Miss Universe Lebanon Maya Aboul Hosn and Miss Universe Philippines Michelle Dee are among the top favourites ahead of the global finale in November.
Miss Universe recently shared the Top 10 list of its fan vote, which also included France's Diane Leyre, Myanmar's Amara Bo, Thailand's Anntonia Porsild and Mexico's Melissa Flores.
Online voting is now open via the Miss Universe app, with the contestant earning the most votes getting an automatic placement in the semi-finals. The next Miss Universe is set to be crowned on November 18 in El Salvador.
Hosn, 25, a radio and television personality, was crowned Miss Universe Lebanon last month at a competition in Beirut. She is only the third Arab contestant at the global competition along with Miss Universe Egypt Mohra Tantawy and Miss Universe Bahrain Lujane Yacoub.
Lebanon has won the Miss Universe crown once when Georgina Rizk made history by becoming the first woman from the Arab world to win the title in 1971.
Miss Universe Philippines's Dee, meanwhile, comes from a beauty pageant-obsessed country, which has won the title four times.
An actress and model, Dee, 28, represented the City of Makati at the national contest in May. She is the daughter of actress and producer Melanie Marquez, who won the Miss International crown in 1979. As a pageant promoter, Marquez has also trained many beauty queens who've gone to represent on the Philippines on the international stage.
Dee has also represented the Philippines at a global pageant, having won Miss World Philippines in 2019. She finished in the top 12 at the Miss World competition, held in London, where Jamaica's Toni-Ann Singh was crowned winner that year.
Reigning Miss Universe R'Bonney Gabriel from the USA will crown her successor at the November event in El Salvador, which will begin with a number of preliminary rounds spread over a number of weeks.
Here are the Top 10 Miss Universe contestants with the most fan votes in alphabetically order:
- Albania: Endi Demneri
- Chile: Celeste Viel
- France: Diane Leyre
- Lebanon: Maya Abou El Hosn
- Mexico: Melissa Flores
- Myanmar: Amara Bo
- Nicaragua: Sheynnis Palacios
- Philippines: Michelle Dee
- Puerto Rico: Karla Acevedo
- Thailand: Anntonia Porsild
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
More from our neighbourhood series:
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South Africa v India schedule
Tests: 1st Test Jan 5-9, Cape Town; 2nd Test Jan 13-17, Centurion; 3rd Test Jan 24-28, Johannesburg
ODIs: 1st ODI Feb 1, Durban; 2nd ODI Feb 4, Centurion; 3rd ODI Feb 7, Cape Town; 4th ODI Feb 10, Johannesburg; 5th ODI Feb 13, Port Elizabeth; 6th ODI Feb 16, Centurion
T20Is: 1st T20I Feb 18, Johannesburg; 2nd T20I Feb 21, Centurion; 3rd T20I Feb 24, Cape Town
Friday's schedule at the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
GP3 qualifying, 10:15am
Formula 2, practice 11:30am
Formula 1, first practice, 1pm
GP3 qualifying session, 3.10pm
Formula 1 second practice, 5pm
Formula 2 qualifying, 7pm
Bharat
Director: Ali Abbas Zafar
Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh810,000
Abu Dhabi race card
5pm Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
5.30pm Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
6pm Abu Dhabi Championship Listed | Dh180,000 | 1,600m
6.30pm Maiden | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap | Dh80,000 | 1,400m
7.30pm Handicap (TB) |Dh100,000 | 2,400m
THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 258hp at 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,550-4,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.4L/100km
Price, base: from D215,000 (Dh230,000 as tested)
On sale: now
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Cologne v Hoffenheim (11.30pm)
Saturday
Hertha Berlin v RB Leipzig (6.30pm)
Schalke v Fortuna Dusseldof (6.30pm)
Mainz v Union Berlin (6.30pm)
Paderborn v Augsburg (6.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund (9.30pm)
Sunday
Borussia Monchengladbach v Werder Bremen (4.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)
SC Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt (9on)
