Sharjeel, Khalid secure Pakistan 9-wicket win over England

Sharjeel Khan and Khalid Latif scored quickfire half-centuries as Pakistan defeated England by nine wickets in the only Twenty20 International (T20I) at Old Trafford, Manchester, late on Wednesday.

It was a boundary-galore as the pair registered a 107-run opening stand hitting 17 boundaries in the first 10 overs.

The ball crossed the boundary rope 22 times in total.

The two came out all guns blazing as the opening duo struck record 73 runs in the powerplay overs — overshadowing Pakistan's previous best of 72 against Zimbabwe.

Sharjeel, who registered his second T20I half-century with a towering six over cow corner off Adil Rashid, fell in the 12th over as he tried a cross-bat heave off the leg-spinner.

The left-handed batsman struck seven fours and three sixes in his 36-ball 59.

On the other hand, Khalid continued the onslaught and went on to score his maiden fifty of the format with a six over mid-wicket.

He remained unbeaten on 59 from 42 balls. The 30-year-old hit 10 boundaries — eight fours and two sixes. 

Earlier, in what was a disciplined show by Pakistan bowlers, that restricted England to 135 for seven in 20 overs. Half of England's batting line-up was back in the pavilion by the end of the 15th over as the hosts were 105 for five.

Left-arm orthodox Imad Wasim dismissed both England openers — Jason Roy and Alex Hales — to reduce England to two down for 67 in nine overs during the ongoing one-off Twenty20 International (T20I) against Pakistan at Old Trafford, Manchester.

Roy, who struck two fours and a towering six — off Sohail Tanvir — in his 20-ball 21, fell during the seventh over after he accumulated 56 runs along Hales for the first wicket on Wednesday.

Going for a reverse sweep off Imad Wasim, Roy was given LBW when the left-arm orthodox's straighter delivery crashed into the batter's pads.

Starting the proceedings quietly, the openers turned screws on the Pakistani bowlers during the third over.

Left-arm fast-bowler Mohammad Amir was welcomed with a pull-shot by Roy that crashed into the mid-wicket boundary in the third over of the innings when England were eight without a loss.

The two batsmen piled up 41 runs in the next 23 balls.

Hales, who hit 37 off 26 with five fours, fell during Imad's third over trying to attempt a cross-bat shot.

Imad, who opened the bowling for Pakistan by conceding just two singles, gave away 17 runs at an economy just over four per over in his quota of four overs.

In the 10th over, Hasan Ali removed Joe Root, who had replaced Roy, for the third consecutive time on the tour on the first ball of his second over which reduced the hosts to three for 67.

Jos Buttler, who failed to scoop pacers on umpteen occasions, handed an easy catch to Shoaib Malik at the cover boundary off Wahab Riaz during the 14th over which was followed by Ali's second wicket — Ben Stokes — 10 balls later.

Wahab, who impressed with terrific line and length bowling, picked up England captain and David Willey to end with three wickets — the most in the innings — at just 6 runs apiece.

Toss

England captain Morgan opted to bat first against Pakistan in the one-off Twenty20 International (T20I) at Old Trafford, Manchester.

Captaining Pakistan for the first time, Sarfraz Ahmed admitted that he would have liked to bat first.

The wicketkeeper batsman further added that he wants to end the England tour on a high note with a win, during the post-toss conversation with Mike Atherton.

Tanvir returned to the national side after a 10-month-long hiatus.

England fielded the same side that lost the ICC World T20 final to Darren Sammy-led West Indies earlier in April this year.

Team line-ups

England: Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (C), Jos Buttler (W), Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Liam Plunkett, Chris Jordan, David Willey, Adil Rashid.

Pakistan: Khalid Latif, Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (C)(W), Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali.

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PTI stages walkout from NA as Imran terms speaker 'biased'

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday lambasted National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq for 'victimising' him and alleged that Sadiq is no longer an impartial speaker.

Members of the PTI staged a walkout from the House after Imran's remarks in the NA.

Speaking to journalists outside the NA, Khan said, "I referred to him as Ayaz Sadiq, not as the Speaker. In my opinion, he is not a speaker. A speaker is supposed to be unbiased."

"Whatever he's done, he has done under pressure from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif," Imran Khan alleged.

"Nawaz believes if someone can be bought, buy them. If they cannot be bought, then they must be suppressed," he alleged.

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Pakistani engineer braves tragedy to develop low-cost ventilator

There was a deathly sound in the ward, of lungs struggling, and wheezing. Most of the patients were children, with a variety of winter respiratory diseases, including but not limited to Pneumonia.

