THE HINDU | MONDAY | MAY 23, 2016

Science & technology

Ethics and you

Goalpost

Water staircases
could play a role in
the warming of surface
ice in the Arctic Ocean.

In the times of
social media, has
the term friend
become devalued?

Sahana Sekhar writes about

pursuing her passion in
food science at the
University of Leeds.

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Exam Prep | Admissions | Scholarship alert | Internships | Offbeat careers | Science | Technology | Campusline
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Know both sides of every profession

SCHOLARSHIP ALERT
Nishkam Scholarship

Do not get enamoured by salary and power. It is important to understand the lifestyle demands that come with the job.
T. MURALIDHARAN

Most
surgeons
in India
work 12 to
14 hours
a day.

here are at least 25 popular

career options in the fields of
medicine, nursing, civil services, software, engineering,
sports, military, architecture
and corporate. Last week, I was asked
to speak to parents and children on
choosing the right profession. The
question and answer session proved
to be very enlightening.
The first insight I gained from the
session is that most of the parents are
ready to support the childs aspirations as long as he/she is passionate
about it, and the profession is rewarding. The second insight is that
they are ignorant that every profession comes with its own lifestyle issues. In other words, the focus of the
parents is on their wards reaching
the top of the profession, without
having an idea about the lifestyle of
top practitioners.
Why top practitioners? While the
mediocre professionals lifestyle may
be more balanced, the lifestyle of top
performers must be understood in its
entirety.
So, let me throw some light on the
lifestyles of top practitioners in a few
professions only to make a point. Of
course, there are exceptions to this
picture that I am painting.
Surgeons: Most surgeons in India
work 12 to 14 hours a day. They perform their first operation at 6 a.m.
and operate on multiple patients till
early evening. Then, they do the
post-operative patient visit and attend to urgent and important out-patient cases, sometimes, till late evening. After this they prepare for the
next days operations.
On weekends, they see out-patients to fill up the operation calendar. They travel for essential conferences both in India and overseas and
often perform free surgeries. This
routine stays for over 20 years or
more after they achieve success. This
means that they have very little time
for their families, friends and
relatives.
Software engineers: My job as a
recruiter allows me to study software
engineers closely. Most software engineers start as code writers, become
team leaders, project managers, program managers, and reach the level

of a practice head in a typical career

trajectory spread over 20 years. To
reach the top, they pay a heavy price
on lifestyle. To meet deadlines, they
work overnight and even over weekends. As they work with foreign clients, they have to work across multiple time zones.
Most of the key client conference
calls happen late into the night and
the expectation is that the corrective
actions happen overnight. Travel to
client locations for short visits or
even 3 to 6-month postings are common; many are on short notice to locations where temperatures go below zero degrees. There are missed
deadlines and client escalations every day, leading to frustration.
Academics: I have a close friend
who is a professor at a leading university in the U.S. I asked him why he
chose to remain in academics despite
the relatively low salaries. His answer was revealing. He said that it is
the only job where one can reflect
on ones life. He has enough time to
read and research. He can take a sabbatical of six months or more to learn

ILLUSTRATION: SATHEESH VELLINEZHI

new things, not once, but many times

in his career. He lives in a beautiful
campus, and, most importantly,
teaches young people, and hence,
stays young till late in life. Why? Because his stress levels are low and his
work-life balance is high. Sure money is not great, but what is the value
of these intangibles that I get? he
concluded.
Civil servants IPS oicers:
Many young people dream of joining
civil services because of the power
they wield and the impact that they
can create. I am very close to six IPS
oicers who are at a senior level in
the police hierarchy. Most IPS oicers start at the ASP level and move
up as SP of a district when they are in
their early 30s. Most IPS oicers believe that the best part of their career
is during their stint as SP. Thereafter,
they assume a variety of roles and reach the Director General of Police
rank in 30 plus years. The good part
of being an IPS oicer is the orderlies
(equivalent to peons) who do a variety of jobs at home, the oicial car and

Risk management at GRMI

A cutting edge curriculum for future leaders.

other perks. On the other hand, there

are several challenges. First, in the
district postings, there is no social
life. Even when posted in cities, IPS
oicers lead a very limited social life
because the press is always looking
for an opportunity to brand them as
Page 3 IPS oicers. The timings are
very irregular and unpredictable.
When you are in key postings, you
have to work 16 hours a day and on
weekends, too. The higher you go,
the greater is the interface with politicians, other civil servants and the
public. On top of this, the police system is hierarchical and boss time is
more important than yours and your
family. All this means you may not be
there when the family needs you, because of work.
Army oicers: The army attracts
bright talent every year through attractive advertisements showing
smartly dressed oicers in a combat
dress battling the enemy. The army
provides the best of the best training to its oicers starting with the

INTERNSHIPS
University Analyst at Valued Epistemics

KRITIKA SHARMA SEBASTIAN

Category: Operations
Location: Chennai
Stipend: Rs. 13,000 15,000/month
Eligibility: All students
Website: http://bit.ly/Twenty19TH570

or those interested in pursuing a

course in risk management, Gurgaon-based Global Risk Management Institute (GRMI) is ofering a
postgraduate diploma in the
subject.
The institute has put together a cutting
edge curriculum to educate aspiring professionals for a successful career in the
risk management market which is growing steadily. The programme has a first-ofits-kind comprehensive risk management
curriculum, covering end-to-end fundamentals of risk management across multiple industry verticals such as manufacturing retail, banking, life sciences, telecom,
hospitality, and so on.
The PG diploma programme is especially structured to bridge a significant
talent gap in the industry. It aims at creating leaders with an innovative and analytical mind, who can be the best in their chosen fields.
It is a full-time one-year classroom
programme with cutting edge curriculum
and extensive infusion of live case studies
to give students a more practical experience. They will also benefit significantly
from the regular course curriculum that
will be provided by leading industry
icons, said a professor from the institute.
Some of the potential recruiters of
GRMI students are large consulting and
risk consulting organisations such as Accenture, EY, KPMG, PwC, Deloitte, Pro-

WHAT'S NEW
Diploma in Training
and Development
The Indian Society for
Training and Development (ISTD), a nationallevel professional and
CM
YK

NDA (National Defence Academy),

IMA (Indian Military Academy) and
OTA (Oicers Training Academy),
and regular training throughout the
service. The salary and perks are excellent at the initial stages and the career growth is almost automatic till
the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Thereafter, the career climb is very
steep, forcing many to retire early.
The lifestyle in an army career has
many plusses and minuses.
The plusses include community
housing, army canteens and clubs,
housing support for children, retirement pension and other benefits.
The minuses include frequent transfers forcing children to change
schools frequently, disturbed family
life and postings in sensitive locations. But by far the biggest minus is
early retirement, depending on the
rank attained.
The retirement age starts at 52 for
Major and 54 for Colonel. When
schoolmates in other careers peak
and the children are in college, some
of the army oicers have to retire
with inadequate income. Their resettlement in civilian jobs is also a
challenge.
Lawyers: The legal community
has probably the widest disparity in
income among all professions, with a
few lawyers earning crores annually
while others struggling to make a decent income. The toughest challenge
in this career is acquiring litigants.
The biggest pluses in the job are flexibility to work from home when your
cases are not in court, significant
court vacation periods, flexibility to
choose and define the workload, and
so on. The biggest minus is the stress
on the job.
While litigants want a favourable
outcome, lawyers are unable to provide the same due to complex and
diicult court procedures, delays in
hearing, unfavourable judgements,
and other problems. Another challenge is extensive paperwork and
preparation time, often eating into
family time. Most lawyers, like doctors, are busy when their families are
free.
In conclusion, my view is that
there are plusses and minuses with
every career and one should know
both sides of the career coin.

