Kepler-22b -- An Earth Like Planet Discovered by NASA

           The most Earth-like planet ever discovered is circling a star 600 light years away, a key finding in an ongoing quest to learn if life exists beyond Earth, scientists said on Monday.
The planet, called Kepler-22b, joins a list of more than 500 planets found to orbit stars beyond our solar system. It is the smallest and the best positioned to have liquid water on its surface -- among the ingredients necessary for life on Earth.

"We are homing in on the true Earth-sized, habitable planets," said San Jose State University astronomer Natalie Batalha, deputy science team lead for NASA's Kepler Space Telescope that discovered the star.
The telescope, which was launched three years ago, is staring at about 150,000 stars in the constellations Cygnus and Lyra, looking for faint and periodic dimming as any circling planets pass by, relative to Kepler's line of sight.

Results will be extrapolated to determine the percentage of stars in the Milky Way galaxy that harbor potentially habitable, Earth-size planets.
This is the first detection of a potentially habitable world orbiting a Sun-like star, scientists reported in findings to be published in The Astrophysical Journal.

Kepler-22b is 600 light years away. A light year is the distance light travels in a year, about 6 trillion miles (10 trillion km).

GROUND TELESCOPES
Planets about the same distance from their parent stars as Earth take roughly a year to complete an orbit. Scientists want to see at least three transits to be able to rule out other explanations for fluctuations in a star's light, such as small companion stars. Results also are verified by ground and other space telescopes.
Kepler-22b, which is about 2.4 times the radius of Earth, sits squarely in its star's so-called "habitable zone," the region where liquid water could exist on the surface. Follow-up studies are under way to determine if the planet is solid, like Earth, or more gaseous like Neptune.

"We don't know anything about the planets between Earth-size and Neptune-size because in our solar system we have no examples of such planets. We don't know what fraction are going to be rocky, what fraction are going to be water worlds, what fraction are ice worlds. We have no idea until we measure one and see," Batalha said at a news conference at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffet Field, California.
If Kepler-22b has a surface and a cushion of atmosphere similar to Earth's, it would be about 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 C), about the same as a spring day in Earth's temperate zone.
Among the 2,326 candidate planets found by the Kepler team, 10 are roughly Earth-size and reside in their host stars' habitable zones.

Another team of privately funded astronomers is scanning the target stars for non-naturally occurring radio signals, part of a project known as SETI, or the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence.
"As soon as we find a different, a separate, an independent example of life somewhere else, we're going to know that it's ubiquitous throughout the universe," said astronomer Jill Tarter, director of the SETI Institute in Mountain View.

The Kepler team is meeting for its first science conference this week.

Dr.Devi Shetty's Advice To Software Engineers

      A chat with Dr.Devi Shetty, Narayana Hrudayalaya(Heart Specialist) Bangalore was arranged by WIPRO for its employees The transcript of the chat is given below. Useful for everyone.

Q: What are the thumb rules for a layman to take care of his heart?
Ans:
1. Diet - Less of carbohydrate, more of protein, less oil
2. Exercise - Half an hour's walk, at least five days a week; avoid lifts and avoid sitting for a longtime
3. Quit smoking
4. Control weight
5. Control blood pressure and sugar

Q: Is eating non-veg food (fish) good for the heart?
Ans: No

Q: It's still a grave shock to hear that some apparently healthy person gets a cardiac arrest. How do we understand it in perspective?
Ans: This is called silent attack; that is why we recommend everyone past the age of 30 to undergo routine health checkups.

Q: Are heart diseases hereditary?
Ans: Yes

Q: What are the ways in which the heart is stressed? What practices do you suggest to de-stress?
Ans: Change your attitude towards life. Do not look for perfection in everything in life.

Q: Is walking better than jogging or is more intensive exercise required to keep a healthy heart?
Ans: Walking is better than jogging since jogging leads to early fatigue and injury to joints

Q: You have done so much for the poor and needy. What has inspired you to do so?
Ans: Mother Theresa , who was my patient.

Q: Can people with low blood pressure suffer heart diseases?
Ans: Extremely rare.

Q: Does cholesterol accumulates right from an early age (I'm currently only 22) or do you have to worry about it only after you are above 30 years of age?
Ans: Cholesterol accumulates from childhood.

