Ramana Gove

It is a common, disgusting and unhygienic scene to observe people spitting on the road or spewing out a stream of reddish saliva from pan chewing or a stream of watery ejection from vomiting while on move. Of course, vomiting from the window of moving bus or train or car is understandable to some extent as it is a result of nausea due to motion sickness or gastric disturbance but then, one may keep a carry bag along, and care a bit to peep either side of the window for a while so that the passers by can protect and prevent themselves from getting drenched !The same thing is applicable in the case of those who can not so easily get rid of  other practices. Similarly smoking in public places is another such undesirable habit.A study says that passive smoking( breathing in the smoking of other people ) is no less harmful.If one has never smoked but lived with people who smoke, there are chances of    getting affected from a range of tobacco related diseases such   ...

We often develop a dislike or even look down or undermine the importance of certain branches of knowledge.This happens mostly out of our ignorance in that branch    but certainly not because of our indignation or haughtiness.I must confess that one such subject which I used to think is of lesser importance, is ‘Statistics’.But I understand the height of my ignorance. I believe that figures speak volumes ! Figures compel us to think and analyse and help us to search for a probable cause effect link. Figures provide insights to arrive at certain conclusions which otherwise may not be  possible.     Whether we talk of the GDP data of  trillions of dollars of a nation or the mind blowing findings of the data of observations that estimate a 2 seconds increase in the length of the daily in 100 years’ time due to changes in the earth’s magnetic field, or the data of the weather profiles of the    past decades that help a logical extrapolation with modell...

Marchetti’s constant (Cesare Marchetti is an Italian physicist) speaks of the average commuting time a worker spends.It is said to be an hour a day and quite surprisingly this has been found valid right since Neolithic times.(thousands of years ago)). Taking this in to account and assuming a 38 hour working work , it is said that there would be a substantial increase in productivity due to the elimination of this commuting time. There are some more advantages like :(1)The decreased pollution levels due to an enormous reduction in commuting and (2) the resultant savings in crude import bill for the nations ( more so for energy hungry countries like India ) and (3)the reduced costs of health burden for the nation in the event of this culture continuing for long. Well, it is true that by cutting down the commuting time, the productivity shoots up as perceived, probably fuelled by an undisturbed concentration, reduced stress levels in commuting (more so in buzzing metros),longer connecting...

While the roles of a clinical psychologist and psychiatrist are not to be forgotten and neglected,there is a lot to be done by the near and dear to augment the professional help in mending the things.   The effective tools available for the care takers in dealing with health disorders like anxiety, depression, OCD (Obsessive–compulsive disorder) bi polar disorder are talking,explaining,narrating,instilling(confidence),sympathising,hugging, cuddling, caressing,counselling and consoling,motivating as excessive thinking, fears, phobias, introversion, aloofness, rumination,repetitive gestures,heightened and subdued spirits etc form an integral role in these with an inability to maintain an emotional balance.Introversion and depression often go together while either being the cause and the other, the effect !     Stephen Hawking’s statement that ‘quiet people have the loudest minds’ perhaps applies well to introverts and the depressed as they have loud and chaotic minds,engros...

News of the death of Sean Connery at 90 made me dive into fond memories of Bond movies known for his stellar performance as secret agent 007 ! He brought a distinct glory to the Bond movies by cementing an unforgettable bond with the audience across continents. His gestures, majestic poise in nabbing the culprits and unwinding the ploy of the villains,his sensuous handling of the sizzling blondes,the chasing scenes with serpentine twists and turns of the motor cars and yachts, skurfing and water skiing leaving a long trail of foaming water behind,tubing in a zigzag path on vast s terrains of water,scenes of skiing with a glide on icy mountains, all leave an indelible impression on the minds.Though these features are common in many of the    the Bond movies ,Sean Connery has carved a niche for himself !   James Bond is the iconic character of a Secret Service agent rolled out by the author Ian Fleming in a series of spy novels.Sean Connery was the first actor to portray th...

We see torrential rains lashing the cities, at times breaking century’s old records creating     havoc and almost paralysing civic life.Scenes of cities inundated, roads washed off, lives and livelihoods affected, bunds breached,and many rendered homeless and seeking shelter are common during such spells.This has been the scene of many cities as and when it rains cats and dogs.The most recent instance in the city of Hyderabad is an example when the city reported about 192 mm of rain fall in just 24 hours.The water so available is enough to serve the needs of population of the city for more than 90 days if we take the per capita recommended water need as 135 litres per day for all uses.   All this is just with the rain fall in one day and one city.Then a logical extrapolation to the huge loss of one of the most precious natural resources ( water ) is simply mind boggling when we think of such a large country as ours and it is high time we take measures on a war footing to ...

With hectic trials to roll out vaccine at the earliest, the major issue of global concern is its availability, accessibility and affordability to all. The term availability is meant the number of doses required to reach the global population of about 780 crores.Since a lengthy timeline is needed for such a massive production and supply, the terms accessibility and affordability assume significance since the basic law that governs the markets is the demand supply scenario ! It is said that the rich nations are in the first line.The advanced countries are pumping funds to manufacturers globally.If reports are to go by, wealthy nations have already locked up more than a billion doses of vaccines. The probable monopolisation of supply by the wealthier countries as was the situation in the swine flu pandemic seems a cause for concerns among poor nations. In the case of Covid -19,the access is important to the most needy for the safety of every one let alone ethical or humanitarian concerns ...