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Ajmer: The Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) on Friday announced to recruit candidates for 575 posts of assistant professor in the department of college education. The recruitment will cover 30 subjects. Candidates can fill forms from Jan 12 and last date for online application is Feb 10. Date of examination will be announced later. RPSC secretary Ramniwas Mehta said that the recruitment will be conducted for 30 subjects, with the highest posts being 60 in geography, 58 in Hindi, 55 in chemistry, and 52 in political science, among other subjects. The recruitment will be based on a written exam and interview, and merit lists of candidates will be declared. There will be three written exams, all objective type, with the first two papers related to the subject, while the third exam will be on general studies of Rajasthan. The written exam will be of 200 marks, with the first two papers being 75 marks each, while the third paper will be 50 marks. Those who are eligible in the written exam will go through the interview, which will be of 24 marks, he said. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , and Mini Crossword .
Towie star Danielle Armstrong SLAMMED by angry fans after showing off incredible 3.5st weight loss in black underwearPresident Joe Biden is commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were released from prison and placed on home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic and is pardoning 39 Americans convicted of nonviolent crimes. It’s the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history. The commutations announced Thursday are for people who have served out home confinement sentences for at least one year after they were released. Prisons were uniquely bad for spreading the virus and some inmates were released in part to stop the spread. At one point, 1 in 5 prisoners had COVID-19, according to a tally kept by The Associated Press. WRAY RESIGNS: FBI Director Christopher Wray told the bureau workforce Wednesday that he will resign at the end of President Joe Biden’s term in January. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI. ECONOMY: The Labor Department reported Wednesday that consumer prices rose 2.7% in November from a year earlier, up from a yearly figure of 2.6% in October. And on Thursday, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said the average rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped to 6.6% from 6.69% last week. SUBWAY DEATH: Daniel Penny, a Marine veteran who used a chokehold on an agitated subway rider, was acquitted on Monday in a death that became a prism for differing views about public safety, valor and vigilantism. A Manhattan jury cleared Penny of criminally negligent homicide in the 2023 killing of Jordan Neely. Ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad fled to Moscow last Sunday, Russian media reported, hours after a stunning rebel advance took over the capital of Damascus and ended the Assad family’s 50-year iron rule. The Russian agencies Tass and RIA cited an unidentified Kremlin source on Assad and his family being given asylum in Moscow by his longtime ally. Assad reportedly left Syria early Sunday, and Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire. The swift events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider Middle East region. TRUMP STAFF: President-elect Donald Trump made another flurry of job announcements on Tuesday, selecting Andrew Ferguson as the next chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Ron Johnson for ambassador to Mexico, Kimberly Guilfoyle for ambassador to Greece and Tom Barrack for ambassador to Turkey. INFOWARS SALE: U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez of Houston rejected the auction sale of Alex Jones’ Infowars to The Onion satirical news outlet late Tuesday, criticizing the bidding process as flawed. GROCERY MERGER: The proposed merger between supermarket giants Kroger and Albertsons floundered on Tuesday after judges overseeing two separate cases both halted the merger. The companies proposed in 2022 what would be the largest grocery store merger in U.S. history, but the Federal Trade Commission sued to stop the deal. — Associated Press 17.29M Average viewers for the Dec. 5 football game between the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, which Detroit won 34-31. It was the most-streamed NFL regular-season game in history. This looks like every other set of dietary guidelines since 1980: eat your veggies and reduce consumption of foods high in salt, sugar and saturated fat.” — Marion Nestle, a food policy expert, after the 2025 federal dietary guidelines were released Tuesday. GOLDEN GLOBES: Nominations for the 82nd Golden Globes were announced Monday, and Jacques Audiard’s audacious musical “Emilia Pérez” led with 10 nods, more than other contenders like the musical smash “Wicked” and the papal thriller “Conclave.” The awards show will be televised by CBS and streamed on Paramount+ on Jan. 5. MERRIAM-WEBSTER: Merriam-Webster announced Monday that its word of the year is “polarization.” Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster’s editor at large, said the choice reflected the nation’s political climate. “Polarization means that we are tending toward the extremes rather than toward the center,” he said. CONTRACT RECORD: Star outfielder Juan Soto and the New York Mets agreed last Sunday to a record $765 million, 15-year contract, a deal that could escalate to $805 million and is believed to be the largest contract in team sports history. Soto’s deal, which equals $314,815 per game, is the largest and longest in Major League Baseball history. GEORGE J. KRESGE JR. (1935-2024): George Joseph Kresge Jr., who was known to generations of TV watchers as the mesmerizing entertainer and mentalist The Amazing Kreskin, died Tuesday at his home in Caldwell, New Jersey, according to his former road manager Ryan Galway. He was 89. SUSPECT ARRESTED IN DEATH OF UNITEDHEALTHCARE CEO
