tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44683807020332241192024-03-19T08:06:10.729+05:30 MUSINGS FROM DOHAFROM CAPTAIN OF FEW TO CEO OF A CORPORATE OF REPUTE , MY JOURNEY OVER THREE DECADES WORKING ABROAD IN QATAR, NOT ONLY GAVE ME COMMERCIAL DIVIDENDS , PROFESSIONAL INPUTS BUT AN IMPETUS TO MY THINKING AND APPROACH TO THE WORLD.
THIS BLOG IS DEDICATED TO RESIDENTS OF DOHA, RESIDENTS OF KOCHI, MY HOME TOWN IN INDIA AND THE BEST PERSON I KNOW- GEETHA, MY WIFE.
THIS IS MY RIDE THROUGH TAPESTRY OF TIME! THANKFULLY VISITED BY OVER 425,000 READERS FROM 110 COUNTRIES SO FAR AND COUNTING!!JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.comBlogger157125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-85711154747408041252024-03-01T09:01:00.000+05:302024-03-01T09:01:08.114+05:30"TENNO HEIKA BANZAI"!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>On October 25, 1944 the Japanese military employed the Kamikaze bombers for the first time in WW2. Who's a Kamikaze bomber? He is the specially trained pilot who would crash his specially made plane directly into Allied ships. Simply to put it, Kamikaze attack is suicidal bombing tactic to destroy the enemy ships.</i></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Mohotoru Okamura who commanded a Kamikaze </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Squadron sincerely believed that these dare devil acts would make the tide of war in favour of Japan as he ordered the first Kamikaze pilot to be at the battle of Leyte Gulf, in the Pacific Ocean near Philippines!</span></span></i></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>In various attacks thereafter more than 3000 Japanese Kamikaze pilots perished while causalities among the US, Australian and British forces might have touched 7000.Nevertheless this did not change the tide of war. Japan had to surrender unconditionally on 16 August 1945!</i></b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>"Tenno Heika Banzai" literally means " Ten Thousand Years" in Japanese. This they used to express joy or long life. It was also used by the Japanese military personnel while storming in the battle meaning "Long Live The Emperor". The Kamikaze pilot used to shout exactly these words before he hits the ship of Allied Forces killing himself!</i></b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">KAMIKAZE STRIKES...JAPAN'S LAST BID FOR VICTORY!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikdWhdxiEtOUjgWukKFiCS6A3ult5o1wPwh4H0GSp6yPkDR8TGOwaZYmhGQBNbIL11fHBQd4M2Z89BJ6iqLBLePoCUk82tnZxs3fKPuOCXBh05oa29a5hHk76bfuzXPQut-_xcyTb84nep8dOuP0B_hG_A-rlkPKkj7rSQ2kFGcAcH5rbwXOyYKLZp1A/s1201/Kamikaze-Cabot.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="1201" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikdWhdxiEtOUjgWukKFiCS6A3ult5o1wPwh4H0GSp6yPkDR8TGOwaZYmhGQBNbIL11fHBQd4M2Z89BJ6iqLBLePoCUk82tnZxs3fKPuOCXBh05oa29a5hHk76bfuzXPQut-_xcyTb84nep8dOuP0B_hG_A-rlkPKkj7rSQ2kFGcAcH5rbwXOyYKLZp1A/s320/Kamikaze-Cabot.jpg" width="320" /></b></a></div><b><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Year 1944...Birth year of Kamikaze.</span></b><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">By the year 1944 it was clearer that the tide of world war was clearly favouring the Allied forces. Japan, one of the trailing Axis Forces was facing defeat one after another whether on land, sea or air. It was in this context that Takijiro Onishi, Admiral of Imperial Japanese Navy, who founded Kamikaze convinced his superiors of having a squadron of suicide bombers attacking and destroying enemy ships to change the tide of war. At least they would be able to negotiate better terms for surrender, Japan thought. But Takijiro had to commit ritual suicide following unconditional surrender of Japan !</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Kamikaze means 'divine wind'. It was the name of a typhoon originally which destroyed invading Mongol ships in the 13th century saving Japan.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Kamikaze planes...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The planes used were light bombers loaded with bombs-250 kg on the nose and extra gasoline tanks. Kamikaze planes were launched with their wheels dropped at take off. This reduces the weight, increase the range and possibly limit the ability of pilot to return. These single seated planes- mostly like Yokosuka MX 7 Okha were used.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdf7fw_ML8Bg-ax9pKJ_e-Dvt-QgnbxydOYexYU7vbpJQMhaZesoGJYUNnFz0I9li90benGeTn7cgvRG0Izs0WcYjAEYWC_xjQ1gKCmXsCn4l1XAzbHa5ygW_-wAE-nJukWgvFHjlfvR-SeRIJj7mJVeF9i3UgAH3CMvUmnVvRdN47HBwrJmDzUhe_Q/s602/main-qimg-5095fcd75e3a826504c2492aba707d50-lq.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="602" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdf7fw_ML8Bg-ax9pKJ_e-Dvt-QgnbxydOYexYU7vbpJQMhaZesoGJYUNnFz0I9li90benGeTn7cgvRG0Izs0WcYjAEYWC_xjQ1gKCmXsCn4l1XAzbHa5ygW_-wAE-nJukWgvFHjlfvR-SeRIJj7mJVeF9i3UgAH3CMvUmnVvRdN47HBwrJmDzUhe_Q/s320/main-qimg-5095fcd75e3a826504c2492aba707d50-lq.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Kaiten...torpedoes containing human beings!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Kaitens were an under water equivalent of Kamikaze. These were launched from submarines for direct combat on identified ships. The kaiten was small enough for the pilot to squeeze through and enter the body of torpedo!The pilot verifies the position of the target- a ship normally- by a fitted periscope and then surges for the final assault. The first Kaiten assault claimed USS Mississinewa which was on anchor when hit. 63 US sailors perished!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pDVj_ivPXmtLWq9eHQb3heRhNYvejgafYnrRE7ATU5Axx9pIBvkAR5pYSQJ5-RCGKC0pj7oKw0ZPJdhBNJn1ekH8UjrcZgzWZkDbA12M-vQ6IVXe0BGE_txywyiugQ61ioid91HuzlqwEKNSfxNH8rWtb6psKYaB2KVf5VzDgDTFLCUGwNnUR1LoGQ/s1024/3537692750_4230297051_b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="819" data-original-width="1024" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pDVj_ivPXmtLWq9eHQb3heRhNYvejgafYnrRE7ATU5Axx9pIBvkAR5pYSQJ5-RCGKC0pj7oKw0ZPJdhBNJn1ekH8UjrcZgzWZkDbA12M-vQ6IVXe0BGE_txywyiugQ61ioid91HuzlqwEKNSfxNH8rWtb6psKYaB2KVf5VzDgDTFLCUGwNnUR1LoGQ/s320/3537692750_4230297051_b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Kamikaze pilots' training...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Kamikaze pilots were given special training for their special mission. They performed a special ceremony of drinking Sake (Rice wine) and eating rice before they take off in their mission. They were also honoured by giving medals and a Katana sword (traditional curved sword used by Samurai) during these ceremonies.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">By 1945 more than 500 Kamikaze planes had taken part in these suicide missions it is estimated! And 3800 Kamikaze pilots had died!!Many were new recruits from the finest universities of Japan! Although Kamikaze pilots never threatened to change the course of war led by the Allied forces, Kamikaze offensives were a concern for the Allies.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">There are a number of books and movies produced based on actual experiences of Kamikaze post war.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> --------------------------------</span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-24322220073084791282024-02-01T09:14:00.000+05:302024-02-01T09:14:29.253+05:30MASTER SHIPBUILDERS OF INDIA:CRAFTED WORLD CLASS WARSHIPS FOR ROYAL BRITISH NAVY!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">WHAT IS THE HISTORICAL RELATIONSHIP OF NATIONAL ANTHEM OF AMERICA AND INDIA? WHICH IS THE OLDEST SHIP STILL AFLOAT IN THE WORLD?AND WHO BUILT IT?</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large; font-weight: bold;">W</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>e all know that as the greatest colonial power on earth, the British once emerged as the 'Empire on which the sun never set' due to their supremacy over the high seas- with their fantastic ships, admirals and sailors. Being an Indian, this I had learnt repeatedly right from the the days I started reading as a toddler to this very day.But what I didn't know or learn was that one of the biggest </b></span></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>contributions for the British to attain this status rivaling Spain,Portugal or France was colonial India itself! </b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>More than India's rich resources being stolen by them- traders turned as masters- systematically, an Indian shipbuilder at Bombay, exclusively built indigenously using Indian craftsmen, skilled workers and raw materials including Malabar Teak , world class ships on orders of British Navy! Not just one or two but 363 of them- enabling the British merchant and naval gunships and others trotting the whole globe covering and mastering all the seven continents in the 17th,18th and 19th centuries!! Such a fleet which were products of exclusive Indian brains, skills and technology contains HMS Minden,HMS Trincomalee and HMS Cornwallis ! The name of the great shipbuilder was Jamsetjee Bomanjee and family of Wadia Shipbuilders !!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>More than what you have already read above, it is believed to have been on board this Indian made Royal Naval ship HMS Minden, that the great American lawyer poet wrote the US National Anthem 'Star- Spangled Banner ' while on the coast of US near Baltimore in 1814! The poet Francis Scott Key was a prisoner in the ship held by British Navy who also coined and gave America its motto:In God we trust! Again it was on board HMS Cornwallis built by Indians in 1842 that the Treaty of Nanking was signed that ceded Hong Kong to the British! Then the record of the oldest ship afloat goes to HMS Trincomalee, another one!!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Hard to believe? Incredible? But be rest assured that this is absolutely true.It is high time that we learn from our own history - our strengths and weaknesses- more than who invaded or colonised and looted us.....It is high time that we tell about ourselves to the world than waiting for others to do that which they limit to 'extreme poverty or casteism' only for their interests! </b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit970s6of2MRwNeK7gva6Zqb63coaKIRnRWUwq9SmubDjcPoFfkMyFLPrWeUyjcCITfgG0ovGOTcQtZNROTn9MkP6iS-_0ooRWtnRs8r3J5NEHi-iZevOYq-ndALevIi7x-nxEzYNnOjWwQkTspYwF_LXJkWRPf6p4OJ41qCRYheUifigBG2sjQKXZzvPV/s6048/P-2-Trincomalee-figurehead-modelled-on-its-builder-Jamsetjee-Bomanjee.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6048" data-original-width="4032" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit970s6of2MRwNeK7gva6Zqb63coaKIRnRWUwq9SmubDjcPoFfkMyFLPrWeUyjcCITfgG0ovGOTcQtZNROTn9MkP6iS-_0ooRWtnRs8r3J5NEHi-iZevOYq-ndALevIi7x-nxEzYNnOjWwQkTspYwF_LXJkWRPf6p4OJ41qCRYheUifigBG2sjQKXZzvPV/w213-h320/P-2-Trincomalee-figurehead-modelled-on-its-builder-Jamsetjee-Bomanjee.jpg" width="213" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw_fdZzlwldd_Xa-wHC_oQcXOVypWWryZXSWRv_pfc0tmaWzNAZhZ7AU3a-mjtdCVupdYkQbKHGC4KBDpRBJvuttvGWo07zada-hP9aMWFYPESM3kq7KEeHLL-4jmFLpSdpxm5Kqb7MT63h7LWDg0oeM3l2uYFsFax1hvwpb3cTG4aqzPUBfGRsnlueE8g/s640/H.M.S._Trincomalee,_Hartlepool_Maritime_Experience_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1605077.jpg" style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; font-style: italic; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="482" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw_fdZzlwldd_Xa-wHC_oQcXOVypWWryZXSWRv_pfc0tmaWzNAZhZ7AU3a-mjtdCVupdYkQbKHGC4KBDpRBJvuttvGWo07zada-hP9aMWFYPESM3kq7KEeHLL-4jmFLpSdpxm5Kqb7MT63h7LWDg0oeM3l2uYFsFax1hvwpb3cTG4aqzPUBfGRsnlueE8g/s320/H.M.S._Trincomalee,_Hartlepool_Maritime_Experience_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1605077.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">HMS Trincomalee is kept at National Museum of Royal Navy,England. Figurehead of the ship is modelled on its builder Jamsetjee Bomanjee. </span> </div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>How I ran to this....</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Two months back I could see a magnificent telefilm video produced by the Indian Navy on themselves. Impressive it was but I wished that they could add our ancient past too as ancient Indian port at Lothal was one of the oldest dry docks in the world, if not the oldest. Subsequently, my interest in digging the past on the subject hit a gold mine of historical information on our own naval history - of reasonably recent past than ancient ones.That's</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> how I could write this article which I am sure will make many eyebrows raise like I did. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The background</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The Mughals who were ruling India were a bit relieved to see the British East India Company(EIC) in the early 16th century defeating the Portuguese, predominantly because while the later were Christian fanatics against Islamic fanaticism</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">, British were not , which went on tune with Mughal's interests in India initially</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">. The Mughals eagerly made concessions to EIC to accommodate</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> them as emperor Jahangir gave them permission to trade within their territory followed by commencement of the first British factory at Surat in 1613. Bombay was just a sleepy fishing village then.That status continued till 1662, when Catherine of Braganza of Portugal was given Bombay village as a dowry to wed Charles II of Britain!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">At the end of the Napoleonic war against France, after Battle of Trafalgar in 1815,British Royal Navy felt the need to replenish lost or ageing fleet of theirs.At that time there was a shortage of availability of quality Oak wood for the purpose of ship building.But soon the British knew about the availability of quality Malabar Teak wood of India which was even better than Oak as being more denser for building ships. Than bringing the bulky cargo of teak wood to Britain taking time, they focused on the fame of a master shipbuilder at Surat in India-Jamet Bomanjee of Wadia Shipbuilders! The British decided to 'outsource' the engineering skill of shipbuilding to an Indian which was just a tip of an iceberg of events of naval history of the world to follow. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvrfVVFZL-YRtljdD-BQTZWVYz_ZZtGUDFw-3rhyOEhrSXCF2vf3cvhq8VyaWfci_tAbN7WTcLgpGZ2cZNfdK0EnC29822vgXDURVTCJq4--pebVZdn15vfVOqGDpoYTPpc7yI8F5ReyVEh5UZg4q7hQIbWD80JFseHBAmYQAI8B3lwzuy68vOYAnNtQ4U" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1070" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvrfVVFZL-YRtljdD-BQTZWVYz_ZZtGUDFw-3rhyOEhrSXCF2vf3cvhq8VyaWfci_tAbN7WTcLgpGZ2cZNfdK0EnC29822vgXDURVTCJq4--pebVZdn15vfVOqGDpoYTPpc7yI8F5ReyVEh5UZg4q7hQIbWD80JFseHBAmYQAI8B3lwzuy68vOYAnNtQ4U=w335-h400" width="335" /></a><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">Portrait of Jamsetjee Bomanjee in British naval archives.A divider in one hand while the drawings of HMS Minden on the other. One can also see the progress of construction of the very ship with 74 guns which was launched in 1810- also through the window!Interestingly this portrait is available in US historical archives also for reason as explained in the article</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Wadia family ...the illustrious shipbuilding family of the world..</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The Wadia Parsi </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">family hails from Surat in Gujarat.The very name 'Wadia' means carpenter/shipbuilder in Gujarati language. Jamset Bomanjee's firm which was named Surti Ship Builders(later known as Wadia Shipbuilders) secured initial contracts for bui</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">lding ships with EIC </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">from 1736. He himself was the master shipbuilder.</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Bombay</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dry Docks was built by his brother Lovji Nusserwanjee in 1750 on the British request as EIC headquartered to Bombay from Surat. Incredibly between 1735 and 1899, seven generations of Wadias built 363 ships of world class quality for the British and others ,which sailed all over the seven high seas ! The Indian Parsi shipwrights exclusively produced 39 vessels on orders of British Royal Navy- 16 ships of the line, 13 frigates, 9 sloops and 1 schooner! Some of them remained the finest creations of it's class for decades which followed! The British, the US and the west have officially chronicled this info but we, Indians are yet to add in our curriculum for our children, it seems!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Bombay Dock , the oldest in Asia is functioning even today as the Naval Dockyard.The northern part of the erstwhile dockyard is today's Mazagon Dock, India's premier Ship Building Centre.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>HMS Minden and birth of US national anthem 'Star-Spangled Banner' </b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">This 74 gun frigate had set off for the maiden sail on 8 Feb 1811 from Bombay Dockyard after the customary 'breaking the bottle' ceremony performed by the then British Governor Jonathan Duncan.HMS Minden was the handiwork of Jamshedji for which the order was received from Royal Navy ten years earlier. This was the first British Royal Navy ship of the line built out of 'Great' Britain.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp3u3vqk0nWV6w1uvXLWr9_fOuCK8Zrldu8FsE2wTU6kXx2UCoQ3_sVh48q_1Wl3nLVzUZ0cuenAsxCKQPV3U13bRHIiWAOT-DozILizVP1KzA3ZR1RPLFkhoUwGnt87-JNO-9qfbjLjKT5x_-zDDj3UDUdTt1nYiNdoNKYa3AjSoaaade4htOCKCCGxx/s768/HMS-Minden-768x458.jpg" style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="768" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp3u3vqk0nWV6w1uvXLWr9_fOuCK8Zrldu8FsE2wTU6kXx2UCoQ3_sVh48q_1Wl3nLVzUZ0cuenAsxCKQPV3U13bRHIiWAOT-DozILizVP1KzA3ZR1RPLFkhoUwGnt87-JNO-9qfbjLjKT5x_-zDDj3UDUdTt1nYiNdoNKYa3AjSoaaade4htOCKCCGxx/s320/HMS-Minden-768x458.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4Up4zDopJw-FTSVYL3E4DoIbBjhf4qe8d3-pm1AcOJl-W_b7lfOVyfmM7tbApfxzbqAyYyGU1cpf1K-XuEQwl9kq5OXf2fLRqI1gS4diiIyfaGgTewtPLa31XAstUwWvUw-cKRkdbTcMIpt9AZgORQmcsQEKBX4UmYZwYG3Epw3CAfmqf_v3fu8PBTXC/s520/stars-and-stripes_1814_smithsonian.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="464" data-original-width="520" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4Up4zDopJw-FTSVYL3E4DoIbBjhf4qe8d3-pm1AcOJl-W_b7lfOVyfmM7tbApfxzbqAyYyGU1cpf1K-XuEQwl9kq5OXf2fLRqI1gS4diiIyfaGgTewtPLa31XAstUwWvUw-cKRkdbTcMIpt9AZgORQmcsQEKBX4UmYZwYG3Epw3CAfmqf_v3fu8PBTXC/w200-h179/stars-and-stripes_1814_smithsonian.jpg" width="200" /></a></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Indian made teak 74 gun ship HMS Minden and actual remains of the US flag preserved at National Museum of American History,Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of American History.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;">On 3rd Sept 1814 many Royal Navy ships including INS Minden were about to attack US Fort McHenry near Chesapeake Bay , outside Baltimore as they were enemies then. On the advise of the US President James Madison , two of his representatives Francis Scott Key and John Stuart Skimmer had set sail on a US boat flying a flag of truce and reached INS Minden. Their aim was peaceful negotiations for surrender with the British. What the British did was not only agreeing to the discussions but kept the two American reps as captives! In the night the royal Naval ships bombarded the fort the whole night to the astonishment of the American captives. In the early morning, expecting a complete devastation of the US fort, as they looked out they could see almost a miracle -the fort was standing loud and clear with a fluttering US flag atop!!They believed that God had intervened!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Key was a poet too. As he saw the US flag with 15 stars and 18 stripes on the fort , he scribbled down a poem while still as a captive in the ship...the fragile faded flag remains the holiest icon of American life.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjlFkcJFvlkDK2n1rYzOzDMDkoPfjmi3oISJHXlIakAIC2s0Uay3kY0qLFoggPZ9LNealWE1gmOtwCtIQXYsiEB2WUBdCwQZ4GiuzfszNsdXWPmZBmGMASzbZRjB6XNE6n525cQ91yO4wqYml9bWvD52GcReSsoAjXSxGYsF8AP_nbPgqvDiCvcK-RezH3/s640/Francis_Scott_Key_640x480.jpg" style="font-size: x-large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjlFkcJFvlkDK2n1rYzOzDMDkoPfjmi3oISJHXlIakAIC2s0Uay3kY0qLFoggPZ9LNealWE1gmOtwCtIQXYsiEB2WUBdCwQZ4GiuzfszNsdXWPmZBmGMASzbZRjB6XNE6n525cQ91yO4wqYml9bWvD52GcReSsoAjXSxGYsF8AP_nbPgqvDiCvcK-RezH3/w200-h150/Francis_Scott_Key_640x480.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAl1pqD_TopwvndATne0_pVnpr5Rd2fUcpkC2uwIxaViz1UxZGODVu1OIgDFgvfBqcHQxKq9IDAYTYyz-LrKO5cZ0wulBRXfSiksKOe1MIReyE0CtVFPMD1JnEl5CYDN4ZSLeZZSdsG-E4SoK1oRt5VFaf7yy3BAet52m6VtLVETIgM3E2PUQZ8XFYiiIL/s1200/Star-spangled-banner-manuscript.webp" style="font-size: x-large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAl1pqD_TopwvndATne0_pVnpr5Rd2fUcpkC2uwIxaViz1UxZGODVu1OIgDFgvfBqcHQxKq9IDAYTYyz-LrKO5cZ0wulBRXfSiksKOe1MIReyE0CtVFPMD1JnEl5CYDN4ZSLeZZSdsG-E4SoK1oRt5VFaf7yy3BAet52m6VtLVETIgM3E2PUQZ8XFYiiIL/w320-h181/Star-spangled-banner-manuscript.webp" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"> Francis Scott Key original scribbling of the poem </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: justify;"> </div></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;">It was recognized as a patriotic song immediately but it took more than 100 years. On 3rd March 1931 it was declared as US National Anthem. </span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><span style="text-align: justify;">The last years of HMS Minden was in Hong Kong where it was used as a hospital before being scrapped in 1861!</span></div></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> HMS Trincomalee and HMS </b></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Cornwallis</b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">HMS Trincomalee was launched on 12th October 1987 at </span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Bombay. A 46 gun frigate it served many occasions for Royal Navy including Crimean war in 1897 and even WWII (1939-1945). It also served as a training ship under the name Foudroyant.To this day it floats at a British Museum and attracts around 60000 visitors a day!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyv56spdhdbj2x1tp-YZVXlopfRlbKfCcn8c5dgNsCC6g32ge9eQjmY9xPTTqxrCGvL8MD6jID2tNRMxRMv8ojuCmzOz9E2EBsvRPg0iIN0KPs_5KiHQzlPoy68qCwAgxKiMkWbnd_Rn4gVidRSXkVTRCfnLt5_AzKwb9E6e90Tnpou4Wf-qtwep2zRu1Y/s640/DSCF2494a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyv56spdhdbj2x1tp-YZVXlopfRlbKfCcn8c5dgNsCC6g32ge9eQjmY9xPTTqxrCGvL8MD6jID2tNRMxRMv8ojuCmzOz9E2EBsvRPg0iIN0KPs_5KiHQzlPoy68qCwAgxKiMkWbnd_Rn4gVidRSXkVTRCfnLt5_AzKwb9E6e90Tnpou4Wf-qtwep2zRu1Y/s320/DSCF2494a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Guns in HMS Trincomalee</span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK2CkebbbL3cbjxSGNQEs93pn-y2Vj7faRqCU3hSTjEPhf5FeLGFW590o3okAFevnh3CQANf-ChAj0-Bg5iOShsFaLfgnp_wp1eAAuYi_DFXD9Ct23r6JHcPspOIXUvfH0f-kSaiJYyd10uWJt5iP8ZfgzENfxmqRijDh-wl4RZoaCk1CNjOPwjMlXWxag/s9686/The_Signing_of_the_Treaty_of_Nanking.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3633" data-original-width="9686" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK2CkebbbL3cbjxSGNQEs93pn-y2Vj7faRqCU3hSTjEPhf5FeLGFW590o3okAFevnh3CQANf-ChAj0-Bg5iOShsFaLfgnp_wp1eAAuYi_DFXD9Ct23r6JHcPspOIXUvfH0f-kSaiJYyd10uWJt5iP8ZfgzENfxmqRijDh-wl4RZoaCk1CNjOPwjMlXWxag/w400-h150/The_Signing_of_the_Treaty_of_Nanking.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <span style="font-family: verdana;"> Signing the treaty of Nanking in HMS Cornwallis</span><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">14 gun ship HMS Cornwallis was built in 1813 for Royal British Navy and served till 1957! The treaty of Nanking by which Hong Kong was ceded to </span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Britain was signed in this Indian made ship.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The technical prowess and skills of Indians in shipbuilding for the last three centuries is recognized in maritime world history very much. I am neither a professional historian nor a naval architect or expert but anyone can find out these facts from historical chronicles. Am I wrong in suggesting that the subject is to be inducted immediately in Indian school curriculum as I find this a 'must' ,the whole of India and world should know?</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> ___________________ </span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-66811056743214635452024-01-01T09:36:00.007+05:302024-01-12T16:40:49.609+05:30 HEAVENLY FRAGRANCE OF GODS WAS FROM INDIA!!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Happy new year to all my readers .... worldwide! Let me kick off the new edition of the new year with a hardly known historical fact about India.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>It is a fact that in spite of our resources and local demand, India doesn't make a lot of consumer goods of Indian origin.Most of the FMCG items we manufacture and use are international brands though made in India. But steadily the scenario is getting changed I notice, but next ten years India could change the current speed of it,I am sure.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>In the field of cosmetics and perfumes now we are </b></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>nowhere though the consumption rate has gone high.Parisian brands are the most sought after here too for those who can afford it.I have read somewhere that the famous Indian brand in that field 'Lakme' was started by Tata's Unilever at the request of our first Prime Minister Nehru to JRD Tata to go for an Indian brand which our women could afford.JRD earnestly took the request, ending up in the creation of the brand 'Lakme'.But many of us may not be aware that 'Lakme' is a French rendition of the Sanskrit word 'Lakshmi' who is the Goddess of wealth and beauty in Hinduism. Though Lakme created in 1952 has become a premier brand in India and even exported to 70 countries or so, now House of Tatas represent and just distribute a lot of imported international brands in India through their enterprise Tata Luxury even online! May be good for the organization for profits but definitely not for the country. Just an observation and nothing more since, I am not an expert in the field. It is comparable to our computer hardware field where our own brands are much less, though we claim ourselves to be software giants!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>But here I am to share a hardly known information among us that India has one of the richest history in own fragrances and perfumes which is yet to be commercially tapped.Here I am writing about Agarwood or Aloes or Oud, a fragrance of Indian origin that mastered the fragrance world since </b></i></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>1400 BC about which shamefully I came to know first from Arabs only, while in Qatar.</i></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65wuNf3bcPo8X6firbftqoJwdi3oN2qjYVRdqKcV-Uv6HJKBzF_xDX3XwFs6yrvwIvCLerwJkRYC95pQB5QAbo4MyJKTlzgkQcxoMJso1-xl5IpHo-OqB-Zv_gu-LlZMppeg87_OAYGRPIvTmypYrujLFXnouljpqy5lJ-RmAaATwZeS5ARVXs14zgQgi/s400/Oud_5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="400" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65wuNf3bcPo8X6firbftqoJwdi3oN2qjYVRdqKcV-Uv6HJKBzF_xDX3XwFs6yrvwIvCLerwJkRYC95pQB5QAbo4MyJKTlzgkQcxoMJso1-xl5IpHo-OqB-Zv_gu-LlZMppeg87_OAYGRPIvTmypYrujLFXnouljpqy5lJ-RmAaATwZeS5ARVXs14zgQgi/s320/Oud_5.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgosUJsl9tDo6uLBIiSaKv8_YZkeMUTq-oIFLWU8gBTZCQX1YQ35lIieNO5kZft6ZaAT4z1W506eplnvrET1-SV1DBNXUMI1GK9Kg_NR8p4waR64zWKHPUr25joSHCIsGmOeYTx2IgjrJ0iFO3avCYHc4ZoAhlpJo6AgS1mHcszGDRdtsuyfIH3kcEd7qgQ/s612/istockphoto-543052538-612x612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="612" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgosUJsl9tDo6uLBIiSaKv8_YZkeMUTq-oIFLWU8gBTZCQX1YQ35lIieNO5kZft6ZaAT4z1W506eplnvrET1-SV1DBNXUMI1GK9Kg_NR8p4waR64zWKHPUr25joSHCIsGmOeYTx2IgjrJ0iFO3avCYHc4ZoAhlpJo6AgS1mHcszGDRdtsuyfIH3kcEd7qgQ/s320/istockphoto-543052538-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Oud shops of Mumbai....</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">It was Mr. Sherida Al Kaabi, Chairman of the business group 'Al Balagh' where I had been working in Qatar, who told me first that among the Oud wood the best and costliest comes from India! I specifically remember that he told me so while we were strolling Mumbai Fort area looking for some specific shops selling them! We were on a business trip .To be very honest and frank, when I had landed in Qatar in 1984, I was so ignorant about perfumes and fragrances that I did not know the difference between an eau de cologne, eau de toilette and eau de parfum! I didn't know about Oud wood chips either. I think many of the educated Indians could still be in that state even now.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">But let us be awake fellow Indians...We have introduced the first most popular fragrance to the rest of the world centuries back. Let it be in ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, Middle East or else where...India has done it historically making it the 'favourite fragrance of the Gods' whether it is Hinduism,Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism or Islam as it is mentioned in seminal texts!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>As spiritual history rolls out....