Friday, November 27, 2015
Data put the Indian desire for male child in stark relief
India is going through a radical demographic transition, but new data from the Census show that one thing remains the same -- the desire for a male child.
Around 290 million women have had at least one child, the data show, with two being the most common number of children in a family -- a testament to falling fertility rates in India. The drop from number of two-child families to the number of families with more children is much sharper now than it was a decade ago. In fact, there were more families with over six children 10 years ago despite population growth.
Bring in gender dynamics, however, and an extremely complicated picture emerges. Among families with one to four children, more boys are born than girls. The unnatural advantage for boy babies is particularly sharp among families with two children -- half of such families have one boy and one girl, a third have two boys and just one-sixth have two girls. Even given the slight birth advantage that boys enjoy (in nature, there is a slightly higher likelihood of males being born than females), such sharply skewed sex ratios are a clear indication of unnatural processes, most likely pre-natal sex selection.
Among families with more than four children, a sudden reversal begins to take place, as girls become more common than boys. What’s going on here? Families that are unable to practise sex selection, or choose not to, are likely to continue with more pregnancies in the hope of a male child, demographers explain. So large families are more likely to have more girls, as the desire for a male child is what is spurring the size of the family.
What’s more, it’s clear that as family sizes got smaller over the last decade, these processes have only intensified. The magnitude of disparity between small families with more boys than girls and large families with more girls than boys has sharpened between 2001 and 2011.
As India pushes on ahead with its aim of reducing family sizes, it’s going to need to consider the significant impact it’s having on gender dynamics.
Source: The Hindu, 25-11-2015
90% of disasters weather related: UN report
The five countries hit by the highest number of disasters were the US, China, India, Philippines and Indonesia; Storms were the deadliest.
In the past 20 years, 90 per cent of major disasters around the world were caused by nearly 6,500 recorded floods, storms, heatwaves, droughts and other weather-related events, UN spokesman has said.
A new UN-backed report, titled The Human Cost of Weather Related Disasters, found that since 1995, over 600,000 people have died as a result of weather-related disasters with 4.1 billion people injured, left homeless or in need of emergency assistance, Xinhua quoted UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric as saying on Monday.
The five countries hit by the highest number of disasters were the US, China, India, Philippines and Indonesia, said Dujarric.
The report issued by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) notes data gaps, saying that only 35 per cent of records include information about economic losses.
UNISDR estimated that the true figure on disaster losses — including earthquakes and tsunamis — was between $250 billion and $300 billion annually.
According to the report, Asia accounts for the “lion’s share of disaster impacts” including 332,000 deaths and 3.7 billion people affected.
The death toll in Asia included 138,000 deaths caused by Cyclone Nargis which struck Myanmar in 2008.
The report also highlights that floods accounted for 47 per cent of all weather-related disasters from 1995-2015, affecting 2.3 billion people and killing 157,000.
Storms were the deadliest weather-related disaster, accounting for 242,000 deaths (40 per cent) of the global weather-related deaths, with 89 percent of these deaths occurring in lower-income countries.
Overall, heatwaves accounted for 148,000 of the 164,000 lives lost due to extreme temperatures, with 92 percent of deaths occurring in high-income countries, said the report.
Finally, drought reportedly affects Africa more than any other continent, with 136 events between 1995 and 2015, including 77 droughts in East Africa alone, the report showed.
Source: The Hindu, 24-11-2015
How I won $10,000 Alan Mulally Scholarship
I am an engineering student from Anna University, Chennai, and the first recipient of the US $10,000 Alan Mulally Leadership in Engineering Scholarship.
I came to know about the scholarship through my college bulletin board. I discussed the opportunity with my professor and got a letter of recommendation. Next, I prepared a statement of purpose, expressing my love for computer science, design, cars and leadership. I was surprised to be selected.
The scholarship honours former Ford Motor Company CEO Alan Mulally’s expertise in science and engineering. It is a part of a global initiative from Ford. I’m looking forward to connect with the company’s corporate science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) strategic initiative.
A meeting with Wendy Hall (professor of computer science at the University of Southampton, England) during an ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) meeting in 2012, boosted my interest in computer science. Consequently, I took up an undergraduate course in computer science at the College of Engineering Guindy, Anna University.
I’m in my final year. I fell in love with cars during a car exhibition in my college. My final-year project is related to smart communication between vehicles to reduce accident risks and noise pollution. After graduating, I want to pursue research in computer science that will utilise my learning in databases and algorithms. Machine learning and artificial intelligence are other fields I’m interested in. I also want to mentor students from underrepresented populations.
