ELMS Sports Foundation Set To Initiate Second Edition Of High-Performance Leadership Program

* Last date for accepting applications is March 1, 2021

After having successfully upskilled the country’s top sports administrators and stakeholders through the inaugural batch of India’s first-ever High-Performance Leadership Program, ELMS Sports Foundation, with the Abhinav Bindra Foundation as Knowledge Partner and with the expert guidance of one of the leading sports education institutions in the world Loughborough University, announced the start of the second batch of the online program from March 20, 2021.

The first cohort of the program included Olympians Aparna Popat, Shiva Keshavan and Neha Aggarwal alongside other international athletes, representatives of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and state governments, elite sports clubs as well as NGOs associated with athlete management. This one-of-a-kind program is now open for everyone who fits its eligibility criteria.

“We have received a tremendously positive response during the induction of the first batch and I’m extremely happy to announce the second batch. Along with Abhinav Bindra Foundation and Loughborough University, we have successfully created a pool of High-Performance leaders who have developed the ability to not only contribute to the growth of the Indian sports ecosystem but also lead and created meaningful engagement and an environment for sports and sportspersons to thrive. I hope many more sports administrators can benefit from this curriculum and accelerate the growth of Indian sports,” ELMS Sports Foundation co-promoter Vita Dani said.

"High Performance Sport has seen a resurgence over the years owing to the potential of our athletes, guidance of our coaches and also due to the know-how of our sports leaders and administrators. These leaders and administrators not only create an athlete-centric approach but also execute plans with perfection. After the success of the first cohort of the High-Performance Leadership Programme, we are delighted to invite applications for the second batch, as we take concrete steps in taking Indian sport to greater heights in a sustainable manner. Come join us on this journey," India’s only Olympics gold medallist Abhinav Bindra added while urging interested candidates.

The ongoing pandemic has helped us witness and understand the importance of being skilled and innovative. While live sport has taken a hit and is making a slow recovery, High-Performance leaders will play a crucial role in the growth of the sporting ecosystem with their innovation, efficiency, and unique skill-set. Having Abhinav Bindra Foundation as the Knowledge Partner, ELMS Sports Foundation’s High-Performance Leadership Program has been developed with an active collaboration from Loughborough University and many other national and international experts to upgrade knowledge, skills and abilities of sports administrators and train them to become process and result-oriented simultaneously in order to achieve sustainable growth.

Registrations are now open for this seven-month online certificate program with the last date to apply being March 1, 2021. Candidates can submit their application on bit.ly/HPLP2Form. The fees for the program is INR 40000 + GST (one-time) while INR 35000 + GST for candidates who are sponsored by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, State Sports Departments or government bodies like SAI, SAG, NIS, etc. as well as any of the national sports federations.

To know more visit, http://www.highperformanceleadershipindia.com or read the brochure here: http://bit.ly/HPLP2_Brochure

Apply now: bit.ly/HPLP2Form

Message ELMS on WhatsApp: https://wa.me/message/K6D6ZDMAYN6FC1          

Uttarakhand Tourism Ministry Encourages Tourism Through Discovery’s New Title Explore Uttarakhand

* The two-part special film introduces hidden gems of Uttarakhand – from places of thrilling adventure sports to yoga retreats that heal mind and the body

* The films on Adventure Tourism, and Health and Wellness Tourism will be aired on Discovery Channel on 20th February 2021 at 7 PM and 21st February respectively

Discovery Channel, the leading real-life entertainment channel from India in collaboration with Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB) is all set to present a sublime new original two-part film titled ‘Explore Uttarakhand’. Providing audiences the chance to engage through stunning visuals of Uttarakhand, the film is all set to premiere on 20th February and 21st February on Discovery Channel, and explores spiritual yoga destinations and adrenaline packed adventure sports that go on in the snow filled mountains of the state.

