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Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Hema Thakur: Journey from Editing to Researching in Academia
When Hema Thakur first stumbled upon the world of academic editing, it wasn't through a job board or a planned career move. It was during a casual chat with a batchmate in a language class. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now 'Oh wow! I had no idea this job existed,' she remembers saying — and that moment sparked a journey that's now lasted over a decade. Hema began as an editor in the business and economics division, polishing manuscripts that would go on to be published in top journals. Over time, she moved into the quality and training side of things, spotting the subtle choices that shaped both client satisfaction and editorial standards. Today, she mentors new editors, drawing from her own winding path. The shift to remote work during the pandemic gave Hema new exposure. She began leading virtual sessions for researchers from institutes like the University of Columbia and Puerto Rico — a first for her. 'That was when I saw how similar our struggles were: researchers were trying to find their voice and editors trying to help shape it,' she reflects. Once travel resumed, Hema began visiting campuses and engaging with early-career researchers. 'I had this image of researchers as distant intellectuals. But in person, they seemed just like me — curious, questioning, and figuring it out,' she says. That experience inspired her to start exploring research herself. She began writing on everything from inflation and income inequality to how AI can help people with cognitive disabilities understand peer reviews. Her essays and research found homes on platforms like Editage Insights, SAGE Social Science Space, and the European Association of Science Editors. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Over time, Hema's perspective shifted. 'I started seeing the world through the eyes of academic authors, our clients. Even small daily observations felt like research questions waiting to be asked,' she says. This mindset helped her reframe her work: more experiment, less outcome-chasing. She also began drawing inspiration from unexpected places. A video about how confirmation bias affected a pilot's judgement led her to explore how similar bias affects editors. A fun trivia fact — that the roll-on deodorant was inspired by the ballpoint pen — sparked a metaphor she now uses in sessions to explain AI: 'Technology is great at spotting patterns and quickly uncovering how ideas have been applied elsewhere, but applying this to our unique situation? That's still on us. ' Now, as someone who has worked, researched, and taught in this space, Hema sees one constant running through it all: curiosity. 'Dots do connect, but only in hindsight,' she says. 'The only thing we can do is stay curious and keep asking questions.'
ITV News
04-07-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Activist Mahmoud Khali: Trump administration targeting those who don't fit its vision of America
On a leafy street on the Upper West side, a building supervisor sweeps the steps to a red brick apartment block with perfectly tended pots of geraniums marking its entrance. Home to staff members and postgraduates studying at the University of Columbia, inside the lobby it is library-quiet. But the peace here was shattered on an ordinary Saturday four months ago when agents from ICE - the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement - snatched one of its student residents as he came back from dinner with his heavily pregnant wife. Watching the video Noor Khalil filmed on her phone as Mahmoud was taken is a slightly surreal experience. "You don't need to do that," she says incredulously, as men who refuse to tell her who they are working for handcuff her Palestinian husband. As they bundle him into a car she frantically calls a lawyer; audibly fighting back tears as Mahmoud is driven away into the night. In the months before she sees him again, Noor gives birth to their first child, a little boy called Deen. It's a moment the couple have dreamt of for years. But Mahmoud misses it all because ICE has flown him more than a thousand miles south to a detention centre in Louisiana. The 30-year-old international relations specialist was held there for 118 days. When we meet he has been home for a fortnight, finally reunited with his wife and getting used to life as a new dad. But his sadness at having missed out on the first few weeks of Deen's life is palpable. 'This was absolutely the heaviest moment in my entire life,' he tells me. 'I went through the Syrian War. "I went through living in a Palestinian refugee camp. I went through so many hardships, but this particular moment was the most heartbreaking.' He was allowed to phone his wife as she gave birth. The American government says its detention facilities are safe and humane but Mahmoud says he was sharing a dormitory with around 70 other men with no privacy. 'It was after midnight, around one, two, in the morning,' he remembers. 'I was just listening on the phone, trying to send supportive words, not knowing if she actually could hear me or not.' 'I was so worried about that,' he sighs. 'Because I know what this moment meant for her - to have me holding her hand while delivering our baby.' Khalil's crime had been to lead high-profile protests at Columbia University against Israel's war on Gaza - activities the American government alleged were anti-semitic and aligned him with the terrorist organisation Hamas. I ask him if he is anti-semitic and he shakes his head. 'It's absurd to say this. I take anti-semitism concerns very seriously and I've privately and publicly denounced anti-semitism and said it has no place in the protest movement.' I point out that with anti-semitic attacks on the rise, the demonstrations he led left some Jewish students feeling unsafe and uncomfortable; he counters that, as a Palestinian watching the horrors unfold daily in Gaza, he felt a moral duty to protest. When I ask him whether it's his position to criticise US foreign policy, as a green card holder here at the government's leisure, he doesn't hesitate. 'I pay taxes, I pay my student fees here,' he says. 'I am simply asking them not to use my tax money to support a genocidal state.' Mahmoud pauses to check on his wife and son who are resting and his worry is evident. They are both American citizens, but in a political climate where President Trump has vowed to end birthright citizenship, even their future feels uncertain. He says he is not just anxious for Deen, but for every child. 'Because what this administration is trying to do is define what an American should be. Who is American and who is less American? They are coming after everyone who doesn't fit their vision of what an American citizen should be'. He knows that for defenders of freedom of speech, his release from detention was seen as a win against an increasingly authoritarian government. But it may be a short-lived victory. Within ten minutes of his release, the Trump administration had filed an appeal against the court ruling preventing his deportation. Mahmoud Khalil is still looking over his shoulder.
