Kashmiri students allegedly beaten up for not shouting anti-Pak slogans in Greater Noida

Greater Noida: Three Kashmiri students were allegedly beaten up in their hostel in Greater Noida by a group of eight other students. The students claim that they were forced to say Bharat Mata ki jai and raise anti-Pakistan slogans. When they didn't say this, they were beaten up.

The students, close to 150 of them in Noida International University, claim that their repeated complaints of intimidation didn't get much of a response from the university administration. The administration, however, claims that these are normal fights between the groups of students and has no ethnic or regional undertone.

The incident did not take place in the college campus, but in the area where most of the students live in various private hostels. According to the university administration, those who beat up the students belong to the Priyadarshini Institute while the Kashmiri students who were beaten up belong to the NIU.

Reacting to the incident, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah tweeted, "Let's beat patriotism in to Kashmiri students, why don't we. Great way to remove any fear or sense of alienation among Kashmiris. Thugs!!!"

Hitting out at the Akhilesh Yadav government, Omar added, "If the universities or state authorities can't protect Kashmiri students coming there then man up and admit your inability or unwillingness. I'm sending the Resident Commissioner from Delhi to visit the university in question to ascertain all the facts before deciding next steps."

Three months ago in a similar incident, sedition charges were slapped against Kashmiri students for cheering the Pakistan Cricket team in UP. The charges were later withdrawn after Omar Abdullah stepped in.

Big quake rattles Tokyo, 17 injured

TOKYO: A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake shook buildings in Tokyo early Monday, lightly injuring 17 people, but officials stressed there was no risk of a tsunami.

Tokyo inhabitants - set to enjoy a national holiday - were woken shortly after dawn by the quake, which jolted the densely-built apartments and office blocks.

Local media said 17 people injured themselves as they stumbled while trying to take cover, with a 74-year-old Tokyo woman dislocating her shoulder.

Some objects fell from shelves and furniture wobbled, an AFP reporter saw.

The epicentre of the quake - which hit at 5:18 am (2018 GMT Sunday) - was near Izu Oshima island southwest of central Tokyo, the Japanese meteorological agency said.

The US Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude of 6.0, revised upwards from 5.8, and struck at a depth of 155 kilometres (96 miles).

It was the biggest tremblor felt in the Japanese capital since the 9.0-magnitude quake that hit northern Japan in March 2011, unleashing a killer tsunami and triggering the Fukushima nuclear crisis.

Japan Meteorological Agency said quakes of such depth do not usually cause many aftershocks, but warned the public that moderate aftershocks are possible for the next few days.

A number of train lines were automatically stopped as the quake struck, but were restarted again a short time later.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority said regional nuclear facilities avoided damage, including the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant.
Three of the reactors at the plant went into meltdown after a huge 9.0-magnitude earthquake sparked a massive tsunami in March 2011.
The wave destroyed vast swathes of the coastline as it smashed into Japan's northeast, killing more than 18,000 people.

Japan is situated at the meeting place of several of the Earth's tectonic plates and experiences a number of relatively violent quakes every year.

But strict building codes frequently mean that even powerful quakes that might wreak havoc in other countries can pass without much damage.

Weight-loss surgery may reverse liver damage in obese: Study

Weight-loss surgery in severely obese liver patients can reverse early-stage liver fibrosis - the thickening and scarring of liver tissue - by reducing fat deposits, a promising study reveals.

Bariatric surgery can also result in significant improvement in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), according to new research.

"Doctors should consider bariatric surgery as the treatment of choice for NAFLD in severely obese patients," said Michel Murr, a professor of surgery at University of South Florida-Tampa.

Bariatric surgery be considered for patients with a body mass index greater than 35 and obesity-related co-morbidities, or a body mass index of greater than 40, Murr suggested.

Researchers compared liver biopsies from 152 patients - one at the time of the bariatric procedure and a second an average of 29 months afterwards.

After reviewing post-operative biopsies, they found that bariatric surgery resulted in improvements for these patients.

In the post-operative biopsies, researchers found that fat deposits on the liver resolved in 70 percent of patients.

Inflammation was also improved.

Murr noted that these findings on fibrosis reversal apply only to early-stage fibrosis and not late-stage liver disease.

"As a tool in fighting obesity, bariatric surgery could also help prevent the emergence of widespread liver disease," he added in the study that appeared in the journal Digestive Disease Week (DDW).

Checking work emails after office hours lead to stress

Have you developed a habit to check emails after office hours on your cell phone? You are heading towards 'stress bomb' that can explode anytime. According to a latest Gallup poll, using cell phones and tablet to read and send work emails outside office hours can dramatically improve your stress levels.

The findings revealed that nearly half of workers who frequently email for work outside of normal working hours report experiencing stress "a lot of the day". Also, nearly 62 percent of workers said they have employers who expect them to check emails frequently outside of working hours.

