Google Maps, PWD Engineers Booked for Bizarre Incident Killing Three

There have been several incidents where users have faced issues due to incorrect directions provided by Google Maps.

Most recently, three men died after their car plunged off an incomplete bridge while following directions on Google Maps.

In this tragic incident in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, three men lost their lives after their car plunged off an under-construction bridge while following directions on Google Maps. The bridge, which had been damaged by floods earlier this year, lacked safety barriers and warning signs. The car fell into the Ramganga River, resulting in the tragic deaths.

 

Image Source - Reddit

The police have booked four engineers from the Public Works Department (PWD) and an unnamed official from Google Maps in connection with the accident. The FIR names two assistant engineers and two junior engineers from the PWD, as well as "unknown persons". A Google spokesperson expressed condolences and confirmed that the company is cooperating with the investigation.

Some unidentified locals who allegedly damaged a protective wall at the site have also been charged.

The FIRs were registered under Section 304A (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

This incident highlights the importance of accurate and up-to-date information on navigation systems, as well as the need for proper safety measures at construction sites.

Last year in Jakarta, Indonesia, the Indonesian National Transportation Safety Commission (NTSC) reported that several road accidents occurred because drivers followed incorrect routes suggested by Google Maps.

In 2019, a woman was stranded in Death Valley, United States, after Google Maps directed her onto a remote, impassable road. She was rescued after spending several days in the desert.

There have been numerous reports of drivers ending up in dangerous or inappropriate locations due to outdated or incorrect information provided by Google Maps.

These incidents highlight the importance of verifying navigation directions, especially in unfamiliar or potentially hazardous areas. Google continuously works to improve the accuracy of its maps and relies on user feedback to update its data.

Google relies heavily on user feedback to correct and update map data. They encourage users to report errors directly through the app.

Google is said to be actively working to address issues related to incorrect or outdated information on Google Maps and improve user safety.

Google Maps now includes a "Safer Routing" or "Stay Safer" feature that takes into account road conditions, weather, and traffic when providing directions. This helps users avoid potentially dangerous routes.

India Cities Happiness Report 2020: City Happiness Rankings, Impact of COVID-19 and Thought Leaders’ Insights

First India Cities Happiness Report covering thirty-four major cities measuring happiness across the country, the contributing factors to people’s happiness, the impact of COVID-19 on happiness, and insights from global thought leaders.

The study is based on a nationwide survey covering 13,000 people during October- November 2020 by Professor Rajesh K Pillania. He is recognised for his extensive research, jointly ranked number one in average research productivity among management faculty (including IIMs & IITs) in India between 1968 to 2014.

John F. Helliwell, Co-Editor (with Jeffry Sachs and Richard Layard) of the World Happiness Report, Professor Emeritus, Vancouver School of Economics, University of British Columbia emphasises that Rajesh Pillania and his team did a signal service in extending the scope of world happiness research by providing data for 36 Indian states in India Happiness Report 2020. The India Cities Happiness Report 2020 further deepens understanding by monitoring the quality of life in 34 major cities.

In the happiness rankings of cities, Ludhiana, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh are the top three. Among the Tier-I cities, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and New Delhi are among the top three whereas, among Tier-II cities, Ludhiana, Chandigarh and Surat are the top three cities in happiness rankings. The results show age group, education, and income level are overall positively related to happiness and marital status is negatively related to happiness, i.e. unmarried people are happier than married people in big cities.

Jaime Lerner, World-renowned Architect & Urban Planner, Former President of the International Union of Architects and, Chairman, Jaime Lerner Arquitetos Associados, and Among 25 Most Influential Thinkers in the World (Time magazine, 2010), stresses on Remembering Togetherness for happiness in cities and emphasises that quality public spaces are the glue that can hold together sharing, trust, connectedness, a sense of civic duty, responsibility and pride because public spaces are the theatres where urban life happens.

The spirit of India is quite resilient, and the impact of COVID-19 varies across cities. It varies from the worst possible to the best possible among individuals in the study. Bengaluru, Kochi and Kolkata have shown the worst possible impact of COVID-19 on happiness.

Francesc Miralles, Co-author of Bestselling book Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life pinpoints people often believe that happiness is the absence of problems, and that's a big mistake.

The report contains insights from various thought leaders on happiness including Ruut Veenhoven, Pioneer and World Authority on the Scientific Study of Happiness, Emeritus Professor of Social Conditions for Human Happiness, Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands (EHERO), and, Director, World Database of Happiness; John F. Helliwell, Co-Editor (with Jeffry Sachs and Richard Layard) of the World Happiness Report, Professor Emeritus, Vancouver School of Economics, University of British Columbia, and Distinguished Fellow, Canadian Institute of Advanced Research; Jaime Lerner, World-renowned Architect and Urban Planner, Former President of the International Union of Architects, Chairman, Jaime Lerner Arquitetos Associados and, Among 25 most Influential Thinkers in the World (Time magazine, 2010); Carlo Ratti, Director, MIT Senseable City Lab, Founding Partner, Carlo Ratti Associati and, Co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Cities and Urbanization; Richard Florida, one of the World’s Leading Urbanists, University Professor at University of Toronto’s School of Cities and Rotman School of Management, A Distinguished Fellow at NYU’s Schack School of Real Estate, and, Founder of the Creative Class Group; Padma Bhushan M. B. Athreya, Recognised as one of the Founders and Pioneers of the Indian Management Movement, and Ex-Professor London Business School, and Ex-Professor IIM- Calcutta; and, Francesc Miralles, Co-author of Bestselling book Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life.

People are optimistic about the future and generally scored more on happiness after five years compared to scores today. In the future happiness rankings after five years, Ludhiana, Jammu and Amritsar are the top three.

Carlo Ratti, Director, MIT Senseable City Lab and Co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Cities and Urbanization highlights that the key issue cities are facing is the relationship between the natural and the artificial worlds resulting in more happiness; and, don’t focus just on new technologies but use them to build cities for lovers and friends.

The three key takeaways for governments, organisations, and individuals are first different cities are at different levels of happiness rankings. There is a pressing need for more discussion, focus, and the application of happiness in the Indian context. Second, knowing is not enough, happiness needs to be practised. Third, choose and put into practice all or some or at least one of the insights from this report.

Professor Pillania has been researching, writing, teaching and training students and senior management people on happiness for the last five years. He has taught and trained 1000s of students and senior management people on strategy, innovation and happiness over the last 20 years. His recent books are Amazon Bestseller, ‘Happiness Strategy: Strategy and Happiness for Everyone’ and, ‘Happiness Diary: My Experiments with Happiness’.

