It is a developmental disorder characterized by behavioral and communicational affections.
It impacts a person’s ability to navigate social interactions and causes repetitive and restricted behavior.
Many children show symptoms of autism by 12months to 18 months of age or earlier.
What causes Autism?
Genetic factor:
Something happens during fetal development that alters a gene.
Child inherits problematic gene/genes from one or both parents
Environmental factors: Mothers exposed to high levels of pesticides and air pollution may also be at high risk of having a child with ASD.
Brain Development: Children with ASD have more cells in their brain, than they require. Even the connections between the cells are not proper.
These factors by themselves, don’t cause autism. Rather, in combination with genetic factors, they appear to increase risk.
World Autism Day
Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned, the UN representative from Qatar proposed the idea of recognizing World Autism Day.
The UNGA unanimously declared 2nd April as World Autism Awareness Day to highlight the need to help improve the quality of life of those with autism, so that they can lead full and meaningful lives as an integral part of the society.
Facts about Autism
A puzzle ribbon is used as the new symbol for autism.
ASD now affects 1 in 68 children.
Boys are nearly 4.3 times more likely to be diagnosed with ASD than girls.
ASD is more common than childhood cancer, diabetes and AIDS combined.
Government is required to undertake various economic, social, and other activities in every country. It is like to pursue various policies to achieve certain objectives like economic development, reduction of inequalities of income and wealth. The government has to incur expenditure in performing these activities and in pursuing its policies. For instance, the government has to incur expenditure in maintaining law and order and in undertaking various developmental activities. As such, government has to raise necessary revenue to finance these expenditures.
Accordingly, the government has to draw a financial plan corresponding to various activities it wants to undertake during the coming year . Such a financial plan is known as the budget of the government. “Budget of the government is an annual financial statement describing in detail the estimated receipts and proposed expenditures and disbursements of the government under various heads for the financial or fiscal year. The budget is the indicator of government functioning. It also gives the actual financial accounts for the previous year and the revised estimates for the current ye . In other democratic countries ,the government budget is a constitutional obligation in India. Under Article 112 of the constitution, a statement of estimated receipts and proposed expenditures of the Central Government has to be prepared for every financial or fiscal year and has to be placed before the parliament. It is titled Budget of the central government.
Government budget is a subject of immense importance for a variety of reasons.
Planned approach to government’s activities: The importance of government budget arises because of the fact that the activities of the government have increased tremendously. This calls for mobilization of large resources to meet the expenditure required to undertake these activities. There has to be a definite planning with regard to the estimated revenue and proposed expenditure for the proper conduct of the government activities.
Integrated Approach to Fiscal Operations: All these decisions and policies are interconnected and they must form a part of the overall set of objectives which the government wants to pursue. Government’s fiscal policy as reflected in the budget is an essential part of its overall economic and social policy.
Public Accountability: Budget proposals are discussed in the parliament. A popular debate also takes place in the media about the budget proposals. Parliament also exercises control over the government expenditure through various committees – Public Accounts Committee, the Estimates Committee and the Committee on Public Undertakings. Thus, Budget serves as a powerful weapon of financial control in respect of both collection of revenues and their disbursement.
STRUCTURE OF THE GOVERNMENT BUDGET
Constitution of the country demands that the budget must distinguish expenditure on revenue account from the expenditure on capital account. Revenue account covers those items which are recurring nature, while capital account covers those items which are of the nature of creating or reducing the capital assets. Budget is necessarily presented in two parts:
REVENUE BUDGET
CAPITAL BUDGET
Revenue budget shows revenue receipts of the government and the expenditures met from these revenue receipts. It consists of revenue receipts and revenue expenditure. Revenue receipts of the government are all those receipts which are non-redeemable. They create no liabilities or involve no sale or reduction in the assets of the government. Revenue expenditures relate to expenditures incurred by the government on day to day normal functioning of the government and interest payment on government debts. These expenditures neither create any physical or financial assets nor reduce any liability of the government .
Capital Budget comprises capital receipts and capital expenditure of the government. It shows capital requirements of the government and financing of these expenditures. Capital receipts are the receipts of the government which create liabilities or reduce assets of the government. The main component is to borrowing of all kinds from the public, RBI and repayment of loans to the central government by state government and public sector enterprises. Capital expenditures are those expenditures of the government which lead to creation of physical and financial assets or reduction of financial liabilities.
BUDGET DEFICITS
An important issue which is raked up every year during the budget in India is the issue of budget deficit. In the past two to three decades, government spending has increased more than its receipts. As a result , budget deficits and the government borrowings have increased sharply. Although politicians regularly make fine speeches about the need to reduce deficit, cutting down spending or raising taxes so as to reduce deficit are not politically popular. In every budget , the government has been setting the target of reducing the budget deficit, but reaching the target of reducing budget deficit has been rather difficult.
Budget deficit is financed by increasing the money supply and by borrowing from public and from other countries. This involves burden both on present as well as the future generations. The present generation has to shoulder the burden of budget deficits in terms of inflationary rise in prices. Higher debt also means that interest payments eat away a large part of government expenditure, which could otherwise be used for providing various economic and social services to the public. This deficit is a liability for future generations as well. Taxes will have to be increased in future to pay interest on the debt and to repay the debt. This is the burden of the debt on future generations.
