The US nuclear weapons force still uses a 1970s-era computer system and 8-inch floppy disks, a government report has revealed.

The Government Accountability Office said the Pentagon was one of several departments where "legacy systems" urgently needed to be replaced.
The report said taxpayers spent $61bn (Â£41bn) a year on maintaining ageing technologies.
It said that was three times more than the investment on modern IT systems.
The report said that the Department of Defence systems that co-ordinated intercontinental ballistic missiles, nuclear bombers and tanker support aircraft "runs on an IBM Series-1 Computer - a 1970s computing system - and uses eight-inch floppy disks".
"This system remains in use because, in short, it still works," Pentagon spokeswoman Lt Col Valerie Henderson told the AFP news agency.
"However, to address obsolescence concerns, the floppy drives are scheduled to be replaced with secure digital devices by the end of 2017."
She added: "Modernisation across the entire Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications enterprise remains ongoing."
The report said that the Pentagon was planning to fully replace the system by the end of 2020.
According to the report, the US treasury also needed to upgrade its systems, which it said was using "assembly language code - a computer language initially used in the 1950s and typically tied to the hardware for which it was developed".


Autocrats are watching what's happening in Washington

I spent the evening after FBI Director James Comey's firing with a group of women from developing countries who work to ease conflicts. Their take on what had just happened here was salutary, and a reminder that the global impact of what happens in Washington should not be underestimated.
Here were there two main concerns:
First, they fear the firing of Comey could embolden autocrats in their own countries. A woman from Uganda told me this is exactly the kind of thing President Yoweri Museveni takes note of it. She said leaders with dictatorial tendencies might use the dismissal as cover for their own autocratic actions - a sort of "if it's OK in America, then it's OK here too" rationale.
Second, these women, from Latin America, Asia and Africa were all surprised that America would risk compromising its moral leadership in this way. As one woman from Colombia put it, "In countries where the rule of law is fragile, we've looked to the US as an inspiration."
America is more than another democracy, she said, it's a role model for other nations, an example of what to do and what not to do.
To a woman, this group was concerned about the impact Comey's sudden dismissal would have on their own leaders.
Their conclusion was grim: It would encourage autocrats who already feel they are above the law to act with impunity.


A Taiwanese company has created a plug-like computer capable of running Microsoft's forthcoming Windows 10 operating system.

Quanta's Compute Plug is designed to be pushed directly into a power socket, has an HDMI port for TV connections and two USB sockets.
It is not the first such device. US chipmaker Marvell has promoted a range of similarly formed PCs since 2009.
But they are designed to work with the less processor-intensive Ubuntu OS.
To date, Marvell's "plug computers" ecosystem - which is targeted at schools and smart home enthusiasts - has had only niche appeal.
Microsoft announced details about the new wi-fi enabled Windows device on its blog, indicating that it was designed to be cable-linked to a screen to turn it into a voice-controlled portable computer.
"The new Compute plug from Quanta is a mini PC and power adapter in one that can be plugged into any outlet and connected to a TV to turn it into a smart computer that can be controlled using Cortana via a Bluetooth remote or headset," it said.
The software-maker also showed off another unusual device made by Foxconn - a Taiwanese company which is best known for assembling other company's products.
The Kangaroo fits a Windows 10-powered PC into a box that resembles a portable hard disk drive fitted with a fingerprint reader on top. It also features a battery said to be capable of lasting six hours between charges.
Microsoft describes it as an "ultra-portable" computer that "can turn a TV into a full Windows 10 PC".
The US firm was unable to provide pricing or launch dates for the equipment, which it announced to coincide with the Computex trade show.
That casts a question mark over how widely they will be offered for sale.
But one analyst suggested they were a taste of things to come.
"Foxconn, Microsoft and Quanta aren't boasting about computing power with these devices - that's not the point," commented Peter Bryer from the consultancy CCS Insight.
"It's a matter of utility, enabling users to have specialised PCs scattered throughout the house.
"Windows 10 supports a wider set of devices, providing Microsoft with the flexibility to compete against more new shapes and sizes."
The new Windows OS is released as a completed build on 29 July, and will be free to existing Windows users and $119 (Â£78) to others for the basic version.
Based on the evidence of preview versions made available to for the public to test, some experts have suggested it might be a "buggy" experience, at least at first.
But those wishing to try out a tiny computer can already do so with other products already on the market.
Intel released its Compute Stick in April - an HDMI dongle that turns TVs into computers, which has both a USB port and an in-built MicroSD card reader.
It is sold pre-installed with a choice of either Windows 8.1 or Ubuntu.
Reviews, however, have complained that is is under-powered and "feels more like a proof-of-concept than a consumer device".
Elsewhere, China's RikoMagic offers the fifth generation of its Mini PC, which now supports 4K-resolution video playback, and comes with either Android or Ubuntu.
And on the horizon, Asus is set to release the Chromebit - a dongle powered by Google's Chrome OS.
That device is due to go on sale for under $100 (Â£65) before the end of August.
"Defining the classes of products will be an ongoing challenge," commented Mr Bryer.
"However, we hope to see more fresh designs.
"The market for computers has gone from luggables to pluggables in short order."


Two real-life brothers, an actress who has played TWO previous roles in EastEnders, a bloke from Benidorm and a bearded dragon called Rooney - this is the new "not-to-be-messed-with" EastEnders family.

The Taylors will, we are assured, make "quite an entrance" when they arrive in Albert Square this summer, giving the resident Walfordians "a rude awakening".
EastEnders executive producer Sean O'Connor describes them as "noisy and brash" who "lack cash" but "have love and warmth in spades".
The announcement has split opinion among fans on the soap's Facebook page, with some worried they are a stereotypical white working-class family and/or a pale imitation of the Millers.
Others have said there should be more ethnic minority families instead, or have questioned whether they would be able to afford to live in the East End these days.
But some are looking forward to what O'Connor described as their "explosive" impact on Walford life.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Pakistan is a country beset with political difficulties, but they could be of secondary importance to its economic woes.

While much attention has been devoted to the dramatic Supreme Court move to order the arrest of Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on charges of corruption and recent large-scale protests led by populist cleric Tahirul Qadri to demand the resignation of the government ahead of elections due in May, the country's financial difficulties have been overlooked.
Likewise recent deadly militant bombings have also distracted attention, as have skirmishes with India on the Line of Control (LoC) that divides the disputed Kashmir region.
These headline-grabbing events have not only served to obscure the profound economic challenges facing Pakistani society but in many cases have also nurtured and aggravated them.
The truth is that the Pakistani people are deeply troubled by the plight of their economy and their own economic prospects.
With the government likely to ask the International Monetary Fund this year for a new aid package, the nation's economic plight may soon become topic number one in the global discussion about Pakistan's future.
"Deep seated structural problems and weak macroeconomic policies have continued to sap the [Pakistani] economy's vigour," the IMF's executive board concluded in late November.
Economic growth over the past four years, after adjustment for inflation, averaged 2.9% annually, and is projected to be only 3.2% in 2012-13.
That, says the IMF, is not sufficient to achieve significant improvement in living standards and to absorb the rising labour force.
All this at a time when prices are rising about 11% per year.
Moreover, the government deficit was 8.5% in the last fiscal year and press reports suggest it may miss its budget deficit target this year by a significant amount.
The IMF expects foreign reserves this fiscal year to be half what they were just two years ago, a sign of waning investor confidence and a deteriorating international economic situation.
Hardly surprising then that the Pakistani people are extremely downbeat.
Roughly nine out of 10 say the economy is bad, including a majority (64%) who think that it is very bad, according to the 2012 Pew Global Attitudes survey.
Just 9% rate the economy positively.
There has in fact been a sharp decline in economic ratings in Pakistan since the beginning of the global economic recession.
In 2007, 59% said the economy was doing well; by 2008, this percentage had dropped to 41% and has continued to fall since then.
A plurality (43%) believes the economy will only worsen. For many of them, this pain will be felt personally.
Their assessment of their own personal economic situation is down 19 percentage points since 2008, one of the largest fall-offs among the 15 countries for which the Pew Research Centre has comparable data.
Only 38% say they are better off than their parents.
More than half (57%) say they are worse off than five years ago. And 65% say it will be very difficult for their children to advance economically.
Unemployment is one of the public's major concerns.
Nine out of 10 people say that the lack of jobs is a very big problem, a more important issue to them than concern about corrupt political leaders or unrest in Kashmir.
However because the survey was conducted in the spring of 2012, it could be that concern about Kashmir has risen more recently because of flare-ups in January along the LoC.
While it is true that issues of life and death and war and peace will always trump economic news, the dire nature of Pakistan's economic problems could ultimately feed political and social unrest as the regional and global discussion about Pakistan's future moves to centre stage.
Polling suggests that the people of Pakistan may say this refocusing is long overdue.
Bruce Stokes is the director of global economic attitudes at the Pew Research Centre.


A 10-part drama about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II is to be screened by on-demand TV service Netflix.

The series, titled The Crown, is based on the hit West End play The Audience, in which Dame Helen Mirren portrays the monarch.
The Crown will be created by writer Peter Morgan and director Stephen Daldry - the pair behind The Audience.
British actress Claire Foy has been approached to play the young Elizabeth II, according to Deadline.com.
Foy is best known for TV dramas including White Heat, Little Dorrit, The Promise and the revived Upstairs Downstairs. She will also play Anne Boleyn in the new BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel's novel Wolf Hall.
The Crown is expected to chart the Queen's reign, from the death of her father George VI in 1952 to the present day.
Like the stage play, it will centre on her encounters with the 12 prime ministers who have served during her reign, and the political and social upheavals that have unfolded over that time. It will reach screens in 2016.
Dame Helen will play the monarch in The Audience on Broadway next year, but there is no confirmation of whether she will appear in the Netflix version.
Kristin Scott Thomas will take over the regal role when the play returns to London's West End next April.
Peter Morgan said The Crown would not just be about the royal family, but "about an empire in decline, a world in disarray and the dawn of a new era".
"I am beyond thrilled to be reunited with partners from film, theatre and television for this epic project and delighted to be working for the first time with Netflix," he said.
Netflix vice-president of original content, Cindy Holland, said: "The Crown is storytelling that lives somewhere between television and cinema from Britain's foremost chroniclers of modern politics, class and society."


