Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will lead a delegation to the 'Heart of Asia' conference scheduled to take place on Tuesday at Tajikistan capital Dushanbe, the Foreign Office announced on Sunday.&nbsp;

On the sidelines of the 9th Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process (HoA-IP) ministerial conference, Qureshi will hold 'consultations with key regional and international partners', it said.&nbsp;

The conference would also see the participation of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.&nbsp;

The participation of both the ministers at the event has sparked speculation of a possible meeting between the two leaders amidst peace overtures from the Pakistan Army. However, both countries have not said anything about a possible meeting between the two foreign ministers in Dushanbe.&nbsp;

Jaishankar is expected to meet leaders of other participating countries on the sidelines of the conference, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement on Friday while announcing his participation.&nbsp;

Speaking at the India Economic Conclave in New Delhi on March 26, Jaishankar did not give a specific reply to questions on whether he will meet Qureshi on the sidelines of the conference.&nbsp;

"My scheduling is in progress. So far, I do not think any such meeting (is scheduled)," he said.&nbsp;

Asked whether the agreement between the militaries of India and Pakistan and the talks between Indus commissioners of the two sides were a sign of thaw in ties, Jaishankar said, "I think the agreements between the DGMOs is a sensible agreement because I don't think Pakistan either did themselves or us good by encouraging or facilitating infiltrators and terrorists across the Line of Control and the IB (international border)."&nbsp;

On March 18, Pakistan's powerful Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa said it was time for India and Pakistan to 'bury the past and move forward'.&nbsp;

India has said it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence and that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment free of terror and hostility.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will lead a delegation to the 'Heart of Asia' conference scheduled to take place on Tuesday at Tajikistan capital Dushanbe, the Foreign Office announced on Sunday.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will lead a delegation to the 'Heart of Asia' conference scheduled to take place on Tuesday at Tajikistan capital Dushanbe, the Foreign Office announced on Sunday. On the sidelines of the 9th Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process (HoA-IP) ministerial conference, Qureshi will hold 'consultations with key regional and international partners', it said. The conference would also see the participation of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. The participation of both the ministers at the event has sparked speculation of a possible meeting between the two leaders amidst peace overtures from the Pakistan Army. However, both countries have not said anything about a possible meeting between the two foreign ministers in Dushanbe. Jaishankar is expected to meet leaders of other participating countries on the sidelines of the conference, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement on Friday while announcing his participation. Speaking at the India Economic Conclave in New Delhi on March 26, Jaishankar did not give a specific reply to questions on whether he will meet Qureshi on the sidelines of the conference. "My scheduling is in progress. So far, I do not think any such meeting (is scheduled)," he said. Asked whether the agreement between the militaries of India and Pakistan and the talks between Indus commissioners of the two sides were a sign of thaw in ties, Jaishankar said, "I think the agreements between the DGMOs is a sensible agreement because I don't think Pakistan either did themselves or us good by encouraging or facilitating infiltrators and terrorists across the Line of Control and the IB (international border)." On March 18, Pakistan's powerful Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa said it was time for India and Pakistan to 'bury the past and move forward'. India has said it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence and that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment free of terror and hostility. (With inputs from agencies)

Pak foreign minister to attend 'Heart of Asia' conference in Tajikistan  

The findings of a new study show that acquiring a new language initially boosts brain activity, which then reduces as language skills improve. The study with first-time learners of Japanese measured how brain activity changes after just a few months of studying a new language. &nbsp;

"In the first few months, you can quantitatively measure language-skill improvement by tracking brain activations," said Professor Kuniyoshi L Sakai, a neuroscientist at the University of Tokyo and first author of the research recently published in Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.&nbsp;

Researchers followed 15 volunteers as they moved to Tokyo and completed introductory Japanese classes for at least three hours each day. All volunteers were native speakers of European languages in their 20s, who had previously studied English as children or teenagers but had no prior experience studying Japanese or travelling to Japan.&nbsp;

Volunteers took multiple-choice reading and listening tests after at least eight weeks of lessons and again six to fourteen weeks later. Researchers chose to assess only the 'passive' language skills of reading and listening because those can be more objectively scored than the 'active' skills of writing and speaking. &nbsp;

Volunteers were inside a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner while taking the tests so that researchers could measure local blood flow around their brain regions, an indicator of neuronal activity.&nbsp;

"In simple terms, there are four brain regions specialised for language. Even in a native, second or third language, the same regions are responsible," said Sakai.&nbsp;

Those four regions are the grammar centre and comprehension area in the left frontal lobe as well as the auditory processing and vocabulary areas in the temporoparietal lobe. Additionally, the memory areas of the hippocampus and the visual areas of the brain, the occipital lobes, also become active to support the four language-related regions while taking the tests.&nbsp;

During the initial reading and listening tests, those areas of volunteers' brains showed significant increases in blood flow, revealing that the volunteers were thinking hard to recognise the characters and sounds of the unfamiliar language. &nbsp;

Volunteers scored about 45 per cent accuracy on the reading tests and 75 per cent accuracy on the listening tests (random guessing on the multiple-choice tests would produce 25 per cent accuracy).&nbsp;

Researchers were able to distinguish between two subregions of the hippocampus during the listening tests. The observed activation pattern fits previously described roles for the anterior hippocampus in encoding new memories and for the posterior hippocampus in recalling stored information.&nbsp;

At the second test several weeks later, volunteers' reading test scores improved to an average of 55 per cent. Their accuracy on the listening tests was unchanged, but they were faster to choose an answer, which researchers interpret as improved comprehension.&nbsp;

Comparing results from the first tests to the second tests, after additional weeks of study, researchers found decreased brain activation in the grammar center and comprehension area during listening tests, as well as in the visual areas of the occipital lobes during the reading tests.&nbsp;

"We expect that brain activation goes down after successfully learning a language because it does not require so much energy to understand," said Sakai.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

The findings of a new study show that acquiring a new language initially boosts brain activity, which then reduces as language skills improve. The study with first-time learners of Japanese measured how brain activity changes after just a few months of studying a new language.

