Variety Is The Spice Of Life

Connected, Yet Disconnected

2011-06-16T08:47:00.000+05:30

A life was gone. I didn't know. A condolence message to that friend, which appeared as the recent update on my social networking site took me by shock. I sat to remember the last interaction; it was a birthday post on my friend’s profile.

Social networking sites are the new means of staying connected with friends. School, college, office colleagues, neighbourhood and like-minded people from our profession. The friend list goes on increasing and decreasing, oft and on, as and when, people move in and move out due to their own personal reasons.

However, the question that continued to haunt me was "do we really stay in touch with each and every individual from our friend's list?" I would not have thought about it had it not been for a friend whom I lost recently.

Today that friend is a living profile on the social networking site. Many may be still waiting for the site to update on the individual’s birthday; a day we chose to wish our friends. Here, I search for an appropriate word, “friend”, “acquaintance” or “contact”. Whoever it is, we hardly know most of the people in our endless list.

On the hindsight, social networking site is an excellent platform to build network. This does not necessarily mean emotional connects. A practical approach to life and the concept of “live, and let live” is the rule to live.

I wished for once to reconnect with my dear and near ones. I was happy that I still could get to speak to them over the phone. I knew they were all safe and sound. And that my cyber indulgence is a far cry from reality. A farce of true value of friendship.

Petrol Price Rise Vs. Sentimental Values

2011-05-31T21:40:00.002+05:30

Wish we had foreseen what was coming our way when planning a future to owe a vehicle. The recent rise in the petrol price has affected the set budget for fuel allowances at every home. Reminding very much of mid- life crisis in a human life, mid-May was no different.

The State-owned oil companies had raised the price of petrol by Rs 5 inviting the displeasure of people in India. This morning, a leading newspaper carried another hint at a possible hike in petrol price by Re 1, “if the cost of crude bought by them (State-run oil companies) remains at the current levels.”

Turn of events for good or worse, the petrol vehicle owners, at least a few known to me, were in two minds. “Should we go for a diesel vehicle?” or “Should we change our vehicle into CNG or LPG?” Also, since the situation has triggered from petrol price hike, there was a very thin chance of getting a good price if they were planning to sell off their existing petrol vehicles.

Many of us have learnt to live with the situation by shelling out the recommended prices. “What to do, we have to keep moving” is the utmost we say and do. That’s not all; we continue to indulge in discussions, and purge our repressed energies with little actual solutions.

I could not imagine our priced possession - our car - is suddenly an expensive affair. An artefact representing merely a status symbol in society? In the past few trips that we had taken, our thoughts were vaguely playing with the idea of giving away our small petrol luxury for something more economical.

After one such journey, don’t know what had happened, but instead of walking towards our home I stood there looking at our car. A purple beauty with power steering, high end functionalities, sufficient luggage space and super comfort. It was simply irresistible. Of course, craze for branded cars never fade.

Probably, I have not done anything like this before. However, I realised petrol and diesel hardly mattered to me, but the relationship did matter. The four-wheeler evoked old tales of associations only. From being a part of our friend’s wedding to providing comfortable journey to family, our car has shared every single moment.

There are many such fond memories…

Word Games

2011-02-02T14:21:00.000+05:30

Times have changed; yet, Scrabble continues to be the most sought after games on the internet, mobile phone and computer applications.

Play and Learn With Scrabble

Republic Day Chief Guest

2011-01-27T10:44:00.003+05:30

Republic day celebrations not only evoke the patriotic fervour of the Indian citizens but also open the doors for international tie-ups.

Guest Country and Republic Day

Caste Unaware

2010-09-24T10:36:00.005+05:30

Caste has cast its spell on our lives

That we did not ask for.

For generations, we tried hard to break-free

Yet we could't find permanent solutions

So we learnt to live with the situation.

But why do we have to drag the poor animals

Those are caught unaware in the caste battle?

---

Thanks to the article in Times of India

Dog cast(e) away after dalit touch

A dog's life couldn't get worse. A mongrel brought up in an upper caste home in Morena was kicked out after the Rajput family members discovered that their Sheru had eaten a roti from a dalit woman and was now an "untouchable". Next, Sheru was tied to a pole in the village's dalit locality. His controversial case is now pending with the district collector, the state police and the Scheduled Caste Atrocities po lice station in Morena district of north MP.

Read more:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Dog-caste-away-after-dalit-touch/articleshow/6617039.cms

Mahatma...

2009-11-20T16:42:00.000+05:30

The recent launch of $25,000 limited edition pen from German pen maker Montblanc to mark the 140th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birth did not go well with many Indian citizens.

Can Mahatma Gandhi be used as a marketing machine? Economic Times has a very interesting article, written by Vikram Doctor.

"Gandhi differentiated his appeal from other leaders, using ways of operation (fasts, silent days) that were uniquely his own and developed a unique visual identity. By wearing his dhoti and shawls even in the cold of England, Gandhi demonstrated the importance of brand consistency , even at the risk of his own inconvenience."

Click on the link below for the article......

Can the Mahatma be used as a marketing machine?