</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">Agarwood of Assam, India and its mystifying fragrance was first mentioned in the Sanskrit epic 'Mahabharata' in 1500 BC. There it is mentioned as a welcome aroma as 'Agaru'.The earliest recorded use of this plant aromatics is found in the four vedas of ancient India written between 1500-1000 BC . So also in Arthasastra of 320 BC it is clearly mentioned that the aromatics originates from resin infused infected wood in the stem of the Agar tree or even artificially done so!Agarwood was in use as an ingredient of perfumery in India along with sandalwood,musk, camphor from olden times.From time immemorial Hindus burn incense stick in puja rooms and elsewhere. It is known as 'Agarbatti' which is derived from 'Agar bathi' in Hindi- incense stick made from Agarwood!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">In the Old Testament of the Bible, Aloe (Agaru) is specifically mentioned many times may be because it was in use in Jewish traditions.Even in the New Testament as per the Gospel of John 19:39-40 it is stated that Jesus's body was anointed with a mixture of Myrrh and Aloes following His crucifixion!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">In 'Nirvana Sutra Buddhism' when Buddha was about to enter the state of Nirvana, about Aloe aromatics there is a mention.Buddhist text 'Jataka Tales' of 4th century BC also mentions about Aloe categorically!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">Pre Islamic Arabian tribes were trading in Aloeswood/Agarwood of India.In the Quran there is a mention of many fragrant plants. In several Hadiths, Oud (Agarwood) is referred to as an Indian Incense for rituals as burning of incense wood, which is being practiced in many Islamic countries to this day.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">As I am not an expert on holy books all as these references are made from historical records available and any wrong interpretations be taken in that spirit.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Black Gold.....</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKZMIjRyl4LXDavzYqNcdlzsTZcKxZJpdPVxmuZWfsa0Y629-YZqcglbKEXhqZdOOolHEX-8Tn3pV4PcaAG4gm52-E2eoMFDcgvwHc_30IGZf2OXidTUYian6RVfL5Nf9GnxS4SbStRY5qGLFLaDOyLlIZD2l44Y-dn3NV0UEdo2VBxMCpkUQ2PhCMQSQ/s1600/0ce7c22a-dfab-4ec6-b554-5af64bdb4abc_d-stories-trending-oud-scents-hero.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1600" height="120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKZMIjRyl4LXDavzYqNcdlzsTZcKxZJpdPVxmuZWfsa0Y629-YZqcglbKEXhqZdOOolHEX-8Tn3pV4PcaAG4gm52-E2eoMFDcgvwHc_30IGZf2OXidTUYian6RVfL5Nf9GnxS4SbStRY5qGLFLaDOyLlIZD2l44Y-dn3NV0UEdo2VBxMCpkUQ2PhCMQSQ/w320-h120/0ce7c22a-dfab-4ec6-b554-5af64bdb4abc_d-stories-trending-oud-scents-hero.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUNPTltWEmppGzT8E0jCK_yl1VcDc135mYRk0tjQfJYv32XMZoc0Bdm8wCRtAlqILI5BAwbmgf0OhWYE63zKElTl29VXx3PpjaD0LuxNJefUgaEO6Nc2DeP441ftknnoiIxcAzg-yy0YZKw6Hlnygoin6hticHmpTg2PyaKBH8F-ioJFuExD-wEibi2c2/s2000/5e226bdc-e6a1-4de8-9601-cf69df4bdd6a_f1-d-pdp-promo-stories-6-of-the-rarest-fragrances-and-ingredients-you-need-to-kno.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="2000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUNPTltWEmppGzT8E0jCK_yl1VcDc135mYRk0tjQfJYv32XMZoc0Bdm8wCRtAlqILI5BAwbmgf0OhWYE63zKElTl29VXx3PpjaD0LuxNJefUgaEO6Nc2DeP441ftknnoiIxcAzg-yy0YZKw6Hlnygoin6hticHmpTg2PyaKBH8F-ioJFuExD-wEibi2c2/w320-h320/5e226bdc-e6a1-4de8-9601-cf69df4bdd6a_f1-d-pdp-promo-stories-6-of-the-rarest-fragrances-and-ingredients-you-need-to-kno.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">Botanically when an Agar tree - Aquilaria Malaccensis- becomes infected by a mould -Phialophora Parasitica- the tree produces a dark, dense and fragrant resin to protect itself.It is this resin which becomes embedded in the tree which is the source of Oud! As in the case of pearl, artificially also such a resin can be produced.Originally discovered in India in Assam locally known as Xasi,the ' info and technique' of Agarwood was later passed on to Tibet (a-ga-ru), China (Chen Xiang),Thailand (Mai Krishna), South East Asia and Middle East where it was known as Oud.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">As the neo rich of the Arabian Gulf states likes the fragrances and perfumes, the area became a big market for this costly oil-- more than $ 12000 per kg! International brands of perfumes of Paris and London fight with each other for their market share with neo fragrances in neo bottles with neo prices each season- the highest ever perfume created for a human nose so far !From Tom Ford, to Christian Dior to Armani or Yves Saint Laurent ......But this fragrance is not popular among westerners is another fact. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">It all started with India centuries back...It is high time that Indians take a note of it! Not only we have to teach others but we have to learn also from others- what we don't know or not good at...It is difficult to believe that now India makes one of the best whiskies in the world out beating even renowned scotch brands - 'Amrut' single malt.And the best cheese in the world out classing all the best European brands-'Eleftheria Brunost' is from Bombay!I am sure that among perfumes also we are capable of competing Paris- just a matter of time.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><u><br /></u></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Tailpiece</u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #444444;">I don't find any mention of this history in Indian textbooks!I wish that I am wrong!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> _______________________________</div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Dr.Rajan Varghese, Ex Principal UC College has shared the following postal stamps of India on the subject.His comments are given in appropriate column. </b></i></span> </div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_MJ3C1aBentun_Q_wy4_RZlKNYc61DrXE8y2WL5kglTq3S3En6vF5iHd447jL8w0-zUtnunJdXwZExan0kJUcTrxs_n3ADoqhiEKoSTF1k7b28C4z_JeJlJUm5fLlSsbgwZi38Z0zskix2dWQVDhF47RB-3nDd5GxsPis3EinoUg94Kj4sXV4iycd7eC/s590/thumbnail_PHOTO-2024-01-12-15-32-45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; font-style: italic; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="590" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_MJ3C1aBentun_Q_wy4_RZlKNYc61DrXE8y2WL5kglTq3S3En6vF5iHd447jL8w0-zUtnunJdXwZExan0kJUcTrxs_n3ADoqhiEKoSTF1k7b28C4z_JeJlJUm5fLlSsbgwZi38Z0zskix2dWQVDhF47RB-3nDd5GxsPis3EinoUg94Kj4sXV4iycd7eC/w200-h163/thumbnail_PHOTO-2024-01-12-15-32-45.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-xLqr1eMDZG1PeI7i2Z4NJxhc4sacI09hsirlRLYZhcMUAspo8_PA5Z9fjEkwFVNBj0MK9QWPgwH08f_0Lav9GLrhBwX82L9B8MhE_DRm1ff6pI15Ht7uon_I01XwR7vP0qj0WyUeHDItHn80pLVWHlP1B19z5AoLnEM29CKm8IpH1xnoWFE0Uu0Ya-xA/s673/PHOTO-2024-01-12-15-27-47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="673" data-original-width="534" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-xLqr1eMDZG1PeI7i2Z4NJxhc4sacI09hsirlRLYZhcMUAspo8_PA5Z9fjEkwFVNBj0MK9QWPgwH08f_0Lav9GLrhBwX82L9B8MhE_DRm1ff6pI15Ht7uon_I01XwR7vP0qj0WyUeHDItHn80pLVWHlP1B19z5AoLnEM29CKm8IpH1xnoWFE0Uu0Ya-xA/w159-h200/PHOTO-2024-01-12-15-27-47.jpg" width="159" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">_______________________________________________</div><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><b><br /></b></i></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-45298576922913594252023-12-01T11:09:00.003+05:302023-12-01T11:14:25.399+05:30GUILLOTINE -HOW A KILLING MACHINE BECAME A SYMBOL OF EQUALITY!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>While the French revolution gave the world 'Liberty , Equality and Fraternity' which reverberated throughout the world , though necessarily immediately like in India, it also gave a killing tool some sort of a status in the French society! Guillotine which was promoted by a surgeon became respectable at that time since it symbolized equality in death also! When it was introduced in 1789 by Dr.Joseph Ignace </b></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Guillotin as a lawmaker this was the logic behind and the name of the equipment got stuck to the family name.</b></i></span></span><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b>Till capital punishment was stopped recently in France in 1981, Guillotine was continued to be used.</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>As the Guillotine way of execution which was quick and considered to be more humane compared to the various ways of execution existed till those days, the King Louis XVI was slaughtered in 1793 in public, declaring the country to be republic followed by queen Marie Antoinette in the same year! </b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>During the days of 'Reign of Terror' (1793-94) fight among revolutionaries themselves following execution of the King took place while Jacobin's eventually took control, 40000 such executions took place using Guillotin.Such executions were popular among the masses as an entertainment and staged in public.</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0SzpCgp_IgV42eV-m_BDj2d9L2Z-I_jNKxDcr-Kg6lVVuXEMNBON7fdNoPAomqJ78fAMrkuLHw-8_iZ_vKoSUn308SdZqsUQc82P7dpCG7z_kwS9AWggbEEV1MFtPs3CgfVjCHhaE19qv5V5EVv5I-YnqEQzeZ3s3IfykDNvnZCSuiL-nRMLIYk7rA/s256/guillotine.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="256" data-original-width="256" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0SzpCgp_IgV42eV-m_BDj2d9L2Z-I_jNKxDcr-Kg6lVVuXEMNBON7fdNoPAomqJ78fAMrkuLHw-8_iZ_vKoSUn308SdZqsUQc82P7dpCG7z_kwS9AWggbEEV1MFtPs3CgfVjCHhaE19qv5V5EVv5I-YnqEQzeZ3s3IfykDNvnZCSuiL-nRMLIYk7rA/s1600/guillotine.png" width="256" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YXXRlEkCBQO0rJPbZY5SMDjTADjDCVd8rG9l8VVGnywLlEmasYzkZDetZPAoe4tz1nGZ961kWj8ddZFiP27RbnXSDjCrDS158WRz38gA6Siv-3rWrQileViMEl3Qg7I9tBfMxkpb1ig4FOnje7fxkPVTonhxKqPH7UNBpSuM5Qq_50nwr-1ecx7i2w/s1600/guillotine-execution-de-la-Revolution-canvas-paper-1793.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1133" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YXXRlEkCBQO0rJPbZY5SMDjTADjDCVd8rG9l8VVGnywLlEmasYzkZDetZPAoe4tz1nGZ961kWj8ddZFiP27RbnXSDjCrDS158WRz38gA6Siv-3rWrQileViMEl3Qg7I9tBfMxkpb1ig4FOnje7fxkPVTonhxKqPH7UNBpSuM5Qq_50nwr-1ecx7i2w/s320/guillotine-execution-de-la-Revolution-canvas-paper-1793.webp" width="320" /></a></i></span></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /><b>How Guillotin came into France...</b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The story of beheading was different in the world.At least<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>500 years before Guillotine was put into practice in France, similar but more crude and other ways of executions were there in Ireland ,Italy and England. "Planke" of Germany, Scottish "Maiden" and "Mannaia' of Italy are some of them. "Halifax Gibbet" was used in England in the 12th century.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In 1790 Dr Joseph Ignace Guillotin did not invent the machine but as a lawmaker promoted it that death penalty shall be equal to all regardless of crimes committed or social ranking of the person who did it!In fact this machine was invented by another surgeon Antonie Louis.Initially the machine was called as Louisette.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"> Dr. Guillotin presented his six articles as follows and became law in France.Quote:</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Offences of the same kind will be punished by the same kind of penalty.</span></span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In all cases where the law imposes the death penalty on an accused person, the punishment shall be the same, whatever the nature of the offence of which he is guilty; the criminal shall be decapitated; this will be done solely by means of a simple mechanism.</span></span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In view of the personal character of crime, no punishment of a guilty person shall involve and discredit to his family. The honour of those belonging to him shall be in no way be soiled, and they shall continue to be no less admissible to any kind of profession, employment and public function.</span></span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">No one shall reproach a citizen with any punishment imposed on one of his relatives. Whosoever ventures to do so shall be publicly reprimanded by the judge. The sentence imposed on him shall be written up on the offender's door. Moreover, it shall be written up on the pillory and remain there for a period of three months.</span></span></span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQ61MGx4uvzHgUog7NdDX4_nh3QUPmqQtzyt2PCXcnsH862VkcTyWNFOpQcFy5NjZKe4voEY6MTKBsbhFmiMZStJT-jNH4f_oNdP-_1AKk5jU3IbTR90QYa3464PCtfhiMduaciIr9Psh5y91pBp5xtiYwBBSSWEqEUQ7b9HThq7xO9EOGzsiLLooZw/s300/1200px-joseph-ignace_guillotin_cropped-252x300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="252" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQ61MGx4uvzHgUog7NdDX4_nh3QUPmqQtzyt2PCXcnsH862VkcTyWNFOpQcFy5NjZKe4voEY6MTKBsbhFmiMZStJT-jNH4f_oNdP-_1AKk5jU3IbTR90QYa3464PCtfhiMduaciIr9Psh5y91pBp5xtiYwBBSSWEqEUQ7b9HThq7xO9EOGzsiLLooZw/s1600/1200px-joseph-ignace_guillotin_cropped-252x300.jpg" width="252" /></a></span></span></span></div><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span> </span> Dr.Guillotin<br /><span>5. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Confiscation of the condemned person's property shall in no case be imposed.</span></span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;" /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The corpse of an executed man shall be handed over to his family on their request. In every case, he shall be allowed normal burial and no reference shall be made on the register to the nature of his death.Unquote.</span></span></div></span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The machine...</b></span></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx36CThU8WHgxSOBkWdA75jxvsTof-fgwcyh9JWocTQmSxuTlh55wkARYl3vbmA7dFraaBnGraM8ROsbdq_JmgYk8eLlxptNmWnie3WUBEphvh8oxm_xpG3telbejQXD4vXqSM95ICAeo6qD8CRkcIJoAE0I4NkJImlRLZn-3WDzjCFAEF-BTo_nvUXbOR/s924/2019-10-16-guillotine.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="924" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx36CThU8WHgxSOBkWdA75jxvsTof-fgwcyh9JWocTQmSxuTlh55wkARYl3vbmA7dFraaBnGraM8ROsbdq_JmgYk8eLlxptNmWnie3WUBEphvh8oxm_xpG3telbejQXD4vXqSM95ICAeo6qD8CRkcIJoAE0I4NkJImlRLZn-3WDzjCFAEF-BTo_nvUXbOR/s320/2019-10-16-guillotine.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The device releases a sharp blade from a height of 226 centimeters.With the combined weight of the blade and counter the Guillotine can cut through the neck of a human being within .005 seconds!According to Guillotine, this invention was one of the best deals of the revolution-humane,equalizing and scientific!</span></span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana;">A guillotine blade that was originally used during revolution for executions is exhibited in Paris at the Police Museum.Still it seems like a star attraction!</span></div></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">By the time joseph Guillotin died at his age of 75, the machine had become synonymous with terror with his family name stuck to it. After his death , his relatives approached the Government to change the name of the machine which was rejected.It could be a paradox in history that instead the family changed the name!</span></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Earrings and Tricoteuses of the revolution period</b></span></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU79W1GLWeGxUPToLfE5rVsi8oaug3UZyGjBTSeF4tDUwNOjJfcvLTy-LFCoMTF2kaZBulCcRir5qy1wXaLcTmiq4o1Rs0scSYPHuCNKiJOfTzOE05HxnN-n8nmUb8v4RsYLO3Lx_fC0oYnByuXmkIjqaxsHA_1nv3Pd3t7jNaxm5qv5Ll-DGovfvNrA/s300/0phn6o-eauupfuxyrpqf0ztd1vboqjatnqadorvqpz4-300x270.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="300" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU79W1GLWeGxUPToLfE5rVsi8oaug3UZyGjBTSeF4tDUwNOjJfcvLTy-LFCoMTF2kaZBulCcRir5qy1wXaLcTmiq4o1Rs0scSYPHuCNKiJOfTzOE05HxnN-n8nmUb8v4RsYLO3Lx_fC0oYnByuXmkIjqaxsHA_1nv3Pd3t7jNaxm5qv5Ll-DGovfvNrA/s1600/0phn6o-eauupfuxyrpqf0ztd1vboqjatnqadorvqpz4-300x270.jpg" width="300" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihlVUr-o8YGXsN1U-0mg4UCxEJvKswytWg8jsS5zfxKgzD7Bs4fsA_Wa-i9OUZoCxtecOpr0iE5RKam2I6qfitnqsvIRQCnqhi9vGI0f1rdpcaL12SAOKI5dP5SazI9ICmpmbMJS6D9JBqAJ4KPVAYYpMAHP_gbiA6ksConqLg9BlaSGqwMP-memykdw/s602/main-qimg-3bb4d572d56505c9d49d21ecb388d37a-lq.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="602" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihlVUr-o8YGXsN1U-0mg4UCxEJvKswytWg8jsS5zfxKgzD7Bs4fsA_Wa-i9OUZoCxtecOpr0iE5RKam2I6qfitnqsvIRQCnqhi9vGI0f1rdpcaL12SAOKI5dP5SazI9ICmpmbMJS6D9JBqAJ4KPVAYYpMAHP_gbiA6ksConqLg9BlaSGqwMP-memykdw/s320/main-qimg-3bb4d572d56505c9d49d21ecb388d37a-lq.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlx951jHJuuOfBPgvDsLVeas74HSgCYh69GCe5XjZZ7aT2TJMU97YWE-uLT1OVzCLSPuXpxOWkRUW1tAnWFw8oAW29nv4avEtLKHl9qqF2iX7ZqNOnOFjjysUfgqklzTpXc8fJYAmDGHuIcLmqujQrVuFVdeR-f2iegHVIHh7MOFI2bOQdJ2C7ZGVZPr07/s180/th%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="180" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlx951jHJuuOfBPgvDsLVeas74HSgCYh69GCe5XjZZ7aT2TJMU97YWE-uLT1OVzCLSPuXpxOWkRUW1tAnWFw8oAW29nv4avEtLKHl9qqF2iX7ZqNOnOFjjysUfgqklzTpXc8fJYAmDGHuIcLmqujQrVuFVdeR-f2iegHVIHh7MOFI2bOQdJ2C7ZGVZPr07/s1600/th%20(1).jpg" width="180" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;">Tricoteuses is a French term used to describe 'a knitting woman' who used to flock in thousands and watch the live executions staged in public while continuing to knit!It became a nickname to describe the women who sat to watch the executions by guillotine and cooly knit enjoying the scenario! The liberty cap they knit those days became infamously popular. Charles Dickens in his famous novel 'A Tale of Two Cities ' has popularized the images of Tricoteuses profusely. Even fashion was influenced by the earrings modelled after Guillotine as seen above!!</span></div></span></span></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ironically Hitler made the Guillotine the state method of execution in the 1930s and 40s with 20 such machines placed across the German cities killing thousands!</span></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Tailpiece....The Cross</b></span></span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;">Having written about Guillotine and how it was regarded as a symbol of equality on death in a modern society in France and elsewhere, if I skip about a killing device which has become arguably the most popular in the history of the world, I would be unfair.The Cross, the most important symbol of Christianity not only remains a symbol of hope and peace... but also revered among Christians for last 2000 years!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> ________________________<br /><b><br /></b></span></span></span></span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-55119522535532228782023-11-01T10:19:00.001+05:302023-11-01T10:23:41.895+05:30 IN EUROPE PINEAPPLE WAS "PINA DE INDES" - PINE OF THE INDIANS, A STATUS SYMBOL! .... rediscovering unknown history!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Kerala , my home state in India is blessed with a lot of locally grown tropical fruits. Pineapple is one among them. This exotic fruit is so cheap here that it is available for less than half a USD a KG! And it is abundantly available during the season.But when I read somewhere that pineapple was a status symbol among the elite in Europe some time back- in 16th and 17th century- I decided to make a trail of it to have a better understanding of the theme.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Pineapple is a native of South America especially to Brazil and Paraguay. It was known as 'Ananas Comosus' in Guarani, a local live language which existed there from the days of the conquest of the Spanish. It was Christopher Columbus in 1496 who brought a lone pineapple which survived his long voyage of weeks- in a ship which had only wind power- from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe to Spain. He presented it to King Ferdinand as "pina de Indes"- Pine of the Indians thinking that he had just discovered India for this island!. The king fell for the taste of the fruit which was unknown to anyone in Europe till then! The hey days of pineapple commenced that day!!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>As pineapples started being available in a limited way in Europe, the wealthy went wild with the taste of this fruit. Along with the taste, pineapple became synonymous with nobility and wealth as it became the favorite of Charles II of Scotland, Catherine the Great of Russia, Louis XV of France and King Ferdinand of Spain!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7oZ7WNhaEysbt6iKDKsOe14_nU5ZYb9QQIB6jN0EFzqJdtIrvRExZe7GCmShEDGz7uOspuO4IIjUfj6uliqqRnJRk-dbK_KLFaqlwyUGsTLOhXjrDl0QdK5jD1B35lRZq9BE7323ON7wXdLnF9NuiYwNN9assDEBnKvbwbDyMNqJP65br-QkEuSvQdw/s1200/cabinet_023_beauman_fran_001.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="973" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7oZ7WNhaEysbt6iKDKsOe14_nU5ZYb9QQIB6jN0EFzqJdtIrvRExZe7GCmShEDGz7uOspuO4IIjUfj6uliqqRnJRk-dbK_KLFaqlwyUGsTLOhXjrDl0QdK5jD1B35lRZq9BE7323ON7wXdLnF9NuiYwNN9assDEBnKvbwbDyMNqJP65br-QkEuSvQdw/s320/cabinet_023_beauman_fran_001.jpg" width="259" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLDPmsXJZ8b3vi6zr1J0A3KOlmVikosQORonFzxRI54r-DPWxMwI6tToHWOn_jbZWC1p5L2v3wmILfnLbXm0dUmO3VoX9JCAX89LYBeIsT2MLxC-0XWiWmAcYtiuK6XJSK45zZ6bkI_fGkbAPCib1C8KGWHRmaa00m_vhPynOxby2uWWxozkurzMMDiQ/s274/images%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="184" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLDPmsXJZ8b3vi6zr1J0A3KOlmVikosQORonFzxRI54r-DPWxMwI6tToHWOn_jbZWC1p5L2v3wmILfnLbXm0dUmO3VoX9JCAX89LYBeIsT2MLxC-0XWiWmAcYtiuK6XJSK45zZ6bkI_fGkbAPCib1C8KGWHRmaa00m_vhPynOxby2uWWxozkurzMMDiQ/w214-h320/images%20(1).jpg" width="214" /></a><br /><br /><br /><b>From the Mayas to "Pineries" of Europe...</b></span><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Around 750 BC, the Mayas and Aztecs of Mexico were the oldest civilization which cultivated pineapples. Soon it might have spread around the areas of that Continent , but nothing is recorded until Christopher Columbus who transported the first pineapple to Europe in 1496 which he named as "pina de Indes"-Pine of India. Just 25 years later Magellan too discovered the pineapple plant in his exploration of Brazil. Spaniards named the fruit "pinas" due to resemblance to pine cone.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In Europe by mid 1600 pineapples were successfully cultivated in specially designed hot houses called "pineries". In 1677 the first European grown pineapple in England was presented to King Charles II and soon "pinery" became a status symbol.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Pineapple madness...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">As the pineapple became sought after, rivalries broke out among the aristocrat families of Europe! It was so expensive that only few could eat it. At one stage it was "rented" out to banquets for display! Pineapples were carved into stones, carpet, sand, wood by artists making pineapple a luxury. By 18th century, the fruit became an architectural feature of selective buildings.In Europe such a craze reverberated to the extent that a single fruit cost $8000 by today's standards!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RKevR_i35GpA1JP92Nvn0Yw10wkfAe_PlP7EVT3R1PA_9KV5o202M9vHRVDoj-_8ijJrWXy2zXYD07UqenvRdfkEZ2F_RjI-LELVxFJwzZwuSEnuldwW8zE2bVa3tx4d-WSfhinLucMYPuVgmcLi4u782B21UO8YhWlScOgix_iT3rwn8AI1e74eAA/s600/4ffca329bc790853d2feb81b755c51cb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="450" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RKevR_i35GpA1JP92Nvn0Yw10wkfAe_PlP7EVT3R1PA_9KV5o202M9vHRVDoj-_8ijJrWXy2zXYD07UqenvRdfkEZ2F_RjI-LELVxFJwzZwuSEnuldwW8zE2bVa3tx4d-WSfhinLucMYPuVgmcLi4u782B21UO8YhWlScOgix_iT3rwn8AI1e74eAA/s320/4ffca329bc790853d2feb81b755c51cb.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">How the price came down....</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">By early 18th century, steamships came into existence for navigation. Long voyages could be made in rather short periods unlike the earlier ships which were depending on wind power. Transport of pineapples in bulk also could be facilitated in shorter period which made Europe to get fresh supplies from far away countries which were colonized by then. Pineapple became a product of colony and prices came down!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> So also many countries of South America. In 1888 John L Jensen, a new migrant to US made a modern plantation of 133 acres extent and export center at Florida. In 1899 James D Dole ,a Harvard graduate developed a modern pineapple plant of 65 acres at Hawaii who was known as pineapple king!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi10hvx72aVsb1l4viIcl_pRzSiFQvHM3KfGG0ybm_o5wRmjesaiDm9114FQpQmEid7Mgsfv8BYrUZZ1l5wbJkYEctV33-Bx8djyY7sNVyUTsvdXsn32nVlFduYngJklvjptIVpiaI1FQgrfmw_eAXGGqof7OUwKMzJCvUZtGMuCtfTjbnG9Qe5NWPsRQ/s720/Dole-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="720" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi10hvx72aVsb1l4viIcl_pRzSiFQvHM3KfGG0ybm_o5wRmjesaiDm9114FQpQmEid7Mgsfv8BYrUZZ1l5wbJkYEctV33-Bx8djyY7sNVyUTsvdXsn32nVlFduYngJklvjptIVpiaI1FQgrfmw_eAXGGqof7OUwKMzJCvUZtGMuCtfTjbnG9Qe5NWPsRQ/s320/Dole-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>And now..</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">As the scientific world found out that pineapples are low in calories while high in vitamins,minerals and an antioxidant, the fruit- fresh as well as canned- became very popular.Largest producers of pineapples currently are Philippines, Costa Rica and Brazil.Even fresh pineapples come under world renowned brands like Del Monte,Dole and Chiquita.The best and tastiest pineapple is the Caribbean Antigua Black Pineapple although it is not black.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Pineapple cultivation was introduced to India in 1548 by the Portuguese colonists in Kerala and Goa but was limited to traditional cultivation.Assam,Meghalaya and Tripura are the states where pineapples are grown largely in India currently.There is a village named Vazhakulam near my home town which is very well known for this exotic fruit which I believe has a geographical tag for taste and quality. I have read the other day that Kerala state is in the process of making wine from locally grown pineapples and few more fruits.I am sure that only few might have observed Pineapple motifs built on famous Charminar at Hyderabad as seen below.Interestingly it is there since 16th century built by Qutb Shahi dynasty. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-X0k4Y3hKwPk6JyJmfNUB6suGC2sguDQZc6Kci7EMIo70XzobRm9XxrxhL0p_x5y040mHRXFNC6fTk4QtzOPGPOWWZT362udy1cJMEN0dA9xRUTU5aBEbCLOLtEQpfO08UI3NMH98Cm_mkLvriV--PJVGVKiMMOySszThZAtli1YKwvErJG7P9fyOEq9x/s1048/Pineapple_P1%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-X0k4Y3hKwPk6JyJmfNUB6suGC2sguDQZc6Kci7EMIo70XzobRm9XxrxhL0p_x5y040mHRXFNC6fTk4QtzOPGPOWWZT362udy1cJMEN0dA9xRUTU5aBEbCLOLtEQpfO08UI3NMH98Cm_mkLvriV--PJVGVKiMMOySszThZAtli1YKwvErJG7P9fyOEq9x/w153-h200/Pineapple_P1%20(1).jpg" width="153" /></a> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVVZIWRa9R5KcI2FJhXE_sL0-hfJLK68vohdVH24UpAiqo5qaPkzEwPX982wN9jZI3TUlqrCUgi-ksAJNW_vIFPHAoFWYOJ6sbJerNr4njTfluQGOkvp1eQfflGkb5E5LpG_Jlxh3I7Y92_Xc2JQJgWij0PH6jDuzuFLGen_1_ctjJKq2PadtlGnx5Enr/s736/f4aa8b7a1a3783699ef744cbf571d527.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="736" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVVZIWRa9R5KcI2FJhXE_sL0-hfJLK68vohdVH24UpAiqo5qaPkzEwPX982wN9jZI3TUlqrCUgi-ksAJNW_vIFPHAoFWYOJ6sbJerNr4njTfluQGOkvp1eQfflGkb5E5LpG_Jlxh3I7Y92_Xc2JQJgWij0PH6jDuzuFLGen_1_ctjJKq2PadtlGnx5Enr/w200-h200/f4aa8b7a1a3783699ef744cbf571d527.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">To this day when the best hotels and banquet halls display fruits from all over the world, it will be crowned by a fresh pineapple! Many countries of the world call </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">pineapple as ananas to this day especially those who speak Arabic, Hindi, German, French and Greek. This is the story of Pina de Indes or ananas oops pineapple!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _______________________________</span></span></div></div><p></p></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-19908685920066643602023-10-01T09:59:00.001+05:302023-10-02T10:46:58.729+05:30 FROM NAZI TO NASA, US AND ROSCOSMOS, RUSSIA...... <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>HOW V2 - THE NAZI ROCKET AND SCIENTISTS WERE USED BY AMERICANS AND RUSSIANS IN SPACE WAR!!</i></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>October 4, 1957.Moscow time 10.29 PM. As Russia launched the first artificial satellite named 'Sputnik 1' -meaning fellow traveller in Russian language- US ,the west and the rest of the world were taken aback by surprise!Russian(Soviet) news agency TASS and Radio Moscow announced that the successful launch could be seen with the use of a powerful binocular and even record the Beep-Beep signal using apt instruments!As the scientists and others in US watched and listened in awe, mixed with panic than happiness, this Soviet spacecraft passed over them many times a day!! The space war between Russia and US had begun that day during another already ongoing war- the cold war.