Playing a major role in saving the planet could make us richLip service

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PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Has $7.89 Million Stock Holdings in Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (NASDAQ:VXUS)

VA.-LYNCHBURG (0-12) T.Johnson 10-30 0-2 21, Bratcher 5-15 0-0 10, Corrigan 0-1 0-0 0, Newman 5-15 9-12 19, Joppy 0-1 0-0 0, Crews 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 20-66 9-14 50. UNC-GREENSBORO (7-6) Davis 4-9 0-0 9, Henry 3-4 4-6 10, Atwell 6-14 4-4 21, Giles 4-10 0-0 12, Polite 4-7 2-2 12, Ahemed 3-5 0-0 7, Breath 3-6 2-5 8, Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Reath 5-6 0-0 10, Saizonou 2-7 2-2 7, Kauzonas 3-4 0-0 6, Webb 0-0 0-0 0, Bailey 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 38-74 14-19 105. Halftime_UNC-Greensboro 56-26. 3-Point Goals_Va.-Lynchburg 1-12 (T.Johnson 1-5, Corrigan 0-1, Crews 0-1, Joppy 0-1, Newman 0-1, Bratcher 0-3), UNC-Greensboro 15-38 (Atwell 5-10, Giles 4-9, Polite 2-5, Bailey 1-2, Ahemed 1-3, Davis 1-4, Saizonou 1-4, Reath 0-1). Rebounds_Va.-Lynchburg 24 (T.Johnson 10), UNC-Greensboro 52 (Davis, Henry, Reath 7). Assists_Va.-Lynchburg 4 (Bratcher 3), UNC-Greensboro 29 (Polite 7). Total Fouls_Va.-Lynchburg 15, UNC-Greensboro 11. A_462 (23,500).Syracuse pulls away from pesky Bucknell to snap losing streak

NoneTexas will look to win its fourth straight game and carry a measure of momentum into its inaugural season as a member of the Southeastern Conference when it hosts Northwestern State on Sunday afternoon in Austin, Texas. It's the final tune-up before the SEC gauntlet for the Longhorns (10-2), who roll into Sunday's game with 10 days of rest and after a 98-62 win over New Orleans on Dec. 19. Justin Pope led Texas with a career-high 42 points, the most for a member of the Longhorns since Reggie Freeman had 43 against Fresno State in 1996. Arthur Kaluma added 15 points and Chendall Weaver scored 12 for Texas, which played without star freshman guard Tre Johnson for the second straight game. Johnson has been listed as day-to-day for a return but would be a likely participant to get at least some playing time before the Longhorns' SEC opener at No. 13 Texas A&M on Jan. 4. Texas coach Rodney Terry is looking for focus on the defensive end from his team as it heads into league play. "We want to be playing Texas basketball defensively," Terry said. "We try to protect the paint, we try to keep the guys off the glass, (and be) physical (with our) block outs. Then try to get out and play to a strength of ours. We're a fast team but you've got to be able to get stops to be able to do that and play in transition." Northwestern State (5-6, 2-0 Southland Conference) heads to Austin after an 89-79 win at home over Southern-New Orleans on Dec. 20. Addison Patterson turned in a career performance in the win with 33 points, 10 rebounds and four assists as the Demons won for the third time in four games. The Demons have played four teams from power conferences -- Texas Tech, Oklahoma, LSU and, most recently, Cal on Dec. 14 -- and have lost by at least 16 points in each game. "Our guys are always ready to play," Demons coach Rick Cabrera said. "We had a really good Christmas break to decompress and recuperate. They are just ready and willing to play anyone regardless of conference. Texas is extremely talented, and we are looking forward to competing with one of the top programs in the country." The contest against Texas is the final non-conference game for Northwestern State, which returns to Southland Conference play at home against Nicholls on Jan. 4. The Longhorns have won all five previous games with Northwestern State, most recently a 105-57 victory at home in November 2017. --Field Level MediaSADO, Japan (AP) — Japan held a memorial ceremony on Sunday near the Sado Island Gold Mines , listed this summer as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of historical disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the mines' dark history. However, it has not offered an apology. At these mines, hundreds of Koreans were forced to labor under abusive and brutal conditions during World War II, historians say. Japanese officials at Sunday’s ceremony time paid tribute for the first to “all workers” including Korean laborers who died at the mines, without acknowledging they were forced laborers — part of what critics call a persistent policy of whitewashing Japan's history of sexual and labor exploitation before and during the war. The ceremony, supposed to further mend wounds, renewed tensions between the two sides. South Korea boycotted Sunday's memorial service citing unspecified disagreements with Tokyo over the event. “As a resident, I must say (their absence) is very disappointing after all the preparations we made,” said Sado Mayor Ryugo Watanabe. “I wish we could have held the memorial with South Korean attendees.” The Associated Press explains the Sado mines, their history and the controversy. The 16th-century mines on the island of Sado, about the size of the Pacific island of Guam, off the western coast of Niigata prefecture, operated for nearly 400 years, beginning in 1601, and were once the world’s largest gold producer. They closed in 1989. During