SOME FACTS ABOUT INDIAN BUDGET OVER THE YEARS
The budget system was introduced in India on 7 April,1860.
James Wilson, the first Indian Finance member, delivered the budget speech
The first budget after independence was presented on 26 November, 1947 by R.K.S. Chetty.
Yashwant Sinha, the then finance minister, moved the budget to 11a.m. in 1999, instead of 5 P.M. as was the practice till then.
Arun Jaitley, the present Finance minister, has advanced the presentation of the budget to 1st February from the 2017-18 Budget. He has presented 4 regular budgets till date.
24 people have presented budget in independent India.
Morarji Desai holds the record for the most budget presented in independent India with 8 full budgets and 2 interim budgets.
P Chidambaram has matched Morarji Desai’s record of presenting 8 full budgets.
All the three Prime Ministers from the Nehru family- Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi have presented one budget each.
I know I’m late to the After party. But hey, better late than never! I started After by Anna Todd in the evening, then stayed up all night because I had to finish it. And then, I begged my teen sister for the second book. She kindly agreed to give the book to me. I hope she doesn’t change her mind just to torture me. We’ll have to see how this unravels.
Synopsis:
Tessa is just starting college, and she’s got everything planned. In one year, her boyfriend Noah will join her as well. But then she meets her wild roommate Steph as well as the incredibly rude guy with a British accent, Hardin. And everything changes!
My Thoughts:
Tessa is a good girl and she doesn’t do parties and short dresses. And she goes to a party with Steph and something changes. She can’t look away. Harding is doing something to her and she can barely resist. But she has a boyfriend. And also, everything she has a good moment with Hardin, two bad ones follow. Hardin is toxic, and Tessa hurts him in return as well. Also, their communication has to improve. Not the mention how the whole boyfriend situation was handled.
Honestly, I thought my opinions would be conflicting. But they’re not. I really enjoyed the book and I’m looking forward to the second one. Also, I know Hardin is based on Harry Styles, but while I was reading the book, he didn’t once cross my mind. I also often have fantasies about celebrities, I just don’t happen to write them. Honestly, it’s not a big deal.
My only worry was that teens might see Hardin’s toxic side and think that’s how a girl should be treated. But that would mean underestimating the girls out there. Even in the book, Tessa was aware Hardin’s behaviour was not okay, which is why she reacted the way she did. The facts she would return only meant that she had feelings for him. Their relationship has more issues than good parts, but in all honesty, when I think about my high school days, it was that way for me too. I didn’t handle things well. Sometimes I didn’t communicate well. I trusted people I shouldn’t have trusted. And that’s the beauty of this book.
After by Anna Todd is the perfect teenage book.
It reminded me of my days of high school and uni. Attending parties I shouldn’t have and trusting people that didn’t deserve my trust. Handling relationships badly and having terrible ability to communicate. And this book brought all the excitement back and more. Fond and not so fond memories that reminded me that I have lived at the fullest.
In the next book, I do hope that their relationship improves. I hope Hardin grows up and Tessa communicates to him, instead of hurting him back. Also, I hope Tessa fixes her relationship with her mother as well, even though her mother needs to work on her own biases as well. I also hope that the dramas continue as well – I really love them.
Can’t figure out how to sleep better? Below are the best techniques for getting better sleep, from sleep experts and neurologists.
1. Keep Clocks Out of Your Bedroom
What’s the biggest change you can make to get more sleep? Don’t look at the clock during sleeping hours, says sleep expert Terry Cralle. Without a clock, the “chore” of falling asleep goes away. You won’t start doing math in your head and worrying about how little sleep you’re getting. If your room is dark and cool and you’re “in the dark” about how much sleep you’ve missed, you’ll most often fall back to sleep soon.
2. Follow a Sleep Schedule
One of the biggest reasons we don’t sleep is that we don’t respect it. “People say they only have time for 4–5 hours a night,” says Cralle. “But that can be dangerous, with studies showing metabolic changes after just a few nights of short sleeping.”
Wondering, “When should I wake up?” Or, “What time should I go to bed?” Try to go to bed as close to the first full darkness as you can, and rise with the sun. Going to sleep at 9pm, 10pm, or 11pm matters less than keeping the same sleep schedule every night.
Is 6 hours of sleep enough?
Getting 6 hours of sleep a night will sap your focus, moods, health, and well-being. Always get 7–9 hours of in-the-bed sleep time, even if you’re awake for some of it. Even if you feel fine after six hours of sleep, your effectiveness suffers.
3. Get More Daylight
Numerous studies show getting more natural light is one of the top techniques for how to sleep better. Yet we’ve got ever brighter screens in laptops and phones. Those screens—and our brightly-lit homes—are sending silent messages to our brains that say, “It’s morning! Go to sleep 12 hours from now.” Trying to override those messages can be like eating a 32-ounce porterhouse steak right after Thanksgiving dinner. Your body will say, “Nope.”
