Inflation at the Breakfast table

rst it was our lunch and dinner. Now inflation has hit our breakfast. Eggs are selling for four bucks a piece. A glass of milk, dab of butter and a slice of toast already cost 10% more and moving up. Muesli prices are set to rise within days. What kind of world do we wake up to each morning these days? And how did we get here?

The answer lies in two simple words: conversion cost. What we pay depends crucially on how much it cost to make. If the amount of raw material you need increases or if the cost of these inputs spikes, the price of the final product rises too.

Take eggs. To get eggs with the right combination of shell thickness, weight and taste, hens on poultry farms are fed a mix of protein and starch, which come mainly from corn and soyameal. A hen needs to eat 130 gm of this mix to lay an egg. So when the cost of feed rises, eggs become expensive too. The drought has impacted supply of corn and soyameal, raising their prices over 30%.

So the new maths is simple. An egg now costs a farmer Rs 2- 2.25. He sells it for Rs 2.90. The wholesaler sells it for Rs 3. The grocer, the guy actually raking it in, sells it to us for Rs 4.

Milk is the same story. Cows and buffaloes are fed on grain, hay and oil meals. The erratic rains decimated supplies, pushing up feed costs. “Bhoosa (hay) used to cost Rs 3 per kilo. Now it costs Rs 6. There is hardly any green grass. If feed crop supply doesn’t improve over the next few months, milk prices will rise another 3-4%. But the overall increase in milk prices is still below 14% food inflation,’’ says an official at cooperative dairy Amul. That is hardly any consolation.

Bread prices have shot up from Rs 18 per loaf to Rs 20, and manufacturers are now talking of Rs 22. Why? Every 800-gm loaf has 65% wheat flour. Flour prices have increased almost Rs 4 per kilo in the last two months, mainly because private traders don’t have much grain. The government-owned Food Corporation of India is the monopoly seller in the market and its higher prices set the benchmark. The other ingredients in a loaf – sugar, milk, oil, salt, soya flour – are all much dearer too. Add higher freight and packaging costs and you know the final outcome. Old food budgets in crumbs.

The same crisis in wheat is hitting breakfast cereals too. Muesli, a favourite amongst the sugar and cholesterol watchers, uses flakes from high-protein varieties such as Madhya Pradesh’s sharbati, which is in short supply. Wheat flake prices have risen from Rs 37/kg to Rs 47/kg and suppliers want new contracts signed at Rs 51/kg, an almost 40% jump. Muesli also uses invert syrup, a pharma-grade sugar syrup, which is now 28% more expensive. “We will have to increase MRP by 5% to Rs 310-15 per kilo in PET jar,” says Shyam Bagri, who owns popular breajfast cereal brand Bagrry’s.

In a nutshell, our crazy breakfast bill is the trickle-down result of the beating Indian crops took at the hands of a terrible summer. Will things improve? In a seasonal business like farming, they usually do.

But that is not the real take away. What is really gobsmacking is that we are still eating omelettes and smoothies. Even at these prices. That is the real story.

Not one eggs, milk or bread wholesaler is complaining of a decline in demand yet. If anything, the shortage has worsened. India produces about 17 crore eggs daily. There is demand for 19 crore eggs. “There is a 15% shortfall in egg supply over last year, which becomes worse in winter. We are not seeing any decline in demand at these prices,” says an official from the industry-owned National Egg Coordination Committee.

Milk and butter prices may be at record highs but customers aren’t holding back. The bread market too continues to grow unabated at 15% per annum. At Rs 25 per kilo, bread is still one of the cheapest things you can eat right now. Ditto in a choice between eggs and vegetables.

We are getting used to price levels unheard of earlier. That is a good sign because high prices are the cure for high prices. Producers crippled by rising input and labour costs realize to their amazement they still have a market. The record egg prices will help re-open poultry farms shut due to losses. There has been no capacity expansion there in the last three years. Similarly, farmers will plant more sugarcane, hay and grains.

Even so, bread, milk and eggs are foods that we choose to eat. They are not as critical for our health and survival as dal, roti and subzi. Or so we thought. Not anymore. The Indian consumer remains willing and able to buy them directly or consume them through processed foods without much outcry. Sure, a few families will cut back. But not so you would notice. Our new food choices are here to stay.

The crazy price of our breakfast is today’s headline. The fact that now we can’t do without it is tomorrow’s big story. As India becomes wealthier and more nutrition-conscious, our farms will have to work harder to keep pace. That is a huge worry as well as huge opportunity. Did you know milk generates more value than wheat, rice and sugarcane? And five out of every 100 Indians own a cow or raise hens. More will eventually get into the act. Meanwhile, like Audrey Hepburn in ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, start your day with champagne. It will help you believe you are breakfasting like a king.