Divers have been searching a river in York following the disappearance of man last seen during a night out.

Rory Johnson, from Skipton, has not been seen since leaving the York Central Travel Lodge at 00:15 GMT on Friday.
The 29-year-old did not return to the hotel and failed to turn up to work on Friday.
North Yorkshire Police believed he might have "got into difficulty" while walking near the River Ouse.
Humberside Police Underwater Search Unit has been carrying an extensive search of the river near City Mills and Skeldergate Bridge.
Dave Benson, from the York Rescue Boat charity said they were assisting police.
He said: "If anyone did go in the water it's extremely dangerous, it's very cold, there's a fast flow and the water is currently higher than normal levels."
Mr Johnson was with friends at The Postern Gate pub at around 23:30 GMT and returned to the hotel on Piccadilly for a short time, before heading back out.
Anyone who saw him on Thursday evening or Friday morning is urged to call police. He is described as white, of slim build and has short, blonde hair.


A woman has died following a suspected hit-and-run in Manchester.

Two women were hit by a van at a pedestrian crossing in Princess Parkway, West Didsbury, on 16 January.
A 57-year-old woman has died from her injuries and a woman aged 70 remains in a serious but stable condition.
Two men arrested on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and failing to stop at the scene of a collision have been released on bail.
Sgt Mark Thomas said: "Tragically, one of the women has now died from her injuries while the other remains in a serious condition in hospital.
"We are continuing to support their families through this difficult time."


Colchester United moved up to ninth in League Two with a victory at Stevenage, courtesy of two late goals.

The visitors made the perfect start after Brennan Dickenson powered home a header from an Owen Garvan corner.
And it was 2-0 four minutes later, as Kurtis Guthrie scored from the penalty spot after being brought down by Stevenage goalkeeper Jamie Jones.
But Stevenage fought back with goals either side of the interval, Ben Kennedy finishing off a Steven Schumacher free-kick before Matt Godden broke clear to pick his spot and make it 2-2 on 50 minutes.
But with 10 minutes left Chris Porter stabbed the ball home from close range to put the visitors back in front.
And then in time added on, Porter found on-loan Reading midfielder Tarique Fosu-Henry who drilled the ball past a helpless Jones to seal the victory for the U's and keep them in the hunt for a play-off spot.
Report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Stevenage 2, Colchester United 4.
Second Half ends, Stevenage 2, Colchester United 4.
Attempt missed. Tarique Fosu-Henry (Colchester United) right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high from a direct free kick.
Foul by Fraser Franks (Stevenage).
Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, Colchester United. Lloyd Doyley replaces Richard Brindley.
Tarique Fosu-Henry (Colchester United) is shown the yellow card for excessive celebration.
Goal!  Stevenage 2, Colchester United 4. Tarique Fosu-Henry (Colchester United) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Chris Porter.
Attempt missed. Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is close, but misses to the right.
Attempt saved. Tom Eastman (Colchester United) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Attempt blocked. Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Ben Kennedy (Stevenage) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Ben Kennedy (Stevenage).
Tarique Fosu-Henry (Colchester United) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Tom Pett (Stevenage) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Brennan Dickenson (Colchester United).
Substitution, Stevenage. Charlie Lee replaces Henry Cowans.
Foul by Fraser Franks (Stevenage).
Chris Porter (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Ben Kennedy (Stevenage).
Richard Brindley (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Matt Godden (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by George Elokobi (Colchester United).
Richard Brindley (Colchester United) is shown the yellow card for excessive celebration.
Goal!  Stevenage 2, Colchester United 3. Chris Porter (Colchester United) left footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Richard Brindley.
Attempt saved. Chris Porter (Colchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Tom Eastman (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Tyler Walker (Stevenage).
Kgosi Ntlhe (Stevenage) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Chris Porter (Colchester United).
Corner,  Stevenage. Conceded by Richard Brindley.
Attempt blocked. Matt Godden (Stevenage) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked.
Corner,  Stevenage. Conceded by Richard Brindley.
Attempt blocked. Richard Brindley (Colchester United) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Attempt blocked. Tarique Fosu-Henry (Colchester United) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Substitution, Stevenage. Tyler Walker replaces Steven Schumacher.
Substitution, Colchester United. Tarique Fosu-Henry replaces Drey Wright.
Corner,  Colchester United. Conceded by Henry Cowans.
Attempt missed. Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.
Jack King (Stevenage) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.


The Chinese Ministry of Justice has threatened legal action against "organisations and individuals" making "false claims" about the security of Chinese-made devices.

It follows a product recall from the Chinese electronics firm Hangzhou after its web cameras were used in a massive web attack last week.
The attack knocked out sites such as Reddit, Twitter, Paypal and Spotify.
The Chinese government blamed customers for not changing their passwords.
Its legal warning was added to an online statement from the company Xiongmai, in which the firm said that it would recall products, mainly webcams, following the attack but denied that its devices made up the majority of the botnet used to launch it.
The firm later told Reuters that the recall would effect "less than 10,000" devices.
It also noted that users not changing their default passwords were contributing to weak security.
This was reiterated by the Ministry of Justice which said Xiongmai's products "cannot be manipulated by criminals", again blaming users who "do not change the initial password".
The cyber attack hit Dyn, a firm which matches IP addresses to web addresses to allow users to find sites online, on 21 October.
Afterwards, it became clear that it was made possible via a botnet made up of insecure "smart" devices, which had been taken over remotely and enlisted to bombard Dyn with data, knocking offline the sites it manages.
Various publications, including security blogger Brian Krebs, said that products made by Xiongmai formed part of the botnet.
Krebs pointed out that it was difficult for users to change the default passwords on devices.
"Products from Xiongmai and other makers of inexpensive, mass-produced 'internet of things' devices are essentially unfixable," he said, "and will remain a danger to others unless and until they are completely unplugged from the internet."
Video surveillance equipment expert Brian Karas said he did not believe the Chinese government would follow through on its legal threats.
"We believe Xiongmai has issued this announcement as a PR effort within China, to help counter criticisms they are facing," he said.
"We do not believe that Xiongmai or the Ministry of Justice is seriously going to sue any Western companies as this is a typical tactic to save face," he wrote.


Former first minister Alex Salmond has indicated a decision on whether to hold a new independence referendum could come within weeks.

He said the UK government's response to Scottish plans to protect trade with Europe would be crucial.
Mr Salmond, the SNP's international affairs spokesman at Westminster, said a rejection of the plans would probably result in an autumn 2018 referendum.
The UK government has said it will seek a deal for "the UK as a whole".
Speaking on the BBC's Sunday Politics Scotland programme, Mr Salmond said: "The UK government has still to respond to Nicola Sturgeon's compromise proposal.
"That's going to come over the next few weeks and once that's done - if they reject it as many people predict - then we'll know that they're not interested in the voice of Scotland.
"As Nicola Sturgeon has said it is (then) very likely there will be another independence referendum."
In an initial response to the Scottish government's plan to continue open trade with the EU, published at the end of 2016, a Downing Street spokesman said the government welcomed it and would "look closely" at it.
But the spokesman made clear that Prime Minister Theresa May is determined to deliver a UK-wide Brexit and did not believe there should be a second referendum on Scottish independence.
He added: "The government is committed to getting a deal on exiting the EU that works for all parts of the UK - which clearly includes Scotland - and works for the UK as a whole.
"The best way for that to be achieved is for the government and devolved administrations to work together."
Mr Salmond said he thought the degree of progress being made in Brexit talks would be clear before a vote on Scottish independence took place.
He said: "If there is another independence referendum then the timescale I would have said would be the autumn of next year."
"If you're talking about a referendum in about 18 months time, by then the negotiations will be crystallised.
"You'll be able to tell what the deal - or no deal - is going to be.
"And certainly that's after the timescale the government was talking about this week about bringing the deal or non-deal back to the House of Commons for a vote."
Scottish Labour said the supporters of independence had still to answer detailed questions such as which currency an independent Scotland would use.
The party's business manager James Kelly added: "Scotland is divided enough, the SNP should rule out another divisive independence referendum and focus on improving our schools and hospitals.
"Labour believes that together we're stronger, and that is why we oppose a second independence referendum."


Five Congolese park rangers have been killed in an operation to rescue a US journalist and three other rangers, officials say.

The group had gone missing during a militia attack on the town of Mambasa in the Okapi wildlife reserve, in the northeast of the country, on Friday.
Cosma Wilungula, the head of DR Congo's park service, told Reuters the gunmen were mining gold inside the reserve.
The mineral-rich east of the country has been wracked by decades of war.
The kidnapping happened when a group of armed men from the Mai Mai militia attacked a group of park rangers accompanying three foreign journalists, Radio Okapi reported.
During the exchange of fire, some of the group, including two Dutch journalists, were able to escape.
The Mai Mai describe themselves as "self defence" groups. Many were armed during the DR Congo war that ran from 1998 to 2003 and were never disarmed.
Park rangers working to protect wildlife regularly clash with the groups, who exploit minerals, wildlife and other resources.
The Okapi reserve covers nearly 14,000 sq km (5,400 sq miles) and protects part of the Ituri forest near the borders with South Sudan and Uganda.


