Asus' all-in-one PC series

Asus has introduced its ET2013 series of all-in-one PCs in the local market.
The Asus All-in-One PC ET2013 series is powered by the Intel Pentium dual core 2.9 GHz processor for responsive multitasking performance and energy efficiency. The 20” 16:9 HD+ LED backlighting gives crystal-clear images on screen while helping to reduce power consumption.
Its ultra-slim space-saving design makes easy to setup and use. The PC comes with 2GB DDR-3 RAM, 500GB Hard Disk, Intel HD graphics, built-in speakers, Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n), Gigabit LAN, Webcam, 2 USB 3.0 ports, 3 USB 2.0 ports, USB keyboard and mouse.

Financing depends on panel’s assessment: Goldstein

World Bank Country Director Ellen Goldstein on Tuesday said the decisions by the global lender regarding future project financing in Bangladesh depend on the outcome of its external panel's assessment.
“World Bank’s panel of internationally-recognised anti-corruption experts will issue a report assessing the adequacy of the Anti-Corruption Commission's investigation once they have had an opportunity to fully review and discuss the First Information Report (FIR)," she said.
"Decisions by the World Bank regarding future project financing and implementation would depend on the outcome of the external panel's assessment," said Goldstein.
Earlier on Monday, the ACC after a year-long inquiry into the allegation over Padma bridge project sued seven people for allegedly conspiring to indulge in bribery.
The accused include former secretary of the Bridges Division Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, but the anti-graft body did not include in the case former communications minister Syed Abul Hossain and former state minister for foreign affairs Abul Hasan Chowdhury

Top Gun to be released in 3D in 2013

A 3D version of Top Gun, starring Tom Cruise, will be released in selected Imax cinemas on 8 February next year. Paramount announced on Tuesday that the 1986 classic had been re-mastered from high-resolution original negative scans. The painstaking conversion of the movie, which has earned more than $350m worldwide, was overseen by Tony Scott. The late director, who died in August, had been looking into a Top Gun sequel with Cruise and Paramount. Together with Jerry Bruckheimer, they were scouting locations for Top Gun 2 before Scott's suicide. According to a report in the New York Times, plans have since been shelved. Top Gun in 3D will run in cinemas for six days ahead of the film's debut on Blu-ray.

Britney Spears is highest paid female musician of 2012

Although she didn't release any new music or go on tour this year, the 31-year-old made an estimated $58m (£36m) in the 12 months to May 2012.
In second place, Swift brought in around $57m thanks to her tour - which made more than $1m (£62,000) a night.
Lady Gaga, 2011's top earner, slipped to fourth with $52m (£32m).
A substantial part of Spears' income came from her stint as a judge on US X Factor, which was reportedly worth $15m (£9.3m).
Forbes magazine said the bulk of her earnings came from her 2011 album, Femme Fatale, which went Platinum in the US, and receipts from her world tour, which ran between June and December 2011.
Endorsements The pop star also earned a substantial amount from her popular perfume line with Elizabeth Arden and her endorsement deals.
However, the star does not have personal control of her finances, which have been managed by her father since 2008.
Jamie Spears was appointed the singer's conservator after she underwent psychiatric treatment in hospital, following a very public period of personal turmoil. He now shares the conservatorship with her fiance, Jason Trawick, although he has no say in her finances.
Forbes compiled the list after estimating income before tax, based on record sales, touring information merchandise sales and interviews with concert promoters, solicitors and managers.
Elsewhere in the list, 24-year-old R&B singer Rihanna moved up two places to number three, earning an estimated $53m from her Loud tour, hits such as We Found Love as well as a perfume line and lucrative endorsements.
Rounding off the top five was Katy Perry, 28, with an estimated $45m in earnings, helped by her California Dreams Tour which grossed nearly $60m, according to Forbes.
"What all these girls have in common is that they have smashes under their belts," marketing guru Steve Stoute told Forbes.
"Gaga [is] a pop culture icon because of her sensibilities. I think Rihanna has found the very thin space of being the alter ego of the good girl.
Along with Katy Perry, "they've completely dominated the charts in the past three years," he added.
Madonna, 54, scraped into the list in ninth place bringing in an estimated $30 million, which did not account for profits from her latest tour as it fell outside the time period Forbes considered for the ranking.
Despite their huge incomes, only eight of the top-earning women featured in Forbes list of the 25 best-paid musicians, partly due to family considerations, and partly because of how they are perceived within the industry as they get older.
Hip-hop mogul Dr Dre topped the overall list, earning $100 million (£62.3m), largely thanks to his lucrative range of high-end headphones.
Spears came seventh, and was the only woman to feature in the top 10.

"Phones" 96% Indians check their phones regularly: Survey

MUMBAI: A report by internet gear giant Cisco has revealed what we always suspected. An ever-networked Gen Y is practically making phones an intrinsic part of its daily routine. They wake up to check their updates -- often before brushing their teeth -- and fall asleep only after logging in to keep their status messages current. As phones become cheaper and mobile broadband proliferates, smartphone usage looks set to blur all previous boundaries.

Ninety percent of respondents to the Cisco Connected World 2012 report released earlier today check their phones as a matter of routine -- in India its even higher at 96%, according to this study. What's more, through the day, they continued to be glued to their handsets, with 60% of respondents admitting that they checked their phones through their work day, with a higher percentage of women (85%) being online practically all the time. Besides being an instrument of communication, smartphone owners have almost become permanently welded to their phones -- 45% said they would suffer withdrawal symptoms if they couldn't log on periodically. This facet seems aggravated in India -- some 70% said they compulsively check their phones for updates and 42% of them admitted to feeling anxious when disconnected.

This constant need to stay connected could be a problem. According to this survey, 29% of respondents check their phones so often they lose count, 40% of IT professionals check them once in ten minutes and 75% of them check their phones in bed. In India, personal and professional boundaries are clearing blurring -- a full 84% of respondents said they checked their phones in the bedroom and a higher percentage (56% compared to 46% globally) checked while out for a meal.

What's more, Gen Y in India and everywhere is going out of its way to access phones and the content on it. According to Cisco's survey, two-fifth of global respondents (41% in India) say their employers forbid them from using their handsets for personal browsing, but many of them take this edict lightly -- globally 71% break the rule, compared to over half in India. With this urge to have access at all times, users are spending an alarming amount of time online -- 40% said they spend more time online with friends than socialising in person (56% in India). What's more, 81% of them believe they need to have separate offline and online personas.

