MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013 • plus@pen.com.qa • www.thepeninsulaqatar.com • 4455 7741

WHEELS

MARKETPLACE

HEALTH

MOVIE

TECHNOLOGY

LEARN ARABIC

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P | 8-9

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• Porsche unveilsnew Caymanand Cayman S

• QTA showcasesnew opportunitiesat career fair

• Avoid the sourside of asweet tooth

• Roger Ebert: Stimulating film critic with formidable internet presence

• New apps transforming remote parts of Africa

• Apps for the day

• Learn commonlyused Arabic wordsand their meanings

inside

P | 10-11

Cambodia: A land of contrasts

P | 2-3

This year’s World Health Day was dedicated to hypertension, a condition which affects about 33 percent of the Qatari population.

A DAY FOR A DAY FOR HEALTHHEALTH

2 COVER STORYPLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

By Isabel Ovalle

The World Health Organization (WHO) com-memorated World Health Day yesterday. This year’s

celebration was dedicated to hyper-tension, a condition which affects approximately 33 percent of the Qatari population, according to the latest Qatar Statists Authority’s sur-vey on this issue.

This medical condition is chronic and silent, given that it doesn’t have any apparent symptoms. According to Dr Hashim Al Sayed, many patients underestimate this illness, allowing it to become “a time bomb waiting to explode.”

One in three adults world-wide has high blood pressure. However, studies completed by WHO reveal that this proportion increases with age, from one in 10 people in their 20s and 30s to five in 10 people in their 50s. In Qatar, this condition is mostly rela-ted to obesity.

Al Sayed, an Assistant profes-sor at Weil Cornel Medical College

in Qatar and Senior Consultant of Family Medicine, added: “We recom-mend these patients to lose weight, but most of them fail and prefer to use medication.”

Of the 2,496 Qataris aged 18 to 64 years surveyed by QSA, 33 percent were suffering from high blood pres-sure, 16,7 percent from diabetes and some 21,9 percent from higher-than-normal cholesterol levels.

In this context, experts suggest people to go for a checkup if they’re over 40, smoke, lead a sedentary life or have diabetes. After three consecutive measurements of blood pressure, if the patient registers con-tinuous high levels, he or she will be diagnosed with hypertension.

At this point, explained Dr Deepak Chandramohan, Internist at Naseem Al Rabeeh Medical Centre, before prescribing any medication, we advise patients to introduce changes in their lifestyle during at least three months. These changes are: reduce salt intake, eat a balanced diet, avoid harmful use of alcohol, regular physical activity,

maintain healthy body weight and avoid tobacco and shisha.

The specialist also highlighted the symptoms that, if presented together, can be a sign of hypertension. These include headache, dizziness, tired-ness, abnormal vision and ringing in the ears, among others. If these symptoms show up it’s suggested to consult a physician and have a blood pressure reading.

Dr Chandramohan also stated that hypertension comes with a whole bouquet of other diseases and can lead to other complications such as heart attacks, artery damage and narrowing or aneurysm.

Some patients have isolated epi-sodes of hypertension due to stress or lack of sleep. To avoid wrongful diagnosis, at least three consecutive readings should be done.

The expert noted that blood pres-sure can appear at any age. “I have patients as young as 24 years. It’s important for this condition to be diagnosed as early as possible. Patients need to be aware and have their condi-tion followed up,” concluded the doctor.

CHANGE YOUR

LIFESTYLELIFESTYLE

Dr Hashim Al Sayed

Dr Deepak Chandramohan

3PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) supported the WHO campaign

by encouraging the commu-nity to change behaviors that can lead to hyperten-sion. To do so, PHCC deci-ded to let students know about the causes and risk factors of high blood pres-sure, encouraging them to regularly check their blood pressure, avoid tobacco use, take regular physical acti-vity, mantain a healthy body weight and reducing salt intake.

Eight of its most active Health Promotion Schools in health activities, four intermediate schools and four secondary schools were selected by PHCC to commemorate the day by raising awareness of the causes and consequences of high blood pressure and

encourage them to change their lifestyles.

The activities included presentations and educa-tional sessions led by the school nurses, who distribu-ted flyers and offered blood pressure checkup for the students and staff of their schools.

PHCC’s Health Promotion Manager, Yousra Hammad, said: “Non-communicable diseases, including high blood pressure, are the major cause of death in Qatar, accounting for 51 percent of classified deaths in 2010. Up to 80 percent of non-com-municable diseases can be prevented, mainly by adop-ting healthier lifestyles.”

Hammad urged everybody to learn and explore more about high blood pressure. “World Health Day gives us a great opportunity to promote physical health

amongst community mem-bers. Our focus this year was school students that represent 25 percent of the community but our ulti-mate aim is to encourage the whole community in Qatar to change behaviors which could have a negative impact on their health and to get their health checked regularly”, she concluded.

The Peninsula

Prevention begins in schools

Non-communicable diseases, like high blood pressure, are the major cause of death in Qatar, accounting for 51 percent of classified deaths in 2010. Up to 80 percent of non-communicable diseases can be prevented, mainly by adopting healthier lifestyles.

Hypertensionin the world(WHO’s factsand figures)

• Prevalence of hyperten-sion is highest in Africa (46 percent of adults) while the lowest pre-valence is found in the Americas (35 percent of adults). Overall, high-income countries have a lower prevalence of hypertension (35 percent of adults) than low- and middle-income groups (40 percent of adults).

• More than one in three adults worldwide has high blood pressure, with the proportion going up to one in two for people aged 50 and above.

• The number of people with hypertension rose from 600 million in 1980 to 1 billion in 2008.

• Complications of high blood pressure account for more than 9 million deaths worldwide every year. This includes 51 percent of deaths due to strokes and 45 percent of deaths due to coro-nary heart disease.

• The prevalence of high blood pressure is highest in the African Region at 46 percent. The lowest prevalence is in the Americas Region at 35 percent. Globally, overall prevalence of high blood pressure in adults aged 25 and older was around 40 percent in 2008.

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 20134 WHEELS

Porsche Centre Doha yesterday unveiled the new generation two-seater Cayman and Cayman S at a ceremony here yesterday. The new Cayman is — after the 911 Carrera

and Boxster — the third sports car model line from Porsche to feature innovative lightweight body design. Porsche’s latest model is up to 30kg lighter, depending on the specific model and equipment, and consumes up to 15 percent less fuel per 100km than the predecessor — despite higher engine and driving performance.

Salman Jassem Al Darwish, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Porsche Centre Doha, Al Boraq Automobile Co WLL, said: “The new Cayman is built for driving through bends like few other sports cars can: The mid-engine sports coupé sets new standards in its class for driving performance with a longer wheelbase, all-round new chassis and lower weight.”

The Cayman has been completely redeveloped. It is lower and longer, lighter and faster, more efficient and more powerful than ever. A longer wheelbase, wider track and larger wheels enhance the driv-ing performance of the mid-engine sports car to an unparalleled level in its competitive class.

Featuring a new lighter design and powered by a 2.7-litre flat-six cylinder engine, the Cayman sports coupé produces 275 horsepower. It accelerates from zero to 100km/h in 5.4 seconds, depending on the equipment, and reaches a top speed of 266km/h. Its fuel consumption (NEDC) is 7.7 l/100 km when equipped with Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (PDK).

Its bigger sibling, the Cayman S makes use of a 3.4-litre naturally aspirated flat-six cylinder engine for an output of 325 horsepower. Acceleration time from a standstill to 100km/h time is 4.7 seconds with a top speed of 283 km/h. The NEDC fuel consump-tion value is 8.0 l/100km with PDK.The new model features an extended wheelbase with shorter over-hangs. The standard 18- and 19-inch Cayman wheels give it not only a sportier appeal but also better lat-eral stability and handling properties.

From the front end, the new Cayman is marked by its dominant cooling air inlets, which increase in size towards the sides of the car. Integrated in them are the round front lights with four-point daytime running lights or position lights — an unmistakable

identifying feature of the new Cayman. Al Darwish added: “Our two-seater sports coupé

is a genuinely new car featuring drastic changes in the design, but without losing its valuable Porsche identity. I am convinced that the Cayman will be a real sight on our roads.”