This merit-based scholarship has been set

up by Nishkam Sikh Welfare Council, New
Delhi, to help students who are meritorious or
from economically weaker backgrounds. It
aims at inspiring them to achieve excellent results by providing financial support.
Eligibility: Students who are pursuing any
professional degree/diploma courses such as
engineering, IT, computer science, medical,
nursing, home science, architecture, agriculture, business management, B.Ed., Journalism,
CA , and so on. The total family income of applicants should be less than Rs.1,50,000 per
year. Students who have taken Class XII Board
exam this year can also apply.
Application: Download the form, fill and
send it by post.
Prizes and rewards: Scholarships up to
Rs. 30,000 per year.
Deadline: June 30
Website:
http://www.b4s.in/plus/NSW670

Stanford Reliance Dhirubhai

Fellowship
It is a programme through which Reliance
Industries provide financial assistance to students who want to study MBA at Stanford
University.
Eligibility: Meritorious graduates who
have proficiency in English and are committed
to the development of India after completing
their MBA course.
Application: Online only.
Prizes and rewards: Five fellowships are
given each year, under which approximately
$150,000 is provided for the two-year
fellowship.
Deadline: June 15
Website: http://www.b4s.in/plus/SRD669

Fulbright Nehru Masters Fellowships

This fellowship is for outstanding Indians to
pursue a masters degree programme at select
U.S. colleges and universities in the areas of
arts and culture management including heritage conservation and museum studies, environmental science/studies, higher education
administration, international legal studies,
public health, urban and regional planning and
women's studies/gender studies.
Eligibility: Candidate must have completed a four-year graduation programme or masters degree with minimum three years of professional work experience.
Application: Online.
Prizes and rewards: Tuition fees, living
costs, round-trip air travel, insurance cover
and visa support.
Deadline: June 15
Website: http://www.b4s.in/plus/FNM599

The writer is chairman, TMI Group.

Courtesy: www.buddy4study.com

WRITE TO US
The Hindu Education Plus invites Indian students in foreign universities to share their experience about the campus, quality of education, city life and adapting to changes abroad.
The article should not be more than 500 words. Send three diferent pictures of yourself
(one solo, two on the campus) of minimum 2MB size to goalpost@thehindu.co.in

Software Development Internship at Internet

Design Zone

A screen grab of GRMI's website.

tiviti, Grant Thornton and other corporate organisations such as General

Electrics (GE), Tata Group and PepsiCo.
In addition to specific risk management
papers, GRMI also focuses on all round
development of the students. It ofers
hand-pick subject papers such as human
resources, organisation behaviour, applied cyber risk, strategic risk management and impact of digitisation on risk
management.
Led by Subhashis Nath, the mentor of
Global Risk Management Institute, under
the guidance of a board of directors and
strategy board, an internationally represented board of governors, and impressive
academic council, GRMI aims at becoming a hallowed portal for creating future
leaders for the country and the globe.
The duration of the course is one year
and the eligibility criterion is graduation
in any subject. For details, visit
www.grm.institute/.

non-profit society, is inviting applications for

Government of India recognised 75th batch of Diploma in Training and
Development (18 months
distance learning programme).
The course will commence from July 1. The

Category: Software
Location: Mumbai
Stipend: Rs. 7,000/month
Eligibility: Computer Science/IT Students - UG
Website: http://bit.ly/Twenty19TH575
Courtesy: www.twenty19.com

last date for submitting

the application form is
May 31. For details, contact Programme Oicer,
Diploma Programme, Indian Society for Training
& Development, New
Delhi 110 016 or call 01126867710, 26857157. Website: www.istd.co.in/.
ND-X

NOIDA/DELHI

02 EducationPlus

THE HINDU | MONDAY | MAY 23, 2016

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SNAPSHOTS

Water staircases in seas

Earth home to a
trillion species

When a vertical internal wave strikes this formation, a part of its energy may be transmitted through it.

SHUBASHREE DESIKAN

Water
staircases are
steplike
variations of
density of
water due to
steplike
changes in
temperature
and salinity.

GM mosquitoes set to take

wing

nternal waves, which move

vertically through the
ocean, can sometimes pass
through water staircases,
which are steplike variations of density of water, in
such as manner as to churn up
the underlying warm, salty water, thereby increasing the temperature of the top, cooler layers, according to a paper
published in Physical Review
Fluids. This suggests a possible
mechanism by which the upper
layers of the Arctic Ocean
warm up, causing the ice to
melt.
Water staircases are steplike
variations of density of water
due to steplike changes in temperature and salinity. Though
internal waves exist where the
density gradually increases
with depth, they cannot propagate where the density is uniform, for instance, within the
steps of the staircase. While the
passage of waves through a single step was studied earlier, the
interaction between waves and
multiple steps was not really
understood well and is considered for the first time in this
paper.

Science journal reports that millions

Ocean warming

Most efficient solar cell

University of New South Wales

researchers have developed a new solar

cell configuration which has unfocused
sunlight-energy conversion efficiency of
34.5 per cent, according to a report
posted on the university website. This is
a world record and is close to the
theoretical limits for such a device.

of genetically modified mosquitoes are

about to be released in the Grand
Cayman island. It s hoped that these will
mate with other mosquitoes, which
helps spread Zika virus, and produce
unviable offspring. This is expected to
prevent spread of Zika virus.

The Arctic Ocean has inflows coming from the Pacific

Ocean and Atlantic Ocean. In
this, the top layers consist of
cooler and less saline water and
below that is a layer of water
coming from the Atlantic
Ocean which is more saline and
warmer, too. The efect of salinity wins over that of temperature and so, though the water

Unlike the surface waves we usually observe, internal waves in the ocean can stretch over scales
of 10-100 kilometres. This photo is used for illustrative purposes only. Photo: C. Ratheesh Kumar.

below is warmer, it is heavier

than the cooler, less saline layer
on top..
Warm, but salty water ultimately originating from the
Atlantic Ocean resides near the
bottom of the Arctic Ocean. If
turbulence could somehow
mix this water with that above,
then, eventually, the surface
could warm more rapidly, and
this would increase the rate of
sea-ice melt. One mechanism
for mixing is the result of breaking internal waves, says Bruce
Sutherland, University of Alberta, Canada, the author of the
paper, in an email interview.
The internal movement of
water within seas from cold,
dense regions to warmer, lighter ones constitutes the largest
observable waves. These can
stretch to wavelengths of over a

hundred metres and travel

from top to bottom. Like normal water waves, these propagate due to a variation of density of the water and not when
there is constant density. In a
staircase-like
formation,
though the density is constant
within the step, there is a jump
in density from one step to another. Hence, the waves energy
can be transmitted from one interface to another.
Though not predominant,
thermohaline staircases do occur in many places. As well as
the Arctic, they are persistent
in the Caribbean Sea. This is
due to surface heating and
evaporation resulting in warm
salty water overlying colder
fresher water. They do not exist
where there are strong currents, as in the Antarctic, which

have enough energy to stir up

any staircases that might form,
says Dr Sutherland.