New computer worm virus may affect documents

China's anti-virus authorities on Sunday warned computer users to guard against new mutation of worm virus, which could infect various documents in their system.

The virus, Worm_Piloyd.B, could infect documents like exe, html and asp and prevent the system from restoring the affected documents, according to the Tianjin-based National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre.

The virus could force the system to download other viruses from designated websites, the centre warned.

Experts suggested computer users update their anti-virus software and use the real-time computer virus monitoring function whenever they surf the Internet, Xinhua news agency reported.

Dell India sales up 17%

Even healthy growth in vibrant markets like India and China could not help global personal computer manufacturer Dell’s net profit from slipping 54 per cent to $337 million, from $727 million in the same quarter last year. Revenue also declined by 15 per cent to $12.9 billion, compared with $15.2 billion in the same period last year, it added.
The India market grew 17 per cent year-on-year and China sales were up 20 per cent sequentially and 8 per cent y-o-y. Combined sales from China, India, Brazil and Russia were up 18 per cent sequentially and 5 per cent over the past year.
“Our growth in the India market has been encouraging. We have been able to get significant share gain in India and we have been growing sequentially in India. We will continue to add to build sales capacity, expand channel strategy and invest in India,” said Steve Felice, President, Small and Medium Business.
Felice also said India will play an important role after the integration of its recent acquisition target, Perot Systems, by Dell for $3.6 billion. “We are working on the integration. We are integrating Dell Services into Perot Systems, rather than the other way. Over 7,000 people in India work for Perot Systems. We will use India as a big base of operations and India will play an important role in this segment,” added Felice.
On the results, the company said the slow uptick in the corporate sector is responsible. However, since October, and more importantly after the release of Windows 7, the commercial segment has seen a rise.

Happiness spreads much like the flu

one day, perhaps we'll have public health campaigns of a different kind. "Be jolly: it's catching." Or, "Eat less: do it for your friends." Why? Because "traditional" infectious diseases - those, like flu and tuberculosis, that are caused by viruses or bacteria - are not the only aspects of health that can spread from one person to another. Taking up smoking is contagious ; so is quitting. Obesity is contagious. So is happiness. At least, these are the results coming in from long-term studies of social networks - the networks of friends and families, neighbours and colleagues that we all belong to. Such studies have found that one person's change in behaviour ripples through his or her friends, family and acquaintances . If one of your friends becomes happy, for example , you're more likely to become happy too. If you're great friends with someone who becomes obese, you're much more likely to become obese as well. And the effect doesn't stop there. If your friend's friend becomes happy, that increases the chance your friend will become happy - and that you will too. Conversely, if you become obese or depressed, you may inadvertently help your friends, and your friend's friends, to become fat or gloomy. Intriguingly, happiness and obesity seem to spread in different ways. Obesity spreads most easily between friends of the same sex who are emotionally close. Happiness spreads most readily between friends who live near each other: a happy friend on the same block makes more difference than a happy friend three miles away. I should say that doing long-term studies of social networks is difficult - it means interviewing and measuring thousands of people repeatedly over many years. After all, if I want to know whether you and your friends will change weight over the next five years, I have to measure all of you now and again in five years' time. Moreover, I have to keep track of how friendships come and go, of who moves house and so on. In short, it's a massive task just to collect the data. So, while there have been plenty of studies of how pairs of people, especially spouses, affect each others' health, there have been far fewer studies of how health reverberates through large social networks. The results I'm referring to here all come from the so-called "Framingham Heart Study," which began in Massachusetts in 1948 and has continued to the present day. (Up to now, the study has involved two cohorts of several thousand people each; a third cohort has just been enrolled.) It's possible, therefore, that the results I'm talking about are specific to this group of people. However, I think that's unlikely. The details of how an attribute spreads may differ from one group to another: perhaps in some places, friends have less influence and siblings have more. But the general result - that healthy (or unhealthy) behaviours, habits and outlooks are infectious - is, I think, likely to prove robust. But then, how does something like obesity get "caught" ? That's not clear. One idea is that people judge their own weight by that of their friends - you think of yourself as thin if you are thinner than the people you know - and eat accordingly. Another is that friends mirror one another's eating habits. Many studies have found that people tend to eat less when they are eating with someone who is not eating much. Also, people tend to eat more when they eat with friends rather than with strangers. Perhaps, too, a habit of eating, say, dessert when you are with your friends makes you more likely to eat it when you are alone. And happiness? Again, it's not clear how it spreads, though there are plenty of ideas. For example, since we tend to unconsciously mimic the postures and facial expressions of those around us, perhaps we begin to take on the moods of others by adopting postures consistent with those moods. Or perhaps talking to people who are cheerful imbues us with cheerful thoughts. Whatever the mechanisms , the implications are profound. Obesity, smoking and happiness all have substantial effects on health. Obesity is associated with a host of troubles, from diabetes to many kinds of cancer. Happiness, meanwhile, appears to improve health. Although this idea is still controversial, several recent studies have found that happy people tend to have more robust immune systems. For example, in one experiment volunteers were scored for happiness then had cold viruses squirted up their noses; those who were happier were much less likely to fall sick. (I'm not sure I'd be volunteering for that experiment, regardless of my emotional state - hats off to those who did.)In another, volunteers were vaccinated against the virus that causes hepatitis B; several months later, the happy volunteers showed a stronger response to the vaccine than the unhappy volunteers. The discovery that the health of one person affects the health of those around them isn't new. Depressed mothers, for example , have a suite of unhappy effects on their children: their children are less likely to be vaccinated, less likely to do well at school and more likely to have emotional problems of their own. Nor is it news that social lives affect health: it's long been known that people with more friends tend to be healthier. But the finding that particular attributes of health - or lack of it - can ripple through social networks shows that one person's health can have far reaching effects. I draw a couple of conclusions from this. The first is that unless you are a hermit living entirely alone, your choices and well-being do not affect just you. The second, and more important, conclusion is that medicine isn't simply about improving the health of an individual here and an individual there. It's about the health of the whole society.

