Jun 24 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

2012 find may indeed be the God particle

Washington: PTI





Researchers at Cern have found the first evidence for the direct decay of the Higgs boson into fermions — a strong indication that the particle discovered in 2012 is indeed the Higgs boson, the so-called God particle.The findings confirm that the bosons found in 2012 decay to fermions — a group of particles that includes all leptons and quarks — as predicted by the Standard Model of particle physics.
In July 2012, Cern researchers said they had observed a new particle whose properties were consistent with those predicted for the Higgs boson by the Standard Model, but more work was needed to confirm this.
“What we are trying to do is establish whether this particle is consistent with the Higgs boson and not one of many Higgs bosons, or an imposter that looks like it,” said Markus Klute, an assistant professor of physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology .

Jun 24 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

THE SPEAKING TREE - Learn To Empty The Cup Within

Talk: Swami Sukhabodhananda





We are often insensitive to the poetry of living life wisely. We are caught in the prose of what we want rather than what is truly wise. It is said, “God has given us two ears and one mouth, to listen more and talk less“. Have we learnt the art of wise listening? We go to listen to lectures. Why? Have you asked this question of your self ? We collect more words, more concepts and they become our memory bank.Next time you listen to some other lec ture, your memory bank becomes a kind of obstacle without your knowing it, for you have invested in what you know. Hence our knowledge of the past becomes our block. Is it not?
Are you reading this article more to confirm what you know or are you searching for something new? Listening or reading to find out something is very different from confirming what you know already . If you are listening more to confirm rather than to find out, then your listening has no significance, is it not? How can one's listening be anchored in “finding out“ rather than as confirmation of what one knows?
Try this out next time. When you listen to a lecture, be sensitive to the beginning and ending of any concept that is spoken and get the whole picture. See the “newness“ of what the speaker is saying; see what is it that you can practise from what the speaker is saying, can you be alert to be “open“ to what the speaker is saying and not allow your knowledge to interfere in your understand ing? Try this out and then you will learn how to find out.
To find out something, one has to be open and fluid. If you have observed a river, how it flows, you will notice sometimes on the backwaters of the river, there are small ponds. Water stagnates in a pond, there are no fish. But the river water is fresh, vibrant and flowing. If you become like a pond, you become stagnant to what you know, to your positionality , to your opinion, to your dogmas and so will end up missing the quality of freshness of the flowing river.
Our listening, when it is caught in our opinion, in our dogmas, in our likes and dislikes, we miss the freshness and open ness of listening. When you are listening, learn to be open and flowing. Give space to the speaker, give space to your doubts, giving inner space, in being open. And from that openness when one listens, there is a different quality of understanding.
Next time your boss is talking to you, don't be caught in your disagreement, give space to your preferences and give space to what he is saying, then you can intuit what he is saying.
Next time your spouse scolds you, just be open, don't get lost in what you want, give space for your spouse to say and from that openness listen to your spouse's scolding. You will understand better and not be bitter.
Once you are bitter, you get isolated and in that isolation, you can't connect to your spouse. Isolation creates conflict and when\ in conflict, you get filled with\ frustration and your inner cup is filled with restlessness. Learn to empty your inner cup. Follow Swami Sukhabodhananda of Prasanna Trust at speakingtree.in and post your comments there.

