Features

For many years now there has been concern about what may happen to us all should the global network break or fail. Countless stories, including in the very column, have been written about the hypothetical doomsday scenario. In all of them the main fear that was expressed was that the Internet would fail because of an unexpected, accidental technical failure, or an intentional criminal act.

None of these scenarios involved a failure that would take place because the network would have to handle a sudden, exceptional, tremendous load, generated by an unusual, extraordinary situation, one that is unrelated to any technical mishap or criminal act. Which is the situation we are now living because of the Covid-19.

Millions are told to work from home and an overwhelming number of school children are re-oriented to remote web sites to keep on learning and to do their homework. One can imagine the scale of the additional stress put on the Internet this way.

At this point in time, and while this very article is being written and emailed to the Jordan Times, no noticeable negative impact is felt. No network slowdown and no failure – thank God. There are rare cases, however, where users have felt some impact, though it remains minor and temporary.

A couple of examples

One of the most popular sites for e-learning and that some private schools in Jordan use is itslearning.com. It is based in Norway. Earlier this week, and for a short period, itslearning was flooded and stopped responding, because of the unusual number of school children accessing it. According to marketscreener.com itslearning had 10,000 hits in 10 minutes! Access to it was restored in only a few hours.

Zoom.us is frequently used as a video conferencing and online meeting site. It is fast, reliable and easy to use even if you are not particularly technically minded. Zoom too encountered a temporary slowdown earlier this week because more and more people understandably were going for online meetings to conduct their business, instead of meeting in person, physically.

The list of online sites and services we depend on is a mile long, from Skype to Messenger, WhatsApp, Internet telephony and video calls, email and online banking. Over the last few days and given the health situation everywhere in the world, our dependence on these sites, on the online services and on the web in a general manner, has increased 10, 100 or perhaps 1,000 times – it is impossible to estimate – and it will probably increase even more in the coming days. The added load on the web obviously is proportional to this dependency.

The good news is that we do have the Internet to help us cope with the situation and work from home, and that despite the added pressure it seems to be holding on strong. The fact that fibre optic connection has superseded the old ADSL in most places is a reassuring factor and will certainly contribute to maintain the global network in a good and reliable state.

Should we start being reasonable when using the Internet, so as to reduce the added load, like for example to avoid unnecessary huge uploads/downloads? Should we cut on Netflix or music streaming? Should we keep video conferencing and Skype video chats for critical matters and refrain from using it to communicate with friends and family?

Nothing like that seems necessary at this point and it probably, hopefully, won’t be at any time. Besides, in this situation of confinement at various degrees, even a friendly or family video chat may qualify as critical and would prove to be as important as a business communication in the end. In addition to conducting formal work, being able to communicate with our beloved ones will be essential to our well-being and our sanity, mentally and physically.

The best we can wish for, in addition of course to an as-soon-as-possible and positive outcome to the Covid-19 crisis, is that all those in charge of the Internet will be able to ensure it is up all the time, fast, and here for us all. They deserve to be thanked in advance for their highly critical, vital work.

AMMAN — In an automotive landscape where ever more carmakers looking to position themselves in an elusively ill-defined ‘premium’ segment for greater desirability and bigger profit margins, the MG HS’s victory at the 2020 Middle East Car of the Year (MECOTY) awards comes as vindication for the idea that a car can offer both good value and premium features. Beating out close competition from supercars and high-end luxury cars, the Chinese-built and owned British brand’s top Car of the Year honour and Sub-Compact Crossover and Sub-Compact Sedan wins for the MG HS and MG 5 models respectively, is a timely reminder of China’s growing maturity and sophistication as a car-making nation.

While value for money is ever more important for many car buyers in the region during the current economic climate, this however doesn’t necessarily affect the top end of the prestige brand car market. That said, and at a diametrically opposite end of the automotive world, Italian supercar maker and member of the wider Volkswagen group member, Lamborghini proved to be the other big 2020 MECOTY winner. Scooping up category wins for all its nominated models, Lamborghini collected prizes for the Midsize Premium Performance SUV, Premium Performance Coupe, Premium Performance Convertible and Supercar categories, not to mention the Huracan Evo and Urus models being ranked among the top prize finalists.

Sticking with the prestige end of the market, British ultra-luxury brands also fared well at MECOTY 2020, with the beautiful and brutally quick Aston Martin DBS Superleggera winning the Luxury Performance Coupe category. The Bentley Continental GTC meanwhile won best Luxury Performance Convertible, beating out the convertible version DBS Superleggera Volante, but the Bentley Bentayga Speed lost out to the Lamborghini Urus in the Midsize Premium Performance SUV category. Making a big impression, the Bentley Flying Spur meanwhile garnered a narrow win over the Rolls Royce Phantom VII in the Large Luxury Sedan segment, and positioned as a COTY finalist.