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Before the excitement over Sputnik 1 was over, Russians fired the 'Sputnik 2' just after 4 weeks, on November 3 1957! The world got bewildered knowing that a dog named 'Leika' too was sent in it into orbit making it the first living creature ever to do so.On May 15 1958, 'Sputnik 3' was launched with a lot of instruments fitted on them, though other than the Russians nobody knew what precisely those were.When the Russians sent their cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin into space for the first time three years later, on April 12,1961 they sincerely thought that the Americans were left much behind in the race. Russians were proved wrong.In another 8 years thereafter, the Americans could make a human walk on the moon for the first time as a befitting response to USSR! Neil Armstrong made the 'Giant Leap for Mankind' on July 20, 1969 as we all know!!</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Slightly bigger than a basketball, with whiskers like features of a cat as antenna, it was the launch of 'Sputnik 1' by Russia (erstwhile USSR)- not US- that opened the doors of the space age, heralding the space race and space explorations which continue to this day.Remarkably this war has taken place during my time and many more players have joined since then-France,Germany,UK,Japan,China, India and more....Definitely this topic would not have come to my mind, if India had not made the mission Chandrayaan 3, becoming the first country to soft land a satellite successfully recently on the southern polar region of the moon.I am trying to take stock of how this race had started historically than scientifically especially for the reading of youngsters and old timers alike, including my grand daughters Maria and Serah...who will understand well later, if not now....A must read...</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmOnxzMQdpuQCFSTwf6oe-TpG6ARZ2s1N0mM-E-_hnOgHM00vUAixg55TKnolNX7aY6q8XR4EuqyQP7EMO9Ur7lUJsY8Af7CTtp5pVJs53oxwKa7nO_uFqEoyfbLBZXig_sEchSC3btt29MV12SKnqIEjAKWA_0pas7CXtzYibOMRYp9x1gelrF3BFplAy/s1500/GettyImages-151541875-adcfc13d221e40e4946f571b57180f3d.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="947" data-original-width="1500" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmOnxzMQdpuQCFSTwf6oe-TpG6ARZ2s1N0mM-E-_hnOgHM00vUAixg55TKnolNX7aY6q8XR4EuqyQP7EMO9Ur7lUJsY8Af7CTtp5pVJs53oxwKa7nO_uFqEoyfbLBZXig_sEchSC3btt29MV12SKnqIEjAKWA_0pas7CXtzYibOMRYp9x1gelrF3BFplAy/s320/GettyImages-151541875-adcfc13d221e40e4946f571b57180f3d.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></i></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div>Development of Science in US and Russia(USSR)...</b></span><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In spite of the fact that at least eight Founding Fathers of US including Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were renowned scientists, most of Europe was much advanced in scientific explorations comparatively till almost mid 20th century.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Russia's history of development in Science started from Czarist days.Peter the Great established the Imperial Academy of Sciences as early as in 1725.In 1917 when the Communists came to power there, already that country had 4 full fledged universities. USSR gave much importance to Mathematics,Nuclear Science and Astronomy thereafter, churning out thousands of Scientists and Engineers, much more than relative to world population then.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">But all these actions did not bring the standards in Russia either to what was available notably in Britain and Germany because of the long established scientific infrastructure, societies, universities and institutes there over centuries.Then what made US and Russia(USSR) lead the race of space explorations all of a sudden?</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>US ,V2 and a man from NAZI to NASA....</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Nazi Germany was much ahead in Quantum Physics and Rocket Science compared to any other countries of the world.But Nazi thoughts of Hitler were not conducive for Jew citizens who were leading among the scientists in that country even to survive there.As Nazis started their influence over Germany and Italy,there was a steady flow of Jewish German scientists to US, which the latter encouraged.The famous Albert Einstein</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> was one among them who migrated to US in 1933 which was followed by a lot.We all know how the US managed to have the first nuclear explosion with the help of such emigrants including Oppenheimer in 1944.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp26XvAOLLYjTDp9ntBobnqtRsAVlQhWmyIPbxQdIgO1eh8j2XUWlCM9krWyoSxECSjv0e2eIHoi9gDE89oBBxkIWNZBBGgO3ViZPqE41OKh3o5Jv3YZrjxmuE_QNPDx85LLLVeLvYpJHMHZ_S4B2nLxFiA0j8pOUnPibq32vN_StXLYbbAG6GYEIeJPKw/s300/life-cover-sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="225" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp26XvAOLLYjTDp9ntBobnqtRsAVlQhWmyIPbxQdIgO1eh8j2XUWlCM9krWyoSxECSjv0e2eIHoi9gDE89oBBxkIWNZBBGgO3ViZPqE41OKh3o5Jv3YZrjxmuE_QNPDx85LLLVeLvYpJHMHZ_S4B2nLxFiA0j8pOUnPibq32vN_StXLYbbAG6GYEIeJPKw/s1600/life-cover-sm.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Nazi Germany was able to develop the first long range guided ballistic missile code named V2, much ahead of others.It was the brainchild of the Nazi German aerospace scientist Werner Von Braun and his team. V-2 was the world's first functional large scale liquid propellent rocket which the Nazi army secretly developed at Peenemunde island in Germany. Just before the Red army captured this island on May 5, 1945, Braun and his entire team of about 125 and about 1600 other German scientists had moved out secretly to surrender to US forces along with truck loads of related research papers. The secret US operation was code named as 'Paperclip'!No one knows the correct numbers.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> US was able to place Wernher Von Braun as Director in NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). He was on the cover of lot of American publications later including Life magazine! The fact that he became a US citizen and regarded as the 'Father of Rocket Science' in that country was never an accident!Redstone missile which made Alan Shepard possible as first US astronaut to travel into space in 1971 was a direct derivative of V-2! </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> At the same time I don't think that US Science was anyway substandard before the Germans reached there.But they took advantage of the situation before and after the WW2 which definitely gave an impetus to the scientific society there.Since 1950s to this day ,Americans have won half of Nobel prizes awarded in Sciences is a world record yet to be broken! When the Electronics, Medicine, and IT boom started too, Americans are the leaders for sure.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPbR2aolgySEAeDczKC4F-oxoXvPJ7vh-RB9RsmpHKZ-VCuv-iazZFeT5B_5ONONXSVzzUW5Scv6K_T98-RDwYjKLyoh1QjEhvR6zVNx2HH0vZR0-fVBrDB7tr_A7seRzofv3tJuCCZ2CU8EY26Dw9YggXGOh1MBnU__FzfsusigaZ7ZyVdHC_zBVzlSsi/s720/1_i0D8xQXB9Ugq2TzuxUjstw.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="208" data-original-width="720" height="92" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPbR2aolgySEAeDczKC4F-oxoXvPJ7vh-RB9RsmpHKZ-VCuv-iazZFeT5B_5ONONXSVzzUW5Scv6K_T98-RDwYjKLyoh1QjEhvR6zVNx2HH0vZR0-fVBrDB7tr_A7seRzofv3tJuCCZ2CU8EY26Dw9YggXGOh1MBnU__FzfsusigaZ7ZyVdHC_zBVzlSsi/s320/1_i0D8xQXB9Ugq2TzuxUjstw.webp" width="320" /></a></div> <span style="font-size: medium;">German Scientists picked up in Operation Paperclip in US-1946. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht-XKqi9i3MlEDaop6zBbJBC-Gq1Lvd1UOVtyeODiBiJKv8hlHZZG1AGdeVo0eQBL2qWYXFSylIat2W-5sifFhrYxEun8EU-YfP2C4r1AcQmur3ZLfpQXhOdHUiZ7azfoEot51xm1Zi0g9N17iTeCa19WTyqieonBQO8yqLyXkE_SZttsI913F41Y9lJ8i/s976/p025zmzy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="549" data-original-width="976" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht-XKqi9i3MlEDaop6zBbJBC-Gq1Lvd1UOVtyeODiBiJKv8hlHZZG1AGdeVo0eQBL2qWYXFSylIat2W-5sifFhrYxEun8EU-YfP2C4r1AcQmur3ZLfpQXhOdHUiZ7azfoEot51xm1Zi0g9N17iTeCa19WTyqieonBQO8yqLyXkE_SZttsI913F41Y9lJ8i/s320/p025zmzy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> V2, Forerunner of all ballistic missiles, developed by Nazi Germany.<br /><b style="font-size: large;"><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Russia (USSR), ROSCOSMOS, V.2 and Nazi Germany...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Russia was fully aware of Braun and V-2.But they couldn't stop him and the team of 125 going to US as they preferred to surrender to them, though it was Red army which reached Berlin first on May 2, 1945 with access to Reichstag and Hitler's dwelling.Russians did the best of next available options.They took the V-2 assembly facility at Peenemunde to bits to decipher their workings ,along with detailed drawings and shipped available data to Moscow! Americans and the British had to wait another two months until July 4, 1945 to have an entry to Berlin. But they had their pieces of cakes from elsewhere in Germany!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">ROSCOSMOS is equivalent of NASA in Russia, if you don't know.Under 'Operation Osoaviakhim', Russians identified about 2500 Nazi German scientists - altogether 6500 including family members- who were transferred to Soviet Union latest by October 22, 1946 in 92 trains!The famous rocket engineer Helmut Grottrup, who was a colleague of Braun was one among them.He along with other Germans such as Johannes Hoch,Kurt Mogus etc have contributed German technology to USSR.Here I have to mention that Grotropp defected to West Germany in 1953 and invented the first smart card of the world thereafter! </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Americans exploded the first atomic bomb in 1944, but Russians followed suit in 1949, now you know how!The famous rocket of USSR code named R-5M was made on the basis of V-2 as seen below!</span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9lZewUnARDxE4AH39JfCOZ_cROiNH6tPL50nUnzCG8Kp2YXNEN4AcKjdIdT0pj3oUm6GmUCmmLPW1zP88XNU1wdOi0BMD-4YbwP02fJPRKIDJzGp6LhsGbs1LZMNwTSiK1mRxa3U63vxy3JUXiOu_3mBHY6RkefeYVB-DJRSOrG9yh3ZOU46RW5FqWvCj/s700/img_59-1_22.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="700" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9lZewUnARDxE4AH39JfCOZ_cROiNH6tPL50nUnzCG8Kp2YXNEN4AcKjdIdT0pj3oUm6GmUCmmLPW1zP88XNU1wdOi0BMD-4YbwP02fJPRKIDJzGp6LhsGbs1LZMNwTSiK1mRxa3U63vxy3JUXiOu_3mBHY6RkefeYVB-DJRSOrG9yh3ZOU46RW5FqWvCj/s320/img_59-1_22.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHFtsYdocb0O55-wgaNFCPC2qp8fm55ndHP89YtQEbuxaKV5ux-oJ2czSeR_APqC3AEFHQXn_9LyDdYWiYS74h_6uyWdsHsB_fxxHc-Zfv57VOmRp4a5rNFr5zsCmc92oCkqIKW_gKB51zsUMfb2ZEowkBPqMpD_CCNGTHrNlCYaRPLVNkJ4x5DC7jt0Q3/s1396/sovjet-vlag-op-rijksdag-2-mei-1945-berlijn.jpg__1536x1536_q85_subsampling-2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1396" data-original-width="966" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHFtsYdocb0O55-wgaNFCPC2qp8fm55ndHP89YtQEbuxaKV5ux-oJ2czSeR_APqC3AEFHQXn_9LyDdYWiYS74h_6uyWdsHsB_fxxHc-Zfv57VOmRp4a5rNFr5zsCmc92oCkqIKW_gKB51zsUMfb2ZEowkBPqMpD_CCNGTHrNlCYaRPLVNkJ4x5DC7jt0Q3/w221-h320/sovjet-vlag-op-rijksdag-2-mei-1945-berlijn.jpg__1536x1536_q85_subsampling-2.jpg" width="221" /></a><br /> <span style="font-size: medium;">Soviets in Berlin hoisting their flag over Reichstag</span><br /><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">And V-2....and India</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">V of V-2 stands for a difficult German word to pronounce for me- 'Vergetltungswaffezweir' which means 'Vengeance weapon'.It is estimated that thousands of concentration slave workers had perished in manufacturing them by Nazis.Nevertheless both countries- America and Russia - considered V-2 as antecedent of their own ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles and used effectively related German scientists, is a true record of history which even those countries don't deny! When US and West used to look down on India while getting into the bandwagon of atomic club or aerospace club with our own humble but honest efforts with all our problems including poverty , I never knew that they had such a negative past! And I don't think that most of fellow Indians either!!Perhaps even those who live in the west now also may not be fully aware, as only after the cold war was over it is known in public domain.But look at the double standards of the western outlook! They laugh at us, forgetting what they did in this field with the Nazis'!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaqQVIcy-WoQOTC__BeQmiqrGdpWr_1UNgdnfZHi1Qs6GIQ1TVAsIQ73-VUjOvp4y_gN-N6xY8Y4Mol79niBEEvQQ8WdQzqnCyXwY-8umfbalZDfzmF1cRfYu4YV3ciiiK7xZMyfJAUzM4KmJ8CQ5BecDNtRjhufJvZB6macnO_qVqRAa8_nMncCy7Ouq/s976/_78030102_78030100.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="976" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaqQVIcy-WoQOTC__BeQmiqrGdpWr_1UNgdnfZHi1Qs6GIQ1TVAsIQ73-VUjOvp4y_gN-N6xY8Y4Mol79niBEEvQQ8WdQzqnCyXwY-8umfbalZDfzmF1cRfYu4YV3ciiiK7xZMyfJAUzM4KmJ8CQ5BecDNtRjhufJvZB6macnO_qVqRAa8_nMncCy7Ouq/s320/_78030102_78030100.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-family: verdana;">The cartoon published in NYT when India sent record number of satellites in a day. They later apologised for the same. Given another opportunity probably, they may repeat!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs_uZjXgTielxyFw_ESC5Spdxsqc4tGvHlk3DbL0vlJLV7BBGD8KKn7MJ84fg8p-Fj7J4Dw6OmcnlsNY4CocnmyJlgrttApbpt5AtVxp3CC35Lw4iFwsO-KRWJf2dR-LiJTITxsWY-3j7Uav9nqePsmVTHitOidOnnjiA683d6HaSapSk_LVgzBmdCFPyJ/s878/FpTWHLQXwAAItDp.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="878" data-original-width="686" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs_uZjXgTielxyFw_ESC5Spdxsqc4tGvHlk3DbL0vlJLV7BBGD8KKn7MJ84fg8p-Fj7J4Dw6OmcnlsNY4CocnmyJlgrttApbpt5AtVxp3CC35Lw4iFwsO-KRWJf2dR-LiJTITxsWY-3j7Uav9nqePsmVTHitOidOnnjiA683d6HaSapSk_LVgzBmdCFPyJ/s320/FpTWHLQXwAAItDp.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> In 1925 -almost 100 years back- a US cartoon predicting that one day the balance of power would shift!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Always remember that the great invention of 'zero'('sunya' in Sanskrit) by Indian Mathematicians in the 5th century , was more than nothing.That's why Albert Einstein himself told once:"We owe a lot to Indians , who taught us to count without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made".Intelligent westerners like Max Muller,Mark Twain,Romain Rolland, Will Durant...the list can be longer ,have testified similar accounts, if you require such consolations from west itself.But I also remember that we cannot live quoting our glorious past alone.</span></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">India is very young country in the quest of aero space adventures comparing to existing experts.But the new economic situation of the country making it one of the richest in GDP have opened many avenues for the country and countrymen. And the situation will be much better as years go by.We may not have Godfathers to help us or need not be copy cats as the west did but still I feel that in the next 25 years, India will turn around to be a full blossomed robust nation in this respect.All we do is inject a sense of nationalism in the veins of Indian youngsters , giving professional opportunities to grow in our own country,who now make serpentine queues in front of US and other western consulates to immigrate! Make them understand that after scoring excellent grades from top most best institutes of the country, which are on par with the best in the world in Sciences and Engineering, not to settle for selling FMCG or beauty products or cool drinks here or abroad just for the sake of some more monies to earn!Sure,nothing wrong with those careers but they are making others loose chances for an entry to study Science and Engineering in such prestigious colleges of fame and become world class scientists and engineers! Let us resolve problem of poverty in India also along with becoming a super power house in Science, Technology and Economy- not forgetting Arts, Literature, Humanities and others- reminding the fact that Science can help it being accomplished, more than anything else! We have to grow ourselves and protect ourselves! We have the right capabilities.We have to make it happen.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I shall sign off here after making two cartoons as above.The first one could be a repeat for you.Elite Space Club of US/Europe making fun of India, when the later shot more than hundred satellites in one go, a world record so far.The second is to show that all westerners are not fools.One of them had made a cartoon about 100 years back forecasting what India would do now and in future! US cartoonist Bob Minor had published in 1925, predicting that one day the balance of power would shift to China, India and Africa!I don't think that even an Indian could dream of such a status for India at that time!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Definitely I may not live long enough to see this situation happen.But that is secondary.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> ___________________________</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-46378727009824339242023-09-05T16:20:00.001+05:302023-09-05T16:20:20.263+05:30400,000! 4 LAKHS HITS!!<h1 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: verdana; font-size: x-large;">400,000 ! 4 LAKH.... HITS!!</span> </h1><h1 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">In spite of all the differences among us, this world is still small!!</span></h1><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWvyENMoHYvZheNob_FNOKN-1Bhttwt3rK0uJm_o5wRHRrWxfH8cvFKJvCJJSkSTzq03I0vh06t8ouMIIdLVD0f3wEzpsc0Wp-uAid_S6DpkaRrgpn8xaM0XZq2ONWPoPMHzHqfvL5bGYgeZduiDFm89j3L-wKXIjfnTZKE-h7k7wvbuIq8VotEkFsIWTW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="416" data-original-width="640" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhWvyENMoHYvZheNob_FNOKN-1Bhttwt3rK0uJm_o5wRHRrWxfH8cvFKJvCJJSkSTzq03I0vh06t8ouMIIdLVD0f3wEzpsc0Wp-uAid_S6DpkaRrgpn8xaM0XZq2ONWPoPMHzHqfvL5bGYgeZduiDFm89j3L-wKXIjfnTZKE-h7k7wvbuIq8VotEkFsIWTW=w200-h130" width="200" /></a></div><b><br /></b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>400,000 and going on strong!</b>That's the total number of readers worldwide who have visited my blog MUSINGS FROM DOHA at https://www.jaisonchacko.com/ so far. It is amazing, gratifying and equally encouraging for me to note that the readership has spread to 110 countries in all the continents as shown above! Most of such countries are well known but quite a few are not that known- no offence meant to them- like Burkina Faso, Kosovo, Montenegro, Moldova or North Macedonia. Then, there are a few from 'unknown countries', classified as such by Google, presumably Cuba, Sudan, Syria, Crimea, North Korea or Iran, details of which is not known.Around 150 articles on various topics- on first of every month- are published so far on this blog. Two books are published based on selective topics namely ' Gandhi? Who's That?' and 'Kaleidoscopic Musings' , still available on Amazon. So far 1700 valuable comments are received from the readers worldwide! I thank each one of my readers , near and far, for your continued support. As far as I am concerned it is incredible but true! It also shows that in spite of all the differences among us, this world is still small!!</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>The following three articles are in the top of the chart in popularity now :</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1.What and How to negotiate business deals.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2.63,Ravipuram Revisited and </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3.Five minutes before closing time......Beyond Lutyens Bakerloo and Chausath Yogini.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>And maximum number of the readers are from the following 10 countries in that order now...</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1.US 6.Ukraine</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2.Hong Kong 7.France</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3.Indonesia 8.Germany</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4.India 9.China and</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">5.Russia 10.Qatar.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Of all, readers from US is 20%,Hong Kong 13%,Indonesia 10%,India 8% and Russia 5% followed by 6- 10 and rest of 100. Thanks to Google technology without which I could not have even dreamed of this feat. Perhaps more than anyone, I myself enjoy writing... keeping my old mind busy, young and creative.Thank you very much for your valuable supports.Namasthe!</span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-24871538273340553792023-09-01T07:03:00.000+05:302023-09-01T07:03:12.255+05:30WHAT THE LITTLE BOY AND FAT MAN DID TO THE WORLD.... <p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The recent release of the Hollywood movie "Oppenheimer" , brought to my mind an avalanche of related thoughts, not mentioned in the movie, about the dropping of the first atomic bomb.I was not born then.The 'Little Boy'- Thin Man was the original name- and the 'Fat Man' were the names given to the atomic bombs by the Americans which were used in Japan. Why the Americans gave those funny names- which doesn't look funny to me- anyway?</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The American bomber aircraft which dropped the bomb at Hiroshima was named as 'Enola Gay'.But who gave this strange name for this bomber? The pilot did.His name was Paul Tibbitts. He chose the name to honour his own old mother! Finally was it a honour or dishonour for her, I don't know.Because Paul who thought himself to be a hero to his country men finally decided not to have an engraved grave fearing backlash from protestors for years to come!</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>On August 6, 1945 the 'Little Boy' was dropped over Hiroshima!Three days later on August 9 the 'Fat man' was dropped over Nagasaki! The world was never the same again!!</b></span></i><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>In fact, Nagasaki was not the original primary target but another city named Kokura.But on that fateful day Kokura was in morning fog! As such the pilot mistakenly or otherwise targeted secondary Nagasaki- which culminated a new expression 'Kokura's luck'!!</b></span></i><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>I hope this article will enthuse especially the youngsters of the new gen on the subject.</b></span></i><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> Many oldies of my generation as well may not be aware of these historical facts, many of them were classified information once.For example America decided not to include Albert Einstein , one of the their greatest Physicists to chair or even include in the team of ' Manhattan Project' formed to build the first atomic bomb!! America decided to drop atomic bombs in Japan in spite it was explicitly clear that Germany didn't have one as they surrendered unconditionally!! Why?</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM4aAL2qL6O7S7FNm1qW_Y9YYeinzzXM94iuVuosVJW7mI4nXpzXhEBtta0HoCaNKKuuOoeoprby6hbGWDbgZ1mL8iROhaaW3rbZYMWu-pFYpEqbS5FbpWqojN72E0msQ0Q93Mko2sHFQVGZFcOtLbP9dOQ_XOvW9cLchl9C7RnzSmeqHbSu1dJrq_8mOx/s612/istockphoto-850824240-612x612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM4aAL2qL6O7S7FNm1qW_Y9YYeinzzXM94iuVuosVJW7mI4nXpzXhEBtta0HoCaNKKuuOoeoprby6hbGWDbgZ1mL8iROhaaW3rbZYMWu-pFYpEqbS5FbpWqojN72E0msQ0Q93Mko2sHFQVGZFcOtLbP9dOQ_XOvW9cLchl9C7RnzSmeqHbSu1dJrq_8mOx/s320/istockphoto-850824240-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBijBa3Ncx07SEBvfSal6CEV1Qsbr6mRtcXiMPjWewHWRaPbtKMJTqmO4UUK28GWLOAcl98lKTUgZJv4W1DSHaCCxA0i1ML684fAv25ZxcKRBSId22biE6ylwU9ExUXj6aJYxVT8NcpWnyzd2hKyvXL5ouv69KlvwJlb7EcgruQ3l17GfTvDBSGlN0nZCe/s960/MP_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBijBa3Ncx07SEBvfSal6CEV1Qsbr6mRtcXiMPjWewHWRaPbtKMJTqmO4UUK28GWLOAcl98lKTUgZJv4W1DSHaCCxA0i1ML684fAv25ZxcKRBSId22biE6ylwU9ExUXj6aJYxVT8NcpWnyzd2hKyvXL5ouv69KlvwJlb7EcgruQ3l17GfTvDBSGlN0nZCe/s320/MP_01.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></i></span></i></div><p></p><span style="background-color: white; color: #383b40; text-align: start;"><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: xx-small;"> Models of Fat Man and Little Boy on display at the Bradbury Science </span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: xx-small;"> Museum Los Alamos National Laboratory. Image courtesy of Los Alamos National Laboratory.</span></span></p></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>From Pupil Hall, Manhattan to Los Alamos desert, New Mexico desert....</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">On atomic theory, a forerunner of making such a bomb, a number of scientists have contributed.Among them John Dalton and Frederick Sodely, both English scientists of 18th century and Pierre and Marie Currie, French scientists and Rutherford the New Zealand scientist of early 19th century stand out. There could be others.Interestingly HG Wells, an English scientific fiction writer wrote about an atomic bomb as early in 1914 in his novel 'The World Set Free'. There were efforts for splitting atom in France, Italy, Japan and Germany from late 19th and 20th centuries.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">As the Nazis came to power in Germany in 1933, many leading Jewish scientists fled from that country for safe havens.In spite of this exodus, German Scientists Hahn and Strassmann could lead an operation there for making an atomic bomb. Leo Szilard, a leading German scientist came to US and joined University of Chicago in 1942 and joined efforts to make the bomb. Prior to that in 1939 scientists of Columbia University could conduct a nuclear fission experiment successfully in the basement of a Physics lab named Pupil Hall, right in the heart of Manhattan very close to Broadway! Hardly few knew that then, even in US!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In August 1939, Albert Einstein wrote an official letter drafted by Szilard to then US President Franklin D Roosevelt warning the impending danger of the Germans if successful in making an atomic bomb.Though US took serious efforts only after they entered the WWII, a committee was formed which eventually gave birth to the secret move </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">named</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> '</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Manhattan Project' </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">to make a bomb in 1942 !Leslie Groves, an officer from US Corps of Engineers headed it while the team of scientists was headed by Robert Oppenheimer, another German Jew who migrated to America. Interestingly Albert Einstein was sidelined by the Govt since he was thought to be left leaning politically and US Army intelligence didn't clear his name!!He was listed as a security risk!!However on July 16 1945 in the desert named Los Alamos near New Mexico,US the first nuclear test took place code named 'Trinity'! Robert Oppenheimer, father of nuclear bomb didn't live long as a hero there!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">From Los Alamos desert to Hiroshima and Nagasaki... </b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Harry Truman came to the seat of Presidentship in US soon after the death of President Roosevelt on April 12,1945. Team Manhattan was ready with bombs as they recommended a short list of cities of Japan including Hiroshima and Kokura to be bombed as primary targets.They selected the cities, least affected by bombing thus far, so that the effects of the bombs could be measured better and the world could see possibly the might of a new military power on earth!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Meanwhile it was known that Germany was no more a nuclear threat as the country surrendered to the Allied forces on May 7,1945. As such two petitions signed by Leo Szilard and other 59 scientists involved including Robert Oppenheimer in making the atomic bombs urged the US President , commander-in- Chief in July 1945 not to use the atomic bomb in Japan.Unfortunately such petitions never reached the President as Leslie Gores, Head of military sat on it!!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Both bombs were were transported to Tinian Island, Japan which was under command of American Forces on the ship USS 'Indianapolis' for assembly on July 26, 1945. Four days later this very ship was torpedoed by the Japanese Forces is another hardly known part of history!On August 6, 1945 at 2.00 AM the American Bomber B29 Superfortress named Enola Gay left the Japanese isle of Tinian and headed for Hiroshima.At 08.15 AM local time the 'Little Boy' exploded! Three days after on August 9 the second bomber named as 'Bock's Car' dropped the 'Fat Man' over Nagasaki at 11.02 AM local time!</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The name of second bomber was so given by the pilot Frederick Bock who was selected to drop the Fat Man at Nagasaki.But on that fateful day due to technical reasons another pilot Charles Tweeny did that, could be another twist in the history!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>TAIL PIECE...</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhNQLrumAkSv3bZO57HGLRFV3DCihRBqu81w_jtSeItXw8HzMglsyXSwfRtc1vQJhm0x5Vf42AByXOc0a5GL8oQyvjNmJ36jziprfg1sY80-OKEZaAFTso4nyUBLmB0ET4jKIB8Zz0HaLY-DNEY_-jAgCULvdUeZXFGbaM5QLVBWl7qifnynp7QXxFMdd8/s2304/original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1728" data-original-width="2304" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhNQLrumAkSv3bZO57HGLRFV3DCihRBqu81w_jtSeItXw8HzMglsyXSwfRtc1vQJhm0x5Vf42AByXOc0a5GL8oQyvjNmJ36jziprfg1sY80-OKEZaAFTso4nyUBLmB0ET4jKIB8Zz0HaLY-DNEY_-jAgCULvdUeZXFGbaM5QLVBWl7qifnynp7QXxFMdd8/s320/original.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><p style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;"><b>Enola Gay is 'proudly' exhibited at National Air and Space Museum at Washington DC while Bock's Car is on display at US Air Force Museum,Ohio. </b><b>I have seen Enola Gay in full sheen which is displayed at Washington but could not appreciate for some reason. But the meaningful funeral silence maintained by the visitors at Peace Memorial at Hiroshima which I could experience 6 years back, lingers in my mind to this day!