Paris

French physicist wins million-pound Templeton Prize

Paris - French physicist Bernard Espagnat was awarded the prestigious Templeton Prize, worth 1 million pounds (1.41 million dollars), the John Templeton Foundation announced in Paris on Monday.

The 87-year-old Espagnat was named the recipient of the world's most generous individual scientific award for his work in the field of quantum mechanics, particularly for his experimental proofs on Bell inequalities.

Bell inequalities concern measurements made on pairs of particles and were derived from the original Bell's inequality, devised by the late physicist John Bell, regarding an apparently inherent contradiction in quantum mechanics.

French physicist wins million-pound Templeton Prize

Paris - French physicist Bernard Espagnat was awarded the prestigious Templeton Prize, worth 1 million pounds (1.41 million dollars), the John Templeton Foundation announced in Paris on Monday.

The 87-year-old Espagnat was named the recipient of the world's most generous individual scientific award for his work in the field of quantum mechanics, particularly for his experimental proofs on Bell inequalities.

Bell inequalities concern measurements made on pairs of particles and were derived from the original Bell's inequality, devised by the late physicist John Bell, regarding an apparently inherent contradiction in quantum mechanics.

Number of police injured in rioting in Paris suburbs

Paris  - A large gang of youths armed with buckshot and stones left a number of police officers lightly injured overnight in a Parisian suburb, a police spokesman said Sunday.

About 100 young people were involved in the violence, the spokesman told French radio, adding that eight were arrested.

The number of policemen hurt were originally reported as 21, but later reduced to 10.

According to early reports, the rioting began when police responding to a call concerning a burning car were "ambushed" by an waiting band of youths in the Les Mureaux suburb. A number of homemade incendiary devices were also discovered at the scene.

Policeman shot on La Reunion as economic protests turn violent

Paris - Bands of roving youths set fires to cars and trash bins, looted stores and battled police on the French overseas territory of La Reunion as a demonstration protesting the high cost of living degenerated into violence, local media reported Wednesday.

One policeman was injured by gunfire and 20 received other injuries in a disturbing reminder of the riots that shook French suburban ghettos in the fall of 2005. French media reported that 22 people were arrested.

The incidents occurred late Tuesday after thousands of people marched in the streets of Saint-Denis, the capital of this island in the Indian Ocean, to demand salary hikes of 200 euros (255 dollars) a month for low-wage earners and price cuts of 20 per cent for some 500 products.

Sarkozy to announce France's return to NATO military command

Sarkozy to announce France's return to NATO military command Paris - French President Nicolas Sarkozy is widely expected to announce later on Wednesday that France is returning to NATO's command structure 43 years after Charles de Gaulle pulled Paris out and evicted US military bases from French soil.

Sarkozy will probably make the announcement during an address at the conference "France, European Defence and NATO in the 21st Century," at the Ecole Miliaire in Paris, in the presence of NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

Police kill Paris sniper

Police kill Paris sniperParis - A man who took his mother hostage and then began shooting at pedestrians in Paris from his apartment has been killed by police, BFM television reported on Monday.

The man, who was said to be about 50 years old, took his mother hostage for about an hour early Monday. After releasing her, he began to shoot at police and other pedestrians with what French media described as a small-calibre handgun.

One man was reportedly shot in the back and taken to hospital. His condition was said to be stable.

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