In November when more than 100 million Americans select either Kamala Harris, Donald Trump or a third-party candidate as the next president of the United States, exactly how they vote will depend on several factors.
Despite the relatively uniformed portrayal of voting in television and movies, there isn't exactly one standard voting method used throughout the US and, for that matter, much of the world.
The ballot options run the gamut.
There's hand-countered paper ballots, optical scan ballots, punch card ballots, and mail-in ballots to name just a few.
Then you have rare and sometimes extinct methods of voting, such as mechanical lever machines.
"You had a series of toggles with the names of candidates," said Timothy Kneeland, a professor of history, politics and law at Nazareth University in upstate New York.
"When you were done toggling the switches, you pulled a lever which opened a curtain, and that's when the vote was recorded in a mechanical way," he explained, remembering the first election he voted in back in the 1980s.
According to Verified Voting, a non-profit organisation that pushes for the responsible use of technology in elections, mechanical lever voting systems were used by as many as 20 per cent of US voters at their peak, but haven't been used since 2010 due to ageing machines and new technology, such as paper ballots and optical scanning machines.
Yet even when mechanical lever voting machines were at their peak, depending on where US citizens lived and voted, the vote methods widely varied.
That's in part because the US Constitution made elections a state responsibility to a large extent, which led to 50 states deciding how elections unfold.
"Each state gets to decide how elections will be run and they even decide when primaries will be held on the calendar, distinct from one another," explained Prof Kneeland.
"They can also set other laws, for example 36 states have ID laws, so you can't vote unless you show an ID, and some are very strict, it has to be government issued, and some are less strict."
Many states throughout the US also allow early voting, although the window for early voting varies from state to state.
That autonomy given to states is often on full display during the vote counts, with some states quickly able to count votes, and others taking days and even weeks to count and declare a winner.
During the 2000 US presidential election, those state-by-state differences put the spotlight on Florida, where controversies over flawed punch card ballots and confusing butterfly ballots were the subject of several lawsuits, ultimately leading to the defeat of democratic Vice President Al Gore and the victory of his republican challenger George W Bush.
That election took place on November 7, yet wasn't ultimately decided until December 13.
The weeks of controversies from ballot discrepancies and back and forth accusations resulted in the Help America Vote Act (Hava), which, in part, sought to update voting equipment.
That legislation, passed in 2002, hastened the methodical phase out of the punch card ballots and certain voting machines, and gave way to the rise of paper ballots, optical scan readers, and direct recording electronic (DRE) systems.
The DRE systems, however, were initially scrutinised due to occasional glitches and potentially vulnerable memory cards.
To address those concerns, many DRE systems now include what's known as a Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), so that voting records can be logged on paper, checked, and tabulated in the event of a recount or concern over vote discrepancy.
According to the MIT Election Data & Science Lab, although the use of DREs spiked following the passage of the Hava, optical scan technology has become a more popular choice, and is used by 77 per cent of the US electorate as of 2020.
"We've become more standard in the last 24 years or so," said Prof Kneeland, referring to how the US votes.
Mail-in, absentee ballots and early voting
Despite an unprecedented amount of technology available to those tasked with organising elections, the tried and true idea of mail delivery has gained traction in various states hoping to make voting easier, while also maintaining vote integrity.
Since 1998, the state of Oregon has conducted its elections by mail-in voting with hopes of increasing voter participation and making the process easier.
California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Washington DC also allow for voting by mail without making a special request, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
In recent years, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, various states have also sought to increase awareness about absentee voting, which allows citizens the option of voting by mail through a request to local election offices.
For mail-in voting, most of those ballots are counted by optical scan machines.
In addition to the mail-in option, a majority of states in the US also allow for early in-person voting, giving more flexibility to those who may not be able to vote on election day.
Alabama, Mississippi and New Hampshire, however, do not offer early in-person voting, according to the NCSL.
Blockchain voting?
With the increasing prevalence of blockchain, especially in the world of finance, some have wondered if the technology that revolves around the idea of decentralised and unalterable databases might also offer another way for voters to cast their ballots.
Voatz, a Boston-based company that offers a mobile elections platform using biometrics and a blockchain-based infrastructure, has conducted more than 130 elections for various government bodies, union elections and professional associations, although it's hardly mainstream.
Using the company's smartphone app in areas where Voatz is implemented, voters can use their phones to vote, and then a paper ballot is generated at the local jurisdiction for tabulation.
The anonymised votes, according to a video provided by the company, are locked on a blockchain network for a tamper resistant record and potential election audits.