Cherish Banarasi Saree

2009-09-22T12:47:00.006+05:30

The Indian handloom and cottage industries has emerged stronger after every unwarranted crisis for years. The past has always sown seeds of hope. The Banarasi saree’s recent geographical indications (GI) status is an achievement worth mentioning.

With this the story of duplication comes under scrutiny as “the GI rights are the intellectual property rights that restrict others from marketing or processing a product in the same name.”

September saw the Banarasi silk product register as the ‘Banaras Brocades and Sarees’ under Geographical Indications (GI) Act.

According to experts “the GI status would benefit about 12 lakh people associated directly or indirectly with the handloom silk industry of the region because it would restrict the misuse of Banarasi saree brand. As per the GI certificate issued by the registrar of GI, the Banaras Brocades and Sarees fall in four classes (13-26) that include silk brocades, textile goods, silk saree, dress material and silk embroidery. The registration is for 10 years and it may be further renewed.”

It is easy to find skilled labour, but maintaining the tradition needs attention and care. Though at the policy level there is a need for protection from cheap silk and powerloom houses, the challenge to reintroduce Banarasi sarees as a brand is not anymore a dream in waiting. The sweat, blood and about eight years struggle of many weavers to restore the lost glory and grandeur of the Banarasi sarees is set to begin a new innings.

Living with Acne | HealthMad

2009-08-22T12:33:00.003+05:30

Living with Acne | HealthMad

Posted using ShareThis

Understanding Medical Tourism | HealthMad

2009-08-19T12:28:00.002+05:30

Understanding Medical Tourism | HealthMad

Posted using ShareThis

Virtual India’s Bhuvan

2009-08-18T14:18:00.001+05:30

Bhuvan, India’s mapping application website has been launched. Working on similar grounds as Google Earth and Wikimapia, Bhuvan is a geoportal that provides medium to high resolution satellite imagery of virtually the entire India. When compared to the rest, this web-based 3D mapping tool, which is a product of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is said to have better zooming properties. “This would provide a user with images having resolution up to 10 metres. The degree of resolution showcased is based on the points of interest and popularity, but most of the Indian terrain is covered up to at least 5.8 metres of resolution with the least spatial resolution being 55 metres.” It is also said that “the user can also navigate through 3D viewing environment. One can “fly” to destinations of choice and even draw 3D objects such as placing of expressive 3D models, 3D polygons and boxes. The site also offers tools to measure horizontal, vertical and aerial distances.” The images on the site are a combination of satellite imagery from various IRS sensors taken “sometime within the last three years during different seasons.” But to browse the website, one has to create an account and download “the Bhuvan Plug-in”. A few days old into the World Wide Web, Bhuvan has a long way to go. As a common man we can hope that it would be a rich and useful source in addressing very local problems including water issues and infrastructure development.

Rich Lifestyle Affects Climate

2009-07-15T21:04:00.003+05:30

According to a study conducted by researchers at Princeton University, rich people and their lifestyles account for a major chunk of the carbon emissions globally. Tackling climatic change has been an ongoing process world around; but who could have imagined that the rich and the wealthy can be one of the causes? “Instead of simply considering carbon emissions on a national or per capita level, the Princeton team proposes a more granular system of climate accounting that would examine the range of individual emissions within countries. Thanks to economic growth, there are well-off people in almost every nation in the world.” The current data says that the world average for tons of carbon dioxide emitted a year per individual is about five tons. Here, while each European produces about 10 tons a year, Americans alone produce twice that amount. A researcher noted that most of the emissions come from lifestyles that involve airplane flights, car use and the heating and cooling of large homes. “And the study doesn’t take into account the carbon that is embedded in imports and exports in global trade. But big developing nations like China – with its rising middle class – won’t be let off the hook either.” Writes Times. It has been estimated that in 2008, half of the world’s emissions came from just 700 million people. Wonder, what one will do, if pleasures and comfort are taken away from life.

Father, My Father

2009-06-24T10:26:00.004+05:30

“I love my daddy. My dad is the best,” you say proudly and so is the story of dads, the world around. Dad, papa, father, no matter how you address him even in your mother tongue, he is the guiding force in a healthy family. The Father’s Day is far gone, but the cards and news stories keep the day alive, and the reasons for me to write. Thanks to Sonora Smart-Dodd, we have an exclusive day - the third Sunday in June - to honour not only our fathers but also those who are our father figures. Though legend says that a Babylonian youth named Elmesu carved the first known Father’s Day card in clay with a special message that wished his father good health and a long life, it was Sonora’s efforts that bore fruit. Sonora’s father William Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran and widower raised his six children single-handedly. For Sonora, it was hero worship. On Mother’s Day, in 1909, when she was listening to the sermons at the church, she got the idea to have a Father’s Day observation. The following year Sonora convinced the local churches and celebrated Father’s Day honouring her father on his birthday. She also encouraged the concept of roses - a red rose was worn for fathers who were still living and a white rose to honour the dead. With time, Father’s Day has been much commercialised and you have an option to choose from a variety of cards and gifts. Interestingly, a National survey (US) shows the evolution of the Father’s Day gift, from Old Spice and leisure suits to DVDs and plasma TVs. Her interest and efforts paid off well, as the then US President proclaimed it a law; and President Richard Nixon in 1972 established a permanent national observance of Father's Day on the third Sunday of June. Today Father’s Day is a universal concept and celebrated across countries.

