Category: Learning

‘Climate change and Corporate responsibility’

“We don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children”   

 

According to united nations framework convention on climate change “Climate change means a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods”.

Climate is determined by many factors influencing energy flows the most important being greenhouse gases. Sun’s energy influences climate on earth. The amount of heat radiations which the earth receives depends on how far the sun is from the earth and the sun’s emission power. The sunlight received by earth, a part of it is reflected back to space by the atmosphere, clouds, land, water surface and ice. Aerosols tiny particles in the atmosphere can increase the reflection of sunlight. This solar energy absorbed by earth is returned to space as infrared (heat) radiations. Not all gases interact with infrared radiations. Some gases like water vapor, methane and carbon-dioxide absorb infrared radiation flowing upwards from earth’s surface and re-radiate it in all directions. They thus impede outward flow of infrared energy from earth to space. This is called ‘greenhouse effect and the gases that cause it are called greenhouse gases.

 

Climate change is a phenomenon which mainly occurs through natural or anthropogenic factors. Latitude, ocean currents, wind and air masses, elevation, relief and nearness to water are some important natural factors that affect climate change. Anthropogenic factors affecting climate change include air pollution from vehicles, crackers and industrial activity, overuse and exploitation of natural resources like fossil fuels and infrastructure activities lay roadway to development but at the same time affects climate severely.

 

Reducing climate change involves reducing the factors that affect it like greenhouse gases. We as citizens can reduce the human interference with climate change by lowering our fuel consumption which in turn is possible by using cycles instead of two or four wheelers, by using community vehicles more often, by walking to nearby areas instead of using vehicles, switching off power plugs when not needed, saving water by not wasting it while we bath, brush or clean things. United nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) is an international environmental treaty addressing climate change, negotiated and signed by 154 states at the united nations conference on environment and development informally called the earth summit.  UNFCCC has its main objective to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.  Today it has 197 member countries which ultimately works to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. Under this framework the industrialized countries have to report regularly on their climate change policies and measures, including issues governed by Kyoto protocol. They must also submit an annual inventory of their GHG emissions.

 

Kyoto protocol is an international treaty which extends the 1992 UNFCCC. Under this 192 nations committed to reduce their emissions by an average of 5.2% by 2012 which would be 29% of world’s total emissions. 

In 2019 a report published by the United Nations said that to limit the temperature rise to 2 degree Celsius, the world will need to cut emissions by 2.7 % each year from 2020 to 2030, and triple the climate targets. Even if all the Paris agreement pledges as they are in 2019, are fulfilled the temperature will rise by 3.2 degrees this century.  

“Corporate social responsibility is a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis.” 

 

CSR is termed as “triple-bottom-approach” which helps the companies in promoting itself as well as in fulfilling its responsibility that it hold towards the society at large. According to United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, CSR based on triple bottom line approach can help countries in the developing bracket to accelerate their socio-economic growth and help them become more competitive. Companies can fulfill their responsibilities through various activities like pollution control mechanisms, waste reduction or by contributing in educational and social programs. CSR is said to improve brand image of a company and increase its goodwill. 

 

There are three basic principles that comprise CSR- 

Sustainability- If resources of an organization are utilized efficiently then they will be available for the future generations too after satisfying needs of present generations. As the availability of resources is limited and non-renewable resources like oil, natural gas, minerals which are used in abundance are regenerated after long spans of years resources must be used optimally. 

 

Accountability- The main aim of a business organization is to maximise its profits. But apart from making profits a company should be accountable to its employees and community members. A satisfied and motivated workforce will work more productively than exploited workers. 

 

Transparency – From government’s point of view transparency is very essential for an organization. All its activities must be transparent so that if any organization tries to hide anything about the conduct of its activities it can be easily located.

 

Any actions that the organization undertakes has an effect on its external environment in which it resides whether it be social, legal, cultural or economic environment. An organization can have very significant effect on its external environment and can actually change that environment through its activities. Organizational activities can affect utilisation of natural resources, competition between various firms, land transformation or degradation dur to raw material extraction, distribution of wealth among owners and workers of the firm and the greatest of all affected is climate change due to greenhouse gas emissions. 

 

The most recent concern that every organization faces is effect of its activities on climate. Companies act, 2013 has formulated section 135, companies (corporate social responsibility) rules, 2014 and schedule VII which prescribes mandatory provisions for the companies to fulfill their CSR. A company or subsidiary of the company having net worth of Rs. 500 crore or more or turnover of Rs 1000 crore or more, or net profit of Rs. 5 crore or more during the immediately preceding financial year must undertake CSR activity. A foreign company having its branch office or project office in India, which fulfills the above criteria is applicable for CSR. However, if a company ceases to meet the above criteria for 3 consecutive financial years then it is not required to comply with CSR provisions till such time it meets the specified criteria.

Every company on which CSR is applicable is required to constitute a CSR committee with directors on its board. 

 

Functions of CSR committee- 

 

Formulate and recommend to the board a CSR policy which shall indicate all the activities to be undertaken by the company Recommend the expenditure required on the above mentioned activities. 

Monitor the CSR policy from time to time. 

Institute a transparent monitoring mechanism for implementing the CSR projects or programs undertaken by the company. The board of directors shall disclose contents of CSR policy in its report and the same shall be displayed on the company’s website. 

Schedule 7 of the act states the activities that the companies can undertake under CSR- 

Eradicating hunger, poverty and malnutrition, promoting health care including preventive health care and sanitation. 

Rural development projects.

Slum area development. 

Promoting education, including special education and employment enhancing vocation skills. 

Promoting gender equality, empowering women, setting up homes and hostels for woman and orphans, setting up old age homes, day care centers etc. 

 

About 20 most influential companies contribute one-third of all the greenhouse gas emissions that we have presently. Companies can reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as a part of social obligation, by following stringent guidelines. Smart thermostats and motion-activated lights can be used to avoid wasting energy, reducing GHG emissions. Companies can measure and analyse GHG emissions and accordingly reduce its energy consumption. They can use renewable energy sources, can use environment-friendly infrastructure and transport, promote environment-friendly ways of working and most important of all it can spread awareness among its employees and various stakeholders. 

 

Companies take actions to reduce GHG emissions in the environment. Microsoft has pledged to reduce operational emissions by 75% by 2030, but has been operating as 100% carbon neutral since 2012. Tata chemicals spent the highest on CSR in 2019, although its prescribed CSR budget for 2019-2020 was 21.39 Crores, the company spent 37.81 Crores on community development projects. Tata chemicals as a part of its CSR responsibility established Tata chemicals society for rural development in 1980 as a society and trust. 