Voatz boasts that its technology allows users to vote securely from anywhere while also making it possible to make sure votes are counted properly, without identities of voters being revealed.
On its website, the company explains that the Voatz platform is not to be confused with the idea of internet voting.
"Internet voting generally refers to the submission of a ballot on a website from a personal computer (PC). This method is highly insecure, as it can be difficult, or even impossible, to detect whether a PC has been compromised," a statement reads.
"In contrast, Voatz is a mobile application that can only be downloaded to recently manufactured smartphones. These phones need to have several advanced security mechanisms, including fingerprint and facial recognition, which Voatz uses for secure voter identity verification and ballot submission."
Although intriguing but still very much in the nascent stage, the idea of using blockchain technology in elections is not without scrutiny.
"While the notion of using a blockchain as an immutable ballot box may seem promising, blockchain technology does little to solve the fundamental security issues of elections, and indeed, blockchains introduce additional security vulnerabilities," read a report from the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine titled Securing the Vote: Protecting American Democracy.
The report noted that while blockchain proponents often boast about decentralisation, that very idea goes against the grain of how elections work.
"Public elections are inherently centralised," the report explains. "Requiring that election administrators define the contents of ballots, identify the list of eligible voters, and establish the duration of voting."
The authors of the report also point out that the software required to examine the postings on blockchain cold become compromised or might be inadvertently flawed.
"If such software is corrupted, then verifiability may be illusory," it explained.
The future
While it remains to be seen if blockchain voting will ever make its way into the mainstream for major elections, Prof Kneeland said the time is right to leverage all those smartphones in billions of pockets, to increase voter participation.
"I would like to see some sort of electronic voting, not mail, but instead, maybe something on the internet," he said, quickly pivoting to concerns raised by many about potential hacking attempts or vote discrepancies.
"I know a lot of people are concerned about fraud, but if done right, it would be easier for people to vote, and there's no reason why you wouldn't be able to implement a unique sign in technology, that's how we access some government services now," he said, pointing to the proliferation of two-factor authentication processes that could enhance voting security.
Prof Kneeland added that an undiscussed but prevalent barrier to voter participation is a fear of embarrassment in terms of not knowing where to vote, how to request a ballot or how to register, and that a computer or phone based voting method, could remove some of that anxiety.
"It's probably the lead reason why people who haven't voted before are reluctant," he said. "They don't want to look silly."
In its report on vote security, however, the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine is very cautious about any sort of internet-based voting.
"Conducting secure and credible internet elections will require substantial scientific advances," the report read in part.
Although Prof Kneeland said that it's difficult to see exactly how voting will look in the future given the breakneck pace of technology, he said that it was relatively certain what voting methods wouldn't be prevalent in the years ahead.
The punch card ballots and mechanical lever machines, he said, won't be making a comeback.
"Anything that's going to lead to ambiguity in elections won't be part of the future," he said.
"Particularly in the recent situations where things are so litigious and you've had Democrats and Republicans fighting over every single vote."
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStreaming%20on%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMBC%20Shahid%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Champion%20v%20Champion%20(PFL%20v%20Bellator)
%3Cp%3EHeavyweight%3A%20Renan%20Ferreira%20v%20Ryan%20Bader%20%3Cbr%3EMiddleweight%3A%20Impa%20Kasanganay%20v%20Johnny%20Eblen%3Cbr%3EFeatherweight%3A%20Jesus%20Pinedo%20v%20Patricio%20Pitbull%3Cbr%3ECatchweight%3A%20Ray%20Cooper%20III%20v%20Jason%20Jackson%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EShowcase%20Bouts%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3EHeavyweight%3A%20Bruno%20Cappelozza%20(former%20PFL%20World%20champ)%20v%20Vadim%20Nemkov%20(former%20Bellator%20champ)%3Cbr%3ELight%20Heavyweight%3A%20Thiago%20Santos%20(PFL%20title%20contender)%20v%20Yoel%20Romero%20(Bellator%20title%20contender)%3Cbr%3ELightweight%3A%20Clay%20Collard%20(PFL%20title%20contender)%20v%20AJ%20McKee%20(former%20Bellator%20champ)%3Cbr%3EFeatherweight%3A%20Gabriel%20Braga%20(PFL%20title%20contender)%20v%20Aaron%20Pico%20(Bellator%20title%20contender)%3Cbr%3ELightweight%3A%20Biaggio%20Ali%20Walsh%20(pro%20debut)%20v%20Emmanuel%20Palacios%20(pro%20debut)%3Cbr%3EWomen%E2%80%99s%20Lightweight%3A%20Claressa%20Shields%20v%20Kelsey%20DeSantis%3Cbr%3EFeatherweight%3A%20Abdullah%20Al%20Qahtani%20v%20Edukondal%20Rao%3Cbr%3EAmateur%20Flyweight%3A%20Malik%20Basahel%20v%20Vinicius%20Pereira%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
