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Melons sell for the price of a new car and grapes go for more than $100 a pop, Japan is a country where perfectly-formed fruit can fetch a fortune.

FRUITFRUIT FORTUNEFORTUNE

2 COVER STORYPLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

Every May, a pair of canteloupe melons grown in the north of Hokkaido is auctioned off. They regularly fetch the price of a modest new car. The hammer fell on this year’s pair at a cool 1.6m yen.

With melons that sell for the price of a new car and grapes that go for more than $100 a pop, Japan is a country where perfectly-

formed fruit can fetch a fortune.An industry of fruit boutiques has defied

Japan’s sluggish economy to consistently offer luscious and lavishly tended produce for hefty prices -- and it is always in demand.

In July, a single bunch of “Ruby Roman” grapes reportedly sold for 400,000 yen ($4,000), making the plump, crimson berries worth a staggering 11,000 yen each.

Every May, a pair of canteloupe melons grown in the north of Hokkaido is auctioned off. They regularly fetch the price of a modest new car.

The hammer fell on this year’s pair at a cool 1.6m yen.

While such cases are at the extreme end, top-notch fruit is a valuable commodity in the world of business and as a seasonal gift, signifying just how much importance the giver attaches to the relationship.

“Most of our products are for gift purposes, so we collect large and high-grade products from all around Japan,” says Yoshinobu Ishiyama, manager of a branch of Sun Fruits at Tokyo Midtown, a glitzy office-commercial complex that is also home to a Ritz Carlton Hotel.

“We offer rare products. Above all, they have to be delicious,” he says.

‘You never forget the experience’Inside his bright, white-tiled emporium, an

array of mouth-watering fruits gives off a heady, brain-tingling aroma as soothing music lulls his well-heeled customers.

While Ishiyama doesn’t have anything you could trade for a mid-range auto, he does have a slightly more affordable example of the “Ruby Roman” grapes -- a snip at 31,500 yen for a bunch.

A single white peach -- flavourful, perfectly round and about the size of a newborn baby’s head -- goes for 2,625 yen. A bunch of Muscat of Alexandria grapes has a 7,350 yen price tag.

Then, there is the unrivalled symbol of expen-sive gifts in Japan: musk melons.

Japan’s fruit masters Japan’s fruit masters grow money on treesgrow money on trees

3PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

Sitting in individual wooden boxes on the top shelf of a glass-door refrig-erator at the back of the shop, they will set you back as much as 16,000 yen.

There are also square watermelons -- grown in plastic boxes and usually for decoration -- which start at 5,000 yen.

As with everything in Japan, presen-tation is key: serried ranks of cherries line up in boxes, their stalks all facing in the same direction; strawberries nestle in soft packaging, their highly-shined, deep red surface uniformly patinated by seeds.

It goes without saying that there are no blemishes. Nothing is bruised, eve-rything is exactly the right shape, as if each fruit has been cast in wax by a master craftsman working off the original blueprints.

Of course, not everyone buys their bananas at places like Sun Fruits; much more affordable offerings are

on display in the average supermarket.But to lubricate the wheels of social

exchange in a country that has a deeply ingrained culture of gift-giving, noth-ing matches high-end fruit.

At summer and year-end, house-holds send packaged gifts to rela-tives, business associates and bosses to express their gratitude.

If the two sides of the exchange are

of a broadly similar social standing the gift is reciprocated. A 4,000 yen box of cherries might be given in exchange for a 5,000 yen presentation pack of mangoes.

If the giver owes for social favours dispensed through the year, there could be no change from that 16,000 yen musk melon. But the boss who receives it will understand how grateful you are.

The giving of high-end fruits cre-ates a lasting impression on Japanese clients, says Tokyo-based corporate trainer Farhad Kardan, who was strolling through Sun Fruits choosing possible gifts.

“You buy these delicious things and share a great time with people who are close to you,” he said.

“You never forget the experience of having eaten something so delicious. What you pay for is for the quality and the value.”

How can fruit cost so much?Despite more than a decade of defla-

tion, prices for fresh food in Japan are considered high by world stand-ards, partially as a result of farming practices and import preferences. Consumers are accustomed to paying a premium on Japanese-grown produce, with many believing it to be safer and better quality than imports.

But even so, many open-mouthed visitors to Japan wonder: how can a piece of fruit cost so much?

Ishiyama says his master musk melon grower Toshiaki Nishihara puts a whole lot of love into each fruit he raises in his computer-controlled greenhouse in Shizuoka prefecture, southwest of Tokyo.

He hand-pollinates his crop and selects only one melon on each plant so that all the nutrients, sugar and juice are concentrated in the chosen fruit.

Like their $16,000 cousins from Hokkaido, the best-quality melons are perfect spheres with a smooth, evenly patterned rind.

“The prices are very high because of the care and cost that go into the fruits,” Ishiyama said.

The AFP team who visited Sun Fruits was about to walk away empty-handed when they spotted two regular apples by the door -- a bargain at a little over $4 for the pair.

AFP

PLUS | MONDAY 1 OCTOBER 20134 CAMPUS

Like, share, tweet, pin, comment and many more such terms. Everyone knows what

these terms are related to. Obviously, it is the world famous distraction; social networking.

Well, what is social media? It is the website where the whole world shares their beau-tiful moments, funny times, jokes, social issues, and chatter at all times. But isn’t it drasti-cally affecting our everyday life? The answer is yes. The world is not socialising face to face just because of this distraction. Even the great author, T S Eliot, said, “Distracted from distraction by distraction.” This means that the world is not interacting to each other but is instead being glued to the social networking websites in the small box of big distraction.

Did you know that an average person spends 6.75 hours of a month on Facebook and one-and- a-half-hour of a month on Google plus? Social networking has made the world so boring that now they don’t even bother to go outside to play, they just sit on the couch and keep typing without know-ing what is happening around the world.

And some people have gone so far that they even tell the world what they are eating, what they are drinking, and if they are going to sleep or not. It has also created tension between people, countries and even within the

countries. In a real life incident people of

northeastern parts of India were threatened by a group through social media that they were going to be attacked by mob. This led to huge mobilisation of northeastern people to their native places, tak-ing a massive toll on resources as well as psyche.

Also a boy in Pakistan was kidnapped just because he was chatting on Facebook to the kid-napper which helped them track down his location and kidnap him for a 1.5 million rupees ransom.

Some people have been bullied through social media so much that they have committed suicide. Children do not concentrate on their homework and become too reliable on social media to col-lect information for their home-work. Studies show that most of the children having a laptop or a PC try to multi-task. This means that they try to study and check their Facebook accounts at the same time. This deteriorates their grades.

It also affects their writing as they become lazy to write the full sentence and prefer to write in short forms. They also get used to social network’s auto correct and write the wrong spelling subcon-sciously thinking that the auto correct will correct it.

It has made people suffer from anxiety because they are afraid that somebody will hack their accounts exposing their personal

information to everyoneBut social networking is not

completely bad, like other things in life; it also has a positive side.

It has made millions of long lost friends come together just by typing his or her name in the search box. It has helped tear down the government which was torturing those poor, miser-able people. It helps us express ourselves and still be less embar-rassed than expressing ourselves

in real life.It also keeps us in touch with

our family members far away from us. Social networking is a great friend of businessmen also as it helps businesses boom. It also has made an organiser’s work easy because he does not have to go everywhere to tell people about an event, instead he can put it on social media and all peo-ple come to know about it.

It can also be used for enter-tainment. Most of the world joins Facebook for its jokes, funny videos, and pictures. It has also increased the rate and quality of collaboration of students. We get to know this as they are able to communicate on meetings and share information quickly. It also brings up team spirit. It also makes students learn skills of business as they will make con-nections with other people help-ing them in the future. People are also able to present their creativity to everybody without asking them. It opens doors to job opportunities without people being busy as a bee. It also keeps us updated about the world. For example, most of the people got to know about the 26/11 attacks through social media.

Social networking becomes good or bad because of our use. So if we put it to good use it will be good for society. But don’t forget it is a useful pet when rational but a dangerous animal when wild.

Navjot Singh Saroa Grade VIII

Doha Modern Indian SchoolWinner of the third prize in The Peninsula Creative

Writing Contest Subject: Impact of Social

Networking On YourDay-To-Day Life

ikikike,e,e, ss shahaharerere,,, twtwtweeeeeet,t,t, p p pininin,, , comment and manymomorere s sucuchhh tetermrms.s. Everyone knows what

these terms are related to.

cococounununtrtriies. In a real life incident pepepeeeeeeopoopplelle o offfff fffff

nonortrthheheasasteternrn p parartsts o off f IInIndididididiaaa aa wewerere threatened by a group thro gughhsocial media that they were going

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Social networking can be good or bad

depending on use

5COMMUNITY / MARKETPLACE PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

Grand Hyatt and Cancer Society collaborate for breast cancer awareness

Grand Hyatt Doha, in collaboration with Qatar Cancer Society, has launched a campaign in support

of breast cancer awareness throughout October. October is the official Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM), an annual international health campaign organised by major breast cancer charities.

All employees of Grand Hyatt will be wearing a pink ribbon on their daily uni-form throughout the month.

At Biscotti, a special pink cupcake will be available, where QR5 from each cupcake will be donated to Qatar Cancer Society.

Also a donation box will be set up to encourage all guests to donate directly to the organisation. The hotel will also pro-vide information on breast cancer, includ-ing informative flyers and phone numbers to book check-ups.