the Edo period, from 1603 to 1868, the mines supplied gold currency to the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate. Today, the site has been developed into a tourist facility and hiking site where visitors can learn about the changes in mining technology and production methods while looking at the remains of mine shafts and ore dressing facilities. Critics say the Japanese government only highlights the glory of the mines and covers up its use of Korean victims of forced labor and their ordeals. The mines were registered as a cultural heritage site in July after Japan agreed to include an exhibit on the conditions of Korean forced laborers and to hold a memorial service annually after repeated protests from the South Korean government. A few signs have since been erected, indicating former sites of South Korean laborers’ dormitories. A city-operated museum in the area also added a section about Korean laborers, but a private museum attached to the main UNESCO site doesn't mention them at all. At the UNESCO World Heritage Committee July meeting, the Japanese delegate said Tokyo had installed new exhibition material to explain the “severe conditions of (the Korean laborers’) work and to remember their hardship.” Japan also acknowledged that Koreans were made to do more dangerous tasks in the mine shaft, which caused some to die. Those who survived also developed lung diseases and other health problems. Many of them were given meager food rations and nearly no days off and were caught by police if they escaped, historians say. But the Japanese government has refused to admit they were “forced labor.” South Korea had earlier opposed the listing of the site for UNESCO World Heritage on the grounds that the Korean forced laborers used at the mines were missing from the exhibition. South Korea eventually supported the listing after consultations with Japan and Tokyo’s pledge to improve the historical background of the exhibit and to hold a memorial that also includes Koreans. Historians say Japan used hundreds of thousands of Korean laborers, including those forcibly brought from the Korean Peninsula, at Japanese mines and factories to make up for labor shortages because most working-age Japanese men had been sent to battlefronts across Asia and the Pacific. About 1,500 Koreans were forced to work at the Sado mines, according to Yasuto Takeuchi, an expert on Japan’s wartime history, citing wartime Japanese documents. The South Korean government has said it expects Japan to keep its pledge to be truthful to history and to show both sides of the Sado mines. “The controversy surrounding the Sado mines exhibit underscores a deeper problem” of Japan’s failure to face up to its wartime responsibility and its growing “denialism” of its wartime atrocities, Takeuchi said. All workers who died at the Sado mines were honored. That includes hundreds of Korean laborers who worked there during Japan’s 1910-1945 colonization of the Korean Peninsula. At Sunday’s ceremony, four Japanese representatives, including central and local government officials and the head of the organizing group, thanked all mine workers for their sacrifice and mourned for those who died. None offered any apology to Korean forced laborers for the harsh treatment at the mines. Attendants observed a moment of silence for the victims who died at the mines due to accidents and other causes. The ceremony dredged up long-standing frustrations in South Korea. About 100 people, including officials from Japan’s local and central government, as well as South Korean Foreign Ministry officials and the relatives of Korean wartime laborers, were supposed to attend. Because of South Korea's last-minute boycott, more than 20 seats remained vacant. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday it was impossible to settle the disagreements between both governments before the planned event on Sunday, without specifying what those disagreements were. There has been speculation that the South Korean boycott might have been due to the presence of parliamentary vice minister Akiko Ikuina at Sunday's ceremony. In August 2022, Ikuina reportedly visited Tokyo’s controversial Yasukuni Shrine , weeks after she was elected as a lawmaker. Japan’s neighbors view Yasukuni, which commemorates 2.5 million war dead including war criminals, as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism. Her visit could have been seen as a sign of a lack of remorse. Some South Koreans criticized the Seoul government for throwing its support behind an event without securing a clear Japanese commitment to highlight the plight of Korean laborers. There were also complaints over South Korea agreeing to pay for the travel expenses of Korean victims’ family members who were invited to attend the ceremony. Critics say Japan’s government has long been reluctant to discuss wartime atrocities. That includes what historians describe as the sexual abuse and enslavement of women across Asia, many of them Koreans who were deceived into providing sex to Japanese soldiers at frontline brothels and euphemistically called “comfort women,” and the Koreans who were mobilized and forced to work in Japan, especially in the final years of World War II. Korean compensation demands for Japanese