Latest news with #Gora
The South African
02-07-2025
- The South African
Two South Africans linked to R10.5m robbery in Zimbabwe
In an unexpected twist, Zimbabwean authorities are now on the hunt for two South African nationals who are believed to be part of a gang that pulled off a heist involving over R10 million. The revelation came to light during a court hearing in Harare on Monday, where the driver of the victim, prominent businessman and former Dynamos Football Club chairman Rafiq Adam, appeared facing armed robbery charges. The accused, 35-year-old Samson Gora, is alleged to have tipped off the robbers about large sums of money kept at Adam's company offices in central Harare. Reports are that the robbers included two Zimbabweans and two South Africans. According to Zimbabwe's National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Gora passed on detailed information about the $600 000 (roughly R10.5 million) stored at Merchantman Enterprises, Adam's business in the CBD. 'The accused, Samson Gora, provided details about the cash being kept at the premises to his accomplices,' said state prosecutor Rufaro Chonzi. 'The robbery was then executed by four men, including the two foreign nationals not known to Gora.' The robbery took place on 16 June 2025. Prosecutors say four men stormed the building armed with a pistol and attacked Adam while he sat at reception. He was struck on the head with the firearm, and the gang demanded money and access to the office safe. While the robbers only took about $500 (R8 800) from Adam directly, they then accessed the safe and made off with the full $600 000 (R10.5 million). They also grabbed high-end gadgets, including an iPhone 13 Pro Max, a Samsung Fold, and phones belonging to other employees, some of which were later dumped during their getaway along a busy Harare street. Gora was arrested on 27 June following a tip-off to Zimbabwe's CID Homicide Unit. Under interrogation, he reportedly confessed to leaking the information to the gang. He admitted to receiving $10 000 (R175 000) as his share from a man identified as Nyengerayi Chikwadze, alias Chipato. Chikwadze, in turn, is said to have split the money with fellow Zimbabwean Oscar Muchenje and the two unnamed South African nationals, whose whereabouts remain unknown. According to iHarare , police have since recovered $4 400 (R77 500) in cash and seized multiple Samsung smartphones and a Toyota Hiace vehicle believed to have been bought with proceeds from the heist. Gora also led police to his brother, Willard Gora, where part of the stash had been hidden. The case has raised eyebrows across the region, particularly because South Africans are now being sought in Zimbabwe for a high-profile crime. It's a reversal of the usual narrative, where Zimbabweans are often accused of being involved in criminal activity across the Limpopo. Zimbabwean authorities have launched a full-scale manhunt for the two South African suspects, who have not yet been publicly named. Gora, meanwhile, has been remanded in custody until 16 July as investigations continue. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 . Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp , Facebook , X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Observer
04-05-2025
- Science
- Observer
This Tree Wants to Be Struck by Lightning
When lightning strikes a tree in the tropics, the whole forest explodes. 'At their most extreme, it kind of looks like a bomb went off,' said Evan Gora, a forest ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York. Dozens of trees around the one that was struck are electrocuted. Within months, a sizable circle of forest can wither away. Somehow, a single survivor stands, seemingly healthier than ever. A new study by Gora, published in the journal New Phytologist, reveals that some of the biggest trees in a rainforest don't just survive lightning strikes. They thrive. Gora set out to study whether individual trees in the rainforest in Panama's Barro Colorado Nature Monument benefit from being struck by lightning. And if they did, does that help the population of the species survive at a larger scale? Members of Gora's team developed a method for monitoring lightning strikes and triangulating their electromagnetic signals. From 2014-19, their system captured 94 lightning strikes on trees. The researchers discovered that 85 species had been struck and seven survived, but one stood out literally and figuratively: Dipteryx oleifera, a towering species that had been struck nine times, including one tree that had been hit twice and seemed more vigorous. Dipteryx oleifera stands 30% taller than the rest of the trees and has a crown 50% larger than others, as if it is an arboreal lightning rod. All the struck Dipteryx oleifera trees survived lightning strikes, but 64% of other species died within two years. Trees surrounding Dipteryx oleifera were 48% more likely to die after a lightning strike than those around other species. In one die-off, a single strike killed 57 trees around Dipteryx oleifera 'while the central tree is just happy and healthy,' Gora said. The clearing of neighboring trees and choking vines meant struck Dipteryx oleifera trees had less competition for light, making it easier to grow and produce more seeds. Researchers estimated getting struck multiple times could extend a Dipteryx oleifera tree's life by almost 300 years. — REBECCA DZOMBAK / NYT
The Hindu