Yoga can reduce chronic low back pain
Individuals from low-income, minority backgrounds with chronic low back pain (CLBP) may be more affected due to disparities in access to treatment. Although many CLBP patients seek relief from complementary therapies such as yoga, use of these approaches are less common among minorities and individuals with lower incomes or less education. For the study, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center recruited adults with CLBP from two community health centers that serve racially diverse, low-income neighbourhoods of Boston. They were randomly assigned to either a standardized 12-week series of hatha yoga classes or standard treatment including doctor’s visits and medications. As part of the trial, the researchers asked participants to report their average pain intensity for the previous week, how their function is limited due to back pain, and how much pain medication they are taking. The yoga group participated in 12 weekly 75-minute classes that included postures, breathing techniques, and meditation. Classes were taught by a team of registered yoga teachers and were limited to eight participants. Home practice for 30 minutes daily was strongly encouraged. Participants were provided with an audio CD of the class, a handbook describing and depicting the exercises, a yoga mat, strap, and block. Pain scores for the yoga participants decreased by one-third compared to the control group, which decreased by only 5 percent. Whereas pain medication use in the control group did not change, yoga participants’ use of pain medicines decreased by 80 percent. Improvement in function was also greater for yoga participants but was not statistically significant. "Few studies of complementary therapies have targeted minority populations with low back pain," said lead author Robert B. Saper, MD, MPH, an assistant professor of family medicine at BUSM and director of integrative medicine at Boston Medical Center.

Eat dark chocolate to avoid sun damage

Dark chocolate can protect the skin against the ageing effects of the sun, says a new research.
According to scientists, who carried out the study at European Dermatology London, a private Harley St skin clinic, a daily portion of choco bar might also lower the risk of skin cancer. But it only works with dark chocolate that is very high in flavanols, the antioxidants that occur naturally in cocoa beans, reports The Herald Sun. In the research, scientist s found that participants who ate flavanol-rich chocolate could tolerate more wrinkle-causing UV light on their skin than those who ate a lower-flavanol chocolate. The researchers said: "The main mechanism is likely to be the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. But conventional chocolate had no such effect."

In pics: Nokia N97 mini in India
Indiatimes Infotech All those planning to buy Nokia's recently-launched high-end smartphone N97, now have an option. The world's top cellphone maker Nokia has launched a smaller version of N97 called N97 mini in India. Touted as a smaller mobile computer, the phone has a few changes vis-a-vis its predecessor N97. Here's looking into how the new Nokia N97 mini looks, features and pricing.