The findings of a new study show that acquiring a new language initially boosts brain activity, which then reduces as language skills improve. The study with first-time learners of Japanese measured how brain activity changes after just a few months of studying a new language. "In the first few months, you can quantitatively measure language-skill improvement by tracking brain activations," said Professor Kuniyoshi L Sakai, a neuroscientist at the University of Tokyo and first author of the research recently published in Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. Researchers followed 15 volunteers as they moved to Tokyo and completed introductory Japanese classes for at least three hours each day. All volunteers were native speakers of European languages in their 20s, who had previously studied English as children or teenagers but had no prior experience studying Japanese or travelling to Japan. Volunteers took multiple-choice reading and listening tests after at least eight weeks of lessons and again six to fourteen weeks later. Researchers chose to assess only the 'passive' language skills of reading and listening because those can be more objectively scored than the 'active' skills of writing and speaking. Volunteers were inside a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner while taking the tests so that researchers could measure local blood flow around their brain regions, an indicator of neuronal activity. "In simple terms, there are four brain regions specialised for language. Even in a native, second or third language, the same regions are responsible," said Sakai. Those four regions are the grammar centre and comprehension area in the left frontal lobe as well as the auditory processing and vocabulary areas in the temporoparietal lobe. Additionally, the memory areas of the hippocampus and the visual areas of the brain, the occipital lobes, also become active to support the four language-related regions while taking the tests. During the initial reading and listening tests, those areas of volunteers' brains showed significant increases in blood flow, revealing that the volunteers were thinking hard to recognise the characters and sounds of the unfamiliar language. Volunteers scored about 45 per cent accuracy on the reading tests and 75 per cent accuracy on the listening tests (random guessing on the multiple-choice tests would produce 25 per cent accuracy). Researchers were able to distinguish between two subregions of the hippocampus during the listening tests. The observed activation pattern fits previously described roles for the anterior hippocampus in encoding new memories and for the posterior hippocampus in recalling stored information. At the second test several weeks later, volunteers' reading test scores improved to an average of 55 per cent. Their accuracy on the listening tests was unchanged, but they were faster to choose an answer, which researchers interpret as improved comprehension. Comparing results from the first tests to the second tests, after additional weeks of study, researchers found decreased brain activation in the grammar center and comprehension area during listening tests, as well as in the visual areas of the occipital lobes during the reading tests. "We expect that brain activation goes down after successfully learning a language because it does not require so much energy to understand," said Sakai. (With inputs from agencies)

Studying new language leads to measurable changes in brain activity: Research

About 3,000 villagers from Myanmar's southeastern Karen state fled to Thailand on Sunday following air attacks by the army on an area held by an ethnic armed group, an activist group and local media said.&nbsp;

Myanmar’s military launched air strikes on five areas in Mutraw district, near the border, including a displacement camp, the Karen Women’s Organization said.&nbsp;

"At the moment, villagers are hiding in the jungle as more than 3,000 crossed to Thailand to take refuge," a statement from the group said.&nbsp;

Thai PBS reported about 3,000 had reached Thailand.&nbsp;

Thai authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.&nbsp;

At least two soldiers from the Karen National Union were killed, said David Eubank, founder of the Free Burma Rangers, a relief organisation.&nbsp;

"We haven’t had air strikes there for over 20 years," Eubank said. "Second, these were at night, so the capability of the Burma military has increased with the help of Russia and China and other nations, and that is deadly."&nbsp;

In an air attack by the military on Saturday, at least three civilians were killed in a village controlled by the KNU, a civil society group said. The militia earlier said it had overrun an army post near the border, killing 10 people.&nbsp;

The air assaults are the most significant attack for years in the region. The KNU had signed a ceasefire agreement in 2015 but tensions have surged after the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government on February 1.&nbsp;

The KNU and the Restoration Council of Shan State, also based on the Thai border, have condemned the takeover and announced their support for public resistance.&nbsp;

KNU says it has been sheltering hundreds of people, who have fled central Myanmar amid mounting violence in recent weeks.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

About 3,000 villagers from Myanmar's southeastern Karen state fled to Thailand on Sunday following air attacks by the army on an area held by an ethnic armed group, an activist group and local media said.

About 3,000 villagers from Myanmar's southeastern Karen state fled to Thailand on Sunday following air attacks by the army on an area held by an ethnic armed group, an activist group and local media said. Myanmar’s military launched air strikes on five areas in Mutraw district, near the border, including a displacement camp, the Karen Women’s Organization said. "At the moment, villagers are hiding in the jungle as more than 3,000 crossed to Thailand to take refuge," a statement from the group said. Thai PBS reported about 3,000 had reached Thailand. Thai authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment. At least two soldiers from the Karen National Union were killed, said David Eubank, founder of the Free Burma Rangers, a relief organisation. "We haven’t had air strikes there for over 20 years," Eubank said. "Second, these were at night, so the capability of the Burma military has increased with the help of Russia and China and other nations, and that is deadly." In an air attack by the military on Saturday, at least three civilians were killed in a village controlled by the KNU, a civil society group said. The militia earlier said it had overrun an army post near the border, killing 10 people. The air assaults are the most significant attack for years in the region. The KNU had signed a ceasefire agreement in 2015 but tensions have surged after the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government on February 1. The KNU and the Restoration Council of Shan State, also based on the Thai border, have condemned the takeover and announced their support for public resistance. KNU says it has been sheltering hundreds of people, who have fled central Myanmar amid mounting violence in recent weeks. (With inputs from agencies)

'Thousands flee to Thailand after Myanmar army's air strikes on villages'  

A Pakistani court directed authorities to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the organisers of this year's Aurat March in Islamabad for allegedly displaying 'obscene posters' and making sacrilegious remarks against religious personalities.&nbsp;

A local court in Karachi directed on Saturday the police to record the statement of an applicant and, if any cognizable offence was made out, then register an FIR against the organisers of the march in Islamabad, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported.&nbsp;

The Aurat March is an annually-held demonstration, organised in various cities of Pakistan including Lahore, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Karachi, Islamabad and Peshawar to observe International Women's Day.&nbsp;

The directive comes two days after a similar order was issued by a local court in Peshawar, which had ordered the registration of an FIR on Thursday.&nbsp;

On Saturday, the additional district and sessions judge (South) gave this direction to the Station House Officer (SHO) of the City Courts police station on an application, filed by Advocate G M Arain under Section 22-A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) against the same SHO for allegedly not entertaining his request to register an FIR against the organisers of the Aurat March. &nbsp;

