Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep Islands named as “Hope Spots” by IUCN

Indiscriminate and irrational use of natural resources in the guise of development has already caused a great damage to the global ecosystem. There is rampant air, water and land pollution. Several conservations plans have been initiated worldwide to contain the damage. One such concerted effort is the declaration of the Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands as new “hope spots” at the third International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Oceanographer Sylvia Earle of Mission Blue. The main objective of this congress has been to protect the rapidly disappearing of the exquisite marine fauna and flora.

Hope Spots are a brain-Child of the frontier marine biologist Sylvia Earle who lead more than 50 sea expeditions and recipient of the TED 2009 prize. With TED’s support she initiated Mission Blue which aims to establish the marine protected areas “Hope Spots”. She was described by Time as the “Hero for the Planet” and “Her Deepness” by the New Yorker and New York Times. She worked tirelessly for nearly four decades the conservation of the marine life. She is an advocate of world oceans and the underwater life. She voices out the urgent need for an awakening among public about the importance of maintaining the health of oceans and the significant role they play in our lives.  Hope spots are the places in the ocean that merit special protection because of their unique wildlife and habitats.  They are the places where human activities and impacts will be minimised. Subsequently the unique and vital ecosystems within Hope Spots will have a chance to recover and to flourish. Each hope spot has been chosen for their geographical uniqueness, its diversity of marine life and its exceptional habitat. Hence full protection of these vital areas must become a global priority.  Hot spots are the areas which provide a breathing space to the ocean. The areas help to recover and rejuvenate from the human activities that have highly impacted the fragile ecosystem of the ocean. These are termed as hope spots since revival and conservation of these spots would offer real offer for restoring imperilled health of oceans.

IMPAC-3 held at Marseille, France was attended by around 1200 scientist and marine biologists from different countries proposed plans for the conservation and sustainable development of Oceans. The Congress has announced a bold plan for the inclusion of 31 new Mission blue hope spots to the already existing list of 17 places on the list.  These places are spread all over the globe and experts believe that marine protection is necessary for a substantial future.  The congress has set an agenda for “Marine Protected Area with a keen focus on the management, financing, ecological representativity, local integration and high seas stewardship”. Earth is referred to as Blue planet and the heart of our planet are Oceans. Around 12% of the land is under various worldwide Conservation programmes (like the national parks, reserve forests, heritage sites etc) whereas only 1% of Ocean area is protected.

Oceans generate about 70% of oxygen and sequester the carbon dioxide, thus maintaining equilibrium and reducing the spiralling effects of the global warming. They also regulate the climate, chemistry and weather of the planet. Over 2/3 rd of earth is ocean and its volume represents 90% of living space. Hence there is dire need to create and build networks of marine protected areas, maintain healthy diversity, provide carbon sink, generate life-giving oxygen, preserve critical habitat and permit eco-tourism that cause minor impact on the ocean life.

Hope spots are of utmost importance presently as experts in marine biology and conservation believe that we are just at the sweet time where corrective steps can revive the Ocean’s health. With this firm hope IUCN, Mission Blue is mobilising international agencies as stakeholders in averting further damage and destruction to the fragile marine habitats.

Andaman Nicobar Islands have a very high degree of biodiversity and are characterised by flora and fauna which are endemic. The islands are home for 270 species of birds, 14 of which are endemic and have 2200 varieties of plants. It has a vast collection of butterflies of moths, nearly 225 species could be found on the islands. The islands have 6 national parks and 94 wild life sanctuaries. These islands have the richest fringing coral reefs of Indian subcontinent. This kind of coral reefs grow directly from a shore and hence increased human activity, siltation, effluent discharge and intensive agriculture might lead to their decimation. Coral reefs offer protection to the coast line against soil erosion and also harbour host of animals like fishes, molluscs, sponges, echinoderms, crabs, lobsters, sea anemones and other organisms.

Lakshadweep is a cluster of 39 islands and islets. These are called Indian Coral islands and have the largest group of atolls. Atolls are circular Oceanic reef system surrounding a large central lagoon. A lagoon is a wide band of water that lies between shore and main area of reef development. The island has unique collection of corals, seaweeds, gastropods, bivalves and 101 species of birds; nearly 600 flowering species have been identified. Atolls are unique kind of coral formations found mostly in the Indo-Pacific regions. Another region Maldive Atoll in India has been listed as a hope spot and four more are included in proposed list.

 

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

India's Stint With The Red Planet

The much awaited Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) or Mangalyaan has been delayed by a week and the new launch date is November 5^th (mangalwar) 14:36 IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. India is using its most trusted launch vehicle, PSLV-C25 an XL variant of the launcher. For any nation– For any nation, initiation of any project for Mars is technologically exacting as it demands understanding and executing interplanetary aerodynamics with extreme precision. It throws up a challenge to India to develop the required technical skills across a wide spectrum of cutting edge technologies and to test them. Moreover, it will be India’s first attempt to understand and work through the deep interplanetary region and Martian gravitational force as this satellite has to be placed 360,000,000 Km from earth. For the satellite to be placed in Mars orbit, it has to overcome the earth’s gravitational force and enter the heliosphere, the region of Sun’s gravity before entering the Mars gravitational field. It is 300 days journey with three distinct phases-Geo-centric phase, Heliocentric phase and the most crucial Martian phase.