One of Scotland's largest bird shows has been cancelled due to restrictions over avian flu.

Peebles Poultry Show expected about 1,500 entries on 26 February but it has now been confirmed it will not be held.
Hazel Dickson, of Peebles and District Poultry and Bantam Club, apologised for the "disappointment and hassle" the decision would cause.
"We had hoped, like many, that the situation would settle quickly," she added.
"Having studied the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs communications as well as Animal and Plant Health Agency information we feel that we have no choice but to cancel."
The Scottish government announced in December that all poultry and captive birds must be kept indoors, after a Europe-wide alert over avian influenza.
The initial restrictions were for 30 days but the discovery of wild birds with the H5N8 strain in Scotland, England and Wales has led to the outdoor ban continuing.
Last week it was confirmed the restrictions would remain in place until the end of February, at the earliest.
Poultry owners from all across the UK head to the Borders every February for the Peebles Show.
Last year's record numbers saw 1,029 competitive birds displayed at the Burgh Hall.
The Peebles club will now turn its attentions to the regional summer show in August and next year's 30th anniversary event in February.


Two people arrested over the death of a 13-month-old girl have had their bail cancelled, Cumbria Police has said.

Poppi Iris Worthington died in December 2012, and her father, Paul, 46, and a 30-year-old woman were later arrested.
An inquest in October ruled the cause of death could not be ascertained and their bail has now been cancelled.
Police said the inquiry was continuing and a file had been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service for consideration whether to bring criminal proceedings.


Borussia Dortmund and Gabon star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is still in line to retain his African Player of the Year crown after making the Confederation of African Football's (Caf) final three-man shortlist.

The 27-year-old will go up against Leicester City's Algerian winger Riyad Mahrez - the BBC's 2016 African Footballer of the Year - and Liverpool and Senegal winger Sadio Mane.
Egypt's Mohamed Salah and Islam Slimani of Algeria both missed out having made the final five.
Caf confirmed that the winners will be unveiled at a ceremony on Thursday 5 January in Abuja, Nigeria.
Aubameyang's victory last year ended Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure's run of winning the trophy in four successive years.
Mahrez stands a great chance of dethroning him after a stunning 2016 in which he helped Leicester win the Premier League title and won the English Players' Player of the Year award.
Zambian midfielder Rainford Kalaba, Zimbabwean forward Khama Billiat and Ugandan goalkeeper Denis Onyango are the three contenders for the prize for Caf's best African player based on the continent.
List of players nominated for Caf's 2016 African Player of the year award:
List of players nominated for Caf's 2016 African Player of the year (based in Africa) award:


Drones will be banned from flying in large parts of London during the visit of US President Barack Obama, aviation officials have announced.

The restrictions on drones, which are remotely-controlled, unmanned aircraft, will apply between 09:00 BST on Thursday and 22:30 on Sunday.
The ban also extends between London and Windsor, where Mr Obama will have lunch with the Queen on Friday.
Authorities said it was a routine ban, similar to those used at sports events.
It comes after a London-bound flight is believed to have hit a drone on Sunday.
Detectives launched an investigation after the pilot of the British Airways flight approaching Heathrow reported his aircraft being hit by a drone.
Police say the drone was being flown near the area of Richmond Park in south-west London.
Are drones dangerous or harmless fun?
The rules for flying domestic drones
Announcing the restrictions, the UK's National Air Traffic Service said they were part of an "overarching security plan" for the visit of Mr Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
Drones will be banned from flying over a large part of the capital, extending from Purley in the south to Haringey in the north.
Restrictions are in place between Windsor and London on Friday - when the Obamas will have lunch at Windsor Castle.
The ban also extends between Stansted Airport and the capital on Thursday night and Sunday morning.
The Civil Aviation Authority says drones can usually be flown up to 400ft (122m).
However, the regulations ban aircraft from flying below 762m (2,500ft), unless they are using Heathrow, Stansted or London City airports.
Aircraft at London Heliport, RAF Northolt, and those being operated by the emergency services are to be excluded.
The restrictions also apply to "any small balloon, any kite weighing not more than two kilograms, any small unmanned aircraft and any parachute" in the relevant areas.
Similar rules have previously been introduced for high-profile visits and major sporting fixtures, including the London Olympics in 2012 and the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Drones were recently banned at American Football's Super Bowl.
The Obamas' visit to the UK stay is part of a tour including Saudi Arabia and Germany.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will host the couple on Friday, Kensington Palace has said.
The president will also stage a press conference with Prime Minister David Cameron.


Most newspapers in India say the threats and protests against comedy group AIB's "roast show" have "undermined" the country's democratic structure.

The AIB recently invited Bollywood actors Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh to its "comedy roast" filmed in front of thousands of people.
The programme was based on US-style roast shows where celebrities are abused and insulted.
The three-part series got more than eight million views within days after it was uploaded on YouTube.
Right-wing groups and Twitter users, however, objected to the show's "abusive jokes" and "below the belt" content.
The AIB decided to take its series off YouTube after the protests, and later issued a statement.
"We can live with abuse, hate, anger, fury, rage, ignorance, bigotry and perhaps even bullying. But we don't want anybody to get hurt because of us. And we do mean anybody," the group said to defend its decision.
The AIB added that it believes "in the right to absolute freedom of expression" and wants to "be part of an environment that supports that sort of expression without fear of persecution, intimidation and most importantly, annoyance".
Most papers have backed the AIB's desire to have creative freedom.
The Times of India argues that "humour, of all kinds, is central to liberal democracy. In this case, the makers made their intentions clear and clearly labelled it as adult content".
"Those who don't like the show don't have to watch it. If political protests are allowed to interrupt creative platforms, it will not only severely restrict art but undermine Indian democracy itself," it adds.
The Indian Express says bodies like the country's film watchdog "have increasingly come to represent a dated, paternalistic worldview, in which the public needs to be guided through what it can consume".
A member of the Central Board of Film Certification had used "very offensive language" in his tweet to criticised the AIB roast's host and well-known filmmaker Karan Johar.
Papers also make a pertinent point that the show was uploaded on YouTube with a clear warning that it was meant for adults only.
Moreover, people always had an option of not watching the show if they were not too sure about its content.
"The point is, no one was forced to watch the video. Taking offence because it goes against 'our culture' is the kind of moral policing we must leave behind. On the tickets of the show, as well as before the YouTube videos play, there are sufficient warnings about possibly offensive comments," wrote Veena Venugopal of The Hindu.
Meanwhile, in some more news about intolerance of views in India, a right-wing group has warned young couples to refrain from positing "love-you messages" on social media platforms.
"Display of love in the entire Valentine's week is equivalent to not following Indian traditions. Anyone found displaying love on Facebook, Twitter or WhatsApp will be caught hold of. A total of eight teams have already been formed in Delhi to keep a check on social media," The Times of India quotes Chandra Prakash Kaushik of the Hindu Mahasabha group as saying.
The group said it would also monitor couples in parks, malls and other public places to stop them from "indulging in public display of affection".
And finally, former captain Saurav Ganguly believes India can do well in the upcoming cricket World Cup despite their recent defeats at the hands of hosts Australia and England.
"You need one game in one afternoon to be a star and change the situation. This team (India) under M S Dhoni have the ability to excel and I won't be surprised if India reach the final," a report in The Financial Express quotes him as saying.
The tournament will start on 14 February in Australia.
BBC Monitoring reports and analyses news from TV, radio, web and print media around the world. You can follow BBC Monitoring on Twitter and Facebook.


The Mental Health Commission for Scotland has praised efforts to treat a greater number of patients in the community.

It singled out the Borders as an example of good practice.
The commission looked at the cases of 200 people treated for mental health conditions under community-based compulsory orders.
Changes to the law have meant that fewer people are being kept for lengthy periods in hospital.
The Borders was reported to have made extensive use of treatment outwith hospital, and the report found evidence of good care planning and review of orders.
This was a new provision under the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003.
Before it was implemented the report found that people did not think that community services were well enough developed to provide the care and support needed in the community.
Dr Cliff Sharp, Associate Medical Director said: "We have a lot of people treated in the community under the provisions of the mental health act, and our community teams work with the individuals to discuss their needs and put in place support to achieve the agreed goals.
''This includes discussing with the individual what needs to be in place for the order to be removed and working towards maintaining engagement and therapeutic relationships even when compulsory measures are necessary.''
Dr Donald Lyons, Chief Executive of the Mental Welfare Commission, said: "We hope that service providers use the messages in this report to help people to recover from serious mental illness.
''Good care, treatment and support must be accompanied by services to improve the person's overall quality of life.
''We continue to regard compulsory community treatment as a priority for our attention.
''We will look further at our findings from this report and our forthcoming work on crisis support and intensive home treatment''.


The TalkTalk cyber-attack has put protecting consumers' data right back at the top of the agenda for many people.

