Archives November 2012

J.C. Bose, the great Indian scientist, has proved that trees have life as do the animals and humans. They feel and react but have no language or tongue to express their feelings. Only if they had the power of speech, they would express themselves in much the same way a; we do. Leaves would say how they hate winter that heralds their impending death. Tree trunks would boast to one another of their advanced Age and experience. Fruits would tell stories about their childhood. Branches would talk about the visits they have had from their insect, bird and animal friends. The spring would have sweet songs of welcome from them. The trees would also tell us things that would shock us. They would say 'ouch', if the leaves on their branches were pricked. They would be found screaming with pain, if we were cruel enough to break their twigs or more...

It seems that more and more marriages are falling apart every day. Divorce rates seen to be climbing astronomically. In so many of these divorces there are children to be considered. What is best for the child? Who will get custody? Will the child be scarred for life? It's really hard to say. The overall effects on our children vary according to the factors involved. I am going to attempt to discuss a few of the problems that can occur with children of divorced families and what parents can do to ease the transition. I will limit this discussion to infantile age thru early elementary aged children. Let's start with understanding the parents role concerning being together or being apart. Obviously, two parents can provide children with far more guidance, sustenance, and protection than one, and are more likely to prevent the kinds of psychological disturbance that may result from more...

When toxic substances enter lakes, streams, rivers, oceans, and other water bodies, they get dissolved or lie suspended in water or get deposited on the bed. This results in the pollution of water whereby the quality of the water deteriorates, affecting aquatic ecosystems. Pollutants can also seep down and affect the groundwater deposits. Water pollution has many sources. The most polluting of them are the city sewage and industrial waste discharged into the rivers. The facilities to treat waste water are not adequate in any city in India. Presently, only about 10% of the waste water generated is treated; the rest is discharged as it is into our water bodies. Due to this, pollutants enter groundwater, rivers, and other water bodies. Such water, which ultimately ends up in our households, is often highly contaminated and carries disease-causing microbes. Agricultural runoff, or the water from the fields that drains into rivers, more...

Around the world girls and women are treated as number two citizens - all luxuries, comforts and even necessities must first be provided for boys and men, and only then, if available, can percolate to girls and women. This is true to some extent throughout the world but more so and very conspicuously so in India. For the past few centuries in India, the girl has been completely neglected even as a human being and she lives as if only to support and satisfy men. In every home even today the boys are still pampered and given the best of everything and the girls of the same family are almost completely ignored. Even in the basic requirement of education, girls are left out because it is felt that, they in any case have only to look after their homes and the need of their families, so, where is the need more...

According to Bacon "Reading make a full man; writing all exact man and conference a ready man.' And if someone asks what reading, writing and conference make together anyone would say that they stand for education. If other words, we can say that education makes anyone complete, accurate and worldly wise. It means that no one is complete without education. Thus we can confidently say that education is necessary for the all-round development of the personality of a human being. He cannot hope for success, name, fame and prosperity in life without it. Even a nation would be devoid of any progress, if its citizens fail to have the benefits of education. H.L. Wayland has correctly said, "Universal suffrage, without universal education, would be a curse." For the success of any democracy, education is a must. Imagine a country with illiterate ministers voted to power by illiterate people! Unfortunately, there more...

The natural resources will not last forever, eventually everything comes to an end and the end is very near with the depletion of natural resources. People dispose lots of stuff, and simply do not care. Recycling is a way to reuse stuff. This technique seemed quite successful at the beginning, until its true identity appeared. Recycling has been very useful specially that man is continually consuming, burning up, wearing out, replacing and disposing at an alarming rate. Unfortunately recycling has proven that it is quite costly even if recycling of wastes material solves the problem of garbage disposal at landfills, and saves resources. It involves large hidden costs in collecting, sorting and manufacturing; therefore, it is necessary for the government to overcome such problems of recycling to be worthwhile and for manufacturers and consumers to consume less. Recycling has proven its efficiency in solving the problem of garbage disposal at more...

Television is a chatty medium. Those who appear on it (whether they are news-readers or sports commentators, are always directly to the viewers. Television cannot build upon fantasy because programmes have to be interrupted at regular intervals to advertise products; or to address the audience. It is a common misconception that products are sold through advertisements on television; for it is infect the audiences that are packaged for products. The imperatives for audience research, determining the extent of view ship and making prime time allocations is geared towards getting sponsorship from makers of one or the other product, and generating information on the kind of products that should be advertised at different time slots. The result is that television becomes chatty medium embedded into the world of commodities, in which moral communities are created and destroyed in ways that are unique to television. About a year ago an event on more...

Television is not a bad thing, but in fact is a resource that can be used to educate and entertain people of all ages. There are many programs on television, which do not educate, because everyone needs to be entertained. Television stations should organise their programs so that the education shows are shown when children get home from school so that the children will be able to learn while enjoying themselves at home. I think that this is an excellent use of television and more use should be made of it in education, because it offers many advantages to classroom teaching. Comedy programs, however, make viewers laugh, feel better, and make people generally happier. These programs should be encouraged, instead of the 'real life' dramas. Sports programs and broadcasts of sporting matches are very good. With them, fans of the sports can watch only parts of a match, or watch more...

Cicero defined superstition as "Fear of God". In earlier times people looked upon natural pehnomena as particular signs from the gods. Thunder warned of the displeasure of Lord Indra and havoc of floods was a sign from Lord Varuna. Today in the age of computers, irrational fear appears to be an anachronism. It is considered holy to bathe in the Ganges, especially during Kumbha Mela days, to get rid of one's sins. If sin's could be washed by a holy dip, then fish would have the first claim to a place in Heaven, according to Sufi Saint Bulbe Shah. Our elders observe Shradhs by offering sumptuous meals and Charity (Daan) to Brahmins for the satisfaction of the souls of our forefathers. Does it not amount to pampering the Brahmins whom we are ourselves making divine agents? When one goes for an examination, it is a must to eat sweetened curd more...

My father is in Dena Bank. His bank is in Darya Ganj. He goes there by bus. When we are all together, we have a lot of fun. My father tells us many jokes. On holidays he takes us to a picnic, or for outing. Last Sunday he took us to a magic show. We enjoyed the show very much. I love him very much. He gets up early in the morning. Then he takes exercise. After bath he meditates for half an hour. He is very regular in his work. It keeps him fit and healthy. He is thirty-seven years of age. He is head of our family. I am really proud of him. He loves me very much. He is very social. He is always ready to help others. He always tries to solve the problems of his neighbours. Sometimes, he helps the poor people. He cannot see more...