The full report is available for free at www.pillania.org

Author of India Cities Happiness Report 2020
Professor Rajesh K Pillania,
Professor of Strategy, Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, INDIA.
Email:rajesh@pillania.org         
Phone:91-9818961019   
    
Dr. Rajesh K. Pillania is rated and awarded the Top Professor for Strategy in India by ASSOCHAM and Education Post. He is recognised for his extensive research, jointly ranked number one in average research productivity among management faculty (including IIMs & IITs) in India between 1968 to 2014. His research and/or academic experience include the Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode; Smith School of Business, University of Maryland; Harvard University; and Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon, India among others.

CompTIA A+ Certification for Computer Technicians from PrepAway Practice Test Dumps

If you are an IT professional, you must have heard of CompTIA and might have even applied for their courses. CompTIA or the Computing Technology Industry Association is an organization that gives certificates to the IT Professionals in various departments. These certifications can be easily earned after passing the exams given by CompTIA. The certificates have a lot of value and hence over 2.2 million people have earned CompTIA certifications.

CompTIA provides the candidates with the basic, professional Master as well as Specialty level certifications. One of the most common certification is CompTIA A+. This is an entry level certification that covers all the things that a computer technician should know. The candidates need to pass two exams to getCompTIA A+ Certification. The exams are CompTIA 220-901 and 220-902.

The first step is to visit www.prepaway.org

We will be discussing about this exam only in this article. The candidate needs to prepare well to ace in this certification exam. In this article, we have included all the information about CompTIA A+ certification. You will know all about the pattern of the exam and the study material that you need to ace in it.

Important Information about CompTIA 220-901 & 220-902 exams

Before applying for the exam, there is some information that all of the candidates should know about CompTIA 200-901 exam. The information is given below:

• Eligibility

Since this is a very basic exam, the candidates only need to be 18 years or older to apply for this exam. Apart from that, there is no necessary qualification. However, it is important that the candidate has some experience in the field before applying for the exam. An experience of 6 months to one year is enough.

• Exam Pattern

The candidates are given 90 questions. These questions are either multiple choice or are performance based. The time given to solve these questions is also 90 minutes. This means that the number of questions and time is equal and hence the candidates have to be really fast. The passing score of this exam is 675 on the scale of 100-900. The candidates will give the exams in test centers.

• Fee

A fee of $211 USD has to be paid to register for 220-901 & 220-902 exams. However, the candidates have to pass the other 220-902 exam as well, so this fee will get doubled to get A-plus certification. The candidates can take the exam again if they fail in the previous attempt. However, they will have to pay the fee again.

• Validity

A+ certification is only valid for 3 years. Remember to get the certificate you need to pass two exams.

• Syllabus

The syllabus for CompTIA 220-901 & 220-902 exams includes various domains that hold different percentage of marks for the exam. There are total four main topics with several sub topics that need to be studied in order to score well. The topics are:

1. Hardware;


2. Network;


3. Mobile devices;


4. Hardware and network troubleshooting.

 

The entire syllabus should be downloaded from the website for future references during the preparation.

Who Should Give

The candidates who want to work as Support specialists, field service technicians, help desk tier 2 support and desktop support analyst are the people who will benefit from this certification. Any IT professional with the knowledge of the given topics, can give the exam and get certified.

The Study Material to Get

One of the most important things that any candidate needs to pass an exam is the study material. There are many ways in which you can prepare for this exam. These ways include:

1. Examsnap Practice Tests

Examsnap A+ Certification section that is provided to the students by CompTIA to prepare for certification exams. With this tool, the candidates will have the option to prepare for the exam and will also have the option to test their preparation with some practice papers. This tool will give the candidates a realistic experience of CompTIA 220-901 & 220-902 exams.

Visit Website to Download: www.examsnap.com

2. Classroom training

Classroom training is another method of preparation in which the students can join CompTIA partners who will teach them all about the things involved in passing this exam. You can select your own instructor, take their classes and master all the skills that are required to ace this exam. The candidates can easily apply from the website of CompTIA itself. However, it is important to note that the classroom training has a much higher cost.

3. E-books

E-books can be either bought or downloaded from various sources. Get these e-books and start preparing for the exam at your own pace. You can also buy books from some famous publishers that have the entire syllabus of this exam.

4. PrepAway & ExamSnap Practice Test Questions

Another important study material that every student should have is the practice papers. You can either buy the practice papers for the entire course or just one topic. Prepaway Practice Tests gives you a good chance to keep solving them as and when you finish the topic.

Special Tips for Preparation

Here are some tips that the candidates must consider while studying for CompTIA 220-901 & 220-902 exams.

• Always keep your syllabus with you while preparing for this exam. If you visit CompTIA website, you will see a detailed syllabus has been provided which shows every big and small topic that has to be covered in this exam. Keep that with you and you will be able complete 220-901 syllabusin no time.


• Practice papers should always make a big part of your preparation. These papers need to be solved regularly so that you can increase your speed and can also focus on your weaknesses.


• Start preparing as early as possible if you want to score well in the exam. Do not forget the importance of practice and experience in this process.


• PrepAway, is yet another a great platform to find the best quality dumps and practice tests for CompTIA A+ certifications especially for exam 200-901.


• Read More on CompTIA Website: https://certification.comptia.org

With these small tips, you will be able to score well in the exam and get certified easily.

Bike Sharing - A Healthy Lifestyle and Better Time Management

Bike sharing is no longer just material idealistic hipster talk. Cities across the world have seen people leave their car keys home and head over to the nearest cycle station, pedaling away to their destinations. Paris and Copenhagen boast integrated cycling networks that include thousands of stations and state-of-the-art technology. That bike-sharing boom can also be seen in Indian cities, (in)famous for their traffic gridlocks. There are many reasons why informed commuters are finding their transport solution in a cycle rental rather than cars and buses – it is all about the multi-pronged benefits.

Negotiate the Traffic with Ease

Cycles have always been an efficient mode of transport. A staple of the rural and semi-urban countryside, the humble ‘seat and two wheels’ is slowly becoming the answer to the packed urban schedule. A cycle can be squeezed through stationary traffic without anyone objecting and cyclists can from point A to point B via typical Indian skinny alleys that even scooters and motorbikes would struggle to maneuver in. Changed minds about the route? With a cycle, it is as easy as lifting it up and doing an about turn.

The time saved on commuting is precious. An extra half-hour, either way you can be some rejuvenating sofa-TV time or even a bit of reading or catching up with the kids.

A Health Upgrade

A lot of city-dwellers have undergone the routine of joining a gym only to have the enthusiasm fade away in a couple of weeks. Exercise is not just about motivation. It is also about tricking the brain into a pleasure-giving habit that works the muscles. With a cycling habit, even the most lethargic will find a new lease of life. Here are just some of the many ways cycling can rejuvenate a person.

