Archives November 2012

Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living things in engineering, technology, medicine, and other useful applications. Modem use of the term includes genetic engineering as well as cell and tissue culture technologies. The concept encompasses a wide range of procedures for modifying living organisms according to human purposes. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity defines biotechnology as "any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use". Biotechnology draws on the pure biological sciences like genetics, microbiology, animal cell culture, molecular biology, biochemistry, embryology, cell biology, etc. In many instances, it is also dependent on knowledge and methods from outside the sphere of biology such as chemical engineering, bioprocess engineering, information technology, and biorobotics. Conversely, modern biological sciences including molecular ecology are intimately entwined and dependent on the methods developed through more...

In order to create a second wave of institution building and of excellence in the field of education, research and capability building so that the country is better prepared for the 21st century, the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) was constituted on 13ih June 2005 with a time-frame of three years, from 2nd October 2005 in 2nd October 200, as a high- level advisory body to the Prime Minister of India. The NKC was given a mandate to guide policy and direct reforms, focusing on certain key areas such as education, science and technology, agriculture, industry, e-govemance, etc. Easy access to knowledge, creation and preservation of knowledge systems, dissemination of knowledge and better knowledge services were the core concerns of the Commission. The Terms of Reference of the NKC were; to build excellence in the educational system to meet the knowledge challenges of the 21sl century and increase India's competitive advantage more...

The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) was officially launched on January 11, 2010 in address problems of India's energy security as well as climate change. The Mission was launched with full backing of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the ambitious targets to harness solar energy in the next one decade. JNNSM, which figures as one of the eight missions in India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), seeks to generate 20,000 MW of electricity through solar energy by the end of 13th Five-Year Plan in 2022. The three-phased project aims to generate 1,000 MW of electricity through solar energy by 2013, and an additional 3,000 MW in the minimum by the year 2017. The JNNSM would be responsi-ble for: (a) the deployment of commercial and near commercial solar technologies in the country; (b) establishing a solar research facility at an existing establishment to coordinate the various research, development more...

Indians are high on the emotional quotient and anything that strikes the emotional chord is an instant hit m India. The success of reality shows in India can be attributed to a great extent to this weakness. The relief that these shows provide from the saas-bahu soaps is another reason for their immense popularity. The rising popularity of the reality slows on Indian television channels has added a new dimension to the production of TV programs. These shows give opportunities to the prodigies residing in the interiors of the country to showcase their talent. The craze for reality television hit India when channel V came up With Viva, a band of five young singers. When auditions were announced, young dreamers gathered in huge numbers lo give their luck a try.  They cried when they failed and celebrated when they triumphed. The audience lapped up this overdose of emotions tin-own with more...

The Commonwealth Games is a multinational, multi-sport event which features competitions involving thousands of elite athletes from members of the Commonwealth of Nations. The Games are organised every four years and are the third-largest multi-sport event in the world, after the summer Olympic Games and the Asian Games. Besides many Olympic ports, the Games also include some sports that are played mainly in commonwealth countries, such as lawn bowls, rugby sevens and netball.                 A sporting competilion bringing together the members of the British Empire was first proposed by the Reverend Astley Cooper in 1891 when He wrote an article in The Times suggesting a "Pan-Britannic-Pan- Anglican Contest and Festival every four years as a means of increasing the goodwill and good understanding of the British Empire". Subsequently, the Festival of the empire was held in 1911 in London to celebrate the coronation of King George V. In the inter-empire more...

Poverty has acquired a vast meaning and it entails more than the lack "I income and productive resources to ensure sustainable livelihoods. I lie manifestations of poverty include hunger and malnutrition, limited access to education and other basic services, social discrimination and inclusion as well as the lack of participation in decision-making. Poverty eradication was identified by the World Social Summit as an ethical, social, political and economic imperative of mankind. To address the root causes of poverty, it is essential that basic needs are provided for all and it needs to be ensured that the poor have access to productive resources, including credit, education and training. The 24 th l special session of the UN General Assembly set up targets to reduce The  proportion of people living in extreme poverty by one half by 2015. This target has been subsequently endorsed by the Millennium Summit as Millennium Development Goal. more...

Credit card usage has become so common that one really ponders whether there is life without credit cards. A connected question is, if there exists a life without credit card, is it worth living. In today's instant gratification world, the thought of forgoing credit cards in favour of a cash-only lifestyle seems as foreign as mailing a handwritten letter through the post office. Yet there are instances "where some people have declared, 'enough is enough!' and dedicated themselves to lives sans credit cards. Most of the so-called liberated, polished and educated well-to-do people have a credit card. All non-card holders are those who are unable in obtain credit cards, or those who choose not to use them. Many of those without credit cards simply do not qualify for credit due to bad credit, no credit, immigration status or another reason. Even when people find themselves debt-ridden and their privileges suspended more...

The Right to Information (RTT) Act is a law enacted by the Parliament of India to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens. It was passed by Parliament on 15 June 2005 and came fully into force on 13 October 2005. The RTI Act mandates timely response to citizen requests for government information, ll applies 10 all Stales and Union Territories of India, except the State of Jammu and Kashmir, which is covered under a State-level law. The Act relaxes the Official Secrets Act of 1889 which was amended in 1923 and various other special laws that restricted information disclosure in India. In other words, the Act explicitly overrides the Official Secrets Act and oilier laws in force as on 15 June 2005 to the extent of any inconsistency. Under the provisions of the Act, any citizen (excluding the citizens within J&K) may request more...

The more than ten coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai which began on 26 November 2008 are referred to as 26/11 on the lines of 9/11 that reminds of the attack on the Twin Towers in US. The attacks lasted until 29 November, killing at least 173 people and wounding at least 308. Eight of the attacks occurred in South Mumbai including at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, the Orthodox Jewish-owned Nariman House, and the Metro Cinema. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and in a taxi at Vile Parle. India's National Security Guards (NSG) carried out Operation Black Tornado, which ended all fighting in the attacks on 29 November with the death of the last remaining attackers at the Taj hotel. Ajmal Kasab was the only attacker who was captured alive. He more...

Feminism refers to political, cultural, and economic movements aimed at establishing greater rights, legal protection for women, and or women's liberation. It includes some of the sociological theories and philosophies concerned with issues of gender difference. Nancy Cott defines feminism as the belief in the importance of gender equality, invalidating the idea of gender hierarchy as a socially constructed concept. Feminism has earned itself a bad reputation, but it never undermined gender differences that exist between males and females. A man can never be as good a mother as a female can. Similarly, a woman can never be as good a father as a male can. While accepting these anatomical and physiological differences between the two genders, feminism seeks for both genders to be equally respected. They are both human and as a species, humans cannot progress without either one of them. Maggie Humm and Rebecca Walker divide the history more...