Joya Ahsan, one of the biggest names on the television screen is busy with cinema nowadays, and receiving similar resounding accolades on the big screen also. She has won the Best Actress Award at this year's National Film Awards for her outstanding role in "Guerrilla" and her highly anticipated movie "Chorabali" is to be released later this month. Besides working with Shakib Khan in a mainstream Bangla movie, she is also working with a Kolkata movie house and due to be released next year.
The actress recently spoke to The Daily Star (TDS) about her recent work and future plans.
TDS: What do you anticipate will be the audience reaction to “Chorabali”?
Joya Ahsan: I believe the audience will be treated to a brilliant movie. It's a thriller and audiences are hungry for such films, since there's a lack of a conducive environment and good cinemas. The movie has a twisting plot and is artfully made. Personally, I loved working in the film and hope the audience loves it also.
TDS: How was it like working with your co-artiste Indranil?
Joya Ahsan: Indranil basically comes from Mumbai and works in Kolkata. He is a very professional actor. He loves his work and maintains a professional approach throughout. Despite being a super star, he is extremely humble. While working with Indranil, it never felt like an actor from abroad had come to Bangladesh to perform. He can create a very good chemistry with everyone around him and it was an absolute pleasure working with him.
TDS: Can you tell us something about your character in “Chorabali”?
Joya Ahsan: I played the role of a daring crime reporter. The journalists play such an important role in our society and I feel that anyone who watches the movie would be inspired by the character.
TDS: You also had to learn how to ride a bike for your role?
Joya Ahsan: Yes, it was quite an adventurous experience. I thought why don't I learn something new? Previously I learned how to ride a horse for a TV play by Nurul Alam Atiq. Although I was scared at first, I still managed to ride! I try not to miss an opportunity to learn something new for my work. That is why I learned to ride a bike for “Chorabali”.
TDS: This is the first time you've chosen to work in a mainstream movie. What is the reason?
Joya Ahsan: I made the choice because of my love for cinema. I feel that the film industry cannot improve unless mainstream films are good themselves. My commitment as an artiste also prompted me. Artistes are like clay, they can shift shapes and adapt for any challenges they face in any kind of cinema. Working in “Purno Doirgho Prem Kahini” is part of that design.
TDS: What is your character like in “Purno Doirgho Prem Kahini”?
Joya Ahsan: The audience will find me as a stereo-typical Bangla movie heroine in the film. The character is born and raised in Malaysia. I believe that the appearance plays a major role in building a character so I designed my own costumes for the movie. This was my personal experiment.
TDS: How was your experience working with Shakib Khan for the first time?
Joya Ahsan: I felt that Shakib Khan is a very professional actor. He loves his work and is a brilliant co-actor. From up close, I saw how serious and sincere he is about his work.
TDS: You've also worked in the movie “Parle Thheka” and sang songs for the film?
Joya Ahsan: Yes, that is an upcoming project. We will establish the character as part of the project. I sang two songs, as the character demanded it. It was a leap for me but I did it to help me blend deeper with the character.
TDS: You also did a Kolkata film recently. When will it be released?
Joya Ahsan: The movie is called “Aborto”. Hopefully it will be released next February.
TDS: What is your reaction to being selected for the National Film Award for “Guerrilla”?
Joya Ahsan: It's an overwhelming feeling to be recognised on a national level. I am overjoyed and grateful to my audience, but I think the feeling will not sink in completely until I have the award physically in my hands!

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Singer James Taylor suggested for lead role in Lincoln

Singer-songwriter James Taylor says he doesn't see the resemblance, but he was pitched - without success - to play the role of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in the new film.
Taylor told a packed audience at the National Press Club on Friday that Oscar-winning musician John Williams - who composed the soundtrack for "Lincoln" - had pushed for Taylor to play the lead role in Steven Spielberg's new film.
The role of Lincoln in the historical drama ultimately went to Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis.
"John wanted me to play that part. He actually stood up for me there and suggested me at one point," said Taylor, 64, adding, "It was never going to happen."
The "Fire and Rain" singer, who has no professional acting experience, said he was flattered that some people thought Day-Lewis' portrayal of Lincoln reminded them of him. But he did not see much resemblance aside from the fact that they were "tall and somewhat skinny."
"He doesn't look like me to me, but I live in here, so I'm apt to notice the difference," Taylor said.
British-born actor Day-Lewis, who already has two Oscars, is seen as a front runner to take home another golden statuette at the Academy Awards in February.
Taylor said he had no ambitions to go into acting after what he called "an interesting ride" of a performance career in which he essentially played himself.
"This is fine. I've spent my life being myself for a living," said Taylor, a five-time Grammy Award winner.
"There are performers who develop and assume a character that they then play for the public. But I don't know anyone who is as much themselves publicly for a living as I am," he said.
Taylor and his third wife, Kim Taylor, campaigned actively for then-candidate Barack Obama in 2008 and again in 2012. The singer performed in Washington on Thursday evening at the 90th annual lighting of the National Christmas Tree, presided over this year by President Obama and his family.

Centenary celebrations of Bangladesh National Museum

Marking the centenary celebrations of Bangladesh National Museum, a painting competition for children was recently held at Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Sangrahashala (art gallery).
Mymensingh district administration organised the painting competition.
Eighty nine children from different educational institutions from class one to class ten of the town and outside took part in the competition in four groups. The subjects of the competition were Open choice, Liberation War, Victory marking Independence and The speech of Bangabandhu on March 7.
Forty paintings from the four groups will be sent to the National Museum and after another scrutiny in Dhaka, the names of the winners will be announced. The National Museum will publish an album with the selected paintings of the children coming from 64 districts.
Earlier, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Education and Development) of Mymensingh, Shibir Bichitra Barua inaugurated the competition as chief guest. Dr. Bijoy Krishna Banik, deputy keeper of the art gallery presided over the inaugural session.
The judges of the competition were--Mohammad Abdur Rouf, lecturer of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Fine Arts Institute and Poritosh Majumder, assistant expert at National Academy for Primary Education (NAPE), Mymensingh.
The chief guest said, the National Museum was established in 1913, a significant milestone as Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel Prize that year. The National Museum is a stakeholder of our culture and tradition, said the chief guest.
Mymensingh, a town is renowned for the world famous artiste Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin and the child artists of today will one day bring more fame and glory for Mymensingh, concluded the chief guest.

Family Flick Movie Review: We Bought a Zoo

Moviemakers these days seem to be pushing family flicks over the brink of extinction. Is it because families do not have time to watch movies together anymore? Or is Hollywood running out of ideas for family entertainment? Whatever the reason might be, movies with a broad family appeal are becoming a rarity. It is becoming quite an ordeal to find a movie suitable to watch with my six-year old son, who is rapidly turning into a movie buff like me.
Having said all that, I must say that I admire the thoroughness with which the 2011 movie “We Bought a Zoo” caters to the whole family. Acclaimed filmmaker Cameron Crowe (“Jerry Maguire”, “Almost Famous”) directs an amazing story about a widower who decides that his grieving children need a fresh start. So they move to the most unlikely of places: a zoo. With the help of a diverse set of staff the family works to return the rundown zoo to its former glory.
In lesser hands, a film seemingly based on a familiar formula would have landed in a sentimental mess that often devours films like these. Instead, with the aid of a strong acting ensemble and Crowe's dexterity in developing his characters from inside out, we have an intelligent family film.
The movie is based on a memoir written in 2006 by Benjamin Mee, former journalist of “The Guardian” about how he and his family rescued a failing zoo in Devon. The real Mee bought Dartmoor Wildlife Park when his wife became ill, however, in the movie she dies before the opening credits.
The events chronicle the attempts of Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon), father of two, who feels the pain of losing his wife to cancer and puts his children teenaged Dylan (Colin Ford) and seven-year-old Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones), over his job. But when Dylan is expelled from school, six months after the tragedy, Benjamin starts thinking. He realises that the hurt will take longer to heal if they remain in the shadow of their past. So he attempts to glue together the broken pieces of his family by finding a sanctuary in a crumbling country house that comes with a zoo.
At the Rosemoor Wildlife Park, the family gets to know a team of quirky staff members led by head zookeeper, Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson). Later, when the forthright, no-nonsense Kelly asks Mee why he bought a failing zoo when he had no experience, he replies, “Why not?” The team has a good alchemy and in spite of rising debts and personal tension, financial difficulties and heartbreak, they work together. Mee had never been a wildlife advocate but somehow the dilapidated zoo echoes his own fractured life. He empathizes with the wild creatures in his menagerie, especially the dying tiger, Spar, whose despair mirrors his own.
Damon's performance is extraordinary. He understands the depth of his character and lets us glimpse into the hurting and lonely person beneath the tough exterior of intelligence and wit. The director fittingly captures the magic of Rosemoor and its animal inhabitants. Simply watching them interact offers a number of genuinely touching moments.
With the sunshine seeping through the leaves of majestic trees, cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto aptly portrays the tranquility of the spot. Finally, the eclectic and mood-altering music by Iceland's Jónsi appeals as everything else about the film.
This easy-going, likable film might not be lauded by critics but the film is not likely to dishearten its audience. Of all the movies I have seen this year "We Bought a Zoo" is definitely one from the heart.
The story is one of hope and healing, and the rebuilding of the zoo provides a metaphor for the family's personal journey. In case, you are still wondering why you should watch this movie, just ask yourself, “Why not?”

