Tuesday, July 31, 2018



NARA’S NOTEPAD

VOLUME 14
AUGUST 2018
NUMBER 8

SUPPORTED BY READERS LIKE YOU



PROBLEMS ARE NOT STOP-SIGNS, 

THEY’RE GUIDELINES


NARA’S NOTEPAD
THANK
Sri. R. Padmanaban, M. Sc (Ag)
Consultant,
Tea Plantations at Darjiling, Assam & Nepal
17/22 Titan Township, Madhagiri, Hosur 635 110
Ph: 094431 42391


MEMO FROM NARA


Countries have to think of good roads as the best infrastructure. Developed countries of the world realized this long ago and paved good roads all over. As a result, transportation increased and movement of goods and people from one place to another was accelerated. Settlement of people came on either side of those roads. Developing countries, by looking at those developments started thinking about the good roads for their own economic progress. Bad roads are there everywhere, paved or unpaved. Pot holes, speed breakers, damages in patches, narrow ones are the status of roads in many developing countries including India.
Allotment of budget for this vital sector is thought of only recently to link north to south and east to west of India. Huge amounts of money is required to make the already existing narrow roads to four lane ones. Mostly the World Bank loans are availed for this purpose. Highways/motorways have to be improved to the level of the ones we find in developed nations. They are going to be the lifeline of a nation. Good roads have to be maintained frequently to give a better service to the users. Bad roads cause fatal road accidents very often. The traffic police take lots of measures to prevent road accidents. If the roads are bad, they will be helpless to implement those measures.
Effective steps have to be taken to lay good roads with signboards and proper lighting. Design engineers are responsible for laying good roads for the country. The system of construction through corrupt practice makes the proposal for good roads, a mediocre one. Within a short period after the construction, the roads become unusable, and such is the situation in most regions of our country – India. There are experienced construction companies in India who laid very good roadways in other countries, but they are generally ignored by the politicians. They cannot get their required commission from such reputed companies. Therefore the development is poor and our progress in road infrastructure is retarded to a considerable extent. India being one of the important growing giants in the world certainly needs good roads throughout the length and breadth of the country. Four thousand years ago the ancient cities of Mesopotamia was paved with stone. That was the first man-made roads.
Later, Roman roads formed the most extensive network in Europe and Middle East. The motorways of the 20th century are built on a firm, thick base of pebbly material with a layer of concrete laid over top. Above this is a layer of tar or rolled asphalt. Rubberized roads are also coming up in certain regions in India. Even plastic wastes are also mixed with tar and applied on the top of the road. Innovative road building techniques are invented and applied wherever possible. 

A country which managed with single lane roads for seventy long years after independence realize today the necessity of this important infrastructure on which many other developments depend. National highways connecting various states help in interstate business, transportation of goods and people. In fact, India is moving towards the dream of a developed nation.

While making good roads, there are many hurdles the country has to face. Towns and cities have to be connected by roads of short distances. So the interfering structures have to be removed or demolished. Sometimes rivers have to be crossed, so bridges have to be constructed. The engineering technologies have improved so much that constructing various kinds of bridges is possible nowadays. Wide roads were made in town and cities, but the paved roads are only half the width of the planned roads. Avenue trees occupy some area on either side of the road. Similarly the electric and telephone poles also take away some space. Unauthorized constructions like projection of roof structures by the shops on either side steal away some space. As a result we will be left with a narrow road in the cities for the vehicles to pass by. It is really sad to see such bad roads in many parts of India. Every time the local administration tries to remove the unauthorized occupations, there will be resistance from the public who are affected. They go the extent of filing a case against the administration in the court and stay the work. We know the court takes its own time to clear such cases. Another set of people who get the votes of these people also support them and will not allow the administration to do its job. Thus road remains as it was. We have seen many times such sights in every town. In a democratic country with about 40% illiterates, it becomes difficult to interfere with peoples’ proper or improper activities. It is one the reasons that India could not progress fast and reach the status of a developed nation. With all these limitations, India has a hope to come up in the Global level as a developed nation with good roads in the near future.

ARE YOU ADDICTED TO APPROVAL?



Signs of being addicted to approval include:
1. You are very aware of the expectations of others. They also affect how you feel about yourself.
2. You are constantly worried about how others view you/ what they are thinking about you.
3. You choose NOT to do things that others don’t approve of for fear of judgment and rejection.
4. You DO things you don’t want to do as you fear others making fun or you, putting you down, or talking about it.
5. You feel anxious and upset if you think you have upset or irritated someone – and desperately try to make things right.
6. You think the views and opinions of others are more informed and valuable than yours.
7. You agree when others criticize and put you down. Then you start to attack and feel ashamed of yourself.
8. You reject yourself if other people reject you, and basically believed that at core you are flawed.

TO QUOTE


v  Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot. – Charlie Chaplin
v  For every ‘inside’ there is an ‘outside’ and for every ‘outside’ there is an ‘inside’, though they are different, they go together. - Allan Watts
v  Life would be tragic if it weren’t funny. - S . Hawking

JUST TO LAUGH



“This gay came by trying to sell me a talking dog for $10,” related the bartender
“I said, Get out of here!”
But the dog said, “Please, Sir, this man is mean to me; he never takes me for walks, hardly feeds me, …’
I said, “Hey, he really can talk. Why are you selling him for only $10?
The guy said, “I’m sick and tired of all his lies.”


