Manhattanhenge: Thousands gather to see setting sun aligning with New York City’s east-west streets

 

Thousands of New Yorkers and tourists gathered to photograph a natural phenomenon known as Manhattanhenge. This is when the setting sun is perfectly aligned with the east-west numbered streets of New York City’s grid system. Manhattanhenge occurs twice a year either side of the summer solstice, around 28 May and 12 July. The phenomenon gets its name from the way that Stonehenge is aligned with the setting sun on the summer solstice.

The sun sets behind Times SquareMark (Kauzlarich/Reuters)
The sun sets along 42nd Street during Manhattanhenge, as seen from Hunters Point South Park in Queens (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Instagram and Twitter have been flooded with fantastic Manhattanhenge photos. IBTimes UK publishes some of the best in this gallery.

Every year thousands of worshippers with phones flock to #Manhattanhenge to pay respect to the summer solstice.

People stand in the middle of 42nd Street in Times Square to take pictures as the sun sets over Manhattan (Mark Kauzlarich/Reuters)
People take photographs of the Manhattanhenge sunset from Hunters Point South Park in Queens (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

 

The Manhattanhenge sun sets along 42nd Street (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

 

See full story on www.ibtimes.co.ukbusinessinsider.my

Image courtesy of www.ibtimes.co.uk

Google creates 13 emoji to represent working women

Inspired by the controversy, four Google employees have suggested a plan to rectify the imbalance. They include a prince, a dancing man, a man dressed in a tuxedo, as well as men wrestling and playing handball. Other emoji portray a pregnant woman, a gymnast and Mother Christmas.If accepted, they will be released in June 2017.Have something to add to this story?

Spend any time tapping out emoji and you’ve probably noticed that women are confined to three principal roles: bride, princess and dancer.

While these are lovely things to be, the limited selection grows tiresome quickly, especially in contrast to emojis that show men as a police officer, cyclist and weight lifter.

The disparity was recently the subject of a new Always advertising campaign and a New York Times op-ed. Inspired by the controversy, four Google employees have suggested a plan to rectify the imbalance. A proposal released by the company this week suggests adding 13 new female emoji to “better reflect the pivotal roles women play in the world.”

“No matter where you look, women are gaining visibility and recognition as never before,” the Google employees wrote. “Isnt it time that emoji also reflect the reality that women play a key role in every walk of life and in every profession?”

 

Image courtesy of mashable.com

How to watch Mercury pass in front of the sun on Monday

STEPHAN JANSEN/PICTURE-ALLIANCE/DPA/AP IMAGES

The transit of the planet Mercury is seen is a tiny dot on the sun disk at the bottom right, the bigger dot closer to the middle is a sunspot, pictured in Munich, Germany, 7 May 2003.

Mercury is set to pass in front of the sun on Monday, a cosmic occurrence that only happens about a dozen times per century.

Scientists will be keeping a close eye on the planet as it moves across the face of the sun from Earth’s perspective over the course of about 7.5 hours May 9, and you can check out the transit too either online or in person.

The event takes place from 7:12 a.m. to 2:42 p.m. ET, and millions of people around the world with clear skies should be able to see it using the right eye protection and magnification.

Do not look at the sun with your naked eyes, even during a planetary transit.

If you plan to watch the transit in person, get either a pair of high-powered binoculars or a backyard telescope, both with proper solar filters, to see the transit of Mercury.

But if you can’t see the transit safely in person, you can watch it happen live online thanks to multiple webcasts.

NASA will host a live broadcast from10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET on NASA TV and the space agency’s Facebook page with experts on-hand to discuss the relatively rare transit. You can also watch the webcast in the window embedded below:

People can ask questions in the comments of the Facebook Live page and by using the#AskNASA hashtag on social media.

Scientists will also post photos of the transit from NASA’sSolar Dynamics Observatory, a sun-observing satellite that will keep an eye on the transit of Mercury.

Slooh, a community of astronomy enthusiasts, will also host a webcast featuring live images of the transit of Mercury fromthe Middle East, United States and a new solar telescope in the Canary Islands.

