The Egyptian contestant Carmen Suleiman beat her Moroccan counterpart Donia Batmah to the title of Arab Idol: the biggest singing competition in the Arab world, in its first season. Suleiman also won a contract with Platinum Records, who will manage all her music projects. In addition, she signed a contract with the Pepsi company for a number of commercials, and won a 2012 Corvette. The final episode of the show, aired last Saturday on MBC1, was a blast, with the Tunisian star Latifa as a guest and performances by both Ragheb Alama and Ahlam both together with the finalists and alone. Suleiman won first place in the semifinals of the Arab Music Festival. Egyptian composer Helmi Baker supported her and composed a song for her about the Egyptian Revolution titled Balad Al-Huriyah (Land of Freedom), which she sang alongside Ahmed El-Jaraf. photo: Nader Habib YouTube Space Lab and Lenovo and Space Adventures have announced their two Global Winners in the Science Competition; and the Egyptian student Amr Mohamed is one of them, for his experiment to go into space. The worldwide science competition challenged budding scientists in the 14-18 age bracket to design an experiment that can be performed in space. Mohamed from Egypt (17-18 year-old age group) and Dorothy Chen and Sara Ma from the US (14-16 year-old age group) were given that honour at a ceremony in Washington, DC, attended by representatives of the Space Lab partners including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The students will have their experiments conducted by astronauts 250 miles above Earth, aboard the International Space Station (ISS), and live-streamed to the world on a Lenovo ThinkPad laptop via YouTube later this year. "Realising this goal will require an entrepreneurial spirit and a new generation of scientists and astronauts," reads the press release, "YouTube Space Lab is a wonderful initiative that helps inspire young minds around the world to take a greater interest in science and the future of space exploration." Mohamed, 18, from Alexandria, came up with an experiment to explore the question, "Can you teach an old spider new tricks?" Mohamed proposed investigating the effects of microgravity on the way the zebra spider catches its prey and whether it could adapt its behaviour in this environment. "The idea of sending an experiment into space is the most exciting thing I have ever heard in my life," he said. "Winning YouTube Space Lab means everything to me, to my family, and to the people of the Middle East." As a testament to her devotion to positive social change, Dina Sherif, associate director of the John D. Gerhart Centre for Philanthropy and Civic Engagement at the American University in Cairo, was selected as one of 2011 Trust Across America's Top Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behaviour in Europe and the Middle East. Trust Across America, an organisation committed to responsible business behaviour, together with the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence, a global advisory organisation providing sustainability solutions, selected 100 people who stand out for their leadership in transforming and reversing the cycle of mistrust in business. "Philanthropy is important because it represents our human side, our instinct to connect and do for others, to give back," said Sherif. "Philanthropic wealth is key to resolving many of the problems in our part of the world." photo: Ayman Barayez Minister of Culture Shakir Abdel-Hamid inaugurated an exhibition under the title "The Inner Light" at the Zamalek Centre for Arts, featuring work by four artists: Nermine El-Hakim, Mushira El-Azhari, Mustafa Yehia and Ramadan Abdel-Moatamed. Present at the ceremony were the head of fine arts sector Salah El-Meligui, the former ambassador Fakhri Othman, the cinema critic Rafiq El-Sabban, the Czech artist David Dvorsky and Al-Ahram theatre critic Amal Bakir.
