Time magazine has chosen Donald Trump as its Person of the Year for 2024. This is the second time he has received this award; he was also named Person of the Year in 2016. The announcement was made on Thursday, celebrating Trump’s impact and influence over the past year. Last year, pop star Taylor Swift received the title for 2023.
Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting story!
In Mumbai trading, some stocks shot up by more than 15% on Thursday, even though the main stock market indexes, BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty, faced a decline. Top performers included companies like Nilachal Refrac (up 20%), DCM Ltd (up 19.99%), Centum Elec (up 19.99%), Apoorva Leasing Finance (up 19.98%), and others with impressive growth.
The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped by 236.18 points, finishing at 81,289.96, while the 50-share NSE index fell by 93.1 points to close at 24,548.7. In the Nifty50 index, 16 stocks did well, while 34 stocks struggled.
Some companies, including Apoorva Leasing Finance and Zinka Logistics, reached new highs for the year. On the other hand, stocks like Advance Lifestyles and Gayatri Sugars hit new lows.
A recent poll shows that Americans are becoming less welcoming towards immigrants living in the United States without legal status. The poll, conducted from December 5 to December 10, found that only 33% of people believe most immigrants without legal status should be allowed to stay. This is down from 39% in 2017. However, most people, around 53%, still think these immigrants should be deported. The number of people unsure has also increased, going from 9% to 14%.
Even though some views about immigrants are getting stricter, many people oppose the idea of locking them up in detention camps while waiting for deportation hearings. Only 30% of those polled agreed with keeping immigrants in camps, while 53% disagreed.
Experts believe that if former President Donald Trump aggressively pursues his deportation plans, it could cost him support. Many Americans might not like the idea of breaking up families or sending back people who were brought to the U.S. as children, known as “Dreamers.”
In the poll, 27% of respondents said immigration should be the main issue Trump focuses on during his first 100 days back in office. Trump stated in an interview that he aims to deport all immigrants living in the U.S. illegally but wants to avoid breaking up families.
Increasingly, the population of immigrants living in the U.S. has reached 14%, the highest in over a century. The Department of Homeland Security estimates that there are about 11 million immigrants without legal status.
The plan is for the new administration to use resources from different government areas to carry out a deportation initiative that could target 1 million people a year. However, the cost of deporting everyone without legal status could be about $88 billion each year.
During Trump’s election campaign, he made claims about immigrants committing crimes, but many studies show that immigrants do not commit crimes more than native-born Americans. Some Americans are worried about immigrant crime, but past surveys show that this has not been a major concern.
The poll also found that support for allowing immigrants to stay has dropped among Republicans. Only 9% of Republicans now support letting immigrants stay, down from 18% in 2017. In contrast, 61% of Democrats still back the idea. Among Hispanic Americans, support fell from 54% to 47%, while Black Americans’ support decreased from 58% to 36%.
In summary, many American voters want Trump to take action on immigration, focusing on securing the border and deporting criminals first.
Taron Egerton stars in a new Netflix action movie called “Carry-On,” which pays tribute to the hardworking TSA employees, especially during the busy holiday season. “I hope they feel proud when they watch it,” Egerton said. In the film, he plays Ethan Kopek, a TSA agent struggling to find his path with help from his girlfriend, Nora, played by Sofia Carson.
Jaume Collet-Serra directs the movie, which also features Danielle Deadwyler as FBI agent Elena Cole. The story revolves around Kopek, who is forced by a tricky stranger, portrayed by Jason Bateman, to sneak a dangerous package through airport security just before Christmas.
Deadwyler mentions that this film connects with everyone who has traveled during the holidays. “The airport is always chaotic at Christmas time,” she shared. “It’s a fun way to bring back memories of classic Christmas action movies,” she added, drawing a comparison to “Die Hard.”
To ensure authenticity, Egerton and Carson spent time learning from real TSA agents. Carson explained, “I followed a director at the New Orleans airport for days. It’s tough to manage things at an airport.” Deadwyler highlighted that the film goes beyond action, showcasing the humanity and kindness of airport workers. “Those working at the airport deserve love and support because they help us through our travel anxieties, not just during the holidays,” she said.
