Nano satellites are the future: Experts

SRIHARIKOTA: Buoyed by Monday's PSLV launch, space experts have said that in the coming years an increasing number of nano satellites will be launched as they are guided by the slogan "faster, better, smaller and cheaper".

"This (nano satellite) could inspire and encourage youngsters to look for a career in the space sector," said an ISRO official.

The launch of nine nano satellites — which weigh between 1-10 kg and are cubical in shape — could encourage Indian universities to work on similar projects in collaboration with ISRO, officials said. They predicted that future satellite constellations will be "swarms" of hundreds of nano satellites, each weighing around 10 kg.

ISRO chairman Madhavan Nair has been quoted as saying that the demand for nano satellites is picking up. He said many space missions during the 11th Plan period could use such satellites.

According to NASA, nano satellites will revolutionise scientific investigations of key physical processes explored by the space and earth science communities.

Keeping in view the significance of nano satellites, space buffs of Israel formed an Israeli Nano Satellite Association in '06. The key role of the body is to promote the use of nano satellites for academic and commercial purposes.

source: Times of India

Nepaali: A Tamil Movie

OST Films' Nepaaliis an absolute thriller. The news flashes about the novelty in Bharath's looks and the courage and diligence in which he has distinguished the three characters offer the exciting extra for the film.

Karthik (Bharath) is a software engineer from Chennai. While attending a training program in Ooty, he meets Priya (Meera Jasmine). After a string of naughty pranks and cheery exchanges, Karthik and Priya begin to like each other. Worried about parental rejection, they get married without informing their parents. Priya's irate parents suspect Karthik has seduced Priya and hence file a complaint against him for misleading their daughter. Unexpectedly, the officer who investigates the case falls for Priya's charm. He tries to use the tricky situation, his power and position, to force Priya to surrender to his desire. Subsequently, owing to awful pressures and prejudices, a murder is committed.

Meanwhile, another Bharath is spending his term in the jail. Young and vibrant, he looks like a terrible misfit in the macabre surroundings. There, he befriends an old Nepali, an informant who tips the police with information regarding serious crimes happening in the city committed by perverted persons of high society, who wear a deceptive mask in public. The police follow up the cue and track down the criminals.

There is yet another Bharath, a native of Nepal. Behind his piercing eyes that spew venom there is also a vague ache, a sad story. He looks unkind and dangerous. He is a person who determinedly breaks known rules of conduct and behaviour and upsets certain people's life by being impossible and obstinate. Is there any link between the three Bharaths? If so, what is the connection? Will that expose some disturbing realities? Who is the real culprit? Who is innocent and flawless? Watch Nepaali and you are sure to go through some thrill-a-minute scenes!

For chocolate-boy Bharath, the three roles offer abundant scope for acting and expressing his talent. As Karthik, the happy young man, he basks in youthful bliss, secure with Priya's love. As the sad hero who bides time in jail, he looks typically sullen and lost, almost at the end of the tether. As the terrifying Nepali, he displays petulance and conceit; dangerous doctrines rule his dubious life. It is indeed a good show from the promising hero!

Meera Jasmine, the heartthrob of Malayalam cinema, is the cute darling of Nepaali. Lovely and lively, she adds gloss, glamour, sophistication and value to the story. If we discuss about the predominant features in Nepaali, story comes first. Indeed, Nepaali's plot amuses the viewers. The audiences travel along with the characters and sequences, emoting to them suitably. Srikanthdeva's music, Madhie's camera, Pattukottai Prabhakar's dialogues are the other positive points in the film.

Director V.Z. Dorai has tried to project an invincible hero and has simultaneously exposed some high-society neuroses, follies and offences. Overall, the movie is entertaining and appealing for the intensity of Bharath's roles and the reality it has tried to establish.
source: galatta.com

Kya aap paanchvi pass se tez hain?Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

Kya aap paanchvi pass se tez hain?... aur angrezi mein kahate hain!!..Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?. ..This show is produced in almost all the major languages of the world.Nothing is new under the STAR! Any ways I am lovin it.Read more

Free Tibet under Shree Tibet !!

Train Machine-Travel to the Future

HOWRAH(Times of India-Pinaki Das): Sixty-year-old Gopal Dey has a ticket to ride but nowhere to go. The tailor from Kadamtala in Howrah has a Kolkata-Jamshedpur train ticket — dated June 28, 2073.

Dey has Indian Railways in a fix. Taking advantage of a rule that once allowed passengers to buy advance tickets without any time limit, Dey booked a ride on the Tata Express as a practical joke in 1973. Of course, Dey never expected to use the ticket. He plans to hand over the ticket to his daughter and hopes his grandson can use it.

The railways does not know what to do with the ticket since the rule has been scrapped long ago.

It was a railway notification that sparked the idea. "It said passengers could reserve their seats without any time limit. I wondered, why not buy a ticket 100 years before the date of journey," said Dey.