In the application, Arain contended that the respondents, including Marvi Sarmad, Tooba Syed and others, had organised an event by the name of Aurat March in Islamabad on March 8.&nbsp;

He further mentioned that vulgar and anti-Islam slogans were raised during the event. According to Dawn, the applicant stated that he, along with other members of the Karachi Bar Association, had watched the event's telecast on television channels from the capital.&nbsp;

He alleged that during the event, sacrilegious remarks were made about respectable religious personalities and their wives, adding that provocative slogans were also raised. &nbsp;

Earlier this month, a video from the demonstration held in Karachi was doctored to falsely show participants raising blasphemous slogans and widely shared online. The organisers of Aurat March clarified that the participants of the march did not raise such slogans and their video was edited to defame their struggle. &nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

A Pakistani court directed authorities to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the organisers of this year's Aurat March in Islamabad for allegedly displaying 'obscene posters' and making sacrilegious remarks against religious personalities.

A Pakistani court directed authorities to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the organisers of this year's Aurat March in Islamabad for allegedly displaying 'obscene posters' and making sacrilegious remarks against religious personalities. A local court in Karachi directed on Saturday the police to record the statement of an applicant and, if any cognizable offence was made out, then register an FIR against the organisers of the march in Islamabad, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported. The Aurat March is an annually-held demonstration, organised in various cities of Pakistan including Lahore, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Karachi, Islamabad and Peshawar to observe International Women's Day. The directive comes two days after a similar order was issued by a local court in Peshawar, which had ordered the registration of an FIR on Thursday. On Saturday, the additional district and sessions judge (South) gave this direction to the Station House Officer (SHO) of the City Courts police station on an application, filed by Advocate G M Arain under Section 22-A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) against the same SHO for allegedly not entertaining his request to register an FIR against the organisers of the Aurat March. In the application, Arain contended that the respondents, including Marvi Sarmad, Tooba Syed and others, had organised an event by the name of Aurat March in Islamabad on March 8. He further mentioned that vulgar and anti-Islam slogans were raised during the event. According to Dawn, the applicant stated that he, along with other members of the Karachi Bar Association, had watched the event's telecast on television channels from the capital. He alleged that during the event, sacrilegious remarks were made about respectable religious personalities and their wives, adding that provocative slogans were also raised. Earlier this month, a video from the demonstration held in Karachi was doctored to falsely show participants raising blasphemous slogans and widely shared online. The organisers of Aurat March clarified that the participants of the march did not raise such slogans and their video was edited to defame their struggle. (With inputs from agencies)

Pak court orders registration of FIR against Aurat March organisers  

An Indonesian cathedral was rocked by a suicide bombing on Sunday that wounded 20 as worshippers celebrated the start of Holy Week, an attack slammed by the country's president as an 'act of terror'.&nbsp;

Two suspects behind the powerful blast were killed as they rode a motorbike into the compound of the church in Makassar city on Sulawesi island, authorities said.&nbsp;

"A suicide bombing occurred at the cathedral in Makassar," Indonesia's chief security minister Mahfud MD told reporters in the capital Jakarta.&nbsp;

"The two (bombers) died."&nbsp;

Authorities had not previously confirmed that the bombing, which happened around 10:30 am local time (0330 GMT), was a suicide attack. &nbsp;

Twenty church officials, congregants and security staff were injured by debris from the blast, authorities said.&nbsp;

A church security guard tried to prevent the two perpetrators, who have not been identified, from entering when the explosion occurred, they added.&nbsp;

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he 'strongly condemned this act of terror'. "Terrorism is a crime against humanity," he said. "I call on everyone to fight against terror and radicalism, which go against religious values."&nbsp;

One witness described hearing two 'very strong' blasts and then seeing plumes of smoke.&nbsp;

"There were several injured people on the street. I helped one woman... who was wounded and covered in blood," Yosi said.&nbsp;

"Her grandchild was also injured. There were body parts everywhere."&nbsp;

It was not clear if the victims' wounds were life-threatening.&nbsp;

"We were finishing the service and people were going home when it happened," Pastor Wilhelmus Tulak told reporters.&nbsp;

Forensic investigators have been poring over body parts scattered at the scene in a bid to determine the attackers' identities.&nbsp;

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.&nbsp;

Churches have been targeted in the past by extremists in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority nation and home to several religious minorities including Christians, Buddhists and Hindus.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

An Indonesian cathedral was rocked by a suicide bombing on Sunday that wounded 20 as worshippers celebrated the start of Holy Week, an attack slammed by the country's president as an 'act of terror'.

An Indonesian cathedral was rocked by a suicide bombing on Sunday that wounded 20 as worshippers celebrated the start of Holy Week, an attack slammed by the country's president as an 'act of terror'. Two suspects behind the powerful blast were killed as they rode a motorbike into the compound of the church in Makassar city on Sulawesi island, authorities said. "A suicide bombing occurred at the cathedral in Makassar," Indonesia's chief security minister Mahfud MD told reporters in the capital Jakarta. "The two (bombers) died." Authorities had not previously confirmed that the bombing, which happened around 10:30 am local time (0330 GMT), was a suicide attack. Twenty church officials, congregants and security staff were injured by debris from the blast, authorities said. A church security guard tried to prevent the two perpetrators, who have not been identified, from entering when the explosion occurred, they added. Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he 'strongly condemned this act of terror'. "Terrorism is a crime against humanity," he said. "I call on everyone to fight against terror and radicalism, which go against religious values." One witness described hearing two 'very strong' blasts and then seeing plumes of smoke. "There were several injured people on the street. I helped one woman... who was wounded and covered in blood," Yosi said. "Her grandchild was also injured. There were body parts everywhere." It was not clear if the victims' wounds were life-threatening. "We were finishing the service and people were going home when it happened," Pastor Wilhelmus Tulak told reporters. Forensic investigators have been poring over body parts scattered at the scene in a bid to determine the attackers' identities. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. Churches have been targeted in the past by extremists in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority nation and home to several religious minorities including Christians, Buddhists and Hindus. (With inputs from agencies)

Indonesian president slams suicide attack at church as an 'act of terror' 