Do You Miss Zoozoos

2009-05-28T13:42:00.005+05:30

This morning I received an e-mail forward on the "making of ZooZoo", the vodafone ad campaign, a second time in a week. I could not stop myself but go chasing the zoozoo related news. Here, is my writeup... They appeared as the sweet animations we would love to watch again and again. Fresh out of the box and in between the IPL matches, Zoozoo, the dwarf egg-heads, successfully walked straight into the hearts of the viewers. In a short span of time, the new brand ambassadors of Vodafone have become the stars with fan following on the World Wide Web. Interestingly, these characters from Vodafone ad campaign are real people. Vodafone’s new brand ambassadors came alive through Ad-filmmaker Prakash Varma of Nirvana Films, who directed the commercials for Ogilvy and Mathers (O&M). “The practical aspect of how they would talk, gesticulate and emote was very important. It took me three weeks of pre-production work to understand how it would work,” said Prakash in an interview. Today, the zoozoos are celebrities in various social networking sites and have a great fan following. “According to data available here Advertising Age U.S., which tracks the top viral video advertisement (video clip that gains widespread popularity through the process of Internet sharing - e-mail or Instant messaging, blogs and other media sharing websites) campaigns of the world by number of views, has the Vodafone Zoozoo campaign right at the top. For the week of May 11, the Vodafone Zoozoos top the chart at 1.45 million views, way ahead of the second placed campaign. This is the second week in a row that the Vodafone Zoozoos have topped this chart. Last week, the Zoozoos entered the chart at number one, the first time in the world any campaign has done that on its debut. This also marks the first time any ad campaign from India has ever appeared on this chart of the most viewed viral ad campaigns of the world, let alone tops it,” reported Sakaal Times. That’s not all; it has wooed People for Ethical Treatment for Animals (PETA) too. “The popularity of this ad campaign proves that there are many creative ways to convey a message without using animals. Animals used in films are often treated as little more than props, and many suffer terribly behind the scenes.” Vodafone has won the first of PETA’s 2009 Glitterbox Awards, for taking advantage of humane alternatives to the use of real animals in their ZooZoo ads. It has been rightly observed, “If Hutch made Pug the ‘national’ dog, ZooZoos are the new youth icon.” Do you miss them?

Changing Jobs? Well...

2009-05-24T11:47:00.007+05:30

When I was reading this 'interview of a job hopper' that came as an interesting e-mail forward, I felt a need to share with all. I guess at some point of time we had these answers in our minds too... "Interesting.....Don't miss last Questions..." Some, rather most organizations reject his CV today because he has changed jobs frequently (10 in 14 years). My friend, the ‘job hopper’ (referred here as Mr. JH), does not mind it…. well he does not need to mind it at all. Having worked full-time with 10 employer companies in just 14 years gives Mr. JH the relaxing edge that most of the ‘company loyal’ employees are struggling for today. Today, Mr. JH too is laid off like some other 14-15 year experienced guys – the difference being the latter have just worked in 2-3 organizations in the same number of years. Here are the excerpts of an interview with Mr. JH: Q: Why have you changed 10 jobs in 14 years? A: To get financially sound and stable before getting laid off the second time. Q: So you knew you would be laid off in the year 2009? A: Well I was laid off first in the year 2002 due to the first global economic slowdown. I had not got a full-time job before January 2003 when the economy started looking up; so I had struggled for almost a year without job and with compromises. Q: Which number of job was that? A: That was my third job. Q: So from Jan 2003 to Jan 2009, in 6 years, you have changed 8 jobs to make the count as 10 jobs in 14 years? A: I had no other option. In my first 8 years of professional life, I had worked only for 2 organizations thinking that jobs are deserved after lot of hard work and one should stay with an employer company to justify the saying ‘employer loyalty’. But I was an idiot. Q: Why do you say so? A: My salary in the first 8 years went up only marginally. I could not save enough and also, I had thought that I had a ‘permanent’ job, so I need not worry about ‘what will I do if I lose my job’. I could never imagine losing a job because of economic slowdown and not because of my performance. That was January 2002. Q: Can you brief on what happened between January 2003 and 2009. A: Well, I had learnt my lessons of being ‘company loyal’ and not ‘money earning and saving loyal’. But then you can save enough only when you earn enough. So I shifted my loyalty towards money making and saving – I changed 8 jobs in 6 years assuring all my interviewers about my stability. Q: So you lied to your interviewers; you had already planned to change the job for which you were being interviewed on a particular day? A: Yes, you can change jobs only when the market is up and companies are hiring. You tell me – can I get a job now because of the slowdown? No. So one should change jobs for higher salaries only when the market is up because that is the only time when companies hire and can afford the expected salaries. Q: What have you gained by doing such things? A: That’s the question I was waiting for. In Jan 2003, I had a fixed salary (without variables) of say Rs. X p.a. In January 2009, my salary was 8X. So assuming my salary was Rs.3 lakh p.a. in Jan 2003, my last drawn salary in Jan 2009 was Rs.24 lakh p.a. (without variable). I never bothered about variable as I had no intention to stay for 1 year and go through the appraisal process to wait for the company to give me a hike. Q: So you decided on your own hike? A: Yes, in 2003, I could see the slowdown coming again in future like it had happened in 2001-02. Though I was not sure by when the next slowdown would come, I was pretty sure I wanted a ‘debt-free’ life before being laid off again. So I planned my hike targets on a yearly basis without waiting for the year to complete. Q: So are you debt-free now? A: Yes, I earned so much by virtue of job changes for money and spent so little that today I have a loan free 2 BR flat (1200 sq. feet) plus a loan free big car without bothering about any EMIs. I am laid off too but I do not complain at all. If I have laid off companies for money, it is OK if a company lays me off because of lack of money. Q: Who is complaining? A: All those guys who are not getting a job to pay their EMIs off are complaining. They had made fun of me saying I am a job hopper and do not have any company loyalty. Now I ask them what they gained by their company loyalty; they too are laid off like me and pass comments to me – why will you bother about us, you are already debt-free. They were still in the bracket of 12-14 lakh p.a. when they were laid off. Q: What is your advice to professionals? A: Like Narayan Murthy had said – love your job and not your company because you never know when your company will stop loving you. In the same lines, love yourself and your family needs more than the company’s needs. Companies can keep coming and going; family will always remain the same. Make money for yourself first and simultaneously make money for the company, not the other way around. Q: What is your biggest pain point with companies? A: When a company does well, its CEO etc will address the entire company saying, ‘well done guys, it is YOUR company, keep up the hard work, I am with you.” But when the slowdown happens and the company does not do so well, the same CEO etc will say, “It is MY company and to save the company, I have to take tough decisions including asking people to go.” So think about your financial stability first; when you get laid off, your kids will complain to you and not your boss.

