Monday, December 24, 2007


NARA'S NOTEPAD


VOLUME 4 JANUARY 2008 NUMBER 1


HAPPY NEW YEAR

MEMO FROM NARA


The twelve months from January to December in every year will be impregnated with some good and bad happenings in the world and in our country.

The year of 2007 has also seen such events.


New President of India, good monsoon, victories in sports, good export and stronger economy are some of the hopes whereas terrorism, road accidents, political instability

in some States are some of the challenges.

I hope 2008 will look into all those to create a better India for our people.

NARA’S NOTEPAD is stepping into its 4th year to expose some of you to ideas that you haven’t heard before. Sharing, inspiring and motivating are the main mandates of NN.

The feed-back I receive from some of you encourages me to continue NN with greater vigor.

Your interest in NN is my satisfaction. Let it continue in 2008 also.

May your heart be filled with joy and peace this New Year.


Warm wishes for a happy and healthy 2008.

DEFINITIONS


Conference Room : A place where everybody talks, nobody listens and everybody disagrees later on.


Boss: Someone who is early when you are late and late when you are early.


Politician : One who shakes your hand before elections and your Confidence after.


Doctor : A person who kills your ills by pills, and kills you by bills.


Classic: Books, which people praise, but do not read.


Smile: A curve that can set a lot of things straight.


Office: A place where you can relax after your strenuous home life.


Yawn: The only time some married men ever get to open their mouth.


Etc.: A sign to make others believe that you know more than you actually do.


Committee : Individuals who can do nothing individually and sit to decide that nothing can be done together!

GREAT SELF-CONFIDENCE BOOSTERS


1: Pump Up Your Self Esteem: Be honest and brave enough to take a look at yourself; find out who you are and where you presently are in life. Learn to have self discipline and silence your inner critic. Stop listening to that little voice of doubt that says you're not good enough or that other people are better than you. Use this opportunity to figure out how you can improve - and trust me, you can do better. An important step is for you to take stock of your achievements.


2: Overcome Shyness: Shyness prevents you from letting people see the real you, because you're afraid to say or do the wrong thing or to appear awkward. The problem is, by being shy and hanging back from the rest of the crowd, you're already projecting yourself as awkward. You have to show respect, empathy, and recognition to others. All you need to do is emerge from your shell and be alert; always open yourself to interact with people. Always show your enthusiasm and radiate optimism, and you will naturally attract people's attention.


3: Get Out There and Just Do It: Many of us don't think we are capable of doing the things we want because we're not sure about ourselves. Again, there's the dreaded voice of doubt. What you want is to be fearless enough so you'll be able to tackle all the things you've ever dreamed of doing. Fear of failure is a big factor in the crumbling of our self-confidence.


4: Dress for Success: Instead of putting on clothes that only make you feel drab and dull, choose the very things that make you stand out and feel special. It all starts in how you feel; and if you feel good about yourself, you will really act more confidently (and intelligently) throughout the day.


-Michael Lee

ACCEPTANCE



"Acceptance does not mean giving in or giving up. It means moving on, as in moving on ahead.


Acceptance does not mean allowing others to take advantage of you.

It simply means that you


look realistically at what has happened and allow yourself to see the positive opportunities that are most certainly there.


Once you accept what is, you are free to move positively forward.


Once you quit fighting, you are free to start achieving."

-- Ralph Marston

THEY SAID...


No two days are alike nor even two hours; neither were there even two leaves of a tree alike since the creation of the world. – John Constable

In everyone’s life, at sometime, our inner fire goes out.

It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being.

We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.

Albert Schweitzer

The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

Walter Bagehot

Motivation is like food for the brain. You cannot get enough in one sitting. It needs continual and regular top ups.

Peter Davies

Politeness is one half good nature and the other half good lying.

M. W. Little

We’d all like to vote for the best man but he’s never a candidate.

Kin Hubbard

JUST TO LAUGH...