Announced earlier than scheduled this year, the MECOTY awards included two category awards for two nominations for Audi and one win for one nomination for Volvo. Both traditional high award performers, Audi scooped Midsize Executive Sportback and Sub-Compact Premium Crossover victories for the RS5 Sportback and Q3 models respectively, while the Volvo S60 took the Midsize Executive Sedan prize. In the premium segment, the more attainable Land Rover Discovery Sport meanwhile beat its own more upmarket Range Rover Evoque sister model for the Compact Premium SUV prize, while the stylish, impressive and ambitious new Mazda 3 won best Compact Sedan against the MG 6, Ford Escort and Toyota Corolla.

Another strong MECOTY performer, Ford thrice claimed victory over its traditional General Motors rival in the Full-Size Truck, Compact Crossover and Midsize Premium SUV Coupe categories, where the Ford F150, and Ford Edge and its premium Lincoln Nautilus cousin defeated the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, Chevrolet Blazer, and Cadillac XT5, respectively. Making a big mark on MECOTY, Mitsubishi meanwhile scored three category victories of four nominations, picking up best Compact Crossover (Hybrid), Midsize SUV and Midsize Truck awards for the Outlander PHEV, Montero Sport and L200 models respectively. Trailing behind Midsize Sedan category winner Volkswagen Passat, the Peugeot 508 however took home the non-jury Public COTY online popular vote award.

The Middle East’s only independent automotive awards were established in 2014. They are organised by Custom Events L.L.C. and are comprised of a 14-member jury panel of specialised automotive print, online and TV journalists and media, representing Jordan, Lebanon, the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar, who bring a wide range of experience and outlooks. Starting with a nomination process to include the best recently launched and available car in the broad Middle East region, the jury panel’s scoring and voting process is based on ten criteria, which are assessed through evaluation test drives throughout the year.

Usually revealed at a gala ceremony at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre Motor Show at the end of the month, the MECOTY results were instead announced early online this year in response to limited public gatherings in the wake of the global coronavirus outbreak.

Highlights

Middle East Car of the Year (COTY) & Best Sub-Compact Crossover: MG HS

A car that seemingly has it all, the MG HS is the biggest sign yet of great things to come from the Chinese owned and operated British brand. A modern and practical crossover SUV that with a sense of sporty style that hints at the brand’s past, the HS is thoroughly well equipped and boasts a sporty leather-lined cabin with body-hugging sports seats in top Trophy spec. Keenly priced, comfortable and refined, the HS also boasts a powerful and flexible 228BHP low-rev, high torque turbocharged 2-litre engine.

Best Premium Performance Coupe & COTY finalist: Lamborghini Huracan Evo

A revised and restyled incarnation of the smaller of Lamborghini’s two supercar lines, the Huracan Evo remains refreshing and exhilarating with mid-engine weighting, four-wheel-drive road-holding and a scintillating 631BHP naturally-aspirated 5.2-litre V10 engine, lifted from the outgoing version’s special high performance Performante edition. Inside, the Evo gains better more user-friendly infotainment and instrumentation, while its design incorporates some passive airflow management tricks gleaned from the Performante, if active ones. Meanwhile underneath its striking style, the Evo also gains four-wheel-steering, which proves transformative in enhancing agility, manoeuvrability and stability.

Best Large Luxury Sedan & COTY finalist: Bentley Flying Spur

Coinciding with the ultra-luxury British brand’s centenary, the new Bentley Flying Spur is larger and more luxurious, yet sportier than its predecessor. Built on a more rear-biased platform with more elegant design details and profile, the Flying Spur has yet bigger shoes to fill, and will become Bentley’s flagship once the current Mulsanne soon ceases production. Effortlessly powerful with its mighty 626BHP 6-litre twin-turbo W12 engine, the Flying Spur also boasts lavish cabin appointment, four-wheel-drive grip, high tech suspension and supple ride. It also gains four-wheel steering for enhanced agility, manoeuvrability and stability.

