Monthly Archives: November 2013

We have 34 GMs in India because of ‘torchbearer’ Anand: Ramesh

Leaders, Records, All, Sports, World Opinion
Viswanathan Anand winning the World Junior Chess Championship and subsequently earning the GM title is an important landmark not just for Anand but for Indian chess too as it set up a chess revolution in India. AP file photo
Viswanathan Anand winning the World Junior Chess Championship and subsequently earning the GM title is an important landmark not just for Anand but for Indian chess too as it set up a chess revolution in India. AP file photo

Great sportsmen have a unique way of achieving milestones with an effortless ease which others from the same breed shudder to think of. What sets them apart is the fact that they are ambitious, think ahead of the times and venture into areas that none from their ilk could ever dream of.

Viswanathan Anand winning the World Junior Chess Championship and subsequently earning the GM title is an important landmark not just for Anand but for Indian chess too as it set up a chess revolution in India. Anand’s feat was similar to legendary Lala Amarnath’s achievement of scoring India’s first Test century.

“Anand winning the world junior crown was a remarkable feat. Being the first one to do so was all the more special,” said Manuel Aaron. Years of practice, dedication, sacrifice, travel helped Anand achieve something that was beyond the reach of youngsters at that time.

Although India had an IM in Manuel Aaron and several talented players, none could get near the GM norm. “There were quite a few talented players then like TS Ravi and others. Apart from his talent, what helped Anand was opportunities. Anand played many tournaments both within and outside Tamil Nadu. This exposure made him refine his game and his ability to learn (read from books) set him apart. The other players, however talented, could not go up the ladder due to paucity of exposure,” explained Aaron.

It is interesting to note that Anand in his World Junior match in 1987 defeated Simen Agdestein, who later became Magnus Carlsen’s first coach. Anand  scored 9/13 to win the title and defeat Agdestein, the top seed in a crucial match in the middle of the tournament. Simen’s brother Espen Agdestein is now the manager of Carlsen. After that Anand won the Sakthi Finance International Grandmasters tournament and bagged the GM title.

GM RB Ramesh hails Anand’s feat of winning the GM title first and reckons it was an important landmark in Indian chess. “At that time we had only one IM in Manuel Aaron. No one could dream of becoming a GM and it looked like none would get there, for one needed money to go and play abroad. You have to play against and beat foreign players. Taking the cost in mind at that time, one thought becoming a GM was out of bounds,” said Ramesh.

“It is here that Anand like a torchbearer showed us the path and gave us the self belief that we (Indians) too could become GMs. His winning the World Junior title was special and the GM title later was like icing on the cake. It is because of Anand we have 34 GMs in India today. Hats off to Anand,” complimented Ramesh.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Sport / by Ashok Venugopal / ENS – Chennai / October 24th, 2013

Learn winning strategies at MMA convention on Oct 25, 26

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education

Chennai :

Want to make ‘winning’ a habit? Block your calendar on October 25 and 26 to attend the 12th All-India Management Students’ Convention organised by Madras Management Association, in association with the University of Madras. This year’s theme for the convention is ‘Winning Strategies – how to make winning a habit’.

The convention will provide an insight into the strategies of winners and draw lessons for young, aspiring managers to understand the determinants of success. The convention will also focus on inspired learning from competitive professions such as sports, politics, media, cinema and the battlefield. The finale of various on-going events such as Chanakya – The Mastermind (best management student of the year), paper presentation, business plan, the big debate and management quiz will also take place during the convention. Around 300 management students from various institutions are expected to attend the event. The convention will take place at the Centenary Auditorium of University of Madras.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home /  The Hindu Bureau / Chennai – October 23rd, 2013

Recent Studies from C. Abdul Hakeem College Add New Data to Aeromonas hydrophila

Education, Science & Technologies, World Opinion

Researchers detail new data in Proteobacteria. According to news reporting from Tamil Nadu, India, by NewsRx journalists, research stated, “Nanosized materials have been an important subject in basic and applied sciences. A novel, low-cost, green and reproducible bacteria, Aeromonas hydrophila mediated biosynthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) was reported.”

The news correspondents obtained a quote from the research from C. Abdul Hakeem College, “The resulting nanoparticles were characterized by FTIR, XRD, AFM and FESEM with EDX. FTIR showed characteristic bands (1643 and 3430 cm(-1)) finds the role of carboxyl group OH stretching amine NH stretch in the formation of TiO2 NPs. The XRD spectrum confirmed that the synthesized TiO2 NPs were in the form of nanocrystals, as evidenced by the peaks at 2? values of 27.47°, 31.77°, 36.11°, 41.25°, 54.39°, 56.64° and 69.54° were identified as 110, 100, 101, 111, 211, 220 and 301 reflections, respectively. The crystallite sizes were calculated using Scherrer’s formula applied to the major intense peaks and found to be the size of 40.50 nm. The morphological characterization was analyzed by FESEM and the analysis showed the NPs smooth shaped, spherical and uneven. GC-MS analysis showed the main compounds found in A. hydrophila were uric acid (2.95%), glycyl-L-glutamic acid (6.90%), glycyl-L-proline (74.41%) and L-Leucyl-D-leucine (15.74%). The potential glycyl-L-proline could have played an important role as a capping agent. A possible mechanism for the biosynthesis of TiO2 NPs has been proposed.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “The antibacterial activity of the synthesized TiO2 NPs was assessed by well diffusion method toward A. hydrophila, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa,Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes and Enterococcus faecalis and showed effective inhibitory activity against S. aureus (33 mm) and S. pyogenes (31 mm).”

