China orders closure of 100 golf courses

Beijing: China has ordered the closure of a sixth of the country’s golf courses since 2011, its top economic planner said, in an ongoing crackdown on a sport controversial for its links with wealthy elites. In 2015, the country’s 88 million Communist Party members were banned from joining golf clubs in a corruption crackdown. afp

Australian woman in record Antarctica bid

Sydney: Sailor Lisa Blair set off from the Australian town of Albany on Monday in a bid to be the first woman to circumnavigate Antarctica solo, non-stop and unassisted in less than 100 days. The 32-year-old will have to navigate through Cape Leeuwin, Cape Horn and Cape Agulhas, regarded as some of the world’s most dangerous stretches of water. ians

Roasted potatoes may cause cancer   

London: Bread, chips and potatoes should be cooked to a golden yellow colour, rather than brown, to reduce our intake of a chemical that could cause cancer, UK scientists revealed on Monday. The Food Standards Agency said people were consuming too much acrylamide, a chemical produced naturally as a result of cooking starchy foods at high temperatures. It has been shown to cause cancer in animals and is likely to do so in humans too. IANS