Two Moroccan Girls Represent Morocco in Le Plumier dOr
By Aya SoulimaniMarrakech – Out of the 15,000 candidates that applied to Le Plumier d’Or, only 60 received awards. Two of these students, Yasmine Laarabi from collège Anatole France and Reda El Fahdi from lycée Lyautey in Casablanca, proudly represented Morocco.Founded in 1997, Le Plumier d’Or is an international examination of the French language organized for eighth graders by Défense de la Langue Française (DLF), whose main goal is to preserve and protect the French language. This examination is held in honor of La Semaine de la Francophonie and is sponsored by the Senate, the Navy, and many other patrons, such as Les Belles Lettres, Tours de France and Editions du Triomphe.In order for these Moroccan laureates to participate, they had to fulfil certain qualifications. First, they had to be in 8th grade, which is called the “4e année de college” in France. It was also mandatory for their class to participate as whole in order to take the examination. Throughout the exam, which was held in January, their French teachers had to supervise them and register each student in the class as candidates in the competition.Ms. Laarabi and Mr. El Fahdi were part of the selected 60 laureates, a grou[ which included brilliant students from countries such as the UAE, UK, India, France, India and Germany. In order to be considered excellent French speakers, they first had to take the exam, which had a grammar section (out of 70 points) and an essay section (out of 30 points). Their French professor was responsible for grading the grammar section. The tests with the three highest scores would then be sent to a committee in France, assigned by the DLF, that would be responsible for grading the writing/essay section.In the 11th of March 2016, Yasmine and Reda, along with the other 58 laureates, were sent letters congratulating them for being the winners of 2016 Plumier d’Or examinations and inviting them, along with their teachers, to the Senate’s ceremony in Paris in order to collect their prizes. The prizes consist of books, games, and watches. The ceremony was held May 25, and the laureates got their diplomas at the beginning of this passing June.
https://jrnl.ie/3286936 By Sinead O’Carroll Sister leads tributes to ‘brave’ Captain Dara Fitzpatrick who lost life in Coast Guard crash She was a well-known senior pilot with the Coast Guard. Mar 14th 2017, 4:30 PM Tweet thisShare on FacebookEmail this article History maker Fitzpatrick began flying in 1990 and started working in search and rescue in March 1993, moving from Shannon to Waterford after almost 10 years.In 2013, she was part of the Coast Guard’s first ever all-female mission alongside her co-pilot Carmel Kirby.“I first went up in a helicopter when I was about 18 and was immediately sold on it – I thought it was the business. And that, pretty much, was it,” she told the Munster Express in 2009.In a video made for students by the Irish Bishops’ Conference in 2008, she discussed her love for the job, as well as the difficulties it brings. Source: BishopsIreland/YouTubeFitzpatrick was also filmed for a RTÉ documentary series on Rescue 117 which saw her crew followed for six months. At the time, the filmmakers described her as “one of only a handful of female civilian rescue pilots in the world”.She is survived by her family and three-year-old son.President Michael D Higgins described today is a dark one in the history of Garda Cósta na hÉireann.“On behalf of the people of Ireland, may I pay tribute to Captain Dara Fitzpatrick who died today,” he said in a statement.