Latest news with #Tessy
Gulf Today
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
A book club for women to bond over books
How do you combine reading, networking and build relationships in daily life? Ask Tessy Koshy, Dubai resident and independent journalist and editor of Middle East Masala, an online art magazine, who has found the perfect answer by starting the Power of Pages Book Club. Founded in 2022, the club has weekly meetups for women, to bond over motivational and self-help books. With over 100 members in its Facebook page and WhatsApp group, the club regularly meets on Wednesday mornings in Burjuman Mall, Dubai. 'I've always been a bookworm and an avid reader of fiction,' says Tessy. 'But over the years, as I navigated through certain life challenges, I found solace in self-help books that gave me hope, inspiration and many new perspectives on life.' The club is designed in a way that encourages both readers and non-readers, who benefit from each other's company in the 'meet and read aloud' sessions. Most members are either stay-at-home moms, women on career breaks, entrepreneurs or remote workers. Dubai residents Ritu Sisodia, an entrepreneur, and Poonam Soni, an Arabic tutor and make-up artist, are some of the first members of the club. Both confess to being not typical readers. 'Mirror Work by Louise Hay was the first book I read in the book club and the whole concept of self-love was so new to me, I was completely hooked to the idea and the club,' says Ritu. Book club members are currently soaking in the wisdom of The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Han. In the past, they have read several popular self-help titles, including The Power of Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy, Magic by Rhonda Byrne, Ikigai, The Alchemist and Who Moved My Cheese. While reading a book, the women not only discuss concepts they learned, but also share their life challenges, lending a patient ear to each other. 'The book club has today evolved into a safe, non-judgmental space for women to interact and find support,' says Tessy. Meeting on a regular basis has fostered a sense of community spirit among members. They interact, learn from each other and inspire each other as well, learning valuable life lessons along the way. Priyanka Bhatnagar, an artist and stay at home mom, says she experienced a profound change after joining the Power of Pages Book Club. One of the most important lessons she learnt, she says, was to begin prioritising her well-being. 'Initially, it was tough for me to attend the book club, since I had a busy schedule at home,' she says. 'But gradually I started completing all my tasks to be able to make it to the book club. Today, Wednesday meetups bring me so much joy! Reading motivational books have taught me to love myself the way I am. They've also made me calm and contented - a far cry from the anxious person I was, with a lot of self-doubt.' Amee Shah, a corporate employee who works from her home in Dubai, has been part of the Power of Pages Book Club for nearly a year. 'The book club has had such a positive impact on my life,' she says. 'It has pushed me to explore books I would not have picked up otherwise. And in the last one year, I've really widened my perspectives on many aspects of life. Plus, it's a great place to meet new people, hear different viewpoints and share some good laughs together.' To celebrate the successful completion of a book, the club also organises fun meetups with workshops and expert talks. 'From art workshops to author meetups and wellness sessions, Power Talk series is an additional way for members to hear and interact with eminent personalities based in the UAE. Empowering each other through books and shared knowledge, is at the core of the Power of Pages book club,' concludes Tessy. Sometimes, book club members showcase their own talents by imparting their knowledge to others, at such events. As UAE celebrates 2025 as the Year of Community, the Power of Pages Book Club is an example of how a community initiative can bring people closer through shared experiences, individual resourcefulness, and practical wisdom.
Miami Herald
10-05-2025
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
He Trusted Tesla Autopilot, and Paid With His Life
This week in 2016, Joshua Brown, 40, drove Tessy, his new Tesla Model S sedan, one last time after completing a family vacation in Disney World. The drive lasted 41 minutes. It's then that Brown became an ignominious footnote in automotive history: he was the first person to die in a Tesla in the United States while using its semi-autonomous Autopilot driving software. Brown, a former Navy SEAL in the Naval Special Warfare Development Group-aka SEAL Team 6-and a business owner, was a devoted Tesla enthusiast who clocked 45,000 miles in the first nine months of Model S ownership. Weeks before the fatal crash, he even posted a video titled "Autopilot Saves Model S," in which his car is shown swerving on an interstate highway to avoid a truck that has cut in front of him. A frame grab from the video is shown above. He died in his Model S when it failed to brake as a tractor-trailer made a left turn in front of the Tesla while traveling at 74 mph. The Automatic Emergency Braking did not engage, and Autopilot didn't recognize the white truck in front of him despite a bright sky and ideal lighting conditions. His car struck the side of the tractor-trailer head-on at windshield level, causing the Model S to slide under the truck and continue down the road, driving through two fences before striking a pole. The Florida Highway Patrol charged the truck driver, Frank Baressi, 62, with a right-of-way violation. Baressi told the Associated Press at the time that Brown was "playing Harry Potter on the TV screen" and that "he went so fast through my trailer I didn't see him". In its 500-page report, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said that Brown, shown below, was required to have his hands on the wheel for 37 minutes of the trip, but only did so for 25 seconds. The car issued a visual warning seven separate times, saying, "Hands Required Not Detected," while a chime sounded between each warning. The crash report led the NTSB to recommend that manufacturers develop ways to monitor whether drivers are paying attention while driving. This caused automakers to install inward-facing Driver Monitoring Systems, which use infrared sensors and cameras to monitor the driver's eye position, head movement, and other factors to detect fatigue or distraction. Some systems can also proactively slow the car down and steer it off the road, not just sound a warning. Such systems are common today, even in cars without self-driving systems, but despite all of the technology, mitigating the human factor is the biggest challenge, and one not easily solved. Tesla introduced Autopilot in October 2014 by fitting hardware to the Model S sedan that could automate steering, braking, and throttle input. The software to run it was released a year later, along with Autosteer, which was basically lane-centering software. Brown's crash caused the automaker to update the software, reducing the amount of time drivers can have their hands off the wheel. By October 2016, Tesla released what it called full self-driving software, offered as a $5,000 Enhanced Autopilot option and a $3,000 Full Self-Driving Capability option. While it continues to be improved, Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems have been tied to at least 51 reported fatalities as of October 2024, according to Forbes. In addition, Autopilot has been connected with 736 crashes since 2019. Similarly, Ford's BlueCruise self-driving technology has been linked to three deaths in two separate fatal crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). There has also been one pedestrian death involving an Uber-operated autonomous Volvo XC90. GM's Cruise driverless taxi service has no reported fatalities. Fatality data from other automakers is not publicly available. Time will, of course, improve these technologies. As of right now, however, we need to exercise caution and rely on our reflexes and instincts more often than not, lest we forget the past. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