Through this two-part film, viewers will get to witness the scenic Uttarakhand and familiarize themselves with its adventure sports and treasure of yoga and wellness. The film documents adventure activities in Uttarakhand that are some of the most challenging in the entire Indian subcontinent, attracting adrenaline seeking sport professionals and enthusiasts from all around the globe. Along with that, the ancient science of Yoga which was found by Indian sages thousands of years ago actually traces its beginning to Uttarakhand.

Speaking about the film Satpal Maharaaz, Minister of Tourism, Uttarakhand said, “Uttarakhand is a beautiful state which holds the privilege of being in the path of the mighty Himalayan Ranges that consist of some of nature's most extreme and unpredictable patterns. There are many famous shrines and places here like our Chardham, Hemkund Sahib, Haridwar and Rishikesh and others that have attracted tourists from all over the world. Uttarakhand which has also become preferred film destination in past years is also attracting tourists from all around the globe. Through Explore Uttarakhand on Discovery Channel, we humbly welcome you to this divinely blissful and fabulous state of ours.” he added.

Secretary Tourism Mr. Dilip Jawalkar said, “Uttarakhand is a heavenly destination when it comes to offering various adventure activities to tourists. From last few years we are constantly working to develop infrastructure to promote adventure and wellness tourism in Uttarakhand. The documentary film “Explore Uttarakhand’’ made by the Discovery Channel will play an important role to reach national and international audience.”

“We, at Discovery, believe in bringing factual stories to our audiences that not only entertain them but leave them with an enriching experience and a better understanding of the world. The two-part documentary is a visually stunning film that captures the tremendous beauty of the state of Uttarakhand and the Himalayan Ranges. We are delighted to join hands with the Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board to bring to the fore hidden gems from the destination, aiming to inspire people to experience the mesmerizing beauty and versatility the state has to offer.” said Megha Tata, Managing Director- South Asia, Discovery Communications India.

Watch visually stunning film Explore Uttarakhand on 20th and 21st February only on Discovery Channel India

About Discovery India:

Discovery Communications India, country’s leading real life entertainment player, is dedicated to satisfying curiosity, engaging and entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its portfolio of 14 channels including Discovery Channel, Discovery HD, Animal Planet, Animal Planet HD, TLC, TLC HD, Investigation Discovery, Investigation Discovery HD, Discovery Science, Discovery Turbo, Discovery Kids, DTamil and sports channels Eurosport and Eurosport HD.  The company recently launched India’s first aggregated real-life entertainment streaming app Discovery Plus. Available on Android, iOS and on the desktop / mobile web and Fire TV, the app offers more than 40,000 hours of content, across 40+ genres including Science, Adventure, Food and Lifestyle, in the language of your choice. 

Kioxia And Western Digital Announce 6th-Generation 3D Flash Memory

* Innovations in Scaling and CMOS Placement Deliver the Companies’ Highest Density and Most Advanced 3D Flash Memory Technology to Date

Kioxia Corporation and Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC), today announced that the companies have developed their sixth-generation, 162-layer 3D flash memory technology. Marking the next milestone in the companies’ 20-year joint-venture partnership, this is the companies’ highest density and most advanced 3D flash memory technology to date, utilizing a wide range of technology and manufacturing innovations.

“Through our strong partnership that has spanned two decades, Kioxia and Western Digital have successfully created unrivaled capabilities in manufacturing and R&D,” said Masaki Momodomi, Chief Technology Officer, Kioxia. “Together, we produce over 30 percent1 of the world’s flash memory bits and are steadfast in our mission to provide exceptional capacity, performance and reliability at a compelling cost. We each deliver this value proposition across a range of data-centric applications from personal electronics to data centers as well as emerging applications enabled by 5G networks, artificial intelligence and autonomous systems.”