 

Since the lockdown began TCSRD has been actively supporting government by distributing disinfectants, stitching masks, ensuring food security and providing medical help. Infosys Ltd. Spent 2% of its profit towards various schemes of corporate social responsibility. BHEL a government company as a part of its corporate social responsibility for COVID-19 relief , organized ‘Swachhata Pakhwada 2020’ from July 1 to 15, 2020. Mahindra and Mahindra ltd company spent 93.50 Crores out of which 8.36 Crore was spent on project Nanhi kali which provides educational support to underprivileged girls in India through an afterschool support programme.

 

ALL ABOUT HINDU MARRIAGE IN BRIEF

How to explain 'The Hindu Marriage act 1955' to common citizen in comprehensive way - Quora

 

Introduction

According to Hindu Law, Marriage is a sacrament or a religious ceremony that creates a relation between two families. It is a sacred tie between husband and wife which can not be broken. It is believed that Marriage is the purest form of bond which is for seven lives that is birth to birth. According to Vedas, a man is considered incomplete until he gets married. It is the last tenth sacrament.

Who are Hindus?

A person who :

  • Is a Hindu by religion in any of its forms.
  • Is born from Hindu parents.
  • Is a Buddhist, Jain, Sikh by religion.
  • Is not Muslim, Christian, Parsi or Jews and are not governed under Hindu Law.
  • Hindus by Conversion or Reconversion.

Conditions for a Hindu Marriage :

Section 5 of the Hindu Marriage Act,1955 lays down the following conditions for a valid Hindu Marriage :

i) neither party has the spouse living at the time of the marriage;

ii) at the time of the marriage, neither party-

  • is incapable of giving a valid consent to it in consequence of unsoundness of mind; or
  • though capable of giving valid consent, has been suffering from mental disorder of such a kind or to such an extent as to be unfit for marriage and the procreation of children; or
  • has been subject to recurrent attacks of insanity

iii) the bridegroom has completed the age of twenty-one years and the bride the age of eighteen years at the time of marriage;

iv) the parties are not within the degrees of prohibited relationship unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits of a marriage between the two;

v) the parties are not sapindas of each other unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits marriage between the two.

Ceremonies for a Hindu Marriage :

  • Marriage must be performed by the customary rites and ceremonies of either party thereto and where such ceremonies include the taking of seven steps by the bridegroom and the bride jointly before the sacred fire, the marriage becomes complete and binding when the seventh step is taken.

 

Registration of Marriage : As per section 8 of the act, provisions have been made to register the marriage under the act.

 

 

Types of Marriage :

i) Valid Marriage: if the marriage has been performed in followance of the essentials or conditions provided then it will be a perfectly valid marriage and is binding on the parties to it.

ii) Void Marriage: marriage shall be null and void and have no legal effect in the following cases if-

  •  either party has a spouse living at the time of the Marriage; or
  •  the marriage has been performed within the degrees of prohibited relationship unless the custom or usage governing each of them permits a marriage; or
  • the parties to a marriage are sapindas off each other unless the custom or usage permits it.

Marriage can be declared as void on the petition of either of the party to a marriage.

iii) Voidable Marriage: marriage is perfectly valid until or unless it is annulled by a decree of nullity and it can be avoided at the option of one of the parties to the marriage. Following are the grounds on which a marriage can be annulled-

a) marriage has not consummated owing to the impotence of the respondent; or

b) marriage violates clause (ii) of section 5; or

c) where the consent of the petitioner, or where the consent is given by the guardian, the consent is obtained by force or by fraud as to the nature of ceremony or as to any material fact or circumstances concerning the respondent. But this will not be a ground for annulment if-

  • the petition has been presented after one month of the cessation of force or fraud discovered; or
  • the petitioner has lived with the other party to a marriage with his or her full consent after the force has ceased or fraud has discovered.

d) the respondent was pregnant by another person at the time of marriage. But this ground shall not be entertained unless the court is satisfied that-

  • the petitioner was ignorant of this fact at the time of marriage;
  • proceedings have been instituted in the case of a marriage solemnized before the commencement of this act within one year of such commitment and in the case of marriages solemnised after commencement within one year from the date of such marriage; and
  • the marital intercourse with the consent of the petitioner has not taken place since the discovery by the petitioner of the existence of the said ground.

Punishments for contravention of conditions for Hindu marriage :

  •  any marriage between two Hindus solemnized after the commencement of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 is void if at the date of such marriage either party had a  husband or wife living, and the provisions of section 494 and 495 of the IPC shall apply accordingly. This is a punishment for bigamy.
  • if there is a contravention of the condition of the age of marriage then will be punished with rigorous imprisonment which may extend to two years or with a fine which may extend to one lakh rupees or with both
  •  in the case of a contravention of the condition of sapinda relationship or prohibited degree then the punishment will be simple imprisonment which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both. 

 

Conclusion 

After the commencement of the Hindu Marriage Act,1955 every marriage between the two adult Hindus should be performed in accordance with the rules and regulations made under the act for this purpose.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The story of unsung hero – Sindhutai Sapakal

 

Sindhutai Sapakal also known as ‘mother of orphans’ is Indian social worker and social activist known particularly for her work of raising orphan children. Famously called ‘Mother Terresa of Maharashtra’ or ‘Mai’ in Marathi she has raised 1050 orphan childern and has a grand family of 207 son-in-laws and 36 daughter-in-laws. In her 45 years of relentless service she has been awarded with more than 750 awards.   

 
Sindhutai was born and brought up in Pimpri Meghe village in Wardha district of Maharashtra and was daughter of a cowherd Abhimanji Sathe. From an early age she was very inquisitive, intelligent child with the sense of right or wrong. She was her father’s favorite but was unwanted by her mother and was therefore being called Chindi (a small piece of rag). Married was as early as at 9 years of age education had been denied to her but she took every chance to read. At the age of 20 after facing brutalities from her husband she left the house. When she went to her home her father had already left her and her mother refused to take her inside. She was left all by herself. Abject poverty and dismal conditions made her suffer a lot. 

Begging by day along the railway tracks and hiding by night in the nearby crematorium grounds- it was grim existence. The railway tracks took her into uncharted territory, even as she begged and sang bhajans for the passengers. She began to experience that there were so many children without parents begging on the streets or left alone somewhere in search of food. This gave her a purpose and she decided to give others what she was deprived of. She would plead people to allow her to sing bhajans in their functions. This way she managed to give her children food. 