The new generation also comes with new optional features. Customers can now order Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) ) — a system that controls the dis-tance to the car ahead in traffic and vehicle speed. Also Porsche Entry & Drive is being offered for the first time in the class of the Cayman. The system

enables keyless and convenient unlocking and lock-ing of the doors and bootlid as well as engine start-ing. As soon as the driver touches the door handle, the Porsche Entry & Drive queries an access code that is saved in the key. If it is correct, the door is unlocked. Similarly, when the driver approaches the sensor zone at the front or rear of the car, the boot lid in that zone is unlocked and can be opened. Other options include a specially developed Burmester sound system. The basic retail price for the new Porsche Cayman is QR199,800 and for Cayman S at QR226,200. The Peninsula

Th e Fo r d Mustang will soon become the newest member

of a very exclusive club – vehicles in continuous production for 50 years. To help mark this mile-stone, 50 companies will sell products including watches, T-shirts, model cars and more that cel-ebrate the Mustang’s first 50 years.

“During its first 49 years of production, Mustang has come to evoke a variety of emotions in our customers — freedom, independence and being true to one’s self – just to name a few,” said John Nens, Ford’s team lead for Global Brand Licensing. “We’re marking this Mustang milestone with a distinctive collection of licensed products from select manufacturers

that will carry the unique Mustang 50 Years logo.”

All of the new merchan-dise will be easily identified with a custom logo that cel-ebrates 50 years of Mustang.

The logo was crafted by Ford designer Michael Thomson. It features the Mustang’s trademark gal-loping pony in silhouette over the characters “50 YEARS.”

Only 50 companies will be licensed to create products bearing this special logo including high-quality die cast models, videogames, watches and apparel. “We’re working closely with our licensees to ensure every item reflects the unique qualities of Mustang,” said Nens. “Like the car itself, we want our licensed products to convey an attitude of strength, passion and the highest quality.”

The Peninsula

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Porsche unveils new Cayman and Cayman S

Mike Ellenthorpe, Regional Operation Manager of Porsche Middle East and Africa, and Salman Jassem Al Darwish, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Porsche Centre Doha, with the new Cayman S.

Ford marks countdown to 50 years of Mustang

5MARKETPLACE PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

Al Khayarin Group hosted annual din-ner for its staff recently. The event coin-cided with the distribution of annual increments and performance bonuses to deserving employees. Mohammed Idrees Anwar, CEO and Managing Partner, was Chief Guest. Also present were M Tahir Chouhan, Group Finance Manager, Kamran Azmi, General Manager (KG Interiors), Vinay Mishra, General Manager, M Tariq Hanif, BDM (KG Electrical Trading), Imran Chughtai, General Manager, Mar Maaz Kola, Operation Manager, Muhammad Iqbal, BDM (KG Travels & Tours), Shree Kumar, General Manager, KG Switchgear, Manoj Kumar Joshi, Operation Manager, and Mudassar Raza, Contracts Manager (KG Group ).

Techno Q takes part in consumer engagement technology conference

Techno Q has recently taken part in the Customer Engagement Technology (CET) Middle East conference in Dubai, which it also sponsored.

Techno Q Co-founder and Executive Director Abdulla Alansari took part in a panel discussion, tackling the topic about the effects and opportunities for digital signage solutions to expand and capture the Middle Eastern markets.

“With the rise of digital signage, self-service kiosks, mobile media and other customer engage-ment technologies, digital media is transforming the way organisations communicate with their customers and stakeholders,” said Alansari.

He said digital signage is making the shift into more ‘non-traditional’ areas such as education and corporate environments.

“In recent years, our company has designed and installed digital signage systems for clients in various sectors ranging from digital installations for corpo-rate internal communication purposes to information and way finding systems for university campuses to name a few.

“The year 2012 was a breakout year in the dig-ital signage industry,” Alansari said, “with success

driven in large part by countless vertical markets that embraced digital signage as a way to engage their target audiences.”

“Everywhere throughout the region digital signage installations are becoming more and more evident, so much so that it is now seen as a very positive trend. The industry has been growing at a 40 percent compounded annual growth rate and it is predicted

that 22 million digital signs will be active by 2015. By 2016 this sector of the industry will be worth some $4.5 billion. Retail, corporate, and transportation will continue to be the top three sectors worldwide, but sectors such as education, healthcare and hospital-ity are seeing tremendous growth in the region,” Alansari concluded.

The Peninsula

ibq unveils loan promotion

International Bank of Qatar (ibq) launched a new loan promotion

offering customers dig-ital handsets and tablets such as a mini iPad, iPad 4 or an iPhone 5.

The campaign run-ning until May 31 also features attractive inter-est rates, great flexibility with repayment terms and fast approvals. Andrew Ball (pictured), Head of Retail Banking at ibq said: “This is a great promo-tion for those who look for convenience, ease and overall value. We are here to surprise and delight both new and existing customers. This is nothing less than you would expect from ibq. We are in tune with our customers’ wants and needs and strive to develop smart solutions and competitive services that are both efficient and rewarding.” The Peninsula

Marketing experts Appropriate Innovative Marketing Solutions (AIMS) and Think Big Qatar (TBQ) have launched a new integrated

system to develop business to business marketing potential.

Designed to provide cost effective professional marketing for businesses in Qatar, this new approach enables businesses to benefit from marketing and control costs. AIMS have based the new offer on years of integrated B2B marketing campaigns for companies ranging from blue chip organisations to small and medium enterprises.

Sonia Waters, Managing Director of AIMS, said: “Marketing is essential to promote businesses and AIMS understands the need for business leaders to control expenditure. Our new services enable companies of all sizes to benefit from effective marketing campaigns that will raise their profile, increase business and control costs — a one-stop-shop providing real marketing value.”

The goal is to design unique marketing packages

for the particular needs of each business, comprising business cards, logo design, web design and an opportunity to promote the business on Think Big Qatar platform.

A total of three different Marketing Packages are offered. The Bronze package, featuring a three page static website, logo design and business card design and 500 printed cards and a 30 second video and two weeks subscription on Think Big Qatar

The Sliver package includes a five page static website, logo design, business card design and 1,000 printed cards, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn setup and a 30 second video and four weeks subscription on Think Big Qatar.

Finally, the Gold package offers a 10 page static website, logo design, business card design and 1,000 printed, letter head and complimentary slip design, leaflet or poster design, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn setup, PowerPoint template, brochure design, and 45-second video and two months subscription to Think Big Qatar.

The Peninsula

AIMS, TBQ launch system to develop B2B marketing potential

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013 MARKETPLACE66

Acon Travels Al Khor branch was inaugurated by Khalaf Bjoomhoor Al Mohannadi in the pres-ence of Abdul Kader, Managing Director, Naser Karukapadath, General Manager, and Qatar Airways Sales Manager Johney Arbaham.

The Minister of Energy and Industry H E Dr Mohamed bin Saleh Al Sada visited Total E&P Qatar’s booth in the Qatar Career Fair at the Qatar National Convention Center.

The French oil and gas company was a gold sponsor of the event, in support of the initiative to create a dynamic Qatari future workforce.

Total is offering career development programmes and opportunities to prospective Qatari candidates, in the fields of accounting, communications and institutional relations, administration, electrical engineering, environmental engineering, drilling, reservoir engineering, telecom engineering, material

management, and logistics. Many Qatari visitors have expressed their interest in the sponsorship and schol-arship programmes, which Total provides in partner-ship with leading institutions in Qatar and France.

Stephane Michel, Managing Director, and other managers were present at the booth during the Minister’s visit.

“Total E&P Qatar is delighted to be associated with the Qatar Career Fair every year, and looks forward to its participation in similar ventures that will help in contribution to human development in Qatar,” said Michel after the Minister’s visit.

The Peninsula

Minister visits Total’s booth

QIB wins excellence award from IAIR

Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) has been awarded the title of Excellence in Banking from the International Alternative Investment Review (IAIR).

The IAIR Awards is a prize for excellence in global finance, put together by a team of legal, economic and financial journalists in over 50 countries worldwide. This year’s award ceremony was held in Hong Kong.

QIB won the award for providing innovative Shariah-compliant financial solutions that meet international banking standards, high-end qual-ity services and for a long-term strategic vision of investments adopted at a global level.

Over the past year, QIB has won a number of awards, including “Best Islamic Bank in Qatar” by Islamic Finance News (IFN), Euromoney, The

Asset magazine, and World Finance, together with “Best Islamic Financial Institution in Qatar” from Global Finance, and “Best Sukuk Deal 2012” — also from World Finance. The Peninsula

Officials with the award.

QTA showcases new opportunities at career fair

Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has suc-cessfully concluded its participation in the Qatar Career Fair 2013 which was held from April 1 to 6 at the Qatar

National Convention Center. QTA’s involvement with the event was a success,

with 657 job applications received for different employment positions throughout the authority, catering for intermediate and graduate level posi-tions, a company press release claimed.