Selective filtering
So the scenario is that when
an internal wave strikes a density staircase, a part of its energy may be transmitted through
the staircase. In other words,
density staircases in the ocean
can act to reflect short wavelength internal waves and
transmit longer wavelength
waves. This is analogous to the
selective transparency of glass
windows on modern buildings
that have multilayered coatings
designed to reflect red light
(long wavelength light) and allow green-blue (shorter wavelength) light through
On reaching the ocean floor,
the long-wavelength waves

which have been transmitted

cause turbulence and mix up
the water. The warm waters
then rise to the top and warm
the top layers.
Strong storms passing over
the Arctic typically generate
waves on the order of 10-100 km
horizontal scale. As sea-ice retreats and storms passing over
the increasingly non-ice-covered ocean generate more and
more waves, it seems that still a
substantial fraction of this energy can transmit to depth, and
this may consequently cause
mixing at depth that could
bring those deep warm (but
salty) waters closer to the surface. The filtering that my theory predicts suggests that the energy transmitted to depth
might be moderately smaller
than one would expect in the
absence of density staircases.
But, for the most energetic
waves those transmitted by
storms the decrease is not
substantial,
says
Dr
Sutherland.

IANS

QUESTION

More extreme rainfall on land masses predicted

K.S. RAJGOPAL

How hornbills keep cool

Thermal imaging on a species of

hornbill has shown that they vent heat

from their beaks. They manage to cool
down by dilating their blood vessels to
increase the blood flow in their
uninsulated beaks, a study published in
PLOS ONE revealed.

Early eukaryote fossil

A 1.56 billion year old fossil of an

organism may well be the earliest

multicellular life form, says a study
published in Nature Communications.
This pushes back evidence for
multicellular life forms to a time when
the Earth was very hot and oxygen was
scarce. This pushes the timeline back by
nearly a billion years.

he Earth could contain nearly one trillion species, of

which 99.999 percent are yet to
be discovered, says a study
based on the largest analysis of
microbial data. The findings,
published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that
only one-thousandth of one
percent of all the species have
been identified till now.
Estimating the number of
species on Earth is among the
great challenges in biology,
said one of the study authors
Jay Lennon from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. The scientists combined
microbial, plant and animal datasets from government, academic and citizen science
sources, resulting in the largest
compilation of its kind.
Altogether, these data represent more than 5.6 million microscopic and non-microscopic species from 35,000 locations
across all the worlds oceans
and continents, except Antarctica. Our study combines the
largest available datasets with
ecological models and new ecological rules for how biodiversity relates to abundance. This
gave us a new and rigorous estimate for the number of microbial species on Earth, Lennon
explained. The estimate is
based on universal scaling laws
applied to large datasets.
The authors are Jay Lennon
and Kenneth Locey of Indiana
University. Until recently,
weve lacked the tools to truly
estimate the number of microbial species in the natural environment. The advent of new genetic sequencing technology
provides a large pool of new information, Lennon added.

n the current global warming scenario, extreme rainfall events can be expected
to increase in both dry and
wet land regions of the
world, according to a recent
study published in the journal
Nature Climate Change.
The water vapour concentration increase in the atmosphere
per degree Celsius rise in temperature is 7 per cent according
to the Clausius-Clapeyron theory. Over the ocean, where evaporation is greater than precipitation (rainfall), such as in dry
areas, the atmosphere will get
drier with increased global
warming as the evaporated water, in the form of vapour, is carried away by winds, leaving behind a dry atmosphere. And
where the precipitation is greater than evaporation such as in
wet areas the areas will get
wetter.
But over the land masses it has
been less clear as to how the
rainfall patterns change with
global warming. Based on models and observations it has been
found that global average precipitation increases only about 2
per cent. In some way the atmosphere produces less rain.

Though significant, the study does

adequately. Photo: M. Vedhan
One way that this could happen is if rain increases at the
ClausiusClapeyron rate when
it does fall, but falls less often,
making precipitation events
more extreme. This is what is
seen typically in general circulation models (GCM), the most
detailed models of the climate
system.
Another point is that the heat
released by the condensation of
water itself tends to pull more
moisture into a precipitating
system. This suggests that intense rain might instead in-

not cover tropical land masses

crease with warming at even

higher rates than the ClausiusClapeyron rate perhaps
twice as fast, as some observations for short timescales (minutes to hours) seem to show. On
the other hand, as the atmospheres capacity to evaporate
moisture from arid regions and
to transport it away will increase
at the ClausiusClapeyron rate,
arid regions are expected to become drier still, and it seems
plausible that this would reduce
all precipitation (from light to
heavy) in these regions.

In the study, Dr Markus Donat

of the Climate Change Research
Centre, University of New South
Wales, Australia and colleagues
analyse the changes in observations of annual total and extreme
(the most to fall on any single
day in the year) precipitation
over land for 19512010. They
find that the fraction of the
years rain that falls on the wettest day increases consistently
with the ClausiusClapeyron
rate across both these regions.
GCM simulations of the same
period are consistent with these
observations, and those of the
late 21st Century show that the
trend continues. Therefore, we
can have some confidence that
extreme precipitation risk will
increase not only in wet regions
but also in dry ones.
The study, though significant
for its findings has the drawback
that the tropics were poorly covered. The global warming efects
are most severely felt in the tropics where complex physical interactions make prediction hardest. Also, extreme rainfall data
is widely available only on the
daily timescale. It cannot be
known how it will change on
shorter and longer timescales,
which will indicate the flood risk
in diferent places.

CORNER
TSUNAMI HEIGHT
Why is the wave height of tsunami not so big in
open seas?
- Dr. Sagar Chahar, Delhi
Tsunami is a Japanese word meaning harbour wave. Tsunami
waves are somewhat similar to the wind generated waves we
see at a beach. Wind generated waves are restricted to a thin
layer below the water surface and the up-down oscillations of
the water particles (typically 0.1 3 m at the surface) quickly
decrease as one moves down from the water surface. We can
create such waves by a paddle.
Tsunami waves, on the other hand, are created by a large motion
of the earths crust, for example in an earthquake. A large plate
(hence large wavelength) of the earths crust creates these
waves by displacing water and the energy liberated is huge.
Wave amplitudes are small (0.1 1 m) but the wavelength is
large, typically 100 to 1,000 km. Oscillations of water particles
are not just restricted to the water surface but are distributed in
the entire depth. We cannot create such waves by a paddle.
Because of the large volume of water involved, energy of tsunami
waves is large even though the amplitudes are small. This is why
it is difficult to observe the height of tsunami waves in the open
sea.
But the destructive power of the tsunami waves is felt when they
reach the seashore. Here the same energy gets concentrated
into a smaller depth and hence amplitude becomes very large
and gets noticed.
Thus, the tsunami waves correspond to large amount of energy
liberated in a large volume with relatively small amplitude
becoming noticeable only when the waves reach shallow waters.
- Prof. Mohan D. Deshpande
M.S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, Bengaluru

