The band’s 2018 presentation brings light, through costuming, to the fact that in all things love and harmony exists. This example will be illustrated through a cinematic experience, incorporating theatre and costuming, says twins Kathy and Karen Norman of K2K Alliance and Partners. The three-time medium band of the year winner will be hosting its 2018 band launching on Saturday. The band retained its medium band of the year title with its presentation this year with At The Helm. Its 2018 theme is We Stand United.

The National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA) will be filled with the sights and sounds of a band whose work has captured masqueraders across TT.

The launch will discuss serious issues taking place in TT and across the globe. In emailed responses to exactly what is going to be addressed, the sisters said: “Love, loss, brotherhood, conflict, and unity.” Those attending can also look forward to an exhibition titled The Tudor Rose (War of the Roses) on NAPA’s ground level.

The band will consist of three clusters with six sections. The band’s three clusters are APAC (Asia Pacific), EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and Americas.

The six sections are The Dragon and The Fan, Peacock Feathers and Dupattas, The Tudor Rose (War of the Roses), Siyahamba, To Andalucía with Love and Totem.

Each of the clusters and sections brings conflict back to harmony. In a phone interview, Kathy said: “Each of the sections depicts a different country. The Tudor Rose is a depiction of Britain and what it represents is the war between two houses in England. It is the period in England whereby the whole segment is called War of the Roses. It was a fight between two families for the throne and control of England. In the end what you kind of learn about is the tale of two families coming together. There was the family that wore the white rose and the family that wore the red rose and in order to form harmony, the two families married. And today what is known as Tudor Rose is actually a pink rose. So it is actually a representation of unity.” But this section won’t be shown on stage, so attendees can instead glimpse this section at the exhibition downstairs.

Sections like Andalucia With Love expands the band’s wider theme of coming together.

Kathy said, “It talks about the love relationship between a guy from Spain and a woman from North America. It represents the passion and the love of Spain and the conflict that is found within love…in the end there is conflict and when you actually listen to the story that is going to be told at the presentation, you realise out of conflict there can actually be found harmony.” What about the Caribbean and TT some might wonder? Well, for the Norman twins the Caribbean is an “amalgamation of everything.” Kathy said the region was not one particular race but history, “has blessed us with the beauty of being that perfect place.” This was the reason K2K did not choose a specific costume to represent TT and the Caribbean.

But whatever the region and whatever the space, it all leads back to one common story and that story is harmony.

There are some general tickets remaining for the band launch.

For more info: visit the band’s Facebook page. Cocktails start at 8 pm and showtime begins at 9pm.

We had the 1970 Black Power revolution, the 1990 attempted coup, murders and kidnappings to deal with during the 55 years as an independent nation. But we have things of which to be proud: * Our own indigenous bank — FCB * Our own university — UTT * Local products that are being exported to other countries.

* Experts in the fields of engineering, medicine, law and finance.

* Gold medalists at the Olympics in the javelin throw and the 100M sprint, silver and bronze in other track events including swimming.

* A world record holder in cricket.

* Two Miss Universe winners.

* Invention of a musical instrument — the steel pan.

* Renowned authors.

May God bless our nation and happy Independence Day to all.

ANDRE ROBERTS via email

Since then TT has made tremendous strides which are noticeable throughout the country. However, much more needs to be done. I have made the following dream list for the country: An economic turnaround: First and foremost on my independence dream list is a 360-degree turnaround in our economy. I still believe it can happen despite the prediction of some economic pundits. We were here before and there was a turnaround — the oil price did go up.

Diversification in the economy: This can become a reality. Someone or group would have to lead the way and demonstrate that this is possible, boldly going where no man has gone before and being a pioneer in these challenging times.

A drastic decrease in crime: From the depth of my heart I sincerely believe this dream can materialise in all areas of crime — murder and robbery, illegal entry of guns and illicit drugs, corruption at all levels, abuse of children and rape of our women. I refuse to accept that this is something we have to get used to. We can make the change working together.

There is still hope, let us not give up trying.

