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Message For the Day… ” Develop Self Confidence and Have Firm Faith in God…”

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Your life may be compared to a stalk of sugar cane. Like the cane, which is hard and has many knots, life is full of difficulties. But these difficulties must be overcome to enjoy the bliss of the Divine, just as the sugarcane has to be crushed and its juice converted into cane-sugar (jaggery) to enjoy the permanent sweetness. Enduring bliss can be got only by overcoming trials and tribulations. Gold cannot be made into an attractive jewel without it being subjected to the process of melting in a crucible and being beaten into the required shape. When I address devotees as, ‘golden one (Bangaru)’ or Divine Embodiments of Love, I really mean it! You must go through the vicissitudes of life with forbearance and become attractive jewels. You should not allow yourselves to be overwhelmed by difficulties. Develop self-confidence and have firm faith in God.

Sathya Sai Baba

Image of the Day….First Notable Solar Fire of 2015 …

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 First Notable Solar Flare of 2015

The sun emitted a mid-level solar flare, peaking at 11:24 p.m. EST on Jan. 12, 2015. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation. Harmful radiation from a flare cannot pass through Earth’s atmosphere to physically affect humans on the ground, however — when intense enough — they can disturb the atmosphere in the layer where GPS and communications signals travel.

Image Credit: NASA/SDO 

SOURCE:::: http://www.nasa.gov

Jan 15 2015

Planes Go ” Hybrid ” Electric…. !!!

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An aircraft with a parallel hybrid engine – the first ever to be able to recharge its batteries in flight – has been successfully tested in the UK, an important early step towards cleaner, low-carbon air travel.

The world’s first hybrid-electric aircraft that can recharge while flying. 
Electric aircraft

A new hybrid-electric aircraft, the first ever to be able to recharge its batteries in flight, has just been tested in the UK, the University of Cambridge announced in a statement today.

The plane uses a “parallel hybrid-electric propulsion system,” where an electric motor works with a regular petrol motor to drive a propeller. It’s just been trialled at a test site in Northamptonshire.

According to Cambridge engineers, the plane uses 30% less fuel than a similar model that only uses a petrol engine. More importantly, the new design can also recharge its batteries during flight — something that’s never been achieved before.

“Although hybrid cars have been available for more than a decade, what’s been holding back the development of hybrid or fully-electric aircraft until now is battery technology,” project leader and Cambridge professor Paul Robertson said in a statement. “Until recently, they have been too heavy and didn’t have enough energy capacity. But with the advent of improved lithium-polymer batteries, similar to what you’d find in a laptop computer, hybrid aircraft — albeit at a small scale — are now starting to become viable.”

The plane uses its 4-stroke piston engine and electric motor during take off and climbing. But once in cruising mode, the electric motor switches to an electric generator in a similar way to a hybrid car. Once full height is reached, the generator mode can then recharge the batteries or be used in motor assist mode to minimise fuel consumption, the university said.

Here it is climbing after take off:

Flight



And here it is soaring over England’s patchwork fields:

Flight2



The project is vital to combating the impact air travel has on the environment. The team notes that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates “aviation is responsible for around 2% of global man-made carbon dioxide emissions.”

The plane is a step “towards cleaner, low-carbon air travel,” but it’s not there yet. More research is still needed to prolong the flying time. “If all the engines and all the fuel in a modern jetliner were to be replaced by batteries, it would have a total flying time of roughly ten minutes,” the researchers point out.

Still, the Cambridge demonstrator model is a move toward creating the first fully-electric plane, which could one day be used commercially.

SOURCE:::: http://www.business insider .com.au and You Tube

Natarajan

Jan 15 2015

Message For the Day…” Learn From SUN God about Selfless and Tireless Service …”

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Today the Sun-God begins his northward journey, the auspicious Uttarayana. Let this Sankranthi bring about a change in your attitude, so you sanctify your life. Ability to Change (Kraanthi) and Peace(Shanthi) both reside within your heart. Do not search for them in the outside world. Discover them within. Today is another pointer to the path to realise God. The Sun is the supreme example of selfless and tireless service. Life on earth is possible only because of the Sun. The Sun teaches everyone the lesson of humble devotion to duty, without any conceit. Sun God is a shining example and reminder for everyone that they should do their duty with devotion and dedication. Selflessly doing one’s duty is the greatest Yoga, says Lord Krishna in the Gita. Serve your parents and society, and lead a godly life! Hence let your actions and thoughts be good. You will certainly experience the Bliss Divine.

Sathya Sai Baba

“மென்” பொங்கல் வாழ்த்துக்களும் விழைவும் …. !!!

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Coldest Place on Earth… Oymyakon , Russia…

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It may look serene but the temperatures here can be seriously unbearable. Picture: Maarte

It may look serene but the temperatures here can be seriously unbearable. Picture: Maarten Takens. Source: Flickr

IT’S been named the coldest permanently inhabited place on Earth reaching a record low of minus 71.2 degrees Celsius in 1924.