The Slooh webcast starts at 7 a.m. ET, and you can watch it directly through the organizationor in the window below:

“The Transit of Mercury reminds us that all of the planets, including Earth, are in rapid and perpetual motion,” Slooh host, Paul Cox said in a statement.

“As we gaze together at this majestic astronomical event, we will appreciate that it is similar planetary transits around other stars that have allowed us to discover a multitude of strange and exotic exoplanets.”

Sky & Telescope Magazine will also host a webcast from7 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET. You can watch it below or directly through the magazine.

Telescopes in space and on the ground will watch the transit in order to observe Mercury’s very thin atmosphere illuminated by the star’s light.

Image courtesy of mashable.com

We found a copy of Prince’s 1994 video game. You’re welcome.

Did you know Prince was the star of his very own (sort of) video game? It was a secondhand purchase, since the game isn’t produced anymore. Instead, I pulled a 14-year-old Sony VAIO out of my closet.

Did you know Prince was the star of his very own (sort of) video game?

 

Prince Interactive surfaced in 1994, right when the introduction of CD-ROMs was changing the world for PC users. It launched after Mystand The 7th Guest, along with a flood of other “Myst-alike”puzzle game knockoffs.

Of course, this one starred Prince, meaning it was inherently weirder than any of its contemporaries.

After his unexpected passing on Friday, I went looking for Prince Interactive. Even at a time when game streaming has turned “Let’s Play” videos intoa big business, there’s almost nothing to be found online. So I did what any other bereft Prince fan might have done: I ordered Prince Interactiveon Amazon.

It was a secondhand purchase, since the game isn’t produced anymore. What’s more, the 22-year-old CD-ROM is ancient enough that it can’t run on any Windows version more recent than XP.

If you have a registration key for any of the earlier Windows versions, it’s possible to set up a virtual drive using software like DOSBox and install Old Windows from there. That wasn’t an option for me. Instead, I pulled a 14-year-old Sony VAIO out of my closet. It still ran, and it had Windows XP.

Perfect.

Popping the CD-ROM in the drive which spun as loudly as you’d expect I loaded the setup executable and was greeted by this image:

A dizzying gauntlet of “OK” prompts followed as the setup process copied the files to their destination and advised me about editing my autoexec.bat(!!).

Before it finished, the installation app warned me in two consecutive pop-up messages to reboot my computer.

 

The whole thing was a welcome reminder that, nowadays, computers work for us (most of the time) and not the other way around.

Image courtesy of mashable.com

Protesters take roasted pig’s head to Ferguson police department (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

Americans fighting for social justice and against police brutality kicked off the weekend with nationwide demonstrations, exactly one year after police shot and killed an unarmed black teen in Ferguson, Missouri. Year of protest: Ferguson erupts into rioting after white officer kills unarmed black teen (pt. 1)The St. Louis suburb has once again become the epicenter of the Black Lives Matter protests that have gripped the nation in the past 12 months.

The St. Louis suburb has once again become the epicenter of the Black Lives Matter protests that have gripped the nation in the past 12 months. Civil rights activists, religious leaders and others converged on the mostly black community of about 21,000 to commemorate the life and death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

The highlight of Saturday’s peaceful rally in Ferguson was a roasted pig dressed as a police officer, in reference to officer Darren Wilson, who shot and killed Brown on August 9, 2014.

Before and After #Ferguson PD (Source image: twitter.com)

The pig became the mascot of a peaceful march during the day, until the protesters ate it all, excluding its head. At nightfall protesters took the head to the police department building, where hundreds of people had converged.

#ferguson residents drop severed pigs head torn from body marked #DarrenWilson outside #ferguson PD #MikeBrownAugust  (Source image: twitter.com)

#MikeBrown#UnitedWeFight#BlackLivesMatter

The weekend’s events, many of which have been organized by Brown’s father, include marches, concerts and a moment of silence that is to commence midday Sunday at the location of Brown’s death at the hands of Wilson on August 9, 2014.