Jun 24 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

DU can do what it wants: FYUP camp

New Delhi: TIMES NEWS NETWORK





While one group of students held a slightly premature celebration of the FYUP rollback—still not announced formally—a teachers’ group, Academics for Action and Development (Mishra) got together to tell students, teachers and the media all the reasons the UGC doesn’t have the right to intervene. On top of the list is that Delhi University is an autonomous institution and UGC’s actions are in violation of that.This group also reminded that the HRD ministry and UGC, which has suddenly found FYUP “illegal”, hadn’t objected to its introduction last year.
“UGC’s diktat not only violates the long-standing autonomy of DU since its inception in 1922, but it is also in contradiction of its own rules, regulations and letters to DU where it clearly states the freedom on duration of courses with a cap only on the minimum number of years for awarding a degree,” says a statement by AAD. “UGC has
overstepped its own mandate, act and regulation in acting as a more than willing instrument of the HRD ministry.” “UGC can only advise and recommend,” argues Mishra.Mishra also said that DU had written to the Visitor, President Pranab Mukherjee, informing him of the changes. “The President never
writes `I am pleased to sanction these',“ he says, “If there's no objection, it is understood the changes have been approved.“The meeting, however, didn't end well for AAD-Mishra with a prominent member being roughed up by students during a debate for a television channel. Student groups ABVP and NSUI--for once, on the same side of the FYUP debate, that is, against it--passed the blame. “The fight was between ABVP activists and Surendra Kumar (the history department),“ says NSUI's Amrish Ranjan Pandey. ABVP's Rohit Chahal says, “I'm not so stupid that I will try to beat up a teacher in front of a TV crew. In fact, I was stunned to see Congress’ student wing beating up its teachers’ wing.” Earlier, unaffected by the silence maintained by the authorities, students of ABVP participated in frantic, if slightly premature, celebrations at the arts faculty on North Campus on Monday. It wasn’t the speech-and-march affair promised but it involved crackers, colour, dhols and hysterical dancing. Thinking the rollback is already in the bag, Chahal says, “It’s not over yet as the VC is yet to resign.” Meanwhile, AISA, which essentially began the student campaign against FYUP in 2013, took their campaign away from campus on Monday. They demanded an “immediate intervention of the HRD ministry to ask the Visitor to annul the FYUP Ordinances, ensure AICTE-approved BTech degrees for the first batch” and argued that the rollback “cannot be left to DU principals who have been vociferous supporters of FYUP”.

Jun 23 2014 : Mirror (Pune)

FORENSICS DO NOT LIE - `Prevent crime by becoming aware of how it takes place'

Mubarak.Ansari @timesgroup.com TWEET @ThePuneMirror





A lecture on forensic science revealed how crucial it is in modern day crime detection and the emerging trend of preventive forensics

Crime can be prevented if more people are aware of how it takes place -this was the biggest take away from a lecture on forensic science on Saturday, as Dr Rukmani Krishnamurthy, chairman of Helik Advisory Limited, a forensic and allied science organisaiton based in Mumbai, harped on the application of forensic science in the prevention of crime.Krishnamurthy, a former director of the Directorate of Forensic Science Labs, Maharashtra, was in the city to deliver a lecture on `Use of forensic science to tackle hi-tech crimes' at the Centre for Police Research (CPR) on Pashan Road.
Citing the intended use of liquid explosives in the foiled 2006 terror attack at the Heathrow Airport in London, she said that forensics can help in finding such substances which if people are made aware of, more such incidents can be foiled.
“A new trend of preventive forensic is emerging where one knows about an impending terror attack or other crime from the analysis of tests like narco analysis tests. The brain, which can mastermind the most heinous of crimes, can also be `stimulated' to give away criminal intent by confronting it with stimuli such as a picture, word, or phrase associated with information that may be stored in the brain,“ she said.
On the role of forensic evidence in nabbing the guilty, she said, “In serious offences like rape, DNA report can pin point the culprit(s) and reveal how many persons were involved in a case of gangrape.“ Forensic evidence is admissible in a court of law, she informed the audience, which comprised of serving and retired officers.
“When the court has to form an opinion upon a point of foreign law, the identity of hand writing or fingerimpressions, opinions of experts are relevant. Further, Section 293 of the CrPC says government scientific experts may be used as evidence,“ she said.
Talking about the crime scene, she added, “Evidence as tiny as a strand of hair or drop of oil often play a crucial role in solving cases.“
Additional DGP S P Yadav, who is the chief of Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID), said, “Collection of forensic evidence is need of the hour.“ Adding that detection methods have changed, he said, “Extracting a confession is not enough now. Judges take forensic evidence more seriously, as conviction rate increases with the availability of evidence.“ CPR managing director A V Krishnan, a former IPS officer, said that forensic science raises the credibility of the convict being the guilty.
Police Inspector B B Khaira, who is the admin and accounts manager at CPR, said, “This lecture was the 17th lecture as part of a lecture series, which began in April 2011, aimed at promoting discussion among the intelligentsia on socially relevant issues.“

Jun 23 2014 : Mirror (Pune)

Each species has its own niche in caves

Mayuri.Phadnis @timesgroup.com TWEET @ThePuneMirror





After researching 80 caves in the state, city-based environmentalist says dwelling animals live in peaceful co-existence; study will help in building artificial habitats