Augmented Reality Ghost Hunting Creeps Into App Store

I ain’t afraid of no iGhost! I’m referring to the lame ghosts in this app Augmented Reality Ghost Hunting (ARGH), for the iPhone. The app festively debuted on this glorious Friday the 13th, and I guess it’s supposed to creep us out, but it just got me giggling.
The objective of ARGH is to use your iPhone as a paranormal viewfinder to locate and capture ghosts in your general area. A color meter in the app tells you whether you’re getting closer to a ghost (red means warmer); once you point your camera at the proper location and see the cartoon-ey ghoul, you can tap a button to capture it.
I tested the app in Wired.com’s newsroom, and it actually took a bit of wandering around with my iPhone until I spotted a ghost — so I guess it could double as a fitness app, too.
ARGH felt like a short-lived gag for the most part, but we’re excited to see what other types of augmented reality games emerge as smartphones become more powerful and capable. Georgia Tech’s augmented reality zombie shooter, which uses a prototype phone, is a great example of what we can expect.

Why SMSing can be a pain

WASHINGTON: Excessive text messaging among youngsters can put them at increased risk of suffering from neck and shoulder pain, say researchers.
Judith Gold, an assistant professor of Epidemiology at the College of Health Professions and Social Work examined the effect of too much texting on college students. The expert in her preliminary research suggested the more college students texted, the more pain they suffered in their neck and shoulders. Gold, who directs the Ergonomics and Work Physiology Laboratory, said: "Looking around our campus, you see every student on their cell phones, typing away. "It's the age group that texts the most, so it's important to know what the health effects may be to learn whether it will cause long term damage." She added: "What we've seen so far is very similar to what we see with office workers who've spent most of their time at a computer. "The way the body is positioned for texting - stationary shoulders and back with rapidly moving fingers - is similar to the position for typing on a computer." The study was presented at this year's annual meeting of the American Public Health Association.

Hikari to unleash iFrame Android tablet on Japan

Hikari’s iFrame (as opposed to the other, ubuntu- sportin iframefrom a while back) is an android powered tablet with a skin that's heavy on the widgets and -- in case you're still intimidated by its difficulty -- is also being touted as a photoframe for people who don't mind ugly photoframes. Ideally suited for the kitchen or living room (and, as such, is being marketed towards women -- which we find pretty condescending, truth be told) this bad boy features a 7-inch touchscreen display, SD memory card slot, and WiFi. Due out in Japan sometime next year (no word yet on a stateside release date) look to pay anywhere between $220 and $330 (with the company giving credit to the OS for th e low price point). Video after the break.

No pain, no gain applies to happiness, too'No pain no gain'
also holds true for getting increased level of happiness, says a new study.
Study’s researchers said that people who work hard at improving a skill or ability, such as mastering a math problem or learning to drive, may experience stress in the moment, but experience greater happiness on a daily basis and longer term. "No pain, no gain is the rule when it comes to gaining happiness from increasing our competence at something. People often give up their goals because they are stressful, but we found that there is benefit at the end of the day from learning to do something well. And what’s striking is that you don’t have to reach your goal to see the benefits to your happiness and well-being," said Ryan Howell, assistant professor of psychology at San Francisco State University. The study found that people who engage in behaviours that increase competency, for example at work, school or the gym, experience decreased happiness in the moment, lower levels of enjoyment and higher levels of momentary stress. Despite the negative effects felt on an hourly basis, participants reported that these same activities made them feel happy and satisfied when they looked back on their day as a whole. The surprising finding suggests that in the process of becoming proficient at something, individuals may need to endure temporary stress to reap the happiness benefits associated with increased competency. The study examined whether people who spend time on activities that fulfil certain psychological needs, believed to be necessary for growth and well being, experience greater happiness. In addition to the need to be competent, the study focused on the need to feel connected to others and to be autonomous or self-directed, and it examined how fulfilling these three needs affects a person’s happiness moment by moment within a day. While behaviours that increase competency were linked with decreased happiness in the moment, people who spent time on activities that met the need for autonomy or feeling connected to others experienced increased happiness on both an hourly and daily basis. The greatest increase in momentary happiness was experienced by participants who engaged in something that met their need for autonomy-any behaviour that a person feels they have chosen, rather than ought to do, and that helps them further their interests and goals. The authors suggest that shifting the balance of needs met in a day could help people find ways to cope with short-term stress in the workplace. "Our results suggest that you can decrease the momentary stress associated with improving your skill or ability by ensuring you are also meeting the need for autonomy and connectedness, for example performing the activity alongside other people or making sure it is something you have chosen to do and is true to who you are," said Howell. The study has been published in the Journal of Happiness Studies .

The Times of India creates print roadblock for Volkswagen brands.

