Dortmund break Champions League record, Real and Leicester advance to last 16
Borussia Dortmund beat Legia Warsaw in a pulsating 8-4 victory on Tuesday that broke the record for goals scored in a Champions League match.The record was set in injury time when Marco Reus, who had earlier scored twice, unleashed a shot that was deflected into the net by Legia captain Jakub Rzezniczak. The 12 goals were one more than the total when Monaco beat Deportivo La Coruna 8-3 on November 5, 2003.Shinji Kagawa scored twice for Dortmund, while Aleksandar Prijovic also got two for Legia.In the two matches against the Polish side, Dortmund scored a total of 14 goals, having won the first leg 6-0. (Also read: Usain Bolt plans to train with Borussia Dortmund)The winner of Group F will be decided in the final round when Dortmund visits Real Madrid. Both teams are through to the round of 16. Dortmund has 13 points and Real Madrid 11. Sporting, which lost 2-1 to Real Madrid, has three points and Legia one.The scoring bonanza included a four-minute spell in the first half with three Dortmund goals, two of them from Kagawa.Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel made nine changes to the side that beat Bayern Munich over the weekend. Reus, the captain for the match, played his first game since a groin injury in May.”That’s how you imagine a comeback after a long time. I’m fine now, it’s great that I could play from the start,” Reus said. “But it was tough. I’ve been out for a long time.”Dortmund’s final goal came from a pass by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the club’s top scorer, who came on with 20 minutes left. He did not score, although he hit the post.advertisementAubameyang passed across the penalty area and Reus hit a low shot that struck Rzezniczak and slipped through the legs of Legia goalkeeper Radoslaw Cierzniak.”It’s fantastic for Reus, I am really pleased,” Tuchel said. “I’ve never had such a game, though, so I don’t really know how to analyze it. We scored a clear victory, but I really don’t know what to say.”Dortmund’s reshuffled defense was caught out in the 10th minute, when Vadis Odjidja crossed into the area. Prijovic controlled the ball and then curled it inside the far post with the outside of his right boot.Dortmund replied quickly. Kagawa stooped at the far post for a rare header off a cross from Ousmane Dembele in the 17th. One minute later, Kagawa and Dembele swapped passes before Kagawa drilled in with his left foot. And in the 20th, Cierzniak tried to punch out a free kick, only for the ball to hit Nuri Sahin and bounce into the net.The action never stopped and in the 24th Prijovic got his second, shooting through the legs of a defender. Prijovic nearly had a hat trick, but hit the crossbar from point-blank range.The ball soon ended up in Dortmund’s possession and Sahin fed Reus, who set up Dembele. Dembele fooled two defenders before shooting under Cierzniak in the 29th. Reus then completed the seven-goal scoring fest in the first half by tapping in a low cross from Kagawa.Reus got his second in the 52nd, again from close range from a Dembele pass, to make it 6-2.Michal Kucharczyk pulled one back for Legia, before Felix Passlack scored after a great run by Christian Pulisic, who crossed for Andre Schuerrle. His shot was blocked, but Passlack headed the rebound into the net.Nemanja Nikolic scored Legia’s fourth, before Rzezniczak’s own-goal completed the win.A small group of Legia supporters made it into the stadium although UEFA had imposed a ban after Polish fans had created disturbances in the match at Real Madrid.REAL MADRID 2 – 1 SPORTING LISBONDefending champion Real Madrid advanced from the group stage of the Champions League for the 20th straight time after beating 10-man Sporting Lisbon 2-1 on Tuesday.Karim Benzema came off the bench to get the late winner in the 87th minute.A draw would have been enough to get Madrid through to the knockout stages anyway, but victory gave the team a chance to finish first in Group F with a home victory over Borussia Dortmund in the final round.LEICESTER CITY 2 – 1 CLUB BRUGESLeicester City added another tale of remarkable success to an incredible year by reaching the last 16 of the Champions League in their debut season with a 2-1 victory over Club Bruges on Tuesday.A volley from Shinji Okazaki and a Riyad Mahrez penalty put Leicester two goals ahead in the first half and they managed to see off a revival from the visitors who pulled one back with a fine individual effort after the break from Jose Izquierdo.advertisementThe result moved the Premier League champions to 13 points from five matches and not only ensured their spot in the knockout stages, but also their status as Group G winners with one match to spare.JUVENTUS 3 – 1 SEVILLAJuventus came from behind to secure a 3-1 win at Sevilla and reach the Champions League knockout stage on Tuesday, helped by a controversial penalty and a first-half sending-off.Nicolas Pareja gave Sevilla an early lead but it fell apart for the hosts after Franco Vazquez was booked twice in a five-minute spell and Juve’s Claudio Marchisio levelled with a hotly-protested penalty in first-half stoppage time.Late goals by Leonardo Bonucci and Mario Mandzukic for the visitors then settled a petulant game that produced 31 fouls and eight yellow cards.MONACO 2 – 1 SPURSMonaco cruised into the Champions League last 16 at the expense of Tottenham Hotspur as goals by Djibril Sidibe and Thomas Lemar earned a 2-1 Group E win that would have been more emphatic but for visiting keeper Hugo Lloris.All the goals came in a breathless spell just after halftime as Sidibe headed home in the 48th minute only for Harry Kane to equalise from the penalty spot four minutes later.Lemar put Monaco back in front a minute later with an angled shot and France international Lloris, who saved a first-half spot kick from Radamel Falcao, spared the Londoners a thrashing.Monaco are assured of top spot with 11 points from five games, four more than Bayer Leverkusen who go through to the knockout round as runners-up.FC COPENHAGEN 0 – 0 FC PORTOFC Porto missed their chance to book a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League as Danish champions FC Copenhagen held them to a 0-0 draw at the Parken Stadium in their Group G clash on Tuesday.The first 45 minutes were played at an electrifying pace with plenty of aggression from both sides but despite a number of chances at both ends, neither could find a way to break the deadlock.Copenhagen keeper Robin Olsen made a scrambling double save to thwart Andre Silva midway through the second half and he was called into action on several other occasions as the Danes hung on to keep their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stage alive.(With inputs from AP and Reuters)
