ranjan

Peace and security is an essential factor of human life. A peaceful and secure environment is critical to every society since it affects all aspects of economic and social development in a country, and is necessary to realization of Human rights. There is a plenty of authority for the view that, in a chaotic and bloodthirsty world and the threat of violence are the essential building blocks for peace and stability.  Though in the ancient world, from China to Greece to Rome, military might was regarded as essential for maintenance of international order. War is not the only way to bring peace. There are many alternative ways such as negotiating to terms which are reasonable to both the countries, hence resolving the problem. There shall always be a win-win situation. Some terms shall be accepted by one party and some by the others.  Take a look at our two world wars. They have proved that wars cause major suffering and in fact, the only reason that World War I ended was that mo...

In ancient times, the ability to memorize was a prized skill. Memory is an active, subjective, intelligent reflection process of our previous experiences.   When I started writing my blog on May 23, 2018, I never thought of recollecting my memories and write about them. With the passage of time, while I was  searching for new topics to write about, I have thought and now attempted to say something thing about self.  School Time Memories - My first memory goes back to time when my mother dropped me at the school on first day, I started crying as that was my first day which I have to spend at my own in the company of unknown children. This later got sorted out within next few days.  It was the school that made me realize that I am worth something, that I can be someone. Later,  I find it correct as the saying goes - That 'in the school learn as much as you can while you are young, since life becomes too busy later' as you don't have to be the best at everythi...

Since its foundation in 1945, United Nations was considered as an instrument to face the most relevant global challenges emerging in the international system. Its structure and foundation was designed to curtail the negative effects of globalization, like spread of transnational threats, grant peace and security.              As the world power has changed and the range of problems has increased, UN system has failed to adapt. This has left the UN without the political, financial (concerning money management) or resources needed to do enough to deal with the  issues we now face. .    It has been seen that UN cannot interfere with the internal affairs of the country in as far as the Human rights violation is concerned. Though many times UN had proved to be successful in addressing a number of global issues in he past, it has revealed some deficiencies and weaknesses thereby making member states call for reform in terms of its structu...

A timezone is a region of the globe that observes a uniform standard time for legal, social and commercial purposes.  Time zones tend to follow the boundaries of countries and their subdivisions instead of strictly following longitude because it is convenient for areas in close commercial or other communication to keep the same time.  Prior to the late nineteenth century, timekeeping was a purely local phenomenon. Each town would set their clocks to noon when the sun reached its zenith each day. A Clock maker or Town clock would be the "official"time and the citizens would set their pocket watches and clocks to the time of the town. Travel between cities meant having to change once pocket watch on arrival. However, once railroads began to operate and move people rapidly across great distances, time became much more critical. In the early years of railroads, the schedules were very confusing because each stop was based on a different local time. The standardization of time was...

A Hybrid attack is a blend of both a Dictionary attack method as well as a brute force attack. This means that while a dictionary attack method would include a word list of passwords, the brute force attack would be applied to each possible password in that list.        A hybrid cyber attack involves more than just a single threat vector. For example, it can include deceptive email to deliver malware, and then DDoS  (Distributed-denial-of-service) to complicate recovery from a malware attack, as also to disrupt normal traffic of a targeted server. This type of attack enables online criminals to carry out their crimes and then hide their tracks.   Hybrid threats incorporate a range of unique combinational threats specifically designed to target the attacked country's vulnerabilities. The instigator of a hybrid warfare is a state or a group of states that choose a non-conventional approach to warfare. The adversary selects from the whole menu of tactics ...

A setback is a time when you go 'backwards' a little in your progress against social anxiety, either because you faced too high of an anxiety situation or negative thoughts comes up in your head in an inopportune time when you weren't expecting it. Anxiety does not really vanish forever. It is just like any other feeling you have -happiness, sadness, anger, frustration, love and so on. Just like one cannot eliminate those emotions from your brain, you can't rid anxiety from your brain once and for all.       Every setback is a setup for a comeback. God wants to bring you out better than you were before. Never let a small setback ruin your future. They are important, if we pay attention to them. They provide clues that things aren't working, either because of things that we are or aren't doing, of changes outside our control but do impact us. The three common setbacks are due to - 1. Loss of motivation. 2. Self curveballs. 3. Self sabotage.      It is w...

Toxic bosses can make life miserable for even the most of resilient (able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions) of employees. How do they get -and keep- their jobs in the first place? It is all about perspective. many abusive managers can turn on the charm, especially when their superiors are near. To identify these bad apples, company leaders need to talk to these managers' current and former direct reports. When hiring these managers, leaders can include employees who will report to this new hire.  Having supportive managers can lower team quit rates and boost productivity.  In a just world, managers who mistreats their employees would face certain barriers to success. But as a spate of recent news stories, about toxic work cultures and galling executive behavior illustrates, there is no shortage of companies where bad bosses thrive. In some cases, the answer may be that the toxic culture comes from the top.  Such bosses create "yes men" by rewardin...