I Lost My Job. Could This Be The Reason?

2009-05-21T16:20:00.010+05:30

A friend of mine called up this morning to inform that she has lost her job. She did not cry but her sarcasm-filled tone could repeat nothing but what her immediate boss had to justify. In her words the "gyan-patti"... Guess what? REASON ONE: "The company feels you do not fit the company profile?" She wondered why did the company select me in the first place? REASON TWO: "At the same time I did not get any positive vibes from you?" She laughed, vibes from work or not being too pally with the boss? REASON THREE: "You lack energy." She chuckled, "Energy! I did not know that I was part of a health drink ad?" "But never once, he mentioned I was a bad performer." She added. Once she was finished with her statement, I sat to analyse. Somewhere I felt, the answer lies in the logic. "Your bosses actually find unreasonable reasons to make you leave your job willingly." Probably, these were the reasons cited to save his insecure seat? Summing up from my friends conversation, there appeared three possibilities that you need to check before deciding to join a company. One, It is better to choose a boss who is not of the same age group and experience. Second, if your boss has an ego that cannot distinguish the right and wrong, he sees you as a possible threat. And in recession friends turn foes. Third, your confidence and popularity with the team members gives rise to inferiority and insecurity. Neither she nor anyone, will ever know what turns your bosses off during recession.

2009-03-28T16:42:00.004+05:30

A forward I feel can make a difference. Join the revolution, fight against Global Warming www.earthhour.in 1. What is Earth Hour? - Earth Hour is World Wildlife Fund's global initiative where individuals, businesses and governments turn off their lights for one hour to show their support for action on climate change. - Earth Hour is a symbolic event designed to engage people from all walks of life in the climate change discussion to send a strong message to our political leaders that we want them to take meaningful action on climate change. - The largest climate event in history where millions of people around the world will unite by turning off their lights for one hour, Earth Hour, to demand action on the climate crisis. 2. When is Earth Hour? Earth Hour 2009 takes place on Saturday, March 28, 2009 at 8:30 pm local time. Just like New Year’s Eve, Earth Hour will travel from time zone to time zone starting at 8:30 pm in New Zealand. 3. Which cities have signed up for Earth Hour? Already cities in more than 80 countries around the world have committed to Earth Hour 2009, including Mumbai and New Delhi. Satellite Earth Hours will also be observed in Bangalore, Pune, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Amritsar. 4. What do we hope to accomplish through Earth Hour 2009? - Through Earth Hour, WWF hopes to create political momentum for enacting national climate legislation and a global climate treaty. - Through Earth Hour, WWF will continue to educate and raise awareness about the climate crisis and offer ideas and solutions that people can merge into their daily lives. - Through Earth Hour, WWF aims to unify people’s voices from around the world who are demanding action form our elected officials to solve the climate crisis. 5. What happened during Earth Hour in 2008? - Earth Hour 2008 was an important step in the fight against climate change. Over 50 million people, representing over 400 cities on all seven continents, turned out their lights in the largest climate event of all time. - The movement captured the public's imagination with lights going out at some of the world's most iconic landmarks, including the Sydney Opera House, Bangkok's Wat Arun Buddhist temple, the Coliseum in Rome, Stockholm's Royal Castle, London's City Hall, New York's Empire State Building, Sears Tower in Chicago and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Other symbols going dark included Cola-Cola's famous billboard in Times Square and the Google homepage. 6. Who can participate in Earth Hour? Anyone. Earth Hour is an inclusive event and everyone is invited to participate. WWF will provide tools online to enable any town, community, school, individual or organisation to be part of the event. 7. Why is Earth Hour at 8:30 pm this year instead of 8 pm? As the campaign has grown from one city in one country to a truly global campaign, the time has been moved to allow the maximum number of cities around the world to be suitably dark for the lights out campaign to have greater visual impact. Earth Hour is held around the spring equinox, which ensures nearly equal sunset times in both the northern and southern hemispheres. 8. Do I have to turn off all of my electricity for Earth Hour? Not at all. Through Earth Hour we are asking people to turn off all non-essential lighting. Emergency lighting, televisions and computers can stay on for the hour. The main point of Earth Hour is to unite people, companies and governments around the world through the symbolic flip of a switch. Earth Hour in itself will not lower our carbon footprint, rather, it sends a signal to those in positions of power that we as individuals and communities demand action. The decision on which lights to turn off can be made individually, but it usually involves shutting overhead lights in rooms (whether it is your house or a business), outdoor lighting that does not impact safety, computers, decorative lights, neon signs for advertising, televisions, desk lamps, etc. 9. Will my city go completely black? Earth Hour is not a black-out. It is a voluntary power shutdown of non-essential, decorative lighting by its participants. For businesses in city skyscrapers or for government buildings, it involves turning off the lights at the end of the business day the Friday before Earth Hour and not turning them back on until that Monday morning. So the event will be more of a fadeout to gray than an abrupt shift to black. There is usually no instant dramatic difference, but rather a gradual power shutdown starting the day prior. Earth Hour means turning off non-essential lighting only. Lights necessary for public safety will not go out. 10. Why is WWF dealing with climate change? WWF is committed to saving the planet's most threatened habitats and species, including tigers, rhinos, elephants and polar bears. To do this effectively, WWF must focus on the most imminent threats, climate change being an overarching issue for all of them. Simply put, climate change is a game changer. It threatens to undo the great progress we've been making in conserving the world's most important and most threatened regions and animals.