“Hyatt’s global corporate responsibility platform, Hyatt Thrive, is designed to help make our communities places where our associates are proud to work, our guests want to visit, and our neighbours want to live,” says General Manager Christoph K Franzen.

On October 23, the hotel will host a ladies-only high-tea fundraiser. Participating guests will pay QR100 and all profits will be donated to Qatar Cancer Society.

In association with Fashion Rocks Qatar, the event will include a fashion auc-tion by designers that will also be part of the fundraiser for the cause.

“The event will be a wonderful social gathering, and an opportunity for peo-ple to give back to the community,” said Farah El Alfy, Marketing Communications Manager of Grand Hyatt Doha.

Commenting on the collabora-tion, Sheikh Khalid bin Jabor Al Thani, Chairman of Qatar Cancer Society, said: “QCS realises the importance of this ini-tiative and what it represents to cancer patients and their families. We thank Grand Hyatt Doha for supporting this noble cause and hope the ongoing efforts achieve the goals.”

For more information on the ladies high-tea fundraiser, please email to farah.elalfy@hyatt.com The Peninsula

Hyatt employees wearing the pink ribbon on their uniforms.

Qatar Fuel Additive Co Ltd (Qafac) invited Protiviti to hold a fraud

risk seminar at the Intercontinental Hotel, Doha recently. The event was attended by participants from Qafac and other Qatar Petroleum group companies.

The seminar comprised a session on types of fraud and measures to prevent them. It covered identifica-tion of occupational frauds by people, behavioural traits of such fraudsters, examination of internal controls, gaps in those controls and characteristics of high-risk organisations.

Nasser Al Kuwari, General Manager of Qafac, in his opening address said: “All organisations face many types of risk. Fraud represents a potential financial and reputational risk to any organisation. Effective corporate governance together with good processes and monitoring, an ethical culture and awareness across the organisation are necessary to avoid being a victim.

“We are delighted that Qafac has now been awarded the prestigious ISO 27001 certification for informa-tion system security.”

He welcomed Protiviti speakers Andrew North, Managing Partner for Qatar, Simon Padgett and Gary Bauer, Regional Head of Forensic Services. “Good governance and risk management are vital for any organi-sation to succeed in today’s chal-lenging business environment,” said Andrew North, Managing Partner for Protiviti Qatar.

The Peninsula

Qafac holds fraud risk seminar Qafac official at the seminar.

The Indian Women’s Association (IWA) announced that the Kellogg’s 17th Interschool Quiz

will be held on October 3-4 at Birla Public School.

The contest is all set to give an opportunity to students of various schools in Doha from grades 7, 8 and 9 to participate and actively engage in the world around them through quizzing.

The competition includes questions on various subjects including literature, sports, science and current affairs.

Thirty-four schools have been invited to the event this year.

Fifteen schools have confirmed their participation and others are yet to confirm.

IWA is also introducing celebrity quiz master Mohan Kapur for the first time in Doha.

The preliminary round will be on October 3 between 2.30pm and 4.30pm.

The final round will be on October 4 from 4.30pm onwards.

Both rounds will be held at Birla Public School. The Peninsula

IWA Doha to hold interschool quiz

Diplomatic Club introduces outdoor activity for families

Al Sayyad, the Diplomatic Club’s signature restaurant, is intro-ducing new family-centred out-

door activities.Starting from the first Friday in

October, the club will be offering a range of kid-friendly and fun activi-ties every Friday from noon to 4pm. A bouncing castle, face painting and lively entertainment, family Fridays offer parents a chance to enjoy a meal while their children spend the after-noon having fun outdoors.

In addition, the club announced the opening of Family Day events sea-son for corporate organisations and companies.

With a team of event planners, the club will handle every detail, from planning the menu to arranging tai-lored activities for employees and their

families in addition to sports activi-ties like tennis, football, volleyball and many more.

The Peninsula

Rugby greatto speak at charity event

Guardian Wealth Management, in association with Vodafone, Zurich International, The

Torch, Renaissance Marriott, Intercontinental, Oryx Rotana and Four Seasons, will be hosting a free charity event on October 8 at 6.30pm at Doha Golf Club.

Special guest speaker will be Rugby World Cup winner and former British and Irish Lions scrum half (not to mention star of Dancing on Ice) Kyran Bracken, who will be telling stories of his time in rugby’s top flight.

David Russell, CEO of Guardian Wealth, said: “Kyran is not only a great sportsman, but is quite a char-acter and will be around all evening to sign autographs, pose for pictures and answer questions. All profits from the evening will go to Think Pinky, a Nepalese charity that looks after and nurtures underprivileged children.

“We are very grateful to companies in Doha which have generously donated prizes for the raffle. We have a number

of smartphones courtesy of Vodafone and hotels have thrown in a number of overnight stays and meals.

“Top Al Jazeera Sports presenters Andy Gray and Richard Keys have also donated a private lunch to discuss all things football, which is a fantastic prize for sports fanatics.”

Raffle tickets will cost QR50 which will include a free beverage.

Additional donations will also be accepted on the night. Register at www.guardianwealthmanagement.qa The Peninsula

PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 20136 RECIPE

Stuffed Potatoes

Ingredients• 2 medium sized potatoes• 1/2 cup onion (chopped)• 1/3 cup mushroom (chopped)• 2 green chillies (chopped)• 1/2 tsp ginger (grated). • Boiled peas: 1 tbsp• 2 tbsp tomatoes (chopped)• 1 tbsp butter• 2 slices of cheese• 1 tsp butter for greasing • Salt as per taste.For garnishing:• 1 tbsp coriander leaves

Method:Wash and poke the potatoes with fork and microwave it for five

minutes. Cut each potato into 2 halves and scoop out the centres.Mash the scooped out potatoes and keep aside.In a microwave safe bowl, combine the onions, mushrooms

and butter and microwave on high for 2 minutes stirring once in between.

Add the green chillies, ginger, green peas, scooped mashed potatoes, salt and pepper. Mix well and microwave on high for 1 more minute.

Add the tomatoes, mix well and keep aside.Rub some salt, pepper and butter on the top.Place them on a microwave safe plate and fill it with mush-

room and pea mixture and microwave on high for 15 seconds.Remove and spread 1/4 th of the cheese on each potato and

microwave it for 30 seconds. Garnish with coriander and serve. Lakshmi

Stuffed Potato Chops With Chilly Pineapple Dip

Ingredients:• 8 medium sized potatoes, boiled and mashed • 1 chopped onion • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped • ½ inch piece of ginger grated • 3 green chilies, finely chopped • 1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves • 1 tsp turmeric powder • ½ cup rice flour • 1 cup fried and crushed cashew nuts • Oil: to shallow fry • 2 tbsp full grated cheese

Method:Take oil in a pan and sauté garlic, ginger, green chilies and

turmeric powder.Add half the onion sauté. Add this mixture to the mashed

potatoes.Mix the remaining onion with the grated cheese for stuffing.

Add chopped coriander leaves.Make small balls of the potato mix, add stuff the centre

with cheese mixture.Dip the stuffed balls in a thick paste of rice flour and water.Roll in roasted crushed cashew nuts and pat into round

shapes. Keep in the freezer for some time.Heat a little oil in a pan and shallow fry the chops on both

sides till a crisp golden brown.Serve with chilly – pineapple dip.

For Chilly Pineapple DipsIngredients • 1 small onion• 2 green chilies • ½ cup chopped pineapple• 1 tps butter• 1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger

Method:Saute onions, ginger and garlic in butter, with chopped

green chilies and pineapple.Add a little water to it and cook till pineapple is just done.

Cool the mixture and grind into a smooth dip.Add salt to taste. Nitin Tawde

Sesame Candied Potato

Ingredients• 1 big potato washed ,peeled and cut into medium cubes

and soaked in cold water.• 1/3 cup sugar.• 2 tbsp. water.• 1 tbsp. soya sauce.• 1 tsp. white sesame seeds dry roasted..• 1 tsp. black sesame seeds dry roasted.• oil for deep frying.• A pinch of salt.

