Cannabis cure cancer..

I wrote earlier about cannabis doing a lot of harm to lungs. However according to a report at BBC new study reports that they could stop breast cancer in human body.

Cannabidiol or CBD, a compound extracted from cannabis block the activity of genes responsible for aggressive spread of cancer cells away from the original tumor site. The report also suggests that it could act as an alternative to non-toxic chemotherapy.

However the authors of the report were quick to stress that they didn't suggest "people smoke cannabis" : )

Lust , Caution

"Censorship ends in logical completeness when nobody is allowed to read any books except the books that nobody reads."
- George Bernard Shaw

A Chinese movie goer is suing the Regional Censor Board in frustration with the censored version of the steamy WWII drama "Lust , Caution" by Academy award winning director Ang Lee. Set in World War-II era Shanghai, "Lust, Caution," starring mainland actress Tang Wei and Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai, is about a sexually-charged relationship between an undercover female student activist and a Japanese-allied intelligence chief.

Dong Yanbin, a Ph.D student at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, had filed a suit against the nation's film censor, the State Administration of Radio Film and Television (SARFT), for infringing upon his "consumer rights," the Beijing Times said. Watch a trailer of the movie below.



The movie opened in China on Nov. 1 minus on-screen sex scenes and has since grossed 90 million yuan (11.25 million dollars) on Chinese mainland. Some filmgoers in the southern province of Guangdong have opted to cross the border into Hong Kong to watch the full, uncut version, local media have reported.

Dong was seeking apologies and 500 yuan ($67) in "psychological damages" from both SARFT and UME, the cinema chain showing the movie, the paper said. The court has not yet accepted the case.

Marriage of convenience!

"Every dog has its day"
English Proverb.

A man known as Selvakumar has married a bitch in a ceremony which took place in Sivaganga district, 50 km east of Madurai in South India. The bride has been renamed Selvi (Mrs. Selvakumar) after the marriage. "Chosen" by the family, she was bathed and dressed in a sari before the "couple" exchanged marriage vows.


The man believes he had been cursed by the killing of 2 stray dogs 15 years ago - suffering paralysis and loss of hearing. An astrologer since advised him to marry off a female dog to ward off the curse. The groom and his family had a marital feast where the dog was given a bun!

In the recent past a donkey wedding was also arranged to bring monsoon rains in the IT capital of India - Bangalore.

Kilo gets lighter...

“The nicest thing about standards is that there are so many of them to choose from.”
Andrew S. Tannenbaum

Watch out for the weight next time you step out to buy grocery because the kilogram just got a little lighter. "Le Grand K" - the cylinder of platinum & iridium is the only object known to scientists that has a mass of exactly 1 kg. It is the reference object from which the unit of mass is derived. All objects measured in kilograms - grocery to a warship are defined by Le Grand K's mass.


Several copies have been distributed across the world to act as arbiters of mass. They are measured against Le Grand K to ensure the integrity.


Losing some weight
But there is a fluctuation of mass between the sisters with either the Le Grand K losing some mass or others gaining some. However as they all are measured against each other, finding out the "one" is difficult.

Common man can however lay to rest his concerns as the fluctuations are about 50 parts in a billion. Although tiny, the difference is crucial to scientific community as these cylinders act as reference for kilogram.

New standards
As a outcome of the drift scientists are devising new ways of defining the kilogram. The basic idea is to measure kilogram in terms of constants of nature just the way a meter is defined as the distance traveled by light in vacuum in a precise fraction of a second. Another idea may be to redefine the kilogram on the basis of the mass of an atom.

What ever it may be one thing is sure - the small lump of metal in Paris is going to be used for some time to come.


Image Credits: Wikipedia

Think different - Inspirational Video...

Found this inspirational video on Youtube. It features Einstein, Martin Luther King, Richard Branson, Muhammad Ali, Gandhi , Churchill, Lenon, Bob Dylan, Edison , Alfred Hitchcock and Picasso.



The video is promoted by Apple.

Oprah on YouTube now...

Oprah Winfrey - the popular talk show host has launched her own channel on the online video sharing website You Tube. The channel will feature backstage video grab, upcoming programs, and interviews with the "already stars" on Youtube.


Oprah is the world's most powerful celebrity according to Forbes - she beat Tiger Woods & Madonna, Elton John and David Beckham to the top. She had an estimated earning of $260 million last year.

Featuring on the channel will be the founders of You tube, the "dirty dancing" couple, the "evolution of dance" guy, the P. Diddy assistant and even Tyson the skateboarding bulldog!

Watch them here.

Kylie Connect

Meanwhile singer Kylie Minogue also launched her own social networking website. Users can download (for a fee) Kylie's popular numbers and wallpapers from the page all the while participating in a lucky draw - the prize booty being a rendezvous with Kylie herself!


Kylie recently received the Music Industry Trust Prize for her contribution to the pop world. Her much awaited tenth album X featuring 13 new tracks releases on November 26. Her single 22 hearts has already been branded a "surefire no. 1" by Sun.

Britney Spears - an accountant's nightmare!

Britney Spears earns roughly $737,000 monthly but saves or invests nothing!