The%20Killer
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EDavid%20Fincher%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EMichael%20Fassbender%2C%20Tilda%20Swinton%2C%20Charles%20Parnell%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
How to get there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%204-cyl%20turbo%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E190hp%20at%205%2C600rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E320Nm%20at%201%2C500-4%2C000rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10.9L%2F100km%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh119%2C900%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Kanye%20West
%3Cp%3EYe%20%E2%80%94%20the%20rapper%20formerly%20known%20as%20Kanye%20West%20%E2%80%94%20has%20seen%20his%20net%20worth%20fall%20to%20%24400%20million%20in%20recent%20weeks.%20That%E2%80%99s%20a%20precipitous%20drop%20from%20Bloomberg%E2%80%99s%20estimates%20of%20%246.8%20billion%20at%20the%20end%20of%202021.%3Cbr%3EYe%E2%80%99s%20wealth%20plunged%20after%20business%20partners%2C%20including%20Adidas%2C%20severed%20ties%20with%20him%20on%20the%20back%20of%20anti-Semitic%20remarks%20earlier%20this%20year.%3Cbr%3EWest%E2%80%99s%20present%20net%20worth%20derives%20from%20cash%2C%20his%20music%2C%20real%20estate%20and%20a%20stake%20in%20former%20wife%20Kim%20Kardashian%E2%80%99s%20shapewear%20firm%2C%20Skims.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Revival
Eminem
Interscope
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%3A
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Envision%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKarthik%20Mahadevan%20and%20Karthik%20Kannan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20The%20Netherlands%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Technology%2FAssistive%20Technology%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%241.5%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2020%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204impact%2C%20ABN%20Amro%2C%20Impact%20Ventures%20and%20group%20of%20angels%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Meghan%20podcast
%3Cp%3EMeghan%20Markle%2C%20the%20wife%20of%20Prince%20Harry%2C%20launched%20her%20long-awaited%20podcast%20Tuesday%2C%20with%20tennis%20megastar%20Serena%20Williams%20as%20the%20first%20guest.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EThe%20Duchess%20of%20Sussex%20said%20the%2012-part%20series%2C%20called%20%22Archetypes%2C%22%20--%20a%20play%20on%20the%20name%20of%20the%20couple's%20oldest%20child%2C%20Archie%20--%20would%20explore%20the%20female%20experience.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ELast%20year%20the%20couple%20told%20Oprah%20Winfrey%20that%20life%20inside%20%22The%20Firm%22%20had%20been%20miserable%2C%20and%20that%20they%20had%20experienced%20racism.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%22I%20don't%20ever%20remember%20personally%20feeling%20the%20negative%20connotation%20behind%20the%20word%20ambitious%2C%20until%20I%20started%20dating%20my%20now-husband%2C%22%20she%20told%20the%20tennis%20champion.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Leap of Faith
Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
Dh67
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
More on animal trafficking
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.0-litre%20six-cylinder%20turbo%20(BMW%20B58)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20340hp%20at%206%2C500rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20500Nm%20from%201%2C600-4%2C500rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20ZF%208-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E0-100kph%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204.2sec%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20267kph%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh462%2C189%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EWarranty%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030-month%2F48%2C000k%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2017 Lotus Evora Sport 410
Price, base / as tested Dh395,000 / Dh420,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission Six-speed manual
Power 410hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 420Nm @ 3,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.7L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
PROFILE OF STARZPLAY
Date started: 2014
Founders: Maaz Sheikh, Danny Bates
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment/Streaming Video On Demand
Number of employees: 125
Investors/Investment amount: $125 million. Major investors include Starz/Lionsgate, State Street, SEQ and Delta Partners
MATCH INFO
Burnley 0
Man City 3
Raheem Sterling 35', 49'
Ferran Torres 65'
Where to submit a sample
Volunteers of all ages can submit DNA samples at centres across Abu Dhabi, including: Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec), Biogenix Labs in Masdar City, NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City, NMC Royal Medical Centre, Abu Dhabi, NMC Royal Women's Hospital, Bareen International Hospital, Al Towayya in Al Ain, NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain