Our World in 7 Headlines: Nov. 20

The world on Nov. 20, 2013, through local media headlines—“Mt. Sinabung record-breaking ash cloud,” “Government jobs in India attract corrupt youngsters like a magnet,” and more.
Our World in 7 Headlines: Nov. 20
Mount Sinabung spews volcanic materials as it erupts in Tiga Pancur, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013. AP Photo/Dedy Zulkifli
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India: Government jobs in India attract corrupt youngsters like a magnet: Study

It is now official - the government in India attracts corrupt youngsters like a magnet.

Scientists have, for the first time, shown that students who are cheats in school are more likely to opt for a government job.

The results are part of a large scale study byHarvard University and the University of Pennsylvania conducted among 662 students from seven large universities in Bangalore. The study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, set students a number of tasks, which were predictive of corrupt behaviour by real government workers. It was then found that cheating students are more likely to want a job in public service. ...

Times of India

 

United Arab Emirates: UAE public sector gets double the holidays of private sector

Tally shows public sector had 20 days off in the last year. The private sector had 9. ...

That difference is often taken into consideration by Emiratis when deciding where to work, jobseekers and work placement agents have long said.

However, government officials have also been encouraging UAE nationals to take up positions in private sector companies to compete in the job market – around 90 per cent of private sector jobs are held by expatriates in the UAE. …

Gulf News

 

France: IKEA France executives held over spying allegations

Two senior executives at IKEA France were being held by police Tuesday in a continued investigation over allegations that the Swedish furniture company illegally spied on staff and customers, officials said.

Officials say senior executives of IKEA France are in police custody over allegations that they paid for access to secret police files to spy on employees and customers. ...

France 24

 

Indonesia: Mt. Sinabung record-breaking ash cloud

Mount Sinabung in Karo regency, North Sumatra, erupted again on Tuesday night in what has been called the most powerful blast since September, which created a volcanic-ash cloud that was 10-kilometers high. ...

Jakarta Post

 

Australia: Research gets donor hearts beating again

The waiting list for donor hearts could be slashed by pioneering research from Sydney doctors that could increase the supply of the organs by up to 50 per cent.

The team from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and St Vincent’s Hospital have discovered a way to protect hearts that have already stopped beating, in what is known as circulatory or cardiac death, and bring them back to life outside the human body.

Peter Macdonald, the co-head of the Cardiac Transplantation Laboratory at Victor Chang, said up until now doctors had not been able to use the hearts from people who donated their organs after brain injury caused by things like car accidents because of the complex process involved in turning off life support and ensuring death has occurred. “Once you withdraw life support there is no oxygen going in to the body and all the organs are suffering,” he said. ...

Sydney Morning Herald

 

Romania: New Romanian law sets fines for teachers who punish students

Romanian teachers will no longer be allowed to kick students out of class, punish them by sending them to a corner or by asking them to stand up for the entire class, according to a newly published law. ...

Romania Insider

 

Oman: From access to academic success

When His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said ascended to the throne in 1970, there were only three schools in the whole of Oman, teaching a mere 900 students, all boys and all at the primary level. Today the Sultanate competes with the best academic institutions of the world ...

While not mutually exclusive, three distinct stages in the development of the school education system in Oman can be determined …

Times of Oman

Oman, east of Saudi Arabia, south of Iran. (Google Maps)