Amaravati, Aug 31 (PTI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu today announced a reward of Rs one crore to archer Vennam Jyoti Surekha, who received the prestigious Arjuna award two days ago.He also announced a 500- sq yd house site in Vijayawada and a government job for her. Surekha met the Chief Minister here this afternoon.The Chief Minister lauded her achievements in the field of archery and promised full support for her to excel further.”Surekha did Andhra Pradesh proud by winning 70 medals at national and international archery competitions. She is also the youngest to receive Arjuna award from south India,” the Chief Minister said.Surekha, who is currently pursuing her MBA, told the Chief Minister that bagging a Olympic medal for the country was her aim.Chandrababu asked the Special Chief Secretary (Youth Affairs and Sports) to identify top ten sports-persons in the state and extend all necessary support for them to excel in their fields.The Chief Minister also announced Rs 10 lakh reward for 10-year-old Devisri Prasad of Tirupati on setting the Guinness World Record in skating.Prasad achieved the feat by skating under 60 cars, covering a distance of 115 meters (forward and backward).The Chief Minister congratulated the kid on the achievement. PTI DBV NRB
TOKYO (AP) — The International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo organizing committee wrapped up a two-day project review on Wednesday vowing to cut costs for the 2020 Games and address concerns over water pollution in Tokyo Bay.IOC vice president John Coates said the IOC needs to see cuts of $1 billion from the $12 billion budget. Coates said he saw potential for cost reduction in 11 of the 14 areas that were discussed during the meetings.“That’s the target that we think should be achievable not just by Tokyo but by all summer organizing committees,” said Coates, who chairs the IOC’s Coordination Commission for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. “What we are trying to do is create a situation where there is no strain on the public purse.”For example, Coates said IOC data from previous games shows that Olympic family lounges operate at only 40 percent capacity, meaning Tokyo organizers could save money on staffing such facilities.The IOC is seeking to make the games more affordable as part of President Thomas Bach’s “Agenda 2020” reforms. In a bid to cut costs, Tokyo organizers have moved several events to existing facilities in neighboring prefectures.In late May, local governments outside Tokyo that are to host competitions agreed with the Tokyo metropolitan government, the Japanese government and games organizers on basic principles concerning cost sharing.Yoshiro Mori, the head of the 2020 Tokyo Games organizing committee who also took part in the meetings, said it will be important to explore cost cutting “based on the framework” reached in May.Mori said that while there have been some heated debates on the cost-cutting efforts, all sides agree that the ultimate goal of delivering the best possible games should be adhered to.Coates also said that a water quality report from organizers at Odaiba in Tokyo Bay, site of the marathon swimming and triathlon events, turned up “readings that were not what they should be.”Tokyo organizers said the sub-standard results of recent tests were likely due to higher-than-usual rainfall in August.Organizers released a statement on Wednesday saying they plan to implement water quality improvement measures in advance of the games.JIM ARMSTRONG, AP Sports WriterTweetPinShare0 Shares
Madrid: Gareth Bale scored twice to save Real Madrid from a damaging defeat away at Villarreal on Sunday before capping a dramatic 2-2 La Liga draw by being sent off in injury-time. Zinedine Zidane said in July it would be “best for everyone” if Bale left this summer but it was the Welshman’s double that earned Madrid a point from a thrilling contest at la Ceramica. Villarreal took the lead through Gerard Moreno in the 12th minute and then Moi Gomez 16 minutes from the end but each time Bale pegged them back, first on the stroke of half-time and then four minutes from the end. Also Read – Puducherry on top after 8-wkt win over ChandigarhTwo yellow cards in as many minutes then saw Bale dramatically sent off in the 94th minute but by then his match-saving contribution was complete. It was six years to the day that Real Madrid paid 100 million euros (now 110m) to sign Bale, who now has 104 goals for the club, as many as the Brazilian Ronaldo. But his heroics could not save Madrid from another slip, which means they head into the international break five points behind early front-runners Atletico Madrid, who had earlier beaten Eibar 3-2. Also Read – Vijender’s next fight on Nov 22, opponent to be announced laterAfter drawing at home to Real Valladolid last time out, this was not the result Zidane would have wanted, particularly given he threw two new signings into his starting line-up. Luka Jovic and Ferland Mendy both started, with Bale on the left of midfield in a 4-4-2, a sign of Zidane’s renewed faith in the 30-year-old’s defensive capabilities. Zidane has now won only six of the 14 matches since he returned as coach in March and it remains to be seen if the club make any late additions on the final day of the transfer window on Monday. Sergio Ramos was at fault for the first goal, robbed on the halfway line by Moreno, who drove forward and slipped in Karl Toko Ekambi. Ekambi’s shot was parried by Thibaut Courtois but only back into the path of Moreno, who picked his spot. Madrid dominated the rest of the half as Casemiro headed wide, Lucas Vazquez lashed into the side-netting and Karim Benzema’s long-range effort hit the post. They did score in the 46th minute with a brilliant goal, Jovic flicking Casemiro’s pass into Dani Carvajal, who crossed first time for Bale to tap in.
