All posts tagged: represent

Eurovision: Hamas 7 October attack survivor to represent Israel | Ents & Arts News

Eurovision: Hamas 7 October attack survivor to represent Israel | Ents & Arts News

A survivor of the 7 October Hamas attack has been chosen to represent Israel at Eurovision. Yuval Raphael was at the Nova music festival when Hamas led a cross-border attack from Gaza into southern Israel. Hundreds were killed and many were taken hostage at the event. The amateur singer was there with friends and later told Israel’s parliament she hid under dead bodies for eight hours. Image: Yuval Raphael. Pic: Eurovision/Tal Givoni She added: “I’m going to deal with this thing for the rest of my life.” The 24-year-old earned her place at Eurovision, taking place in Switzerland in May, after coming first in the Rising Star singing contest on Israeli TV. She won with a performance of ABBA’s Dancing Queen which she dedicated to victims of the attack which kick-started the war between Israel and Hamas. After winning, she said: “I can’t explain how excited and ready I am. “Thank you for giving me this huge honour and trusting me to represent my country on the grand Eurovision stage in Switzerland.” In the months …

This AI-generated Minecraft may represent the future of real-time video generation

This AI-generated Minecraft may represent the future of real-time video generation

“What if you could say ‘Hey, add a flying unicorn here’? Literally, talk to the model. Or ‘Turn everything here into medieval ages,’ and then, boom, it’s all medieval ages. Or ‘Turn this into Star Wars,’ and it’s all Star Wars,” says Leitersdorf. A major limitation right now is hardware. They relied on Nvidia cards for their current demo, but in the future, they plan to use Sohu, a new card that Etched has in development, which the firm claims will improve performance by a factor of 10. This gain would significantly cut down on the cost and energy needed to produce real-time interactive video. It would allow Decart and Etched to make a better version of their current demo, allowing the game to run longer, with fewer hallucinations, and at higher resolution. They say the new chip would also make it possible for more players to use the model at once. “Custom chips for AI hold the potential to unlock significant performance gains and energy efficiency gains,” says Siddharth Garg, a professor of electrical …

Daisy Bates, Johnny Cash statues represent Arkansas in Statuary Hall

Daisy Bates, Johnny Cash statues represent Arkansas in Statuary Hall

Two heroes from Arkansas are being honored with statues in the U.S. Capitol. Daisy Bates, a civil rights leader, and Johnny Cash, the world-renowned singer, are set to represent Arkansas in Statuary Hall, the Capitol’s main exhibition space, featuring two statues from every state. Bates’ statue is scheduled for installation this week, while the statue of Cash is set for display later this year. Bates served as president of the Arkansas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for several years. In addition, she and her husband also published a weekly newspaper dedicated to the coverage of the civil rights movement. With that background, she was the perfect mentor for the Little Rock Nine, the Black high school students who integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957 when segregationists vowed to keep the school all-white, despite the 1954 Supreme Court ruling that segregated schools were unconstitutional. She helped organize the parents and the students for the monumental civil rights event. Bates is depicted in the 8-foot-tall bronze …

“I’m Here…to Represent Jesus Christ”: Arizona Republicans Block Second Attempt to Repeal Civil War–Era Abortion Ban

“I’m Here…to Represent Jesus Christ”: Arizona Republicans Block Second Attempt to Repeal Civil War–Era Abortion Ban

After the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated a 1864 law banning virtually all abortions, including in cases of incest and rape, the response across the country was deafening, and not in a good way. From people who believe in reproductive rights, sure, but also from many Republicans, including Donald Trump, who fear the move will cost the party elections. It went “too far,” the man who brags about killing Roe v. Wade told reporters, adding, desperately, “I’m sure that the governor and everybody else are going to bring it back into reason.” But a week later, things have not been brought back “into reason,” because Republicans in the state are apparently intent on letting the barbaric law stand. On Wednesday, Arizona Republicans blocked the second effort in two weeks to repeal the Civil War–era abortion ban. According to The New York Times, after GOP lawmakers initially resisted Democratic efforts to reverse the law last week, “cajoling” from Trump and Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake* looked like it was going to translate to an about-face this week, …

Pace Gallery Will Represent the Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative

Pace Gallery Will Represent the Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative

Via the gallery.   Pace Gallery will globally represent the Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative, the institution announced news on Friday. The news comes a few days before an Indiana exhibition, scheduled to open in Venice. It also coincides with the Biennale. Overall, this initiative is a business tasked with overseeing the heritage and artwork of the Pop artist.   Wondrous Opportunities for a Distinctly American Artist View of Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE sculpture at Rockefeller Center in New York, 2023. PHOTO JOHN LAMPARSKI/GETTY IMAGES.   The Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative describes itself as the key organisation in charge of preserving Indiana’s work and archives. Dealer Simon Salama-Caro created the initiative shortly after the estate reached a complicated and protracted court dispute on Indiana’s historical heritage. “This is the start of an exciting next phase of Robert Indiana’s illustrious legacy”, Salama-Caro said in an email.   “For Bob’s work to be globally represented by Pace Gallery provides wondrous opportunities for a distinctly American artist to be further introduced to new audiences around the world, where his …