Pope Francis led Palm Sunday services in an almost empty St Peter's Basilica because of coronavirus restrictions for the second consecutive year and said the devil is taking advantage of the pandemic.&nbsp;

In pre-coronavirus times, Palm Sunday, which marks the start of Holy Week and leads to Easter, tens of thousands of people would pack St Peter's Square holding olive branches and intricately woven palm fronds in an outdoor ceremony.&nbsp;

Instead, only about 120 members of the faithful participated in Sunday's Mass, joining the pope and about 30 cardinals in a secondary wing of the huge basilica.&nbsp;

"Last year, we were shocked. This year, we are more under pressure and the economic crisis has become heavy," Francis said, in his traditional Sunday noon address after the Mass.&nbsp;

Italy is in the midst of another national lockdown, which is due to end after Easter. On Wednesday, the pope ordered cardinals and other clerics to take pay cuts to save the jobs of other employees.&nbsp;

"The Devil is taking advantage of the crisis to sow distrust, desperation and discord," he said, adding that the pandemic had brought physical, psychological and spiritual suffering.&nbsp;

Since he was elected in 2013, Francis has made clear that he believes the devil to be real, saying in a 2018 document that it was mistaken to consider him a myth.&nbsp;

In both his homily during the Mass and his comments afterward, Francis said the pandemic made it more important than ever to look after those in difficulty, the poor and the suffering.&nbsp;

Nearly everyone, who took part in the Mass, except the pope and the choir, wore masks.&nbsp;

In a small-scale version of a traditional Palm Sunday service, the 84-year-old pope and the cardinals processed to the altar holding palm fronds.&nbsp;

Palm Sunday commemorates the day the gospels say Jesus rode into Jerusalem and was hailed by the people, only to be crucified five days later.&nbsp;

During the Mass, the pope had a pronounced limp. He suffers from sciatica, which causes pain in his legs when it flares up.&nbsp;

The remainder of the pope's Holy Week services - Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter next Sunday, will also take place with a limited number of participants.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Pope Francis led Palm Sunday services in an almost empty St Peter's Basilica because of coronavirus restrictions for the second consecutive year and said the devil is taking advantage of the pandemic.

Pope Francis led Palm Sunday services in an almost empty St Peter's Basilica because of coronavirus restrictions for the second consecutive year and said the devil is taking advantage of the pandemic. In pre-coronavirus times, Palm Sunday, which marks the start of Holy Week and leads to Easter, tens of thousands of people would pack St Peter's Square holding olive branches and intricately woven palm fronds in an outdoor ceremony. Instead, only about 120 members of the faithful participated in Sunday's Mass, joining the pope and about 30 cardinals in a secondary wing of the huge basilica. "Last year, we were shocked. This year, we are more under pressure and the economic crisis has become heavy," Francis said, in his traditional Sunday noon address after the Mass. Italy is in the midst of another national lockdown, which is due to end after Easter. On Wednesday, the pope ordered cardinals and other clerics to take pay cuts to save the jobs of other employees. "The Devil is taking advantage of the crisis to sow distrust, desperation and discord," he said, adding that the pandemic had brought physical, psychological and spiritual suffering. Since he was elected in 2013, Francis has made clear that he believes the devil to be real, saying in a 2018 document that it was mistaken to consider him a myth. In both his homily during the Mass and his comments afterward, Francis said the pandemic made it more important than ever to look after those in difficulty, the poor and the suffering. Nearly everyone, who took part in the Mass, except the pope and the choir, wore masks. In a small-scale version of a traditional Palm Sunday service, the 84-year-old pope and the cardinals processed to the altar holding palm fronds. Palm Sunday commemorates the day the gospels say Jesus rode into Jerusalem and was hailed by the people, only to be crucified five days later. During the Mass, the pope had a pronounced limp. He suffers from sciatica, which causes pain in his legs when it flares up. The remainder of the pope's Holy Week services - Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter next Sunday, will also take place with a limited number of participants. (With inputs from agencies)

On Palm Sunday, Pope says devil taking advantage of pandemic 

The Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen's Houthi forces has destroyed two explosive-laden boats that the Iran-aligned group planned to use in an 'imminent' attack launched from the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Saudi state media reported on Sunday.&nbsp;

The coalition in separate statements also said it intercepted and destroyed three armed drones launched towards southern Saudi Arabia, including the city of Khamis Mushait.&nbsp;

The Houthis, who ousted Yemen's internationally recognised government from the capital, Sanaa, and now hold most of north Yemen, have kept up missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia after Riyadh last week presented a new peace initiative.&nbsp;

US Special Envoy Tim Lenderking on Thursday returned to the region to push for the initiative, which includes a nationwide ceasefire.&nbsp;

The Houthis want the coalition to fully lift its sea and air blockade on areas the group controls.&nbsp;

The conflict, seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, has caused what the United Nations says is the world's largest humanitarian crisis.&nbsp;

The Houthis say they are fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

The Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen's Houthi forces has destroyed two explosive-laden boats that the Iran-aligned group planned to use in an 'imminent' attack launched from the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Saudi state media reported on Sunday.

The Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen's Houthi forces has destroyed two explosive-laden boats that the Iran-aligned group planned to use in an 'imminent' attack launched from the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Saudi state media reported on Sunday. The coalition in separate statements also said it intercepted and destroyed three armed drones launched towards southern Saudi Arabia, including the city of Khamis Mushait. The Houthis, who ousted Yemen's internationally recognised government from the capital, Sanaa, and now hold most of north Yemen, have kept up missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia after Riyadh last week presented a new peace initiative. US Special Envoy Tim Lenderking on Thursday returned to the region to push for the initiative, which includes a nationwide ceasefire. The Houthis want the coalition to fully lift its sea and air blockade on areas the group controls. The conflict, seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, has caused what the United Nations says is the world's largest humanitarian crisis. The Houthis say they are fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression. (With inputs from agencies)

Saudi-led coalition destroys Houthi rigged boats, drones: Report 

The Philippine military is sending light fighter aircraft to fly over hundreds of Chinese vessels in disputed waters in the South China Sea, its defence minister said, as he repeated his demand the flotilla be withdrawn immediately.&nbsp;