THIS WEEKS QUESTION

How does an ATM work on touching the glass on
the machine?
- K Ananthanarayanan, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu

Readers may send their questions/answers to

questioncorner@thehindu.co.in

On the sanctity of the cow: the heart has its reasons

SPEAKING
OF SCIENCE

he Vedic People,
since 1600 BCE, have
bred and used the
cow in their homes,
community and society. While these ancient Indians were familiar with a
large number of animals
(horses, cats and tigers, dogs,
deer, elephants and even the
rhinoceros) the cow has always been held and worshipped in maternal terms
(go-matha). This sanctity of
the cow is respected to this
day. She is tame, gentle, gives
us our daily milk, and we use
even her droppings for a variety of purposes.
These are already enough
reasons to admire and adore
her; yet some people have
tried to thrust several
unique but, alas, scientifically untenable properties on
CM
YK

the cow. My cousin Sundaram had sent me one such set

of claims, which are found in
the site https://www.iskconbangalore.org/blog/whyshould-i-not-kill-cow/.
There are a few other sites
with similar scientific
claims. In this column, I wish
to point out whey these
claims are scientifically
untenable.
Here is one such claim.
One cow was regularly fed a
particular quantity of a poison every day. After 24 hours,
its blood, urine, dung and
milk were tested in a lab to
check where the poison
could be found. In this way,
the tests were done not for 1
or 2 days, but continuously
for 90 days in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) New Delhi. The researcher did not find any
trace of poison in milk, blood,
urine or dung of that cow.
Then where did this poison

Many scientifically untenable properties are bestowed by

people on the cow, which science can only refute.
PHOTO: CH VIJAYA BHASKAR

fed for 90 days go? The gomatha hid the entire poison
in her throat. This is a special
quality that no other animal
has.
Comment: Well, my enquiries with some faculty
members at the AIIMS sug-

gest that no such experiment

was done there at all. The Institutes Animal Ethics Committee would not have allowed feeding any poison to
animals in the first place
and for 90 continuous days!!
Claim 2: The cow is the

only creature that inhales oxygen and also exhales

oxygen.
Comment: Other than
plants and mosses that photosynthesise, there is no living being that exhales oxygen. The oxygen that is
noted upon exhalation is part
of the (unused) oxygen inhaled. The lungs of any animal are not eicient in delivering all oxygen from the
inhaled air. Some of this oxygen that was not absorbed is
exhaled. As https://www.quora.com/Do-cows-really-exhale-oxygen. points out, this
is the reason why mouth-tomouth resuscitation works.
Claim 3: Cow milk has
the quality of countering
poison.
Comment: Poison is a
wide word. What poison?
Cyanide? DDT? And what
proof do we have? Science
will not accept (neither will
law) unless proof is given.

How do we prove (or disprove) the unprovable?

Claim 4: Cow urine is the
best killer of microbes.
Comment: That urine
(human, cows) can kill bacteria is known. The mechanism is also known; it is the
acidity of any animal urea
(low pH value around 5), the
presence of urea, and ammonium compounds (vide D.
Caye, 1968, Journal of Clinical
Investigations, pp. 2374-90)
The cows urine is no diferent (paper by A. Ahuja et al.,
International Journal of Recent Advances in Pharmaceutical Research, April 2012;
2(2): 84-87).
Claim 5: We can save
from radio-waves by plastering the home floors and area
outside the home with
cow-dung.
Comment:
Radiowaves is a broad term, with
no specification of the frequency/wavelength
or

strength/intensity. Ordinary
radio and TV operate very
well indeed, whether the
house is plastered with cow
dung or not, and so do cell
phones and wi-fi. Indeed, the
trouble with such statements
is their very generality.
Claim 6: If 10 grams of
cow-ghee is put in fire (yagnya), 1 ton of oxygen is
generated.
Comment: This claim is
totally against the laws of
physics. 10 grams simply cannot generate 1,000 kilograms
in any manner.
None of the claims made in
the above article can be supported by science, bar perhaps one, namely, that cow
urine has the ability to kill
some microbes, and that too,
with some reservation about
the uniqueness of the cow in
this context. And there is no
point or logic in dismissing
science, saying they will
prove it some day, or they

are just against Hindu

beliefs.
Many of us Hindus revere
the cow. This sense of reverence is touching, and unique
indeed. We are moved in admiration and gratitude to the
great help she has ofered to
mankind through her milk
and her ability to produce
healthy babies (cows and
bulls). The cow has been deified not only as Kamadhenu,
but even as the ordinary
household variety.
But with claims such as the
above, the holy cow loses
some of her nobility, and we
start thinking of her more in
utilitarian terms, which is
somewhat demeaning to her.
Plus such tall claims, so easily
dismissed by science, make it
worse. As the French philosopher Blaise Pascal so aptly
said: the heart has its reasons,
which reason does not know.
D. BALASUBRAMANIAN
dbala@lvpei.org
ND-X

NOIDA/DELHI

EducationPlus 03

THE HINDU | MONDAY | MAY 23, 2016

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What is your friendship worth?

KNOW YOUR ENGLISH

S. UPENDRAN

Has the term friend become devalued over time?

ETHICS AND

hear you went to Bhutan

last week. Didnt you visit
the place a year back?
Id planned to go there
a year ago, but I had to cancel at the
last minute.
Oh yes, now I remember. You
had planned to go a year back, but
you fell sick.
I had malaria. By the way, we
dont say a year back. Its usually a
year ago.
I see. The last time I went to
Mumbai was a year ago.
I was in Mumbai a month ago. I
met your cousin and uncle.
Looks like youve been travelling
quite a bit. You went to Mumbai a
month ago. A week ago, you were in
Bhutan. Where are you going to be
next week?
Ill be right here. Were having
problems with the workers.
Theyre
I read about it in the papers.
Theyre planning to go on strike.
Thats right! Theyre protesting
the increase in working hours.
Protesting
the
increase?
Shouldnt you say, they are protesting against the increase?
One can protest against or protest about something. In American
English, however, its also possible
to say to protest something. The
students protested the increase in
fees.
How about this example? The
workers
protested
against
downsizing.
Sounds good. If you ask me,
theres no point in protesting
against anything.
Which is why I never do. Now
tell me, is Bhutan as beautiful as
people say it is?
It is. When you climb a hill and
look down, the scene below is
jaw-dropping.
Jaw-dropping? What does it
mean? Does it mean beautiful?
When you say something is jaw-

In the times of
Facebook, we
have made
friend a verb
and even
introduced the
negative
unfriend!