The impact of coronavirus pandemic in the financial year of 2020-21 would erode all the economic value that Indians have added in the last 16 months - a full fiscal year of 2019-20 and the preceding four months. Large informal sectors, weak institutional capacity and incomplete registries of the poor make it difficult to reach the needy.      The great contraction of Indian economy would affect all products and services which are not essential for a living. Government revenues would decline because of lower consumption and resultant lower profits. It would set the economy back by 28 months-country never seen such unprecedented in its recent history.  It would also effect the ability of State Governments to spend on welfare schemes, which have mushroomed since the economy was liberalized in the 1990s. Governments have limited fiscal sources to support. Though agriculture remains more or less unaffected by the coronavirus as on today, it cannot offset the slump in sect...

Cryo-electron microscopy breaks a key barrier that will allow the working of proteins to be probed in unprecedented detail. By achieving Atomic resolution using Cryogenic-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) the working of Proteins that cannot be easily examined by other imaging techniques e.g. X Ray crystallography, be understood. The number of protein structures being determined by Cryo- electron microscopy is growing at an explosive rate.  Cryo-EM is a decades old technique that determines the shape of flash-frozen samples by firing electrons at them and recording the resulting images. Advances in technology for detecting the ricocheting electrons and in image-analysis software catalysed a 'resolution revolution' that started around 2013. This led to protein structures that were sharper than ever before - and nearly as good as those obtained from X Rav crystallography, an older technique that infers structures from diffraction patterns made by protein crystals when they are bombard...

 A Super Power is a state with dominant position exercised by its extensive ability to exert influence or project power on a global scale. This is done through the means combined of economic, military, technological and cultural strength as also the diplomatic and soft power influence. Russia, France, UK, USA and and China are often referred as great powers due to their Economic and Political dominance of the global arena. These five nations are the only states with veto power on UN Security Council.    Today Indians are hoping like never before that the country is on the verge of a great turnaround. Because it remains a fact that God gives you nuts but does not crack them for you. It is also difficult to brush under the carpet a fact that Indians have great brains. Therefore, we on our own, can produce atomic bomb, created enormous telecom infrastructure and a mark in the software. There are few must-haves without which India story may not happen. These are - 1.  Pu...

As  Human being, we want to feel safe in relationships. feel physically safe in our world.   Therefore, we have developed a belief that if we are respected, we will be safe. But there is a difference in our approach when we strive for safety and we strive for respect. There is also a difference between demanding respect and commanding respect - and there are also alternatives to "respect" for feeling safe.  To demand respect is to tell others, "you will respect me" or otherwise threaten or punish those who do not act according to your wishes. To command respect is to have others observe and admire your actions of their own volition. The underlying desire of having respect feeling safe and in control.  Here are four habits which helps in commanding more respect - 1.  Be worthy of respect - This first point is obvious. This means that - Don't  miss deadlines, Show up on time, Follow through on promises. Make sure all your work is high qual...

While urban demand for consumer products remains sluggish worldwide, rural markets are growing faster than ever in some of the largest emerging economies, where rural residents report being more optimistic about future wage increases than their urban counterparts.  In some countries, rural side has already begun to outstrip demand in the cities.  India, the fastest growing economy in the world and with over 1.25 billion consumers of food and beverages is the fifth largest sector in manufacturing. What's more, rural Indians are trading up. Commodities are giving way to branded products, and more expensive goods are replacing entry-level versions, as consumers gain more disposable income. Their increased purchasing power is largely due to the steady migration of manufacturing jobs to the countryside.   Many corporations are recognizing this enormous opportunity and stepping up efforts to gain a strong foothold in India's rural markets. But they are meeting with mixed r...

Emotional intelligence helps the person in effective decision making and build relations with the society. It is a very important skill in leadership. It has five main elements - self regulation, self awareness, motivation, empathy and social skills. It is enumerated  through deep listening to oneself and  listening to others. Such emotional intelligence influences the kind of relations one shares with its environment and people.  Public servants have to deal with various situations involving tolerance, empathy, dedication, trust and compassion which require strong level of emotional intelligence to deal with the situation. Emotional intelligence matters and if  cultivated affords one the opportunity to realize a more fulfilled and happy life.  The emotional brain responds to an event more quickly than the thinking brain. People tend to become more emotionally intelligent as they age and mature.    In today's world, one has to focus on the following fo...