Ismael bin Mohamad Al Sayed, Shared Services Director at QTA, expressed delight at the QTA’s participation in the fair, stressing that partici-pation in such events forms part of a significant effort QTA provides to support the community.

He said: “Qatar Tourism Authority’s partici-pation in the Qatar Career Fair reflects QTA’s commitment in line with the country’s National Vision 2030, to develop human capital to achieve a knowledge-based economy. We are committed, as well, to providing Qatari youth with suitable career opportunities as a priority for a brighter future, which will in turn reflect on the future development of Qatar.”

QTA and Stenden University Qatar have recently signed a memorandum of understand-ing to initiate a new Tour Guide License Program to develop professional tour guides for Qatar that are knowledgeable about the nation’s rich past and history, its culture and heritage as well as tourist and historical sites.

The aim is to train tour guides to have in-depth knowledge of Qatar’s heritage, history and culture as well as its many museums, theme parks and nature attractions. The Peninsula

An official explaining opportunities at QTA.

New branch of Acon Travels

HEALTH 7

Health Tipsfrom DOCTOR

Helicobacter pylori is a bacteria found in the stomach. It was present in patients with chronic gastritis and gastric ulcers,

conditions that were not previously believed to have a microbial cause.

Researchers investigated the link between H. pylori infection and iron levels in non-iron-deficient preschool and school age children and found the infection causes a decrease in the lev-els of iron in children who do not have anaemia or an iron deficiency. The bacterium H. pylori infects the lining of the stomach resulting in chronic swelling of tissue, a condition known as gastritis. H. pylori is also a major cause of peptic ulcer disease and the cause of most cancers of the stomach, according to the World Health Organization.

At least half the world’s populations are infected by the bacterium, making it the most widespread infection in the world. Actual infec-tion rates vary from nation to nation; the devel-oping world has much higher infection rates than the. The age at which this bacterium is acquired seems to influence the pos-sible pathologic outcome of the infection: People infected with it at an early age are likely to develop more intense inflamma-tion that may be followed by atrophic gastritis with a higher subsequent risk of gastric ulcer, gastric cancer or both. Acquisition at an older age brings different gastric changes more likely to lead to duodenal ulcer. Infections are usually acquired in early childhood in all countries.

Several investigations to detect H. pylori infection exist. One can test noninvasively for H. pylori infection with a blood antibody test, stool antigen test, or with the carbon urea breath test (in which the patient drinks 14C- or 13C-labelled urea, which the bacterium metabo-lizes, producing labelled carbon dioxide that can be detected in the breath). However, the most reliable method for detecting H. pylori infec-tion is a biopsy check during endoscopy with a rapid urease test, histological examination, and microbial culture

If you are found to have H. pylori infection, you may wish to have antibiotic treatment of some kind. Treatment of H. pylori is usually simple & straight forward. After treatment of H. pylori, it is necessary to repeat the investi-gation done to detect the H pylori infection to see if the germ has been killed or eradicated for good. Cure of H. pylori infection is associated with recovery from iron deficiency anaemia if it was the underlying cause.

Dr. Iman AbdEl-Mohsen Shaheen

Laboratory MedicineHealthspring World Clinic

H. pylori infection

By Gabriella Boston

Have you ever had a sugar-crash? You know that sudden fatigue, headache or irritability you might feel after eating, oh, a hundred jelly beans?

If so, you are probably not alone.The American Heart Association recommends

women consume no more than 100 calories daily from refined sugar, 150 calories for men.

That translates, using our jelly bean currency, into 10 jelly beans for women and 15 for men.

And that is your entire allotment for the day of refined sugar.

“Many Americans eat about five times the amount of sugar they should consume,” says Natasa Janicic-Kahric, an associate professor of medicine at Georgetown University Hospital.

That means that instead of the AHA-recommended six teaspoons, many women are consuming as much as 30 teaspoons of sugar; and men are consuming 45 teaspoons of sugar instead of nine.

High levels of sugar flood the blood and create sudden spikes and drops in blood sugar levels. This can — but doesn’t necessarily — cause a “sugar crash” (sudden headache, fatigue, irritability, increased heart rate, anxiety), says Janicic-Kahric, though it’s not known how many people experi-ence this problem.

In fact, some in the medical community are even sceptical of its existence, Janicic-Kahric says. “But I see patients with these symptoms and would estimate that about 5 percent of Americans expe-rience sugar crash,” she says.

Normal blood sugar levels can range pretty widely, so it’s possible to rapidly yo-yo between these numbers without the symptoms of sugar crash. But if you do experience sugar crash symp-toms — or if you just generally want to stave off having fluctuating blood sugar because it’s taxing on the body — eat your small portion of sweet treats after a meal, says Cheryl Harris, registered dietitian in Fairfax, Virginia, and owner of Harris Whole Health.

“It really helps to have fiber and protein along with sugar,” Harris says. “It slows things down.”

Even fat helps blunt the blow of pure sugar into the blood stream, she says.

In other words, if you eat the jelly beans after dinner, you are less likely to experience a blood sugar roller-coaster and a subsequent crash.

This probably is why blood sugar crash is more

widely reported among children, Harris says, as kids are more likely to ingest pure sugar, in the form of soda or candy on an empty stomach.

And it doesn’t take much soda to get up to the AHA guideline: A 12-ounce Coca-Cola, for exam-ple, is the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar — already more than the daily recommended intake.

But what about sugar-packed fruit?Fruit is different, says Angela Ginn, a

Baltimore-based nutritionist and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

“I like to focus on foods that have natural sug-ars — like fruit,” Ginn says. “And at the same time limit the added, refined sugars.”

In other words, you are not likely to experience a crash from eating too many apples because of the fibre. Apple juice, on the other hand, lacks fibre, so you could sugar crash from drinking too much, Janicic-Kahric says.

But back to candy: Is it better to eat, say, choc-olate-covered nuts than Skittles?

“From a sugar crash standpoint, yes,” Ginn says. “Anytime you can bring fibre and protein into the mix, it helps,” she says.

So, is it dangerous to experience sudden blood glucose highs and lows?

“It’s disputable,” Janicic-Kahric says. “Does too much insulin cause heart disease? Is a surge of insulin bad?”

It’s not clear, she says.What we do know is that too much sugar can

cause weight gain, and weight gain causes a whole host of health problems including diabetes, she says.

So, how should we monitor how much sugar we consume?

If you like to add sugar yourself, such as with coffee or tea, Ginn suggests monitoring the amount by using sugar cubes (15 calories of sugar per cube). “If you use sugar in your coffee or tea, this is a way to keep an eye on exactly how much you are using,” Ginn says. It gets harder when refined sugar is already added into a food product, especially those without nutrition labels.

In the end, refined sugar is a relative new-comer on the human dietary scene. It’s seductive and sweet, but maybe the human body isn’t yet equipped to deal with large amounts, Harris says.

“When we evolved it wasn’t common that we knocked down a beehive to access pure sugar. We got sugar through fruit and berries,” Harris says.

“We didn’t evolve for jelly beans.”WP-Bloomberg

Avoid the sour side of a sweet tooth

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

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ist

of

books

about

the C

an

nes

fest

ival

— i

t’s

a t

rem

en

dousl

y e

ngag-

ing a

nd r

eadable

mem

oir

about

Cannes

and t

he s

outh

Of

France; in

cid

enta

lly,

it

inclu

des

Ebert’s

ow

n l

ine d

raw

ings.

“I

h

ope C

haz an

d I

run

in

to you at

Can

nes

in M

ay,

” he w

rote

— C

haz

of

course

bein

g h

is w

ife, and t

he a

bso

lute

bedrock o

f his

pers

onal and p

rofe

ssio

nal

life

. S

adly

I n

ever d

id g

et

to s

ee h

im, or

rath

er I

saw

him

only

from

afa

r, in t

he

Cannes

Pala

is, su

rrounded a

s he a

lways

was

by a

gaggle

of fr

iends

and a

dm

irers

.It

soun

ds

desperate

ly

naïv

e,

but

Ebert’s

death

is

a t

errib

le s

hock.

He

had seem

ed so in

dom

itable

, an

d h

is

form

idable

web p

rese

nce —

as

well a

s revie

win

g f

or p

rin

t and o

nline, he h

ad

becom

e a

gran

dm

ast

er o

f tw

eeti

ng –

had m

ade i

t lo

ok a

lmost

as

if n

oth

ing

was

am

iss.