International concern is growing over what the Philippines has described as a 'swarming and threatening presence' of more than 200 Chinese vessels that Manila believes were manned by maritime militia.&nbsp;

The boats were moored at the Whitsun Reef within Manila's 200-mile exclusive economic zone.&nbsp;

The Philippine military aircraft were sent daily to monitor the situation, Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in a statement late on Saturday.&nbsp;

Lorenzana said the military will also beef up its naval presence in the South China Sea to conduct 'sovereignty patrols' and protect Filipino fishermen.&nbsp;

"Our air and sea assets are ready to protect our sovereignty and sovereign rights," Lorenzana said.&nbsp;

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has said the vessels at Whitsun Reef were fishing boats taking refuge from rough seas and that there were no militia aboard.&nbsp;

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte reaffirmed to China's ambassador, Huang Xilian, the Philippines had won a landmark arbitration case in 2016, which made clear its sovereign entitlements amid rival claims by China, his spokesman said last week.&nbsp;

Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, China and Vietnam have competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, through which at least $3.4 trillion of annual trade passes.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

The Philippine military is sending light fighter aircraft to fly over hundreds of Chinese vessels in disputed waters in the South China Sea, its defence minister said, as he repeated his demand the flotilla be withdrawn immediately.

The Philippine military is sending light fighter aircraft to fly over hundreds of Chinese vessels in disputed waters in the South China Sea, its defence minister said, as he repeated his demand the flotilla be withdrawn immediately. International concern is growing over what the Philippines has described as a 'swarming and threatening presence' of more than 200 Chinese vessels that Manila believes were manned by maritime militia. The boats were moored at the Whitsun Reef within Manila's 200-mile exclusive economic zone. The Philippine military aircraft were sent daily to monitor the situation, Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in a statement late on Saturday. Lorenzana said the military will also beef up its naval presence in the South China Sea to conduct 'sovereignty patrols' and protect Filipino fishermen. "Our air and sea assets are ready to protect our sovereignty and sovereign rights," Lorenzana said. The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has said the vessels at Whitsun Reef were fishing boats taking refuge from rough seas and that there were no militia aboard. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte reaffirmed to China's ambassador, Huang Xilian, the Philippines had won a landmark arbitration case in 2016, which made clear its sovereign entitlements amid rival claims by China, his spokesman said last week. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, China and Vietnam have competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, through which at least $3.4 trillion of annual trade passes. (With inputs from agencies)

Philippines sends fighter aircraft over Chinese vessels in South China Sea

Myanmar army fighter jets launched air strikes on Saturday on a village near the Thai border in territory controlled by an armed ethnic group, the group said, as fears grow of civil war following last month's military coup.&nbsp;

The Karen National Union (KNU), the armed ethnic group that controls the southeastern region, said fighter jets attacked Day Pu No in Papun district, an area held by its Brigade 5 forces, at around 8 pm, forcing villagers to flee.&nbsp;

"They bombed the area... The villagers from that area said two dead and two injured," a spokesperson for civil society group Karen Peace Support Network said, adding that communication was difficult in the remote region and there could be more casualties.&nbsp;

A spokesman for the junta did not answer phone calls seeking comment.&nbsp;

The reported air assault is the most significant attack for years in the region. The KNU had signed a ceasefire agreement in 2015 but tensions surged after the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government on February 1.&nbsp;

Earlier on Saturday, the KNU said Brigade 5 forces overran an army base, killing 10 soldiers including a lieutenant-colonel, as the junta celebrated its annual Armed Forces Day with a parade in the capital, Naypyitaw.&nbsp;

The KNU says it has been sheltering hundreds of people, who have fled central Myanmar amid mounting violence in recent weeks. The junta's troops killed dozens of people on Saturday, including children, in one of the bloodiest days of protests since the coup, news reports and witnesses said.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies) &nbsp;&nbsp;

Myanmar army fighter jets launched air strikes on Saturday on a village near the Thai border in territory controlled by an armed ethnic group, the group said, as fears grow of civil war following last month's military coup.

Myanmar army fighter jets launched air strikes on Saturday on a village near the Thai border in territory controlled by an armed ethnic group, the group said, as fears grow of civil war following last month's military coup. The Karen National Union (KNU), the armed ethnic group that controls the southeastern region, said fighter jets attacked Day Pu No in Papun district, an area held by its Brigade 5 forces, at around 8 pm, forcing villagers to flee. "They bombed the area... The villagers from that area said two dead and two injured," a spokesperson for civil society group Karen Peace Support Network said, adding that communication was difficult in the remote region and there could be more casualties. A spokesman for the junta did not answer phone calls seeking comment. The reported air assault is the most significant attack for years in the region. The KNU had signed a ceasefire agreement in 2015 but tensions surged after the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government on February 1. Earlier on Saturday, the KNU said Brigade 5 forces overran an army base, killing 10 soldiers including a lieutenant-colonel, as the junta celebrated its annual Armed Forces Day with a parade in the capital, Naypyitaw. The KNU says it has been sheltering hundreds of people, who have fled central Myanmar amid mounting violence in recent weeks. The junta's troops killed dozens of people on Saturday, including children, in one of the bloodiest days of protests since the coup, news reports and witnesses said. (With inputs from agencies)

Myanmar army launches air strikes in Karen state, says group 

At the end of a winding answer Thursday about competing with China and about his relationship with Xi Jinping, a man he said does not have a democratic “bone in his body,” President Joe Biden offered up a revealing assessment of one of America’s most pressing challenges.

“This is a battle between the utility of democracies in the 21st century and autocracies,” he told reporters at his first news conference as president. “We’ve got to prove democracy works.”

China’s president, Xi, Biden said bluntly, was “a smart, smart guy” who shared with President Vladimir Putin of Russia a belief that “autocracy is the wave of the future and democracy can’t function” in the complexities of the modern world.

Among the biggest tasks of his presidency, Biden seemed to be arguing, is to prove anew to a skeptical world that both American democracy and its model of democratic capitalism still works — and that it is superior to the very different system Xi is ruthlessly enforcing at home as he tries to extend China’s influence around the world.

For a president barely 10 weeks into office, casting the United States as confronting a global struggle with the Chinese model has some clear political benefits. One of the few issues that unites Democrats and Republicans is the need to compete head-on with Beijing. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said Monday that the Chinese have already taken notice.

