Facts & Figures-46: "Nauseating Figures"

1. About 65% of Indians defecate in places such as fields, railway tracks and abandoned or unfinished constructions.

2. Globally 1.2 billion people defecate in the open, and more than half of them are Indians.

3. About 2 lakh tonnes of faeces is discharged per day in the open in India.

4. On an average, a gram of excreta can contain about a crore viruses, 10 lakh bacteria, 1000 parasites cysts and 100 worm eggs.

5. 1000 children die daily of diarrhoea or other gastro-intestinal diseases.

6. Proper sanitation can reduce risk of diarrhoea by 40%; malnutrition and retardation growth by 60%; cholera by 72%; schistosomiasis (caused by blood flukes) by 77% and blindness by 25%.

Courtesy: The Week, August 31, 2008.

Grateful thanks to The Week.

Letters-40: "Is this Your Phone?"

1. It is strange that you deliberately mislaid nearly a thousand cellphones across the world just to see how honest people were. ["Excuse Me, Is This Your Phone?", Reader's Digest, August 2007"]. Unattended cellphones could be dangerous - they can be used to cause blasts. It is surprising that people first picked up the phones and went on to return them, risking their lives and that of others. The best course would have been to alert the police about an unattended object. - Divyang Purohit, via email.

2. That you recovered 654 out of 960 "lost" cellphones proves that an overwhelming majority of people the world over, are still guided by an inner personal code of Honesty. It is heartening that there are people in Mumbai who may not have scored a "pass" in the politeness test, but are honest. - Dr.R.K.Malhotra, New Delhi.

3. In June, I lost my cellphone at a wedding reception. Since my phone was "not reachable" I sent an SMS to it. Minutes later I got a call from the finder - a guest at the same reception who had already got back home to a nearby town. He insisted on coming back all the way to my hotel and handing over the lost phone, even though it would be midnight by the time he got to me. He refused any reward or travel expenses. My phone is now more precious - it is a symbol of honesty and goodness. - D.Petersen Priyakumar, via email.

Courtesy: Reader's Digest, October 2007.

Grateful thanks to Divyang Purohit, Dr.R.K.Malhotra, D.Petersen Priyakumar and Reader's Digest.

S&T Watch-26: "Machines may outsmart humans by 2050"

Machines might catch up with human reasoning capabilities by the year 2050. At the Intel Developer Forum held in San Francisco, Justin Rattner, chief technology officer, Intel, demonstrated two working personal robot prototypes developed at Intel's research labs. One of the demonstrations showed electric field pre-touch that has been built into a robotic hand. Based on a novel sensing modality used by fish, this hand can 'feel' objects before it even touches them. The other demonstration was a completely autonomous mobile manipulation robot that can rocognise faces and interpret and execute commands using motion planning, manipulation, perception and artificial intelligence.

Rattner also demonstrated powering a 60-watt light bulb without the use of a plug or wire of any kind. This has been made possible by a wireless resonant energy link that promises to deliver wireless power safely and efficiently. The technology relies on strongly coupled resonators-a principle similar to the way a trained singer can shatter a glass using her voice.

Intel researchers are also investigating how millions of tiny micro-robots, called 'catoms', could build shape-shifting materials. If used to replace the case, display and keyboard of a computing device, this technology could make it possible for a device to change physical form in order to suit the specific way you are using it. A mobile computer, for example, could be tiny when in a pocket, change to the shape of an earpiece when used as a mobile phone, and be large and flat with a keyboard for browsing the Internet or watching a movie.

Courtesy : Electronic For You September 2008

Facts & Figures-45: "400 TV Channels in India!"

The Govt of India has given permission for 400 TV channels.

Courtesy: Ananda Vikatan, Tamil Weekly, September 10, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Ananda Vikatan.

My Photo Album-20: "Dad with my kids"

Dad with my kids. This was taken by a photographer-friend more than 20 years back.

Letters-39: "Bihar Floods"

1. Every year hundreds of people die, thousands become homeless and infrastructure worth millions is washed away in Bihar floods. By the time people overcome the trauma, the floods come raging again. Unfortunately, the Centre and the Bihar government are indifferent to the people's plight. Instead of forestalling the calamity by constructing a dam, the administration remains a mute witness to the catastrophe. - Tejeshwi Sharma, Stockholm.