YOU
MINI KRISHNAN

t is diicult to find a person

who is perfectly content
spending all day in his or
her own company and does
not need anyone else. Deep
down, everyone desires company. That is just the way we
are. Research has found that social integration is more important for well-being than
income.
There was a time, before our
lives became as urbanised as
they are today, when most of
our socialising was done within the family. Either a wedding
or a birthday or an illness or
someones demise brought and
kept families together. No major decision was taken without
consulting various family
members, even though we
knew all of them would say
nearly the same thing. It was
considered discourteous to
take a decision and then inform
the family!
Gradually, when people
started moving to diferent
places in search of education
and jobs, the only contacts we
had outside our family were
those we made at school, college or work. These acquaintances rarely came home, nor
did we visit their houses. An elder at home always raised
questions concerning their
caste or social standing.
Things are vastly diferent
today. Visit anyone in a hospital
and you are bound to see as
many friends of the patient as
members of his or her family.
Indeed, many people see

How deep is your bond? PHOTO: NAGARA GOPAL

friends as family. In some instances, friends take the place

of family and know far more
about ones problems and
hopes than the family members. Some years ago, the mother of a friend kept in touch with
me because she felt that I understood her daughter better
than she did. She confides in
you. Let us know what she feels
about
And yet, sometime ago, I told
myself I would reserve Fridays
to visit my friends, invite one or
the other to lunch, or to watch a
film. This lasted for five weeks.
Work pressure interfered too
much, and I fell back into the
mailing, telephoning and the
occasional visit routine. It isnt
that they were not important,
but that I simply couldnt man-

age my time eiciently.

I asked myself, What is my
friendship worth?
What do we mean when we
say, He/she is my friend, or I
am a friend of ? Acquaintance is not friendship. Merely
spending time with someone
isnt friendship either. Friendship is something else, entirely
personal and based on mutual
regard, understanding and give
and take.
We like to think that we are a
friend to this or that person.
But how deep is this bond? Is it
just for the good times? When
did you last put everything
aside to help or advise a friend?
Like all relationships, friendship comes with some obligations most of them unsaid.
If you know your friend is on

a dangerous path, it isnt friendly to stay silent. Speak up, argue, maybe even fight, but never give up persuading your
friend to stop doing whatever
you think is unworthy or
unhealthy.
Then, there are other relationships that pass for friendship. Friendships of convenience.
A family I know gets in touch
with me only when they need
something: a book, an appointment with a doctor, travel tickets, my influence to influence
someone whose influence they
need. They never ask how I am
and if there is anything they can
do for me. The extraordinary
thing is that I continue to be
fond of them and still describe
them as friends. Do you have

anyone in your life like that? Be

very clear: they are not friends!
Older communities had interesting variations of the word
friend. Old English had freonsped (an abundance of
friends), freondleast (want of
friends) and freonspedig (rich
in friends). Today, the term
lacks that richness and texture
and has undergone devaluation. And, in the times of Facebook, we have made friend a
verb and even introduced the
negative unfriend!
Recently, I came across a
quotation from the most complex of epics, the Mahabharatha, that captures what Im
trying to say: A friend is one
who can be trusted like a father.
Others are mere companions.
Unless friendship is a medium of mutual growth with both
sides giving and absorbing
gracefully, the relationship will
either wither away or put forth
bitter fruits of injury and painful memories.
On the other hand, true
friendship, such as kindness, is
never wasted and is a distillation of what lifts us above the
rest of the animal kingdom, encapsulating
untainted
goodwill.

dropping, what youre suggesting is

that its amazing. Youre so astonished or surprised by what you see
that you stand there gaping your
mouth is wide open.
I see. During his fifty-ball innings, Kohli played several jawdropping shots.
Yes, in this years IPL, hes played
some jaw-dropping innings. My sister said that some of the special effects in the new Jungle Book movie
were jaw-dropping.
Arent you supposed to treat me
to a movie this weekend?
Lets postpone it to next weekend. Ill definitely take you. Its a
promise.
Mother promise? Tell me, do native speakers of English say mother
promise?
The expressions god promise
and mother promise are mostly
limited to India. Here, its mostly
children that use them. Theyre
probably a translation of expressions in our Indian languages.
Really? Are you saying that
mother promise is a translation of
the Hindi maa kasam?
Not just Hindi. Other Indian languages have a similar expression.
But tell me, if mother promise
doesnt exist, whats the expression
that native speakers use when they
want to make it clear that what
theyre about to say is the truth, the
whole truth and nothing but the
truth?
The most common expression
they use is swear on my mother.
For example, I swear on my mothers grave that I didnt steal the
money.
Thats what all our politicians
say.
****
I apologize for lying to you. I
promise I wont deceive you except
in matters of this sort. Spiro T.
Agnew
Email: upendrankye@gmail.com

Email: minioup@gmail.com

The road less travelled

Reach out for support

Unhappy with your results? Don't bottle up your feelings.

Seven unique courses offered at various colleges

across the country.

MIND
MATTERS

OFFBEAT

DR. SAMIR PARIKH

Puppetry

AISHWARYA RAGHU KASHYAP

ealing with poor

academic results is
an unpleasant and
stressful experience for both students as well as parents. It is
a situation which could lead
to a mixed bag of emotions,
including worry, despair,
anxiety, apprehension, as
well as confusion, to name a
few.
It is not easy to struggle
with this alone and the following points can be kept in
mind to deal with it.
Talk about it. It is not uncommon for parents or students to have negative
thoughts and feel distressed
when the results do not
meet our expectations.
However, it is important to
not bottle up ones feelings
inside. Instead, we need to
be willing to talk it out, vent
out our emotions and share
our distress with our near
and dear ones.
Spend time with friends.
You are not the only one
who has experienced the
pressures of the exams and
their result. Your friends
have also sailed in the same
boat.
Reach out to your peers
and seniors and talk to them.
However, remember not to
compare your performance
with others. Spending time
with friends who can identify and relate with your feelings can be beneficial.

WASSUP
B.Tech., M.Tech. at
NIFTEM
The National Institute of
Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management
(NIFTEM), Sonepat, under
the Government of India, has
invited applications for admission to its B.Tech., M.Tech.
and PhD programmes for the
year 2016- 17.
Those who have passed
class XII with physics, mathematics and one of the subjects
from chemistry, biotechnology, computer science and biology, and secured at least 50
per cent aggregate marks in all
subjects, are eligible to apply
for the B.Tech. programme.
Those who have appeared in
JEE (Main) can also apply. Admission is based on the all India rank if JEE (Main).
Those who have passed
four-year bachelors or masters degree in relevant disciplines with 60 per cent aggreCM
YK

Do not compare your performance with others.

PHOTO: K. ANANTHAN

Rely on the support of

your parents. Through they
might have been after you to
study (if at all), remember
that they are the ones who
would ofer you their unconditional support.
Therefore, do not hesitate
to talk to them about your
fears and worries. Share
your disappointment with
them and seek their feedback and guidance for dealing with it.
Call on helpline numbers
by experts. Today, help is
easily available and accessible. Do not feel hopeless or
alone in your troubles.
If you are unable to talk to
your friends or parents, do
not hesitate to call on the
helpline numbers being run
especially during the time of
results by mental health experts. They can hear out
your problems and ofer solutions of coping with the
situation in a better manner.
Do not hesitate to reach
out to a professional. Remember, struggling alone to

gate marks are eligible to

apply for the M.Tech
programme.
The eligibility for admission to the PhD programme is
an M.Tech / masters degree in
a relevant discipline with minimum 60 per cent marks. For
details,
visit
www.niftem.ac.in/.