Around each bed, loved ones stood guard. Fathers and sons, mothers and daughters. They looked on as their own fought for their lives. And to make things even more difficult, some of these loved ones, were bent over a machine, pumping precious air into the lungs of their children.

Dr. Mujeebur Rahman was one of them.

"My nephew had been brought in from Sahiwal, and as his condition went from bad to worse, there was no ventilator available for him."

"What we were given instead was an ambu bag which is generally used as a stop gap arrangement to save a patient’s life. Me and three other people took turns on this bag to make sure the child got his body’s requirement of air."

The lack and state of ventilators in public hospitals across the province is nothing new. According to a leading newspaper, a report recently filed by the Provincial government in the Supreme Court alleges that out of the 885 ventilators available across the province, at least 122 are dysfunctional.

That is nearly 14%. The same report claims that while many faults have been repaired locally, major defects cannot be resolved in the short term due to the unavailability of certain high tech parts which have to be imported from manufacturers and/or agents.

A lack of working ventilators means patients are given ambu bags for manual ventilation. Dr. Rahman's version aims to removes human error from the process ─ MIT review Technology

Numerous deaths have also been attributed to these damaged ventilators. Just last December, at least ten children died in a leading public hospital in Lahore due to dysfunctional machines.

With the number of working ventilators low, it is a challenge for most people to get access to the life saving machine. Especially in public hospitals. And that’s where the ambu bags come in.

Even for a person with no medical background, it is easy to see that this manual ventilation method is a recipe for disaster.

The human heart is a perfect engine. It regulates the pace and pressure of air into the lungs. But when the heart is unable to pump enough air into the lungs, intervention is necessary, and that’s where the ventilators come in.

Most private hospitals have a much better ventilator to bed ratio as compared to public hospitals, but since they are business oriented, these private hospitals charge exorbitant rates for the use of the machines. Rates that most of Pakistan cannot afford.

And so, Dr. Rahman’s young nephew fought for his life, for three days and three nights, in a public hospital, breathing through an ambu bag. And soon faded away.

An electrical engineer from the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore, Dr. Rahman had recently returned from the United States after completing his Masters and PhD from The California Institute of Technology (Caltech), one of the world’s leading institutions in the field of science and technology. Now, he felt helpless.

“As an engineer, I couldn’t reconcile myself with the state of affairs in the ward, that too in the 21st century,” says Dr. Rahman, who is now an Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering at Lahore's Information Technology University (ITU).

"I now had a choice to make: either I could sit and fume, or I could use my engineering acumen and look for a solution."

The good doctor chose the latter.

The idea was not to reinvent the wheel, but to create a product that could at the very least, take out the human errors involved in using an ambu bag as a ventilator. So the decision was made to automate the ambu bag.

"It’s much easier to accept something familiar," Dr Rahman says, "if we’d gone out and built something completely different, there would be challenges in getting it accepted."

At the heart of the invention is a motor regulating flow rate and tidal volume ─ MIT review Technology

With a mechanical engineer from UET, the process of invention began, and as with most such efforts, it all started on paper, with some preliminary sketches. From there, they moved towards mechanical designs, and soon enough, the design was ready.

At this point, Dr. Rahman felt that a full time resource was needed, which is when his associate Saad Pasha came on board, as a research associate provided by ITU.

Together the two have put together what is version 0.1 of the low cost ambu bag ventilator system.

Both parameters can be monitored via sensors connected at both ends ─ MIT review Technology

"Clearly there is a lot of optimisation that can happen, in the weight, size and form of the device," says Dr. Rahman. "And as with all things medical, this needs to now go into a testing phase after which it can be rolled out."

At the heart of the invention is a motor, that regulates the flow rate and the tidal volume of the ambu bag. Both these two parameters can be monitored via sensors connected at both ends, the motor and the ambu bag.

These sensors not only help in ensuring that the correct parameters are being delivered, but also come in handy when and/if the device develops a fault. A standard 12 volt battery powers the device. "At the end, we want this to be a handheld device," says Dr. Rahman. The money needed to build the prototype came from ITU's research fund, which is made exclusively for such projects.

There are at least two major challenges ahead. The crucial step is testing. For the device to be accepted, it needs to go through a rigorous process where it is first tested and monitored on animals, and then human testing may begin. Then if it meets certain regulatory standards, it can be allowed for mass scale production.