“They recognize in many ways that we are now finally awakened to the challenge,” he said this week at the Atlantic Council. “And I would call it a bipartisan awakening.”

Biden’s aides say his view of the Chinese challenge is not solely one of foreign policy. He plans to make full use of the fear of Beijing’s ambitions as he introduces his infrastructure initiative next week.

There will be hundreds of billions of dollars for technologies and projects that the Chinese are also pouring cash into, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence and 5G networks, as well as big breakthroughs in electric cars and synthetic biotechnology.

On Friday, Biden said he suggested to Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain that the big Western democracies work together to counter China’s ambitious efforts to build better trade routes around the world, a project called the Belt and Road Initiative. The project is one of China’s main instruments for influencing nations in its economic orbit by investing in ports, rail lines, roads and other infrastructure in Asia, Africa and Europe.

“We talked about China and the competition they’re engaging in in the Belt and Road Initiative,” Biden said. “And I suggested we should have, essentially, a similar initiative coming from the democratic states, helping those communities around the world.”

There is a striking similarity between Biden’s list and Xi’s “Made in China 2025” initiative — which was first announced six years ago as an effort to make China largely independent of Western suppliers for critical technology.

At the core of Biden’s infrastructure and supply-chain initiatives is an effort — parts of which began in the Trump years — to ensure the West is not dependent on Chinese technology. It is a battle that blossomed over Huawei, the maker of next-generation communications networks, but has now spread to fears that Chinese apps like TikTok could be a pathway for attacks on American infrastructure.

“China is outinvesting us by a long shot,” Biden said, previewing his argument, “because their plan is to own that future.”

It is a time-tested approach: President Dwight D. Eisenhower used the launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, to spur a military and civilian space race, and President John F. Kennedy picked up on the theme in setting the goal for landing a man on the moon.

A decade ago, President Barack Obama used his State of the Union address to call for a “Sputnik moment” of public investment, also using China as a spur, but the effort fell flat.

Yet for all the unanimity around the China challenge, it is far from clear whether Biden’s political strategy will work.

Republicans object to both the huge government spending in the Biden plan and to the overhang of debt it would create. And there seems bound to be a rerun of the arguments, dating to the 1980s, over whether a federal “industrial policy” — where taxpayer dollars are poured directly into technologies in which the United States judges it must stay ahead — that creates a competitive advantage for America makes sense or just squelches the innovations of Silicon Valley.

No matter how that plays out, Biden is casting the United States’ current competition in very different terms than his predecessors did. “Look, I predict to you,” he said, “your children or grandchildren are going to be doing their doctoral thesis on the issue of who succeeded: autocracy or democracy? Because that is what is at stake, not just China.”

Most notable was what was missing. There was no talk of American “exceptionalism,” just a shorter-term assurance that “on my watch,” China would not reach its overall goal “to become the leading country in the world, the wealthiest country in the world, and the most powerful country in the world.”

Biden was also careful not to make Cold War analogies; in fact, he noted that what was missing now was much of an ideological contest. (“You don’t have Russia talking about communism anymore,” he noted.) He has always said he would cooperate with adversaries, and on Friday he invited Xi and Putin to a virtual climate summit meeting he is hosting in April. He speaks of competition, not containment.

“I see stiff competition with China,” Biden said, over everything from chips to national values, which he added was the key to his two-hour conversation with Xi. And that, he said, meant pushing back on China’s stripping of rights in Hong Kong or on its harsh repression of Muslim minorities.

“The moment a president walks away from that, as the last one did,” he said, taking a dig at former President Donald Trump, “is the moment we begin to lose our legitimacy around the world.”

Still, Biden’s discussion of an open contest between two similarly sized superpowers was a significant change for U.S. presidents.

A quarter-century ago, President Bill Clinton would make the case — oftentimes, during visits to Beijing — that the arrival of the internet would force China to embrace an more American-style democracy. Clearly, that did not work out.

President George W. Bush stressed areas where Chinese and American interests overlapped — counterterrorism and North Korea were the two he mentioned the most — but never cast China as a technological equal. Obama would always say the United States “welcomes the rise of China” and recognized that it could not contain the country if it wanted to, so it would be foolish to try.

And Trump spent three years imposing tariffs and insisting he would cut the deal of the century with China, and one year castigating it as the exporter of the coronavirus, while his secretary of state at the time, Mike Pompeo, insisted that over time, the Communist Party would collapse.

Now, Biden’s team says it is assembling a strategy built more around competition than containment.

“I don’t think China is on a mission to export its model abroad and undermine democracy abroad,” said Thomas J. Christensen, a Columbia professor and former State Department official dealing with China during the Bush administration. “But I do think they are on a mission to defend their model from criticism and defend single-party authoritarian rule.”

Christensen published an essay this week in Foreign Affairs titled, “There Will Not Be a New Cold War,” arguing that American allies were “too economically dependent on China to adopt entirely hostile policies,” and that the United States’ advantage was that it had allies and partners who ranked among the greatest technological powers in the world.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken seemed to acknowledge that this week when, on a visit to Brussels, he assured the Europeans that he would not force them to make an “us or them choice.”

The Biden camp’s calculation seems to be that it is more important to hold allies together than to ensure that each one cuts off its dependency on Chinese technology or investment.

The problem will come, as Blinken notes, as China lashes out at those who criticize its actions at home, in the South China Sea, or against Taiwan. “When one of us is coerced,” he said, “we should respond as allies and work together to reduce our vulnerability by ensuring our economies are more integrated with each other.” Which sounds a lot like creating opposing camps.

At the end of a winding answer Thursday about competing with China and about his relationship with Xi Jinping, a man he said does not have a democratic “bone in his body,” President Joe Biden offered up a revealing assessment of one of America’s most pressing challenges.