Uniting the people: We cannot evade the fact that as a nation we are divided but this division can be turned around if every citizen recognises that it is unprofitable for any country or people to be divided. Unity is possible and is within reach if we want it. It begins with we the citizens and leaders.

Looking out for each other: The one word that demonstrates this is “love.” Let there be love where we will reach out and touch people in need. If God has blessed you with abundance, reach out to an unfortunate someone and make their day brighter.

So as we celebrate Independence Day, I hold fast to those dreams for TT . Our country will be a better place as they are fulfilled.

Happy Independence Day and God’s blessings to all.

ARNOLD GOPEESINGH via email

“As a professional service, we provide business solutions recognising that the country (has) challenges.

We have the capability to assist,” Dawkins Brown, the company’s managing partner for the Caribbean told the audience on Tuesday during the official launch at the Trinidad Hilton and Conference Centre, St Ann’s.

The company recognises this country has a kind of resilience for growth despite going through some “choppy waters,” he said, but the country’s problems are not localised, and Crowe Howarth is an international firm, so it had the capability to leverage that global network to help its local clients.

He said small and medium enterprises will be able to access the firm’s services through a special pricing strategy that will be based on their existing structure and growth projections, and not just capital.

The company’s operations here will focus on knowledge transfer and human resource capacity building, borrowing from the international network to train local staff, he added.

Brown said he expected the two offices to have a staff of just over 40, with at least 30 per cent of that being recent university graduates who will also be able to access opportunities to work in other territories in which the company operates.

Also attending the launch were Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon and Port of Spain Mayor Joel Martinez, both of whom congratulated the company on its new local operations, saying it was a sign of economic growth and business confidence in the country.

The company will be ramping up its operations over the next four weeks, and has “integrated” local consulting firm Premier Consulting Group as its local partner. Brown said over the coming weeks the company will announce the core members of the local team.

Crowe Howarth is the eighth biggest accounting firm in the world. It operates in 130 territories including Caribbean markets like Jamaica, Barbados, Dominican Republic and Curacao.

Valley Boyz posted a challenging 117 without loss with Beepath top scoring and Sheldon Thomas contributing 26 not out. It was a valiant effort by Hard Hitters as they got to 99/4 in their 12 overs. Ravi Sooden scored 25 and Chase Sookdeo pitched in with 19.

Roger Millien was the best bowler for Valley Boyz snatching three for 12.

SUMMARISED SCORES: Valley Boyz 117/0 (Sunil Beepath 80, Sheldon Thomas 26) vs Hard Hitters 99/4 (Ravi Soodeen 25, Chase Sookdeo 19, Roger Millien 3/12).

Valley Boyz won by 18 runs.

Wreckin Crew 85/6 (Ravi Naidoo 24, Ricky Ramanan 17; Jacob Larode 3/7, Ravi Sookwah 3/15) vs Rampage 65/7 (Satesh Ramharack 13, Rishi Bharathsingh 12; Wazim Juman 2/10).

Wreckin Crew won by 20 runs.

Lances Bar 35 (Keshore Boodoo 3/10, Brian Gangoo 2/6) vs Rampant Recruits 36/1 (Ryan Cassie 16, Zephori Richards 16).

Rampant Recruits won by nine wickets.

Morefire 87/8 (Randy Mahase 28, Randy Ramlogam 13; Romel Nanan 4/21, Andy Briggs 2/18) vs Moondogs 65 (R Nanan 14; Trevor Mohammed 3/20). Morefire won by 22 runs.

Strike Force 92/7 (Wendell Adams 23, Mohan Kanpat 23, Marlon Morris 12; Trevor Rajkumar 2/18, Aneil Ramkissoon 2/8) vs For Ameuzment Only 96/3 (Ariz Khan 41, Jesse Roland 24). For Ameuzment Only won by seven wickets.

Gameover 77/4 (Carlos Narine 20, Riaz Mohammed 14, Jarred Phillip 12) vs Tigers 58 (Junior Griffith 18). Gameover won by 19 runs.

