04 October 2017
Questioned by Gujarat police over Adani story: Aussie journalists
Questioned by Gujarat police over Adani story: Aussie journalists
Adani is developing a mega coal mine in Australia, and many sections in that country are against the project
A team of journalists working on a story on the Adani Group for Four Corners, an investigative journalism programme aired on ABC TV on Monday evenings, has said they were questioned by Gujarat Police “on and off for nearly five hours” in their hotel a day after they arrived at Mundra in Kutch district for filming the report.
The team, led by reporter Stephen Long, was heard saying in the report aired on Monday: “A senior policeman kept going outside and talking to someone on his mobile phone and whenever he would return, the questioning, the hostility, would ramp up.”
While attempting to film and gather information about Adani’s operations, the Four Corners team claimed, they were forced to leave Mundra at 4 am. The police told them that if they stayed they would have “three intelligence services coming to see us the next day”, says Long in the aired report. The link to the report was posted on the Four Corners Twitter handle.
The Kutch (West) police confirmed that foreign journalists were questioned for allegedly shooting in and around Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone (MPSEZ) of Adani Group late August.
“We questioned the journalists as they were foreign nationals and were shooting vital installations without permission from authorities,” Kutch (West) SP Makrand Chauhan told The Indian Express. Chauhan was transferred out of Kutch last week as part of an IPS reshuffle.
Adani is developing a mega coal mine in Australia, and many sections in that country are against the project.
Space Era
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/60-years-ago-today-russia-launched-sputnik-1--and-the-space-age-began-20171003-gytf7x.html
03 October 2017
Einstein’s waves win Nobel for 3 Americans
Black Hole researchers find ripples in fabric of universe
Three American scientists from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) have won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their contribution to detecting gravitational waves — ripples in the fabrics of spacetime which were predicted by Albert Einstein a hundred years ago.
The scientists were awarded the Nobel prize “for decisive contributions to the LIGO detector and the observation of gravitational waves”, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced here on Tuesday.
The 9 million Swedish kronor (825,000 British pounds) prize was divided. One half was awarded to Rainer Weiss of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the other half jointly to Barry C Barish and Kip S Thorne — both from California Institute of Technology (Caltech).
Originally predicted in the early 20th century by Einstein, gravitational waves were not detected until 2015, when LIGO identified the first such signal from two merging black holes.
“The 2017 Nobel Laureates have, with their enthusiasm and determination, each been invaluable to the success of LIGO,” said the Royal Swedish Academy. “Pioneers Rainer Weiss and Kip S Thorne, together with Barry C Barish, the scientist and leader who brought the project to completion, ensured that four decades of effort led to gravitational waves finally being observed,” the Academy added.
The international LIGO Science Collaboration (LSC) consisting of about 1,000 scientists from universities and research institutes from about 15 countries, including from India, announced the first detection on February 5, 2016 and second one on June 15, 2016. “I view this more as a thing that recognises the work of about 1,000 people, a really dedicated effort that’s been going on for — I hate to tell you — as long as 40 years,” Weiss told the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, acknowledging the contribution of other scientists in achieving the scientific milestone.
There was a very significant presence of Indian scientists in this milestone scientific achievement.
There were 37 authors from nine Indian Institutions in the scientific publication presenting the first discovery of gravitational waves published in the Physical Review letters by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration.
There were 39 authors from the same nine Indian institutions in the publication for the detection of the second black hole merger event.
Currently, Indian participation in the international LIGO Science Collaboration, has over 60 researchers, constituting five of the members of the LSC, making it the fourth largest national participant. LIGO discovered its third gravitational wave on January 4, 2016.
02 October 2017
Award Wapasi 2.0
Award Wapasi 2.0
Written by Pamela Philipose
Is the Narendra Modi government, which has been spectacularly successful in keeping a tight leash on information flows, slowly losing its ability to control the contours of the national narrative, three and a half years after it came to power?
The question is intriguing, more so because setting the terms of public discourse has been one of the distinguishing features of this government. Four key strategies are adopted to achieve this. First, the strict regulation of access to those in power. Second, the establishment of a largely one-way communication pathway between the government and the people. This has led to a curious paradox: Even as the government acquires greater information on citizens through instruments like Aadhaar, citizens face an increasingly opaque government. Third, an informal yet intimate connection with a core cohort of influence makers on social media that have user bases far exceeding anything that even major newspapers and TV channels enjoy. Fourth, ensuring pre-selected tropes for public discourse through placement of documents, leaks, plants and the like in mainstream media — which also accounts for the unfathomable manner in which TV discussions divert attention from the issues of the day, making up through the gladiatorial performance of anchors what they lack in substance.