In advertising its not about how much you are going to spend to get noticed, its how much brand is worth the next day, and if you have succeeded in doing that, then it is money well spent. The post ad brand recall as we call it in advertising, is a very important factor in deciding what and how the communication must reach the TA. If VW has done a Roadblock it is not the first time, it has been done to death by many brands not in India but in many other countries worldwide, it is one the proven ways to get noticed and talked about, in our today's clutter of ad messages, and this sets the tone for the brand, and what is going to come from them next. This is a global brand, and in times of recession it is markets like India that are their only hope, so why shouldn't they spend, good for TOI good for India. They are doing the right thing. It will definitely get them the desired WoM and the cost per thousand will be well worth if you consider the number of people that have talked about it today... and will continue to talk for days to come. If he/she is in the market for an entry level car I am sure this will put the brand on the consideration list. thats what advertising is suppose to do in today's times, bring people into showrooms asking for it. For those who are not convinced about what they have done... think about how many ads/brands do you remember from today's morning newspaper, leave alone the message. Thumbs up from my side to all those behind the campaign... though not an original thought, but it did the job. At times, its better to give the proven prescription than to try a new one... these are the times.

Gateway Distriparks outperforms Sensex with 86% gain in 6 months

The Gateway Distriparks’ stock has declined nearly 6% in the past two trading days to close at Rs 125.5 on Tuesday. This was despite a recent announcement of fund-raising of Rs 300 crore through compulsorily convertible preference shares to Blackstone, in a bid to meet the growth plans of its subsidiary Gateway Rail Freight.

This transaction would result in the private equity player gaining between 37.3% and 49.9% stake in Gateway Rail Freight, depending upon certain parameters. The range of the stake dilution was, however, higher than analysts’ expectations. Gateway Distriparks held 89.2% in Gateway Rail Freight at the end of FY09.

However, in the past six months, Gateway Distriparks had outperformed the broader Sensex, by gaining nearly 85.5% during this period, as a pick-up in the industrial sector and broader economy is expected to improve the demand conditions for logistic players.

Gateway Rail Freight operates from its terminals at Gurgaon near Delhi, Ludhiana, Punjab and near Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Navi Mumbai. Its fleet includes container trains and rail-inland container depots, which provide end-to-end logistic solutions for export-import trade in the northern region, coupled with domestic trade in other parts of the country.

Gateway Distriparks, on a consolidated basis, had already invested nearly Rs 587 crore during FY07 and FY09 for expanding its logistics network, but its cash flow during this period was just Rs 320 crore. This had resulted in its debt levels on a consolidated basis jumping nearly 25 times to Rs 204.5 crore on March 31, 2009. Analysts also point out that the funds raised by Gateway Rail Freight would help the company compete more effectively with the dominant player in the logistics sector, government-owned Container Corporation of India.

Gateway Rail Freight’s segment revenues were Rs 75.4 crore in the September 2009 quarter, a rise of 72.9% Y-o-Y, and they accounted for nearly 56.2% of consolidated quarterly sales. This growth in the rail freight segment was powered by a 36.1% Y-o-Y growth in volumes transported to 27,762 TEUs in the second quarter, and it helped segment loss after tax of this division decline 61.7% Y-o-Y to Rs 2.28 crore.

Going forward, analysts expect the company to maintain the momentum in its rail freight business, given the current upturn in the domestic and EXIM trade. Gateway Distriparks trades at nearly 16.4 times trailing earnings, while Allcargo, another player in the sector, trades at almost 21.3 times.

India may 'use' Dalai to 'solve' boundary issue, says Chinese scholar.

“The Dalai Lama went to southern Tibet at this critical moment probably because of pressure from India,” Hu Shisheng, a researcher of Southern Asian studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, was quoted as saying by the sister publication of the ruling Communist Party’s mouthpiece, People’s Daily.
“By doing so, he can please the country that has hosted him for years,” Hu said. China has not officially reacted to the Dalai Lama’s current visit to Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claims as its territory.
The appearance and activities of the Dalai Lama in southern Tibet may foment anti-China sentiment among people living in the region, Hu said. “When the conflict gets sharper and sharper, the Chinese government will have to face it and solve it in a way India has designed,” Hu added. The report noted that during his visit to the Tawang monastery yesterday, the Dalai Lama had “spoke out against China”.