“We are grateful for the courage, resolution and exemplary commitment to the aims of the Coast Guard that Captain Fitzpatrick and her colleagues have consistently displayed. Source: Irish Coast GuardUpdated 6.45pmWELL-KNOWN PILOT Dara Fitzpatrick has been named as the first casualty of this morning’s rescue helicopter crash.Gerard O’Flynn, a spokesperson for the Coast Guard, confirmed her death to reporters at Blacksod in Mayo this afternoon.She was recovered from the water in a critical condition at first light today, hours after Rescue 116 disappeared. She was later pronounced dead.O’Flynn said it is a “difficult time” for her company CHC Helicopter and the Coast Guard.“Dara is the most senior pilot with CHC – with the company close to 20 years,” he told reporters.“Outside of her work as a pilot, she did an enormous amount of work in water safety and was always available to do school visits and highlight basic water safety.“For all of us involved in the Coast Guard, and particularly her family, it does come as a big shock and we want to extend our sincere sympathies to her sympathy to all her family and indeed to her flying colleagues at CHC.” Source: TheJournal.ie/YouTubeCaptain Fitzpatrick’s sister, psychologist and Today FM agony aunt Niamh Fitzpatrick, said the family are devastated by the loss of her “brave sister”, asking on Twitter for prayers for the other crew members of Rescue 116.A search operation for the three men is ongoing. The Coast Guard helicopters on scene off the Mayo coast are being assisted in their search by the Air Corps Casa, RNLI boats, the Naval Services’s LE Róisín, garda divers and local fishing vessels. My brave sister Capt Dara Fitzpatrick lost her life in #Rescue116 crash. We are devastated. Please pray for recovery of 3 remaining crew.— Niamh Fitzpatrick (@NFitzPsychology) March 14, 2017 129 Comments Short URL Source: Niamh Fitzpatrick/Twitter Share Tweet Email2 242,936 Views My thoughts are with her family at this difficult moment and also with the families of the missing crew.“It is appropriate that we acknowledge and pay tribute to the efforts of her colleagues at the Coast Guard who have been working at a time, which must be for them, a time of great grief and uncertainty.”With reporting from Paul Hosford in Blacksod, Mayo and Michelle HennessyRead: Search continues for three members of Coast Guard helicopter crew Tuesday 14 Mar 2017, 4:30 PM
Short URL By AFP Thursday 30 Mar 2017, 8:56 AM File image. Tweet thisShare on FacebookEmail this article AN INDONESIAN FARMER has been discovered inside the belly of a giant python after the swollen snake was caught near where the man vanished while harvesting his crops.The body of 25-year-old Akbar was found when local people cut open the seven metre (23 foot) python after it was found bloated and slithering awkwardly in the village of Salubiro, on the eastern island of Sulawesi on Monday.“We were immediately suspicious that the snake had swallowed Akbar because around the site we found palm fruit, his harvesting tool and a boot,” said Junaidi, a senior village official, who like many Indonesians goes by only one name.Worried relatives launched a search for Akbar after he failed to return home from a trip to the family’s plantation on Sunday.Junaidi said the snake had swallowed the farmer whole, adding that it was the only such fatality recorded in the region.The breed of snake, which regularly tops 20 feet, is commonly found in Indonesia and the Philippines.While the serpents have been known to attack small animals, attempts to eat people are rare.In 2013, a security guard on the tourist island of Bali was killed by a python at a luxury beachfront hotel.- © AFP 2017Read: Another blow for Trump’s new travel ban as court blocks it indefinitelyRead: Fears cyclone will turn parts of Great Barrier Reef into ‘underwater wasteland’ File image. Image: Shutterstock/GrooveZ Farmer’s body discovered inside giant python in Indonesia Worried relatives launched a search for the farmer after he failed to return home.