The upside? One-third of US employees work from home at least sometime during the week. That gives us a tremendous opportunity to work on a porch, park bench or in an outdoor cafe. In winter, sit near a window for a few hours in the morning.
4. Have a Coffee Cutoff Time
Tired of being tired? Try switching to decaf after 2pm. Studies show that even drinking coffee 6 hours before bedtime can rob your sleep time.
5. Try Audiobooks
Listening to an audiobook can help you sleep. Turn the volume down and set the playback to its slowest speed. Then set a timer so it shuts off in an hour. Most phones can set a “stop playback” alarm. Here’s how on iPhone and Android.
6. Distraction Techniques
When your mind has a tricky “job to do,” it stays alert. “Some people fall asleep better with a distraction,” says Cralle. So, here are a few tips for how to sleep better with distractions:
The Navy SEAL Technique
Why is sleep important for Navy SEALs? Imagine trying to sleep in the rain, cold, or in a fire zone, when your life depends on being rested. Thankfully, these hardened warriors have a trick that helps them drift off in two minutes.
How to fall asleep:
Sit on the edge of your bed.
Relax the muscles of your face, jaw, tongue, and eyes.
Let your shoulders and arm muscles go slack.
Breathe out. Relax your chest, then thighs, calves, feet, and toes.
Clear your mind for 10 seconds.
Picture one of these three images:
You’re lying in a pit room in a black velvet hammock.
You’re in a canoe on a calm lake with blue sky above.
You repeat the words “don’t think,” for 10 seconds.
The 2-minute Navy SEAL sleep technique works for 96% of sleepers. The downside? It can take six weeks of practice.
It is a healthy activity to reflect on the time gone by, objectively, before making plans for the year ahead. However, most of us are moving towards one of the two extremes:
Self-ridicule or lamenting the stuff we didn’t do or did wrong.
Self-congratulation of patting oneself on the back for all the great stuff we did, while ignoring the mistakes.
Reviewing The Year: Achievement And Effort
While reflecting on the past, we normally look at our achievements and appreciate what we have been successful at. Despite our best efforts, we sometimes do not get success due to other factors like luck, timing etc. The right approach is to learn from the experiences and to appreciate one’s effort. Example: Going for various interviews that didn’t go well wasted a lot of our time, energy, effort and resources, but we still have to appreciate our effort and what all we learned from the rejections.
Reviewing The Year: Self-Change
If we learned and changed during the past year/decade, we are on the path towards growth, even though it may not be visible or tangible as of now. Personal growth means your experiments are paying results. The troubling thing would be to remain completely unchanged, as stagnancy is a cause for concern.
Reviewing The Year: The Boss-Like Evaluation
It’s a great idea to have an objective assessment for one’s achievements and efforts, reviewing them like a supportive boss would do while providing an appraisal. To maintain an ideal balance, give yourself constructive feedback (25 per cent) and appreciate the hard work and achieved goals (75 per cent).
“Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action.” – Peter Drucker
Reviewing The Year: Understand What Worked
Sometimes the reason for your success is the failure you endured. The good night’s sleep that helped you shine the next day for the interview, is an important aspect of success. Most of the time it is our self-care and other unidentified reasons that become a cause for our eventual success, and one needs to think holistically while reflecting to find the hidden reasons.
The word ‘budget’ is derived from the French word, Bougette, which means a leather wallet or purse.Therefore, the term modern budget refers to a document that contains estimates of revenue and expenditure of a country, usually for one year.
Types of Budget
Budgets can be categorized based on the following principles:
Combined time.
Number of budget’s tabled in the legislature.
The overall finance budget’s position is presented in the budget.
An approved policy on the takeover of revenue and expenditure in the budget.
Division of receipts and expenses in the budget.
Based on these principles budget’s can be:(Annual budget’s or long-term budget’s.
One or more budget’s.
Excess budget’s, deficits or estimates.
Budget or revenue budget.
Departmental budget or operating budget.
A brief description of the different types is as follows
1. ANNUAL or long-term budget’s
Generally, Government budget’s are for one year that is, for one year. In India, England and many other commonwealth countries the financial year, starts on April 1 and ends on March 31, but in the U.S.A., Australia, Sweden and Italy the dates are 1st July and 30th June. Some countries adopt a planned economic policy and meet the requirements for long-term planning, using a long-term budget, that is, preparing a budget for three years or more. Such a budget is a long-term plan rather than a long-term budget because what is offered is a financial plan over the years to fund the program.These countries spread the use of program costs over many years. The legislature approves the plan and estimates its costs, but that does not equal the actual voting of all-time shares. Every year, the national budget will include expenditure on a plan for that year, to be approved by the legislature.
2. One or more budget’s
When the estimates of all Government functions are allocated to a single budget, it is known as a single budget. The advantage of a single budget is that it reflects the financpractisetion of the Government as a whole.But if there are separate budget-related budget’s passed by the legislature, it is called a mass budget. In India, we have two budget’s — one for the railway line and one for the rest of the departments. The practice of having a separate train budget began in 1921. In England, there is one budget.
