Posted by 9jabook.com on December 28, 2009 at 12:50am
Maryam Babangida dies; burial today
By Emeka Mamah, Wole Mosadomi &Austin Ogwuda
Monday, December 28, 2009
MINNA— Former First Lady and founder of the Better Life for Rural Women, Mrs. Maryam Babangida, is dead.
Maryam Babangida
She died at City Hope Hospital, California, United States of America, at 12 noon Nigerian local time, with her husband of over three decades, General Ibrahim Babangida, beside her sick bed.
Maryam, 61, who celebrated her last birthday on her sick bed on November 1, in the American Hospital, battled with Ovarian Cancer before she lost the out yesterday, after three months in the hospital.
Former Military President, Gen. Babangida, broke the news of her death in a telephone call to his cousin, Alhaji Datijjo Aliyu, a former Commissioner for Health in Niger State, an hour after the doctors certified her dead.
According to Aliyu, “My brother, Gen. Babangida, called me this afternoon about 1 p.m. that He lost his wife. He told me she passed on about an hour ago.”
Aliyu, who was with her second son, Aminu, added that her remains would be buried in Minna.
She was rumoured dead November 15. However, she told Vanguard then that ”only God gives life and can take it.”
A former governor of Niger State, Mr.Abdulkadir Kure, who received mourners at the Hilltop residence of the Babangidas, refused to comment on the deceased. He said: “It is against Islamic doctrine to comment about the dead before burial. All I know is that to Him (Allah) we come from and to Him shall we go back to.”
He told newsmen that details of the burial will be released after the family members would have met today. ”Please, you should bear with the family. We shall give details of the burial latest by tomorrow (today). We are still consulting.”
The Governor of Niger State, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, described the deceased as a woman who positively touched many lives. He noted that, “She left good people and good legacy. May her soul rest in peace?”
According to the governor, “for some time now, people were talking about her death, but now we can confirm she has died. Death is the expected fate of everybody and until it is your time, nobody can do anything about it.
“She lived a good life worthy of emulation. We are living witnesses to her contributions at emancipating African women,” the governor said.
Also, a friend of the Babangidas, Sir Tunde Olowu, described Maryam’s death ”as a great loss to her family, her pet non-governmental organisation, and the nation. Only God can console IBB who was by her bedside for over three months in America. It’s a lesson in love and character. May her gentle soul rest in perfect peace.’’
Asaba community, Uduaghan shocked
The Asaba Community, where Maryam, was born, was thrown into mourning as the news of her death broke yesterday afternoon.
At her ancestral home at Ogbeogo, in the Umuonaje Quarters, the atmosphere was moody. As the news spread, some people at social gatherings and pub houses became saddened over the death and abruptly left for their homes.
The Diokpa (Head) of the Okogwu family, from wgere Maryam hailed from, Ambassador Leo Okogwu, told Vanguard that “her death is tragic. We will miss her and I hope she will be remembered as the First Lady who empowered the women and popularised African fabric.”
In a reaction, the member representing Aniocha/Oshimili Federal Constituency, Mr. Ndudi Elumelu, said: “I am very sad that we lost her. I represent her constituency and I can tell you that we have lost a great daughter of Ahaba and we, the good people of Aniocha/Oshimili Federal Constituency and Anioma people are really in pain. May Allah comfort her husband and the children she left behind.’’
The Ikemba Ahaba, Chief Joseph Achuzia, said “the death of this our dear daughter is painful. It is a tragedy. We will remember her for the indelible role she played in giving us (Asaba) a state capital during her husband’s tenure. We will continue to remember that role. We pray that God will give the husband, our in-law the fortitude to bear the loss and also her brother, Chief Sonny Okogwu, as well as the children she left behind. What a painful loss!”
Relatedly, Governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, in a statement in Asaba, yesterday, noted that “It is with great shock and personal loss that I received the news of the death of Nigeria’s former First Lady, Mrs. Maryam Babangida.
“Her passage to the great beyond undoubtedly marks a watershed in the history of Delta State. Apart from being a proud and treasured daughter of our state, we will continue to remember her unwavering role in ensuring that Delta maintains its lead among other states.
“Definitely, we will miss her motherly advice and support.
“We express our heartfelt condolences to her husband, former President Ibrahim Babangida, to whom she was a friend and companion; her children; and above all to her extended family back home in Asaba, Delta State. May God grant us all the fortitude to bear this loss.
Brother, Okogwu weeps
Kaduna-based brother of the deceased, Chief Sonny Okogwu, cried yesterday as sympathisers trooped to his Ship House residence to condole him on the death of his younger sister, and wife of former President Babangida.
“I wish I saw her before she died,” Okogwu said, adding that she was a special woman who contributed her quota to the development of the country.
Kaduna State Governor, Alhaji Mohammed Namadi Sambo, said the late Maryam helped to positively influence Nigeria’s rural women through her pet project, Better Life for Rural Women, when she was the First Lady.
Sambo, in a statement noted that, “it is indeed, a great loss to the nation and she will be greatly missed. May her soul rest in Aljanna firdaus and may Allah Subhanahu Wata’ala provide the family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.”
Ex gov. Makarfi mourns
However, the immediate past governor of the state, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, said: “I received with shock and sadness, but also with total submission to the will of Allah news of the death this morning, of Hajiya (Mrs) Maryam Babangida, wife of President Ibrahim Babangida.
“Even though death is the inevitable end of all of us, her death at this time will certainly leave a huge vacuum, not only in the Babangida family but also in the lives of the multitude she had touched in several ways through her philanthropy and kind-heartedness.
“This country will not forget the benevolence behind many of her moves, particularly the Better Life for Rural Women Programme, which in no small measure helped in mobilising Nigerian women and awakening them to attempt to explore their potentials to the fullest.
“We take solace, therefore, in the feeling that though God will reward her abundantly for all she has done for humanity, her good will not be interred with her. They will remain worthy legacies and proud reminders that such a good woman lived amongst us.”
I have lost a mother, ex-CPS
Former Nigeria’s Ambassador to Spain and one-time National Chairman of Alliance for Democracy, AD, Ambassador Mamman Yusuf, who was at a time Maryam’s Chief Press Secretary said, “My family and I have lost a mother, imagine the pain of losing a mother, it is unquantifiable. It is sad losing a mother.”
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 28, 2009 at 12:47am
Detroit terror attack: Second Nigerian arrested on Amsterdam flight
By NICK ALLEN
A second Nigerian man has been arrested on a Northwest Airlines jet in Detroit 48 hours after Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab tried to blow up an airliner
unday's flight - Northwest Airlines 253 - was exactly the same route that Abdulmutallab targeted on Christmas Day.
The pilot alerted the authorities and the plane made an emergency landing and was met by police on its arrival in Detroit.
The man, who is in his 30s, reportedly locked himself in a toilet for more than an hour as the plane flew over the US.
Before locking himself in to the toilet the man had already been up and down to the same cubicle several times. Cabin crew became increasingly suspicious, broke the door down and dragged him out. He is then said to have become irate and verbally aggressive.
He was subdued and the pilot contacted the airport to say there was an emergency on board. Emergency vehicles gathered on the runway to meet the plane.
The passengers and crew were evacuated from the plane and the man was formally arrested. Officials said no explosive device had been found on the suspect.
The man had boarded the flight with no luggage.
President Barack Obama, who is on holiday in Hawaii, was informed immediately. White House officials said Mr Obama was to have further talks with his aides over airline security.
However a senior US official told Fox News that the man arrested on Sunday was simply a “sick passenger”.
Another official told CNN the incident appeared to be “non-serious” and that the disruptive passenger “does not appear to be a threat”.
The FBI gave the all-clear within hours of the latest alert.
Like Abdulmutallab, the passenger had flown from Nigeria to Amsterdam and then picked up Flight 253 to Detroit.
Abdulmutallab, who had studied engineering in London until last year, disappeared into a toilet for a long period of time before trying to set off his device.
The flight, which had 257 passengers and 12 crew on board, landed safely in Detroit at 12.35pm local time.
The plane was removed to a secure area of the airport for additional searches by bomb experts.
Police took the disruptive passenger into custody for questioning.
An airline spokeswoman, Sue Elliott, said the passenger was "verbally disruptive".
She added: "Out of an abundance of caution the flight crew asked the plane be met on arrival by law enforcement."