Share38 Tweet Email10 Image: Shutterstock/GrooveZ Mar 30th 2017, 8:56 AM 23,258 Views http://jrnl.ie/3314531 36 Comments 
Rishi Jaitly, Twitter’s India head, has announced his resignation. In a series of tweets on Tuesday, he said that he wants to “move to new opportunities.” Jaitly had joined the microblogging site’s India operations in November 2012. The news comes within two months of Twitter deciding to shut down its engineering operations in India, laying off about 20 employees in the process.He follows Shailesh Rao, who quit the San Fransisco-based social media network in July this year as vice-president, international operations, four years after joining the organisation in February 2012.Jaitly said that he is moving to Chicago, hinting that he may be joining an organisation with a civic orientation. He said he would continue to pursue his “mission” of harnessing technology for connecting people with leaders.At Twitter, Jaitly was responsible for its operations across Asia Pacific and the Middle East.Today, after 4 years of user/business momentum in India & the region, I’m sharing my intention to move on to new opportunities, same mission— Rishi Jaitly (@rsjaitly) November 1, 2016 My mission remains the same: harness tech/media’s scale to connect users/citizens to their voice/agency/leadership in places they care about— Rishi Jaitly (@rsjaitly) November 1, 2016 While a personal/civic calling takes me to Chicago, I’ll spend significant time in India/Asia, drawing on my past to further tech’s promise.— Rishi Jaitly (@rsjaitly) November 1, 2016
Nikesh Arora has been appointed as the new CEO of Palo Alto Networks and he is being paid a whopping $128 million packageNadine Rupp/Getty ImagesCybersecurity brand Palo Alto Networks has named former SoftBank Group Corp president Nikesh Arora as its chief executive officer and chairman. Arora succeeds Mark McLaughlin, who will remain with Palo Alto as the company’s vice-chairman.Arora begins his role as the CEO and chairman at Palo Alto on Wednesday, June 6, and has reportedly been given a package of about $128 million, which is about Rs 850 crore. The 50-year-old is also investing about $20 million (about Rs 130 crore) in shares of Palo Alto, apparently to prove his loyalty to the company.”It’s sort of like put your money where your mouth is,” Fortune quoted him as saying.Who is Nikesh Arora?Born on February 9, 1968, in Ghaziabad, Arora is an Indian businessman.He is an alumnus of the IIT, BHU in Varanasi and went on to get an MBA from the Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts.After starting his career with Fidelity Investments in 1992, Arora joined Google in 2004 where he had held many senior-level postsHe was the company vice president for Europe operations from 2004 to 2007 and went on to become the president Europe, Middle East and Africa from 2007 to 2009.Arora was also the senior vice president and chief business officer of Google Inc. between January 2011 and July 2014.He resigned from Google in 2014 and joined SoftBank Corp.The 50-year-old has also been on the board of directors of several other firms such as Airtel, Aviva, Colgate-Palmolive, and Richemont Sprint to name a few.As Softbank is known to have investments in Ola, Snapdeal, Oyo and a few other firms, Arora had board positions and other rights in these brands.Arora has also worked with T-Mobile and was the CEO and founder of T-Motion PLC, which merged with T-Mobile International in 2002.Arora married Delhi socialite Ayesha Thapar in 2014. He was earlier married to Kiran and the former couple have a daughter.At Palo Alto, Arora will be entitled to equity awards of about $126 million, half of which banks on him staying at Palo Alto and the other half on if the firm manages to at least double its shares. Under McLaughlin, the California-based company is known to have seen a five-fold since its initial public offering in 2012.Meanwhile, McLaughlin believes that Arora will be able to do take the firm places and seemed pleased with the appointment. “The company is executing extremely well and is the clear leader in next-generation security,” he said in a statement.”Over the course of several quarters, I have been discussing succession planning with the Board and I couldn’t be more pleased that we have found a leader in Nikesh who is ideally suited to take the company on the next leg of its journey. I look forward to working with Nikesh as we transition and serving as vice chairman of the Board.”Arora too seems immensely proud and said that he has grown very fond of the company and its values and culture and that the team will work towards providing flawless security to its customers.Apart from the stock options, Arora will draw an annual base salary of $1 million (about Rs 6.7 crore).Looking fwd to working with the Palo Alto Networks team. Mark, Nir, Lee, Rajiv, Rene and many others have built a unique company. Feel honored to become a part of it. https://t.co/vM07vameE3— Nikesh Arora (@nikesharora) June 2, 2018