A retired soldier has been charged in relation to a farm work scam through which he allegedly defrauded two women more than $1 million in June this year. Fifty-six-year-old Phillip Panton is charged with obtaining money by means of false pretence as well as conspiracy charges. The Portmore police allege that Panton and another man informed the two women that they could guarantee them a place on the farm work programme in the United States or Canada for a cost of $100,000. The women allegedly paid a total of $1,085,000 to the men who would periodically provide updates on the progress. The women later learned via social media posts that Panton had allegedly swindled money from other persons. A report was made to the police and Panton, who had been previously charged with similar offences, was again charged following a question and answer session in the presence of his attorney. His court date is yet to be finalised. Follow The Gleaner on X and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com .GRAYWORLD Many areas in Bago City in Negros Occidental are still to recover from the massive ashfall that rained on the town, turning verdant green vegetation, roads and rooftops into gray, after Mt. Kanlaon erupted on Dec. 9, as shown in this photo taken in Barangay Mailum on Dec. 11. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BACOLOD CITY—Negros Occidental was declared under a state of calamity on Friday, Dec. 13, with a price freeze imposed on basic necessities and prime commodities to address the effects of last week’s explosive eruption of Mt. Kanlaon. The Provincial Board, in a special session, unanimously approved the state of calamity declaration, which will enable the provincial government to use its P78-million quick response fund to help about 33,806 residents living in the 6-kilometer radius of the volcano covered by the mandatory evacuation. READ: ‘Evacuate now,’ Marcos urges residents near Kanlaon Volcano The province-wide declaration will also allow other localities not affected by the eruption to extend help to the distressed towns and cities. The price freeze was imposed to curb “predatory pricing” by businesses and hoarding of goods, the resolution said. President Marcos on Friday assured the public that the government will step up its response to help those affected by the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon. “We will level up. Any escalation in damages and destruction will be met with a stronger government response,” the President said in a video message amid concern by local governments on the mounting cost of the evacuations. The President said the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and the Office of Civil Defense were already prepared for a worst-case scenario even before the volcano erupted on Dec. 9, adding that the Task Force Kanlaon would “coordinate the appropriate response based on the intensity of the volcano’s eruption and the destruction it brings.” Mr. Marcos said the target was to evacuate a total of 84,000 residents. The forced evacuation was being implemented amid a warning from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology that the volcano could erupt again in the coming weeks. “We will match the wrath of the volcano by extending the same degree of care and disaster response to you,” Mr. Marcos said. As of Friday, the 14,922 evacuees in shelters across Negros Occidental dropped to 10,864 residents because others opted to go home since they did not live within the 6-km radius danger zone and were only affected by ashfall, according to Irene Bel Ploteña, head of the Provincial Disaster Management Program Division. The remaining evacuees were 8,188 in La Castellana, 211 in Bago City and 2,465 in La Carlota City. Only those from within the danger zone were required to evacuate, said La Castellana Mayor Rhummyla Nicor Mangilimutan. Mangilimutan said she was happy the President had heard their cry for help, particularly that they were running out of municipal funds and were relying on donations from other local governments and the private sector. She said they also have to make a long term plan to relocate those living in the danger zone of an active volcano. Marcos has instructed the Department of Budget and Management to release funds for the victims of the calamity. The Department of Health (DOH) was also instructed to continue to be on alert against diseases caused by volcanic ash. “The forward-deployed relief items of the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development), such as family food packs and nonfood items, will be poured into the evacuation centers. This includes clean water, sleeping and hygiene kits,” Mr. Marcos said. The DOH-Negros Island Region (DOH-NIR) Center for Health Development also changed its status from “code white” to “code blue” following the declaration of the state of calamity. “It is intended to supplement the province’s request for more aid for the individuals and families impacted by the recent natural disaster,” said Razel Nikka Hao, DOH-NIR regional director, in a press statement. Code blue, she said, indicates the immediate deployment of health teams, experts and additional units during an emergency response, Hao said. She advised the public to continue to protect themselves from ashfall by staying indoors, wearing masks, and sealing windows and doors to prevent ash from entering their homes. “There is still an active threat with Mt. Kanlaon. The situation remains dangerous due to continuous volcanic activity. We urge the public to follow evacuation orders and safety instructions from your local government,” she said. Hao urged the public to use only clean, safe water for drinking and cooking. “Boil or disinfect water if its safety is uncertain,” she added. At the shelters, evacuees were also advised to maintain proper hygiene, wash hands regularly, and report any signs of illness to health personnel immediately. Meanwhile, the Provincial Veterinary Office reported that 26,006 farm animals have suffered from illnesses caused by the ashfall. These included 1,062 carabaos, 183 cattle, 603 goats, 1,246 swines, 22,250 poultry, 320 ducks, 284 dogs and 58 cats. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . The animals are exhibiting respiratory and digestive diseases, damage skin, rashes, foot rot, cough, loose bowel movement and asthma, said Dr. Placeda Lemana, provincial veterinarian. —WITH A REPORT FROM JULIE M. AURELIO INQ