Gabba Youths 78/2 (Abraham Thomas 23, Gerard Skeete 13,Y Paul 17) vs FBSC 80/8 (Ryan Inniss 18, Arvind Kumar 17; Kalim Bissessar 2/13).

FBSC won by two wickets.

Furniture Boys 78/6 (Michael Solozano 25, Billy Seerattan 22, Sean Nepaul 14; Trevor Notttingham 2/14) vs Club House 56 (T Nottingham 12). Furniture Boys won by 22 runs.

Data is important as it has always been the backbone of the decisionmaking process and the viability of businesses depend on the quality of decisions made. The processes for oil and gas exploration, development and production generate large amounts of data and the volume of this data grows daily. Big Data analytics are expected to be fully utilised by the oil and gas industry in the future. Hopefully, this is a point not loss on all stake holders in this country.

According to a recent Reuter’s report, in today’s US shale fields, tiny sensors attached to production gear harvest data on everything, from pumping pressure, to the heat and rotational speed of drill bits. These sensors are leading Big Oil’s mining of so-called big data, with some firms envisioning billions of dollars in savings over time by avoiding outages, managing supplies and identifying safety hazards. The industry has long used sophisticated technologies to find oil and gas but only recently have oil firms pooled data from across the company for wider operating efficiencies. When oil traded at more than $100 a barrel, data analysis was an “afterthought” for most oil firms. However, with prices at about $47 a barrel, the efficiency aspect is considered far more important.

A 2016 survey by Ernst & Young examined 75 large oil and gas companies and found that 68 percent of them had invested more than $100 million each in data analytics during the past two years. Nearly three quarters of those firms planned to allocate between six and ten percent of their capital budgets to digital technology. Simple sensors already increase safety and savings by eliminating the need to send workers to rigs or production facilities to gather data. Automating drilling decisions can produce more consistent results by cutting out human errors. The driller is now able to focus his attention on the well and the performance and safety of his crews, as opposed to the manual manipulation of controls.

Occidental Petroleum Corp also uses an analytical tool to find the best design for hydraulic fracturing wells. A new version of the software analyses data on well completions and geology to recommend whether injecting steam or water would produce more oil.

Abhishek Gaurav, a petroleum engineer for closely-held Texas Standard Oil, said he uses big-data analytics to help his company choose which properties to explore. Using Spotfire, the same program utilised by Conoco Standard applies a combination of data science and petroleum engineering to rank asking prices for land based on a variety of completion, production and geological variables, such as the amount of sand that likely would be required to complete a well in a given formation. This technique has reduced the time needed for evaluating land parcels from weeks to hours, and resulted in better decisions.

Unfortunately, some of the information needed by oil firms is not very easy to gather or analyse.

Surveys and maps that companies use to acquire acreage for drilling, for instance, are often not digitised.

Older company data on wells may be unstructured or spread among suppliers using different storage formats, making integration and analysis a challenge. General Electric and its oil-and-gas unit are moving aggressively into the business of digitising industrial equipment for other firms, and have invested in large data processing centres for energy clients. GE sees huge potential for market growth: a company study estimated that only three to five percent of oil and gas equipment is connected digitally, and less than one percent of the data collected gets used for decision-making.

Clearly, we are entering a new era of unprecedented data availability, where digital trends are disrupting traditional business models. These trends have enabled the emergence of big data and advanced analytics, which is rapidly becoming a big industry.

There are four key applications that are emerging for big data in oil and gas companies – digital fields, predictive plant and drilling analysis, Remote operations and Reservoir modeling and seismic imaging. Research shows that “big data” can help to reduce costs, improve decision making and operational performance, achieve greater efficiencies and develop new business models with increased market presence and revenue. Assuming our oil and gas producers are at various stages of use of these new techniques our policy makers must examine how best they can contribute to increased efficiency. At the present gas and oil prices, all stake holders should exploit ways of lower costs and ensuring profitability in the oil and gas sector.

Speaking with reporters during a tour of projects in the Diego Martin West constituency, Rowley said he had already given an undertaking for Tobago to have “greater input” in talks regarding a new vessel to service the seabridge.

