Interesting read

This 24 years old is Empowering Rural Bihar …. How ?

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An internship experience in West Champaran inspired University  Of Pennsylvania graduate   Zubin Sharma to take up the cause of educating the less privileged. 

 

He realised that the kids in India’s villages have the potential to change the world. 

In the last four years, Sharma’s team of volunteers and teachers have impacted thousands of lives and changed their futures. Find out how!

The future of India lies in its villages.”

This famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi is being threatened today with India looking towards a shining future in its cities and skyscrapers.

However Zubin Sharma , a 24 year-old graduate of University of Pennsylvania, took Gandhi’s words to heart.

Zubin Sharma '09

After starting an organisation called SEEKHO India in 2013 to introduce a culture of education in Bihar, Zubin realised that bringing together the existing strengths of a community could help increase its collective well-being.

That’s how Project Potential was born, with a vision to help people and communities everywhere reach their potential.

Here, Zubin talks about his inspiration behind the initiative and how it is changing and empowering the lives of people in rural India.

From U Penn. to Bihar, how and when did the idea of empowering Indian villages begin?

I landed in rural Kishanganj District in Bihar during a gap semester from U Penn that I took to test a hypothesis I had – that people everywhere have potential and that this potential can be used to create change.

I was working with an NGO there, and while the NGO was doing a good job, they weren’t able to reach a lot of small hamlets, so I wanted to see what else could be done.

SEEKHO was formed out of a village meeting in one of these small hamlets, in which the community was asked, “What are our shared goals for the future?”

Everyone said, ‘education,’ so we worked to provide education.

We’ve provided education to over 4,000 people since February 2013 through local people, who we trained as teachers.

What was your most surprising observation when you first came to Bihar?

The first time I came to Bihar was in 2010 on an internship with Husk Power Systems in West Champaran.

What surprised me was how much potential I saw; all anyone would ever say about Bihar was how backward it was, which made no sense to me, since I saw a lot of innovation and movement happening.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but you can’t be backward if you’re moving forward!

The second important point is how adaptable human beings are to their material environment.

With Husk Power Systems, I lived in a one room mud hut during my internship, and adjusted to the living conditions within 24 hours.

In Kishanganj, I had it a little better, sleeping on the floor with a building, so that was even easier.

Many people say, ‘OMG, I could never do that,’ to which I say, ‘yes you can! Just give it a try!’

Zubin with Project Potential volunteers Project Potential focusses on the existing resources and strengths of a community. Tell us more about how that notion evolved.

While we have accomplished a lot in the past few years with SEEKHO, we saw that a lot of other systemic challenges, like poverty, health, and communal strife often hold children back from getting educated.

Many of our local teachers were picking up on this fact and actually started providing services in other areas, like Ganesh, who trained the community in sanitation practices.

Seeing this, we felt like our teachers could do much more than just teach — they could change the underlying systemic issues that were blocking students from learning.

So we did a three-month pilot and saw amazing results — two villages getting electrified, a pre-school getting built, new associations built, new learning centres opened, etc, all using locally available individual, community, or institutional resources.

Most importantly, we saw the community coming together in a way that it hadn’t before.

These findings led me to found Project Potential.

A poster for empowerment of girl child released by Project PotentialHow does Project Potential work?

Take 19 year-old Razia for example, who is what we call a Village Visionary.

She mobilised women in the community to build an association.

The association then set their goals:

• Learn basic literacy

• Get their kids educated

For basic literacy, she trained A LOCAL GIRL to teach the women.

The main obstacle to get kids educated was flooding in the rainy season.

So she organized A MEETING with the block educational officer, who then set up a bridge school for them to get educated.

Finally, FOR EARNING MONEY she worked with local businessmen to get them jobs and then also helped them get job cards. So this is the kind of work we do.

As you can see, it’s all about using local, available resources to help the community achieve their self-defined goals.

We discuss it in three steps:

1. Building an army of Village Visionaries

2. Connecting the dots

3. Getting stuff done

We have six Village Visionaries in the field right now, and will have 24 more beginning in January.

The Project Potential ‘family’ have people from various backgrounds, countries and most certainly different strengths. Was it difficult finding people who would readily leave what they were doing to come and work in Bihar?

Project Potential is an international family of people, who are connected by a belief in the potential of people, a commitment to action, and an understanding that our RELATIONSHIPS matter over all else.

Take Jason House, for example, an ACQUAINTANCE from college and a Wharton graduate.

He read an article I wrote on some mindfulness work we had done in Nepal, and then told me he wanted to quit his job and work with us in India.