Last week's leak was closely followed by Tuesday's news that Marks and Spencer had suspended its site after a fault allowed customers to see each other's details when they logged into their own accounts.
Rewind about two months and it was the infidelity dating website Ashley Madison in the spotlight when its customers' details were stolen and leaked online.
So, what rights do victims have and what obligations are companies under?
The primary option for most people in the UK is to approach the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which has a statutory obligation to investigate and can penalise organisations found to have misused people's data. It has the power to fine bodies up to Â£500,000. But it cannot award compensation to consumers. For that, a person would have to go to court.
"Unfortunately, there have been very few cases of an individual's right to claim compensation as a result of breach of data protection laws and many of the cases are fairly old," Mahisha Rupan, a specialist data protection lawyer at the law firm Kemp Little, told the BBC.
She added: "The compensation in these cases has been fairly modest but we did have a landmark judgment from the Court of Appeal earlier this year."
Ms Rupan said people had previously to show evidence of financial loss as a result of breach of data protection laws to have a chance of getting compensation. But, after the Court of Appeal's ruling, an inability to do so was no longer seen as barrier to asserting the rights afforded by data protection legislation.
"We could potentially see a change in the way data protection compensation claims are handled by the court," she added
Individuals affected by a data breach also have the option of trying to bring a firm involved to a voluntary agreement. However, consumer groups have not always been impressed by the offerings. In the wake of the TalkTalk breach, the consumer group Which? said that the firm's offer to release people who could show financial loss as a direct result of the breach from their contracts for free was the "bare minimum".
It said: "TalkTalk must treat their customers fairly by letting those affected leave their contracts without penalty and consider offering appropriate compensation."
With any leak of personal data, there would be a risk of falling victim to identity theft and to phishing scams, in which fraudsters attempt to extract information from their victim, often posing as a trustworthy figure and using information they have already obtained.
"Phishing is a very serious risk and individuals should be wary. They could give away more information, which could lead to greater loss," Ms Rupan said. "Just because financial information itself is not available to the hackers, does not mean all of the risks are mitigated."
Under the data protection act (DPA), consumers have the right to demand to know what information organisations hold relating to them in the form of a subject access request.
The same UK law that protects consumers, also requires organisations that handle their data to put in place appropriate security measures.
But the requirement is not prescriptive. "It is a broad-based principle that requires companies to self-assess what risks the data may be exposed to and then apply the technical and organisation measures they consider will be appropriate to protect against such risks," Vinod Bange, the head of UK data protection at the law firm Taylor Wessing, told the BBC.
According to Ms Rupan, that means the security obligations on firms are more closely related to the value placed in the data they hold than to the expected sophistication of any attack.
In short, if the data are not very sensitive, a lower level of security will suffice, regardless of whether that renders the firm more vulnerable to attack. But the most sensitive types of data, such as medical records, would require a higher standard.
Companies should be carrying out regular assessments of intrusions in order to be able to step up their security measures accordingly, Mr Bange said.
While companies could be ordered to pay compensation, the fines handed out by the ICO are typically much greater and "probably the biggest risk to the business is going to be loss of trust", added Ms Rupan.
What about the future?
The US and the EU are negotiating a deal that will allow European citizens to sue US firms over data breaches. But it has not been signed.
There are also efforts in Europe to introduce a new law that would give them the right to be forgotten by those organisations - and to have their data in an easily transferrable format, so that they can move it to rival organisations.
However, that is unlikely to be enforceable before early 2018, Ms Rupan said.


Chris and Gabby Adcock are part of Britain's eight-strong badminton squad for this summer's Rio Olympics.

The husband and wife team compete in the mixed doubles and won gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and claimed the World Superseries Finals title last December in Dubai.
Rajiv Ouseph and Kirsty Gilmour will play in the men's and women's singles.
Marcus Elliswill and Chris Langridge are in the men's doubles with Heather Olver and Lauren Smith in the women's.
Britain have won two medals in badminton since its inclusion as a full-medal sport in 1992 with Simon Archer and Joanne Goode taking bronze at Sydney 2000 before Gail Emms and Nathan Robertson won silver four years later in Athens.
Team GB's Chef de Mission Mark England said: "There is plenty of talent in this squad and on their day any of these athletes can challenge the best in the world so we're looking forward to seeing them in action this summer."
Rio 2016 team:
Rajiv Ouseph (Men's singles)
Kirsty Gilmour (Women's singles)
Gabby Adcock (Mixed doubles)
Chris Adcock (Mixed doubles)
Chris Langridge (Men's doubles)
Marcus Ellis (Men's doubles)
Lauren Smith (Women's doubles)
Heather Olver (Women's doubles)


To understand the potential of the aviation sector in India, you just have to make a trip to the New Delhi Railway station.

One of the busiest railway stations in the country, passengers line up in the hot sun for hours.
On platform number 14 the train arrives two hours before its scheduled departure, but that does not stop the mad clamour among passengers for a seat to get to their hometown.
People like 35-year-old Ravi Shanker Thakur say that taking a train is the only affordable way to see their relatives. Mr Thakur's family live faraway in Muzzafarpur, in the eastern state of Bihar.
By working in a Delhi factory, he saves 1,000 rupees (Â£9.90; $15) to make his annual trip home.
"I can't afford a flight ticket - I can barely afford a train ticket," he says.
"I wish I could travel in air conditioned comfort [on a plane], with a seat to sit on, but tickets are so expensive - I'll have to spend many months' salary to buy one."
While the state-run rail network subsidises tickets to keep train travel affordable, many still aspire to fly.
But it is not just price that holds passengers back, it is also convenience. India's railway network reaches every state and territory across this vast country - there are 8,000 stations in total.
Compare that with just over 100 civilian airports, and you can see that the geographical coverage of air travel is still fairly limited if you want to go further than a big town or city.
The government plans to change this though, aiming to build 200 more airports in the next 20 years.
And recent statistics show that the demand for air travel is growing strongly in the country.
Between April and June of this year, more than 20 million passengers flew within India, according to industry figures. That's up 19% from the same time a year ago.
Dinesh Keskar, senior vice-president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, says that for the current financial year overall he expects 75 million passengers to fly in India.
And predicting that the number of Indian air passengers will only continue to grow, US-based Boeing expects a demand for 1,740 planes in India over the next 20 years, with an estimated total price tag of $240bn (Â£157bn).
Yet problems still remain in the aviation sector, such as the fact that many current airports are not always utilised after they were built in the wrong location - remote areas of the country where they struggle to secure enough passengers.
More than $50m has in fact been spent by the government in recent years on eight such airports that do not receive scheduled flights, and many more lie underused.
One such facility is Jaisalmer Airport, in India's north western state of Rajasthan. It cost $17m to build, yet has never opened.
And for India's airlines, most continue to lose money, blaming high operating costs - from airport charges to fuel bills.
Since 2009, Indian carriers including the state-owned Air India, and the now-grounded Kingfisher Airlines, have lost more than $10bn after years of below-cost ticket pricing and overambitious expansion. Kingfisher had its flying licence removed in 2013 after was hit by repeated strikes by staff who had not been paid.
According to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, airline debt stands at around $11.3bn, and rises to close to $14bn if liabilities to vendors are included. At an industry level, airline debt is now equivalent to more than 100% of airline revenue.
However, the rising demand for air travel, combined with falling fuel prices, has started to make a positive difference.
Jet fuel prices have dropped by 41% in the past year, and with fuel accounting for a substantial portion of an airline's costs, most carriers have benefitted.
For the three months to the end of June airlines SpiceJet and Jet Airways posted an operating profit as against a loss in the year-ago quarter.
The big comeback story has been that of Spicejet. An airline that was perilously close to collapse at the end of last year.
It cancelled thousands of flights and was being denied fuel because of unpaid bills. Then its founder Ajay Singh - who had sold the company - came back to the business - promising to invest more than $200m and becoming the boss once more.
Mr Singh says India needs to change its mindset about aviation.
"In the past aviation was thought to be something that only the rich did," he says. "And because it was something for the rich, it was taxed much as colour television used to be in the old days, or like computers was taxed.
"Aviation is now something that is very much for the middle classes of India. If we can bring the cost down, you can help airlines bring down fares, you can stimulate the economy."
For now, everyone is betting on growing demand. Income levels are rising for many in the country, which might help turn around the fortunes of the industry here.


Natalie Sciver hit the winning run off the final ball as England women beat New Zealand by four wickets in a warm-up game for the World Twenty20.

Sciver's single came from her first ball as England reached their target of 131 for the loss of six wickets.
A partnership of 75 between Charlotte Edwards (28) and Sarah Taylor (51) was the backbone of England's innings.
Katherine Brunt took 2-15 to help restrict New Zealand to 130-6, with Sophie Devine top scoring with 40.


Police are likely to apply for extra powers to stop and search people at this weekend's Champions League final.

About 170,000 people are expected in Cardiff over four days around the match between Real Madrid and Juventus.
South Wales Police's Assistant Chief Constable Richard Lewis said the force could invoke temporary powers allowing officers to search anyone without the usual reasonable grounds.
He described safety and security at the event as "our absolute aim".
He added: "We have powers to stop and search every day of the week and we will be utilising these, but we can also apply for extra powers to allow us to stop and search specifically in an area which we may apply for and use this weekend."
These powers, which must be approved by a senior officer, allow random searches if serious violence may take place in a specific area.
Streets immediately surrounding the National Stadium of Wales will be off limits for anyone without a match ticket on Saturday and no bags will be allowed in the stadium.
Real Madrid and Juventus fans have two different bag drops and their belongings will be held in articulated lorries.
ACC Lewis advised against attempting to drive into the capital on match day due to additional security barriers preventing vehicles from getting into the centre.
Over 24 hours on Saturday there will be 2,000 deployments of police officers throughout the city.
Between Thursday and Sunday, when the festival around the match runs, there will be 6,500 deployments, including 550 armed officers.
ACC Lewis said the Champions League "even trumps Nato" in terms of the impact on the city.


A troubled NHS trust has paid millions of pounds to companies owned by previous associates of its embattled chief executive, BBC News has learned.