</b></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana;">Before I conclude this article, I have to also mention about the Indian connection of Robert Oppenheimer. He was a German Jew by birth but like many other German scientists and philosophers he was interested in Indian Hindu scriptures especially 'Bhagavad Gita'. After his initial interests in the book reading the translated version, he took all the pains to study Sanskrit, the original language in which the book was written thousands of years back, to know more in depth about the meaning of the verses in the book first hand!!</b></div></span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> _____________________________________________</span></span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-79152188940367774942023-08-01T10:01:00.000+05:302023-08-01T10:01:04.406+05:30 MAN MAKES PLANS...GOD LAUGHS !<p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>We all know the sad plight of the recent Ocean Gate expedition - to explore the wreckage of the sunken ship SS Titanic.In fact for the last few decades wealthy and adventurous tourists have been paying heavily to catch a the glimpse of the wreck of the luxury ocean liner. This reminds me of a novel titled 'Futility' about which I want to share with you.This spins around one John Rowald who was in the US Navy but dismissed from service due to alcoholism.To make a living John joins a mighty British ocean liner called 'Titan' as a deck machinery assistant.The ship collides accidently with a floating iceberg in North Atlantic Sea. Then only like others in the ship, John understands that the number of lifeboats arranged in the ship is much lower to what is actually required! The ship sinks to bottom of the sea eventually!</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Does this story remind you particularly of the actual story of 'The Titanic', the unsinkable ship ? Yes,it does. But when you note that this novel "Futility" was first published in 1898, fourteen years before 'The Titanic' was launched to sea in 1912,one will be surprised obviously.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>What the American author of many short stories and novels named Morgan Robertson did was exactly that. The poor chap never made a claim to be astrologic when the Titanic hit the bottom of the Atlantic.He always thought that the actual wreck of SS Titanic was just a coincidence to one of his stories!In spite of this creation in fact he failed to make a living as a professional writer until his death. Believe it, he had given an alternative title to this particular book- 'The Wreck Of Titan' which is getting popular among readers these days! Man makes plans but God laughs...is an Yiddish proverb.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSssHJbXipJ_StxJV203LA88dtXpHCs6BKC8gpVdscjgfENGhOyEjo8oV0j8OBw7O9UUp4fNsiQq29doPgUdIBvaEiKo5u1_QVowt-3lQJFx4onrBOPOg8oriYKBRH5zMdxShNEaFNxnfVizr6tpyVU1nUkULLLTsPeDtUbQ3diAdDqk3j1TnHiQoZlpYC/s1200/76i5h4h_titanic-sub_625x300_21_June_23.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="1200" height="123" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSssHJbXipJ_StxJV203LA88dtXpHCs6BKC8gpVdscjgfENGhOyEjo8oV0j8OBw7O9UUp4fNsiQq29doPgUdIBvaEiKo5u1_QVowt-3lQJFx4onrBOPOg8oriYKBRH5zMdxShNEaFNxnfVizr6tpyVU1nUkULLLTsPeDtUbQ3diAdDqk3j1TnHiQoZlpYC/w200-h123/76i5h4h_titanic-sub_625x300_21_June_23.webp" width="200" /></a></b></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6i0TpJBiHbIlo7hnsKg3KtZa5SVE7Rc7ngMnocygk118uIOGx4jErnOGdHlKx6L5lMWl9byUE87ZEHDfHsFLkrsjqbnfanQvz0zpwpPa3KXxMFcvPphgzcwNV3__EUVfxXg61KvwK6YEUKuxiUo8lWCUhRVQnXRYCone9dPaypWxKs8VMJtkNuIrWWQ/s577/9781396317347.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="360" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6i0TpJBiHbIlo7hnsKg3KtZa5SVE7Rc7ngMnocygk118uIOGx4jErnOGdHlKx6L5lMWl9byUE87ZEHDfHsFLkrsjqbnfanQvz0zpwpPa3KXxMFcvPphgzcwNV3__EUVfxXg61KvwK6YEUKuxiUo8lWCUhRVQnXRYCone9dPaypWxKs8VMJtkNuIrWWQ/s320/9781396317347.webp" width="200" /></a></span></i></b></span></i></div><p></p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /><b>The 'Titan' and the 'Titanic' - the similarities are more than to be ignored...</b></span><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The movie 'Titanic' of 1997 is one of the all time high box office hits ever made.Based on the actual story of one of the worst but biggest shipwrecks we ever had, I am not going to elaborate it once again since it is too well known. Commencing the maiden journey from Southampton, UK on April 10, 1912, the liner hits an iceberg on April 14 culminating in the drowning of 1517 passengers out of 2224.The main reason was that there were not enough lifeboats in the ship for safety although the ship is believed to have the best ever of that time!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Quite interestingly Robertson has written in his story a lot of similarities about the actual ship Titanic 14 years before it took the maiden journey.The very name of the ship was 'Titan' which was closer enough to the actual 'Titanic'! Both are described as the biggest ships of that time and could take a speed of 20 knots. Both were 'unsinkable'! The mishap was taking place in North Atlantic. Though Robertson is an American writer he envisaged the story to take place in a British liner. Hitting on an iceberg and shortage of lifeboats are the other two close similarities- one story and the other factual history. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigf03yK18kk6w1anMchzXBcrPq_iBbepvDFO6juN20in4zY3w86KTTi7RVlI8BGxwMOu-V8NPGbKfFXQEpYWnXg5yxcyDYqFEUboVSNZxWS9Hc1KlkKw5A8eiVHHlk3N_iwK4PrTw6kZnBQzCDLnk-FpFlGLAFM9jJmPpXOdCE_8Gby2Ryok3vFrP5tg/s200/download%20(2).jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigf03yK18kk6w1anMchzXBcrPq_iBbepvDFO6juN20in4zY3w86KTTi7RVlI8BGxwMOu-V8NPGbKfFXQEpYWnXg5yxcyDYqFEUboVSNZxWS9Hc1KlkKw5A8eiVHHlk3N_iwK4PrTw6kZnBQzCDLnk-FpFlGLAFM9jJmPpXOdCE_8Gby2Ryok3vFrP5tg/s1600/download%20(2).jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4BlIeOBBid_6DhVuU1oGp7hWuT3G0uZYPcP-K4dTulkMbP8Ix2GUZRAMBTMgw_-5yBjos64ZVUXQZi51yFPZ0imL9azD0MCNxfbL-2PA5w_Oq3Qb3ptqiCi6O816flUNirlCCgBkNASnWQoAp9ajklblmMHXEGZFrRW4POUwLp1P2PcDRJ9NF5euToA/s170/istockphoto-121226200-170x170.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="106" data-original-width="170" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4BlIeOBBid_6DhVuU1oGp7hWuT3G0uZYPcP-K4dTulkMbP8Ix2GUZRAMBTMgw_-5yBjos64ZVUXQZi51yFPZ0imL9azD0MCNxfbL-2PA5w_Oq3Qb3ptqiCi6O816flUNirlCCgBkNASnWQoAp9ajklblmMHXEGZFrRW4POUwLp1P2PcDRJ9NF5euToA/s1600/istockphoto-121226200-170x170.jpg" width="170" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> Morgan Robertson Periscope</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Once the tragic end of the 'Titanic' came out in the press,Robertson got a lot of publicity.He was more known as a clairvoyant- one who claims to predict the future, which Robertson strongly denied.It was a strange coincidence according to him. And Robertson being an expert on maritime trends might have influenced him while writing the stories.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Inventor of Periscope ?</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Periscope is an instrument fitted in a submarine which allows the vessel to see targets when submerged, if you don't know.Robertson is believed to have claimed to have tried for the patent of a Periscope.In any case he has described about a Periscope in his novel named 'The Submarine Destroyer' in 1905 and also in other few fictional creations.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _______________</span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-51078543975498482572023-07-01T09:54:00.000+05:302023-07-01T09:54:10.787+05:30"BE SURE TO PUT YOUR FEET IN THE RIGHT PLACE , THEN STAND FIRM!"<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>We cannot comprehend who people were once, by looking at the best of their careers</i></b></span>. <span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>The best living example is the current Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, who was once selling tea but recently seen by everyone making an unforgettable and impressive address in Joint session of US Congress, a week back! Coming to US presidents there is no single career path to the white house and American Presidentship although most of them were lawyers.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Americans seem to regard Abraham Lincoln not only as one of their great Presidents but also a great man! I am fully with them in this matter. Emancipation Proclamation he had issued on 1 January, 1863 against all odds stating that ' all persons held as slaves are and henceforth shall be free " itself is enough to make him great.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>But how many of us know that Abraham Lincoln did varied jobs before he became a President? He was a licensed bartender for some period- a part owner of a small store in Illinois named Berry & Lincoln! He was a wrestling champion as well! Most interesting of all is that he was the only President to receive a patent though he was a self made person in Education!!! Here I am to share three of his earlier jobs which are less well known- a bartender, a patent holder and a wrestler.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6syybV9BAdV59GiUR05JK_RRGyFLTSJ8KAKuKfNJy9iNM3qwpfWieuLsQAgBTCgZGvhN96bqKbbEqXX7lCM5LD8XZndYYDHH1Gc9KbVdcoXKXOCij246sOo_xp2fB41utQ3Tfu7PaCO1_eIG2CPQRnsFw2ByER2z_yv9a_PSmdoes9Oa8Yf0CqWkBUw/s372/berry-lincoln-by-flickr-user-lns-1122-compressor%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="372" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6syybV9BAdV59GiUR05JK_RRGyFLTSJ8KAKuKfNJy9iNM3qwpfWieuLsQAgBTCgZGvhN96bqKbbEqXX7lCM5LD8XZndYYDHH1Gc9KbVdcoXKXOCij246sOo_xp2fB41utQ3Tfu7PaCO1_eIG2CPQRnsFw2ByER2z_yv9a_PSmdoes9Oa8Yf0CqWkBUw/s320/berry-lincoln-by-flickr-user-lns-1122-compressor%20(1).jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2N3FxU2U03zm4ndfz89o14_o5n5ke91w1cRsZOkV8b2SF79IczN9p9helSTpkE7hvfpDiDUEKP9r5GW6Qjx2N7KJmItyDkpVhRqAoGl-5Pb54uY_wUn1S6cPup34oWO7R5sGknX1HGmROY9WfjZFVBMY1hUavfGrgIKZHmO1sOnk42OJXQAN7_BDjDQ/s950/256115.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="950" data-original-width="668" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2N3FxU2U03zm4ndfz89o14_o5n5ke91w1cRsZOkV8b2SF79IczN9p9helSTpkE7hvfpDiDUEKP9r5GW6Qjx2N7KJmItyDkpVhRqAoGl-5Pb54uY_wUn1S6cPup34oWO7R5sGknX1HGmROY9WfjZFVBMY1hUavfGrgIKZHmO1sOnk42OJXQAN7_BDjDQ/w281-h400/256115.jpg" width="281" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PfgYJepxM9qBbNurRBMo_mPgr3yO0XzfOeIkjIJu30whpUZix72aYAcJ8NQYcT46jcFaYq-DAFlLHend5XxL24xQt9efWfyex-GbkcXlGWxIQxs6w7ZQ1nNjNnaEWjOmN6nOlM1NU6VigUtaThzqmxu1x5TFNNjpougQjYXN-QTCKuz0iCCSo6AW-Q/s2272/Lincoln_New_Salem_03.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1704" data-original-width="2272" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PfgYJepxM9qBbNurRBMo_mPgr3yO0XzfOeIkjIJu30whpUZix72aYAcJ8NQYcT46jcFaYq-DAFlLHend5XxL24xQt9efWfyex-GbkcXlGWxIQxs6w7ZQ1nNjNnaEWjOmN6nOlM1NU6VigUtaThzqmxu1x5TFNNjpougQjYXN-QTCKuz0iCCSo6AW-Q/s320/Lincoln_New_Salem_03.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><p></p><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>A bartender.....</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Abraham Lincoln had served in the Black Hawk war, the war between United States and native Americans. It was after that he had met his friend William F berry. Abraham Lincoln joined him to open a store in Illinois at New Salem where he lived from 1831 to 1837. Co owned with his friend Berry, it was a general store which was licensed to sell alcohol in quantities greater than a pint for off premises consumption.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Berry was an alcoholic and used to sell goods while Lincoln was dealing with customers and reading. As they fell into debt in 1833 Lincoln sold his interest to his partner. Lincoln joined as a post master. Lincoln remained at New Salem and he studied law and earned a legal license.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>A Patent holder....</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Abraham Lincoln had a brief experience as a ferryman. His invention" adjustable buoyant air chambers" could be attached to the sides of the boat. They could be lowered into water and inflated to lift the boat over obstruction in the water. On May 22,1849 Lincoln got a patent which was numbered as 6469 for a device to lift boats over shoals as below.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf55WhFX2KBh36LQsGlfGt--SlO8BCic_eK_7QM1EqFpnTBWFqZwUpbBSvgotD6UxNHvZwlsokZWln4RXBA9FD9HNkz4kfA8rHTh7-AEj8rWcnSVqNLn4yxkeXDKKKKed2vmKPDcnVOumwQhV6IEuQeWQ7Z9iw0l18yKXgqbUX2vbxc0KhtOaMf-q0MQ/s1599/nmah-2009-5611.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1062" data-original-width="1599" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf55WhFX2KBh36LQsGlfGt--SlO8BCic_eK_7QM1EqFpnTBWFqZwUpbBSvgotD6UxNHvZwlsokZWln4RXBA9FD9HNkz4kfA8rHTh7-AEj8rWcnSVqNLn4yxkeXDKKKKed2vmKPDcnVOumwQhV6IEuQeWQ7Z9iw0l18yKXgqbUX2vbxc0KhtOaMf-q0MQ/s320/nmah-2009-5611.webp" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyg14MQvSwSD_K1as9gG7LQQDW_4JfsFcSJ-rlp3hhvLh7TXRkhBJpBz2bbeVSXLc7iyaKUhCyW3zkTCgcXZbfzQ9qppJCUx7RgS-ynewaZgShsWZJO5usOGcHvpM3gyrKsrvGOwsAB0rPMV7jl03cSpucskndkxMdW3ArGP02D4Yg_ODtkJ8oQojn4w/s1280/1280px-Lincoln_patent_drawings.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="871" data-original-width="1280" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyg14MQvSwSD_K1as9gG7LQQDW_4JfsFcSJ-rlp3hhvLh7TXRkhBJpBz2bbeVSXLc7iyaKUhCyW3zkTCgcXZbfzQ9qppJCUx7RgS-ynewaZgShsWZJO5usOGcHvpM3gyrKsrvGOwsAB0rPMV7jl03cSpucskndkxMdW3ArGP02D4Yg_ODtkJ8oQojn4w/s320/1280px-Lincoln_patent_drawings.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">A wrestler........</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Wrestling was already an established sport among native Americans in the 15th and 16th centuries when the first Europeans began arriving in North American continent. </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: center;">Abraham Lincoln started wrestling as early as in 1830 at the age of 21.Strengthened by physical hard work in the fields Lincoln had an impressive physical specimen who was 6' 4" tall</span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: center;">.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRJKm2KJeb_uHy11HtXy9cPwu-_qHvkk2I_8iYCUPF6UHdwo0qE1SZ7v7wA8bSUVSsDoA_Y5D_qwGU_Gq_jWGVL2Ltk9HzHbTsRzRYnHvS9gFhYkjZuTTerzrryq2NQUwqACYIGJ_ax97caaGk6zYPZqVAT1mtUKLpH_DlaQ6u6JFFbD8DUFiEsEWEgw/s1281/abe-lincoln-wrestler.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1281" data-original-width="833" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRJKm2KJeb_uHy11HtXy9cPwu-_qHvkk2I_8iYCUPF6UHdwo0qE1SZ7v7wA8bSUVSsDoA_Y5D_qwGU_Gq_jWGVL2Ltk9HzHbTsRzRYnHvS9gFhYkjZuTTerzrryq2NQUwqACYIGJ_ax97caaGk6zYPZqVAT1mtUKLpH_DlaQ6u6JFFbD8DUFiEsEWEgw/s320/abe-lincoln-wrestler.webp" width="208" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">He had completed 300 wrestling matches for more than a decade and lost only once. He was wrestling champion of his county in Illinois. While working in the store he had a famous bout with Jack Armstrong also a wrestling county champ. I am sure that only few know the fact that Lincoln was enshrined in the national wrestling Hall of Fame along with few others who became US Presidents! See what all jobs Lincoln did before he became a great emancipator who said in his later life "Be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm"!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> ____________________</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><br />JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-37634838740793733522023-06-01T12:16:00.002+05:302023-09-27T18:31:01.998+05:30INDIA'S LAKE OF SKELETONS<p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Skeleton Lake? That too in India? This was my own reaction when I came to know about this lake. A glacier lake which contains hundreds of human skeletons is known as </b>Roopkund <b>which is situated in the Himalayas.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>In fact this lake containing hundreds of skeletons is located in the slopes of Trishul massif, the mountain range of Himalayas, about which I was equally ignorant as in the case of Skeleton Lake.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Trishul I, Trishul II and Trishul III are three mountains in a group in Himalayas known as Trishula. This group of three resemble a trident in looks! Trisula in Sanskrit is a trident which is believed to be the weapon of Lord Siva by Hindus while Himalayas itself is his abode ....ഹാലോ </b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; font-style: italic;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; font-style: italic;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoXAANqt1nBni0bX8m-slqpncVURUXfE3RxfpMb9qSKnPmNNoU2LopMMtDJbTe08P7CZiaGjw2X98Frf24yw-_Nooo9e7rmyls-1PI0Bsh9FiOA0ZD_zlIdQ7Y2rlQmb6-GjddBv-Pz0BSm19a8X5hvyFlMKHcsYC9jSYSpxUDqrNnYo4w7ExpPII1Fw/s1986/20TB-SKELETONLAKE1-superJumbo-v3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1284" data-original-width="1986" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoXAANqt1nBni0bX8m-slqpncVURUXfE3RxfpMb9qSKnPmNNoU2LopMMtDJbTe08P7CZiaGjw2X98Frf24yw-_Nooo9e7rmyls-1PI0Bsh9FiOA0ZD_zlIdQ7Y2rlQmb6-GjddBv-Pz0BSm19a8X5hvyFlMKHcsYC9jSYSpxUDqrNnYo4w7ExpPII1Fw/s320/20TB-SKELETONLAKE1-superJumbo-v3.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; font-style: italic;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhScxsTIg8u8uL9I1tigXrzV__qcgHtg63qzAtnMBBVf7FMMVDTye92TZO9cjzOX4XOpXDLpYubwB6MwhYY36I1HetI7f36oDKG_gNwyCgR0plEaCeYo1PlMzTNwmPNjKAQBrYXZzLiSur7ybVD69ENcg0mhQWMtwL5VOk350umRH_xhVcxNt-ct9XU5Q/s550/view-of-himalayan-peak.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="550" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhScxsTIg8u8uL9I1tigXrzV__qcgHtg63qzAtnMBBVf7FMMVDTye92TZO9cjzOX4XOpXDLpYubwB6MwhYY36I1HetI7f36oDKG_gNwyCgR0plEaCeYo1PlMzTNwmPNjKAQBrYXZzLiSur7ybVD69ENcg0mhQWMtwL5VOk350umRH_xhVcxNt-ct9XU5Q/s320/view-of-himalayan-peak.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Skelton Lake and Trishula I,II and III</i><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>HOW, WHAT AND WHEN IT WAS DISCOVERED...</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: verdana;">At an altitude of 5000 meters ,the area around the lake is uninhabited and can be reached in the State of Uttarakhand possibly only by mountaineers. When the water level shrinks and not frozen the skulls and bones can be seen during one or two months a year during summer.</span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In 1942 a Game Reserve Ranger named Hari Krishna Madhwal discovered the skeletons accidently. Seeing hundreds of skeletons it is reported that his assistants ran away initially! It was thought that the skeletons belonged to Japanese soldiers who tried to invade India during WWII but upon detailed investigation by the British, it was confirmed that the bones were older than that period.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As late as 2004 a professional team of National Geographic magazine made an expedition to the lake and returned with 30 skeletons for their detailed studies. Some of the skeletons had hair and flesh attached to bones! DNA tests were conducted. It was finally confirmed that the skeletons are 1200 years old. Their death might have occurred in the 9th century AD!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In 2013 further studies were conducted and the reason for the death of hundreds of people was found out to be because of gigantic hailstorms especially from the evidences on bones of skulls and shoulders! Although the reason seems to be logical, still the controversies are on.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Some researchers are of the opinion that the skeletons belonged to a Hindu pilgrimage journey called Nanda Devi(a manifestation of Goddess Parvati) Raj Jot Yatra. The skeletons were of male female group belonging to a wide age range.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuj3tsvSoOzTNi60axKJbW8ZyUd_Trj9fK2vR08Tfbo1ZvO1Ie_ATlPyhpKZzEuK4L-XmwvrFyqsgisu7GYjqXkLP2iOaJx4y4cW4q3W2PYs9lHpdU-K4RkNC5PBApaeliv2tEPQRMlMy27GMsfURuqN4hzLFALBYV80G_judGrRY7blIwK3XKugJ4lw/s300/images%20(3).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuj3tsvSoOzTNi60axKJbW8ZyUd_Trj9fK2vR08Tfbo1ZvO1Ie_ATlPyhpKZzEuK4L-XmwvrFyqsgisu7GYjqXkLP2iOaJx4y4cW4q3W2PYs9lHpdU-K4RkNC5PBApaeliv2tEPQRMlMy27GMsfURuqN4hzLFALBYV80G_judGrRY7blIwK3XKugJ4lw/s1600/images%20(3).jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p></p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div>Roopkund trek...</b></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Last few years an arranged trek by Tourism Dept named as above takes place in favorable season. This trek is considered to be moderate to hard(in terms of difficulty) and one of the most beautiful treks in India. The trail of 53 kms which passes through mountainous rivers, enthralling ridges, lush forests and scenic meadows is divided into 6 days for one to complete from the base camp of Lohajung/ Wan.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgXvosA1RjdYxBnQUkPipIBHST_vmpmMSQXVZ4TBWcnD5Mdt66tUqpPZZmUMCfLGUkOUqcQfKABhTSO6e1_Weh_PkVN_ne086upbWFFW-8hPidGWBYduwVC-sc2GBc4k60d6uVYUq08--uGI-OqOvI46V6t6YvVjxeJZ7Dkh-Ik4XT0oDsmaCrOT-2rQ/s1024/roopkund-trek-map-1024x1024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgXvosA1RjdYxBnQUkPipIBHST_vmpmMSQXVZ4TBWcnD5Mdt66tUqpPZZmUMCfLGUkOUqcQfKABhTSO6e1_Weh_PkVN_ne086upbWFFW-8hPidGWBYduwVC-sc2GBc4k60d6uVYUq08--uGI-OqOvI46V6t6YvVjxeJZ7Dkh-Ik4XT0oDsmaCrOT-2rQ/s320/roopkund-trek-map-1024x1024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">It seems the Govt has banned such a trek for the last two years since such treks are disturbing the ecological systems of the area.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> ______________________________</span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-12450176041480452862023-05-01T10:02:00.001+05:302023-05-02T10:18:25.444+05:30THIS APPLE IN HAND KEEPS ME AWAKE ! <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>It was in 1665 that Isaac Newton formulated his great gravitational theory after watching an apple fall straight down rather than sideways or even upward. The impact of his finding remain as one of the most popular scientific achievements to date.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Much later in 1976, two college dropouts decided to use the same apple as the name and logo of their company. Their intention was to make small computers for people which are user friendly. The Apple Computer Company so formed by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak- there was a third cofounder also named Ronald Wayne who left the company after two weeks- may value more than 2 trillion US dollars or more as of now! Hundreds of millions of people use Apple products everyday world wide- </b></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>iBook, iPod, iPhone, iPad, Apple watch are some of them. As known today Apple Inc. sells through their Apple stores while miles of queues of people emerge in front of them in each town when new products are introduced! Now India has opened multiple Apple stores, produces iphones and expected that in another five years more than half of apple products in the world will be produced from India- making a shift from China.</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Here I am covering the story of the transformation of their first logo which showed Sir Isaac Newton and his apple to what is today- an apple with a byte oops a bite!!Read about Apple Computers which you don't know though you may be using their products for years...including the truth that Steve Jobs was fired by his own company once!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJxRlLZwavmDBA3r6b86lDkE_SeYaARWMdmZXccddrgtVQdw6nctLvttYHIfy4pnuxzngvZJlep40x0VUDCMyZtZy6u8YptzQi-GD2PeHGih3X91zl5owHjtNngSiEmM91vfrRqouw7lDIifNVrJC8azjBt4CWuNZfJPIkNFxRstP9vhdFA3wtW1oo7Q/s1366/original_apple_computer_company_logo___colorized_by_w_d_badger_dch379b-fullview.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJxRlLZwavmDBA3r6b86lDkE_SeYaARWMdmZXccddrgtVQdw6nctLvttYHIfy4pnuxzngvZJlep40x0VUDCMyZtZy6u8YptzQi-GD2PeHGih3X91zl5owHjtNngSiEmM91vfrRqouw7lDIifNVrJC8azjBt4CWuNZfJPIkNFxRstP9vhdFA3wtW1oo7Q/s320/original_apple_computer_company_logo___colorized_by_w_d_badger_dch379b-fullview.jpg" width="240" /></a></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Coloured version of the first logo</span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div>The beginning....and why they chose an apple?</b><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Founded on April 1 , 1976, Apple Computers started operations in the garage of Steve Jobs. Their first product Apple I was sold without a monitor the same year. Next year in 1977, they added the monitors. Within 4 years of existence they could make sales of 117 million when they decided to go public in 1980.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Steve Jobs was a vegetarian , a fruitarian to be exact. He was an environmentalist also. He had spent some time in India as well, to experience Zen Buddhism. Jobs was working as a video game designer with a US firm named Atari which was founded in 1972.When he named the firm as Apple, Jobs could have had the intention of listing in the phonebook ahead of Atari! This could be the logical reason why he and partners chose an apple to name their company. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 1974, Jobs had reconnected with his high school friend Stephen Wozniak who was with Hewlett Packard Co. They had a third partner named Ronald Wayne who designed their first logo with Sir Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree with a ripened apple looming large about to fall ! Strangely within 12 days of existence Ronald Wayne left the organization and later sold his 10% share of $800 to his partners!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Evolution of logos....</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtHHnRov6mecKnlmC5KmSjPANbRHbOPKOMVfl4arS9G-ye2S1iT2YLoK5_z9y9dMo-OEQ2XZtVZ1Z1Tp9DW0FRDioA9uDsp_4dMSwTfq4lWbWNLshVC02qhgt25xYkk4NXXr22HfawxWdeZ_hszUPsyvausyU8B0mKDKxWtSStQtIisMYaCJ7H9ZCzJw/s1000/apple-2.jpg.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="1000" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtHHnRov6mecKnlmC5KmSjPANbRHbOPKOMVfl4arS9G-ye2S1iT2YLoK5_z9y9dMo-OEQ2XZtVZ1Z1Tp9DW0FRDioA9uDsp_4dMSwTfq4lWbWNLshVC02qhgt25xYkk4NXXr22HfawxWdeZ_hszUPsyvausyU8B0mKDKxWtSStQtIisMYaCJ7H9ZCzJw/w640-h288/apple-2.jpg.webp" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;">In 1977,one year after the first logo depicting the apple about to fall on the head of Sir Isaac Newton, with the caption 'Newton: A mind forever voyaging through strange seas of thought...alone' they decided to change drastically. This time they went for an apple in rainbow colours. The designer went to include a bite on the apple to differentiate from that of a cherry! The apple with a bite continue to remain as their logo albeit the fact that they have changed the colours and shades from time to time.</span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>How Steve Jobs was fired from his own company?</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Strange things can happen in corporate world as I know first hand! As the Apple Inc was getting established and professionally growing, the two co founders thought that they should have a CEO who is senior to them and mature enough to guide the company to greater heights. When Steve Jobs zeroed on John Sculley, the CEO of Pepsico, the later was not interested to join them. "Do you want to sell sugar water for rest of your life or do you want to come with me and change the world?" Jobs is recorded to have asked Sculley. However Sculley joined Apple Inc in 1983.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Two years later, over two new products launched -the Lisa and the Macintosh- as they failed to perform in sales returns, Jobs and Sculley had to quarrel. The issue was taken to the Board. In 1985 the Board decided to fire Steve Jobs, leaving the Apple company without the inputs of the iconic founder!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6wMQyY7u7aIV03tlsquVxyTW7cSfBKTsCuOxaxqnIr-4wbQMxOqfqtGNIpt7ocGE1Qfs37QlrsP-zcif1bUyoRcy5I3qOOdyaAkYMA57u5AzemZyFfjj-_9FozyjaoHS6ccnZh0g3909omvUZwJa0xzAenf3BDZVbWE8TQlKRiEY37Jja8i_Ck691AQ/s235/images%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="235" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6wMQyY7u7aIV03tlsquVxyTW7cSfBKTsCuOxaxqnIr-4wbQMxOqfqtGNIpt7ocGE1Qfs37QlrsP-zcif1bUyoRcy5I3qOOdyaAkYMA57u5AzemZyFfjj-_9FozyjaoHS6ccnZh0g3909omvUZwJa0xzAenf3BDZVbWE8TQlKRiEY37Jja8i_Ck691AQ/s1600/images%20(2).jpg" width="235" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It took another 12 years as Apple company confronted more and more problems without a stalwart like Jobs, the Board decided to call back services of Steve Jobs in 1997! I am not going to elaborate what Steve Jobs did here. The world would not have been the same but for his contribution!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> ______________________</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><b><br /></b></div></span><p></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-58256060689560693912023-04-01T10:44:00.000+05:302023-04-01T10:44:15.810+05:30THE DAY RUSSIA COMPLETELY RAN OUT OF VODKA!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Vodka is synonymous with Russia like Alfred Hitchcock with thriller movies. Vodka is more of a symbol of Russia to rival its own brown bears, caviars and Matryoshka! Sure, Vodka is native of Russia with the highest consumption rate among the people for the last many centuries-currently with 17 shots per person per month! Poland and Ukraine are close enough to them in this matter. So also the whole of Vodka belt containing Eastern Europe and Nordic countries.