Method:Drain potato cubes from water and dry on a paper towel.Heat oil in a pan or fryer and deep fry the potato cubes with

a pinch of salt till golden brown and cooked.Drain potato cubes with a slotted spoon and keep aside.In a saucepan, heat water, soya sauce and sugar .Using a

wooden spoon keep stirring till sugar is dissolved.Stir and cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes or till a semi-

thick sauce is obtained.Drop in the fried potato cubes into the caramelized sauce

and gently stir till all the cubes are coated well with the sauce.Sprinkle the sesame seeds and gently mix once.Take out on a serving plate. Cool a bit and serve along with

a toothpick.Can be served along fresh fruit chunks and vanilla ice-cream

as a dessert.Enjoy n Happy Cooking. Aisha Mohammed Rafiq

WINNER

Crispy Potato Wedgeswith Green Sauce

Ingredients:For potato wedges• 200 gms potatoes• ¼ tsp asafoetida • 1 tsp chilli powder • ¼ tsp dried mango powder• 1 tsp poppy seeds• 1 tsp roasted sesame seeds• Salt to taste • Sunflower or corn oil for frying For Green Sauce• 100gm thick curd• 1 cup measure coriander leaves• 12 leaves mint leaves• 2-3 pieces green chillies• ½ tsp sugar• Salt to taste

Method:Peel the potatoes and cut into wedges. Boil in the microwave oven for 10 minutes with a little salt. Drain and keep aside. Add more salt and asafoetida to the boiled potatoes. Mix well and keep aside. Take oil in a pan. Put the potatoes and keep turning them while frying. Add chilli powder and dried mango powder. Mix well and keep frying till well coated and done. Add poppy seeds and fry further in slow heat. For the green sauce: Hang the curd in a muslin cloth

or fine strainer to drain the excess water. Grind the coriander leaves and mint leaves with salt,

sugar, green chillis and very little water. Add the thick curd to the paste and mix well.Serve the crispy fried potatoes hot with carrot and cucum-

ber sticks along with the sweet and sour green sauce. Riniki Ghosh

RECIPE CONTEST

Theme Nights:

Sundays - Surf Seafood Night dinner buffet@ QR 260Tuesdays - Asian Flavours dinner buffet @ QR 225Thursdays - Phoenician Night dinner buffet@ QR 235Saturdays - Turf Steak Night dinner buffet@ QR 250Mondays, Wednesdays & FridaysInternational buffet dinner @ QR 195Friday Brunch: 12:30pm - 4pm at QR 275 ORQR 250 with soft drinksSaturday Brunch: 12:30pm - 3:30pm at QR 250 OR QR 225 with soft drinks

Peninsula PlusPO BOX 3488, Doha,

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The theme for this

week is Stuffed.

(Send in your recipe with

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Q & A

Hot n Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:• 6 medium potatoes cut into thick fingers and soaked in water.• 1 tsp garlic paste.• 2 tsp red chilli paste.• 2 tsp red chilli sauce.• 6 garlic cloves chopped.• 5 tbsp corn starch or corn flour.• 1 tbsp red chilli flakes.• 2 tbsp honey.• 2 tbsp vinegar.• 1 tsp sugar.• 2 stalks green spring onion chopped.• 1 tbsp green coriander chopped.• 2 tbsp oil + to deep fry.• Salt to taste.

Method:Heat sufficient oil in a non-stick pan. Deep fry potato fingers till crisp and golden. Drain on an absorbent paper. Heat two tablespoons oil in another non-stick pan. Add garlic

and ginger. Saute for a minute.Add spring onion bulbs, mix well and saute till onions are translucent. Add red chilli sauce,

vinegar, red chilli flakes, sugar and honey. Mix well and cook for half minute.Add salt and mix well. Lower the heat and add fried potato fingers. Mix well, add spring onion

greens and mix again. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot. Rukhsar Rafiq

What’s the best way to store green onions? They wilt so fast in my refrigerator.

I’ve been able to keep green onions fresh for nearly 10 days by doing this: Pat the green part dry with a paper towel; fill a drinking glass with about an inch of water (just enough to cover the white part of the onion); stand the onions in the glass; loosely cover them with a plastic bag. It takes up space, but it works pretty well.

Does cooking a food on its expiration date extend its shelf life?Yes. If it’s the last day for chicken and you cook it and refrigerate it, it’s

fine for another few days at least.WP-Bloomberg

FITNESS/HEALTH 7PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

By Julie Steenhuysen and Ben Hirschler

In 2006 when doctors started test-ing a melanoma treatment made by Roche Holding AG on patients, they were used to facing slim

odds — about one in eight — that the tumours would shrink on chemother-apy. This time, they couldn’t believe their eyes.

With Zelboraf, a drug that targets specific mutations in cancer cells, eight out of 10 patients in an early-stage trial experienced significant tumour shrink-age. Roche clearly had a remarkable drug, though it only worked for people with a specific genetic makeup.

Research like the Zelboraf tests, that fine-tune treatments to the genetic profile of patients, is fuelling a rethink over how new cancer drugs are tested. The promise: medicines that, in theory at least, can win approval more easily and cheaply.

That also raises ethical questions. If you know a certain treatment is genetically bound to work much bet-ter on some people than on others, is it right to conduct randomised tri-als to see which works best? Zelboraf led some doctors to question whether to go ahead with the trials they had planned, trials that would pit Zelboraf against the standard treatment, a chemotherapy developed in 1975 called dacarbazine.

Some doctors believed that would risk patients’ lives unnecessarily. US Food and Drug Administration can-cer drug czar Dr Richard Pazdur pushed for changes to shorten the trial. Others, such as Dr Patrick Hwu of MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas, refused to participate in a study that seemed bound to disadvantage some patients.

Ultimately, the trial proceeded and the drug won US approval in 2011. But experts say the controversy over Zelboraf broke the mould, potentially pointing the way to lower-cost drug development.

At least one company has already indicated it will cut prices. Earlier this year, GlaxoSmithKline Plc won approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for Tafinlar, a drug targeting the same mutant genes as Zelboraf, based on a single clinical trial of just 250 patients. It said the drug would cost $7,600 a month, 30 percent less than Zelboraf.

Whether others follow suit in cut-ting prices will depend on a host of

issues, perhaps the biggest of which is the vast difference in the way the US and Europe regulate drugs.

Pressure is mounting. A new and highly promising class of immuno-therapy drugs — which some analysts see as a potential $35bn a year market — may force companies’ hands. These therapies will come to market just as more people are asking if health insur-ers and governments will keep paying sky-high prices.

Dr Alexander Eggermont, chief executive of Institut Gustave-Roussy, France’s largest cancer center, was one of those who held a hard line on Zelboraf testing, insisting on a ran-domised trial. But Eggermont now says the standard of proof has changed and he believes immunotherapies — which he calls the “biggest game changer we have ever seen” — will cement the new approach to testing.

“We won’t have to do those dino-saur trials,” he said. “It will change the whole attitude in drug development.”

BETTER SCIENCERandomised controlled trials —

where some patients are given the treatment that is being tested and oth-ers get a “control” substance for com-parison — became known as the gold standard of drug testing because they were the most effective way of see-ing if a drug worked. But for patients whose cancers are driven by specific genetic mutations, some argue that randomised approach could become obsolete.

“The types of drugs that we’re see-ing now are different. They are just simply better in terms of efficacy,” says Pazdur, the FDA expert who wanted to shorten the Zelboraf trial.

The new drugs are born out of a better understanding of the molecu-lar changes that fuel cancer growth. For example, an estimated 50 to 60 percent of melanoma patients have a specific genetic mutation. Zelboraf and Tafinlar target these people. By testing such treatments only on people with a specific mutation, researchers can work out more quickly, and with fewer patients, if a treatment is effective.

Zelboraf represented a watershed in treating melanoma, a notoriously deadly cancer, although it is not a cure: Most patients eventually develop resistance to the drug. The Zelboraf trial fuelled support for a new “break-through therapy” regulatory pathway that was signed into US law last year. It could shave years off the traditional

drug approval process.To qualify, a drug must show remark-

able clinical activity in early stages of testing. The FDA’s Pazdur, who has spent the past 14 years overseeing can-cer drug approvals, calls them “knock-your-socks-off” treatments.

He says the FDA has already become more flexible in the kinds of evidence it will accept to speed new cancer drugs to patients.

For example, Stivarga is a pill from Bayer AG for some advanced gastroin-testinal tumours. It was approved in February, just three years after the first patient with the condition received it in clinical tests. That’s nearly twice as fast as Zelboraf. “That was like a land-speed record,” says Dr George Demetri of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, who worked to develop the medicine.

The drug was reviewed under another FDA scheme called the pri-ority review program, which provides an expedited six-month process.

The step-change in the pace of cancer drug development has helped drive a recent improvement in overall pharmaceutical industry productivity. New cancer medicines are the main driver of a pick-up in the number of products coming to market. Since the start of 2012, one third of the 54 drugs approved by the FDA across all dis-eases areas have been for cancer.

PRICING BACKLASHBut despite the faster approval

times, the impact on drug prices so far has been limited.

Clinical trials are the biggest single cost in drug company R&D, account-ing for 36 percent of total research expenditure in 2012, according to Thomson Reuters CMR International. Drugmakers traditionally argue that

it is only by ploughing an average of a $1 billion-plus into each new medicine that treatments can be improved.

“The costs should be coming down tremendously,” said Paul Workman, head of drug discovery at Britain’s Institute of Cancer Research. “What’s disappointing is that we haven’t seen it happen yet. We are in a fascinating but frustrating period of transition.”

Don Light, a Harvard professor who is a long-time critic of the drugs indus-try, is more blunt. He says companies are deliberately clinging to the notion of huge research costs despite the advantages of smaller trials in cancer.

“Claimed high costs are like bragging rights — the higher companies say they are, the more they create the impres-sion of heroism and financial suffering,” Light says.

Still, not everyone in the industry is toeing the line. GSK Chief Executive Andrew Witty startled a number of his peers earlier this year by telling a British National Health Service con-ference that the $1bn price tag was “one of the great myths of the indus-try.” Since the figure includes the cost of failures, any drug company that can improve its success rate should be able to charge less for new medicines.

“For the first time in my career, pricing is becoming a really interest-ing piece of the dynamic,” Witty said in an interview. “If you believe you have a sustainable model that can churn out more product than anybody else, why wouldn’t you do this?”

That could be particularly impor-tant as drug companies begin to com-bine treatments in hopes of achieving longer-lasting benefits. GSK, for instance, has a second melanoma drug called Mekinist that it plans to com-bine with Tafinlar. Both are cheaper than existing drugs, though combined, of course, they will still cost many thousands of dollars a year.