3. Extra income, deficit or limited budget
A budget is a surplus if the estimated income exceeds the estimated cost/expense But if the expected revenue falls below the expected cost, it becomes a budget deficit. According to economists, a deficit budget is a sign of global development. A limited budget is when the expected revenue is equal to the expected cost/expense. Budgets are often in short supply.
4. Income or budget of income
A budget is one in which the estimates of various items of income and expenditure include amounts to be acquired or used in one year,.In revenue and expenditure budget’s, accumulated in one financial year,, are planned for that financial year, regardless of whether the revenue is available or expenses incurred in that financial year,. In India, Britain and the U.S.A., counts are calculated, in France and other continents, counting income.
5. Departmental or operational budget
The current practice is to have a departmental budget, that is, the revenue and expenses of one department are organized under it. It does not provide any information about the work or activity that has been budgeted for. The operating budget is another where the total cost of a particular project is compiled under the head of a specific program.It is organized into activities, programs, activities and projects, for example, in the case of collaboration (employment), it will be divided into programs such as higher education, Secondary and Higher Education. Each program will be divided into activities, for example, teacher training is a task. The project is the final unit of division of labor.It symbolizes work as a major project, such as the construction of a school building. The A.R.C. proposed the adoption of a budget for all the departments and agencies of the Central and provincial governments that have managed development programs.
We feel that comfort and convenience are the necessities of life, while all that we need to make ourselves happy is something to be proud of. ” – Albert Einstein
Dip
In all language courses, company building, and any type of creative project, there is immersion. Dip a long distance between beginner luck and real success. Extraordinary benefits accumulate a handful of people who can push for longer than most.
StartingBefore Immersion
In any goal to be achieved, there is a Beginning. It is often overlooked, as it always is. Getting started is a big problem as you can only reach The Dip if you don’t finish Start, and many people dream of doing something rather than doing it and quitting.
Motivational management
The biggest problem we face in completing our projects is not production or time management, but motivational management. If you are motivated enough to accomplish something, you will move heaven and earth to do it.
Motivation Explained
Motivation is “the reason or reason for a person to do or behave in a certain way,” or to put it another way, “a common desire or determination.”
“If you stop doing what you want to do, then the reasons for quitting are more than just reasons to keep going. Thus, to maintain your motivation you can strengthen the reasons for continuing or weaken the reasons for quitting. Effective motivation often involves both. ” – Ericsson & Poole
Promotion to Start a Project
Increase your reason for starting a project, by increasing the importance of starting it.
Increase the time you are expected to succeed in the task.
Reduce your reasons for the delay, by increasing urgency, using deadlines.
Parkinson’s Law
It says “work grows to complete the available time for its completion.”
Commitment device
Many people use a dedicated device or play around them to find and stay motivated. You can help your physical goal with things like throwing away your junk food, just bathing in the gym to get there, and similar activities aimed at focusing on your goal. People also use social responsibility in social media to keep themselves motivated by peer pressure.
Stay Motivated
Set small, climbing goals that are fun enough to motivate you and that you expect to achieve.
How to proceed
Keep your Expectancy feeling in the project using minimal winnings and achievements.
Reward yourself.
Maintain a sense of urgency by finding a way to remind yourself of the big picture of the small daily moments of effort.
It means getting more out of the limited time you have each day. It’s one of the cornerstones of productivity and once you know how to properly prioritize, it can help with everything from your time management to work-life balance.
Master lists
Capture everything on a Master List and then break it down by monthly, weekly, and daily goals.
Start by making a master list—a document, app, or piece of paper where every current and future task will be stored.
Once you have all your tasks together, break them down into monthly, weekly, and daily goals.
When setting your priorities, try not to get too “task-oriented” – you want to make sure you’re prioritizing the more effective work.
Eisenhower Matrix
The matrix is a simple four-quadrant box that answers that helps you separate “urgent” tasks from “important” ones:
Urgent and Important: Do these tasks as soon as possible
Important, but not urgent: Decide when you’ll do these and schedule it
Urgent, but not important: Delegate these tasks to someone else
Neither urgent nor important: Drop these from your schedule as soon as possible.
The Ivy Lee Method
Rank your work by its true priority with the Ivy Lee Method:
At the end of each workday, write down the 6 most important things you need to accomplish tomorrow.
Prioritize those 6 items n order of their true importance.
When you arrive tomorrow, concentrate only on the first task. Work until the first task is finished before moving on to the next one.
Approach the rest of your list in the same fashion. At the end of the day, move any unfinished items to a new list of six tasks for the following day.
Repeat this process every working day.
The ABCDE method
Instead of keeping all tasks on a single level of priority, this method offers two or more levels for each task:
Go through your list and give every task a letter from A to E (A being the highest priority)
For every task that has an A, give it a number that dictates the order you’ll do it in
Repeat until all tasks have letters and numbers.
Set the tone of the day by “Eating the frog”
Once you’ve prioritized your most important work, it’s time to choose how to attack the day. How you start the day sets the tone for the rest of it. And often, getting a large, hairy, yet important task out of the way first thing gives you momentum, inspiration, and energy to keep moving.