Gallup interviewed 4,475 working adults, aged 18 and older, in the US. The survey found that time spent working remotely outside of working hours has similar problems. Nearly 47 percent of those who work remotely at least seven hours per week reported a lot of stress the previous day compared with 37 percent experiencing stress who reported no remote work time.

Workers who leverage mobile technology more often outside of work are much more likely to be stressed on any given day. "Such behaviours can both positively and negatively influence employees' well-being in the long run," the researchers added.

Kochadaiiyaan vs Avatar: High on technology movie set to rock box office (see pics)

At last the long wait is over and the Rajinikanth fans across the globe will get to see his much-awaited and anticipated Tamil film "Kochadaiiyaan", a directorial debut of the matinee idol's younger daughter Soundarya. 

When it unravels on the silver screen Friday, the film will introduce moviegoers to a new technology - first motion capture photo-realistic 3D animation.

A labour of love, Soundarya's Rs.125-crore directorial venture, which has been cleared with U-certificate, will have a wider release - it will release in 10 countries on approximately 6,000 screens and dubbed in six languages, including Telugu, Hindi and more likely in Bhojpuri too.

Sony Xperia Z2 India Launch Date Set For May 8

Rumors and speculations surrounding the India launch of the Sony Xperia Z2 smartphone have been around for a long time. 

So far, the device has been delayed not only in India, but in other key European territories as well. 

Now, it seems that Sony is almost ready to bring its flagship handset for 2014 into Indian Market on May 8, according to the report coming from The Economic Times. 

Sony is expected to launch the Xperia Z2 in New Delhi-based event on May 8. 

Reportedly, the Japanese giant Sony has already started to send the invites to the media in the country. This indeed proves that the Xperia Z2 is expected to be launched in India on May 8. 

Previous rumors about India launch of the Xperia Z2 have suggested that the device might get introduced on May 15.

Sony Xperia Z2- What to expect? 

Sony originally launched the Xperia Z2 earlier this year at this year's MWC. Sony Xperia Z2, the successor to the original Xperia Z1 features a 5.2-inch "Triluminos" display at 1080p. 

It runs on a 2.26 GHz MSM8974AB Snapdragon 801 processor, compared to Z1's 2.15 GHz MSM8974AB Snapdragon 800 processor. 

The Android 4.4 Kitkat powered device offers a 3GB of RAM, 16GB/32GB of ROM, and a powerful 3200 mAh battery under the hood. 

On the camera front, the handset comes with a 20.7-megapixel camera with 4K video recording capabilities, alongside a 2MP front-facing camera. Moreover, the Xperia Z2 is also IP55 and IP58 certified, making the device rugged in nature (water and dustproof). 

The handset is expected to be priced at par with the Samsung Galaxy S5 in Indian market. Stay tuned to GizBot for more updates!

Now, smartphone that folds in to different shapes

Scientists have developed the world's first foldable smartphone that changes to a tablet and a notebook using a set of screens and hinges. 

The shape-changing smartphone allows users to fold open up to three flexible electrophoretic displays to provide extra screen real estate, the amount of space available on a display, when needed. 

Displays are detachable such that users can fold the device into various shapes that can range from an ultra notebook shape to a foldout map. 

"In PaperFold, each display tile can act independently or as part of a single system," said Dr Vertegaal, a professor in the School of Computing and Director of the Human Media Lab at Queen's University, Canada. 

"It allows multiple device form factors, providing support for mobile tasks that require large screen real estate or keyboards on demand, while retaining an ultra-compact, ultra-thin and lightweight form factor," said Vertegaal. 

PaperFold automatically recognises its shape and changes its graphics to provide different functionality upon shape changes. 

For example, folding the device into an ultra notebook form factor opens up a keyboard on the bottom screen. Users could use this form factor to type a search. 

By flattening PaperFold's three displays, the user changes views to a Google map that spans all screens. 

RShaping PaperFold into a convex globe shows the map in Google Earth view. 

Folding PaperFold into the shape of a 3D building on the map will pick up a Google SketchUp model of the building and turn the device into an architectural model that can be 3D printed. 

Researchers said the inspiration for PaperFold came from its namesake: paper. 

Typically, mobile devices require scrolling or zooming in order to see different parts of a document whereas paper can be folded, detached or combined allowing it to be accessed in multiple parallel forms. 

"The development of electronic paper computers that can adopt similar qualities to paper has been an enduring research goal for our team," said Vertegaal. 

"Books use folding as both a navigational and space saving technique, and paper maps have malleable display sizes. 

"The PaperFold smartphone adopts folding techniques that makes paper so versatile, and employs them to change views or functionality of a smartphone, as well as alter its screen real estate in a flexible manner. PaperFold demonstrates how form could equal function in malleable mobile devices," Vertegaal said. 

The PaperFold was unvieled at the ACM CHI 2014 conference in Toronto.