According to the court papers released in the custody dispute with KF, she spends lavishly on clothes & entertainment. Here is an account of her monthly expenses:

• $49,267 - in mortgage for two houses
• $16,000 - for clothes
• $102,000 - for entertainment, gifts & vacation
• $4758 - dining out
• $500 - Charity
  

She has to pay KF $15,000 per month in child support and $20,000 in spousal support. Her ex-hubby Kevin Federline has comparatively modest expenses with $7000 being the highest amount to be paid in monthly rent.


The court had prohibited the divorced couple from driving their children unless they're properly insured and have a valid driver's license. However Britney was photographed driving her kids a few days after the order was passed out leading the court to relinquish the children.

Next thing Britney went into a Motor vehicles Dept. office and applied for a licence!

World's richest man - an Indian!

In yet another high for an Indian, business tycoon Mukesh Ambani today became the world's richest man. He overtook Gates, Slim and Buffett to reach the milestone. This all came courtesy the current bull run in the Indian stock exchange which has ballooned his market cap in Reliance Industries, Reliance Petroleum and Reliance Industrial Infrastructure Ltd.


Its 20-20 time!
The Mumbai based BSE index touched an all time high of 20,000. In doing so it became the 20th nation in the world to have touched the 20K mark. The countries whose stock market indices have crossed 20k level include Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Venezeula, Peru, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Italy, Poland, Russia, Hungary, Ukraine, Turkey, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and Hong Kong. Another Indian born Lakshmi Mittal is already in the top 5.

The five richest people in the world with their net worth

1. Mukesh Ambani ($63.2 billion)

2. Carlos Slim Helu ($62.2993 billion)

3. William (Bill) Gates ($62.29 billion)

4. Warren Buffett ($55.9 billion)

5. Lakshmi Mittal ($50.9 billion)


Ambani's wealth of about Rs 2,49,000 crore includes about Rs 2,10,000 crore from RIL (50.98% stake), Rs 37,500 crore from RPL (37.5%) and Rs 2,100 crore from RIIL (46.23%). Earlier on September 26, Ambani had overtaken steel czar Lakshmi Mittal to become the richest Indian in the world.

How to make an English cup of tea!

"No sex please, we are British"
Unknown ( at least I don't know, somebody said the queen!)

The British are said to be reserved in manners, dress and speech - with its stiff upper lip. Known for their politeness, self-discipline and sense of humour (did someone say dry?). Much has been written about the social dos and don'ts in Britain.. sample a few!


Don't

1. Stare at anyone in public. (what about people watching?)
   
2. Ask a lady her age.
   
3. Do gesturing in public like backslapping and hugging.
   
4. Do not pass wind in public (ha ha....)
5. Ask questions like "How old are you?" ,"You seem to have put on some weight?", "Why aren't you married?" or "Why is British food so bad?"
   

and many more...

English Tea
Britishers also like to distinguish themselves from the Americans by the way of their accent and drink (tea for British ,coffee for Americans). Now a 17 years old school boy in Britain named Charlie McDonnell has created a video named "How to be English ?". The video has been a major hit online attracting thousands of visitors. The video takes a tongue-in-cheek look at English manners and mannerisms including how to make the perfect cup of tea. Watch it here. The video is really funny!



"I set up a You Tube account about six months ago and thought I might as well do something with it and started filming little videos and sketches. The 'How to be English' one was one of the most popular. I got quite a few comments from Brits accusing me of being an American pretending to be English," McDonnell told reporters.

The teenager's satirical sketches have now won him an invitation to appear on the ABC channel's popular daytime show The View, co-hosted by Oscar winner Whoopi Goldberg!

The runaway bride..

Chiru's daughter runs away..
Meanwhile in a truly filmy way, Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi's younger daughter Shirija "eloped" with her lover Shireesh Bharadwaj, a final year engineering student. They married at the Arya Samaj , Hyderabad in the morning. The marriage was also telecast live by a Telugu television channel.

However the couple looked confident although expressing fear for their safety.
"Today morning, I eloped from home and got married to Sirish Bharadwaj. I am 19 years old and he is 22. Since we are majors, we have the right to get married. We got married in Arya Samaj temple today. We have been in love for the past four years and decided to get married this year. We want support from the media and the police because of threats from my family's side," said Srija.


Troubled times..
The actor and family seemed to shell shocked by this act of the runaway bride. Chiru's most anticipated movie Shankardada which was released recently didn't do well at the box office while his son Ram Charan made his debut a few days ago. Chiranjeevi's younger brother Pavan Kalyan has been in news for a bigamy case filed against him by his wife Nandini in a Visakhapatnam court. Chiru's elder daughter Sushmita's marriage with actor Uday Kiran was cancelled at the last minute when it was learnt that the groom was in love with another girl.



Caste matters?
An India, that marches confidently towards the next century however seems to have its feet rooted in the medieval past when it comes to social events like marriage where things like religion, caste, creed ,region matter. It is interesting to note that Sirish is a Brahmin, while Srija is an OBC. This marriage has been opposed by both the families! Poor couple..

Yaara da Tashan!