Complete List of MECOTY 2020 Awards

• Middle East Car of the Year (jury award):
• MG HS
• Runner-ups: Lamborghini Huracan Evo, Lamborghini Urus, Bentley Flying Spur
• Best Sub-Compact Sedan: MG 5
• Other nominee: Kia Pegas
• Best Compact Sedan: Mazda 3
• Other nominee: MG 6, Ford Escort, Toyota Corolla
• Best Midsize Sedan: Volkswagen Passat
• Other nominees: Nissan Altima, Peugeot 508, Chevrolet Malibu
• Best Midsize Executive Sedan: Volvo S60
• Other nominee: Cadillac CTS
• Best Midsize Executive Sportback: Audi RS5
• Other nominee: Mercedes-Benz CLS53 AMG
• Best Midsize Executive Coupe: BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe
• Other nominee: Mercedes-AMG GT 40
• Best Large Sedan: Nissan Maxima
• Other nominee: Dodge Charger
• Best Large Executive Sedan: Cadillac CT6
• Other nominees: Genesis G90, Kia K900
• Best Large Luxury Sedan: Bentley Flying Spur
• Other nominee: Rolls Royce Phantom VIII
• Best Sub-Compact Crossover: MG HS
• Other nominees: Mitsubishi ASX, Honda HR-V, Kia Seltos, Hyundai Creta
• Best Sub-Compact Premium Crossover: Audi Q3
• Other nominee: Lexus UX
• Best Compact Crossover: Ford Edge
• Other nominee: Chevrolet Blazer
• Best Compact Crossover (Hybrid): Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
• Other nominees: Kia Niro, Toyota Rav4
• Best Compact Premium SUV: Land Rover Discovery Sport
• Other nominees: Range Rover Evoque, Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class, Infiniti QX50
• Best Compact Premium Performance SUV: Mercedes-AMG GLC43
• Other nominee: BMW X4 M
• Best Midsize SUV: Mitsubishi Montero Sport
• Other nominees: Hyundai Palisade, MG RX8, Kia Telluride, GMC Acadia
• Best Midsize Premium SUV Coupe: Lincoln Nautilus
• Other nominee: Mercedes-AMG GLE-Class, Cadillac XT5
• Best Midsize Premium Performance SUV: BMW X6 M
• Other nominees: Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class Coupe, Porsche Cayenne Coupe
• Best Midsize Premium Performance SUV: Lamborghini Urus
• Other nominee: Bentley Bentayga Speed
• Best Large Premium SUV: Cadillac XT6
• Other nominees: Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class, BMW X7
• Best Midsize Truck: Mitsubishi L200
• Other nominees: Ford Ranger, Toyota Hilux
• Best Full-size Truck: Ford F150
• Other nominees: Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss, GMC Sierra
• Best Premium Performance Hatchback: Mini Clubman JCW
• Other nominee: Mercedes-AMG A45 S
• Best Performance Coupe: Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
• Other nominees: BMW Z4, Toyota Supra
• Best Premium Performance Coupe: Lamborghini Huracan Evo
• Other nominee: Porsche Carrera 4S
• Best Premium Performance Convertible: Lamborghini Huracan Evo Spyder
• Other nominees: Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabrio, Porsche Carrera 4S Cabrio
• Best Luxury Performance Coupe: Aston Martin DBS Superleggera
• Other nominee: BMW 8-Series Coupe
• Best Luxury Performance Convertible: Bentley Continental GTC
• Other nominee: Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante
• Best Supercar: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ Roadster
• Other nominees: McLaren GT, Ferrari F8 Tributo, Mercedes-AMG GTR Pro
• Public Car of the Year (non-jury): Peugeot 508

As health officials urged social distancing to quell the tide of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the overall North American box office plummeted 40 per cent from last weekend with several high-profile movies being rescheduled, in some cases indefinitely.

This weekend, the domestic box office earned an estimated $55.3 million, a low not seen since 2000 when holdover “The Watcher” dominated the mid-September box office and overall domestic grosses amounted to just $54.5 million.

AMC, Regal and several other chains announced Friday that they would be cutting theatre capacity by 50 per cent to address safety concerns by allowing individuals to sit next to empty seats. Roughly 84 theatres across Canada and the US have shuttered altogether.

“This was naturally going to be a low-grossing weekend in theatres given capacity reductions to honour social distancing guidelines, no major new mega-blockbuster releases and of course an overall sense of uncertainty in the marketplace,” said Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at measurement firm Comscore.

“Movie theatres are trying to balance the desire of their patrons to go to the movies while providing a safe and healthy environment for customers and employees. It’s clear that this situation is having an unprecedented effect on all businesses, but down the road we will likely see a strong surge for all kinds of outside the home activities and moviegoing in particular.”

Disney and Pixar’s “Onward” maintained the top spot on Sunday, adding $10.5 million in its second showing (a steep 73 per cent drop) for a cumulative $60.3 million, according to estimates from Comscore. Internationally, the film added $6.8 million across 47 markets for a worldwide cumulative of $101.7 million.

Late last week, the studio postponed the releases of three hotly anticipated films, “Mulan,” “The New Mutants” and “Antlers” because of coronavirus concerns. Alongside Disney, several other studios took measures to move or postpone their highest-profile spring blockbusters including MGM’s James Bond film “No Time to Die,” Paramount’s “A Quiet Place Part II” and Universal’s “F9.”

The weekend’s top new release, Lionsgate’s faith-based drama “I Still Believe” opened in second place with $9.5 million, the rare film to debut within range of analyst projections this weekend.

The film, based on true events, features “Riverdale” actor KJ Apa as Christian singer Jeremy Camp, whose first wife (played by Britt Robertson) was diagnosed with ovarian cancer early in their marriage. Directed by siblings Andrew and Jon Erwin (“I Can Only Imagine”), it is the first film to be released through their Kingdom Story Co.

It received a mixed reception with an A CinemaScore and a 40 per cent “rotten” rating from review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.

At No. 3, Sony’s Vin Diesel superhero picture “Bloodshot” opened with $9.3 million, slightly under analyst projections of $10 million. The $45-million movie received a B CinemaScore and a 31 per cent “rotten” score on Rotten Tomatoes.

In fourth place, Universal’s “The Invisible Man” added $6 million in its third weekend for a cumulative $64.4 million. Internationally it earned $6.2 million for a worldwide cumulative of $122.7 million.

Rounding out the top five, the studio’s “The Hunt” opened with $5.3 million, well below analyst projections of $8 million to $9 million. Internationally the film earned under $1 million across four territories for a global cumulative of $6 million.

