Man, 35, reportedly marries computer holograph

Akihiko Kondo, 35, poses for a photograph with a doll modeled after virtual reality singer Hatsune Miku, wearing their wedding rings, at his apartment after marrying her in Tokyo, Japan. (Reuters)

Surrounded by nearly 40 people, a 35-year-old man reportedly married a virtual hologram earlier this month.

Akihiko Kondo, who works at a middle school in Japan, wed Hatsune Miku, a hologram that was created by a computer as singing software, on Nov. 4, Reuters reported Wednesday.

The hologram, which takes the form of a teen performer, “is a singing voice synthesizer featured in over 100,000 songs,” according to an online description from Crypton Future Media, the company whose program the character is modeled on, Reuters reported.

The company did not immediately return Fox News’ request for comment.

While acknowledging the traditional path to marriage, Kondo said he feels “the shape of happiness and love is different for each person.”

"There definitely is a template for happiness, where a real man and woman get married, have a child and live all together. But I don’t believe such a template can necessarily make everyone happy,” Kondo told Reuters.

Both Kondo, whose parents were not present at the wedding, and his new bride each have wedding rings, according to the outlet. A doll that resembles the bride reportedly wears the hologram’s ring.

The groom requested a marriage registration form from Gatebox, a technology company that last year offered the documents for those who wanted to marry computer-generated personas, Reuters said. However, the weddings reportedly do not have any legal grounds.

Since the ceremony, Kondo told Reuters that people have reached out to him, “saying they were encouraged,” he told the outlet. “I think it was nice to have this wedding for that reason.”

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'Jesus' face' uncovered at ancient church in the Israeli desert

A previously unknown 1,500-year-old painting of Christ’s face has been uncovered at a Byzantine church in Israel’s Negev desert, according to a report by Fox News.

The discovery in the ancient Byzantine village of Shivta has reportedly thrilled archaeologists.

Although the painting is fragmented, experts from Israel’s University of Haifa were able to make out the facial outline, according to the report.

The Baptistry Chamber (on right) where the painting was found. Photo credit: Fox News

Their research was reportedly published recently in the journal Antiquity.

The painting, which is believed to date from the sixth century A.D., depicts Jesus as a short-haired youth.

“Christ’s face in this painting is an important discovery in itself, It belongs to the iconographic scheme of a short-haired Christ, which was especially widespread in Egypt and Syro-Palestine, but gone from later Byzantine art,” they explained in their paper

The painting was briefly noted in the 1920s, but has now undergone more analysis. In their study, the University of Haifa archaeologists explain that Christ is depicted next to a much larger figure, which is probably John the Baptist.

The face of Christ with proposed reconstruction. Photo credit: Fox News

“The location of the scene—above the [church’s] crucifix-shaped Baptist font—suggests its identification as the baptism of Christ,” said the study’s authors.

Experts describe the painting’s discovery as extremely important, noting that it predates the religious iconography used in the Orthodox Christian Church.

“Thus far, it is the only in situ baptism-of-Christ scene to date confidently to the pre-iconoclastic Holy Land,” they said in the study.

“Therefore, it can illuminate Byzantine Shivta’s Christian community and Early Christian art across the region,”the study's authors added.

The painting is the latest fascinating archaeological discovery in Israel. Engravings of ships, for example, were recently found on an ancient water cistern discovered in a city in the Negev desert.

In a separate project, archaeologists recently confirmed the first full spelling of 'Jerusalem' on an ancient stone inscription excavated in the area of Jerusalem’s International Convention Center, known as Binyanei Ha'Uma.

In another project, experts discovered a site that may offer fresh insight into the ancient biblical kingdom of David and Solomon.

In a separate archaeological dig, a trove of bronze coins, the last remnants of an ancient Jewish revolt against the Roman Empire, were recently discovered near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

This is a very interesting discovery.

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Tech War Looms as Facebook Founder Orders Staff to use Android Phones

The Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, was reportedly enraged by criticisms over privacy policy issues by Apple CEO Tim Cook and he allegedly instructed his executives to stop using iPhones in favour of Android devices.

This allegation is contained in a New York Times article titled Delay, Deny and Deflect: How Facebook’s Leaders Fought Through Crisis.

The article also details the social network's many unending battles in addressing data breach on its platform, particularly concerning Russian interference in the 2016 election and subsequent privacy concerns raised by critics.

“We’re not going to traffic in your personal life,” Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, said in an MSNBC interview. “Privacy to us is a human right. It’s a civil liberty.” (Mr. Cook’s criticisms infuriated Mr. Zuckerberg, who later ordered his management team to use only Android phones — arguing that the operating system had far more users than Apple’s.)," The New York Times' article states.

Facebook has reportedly not responded to the claim that Zuckerberg had personally told executives to stop using iPhones.

Meanwhile,Facebook had released the number of Nigerians whose data ware used by Cambridge Analytica.

The social media giant said about 78 Nigerian users were directly involved as they installed the app provided by Cambridge Analytica while 271,469 users were potentially impacted.

This was because they are friends to those who would have installed the app elsewhere in the world.

A Facebook spokesperson who pleaded anonymity warned Nigerians to manage the apps they use to forestall future occurrence.

“We want to encourage people to manage the apps they use. We already show people what apps their accounts are connected to and control what data they’ve permitted those apps to use through app settings.

"We are putting a link at the top of people’s News Feeds to make sure that everyone sees it. Furthermore, it’s important for us to tell people if and how their data may have been accessed via This Is Your Digital Life,”he said.

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Nigeria named world’s biggest rice importer in 2019, after China

A report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture says Nigeria’s rice imports will jump 13 percent next year to 3.4 million metric tons, Bloomberg reports.

The projection means Nigeria will be the world’s biggest rice importer after China.

“China and Nigeria are projected to remain the largest rice importing countries in 2019, followed by the EU, Cote d’Ivoire, and Iran,” the USDA said in its latest Rice Outlook released on Tuesday, November 13.

“Nigeria and Egypt are projected to account for the bulk of the 2019 import increase,” it added.

The forecast growth is a setback for the Nigerian government, which plans to stop rice imports by the end of this year.

The government had plans to stop rice imports by the end of this year to save foreign currency.

Production had increased more than 50 percent since 2012 to 3.7 million tons last year, while domestic demand rose 4 percent to 6.7 million tons in the 2017-18 year that ended in May.

Rice farmers in Nigeria have reported a drop in output since last year due to a combination of higher input costs, insecurity and widespread flooding in the main growing regions.

“The rain has not been favorable to rice farmers this year,” Mohammed Sahabi, chairman of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria in Kebbi, one of the main rice-growing states, said by phone.

“We lost more than 20,000 hectares of unharvested rice this year in Kebbi alone,” he added.

Current global production exceeds consumption by 2.3 million tons, according to USDA, with 2018-19 “global ending stocks” projected to reach 163 million tons, 17.8 million tons more than previously forecast.

Meanwhile, the federal government says it is considering fixing a guaranteed minimum price for agricultural produce to reduce the fluctuating and high cost of commodities.

Chief Audu Ogbeh, the minister of agriculture and rural development, disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday, November 13, at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between tractor companies and Agriculture Mechanisation Company.

Ogbeh frowned at the act and idea of people buying cheap grains during harvest, store and sell them at exorbitant prices.

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Niger seeks World Bank’s assistance to revive 17 irrigation schemes

The permanent secretary in the ministry of agriculture and rural development, Ibrahim Musa, has said that Niger state needs help from the World Bank-sponsored Fadama programme to reactivate 17 irrigation schemes and improve mechanisation to encourage youths and women involvement in agriculture.

Musa made the statement in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Thursday, November 15..

He said that Fadama had encouraged irrigation farming by revitalising some irrigation projects. He said agricultural production all-year-round could not be achieved by relying only on rainfall.

He said: “In Niger State, we have about 17 irrigation projects and almost all of them are in dilapidated states but Fadama has reactivated some of the irrigation schemes and our duty is to continue from where they stopped.

“World Bank should help us to reactivate our 17 irrigation schemes in the state which has the capacity to employ over 60,000 people.

“Our 17 irrigation schemes have the capacity for about 60,000 hectares, it is large enough. If each person is to cultivate on a hectare of land, we will be mopping up about 60,000 of them into the agricultural value chain.”

According to him, World Bank is expected to assist in mechanisation in the next phase of Fadama to make agricultural activities easy for farmers.

Meanwhile, Nigeria dropped a spot on the World Bank’s latest Ease of Doing Business ranking.

The development was made public on Wednesday, October 31, in the global bank’s report, themed: ‘Doing Business 2019’.

 Nigeria moved 24 places from its 2016 spot of 169 to 145 in 2017, it dropped to number 146 in the 2018 edition

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2019: Nigerians must desist from engaging in hate crime, discrimination - UN

Nigerian youths have been warned against engaging in discrimination and hate crime ahead of the forthcoming 2019 general elections in the country.

