Oscar Nominations Deferred Again, To Be Announced On January 23

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has postponed the announcement of this year's Oscar nominations for a second time because of the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles, organizers said on Monday.

The nominations for the film industry's highest honors will now be announced on January 23. They originally had been set for January 17 and then moved to January 19.

"Due to the still-active fires in the Los Angeles area, we feel it is necessary to extend our voting period and move the date of our nominations announcement to allow additional time for our members," Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a statement.

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Team India's Test and ODI captain, Rohit Sharma has been under the spotlight since the 1-3 defeat to Australia in the 2024/25 Border Gavaskar Trophy series. The opening batter's struggles continued in Australia which saw him recuse himself from the playing XI for the final Test at Sydney Cricket Ground. Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwari backs the captain to return to form and claims his lack of runs can be attributed to his low self-confidence. "The performance is not going well, there is no doubt about it. If the performance was going well he would not have dropped himself. After what happened in Sydney in the final Test, he himself clarified in his interview that he was not scoring runs, which is why he felt he should not play.

"When you are not scoring runs you lose your self-confidence and if your confidence is down, then your run-scoring percentage also falls down. He will definitely work on his batting. He is a blistering run-scorer in white-ball cricket and holds a lot of potential, a player of his calibre might take time to return to form so I believe he holds the potential to rectify his performances in red-ball cricket as well," Tiwari told IANS on Monday.

India lost the five-Test series 3-1 and missed out on a third successive spot in the World Test Championship final. Rohit, who missed the first Test of the series due to the birth of his second child, failed to score beyond 10 runs across five innings before opting to rest in the fifth Test at Sydney Cricket Ground. He accumulated only 31 runs in five innings of the series and came under public scrutiny for his substandard outings. Moreover, former cricketers and the media also questioned his leadership skills which gave India a chance to win the ICC major in red-ball cricket.

India lost the opportunity to qualify for the WTC Final thanks to consecutive series losses against New Zealand and Australia. India had suffered a humiliating 0-3 clean sweep at home after a long gap.

"The performance has not been good. The performance in the Test match was not good. It has been good in T20, we won the World Cup a few months ago but now we have seen in Test cricket, we lost the home series 3-0 against New Zealand, that has happened after a lot of regret, this does not happen normally and should not happen either because you were playing in home conditions," Tiwari added.

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Mark Zuckerberg Advocates For "Masculine Energy" In Corporate Culture

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wants more "masculine energy" in corporate culture, saying that an environment that "celebrates aggression" can have positive effects.

"The masculine energy I think is good," the 40-year-old said during a lengthy interview with podcaster Joe Rogan. "And obviously society has plenty of that, but I think corporate culture is really trying to get away from it." He added that having a culture that celebrates aggression "a bit more, has its own merits that are really positive."

Mr Zuckerberg, appearing with curly hair, a black T-shirt, and a gold pendant, reflected on his own evolution. He credited martial arts as a formative experience, describing it as "a much more masculine culture."

Mr Zuckerberg recently announced major changes to Meta's policies, ending initiatives aimed at boosting diversity in hiring. An internal memo, shared by Axios, explained the decision, partly blaming a "charged" view of DEI.

The memo read: "At Meta, we have a principle of serving everyone. This can be achieved through cognitively diverse teams, with differences in knowledge, skills, political views, backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences."

"Such teams are better at innovating, solving complex problems and identifying new opportunities which ultimately helps us deliver on our ambition to build products that serve everyone," the memo added.

"On top of that, we've always believed that no one should be given - or deprived- of opportunities because of protected characteristics, and that has not changed," it read.

The company said it would no longer use the Diverse Slate Approach for hiring but still look for candidates from all backgrounds. Goals for hiring women and minorities have been dropped to avoid the idea that decisions are based on race or gender. The company is also ending its programme to prioritise diverse-owned businesses and will now focus on supporting small and medium-sized businesses.

Training programmes will focus on fair and unbiased practices for everyone. The DEI team has been disbanded, and its head, Maxine Williams, will take on a new role focused on accessibility and engagement.

Mr Zuckerberg also believed companies had become too culturally "neutered." He said this realisation came after he started interacting more with men in the mixed martial arts community. "You want women to succeed and companies to unlock the value of great people no matter their background," he said. "But I think these things can all always go a little far."

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Zelensky Offers To Exchange North Korean Soldiers With Captive Ukrainians

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday he was ready to hand over captured North Korean soldiers to Pyongyang in exchange for the return of Ukrainian POWs held in Russia. Zelensky's offer came hours after South Korea's National Intelligence Service confirmed Ukraine's announcement from the previous day that it had captured two North Korean soldiers.

