KUALA LUMPUR: Domestic travel will kickstart the recovery of Asean’s tourism sector with full recovery hinging on vaccination rates, according to panelists at Maybank Kim Eng’s webinar. We saw that in Thailand, Vietnam and to a lesser extent, Malaysia.” Hughes pointed out these three markets saw domestic destinations that were not in the Top 10 before now becoming popular. Benito C. Bengzon Jr., Undersecretary for Tourism Development, Department of Tourism, the Philippines noted that even before the onset of Covid-19, the country enjoyed a healthy domestic tourism sector, registering 110 million domestic trips that generated revenue five times bigger than revenue from inbound trips. “What we’ve seen over the last couple of months is that there’s been a lot of interest in opening up travel bubbles. The webinar was the fifth in the Invest Asean 2021 series, Maybank Kim Eng’s flagship annual investor conference that will run until August.

Claire Yap Jyn Wei, 6Older sibling Sophie Yap Jyn Qing, eight, doesn’t like frogs and toads because they are slimy and some species are poisonous. I like painting too, because I can paint what I am thinking.”Sophie Yap Jyn Qing, 8Six-year-old Adelyn Hui-Ling Yeo loves magic, music and ballet. Jodie Tan Li Juen, 12Jodie Tan Li Juen, 12, writes: “I have a sweet tooth so I crave sugary foods like ice cream and chocolate. I hate noises that disturb my focus when I’m studying.”Jayden Tan Li Sheng, 8Younger sibling Jayden Tan Li Sheng, eight, says: “Like my elder sister, I have a sweet tooth too. Asher Wang Qi Chuen, 3Asher Wang Qi Chuen, three, enjoys chatting, colouring, and eating different types of dairy products and Vitamin C tablets.

To the general public, home-based Learning and Teaching (PdPR), is simply an online learning method through the Zoom application, Google Meet, Google Classroom or Skype. However, she said, some parents did not take the module, prompting the teachers to try another approach this year by going to the students’ houses to send the modules. "Through these video lessons that I produced and uploaded onto YouTube, my students can have their lessons anytime and anywhere. "My advice to teachers is that we have to continue to explore various ways so that students can catch up and grasp what we want to convey. "As teachers, we know better what way is appropriate for our students,” she added.

PUTRAJAYA (July 9): Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob clocked in at the Deputy Prime Minister's Office at Perdana Putra here today to start his duty as the number two leader in the country’s administration. Clad in a blue suit, Ismail Sabri arrived at the Perdana Putra compound at 10am and was welcomed by the Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali and Senior Deputy Secretary-General of the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Jamil Rakon. Ismail Sabri, 61, was appointed deputy prime minister on Wednesday (July 7), while retaining the portfolio as Defence Minister. Through his Facebook page, Ismail Sabri expressed his gratitude for the appointment and regarded it as a bigger trust given to him. Ismail Sabri, who Bera Member of Parliament and UMNO vice-president, has vast experience in politics and government administration, having held several ministerial positions before, including as Minister of Youth and Sports, Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs and Minister of Rural and Regional Development.

On the face of it, you might think that the QAnon conspiracy has largely disappeared from big social media sites. When DFRLab analysed more than 40 million appearances of QAnon catchphrases and related terms on social media this spring, it found that their presence on mainstream platforms had declined significantly in recent months. It is more difficult to come across blatant QAnon accounts on mainstream social media sites these days, at least from the publicly available data that does not include, for instance, hidden Facebook groups and private messages. Carusone, for instance, noted that Facebook banned QAnon groups tied to violence six weeks before it banned QAnon more broadly. “If there were ever a time for a social media company to take a stand on QAnon content, it would have been like months ago, years ago,” DFRLabs’ Rizzuto said.

KUALA LUMPUR (July 9): Former Penang chief minister and Bagan member of Parliament (MP) Lim Guan Eng has applied for his undersea tunnel graft trial — which is supposed to begin at the Sessions Court next week — to be transferred to the High Court. Guan Eng also noted that according to Section 62 of the Act, the defendant has to file his defence first. Hence, I believe that my case is a fit and proper matter to be transferred to the High Court so the issues pertaining to Husdi's scase could be ventilated there," he said. Court has jurisdiction to transfer caseGuan Eng said the High Court has the jurisdiction under Section 417 and 418 of the Criminal Procedure Code to transfer this case to the High Court. The 60-year-old politician on Aug 7 last year claimed trial to corruptly solicited gratification to help CZC secure the undersea tunnel project.