Now he’s adopted an Indian name — Sanjay bhai — and wears a gamsha and a lungi.

He fits in so well, and wherever we work, everyone in the community knows and loves him.

So, in short, it’s not tough — there are lots of people for whom Project Potential was their calling and exactly what they were looking for — a community and family built on super strong values and 110 per cent committed to its people.

Is there any parting message you’d like to give our readers?

Gandhi only had 24 hours a day. Same goes for you. No excuses. Start making moves!

Photos Courtesy: Seekho India and Project Potential’s Facebook Pages

 

SOURCE::::rediff.com

Natarajan

அலுவலகத்தைப் பெருக்கி சுத்தம் செய்யும் ஐ.ஏ.எஸ். அதிகாரி !!!

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ஐ.ஏ.எஸ். அதிகாரி அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டே | படம்: சிறப்பு ஏற்பாடு.

ஐ.ஏ.எஸ். அதிகாரி அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டே | படம்: சிறப்பு ஏற்பாடு.

சுத்தம், சுகாதாரம் இவை ஒரு முறை பிரச்சாரத்தோடு நிறுத்திக் கொள்ளப்பட வேண்டியது அல்ல. இந்த கொள்கையைக் கொண்ட ஐ.ஏ.எஸ். அதிகாரி அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டே கடந்த 4 ஆண்டுகளாக அவரது அலுவலகத்தை அவரே பெருக்கி சுத்தம் செய்து வருகிறார்.

டாக்டர் அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டேவின் அலுவலகத்தின் வெளியில் ஒரு பதாகை தொங்கவிடப்பட்டிருக்கிறது. அதில், ‘இந்த அறை என்னால் சுத்தப்படுத்தப் படுகிறது. இவ்விடத்தை அசுத்தம் செய்து என் பணிச்சுமையை அதிகரிக்காதீர்கள்’ என எழுதப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.

பிரதமர் நரேந்திர மோடி கடந்த வியாழக்கிழமை ‘தூய்மை இந்தியா’ திட்டத்தை துவக்கி வைத்தார். இத்திட்டம் நாடு முழுவதும் பரவலாக பேசப்பட்டு வரும் நிலையில், அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டே போன்றவர்களின் அறிமுகம் நம் சுற்றுப்புறத்தை தூய்மையாக வைத்துக் கொள்வதில் நமது பங்கு என்ன என்பதை நன்கு உணர்த்துகிறது என்றே சொல்ல வேண்டும்.

உத்தரப் பிரதேசத்தின் மீரட் நகரில் கூடுதல் ஆணையராக இருக்கும் டாக்டர் அஜய் சங்கர் பாண்டே ஐ.ஏ.எஸ், ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் தனது அலுவலகத்திற்கு குறித்த நேரத்தைவிட சற்று முன்னதாகவே வந்துவிடுகிறார். தனது அறையை அவரே சுத்தம் செய்கிறார்.

இது குறித்து அவர் நம்மிடம் கூறுகையில்: சுத்தம் என்பது நமது தினசரி கடமை. இன்று அனைவரும் ஸ்வச் பாரத் (தூய்மை இந்தியா) திட்டத்தில் தங்களை இணைத்துக் கொள்கின்றனர். இந்த வேளையில், சுத்தம், சுகாதாரம் என்பன ஒரு பழக்கம், அதை தினசரி கடைபிடிக்க வேண்டும். நாம் வசிக்கும் பகுதியை சுத்தமாக வைத்துக் கொள்வது நமது கடமை. சுத்தம் செய்வது என்பது குறிப்பிட்ட சிலரின் வேலை என்ற பார்வை இந்தியர்கள் மத்தியில் மேலோங்கிக் காணப்படுகிறது. நம் குடும்பத்துக்குள்ளேயும்கூட வீட்டுப் பெண்கள் சுத்தம் செய்யும் பணியில் ஈடுபடும்போது நாம் அதற்கும் நமக்கும் எந்த சம்பந்தமுமே இல்லை என்பது போல் இருக்கின்றோம். இந்த எண்ணம் மாற வேண்டும்” என்றார்.

படிக்கும் காலத்தில் இருந்தே தான் இருக்கும் இடத்தை தானே சுத்தம் செய்யும் பழக்கத்தை பாண்டே கொண்டிருக்கிறார்.