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh!" he whispered. "Yes, Piglet?" "Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you." - A.A. Milne


Is it all over?
Its loud and clear now.. the Saif - Kareena relationship is a rumour no more! The tinsel town of Bollywood has always had its share of heart breaks and love affairs but today was a Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham moment - khushi for Saif and gham for Shahid!

The most famous relationship in Bollywood had showed signs of fading away in the recent past with rumours of an eminent break up looming large but today it was all confirmed. While the duo were at the Indian Fashion Week attending a Manish Malhotra Show, Saif confirmed in a chat with reporters that their relationship was more than "friendship".

Saif & Kareena show up together in the upcoming movie Tashan. While it might not be the curtains down for the lovesome duo of Shahid-Karina, it might take something to bring back the old times!

BroadBand Blues - anyone?

Broadband Blues
There is good news in sight for people who paid up big bucks for their “high speed Broadband” Internet connection but feel they are being cheated. According to a recent BBC news item, top Internet firms in UK are being asked to explain why customers do not get the speed firms advertise.

Just a trickle?

The hunger for higher speed has increased with the advent of bandwidth hungry applications like video sharing sites, music and movies downloads and flash enabled web pages. It is estimated that 62% of readers who carry out speed tests get less than half of the top broadband speed advertised by their service provider. Of course the top speeds are advertised assuming a perfect connection, right from the service provider (ISP) to your machine. But even after considering the transmission, absorption, radiation and all other kind of loss involved, the final speed available to a consumer is a pittance.

Following YouTube video gives you a way to achieve upto 5 times faster Broadband speed..



Good times ahead..
The firms have been asked to find ways to deal with the technical problems so consumers are more informed about the potential broadband speeds in their neighborhood. Another proposal involves allowing the customer to test connection speeds before they sign a contract and letting them terminate the contract early if speeds are well below what is advertised.

With the government considering intervening in the way broadband is rolled out, surfers can expect happier times ahead.

BBC Pics of the year..

Have a look at the BBC website Photographer of the year 2006.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5348588.stm

Posting one of the finalists for you..


Amazing entries...

Image Credits: BBC UK

Hippie Jesus swings to music..

"What good is having someone who can walk on water if you don't follow in his footsteps?"
- Author Unknown

Religious authorities are seeing red over the television ad being aired for promotion of Plug TV. They say it is blasphemous! See it for yourself..



The video shows a long haired and pot bellied Jesus swinging to the music in a bar and drinking whiskey. He turns the bouncers into dwarfs when they disallow him an entry and two converts two fat women into blond babes with devil horns before being reprimanded by the GOD himself!

Window shopping in Amsterdam..

"We say that slavery has vanished from European civilization, but this is not true. Slavery still exists, but now it applies only to women and its name is prostitution."
- Victor Hugo

Red light Districts of Amsterdam
The Dutch city of Amsterdam has decided to close one-third of its brothels. Red Light District that everyone knows about is the one where women, of all nationalities, parade their wares in red-fringed window parlours, many ready to offer more than a school boy peep-show in a private cabin. Amsterdam prides itself on its liberalism and has legalized prostitution. Today prostitutes in Holland are taxpayers and have access to medical facilities and better working conditions.


Time's up?
However the city has had enough of it and plans to turn the brothels into shopping and housing complexes. The city authorities insist that they don't want to get rid of prostitution as it is a part of the history of the place, its just that there was too much of sex trade in the city center.

"What we do want is to get rid of the underlying criminality", the city mayor said.

Image Credits : http://www.amsterdam.info/pictures/red-light-district/

Mystery Spending

"Spending is quick, earning is slow."
- Russian proverb

According to a new survey by Visa, Americans are spending an average of $45 a week on something they can't remember! Among those who report "mystery spending," men under age 35 are the worst at monitoring where it all goes, losing track of more than $3,000 a year on average.

The nationwide telephonic survey of 2036 adults reveals that almost half (48%) of respondents suffer from mystery spending. The survey also reveals that young men mystery spend on nights while young women do so while shopping.

News Credit: Visa USA
Image Credit: http://www.freefoto.com/

Pigeon Menace..

"Accept that some days you are the pigeon and some days the statue."
— Dilbert

Every dog has its day but looks like the pigeons in Venice have a hard time ahead. The mayor of the city is contemplating a ban on throwing of rice on newly weds. Soiling of the squares is not the only problem with the pigeons chipping away at the marble statues and buildings. Repairing the damages caused costs each Venetian taxpayer 275 euros a year.

"Throwing rice at the bride and groom brings hordes of pigeons who then wait around until the next ceremony. The situation has become unbearable," said the city mayor Marco Agostini.

Next step in line is a ban of the sale of grain to feed the pigeons!

News credit: Reuters

Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/diaa/

Walkers crisps got crispier!

Walkers crisps got even more crispier! The company is the first to put carbon footprint figures on its products.

Carbon Footprints
Carbon footprints - which measure the amount of carbon (other GHG emissions) produced to directly or indirectly support any activity in equivalent tons of CO2 have become a bench mark. For eg. when you buy an Walkers crisp, carbon has been burnt during its production,packaging, transportation etc. Therefore the overall Carbon Footprint of a crisp is calculated by summing up all the carbon expanded during its lifetime.