Consistent cycling is a great way to lose belly fat but the weight loss benefit does not stop there. It is a perfect exercise for those who want to tone their body while maintaining agility. And all this can be done while going for an errand. Cardiovascular fitness, or the lack of, is a serious issue in India. Heart disease is rampant as people eat more and spend more time sitting. Cycling strengthens the body’s most important set of muscles – the heart. With a stronger heart, people will enjoy better stamina for other tasks. The weight management and cardio benefits of cycling help reduce the chances of hypertension and even diabetes.

Core body strengthening can be achieved by a good bout of cycling now and then. The cycling posture is low impact and also improves back strength. It is recommended over jogging on the treadmill as it is easier on the weight-bearing lower body muscles and leg joints. Cycling is also good for joint mobility and flexibility. It increases muscle strength of the legs and constant cycling also improves muscle coordination and reflexes.

From a mental point-of-view, cycling is a trusted stress buster. The adrenaline rush is a positive body reaction that can lift a person’s mood. Exercise also gives participants a sense of achievement and gives them a confidence boost that can translate in many ways, including at the workplace.

The best part about cycling is that it is easy. Once a rider gets the hang of it, the natural body movements integrate seamlessly with the bike – unlike other complex exercises and sports that require a fair bit of practice. Cycling is fun, so it takes the mind off the exercise allowing people to be active for more hours than they would usually achieve in a gym or running track.

A Great Way to Explore

For travellers looking to feel the pulse of a new city, there is no better way than to dive into the crowded melees and buzzing markets on a cycle. From Chandni Chowk in the evenings to a sunrise trip around Mumbai’s heritage streets, a cycling route can be punctuated with stops for chai and snacks – without the nightmare of driving in circles looking for parking. With mostly plain landscape, India’s cities have easily doable and fascinating cycling routes – old towns and scenic countryside included.

A Responsible Way to Travel

Doomsday scenarios are not as unrealistic as one may have initially thought with climate change causing havoc. At a local level, temperatures have risen and pollution has increased just from the exhaust of buildings and vehicles. A cycle on the other hand, is the cleanest mode of transport. The only thing burning is calories. This progressive attitude towards commute is a great way to make friends too. Many cycling clubs, formal and informal, have formed in India’s cities, driven by a common goal of sustainability and a healthy lifestyle.

Cycling Rentals – Making Things Easy

For those who are not ready to make an investment in a cycle, rentals are the best way to enjoy the ride without having the liability. There are no time limits for how long one can rent a cycle for – with pre-booking, commuters can hold on to the cycle from as little as an hour to an entire month. Cycling rentals also get rid of storage issues – which can be a problem for cycle owners who live in apartment blocks or small urban spaces.

A lot of trips within the city are short enough for a cycle ride. With companies like Pedl, booking a cycle online is as easy as it gets. Customers just need to find the nearest Pedl station and unlock a cycle with a popular wallet app. The rates for Pedl shared cycles are cheap – at INR 3 for half an hour no other transport option can beat that. When the ride is over, cyclists can drop the ride back at the nearest Pedl station, which are dispersed across the city.

From gaining mobility and flexibility in even the worst of traffic jams to increasing cardiovascular health, cycling is an activity that is life changing in multiple ways. Step out and rent a bike – feel the wind and freedom of this timeless piece of transport.

Bike Sharing - A Healthy Lifestyle and Better Time Management

Bike sharing is no longer just material idealistic hipster talk. Cities across the world have seen people leave their car keys home and head over to the nearest cycle station, pedaling away to their destinations. Paris and Copenhagen boast integrated cycling networks that include thousands of stations and state-of-the-art technology. That bike-sharing boom can also be seen in Indian cities, (in)famous for their traffic gridlocks. There are many reasons why informed commuters are finding their transport solution in a cycle rental rather than cars and buses – it is all about the multi-pronged benefits.

Negotiate the Traffic with Ease

Cycles have always been an efficient mode of transport. A staple of the rural and semi-urban countryside, the humble ‘seat and two wheels’ is slowly becoming the answer to the packed urban schedule. A cycle can be squeezed through stationary traffic without anyone objecting and cyclists can from point A to point B via typical Indian skinny alleys that even scooters and motorbikes would struggle to maneuver in. Changed minds about the route? With a cycle, it is as easy as lifting it up and doing an about turn.

The time saved on commuting is precious. An extra half-hour, either way you can be some rejuvenating sofa-TV time or even a bit of reading or catching up with the kids.

A Health Upgrade

A lot of city-dwellers have undergone the routine of joining a gym only to have the enthusiasm fade away in a couple of weeks. Exercise is not just about motivation. It is also about tricking the brain into a pleasure-giving habit that works the muscles. With a cycling habit, even the most lethargic will find a new lease of life. Here are just some of the many ways cycling can rejuvenate a person.

Consistent cycling is a great way to lose belly fat but the weight loss benefit does not stop there. It is a perfect exercise for those who want to tone their body while maintaining agility. And all this can be done while going for an errand. Cardiovascular fitness, or the lack of, is a serious issue in India. Heart disease is rampant as people eat more and spend more time sitting. Cycling strengthens the body’s most important set of muscles – the heart. With a stronger heart, people will enjoy better stamina for other tasks. The weight management and cardio benefits of cycling help reduce the chances of hypertension and even diabetes.

Core body strengthening can be achieved by a good bout of cycling now and then. The cycling posture is low impact and also improves back strength. It is recommended over jogging on the treadmill as it is easier on the weight-bearing lower body muscles and leg joints. Cycling is also good for joint mobility and flexibility. It increases muscle strength of the legs and constant cycling also improves muscle coordination and reflexes.

From a mental point-of-view, cycling is a trusted stress buster. The adrenaline rush is a positive body reaction that can lift a person’s mood. Exercise also gives participants a sense of achievement and gives them a confidence boost that can translate in many ways, including at the workplace.

The best part about cycling is that it is easy. Once a rider gets the hang of it, the natural body movements integrate seamlessly with the bike – unlike other complex exercises and sports that require a fair bit of practice. Cycling is fun, so it takes the mind off the exercise allowing people to be active for more hours than they would usually achieve in a gym or running track.

A Great Way to Explore

For travellers looking to feel the pulse of a new city, there is no better way than to dive into the crowded melees and buzzing markets on a cycle. From Chandni Chowk in the evenings to a sunrise trip around Mumbai’s heritage streets, a cycling route can be punctuated with stops for chai and snacks – without the nightmare of driving in circles looking for parking. With mostly plain landscape, India’s cities have easily doable and fascinating cycling routes – old towns and scenic countryside included.

