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Orca calf rescue team considers changing tactics to save stranded B.C. whale: DFO

A rescue team working to coax a stranded killer whale calf from a lagoon off northern Vancouver Island is prepared to change tactics to save its life, including the possibility of lifting the orca out to the open ocean, says a Fisheries Department marine mammal co-ordinator. Paul Cottrell said Wednesday that all contingencies will be considered over the coming days after efforts by a team of experts and First Nations members failed to get the two-year-old to leave the remote lagoon through a narrow passage during high tide. He said they won’t rule out a “live-capture” scenario, which could involve placing the orca in a sling-type device and hoisting it to the open ocean. “We are thinking beyond if we have to change tactics, depending on the calf’s health going forward,” said Cottrell at a news conference with Ehattesaht First Nation Chief Simon John in Zeballos, located more than 450 kilometres north of Victoria. Several attempts have been made to get the calf to leave the area after its pregnant mother died in the lagoon Saturday when she was stranded by the low tide. Attempts to use recorded killer whale vocalizations to convince the calf to leave the lagoon have not been successful. Despite the difficulties, Cottrell said the team will be back on the water Thursday, continuing to try and coax the whale out. “We’re looking at all contingencies and contingencies later on,” said Cottrell. “As you can imagine, this is a very short time window we have, so we’re having to look at all those options and think ahead in case we have to look at those later options, which is in progress for sure.” The whale has not been eating and Cottrell said that for it to survive once it’s freed, it will need to be reunited with its pod, or adopted by another pod. John said he hopes the orca will reunite with its family members. “My real concern is that the whale gets out of the lagoon safely and reaches its pod,” he said. “That’s kind of where the real collaborative effort is at. We’re really trying to get to that point of actually getting it out of there.” John said the area of the lagoon is known locally as Little Espinosa and is considered prime seal hunting waters for killer whales. A necropsy of the mother orca, a 15-year-old Bigg’s killer whale, showed she was pregnant with a female fetus when she died. Cottrell said the pregnancy may have contributed to the mother’s death as it could not manoeuvre itself off the beach when it became stranded despite the help of local residents. “The effort was incredible, and just an unlucky situation,” said Cottrell, adding the mother orca could have weighed between eight and 10 tonnes. The lagoon poses access challenges, especially for an orca calf left alone without its mother acting as a guide in and out of the area, he said. He said boats involved in the rescue effort can find it tricky to get into the lagoon. “It’s almost like threading the needle,” said Cottrell about the entrance and exit to the lagoon, which includes short optimum tidal times of about 15 to 20 minutes and tricky currents. Cottrell, who has been doing this work for 17 years, said this is one of the most difficult rescue scenarios he’s been involved with. John said nation members have been out looking for the calf’s family in open water and have given the young calf a name: kwiisahi?is, meaning Brave Little Hunter. He said First Nations members conducted a ceremony to honour the mother killer whale. “We tried to release the whale’s spirit with a ceremony.” John said earlier that killer whales have an important connection to the Ehattesaht First Nation’s culture, where its stories say “the killer whale came onto land and transformed into the wolf and then the wolf transformed into man.

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French company Valeo to use more Google Cloud AI tools

PARIS : French car parts maker Valeo said on Thursday it would be using more Google Cloud AI tools at Valeo, highlighting the growing importance of the technology in the cars sector. Valeo said one such area where it would be using artificial intelligence would be in deploying Google Cloud’s AI products to the toolbox used by its software development teams and in areas related to vehicle design and customer service. “Together, we will play an essential role in how we make generative AI as relevant, secure, and productive as possible to support Valeo’s growth,” Valeo Chief Technology Officer Geoffrey Bouquot said. In February, Valeo cut its net sales guidance for 2025, citing lower-than-expected growth in the automotive market and particularly for electric vehicles.