APTN National NewsIn the Northwest Territories, many consider the mining industry to be an over-regulated landscape.As APTN National News reporter Curtis Mandeville reports, a gaping loophole in the regulations is allowing mines to pollute the air, unchecked.
Mumbai: The lenders to the crippled Reliance Communications (RCom) Tuesday moved NCLT to appoint a new resolution professional and form a committee of creditors, the first step to begin the bankruptcy process of the Anil Ambani group company that owes close to Rs 50,000 crore to 31 lenders led by State Bank of India. Meanwhile, RCom through the existing resolution professional, sought 13 months exclusion in the insolvency process citing the stays it had on the process by the appellate tribunal and the Supreme Court. Also Read – Commercial vehicle sales to remain subdued in current fiscal: IcraThe RP sought the exclusion from April 30, 2018 to May 30, 2019 as the initial insolvency proceedings was stayed by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) and later by the apex court. RCom was in trouble for years forcing it to discontinue operations two years ago. Its effort to stave off bankruptcy by selling spectrum to Reliance Jio got scuttled after the long legal and government delays for approvals. Also, the company has not been successful to meet any of the several publicly made promises to pay back the lenders by monetising real estate and spectrum assets. Also Read – Ashok Leyland stock tanks over 5 pc as co plans to suspend production for up to 15 daysLast month company chairman Anil Ambani managed to avoid a contempt of the Supreme Court and a possible jail term after a last-minute bailout by elder brother Mukesh who extended him over Rs 480 crore to pay back vendor Ericsson, which was the first operational creditor to drag it to NCLT last year. Earlier, China Development Bank from which RCom had borrowed over $1 billion, had dragged it to the NCLT which was settled after giving a portion of its headquarters DAKC in the nearby Navi Mumbai. On May 3, SBI held a meeting to shortlist an RP after issuing a request for proposal in April for a new RP. RCom’s committee of creditors will have to approve a new RP with a 66 percent vote after the NCLT starts the insolvency process. The Mumbai bench comprising of VP Singh and Ravikumar Duraisamy directed the existing RP to file a progress report by May 30 when it will hear the matter.
WITH THE MAJORITY of CES announcements out of the way, one of the main themes of the event was 3D printing.With an entire section dedicated to it at CES, it’s an area that is getting more attention as more companies offer their own versions of the technology and give them different uses.With a number of 3D printing products announced this week, here’s a roundup featuring some of the more noticeable examples out there.da Vinci 2.0The da Vinci 2.0 separates itself from the other 3D printers out there by being one of the more affordable products.Created by XYZPrinting, a company based in Taiwan, the printer connects to your PC or Mac via a USB cable and is designed for both households and small businesses.Engadget report the company will be priced at $499 and will be released in Europe, Japan and the US in March.(Image: XYZPrinting)MakerBotOne company that has grown in popularity was MakerBot, which revealed its fifth generation of printers this week. The first of three printers announced was the Replicator Mini, which is designed with beginners in mind and will cost $1,379 when it’s released in spring.The Replicator Mini is a plug in and play printer and is both app and cloud enabled. It also features a built-in camera so you can monitor the progress of whatever object you’re printing.Its other printers, the Desktop 3D printer and the Replicator Z18, will sell for $2,889 and $6,449 respectively and are intended for commercial purposes. The Desktop 3D printer is available for purchase now while the Replicator z18 will be released in spring.MakerBot also launched its own digital store dedicated to purchasing and printing 3D models. Ranging between $0.99 for individual figures to $9.99 for a complete collection, the store advertises six different collections of toys aimed towards children.Those with a compatible 3D printer can print as many models as they wish once they purchase the print file.(Image: MakerBot)ChefJetWhile the other printers here focus on printing objects, 3D Systems wants to print sweets. The ChefJet and ChefJet Pro are both designed for kitchens and will print out sweets using a combination of sugar and water.The sweets printed out on the regular ChefJet are monochrome, but the pro version includes food colouring to brighten up your treats. Both can produce a number of different flavours.Both are expected to go on sale in the second half of 2014, with the ChefJet costing under $5,000, and the Pro costing just under $10,000.(Image: Cubify.com)PreForm 1.0Those looking for something more simplistic and fun will be interested in Formlabs’ PreForm 1.0. According to The Verge, the company aims to create “1-click 3D printing” which will make 3D printing just as easy as 2D printing.The PreForm 1.0 will cost $3,299, but the company will accept Bitcoins as payment should you happen to have any. (Image: Formlabs)Pirate 3D Buccaneer Starting off life as a Kickstarter project – and raising less than $1.5 million within 30 days – the Pirate 3D Buccanner is similar to the da Vinci 2.0 in that it wants to bring affordable 3D printing to homes.It aims to be easy to set up and allows people to print out objects without requiring any knowledge in 3D design software.It will cost under $500 and will be released in May. (Video: Pirate3DPrinters/YouTube)Read: British fighter jet flies using 3D printed parts >Read: The five tech trends that will help shape 2014 >