A Responsible Way to Travel

Doomsday scenarios are not as unrealistic as one may have initially thought with climate change causing havoc. At a local level, temperatures have risen and pollution has increased just from the exhaust of buildings and vehicles. A cycle on the other hand, is the cleanest mode of transport. The only thing burning is calories. This progressive attitude towards commute is a great way to make friends too. Many cycling clubs, formal and informal, have formed in India’s cities, driven by a common goal of sustainability and a healthy lifestyle.

Cycling Rentals – Making Things Easy

For those who are not ready to make an investment in a cycle, rentals are the best way to enjoy the ride without having the liability. There are no time limits for how long one can rent a cycle for – with pre-booking, commuters can hold on to the cycle from as little as an hour to an entire month. Cycling rentals also get rid of storage issues – which can be a problem for cycle owners who live in apartment blocks or small urban spaces.

A lot of trips within the city are short enough for a cycle ride. With companies like Pedl, booking a cycle online is as easy as it gets. Customers just need to find the nearest Pedl station and unlock a cycle with a popular wallet app. The rates for Pedl shared cycles are cheap – at INR 3 for half an hour no other transport option can beat that. When the ride is over, cyclists can drop the ride back at the nearest Pedl station, which are dispersed across the city.

From gaining mobility and flexibility in even the worst of traffic jams to increasing cardiovascular health, cycling is an activity that is life changing in multiple ways. Step out and rent a bike – feel the wind and freedom of this timeless piece of transport.

5 Tips for Online Trading Novices

Trading online can be quite challenging especially if you are doing it for the first time. Many people are usually very skeptic about online trading because of the stories they read about the risks which are involved in online trading. However, online trading is not as risky as most people paint it to be if you have the right advice. Online trading can be very rewarding and can become a full time career. If you are looking to trade online, here is advice for online trading that you need.

1. Start Small
   
   When you are a novice looking to trade online, it’s always advisable to start small. This means that you should not stat by investing a lot of money on the online trading platform that you choose. The reason for this is you need to start small and gradually grow as you gain more experience. The common online trading can be trading in stock or even in cryptocurrency; it’s important to start with small amounts and build your online investment over time.

2. Know the risks
   
   Just like in any other business, when you are trading or investing in online trading you need to know the risk. The reason for this is that you know the online trading which present high risk and those which are less risky. Knowing the risk will help you anticipate and decide the risk which you are willing to take and the one which you are not comfortable taking. Another reason as to why you need to know about the risk is so that you can know the ways which you can reduce such risks.

3. Choose the right broker
   
   In online trading when you are a novice in most cases you many need someone to guide you on how to trade.  A broker is the person you will help you learn the ropes of online trading, once you have mastered all the aspects of online trading you may opt to do it on your own. It’s important to choose the right broker; this is the broker who will take care of your investment. There are many investment brokers out there so it’s important to take time to decide who the best is.  You can start by checking their portfolio and their track record.

4. Be Patient
   
   Online trading require carefully calculation and anticipation, you do not have to trade every single day if there is nothing which favors you. Expert online traders do not trade every day, they take time to observe the market and determine when it’s most favorable to trade and how much to trade with.

5. Trade with what you can afford to lose
   
   As mentioned online trading can be risky at times and when you are trading then you should do it with the amount which you can afford to lose. You need to set aside the amount which you will be using to trade online with. This is the amount which you can afford to lose as it's not money saved for other things like retirement.

Planning for Retirement Can be Boring without These Exciting Ideas

Who wants to plan for retirement in their 20s? After all, you just started living the life of your dreams. Finally, the money is flowing in; your parents are sitting back and relaxing rather than haggling with you about your expenses. You will think of retirement once the dust of excitement settles down.

If you can relate to these thoughts, perhaps you are assuming retirement to be the end of all excitements of life.

In reality, it's only up to you. You can decide if you want the excitement and vigour to continue even after retirement. All you need is to sit down and list some exciting things you can do after retirement.

Five exciting ideas for your retirement:

1. Owning a Yacht

You can just decide to buy a yacht and live the cruising lifestyle, with the freedom to move wherever you want, whenever you want, and basically “take your home” along with you. There can be no better view to enjoy your morning coffee on the deck of your yacht.

And if you don’t feel like cruising, you can simply choose to dock in numerous marinas across the country and live out your life in a paradise of your choice.

2. Playing Golf at A Prestigious Golf Club

After retirement you don’t have to worry about what to do with your time—you can choose to remain busy playing, practicing, and reliving at a lush green golf club. One of the nicest perks of playing golf during retirement is it gives you a chance to combine travel. Many vacation spots these days have condos and resorts available for retired people to combine their passions for vacation and golf. Golf can also prove great for you in terms of remaining fit and healthy.

3. Starting a Business

If you have an idea for a business -- retirement can be the time to test it out. Starting your business is one of the best ways to get the most out of retirement. This most likely sounds somewhat counter-intuitive. After all, isn't the general purpose of “retiring” to quit working? Not really!

Starting a business around one of your hobbies can help you to remain socially connected and give you a sense of purpose. Moreover, there is nothing better than making some extra pennies along the way, right?

4. Going on a Long Memorable Trip

You can romanticize your retirement as the long-anticipated vacation that never ends. Think of how the novelty of travelling will provide a respite from your routine — whether it’s a long memorable trip abroad, a visit to your relatives or friends out-of-town, a stay at a wellness or beach resort, or a fishing or camping trip. You can also visit other cities or states and scope out places to relocate or move seasonally.

5. Buying a House at a Hill station/Seaside

You can just leave behind the fast-paced city life to live at a quiet hill station or a seaside villa. Buying a second home can become one of the best investment options for you. Apart from being the best way for your money to grow, your home can also give you other benefits like adding a source of income through rent and increasing your asset value.

But be Prepared!

You can very well purchase a new home or start a business or go on a vacation in your retirement, but only if you have your income secured for the golden years. If you expect this security, it is essential that you have a financial plan in place.

So, in case you want to make your retirement more exciting, setting up best retirement plans is a great idea. And on the investment and protection front, ULIP plan may serve the purpose well.

ULIP plans will give you the option to move your money between equity and debt funds and allow you to withdraw a part of your money whenever you need it. Since ULIP plans are market-linked, they provide you great returns over the long run (by digesting the market fluctuations). Also, you can enjoy tax benefits on the premium as well as on the returns received at the end of the policy term.

Conclusion:

Best retirement plans coupled with a healthy mind and a fit body will help you look forward to a happy retirement phase. So, get in charge of your retired life and add value to it instead of just allowing life to drift by.