On June 28, 1973, Dey queued up at a Howrah booking counter near the boro ghari (which no longer exists). The man at the counter rolled his eyes in disbelief when Dey asked for a ticket to travel 100 years later. "He thought I had lost it. I showed him the notification, but he didn't relent," recalled Dey.

Railway officials said it made no sense since he won't be able to use the ticket, but Dey didn't give in. "Since they had said passengers could book tickets for any date in advance, they were bound to issue the ticket," said Dey. After a day-long deliberation, the authorities relented and the ticket was issued. The fare? A princely Rs 9.75.

Dey has preserved it in a box in a bedroom cabinet. His neighbours know about his prized possession and people often come to see the unusual ticket.

"I never take it out of my house. I won't be able to travel with it, but my grandchild might. It will be a unique journey of which I, too, will be a part," Dey said.

Railway officials don't know what to do with the ticket. "We are supposed to maintain Dey's reservation record manually since computerization had not begun when he booked the ticket. It is indeed a unique case," said Samir Goswami, senior PRO of Eastern Railway.Read more items..

and the Maharaja smiled ! - BOLT & RANK

 

The BOLT and RANK-2007 Awards were presented to the Teachers and Students by His Excellency ,Governor of Sikkim -Shri.Sudarshan Agarwal and the honourable Guest,Vice-Chancellor of the Sikkim University- Shri. Mahendra P. Lama at a function organised by Sikkim Express and Air-India at the Janata Bhawan,Gangtokon 14th of April 2008.

Mr.Praveen Puri of CCT,Chisopaani won the State BOLT Award-Teachers and Miss.Meena Pradhan of Mangan S.S.School won the RANK State award for Students . Read more....

Trek to Barse : Rhododendron

Barsey can be reached from Dentam,Hilley,Soreng,Begha,Uttarey..on a trek.Shortest trek route about three Kms. from hilley ..ie.from Jorthang to sombaria,from there to Hilley by jeep then Trek to Barse.We took the long route,Dentam>school>tshering sherpas house>maane>Lukva>Kaanchi pokhri>taar barkhe>Barse.
The best season is Mid- April ,due the Rhododendron flowers which bloom during this month.

The Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary located on the Shingalila Range in West Sikkim is world famous for its Rhododendrons (Guransh, Chimal and Kurlingo) and the spectacular views of the snow clad Shingalila Range. It is also the catchment for the life giving rivers and streams including the Kaleej khola , Ringyang Khola , Rambong Khola, Dentam Khola, Begha Khola, Sungure Khola and many many more. It stretches right from Phunchebong in the East to Chewabhanjyang in the West and covers a total of 104 sq. km. The forests of Bante (Lithocarpus pachyphlla) and Hemlock (Tsuga dumosa) loaded with epiphytes like ferns, moss, lichens, orchids etc support a wild variety of fauna like the Red Panda, Himalayan Black Bear (Bhalu), Barking Deer (Mirga), Yellow Throated Marten (Malsampra), Goral, Pheasants, Magpies etc. The under storey of Malingo (Arundinaria maling) dwarf bamboo and Rhododendrons serve as a habitat for the State Animal of Sikkim – The Red Panda and the State Bird of Sikkim – The Blood Pheasant.

This sanctuary is also extremely rich in various medicinal plants including Bikhma (Aconitum spp), Pakhan bed (Bergenia ligulata), Chimping (Heracleum nepalense), Panch Aunle (Orchis latifolia), Siltimbur (Litsae citrate), Kutki (Picrorhiza kurrooa), Har Jur (Viscum articulatum), Taxus baccata etc. These medicinal plants are used for various purposes ranging from analgesic, diuretic, purgative, febrifuge, anthelmintic, antipyretic, antiperiodic, hair loss, laxative, leucoderma, asthma, bronchitis, piles, typhoid, diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.

http://www.heebermiok.com/barsey.htm

BREAKING NEWS :Rocks

You might have seen workers boring holes in the rocks or using big hammers to break rocks here in Sikkim.Other form of breaking rocks are through explosions.But there is an alternative to this which will not cause explosion and will not destroy the surroundings.It is called Soundless Chemical Demolition Agents.Soundless chemical demolition agents (SCDAs) have proven to be viable substitutes for the use of explosives. SCDAs are powdery materials that will expand considerably when mixed with water. This expansion, when occurring under confinement, generates significant expansive pressures. These pressures are sufficient to break up rock and concrete when the SCDA is confined in a borehole or a series of boreholes. Experiments have been conducted with SCDAs to learn more about those variables that tend to hamper or enhance SCDA performance. Results show that the amount of mixing water and the ambient temperature arc the most important variables in influencing the generation of SCDA expansive pressures.

The Answer .

How many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea?
Yes, 'n' how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?
Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn't see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

-Bob Dylon

Back to Homework!

APRIL MORPHING!!

NOT THE FALLEN ANGEL !