The 500 or so residents of Oymyakon in Siberia live in one of the remotest places on Earth, just a few hundred kilometres from the Arctic Circle.

Wired reports that Oymyakon is a town full of extremes. It lies in complete darkness for 21 hours a day during winter yet daylight lasts for 21 hours in summer.

This brings a whole new meaning to camping.

This brings a whole new meaning to camping. Source: Supplied

The nearest major city, Yakutsk, is a two day drive away, accessible only by road during winter when the conditions are too harsh for planes to land.

The ground remains permanently frozen meaning crops cannot grow so its population lives on a diet of reindeer and horse meat, raw frozen fish flesh and a local delicacy of frozen horse blood and macaroni.

Petrol stations in the main road stay open 24 hours a day should you get stuck.

Petrol stations in the main road stay open 24 hours a day should you get stuck. Source: Supplied

If you’re brave enough to drive a car, it must be left in idle once out of a heated garage for fear it will freeze and never start again. And trips to the bathroom are just as unpleasant, its residents must use outhouses as the indoor plumbing too often freezes.

It becomes problematic when someone dies. The ground has to be warmed for days by a bonfire to be able to bury the dead. And the town’s only school has a policy to shut if the temperatures fall below -52 degrees Celsius.

Called the ‘Pole of Cold’, the name Oymyakon ironically means ‘unfrozen water’, thought to be a reference to the thermal springs that reindeer herders would visit until it became a permanent inhabited settlement.

For more on this amazing town, visit Wired.

Not your usual type of hotel, don’t expect room service.

Not your usual type of hotel, don’t expect room service. Source: Supplied

Its animals endure and survive in unimaginable temperatures. Picture: Maarten Takens.

Its animals endure and survive in unimaginable temperatures. Picture: Maarten Takens. Source: Flickr 

SOURCE:::: http://www.news.com.au

Natarajan

Jan 14 2015

Automatic Aircraft Tracking System of Qatar Airways ….

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Qatar Airways is the first airline in the world to test automatic aircraft tracking.

Qatar Airways is the first airline in the world to test automatic aircraft tracking. Source: News Limited

QATAR airways is carrying out tests to become the first airline in the world to install an automatic tracking system that would replace the current radar system.

Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker told a press conference in Doha that the technology was being tested ahead of a fleet wide roll out.

“Once this has been proven and all the bugs have been cleared then Qatar Airways will, I hope, be the first airliner to introduce this in all our planes,” he told reporters.

Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways, hopes the new system will be rolled out fleet wide. Source: AFP

In response to worldwide pressure for tighter airline monitoring after the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, the new system will stream flight data from a planes black box directly to an airline’s operation centre on the ground in real time.

Reported in Bloomberg, it is part of an aviation safety overhaul as the industry comes under scruity for being unable to explain the mysterious fate of MH370.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) set up an expert task force in June 2014 to review current tracking methods and highlighted three areas of concern. These were installing tamper proofing airline tracking, tracking to one nautical mile or better and giving airlines one year to implement the recommended new system.

Qatar Airways has always stayed ahead of the game and was recently delivered the new Airb

Qatar Airways has always stayed ahead of the game and was recently delivered the new Airbus A350 at an inaugural ceremony in Doha. Source: AFP

The IATA however has come under fire from some airlines who say adopting these new criteria within a year is unreasonable. The International Civil Aviation Organization, a United Nations aviation regulator, has instead proposed that commercial planes be required to report their position every 15 minutes.

Qatar’s decision to install this new type of tracking means that its planes will be automatically tracked from takeoff to landing without control from pilots, removing any issues of tampering and providing real-time aircraft monitoring.

SOURCE::: http://www.news.com.au

Natarajan

Jan 14 2015

Only One Passenger On a Flight !!!… Strange But True !!!

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You won't have to worry about getting a drink on this flight.

You won’t have to worry about getting a drink on this flight. Source: Getty Images

A US man from Brooklyn flew home in style on Monday, as practically the only passenger on-board a Cleveland-to-New York flight.

Chris O’Leary tweeted in disbelief after taking his seat as the solo flyer aboard a Delta regional plane and got incredibly personalised safety instructions from flight attendants.

O’Leary’s 9:39am flight home was delayed for hours, so he stayed in his hotel until the afternoon when it was finally going to depart, according to ABC News.

By the time O’Leary reached the airport, he learned that virtually all his fellow passengers had been rebooked on other flights and he somehow missed messages offering the earlier departures.

View image on Twitter

 

“They rebooked everyone but me on another flight to LGA,” he tweeted, “so I am literally the only person on this plane.”

He added: “Just got a personal safety briefing from my two flight attendants.”