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking some time to reflect after Chrystia Freeland’s bombshell resignation as finance minister, Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Tuesday. That comes as the number of Liberals who are calling for Trudeau to step aside appears to have grown. “The prime minister, as I understand it, a number of caucus colleagues have said that the prime minister has said that he will reflect on both the decision that minister Freeland made, but also what he’s heard from members of his own caucus,” Jonathan Wilkinson said in an interview with The Canadian Press. “I think we all need to give him a little time to reflect, and I respect that fact that he’s going to take some time to reflect.” The House of Commons is now on its holiday break, giving Trudeau a few weeks to decide on his next move before MPs return to Ottawa on Jan. 27. Freeland’s decision to walk away from the top cabinet job came three days after Trudeau had informed her she would be moved out of the finance portfolio in the next cabinet shuffle. The news came out just hours before she was set to present the government’s fall economic statement in the House of Commons. That kicked off a day of turmoil on Parliament Hill that began with an unexpected cabinet meeting, followed by hours of confusion about which minister might table the important financial update, or if it would be introduced at all. Several Liberal MPs demanded an emergency caucus meeting, and during that evening gathering, some of them called for Trudeau to step aside as party leader. New Brunswick MP Wayne Long, one of 23 caucus members who signed a letter back in October calling for Trudeau to quit, remains adamant that it’s time for Trudeau to go. He said this time “is so different than times before.” “We certainly have more MPs than last time. So, if I had to guess how many more right now, I’d say we’re probably at 40 to 50 right now,” Long said. The attempt to oust Trudeau earlier in the fall ultimately failed to garner support from anyone in cabinet. This time, Long said, at least five cabinet ministers believe it’s time for a change at the top — though he did not identify them. “I certainly am one to say to my colleagues, to ministers in particular: ‘Let’s come out of the shadows,’” Long said. “Let’s openly, once and for all, state how we feel and let’s move forward with what we know has to happen.” Several former cabinet ministers have called for Trudeau to go, including former environment minister Catherine McKenna on Tuesday. “Every Liberal MP should be calling on the prime minister to resign,” she said in a post on social media. “The surest way to elect a Conservative majority and lose all the progress we’ve made is for him to stay. And we need to focus on tariff threat from the U.S. It’s over.” But most current cabinet ministers, when asked, have backed the prime minister publicly. Before question period on Tuesday Treasury Board President Anita Anand and Diversity Minister Kamal Khera, replied “yes” when asked if they support the prime minister. Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said the same. Prince Edward Island MP Sean Casey isn’t convinced this attempt to push Trudeau out will work any differently than when he and 22 colleagues asked the prime minister to resign in October. At the time, Liberal MPs told reporters that Trudeau pledged to reflect on what was said. The very next day, he publicly stated his intention to stay on as leader. Casey does not think the prime minister will take a walk in the snow now, either. “There’s not a single indicator in anything that he says or does that would tell me otherwise. He seems to be absolutely committed and he has throughout the piece, he’s been remarkably consistent,” Casey said. Whenever Trudeau has been asked if he intends to lead the Liberals in the next election the response has been an unambiguous “yes.” Trudeau typically holds a cabinet retreat before the return of Parliament and a long-anticipated cabinet shuffle is likely to come soon. He replaced Freeland immediately with longtime friend and ally Dominic LeBlanc, who officially is now the minister of public safety, finance and intergovernmental affairs. Anand also holds two portfolios, juggling Treasury Board with transport, which she took on after Pablo Rodriguez stepped aside to prepare a run for the Liberal leadership in Quebec. There are also at least five sitting ministers who do not plan to run in the next election, including Housing Minister Sean Fraser, whose announcement on Monday about his future was completely overshadowed by Freeland’s bombshell. It has been a tumultuous fall for the government. The Liberals survived three non-confidence votes in the House of Commons and have struggled to advance legislation because of a filibuster on a Conservative privilege motion related to misspending at a now-defunct green technology fund. On Tuesday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre once again called on NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh to topple the government. Poilievre said Canada needs an election because U.S. president-elect Donald Trump “can spot weakness from a mile away” and the Trudeau government is weak. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet also said a new Parliament is needed “as soon as possible,” and he wants to see an election called in January. Blanchet said Trudeau has lost the political, moral and ethical authority to govern. On Monday, Singh called for Trudeau to step down but did not make a firm comment on whether the NDP would vote non-confidence in the Liberal government, saying only that “all options are on the table.” The NDP, which ended a formal supply-and-confidence agreement to support the Liberals in September, has since voted with the government on all three non-confidence motions, trying to spin it as voting against the Conservatives rather than with the Liberals. Singh has repeatedly said a Poilievre-led Conservative government would cut things New Democrats have fought for like dental care, pharmacare and other social programs.Affordability crisis: ‘Alarming’ new car prices push buyers toward used vehicles, but they’re pricey, too
Dungeon Masters are at the heart of every Dungeons And Dragons game. They world hard to bring together players, provide a solid level of challenge and weave chaotic choices into a story that makes sense to everyone. It’s a hard job and whether they are running the game for you or for other people, it’s okay to gift them a gift for it this holiday season. I’ve included options from all over the budgetary map. This list focuses on third party and other products outside the main line of books because it’s very likely that Dungeon Masters already have those things in their possession. That said, if you are 100% certain they don’t have a copy of the latest Player’s Handbook or Dungeon Master’s Guide , you should definitely consider those for gifts this season. Dungeon Master’s Guide Premium Map Collection Beadle & Grimm’s Pandemonium Warehouse is best known for offering premium editions of official Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. They’ve slowly branched out over the past few years by supporting other games in a similar style. They also now offer dice sets and other accessories. The Dungeon Master’s Guie Premium Map Collection zooms in on the maps in the back of the 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide to provide full color miniature scale maps for encounters. The set also pays respect to the section on Greyhawl by providing a pair of canvas maps suitable for framing or spreading out on the table to plot the next campaign move. The Dungeon Master Screen offers additional information on Oerth while also doubling the secret space for the DM for their notes and other vital game components. Loke Battlemats Terrain Set Loke Battlemats have become one of my favorite battlemap makers. They provide maps in many different styles from small flip books to massive collections and even unusual configurations like calendars and wrapping paper. The different styles and shapes make customizing their maps for a specific scene very easy. Their latest release The Terrain Set, offers some basic terrain types like desert, ice, grasslands, beaches and more. It includes resuable clings that stick in place for things like trees, rocks, ruins and even wrecked ships. Never in all my years did I think playing with Colorforms as a kid would come in handy later in life. Wizkids Icons Of The Realms Miniatures: Return Of The Dragons If you’re looking for miniatures to use on those new battlemaps, Wizkids has been providing them for years. They offer many different kinds of miniatures that come painted, unpainted and randomized. They’ve served as the official D&D minis provider for many years though their other ranges offer everything from superheroes to Star Trek. Return of the Dragons is their latest product in the line which updates their set that supported Tyranny of Dragons , the first campaign for Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition. It’s a set full of dragon minis as well as plenty of heroes and villains to use. This set is currently on pre-order which makes it perfect for the Dungeon Master kicking off a new campaign in the new year. Mini Dungeon Tome Sometimes Dungeon Masters run out of prep time. There are a lot of resources out there to help with this. I like keeping adventures around that I can drop in to a storyline or cut out bits and pieces from for my own original idea. AAW Games offers two Mini-Dungeon Tome books where each dungeon is detailed in two pages with a full map and multiple encounters. The dungeons are groups by group level and by keyword so you can figure out what might be suitable at a glance. These books are built for Fifth Edition D&D and there are versions for Pathfinder Second Edition Remastered as well. The Dungeonmeister Random Monster Generator One of the joys of being a Dungeon Master is flipping through the Monster Manual or any monster book trying to find the right adversary to challenge players. Even with all hose choices, sometimes nothing is quite the right fit. Making up new monsters takes too long...but does it have to? Enter The Dungeonmeister Random Monster Generator which turns kids flip book technology into a fun way to build unique monsters to throw at players. Each two page spread includes are, stats and even a name for the beast. The Challenge Rating for these monsters is between CR 2 and CR 4 with the authors suggesting that at higher levels just throw more of them at the heroes. These Dungeons and Dragons gifts can be purchased directly from vendors, through online marketplaces and Friendly Local Game Stores.