One firm received more than £5m despite winning a contract valued at less than £300,000, while another was paid more than £500,000 without bidding at all.
Both are owned by former acquaintances of Southern Health NHS Trust's chief executive Katrina Percy.
The trust said it took its financial responsibilities "very seriously".
The BBC has also learned Southern Health has access to the services of former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell, after it hired Portland Communications to help with its ongoing problems.
Mental health trust Southern Health has been under intense scrutiny since an NHS England-commissioned report in December found it failed to investigate the unexpected deaths of hundreds of patients.
A failure of leadership and governance at the trust was blamed for the problems, a conclusion a subsequent CQC report in April agreed with.
In light of the criticisms, Katrina Percy, the only chief executive the trust has ever had, has faced widespread calls to resign but has refused to do so.
2006 - Management consultant Chris Martin and Katrina Percy start working together during her capacity as chief operating officer at Surrey and Sussex Hospitals
2009 - Ms Percy becomes chief executive of Hampshire Community Health Care and Mr Martin follows her, providing coaching and leadership support
2010 - Mr Martin starts a firm of organisational psychologists called Talent Works Ltd, whose website says they are "experts in culture and behaviour change"
2010 -  In December, Southern Health advertises for management development support. The tender has a value of £288,000, and the contract is to last three years, with an option for a one year extension
2011 - Ms Percy joins Southern Health as chief executive and the work is awarded to Talent Works Ltd
2014 - The initial three year contract ends and the firm is paid £5.365m - an over-spend approaching 2,000%. The trust chooses to exercise its option for a one-year extension
Now she is facing fresh questions about two former associates, Chris Martin and Paul Gray, whose companies were paid by Southern Health.
Roy Lilley, former chairman of an NHS trust and now a health policy expert, said the overspend on Mr Martin's company was "extraordinary".
He said: "It really doesn't look good, and it casts a deep shadow over the people involved and the way in which the trust has been run by the board."
A former governor at Southern Health, John Green, who has a background in running quality management programmes, said he queried the work that Talent Works was doing at the trust.
"I was fobbed off," Mr Green said.
"I didn't get any information for well over a year.  I believe the spending of public money in the NHS is nothing as accountable to the public as it should be."
Paul Gray worked with Ms Percy as director of strategy at Hampshire Community Health Care and his firms made money from the trust without having to bid for a contract.
In July 2009, he set up consultancy firm Consilium Strategy Consulting Ltd and in 2014 he formed a second company, Consilium Partners Ltd. Together they have been paid at least £602,000 by Southern Health since 2011.
In a statement, Southern Health said it had "tested the market to ensure value for money in 2011. There has been no increase in rates since this benchmarking exercise took place".
Regarding Talent Works, the trust said: "We fully accept that the original contract for Talent Works was for a sum far less than the eventual spend, however it was made clear in the tender documentation that there would be scope for additional work to be provided.
"The trust's audit committee were aware of the contract overspend but were satisfied that the market rates had been tested and that for a number of reasons, it was in the best interests of the trust for their work to continue."
It added that it was "not unusual" both men had worked with Ms Percy "given the specialist services they provide to the NHS".
Regulator NHS Improvement said it had no concerns about how the trust awarded the contracts.
It said: "All NHS organisations have a responsibility to manage their finances and procurement in a way which provides good value for money for patients and for taxpayers.
"The trust has clearly stated that it has fully market tested its contract with Consilium to ensure it delivers value for money.
"We expect all trusts to follow NHS procurement policy and at all times to do what is in the best interests of their patients."


North Korea notoriously restricts access to the internet for its citizens, but it does, in fact, maintain some websites which can be seen outside the country.

Most of these sites have always been accessible outside North Korea but on Tuesday an exhaustive list was revealed apparently for the first time -  turns out that there aren't that many.
The list, reportedly unveiled by a US-based engineer, reveals fewer than 30 websites. Predictably, there is propaganda as well as more mundane ministry and tourism information, but you can also find North Korean recipes and films on there.
So how did this great unveiling happen?
It went like this: North Korea's main Domain Name System (DNS) server was sent a frequent and automated request by a US-based engineer for access to all the internet domains in the country, possibly merely out of mischief. The server is usually configured to reject this.
But for some reason - most likely by mistake - it obliged on one occasion, late on Tuesday. The engineer then posted the list online, TechCrunch reports.
North Korea watchers and analysts were already familiar with these sites but didn't know the extent of North Korea's online presence.
"When North Korea brings up a new website they never publicise it. Either someone finds it by accident or it might show up in a search engine," says Martyn Williams who runs the website North Korea tech from San Francisco.
"We knew about most of these, but weren't sure what else existed".
For the uninitiated, here's what you might see on a wander around the North Korean internet.
Most of the websites are in Korean, but some like rodong.rep.kp - the site for the main newspaper Rodong Sinum - have an English site too.
It includes a section dedicated to what leader Kim Jong-un might be up to on any given day titled "Supreme Leader's Activities".
His visit to a fruit farm where he delivered some guidance, presumably on fruit farming, was featured, as was his speech to the Kimilsungist-Kimjongilist Youth Movement.
Of course, his "guiding" of Tuesday's ground test for a new type of rocket engine to launch satellites dominated the headlines.
"These websites are really there to push North Korea's voice on the global stage, as if it's a normal member of the international community," says Mr Williams.
"We never know if any of it's true as there's no way to verify it independently".
Many of the websites, which can be painfully slow to load, are basic.
The news-focussed sites don't update very often or have much unique material, says Chad O'Carroll from NK News, a website that monitors North Korean media.
He notes that many of them simply reproduce what they get from the official state news agency and that they get very little traffic, are poorly designed and not user friendly.
They make minimal effort to mimic the slick appearance of international news sites.
"They don't try to ape Western media. When you go on the website its obvious its news from North Korea. It's not dressed up to look like a slick international media outlet," says Mr Williams.
A food site cooks.org.kp is filled with pictures of "Korea's famous recipes".
It has a listing of all the main restaurants in North Korea including Okryugwan - the most famous one selling Pyongyang style cold noodle - as well as the Pyongyang Dog Meat Restaurant, which gives away its speciality in its name.
For South Koreans, the food might look a little bland, but the site explains why North Korean food is so good.
Answer: "Taste and aroma, beautiful colours, variety and its healthy for the body."
If you're in the mood for a film, korfilm.com.kp is a website highlighting North Korea's film industry.
The Pyongyang International Film Festival is happening now and heavily promoted on the site with detailed instructions on how to take part. The three kinds of films you can watch at the festival are "art films, documentaries and animated movies".
When the engineer who found that momentary chink in the armour posted the list, it sparked a temporary frenzy within the tech forums.
But what it doesn't tell us is anything about North Korea's intranet - a mysterious and closed system for its citizens that doesn't connect to the internet, likely to be far more revealing about the workings of the state.


Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia will meet South Africa's Orlando Pirates in the final of the Confederation Cup in November.

Pirates recovered from two goals down in Suez to beat Al Ahly of Egypt 4-3 in Sunday's semi-final second leg to win 5-3 on aggregate.
Etoile survived a second leg comeback by Zamalek of Egypt on Saturday.
Leading 5-1 from the first leg, Etoile lost 3-0 in Cairo to Zamalek but squeezed through 5-4 on aggregate.
Zamalek played 85 minutes with 10 men after Ali Gabr to a straight red card, Etoile had Marouene Tej dismissed with quarter of an hour to play after a second bookable offence.
Kahraba, whose real name is Mahmoud Abdel Moneim, scored in each half for the White Knights and a Ghazi Abderrazak own-goal midway through the second half triggered a tense climax.
Etoile are the third most successful African club after Ahly and Zamalek, and the only one to win all five competitions.
Pirates held a slender 1-0 advantage from the first leg but Al Ahly took a 2-0 lead midway through the second half as Gabonese Malick Evouna scored twice.
Kermit Erasmus, Thamsanqa Gabuza, Thabo Matlaba then scored to restore the advantage for the South Africans.
Amr Gamal pulled another goal back for the eight-time African champions in injury time only for Thabo Rakhale to find the target minutes later to inflict a rare home defeat on Ahly.
Both teams were held back at the stadium after the final whistle as the security forces dispersed some angry Ahly fans.
The climax of the second-tier African club competition is set for successive weekends between November 20 and 29 with the first game in South Africa.


Joe Allen scored twice as Stoke City progressed to the EFL Cup third round with a comfortable win against League One Rochdale.

Former Liverpool midfielder Allen, captain for the night, opened the scoring with a header.
Peter Crouch then struck from close range before Allen turned in Erik Pieters' cross for the Premier League side's third.
Ramadan Sobhi completed the victory when he rounded the goalkeeper late on.
Match ends, Stoke City 4, Rochdale 0.
Second Half ends, Stoke City 4, Rochdale 0.
Corner,  Rochdale. Conceded by Lee Grant.
Attempt saved. Ian Henderson (Rochdale) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Jordan Williams.
Corner,  Rochdale. Conceded by Harry Souttar.
Attempt missed. Peter Crouch (Stoke City) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Charlie Adam with a cross following a corner.
Corner,  Stoke City. Conceded by Jordan Williams.
Attempt blocked. Bojan (Stoke City) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box is blocked. Assisted by Philipp Wollscheid.
Attempt missed. Philipp Wollscheid (Stoke City) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Charlie Adam with a cross following a corner.
Corner,  Stoke City. Conceded by Harrison McGahey.
Attempt blocked. Charlie Adam (Stoke City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Ramadan Sobhi.
Attempt missed. Andrew Cannon (Rochdale) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.
Attempt missed. Steve Davies (Rochdale) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Matthew Gillam.
Substitution, Rochdale. Matthew Gillam replaces Matt Done.
Goal!  Stoke City 4, Rochdale 0. Ramadan Sobhi (Stoke City) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right to the bottom left corner.
Attempt saved. Charlie Adam (Stoke City) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Attempt saved. Andrew Cannon (Rochdale) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Ian Henderson.
Attempt missed. Bojan (Stoke City) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Thibaud Verlinden.
Attempt missed. Ramadan Sobhi (Stoke City) left footed shot from the right side of the box is high and wide to the left.
Attempt blocked. Thibaud Verlinden (Stoke City) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Substitution, Stoke City. Thibaud Verlinden replaces Erik Pieters.
Foul by Harrison McGahey (Rochdale).
Peter Crouch (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Erik Pieters (Stoke City) left footed shot from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Peter Crouch.
Josh Tymon (Stoke City) hits the bar with a left footed shot from outside the box. Assisted by Charlie Adam with a through ball.
Foul by Steve Davies (Rochdale).
Harry Souttar (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Bruno Martins Indi (Stoke City) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Bojan.
Offside, Stoke City. Harry Souttar tries a through ball, but Peter Crouch is caught offside.
Andrew Cannon (Rochdale) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Charlie Adam (Stoke City).
Substitution, Stoke City. Harry Souttar replaces Kurt Zouma.
Attempt missed. Steve Davies (Rochdale) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
Attempt blocked. Charlie Adam (Stoke City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Bojan.
Substitution, Rochdale. Jordan Williams replaces Bradden Inman.
Kgosi Ntlhe (Rochdale) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Erik Pieters (Stoke City).
Second Half begins Stoke City 3, Rochdale 0.
Substitution, Rochdale. Steve Davies replaces Keith Keane.
Substitution, Stoke City. Darren Fletcher replaces Joe Allen.