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>The word Vodka comes from the translation of water in Russian "Voda".Experts suggest that its use became so common among the people in Russia because it is a quick remedy for the cold they have to face! And vodka is everywhere in Russia, in politics, folk songs, movies, literature, jokes which has become inseparable with social life of people. </b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Having narrated about the importance of Vodka in the life of Russia and Russians, there was a time when they ran out of Vodka for a day and had to face disrupted supply for many following days! That was on May 9, 1945, the day Germany had surrendered to the Allied Forces as officially announced by Russia on the radio!! The news broke out on that day by 1.10 am but the Soviet </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>citizens</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> went outside in the middle of the night in their pajamas, embraced each other and wept with joy. Before Stalin could officially announce about the German surrender, the country had run out of Vodka!!</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdMgMGkIecgUbEEpfz-jBV2x-ohVlPjdT4p1cQyBilujs1LC1Ttj3wEwuG3DTvqGiZeDPM6CUh7Zvd7phIQQk6KovsjuYQTToR9owQUXnP9Gkz3SUb_9E3s_JDK067lza1u8b9y2ni5lzCZvp30brkOjwR2QcC-d4VHnvhCUV7bAl_RmChTuUmJoj2Q/s2049/44b6f944-4902-4b51-9f88-cef9ac20db34.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="2049" data-original-width="1274" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdMgMGkIecgUbEEpfz-jBV2x-ohVlPjdT4p1cQyBilujs1LC1Ttj3wEwuG3DTvqGiZeDPM6CUh7Zvd7phIQQk6KovsjuYQTToR9owQUXnP9Gkz3SUb_9E3s_JDK067lza1u8b9y2ni5lzCZvp30brkOjwR2QcC-d4VHnvhCUV7bAl_RmChTuUmJoj2Q/s320/44b6f944-4902-4b51-9f88-cef9ac20db34.jpg" width="199" /></b></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Russia has not changed..</b><br /><span style="text-align: justify;">In 2017, much later after Soviet Union had disintegrated to so many countries including Russia, Geetha and I ,were in Moscow along with few other Indians on a tour. As we visited a good restaurant for a buffet dinner, there was a free offer from the owner that either a can of beer or a shot of locally brewed Vodka is free. As expected hardly few fellow Indians had it but those who had ,went for international brands of beer. But I went for the Vodka since I thought it was a good chance to taste the local brew of Moscow. Sure , as practiced I wanted soda or water to dilute it but the bartender asked me to take it as it is in sips.It was a good decision and I ordered for the second shot. Geetha joked that it was a clever ploy of the owner to extract money. But when we wanted to settle the bill I was not charged for the Vodka in spite I had asked to bill the extra shot! The waiter smilingly told me that it was on the house! Their love for Vodka has not changed a bit whether the Govt has become capitalist or communist or dictatorship!!</span></span><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Origin of Vodka...</b></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Poles claim that they had been making Vodka from 8th century distilling grain and potato spirits. However Russia started it much later in the 14th century. It is believed that an orthodox monk named Isidore of Greek origin had pioneered it in 1430, distilling from Chudov monastery in Moscow distilling products of wheat and hence known as 'bread wine'.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu4vOL7lFWYgbKZ4CAsIK12Xlg9x62byr3afu9-mOMlVdLrKchJwSWDNhuTXJ48t2p76E1vsuQKLl8qHKdwYqafB_XMkiedwR6RLOxbxFQYMpuPWu8W-TLPeIgE_BYFcbHHv_Uker6KQKoE81f7sa7v-p-zFmeMAd4KA0c6ZlK8HC4dOs20MujkSON9w/s1024/Chudov_Monastery.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="695" data-original-width="1024" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu4vOL7lFWYgbKZ4CAsIK12Xlg9x62byr3afu9-mOMlVdLrKchJwSWDNhuTXJ48t2p76E1vsuQKLl8qHKdwYqafB_XMkiedwR6RLOxbxFQYMpuPWu8W-TLPeIgE_BYFcbHHv_Uker6KQKoE81f7sa7v-p-zFmeMAd4KA0c6ZlK8HC4dOs20MujkSON9w/s320/Chudov_Monastery.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> Chudov Monastery<br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In 1472 the Tsar Ivan II institutionalized the first state autonomy of Vodka in the country. All in Russia had to purchase the state produced Vodka except the nobles of the society who were permitted to brew. Thus home brewed Vodka offered infused with herbs, berries and fruits. Peter the Great invented the 'penalty shot'- a shot of Vodka - but in goblet of 1.5 litres- to be gulped by those who came late to his parties!! The first prohibition was also imposed during the Tsarist reign. Tsar Nicholas did that in 1914.I don't know whether it had any impact with Bolshevik revolution which followed soon!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl3MW1QTiera5RwMwJXbeDa3N4zfdfgbe4P9m2PDob4a7Li3nTtPc1rnEOe-0CqzN4EhAOW3lzbnukR6SUauqA_k4oMxUkZjX28XB0nX6BXmRTF9V48n3fD6agUFNyLTF8evzSw6Db8uHMzzegZIl5yOdnVUHnr-GoTn7YIKYnSdFqsJGvAH557OWfjA/s1139/8f3b81727b6e1b71_org-709159958567_original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1139" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl3MW1QTiera5RwMwJXbeDa3N4zfdfgbe4P9m2PDob4a7Li3nTtPc1rnEOe-0CqzN4EhAOW3lzbnukR6SUauqA_k4oMxUkZjX28XB0nX6BXmRTF9V48n3fD6agUFNyLTF8evzSw6Db8uHMzzegZIl5yOdnVUHnr-GoTn7YIKYnSdFqsJGvAH557OWfjA/s320/8f3b81727b6e1b71_org-709159958567_original.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">When the communist revolution came in 1917 it did not curb the people's interest in Vodka either, since it was a good way of collection of revenue. In fact the production, distribution and sales of Vodka were more professionalized. During the second world war, the Soviet soldiers were supplied with 100 grams of Vodka each day!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Smirnoff Vodka is not a Russian brand!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Smirnoff who fled Russia during the revolution period established his brand of Vodka made in USA and Canada and many other western countries. Made from grains of wheat, corn and potatoes this brand is the largest selling brand in the world among 130 countries where Vodka is used! Second most sold brand of Vodka is Absolut, a Swedish product!Than the quality of these products, western techniques of advertisements and sales might have helped establish these brands in the world in popularity, I presume.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> ____________________</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><br /><b><br /></b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><br /><b><br /></b></i></span><p></p></div></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-81246963467045528922023-03-01T09:39:00.001+05:302023-03-05T11:36:42.462+05:30OSHIYA- THE PROFESSIONAL PUSHERS OF TOKYO METRO !<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>I had been thinking earnestly that it is in some of the trains and buses in the third world only that passengers are mostly stuffed like sardines in a tiny tin. Though it cannot be compared in the real sense of it, when I saw passengers being pushed inside trains in Tokyo Metro professionally I got a hiccup! And there are professional pushers named as 'Oshiya' employed in Japan!!And why, I was curious to find out?</i></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Tokyo caters for 38 million people! And most of them live in far suburbs as the accommodation is expensive and use public transport systems. While the trains are most modern, fast and passenger friendly in queues, the rush hours are simply maddening- with as much as 200% over capacity crowd. I am sure that the authorities must have reached the dead end of facilitating more trains. Instead they employed passenger pushers to manage the situation.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>And I understand that Tokyo is not the first city to deploy them but New York in 1920s! So also Frankfurt ,Madrid and some cities in China use the system to this day! Definitely not on a lighter tone, the youngsters of Kerala state(my home state)where they move around the globe looking for new lucrative jobs, this could be a chance if you happen to be in Japan- "Oshiya" of Tokyo!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytcwX_zCkqcha9hcu5HUL7cPbw3r66fJQyLEYvZ1P6x3xrZ2CvO58sk4_KWbUPvrI3ofzx_OwYCKdfhBQRosLHs29TArIllk7Rg-GBlXisuwcXP_OXBjKJr-LZlmJXycxACOweEKtyoaWtZ5PSCHRV_SxwuzBvMwQgD8FmM-Chtl2npYJVINjQhreDg/s980/tokyo-subway-pushers-42.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="980" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytcwX_zCkqcha9hcu5HUL7cPbw3r66fJQyLEYvZ1P6x3xrZ2CvO58sk4_KWbUPvrI3ofzx_OwYCKdfhBQRosLHs29TArIllk7Rg-GBlXisuwcXP_OXBjKJr-LZlmJXycxACOweEKtyoaWtZ5PSCHRV_SxwuzBvMwQgD8FmM-Chtl2npYJVINjQhreDg/s320/tokyo-subway-pushers-42.jpg" width="320" /></a></i><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRrMrQhokdw6MPSNYEPUeAVXi-gC-6yOtXbbQCh4iU6osIBG_Fe0c70RDJbmwFtt2E2d5Up-THkeKG_hseXWh7ChZ8ZI7Mtjl88W7se92ZQ7w_yLsVL173IFYyVcO6Wcqsg8-2tXlSDYUbs_rtPZFTPGhX7IfZap-zw5ncrLq6aRIxLn6ldlLuKjl7CQ/s962/tokyo-subway-pushers-36.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="962" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRrMrQhokdw6MPSNYEPUeAVXi-gC-6yOtXbbQCh4iU6osIBG_Fe0c70RDJbmwFtt2E2d5Up-THkeKG_hseXWh7ChZ8ZI7Mtjl88W7se92ZQ7w_yLsVL173IFYyVcO6Wcqsg8-2tXlSDYUbs_rtPZFTPGhX7IfZap-zw5ncrLq6aRIxLn6ldlLuKjl7CQ/s320/tokyo-subway-pushers-36.jpg" width="320" /></a></i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHcu7bRN5bn6tUBCV_G70I-R3AWNMxqCnJ4UYDPVsUBh7R1q2PwjGsij0kenZ5lIR5XNnEw6Avsc1n5-XjJaMIRoI7hYwXGVTVGQHjZt4q1MpxHHz8IeUSC3z06qJGeOZ17uMOUinAFP4aHVWlymkjR47tPXVBp-vMF3OVDNDSBHUmZDfVyoE0oXwj8Q/s1114/8ff56157b7e93a15f5083f045a1f2e7f.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="1114" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHcu7bRN5bn6tUBCV_G70I-R3AWNMxqCnJ4UYDPVsUBh7R1q2PwjGsij0kenZ5lIR5XNnEw6Avsc1n5-XjJaMIRoI7hYwXGVTVGQHjZt4q1MpxHHz8IeUSC3z06qJGeOZ17uMOUinAFP4aHVWlymkjR47tPXVBp-vMF3OVDNDSBHUmZDfVyoE0oXwj8Q/s320/8ff56157b7e93a15f5083f045a1f2e7f.gif" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b style="text-align: left;">Most populated city...the need of pushers</b></i></span></div><p></p><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Tokyo is the most populated city in the world to be followed by Delhi and Shanghai. About 57% of total population of Japan live in Tokyo. As the standards of living are higher and costly, most of the common people live in far suburbs. And most of them use public transport systems mainly trains to reach their working places and shopping areas. The complexity of the rail map of Tokyo above reflects the need of such extensive and serpentine rail road systems of metro and other subway trains in that city. At Shin Kunju station in central Tokyo 1.1 million people board or leave trains daily!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">During winter as the commuters use warmer and heavier clothes, the spaces get more squeezed practically.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In spite of all the efforts, it seems the authorities might have reached the dead end of introducing more new routes and trains. In peak rush hours some of the stations are run in 200% over capacity! This is when Japan introduced 'Oshiya' or passenger pushers taking a clue from New York from 1964 onwards when Japan staged the first Olympics!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Enter the passenger pushers!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dressed in full suits and white gloves pushers of Tokyo Metro cannot be missed at all during rush hours. These professional pushers are trained for few weeks before they are deputized for the job. Generally the Japanese pushers are polite and passengers cooperate with them for being pushed in. They might have learned a lesson or two from New York rail pushers who were hated by commuters being rude and they were known as 'sardine packers'! At times college students are also employed to allow them to earn extra monies! Interestingly the train passengers are almost silent despite being pushed in! At the Lost & Found at every station piles of shoes, handbags, tie pins or books are reported to be exhibited soon after rush hours. Not only the passengers but these pushers also contribute their efforts in this matter.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">On an average they are paid an annual salary of $44995 (Rs. 40 lakhs!) for this weird job.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E7kor5nHtZQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="E7kor5nHtZQ"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Pushers of China, Spain, Germany...</span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In China at least in three metros at Shanghai, Chongqing and Guangzhou they use pushers at peak rush hours currently since 2008. At Madrid Metro pushers are known as 'empujadores' and employed since 2017.At Frankfurt Metro especially while the famous trade fair take place there, they seek the help of pushers since 2015.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _____________________________________<br /></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b style="font-style: italic;"><br /></b></span><p></p></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-74655378918664525022023-02-01T09:56:00.000+05:302023-02-01T09:56:35.323+05:30DOLMEN OF MARAYOOR! <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Since we came back from Doha and resettled in our home town of Kochi, Geetha and I started visiting many states of India which we had not seen so far. So also places within our own state. Travel has been always one of our passions. Soon we could regroup with three more old friends - late Govindan Kutty, Cherian and Venugopal- classmates of mine at the Engineering College hailing from the same city who have similar tastes and interests. Moreover we all were working initially in India but spent the hey days of our careers in Arabian Gulf states which was another catalyst to make our relationships warm. Along with them and their better halves, we could make a lot of trips within own state, rest of India and abroad. One such trip was specific for Marayoor, the only place in Kerala known for natural sandal wood forests. It is also known for ' Neelakurinji' flowers which blossom only once in twelve years! But we could end up visiting something I hardly knew of -Dolmen of pre historic days !!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Situated at +5000 ft above MSL, Marayoor can be reached by serpentine roads about 50 kms away from Munnar, the famous hill station. Due to its location and climatic conditions Marayoor is the only place in Kerala where Apples, Oranges, strawberries, Blackberries, Plums and Peaches are grown. Dolmens of Marayoor are locally known as 'Muniyara' meaning dens of sages. The way these dolmen are kept or I would say neglected by the Govt and public , I am sure that people over here are not fully aware of our own values in history. These dolmen could be the earliest monuments of its kind existing in the state, or one of such in India and rest of the world!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTayh8ma8-iDHsFfOWYgV3EowDE3BxbMmk_MC2_ez1Z4fudBU8GK6QditvKHhz5NZd61xpIGGL793MYgBe1ovO-H7NIeX3JaYmWJ5nas32GTgX7FhHs40_iyI1qe7uKvIYUAoXGhx_aXz0UE2H33dsC3nmFwlYyK908sAYisjTrYipjSNWyD-YmtGS-g/s550/49842710%20(2).webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="433" data-original-width="550" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTayh8ma8-iDHsFfOWYgV3EowDE3BxbMmk_MC2_ez1Z4fudBU8GK6QditvKHhz5NZd61xpIGGL793MYgBe1ovO-H7NIeX3JaYmWJ5nas32GTgX7FhHs40_iyI1qe7uKvIYUAoXGhx_aXz0UE2H33dsC3nmFwlYyK908sAYisjTrYipjSNWyD-YmtGS-g/s320/49842710%20(2).webp" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Dolmen in India...</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">About these dolmen I had read about years back somewhere but not much. As we walked up the steep hill enjoying the cool breeze of the afternoon and reached the place, I could find quite a number of such dolmen. Dolmen are burial chambers of prehistoric age meant for people of higher status in the society. They were buried in sitting positions. Even now this practice is continued among certain communities in India. The bigger the chamber the more important the person would have been. They are made of four stones placed on edges with a larger stone used as 'a cap stone' which are called megaliths. With the 'Anamudi' hill in the distant background, hundreds of such stone chambers all around is a scene which we will remember for a long time time to come.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">These Dolmen belong to Neolithic age- a term used when man shifted from hunting wild animals to plants for a family style account- 4000 BC to 2000BC.It seems that many anthropologists and archaeologists visit this location from all over the world. But the site is completely neglected by the authorities!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">While Kerala remains the state where maximum dolmens are found in India, they are also found in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Dolmen abroad....</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dolmen are known to exist in Japan, Russia, South Korea, Ireland, Israel Jordan and China. In North Africa and European countries too they exist. The maximum number (35000) is found in South Korea where the UNESCO has declared as heritage sites.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In olden times people were superstitious to believe that those dolmen were creations of giants or even devils! Few centuries back some anthropologists shared the view that these dolmen are creations of certain Aegean tribes which is proved to be wrong later. Now that it is proved to be scientifically by 14 C radio carbon method which is available since 1940, the oldest is believed to be in central Europe/Northern Europe. I am not ready to buy this 'historical story' readily since the Europeans will go to any extend to show case that they have a superior past compared to others! More over I simply believe that past history of India and elsewhere in Asia were much superior to those of Europeans although the later happen to colonize and steal all the resources of Asians!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBDqJ3EBJHZlX51ObgTWKruuU-yTxix8PSrMPE2jhcOhSVGlCXYgvDE_K_9yw98O69CPCNpbLoVy7-vQ6KCZFIxMN78j85vn4C57QkyW7Veiy3aU3znK_5l9a__gEbTs0FlFvWuTDbqwnSCVptRwC6Tceso7rQO0BXAbHOkPkK0aqOQZUB0c5A9Yp7rQ/s1280/Example_of_a_northern-style_dolmen_at_Ganghwa_Island.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="958" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBDqJ3EBJHZlX51ObgTWKruuU-yTxix8PSrMPE2jhcOhSVGlCXYgvDE_K_9yw98O69CPCNpbLoVy7-vQ6KCZFIxMN78j85vn4C57QkyW7Veiy3aU3znK_5l9a__gEbTs0FlFvWuTDbqwnSCVptRwC6Tceso7rQO0BXAbHOkPkK0aqOQZUB0c5A9Yp7rQ/s320/Example_of_a_northern-style_dolmen_at_Ganghwa_Island.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> One of the dolmen preserved in South Korea</span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The absence of any metal is an indication of the age of the dolmen. The famous Stonehenge of UK is not a dolmen in the strictest sense of it but definitely it is made of stones including dolmen! Other older megaliths of the world are Gobekli Tepe (Turkey),Alit Yama (Israel), Carnac stones(France) and the Pyramids of you know where they are!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> __________________</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-35762858617997127672023-01-01T05:55:00.000+05:302023-01-01T05:55:58.636+05:30"I CAN" IS 100 TIMES MORE IMPORTANT THAN "I.Q"!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>What's common with Albert Einstein, Learnado Da Vinci and Stephen W Hawking? High rate of Intelligence, of course. They were not known to be subjected to any IQ tests in their lifetime though.IQ stands for Intelligence Quotient as we all know. Intelligence of any individual is difficult to measure it is said. Yet this has not stopped us to get attracted by intelligence tests.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>What's the score for an average IQ rating? What is the score the above gentlemen would have scored in such tests or to put it another way how much is given to them each by the scientific community? </b></i></span><i><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Which community or countrymen top the list with highest IQ rating in the world? Being an Indian, I was curious to know, where does an </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>average</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> Indian stand in the scale?</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>The biggest irony is that the first IQ test ever invented </b></i></span><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><b> by two professional psychologists of France in 1905 was not to find out the brightest among students but on the contrary the weakest who may require support in their studies!!Read about IQ, the most sought after 'commodity' in the world, which most of us are not aware of!</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0_qW_Ih14jF-Bt_OrcyKvvyKWSiEo9T6XCQ875XwYaOCf7D1JvvrVd6_Lgx8EL6PADzrArgvbyzwA1O3Khw5jc45V2d5UtUhuNTh-sxyS-cqhH7ZkouLbB1FQr1NDylhjSh4b7kDiVGErRycKIuBNcVsAT3RAR5Idktiz-jAOCgIkRhkjGWeBDm6rwQ/s170/istockphoto-1335424586-170x170.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="96" data-original-width="170" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0_qW_Ih14jF-Bt_OrcyKvvyKWSiEo9T6XCQ875XwYaOCf7D1JvvrVd6_Lgx8EL6PADzrArgvbyzwA1O3Khw5jc45V2d5UtUhuNTh-sxyS-cqhH7ZkouLbB1FQr1NDylhjSh4b7kDiVGErRycKIuBNcVsAT3RAR5Idktiz-jAOCgIkRhkjGWeBDm6rwQ/w320-h181/istockphoto-1335424586-170x170.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b style="text-align: left;">The first IQ test </b></span><p></p></b></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It was in 1905 that two French Psychologists named Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon designed a professional IQ test for children. It was never known as IQ test then because the abbreviation IQ was coined by German Psychologist named William Stern only in 1912.The intention of Binet and Simon in formulating the test was for school children to find out those who are struggling in studies so that they can be supported! But it so happened that this test became the basis of all modern IQ tests which came thereafter to this day!</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"> </span><b style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Salient ratings of IQ tests</span></b></div><div><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;">Most of the people when tested fall between 85-115, while 100 is considered as the average. It is found that career wise IQ ratings of Managers and Administrators are lower than professional doctors and technocrats. Sales pe</span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;">ople stand still lower!</span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: justify;">What about sex difference in intelligence? Test results show that in certain test batteries males are better while in others females. In overall performance there is zero difference. Also it is found that among races it varies is a myth! It is also proved that the new generation fares over the old because of better education, better nutrition and better environments. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dark history of Tests..</span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">All countries have imperfect history and US or others are no exemptions. While Adolf Hitler is notoriously projected as champion of racisms practiced at its extreme in the world, do you know that Virginia Sterilization Act of 1924 which allowed Sterilization of the feebleminded in US? So also in Nordic countries like Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden in 1930s. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVKzPupDMA3IK_3YNnbZo3ehYaDy98fHVzaafmBOC7KxQMxjlScntzgoXfyWoj_5g8Xc4ATbxglgh0HYnyhEDPgELWqCtP6WlnEUa_f4T14Rsl3Z1toYlr5tSFN-JQW1r5NwlxA9TMDnFDlzkskfNsO02RbkqK2U_r78Bj4znJOo2KXjOwn2EDqeU-dw/s531/2_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="335" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVKzPupDMA3IK_3YNnbZo3ehYaDy98fHVzaafmBOC7KxQMxjlScntzgoXfyWoj_5g8Xc4ATbxglgh0HYnyhEDPgELWqCtP6WlnEUa_f4T14Rsl3Z1toYlr5tSFN-JQW1r5NwlxA9TMDnFDlzkskfNsO02RbkqK2U_r78Bj4znJOo2KXjOwn2EDqeU-dw/s320/2_1.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A poster in US by those believed in Eugenics!</div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Based on Eugenics- practice of selective breeding of human population based on IQ tests- definitely there was a dark past in history of mankind in conducting such tests. It was as late as 2001 that Virginia General Assembly passed a joint resolution expressing regret over such incidents and offered compensations to the victims expected to be not less than 7000!</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">During WWI, US Army used to conduct two type of tests for the new recruits, named as Alpha and Beta tests it is recorded. The first was a written test while the second was for those who couldn't read.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">However thankfully intentions and practices of IQ tests improved all around the world over the years which are based on verbal reasoning, working memory and visual-spatial skills.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Which countries top the list in IQ rating..</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The best 10 countries in the world in IQ rankings are as below:</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">1.Japan 106.48</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">2.Taiwan 106.47</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">3.Singapore 105.89</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">4.Hong Kong (China) 105.37</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">5.China 104.10</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">6.South Korea 102.35</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">7.Belarus 101.60</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">8.Finland 101.20</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">9.Liechtenstein 101.70</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">10.Germany &Netherlands 100.74</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZPvzBxGFKDxaacrc89QsNYVuFFKs1a2mCeMgneT2NIoRpL6K7FfOxXOB72BbUrzHPFfcd1utHWCO6PQw4BU1A9ITaJeLGp6rbyA7-d5MY40XWm4Si7fMQnCgN7W28_35wzXtWodi0NNRUv038ECbVtcOffjfK5t9KOaU4lFsQM_HL4Mxp-zjTVXVclA/s800/800px-IQ_by_Country.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="364" data-original-width="800" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZPvzBxGFKDxaacrc89QsNYVuFFKs1a2mCeMgneT2NIoRpL6K7FfOxXOB72BbUrzHPFfcd1utHWCO6PQw4BU1A9ITaJeLGp6rbyA7-d5MY40XWm4Si7fMQnCgN7W28_35wzXtWodi0NNRUv038ECbVtcOffjfK5t9KOaU4lFsQM_HL4Mxp-zjTVXVclA/w640-h293/800px-IQ_by_Country.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One can notice that there is hardly any difference in scores between the first and second which are Japan and Taiwan! Also one can notice that the first six countries are from Asia and from one region more or less. In spite of this fact the Europeans made Asia their colonies and stole all our resources. Still they do in one way or the other!! I have noticed that some surveys vary in results of the rankings but only in minor nature. Surprisingly- at least for me- India stands in a position of 143 only out of 199 countries!!India unfortunately get lower rankings in almost all the international ranking scales such as Hunger Index, Cleanliness, Pollution etc in spite that we are one of the richest countries in the world currently. The main reason could be the huge disparity in everything among the people but in anther ten years I think India will do much better.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Mensa International and TNS</b> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">There are few international clubs/societies where the membership is restricted to those having very high IQ ratings. Mensa International is such an organization having 134000 members in 100 countries world wide. Their requirement for membership is a score over 98th percentile on certain standard IQ tests! Another similar organization is Triple Nine Society or TNS. Their requirement for membership is 99.9th percentile as indicated in the name!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Tail Piece</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">While reading and writing a lot about these blessed people with a lot of intelligence, I find myself solace with words of Socrates and Samuel Goldwyn. Socrates we all know about. Samuel Goldwyn was a poor Polish Jew migrated to US who eventually became a leading business person apart from a film producer and director there. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Socrates who lived between 470-399BC philosophically had told " I know that I am intelligent because I know nothing! ". Samuel Goldwyn 1879-1974 was more practical when he concluded that " Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day"! Albert Einstein himself has commented that "I can' is 100 times more important than "I.Q"!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> _______________</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-56646481987747305532022-12-01T11:27:00.000+05:302022-12-01T11:27:58.641+05:30FOR THE LOVE OF COFFEE...FROM PADRE FRANCISCO ROMERO TO JUAN VALDEZ.