A United Nations consultant, who issued the warning on Wednesday, November 14, urged the youths to contribute their quota to the country's development by engaging in political activities.

The chairman of the Nigerian Model United Nations Society (NIGMUNS), Chika Nwaozuzu, spoke on behalf of the UN consultant at the fourth Lagos Regional Secondary Schools Model United Nations (LARSSMUN) conference on Wednesday, November 14.

He said: “Here at this conference, the delegates disagreed over issues but after several disagreements, they found a common ground that suits all. That is what we want from our public office holders. This will benefit Nigeria.

“Our diversity, if well managed and taught, can bring us certain advantages. It can improve productivity, creativity and efficiency in our global societies as businesses.

"Organisations and communities can profit from the variety of skills, creativity, experience and entrepreneurship that comes with diverse mix of people living in same local government.

The federal government on Wednesday, July 11, admonished Nigerians not to share any information for which they could vouch on Facebook, Twitter or WhatsApp as a measure to curtail fake news menace.

The minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, gave the admonition in Abuja at the launch of National Campaign against Fake News.

He urged social media users that before sharing any information on Facebook, Twitter or WhatsApp, they should ascertain how credible the source was.

Mohammed said the campaign against fake news was to sensitise Nigerians on the dangers it posed to peace, security and nation’s corporate existence. He said though there were existing laws against fake news, the government did not intend to resort to coercion or censorship.

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Saudi to behead 5 suspects in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi

Following the brutal killing of Saudi Arabian journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, death penalty will be sought by Saudi against five suspects that were accused of murdering the journalist in the country's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Saudi's public prosecutor also announced charges against six other people allegedly involved in the killing.

The prosecutor said Saudi believes that Khashoggi was given a lethal injection inside the country's consulate on October 2.

Recall that Khashoggi was said to have been chopped into pieces while still alive in horrifying seven-minute execution in Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

According to an anonymous source, the journalist, who wrote critically about the Saudis for the Washington Post, could be heard screaming as he was dragged from the consul general’s office to a desk in the next door study.

The source said the consul general was taken out of the room before Khashoggi was "injected with an unknown drug".

The anonymous source said, who stated that Khashoggi’s cries and screams were heard by witnesses downstairs before his body was cut into pieces, said: "There was no attempt to interrogate him. They had come to kill him."

Earlier the United States promised to make those involved in the gruesome killing of US-based Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, pay for their act.

The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, made this promise during a phone conversation with the Saudi crown prince, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, on Sunday, November 11.

The promise was expedient after the pre-killing audio statement of the slain veteran journalist and critic of the Riyadh was revealed, detailing how he was begging his killers moments before he was murdered.

 President Tayyib of Turkey had revealed that the audio evidence had been sent to states interested in the case across the world.

He said: "We gave the tapes. We gave them to Saudi Arabia, to the United States, German, French and British, all of them. They have listened to all the conversation in them. They know."

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Google honours Nigerian music legend Christy Essien Igbokwe on her posthumous 58th birthday

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Global tech giant, Google recently celebrated the late Nigerian music legend, Christy Essien-Igbokwe on her posthumous 58th birthday, on November 11, with a doodle.

Many years may have passed but the impact of Christy Essien-Igbokwe's life and music lives on. Born in Akwa Ibom state in 1960, she was an actress and singer popularly known as “Nigeria’s Lady of Songs.”

She was fluent in her native language, Ibibio, but she also sang effortlessly well in Yoruba and Igbo, giving her music a broad cultural acceptance across the nation. Among her many hits was 'Seun Rere' which became a widely accepted national anthem in many Nigerian homes.

According to Google, in one of her interview, the singer revealed she was orphaned at an early age and grew up with a brother who was always on transfer due to the nature of his job as a soldier. She revealed that the hardship she faced growing up, pushed her to discover her singing talent.

Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google’s homepages that commemorates holidays, events, achievements and people. Source: Google

“I didn’t know I could sing until I found myself doing so. I was like an abandoned child, my condition made me discover myself,”

A talented Christy started her career singing in clubs before she landed an appearance on a televised talent show, which led to a role on the popular TV show ‘The New Masquerade’.

She released her first record, Freedom, at the young age 17 and that was the beginning of many hits to come. Her 1981 album Ever Liked My Person became an instant smash hit. In the year 1987 shew released the song, Akwa Ibom Mmi, which became an anthem of pride for people of heritage.