Andrea Riseborough Wanted The Regime’s Agnes to Represent the People

Andrea Riseborough Wanted The Regime’s Agnes to Represent the People

The Christmas carp may have escaped the palace, but Agnes was not so lucky. On the penultimate episode of The Regime, “All Ye Faithful,” Andrea Riseborough’s steadfast right-hand woman met her untimely demise, shot to death in the palace during a violet uprising. Riseborough dropped by the Still Watching podcast to chat about Agnes’s unceremonious end in episode five and workshopping Agnes’s backstory with costar Kate Winslet.   “Poor Agnes,” said Riseborough on the podcast. “It’s so horrible, the faceless fallout of war.” Riseborough had a simple explanation as to why Agnes stuck around Chancellor Elena’s corrupt regime as long as she did, despite being presented with multiple opportunities to flee the country: “I think Agnes probably wouldn’t have continued to be complicit working in the palace had her son [Oskar] not been suddenly found in great favor by Elena,” said Riseborough. “That just complicated Agnes’s whole situation to the point where she found herself co-parenting with a dictator, which is trying at the best of times. She’s trapped, essentially.” The To Leslie star dove …

Mbappe expects future to be decided before Euros, wants to represent France in Olympics

Mbappe expects future to be decided before Euros, wants to represent France in Olympics

DECINES-CHARPIEU, FRANCE : Kylian Mbappe believes he will know which club he will join next season before the European Championship kicks off in June, the France forward said on Friday. Mbappe, who is set to leave Paris St Germain in the summer, said his focus was on representing his national team in the Euros as well as the Olympics in Paris, if he is allowed to be available for selection. “I have still not announced anything on my future as I’ve nothing to announce… I’ve always said that when I have something to announce, I’ll do it as a man,” he told reporters ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Germany. “I think my future will be resolved before the Euros, yes.” Mbappe said playing in the Olympics would be a dream but the decision is not up to the 25-year-old. “I always wanted to play at the Olympics and my desire has not changed… but if I’m not allowed to, then I will do as I’m told,” he said. The Olympics men’s soccer tournament is played …

MPs, understand this: protests are inevitable when you fail to represent the people | Andy Beckett

MPs, understand this: protests are inevitable when you fail to represent the people | Andy Beckett

Where should politics happen? For most MPs, accustomed to the Palace of Westminster’s inward-looking spaces and rituals, the answer is obvious. In parliament and its associated offices, corridors, committee rooms, bars and tea rooms; in Downing Street and its surrounding maze of ministries; and in the parts of the media that mould political opinion. This country is supposed to be a representative democracy. Except for very occasional referendums, periodic elections, voxpops and opinion polls, or perhaps the odd exchange with their MP, voters are not meant to be directly involved. A sign of a healthy political system, we are often told, is one where most people get on with their lives and leave politics to the professionals. But Britain doesn’t feel like that kind of place now. Political professionals – whether MPs, ministers or party functionaries – are regarded by many voters with contempt: as incompetent, corrupt, uninspiring, or a combination of all three. Meanwhile the public spaces of Westminster and the centres of other cities are busier with protests than they have been for …

‘They don’t represent us’: Rochdale voters on why they deserted major parties | Byelections

‘They don’t represent us’: Rochdale voters on why they deserted major parties | Byelections

In the freezing dark outside Rochdale leisure centre, Hassan Ali, 26, celebrated George Galloway’s stunning victory hours before the result was officially declared. “We have created history tonight,” he said in the small hours of Friday, surrounded by dozens of young men, slapping each other on the back and video-calling friends in English, Urdu and Bengali. “Our families have voted for Labour for many years because they’ve got used to ticking the flower box, but this is a vote for change,” said Ali, a community worker. Around him, several men in their 20s said they had voted for the first time on Thursday in order to send Galloway to parliament – and deliver a message to Labour. “Labour have been running these streets for years and they’ve done nothing,” Ali said. “Starmer has betrayed the people of Rochdale and the Asian vote.” Galloway, the irrepressible agitator, is back in the Commons representing a fourth constituency in nearly four decades after urging voters to deliver “the ultimate protest” over Labour’s handling of the Israel-Gaza conflict. The …

Palestinian singer running to represent Iceland at Eurovision contest | Music News

Palestinian singer running to represent Iceland at Eurovision contest | Music News

Bashar Murad said he wants to use his song to ‘illustrate’ the difficulties Palestinians face in order to be heard. Palestinian pop singer Bashar Murad is hoping to represent Iceland at the Eurovision Song Contest in May and bring “a Palestinian voice to the main stage”. Iceland is expected to pick its contestant on Saturday for the annual song competition, which is being held in the Swedish city of Malmo. Murad is competing in the national final with a song co-written by Einar Stefansson of the Icelandic band Hatari, known for raising a banner showing Palestinian flags during the 2019 Eurovision Contest. While the competition bills itself as a non-political event and can disqualify those it considers to be in breach of the rule, the global political backdrop frequently weighs in on decisions. In 2022, Russia was banned from participating in the contest after several countries called for its removal due to its invasion of Ukraine. In light of the war in Gaza, some artists have called on the competition organisers to also exclude Israel …