The prime minister said when he met stakeholders on the island last week, “I offered to Tobago that when the next goaround which is happening now, of evaluating and selecting a vessel for Tobago, an evaluation team will be put in place to support the Port and that evaluation team will have a large Tobago input.

“One does not have to swim across the channel for that.” Rowley said he also had spoken about the expansion of the board of the Port to give Tobagonians a larger say, “to ensure that whatever the Port does because Tobagonians are so vulnerable to Port management issues, Tobagonians will have a bigger say.” He said this issue was already on the table.

“Those are all things that government put on the table . So that did not require a swim, a dive or whatever else,” Rowley added.

Early on Monday, Duke, accompanied by fellow minority assemblyman Farley Augustine and other supporters, swam for about an hour in the waters off Scarborough before being taken on board a jet ski and pirogue to get to Toco, to highlight the need for Tobagonians to have a greater say in managing their affairs, including the beleaguered sea bridge.

Rowley told reporters Duke did a very good job of pointing out that Tobago is not far from Trinidad.

“He has made a good case for the Toco port and the road to Toco and if there is a ferry service from Tobago, one would not have to struggle, to drown, to get a pirogue or to get a jet ski.

“All we need is to have that project of the development completed and have a good ferry service running back and forth over a 20-mile stretch of water which would be done on a 45-minute trip as against a fourhour trip.

“That is part of the development project that’s ongoing and nobody is swimming for that.” Rowley anticipates the report on businessman Christian Mouttet’s investigation into the procurement of the Cabo Star and Ocean Flower 11 vessels will be completed by the time he returns from his overseas trip within the next two weeks.

All relatives know is that late Monday evening while at her aunt’s home at Techier Village, Point Fortin where she had been spending a week-long vacation, Tinniyah received a phone call (on a borrowed phone) after which she left the house telling them she was taking a walk outside.

Tinniyah has not been seen or heard from since. Checks with relatives and friends have so far proven futile. Speaking from his home at Lake View, La Fortune, Point Fortin yesterday, her distraught father Errol Rauseo pleaded with the public to help him locate his last child who, he said, will enter form four at Holy Name Convent, Point Fortin.

He described her as five feet, two inches tall and brown in complexion with shoulder length hair.

He said she was last seen wearing a black track pants with green stripes and a pair of slippers.

Anyone with information can contact 555, 999 or 800-TIPS or any police station.

They are being represented by Criston J Williams, Fareed Ali and Wayne Sturge.

Lara said he and the other accused have been languishing in prison for the past seven years.

However, Earle-Caddle reminded them she was not the chief magistrate at the time of commencement of the case, however she was seeking to move the matter along as quickly as possible.

“I am here everyday,” Earle- Caddle said. “While there have been matters that were restarted, I have ensured that some of them are approaching their closure. I cannot see about what took place in the past, only the present and the future.” One of the accused said when last he spoke to his attorney, they were seeking to file an application before the High Court but was unsure of the status. However Earle-Caddle said she was not aware of any such application.

The men are expected to reappear in court on September 14. They are charged with the murder of Diego Martin labourer Russell Antoine.

This is one of the 52 cases left in abeyance after the appointment of former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar as a judge of the High Court.

The charges were laid after Inspector Ken Lutchman presented a file to Gaspard in relation to the alleged kidnapping of two Sangre Grande teens. The five are two 28-year-olds from Barrackpore, a16-year-old, a 32-year-old and a 54-year-old man.

Charges were laid by Corporal Randy Castillo and the five are expected to appear before a Sangre Grande magistrate tomorrow.

Others involved in the investigation were Sergeant Happa and PC Amit Samuel.

Last Thursday, members of the Anti Kidnapping Unit were on the hunt for the teen cousins after they were allegedly taken from their father and uncle, Dale Lutchman during a family hunting trip in Sangre Grande. The mother of one of the teens allegedly received a phone call demanding a $350,000 ransom for the safe return of the boys. They were found walking in Penal the next day. Police later deemed the kidnapping to be fake.