NOBEL PRIZES - 2013

PHYSICS

 

Physiology or Medicine: James Rothman (US) Randy Schekman (US) Thomas C. Suedhof (Germany, US) For - plotting how cells transfer vital materials such as hormones and brain chemicals to other cells, giving insight into diseases such as Alzheimer's, autism and diabetes.

 

Physics: Francois Englert (Belgium) Peter Higgs (UK) For - predicting the existence of the Higgs boson particle that explains how elementary matter attained the mass to form stars and planets.

 

Chemistry: Martin Karplus (US, Austria) Michael Levitt (US, UK) Arieh Warshel (US, Israel) For - laying the foundations for development of computers to understand complex chemical processes from the purification of exhaust fumes to photosynthesis, which helps in complex processes such as the development of drugs.

 

Literature: Alice Munro (Canada) For - being a master of the contemporary short story. Munro is acclaimed for her finely tuned storytelling, which is characterised by clarity and psychological realism. Some critics consider her a Canadian Chekhov.

 

Peace: Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) For - its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons.

 

Economics: Eugene Fama (US) Lars Peter Hansen (US) Robert Shiller (US) For - their empirical analysis of asset prices.

THE SECRETS OF OLD AGE...

 

 

 

·         Settle all the outstanding issues before hand and you will be able to leave without regret.

·         Let the doctors handle your body, God handle your life, but be in charge of your own moods.

·         If worries can cure your sickness, then go ahead and worry.

·         Our kids will make their own fortune.

·         Your old body – pay more attention to health, you can only rely on yourself in this.

·         Retirement funds – money that you have earned, it is best to keep them yourself.

·         Your old friends – seize every opportunity to meet up with your friends, such opportunities will become rare as time goes by.

·         Every day you MUST smile and laugh.

·         Running water does not flow back. So is life, make it happy.

·         Cry louder if you want to cry.

·         Life ends; when you stop dreaming.

·         Hope ends, when you stop dreaming.

·         Love ends, when you stop caring.

·         Friendship ends, when you stop sharing.

JUST TO LAUGH...

 

 

·         Having one child makes you a parent, but having two makes you a referee.

·         Marriage is a relationship in which one person is always right and the other is always husband.

·         You can’t buy love but you pay heavily for it.

·         Wife and husband always compromise, husband admits that he’s wrong and wife too agrees with him.

·         Our language is called the mother tongue because the father never gets a chance to speak.

·         Man: We should all be good citizens and pay our taxes with a smile. Woman: I’d love to, but they insist on cash.

·         Lecture: An art of transferring information from the notes of the lecturer to the notes of students without passing through ‘the minds of either.’

THE SECRETS OF HAPPINESS

1.       Character isn't something you were born with and stuck with ... like your finger prints. It’s something you must take responsibility for forming ... and the same goes for happiness.

2.       Destiny isn't a matter of chance; it's a matter of choice.

3.       Life is full of good sound reasons and reasons that sound good. Choose wisely.

4.       Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

5.       Happiness is found in doing. Not merely in possessing.

6.       Learn to save money. People who spare now won't despair later.

7.       Being broke is a temporary condition. Being poor is a state of mind. When you live right, things tend to go right.

8.       Being sad and wealthy beats being sad and poor all day long.

9.       Organize or agonize.

10.    Problems are just unresolved opportunities.

LINES I LIKED

 

 

Ø   Communicating with people offers you a wealth of information that can help you.

Ø   Enjoy anything that gets you thinking.

Ø   Distance yourself from aggressive people.

Ø   Think of a new use for everything you see.

Ø   Happiness will never come to those who don’t appreciate what they already have.

 

 

 

Enjoy the simple things!

Meet you next month – December, 2013

 

Professor A. Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP

 

E-mail: arumugakannu@gmail.com

Ph : 0422 2423017 Mobile : 098422 42301

www.nara.tumblr.com  (NARA’S DIGEST)

www.nara2007.blogspot.com  (NARA’S NOTEPAD)

 

 

NARA'S NOTEPAD

VOULUME 9

 

OCTOBER 2013

 

NUMBER 10

 

 

 

NARA'S NOTEPAD

IS

SUPPORTED

BY

READERS LIKE YOU

 

LOVE

 

WHAT YOU HAVE

SPONSORS

NARA’S NOTEPAD thank

Dr. K. Karunaichamy, Scientist, Rubber Research Institute of India, Kottayam, Kerala

 for sponsoring Sept., Oct., and Nov. 2013 issues

and

Dr. V.V. Ramamurthy, Principal Scientist (Entomology) and National Coordinator, IARI, New Delhi

for sponsoring Dec. 2013, Jan. and Feb. 2014 issues.

LINES I LIKED

PART 1

A BOOK BY NARA

264 PAGES, PRICE: Rs. 150/-

If you want a copy, please send a cheque / DD favouring

A. Narayanan, at Coimbatore to:

Prof. A. Narayanan, #19, Phase 5, Maharani Avenue, Vadavalli,

Coimbatore – 641 041 giving your postal address.

MEMO FROM NARA

 

Healthy people are happy people. Is it true? I think it is true to certain extent. Of course good health is a must for our good living. In order to achieve good health we need to follow some principles in life. In fact one comes to know this only when he/she becomes unhealthy. Even if one is healthy, he/she may not be happy in some cases. Although health is the primary requirement for happiness, if someone is not feeling happy, then it is due to some other problem, probably due to unhealthy behaviours and habits.