OpenAI's Altman will donate $1 million to Trump's inaugural fundSingh won’t support Conservative non-confidence motion that uses his own words
The lineup is one fewer than this year and tees off with the Procore Championship in Napa, California, on September 11-14, two weeks after the 2025 Tour Championship. Absent from the schedule is the Shriners Children's Open in Las Vegas. After the Ryder Cup next September at Bethpage Black, the PGA Tour events resume with the Sanderson Farms Championship on October 2-5. The PGA Tour's Japan stop, the Baycurrent Classic, will be October 9-12 at Yokohama Country Club followed by the Black Desert Championship on October 23-26 in Utah. The World Wide Technology Championship at Los Cabos, Mexico, will be November 6-9 followed the next week by the Bermuda Championship and the RSM Classic on November 20-23 at Sea Island, Georgia. "With events in four US states, Japan, Mexico and Bermuda, the conclusion to the 2025 golf calendar promises to be exciting for our fans worldwide," said Tyler Dennis, PGA Tour chief competitions officer. Under tighter qualifying rules for the 2026 PGA Tour approved by the Player Advisory Council last month, only the top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings will secure exempt status with the 50 who reach next year's BMW Championship being exempt into signature events for 2026. Those ranked 51st and beyond will take FedEx Cup points into the fall to try and accumulate eligibility points for the 2026 campaign. Three PGA Tour Challenge season events will be played next December -- the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas hosted by Tiger Woods, the LPGA-PGA mixed-team Grant Thornton Invitational and the PNC Championship parent-child event. Tour commissioner Jay Monahan also announced Tuesday that the PGA is searching for a new chief executive officer whose job would be to grow the business side of the operation in light of the $1.5 billion investment in PGA Tour Enterprises by Strategic Sports Group, a set of team sports owners. js/bb
‘Breaking of gridlock’ between Quebec, N.L. is the envy of former premiersThe Sacramento Kings fired head coach Mike Brown on Friday, according to ESPN's Shams Charania. Brown was fired after the Kings suffered a heartbreaking 114-113 defeat at the hands of the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night, representing their fifth consecutive loss. Assistant coach Doug Christie is set to become the team's interim head coach, per Charania . Sacramento won at least 46 games in each of the past two seasons but owns a record of just 13-18 to open its 2024-25 campaign. The slow start was especially surprising considering stars De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis have remained relatively healthy, combining to miss just three games this season. Brown was named the 2022-23 Coach of the Year after helping the Kings snap a 16-year playoff drought, but now he's no longer with the organization. Here are three potential candidates to replace him. Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori has been a candidate for several head coaching openings throughout the past year and he could be considered for Sacramento's sudden vacancy. Nori doesn't have any head coaching experience, but he's served as Chris Finch's top assistant since the start of the 2021-22 season. He has also briefly operated as the Timberwolves' interim head coach whenever Finch hasn't been available. He has some familiarity with Sacramento, as he was an assistant on the team from 2013-15 under former Kings head coach and current Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone. Nori was interviewed by the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers regarding their head coaching vacancies following the 2023-24 season, but he ultimately didn't land either role. He started his NBA coaching journey with the Toronto Raptors in 2009 and has been on the coaching staff of various teams in every season since. Brown already had 563 games of experience under his belt before taking over as Sacremento's head coach in 2022, and the team could chose to go in the direction of a first-time coach for its next candidate. Nori may be the person to fill the role. Similar to Nori, Denver Nuggets assistant David Adelman is a qualified candidate that would potentially become a head coach for the first time in his career if the Kings end up targeting him. Adelman has served as the Nuggets' lead assistant since the start of the 2017-18 season and has been a part of their rise from a playoff contender to a champion in 2023. Prior to his time in Denver, he was on the Timberwolves' staff from 2011-16 before joining the Orlando Magic for the 2016-17 season. While Adelman is still with the Nuggets, he was considered for multiple roles during the 2024 head coaching cycle. He interviewed with the Charlotte Hornets , Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers regarding their respective vacancies. He