At the end of a winding answer Thursday about competing with China and about his relationship with Xi Jinping, a man he said does not have a democratic “bone in his body,” President Joe Biden offered up a revealing assessment of one of America’s most pressing challenges. “This is a battle between the utility of democracies in the 21st century and autocracies,” he told reporters at his first news conference as president. “We’ve got to prove democracy works.” China’s president, Xi, Biden said bluntly, was “a smart, smart guy” who shared with President Vladimir Putin of Russia a belief that “autocracy is the wave of the future and democracy can’t function” in the complexities of the modern world. Among the biggest tasks of his presidency, Biden seemed to be arguing, is to prove anew to a skeptical world that both American democracy and its model of democratic capitalism still works — and that it is superior to the very different system Xi is ruthlessly enforcing at home as he tries to extend China’s influence around the world. For a president barely 10 weeks into office, casting the United States as confronting a global struggle with the Chinese model has some clear political benefits. One of the few issues that unites Democrats and Republicans is the need to compete head-on with Beijing. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said Monday that the Chinese have already taken notice. “They recognize in many ways that we are now finally awakened to the challenge,” he said this week at the Atlantic Council. “And I would call it a bipartisan awakening.” Biden’s aides say his view of the Chinese challenge is not solely one of foreign policy. He plans to make full use of the fear of Beijing’s ambitions as he introduces his infrastructure initiative next week. There will be hundreds of billions of dollars for technologies and projects that the Chinese are also pouring cash into, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence and 5G networks, as well as big breakthroughs in electric cars and synthetic biotechnology. On Friday, Biden said he suggested to Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain that the big Western democracies work together to counter China’s ambitious efforts to build better trade routes around the world, a project called the Belt and Road Initiative. The project is one of China’s main instruments for influencing nations in its economic orbit by investing in ports, rail lines, roads and other infrastructure in Asia, Africa and Europe. “We talked about China and the competition they’re engaging in in the Belt and Road Initiative,” Biden said. “And I suggested we should have, essentially, a similar initiative coming from the democratic states, helping those communities around the world.” There is a striking similarity between Biden’s list and Xi’s “Made in China 2025” initiative — which was first announced six years ago as an effort to make China largely independent of Western suppliers for critical technology. At the core of Biden’s infrastructure and supply-chain initiatives is an effort — parts of which began in the Trump years — to ensure the West is not dependent on Chinese technology. It is a battle that blossomed over Huawei, the maker of next-generation communications networks, but has now spread to fears that Chinese apps like TikTok could be a pathway for attacks on American infrastructure. “China is outinvesting us by a long shot,” Biden said, previewing his argument, “because their plan is to own that future.” It is a time-tested approach: President Dwight D. Eisenhower used the launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, to spur a military and civilian space race, and President John F. Kennedy picked up on the theme in setting the goal for landing a man on the moon. A decade ago, President Barack Obama used his State of the Union address to call for a “Sputnik moment” of public investment, also using China as a spur, but the effort fell flat. Yet for all the unanimity around the China challenge, it is far from clear whether Biden’s political strategy will work. Republicans object to both the huge government spending in the Biden plan and to the overhang of debt it would create. And there seems bound to be a rerun of the arguments, dating to the 1980s, over whether a federal “industrial policy” — where taxpayer dollars are poured directly into technologies in which the United States judges it must stay ahead — that creates a competitive advantage for America makes sense or just squelches the innovations of Silicon Valley. No matter how that plays out, Biden is casting the United States’ current competition in very different terms than his predecessors did. “Look, I predict to you,” he said, “your children or grandchildren are going to be doing their doctoral thesis on the issue of who succeeded: autocracy or democracy? Because that is what is at stake, not just China.” Most notable was what was missing. There was no talk of American “exceptionalism,” just a shorter-term assurance that “on my watch,” China would not reach its overall goal “to become the leading country in the world, the wealthiest country in the world, and the most powerful country in the world.” Biden was also careful not to make Cold War analogies; in fact, he noted that what was missing now was much of an ideological contest. (“You don’t have Russia talking about communism anymore,” he noted.) He has always said he would cooperate with adversaries, and on Friday he invited Xi and Putin to a virtual climate summit meeting he is hosting in April. He speaks of competition, not containment. “I see stiff competition with China,” Biden said, over everything from chips to national values, which he added was the key to his two-hour conversation with Xi. And that, he said, meant pushing back on China’s stripping of rights in Hong Kong or on its harsh repression of Muslim minorities. “The moment a president walks away from that, as the last one did,” he said, taking a dig at former President Donald Trump, “is the moment we begin to lose our legitimacy around the world.” Still, Biden’s discussion of an open contest between two similarly sized superpowers was a significant change for U.S. presidents. A quarter-century ago, President Bill Clinton would make the case — oftentimes, during visits to Beijing — that the arrival of the internet would force China to embrace an more American-style democracy. Clearly, that did not work out. President George W. Bush stressed areas where Chinese and American interests overlapped — counterterrorism and North Korea were the two he mentioned the most — but never cast China as a technological equal. Obama would always say the United States “welcomes the rise of China” and recognized that it could not contain the country if it wanted to, so it would be foolish to try. And Trump spent three years imposing tariffs and insisting he would cut the deal of the century with China, and one year castigating it as the exporter of the coronavirus, while his secretary of state at the time, Mike Pompeo, insisted that over time, the Communist Party would collapse. Now, Biden’s team says it is assembling a strategy built more around competition than containment. “I don’t think China is on a mission to export its model abroad and undermine democracy abroad,” said Thomas J. Christensen, a Columbia professor and former State Department official dealing with China during the Bush administration. “But I do think they are on a mission to defend their model from criticism and defend single-party authoritarian rule.” Christensen published an essay this week in Foreign Affairs titled, “There Will Not Be a New Cold War,” arguing that American allies were “too economically dependent on China to adopt entirely hostile policies,” and that the United States’ advantage was that it had allies and partners who ranked among the greatest technological powers in the world. Secretary of State Antony Blinken seemed to acknowledge that this week when, on a visit to Brussels, he assured the Europeans that he would not force them to make an “us or them choice.” The Biden camp’s calculation seems to be that it is more important to hold allies together than to ensure that each one cuts off its dependency on Chinese technology or investment. The problem will come, as Blinken notes, as China lashes out at those who criticize its actions at home, in the South China Sea, or against Taiwan. “When one of us is coerced,” he said, “we should respond as allies and work together to reduce our vulnerability by ensuring our economies are more integrated with each other.” Which sounds a lot like creating opposing camps.