The $14-million political satire, which was delayed in September amid controversy following a series of mass shootings and only recently rescheduled, follows a group of liberals who hunt conservatives for sport. It was poorly received with a C+ CinemaScore and a 54 per cent “rotten” score on Rotten Tomatoes.

At No. 6, Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” added $2.6 million in its fifth weekend for a cumulative $145.8 million.

In seventh place, Warner Bros.’ “The Way Back” added $2.4 million in its second weekend (a huge 70 per cent drop) for a cumulative $13.4 million.

At No. 8, 20th Century Studios’ “The Call of the Wild” added $2.2 million in its fourth weekend for a cumulative $62.1 million.

In ninth place, Focus Features’ “Emma” added $1.4 million in its fourth weekend for a cumulative $10 million. Internationally the film earned less than half a million dollars across 31 territories for a worldwide total of $25.1 million.

Rounding out the top 10, Sony’s “Bad Boys for Life” added $1.1 million in its ninth weekend for a cumulative $204.3 million.

In limited release, Elevation released the Dave Bautista action comedy “My Spy” in 251 Canadian locations to $280,000 for a per-screen average of $1,115. It was poorly received with a 44 per cent “rotten” score on Rotten Tomatoes and is currently scheduled to open in the US on April 17.

Focus Features’ “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” opened in four locations to $18,000 for a per-screen average of $4,601. It was positively received with a 99 per cent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.

101 Studios expanded “Burden” from 31 locations to 109 to $46,536 for a per-screen average of $427 and a cumulative $133,922. Searchlight expanded “Wendy” into 165 locations (up from 69 last weekend) to $44,000 for a per-screen average of $267 and a cumulative $142,367.

No wide releases are scheduled for release until Universal plans to open the animated sequel “Trolls World Tour” on April 10, the date vacated by the James Bond adventure “No Time to Die.” 

By Sonaiya Kelley

So you’ve just been told to work at home, and now you’re wondering how to get it done.

Thanks to advancements in technology, it’s never been easier. But where to start?

 We’ve got a few ideas. Here’s what you need to know, the 2020 edition.

 You’ll start with the basics like a good Internet signal, without which, you’re toast. From there, let’s focus on the workspace you’ve dedicated for your new home away from the office.

 After all, this is the place where you’ll be spending a good eight hours a day for the foreseeable future. Why not make it comfortable and enjoyable? 

Set up your home office

Pick a dedicated, comfortable place to hang your shingle and park your laptop, hopefully one with few distractions, like nearby food. If you have a desk, great. But a dining table will do, too.

If you’d like to recreate the office experience, you could always put a picture of the kids or significant other on your desk. I like to have a notebook by my computer, for obvious reasons. Beyond the journalists out there, it helps to have an old-fashioned tool to write down phone numbers and keep a running list of the tasks for the day. 

If you prefer, you could create a document with the same information and leave it up and running on your computer, or have an iPad or other brand of tablet on your desk to replace the physical notebook.

Clean up your home office space  

Get rid of all the junk on your desk. You’ll be making video calls with the office and don’t want to look like Pig-Pen.

Let’s be honest, the cleaning up can be as simple as throwing everything onto the floor, or possibly in a box, to be more organized. You can deal with it later. A nice, clean, spare desk will make a great impression. 

(Remember that when you do make your video calls, don’t sit with a window behind you. You’re likely to be backlit. The computer webcam will expose for the window light and turn you into a silhouette. Instead, turn around and face the window, which will light you nicely.)

And if you really don’t have time to clean (or you’re choosing to be lazy),the Zoom tool, which many companies use for video calls, has a fun feature that can blur the background and all your junk. TheVerge has a good primer on how to use it. 

Microsoft Teams also has a blur feature that works a bit like the Instagram filter on steroids – everyone else sees your outline surrounded by a blur over everything else around you.

Powering your home office

The biggest challenge at home: finding a place to plug all your stuff into. You already have lamps and clocks plugged in. How to make space? Get a good, dedicated power strip. Belkin has two models on Amazon, for eight outlets or 12, both in the $20 range. You can plug in lots of stuff, and since there’s a surge protector, you’re “safeguarded” in case the power blows. Eight and 12 outlets sound extreme, but they’re not at all. Consumer electronics companies have a habit of making products with giant connectors that can hog at least half of your strip space. With an eight-outlet or 12-outlet strip, you’re not going to struggle to plug in the four to five products of your choice.

What you need for your phone

After you’ve added the teleconference phone numbers you need, put the phone on speaker and have it available all day long for calls while keeping your two hands available for other things. A $10 investment will get you a cellphone stand to have next to your computer. Amazon offers many different brands in this price range. Since you’ll be using the phone all day, don’t let the battery drain. Invest in some of the newer cables that offer faster charging, like Belkin’s Boostchahrge USB-C Wall Charger ($24.99), which it says can take recent iPhones or Google Pixel phones from zero to 50 per cent in 30 minutes. Anker’s PowerPort PD2 ($21.94) will fast-charge USB-C devices, which means it works with recent Samsung Galaxy premium phones, GoPro cameras and more.