However, in in-house testing, the device has performed remarkably well: where human input has been terribly scattered, the device has been exactly on point.

The other challenge is scalability. This prototype is handmade. Most of the components are locally sourced, from areas like Hall Road and Brandreth Road, which are more renowned for their audio and spare parts shops than components for lifesaving equipment. If the ventilator is to be mass produced, it will need to be an assembly line production.

As a start, Dr. Rahman believes that his team can hand make up to ten ventilators, which can be installed at a single hospital. There, both the doctors and his team can work together to monitor the devices for effectiveness, precision and faults.

"One problem with us engineers is that we build something and then put it away on the shelf to gather dust," admits Dr. Rahman.

"I don’t intend on letting this happen to the ventilator."

This piece first appeared on MIT Technology Review Pakistan and has been reproduced with permission.

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Pokemon Go 'is blasphemous' Indian court told

AHMEDABAD: Pokemon Go is blasphemous and should be banned, an Indian court was told Wednesday, because it rewards religious vegetarians with eggs.

Lawyer Nachiket Dave argued that the game offended the religious sensibilities of Hindus and Jains ─ some of whom do not eat meat or other animal products ─ by giving players virtual eggs, including in places of worship.

"Those who succeed are rewarded with eggs. Offering eggs to people in temples, even in the virtual world, is highly objectionable and amounts to blasphemy," Dave told AFP after the brief hearing at the court in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

Many Hindus are vegetarian, among them Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while members of the Jain faith usually follow a very strict vegan diet.

Dave, who is acting on behalf of a private individual named Alay Dave, said the court would now ask the Gujarat and Indian governments as well as the San Francisco-based makers of Pokemon to respond to the claims.

The global Pokemon Go craze has prompted a slew of complaints, with religious sites arguing that it is disrespectful to play there and some countries imposing a complete ban.

The game was recently updated to remove the Hiroshima and Berlin Holocaust memorials as Pokemon landmarks.

A Russian blogger has been charged with offending religious believers and inciting hatred after filming himself playing Pokemon Go in a church.

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LG unveils V20, the first phone to ship with new Android Nougat OS

SAN FRANCISCO: LG is unveiling the first phone to ship with Google's new Android Nougat software, in hopes of appealing to people who like to take and share photos and video.

The new V20 phone comes on the eve of a San Francisco event where Apple is expected to launch new iPhones.

Nougat is already available as a free upgrade on some Google phones under the Nexus brand.

The V20 would be the first with Nougat already installed. Other phones aren't likely to get Nougat for a while because individual phone makers and wireless carriers have to tweak and test the new software first.

A model poses with LG Electronics Inc.'s new smartphone the V20 during its unveiling ceremony in Seoul ─ AP

Many of the Android improvements in Nougat are "under the hood" and thus largely invisible, such as tweaks to reduce battery consumption and cellular data use.

The most obvious changes include the ability to run two apps side by side, something Samsung and LG have offered on their phones on a limited basis. Nougat will also let people reply to messages within notifications, something Apple already offers on iPhones.

Meanwhile, the V20 promises higher-quality audio playback and recording, with reduced background noise, according to LG. The company also says it also improved image stabilisation when recording video.

LG spokesman Frank Lee described the V20's target audience as "storytellers."

Like LG's G5 phone, which it released in April, the V20 will have two lenses on the main camera one for regular pictures and one with a wide angle to capture more of the scene. Unlike many other top-line phones, the V20 features a replaceable battery.

LG is unveiling the first phone to ship with Google's new Android Nougat software, in hopes of appealing to people who like to take and share photos and video ─ AP

The V20 is expected in South Korea this month, with other markets, including the US, to follow. LG didn't immediately announce prices.

Apple also plans to update its phone software this month. The update, iOS 10, will come with new messanging and photo features and more detailed notifications on the lock screen. Existing iPhone users will be encouraged to upgrade for the software for free.

New iPhone's expected to be unveiled Wednesday will come with iOS 10.

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Tech may help steer older drivers down a safer road

SAN FRANCISCO: Older drivers may soon be traveling a safer road thanks to smarter cars that can detect oncoming traffic, steer clear of trouble and even hit the brakes when a collision appears imminent.

A few of these innovations, such as blind-spot warning systems, are already built in or offered as optional features in some vehicles, primarily in more expensive models.

But more revolutionary breakthroughs are expected in the next few years, when measures such as robotic braking systems are supposed to become standard features in all cars on U.S. roads.

