Monthly Archives: June 2011

Ride your way through these Riddles !!!

I read these riddles somewhere in the internet.I loved them and decided to post them so that you can also see

  1. How many times can you subtract 5 from 25?
  4. What English word has three consecutive double letters?
  6. Until I am measured
    I am not known,
    Yet how you miss me
    When I have flown.
  7. Two in a corner,
    1 in a room,
    0 in a house, but 1 in a shelter.What am I?
  8. If you break me
    I do not stop working,
    If you touch me
    I may be snared,
    If you lose me
    Nothing will matter.

Answers :

  1.  Only once(on subtraction the number becomes 20.)
  2.  Nothing (Nothing is greater that God more evil than the devil. The poor have nothing and the rich people need it and if you eat nothing you will die.)
  3. Coffin.
  4. Bookkeeper (Another tricky answer is Woollen where ‘W’ can be considered double U).
  5. Few.
  6. Time.
  7. The letter ‘r’.
  8. Your heart.

The Possessed Hand

A new piece of technology has been developed which can be of great use to people who are aspiring to become budding musicians. A team of scientists in Japan has become successful in inventing a device that can be used to manipulate the human hand through a set of wires. It is commonly known as the Possessed Hand (Electric wrist band)for the obvious reason that the hand is controlled by it and so it is believed to be possessed.The device helps you move the right fingers at the right point of time. It was Emi Tamaki , of the University of Tokyo, who took over the responsibility of developing the device, along with Miyaki Takashi, Jun Rekimoto and a team(in conjunction with Sony Computer Science Laboratories) .

The Electric Wrist Band.

The concept behind the working of this device is quite simple. The device is worn around the wrist like a bracelet or band. There 28 electrodes in the device which when around the wrist get connected to the fore arm triggering a range of 16 joint actions. An electrical stimulus is passed via the muscles of the forearm to the fingers which controls them. While the electrical stimulus is not as strong as to move the fingers itself, is strong enough to give a hint to the user as to which finger is to moved. The magnitude of the electrical pulse passing through the fore arm muscles of the users can be controlled by the individual using it. In the entire process the brain does not get involved at all. The hand becomes an external device to the machine and allows itself to be controlled in every manner by the device.

There are other devices that do more or less the same thing but they may involve pain and inconvenience but this on the other hand is extremely comfortable and runs of quite simple a logic. Other instruments with similar effects involve wearing a glove.

Mainly aimed at helping musicians to play instruments that involve plucking, (like the guitar or the Veena) it can also be used for a couple of other purposes like helping people to learn typing, or helping people (who can hear) in communicating with the deaf through sign languages. Another very important use of this invention is that it can be used to help the paralyzed people move their hands specifically their fingers, and become normal.The victims have been reported to receive only crude signals without an invasive surgery. The musicians wear a band of three spectrums while playing an instrument and the stimulus indicates which finger is to moved. Another fact that they noticed was that it reduced the number of mistakes made by the beginners while playing the instrument.

The device has earned criticism from the community of musicians as they feel that users of this device do not actually learn anything new, left alone music. They feel that the users do not learn to play the instrument. They just move their fingers as indicated by the device. They say that while the fingers move and the brain continues to remain  “passive” through the process.

Some people on whom ‘The Hand’ was tried said that the feeling of their hands moving on their own was very creepy. Some people even said that they felt that their body was being ‘hacked’. But Ms.Tamaki said that,

‘We believe convenient technology will overcome a feeling of fear’.

I agree with her. I feel that the invention is absolutely awesome. What I like the most about this invention is that it can be used to help the paralyzed. Hats off to the inventors for innovative thinking and for putting together their thoughts and materializing them. What do you think about the Possessed Hand ? Feel free to share your views on this post or any other post of mine.

Smile Please…

Did you know that a Japanese scientist has invented a device that forces children to smile. The instrument can be used to make adamant children smile. If you want to give everyone the impression that your actually stubborn child is a happy and polite child this is a device that you will be needing. Even if the child does not wish to smile he/she will have to smile. That is the advantage of this device.

The device is a small one looking similar to a pair of spectacles. But instead of wearing it over the eyes they are to wear it such that it fits perfectly under their chin and hooks around the ear. The device does not have lenses but instead has a conducting pad, the use of which you will understand as you read further. The pad remains in contact with the child’s chin.