29-04-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Tagore's own institution neglects printing his books; many popular titles out of circulation
Many of Rabindranath Tagore's books appear neglected by the publishing arm of his own institution, Visva-Bharati, with numerous titles under his authorship, including the flagship 18-volume Rabindra Rachanabali, being out of print for over a year now. With the aesthetically printed university-published titles missing from the market, private players are profiting from the neglect by selling their own versions. 'A book like Gora is not available. A book like Sanchayita is not available. This is unbelievable, totally unbelievable!' eminent educationist-writer Chinmoy Guha, professor emeritus of University of Calcutta and former Vice-Chancellor of Rabindra Bharati told The Hindu. 'It looks like Visva-Bharati officials are not even aware of their books not being in the market. Nobody is talking about it. Even books like Chokher Bali, Chhelebela, Char Adhyay, Jogajog are not to be found. These are all part of our heritage — such beautifully printed books. Nobody seems to be noticing they are missing,' Prof. Guha said. Visva-Bharati set up its publishing arm, Granthan Vibhaga, in 1923, mainly to print Tagore's major works and circulate his ideas and literature across the globe. The department is currently based in Kolkata and until recently had two outlets in the city: one on College Street and another on Bidhan Sarani, which closed down in 2022. 'Major works out of print include Sanchayita and Sishu. Important textbooks like the full set of Sahaj Path have not been published regularly, resulting in huge loss of revenue over the last one year. The full set of his biography Rabindra Jibani is out of print as are several volumes of Swara Bitan, something so essential for Rabindra Sangeet practitioners,' said a source in Visva-Bharati. 'All this has led to private publishers gradually taking over the profitable space that Granthan Vibhaga once occupied. There is also a clear lack of sales strategy. A few years earlier there had been an attempt to promote online sales but at present there seems to be not much effort in this matter. Of the two shops in Kolkata, the one that is still open seems to be in a state of decline,' the source said. Visva-Bharati has not responded so far as to why such iconic books have remained out of print for over a year. But insiders blame it mainly on lack of planning as far as sales is concerned. Another major issue, according to them, has been the absence of a permanent director and the apathy of the production section. 'Even a year after the previous Vice-Chancellor left, there has not been a single new publication by the Granthan Vibhaga. A proposal was mooted earlier to transfer the production section from Kolkata to Santiniketan so that concerned departments interact better to plan new volumes on Tagore, but this has not been followed up,' an employee said.
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists Intrigued by Tree That Harnesses Electricity to Kill Its Enemies
For trees, lightning strikes are the great leveller. Stick your neck out by growing taller than the rest, and you risk getting zapped into oblivion. Hundreds of millions of trees suffer this fate every year. But the opposite appears to be the case for the towering tonka bean tree (Dipteryx oleifera), a native of the rainforests of Panama that grows up to 130 feet tall and lives for hundreds of years. Lightning is a weapon in its arsenal, and it wields it masterfully. When an opportune lightning strike comes, the tonka tree survives unscathed — while clinging-on parasites and its competing neighbors are vanquished, according to a recent study published in the journal New Phytologist. "We started doing this work 10 years ago, and it became really apparent that lightning kills a lot of trees, especially a lot of very big trees," lead author Evan Gora, a forest ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, told Live Science. "But Dipteryx oleifera consistently showed no damage." The work explores how lightning shapes forests and the lives of the trees that inhabit them. Compared to other causes of tree mortality, like drought and fire, which are known to have crucial roles in maintaining a healthy ecosystem, lightning's positive influence is largely understudied, according to the researchers. To dig in, the researchers created a system to pinpoint lightning strikes in Panama's Barro Colorado Nature Monument, using an antenna array and an ensemble of drones. Combined with four decades of tree plot records of the extensively studied rainforest, the researchers were able to form a clear picture of how lightning affected the specific areas that it struck. In all, between 2014 and 2019, the researchers documented nearly 100 instances of various species of trees being directly struck by lightning. More than half of these trees were killed. But strikingly — pun intended — all ten tonka bean trees that were hit by the powerful electric discharges survived, showing negligible damage. The same could not be said for the tonka bean trees' parasites, a species of woody vine known as lianas: 78 percent of them were wiped out by the lightning purges. And woe befell the neighbors, too, with over two metric tons of competing trees' biomass annihilated in each strike. "There's a quantifiable, detectable hazard of living next to Dipteryx oleifera," Gora told Live Science. "[As a tree], you are substantially more likely to