5 Tips to keeping your information safe when replacing a lost social security card online

Identity theft is something that can happen to anyone at anytime. That is why it is important to keep your information safe and in a spot where you can find it when you need it. Social security cards, passports, identification cards, and birth certificates are all necessary items that you should keep in a safe so that you have these documents when you need them. While storing these documents seems like an easy task, these things have a tendency to become lost in the shuffle. This article will highlight some tips that will help you keep your information safe when applying for a social security card replacement online.

• Make sure that you have a secure connection. When applying for a social security card online, the first thing that you want to check is that the website you are visiting has a secure connection. The easiest way to tell this is by checking for the “https” in the search engine bar. If the website begins with an “https” then that means that the website is secure. If the website begins with an “http” it is best to avoid supplying any important information on to the website as it is not secure. This means that a potential hacker could steal your information.


• Keep your documents locked up. When you are not using your documents, be sure to keep them locked up and in a secure place in your home. One of the ways that you can keep your documents safe is by keeping them in a safe or in a spot in your home that is not easy to access by intruders.


• Do not give out your information to just anyone. Before you apply for a social security card online, make sure that you are doing so through a reputable website. Many websites can look secure and like a legit government website but they may actually just be a facade. To avoid giving your personal information to those who do not need it, be sure to go to a website that has pertinent government information about security card administration.


• Keep printouts of your transactions. When you apply for a social security card online, make sure to keep copies of all transactions that you make. The reason for this is that you can use the documentation should you need to contact the social security administration office in person.


• Avoid using a public computer to apply for a social security card online. Sometimes this cannot be avoided, but whenever possible, try to avoid using a public computer. Public computers are used by anyone and even if you don’t think that your personal information had been saved on the computer, you cannot be for sure. When applying for sensitive, personal documents such as a passport or a social security card, be sure to do so on a private computer.

3 Tips to purchasing consumer electronics translation services

If you are in the consumer electronics industry and you want to be on par with your competition, it’s time to break down the language barriers between you and your customer. If you have a product that you want to launch and you want your target customers to prefer it over the other products similar to yours, when you translate it to their native language, you are able to separate yourself from the other companies.

That’s why it is very important that you choose the best translation services you can find. If you choose the wrong company, you may be faced not just with lost customers but maybe even some legal issues and the like.

Check out the tips below on what you should consider when looking for the services that will help your company become globally competitive.

1. Make sure that the company is able to meet your needs – you have to make sure that the company you are eyeing can deliver what you need. There are many aspects to translation services. There are companies that can easily translate a website from English to Chinese, or a legal document from Spanish to another language. But you need to consider that consumer electronics translations are very different from the translation services listed above because it is very technical and you need translators who know entertainment electronics translations really well. The translators need to know more than just the language to ensure that the company will be able to provide what you need.

2. Get a company that has enough experience and a good reputation – there is nothing wrong with hiring a translation service company that has only been newly-established. But you may want to consider a company that has had years of experience in the entertainment electronics translations. This particular aspect of translation has its own technical terms and jargon as it is a specialized discipline, so it is imperative that the company you hire will have translators that are well-versed in the particular discipline or industry your company is focused on. A company is only as good as its translators, so you should check the company’s reputation. Ask yourself what languages they can translate for, and what kind of quality control they have in hiring their translators and in the translation they give.

3. Look for a company that priorities data security – another thing you should prioritize is data security. You want to make sure that the company you hire will have strict measures and procedures to protect the documents and data that you will ask them to translate. You may look at the company’s list of former and present clientele to see if they have experience translating for reputable companies. You can also check for any certifications that have to do with risk management. Ask the company to explain to you their process of translation and data security so you can feel at peace knowing that you can give them sensitive information and still be assured that the information will be in good hands.

3 Ways That Healthcare IT Can Help Your Practice

As with most industries, the invention of new technology is causing many healthcare practices to evolve and change to keep up with their competitors. By providing your clients with the most up to date technology, you are offering them the best service that is available by any provider. This will not only keep your services at the highest demand, but you will also be known as being forward thinking and a trendsetter within the industry. This article will provide information on ways in which hiring healthcare IT can help your practice.

• Healthcare IT can help you increase security. By increasing security measures within your healthcare databases, you can also decrease your level of risk at being hacked by those trying to obtain patient information. Patients want to know that their information is safe with you, especially when it comes to their medical records. While many IT professionals have been successful at keeping your information safe from hackers, the industry does predict that hackers and malware attackers are going to be using more forceful ways to attack systems in 2018. By employing a knowledgeable IT staff team and offering them pertinent ongoing professional development and training, you can rest assured that your investment will work to your benefit. When you keep your client’s information secure and private from the outside world, you can be sure to have satisfied clients.


• IT can help you store data in a safe and easily accessible space. Another new trend for 2018 is that many healthcare industries are beginning to move their information from an onsite data center to a cloud platform. In fact, some industry leaders predict that within the next five years, the use of data centers onsite at local hospitals will be obsolete as many will be storing their information in a cloud format. This will free up space on site and will also allow for information to be accessed from anywhere one has internet capabilities. While this is still a relatively new phenomenon, people are beginning to explore the possibilities of moving their data to a cloud storage center as it will save money and create ways for providers to access information from anywhere.



• Improved communication. By hiring a supportive healthcare IT staff, you can offer your clients services that you may not be able to otherwise. For example, client’s appreciate when their medical providers communicate with them. One of the most successful ways to communicate with your clients is by using an app. An app takes the knowledge and skill of an IT professional to troubleshoot bugs and to help make it run smoothly. Whether you want to receive messages or just share health information with your clients, an app is a good way to do it but it will require a knowledgeable professional to help you manage it.

Now that you know why it is important to employ healthcare IT staff who are knowledgeable about industry trends, be sure to look into the True North ITG Healthcare IT experts to learn more.

Just Like Airbags, it is Time to Make a Package Car Insurance Also Mandatory!

Have you heard the news about ‘Airbags’ being made mandatory by the government of India for all the cars manufactured after July 2019? It's not just airbags but include the following also!

• Seat-belt reminders


• Speeding alert systems beyond 80 kmph


• Sensors for reverse parking to avoid accidents


• Manual overrides over central locking system for emergencies

All these will be mandatory after July 2019, a great initiative we all will agree.

India is one of the countries yet to enforce safety features in vehicles to protect the passengers. Apart from all the above initiatives, a comprehensive car insurance policy should also be made mandatory to strengthen the safety procedures for the car owners.

Currently, third-party car insurance is mandatory in India, under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. A third-party insurance offers cover against any legal liability to a third party caused when the car owner is at fault. It covers any damage or injury caused to another person or property. However, it lacks the extensive coverage facilities as compared to the comprehensive car insurance.