The concept behind the Electro Smile is quite disturbing. So be braced up for it. When the child wears the gadget , a small electric current passes through the jaw that sets up a reflex in the jaw muscle of the child. This causes the child to widen his/her lips resulting in what looks like a smile.This is actually a forced smile. Along with the reflex that is caused in her smile , there is also an excitement that runs through the whole of her/his body resulting in the viewer misinterpreting the shiver in the child’s body to be his/her excitement. There are also provisions to widen the smile. All you have to do is to set the Electrosmile unit on high.

One major disadvantage of this invention is that it has a side effect. It causes a slight twitching of the head even after the gadget has been removed. Even during normal hours like class or sleep , there is a slight twitch of the head. This device is available only for children but soon is expected to be available in adult sizes too.

Now that is one weird piece of invention from the Japanese. Why do children have to be put through shock treatment to force them to smile ? Don’t you think that the parents who have bought the Electro Smile Enhancer are going a little too overboard in making their kids smile ? If the kids are not in a mod to smile , they should be able to persuade them to smile. Anyways , that is my opinion about the whole invention. People are different and so are their ways of thinking. I give the unknown inventor full credit for his innovative thinking but I really think that it is not nice to make children smile forcefully. They should be given the freedom to express their feelings freely without any restrictions.After how long do they have, to smile and exhibit their emotions freely. Once they grow up they have to worry about not hurting others while expressing their feelings in front of an audience.Thus I feel that it absolutely unnecessary to provide a shock treatment to the children just to put a fake impression in front of others.What do you think ?


Exhausted ? Bored ? Wanna have a good laugh ? Well, you have come to the right place. Just scroll down and you will come across a variety of Japan’s funniest and most crazy inventions.

Japan is always known for its development in the field of technology. It is a country known for the most advanced scientific research especially in the areas of biomedical research and machine production. But as well as they are known for their technological inventions they are also known for their crazy , totally insane thoughts as well. These thoughts , when materialised give rise to the most entertaining and amusing inventions in the history of the world. But as hilarious as these inventions might seem, they are practical and though funny help us in our daily lives and so you’ve got to give them the credit.

The following are some of the comical inventions of Japan. I am sure that by the time you are done with this article you will be having a smile plastered on to your face.

Enjoy!Here goes…

Invention Number One :

Do you get wet in the rains inspite of holding an umbrella ? Well, then this invention will definitely help you remain dry.

Invention Number Two :

Do you hate eating a steaming cup of noodles ? Are you impatient for the noodles to cool down ? Here is what you can do to.You can eat and at the same time blow your noodles.

Invention Number Three :

Do you often fall a sleep from your chair and hit your head ?May be you can adopt the following idea so that you won’t fall off your chair when you take a nap in the public.

 Invention Number Four :

Do you dislike your hands becoming all oily and slippery after you have spread butter on a bread slice or do you hate the excess butter on a slice of bread falling off ?  Here’s what you can do apply the right amount of butter on your bread .

Invention Number Five :

Are you having a heavy cold ? You will need plenty of tissue paper to help maintain a clean nose. May be the image below suggests a good idea. What do you think ?

Invention Number Six :

Do you find it difficult to carry milk for your baby in a separate bag ?You could do this. With this, even the men can feed the baby milk.

Invention Number Seven :

Do people with long hair find it difficult to wear a helmet with, her/his hair plated ? You could do this.

Now apart from the inventions , there is a funny picture that I would like to share with you.

How many of you think that the municipal cleaners are very sincere and efficient in their work of cleaning up the city or town ? May be the picture will change your views on the matter for good.

How did you like my post ? Please feel free review.
These are some of the many photos that I saw in You can click on the link to find many other funny inventions.

How To Create A Resume?

I thought a lot  before ‘typing’ this post as I did not know what to write upon.Today I would like to write to you about  ‘How  to  Create  A resume’.I may not be old enough to create one but I was recently taught  how create a resume in the workshop that I attended.

As you all know a resume is an extremely important part of who you are.It is your identity.Your resume is what decides what you will become in future.A ‘healthy’ resume that has the ability to impress others earns you a good job.Of course you must put your effort  to make it win others approval.

But it is not enough that you attend internships and projects so that your resume looks filled up.You must organize the information in a systematic order.The resume must look professional but at the same time easy to uncomplicated and straightforward.In short, the person viewing your resume should be able to grasp your strong points and achievements, without having to search for it.

Earlier students and officials had to create their own resume by themselves.But today, samples of the same are available all over the just have to Google  it.Here a few steps that will help you create a good resume.

  • You need to first download Kile editor in your system. It is another editor like vim and gedit.It helps you make changes in the sample resume.

             If you plan to install Kile editor through Linux , the command is:

                  apt-get install kile                 //and press enter.