 This week is the 75th anniversary of the United States' nuclear attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, on 6th and 9th August, 1945. The attack on Hiroshima on 6th August, 1945 killed estimated  90,000 to 1,20,000 people who died either instantaneously or over the following weeks and months from injuries and acute radiation sickness, the result of damage to bone marrow and the intestinal tract.  The bomb leveled 3 days later on Nagasaki on 9th August, 1945 claimed another 60,000 to 70,000 lives. These estimates are rough because there were no bodies left near the hypocenter. The heat and energy literally vaporized the closest persons. Many bodies were swept out to sea with the tides,after dying burn victims sought relief in Hiroshima's rivers.  Within six weeks of the bombings, three U.S and two Japanese expert teams were at work in both cities to study the biological impact of the radiation. Their objectives differed. Japanese were trying to understand the medical effect...

Behavioral change approaches have increasingly gained ground in policy making as they aim to influence how people behave and make decisions. These policies require for an understanding of the psychology of corruption, and second a holistic approach to influence both the mind and environment in which the individual make decisions. Corruption at all levels of societies is a behavioural consequence of power and greed.  The majority of corruption cases in the world involve some form of  contracting. This comes as no surprise as contracts are the main vehicles to spend Govt's budgets. We tend to see corruption in contracting  as a technical problem, when it actually is a behavioral one. The obvious path to address a technical problem is to insist on legal reform. Checklists, adopting standardized laws, or implementing a new E-procurement system do not suffice. Taking human behavior out of the equation does not make Govt. less vulnerable to corruption. It just displaces the ...

Nuclear testing has often been used as an indicator of scientific and military strength, and many tests have been overtly (without concealment or secrecy) political in their intention, most nuclear states publicly declared their nuclear status by carrying out a nuclear test. The effects of a nuclear explosion are much more destructive and multifaceted than those caused by conventional explosives.    The end of World War II marked the beginning of the atomic age, when a number of states launched the nuclear arms race. The beginning of the atomic age marked the outset of nuclear weapons testing, which is responsible for radioactive contamination of a large number of sites worldwide. Nuclear tests were conducted in all environments, namely in the atmosphere, underground and underwater. Atmospheric nuclear weapons testing involved the release of considerable amounts of radioactive materials directly into the environment and caused the largest collective dose from man-made sour...

War has played a major role in Human history, the fact which we prefer to forget. The central puzzle is why states fight wars when an ex post outcome - terms of a peace agreement - comes at the cost of fighting the war. The war primarily start when the leaders begin to think or do is right. Some aspire for land or trade with other countries which are not ready to give. These leaders want to achieve what they desire forcibly due to which a new Government forms and its economy builds a new form of depression. These type of wars symbolize the people to kill or to be killed. Leaders think they have to take away the resources, people and land of other country. It is nothing but robbery. Greed of power, money, land and resources along with the fear of others that they might conquer the nation will allow the person or country to begin the war. The leaders have disregard for human life since they do not feel that human life is valuable. War starts and continues till any treaty meant for pe...

The economy is the start and end of everything. You can't have successful education reform or any other reform if you don't have a strong economy. A strong economy begins with a strong, well-educated workforce. No economy can succeed without a high quality workforce, particularly in an age of globalization and technical change.Economic growth is the white whale that politicians, economists and business leaders have been chasing across the sea of economic policy for decades. Economy and environment are the same thing. That is the rule of nature. In the new economy, education, information and motivation is everything. A free economy and strong communities honor the dignity of every person, rewarding effort with justice, promoting upward mobility, and building solidarity among citizens. When we replace a sense of service and gratitude with a sense of entitlement and expectation, we see the demise of our relationships, society and economy. The economic owning c...

Ego is essentially the sense of being a separate being from the rest of the world takes credit for accomplishments and blame others for what goes wrong. It can express just as easily as a sense of  superiority, or a sense of being injured, as a sense of importance or a sense being neglected. The ego,however, is not what you really are. The ego is your self-image, a social mask, is the role you are playing. Social mask thrives on approval. It wants to control, sustained by power, because it lives in fear. Inflated egos are the type of people who - 1, Who do not enjoy seeing others receive credit. 2. Never see the skills of someone else as superior to their own. 3. Must be out front, all the time. 4. Are poor communicators. Can talk but do not communicate with other people well. 5. Cannot step aside and let someone else use his talents and skills. 6. Do not understand and accept a Teamwork approach to the tasks at hand. 7. Would see the task they are involved in fail if they do not r...

Infectious disease forecasting aims to predict characteristics of both seasonal pandemics and future pandemics. Accurate and timely infectious disease forecasts could aid public health responses by informing key preparation and mitigation efforts.  The predictive model learns from historical data to help predict who will develop acute respiratory distress syndrome,a severe outcome of Covid-19. Despite the advances in medicine, infectious diseases are leading causes of death worldwide, especially in low income countries. With the advent of mathematical tools, scientists are now able  to better predict epidemics, understand the specificity of each pathogen, and identify potential targets for drug development. Artificial intelligence and its components have been widely publicized for  their ability to better diagnose certain types of cancer from imaging data. It is to cover series of applications selectively chosen as to how Artificial intelligence is moving in the field of ...