Kyiv said Saturday they had been wounded fighting Ukraine's troops in Russia's Kursk region, but at the time did not provide any proof of their nationality.

But on Sunday, the NIS told AFP it had "confirmed that the Ukrainian military captured two North Korean soldiers on January 9 in the Kursk battlefield in Russia".

In a post on X Sunday, Zelensky said: "Ukraine is ready to hand over Kim Jong Un's soldiers to him if he can organize their exchange for our warriors who are being held captive in Russia." There would "undoubtedly be more" North Korean soldiers captured by Kyiv, he added.

"For those North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, there may be other options available," said Zelensky.

"In particular, those who express a desire to bring peace closer by spreading the truth about this war in Korean will be given that opportunity."

Russia-North Korea ties

Ukraine, the United States and South Korea have accused nuclear-armed North Korea of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help bolster Russian forces. Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang has acknowledged that North Koreans have been deployed to fight against Ukraine. The two countries have boosted their military cooperation since Russia launched its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

"There should be no doubt left in the world that the Russian army is dependent on military assistance from North Korea," said Zelensky.

The Ukrainian president posted a video of an interrogation of the two North Korean prisoners of war, one of whom is lying in a bunk bed and the other is sitting up in bed with a bandage around his jaw.

One man can be heard speaking to a Ukrainian official through an interpreter, saying in translated comments that he did not know he was going to fight in a war with Ukraine and that his commanders "told him it was just training".

In translated comments, one of the men says he wants to return to North Korea. The other says he will do what he is told but, if given the chance, wants to live in Ukraine.

'Significant losses'

South Korea's confirmation Sunday added weight to Kyiv's account, confirming details released by Ukraine the previous day.

The NIS said one of the captured soldiers had revealed that he received military training from Russian forces after arriving there in November.

"He initially believed he was being sent for training, realising upon arrival in Russia that he had been deployed," the NIS said.

The soldier also said North Korean forces had experienced "significant losses during battle".

The NIS said it would continue to work with the SBU to share information on North Korean fighters in Ukraine.

Neither Russia nor North Korea has reacted to the intelligence accounts.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said last month that nearly 3,000 North Korean soldiers had been "killed or wounded" fighting for Russia. Seoul put the figure at 1,000. The NIS told the country's lawmakers last month that "several North Korean casualties" had already been attributed to Ukrainian missile and drone attacks as well as training accidents, with the highest ranking "at least at the level of a general". 

Due to losses among its forces, North Korea is preparing for additional deployment to Ukraine, according to Seoul's military.

Russia on Sunday claimed the capture of two villages in eastern Ukraine where its forces have been advancing for months. The defence ministry said forces had captured the village of Yantarne in the eastern Donetsk region, around 10 kilometres (six miles) southwest of Kurakhove, a key logistics hub that Moscow claimed to have seized last week.

Russian troops also captured the village of Kalinove in the northeastern Kharkiv region, said the ministry.

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Fourteen-year-old Mumbai opener Ira Jadhav became the first Indian to score a triple hundred in Under-19 cricket, when she made a 346 against Meghalaya in the U19 Women's One Day Trophy in Alur, Bengaluru on Sunday. Ira, a student of the Sharadashram Vidyamandir, the alma mater of Sachin Tendulkar, Vinod Kambli and Ajit Agarkar made her runs in 157 balls with 42 fours and 16 sixes. This is also the highest score in Youth List A matches by an Indian but the world record in the segment stands in the name of Lizelle Lee of South Africa, who made 427 in 2010 in a domestic match.

Jadhav, who went unsold in the previous Women's Premier League auction, however has been named among the standbys for India's U19 T20 World Cup squad for the tournament to be held in Malaysia.

An admirer of India batter Jemimah Rodrigues, Jahdhav's triple hundred and her 274-run stand for the second wicket with skipper Hurley Gala (116, 79 balls) powered Mumbai to a mammoth 563 for three.

Meghalaya were bowled out for a mere 19, an inning that contained six ducks, as Mumbai recorded a massive 544-run victory.

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Pastor Who Predicted Trump's Assassination Bid Now Warns Of A Doomsday Event

Brandon Dale Biggs, an Oklahoma pastor and self-proclaimed prophet who said he accurately predicted the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, has come up with another eerie prediction. Mr Biggs said god had shown him a vision of a 10-magnitude earthquake which may kill thousands of people across the US, according to a report in Metro. Mr Biggs claimed that the earthquake would hit the New Madrid fault line, stretching through Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and Illinois.

'It was so big, there were 1,800 people who died [along that stretch]. All the houses on cinder blocks were completely shaken to the foundation, they just fell," said Mr Biggs.

'[The] New Madrid earthquake [is] so big [and] when it happens the Mississippi River starts it goes out another direction.'