  • Then you need to copy a file of the name modern_cv. It can be found in google.
  • Open the Kile editor and open the folder of modern_cv that you just downloaded from google. There you see a folder named examples.
  • Click on it and choose template.pdf. You get a sample version of the resume(It is of a person named John Doe).
  • Now you need to open the same file using Kile editor so that you can edit the contents to include your name and details.
  • In order to view the changes that you have made you can compile the code and view the changes.

The Midnight Sun

Today is the Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere , meaning that today marks the beginning of the summer in the Northern Hemisphere.From this day on the days , the nights begin to shorten and the days begin to lengthen.It is on this particular day of the year that the axis of the earth is at its maximum inclination towards the Sun at an angle of 23°26′.

The word ‘solstice’ is actually derived from the latin words sol which mean the Sun and sistere which mean to stand still.This is because the Sun is considered to be standing still on this day as it reaches its highest position.

The rays falling on the Earth on Summer Solstice.

In the Northern hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs on June 21st while in the Southern Hemisphere , it is on December 22th.It is on this day that the Sun reaches its highest position in the sky at all places above the Tropic of Cancer-23°26′ N(on 21st June) and below the Tropic of Capricorn-23°26’S (on 22nd December).But between these two latitudes, the highest position of Sun is not seen on the day of Summer Solstice.Though the Summer Solstice, like an eclipse occurs only for a particular instant of time, the day of its occurence is referred to the Summer Solstice.Some people wrongly understand that Sun remains at its highest position all throughout this day. This is not true.

The terms Midnight Sun(Polar Day) or Polar Night are also used to describe the phenomenon. During the Summer Solstice, all places situated on the Arctic Cricle-66.56° N see the Sun on the horizon at midnight and all places to the north of the Arctic Circle see the Sun for 24 hours. This popularly known as the Midnight Sun or the Midsummer Night Sun or the Polar Day. But in the Southern Hemisphere, all places located on the Antarctic Circle-66.56° S are able to see the Sun just at the horizon during midday and all places to the south of the Antarctic Circle do not see the Sun throughout this particular day. This is known as the Polar Night.

The number of days with midnight Sun per year increases as one moves towards the pole.In countries like Canada(especially Yukon and North-West territories) ,Sweden ,Denmark ,Alaska of USA ,Norway ,Finland ,Greenland have almost no sunset from the last week of April to the last week of August. But people getting affected by the midnight Sun in the Southern Hemisphere is low because there are not many number of permanent settlements to the south of the Antarctic Circle.

The term Midnight Sun has been used many times in the Shakespearean novel ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.

The Summer Solstice is often related with many celebrations.In Germany,the midnight sun is known as Sommer-Sonnenwende.People gather around,to watch the bonfire and celebrate the solstice.In Austria, the solistice celebrated by a procession of thirty ships sailing in line down the Danube River.It lasts for about 90 minutes.In Brazil,it is celebrated as a part of the Festa Junina or June Festival which begins on June 12th which is St.Antony’s Day and ends on June 29th which is St.Peter’s Day.The people there erect a pole called the maypole. In Bulgaria,they celebrate this day as Enyovden.The people believe that certain herbs have great medicinal healing power on this particular day especially in the morning during sunrise and so they collect herbs on this day.

In Canada, the people celebrate this day as St.John’s Day.They light fire at night and burst crackers.In Crotia,the midnight sun is called Ivange.Bonfires are lit on beaches or lake shores for young people to dance around and jump over.In Denmark,the solstitial celebrations are called Sankt Hans aften.They put some straw and cloth together to build a witch which they burnt on this day.They also light bonfires on hilltops.In Finland the celebrations are called Ukon Juhla ,named after a Finnish god Ukko.Many bonfires are burnt side by side the largest of them being Ukko-kokko.Young birch trees are also kept on either side of the door to welcome people on this day. Even in Stonehenge (which is one among the seven wonders of the world)midnight sun is celebreted with great enthusiam.

The Midnight Sun at Stone Henge.

The French celebrate this day as the treat of St.John the Baptist.In Ireland there are many fairs and functions held and offerings are also made to the Irish deities.In Sweden a maypole is erected around which the people dance to traditional folksongs.They wear traditional dresses and sometimes crowns and wildflowers on their heads.It is celebrated with great importance here. People drink heavily.It is during this time that the potatoes and strawberries begin to grow here. In Spain,traditional parties are held in the honor of San Juan’s(St.John) and bonfires are lit along with bursting crackers on beaches.In Romania, the people Dragaica on this day.Young girls perform dance and one among them is chosen as the dragaica.She is dressed up as a bride while the others are dressed in white with  veil made of bedstraw.