In order to take the advantage of the unique planetary position India planned to launch Mangalyaan on October 28^th . The decision to delay the launch of the Mars Orbiter is due to the bad weather conditions in the South Pacific Ocean. Two ships SCI Nalanda and SCI Yamuna leased from Shipping Corporation of India to study the crucial phase of satellite ejection. Nalanda carrying the satellite tracking system has failed to reach Fiji on Oct 21^st. From Fiji both ships have to travel to their designated locations, for tracking the position of the rocket. While one ship tracks ignition, other will track the satellite separation. The crucial journey of the satellite from Earth to Mars will be tracked by the Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) from Baylalu on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The time of Mars capture, navigation and communication will be tracked by the 70m antennae of NASA’s deep space network located at Canberra. NASA’s Jet Propulsion laboratory (JPL) has promised to provide navigation and communication support to this mission with their deep space network facilities. ISRO had some tense moments before launch following the financial shutdown in US as it relied on NASA’s deep space network. But NASA allayed ISRO’s fears and assured complete support.

Initially ISRO planned to launch a 500kg satellite with scientific payload of 25kg using the GSLV, but due to its failure they have scaled down the project. The current Mars Orbiter has 15kg payload which contains five scientific instruments to map, scan and analyse the surface of mars and its atmosphere. These include a methane scanner, capable of scanning the entire Martian disc within six minutes and a mars colour camera. Initial reports on Martian atmosphere suggested the presence of Methane clouds. Methane gas analysis is done as it indicates the existence of life on Mars. But presence of Methane gas on Mars is still largely debated. The space craft Curiosity of NASA which landed on the Gale Crater has failed to detect methane in six samples. The upper limit of methane in the atmosphere was estimated to be 1.3 parts per billion by volume which is several folds lesser than the estimates made by satellite and telescopic observations. In March 2003 a research team led by Micheal J Mumma of NASA Goddard Space flight Centre has observed a big plume emanating gases from certain locations. Based on those observations they have accounted for the presence of 19,000 tonnes of methane. But the amount has become half by January 2006. Scientists believed that the sunlight might have caused the breakdown of the gas. Since the lifetime of methane gas is more than 300 years this observation is highly contested. Methane is much lighter and might have escaped into the higher levels of the atmosphere composed mostly of carbon dioxide and perhaps Curiosity couldn’t detect it. Indian sensor aboard can detect the methane up to a level of 10 parts per billion of volume. If the methane gets mixed with the Martian atmosphere, then it may not be able to record any measurements. But if indeed any sporadic eruptions occur when the Orbiter races around the planet, sensor can detect the gas erupting from the plumes, subsequently providing valuable inputs to solve the methane puzzle of Mars.

The Liquid Apogee Motor will propel the Orbiter from earth’s orbit hurtling it past towards Mars. The space craft will be placed in an elliptical orbit at closet distance of 377 km from Mars. The main focus is to study climate, geology of Mars, to assess its suitability for life by exploring the presence of groundwater aquifers, effect of solar wind on Mar’s atmosphere and the surface magnetic field. By Nov 30^th Orbiter has to leave the earth’s sphere of influence, otherwise it has to wait for 26 months for the next launch. The present mission is more challenging when compared to Chandrayaan, as it has argument of perigee of 270 degrees, which requires longer flight and different trajectory. It is to use minimum fuel to transfer from Earth’s orbit to Mar’s orbit.

The major challenges in the current interplanetary mission are critical mission operations and stringent requirements of propulsion, communication and other bus system of space craft. The basic technological learning from this mission are designing and realising a space craft capable of reaching Mars (Martian transfer trajectory), and orbiting around Mars (Mars Orbit insertion) which will take about 9 months after circling around the Earth for 20-22 days. The maximum earth to mars Round trip Light Time (RLT) is 42 min. It takes 21 min for a signal from earth to reach mars and vice versa. Hence communication with the satellite becomes extremely daunting task. The satellite has to be loaded with commands in advance so that it can take care of itself.

The successful launch of the 1350kg of Mars Orbiter would ensure India’s entry into the elite club of nations -USA, Russia and Europe, which have made explorations to the red planet. US, Russia and European Space Agency (ESA) are the predecessors who have either independently or in collaboration have placed their spacecrafts in the celestial bodies. This mission assumes greater importance as Asian giant China in 2011 had to abort the launch of its space craft Yinghou-1 to Mars due to a technical problem. World media is wondering whether this is beginning of an ongoing Asean space race between China, Japan and India.

Earliest attempts to explore the red planet were the result of the ongoing space race between the US and USSR in early 1960. USSR failed to launch its satellite Marsnik 1 in 1960 but US’s Mariner 4 could fly by the Mars planet. NASA has been successful in sending two rover crafts to Mars, Curiosity and Pathfinder that have started probing the Martian surface, its atmosphere, soil composition and other aspects.

 

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

 

“Haier”: The Un-Chinese Business Giant

Sometimes inspiring stories of the Industries or individuals attaining marked success gives enough courage to dream big. The steady progress made by Haier in the field of electronic appliances is remarkable. Till now, because of its exceptional standards, quality, reputation in International market circles I thought it was either Japanese or a Korean company. But I was wrong; it stands as a towering example of sheer Chinese excellence and diligent work.

The phenomenal growth and success of the company can be attributed mainly to its strict adherence to the quality, deliverance of services and out of box thinking. The working style is quite different. What has started as small fridge factory in narrow shambolic walls of Quingdao province has rose to the peaks of World’s biggest appliance maker. After Zhang Ruimin acquired the charge of the manager of the firm, he strived hard to change the perception of people about Chinese products to be mere cheap imitated products. His initial stint of working in Germany, a country obsessed with quality has made a deep impact on his mind. The revenue of the Haier Group has reached $160 billion mark, quadrupling its revenues in 12years. He sensationalised the nation when he openly hammered some 76 defective fridges on the roads at the outset of his tenure way back in 1985. This marked the beginning of the great transformation set to unfold.

