DAP: The breaking news in Cambodia: “Facebook study shows our degree of separation is shrinking” plus 9 more

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Facebook said Monday the rapid development of the online social network had reduced the average number of people linking any two individuals in society to 4.74.

In the 1960s, American social psychologist Stanley Milgram and other researchers conducted several experiments to examine the average path length, or the number of steps along the shortest paths, for social networks of people in the United States. They suggested human society was a small world type network with a path length of around 5.5 or about six people on average.

In a new paper called "Four Degrees of Separation," researchers from Facebook and the University of Milan examined all 721 million active Facebook users with 69 billion friendships among them.

Using a set of algorithms developed at the university, the researchers found the average number of links from one arbitrarily selected Facebook user to another was 4.74.

"We found that six degrees actually overstates the number of links between typical pairs of users," said Facebook in a post on its site. It said the average distance in 2008 was 5.28, noting its development had brought the world closer.

However, some researchers said the random samples in the study were actually biased, noting that Facebook might have changed the definition of "friends."

Eric Horvits, a Microsoft researcher who led a similar study in 2008, told The New York Times his study used a more conservative definition of friend and found an average chain of 6.6 people among 240 million who exchanged chat messages. In the Facebook study, the notion of what a friend is has evolved.

Jon Kleinberg, a computer science professor at Cornell University, told the newspaper the social ties that make the world small are weak ones, on which people do not necessarily like, sympathize or have anything in common with each other.

SINGAPORE, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- The devastating floods in Thailand could reduce the country's 2011 economic growth by around 1 percentage point, the World Bank said in a report released on Tuesday.

The Thai economy is projected to grow by 2.4 percent this year, the bank said in its latest East Asia and Pacific Economic Update. This represents a downward revision from the bank's previous forecast of 3.7 percent released six months ago, mainly due to the impact of the floods and the weakening external demand from the developed markets.

"The impact of the floods will be most severely felt in the last quarter of 2011, coming mainly from production losses of the industrial estates in the vicinity of Bangkok," said the report.

The World Bank said the estimates of the losses from the floods in southeast Asian countries were not yet complete.

Thailand experienced rarely-seen floods over the past weeks, forcing the closing-down of many factories and quite a part of the capital Bangkok.

The World Bank also revised the growth forecast for Thailand in 2012 by 0.2 percentage point to 4 percent. Factors supporting growth include the reconstruction and rehabilitation by both the public and private sectors after the floods, dissipation of supply chain disruptions, a momentum in household consumption and likely solid performance of private investment following the improved political stability.

The bank revised its growth forecast for developing East Asia excluding China downward from 5.3 percent to 4.7 percent. China is expected to grow by 9.1 percent this year and 8.4 percent next year, respectively.

JAKARTA, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) welcomed supports and advices from its partners for the sake of the bloc's progress, a top official said here on Tuesday.

"We have been much more important and critical to the world. Anything happens here will have far more implication to the global community. But, we know that we still have many unfinished agenda. We know that we can count on your supports, because with your goodwill, we could stand against nature, wind, storm, cyclone, flood and earthquake," ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told ambassadors of foreign countries to Indonesia in a briefing of post ASEAN and East Asia Summit.

He said that the support is very important as ASEAN will change its revolving chairmanship to Cambodia in 2012, replacing Indonesia's position.

"Next year will be Cambodia (to chair ASEAN). On 21st of this month, I and my deputy have visited Phnom Penh to discuss with the new chair about its priority and agenda and what would be the role that Cambodia expects to play," said Pitsuwan.

He also praised Indonesia's chairmanship during 2011, saying that the country's vision is about the future.

BANGKOK, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's National Disaster Warning Center on Tuesday warned over possible flash floods and landslides in the southern region during Nov. 22 to 24.

The eastern side of the southern region including Nakhon Si Thammarat, Pattalung, Songkhla, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces were among those to be lashed severely by heavy rains.

Flash floods and landslides are very likely in those provinces, according to the center's prediction. Authorities in risk-prone areas were directed to get ready and closely follow up information issued by the center and the Information and Communications Technology Ministry.

Since late July, the whole country, except for the southern region, has suffered from the most severe inundation in over half a century. Some 13 million people across the nation have been affected while more than 600 people were killed.

PHNOM PENH, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian and Chinese legislators in the committee of economy and finance met here on Tuesday to discuss ways to strengthen and expand the two countries' relations and cooperation.

The Chinese delegation headed by Han Yuqun, vice-chairman of financial and economic committee of the Chinese National People ' s Congress, held talks with their Cambodian counterpart.

Speaking on Tuesday during the welcome ceremony of the Chinese delegation, Heng Samrin, president of Cambodia's National Assembly  (CNA), said the delegation's visit would double good friendship relation and historic solidarity between the governments and th  peoples of Cambodia and China.

He said that the CNA was very much satisfied with good cooperation between the two countries in all the fields.

"Currently, hundreds of Chinese firms are doing various businesses in Cambodia," he said. "They are very important to boost the development of bilateral trade and investment relations between Cambodia and China."