“Carry-On,” a collaboration between Netflix and Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners, will be available to stream on Friday.
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter, a small flying robot that explored Mars, crashed during its 72nd flight on January 18, 2024. This was shared during a NASA talk at the American Geophysical Union meeting on December 11.
Ingenuity had a mission to fly just five times, but it did over 70 flights since arriving on Mars with the Perseverance rover in 2021! It flew higher and farther than anyone expected, covering more than 30 times its planned distance and flying for over two hours total.
The crash happened when the helicopter lost its control during a tricky move because the flat surface on Mars made it hard for its navigation system to work correctly. Even with the crash, NASA is proud of Ingenuity’s achievements. This was the first time a flying machine has been in control on another planet!
The last flight involved climbing 12 meters (about 39 feet) to take pictures. Communication was lost during its descent but was fixed the next day. When pictures were finally sent back, they showed that the rotor blades were badly damaged.
NASA found that a problem with the navigation system likely caused the crash. They believe the lessons learned will help in future Mars helicopter designs and other space aircraft.
Though Ingenuity isn’t flying anymore, it still sends back weekly weather and test data to the Perseverance rover. This information can help with future Mars missions.
Exciting News: The Mars Chopper is Coming!
Meanwhile, NASA is working on a new helicopter called the Mars Chopper. This one will be much bigger, about the size of an SUV, and have six rotors! It will be able to carry loads up to 11 pounds and fly almost two miles a day.
The Mars Chopper is designed to explore hard-to-reach areas on Mars, like cliffs and craters. This new project involves teamwork from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Ames Research Center, and AeroVironment Inc.
NASA said they are using the lessons learned from Ingenuity’s flights and its crash to make the Mars Chopper even better. Although it’s still in the early design stages, NASA hopes it will help with exploring the mysteries of Mars!
Bigg Boss, hosted by Salman Khan, has been a popular reality show for many years. However, since Season 13, it seems to have lost some of its charm. The ratings have been falling, and audiences are not as interested. Season 18 started strong with a rating of 2.3 on its first episode, but it has quickly dropped to 1.3. This is much less than previous seasons, like Season 13, which had ratings between 2.1 and 2.5. Other seasons have struggled too, with Season 14 averaging 1.8 and Season 15 hitting a low of 0.9.
Why is Season 18 not doing well? Here are some reasons:
1. Too Much Interference from Bigg Boss
Bigg Boss has been too involved this time. He openly said he would favor certain contestants, which the audience didn’t like. This makes it less fun to watch since it feels less like a competition and more like a scripted show.
2. Fewer Familiar Faces
Many famous contestants have turned down offers to join the show. Unlike Season 13, which had stars like Sidharth Shukla and Rashami Desai, this season has fewer recognizable faces. This makes it harder for viewers to connect with the contestants.
3. Boring Tasks
The tasks this season have not been exciting. In Season 13, tasks were fun and kept everyone engaged. Now, some tasks seem pointless, like a boring musical chair game for food. Viewers want challenges that keep the show interesting.
4. Dull Weekend Episodes
The Weekend Ka Vaar episodes have lost their spark too. They feel biased, focusing too much on some contestants while ignoring others, which doesn’t keep the audience entertained.
5. Forced Drama
This season feels like it is trying too hard to create drama over small issues like food. The connections between contestants seem fake, and viewers can tell it’s not authentic.
6. Irrelevant Wildcard Entries
New wildcard contestants have been introduced, but they don’t add much to the show. They often seem lost and fail to impress the audience.
Overall, Bigg Boss 18 lacks the excitement and personality of earlier seasons. Viewers are missing the fun and competitive spirit that made Season 13 such a hit!
On Thursday, the Indian government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved a plan called “One Nation, One Election.” This means that all elections in the country could happen at the same time instead of separately. The new laws will be shared with Parliament soon, and the government wants to talk to various leaders to get their opinions on it.