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ROMULUS, Mich. - An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke - sending passengers scrambling to tackle a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from al-Qaida to blow up the airliner, officials and travellers said.The commotion began as Northwest Airlines Flight 253, carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew members from Amsterdam, prepared to land in Detroit just before noon Friday. Travelers said they smelled smoke, saw a glow, and heard what sounded like firecrackers. At least one person climbed over others and jumped on the man, who officials say was trying to ignite an explosive device."It sounded like a firecracker in a pillowcase," said Peter Smith, a passenger from the Netherlands. "First there was a pop, and then (there) was smoke."Smith said one passenger, sitting opposite the man, climbed over passengers, went across the aisle and tried to restrain the man. The heroic passenger appeared to have been burned.Afterward, the suspect was taken to a front-row seat with his pants cut off and his legs burned. Multiple law enforcement officials also said the man appeared badly burned on his legs, indicating the explosive was strapped there. The components were apparently mixed in-flight and included a powdery substance, multiple law enforcement and counterterrorism officials said.The White House said it believed it was an attempted act of terrorism and stricter security measures were quickly imposed on airline travel. Dutch anti-terrorism authorities said the U.S. has asked all airlines to take extra precautions on flights worldwide that are bound for the United States.The incident was reminiscent of Richard Reid, who tried to destroy a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes, but was subdued by other passengers. Reid is serving a life sentence.Multiple law enforcement officials identified the suspect in Friday's attempted attack as Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab. He was described as Nigerian.In Nigeria, a prominent banker said Saturday that he was meeting with security officials there because he feared his son was the suspect. Alhaji Umaru Mutallab told The Associated Press that his son was a one-time university student in London who had left Britain to travel abroad. He said his son hadn't lived in London "for some time" but he wasn't sure exactly where he went to."I believe he might have been to Yemen, but we are investigating to determine that," the elder Mutallab said. He said he would provide more details later Saturday as he learned more from authorities.One law enforcement official said the man claimed to have been instructed by al-Qaida to detonate the plane over U.S. soil, but other law enforcement officials cautioned that such claims could not be verified immediately, and said the man may have been acting independently - inspired but not specifically trained or ordered by terror groups.All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing.Intelligence and anti-terrorism officials in Yemen said they were investigating claims by the suspect that he picked up the explosive device and instructions on how to use it in that country. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media.Melinda Dennis, who was seated in the front row of the plane, said the man involved was brought to the front row and seated near her. She said his legs appeared to be badly burned and his pants were cut off. She said he was taken off the plane handcuffed to a stretcher.An intelligence official said he was being held and treated in an Ann Arbor, Michigan, hospital. The hospital said one passenger from the flight was taken to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, but referred all inquiries to the FBI.One law enforcement official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mutallab's name had surfaced earlier on at least one U.S. intelligence database, but he was not on a watch list or a no-fly list.The suspect boarded in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit, Rep. Peter King, the ranking Republican member of the House Homeland Security Committee, told CNN. A spokeswoman for police at the Schiphol airport in Amsterdam declined comment about the case or about security procedures at the airport for Flight 253.Dutch airline KLM says the connection in Amsterdam from Lagos, Nigeria, to Detroit involves a change in carrier and a change in aircraft.Dutch antiterrorism authorities said Saturday that Mutallab was travelling on a U.S. visa valid through the first half of 2010.She said an initial investigation showed that routine security procedures were followed at Schiphol airport with no irregularities. Mutallab's name was on the passenger manifesto that was forwarded and approved by U.S. authorities before takeoff.Nigeria's information minister, Dora Akunyili, condemned the attempted bombing. She said the government has opened its own investigation into the suspect and will work with U.S. authorities."We state very clearly that as a nation we abhor all forms of violence," Akunyili said in a statement issued Saturday.London's Metropolitan Police also was working with U.S. officials, said a spokeswoman who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department policy. A search was under way Saturday at an apartment building where Mutallab is said to have lived in a posh West London neighbourhood.University College London issued a statement saying a student named Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab studied mechanical engineering there between September 2005 and June 2008. But the college said it wasn't certain the student was the same person who was on the plane.Delta Air Lines Inc., which acquired Northwest last year, said a passenger caused a disturbance, was subdued, and the crew requested that law enforcement officials meet the flight.Passenger Syed Jafry, a U.S. citizen who had flown from the United Arab Emirates, said the incident occurred during the plane's descent. Jafry said he was seated three rows behind the passenger and said he saw a glow, and noticed a smoke smell.It was another passenger, who Jafry described as being in his 20s or early 30s and having a medium, stocky build, who quickly jumped toward the man who had started the fire."He did a good job with his power, tackled him and put him under arrest," Jafry said Saturday.Federal officials said there would be heightened security for both domestic and international flights at airports across the country, but the intensified levels would likely be "layered," differing from location to location depending on alerts, security concerns and other factors.Passengers can expect to see more screening, bomb-sniffing dogs, officer units and behavioural-detection specialists at some airports, but there will also be unspecified less visible precautions as well, officials said.The FBI and the Homeland Security Department issued an intelligence note on Nov. 20 about the threat picture for the holiday season, which was obtained by The Associated Press. At the time, officials said they had no specific information about attack plans by al-Qaida or other terrorist groups.President Barack Obama was notified of the incident and discussed it with security officials, the White House said. Officials said he is monitoring the situation and receiving regular updates from his vacation spot in Hawaii.
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For years Tiger eluded the snooping press.His commitment to living his private life away from the public eye further fuelled the desperation of the ferocious tabloids, and the appetite of the mindless masses for some sensational reports on Tigers flaws.After years of chasing the elusive Tiger,the dirt-press eventually caught up with him.The result-news on Tigers adulterous sexcapades.It never ceases to amaze me how we can hail a celebrity one day and nail them the next.Maybe we have a had time accepting the flaws of people we've once revered.We make Gods of Men without their permission.And when they cant live up to that God-ness we nail them to a cross.Even artists like Whitney Houston,Britney Spears and Michael Jackson where not spared from this crucifixion. I make no excuses for Tigers behaviour but i do empathise with him.Its easy to just approach this scandal from the surface and draw a quick conclusion.But look closer and you might learn a lesson or two.Here's a guy who's been forced into a perfect mould all his life.Probably never had a time in his life when mistakes could be tolerated by fans,friends and parents alike.He's probably been struggling with his humanity and found no one to talk to-trust enough.No one who could bear the fact that TIGER WOODS IS HUMAN! So he keeps it to himself until the urges boil over and lead him into the sorts of things he got into.The more he gets the more he craves.He is so ashamed of his choices that he goes to great lengths to conceal this waywardness until what was done in the dark finally comes to light.I can relate to that.I'd been in a slightly similar situation when i couldn't share with anyone my inner struggles for fear of disappointing people.So i tried to contain it till i popped. I know there are lots of people out there like Tiger who haven't been caught yet.Married women sneaking out at night to swingers clubs,Married men sleeping with their nanny and wives best friends,Preachers stealing church funds,Police officers taking bribes,Accountants cooking the books,People with secret drug habits, Nuns engaging in lesbian orgies, etc. The list is endless.What ever the temptation or the human struggle, people must seek counsel before the situation gets really ugly.I believe we all can find someone to trust if we search hard enough.You can bear your heart to God for a start.Those temptations and urges need to be checked while they are still in their thought form lest they boil over and produce a scandal.However, I don't think its over for Tiger or any "Tiger that's been caught in the woods".We can all have a fresh start.The merciful God made it so.But the decision must first be made.Wish you the best!
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A parcel bomb exploded in the premises of Superscreen, a private television station, in the Onipanu area of Lagos yesterday, ripping off the right hand of the conveyer of the explosive device.
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The incident, which occurred at about 1.30 p.m, sparked fears and apprehension among staffers and other occupants of Logemo House, the multi-storey building occupied by the television station.
Doctors are batling to save the life of the bomb conveyer, while the building has been evacuated.
Daily Sun gathered that the young man, whose mission and sponsors remained shrouded in mystery, had stormed the television house, spotting jeans trousers, T-shirt and canvass with parcel bombs disguised as Christmas gifts.
The agent of death who could not be immediately identified was said to have requested to see the most senior official of the television station.
The security guards on duty, it was learnt, granted him access after questioning him.
Daily Sun gathered that as the man was climbing up the stairs, the parcel of bomb slipped off his hands and exploded, ripping off his hand.
The explosion was said to have attracted the staff of companies occupying the building, as well as others in the neighbourhood who scampered for safety.
The management of Superscreen quickly contacted the police at the Onipanu Police Station who invited the police bomb disposal unit to the scene. The police bomb disposal unit was said to have recovered three unexploded parcel bombs and quickly detonated them.
As at press time, the nine-storey building housing many companies including two churches has been evacuated. However, some armed policemen including those from anti-bomb section were seen manning the gate. Journalists and other sympathisers who thronged the scene were barred from entering the premises.
A senior public officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: “Barring people from entering the place was to ensure that the place was safe before allowing people to enter.”
The police officer further revealed that the Commissioner of Police, Mr Marvel Akpoyibo, had directed the anti-bomb unit to comb the premises. The commissioner was equally said to have pleaded with the medical doctors treating the suspect to make sure that he was alright to enable him to assist the police in their investigations.
When contacted, police spokesman, Mr Frank Mbah, confirmed the incident and said the suspect was being treated in a hospital. Though, the bomb disposal unit had certified the building safe, he warned people to stay away from the area till further notice.