Michael Marks/Texas StandardCattle stand in a Brazoria County pasture surrounded by Snow on the Mountain and other weeds.Up and down the Gulf Coast, Texans are still trying to get back to where they were before Hurricane Harvey. Some have had to rebuild from the ground up. For others, the trouble is with the ground itself.Fifty miles south of Houston in Brazoria County, Jessica Chase and Brady Stark are examining a piece of grass they found in Stark’s pasture.“This came in with Harvey. It’s a summer annual weed and it can reach up to three-and-a-half feet tall – yours are getting close,” Chase says.Chase is a Texas A&M Agrilife extension agent for Brazoria County. One of her jobs is to help landowners like Stark keep their pastures in good shape: identifying weeds like the Pennsylvania Smartweed she and Stark are looking at, and suggesting herbicides and fertilizers.And that’s important work in Brazoria County. It’s an exceptionally green place, where people raise cattle and horses, rice and sorghum. Stark’s been here since 1995. Over that time, he’s worked hard to keep his pastures in good shape for the cattle he raises. And they were in good shape until Hurricane Harvey.“After Harvey it was like, about a foot to maybe 16 inches deep. All over. I had water in the barns, but not in the house,” Stark says.His cattle were fine, but the pastures sat underwater for two weeks. They were caked in mud for another month after that. And once the mud washed off, the weeds came. Stark’s been able to get rid of a lot of them, but a ride around his property shows there’s still plenty left – with new species continuing to pop up. As we drive around to the backside of his pond, something catches Chase’s eye.“Did you have this thistle before Brady?” Chase asks.Chase is talking about a patch of plants that all have thin, spiny stems with equally prickly bulbs on top.“Now that you mention it I’ve seen several patches of this too,” Stark says.“I’ve seen several patches of it around. It is a thistle, I believe it’s blessed milk thistle. So that’s another one that’s been popping up also,” Chase says.Rains from Hurricane Harvey acted like a conveyer belt for weeds. As rivers, creeks and bayous breached their banks, they carried plant material with them. The water sitting over pastures like Stark’s became a soupy slurry of seeds.“Basically whatever your neighbors had that you worked so hard to keep off of your land – or the neighbor two miles up the road – is now on your property because that water just floated it all across,” Chase says. “So basically everything that everybody had in the county is mixed all over the place.”Repairing pastures is expensive and time-consuming. But if you’re trying to raise livestock, you’ve got to do it. Cattle and horses usually won’t eat weeds, and even if they did, they wouldn’t get nearly the nutritional value they would from eating grass. Some weeds, like Snow on the Mountain – a species that has thrived after Harvey – are even toxic to cattle.Now many pastures affected by the storm have recovered. But others are still in bad shape, maybe too far gone to be salvaged. As I was driving around Brazoria County, I stopped to take a closer look at a property just outside Angleton, the county seat. The place was surrounded by a barbed wire fence and had a cattle guard leading up to the driveway. There are no cows. And the reason for that is that weeds have completely and totally taken over the pastures. All the grassy area around the house, which I would estimate probably comprises 15 to 20 acres, it is entirely weeds.Some of them came up to my waist, others were over my head. It’s a fate that Kevin Reifel’s been trying to avoid on his own land. He drove me over to take a look at some property between the San Bernard and Brazos rivers. He keeps a few horses on it, and he and his brother *used to raise cattle there too.“This was our main pasture and we have sold all the cows off of it,” Reifel’s says.The plot that was once thick with healthy Bermuda grass is now empty except for scrubby, spiny stands of weeds in between patches of mud. Reifel’s brother’s house flooded during the storm. He’s building a new one – this time raised up on 12 foot beams. But they had to sell their cattle after Harvey because they couldn’t take on both rebuilding a house and a pasture. To get it back in order, they’ll have to start over: till up the field, spray herbicides for all the weeds, and then replant the grass. Reifel knows better than most how much that will cost. He owns the local feed and ranch supply store in the city of Brazoria, so he’s had a big part in getting people what they need to get back to normal.“Grass seed, grass seed, grass seed – that a lot. Insecticide, herbicides, and feed. So just about everything that I sell, they’ve been buying,” Reifel says.Harvey’s been a boon for Reifel’s business he wishes never happened. In his part of Texas, the struggle against weeds and loss of good grass could go on for years. Because even though you might kill a weed above ground, it could still be alive below the surface. So for people like Brady Stark, getting back to normal will take time…“But I’ll get back. Just don’t know when,” says Brady Stark. Share