In few days she gained fame and also earned good amount to enable her and her children to eat food sufficiently. In 1984, ten years after the birth of her daughter she registered her first trust in Chikhaldhara. Her strategy is simple. She makes public speeches on various platforms and appeals to people to contribute for this kind cause. With the help of government’s Child welfare committee children are able to get proper homes. A Marathi movie named ‘Mee Sindhutai Sapkal’ was released on her life in 2010. We must all salute her for the sheer committement and hard work with which she undertakes her work. 

 

An orb and Leonardo da Vinci: The Salvator Mundi Painting Solved

Leonardo da Vinci, the artist of the famous Mona Lisa and Salvator Mundi painting, is a man of mysteries. He was more than a painter. He was an avid engineer, scientist, sculptor and an architect with deep knowledge about science and astronomy. The alien theories, the striking symbolism theories and more out-of-the world speculations about his work are being debated up till now. One such puzzle is the Salvator Mundi painting

The Salvator Mundi Painting

Salvator Mundi
The Salvator Mundi painting

The Salvator Mundi painting was created by da Vinci somewhere between 1490-1500. It is the world’s most expensive painting, priced at 450 million US dollars. No, Mona Lisa isn’t the most expensive one. Deep search can tell you that. The image depicts a man, presumably Jesus Christ, holding in his hand a spherical ball like structure. Nothing mysterious about the painting as of now. Okay. So what was solved?

To understand how scientists solved the puzzle, we have to look up the problem. As I had already stated, da Vinci was a man of science and had genuine knowledge about it. It can be proved by looking at his works which deceivingly represent scientific facts. Salvator Mundi means ‘savior of the earth’. So it can be interpreted that the glass orb that Jesus is holding symbolizes the earth.

The problem behind

What is wrong about this painting is that, any 10th grader would know that a convex lens would provide an inverted, magnified, reversed image of an object placed behind it. The glass orb must act like a convex lens and thus do the same. But if you observe carefully, you can see that it appears as if those properties are defied and a clear, non-reversed image of Jesus’ hand and clothing is visible behind the glass orb.

You may argue that any painter would be ignorant of the science behind a convex lens. But Leonardo da Vinci was not ‘any painter’. He was a polymath of the High Renaissance! He has portrayed much more complex scientific principles in his work than that of a convex lens. There is no plausible way that da Vinci couldn’t have known the laws of optical physics. So why did he do that?

Solved

The puzzle was solved by computer scientists from the University of California, Irvine. The painting was 3d virtualized to study about how the various material orbs would appear under different refractive conditions. Many materials with which orbs could be designed were taken into consideration. At last it was concluded that the spherical orb was not a solid mass, instead a hollow orb. Hollow orb does not behave like a convex lens. It displays the image as it is, thus adhering with the painting. They predicted that the glass of the orb in Salvator Mundi was a fraction of an inch thick thus accounting for the quality.

Did Leonardo da Vinci actually paint it?

Many critics claim that the painting is not actually da Vinci’s. They point that da Vinci is more of a scientist to commit such trivial errors and thus proving that he did not paint it at all and that it was painted by a ‘lesser’ painter. But many say that, such a clever installation of the orb itself is a proof of authenticity. In order to think about hollow orbs and paint it during the 1500s would take immense intellect, which can only be done by the polymath himself.

Leo constellation?

 

three dots
The three dots in the glass orb

Orange iris
The orange iris of Jesus in the painting

As if the Salvator Mundi has not enough controversies, one more intriguing detail is the three dots painted in the glass orb giving it a mystical appearance. The three dots are said to represent the constellation of the sign Leo. What does it have to do anything with this painting? Well, if you observe the iris of Jesus, a faint orange glow emanates from within. The orange iris imitates Lion’s eyes. And thus the constellation, many say. Some also relate to the fact that his name Leonardo is the reason behind. However there is no concrete explanation behind.

Hope I kindled some curiosity within you today. I leave you with one of my favorite da Vinci’s quote:

To develop a complete mind:

Study the science of art;

Study the art of science.

Learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else.

-Leonardo da Vinci

 

 

HOW WELL ARE STUDENTS TAKING ONLINE EDUCATION?

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 brought many dramatic changes in our social as well as personal lives. Our routines are changed, our habits and majorly our system of education.

Source: Google

Though the work from home culture is in its second year, the schools and universities are still trying to adapt themselves to the online mode of education. The introduction to digital classes was first seen as a major setback for the aged teachers who are not gadget-friendly or prefers an interactive physical class as the sole place for good teaching.

Over the course of time, these teachers have become quite familiar with the online teachings, yet, that special gap that will always tend to loom and show the differences of physical classes over the virtual ones.

Yes, it is quite true and agreeable that digital classrooms pave the way for the education of the future when most of the world has turned online in every sphere. But, how truly does it help students, especially the pre-primary or the primary ones? They are the ones who are most dependent on the ‘touches’ of the teachers, or be in a classroom- their first step to the world beyond home, socializing with others.

Major drawbacks online education brings:

Not affordable for all families in India:

Money stands a major factor here, in India. It is not a hidden fact to us that India is home to people of different social strata and financial standing. A handful of people across the nation cannot afford schools for their children. The Hindu in 2019 reported that 30 out of 100 children complete their school. The reasons may vary but we can’t deny the reality. The monetary conditions of families can be counted as a major reason. Well, this is the calculation done before the pandemic happened. As we see many children cannot afford proper schooling, we can predict how tough would it be for them to do classes “online”.

Online education could not serve to educate a major part of India because the poor folks cannot afford a smartphone in many parts of the country- leave alone a laptop or personal computer.

Network Accessibility:

India is a country of diversities, even geographically. Thus some groups of the population tend to live in extremely remote places like forests, or foothills of the Himalayas, or deltas of the Sundarbans. Such remote villages lack basic amenities to survive like proper water supply or electricity. To make a phone call one has to travel miles. So, this leaves us with the question, how can the children attend online classes?

This makes us think, is education moving from a basic right to a privilege?

Less personal interaction:

The virtual classes, how much fun it seemed at the beginning, could not hide its one of the major drawback for long. The lack of personal touch makes us the students detached from the school/ university vibe.

Yes, we hated the monotony of attending regular classes, but can’t deny the fact the monotony, the disciplined life, the constant monitoring of our mentors helped us in our studies. Secondly, school/university isn’t only about what we learn from books, we met real people, made friends and learn to live. But, beginning a session with online classes has made this quite impossible, we are making friends, but a part of the puzzle is missing.

Practicals:

Some of the subjects of the curriculum cannot be done with the help of online classes. In schools, physics, chemistry, biology practicals, or when we move up to the higher education subjects which require the teaching of gadget handlings like cinematography, engineering, or medical field is quite difficult on the students’ part.