<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Which country has the best coffee in the world? I am not an expert in the field but still I would say it is Columbia (arguably) from authentic statistics and unbiased information available </b></i></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b> on the subject. The Columbian landscape provides the perfect natural environments for growing coffee along with its climate among 80 countries which grow coffee. The quality of coffee is influenced also by a variety of factors such as soil, altitudes above sea level etc. making Columbia filling up 15% of world consumption by its own Arabica.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>But what interests me are two factors - one historical and the other commercial -which </b></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>influenced Columbia in its production of Coffee beans. First is about Francesco Romero who was a Jesuit priest visiting Columbia in 18th century. Having convinced himself about what wonders coffee could do for the people and the country , he used the most unethical religious method to spread coffee plantations among people who were reluctant to plant coffee beans!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Second is how Columbia professionally marketed its coffee to reach the world by inventing and promoting a fictional Columbian coffee farmer named Juan Valdez with his mule since 1959.Both are incredible but true....</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Dg2afv6MyAWK3gdoiEjkjC8vCPpSz3EFx5tTQiRz82_Ifq9qPl6Ufp77GZMtsidCPLeY7XXXjFibQsxc2XwJIHSH-eBakbyNUVKBaVakRqABFcXXXqmd96WbTwq3NRc9yFAo4tmMYvlQGd4xfY8UzpCCa7tVbfvlQWojaIIWby5xCH3tssp1ilTUTw/s1417/CAFE_DE_COLOMBIA_LOGO.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1250" data-original-width="1417" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Dg2afv6MyAWK3gdoiEjkjC8vCPpSz3EFx5tTQiRz82_Ifq9qPl6Ufp77GZMtsidCPLeY7XXXjFibQsxc2XwJIHSH-eBakbyNUVKBaVakRqABFcXXXqmd96WbTwq3NRc9yFAo4tmMYvlQGd4xfY8UzpCCa7tVbfvlQWojaIIWby5xCH3tssp1ilTUTw/s320/CAFE_DE_COLOMBIA_LOGO.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Coffee Revolution in Columbia..</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It started with a Jesuit Priest named Francisco Romero from Spain visiting the country in the 18th century. Coffee had reached Columbia before that but the farmers were reluctant to plant them considering the fact that it takes not less than 5 years for the coffee plants to bear fruits for the first crop. Pretty long time for the poor farmers.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Having convinced about the development coffee plantations can make in the families and society under the best climatic environments ideally suited for coffee to grow, it is believed that this priest did a trick with the believers. Instead of the usual penance at confession in the church he told them to plant coffee plants!!He promised them in the name of God that the sins will be absolved in exchange!!The penance could go between 100 or 1000 bushes depending on the seriousness of the sin made.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRzBcltr4FbmCL1d668EUoHtoDJgZDuS5PAc9av8rOIre4o5fyhWmELte1xyS-51ER8t31Mxkn37aEbkFfwEshPFWUtG-cDr9BosB_c_CWoI9gR-4OS91q1o7w0fcBi78kb8hOM4ZvATh10a7HY0u3eXPLhU98qUa4AR7EiMhFEr15iEc9wmGBfq8JHA/s765/jesus-3759617__480.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="765" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRzBcltr4FbmCL1d668EUoHtoDJgZDuS5PAc9av8rOIre4o5fyhWmELte1xyS-51ER8t31Mxkn37aEbkFfwEshPFWUtG-cDr9BosB_c_CWoI9gR-4OS91q1o7w0fcBi78kb8hOM4ZvATh10a7HY0u3eXPLhU98qUa4AR7EiMhFEr15iEc9wmGBfq8JHA/s320/jesus-3759617__480.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">This reminds me of 'sale of indulgences' by Pope Leo X in 1517 for raising funds to build St Peter's Basilica at Rome! While this act resulted in the movement of Reformation by Martin Luther and finally leading to split of the church, the act of Francisco Romero made a positive revolution for Columbia. As a priest he was in all the places of Columbia but he started promoting cultivation of coffee at Salazar de las Palmas. Within a few years after the death of Francisco Romero in 1865, Columbia started exporting coffee!!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>What Juan Valdez with his mule Conchita did..</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">National Federation of Coffee Growers of Columbia as early as 1959 started taking steps to take Columbian Coffee reach the international market. They entrusted the famous US ad firm named Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) for this purpose. Thus the fictional coffee farmer Juan Valdez was born at Manhattan, NY created by William Bernbech, the founder of DDB. Juan Valdez was also given a companion which was a mule named Conchita. Valdez and Conchita shook the minds of American coffee lovers. Just 5 months after the first Juan Valdez commercial was introduced in US, the sale of Columbian coffee there was increased by a whopping 300%, to the astonishment of even DDB. Within few years it became a household name in America!</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhcKxnNqZ2hN7SkjSO0KhEA5oe-7I4Y2cozBtuMeYFWwugZ_Psl97ATAhFLdob3yIFEJgGcNO_nUwf0jpCV7ktE52h-BYmVxzwzjcPqyy2anP7Y-JYSbp9bS_ep9r5xA1YtkugoY7NW6VIpKvVCYstbbWRz3oL5r-xCjTzend3CIHiwnNEeutDf1N_A/s815/valdezz-20180831051418428.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="815" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhcKxnNqZ2hN7SkjSO0KhEA5oe-7I4Y2cozBtuMeYFWwugZ_Psl97ATAhFLdob3yIFEJgGcNO_nUwf0jpCV7ktE52h-BYmVxzwzjcPqyy2anP7Y-JYSbp9bS_ep9r5xA1YtkugoY7NW6VIpKvVCYstbbWRz3oL5r-xCjTzend3CIHiwnNEeutDf1N_A/s320/valdezz-20180831051418428.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Initially the role of Juan Valdez- dressed in the classic outfit of Columbian coffee region- was played by a Cuban named Jose Duval. He was succeeded by Carlos Sanchez from Columbia till 2006.Now it is done by Carlos Castaneda , an actual coffee grower from Columbia! Juan Valdez is always seen with his pet donkey Conchita carrying two bags full of coffee beans on its sides. Such animals are favorites in the hilly coffee regions of Columbia as companions of farmers.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">There are hundreds- over 335- of Juan Valdez coffee shops in Columbia and around 150 abroad. There is one at Katara Cultural Centre at Doha, Qatar but not in India yet I presume. They may be thinking that all Indians are 'chai' lovers but south India especially Chennai could challenge this belief!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">No wonder that coffee became the second most consumed beverage in the world after water!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _______________</span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-21195361355222599262022-11-01T10:12:00.000+05:302022-11-01T10:12:39.704+05:30DID COLUMBUS DISCOVER AMERICA? THEN HOW THE COUNTRY GOT THE NAME AMERICA?<p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: x-large; font-weight: bold;">W</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>hen Americans get a holiday on every 10th October since 1937 to celebrate as 'Columbus Day', why should I doubt? Americans and Europeans can never go wrong in anything especially narration of their own history, don't you think so? Nevertheless that Christopher Columbus never set his foot or discovered North America in any of his voyages is a historical fact. Then who else? Amerigo Vespucci, whose name gave the country and two continents their names -America? He did not land in north America any time either! Was it Leif Ericson, the Islandic Viking explorer who is believed to have reached Newfoundland, Canada some 500 years before </b></span></i><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Columbus? No, as he too failed to reach America main land.</i></b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Interestingly as we all know that Columbus was keen to find a new sea route to reach India for trading its riches along with Indies and China. Finally when Columbus reached the islands like Bahamas and Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic as known today), he sincerely believed that he had reached India and the people over there were called Indians! This fact is too well known to be repeated here.</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>When Amerigo Vespucci reached South America and Amazon river, he named that spot of Amazon as 'Gulf of Ganges' since he too believed that he had reached India and Ganges! I am sure that this is not well known in history....</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>This is not history reinvented but revisited. It was there all along but many of us must not have noticed or wrongly observed for obvious reasons!</b></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHV07G86DizIaoin3wA4WOgXlxp7p91U6rDDTHVGjqQdtzFoAxMLB8h2lEUYo9v_0PN6HNsyiHjr6869slkY4x7wQVp8szvR3laOUOdhy09U8Y0QJLwet_tMHvEmL68QgIJTcqGzQ8PUuQBDnZybSZUXez7-xwmIzMIEF-N3Z0iUhFKMS7fuHkY1GLjQ/s300/ColumbusShips-300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="300" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHV07G86DizIaoin3wA4WOgXlxp7p91U6rDDTHVGjqQdtzFoAxMLB8h2lEUYo9v_0PN6HNsyiHjr6869slkY4x7wQVp8szvR3laOUOdhy09U8Y0QJLwet_tMHvEmL68QgIJTcqGzQ8PUuQBDnZybSZUXez7-xwmIzMIEF-N3Z0iUhFKMS7fuHkY1GLjQ/s1600/ColumbusShips-300.jpg" width="300" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Columbus makes 4 trips ... but none touched main land of USA! </b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">During the 15th and 16th century Europeans, esp. Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and others wanted to find sea routes to India, China and Far East. Their main intention was to bring back cargoes of spices and silks to make them quick rich.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Christopher Columbus was from Genova, Italy by birth but moved later to Lisbon, Portugal. Columbus knew that the earth was round unlike the Catholic theologians of those days who insisted that Earth was flat! He calculated that sailing west instead of East and Africa would eventually lead to India. Finally the King and Queen of Portugal, Ferdinand and Isabell agreed to finance the trip of of Columbus.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Columbus travelled in1492 in the ship named 'Santa Maria' and along with another two more- the Nina and the Pinta- similar ships and a crew of 90 from Palos, Spain for sure. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyTe3yztES7yHfdJs6WkeS6xFKLI4-cX_6y4HkTF3iHlMkXKiEX9CkLUpoky9cGVAg8GYXQxJcNmxV_tdYlafJhQuBB8FdjHRl8ggSjZKf2vjSo4ppGFHQaDeuoJ2ZsIMiLcvI_DVKDjMO1vdrtz8ApGWyGKx5NSwtvYASfy1cNZNLgZgIiFEI_9emA/s350/350px-Viajes_de_colon_en.svg.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="234" data-original-width="350" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyTe3yztES7yHfdJs6WkeS6xFKLI4-cX_6y4HkTF3iHlMkXKiEX9CkLUpoky9cGVAg8GYXQxJcNmxV_tdYlafJhQuBB8FdjHRl8ggSjZKf2vjSo4ppGFHQaDeuoJ2ZsIMiLcvI_DVKDjMO1vdrtz8ApGWyGKx5NSwtvYASfy1cNZNLgZgIiFEI_9emA/s320/350px-Viajes_de_colon_en.svg.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Between 1492 and 1504 , Columbus made 4 trips of expeditions of discovery to India and Indies, which was later known as the Age of Discovery. Although he didn't touch the main land of America as seen in the map above, these voyages led to the widespread knowledge of the New World! The Bahamas as well as the Caribbean islands are known to this day as west Indies. It is also to be noted here that Columbus was merciless, brutally enslaving the natives(thinking that they were Indians) in these expeditions! He died in 1502 on the belief that he had discovered a new sea route to India!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Amerigo Vespucci had made 2 trips but again did not touch America!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Vespucci played a major role in at least two voyages in search of India between 1499 and 1502 reaching the present South America. He was from Italy and by profession a cartographer. In 1499 when he sailed to the Amazon river, he had named that as 'Gulf of Ganges' thinking that he had reached India! In history it is recorded that Vespucci had met Columbus at least once in 1496 and shared the experiences but both never landed in United States Of America!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In 1507 Martin Waldseemuller, a German clergy man and another famous cartographer first used the name of America in honour of Amerigo Vespucci and it got stuck to the two new continents and the country. He was the first to make a new map of the world separating America from Asia. In US every March 9 is observed as Amerigo Vespucci day officially but much less in fanfare and celebration to Columbus day, I believe.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKYqet7HT-eJME9iuZ9YlR0-pkPoowacLJMpfs2vaKLmzFRkaH5lwAF4YRBNiX09Zj0uWB72UFDq3kKOb2oQ6WcfPSlBNImHPzg5weKpIQetcbEJq9_OUgfSTpL_DLTOKiB0GFm71ZDJ0D6Lxls9i_QNK1LPMtAJ8-J-gosCywiUF1RHWtFF1w_-2kA/s409/20b07601d3c6ac5be8fab8449df7738f.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="252" data-original-width="409" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKYqet7HT-eJME9iuZ9YlR0-pkPoowacLJMpfs2vaKLmzFRkaH5lwAF4YRBNiX09Zj0uWB72UFDq3kKOb2oQ6WcfPSlBNImHPzg5weKpIQetcbEJq9_OUgfSTpL_DLTOKiB0GFm71ZDJ0D6Lxls9i_QNK1LPMtAJ8-J-gosCywiUF1RHWtFF1w_-2kA/s320/20b07601d3c6ac5be8fab8449df7738f.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Voyage of Leif </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Erikson...</span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">About 500 years early to expeditions of Columbus and Vespucci, an Islandic Viking explorer had surely made a voyage from his home country in search of the New world. It is recorded in history that he had established a settlement at Vinland in Newfoundland, Canada.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It was US President Coolidge who recognized the feat of Leif Erikson in 1925 and declared October 9 as Leif Erickson day.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgldYFqksDpNzXCSJEaeaRXRfB2e_FAKxFI1cjNtlaxytTAnXu4DKLMT81W9kt6TAk-9qIgUuaZuXHzWEm2HgIaYHxUdmaU6T9xvgUqubGl2UJp2AapB7XY3hfieRroVluEtIB_1S5QKSGoxK8vcJ5vNdW29-LZUqwUMfRf4SKqE_0YhXpyMjqkjnhYlQ/s1600/9190.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1214" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgldYFqksDpNzXCSJEaeaRXRfB2e_FAKxFI1cjNtlaxytTAnXu4DKLMT81W9kt6TAk-9qIgUuaZuXHzWEm2HgIaYHxUdmaU6T9xvgUqubGl2UJp2AapB7XY3hfieRroVluEtIB_1S5QKSGoxK8vcJ5vNdW29-LZUqwUMfRf4SKqE_0YhXpyMjqkjnhYlQ/s320/9190.webp" width="243" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">____________________________________________________</div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-31122915913569409272022-10-01T07:50:00.000+05:302022-10-01T07:50:53.452+05:30MARIA AND SERAH..... MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB!<p style="text-align: justify;"><b><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Some of the best moments I have had in my retired life, after settling to my home town eight years back, is the time spent with my grandchildren. Nothing unusual than what the world generally goes with, but still I would consider myself lucky. The moments which are filled up with love and </span></i></b><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>happiness, lighter moments of laughter and a lot more which only such grandparents and grandchildren will fully understand! It is said that the genes skip a generation, though I don't know whether it is scientifically true or not. Probably that's why grandparents find their grandchildren so likeable!!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>One thing which I am exposed to once again during this period is the nursery rhymes which they went through while they were in play schools. To the best of my understanding a nursery rhyme in English or any language or vernacular is a poem or song evolved around certain traditions or hearsays. They are rhythmical and intended to amuse young children. Such rhymes are always imaginary and bear nothing to do with any actual event though for centuries they are passed from generation to generation.</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>But only recently I came to know that at least one among hundreds of such old nursery rhymes is based on an actual event. That's to do with Mary and her lamb. There was a Mary who lived in Sterling, Massachusetts, US around early 18th century. And she had a little lamb too which accompanied her wherever she went including the school! But the actual history of the authorship of this popular rhyme is not kid stuff including legal battles in which even the Automobile icon Henry Ford was involved at one stage! And this rhyme was the first recorded human voice in the first Phonograph invented by Edison in 1877!</b></i></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>This article is dedicated to my grandchildren Maria and Serah. Maria will be completing her ninth birthday next month while Serah does her fifth today. Yes, Mary had a little lamb in true life! </b></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><span style="text-align: justify;"><br /> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjXj7oF787hrqbPV6XZx_SNm9QRA49_LAn3OFqPo35o7Zbgap5SsHmyMNY9FzlGjw4y5JDm5u96gut5rm8XYEzikZAxQZBhsGXSLI2nzGEs9G5AMvnl3UW_OEnVRGGP7Cbzin6ZRxKJ6ivcyEejnXOH_vpds8JATfElfVunRrBrcuXuMHGbjfUFGYk3w/s569/PHOTO-2022-07-10-12-51-27%20(3).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="526" data-original-width="569" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjXj7oF787hrqbPV6XZx_SNm9QRA49_LAn3OFqPo35o7Zbgap5SsHmyMNY9FzlGjw4y5JDm5u96gut5rm8XYEzikZAxQZBhsGXSLI2nzGEs9G5AMvnl3UW_OEnVRGGP7Cbzin6ZRxKJ6ivcyEejnXOH_vpds8JATfElfVunRrBrcuXuMHGbjfUFGYk3w/w200-h185/PHOTO-2022-07-10-12-51-27%20(3).jpg" width="200" /></a></b></i></span></span></div><p></p> Maria & Serah<br /><br /><div><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">1806 -It starts with Mary Elizabeth Sawyer.....</b></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Mary Elizabeth Sawyer was born in 1806 on a farm in Sterling, Mass. When she was nine years old in 1815,while helping out her father in the farm, they discovered a sickly new born lamb that had been abandoned by her mother. Mary persuaded her parents to allow her to hand raise the lamb. Although they didn't expect the baby to survive for long, against all odds </span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Mary could nurse the poor lamb to health. And where ever Mary went this lamb just followed keeping a special relation with her! And as the lamb grew up she had a fleece as white as snow!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The lamb used to follow Mary and her brother to the one room school they attended which was known as Redstone School. In the class also Mary had very embarrassing moments due to the lamb.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd61xA9xIF5P0g01T4uEIYzpXYzjlrFbMKnjJsBktfQ_9lFxqOYoiX50t6p2AVnvASQaywaPEFXzQPHiQ5qHkp1z7Cmmo1-OeBq1ECkU21eM76MCbzPzk6JsTJbqPL7u_0fVdq5byxe5LIaYUtK5G2CWpSUQbdLlO4D99B5QjxpNnssfjI3E3DqL-Tlw/s900/the-redstone-school-krista-sidwell%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="900" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd61xA9xIF5P0g01T4uEIYzpXYzjlrFbMKnjJsBktfQ_9lFxqOYoiX50t6p2AVnvASQaywaPEFXzQPHiQ5qHkp1z7Cmmo1-OeBq1ECkU21eM76MCbzPzk6JsTJbqPL7u_0fVdq5byxe5LIaYUtK5G2CWpSUQbdLlO4D99B5QjxpNnssfjI3E3DqL-Tlw/s320/the-redstone-school-krista-sidwell%20(1).jpg" width="320" /></a></div> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> Redstone one room School which Mary and the lamb attended</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One day One John Roulstone a student of the same school but senior to Mary wrote three stanzas of a poem based on the special relationship Mary and lamb had as we all know.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 17.5135px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> </em><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); font-size: 17.5135px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> </em><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> Mary had a little lamb;</em><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;" /><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> Its fleece was white as snow;</em><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;" /><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> And everywhere that Mary went,</em><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;" /><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"> The lamb was sure to go.</em></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span> </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;">It followed her to school one day</em></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> Which was against the rule;</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> It made the children laugh and play</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> To see a lamb at school</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> And so the teacher turned it out;</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> But still it lingered near,</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> And waited patiently about</span></em></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9); margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> Till Mary did appear.</span></em></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9)" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9)" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The lamb mothered three lambs of her own before she died. John Roulstone too suddenly died in 1822 at his age of 17 while he was at Harvard!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9)" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b style="color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9);">The </b><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"><b>controversy</b></span><b style="color: rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9);"> starts...</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)">In 1830 Sarah Josepha Hale, a renowned writer hailing from Newport, published her book titled 'Poems for Our Children' which included a version of the poem penned by John Roulstone! Sarah didn't make it clear how she could include a poem about Mary's lamb. And Mary didn't have any idea how Sarah had gotten Roulstone's poem!!All the more Mary didn't have any proof to show than her testimony. Mary had lost his hand written poem but she didn't loose the socks she had knitted from the wool of the very lamb that followed her to school. According to Mary Sawyer the lamb was a female while Sarah Hale's poem says it was a male!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.9)"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)">Soon the residents of Sterling, Mass and those from Newport, New Hampshire were </span><span style="color: #050031;">arguing</span><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"> about the the poem's provenance for years. The fight did not stop when Sarah died in 1879 followed by Mary who died in 1889!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"><b>The first recording of human voice..</b></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: center;">When Thomas Edison invented the Phonograph for the first time in 1877, it was this poem that was recited for the first time! Yes. The first recording of human voice ever made was recitation of the poem 'Mary had a little lamb'!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQLM0rulDf8kbFzfzLx9AQppzq7iwgRxBebOrkUYxCdLTDwVOUPhq1TiJ0H9Dc1trYfmQNC5rGznDXfGXhF8bL7m7PiFz2prnbs4aNr1-jv_qy-BShGGrL6R9igKmVWE3haxelnueDvkJrq_LFHUzq-9IwM6kCa9uDpXSBAsZ-lc5k7KMLRsf07IJYw/s378/5673293_138711343587.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQLM0rulDf8kbFzfzLx9AQppzq7iwgRxBebOrkUYxCdLTDwVOUPhq1TiJ0H9Dc1trYfmQNC5rGznDXfGXhF8bL7m7PiFz2prnbs4aNr1-jv_qy-BShGGrL6R9igKmVWE3haxelnueDvkJrq_LFHUzq-9IwM6kCa9uDpXSBAsZ-lc5k7KMLRsf07IJYw/s320/5673293_138711343587.jpg" width="212" /></a></div> Mary Sawyer</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQLewbGKJm7OR1m7NYzpFW9-JKvMFrdcBnQhA2tNmTHuMc5l77Dfg7d2qZnX0_r7D6Pky3MK37AjZK5yfO0w6PYH7hAwXcgx2N_BQeioDcqFdr4UKViAunQHamkudskex8UkvtE1HQX5Xgr3CaNzUD5siLrsBOtxRK2kIJ6ObhsEs6MjdgM42YM90Upw/s1360/81syySeRceL.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1360" data-original-width="907" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQLewbGKJm7OR1m7NYzpFW9-JKvMFrdcBnQhA2tNmTHuMc5l77Dfg7d2qZnX0_r7D6Pky3MK37AjZK5yfO0w6PYH7hAwXcgx2N_BQeioDcqFdr4UKViAunQHamkudskex8UkvtE1HQX5Xgr3CaNzUD5siLrsBOtxRK2kIJ6ObhsEs6MjdgM42YM90Upw/s320/81syySeRceL.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;">Henry Ford comes to picture...</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)">Henry Ford openly sided with Mary Sawyer by 1920.It was he who bought the old school building where the lamb incident took place and moved to Sudbury, Mass. The city authorities also made sure of preserving the house of Mary Sawyer to this day where it is erected now. He also published a book on Mary and the lamb!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9SypY_hZ-E6zauDEtawMzV7z19_Oc35nQ0uX83UbxPsPHQaJtW5mAytP-V5fIPkD9mTkQRL2bweMgggV4XwSlY01DE-1-uuW8L-km2SQHwjUp0QJhvDdvXDhfyyMEuddEwIw8Q51MkUdmhxLL-Ei0j7dWeAhi3W_g5kmlf47phgDW7ZuHQIKmpd4uQ/s1000/mary-lamb-sterling-12.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9SypY_hZ-E6zauDEtawMzV7z19_Oc35nQ0uX83UbxPsPHQaJtW5mAytP-V5fIPkD9mTkQRL2bweMgggV4XwSlY01DE-1-uuW8L-km2SQHwjUp0QJhvDdvXDhfyyMEuddEwIw8Q51MkUdmhxLL-Ei0j7dWeAhi3W_g5kmlf47phgDW7ZuHQIKmpd4uQ/s320/mary-lamb-sterling-12.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> Mary's house as seen today<br /><span color="rgba(50, 50, 50, 0.901960784313726)"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDAzm2dy6smrV1gY2nRBsJKyWoWZS8ynmgmIm-6T4JwLvl9hvV624CWOp-XCqv8UqL4qpST2LI-X1iclCR7l0mtqECnE5NdLfQXr8kPaVGhTl3hFKfFBbt9zP8CbYz2xyZd0svr7BSC-H6uJd4l3fp4-uzz-NLVIQlKjJLlQhR2SlmwfxXjmEwD0A5MA/s692/77a5fdaa-fef4-4560-b3b5-0fe72e16de5c88685e18058fc62ef2_20210729_134623.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="692" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDAzm2dy6smrV1gY2nRBsJKyWoWZS8ynmgmIm-6T4JwLvl9hvV624CWOp-XCqv8UqL4qpST2LI-X1iclCR7l0mtqECnE5NdLfQXr8kPaVGhTl3hFKfFBbt9zP8CbYz2xyZd0svr7BSC-H6uJd4l3fp4-uzz-NLVIQlKjJLlQhR2SlmwfxXjmEwD0A5MA/s320/77a5fdaa-fef4-4560-b3b5-0fe72e16de5c88685e18058fc62ef2_20210729_134623.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>It is interesting to note that a 2 feet tall statue of Mary's lamb stands in the town centre of Sterling!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Still an outstanding mystery....</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">It may be noted that I could not find anywhere the mention of the name of the lamb! After all this lamb was a pet and it is very likely that Mary had named it. But I could not find anywhere in the records the name in spite of the fact that the story of the lamb later became controversial. May be Maria or Serah later, or any of my readers can find it and inform me...Always remember that no topic is trifle. Interestingly there is a lot to learn and understand in the world though many look silly apparently.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi23IkaYHtx0rH6WnSTyhizuJg4cW_8VQqSvjjBRngMcgjXEzGHerLDF_XcfEg0fDLqPan03HDXLYF9yP6gKYAEL6Lczk-LlsuSFWK7y1Ah_5alrt2Tx9RCcqcYrAxh_Di2_44al-xrHGtPbcugeq0am-UVx36_GdxuxHocpRNtPRcqy6b034pyYCYM3w/s640/thumbnail_IMG_2636.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="640" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi23IkaYHtx0rH6WnSTyhizuJg4cW_8VQqSvjjBRngMcgjXEzGHerLDF_XcfEg0fDLqPan03HDXLYF9yP6gKYAEL6Lczk-LlsuSFWK7y1Ah_5alrt2Tx9RCcqcYrAxh_Di2_44al-xrHGtPbcugeq0am-UVx36_GdxuxHocpRNtPRcqy6b034pyYCYM3w/w200-h149/thumbnail_IMG_2636.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UjCqmFFxcF3cV0zcBO5YzhkEVLq1fq6_xskrWKtHMeatIZdwQLyqgSvLNs47zRmxxtPOz-B75vLELahK_F0b4lnE_jVlba8JRPBpyQb6kcH0wp2RHPh6Da7uioHAwQ-dW9jvTBxdH7um6ok7ykO3g1wik1KdmxQwtKLlVGG7edXjfjCrhCILbDWyPg/s640/thumbnail_IMG_2635.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="640" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UjCqmFFxcF3cV0zcBO5YzhkEVLq1fq6_xskrWKtHMeatIZdwQLyqgSvLNs47zRmxxtPOz-B75vLELahK_F0b4lnE_jVlba8JRPBpyQb6kcH0wp2RHPh6Da7uioHAwQ-dW9jvTBxdH7um6ok7ykO3g1wik1KdmxQwtKLlVGG7edXjfjCrhCILbDWyPg/w200-h152/thumbnail_IMG_2635.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Be imaginative, creative and inquisitive...life is altogether different with these virtues.</span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> ___________________________</span></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-2445678252843835542022-08-30T08:11:00.001+05:302022-08-30T19:32:25.484+05:30MOHAWKS ! ACROPHILES OF NEW YORK CITY!!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieP7hlJD3nuiLSAr64J9pyljXgcZ2pRdzpiMQGvOETo6OBvN8PutdfVpp5cYJAaeVuXM0-eTgLPIBPJsq7kZpbYP8HCMumoB_oY9Em1zDFMopaUhrvQYExlXFom8EtiF-yQlYiOw1o0Gok_RjZ6NKujPZHlNGZfEqrSnLd-idf9vuWnCcYtihLiK8ihw/s462/PHOTO-2022-08-26-14-38-33%20(2).jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="388" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieP7hlJD3nuiLSAr64J9pyljXgcZ2pRdzpiMQGvOETo6OBvN8PutdfVpp5cYJAaeVuXM0-eTgLPIBPJsq7kZpbYP8HCMumoB_oY9Em1zDFMopaUhrvQYExlXFom8EtiF-yQlYiOw1o0Gok_RjZ6NKujPZHlNGZfEqrSnLd-idf9vuWnCcYtihLiK8ihw/w168-h200/PHOTO-2022-08-26-14-38-33%20(2).jpg" width="168" /></a></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> D E D I C A T I O N </b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Mr. N.Govindankutty is no more. He breathed his last on 15th August 2022.He was one of the very best among my close friends and a fine human being. Our friendship lasted over 50 years but while we were in Qatar that it flowered and blossomed the best. A big loss for me!