He h

ad,

as

I put

it a

t th

e

tim

e,

dig

itally r

efa

bric

ate

d h

is p

res-

ence a

s a c

rit

ic:

Ebert

was

once a

TV

st

ar a

s w

ell a

s a s

yn

dic

ate

d c

rit

ic f

or

the C

hic

ago S

un

-Tim

es,

an

d w

as

net-

tled w

hen t

he r

evie

w s

how

he o

nce c

o-

host

ed w

ith G

en

e S

iskel

was

can

ned.

But

then h

e g

rasp

ed t

he o

pportu

nit

ies

of

a n

ew

mediu

m, and r

em

inded u

s all

that

he w

as

a w

rit

er a

nd journalist

as

well a

s a b

roadcast

er.

The I

nte

rnet

had

giv

en

him

a n

ew

lease

of

life

, an

d h

is

archiv

ed r

evie

ws

invaria

bly

cam

e t

op

of th

e lis

t in

each e

ntr

y o

n t

he I

nte

rnet

Movie

Data

base

(IM

Db),

whic

h m

ade

him

an

d h

is m

em

ory of

the m

ovie

s prett

y w

ell a

glo

bal reso

urce.

He r

eveale

d t

his

week t

hat

the r

ecur-

ren

ce of

can

cer on

ly m

ean

t th

at

he

was

goin

g t

o t

ake a

“le

ave o

f prese

nce”

— i

ndic

ati

ng a

lig

hte

r w

ork

load,

wit

h

som

e r

evie

ws

dele

gate

d t

o o

ther w

rit

-ers,

but

wit

h a

whole

new

raft

of

ideas

about

dig

ital pla

tform

s fo

r c

rit

icis

m. H

is

online J

ournal w

as

of cours

e a

viv

id fl

ow

of

perso

nal im

press

ions

and ideas.

This

was

the E

bert

“prese

nce”

we h

ad

grow

n u

sed t

o: E

ndle

ssly

insi

ghtf

ul and

stim

ula

ting.

Roger E

bert

sure d

idn

’t f

ade a

way.

He r

em

ain

ed a

tough,

shrew

d,

hugely

in

tellig

en

t crit

ic w

hose

auth

orit

y j

ust

grew

and g

rew

. E

bert

had t

he s

ensi

bili-

ties

of a c

inephile, but

the e

ssenti

al gif

ts

of

a p

opula

r j

ournalist

who k

new

how

to

make a

connecti

on w

ith h

is r

eaders.

Here is

Ebert

on z

om

bie

film

s: “

I am

fa

scin

ate

d b

y D

arw

in’s

theory o

f evo-

luti

on

as

it a

pplies

to z

om

bie

s. S

ince

Ric

hard D

aw

kin

s te

aches

us

that

the

only

concern o

f a s

elfi

sh g

ene is

to s

ur-

viv

e u

nti

l th

e n

ext

gen

erati

on

of

the

organis

m t

hat

carrie

s it

, w

hat

are t

he

prosp

ects

of

zom

bie

gen

es,

whic

h c

an

presu

mably

be t

ransm

itte

d o

nly

by t

he

dead?

And h

ow

do z

om

bie

s reproduce,

or s

pread? W

hy m

ust

they e

at

flesh

?

Why n

ot

a w

hole

foods

die

t of

fruit

s,

vegeta

ble

s an

d g

rain

s? M

aybe a

lit

tle

fish

. I

know

this

has

noth

ing t

o d

o w

ith

film

crit

icis

m. I

am

blo

wn a

long b

y t

he

win

ds

of m

y o

wn z

eal. I

f a g

ood v

am

pir

e

or z

om

bie

movie

com

es

alo

ng, I

do m

y

best

to p

lay f

air

wit

h it…

”I

loved t

hat

kin

d o

f guit

ar s

olo

from

E

bert.

It

incid

en

tally c

am

e f

rom

his

coll

ecti

on

of

thum

bs-d

ow

n revie

ws,

en

titl

ed:

A H

orrib

le E

xperie

nce O

f U

nbearable

Length

: M

ore M

ovie

s T

hat

Suck —

a g

reat

titl

e a

nd a

great

phrase

. A

s a f

ellow

revie

wer,

I w

as

jealo

us

of

him

for h

avin

g t

hought

of

it,

and y

ou

can’t

say f

air

er t

han t

hat.

Here,

on

the o

ther h

an

d,

is a

pas-

sage f

rom

his

laudato

ry r

evie

w o

f C

lint

PLU

S |

MO

ND

AY

8 A

PR

IL 2

013

HO

LLY

WO

OD

NE

WS

MO

VIE

89

BO

LLY

WO

OD

NE

WS

Cha

shm

e B

addo

or r

emak

e w

orks

By

Su

bh

ash

K J

ha

Film

: Cha

shm

e Ba

ddoo

rCa

st: R

ishi

Kap

oor,

Lile

tte

Dub

ey, A

li Za

far,

Sidd

hart

h, D

ivye

ndu

Shar

ma,

Taa

psee

Pa

nnu

and

Anup

am K

her

Dire

ctor

: Dav

id D

haw

an

Du

m

ha

i,

Bo

ss!

—

the

perk

y

you

ng

Mis

s C

on

gen

iali

ty

in

David

D

haw

an

’s

Ch

ash

me

Ba

dd

oor,

a far c

ry from

the

shast

riy

a s

an

geet

train

ee

tutt

i fr

uti

-eati

ng D

eepti

N

aval

in S

ai

Paran

jpye’s

fi

lm,

excla

ims w

hen

ever

sh

e is

im

pressed by h

er

loverboy’s

dia

logue-b

aazi

.E

xcla

mati

on

mark

s are

the on

ly pun

ctu

ati

on

s in

th

is s

eam

less

com

edy o

f courts

hip

pla

yed a

t an

im

poss

ibly

hig

h o

cta

ve,

wit

hout

gett

ing s

hrill.

‘Farce’ th

ings

firs

t. B

arrin

g t

he c

ore t

hem

e o

f tw

o frie

nds

malicio

usl

y n

ip-

pin

g t

he t

hir

d frie

nd’s

rom

ance in t

he b

ud, and s

om

e m

ischie

vous

sequences

and c

haracte

rs

from

the o

rig

inal, w

hic

h h

ave b

een e

nti

rely

re-i

nte

rprete

d

as

‘sw

ines

of

the t

imes’

, D

haw

an’s

Ch

ash

me B

ad

door

is f

ar(c

e)

rem

oved

from

Paranjp

ye’s

orig

inal.

Those

were d

ays

of

rela

tive i

nnocence. W

his

tlin

g a

t gir

ls a

t bus

stops,

chasi

ng u

nw

illing g

irls

to t

heir

hom

es,

and l

andin

g u

p a

t th

eir

doorst

ep

under a

ssum

ed identi

ties

were a

ll c

onsi

dered innocuous

bachelo

r b

accha-

nalia. In

Paranjp

ye’s

Ch

ash

me B

ud

door,

it

was

a b

ig d

eal th

at

Rakesh

Bedi

managed t

o g

et

into

Deepti

Naval’s

bath

room

prete

ndin

g t

o b

e a

plu

mber.

In D

haw

an’s

film

, th

e v

ery g

ifte

d D

ivyendu S

harm

a,

who p

lays

Bedi’s

part,

just

can’t

prete

nd t

o k

now

the p

erk

y g

irl next-

door inti

mate

ly b

y h

er

bath

room

decor.

He m

anages

to t

ake a

pic

ture o

f a t

att

oo o

n h

er w

ais

t to

convin

ce h

is love-s

mit

ten p

al S

id (

Ali Z

afa

r)

that

the g

irl is

... w

ell, not

chast

e.

A t

ongue-i

n-c

heek v

irtu

osi

ty r

em

ain

s th

e fi

lm’s

greate

st t

riu

mph. S

ajid-

Farhad’s

writ

ing is

wild, naughty

and w

itty

, but

never v

ulg

ar.