Biden defines his underlying challenge with China: ‘Prove democracy works’

Gunshots were fired at the US cultural centre in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon on Saturday but caused no injuries, an embassy spokesperson said.&nbsp;

The United States has been strident in its criticism of the junta that seized power in Myanmar on February 1 and the killing of hundreds of anti-coup protesters by security forces.&nbsp;

"We can confirm that shots were fired at the American Center Yangon on March 27. There were no injuries. We are investigating the incident," embassy spokesperson Aryani Manring said.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, Myanmar's security forces shot and killed at least 91 people - including a young boy - on Saturday, news reports and witnesses said, even as the ruling junta's leader said the military would protect the people and strive for democracy.&nbsp;

Protesters against the February 1 military coup came out on the streets of Yangon, Mandalay and other towns, defying a warning that they could be shot 'in the head and back', while the country's generals celebrated Armed Forces Day.&nbsp;

"Today is a day of shame for the armed forces," Dr Sasa, a spokesman for CRPH, an anti-junta group set up by deposed lawmakers, told an online forum.&nbsp;

The deaths on Saturday, one of the bloodiest days since the coup, would take the number of civilians reported killed to nearly 400. Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in parts of Myanmar on Saturday.&nbsp;

A boy reported by local media to be as young as five was among at least 13 people killed in Myanmar's second city of Mandalay. The Myanmar Now news portal said 64 people had been killed in total across the country by 2.30 pm (0800 GMT).&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Gunshots were fired at the US cultural centre in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon on Saturday but caused no injuries, an embassy spokesperson said. The United States has been strident in its criticism of the junta that seized power in Myanmar on February 1 and the killing of hundreds of anti-coup protesters by security forces.

Gunshots were fired at the US cultural centre in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon on Saturday but caused no injuries, an embassy spokesperson said. The United States has been strident in its criticism of the junta that seized power in Myanmar on February 1 and the killing of hundreds of anti-coup protesters by security forces. "We can confirm that shots were fired at the American Center Yangon on March 27. There were no injuries. We are investigating the incident," embassy spokesperson Aryani Manring said. Meanwhile, Myanmar's security forces shot and killed at least 91 people - including a young boy - on Saturday, news reports and witnesses said, even as the ruling junta's leader said the military would protect the people and strive for democracy. Protesters against the February 1 military coup came out on the streets of Yangon, Mandalay and other towns, defying a warning that they could be shot 'in the head and back', while the country's generals celebrated Armed Forces Day. "Today is a day of shame for the armed forces," Dr Sasa, a spokesman for CRPH, an anti-junta group set up by deposed lawmakers, told an online forum. The deaths on Saturday, one of the bloodiest days since the coup, would take the number of civilians reported killed to nearly 400. Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in parts of Myanmar on Saturday. A boy reported by local media to be as young as five was among at least 13 people killed in Myanmar's second city of Mandalay. The Myanmar Now news portal said 64 people had been killed in total across the country by 2.30 pm (0800 GMT). (With inputs from agencies)

Gunshots fired at US cultural centre in Myanmar, says embassy 

Video gamers can significantly improve their esport skills by training for just 10 minutes a day, a new study revealed.&nbsp;

The study also found that novice gamers benefited most when they wore a custom headset delivering transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) for 20 minutes before training sessions.&nbsp;

"Our study found that novice gamers who received tDCS over their motor cortex before training improved their performance on the specific task over five days, significantly more than novices who trained following no such stimulus," said researcher Mark Campbell, director of Lero's Esports Science Research Lab (ESRL).&nbsp;

For the study, published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, the participants wore a custom headset designed to deliver transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS).&nbsp;

However, some received no stimulation, others just a 'sham' treatment, while the remainder received a 20-minute exposure.&nbsp;

"One of the original and most prominent esports over the past 20 years has been the first-person shooter (FPS) game, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO)," the researcher said.&nbsp;

"We asked participants to shoot and eliminate enemy targets as quickly and accurately as possible during their training sessions in the study," they added.&nbsp;

According to the researchers, when they examined the effect of tDCS on training compared to non-stimulated groups, they observed a significant effect of tDCS on training for left and right targets, but not centre targets.&nbsp;

The researchers said that in light of the team's findings, tDCS may be especially beneficial during the initial stages of task learning.&nbsp;

"Stroke patients, for example, could benefit from tDCS at the start of their rehabilitation process when re-learning complex movements that were once automatic," Campbell said.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Video gamers can significantly improve their esport skills by training for just 10 minutes a day, a new study revealed. The study also found that novice gamers benefited most when they wore a custom headset delivering transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) for 20 minutes before training sessions.

Video gamers can significantly improve their esport skills by training for just 10 minutes a day, a new study revealed. The study also found that novice gamers benefited most when they wore a custom headset delivering transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) for 20 minutes before training sessions. "Our study found that novice gamers who received tDCS over their motor cortex before training improved their performance on the specific task over five days, significantly more than novices who trained following no such stimulus," said researcher Mark Campbell, director of Lero's Esports Science Research Lab (ESRL). For the study, published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, the participants wore a custom headset designed to deliver transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS). However, some received no stimulation, others just a 'sham' treatment, while the remainder received a 20-minute exposure. "One of the original and most prominent esports over the past 20 years has been the first-person shooter (FPS) game, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO)," the researcher said. "We asked participants to shoot and eliminate enemy targets as quickly and accurately as possible during their training sessions in the study," they added. According to the researchers, when they examined the effect of tDCS on training compared to non-stimulated groups, they observed a significant effect of tDCS on training for left and right targets, but not centre targets. The researchers said that in light of the team's findings, tDCS may be especially beneficial during the initial stages of task learning. "Stroke patients, for example, could benefit from tDCS at the start of their rehabilitation process when re-learning complex movements that were once automatic," Campbell said. (With inputs from agencies)

10 minutes of video gaming every day may enhance esport skills 

Author

Zee News Rajasthan

Editor

Gandharv Walia

Home

Live Tv

Latest

World

India

Business

Entertainment

Sports

Opinions

Videos

Photos

Gravitas

Lifestyle

Science

Tech

Rajasthan News in Hindi: In-depth coverage of Rajasthan Crime, Political News, Education, Rajasthan Weather Update and Latest Rajasthan News on Zee News Rajasthan.