Source: Hindustan Times, 26-11-2015
Li-fi: Internet that's 100 times faster than Wi-Fi
Doug Bolton
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Transmits Data @1GBps Via Visible Light, But It Can't Pass Through Walls
A new type of wireless in ternet technology has be en developed that could provide a connection 100 times aster than traditional Wi-fi.The tech is called Li-fi, and was tested by an Estonian start up called Velmenni. Li-fi is ca pable of sending data at speeds of up to 1GBps, around 100 times aster than most Wi-fi connec ions. At speeds like this, al bums, high-definition films and even video games could be downloaded in seconds.
The speed is down to the way n which it transmits data -by using Visible Light Communi cation (VLC), data is sent betwe en networks by LED lights tha flicker incredibly fast. Howe ver, the technology has one ma jor limitation -because it reli es on visible light to work, it can't pass through walls.
However, this makes the net work much more secure. The dramatically increased speeds make it a big improvement on current technology for some applications as well.
Professor Harald Haas, from the University of Edinburgh pioneered the technology and coined the term Li-fi in 2011, but this is the first time it's been used in a `real world' setting. De epak Solanki, CEO of Velmen ni, said the technology could be rolled out to consumers within the next three to four years. However, due to Li-fi's limi tations, it would be likely to run in parallel with existing technology to increase a network's speed and efficiency . However, if the infastructure catches up, Lifi could become much more widely used, especially if it's transmitted through our lightbulbs.
As Haas said, “All we need to do is fit a small microchip to every potential illumination device and this would then combine two basic functionalities: illumination and wireless data transmission.“ “In the future we will not only have 14 billion light bulbs, we may have 14 billion Li-fis for a cleaner, greener and brighter future,“ he said.
Source: Times of India, 27-11-2015
The speed is down to the way n which it transmits data -by using Visible Light Communi cation (VLC), data is sent betwe en networks by LED lights tha flicker incredibly fast. Howe ver, the technology has one ma jor limitation -because it reli es on visible light to work, it can't pass through walls.
However, this makes the net work much more secure. The dramatically increased speeds make it a big improvement on current technology for some applications as well.
Professor Harald Haas, from the University of Edinburgh pioneered the technology and coined the term Li-fi in 2011, but this is the first time it's been used in a `real world' setting. De epak Solanki, CEO of Velmen ni, said the technology could be rolled out to consumers within the next three to four years. However, due to Li-fi's limi tations, it would be likely to run in parallel with existing technology to increase a network's speed and efficiency . However, if the infastructure catches up, Lifi could become much more widely used, especially if it's transmitted through our lightbulbs.
As Haas said, “All we need to do is fit a small microchip to every potential illumination device and this would then combine two basic functionalities: illumination and wireless data transmission.“ “In the future we will not only have 14 billion light bulbs, we may have 14 billion Li-fis for a cleaner, greener and brighter future,“ he said.
Source: Times of India, 27-11-2015
Building Character Through Social Media
B V Vaman Maharaj
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While scrolling through a social media site which has become a very crucial element of daily life i came across an article mentioning that two German universities joined forces to investigate social e-networking.The study concluded that one in three people surveyed felt worse (`lonely , frustrated or angry') after spending time on social networking sites, often due to perceived inadequacies when comparing themselves to friends.Another article stated that heavy social e-media use might be correlated to lower self-control, which marketing experts believe could lead to higher spending.Although the increasing popularity of social media sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn have gained attention as the most viable communication choice for bloggers, article writers and content creators, the downside is that the user shares too much information which may pose threats to him. Even with the tight security settings, your personal information may leak out. On the other hand, social networking sites are great enablers in a variety of ways despite the fact that they are also a source of exasperation and irritation.
Many times it is observed that children engrossed in their e-devices tend to ignore the call of their parents and teachers. Adults, too, end up paying more attention to social networking sites and in so doing, tend to neglect their partners, siblings and other family members and friends, too. Instead of spending quality time with family , we are spending quantity time on social media. We are depriving ourselves of sharing real time love and affection. Although connected with friends and relatives who are far away , we are becoming distanced from near ones, sitting next to us.
Preoccupation with digital devices and e-social networking is a growing trend; and if this continues to the exclusion of people-to-people contact in the real world, it may cause more problems than generate solutions. The wonderful invention of science should help us to become a loving and caring society instead of an affectionless society .
Life on earth as a human being could yield the highest benefit to not just humans but for all life forms.
Therefore a sober and intelligent person should try to attain the highest benefit in life before it is too late. One should overcome or reduce the tendency for sense gratification. We must utilise this wonderful opportunity by means of social media to find out the path to Self-realisation, to gain knowledge of the Eternal Well-wisher who is ever ready to shower grace on us. One should use the human form to practise devotional and social service.And in this, social media could be a very important tool. The human body is most rarely achieved, and although temporary like other bodies, it is meaningful because in human life one can perform devotional service.
