Are museums still relevant or are they merely "collections of stuff"? asked a major news broadcaster earlier this year. The snaking queues outside Louvre Abu Dhabi today on its first public opening offer a resounding answer to the question that has been troubling cultural institutions for years; how does one make museums an essential part of the fabric of a community? In designing Louvre Abu Dhabi, Jean Nouvel factored in the need not to simply create a home for astonishing artefacts but to offer something for everyone, whether that is a meeting place, a cafe, somewhere to watch the sunset or a place to entertain children for a few hours. Abu Dhabi's new showpiece is not simply an acquisition or status symbol, but part of a grand masterplan to make the UAE's capital a destination in its own right - one with a credible sense of its past, present and future.
Like the pieces of a jigsaw, all the parts are coming together. Within two years, the Dh19.1 billion Midfield Terminal airport project will be completed, capable of serving 84 million passengers a year. The Eithad Airways Formula One Grand Prix, theme parks and year-round sunshine already bring in more than 3.5 million visitors a year. Louvre Abu Dhabi alone is expected to reel in 3,000 visitors a day and the domino effect is likely to be huge. The Conference of Mayors estimates out of every dollar spent in the US on museums, $7 are returned to the public coffers, because cultural tourists stay longer and spend more.
Add to that the numbers drawn to the city via its cruise terminal – 346,000 passengers a year, with plans to introduce a water taxi linking all the major attractions to Mina Zayed – and the Dh3 billion contributed annually through exhibitions and you have a comprehensive strategy to provide a rounded experience for residents, tourists and those here on business. It is the realisation of the dreams of a man who envisaged its potential when Abu Dhabi was little more than a sleepy fishing village. Looking out on a barren patch of sand, Sheikh Zayed said: "No matter how many buildings, foundations, schools and hospitals we build, or how many bridges we raise, all these are material entities. The real spirit behind progress is the human spirit, the able man with his intellect and capabilities." Louvre Abu Dhabi is the embodiment of that sentiment and prescient of the things to come.
Central%20Bank's%20push%20for%20a%20robust%20financial%20infrastructure
%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3ECBDC%20real-value%20pilot%20held%20with%20three%20partner%20institutions%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPreparing%20buy%20now%2C%20pay%20later%20regulations%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPreparing%20for%20the%202023%20launch%20of%20the%20domestic%20card%20initiative%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EPhase%20one%20of%20the%20Financial%20Infrastructure%20Transformation%20(FiT)%20completed%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Director: Ron Howard
2/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
'Tell the Machine Goodnight' by Katie Williams
Penguin Randomhouse
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Vikram%20Vedha
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirectors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Gayatri%2C%20Pushkar%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hrithik%20Roshan%2C%20Saif%20Ali%20Khan%2C%20Radhika%20Apte%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3E3.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Ant-Man%20and%20the%20Wasp%3A%20Quantumania
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPeyton%20Reed%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Paul%20Rudd%2C%20Evangeline%20Lilly%2C%20Jonathan%20Majors%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”