The Allen telescope array will comprise 350 telescopes listening for ET signals A senior astronomer has said that the hunt for alien life should take into account alien “sentient machines”. Seti, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, has until now sought radio signals from worlds like Earth. But Seti astronomer Seth Shostak argues that the time between aliens developing radio technology and artificial intelligence (AI) would be short. Writing in Acta Astronautica, he says that the odds favour detecting such alien AI rather than “biological” life. Many involved in Seti have long argued that nature may have solved the problem of … Continue reading Alien hunters ‘should look for artificial intelligence’

Sialkot district police chief detained Monday, 23 Aug, 2010 // <![CDATA[// // <![CDATA[// Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif is reported to have requested Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to suspend Mr Chohan for being responsible for the incident. – AP Photo National Lynching of brothers: case against 14 policemen LAHORE: Sialkot’s District Police Officer Waqar Ahmad Chohan was detained for 30 days on Sunday in connection with the lynching of two brothers by a mob. According to an executive order issued by the Sialkot District Coordination Officer, Mr Chohan would be detained by police and kept in police custody for 30. … Continue reading Haraamzada – W A Chohan detained?

Zardari heads ranking of leaders ‘who were absent when needed most’ WASHINGTON: President Asif Ali Zardari, who was touring Europe while Pakistan was ravaged by the worst floods seen in almost a century, has topped a unique list of influential people who were conspicuously absent when they were needed the most. Releasing the list of five such people, the prestigious Foreign Policy magazine said that Zardari was travelling in Europe, while millions of people were in dire straits due to the devastating floods and hundreds of others were targets of political violence in his country. “For a world leader, being … Continue reading US magazine unveils list

Daughters of Al Huda The writer is a director at the South Asia Free Media Association, Lahore khaled.ahmed@tribune.com.pk We are wrong to look for terrorist tracts in the madrassa. The suicide bomber is not made through syllabi but through isolation from society. When we wish to produce a normal citizen we begin by socialising the child. Anyone withdrawing from society by rejecting its norms is ripe for the plucking by the terrorists. The residential madrassa does that. In Islamabad, a number of female “dars” groups are busy doing that in varying degrees. Sadaf Ahmad is an assistant professor at the … Continue reading Al Huda – Encourage it or Ban it?

Stone in the midst of all The writer is contributing editor, The Friday Times In his novel Shame Salman Rushdie’s character Saleem remarks that “no people whose word for ‘yesterday’ is the same as their word for ‘tomorrow’ can be said to have a firm grip on the time”. Earlier in the novel, the narrator finds it difficult to tell the story of Khayam, remarking that “it seems that the future cannot be restrained, and insists on seeping back into the past.” Writing a book review in August 2008, Khaled Ahmed ended his argument thus: “Jadeed (modern) in Arabic comes … Continue reading Yes The Taliban and The Lynch Mob were Muslims!

VIEW: Direct Action Day: lessons to be learnt — II —Yasser Latif Hamdani The real tragedy that unfolded on August 16, 1946 was that Jinnah had transformed into precisely the kind of politician he had warned his old friend Gandhi against becoming. He gave up the fine wisdom of the old ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity and chose instead to walk the perilous course of disorder and chaos The truth is that the Muslim League could not afford mass-scale Hindu-Muslim violence in Calcutta or in India. Suhrawardy was in power through a cross-communal ministry, which depended as much on Hindu support … Continue reading Direct Action Day: lessons to be learnt

COMMENT: Mosque in Manhattan —Dr Syed Mansoor Hussain One of the fears expressed by the opponents of this project that such a centre will eventually become a hotbed of Islamic extremism is entirely misplaced. If and when the centre is up and running, it will probably become one of the most closely watched places of worship in any part of the country The planned Islamic centre in Manhattan near ‘Ground Zero’ has become quite controversial. The facts are straightforward. The planned centre will, among other things, include a mosque. The project has passed all local zoning laws and has been … Continue reading Mosque in Manhattan

COMMENT: The beast called the ‘army’ —Shahzad Chaudhry The military remains the most robust national institution despite our plight of the recent years in all other matters of the state. We should refrain from weakening the institution by defamation, and uncalled for efforts to belittle its positive contributions What do you do with such an entity? When the Swat-Malakand operation was launched in 2009, and there were some quick successes, the world began to take notice of those successes — far more efficient and effective than any that NATO/ISAF had been able to undertake in their nine-year long presence and … Continue reading The beast called the ‘army’

COMMENT: Pakistan Telecom and IT sectors —Muhammad Aftab The IT sector has become one of the most innovative and vibrant industries, advancing at a pace of 30 to 50 percent a year. The IT firms serve the financial, textile and telecom sectors and government departments Pakistan will maintain “a steady, progressing, profitable and high quality telecom market, where consumers interest is given the top priority, while keeping in view the business profitability”. This is the latest projection for the telecom industry that has recorded the highest growth in whole of the economy. Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA), the industry regulator, in … Continue reading Pakistan IT sectors

The New Anti-Semitism: Replace Jew with Muslim Posted on 21 August 2010 by Rousseau LOONWATCH The anti-Muslim movement is gaining momentum Danial Luban examines the people and ideas behind the growing anti-Muslim hysteria. What he finds is a mixture of crusader-inspired nuts and right wing politicians willing to compromise sanity for electoral success. The New Anti-Semitism by Daniel Luban After Abraham Foxman waded into the “Ground Zero Mosque” controversy,opposing [1] plans to construct an Islamic community center a few blocks from the World Trade Center site, the Anti-Defamation League chief was assailed by critics who charged that the ADL was … Continue reading Replace Jew with Muslim – OUCH!