Now he prospects the thought of doing away completely with the middle management as he believes that it is salubrious to the growth of the firm. He never advocated conventional wisdom. Unlike his other Chinese business compatriots, he began marketing his products directly in the developed countries as against the norm of venturing first into competitive markets of South East Asia or Africa. This company has far exceeded the standards set by the Japanese bodies even and cast a steady lead over the leading brands. It is rated among the top 8 most innovative firms of the world marching ahead of the Amazon. The company has changed the style of working by splitting the employees into groups of 2000zi zhu jing ying ti (ZZJYTS). They are self- managed teams and each of them is responsible for profit and loss and individuals are paid as per their performance. Employees are encouraged to come up with innovative ideas and if he is able to work it out, he will emerge as the winner of the team and becomes project leader. Zhang believes that an unsteady and dynamic environment is the best way to keep everyone flexible. As a raising firm in the internet age he assigns great emphasis to customer feedback, their changing requirements, interests. He incorporates the necessary changes in their products and thus the company stays ahead in the electronic market.

“If we don’t challenge ourselves, someone else will” seems to be business motto of the unrelenting Haier’s Godfather.

The Geronimo Stilton Series

Of late my seven year old son has been pestering me to buy him books. It was such a huge relief for me as previously I used to persuade him to start the habit of reading story books and fairy tales that have impressive illustrations. I don't know how he discovered the children fiction series by Geronimo Stilton. The series is such a popular hit among the kids. Even for the autumn break home work, he chose the Geronimo Stilton series as recommended by his seniors and he was incredibly happy as I continued reading to him. An enthusiastic reader myself and with a little bit curiosity,  I have decided to read the at least one of the books myself. The pleasure of reading children’s book was extraordinary. I picked up the Race Across the America title.

Right from the first page I couldn’t stop myself from admiring the way the characters are introduced in the book. It appears a lot of emphasis is given, with an intention to teach the kids, on the distinctive words that are used in the story every time. They are highlighted in special way-in special colour fonts- different to attract the reader’s attention. The kid would invariably stop and look for the meaning. In general, the series is specially written, formatted and designed for children in age group of 6-12 with attractive illustrations that makes reading a thrilling experience.

Coming to the story itself, the main character of this series is Mr. Geronimo Stilton, a rodent, who is the publisher of a famous newspaper on the Mouse Island, The Rodent Gazette. He lives in the New Mouse city and is a voracious reader.  He likes a quiet and subdued life but ends up in an irresistible adventure of racing across the America on bicycle due to coercion by his close friend Bruce Hyena who is a sportiest mouse. Though it was a tough ordeal for him to undergo regular and tough training regime, he takes up the race not to disappoint his nine year old cousin, Benjamin Stilton. Hence he had to cycle race rather unwillingly.

The book has fantastic information about almost everything that has to deal with bicycles: how they were introduced for the very first time in France to the most advanced racing bikes. This information is presented in a lucid and crisp language suitable for children of age group the series is meant for. The adventures of cycling across the country and its benefits are also neatly described. Moreover, the strength of working in the team is beautifully illustrated in the book and attempts to teach the reader how the team members have sincerely delivered their tasks to clinch victory in the race. Apart from cycling, all the major landmarks travelled during the race were detailed during the course of the story like the Grand Canyon, river Mississippi, Miracle rock, Monument Valley, Ear of the Wind etc., with an intention to introduce all these historical places of importance to the kids. The narration was in a classic flow that children would find it really interesting and informative as well.

I was simply impressed by the language and needless to say, the book is a recommended reading even for adults who will thoroughly enjoy reading this book and the series for improving their vocabulary. Congruently, it helps the reader to learn the art of using the right word at the right place and context making them adept in their oral and writing skills. For a parent like me reading this book has helped to decipher the tenderness of children’s heart. The kind of children fiction encompassed with adventure was handy to understand how children would respond to different new activities. The ending of this book would particularly leave an indelible impression on children’s mind as the Geronimo and his friends decide to dedicate their victory for the cause of the mouselings suffering from leukaemia. They raise massive funds for their health care and hence the enormous challenge he accepted was worth it. The honest convictions in their actions was heart a touching story and I am sure children would at least cultivate the habit of working for and helping others.

The Geronimo Stilton series of books are a massive hit among children. The character was first created by Elisabetta Dami, who is extremely adventurous and loves writing fiction, especially adventure stories for children. The stories were originally written in Italian and they were soon translated into 35 languages. The first book came out in 2000. Scholastic corporation has started publishing these series in English from 2004.

It has been an excellent experience to read children’s book. Just like their sublime hearts the characters are naive the plots are mysterious and the experiences are magical. It was like a voyage to the mystical dreamy fairy land....Hope the children of the present generation who are gadget savvy explore the inexplicable enchantment of reading books.

 

 

 

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

The race is on, can India sustain????????

Vroom......vroom!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Buddh International Circuit (BIC) at the Gautam Buddh Nagar in Greater Noida is going to be abuzz with activity this weekend. The 5.14 km long race track which has 16 turns and is spread over a sprawling 875 acres land has a seating capacity of nearly 100,000. Yes, the Formula 1 race is back in Indian sub-continent on 25-27 October 2013, and perhaps for the last time. Two years back the track was first inaugurated amid fanfare by the Indian Formula 1 champion Narayan Kartikeyan when he warmed up the track with great enthusiasm igniting the aspirations of lakhs of F1 fans in India to watch a race live on the track. The track had also received accolades for its international standards and engineering marvels, and elevated India to a high profile status in the motor sport world. But now the glory seems to be short lived as rumours are high and dry this weekend may witness the last race.

Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone confirmed that F1 had a five year deal with the Jaypee Group and wanted the race to be held in the first half of the year, whereas Jaypee insisted the race to be conducted in the month of October. Although the Group had its way in the first two years, with newer circuits appearing in the calendar and F1 teams reluctant for more races, the Jaypee Group is expected to conduct the race in March 2014. This obviously is difficult for the Jaypee Group to conduct a race in October 2013 and March 2014 again, with the race not in 2014 calendar now. Further the Jaypee group has to shell out $40 million (237.7 crores) for every race towards Buddh International Circuit as licensing fee to the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

 

If the gossip in F1 circles is to be believed, Bernie Ecclestone, who has been controlling the F1 for 40 years, is not happy with taxation policy and the red tape in India as hard lobbying is needed to reinstate the track for the sporting event in the year 2015 calendar. But owing to the economic slump the chances for further persuasions by the F1 lobbies appears to be bleak. Moreover, with two more tracks going to add up to the existing races in the forth coming calendar year- the Black Sea resort of Sochi in Russia and a Grand Prix in New Jersey, US. Austria is too pitching to make a comeback after 11 year break. Since the sport if expanding it base and gaining popularity from new corners, India has to be alert to stay put in the highly competitive event card. On the other hand, owing to the enormous potential of Indian fan base, F1 organisers can also not afford to discontinue the races in India An understanding the sport and the engineering involved indicate why the sport is so exciting.

Formula 1 is the highest class of single seated auto racing sanctioned by the FIA. A typical F1 season includes different races in a calendar year, called Grands Prix meaning great prizes in French and is conducted on specially engineered circuits and public roads across different countries. The race drivers, constructor’s team, track officials, organisers and circuit should be holders of valid Super licences issued by the FIA. No doubt it is one of the most glamorous sports.

Success in Formula 1 unlike other sports is not absolutely dependent on the tenacity and the sportsmanship of the driver. It is a marquee sport and the long term standing depends on tactfully designing the car based on latest technological advances by the team, adhering to FIA regulations and the adroitness of the driver. Hence both of them are felicitated for every victory. The world championship every year is awarded based on the points procured in each of the races conducted in the year. Points are awarded at the end of the race as per the order of finishing the race with the winner receiving 25 points and the Constructor team receiving a sum of points scored by the team drivers. These points then get cumulatively added after every race both for the drivers and constructors.

F1 cars are the fastest multi-turn circuit-racing cars in the world capable of reaching speeds of 350 kmph and capable of lateral acceleration of 5g.  The front wings of F1 cars are uniquely designed to generate large amounts of downforce which allows the car to travel faster through a corner. The overall performance of the car is dependent on the aerodynamics, suspension and tyres, all of which have undergone a radical change through the course of the history of the sport.  All teams in F1 pump in several millions of dollars into the research and development in improving the aerodynamics of car. Recent innovations like KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) and DRS (Drag Reduction System) are incorporated to enhance driver’s skills especially while overtaking. The angle of rear wing flap of car is altered, reducing the drag and increasing the speed in the designated DRS activation zone/s.

Formula 1 is a classical example of precise man-machine teamwork. It is coordinated magic between science and the human power. Introduction of pit stops during race in 1994 has changed the tactical strategies of the game. The strategies are worked out to exploit the variations of different circuits to maximum advantage. In addition to the use of different tyres, variable pit stops other variables like the weather forecast, length and number of pit stops, likelihood of overtaking on certain circuits and possibility of accidents all these determine the final outcome of the race. To top it all the incredible skill of the driver in overtaking sometimes changes the final result.

Logistics

Apart from the racing aspect of it, there are enormous set of logistics to be worked out. For races within Europe, the cars along with their telemetry devices are transported in large carriers by road. This becomes complicated as the race tracks are expanding to different continents. The task of transporting all the cars, equipment and other components is gigantic and is done through specially designed cargo crates to facilitate the transport on cargo planes chartered by the Formula One Management (FOM). These planes fly from London or Munich. Most people jokingly describe the whole process as similar to medium sized military campaign.

 

Pitstops

An important strategy of the race which makes all the difference is the pit stops. Pit stops are guided by ‘lollipop’ man; named after its resemblance to the shape. Though the Formula 1 driver receives great attention, coordinated efforts of a team of mechanics working with millimetre- precision and alacrity play a significant role in the exemplary race finish. Often the acts of changing the tyres, damaged parts and adjusting the wings, nose of the cars are so intricately choreographed to march towards the podium finish. Usually these pit stops are completed in less than three seconds which speaks of skills of the mechanics.

Tyres

Yet another indispensible interacting variable between the car and track are the tyres. It is believed that performance of the tyres improves with higher temperatures, as high temperatures can make them stickier. The quality of the rubber used in tyres is decided by the characteristics of race track. Because of the higher speeds clocked by the F1 cars, durability is much less. They last for only 120km against the regular road tyres which can last for 16000km. The composition of sulphur, oil and carbon are varied in the tyres to have six different varieties. Like the super soft, soft, medium, hard and two types of wet tyres. Formula one race faces an important challenge when it comes to racing during wet conditions. The wet tyres are designed to dispel 60 litres of water per second referred to as aqua planning. The tread patterns are mathematically designed to scrub off maximum water between the tyre track interfaces. Tyres are filled with special nitrogen-rich air mixture to withstand the extreme variations in pressures. Fuel used is the ordinary gasoline but tightly controlled mixture, consumption is 75 litres for 100 kilometres travelled.  The game seems to constantly evolving as new rules are in place every year to ensure maximum safety to the driver. The heart of the racing is race controls which is responsible for monitoring and supervising all the stages of practice, qualifying and final race events.

 

 

Teams

Currently there are eleven racing teams with each team sporting two drivers. So, a total of 22 professional drivers compete when the five red lights illuminate on the gantry marking the start of the race session. Championship entry fee is USD 500,000 plus USD 5000 per each point scored. Engines are supplied by suppliers such as Cosworth, Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault. Formula one has tremendous potential of job creation and has a gross economic effect as billions of dollars are spent every year in research and development, up gradation of the engines and in several allied activities. Its burgeoning popularity worldwide has created wider scope for merchandising its products. Further the growing craze about this sport has spurred sponsor investments. It has turned into a lucrative business due to the increased viewership and the television networks are making swift business. The exhilarating and hair-raising experience when the fastest cars are skilfully clinching the narrow serpentine spaces driving diligently to avoid crashes to catch the corner spots marks the beginning of the exciting Formula 1 race.