Doctors are getting restive. In April, more than 100 leukemia specialists from around the world took the unu-sual step of complaining publicly in the American Society of Hematology’s journal Blood that cancer drug prices were “too high, unsustainable, may compromise access of needy patients to highly effective therapy, and are harm-ful to the sustainability of our national healthcare systems.”

With 11 of the 12 cancer drugs launched in the United States last year costing more than $100,000 a year per patient, according to the paper, the debate is not going away. Reuters

How new cancer drugs can skip randomised trials

PLU

S |

TU

ES

DA

Y 1

OC

TO

BE

R 2

013

EN

TE

RTA

INM

EN

T8

9

BO

LLY

WO

OD

NE

WS

By

Lis

a R

ich

win

e a

nd

Ch

ris

Mic

hau

d

Th

e sequel

to

Clo

ud

y w

ith

a

Ch

an

ce o

f M

ea

tba

lls

devoured

the

week

en

d

box

offi

ce

com

peti

tion.

Th

e an

imate

d 3D

C

lou

dy W

ith

a

C

ha

nce

of

Mea

tba

lls

2,

whic

h t

ells

the

story o

f m

onst

er-s

ized f

ruit

s, v

egeta

-ble

s an

d c

heese

burgers

that

com

e t

o

life

as “f

oodim

als

,” earn

ed $35m

at

US

and C

anadia

n t

heatr

es,

accordin

g

to s

tudio

est

imate

s on S

unday,

easi

ly

beati

ng a

ll c

om

peti

tors.

Clo

ud

y 2 o

utp

aced c

ar r

acin

g d

ram

a

Ru

sh,

wh

ich

pull

ed in

$10.3

m fr

om

F

rid

ay t

hrough S

unday t

o fi

nis

h t

hir

d,

beh

ind

last

week

’s

win

ner,

dram

a

Pri

son

ers

sta

rrin

g

Hugh

Jack

man

, w

hic

h m

ade $

11.3

m.

Th

e

Clo

ud

y

sequel

featu

res

the

voic

es

of

Bill

Hader a

nd A

nna F

aris

and i

s a f

ollow

-up t

o a

2009 h

it t

hat

saw

th

e ficti

on

al

isla

nd of

Sw

allow

Fall

s att

acked by gia

nt

food th

at

plu

nges fr

om

th

e sk

y.

In th

e n

ew

in

sta

llm

en

t, th

e fo

od com

es to

li

fe

an

d evolv

es in

to “fo

odim

als

” th

at

inclu

de a

hip

popota

mus,

eggpla

nate

e

and c

heesp

ider,

a c

heese

burger w

ith

sesa

me-s

eed e

yes

and french-f

ry legs.

Som

e f

orecast

ers

proje

cte

d C

lou

dy

2 w

ould

gross up to

$45m

, th

ough

Sony s

aid

it

expecte

d a

low

er d

ebut

of

betw

een

$30m

an

d $

35m

. T

he m

ovie

cost

$78m

to p

roduce.

“This

is

just

a f

anta

stic

sta

rt,”

said

R

ory B

ruer,

Sony P

ictu

res’

world

wid

e

presi

dent

of

dis

trib

uti

on.

“We k

new

that

people

really l

oved

the fi

lm from

our e

arl

y s

creenin

gs,

and

it’s

one o

f th

ose

tim

es

that

the s

equel

is b

ett

er t

han t

he fi

rst

one,” h

e s

aid

.B

ruer a

lso p

redic

ted t

hat

the fi

lm

would

reso

nate

wit

h a

udie

nces

over-

seas,

sayin

g:

“I’m

certa

in i

t’s

goin

g t

o

do e

ven b

ett

er inte

rnati

onally.”

Ru

sh, fr

om

Osc

ar-w

innin

g d

irecto

r

Ron

How

ard,

tells t

he s

tory o

f th

e

1976 b

att

le f

or t

he F

orm

ula

One r

ac-

ing c

ham

pio

nsh

ip. C

hris

Hem

sworth

st

ars

as

English

man J

am

es

Hunt

and

Dan

iel

Bruhl

as h

is r

ival, A

ustr

ian

Nik

i L

auda.

The m

ovie

expanded t

o n

earl

y 2

,300

theatr

es

aft

er a

very l

imit

ed d

ebut

a

week a

go.

It w

as

produced f

or $

38m

by C

ross

Creek P

ictu

res

and E

xclu

sive

Media

an

d d

istr

ibute

d b

y U

niv

ersal

Pic

tures,

a u

nit

of

Com

cast

Corp.

Nik

ki

Rocco,

presi

dent

for d

om

es-

tic d

istr

ibuti

on a

t U

niv

ersa

l P

ictu

res,

sa

id: “A

lthough w

e s

tarte

d o

ut

on t

he

low

end o

f w

here w

e t

hought

we w

ould

be, st

rong e

xit

polls

and g

ood w

ord-o

f-m

outh

will help

it

find its

nic

he in t

he

weeks

to c

om

e.”

Ru

sh w

on s

trong r

evie

ws

from

crit

-ic

s w

ith a

n 8

8 p

ercent

posi

tive r

ati

ng

from

com

pen

diu

m w

ebsi

te r

ott

en

to-

mato

es,

an

d a

n A

-min

us

grade f

rom

C

inem

aS

core, w

hic

h p

olls

movie

goers.

Pri

son

ers

, sta

rrin

g Jack

man

as a

fath

er o

n a

desp

erate

search f

or h

is

mis

sing d

aughte

r, b

rought

its

dom

est

ic

sale

s to

tal

to $

39m

aft

er t

wo w

eek-

en

ds.

The m

ovie

, w

hic

h to

pped box

offi

ce c

harts

when i

t debute

d a

week

ago,

was

rele

ase

d b

y W

arn

er B

ros,

a

unit

of

Tim

e W

arner I

nc.

New

rom

an

tic

com

edy

Ba

gga

ge

Cla

im, dis

trib

ute

d b

y F

ox S

earchlight,

a u

nit

of 21s

t C

entu

ry F

ox a

nd s

tarrin

g

Paula

Patt

on a

s a w

om

an o

n a

30-d

ay

quest

to fi

nd a

mate

, finis

hed in fourth

pla

ce w

ith $

9.3

m.

Raun

chy c

om

edy D

on

Jon d

ebute

d

in t

he w

eekend’s

No 5

spot

wit

h $

9m

. T

he m

ovie

sta

rs

Jose

ph G

ordon-L

evit

t as

a

youn

g

man

w

hose

addic

tion

inte

rfe

res

wit

h h

is r

ela

tion

ship

wit

h

a y

oun

g w

om

an

, pla

yed b

y S

carle

tt

Johanss

on.

Gordon-L

evit

t als

o w

rote

and d

irecte

d t

he fi

lm, w

hic

h R

ela

tivit

y

Media

acquir

ed f

or $

4m

.R

eute

rs

HO

LLY

WO

OD

NE

WS

Boog

ie W

oogi

e is

bac

k

One o

f th

e o

ldest

dance r

eality

show

s B

oogie

Woogie

will be r

etu

rnin

g t

o

the s

mall s

creen s

oon. T

he s

how

is

open f

or c

hildren in t

he a

ge g

roup

of

six t

o 1

4 y

ears

and w

ill air

on S

ony E

nte

rta

inm

ent

Tele

vis

ion.

The a

udit

ions

will

begin

in B

hopal

and R

anchi

on O

cto

ber 7

-8, accord-

ing t

o t

he o

fficia

l F

acebook p

age o

f th

e c

hannel. L

aunched i

n 1

996,

Boogie

W

oogie

was

the b

rain

child o

f T

V p

erso

nality

Naved,

his

broth

er J

aved

Jaff

rey a

nd a

cto

r R

avi

Behl. I

t w

as

als

o o

ne o

f th

e l

ongest

runnin

g d

ance

reality

show

on I

ndia

n T

v.

Wai

ting

for

Indi

an ta

lent

in A

mer

ican

fil

ms

to w

in O

scar

: Kam

al H

aasa

n

Acto

r-fi

lmm

aker K

am

al H

aasa

n, w

hose

dir

ecto

ria

l V

ish

wa

roop

am

was

in

the r

ace w

ith o

ther fi

lms

for I

ndia

’s o

fficia

l entr

y t

o A

cadem

y A

wards

this

year,

is

not

dis

appoin

ted a

t lo

sing t

he o

pportu

nit

y. In

stead h

e f

eels

it

would

be m

ore s

ensi

ble

when I

ndia

n t

ale

nt

work

s in

Am

eric

an m

ovie

s and

win

s an O

scar.

“Wit

h d

ue r

esp

ect,

my fi

lms

have g

one s

even t

imes

to t

he O

scars

but

I th

ink i

t w

ill

make m

ore s

en

se w

hen

the I

ndia

n t

ale

nt

takes

part

in

Am

eric

an m

ovie

s and w

ins

an O

scar o

r i

t m

ust

be l

ike t

he w

ay R

ay s

aab

(Saty

ajit

Ray)

did

for w

orl

d c

inem

a. O

therw

ise, w

e a

re just

vis

itin

g A

meric

a,

we a

re t

ouris

ts,” H

aasa

n t

old

reporte

rs

here S

unday a

t th

e c

losi

ng o

f th

e

Jagran F

ilm

Fest

ival.