Oh, and don’t forget to charge.

Printer

 If you’re going to be at home for a long time, you might want to invest in a printer. Our sage advice: Skip out on the cheap colour printers, which let you get in for under $100 but then make it up by selling you expensive inks. (Often a whole new printer can cost less than continuing to refill the ink. Not very environmentally friendly.) Ask yourself: Do I really need colour ink to print an expense report? 

We fell in love with the Brother line of black-and-white laser printers two years ago and have never looked back. (We’ve only had to refill the ink once during that time period.)

The Brother “Compact Monochrome Laser Printer, HL-L2350DW” sells for just under $90 on Amazon, prints via Wi-Fi and won’t gouge you on ink costs.

And with your new power strip, you’ll have room to plug it in.

By Jefferson Graham

Launched last year, the Audi RS5 Sportback is an intersection between the descendants of two of Ingolstadt manufacturer’s most iconic cars, the 1980-91 Quattro and 1994-95 RS2 Avant, and sits somewhere between the two-door RS5 Coupe and the more practical estate-body RS4 Avant. Sharing the same platform, mechanicals and near identical performance as its mentioned and current stablemates, the RS5 Sportback — with its rakish low-roof design and 5-door liftback body — loses little of the former’s sleek hunkered down style yet gains a modicum of the latter’s versatile space and utility.

Fast five-door liftback

A little longer than its Coupe sibling to accommodate the addition of its rear doors and window panes, the RS5 Sportback is otherwise little altered aesthetically apart from looking slightly stretched at the middle and losing the Coupe’s thick C-pillar, which is a more direct visual link to the original and iconic Quattro. Identical in its moody disposition, the Sportback shares the Coupe’s squinting LED headlights, hungry honeycomb hexagonal grille jutting bumper treatment, sills and surfacing, and carries over the subtle wheel-arch blisters and Coke-bottle like side crease kink at the rear haunches.

Virtually indistinguishable from direct rear view, the RS5 Sportback, however, seems to sit with a visually heavier rear emphasis, while its roofline seems more flowing in its arc, and less chunky than the Coupe. Gaining better rear legroom and slightly improved rear headroom, the Sportback notably trades the Coupe’s traditional boot for a much more practical liftback. With much improved lifting height and boot access, the Sportback’s luggage volume is nominally unchanged at 465-litre, but with rear parcel shelf removed and rear seats folded, it offers significantly better expanded capacity.

User-friendly performance

Downsized from the previous generation RS5’s naturally-aspirated 4.20litre V8, the new RS5 is instead powered by twin turbocharged 2.9-litre V6. It retains a similar power output but makes significant gains in torque output and reduced 9.2l/100km fuel economy. However, its character is a little different. Gone is the outgoing model’s intensely progressive build-up and high strung deliver, replaced by a more explosive mid-range surge. And while its rev limit is lower, the new engine manages to both rev high for a turbo unit, and also benefits from good low-end responsive. 

Lurking under its long and muscularly contoured bonnet, the RS5’s mighty twin-turbo V6 engine is mounted low and in-line, just in front of the front axle to help develop Audi’s signature tenacious traction. Mated to a slick and quick 8-speed automatic gearbox, the RS5’s punchy engine sends power through Audi’s hallmark Quattro four-wheel-drive system, which achieves vice-like levels of road-holding for secure, stable and highly exploitable all-weather performance. The RS5’s engine management, throttle, gearbox, steering and optional limited-slip rear differential can also be altered in sharpness, aggression and character through various driving mode combinations.

Quick and committed

Producing 444BHP at 5700-6700rpm and a brutally versatile wave of 442lb/ft torque throughout a broad and accessible 1900-5000rpm band, the RS5 is quick-spooling and nearly lag-free from idling, abundant in mid-range and urgent at top-end. Developing immense traction at launch, the Sportback bullets through 0-100km/h sprint in 3.9-seconds, and can attain 280km/h when optionally de-restricted from 250km/h. Smooth, refined and almost acoustically docile in Comfort mode, the RS5, however, takes on a dual personality and adopts a sharper throttle response, and more viciously vocal, snarling and wailing exhaust characteristic in Dynamic mode.

A highly capable high performance low roof saloon or five-door coupe — depending on one’s perspective — the RS5 is effortlessly rapid and user-friendly, with blistering acceleration, deep mid-range pulling power and a ferocious top-end plateau. Accessible for daily driving, the RS5 is manoeuvrable in town with light Comfort mode steering, settled and stable at speed, and committed through corners and over low traction surfaces. Such are its road-holding and the reassuring manner in which it delivers its considerable performance envelope that one need to push closer to its dynamic to best enjoy it.

Reassuring roadholding

The smallest, lightest and most nimble of Audi’s traditional front inline engine cars next to the RS5 Coupe, the Sportback still has a distinctively different approach to high performance motoring than rear-drive derived rivals. Emphasising grip and traction, the RS5’s now lighter engine and more sophisticated five-link all suspension, however, help make it more eager, crisp, tidy and agile on turn-in than expected for its front-biased weighting. The RS5’s agility is further aided by a slight rear bias to its power distribution, and an optional limited slip differential to vary power distribution at the rear.