also previously received the endorsement of superstar center Nikola Jokić. "I really think that DA's a guy who's gonna be next head coach because he has that, I'm gonna say 'head' for a head coach," Jokic said in Jan. 2023, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post . "... He knows the answers. He reads, reacts." Adelman doesn't have any professional connection to the Kings, but he does have a personal one. His father, Rick, served as Sacramento's head coach from 1999 through 2006 and ranks No. 1 on the organization's all-time wins list (395) while also holding the highest winning percentage (63.3 percent) for a head coach in the team's history. It's possible that Adelman may look to follow in his father's footsteps for his first head coaching gig. If the Kings are able to turn their season around with Doug Christie, it's easy to imagine him becoming the team's full-time head coach moving forward. Christie's ties to the organization run deep, as he's already been on Sacramento's staff since the start of the 2021-22 season. He covered the team for NBC Sports California prior to becoming an assistant. The former NBA shooting guard spent five years of his career with the Kings, averaging 10.6 points and 4.3 rebounds per game during 355 appearances in Sacramento. Christie was also the team's 2024 Summer League head coach . There's still time for the Kings to turn their season around, which will need to start with pulling out wins in close games. Sacramento has struggled mightily in clutch situations, which is defined as the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime when the score is within five points. The Kings have found themselves in 20 clutch games this season, owning a record of just 6-13 (via NBA.com ). Despite boasting isolation scorers such as Fox and DeMar DeRozan, Sacramento has routinely let games slip away. If Christie can find a way to help the Kings solve their late-game issues and compete for a second playoff appearance in three years, he'll likely earn serious consideration to remain in the role for the foreseeable future.Kiev Seeks to Win Trump Administration Support With Critical Mineral Concessions
On Thursday night in Singapore, in the fifth hour of the fourteenth game of a world championship chess match that had ground on for nearly a month , Gukesh Dommaraju noticed something surprising and started to cry. His opponent, the defending champ, Chinese grandmaster Ding Liren, had put his bishop on the wrong square and Gukesh saw with sudden clarity that he was about to become world champion — the youngest ever, at 18. Gukesh’s win is a milestone in the history of an ancient game experiencing an extraordinary resurgence. A generational handover, his victory also represents the long-heralded arrival of India, the birthplace of the game, as a chess superpower. And it comes at a time of exploding interest in the sport; not since Bobby Fischer won a Cold War proxy battle in the cool Reykjavik summer of 1972 has chess been so trendy. “The Queen’s Gambit” lit a spark . The pandemic, with its vast expanse of time to pass, created a boom. Since 2020, sales of instructional chess books have skyrocketed. Chess.com tripled its membership to about 150 million players. Online chess streamers, believe it or not, built social media channels with millions of followers keen to watch them play and analyze games, earning small fortunes along the way. This attention has transformed elite chess: more tournaments, more money, more fans. Every day in Singapore, as Gukesh left the glass box in which the matches were played, he was mobbed by supporters chanting his name: “Gooooo-kesh! Goo-kesh! Gooooo-kesh! Goo-kesh!” Bearded and impossibly poised, seeming twice his age, he signed every autograph and stood for every selfie, a far cry from the remote and often-tempestuous grandmasters of the old guard. Students at Gukesh Dommaraju’s school in Chennai celebrate his victory. For Ding, whose fatal bishop blunder was described by one chess master as the worst move in the history of world championship chess, the match was an exercise in heartbreak. China’s first world champion, the 32-year-old Ding is beloved in the chess world for his kindness and eccentricity. Eye contact is not his forte. In interviews, he often loses his train of thought and stares searchingly into the camera; when he feels the conversation is over, he will wander away without a word. But despite this affection, few observers were surprised by the outcome. Since winning the title in Kazakhstan nearly two years ago, Ding had struggled with his health, both physical and mental, and lost his form. Fitness is crucial in chess; in a classical game, which can often last five or six hours, grandmasters burn as many calories as marathon runners. Mental health, meanwhile, is a little-discussed challenge that some say has reached crisis levels. Lotis Key, the mother of top-20 grandmaster Wesley So, said last year: “Perhaps the mental