First up is the widely-despised Water Services Bill, which gives legal effect to the forthcoming system of water charges and sets up Irish Water to collect them. This is the final consideration of this Bill: a final vote will be held this morning.Next up is the Child Care (Amendment) Bill, which relates to the time period for which the State can step in and remove a child from its parents without their consent. Currently, the HSE can only seek a court order to take a child into care for eight days at a time. This legislation would extend the period to 29 days. All stages of this brief Bill will be taken today.Finally, it’s the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill – on which debate began yesterday. That’s the one that allows minor criminal convictions to be removed from a person’s criminal record if they have not reoffended within a particular period.Four topical issues will be discussed at 3:42pm, before Ruairi Quinn ends the day with Questions to the Minister for Education and Skills at 4:30pm.The day’s Dáil business can all be viewed here.SEANADThe Seanad is getting into the habit of short Thursdays: after it spends 75 minutes discussing its agenda at 10:30am, the only item on the agenda itself is the Education and Training Boards Bill, which consolidates Ireland’s network of VECs into a small number of larger groups.The day’s Seanad business can all be viewed here.COMMITTEESIt’s a busy day on the committee front, with five meetings up today. Here they are, in order of the time they start at:It’s an early start for the Health and Children committee at 9:30pm. The HSE director-general-designate Tony O’Brien (Cathal Magee is still in place as CEO, but has handed over effective responsibility) will appear to discuss the HSE’s National Service Plan for 2013. (See ‘One to Watch’ below; watch here.)Also beginning at 9:30am is the Transport and Communications committee, which continues the discussions on the abuse of social media (which began yesterday). Policy representatives from Twitter and Facebook will appear today. (Watch here.)At 10am, the Public Accounts Committee has some real red meat on its table: it gets to examine the Department of Finance accounts for 2011, and to look more closely at government debt, Ireland’s EU transactions and the bank recapitalisations that took place that year. John Moran, the secretary-general of the Department of Finance, will be present. (Watch here.)Also at 10am, the Finance sub-committee will be continuing its exhaustive line-by-line examination of the Finance Bill 2013. One for policy wonks only. (Watch here.)The EU Affairs committee meets with the three MEPs representing Dublin – FG’s Gay Mitchell, Labour’s Emer Costello and Socialist Paul Murphy – at 2pm. They’ll be discussing the same three themes that have regularly popped up at committee meetings for the last few weeks: the effects of financial integration across the EU, the question of ensuring political legitimacy, and the potential effects to Ireland of a British exit from the EU. (Watch here.)TheJournal.ie‘s ‘One to Watch’Tony O’Brien’s last visit to an Oireachtas committee didn’t get off to the best of starts – Sean Fleming walked out of a Public Accounts Committee hearing, believing that the HSE representative was stonewalling questions put by TDs.This morning he’ll be discussing the HSE’s National Service Plan, which has to include cutbacks to some services as a necessity of the cuts to the HSE’s spiralling budget.Last time O’Brien said he was precluded from discussing government policy, which meant he couldn’t answer many questions – so it’ll be interesting to see how many times the same excuse is cited today if there are more questions about James Reilly’s performance.(One might also wonder why the head of the HSE will be asked about the issue of medical cards, when the policy for distributing them is set by the Department…)Explainer: How does a Bill become a law? WHAT ARE OUR politicians doing in the halls of Leinster House?TheJournal.ie lets you know with our guide to what’s coming up to the Dáil, Seanad and various Oireachtas committees today.DÁILThursday morning means it will be Eamon Gilmore stepping in to take Leaders’ Questions at 10:30am, with a brief discussion on the rest of the day’s agenda when that’s done at nearly 11am.That means it’ll be nearly 11:20am before discussion begins on the three Bills to be considered today; they’re due up in the following order:
Google désindexe des sites jugés de mauvaise qualitéLa semaine dernière, Google a supprimé de l’index de son moteur près de 11 millions de sites en .co.cc jugés malveillants ou de piètre qualité. Une décision visant à lutter contre le pishing mais bien peu appréciée par la société d’hébergement Co.cc. Au début du mois, dans un effort de lutte contre le spam, Google a décidé de nettoyer son moteur de recherche en supprimant des millions de sites, dont près de 11 millions hébergés par Co.cc. D’après une récente étude du cabinet Anti-Phishing Working Group, “plus de 40% des attaques utilisant un service de sous-domaine exploiteraient Co.cc” au second semestre 2010. À lire aussiÉquinoxe du Printemps : pourquoi tombe-t-il le 20 mars ?C’est sur les forums officiels de Google Webmaster, que James Kim, qui se dit être le directeur général de Co.cc, fait part de son incompréhension, rapporte le site Clubic. Il assure que sa société est très réactive et bloque très souvent des sites malveillants repérés par les firmes de sécurité informatique Trend Micro, Symantec ou encore Spamhaus. Il affirme également que “la proportion de sites malveillants n’excéderait pas 0,01%” des sites hébergés par Co.cc. Du favoritisme de la part de Google ?En outre, James Kim déplore la suppression de sites de faible qualité réalisée par Google. “Nous n’avons pas le droit de forcer les internautes à concevoir des pages Web de haute qualité” s’insurge-t-il. Il rappelle alors qu’une bonne majorité “des adresses de type xxx.blogspot.com et facebook.com/xxx ont été abandonnées” et sont alors elles aussi de mauvaise qualité. Or elles n’ont pas disparu de l’index du géant de la recherche sur Internet.Bien que ces affirmations, comme l’identité même de l’auteur de ce message, soient loin d’être vérifiées, elles posent une nouvelle fois la question de l’impartialité de Google, déjà plusieurs fois pointé du doigt pour son favoritisme à l’égard de ses partenaires.Le 12 juillet 2011 à 20:34 • Maxime Lambert