சுத்தம் செய்ய தயக்கம் வேண்டாம்:

நமது பகுதியை சுத்தமாக வைத்துக் கொள்ள நாம் எப்போதும் தயங்கக் கூடாது என கூறிய பாண்டே தனது அனுபவத்தை எடுத்துரைத்தார். அவர் கூறியதாவது: “ஆக்ராவில், பணியாற்றிக் கொண்டிருந்த போது அப்பகுதியில் துப்புரவுத் தொழிலாளர்கள் வேலை நிறுத்தத்தில் ஈடுபட்டிருந்தனர். அப்பகுதி மக்கள் பலரும் என்னிடம் வந்து புகார் மனு அளித்தனர். ஆனால், துப்புரவுத் தொழிலாளர்கள் வைத்திருந்த கோரிக்கையோ உடனடியாக நிறைவேற்றக் கூடியதாக இல்லை. எனவே, அந்தப் பகுதியை சுத்தம் செய்ய நான் தயாராக இருப்பதாகக் கூறினேன். உடனே துடைப்பத்தை எடுத்துக் கொண்டு புறப்பட்டேன். எனக்கு ஆதரவாக பொதுமக்களும் இணைந்தனர். அந்தப் பகுதியே சுத்தமானது. எனது செய்கையைப் பார்த்து துப்புரவுத் தொழிலாளர்கள் போராட்டத்தைக் கைவிட்டு திரும்பினர்” என்றார்.

சுத்தம், சுகாதாரம் இவை ஒரு முறை பிரச்சாரத்தோடு நிறுத்திக் கொள்ளப்பட வேண்டியது அல்ல என்பது எப்போதுமே அவரது கொள்கையாக இருக்கிறது.

-தமிழில் பாரதி ஆனந்த்

Source:::: The Hindu…Tamil
Natarajan

Meet Mr. Jockin Arputham …Fighting For Dignity …

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  • Jockin Arputham. Photo: Aparna Karthikeyan
    Jockin Arputham. Photo: Aparna Karthikeyan
  • Jockin Arputham. Photo: Aparna Karthikeyan
    Jockin Arputham. Photo: Aparna Karthikeyan

Sanitation and shelter are for everyone, says Jockin Arputham, the Mumbai-based activist who has been nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

“Jockin, Slum Dweller.” That is how, Jockin Arputham, from Dharavi, Mumbai, nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize this year, introduces himself in any public forum. All his life Jockin has been fighting for dignity, for the ‘weakest of the poorest person’. Except that when he chanced into his line of work, in 1969, he had ‘no theory, philosophy, nor a political compulsion.’

Like the great majority that lives in Dharavi, Arputham is a migrant, who came to Mumbai looking for work. But the city appalled the young man. “It was a culture shock,” he says. He had come expecting a rich city. Instead, it had the worst slums.

He lived in one such slum, Janata Colony. In the first few difficult days, when he felt he had ‘fallen into the pit’, he contemplated taking his own life. So he climbed up a nearby hill, and stayed there for three days, but then he decided he wouldn’t die. Nor go back.

The next morning, he put his carpentry skills to good use, made some MONEY and, in a few days, began sub-contracting work at the nearby Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). He learnt to give orders in Hindi; and soon the 21-year-old settled down in his new life in Mumbai.

Arputham, now 68, knows what he wants. He wants shelter, sanitation and water for every slum-dweller in Mumbai, in India, in the world. He wants every pavement-dweller relocated. He wants to see change — redevelopment — happening with people’s participation.

It was mosquitoes that made him aware of his potential as a change-maker. Arputham was conducting a coaching class for slum kids when he found the kids unable to focus because they were being bitten. The problem was mounting piles of garbage. To show the municipality the magnitude of the problem, Jockin made the kids carry a newspaper parcel of rubbish and dump it outside the municipal office in Chembur. When the police came to arrest him, Arputham said he would repeat his act until the garbage was cleared. The municipality was shamed into doing its work, for the first time in 22 years in that settlement.

Having tasted the power of protest, he decided to do more. He cleaned the filthy community toilet, again with children’s help. “By that evening, it was a beautiful new toilet!” After that, he was summarily adopted by the people who sought him to sort out civic issues. He learnt English, became an activist, a ‘self-built leader’, led huge demonstrations against the proposed eviction of Janata Colony. In 1974, when he got married, he finally rented a small house.

Arputham still lives in a rented house. He has no property, no assets. His immediate family is small — he has two grandchildren, one from each of his daughters. But his extended family is very large — the urban poor from 33 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. They are all members of Slum/Shack Dwellers International (SDI), an organisation founded in 1999, to provide alternatives to eviction. SDI’s headquarters is in Cape Town, South Africa, and Arputham is its president.