</span></p><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Mr. Kutty was a senior MEP Project Manager who was a very professional veteran in his field of specialization in execution of infrastructure projects. He was himself an acrophile- having no fear of heights- </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">who had successfully contributed his professional service in high-rise structures of Dubai including Emirates Towers and Burj Khalifa, the tallest in the world!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">My tearful bouquet for him🎕. Please rest in peace 'Kuttysaab' as he was called by me fondly. I am dedicating this article to him today - from the conventional date of every first of very month- being his <i>Sapindi day-</i>16th day of his demise. </span>🙏 -----------------------------------</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><b>The Empire State Building, Rockefeller Centre, The Chrysler Building, George Washington Bridge, United Nations HQ, Time Warner Center and a host of others....What is common for all these structures other than that they all are located in Manhattan, NY? Common architects and structural engineers? Construction methodology? Period of construction? None of these.</b></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>The common factor is that they are built into record heights by a group of men known as 'Sky Walkers'. But for their nature of having no fear of heights- acrophiles- with their skill in steel construction and riveting ,simply it would not have been possible at a time when techniques and equipment of construction were not computer aided and modern as today! And fast they did. The Empire State Building was constructed within a period of one year!!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Again it is not known to the outside world much that majority of those of 'Sky Walkers' belonged to the Mohawks Indians, a tribe of indigenous people of North America from New York State and Canada! Mohawks were there to construct World Trade Centre and also to cart away the debris of the same building after it came down on September 9/11.New York Times once wrote about them that " Like little spiders they toiled spinning a fabric of steel against the sky!</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0RtXcCcBPlla8YUx6dJurZwi8THGzTl647BcdkEwX-mIaIXuYr_WxetJiOMFXd1iFEisreMLrk1HkdiKfJMNTP4-4wzP3I6z7_KMQ0Lw6FCr47iVX95aA3X7xMTXNX9QbBf88UxzxxZTdm43GsDHoYv8VvJHMlAADA5gbhi0J90TAi4nTLVenskBYg/s551/group-iron-steel-workers1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="551" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0RtXcCcBPlla8YUx6dJurZwi8THGzTl647BcdkEwX-mIaIXuYr_WxetJiOMFXd1iFEisreMLrk1HkdiKfJMNTP4-4wzP3I6z7_KMQ0Lw6FCr47iVX95aA3X7xMTXNX9QbBf88UxzxxZTdm43GsDHoYv8VvJHMlAADA5gbhi0J90TAi4nTLVenskBYg/s320/group-iron-steel-workers1.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYyB7yEhIFvoSdoWuS99I2adOvArDYBf2RHFow7GbtNLarRewGognw64vretURbBi6umtqo16T8KlJhY6ymXgii8hfC4Jwz-qvjAHzovBLff2X7qYwzDEyc11CB_tEWzYq9kEYK3BiBNq5nXllcLVnYOZa10gsv3S9ofSYpM9jqHTusRACRcMgoL_eXQ/s2048/da3b48217707ef7989a1cd2ab67600bc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYyB7yEhIFvoSdoWuS99I2adOvArDYBf2RHFow7GbtNLarRewGognw64vretURbBi6umtqo16T8KlJhY6ymXgii8hfC4Jwz-qvjAHzovBLff2X7qYwzDEyc11CB_tEWzYq9kEYK3BiBNq5nXllcLVnYOZa10gsv3S9ofSYpM9jqHTusRACRcMgoL_eXQ/s320/da3b48217707ef7989a1cd2ab67600bc.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Mannahatta to Manhattan...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Historically Manhattan island belonged mainly to the Indian tribe of Lenape before colonization by Europeans which was known as 'Mannahatta' meaning 'the place we get bows' in their language. The island was full of Hickory trees considered ideal for bows. Later it was bought by the Dutch from the Indians which was renamed as 'New Amsterdam' and finally emerged as Manhattan. Henry Hudson, an Englishman who worked for Dutch East India company discovered it in 1609. While Manhattan remains the most expensive real estate in the world and show cases some of the beautifully designed sky scrappers in the modern world, Times Square is the most visited tourist destination of the world- more than 50 million annually! My interest in the skyscrapers of New York never ceases it seems and here trying to dig out more on the subject.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The race for the tallest building in the world!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The race for the tallest building in the world was not between two countries but two cities in the same country if you didn't know -Chicago and New York in the late eighties. American Surety Building in NY in 1895 was the first to be followed by others. However Chicago won the race later with opening of Sears Towers in 1974(now known as Willis Tower).Empire State Building, NY adorned the title to be the tallest for a long period from 1930 to 1970. Later it was dwarfed by Petronas Tower at Kuala Lampur in 1996,Taipie's Taipei in 2004 and current champion is Burj Khalifa at Dubai since 2010.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The first photo above which was clicked in 1932 at RFC Building, NY is iconic. It was on the 69th floor at 850 feet above GL and was publicized as a stunt for the popularity of the building but became symbolic with the period of The Great Depression which was looming large at that time. The same photo is also mistakenly circulated as atop the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Centre! The second photo is what New York looks like from the edge of a skyscraper.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Structural Steel enters as the main building material in US...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Henry Bessemer of Britain in 1856 remains as the father of modern steel making as he could develop a method of producing steel that was quicker and cheaper followed by William Siemens who could develop the technology further. But it was Andrews Carnegie of US who popularized steel as the main construction material for the skyscrapers of NY and elsewhere. Soon in the early 20th century US surpassed the combined production of Britain and Germany!! The huge fire which swept Chicago in 1871 might have surely influenced the designers of high rise at NY.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ1rbgF21pvjyxBCVD2HQaCEOmEz3WHrSol6ile2Ea0SJ-OsC75SPS_9QEN1CVdKDxMpnk439d-X0r6w69jdQ5EG1CLwnojITc0nGaTeSDLm5lmUfIOtHjblx0ij-B3XkHafOvNjtL-myKrDOqNHod0kDS8aHZUqFHkqmiWjuuQwc6LfNckaO2on1nbA/s750/image.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ1rbgF21pvjyxBCVD2HQaCEOmEz3WHrSol6ile2Ea0SJ-OsC75SPS_9QEN1CVdKDxMpnk439d-X0r6w69jdQ5EG1CLwnojITc0nGaTeSDLm5lmUfIOtHjblx0ij-B3XkHafOvNjtL-myKrDOqNHod0kDS8aHZUqFHkqmiWjuuQwc6LfNckaO2on1nbA/s320/image.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Enter the Mohawks!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In1880s the Canadian Pacific Railway Company was building a bridge in the Kahnawake Mohawk reservation that the authorities noticed the special talents of the Mohawk Indians- that they are more or less fearless while working at heights. Soon they were employed in the whole of US especially in cases of high rise buildings, that in steel. From 1930s to 1970 on special labour contracts they were employed in Manhattan towers. Those years we were not as modern as today in safety matters- Safety, Health and Environments- SHE or HSE as known in the professional construction field. Many accidents have </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">happened. But those incidents never altered the outlook of Mohawks towards their dedicated trade!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> ____________________________________</div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com34tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-46848653244084992742022-08-01T09:51:00.000+05:302022-08-01T09:51:15.197+05:30FROM THE DIARY OF A BRITISH SURGEON........ WHO MADE 'PASSAGE TO INDIA' EASIER!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large;"> </span><i><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">The</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> more I read about the history of India especially how the British East India Company (EIC) came to power and colonized the country, it becomes more and more intricate and convoluted to me. New unknown names and characters come to central stage all of a sudden from nowhere which the Indian historians have hardly mentioned, for reasons beyond my comprehension!</b></span></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Such a name is Dr. William Hamilton, a surgeon who came to India in 1717.How come a doctor played a crucial and decisive role in the affairs of EIC which captured the control of India ultimately? Such a reflection can be still seen on the grave inscriptions of the doctor at the St John's church, Calcutta which is given below. It ends with 'he made his own name famous at the court of the Great Monarch; and without doubt will perpetuate his memory as well in Great Britain as all other nations of Europe'!</b></span></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Here is another episode on how Britain became 'great' at the expenses of oppression of Indians and systematic loot of resources for centuries, one of the biggest benefactors of his country. How EIC became the </b></span></span></i><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>bellwether of the British Economy? What's the roles of surgeons in the establishment of the domain of EIC in India? And at least in one instance EIC reps were forced to prostrate in front of the Indian Emperor asking for forgiveness in Child's war!!</b></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSt1By84DtTL5DjvBwH2gtdD3WtnYq4QDqhcUU5X0g27MaxH1nTwxwDzKgidj2pmKDvfdeb_N28Hs95ECkrjGIU-Lh5WsGGkCYtMiIWwyFN6GH3ShkIbqGxMPfGmTm8hDqWbmUgpyT9lBxyENU_5anvJGHTCWFi20fcR59rLEOIESyviQqnXoJrHZjw/s221/220px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_East_India_Company.svg.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="221" data-original-width="220" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSt1By84DtTL5DjvBwH2gtdD3WtnYq4QDqhcUU5X0g27MaxH1nTwxwDzKgidj2pmKDvfdeb_N28Hs95ECkrjGIU-Lh5WsGGkCYtMiIWwyFN6GH3ShkIbqGxMPfGmTm8hDqWbmUgpyT9lBxyENU_5anvJGHTCWFi20fcR59rLEOIESyviQqnXoJrHZjw/s1600/220px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_East_India_Company.svg.png" width="220" /></a></b></i></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>EIC... Coat of Arms</b></i></span></span></div><p></p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>1600....EIC is born...</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was in the year 1600 that Queen Elizabeth I of Britain granted a petition signed by over 200 merchants of London allowing them to trade with the Eastern world. Thus East India Company (EIC) was formed on 31 December 1600, the first Joint Stock Company in the world. It was during the reign of Akbar, the Mughal emperor in India that this incident happened which was hardly noticed in many parts of even Britain or Europe, forget about India. After all having trading relationship with India was existing from time immemorial by Romans, Phoenicians, Greeks, Venetians, Egyptians, Chinese, Arabs...'Red Dragon' the first ship owned by EIC set sail to the East Indies(Indonesia) under the command of James Lancaster soon. Medical Officers were employed as ship surgeons who were qualified to treat the crew of the ships initially and later the staff of EIC at shores as they were not sure of the quality of medical service available on the lands they will trade.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>'Red Dragon'</b> <b>docks in India... the first EIC factory</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was in 1612 that 'Red Dragon' came to India for the first time which was under the command of Thomas Best, who could get trading rights at Surat. In 1613 the first EIC factory in India was established there. Gabriel Boughton, the ship's surgeon is said to have saved Princess Jahanara, daughter of the reigning Mughal emperor Shah Jehan, from injuries due to burns. The emperor was pleased and the incident acted like a catalyst for giving the trading rights and eventually to award duty free rights to EIC. By 1647 EIC had 23 factories in India. Money started pouring to London in leaps and bounds, in spite of few Anglo Dutch wars! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Initial humiliating set back for EIC... Child's war </b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">When it was thought that everything is in order for a thriving business in India, the relationships with the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb soured. In 1689, a Mughal fleet under command of Sidi Yaqut defeated the forces of EIC at Bombay when Sir Josiah Child was their Governor at London. The Company was forced to seek pardon with the Emperor by sending their representatives to prostrate in front of the Emperor for forgiveness. I don't think EIC had to do such an act before or after in the history of India! And I wonder myself why I did not know that all these years!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Soon after the company decided to concentrate at Calcutta to continue the business.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>William Hamilton's role commences....</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He reached India as a surgeon in the ship named 'Sherborne'. Later he was appointed as second surgeon to the British settlement in India in 1711.When the British Embassy started operation at Calcutta in 1714, he was reappointed as Medical Officer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was Farrukhsiyar, the tenth Mughal ruler who reigned in north India between 1713 and 1719.He also happened to be Aurangzeb's great grandson who came to power after assassinating his own uncle. He was a handsome man but lacked the brightness to rule his kingdom on his own, more depending on his advisors!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> In 1715 EIC decided to send a delegation to the Emperor at Delhi asking for major grants for the establishment of the company affairs in India further. They were mainly (1) to purchase 38 villages surrounding the headquarters of the company in Bengal (2) Trading privileges in Bengal and (3) further fortifications of Calcutta. Why EIC decided to include William Hamilton who is a medical officer at the Embassy in such a delegation is not known. Could be that they remembered about the services of Gabriel Doughton in 1613 or might have heard about the decease the Emperor had which was kept as a state secret.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJBBMwXzAB_RIF-BFDpdB8Kq6bS3IJAT8TdV3GdEfwO1CPOBZDV8nxDtoRdIGboGpekntMwSWVeMVkaBGLJkduLaDm3fdgaWX7XeLp2sKfbf1xfIaZLZBR7vfq0GCfysQMyoGqS7tezI7D7kDAnsO679eZzNLqwS0MlWxJKxqSuPRP-dXFn9zpijd1Q/s1076/William_Hamilton_gravestone.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1076" data-original-width="656" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJBBMwXzAB_RIF-BFDpdB8Kq6bS3IJAT8TdV3GdEfwO1CPOBZDV8nxDtoRdIGboGpekntMwSWVeMVkaBGLJkduLaDm3fdgaWX7XeLp2sKfbf1xfIaZLZBR7vfq0GCfysQMyoGqS7tezI7D7kDAnsO679eZzNLqwS0MlWxJKxqSuPRP-dXFn9zpijd1Q/w390-h640/William_Hamilton_gravestone.jpg" width="390" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>How William Hamilton succeeds in the getting the grants ...'Magna Carta' of EIC leading to British Raj!</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Farrukhsiyar's second marriage was fixed with princess Indira Kanwar, daughter of Maharaja Ajit Singh, Rajput of Jodhpur. The conquered Rajput king wanted to make a treaty with the Mughals by submission to Delhi. But the marriage had to be postponed many times due to a very bad ailment the Emperor had on his groins. He had a bad swelling there and no indigenous medicines of Vydhyas and Hakims were effective. That's when William Hamilton reached Delhi and was consulted by the Emperor. The surgeon took a chance and made an operation which was successful.Needless to note that the Emperor was more than pleased!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The surgeon was honoured by gifting a lot of valuables including an elephant! But the unexpected bonanza was for the East India Company as the Emperor sanctioned the requests of the company in full issuing a Farman! This in hindsight turned out to be the 'Magna Carta' of EIC, eventually making the company loot India high and dry!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After the grant, Farukkhsiyar expressed his wish to retain the surgeon at Delhi but Hamilton refused. Dr. Hamilton died in 1717 at Calcutta, the same year of the grant while Farrukhsiyar was assasinated in 1719 at Delhi! EIC played the right trump card at the right time!!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> ________________________________</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span></span><p></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-17157046534117792592022-07-01T10:27:00.000+05:302022-07-01T10:27:21.669+05:30PEPSI - HOW THEY OWNED THE SIXTH LARGEST NAVAL FLEET IN THE WORLD!<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Undoubtedly the names of Coke and Pepsi remain the two most popular brands among soft drinks in the world from inception in 1886 and 1893 respectively.</i></b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Pepsi which was started by a small town pharmacist named Caleb D Bradham was selling his product initially under the name 'Brad's drink'. He bought the name 'Pep Kola' from a local competitor in North Carolina, US and changed the name to Pepsi Cola. </b></i></span><i><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>PepsiCo</b></span><span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> had to go through many ups, downs and bottle neck situations and became bankrupt at least once. Had to change ownerships but appreciatively continued to grow along with Coke- rivals to this day! I am not here to tell more about them or their </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>rivalry</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> which is well known to all of us.</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Here I am for a narration of how </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>PepsiCo</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> came to own a Soviet Naval Fleet! How Pepsi Navy all of a sudden became the sixth largest in the world in 1989 !! This is not fiction. This is real history. Before the fall of Soviet Union(USSR), they traded 20 warships of theirs with the American Beverage </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Company</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>PepsiCo</b></span><span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">! The </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>thirst</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> for Pepsi cola among the Russians compelled them to do that once!!</b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></b></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2tU517kTnfeviIgtKAYoytOoy3oUCG5dy1U3s0kmX3bPcR6u8tUXUhzCor4yBy0jT1kjHddf9rWcYjBc3g_pxshy8kwYNRdY-O1VIJYTpTVnt1isl61xqzMAUcLE5H33Q-JXKNftMPbwnZ2sxpplX5HE-iuq3P9ZAgmTnOeJZ11tcJuZtDZ4BjCSW2Q/s720/374420ae9b29dca2141575390275eb05.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="404" data-original-width="720" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2tU517kTnfeviIgtKAYoytOoy3oUCG5dy1U3s0kmX3bPcR6u8tUXUhzCor4yBy0jT1kjHddf9rWcYjBc3g_pxshy8kwYNRdY-O1VIJYTpTVnt1isl61xqzMAUcLE5H33Q-JXKNftMPbwnZ2sxpplX5HE-iuq3P9ZAgmTnOeJZ11tcJuZtDZ4BjCSW2Q/s320/374420ae9b29dca2141575390275eb05.jpeg" width="320" /></a></i></div><i><br /></i><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><span><span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">1959 </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>American</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> National Exhibition in Moscow</b></span></span></i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Iron Curtain period. In US it was the tenure of President Dwight D </span></span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Eisenhower and Richard Nixon as Vice </span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">President. That was also time when Nikita Khrushchev as Premier of USSR ,honestly believed that life under Communist rule was better than in Capitalist US and vice versa. Moreover the propaganda of USSR was that their Economic system is far superior to that of US and may overtake them soon! I remember reading free periodicals issued by USIS (United States Information Service) as well as 'Soviet Land' of USSR, both claiming themselves to be the best in the world! Indian Prime Ministers Nehru and daughter Indira Gandhi also were mesmerized by the Soviet's claim who were very often taking conducted tours in USSR and had tried to implement 'Socialism' in India as well until when India took a U turn in late 90s and headed for Capitalism, though not fully yet!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">President Eisenhower took a chance and decided for US participation in 1959 and to show case their products at Moscow. Thus many US companies in the Govt and Private sectors like Kodak, General Electric ,McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Baskin Robbins etc decided to participate. Pepsi also joined the delegation represented by CEO Donald Kendal, while Coco Cola decided not (see the photo below).</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">At the exhibition hall, on the first day during the inaugural function when Khrushchev visited the stall of Pepsi , he was offered Pepsi to taste by CEO Donald Kendall in the presence of Nixon. Khrushchev fell for the drink immediately! He ordered the concerned to negotiate with Pepsi team and settle the order to make Pepsi available in the country. Exhibition was visited by 2.7 million Soviets.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The problem of currency surfaces...</b></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Soviet's</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> own currency Rouble has no value outside the country and Americans expressed their inability to execute the order. The problem was finally resolved by USSR amicably. Americans will have state owned vodka named as </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Stolichnaya against payment to Pepsi! A sort of barter system. Thus US and USSR had a successful deal, could be for the first time during the iron curtain period. Kendall eventually negotiated a landmark deal to mass produce Pepsi in USSR.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One of the catchy advertisement of Pepsi those days was: 'Be sociable, Have a Pepsi". When the photo of Khrushchev sipping Pepsi came out in newspapers of the world , the wordings of the advertisement was changed to: 'Khrushchev learns to be Sociable'! The westerners are very good at wry humour to this day I admit.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQimd4QuQ8N8haEraYTgdvTU9izBOQHw4NVmN_V3aYl-jMn22t28YxvTtYD5hjYh5tHEumv2VRVRE_mDK8ZNDvq9TLxTMxBAsQTNG7PEEwsG6-hZ6CI7AAVmBQKU_3-f-SnjQcuzrM2pXEXHjUF7Q7Iy1DG2YsTq5beWLsUAxxKVa1JxY0r1P0_-Zdw/s1000/Pepsi-US-USSR-Soviet-Nixon-Krushchev-1959GettyImages-464421271.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQimd4QuQ8N8haEraYTgdvTU9izBOQHw4NVmN_V3aYl-jMn22t28YxvTtYD5hjYh5tHEumv2VRVRE_mDK8ZNDvq9TLxTMxBAsQTNG7PEEwsG6-hZ6CI7AAVmBQKU_3-f-SnjQcuzrM2pXEXHjUF7Q7Iy1DG2YsTq5beWLsUAxxKVa1JxY0r1P0_-Zdw/s320/Pepsi-US-USSR-Soviet-Nixon-Krushchev-1959GettyImages-464421271.webp" width="320" /></a></div> <span style="font-family: verdana;">Khrushchev learns to be 'sociable'!</span> <br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span><div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Pepsi gets a Soviet naval fleet!</b></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Pepsi and the Soviets didn't have any problem and business flourished till 1980. That was the year USSR invaded Afghanistan. The American people for political reasons responded by boycotting products of USSR including Stolichnaya vodka! Pepsi had a real problem then.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The Soviets finally resolved the matter in 1989 offering a veritable navy owned by them. Pepsi agreed for the offer which included 17 submarines, a cruiser, a frigate and a destroyer!!In the same year tanks rolled into Tiananmen S<span>quare and the notorious Berlin Wall fell in Germany- events which shook the communist world just before the down fall of Communism in USSR itself in 1991!!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span>Tail </span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Piece</span></span></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">(1)PepsiCo never had a navy of theirs in reality since they didn't take possession of the fleet. As the vessels were in a very old and unseaworthy conditions, PepsiCo ,as the fleet came to them to be owned ,immediately turned them over to a Norwegian Shipyard to be scrapped to raise the monies Soviets owed to them!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">(2)In 2004 Kendall received the Order of Friendship from the Russian President Putin!</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">(3)Russia remained Pepsi's second largest international market after Mexico until April 2022.Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, PepsiCo has suspended their operations in Russia.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _______________________________</span></span></p></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-2710201632189932742022-06-01T07:03:00.000+05:302022-06-01T07:03:47.294+05:30AMBERGRIS...FLOATING TREASURE OF THE SEA. <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>To be honest I would not have come to this topic but for the smugglers in my state. Some of them were booked for smuggling Ambergris recently which made me focus more on this substance. I don't know whether to thank the smugglers or the media which covered the incident but I now know about </i></b></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>something which even the ancient Egyptians knew of! I don't know how I couldn't remember about it when I skimmed through the book 'Moby Dick' by Herman Melville years back!</b></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Amergris is referred to as whale vomit generally. Scientifically it is excreta of whale than the vomit, I understand. And it floats around the seas where sperm whales are found but limited to only less than 3% - could be 1 in 100-of such whales produce this substance. Ambergris is considered to be one of the strangest natural </b></i></span></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>occurrences. Mostly around a tennis ball size. It is used to make medicines and perfumes although for the last many years alternatives founded in a lab is used. This makes the aroma of the perfumes last long. But what makes it most sought after is its price- above $ 25000 a kilogram!!That's a whale of a money!</b></i></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhLz4LFuhvtE1yrvR2FYvglif3Rr_1DE6TIW2WKdOM14vCTTDPAjmIkp084O_CGiGNbCPTBTwdpWHh7YACpFt1xjBTPRggANFsH4jxForf3sMstMwS0B5f1c0Z5rHmwgpNUq8jD-7YHRVekvKdOvzdOjgBBjdzMRj8te9__pP_Gp3mK7VS7mcpt0eV7uQ=s612" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="612" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhLz4LFuhvtE1yrvR2FYvglif3Rr_1DE6TIW2WKdOM14vCTTDPAjmIkp084O_CGiGNbCPTBTwdpWHh7YACpFt1xjBTPRggANFsH4jxForf3sMstMwS0B5f1c0Z5rHmwgpNUq8jD-7YHRVekvKdOvzdOjgBBjdzMRj8te9__pP_Gp3mK7VS7mcpt0eV7uQ=w320-h200" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiG8iFVm5th2TM4NKaOaxoTBwaG2imEKiiyBO2z-b60x7eU1QC-I761L3LOGwlz4hnOXZIi6osWaG4uA_nA_hOR3gA1Z25mcGm_WxrBbYFimrnE_0CAE1eP0G5te2dW4p0fn9vah703cYWEdytzy0PnjkMHVPOjIQxsFOm9dJkEbogYfJwA5PD23qYTpw=s225" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiG8iFVm5th2TM4NKaOaxoTBwaG2imEKiiyBO2z-b60x7eU1QC-I761L3LOGwlz4hnOXZIi6osWaG4uA_nA_hOR3gA1Z25mcGm_WxrBbYFimrnE_0CAE1eP0G5te2dW4p0fn9vah703cYWEdytzy0PnjkMHVPOjIQxsFOm9dJkEbogYfJwA5PD23qYTpw=w320-h320" width="320" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: 400;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; font-weight: 700; text-align: justify;">The origin...</span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The origin of the word 'Ambergris' is derived from Arabic language. The word 'anbar' in Arabic means a sperm whale. In the simplest way to put it , it is a whale poo. It smells very bad when excreted but over the years Ambergris turns into a sweet smelly rock!</span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">There was a time when people wondered about the origin of this substance seen floating in the sea. The Chinese thought that it was dried saliva of the Chinese dragon! Some thought it was fish liver, a tree sap or even precious stone! Seals and crocodiles were subjected to prejudiced stories with Ambergris. Anyway the earliest perfumes made of Ambergris comes from Spain when it was under the Arab occupation. It is generally found in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. </span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In 2006 Rober Clarke , a biologist coveted that as the whale eats a lot of squid beaks which is then accumulated into the intestine of the whale which in turn forms as finally Ambergris is scientifically accepted as a logical explanation. Hence Ambergris cannot be cultured or cultivated like in the case of pearl.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Ambergris in history...</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400; text-align: center;"><b><b style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ancient Egyptians as well as Arabs used it as incense.