Warren Buffett’s 2-list strategy
Cut out “good enough” goals with Warren Buffett’s 2-list strategy.
Write down your top 25 goals: life goals, career goals, education goals, or anything else you want to spend your time on.
Circle your top 5 goals on that list.
Finally, any goal you didn’t circle goes on an “avoid at all cost” list. These are the tasks that are seemingly important enough to deserve your attention. But that isn’t moving you towards your long-term priorities.
The sunk cost fallacy
Humans are especially susceptible to the “sunk cost fallacy”—a psychological effect where we feel compelled to continue doing something just because we’ve already put time and effort into it. But the reality is that no matter what you spend your time doing, you can never get that time back. And any time spent continuing to work towards the wrong priority is just wasted time.
When learning, there are times in which you are focused and times in which you allow your mind to wander. Both modes are valuable to allow your brain to learn something. Take regular breaks, meditate, think about other things, and give yourself plenty of time in both modes.
Chunking
This is the idea of breaking what you want to learn into concepts. The goal is to learn each concept in a way that they each become like a well-known puzzle piece. To master a concept, you not only need to know it but also to know how it fits into the bigger picture.
Beware of Illusions of Competence
There are many ways in which we can make ourselves feel like we have “learned” a concept. Instead of highlighting or underlining, rather take brief notes that summarize key concepts.
Recall
Take a couple of minutes to summarize or recall the material you are trying to learn. It goes a long way to taking something from short-term memory to long-term learning.
Bite-Sized Testing
To avoid breakthrough illusions of competence, you should test yourself as you’re encountering new material. The recall is a simple example of this mini-testing.
Over-Learning
Do not spend too much time in one sitting going over the same material over and over again. The law of diminishing returns certainly applies. Spread it out over many sessions and many different modes of learning.
Interleaving
Once you have a basic understanding of what you are trying to learn, practice jumping back and forth between problems that require different techniques. This will solidify your understanding of the concepts by learning how to choose to apply them in various situations. Knowing when to apply a particular concept is as important as knowing how.
Process over Product
When facing procrastination, think of the process over the product. Instead of thinking that you have to get X done, rather think to spend an hour on X. It is then not overwhelming and doesn’t require a long breakdown of tasks.
Metaphors and Analogies
They are often talked about as helpful study techniques. Try to make a deliberate effort to teach what you learn to someone else and, in doing so, you will likely be forced to explain concepts with relatable metaphors and analogies.
Study Groups / Teamwork
This has proven to be most beneficial to maintain continued progress and hold each other accountable. Finding the right group is key.
Learning and memory benefit from active involvement. When you add speaking to it, the content becomes more defined in long-term memory and more memorable.
Take notes by hand
Most of us can type very fast, but research shows writing your notes by hand will allow you to learn more. Taking notes by hand enhances both comprehension and retention.
Chunk your study sessions
Studying over some time is more effective than waiting until the last minute. The distributed practise works because each time you try to remember something, the memory becomes harder to forget.
Self-testing is highly effective
Regularly testing yourself will speed up learning. When you test yourself and answer incorrectly, you are more likely to recall the right answer after you look it up. You will also remember that you didn’t remember.
Change the way you practice
Repeating anything over and over might not be the best way to master that task. If you practice a slightly different version, you will learn more and faster. For example, if you want to master a new presentation:
Rehearse the basic skill.
Wait at least six hours to allow your memory to consolidate.
Practice again, but speak a little faster.
Practice next by speaking slower.
Break your presentation into smaller steps. Master each chunk, then put it back together.
Change the conditions. It will prepare you better for the unexpected.
Exercise regularly
According to research, regular exercise can improve memory recall. Exercise also increases a protein (BDNF – brain-derived neurotrophic factor) that supports the function, growth, and survival of brain cells.
Sleep more, learn more
When you sleep, most of the consolidation process occurs. In contrast, sleep deprivation can affect your ability to commit new data to memory and consolidate any short-term memories.
Concepts in parallel
Interleaving – studying related concepts or skills in parallel – improves your brain’s ability to differentiate between concepts or skills. It helps you to learn and gain an understanding at a deeper level. Instead of focusing on one subject during a learning session, learn several subjects or skills in succession.
Teach someone else
Research shows that those who teach, speed up their learning and remember more. Even just preparing to teach means that you will seek out key points and organize information into a coherent structure.
Build on what you know
When you have to learn something new, try to associate it with something you are already familiar with. Then you only have to learn where it differs. You’ll also be able to apply greater context, which will help with memory storage and retrieval.
In 2013, a group of seven boys, all from different backgrounds, who left behind their friends and family to follow their dream of becoming K-pop artistes, were about to debut. But soon afterwards, their hopes were crushed as the bad press from the media, internal strife and lack of proper finance forced them to almost disband multiple times. But they kept on fighting for their dream, even if that meant living in one cramped dorm room and having to beg people to come to their concerts. These boys had very humble beginnings – one of the members, Yoongi, recently had a surgery to repair a torn shoulder labrum. The tear was related to an injury that occurred in 2012, when the performer was hit by a car during one of his delivery-boy shifts.