Tribute K.S. Murshid: A life of the mind

Khan Sarwar Murshid was part of a dwindling band of cultured men in this country. He belonged to a generation which gave of its best to Bangladesh through being part of the historical process which went into its creation in 1971. If the nine months of the struggle for freedom were the worst time in the collective life of the Bengalis this side of the political frontier, fundamentally because of the organised killings carried out by the Pakistan occupation army, they were also the best in terms of drawing out of us the patriotism necessary for a righteous war to be sustained.
Professor Khan Sarwar Murshid demonstrated an immensity of patriotism in those dark yet soon to be illuminating months. And with that patriotism he brought into action the intellectual force that was so needed to convince the rest of the world that the struggle for Bangladesh was not a simple matter of resistance to the enemy but, in a larger sense, a demand for liberty based on the logic that at critical times is derived from history. It was within this ambience of historical grandeur that Murshid served as a significant cog in the wheel of the Mujibnagar government. As a member of the wartime planning commission, as a key aide to Tajuddin Ahmed, as one of the men articulating our aspirations before the councils of the world in that year of death and resurgent hope, Khan Sarwar Murshid, with others of his belief, was our intellectual face to the world.
In Khan Sarwar Murshid were combined a devotion to literature and a commitment to the public weal. The first he ensured through teaching, which teaching would see him preside over Rajshahi University as vice chancellor soon after the liberation of the country; and the second he put into implementation as the new nation's ambassador to Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia, again in the early 1970s. The government of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman did what was required at that point of time in the nation's history: it placed cerebral men at the new diplomatic missions of Bangladesh abroad, the clear objective being to drive a potent truth home --- that Bangladesh had men who lived the life of the mind, to speak for it abroad. Azizur Rahman Mallick went off to New Delhi and Khan Shamsur Rahman was despatched to Moscow. Khan Sarwar Murshid made his way to eastern Europe. He served with distinction.
Murshid's zeal for language, for a proper application of it both in the verbal sense and in the written form, was matched by few in his times. In his Bengali and in his English, it was perfection he sought and then applied to satisfaction, his own and that of his followers. That was one way in which he asserted his adherence to values. That was also the reason why he named the journal he launched in the late 1940s New Values. The journal travelled a long way before circumstances called a halt. But the principles it upheld, the integrity of life it embodied were never to go away. In that old-fashioned sense of the meaning, Murshid was to see them at play again years later in the journal his wife, scholar and educationist and politician in her own right, would edit.
In Murshid's passing the twilight sets on an era. Within the luminosity of that era, it was starlight we basked in. The stars shone bright, back in 1973, when Khan Sarwar Murshid brought us in touch with Andre Malraux, here in free Bangladesh. As he prepared to bid farewell to Malraux, Murshid asked the French writer-philosopher if Sheikh Mujibur Rahman could turn things around in Bangladesh. Yes, said Malraux, if you do not kill him. Murshid would not forget that prescient statement. Neither would we.
Today, it is hard for us to forget the man of substance that was Khan Sarwar Murshid. He taught us, about literature, about politics, about the human condition. He shaped ideas, which ideas he passed on to us. And thus he lives on.

Syed Badrul Ahsan is Executive Editor, The Daily Star.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Halon known as Sony Ericsson Vivaz 2 has revealed by Eldar Murtazin

Here are Sony Ericsson Xperia Halon or can be referred to as Sony Ericsson Vivaz 2, a new mobile phone from Sony Ericsson of Vivaz SE family. The phone is scheduled to be exhibited at the MWC event february 2011.

One reviewer of mobile phone-named Eldar Murtazin review has revealed this Sony Ericsson Vivaz  2. In the review, Eldar says that the SE Vivaz 2 uses a processor 1GHz Qualcomm MSM7630 plus GPU Adreno  205, 512 MB RAM and 1500 mAh battery as the support of power.
In addition, the front camera Vivaz 2 also known to have ability above average. As for appearance, this phone has a screen resolution of Reality Display 854 x 480 pixel technology  Bravia Engine and Vivaz 2 uses the Android 2.3 Gingerbread.
That said, Vivaz 2 will come down to compete in the class mid-range Android phones and the price seems Vivaz 2 is going quite friendly pocket.

iPhone 5G

A rumor spread that Apple is developing a new device that will appear later in the year 2011. Devices that are rumored iPhone 5G. Not just a rumor that the iPhone 5G ready to be launched later in 2011, the experts also said to have predicted mainstay features that carried the Apple-made phone. Rumor’s said, the iPhone 5 will feature 128GB of storage and a brand new display boasting 27.8 more pixels and the iPhone 5G will be coming to Virgin Mobile. As was disclosed by someone who does not wish to remain anonymous through the Wall Street Journal, “the fifth generation of the iPhone this will look different in a number of factors compared to their

Jailbreak Ios 4.2.1 has been released for your iPhone

Hi guys, I’ve got a very good news for users of iPad and iPhone.  Dev Team has released Jailbreak IOS 4.2.1. In this new jailbreak,  offering services that allow us to use animated  wallpapers that we want or other images that you want to display on the iPad or iPhone that we  have.
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sheer CHIC Sabrina Fatma Ahmad