For more information on this research see: Biological approach to synthesize TiO2 nanoparticles using Aeromonas hydrophila and its antibacterial activity. Spectrochimica Acta Part A, Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy, 2013;107():82-9 (see also Proteobacteria ).

Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting C. Jayaseelan, Unit of Nano technology and Bioactive Natural Products, Post Graduate and Research Dept. of Zoology, C Abdul Hakeem College, Melvisharam, Vellore 632 509, Tamil Nadu, India. Additional authors for this research include A.A. Rahuman, S.M. Roopan, A.V. Kirthi, J. Venkatesan, S.K. Kim, M. Iyappan and C. Siva.

Keywords for this news article include: Asia, India, Tamil Nadu, Nanoparticle, Aeromonadaceae, Nanotechnology, Proteobacteria, Aeromonas hydrophila, Emerging Technologies, Gram Negative Bacteria.

source: http://www.hispanicbusiness.com / Hispanic Business.com / Home> News> News Column / October 29th, 201 3 /by a News Reporter – Staff New Editor at Life Sciences Weekly

Book fair at Ambur college starts today

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education

Mazharul Uloom College in Ambur is hosting a two-day book fair on its campus beginning October 24.

According to the Principal Dr Adil Ahmed, the fair is being organised under the aegis of the departments of English and Tamil.

Abdul Razak, professor of Tamil from the New College in Chennai, and noted lyricist Yugabharathi would be the chief guest during the inauguration of the fair.

Poet Yazhan Adi, writer Azhigiya Periyavan and industrialist Sivakumar would be the chief guests during the valediction of the book fair.

A book titled Thaayumanavan written by the head of the English department A S Mohamed Rafi will be released at the fair, the principal said.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Education> Student / by Express News Service – Vellore / October 24th, 2013

Donkey’s milk still in demand in Chennai

Green Initiatives/ Environment, Nature, Science & Technologies
The sale of donkey’s milk is now limited to a few pockets in the city such as Perambur, Royapuram and Mylapore. But the milk is expensive and a few millilitres cost Rs. 200 to Rs. 400. / Photo: B. Jothi Ramalingam / The Hindu
The sale of donkey’s milk is now limited to a few pockets in the city such as Perambur, Royapuram and Mylapore. But the milk is expensive and a few millilitres cost Rs. 200 to Rs. 400. / Photo: B. Jothi Ramalingam / The Hindu

Many continue to believe that donkey’s milk boosts immunity in newborns; doctors disagree

Vijaya, a resident of Perambur, recently gave her five-day-old great grandson donkey’s milk believing it would clear his throat and cure his cold. She said this was an accepted practice with her family.

Like Vijaya and her family, many others in the city hold on to this age-old “belief” that donkey’s milk boosts immunity and gives clarity of voice to newborns. Doctors decry this practice.

K. Githa, former professor of neonatology of Madras Medical College, said donkey’s milk had no proven benefits. Many other doctors agree with her. They have come across newborns with complaints of infections due to poor handling of the donkey’s milk administered to them.

“Some say donkey’s milk is equivalent to mother’s milk but unhygienic handling could lead to infections. I have heard of babies getting aspirated when the milk is forcibly fed by elders,” V. Kalaivani, superintendent of Government Raja Sir Ramaswamy Mudaliar (RSRM) Lying-in Hospital, said.

“Mothers should feed colostrum (first milk) to their babies. The constituents of donkey’s milk, such as proteins and sugar levels, vary. There are chances of the newborns developing infections. We advise them not to give donkey’s milk, sugar water and honey,” Dr. Githa said.

The infections could manifest as diarrhoea leading to dehydration especially if the baby was not exclusively breastfed, said T. Srikala Prasad, senior assistant professor of Government Kasturba Gandhi Hospital for Women and Children.

The sale of donkey’s milk is now limited to a few pockets in the city such as Perambur, Royapuram and Mylapore. But the milk is expensive and a few millilitres cost Rs. 200 to Rs. 400.

The family of Duraikannu, who works at the Chennai Corporation’s dhobi ghat on Veeraperumal Koil Street in Mylapore, sells donkey’s milk regularly.

“My uncle’s son owns a donkey and we sell milk in the morning. A “paladai” (a small feeding device) of milk costs Rs. 350 to Rs. 400. On certain days, we get five customers and there are lean days when we get just two,” he said. He cautioned that some unscrupulous sellers mixed donkey’s milk with cow’s milk.

Porkodi of Washermenpet regularly sells donkey’s milk near RSRM Lying-in Hospital in Royapuram in the early hours of the day. “I milk the animal in front of the buyers. Sometimes, there are 10 customers, mainly from the nearby maternity hospital,” she said. She claimed the milk was good for children suffering from fits and cold.

A resident of Mylapore said two families owning donkeys regularly sold the milk on P.S. Sivasamy Salai, Mylapore, but stopped recently. “Several persons used to come for the milk. Some sellers purchase milk from Perambur and sell it here. Nobody knows if it is donkey’s milk,” he said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Citites> Chennai / by Serena Jospehine. M / Chennai – October 24th, 2013