Saty

ajit

Ray,

legen

dary fi

lmm

aker-w

rit

er,

not

on

ly w

on

an

Osc

ar b

ut

als

o a

ll t

he m

ajo

r a

wards,

in

clu

din

g N

ati

on

al

Aw

ards.

His

film

“P

ath

er

Panchali”,

won a

tota

l of

ele

ven i

nte

rnati

onal

priz

es,

inclu

din

g o

ne a

t th

e

Cannes

Film

Fest

ival. T

his

year,

out

of

the o

ver 2

1 In

dia

n fi

lms

com

peti

ng

to m

ake it

to t

he O

scars,

Guja

rati

film

Th

e G

ood

Roa

d h

as

been c

hose

n a

s In

dia

’s o

fficia

l entr

y t

o t

he O

scars.

Mor

e th

rills

in s

econ

d po

ster

of D

hoom

3

Yet

anoth

er s

izzl

ing m

oti

on p

ost

er o

f th

e forth

com

ing m

ovie

Dh

oom

3 is

out

online a

nd looks

like a

rem

inder t

o fans

about

what

they a

re a

bout

to e

xperie

nce w

ith t

he r

ele

ase

of

the m

ovie

. W

hile t

he fi

rst

moti

on p

ost

er

did

n’t

reveal m

uch e

xcept

Aam

ir K

han’s

chis

elled b

ody,

this

one h

as

more

thrills

and c

hills

att

ached t

o it.

Aam

ir p

lays

a n

egati

ve r

ole

in t

he m

ovie

and t

he s

mir

k o

n h

is f

ace g

ets

your a

ttenti

on.

The m

ovie

, w

hic

h h

as

alw

ays

giv

en b

ikes

and v

illa

ins

a l

ot

of

lim

elight,

has

bik

es

jum

pin

g o

ver c

ars

and b

rid

ges

in t

he s

econd m

oti

on p

ost

er.

The f

ocus t

hen

shif

ts t

o t

he f

our m

ain

prota

gon

ists

- A

am

ir K

han

, A

bhis

hek B

achchan, U

day C

hopra a

nd K

atr

ina K

aif

.T

he leads

pose

in a

heroic

manner a

s a fi

re r

ages

around t

hem

. T

he g

raph-

ics

are w

ell d

one. T

he s

ound o

f a b

ike r

acin

g a

dds

to t

he t

hrilling feeling. T

he

signatu

re t

une o

f th

e

Dh

oo

m

fran

ch

ise

takes

the

music

al

lead soon

fo

llow

ed

by t

he s

ound o

f th

e

bik

e.

Aam

ir w

ill be s

een

in a

negati

ve r

ole

in

the

thir

d

insta

ll-

men

t of

the fr

an

-chis

e w

hile A

bhis

hek

Bachchan a

nd U

day

Chopra r

epris

e t

heir

role

as

AC

P J

ai D

ixit

and A

li r

esp

ecti

vely

.D

irecte

d b

y V

ijay

Kris

hn

a

Ach

arya,

the m

ovie

is s

et

to

rele

ase

on D

ecem

ber

20.

Tom

Han

ks n

ot d

rive

n by

mon

ey

Acto

r-fi

lmm

ak

er

To

m

Ha

nk

s says h

e is

n

ot

driv

en

by

big

pay

ch

equ

es.

The 5

7-y

ear-o

ld i

nsi

sts

that

he w

ould

be just

as

happy a

s he is

now

even

if h

e m

ade s

mall s

um

s in

com

paris

on

to w

hat

he e

arns

today,

reports

fe

male

first

.co.u

k.

“M

y

attit

ud

e

to

mon

ey? O

n a

1980 T

V

serie

s

call

ed

Bo

som

B

ud

die

s I

made $

5,0

00 a

w

eek. If

I h

ad m

ade t

hat

kin

d o

f m

on

ey f

or t

he

rest

of

my l

ife I

would

have b

een

happy,

hon

-estl

y.

But

I have been

gett

ing l

udic

rous

sum

s of m

oney for q

uit

e s

om

e

tim

e,” h

e s

aid

.“T

he b

est

part

is n

ot

ow

ing m

oney t

o a

nyone.

Money,

though, has

never b

een m

y d

riv

ing f

orce. Y

ou c

an l

ive i

n t

he b

ig-

gest

and b

est

house

in t

he w

orld

but

it c

an b

e w

ast

e i

f you a

re u

nhappy,

” H

anks

added.

PLU

S |

TU

ES

DA

Y 1

OC

TO

BE

R 2

013

Kerr

y W

ashi

ngto

n na

med

bes

tdr

esse

d w

oman

by

Peop

le m

agaz

ine

Actr

ess

Kerry W

ash

ingto

n, w

ho w

as

nom

inate

d f

or a

n E

mm

y f

or h

er

role

in t

he A

BC

tele

vis

ion d

ram

a S

can

da

l, w

as

nam

ed t

he “

World

’s

Best

Dress

ed W

om

an”

by P

eop

le m

agazi

ne.

Wash

ingto

n,

36,

headed a

lis

t th

at

inclu

ded A

cadem

y A

ward-w

inn

er

Jennif

er L

aw

rence, si

nger-s

ongw

rit

er S

ola

nge K

now

les

and a

ctr

ess

es

Jenna

Dew

an-T

atu

m a

nd K

ate

Bosw

orth

.“I

don’t

wear a

lot

of

pants

,” W

ash

ingto

n s

aid

in a

sta

tem

ent

announc-

ing t

he h

onour.

“W

hen I

go s

om

ew

here I

want

to k

now

I’m

goin

g t

o b

e

com

forta

ble

and I

’m d

ress

ed f

or t

he e

vent.”

Peop

le m

agazi

ne E

xecuti

ve E

dit

or E

liza

beth

Spork

in p

rais

ed W

ash

ingto

n

for h

er f

ash

ion s

ense

.“T

here h

as

been a

trend t

his

year i

n l

ady-l

ike f

ash

ion a

nd I

thin

k s

he

is a

lmost

sin

gle

-handedly

resp

onsi

ble

for it,”

Spork

in s

aid

in a

n inte

rvie

w.

Alt

hough W

ash

ingto

n n

abbed t

he b

est

dress

ed t

itle

, L

aw

rence, th

e w

in-

ner o

f th

is y

ear’s

best

actr

ess

Osc

ar for S

ilve

r L

inin

gs

Pla

ybook, w

as

cit

ed a

s havin

g t

he b

est

hig

h fash

ion s

tyle

, and a

ctr

ess

Jess

ica C

hast

ain

, th

e s

tar o

f 2012

’s Z

ero

Da

rk T

hir

ty h

ad t

he b

est

red c

arpet

style

, accordin

g t

o P

eop

le.

Sola

nge K

now

les

got

top m

ark

s fo

r s

tyle

ris

k-t

akin

g a

nd c

onfidence.

“She r

eally d

oes

push

the e

nvelo

pe,” s

aid

Spork

in.

“No o

ne e

lse w

ould

even t

hin

k o

f putt

ing t

ogeth

er t

he looks

she w

ears.

She a

lways

pulls

it o

ff.”

Ava

tar

actr

ess

Zoe S

ald

ana h

ad t

he b

est

denim

sty

le a

nd a

ctr

ess

Lily

Collin

s w

as

nam

ed t

he b

est

for u

p-a

nd-c

om

ing s

tyle

.A

ctr

ess

Em

ma S

tone, th

e s

tar o

f T

he A

ma

zin

g S

pid

er-

Ma

n a

nd T

he H

elp

, w

on p

rais

e for h

er c

lass

ic s

tyle

and t

imele

ss looks

and t

ele

vis

ion h

ost

Nic

ole

R

ichie

was

nam

ed b

est

in t

rend-s

ett

ing s

tyle

.T

he c

ele

brit

y m

agazi

ne s

aid

it

com

piled t

he lis

t aft

er g

ett

ing input

from

it

s edit

ors,

its

42 m

illion r

eaders

and f

ash

ion d

irecto

rs

and b

loggers.

The m

agazi

ne a

lso l

ooked b

ack a

t fa

shio

n m

om

ents

of

the y

ear,

cit

ing

actr

ess

Sarah J

ess

ica P

ark

er’s

haute

punk m

ohaw

k h

eaddress

by d

esi

gner

Philip

Treacy a

t th

e M

et

Ball in N

ew

York

and fi

rst

lady M

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PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013 WORLD AGENDA610

© GRAPHIC NEWSPi t AP G tt I R h K t Ed l

Oct 20, New York:The stage version ofauthor ���������� (right) first novel, A Time To Kill,

published in 1989, opens onBroadway. Nine of his nearlytwo dozen novels, which havesold 250m books worldwide,have been made into films

Oct 20, New York:The stage version ofauthor ���������� (right) first novel, A Time To Kill,

published in 1989, opens onBroadway. Nine of his nearlytwo dozen novels, which havesold 250m books worldwide,have been made into films

Oct 1, U.S.: The defining act of Barack����� presidency, health care reform,comes to fruition when subsidisedinsurance goes on sale.Seven million Americansare expected to sign upin the first year, risingto 22 million by 2016

Oct 1, U.S.: The defining act of Barack����� presidency, health care reform,comes to fruition when subsidisedinsurance goes on sale.Seven million Americansare expected to sign upin the first year, risingto 22 million by 2016