Fashionwise, August is a strange month in Bangladesh. Not quite summer, although the weather is still pretty warm on most days, and not autumn just yet. With Ramadan spanning through its dates, this is also an austere time, but there is a sense of anticipation as Eid rolls closer, with its promise of food, fashion and many festivities. So how does one go about finding clothes that manage to multitask and meet all the dictates of weather and appropriateness? The answer may very well lie in seven yards of sheer chic, also known as the chiffon sari.
While not an obvious choice, considering that the heat makes us run towards cotton and its blends, chiffon is actually a better bet all around. For one thing, it is a lightweight, breathable fabric that, if allowed to flow loose, directs the sweat away from the body. So while a fitted kameez made of the material might still cause pit-stains during a power cut or under the sun, a sari is the perfect balance of cling and flow if you want something easy and breezy.
t can be dressed up or down as the occasion permits, and is just as suitable for an iftar party as it is for a more formal occasion. The fabric hugs your body, accentuating the curves you want to show off, and concealing what you don't want advertised with almost magical effectiveness. It is the perfect choice for anyone who's not proud of the results of all those yummy piyajus. And an added bonus? The texture of chiffon makes it one of those textiles that photograph really well.
Silk chiffon is the fanciest of the lot, the most popular choice for bridal gowns, but works well as sari material too. Since it is also the more expensive type of chiffon, this is the fabric you opt for your more formal 'dos.
Silk crinkle chiffon, which has a more crepe-y texture, looks absolutely smashing if worn plain, in a bright, solid colour, dressed up either by a single pearl strand and small earrings, or by big statement earrings and a bold cocktail ring. Or you could go for the flat silk chiffon, which allows for subtle prints and embellishment. The problem with silk chiffon is that it is very delicate and thus hard to maintain or store.
Polyester or 'poly' chiffon is made from polyester or rayon, as the name suggests, and is more durable than silk chiffon. It drapes as easily as silk, so is a more viable option for the budget-conscious. It is perfect for the afternoon party, or the iftar dawat. The downside is, the polyester isn't as 'cool' as the silk fabric, so while it's still a breathable, light and breezy material, it is less sympathetic towards heat and perspiration than its silk counterpart.
The stores at Bashundhara City and Pink City are good places to go looking for chiffon saris. If you want the really high-quality French chiffon, tissue saris or the Pakistani 'shimos' silk chiffon saris, you'd have better luck looking for the specialty boutiques that import the garments.
If you're in a DIY frame of mind, seven yards of the fabric from any of our silk houses will get you started on a fine creative adventure. Whichever you choose, chiffon saris are a trendy choice for this festive season.

Home gardening

My grandfather was a 'plant lover'. From the cactus on the table at his office, to the age-old trees that line the road in front of Sir Salimullah Hall- his abode as a student of DU- his passion for plants was wide and varied. Everyday after returning from the office, he would put on his gardening gear- lungi and a tee shirt, armed with his gardening gadgets and head to his garden. It was his respite; even in his dying days he never gave up visiting the green sanctuary that he had himself built with his own hands.
But times have changed. The city is a stifling place. Where there previously used to be lawns and gardens, are now concrete apartment buildings.
A large proportion of us city dwellers don't have the luxury of a sprawling garden, but that should be no impediment to having plants inside our homes. Other than their environmental benefits, plants also beautify a place and lend character to an otherwise droll setting.
Gardening in tropical and humid climates such as ours is an ordeal but once you get the hang of it you will see it more as an adventure and less as a chore. Not all plants are suited for indoor cultivation, but you can easily grow outdoor plants such as Hibiscus, Miscanthus cabaret, New Zealand flax, Cardinal lobelia, Canary reed-grass (ground-cover), Kalanchoe (annual plant), Agave (for sandy well-drained soil) in a patch of land overlooking the patio, if you have one.
However, many tropical plants require some extra care as they perish quite easily if they do not find the favourable conditions in your garden. The trick is to follow some simple, basic rules.
The obvious thing to be careful about is the quality of soil. Tropical plants need well-soaked soil, so make sure that the soil in your garden or flowering pot is capable of retaining moisture for a long time after watering.
Another consideration is the choice of fertilizers. For instance, tropical flower plants should not be supplied with too much of nitrogenous fertilizers; it hampers their normal growth. It increases the growth of the leaves, but decreases the blooming of the flowers. Also, apart from nitrogen rich chemicals, fertilizers containing phosphorus and potash are also recommended for tropical plants. You may use these in minimal quantity, so that they do not hamper the growth of the plants.
As mentioned earlier, not many of us have an outdoor space in which to indulge our gardening aspirations. As a seasoned gardener says, �Plants in the outdoors get a lot of rainfall in our climate, except in the winter. But when plants are indoors, it is very important to keep them hydrated by watering the pots at least once a day. Also important is to remember that plants should be kept close to a light source, preferably by a window, because as we all know green plants cannot survive without sunlight.�
The prevailing temperature is a major factor in determining whether your plants will thrive or wilt. Generally, it is useful to keep your plants outside in the summer, and inside during the winter. Although it is recommended that the plants have some sort of heating during the winter, as frost is undesirable for their normal growth, it is not relevant for plants in Bangladesh because of our mild winters. However, if you live in the northern parts and it gets quite chilly, use a heating source at your own discretion; by then you should have developed quite a green thumb.
It is best not to take too much upon yourself. If you have no prior experience or knowledge of gardening, it is important that you consult and take the advice of someone who has done it before. Information on how much fertilizer to use and what to grow can only be supplied by an experienced gardener who has a firm grasp of local conditions. With so much information at our fingertips, it is quite easy to go online and hunt around for tips, but that must be complemented by sound practical knowledge.
We automatically think that gardening is for someone else to do and that it's too much of a hassle. You may be surprised however, at how easily you grow into the role of gardener once you start doing it. Although it may seem unlikely now, you may even begin to share a bond with the plants that you have nurtured from little saplings; it's only natural.
Tips on Home Gardening
If horticulture is your passion, or you are merely in pursuit to add greenery both in and outside your home, there are certain thumb rules that you must follow. Home gardening, though far from a strenuous task, requires consistent maintenance and nurturing. You must take care of your plants but always remember that 'too much' care often causes more harm than good.
�How much to water?� is an age-old question raised by home gardeners. Too much water floods the plants and cripples them from absorbing the minerals and nutrients from the soil. Whereas insufficient watering dehydrates plants, making the branches limp and lifeless.
The species of your plants plays a role in determining the right amount of water that it requires. A thorough research should be conducted before implementing the necessities. If you feel too lazy to read books and magazines to learn about plant care, at least ask the vendor of the nursery you buy your plants to inform you about plant care.
It is pivotal that the appropriate amounts are showered. One deep watering is much better than watering lightly several times a day. If the weather pertains to hot and humid conditions, a little more than usual water should be sprinkled.
Uninvited moss, grass and mould of various genres take residence in the nearby alleys or on the flower plants in your outside garden. Instead of bending over to tug at the roots of these or scrubbing them off, sprinkle sufficient amount of regular table salt directly on the areas. Salt chokes the life out of these.
Plants and stagnant water bodies are homes to dengue and malaria causing mosquitoes. Remove any water deposits in your gardens as a preliminary precaution to preventing the spread of any disease. Insecticides and pesticides should be sprayed on a regular basis.
Pruning limbs and branches is necessary for a healthy growth and a less disease-prone garden. Air out plants stored within confinements at least once a week to filter out any germs, which might have been dwelling in them.
Consider planting insect repelling plants such as but not limited to-
Ants: mint, tansy, pennyroyal;
Aphids: mints, garlic, chives, coriander, anise;
Mice: onion;
Squash Bug: radish, marigolds tansy and nasturtium.
These plants have their own chemically designed defence systems and when placed among flowers and vegetables they keep unwanted pests at bay.