die than living next to any other big old large tree in that forest." As tonka bean trees can live for centuries, the researchers estimate that on average, one will be struck at least five times over its lifespan, providing substantial benefits that rise above mere fluke. In fact, with a height some 30 percent taller and a crown 50 percent wider than others, it seemingly dares the heavens above to unleash their fury. Relative to trees with a trunk of similar diameter, the researchers found, the tonka bean tree boasted 68 percent higher odds of being struck by lightning. "It seems to have an architecture that is potentially selecting to be struck more often," Gora told the New York Times. And so, virtually bending lightning to its will to take care of its enemies, the tonka bean trees see a fourteen times boost to their fecundity — a stunning reproductive advantage. More on nature: Behold This Bonkers Photo of a 2,800-Pound Rhino Dangling Upside Down From a Helicopter
New York Times
01-04-2025
- Science
- New York Times
This Tree Wants to Be Struck by Lightning
When lightning strikes a tree in the tropics, the whole forest explodes. 'At their most extreme, it kind of looks like a bomb went off,' said Evan Gora, a forest ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, N.Y. Dozens of trees around the one that was struck are electrocuted. Within months, a sizable circle of forest can wither away. Somehow, a single survivor stands, seemingly healthier than ever. A new study by Dr. Gora, published last week in the journal New Phytologist, reveals that some of the biggest trees in a rainforest don't just survive lightning strikes. They thrive. The rainforest in Panama's Barro Colorado Nature Monument is the perfect place to study whether some trees are immune to lightning. It's home to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and one of the most closely studied tropical forests in the world. Dr. Gora set out to study whether individual trees in the forest benefit from being struck by lightning. And if they did, does that help the population of the species survive at a larger scale? Early on, he spent much of his time climbing trees, looking for signs of lightning damage. But making critical observations could be painfully inefficient. Dr. Gora would begin climbing one tree, convinced it was the struck trunk, only to get 50 feet up and see he actually wanted to be up the neighboring tree. Honey bees would also swarm Dr. Gora's eyes and ears. 'Your entire life is just buzzing,' he said. 'It's horrifying.' Dr. Gora needed a more efficient way to find struck trees, so he and his collaborators developed a method for monitoring lightning strikes and triangulating their electromagnetic signals. The technique led him more quickly to the right tree, which he could assess using a drone. From 2014 to 2019, the system captured 94 lightning strikes on trees. Dr. Gora and his team visited sites to see which species had been struck. They were looking for dead trees as well as 'flashover points,' where leaves are singed as lightning jumps between trees. From there, the canopy dies back, and the tree eventually dies. Eighty-five species had been struck and seven survived, but one stood out literally and figuratively: Dipteryx oleifera, a towering species that had been struck nine times, including one tree that had been hit twice and seemed more vigorous. D. oleifera stands about 30 percent taller than the rest of the trees and has a crown about 50 percent larger than others, almost as if it is an arboreal lightning rod. 'It seems to have an architecture that is potentially selecting to be struck more often,' Dr. Gora said. All the struck D. oleifera trees survived lightning strikes, but 64 percent of other species died within two years. Trees surrounding D. oleifera were 48 percent more likely to die after a lightning strike than those around other species. In one notable die-off, a single strike killed 57 trees around D. oleifera 'while the central tree is just happy and healthy,' Dr. Gora said. Lightning also blasted parasitic vines off D. oleifera trees. The clearing of neighboring trees and choking vines meant struck D. oleifera trees had less competition for light, making it easier to grow and produce more seeds. Computer models estimated that getting struck multiple times could extend the life of a D. oleifera tree by almost 300 years. Before the study, 'it seemed impossible that lightning could be a good thing for the trees,' Dr. Gora said. But the evidence suggests that D. oleifera benefits from each jolt. 'Trees are in constant competition with each other, and you just need an edge relative to whatever is surrounding you,' said Gabriel Arellano, a forest ecologist at the University of Michigan who was not involved in the study. The physical mechanisms that help trees survive intense lightning strikes remain unknown. Different trees could be more conductive or have architectures that escape damage, Dr. Gora suggested. While the study was only in Panama, similar patterns have been observed in other tropical forests. 'It's remarkably common,' said Adriane Esquivel Muelbert, a forest ecologist at the University of Birmingham in England who had collaborated with Dr. Gora but was not involved in the study. 'It's quite clear when it happens.' Climate change is set to increase the frequency and severity of thunderstorms in the tropics. Some trees, it seems, may be better equipped for a stormy future than others.