Mbah, warned members of the public to be wary of the Christmas gifts especially hampers and parcels they received from strange people. The police spokesman assured that the security agents would unravel the mission of the suspect, his targets and sponsors.
Letter bomb in history
Letter bomb, also called parcel bomb, mail bomb or post bomb, according to experts is an explosive device sent via the postal service, and designed with the intention to injure or kill the recipient when opened. They have been used in terrorist attacks in several cities around the world.
Letter bombs are usually designed to explode immediately on opening, with the intention of seriously injuring or killing the recipient (who may or may not be the person to whom the bomb was addressed). A related threat is mail containing unidentified powders or chemicals, as in the 2001 anthrax attacks.
A letter bomb apparently timed to coincide with crucial regional elections exploded on May 16, 2001 in the face of a journalist known for his denunciations of the violent Basque separatist group Eta.
By the afternoon, no one had claimed responsibility for the attack against Gorka Landaburu, a reporter for the Spanish Cambio 16 magazine and a national television station. He suffered face and hand injuries.
Similarly on October 24, 2008, Ivo Pukanic, Editor-in-Chief of Zagreb’s second widest read political weekly, was killed late in a car bomb blast in downtown Zagreb. The attack continues a pattern of organized crime in the eastern European country that could jeopardize its EU accession.
However, one of the world’s first mail bomb was mentioned in the 18th century diary of Danish official and historian Bolle Willum Luxdorph, where he wrote that Edward White, formerly an artist at Madame Tussauds, was alleged to have sent a parcel bomb to John Theodore Tussaud in June 1889 after being dismissed.
A Swedish man named Martin Ekenberg used a mailbomb August 20, 1904, targeting CEO Karl Fredrik Lundin in Stockholm. It was made of a box loaded with bullets and explosives.
In 1915, vice president of the United States Thomas R. Marshall was the target of an assassination attempt by letter bomb.
Austrian Nazi war criminal, Alois Brunner was sent a letter bomb by the Israeli intelligence services, Mossad, to which he lost an eye and several fingers.
Ruth First, a South African communist anti-apartheid activist was killed by a parcel bomb mailed by the South African government to her home in Mozambique.
Theodore Kaczynski, the “Unabomber”, killed three and injured 23 in a series of mailbombings in the United States from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
In August 1985, a woman in Rotorua, New Zealand, Michele Sticovich, was instantly killed and a close friend of hers seriously injured after she opened a parcel addressed to her containing a number of sticks of gelignite. Mrs Sticovich’s estranged husband, David Sticovich, was arrested and ultimately pleaded guilty to her murder.
Robert Smith Vance, a U. S. federal judge, was killed instantly upon opening a letter bomb in the kitchen of his home in Birmingham, Alabama, with his wife, Helen, seriously injured. Walter Leroy Moody was later convicted of killing both Vance and Georgia attorney Robbie Robertson by use of letter bombs delivered through the mail.
Franz Fuchs, Austrian mail bomber, killed four and injured 15 with mail bombs and improvised explosive devices in the mid-1990s.
Singer Björk was sent a letter bomb charged with explosives and hydrochloric acid by fan Ricardo López in 1996. The bomb did not reach Björk, having been randomly intercepted by London Police.
In February 2007, a series of mail bombings in the United Kingdom injured nine people, though none of them were critically hurt.
In January and February 2007, a bomber calling himself “The Bishop” sent several unassembled bombs to financial firms in the United States, and was arrested in April 2007.
In August 2007, a Lebanese immigrant was charged in connection with a letter bomb ring in the Toronto-Guelph, ON area; he was responsible for injuring 1 person. He was also responsible for the precautionary closing of a portion of the Don Valley Parkway in Toronto on August 31, 2007.
Dele Giwa, Nigeria’s first victim of parcel bomb
By PHILIP NWOSU
The first incident of letter bomb in Nigeria was recorded on October 19, 1986 in Lagos and the bomb was dispatched to Dele Giwa, a leading Nigerian journalist, editor and founder of Newswatch magazine.
Dele Giwa was killed by the letter bomb in his home located at No. 25, Talabi Street Ikeja, Lagos.
According to reports, the journalist was at home having a late breakfast with a colleague, Kayode Soyinka, when a mail delivery man brought a parcel addressed to him.
The parcel was allegedly delivered to his eldest son, Billy; then 19 years old, who later handed it over to his father.
It was gathered that Dele Giwa allegedly looked at the parcel and commented “this must be from the president,” a statement many said was linked to the seal of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which appeared on the envelope.
Reports said Dele Giwa allegedly tried to open the parcel and a deafening explosion ensued.
According to Giwa’s lawyer, the now late Gani Fawehinmi, State Security Service (SSS) officials had earlier summoned the popular editor to their headquarters on October 17, just 48 hours before he was killed.
The SSS, it was gathered, had accused Giwa of planning a social revolution and of smuggling arms into the country.
Early reports of the incident said government’s coat of arms was sighted on the outside of the package.
Although police investigated the murder, no one was ever prosecuted. In 2001, former Nigerian president Ibrahim Babangida, who ruled the country from 1985 to 1993, refused to testify before a national human rights commission on the Giwa murder.
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Posted by Jane Okinedo on December 22, 2009 at 11:07pm
The Palace of Benin Kingdom on Monday gave the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, one week within which to show remorse by apologising to the Omo N’ Oba, Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa for his sin against the palace.advertisementPublic Relations Consult to the Oba of Benin, Obi (Dr.) Martha Dunkwu, conveyed the palace position on the face-off between the palace and Igbinedion during the quarterly media briefing with the Benin monarch.Igbinedion, who was suspended from palace functions 18 months ago by the Benin Council of Chiefs over allegation of parading himself as the Oba of Benin outside the shores of the country among other offences, was advised to do the right thing by going through the palace chiefs to apologise to and seek forgiveness from the Oba.In the same vain, the Independent Television station (ITV) owned by the Igbinedion was asked to also tender unreserved and unconditional apology to the Oba of Benin for allegedly despising the Oba of Benin.The palace also on Monday asked the Benin Market Women Leaders Association led by one Mrs. Josephine Omoregie, to come to the palace of the Oba and tender apology to the monarch over their conduct and utterances at the palace ground two weeks ago.The women were said to have protested to the palace in their bid to seek forgiveness for Igbinedion by the Benin monarch.Their action, which was given wide publicity in electronic media reportedly, angered the palace, which had queried the behavior of the women.Meanwhile, chairman of the Edo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Friday Obanor, however tendered apology to the Oba over comments he reportedly made in electronic media when the market women protested to the palace.Reports had it that journalists who had gone to the palace to cover the protest were restricted by palace security, but the NUJ chairman reportedly berated their actions, which were said to emanate from palace authority.The comments of the NUJ chairman on television, it was learnt, angered the Oba of Benin.Consequently, the palace on Monday during the parley demanded apology from the NUJ Chairman and he was subsequently forgiven by the Oba.Vice Chairman of the Edo NUJ, Ms Flora Bassey, who stood in before the arrival of the chairman, had earlier urged the Benin monarch to continue his good relationship with journalists in the state, noting that no other traditional institution in the country was doing what the Oba of Benin was doing to journalists in hosting them quarterly for the past 11 years.
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BARCELONA star, Lionel Messi, has been named FIFA World Footballer of the Year to complete a stunning 2009 for the Argentine forward.advertisementThe 22-year-old, who helped Barca win the Club World Cup on Saturday, their sixth trophy of the year, also won the Ballon d'Or award this year.“A magnificent year for me and Barca has ended in the best way,” Messi said after the presentation of the award.He beat off competition from last year's winner, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Xavi and Andres Iniesta.Messi becomes the first Argentine to win the award, which was inaugurated in 1991 and it completed a stunning year for the brilliant winger.He helped Barca to an unprecedented treble of Champions League, La Liga and Spanish Cup last season, scoring the second goal in their 2-0 win over Manchester United in May.This season, the Catalan club added the Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup and Club World Cup to its roll of honour, beating Argentine side, Estudiantes, in Abu Dhabi to complete a stellar year.At the start of the month, Messi beat Ronaldo to the European Footballer of the Year award by a massive margin, 473 points to 233 and has now succeeded Ronaldo to win the FIFA award too.However, Messi has played down the attention, saying: “No, please, I am not king of the world now, nor the number one, I don't believe in those things.“I am the same person as always and I have the good fortune to play in a great team. It was an historic year for Barca and for me, but thanks to the work of everyone.”At a glittering gala at the Zurich Kongresshaus, England stars, John Terry and Steven Gerrard, were named in the FIFPro World XI, voted for by their fellow professionals.Fellow Premier League stars Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic and Fernando Torres were also picked, along with former Manchester United star, Ronaldo.Real Madrid's Iker Casillas was picked in goal and Barca quartet Dani Alves, Xavi, Iniesta and Messi completed the line-up.Ronaldo won the inaugural FIFA Puskas Award for the best goal of the year for his stunning 40-yard strike while playing for Manchester United against FC Porto in the quarter-finals of the Champions League in April.Brazilian Marta won the Women's World Player of the Year for a record fourth consecutive time, beating off competition from England striker, Kelly Smith.The 31-year-old Smith, who played her club football in the United States, starred in the England side that reached the final of Euro 2009.The prizes were voted for by the captains and head coaches of the men's and women's national teams.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 22, 2009 at 8:53pm
Tragedy struck last Friday at about 11:30pm as a 54-year-old man, Mr. Patrick Omini Ewoh, died having marathon sex with his 20-old heart throb at a guest house in Ugep, Yakurr Local Government Area of Cross River State.