But the path to fame was not smooth. In the 1970s, there were many attempts to arrest him. Each time, people, especially thousands of women from the slum, surrounded him and hid him.

When Emergency was declared in India in 1975, Arputham found that he would be put away; so he fled to the Philippines and stayed there until the new government was elected. But he carried on with his work. He set up the Bombay Slum Dwellers Federation in 1975. Slowly, the movement grew and became the National Slum Dwellers Federation (NSDF). “The organisation is a very huge one,” he says. “I work in around 70 cities in India.”

While Arputham never wavered in his ideals, his approach changed over the years. In the early 1980s, he swapped the ‘shirt of militancy’ for one of negotiation. He moved from Janata Colony — the slum made way for BARC — to Dharavi.

Dharavi ALONE has 89 slum pockets, he says, sitting in his office. The walls are painted in jewel colours. But the real jewels in the room are Jockin’s awards — the Ramon Magsaysay in 2000; Padma Shri in 2011; and an honorary Ph.D. from KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, in 2009.

As the founder, and now reluctant president of NSDF (he wishes to resign, but nobody will hear of it), he’s especially keen to include women in the organisation’s activities. “I’m running this organisation because of the strength of the women. In India itself, more than 10-12 lakh women are members. Men are good bullies; they tend to take the credit, even if women run the show.”

In the slums where NSDF functions, migrations from rural to urban India are touching new highs, and sleepy little towns are today being transformed into bustling shanty towns.

‘Achche din’ has to reach out to these people too, argues Arputham. “Show me one budget that is talking about the other citizen of the city. You look at the city corporation agenda, which I look at every week. Three per cent of the agenda is connected with the slum-dwellers whereas their population is 60 per cent. The rest of the city hogs the whole agenda.”

“I’m known world over as ‘Toilet Man’. In South Africa, where it’s a stigma to say toilet, I made them talk about it. In the United Nations, I built a demonstration toilet in the UN plaza.” And demonstrated to Kofi Annan how Indians squat! He has built more than 20,000 (toilet) seats in Mumbai ALONE.

It was from Dharavi that Arputham drew plans for inclusive growth. He insisted on new standards on redeveloped housing, an increased floor-space-index. Over the years, Arputham has built 30,000 houses in India, and 1,00,000 houses abroad. FUNDING for his work comes from many sources. Thanks to his work, he has met both Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela.

THE WINNER of the Nobel Peace Prize 2014 will be announced on October 10.

Keywords: Jockin Arputham, Nobel Peace Prize, sanitation, shelter, Dharavi, slum dwellers, floor-space-index, National Slum Dwellers Federation

SOURCE:::::Aparna Karthikeyan in The Hindu.com

Natarajan

Image of the Day… This Date in Science…Launch Of SPUTNIK…

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This date in science: Launch of Sputnik

sputnik-1-technician-cp
Sputnik’s unassuming beep was a symbol not only of Russia’s remarkable accomplishment, but also of what many believed was Soviet superiority in space.

October 4, 1957. On this date, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth. According to many space historians, the Space Age began on this date.

It was a polished metal sphere, made of aluminum alloy. It was 58 centimeters (23 inches) in diameter – about the size of a beach ball – and weighed just 184 pounds. Its four external radio antennae were meant to broadcast radio pulses. And broadcast they did. For 21 days in 1957, people around the globe heard Sputnik’s unassuming beep beep on the radio.

Photo credit: NASA

The pressurized sphere had five primary science objectives: test a process for placing an artificial “moon” into Earth orbit; provide information on the density of Earth’s atmosphere, calculated from Sputnik’s lifetime in orbit; test radio and optical methods of orbital tracking; determine the effects of radio wave propagation though Earth’s atmosphere; and check principles of pressurization that could be used on Earth-orbiting satellites. Clearly, the next step was to place living things in space.

Sputnik’s beeping was a symbol not only of Soviet Russia’s remarkable accomplishment, but also of what many immediately assumed was Russia’s superiority in space. The American public feared that the Soviets’ ability to launch satellites also translated into the capability to launch ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear weapons from Europe to the U.S.

This historic image shows a technician putting the finishing touches on Sputnik 1, humanity's first artificial satellite. The pressurized sphere made of aluminum alloy had five primary scientific objectives: Test the method of placing an artificial satellite into Earth orbit; provide information on the density of the atmosphere by calculating its lifetime in orbit; test radio and optical methods of orbital tracking; determine the effects of radio wave propagation though the atmosphere; and, check principles of pressurization used on the satellites. Image Credit: NASA/Asif A. Siddiqi

Then the Soviets struck again. On November 3, 1957, they launched Sputnik II, this time carrying a much heavier payload, including a dog named Laika.

