Gonzalo Becomes 'Major Hurricane' in Atlantic: US Forecasters

Miami, Florida:  Gonzalo strengthened to a "major hurricane" over the open Atlantic late Tuesday and was expected to continue gaining force, forecasters said.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 115 miles (185 kilometers) an hour, with gusts even stronger, Gonzalo surged to a Category Three on the Saffir-Simpson scale, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

"Additional strengthening is forecast during the next 48 hours and Gonzalo is expected to become a Category Four storm on Wednesday," the NHC said.
 

The highest category on the Saffir-Simpson scale is five.
The storm skirted the Caribbean and was moving over open ocean, some 770 miles (1,240 kilometers) south of Bermuda.

No coastal warnings were in place, but forecasters cautioned Bermuda to closely monitor the storm's path.

Three people were reported missing in the islands of St. Martin and St. Barthelemy after the storm passed, and French authorities expressed concern about four other people they were trying to contact.

The missing were a man who fell off his boat in St. Martin and two others who were trying to get back to their boat in St. Barthelemy.

St. Martin is divided between French and Dutch sides, while St. Barthelemy is French.

Cop Shoots Dead Suspect Inside Police Station, Reportedly in Self-Defence

Chennai:  A sub-inspector allegedly killed a suspect at a police station in Tamil Nadu's Ramanthapuram district today, reportedly in an act of self-defence.
According to the police, 24-year-old Syed Muhammad Kattu Babu had been brought to the SP Pattinam police station following complaints of extortion against him. He allegedly stabbed the sub-inspector after the latter reportedly directed his colleagues to file a case against Babu under stringent provisions. 

The injured policeman is being shifted to Madurai after he received preliminary treatment in Ramanathapuram.
Some activists have claimed that it is a clear case of murder by the police and they have sought a probe into the incident.

Kerala Diaspora Directory to Go Online on November 1

Thiruvananthapuram: A diaspora directory for all the non-resident Keralites will go online Nov 1, which is celebrated as the Kerala Day, an official said on Friday.

The software for making the directory was developed in-house, P. Sudeep, CEO of Roots-Norka, the Kerala government agency that looks after the welfare of the state's diaspora, told IANS.

Kerala came into being place Nov 1, 1956.

The directory will help all the non-resident Keralites make online registrations, Sudeep said he said.

"Last minute checks are going on and we wish to begin the online registration Nov 1. We are now awaiting the clearance from the state government," said Sudeep.

The Kerala diaspora directory has been a long standing demand by the academic community as there is no authentic record to know the exact number of the non-resident Keralites.

Over the years, the only one source that has been quoted is a series of studies done by the migration unit of the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) in Thiruvananthapuram.

The most recent study by K.C. Zachariah and S. Irudayarajan came last month which said that the number of emigrants in 2014 from the state is 23.63 lakh so far. The figure was 22.81 lakh in 2011, 21.93 lakh in 2008, 18.38 lakh in 2003 and 13.62 lakh in 1998.

It also points out that 90 percent of the state diaspora is in various Middle-East countries.

"The online registration is a simple process and any Keralite who lives outside can log-in to our site and register themselves. This will be useful for the state government as none has any idea about the exact number of Keralites abroad," said Sudeep.

"After getting clearance from the state government, we will get in touch with all the Kerala based organisations in other countries to provide help to those who do not have direct access to computers," Sudeep said.

Roots-Norka is planning to give the duration of about three months to the Keralites aborad to register themselves.

Wholesale Inflation Falls to 5-Year Low of 2.38% in September

India's wholesale price inflation eased to a near five-year low in September, helped by a moderation in food and fuel prices, but the risk of price shocks is expected to prevent the central bank from cutting interest rates soon.

The wholesale price index (WPI) rose an annual 2.38 per cent last month, its slowest pace since October 2009, compared with a 3.3 per cent jump forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. In August, wholesale prices rose 3.74 per cent.

The reading for July WPI inflation was revised to 5.41 per cent from 5.19 per cent earlier.

"The sharp moderation in inflation has been a culmination of a favourable base effect, moderation in food prices, softening crude oil prices and weak growth," said Upasna Bhardwaj, an economist at ING Vysya Bank.

Data released on Monday showed consumer price inflation, which the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tracks to set policy lending rates, dropped sharply to 6.46 per cent in September, the lowest since the latest data series started in January 2012.

The moderation in price pressures was driven by cheaper food and fuel. Wholesale food inflation dropped in September to 3.52 per cent on lower vegetable prices from 5.15 per cent a month ago.

Falling global crude oil prices, meanwhile, drove fuel inflation down to 1.33 per cent last month from 4.54 per cent in August.