Love For A Lifetime

2009-02-14T13:49:00.004+05:30

Shobhaa De writes in Spouse, “While (the) wife had ‘adjusted’ to his long absences, he felt quite lonely and said excitedly that he was looking forward to spending the next few days catching up with her life.” Now that’s the kind of life we are all a part of; we get to read about celebrity couples preparing for the V-Day but like them every other person appreciates the essence of the day even though it’s western culture that is getting Indianised. So even though you are very much a part of each other’s life, the much commercialised Valentine’s Day gives you the chance to express your feelings. No more do you get butterflies-in-the-stomach; it’s just the desire to spend the whole day together and revel in nostalgia. Studies of dating and engaged couples find that feelings of passion and infatuation tend to fade quickly in the first year, and a year or two later often it’s all gone. By then love takes a new meaning. You learn to accept situations, circumstances and make sacrifices along with a lot of give and take to keep the relationship going. Gradually, love, marriage, children and with growing responsibilities, forty becomes an age to participate in work and more work. There are days when you don’t take time to be with your beloved or just touch and reassure your feelings. With time every relationship gets caught in the ‘taken for granted’ syndrome. You know you love but hardly get time to put forward your thoughts and feelings. And then it is stealing time to relax and spend time together, just the two of you. Of course nothing is easy and so is finding true love in your valentine. The beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder and as psychologist Robert Sternberg puts it, if you have the three ingredients of love - intimacy, commitment and passion - the relationship is going to last forever. Excerpts from Article published in btw, Love's Labour Found by Deeya Nayar-Nambiar

Four Indians in Forbes

2009-02-05T17:28:00.001+05:30

The economic slowdown has not got all the Indians trickling down in the latest list of Forbes’ world’s wealthiest CEOs. According to a list of 10 wealthiest CEOs compiled by Forbes magazine, Reliance Industries (RIL) chief Mukesh Ambani is the third-richest chief executive in the world. The other Indians to follow are Lakshmi Mittal, Anil Ambani and Sunil Mittal. “Being a CEO isn’t what it used to be. Crackdowns on corporate frills like private jets and over-the-top offices have become the norm, taking some of the fun - but none of the stress - out of running billion-dollar businesses. “While some chief executives’ jobs may be in peril, these 10 have stuck it out long enough to partake in what’s left of the global economy. These have made our annual list of the world’s wealthiest CEOs,” Forbes said. Despite a 62 per cent drop in RIL share prices since last year, Mukesh Ambani climbed up three places in the 2009 rankings. For steel baron Lakshmi Mittal, who heads ArcelorMittal, it was a slip down to the fourth position from second. While Sunil Mittal of Bharti Airtel has joined the league at ninth position, Wipro chief Azim Premji is out of the race. Interestingly, the total number of Indians on the list have remained unchanged at four this year too. “To compile our list for 2009, we looked at chief executive officers and managing directors (a title that sometimes denotes the top leadership position at corporations outside the US) of public companies the world over and ranked them according to the size of their stakes in the businesses they run,” Forbes said. Yet the undisputed wealthiest chief executive is once again, the American billionaire investor Warren Buffett. “Due to the difficulty of pinning down private holdings in the midst of volatile market swings, we excluded CEOs of private companies from our rankings. We also excluded individuals’ private holdings. Full net-worth estimates will be available in March, when we release our annual list of the world’s billionaires,” Forbes added.