Oct 6-12, KualaLumpur: BarackObama tours Asiaand becomes thefirst U.S. president innearly half a centuryto visit Malaysia.Relations betweenthe two countriessoured when MahathirMohamad, a strident criticof the west, was prime ministerbetween 1981 and 2003

Oct 13, AddisAbaba: African leaderscall for a mass withdrawalfrom the InternationalCriminal Court in protest���������������� �����������president William Ruto(below). The African Unionaccuses the court of��� �� �������� �� � ���leaders Oct 18, Luxembourg: The European

Union is expected to agree on business talkswith China, paving the way for a possible

free-trade deal between two of��������������������������Trade between the marketsrose to $435bn last year

Oct 10, Parma: Concertsand performances take placein Italy and around the worldto celebrate the bicentenaryof the birth of GiuseppeVerdi (left), one of themost influentialoperacomposersof thenineteenthcentury

Oct 2, Vatican: PopeFrancis receives SisterAngelique Namaika (left),�� ��������������NansenRefugee Award, who hashelped over 2,000 womenand girls abused anddisplaced by conflict inthe Democratic Republicof the Congo

Oct 25-26,Prague: Electionsin the CzechParliament couldhand a share of powerto the CommunistParty for the first timesince the 1989 VelvetRevolution ended itstotalitarian rule. TheSocial Democrats areset to win the most seats

11FOOD PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

By L V Anderson

I was delighted to learn earlier this year that spinach does not deserve the reputation as a strength-enhancing superfood that Popeye gave it. Apparently, the belief that spinach contains

a boatload of iron relative to other greens stems from a misplaced decimal in a 19th-century chem-ist’s notes about the nutritional content of vegeta-bles. The reason for my delight is that I’ve never been a fan of spinach. Raw, it tastes simultaneously bland and metallic. Cooked, it’s bland, metallic and almost always excruciatingly watery, with nothing approaching the body and earthy flavour of kale or collard greens.

One traditional American spinach dish, creamed spinach, tackles the wateriness problem head-on by cooking the dickens out of the spinach and then adding cream or béchamel sauce to thicken it up. Unfortunately, creamed spinach is a total snoozefest. Fortunately, North Indian cuisine has a far superior version of creamed spinach, enlivened with chilies, cumin and ginger: palak paneer.

Palak means spinach; paneer is a fresh cheese with a firm, almost rubbery texture. (Sometimes Indian restaurants will call this dish saag paneer; saag is an umbrella term for leafy greens.) You can buy paneer at Indian groceries and other specialty markets, but it’s easy and fun to make at home: All you have to do is bring milk to a boil and add diluted lemon juice. The milk will immediately separate into scrambled-egg-like curds and watery whey. After straining and then pressing the curds for a few hours, you’ll have a solid, sliceable block of homemade cheese. You can cube paneer at this point and stir it into your spin-ach, but it’ll be firmer and less likely to crumble if you first brown the cubes in the oven.

As for that spinach: Frozen is, frankly, way easier to use in this dish than fresh. Plus, because most of the flavour of palak paneer derives from spices, you’re not sacrificing much flavour by going the fro-zen route. To prepare frozen spinach for palak pan-eer, just to thaw it and then squeeze its water out. (Put it in a strainer and press down on it, or wrap it in cheesecloth — which you’ll have on hand already if you’re making paneer from scratch — and wring it out.) If you prefer to use fresh spinach, steam or

boil it for a minute or two, cool it, and then squeeze it dry. The squeezing is essential: A medium-sized pile of spinach contains, so far as I can tell, buckets and buckets of water, so merely draining it in a colander or strainer isn’t good enough-you have to take a cue from Salt-n-Pepa and push it real good.

Most of the additional ingredients in palak paneer are relatively easy to find, with the possible excep-tions of garam masala (substitute generic curry pow-der if you must) and ghee, which is clarified butter. You can make ghee yourself without much trouble, or you can substitute butter-but if you use unclarified butter, keep an eye on it while you’re sautéing the cumin seeds. Regular butter burns at much lower temperatures than ghee.

Admittedly, this recipe is dairy city, calling not only for ghee and paneer but also for cream and yogurt. Vegans and other lactose avoiders can sub-stitute peanut or canola oil for the ghee, use 8 to 12 ounces of tofu instead of making paneer (freeze it if you have time, or at least press it), and omit the yogurt and cream.

Palak PaneerYield: About 4 servingsTime: 3 1/2 to 4 hours, mostly unattended

Ingredients: 6 cups whole milk3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juiceSalt3 tablespoons ghee or butter1 teaspoon cumin seeds1 medium yellow onion, chopped6 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger4 medium fresh jalapeños, seeded if desired and minced1 tablespoon ground coriander1 teaspoon paprika1/4 teaspoon ground turmericOne 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes1 pound frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry1 teaspoon ground garam masala1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1/4 cup whole-milk yogurt1/4 cup heavy creamCooked basmati rice for serving (optional)

Method:Put the milk in a medium pot over medium-high

heat. While it’s heating, combine the lemon juice with 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water. When the milk comes to a boil, add the lemon juice mixture; the milk should immediately separate into curds and whey. Add a pinch of salt and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Line a strainer with a few layers of cheese-cloth and put it in the sink; pour the milk mixture into the strainer to strain out the whey. Rinse the curds with cool water, then twist the edges of the cheesecloth around the cheese and squeeze out any remaining liquid. Transfer the cheese bundle to a plate lined with paper towels, weigh it down with a cast-iron skillet or another heavy object, and let rest for at least 3 hours.

Put 2 tablespoons of the ghee in a medium pot over medium heat. When it melts, add the cumin seeds and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and season with salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions soften, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the jalapeños, coriander, paprika, and turmeric, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Add the spinach and continue to cook, stir-ring occasionally, until the spinach is tender, about another 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400°F. Unwrap the paneer and cut it into 1/4-inch cubes. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon ghee in an 8- or 9-inch square pan in the oven. Add the cubed paneer; toss gently to coat the paneer in the ghee and and season with salt. Roast, turning the cubes once or twice, until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Stir the garam masala and cayenne pepper into the spinach mixture and cook for 2 minutes, then turn off the heat. Add the yogurt and cream to the spin-ach mixture and partially purée with an immersion blender. Stir in the roasted paneer. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then serve hot over basmati rice, if desired. (Store leftover palak paneer in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.)

WP-Bloomberg

How to make the perfect

Palak Paneer

TECHNOLOGYPLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 201312

By Samuel Gibbs

Marking Google’s 15th birthday, Hummingbird is the biggest change to the inner workings of the

world’s most popular search engine since Google’s “Caffeine” update in 2010, which sped up Google’s indexing of sites and delivery of search results.

The Hummingbird update focuses more on Google’s Knowledge Graph – an encyclopaedia of about 570m con-cepts and relationships that allows Google to anticipate facts and figures you might want to know about your search term.

New engine with old partsHummingbird isn’t an overhaul

that Google search users will instantly notice, however.

“In general, Hummingbird – Google says – is a new engine built on both existing and new parts, organised in a way to especially serve the search demands of today, rather than one created for the needs of 10 years ago,

with the technologies back then,” said Danny Sullivan of the search blog Search Engine Land.

It will benefit those using more mod-ern forms of search, such as conversa-tional or voice search, where you ask Google a question rather than typing keywords into the search box.

“The goal is that pages matching the meaning do better, rather than pages matching just a few words.

“Google said that Hummingbird is paying more attention to each word in a query, ensuring that the whole query – the whole sentence or conversation or meaning – is taken into account, rather than particular words,” said Sullivan.

But will it really work?Unfortunately, it’s very difficult

to do before and after comparisons, especially as Google has pushed out the Hummingbird update over the last month without any public announcements.

For the moment we only have Google’s word that Hummingbird will

make a difference, although it gave a few examples of searches that could benefit from the new algorithm.

For instance, a search for “acid reflux prescription” pre-Hummingbird produced sites with lists of drugs, but now brings up search results with more information about acid reflux treat-ment in general. Likewise, a search for “pizza hut calories per slice” now links the answer directly from Pizza Hut.

It’s a smart move, but there’s a long way to go

“Apps are the biggest long-term threat to Google’s current search-based business model – people turn to apps for information on discrete serv-ices like flights rather than search,” said Ian Maude, a search analyst at Enders Analysis.

Google Now – Google’s personal dig-ital assistant that uses context, loca-tion and knowledge of the user’s habits to preempt requests for information like flights, your daily commute and film times — has been one of Google’s attempts to fight the silos of individual

apps and keep you within the Google search ecosystem. That all helps Google maintain its estimated 53% market share of internet advertising.

Google Now relies on Knowledge Graph, as well as natural language interpretation, which were both boosted by the Hummingbird update.

“Hummingbird doesn’t replace key-word search, it augments it, speeding up the process of search using natural language processes that understands conversational search or speech – it’s a smart move, but there’s clearly a long way to go.

“Right now, when I search for trains to Warwickshire, I get a list of search results for train operator websites, but I don’t yet get times for the next trains pulled into fact boxes by Google,” said Maude.

Not everything is so straightforward in Google land, as Google’s chat pro-tocols Hangouts and Talk, suffered a privacy issue on the 26 September that saw instant messages routed to unin-tended recipients. The Guardian

Google introduces biggest algorithm change in 3 years

New ‘Hummingbird’ algorithm will make core search better at answering longer, more complex and spoken queries.

