Bengaluru Speaks: The Urban Woman

Come join us for the 9th session of

Bengaluru Speaks

An evening of uncommon conversation.

This Month’s theme:
THE URBAN WOMAN:

Inspiration, Challenge, Threat ?

SATURDAY, April 4th

4.30pm -7.00pm

PLEASE NOTE THE CHANGE OF TIME

Ashirvad (30 St. Mark’s Cross Road, across from the State Bank of India, first right after the petrol bunk on St. Mark’s Road)

Come engage in honest and constructive conversations about issues that matter to you and your city.

Bengaluru Speaks is hosted by Meta-Culture. We work to build peaceable and sustainable communities by changing how individuals and groups in conflict talk with each other. For information about our activities, contact: www.meta-culture.org

Last month’s Dialogue: Competing Cultures: Morals, Malls and Marriages allowed participants to share their thoughts about the differences, shifts and clashes of culture in India today. While some sought to preserve tradition, others sought to change with the times-  some feared loss of identities, while others feared identities being forced upon them.

This month, MCD will encourage participants to explore the topic:

“The Urban Woman: Inspiration, Challenge, Threat ?”

This topic was chosen because of the recent violence against women in Bangalore. We would like discussion to both be in-depth and broad, where we talk about the role of women in Bangalore, their changing identity and the differences in perception of the Urban Woman.

Is the Urban Woman an inspiration, a challenge or a threat?

Participants will share their thoughts on pertinent questions that will be posed to them, as well as, have the opportunity to converse with fellow citizens of Bangalore about relevant issues, in a respectful and safe space.

All are welcome.  Invite your neighbours, colleagues and friends.

We look forward to seeing you there!

The Meta-Culture Team

Subsequent Bengaluru Speaks will take place at the end of every month!

For more information about Bengaluru Speaks, Meta-Culture, facilitation, and dialogue, contact us on 080-4152-4785 or dialogics@meta-culture.org.

The voice of silence…

Why is that sometimes one can understand the feelings unspoken but can’t understand words spoken! I really wonder and it is so very strange. Unspoken feelings when understood by our loved ones make us immensely happy. It is a real blessing to find someone who can respond to your unspoken feelings. Sometimes the communication that two hearts have in silence is more beautiful than the words shared….it reminds me of a song…one of my most favorites…“When you say nothing at all”.

Its amazing how you can speak right to my heart
Without saying a word, you can light up the dark
Try as I may I could never explain
What I hear when you dont say a thing

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
Theres a truth in your eyes saying youll never leave me
The touch of your hand says youll catch me when ever I fall
You say it best..when you say nothing at all

All day long I can hear people talking out loud
But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd (the crowd)
Try as they may they can never define
Whats been said between your heart and mine

The smile on your face
The truth in your eyes
The touch of your hand
Lets me know that you need me..

(you say it best when you say nothing at all
You say it best when you say nothing at all..)

Life’s back in the fast lane!

The 2009 Formula one couldn’t have started any better! For the first time (according to the official website) complete newbies have taken over the front row. Team Brawn (Brawn GP) which at one time was not even sure that it would start this season is one-two in the season opening qualifier! Check out the official website for more information on the qualifying.

Below you will find the official calendars’ for both Moto GP and Formula One 2009 season.

2009 Moto GP Season

COMMERCIALBANK GRAND PRIX OF QATAR (Losail Circuit) – 12 April

POLINI GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN (Motegi) – 26 April

GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA (Jerez) – 03 May

GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE (Le Mans) – 17 May

GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA ALICE (Mugello) – 31 May

GRAN PREMI CINZANO DE CATALUNYA (Circuit de Catalunya) – 14 June

ALICE TT ASSEN (Assen) – 27 June

RED BULL U.S. GRAND PRIX (Laguna Seca) – 05 July

ALICE MOTORRAD GRAND PRIX DEUTSCHLAND (Sachsenring) – 19 July

BRITISH GRAND PRIX (Donington Park) – 26 July

CARDION AB GRAND PRIX CESKE REPUBLIKY (Automotodrom Brno) – 16 August

RED BULL INDIANAPOLIS GRAND PRIX (Indianapolis) – 30 August

G.P. CINZANO DI SAN MARINO E DELLA RIVIERA DI RIMINI (Misano) – 06 September

GRANDE PREMIO DE PORTUGAL (Estoril) – 04 October

AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX (Phillip Island) – 18 October

MALAYSIAN MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX (Sepang Circuit) – 25 October

GRAN PREMIO DE LA COMUNITAT VALENCIANA (Comunitat Valenciana) – 08 November

For further information on the circuits and the official calendar, visit: http://www.motogp.com/en/calendar+circuits

2009 FIA Formula One World Championship Race Calendar

2009 FORMULA 1 ING AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX (Melbourne) 27 – 29 Mar

2009 FORMULA 1 PETRONAS MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX (Kuala Lumpur) 03 – 05 Apr

2009 FORMULA 1 CHINESE GRAND PRIX (Shanghai) 17 – 19 Apr

2009 FORMULA 1 GULF AIR BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX (Sakhir) 24 – 26 Apr

FORMULA 1 GRAN PREMIO DE ESPANA TELEFONICA 2009 (Catalunya) 08 – 10 May

FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX DE MONACO 2009 (Monte Carlo) 21 – 24 May