The most superior kind of protection you can provide your car is a package car insurance policy. It is one step ahead of the basic third-party car insurance policy. A third-party insurance offers protection and security only for the third-party or the vehicles but fails to cover your own vehicle against the possibility of an accident. However, comprehensive insurance, on the other hand, provides extensive coverage and offers more services. There are many benefits to this type of coverage.

A comprehensive car insurance policy protects your car from any unforeseen event apart from just collision events.

• It is the highest level of protection for your car as it covers the damages caused to your own car during an accident (which the third-party insurance does not provide)
• If you are found to be at fault in the event of an accident, with comprehensive car insurance, you can claim for losses incurred
• It covers lawsuits, including legal fees because of an accident
• It gives the insured a financial protection
• Offers financial aid if the car is written off

Covers Theft and Vandalism
A comprehensive package policy will cover your loss if your car is stolen or vandalised. If your car is stolen, you need something to cover the loss. Let's say that you just bought a brand-new car on loan. As per the law, you have just the third-party coverage that does not have comprehensive coverage. If the car is stolen out of your driveway, just imagine the horror you can face. Even if you don’t have the car, you will still have to make huge monthly payments. However, comprehensive coverage is well worth for situations like this.

Gives Weather Protection
Comprehensive vehicle insurance covers your car from faulty and damaging weather conditions like flood damage or icy limbs falling on the car windshields and other weather occurrences.

Covers Animal Damage

If your car is involved in a car accident due to an animal, comprehensive insurance will cover the damages. For example, let's say that you're driving along a road and suddenly a cow comes in the middle of the road. To avoid collision with the cow, you turn your wheels, but in vain. If the car is damaged in such accidents, with comprehensive car insurance, your loss would be covered.

So, in short, the comprehensive vehicle insurance covers:
• Fire
• Theft
• Vandalism
• Damage to the third party
• Damage caused by animals
• Damage caused by natural disasters or severe weather
• Damage caused to insured’s vehicle by falling objects such as trees
• Damage or destruction of insured’s vehicle caused by an act of civil disturbance such as riot

Now that we have understood the importance of a comprehensive car insurance, you should definitely have one for your car. You can easily buy car insurance online with hundreds of options available. To know your premium payable, make use of car insurance premium calculator. With the help of a car insurance premium calculator, you can get the best quote for your vehicle insurance policy as it quickly helps one figure out the premium amount payable for the policy.

Here are some benefits of car insurance premium calculator:

• You get accurate figure of the premium amount that you need to pay for a selected policy
• You get the idea of how the premium rates change with a change in variables
• By helping you evaluate your insurance needs, it makes it easy to select the best policy for all the requirements
• It is an unbiased way of selecting the policy as you don’t have to be under the influence of an agent, and are free to make your own.

Conclusion

If you wish to pamper your car and give it maximum protection, choose the apt policy by using the car insurance premium calculator.

Although comprehensive car insurance offers more coverage than a third-party cover, some policies may not cover what you want. Always compare comprehensive car insurance quotes online to check what suits you best.

Buy comprehensive car insurance policy for your sake!

Just Like Airbags, it is Time to Make a Package Car Insurance Also Mandatory!

Have you heard the news about ‘Airbags’ being made mandatory by the government of India for all the cars manufactured after July 2019? It's not just airbags but include the following also!

• Seat-belt reminders


• Speeding alert systems beyond 80 kmph


• Sensors for reverse parking to avoid accidents


• Manual overrides over central locking system for emergencies

All these will be mandatory after July 2019, a great initiative we all will agree.

India is one of the countries yet to enforce safety features in vehicles to protect the passengers. Apart from all the above initiatives, a comprehensive car insurance policy should also be made mandatory to strengthen the safety procedures for the car owners.

Currently, third-party car insurance is mandatory in India, under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. A third-party insurance offers cover against any legal liability to a third party caused when the car owner is at fault. It covers any damage or injury caused to another person or property. However, it lacks the extensive coverage facilities as compared to the comprehensive car insurance.

The most superior kind of protection you can provide your car is a package car insurance policy. It is one step ahead of the basic third-party car insurance policy. A third-party insurance offers protection and security only for the third-party or the vehicles but fails to cover your own vehicle against the possibility of an accident. However, comprehensive insurance, on the other hand, provides extensive coverage and offers more services. There are many benefits to this type of coverage.

A comprehensive car insurance policy protects your car from any unforeseen event apart from just collision events.

• It is the highest level of protection for your car as it covers the damages caused to your own car during an accident (which the third-party insurance does not provide)
• If you are found to be at fault in the event of an accident, with comprehensive car insurance, you can claim for losses incurred
• It covers lawsuits, including legal fees because of an accident
• It gives the insured a financial protection
• Offers financial aid if the car is written off

Covers Theft and Vandalism
A comprehensive package policy will cover your loss if your car is stolen or vandalised. If your car is stolen, you need something to cover the loss. Let's say that you just bought a brand-new car on loan. As per the law, you have just the third-party coverage that does not have comprehensive coverage. If the car is stolen out of your driveway, just imagine the horror you can face. Even if you don’t have the car, you will still have to make huge monthly payments. However, comprehensive coverage is well worth for situations like this.

Gives Weather Protection
Comprehensive vehicle insurance covers your car from faulty and damaging weather conditions like flood damage or icy limbs falling on the car windshields and other weather occurrences.

Covers Animal Damage

If your car is involved in a car accident due to an animal, comprehensive insurance will cover the damages. For example, let's say that you're driving along a road and suddenly a cow comes in the middle of the road. To avoid collision with the cow, you turn your wheels, but in vain. If the car is damaged in such accidents, with comprehensive car insurance, your loss would be covered.

So, in short, the comprehensive vehicle insurance covers:
• Fire
• Theft
• Vandalism
• Damage to the third party
• Damage caused by animals
• Damage caused by natural disasters or severe weather
• Damage caused to insured’s vehicle by falling objects such as trees
• Damage or destruction of insured’s vehicle caused by an act of civil disturbance such as riot

Now that we have understood the importance of a comprehensive car insurance, you should definitely have one for your car. You can easily buy car insurance online with hundreds of options available. To know your premium payable, make use of car insurance premium calculator. With the help of a car insurance premium calculator, you can get the best quote for your vehicle insurance policy as it quickly helps one figure out the premium amount payable for the policy.

Here are some benefits of car insurance premium calculator:

• You get accurate figure of the premium amount that you need to pay for a selected policy
• You get the idea of how the premium rates change with a change in variables
• By helping you evaluate your insurance needs, it makes it easy to select the best policy for all the requirements
• It is an unbiased way of selecting the policy as you don’t have to be under the influence of an agent, and are free to make your own.