There are three types of noise errors, according to the authors. The first is what they call “level noise”, which describes the difference in average levels of, for instance, strictness in interviewers. The optimal “experimental failure” level in a country is non-zero. Therefore, the optimal level of “noise” in an economy is non-zero. We need noise.

KUALA LUMPUR (July 9): Bursa Malaysia was slightly higher in early morning trade on bargain-hunting activities, which supported the benchmark index to stay above the 1,500-level. At 9.05am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 5.15 points to 1,513.86 from Thursday’s close of 1,508.71. “However, we believe bargain-hunting activities may emerge in the near term due to the significant selldown and oversold tone across the board. “Besides, bargain-hunting activities may emerge in sectors such as transportation and logistics and essential consumer stocks as well as technology stocks,” said Malacca Securities. Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index lifted 58.12 points to 14,934.98, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 0.11 of-a-point to 186.37, and the Plantation Index bagged 18.08 points to 6,294.92.

One of the world’s most exclusive clubs just got a new member, with a second aspirant knocking on the door. Steve Ballmer, the former chief executive officer of Microsoft Corp, has a net worth of more than US$100bil (RM418.15bil), making him the ninth person in the world to reach that lofty plateau. A rally in tech shares has fuelled the latest surge in wealth, with seven of those above the US$100bil (RM418.15bil) mark deriving their fortunes from technology companies. While the stock rally has boosted the fortunes of the world’s richest, it’s also renewed scrutiny of wealth inequality and taxes. Propublica, which cited Internal Revenue Service documents, said a spokesperson for Ballmer declined to answer specific questions.

“Rogue sellers (scammers) took advantage of the situation and started offering their products on social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and others. “Many buyers were scammed and until today, we still receive complaints from consumers scammed by these sellers on social media,” he said when contacted yesterday. Baskaran said for legitimate e-commerce platforms, the type of complaints received mostly touched on their refund and return policy which were said to be tedious and time-consuming. However, he noted that recently, some issues regarding refunds and return policies from legitimate e-commerce platforms have improved slightly. On sellers on social media platforms, Baskaran said many scammers posed as sellers.

AS TIMES get tougher, more people are showing their generosity by providing food to those who need it. The restaurant’s owner Tee Lee Ting, 50, said a kind-hearted individual first approached her before Phase One of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) for help to provide 30 packs of food. “Initially we gave out 30 packets of food to the needy in the evening. She noted that many among the poor who showed up for the free food comprised senior citizens. “We usually try to avoid including spicy food in the food packets, to cater to the older recipients.

Now that this activity is allowed, I will be out early in the morning cycling around my area. Azmin, who usually enjoys cycling in jungles, said he would just cycle near his house for now. “I have my own usual trails as I have been cycling for 20 years, but now I understand there are rules. “Outdoor sports like jogging, exercise activities, cycling, skateboarding, fishing, tennis, hiking, archery, golf and equestrian are allowed. “Local parks like Penang Botanic Gardens and Penang City Park will be open but parks under the supervision of Penang Water Supply Corporation will remain closed.

PETALING JAYA: As more people shop online due to movement restrictions from the Covid-19 pandemic, waste from e-commerce packaging is also increasing. However, he said the indiscriminate disposal of plastic waste would inadvertently “come full circle” when microplastics entered the food chain. Environment and waste management specialist Dr Theng Lee Chong believes that there is a huge amount of plastic waste being discarded although he has no information on the exact quantity. He also pointed out that there was a 20% increase in plastic waste recorded in 2018 compared to 2005. “Sometimes, I noticed that they would just dump them all together with general waste.

THE onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted everybody, including children and newborns. Malaysian babies born after March 18, 2020 (the day the first nationwide lockdown came into force), will only know a world in the grip of a pandemic. As long as the pandemic continues (along with movement restrictions), they certainly will not have the same opportunities to interact with others compared with children born before the pandemic began. Covid-19 has also changed the way newborn babies are cared for within the neonatal setting due to the wearing of masks. Babies have an uncanny ability to process faces, so will face processing in infants be adversely affected?

PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles star Goh Liu Ying is unsure whether the Tokyo Olympic Games will be her swansong. At 32, many are expecting Liu Ying to call it a day after completing her third Olympics appearance in Tokyo. She was not even expected to qualify for the Tokyo Games but she made it. Liu Ying has not given any hint that the Tokyo Games will be her last. By sealing a ticket in Tokyo, Liu Ying has become the first woman player to participate in three Olympics.