Better technology, of course, can help prevent drivers of all ages from getting into accidents. But those in their 70s and older are more likely to become confused at heavily trafficked intersections and on-ramps.

Aging also frequently limits a body's range of motion, making it more difficult to scan all around for nearby vehicles and other hazards. And older drivers tend to be more fragile than their younger counterparts, suffering more serious injuries in traffic accidents.

"Anything that reduces the likelihood or severity of a collision is really a technology that is primed for helping tomorrow's older adults," says Bryan Reimer, research scientist for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AgeLab and associate director of the New England University Transportation Center.

"We are moving toward an ecosystem where older adults will increasingly be supported by the technology that may help enhance their mobility."

Automakers are rolling out more technology just as the first members of the culture-shifting Baby Boom generation turn 70 this year. By 2030, the US Census Bureau expects there will be nearly 54 million people who are 70 or older living in the country, up from about 31 million in 2014.

About 80 percent of that group is expected to be licensed to drive, based on current trends, and that ratio could rise even higher if technology lets elderly people remain behind the wheel and preserve a sense of independence longer.

The presence of safety technology will be a key consideration for three-fourths of the drivers older than 50 who plan to buy a car in the next two years, according to a recent survey by auto insurer The Hartford and MIT AgeLab.

In an indication that priorities are shifting, only one-third of the surveyed 50-and-older drivers who bought a car during the past two years focused on safety technology.

The push to engineer self-driving cars has helped heighten awareness about the role technology can play in eliminating the human error that causes most accidents.

Google, now part of Alphabet Inc., ignited the self-driving car research seven years ago when it began working on autonomous vehicles in a secret laboratory.

Now, most automakers and other major technology companies, including Apple and Uber, are also working on self-driving technology, though there is still wide disagreement over when robotic chauffeurs will be ready — and legally cleared — to assume sole responsibility for navigating public roads.

Google aims to have its fully autonomous vehicles cruising around by 2020. That objective is considered too ambitious by many auto industry executives and experts who believe self-driving cars are a decade or more away from becoming a reality.

In the meantime, plenty of other technology should be widely available for older drivers.

Earlier this year, the auto industry vowed to make automated emergency brakes a standard feature by September 2022, but it won't be that long before the technology is widely available. Toyota plans to build it into most models, including its Lexus brand, by the end of next year.

Cameras on a dashboard screen that show what's behind the car have become commonplace in recent years and will be mandatory on all new cars by May 2018. The equipment is expected to be especially helpful for older drivers with a limited range of motion.

Other technology expected to assist older drivers includes automated parking, and adaptive headlights that swivel in the same direction as the steering wheel and adjust the beams' intensity depending on driving conditions and oncoming traffic.

Robotic systems that temporarily assist with highway driving already are available, most notably in Tesla Motors' high end Model S.

The electric-car maker released its Autopilot feature last fall, prompting some Model S owners to entrust more of the driving to the robot than Tesla recommends while the system is still in testing mode. For instance, some drivers have posted pictures of themselves reading a newspaper or book with the Model S on Autopilot, or even sitting in the back seat.

In May, an Ohio man was killed when a Model S in Autopilot mode crashed into the side of a tractor-trailer while traveling 9 mph above the speed limit on a highway near Gainesville, Florida. Federal investigators are looking into the cause.

Highly publicized incidents like that may make it more difficult to persuade older drivers to trust the technology coming to their cars.

Older drivers also will need help understanding its benefits and how to use it, says Dale Rife, senior adviser to American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). To help, AARP is planning to put more focus on car technology in its 37-year-old driver safety programs.

"This evolution is going to accelerate in the next few years," Rife predicts, "but people fear what they don't understand. And if they don't understand it, they will just avoid it."

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Pakistan likely to host squash event worth $50,000 next year

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) said Wednesday the World Squash Federation (WSF) has assured it of an opportunity to host an event worth $50,000 next year.

Talking to APP, PSF Vice President Qamar Zaman said the WSF Chief Executive Officer Andrew Shelley has assured Pakistan that it will be provided with maximum PSA events.

"Andrew was present in Poland where Pakistan clinched the 2016 World Team Junior Squash Championships title and there he committed that a $50,000 PSA event will be given to us next year," said the PSF vice president.

He said that Egyptian and Malaysian players, too, have shown eagerness to play a bilateral Test Series with the Pakistani players.

"Egyptian and Malaysian officials have assured that they will come here and play a bilateral Test Series with Pakistani. Pakistan has eight to nine players who can outcome any international player. It's just that we need to groom them."

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