Bible and American President

2009-01-22T18:35:00.003+05:30

Barack Obama, the 44th President of United States is the first US president to swear on the Bible that Abraham Lincoln used for his 1861 inauguration. In the US, presidents are not constitutionally required to be sworn in using a Bible, though most presidents have traditionally used one to take oath of office. It was George Washington, the first president of United States of America who began this practice. He borrowed a Bible from St. John’s Lodge No. 1. Chester A. Arthur in 1881 and Theodore Roosevelt in 1901, were some exceptions as they did not use a Bible. Similarly, when Kennedy was assassinated, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson assumed the job of president and took the oath of office aboard “SAM 26000”- Air Force One in 1963. Since there was no Bible in the plane, he used a Roman Catholic missal (contains religious services). The popular choice till date has been George Washington’s Bible. It has been used by Warren Harding, Dwight Eisenhower and George W Bush. Some others like Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton have opted for personal Bibles. While Nixon used two Bibles belonging to his family, Clinton chose his grandmother’s. The Lincoln Bible, an 1853 Oxford University Press edition, will be on display at the Library of Congress from Feb 12 to May 9 as part of an exhibition for the 200th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth. No matter what the rule says, the presidents continue the tradition to finish the oath of office with the words “So help me God”.

It's Wikipeida's Day

2009-01-15T13:44:00.005+05:30

Wikipedia turns 8 today. The free, multilingual encyclopaedia, launched in January 15, 2001, is currently the most popular general reference work on the Internet. The articles, said to be about 12 million in count has 2.6 million in English. The volunteers around the world have written collaboratively on these articles, and almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone who can access the Wikipedia website. They remain anonymous too. “Consequently, Wikipedia "makes no guarantee of validity" of its content.” Wikipedia.org was opened on donated bandwidth and server and its first article appeared on January 16. UuU, said to be the oldest article, contains the earliest surviving edit on the Wikipedia. When Time recognized “You” as its “Person of the Year for 2006”, the magazine listed websites like YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Wikipedia as media that allowed users to interact with the web by uploading and publishing their own comments, videos, pictures and links. According to studies Wikipedia is among the ten most visited websites worldwide. A good portion of the searches made on Internet is related to academic research and about 50 percent of search engine traffic to Wikipedia comes from Google. No wonder, Wikipedia’s audience have shot up to 9.5 million from 6.3 million.

Help Yourself, Love Yourself

2009-01-10T11:09:00.002+05:30

Published in: http://ezinearticles.com/?Chapters-of-Life A self-help book comes in print. It becomes the best seller. The book shows us the things we know and guides us to follow it. It is a source to help you to lead a better life. Many read and follow the book to be better human beings and to be able to improve their life. But many others turn critics and ponder on as to why it had to sell when there is nothing new in the book. Agreeing with the critics, when put to think, you would be the first to comment, “The writer has just written all that we know.” But still you do not put it to practice. You are right when you say you know it all. The only difference is - these are the simple lessons of life you do not take into consideration as necessary. Instead, you love to find fault with others, and read the book with enthusiasm hoping to improve your own life. You are blind to your imperfection. You do not even take time to think, “Maybe I went wrong somewhere?” Indeed it is human tendency to feel jealous and indulge in self-pity when you miss a great opportunity; or when going gets tough. Yet, often you do not mend your way. You like to complain and hold someone else responsible for your mistakes. The chapters of life are very simple. - Love yourself first, before anything else. If you learn to love you, as who you are, loving others will follow soon. You may be talented, skilled and extremely efficient; but you feel your friend or sister is doing better. In this unwanted competition you fail to see your achievements. You lose out to yourself, giving others an opportunity, to further pull you down. - I came alone, I will go alone. Others are needed for my existence. Often you are faced with situations where you are all alone. When you fall sick, you are the only one who can take care of your body. Family and friends act as support systems, which help you to recover. This is just one example. There are many that you face on a day to day basis. The moment you realise the significance of your existence, you will learn to depend on yourself before looking out for someone to depend on. This will help you to become stronger to face tougher situations. - Look at the positive side of things. There are times when, whatever you lay hands on becomes hard to achieve. You refuse to give up, and fight back, because you know that you are gaining in the process. If you stop seeing the glass as half empty, you have miles to go. But always remember to be positive, read, write and spread positivity around. You will feel good and happy too. Even people you come across will be happy to have you around. - Learn to accept the situations and people as they are. You will never have an answer for, “Why this happened to me?” You do not have that much time to ponder and brood over it. The best solution then would be to accept it the way it is, and learn to adjust and accommodate yourself to every situation. For example, you work really hard on your office presentation that could decide your promotion. It is well received and appreciated by your management and co-workers. But when the promotion list is out, your name does not appear in it. You feel miserable, sad and unhappy. You wish not to return to the office anymore. When you do not have a job in hand, instead of creating a scene in public, think and act. Accept the situation as it is. And continue to be a part of it, till your turn comes - a new job if lucky, otherwise change your outlook and work for the organisation. - It is easier to change the way you see things than change the situation or people. You may question “Why only I need to change, when others are not making any attempts?” Simple, you have to live in the situation with the people. Of course, it is easy to teach children the book of life, but once you are in the path of being an adult or adulthood, making attempts to teach is futile. Self-help is the best help for a successful living. A little change in your attitude with a minor adjustment to the environment, you will find peace of mind and happiness taking the reign of your life.