Let your home blossom this Eid

Cleaning and preparing the house for Eid day can be a frantic and frenzied task, especially if you are a busy mum with loads to do both at home and beyond. As the hectic days of Ramadan pass by in a mad rush, one is seldom left with time to think about ways of making their homes look appealing during Eid day. For such individuals, shortcuts to home d�cor for Eid are the way to go.
One such element that can readily transform your home from a dull and drab dwelling to a colourful and lively abode is flowers. Flowers are one of the most natural ways to embellish your home, and has the added advantage of going easy on your workload as well. All you have to do is visit a flower shop nearby that offers a wide range of flowers and select the ones you like to create a perfect combination for some bouquets.
You can also string flowers into garlands and roll them around in staircase handles or on walls to spread their fragrance and enhance the festive mood. Use of colour can also drum up the jollity, so use red, yellow, pink and golden as the colour theme for this occasion.
We now get to find many flower shops in the city that offer a wide range of flowers to choose from, both local and imported. One such flower shop is Pushpo Bitan, situated in Shimanto Square Shopping Mall in Dhanmondi. The shop specialises in imported flowers, ones that you rarely get to see in other shops. They have their own bouquet designer who has his own catalogue of designs from where you can select the desired one. He will also help you create your own customised flower bouquet by taking your suggestions. The flowers in their display this Eid includes Carnation, Rose, Lilly, Chrysanthemum, Emilia, Orchid and many more. Also, if you want to add a unique touch to your home this Eid, you can grab one of their miniature bonsai trees or cactus plants. The price for the bouquets ranges from Tk.500 to 6000, depending on the type and quantity of flowers. You can decorate your bouquet with the various accessories they offer, like nets, ribbons, cellophane, etc.
Flowers can be very easy to work with and even easier to get hands on at a reasonable price. It adds dollops of splendour to your dwelling and makes it smell good. So, give your home a touch of festivity with flowers this occasion and bring out the designer in you.

Bidding invited for oil, gas exploration in Bay

Petrobangla, the state-run Oil, Gas and Minerals Corporation, has invited international bids for exploring oil and gas in the Bay of Bengal.
The bidding was invited for exploring oil and gas in nine shallow-sea blocks and three deep-sea blocks, Petrobangla Director Muhammad Imaduddin told reporters on Sunday.
The international companies will have to submit bids between December 17, 2012 and March 18, 2013, the director added.

A new timeline of Stonehenge's construction reveals that the massive megaliths came first, while the smaller bluestone oval came later. Source: Live Science

Mars Struck Why we're mad for Mars

An excited comment by a NASA scientist set off a bout of feverish online speculation last week about what new discoveries might be coming from the surface of Mars.
John Grotzinger, the principal investigator for NASA's Mars Curiosity rover mission, told an NPR reporter that the rover's soil sampler analysis had turned up something exciting.
"This data is gonna be one for the history books," he said. "It's looking really good."
Populate Mars!
The comments kicked off immediate online speculation on what the finding could be, but NASA immediately began to manage expectations, with a spokesperson telling CBS News that the discovery was "nothing earthshaking."
But try as it might, NASA likely can't tamp down enthusiasm about the Red Planet. Earth's neighbor has long fascinated the public for its potential to have a history of life, or even to one day support a future human colony.
The lure of Mars
Until the first spacecraft flybys of Mars in the 1960s, scientists believed the planet might have liquid water and sustain life. That possibility was enough to fascinate the public, Bob Crossley, author of "Imagining Mars: A Literary History" (Wesleyan, 2011),told LiveScience in August.
"Somewhere deep in my own psyche, and maybe for other people as well, there is a desire for another world," said Crossley, an emeritus professor of English at the University of Massachusetts.

Mini Caller Why do parrots talk?

Though a parrot might not understand any words it's saying toward you, there's a good chance its aim is to address you individually, new research suggests.
A study indicates that at least some parrots' talent for mimicking sounds, which underlies their "talking" skill, functions in nature to let them communicate with individual parrots they encounter.
Thorsten Balsby of the University of Aarhus, Denmark and colleagues from the University of Copenhagen studied one parrot species, the orange-fronted conure.
In the wild, these birds live in dynamic flocks where individuals flit in and out, so each parrot encounters many different individuals daily, the researchers noted. Each bird also has its own unique call.
Both in the wild and in the researchers' experiments, parrots that heard an imitation of their own calls responded more often and faster to the calling individual than parrots that didn't hear this imitation, according to the scientists.
Based on these observations, they suggest that the parrots may have evolved their abilities as mimics so they could start "conversation" with a specific individual by mimicking their call. The findings were published Nov. 21 in the research journal PLoS One.
"Given that orange-fronted conures frequently communicate within large communication networks with many potential receivers, which may be from several different flocks, the ability to selectively address specific individuals may be of particular importance" to them, the scientists wrote.

The Higgs discovery

On the flight to Melbourne, Australia, I close my eyes and reflect on the day. What a day! July 4, 2012 will be a day to remember: another one like this may not come in my career. Essentially, we have announced the discovery of the Higgs boson today. I think back on the scene.
The seminar at CERN is due to start at 9 in the morning. The seating is limited, so we have lined up outside the Main Auditorium since 1 am. Mostly young people, students and postdocs, who have the stamina to stay up all night; some of us working on our laptops, because the work never stops, others drinking, chatting, playing cards; everybody wondering what the other experiment has. A discovery must be confirmed by both of the major experiments at the Large Hadron Collider: ATLAS and CMS. I am a member of ATLAS, and we have kept our results carefully hidden from CMS. CMS has tried to do the same, but there are rumors that they also have a '5-sigma significance', which is the statistical threshold needed for discovery in this field.
The auditorium door opens at 7:30 am. We troop in. Almost half of the auditorium is reserved for VIPs, who include political hotshots from the CERN member countries as well as some of the biggest names in high-energy physics. There comes Peter Higgs, who hypothesized the scalar boson back in 1964. 48 years of relentless search is about to bear fruit. The atmosphere is tremendous, with people trying to hide the inner excitement and look grave for the occasion.
Joe Incandela presents the CMS results: excesses in both diphoton and four-lepton decay channels. Combined significance: 5 sigma. Yes! Then Fabiola Gianotti steps up to present the ATLAS results. This is one of the most influential women in the world, the spokesperson for a 3400-people collaboration. The same picture is seen by ATLAS: excesses in diphoton and four-lepton channels. Combined significance: 5 sigma. So this is it, the discovery is confirmed! Standing ovation in the auditorium, the applause goes on for 3 minutes, my palms are all pink. Rolf Heur, CERN's Director General, makes the formal statement: 'we have it'.
Now I think back on all the work that has gone in. I decided to be a particle physicist all those years ago in high school, standing beside the ping-pong table in Scholastica. Later, in my second year at Harvard, I dubbed myself a Higgs Hunter and resolved to be part of the Higgs discovery, if the boson exists at all. Since I completed my PhD, I have been working on the WW channel, which is the most sensitive Higgs decay mode in the low mass range. That is only my personal story; extremely hard work by hundreds of people over years has gone into the making of this morning. Notwithstanding, I am proud of the moment, proud of representing my country here at the pinnacle of science, of knowledge and of human achievement.
The next phase is to measure the properties of this particle: couplings, spin, parity. Is this really the Standard Model Higgs boson, or something more exotic? The latter possibility is definitely the more exciting one. So there is much work to be done. But for now, I am off to Melbourne to attend the International Conference for High-Energy Physics, a few days of relative leisure away from CERN.