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The late Mr. Ewoh was said to have met his untimely death when on that fateful day, he decided to have fun with his little damsel.
An eye-witness told Daily Sun that the lover-man after he had gone out with his wife to visit one of the family friends, who lost the husband decided to drop off the wife and then called up the girlfriend on phone to meet him at their usual sex zone that evening.
A few minutes after, the account continued, the young girl showed up at the guest house, located in the outskirts of Ugep, where they had treated each other to some bottles of beer spiced up with cans of energy drinks and suya in apparent readiness for the marathon.
Having done with little entertainment, Ewoh, who was the treasurer of Ugep General Hospital, proceeded with his ‘baby girl’ to his hotel room for a short time. But barely 30 minutes, the young girl quickly dashed out of the room and headed for the road pretending she wanted to buy something outside.
However, the burble burst when after about one-hour and-forty-minutes the man did not come out. One of hotel attendants tapped at the door persistently, but was shocked that there was no response from inside.
The attendant forced the door open and saw to his chagrin the fun-seeking man panting and gasping for breath, perhaps after a round of sex. He quickly called up the owner of the hotel, one Mr. Thomas Eteng, a retired military officer, who in turn reported the incident to Ugep Police Station for necessary action.
When police arrived the scene, they rushed Ewoh to Ugep General Hospital where doctors on call battled to resuscitate him but to no avail.
Fearing that he might die at the same hospital, where he served as treasurer, the doctors advised that he be taken to Calabar General Hospital for urgent medical attention.
However, 30 minute after they took off to Calabar, the ‘lover man’ gave up the ghost. A close relative, who was in the pick-up jeep that brought him back, confided in Daily Sun that the corpse had been deposited at Ugep General Hospital mortuary while arrangements are on to bury the late Ewoh.
The relative, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the family is trying to fish out the girl and that they have reported to the police for necessary action, adding that the death of his uncle is a shameful thing that does not deserve public attention and wondered how the news leaked out to a journalist.
When Daily Sun visited the Ugep Police station, the authorities refused to comment on the matter claiming that the matter has at Calabar Police Command.
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BE yourself in this season, don't be rough, arrogant insteady be diligent & vigilant, self-control, christmas is the reason for the seasons telling the birth of Christ also given out for the less privilege, orphanage. As the year is coming to an end, so God help us through another years!!Happy Christmas.
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Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Brittany Murphy, the bubbly, free-spirited actress who appeared in such films as "Clueless" and "8 Mile," died Sunday, apparently of natural causes, the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office said. She was 32.Murphy was pronounced dead at 10:04 a.m. PT Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, hospital spokeswoman Sally Stewart told CNN Radio.An autopsy had not been scheduled as of Sunday night, but Captain John Kades, a spokesman for the coroner's office, told CNN that there was no sign of foul play or trauma. He added that it's not unusual for a younger person to die of natural causes.The coroner's office is looking into Murphy's medical history. A final report could take up to eight weeks.The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the death, and robbery and homicide detectives will be at her home, LAPD spokeswoman Norma Eisenman said."The sudden loss of our beloved Brittany is a terrible tragedy," her family said in a statement issued by her publicist. "She was our daughter, our wife, our love and a shining star. We ask you to respect our privacy at this time."Funeral arrangements are pending, the family said.Murphy starred in several movies, including "Just Married," "Don't Say a Word" and "Riding in Cars with Boys." She also voiced the character Luanne on the animated TV series "King of the Hill."She is survived by her husband, British screenwriter Simon Monjack, whom she married in 2007.Fans took to Murphy's official Facebook page Sunday to issue their condolences."She was a great actress and was going to go far in her career! She will be greatly missed!" read one post.Murphy's former boyfriend and "Just Married" co-star Ashton Kutcher posted his reaction to the news via Twitter."2day the world lost a little piece of sunshine. My deepest condolences go out 2 Brittany's family, her husband, & her amazing mother Sharon," Kutcher posted.He added later: "see you on the other side kid."Singer-actress Jessica Simpson tweeted: "Brittany Murphy was an incredible ray of Light to so many people. Her smile was contagious. My prayers are with her family and loved ones."Actress Alyssa Milano, who did a USO tour with Murphy in 2003, wrote on Twitter: "She was a sweet soul, with a lot of talent and heart."Murphy was best known for her work in a string of romantic comedies in the early 2000s, including lead roles in "Uptown Girls" alongside fellow Georgia native Dakota Fanning, and "Little Black Book" with Holly Hunter and Kathy Bates, but her movie roles had declined in recent years.Last month, Murphy reportedly was fired from "The Caller," a movie she was working on in Puerto Rico. Her representative issued a statement to news outlets disputing the report, saying: "She was not nor has she ever been fired from any job big or small. ... [Due] to creative differences Ms. Murphy and the production mutually parted ways," according to People magazine.In addition to her "King of the Hill" role, she lent her voice to a number of animated works including the TV series "Futurama" and the 2006 hit movie "Happy Feet."Her work as troubled teenagers in "Don't Say a Word" and "Girl, Interrupted" also gained her critical acclaim.Murphy was the subject of tabloid gossip after she transformed from a pudgy brunette in 1995's "Clueless" to a petite, lithe blonde who graced the cover of such magazines as Cosmopolitan in 2005. She frequently denied rumors of an eating disorder and plastic surgery.Her love life also was fodder for gossip sites as she broke two engagements in 2004 and 2006, then married Monjack after only four months of dating."All these ridiculous people came out and said all this nonsense when we got married, [but] thank God we had the substance and the history within that to [say], 'Yeah, whatever!' " Monjack told People magazine in a 2008 interview. "We still don't understand what happened. It's made us laugh, it's made us cry, but it's made us stronger."