The strain on eyes:

Since childhood, we came across our parents warning us not to watch too much television or going close to it, as it would harm our eyes. So, 2020 brought us to the days where most of our time is being spent staring at our mobile or laptop screens, not just adults but nursery children as well. This extended screen-time is causing eye strains, headaches and sometimes migraines to many.

 

Though throughout our school and college lives, we used to brood, What if we can attend our classes staying at home and not miss the attendance( tbh after passing school, it’s the attendance we mostly care about). But now, the one year of being in a virtual class, a part of us do miss the hustle and bustle of college life. We crave being back in those classrooms, feel those benches, or plan mass bunking our classes. Yes, though being a necessity now, online classes seem to take away a major part of our student life.

New Online Academic Year, New Hopes

The door to yet another online academic year is about to open, amidst the worsening pandemic crisis. Bored by their previous experiences, students hesitate to get underway their similar routes. Students were nearly getting a kick out of their shores of hopes, awaiting campus fullfilment. But their hopes were shattered by the second yet dangerous wave of coronavirus followed by deadly infections such as yellow, black and white fungus. People are getting used to this prolonged period of closures. Everything is getting shut down, so are people’s minds. 

As the situation shrouding us is getting worse, teachers are off to adopt the mandatory online mode of teaching once again. Educators and administrators are forced to make an effort out of the challenges offered by the crisis. After a year of suffocation, students and teachers are almost used to this online teaching mode. Even though everyone knows the truth that education through digital screens will not be as lively and joyous as education in classrooms, we are bound to find new possibilities from these limitations. This new academic year may also be an opportunity for us to evaluate, correct and update our minds and body. 

 Disadvantages of Online Classes 
Smartphone classrooms were devoid of actual attention and brightness, instead, it was stuffed with boredom, negligence, painful memories and dimmed hopes. Kindergartens missed their excitement of packing up bags, hanging newly bought water bottles and jumping into their school bus with an urge to mingle. The major loss was experienced by school and college students. Cancelled sports day and cultural fests, no shared lunches or canteen snatches, no farewells and tours, and massively increased screen time marked 2020-21 academic session. Smartphones and laptops became the backbone of education. Well, along with education, we should consider its addiction too. Watching countless movies or episodes and sleeping for hours became a “new normal” routine for students. The non-availability of gadgets, which was a serious issue last year, currently boosted. It is now normal for school students to keep their own smartphones or laptops. 

 Benefits of Online Classes 
Blended learning also includes some benefits such as reduced time and elimination of travel costs. Students can also achieve several internships and online courses easily. Benefiting from these would aid your career in future.One could also get easy attendance by sitting at the comfort of your homes. 

Ways to enhance online learning 
 • Learning empowered with Videos and Notes. 
 Giving essential notes along with videos would bring a versatile and convenient flare to education. They serve as go-to resources that can be viewed anytime from anywhere. 
• Virtual Study Trips 
 Virtual trips increase the interest in students and grab their attention. 
• Do not burden students with too many lectures and assignments. Divide lectures into small chunks. Give limited assignments so that they could put their efforts in it fully. 
• Make time for fun 
Engage students with interesting games and competitions. There are several platforms to do so. It’s all about engagement. 
• Reduce time 

Attending online class continuously for 6-8 hours is exhausting and harmful for health. Reducing time and creating more quality content is more helpful for both students and teachers. 
• Prevent cheating in exams and sharing of academic documents. 

Despite the challenges and flaws of last year’s online learning, we can expect this year to be a better, promising one. Have gotten ideas on enhancing your e-learning, lets hope students and teachers utilise the best of it.

What is Yellow Fungus? Know causes, effects, prevention and more.

The second tide of coronavirus is finally slowing down with daily cases in India dropping to below 2 lakhs. But new fungal infections are followed by its result. The most recently reported one is the deadly “yellow fungus”. After Black and White fungus, cases of yellow fungus appear in U.P. First case of yellow fungus was reported in Ghaziabad. The 45-year-old patient, who is undergoing treatment, is suffering from yellow fungus as well as black and white fungus. Yellow fungus is known to be more dangerous because it originates internally, which makes it more difficult to detect and treat. 

 Symptoms of yellow fungus 
• Weight loss 
• Sunken eyes 
• Failure of organs 
• Wound heal slowly 
• Permanent death of cells 
• Leakage of pus 
• Malnutrition 

 Causes of yellow fungus 
 Yellow fungus is mainly caused by a lack of hygiene. Poor hygienic people are more tend to be affected by this deadly infection. Humidity levels below 30-40 per cent can also stimulate the growth of fungus. Dull and old food can also lead to the growth of this virus. Remove old food and faecal matter in and around your house to help prevent the growth of bacteria and fungus. 

 Treatment of yellow fungus 
 The only known treatment till now for this infection is Amphotericin B injection, which is an antifungal drug. It is also used in the treatment of black fungus. Precautions to take 
• Keep your house and surroundings clean. 
• Do not consume dull and old food. 
• Check the humidity in the room often. Too much humidity promotes the growth of yellow fungus. Start to maintain cross ventilation. 

• To avoid complications of the yellow virus, covid-19 patients should begin their treatment as soon as possible.

Understanding black fungus

This disease is caused by a kind of mould called ‘micromycetes, present in our surroundings. The infection affects those who are highly immunocompromised and have diabetes. Another cause of its growth is that to deal with COVID-19 patients, steroids are used to lessen the inflammation in the respiratory tracts. Such patients have been detected to be more prone to get this infection. Moreover, people with pre-existing morbidity such as diabetes, impaired kidney function or cancer are at higher risk of getting infected and they need to be very carefull.


The onset of white fungus

White fungus or ‘aspergillosis’ affects people with low immunity and comorbidities such as diabetes. Over usage of steroids is yet a factor in the onset of this disease. Unlike yellow and black fungus, this variant affects numerous parts of the body such as the nail bed, skin, stomach, kidney, brain and reproductive organs.


So, stay informed and alert of health changes arising due to the Covid-19 infection and keep in touch with a doctor.Whether it is about symptoms or side-effects, it is crucial to be doubly sure, so that you don’t run into crisis in any way. The only thing one must do, while dealing with Covid-19 at home, is to be in continual touch with a trusted doctor. If there are any serious symptoms, including low oxygen concentration, chest pain, and more, then it’s necessary to take immediate action. As we know, prevention is better than cure anyway.

China Issues Total Ban On Synthetic Cannabinoids

China will proudly become the world’s first nation to ban all synthetic cannabinoid substances, the country’s National Narcotics Control Commission declared. This endeavour is liable to come into effect on July 1. It echoes China’s continued efforts to crack down on new psychoactive substances. Xi Jinping, existing President of China, aims to advance China to its glory through his grand strategy of “National Rejuvenation”. 