atrocities during its brutal colonial rule have strained relations between the two Asian neighbors, most recently after a 2018 South Korean Supreme Court ruling ordered Japanese companies to pay damages over their wartime forced labor. Japan’s government has maintained that all wartime compensation issues between the two countries were resolved under the 1965 normalization treaty. Ties between Tokyo and Seoul have improved recently after Washington said their disputes over historical issues hampered crucial security cooperation as China’s threat grows in the region. South Korea’s conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol announced in March 2023 that his country would use a local corporate fund to compensate forced labor victims without demanding Japanese contributions. Japan’s then-Prime Minister Fumio Kishida later expressed sympathy for their suffering during a Seoul visit. Security, business and other ties between the sides have since rapidly resumed. Japan’s whitewashing of wartime atrocities has risen since the 2010s, particularly under the past government of revisionist leader Shinzo Abe . For instance, Japan says the terms “sex slavery” and “forced labor” are inaccurate and insists on the use of highly euphemistic terms such as “comfort women” and “civilian workers” instead. Takeuchi, the historian, said listing Japan’s modern industrial historical sites as a UNESCO World Heritage is a government push to increase tourism. The government, he said, wants “to commercialize sites like the Sado mines by beautifying and justifying their history for Japan’s convenience.” Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea contributed to this report.

Applications for new Zip Oyster photocards for children aged five to 16+ are now being accepted by Transport for London (TfL), after they were temporarily paused following a recent brutal cyber attack. Zip Oyster cards for children come in three categories - 5-10, 11-15 and 16-17. It follows TfL reopening Oystercard concessions for pensioners, students and others in recent weeks . It means all photocard concessions are available once again. TfL intends to refund customers who have paid more for their travel than they should have, due to TfL not being able to accept new photocard applications. TfL plans to write to photocard customers who were impacted by not being able to apply for a new Photocard with further details about how to apply for refunds and the criteria for processing these. TfL says it has been continually monitoring its systems to ensure only those authorised can gain access, following a serious cyber attack on September 1. TfL identified suspicious activity and took immediate action to secure its network, ensuring all safety critical systems and processes were maintained. Shashi Verma, Chief Technology Officer at TfL said: "We’re pleased that we can now accept photocard applications for all concessions managed by TfL and will be working hard to process these as quickly as possible. We apologise for any inconvenience that this has caused our customers. "Following the recent highly sophisticated cyber security incident, we have been working to restore systems which we had to take offline as part of our mitigations. We are now able to start processing refunds for those requiring refunds for journeys made using Oyster or paper tickets. We hope to shortly contact all new photocard customers who those who were impacted by not being able to apply for their new photocard, as well as continue work to allow us to begin processing refunds for contactless journeys, and for customers to be able to see their full journey history again." TfL has worked closely with the National Crime Agency and the National Cyber Security Centre following the hack attack and notified the Information Commissioner's Office. As part of the measures to deal with the incident, TfL decided to pause new concession photocard applications while it undertook security checks. With the concession photocard website now fully back online again , TfL is working to process all new photocard applications as quickly as possible. Already, more than 30,000 18+ Student photocards, more than 10,000 60+ London Oyster photocards and nearly 600 Apprentice photocards have been processed and dispatched since applications reopened. TfL and train operating companies across London continue to accept expired 5-10 and 11-15 Zip Oyster photocards, where they are normally valid, in light of the cyber security incident until December 31, 2024. This gives expired Zip photocard holders plenty of time to apply for their new concession photocard. Parents and guardians of those with expired Zip photocards are encouraged to apply as soon as possible for a new photocard for their children or dependent to help ensure that they receive one before the end of the year. Expired photocards will not be accepted for travel on TfL or train operating company services from 1 January 2025. Photocard applications can be made via photocard.tfl.gov.uk . For the latest information on TfL’s recovery from the cyber security incident can found here – tfl.gov.uk/campaign/cyber-security-incident . Looking for more from MyLondon? Subscribe to our daily newsletters here for the latest and greatest updates from across London.