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This is the short list of how the women of “Fela!,” the Broadway musical about the Nigerian Afrobeat musician and political agitator, do not see their characters: victims, go-go dancers, sex objects.The nine women in tight outfits, elaborate hairdos and painted faces represent the 27 real-life co-wives of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, who married them collectively in what he considered a personal and political gesture as he fought against Nigeria’s corrupt authoritarian regime and defended traditional African culture.The women have no individual lines. In any other show they would be considered part of the chorus. Yet they maintain a constant, magnetic stage presence, dancing and singing at Fela’s nightclub, the Shrine, in the Lagos of the late ’70s. While their stories are not told, their characters have been thoroughly studied and embodied by the performers, who see them as an integral part of the complex and contradictory tale of the man who inspired the musical.“The relationship is more intricate than just a bunch of passive women who let a man do whatever he wanted,” Aimee Graham Wodobode, a dancer who plays a wife named Sewaa, said during a recent interview with five of the wives, called queens, at a Midtown restaurant. “They believed in his mission and were ready to die for him.”Iris Wilson, whose character, Najite, met Fela when she 14 and described him as a combination father, mother and comrade in the fight for African democracy, said, “These were women who stood for something, who spoke out with Fela against the corrupt African government.”Abena Koomson, whose character, Funmi, a former dancer, is pregnant in the musical and hangs back with the band, said: “Fela could not have done what he did by himself. Afrobeat music really takes a community. What it requires is polyrhythm, many different sounds. In many ways that’s a metaphor for community, for the call and response of African music. The queens are that sound, that affirmation.”Fela’s collective marriage in 1978 to the women — many of whom had been teenagers when they first came to the Shrine and then his home to escape their families or find personal fulfillment — takes only a few minutes onstage. Fela says to the assembled women, “Will you marry me?,” and they respond, “Yeah, yeah.”What the audience might not know is that the marriage — often described in prurient terms by the news media over the years — had been publicly described by Fela as a gesture of political solidarity and emotional support for his women after a devastating 1977 raid on his compound in Lagos, called Kalakuta.One thousand soldiers swarmed Kalakuta, beating Fela and raping and viciously abusing some of the women — an episode depicted vividly onstage. Fela’s 77-year-old mother, Funmilayo Anikulapo-Kuti, herself a political counterforce to Nigeria’s authoritarian regime, died the following year from injuries suffered after the soldiers threw her out a window.Within the musical’s kinetic framework the queens’ flourishes are subtle. “One slaps his hand away, one is like his pet, another does not look at him,” said Bill T. Jones, the show’s director and choreographer.The audience has to look closely. None of them like Fela’s African-American lover, Sandra Isadore (played by Saycon Sengbloh), so they maintain a physical distance from her. And even though the performers crowd the theater’s aisles, Mr. Jones instructed them not to “bat your eyes or wiggle your hips at the audience.”Ms. Wodobode, whose character is from Ghana, said: “If you look at our faces and attitudes during the play, it’s not a ‘look at me.’ We are not grinning and gyrating and trying to please. We are there to create a community, to make a statement, to help create music.”Ms. Wilson said one of Fela’s friends helped develop her character. “He said my role in the play is to always be attending to Fela because that is what she did, so you see me lighting his cigarettes, giving him his saxophone, wiping his brow.”Afi McClendon, who plays Ihase, the youngest-looking, smallest queen, said she saw the women as rebels. “In this day and age, feminine energy is so understated,” Ms. McClendon said as she got into her makeup for a show. “They were women who had the courage to define themselves as individuals in a society that was so corrupt and did not allow them to be the individuals that they were."Lauren De Veaux, who plays Alake, discovered that her character was 17 when she met a 35-year-old Fela and went to school with his eldest daughter. “Some of them were D.J.’s at the Shrine,” she said, dismissing the notion that the women were political accessories. “They did choreography.”Nicole de Weever described her role, Adeola, as an intellectual young woman from Ghana with artistic aspirations, from a polygamous middle-class family.Although the women had some dialogue in an early workshop incarnation of “Fela!,” Mr. Jones decided to streamline the show with 9 wives instead of 27 and to present them through Fela’s eyes.“It was unwieldy,” Mr. Jones recalled of attempts to use dialogue. “The people we were working with were primarily dancers, not actors, and I didn’t want to fall into the trap of this being a fascination with polygamous lifestyle.”Like the real-life queens, the performers come from various places. Ms. de Weever is from the Dutch Caribbean island of St. Maarten, and Ms. De Veaux is from Chattanooga, Tenn. Ms. Koomson’s parents are from Ghana, but she grew up in New England. Ms. Wodobode was born in the Central Africa Republic and grew up in Paris. Ms. Wilson was raised in Queens; Ms. McClendon was born and reared in the Bronx.With the exception of Ms. Koomson, the women — most of whom are making their Broadway debuts here and had appeared in Off Broadway incarnations of the show — knew one another through other performances.Much of their information about Fela and his queens came from the “Fela: This Bitch of a Life,” a biography by Carlos Moore, an ethnologist and political scientist who knew Fela. (The book was published in Europe in 1982, and in the United States this year by Lawrence Hill Books.)Mr. Moore met with Mr. Jones and the performers. “I did not want them to appear as they were often portrayed in the media, practically as prostitutes,” Mr. Moore said, speaking by phone from his home in Salvador, Brazil. “It is extremely unfair to these women who suffered so much for their political beliefs. He really loved these women. I saw that.”At the same time, the interviews in his biography show Fela as a man who slapped his wives to maintain authority and used profanity to talk about the centrality of sex to his relationships with women. He was both sexist and savior, pushing the women to educate themselves and using them as political agitprop at times. In the biography the wives talked about their love for Fela and their wish to have his children, and also about their shared battle against corruption and repression anywhere in the world.During 30 years of protests Fela was imprisoned at least a dozen times. After one such stretch, about eight years into the collective marriage, he pronounced the institution of marriage a fraud, and some of his wives left him, according Mr. Moore’s biography. Other relationships frayed over the years as Fela endured prison and later suffered from AIDS. He was 58 when he died in 1997.As far as Mr. Moore knows, the co-wives bore four or five of the children fathered by Fela, and perhaps three of the women died of AIDS. (In 1961 he legally married Remi Taylor.) Today the former wives are scattered around the world, with at least one in London and a handful still in Nigeria, he said.The women of “Fela!” all said they hoped the future would bring a more thorough telling of the stories of the women behind the man. Until then, “it’s O.K. if people go home making up their own stories,” Ms. Wodobode said. “We have a lot of fantasies about the queens too.”
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 20, 2009 at 9:56pm
1. Quantum Mechanics for Beginners
- An Introduction -
How the Princess began to Feel the Pea.
Science is exciting because it is always in trouble. No matter how excellent a theory is, it always misses some point or other. Even our most precious ideas about the universe are not able to explain everything; there's always a blind spot. And when the hopeful folks zoom in on that blind spot it pretty much always turns out to be a lot larger than anybody thought, and all of us a mere bunch of naive beginners.
At the end of the eighteenth century the blind spot of regular mechanics (=the library of dogmas that teach the ins and outs of objects moving and colliding) covered the behavior of very small objects, such as electrons, and the behavior that light caused when it hit small things like electrons.
Light had been a mystery for centuries. Some experiments proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that light was waves. Some other experiments proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that light was particles. The truth about light was obviously hidden and it wasn't until 1900 that people began to understand that there was something very weird about the world of the small. Something that required a complete revision of understanding.
It was decided that the world of the very small was governed by rules that were different from the rules that governed the world we can see, and regular (or classical) mechanics begat Quantum Mechanics. And that unanticipated breach in mechanics spawned this very important rule:
Hold that thought (1):
Individual quantum particles are subjected to a completely different law than the law to which large objects made from quantum particles are subjected.
The introduction of the quantum
The Quantum Mechanical era commenced in 1900 when Max Planck postulated that everything is made up of little bits he called quanta (one quantum; two quanta). Matter had its quanta but also the forces that kept material objects together. Forces could only come in little steps at the time; there was no more such a thing as infinitely small.
Albert Einstein took matters further when he successfully described how light interacts with electrons but it wasn't until the 1920's that things began to fall together and some fundamental rules about the world of the small where wrought almost by pure thought. The men who mined these rules were the arch beginners of Quantum Mechanics, the Breakfast Club of the modern era. Names like Pauli, Heisenberg, Schrödinger, Born, Rutherford and Bohr still put butterflies in the bellies of those of us who know what incredible work these boys - as most of them where in their twenties; they were rebels, most of them not even taken serious - achieved. They were Europeans, struck by the depression, huddled together on tiny attics peeking into a strange new world as once the twelve spies checked out the Promised Land. Let all due kudoes abound.
Believing the unbelievable
One of the toughest obstacles the early Quantum Mechanics explorers had to overcome was their own beliefs in determinism. Because the world of the small is so different, people had to virtually reformat the system of logic that had brought them thus far. In order to understand nature they had to let go of their intuition and embrace a completely new way of thinking. The things they discovered where fundamental rules that just were and couldn't really be explained in terms of the large scale world. Just like water is wet and fire is hot, quantum particles display behavior that are inherent to them alone and can't be compared with any material object we can observe with the naked eye.
One of those fundamental rules is that everything is made up from little bits. Material objects are made up of particles, but also the forces that keep those objects together. Light, for instance, is besides that bright stuff which makes things visible, also a force (the so-called electromagnetic force) that keeps electrons tied to the nuclei of atoms, and atoms tied together to make molecules and finally objects. In Scriptures Jesus is often referred to as light, and most exegetes focus on the metaphorical value of these statements. But as we realize that all forms of matter are in fact 'solidified' light (energy, as in E=mc2) and the electromagnetic force holds all atoms together, the literal value of Paul's statement "and He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together (Col 1:17)" becomes quite compelling.
Particles are either so-called real particles, also known as fermions, or they are force particles, also known as bosons.
Quarks, which are fermions, are bound together by gluons, which are bosons. Quarks and gluons form nulceons, and nucleons bound together by gluons form the nuclei of atoms.
The electron, which is a fermion, is bound to the nucleus by photons, which are bosons. The whole shebang together forms atoms. Atoms form molecules. Molecules form objects.
Everything that we can see, from the most distant stars to the girl next door, or this computer you are staring at and yourself as well are made up from a mere 3 fermions and 9 bosons. The 3 fermions are Up-quark, Down-quark and the electron. The 9 bosons are 8 gluons and 1 photon.
Like so:
But the 3 fermions that make up our entire universe are not all there is. These 3 are the survivors of a large family of elementary particles and this family is now known as the Standard Model. What happened to the rest? Will they ever be revived?
We will learn more about the Standard Model a little further up. First we will take a look at what quantum particles are and in which weird world they live.
(If you plan to research these matters more we have written out the most common quantum phrases in a table for your convenience. Have a quick look at it so that you know where to find it in case you decide you need it).
Summary 1: Quantum Mechanics for Beginners; an Introduction.
Everything is made up from little chunks called quanta.
Small particles are completely different animals than large objects.
The visible universe is made up of 3 fermions and 9 bosons (not counting gravity)
The matter that makes up the visible universe is part of a larger family of particles called the Standard Model.
2. Big Rules for Small Particles
- Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle -
Uncertainty.
A scientific model or theory is supposed to be a cascade of certainties and whenever someone uses the word 'uncertainty' most scientist will run for the nearest airlock.