After 12 years away, one of the best, most critically acclaimed cartoon series of all time, Samurai Jack, returns to television later this year with original series creator Genndy Tartakovsky at the helm. To help you get ready, Geek.com’s Aubrey Sitterson is rewatching the entire series in order.When I sat down to watch episode 10 of Samurai Jack, I had completely forgotten the name of the episode or what it was about and I didn’t bother looking it up or even reading the description because really what difference would it make, right? As it turns out though, I’m glad that I went into this episode as a little bit more of a blank slate, because it featured a very unique approach, one that closely mirrored an artistic medium that, despite possessing a massive influence, rarely reaches out to touch film and television. That medium? Video games.As we’ve touched on in previous installments, Samurai Jack is a pastiche, a delicious hodgepodge of influences, references, tropes, and in-jokes. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the age of the creators, as well as the medium and genre that they’re working in, the vast majority of those influences tend to originate in film and television. “Jack and the Lava Monster,” however, does something different, structuring the entire episode around what can only be described as the “lava level” of a video game. But what’s most impressive about the episode is that it still manages to feel like a Samurai Jack episode, courtesy of some fantastic trope-twisting at the end.The episode starts off in a familiar fashion: Jack, sans context, wanders silently through a lovingly rendered landscape. This time out, it resembles a northern European moor or tundra. While some people criticize the show for its sometimes lackadaisical pacing, the anime-esque tendency to linger over long, silent shots, it’s something that I truly love about the show. What’s more, I actually respect the restraint that it indicates, as the show’s storytellers are confident enough in their ability to not worry about packing every single moment with action.That somewhat sedate opening sequence also serves another purpose here, however, beyond just impressing geeks like me: It establishes a tonal baseline from which the episode quickly deviates. Before long, Jack, having discovered that the landscape has been blasted and defiled, follows a beckoning voice, climbing an ominous mountain to reach and, presumably, confront it.And there, once Jack is inside the mountain, is where the video game similarities really kick in. Our hero finds himself subjected to a seemingly endless series of traps. Spikes and chomping teeth, lava and flame, Jack is faced with a gauntlet of death, a gauntlet that he must run through. And that’s the really interesting part, something that is addressed soon after Jack finds himself amongst the traps: Jack cannot go back, he can only move forward. And as he moves forward? The traps get more and more treacherous.As Jack traverses this “lava level,” one of my favorite moments of the episode stands in stark contrast to the dire straits in which the samurai finds himself. While on the run, he barrels out over a cliff and, for a brief moment, does a Wile E. Coyote-esque hang in the air before plummeting downward. It’s a brief bit of comic relief that helps release the tension so that it can start to build anew as Jack confronts his next challenge: The level’s boss.And fittingly for a “lava level,” the boss is a giant made of volcanic rock and molten lava, a villain that Jack must face and defeat because, well, that’s not exactly clear. Up until this point, the show has followed a classic platformer video game story progression, and shares the same problem as many video games: The stories are merely a delivery method for the gameplay and action, which comprise a video game’s true appeal. If Jack were to simply face, fight, and defeat the monster, it would be an exciting, action-packed episode for sure, but ultimately, it’d be a bunch of empty calories. Fortunately, the show’s creators found a smart, clever solution.That solution was to once again have Jack mention the very problem he was confronted with. But just as earlier, when he observed that he could not go backward, only forward, Jack’s observation isn’t some fourth wall breaking bit of meta-narrative. It’s actually built into the story, as he refuses to simply brawl to the death with the Lava Monster for no real reason.It’s a deceptively simple solution and one that allows the episode to seamlessly slide back out of its video game logic and give some background for the Lava Monster. And that background? It shows us that prior to becoming a Lava Monster, he was actually a man, a warrior not unlike Jack, who struggled, fought, and lost in a battle with Aku. Furthermore, he, like Jack, was not merely beaten by the demon, but was condemned to observe his utter defeat. As Jack was catapulted into the future to find a world that Aku had dominated, the viking warrior that became the Lava Monster was forced to watch, helpless, trapped within a mountain.Ultimately, Jack gives the Lava Monster what he wants, and the two have an epic duel. But the reason why Jack decides to give in and fight is an important one, as it’s only because of his similarities to the Lava Monster, and the knowledge that defeating him in battle, allowing him to ascend to Valhalla, is an act, not of senseless video game violence, but of mercy.These are some of my favorite episodes of Samurai Jack – ones that abandon the driving overall narrative to allow for diverse types of stories, ones that not only explore tropes, but turn them on their heads in service of the story. And we’re in luck, because next week sees us tackle another of my favorites, one that introduces one of my favorite cartoon characters ever. It’s episode eleven of Samurai Jack’s first season, “Jack and the Scotsman.” Watch along with us on Hulu!Aubrey Sitterson is a Los Angeles-based writer whose most recent work is the Street Fighter x G.I. Joe series from IDW, available at your local comic shop or digitally on Comixology. Follow him on Twitter or check out his website for more information!