When you wallpapered your lounge room,” Fred said to Peter, “how many rolls did you buy? Our room is exactly the same size.”
“Twelve,” Peter replied. About a fortnight later, Fred complained that he had six rolls left over.
“I’m not surprised.” said Peter. “So have I.”


The lecturer had reached one of his most telling points: “He who gives in when he’s wrong is wise; but the man who gives in when he’s right is ---“ Married,” came a voice from the audience.

THINGS YOU NEED TO DO



1. The few things that aren’t going right. – When things go wrong, take a moment to be thankful for all the other things that are still going right. And if you’re struggling to be thankful for what you have, be thankful for what you have escaped. Sometimes the best gifts in life are the troubles you don’t have.
2. Trying to label everyone and everything. – Sometimes you’ve just got to take people and situations for what they are, appreciate them, and not try to label them or change them.
3. Worrying about what everyone else thinks. – The minute you stop overwhelming your mind with caring about what everyone else thinks, and start doing what you feel in your heart is right, is the minute you will finally feel freedom.
4. Wasting time on the wrong people. – You cannot make someone respect you; all you can do is be someone who can be respected. No matter how much you care some people just won’t care back. At some point you have to realize the truth – that they no longer care or never did, and that maybe you’re wasting your time and missing out on someone else who does.
5. Old wounds and grudges. – You will never find peace until you learn to finally let go of the hatred and hurt that lives in your heart. In order to move on, you must know why you felt the way you did, and why you no longer need to feel that way. It’s about accepting the past, letting it be, and pushing your spirit forward with good intentions.
6. Superficial judgments. –Every human being is beautiful; it just takes the right set of eyes to see it.
7. Letting small disagreements snowball out of control. – Don’t let a single poisonous moment of misunderstanding make you forget about the countless lovable moments you’ve spent together.
8. Showing a lack of self-respect. – Decide this minute to never again beg anyone for the love, respect, and attention that you should be showing yourself. Choose to be your own best friend.


LINES I LIKED

       


Ø  Avoid comparing yourself to others, that’s the fastest way to beat up on yourself!
Ø  Avoid growing tired in your thoughts and attitudes and keep your interest and eagerness in every aspect of life at a high level
Ø  Awareness is the first step in transformation.


Be specific in asking what you want!

Meet you next month –2018

 

Professor A. Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP


Ph : 0422 4393017 Mobile : 75399 15614
(NARA’S DIGEST) 
(NARA’S NOTEPAD)

Sunday, July 1, 2018



NARA'S NOTEPAD

VOLUME 14
JULY 2018
NUMBER 7

NARA'S NOTEPAD 
IS 
SUPPORTED 
BY READERS LIKE YOU

WELL DONE 
IS BETTER THAN 
WELL SAID

SPONSOR



NARA’S NOTEPAD
THANK
Sri. R. Padmanaban, M. Sc (Ag)
Consultant,
Tea Plantations at Darjiling, Assam & Nepal
17/22 Titan Township, Madhagiri, Hosur 635 110
Ph: 094431 42391