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Take-Two to acquire Borderlands maker Gearbox from Embracer for $460 million

U.S. video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software said on Wednesday it would acquire Gearbox Entertainment, best known for the first-person shooter game Borderlands, from Sweden’s Embracer for $460 million. The Swedish group is selling the game developer for a steep discount, having bought it in a deal that valued the business at up to $1.4 billion in 2021. In a separate statement, Embracer said the deal with Take-Two would cut its net debt by about 3.2 billion crowns ($301.23 million) to 3.5 billion crowns and that it expected the transaction to be immediately accretive to its free cash flow generation. Embracer, the owner of the Tomb Raider video game franchise, has been carrying out a restructuring programme since last year, aiming to cut debt. It said last month that it may fall short of its March net debt target of 8 billion crowns. Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors said that Gearbox’s acquisition “marks the result of the final structured divestment process and is an important step in transforming Embracer into the future with notably lower net debt and improved free cash flow”. Gearbox will operate as a studio within 2K, a publishing label owned by Take-Two, and will be led by founder and CEO Randy Pitchford, Take-Two said. The acquisition is set to be completed during the first quarter of Take-Two’s fiscal year 2025. Reuters reported last year, citing people familiar with the matter, that Embracer had been considering options for Gearbox as it looked to shore up its finances. The Swedish company suffered a setback in May last year when a $2 billion partnership deal with an undisclosed company fell through, which led it to announce a major restructuring plan in June. ($1 = 10.6232 Swedish crowns)

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Give your garden a spring refresh with 25% off plants, herbs, fire pits and more

Spring is here which means we can finally get outside and start sorting the garden ready for the warmer months ahead. Green fingered folk are saving money by heading online to Crocus, where the brand is running a spring sale with 25% off plants and garden goods. The mega sale is available to shop until midnight on Monday 1, April, so shoppers have the entire Easter weekend to get their hands on discounted gardening gear, flowers, herbs and more. While you can purchase plants individually, Crocus offers a lovely selection of flower collections that will soon have your garden bursting with bright blooms. The Pastels Garden collection is now £19.29 down from £25.72, including cottage-country style flower varieties in lilac, blue and white. Larger shrubs are also covered in the sale with bee-loving lavender, sweet scented magnolia and hedging all 25% cheaper. Planting those varieties in your garden will have it smelling glorious come summer. If you fancy yourself as a herb or vegetable grower, browse their selection of reduced vegetables here or pick from 25% off rocket, basil, coriander and more. It’s a great way to save money off the food shop and a fun activity to get kids outside and interesting in nature. For those that don’t have much outdoor space or perhaps have a balcony, a grow house is an excellent idea and also makes a lovely gift for any budding gardeners. This solid wood grow house was £199.99 and is now £149.99 with shoppers saying that it is a “useful addition to small garden with no space for greenhouse.” Get your garden ready for spring and summer hosting by shopping discounted accessories and lighting. A fire pit is a lovely addition and this £119.99 one is now £89.99. Hanging lanterns are an easy way to create a cosy atmosphere in your space – we love the look of these hanging tealights are on sale. You can shop the entire Crocus 25% off sale here, or Amazon are selling 10-piece gardening tool kit for £29.99 down from £36.99.

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UK weather: New maps show exactly where and when snow will fall – full list of areas