Beyond Vertical Scaling – New Architecture Leverages New Innovations

“As Moore’s Law reaches its physical limits across the semiconductor industry, there’s one place where Moore’s Law continues its relevancy — that’s in flash,” said Dr. Siva Sivaram, President of Technology & Strategy, Western Digital. “To continue these advances and meet the world’s growing data demands, a new approach to 3D flash memory scaling is critical. With this new generation, Kioxia and Western Digital are introducing innovations in vertical as well as lateral scaling to achieve greater capacity in a smaller die with fewer layers. This innovation ultimately delivers the performance, reliability and cost that customers need.”

This sixth-generation 3D flash memory features advanced architecture beyond conventional eight-stagger memory hole array and achieves up to 10 percent greater lateral cell array density compared to the fifth-generation technology. This lateral scaling advancement, in combination with 162 layers of stacked vertical memory, enables a 40 percent reduction in die size compared to the 112-layer stacking technology, optimizing cost.

The Kioxia and Western Digital teams also applied Circuit Under Array CMOS placement and four-plane operation, which together deliver nearly 2.4 times improvement in program performance and 10 percent improvement in read latency compared to the previous generation. I/O performance also improves by 66 percent, enabling the next-generation interface to support the ever-increasing need for faster transfer rates.

Overall, the new 3D flash memory technology reduces the cost per bit, as well as increases the manufactured bits per wafer by 70 percent, compared with the previous generation. Kioxia and Western Digital continue to drive innovation to ensure continued scaling to meet the needs of customers and their diverse applications.

The companies detailed the related innovations in a joint presentation at the ISSCC 2021 show earlier today.

About Kioxia

Kioxia is a world leader in memory solutions, dedicated to the development, production and sale of flash memory and solid-state drives (SSDs). In April 2017, its predecessor Toshiba Memory was spun off from Toshiba Corporation, the company that invented NAND flash memory in 1987. Kioxia is committed to uplifting the world with memory by offering products, services and systems that create choice for customers and memory-based value for society. Kioxia's innovative 3D flash memory technology, BiCS FLASH™, is shaping the future of storage in high-density applications, including advanced smartphones, PCs, SSDs, automotive and data centers.

About Western Digital

Western Digital creates environments for data to thrive. As a leader in data infrastructure, the company is driving the innovation needed to help customers capture, preserve, access and transform an ever-increasing diversity of data. Everywhere data lives, from advanced data centers to mobile sensors to personal devices, our industry-leading solutions deliver the possibilities of data. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, SanDisk®, and WD® brands.

Aditya Birla Education Academy, Johns Hopkins collaborates For Talented Youth To Bring Online Programs For Advanced Learners

Aditya Birla Education Academy (ABEA), India’s leading professional development institute, has collaborated with the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY) to offer scholarships for CTY’s Online Programs for advanced learners in India. Both ABEA and CTY aim to identify and support the needs of bright young learners in India through these online programs at reduced rates up to August 2021. Through this cooperation with CTY, Aditya Birla Education Academy is providing a 5% scholarship on tuition fees and reduction in the application fees up to August 2021. This scholarship can be availed by only first 50 advanced learners who apply to ABEA. Students in grades 2 through 12 can qualify through participation in the CTY Talent Search and demonstrating high ability in either quantitative or spatial reasoning (for math and science courses) or verbal reasoning (for humanities and writing courses).

CTY offers more than 200 challenging, engaging, and fun virtual courses, which are conducted by expert instructors who specialize in teaching advanced concepts to bright students. Courses are available in real-time, independent, and student-driven, collaborative formats. One can understand in detail about CTY courses in computer science, critical reading, engineering, history, mathematics, science, social science, world languages, and writing by attending a virtual information session or by visiting CTY's website.

Mrs. Neerja Birla, Founder, and Chairperson, Aditya Birla Education Trust, said, “We, at Aditya Birla Education Academy, are dedicated to offer unique, rigorous and relevant courses to learners in the country who are looking to upskill themselves in this dynamic environment. In this endeavour, we are happy to extend our cooperation with the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth with a special scholarship to fulfil the learning needs of bright young minds in India to enrol in CTY’s Online Programs for advanced learners. I am confident that students will find tremendous value in these enriching courses.”