Great therefore was the consternation when uncertainty appeared to be one of the most characteristic qualities of quantum particles. Einstein even went as far as to boldly state: I don't believe that God plays dice!
But God did. Or so it seemed.
The year was 1927 when a brilliant 26 year old German named Werner Karl Heisenberg postulated a principle that would go down in history as the Uncertainty Principle of Heisenberg. It goes like this:
A large object that moves along a trajectory has, at any point in time, a certain speed and a certain position. Both speed and position for any point along the track can be accurately calculated or measured. But of a quantum particle that zips through space the speed and position can not both be accurately known. Either the position of the particle is known or the speed. And when one of the two is known accurately, the other one is hidden. When we know the speed, we have no idea where the particle is situated. And when we know the position of the particle, we are oblivious to its speed. And that is not because we're not smart enough, or our instruments are not accurate enough. It simply does not exist!
Hold that thought (2a):
The Uncertainty Principle of Heisenberg:
Of a quantum particle, speed and location can not be simultaneously known.
We like to think of speed and position as two separate things but in fact they are two sides of one thing. Just like space and time are really not two but one: spacetime. Einstein was right when he said that God doesn't play dice. He doesn't. In stead He created the universe on a principle of sovereignty. Quantum particles are allowed to surround themselves with mere blurs of their intentions. No one is to know their true speed-position, not even God, because it does not exist.
The Famous Slot Experiment
Quantum-uncertainty has a very peculiar consequence. It can not be predicted where a particle will end up when we shoot it at a target. Particles are sovereign and can not be coerced.
Take a look at the following installation:
A particle canon shoots particles at a screen with a slot. Behind the first screen we place a recording screen that marks the place of particles impact with a black dot. We let the installation run for a couple of hours, or at least long enough to have fair coverage of possibilities.
If particles were regular objects they would have been easily directed through the slot
and on to the same spot on the recording screen. But particles are not regular objects and our recording screen shows a blurred black smudge at the spot we were aiming at.
Obviously most particles hit the recording screen somewhere in the vicinity of our target. Particles can not be coerced but they seem nevertheless quite willing to join the fun.
But the black blur does not have a boundary. It smudges across the entire recording screen, graying out radially until at the edges hardly any impact shows. It appears that some particles chose to avoid the mainstream and steer for the edge. In fact, if we would have placed recording screens all around the canon, we would have seen impacts everywhere, even behind the canon! Some particles simply tear a U-turn and hit a wall 180 degrees opposite the one we were shooting at.
We decide to count the number of impacts directly behind the slot in an area with a certain small radius. Then we count again but cover a larger area. We count more hits of course because we've added surface to the first count. Then we count again, and again until we have a pretty accurate picture of the spread of particles. We plot the numbers in a graph and find a curve that never becomes zero (since particles hit everywhere). This curve was plotted for the first time in 1925 by an Austrian named Erwin Schrödinger and has been called the Schrödinger Wave ever since.
Schrödinger solved the troublesome particle/wave duality paradox that had plagued scientists for so long. The question whether things such as photons were waves or particles was answered with a loud negation across the board: they are neither, or rather: both! Quantum particles are particles that propagate through space by means of chance-waves. That is the wave some scientists had detected. This wave does not propagate through some kind of medium, like water or air, but emerges from the individual sovereignty of quantum particles. Before quantum theory waves always ran through a medium, like the ocean. Take away the wave and you still have water. A quantum wave does not use a medium; it uses chance. Take away the wave (which are the particles) and you'll be left with nothing.
The Famous Two Slots Experiment
If quantum particles that burst forth from their source behaving like a wave, we should be able to observe interference. Interference happens when two waves collide and some parts of both waves cancel out and other parts add up. (To construct a resultant-wave we add up the amplitudes of both waves for all points - above the gray line is positive, below is negative).
And to make two waves in order for them to interfere we take out the slotted screen of our previous experiment and insert a screen with two slots. We fire at will and wouldn't you know... interference! Indeed many particles ride the wave of their identity.
But! we're not happy so fast. We decide to fire off one particle at a time with an interval of one minute between particles. Quantum particles are those things that can not be divided.
Particles must go through one of the two slots, our intuition dictates. Firing off particles one at a time should not produce an interference pattern, we think.
A few hours later we return, and find the recording screen adorned with yep! an interference pattern. How is this possible?
Well, apparently we have stumbled upon the heart of quantum weirdness. The rule is easily derived, but not easily swallowed. We'll have to choke it down: Quantum particles are per definition individable, but they travel through space according to all the many possibilities that they have to choose from. They are not compelled to choose one specific trajectory, but are allowed to travel all of them, according to the chance that they will.
Particles will travel everywhere from source to target, like a smear, thick where the particle is most likely to be, and thin where it is most likely not to be. The smear by which they travel is called a path integral: the total area covered by all possible trajectories.
Interpretation
In the two-slots experiment the following is true:
The chance that the particle goes through slot 1 is x%. The chance that the particle goes through slot 2 is y%. Chance x and chance y are both Schrödinger-waves and they will engage each other to form an interference pattern behind the two slots.
Quantum particles are indivisable but will interfere with themselves to form complex patterns when they encounter obstacles. When we repeat the experiment we will find the same results. Approximately the same number of particles hit in certain areas. Uncertainty appears to have its certainties after all. Or...doesn't it?
What if we shoot one hundred particles at a target and the first ninety nine of them 'choose' to fit the pattern. Then, if certainty existed, the hundredth particle would be forced to land in the only spot left by its predecessors. No way Jose. There's no way of telling where the hundredth particle will go. The last one's freedom will always infringe ultimate certainty.
The more particles we fire off the more accurate we can predict how the spread of particles will be. If we shoot off a million particles, we can quite accurately predict the percentage of hits per area. If we shoot of a hundred particles we can still predict how the spread will be but not very accurately. And if we shoot off one particle we can not make any sound prediction where it will end up. All we can talk about is the chance that our particle will end up in a certain area.
If 95% of one million particles ends up in a radius of 50 centimeter from the projected heart of the slot we can say that there is a 95% chance that particle number one-million-and-one will end up in the same area. But this says nothing about the actual destination of the particle.
Hold that thought (2b):
A large number of particles will display a pattern that is near equal to the initial possibilities of a single particle.
A quantum particle can not be coerced. If it chooses to do so it will end up there where only 1% of the particles ended up. It might even boldly go where no particle has gone before. Nothing is certain. Everything is possible.
Which brings us to another phenomenon: quantum tunneling, which allows a quantum to simply up and leave and show up somewhere else. In fact, there is a very real yet astronomically small chance that all particles that make up you and your computer suddenly decide to zip to Mars. The chance that this happens naturally is so small that we don't incorporate it in our daily experience of reality. But it is certainly not zero. Quantum tunneling is a very real thing, like say electricity.
Before electricity was comprehended and harnessed by man, all natural manifestation of it (lightning, static electricity, magnetism) must have seemed miraculous and magical, but nowadays we don't look up from a illuminating light bulb. Same with quantum tunneling. If the principle is understood and a pact is sealed with the world of the small, large objects such as a human being may be freely transported instantaneously over great distances. Like Philip in Acts 8:39, or the disciples in John 6:21. No magic. No super natural goings on. Just a utilization of one of nature's freely available principles.
Still, even sovereignty is limited. Freedom seems to be something that exists between borders. Freedom has its parameters after all.
Summary 2: The Uncertainty Principle of Heisenberg.
Freedom is the most fundamental principle of the universe
The Uncertainty Principle: Speed and position of a quantum can not be simultaniously known
Quanta move along according to the chance that they do, and can interfere with themselves.
A large number of particles will display a pattern that is near equal to the initial possibilities of a single particle.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 20, 2009 at 9:30pm
* 38 others critically injured
Lokoja-IT was a gory sight yesterday in Dekina, in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State when a truck carrying fertilizer lost control and crashed into a market in the area, killing about 90 people.
Sunday Vanguard gathered that 38 other victims, mainly traders, were seriously injured and were, at press time, being treated at the intensive care unit of a private hospital in the area. The zonal commanding officer of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in charge of Anpka Division, Abdul Adejo, who confirmed the auto crash, blamed it on brake failure.
Governor Ibrahim Idris, who was scheduled for an official assignment in Abuja at the time of the incident, cancelled the trip and immediately proceeded to the scene of accident. The governor, who battled to hold back tears, directed that the injured be immediately taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, for proper treatment.
Idris, who described the incident as a “tragedy” that calls for a state mourning, promised to offset the medical bills of the injured persons. “This is a very terrible situation. I can’t understand why the blood of human beings will spill in this manner,” Idris said.