In recent times carbon footprints have wielded great significance with its effect on increasing world temperatures and resulting climate change. 72% of the totally emitted GHG (Green House Gases) is CO2. Carbon footprints therefore measure the contribution of a product towards Global Warming. Countries like US, China, Russia, Japan, India and Germany have the largest CO2 emission levels with US also leading in the per capital CO2 emissions.

Walkers Carbon Footprint
Carbon trust on the behalf of Walkers have calculated the carbon footprint of a standard packet of Walkers Cheese and Onion crisps. They have taken into account various stages in the life cycle of a Walkers Crisp starting from sowing of potato and sunflower seeds to disposing of the packet. The final carbon footprint calculation is 75g.



The stages involved in calculation :

1. Raw Materials : Potato, Sunflower and seasoning.
2. Manufacture : Producing crisps from potato.
3. Packaging.
4. Distribution.
5. Disposal of the packets.

Certainly a commendable step towards the future of this planet!

Image credits: Walkers

Big brother is watching you...

According to a news item published in the BBC, citizen surveillance is on the rise. USA and Britain are the countries using state of the art gadgets to keep common people under their watch. The goal is to create a system that will match the facial image of the person with their gait, height, weight and other elements to identify a person instantly. With newer technology, radio waves can be used to find out if anyone is on the other side of the wall and may be their heart and breathing rates as well.

"As you walk through a crowd, we'll be able to track you. These are all things that don't need the cooperation of the individual." said Professor Challapa from Maryland University.

Changed times

Since 9/11 terror attacks are on the rise throughout the globe and countries like US and UK are always on the hit list. Round the clock surveillance gives rise to privacy issues even though it might lead to reduced crime rates. The terror suspects come from various strata of the society often mingling with the unsuspecting crowd making peer to peer surveillance nearly impossible. This system will provide means of non-contact surveillance.

However the public doesn't seem to mind! Opinion polls, both in the US and Britain, say that about 75% of us want more, not less, surveillance.

Most polluted places..

Here's a list of world's top 10 polluted places according to a new study published.

1. Sumgayit, Azerbaijan; Potentially 275,000 affected
2. Linfen, China; Potentially 3m affected
3. Tianying, China; Potentially 140,000 affected
4. Sukinda, India; Potentially 2.6m affected
5. Vapi, India; Potentially 71,000 affected
6. La Oroya, Peru; Potentially 35,000 affected
7. Dzerzhinsk, Russia; Potentially 300,000 affected
8. Norilsk, Russia; Potentially 134,000 affected
9. Chernobyl, Ukraine; Potentially 5.5m affected
10. Kabwe, Zambia; Potentially 255,000 affected

It is interesting to note that developing countries like India, Russia and China figure most prominently in the list assembled by the Blacksmith Institute, a US-based independent environmental group. Click here for the entire story.

Got an answer?

"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself." - Lloyd Alexander (American author)


These are some of the interesting unanswered questions - from daily life and experience. Have you got a clue?

• Why is it so much easier to drink a whole pint of beer or orange squash, say, in one go than it is to down a pint of water?
• Why are pears pear-shaped and not spherical like apples?
• What causes cells to stick together in the human body rather than simply falling apart?
• In a worst-case scenario, if one had to eat parts of oneself, which non-organs would be the most nutritious? Nails? Hair? Earwax?
• Do elephants sneeze?
• Do fish get thirsty?
• How many human faces will I, an average person, see in my lifetime?
• Why do humans feel compelled to dance to music and are we the only species that does so?
• How do toothpaste makers get the stripes in toothpaste? And why do they persist until the tube is used up?

Find such questions and many more here..

A kiss...

"A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous. "
-Ingrid Bergman

However a new study at the State University of New York indicates that a kiss can make or break a couple's relationship. The study indicates that women placed more emotional importance on a kiss. Man on the other hand tend to see kissing as a means to an end – SEX.




"The complicated exchange of information that occurs during a kiss may inform evolved, unconscious mechanisms about instances of possible genetic incompatibility," say researchers.

The study was conducted on 1041 college students and consisted of three questionaries measuring kissing preferences, attitudes, styles, and behaviors. The study also indicates that women value kisses throughout a relationship however men place less importance on kissing as a relationship progresses.

Yahoo Photos closes down..

Yahoo's first generation photo sharing site Yahoo Photos closes on September 20th 2007 at 6 pm. The users can move their photos to the photo sharing site Flickr. Yahoo! is not accepting any new accounts or allowing existing users to upload new photos. Users have the option to transfer their photos to other photo sharing sites like Kodak Gallery, Shutterfly, Snapfish, and Photobucket.



This follows after Yahoo's share in the photo sharing market has been cut down to 5.8 % (in the US market). Yahoo! bought Flickr in 2005 which has seen a phenomenal growth in the users and the volume of photos uploaded. Yahoo Photos is a more conventional photo-finishing site, full of family snapshots, while Flickr has attracted a passionate fan base of amateur and professional photographers who use the site to share digital photos online, and for whom printing is largely an afterthought. Yahoo! had been maintaining both the sites for the past two years keeping in mind the different user base but has decided to pull the plug now.