By Will Oremus

Hundreds of millions of people around the world, including virtually everyone who has ever used a Windows device, have had to

memorise the key command “control-alt-delete.” In retrospect, that was probably unnecessary, Microsoft co-founded Bill Gates (pictured) said in a talk at Harvard last week.

As Geekwire points out, the surprising — and, let’s face it, seriously belated — admission came in response to a wonderfully blunt question from David Rubenstein, co-chair of a Harvard fundrais-ing campaign. “Why, when I want to turn on my software and computer, do I need to have three fingers: control, alt, delete?” Rubenstein asked the living tech legend. “Whose idea was that?”

The crowd laughed as Gates shifted his weight and scratched his ear sheepishly. His response began with some hemming and hawing, but he eventually wound his way to a straight answer:

Basically, because when you turn your computer on,

you’re going to see some screens and eventually type your password in, you want to have something you do with the keyboard that is signaling to a very low level of the software — actually, hard-coded in the hard-ware — that it really is bringing in the operating system you expect. . . . So we could have had a single button, but the guy who did the IBM keyboard design didn’t want to give us our single button. And so we had, we

programmed at a low level that you had to — it was a mistake. The guy who did the IBM keyboard design didn’t want to give us our single button.

There, in a nutshell, is one big tradeoff Microsoft made by partnering with third-party hardware firms rather than building its own computers, as Apple did. The strategy paid off handsomely, as Microsoft’s operating systems became the global standard. But it wasn’t without its downsides. Can you imagine Steve Jobs requiring users to perform such a wonky key command before they could begin to use an Apple device?

Note that Gates is not talking about the original use of control-alt-delete to perform a “soft reboot”

but about Microsoft’s decision in the early 1990s to make the command a requirement for logging into a Windows machine. Of course, Gates didn’t men-tion all the mistakes that rendered certain versions of Windows so unstable that users grew equally familiar with control-alt-delete as the only escape from a locked screen. Maybe that’s because he knew he couldn’t blame those on IBM. WP-Bloomberg

Control-alt-delete was a mistake: Bill Gates

COMICS & MORE 13

Hoy en la HistoriaOctober 1, 1890

1903: European railways were linked with Russia1918: Arab forces captured Damascus from the Turks with the help of British officer T.E. Lawrence1998: NATO prepared for possible air strikes on Serbia as the UN condemned the massacres of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo2001: Japan’s NTT DoCoMo launched the first third generation (3G) mobile phone service

The Yosemite National Park was created in California to protect the Yosemite Valley and surrounding mountains and forests from development

Picture: Associated Press © GRAPHIC NEWS

ALL IN THE MIND Can you find the hidden words? They may be horizontal,vertical, diagonal, forwards or backwards.

ALEXANDR DOLGOPOLOV, ANDY MURRAY, DAVID FERRER, FELICIANO LOPEZ, FERNANDO VERDASCO, GAEL MONFILS, GILLES SIMON, JANKO TIPSAREVIC, JOHN ISNER, JO-WILFRIED TSONGA, JUAN MARTIN DEL POTRO, JUAN MONACO,KEI NISHIKORI, MARDY FISH, NICOLAS ALMAGRO, NOVAK DJOKOVIC, RAFAEL NADAL, ROGER FEDERER, STANISLAS WAWRINKA, TOMAS BERDYCH.

LEARN ARABIC

Baby Blues by Jerry Scott and Rick Kirkman

Zits by Dennis Young and Denis Lebrun

Hagar The Horrible by Chris Browne

Body Organs

Finger I�baç

Nails A�afir

Blood Dam

Chin �aqn

Mustache Šarib

Lip Šafa

Bone Ça�m

Beard Li�ya

Brain Dima�

Artery Širyan

Heart Qalb

Two lungs Ri'atan

Stomach Maçida

Intestines Amça'

Liver Kabid

Kidney Kilya

Flesh La�m

Note: ç = ‘a’ in ‘agh’ when surprised � = ‘th’ but we strengthen our tongue a little

PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

HYPER SUDOKU

CROSSWORD

CROSSWORDS

YESTERDAY’S ANSWER

How to play Hyper Sudoku:A Hyper Sudoku

Puzzle is solved

by filling the

numbers from 1

to 9 into the blank

cells. A Hyper

Sudoku has

unlike Sudoku

13 regions

(four regions

overlap with the

nine standard

regions). In all

regions the numbers from 1 to 9 can appear

only once. Otherwise, a Hyper Sudoku is

solved like a normal Sudoku.

ACROSS 1 ___ pants

6 Voting alliance

10 Boxer Riddick

14 Director De Palma

15 Flying: Prefix

16 Nadir’s opposite

17 Quite cold

18 Skateboard park feature

19 Left in

20 Provision for ending many a mortgage

23 2011 Huffington Post purchaser

24 Sergeants major, e.g.: Abbr.

25 Amuse

30 Where Noah made landfall

34 Big Ten football powerhouse, for short

35 Aircraft with pontoons

37 Quite unoriginal

40 Eye, poetically

41 Thread of a screw, e.g.

42 1970 Freda Payne hit

45 L.A. winter hours

46 Snowmobile brand

47 Google queries

50 Flying fish-eaters

52 Go after

53 Weekend publication since 1941

60 Pig’s tail feature

61 MS-DOS alternative

62 Late-night coffee, maybe

63 Helen Crump Taylor’s TV stepson

64 Salinger heroine

65 All thumbs

66 Pier

67 Favorable tournament position

68 ___ Kefauver, 1956 vice-presidential candidate

DOWN 1 Former N.Y.C. club

2 ___ 51 (ufologist’s interest)

3 Hard-to-take person

4 Vituperate

5 ___ plumbing

6 Home for an owl, maybe

7 Bound

8 Financial adviser Suze

9 Mimic

10 Common fund-raiser

11 Unreserved

12 Boohooed

13 Business card abbr.

21 Count ___, character in the Lemony Snicket books

22 Transform (into)

25 TV/radio host Lou

26 Chris with the 1991 hit “Wicked Game”

27 Islam’s largest denomination

28 Jam up

29 Pamplona runners

31 Sampson of the 1980s-’90s N.B.A.

32 Biscotti flavoring, sometimes

33 Pastors’ readings

36 Qualified

38 Cannonball of jazz fame

39 Irish lullaby syllables

43 Melted-cheese dishes

44 Deputy ___ (Terrytoons character)

48 One who sets the stage?

49 Deceives

51 Rationality

53 ___ platter

54 La Scala presentation

55 Marcel Marceau, for one

56 Got rid of

57 Rapper who co-starred in “Ricochet”

58 Scruff

59 Small salamanders

60 ___ au vin

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33

34 35 36

37 38 39 40 41

42 43 44 45

46 47 48 49

50 51 52

53 54 55 56 57 58 59

60 61 62

63 64 65

66 67 68

A H O R A R O M M A S ST E N O R I N E R E S E TC H I C K A D E E O N K E YO H O H C E L T I C SS E N E C A B U C K A R O OT H Y O D S P I A A P E

S C I O N B I T E RL A C K A D A I S I C A L

L U C I A H O T L YO L D M O T U R L A P OT U C K A H O E E Y E L I D

A M M O N I A M L L EP O N Z I H U C K A B E E ST A H O E O R O L E G O SA R L O T E N A R E N A

How to play Kakuro:The kakuro grid, unlike in sudoku, can be of any size. It has rows and columns, and dark cells like in a crossword. And, just like in a crossword, some of the dark cells will contain numbers. Some cells will contain two numbers.However, in a crossword the numbers reference clues. In a kakuro, the numbers are all you get! They denote the total of the digits in the row or column referenced by the number.Within each collection of cells - called a run

- any of the numbers 1 to 9 may be used but, like sudoku, each number may only be used once.

YESTERDAY’S ANSWER

14

EASY SUDOKUCartoon Arts International / The New York Times Syndicate

Easy Sudoku PuzzlesPlace a digit from 1 to 9 in each empty cell so everyrow, every column and every 3x3 box contains allthe digits 1 to 9.

CINEMA / TV LISTINGS 15

TEL: 444933989 444517001SHOWING AT VILLAGGIO & CITY CENTER

05:30 The Football

League Show

06:00 Liverpool Club

Channel

09:00 Stars - Alan

Shearer

10:00 Granada vs

Atletico Madrid

11:45 Nottingham

Forest vs Derby

13:30 Stars - Arsene

Wenger

14:00 Omni Sport

14:30 Tottenham Club

Channel

17:30 Stars - Alan

Shearer

18:00 Sports News

18:15 Harlequins vs

Saracens

20:00 Millwall vs

Leeds

21:45 Bucuresti vs

Chelsea

23:45 Beach Soccer

World Cup

08:00 News

09:00 Al Jazeera

World

10:30 Inside Story

11:00 News

11:30 The Stream

12:00 News

12:30 Witness

13:00 NEWSHOUR

14:00 News

14:30 Inside Story

15:00 Algeria: The

Test of Power

16:00 NEWSHOUR

17:00 News

17:30 The Stream

18:00 NEWSHOUR

19:00 News

19:30 The Cure

20:00 News

20:30 Inside Story

21:00 NEWSHOUR

22:00 News

22:30 The Stream

23:00 Al Jazeera

World

13:45 Weird

Creatures With

Nick Baker

16:00 Monkey Life

16:30 The Most

Extreme

20:10 Animal

Battlegrounds

21:05 Big Five

Challenge

22:00 Bondi Vet

22:55 ER Vets

23:50 Animal Cops

Houston

13:00 Do Dil Bandhe

Ek Dori Se

15:00 Pavitra Rishta

15:30 Sapne Suhane

Ladakpan Ke

17:00 Punar Vivah

19:30 Jodha Akbar

20:00 Pavitra Rishta

21:00 Qubool Hai

21:30 Khelti Hai

Zindagi Aankh

Micholi

22:00 Punar Vivah

13:00 High School

Musical

15:00 A.N.T. Farm

18:30 That's So

Raven

20:30 My Babysitter's

A Vampire

22:00 Jessie

22:50 Good Luck

Charlie

23:10 Wizards Of

Waverly Place

14:00 A Thousand

Words

16:00 Gabe The

Cupid Dog

18:00 Lying To Be

Perfect

20:00 Rushmore

22:00 For A Good

Time, Call

13:15 Deadliest

Catch

15:20 Yukon Men

17:00 Ultimate

Survival

19:30 Sons Of Guns

21:35 How It's Made

22:00 Bear Grylls:

Escape From

Hell

22:50 Ed Stafford:

Naked And

Marooned

23:40 Car vs Wild

13:00 Ellen DeGeneres

Show

14:00 Suits

15:00 24

18:00 Suits

19:00 Grey's

Anatomy

20:00 Grey's

Anatomy

21:00 Homeland

22:00 Breaking Bad

23:00 The Americans

00:00 24

11:00 Christmas

Comes Home

To Canaan

13:00 StreetDance 2

15:00 Madea's Big

Happy Family

17:00 Wreck-It Ralph

19:00 The Darkest

Hour

21:00 Men In Black 3

23:00 The Samaritan

01:00 Cash

10:00 Flushed Away

11:30 Marco Macaco

13:00 Crab Island

14:30 A Fairy Tale

Christmas

16:00 Bushwhacked

18:00 Flushed Away

20:00 The Great Bear

22:00 Supertramps

QF RADIO 91.7 FM ENGLISH PROGRAMME BRIEF

LIVE SHOWS Airing Time Programme Briefs

SPIRITUAL HOUR

6:00 - 7:00 AM A time of reflection, a deeper understanding of the teachings of Islam.

RISE 7:00 – 9:00 AM A LIVE 2-hour morning show hosted by Laura Finnerty and Scotty Boyes. It focuses on a wide array of topics from Weather, News, Health tips, Sports News and interactive bits with the callers.

INTERNATIO-NAL NEWS

1:00 PM The latest news and events from around the world.

DRIVE 3:00 – 4:00 PM A daily afternoon show broadcast at peak travel time. Today, it’s “music” day with Nabil Al Nashar.

INNOVATIONS 6:00 – 7:00 PM Today on Innovations, Scott visits the Solar Test Facility at Qatar Science and Technology Park and learns about the latest advancements in harnessing energy from the sun.

Repeat Shows

FASHION 10:00 – 11:00 AM A weekly show hosted and produced by Laura Finnerty. In this episode Laura speaks with Sothebys diamond specialist David Bennett about the sale of the world's most valuable diamond - The Pink Star! One of the world's most exquisite natural treasures.

LEGENDARY ARTISTS

12:00 – 1:00 PM The show tells the story of a celebrity artist that has reached unprecedented fame. In this episode we bring you the king of ‘Blues’ Robert Johnson.

MALL

1

Kiroriki (3D/Animation) – 2.30 & 4.30pm

Insidious 2 (2D/Horror) – 6.30 & 8.30pm

Raja Rani (2D/Tamil) – 10.30pm

2

Raja Rani (2D/Tamil) – 2.30pm

Rush (2D/Action) – 5.30pm

Memories (2D/Malayalam) – 8.00 & 11.00pm

3

The World's End (2D/Comedy) – 2.30 & 5.00pm

Empire State (2D/Action) – 7.15 & 9.15pm

Runner Runner (2D/Crime) – 11.30pm

LANDMARK

1

Rush (2D/Action) – 2.30 & 5.15pm

Memories (2D/Malayalam) – 8.00pm

Empire State (2D/Action) – 11.00pm

2

Kiroriki (3D/Animation) – 3.00 & 5.00pm

Runner Runner (2D/Crime) – 7.00pm

Insidious 2 (2D/Horror) – 9.00 & 11.15pm

3

The World's End (2D/Comedy) – 2.30 & 5.00pm

Empire State (2D/Action) – 7.15 & 9.15pm

Runner Runner (2D/Crime) – 11.30pm

ROYAL

PLAZA

1

Raja Rani (2D/Tamil) – 2.30, 5.30 & 8.30pm

Insidious 2 (2D/Horror) – 11.30pm

2

The World's End (2D/Comedy) – 2.30 & 5.00pm

Empire State (2D/Action) – 7.15 & 9.15pm

Memories (2D/Malayalam) – 11.00pm

3

Rush (2D/Action) – 2.30pm

Kiroriki (3D/Animation) – 5.00pm

Runner Runner (2D/Crime) – 7.00 & 11.30pm

Warning (2D/Hindi) – 9.00pm

PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013

PLUS | TUESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2013 POTPOURRI16

Editor-In-Chief Khalid Al Sayed Acting Managing Editor Hussain Ahmad Editorial Office The Peninsula Tel: 4455 7741, E-mail: plus@pen.com.qa / editor@pen.com.qa

IN FOCUS

A scene from Aspire Park.

by Wang Xiaoyan

Send your photos to plus@pen.com.qa. Mention where the photo was taken.

MEDIA SCAN A summary ofissues of the daydiscussed by the Qatari communityin the media.

• There is discussion in social media about

the massive campaign being conducted

by the Ministry of Municipality and other

bodies to remove more than 10,000

abandoned vehicles that occupy public

spaces in Industrial Area.

• It has been suggested that play areas

for kids be created in parks located in

residential areas to encourage them to

take up sports.

• Many parents have complained about

some nurseries hiking their fees without

any change in their services. This has led

to the emergence of nurseries operating

from homes, which pose a risk to children

as they lack the minimum requirements

for safety.

• People have demanded that the Ministry

of Municipality inspect fishmongers,

which are selling fish that are not fresh,

and sometimes damaged, and the sellers

do not know whether they are fit for

human consumption.

• People have demanded that the traffic

department install cameras to monitor

cars overtaking from the right, particularly

on the main roads and highways.

• There are demands for inspection of all

fuel stations in the light of the collapse

of an underground tank at Al Andalus

station, particularly the old ones, which

pose a threat to people’s life and property.

• There are complaints about workshops

operating in residential areas despite

repeated demands for them to be

relocated.

• Residents of Rawdat Al Mattar area have

complained about a sand filtering unit set

up by a construction company without

permission near an Independent school.

This is said to be producing dust that is

causing suffering to students.

President of Qatar University Professor Sheikha AbdullaAl Misnad

Professor Al Misnad became the president of Qatar University in 2003. Prior to that, she served

Qatar University as Vice President for Research and Community Development (2000-2003), Head of the Department of Foundations of Education (1992 -1995), and as a member of the University Council (1986 -1989; 1998 - 2004). She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Education (1977), and subsequently a diploma in Education in 1978. She completed her doctoral studies, Doctor of Philosophy in Education, in 1984 from Durham University, UK.

Who’s who

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Rachmaninoff’s Paganini RhapsodyWhen: October 5; 7.30pm Where: Opera House, Katara

What: Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra performs Rachmaninoff’s Paganini Rhapsody. Han-Na Chang is music director and Cristina Ortiz on piano. Tickets: QR-75-QR300, available at Virgin Megastores

NODDY in Toyland When: Oct 24, 25, 26; 4pm & 7pm Where: Al Rayyan theater, Souq Waqif What: A live show of Noddy — sing-along, dance-along — featuring friends Tessie Bear and Bumpy Dog as well as the naughty goblins. Kid’s play.Tickets: QR-100-QR350, available at Virgin Megastores

Exhibition by Rhys HimsworthWhen: Until October 27 Artist Talk on October 22; 7pm Where: Katara Art Center, Building 5

What: Rhys Himsworth is a British artist based in Doha, and is a faculty member of Virginia Commonwealth University where he heads the Painting & Printmaking program. Entry: Free, open to all

L’âge d’or — exhibitionby Adel AbdessemedWhen: October 6 to January 5Where: Atrium and ground floor of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art What: Curated by Pier Luigi Tazzi, the exhibition will showcase recent works, including drawings, paintings, sculptures and videos, many created by Adel Abdessemed.Entry: Free, open to all

Northern Legacy – Photographic Exhibition When: Until Nov 19, 2013; 10am-10pm Where: Katara Gallery 1 - Bldg 13 What: Photographic Exhibition by Harold Crompton Robinson. Free Entry

Oil Painting workshop When: Sept 28, Oct 5, 12; 5pm-8pm Where: Katara Art Studios - Bldg 19 What: KAS is organising an Oil Painting workshop with Egyptian artist Fairouz Alokadi. Fairouz will teach participants from different levels, the basics of oil painting and also how to use and develop your painting skills into developing your own artwork. Workshop Fee: QR200

Omar Khalifa – “Infinite”When: Until Dec 15; 10am-10pmWhere: Katara Cultural Village What: This outdoor installation examines ‘the nature of being’. Using digital multiple exposure techniques, an image is crafted that gives a of other-worldliness and depth of perspective through the human form. Free Entry

Events in Qatar