 According to Chinese councils, more than eight thousand variations of synthetic cannabinoids are manufactured worldwide. While some are being produced domestically, others are being smuggled from abroad. As it is becoming one of the most abused new psychoactive substances it spawns severe health risks. It is also highly cloaked and camouflaged. Some are detected in e-cigarette oil and some in cut tobacco formulated from leaves, flower petals etc. The former U.S. President Trump irritatedly criticised China for shipping synthetic opioids into the U.S. Cannabinoid substances stance a severe threat to society and its use and abuse increased alarmingly in the last few years. Hence, it is arising as a public health problem. Many of these drugs create enormous threats for abuse, addiction or overdose than the remaining drugs of abuse that they replace. One of the primary concerns about the widespread usage of these dopes is that their properties are unpredictable, hence the degree of threat they pose is unlikely. 

Synthetic cannabinoids represent the largest group of drugs detected and reported worldwide to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Sprayed on natural herb mixtures, it is often sold as “herbal smoking blends” or “herbal scent” under several brand names. Synthetic cannabinoids have been linked with deaths and acute intoxications in Europe and many other areas. In addition to being more powerful than natural cannabis, it may also have long half-lives, dangerously leading to a prolonged psychoactive effect. These are human-made chemicals and it alters your mind too. These chemicals are labelled cannabinoids because of their similarity to marijuana plant chemicals. Because of this resemblance, synthetic cannabinoids are often misleadingly titled synthetic marijuana or fake weed. Hence they are traded as safe and legal. In fact, they are not at all safe and may harm the brain much more intensely than marijuana and in some cases, it may even be life-threatening.


Health effects of synthetic cannabinoids

• Violent behaviour 

• Heightened moods

• Severe anxiety

• Confusion

• Paranoia

• Hallucinations

• Rapid heart rates

• Vomiting

• Gloomy thoughts

How do people take synthetic cannabinoids
The most common way of using this synthetic cannabinoid is by smoking the dried plant material. Users also buy synthetic cannabinoid products as liquids to try them in e-cigarettes.
Its overdose may result in kidney damage and seizures.


Thus, China added synthetic cannabinoids to its list of banned drugs. It is the second time that the Chinese government imposed a class-wide ban on a substance after it controlled all fentanyl-related drugs in 2019. The changes may take effect on July 1. It is a new situation and a new challenge for China. China knows and they stood up for themselves, creating a new world, new life for its people. They are saving their people from the nightmares of chemical slavery. Let us all hope for the best.


Digital Citizenship | Digital literacy

Digital Citizenship

Digital citizenship is responsibly using the technology by anyone who uses computers, the Internet, and digital devices to engage with people on any level. Digital citizenship includes appropriate online etiquette, literacy in how digital technologies work and how to use them, an understanding of ethics and related law, knowing how to stay safe online, and advice on related health and safety issues such as predators and the permanence of data. It is about confidence and positive engagement with digital technologies.

With the increase in technologies, everyone is becoming more dependent on the internet for daily activities like checking bank account, purchasing something online, or talking to someone; especially at present, many people are using the internet daily as a result of social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Digital Citizenship

Due to this increase in dependency on technology, there’s a difference between good digital citizenship and bad digital citizenship.

Good digital citizenship engages people and shows them how to connect with one other, empathize with each other whereas Bad digital citizenship, on the other hand, includes cyberbullying and irresponsible social media usage.

By educating people especially students about digital citizenship, they can develop an understanding of concepts like

  • Digital and information literacy
  • Privacy and Security
  • Cyberbullying
  • Practicing digital literacy
  • Practicing digital wellness
  • Acknowledging the digital divide
  • Understanding User Data

Online etiquettes are also one of the aspects of being a good digital citizen i.e communicating kindly with others. It’s important for people to understand that their written words have just as powerful an effect on the recipient as they would if spoken aloud.

Digital literacy:

World over years has taken a huge turn with the advanced technology we have therefore it is very essential to teach citizens about the basic understanding of using devices in an effective and useful way.

Example: Finding your query on search engines like google, shopping online, learning how to pay online, etc.

Digital literacy is the practice of reading information online and understanding what it means, where it originated, and whether it’s accurate. Digital literacy requires a lot of planning and review to ensure what one needs to know about the digital world.

Digital Literacy can be summarized as:

  1. Clickbait:

Clickbait refers to any text, headline, video title, etc. that’s deliberately written to pique someone’s interest and get them to click.

     2. Fake News:

Fake news is a relatively new phenomenon in 2019. It refers to any media outlet publishing severely biased or intentionally false information.

     3. Empathy:

Empathy is actually a big part of digital literacy and digital citizenship because digital literacy requires students to think beneath the face-value text that they’re reading online, they need empathy to truly understand the information they’re absorbing.

Digital Divide is the disparity between those who have access to modern digital tools (like computers and the Internet) and those who don’t. By acknowledging the digital divide one can mean to find the information one needs.

Digital wellness is the practice of refraining from indulging in the Internet and digital media for unreasonable amounts of time.

  • Practicing Digital Wellness is using a combination of health information, psychology, neurology, and current events to illustrate why it’s important to take time away from devices.
  • It is encouraged not to legally download contents that are not relevant or has an age restriction, accessing illegal material may lead to disrespect to digital property and if found guilty can cause severe punishment by the authority.
  • It is advised to avoid hateful speech and harassment which may hurt others.
  • Maintain good digital communication, in today’s circumstances almost everything is online for students from attending classes to making friends, let us teach them how they can do the safe and mannered talk and explain to them about the tactics of digital citizenship.

Lastly, Securing Digital Devices includes a few things like safety from viruses, keeping our devices password-protected, spam, etc.

 

 

 

 

Home Workout | Get desired body shape at home

Home Workout

In this pandemic, many people are suffering loss and struggle to earn living. Lockdown has made it difficult to shop, travel, etc.  But most importantly people are unable to do their work-out as gyms are closed. This is one of the most important factors that are necessary for a person’s day-to-day life. But in this pandemic, we can’t expect our gym to get open again.

 

Get desired body shape at home

Yes absolutely! We have ways to keep you fit without a gym in this pandemic. In the gym, we get weights, machines as equipment like dumbbells, barbells, back rowing machines,s and many more. The basic principle of bodybuilding is resistance. We’ve got the best resistance with us i.e. our own body. We can do any body-weight workouts at home so as to fulfill the resistance requirements.

Home Workout

 

A brief description of muscle building:

The basic principle of muscle building is to generate stress while compressing our muscles. When we create stress/tension on the desired muscle, the muscle fibers break resulting in muscle building. At home, we use our body to generate that resistance to break muscle fibers.