Notably, in a YouTube video dated March 14, 2024, Mr Biggs said the US president-elect would be targeted and that a bullet would fly by his ear.

“I saw Trump, rising up, and then I saw an attempt on his life. This bullet flew by his ear, and it came so close to his head that it busted his eardrum," Biggs told Pastor Steve Cioccolanti in the video.

“And I saw, he fell to his knees during this time frame, and he started worshipping the Lord.”

A few months later, Mr Trump narrowly survived an assassination attempt while addressing a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania. The bullet fired by gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks kissed Mr Trump's right ear before the security officials killed the former.

Is a 10-magnitude earthquake possible?

Contrary to Mr Biggs' claims, earthquakes of magnitude 10 or greater cannot happen, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The magnitude of an earthquake is related to the length of the fault on which it occurs. That is, the longer the fault, the larger the earthquake. Currently, no fault on Earth is long enough to generate such a megaquake.

The largest earthquake ever recorded was a magnitude 9.5 on May 22, 1960 in Chile on a fault that is almost 1,000 miles long.

Also Read | Nostradamus' Predictions For 2025: Asteroid Collision To Plague-Like Outbreak And More

Other predictions

While Mr Biggs has claimed that a massive earthquake is around, Nostradamus' predictions suggest that 2025 may witness a giant asteroid colliding with the Earth, or coming in dangerous proximity to the planet.

Born Michel de Nostredame, Nostradamus was a French astrologer and physician who lived in the 1500s and predicted some of the modern-day epochal moments such as Adolf Hitler's rise to power, the September 11 attacks and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Similarly, Baba Vanga, another seer popular for predicting global events, warned that catastrophic natural disasters, including earthquakes along the US West Coast and eruption of dormant volcanoes, were possible in 2025.

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As South Africa prepares for its World Test Championship final against Australia at Lord's, legendary cricketer Jonty Rhodes says the Proteas' pace battery is unlikely to give a big advantage to the side as Pat Cummins' team too is equally adept at handling the quick bowlers. The one-off Test will be played from June 11 to 15, with June 16 available as a reserve day if required. "Well, I don't think so. There is no advantage to South Africa. The Australians are adept at playing pace bowling. They have a battery of fast bowling whom South African batters will be facing at Lord's.

"So, I wouldn't say that we have an advantage. Australians have grown up facing pace and know all about it, but it certainly is going to be a great contest," the South African, known for his breathtaking fielding, told PTI Videos on Saturday.

South Africa's run to the WTC final has been driven by their dominant performances, especially at home. In those matches, their potent pace attack, featuring Kagiso Rabada (37 wickets in 8 matches at an average of 19.8) and Marco Jansen (29 wickets in 7 matches), has proved to be a game changer.

Beyond the immediate focus on the WTC final, Rhodes believes that South African cricket appears to be on the cusp of a resurgence.

"You know, success breeds success. For a long time, South Africa was in the middle of the ICC rankings and it kind of showed. Rugby has a cult fan following in South Africa because we have had consecutive World Championships winning teams.

"I as a player and cricket coach in India have seen that the success of the men's team and the women's team has driven the popularity of the game and support for the players and the team," said Rhodes, who is also the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) fielding coach.

"I hope that cricket in South Africa will get a resurgence, one from the Test team's performance and other from tournaments like the SA20," he added.

At one point, it seemed rather impossible for the Proteas, with several key players unavailable and the team going through transition, to make it to the WTC summit clash.

Rhodes says the roller-coaster journey has been amazing.

"Well to win that many Test matches is pretty tough. Test cricket has certainly changed from my generation and my era when a lot of drawn matches used to happen. The way the players play these days, the game certainly goes forward very, very quickly.

"Not too many Tests last for five days. But to be able to win eight out of nine games is a spectacular performance", Rhodes said.

"Considering that the team has changed, at one point players weren't available. It's amazing to see that South Africa has reached the final of the WTC," he added.

Rhodes feels leagues like SA20 have played a vital role in reigniting interest and unearthing talent back home.

"The standard of young players coming through the ranks is pretty exciting... exciting times ahead if you are a fan of cricket in South Africa." Rhodes, who was invited as a special guest speaker at the Viksit Bharat Youth Leaders Dialogue and National Youth Festival here, was particularly inspired by the Viksit Bharat 2047 mission.

"In a team environment or society, communication is so essential and it is not a monologue. And to actively listen to the youth of the country, is just mind-blowing. The fact that the PM's gonna be here tomorrow, the youth of the country that will be driving the Viksit Bharat 2047 mission..." "The fact that they will get a chance to present their thoughts to the Prime Minister of the country blows me away," he added.

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