Thus far, the potential of a counter-narrative displacing the officially sanctioned one was limited. The magnitude of the 2014 mandate was treated as an implicit endorsement of Prime Minister Modi for at least the initial year of this regime. The first crack in the mirror possibly came with the Award Wapsi moment of 2015, when through a common act of renunciation some of the country’s best regarded intellectuals stood up against what was framed as “rising intolerance”. By itself it was not a majorly threatening objective, yet it prompted a swift and angry response from state and non-state entities. The finance minister famously termed it as “manufactured”, the minister of culture thought it should be a matter of investigation, while others claimed that it was driven by a hunger for publicity, and even took out an “India Tolerant March” to expose the ugly intent of “pseudo-secularists” to tar the nation. Looking back, that slap down was quite successful. The NDA may have lost the Bihar election towards the end of that year but the Modi government was able to ride out that period of anxiety.
Today, two years later, is that anxiety back? The PM has himself complained about being constantly misunderstood (“They said Modi only talks of bullet trains in India… Now that they see I have actually got the bullet train to India, they ask why a bullet train?”). His party president’s entreaty to Ahmedabad’s youth to resist the lure of social media propaganda seems to indicate a fear that the party’s formidable propaganda drive on social media is facing serious blowback.
There are contingent causes for the new credibility that is coming to be attached to this counter-narrative despite the prevailing disarray in Opposition ranks. Among them is the roiling within universities across the country, where brutal state repression is sharpening student militancy. Joblessness is now being perceived as the inheritance of failure; farming as the harvesting of loss. The assassinations of journalists and assaults on them are threatening to alienate a crucial category of professionals. The initial silence that greeted the unrelenting barbarism of beef vigilantism, targeting minorities and Dalits especially, is also breaking. That lack of immediate response was interpreted by many within the Sangh Parivar as tacit public acquiescence to the project but now widespread revulsion to such randomised violence and killing among ordinary citizens is coming into view, with citizens’ initiatives emerging to reclaim India’s secular legacy across the country. They may appear limited and periodic but they are punching above their weight through the unleashing of immense cultural and oratorical power.
This wave could be read as Award Wapsi 2.0 but look what’s different this time. Those speaking out are also from the BJP’s own camp. It’s also not just about ideas this time, it’s about the economy; about the assumed benefits of demonetisation and GST going AWOL. This is why the meme, ‘Vikas Gando Thayo Che’ (development gone crazy), now buzzing around the BJP’s Gujarat headquarters like an unswattable fly, is interesting, indicating as it does that the famed Gujarat Model — built on a rock solid foundation of words — is now tilting ever so slightly.
Circadian Rhythms, the Chinese Clock and How To Live in Sync
Circadian Rhythms, the Chinese Clock and How To Live in Sync
Our bodies have a number of processes that happen at regular intervals throughout the day. We respond to light and dark, hot and cold, and other natural polarities – in effect “yin and yang”. Through spending less time in natural environments, working long hours, eating at odd hours and all of the other less natural behaviors we conduct we may disrupt these processes. Western medicine uses the term “circadian rhythms” to describe these processes and the changes that happen internally in response to our environment. While researchers do not yet understand all of the rhythms and their effects, we are beginning to explore the relationship between disruptions in these rhythms and the development of illness. More obvious issues that arise such as jet lag are well known, but psychological issues, digestive problems, insomnia and fatigue among others may be related as well. Chinese Medicine uses the theory of the Chinese clock to describe a similar set of activities that happen on a daily basis and also effect our health. This article is going to explore both of these systems looking for similarities as well as tools we can use to help us live more in sync with our natural environment.
What Is A Circadian Rhythm?
Circadian rhythms describe regular events that happen to all humans, plants and animals on a daily basis. We are far from understanding all of them and their effects on our health but we know that there are processes that happen in all of us on a roughly 24 hour cycle influenced by various cues from our environment. The influence of these rhythms can change sleep and wake cycles, release various hormones, influence body temperature and regulate other important bodily functions. While we all have circadian rhythms there are some differences in the length of the cycles which helps to explain why some of us are “night owls” and others are “morning people”. There also appears to be a genetic component to our rhythms which explains why some lifestyle habits such as staying up late appear to run in families.
The image below shows many of the circadian rhythms:
From the image we can see regular changes in melatonin secretion, body temperature, vascular changes and bowel changes among others. For example, melatonin secretion starts around 9pm and ceases around 7:30am with our period of deepest sleep at 2am. This sets in place a natural sleep cycle for us as humans. For those of us who work late hours or third shift we are in direct contention with this natural cycle and this may lead to issues with sleep or other aspects of our health.
We also see that our lowest body temperature is at 4:30am and our highest is at 7pm. This natural temperature variation allows for many processes in our body to function correctly, yet our temperature controlled environments may not always cater to allowing these functions to completely take place. This, again, is another example of possible disruptions.
What Are Some Causes of Disruptions In Our Internal Clock?
Besides obvious disruptions such as flying across the international date line, the majority of the disruptions to our internal clock are related to a less natural environment and various lifestyle habits. Many of us know the joys of going camping – the fresh air, the cool streams, etc. What is interesting about camping, particularly after a few days, is how you begin going to sleep a few hours after sundown and wake up right around sunrise. At home we have lights, tv’s, computers, stores that are open 24 hours and more to keep us stimulated and busy much later than we would in a natural setting. It should come as no surprise that this would have an impact on us.