Protesters decapitated Darren Wilson and offered some to Ferguson Police

Brown’s tragic death kick-started months of clashes with authorities both in Ferguson and around the country. They were exacerbated further by subsequent police killings of unarmed black men in several US cities.

Starts the march at West Florissant towards Ferguson Police Department. #UnitedWeFight weekend.

Similar peaceful protests took place around the nation to show that black lives do matter. Most have been marked by concerts and family events organized by volunteers throughout the nation.

Image courtesy of rt.com

OnePlus finally reveals the OnePlus 2, its ‘flagship killer’, starting at $329

OnePlus, the Chinese startup behind the popular OnePlus One, has finally revealed its next flagship and it doesn’t disappoint. With a refreshed set of flagship-worthy specs and a new operating system, the OnePlus 2 manages to build on all the best features of its predecessor while making significant hardware and software improvements for less than $400. Like its predecessor, it lacks a microSD option for additional storage, but has dual-SIM slots.

The new OnePlus 2 with the optional bamboo back cover.

There are five different “SwapStyle” back covers available (from left): Kevlar, bamboo, sandstone black, black apricot and rosewood.

The OnePlus 2 ships with the company’s signature “sandstone black” back cover.

The OnePlus 2 runs OxygenOS, which is based on Android 5.0 (Lollipop).

The OnePlus 2 with the $26.95rosewood back cover.

The OnePlus 2 is one of the first flagship smartphones to support the new USB Type C standard. The company’s USB cable also features a reversible design.

One of the most hyped Android phones of the year has arrived. OnePlus, the Chinese startup behind the popular OnePlus One, has finally revealed its next flagshipand it doesn’t disappoint.

With a refreshed set of flagship-worthy specs and a new operating system, the OnePlus 2 manages to build on all the best features of its predecessor while making significant hardware and software improvements for less than $400.

The company is billing the OnePlus 2 as 2016’s “flagship killer” and the specs alone certainly put the OnePlus 2 squarely at the front of the pack in terms of its Android competitors.

The 5.5-inch phone is powered by a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor with options for 4GB or 3GB of RAM (for the 64GB and 16GB capacity models, respectively). Like its predecessor, it lacks a microSD option for additional storage, but has dual-SIM slots. The display is 1,920 x 1,080 resolution (full HD) and comes with a fingerprint sensor that can store up to five prints. The 13-megapixel rear-facing camera is equipped with a dual-LED flash and f/2.0 aperture; it supports 4K resolution video and a slow motion mode that shoots at 720p.

More impressive, however, is the price: The unlocked OnePlus 2 will cost $329 for the 16GB model and $389 for 64GB. By comparison, Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S6, with 64GB of storage and only 3GB of RAM, runs more than $800 without a carrier subsidy.

“Our goal is to just have enough margin to keep the company running and not make a profit,” OnePlus cofounder Carl Pei tells Mashable. “When we launch a new product, we normally make nothing selling it,” he says, adding that the company expects its margins to improve over time as it sells more devices and hardware costs go down.

For its second generation flagship, Pei says OnePlus made more than 100 changes from its first release in 2013. Most notably, the polycarbonate bezel of the original OnePlus One has been swapped for an all-metal one, which give the phone a more premium look and feel.

The OnePlus 2 ships with the company’s signature “sandstone black” back cover. The textured cover manages to strike the right balance between providing a good grip and while not feeling (or looking) cheap as is often the case with textured covers employed by other manufacturers.

The “black sandstone” back cover that ships with OnePlus 2.

Image:Karissa Bell/Mashable

OnePlus is also selling four optional back covers: black kevlar, bamboo, rosewood and black apricot. Each cover is made with the actual materials on a polycarbonate casing and each feels and looks like it belongs on a premium flagship. The covers are easily removable and, unlike the OnePlus One, the new covers don’t have antennas embedded in them, which has helped bring the cost down to $26.99 each.