User-friendly, comfortable and luxurious inside, the Sportback is thoroughly well equipped with safety, assistance, infotainment and convenience features, and has comfortable, supportive quilted leather seats, terrific driving position, good front visibility and chunky sports steering wheel, for an involved and alert driving position. Carrying cornering speed in its stride, the Sportback feels little different to drive than the Coupe. With fixed rate sports suspension it remains flat and taut through corners and smooth and buttoned down at speed, but ride quality can be slightly firm over jagged lumps and bumps.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 2.9-litre, twin-turbocharged, in-line V6-cylinders

Bore x stroke: 84.5 x 86mm

Compression ratio: 10:1

Valve-train: 24-valve, DOHC, direct injection

Gearbox: 8-speed automatic, four-wheel-drive

Ratios: 1st 5.0; 2nd 3.2; 3rd 2.143; 4th 1.72; 5th 1.313; 6th 1.0; 7th 0.823; 8th 0.64

Reverse/final drive: 3.478/3.204

Drive-line: Self-locking centre differential, optional rear sport differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 443.8 (450) [331] @5,700-6,700rpm

Specific power: 153.3BHP/litre

Power-to-weight: 254.7BHP/tonne

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 442.5 (600) @1,900-5,000rpm

Specific torque: 207.3Nm/litre

Torque-to-weight: 344.4Nm/tonne

0-100km/h: 3.9-seconds

Top speed (optional de-restriction): 250km/h (280km/h)

Fuel consumption, combined: 9.2-litres/100km 

CO2 emissions, combined: 209g/km

Fuel capacity: 58-litres

Length: 4,783mm

Width: 1,866mm

Height: 1,399mm

Wheelbase: 2,826mm

Track, F/R: 1,598/1,588mm

Overhangs, F/R: 918/1,039mm

Aerodynamic drag co-efficient: 0.32

Luggage volume: 465-litres

Unladen weight: 1,742kg

Steering: Electric-assisted rack & pinion

Steering ratio: 15.9

Turning Circle: 11.7-metres

Suspension: Five-link, anti-roll bars

Brakes: Ventilated, perforated discs

Tyres: 275/30ZR20

AMMAN — Red Bull OG team recently ignited the universe of e-sports by entering one of the most iconic and competitive games in the world: Counter Strike Global Offensive. The team welcomed a selection of players who demonstrated themselves with dedication, hard work and great talent that earned them a spot on the chairs of the OG CS: GO team., according to a statement from the team.

Among those very few selected is the Jordanian player Issa Murad, nicknamed ISSA, the 23-year-old who has built a promising career in the world of e-sports, and who will play a new challenging role amongst the ranks of team OG, and is the first player from Jordan to do so.

Let’s take a look at his path towards professionalism before he started raising winning trophies with OG CS: GO:

As was the case with many players, Murad first got acquainted with Counter-Strike through his brother, who introduced him to the game when he was only four years old. His brother stopped playing after a while, but Murad kept clinging to his new passion. 

By the time CS:GO was released, Murad had started playing from home, and had jumped on the new version of the game right away. No longer part of the internet café community, as the local network scene in Jordan was not really that active, Murad started playing on ESEA alone in order to connect with other Jordanian players from his country, and the Octopus1 team was soon created.

By the end of 2015 Octopus1 played their first LAN event, qualifying for Play It Cool CS: GO Community Challenge, a show of LAN amateurs in Stockholm, where they played against Play It Cool All-Stars. Although it was just a show tournament, playing against his beloved players meant a lot to Issa: “We were very happy! It was our first official game and we were excited and happy to play against legend players. I have always been a fan of GeT_RiGhT.”

From there, Murad’s career kicked off and her started playing professionally with local and international teams and participating in competitions at a global level.

But playing with a formal team has had its cost. “I was at university, studying law, it was my final year when the HellRaisers team called me. I had no choice but to suspend my studies indefinitely, due to the strict attendance policies, there was no compromise:” At my university, if you did not attend the lectures for seven days, you will be expelled from the class.” Issa followed his dream, he put his education on hold and joined team HellRaisers, but the decision did not impress his family.

“Here in Jordan, in the Middle East, it is important to get a college degree. My family thought I was ruining my life, and I didn’t know what I was doing. Up until I signed a contract with HellRaisers and started getting a proper salary. Now, my parents support me and follow all my games.”

Murad may not have the trophies and plaudits of his teammates, but it’s only a matter of time. Already a familiar face in big tournaments like the ESL Pro League, the former HellRaisers player will be looking to rectify that in swift order on OG CS:GO.

“After playing for three years in the same pro team, I got a bit demotivated and I felt I needed something fresh. When I was on the bench, the break helped me to refresh my mind and to know what way I want to go, and I think in OG I have everything I want.”