The w

him

si-

cal

word-p

lay fl

ow

s fr

om

a t

ap-d

ance o

f prankis

h I

nte

rnet-

style

d b

ante

r

whic

h i

s border-l

ine s

illy

but

noneth

ele

ss v

ery e

ngagin

g i

n a

n o

ff-h

and-

edly

sm

art

way. If

anyth

ing, th

e r

eparte

es

flow

much t

oo f

urio

usl

y. F

rom

A

nupam

Kher’s

slap-h

appy m

oth

er B

harati

Achrekar (

eff

ortl

y r

epla

cin

g

Leela

Mis

hra f

rom

the o

rig

inal)

to G

oan c

afe

ow

ner R

ishi

Kapoor’s

uni-

denti

fiable

ass

ista

nt

— e

veryone is

a c

erti

fiable

quip

ster in t

he n

ew

film

.A

mong t

he t

hree p

rota

gonis

ts,

Div

yendu,

pla

yin

g a

n a

wfu

l se

lf-s

tyle

d

shaayar,

gets

the m

ost

taw

dry lin

es

of

bum

per-s

ticker w

isdom

, w

hic

h t

he

acto

r d

elivers

wit

h s

uch p

unctu

ate

d p

anache, w

e c

an’t

help

guff

aw

ing o

ut

our im

plicit

‘ir

shaad’.

Com

ic t

imin

g i

s of

vit

al

importa

nce t

o t

his

film

. A

nd e

very a

cto

r g

ets

it

rig

ht,

dead-o

n s

om

eti

me d

ead-p

an. T

o m

e, th

e fi

lm’s

most

natu

ral-

born

scenest

eale

r is

the s

outh

ern s

tar S

iddharth

. S

een late

ly in D

eepa M

ehta

’s

Mid

nig

ht’s

Ch

ild

ren, S

iddharth

nails

his

characte

r’s

film

y fl

am

boyance. M

any

would

say S

iddharth

has

gone o

ver t

he t

op. B

ut

to s

ust

ain

that

hig

h-p

itched

level of

crazy

energy t

hroughout

the fi

lm is

no laughin

g m

att

er.

Or,

on s

econd t

houghts

, th

is t

ale

nte

d a

cto

r’s

perfo

rm

ance i

s in

deed a

la

ughin

g m

att

er.

Ali Z

afa

r i

s fa

r m

ore s

ober a

nd c

ontr

olled t

han h

is c

o-

stars.

It

takes

som

e d

oin

g t

o r

em

ain

ste

adfa

st i

n y

our s

tipula

ted s

obrie

ty

while a

ll y

our c

o-s

tars

pull o

ut

all s

tops.

The laughs,

so r

efr

esh

ingly

lib

erate

d o

f le

wdness

flow

alm

ost

non-s

top.

Addin

g a

dollop o

f sp

ice t

o t

he o

rig

inal

scrip

t is

an e

nti

rely

unsc

hedule

d

love a

ngle

betw

een R

ishi

Kapoor a

nd L

ilett

e D

ubey. L

allan M

iya (

Saeed

Jaff

rey),

who p

layed R

ishi’s

characte

r in P

aranjp

ye’s

film

would

have loved

that.

Outs

tandin

g b

oth

, K

apoor a

nd D

ubey m

ake t

heir

onsc

reen r

om

ance

look w

arm

, cuddle

som

e a

nd c

redib

le.

Audacio

usl

y, D

haw

an a

nd h

is w

rit

er S

ajid-F

arhad h

ave t

ransf

erred t

he

cele

brate

d ‘cham

ko’ dete

rgent

dem

onst

rati

on-s

equence b

etw

een F

arooque

Sheik

h a

nd D

eepti

Naval

in S

ai

Paran

jpye’s

film

to t

he R

ishi-

Lilett

e

characte

rs.

Just

when m

y f

ait

h i

n r

em

akes

had b

een s

haken b

y H

imm

atw

ala

last

w

eek, D

avid

Dhaw

an h

ad m

e s

hakin

g w

ith laughte

r t

his

week.

IAN

S

Kat

ie P

rice

’s h

usb

and

take

s ca

re o

f ex

pen

ses

Model K

ati

e P

ric

e s

ays

her n

ew

hus-

band K

ieran H

ayle

r n

ever t

rie

s to

“s

croun

ge o

ff m

e”

an

d “

pays”

for

everyth

ing.

The 3

4-y

ear-o

ld g

ot

marrie

d t

o H

ayle

r, a

st

rip

per,

in J

anuary t

his

year a

nd s

aid

she

never f

eels

that

he m

arrie

d h

er f

or m

oney.

“I don

’t fe

el

a vib

e th

at

he is

out

to

scrounge o

ff m

e,” t

hesu

n.c

o.u

k q

uote

d P

ric

e

as

sayin

g.

“If

we g

o t

o t

he c

inem

a,

he p

ays.

If

we

go t

o d

inn

er,

he p

ays.

He e

ven

goes

to d

o

a s

uperm

ark

et

shop w

ithout

ask

ing m

e f

or

money,

” sh

e a

dded.

This

is

Pric

e’s

thir

d m

arria

ge.

She w

as

earlier m

arrie

d t

o s

inger P

ete

r A

ndre a

nd

late

r t

o c

age fi

ghte

r A

lex R

eid

.

Vic

tori

a B

eckham

turn

s te

acher

Sin

ger-f

ash

ion d

esi

gner V

icto

ria

Beckham

will so

on g

ive lectu

res

on

current

fash

ion t

rends.

Vic

toria

, 38, w

ill

teach b

uddin

g d

esi

gners

at

the V

ogue F

est

ival

here late

r t

his

month

, reports

mir

ror.

co.u

k.

“Vic

toria

can’t

wait

to s

hare w

hat

she k

now

s about

the fash

ion indust

ry.

S

he h

as

alw

ays

loved f

ash

ion,” s

aid

a s

ource.

“When s

he d

ecid

ed t

o m

ake a

career o

ut

of

it s

he h

ad a

lot

to l

earn

so s

he f

eels

lucky t

hat

she h

ad p

eople

to t

each h

er.

Now

she t

hin

ks

it’s

ti

me t

o g

ive s

om

eth

ing b

ack,” a

dded t

he s

ource.

The d

esig

ner w

ill

be t

alk

ing a

bout

vario

us a

spects

of

the f

ashio

n

indust

ry.

“She w

ill

be r

evealing a

ll a

bout

the b

usi

ness

and h

and o

ut

advic

e t

o

those

youn

gst

ers

who h

ope t

o h

ave a

career i

n t

he f

ash

ion

in

dust

ry,

” sa

id t

he s

ource.

Ro

ger

Eb

ert:

R

og

er E

ber

t:

Sti

mul

atin

g,

Sti

mul

atin

g,

auth

ori

tati

ve

auth

ori

tati

ve

film

cri

tic

film

cri

tic

Har

din

g a

rres

ted f

or

usi

ng p

hon

e w

hile

dri

ving

Sin

ger S

arah H

ardin

g w

as

reporte

dly

arrest

ed f

or u

sing h

er m

obile p

hone

while d

riv

ing.

She a

lso d

id n

ot

stop

the c

ar w

hen t

he p

olice t

rie

d t

o b

rin

g h

er

to a

halt

.T

he

incid

en

t to

ok

pla

ce

wh

en

th

e

31-

year-o

ld w

as d

riv

ing o

n t

he C

harin

g

Cross

Road in L

ondon.

“Sarah w

as

driv

ing a

4x4 (

four-w

heel-

driv

e v

ehic

le),

when a

policem

an o

n a

bic

y-

cle

saw

her a

nd t

rie

d t

o m

ake h

er s

top.

He w

as

tryin

g t

o fl

ag h

er d

ow

n b

ut

she

carrie

d o

n a

bit

dow

n t

he r

oad w

here s

he

was

pulled o

ver a

couple

of

min

ute

s la

ter,”

mir

ror.

co.u

k q

uote

d a

source a

s sa

yin

g.

“She w

as t

alk

ing t

o t

he p

olice b

y t

he

side o

f th

e r

oad f

or a

while b

efo

re s

he w

as

arrest

ed. A

pparentl

y, S

arah w

as

very u

pse

t w

hen s

he w

as

arrest

ed a

nd c

harged.

The

off

en

ces are prett

y serio

us,”

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TRAVELPLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 201310

By Isabel Ovalle

The Kingdom of Cambodia has a rich and tragic his-tory that visitors will feel every step along the way during their visit. The

capital, Phnom Penh, offers a mix of modernism and tradition, with clear strokes of its French heritage.

The number of people that travel to Cambodia has increased noticeably in the last three years. Europeans and Chinese visitors are among the most numerous. The growing arrival of tour-ists has impacted the capital and tour-ist destinations like Siam Reap and Sihanoukville, in the coast.

Located at the confluence of three rivers — the Mekong, the Bassac and Tonle Sap-, the capital is divided into three sections: The north, an attractive residential area, the south part where the ministries, banks and colonial houses are located, and the centre or heart, with its narrow lanes, markets, food stalls and shops.