In an ideal ecosystem, each species has its own niche ­ what it does, what it eats, where it sleeps, and more. To find out how animals coexist without conflict in caves, live in the same spot, yet not overlap in some of their roles or needs, a city-based environmentalist has studied over 80 caves across the state, including Western Ghats and Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve. In a span of eight years, entomologist Dr Rahul Marathe, who visited 10 big caves and 35 small to medium caves, said the most commonly found cave animals are bandicoots, rats, bats and porcupines.Even though many different animals coexist in caves, Marathe observed that these noctural animals have their own marked territories.
While the bandicoots and rats take shelter in deep crevices, bats use the roof of caves. Even porcupines live deep within the cave interior, but unlike other rodents they do not make burrows. They also chew on bone and tree root to keep their teeth sharp.
“Even though these animals use the same entrance, they have different timings so that they do not come in close contact with each other. Bats generally move out immediately after the sunset. A little later the porcupines move out, and around midnight, the rats and bandicoots go out.
Since all these animals are nocturnal they use the cave for resting throughout the day,“ said Marathe.
According to the study, few of the caves in Tadoba are also used by tigers. “Usually, tigers live at the mouth of the cave and do not go deeper into the cave. They are not cave animals, but use the cave to hide, ambush and attack prey.
Tigers also use caves for resting,“ Marathe added.
For tigers the caves are more of hideouts, while hyenas use the caves to reside, said Marathe. Like tigers, hyenas use the mouth of the cave, where are remnants of its prey can be found.
Besides the regular bats, porcupines and bandicoots, the caves in Konkan and Tamhini Ghat have frogs, which use it as a breeding ground and lay their eggs in water puddles.
“It is like a live-in relationship amongst animals, without crossing each other's paths. Each animal uses these caves in their own `niche' ways.
Considering habitat destruction, this research study can be used to create artificial habitats for them,“ he said.
Saying that artificial habitats, with more crevices, can be build as “natural“ as possible, Marathe said the animals will feel secure in such habitats, and chances of breeding will increase too.
“As the localities change so do the caves and the creatures that reside there. In the caves in Dive Ghat, greyhound owl can be found in the crevices, and at other places Gecko can be seen. These caves and the life that dwells in it needs to be identified and a centralised data should be compiled. Once the data is available, a district level conservation plan can made to protect such caves,“ said Anuj Khare, the honorary wildlife warden of Pune.

un 23 2014 : The Economic Times (Bangalore)

Why India Eats Badly

Veena S Rao





For an aspiring global power, India suffers from shocking levels of malnutrition
We must overcome our reservations about private sector cooperation in our campaign against malnutrition, and motivate them to do something

T he bad news is that India continues to lead most cou ntries in several malnutri tion and mortality indica tors. The latest UN report places India's maternal mortality as highest in the world at 17% of global maternal mortality . The good news is that the BJP manifesto said that “extreme poverty and malnutrition will be treated as a national priority and will be addressed on mission mode“. This has to be done, because our malnutrition dimensions have now reached a situation of alarm with more than 50% suffering from some form of malnutrition or micronutrient deficiency , resulting in suboptimal cognitive and physical development, low productivity and high health costs.Malnutrition in India is not a woman and child phenomenon, but a population problem. Data of underweight/stunting of children of both sexes, low body mass index and chronic energy deficiency of adolescent girls and boys, and adults, are worrisome, and not what an aspiring world power should have. This demographic emergency should have been addressed through a national programme.
Previous governments have failed to curb this. The Budget speech of 2012 announced a multi-sectoral programme to be rolled out during 2012-13 to address maternal and child malnutrition in 200 high-bur den districts. However, no imple mentation template was sent out to state governments, and I am in formed that this is currently still the subject of discussion in states.
But, wisely , the government real ised that malnutrition needed more than ICDS to cure it, and initiated the policy shift towards the inter sectoral strategy , something that a had been recommended by the Na tional Nutrition Policy , 1993.
We must pick up from this multi sectoral shift and compose a stratet gy that rectifies the disconnect bes tween the causes of malnutrition l and the interventions on offer. Ins dia's under-nutrition is intergenert ational, and rooted not only in pov erty and the lack of balance between y calories, proteins and micronu trients, but also lack of information e and gender inequity .
e The present interventions do not address structural and systemic causes of India's malnutrition; they are inadequate with poor coverage, n and riddled with gaps. This is why l their impact has been suboptimal.
d Start at the Block The unit for inter-sectoral intervena tions should be the block, and not the district, as the former is more h compact and homogeneous, making it easier to engineer “convergence“.
The minimum, basic inter-sectoral e convergence requires that every tar geted family must receive simultas neously benefits of calorie-proteind micronutrient supplementation, full immunisation of children, IFA for addressing anaemia, safe drink ing water and hygienic sanitation.
Actual convergence must happen l at the community level; its success g can be tested through monitoring d how many families in a village have t simultaneously received these five c benefits, four of which are ongoing y government programmes. Gender e, equity and female literacy , also bacy ked by national programmes, are in direct interventions that result in improved nutritional status, throu gh late marriage, fewer children and better awareness.
t But who will ensure and monitor e this convergence at the community g level? Regardless of government “. orders and advisories from above, l there must be one functionary in reach village who should be given reasponsibility to ensure this. Present ly, there is no one, and we have no , data about how many households A have received the complete package of their benefits.
n Let Private Players in s We must also overcome our reserva g tions about private sector coopera e tion in our campaign against mal nutrition, and motivate them to assume some responsibility . Maybe companies could make available ap propriate low-cost energy foods for poor and malnourished children, women, adolescent girls and boys, the sick, aged and infirm, in rural and urban markets. There is a huge market vacuum in this respect, which has been filled by forcefully advertised low-cost junk food and tobacco products.
Just Do It India has a sound National Nutrition Policy, 1993, which requires a little updating and lots of implementation. On its recommendation, the National Nutrition Council headed by the Prime Minister was constituted in 1994. This council never met, and after much criticism, was replaced by the PM's Committee on Nutrition Challenges in 2008.
The terms of this panel were limited to providing policy direction and reviewing nutrition programmes, without any mandate for fresh strategies for specifically reducing malnutrition.
The new government could begin by revisiting the committee's composition and mandate, and tasking it with the responsibility of drawing up its blueprint for addressing malnutrition in mission mode.
The writer is a former secretary to the government of India