Indian Grand Prix has the potential of generating $170 million and can employ 10,000 people. The first edition of the race witnessed was attended by 90,000 sports enthusiasts but the second edition has registered mere 75,000. So far the third edition could garner mere 20,000 F1 fans but will improve as the race day nears; economic slump might be attributed for the poor opening. The enthusiasm generated by the advent of Formula 1 in India from the first race appears to have fizzled out very fast. May be alternative promotion plans must be seriously envisaged for popularising the game among Indian public for who cricket is still affordable.

 

 

 

 

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

 

Nobel Prizes 2013

 

Nobel prizes are awarded to persons of highest achievement in particular field. Alfred Nobel, a Swedish scientist, engineer, inventor, business man, poet, dramatist and weapons manufacturer. He developed dynamite and invented a detonator which drastically reduced the cost of mining, blasting rocks, building tunnels and building canals. By the time of his death in 1896 he had 355 patents. Due to his entrepreneurial acumen, he founded 90 industries spread in over 20 counties and accumulated lot of wealth. As per will of Alfred Nobel, the interest on the huge capital invested in safe securities was to be distributed into five equal halves and shall be used to award prizes annually. The prizes are awarded to a discovery or an invention in the field of physics, chemical sciences, physiology or medicine; to a work in the field of literature working towards an ideal; to a person who has made outstanding contributions in promoting the fraternity between nations, reducing the standing armies and contributing to the peace and progress of nations. Following these directions, annually five prizes are awarded. The prizes for Physics and Chemistry are awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, for physiology or medicine by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and Norwegian Storting nominates the award for peace prize.

Though Nobel Prize for economics has not been instituted under Alfred Nobel’s will, The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in the memory of Alfred Nobel is awarded every year for outstanding contributions in economics. It is more often referred to as “Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics”. The nomination, selection, awarding and announcement of prizes are similar to the Nobel Prize.  Awardees are selected by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is a non-Nobel Prize associated officially with the Nobel Foundation. It was first awarded in the year 1969. Following the eruption of controversies after the release of book “A beautiful Mind” written by Slyvia Nasar pertaining to awarding of Nobel Prize in Economics to John Forbes Nash in 1994, prize was redefined as prize in social sciences. Hence there is an ample opportunity for people working tin fields of psychology, political science and sociology to vie for the prize with their land mark contribution in those fields. Meanwhile the composition of the Economics Prize Committee has thus been changed to accommodate two non-economists. There are instances where non-economists like Herbert A Simson, a PhD in political Science won Nobel Prize in economics. The nominations for the prizes are strictly by invitations. The information about nomination process is not disclosed till 50 years later as per the statutes of the Nobel Foundation.

India has distinction of being the birth place for 11 Nobel Laureates. All the Nobel Prizes have been announced. The Nobel Prize for Physics could be easily guessed as the landmark discovery of the God particle or the Higgs-Boson particle has made headlines in the preceding year. There has been a great excitement regarding the peace prize as for the first time a 16 year old girl has been nominated for the prize and conferring her with the prize would have been a history. Since the average age of the Nobel Prize winners is 59 and the youngest Lawrence Bragg, aged 25 bagged the prize. While 90 is the age of oldest winner Leonid Hurwicz, received Nobel Memorial prize for economics and 49 laureates were younger than 40. Le Duc Tho a Vietnam politician awarded a Nobel Peace Prize along Henry Kissinger for their role in negotiating Vietnam peace accord declined the prize. Prize amount is 8 million Swedish Kroner (SEK) or 1.2 million USD. Till 2012 Nobel Prize was awarded to 835 individuals and 21 organisations.

The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute has awarded Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine jointly to James E Rothman Yale University, Randy W. Schekman, University of California Berkeley and Thomas C Sudof Stanford University for solving the mystery of how cell organises its transport system. They have discovered the principles that govern the transport of cargo to the right place at the right time in the cell. The molecules or cargo is transported around the cell in small packaged called vesicles. Randy Schekman discovered the set of genes responsible for vesicular traffic. James Rothman unravelled the protein machinery that allows vesicular fusion and subsequent release of cargo at the right target. Thomas Sudof revealed the processes involved in vesicular signalling that guides the vesicles to release their cargo accurately. Any minor aberration or discrepancy in any of these mechanisms would have deleterious effects resulting in neurological disorders, diabetes and immunological disorders.

Nobel Prize in Physics was jointly was to Francois Englert , Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels and Peter W Higgs, University of Edinburg. In 1964 each of them along with Englert’s colleague Robert Brout, now deceased have independently postulated a theory of how particles acquire mass. These ideas were confirmed by the illustrious experiment carried on Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN laboratory outside Geneva, with the discovery of the Higgs particle. LHC is perhaps the largest and the most complex instrument built by humans so far. Two research groups comprising 3000 scientists managed to extract Higgs particle from billions of collisions within the LHC.

The Royal Swedish Academy has conferred the Nobel Prize in Chemical Sciences 2013 jointly to Martin Karplus, University of Strasbourg, France and Harvard University Cambridge, MA; Michael Levitt, Stanford University, Arieh Warshel, University of Southern California. These have spearheaded computer modelling to understand and predict complex chemical processes. Earlier chemists used to create models of molecules using ball and stick. The trio have managed to make Newton’s Classical physics work to work side by side with fundamentally different quantum physics. The combination of classical and quantum physics is used to make simulations which are realistic and are capable to predicting the outcome of traditional chemical experiments.