Sputnik I and Sputnik II sent shockwaves around the world. American political leadership scrambled to catch up. Ultimately, that extra push resulted in the United States sending the first astronauts to walk on the moon, on July 20, 1969.

Bottom line: On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the Sputnik 1 satellite into Earth orbit, and the Space Age began.

SOURCE::::: earth sky news

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How The City KOROMO in Japan was Renamed as TOYOTA City !!!

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Toyota
Japan

Toyota Predicts First-Ever Operating Loss For Fiscal Year 2009

Cities are more often named after mythological beings, local terrain features, or historical figures. Very rarely do cities get named after actual companies. One hilarious story involves Topeka, Kansas, which changed its name to “Google” during March 2010 in an effort to bring the company’s fiber-optic technology to the city. Google, of course, jokingly renamed itself “Topeka” for one day—April 1, naturally.

The story of the town of Koromo is neither a spur-of-the-moment decision nor an April Fools’ joke; rather, it shares a long history with the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. Koromo had been an agricultural village for centuries. During the late 1800s, Koromo had seen a boom in the silk manufacturing industry. When the MARKET for raw silk collapsed during the 1930s, Toyoda Automatic Loom Works, Ltd. bought 2 million square meters (21.5 million ft2) of undeveloped land in Koromo to build factories for their NEW BUSINESS venture—automobiles.

The plants in Koromo manufactured vehicles under the “Toyoda” brand and family name. However, some found that a change was necessary. The Toyoda family agreed to rename its company “Toyota”—which, when written in Katakana, would require eight brush strokes (the number eight was considered lucky). Similarly, “Toyota” just sounded a lot more modern than “Toyoda” (which meant “fertile rice paddies“). Business boomed for the company despite the devastation of World War II. As a result of their local and nationwide contributions, Koromo was renamed “Toyota City” on January 1, 1959. A year later, owing to its place in the industry, Toyota became a sister city to Detroit.

SOURCE:::: listverse.com

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Sky…. Why it is Blue ?

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Why Is The Sky Blue?

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Barring cloudy days (along with both sunsets and sunrises), the sky will usually appear to be blue. This happens because of the way certain things can manipulate light. Just as prisms can bend light to create a rainbow and a mirror can reflect light back to where it came from, some objects can scatter light. The white light from the Sun hits oxygen and nitrogen molecules that make up most of the Earth’s atmosphere and is scattered to produce all the colors. However, since the color blue has a shorter wavelength than the rest,it is scattered more.

This effect also explains the other colors that can appear in the sky. Closer to the horizon, the sky will look much paler. Here, the light has traveled through more air and has been scattered more intensively, mixing in with the other colors and losing its blue tinge. With the Sun lower in the sky, as with sunsets, the light has to travel through even more light. This scatters the blue light further, allowing the red and yellow light to travel through.

SOURCE:::: listverse.com

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Thanks to Elizabeth Holmes…Blood Tests in Future Would be Totally Different !!!

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The next time you get a blood test, you might not have to go to the doctor and watch vials of blood fill up as the precious fluid is drawn from your arm.

No more wondering to yourself – “ah, how much more can they take before I pass out?”

Instead you might be able to walk into a Walgreens pharmacy for a reportedly painless fingerprick that will draw just a tiny drop of blood, thanks to Elizabeth Holmes, 30, the youngest woman and third-youngest billionaire on Forbes’s newly-released annual ranking of the 400 richest Americans.

Theranos Chairman, CEO and Founder Elizabeth Holmes

Revolutionizing the blood test is a golden idea.

Because of new testing methods developed by Holmes’s startupTheranos, that LONE drop can now yield a ton of information.

The company can run hundreds of tests on a drop of blood far more quickly than could be done with whole vials in the past – and it costs a lot less.

A Billion Dollar Idea

Holmes dropped out of Stanford at 19 to found what would become Theranos after deciding that her tuition MONEY could be better put to use by transforming healthcare.

Traditional blood testing is shockingly difficult and expensive for a tool that’s used so frequently. It also hasn’t changed since the 1960s.

It’s done in hospitals and doctor’s offices. Vials of blood have to be sent out and tested, which can take weeks using traditional methods, and is prone to human error. And of course, sticking a needle in someone’s arm scares some people enough that they avoid getting blood drawn, even when it could reveal life saving information.

Holmes recognized that process was ripe for disruption.