Sabah Earthquake: LATEST UPDATES And All You Need To Know

  • 18 Jun — 12:07 PM

    3 more earthquakes hit Sabah, with one measuring 4.0 on the magnitude scale this morning64deImage via Around the globe

    • A weak earthquake measuring 4.0 on the Richter scale hit Ranau, Sabah, at 5.58am today. The Meteorological Department, in a statement today, said the tremors from the earthquake could only be felt in Ranau.  themalaysianinsider.com
    • It was the third tremor since yesterday. Two weak earthquakes were detected in Ranau yesterday, with the first, measuring 2.5 on the Richter scale, at 11.51 am and the second, measuring 3.4 on the Richter scale, at 6.12 pm.  themalaymailonline.com
    • The department has recorded more than 65 aftershocks since the July 5 Mount Kinabalu earthquake which resulted in the deaths of 18 people. thestar.com.my
  • 13 Jun — 05:06 AM

    BREAKING NEWS: Ranau hit by 5.2-magnitude aftershock0539Image via The Star

    • A strong aftershock measuring 5.2 hit Ranau in Sabah at 2.29am. The tremors rattled residents in Kota Kinabalu where some people in highrise buildings ran out of their home, fearing for their safety. thestar.com.my
    • One of the Kota Kinabalu resident told The Star, “I felt tremors in my house at 2.29am. I thought a really big cat was running across the roof.” While a Ranau resident said his family moved outdoor after tremors and were waiting to see what happened next, The Star reported.

      says.com

  • 12 Jun — 01:20 PM

    Sabah leaders: Stripping tourists broke the law, not just insult our cultureC431Image via The Malay Mail

    • Sabah leaders have come out in defence of the state’s customs and ancestral beliefs now being derided globally after a senior government leader blamed last week’s deadly earthquake on tourists who stripped naked on Mount Kinabalu.“We are not apologetic of our rich cultural heritage. They define who we are and we should be proud of them.Other countries, too, have native laws and taboos and if they can respect those in other countries, there is no reason why it should be an exception in Sabah,” he said.Masidi pointed out that the titillating titles by foreign newspaper masked the fact that the tourists’ act, earthquake notwithstanding, would have merited punishment for breaking both local laws and norms. themalaymailonline.com
    • United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Organisation president Madius Tangau said the foreign media’s controversial portrayal of Sabah was damaging and inaccurate, and failed to convey that the tourists’ act was illegal in and of itself.“Yes, there have been insinuations and claims by some to link the earthquake with the nudist incident, but the fact is the nudists are being detained for investigation on their behaviour, which is against Malaysian laws.  todayonline.com
  • 12 Jun — 01:31 PM

    High likelihood of an earthquake hitting KL, says expertsF694Image via Bloomberg

    • Following the quake tragedy in Sabah, there have been concerns that an earthquake may also hit Kuala Lumpur and according to a geological expert, such misgivings are not misplaced.This is because the federal capital is located near the epicentres of ancient fault line zones, said Universiti Malaya Geology Department Associate Professor Mustaffa Kamal Shuib. themalaysianinsider.com
    • A seismology expert, Dr Mohd Rosaidi Che Abas, 54 from The Meteorological Department’s Deputy Director (Application) said some of the country’s most vulnerable areas are Bukit Tinggi in Pahang and Kuala Pilah in Negeri Sembilan.  kualalumpurpost.net
    • Tan Sri Ahmad Phesal Talib, Kuala Lumpur Mayor had said that DBKL would review the construction of new highrise buildings in Kuala Lumpur, especially the safety aspects of these buildings to withstand earthquake tremors.He had said the views and advice of relevant experts would be sought with regard to this. Phesal was asked to comment on a local media report which touched on Malaysia’s location that put the country at risk of earthquake tremors in future.  themalaysianinsider.com
  • 12 Jun — 01:31 PM

    Foamy rivers and falling boulders send villagers living around Mt Kinabalu into a frenzy5bb4Image via Sabahkini