First rate and affordable hotels mix in a country with good food and good-hearted smiley and welcoming people

which have hoped into the tourism development train, leaving many stuck in poverty for years to come.

During their stay in the city visi-tors must stop by the Royal Palace and the National Museum, after tak-ing a walk along side Mekong River, the longest of South East Asia that begins in Tibet.

Must-sees include the Tuol Sleng Museum, a former high school taken over by Pol Pot’s security force and turned into a prison known as Security Prison 21 (S-21). Over 17,000 peo-ple held at S-21 were taken to the extermination camp at Choeung Ek to be executed. It’s important not to miss the National Museum and the Independence Monument as well.

For shopaholics, the Central Market is an obligation, allowing the visitor a total immersion in the Cambodian way of life and traditions. From fish to bags, everything can be found in this bargaining paradise. The visitor will be welcomed by the strong smell of the foods displayed in the section dedicated to local products, were citizens often spend the day having lunch and chat-ting with friends.

Cambodia: A land of contrasts Pi

cs: I

SABE

L OV

ALLE

11TRAVEL PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

Unless your trip is organised and includes transportation, the wide-spread and cheapest way to move around is the famed tuktuk, as well as motorcycles or bicycles for the brave ones.

The offer of high range hotels has grown in the last few years, with three five star establishments: Sofitel, Intercontinental and Raffles.

When planning a trip it’s inter-esting to be informed about seasonal events, such as the New Year that the Cambodian people celebrate during three days in April after the end of the harvest.

From Phnom Penh, travellers can fly to Siam Reap, only 45 minutes flight from the capital. This well-known province of Cambodia, has a colonial and Chinese architecture. There are Apsara traditional dancing perform-ances, craft shop, silk farms, rice-paddy countryside, fishing villages and a bird sanctuary in this area.

The province is also a very popular

tourist destination and has a large number of hotels and restaurants. Visitors are specially attracted by the numerous Buddhist and Hindu temples (about 100).

However, the Angkor complex is def-initely the most popular, comprising Angkor Thom, Angkor Wat, Ta Promo Temple and other historical sites for an

unforgettable sightseeing tour.Regarding the climate, Tourism

Cambodia informs that it can gener-ally be described as tropical. As the country is affected by monsoon, it is hot and humid with an average tem-perature of 27C.

There are two distinct seasons: The rainy season and the dry season. The

dry season is divided into two sub-seasons, cool and hot. These seasons are: the rainy season from June until October (27-35C), the dry season (cool), from November till February (17-27C) and the dry season (hot) from March till May (29-38C).

For most visitors, visas are obtain-able upon arrival at Phnom Penh and Siem Reap International Airports. At land crossing from Thailand, visas are available at Poipet Banteay Meanchey and Cham Yeam (Koh Kong providence).

Visitors who enter from Vietnam through Bavet or Ka-Om Samnor will need to have already obtained their visas prior to their arrival through a Cambodian Embassy or Consulate overseas.

Some nationalities are required to get visa in advance, such as Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Sudan and Nigeria.

The Peninsula

How to get there:Qatar Airways inaugurated its first flight to Cambodia recently, marking the career’s 125th destination and becoming

the only Gulf airline to operate at Phnom Penh International Airport. Potential visitors from Qatar, as well as those travelling from other corners of the world, can now take advantage of this new route and get to know a small and

green country that has seen a tourism boom in the last three years.

TECHNOLOGYPLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 201312

NIMBLE QUEST (FREE)Having made its name with

Tiny Tower and Pocket Planes, Nimblebit’s latest freemium game is more of an action title, blending Snake gameplay with RPG-style characters and upgrades. You swipe your party of heroes to guide them through levels of increasing difficulty. It’s genuinely addictive. iPhone / iPad

POEMS BY HEART FROM PENGUIN CLASSICS (FREE)

Book publisher Penguin’s new app offers poems from Shakespeare, Shelley, Kipling and other famous authors, chal-lenging you to recite them from heart and share the record-ings with friends. Two poems are included free, with others available in packs for 69p a pop.

iPhone / iPad

VDIO (FREE)Vdio is an app for buying or

renting streaming films and TV shows, which launched in the US and UK earlier in the week as a “special preview” for subscrib-ers to its sister music service Rdio. The slick iPad app is used to browse and watch shows and movies either on-screen, or (via AirPlay) on the TV set. iPad

MITTENS (£0.69 / £1.99)Disney’s second game to debut

an entirely new character (fol-lowing Where’s My Water?) stars Mittens the cat, who has to make his way through 75 phys-ics-puzzle levels with overtones of Cut the Rope as you chop through scenery on his behalf. iPhone / iPad

HAKITZU CODE OF THE WARRIOR (FREE)

How to get children inter-ested in coding? Hakitzu wields giant fighty robots for the cause, teaching JavaScript skills in a game that involves battling the cyborgs built by friends. An inventive blend of gaming and education. iPad

THE VOICE UK PREDICTOR GAME (FREE)

BBC talent show The Voice is back for a second series, com-plete with this companion app that aims to get fans predicting which contestant will make it through each week’s auditions. It can be played in the week lead-ing up to each episode, but also during the show itself to guess which judges will spin their seats in approval. iPhone / iPad

by Stuart DredgeThe Guardian(Prices mentioned are for UK)

Apps for the day

By Sudarsan Raghavan

For generations, breeding cows in the rural highlands of Kenya has hinged

on knowledge and experience passed down from parents to children. But Mercy Wanjiku is unlike most farmers. Her most powerful tool is her cellphone, and a text mes-saging service called iCow.

The service informs her when her cows are in heat, which feed might boost their milk output and what their fair market price is. And when she needed a veterinarian recently, she relied on the service’s extensive database. “Otherwise, it would have been hard to find someone qualified in my area,” said Wanjiku, a 29-year-old farmer in Mweru, a village about 100 miles north of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, technol-ogy, particularly mobile technology, has transformed the lives of digital-savvy entrepreneurs. While many are forg-ing successful high-tech businesses in urban centres, others are finding ways to help people such as Wanjiku prosper in more traditional, low-tech professions such as farming and fish-ing. Digital tools are also being used to overcome the continent’s obstacles to growth, such as corruption and weak health care, social services and educa-tion. In recent months, text messaging was a crucial tool in monitoring elec-tions in Kenya and Ghana.

“In Africa, we have too many prob-lems, which provide [so] many oppor-tunities for technology,” said Bitange Ndemo, Permanent Secretary, at Kenya’s Ministry of Information and Communications. “Today, there are multiple options to address these prob-lems. If Plan A doesn’t work, there’s Plan B and Plan C.”

Sub-Saharan Africa is the fastest-growing mobile market in the world, increasing an average of 44 percent annually since 2000, according to the GSMA, a global body representing cell-phone operators, as competition among providers has lowered costs, creating tens of millions of users. With the advent of cheaper smartphones, many predict a surge in mobile apps in the years ahead.

In Kenya, a well-known example of how mobile technology has altered the economic and social landscape is M-Pesa, a cellphone-based money transfer service used by millions that has become the biggest such service in the world. Its success has inspired thousands of software developers

across the continent, including Su Kahumbu, the founder of iCow.

“M-Pesa has done amazing things for this country. It has taught farmers the value of cellphones and SMSes,” said Kahumbu, an organic farmer, referring to text messaging. “Our sys-tem is piggybacking on this.”

In a nation where 80 percent of the population farm their land, iCow started off with a simple premise: The creation of a gestation calendar would increase the productivity of the cows and, hence, food production and the wealth of individuals and communities.

Farmers can register their cows by sending a text message to iCow. That allows them to receive cellphone mes-sages tailored to their needs. They get alerts, for example, on feeding sched-ules, on when to expect their cows to be in heat or on disease outbreaks. The service also functions as a Craigslist of sorts for farmers looking to connect with their peers to buy and sell cattle.

Kahumbu said 42,000 farmers have signed up for iCow, a tiny percentage of Kenya’s farming millions. The poten-tial, though, is enormous.

Mobile connections have risen to 475 million across the continent. Among African nations, Zimbabwe and Nigeria have some of the highest levels of mobile Internet usage globally, accounting for more than half of both countries’ Web traffic, compared with a global average of 10 percent. Across the continent, the GSMA reports, more than 50 “innovation” centres have been started, including Hive Colab in Uganda, Limbe Labs in Cameroon and iHub in Nairobi. American and European firms such as Google and Nokia are encouraging African app developers to invent through contests and financial incentives.