It took a decade for her idea to be ready for primetime, but now it seems that her decision to drop out was undoubtedly a good call. Last year, Walgreens announced that it will be installing Theranos Wellness Centers in pharmacies across the country, with locations already up and running in Phoenix and Palo Alto. And Holmes has raised $400 million in venture capital for Theranos, which is now valued at $9 billion (Holmes owns 50%).

The other two 30-year-olds that are just a little bit younger on Forbes’s List, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his former roommate, Facebook CEO Dustin Moskovitz, also have access to a wealth of information about people – but their data is less likely to save a life.

elizabeth holmes theranos

Courtesy Theranos

How It Works

One closely-guarded secret is what MedCityNews calls “the most interesting part of [the Theranos] story”: how exactly the technology behind its blood test works. The company’s methods are protected by more than a dozen patentsfiled as far back as 2004 and as recently as last week.

In an interview with Wired, Holmes hinted at some of the key ideas behind Theranos.

“We had to develop… methodologies that would make it possible to accelerate results,” she explained. “In the case of a virus or bacteria, traditionally tested using a culture, we measure the DNA of the pathogen instead so we can report results much faster.”

While we can’t yet assess independently how well that method works when compared to traditional blood tests, it already seems to be upending the old way of doing things.

Why Blood Tests?

Holmes told Medscape that she targeted lab medicine because it drives about 80% of clinical decisions made by doctors.

By zeroing in on the inefficiencies of that system, the Theranos approach completely revolutionizes it.

The new tests can be done without going to the doctor, which saves both MONEY and time. Most results are available in about four hours, which means that you could swing by a pharmacy and have a test done the day before a doctor’s visit, and then the results would be available for the physician.

Quick tests that can be done at any time are already a total change, but the amount of data the company can get from a single drop of blood is amazing.

Blood samples have traditionally been used for one test, but if a follow up was needed, another sample had to be drawn and sent out – making it less likely that someone would get care. The Theranos approach means the same drop can be used for dozens of different tests.

It’s cheap too. One common criticism of the healthcare system is that the pricing structure is a confusing disaster of a labyrinth that makes it impossible to know how much anything costs. Theranos lists its prices online, and they’re impressive.

Each test costs less than 50% of standard Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rates. If those two programs were to perform all tests at those prices, they’d save $202 billion over the next decade, according to an interview with Holmes on Wired.

Plus, people get access to their own results.

source::::: KEVIN LORIA  in  http://www.businessinsider.in/

Natarajan

As an example of how helpful that can be, Holmes told Wired that Theranos charges $35 for a fertility test, which is usually paid for out-of-pocket and costs up to $2,000.

But she also explained that this data could be useful for anyone looking to gain a better understanding of their health.

“By testing, you can start to understand your body, understand yourself, change your diet, change your lifestyle, and begin to change your life,” she said.

Message For The Day…” Truth and Righteousness Bring Peace …”

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Those who struggle to uphold Truth are the real devotees. The essence of all scriptures (Vedas) lies in establishing this truth. Unfortunately, today people who recognize such an eternal truth are not to be found anywhere. You must never forsake Truth. When truth (Sathya) and righteousness (dharma) come together, there will be peace (Shanthi) and Love (Prema). In fact, Truth (Sathya) is the basis for all other human values, namely, Righteousness, Peace, Love, and Non-Violence (Dharma, Shanthi, Prema, and Ahimsa). Love (Prema) does not descend from outside. It emerges only from within, from the hearts of people. No human being can live without love. True and real life is one that is suffused with love. All virtues merge IN LOVE. Where there is love, there will be unity that permeates all barriers. Where there is love, people regardless of caste, culture, and country will unite naturally.

 

Sathya Sai Baba

Chicago Reclaims Title as World’s Busiest Airport for Flight Operations…

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In the last 18 months, O’Hare and Midway International Airports welcomed six new international airlines and added dozens of new destinations and Chicago Department of Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino is confident talks during World Routes will result in more arrivals into the Chicago aviation network.

WORLD ROUTES: Chicago Reclaims Title as World's Busiest Airport for Flight Operations

One day after a successful World Routes concluded in Chicago, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced that, for the first time since 2004, O’Hare International Airport had regained its status as the world’s busiest airport for flight operations.

From January to August 2014, more than 580,000 flights departed or landed at O’Hare, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. In 2014, Chicago’s airports have experienced substantial growth in passenger activity, especially for international traffic. Through the first half of the year, international passenger volume is up eight per cent at O’Hare (5.2 million passengers) and 15 per cent at Midway (289,300).