Christy Essien-Igbokwe Source: Zumi

Her fame as one of Nigeria's celebrated singers, landed her roles in two Hollywood movies, Flesh & Blood and Scars of Womanhood. The movies addressed the abuse of women and children.

Among many other things, she helped establish the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria in 1981, with renowned artistes such as King Sunny Adé and Sonny Okosun. In the year 1996, she became the organization’s first female president.

Up until her death on June 30, 2011, Christy Essien-Igbokwe was a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR).

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Osun governorship election tribunal relocates to Abuja

The Osun governorship election petitions tribunal has relocated its sittings to Abuja.

The notice of the relocation signed by the secretary to the tribunal, Adamu Aliyu, was pasted on the information board of the tribunal in Osogbo on Saturday, November 10.

Reason for the relocation of the sittings of the three-man panel to Abuja was not stated in the notice dated Friday, November 9.

The one-paragraph notice read: “This is to inform the general public that the sitting of the Osun state governorship election petitions tribunal has been relocated from High Court of Justice complex , Osogbo, to FCT High Court No. 24, Apo, Abuja.”

When contacted, Adamu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that both parties involved in the case asked the tribunal to relocate to Abuja for security reasons.

“Yes, it is true that the tribunal has been relocated to Abuja.

“Both parties (APC and PDP) requested that the tribunal be relocated to Abuja for security reason,” Adamu said.

Senator Ademola Adeleke, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, is challenging the outcome of the September 22, governorship election in which Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, the candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Oyetola scored 255,505 votes to defeat Adeleke who polled 255,023 votes.

Before then, INEC had declared the result of the election inconclusive.

The returning officer of the election, Adeola Fuwape in an address on Sunday, September 23 said based on the outcome of the result which ended with a slim margin between the two leading parties, the election was inconclusive.

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Dubai police begin training officers how to pilot flying motorbikes

In search of a new innovative way to help combat crime from the skies, Dubai has contracted the service of a California tech firm to train its police officers on how to operate S3 2019 hoverbike, a flying motorbike with three propellers.

According to CNN, the police believe the flying motorbikes will help them reach hard-to-access areas when they respond to emergencies.

The hoverbikes will be in action by 2020 with two crews already learning how to pilot them.

The Dubai police believe the flying motorbikes will help them reach hard-to-access areas when they respond to emergencies. Credit: CNN

“Currently we have two crews already training and we're increasing the number,” said Khalid Nasser Alrazooqi of Dubai Police.

Designers Hoversurf presented the flying contraption to Dubai authorities at GITEX, an annual technology trade fair in Dubai.

The firm said they could provide 30 or 40 to Dubai if police were interested and said the emirate's law enforcement had exclusive rights to order as many vehicles as they needed.

It added that civilians will also be able to buy the flying motorbikes for $150,000 (£114,000) but will have to be screened to establish whether they can use it safely.

The battery-powered bike can fly for up to 40 minutes in its 'drone mode' before it will need recharging.

The battery-powered bike can fly for up to 40 minutes in its 'drone mode' before it will need recharging. Credit: CNN

With its propellers, it can fly at 60mph up to 16 feet above the ground. The company added that the dimensions of the hoverbike allow it to be rolled in a standard doorway while also being able to take off from an ordinary parking space.

“By combining our custom built flight controller, the most innovative composite material processes and having a dedicated team we were able to achieve something truly amazing.

“We presented the S3 2019 to the Dubai Police at this years GITEX 2018 where it will now be integrated into their fleet of futuristic vehicles.

“Both Hoversurf and Dubai Police understand that this is just the beginning to something much larger.

“A partnership were both see the future is within our grasp and that together we can materialize the human dream of personal flight,” the company said on its website.

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Nigerians are hopelessly frustrated, disillusioned - Obasanjo

Nigeria’s former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, has once again commented on the state of affairs of the country, saying that many Nigerians are “hopelessly frustrated and disillusioned”.

Speaking at his Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, Obasanjo, however, admonished Nigerians not to lose hope, adding that the “God of miracle would bring succour to the land, 

The former president said this when the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Bolade Osinowo, led the candidates of the party in the state, including the governorship candidate, Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka, the running mate, Bisi Okeowo-Bolade and Titi Oseni-Gomez, for the 2019 general elections Obasanjo

Obasanjo said it is not the fault of God that Nigeria failed to attain its potential despite the great endowments.

He blamed the current state of the country on the “conscious and unconscious choices of the people of Nigeria.”

He further stated that Nigeria as a country has made numerous mistakes which could have plunged it to extinction, but said the country has continued to exist and remained as one because of the love and grace of God upon her.

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