Q: How do irregular eating habits affect the heart ?
Ans: You tend to eat junk food when the habits are irregular and your body's enzyme release for digestion gets confused.

Q: How can I control cholesterol content without using medicines?
Ans: Control diet, walk and eat walnut.

Q: Which is the best and worst food for the heart?
Ans: Fruits and vegetables are the best and the worst is oil.

Q: Which oil is better - groundnut, sunflower, olive?
Ans: All oils are bad .

Q: What is the routine checkup one should go through? Is there any specific test?
Ans: Routine blood test to ensure sugar, cholesterol is ok. Check BP, Treadmill test after an echo.

Q: What are the first aid steps to be taken on a heart attack?
Ans: Help the person into a sleeping position , place an aspirin tablet under the tongue with a sorbitrate tablet if available, and rush him to a coronary care unit since the maximum casualty takes place within the first hour.

Q: How do you differentiate between pain caused by a heart attack and that caused due to gastric trouble?
Ans: Extremely difficult without ECG.

Q: What is the main cause of a steep increase in heart problems amongst youngsters? I see people of about 30-40 yrs of age having heart attacks and serious heart problems.
Ans: Increased awareness has increased incidents. Also, sedentary lifestyles, smoking, junk food, lack of exercise in a country where people are genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attacks than Europeans and Americans.

Q: Is it possible for a person to have BP outside the normal range of 120/80 and yet be perfectly healthy?
Ans: Yes.

Q: Marriages within close relatives can lead to heart problems for the child. Is it true?
Ans: Yes, co-sanguinity leads to congenital abnormalities and you may not have a software engineer as a child

Q: Many of us have an irregular daily routine and many a times we have to stay late nights in office. Does this affect our heart ? What precautions would you recommend?
Ans: When you are young, nature protects you against all these irregularities. However, as you grow older, respect the biological clock.

Q: Will taking anti-hypertensive drugs cause some other complications (short / long term)?
Ans: Yes, most drugs have some side effects. However, modern anti-hypertensive drugs are extremely safe.

Q: Will consuming more coffee/tea lead to heart attacks?
Ans: No.

Q: Are asthma patients more prone to heart disease?
Ans : No.

Q: How would you define junk food?
Ans : Fried food like Kentucky , McDonalds , samosas, and even masala dosas.

Q: You mentioned that Indians are three times more vulnerable. What is the reason for this, as Europeans and Americans also eat a lot of junk food?
Ans: Every race is vulnerable to some disease and unfortunately, Indians are vulnerable for the most expensive disease.

Q: Does consuming bananas help reduce hypertension?
Ans : No.

Q: Can a person help himself during a heart attack (Because we see a lot of forwarded emails on this)?
Ans : Yes. Lie down comfortably and put an aspirin tablet of any description under the tongue and ask someone to take you to the nearest coronary care unit without any delay and do not wait for the ambulance since most of the time, the ambulance does not turn up.

Q: Do, in any way, low white blood cells and low hemoglobin count lead to heart problems?
Ans : No. But it is ideal to have normal hemoglobin level to increase your exercise capacity.

Q: Sometimes, due to the hectic schedule we are not able to exercise. So, does walking while doing daily chores at home or climbing the stairs in the house, work as a substitute for exercise?
Ans : Certainly. Avoid sitting continuously for more than half an hour and even the act of getting out of the
chair and going to another chair and sitting helps a lot.

Q: Is there a relation between heart problems and blood sugar?
Ans: Yes. A strong relationship since diabetics are more vulnerable to heart attacks than non-diabetics.

Q: What are the things one needs to take care of after a heart operation?
Ans : Diet, exercise, drugs on time , Control cho lesterol, BP, weight.

Q: Are people working on night shifts more vulnerable to heart disease when compared to day shift workers?
Ans : No.

Q: What are the modern anti-hypertensive drugs?
Ans : There are hundreds of drugs and your doctor will chose the right combination for your problem, but my suggestion is to avoid the drugs and go for natural ways of controlling blood pressure by walk, diet to
reduce weight and changing attitudes towards lifestyles.

Q: Does dispirin or similar headache pills increase the risk of heart attacks?
Ans : No.

Q: Why is the rate of heart attacks more in men than in women?
Ans : Nature protects women till the age of 45. (Present Global census show that the Percentage of heart disease in women has increased than in men )

Q: How can one keep the heart in a good condition?
Ans : Eat a healthy diet, avoid junk food, exercise everyday, do not smoke and, go for health checkup s if you are past the age of 30 ( once in six months recommended) ....

