Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer are the proud parents of newborn twins. Their representatives confirmed that Paquin gave birth to the babies a few weeks early but say they're in good health and their parents "are overjoyed". The statement didn't specify when the babies were born or the sex of the children. They are the 30-year-old Paquin's first children. Moyer, 42, has two children from previous relationships. The True Blood stars were married in 2010. * AP
Poehler and Gervais to hand out Emmys
The seven-time nominee Louis CK and The Office's Ricky Gervais are among the stars who will be handing out this year's Emmys, in a ceremony hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. Other presenters include Ginnifer Goodwin, the star of Once Upon a Time, and Mindy Kaling, the star and creator of the new comedy The Mindy Project. Jim Parsons, who is nominated for The Big Bang Theory, and Amy Poehler, nominated for Parks and Recreation, are also set to be on hand. The 64th Emmy Awards will be held on September 23. * AP
Whedon takes on Shakespeare
Joss Whedon, the writer-director behind The Avengers, has unveiled a passion project at the Toronto International Film Festival: his adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. He rounded up friends and family for the low-budget Much Ado, shot for 12 days at his Los Angeles home. Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof from Whedon's TV series Angel star as the leads. "It was the best vacation I ever took," Whedon said. "I've literally never been happier. Every day, my best friends that I hadn't seen since I'd been away doing Avengers for so long came to my house to do my two favourite pastimes, film and Shakespeare." * AP
Cameron: Avatar 4 will be prequel
James Cameron is still writing Avatar 2 and 3, but he already has a premise for the film's fourth instalment. "It will be a prequel that goes back to the early expeditions of Pandora, and kind of what went wrong with the humans and the Na'vi," the director told MTV. The Star Wars-like storytelling of going back in time after the completion of a trilogy is, he says, "the logical thing because we'll have completed the thematic arc by the end of three. The only thing left to do is go back".
DreamWorks unveils 12 new films
DreamWorks Animation has announced a 12-picture release slate for the next four years. Included are How to Train Your Dragon sequels in 2014 and 2016, as well as the Seth Rogen-voiced BOO: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations in 2015. Also planned are some intriguing titles such as Happy Smekday!, The Croods and - for Bollywood fans - Mumbai Musical.
Lavigne talks wedding dress
Avril Lavigne promises a unique wedding dress when she marries the Nickelback rocker Chad Kroeger. "Either it's something I'm going to design, or collaborate with another designer," she said after presenting her Abbey Dawn clothing line at New York Fashion Week. * AP
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs: 2017 Lotus Evora Sport 410
Price, base / as tested Dh395,000 / Dh420,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission Six-speed manual
Power 410hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 420Nm @ 3,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.7L / 100km
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
- Jimi Hendrix
- Leonardo Di Vinci
- David Bowie
- Paul McCartney
- Albert Einstein
- Jack the Ripper
- Barack Obama
- Helen Keller
- Joan of Arc
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
The Energy Research Centre
Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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6027 – Dh 100
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Virtual banks explained
What is a virtual bank?
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority defines it as a bank that delivers services through the internet or other electronic channels instead of physical branches. That means not only facilitating payments but accepting deposits and making loans, just like traditional ones. Other terms used interchangeably include digital or digital-only banks or neobanks. By contrast, so-called digital wallets or e-wallets such as Apple Pay, PayPal or Google Pay usually serve as intermediaries between a consumer’s traditional account or credit card and a merchant, usually via a smartphone or computer.
What’s the draw in Asia?
Hundreds of millions of people under-served by traditional institutions, for one thing. In China, India and elsewhere, digital wallets such as Alipay, WeChat Pay and Paytm have already become ubiquitous, offering millions of people an easy way to store and spend their money via mobile phone. Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines are also among the world’s biggest under-banked countries; together they have almost half a billion people.
Is Hong Kong short of banks?
No, but the city is among the most cash-reliant major economies, leaving room for newcomers to disrupt the entrenched industry. Ant Financial, an Alibaba Group Holding affiliate that runs Alipay and MYBank, and Tencent Holdings, the company behind WeBank and WeChat Pay, are among the owners of the eight ventures licensed to create virtual banks in Hong Kong, with operations expected to start as early as the end of the year.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
More from UAE Human Development Report:
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