Kahumbu said she has received requests to launch iCow in nearby countries such as Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, as well as from Malaysia, Russia and China. Common to all the requests is the desire to find ways to create sustainable supplies of food — in particular, milk and other dairy products.

“It’s becoming a problem in develop-ing nations because the food chain is

under pressure,” she said. “Every time we have a drought, our food resources dry up. We are driving towards disaster if we don’t do anything about it.”

The desire to solve the devel-oping world’s problems is a thread running through many of the new digital tools. Many are funded by nonprofit or social development organizations. For example, there’s Maisha, an app

that helps pregnant women and first-time mothers with the health of their children. There’s also Get H2O, a game that educates players on chronic water shortage.

Mobile technology is improving the lives of some of Africa’s poorest people, in some of the continent’s most remote areas. Ndemo said Kenyan fishermen are using text messages to set up mar-kets along the shores of Lake Victoria and negotiate prices with buyers, which helps them sell more fish.

The technology has also reduced opportunities for abuse, especially among farmers. “We can generally say that it has improved efficiency, in some cases productivity,” Ndemo said. “Middlemen used to exploit the farmer. Now, the farmer has more information about retail and wholesale prices. They know precisely what things cost.”

For Kahumbu, iCow is a way to make money. Each message costs the farmers 5 Kenyan shillings, or about 5 cents. Kahumbu also hopes to make money through advertising and strategic partnerships with cellphone operators. Depending on government or nonprofit groups to run iCow, she said, would open the door to manipulation.

Wanjiku and her family don’t mind the costs. She said the service is afford-able and has helped her gain income. There also are some drawbacks, she said. The text messages are in English, but her 74-year-old grandmother speaks only Swahili and her tribal tongue.

Still, the veterinarian used by Wanjiku helped her artificially insem-inate Baraka, one of her cows. And when Baraka gave birth, the text mes-sages helped Wanjiku feed the calf and watch out for diseases.

Recently she sold Baraka for the princely sum of 38,000 Kenyan shil-lings, or about $450. At first, the buyer low-balled her. But then Wanjiku checked the market prices with iCow and demanded the fair price. Her grandmother approved.

“It’s much easier to do the work now,” said her grandmother, whose name is also Mercy, standing next to their three cows.

WP-Bloomberg

New apps transforming remote parts of Africa

COMICS & MORE 13

Hoy en la HistoriaApril 8, 1973

1838: Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s steamship Great Western left Bristol on her maiden voyage to New York 1913: The opening of China’s first parliament took place in Peking 1953: Jomo Kenyatta was sentenced to seven years in jail for involvement in Kenya’s Mau Mau insurrection 2005: More than 200 world leaders, together with millions of pilgrims from around the world, attended the funeral of Pope John Paul II in Rome

Pablo Picasso, Spanish painter, sculptor and pioneer of Cubism, died. His most noted works were Demoiselles d’Avignon and Guernica

Picture: Getty Images © GRAPHIC NEWS

ALL IN THE MIND Can you find the hidden words? They may be horizontal,vertical, diagonal, forwards or backwards.

ALTO, ANTHEM, ARIA, BALLAD, BAND, BARITONE, BASS, BLUES, CHOIR, CHORISTER, CLASSICAL, COMBO, CONTRALTO, COUNTRY MUSIC, DUET, ETUDE, FOLK SONG, GOSPEL MUSIC, GROUP, OPERA, HIP HOP, HYMN, JAZZ, KARAOKE, LULLABY, MADRIGAL, MUSICAL, NEW WAVE, POP SONG, PSALM, RAPPER, REFRAIN, RHAPSODY, ROCK, SERENADE, SONATA, SOPRANO, SWING, SYMPHONY, TENOR.

Baby Blues Jerry Scott and Rick Kirkman

Zits by Dennis Young and Denis Lebrun

Hagar The Horrible Chris Browne

LEARNARABIC

General questions about verbs

Aina Where Remark: In Qatari

dialect they use Aish

instead of Ma’zha,and

Laish instead of

Limazha, and wain,

instead of Aina

Mata When

Ma’zha What

Limazha Why

Kaifa How

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

HYPER SUDOKU

CROSSWORD

CROSSWORDS

YESTERDAY’S ANSWER

How to play Hyper Sudoku:A Hyper Sudoku

Puzzle is solved

by filling the

numbers from 1

to 9 into the blank

cells. A Hyper

Sudoku has

unlike Sudoku

13 regions

(four regions

overlap with the

nine standard

regions). In all

regions the numbers from 1 to 9 can appear

only once. Otherwise, a Hyper Sudoku is

solved like a normal Sudoku.

ACROSS 1 Hawaiian entree 9 “___-Koo” (old

ragtime standard)15 Emphatic call from

the flock16 And so on17 Honoring at a

banquet, say18 Scotland’s Loch ___19 Natal native20 50th state’s bird22 Kind of sandwich23 First-year J.D. student24 Street child25 Like the area around

an erupting volcano26 Rock layers28 Tennis whiz30 One in la familia31 One concerned about

charges33 Alter35 Assumes, as costs38 The Lizard

constellation

40 Ones on the move41 President ___43 Bow shape44 Redheaded boy of

1960s TV46 Bouquets50 Hard to find in Latin?52 Cure again, as leather54 All-night party55 Sacked out56 “The Heat ___”57 Modern home of

ancient Elam58 Batman’s home60 Being borrowed by63 Pupil surrounder64 1997 Carrey comedy65 Spanky or Alfalfa66 Words after “Que”

DOWN 1 Seder servings 2 Check figure 3 Doctor, ideally

4 Asbestos, for one 5 Dojo floor covering 6 Burgundy bud 7 Skin colorer 8 Former world

heavyweight champion Johansson

9 ___ Curtis, onetime cosmetics giant

10 “How was ___ know?”

11 Home of MacDill Air Force Base

12 Part of many a convent

13 Comment made while elbowing someone

14 “And so on”21 Violinmaker Amati24 Raiment27 Many a classical

sculpture29 Soapbox derby

entrant32 Glimpses

34 Some anniversary events

35 Petri dish gel36 South Pacific island37 Generates, as fluids39 ___ early age42 Modernizes, as a

factory45 First47 1964 Hitchcock

thriller48 2009 James

Cameron blockbuster

49 Madrid madam51 Like some

committees53 Musical with the song

“N.Y.C.”59 Indicator of how

something is done61 Actress ___ Park

Lincoln62 ___ pro nobis

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16

17 18

19 20 21 22

23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30

31 32 33 34

35 36 37 38 39

40 41 42

43 44 45 46 47 48 49

50 51 52 53 54

55 56 57

58 59 60 61 62

63 64

65 66

A P E W H A M C A J U NH E X E O N S E O C E N EA R P S W I S S C H E E S E

G L E S S I O N P H DV O O D O O D O L L P E A LA L I G N I D O V E R D ET A T E M E D T E N S E D

D A R T B O A R DE S T O P S A L G U Z I SS P O U T F L A G L E N ST A U T G O L F C O U R S EE T S S I C R E M O PF U L L O F H O L E S I O SA L E A S T M O A T N R AN A D I A Y O K O G T O

How to play Kakuro:The kakuro grid, unlike in sudoku, can be of any size. It has rows and columns, and dark cells like in a crossword. And, just like in a crossword, some of the dark cells will contain numbers. Some cells will contain two numbers.However, in a crossword the numbers reference clues. In a kakuro, the numbers are all you get! They denote the total of the digits in the row or column referenced by the number.Within each collection of cells - called a run

- any of the numbers 1 to 9 may be used but, like sudoku, each number may only be used once.

YESTERDAY’S ANSWER

14

EASY SUDOKUEasy Sudoku PuzzlesPlace a digit from 1 to 9 in each empty cell so everyrow, every column and every 3x3 box contains allthe digits 1 to 9.