How To Tie Up Your Shoes : Idea Explained And Demonstrated by a TED Speaker

           Terry Moore found out he'd been tying his shoes the wrong way his whole life. In the spirit of TED, he takes the stage to share a better way. (Historical note: This was the very first 3-minute audience talk given from the TED stage, in 2005.)
 How To Tie A Shoe  - Idea by a TED Speaker

About Speaker:

          Terry Moore directs the Radius Foundation in New York, which, as its website says, "seeks new ways of exploring and understanding dissimilar conceptual systems or paradigms -- scientific, religious, philosophical, and aesthetic -- with the aim to find a world view of more complete insight and innovation. The Radius Foundation is a forum for different views."

          The foundation has published several works that examine the intersection of religion and metaphysics with science and social action.

Everytime When I Get Home A VANILLA Ice Cream, My Car Do Not Start !!!

          This is a real story that happened between the customer of car company 'X' and its customer-care executive. A complaint was received by the Pontiac Division of the company 'X':

Every time when I get home a Vanilla flavored ice cream, my car do not start !!! And I don't know why ???

          "This is the second time I have written to you, and I don't blame you for not answering me, because I sounded crazy, but it is a fact that we have a tradition in our family of ice cream for dessert after dinner each night. But the kind of ice cream varies, so every night, after we've eaten the whole family votes on which kind of ice cream we should have and I drive down to the store to get it."

          It's also a fact that I recently purchased a new Pontiac and since then my trips to the store have created a problem. You see, every time I buy a vanilla ice cream, when I start back from the store my car won't start. 

If I get any other kind of ice cream, the car starts just fine.
I want you to know I'm serious about this question, no matter how silly it sounds: "What is there about a Pontiac that makes it not start when I get vanilla ice cream, and easy to start whenever I get any other kind?"

          The Pontiac President was understandably skeptical about the letter, but sent an engineer to check it out anyway. The latter was surprised to be greeted by a successful, obviously well educated man in a fine neighborhood. He had arranged to meet the man just after dinnertime, so the two hopped into the car and drove to the ice cream store. It was vanilla ice cream that night and, sure enough, after they came back to the car, it wouldn't start.
          
          The engineer returned for three more nights. The first night, they got chocolate. The car started. The second night, he got strawberry. The car started. The third night he ordered vanilla. The car failed to start.

          Now the engineer, being a logical man, refused to believe that this man's car was allergic to vanilla ice cream. He arranged, therefore, to continue his visits for as long as it took to solve the problem. And towards this end he began to take notes, he jotted down all sorts of data: time of day, type of gas used, time to drive back and forth etc.
 
          In a short time, he had a clue: the man took less time to buy vanilla than any other flavor. Why? The answer was in the layout of the store. Vanilla, being the most popular flavor, was in a separate case at the front of the store for quick pickup. All the other flavors were kept in the back of the store at a different counter where it took considerably longer to check out the flavor. Now, the question for the engineer was why the car wouldn't start when it took less time. Once time became the problem and not the vanilla ice-cream, the engineer quickly came up with the answer: "Vapor lock". It was happening every night; but the extra time taken to get the other flavors allowed the engine to cool down sufficiently to start. When the man got vanilla, the engine was still too hot for the vapor lock to dissipate. And this gave rise to the study on the Flash point property of the fuel used and ways to standardize and control it.

Election Anthem 2011 by Hip Hop Tamizha !!!

        Tamilnadu election fever is very high and hot campaigns are going on. And why all these people work for this particular election very hard. Any reason behind. Simple and single reason is for the betterment of the people. All these works are only for public who has got the complete authority to choose their next leader for the state. So are we ready for the election ??? Are we ready to vote for the right proper team who will lead our state and people with a great care and respect ??? If you don't have an answer for my question,the video below will inspire you to elect your right candidate.
Ezhuvoam Vaa  - A Citizens Network Anthem for the Clean and Fair Elections Campaign 2011.      by Hip Hop Tamizha

 

Vote for the leaders who will lead their nation to the glorification !!!