2. The Bihar government has neither the strategy nor the executive mechanism to manage the floods. The story is the same this year too - it begins with an aerial survey of the flooded areas by the Prime Minister and his entourage. It is followed by an announcement of financial aid and material relief by the Centre and some agencies. Whether it reaches the afflicted areas in time is a moot point. - Prem Chand, New Delhi.

3. The Prime Minister has done the right thing by declaring the floods in Bihar, caused by a breach in the Kosi embankment, a national calamity. Unfortunately, flood management seems to be nowhere in the agenda of governments. What is important now is to think of measures to prevent the recurrence of such a tragedy. If China could tame the ferocious Yangtze river, there is no reason why India cannot tame the Kosi or the Godavari. What is needed is a commitment to the cause. - R.Unni Krishnan, Kochi.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Chennai, September 1, 2008.

Grateful thanks to M/s.Tejeshwi Sharma, Prem Chand, R.Unni Krishnan and The Hindu.

Eyecatchers-103: "Laptops in Space Infected"

NASA confirmed that laptops in space had been infected with the virus Gammima.AG.

Courtesy: Harper’s Weekly, Sep 2, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Harper's Weekly.

India Watch-12: "Bihar Floods"

1.2 million people were left homeless by monsoon floods in Bihar.

Courtesy: Harper's Weekly, Sep.2, 2008

Grateful thnaks to Harper's Weekly.

Eyecatchers-102: "Who is calling?"

"Do not use mobile phones while driving; the caller could be Yama, the King of Death" - Advertisement from the local traffic police.

S&T Watch-25: "Brain Chemical and Obesity"

Researchers studying people with a rare genetic disorder have identified a brain chemical that may play a role in appetite and obesity, a finding they say could lead to drugs to help some obese people. Previous animal studies had pointed to this chemical as helping regulate appetite and weight, but the new study is the first to show such a role in people - Reuters.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Chennai, August 29, 2008.

Wikipedia article on "OBESITY":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesity

Grateful thanks to Reuters, The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

S&T Watch-24: "Secrets of Immortality"

Scientists working on mechanisms that determine lifespan increasingly believe that the secrets of immortality could be tantalisingly close, a survey has suggested. The survey of anti-ageing research has concluded that a longevity pill to "cure" ageing remains a possibility.

Scientists argue there is no known scientific reason why ageing cannot be prevented. The goal is seen as being similar to preventing age-related diseases - PTI.

Courtesy: PTI and The Hindu, Chennai, August 29, 2008.

Wikipedia article on "IMMORTALITY":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immortality

Grateful thanks to PTI, The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Eyecatchers-101: "Ankle Alerts"

Convicted South Korean sexual offenders are required to wear electronic tracking devices around their ankles from September 1, 2008.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Chennai, August 29, 2008.

Wikipedia article on "SEXUAL ABUSE":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_abuser

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and Wikipedia.

Facts & Figures-44: "Breastfeeding Champ!"

Four-month-old Raul Montoya won the King of Breastfeeding contest held in Lima, Peru, to mar the Breastfeeding Wekk that ended on August 29.

Excerpt from The Hindu, Chennai, August 29, 2008.

Wikipedia article on "BREASTFEEDING":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breastfeeding

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

S&T Watch 23: "Cell Phones Powered by Fuel Cells"

In the near future, you might own a cell phone equipped with a hydrogen-powered fuel cell. The cell phone would come with an insert-ready hydrogen pack and a small solar array for charging.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, August 28, 2008 (From "Snapshots")

Wikipedia articles on "FUEL CELLS" and "PHOTOVOLTAIC ARRAY":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_fuel_cells

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_array

Grateful thanks to The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Letters-38: "Burning Persons Alive"

1. Burning persons alive is an act of cruelty that only dehumanised people are capable of. The country's competitive strength lies not in unethical leaders but in those who know the difference between right and wrong. - K.G.Koru Kuttan Nair, Palakkad.

2. The barbarous and gruesome killing of two innocent persons during the bandh organised by VHP and Bajrang Dal activists is shocking. This lunatic fringe which is trying to push India into the dark ages should be stopped and the perpetrators of the horrendous acts punished immediately. - Jabez Pradeep Roy Chennai.