    • Panic gripped villagers living around the foothills of Mount Kinabalu when boulders and rocks began rolling down close to their homes.Some said they were preparing to evacuate as rivers flowing from the mountain began to foam up.Some reported seeing hundreds of dead fish floating. thestar.com.my
    • Apparently the massive landslide had occurred on the western part of Mount Kinabalu, visible from Marai Parai and after that the river water at Mesilou turned foamy and ground movements were felt.At Nuluh Kiau it was reported that several houses suffered cracks. sabahkini.com
    • Ba3dImage via LinkedlnProf Dr Felix Tongkul
    • Universiti Malaysia Sabah geologist Prof Dr Felix Tongkul said that while the university’s research team was unable to ascertain the cause of the river’s condition, its chemist would be obtaining samples from the river to ascertain its source.He also said that the UMS research team was not sure how many areas had been affected by the same phenomenon.Earlier, in a statement, he urged villagers living along the riverbanks here to be cautious of possible mud floods, which he said could be dangerous.“The aftershocks are causing continuous soil and rock falling, and these are blocking river flow, creating temporary dams. therakyatpost.com
  • 12 Jun — 01:31 PM

    Sultan of Johor donates RM1 million to aid Sabah quake recovery efforts80bfImage via Malaysiakini

    • Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar of Johor showed his compassion yet again, this time by lending a big helping hand to victims of the Sabah earthquake by donating RM1mil to the State Disaster Relief Fund Committee to help with recovery efforts involving the tragedy. thestar.com.my
    • “The Sabah government and people are thankful to His Royal Highness for the donation of RM1 million to the State Disaster Relief Fund Committee,” said Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.He said he was also touched by the concern of the sultan who had instructed for ‘solat hajat’ prayers to be held in Johor for the safety of the earthquake victims in Sabah. bernama.com
    • Ed0aImage via Goh Seng Chong / Bloomberg
    • In Kuala Lumpur, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government was donating RM100,000 to the Mount Kinabalu Earthquake Relief Fund.“It is hoped that the donation will help bring some relief to the affected people,” he told reporters at the lobby of Parliament House.He said the fund would be overseen by Outward Bound Sabah deputy chairman Simon Sipaun and Sabah DAP chairman Jimmy Wong Sze Phin, who is also the MP for Kota Kinabalu. freemalaysiatoday.com
  • 12 Jun — 01:31 PM

    New regulations to be introduced to ensure safety of climbers

    8c1bImage via The Borneo Post

    • Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced several aid and suggestions to boost security of climbers at the Kinabalu Park after seeing for himself the effects of the earthquake on Gunung Kinabalu, Ranau and Kundasang in Sabah. mysinchew.com
    • “We want to see Mount Kinabalu remain a famous destination among local and international travellers,” he said.”It would be a loss to Malaysia and Sabah if activities on Mount Kinabalu were to stop,” he added.  straitstimes.com
  • 12 Jun — 01:31 PM

    Najib announces RM10M fund to rebuild the quake-hit Sabah1683Image via The Malay Mail

    • In his first visit to Sabah since a deadly quake that killed at least 16 people, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced today a RM10 million fund to rebuild the damaged north Borneo state.Najib, who had just returned from an official visit to Saudi Arabia last night, said the allocation was a token from the federal government to Sabah to clean up, rebuild and open up touristy Mount Kinabalu as soon as possible. themalaymailonline.com
    • “We want to make sure it is safe to open up again so we can open up our heritage to future climbers,” he told a gathering of mountain guides, Sabah Parks staff and local community at Kinabalu Park hall here.He had earlier received a briefing of the damages inflicted and the search and rescue operations in the aftermath of Malaysia’s worst quake disaster so far. “After assessing the damages, it is clear we will need to reconstruct the damages so Kinabalu Park can function as a world-famous nature attraction again,” he said.yahoo.com
    • Najib said that the state government made recommendations, including equipping all climbing groups and their guide with a walkie talkie to ensure constant communication with the park headquarters.There is also a proposal to widen the current helicopter landing pad on the summit of Mount Kinabalu to make it easier for helicopters to land in emergency situations. themalaymailonline.com
    • “We would also like to include the latest technology that can sense earth movements although there is no technology available in the world that can predict major earthquakes.“What they can predict is smaller tremors and movements that suggests the possibility of an oncoming earthquake but this will be up to the experts to issue early warnings,” he said.yahoo.com