Cartoon Arts International / The New York Times Syndicate

CINEMA / TV LISTINGS 15

13:30 Uefa

Champions

League

Magazine

14:00 English Sports

News

14:15 Basketball Nba

La Lakers @ La

Clippers

16:15 Rugby Heineken

Cup Harlequins

V Munster

18:15 Futbol Mundial

18:45 Spanish League

Barcelona V

Mallorca

20:30 The Football

League Show

21:00 The Global

Game Special:

Italian League

Roma V Lazio

24:00 Npower League

Brighton V

Leicester

09:00 The Cafe

10:00 News

10:30 Inside Story

11:30 South2North

12:00 News

12:30 People &

Power

13:00 NEWSHOUR

14:30 Inside Story

15:00 Witness

16:00 NEWSHOUR

17:00 News

17:30 Talk to Al

Jazeera

18:00 NEWSHOUR

19:00 News

19:30 Counting the

Cost

20:00 News

20:30 Inside Story

21:00 NEWSHOUR

22:00 News

22:30 The Stream

23:00 The Secret

of the Seven

Sisters

13:40 Dirty Great

Machines

14:35 Border Security

15:30 Baggage

Battles

16:00 Moonshiners

17:50 Mythbusters

20:05 How It’s Made

20:35 Auction Kings

21:00 Baggage

Battles

21:30 Gold Rush

22:25 Jungle Gold

23:20 One Car Too

Far

13:00 Hooked

14:00 Ultimate

Animal

Countdown

15:00 Crocs Of

Katuma

17:00 World’s Weirdest

18:00 Predator CSI

19:00 Hooked

21:00 Crocs Of

Katuma

22:00 Built For The

Kill

13:20 Jessie

13:45 A.N.T. Farm

15:50 Jessie

16:15 Shake It Up

16:40 A.N.T Farm

17:00 Austin And Ally

20:00 Jessie

20:50 Wizards Of

Waverly Place

21:40 Hannah

Montana

22:05 Jonas

12:00 Nacho Libre

14:00 Arthur

16:00 12 Dates Of

Christmas-

PG15

18:00 The Waterboy

20:00 Stripes

22:00 Girl Walks Into

A Bar

13:15 Wild Africa

Rescue

13:45 Animal Precinct

14:40 Wildest India

16:00 Really Wild Show

16:30 Dogs 101

18:20 America’s

Cutest Pet

20:35 Dark Days In

Monkey City

21:05 Wildest India

22:00 Baboons With

Bill Bailey

22:25 Ned Bruha:

Skunk

10:55 New York, New

York

13:35 Submerged

15:05 The Alamo

17:45 What Did You

Do In The War

Daddy

19:40 Yanks

22:00 Boris And

Natasha

23:40 Eye Of The

Needle

12:30 Quo Vadis

15:15 Sunday In New

York

17:00 The Time

Machine

18:40 Courage Of

Lassie

20:10 Dr. Jekyll And

Mr. Hyde

22:00 Shaft

23:45 Point Blank

13:00 Moomins And

The Comet Chase

14:30 Beverly Hills

Chihuahua 2

18:00 Spooky Buddies

20:00 Mandie And The

Secret Tunnel

22:00 Moomins And

The Comet Chase

TEL: 444933989 444517001

MALL CINEMA

1Love Wedding Marriage

(2D/Comedy) – 2.45, 5.00, 7.15, 9.30 & 11.30pm

2

Show Queen (3D/Animation) – 3.00pm

Zambesia (3D/Animation) – 5.00pm

Croods (3D/Animation) – 7.00pmG.I. Joe Retaliation (3D/Action)

– 9.00pmJurassic Park (3D/Adventure)

– 11.00pm

3

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2D/Comedy)

– 2.30pmDead Man Down (2D/Crime)

– 4.30pmEvil Dead (2D/Horror) – 6.45pm

Settai (2D/Tamil) – 8.30pmChashme Baddoor (2D/Hindi)

– 11.15pm

LANDMARK

1

Zambesia (3D/Animation) – 2.30 & 4.30pm

Dead Man Down (2D/Crime) – 6.30pm

Evil Dead (2D/Horror) – 9.00pm

The Palace Beyond The Pines (2D/Drama) – 11.00pm

2

Snow Queen (3D/Animation) – 3.00pm

Croods (3D/Animation) – 5.00 & 7.00pm

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2D/Comedy)

– 9.00pmJurassic Park (3D/Adventure)

– 11.00pm

3

The Bay II (2D/Horror) – 2.30pm

Olympus Has Fallen (2D/Action) – 4.15pm

G.I. Joe Retaliation (3D/Action) – 6.30pm

Chashme Baddoor (2D/Hindi) – 8.30pm

Settai (2D/Tamil) – 11.00pm

ROYAL PLAZA

1

Zambesia (3D/Animation) – 3.00pm

G.I. Joe Retaliation (3D/Action) – 5.00pm

Croods (3D/Animation) – 7.00pmThe Incredible Burt

Wonderstone (2D/Comedy) – 9.00pm

Evil Dead (2D/Horror) – 11.00pm

2Love Wedding Marriage

(2D/Comedy) – 2.45, 5.00, 7.15, 9.30 & 11.30pm

3

Melancholia (Drama) – 2.30 & 9.00pm

Rise Of The Guardians (Animation) – 4.30pm

Take This Waltz (Comedy) – 6.30pm

Jack Reacher (Action) – 11.00pm

QF RADIO 91.7 FM ENGLISH PROGRAMME BRIEF LIVE SHOWS Airing

TimeProgramme Briefs On the Programme…

TodaySPIRITUAL HOUR

6:00 – 7:00 AM

A time of reflection, a deeper understanding of the teachings of Islam.

MORNING SHOW “RISE”

7:00 – 9:00 AM

Rise, a LIVE 2-hour morning show hosted and produced by Scott Boyes. It discusses a wide array of topics from Weather, News, Health tips, Sports News and interactive bits with the callers.

On the program today, Scott speaks with Dr. Alex Amato of the Qatar Green Building Council about sustainable building practices in Qatar.

INTERNATIO-NAL NEWS

1:00 PM A LIVE report on the latest news and events from around the world.

FASHION 6:00 – 7:00 PM

Fashion is a LIVE 1-hour weekly show hosted and produced by Laura Finnerty.

Tonight on The Fashion Show we hear what it’s like being the person behind the camera at a fashion shoot!

REPEAT SHOWSINNOVATIONS 12:00 –

1:00 PMA weekly show hosted and produced by Scott Boyes.

The show talks about all new and exciting technological advancements in the fields of Medicine, Agriculture, Engineering, Astronomy and more.

STRAIGHT TALK

4:00 – 5:00 PM

A weekly 1-hour Political show produced and hosted by Nabil Al Nashar.

The show will host discu-ssions and debates about the latest world political news/ issues/events.

LEGENDARY ARTISTS

8:00 – 9:00 PM

The show tells the story of a celebrity artist that has reached unprecedented fame.

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013

PLUS | MONDAY 8 APRIL 2013 POTPOURRI16

Editor-In-Chief Khalid Al Sayed Acting Managing Editor Hussain Ahmad Editorial Office The Peninsula Tel: 4455 7741, E-mail: plus@pen.com.qa / editor@pen.com.qa

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Hey’Ya: Arab Women in Sport When: March 7-Jun 16 Monday–Thursday, Saturday: 9am-8pmFriday; 3pm-9pm (Sunday closed)Where: QMA Gallery, Bldg 10 What: The Qatar Museums Authority will exhibit ‘Hey’Ya: Arab Women in Sport’ at QMA Gallery in Katara Cultural Village. The exhibition was first held in London during the 2012 Olympic Games. The exhibit originated in Qatar, beginning at the Arab Games’ Athletes Village in December 2011, where photographer Brigitte and documentary filmmaker Marian Lacombe set up an outdoor studio, working with female athletes. They then travelled to 20 Arab countries from the Gulf to North Africa, documenting images and videos of 70 Arab sportswomen. Free entry

“Paper Trail” Works from the Collection of the Barjeel Art FoundationWhen: Until April 20; 10am-10pmWhere: Katara Cultural Village, Bldg 22

What: A curated exhibition by Barjeel Art Foundation featuring selected works from the collection of Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi. The exhibition interrogates ideas of what is ‘real’ in ways that highlight how histories are guided by carefully selected narratives that apply meaning to what we see and hear.There will be an extensive educational program and visiting artists talks complementing this exhibition Free entry

Designed To WinWhen: Until June 23; 10am-10pm Where: Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art What: Katara Exhibition in Collaboration with the Design Museum in London.Designed to Win celebrates ways in which design and sport are combined, pushing the limits of human endeavour to achieve records and victories of increasing significance and wonder. There will be an extensive educational programme and visiting artists’ talks complementing the expo.

A Bridge to the MoonWhen: Until April 27; 10am-10pmWhere: Katara Gallery 2 - Bldg 18 What: Amal Al Aathem is one of the most prominent and proactive Qatari artists today, her reputation as a Qatari artist with a real voice and message has won her respect internationally. Her work has been widely exhibited in the region and in different parts of the world. Al Aathem believes that old philosophies have linked the moon, nature and the woman in a symbolic way, believing that the moon is the centre of the universe and the woman is thecentre of society.

Events in Qatar