It was a tragedy that reached across oceans.

In southern Tunisia, Aboubaker Thabti's parents could not understand how their son was taken from them in a shooting in a Quebec City mosque.
When he left his home country for Canada with his wife and two children some six years ago, he saw it as a new beginning, not an end.
Instead, he became one of six men who died on Sunday night in Quebec while they were saying prayers.
Sabeur Thabti, a family member who called Aboubaker "uncle", said when he first heard of the shooting from his home in the UK, he had not dwelt much on it.
"You hear these things in Syria and Paris and all around the world andâ€¦ you kind of forget how real it is, until it impacts you in such a close way."
Then the personal connection became clear.
"These are real people, these are not just numbers," he said. "Six people died, but thousands of people are emotionally destroyed by what happened."
Now he is "senseless" with grief.
On Monday, Canadian police charged student Alexandre Bissonnette with six counts of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder in connection with the attack.
Another 19 people were injured.
Thousands of people, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, braved the cold at a vigil near the mosque to lay flowers and candles in the snow.
Quebec City residents called for unity among Quebecers.
It was a balm for the community, which has sometimes felt it bears the brunt of political rhetoric in the province.
Quebec has welcomed thousands of immigrants from Arab countries and other nations but has also struggled with how to accommodate those newcomers into the broader culture.
The predominantly French-speaking province fiercely protects its linguistic identity and state secularism, and there has been a longstanding debate over "reasonable accommodation" of immigrants and religious minorities.
The six victims came to build a better life in Canada, hailing from Guinea, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.
At the suburban home of victim Khaled Belkacemi, a professor at Laval University, family and friends gathered to offer comfort after learning of his death.
His friend Arab Boussaid described the professor as "humble" and "wise" and said he hoped that "his sacrifice was not in vain" and helped bring Quebecers together.
"We are from this country," he said. "We adopted them and they adopted us."
He said it also served as warning to never "banalise" minor acts of intolerance.
"There are early warning signs, a certain xenophobia, intolerance," he said, that can lead to "irreparable" acts.
Khalil Belabbas was sitting in his car outside the Assalam halal butcher shop owned by one of the victims, Azzedine Soufiane.
Someone had left a lone bouquet of flowers at the door of the shop, which was closed, the lights out on a Monday mid-afternoon.
Mr Belabbas had come to confirm the news that his friend, a man he prayed with, had been killed in the attack.
Soufiane and his wife were well known and liked in the community, he said, a fact confirmed by a small but steady stream of people coming to the store to confirm the  terrible news they had heard was true.
The meat shop owner was also known as an ambassador for the mosque.
Mr Belabbas said that there was "a certain distance" between Quebec Muslims and the broader community.
"Islam has become a mark of terrorism," he said. "We understand, but we try to be open, to have community days at the mosque, to be open with people."
He touched on an incident last June, when someone left a severed pig's head outside the mosque's entrance during the month of Ramadan.
Though police did not link it with the shooting, Mr Belabbas said the community felt that message.
But still - "we never, ever thought that there would be an [attack] like this".


David Nugent's late header saw second-placed Middlesbrough draw with Blackburn to go level on points with Championship leaders Hull.

Jordi Gomez had put Rovers in front on his debut with 18 minutes to go with a sublime 20-yard strike.
But after Boro debutant Jordan Rhodes was introduced to face the club he left in a £9m move, Nugent levelled matters by nodding in Emilio Nsue's cross.
Hope Akpan had a clear chance to win the game for Rovers but he fired wide.
Rovers boss Paul Lambert saw his side having the better of the chances until Boro introduced new signing Rhodes, who arrived on transfer deadline day.
Blackburn's Elliott Ward had a goal ruled out for offside and Tony Watt fired wide, while Grant Leadbitter and Kike Sola went close for the hosts, who saw Daniel Ayala forced off with an ankle injury after seeing his header saved by Jason Steele.
The visitors looked the more threatening side after the restart with Darragh Lenihan going close with a couple of attempts.
And after Ben Gibson fired over, Rovers took the lead when Gomez, another deadline day signing, struck at goal from 20 yards before Nugent headed in and the former England international went close again soon after, shooting wide from distance.
Akpan should have made it 2-1 to Rovers before Rhodes tested his former team-mate Steele late on, but Blackburn held on for a deserved point.
Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka: "The first 70 minutes we didn't play with the intensity that we needed to, especially after our last two defeats.
"I thought the reaction today was going to be better, but the last 20 minutes is the only time we wanted to win or draw the game when we had a few chances.
"I know the concern, now we try to motivate them as we were two or three weeks ago. So now we try to work more and try to pick the right players."
Blackburn manager Paul Lambert: "I thought we were the better team and we should have won it, with the chances we had.
"Performance-wise I thought we were outstanding. To come here against a team trying to get out of the league is tough but we were very good.
"We coped really well, we dominated the middle of the pitch. They're a good side and they're up there on merit, but we put a lot of pressure on them."
Match ends, Middlesbrough 1, Blackburn Rovers 1.
Second Half ends, Middlesbrough 1, Blackburn Rovers 1.
Attempt missed. Jordan Rhodes (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Adam Clayton with a cross.
Attempt saved. Jordan Rhodes (Middlesbrough) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Nsue.
Corner,  Middlesbrough. Conceded by Elliott Ward.
Attempt missed. Hope Akpan (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left following a set piece situation.
Foul by David Nugent (Middlesbrough).
Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by David Nugent (Middlesbrough).
Grant Hanley (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Thomas Spurr.
Attempt missed. Elliott Bennett (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Simeon Jackson with a headed pass.
Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Elliott Bennett replaces Jordi Gómez.
Attempt missed. David Nugent (Middlesbrough) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by Nsue following a corner.
Corner,  Middlesbrough. Conceded by Corry Evans.
Goal!  Middlesbrough 1, Blackburn Rovers 1. David Nugent (Middlesbrough) header from very close range to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Nsue with a cross.
Substitution, Middlesbrough. Jordan Rhodes replaces Albert Adomah.
Attempt blocked. Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Albert Adomah with a cross.
Attempt missed. Cristhian Stuani (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Grant Leadbitter following a set piece situation.
Jordi Gómez (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card.
Albert Adomah (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Jordi Gómez (Blackburn Rovers).
Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Simeon Jackson replaces Tony Watt.
Goal!  Middlesbrough 0, Blackburn Rovers 1. Jordi Gómez (Blackburn Rovers) left footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Darragh Lenihan.
Attempt missed. Cristhian Stuani (Middlesbrough) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Stewart Downing with a cross.
Adam Clayton (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jordi Gómez (Blackburn Rovers).
Attempt missed. Ben Marshall (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high from a direct free kick.
Foul by David Nugent (Middlesbrough).
Corry Evans (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough).
Elliott Ward (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Grant Hanley (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card.
Foul by Jordi Gómez (Blackburn Rovers).
David Nugent (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner,  Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Tomas Kalas.
Attempt missed. Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Danny Graham.
Attempt missed. Ben Gibson (Middlesbrough) left footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left following a corner.
Corner,  Middlesbrough. Conceded by Ben Marshall.
Ritchie de Laet (Middlesbrough) wins a free kick in the defensive half.


British Paralympic table tennis champion Will Bayley and Rio 2016 team-mate Ross Wilson both won singles gold at the PTT Bayreuth Open in Germany.

Bayley, 29, defeated Ukraine's world number one Maksym Nikolenko 3-2 in the class 7 final.
Wilson, 21, overcame former world champion Richard Csejtey, from Slovakia, 3-2 in the class 8 final.
Another Briton, Martin Perry, lost to France's Bastien Grundeler in the class 6 semi-final, but took bronze.
Find out how to get into disability sport with our special guide.


A Canadian dual national has reportedly been detained in Turkey for allegedly insulting the country's president.

Ece Heper, 50, was arrested on 30 December in the north-eastern town of Kars, her lawyer Sertac Celikkaleli told The Canadian Press.
Canadian officials say they are offering consular assistance, but released no further information.
Turkey's penal code states that anybody who insults the president can face up to four years in prison.
Ms Heper's friend Emrah Bayram told the BBC she was arrested for Facebook posts critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"It's ridiculous, she's expressing her opinion," he said.
Friends say Ms Heper, who lived in Ontario and is reportedly a Canadian-Turkish citizen, has "some health issues" and they are worried about her access to medication while in detention.
Along with her lawyer, they fear it could be at least a month before her case goes to trial. They have contacted human rights organisations over her case.
Mr Erdogan has been accused of mounting a growing crackdown on freedom of speech.
Almost 2,000 cases for insulting Mr Erdogan have been opened in recent years.
They include a former Miss Turkey and a 16-year-old student.
Another man was found guilty of insulting the president and given a suspended one-year jail sentence after he shared images comparing Mr Erdogan to the fictional character Gollum.