NoneOn a rare two-game skid, No. 24 Arizona faces DavidsonCLEVELAND (AP) — Germain Ifedi became the fourth left tackle to start this season for the Cleveland Browns, lining up Thursday night against the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers. Ifedi moved up the depth chart and into the lineup after starter Dawand Jones broke his left leg last week at New Orleans and had surgery. He'll be responsible for blocking quarterback Jameis Winston's blindside. Jedrick Wills Jr., who had lost his starting job to Jones, figured to start against the Steelers (8-2), but was ruled out Wednesday with a knee injury that has bothered him for weeks. A first-round pick in 2020, Wills recently caused a stir by saying he made a “business decision” to sit out a game on Oct. 27 against Baltimore because of his knee. Coach Kevin Stefanski said Wills used a “poor choice of words.” James Hudson started Cleveland's first two games at left tackle while the Browns (2-8) waited for Wills to recover from knee surgery in December. The first-place Steelers were without outside linebacker/edge rusher Alex Highsmith, who missed his second straight game with an ankle injury. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl The Associated Press

Keir Starmer to set out ‘plan for change’ with ‘milestones’ for key missionsHow EaaS Is Solving Security Implications Of AIoT SolutionsUNC-Greensboro 105, Va.-Lynchburg 50

India ‘s connection with railways is deeply embedded in its history, dating back to the mid-19th century when the first train chugged from Mumbai to Thane in 1853. Since then, trains have become synonymous with the country’s vastness and diversity. From the bustling stations to the quiet, scenic routes through remote villages, trains have been a lifeline for people from all walks of life. However, as the Indian railway system evolved, it began to serve not just as a means of transportation but also as a canvas for showcasing luxury and heritage. In 1980, when Palace on Wheels was inaugurated, it made way for several other opulent trains in different parts of the country. South India was not left behind in this revolution, as the Golden Chariot became its first luxury train. Named after the famous stone chariot of Hampi, the train offers a glimpse into the region’s beauty while providing modern amenities to travelers. The Golden Chariot features guest carriages that are decorated with historical carvings and are named after the dynasties that ruled South India: Vijayanagar, Kadamba, Hoysala, Rastrakota, Ganga, Chalukya, Bhahamani, Adilshahi, Sangama, Shathavashna, and Yudukula. It has 40 cabins, including 13 double-beds, 26 twin-beds, and one specially designed for differently-abled guests, accommodating up to 80 passengers. Each cabin is adorned with furniture inspired by Hoysala and Mysore architecture, elegant drapery, and private washrooms. Smart TVs with Wi-Fi-enabled subscriptions cater to guests’ infotainment needs while safety measures like CCTV cameras and fire alarms enhance security. For relaxation guests can visit Arogya, a state-of-the-art spa with fitness facilities, or dine at the Golden Chariot’s fine-dining restaurants, Ruchi and Nalapak, which serve a mix of international and regional cuisines. The Golden Chariot offers two itineraries – The Pride of Karnataka (5 nights/6 days) package will start from Bengaluru to cover Bandipur, Mysore, Halebidu, Chikmagalur, Hampi, Goa and back to Bengaluru. This package is scheduled to start on December 14, 2024, January 4, February 1, and March 6, 2025. The second package is titled Jewels of South (5 nights/6 days) which will start from Bengaluru to cover Mysore, Kanchipuram, Mahabalipuram, Thanjavur, Chettinad, Cochin, Chertala, and back to Bengaluru. It is scheduled to start on December 21, 2024, and February 15, 2025. The fare of this luxurious train is a whopping Rs. 4.53 lakh per passenger, including meals, beverages, sightseeing, and guides. Would you travel on this train for this extravagant price tag? Comment below.by Sunil G Wijesinha Consultant on Productivity and Japanese Style Management Recipient of the “Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays” from the Government of Japan Director, BizEx Consulting (Pvt) Ltd Email: bizex.seminarsandconsulting@gmail.com This is the season of Santa Clauses, Reindeer, Xmas cards and Gifts. This triggered my memory of a Christmas card I received long ago. I was fortunate to be selected to follow an ILO /MATCOM programme at the