 

A flight attendant snapped a picture of O’Leary alone in passenger seats.

He tweeted out the image with: “No, I’m not joking. I’m the only one on this plane.”

 

O’Leary was all set to get his personalised ride home, before the Delta plane rolled back to the gate and picked up one more passenger.

O’Leary didn’t mind sharing his flight.

“Part of this is my own stupidity but it ended up working out in my favor,” O’Leary told ABC, grateful that he missed all of the airline’s messages.

 

It’ll be a Cleveland-to-New York flight O’Leary will never forget.

“Well, this has been a interesting day,” he tweeted. “Who knew the simple act of getting on the plane you’re supposed to could amuse so many people?”

Even O’Leary’s mum saw his picture on Twitter.

“Reaction to this story from my mum: `I’m glad you got a haircut,’ “ O’Leary tweeted.

SOURCE:::: http://www.news.com.au

Natarajan

Money lessons from Makar Sankranti ….!!!

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Let’s take you on a fun journey on kites and Sankranti traditions and guess what? You can learn a thing or two about financial planning from it as well.

Makar Sankranti

Photograph: K Krishnan/Wikimedia Commons

Come January 14 and the Indian skies will break into a riot of colours, as people celebrate Makar Sankranti. Kites of different shapes, sizes, colours and texture will vie in sky with each other to make a place for themselves and entangle in a pursuit to outdo the rest. As you are busy preparing for this festival of kites and friendly combat, have you really thought about its significance, and why kites are flown on Sankranti?

Makar Sankranti (Uttarayan or Pongal or Poush Sankranti as it is called in other parts of India) coincides with the day the Sun leaves the tropic of Cancer to move towards the tropic of Capricorn (called Makar in India). It is a day of great jubilation for farmers as it marks the end of the biting winters and the beginning of the new harvesting season. This day is therefore celebrated as a Thanksgiving for ending the harsh winters and a bountiful harvest.

Significance of flying kites on Sankranti

Sankranti has a philosophical significance in India as well. The word Sankranti literally means ‘movement’, and it is the day for the human race to realise and be thankful for movement. If there was to be no movement within and without our bodies, we would all be dead! But just like yin and yang in China, the concept of movement must be contrasted and appreciated against the stillness. Therefore, when we fly kites in the lap of the still skies, it is a reiteration of our thankfulness for this very movement!

Indian traditions are also rooted deeply in science and so is the tradition of kite flying on Sankranti. When we fly kites on Sankranti, we expose ourselves to the rays of the Sun. On this day when the Sun begins its journey towards the other hemisphere, it is expected to be benevolent and emanate rays that have medicinal benefits.

During the winters our bodies are usually infected with cold and other infections which are eradicated by the direct exposure to the Sun’s rays on this particular day.

Makar Sankranti traditions:

  • In Maharashtra, the ‘Til Gul’ ( a sweet made of sesame seeds and jaggery) are prepared in homes to mark the harvest of the first sugarcane crop of the year (out of which jaggery is made).
  • In Gujarat Makar Sankranti is referred to as Uttarayan, and kites are flown to wake the Gods from their winter slumber and bless farmers’ harvests.
  • In West Bengal this festival is referred to as ‘Poush Sankranti’ and is celebrated as a harvest festival where a variety of sweets such as Pithey, Puli, Patisapta are made with freshly harvested rice flour and jaggery made out of date palms.
  • In Uttar Pradesh it is believed that taking a holy dip in the Ganges on this day provides ‘Moksha’ or salvation from sins.
  • Makar Sankranti is referred to as Pongal in Tamil Nadu and other South Indian states, where it is celebrated as a three day festival which include lot of festivities.

Some financial lessons you can learn Makar Sankranti:

Get set for a flight:

Financial planning is not just about making a plan and keeping it static. You need to keep reviewing it and armed with proper resources and research of the markets you need to seize the opportunities that arise in the economic environment to enhance your portfolio. This is akin to kite flying where you need to customise a kite as per your abilities, have the perfect manjha or string and set it to flight to soar above the rest when the wind is in your favour.

Keep your eyes on your kite:

When you are flying a kite, you cannot for a moment be careless and lose sight of how or in which direction your kite is flying. Similarly, in financial planning you have to be vigilant of the course that your investments are taking and review your investments to see that your financial goals both short term and long term are being met.

Be flexible

While flying kites people shout out ‘dheel de!’ to their companions. It means when you are in the midst of a strong gust of wind you have to let go the string off and adapt to the situation. Similarly, when it comes to an investment climate, things are not always perfect. You have to be patient and sometimes bear some temporary losses, but never lose sight of your vision of meeting your financial goals.

So now armed with this new found knowledge of Makar Sankranti, go ahead and fly those kites with new found fervour! Kai Po Che!

SOURCE::::  Rajiv Raj in http://www.rediff.com

Natarajan

Jan 14 2015