The Oxford English dictionary defines education as systematic instruction. `Character' is defined as mental or moral qualities. The word `secular' is very often used in education. According to the dictionary , secular means `concerned with the affairs of the world, not spiritual, not sacred'. When secular word is not sacred, what is the reason to feel hesitation in introducing basic moral, social and spiritual education to children and the youth? How can we think about good governance of the country by citizens without a moral, social and spiritual backbone?
As Columbia University Professor Keith Wilcox says, “It's not about `don't spend time on social media', but it's about `just be aware of what it might be doing to you'.“
Many times it is observed that children engrossed in their e-devices tend to ignore the call of their parents and teachers. Adults, too, end up paying more attention to social networking sites and in so doing, tend to neglect their partners, siblings and other family members and friends, too. Instead of spending quality time with family , we are spending quantity time on social media. We are depriving ourselves of sharing real time love and affection. Although connected with friends and relatives who are far away , we are becoming distanced from near ones, sitting next to us.
Preoccupation with digital devices and e-social networking is a growing trend; and if this continues to the exclusion of people-to-people contact in the real world, it may cause more problems than generate solutions. The wonderful invention of science should help us to become a loving and caring society instead of an affectionless society .
Life on earth as a human being could yield the highest benefit to not just humans but for all life forms.
Therefore a sober and intelligent person should try to attain the highest benefit in life before it is too late. One should overcome or reduce the tendency for sense gratification. We must utilise this wonderful opportunity by means of social media to find out the path to Self-realisation, to gain knowledge of the Eternal Well-wisher who is ever ready to shower grace on us. One should use the human form to practise devotional and social service.And in this, social media could be a very important tool. The human body is most rarely achieved, and although temporary like other bodies, it is meaningful because in human life one can perform devotional service.
The Oxford English dictionary defines education as systematic instruction. `Character' is defined as mental or moral qualities. The word `secular' is very often used in education. According to the dictionary , secular means `concerned with the affairs of the world, not spiritual, not sacred'. When secular word is not sacred, what is the reason to feel hesitation in introducing basic moral, social and spiritual education to children and the youth? How can we think about good governance of the country by citizens without a moral, social and spiritual backbone?
As Columbia University Professor Keith Wilcox says, “It's not about `don't spend time on social media', but it's about `just be aware of what it might be doing to you'.“
Millions of farmers don’t have safeguards against climate change impact
The impact of climate change on India’s agriculture is more evident than ever before, but millions of small and marginal farmers do not have adequate safeguards, said a study released on Friday.
The country’s farm sector is considered highly vulnerable to shifts in weather patterns as half of the cropland is dependent on rainfall, drawing around 60% of the farmers to the core of the climate-proofing debate.
Climate change increases frequency of extreme weather events, a fact apparent in rainfall data of the past 100 years. Government statistics show such events have increased in recent years, causing massive damage to crops.
The report, “Lived Anomaly”, by the Delhi-based advocacy group Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said the area affected by freak weather events in 2015 jumped to 18.33 million hectares from 0.35 million hectares in 2013, resulting in crop loss worth Rs 20,453 crore. The findings come three days ahead of a climate conference in Paris where 196 countries will decide a new pact providing a mechanism to tackle global warming between 2020 and 2030.
The report underscores the inability of the Indian system to cope with climate change weather events on farmland and points out that compensation is given for a maximum of two hectares of land, is less than 50% of the actual damage on that plot and comes several months after the actual loss.
“The quantum of compensation decided is most of the times a political decision rather than a scientific one,” the study says, adding that the loss is measured by local revenue officers on the basis of oral evidence and often without visiting all the affected areas.
The study comes on the heels of unseasonable rains and hailstorms destroying crops in parts of northern, eastern and central India this year.
Crop insurance, touted as a solution to provide respite to farmers hit by weather anomalies, is almost a non-starter. The CSE said just 20% of farmers are covered under the Centre’s crop insurance schemes that basically provide a safety net for farm loan dues in case of crop damage.
Climate change implications for Indian agriculture
*Kharif crops to be hit more by rainfall variability, rabi crops by dropping temperatures
*Wheat faces damage in rabi due to terminal heat stress
*Negative impact on rice, wheat and horticulture
*Neutral or positive impact on some crops like soybean, groundnut, potato in few parts
*Milk yield in livestock to be hit by heat waves
*Significant negative impact on commercial poultry due to heat stress
Source: Hindustan Times, 27-11-2015
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