Facebook Jon Moxley Joins AEW Twitter Ethan Page on how Impact Wrestling has been better, winning the Tag Titles, booed in Canada Now Playing Up Next Now Playing Up Next Now Playing Up Next Recommended videosPowered by AnyClipWWE Lists The Shields Top 10 WinsVideo Player is loading.Play VideoPauseUnmuteDuration 0:30/Current Time 0:04Loaded: 100.00%0:04Remaining Time -0:26 FullscreenUp NextThis is a modal window.Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaqueFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsReset restore all settings to the default valuesDoneClose Modal DialogEnd of dialog window.Replay the list Seth Rollins Defends WWE On Two Separate Occasions Pinterest WWE Lists The Shields Top 10 Wins Ronda Rousey Videos Articles WhatsApp Now Playing Up Next Jason Namako RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR Google+ Sammy Guevara talks about his match against Cody on TNT, the Wednesday Night Wars Roman Reigns is in Remission Jon Moxley: AEW Was Bigger Than WWE Title Shawn Michaels Now Playing Up Next Videos Articles Dustin Rhodes on AEW against NXT: “I don’t consider us going to war with anybody” Videos Articles WWE.com has a new interview up with Dean Ambrose, talking about this Sunday’s Payback PPV and the main event 4-Way Match for the WWE World Title.You can view the video below. Seth Rollins
Riyad Mahrez and Manchester City defeated Newport County 4-1 in the FA Cup Fifth Round tonight, advancing to the Quarterfinals.After Manchester City defeated Newport County 4-1 in the FA Cup Fifth Round, the Citizens have now advanced to the Quarterfinals.But the Welsh side was not easy to beat, as they gave the Citizens a difficult time before the second half goals came in.And Riyad Mahrez scored the fourth and last goal at the end of the match, helping his team to get the win.“The result is the most important thing in these types of games – if you can add a good performance then it’s perfect,” Mahrez told the club’s official website.“We played good and controlled the game. We are professionals and have to adapt to anything.”“Everyone is very happy to be through to the quarter-finals,” he commented.“They didn’t have a lot of chances – we controlled the game and we are happy to go through to the quarter-finals.”
Premier League Betting: Match-day 5 Stuart Heath – September 14, 2019 Going into the Premier League’s match-day five with a gap already beginning to form at the top of the league. We will take a…“We have to forget the FA Cup now and focus on the Champions League,” he said.Manchester City is now preparing to take on German Bundesliga club Schalke in the UEFA Champions League.“We are taking it game by game, it is not good to project yourself too far forward,” he concluded.The Citizens have a very difficult agenda, playing in four different tournaments at the same time: the English Premier League, the FA Cup, the Football League Final, and the UEFA Champions League.Tough game today but pleased with the result & the goal 🙌🏼 On to the next round 🔜 #KeepBelieving @ManCity pic.twitter.com/uFmq4FZgqB— Riyad Mahrez (@Mahrez22) February 16, 2019
WILMINGTON, MA — Here are highlights of the Wilmington Police Log for Wednesday, May 29, 2019:An employee at the Wildwood School reported a suspicious red pickup truck with New Hampshire plates in front of the preschool entrance. Police responded and vehicle was already gone. (10:33am)A Forest Street caller reported an injured homing pigeon in their backyard. Animal Control Officer responded. (1:02pm)A passerby reported a white teenage boy standing on the old beams to the old bridge on Bridge Lane. Police responded and no one was on the tracks. Police noted a group of teens, but they were moved along. (1:49pm)An Apache Way caller reported a large blue & brown bird with a yellow band on leg deceased in his yard. Animal Control Officer responded. (2:37pm)Police cited two drivers for breakdown lane violations on 93 North near Exit 41. (4:01pm, 4:14pm)Police assisted with vehicle lockout on AL Prime on Main Street. (6:35pm)Police assisted with a residential lockout at Deming Way. (7:06pm)(DISCLAIMER: This information is public information. An arrest does not constitute a conviction. Any arrested person is innocent until proven guilty.)Like Wilmington Apple on Facebook. Follow Wilmington Apple on Twitter. Follow Wilmington Apple on Instagram. Subscribe to Wilmington Apple’s daily email newsletter HERE. Got a comment, question, photo, press release, or news tip? Email wilmingtonapple@gmail.com.Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:Like Loading… RelatedPOLICE LOG for September 5: Train Conductor Helps Locate Missing Puppy; Rented Trucks Not Returned To UHaulIn “Police Log”POLICE LOG for June 6: Women Fighting Or Just Watching The Bruins?; Package Stolen From Porch; Coyote SightingIn “Police Log”POLICE LOG for August 29: Burlington Man Arrested For OUI; Injured HummingbirdIn “Police Log”
I’ve been playing fighting games ever since Street Fighter II launched in 1991. I remember going to local convenience stores, bodegas, and proper arcade halls to play games like Street Fighter Alpha, Virtua Fighter 2, DarkStalkers, X-Men vs Street Fighter, and much more. This is a genre that is part of my gamer DNA and one I am extremely fond of.With that said, I have never considered myself part of the Fighting Game Community (FGC). I like playing the games with my buddies and doing cool moves, but I was never interested or invested in learning all of the re-dizzy combos, technical jargon, or setting time aside to watch stuff like EVO or the Capcom Pro Tour. I just like to get some matches in for fun and go through a fighter’s story mode to unlock neat stuff and work my way to the character’s various endings. It seems that with Street Fighter V, however, people like myself are being left behind in favor of the FGC crowd.The game launched with a bare minimum of features that hardly make it worth the $60 Capcom is asking for. There’s a story mode that can be completed in roughly