Jun 23 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

Staffing cos join search for women leaders

Namrata Singh

Mumbai: TNN





Help India Inc Improve Gender Diversity

Now that gender diversity is getting a strong push from India Inc, headhunters have decided to throw their weight behind the move. From including a certain percentage of women in their candidate shortlist to identifying highquality women leaders in India and abroad through ‘talent mapping’, executive search firms are doing their bit to ensure that female managers get achance to man key posts in organizations.Egon Zehnder, which has offices in Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi, has joined what is called a ‘Club of 30’, wherein 30% of the candidates the firm presents in a search are gender diverse. Originally a group of UKbased CEOs and chairs committed to improving gender balance through voluntary action, the 30% Club today is a global movement. Rajeev Vasudeva, CEO, Egon Zehnder, described it as a moral commitment. “We are not saying that they need to be hired. We are making sure we make enough candidates visible to our clients,” Vasudeva told TOI.
On their part, global recruitment firms like Antal International and Amrop are conducting in-depth analysis to map women leaders. This has become necessary as companies are determined to fill certain leadership posts with women.
When Antal International was recently faced with a demand from an MNC for a woman candidate in a quality control function, the search firm realized the client was simply not ready to consider a male profile for the role. Ultimately, they found and hired a woman candidate. “We have seen often how, even for critical hires and despite pressure from hiring heads, if orga
nizations feel that female candidates are more suited to the role, they are willing to wait till they find one,” said Mayank Chandra, managing partner, Antal International.The search for suitable women leaders is not restricted to India alone. When Siemens India was looking to fill the post of a general counsel recently, the firm was very keen on hiring a woman. The company spent a lot of time on the search which went global. However, since it does not discriminate
on gender and is firm that all capability parameters are met during the hiring process, Siemens eventually filled the post with a male candidate. But if all parameters are met by a woman candidate, chances are that she would get the post. “When we look for talent for India, we don’t restrict the search to India or to Siemens’ global talent network,” said S Ramesh Shankar, HR head of Siemens in India.In India, executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles (H&S) has been proactive for the last couple of years in getting to know and track talented women on a global basis. “We have been producing key reports for some of our clients in India to get them to better understand the landscape and the challeng
es of attracting this talent pool,” said Gauri Padmanabhan, partner, H&S.A key factor that is pushing companies to look for talented women candidates is to meet the new requirement under the Companies’ Bill of a compulsory woman board member. Amrop has done board projects for independent women directors and also conducted research on possible avenues where high-quality women leaders can be hired. One such project was
Hongqi Zhang/iStock/Getty Images for a large telecommunica tions company which ap pointed a women director.Companies are engaging agencies in `talent mapping' where firms locate and track fe male talent to ensure their in clusion in future searches.
Some months ago, H&S was en listed by a large global bank to produce a global female talent map for a couple of senior man agement roles. In India specifi cally, H&S routinely works with its global team to locate over seas a female board of director of Indian origin in order to help clients satisfy their gender in clusion goals.
“For some special roles, our clients prefer we expand the map and find talent on a region al scale,“ said Padmanabhan.