Vienna International Centre, Austria. The programme focused on training methodology and developing training material for managerial-level persons in Co-operative Societies through a more andragogy based methodology. It was an exhilarating experience for me, and at the end of two weeks, I had re-oriented my perceptions and attitudes on training methodology and developing training material, and acquired a vast knowledge in the area of andragogy training.. I received an interesting Xmas card from the MATCOM project at Christmas that year. It showed two Santa Clauses in conversation. The dialogue was something like this: First Santa “I taught my reindeer to sing” Second Santa : “But I have never heard your reindeer singing.” First Santa again : “I did not say he learnt to sing; I said I taught him to sing.” This hilarious exchange highlights a critical truth: teaching and learning are not synonymous. While teaching imparts knowledge and skills, learning involves internalizing, understanding, and applying what is taught. Simply put, teaching may occur without learning, and learning may happen without formal teaching. Rote Learning vs. Meaningful Learning The distinction between teaching and learning becomes even more apparent when we examine two approaches: rote learning and meaningful or active learning . Both have their place but differ significantly in their outcomes and effectiveness. Rote Learning: The Path of Memorisation Rote learning involves memorising information without necessarily understanding its meaning or context. This method emphasizes repetition, often at the expense of comprehension. While it can help recall facts, definitions, or sequences (e.g., multiplication tables or historical dates), its limitations become evident when critical thinking is required. A real-life example of Rote Learning Several years ago, we were recruiting at the executive entry level. All candidates were newly passed out university graduates of business or commerce degrees. In the written examination, one question was, “Peter Drucker states that the responsibility of communicating rests with the communicator, not with the recipient. – Discuss”. Not a single candidate discussed the quote. Still, they all reproduced the traditional communication diagram learnt in the university, showing the sender, the receiver, the message, the medium, interference, etc in a nice diagram. It was a shocking revelation. Last month, I interviewed two candidates who had received their degrees in financial engineering. Both failed to explain what the degree is all about and how a Financial Engineer could add value to our organization. Meaningful or Active Learning: The Path of Understanding Meaningful learning, in contrast, emphasizes understanding and connecting new information to prior knowledge. Active participation, critical thinking, and real-world application characterize this approach. It helps retain information longer and fosters the ability to analyse, evaluate, and create. Example of Meaningful Learning Following a course in Industrial and Systems Engineering in Japan, I was impressed with the approach used to make us understand the “time value of money”. I had completed my CIMA accountancy exams too by that time and could compare the two approaches to teaching this concept. In Sri Lanka, the lecturer came to class and wrote “Time Value of Money” on the board and explained the idea. Quite in contrast, in Japan the lecturer gave us a series of quizes, starting with a simple example where any layman could make an investment decision. We had to decide which alternative investment was more beneficial for each scenario. One by one, the examples were rolled out and became trickier. Finally, we discovered the “aha” moment when we started thinking that an amount realized now is better than the same amount a year later. We learned by experiencing different situations. We discovered the concept through guidance rather than being taught the concept. Professor Carson from Canada was one of our MBA course lecturers. He also lectured undergraduates and often said undergraduate students in Sri Lanka want to take notes rather than discuss a topic. He would joke that when he arrived at the lecture room and said, “Good Morning, Class,” most students would even write that down in their notebooks. Bridging the Gap: From Teaching to Learning The X-mas card’s humorous depiction of Santa highlights a common educational challenge: ensuring that teaching translates into learning. Effective