Mr. Samuel Robfogel, Senior Director for International Initiatives at CTY, said “CTY is committed to providing students with high ability around the globe with the optimal level of challenge to help them develop their academic talents. We are pleased to cooperate with Aditya Birla Education Trust to advance this work in India.”

About Aditya Birla Education Academy

Aditya Birla Education Academy (ABEA) is India’s leading professional development institute for teachers. ABEA aims to engage educators in the new-age global processes of education and empower them to evolve into the best knowledge-givers they can be, as they nurture young minds and contribute towards shaping the future. ABEA also facilitates unique and innovative courses for students, in order to impart new-age skills that are on par with the best in the world.

About Aditya Birla Education Trust

Aditya Birla Education Trust (ABET) is an organisation committed to the cause of education and mental health, with an objective to nurture young minds. Right from establishing the Aditya Birla World Academy, an International School with an Indian soul, to The Aditya Birla Integrated School, which acknowledges the need to cater to children with different learning needs, ABET has always prioritised the importance of a child’s overall development. Further under the aegis of ABET, the Aditya Birla Education Academy provides professional development opportunities for educators, and engages, empowers and equips them to contribute towards shaping the future of young minds. In an endeavour to stamp out stigma surrounding mental health concerns, ABET has established Mpower, a holistic mental health care initiative, which has become the pioneer of mental health awareness in the country. Aditya Birla Education Trust runs under the zealous leadership of its passionate and committed Founder & Chairperson, Mrs. Neerja Birla.

About Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth

A world leader in gifted education since 1979, Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY) is a nonprofit dedicated to identifying and developing the talents of academically advanced pre-university students around the world. CTY serves bright learners and their families through research, advocacy, and counseling, as well as its signature gifted and talented summer, online, international, and family programs.

Amazon Prime Video Announces Shahid Kapoor's Digital Debut In New Raj & Dk Series

* Created, Written and Directed by Raj and DK, this is Raj and DK’s next collaboration with the streaming service, after their spectacularly successful series, The Family Man

Amazon Prime offers incredible value with unlimited streaming of the latest and exclusive movies, TV shows, stand-up comedy, Amazon Originals, ad-free music through Amazon Prime Music, free fast delivery on India’s largest selection of products, early access to top deals, unlimited reading with Prime Reading and mobile gaming content with Prime Gaming, all available only for ₹129 a month. Customers can also watch latest shows and more by subscribing to Prime Video Mobile Edition. Prime Video Mobile Edition is a single-user, mobile-only plan currently available for Airtel Pre-Paid customers

Amazon Prime Video today announced to have commenced production on an upcoming yet-to-be-titled Amazon Original Series featuring Shahid Kapoor in the lead. The quirky drama thriller is created by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, and will mark the digital debut of actor Shahid Kapoor. Filled with Raj and DK’s trademark dark and wry humour, the series will mark the director duo’s new collaboration with Amazon Prime Video following spectacular success of The Family Man which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video in over 240 countries and territories. The show is co-written by Sita R Menon, Suman Kumar and Hussain Dalal.

“At Amazon Prime Video, we take pride in being home to some of the best talent and storytellers from India and across the world,” said Vijay Subramaniam, Director and Head, Content, Amazon Prime Video, India “Shahid Kapoor is an incredibly gifted actor and we are excited to have him join the Prime Video family with a brand new exciting collaboration with Raj and DK. This is a fresh and unique combination that we’re confident will be a hit with our customers!”

Talking about his digital debut, Shahid Kapoor said, “I have been keen to collaborate with Raj and DK for a while. My favourite Indian show on Amazon Prime Video is The Family Man. I couldn’t think of anyone better for my digital debut than them. Amazon Prime Video is a fabulous service and it’s a privilege to work with them. I loved the story idea when I first heard it and since then it has been an exciting ride so far! Can’t wait to share this series with the audience.”