Metro
25-06-2025
- Metro
Cabin crew calls on passengers to subdue air rage woman demanding upgrade
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A flight attendant called on passengers to subdue a woman demanding a business class upgrade. The woman refused to take no for an answer as cabin crew refused her demands on board the flight from St Petersburg to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt. The angry passenger shouted at staff for Russian flag carrier Aeroflot: 'I'm in pain in my butt, I'm in pain in my tits.' She continued: 'I came here. I want my business class.' A clip of the incident on flight SU734 showed her yelling: 'But I need a business class because I was working.' It was also reported that she stripped her shirt on the six-hour flight and threatened to open an emergency exit door of the A330 in protest. Desperate to end her tantrum, the crew turned to other passengers to overpower her. Two beefy men are seen restraining the woman and pushing her back into her seat. According to the Aviatorshchina channel, the scenes reached '18+ content'. It wrote: 'To get to the coveted seats, the passenger began taking off her T-shirt, hoping at least that would work. 'The stewardesses first tried to manage on their own, but the brawler wouldn't give in.' The report added that the woman was subsequently moved to the rear of the plane and then handed to police on arrival. Air rage, aggressive or violent behaviour by passengers, is a frequent problem dealt with by airlines. More Trending It can be caused by several factors, from fear of flying to alcohol abuse. A study by the University of Columbia suggested that inequality between travel classes could be a cause behind some instances of air rage. Some airlines have introduced travel blacklists to ban unruly passengers from flights for a duration of time. For example, on Dutch flag carrier KLM disruptive travellers can be banned from the airline for five years. Metro has approached Aeroflot for comment. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Plane shoots fire from engine mid-flight as it makes emergency landing MORE: Moment cargo ship crashes into Suez Canal port as workers flee MORE: Royal Navy comes within metres of Russian warships in English Channel
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Anti-Israel Columbia protester detained by ICE is freed after federal judge's order
A federal judge ordered the release of an anti-Israel protester who helped organize riots and protests at the University of Columbia on Wednesday. Authorities with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Mohsen Mahdawi, a green card holder, earlier this month in Vermont. U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford ordered his release following a hearing Wednesday morning. "I'm not afraid of you," Mahdawi declared in a message to President Donald Trump as he left the courthouse. According to the court filing, Mahdawi co-founded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia in the fall of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack. He founded the group with Mahmoud Khalil, another pro-Palestinian activist who was detained by federal immigration officials under the Trump administration earlier this year. 'Safer Without Him': Columbia Student Claims Classmate Arrested By Ice 'Hates America' Vermont's two U.S. senators, Bernie Sanders, an independent, and Peter Welch, a Democrat, as well as the state's sole member of Congress, Rep. Becca Balint, a Democrat, condemned Mahdawi's arrest on April 14. Read On The Fox News App Columbia Anti-israel Protester Mahmoud Khalil Can Be Deported, Judge Rules The three issued a joint statement saying Mahdawi walked into an immigration office for "what was supposed to be the final step in his citizenship process" and was instead "arrested and removed in handcuffs by plainclothes, armed individuals with their faces covered." "These individuals refused to provide any information as to where he was being taken or what would happen to him," the statement alleged. Homeland Security To Scan Migrants' Social Media Posts For Antisemitism: 'No Room For Terrorist Sympathizers' "This is immoral, inhumane, and illegal," it continued. "Mr. Mahdawi, a legal resident of the United States, must be afforded due process under the law and immediately released from detention." As a student at Columbia, Mahdawi was an outspoken critic of Israel's military campaign in Gaza and organized campus protests until March 2024. According to a court filing, Mahdawi was born in a refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and moved to the United States in 2014. He recently completed coursework at Columbia and was expected to graduate in May before beginning a master's degree program there in the fall. Fox News' Peter Pinedo and the Associated Press contributed to this article source: Anti-Israel Columbia protester detained by ICE is freed after federal judge's order
Fox News
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Anti-Israel Columbia protester detained by ICE is freed after federal judge's order
A federal judge ordered the release of an anti-Israel protester who helped organize riots and protests at the University of Columbia on Wednesday. Authorities with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Mohsen Mahdawi, a green card holder, earlier this month. According to the court filing, Mahdawi co-founded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia in the fall of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack. He founded the group with Mahmoud Khalil, another pro-Palestinian activist who was detained by federal immigration officials under the Trump administration earlier this year. This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.