PG Diploma at C-DAC
The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing
(C-DAC) has invited online
application till June 9 on
www.cdac.in for the entrance
examination to be held on
June 19 and 26 for admission to
job-oriented 24-week fulltime PG Diploma courses in
Advanced Computing, Big
Data Analytics, IT Infrastructure Systems and Security,
Mobile Computing, VLSI Design, Embedded System Design, System Software Development,
Geoinformatics,
Biomedical Instrumentation
and Health Informatics and
Internet of Things.
Engineering graduates and

Struggling
alone to
deal with
your stress
is not a sign
of strength.
deal with your stress is not a
sign of strength. Be willing
and open to reach out for
help from a professional
mental health expert, who
can help you to identify
your concerns and ofer
more adaptive coping strategies for overcoming the situation while also planning
for a better future.
Parents have an important part to play, too. They
should avoid criticising the
student, believe in their
wards strengths and try to
motivate them.
The writer is director,
mental health and
behavioural science, Fortis
Healthcare.

MCA holders are eligible to

apply. For details, visit
www.cdac.in/.

CIFNET Entrance
The Central Institute of
Fisheries Nautical and Engineering Training (CIFNET),
Kochi, has invited online applications from those who
have completed SSLC/ HSC
with 50 per cent marks in
mathematics and science for
admission to Bachelor of Fishery Science (Nautical Science) and Vessel Navigator /
Marine Fitter course.
Application deadline is
May 27. The four-year Bachelor of Fishery Science (Nautical) course is ailiated to CUSAT, Kochi, and approved by
DG Shipping, Mumbai.
The age limit is 17-20 years
as on October 1, 2016. Selection is based on the entrance
test which will be held on June
11 at Kochi, Chennai and Visakhapatnam. For details, visit
www.cifnet.gov.in/.
Compiled by
Gopakumar Karakonam

he 21st century generation has broken

the chains of conventional doctor-engineer
paths
and
moved on to slightly more
creative ones. Various ofbeat courses are available in
India today, that are helping
to widen the scope of career
choices for students. Here's a
look at some of-beat
courses.

Alcohol Technology
University: Vasantdada Sugar Institute, Maharashtra
As fascinating as this
course sounds,
it doesnt involve any debauchery
as
suggested by the name. Vasantdada Sugar Institute
(VSI) was established in 1975
by sugarcane growers to carry out all scientific, technical
and educational functions
relevant to the sugar industry.
They also have a Department of Alcohol Technology
that has been working towards helping the distillery
industry. Their main work
involves perfecting ways to
increase the productivity of
this industry by developing
and adopting better technology.
The department ofers
three types of courses and al-

Reaching new heights. PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

so conducts national-level
workshops.

Carpet Technology
University: The Indian Institute
of Carpet Technology, Allahabad
As unusual as
it sounds, this
institute
has
been set up by
the Indian Ministry of Textiles.
The Indian Institute of Carpet Technology (IICT) aims
at supporting the carpet and
allied textile industries by increasing skilled labourers
and technical support.
The syllabus of the programmes covers both practical as well as theoretical understanding of the process of
dyeing, textile fibres, carpet
washing, and so on.
It also has a range of regular, distance and short-term
courses.

Mountaineering
University: Nehru Institute of
Mountaineering
If you like living on the edge,
enrolling for the
mountaineering
course at Nehru
Institute
of
Mountaineering might be
the best decision you make.
ITBPs Mountaineering and
Skiing Institute, The Jawahar
Institute of Mountaineering
and Winter Sports in Pahalgam, Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering
and Allied Sports in Manali,
Himalayan Mountaineering
Institute in Darjeeling and
Sonam Gyatso Mountaineering Institute in Gangtok, are
some of the other institutes
that provide this course.
There are mainly two levels
of training, after which you

Bachelors programmes at SNU

TABU AGARWAL
hiv Nadar University has
opened admissions for
its undergraduate programmes Bachelor of
Science (Research), Bachelor of Arts (Research) and
Bachelor of Technology.
It has also announced the
launch of a new bachelors
programme in management
studies (BMS) under the aegis of the School of Management and Entrepreneurship
(SoME).
The BMS programme is
designed to provide students with a strong foundation of specialised knowledge through experiential
learning. Other opportunities include early global exposure through exchange
programmes, internships
and projects at partner universities such as Duke, Carnegie Mellon and Babson

can either become an instructor or take up a career in

mountaineering and allied
sports.

College.
The university has also
earmarked a scholarship
fund of Rs. 35 crore for its
undergraduate
students
that will cover full or partial
education and living expenses for the entire duration of the programme.
Over 13 per cent of students from the graduating
class of 2016 have secured
admissions in masters and
doctoral programmes of
some of the top international universities.
In India, the universitys
students have been selected
by IIM Lucknow and ISB
Hyderabad to pursue higher
education.
Application deadline for
the undergraduate programmes is May 31 and the
last date to appear for SNUSAT and APT test is June 9.
For
details,
visit
www.snu.edu.in.

University: Mumbai University

The Mumbai
University offers a fourmonth
parttime puppetry
course that one
can take after completing
class XII. Puppetry is one of
the oldest forms of entertainment in the country which
has time and again found
ways to revive itself, proving
its importance in Indian arts
and culture. The Calcutta
Puppet Theatre will also
soon start a puppet academy
which will cover all theoretical and practical aspects of
the art.

Bachelor in Rural Studies

University: Bhavnagar University, Gujarat
This course is
a great start for
anybody interested in exploring and understanding
the
rural side of our country. The
syllabus covers a range of
topics such as animal husbandry, forestry, farm management, child development,
agriculture,
environment
management and community development. Several colleges across Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh ofer
similar courses, post which
one can apply for jobs at various government and private
organisations and NGOs that
work for rural issues.

Astrobiology
University: Indian Astrobiology
Research Centre, Mumbai
The questions
surrounding the
existence of extraterrestrial life
still remain unanswered. For all
the space-bufs out there, Astrobiology can quench your
thirst. Not only does it deal
with the study of origin, evolution and distribution of life
in the universe, but also
probes into the possibility of
extraterrestrial life. This
course is ofered by the Indian Astrobiology Research
Centre (IARC), which is an
autonomous scientific body
that conducts and encourages theoretical research in the
field. IARC also ofers a diploma course in the field of
Astronomy and Cosmology,
Space
Sciences
and
Evolution.

Gandhian Thought
University: Yashwantrao Chavan
Maharashtra Open University,
Nashik
If you have always been fascinated by Gandhi's way of life
and have wanted
to understand it
better, you can join the
Gandhi Vichat Darshan programme, a one-year diploma
course ofered by Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra
Open University.
It includes the study of his
life, philosophy and methodology, apart from the Ahimsa
and
Satyagraha
movement.