2009 FORMULA 1 ING TURKISH GRAND PRIX (Istanbul) 05 – 07 Jun

2009 FORMULA 1 SANTANDER BRITISH GRAND PRIX (Silverstone) 19 – 21 Jun

FORMULA 1 GROSSER PREIS SANTANDER VON DEUTSCHLAND 2009 (Nürburgring) 10 – 12 Jul

FORMULA 1 ING MAGYAR NAGYDIJ 2009 (Budapest) 24 – 26 Jul

2009 FORMULA 1 TELEFONICA GRAND PRIX OF EUROPE (Valencia) 21 – 23 Aug

2009 FORMULA 1 ING BELGIAN GRAND PRIX (Spa-Francorchamps) 28 – 30 Aug

FORMULA 1 GRAN PREMIO SANTANDER D’ITALIA 2009 (Monza) 11 – 13 Sep

2009 FORMULA 1 SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX (Singapore) 25 – 27 Sep

2009 FORMULA 1 FUJI TELEVISION JAPANESE GRAND PRIX (Suzuka) 02 – 04 Oct

FORMULA 1 GRANDE PREMIO DO BRASIL 2009 (Sao Paulo) 16 – 18 Oct

2009 FORMULA 1 ETIHAD AIRWAYS ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX (Yas Marina Circuit) 30 Oct – 01 Nov

Source: http://www.formula1.com/races/calendar.html

Celebration of Life!

Death is sometimes a punishment, often a gift; to many it has been a favor.

A beautiful death is for people who have lived like animals to die like angels.

What a wretched life it was, his final moments prolonged. He resembled an angel though, after he had died. But life was hell until that final moment.

Old age is a certainty. I guess he spent his last few years wondering about his death. He must have recognized the ominous signs when his vision started to fail. Strength was slowly sapping away from his body. He yearned for comfort, love and care but of no avail. He was on his own.

After having traveled far and wide in his prime, I wonder what went through his mind when he was confined to his bed; the whole world had shrunken to a few meters from his bed.

Being a chain smoker, I was surprised to find that he no longer derived pleasure in smoking. He would put the stub out after a few drags from it. The floor around his bed used to be littered with half burnt stubs. It was unusual for a chain smoker to not finish his stub.

He abstained from eating and drinking, probably hoping for a quicker end. But he had to wait. It seems that he was put on a waiting list that had quite a lot of names ahead of his!

He weakly protested when his family tried to forcibly feed him. I don’t know what caused him more anguish; the act of eating or eating itself.

His body had given up but his heart and soul were still going strong.

For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.

He certainly knew when it was his time to go. He would have probably danced with joy. The family knew too as he started to bid goodbye’s to every one.

He died like an angel, in his sleep. It was like some one had done a huge favor.

They say that a person’s entire life flashes before his eyes when the moment comes.

I call it the final celebration of life because there is no more life after you die.

WWF Earth Hour: Join in…

Citizens from across 85 countries in over 800 cities around the world are switching their lights off on March 28, 2009 for one hour, from 8.30PM to 9.30PM, to raise their voice against climate change. It’s now happening in India for the first time. Tell your family, friends and colleagues about WWF Earth Hour and ask them to join in and switch off for a healthy planet.

This year Earth Hour (Vasundhara Ghatika) has been transformed into the world’s first ‘global election’, pitting earth against global warming. For the first time in history, people of all ages, nationalities, race and background have the opportunity to use their light switch to vote; switching off your lights is a vote for earth, while leaving them on is a vote for global warming.

Earth Hour began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008, the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with over five crore people switching off their lights. The Social Forestry Department (SFD) has appealed to all its 9,000 eco-clubs and four lakh student-members to observe the Earth Hour on March 28. Over 74 countries and territories have pledged their support to vote for earth during the Earth Hour, and this number is growing everyday, officials said.

What will you be doing at 8.30pm on Saturday March 28th? We’re keen to know what you have planned for Earth Hour 2009. If you’d like to share your plans with us, then please email us at 80feetroad@gmail.com. describing the details of what you have planned for Earth Hour 2009.

LOST LOVE

The pain of going through a broken relationship is awful. Realizing that the special person, who meant life, is no more yours is like world coming to an end. Once you are betrayed, it really hurts and you are shattered completely; everyone looks like a betrayer to you.

Here is a love, shedding tears for LOST LOVE:

Greed for money makes a father ruthless!

As I started my day at office, I read this news which horrified me and left me in painful silence. The Mumbai police have arrested a 60-year-old man from Mira Road area for allegedly raping his elder daughter for the last 9 years. The ordeal began in 2000 when his elder daughter was 11-year-old. The elder daughter, now 21, was allegedly raped for 10 years. The businessman started raping his second daughter – a 15-year-old – just a few months ago. The mother of the two girls has also been arrested for abetment. How disgusting is that! The man apparently acted on the advice of a self-proclaimed tantric friend who advised him to establish physical relations with his daughter to improve his financial condition. Along with him, the mother of those two girls and the tantric have also been arrested for abetting the incest.