Canadian author 82 year old Alice Munro was awarded Nobel Prize for literature for her mastery in contemporary short story writing. She has published several short stories over the years. She is widely acclaimed for her fine tuned style of story- telling characterised by psychological realism and clarity. She is considered as Canadian Chekov. Her stories are set in small town back ground and basically revolve struggle, social acceptance often resulting strained relationships and moral conflicts. They also deal about the generation gap and colliding life ambitions. She is the 13^th woman and 17^th Canadian to receive the award. She was also winner of Man Booker International Prize in 2009.

Organization for the prohibition of Chemical weapons (OPCW) was awarded Nobel Peace prize 2013.It was founded in 1997.Tha Hague based autonomous body works within the frame work of UN. It is awarded the prize for its extensive efforts to eliminate of chemical weapons. It promotes and verifies the adherence to the Chemical Weapons Convention. It has played a crucial role in the recent Syrian war and has been deftly handling the destruction of stock piles of chemical weapons in Syria. It has received massive acclaim for its technical expertise and the unstinted courage displayed by its team for working in the most dangerous war incriminating zones. Disarmament figured prominently in Alfred Nobel’s will, Norwegian Nobel Committee is seeking to contribute to elimination of chemical weapons by awarding the organization.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 25 times to organisation between 1901 and 2013. 22 individual organisations have been awarded, UNHCR and the office of United Nations High Commissioner for refugees received the award twice and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was honoured thrice.

The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences for the year 2013 in memory of Alfred Nobel is shared jointly by Eugene F Fama, University of Chicago; Lars Peter Hansen, University of Chicago and Robert Shiller, Yale University for their empirical analysis of assets prices. . In general there is no way to predict the prices of stocks and bonds over few days or weeks. But it is possible to forecast the prices of the stocks over a broad period. These two statements are quite startling and contradictory. The Nobel laureates have laid foundation for understanding asset prices which are subject to rapid fluctuations. Their analyses rely on the fluctuations, risk and risk attitudes, and partly on behavioural biases and market frictions. The behaviour of the asset prices is the key to the savings, buying of assets and finally plays a pivotal role in the national economic policy. Long term assessment of prices has attained utmost prominence following the collapse of US housing market bubble which led the financial meltdown. So far Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics has been awarded 45 times to 74 laureates.

 

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

 

 

 

 

Recent Spate of Infiltrations In Kashmir

There has been a flurry of activity across the LoC due to the recent infiltration bids by the Pakistanis and subsequent flushing attempts by Indian army for last two weeks.  The massive incursion bids have an imbued message which needs to be urgently addressed by India. These fresh infiltrations coincide with the political skirmishes within our country. The country has witnessed an open political rivalry between a bungling government and its former Army General Vijay Kumar Singh. An enquiry was initiated to investigate the activities of the secret Technical Support Division (TSD) under his tenure. Government has been sitting on the report for more than past six months have resorted to calculated politically motivated leaking. The report was immediately leaked in a newspaper following the public appearance of the general on same platform along with Narendra Modi at a meeting in Rewari, Haryana addressing ex-servicemen.

The revelations of the enquiry which contained various details about army activities have been published by a newspaper. The entire episode took an ugly turn following the innocuous interpretations of the media houses about the working of armed forces. Further, an unabashed votary of Singh in television channels has added more fuel to fire. All the excruciating efforts made by the Indian military as a part of counter-insurgency operations in the Kashmir Valley to restore stability have come under severe scrutiny. It has attempted to even question the patriotism and the commitment of Army, its non partisan style of working in a democratic country. Nation was tormented by the frivolous doubts about the apolitical nature of the military. The ugly war between the government and the retired general caused a grave damage to national security.  Though the political ambitions of the general V.K. Singh have been attributed to be the reason for the dastardly exposure of the highly confidential reports, is it really a substantial reason enough?

Even the internal bickering among the ruling party had also vitiated the existing fragile state of affairs. The public outcry of the Vice President of the Congress Party when the Prime Minister was on US tour on the Ordinance and its subsequent withdrawal publicly exposed the vulnerability of the prime minister’s role in crucial decision making. The meek submission of prime minister reinforced the dubious stature of prime minister. The subdued style of functioning, lack of tough stance on the border issues and foreign policy strategies has provided impetus to the belligerent Pakistan. Prime minister wanted to create a positive legacy in the last year of his tenure by resuming talks with Pakistan. Hence he defied stiff opposition in the wake of infiltration bids just days before the scheduled talks. But a moderate and non-hawkish approach towards Pakistan by our prime minister can never entail any progress in mutual bilateral relations.

Four massive infiltration attempts have been made by the Pakistani army since September 23^rd. In spite of incursion just ahead of the diplomatic talks between India and Pakistan at New York, Prime minister participated. In fact nothing concrete has been agreed upon in the much hyped up talks except for assigning the task of cease fire operations to be directed by their Directors General of Military Operations (DGMO’s). DGMO’s are expected to meet on a regular basis and exchange information for restoration of ceasefire.

A deep soul searching indicates that Pakistan’s moves have been emboldened by the current abrasion of speculative political role of the military and a weak government which is reduced to a non-entity. The petty politics played by the government has taken a severe toll not only on the morale of forces but also provided our wary neighbour enough cue to ride on our backs. There is no denying of the fact that exposing the crucial details of the ongoing enquiry came from the highest levels of the government to derail the political ambitions of General VK Singh. The consequences loomed in the form of recent spate of aggressions in the Keran sector of the Kashmir Valley. The armed forces have intensified their flushing operations in the dense forests of the Keran sector to nab the most trained terrorists and sophisticated arms operators. Army Chief, General Bikram Singh has allayed fears of seemingly Kargil like situation. The intense battle has been continuing across the LoC for the past 15 days. Can India afford such kind of alarming tension at LoC borders more often? Is there something amiss in our diplomatic strategy which is giving way for these aggressive infiltrations?  It is high time India sets right its foreign policy in order to avoid unwarranted morale setback for the forces who are securing our borders.