</span> </span></b></b></b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400;">During outbursts of plague in Europe in the 14th century , many rich used to hang in their rooms containers with Ambergris. King Charles II of Britain used to eat Ambergris with eggs in the 17th century. </span><span style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Marie Antoinette, the Queen of France just before French revolution loved it to go with her hot chocolate drink! Her ancestor King Louis XIV drank it in his healthy broths! In the Gulf states it is thought to be a sexual </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">performance</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> enhancer.</span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: medium; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large; font-weight: 400;"><br /></span></span></b></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400;">Some of the most expensive perfumes are known to have contained Ambergris...Chanel, Gucci, Givenchy... to make the fragrance last long! Although these days synthetic </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Ambergris</span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400;"> is used, some professionals say that it can never be compared with the natural predecessor. Some of the most expensive cigarettes also use Ambergris tincture to have a pleasant smell as one smokes!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: 400;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUOmq-4slHQ5DkuRXUISxkakjh_j8O-UrRuvfKuTTqVZuKplLalQjfUGyfLeuWv-iSJ46FL4vEP9qzUDYcZP5ZOT7acRR8EH-AFlJ6WU0_JMBd-skMPXZjCHeJPNurcU76l1sq6Qb6Byy5c9aAXHWCR3_Vj5kZ-0z5k5zipBXgi2zZSV31fe0JnSlOkQ/s1800/DM44637.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1800" data-original-width="1350" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUOmq-4slHQ5DkuRXUISxkakjh_j8O-UrRuvfKuTTqVZuKplLalQjfUGyfLeuWv-iSJ46FL4vEP9qzUDYcZP5ZOT7acRR8EH-AFlJ6WU0_JMBd-skMPXZjCHeJPNurcU76l1sq6Qb6Byy5c9aAXHWCR3_Vj5kZ-0z5k5zipBXgi2zZSV31fe0JnSlOkQ/s320/DM44637.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /></span></span></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Bermuda colonization....</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The first English men who arrived in the island of Bermuda were those- almost 150 of them- who came out of a ship wreck due to a hurricane<b style="font-weight: 400;"> in 1609.It was the </b>vessel<b style="font-weight: 400;"> named 'Sea Venture' which was on the way to the US land of </b>Virginia<b style="font-weight: 400;">. In fact this episode only made William Shakespeare write his famous creation named '</b>The<b style="font-weight: 400;"> Tempest' in 1611!</b></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></b></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="font-weight: 400;">To </b>their<b style="font-weight: 400;"> utter </b>surprise<b style="font-weight: 400;"> they could find large chunks of Ambergris on the shores of Bermuda it is recorded. Whether such a finding invoked the British to colonize Bermuda is not known for sure but must have influenced them to do so in the following years!</b></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></b></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span><span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>CITES.</b>...</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In India, UK and many other countries of the world, all species of whales and dolphins are protected by law. But at the same time the convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora(CITES), a UN body having 183 countries as members consider Ambergris as waste product of the sperm whale that occurs naturally, making it legal to collect them from the beaches of seas but cannot be sold!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> _______________________</span></div></span></div><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div></b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-82287967830282246802022-05-01T06:53:00.001+05:302023-12-06T16:36:27.233+05:30QUEEN OF STEPWELLS...BEYOND WHAT IS FEATURED ON A CURRENCY NOTE !<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><i>It took seventy years for me to know about it! </i></b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><i>I haven't studied in any of the text books either. </i></b><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><i>Probably if the Govt of India had not issued a new currency note with a picture of it two years ago, I might not have come to know about it in my life span either!! </i></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><i>A new currency note of India's Rs.100 denomination issued in 2018 features Mahatma Gandhi on one side but on the other side an under ground </i></b><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>structure- which doesn't look so in the photo- which is a combination of a marvel in Engineering, art and another long lost or neglected episode of Indian history. 'Rani Ki Vav' means The Queen's stepwell but in essence it is Queen of </b></i></span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>Stepwells ! When it is learnt that this could be the only well so featured on a currency note in any country of the world, which was built over thousand years back one will have to but </b></i></span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>admire...UNESCO has declared it as a world heritage site. </b></i></span></span><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b>I fin</b></i><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b>d that ancient India has contributed quite a few number of sim</b></i><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b>ilar stepwells including Chand Baori in Rajasthan which is</b></i><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b> built in </b></i><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b>more or less the same era, I will stick here to 'Rani ki Vav' </b></i></p><p style="text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvpflGcdJ68lqX53W8zOXLZr_zVtO494Jo15lWy_jFSDM5aFKH0bmSH-DAqvgptOf9tDU9A2I1v3RDaU5G8l3OxNaSAA-ulncoSWah3fjlPnZa8MxJGYeUKljtlV_wMSXQPhD09fRiCHKavBApcJfcvIfPnR-uDHJXXVjUUi_yibQshqBieTyF_Guew=s820" style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="615" data-original-width="820" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvpflGcdJ68lqX53W8zOXLZr_zVtO494Jo15lWy_jFSDM5aFKH0bmSH-DAqvgptOf9tDU9A2I1v3RDaU5G8l3OxNaSAA-ulncoSWah3fjlPnZa8MxJGYeUKljtlV_wMSXQPhD09fRiCHKavBApcJfcvIfPnR-uDHJXXVjUUi_yibQshqBieTyF_Guew=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></p><p style="text-align: justify;"> <i style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">My specific interest in what is featured on currency notes started about 20 years back </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>while</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> in Qatar. The firm 'AL BALAGH' of which I was the CEO was </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>selected</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> to build a small but an </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>important </b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">landmark of the country in </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>connection</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> with a </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Gulf</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"> Cooperation Council GCC </b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b> meeting which took place at Doha. It was the Pearl Oyster monument right in the heart of the city on the corniche, overlooking Qatar Central Bank on one side and the Arabian Sea on the other. The structure was a combination of selective art and modern engineering skills to be built within few weeks, I remember. The same scenario was featured on the currency note later as shown below . Qatar was once a pearl diving nation, struggling to exist while the main industry was the same. It was taken over by hydro carbon industry in the later years of 1950s. Thanks to the wise leadership over there, the country has become now the richest in the world on per capita basis!</b></span></i> </p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTuF_55Agd6YP3bAk9Ls-BGlSC3nuKHosYzihsA9XpZnmkhhsYUh9HhQomTFMbdNaOa_8QMkopBIYwua5SD1jXKsGsV3H7N9zYXCqnQUgMF1VOBNU60WJnD-e9TuZFsDAgxD7hI1Q8ojmMEzKK8U8xYQVuZfLC3t4dxF01p0JUsRdhjc8ZB0szbkxiJQ=s543" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="542" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTuF_55Agd6YP3bAk9Ls-BGlSC3nuKHosYzihsA9XpZnmkhhsYUh9HhQomTFMbdNaOa_8QMkopBIYwua5SD1jXKsGsV3H7N9zYXCqnQUgMF1VOBNU60WJnD-e9TuZFsDAgxD7hI1Q8ojmMEzKK8U8xYQVuZfLC3t4dxF01p0JUsRdhjc8ZB0szbkxiJQ=s320" width="319" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnLGIAyxLGwUlvFbvITVY4gVnKPAxnm4H-F9j_pylej_honkk6BTJPANLCJqgNeWdMTSUHQ7xrSQdwxIlM8AH5xmHkdD8GH2H1fbsvrqrwEd4N_ihUrr88bzIURQ_KvNJJ2AP62HkUV3th56rb0Nr4KRup9moo73sldLmeZ8Ws5uFqXh7s_yn8mzrBjQ=s641" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="641" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnLGIAyxLGwUlvFbvITVY4gVnKPAxnm4H-F9j_pylej_honkk6BTJPANLCJqgNeWdMTSUHQ7xrSQdwxIlM8AH5xmHkdD8GH2H1fbsvrqrwEd4N_ihUrr88bzIURQ_KvNJJ2AP62HkUV3th56rb0Nr4KRup9moo73sldLmeZ8Ws5uFqXh7s_yn8mzrBjQ=s320" width="320" /></a><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj5is2dqWwrZFAUgEZGkwKCRe4YhBFK7a9qqkQhHwQ8HGedvy-0H0pq7GhFG8Nk02XsI-IJ2Pc1aTVBpdyjSTcsLOFSZyiebNdwvKOqRYp8kF_0ThQz0Kthbzb70cxYhqr0ceAjcF4WwdfoMXw1mR2TeNFoeADcz1t_66vc4pVdZJ8dHwrWq2mtOLpOIQ=s600" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="600" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj5is2dqWwrZFAUgEZGkwKCRe4YhBFK7a9qqkQhHwQ8HGedvy-0H0pq7GhFG8Nk02XsI-IJ2Pc1aTVBpdyjSTcsLOFSZyiebNdwvKOqRYp8kF_0ThQz0Kthbzb70cxYhqr0ceAjcF4WwdfoMXw1mR2TeNFoeADcz1t_66vc4pVdZJ8dHwrWq2mtOLpOIQ=w320-h146" width="320" /></a></i></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: x-small;"> Pearl Monument as featured on old and new currency notes of Qatar.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><b>What is a stepwell?</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;">A stepwell in Gujarati means a 'vav' or in Hindi 'Baori'.Essentially it is subterranean edifice and water source! Obviously the kings and queens in the old days dug wells in different parts of their states to get over shortage of water.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; text-align: left;">This stepwell was a part of local folklore for ages and is also narrated in some of the older chronicles like that of Mertunga in 1306. It was built near erstwhile river Saraswati but silted due to floods and people never knew about it for centuries unfortunately. It was rediscovered by two British archaeologists- Henry Cousens and James Burgess- employed with Architectural Survey of India (ASI) as Superintendent civil engineers who were travelling the concerned</span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> location in the 19th century. They wondered what could be the sculptured arches they found protruding out of soil! They could not find more. But it took almost another century till 1980s when Archeological Survey of India (ASI) started excavating the area to unearth this marvelous stepwell to what we see now.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The architectural and structural background...</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">These stepwells played much more role than just being a water source. They had social and cultural significances. I think it could be another excellent Indian contribution with unique 'desi' style to the architectural world. An inverted temple in seven stories underground with stunning sculptures with a water storage, the way ancient world has not seen. I can't blame the so called experts of the west for this short coming either because I myself didn't know about this and I am sure that I am just one among millions of Indians in similar situation! Again I remember the basic fact that we Indians are good in everything except marketing ourselves and our products- past or present! At least so far but might change sooner than later.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgK5osUL8tYeTxoB2doJ7h271RvjbXPmDx951PYjqDrgEIjTQtliLDjl5Pe8pINQSbbSZufRVth-1ArdjbILn2pEWW5L9KTeF8yvXfNdD46B_zjmCmbCsNnxD5GnTAoD08t0PnsUgRjyrEFSYy0xtvrfcWouEMOMTr3zM06-2jBg6q5fjGYzOlGOJ17Qw=s612" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="612" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgK5osUL8tYeTxoB2doJ7h271RvjbXPmDx951PYjqDrgEIjTQtliLDjl5Pe8pINQSbbSZufRVth-1ArdjbILn2pEWW5L9KTeF8yvXfNdD46B_zjmCmbCsNnxD5GnTAoD08t0PnsUgRjyrEFSYy0xtvrfcWouEMOMTr3zM06-2jBg6q5fjGYzOlGOJ17Qw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoYyi51faPRj0tUhcFbkWZdOjJgYKZG4An8Kn-bIqKaPMFfFgvox4sxIX_vgv6jO6kAGy7JYpeZ8v2hwv28s_HEE_OQmPlzo9K-ZVDn93OlE8bhUYhcKNUfD0kHr8EbTUG7YZEq1Gswo6WE5SNCTA4Ngg61FigGkRrd4iRhAw5yvXiULvDkRq84omoRQ=s612" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="612" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoYyi51faPRj0tUhcFbkWZdOjJgYKZG4An8Kn-bIqKaPMFfFgvox4sxIX_vgv6jO6kAGy7JYpeZ8v2hwv28s_HEE_OQmPlzo9K-ZVDn93OlE8bhUYhcKNUfD0kHr8EbTUG7YZEq1Gswo6WE5SNCTA4Ngg61FigGkRrd4iRhAw5yvXiULvDkRq84omoRQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The statues - mostly dedicated to Lord Vishnu, together with hundreds of pillars which are built in perfect symmetry and sculptural completeness in many floors underground about a thousand years back will take a visitor, his or her breath away it is told. The structure has more than 500 principle sculptures and more than 1000 minor ones!</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>The historical background..</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Patan is a town in the Gujarat state about 140 kms north west of the its capital Ahmedabad.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Bhima I was a king of Chalukya(Solanki) dynasty who lived between 1022-1064 CE where as the dynasty existed between 950-1300 CE .After the king died,it is believed that the construction of this stepwell was executed by his queen Udayamati along with her son. In an area of scanty rains and lower water tables, she decided that the best monument for everlasting memory of her late husband and useful for her subjects would be a unique stepwell, highlighting sanctity of water !</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgrp2GbEzJRee8dA8cAWXHiBFKFVpFZrmRNBeW1LtMWqcu1yGcdhuShB33p2adDvoYcC2s4edvQSc6j1diS8e794Vexp_i8pT6uM4W2wSdlRxrDrIgffcldWHHlNchVoQsJbtJ_JOq2C14iJi0yqhplvAOt-BIU7FvH_CY5zVXfXU8N8PfGnffdjatLvQ=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgrp2GbEzJRee8dA8cAWXHiBFKFVpFZrmRNBeW1LtMWqcu1yGcdhuShB33p2adDvoYcC2s4edvQSc6j1diS8e794Vexp_i8pT6uM4W2wSdlRxrDrIgffcldWHHlNchVoQsJbtJ_JOq2C14iJi0yqhplvAOt-BIU7FvH_CY5zVXfXU8N8PfGnffdjatLvQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEipllGWKJPk3Ix8Gmlw82O0PB1-sMqkrsb1Le-koM-miEz53qA28_iD56E5zM1tcQV2KetK14ZrFX7h_jsUbxeKZHGGe1mhM2qDgRwqoK1F4daZhgTWVWxYhftLJhVsth4SAVyOCOP8TH1x1TCd2lX8FkisuQD99dTgr_Yk1EEv4n7fjw--BrkdBzdC5g=s550" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="550" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEipllGWKJPk3Ix8Gmlw82O0PB1-sMqkrsb1Le-koM-miEz53qA28_iD56E5zM1tcQV2KetK14ZrFX7h_jsUbxeKZHGGe1mhM2qDgRwqoK1F4daZhgTWVWxYhftLJhVsth4SAVyOCOP8TH1x1TCd2lX8FkisuQD99dTgr_Yk1EEv4n7fjw--BrkdBzdC5g=s320" width="320" /></a></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-kYEYPKrQZFlVChZNivqq7NNCu5BngB8YKSGLNwqhcBN_MJJcFlm7PKBBW5NF2bhTF6QvLkOailmioe-KPlkiGM7-U1mQQAjQW8PHdNt-Iy2jzLdXe9GXjtqh7X2ua0nrax3u17ypr-DOSQc9F2QR3IjkuwUtCZzvzzi7GnYANFRhmXfsQ04DP9h33A=s612" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="363" data-original-width="612" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-kYEYPKrQZFlVChZNivqq7NNCu5BngB8YKSGLNwqhcBN_MJJcFlm7PKBBW5NF2bhTF6QvLkOailmioe-KPlkiGM7-U1mQQAjQW8PHdNt-Iy2jzLdXe9GXjtqh7X2ua0nrax3u17ypr-DOSQc9F2QR3IjkuwUtCZzvzzi7GnYANFRhmXfsQ04DP9h33A=s320" width="320" /></a></div></div><span style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> Architectural beauty of ancient India</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I am loading up more photos possible here to showcase the beauty of this art centric engineered marvel of India, which is much more effective than description of the same in words. As it is designed and built about thousand years back, I wonder how they could reach this perfection in stone without modern scientific instruments. Probably they might have had their own instruments but was not clever enough to 'patent' them! I am sure the world will talk and write more about this marvel as years go by as it is only 7 years since UNESCO had declared it as a world heritage site, while only twenty-five years since it has been unearthed.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _______________________</span></div><b style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; font-style: italic;"> </b></span><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; color: white;"><i style="text-align: justify;"><b>My specific interest in bisecting what is featured on currency notes </b></i></span><i style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><b> </b></i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-liDjLV4Azc1nDXQfvrQcyIS-JUJ1Ds-cIzubvogvsKpKAkc7dSfs0n2NbVnEGJJgZHARZYbpyZIrDFS8nHgbnM9nyGmOMAimWPEP7z18PaV4EFdhpQoRlMXCO8AC4kYIZp-0w7odoUn2zTIhWfAIh5jrHzjWBDlNkbPa-2RkskkIF57llKO_pQ5fBA=s820" style="clear: left; display: inline; font-family: verdana; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: white;"><i style="text-align: justify;"><b>came after </b></i></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-liDjLV4Azc1nDXQfvrQcyIS-JUJ1Ds-cIzubvogvsKpKAkc7dSfs0n2NbVnEGJJgZHARZYbpyZIrDFS8nHgbnM9nyGmOMAimWPEP7z18PaV4EFdhpQoRlMXCO8AC4kYIZp-0w7odoUn2zTIhWfAIh5jrHzjWBDlNkbPa-2RkskkIF57llKO_pQ5fBA=s820" style="clear: left; display: inline; font-family: verdana; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: white;"><i style="text-align: justify;"><b>one of the structurers which the firm did in Qatar while I was the CEO was featured on the currency note </b></i></span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: white;"><i style="text-align: justify;"><b>oyster monument was built right in the heart of the city in the corniche, within few weeks by us in connection of a Gulf Cooperation Council meeting(GCC) at Doha. Perhaps only few in the new generation knows that Qatar was once a pearl diving society which was the nation's main industry before it was replaced by hydrocarbon industry. Qatar is now one of the richest cou</b><b>ntries in the world </b></i><i style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;"><b>per capita wise.</b></i></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4468380702033224119.post-43940937462375278062022-04-01T09:50:00.001+05:302022-04-01T09:52:49.228+05:30"THAT'S TOO HOT !" UNFOLDING EVOLUTION OF TRADE MARKS IN BUSINESS.....<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>My interest in business trade marks might have started while I was doing my 12th grade in high school(Pre Degree). Although mostly limited to Indian trade marks, I used to derive some sort of fun or enthusiasm in bisecting the trade marks to find out what is hidden in them. As years passed it increased but limited to Indian scenario since the country was not opened up. With my arrival in Qatar in mid 1984 where almost everything was imported from the rest of the world, it was a feast for my interest in trade marks hunger! I still remember the great fun I used to have in this field in quizzing with my good friends D Souza, Jomy and late Prakash. Thank God my interest in trade marks and captions and slogans in business still continues unbated at my 72 !</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b>A trade mark is essentially a recognizable sign, design or expression. It is a type of intellectual property which defines a product or service of a particular source of business organization. If you think that this subject is a drab or lifeless topic you are far from it. I am not going to explain here how we can have registered trade marks for our products legally but how we have reached to the level of identifying a product for its popularity or quality seeing a trade mark! How it evolved to what it is today from Mesopotamian days in 3500 BC.</b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><i><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UzHmv4oiLlo/Yai2nEZ7sxI/AAAAAAAAC2w/3fiFs2mrvnQMlPkfcQ62wJDzObaYs7FcACNcBGAsYHQ/s612/istockphoto-458126133-612x612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UzHmv4oiLlo/Yai2nEZ7sxI/AAAAAAAAC2w/3fiFs2mrvnQMlPkfcQ62wJDzObaYs7FcACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/istockphoto-458126133-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>What ancient history says...</b></span><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">First traces of trade marking in history was in Mesopotamia followed by Egypt and China. While bricks and roof tiles had specific markings in Mesopotamia around 3500-3200BC,Egyptians and Chinese used personal markings to claim ownership of livestock. However Romans were the first in the world to leave distinctive on many products they produced such as decorative vases, grave stones, roof tiles, tableware etc to stamp as a measure of quality , other than identification.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Although it may not be a trade mark in the business sense of it, it could be interesting to note that early Christians in the first and second century who were facing persecution under Roman empire used to identify between the Christians secretly by a mark of Ichthys's fish as below! It was so derived from the Koine Greek pronunciation of 'fish' which actually meant Jesus Christ, son of God, the Savior, if translated to English. The Cross which is international representation of Christianity was recognized few centuries later only after Rome declared Christianity as state religion.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z57OBTp8CWQ/YayhPe0gd-I/AAAAAAAAC4c/Mxs2Gh8ivVIrhpTCuND4ZcTyfCc8fulQgCNcBGAsYHQ/s612/istockphoto-1227631616-612x612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="293" data-original-width="612" height="153" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z57OBTp8CWQ/YayhPe0gd-I/AAAAAAAAC4c/Mxs2Gh8ivVIrhpTCuND4ZcTyfCc8fulQgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/istockphoto-1227631616-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>First trade mark law emerges...in England, France and US</b></span><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In 1200 in Britain, massive frauds on quality of bread baked was rampant. In order to stop or at least control such frauds, in 1266 King Hay III of England passed a trade law which is considered to be the first of its kind in the world. The law insisted that all bread makers to place a mark on the bread they produced and sold so that on quality issues they can be traced and punished! In 1363 silversmiths were required to mark their wares. Soon after in 1400 every printer of books had to put their markings. In 1862 England passed 'the Merchandise Marks Act' to be followed with comprehensive laws on the subject in 1905.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The French came out with 'Manufacture and Goods Mark Act' in 1857 but by 1751 in Paris furniture makers were asked to put their marks on the finished products.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In US trade mark law had to meet a series of changes from 1870 to 1946 with the Lanham Act spelled out to be comprehensive federal trade mark protection rules and statue that governs the trade marks.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Signs of trade marks..and the oldest!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I am sure that most of us know the following marks which we notice in every day life on almost everything we use.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">TM- unregistered trade mark</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">SM- unregistered service mark</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">C</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> within a circle denotes Copy Right and</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">R within a circle denotes Registered</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;">It would be interesting to know the history of some of the oldest registered trade marks in the modern commercial world.</span></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Czech beer trade mark registered in 1859!</span> </span> <span style="font-family: verdana;">Pilsen is a city now in Czech Republic where this type of beer is born</span>. </div> <span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In Britain the first trade mark registered in 1876</span>.Bass & Co</span> </span><span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> Pale Ale!</span></span><span style="text-align: center;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: center;">Once the Bass was the highest selling beer in UK and its red triangle was the first registered trade mark there which was in 1877. </span><span style="text-align: center;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhw2PaqEQu1Ny4DCl6BMsNt_PaEc9qEPclGJZjzXeX7uG2FOOQWZgN7gvqcswgUkxOHVhrCKhtA1xsAF-MJZsF_Z0feyOqngWc5cPnLVz4AnITxI6OnFl8XPAju86yhuBOtDMkRCjaIcXT8UyXg-9x71RJ4BbcqVkaZgdp-PniLpX283q13GdSvFkObgg=s256" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="256" data-original-width="197" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhw2PaqEQu1Ny4DCl6BMsNt_PaEc9qEPclGJZjzXeX7uG2FOOQWZgN7gvqcswgUkxOHVhrCKhtA1xsAF-MJZsF_Z0feyOqngWc5cPnLVz4AnITxI6OnFl8XPAju86yhuBOtDMkRCjaIcXT8UyXg-9x71RJ4BbcqVkaZgdp-PniLpX283q13GdSvFkObgg=w154-h200" width="154" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgj0AZgJntDrOaeFDwMsiY4R_VCk_IAH1R2PdgRDZWux40xp52TvkMfnqkUpbOWl7jKAxyoZwBAuIBz8tupOIKcEU0YvV3_yEddx7qJF493maflhdvt9GDRyN5fOCvqOcd7PfIomD9fQ5zPCNfIbLVB6umDP6CSaS-WIWwr_mE9hJDPaR1fop3CVu_D1Q=s254" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="150" data-original-width="254" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgj0AZgJntDrOaeFDwMsiY4R_VCk_IAH1R2PdgRDZWux40xp52TvkMfnqkUpbOWl7jKAxyoZwBAuIBz8tupOIKcEU0YvV3_yEddx7qJF493maflhdvt9GDRyN5fOCvqOcd7PfIomD9fQ5zPCNfIbLVB6umDP6CSaS-WIWwr_mE9hJDPaR1fop3CVu_D1Q" width="254" /></a></div><br /><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhgnDSnXoVgf78aS7Kzk4UGPZ-dzd1RxcYD8056G1jlEH8gnYbeXnzocIXSqcNxLftUYTa-N6veoDRAkJVU49BYEyr8wVMwgs4Y4avZLA5yQF61UnN67ACdvZZG6byXgBILBNmYihiR_rwN0B0MtpCAiDEIbnMaqPqJoXUsXW_b01QvIRxSNSDWnZX98Q=s295" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="292" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhgnDSnXoVgf78aS7Kzk4UGPZ-dzd1RxcYD8056G1jlEH8gnYbeXnzocIXSqcNxLftUYTa-N6veoDRAkJVU49BYEyr8wVMwgs4Y4avZLA5yQF61UnN67ACdvZZG6byXgBILBNmYihiR_rwN0B0MtpCAiDEIbnMaqPqJoXUsXW_b01QvIRxSNSDWnZX98Q=w198-h200" width="198" /></a></div></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>In US the first registered trade mark belonged to Averill Chemical Paint Company with an eagle holding a paint can in its beak! That was in 1870.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The oldest 10 logos registered include those of Shell, Stella Artois ,Levi Strauss, Heinz, Peugeot and Coco Cola.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The top among the most valuable brands in the world as on today include Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Visa ,Ali Baba and Tencent.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>And the weird stories...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The weird stories related to trade mark rights never ends.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The famous DJ Paris Hilton had made a massive impression with her catch phrase "That's hot"! And she trade marked it!! She had a long stint in the court with the famous firm Hallmark over that. In 2007 she won the case with an out of court settlement with her opponent .</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Tiffany & Co, the giant among jewellery merchants had trade marked their shade of blue. So also the yellow colour of 'Post it' which we use every day is trade marked by 3M! </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The ringing of opening and closing bells of New York Stock Exchange NYST also is trade marked, if you don't know. Another sound which is trade marked is 'Tarzan's yell', by Edgar Rice Burroughs the author of ' Tarzan of the apes'. Have you ever heard the sound of a cigarette lighter when opened? The famous brand Zippo had trademarked theirs. But the most famous sound which is popular and trademarked is-yes, you guessed it right- the roar of the MGM lion!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiNY-IyP9q25G7u2cT8fngKJhua4h6GEjrWaSYp1gcuLU0lkk6BKpp6EB3trLvEamEjxSjEDPGbOvuMfDx1AO2cqFRtEz_ZxYeVx9K56aGwrbbJ-pGGoyhbNd6ljN-k8vnZNgvzsmhS86_hlvhjINif5e-n6n3TDTiXn92St6tP-ieQqIXm3ItDiGvwUQ=s500" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiNY-IyP9q25G7u2cT8fngKJhua4h6GEjrWaSYp1gcuLU0lkk6BKpp6EB3trLvEamEjxSjEDPGbOvuMfDx1AO2cqFRtEz_ZxYeVx9K56aGwrbbJ-pGGoyhbNd6ljN-k8vnZNgvzsmhS86_hlvhjINif5e-n6n3TDTiXn92St6tP-ieQqIXm3ItDiGvwUQ=w200-h133" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Cadbury, the famous confectionary maker in the world could trade mark its famous purple colour till 2013.But thereafter it couldn't because their rival Nestle objected. You will remember Usain Bolt , the famous runner who beat a lot of records. He had trademarked his signature lightning bolt victory gesture as above!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Tail piece...</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">I was curious to find out the first trade mark registered in India. It was Buchanan & co Ltd , a British firm for their Scotch whisky brand of Black & White done in 1942!That's a good start I would say...... </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"> _________________</span></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>JAISON CHACKOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03943895520875262721noreply@blogger.com13