Below are some important points that will help you to train your muscles, they are as follows:

 

Muscles that need to be trained:

We should train our every muscle but it is not possible if gyms are closed. Still, we’ll try to cover almost every muscle. So the basic muscles on which we’ll concentrate are:

  • Chest
  • Back
  • Quadriceps
  • Biceps and Triceps
  • Abdomen
  • Shoulders

 

Bodyweight workout for targeted muscles:

  1. Chest:

The most important and most do exercise for the chest is push-ups I.e., to push your body away from the ground. Push-ups can be of three types and those are inclined declined and flat push-ups. Just doing 2 to 3 sets of each type of push-up can be good training for our chest.

  1. Back:

The most effective back exercise is pull-ups i.e., to pull your body away from the ground. This can be done using a pull-up bar or even any rack in your house. This exercise targets our rhomboids and lats and gives our back a perfect V-shape. Other exercises are low, high plank, bridge hold, superman hold, etc.

  1. Quadriceps:

A quadriceps are a group of muscles that are located in the front of the thigh. One of the best workouts for quadriceps is bodyweight squats in which you have to push your hips backward while standing without bending your knees in the front and slowly come down then go back to your initial position. Other workouts are walking lunge, step-up, etc.

  1. Biceps and Triceps:

These two muscles together occupy a major part of our arm. Their main workouts are Diamond Push-ups, Reverse Grip push-ups, chin-ups, bench dips, close grip push-ups, parallel bar dips, etc. These workouts can make our arms defined and ripped if we do 10 reps of each exercise and 3 sets of min.

  1. Abdomen:

The abdomen or abs are the core of our body and these are the muscles that reside just below our chest. The main abs workout comprises L-sit, L-hold, V-sit, Sit-ups, leg raises, bicycle kicks, Planche holds, etc. These workouts are pretty tough but very effective if kept in regular practice.

  1. Shoulders:

Shoulders are also an important muscle of our body as all the body strength depends on them. Some of the most effective shoulder workouts are plank raise tap crunch, Archer push-ups, typewriter push-ups, etc. Shoulders define our upper body and are responsible for the broadness of our arms. One should do shoulder training at least twice a week to get big bulky shoulders!

Hope this gives you a brief understanding of how we can actually work out giving extra efforts to get the desired body shape at home without even joining the gym.

 

 

Musical Instruments | 3 Types of Musical Instruments

Musical Instruments

We all have a hectic life. We work 24×7 to earn money, to work on our skills, to keep up with our family responsibilities, and many more. Due to this, our mind goes into a state where we face frustration, stress, anxiety and this can further cause depression. What our mind needs is a little deviation from real life. So that we can regain our mental strength to work further. To do something other than work for our pleasure in our leisure time is known as a hobby. It has been observed that the most common hobby of the majority of people is Music.

Music is the integration of vocal and instrumental sounds that are combined to produce a kind of soothing and relaxing sound which is known as melody.

music

What are Musical Instruments?

There are two types of people

  • Music listeners
  • Music makers

Music listeners are those who only listen and feel the music. These people relate their life to the type of music they are listening to. On the other hand, come Music makers. These are people who use some equipment and devices to generate music. They relate music to their life. The equipment and devices they use to generate music are known as Musical instruments. These instruments act as an interface between a person’s mind and the music he wants. If a person wants to make happy music, he will play happy tones on the instrument and then that instrument will give the output as per requirements. There is a wide range of musical instruments in the world. We will discuss the most popular in all-region.

 

Types of musical instruments

In general, music instruments are categorized into 3 types:

  • String instruments
  • Wind instruments
  • Percussion instruments

 

String Instruments

These are also known as chordophones; they produce sound through the vibrating strings when the musician plays the string in a particular manner. These instruments make a sound when the strings are plucked by a ‘plectrum’ or my fingers, others are played by hitting the strings with a light wooden hammer or by rubbing the strings with a bow.

The most common example of these is guitar, piano, string sections (violin, viola, cello, and double bass), harp and much more. In primitive times, strings have been made out of the animal gut. But early in the 20th century, string began to make up of steel at first solid and then roped.

 

Wind instruments

Wind instruments are those which produce sound by blowing air in them. These are the instruments that contain a resonator tube in which a column of air is set into vibration by the player blowing into it. The performer blows into a mouthpiece set near the resonator some examples of wind instruments are flute, accordion, harmonica, clarinet, trumpet, and many more. In primitive days piece of hollow cane or dried fruit was used as a wind instrument

Percussion instruments

Percussion instruments are those which produce sound when struck by a beater. Also, they produce sound when scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Examples are Djembe, snare, Drums, Cymbal, etc.

The first type of percussion instrument was simply anything hit together to produce sound. Drums evolved from this and are known to have existed from around 6000 BC. They were used by all major civilizations throughout the world.

 

These are all types of musical instruments that are played in the modern era and were played in ancient times also. These instruments when played together in order create a beautiful fusion of chords and harmonies which are so pleased that a person can feel the message that musicians trying to convey to their audience.

 

Top places to visit in Bhopal | Upper Lake

Top places to visit in Bhopal

 

“BHOPAL” the city of lakes also known as “Nawabon ka Sheher” as its name symbolizes, the city is famous for the beauty of lakes. But lakes are not the only center of attraction of this city. There are much more places to explore other than jheels. So grab your bag along with your DSLR and lots of snacks and LET’S START OUR RIDE!

 

Upper Lake:

It is obvious to mention it in the first place in this list. Lakes are the main identity of this city.  It is situated on the western side of the city. The primarily upper lake was known as Bhojtal as it was made under the Kingship of Raja Bhoj. It is a beautiful place to visit and even the path to reach there i.e. VIP road also carries Raja Bhoj Setu on it which is one of the best roads of Bhopal.

 

Van Vihar National Park:

One of the beautiful places in Bhopal is Van Vihar National Park. The architecture of this place is the most fascinating thing to observe. One side of the National Park is a jungle and the other side is the lake which symbolizes the unity among aquatic and terrestrial living beings. This is a must-visit place and I would strongly recommend you to visit there.

 

Lakshmi Narayan Temple / Birla Mandir:

This temple is one of the oldest temples of Bhopal. It is situated at the top of area hills. Also, it is situated at the highest point of Bhopal. This temple provides us not only a spiritual environment but also a landscape scenario of the city from the peak point. Tourists from all over the world visit this temple to experience our religion.

 

Manuabhan Tekri:

This temple is situated near Bairagarh road almost 7km away from Bhopal on the top of a hill. There is a Jain Temple on this Tekri where people go either rope-way or by their vehicle. If you love heights and you are in Bhopal, then do visit this place for sure.