The Far Field

Madhuri Vijay

New York: Grove Press, 2019

Pp. 432

This is Madhuri Vijay’s first novel, and it is both original and beautifully written. Unlike the many Indian novels that are set in Mumbai, Delhi or Calcutta, and involve an extended family, “The Far Field” rotates between Bangalore and a remote village in Kashmir, and focuses on a small family consisting only of father, mother and daughter. In an interview at the end of the book, Vijay reveals that these choices are deliberate. Having grown up in Bangalore and worked for a time in a Kashmiri village, she eyed the chance to highlight lesser-known places and the effects of social change in the 1990s brought about by economic liberalisation: “The older traditional joint family structure, at least among a tiny section of urban elites, was starting to give way to the Westernised model of nuclear families…”

The novel is cutting-edge modern in that the main character, Shalina, who narrates the story, is no heroine, but a deeply problematic character. One could argue that there is no real protagonist, but rather a set of characters who gradually reveal themselves as they bounce off each other. While some of the Kashmiris are well grounded, most of the characters are locked in an internal struggle as to who they are and what they want in life. As dramatic encounters pile up, these searches for self can lead to great love and loyalty — or betrayal.

Shalini bonds closely with her mother, an impervious, irascible woman whose hard, outer shell has been honed by resentment at not having gotten the higher education attained by her husband. With her unpredictable moods and outlandish behaviour, she has no friends, but she is also exciting and fun. Shalina idolises her and takes her side against her father, a kind, slightly self-important factory owner, whose patience keeps the marriage afloat. Shalina inherits her mother’s self-imposed loneliness and lack of trust in others, as well as her penchant for acting on impulse. She seems alienated, without a purpose in life. 

When Shalini is six years old, a knock on the door changes everything, triggering a complex plot that is both personal and political. It is a Kashmiri travelling salesman who offers a variety of clothing. Though he sells only a single item to Shalina’s mother, he begins to visit regularly over the following years, drinking tea and mesmerising the mother and daughter with his thoughtful, modest manner and his telling of ancient legends. In his presence, Shalina sees her mother transformed, becoming softer around the edges and actually happy. Thus, Shalina becomes an accomplice to her mother’s greatest secret. “Looking back, I can see that something powerful occurred at that moment and it still astonishes me all these years later: Bashir Ahmed understood in about five minutes what took my father decades. And me? What did I understand back then? Nothing, except that when my mother laughed like that, it made me want a million things at once.” (p. 36)

Bashir Ahmed is not eager to speak about the India-Kashmiri conflict, but at some point, it becomes an uncomfortable issue and he disappears. Over a decade later, after her mother dies, Shalina is at loose ends and decides to go to Kashmir to find him and by implication a new family and herself. Though people there are kind to her, obstacles to finding Bashir Ahmed are erected at every turn. Meanwhile, Shalina sees and hears shocking things about the conflict — Hindu resentment and frankly expressed racism against Kashmiri Muslims, the army’s abuses and intimidation of the population — torture, arrests and the “disappearances” of young men on the tenuous assumption that they are militants. However, she is unable to sort her experiences into a coherent whole. She wants to help, but her self-absorption, incomplete picture of Kashmiri reality and inability to enter into real friendships mean that she makes things worse for the very people who take her in.

The story says a lot about ignorance and indifference to injustice even if it is not so far away. Like the novel itself, Vijay is very honest about this: “Ignorance, deliberate or otherwise, was very much on my mind when I was writing the novel, and I mean the kind of ignorance that exists not just in India, but all over the world. The kind most of us practice in one form or another every single day, closing our eyes to the world’s horrors so we can carry on with our lives.”

Vijay has plotted the novel carefully: Shalini’s childhood and adolescence, which paved her way to Kashmir, is told in alternating flashback chapters, gradually filling in the background and explaining, but only partially, the characters’ actions. Still, a large gap remains for the irrational; motivations often remain murky; and people are caught in roles they are forced to play.

Yet, there are also beautiful passages as Vijay describes the stunning mountains of Kashmir and the close-to-nature life in a remote village. There are also happy and even amusing scenes, but the emphasis is on the darker sides of human behaviour. Clearly, the author set out to make the reader think as well as to entertain. This is a gripping tale which one will not soon forget.

Those with high blood pressure or who are at risk may want to consider simply saying no to sodium. Dr Amy Pollak, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist, says 75 per cent of the amount of salt you get in your day-to-day diet is from processed foods or going out to eat.

A new study found that cutting salt intake not only reduced blood pressure in patients with existing hypertension, but it did so for those who were not yet at risk. The study also showed that the more salt you take out of your diet, the greater the fall in blood pressure.

These tiny granules can make our food taste so good, and too much can raise our blood pressure too high.

“Having high blood pressure is a major risk for heart attack, for stroke, for heart failure, even for things like dementia,” says Pollak.

Reducing salt at the dinner table or when going out to eat can reduce our blood pressure by up to 10 points.

“If you go out to eat and someone is preparing your food, just ask them, ‘Hey, don’t add any salt to my food, please,’” says Pollak.

And when cooking, try more herbs and spices to replace salt.

“It takes a while to reset your taste buds to get used to that lower-salt diet, but you can really make up for any flavour deficits by using more spices or more herbs.”

Maintaining a healthy weight or losing weight can help lower blood pressure.