Stoke manager Mark Hughes says on-loan striker Wilfried Bony has a clause in his contract allowing him to be sold to Chinese Super League clubs in January.

However, Hughes expects the 27-year-old, who joined the club on a season-long deal from Manchester City in the summer, to stay with the Potters.
"I think that may well be true," said Hughes when asked about the clause.
"A lot of things have come to the fore to make that happen, not least that Wilf needs to want to go himself."
He added: "I don't think he will want to. I think he sees himself very much as a Premier League player this year and in the years to follow."
Bony's two goals for Stoke in 10 appearances so far this season came in a win over his former club Swansea.
Hughes also confirmed the Potters do not have a set fee agreed with City to sign the Ivory Coast international on a permanent basis as part of the loan deal.
"Sometimes you can do that but that's clearly not what Manchester City wanted," said the 53-year-old Welshman.
"We're delighted that he's here until the end of the season in our view. We'll look at it again."


Sheltered housing properties bearing the number 13 are to be renumbered because they are proving harder to let.

Charnwood Borough Council in Leicestershire said number 13s stood empty for longer, with one unoccupied since December 2014.
The authority has 560 units across 14 developments which provide warden-controlled homes for the over 60s.
Councillor Paul Mercer said vacant properties would be renumbered 12A, as reported in the Loughborough Echo.
Mr Mercer said the issue was spotted during a meeting to discuss maximising the use of sheltered housing.
"We noticed that those with the number 13 were not actually being rented out and we concluded, I think correctly, that people didn't like the number 13," he said.
"If you look at some modern housing estates, they don't have a number 13, so obviously the market decides. Some people may like it, clearly the majority don't."
Numbers game
Mr Mercer said occupied addresses would be unaltered and agreement would have to be secured from the Royal Mail before changes were finalised.
While no other sheltered housing providers have reported a similar problem, the effect can be seen elsewhere.
In January, a survey showed a private house numbered 13 typically sold for nearly Â£9,000 less than the average.
Prof Bruce Hood, who studies developmental psychology at the University of Bristol, said: "Our brains seek patterns and try to link random or unconnected events - for example bad experiences with the number 13.
"It often becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy - the rituals of sportspeople boost their confidence and therefore the performance - but also plays out in the housing market with people being less likely to buy a number 13 because it might be harder to sell."


The British author and poet Michael Rosen knows a thing or two about writing for children.

A former Children's Laureate, he has also written several children's books and worked extensively in schools.
His most recent project is an authorised biography of Roald Dahl, best known as the creator of timeless classics, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda and The BFG.
Fantastic Mr Dahl explores the inspiration for Dahl's stories, including tales about his childhood and boarding school, to his time at war.
The BBC spoke to Michael Rosen about his personal take on one of the most prolific children's authors.
You have been writing books for children and working in schools for more than 30 years. Do children better connect with an author when they have their back story?
No, it's more the idea that if children get interested in a writer or a book or an area or scene of some sort, if they are given a sense of where writing comes from, that it isn't a mystery.
I go into schools and children say to me: "How do the words get from me into a book?" They quite seriously don't know and there's no reason why they should. It's just mysterious.
So part of the job of writers I think, as well as creating these wonderful stories, is to show them that it isn't totally mysterious; that when they are sitting in school with a pencil in their hand, they are doing just the same as writers do. So that's part of the job of writing this book.
What tools do young children need in order to be inspired to write imaginative stories?
It's not just a matter of finding words; it's also a way of thinking about how you turn your life and things that have happened in your life into ideas. I try to do that in the book and show how the books that [Dahl] came up with relate to some of the things that happened in his life.
What events in Dahl's life do you believe inspired him the most?
Plenty of things that happened, particularly around the fact that he was separated from his mum and put into these strange boarding schools, where on the one hand you learn to be self-reliant and come up with imaginative ways of living, but at the same time all kinds of cruelties are enacted on you.
I think many of his books deal with the way in which grown-ups can be cruel. He exaggerated that and then created wily and clever and cunning children who deal with this. I think a lot of that is inspired by his childhood experiences at school.
The book contains some of Dahl's personal photographs and letters. Why did you decide to include them?
It is the first time that most of the letters have ever been in print. I thought it would be interesting for children to see how the man who wrote Matilda and The Twits, how he was writing when he was their age or a bit older.
And there are other anecdotes, ones that are very personal to you...
Possibly some of the little stories about how he was as an adult. Obviously my own meeting with him, when I had just written about a giant flea in the Underground and he had just written The Twits - he made jokes with my little boy about my beard. I included those so people could get an idea about what kind of guy he was, about how he behaved.
Dahl had misfortune in his life and suffered several tragedies. How is this reflected in his writing?
I think part of his concern and care for children came from those kind of experiences. He wanted children to cherish and delight in the lives they were leading.
I think he had a very strong sense about the briefness of life. He was surrounded by young men who were dying when he was in the RAF. It would have been very painful to see your colleagues, young men in their prime, being shot down in aeroplanes.
He himself was very badly injured and then he suffered these tragedies with his own children [One of his daughters died from measles and his son was badly injured in an accident], and indeed with his father when he was just a toddler. I think he was very aware that life was short and you should make the most of it and I think that's partly why I talked about that.
You describe Dahl as hero-like because of his experiences as a fighter pilot. Do you see him as an adventurer and someone who craved excitement?
I think he craved fun. If he would have craved excitement he would have raced cars and climbed mountains.
I think he was [more of] a pleasure seeker and part of the pleasure he sought was through tricks and practical jokes. He was very intrigued by people who had schemes for things, so when he was inventing the character of Matilda's dad I think he partly based that on somebody he knew who was a bit of a rogue.
The Fantastic Mr Dahl, illustrated by Quentin Blake, is published on 13 September to coincide with Roald Dahl Day.


If you listed the factors that can help drive a firm's success in China, being led by a foreigner is not one of them.

Yet French born Raphael le Masne de Chermont has managed to beat the odds. In 2002, he joined glamorous Chinese lifestyle brand Shanghai Tang as executive chairman.
And in just over a decade, he has managed to switch the firm from a single Hong Kong store aimed at Western tourists who wanted a Chinese souvenir of their travels, into a luxury brand attractive to Asian and Chinese shoppers.
This is no mean feat. When he joined the firm there was no such thing as a high-end Chinese brand. Locals shopping for designer labels would look to overseas names such as Hermes or Burberry.
The secret to Shanghai Tang's successful turnaround was balancing the "knowhow of the West" with the "culture of the East", says Mr le Masne de Chermont.
In practice, this meant pairing up Chinese and Western designers to work together on the firm's products, which range from clothing to home furnishings.
"The Chinese will bring his culture and his feeling and his sensibility and, the Western designer will bring the style, the fabrics, the best practice of international fashion," he says.
Today, the firm continues to run its business in the same way, with half of its designers Chinese and the other half Italian and French.
His simple advice to Western leaders looking to emulate Shanghai Tang's success in China is "modesty".
"It's true for every business man going to another culture. You have to understand the new culture and you have to adapt to it."
It's sage advice. China has become a priority for firms seeking growth. As the world's most populous country, its burgeoning middle class offers massive opportunities. But it's easy to underestimate just how different doing business there is compared to overseas.
Leadership expert Steve Tappin, who works with both Chinese and Western chief executives, says many bosses assume that doing well at home means they will succeed in the East.
"Too often Western business leaders believe that their way is the only way and that one size fits all," he says.
There have been plenty of casualties, from European retailer Metro, which pulled out of the Chinese consumer-electronics business after two years of testing, to US home improvement chain Home Depot, which decided to close all its large stores in China.
Liu Chuanzhi, founder and chairman of Chinese computing giant Lenovo, says often the problem stems from a purely theoretical understanding of how businesses operate.
"Most of their stock of knowledge or experiences on how to run a company comes from their schools, from their universities and is based on their experiences over the years. But in China sometimes it's a different situation."
For the head of a western firm visiting China from the back of a chauffeur-driven car and staying in top-of-the-range hotels, it can also be hard to get a genuine grasp of daily life. Even when a westerner lives in China, their experience is often different.
They live in a good residential area with lots of other ex-pats, send their children to international school and have limited interaction with the "real" China, says Joe Baolin Zhou, chief executive of Bond Education Group, the largest private education service company in southern China.
This means the complexities of life in China can take a long time to grasp fully.
For Western firms to fill in the gaps in their knowledge they need to recruit local business leaders, he says, or Chinese people who have returned from overseas, and put them into senior positions to provide better insight into the Chinese market.
But the biggest lesson of all is that firms need to be patient. An overhang from past foreign invasions and the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, when families and friends were encouraged to report on one another in a bid to enforce Communism, has created a natural wariness of strangers.
And when China first started to encourage development of a market economy there were no proper networks or written contracts, so doing business with a known network was initially the only way to ensure that they wouldn't be taken advantage of.
A personal friendship is still often a prerequisite for doing business in China, and that takes time to establish.
Jeff Immelt, chief executive of US giant General Electric (GE), estimates he's been to China about 75 times over the past 25 years.
"The way that our position has [been] built in China has been one brick at a time, one relationship. You know, hundreds of meetings. We've earned the right, I think, to be a good Chinese company in GE only because we put in decades worth of work," he says.
This feature is based on interviews by leadership expert Steve Tappin for the BBC's CEO Guru series, produced by Neil Koenig.


