Maison&Objet opens on January 16 with theme of Sur/Reality

PARIS: One of the most awaited design show, Maison&Objet opens in the City of Lights on January 16. The five-day show would bring together the future of design: groundbreaking innovations, rising talents, and bold creative visions. With the theme of Sur/Reality, Maison&Objet and Peclers Paris shall take you on a journey through a reimagined surrealism....more

At Maison&Objet, Hospitality Is A Key Element

By Deepak Arora

PARIS, Jan 5: At Maison&Objet that opens here on January 16, hospitality is a key element of differentiation strategy. "The industry’s professionals are looking for unique, striking pieces that go beyond the functional solutions available elsewhere. They come to us for inspiration and to discover creations that will make their projects stand out," said Mélanie Leroy, Managing Director of SAFI (Maison&Objet, ParisDesign Week, MOM)'....more

Biden Awards Pope Francis Presidential Medal Of Freedom With Distinction

WASHINGTON, Jan 12: US President Joe Biden spoke with Pope Francis on Saturday and awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction, the nation's highest civilian honor, the White House said. It was the first time during his four years in office that Biden awarded the medal "with distinction", it said.

Biden, 82, leaves office on January 20. To oversee the federal response to the fires in California, he canceled a trip to Rome this week, where he was due to meet Francis in person.

A lifelong Catholic who has met the pope several times, Biden told reporters on Friday that he was disappointed to cancel the trip, but felt it was more important to stay in Washington.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is presented individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the US, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.

One week ago, Biden awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, chef Jose Andres and conservationist Jane Goodall, among others.

The White House said Biden spoke by phone with Francis on Saturday and expressed his deep regret that he was unable to visit Rome and Vatican City. The two leaders discussed efforts to advance peace around the world, including Francis' work to alleviate suffering for vulnerable communities, it said.

In his citation for Francis, who was born as Jorge Bergoglio in Argentina, Biden lauded the religious leader's life of service to "the voiceless and vulnerable across Argentina" and his lifetime of service to the poor.

"A loving pastor, he joyfully answers children's questions about God. A challenging teacher, he commands us to fight for peace and protect the planet," Biden wrote.

"The first pope from the Southern Hemisphere, Pope Francis is unlike any who came before. Above all, he is the People's Pope - a light of faith, hope, and love that shines brightly across the world."

Both Biden and Francis have been weakened by global events, said Massimo Faggioli, an Italian academic and professor at Villanova University who follows the papacy.

"That is really hard to underestimate how tragic this moment is for both men in different ways," he said. "Because what could go wrong did go wrong in these few years."

Francis has pushed for an end to Russia's war with Ukraine and has been critical of Israel's military campaign against Palestinian group Hamas. Both conflicts are ongoing.

Biden, 82, a regular attender of Mass, departed from church doctrine later in life with his support for abortion rights. In 2021, he said Francis had defended him from criticism by some US Catholics over the issue, including many bishops.

Francis, 88, has pushed to open the Church to the modern world since he took the helm in 2013. He has drawn criticism from some US Catholics who view him as too liberal.

‘I am rich and I have no idea what to do with my life’: Vinay Hiremath after selling startup for $975 million

WASHINGTON D.C., Jan 7: Vinay Hiremath, the co-founder of Loom, recently shared a note about the insecurities he has been experiencing after getting rich. The Indian-origin entrepreneur made millions after selling his startup to Atlassian for $975 million in 2023.

In a blog post titled "I am rich and I have no idea what to do with my life," Hiremath wrote: 'Life has been a haze this last year. After selling my company, I find myself in the totally un-relatable position of never having to work again. Everything feels like a side quest, but not in an inspiring way. I don’t have the same base desires driving me to make money or gain status." He added that he has infinite freedom, yet does not know what to do with it. "And, honestly, I’m not the most optimistic about life."

Hiremath also dressed a few key phases in his life spent in trying to create some meaning out of it.

He said that he broke up with his girlfriend -- with whom he had spent "two years of unconditional love" -- because of his insecurities. Hiremath described the breakup as "extremely painful" but clarified that it was the right call. He also apologised to his former girlfriend without naming her. “If my ex is reading this. Thank you for everything. I am sorry I couldn’t be what you needed me to be,” he wrote.

The Loom co-founder also spoke about how he didn’t want to stay at the company that acquired Loom but found it difficult to walk away from a potential $60 million pay package as the CTO. After he retreated to “the redwoods” to work through his disorientation, Hiremath decided to leave the work behind “to do something. Anything. To be alive again.”

In the next two weeks, he met with dozens of investors and robotics experts, because he wanted to give computers "arms and legs," but it left Hiremath uninspired. “It started to dawn on me that what I actually wanted was to look like Elon, and that is incredibly cringe,” he wrote. “It hurts to even type this out.”

The 33-year-old then turned to climb the Himalayas without any experience, fell ill and had to be rapelled downward “while tripping out of my mind.” After he recovered, his friends suggested he reach out to Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy at DOGE. He did so and even managed to get a job there but soon realised that it wasn’t for him.

“[A]fter 4 intense and intoxicating weeks, I called off my plans to move to [Washington,] D.C. and embark on a journey to save our government with some of the smartest people I’ve ever met,” Hiremath wrote. “And I booked a 1-way ticket to Hawaii.”

Now, he is learning physics, with his gaze fixed on starting a company that “manufactures real world things” and stated that he would be okay even if it doesn’t reach the soaring heights that Loom did.

Scientists Demonstrate 'Negative Time' In Groundbreaking Quantum Experiment

TORONTO, Jan 2: Researchers at the University of Toronto have made a groundbreaking discovery, showing that "negative time" is not just a theoretical concept but a tangible phenomenon. Scientists at the institution showed through an innovative quantum experiment that light appears to emerge from a material before entering, overturning several decades of prevailing ideas about the nature of time.

While much of the attention surrounding the results is international in scope, scientific communities have largely raised an eyebrow over the matter.

The results, yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal, are expected to spur further investigation into the mysteries of time and quantum mechanics.

"It took a positive amount of time, but our experiment observing that photons can make atoms seem to spend a negative amount of time in the excited state is up!" wrote Aephraim Steinberg, a physicist at the University of Toronto, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) about the new study.

While the term "negative time" might sound like a concept lifted from science fiction, Steinberg defends its use, hoping it will spark deeper discussions about the mysteries of quantum physics.

According to a report by Scientific American, the idea for this work emerged in 2017. At the time, Steinberg and a lab colleague, then doctoral student Josiah Sinclair, were interested in the interaction of light and matter, specifically a phenomenon called atomic excitation: when photons pass through a medium and get absorbed, electrons swirling around atoms in that medium jump to higher energy levels. When these excited electrons lapse to their original state, they release that absorbed energy as reemitted photons, introducing a time delay in the light's observed transit time through the medium.