“For us the objective is always to challenge ourselves to do better with every film or series we do.” said the creator duo Raj and DK. “This is our favourite script and has truly been a labour of love. We found a perfect match in Shahid! He was always our first choice for this series. We hit it off immediately, and have been on the same page from the first time we spoke. Shahid is an exciting actor to watch and work with! The intensity he brings to his roles is amazing. Our long-standing relationship with Amazon Prime Video makes us feel more responsible towards every series we do with them. They have been fantastic partners. And we can't wait to create this series!”

There will soon be an announcement on the surprise cast featured in the series.

The new series will join the thousands of TV shows and movies in the Prime Video catalog. These include Indian films Soorarai Pottru, V, CU Soon, Nishabhdam, Halal Love Story, Middle Class Melodies, Maara, Bheemasena Nalamaharaja, Mane No. 13, Penguin, Law, Sufiyum Sujatayum, Ponmagal Vandhal, French Biriyani, Gulabo Sitabo, Shakuntala Devi, Coolie No. 1, Durgamati, Chhalaang, among others along with Indian-produced Amazon Original series like Bandish Bandits, Tandav, Breathe: Into The Shadows, Paatal Lok, The Forgotten Army – Azaadi Ke Liye, Four More Shots Please S1 and 2, The Family Man, Mirzapur S1 and S2, Inside Edge S1, and S2, and Made In Heaven and the award-winning and critically acclaimed global Amazon Original series like Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, The Boys, Hunters, Fleabag, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. All this is available at no extra cost for Amazon Prime members. The service includes titles in Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi, and Bengali.

Prime members will be able to watch the new series anywhere and anytime on the Prime Video app for smart TVs, mobile devices, Fire TV, Fire TV stick, Fire tablets, Apple TV, etc. In the Prime Video app, Prime members can download episodes on their mobile devices and tablets and watch anywhere offline at no additional cost.

Customers can also watch the new series by subscribing to Prime Video Mobile Edition. Prime Video Mobile Edition is a single-user mobile-only plan. All Airtel customers on pre-paid bundled packs get 30-day free trial of Prime Video Mobile Edition. Subsequently, customers can activate Mobile Edition through recharge bundles starting at an introductory offer of ₹ 89.

Prime Video is available in India to Prime members for just ₹999 annually, or ₹129 monthly. New customers can find out more at www.amazon.in/ prime and subscribe to a free 30-day trial.

Building With CO₂-Based Material, Technology Now Becomes Possible

 

Up to 20 percent CO₂ instead of oil in rigid polyurethane foam

Innovative rigid foam for insulation boards

Materials show enhanced sustainability in initial tests

More sustainable, CO₂-based materials for the construction sector - in the future, this could become reality. Since 2016, Covestro has been working with research and development partners as part of the "DreamResource" joint project (FKZ 033RC002) funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) to research new, more environmentally friendly polyols with the potential to be used, for example, in the form of rigid polyurethane foam in insulation for the construction sector. An initial prototype of an insulation board has now been developed together with the project partner puren gmbh, which contains the novel polyols based on conventional ethylene oxides and CO₂. This marks a decisive further development of Covestro's CO₂ technology for a particularly important part of the climate-relevant construction industry.

"Buildings are responsible for a large share of global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. This makes it all the more important for us at Covestro to contribute to the Circular Economy and make insulation even more sustainable and efficient in the future. Our goal is to end the use of fossil fuels and make our production processes more sustainable," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer at Covestro.

Using innovative CO₂ technology, Covestro already produces the CO₂-based precursor cardyon®, which is utilized in the manufacture of mattresses, sports flooring, textile fibers and components for vehicle interiors.

New, promising approach thanks to CO₂ technology

Covestro has now succeeded in combining the petroleum derivative ethylene oxide with CO₂ in a chemical reaction to produce first polyols and finally rigid polyurethane foam. Up to 20 percent of petroleum-based raw materials are expected to be replaced by this process in the future. "With the development of these materials, we are endowing the greenhouse gas CO₂ with a new use with versatile applications," says Dr. Christoph Gürtler, Head of Catalysis and Technology at Covestro.