Flash forward to years later, that same group of boys from South Korea, Bangtan Sonyeondan (BTS), are now one of the biggest boy bands in the world. Among other outstanding achievements, they have multiple No. 1 albums in the US Billboard Hot 100, 15 Guinness World Records and over 300 awards. BTS are the youngest recipients of South Korea’s Order of Cultural Merit award and the first ever K-pop act to receive a Grammy nomination. They are changing the world and the face of K-pop forever, paving the way for others.
For years, BTS struggled to get their music heard. They were not an overnight success, like some people might believe. But because of their struggles and despite of it, they became worldwide superstars and South Korea’s pride and joy. BTS refuse to be confined within the boundaries of the “K-pop” industry, instead often experimenting with different, versatile styles and musical genres like Hip-Hop, Jazz, EDM, R&B, Latin pop, Ballad, Country and Rock among others. Each of the seven members embody various roles and positions in the group, such as dancer, vocalist, leader, rapper, producer, choreographer, and more.
BTS
BTS’s music transcends language, time and cultural barriers; their raw and relatable lyrics resonates with people, going through different stages of life. The healing power of their music does not discriminate. The majority of their self-written and self-produced songs discuss socio-political issues found in contemporary society such as mental health, toxic-masculinity, women’s empowerment, self-love, capitalism, burn-out and the struggles of growing up among other things. Most of their topics are still taboo in the culturally-conservative Asia and are often brushed away as non-existent.
The Korean music industry is known for their “manufactured” and “engineered” sound, where the artistes themselves have no say in what they are singing about, but instead, have their music written and produced by a group of professionals fit for the industry standards. BTS breaks all those preconceived rules by having a voice in their own music. They have started a new trend for Korean singers to explore more complex and impactful themes.
These motifs are often seen in both their studio albums and individual mixtapes. In their latest album “BE”, which was released on November 20, 2020, BTS shared their experiences and hopes during the pandemic, as they as embrace “Be”-ing in this new reality. The relatable lyrics and catchy beats in titles like “Fly to my Room”, “Dis-ease”, “Stay” and “Telepathy” are contrasted with the raw, emotional ballads like “Blue & Grey” and “Life Goes On”.
This album also features their first ever completely English language song, “Dynamite”. It consoles anyone struggling with their mental health during these times and is a beacon of hope for listeners that everything will be okay and life goes on. To me, this album feels like a warm hug from a loved one on a cold winter morning.
BTS’s fans, known as ARMY (short for Adorable Representative MC for Youth) are a group of passionate and creative individuals, from all walks of life, who stand by BTS and each other through thick and thin. Shehrin Tabassum Odri, a digital marketer and an ARMY since 2018, shared her story of how much of an impact BTS has had in her life. “When I was at my loneliest, having hit rock bottom and losing the will to live, BTS was there for me. It was the day they released their ‘Life Goes On’ music video,” she says. “The song was like a wakeup call. It made me realise how many future opportunities and loved ones I will be losing if I give up now and that I’m not the only one feeling this miserable and lost, the members of BTS have gone through this phase too. If they have found a way to stay hopeful for the future to change and better times to come, maybe I should hold on a bit longer too. BTS gave me the hope to keep living.”
“In conservative countries like ours, masculinity is associated with tall, bearded men with deep voices,” mentions Sumaiya Islam, a Nuclear Science and Engineering student. “In a society where men struggle to be vulnerable and be seen as ‘manly’ enough, BTS breaks the gender norms by wearing makeup, jewellery, gender-neutral clothes, and long, colourful hair. They have completely changed my viewpoint on Asian men.” Sumaiya has been an ARMY since 2018.
Atanu Roy Chowdhury shared that the band makes him feel “seen”. “Mental health is affecting our lives, but people don’t want to talk about it. BTS is using the universal language of music to tell the world how important mental health is,” he says. “One of my closest friends died by suicide in 2012, and there are times when it still breaks my heart thinking that I will never see her or talk to her again. Songs from BTS albums help to ease the pain. Having my favourite musicians talk about such issues makes me feel more connected to them.”
By breaking down age-old, ignorant ideas like “men don’t cry” and “only girls can wear makeup”, openly talking about their struggles and sharing their emotions, BTS are showing the world that gender does not have to confine anyone and there should be no one standard of being. Group members Min Yoongi (Suga), Kim Namjoon (RM) and recently, Kim Taehyung (V) and Kim Seokjin (Jin), are known for being open about their struggles with anxiety, depression and burn-out. “I have been called ‘girly’ because I like cooking, cleanliness and keeping my hair long. Even the way I walk has been criticised. Terms like ‘girly’ and ‘gay’ are so easily used as insults, when they should not be,” adds Atanu. “Toxic masculinity is so ingrained in us, and it affects people of all ages. BTS is fighting a difficult fight, and kudos to them for that!” Seeing someone like BTS’ Jungkook be named “Sexiest International Man Alive 2020”, in a sphere usually dominated by white men, can do wonders for brown, Asian men worldwide, giving them an ideal person they can actually relate to. Another ARMY, Niaz Ahmed, shared that messages from the band to “Love Yourself” (a trilogy of their albums in 2018) resonated with him. “Their music was eye-opening, and helped me to start thinking that being happy with who I am is very important,” he says.