BSNL plans to add 3 lakh mobile subscribers

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) plans to add three lakh new mobile customers in the state by the end of the current fiscal. This will take the total mobile subscriber base of the telecom major to 21 lakh by March 2010 from about 18 lakh at present
Vendors to share BSNL's 3G ad spen
As a part of its endeavour to achieve its targeted subscriber base, BSNL plans to add 350 more base transmission stations in different parts of the state by the end of 2009-10.
These would be over and above its existing 1650 base transmission stations.
“We have a mobile subscriber base of about 18 lakh at present and intend to add three lakh more subscribers by March 2010. To provide the infrastructure support, we will be putting up 350 new base transmission stations by the end of the current fiscal”, said A N Rai, chief general manager of BSNL's Orissa circle.
Addressing media persons on the eve of launching the per second billing plan and promotional tariff for 3G prepaid, Rai said, the promotional offer for 3G pre-paid will be valid for two months from November 9 this year. Under the promotional 3G tariff, the voice calls and the video calls in the local network of BSNL will cost 30 paise per minute.
Though the company has a little over 4000 3G customers in the state, the growth has been slow mainly due to high cost of 3G compatible handsets and high tariff. Keeping that in view, the company has brought down the 3G tariff even below the 2G level.
Both the per second billing through introduction of Magic-45, Magic-49 and Magic-97 vouchers and new promotional tariff for 3G prepaid and post-paid customers will help to increase the customers base in the state, he added.
The company which rolled out the 3G services in March this year in Bhubaneswar and Puri, has expanded its service to 38 towns in the state. Work is in progress for launching the service in towns like Paradeep, Keonjhar, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Raygada, Boudh and Phulbani during the current fiscal.
On broadband, Rai said, the company has already set up 800 rural exchanges in addition to the exchanges in the rural areas. The broadband subscriber base in the state is slated to cross the one lakh mark from 75,000 at present by the end of the current fiscal.
However, non-availability of computers is the main constraint for increasing the broad band penetration. BSNL has also started replacing the instrument of the high calling landline customers with caller ID phones.
Rai said, the company is eyeing a revenue of Rs 800 crore during the current fiscal, compared to Rs 730 crore in the previous year. U S Panda, general manager (operations), B Pal, general manager (mobile) and other senior company officials were also present on the occasion.