3. The Orissa government was sufficiently warned of an outbreak of communal violence in September 2006, with the publication of Communalism in Orissa - the Report of the Indian People's Tribunal on Environment and Human Rights, headed by Justice K.K.Usha, former Chief Justice of the Kerala High court, Democracy is at stake in a country where citizens live in the shadow of terror. Any form of religious communalism mars democracy and should be resisted tooth and nail, regardless of our political inclinations and affinites. - Fr.Adolf Washington, Bangalore.

4. The violence in Orissa exposes the destructive character of communalism. The attacks on the minorities and their institutions are unacceptable. Violence should be contained at the earliest. Religious leaders should rise above parochial considerations and come forward with a positive solution. - R.S.Sreeram, Thiruvananthapuram.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, August 27, 2008 (Selected Letters From "Letters to the Editor" column).

Grateful thanks to M/s.K.G.Koru Kuttan Nair, Jabez Pradeep Roy, Fr.Adolf Washington, R.S.Sreeram and The Hindu.

A Thought for Today-128:

Grateful thanks to Jon Sullivan and www.public-domain-photos.com for the above photo.

The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be ignited - Plutarch.

S&T Watch-22: "A new magnetic Carbon"

The newest form of carbon is almost nothing at all - but it will stick to a refrigerator for a few hours. Carbon was known to come in four configurations: diamond crystals, flat sheets of graphite, soccer-ball-shaped cages known as bucky balls and rolled-up cylinders called nanotubes. The new form also consists of narrow tubes, but the tubes are connected in a willowy lattice. The surprise discovery is that nanofoam, unlike the other four forms of carbon, is magnetic. In the first few hours after it forms, nanofoam is attractive enough to stick to a refrigerator. The magnetism then wanes and disappears. It is one of the airiest materials known; a gallon of nanofoam weighs about a quarter of an ounce. - New York Times News Service.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, details not available.

Wikipedia articles on "Nanofoam" and "CARBON":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanofoam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_(element)

Grateful thanks to New York Times News Service, The Hindu and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Facts & Figures-43: "Rarest Disease in the World"

The rarest disease in the world, called Kuru or Laughing Sickness, affects only the cannibals of New Guinea and is believed to be caused by eating human brains.

Courtesy: '501 Fascinating Facts'

Pushtak Mahal, Delhi

Grateful thanks to Pushtak Mahal.

A Thought for Today-127:

(Grateful thanks to Jon Sullivan and PublicDomainPhotos.com for the above photo- http://www.public-domain-photos.com/)

Whatever liberates our spirit without giving us self-control is disastrous - Goethe.

India Watch-11: "Rs 900 crore Bribe for Civic Amenities!"

Poor paid Rs 900-crore Bribe in 2007 for Civic Amenities

Police Force Most Corrupt Service: Study

Agencies

The Times of India, Chennai, June 30, 2008

One third of the people living below the poverty line(BPL) in India paid bribes to access healthcare, education and water among otehr basic facilities, says a new study which also dubs the police force the most corrupt among the services surveyed.

The joint study by Transparency International India and the Centre for Media Studies(CMS) in 2007 found that one-third of BPL households paid Rs.900 crore as bribes in the year to avail of one or more of the 11 public services covered in the survey. The services include the public distribution system, hospital service, senior secondary school education, electricity and water supply. Need-based services including national rural employment guarantee scheme, land records and registation, forest, housing, banking and police service.

The "TII-CMS India Corruption Study 2007" revealed that the police top the chart as far as corruption in 11 selected public services is concerned.

Of the 5.6 million BPL households that interacted with the police last year, a whopping 2.5 million paid Rs.2,150 million as bribes for some work or the other and most of them went to the police station for simple registration of a complaint, it said.

Land records and registration services comes secon d in terms of monetary contribution as nearly 3.5 million BPL households paid Rs.1,224 million as bribes. A total of 22,728 BPL households were surveyed across the states throughout the country.

Courtesy: The Times of India, Chennai, June 30, 2008.

Wikipedia article on "CORRUPTION IN INDIA":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_India

Grateful thanks to The Times of India and Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.