“O’Hare isn’t just the busiest airport in the world, it’s an asset for the City of Chicago,” said Mayor Emanuel. “These new gains will help us attract new businesses and solidify our place as the best connected city in the US and around the world.”

In the last 18 months, O’Hare and Midway International Airports welcomed six new international airlines and added dozens of new destinations and Chicago Department of Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino is confident talks during World Routes will result in more arrivals into the Chicago aviation network.

“On behalf of Mayor Emanuel, we want to thank World Routes and the delegates that travelled from all corners of the world to visit Chicago,” said Commissioner Andolino. “Through the contacts made here, Chicago’s airports will continue to grow service and choices for travellers.”

SOURCE::::: Richard Maslen,
Editor, Routesonline    Routesonline.com

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கோ ஹோம், கோ டூ ஹோம் எது சரி ?….!!!

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  ….OMNI ……ஆம்னி என்றால் எல்லாம் என்று அர்த்தம். இறைவனை OMNIPRESENT என்பதுண்டு. அதாவது எல்லா இடங்களிலும் நிறைந்திருப்பவன். OMNIPOTENT என்றும் சொல்வதுண்டு. சர்வசக்திகளும் படைத்தவன் என்ற அர்த்தத்தில். OMNIVORE என்றால் எல்லாவற்றையும் சாப்பிடக்கூடிய மிருகம் என்று பொருள். அதாவது பிற விலங்குகள், தாவரங்கள் என்று எதையும் சாப்பிடக் கூடியது.

அதெல்லாம் இருக்கட்டும் OMNI BUS என்கிறோமே அதற்கு என்ன அர்த்தம்? அந்தக் காலத்தில் குதிரைகளால் இழுக்கப்பட்ட, மூடப்பட்ட வண்டியைத்தான் OMNIBUS என்பார்கள். லத்தீன் மொழியில் OMNIBUS என்றால் அனைவருக்குமானது என்று பொருள். OMNIBUS எந்த இடத்திற்கும் செல்லும் (அதாவது இந்த தடத்தில் மட்டுமே இது செல்லும் என்பது கிடையாது).

Potable water

ஓர் அடுக்கக விற்பனை விளம்பரத்தில் வசதிகள் என்ற பட்டியலின் கீழ் Potable water என்று குறிப்பிட்டதைச் சுட்டிக் காட்டும் ஒரு வாசகர் இப்படியொரு கேள்வியை எழுப்பியிருக்கிறார். ‘’வெளியிடத்திலிருந்து இங்கே தண்ணீர் கொண்டு வருகிறார்கள் என்றால் அது எப்படி ஒரு சாதகமான விஷயம்?’’.

Potable என்ற வார்த்தையோடு portable என்ற வார்த்தையை இவர் குழப்பிக் கொண்டிருக்கிறார் என்று படுகிறது. Portable என்றால் ஓரிடத்திலிருந்து இன்னொரு இடத்திற்கு எடுத்துச் செல்லக்கூடிய என்று பொருள். Potable என்றால் குடிக்கத்தக்க என்று அர்த்தம்.

Potable water என்றால் அந்த நிலத்தில் கிடைக்கும் தண்ணீர் குடிக்கத்தக்கது – அதாவது உப்பாக இருக்காது என்று பொருள். இது சாதக மானதுதானே?

டெலிவரி

‘’My wife delivered a baby yesterday’’ என்று ஒருவர் சொன்னால் என்ன செய்வீர்கள்? ‘’இதென்ன கேள்வி? கை கொடுப்பேன். வாழ்த்து சொல்வேன்.. மறக்காமல் “எப்ப ட்ரீட் என்பேன்’’ என்கிறீர்களா? இதையெல்லாம் செய்யுங்கள். ஆனால் பிறகு நேரம் கிடைக்கும்போது அவர் கூறிய வாக்கியத்திலுள்ள தவறையும் எடுத்துக் காட்டுங்கள்.

‘’My wife delivered a baby yesterday’’ என்ற வாக்கியத்தில் என்ன தவறு என்கிறீர்களா? இப்படி யோசியுங்கள். உங்களுக்கு ஒரு தபாலில் ஒரு பார்சல் வந்தால் அதை ‘’The postman delivered a parcel’’ என்பீர்கள் இல்லையா? அதாவது தபால்காரரின் வேலை யாரோ அனுப்பிய பார்சலை உங்களிடம் சேர்ப்பிப்பது மட்டும்தான். ஆனால் உங்கள் நண்பரின் மனைவி கஷ்டப்பட்டுத் தானாகவே ஒரு குழந்தையைப் பெற்றிருக்கிறாள். அவருக்குப் பிரசவம் பார்த்த டாக்டரைப் பற்றி வேண்டுமானால் ‘’The doctor delivered the baby to me’’ எனலாம். எனவே ‘’My wife gave birth to a child yesterday’’ என்று உங்கள் நண்பர் கூறுவதுதான் சரியானது.