Dr. Kashif did his undergraduate studies at Yale University, received a PhD in Physics from Harvard University, and is now a postdoctoral researcher with CERN/University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is based at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland.

Crimes of Galileo!

In the early 17th century, the great Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) had to face the wrath of the Catholic Church for his endorsement of Copernicus' heliocentric model of the cosmos. The church believed that the model was contrary to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures and branded it as heresy. It hit at the very core of the church's belief in the geocentric cosmos of Aristotle.
In 1616, officials of the Roman Inquisition, which is an institution in the Catholic Church responsible for eradication of heresies, warned Galileo to stop preaching the Copernican model as truth. At the same time, his book On the Revolution of Celestial Spheres was placed on the list of Index of Forbidden Books. Galileo, however, was steadfast in his belief and tried to enlighten the church about scientific truth as opposed to “revealed” truth. It was an exercise in vain and it eventually led to his downfall.
In 1623 Cardinal Maffeo Barberini, a friend of Galileo and a patron of the arts and sciences, was elected pope and assumed the name Urban VIII. Believing that a friend was at the helm of the church, Galileo mustered courage and wrote the Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems. Though he claimed Dialogue was neutral, it was in fact a veiled polemic in favor of the Copernican model. He had to face the Inquisition again in 1633. This time he was charged with “vehement suspicion of heresy.” After a short but swift deliberation, a guilty verdict was pronounced. Out of compassion for an old friend, the pope spared Galileo the fate of Giordano Bruno, a contemporary scholastic philosopher and Copernican astronomer, who was burned at the stake. Instead he was condemned to a life under house arrest in Florence where he died as a blind man in 1642.
Did the two trials of Galileo diminish his stature as a scientist and thinker? If we confine ourselves to the few decades following the trials, the answer is yes. In 1758, the church regretted for not accepting the truth in science, and lifted the ban on most of Galileo's works supporting Copernican theory. In the 20th century several popes acknowledged the great work of Galileo. In October 1992, Pope John Paul II took the extraordinary step to revoke the condemnation, saying that “the denunciation was a tragic error,” but fell short of admitting the mistake of the church. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI, who condones heresy, admitted “understanding of the laws of nature could stimulate appreciation of God's work.”
After three and a half century, how are Galileo and Urban VIII remembered? Galileo is called the “father of modern observational astronomy.” Urban VIII is known as an authoritarian pope, a champion of nepotism. Galileo is admired for his unflinching devotion to seek the truth. The pope is known for his efforts to establish the Barberini Dynasty he crowned his nephew as the Prince of Palestrina. There is an epigram about Urban VIII: What the barbarians did not do the Barberini's did. Among other things, Galileo has a space probe named after him; Urban has nothing of importance named after him. Galileo's bust adorns the halls of hallowed institutions all over the world; Urban's bust erected after his death was destroyed by angry crowd.
The greatness of a person never goes unrecognized. Stephen Hawking in his book A Brief History of Time described Galileo as “perhaps more than any other single person who is responsible for the birth of modern science.” Albert Einstein considered him the father of modern physics. Even Pope Pius XII described him as one of the “most audacious heroes of research.”
The church may have silenced Galileo's voice, but it could not crush his conviction that science is independent of religion. He did not budge an iota from the credo, which in his own words is: “In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual.” He also lamented, “It vexes me when they would constrain science by the authority of the Scriptures, and yet do not consider themselves bound to answer reason and experiment.”
While under house arrest, he completed his other major work on the science of motion which was published in 1634 as Mathematical Discourses and Demonstrations Concerning Two New Sciences. It was a precursor to Sir Isaac Newton's laws of motion which unlocked the secrets of nature and revealed the mysteries of the Universe.

The writer is a Professor in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, Fordham University, New York.

The anti-social network :(

recently conducted a social experiment and gave up my compulsive texting habit for a while. Instead, I had to pick up the telephone and actually ring people. It had a curious effect. Most people answered in a panic, assuming that I’d only make a phone call if it was to announce big news, such as a death, birth or imminent appearance on Big Brother. They were baffled by the truth – that I just wanted to know if they fancied a drink, and that I expected a definite answer as to where and when it would take place.

What I was encountering was people in the grip of the new sociological phenomenon of “micro co‑ordination”, as Professor Richard Ling at the IT University of Copenhagen has dubbed it. This is the idea that smartphones have revolutionised how we communicate, allowing us to make fluid and quickly changeable arrangements digitally. Gone are the days when we made plans verbally and stuck to them. Is this a good thing, though, or has it turned us into a bunch of liars and flakes?

This week, the text message is celebrating its 20th birthday. But cast your mind back to a time before smartphones. You couldn’t text a last-minute apology: “Aargh got flu, in bed, c u soon”, and settle down with a glass of wine to watch Strictly Come Dancing instead. You couldn’t email: “Meeting overrunning – can’t make lunch”, when you’d received a more appealing offer.

So ubiquitous has this fluid behaviour become that the old lie “the cheque’s in the post” has been replaced by “sry cant make it, spk soon x”. And if you wish to opt out of these new social mores, you haven’t a hope. As Prof Ling makes clear in his recent book, Taken for Grantedness: The Embedding of Mobile Communication into Society, we are all governed by the new behaviour.

“Everybody takes it for granted that we are constantly available on [mobiles],” says Ling. “So you are effectively coerced into this kind of communication… We used to structure our plans around time and location when organising our social life. Now we just use our phones, which enables us to change and manipulate what we do.

Samsung Galaxy S III to top mobile Christmas list

Samsung dominated the smartphone market in Britain in November, with its products occupying five of the top ten positions in the monthly uSwitch.com Mobile Tracker chart.

The Samsung Galaxy S III remains popular due to its reputation for matching the iPhone's specifications without the prohibitive price tag, and for a host of innovative features that are fast becoming industry standards.

Samsung's Galaxy S III, S II, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Ace II and Galaxy Note II all feature in the top ten.

Second and third places are taken by Apple's iPhone, though perhaps surprisingly the iPhone 4S beats the recently released iPhone 5.

This is due in part to iPhone 5 contracts, which require customers to pay £47 a month in order to get the phone for free on the Vodafone network, for example, dropping to £42 a month for the iPhone 4S. It would appear smartphone users are not convinced there is enough of value in the iPhone 5's larger display and improved camera to warrant the extra money.

Wii U review

By Tom Hoggins, Video Games Editor

7:00AM GMT 30 Nov 2012

Comments

It's been a difficult couple of years for Nintendo. Last year saw the Kyoto video games giant post the first annual loss in their history, as their new portable games console, 3DS, initially struggled and sales of their record-breaking Wii console finally began to decline. It was the Wii that, for many, catapulted video games to the heart of the living room. Its motion-control revolution appealing to those who had never played a video game before with an easy to understand concept: swing the remote, and your character on screen will duplicate it. 97 million consoles sold around the world confirming that its simple language was universal.

Nintendo's new home console, Wii U, arrives under a heavy burden and without the simplicity that made its predecessor so easy to sell. Communication has been a problem for Nintendo since the Wii U and its tablet-esque Gamepad controller was revealed. Was the Gamepad an add-on for Wii? Was it a portable attachment?