ABOUT SOLAR SYSTEM

What Is The Solar System?
The Solar System is made up of all the planets that orbit our Sun. In addition to planets, the Solar System also consists of moons, comets, asteroids, minor planets, and dust and gas.
Everything in the Solar System orbits or revolves around the Sun. The Sun contains around 98% of all the material in the Solar System. The larger an object is, the more gravity it has. Because the Sun is so large, its powerful gravity attracts all the other objects in the Solar System towards it. At the same time, these objects, which are moving very rapidly, try to fly away from the Sun, outward into the emptiness of outer space. The result of the planets trying to fly away, at the same time that the Sun is trying to pull them inward is that they become trapped half-way in between. Balanced between flying towards the Sun, and escaping into space, they spend eternity orbiting around their parent star.
How Did The Solar System form?
This is an important question, and one that is difficult for scientists to understand. After all, the creation of our Solar System took place billions of years before there were any people around to witness it. Our own evolution is tied closely to the evolution of the Solar System. Thus, without understanding from where the Solar System came from, it is difficult to comprehend how mankind came to be.
Scientists believe that the Solar System evolved from a giant cloud of dust and gas. They believe that this dust and gas began to collapse under the weight of its own gravity. As it did so, the matter in this could begin moving in a giant circle, much like the water in a drain moves around the center of the drain in a circle.
At the center of this spinning cloud, a small star begin to form. This star grew larger and larger, as it collected more of the dust and gas that were collapsing into it.
Further away from the star that was forming in the center were smaller clumps of dust and gas that were also collapsing. The star in the center eventually ignited forming our Sun, while the smaller clumps became the planets, minor planets, moons, comets, and asteroids.
A Great Storm
Once ignited, the Sun's powerful solar winds began to blow. These winds, which are made up of atomic particles being blown outward away from the Sun, slowly pushed the remaining gas and dust out of the Solar systm.
With no more gas or dust, the planets, minor planets, moons, comets, and asteroids stopped growing. You may have noticed that the four inner planets are much smaller than the four outer planets. Why is that?
Because the inner planets are much closer to the Sun, they are located where the solar winds are stronger. As a result, the dust and gas from the inner Solar System was blown away much more quickly than it was from the outer Solar System. This gave the planets of the inner Solar System less time to grow.
Another important difference is that the outer planets are made up largely of gas, and water, while the inner planets are made up almost entirely out of rock and dust. This is due to the same reasons. As the outer planets grew larger, their gravity had time to accumulate massive amounts of gas, water, as well as dust.
The Solar System Has Over 100 Worlds
It is true that there are only eight planets. However, the Solar System is made up of over 100 worlds that are every bit as fascinating. Some of these minor planets, and moons are actually larger than the planet Mercury.
Others, such as Io have active volcanoes. Europa has a liquid water ocean, while Titan has lakes, rivers, and oceans of liquid Methane. You can read more about these amazing worlds by clicking here.
The Asteroid Belt, The Kuiper Belt, And The Oort Cloud
You have probably heard about the Asteroid Belt. This band of asteroids sits between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It is made up of thousands of objects too small to be considered planets. Some of them no larger than a grain of dust, while others, like Eros can be more than 100 miles across. A few, like Ida, even have their own moons.
Further out, beyond the orbit of the minor planet Pluto sits another belt, known as the Kuiper Belt. Like the Asteroid Belt, the Kuiper Belt is also made up of thousands, possibly even millions of objects too small to be considered planets. A few of these objects, like Pluto, are large enough that their gravity has pulled them into a sphere shape.
These objects are made out of mostly frozen gas, with small amounts of dust. They are often called dirty snowballs. However you probably know them by their other name...
Every once in a while one of these comets will be thrown off of its orbit in the Kuiper Belt, and hurled towards the inner Solar System Where it slowly melts in a fantastic show of tail and light.
Beyond the Kuiper Belt sits a vast area known as the Oort Cloud. Here within this jumbled disorganized cloud live millions of additional comets. These comets do not orbit the Sun in a ring or belt. Instead each one buzzes around in a completely random direction, and extremely fast velocities.
Beyond The Oort Cloud
The Sun's solar winds continue pushing outward until they finally begin to mix into the interstellar medium, becoming lost with the winds from other stars. This creates a sort of bubble called the Heliosphere. Scientists define the boundaries of the Solar System as being the border of the Heliosphere, or at the place where the solar winds from the Sun mix with the winds from other stars.
What Is The Solar System?
The Solar System is made up of all the planets that orbit our Sun. In addition to planets, the Solar System also consists of moons, comets, asteroids, minor planets, and dust and gas.
Everything in the Solar System orbits or revolves around the Sun. The Sun contains around 98% of all the material in the Solar System. The larger an object is, the more gravity it has. Because the Sun is so large, its powerful gravity attracts all the other objects in the Solar System towards it. At the same time, these objects, which are moving very rapidly, try to fly away from the Sun, outward into the emptiness of outer space. The result of the planets trying to fly away, at the same time that the Sun is trying to pull them inward is that they become trapped half-way in between. Balanced between flying towards the Sun, and escaping into space, they spend eternity orbiting around their parent star.
How Did The Solar System form?
This is an important question, and one that is difficult for scientists to understand. After all, the creation of our Solar System took place billions of years before there were any people around to witness it. Our own evolution is tied closely to the evolution of the Solar System. Thus, without understanding from where the Solar System came from, it is difficult to comprehend how mankind came to be.
Scientists believe that the Solar System evolved from a giant cloud of dust and gas. They believe that this dust and gas began to collapse under the weight of its own gravity. As it did so, the matter in this could begin moving in a giant circle, much like the water in a drain moves around the center of the drain in a circle.
At the center of this spinning cloud, a small star begin to form. This star grew larger and larger, as it collected more of the dust and gas that were collapsing into it.
Further away from the star that was forming in the center were smaller clumps of dust and gas that were also collapsing. The star in the center eventually ignited forming our Sun, while the smaller clumps became the planets, minor planets, moons, comets, and asteroids.
A Great Storm
Once ignited, the Sun's powerful solar winds began to blow. These winds, which are made up of atomic particles being blown outward away from the Sun, slowly pushed the remaining gas and dust out of the Solar system.
With no more gas or dust, the planets, minor planets, moons, comets, and asteroids stopped growing. You may have noticed that the four inner planets are much smaller than the four outer planets. Why is that?
Because the inner planets are much closer to the Sun, they are located where the solar winds are stronger. As a result, the dust and gas from the inner Solar System was blown away much more quickly than it was from the outer Solar System. This gave the planets of the inner Solar System less time to grow.
Another important difference is that the outer planets are made up largely of gas, and water, while the inner planets are made up almost entirely out of rock and dust. This is due to the same reasons. As the outer planets grew larger, their gravity had time to accumulate massive amounts of gas, water, as well as dust.
The Solar System Has Over 100 Worlds
It is true that there are only eight planets. However, the Solar System is made up of over 100 worlds that are every bit as fascinating. Some of these minor planets, and moons are actually larger than the planet Mercury.
Others, such as Io have active volcanoes. Europa has a liquid water ocean, while Titan has lakes, rivers, and oceans of liquid Methane. You can read more about these amazing worlds by clicking here.
The Asteroid Belt, The Kuiper Belt, And The Oort Cloud
You have probably heard about the Asteroid Belt. This band of asteroids sits between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It is made up of thousands of objects too small to be considered planets. Some of them no larger than a grain of dust, while others, like Eros can be more than 100 miles across. A few, like Ida, even have their own moons.
Further out, beyond the orbit of the minor planet Pluto sits another belt, known as the Kuiper Belt. Like the Asteroid Belt, the Kuiper Belt is also made up of thousands, possibly even millions of objects too small to be considered planets. A few of these objects, like Pluto, are large enough that their gravity has pulled them into a sphere shape.
These objects are made out of mostly frozen gas, with small amounts of dust. They are often called dirty snowballs.
Every once in a while one of these comets will be thrown off of its orbit in the Kuiper Belt, and hurled towards the inner Solar System Where it slowly melts in a fantastic show of tail and light.
Beyond the Kuiper Belt sits a vast area known as the Oort Cloud. Here within this jumbled disorganized cloud live millions of additional comets. These comets do not orbit the Sun in a ring or belt. Instead each one buzzes around in a completely random direction, and extremely fast velocities.
Beyond The Oort Cloud
The Sun's solar winds continue pushing outward until they finally begin to mix into the interstellar medium, becoming lost with the winds from other stars. This creates a sort of bubble called the Heliosphere. Scientists define the boundaries of the Solar System as being the border of the Heliosphere, or at the place where the solar winds from the Sun mix with the winds from other stars.