MEMO FROM NARA



While I go for my early morning or evening walk, I observe many kinds of plants – big and small all along the way. One of the small categories, about 50 to 100 cm tall green plants with full of tiny white flowers does not escape my eyes. They are in thousands growing happily all along the road and also in plots where no house is constructed so far. Residential colonies are invaded by these plants which are called Parthenium causing diseases like dermatitis and asthma. Along with this, many other unwanted plants grouped as weeds also grow, flower and die. They are the annual plants botanically termed as Parthenium hysterophorus and popularly known as Congress Grass or Carrot Weed. It belongs to the botanical family Asteracae.
It appears that Parthenium is not native to India, but it came with the imported wheat as a mixture, when the US sent wheat to India under PL 480 (Public Law 480 passed 1964 to give food grains to developing countries) in 1956. However, this concept was contradicted by some as not the real story because Parthenium was present in India even in 1951itself. Whatever may be the source of this nasty weed, the tiny seeds spread throughout the country. In general, weeds grow widely in waste lands, fields and field bunds. Controlling them is a stupendous task for weed scientists and farmers. Parthenium is very difficult to eradicate.  So far no single method appears to be satisfactory.
Since the regeneration capacity of this weed is very high, even the mechanical eradication like cutting or slashing did not work. Removal by hand or hoe at the pre-flowering stage is one of the physical methods of eradication recommended. But there are other methods too. Weed killing chemicals are sprayed on the land to kill the weed seeds or on the post-emergence stage of the weeds. One of the potent chemical used was the sodium salt of 2,4–dichlorophenoxy acetic acid popularly called 2,4–D  which acts as a plant hormone at homeopathic dose, whereas at high concentration it kills plants. Such chemicals are grouped as herbicide or weedicide. 
Large-scale usage of herbicides are followed at the US, Australia and many other advanced countries but only limited quantity is being used in developing countries like India. These herbicides are specific for certain plant species. For example, dicot plants are generally susceptible to all herbicides whereas the monocots – the grass family cannot be eradicated by most of them. Fortunately, Parthenium is a dicot plant amenable a variety of herbicides.
In fact, research to find out suitable chemicals for eradicating weeds in cultivated fields as well as in waste land is being extensively carried out in various agricultural universities and research institutes. Even biological control measures and biotechnological techniques are attempted to eradicate Parthenium. In order to control this weed, awareness camps are being conducted regularly in every colony as it has been done in villages for the farmers. Instructions are given to the citizens for effectively controlling Parthenium.
I used to watch carefully the growth behavior of this weed. At the onset of South West Monsoon, the plants emerge from the soil in rosette form by spreading it leaves close to the ground without an elongated stem. Only with the shower of rain, these plants look dark green as if we have applied good amount of nitrogenous fertilizer. I do not know how they got such green foliage. May be they mine the nutrients available in the waste-land. A month afterwards, I used to observe them to put forth elongated stem which grow to the size of about a meter with good number of branches with hundreds of tiny flower buds. This process is technically known as bolting. Once the plants reach such a stage, the pollen from the flowers fly in the air and animals and humans happen to inhale them and end up in irritation of body and develop allergy symptoms. I tried to pull out some of those plants which came up in front of my house. Fortunately I did not get the allergy, when I enquired with the weed specialists; they told me that it will affect only some susceptible people. I was happy that Parthenium is afraid of me.
Once the Parthenium blooms, the seeds – thousands of them are carried by wind and spread all around the place. The seeds settle on the dry soil and stay there, till another rain soaks them. They remain dormant for a long period of time in the dry soil. So it is evident that this weed remains as a menace for human beings. In residential areas, to control this and other weeds, the only way comes to my mind is to construct houses as soon as possible without leaving the plot vacant. No other method is in sight for the time being to get rid of Parthenium around the residential colony.

PEOPLE YOU NEED IN YOUR LIFE



The Cheerleader: They cheer you on and believe in everything you do. When you mess up, they don’t even bat an eye. They keep you focused on how to push through, and are always on your side.
The Pusher: A pusher is someone who pushes you to be the best you can be. The pusher holds you accountable and doesn’t sit quietly when you goof up.
The loyal confidant: This is the person who loves you and will always be there to hear what’s on your mind; the good, bad and ugly. The loyal confidant not only listens but knows that any slip-ups you have don’t define you.
The Energizer: The energizer in your life will scoop you up and make you laugh when times are rough, reminding you to stay motivated when you want to give up.
The Best Friend: Your best friend is the one person that knows everything about you and loves every bit of you anyway! They can look at you from across the room and when you exchange looks know EXACTLY what you are thinking.
The Funny (Crazy) Friend: Funny friends remind you not to take yourself seriously; they make tense situations more comfortable with a single face gesture. These people truly can change your outlook on your day with just a single call or text.


DAILY ACTS OF KINDNESS



v  Say hello to everyone you meet
v  Give directions to someone who’s lost
v  Provide water to strays in this heat
v  Don’t interrupt when someone is explaining herself
v  Simply say “I’m sorry” when wrong
v  Let someone go in front of you in line
v  Hold open the door for someone
v  Compliment the first three people you talk to today
v  Buy a plant. Put it in a terracotta pot. Write positive words that describe a friend on the pot. Give it to that friend
v  Everyone is important. Learn the names of your office security guard, the person at the front desk and other people you see every day
v  Don’t write the angry comment you’re thinking about on social media
v  When everyone around you is gossiping, be the one to be silent
v  Cook a meal for someone
v  Forgive someone, and never bring up the issue again

JUST TO LAUGH




A man who made a fortune almost overnight was boasting to one of his cronies about his new estate with its three swimming pools, “but why three pools?” exclaimed the friend. “One has cold water,” the host explained, “one has hot water, and one has no water at all.” “One with cold water, I can understand. I can even see a reason for one with hot water,” conceded the friend. “But what’s the idea of a swimming pool with no water at all?” “You would be surprised, Joe,” the host confided sadly, “how many of my old friends don’t know how to swim.”

CHANGING A NEGATIVE MOOD


1. Change your environment, or leave the room.
2. Switch your thinking, or redirect your thoughts
3. Go outside and get some exercise
4. Listen to the music that usually lifts your mood
5. Look at those old photographs that always make you laugh
6. Text or call a friend who’s really going through tough times
7. Be nice to a stranger – play it forward – and be kind.



LINES I LIKED



Ø  Awareness is the first step in transformation.
Ø  Avoiding mildly unpleasant tasks may eventually result in major problems or in the failure to achieve some important goals.
Ø  Avoid disclosing too much of your personal life.





Finally the simple life is the best life!

Meet you next month –2018

 

Professor A. Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP

Ph : 0422 4393017 Mobile : 75399 15614
(NARA’S DIGEST) 
(NARA’S NOTEPAD)