The slogan and the Pledge of the Citizen's Network would be 

Make me a Promise - Do Not Sell My Future.Vote Right

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     The official Anthem " Ezhuvoam Vaa" has been written ,composed and performed by Adhi of HipHop Tamizha. Supporting Vocals have been done by Siraj, Karthick Srinivas,Aakansha ,Neil Sebastian and Jennifer. The Team behind the logistics of the song along with the artists  are Aswin ,Naresh ,Vignesh Subramanian and Jeeva. 

Youth ExNoRa International has launched the "Clean and Fair Elections Campaign 2011" at Cuddalore on March 4th,2011. The aim of the campaign has been constituting the Citizen's Network by absorbing citizens from all walks of life , using a Cell Multiplying System by which each member will seek to enroll at least ten membersby explaining about the evils (corruption, caste-communal divisions and coercive politics) infesting the present electoral system and ways to intervene it, also stressing the importance of each and every citizen's right to exercise his/her right to vote. 

A whistleblower you haven't heard - TEDxRotterdam !!!

      At TEDxRotterdam, world champion whistler Geert Chatrou performs the whimsical "Eleonora" by A. Honhoff, and his own "Fête de la Belle." In a fascinating interlude, he talks about what brought him to the craft.
Whistle blower @ TEDxRotterdam

This is a beautiful wonderful TEDx talk that entertained me a lot. Hats off to TEDxRotterdam

Ananda Shankar Jayant during TEDIndia 2009 @ Mysore !!!

        It was almost two years back, during 2009 TED came to India for TEDIndia Conference with a amazing lineup of speakers and performers. Favorite one of mine is the below performance by Ananda Shankar Jayant, a classical dancer who actually is affected by breast cancer. She danced to get out of her cancer. AnandaShankar  fights cancer with dance She won her life battle and now she is well known all over the world. Here is the video from TED which shows her performance and talk. She is the one who started Shankarananda Kalakshetra.

 

         This may be an old data, but still this talk influences me to write this blog spot. Some has extraordinary power within them, and this women, i think has the combined talent and spirit and determination of what the whole world has. According to Ananda Shankar Jayant, she earned her strength for struggling against the cancer through her dances. She did not feel that her career of dance got over but instead she continued her voyage and designed her future in a better manner that no one would have expected !!! Hats off to her and TED !!! The image below is the art that she drew out of her legs while dancing !!!

 

The pictures above shows you her struggle during her breast cancer treatment. One who sees these pictures will definitely get a enthusiasm to live his/her life overcoming all the worst difficulties.

Editor, Reporter and Publisher , at the age of 12 !!!

       Allahabad: He is all of 12 years but Utkarsh Tripathi painstakingly brings out a handwritten newspaper every week to spread awareness among his peers on issues like the environment and female foeticide. And all this to satisfy his urge to "serve the country".

        A Class 8 student of the Brij Bihari Sahai (BBS) Inter College in Allahabad, Utkarsh has been bringing out the newspaper Jagriti for the last one year. And for the four-page, black-and-white newspaper, Utkarsh not only dons the role of a reporter, editor and publisher, but also turns hawker for circulating the weekly.
Unlike other papers, readers of Jagriti don't have to spend a single penny -- Utkarsh distributes it free of cost.
"Yes, I manage it all alone. Right from gathering the content, its editing, publishing and ultimately distributing the copies to readers," Utkarsh, a resident of Khatju colony in Allahabad, told IANS. "I know, you would like to know how I publish the newspaper. First I prepare a handwritten copy of Jagriti and later take out copies at a photocopy shop in my locality... It's simple," he explained. Jagriti has about 150 readers belonging to varied age groups in Allahabad, some 200 km from the state capital Lucknow. "Children comprise the major chunk of Jagriti readers...my school friends, my seniors in school, teachers and also my neighbours," he said. According to Utkarsh's father Hari Prasad, who runs a coaching institute, his son has a flair for writing and wanted to serve the country in some way. "More than a year ago, he read an article on Indo-China relations in a Hindi daily. I don't know what came into his mind... After reading the article, he came to me and asked me to suggest a way he could serve the country," Prasad said. "At that time I wasn't sure how serious he was about the question... I said that joining the defence services was one of the best options to serve the country... To this, he said that he wanted to start serving the society from his school life itself. I then suggested why not work like a journalist and make people aware of their rights," he added. Utkarsh took the suggestion seriously and came up with Jagriti.