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Olu Maintain sang his way to the top of A-list acts in Nigeria when he released his celebratory track Yahoozee, but this season seems to be short of celebratory reasons for the crooner. News reaching BASELINE is that Mr. Olu has sold his Anthony Village three bed room flat that served as his residence.A copy of the transfer of ownership made available shows that Mr. Olu had secured a loan from a new generation bank to finance the purchase of the house with the agreement to service the loan periodically. After servicing the loan for a period of time, we gathered the singer couldn’t sustain payments for the house any longer, hence his decision to allow the bank to take over the sale of the house.As you read this, the house has been sold and Olu has been settled with the deposit he paid for the house. As for his new residence, we will surely keep you posted.We’ve Turned Up Our Game - X-ProjectThe trio of Majeed, Saal and Sleez that make up the boy band X-Project say they are not only ready to release a new album, they are also ready to take their game to the next level. The group’s album tagged “Turn it Up” was released under their founding label SKP and us a 14 track album that features a blend of old and young acts in the music industry.From the older generation and the street music scene is the ghetto king Daddy Show Key. The incredible one MI represents the new generation and Hip-hop acts on the album that has beats from the likes of OJB, Chris Okoro and the group’s in house producer Majeed.On why it took the band over two years to return with a single after the success of “Lori Le”, one of the band member had this to say: “We saw the way our fans accepted our last album and we did not want to let them down, that is why we decided to take as much as a year plus to work on this new album and by the grace of God and the support of our label, we have put down this 14 tracks that would prove to our critics and fans alike that we are not a one hit wonder act.”To show their desire to take the game to higher heights, the band is set to release 11 videos from their new album.Cabasa Hits Benue State for New TalentsPlay Me Entertainment has picked prolific music producer Id Cabasa along side yet to be disclosed other music personalities in the country to search Benue State for new music stars through “The Star in Me” talent show hunt.The show which is organized to search Benue State for new talents will berth in other northern states in the near future to help discover young talents from the Northern part of Nigeria. Benue State, according to Ladi Ogungbemi, is a state that has produced great musicians like Tu Face Idibia, Terry G, Black Face, Zaki Azee and Bongos Ikwe, hence “our decision to search the state in search of fresh talent because for every Tu Face you have today, we have about ten undiscovered ones in Benue State.“That is why we want to give them the opportunity. I will like to say a big thank you to our state governor, Gabriel Suswam who has shown great support for the empowerment of young people,” he concluded.Play Me Entertainment is an entertainment outfit that provides content for radio and television in Nigeria.New Kids on the BlockAlthough she might be married with two lovely daughters and once worked for a new generation bank before resigning, Anne Emmanuel Ibrahim who performs under the stage name Anny says “I am ready to fulfill my dreams.” The beautiful mother of two who loves making friends and meeting people, is set to release her second video “You Are too Much” to compliment her first video “Alleluyah” that featured the soulful South-south Keffi.Aside from shooting a new video the gifted singer says she is set to go on a nation wide tour to promote her new project even as she offered a word of advice for other female singers: “No matter what you do as a young lady in show biz, always remember your self worth because your pride as a woman can not be bought with silver and gold.|Anny’s new video is directed by Bobby Hai of Sauti Cinemas.Read more…
It’s that time of year! During this Christmas season, I heard several sermons on the birth of Jesus. Now, in our Western culture that is rapidly losing its once-Christian worldview, Christians and Christian leaders need to use this time, more than ever, to challenge non-Christians. But will they give the vital message people need to hear at this time of history?
I was thrilled to be able to bring a friend who has struggled with the Christian faith for his entire life to church this Christmas season. Just before we arrived, he asked me a question that has been troubling him.
I was fascinated to note that he didn’t ask about Jesus and the manger, or about the shepherds or the angels who proclaimed the birth of Jesus on earth—instead, he asked, ‘Why do many Christians use organ transplants to prolong their life or try to prolong the lives of their children when they’re born with problems when God has deemed it was their time to die?’ He continued, ‘Why wouldn’t a Christian accept their death that comes from God? Shouldn’t they just accept it if they are true Christians and want to go to heaven instead of trying to survive on this earth?’
Now, why would he ask questions like that? The answer is that increasingly, the culture is losing the true meaning of Christmas because the education system and the media continues to indoctrinate people to reject the Bible as absolute truth. Instead, the Christian faith and the Bible is attacked and ridiculed and condemned as a ‘book of stories’ because so-called science has supposedly proved it cannot be true—particularly in its history in Genesis.
I’m sure my friend wasn’t expecting an answer. After all, such questions as the ones he asked have been leveled at Christians for years. (Sadly, many Christians don’t know how to answer such questions, because they, like him, have not believed the true history of the world from Genesis—which explains the origin and meaning of death.)
Now, I was sure the sermon we were about to hear would be from a pastor who assumed people believed the Bible. I thought he would remind them of the babe in a manger and why He came to earth. I realized that my friend needed answers, so he would know that he could trust the Bible before he even heard the sermon. I was pleased he had asked me what was on his heart and what was obviously stopping him from considering the Christian faith.
My friend had viewed death, suffering and dying as something God must be responsible for. He did not understand that death was an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26), an intrusion due to sin. Death wasn’t something that God made and declared ‘very good’ in Genesis 1:31, but a result of sin. I explained that God created a perfect world, and because the first man Adam sinned, death entered the world as the punishment for sin. I had to explain that the earth was not millions of years old as he had been indoctrinated to believe, and thus there was not death, disease and bloodshed for millions of years before man’s existence.
I continued: When man sinned, God as a righteous and Holy creator had to judge sin with death. He also withdrew some of His sustaining power to cause man to experience a taste of what happens without God. Thus God is permitting things like disease, suffering etc., to happen, but He isn’t the one to blame for this—man is. Then it was like a light bulb came on in my friend’s head. With this new view of God, the Bible started to make sense to him.
Sadly, there are many people within the church who accept the supposed millions of years, instead of the truth as given in Genesis. Because of this, they don’t have valid answers for people like my friend, but instead would ignore his questions and instead relate the story of the babe in the manger in the hope my friend would start believing this. [See The god of an old earth.]
Many people struggle with accepting the truth of Jesus and the Bible because they have the wrong view of history. They, like my friend, have been indoctrinated to reject the Bible as a true account of history and the meaning of life. This is a major stumbling block for so many people believing God’s Word and being saved.
Knowing that many non-Christians view God like this and also knowing that they only set foot in church about once a year, I’m praying that Christian leaders will take advantage of this opportunity and address these issues, that are relevant issues for where the culture is at today, while speaking during this Christmas time. This could make such a difference in the lives of many who have a faulty view of God, and thus challenge them concerning the truths of the Bible.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 17, 2009 at 8:29pm
Supreme Court says Soludo is Anambra PDP candidate
The camp of the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Chukwuma Soludo, erupted in excitement this afternoon after the Supreme Court vacated the order barring Mr. Soludo from parading himself as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the February 6, 2010 governorship election in Anambra State.
The victory comes a day after the Federal Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, Wednesday, refused to lift its interim order that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should not recognise Mr. Soludo as the PDP candidate.
Mr. Soludo was taken to court by some members of the party after the controversial decision of the National Executive Council of the party to choose the former CBN governor without any recourse to a primary election. A lower court in Abuja backs Mr. Soludo’s choice.
Although, the Appeal Court is yet to rule on the substantive suit on his candidature, the Supreme Court’s decision means Mr. Soludo will fly the flag of the party in the February elections against other confirmed candidates such as the state governor, Peter Obi; former governor, Chris Ngige and Andy Uba.
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Posted by 9jabook.com on December 17, 2009 at 8:15pm
ONE HUNDred and Seventy ! ! Not One touch am !
The Federal High Court in Asaba today discharged and acquitted the former governor of Delta State, James Ohanefe Ibori, of the 170-count charge of corruption filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The presiding judge, Marcel Awokulehin, had adjourned the judgment three times in the past before today’s ruling.
The trial of some associates of Mr. Ibori at the Southwark Crown Court in London was put on hold to allow judgment to be delivered in the case before the Asaba High court.
The London trial involves Udoamaka Onuigbo Okoronkwo, Adebimpe Foleyinmi Pogoson and Christine Ibori-Ibie, who are charged with conspiracy to defraud Delta State, as well as related money-laundering charges regarding Mr. Ibori’s alleged theft of $140 million belonging to the state.
ONE HUNDred and Seventy ! ! Not One touch am !