Conclusion

If you wish to pamper your car and give it maximum protection, choose the apt policy by using the car insurance premium calculator.

Although comprehensive car insurance offers more coverage than a third-party cover, some policies may not cover what you want. Always compare comprehensive car insurance quotes online to check what suits you best.

Buy comprehensive car insurance policy for your sake!

Here's How Patenting Can Protect Your Ideas and Creativity

A unique idea, product, or service is born after much hard work. Hence, it becomes the creator's responsibility to protect their creativity and hard work at all times. For starters, they should always push towards working with companies that openly embrace independent product developers. One of the safest ways through which they can protect their ideas is by patenting them.

Here are ways through which one can ensure that their ideas remain theirs forever :

1) Keep looking for Warning Signs

Before submitting your hard work, make sure that you intensively investigate any potential licensees. The procedure is very simple, all you have to do is to Google the name of the company that you're in talks with the keywords 'complaints' and 'lawsuits.' Scout for any warning signs/red flags. Keep seeking out referrals. Don't worry, there will be numerous companies that will want to partner with you and extend you a fair treatment. Such companies will be easier to join hands with, especially when it comes to the part of contract negotiations.

So, what are the warning signs that you need to look for? For example, if a company says that it only considers looking at patented ideas, then it is quite clear that it hasn't actually embraced open innovation. Further, nowadays, a number of companies are accepting online submission of forms so as to systematically manage the numerous ideas they've received. Whenever you're requested to sign documents, do a thorough reading of it or let a lawyer look over it, if you find the legal language difficult to understand. When a company claims it's open to ideas, it doesn't necessarily mean that they're genuinely okay with independent product developers. There have been several cases in the past where certain companies had cleverly gotten people to sign documents where they had to give up all legal rights over their idea.

2) File a Provisional Patent Application

Filing a provisional patent application can quickly help you in protecting your unique idea/invention. When you file a provisional patent in India, you give yourself a 12 months’ time to decide if the idea is worth your time and money, and should you take the provisional patent application forward. It is always considered advisable to file a provisional patent application before disclosing one's unique, original ideas to any third party.

In order to file a provisional patent application with up to 30 pages, the government fee applicable is INR 1,600 for individuals, INR 4,000 for small entity applicants and INR 8,000 for large entity applicants.

While filing for provisional patent, you need to make sure that each provisional specification filed should include as much information the applicant has at the time of filing of the patent as according to the rules, new matter cannot be added by the applicant at a later stage.

3) Test the Waters Before Making the Final Jump

Once the provisional patent is in place, start testing if the market is really interested in your idea and if it has any future. Invest the 12 months allotted to you, courtesy the provisional patent, very carefully and test the markets reaction towards your idea. If it's not that positive, then it will be your call if you still wish to go forward and invest more time in developing your idea or abandon it then and there.

Indian Postmen Will Soon Deliver Customized Weather Reports to Farmers

Indian postmen might soon have another task up their sleeve other than delivering Indian's their precious letters/mails. The country’s public weather forecaster, India Meteorological Department (IMD), is contemplating of giving Indian postmen an additional responsibility of a weatherman.

The IMD has decided to pilot a scheme to take benefit of the massive network that India Post has cultivated over the years and use it to collect and deliver important weather information to the country's farmers.

To start with, a postman will be provided with a template form when he goes to a village. The form will have some basic questions, like land usage, cropping pattern of the village, etc. The postman would be required to fill the form and get the phone numbers of some of the farmers from the village.

IMD's objective with the scheme is very simple, they intend to reach to as many farmers as possible. Since India's postal department has over 1,54,800 post offices across the country, with almost 90% of them in rural areas, they proved to be a perfect fit for the weather department. After reaching the country's hinterlands, the IMD plans to take the help of the Indian postmen to collect information that will help the department in providing farmers with custom-made weather and crop advisories.

AgriMet, IMD’s agriculture division, is gearing up to run the pilot programme in five villages across Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, and Gujarat. While the places have been decided, the cost of the project is still being deliberated upon.

Despite of being the third-largest economy in the whole of Asia, a large majority of farmers in India even now fully depend on the rains to make their decisions on sowing and harvesting. In fact, less than 50 per cent of India's total farmland is irrigated. This means, an inaccurate weather forecast ends up having a catastrophic effect on the country's entire economic cycle as the country's farmers have to suffer huge losses. Seeing India go through two consecutive drought years, the weather department decided to take some serious steps and bail the farmers, the agriculture sector and the whole of country out of this crisis.

The AgriMet is also contemplating on installing screens at the village post offices so as to display information on weather and crops directly to the farmers.

It is no secret that when it comes to monsoon predictions, the IMD has had a shaky past. For instance, it completely missed out on predicting the 2009 drought, which was the worst drought that the nation faced in the last four decades. Further, the department's forecasts have often diverged from the ones of Skymet, which is India’s biggest private forecaster.

In order to restore people's faith in the department and do away with all the discrepancies, the government has decided to spend about $60 million on a supercomputer that will help in increasing the department's precision in forecasting.

India Post's extensive network across the country isn't helping another industry for the very first time. It has received a payments bank license from the RBI, all thanks to its deep reach into the country’s hinterlands. Further, the department has also partnered with leading online sellers in the country such as Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal for deliveries.

Since, the Indian postmen will now also be doubling-up as weathermen, the responsibility of ensuring timely deliveries now becomes important than ever.

[Top Image - Pixabay.com]

Meet World's 10 Most Powerful Women

This isn't a generalization, but a sad truth of the society. Whenever a society, irrespective of where it is from, talks about women, majority of them prefer using adjectives like beautiful, pretty, sexy etc. to describe them while very conveniently skipping words like smart, strong or powerful etc. But, there are several women out there who are working every second to break this very image of women that the society is forcefully trying to project on them. Forbes annual list of world's 100 most powerful women is an effort towards recognizing those women and encourage them to keeping doing what they're doing.

Forbes determines the rankings on the basis of four main metrics: money, impact spheres of influence and media. The women appearing on the 2015 list are broadly from eight categories - politics, technology, business, billionaires, entertainment,finance, media and philanthropy.

Here in this article, we talk about the ten most powerful women that there are in the world right now.

1) Angela Merkel -

Retaining her numero uno position for five consecutive years now, Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel is the most powerful woman of the year 2015. Merkel has had a major contribution in helping Germany put up a good fight against one of the country's worst economic recession ever by taking several important measures. In the year 2014, she was bestowed upon the honour of being the longest-serving elected European Union head of state after she won a third four-year term.