In Poland the celebrations are called Noc Swietojariska.Young girls throw wreaths into the Baltic Sea.The celebrations begin at about 8 o’ clock in the night.In Latvia,the people eat a special kind of cheese called the Janu cheese and drink beer.They ligth the bonfire and sing songs in praise of Janu.The women wear traditional wreaths of flower and the men wear leaves.In Norway, the day is celebrated as St.John’s Day.In some places mock marriages are arranged which are considered to symbolise the  coming up of new life.

This is how people in different parts of the world celebrate Midnight Sun.Thus science has got linked up with various religious customs and traditional beliefs.

The Queen of Kerala Backwaters

Recently my friends and I visited a place where houseboats were being made. The owner of the business started way back in 1986 and the business is flourishing very well. The interior of the houseboats was so intricate. From the living area to the kitchen to the washroom to the living room, everything about her looked so serene.

A Basic House Boat on the Ashtamudi Backwaters in KollamThis is a basic house boat with two bedrooms and a kitchen and living room floating on the Ashtamudi Backwaters in Kollam district of Kerala.

The houseboat that we visited, had only two bedrooms and of course a kitchen and a living room. But the people there, claim to have built houseboats with eleven storeys or so. The eleven stories were divided into ten bedrooms and a kitchen on the ground level (as in the first level) and  one bedroom and a huge living room on the top. When the guide first said that the living room was on the top of the boat, personally I felt a little weird, because we usually have living rooms in the ground level, in our houses. But then one trip to the top floor removed all my doubts as to why the living room was being designed in the top instead of the bottom-most floor as is the case of ordinary houses. The view from the top of the living room is exotic. A part of it is even open with no foliage. You need not use your imagining capacity too much to guess how beautiful and calm a place like backwaters of Kerala would be. The scenery is picturesque , with the horizon showing only three things – coconut trees ,coconut trees and coconut trees.

As you must be knowing , Kerala is famous for the abundant number of coconut trees that grow here. It also provides a good range of employment opportunities to many along with providing .

OK, now coming back to house boats , the makers of the boat have made sure that even the most minute of details, like the door and the bolt on the door and several other places have been taken care of and though they have tried to give the boats a posh look (like in the case of wash rooms which are styled in the European manner) keeping in mind, the taste of the tourists who come here, who are mostly foreigners, they have not forgotten to give it an authentic look, an ancient look. Like I mentioned earlier, the doors of bedrooms are not of the modern type. They have been designed to be a replica of how the door locks were, in olden days, in Kerala. You can still see locks like that in palaces in Kerala. They are famously known as ‘Manichitra poottu’ where ‘poottu’ means lock.

For the benefit of those who do not know what a Manichitra pootu is, the above is a picture of the Manichitra lock as seen in the boat.

The roofs have been made with great care and hard work so that they are not porous and non-porous roofs are a must in Kerala even in the houses considering the plentiful quantity of rains that this small state receives. They have first covered it with P V C sheets and then beneath the sheets they have placed a layer of coconut leaf blades. This layer is thin and is capable of falling down , if proper support is not provided. Thus to prevent this layer from falling they have also placed a layer of thick bamboo sticks crisscrossing each other and tied up with rope. They say they did not stop with just the P V C sheet so that it would keep the interior of the boat, cool. Also the more the number of layers on the roof, the more is the roof non-porous. The walls have also been built with the blades of coconut leaves.

The roof of the House Boat

The staircase leading the way up , is spiral and one has to be very careful while climbing these because they have railing only one side. All the furniture inside the boat is carved out of Banyan wood – everything including the stairs, doors, windows, etc.. The boat is itself made of Banyan wood.

The spiral staircase leading upwards to the living room

The washroom has been designed European as I mentioned earlier. The water that is used is recycled using special cleansing tablets that kill germs and remove them from water thereby making the water safe for future use. Thus, due to this process recycling only very little amount of water gets accumulated as waste even over a long period of time. I think this is a great idea to reduce the waste water.Besides it also conserves water by treating and using the same water.

The experience was absolutely wonderful. But what amazes me the most is that the people have not graduated in engineering, but still know all the concepts related to engineering, in building a boat so that it does moves smoothly in water and not only do they know concepts but also know how to apply  them. Moral of the day : You need not be a know-it-all to succeed in life. All you need to have is a little amount of common sense and creativity along. Instead of just following the bandwagon, think independently and have little bit of courage to take risk. This can definitely take you to great heights.