two hours, Versus Mode where you can fight against someone in the room with you, Survival Mode, Training Mode, and Online Mode. That’s it. While it’s true that many will dive right into the online portion of the game and never look back, there are even more who aren’t necessarily interested in competing with others online and want a full single player experience.I’m sure that some of you reading this are saying to yourselves, “Those people don’t matter, they aren’t the ones who keep fighting games alive and thriving.” While there is some truth to this, I’ll argue that the casual crowd is actually extremely important to fighting games, and without them, the genre will become even more niche and underground than it already is.Think about your friends who play fighting games. What do they like to do most of the time? They like to pick a character they think is cool, go through story mode with them, and see their ending. They may do this with several other characters as well, if not all of them. They might continue playing in order to unlock different costumes, modes, or other characters. They may even want to go against you online as well and have a good time. This type of player, the casual player, constitutes the majority of those who buy fighting games. They want to play the game, do some cool combos, and then move on. This person may not stick it out for the long haul, but they are fans — and customers — regardless.Let’s go beyond the casual crowd for a minute and look at those who are heavily invested in the FGC. The majority of these people will never actively compete in a tournament. They may attend EVO or watch it online and understand the more advanced fundamentals of whichever game they’re invested in, but they aren’t going to be actively participating because their skill level isn’t on par with pros like Justin Wong or Daigo Umehara. Do you think that every person that goes to EVO is a competitive player? Of course not. They’re simply fans of the genre who want to see the best of the best compete.Despite the fact that the majority of those who purchase SFV will never compete in a tournament, Capcom is actively ignoring these folks in favor of the competitive gamer. The whole reason SFV launched when it did was so it could be ready for the Capcom Pro Tour, which kicks off this week. It’s clear that the casual crowd is no longer Capcom’s focus and this is to the detriment of Street Fighter V and the fighting game genre as a whole.Hardcore fighting purists may scoff at them, but there is nothing wrong with a person who just buys a fighting game, plays it for a few weeks, and then shelves it, perhaps dusting it off whenever new features are added or when their friends come over. These are the folks who will insure that copies of the game are sold. Yes, selling copies of a game doesn’t do much for its competitive scene, but it does help make the game profitable for whichever company funded it. Casuals ensure that future fighting games will be made.A perfect example of how to handle a fighting game that appeals to both the casual and hardcore crowd is with the two most recent Mortal Kombat games. A player can spend dozens of hours or more playing the game’s various single player modes and never once go online to play against others.Mortal Kombat’s arcade mode is now the gold standard for fighting games since it gives players a deep and rich storyline that lets them play with a wide variety of characters. And then of course there is the Challenge Tower that contains 300 unique challenges to complete. This mode offers rewards and currency upon completion, which then allows players to unlock even more content.Both of the last two MK games have been huge successes for NetherRealm Studios and have sold millions of copies each. Do you think the majority of the people who bought the titles are super hardcore fighting game aficionados? No, they’re mostly regular gamers who just want to see some fatalities and watch their favorite characters’ stories. More importantly, they are also instrumental in ensuring that we’ll get more Mortal Kombat games down the line. Mortal Kombat may not be as big competitively now, but it is a highly successful game because of the casual crowd.The big problem with Street Fighter V being so bare at launch and having it exclude casuals is that this will affect sales. It’s already being reported that SFV has sold less copies at launch than its predecessor, Street Fighter IV. While that title was heavily geared towards the competitive player, it still contained enough features for the casual crowd. It was a full experience at launch that only got better over time. While SFV will improve as well, this doesn’t excuse it only targeting competitive players. The game is already generating bad word of mouth which will no doubt impact how many copies it will sell in the future. This is an industry that doesn’t forget, and SFV will always be remembered as the game with no features.As I said before, this is a genre that is dear to me so I would hate for it to become virtually irrelevant because of what Capcom has done with SFV. Unfortunately, the damage has already been done. When the time comes that all of the missing features of SFV finally surface, very few reviewers will go back to update the game’s score. SFV will always be stuck with the lackluster reviews it has received and this in turn may affect the release of future Capcom fighting games. This would be a shame considering how Capcom fighting games are the most popular ones out there.While the hardcore FGC crowd is very important for a fighting game’s longevity, they are not the ones who make the genre successful. The casual crowd are the ones that will buy millions of copies of a game and fill seats at EVO. Capcom is doing itself and the genre a great disservice by only catering to the competitive crowd, and I can only hope that other companies making fighting games remember who they really need to focus on if they want their games to sell and be profitable.