The route of a new road tunnel under the Thames Estuary has been revealed.

The Â£6bn project will link the M25, near North Ockendon, Essex, with the A2 near Shorne, Kent, passing through greenbelt land.
The transport secretary said it would create more than 6,000 jobs and boost the economy by more than Â£8bn.
Adam Holloway, Gravesham's Conservative MP, said it was a "crazy idea" and "a disaster for the people of Dartford".
Under the plans, the new road will cross the A13 at Orsett and connect land east of Tilbury to land east of Gravesend.
Stay up to date on our Live page.
A new road will then take traffic to the A2, near Thong, via the Western Southern Link.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said the new Lower Thames Crossing would also "reduce the burden on the busy Dartford Crossing".
A public consultation about the crossing started in January last year, with Highways England  recommending option "C" as the favoured route.
However, opponents raised objections to the fact it would cut through greenbelt land, and its proximity to homes and schools.
Chair of Shorne Parish Council Robin Theobald told the BBC earlier that it was "not a day for celebrations".
Anti-option C campaign group, A Bridge Too Far, argued it would have a "detrimental affect" on the local area and Bob Lane, from the Lower Thames Crossing Association said: "Highways England have hoodwinked the government with their biased consultation. There wasn't a single mention of Option A."
There were originally three main ideas for a new crossing location:
Bryan Sweetland, representing Gravesham on Kent County Council added it would take 10 years to build, by which time the old tunnels at Dartford would also need replacing.
Gravesham MP Mr Holloway, who also objected to the route, said: "It's a crazy idea. They [the Department for Transport] have no numbers on what portion of this traffic is national, and what is regional.
"It's also a disaster for the people of Dartford. We've had this once in a generation opportunity to fix the problem at Dartford, and it's been flopped."
However, according to the Department for Transport (DfT), the chosen option was picked by nearly 47,000 people who took part in a consultation.
A spokesman for the DfT said the C route had been "optimised" after the consultation, and moved slightly east to avoid people's homes.
The Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, which is building thousands of houses across north Kent, Eurotunnel, the Port of Dover, Kent Invicta Chamber and Dartford council leader Jeremy Kite (Con) all voiced their support for the decision.
Christian Brodie, of the South East Local Enterprise Partnership said: "This will strengthen the resilience of our UK and European connections - imperative as we now move towards Brexit."
Mr Grayling also promised Â£10m to help tackle traffic jams around the existing crossing.
Dartford's Conservative MP Gareth Johnson welcomed the decision, saying it was right "for Dartford but also for the whole country".
He added: "It would have been wrong to locate another crossing at Dartford and funnel more traffic in to the area and on to roads that can't cope as it is.
"I understand this decision may not be welcomed by residents in Gravesend but we will do what we can to ensure the impact on the environment is limited."
The Lower Thames Crossing is expected to carry 4.5 million lorries in its first year.


More than 80% of pupils in Wales say they learn less when they are taught by a supply teacher.

Nearly a quarter of children reported being taught by a supply teacher every week, in a survey for assembly members.
One inspector said every school they spoke to could give an example of a supply teacher being asked to leave due to concerns about their work.
In Welsh-medium schools nearly half of pupils said they were taught in English when supply teachers took lessons.
The problem stems from teacher absence in Wales - with nearly 10% of lessons being covered by supply teachers.
Nearly 1,000 pupils took part in a questionnaire for the Assembly's education committee, which is looking into the supply teacher issue.
Catherine Evans, an inspector with Estyn told AMs: "Every school was able to give an example of how they'd had to ask someone to leave and not return to work at the school.
"And in those examples it wasn't anything serious enough to have to contact the General Teaching Council for Wales (GTCW) or go down that kind of route. But they were serious enough to cause enough of a concern that they didn't want those people to return to work at their school."
She also conceded it was possible those supply teachers could continue to work at other schools.
Ms Evans said there were also questions about the quality of the teaching which emerged from some of the responses to the questionnaire.
"Sometimes pupils worked on paper, and that work then wasn't marked it just seemed to disappear into the ether," she said.
"They sometimes undertook tasks like watching a film or a word search and that didn't always connect with their prior learning."
There is also a concern about a lack of training.
Estyn's incoming chief inspector Meilyr Rowlands said: "The bottom line is money.
"All of those things [personal development training] would cost and I don't think anybody wants to pay - the schools, the local authority or the agency don't want to pay for developing supply staff and supply staff themselves don't want to give up a day."
The committee's inquiry will be looking at all aspects of how supply teachers are used and monitored and the impact on pupil performance.


Rescuers used helicopters to pluck families from rooftops in the southern German town of Deggendorf on Wednesday as the Danube flood crisis continues.

Meanwhile more than 30,000 people in the eastern city of Halle have been told to leave their homes after rivers reached their highest level in 400 years.
Floodwater is also threatening parts of Austria and the Czech Republic.
At least 13 people have died and two are missing as a result of the floods.
Rising waters have been triggered by heavy rain following a wet spring.
Eight deaths were recorded in the Czech Republic and three in Germany, while two people were reported dead and two missing in Austria, according to a European Commission update on Tuesday evening.
Parts of Germany have not seen such severe flooding in centuries. However, in the Czech Republic, the water level has stabilised in the capital Prague, where there had been fears of a repeat of disasters in 2002 and 1997.
Helicopters started removing residents from their homes in Deggendorf on Wednesday after two levees along the Danube and Isar rivers broke.
Firefighter Alois Schraufstetter said the floodwater in the Bavarian town was 3m (9.8ft) high. "This is a life-threatening situation," he was quoted as saying by Germany's DPA news agency.
Four farmers were rescued at the very last minute by a helicopter before their tractor was submerged, he added.
German newspapers said water levels in the eastern city of Halle were at their highest for four centuries.
Officials said the city was in acute danger after floodwaters from the Saale river damaged a section of dykes.
The level of the River Elbe in the historic German city of Dresden, where at least 600 people were evacuated, is not expected to peak until Thursday morning.
Coaches reportedly ferried people out the town of Muhlberg, about 40km (25 miles) northwest of Dresden, as thousands were told to leave on Wednesday afternoon.
Chemical plants next to the swollen rivers have been shut down and their chemicals removed over safety concerns, the Associated Press reports.
Meanwhile, the floods were receding in the south German city of Passau. People could be seen sweeping up muck from their streets.
In the Austrian city of Krems, emergency workers have been shoring up a dyke under threat from the swollen Danube.
Thousands of people left their homes in the Czech Republic in recent days as floodwater threatened to overwhelm flood barriers.
In the low-lying industrial city of Usti nad Labem, the River Elbe spilled over the 10m-high (33ft-high) metal flood barriers.
The main rail link connecting Prague and Berlin in Germany have been underwater, with trains being diverted.
Anti-flood barriers have reportedly gone up to protect the Czech capital's zoo after it was badly hit, causing animals to be evacuated.


Britain's Kyle Edmund and Cameron Norrie reached the US Open second round on the tournament's opening day, but compatriot Heather Watson is out.

Edmund, who reached the fourth round in New York last year, impressively defeated Dutch 32nd seed Robin Haase 6-3 7-5 6-3 in under two hours.
Norrie progressed when Dmitry Tursunov retired when trailing 7-6 (9-7) 6-1.
But Watson was beaten 6-4 6-4 by Alize Cornet before Johanna Konta was knocked out by Serbia's Aleksandra Krunic.
World number 42 Edmund is the highest-ranked British male player in the tournament after the withdrawal of Andy Murray.
The 22-year-old arrived at Flushing Meadows after a semi-final appearance at last week's Winston-Salem Open, meaning his victory over Haase was his eighth match in nine days.
He told Eurosport: "I was very tired this morning. I have played a lot of matches. My coach said today is not about tactics, it's about mentality.
"I had to drink a can of cola to get my sugar up, but then I started to get into the match."
Edmund took the first set in 35 minutes, but encountered more of a challenge from his 30-year-old opponent in the second.
The Briton served for the set at 5-4 but was broken as Haase levelled at 5-5. However, Edmund won the next two games and the set, before racing to victory in the third.
"I managed my game well," he added. "I would have liked to have been more solid, but I saved break points.
"To come and win in three straight sets against a guy like Haase, I am pleased with it."
Edmund will play Steve Johnson in the second round, after the American beat Nicolas Almagro in straight sets.
The pair met in the Winston-Salem quarter-finals, with Edmund winning in three sets.
Watson was broken in the opening game on court four and although she saved three set points at 3-5, her French opponent served out the set.
The 25-year-old twice recovered breaks in the second set but lost serve again at 4-4 before Cornet sealed victory in one hour and 36 minutes.
Watson's serve let her down, with seven double faults, including four in a row in the second set. Her first-serve percentage was only 47%.
She has now lost all seven of her main-draw singles matches at Flushing Meadows.
Cornet, ranked 46, faces two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in round two after the Czech beat 2008 finalist Jelena Jankovic 7-5 7-5.
South Africa-born Norrie's victory over Tursunov will nearly double his 2017 prize money, with a guaranteed $77,000. Another win will double his career prize money.
The 22-year-old, who is ranked 225 in the world - 400 places above Tursunov, won a tight opening set on court 14 before racing through the second.
Tursunov, who called for the trainer while trailing 4-1 in the second set, retired with a knee injury at the start of the third set, handing the British number five his maiden Grand Slam win.
Norrie said: "I was really nervous this morning so I just had to tough out the first set and I relaxed a bit in the second. I'm stoked to be through and in the second round."
He faces Spain's world number 19 Pablo Carreno Busta in round two on Wednesday.