 

396 Bodies: Death Toll From Capsized Chinese Cruise Soars

The wreck of the Eastern Star as seen on Friday, after it was rights and lifted mostly out of the water. Aly Song / Reuters

What We Know So Far

  • A cruise ship carrying more than 450 people capsized in China’s Yangtze River in Hubei province on Monday.
  • Only 14 people have been rescued. The death toll stood at 331 people as of early Saturday, according to Chinese state media.
  • By Friday, authorities said there were no more signs of life after crews righted the capsized ship.
  • The ship’s captain and chief engineer survived the wreck and have been detained for questioning.

Reuters

Updates

Posted at 8:42 a.m., Jun. 6

By mid Saturday morning, the number of dead from the Eastern Star cruise ship had climbed to 331.

Chinese state media initially reported that the death toll stood at 345, but later updated the number to 331. More than 450 people had been on the ship, and 14 were rescued.

Rescue workers stand on the river bank as the capsized cruise ship Eastern Star is pulled out of the Yangtze Friday. China Daily China Daily Infor / Reuters

Posted at 6:54 a.m., Jun. 6

The death toll from the Eastern Star cruise ship rose to 154 people Saturday, China’s CCTV News announced.

Crews managed to right the overturned ship Friday, allowing searchers to access more of the wreck.

Rescue workers rest near bodies retrieved from the cruise ship Eastern Star Friday. Aly Song / Reuters

In addition to retrieving more bodies, crews also spent Friday raising the previously capsized ship out of the water. According to CNN, the goal is to drain the ship so that it will hopefully be able to float again.

A rescue team works on lifting the capsized cruise ship Eastern Star in the Jianli section of Yangtze River Friday. Kim Kyung Hoon / Reuters

Posted at 11:31 a.m., Jun. 5

Authorities recovered 25 more bodies from the wreck of the Eastern Star cruise ship, bringing the total to 97.

China’s CCTV tweeted Friday that the bodies had been recovered. A total of 330 people are still unaccounted for.

Cranes work on righting the capsized Eastern Star cruise ship on Friday. China Stringer Network / Reuters

Crews finished righting the ship Friday, and the next step was to drain water from the hull. Searchers also were working Friday to locate bodies, the Associated Press reported.

Rescuers look on as cranes work on righting the capsized Eastern Star cruise ship Friday. China Stringer Network / Reuters

The operation to right the ship involved divers putting bars underneath the hull. A pair of cranes then lifted the bars, rotating the ship into an upright position, the AP reported.

The operation followed an ultimately failed attempt Thursday to find more survivors by cutting holes in the hull.

Posted at 9:27 a.m., Jun. 5

Crews lifted the capsized Eastern Star early Friday.

Authorities are expected to begin search the ship’s cabins for bodies, the BBC reported. As of Thursday night, rescuers saw no signs of life from the ship.

Meanwhile, 82 bodies had been recovered, Reuters reported. The number of survivors remained at 14, and more than 350 people remained unaccounted for.

Posted at 12:03 a.m., Jun. 5

Chinese rescue officials are working to turn the capsized cruise ship and return it to an upright position, a spokesman for the transportation ministry said.

The operation began at 8 a.m. ET and Xu Chengguang, Ministry of Transport spokesman said this will allow the rescuers to “search for the missing persons in the shortest possible time and give maximum protection to the dignity of the deceased,”Reuters reported.

Posted at 7:01 p.m., Jun. 4

The death toll for Monday’s Yangtze River ferry disaster rose to 75 on Thursday morning as rescuers cut three holes in the vessel in an unsuccessful bid to find more survivors, AP reported.

The death toll for Monday's Yangtze River ferry disaster rose to 75 on Thursday morning as rescuers cut three holes in the vessel in an unsuccessful bid to find more survivors, AP reported.