Brits are facing a wintry blast of snow in the coming days – and maps have revealed exactly where. People in parts of the North – particularly around the Pennines – as well as Scotland, North Wales, the West Midlands and Northern Ireland all face a coating of the white stuff as the onset of spring takes a chilly turn. A cold front bringing snowfall is expected for the first weekend of April, with snow depths potentially reaching 15cm in parts. According to WXCharts, which uses MetDesk data, up to 2cm could fall per hour across remote and hilly parts of North Yorkshire and Lancashire on April 8. The Met Office has already issued a weather warning for snow and rain this week, while further alerts have been sent out for the Easter weekend which is set to be a washout for many. Heavy rain and winds are set to pt a dampener on the Bank Holiday as yellow weather warnings are issued across parts of Northern Ireland and the south of England. Forecasters have warned that heavy rain could impact travel and infrastructure in the east of Northern Ireland on Wednesday and Thursday, with up to 15mm-20mm of rainfall in some areas. A yellow warning for strong winds with gusts of up to 70mph was also in place on Thursday for most of the south coast of England, from East Sussex to Cornwall. Met Office spokesman Graham Madge told The Mirror: “The Easter weekend will follow a similar theme to this week with unsettled periods with brighter interludes. “Good Friday sees low-pressure continuing to feed showers and longer spells of rain across the UK although drier spells will develop in the east. Saturday continues this pattern, but for many Easter Sunday is likely to be the best day of the weekend before conditions turn more unsettled again on Easter Monday.” And with snow on the horizon, drivers have been warned to take extra care when heading out and about, with motorists more likely to be complacent about the risks in springtime snowfall. RAC Breakdown spokesman Rod Dennis said: “With plenty of classic early spring weather over the Easter bank holiday weekend, drivers getting away will definitely need to be on their guard and ready to cope with rapidly changing road conditions. “Slowing down in the heaviest of downpours on Good Friday and Easter Saturday is a must as stopping distances will be far greater.”

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Jermain Defoe names Premier League star who could be England’s Euro 2024 wildcard

Jermain Defoe has backed Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney to shine for England – but says Newcastle striker Callum Wilson could still be Gareth Southgate’s wildcard. Harry Kane is expected lead the line barring an injury or suspension, but the recent friendlies gave Southgate a look at his options beyond the Bayern talisman. Watkins started in the defeat against Brazil, before Toney started – and scored – during the thrilling draw with Belgium. Defoe knows a thing or two about seizing an unlikely opportunity, having done so at the World Cup in 2010. And he’s backing the current crop of forwards to do something similar. During the tournament in South Africa, the Tottenham striker scored the decisive goal in England’s 1-0 win against Slovenia, booking an eventual 4-1 defeat to Germany in the round of 16. Defoe had needed be patient for his opportunity under Fabio Capello, having started on the bench for the previous two group games. But when the time came to partner Wayne Rooney, the now-retired Premier League star took his chance. Fast forward 14 years and the Three Lions will face Slovenia once again in their third and final group game, this time at Euro 2024 in Germany. As for the 2024 squad, discussions will now be held over which strikers should be picked alongside Kane, with Toney and Watkins in the driving seat three months out. And speaking exclusively to Mirror Football on behalf of Soccer Aid for Unicef, Defoe pointed out both forwards offer some different qualities: “Ollie Watkins is a goalscorer. Ivan Toney, you know, he’s confident, scores goals. He’s different sort of player to Ollie Watkins, he’s more of a focal point.” Defoe also brought up ex-teammate Callum Wilson, who hasn’t played for Newcastle since February 10 and as things stand, would be a surprise call-up if he makes it into Southgate’s final 23. “I think if he can keep himself fit he’s someone that can score goals,” Defoe noted. “I’ve always liked Callum, I played with him a little bit at Bournemouth. He’s a goalscorer, a good finisher and calm in front of goal.” But it’s not just Kane’s deputies who can provide the goals, but also England’s abundance of wide forwards. “Jarrod Bowen, the hat-trick hero [for West Ham against Brentford last month],” Defoe added. “I keep saying that he’s someone who can be a surprise and probably go to a tournament and make an impact. But in terms of the forward areas, there’s so many options. Your turn! Which backup strikers should Gareth Southgate select? Give us your picks in the comments section. “Phil Foden, who’s been amazing, but when you go to a tournament, it’s not just about obviously the team that starts. The squad is so important. You know, players that don’t start at the beginning of the tournament might end up in the team and might become one of the most important players in the tournament. “We’ve seen it over the years but in those forward areas, there’s loads of players who can definitely make an impact. But Ivan Toney Ollie Watkins are two.” So what advice would the current Spurs youth coach give to those who start this summer on the bench? “I always say it to the young players at Tottenham that you always have to be ready,” he replied. “Whether that’s if you’re at a tournament and you’re not in the team, things can change at any moment. “Players get injured, suspensions like I remember in South Africa. I think the first training session, Rio Ferdinand did his cruciate, so you have to always be ready. Every training session, you have to be switched on to the information and just keep yourself ready. “I think these players, they’re professional. They know at any moment you can get an opportunity and you’ve got to take it, especially at a tournament, that sort of level. That’s the pinnacle. So, you know, those those sort of like, concentration levels are so vital. But they’re all top players anyway.” Defoe himself also hopes to be on the scoresheet for England in June, as he lines up at Stamford Bridge for Soccer Aid. “We’re due a win!” he made sure to note, with the Rest of the World winning the last four editions. “To be back involved is obviously good. I enjoyed it last year, the whole build-up, seeing some familiar faces – obviously people who I’ve never met before as well. The most important thing is trying to raise as much money as possible for all the kids around the world who are suffering and give them a chance of life. So, yeah, I’m looking forward to it and hopefully this year we can win.” Soccer Aid for Unicef 2024 takes place on Sunday, June 9 at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, with tickets available at www.socceraid.org.uk/tickets. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