Kerwa Resort :

If you are a hardcore biker and want a smooth and empty road to ride, then the way to Kerwa resort is the best for you. This place is my personal favorite in the city. The road to Kerwa resort is surrounded by dense forest on both sides. You’ll get a great display of flora and fauna while reaching the resort. And the resort itself is a paradise. This resort is situated on the heights you can see the beautiful waterfall from the balcony of your room. The best part is, you can even go down the hill to do the trekking in the jungle of Kerwa dam.

 

Sair Sapata:

Sair Sapata is amusement in Bhopal. It is located in the Banks of the Upper Lake. It is a good place to spend your eve time whether with your friends, family or couple. Evening time will be better because the light effect in Sair Sapata looks very beautiful and you can definitely have your photo session done. There are many rides and a tiny train that takes a whole round covering the entire Sair Sapata. Boat rides are also available. This is an open place and has many trees and a big beautiful center bridge

So, these are some of the amazing places to visit in the city. If you ever come to Bhopal, don’t forget to include these places in your bucket list. There are still more places to visit but I’ll keep that secret. You have to visit our beautiful city and explore with us to discover more exciting places.

What is Hostel life | 8 Reasons Why Hostel Life is Best

The life of the hostel is different from life at home.

Before getting into hostel life stuff, let’s get into that what actually is Hostel Life.

WHAT IS HOSTEL LIFE?

Hostel life is where an individual (mainly students) from different regions, having different culture, with a different way of living, and also mainly with different experiences comes together and live, it can be having an individual room or living while sharing your room which may differ having 2, 3,4, or more together in one room.

hostellife

                            My Hostel Life Experience

My hostel life started from KOTA, exactly the hub of IIT-JEE and MEDICAL, it is obvious heaven getting full freedom and privacy, no one judge you what you do ( as all are just concern about their studies and future), no one asks you where you go and what you do, you started doing what you like, make friends to whom you actually want to talk to, spend money and eat whatever you like with no restrictions (as generally, your parents used to stop you from doing). You sleep when you want to, your choice whether to become an early riser or a night owl (oh! yes it depends on you) apart from this being alone in a new city surrounded with different people, it is obvious to take care of you, having a balanced and a healthy diet, choice of friends should also be done carefully as for me personally KOTA was full of strangers and people smarter than me(as being a new person), with the experience I got with friends who were thieves, some indulged in shitty relationship stuff and with no concern of future, some people were involved in intoxication (drinks, smoke, consuming hookah or cigarettes), but anyways being with everyone it’s your decision to do, and think what is better for you without concerning what others do. Now me being an engineering student in Indore, I live in my hostel, yes it’s probably a Lil different from hostel life in Kota but anyways hostel life is hostel life no matter where you go, only new faces changed, this time I was experienced as I just completed one of my hostel journey in previous years. But I must say at present I’m in love with this life, living for my future, working for it, your routine, your lifestyle and yes in love with myself. I didn’t know the way how I look myself now that’s what I always mention love yourself, so moving apart(haha!! my inner soul speaks too much). People are familiar and with no doubt are honest and lovable souls. We sleep late at nights completing our test syllabus with one-night preparation, making coffee for each other, in colds we used to just go to the terrace and sit so that we can be far from our beds and make our mindset not sleep, and just study cause the next day is the exam, for keeping awake, we start singing and telling past stories of each other experiences till late hours and suddenly after hours we realize that tomorrow is the exam, and we all laugh realizing what will happen the next day and during this gossip interval we forget about the coffee and at last it turns cold coffee and here battle starts that who is gonna heat the coffee.

8 Reasons Why Hostel Life is Best

  •  As you live with people with different backgrounds and cultures, as I am from M.P and went to Rajasthan so in the same way there were people from Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Chandigarh, Punjab even students from different countries, it’s with no doubt an amazing experience living together and sharing thoughts.
  • The vibe of hostel life is really different, which in the end turns out to be a small family.
  • All together have their meals with their groups or individually, it was always the favorite thing for me having a meal with friends, what we used to do is we were a group of 3, we always took one Thaali and all food according to 3 of us and then sit down and eat lots and lots sharing what did happen all day to each other, in this way we always shared our experience.
  • Oh! yes, how can I forget about the hostel’s breakfast which generally is limited and surprisingly you find it so yummy and want an extra one and certainly you already know that in anyway warden or the cook is not gonna provide you with one more of the dish, and here I always used to remember my mum, but still in this time we used to make plans of how one of us will divert the warden from one side and then the other one will take the extra plate with extra sauce packets.
  • The Game nights were always my most favorite experience of hostel life, where you play many games getting all hostelers together, mainly we used to play truth and dare, and knowing the truths was really gossip material.
  • We used to become ghosts wearing a white dress, or bedsheets, making holes for eyes, applying dark lipstick and Kajal flowing all to your bottom of your eyes, making it sound horrible and then moving everywhere in hostel making ghost sounds, or hiding back of any door and get ready to make your friend jump out of fear and rush fast to your rooms as you can.
  • The Sunday special food was always an exciting thing of the hostel, how beautiful that feeling is when you wait all week for just having that one-day special food from all that boring food taken 6 days which included Dosa, idli-sambhar, uttapam, Daal-Pakwan, chole-Bhature, etc
  • The shakes in the summer season were awesome which included lassi, Thandai, orange juice, flavored juice, a cup of ice cream, etc(all depends on your hostel)

MAJOR MISSING 

  1. Ahhhh!! The missing of home food, as it is for sure you can not get the home taste anywhere, in this case, you need to adjust anywhere living out from your home, either you need to cook yourself to get desired taste, or order food from restaurants, Dhabas, dominos, etc.
  2. Yes, the worst thing is ragging from your seniors or bullying from your own friends, teasing you saying you are too fat or too lean, giving you their works to do, laughing in groups, and the topic is on you, asking you to do their projects and works, which in all way waste your time too.
  3. Missing your home a lot cause phone calls do not complete all satisfaction.
  4. The major problem comes when there is no money left with you, and during that time you eagerly wait for your parents to come and fulfill all your demands (respect for mamma- papa who always neglect their requirements to complete ours)

THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND-

Don’t worry pals, if you are gonna start with your HOSTEL LIFE, just keep these things in mind

  • Carry some extra money, in case you need it urgently, the best way will be to carry your ATM card.
  • Take some homemade Dry food items like Namkeen, dry fruits, Ladoos, pickle, some cloves, anise, some homemade spices (in case if you have an open kitchen or mess).
  • Don’t forget to carry a small Vessel with you to cook something in case if you need to make quick recipes any day you feel like maggie, bread, and milk & I’ll totally suggest you have a Coffee MUG 
  • Carry some regular Medicines which you use like for fever, cough-cold, headache, stomachache, etc.
  • collect all your basic things in one packet like your toothpaste, toothbrush, a mirror, face cream, body lotion, Sanitary napkins, and other Basic cosmetics you use.
  • Having an alarm clock is a good idea, you can carry iron to keep yourself look smart and proper.
  • Carry an extra pair of bed sheets, pillow cover, socks, a dusting cloth, basic tees, and your lowers.
  • Put all the Stationary all together like- scissor, glue, newspapers, cutter, stapler, sticky notes
  •  Also, a family photo that will always remind your loved ones.