loneliness, continual, obsessive self-flagellation, the longing for unattainable perfection, the agony and ecstasy of its pursuit ... is simply the form their joy takes.” Gukesh, for his part, employed the help of a South African mental coach who had helped lead the Indian cricket team to claim the World Cup in 2011. Gukesh’s win was a blow not only to Ding but arguably to an entire generation of older players for whom time is running out. Every elite grandmaster dreams of becoming world champion, of carving their name in chess history and feeling the weight of the champion’s wreath on their shoulders. For a decade, Magnus Carlsen, the Norwegian five-time world champion , made that dream seem impossible for his opponents. Players who had been the best in their city, in their province, in their country, on their continent, among the best in history, could not move the immovable champion and were forced to reconcile themselves to lesser ambitions. So when Carlsen announced in 2022 that he would not defend his title for a sixth time, he created an opportunity many top Millennial grandmasters thought they would never see: a chance to sit on his throne. For two years, amid this new hope, Carlsen’s contemporaries fought in Azerbaijan and the Isle of Man, in India and Canada, finally to fulfil their greatest dream. It was, it seemed, their time. Yet none, in the end, would prevail. Not Fabiano Caruana, the American grandmaster who was described in the New Yorker at the age of 10 quibbling with his country’s greatest chess coach over pawn structure. Not Hikaru Nakamura, once thought a likely world champion, who put competitive chess on the back burner to become a millionaire chess streamer only to return to the highest levels of the sport “for the content” (motto: “I literally don’t care”). Not Levon Aronian , the Armenian-born grandmaster who as a child studied openings by candlelight amid his chess-obsessed country’s frequent blackouts, the expectations of a nation on his shoulders. China’s chess grandmaster Ding Liren competes against Gukesh Dommaraju in game 14 of the 2024 FIDE World Championship. Instead, it was a kid from the next generation, from the next great chess nation, from the game’s future: Gukesh, the prodigy not yet born when most of these players became grandmasters, who, according to received wisdom, could continue to improve for another 20 years, while the older generation begin to decline, their dream ever receding. Asked how he would celebrate, Gukesh told a story. He had taken a walk with one of his trainers on a rest day during the match. They came upon some bungee jumpers. His trainer said that if Gukesh won the match, he’d jump. Gukesh, who is afraid of heights, said he’d do it too. His short life had been focused on a singular goal: becoming world champion. Now that he had achieved it, other goals had come into view: a more precise performance in the next match; Carlsen-like long-term dominance. But first, he said, he was going to jump off a bridge.
Boys basketball photos: Bishop Eustace at Cinnaminson, Friday, Dec. 27
Presbyterian 67, Youngstown St. 42
A 36-year-old man was finally arrested early Friday morning after he climbed 50 feet up a tree that stood over a 200-foot cliff above Puget Sound, Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders said in a social media post. The incident began Dec. 25 when Olympia police located a stolen vehicle here that was from Seattle. The suspect fled on foot and escaped, but Olympia officers were able to obtain a photo of the suspect, according to Sanders. Then late Thursday night, a 911 caller reported their car was stolen in west Olympia. An officer later spotted the vehicle being driven recklessly on Martin Way, but the officer didn’t attempt a traffic stop. Sanders said the information about the suspect was shared with TCSO. A deputy attempted a traffic stop, but the driver refused to pull over and a pursuit was initiated on northbound I-5. The suspect took the Marvin Road exit where deputies attempted a tactical vehicle intervention with a device called a grappler. The suspect turned down Waldron Lane Northeast, a dead-end road, and crashed into a guard rail near the beach. The suspect fled on foot through a swamp, and a police dog was called to the scene. Lacey and Olympia police helped set up a perimeter. A deputy used an infrared drone and located the suspect after 30 minutes of searching with the K9 team in a marsh. Sanders said the man was dangling 50 feet up in a tree that was hanging over a cliff with a 200-foot drop down to the water. The man climbed down and was confirmed to be the same suspect from the previous auto theft. The suspect was arrested on suspicion of attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, resisting arrest, theft and possession of a motor vehicle, according to jail information.World champion at age 18: Why Gukesh Dommaraju’s triumph heralds a new golden age for chess
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