One side we talk of globalization, rationalization, fighting blind beliefs all that and the other side such horrible acts happen! I was just thinking of those two girls, who were exploited for the prosperity of family and to obtain financial stability! How much painful it will be for those two girls, usually if any problem comes in the childhood or teenage, we go to our parents, share with them and feel so happy sharing every little thing…let it be a bigger or smaller thing. But, where will such girls go, if parents themselves push them into such a living hell!!! How painful it is and what will happen to those poor little girls…how badly their hearts must be wounded along with the physical abuse!!! Thank God atleast the elder daughter revealed about this insane act! She confided in her maternal grandmother when she saw her younger sister being targeted just as she had been by her father. The girls further disclosed that the tantric had raped the younger sister, who is now 15-year-old. For now, the girls are staying with their maternal grandmother and uncle.

Sources: Hindustan Times & IBN Live

Kiss therapy for women with low sex hormone levels!

Kisses can be therapies helping to promote fertility in women! When women were administered Kisspeptin, which is a hormone produced by the “KISS-1” gene, ovulation and fertility was restored in a few. This can be a very good news for women with low sex hormone levels. Animals and humans lacking this kisspeptin hormone do not go through puberty and remain sexually immature, and this is in favour of this new research finding. Kisspeptin is basically the product of the KISS-1 gene and it is a G-protein coupled receptor ligand for GPR54. KISS-1 gene was originally identified as a gene that has the ability to suppress melanoma and breast cancer metastasis. However, several studies have made it clear that kisspeptin-GPR54 signaling has a significant role in initiating secretion of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (also called as luteinizing-hormone) at puberty. Kisspeptin hormone activates the release of sex hormones, which are responsible for controlling the menstrual cycle. Well, this field has several ongoing research studies.

One thing that is very interesting about this KISS-1 gene is the history behind its naming! The naming of the KISS-1 gene and Kisspeptin, was made by a team of researchers, who discovered the gene in Hershey, Pennsylvania, famous for its chocolate “Hershey’s Kisses” (bite-sized pieces of chocolate manufactured by The Hershey Company).

What’s the biggest strength of a woman?

Sowjanya Shankar: Her perseverance

Rocksta: Lots of them….I can narrow it down to two: forgiveness and patience

Shilz: “Being a woman”

Usha Gokak: Multi-tasking and patience

Hari Prasad: Character

Mouli Bhattacharya: Patience

Suja Meladath: I guess patience to tolerate almost anything…even injustice because she thinks of others first

Sangeeta Ghosh Dastidar: Patience, stoicness…..and tolerance too…and…hmmm can go on…

Namisha Srivastava: Her sensitivity

Prerna Peer: Her patience

Rakesh Kishore: Her patience, her never ending love and care to her loved ones…specially children

Kavitha Kumar: Her flexibility

Prathima: There are many, to name a few…her caring nature, patience, never ending love, tenderness, being soft, forgiveness, great cook, big kind heart, adorable and one can rely on her anytime

Shilpashri: Her womanhood

Guruvardhan J: Her tears

Anonymous: Confidence, hard work, timeliness, mannu masi etc… idne alwa elru helodu… ah range alli think madake baralla nange

Surprisingly, most of the women, I asked did not know what is their biggest strength! They just said they do not know and did not want to talk about it further.

Koi mil gaya…!!!

Wondering…why I am talking about this 2003 movie now!?

That’s because our Indian researchers have discovered three alien micro organisms!

Our Indian scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have discovered three new species of bacteria in the upper stratosphere. Stratosphere is a layer of Earth’s atmosphere and it is layered in temperature because it is heated from above by absorption of ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Three new species of bacteria found are highly resistant to ultraviolet radiation and these species are not found anywhere on the earth! This leads to doubts that if these species are of extra terrestrial origin! These three species have been named as Janibacter hoylei, Bacillus isronensis and Bacillus aryabhata. A 26.7 million cubic feet balloon carrying a 459 kg scientific payload soaked in 38 kg of liquid neon was flown by researchers from the National Balloon Facility in Hyderabad, operated by the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. The payload consisted of a cryosampler (also called as cryogenic sampler) containing 16 evacuated and sterilized stainless steel probes.

Generally, a cryogenically cooled adsorber is used in such a system for maintaining the vacuum. Stratospheric air was collected using this balloon-borne cryogenic sampler. And, the probes were telecommand opened/closed at pre- determined altitudes. Throughout the flight, the probes remained immersed in liquid neon to create a cryopump effect. And, for those who are wondering what is this cryopump…well, it is nothing but a vacuum pump, which is able to trap gases and vapors by condensing them on a cold surface. The cylinders used for collecting air samples from different heights ranging from 20 km to 41 km, were later parachuted down and safely retrieved by researchers.

They detected 12 bacterial and six fungal colonies, nine of which showed greater than 98 percent similarity with known species on our Earth. However, three bacterial colonies were totally new species! This experiment does not assure the extra-terrestrial origin of these three species but certainly provides an immense encouragement for those who are highly interested in exploring the origin of life!