Aly Song / Reuters

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the ship was stabilized by workers with cranes, who then cut into the vessel’s hull. They then checked for survivors, before welding the sections back on the ship to preserve buoyancy.

Some 200 rescue workers were working in three shifts to individually search each of the the ship’s submerged cabins for survivors, CCTV said.

Despite the chance of finding survivors having significantly diminished with time, officials have yet to declare the search over, AP said.

Posted at 6:40 p.m., Jun. 4

Family members of passengers of the cruise ship which sunk in the Yangtze River on Monday have traveled to the site of the disaster to protest the scarcity of information provided to them by authorities, Reuters reported.

Family members of passengers of the cruise ship which sunk in the Yangtze River on Monday have traveled to the site of the disaster to protest the scarcity of information provided to them by authorities, Reuters reported.

Kim Kyung Hoon / Reuters

Some 80 people hired a bus for the eight-hour journey from Nanjing to Jianli county in Hubei in order to demand information on their missing relatives from officials in person. When they arrived late Wednesday night, they began marching towards the site of the rescue operation.

The protest’s organizer, Wang Feng, told Reuters, “This isn’t going to be much use, we’re just doing this for the government to see.”

Later, a number of protesters broke through a cordon of around 20 to 25 police officers who had tried to prevent them from going through a roadblock, Reuters said.

Later, a number of protesters broke through a cordon of around 20 to 25 police officers who had tried to prevent them from going through a roadblock, Reuters said.

Kim Kyung Hoon / Reuters

The deputy police chief of Jiangsu province told the relatives early on Thursday that they would not be allowed to visit the disaster site at night time, and that buses would be arranged to take them there in the morning. He added that journalists would be barred from visiting the area.

Posted at 9:15 a.m., Jun. 4

Authorities have found another 39 bodies in the Yangtze River where a ship capsized Monday night, bringing the death toll to 65, state-run broadcaster CCTV News reported.

More than 450 people were on board the ship when it capsized amid a powerful storm.

CCTV News reported that only 14 people had been rescued as of Tuesday night, even as crews tried to cut through the hull of the overturned ship in search for possible survivors trapped inside.

Posted at 1:21 a.m., Jun. 4

China’s People’s Daily newspaper reported on Weibo that three bodies have been pulled from the ship after rescue workers earlier cut a hole in the hull.

China's People's Daily newspaper reported on Weibo that three bodies have been pulled from the ship after rescue workers earlier cut a hole in the hull.

weibo.com

Posted at 11:21 p.m., Jun. 3

Rescue workers began cutting a hole into the hull of the overturned ship late Wednesday, according to images shared by state media.

Li Qixiu of China’s Naval University of Engineering told China Daily the hull would be lifted with steel cables, which are visible below.

“The ship sank in a very short time frame, so there could still be air trapped in the hull,” Li said, “and that means there could still be survivors.”

If the cables don’t hold, or any air in the hull escapes, the vessel may sink further, Li warned.

Posted at 10:53 a.m., Jun. 2

Rescuers help lift a survivor from the capsized cruise ship on the Yangtze River on Tuesday. Chinatopix via AP

Frantic efforts to reach more than 400 passengers feared trapped inside a cruise ship that capsized Monday night on the Yangtze River in China took a grim turn as more bodies were pulled from the water.

As of Wednesday morning — roughly 36 hours after the Eastern Star capsized in about 50 feet of water — by Wednesday the death toll had risen to 26, with just 14 others rescued, state-run broadcaster CCTV reported.

The Chinese Ministry of Transport said there were 456 people onboard, including 405 passengers, 46 crew and five tour guides. Many of the passengers were described as being between the ages of 40 and 80.

With hope of finding more survivors fading with the passing hours, despondent family members who had descended on the area awaited anxiously for any scrap of news.

“I only found out about this on the news while I was at work,” said Wang Sheng, who told reporters his parents were on board. “I cried all the way here and here I can’t find anyone, the door is locked.”