Just the way your mom would cook it...

"There is no sincerer love than the love of food."
- George Bernard Shaw

Very true indeed..! The love for food outweighs any other love in this universe. This love which has been epitomized for centuries, by the saying "Bhookhe Bhajan Na Hoin Gopala" (One can't worship on an empty stomach!) and more recently by the ad line "Hum kamate kyon hain? Khane ke liye!" (What do we earn for? to eat!)



Indian food habits

The battle for a decent and affordable square meal assumes gigantic proportions in cities. For any metro worth its salt having a sizable "IT workforce" and student population the population is much more accentuated. Anyone who has moved out of his/her home town to a bigger city misses the "maa ke haath ka khana"(home-cooked food).

Indian food habits are very much traditional even in this globalized age. Occasional bread-n-butter,pizza,burger or maggie is fine but cannot substitute a full fledged meal of Dal, roti, chawal and sabzi!

Now much has been written about the Mumbai ka Dabbawallas, known to deliver 200,000 dabbas (food tiffins) every day but a more recent phenomenon is the Mom's Kitchen which is managed by ex-IT professionals.



Mom's Kitchen

Mom's kitchen prides itself on being India's first fully professional tiffin service providing "end-to-end solutions" right from food preparation to food delivery (What a context!) Started by two IT professionals who got "frustrated" by the pathetic food quality of daily food in Pune, they claim to have the food prepared by the master cooks specially handpicked from Allahabad to retain the homely touch. Their USP is "fanatical devotion to unmatchable customer service."

The food is reasonably priced with the premium tiffin priced at Rs. 30 and the mini tiffin at Rs. 20. With the durable daals, sizzling sabzis and the rasila raitas it seems a runaway!



Interesting study

The "core team" consists of three former IT professionals- Vikram Pandiya, Ashwani Kumar Singh Rathore and Venkataramana Singanamala - all of whom kicked off their jobs. They make for an interesting study as Ashwin wants "all the Pizzas and Burger companies mushrooming around the country to ride back to their parent countries and establish Moms kitchen as a national brand."

The orders can be placed online at their website which also allows for tiffin customization. Their delivery areas cover a large part of Pune with plans to expand further with new centers. If this model succeeds one can foresee similar kitchens coming up other big cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi to name a few!

Blue for boys, Pink for girls..

"Colors, like features, follow the changes of the emotions."
- Pablo Picasso

Ever wondered why men prefer blue and women pink?

A marketing gimmick? No... blame it on evolution ! Researchers from University of Newcastle say that pink may have helped women gather ripe fruit, or pick healthy mates. Whereas blue signals natural preference for a clear blue sky and good water source!



In an experiment, 208 young adult men and women were asked to select, as rapidly as possible, their preferred color from pairs of colored rectangles. While the universal favorite color appeared to be blue, when shown a spectrum of hues from red through blue and green to yellow women preferred red.

So next time, remember the color of rose you intend to present to your lady!

Super powers Vs Soft powers

"To those of you who received honours, awards and distinctions, I say well done. And to the C students, I say you, too, can be president of the United States."
- George W. Bush, President of United States

A recent survey by BBC world service reveals that US, Israel and Iran were the countries with the most negative image in a survey done amongst 12 major nations. Britain, Canada, China, France, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, North Korea, Russia, the United States and Venezuela were the countries voted on.

Israel got the most negative (56%) votes with Iran coming a close 54 % and the US 51%. On the other hand Canada had the most positive rating of 54% followed by Japan and France.




Super power / Soft power -

This survey once again brought to fore the military vs soft power conundrum. The countries pursuing dominance over the world through their military might were viewed in negative light, US and Israel being prime examples. On the other hand countries proliferating soft power like France, Canada, EU, India and Japan tend to be viewed positively.

Something to think about for the technologically and militarily advanced Super Powers of this world! And as Oscar Wilde said, "When good Americans die they go to Paris."

Feeling high...

A recent research confirms that cannabis cause severe harm to the lungs - with one joint being as bad as five cigarettes. In the study, researchers from the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, Wakefield Hospital and the Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, studied 339 volunteers.




This research confirms that cannabis poses a serious health risk to the lungs says Reuters . However, tobacco continues to be more harmful overall because it is typically smoked in much higher quantities than cannabis.


Cannabis - the culture

Cannabis have had a past of their own giving rise to the 420 Cannabis culture with the Beatles star Paul McCartney famously saying ,

"I spent my time [in the Tokyo jail] making a mental list of all those drugs which are legal but dangerous. We're all on drugs --cigarettes, whiskey and wild, wild women. Society thinks alcohol is terrific, yet it kills. Cigarettes can kill. They are worse than marijuana. It's just not true that marijuana can kill. What about the little old ladies on Valium? Think of aspirin's danger to the stomach."

after being deported from Japan for bringing almost half a pound of marijuana into Tokyo for an 11-concert Wings tour. He later said,



"I support decriminalization. People are smoking pot anyway and to make them criminal is wrong."