No and no. Wii U is a brand new home console that connects to your telly and the Gamepad is its fascinating controller. The new console itself is high-definition enabled and far more powerful than the Wii. The Wii U will come in two packages, the basic 8GB white version and the 32GB black premium edition, though the console is equipped with an SD card slot for you to add to your memory space. The black Premium console we tested is a lovely piece of kit too, the physical unit a sleek refinement of the Wii's compact form. It's longer, but discrete and more pleasing on the eye than its competitors.

Few will be too interested in what's on the outside, of course, preferring to focus on the Wii U's inner-workings. The Japanese company have been coy about releasing detailed specifications --their philosophy is to let their unique control system do the talking for them-- but the Wii U is largely on par with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 in terms of raw power, meaning most games will have visual parity. However, the CPU is reportedly slower and initial testing bears that out. The main hub-screen of the Wii U is slow to load, and stuttering on a playtest of the Wii U version of FIFA 13 does cause concern. However, this could be poor optimisation for the game itself and as developers become au fait with the Wii U's specs, we should see a marked improvement.

There's enough visual splendour in the games made specifically for Wii U to leave room for optimism too. New Super Mario Bros. U has gorgeous, bright and crisp visuals, while Ubisoft's ZombiU makes excellent use of light and shaders to build their grimy vision of London. It's quite possible that multi-format games will continue to look and run better on Xbox 360 and PS3, as developers are more familiar with the hardware, but the Wii U exclusive titles will have some of the best visuals around.

iTunes 11 review

iTunes is more than 11 years old, and the launch of version 11 today shows that much has changed since 2001 – but much has not.

It has now got a much-improved new look, but under the bonnet, iTunes is still the same familiar and much appreciated software.

It long ago had to incorporate media such as TV and film and today's slightly delayed launch allows the software to deal better with a a range of entertainment options.

The immediate impression is that there are more graphics, fewer pages of enormous lists of text, and a more intuitive interface.

On the left are your libraries, while in the centre you can choose to view by artist or album, etc, and on the right you can see your own iPods or other devices and the iTunes store.

Swiftkey Flow Beta Android App review

Free beta

Since phones moved to the touchscreen model, there have been apps such as Swiftkey that have aimed to make typing faster, and latterly have aimed to predict what we type. While many users claim that they are absolutely wedded to the physical keyboard models of their BlackBerrys, in fact when they transfer to touchscreens most do not look back.

With SwiftKey flow, two things come together: the first is to continuous typing to Swiftkey, meaning you simply glide (or ‘flow’) your finger from one letter to the next rather than tapping each key, and it also add the option of strings of words too. So users can drag their finger from one letter to the next, then to the space bar and start the next word, without ever taking your finger off the screen. While the single word option is increasingly built in to Samsung and Google Nexus devices such as the Nexus 4,the option to do sentences is incremental progress. When it works it can be a huge boon to the hurried user. When it doesn’t it’s infuriating but the balance is largely positive. I managed to ‘type’ entire messages without lifting my finger from the screen. While Google’s in-house version offers live updates on its suggestion in a bubble above your finger, Swiftkey does it in a bar above the keyboard.

The second is the continued SwiftKey feature of predicting the next word. This is less perfect –while it can analyse your Google and Facebook accounts to see your style, it doesn’t always get it quite right, and sometimes it’s just illiterate. The system presents three options each time: after I started typing “Are you” its next suggestions were “the” and OK”, both of which are plausible, but its third option was “are”. “Are you are” seems an unlikely way to begin a sentence.

Swiftkey Flow is, overall, a really good thing in the sense that Swype-style typing is good and largely accurate, and the word prediction is both often right and sometimes good enough that you’ll accept it. Frustratingly, however, the former doesn’t work everywhere it should, such as in the gmail search box on the Nexus 4, and the ‘flow’ part of incorporating the space bar can’t also predict words.

Too young to withstand the shock

Mizan and Masum are cousins: too young to understand what took away their mothers late Saturday night.
Mizan, 11 months old, and Masum, 18 months old, are now too exhausted to cry for their mothers. They were leaning against their fathers' shoulders like statues.
Both depended on mother's milk.
Almost a week had gone by since their mothers went to work at Tazreen Fashions factory in Ashulia and did not return.
Mizan's mother Mitu's body was lined up among other bodies at Nishchintapur Primary School ground Sunday morning while Masum's mother Mahfuza is missing.
Mahfuza is presumed to be among the 53 dead whose bodies were charred beyond recognition. The unidentified were buried in Jurain graveyard.
Mitu and Mahfuza had been working at Tazreen for the last two years. They married Saddam Hossain and Abdul Jabbar, brothers.
The widowers were wandering from one end to the other of Nishchintapur village yesterday looking blankly and holding their sons close to their chests.
Ruins and wreckage of the burnt factory are what they now roam around in gloom and despair in search for help.
"We do not know how we will lead the rest of our lives with the motherless kids," said Saddam, "We have to work for survival without anyone to take care of our poor sons."
The brothers came from Bhurungamari of Kurigram looking for livelihoods in the capital more than half a decade ago and got jobs as garment workers in Nishchintapur of Ashulia on the outskirts of the capital.
Jabbar married Mahfuza around six years ago while Saddam took Mitu as wife five years ago. They had been living in the same neighbourhood ever since.
"My son is missing his mother and has stopped eating…he refuses to go to anyone else," said Saddam, adding, "I am now penniless… I had to spend all my money to take my wife's body to Rangpur for burial…I can't afford to feed him."
"I can neither leave my son with anyone nor can I go to work," said Saddam, who works at a nearby garment factory.
Jabbar said his son too has stopped eating as Mahfuza used to feed her son and play with him during breaks while at work.
"What do we do now?" he said.
At least 111 garments workers perished at the factory Saturday night in the worst industrial fire in the country.

RMG fire safety largely ignored 15 fire service teams begin countrywide inspection to find out ill-equipped factories