In September, a special committee led by former President Ram Nath Kovind suggested this plan. They believe that having many elections every year is bad for the economy, politics, and society. Here’s what the committee recommended in simpler terms:
1. Having fewer elections each year can be better for everyone.
2. The first step is to hold elections for the Lok Sabha (the national parliament) and state assemblies on the same day. After that, local elections will happen within 100 days.
3. After a general election, the President will announce when the Lok Sabha will start, keeping everything in sync.
4. New state assemblies will have shorter terms to ensure they align with the next general election.
5. A group will be set up to help make sure this plan works well.
6. They suggested a new Article in the law to allow local elections to happen together and to create one voter list for all elections.
7. If there is a tie in the local assembly or a no-confidence vote, new elections will be called, but the new assembly will only work until the next general election.
8. The first phase will include the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections, while local elections will be held shortly after.
9. In case of a hung assembly, new national elections will happen, and the new Lok Sabha will finish the term of the previous one.
10. The Election Commission should plan ahead to gather all the necessary equipment for smooth elections.
11. They want a single system for voter rolls and IDs, which will need changes in the constitution and approval from the states.
This plan could change how elections work in India forever!
India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, is set to open the batting again in the upcoming third Test match against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. The match will start this Saturday at the Gabba in Brisbane. The series is currently tied at 1-1 after India won the first Test in Perth but lost the second Test in Adelaide by 10 wickets.
In training on Thursday, Rohit, who struggled in the last match batting at No. 6, practiced facing the new ball. He played with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep, which was different from his training before the last Test. Initially, it looked like India would stick with their opening pair of KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had a great partnership in Perth. However, after batting poorly in Adelaide with scores of just 3 and 6, many believe Rohit should return to his usual position as an opener.
Former players Ravi Shastri and Sunil Gavaskar shared their thoughts on this decision. Shastri feels that Rohit can be more aggressive and expressive at the top of the order and suggested he should open again. Gavaskar also supported this idea, stating that if Rohit plays well from the start, he could score a big century.
The Supreme Court of India made an important decision on Thursday. They told all courts in the country not to allow any new requests to check if there are temples under mosques. The court said that no surveys or actions should be taken in any current cases about this issue, too.
This decision came while they were looking into challenges to the Places of Worship Act. This law protects all religious places by making it illegal to change them back to how they were before August 15, 1947. Some people are saying this law takes away the rights of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs to reclaim their religious sites that were destroyed.
The Supreme Court team, which includes Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justices P.V. Sanjay Kumar and K.V. Vishwanathan, is reviewing the rules and details of the 1991 law about places of worship. They have asked the government to respond to the challenges against this law within four weeks.
Anrich Nortje, a fast bowler for South Africa, has faced more injury trouble. On Thursday, it was announced that he would miss the rest of the T20 series and three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) against Pakistan. Nortje was out for nine months since September 2023 because of a stress fracture but returned to play in the T20 World Cup, where South Africa made it to the final in June.
Unfortunately, he has now hurt his toe and won’t play in the second and third T20 matches or the whole ODI series. This is crucial practice for next year’s ICC Champions Trophy. Doctors found a fracture in scans taken on Wednesday, and Nortje will see specialists to figure out the best treatment.
To replace him in the two T20 games in Pretoria and Johannesburg are Dayyaan Galiem, an all-rounder who has not played for South Africa before. Now, the team is getting ready for the ODI matches, bringing back star players who rested during the T20 matches. Temba Bavuma, Tristan Stubbs, Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, and Tabraiz Shamsi are all back.
Also included in the squad is Kwena Maphaka, an 18-year-old fast bowler who will play in the ODI matches for the first time. The ODI series starts in Paarl on Tuesday.
South Africa ODI Squad:
– Temba Bavuma
– Ottneil Baartman
– Tony de Zorzi
– Marco Jansen
– Heinrich Klaasen
– Keshav Maharaj
– Kwena Maphaka
– Aiden Markram
– David Miller
– Andile Phehlukwayo
– Kagiso Rabada
– Tristan Stubbs
– Ryan Rickelton
– Tabraiz Shamsi
– Rassie van der Dussen