During basic training, my platoon was given a choice of going either to the gym or shopping.
“Uh – Uh,” said our sergeant. “You’re all going to the gym.”
“But Sarge,” whined one recruit, “we took a vote.”
“Boys, let me explain,” he said.
“We’re here to defend democracy not practice it.”
- Reader’s Digest

When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading. – H. Youngman

Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories.
- John Witmot

To force myself to earn more money, I determined to spend more. – James Agate

Peace in international affairs is a period of cheating between two periods of fighting.John Barrymore

NEGATIVE FEELINGS


There are the three faces of negative feelings: Worry, anger, depression. Most negative feelings you ever feel are a shade of anxiety, anger, or sadness. You know these feelings are unpleasant. You know they aren’t good for your health. But what can you do to minimize the amount of time you feel them?


First, of course, is to look at the situation causing the negative feelings. If there is a concrete circumstance, a real problem causing the feeling, give it some good hard thought and then do something about it, if you can. But if there’s nothing you can do about it, get involved in something that engages your mind and forget about it. Don’t try to stop thinking negatively. Simply try to get absorbed in doing something constructive.


Purposeful activities occupy mind-space, and the more the task engages or takes up your attention, the more mind-space it occupies. Get involved enough in something or do something absorbing enough, and there’s no more mind-space left to think about anything else. What continues a negative emotion is thinking about it.


Just as you can distract a crying child and he will forget his skinned knee, you can distract yourself with something so interesting or challenging or important, your mind will stop thinking about the problem, and your negative feelings — now that you’re no longer producing them with your thoughts — will dissipate. - Adam Khan

CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM (CDM)


CDM is a trading arrangement within the Kyoto Protocol based on the idea that carbon dioxide emission reductions could occur in developing countries in lieu of similar reductions in the industrialized world that would be more expensive. It was originally intended to advanced low-carbon technologies in the developing world, while providing industrialized countries some breathing room to reduce their own emissions.

For instance, if a promoter set up a wind farm instead of a coal-fired power plant in Namibia, he or she could generate “Carbon Credits” that could be sold to, say, Germany to offset its emissions reduction target under Kyoto. Namibia would thus have access to a “new” technology that it might not otherwise have opted for and Germany could continue to use an existing coal-fired power plant for a few more years instead of having to decommission it to meet Kyoto targets.

CDM has become a cash cow for project developers. A vast majority of credits generated from CDM in India and China (both leaders in CDM projects) are for the decomposition of trifluoromethane, a technology readily available. – S. C. Rajan

Good luck resides in good effort!
Meet you next month – FEBRUARY, 2008

Prof. A. Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP
# 19, Phase 5, Maharani Avenue, Vadavalli, Coimbatore – 641 041, Tamil Nadu
Telephone: 0422 – 2423017 Mobile: 98422 42301
E-mail: prof_narayanan_a@hotmail.com
arumugakannu@gmail.com
Visit my blogs:

Thursday, December 6, 2007


NARA'S NOTEPAD

To motivate and inspire you.


Volume: 3 December 2007 Number 12

MEMO FROM NARA


The month of December is cool and puts an end to 2007. At the same time NARA’S NOTEPAD (NN) is completing three successful years with 36 issues which were promptly published for you. I think the contents were quite varied and some might have been use to you. The service of inspiration and motivation certainly creates a strong feeling of satisfaction for me. Many minds should get the healing touch from NN which will continue its service of sharing knowledge with your blessings and cooperation.

Best Wishes for Good Health and Happiness to You and Your Family and Friends.

DO YOU KNOW?


Electricity from the wall plug costs about 10 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). If you were to get the same electricity by buying AAA alkaline batteries at the local store, the cost of that electricity would be: $1,000 per kWh.

A $1.50 AAA battery delivers about 1 ampere for 1 hour at 1.5 volts — an energy of 1.5 watt-hour. That means it costs $1 per watt-hour, or $1,000 per kilowatt-hour. People sometimes complain about the high cost of electricity, but in fact it is 10,000 times cheaper than battery power.- R. A. Muller

The highest achieved efficiency (solar energy converted to electrical energy) of solar cells is approximately 41%.