Spirit of Ramanujan Math Talent Initiative

SHUBASHREE DESIKAN
he Spirit of Ramanujan
Math Talent Initiative
strives to find undiscovered
mathematicians
around the world and
match them with advancement opportunities. These
include:
An open round hosted on
www.expii.com (via its
Solve feature) invites people from around the works
to solve creative mathematical puzzles through their
smartphones.
Participants in the open
round will be invited to apply for further enrichment.
Up to 20 eligible individuals will be awarded Templeton-Ramanujan Scholarly
Development Prizes to use
for furthering their educational pursuits and development. Just as Ramanujans
journey
was
transformed by his introduction to the mathemati-

cal community, successful

applicants will be invited to
participate in the 2017 Joint
Mathematics
Meetings,
which will be held in Atlanta from January 4-7. There,
they will engage with
award-winning mathematicians (such as Fields Medalists, Cole Prize winners
and Steele Prize winners).
Organised by the Mathematical Association of
America and the American
Mathematical Society, the
JMM is the largest annual
mathematics conference in
the world. Its purpose is to
advance
mathematical
achievement, encourage research, and provide the
communication necessary
to progress in the field.
Up to 10 participants will
be ofered financial support
to attend and participate in
approved summer research
in mathematics. They will
receive a Templeton-Ramanujan Summer Fellows

Prize to cover the summer

programme expenses.
Educational material related to Srinivasa Ramanujan and The Man Who
Knew Infinity will be offered to educational programmes worldwide.
To enter the open round,
visit
the
link:
expii.com/ramanujan
The Spirit of Ramanujan
Math Talent Initiative is
headed by Ken Ono (Emory
University) with an advisory board that also includes
Manjul Bhargava (Princeton University), Olga Holtz
(University of California,
Berkeley), Po-Shen Loh
(Carnegie Mellon University) and Sujatha Ramdorai
(University of British Columbia). Corporate Sponsors of the Spirit of Ramanujan
Math
Talent
Initiative include Expii,
Texas Instruments, Springer
Publishing,
and
Maplesoft.
ND-X

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04 EducationPlus

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Be a food technologist
The food processing industry offers diverse work options.

CAREERS

Students can
choose to
supplement
their
education
with logical
and math
classes to get
better jobs.

RITU MEHROTRA

ood processing is a section of food science. It involves research on improving proficiency for
altering raw components
into food fit for consumption.
The growing consumerism in
developed and developing
countries has added to the rise
of food processing industries.Currently, the food processing
business in India has been acquiring impulse as the consumers food industry. Five hundred
food parks are expected to come
up across the country. This will
promote the emergence and
growth of food processing industries and will generate huge
employment
opportunities.
The food processing business is
coming of age and is placed fifth
among industries in India.

Challenges
Even though food technology
is a versatile field, one has to
face various challenges on a
day-to-day basis. Ensuring the
growth of a new product which
tastes good, is of superior quality, and, at the same time, cost efficient, is a tough task. New food
laws have allowed the use of
some ingredients in functional
foods that help diminish the
threat of certain ailments such
as heart disease, diabetes and
cancer. These changes have to
be integrated into the product
without disturbing its taste. Another challenge is that new
global food products are coming into the market due to which
the local products are struggling to compete.
A proper SWOT (strength,
weakness, opportunity and
threats) analysis is required before opting for a career in food
processing industry. It is essential to evaluate whether you are
ready to work in this challenging field which is still at a budding stage, but has a bright
future.
Analyse the work environ-

TASTY TREAT | Food specialists in the making. PHOTO: V. RAJU

ment in the food processing sector before deciding to join. It

can involve activities such as
clean-up of the raw material,
blanching, chopping, cooking of
food items, crushing, mixing,
adding preservatives, final covering, and so on.

Skills required
Attractive career opportunities are available for those who
have technological qualification in food processing. However, tips notch firms look for specific qualities while hiring.
Some tips to get hired in this industry are as follows.
An early start to study food
processing is important. Students should start preparing for
the various entrance exams as
soon as they complete class XII.
Those who are meticulous,
hygiene-focused, careful, hardworking, and possess organisational skills can gain an edge
over other candidates.

There is no substitute for

technological acumen in food
processing. Therefore, candidates possessing excellent domain knowledge always have
better work opportunities.
People interested in working
in the food technology field can
obtain an associate's degree in
applied science in food technology. But graduate or higher degrees may be essential for some
places. Students can choose to
supplement their education
with logical and math classes to
get better jobs. Some positions,
such as a food inspector, might
involve certification, while others might only necessitate a
two-year degree and work understanding. Candidates with a
postgraduate degree or doctorate can work at universities,
government or research firms.

Career options
Food research specialist:
This involves overseeing trials

on food products and may include checking components

things such as preservatives,
colour, nutritious value and surface of the food.
A food research expert may
also work thoroughly with the
rules set out by the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA).
These specialists work in a lab
and might be part of a superior
team of food technology
experts.
Food inspector: Also called
a value control examiner, a food
inspector makes sure that the
products coming from industrial lines or wrapping do not have
harmful substances that might
cause side efects or diseases.
Food examiners may run investigations on packaging or the
food itself.
These specialists also monitor particular guidelines fixed
by the FDA to maintain the
health and safety of customers.
Food product enlargement

director: Food product enlargement directors, also recognised as food scientists, work to
grow new food products and
habits to bundle or uphold food.
Occasionally, these specialists
determine completely new food
causes or control correct
amounts of fats, vitamins and
food additives. Food product
designers work thoroughly with
the FDA's rules that define everything from new canning
methods to enhancing food
waste management.
There is a huge demand for
candidates with specialisation
in food processing technology
in organisations based in the
U.S. and Europe.
Students from India possessing the necessary skills can get
attractive jobs in these
countries.

Remuneration
Food technology specialists
can work at public and private
divisions in numerous positions
such as food packaging manager, associate manager, food scientist, production manager, research
and
development
personnel, food expansion manager, quality control oicer,
food care examiner and food
stylist.
A fresher can expect a salary
package between Rs. 4 lakh and
Rs. 6 lakh per year. People with
work experience can get remuneration in the range of Rs. 8 lakh
to Rs. 10 lakh per year.
The writer is vice president,
Global Growth, Zomato.

Sahana Sekhar

Food science at Leeds

Informational lectures, supportive PhD
students and an effective curriculum have
given her a better understanding of the field,
writes SAHANA SEKHAR.

GOALPOST

hile searching for universities that provided

a masterss course in
food science, I came
across a few varsities
out of which University of Leeds,
U.K., grabbed my attention.
I have found food science interesting since my undergraduation
days. Today, with the advancements
in food technology, food manufacturing requires enhanced food quality, food safety and increasing innovations in products for the
consumers.
The masters programme helped
me broaden my knowledge of food
science, with the focus on chemistry and biochemistry, and, at the
same time, also understand physics,
mathematics and biology which are
required to master this course.
Not only does the course help in
understanding the processing of
food but also in applying fundamental scientific concepts to understand the complexity of food
components.
The most challenging part for me
was staying alone as I had never
lived and travelled so far away from
my family. But I felt at home in just a
few days after my arrival, thanks to
the welcoming fellow students and
seniors. The induction week helped

me interact with people from all

over the world and the social activities made me feel comfortable, due
to which I was rarely home sick.
The lecturers and some of the
PhD students were really helpful
and the course curriculum helped
me gain more interest in food and its
components. The programme encourages students to research on
their areas of interest. This helps
them to develop personal skills and
communicate efectively in a professional workspace.
I joined several societies under
the students union which helped
me stay proactive outside academics and widen my network of
friends. The university has over
30,000 students; this allowed me to
interact with a lot of people from
varied cultures and traditions.
The city of Leeds is quite vibrant
and considered as the cultural, financial and commercial hub of
West Yorkshire. Living costs are relatively cheaper as compared to the
other parts of the U.K. The city has a
lot of eateries that are located close
to the university.
Studying at University of Leeds
has helped me shape my personality, manage my time and get a job in
India.
The writer pursued Masters in
Food Science from University of Leeds
and is currently working
as a research executive at
General Mills, Mumbai.