Pakistan hasn’t ever refrained from its ulterior motives of wrestling its influence on the Kashmir Valley. The blatant denial of the Pakistani authorities in the face of the undisputed evidence provided by the Indian Army further validates Indian anger. Is the prolific infiltration bid another desperate attempt of the reviled Pakistan’s Army Chief Ashraq Parvez Kayani due to retire? The Army chief is known for his dalliance to the trained militants who are inimical to India.

India has to change its current strategy to fight back the incursions. Sadly, the prevailing system of governance offers a bleak possibility for any diplomatic breakthrough. Until country is headed by a strong leader who is capable of taking the bull by its horns no progress can be anticipated. Indian army is making rapid strides in containing the infiltration bids across the LoC. Huge cache of arms and ammunition have been recovered from the combing operations. At this juncture it is important to recall that Kargil war started days after signing the Lahore Agreement in 1999 by Atal Behari Vajpayee and Nawaz Sharif. Now the infiltrations have started 5 days before the diplomatic talks between Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif. "Operation Vijay" of Kargil War has successfully checkmated the scrupulous plans of Pakistan and regained two posts along LoC. But now, with US deciding to pull back its forces from Afghanistan in 2014, India's western borders are set to be more volatile. Can India under the leadership of Prime minister who succeeded in arousing the Indian masses through his ineptitude be a match to the treacherous advances made by Pakistan across the border?

 

 

@ Copyrights  reserved.

Is Indian Parliament Centre Stage for Tragedy Of Errors?

Sudden turn of events, quick dramatic enactments are becoming a simile of a stage where prominent actors unfold a pre-emptive and well-scripted drama. Are the Indian public still playing the role of obedient and passionate audience waiting for the suspense to unfurl completely? Or have they become more vigilant fizzling out the suspense of the drama leaving the protagonists little bewildered? The audience here are now slowly losing interest in the stellar performance and the superficial emotional overtures of the protagonists. In fact this is not a frivolous comparison as Indian public who currently experiencing the myth of the comprehensive political drama enacted by the elected representatives in light of the Ordinance for protecting convicted law makers.

Indian government has become pliable after UPA has assumed the office, at least as it appears now. Under its regime our government its policies, decisions are virtually controlled by the so called high command, reminding us of the quasi-dictatorial system. But when indifferences prop up and fissures are wide open in public the party in power simply dismiss it as symptomatic of democratic governance or hail it as democracy within. Sadly, due to its ambiguous stance, the country has lost its true credence and various policy issues have taken a back footing. The on going episode of the ordinance to protect convicted law makers is one classic example. The Vice President of Congress party, Rahul Gandhi termed it as “nonsense” in public domain. This public denunciation of the ordinance is perhaps the strongest display of emotions by him. The statement assumes greater significance as the PM is on a state visit to US and on the other hand parliamentary board is labouring extra hours to hurl open the back doors for quick passage of bill by taking ordinance route. Though the necessity of ordinance has been questioned by several legal excerpts, their sharp criticisms have been kept at abeyance.  The underlying political scheme is to wrest support of RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav for the ensuing elections. All the hopes have been watered down the drain by the scion of the Gandhi family.

The public disapproval in the Press Council meeting has brought the wide fissures in the Congress to the fore. The widely commended comradeship of Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh stood exposed. The last minute realisation and confession by Rahul Gandhi has further raised several doubts about the functioning of the government and the role of the Prime Minister himself Two important conclusions can be drawn from the whole episode. Firstly- are the references to the Standing Committee on Law and meeting with the coalition partners’ a mere formality and hence the Cabinet’s decision can be publicly ridiculed by the Vice President of the Congress party?  Secondly is this a political strategy hitched by the Congress party as a desperate attempt to win back the credibility of people and project Rahul Gandhi as a capable leader? In the past decade, UPA has become synonymous to corruption with its achievements outnumbered by scams and money floundering activities. Hence the last minute tough stand is indication of the putative UPA’s prime ministerial candidate’s intention to win the credibility of people. The entire drama seems to be a trailer of last minute public rehearsal of Congress’s face saving attempt.

 The much anticipated judgement in the fodder scam case now pronounced Lalu Prasad Yadav, and the JD(U) leader Jagdish Sharma and 44 others guilty of corruption. Although the quantum of sentence is yet to be announced, the timely intervention of Rahul Gandhi has saved Congress from making a self-goal as they were hugely banking on Yadav to garner votes in Bihar. The minimum sentence punishment is expected to be for 4 years following which both the MPs would face disqualification as per the Supreme Court’s ruling of July 10^th on the Representation of Peoples Act.

With the Prime Minister having returned from the US and met the party’s leaders to seek explanation for the manner in which Rahul Gandhi dealt the issue, the media will closely follow all the moves of the trio (both Gandhi’s and PM) for next couple of weeks and the servility of PM would be under scanner. The high command had already begun the campaign of placating the PM. Sonia Gandhi showered encomiums on the performance of PM in a public meeting in Karnataka. But in spite of the extraneous noise in air, the PM habituated to indignation over the past 9 years is going to remain a mute spectator after all. It is going to be business as usual for the PM who is ready for the next set of instructions from the Race Course Road after a brief laissez faire at US. The coalition partners of UPA - NCP and SP raised tirade against withdrawing of the Ordinance and demanded for a Parliamentary Board Meeting. But what was pitched as a battle between the Prime Minister and the party’s Vice President has now subsumed into a drama with Congress withdrawing the ordinance itself.