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Gary Neville explains Harry Styles snub that risked upsetting his daughters

Gary Neville has revealed he snubbed pop superstar Harry Styles because he was too wrapped up in a conversation over League Two finances. The Manchester United legend was working as a pundit for Sky Sports as the Red Devils visited Luton Town last month. Before the game, Neville was relaxing in the studio with the rest of the punditry team, which included Jamie Redknapp. As he was doing so, Styles walked in alongside Luton’s directors, who have overseen a miraculous rise for the Hatters over the past decade. Former One Direction star Styles is a huge United fan. But rather than speaking to him, Neville instead became wrapped up in a conversation with Luton chairman Gary Sweet over finances in the fourth tier. Neville is a co-owner of League Two side Salford City and accidentally snubbed Styles to get tips from Sweet. The legendary United captain has now admitted he made a mistake in ignoring Styles. But he insisted it was an innocent error as he became distracted, though he hinted his daughters might not be happy with him. “Harry was at the back and Gary Sweet was there. But we’d interviewed him for the first or second Friday Night Football of the season and got on really well,” Neville told Geoff Shreeves on the Football, Music and Me podcast. “I felt like I had a lot of synergies with him, because Luton have done their promotions from League Two, we’re in League Two with Salford. I was really interested in his story and how they’d done it. “So I was talking to him and I saw one guy go past and I shook the hand of Harry but I was concentrating on the conversation with Gary. But he walked past and then I saw Jamie Redknapp get up and go ‘hey you alright’. “I thought ‘oh no’. My daughters absolutely adore him. They went and watched him at Lancashire Cricket Club about a year ago now, he fills everywhere. But it was like ‘yeah alright, let me carry on talking to Gary Sweet about League Two finances’.” At the time, Neville blamed the snub on Styles’ smart dress sense for the game. And he admitted that first thought Styles was the son of one of the Luton directors. “I’ve got to get into the studio and try to resurrect the fact that I didn’t recognise Harry Styles before the game. He dressed so smartly. He walked in with the Luton Town owners,” Neville told the Gary Neville Podcast. “I thought he was actually one of the director’s sons. He’s a United fan so he may have done by oh god, I’m totally embarrassed and shocked. My two girls would be horrified, mortified with me. I’m really sorry Harry, I really am.” Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

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I asked for leg amputation and it was the best decision – now I want to win Paralympic gold