IIM-C summer placement back in limelight

Indian Institute of Management-Calcutta (IIM-C) grads seem to be back in demand as the slot zero--or the most coveted slot offered to recruiters for summer placement--has seen a significant increase in the number of companies coming to the institute over last year.
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"This year offers for the slot zero will be significantly higher than previous year of 100 offers," IIM-C external relations secretary Paul Salvo said,
Initially, there were some concerns among the students as the batch size is 104 more than the previous year and the economy is still recovering, but, the increase in number of companies and job offers has given them reasons to cheer.
Summer placement gives a clear indication of demand of professionals but it does not give idea about the salary hike over 2008.
"Students in summer placement are given internship and perks. It will be when companies make final offer, salary levels could be compared. But, we hope it would be better than previous year," Salvo said.
There were offers from investment bankers like as Barclays Capital, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, the Royal Bank of Scotland, and UBS. Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase, Credit and HSBC also had offers for IIM-C.

Facial struture can revveal your temperament:

The research from Brock University says that now your face structure can define your tempare of angreeness . By the facial width-to-hight ratio may help to pridict people tendency towards aggression. By the measuring the distance between right to left cheeks and the distence from upperlip to mind brow. In 39 milisecond they can easily pridict that the actual agressive behaviour of a person.

Basic Skills in Management and Leadership

INTRODUCTION

In new businesses, "management" is often considered "whatever needs to be done just to keep things afloat". However, for your business to grow and remain healthy, you must master certain basic skills in management and leadership -- skills that will help you avoid the crisis situations where you have to do "whatever it takes to stay afloat". The basic skills include problem solving and decision making, planning, meeting management, delegation, communications and managing yourself.
Those basics are also the foundation from which to develop more advanced practices in management and leadership. When organizational personnel struggle, it's often because they've forgotten the basics -- not because they aren't implementing state-of-the-art techniques in management and leadership.
NOTE ABOUT THE LARGE SIZE OF THIS MODULE: This module references numerous basic skills that leaders and managers must master in order to be effective in their organizations and their lives. These skills can be practiced throughout this program and in other areas of learners' lives. Readers who are interested in gaining broader contexts of management and leadership can review optional readings suggested in the "Materials for Review" section below.
NOTE ABOUT ORDER OF MODULES: Therefore, it is common to start management training programs with an overview of the board of directors (if the program includes focus on corporation, which are governed by boards of directors) -- the board of directors is legally charged to govern a corporation. However, in this program, this learning module about basic skills in management and leadership is presented before the learning module about boards of directors. The reason for this order of modules is as follows. Frequently businesses are started by someone with a strong vision for a new product. That person often goes on to become the first chief executive of the new business. Typically, that person also takes a very strong role (often the leading role) in the initial organization and development of the board of directors. Therefore, modules in this program are organized to help the founder (and often the first chief executive) to effectively apply basic skills in management and leadership when organizing the board of directors.
NOTE ABOUT LEARNING SUPERVISION -- Supervision is a major aspect of managing and leading. There are certain roles and responsibilities -- and experiences -- that are highly unique to the role of supervision and highly critical to the success of the organization. Therefore, the topic of staffing and supervision will also be addressed in an upcoming module in this program.