Make the most of internships

New direction to psychology studies

Competitive edge, high stipends and exposure

lucrative opportunities abound for students.

Ambedkar University Delhis M.A. psychology programme aims at infusing real-time relevance into the
discipline and linking it to the human experience.

AARTI PRASHANT

COURSE

CLOSE-UP

hy do students from colleges ailiated with the

University of Delhi intern
with companies all
through the year? To put
it simply, internships ofer practical experience along with a platform for a career path.
There are umpteen options in consulting, writing/content writing, operations, marketing, research, social service/NGOs, and so on. With companies
such as JSW, Willis Towers Watson, Citi
Bank, Teach for India and Asmat NGO
ofering various opportunities, internships in Delhi colleges happen all
through the year with summer and winter internships for two months and one
month respectively. There are also internships that students take up alongside their college studies.
Internships have had a facelift due to
the growing competition and proficiency of young students. Companies are
utilising students innovation and intellect. With various internship options
on ofer and the growing prominence of
interns, paid opportunities are on the
rise to identify the best possible candidate.
For instance, a student from Lady
Shri Ram (LSR) College for Women has
bagged the highest paid internship at
the University of Delhi. She will be getting a stipend of Rs.1.4 lakh for two
months from the American bank she
has joined. Dr. Kanika K. Ahuja, Convener, Placement Cell, LSR College,
says, The company must have noticed
her leadership qualities as well as out of
the box thinking ability to be able to offer her such a high stipend for an internship. Likewise, a stipend shows that a
students skills will be given importance at the company throughout the
internship period. The highest paid internship at St. Stephens College this
year is Rs. 80,000 for a period of two
months.
When it comes to profile, money
takes a back seat. Students give more
importance to a job profile, with money
being an added incentive. Some students who do not come from a well of
background give priority to money
while interning, says Novy Kapadia,
Convener, Placement Cell, S.G.T.B.
Khalsa College. Some prefer to work
with good companies in order to have
an impressive resume, as bigger companies have a well-structured internship
programme where students can learn a
lot.
Growing competition has opened up
new avenues for the students to take up
interesting internships. St. Stephens
College saw some unique internship
opportunities in the field of social service this year. For example, Kitaab, a
Delhi-based NGO, has given students
CM
YK

As it is a
psychosocial
clinical
programme,
societal
outsiders
are relevant
to the
discourse.

SAMAR

Hands-on experience helps.

PHOTO: PALLAVA BAGLA

When it comes
to profile,
money takes a
back seat.
an opportunity to associate themselves
with the children of the families displaced due to the construction of the
Tehri Dam and instil in these children
the habit of reading. S.G.T.B. Khalsa
College has students taking up internships with the DU Beat, an independent
student newspaper created by the students of Delhi University. They also
have an opportunity to work as an RJ
for the DU Community Radio.
There are many internship opportunities for science students, too. A company called Core Diagnostics has approached St. Stephens College to
provide the students of the B.Sc. programme an opportunity to intern at
Digital Pathology Library as well as research and development. Bhavya Madan, a B.Sc. (Hons) mathematics student from St. Stephens College, has
bagged an internship with the global
data services team of Willis Towers
Watson.
Placement cells play a significant
role, too, by providing constant support
to the students. A very successful event
steered by the LSR college placement
cell helped a student secure a scholarship of Rs.1 lakh as well as an internship
opportunity with Ernst and Young.
Based on the performance, the students of pre-final or final year get a preplacement ofer (PPO) from the company they interned with.

ucked away as an optional humanities subject in a section of

schools,
psychology
does not enjoy mainstream recognition. Given that
the discipline can provide perspective on many other fields,
the fact that it is viewed only as a
specialised branch of learning is
unfortunate. As far as the application of psychological constructs to the blurry fault lines of
society is concerned, there is a
void. Ambedkar University Delhis M.A. psychology programme, Psychosocial Clinical
Studies, attempts to fill that
void.
Less than a decade old, AUD
aims to infuse contemporary, real-time relevance into many of
the subjects it ofers, one of
which is psychology. Some of
the teachers who started the
psychology programme left other universities to come to AUD
with a clear aim: to treat the discipline as a social science with
everyday implications.
Mainstream psychology has

Studying refugee life: Part of the discourse. PHOTO: AP

little space for the depth of human experience, says Prof.

Honey Oberoi Vahali of the
AUD psychology department.
Earlier on, psychology was
closer to philosophy. A split
came about as it wanted to prove
its identity within the sciences
and its methods became that of
objectivity and validation. The
human element got lost Psychologys unit of analysis is generally the individual. As it became more positivist, the
contextualisation of the individual lost significance. We wanted
to take psychology out of the

ambit of being an apolitical,

ahistorical and acultural discipline. And we wanted students
to ask diicult questions about
the lives they have lived so far
Bringing real-life proximal to
the classroom rather than the
classroom training people in
theory which is divorced from
life, says Prof. Vahali.

Programme structure
Composed of 70 credits over
four semesters, this programme,
as per its brochure, is the first
attempt in India to redefine and
provide a new direction to the

disciplinary orientation of psychology. It is interdisciplinary

and steeped in the richness of
human subjectivity. It draws
from literature on an array of
streams psychoanalysis, feminism, linguistic anthropology,
aesthetics and sociology, to
name a few. The programme offers about 20 courses that range
from the relatively-expected
(Reading Freud, Ethics, Experiencing the Self) to, from the
standpoint of psychological instruction, the decidedly rare
(Deconstructing Normalcy, Life
at the Margins, Childhood Identity and Society, Politics, Resistance and Transformation, Gender and Psychology). Fieldwork
comes in the form of summer in-

ternships, where students are

placed in institutions associated
with the field of mental health.
The spotlight is placed on
marginalised demographics. As
it is a psychosocial clinical programme, societal outsiders are
relevant to the discourse. The
refugees life, racism, the lives of
the poverty-stricken, and so on,
are engaged with. There is a regard for historical events.

Human narratives
Any kind of human narrative
is what we work with, says Prof.
Vahali. These are diicult memories, so people repress or
compartmentalise them. When
we talk to people afected by the
partition, they say, this is not
something Ive been able to
share or why are you asking
this. But things emerge in bits
and pieces In our kind of psychology, we believe that pain is
not something to be split of;
pain is to be experienced.
We look at grieving as a capacity and not as a weakness
We keep changing our readings.
Not only on the partition, but on
the 1984 riots or homelessness
or the life of Dalits. We work
more with fragmented narratives than coherent ones, she
says.

UNICEF Internship
Programme
Undergraduate and postgraduates students can apply for the UNICEF Internship Programme 2016. It
will give them an opportunity to acquire direct practical experience in
UNICEFs work and the UN system
under the direct supervision of experienced UNICEF staf. For details, visit http://bit.ly/1OQirDL
ND-X