Notwithstanding the deceleration in inflation, the RBI is concerned that poor monsoon rains and geopolitical tensions that affect oil could drive up prices, making it tougher to reduce retail inflation to 6 per cent by 2016.

As a result, analysts widely expect it to keep interest rates on hold until the April-June quarter.

"Going into next year, we expect RBI to assess the diminishing upside risks to its 6 per cent target closely and press the trigger only when it is convinced of a meaningful correction in prices," said Bhardwaj.

The RBI sent a strong signal last month that it would hold off cutting rates until it was confident that consumer inflation could be reduced to a target of 6 per cent by January 2016.
Copyright: Thomson Reuters 2014

How to Get Your Nobel Prize Medal Past Airport Security

Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2011, had a close encounter with the airport security in Fargo, Nebraska. The details were reported on Friday on the blog Scientific America.

Schmidt's grandmother wanted to see the 24-carat gold medal that he'd been awarded and so, he decided to take it with him to Fargo. But first, he had to get it past airport security.

"You would think that carrying around a Nobel Prize would be uneventful, and it was uneventful, until I tried to leave Fargo with it, and went through the X-ray machine," he says on the blog.

He was carrying the medal in his laptop bag, and when it went through the X-ray machine, it left the airport officials bewildered. Schmidt knew the cause of their concern. He was prepared to answer a few questions but wasn't anticipating this conversation (in Schmidt's words):

"They're like, 'Sir, there's something in your bag.'
I said, 'Yes, I think it's this box.'
They said, 'What's in the box?'
I said, 'a large gold medal,' as one does.
So they opened it up and they said, 'What's it made out of?'
I said, 'gold.'
And they're like, 'Uhhhh. Who gave this to you?'
'The King of Sweden.'
'Why did he give this to you?'
'Because I helped discover the expansion rate of the universe was accelerating.'
At which point, they were beginning to lose their sense of humor. I explained to them it was a Nobel Prize, and their main question was, 'Why were you in Fargo?'"

Last week, the Nobel Prize winners for 2014 were announced, including India's Kailash Satyarthi who was awarded the Peace Prize.

Brawling in the Street, Shocking! And Wait Till You See Who's Fighting

Two wild kangaroos came to fisticuffs on a street in Australia.

The feud turned ugly and went viral on the Internet. The two kangaroos in the video below are champions at the double-footed kick, balancing themselves on their super-strong tails.

The amateur video, titled 'Wild Kangaroo Street Fight Aussie Style' and uploaded by Rodney Langham on YouTube, has over three million views already.

The kangaroos could easily replace prizefighters in a boxing ring. They pack a mean and very accurate punch and they just don't give up.

'I am Not Misbah-ul-Haq, I am Shahid Afridi'

Shahid Afridi said no two captains are the same and insisted he developed his exciting brand of cricket and leadership thanks to the aggression of the Pakistani people. 

Afridi says he has very little in common with Pakistan's ODI skipper Misbah.

While Misbah-ul-Haq's form has raised doubts about his leadership skills, Pakistan's T20 captain Shahid Afridi feels aggression is the key to success. Pakistan suffered an ODI whitewash against Australia recently but Afridi says his teammates should stick to their fiery brand of cricket.
Re-appointed as T20I skipper after being axed unceremoniously three years ago, Afridi told ESPNCricinfo that every captain has his unique style. His was aggression. "Every captain has his own approach and I can't be Misbah and Misbah can't be Afridi," he said. "I love to play aggressive cricket because people in my country are aggressive, my players are aggressive and I want them to play aggressive cricket."
While the aggression was largely missing against the Aussies, Afridi feels it is the effort which counts. "Your body language on the field is the reflection of your intentions and people will look beyond the result or performance when they see your efforts," he said. This is in sharp contrast to the approach of Misbah who, many feel, is lacking the 'will to kill.'
Misbah's absence - rest being the official reason - from the final ODI has raised several eyebrows with many in Pakistan demanding for his removal. There are also reports of an internal strife in the dressing-room. Afridi though wants players to stay true to their strengths rather than mould themselves. "If he is comfortable with his approach then what is the problem? But players around him should not become Misbah. Each player has his own strengths and he should carry out what he is capable of rather than suppressing himself."
Afridi himself has hardly ever suppressed himself - on or off the field. Not a stranger to controversies, the 34-year-old had said on Monday that Pakistan don't deserve to play the World Cup if the team fails on UAE tracks. "If we are not able to win on these pitches then we have to think we can't go into the World Cup with these performances."
Even as Pakistan cricket struggles for form and guidance four months before the ODI World Cup, Afridi feels the ultimate cricketing glory lies in a combative game.