New Year Facts

2008-12-31T18:41:00.006+05:30

A very Happy New Year.... Some facts that I found informative... - January is named after the Roman god Janus (Latin word for door) who is said to have two faces that allows him to look both backwards into the old year and forward into the New Year at the same time. - The Gregorian calendar as promulgated in 1582 did not specify that January 1 was to be either New Year’s Day or the first day of its numbered year. - Traditionally a religious feast, but since the 1900s New Year’s Eve, the night of December 31, has become an occasion for celebration. - In the United States, the common image used is that of Father Time (or the “Old Year”) wearing a sash across his chest with the previous year printed on it passing on his duties to the Baby New Year (or the “New Year”), an infant wearing a sash with the new year printed on it. - The New Year’s Day Parade is the biggest New Year street event annually held on January 1 in London. The parade is used to raise funds for charities. - The New Year Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra that takes place in the morning of January 1 in Vienna, Austria is broadcast around the world to an estimated audience of one billion in 44 countries. - In Sydney, Australia, the world’s largest fireworks display draws 1-1.5 million people to the harbour. - It is said that New Year is the most important holiday in Japan. Most businesses shut down from January 1 to January 3, and families typically gather to spend the days together. - Interestingly, January 1 is the World Day for Prayer for Peace.

It's X'Mas Facts

2008-12-24T15:06:00.003+05:30

“Even before the holiday season, the 2008 recession hurt package carriers - and dearly. The U.S. Postal Service lost $2.8 billion for the year ended Sept. 30 despite $2 billion in cost-cutting measures. Total revenue was flat at $75 billion even though postal rates increased. But the volume of mail handled dropped 4.5 percent to 202.7 billion pieces, the news report said.” Yet there is no recession when it comes to interesting facts on Christmas. The Internet had many to offer, but I selected a few that I felt was, probably, less known. 1. A Christmas club, a savings account in which a person deposits a fixed amount of money regularly to be used at Christmas for shopping, came into being around 1905 2. Christmas trees are edible. It is said that, many parts of pines, spruces, and firs can be eaten. The needles are a good source of vitamin C. Pine nuts, or pine cones, are also a good source of nutrition 3. The biggest selling Christmas single of all time is Bing Crosby’s White Christmas 4. Santa Claus was the world’s richest fictional character, in 2006, according to Forbe’s list of the “Forbes Fictional 15” 5. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a 20th century invention by the Montgomery Ward Company, operators of a chain of department stores. It was a promotional gimmick for the Christmas shoppers 6. Sixty year old James Worley with his natural white beard and big belly was mistaken for Santa Claus for years. But Disney World that he visited wanted to preserve the magic of Santa as “Santa was considered a Disney character” and so Worley was ordered to stop looking like Santa...even though it wasn’t a costume 7. Every year the US Postal Service issues US Christmas stamps. Interestingly, the theme of the stamp has often been Madonna and Child 8. Christmas Island in Indian Ocean, discovered on Christmas day in 1643, marked 50 years in 2007, since Britain detonated its first fully operational H- bomb, code-named Grapple X 9. Singing Christmas carols was banned at two major malls in Florida in 1996 as the shoppers and merchants complained that the carollers were too loud and took up too much space 10. Few modern readers realise that Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol was written during a time of decline in the old Christmas traditions