Cannabis - the history

Cannabis has been used as a medicine for thousands of years all over the world including India, China and the Middle East. Painted pottery from the Neolithic Yang-shao culture (4200-3200 BC) indicated the presence of cultivated hemp. Hemp reached eastern Europe in the later part of the third millennium BC. Remains of hemp have been discovered in the eighteenth-dynasty tomb of Akhenaten (Amenophis IV) at el-Amarna and cannabis pollen was found on the mummy of Rameses II (nineteenth dynasty).



It was the first psychoactive substance (apart from alcohol) that became a common subject in modern popular music, with jazz classics from the 1930s such as Louis Armstrong's Muggles and Cab Calloway's That Funny Reefer Man topping the bill of marijuana-inspired fare.Finally, in 1937, through the considerable persuasive powers of Harry J. Anslinger, the first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, the Marihuana (Marijuana) Tax Act became federal law and in 1956 the drug was incorporated into the more comprehensive Narcotics Act.
The history is recorded by BBC in a news item here.


Bhang in India..

Back home in India, the cannabis served as a folk standard of potency. The three varieties are known as bhang, ganja, and charas. Bhang, the least potent of them all is consumed openly during the Indian festival of Holi as a drink and is widely depicted in Indian movies. It is interesting to note that the marijuana used in the United States is equivalent to bhang or, increasingly in recent years, to ganja.



In India while the government cracks down on rave parties where youngsters(allegedly) do drugs the lips are sealed when it comes down to open consumption of Bhang during Holi.

Watch your buddies !

A new study done by researchers at the University of California in San Diego has shown that having fat friends and family may increase your chances of being fat too!

The study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, says it is plausible that "areas of the brain that correspond to actions such as eating food may be stimulated if these actions are observed by others"



This is the first time research has indicated the unhealthy side of social networking. So watch who you eat out with...OBESITY IS CONTAGIOUS!

All they did was weaken the nation..

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, otherwise referred to as Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the 11th president of India served out his term to constitutionally highest post in India. Dr. Kalam has set several precedents during his tenure in the Rashtripati Bhawan which will be difficult to follow for the new incumbent Mrs. Pratibha Patil aka Pratibha Tai...

His dream vision for the future of India by leading the country to be a developed state by 2020, his special relationship and bonding with the kids (whom he hailed as the future of India), his past credentials as the missile man of India and his image as the "aam aami ka pratinidhi" led him to an iconic stature.




He really was the "People's President". Although the comparison is not correct, I would still term him as the best president since our first president Dr. Rajendra Prasad (who, incidentally is the only one to be elected in back-to-back presidential elections). He was also the only prominent national leader after Chacha Nehru to form such an emotional bond with the children...

He now plans to teach at Anna Malai University, in fact he has already joined at the varsity and wants to be referred to as Professor and not former President!

Pratibha Patil, the new President is just a bunny of Congress(I) leader Mrs. Sonia Gandhi (so is Prime Minister Mr. Manmohan Singh) and it still needs to be seen if she can emerge out of her tutelage (although she was chosen specifically for that purpose!). And all this farce in the name of "women empowerment"!




Muslim President and vice-president, first Sikh Prime minister, first Dalit CJI (Chief Justice of India) and now first Women President !

As Col. Jessop would have said, " All they did was weaken the nation".

Benoit was drugged..

Professional wrestler and WWE star Chris Benoit who passed away recently was indeed drugged said medical authorities confirming earlier suspicions.

Reports suggest that the testosterone was injected shortly before Benoit died. In addition to the male sex hormone he had also taken narcotic painkiller Hydrocodone and the anti-anxiety drug Xanax(two widely subscribed drugs). The level of testosterone found in his body was almost 10 times as the normal range. However the level of other two drugs was moderate indicating a theraupatic use over a longer period.



Chris Benoit had killed his wife and son at their home and then hanged himself last month. But investigators say that higher levels of testosterone do not lead to the abnormal behaviour. The WWE which was under fire following the release of the toxicology tests said in a statement that the testosterone had been taken after his April 2007 test.

However this incident has once again brought into light, the stressful lives led by the professional wrestlers like Benoit. Many others like him continue in an industry that feeds on the bruises and aches suffered by many such performers.

Hockey and MBA?

Indian hockey isn't going through the best of phases these days.. clearly in contrast with the glories of the past. However realms of paper have been wasted on this and I am not the first or the last person to put my 50 cents worth into it. But what caught my attention was the recent news about the Indian midfielder Viren Rasquinha not being able to attend the national hockey training camp as he wanted to concentrate on his MBA exams ??




Now let me talk straight..I am not infringing on Viren's right to pursue education he can have all the degrees he wants to... But for a catch..he's not a wide eyed rookie or a regular bench warmer. He has been a formidable force in the Indian midfield for sometime now having played over 200 internationals,in fact he has been the Captain of the Indian Hockey team. Imagine Rahul Dravid (or for that matter any member of Indian cricket team) leaving behind cricket to pursue a mere MBA degree (where they are already rollin' in the Benjamins or the Lincolns or the Gandhis)

Viren has had a troubled relation with the hockey establishment in India as he had been dropped in the past leading him to raise questions about his exclusion. But whatever has happened now is a sad commentary on the state of Indian Hockey.

Australia and Pakistan - worlds apart!