“Certainly, some people can have a more dramatic effect on blood pressure with weight loss, but where you can see the most bang for your buck is really in the low-salt diet,” says Pollak.

PARIS — Can a single COVID-19 patient infect dozens of others? Although transmission rates in the current outbreak appear to be far lower, a variety of factors can lead to an individual infecting many.

The concept of so-called “super-spreaders” — patients who typically infect far more people than the standard transmission rates — emerged in previous outbreaks of diseases such as Sars and Mers.

Amesh Adalja, an expert in emerging infectious diseases at John Hopkins University, said the term was not scientific and there was no set quantity of transmissions that would define a super-spreader. 

“But, in general, it is usually a markedly higher figure when compared to that of other individuals,” he told AFP. 

A range of variables govern how many people an individual infects, from how fast they shed the virus to how many people they come in to close contact with.

The novel coronavirus has a typical transmission rate of 2-3 — that is, every confirmed case appears to infect between two and three other people on average. 

But the pandemic has thrown up at least two patients who appear to have been super-spreaders.

Suspected super-spreaders

One suspected super-spreader, a British national, appears to have infected a dozen others when he returned from Singapore and then went skiing in the Alps.

He recovered, but may have infected another five people after returning home.

In South Korea, which has the second highest number of COVID-19 cases outside of Italy, a woman known as Patient 31 appears to have infected dozens of others.

But in an ever better-connected world, it can be challenging to definitively link transmissions to an individual patient.

“It’s possible that what we call super-spreaders exist, those patients who don’t only infect 2-3 others but could infect dozens,” said Eric Caumes, head of infectious and tropical diseases at Paris’ Pitie-Salpetriere Hospital. 

“The problem is we aren’t spotting them.”

According to Olivier Bouchaud, head of infectious diseases at that Avicenne hospital in Paris’ suburbs, variable transmission rates could be down to how fast a patient sheds the virus once infected.

“That’s just a hypothesis at this point,” he said. “Obviously we don’t have a clear explanation, and there’s nothing specific to COVID-19.”

Another unknown is the role played by young children, who are less severely affected by the virus but are capable of transmitting it — part of the reason many countries have moved to close schools in recent days.

‘Highly variable’

Cristl Donnelly, professor of Applied Statistics at the University of Oxford, said all disease transmission was by nature “highly variable”.

“But we are not all the same, we vary in our immune systems, in our behaviour, and in where we happen to be,” she said. 

“All of these things can affect how many people we would transmit to.”

Bharat Pankhania, an infectious diseases expert at Britain’s Exeter University, even disputed whether super-spreaders existed.

He said that the biggest factors determining transmission were environmental, made worse in dense-populated cities.

“These circumstances often are: crowding; a confined space with poor ventilation; poor infection control, meaning lots of non-porous, hard surfaces which can keep a virus viable for a longer time; a favourable ambient humidity; and the infected person usually being in the early phase of their illness, when virus secretions are at their peak,” he said.

It’s due to these contributing factors that many experts are reluctant to talk in terms of super-spreaders. 

Added to this, as France’s health minister has pointed out, the term might be used to stigmatise individuals, when it is likely they transmitted COVID19 without realising.

By Julie Charpentrat

SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter Inc. is testing a way for users to post photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours — similar to stories products offered on rival social networks — in a push to encourage people to share more often on its service.

The San Francisco-based company calls these disappearing posts Fleets — short for fleeting tweets — and wants the tool to ease the pressure of online sharing. Similar to tweets, Fleets are text-first but videos, GIFs and photos can be added.

“Some of you tell us that you’re uncomfortable to Tweet because Tweets are public, feel permanent, and have public counts,” Twitter wrote in a blog post last week. “We hope that people who don’t usually feel comfortable Tweeting use Fleets to share musings about what’s on their mind.” The test is only available in Brazil.

Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey is under threat from activist investment firm Elliott Management Group, which wants to push him out of the top job. Dorsey has two jobs — he also runs payments company Square Inc. — and Elliott thinks Twitter needs a full-time CEO.

Twitter has also developed a reputation for moving slowly when it comes to launching new products and features. It’s common for some ideas to percolate internally for years before they ever appear to Twitter users, a much slower cadence than other social media companies. Even expanding the length of tweets from 140 to 280 characters took years of debate and discussion inside the company.

The Fleets test provides at least the perception that Twitter is moving forward. Disappearing posts have become a popular way to share on competing social sites, including Facebook Inc.’s Instagram and Snap Inc.’s Snapchat. More than 500 million people use Instagram’s version of Stories, and Facebook executives have pointed to this as an important growth opportunity for the company’s advertising business. Instagram’s Stories feature already makes up about 10 per cent of all ad spending on Facebook properties.

It’s too soon to say whether Fleets will provide a similar opportunity for Twitter. The company has started testing features in public in recent years, often asking for user feedback before rolling something out more broadly. It’s one of the ways Twitter tries to be more thoughtful about what it launches, but also slows down the process. Instagram, by comparison, unveiled its version of Stories to all global users at the same time in 2016.

By Kurt Wagner