Interesting Facts: Honey and Cinnamon

2008-12-15T20:09:00.001+05:30

Sometimes the forwards are not just fun but great piece of information too. It is not only interesting but also useful. Here, honey and cinnamon has reasons to keep you happy. It is found that a mixture of honey and cinnamon cures most Diseases. Honey is produced in most of the countries of the world. Scientists of today also accept honey as a “Ram Ban” (very effective) medicine for all kinds of diseases. Honey can be used without any side effects for any kind of diseases. Today’s science says that even though honey is sweet, if taken in the right dosage as a medicine, it does not harm diabetic patients. Weekly World News, a Magazine in Canada, on its issue dated 17 January, 1995 has given the following list of diseases that can be cured by honey and cinnamon as researched by western scientists: HEART DISEASES: Make a paste of honey and cinnamon powder, apply on bread, instead of jelly and jam, and eat it regularly for breakfast. It reduces the cholesterol in the arteries and saves the patient from heart attack. Also, those who have already had an attack, if they do this process daily they are kept miles away from the next attack. Regular use of the above process relieves loss of breath and strengthens the heart beat. In America and Canada, various nursing homes have treated patients successfully and have found that as you age, the arteries and veins lose their flexibility and get clogged; honey and cinnamon revitalise the arteries and veins. ARTHRITIS: Arthritis patients may take daily, morning and night, one cup of hot water with two spoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. If taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured. In a research conducted at the Copenhagen University, the doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon honey and half teaspoon cinnamon powder before breakfast. They found that within a week, out of the 200 people so treated, practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain; and within a month, mostly all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis started walking without pain. BLADDER INFECTIONS: Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it. It destroys the germs in the bladder. TOOTHACHE: Make a paste of one teaspoon of cinnamon powder and five teaspoons of honey and apply on the aching tooth. This may be applied three times a day until the tooth stops aching. CHOLESTEROL: Two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of cinnamon powder mixed in 16 ounces of tea water, given to a cholesterol patient were found to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood by 10 per cent within two hours. As mentioned for arthritic patients, if taken three times a day, any chronic cholesterol is cured. According to information received in the said Journal, pure honey taken with food daily relieves complaints of cholesterol COLDS: Those suffering from common or severe colds should take one tablespoon lukewarm honey with 1/4 spoon cinnamon powder daily for three days. This process will cure most chronic cough, cold, and clear the sinuses. UPSET STOMACH: Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ache and also clears stomach ulcers from the root. GAS: According to the studies done in India and Japan, it is revealed that if honey is taken with cinnamon powder the stomach is relieved of gas. IMMUNE SYSTEM: Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder strengthens the immune system and protects the body from bacterial and viral attacks. Scientists have found that honey has various vitamins and iron in large amounts. Constant use of honey strengthens the white blood corpuscles to fight bacterial and viral diseases. INDIGESTION: Cinnamon powder sprinkled on two tablespoons of honey taken before food relieves acidity and digests the heaviest of meals. INFLUENZA: A scientist in Spain has proved that honey contains a natural ingredient which kills the influenza germs and saves the patient from flu. LONGEVITY: Tea made with honey and cinnamon powder, when taken regularly, arrests the ravages of old age. Take four spoons of honey, one spoon of cinnamon powder and three cups of water and boil to make like tea. Drink 1/4 cup, three to four times a day. It keeps the skin fresh and soft and arrests old age. Life spans also increases and even a 100 year old, starts performing the chores of a 20-year-old. PIMPLES: Three tablespoons of honey and one teaspoon of cinnamon powder paste. Apply this paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash it next morning with warm water. If done daily for two weeks, it removes pimples from the root. SKIN INFECTION: Applying honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts on the affected parts, cures eczema, ringworm and all types of skin infections. WEIGHT LOSS: Drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one cup of water daily, in the morning - one half hour before breakfast - on an empty stomach and at night before sleeping. If taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet. CANCER: Research in Japan and Australia has revealed that advanced cancer of the stomach and bones have been cured successfully. Patients suffering from these kinds of cancer should daily take one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder for one month three times a day. FATIGUE: Studies have shown that the sugar content of honey is more helpful rather than being detrimental to the strength of the body. Senior citizens, who take honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts, are more alert and flexible. Dr Milton, who has done research, says that a half tablespoon of honey taken in a glass of water and sprinkled with cinnamon powder, taken daily after brushing and in the afternoon at about 3 p.m. ( when the vitality of the body starts to decrease), it increases the vitality of the body within a week. BAD BREATH: People of South America, first thing in the morning, gargle with one teaspoon of honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water, so their breath stays fresh throughout the day. HEARING LOSS: Having honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts daily - morning and night –helps restore hearing.

World AIDS Day

2008-12-03T13:12:00.006+05:30

It was World AIDS Day on first December. In fact, 2008 marks the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. The theme for World AIDS Day (2007-08) was "Lead - Empower -Deliver". It was promoted with the campaigning slogan, "Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise". Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or AIDS is a medical condition that is caused when the virus, called Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV), infects a healthy body. "The concept of a World AIDS Day originated at the 1988 World Summit of Ministers of Health on Programmes for AIDS Prevention. Since then, every year UN agencies, governments and all sectors of civil society worldwide join together to campaign around specific themes related to AIDS." AIDS was first reported in 1981 in the United States (in homosexual men in Los Angeles); it is believed to have originated in sub-Saharan Africa. A recent study states that HIV probably moved from Africa to Haiti, and then around 1969, entered the United States. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), extensive spread of HIV appears to have begun in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The disease did not have a name then. And the general press called it GRID, which stood for Gay-related immune deficiency. But the disease infected both men and women alike. Therefore, in 1982 a new name was coined. It was called AIDS. - A for Acquired, means that, the disease develops after birth from contact with a disease causing agent (HIV). It is not hereditary. - ID for Immunodeficiency, means that, the disease is characterised by a weakening of the immune system. In other words, the system in human body which fights diseases is weakened. - S for Syndrome refers to, a group of symptoms that collectively indicate the disease, where in the infected human body will have a group of health problems. In 2007, an estimated 33.2 million people lived with the disease worldwide, and it killed an estimated 2.1 million people, including 330,000 children. According to our National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), out of a total of 27,332 people who committed suicide due to illness, 952 had AIDS or other sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Among AIDS or STD patients who committed suicide, 334 were women. The maximum number of people who took their life in this category was in the age group of 30 to 44 years. Seven boys and three girls below 14 years also "committed suicide" as they had AIDS or STD, the report said. There is still no report of a complete cure for AIDS. But the AIDS stigma around the world is something that can be worked upon and cured too.