Subyeta Sarwar mentioned how being a part of the BTS fandom in Bangladesh has helped her connect with other ARMYs easily, creating deep bonds and long-lasting friendships. Going to different events such as the BD Korean Festival, hosted by BD K-Family, has helped her socialise and meet fellow ARMYs. Since there is a lack of K-pop concerts in Bangladesh, these events are the closest fans can get to experiencing them.
For fans who have been with BTS for a couple of years like myself, it feels like we are growing up with them, experiencing the highs and lows of their lives and career alongside them, not as a distant fan, but as a close friend. There is a popular saying in the fandom, “If you are not a fan of BTS now, it’s because you’re not at a point where you need them yet. Just wait, they’ll find you and come to you when you need to be healed, never too early or too late.”
In the pop-dominated culture we live in, BTS have successfully utilised their music platform to spread the message of social inequality and injustice, which the youth often face. By speaking up about these issues, BTS are not only breaking the preconceived societal stereotypes and creating awareness, they are also urging their fans to do the same. To quote the group’s leader, Kim Namjoon (RM), from his UNICEF speech at the United Nations in 2018, “No matter who you are, where you’re from, your skin colour, gender identity: speak yourself.”
There are 8 very simple rules that you can follow to become truly successful.
Be Passionate
And do what you for love. If you don’t love it, then why do it? If we build careers or continue in jobs that aren’t our passion, we’re selling ourselves short. It’s like the guy that is a tech consultant that wanted to be the lead singer of a band. I’ve written about love and careers before and I think that the takeaway here is that if you do what you want to do, you will be more creative, more motivated, more tuned-in, and much more likely to be very financially and personally prosperous. Katherine Hepburn said it best.
Work Hard
Don’t ever fool yourself success comes from really hard work. And you might find that although you’re doing all of the heavy liftings, there is satisfaction in a job well done. But remember that you need to rely on others, so make sure that you surround yourself with colleagues that share your same work ethic.
Be Good
Focus always proceeds success which is not possible without a clear emphasis on what matters most. And leaders constantly need to remind themselves of this vital truth. Focus requires the pursuit of a mission and vision.
Push the Limits
Don’t constrain yourself to think inside of the box and don’t allow fear to get in your way. Today, people expect more than ordinary so you need to be extraordinary to get noticed and build strong relationships with your target market. Whether you sell a product or service, you must deliver the utmost experience.
Focus
And by that, I mean damn good. Successful people strive for greatness, not mediocrity. So push yourself (and your team) to ensure that you’ve reached your ultimate potential. And be sure to celebrate your wins, that not only breeds confidence among your team, it will keep your colleagues engaged and also will keep your clients or customers enfranchised. If you haven’t read the book From Good to Great, grab a copy.
Serve
Customer service excellence has always been and will always be one of the critical competitive advantages for any business. Meeting your customer’s needs will help you build a very strong and memorable brand. Be responsive, listen, and observe then you will create value. Learn from mistakes in service.
Create Ideas
In addition to service: ingenuity, authenticity, and forward-thinking will ultimately drive your brand. Aspiration is part of the creative process. You must always continue to innovate, especially in a competitive market space. Push the envelope when it comes to ideation.
Be Persistent
Business development and entrepreneurship should be built out of love and any great love requires passion and persistence to capture your dream. Although you will experience setbacks and failures, you will also find success and triumph.
An important process in studying and learning is note-taking. Almost every student does it, and it is a practical requirement to pass a class. With the large amounts of information presented in each course, note-taking helps in encoding the information and thus makes it easier to remember. It also produces study materials to refer to later for exams and projects.
TYping(computer)
Typing is a fast and easy way to take the information presented in lectures and textbooks and consolidate them for reference later. But, due to its fast nature, this method leads to the least amount of information retained and will require you to study more later.
The organization is customizable
Limitless folders can be created almost instantly so sorting is as easy as ever. Tags can be applied to files for easy access, sorting, and searching. Each file has a name so it is clear what that file is, and those names can always be changed.
Easy to share
Rather than copying or scanning notes, computers have simple share screens to instantly share with anyone. People can collaborate on the same document like in Google Docs, or files can be emailed and/or texted quickly.
Typing is the fastest
Writing can be time-consuming, especially in a fast lecture. Typing takes the least amount of time so more information can be put on the page and reviewed later.
Import lecture slides
If someone does not want to type out all the information a professor teaches, importing lecture slides is very easy and can be stored on the device.
Backups
Although it is less likely anything bad will happen to a computer since it is more valuable than a notebook, computers can backup manually (or automatically) so that your notes are safe.
Digitally Handwritten (Tablet)
The tablet (and other devices that allow digital handwriting) is a happy medium that has both benefits of the computer and those of paper notes. Sharing and customization are easy and handwriting yields greater retention while the size makes tablets as portable as notebooks.
Portable
Not only is a tablet the size of a notebook (or smaller), but it also takes the place of all of them. All your subjects can be stored on a single device.