All these are taught from the primary school onwards to children by the teachers. Good food, clean water, personal hygiene, disciplined life, exercise are some of the important things that make us healthy. One has to understand the physiology of one’s body. It’s also taught in class rooms. We have forgotten those golden lessons and follow some unwanted habits such as smoking, drinking alcohol, over eating, inactivity etc. All these habits hamper our health in the long run, then how can one be happy? Happiness and peace of mind come only because of good health. Wealth may also give happiness to certain extent; but the primary and essential factor needed for happiness in life is good health.

Most of the youngsters do not pay attention to their health because of their robust body strength. Once they enter their late age, they feel weak and their health starts deteriorating. This is the way life goes on. Weakness affects health. One has to listen to the body and observe carefully the symptoms of uneasiness. Immediate attention will certainly pay the dividends. If we postpone, then it would be too late to take care of our health. We all know that healthy life always bring peace of mind and happiness.

Everyone loves to be friendly with healthy people. Poor health is one of the painful aspects of old age. One has to use his/her experience to take appropriate steps to improve health and thus happiness. There are ways and means to keep one’s health at the safer side. We need to understand the needs of our body and feed it properly. Physical health leads to mental health. One gets self-confidence because of good health. Spoiling one’s health is easy but to build good health we need self-discipline and self-control. Temptations and bad company may break the self-control. So, one has to be careful in defeating those unwanted habits. Good habits in fact, bring good health and thus happiness. Let us try to get good health through good habits.

Q & A

 

 

What would happen, if earth starts rotating 30 times faster than at normally does?

Guess What?

We would get salary every day.

 

How can a man stay eight days without sleep?

No problems. He sleeps at night.

AMUSING DEFINITIONS

 Major General: An army officer who has his men behind him before the battle and ahead of him during it.

Love at first sight: The world’s greatest time saver.

Man of few words: One who takes three hours to tell you he is a man of few words.

Microscopic Expert: A person who magnifies everything.

Modern Girl: A girl who wants to go with every Tom, Dick and marry. She marries for money in order to make her dream come through. She is not so much concerned with what a man stands for, as what he will fall for. She loves a man for all he is worth.

Optimist: One who takes a frying pan on a fishing trip.

Laughter: The sound you hear when you stumble, or lose your hat in the wind.

 

THE SECRETS OF OLD AGE...

 

v  Before middle age  - do not fear.

v  After middle age – do not regret.

v  Enjoy your life while you can.

v  Do not wait till you cannot even walk just to be sorry and to regret.

v  As long as it is physically possible, visit places you wish to visit.

v  When there is an opportunity, get together with old classmates, old colleagues and old friends.

v  The gathering is not just about eating, it’s just that there is not much time left.

v  Money kept in the banks may not be really yours.

v  When it is time to spend, just spend, treat yourself well as you’re getting old.

v  Whatever you feel like eating, just eat! It is most important to be happy.

v  Food which are good for health – eat often and more but that is not everything.

v  Things which are not good for health - eat less once in a while but do not abstain from them totally.

v  Treat sickness with optimism.

v  Do not be afraid or worried when you are sick.

v  Everyone has to go through the birth, aging, sickness and death. There is no exception, that’s LIFE.

JUST TO LAUGH...

A milkman dying in hospital is surrounded by his two sons, daughter, his wife and the nurse.
He says to his eldest son, "To you Peter, I leave the Beverly houses."
To his daughter, "My pretty Rose, to you I leave the apartments in the Los Angeles Plaza."
"And Charlie, you being my youngest son, I leave you the City Center offices".
And to his wife, "Darling, you get the three residential towers downtown."
The wide-eyed nurse, obviously impressed, tells his wife, "Madam, your husband is very rich! And what's great is he is bequeathing all his properties to his family. You are all so lucky!!"

The wife retorts, "Rich?,  Lucky?  Are you kidding me?? Those are the routes where he delivers milk!"
 

COGNITIVE SCIENCE

Cognitive Science (CS) is the study of the processes by which the humans and other animals come to know properties of their external environment and convert that knowledge into action as well as relay that knowledge to others by means of communication. As a result CS has a vital role to play in several socially important areas such as mental health, social engineering, education and computer technology. It is assumed that CS one of the four pillars of the 21^st Century along with Nano, Bio, and Information Technology. Of the four, CS is the least represented in the Indian scientific scenario. In view of this Dept. Science and Technology (DST) has identified thrust areas in CS for special consideration in the 11^th Five Year Plan. These are: Foundations of cognition; Language and cognition; Computational intelligence; Cognitive psychology and cognitive neuroscience. In addition to basic research and infra-structure, human resource development has been identified as an integral part of success of the initiative.

Cognition – Process of acquiring knowledge by reasoning or by intuition or through senses.

LINES I LIKED

Ø  Don’t compare yourself with anyone in this world… if you do so, you are insulting yourself.

Ø  A mind that is present and in the moment indicates well-being, whereas shifting our energy to the past or future can lead to unhappiness.

Ø  Too much fun makes you inattentive to your responsibilities.