Chinatopix via AP

Rescue workers stand on the capsized ship, center, on the Yangtze River in central China’s Hubei province on June 2.

Bad weather, strong river currents, and poor visibility were hampering rescuers, who had reported hearing knocking and yelling from inside the hull hours after the ship capsized around 9:30 p.m. Monday local time.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who arrived at the site in Hubei province the next day, has ordered an all-out rescue effort in response, with more than 170 divers scouring the river, the AP reported.

In all, more than 50 boats and 3,000 people were involved in the search Wednesday morning, according to the AP.

“We will do everything we can to rescue everyone trapped in there, no matter they’re still alive or not, and we will treat them as our own families,” Chen Shoumin, a regional military commander, said at a news conference, according to the Associated Press.

Associated Press

The Eastern Star capsized in the Damazhou waterway amid a violent storm that was described as possible cyclone. The Communist Party–run People’s Daily reported that the ship sank quickly after capsizing, leaving the captain no time to send a distress signal.

A handful of people on the boat, including the captain, were able to grab life vests and jump into the storm-churned water, alerting authorities of the disaster after making it to shore. The ship’s captain and chief engineer were later detained by police for questioning, state-run media reported.

Footage aired Tuesday by CCTV showed rescue workers on the hull of the four-story ship, one of them tapping it with a hammer, his ear pressed to the wall as he listened for a response.

The ship had reportedly floated a short distance since sinking, mean air had likely become trapped inside, providing buoyancy and giving passengers a chance, officials said. Those hopes were energized Tuesday after crews cut into the hull and, live on state TV, pulled a 65-year-old woman from an air pocket . She was reportedly in fair condition and able to talk.

A 21-year-old man who was found trapped in a small compartment was also rescued after he was able to swim out using a diving apparatus he was given.

But as the hours passed and the death toll continued to grow, frustrated family members started asking questions, particularly since the captain had managed to escape with so few of his passengers, many of whom were described as retirees.

“Why did the captain leave the ship while the passengers were still missing?” one woman, identified by the BBC as Huang Yan, asked reporters at a local hotel where family members had amassed while waiting for news.

For his part, Li pledged that government would carry out a transparent investigation into how the ship capsized.

According to CCTV, the Eastern Star is 251 feet long with a maximum capacity of 534 people.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates and follow BuzzFeed News on Twitter.‏

Richest 1% Could Soon Own More Than The Rest Of The World Combined

 

http://www.buzzfeed.com/richardhjames/the-richest-1-could-soon-own-more-than-the-rest-of-the-worldThe richest 1% will own more than the rest of the worlds population combined next year unless something is done about rising inequality, the charity Oxfam has warned. The projection is based on Credit Suisses Global Wealth Datebook for 2013 and 2014. According to Oxfam, the richest 1% had an average wealth of $2.7 million per adult in 2014.

According to Oxfam, the richest 1% had an average wealth of $2.7 million per adult in 2014.

PA / Nick Ansell

Meanwhile, the charity said, 80% of the world’s population held just 5.5% of the global wealth, with an average of $3,851 per adult.

The publication of Oxfam’s research coincides with the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday.

Winnie Byanyima, executive director of Oxfam International, said:

Do we really want to live in a world where the 1% own more than the rest of us combined? The scale of global inequality is quite simply staggering and despite the issues shooting up the global agenda, the gap between the richest and the rest is widening fast.

In the past 12 months we have seen world leaders from President Obama to Christine Lagarde talk more about tackling extreme inequality but we are still waiting for many of them to walk the walk. It is time our leaders took on the powerful vested interests that stand in the way of a fairer and more prosperous world.

Business as usual for the elite isn’t a cost free option – failure to tackle inequality will set the fight against poverty back decades. The poor are hurt twice by rising inequality – they get a smaller share of the economic pie and because extreme inequality hurts growth, there is less pie to be shared around.

Oxfam is calling on governments to adopt a seven-point plan to tackle global inequality. The list incudes clamping down on tax dodging, investment in universal free public services, and introducing minimum wages.

Attribution: Buzzfeed