Together with Covestro's industrial partners puren gmbh, BYK-Chemie GmbH and PSS Polymer Standard Service GmbH, it proved possible not only to investigate a wide range of applications but also to develop new analytical methods for the CO₂-based materials. With RWTH Aachen University and the Technical University of Berlin, the ecological and economic potential of this expanded CO₂ technology was investigated along with the in-depth characterization of the novel materials. "The results of DreamResource very clearly demonstrate the diverse opportunities that arise from the use of CO₂ as a basic building block for polyols to produce a wide variety of polyurethane types. The interaction between industry and science plays an essential role in this innovative field," says Dennis Krämer, project manager for national and international research projects for CO₂ utilization at DECHEMA e.V.

Versatile and sustainable insulation

"This renewed expansion of the product range yields enormous leeway," continues Gürtler. Thanks to the promising combination of ethylene oxide and CO₂, surface-active substances can also be produced through this new route in addition to CO₂-based rigid polyurethane foam, which can be used in insulating boards for buildings, for example.

Lake Constance-based puren gmbh is one of the pioneers of rigid polyurethane foam technology and investigated the use of CO₂ polyols in the rigid foam segment in this research project.

Following more than three years of joint research in the collaborative project, over 400 kilogram of the CO₂-based polyol was successfully delivered to puren for further processing. "These initial rigid foam insulation boards made with a CO₂-based rigid foam polyol conform to standards and are already comparable with the market standard in terms of their key technical specifications. During further cooperation, we plan to manufacture additional prototypes and to enhance the properties with the aim of taking a giant step closer to the use of CO₂ as an alternative raw material in rigid foam insulation boards and ensuring rapid final development to market readiness," says puren Managing Director Dr. Andreas Huther. Thanks to this successful collaboration, CO₂ can now be used as an alternative raw material in the rigid foam sector. This will make building insulations even more sustainable and will further reduce the dependence on fossil raw materials.

Bengaluru Based Rishi Shiv Prasanna With IQ level Of 180 Recognized As Young Genius!

As a child, many of us are curious and have lots of questions about many things, but Rishi Shiv Prasanna surprises everyone with his knowledge. The 6-year-old from Bengaluru has an insatiable thirst for knowledge and is a genius in the true sense. Rishi has been certified to have an IQ level of 180. and has been admitted to the Mensa High IQ Society. He is arguably amongst the youngest Certified Android application developers (has developed 3 apps  that are listed in Google play store-”IQ Test App” for kids,  “Countries of the world” and CHB which is COVID Help for Bangaloreans) and has even authored a book.

Rishi Shiv Prasanna’s extraordinary talent will now be recognized in Young Genius, a show that celebrates child prodigies. Rishi met former Indian Hockey player, Padma Shri awardee Sardar Singh and impressed him with his knowledge. Sardar Singh, who has made over 350 international appearances for India and became the youngest Hockey captain was awestruck when he met Rishi.   

Rishi started exhibiting his brilliance at a very young age. Rishi’s mother, Recheshwari S. says, “At the age of 3, Rishi started narrating about the Solar System, the Universe, planets, shapes and numbers. We were surprised to see his knowledge.” In fact, India Book of Records issued him a Certificate of Appreciation in 2019 at the age of 5 for his IQ.

Rishi developed an interest in space, science, technology and computer science at the age of 4. Rishi Shiv Prassana said, “At the age of 5, I learnt coding and now I have developed many user-friendly apps. I want to become a scientist who helps protect Mother Earth.”

Watch Rishi Shiv P with Sardar Singh in an exciting chat in the sixth episode of Byju’s Young Genius on 20th February 2021 (Saturday) and repeat telecast on 21st February on News18 Network!