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Millions saw the apple fall, but Newton was the one who asked why.
-- Bernard Baruch

Finally....

Jail for Imrana's father-in-law from The Hindu

MUZAFFARNAGAR: A local court on Thursday convicted 70-year-old Ali Mohammed of raping his daughter-in-law Imrana and sentenced him to 10-year imprisonment. After the June 6, 2005 incident, a Muslim panchayat directed Imrana to treat her husband as a son, sparking a nationwide furore.

I completely agree...

Skills Gap Hurts Technology Boom in India from NYTimes

India still produces plenty of engineers, nearly 400,000 a year at last count. But their competence has become the issue.

A study commissioned by a trade group, the National Association of Software and Service Companies, or Nasscom, found only one in four engineering graduates to be employable. The rest were deficient in the required technical skills, fluency in English or ability to work in a team or deliver basic oral presentations.

The skills gap reflects the narrow availability of high-quality college education in India and the galloping pace of the country’s service-driven economy, which is growing faster than nearly all but China’s. The software and service companies provide technology services to foreign companies, many of them based in the United States. Software exports alone expanded by 33 percent in the last year.

The university systems of few countries would be able to keep up with such demand, and India is certainly having trouble. The best and most selective universities generate too few graduates, and new private colleges are producing graduates of uneven quality.

As I was educated outside India plenty a times I was subject to the criticism that my education was not good enough. But over a period of time I have realized that maybe primary and middle school education in India might be good but after that very few institutes are there in India that provide even reasonal education. I have seen fellow students and collegues (educated in india) struggle with what should be easy. But I won't just blame the education system here... each individual is to be blamed. Cause all that we worry about is getting the marks and not actually learning what we are doing. Maybe with time this mind set will change among the Indians

(Diwali)Thought

Reminds me of the song Pal Pal hai bhari form Swadesh. Why do we celebrate these festivals??? It does not to have the same value... Seems to be just another holiday no one thinks about them. Some just do the rituals and others don't that is the only difference. Those days are gone when the every festival stood for a trait that was to be learned, a virtue to be added in once life. Now it is just something to show... But show what? That we are Hindus? Does lighting a few diyas or chanting few lines of sholaks actually makes us Hindu? Or just a good enf reason to buy new clothes? chillax at home?

I wonder does virtue actually has any value in life? If not why not? There is a trend in Hinduism in India that I am seeing these days... There no information, only misinformation. Too many (wrong)things are being done in the name of religion. I use to think that it is a problem faced more by other religion(recently) but now it seems to be fast spreading again in Hinduism.

But none the less I will enjoy my diwali to the fullest and hope u all do the same. Will continue on this thought later.

To ban or not to????

We can't just pick and choose what to tolerate [from The Hindu]

The whole article is worth a read, so i am not quoting anything in particular. This is about the 'burkha'/head scarf ban in Europe. Don't know what to comment on this issue. Personally I do not support women wearing 'burkha' or 'ghughat'. But on the other hand noone(includes the govt., their husbands, their parents, etc. etc.) has a right to tell an adult what to wear and what not to. So if they want to wear it... it is their wish and should be respected.

Why are we following other conservative religions????

Katrina's skirt creates a row in Ajmer via samamchar.com

What the hell is wrong with everyone. why do i see more and more headlines about what to wear and what not wear istead of some real issues in the society today. There are simply so many things that need to change in the society other than the lenght of her skirt... look around open your eyes.. no your mind and grow up.

I wanted to blog abt this for quite a few days here it is now

Forgive Afzal (via Hindu) and why not it will fetch these idiots votes. That is all they worry about... I have an idea why not hag one of them instead of Afzal. What say...

Thought

How can one event of life change all the priorities of life. There are a million thoughts running through my head these days and so many things that keep me busy. But there is nothing to show for.
Building a relationship takes effort, time and most importantly willingness to make it successful. :)

Firefox 2

First Look at Firefox 2 RC1 from CNET

Quote

When you aim for perfection, you discover it's a moving target.
-- George Fisher

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Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.
-- Albert Camus

stem cells are here in india... as expected

India to cure killer diseases from siliconindia.com

New Delhi: India will launch its first stem cell transplant center in Chennai, opening next month. Killer diseases like leukaemia, stroke, diabetes and crippling spinal cord injuries could now be treated in India only.

LifeCell, a pioneer in stem cell banking and research in India, in collaboration with the US-based Cryo-Cell Inc would be launching this center. The company has invested $4mn to set up the transplant center at the Sri Ramachandra Medical Center of Excellence, which will be fully operational by the end of this year.

"In India the concept of preserving the stem cell is gradually gaining momentum and the potential for this is huge," said Prasad Mangipudi, vice president of LifeCell.

"Stem Cell therapy is fast emerging as a revolutionary way to treat various diseases and injuries with wide ranging medical benefits," said Anthony Finch, who joined as Advisor to LifeCell, which is launching the country's first stem cell transplant centre.

Stem cell transplantation has been used for more than 30 years to treat a variety of cancers as also some types of solid tumors where other treatments have failed.

"Bone marrow cells are being used for transplants for the past 30 years. Its only in 1988 that the first cord blood transplant was done," informed Mangipudi.

Patients suffering from haematological and oncological ailments would be treated first using stem cells from various sources -- adult bone marrow, umblical cord blood and peripheral blood. The transplant centre would be operational by next month, Mangipudi said adding that he would like to wait for six months before venturing out on an expansion plan.

LifeCell currently offers umblical cord stem cells banking facilities and has about 4,000 subscribers. Stem Cells are undifferentiated cells that retain the ability to produce an identical copy of themselves when they divide and differentiate into other cell types. They have the ability to act as a repair system for the body replenishing other cells as long as the host organism is alive.

Stem cells, obtained from cord blood cells during childbirth, have the potential to cure over 75 diseases that humans face today as they can be used to repair specific tissues, according to researchers.

As for the future the company plans to open collection centers in Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore. Their Dubai center would have its own collection bank while the Malaysian center would be their Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) hub.

they know when to change and what to change... Thailand's millatry coup

Thailand's military tightens grip from BBC

Martial law has been declared, with large gatherings of people and critical news reporting banned.

Mr Thaksin's deputy and chief aide, Chidchai Vanasathidya, has been taken into army custody.

Army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratglin said in a TV address that the coup was necessary to unite the country.

The military had no intention of holding onto power, he added.

The coup leaders have announced that regional army commanders will take charge of areas outside the capital, Bangkok.

...

In the capital Bangkok, tanks have cordoned off the government district. They have yellow ribbons tied around their barrels to signify loyalty to Thailand's revered king.

On the surface, Bangkok is functioning as normal, says the BBC's Kate McGeown there. The city's monorail system is packed with commuters, and cafes and street vendors are open for business.

Now that is something...

Samsung Develops Tiny 32 Gb Flash Chip

Samsung Electronics says it has developed the world’s first 40-nanometer 32-Gb Flash memory, which is just about the size of a thumbnail but able to store 1,000 MP3 music files. The president of Samsung Electronics' semiconductor business Hwang Chang-gyu announced the next-generation of memory at a press conference in Seoul on Monday.

Have the politician succeeded in dividing the Indian youth???

Caste-based bias rampant in AIIMS from NDTV

On Tuesday, elections to the Resident doctors association saw all pro-reservation candidates withdraw just a day before polling leaving only one contestant per post.

"The elections polarised, a meeting was held by director where it was decided to hold elections, what was the hurry to hold elections, the atmosphere is quite charged up right now," said Dr Sunil Chumber, Vice Dean, AIIMS.

Fight to continue

Nevertheless, the administration declared the elections valid. And the doctors who have won say they will continue to fight caste-based quotas.

Pro-reservation students say the caste-based discrimination at AIIMS has become even uglier after the anti-quota agitation.

Reserved category students have vacated their rooms and are now restricted to just one block of the hostel.

For the first time about a week ago, 40 students complained to the Director. But so far, there's been no action.

What's worrying is that what happens at this premier medical college seems to set a precedent for the rest of the country.