Two news items, separated by thousands of geographical miles,but with a common leitmotif came across recently ..


Aussie bars...
First one relates to Down Under where a gay bar has won the right to ban straight individuals. It intends to provide "provide an environment in which gay men can express their sexuality without feeling threatened".

The news report published in The Independent on 29th May 2007, says that the gay men were being "gawked at" as if they were exhibits in a zoo. The Pub's owner said, "Heterosexuals have other places to go to; my homosexuals do not."


Pakistani courts..
On the other side of the world (literally!), in what is becoming an increasing turmoiled state - Pakistan , a court jailed the country's first publicly acknowledged same-sex couple for perjury.

The couple, who married last year had approached the Lahore High Court for protection, were instead turned away to the gallows for three years separately.
The couple on being queried said, “No matter, no matter. We love each other.”

Why are ducks the funniest animals?

"For millions of years, In millions of homes,
A man loved a woman, A child it was born,
It learned how to hurt and it learned how to cry,
Like Humans Do!"

thus sang David Byrne in Look into the Eyeball.



But human nature has intrigued researchers, thinkers and philosophers alike over centuries. Some researchers have gone a step ahead and "created" a new discipline called Quirkology. It uses scientific methods to study quirky human behaviour.

Degrees of Quirkiness

1. Whether local suicide rates are related to the amount of country music played on radio?

2. Do vegetables have personality? ( Lemons are seen as dislikable, onions are stupid, and mushrooms are social climbers )

3. Are people named Bob more likely to have a rounder face?

4. Why ducks are the funniest animals?

and so on..

Quirkology - the book!

Prof Richard Wiseman at the University of Hertfordshire has written a book on it titled "Quirkology" which explores "the curious science of everyday life, including the psychology of lying, love, and laughter".

He even invites you to participate in future quirkology experiments here !

Pac-Man World Championship

This bit is for all the PacMan enthusiasts out there..

Microsoft and Quiznos are joining hands to hold the first ever Pac-Man World Championship. The excitement begins on April 25 and would reach its crescendo on June 6th, the day dot-eaters from all over the world will fight for the numero uno.



The winner takes home a personalized Pac-Man embossed version of the Xbox 360, free Quiznos subs for 26 years, and 100,000 Microsoft Points that can be used to download movies, games, and other Xbox Live content.

Registrations start April 25, 2007, at 12:01 a.m. GMT.

Visit following link for registration.
http://www.xboxlivetournament.com

So what are you waiting for?

Why are we fat ??? - Part 2

Continuing the assault on obesity [and not obese people :)] , is the following article...

For long corpulence has been blamed on too much of eating and too little of exercise. Caloric intake is much more than what could be burnt off by the body. Modern easy-going city lifestyle,lack of physical effort and sports and fat-rich junk food are blamed. Accordingly most of the efforts to reduce obesity have concentrated on addressing the above issues. Eating healthy and staying fit are modern day mantras.



But looks like the obesity researchers are not buying this argument. Insisting that "something" else must have changed in our environment to necessitate such changes, 20 "obesity experts" have come out with 10 most plausible explanations (International Journal of Obesity, DOI: 10.1038/sj.ijo.0803326) for this epidemic. (Obesity has indeed achieved epidemic status in many parts of the world)


Some of the reasons suggested by the experts are:

1. Lack of Sleep.

2. Climate control.

3. Less smoking ( Smoking reduces appetite ! ).

4. Pre natal effects.

5. Heavier people have more children.

6. Demographics ( Some people are fatter than others! )

7. Increased use of drugs.

8. Pollution (looks like you can blame it for everything!).

9. Older parents ( later you conceive, fatter the progeny).

and finally ....

10. Fat people marry fat :)

Hope that now it does not come as a surprise that many of us are fat!

Why are we fat ???

Looks like someone got the answer to the perennial query!

A new study conducted by researchers at Oregon National Primate Research Center, US indicates that in obesity the brain is unaware of body fat!

In both humans and mice, fat cells throughout the body release a hormone called leptin. This hormone controls sensations like appetite and thirst on reaching the brain.



In theory, when fat increases in the body so do levels of leptin, causing a decrease in appetite. But scientists have found that administering leptin does not reliably work to treat obesity. It is because the high fat diet makes the brain insensitive to leptin and hence oblivious of presence of fats.

The experiment conducted on mice surely works up sympathy for those fat human beings out there!

Indian Idol in America?

Sanjaya Malakar, the American Idol contestant has in the last few weeks, stemmed up a lot of controversy. His insipid singing, absolute lack of talent, his "faux hawk" hair, his booming smile ... you can love him, you can hate him ..but you cant ignore him!





Sanjaya, despite "slaughtering" a song every week ,has hung on to the contest because of "public support" while others have been voted out. His tremendous success ( which perhaps is magnified by his mediocrity) which defies any logic could perhaps be explained by a campaign to "vote for the worst". Simon Cowell, one of the judges at the Idol has already threatened to quit if Sanjaya wins.

He has already inspired rage all over with a critic embarking on a 16-day hunger strike to get him off the show. The website vote for the worst has already had Sanjaya tie up with two other contestants for Longest running VFTW American Idol holder and he could be the all-time leader if he gets through next week!