The Representation of the People (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2013 was initially passed in the Parliament with the support of BJP and other political parties. BJP was quick to realise its folly and made a quick U-turn. Sushma Swaraj wrote to the President urging him not to sign the Bill when the UPA took the ordinance route. Hence forth it started mounting pressure on the UPA to withdraw the ordinance. The menace of the criminalisation can be stemmed only if Bill is completely renounced else our dubious politicians can get the ordinance promulgated through back doors.

Meanwhile another Rajya Sabha MP Rasheed Masood who rose to instant fame for his Rs 5 meal comment is now convicted for irregularities in medical seat allotment. He is awarded a four year sentence under the Prevention of Corruption Act. He will have the rarest honour of being the first MP to face disqualification following the landmark judgement of the Supreme Court. This seems to be just a beginning. Finally justice has prevailed since the deliverance of justice has sparked a ray of hope among millions of Indians who have become despondent over years.

The battle pitched between Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh has now subdued as the Prime minister conceded in favour of withdrawing the ordinance. Through this turn of events, the Congress party has scored both the goals in a game that has been fixed even before the PM left to the US. Firstly, it succeeded in its attempts to project Rahul Gandhi as a serious contender for the post of Prime Minister in what is proposed to be a pitch battle come 2014. Secondly it had redeemed itself as a party amenable to public opinion thus garnering the public support and acceptance of its leader Rahul Gandhi. Public verdict in the general elections can alone determine the impeccability of the drama they staged. Hail Democracy. In the meantime, the Indian public who are tired of the political cronyism, criminalisation of politics and lack of public order are made to watch the crazy moves of the political buffoonery. Their deep resentment is evident from outright condemnation of the need for such an ordinance questioning the veracity of Supreme Court’s judgement.

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

Book Review My Journey: Transforming Dreams Into Actions

Life appears pleasant and desirable if there is a breeze of positivity whistling past our brain. This positive force allows us to look at the new dimensions of life with air of optimism. After reading the book “My Journey: Transforming Dreams into Actions” by Bharat Ratna Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam, I too was swayed by his profound philosophy towards life. He continues to inspire millions of Indians with his honest and deep revelations. The vignettes of his life continue to ignite our spirits, add wings to our aspiration and fire our imaginations.

The book is basically a memoir where Dr. Kalam fondly ruminates on all the incidents and people who made a great impact on his life. It is indeed very rare to find a true genius to be highly unassuming. It is a humbling experience to understand the personality of ‘People’s President’ who formulated India Vision Strategies for 2020. All his virtues and traits are truly infectious. His contemplations, opinions and veracity about life are awe-inspiring.

A man with a humble beginning from Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu, making it to the highest acclaims of the country in itself is a phenomenal achievement.  His reminiscences about failing to achieve his dream of becoming a pilot, his astounding success in launching different missiles and satellites and death of loved ones- his parents & brother-in-law. All these incidents have helped him to explore philosophical dimensions of life.  Science is exploratory and the validity of truth is often ascertained by facts. Hence Scientists in general are very practical and so averse to spiritual way of thought. But here we find a genius in Kalam, fondly called as India’s ‘Missile Man’ to be an epitome of spirituality. Whenever he tumbled in life with a failure or a loss of dear ones, he would find solace in the sacred books like Bhagavad Gita, Quran and Bible. His spiritual musings can be traced to his firm faith in God inculcated by his parents at a young age.

In reference to his life in Madras Institute of Technology (MIT) under tutelage of Prof. Srinivasan, he emphasises the importance of devoted teachers in chiselling the intellectual attributes of students. He prods on his initial days at ADE, while designing prototype hovercraft, Nandi. The early inhibitions of a small-town guy with middle class roots stayed with him for a long time, but he always pushed himself hard, worked incessantly for three years and the result was an astounding success. The life of rocket scientist, he says is full of ups and downs. He recounts the days of failure of SLV-3 first launch that changed his ways of thinking and brought him close to existential issues. Often failures of great magnitude bring a fundamental change in our self and our ego witness great change. People discover the reserves of courage and resilience only during obstacles. He particularly rewinds two incidents where he experienced a gamut of emotions ranging from relief, guilt, humiliation and gratitude. Once he along with his colleague had a close encounter with an explosion in lab. But for swift action of his colleague & friend, Sudhakar, both of them could have succumbed to fire. This incident had left with an incredible humbling experience. Another was fateful death of eight officers who died during the testing of Avro ASP aircraft which crashed mid air. This was a heart-wrenching experience that left Kalam in profound sadness. He reiterates political rhetoric alone doesn’t build nation unless backed by sacrifice, toil and valour. These are the virtues that go in true-nation building. The book takes the reader through his eventful eight decades of journey and makes us truly appreciate that this journey og his has been lived not just for him but for countless others too.

In the book he expresses his gratitude and reverence to Pakshi Lakshmana Sastrygal, Reverend Iyadurai Solomon, Ahmed Jalalludin, Dr. Vikram Sarabai, Professor Satish Dhawan and Dr. Brahm Prakash and many others like them who have shaped and moulded his character, thoughts and intellect. The deep desire to share his encounters of life in this book is to help others in the same situation to understand vagaries of life.

While as a scientist of exceptional ingenuity and knowledge he is the Pioneer of rocket science in India. On the other hand, his profound understanding about life is highly motivating. He is perhaps the most humble human being for he believes that values of humanity can alone offer true succour. Here is an excerpt of a deep and insightful saying that speaks volumes about his profound understanding about essence of life. “Joy is fleeting, whereas true happiness and calm can come to us only after intense pain, when we have confronted ourselves in the mirror of our souls and understood the self.”  The book is full of snippets that can captivate any enthusiastic mind.

 

 

@ Copy rights reserved.