When Alice Tai learnt the date of her amputation surgery in early 2022, she threw a “bye, bye leg” party for friends and family. The Paralympic swimming champion was born with club foot and chronic pain increasingly affected her entire body. Tai, possessing near-infinite positivity, was determined to have her right lower limb removed to allow her day-to-day freedom. And as she explains in an uplifting but harrowing Channel 4 documentary charting her surgery and recovery: “The decision to chop my leg off was the best decision of my life.” Heading into next week’s British championships, where she will compete in five events that serve as trials for the Paralympics, the 25-year-old says there remain difficult days but she wants to get the message out that a disability does not necessarily have to define a person’s quality of life. “I’ve lived with chronic pain since I can remember,” she says. “I had my first surgery at 20 weeks.” And more than 20 have followed since. “The worst scenario from the amputation would be that I’d be on crutches for the rest of my life. But that was the position I was in prior to the amputation, so I thought, ‘I’ve got nothing to lose really.’” At one point in a documentary packed with one-liners, Tai says: “I went to hospital and came back legless.” It neatly sums up her forthright, humorous approach to a reality that the majority of people would find traumatic. She was always stubborn but “being direct and concise is an integral part of who I am.” And that approach has stood her in good stead – though it is rare to hear a professional athlete so willing to say they are not as fit as they once were. Tai has not been able to train with the same intensity because of increased injury risk. She had to relearn how to swim and turning at the wall between lengths took some time getting used to. “If I kicked with my right foot, because of the angle it was at, I’d go backwards,” she adds. “So it was just a dead weight in the water. But not having it caused an imbalance.” Even now her starts require work. “They are pretty bad, coming off the blocks,” she says. “We’re trying to figure that out but we’ve got a few months. I’m not where I was in 2019 [when she won six world championship golds in London] but I’m learning to be more efficient instead of relying on being really fit. That’s cool.” Still, she is confident heading to the London Aquatics Centre for the first British championships that will see para-athletes integrated with the main competition. And there is another motivation: succeeding for her grandfather, who recently passed away, and grandmother, who will watch from home. “The last time I raced here they were poolside, so this is for them. They were my biggest supporters, the Bank of Nan and Grandad before I got lottery funding. They funded my dreams. I know where they sat in 2019, so after my races I’ll look up at where they were and see them at that moment.” You can watch Alice Tai and other National Lottery funded athletes in action at the Aquatics GB Swimming Championships at the London Aquatics Centre from 2 -7 April, with live coverage of the event across BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and Channel 4’s streaming platform, app and YouTube channel. Join our new WhatsApp communityand receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

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Where 40 best young players of 2014 are now including £47m transfer and tragic Ajax star

Back in 2014, the Guardian picked 40 of the best young players from around the world aged 16 or 17. Every year the Guardian name a host of wonderkids as football’s most promising talents, making picks from both across the globe and at every Premier League club in a feature that now dates back over a decade. The likes of Marcus Rashford, Tosin Adarabioyo and Hamza Choudhury were among their most successful Premier League picks, but they did not make the global list. And with that in mind, Mirror Football has taken a look at where those 40 players are now. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

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Centre extends 'disturbed area' status under AFSPA in 8 Nagaland districts

The Centre has extended the Armed Forces Special Powers Act 1958 in eight districts and 20 police station limits in five districts in Nagaland for six months The districts have been declared as quotdisturbed areasquot till September 30 2024AFSPA has been extended in Dimapur Niuland Chumoukedima Mon Kiphire Noklak Phek and Peren districts in Nagaland Areas falling within the jurisdiction of 20 police stations in Kohima Mokokchung Longleng Wokha Zunheboto districts have also been declared as quotdisturbed areasquot under Section 3 of AFSPAThe Home Ministry039s latest move comes after a review of the law and order situation in the state was undertakenThe Central government had previously extended the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh in September 2023 CENTRE TO CONSIDER REVOKING AFSPA IN JAMMU AND KASHMIRNotably the move to extend the AFSPA in parts of Nagaland came just a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the Centre would contemplate revoking the same in the Union Territory of Jammu and KashmirquotWe have plans to pull back troops and leave law and order to the Jammu and Kashmir Police alone Earlier the Jammu and Kashmir police was not trusted but today they are leading the operationsquot he said in an interviewShah also said the assembly elections will be held in Jammu and Kashmir before September 2024WHAT IS ARMED FORCES SPECIAL POWERS ACT 1958The AFSPA gives armed forces personnel operating in disturbed areas sweeping powers to search arrest and open fire if they deem it necessary for quotthe maintenance of public orderquotAn area or district is notified as a disturbed area under the AFSPA to facilitate the operations of the armed forcesPublished By Vivek Published On Mar 28 2024Must Watch

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