Simple and extensive editing capabilities
Handwriting allows you to write anywhere on a sheet and not be restricted by margins or spacing and there are a variety of pen sizes and colours to use. Photos and other elements can be placed anywhere on a page and text wrapping is not a concern. If you want your handwriting to be turned into text, many apps offer that ability.
The organization is customizable
Tablets, and other such devices, offer the same organization options (and sometimes more) as computers.
Easy to share
Sharing is just as easy as with computers.
High retention
Since you are handwriting the notes on the device, there is higher retention and mental processing of the information. This yield to better acquisition of the information and less need for studying later.
Import lecture slides
Storing lecture slides is just as easy and the same as with computers.
Backups
All your notes can be stored on the device or in the cloud. Same as computers.
Paper notes
The standard modality that college students have used for centuries. Paper notes are the most accessible way to take notes. Cheaper than the other two methods, many people utilize paper notes to record information for courses.
Natural feel
Paper is what we all write on. Many aspects of our lives include writing by hand on paper.
Portable
Notebooks are easy to carry and transport. Just so long as there are not too many.
Flexible
There are no restrictions. A page is very flexible in that you can write anywhere on it.
Cheap
Unlike the other options, notebooks can cost only a few dollars or less and pencils/pens are very cheap as well. This is a great option if you do not want to break the bank.
Highest retention
Since you must be very aware of what content you are writing down as well as that erasing is not as easy on say a tablet, there is higher retention of the materials compared to the other modalities discussed.
No distractions
Computers and tablets have notifications and if someone texts you or you get emails on the device, or your favourite game sends an enticing notification to try and get you to play again can cause distractions. This disrupts your flow of learning and breaks your focus. Do Not Disturb is an option, but for a true distraction, a free distraction-free is the best option.
Gambling is the act of betting money on various platforms with the intention of earning more than the bet. This act is basically judging the chances of winning of a particular team or happening of an event so as to bet on that probability and make money out of it. A lot of people bet for the easy money that gambling brings in for them, while other might do it just for fun, and still others are just addicted to it after a certain period. Online gambling is the on the web, technological and virtual gambling that is fast gaining fans in the contemporary world.
Annals=
The way people betted was not always online, it was face to face in the old times where people betted with real cash to a bookie. With the improvement in the know-how of the internet, the upgrading of the gambling to the virtual space was an obvious result. It is agreed that it was in 1990s that civilians became aware of the detail that internet could be used for betting and not too late in 1996-1997 many online spaces and portals with the intention of promoting virtual betting came in existence, and since then, the fan following of this has been on a rise.
Legality=
Online gambling is a subject under the governance of the state law in India. It is not therefore illegal but there is no such act or provision relating only to it. Therefore, it is many-a-times dealt with Information Technology Act, of 2000. Various states have their own laws regarding gambling-
Nagaland- The Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling, Prohibition and Regulation of Online Games of Skills Act, 2015
West Bengal- West Bengal Gambling and Prize Distribution Act, 1957
Rajasthan- Rajasthan Public Gambling Ordinance, 1949
Winding Up=
In the day and age where it is becoming difficult to earn a living with rising unemployment and continuous price rise, gambling can prove to be a major source of income. Although there are reservations among some sections of the society regarding the act of betting but with expertise and experience in any field it is not knotty to earn a living through online gambling. The illegality leads to hideous betting thereby depriving government of its taxes. Legality is thus, a necessity.
Let me introduce you all to the definition of law, in other words, what is law?
It is, by definition, the system of rules that a particular country or a community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members which it may enforce by the imposition of penalties.
Or, in the words of eminent Jurist Salmond, law is the body of principles recognised and applied by the state in the administration of justice.
Now why am I stating the facts you may think. Well, I am not giving weight to my part of the writings here, I am giving weight to the situation of the country. How conveniently we twist and turn mere facts in the grab of amendments. Some sure are in our favour but what about the others that are not?
I shall begin with the necessity of amending provisions in the constitution. Provision for amendment in the constitution is made with a view to overcome the difficulties which may encounter in the future in working of the constitution. No generation has the monopoly of wisdom nor has it any right to place fetters on future generations to mould the machinery of government according to their requirements. If no provisions were made for the amendment of the constitution, the people would have recourse to extra constitutional method like revolution to change the constitution, as held in Keshavananda v/s the state of Kerala All India Report 1973 Supreme Court page number 1461. The power of amending the law is exercised by the parliament under Article 368 of the Indian Constitution.
The framers of the Indian Constitution were keen to avoid excessive rigidity. They were anxious to have a document which could grow with a growing nation, adapt itself to the changing need and circumstances of growing people. the nature of the ‘amending process’ envisaged by the framers of the constitution can be best understood by referring the following observation of the late Prime Minister Pandit Nehru – “When we want this constitution to be solid and permanent as we can make it, there is no permanence in the constitution. There should be a certain flexibility. If you make anything rigid and permanent, you stop the nation’s growth.”
In any event, we could not make this constitution so rigid that it cannot be adopted to changing conditions. When the world is in a period of transition, what we may do today may not be wholly applicable tomorrow.
Eduindex News 
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