teaching involves more than just delivering information; it requires creating an environment where students are motivated, engaged, and supported in their learning journey. Strategies to Promote Learning 1. Create a Supportive Learning Environment: Teachers can actively engage students with discussions, group activities, and problem-solving exercises. They can also use technology to enhance the learning experience, such as interactive whiteboards or educational apps. However, creating a supportive learning environment where students feel comfortable asking questions and making mistakes is not just a strategy; it’s a crucial responsibility for promoting learning. It’s about fostering a culture of learning and growth. 2. Encourage Critical Thinking Asking open-ended questions and encouraging debates can help students move beyond surface-level understanding. For example, analysing characters’ motivations and societal implications in literature classes fosters deeper engagement with the text. 3. Connect to Real-Life Contexts Relating lessons to students’ experiences or current events can make learning more meaningful. I still remember our school geography teacher teaching us about monsoon. I still remember his teaching that the rains during the big match in March were inter-monsoon rains. In training Co-operative Society managers, I realized that although they understood concepts such as Break-Even Analysis and Stock turnover ratios, they could not apply them to their organisation. We changed the method, so they brought their own data and practised using their own figures. This was a huge success. 4. Provide Feedback and Reflection Opportunities Feedback helps students understand what they’ve grasped and where they need improvement. Reflective practices, like journaling or group discussions, enable them to process and what they’ve learned. Conclusion: The Synergy of Teaching and Learning Teaching and learning are interconnected yet distinct. While teaching imparts knowledge, learning is acquiring and applying it. Rote learning has its place in specific contexts, but meaningful learning creates lasting understanding and fosters critical thinking. Educators must strive to bridge the gap between teaching and learning, ensuring that their efforts lead to genuine comprehension and application. As the Santa story humorously reminds us, teaching does not automatically lead to learning. Learning only occurs when we align teaching methods with learners’ needs and actively engage them. Therefore, let’s strive to make Sri Lanka a country of learners rather than of teachers. In this shift, educators have the most significant responsibility and the highest opportunity to make this difference.Yoenis Cespedes is pining for a Mets reunion. The former big league outfielder expressed his desire to play in Queens once again during a live stream from the Instagram account NYM_news on Wednesday. “I’m ready to play but just for the Mets,” Cespedes wrote from his official Instagram account. The Cuba native has been out of the majors since opting out of the 2020 season — after he played eight games — with the Mets due to COVID-19 concerns. At the time, sources told The Post that Cespedes partly stepped away from the team out of frustration with a lack of playing time that prevented him from reaching lucrative performance bonuses. In 2021, Cespedes attempted a comeback , holding a showcase in Fort Pierce, Fla. that 11 teams attended, and briefly spoke with the Mets about a potential reunion, although talks fell apart when the outfielder reportedly claimed he was unwilling to play in the minors. Cespedes, 39, has been out of professional baseball entirely since 2022-23 when he played for Águilas Cibaeñas in the Dominican Winter League. The Mets traded for Cespedes at the 2015 MLB trade deadline in exchange for pitchers Michael Fulmer and Luis Cessa. Before the 2017 season, Cespedes signed a four-year, $110 million deal with the Mets. Injuries, including separate surgeries to remove calcifications from both heels, which hampered him over the latter years with the Mets, playing in just 127 games from 2017-20. During five total seasons in the orange and blue, Cespedes hit .279/.344/.539 with 76 home runs and 205 RBIs, including making the National League All-Star team and finishing 8th in NL MVP voting in 2016. Cespedes played eight total seasons in the majors in stints with the A’s, Red Sox and Tigers, in addition to the Mets, after defecting from Cuba in 2011.