The government yesterday launched a nationwide drive to identify readymade garment factories with dismal safety system, five days into the nation's deadliest industrial blaze in Ashulia.
Fifteen teams from fire service inspected 73 garment factories in Ashulia and found that one-third of the factories did not have sufficient fire safety measures and security for workers.
The issue of workers' safety in factories has come up strongly following the devastating fire that killed at least 111 workers at Tazreen Fashions in Ashulia on November 24.
It was found that the factory neither had any emergency exits nor adequate fire safety measures. And fire-fighting equipment on its different floors had not been used during the fire accident.
Moreover, the eight-storey factory had the permission to have only three floors.
The teams comprised of 70 officials would inspect as many factories as possible between November 29 and December 2, said M Abdus Salam, director of Fire Service and Civil Defence (administration and finance), who led the drive with the help of police.
He said they would submit a report to the home ministry on Monday with recommendations for taking punitive measures against factories with dismal safety system.
Salam said they might recommend cancellation of fire service licence of noncompliant factories.
The fire service will then send mobile courts led by executive magistrates to noncompliant factories to penalise them for their failure to ensure workers' safety.
Salam said they did not find any factory without fire safety system, but many of the factories did not fully comply with the directives of fire service.
Those factories did not organise monthly fire drill or arrange training for workers and staff. Fire extinguishers were not even refilled in many factories, he said.
The 15 teams are asked to inspect at least five factories a day.
During the drive, they checked whether the factories had adequate fire-fighting equipment, emergency fire exits and evacuation arrangements, and if they trained workers to tackle fire incidents.
Salam said his team inspected five factories in Zirabo and found that two factories -- Shapr Dyeing and Printing Industries Ltd and Loresk Fashions Ltd -- did not have adequate fire-fighting equipment.
The validity of fire-fighting equipment at the two factories had expired and the workers had not been given training to use them, he said.
Sources said the owners and officials of the two apparel plants had fled their factories sensing the presence of the inspection team.
"We did not find them in their factories," said Salam.
Mokter Hossain, deputy director of the Industrial Police in Ashulia, said they accompanied the fire service teams to the factories.
In the meantime, a committee probing Saturday's fire incident found that Abdur Razzak, production manager at Tazreen Fashions, had been the main culprit for so many deaths in the deadly blaze.
"Though the fire alarm went off, the production manager did not allow the workers to get out of the factory," said Salam, also member of the probe committee formed by the home ministry.
In their statements, the survivors of the fire alleged that Razzak had misled the workers saying it was a regular drill, not a fire incident.
"As a result, the workers could not get out on time and got trapped in the fire," said Salam.
He also said the team was yet to talk to the factory owner and officials, as they were not available.
Also, the labour and employment ministry had moved to form a taskforce to supervise safety measures in garment factories, labour secretary Mikail Shipar told a parliamentary body.
“The taskforce will be composed of representatives from the government, garment owners and workers and headed by the minister or the state minister,” Mikail told reporters after a meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on the labour and employment ministry.
He said the taskforce would visit at least 20 factories every month to see if the plants were complying with safety regulations.
The labour secretary also said the labour directorate on November 27 filed cases with labour courts against Delowar Hossain, managing director of Tazreen Fashions.
“The owner simply cannot shirk his responsibility,” Mikail said.
Israfil Alam, chief of the parliamentary body, told reporters that the committee had recommended stern actions against those responsible for the deadly fire.
The lawmaker said the committee did not want to make any comments pointing fingers to any people. “It is under investigation and we believe the truth will come out through investigation.”
Meeting sources said the committee members were annoyed by the absence of Labour Minister Rajiuddin Ahmed Raju and State Minister Monnujan Sufian.
AHM Anwar Pasha, executive magistrate of Dhaka district, said if a factory does not have any fire-fighting equipment then its owner could be sent to jail for six months to three years along with fines under the Prevention and Extinguishment of Fire Act 2003.
If a factory with fire-fighting gears fails to use the equipment in case of fire its owner will face jail up to six months along with fine, Anwar Pasha told The Daily Star.
Queried about his department's failure to inspect every factory seeking renewal of fire licence, fire service Director Abdus Salam said, "It's not possible for our officials to ensure proper inspection at every factory during renewal of fire licence, as the number of inspectors is very poor compared to that of factories."
Five days into the deadly fire at Tazreen Fashions, the garment makers yesterday decided to form a high-powered committee to ensure upgrade of fire safety apparatus at RMG production units.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association said it would soon form a taskforce and set a time limit for the garment owners to upgrade fire safety measures at their factories.
“If the owners do not upgrade fire safety measures, the taskforce will shut down their plants,” BGMEA President Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said.
Meanwhile, some 300 people among who were university students, journalists and artists joined a protest outside the BGMEA building in the city's Karwan Bazar yesterday to demand justice for the victims of the fire incident.

US birth rate falls to record low

The US birth rate hit a record low last year, led by the decline in child-bearing among foreign-born women, according to a Pew study.
The overall US birth rate decreased by 8% between 2007-10, and by 6% among US-born women, found the data.
The rate fell sharpest for those hardest hit by the recession: 14% among foreign-born women and 23% among Mexican immigrant women in particular.
The 2011 rate was the lowest since 1920, when such records began.
Previous research by Pew concluded that states with the largest economic downturn from 2007-08, were most likely to have experienced fertility declines.
Foreign and US-born Hispanic women have experienced the largest fall in household wealth since 2007.
But increased access to contraception for Latino women may also be playing a part in the falling birth rate, according to the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health.
Foreign-born mothers continue to give birth to a disproportionate share of the nation's newborns.
Last year there were 3.95 million total US births, according to the preliminary data from Pew Research Center.
The overall US birth rate was 63.2 per 1,000 women of child-bearing age.
It peaked in 1957 during the Baby Boom years, reaching 122.7 per 1,000 women.

UN upgrades Palestinians' status

The UN General Assembly has voted to grant the Palestinians non-member observer state status - a move strongly opposed by Israel and the US.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the assembly the vote was the "last chance to save the two-state solution" with Israel.
Israel's envoy to the UN said the bid pushed peace process "backwards", while the US said the move was "unfortunate".
The assembly voted 138-9 in favour, with 41 nations abstaining.
Hundreds of Palestinians celebrated on the streets of Ramallah, in the West Bank, after the result was announced.
'Birth certificate'
"Sixty-five years ago on this day, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 181, which partitioned the land of historic Palestine into two states and became the birth certificate for Israel," Mr Abbas said shortly before the vote in New York.
"The General Assembly is called upon today to issue a birth certificate of the reality of the State of Palestine," he said.
The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, said "the only way to reach peace is through agreements" between the parties, not at the UN.
"No decision by the UN can break the 4,000-year-old bond between the people of Israel and the land of Israel," he said.
Opponents of the bid say a Palestinian state should emerge only out of bilateral negotiations, as set out in the 1993 Oslo peace accords under which the Palestinian Authority was established.
Speaking after the vote, the US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, urged the Palestinians and Israel to resume direct peace talks and warned against unilateral actions.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the vote "unfortunate and counter-productive", saying it put more obstacles on the path to peace.
"By going to the UN, the Palestinians have violated the agreements with Israel and Israel will act accordingly," said the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Twitter.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also called for more talks, saying the resolution underscored the need to resume meaningful peace negotiations.
The UK abstained from the vote, as did Germany. The Czech Republic, the Marshall Islands and Panama were among the nations voting with the US and Israel.
In the West Bank, crowds celebrated the vote by waving flags and chanting "God is great!"
"For the first time, there will be a state called Palestine, with the recognition of the entire world," Amir Hamdan was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.
"Today the world will hear our voice," he added.
Symbolic milestone
The Palestinians are seeking UN recognition of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, the lands Israel captured in 1967.
While the move is seen as a symbolic milestone in Palestinian ambitions for statehood, the "Yes" vote will also have a practical diplomatic effect, says the BBC's Barbara Plett, at the UN.
It would allow the Palestinians to participate in debates at the UN and improve their chances of joining UN agencies and bodies like the International Criminal Court.
Last year, Mr Abbas asked the UN Security Council to admit the Palestinians as a member state, but that was opposed by the US.
Mr Abbas was much criticised by many Palestinians for remaining on the sidelines of the conflict earlier this month in Gaza and efforts to achieve a ceasefire with Israel.
His Fatah movement, based in the West Bank, is deeply split from the militant Hamas movement which governs Gaza.
Gaza's Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh said in a statement sent to the BBC that Hamas' "support for the UN bid is based on the 'rule of non-recognition of the occupier'... and the right of Palestinians to return to their homeland".