Inexpensive solar cells give an efficiency of 10–15%, but the best ones deliver 41% efficiency. The catch is that these cells cost $10 per square centimetre. – R.A. Muller

BRAIN DAMAGING HABITS


1. No Breakfast
People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.

2. Overeating
It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.

3. Smoking
It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.

4. High Sugar consumption
Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.

5. Air Pollution
The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.

6. Sleep Deprivation
Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.

7. Head covered while sleeping
Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects.

8. Working your brain during illness
Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain. 9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.

10. Talking Rarely
Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

PROANTHOCYANIDIN IN GRAPES



Proanthocyanidins (PAs), also known as condensed tannins, are polyphenolic secondary metabolites synthesized via the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway. They are present in many plants and act in defense against plant diseases and in seed dormancy. Dietary PAs are present in many fruits and plant products, like wine, fruit juices, and teas, and contribute to their taste and health benefits. PAs act as potential dietary antioxidants with beneficial effects for human health, including protection against free radical-mediated injury and cardiovascular disease. The Pas found in grapes (Vitis vinifera) are of special interest because of their importance for the taste and astringency of red and white wine.

THEY SAID...


"To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong." - Joseph Chilton Pierce

"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun." - Mary Lou Cook

"No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change." –
Barbara De Angelis

"Happiness is not a matter of events, it depends upon the tides of the mind. – Alice Meynell

"The soul without imagination is what an observatory would be without a telescope." –
H.W. Beecher

JUST TO LAUGH...


An archaeologist is the best husband any woman can have: The older she gets, the more interested he is in her. - Agatha Christie

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies. - Groucho Marx

A man stands at the Cashier’s window in a bank, bumbling around in a bag. The cashier loses patience. “Sir, you’re keeping everyone waiting. Make up your mind, do you want to deposit money, or take some out?”
“I want to take some out, but I can’t find my gun in all the stuff I’ve got in this bag!” – German Petrov

FRIENDSHIP


I'd like you to take a moment to think about your own friends. Are you the type of person who has one best friend, or do you prefer a few close friends? Well, if you answered yes to either of these questions, consider yourself fortunate, because dependable friendships bring some amazing benefits. It is probably no surprise to you that close friendships are good for us. However, the list of actual medical advantages is quite remarkable. Research shows that our good friendships can help us to reduce our blood pressure, heart rate, and cholesterol levels, as well as to lower our stress levels. In other words, solid, dependable friendships help us to live a longer, healthier life. The nice thing about our friendships is that they are ties we choose to develop, sustain, and nurture. When we are young, we seek companionship by befriending dogs, cats, dolls, and stuffed animals. As we grow into adolescence and later into adulthood, good friends can become more than just companions. A good friend is there through the good and bad times. A good friend is someone who loves you in spite of yourself. They laugh with you, cry with you, listen to your problems, tell you the truth when you don't want to hear it, and even keep your secrets. And now, you can add the positive health benefits of friendship to that list! While this information probably won't make you change how you feel about your friends, it may make you appreciate them even more. And may I remind you, that the benefits of our friendships work both ways! - Bethea

POINTS TO PONDER


1. We "see" things when they become important to us.

2. The mind is constantly recording information.

3. The mind and its abilities are expandable through mental exercises.

4. The brain is able to process and do innumerable things at once.

5. The more we practice and the more we trust, the more ideas we have.


So, relax. Take in a deep breath. Trust that the mind is a powerful thing. And as you listen to the "Corridors to Creativity" or as you read the many excellent articles, enjoy the idea that you are improving in every way and opening yourself to new worlds of creativity and inspiration.

Acceptance is the key to change!
Meet you next month – JANUARY, 2008

Prof. A. Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP
# 19, Phase 5, Maharani Avenue, Vadavalli, Coimbatore – 641 041, Tamil Nadu
Telephone: 0422 – 2423017 Mobile: 98422 42301
E-mail: prof_narayanan_a@hotmail.com
arumugakannu@gmail.com
Visit my blogs: http://www.nara2007.blogspot.com/ (NARA’S NOTEPAD)
http://www.nara.tumblr.com/ (NARA’S DIGEST)