புயலென…

Stormed என்பதன் அர்த்தத்தைக் கேட்டிருக்கிறார் ஒரு வாசகர். Storm என்பது புயல். இது பெயர் சொல். ஆனால் Stormed என்பது கடந்த கால வினைச்சொல் – Verb in past tense.

Stormed என்றால் கோபத்துடனும், வேகமாகவும் ஓரிடத்திலிருந்து மற்றொரு இடத்துக்குச் செல்வது என்று பொருள். எடுத்துக் காட்டு – He burst into tears and stormed off. புயலெனக் கிளம்பினான், வில்லினின்று விடுபட்ட அம்பு

போலக் கிளம்பினான் என்றெல்லாம் இதற்குப் பொருள் கொள்ளலாமா என்று கேட்கும் அனைத்து ராசி நண்பர்களே, கொள்ளலாம். கொள்ளலாம் என நான் கூறுகிறேன்.

பொங்கி எழும் வாசகர்கள்

நம் வாசக நண்பர்கள் “பொறுப்பதே வேண்டாம். பொங்கி எழு” பிரிவினர்.

“பாரம்பரியம் மிக்க இந்து இதழில் நீங்கள் இப்படி ஒரு தவறு செய்யலாமா?” என்று ஒருவர் கடிதம் போட்டுள்ளார்.

இருவாரங்களுக்கு முன் வெளியிடப்பட்டிருந்த கார்ட்டூனில் “Go to home” என்ற வாக்கியம் இடம் பெற்றிருந்தது. “Go home” என்பதுதான் சரி என்று சுட்டியும், குட்டியும் வந்தன கடிதங்கள்.

“Go to home” என்று நான் எழுதுவதற்கு முன்பாக எனக்குள் நானே இரண்டு பகுதிகளாகப் பிரிந்து (அந்தக் காலத் திரைப்படக் காட்சிகளில் காணப்படுவது போல) விவாதித்தேன். அந்த விவாதம் இப்படி இருந்தது.

பகுதி 1 – Go abroad என்றுதானே எழுதுகிறோம்? அப்படியானால் Go home என்றுதான் எழுத வேண்டும்.

பகுதி 2 – Go to hospital என்று எழுதுவாயா? இல்லை Go hospital என்று எழுதுவாயா? (இந்த இடத்தில் பகுதி-2 விடமிருந்து ஏளனச் சிரிப்பு. காரணம் Go hospital என்றதும் மருத்துவமனையே நகர்ந்து செல்வது போன்ற காட்சி அதற்குள் விரிகிறது).

பகுதி 1 – இதென்ன உளறல்? Go to downstairs என்பாயா? Go downstairs தானே? எனவே Go home தான்.

பகுதி 2 – அதெல்லாம் இருக்கட்டும். Go to house என்று எழுதும்போது Go home என்று ஏன் எழுத வேண்டும்?

பகுதி 1 – பிரபல இலக்கண நூல்களை ரெஃபர் செய்தும் புரிய வில்லையா? Go home என்பதில் home என்பது adverb ஆகப் பயன்படுத்தப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.

(இதைத் தொடர்ந்து ‘’Home என்பது இந்த இடத்தில் adverb என்றால் house என்பது ஏன் adverb இல்லை? தவிர இந்த விளக்கம் தெளிவைத் தரவில்லை’’ என்றெல்லாம் விவாதித்த பகுதி – 2, ‘’Go to Home’’ என்றே எழுத வைத்து விட்டது.)

வாசகர்களின் கடிதங்களுக்குப் பின் –

பகுதிகள் 1 & 2 இரண்டும் சேர்ந்து சகலமானவர்களுக்கும் தெரிவிப்பது இதுதான். லாஜிக் எப்படி இருந்தாலும், சமீபத்தில் சில ஆங்கில எழுத்தாளர்கள் வேறுமாதிரி எழுதினாலும், தொன்று தொட்டுப் பயன்பாட்டில் இருப்பது Go Home தான். Go Home தான்.

என்ன … திருப்தி தானே- ?

(தொடர்புக்கு : aruncharanya@gmail.com)

SOURCE::::ஜி.எஸ்.சுப்ரமணியன்  in The Hindu…Tamil

Natarajan