In a relief to Tamil Nadu-based editor and publisher, Nakkheeran Gopal, the Supreme Court on Friday stayed proceedings against him in 15 criminal defamation cases lodged in Chennai local courts. A bench of Justices Dipak Misra and P C Pant also issued notices to Union Law Ministry and the Tamil Nadu government on Gopal’s petition which has also challenged the constitutional validity of penal laws on defamation law and a CrPC provision.
Register Now » Free Webinar | Sept. 9: The Entrepreneur’s Playbook for Going Global Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. December 21, 2018 5 min read Growing a business sometimes requires thinking outside the box. Chatbots are receiving a lot of press these days, and with good reason. These automated assistants are available 24/7, and they cater perfectly to users who are abandoning phone lines to do research, shop, and interact with brands on mobile devices. According to research conducted for Facebook, 56 percent of customers prefer messaging customer service over picking up the phone, and businesses and customers exchange 2 billion messages per month. Businesses that can capitalize on these trends by implementing chatbots clearly stand to gain considerable advantages.Customer service is expensive, but Entrepreneur reports that AI-driven technology can save as much as 30 percent simply by resolving the bulk of basic customer inquiries and leaving the more complicated interactions to human agents. Moreover, the benefits aren’t confined to the customer service space.When HubSpot decided to try using Facebook Messenger to get leads to attend an event, lead costs fell by 477 percent and click-through rate increased by 619 percent, according to the same Entrepreneur article. These results would garner attention at almost any implementation price, but in this case the bot integration was free.Related: How Chatbots Save Time and Change How Business Gets DoneWith benefits such as lead generation, a boost to conversions, cost savings in areas such as customer service, and engagement in channels that customers prefer, chatbots are a golden opportunity for businesses. Here’s how to use them to realize their full potential.1. Give customers a personal assistant.Many businesses will test the chatbot waters by using them to send push notifications, but if you stop there, you’re missing the point. They offer an incredible array of capabilities that drive business value. Fang Cheng, CEO and co-founder of Linc Global, points out that “Chatbots aren’t just notification tools — they’re a brand’s automated assistant. Naturally, they need to have a broad range of capabilities, from pre-purchase assistance to post-purchase customer care.”Before you get too ambitious, start by focusing on creating a superlative experience with extensive capabilities in a single channel. Once you’ve accomplished this goal, broaden the reach of your assistant across multiple channels such as SMS, voice platforms, and apps such as Messenger. For instance, 1-800-Flowers opted to develop bots for each major channel after seeing success with its Messenger bot. Of the company’s bot orders, 70 percent are from new customers.2. Power Facebook ads with chatbot technology.Instead of creating ads that send users to your home page or app, you can make it so clicking an ad opens a chat window in Messenger. Because you have each user’s identifying information, you can personalize these ads from the very first interaction.As you would with any Facebook ad, you’ll want to carefully select your target audience. Reach out to individuals who have heard about your business before, as they’ll be the most likely to continue interacting with your bot. When Matthew Black of Black Ops coupled Facebook ads with a chatbot geared toward Ultimate Fighting Championship fans, 501 people engaged with the bot out of 714 total ad clicks, and the users had 5.7 conversations with the bot on average.3. Offer customers constant communication.Customers now expect to be able to interact with your company around the clock. While large corporations can meet this expectation without too much sweat, it can be a difficult perk for smaller companies to offer. Enter chatbots, which can juggle thousands of conversations at once and never need to make a dash for coffee or take a mental break.Related: Why Consumer-Facing Enterprises Need To Evolve With The Modern CustomerUse chatbots to collect customer information and answer questions about shipping and order tracking. By handling these low-level communication tasks, bots decrease the volume of customer service requests that your human agents have to process. In addition, chatbots can act as digital shopping assistants for those shopping online. For instance, H&M’s online site features a bot that’s available to customers anytime; it assists them with their searches by presenting various outfits and making suggestions based on their personal style.4. Give your bot a personality.Customers won’t chat with an impersonal bot, so you need to give yours a face and a voice. This means it’s time for your creative team to flex its muscles, but set a few guidelines first. Establishing a tone for your bot is critical to engaging customers, but you want that tone to reflect the nature of the tasks it’s performing. For example, if your customers are booking tickets to take their kids to Disney on Ice, they’ll expect a different tone than if they’re transferring six-figure sums between bank accounts.To help the 375,000 daily visitors to its website, Amtrak created an automated assistant called Julie. What started out as a phone-based service agent has expanded to include a chat function, meaning customers can now interact with Julie however they see fit. Since implementing the bot, Amtrak has received 25 percent more bookings, and the company estimates it saves $1 million in customer service costs each year thanks to a reduction in the number of email inquiries.Related: Top 10 Best Chatbot Platform Tools to Build Chatbots for Your BusinessChatbots have a wide range of capabilities, and there’s a good chance that your competitors are pursuing the technology. Don’t get left behind. By tapping into the potential of chatbots, you can transform the way customers can interact with your business.