Hassell completed his 10th season working with the Louisville baseball program in 2019, having been with the program from 2008-11 and returning before the 2014 season. His first experience at the international level began immediately following Louisville’s fifth appearance at the College World Series. “USA Baseball is something I’ve wanted to be a part of ever since I started my career as an athletic trainer,” Hassell said. “USA Baseball is such a first class organization from top to bottom and I’m so thankful they gave me this chance to work with such a great coaching staff, not to mention what is most likely the next generation of big leaguers.” Hassell worked alongside UofL head coach Dan McDonnell, who served as the manager of the team, during the four-week period that saw the USA CNT compete across North Carolina against Cuba before series in Taiwan and Japan. Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram at @LouisvilleBSB. Print Friendly Version “Working in college baseball for 14 years has given me so many memories and experiences that I’ll never forget, but having the opportunity to represent the United States and the University of Louisville in international competition is hard to top.” The USA Baseball Collegiate National Team was made up of an elite group of collegiate players from across the country, including a pair of student-athletes from UofL. Reid Detmers and Lucas Dunn competed for Team USA this summer, while Alex Binelas, Michael Kirian and Bobby Miller were all invited to training camp and Gabe Burchell served as the bullpen catcher. Team USA picked up victories in four of its five games in the 8th Annual USA vs. Cuba International Friendship Series before heading across the globe to Taiwan. There, the USA CNT won two out of three to capture the 19th USA vs. Chinese Taipei International Friendship Series before falling 3-2 in the 43rd USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Series to wrap up the summer. LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville Associate Director of Sports Medicine Pat Hassell represented the Cardinals on the international stage this summer, working as the athletic trainer for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. Story Links
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Ladysmith Gazette journalists caught up with law enforcement officers on Tuesday morning (January 31) at the RTI base just outside Ladysmith while they were checking driver’s licences, outstanding warrants of arrest and if vehicles were roadworthy.Police, Public Safety, RTI and Home Affairs officials participated in the roadblock.The scorching sun was the last thing on the officers’ minds, as they busied themselves with making sure the rules of the road were adhered to.The roadblock started at 8am and finished at 11am.Officers determined to keep our roads safe.
Mary Coyle ice cream to reopen in central Phoenix Top Stories Also that year, Binayak Sen, a doctor and activist working with tribal poor in India’s Chhattisgarh state, was convicted of sedition and sentenced to life in prison. The local government said Sen used his medical work as a front to support the cause of a Maoist insurgency in that state. He was later released on bail by India’s top court and is appealing his conviction.(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) NEW DELHI (AP) – A political cartoonist who was jailed on sedition charges for drawings that mocked corruption in the Indian government was released on bail Wednesday.Supporters cheered and waved flags as Aseem Trivedi walked out of Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail after a high court said there was no need to hold him in prison.Trivedi had earlier refused bail until all charges against him were dropped. The local government has promised to review the charges against him. 4 sleep positions for men and what they mean Construction begins on Chandler hospital expansion project Sponsored Stories Former Arizona Rep. Don Shooter shows health improvement Comments Share Clean energy: Why it matters for Arizona The difference between men and women when it comes to pain Sedition is punishable by up to life in prison.“When you hear the word `sedition’ you are transported to 1857 where there is a king and citizens are afraid to criticize him. We must rethink the law,” Trivedi told reporters after his release.India’s sedition laws date to the 1800s when the country was a colony of Britain. They have been used in the past to punish rights activists.Trivedi was arrested Sunday based on a political activist’s complaint that his cartoons insulted the country. The arrest highlighted the government’s increased sensitivity to criticism.A day later, amid protests by free-speech advocates and opposition parties, R.R. Patel, the home minister of Maharashtra state, said the government would review Trivedi’s case.Trivedi was one of two winners of the 2012 “Courage in Editorial Cartooning Award” by the U.S.-based Cartoonists Rights Network International.His cartoons mocked corruption among Indian politicians and were displayed at a Mumbai protest in December by anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare.In 2010 Indian police sought to charge Booker Prize winner and social activist Arundhati Roy with sedition for questioning India’s claim over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Bottoms up! Enjoy a cold one for International Beer Day