 

Anyways there’s nothing to panic about just be confident, Be aware, Be safe and protective, be in a good friend circle and remember the above points, there’s a lot more to experience in life, we never know where one will live after getting into jobs, maybe in a foreign country, a different city or state,  But Remember to do something really big in your life you need to go out from your families, your loved ones and promise them that one day this step of being far from them will change their life into a good happening and there will be happy and prosperous among all,

All the best, wish you a happy journey in your Hostel life.

STOCKDALE PARADOX- NEVER LOSING FAITH HEREAFTER ?

“You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end- which you can never afford to lose- with discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.” –                                       Admiral James Stockdale

 

No one knows when the current situation will get over, but everyone needs a 360 degree approach in life now. From facing the harshness to sometimes dealing with stress and pessimism a lot has changed since the pandemic arrived at out doorstep. We have lost interest in everything we used to do, surely this pandemic has taught us to deal with our own selves, to not lose hope and be optimistic till the end. But is being optimistic good enough ? Being pessimistic without doing anything is the same as being optimistic without taking a course of action.

 

The answer surely lies in what we call Stockdale paradox.


Stockdale paradox is a concept which was used by Jim Collins in his book ‘Good to Great’. He ones met a renowned Admiral James Stockdale who was a highest ranking US military officer on Hanoi camp, Prisoner of war during Vietnam war.  He was held for 8 years in the camp from 1965 to 1973 and tortured several times. In his interview with Jim Collins he recounted his experiences of sheer brutality with which he was treated, without any rights of prisoners, with no release date and uncertainty of getting out. 

 When he was asked how he lived with the hope of not getting out, his answer was very different from the optimists who always proposed a date of their release and were very confident and positive about their freedom, but in the end died. He said he never lost faith in the end of the story. Have faith but be ready to face the brutalities that life has imposed on you. He didn’t depend on blind optimism alone but did what was required to improve his chances of survival. He raised morale of his fellow mates, helped them in every way possible and exchanged secret information with his wife through letters. 

 

The present times demand us to be positive and hopeful that everything will become normal in the coming days. But sitting at our comfort zones and just waiting for time to turn in our favor is folly. We can instead spend this time on productive activities which can help us fulfill our goals. We can take efforts to heal ourselves by finding ways to reduce mental agonies, helping and supporting others, comforting and giving hopes to those who have faced uncertainties.

How can we apply Stockdale paradox in our life –

 

  1. We all want to be successful, happy and fulfill all our wishes, but reaching this state won’t come simply by being positive. We feel good about this attitude and that’s why love the way motivational speakers influence our minds by changing our life simply by changing our mindset from negative to positive. That is well and good but that is not the only thing required. There must be a sense of self-awareness about the realities and action towards something that moves you in the first place. Confronting situation is fundamental to success along with a bit of positive attitude.
  2. Applying this paradox in business- Optimism drives innovation and can lead to growth but one needs to check whether you are playing in reality and not heading towards something that can’t happen.
  3. The Stockdale paradox can help any leader to improve leadership and plan for forthcoming challenges. It makes us resilient through idea of positivity and confrontation of unpleasant facts of the current situation. 

So, try applying this principle in your life and make things work out for yourselves. 

Signing off 

Janhavi Thakre

 

 

3 great ways AI will enrich our society

AI ( Artificial Intelligence ) is basically a computer program that is designed to automate processes that are generally to be done by humans. It is very closely related to Machine Learning which is a program that evolves itself with time. These are implemented from everyday mundane tasks such as showing daily news on your news app based on your previous likes and dislikes to show ads on YouTube or Google are targeted specifically to you based on your recent searches. This may look like a breach of privacy, but this is the world we live in.

This is just a small preview of what AI is capable of now. AI runs a lot of servers and computational things that humans are not physically capable of. In addition, AI-assisted software runs many necessary informational and logistical programs necessary for the running of our society. AI basically uses programming structures called neural networks which basically change and evolve with time to learn new things. It is even used in camera face recognition technology.

Whenever you open your phone using your face, the AI program in your phone can do that. It recognizes small things unique only to your face like the cheekbone structure, the width of your forehead, the breadth of your nose, the distance between your chin and lip, and so on to recognize it is you and then allows you to open the phone.

Now, the question which has taken over the pioneers in this field is whether AI can be given more autonomy in other sensitive fields like finance. AI can be evolved into such a program where it can be seen as a completely different human in and off of itself. A program that has attained consciousness, a program that can control any device linked to the internet. That is the future of AI. Here I will tell you 3 ways that it will be useful to us.

AI-assisted protocols in surgery and science ( Useful ):

In such places, AI will provide a useful tool to assist humans in surgery wherein a human hand cannot be steady enough to go through with the procedure. It can also help humans find patterns in medicine and molecules which are not perceivable by the human mind. Thus, it can help to develop medicine much beyond what is capable now. It can also help in fields of sciences in various ways, from developing complex algorithms for sorting data to giving the best possible course of action.

AI-Assisted decision-making processes:

Decision-making processes are prevalent in a lot of places. Knowingly or unknowingly, we make a lot of decisions every single day. It would be so much better if AI-assisted us in deciding to get only the best result out of it. Decision-making plays a vital role in finance, where the goal is to make a profit. Wrong decisions may ruin someone’s entire life in a matter of seconds. Hence, it would be very vital for those to make wise choices.

AI-assisted automation:

Automating many tasks won’t make them lose their jobs; it will only divert them elsewhere where it is more important. Diverting engineers from manufacturing cars to manufacturing delicate space parts would help humanity advance much farther in space technology. Space is the final frontier. Humanity is not destined to live on earth. Having AI assist us in our mundane day-to-day tasks, much of the human resources can be diverted towards making our society a space-age one.

Hence, when AI assists us in our day-to-day lives, it will drastically improve our quality of living. Society will evolve towards a utopic. AI-assisted technology and society are something to really look forward to.