The circadian rhythms are controlled by our body’s master clock or what is known as the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Using sleep as an example, our master clock receives information from the optic nerves about how much light is outside. As the SCN receives information that there is less light the brain is triggered to produce more melatonin so you can sleep. This is one of many reasons why people with trouble sleeping should not watch TV or use the computer before trying to go to sleep as they are too bright and too stimulating.
While we can and will adjust to various disruptions as we do with jet lag we cannot contend against this natural balance constantly. Jet lag resolves as we respond to a new environment by meshing with the new cycle of day and night. This is entirely different, however, from staying up until 3am for 3 nights out of the week and then going to bed at 9pm the other 4 nights. These types of disruptions, if constant, are the type that may lead to illness.
What Conditions May Result From These Disruptions?
Issues such as alcohol abuse, poor sleep, insomnia, depression, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and bipolar disorder have ties to disruptions in the circadian rhythms. And some medications, herbal formulas and even acupuncture itself may be beneficial in part due to regulating the abnormal circadian rhythms. Just like the interplay between yin and yang in Chinese Medicine, disruptions in the circadian rhythms (called “phase shifts” or “phase delays” in western research) can have wide spread complex effects on the body that are still being explored.
How Does Chinese Medicine Describe These Rhythms (or “What Is The Chinese Clock”)?
Chinese medicine contains a full pool of information based on observations of interactions with our environment over thousands of years. Much as each meridian system has a corresponding season, color, emotion and other related connections (see five element theory), so does each 24 hour period. As with the circadian rhythms of the west, the meridians follow natural periods of heightened activity and of relative rest. Observing and respecting this rhythm allows our body to function more efficiently and to defend against illness.
The following chart shows all of the meridians and their periods of strongest activity:
From this chart we see many correlations with daily activities that can influence our health. 7-9am is when our stomach system is most active making it a good time for breakfast. We see that the liver is most active between 1-3am which is a common time for people to wake with liver related insomnia issues (see “My Liver is What?“). The kidney system, which is the root of our overall energy, is most active between 5-7pm (see “My Kidneys are What?“) a good time for exercise. The pericardium system is most active from 7-9pm which is a good time to start relaxing and unwinding from the day. Imbalances within this system result in anxiety, nausea, and/or insomnia.
What Correlations Do We See Between West and East?
Both the Chinese clock and the circadian rhythms serve in part as reminders that we are in fact human and we are related to our environment in deep ways. As much as light and electricity have allowed us to do many fantastic things, these changes do not come without challenges to our natural systems. While we shouldn’t be unplugging everything just yet, we do need to have an appreciation for our natural relationships and be aware that challenging these may well cause health problems. Working with our environment is by most accounts a very easy way to improve our health and psychological wellbeing without medications, treatments, or other mechanisms.
How Does This Knowledge Effect Treatment Options?
With regards to the circadian rhythms the master clock (or SCN from above) is controlled by the hypothalamus. Within the Tam Healing System that I primarily utilize we use GV 22 to help regulate these functions. This in combination with other points may have deeper systemic effects by balancing the broad range of changes controlled by this system. Researchers are also looking at independent circadian rhythms found in organs and cells outside of the control of the SCN such as those in the lungs, liver, spleen and skin. This means that the natural relationships defined by Chinese medicine such as the lungs being related to the expression of grief, for example, may eventually be “proven” by research into these rhythms. And living more in accord with our environment may have much lead to much broader changes that we may think.
Chinese medicine uses the Chinese clock to help diagnose and treat various issues. Someone who wakes between 1-3am rather than 3-5am tell us the liver system is likely related to their insomnia as opposed to the lung meridian. Digestive problems that are worse between 7-9pm may indicate a weak stomach system as that is when its control is at its weakest point. The clock is also used by some practitioners to choose which points to use based on what time the patient is coming into the office. Certainly an awareness and respect for these relationships is important for successful treatment.
01 October 2017
Twitter user asks how many Aadhaar cards
Twitter user asks how many Aadhaar cards for Ravan? UIDAI’s response has the Internet in splits
A Twitter user was quick to troll the Aadhaar handle by asking for its take on issuing an Aadhaar card to Ravana.
Updated: Oct 01, 2017 09:21 IST
By Atisha Jain
UIDAI’s response to a Twitter user’s query about Aadhaar has the Internet in splits
The Aadhaar Twitter handle (@UIDAI) wished its followers a Happy Vijayadashami with an illustration of arrows piercing through Ravana, the demon-king of Lanka from the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana.
One of the users was quick to troll the Aadhaar handle by asking for its take on issuing an Aadhaar card to Ravana.
Aadhaar is the 12-digit biometric identification project was mooted roughly a decade ago to plug leakages in the delivery of India’s state benefits.
The Aadhar social media team’s epic repartee, however, had Twitter in splits. It said Ravana was not a resident of India and hence, not eligible.
The tweet, at the time of writing, had over 2,400 retweets and close to 2,500 likes.
While some praised the handle’s sense of humour, others questioned it over the situation of the refugee community in the country. Here’s how Twitterati responded:
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