Capping off a week of meetings between mortgage servicing professionals and related government agencies in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, representatives from the National Mortgage Servicing Association’s (NMSA) Joint Federal Agency Task Force met with HUD for a collaborative discussion about the future of the industry.The NMSA Task Force group met with government officials at HUD’s headquarters to discuss the pressing issues facing the mortgage servicing sector, including matters related to the servicing of FHA loans. The Task Force meeting followed Wednesday’s general assembly of the NMSA membership, which included the announcement of Wes Iseley, Senior Managing Director at Carrington Mortgage Holdings, as the group’s incoming Chair, taking over from outgoing Chair Ray Barbone, EVP of Mortgage Services for BankUnited. The NMSA meeting also included a legal update presentation from Legal League 100 Chair Roy Diaz, who discussed matters such as the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in the case of Obduskey v. McCarthy & Holthus LLP, which found that businesses engaged in nonjudicial foreclosure proceedings are not considered “debt collectors” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.Iseley told MReport, “NMSA members had a productive meeting with Brian Montgomery, Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Housing and Commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, and his staff, to discuss recommendations to benefit FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund, the industry, and homeowners. The NMSA membership looks forward to continued discussions towards advancing these and other important recommendations.”“Today’s meeting was a productive and important step in continuing to address the challenges facing the industry,” said Ed Delgado, President & CEO of Five Star Global. “We thank HUD and Commissioner Montgomery for their commitment to homeownership and look forward to a continuing dialog in order to best support the needs of the American homeowner.”Thursday’s meeting wrapped up a week of events that began on Tuesday with the 10th annual Five Star Government Forum at the Newseum, where leaders from the mortgage industry engaged in an open dialogue with their government peers, including representatives from HUD, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, CFPB, the Department of the Treasury, Ginnie Mae, and FHFA.The Government Forum included a full lineup of presentations, discussion, and education, including keynote addresses from both HUD Secretary Dr. Benjamin Carson and The Hon. Brian D. Montgomery, Acting Deputy Secretary and Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing Commissioner, HUD. FHA FHA loans HUD NMSA 2019-04-25 David Wharton in Daily Dose, Featured, Government, News, Servicing National Mortgage Servicing Association, HUD Discuss FHA Loans
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MPs invited by a Swedish medical cannabis company to visit their facilities in Zurich were forbidden to go by House president Demetris Syllouris on Thursday,on the grounds the trip may influence their vote on the upcoming medical cannabis bill.The invitation for the all-expenses-paid trip to Zurich on November 19-21 was sent to the House health committee, which is deliberating the bill seeking to allow the cultivation and distribution of medical cannabis. The bill is due before the House plenum for a vote by the beginning of December at the latest.According to media reports, the specific Swedish company is interested in obtaining one of the two licences, valid for 15 years, included in the bill for the cultivation and distribution of medical cannabis in Cyprus, and to invest in cultivation facilities, should the bill be approved by the plenum.In view of this, Syllouris forbade the MPs to take the trip to Zurich, as it may influence their judgement in the upcoming voting, especially since the trip is just a few days prior.On Wednesday, the ethics committee, in the presence of Syllouris, decided that new and tougher laws aiming at greater transparency over MPs possible conflicts of interest will be drawn up.Medicinal cannabis is expected to be given on prescription to patients suffering from chronic painful conditions associated with cancer, HIV, degenerative diseases of the motor system, rheumatic diseases, neuropathy and glaucoma, among others. It will also be given to patients suffering from Tourette’s syndrome and Crohn’s disease (ulcerative colitis).You May LikeSecurity SaversWindows Users Advised To Do This TodaySecurity SaversUndoMBA Degrees | Search AdsMBA Programs Online – See For YourselfMBA Degrees | Search AdsUndoPlarium I Vikings: Free Online GamePlay this for 1 minute and see why everyone is addictedPlarium I Vikings: Free Online GameUndo Concern over falling tourism numbersUndoThe Deniz boat incident showed clearly the intentions of the Turkish sideUndoIsraeli rape suspects freed, woman who alleged assault arrested (Updated)Undoby Taboolaby Taboola