Online Comments from some News WebsitesIKECHUKWU OKWUOSA
"THIS IS ANOTHER FAILURE IN THE NIGERIAN JUSTICE SYSTEM, IT IS NOT A SUPRISE TO KNOW THAT IBORI IS DISCHARGED OFF ALL COUNT CHARGES, IBORI WHO LOOTED ALL WE HAD IN DELTA STATE, AND WHO WAS CONVICTED AS A CRIMINAL BEFORE HE BECAME GOVERNOR IS TODAY LET GO OF ALL THOSE MONEY LAUNDRY CHARGES, IN SOUTHWARK CROWN COURT, WE BARELY HAVE SPACE IN COURT AS NIGERIANS TO WITHNESS THE CASE OF IBORI ASSOCIATES, BUT INSTEAD LITTLE INDIAN AND PAKISTANI BOYS ARE PAID £100 EACH TO OCCUPY THE SEATS IN THE COURT ROOM. IF ASABA HIGH COURT CAN PUT UP THIS JUDGEMENT, WHAT ABOUT THE EVIDENCES HELD IN LONDON, THIS IS WHY THERE WILL NEVER BE RESPECT FOR OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM, AND THE COUNTRY NIGERIA WILL NEVER SEE RESPECT ANY WHERE IN THE WORLD, THIS CASE WAS CLOSELY WATCHED ALL OVER THE GLOBE, AND THE ADJOURNEMENT IN LONDON IS JUST TO TEST OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM, IT IS A SHAME, EVEN THE DEAF AND DUMB KNOWS IBORI STOLE OUR MONEY, AND THIS HAS TESTED YARADUA'S GOVERNMENT, THEY ARE JUST DECEIVING NIGERIANS, AND AS FAR AS THERE IS STILL IN-SINCERITY IN GOVERNANCE, WE ARE GOING NO WHERE, THAT CASE WAS DECIDED IN ASO ROCK, HENCE IBORI WAS SET FREE."
Posted by Eleniyan omo london on Dec 18 2009
Na padi padi gofument be this o egbami o , na arrangee gofument be this o yeparipa o. This is infact a sad day for nigeria , with this govt we have embarked on a journey of no return where the forces of evil have triumph over good,we all know the start of the journey but no one knows the end. Marcel Awokulehin , James Ibori and Co looters know that we bring nothing to this world and and we will leave with nothing one day all men will be answerable to the almighty where the ultimate judgement lies. Marcel Awokulehin remember what happen to late Justice Bassey Ikpeme of the june 12 midnight ruling! Marcel Awokulehin the man has finally died in you and you have murdered sleep. My people wait and see a bloody revolution is brewing up where all the blood of all saboteurs,vultures and all their collaborators shall be shed to cleanse the land , we are getting there.
Posted by bio on Dec 18 2009
The ruling should not amaze anyone who understands this country called Nigeria run by criminals and a cabal that should have all its members rounded up and jailed for life, if shooting them dead is too callous an option. Remember this barawo called Ibori is still wanted in the UK? So can i hear anyone say Ibori 2011?
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Posted by Jane Okinedo on December 17, 2009 at 1:40am
As Twitter began to fail on a regular basis, many of its users turned to other micro-blogging services to continue on with their 140-character lifestyle. Some returned to Jaiku or Pownce, others starting plurking, and just recently, an open source Twitter clone launched called identi.ca which has people "denting" (Yes, really - it won the vote). And then there are the true social media addicts who joined each one of these services as they launched. For these folks, maintaining a presence in all the communities can be difficult, which is why finding a universal status updating service can help.To update your social status on multiple services, there are several different options to choose from. We've listed some of the most popular ones below:HelloTxtHelloTxt was one of the first status updating services to arrive and still has the biggest list of supported services - currently 21 - to choose from. This list is the largest thanks to HelloTxt's support of several Twitter clone services that were either built for or that have attracted a non-English speaking userbase like the popular Italian service Meemi, the German and French Frazr, and the Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French beemood.HelloTxt is also available on the go on your mobile at m.hellotxt.com, via email, and via SMS. There's a facebook application, too.Supported Services: Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Facebook, MySpace, Brightkite, Bebo, LinkedIn, Hi5, Plaxo, Tumblr, Meemi, Beemood, Plurk, Gozub, Frazr, Numpa, Mexicodiario, Feecle, Fanfou, Identica.Ping.fmPing.fm is a newcomer, still in private beta (get in with the invite code "pingyoulater"), and is fast becoming a popular competitor to HelloTxt. It doesn't have any of the smaller, foreign language services, but it still has a long list of services available - 17 in total at the moment - including a couple that HelloTxt misses like Xanga and Blogger.In addition to the Ping.fm Facebook app, Ping.fm integrates with IM services like AOL, Google Talk, and Yahoo! Messenger. There's also an iGoogle Gadget, a mobile web page, and an iPhone web app available. Profilactic uses Ping.fm's API to power their status updating service.Supported services: Bebo, Blogger, Brightkite, Facebook, hi5, Identi.ca, Jaiku, LinkedIn, LiveJournal, Mashable, MySpace, Plaxo Pulse, Plurk, Pownce, Tumblr, Twitter, Xanga.SendibleSendible is the latest addition to the list of social media message-sending apps, this one more focused on the ability to schedule your messages than to do mass updates. Although the service supports several different services with more on the way, they have not yet provided an easy way to update all the services at once. However, the fact that messages can be scheduled is Sendible's unique feature, which is why it will have some draw - at least until another competitor comes along offering this and universal updates, too.Supported services: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, SMS, and email. They will also soon be supporting Friendster, Hi5, Orkut and Xing.Read our review of Sendible here.SocialThing!Somewhat mistakenly hailed as a competitor to FriendFeed, SocialThing's goal is really to be more of a "digital life manager" instead. Yes, it does stream your social media a la FriendFeed, but it also allows you to interact with that stream by sending data back to the supported services. In addition, you can use SocialThing! to update your status at any time by clicking on the "Post" link found on the top-right of the homepage.Supported services: del.icio.us, Digg, Last.fm, Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook, flickr, Pownce. In progress are LiveJournal, MySpace, and RSS. Users can also vote on what services will be added next.Read our interview with SocialThing! founder, Matt Galligan here and a review of SocialThing! here.MingglMinggl is a social interaction manager that comes in the form of a browser toolbar for Firefox 1.5+ and IE6+. With this toolbar, you can auto-login to your social networks at once and stay updated with the latest info about your friends' activity on the various services. Via its "Status Blaster" feature, you can also easily update all the multiple social networks Minggl supports at the same time.Supported services: MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, DiggApps!There are several apps out there that allow you to interact with the various social services you use without logging into the services' web sites. However, the problem is that most of these apps focus on just one or two services, usually FriendFeed and Twitter. If that's all you need, then there are tons of apps to choose from including Twhirl, Alert Thingy, bTT, feedalizr, and mySocial AIR. (Plurkers can use Plurkair or Plurk It.)Mac OS users have it even better, though - they have access to a downloadable app, MoodBlast, which updates Twitter, Tumblr, Pownce, Jaiku, Facebook, Skype, Adium, and iChat.However, what we're really in need of is a cross-platform app that does the same. For example, Ping.fm or HelloTxt on AIR would rock. Someone build that please?Read a review of Twhirl and Alert Thingy here.http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/six_ways_to_update_your_status.phpRead more…
Posted by SULE BELLO on December 17, 2009 at 1:35am
Controversy over missing corpse at UCH17.12.2009There was a drama at the University College hospital (UCH), Ibadan Oyo State, over a missing corpse of a woman that her relations came to collect from the hospital’s morgue.The drama, which occurred late Wednesday afternoon, arose when a family came to claim a corpse and the corpse handed over to the members of the woman’s family was not the one they had initially deposited at the morgue.It was gathhered that the corpse, brought by the family, was a female who had undergone a caesarian operation, before her death, but had been taken away by another family in November for burial.Rather than collect the corpse of another woman the family members insisted that the hospital should produce their own corpse for proper burial.According to the eyewitness, the mix-up arose because the names of the two dead women were similar and the fact that the identity of the collected corpse was not ascertained before it was buried by her family.By Sade Oguntola
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Posted by Jane Okinedo on December 16, 2009 at 10:03pm
A 35-year-old housewife who mindlessly hawks human parts in Port Harcourt has been arrested. The suspect simply identified as Modina, an indigene of Agbolo Town in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State but resident in Port Harcourt, was picked up from her shop at the Mile 3 Market in Diobu area of the Rivers State Capital.Police detectives acting on a trip-off had approached her, feigning to be prospective buyers of her weird goods.Unknown to her that she was hosting the wrong guests, the suspect was said to have haggled with her ‘customers’ who had approached her for a human skull for quite some time before she finally fixed the ‘last price’ at N45,000.It was in the process of producing the skull that the housewife- from- hell was arrested.It was gathered that several human parts and the parts of some special animals and birds were later recovered from her home during a search conducted by the police.The suspect who had her primary and secondary education in Port Harcourt allegedly later confessed that she had been on the filthy trade for more than 11 years. She was alleged to have told her interrogators that a penis goes for N60,000 while a female breast attracts N30,000.Similarly, a human tongue and hand cost N40,000 and N25,000 respectively at Modina’s shop.The suspect who said she arrived in Port Harcourt in 1985, was said to have made useful statement to the police on how she gets her supply of human parts.When contacted, Police spokesperson in the state, Mrs Rita Inoma-Abbey (DSP) confirmed the arrest and told Daily Sun that investigation was still in progress.
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