Heng Samrin profoundly thanked China for fully supporting Cambodia's candidacy for the post of a non-permanent member of  the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in the mandate of 2013 and 2014.

Meanwhile, Han Yuqun said it was the first visit of his delegation to Cambodia, aimed at strengthening the traditional  friendship relations and cooperation between Chinese and Cambodian legislative bodies.

He added that the visit would make closer economic cooperation.

Chinese delegation arrived here on Sunday for a five-day visit. During their stay, they had also met with Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Keat Chhon, minister of economy and finance.

ABIDJAN, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- A photo taken by Xinhua has helped bring a sum of 600 euros (810 U. S. dollars) to a poor family living in Boribana slum in Cote d'Ivoire's capital, Abidjan.

The photo that was taken by a Xinhua journalist based in Abidjan shows a child holding an empty bottle of insect spray and playing with it as a toy.

A German family saw the photo published in a magazine in Germany and decided to come to the aid of the child. The German family launched an appeal for funds and raised 600 euros for the poor family in Cote d'Ivoire.

The eight-year-old child, who goes by the name Daouda, is one of the six children whose father was a fisherman.

"The war took away everything that we were using to feed our children, the soldiers came here and burnt our canoes and we are now not able to send our children to school because of lack of funds," Daouda's mother told Xinhua.

The West African country, which is also the world's top cocoa producer, is recovering from the post-election violence which ended in April.

The money enabled Daouda to buy a toy and his father to buy a new canoe valued at 325,000 FCFA (681 dollars).

"Any father of a family, his role is to take care of his family, to have an activity that would earn him money, that's what a father desires. But without the materials, I could not feed my family, I had actually become unproductive," Daouda's father said.

NEW DELHI, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- At least seven people were killed and several others injured in a fire which broke out in two compartments of an express train in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand in the wee hours Tuesday, said police.

Seven persons, including two children, were charred to death after fire broke out in an air-conditioned coach and then spread to another AC coach, Railway Protection Force Divisional Commandant Sashi Kumar told the media.

The death toll is further expected to rise, as local TV channels aired footage of the two coaches in flames and later rescue workers trying to get inside the completely charred areas of the burnt bogies.

An Indian Railways official in the national capital said that the deceased included a five-year-old girl while two Russians were among those injured.

Though the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, some eyewitnesses told the TV channels that they saw a short- circuit at 02:00 a.m..

An inquiry has been ordered by Commissioner Railway Safety.

Though the incident brought railway traffic to a halt in the area for over six hours, with many trains being canceled.

Mishaps are common on the state-owned Indian railways, an immense network connecting every corner of the country. It operates 9,000 passenger trains and carries some 18 million passengers daily.

LIBREVILLE, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- A UN mission is in the Gabonese capital Libreville to evaluate ways to fight against piracy in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea, according to an official statement obtained by Xinhua on Tuesday.

The mission held talks after its arrival on Monday with officials of the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) and all other parties taking part in the fight against maritime piracy.

Piracy is carried out within a geographical space that specifically covers four Gulf of Guinea countries in the Atlantic Ocean, including Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Sao Tome and Principe and Gabon.

Another Atlantic country in West Africa Benin is affected by the negative consequences of this phenomenon.

The number of ships moving along Benin's coast have considerably reduced from 150 to fewer than 50 per month.

The UN team began its mission last week in Benin, then to neighboring Nigeria, where it held talks with leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

After Gabon, the UN experts are expected to head to Angola, which hosts the headquarters of the Gulf of Guinea Commission. 

JAKARTA, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Surin Pitsuwan said on Tuesday that the ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance Center (AHA Center) in Jakarta is very important to take steps in avoiding big loss caused by natural disasters.

"During the big flood in Thailand, the region carries burden as the country is the hub of many industries, such as automobile, computer and other electronic goods. It's because parts and supporting industry in Thailand has connectivity with the rest production in the region," said Pitsuwan.

He added that the region cannot afford it happens.

"That's why the AHA Center in Jakarta is very critical for us, to strategize together, to create long terms plan, how to avoid such calamities. If this happens and when it happens, we react fast. Disaster risk reduction is probably one of the most effective ways to guard against disasters,"he said.

Pitsuwan said that when a big cyclone hit Bangladesh several years ago, the damage was smaller when Nargis cyclone hit Myanmar in 2008.

That's because Bangladesh has built up its 'immunity', mechanism of defense. That's the kind of thing that ASEAN must have to do, and AHA Center will contribute on it," he said.

BANGKOK, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- A total of 606 people were confirmed dead and three others still missing in the floods that have inundated the upper part of the country for about four months, the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department reported on Tuesday.

Four more people were confirmed dead on Monday in central provinces of Angthong and Sa Kaew.

Floods were caused by the heavy monsoon "Nock-Ten" and overflow from several dams in upper part of the country since mid July.

On Tuesday, floods still prevail in 17 of the 77 provinces and affect about 5.1 million people of 1.9 million households.

The floods have affected about 4 million households and about 13.4 million people in 64 of the 77 provinces since July 25.