With people all around getting cynical his "popularity" is rising enough to keep him in the contest. MTV has even compiled a list of 10 reasons why Sanjaya is still on the show. Indian call centres, always a butt of jokes for the American media, have also come to fore in the debate with Jay Leno suggesting that Sanjaya had survived yet another expulsion from the show because his father was from India, "where they have all the call centres".



Howard Stern, the American shock jock has also been campaigning for Sanjaya - by asking his fans to vote in jest for this season's underdog. Howard, who was also responsible for "Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf" winning the People magazine's annual beauty poll in 1998 beating Leonardo Di Caprio, George Clooney and others, says
he hopes to turn the Talent show into a farce and destroy its popularity.

"We’re corrupting the entire thing," Mr. Stern said on his pay show Thursday, the day after Sanjaya secured a place in the top nine. "All of us are routing American Idol. It’s so great. The No. 1 show in television and it’s getting ruined."

Interestingly Sanjaya has not found much of support in his parent's homeland India where the mainstream media (except perhaps TOI and a few bloggers) has ignored him completely. However the coming days might see a change with the competition tightening up to the last eight. It will be interesting to see how much support does he get if he manages to win the show. That would be quite a coup!

Top Fictional 15

Forbes is well known for bringing out many lists on a variety of topics mostly concentrating on companies and individuals. Lists like List of Billionaires, Best small companies, Best large companies, Fastest growing tech... (one could keep on going!) have made it popular among business leaders all over the world. No wonder it describes itself as the "HOME PAGE FOR THE WORLD'S BUSINESS LEADERS".

Breaking away from its image as a Buisness Magazine, it also produces lists under Education, Food & Drink, Health & Style, Personal Finance, Places, Real Estate, Sports, Technology, Vehicles and Travel!



I came across a rather interesting list - The Forbes Fictional 15. This list gives the fiction world's wealthiest characters. Interestingly these fictional characters are worth much more than their real-life counterparts with their aggregate net worth being $111 billion!



Jogging my childhood memories, the stingy cartoon character Scrooge Mcduck was there and so was Mario, the unforgettable moustached character from the video gaming world.



Also registering their presence in the Top 15 were Lara Croft, Richie Rich, Willy Wonka & Lucius Malfoy. However out went Santa Claus, for the very first time in Fictional 15's history!

Profiles, giving a snapshot of lives of all the characters, have been created on the site. Surely interesting stuff!

Latest Tech News..

I have not been around for some days now....

So here are some latest tech news..

---> You Tube faces ban in Turkey over a clip insulting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk who was instrumental in shaping modern Turkey. This led to a "virtual war" between Turks and Greeks, with each side berating the other by posting videos on the website. Similarly Jack Straw, leader of Commons also supported plans to impose "control" on You Tube.

And ... similar to Anna Nicole's death it led to Wikipedia temporarily suspending editing of an article on Ataturk.

---> In a challenge to Yahoo! and Google, the founder of Wikipedia plans a search engine. "The idea that Google has some edge because they've got super-duper rocket scientists may be a little antiquated now," he said. The new search engine plans to take as much as 5 % of the search market.


----> To add to the "blocking" rage around the world, Wikipedia was banned in China.Founder Jimmy Wales accused Yahoo! and Google of aiding censorship in China saying "This is something I would never do. I think access to information is a fundamental human right."
In response to the block, the main page of the Chinese Wikipedia has added a message at the top directing any mainland China user who succeeds in getting through to a special status page.

More later...

Team India gets new outfit, but...

Indian Cricket Team's official apparel sponsor, NIKE unveiled a new "inspirational" outfit for the team for the upcoming World Cup in the Carribeans.



"Advanced Nike patented technologies have been incorporated into the cricket apparel to ensure zero distraction, superior comfort levels and enhanced performance", Nike said.

The jersey is made from Dri-FIT fabric, a Nike patented technology, which reduces cling and enables the skin to breathe better. The fabric is designed to wick sweat, which leads to better moisture management and is extremely light so that the player does not carry additional weight that may affect his performance.

Captain Rahul Dravid, Vice-Captain Sachin Tendulkar, former skipper Sourav Ganguly, Zaheer Khan, Sreesanth, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik donned the new outfit at the press release.

Twist in the tail!

But to add a twist to the tale, just 24 hrs. later the International Cricket Council (ICC) informed the Indian board that only uniforms approved and supplied by the sport's world governing body can be worn at the World Cup in the Caribbean!



So why were the stars paraded in those outfits? Obvious Nike had an eye on the coming World Cup and Indian market with its fanatical support for anything that relates with cricket.

Although the new outfit is already available on major online store like Amazon it appears that the Indian team can sport the new clothings only after the World Cup.

This comes after Nike won a $ 27.12 million ( Rs. 199.96 crores) deal in Dec 2006, to sponsor the Indian cricket team's clothes for the next five years. To put it in perspective, this is more than shirt deals struck by Juventus, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Man U!

While other sports are neglected...

Amid all this razzmatazz, other sports in India get a step-brotherly treatment. Read this story about a man, who once was the best player at the National Kho-Kho games in 1987, but now works as a daily labor.