Health News-27: Bats may hold clue to Immunity, Longevity

Bats may hold clue to immunity, longevity in man

PTI | Dec 24, 2012, 05.02 AM IST

Bats, which have survived for 65 million years against all odds, may offer vital clues to immunity and human longevity, a new study has found.

Bats are amazing creatures and one of the most abundant and widespread mammals on Earth, researchers said.

Excerpt from The Times of India, Chennai, Dec.24, 2012

For the full article:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Bats-may-hold-clue-to-immunity-longevity-in-man/articleshow/17737870.cms

Grateful thanks to PTI and The Times of India. 

Facts and Figures-64: Crime against Women

Women get raped in India every 20 minutes. But the authority does not want women to protest against rape. Not even for 20 minutes - Taslima Nasreen, Writer, on Police treatment of Delhi rape protestors

The Times of India, Chennai, Dec.24, 2012

Grateful thanks to Taslima Nasreen and The Times of India.

Eyecatchers-165: Highways Officials miffed with overnight Road Cuts

Highways Officials miffed with overnight Road Cuts by K.Manikandan

In an overnight development, an arterial road near Tambaram was found dug up in 30 places on Sunday morning.

Residents and shopkeepers said they witnessed no signs of work on Medavakkam (Mount-Madipakkam) Main Road all of Saturday.

The road-cut is the handiwork of a private contractor who was entrusted some maintenance job by the Pallavaram municipality. And officials of the State highways department are miffed with the damage to the road. Their permission was not sought for the work, an official said.

Using an earthmover, the stretch was dug up in at least 30 spots between Keelkattalai bus terminus and Madipakkam Koot Road.

While officials of Chennai city roads division of the highways department said the act amounted to a direct violation of norms, officials of Pallavaram municipality said it was meant to facilitate maintenance of the massive underground drainage project.

…

Excerpt from THE HINDU of Dec.24, 2012.

For the full article: (There is a painful photograph in the article showing the damage to the Road)

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/highways-officials-miffed-with-overnight-road-cuts/article4232712.ece

Grateful thanks to  Mr.Manikandan and THE HINDU.

Eyecatchers-164: Exclusive Law Ignored in Rape Case

Exclusive Law Ignored in Rape Case by P.V.Srividya in THE HINDU of Dec 24, 2012

Even as protests demanding stringent laws to deal with rape cases sweep the national capital, an exclusive law, already in force for protection of children from sexual offences, has been apparently overlooked by the police in the case of the rape of an 11-year-old girl here in Thalaignayar near here on Friday. The sexual assault was brought to light on Saturday, and the girl has since been admitted to the Thiruthuraipoondi Government Hospital, which is still awaiting consent for forensic tests.

Even though the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act has been in force since November, the police, instead of booking a case under this law, have filed the case under Section 450 (house trespass to commit an offence) and Section 376 (rape) of the IPC.

The enactment of the Act was seen as a watershed as it facilitates shifting of the burden of proof from the survivor to the accused. The Act mandates child-friendly procedures right from the beginning of the trial. The Act has been framed since the IPC does not cover all forms of sexual offence and it fails to distinguish between adult and child survivors.

…..

The Act is a powerful law and mandates the State to bear the costs of support services for the survivor, says Kannayan, a freelance consultant on child rights and former field officer under the Department of Social Defence. Pointing out that the law also provides for interim compensation during the trial period, he says the District Child Protection Officer should have taken a suo motu cognisance of the incident from media reports, visited the child and streamlined the investigation.”

….

Excerpt from THE HINDU of Dec 24, 2012

Grateful thanks to P.V.Srividya and THE HINDU.

Letters-92: Delhi Gang rape

... 

Last week's gang rape is a symbol of a vulgar society that a vulgar political class has manipulated into existence.  It is a symbol of the degradation of values that a corrupt ruling regime has imposed on an otherwise docile people of snake-charmers and sadhus.

Excerpt from the letter of Mr.N.Saratchandran, Thiruvananthapuram, to the Editor of THE HINDU, dated Dec 24, 2012.

Grateful thanks to Mr.Saratchandran and THE HINDU.

S and T Watch: Nanotechnology is the Future

Convergence among multiple technological and scientific disciplines, coupled with making sustainable systems would define the “knowledge society” of the 21st century, the former President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, said here on Sunday.

He was addressing students of the Indian Institute of Technology (Patna) during its first convocation programme.

Narrating his visit to laboratories in Harvard University and the inventions in biosciences there, Mr. Kalam said, “I saw how two different sciences are shaping each other without any iron curtain between the technologists. This reciprocating contribution of sciences to one another is going to shape our future and industry needs to be ready for it.”

Excerpt from THE HINDU of December 24, 2012.

For the full article from THE HINDU:

http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/nanotechnology-is-the-future-kalam/article4232735.ece

Grateful thanks to THE HINDU.

No More Photos or Pictures

Last month, suddenly, one day when I tried to upload a photo I got a warning that I had exhausted all the free space for photos in my blogs, viz., 1 GB.  It was quite a shock.  I did not know that there was space restriction for photos.  The alternative is making monthly payment in dollars, which is out of the question, for I do not have the resources.

Already, due to health and other problems, I am steadily losing interest in everything. Well, this gets added.  I could not bring myself to write anything for many days, till now.

OK.  Hope Blogger, which is a part of Google, may decide to enhance this free space at some later date, like it did for Gmail attachments - from 25 MB to 10 GB!

Till such time, no more photos or pictures!  Sorry, guys!!