2) Hillary Clinton -

A name which probably doesn't need much introduction given the recent scenario, but for the sake of it, I would still mention some of her biggest achievements and her stepping stones of success. Clinton has donned several hats in United States (US) politics- secretary of state, senator, first lady. Now, the 67-years old Yale Law School graduate is trying for the second time to fulfil her life-long dream of becoming a US President. She recently became the first female nominee for a major US political party. If Clinton does become the US president, Angela Merkel, in all probability, will have to say bye-bye to her five year first position title.

3) Melinda Gates -

One of the biggest names in the world of philanthropy, Melinda has reportedly given away a whopping $3.9 billion in the year 2014 and another $33 billion or more since the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation went live in the year 2000. Being the Cochair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Melinda pays important attention on investments being made by the women of the world around the world.

4) Janet Yellen -

A second position holder in the 2014 list, Yellen slipped to the fourth spot in the latest list. The 68-years old is the Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, United States and holds the laurel of being the first female head of the Federal Reserve. She is famous for being a hard worker and making her work speak for herself rather than the other way around. She is hugely acknowledged for helping in putting the Fed back on the right track.

5) Mary Barra -

Known for her drive and strength, this 53-years old is the CEO of General Motors. Initially, she did face difficult times being the head of the company, but handled it quite well due to her continuous hard work, dedication and sound business wit. It is due to this very reason that Barra made a jump from seventh position in the 2014 list to fifth place in the 2015 list.

6) Christine Lagarde -

At 49, Lagarde is the Managing Director of International Monetary Fund (IMF). She is currently serving the last year of her term as the head of the IMF, an organisation that looks after 188 countries. Maybe, this is the reason that she slipped from the fifth position in the year 2014 to sixth position in the latest year.

7) Dilma Rousseff-

The President of Brazil has had seen a major fall in her position on the latest list. Having started with a mission of making Brazil a poverty free country, she was hit by a number of scandals which had a major impact on her popularity and credibility, and made her take a deep dive to seventh position from the third position in 2014.

8) Sheryl Sandberg -

A majority of us might be familiar with her. Being the COO of Facebook, she often makes appearances in Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook timeline. An ex-Goggle executive, Sheryl has made a major contribution in helping Facebook scale new mountains everyday. She had an important role in bringing digital revenue to Facebook. Further, she is a published writer with her book, "Lean In."

9) Susan Wojcicki -

At 46-years of age, Wojcicki is the CEO of Google acquired YouTube. After having played a crucial role in helping the tech giant acquire YouTube in the year 2006, she was finally bestowed upon the duty of heading the company in the year 2014.

10) Michelle Obama -

Her identity isn't just limited to being the first lady of United States. Over the years that her husband Barack Obama has been in the White House, Michelle has been actively involved in bringing light the importance issues like obesity, equality and girl education have in our 21st century through a number of initiatives. Her one of the recent initiatives is Let Girls Learn initiative focused towards education for girls. The initiative has gained much popularity all over the world.

More power to you, you strong, intelligent and smart 21st century women.

Meet The Four Indian Scientists Behind Gravitational Waves Discovery

In what can be considered as a landmark discovery earlier this year, 60 scientists from India have contributed in successfully detecting gravitational waves, first hypothesized by the genius Albert Einstein almost a century ago.

Opening a new window to the world of studying the cosmos, the discovery is a fruit of a worldwide collaboration between scientists.

Here are the front runners from India who made this discovery possible:

1) Name: Sanjeev Dhurandhar

Age: 64
Occupation: Emeritus professor, IUCAA, Pune

Pune born scientist Sanjeev Dhurandhar was one of the 1,000 key scientists actively involved in discovery of the gravitational waves. As early as the 80's, when the whole world was obsessing on electromagnetic wave, Sanjeev was sure about this scientific marvel's existence.

While Dhurandhar was adamant about his belief, the scientific community wasn't very welcoming to him initially. During his PhD, when he tried seeking funds for building the world’s biggest 100-metre interferometer to detect gravitational waves, he was politely turned away for not having enough credibility. For the unaware, Interferometers are basically investigative tools used in various fields of science and engineering.

Fast forward today, the Pune born scientist is now considered as the foundation holding up the country's gravitational wave research. He has successfully developed novel algorithms on the way to extract gravitational wave signals from the noise created from sources such as black holes, and how to do the same with several detectors – all of this has been put to use in discovering the gravitational wave.

2) Name: Anand Sengupta

Age: 40
Occupation: Faculty, Physics, Indian Institute of Technology - Gandhinagar

When Anand Sengupta was first informed about the first gravitational wave, he didn't believe it to be to be true and thought of it as a mere “injection”. He thought that it was just another case of textbook injection to make sure that the search groups are doing their working properly, all the protocols are in their proper place for due diligence and that frequent checks are being carried out by various programmes.

But, when he finally realised it was true, he was very joyous for his and his team's efforts. He does however feel that though the discovery is a historic one, it is just an isolated one in nature. He believes that more detections are needed and there is also a requirement to locate the sources by using other telescopes.

He and his group meticulously worked on matched filtering algorithm in order to pull out the weak signals.

The group is currently working on an algorithm that will be able to successfully separate background noise from the true gravitational wave event by making use of machine learning.

3) Name: Parameswaran Ajith

Age: 35
Occupation: Leads astrophysical relativity group, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences – Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore

Ajith was vacationing in Kerala when he got informed about a “trigger” in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors that primarily looked as it was from a binary black hole. The trigger in the LIGO detectors triggered Ajith to cut short his vacation in Kerala and come back to work in Bangalore. It was after three weeks of continuous work that his team was successfully in getting its first results. After this, the team's preliminary results came out in just ten days which were then sent for further revision and review.

In what could be considered a major coincidence, just three months prior to the discovery, Ajith and his group at ICTS-TIFR had released a paper where they had talked about the method to infer the mass and spin of the black holes that determines the shape of the gravitational wave.

4) Name: Archana Pai

Age: 42
Occupation: Faculty, physics, Indian Institute of Science Research and Education, Thiruvananthpuram

A faculty of physics at the Indian Institute of Science Research and Education in Thiruvananthpuram, Pai believes that even more than the event itself, the fact that the discovery was made in the 100th year since Albert Einstein first predicted it, matters more to her.

According to her, even though her group did believe that the detection of the gravitational wave would require more sensitivity and that would possibly happen in the advanced LIGO, she didn't expect the first defection to happen this soon. But, after the initial awe and surprise, they started following what the data was meaning to communicate. Pai and her group of talented scientists tested the gravitational wave from the event and found it to be in consistency with Einstein’s theory of general relativity.

Even India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi was joyous about India's contribution in this discovery and tweeted, "Immensely proud that Indian scientists played an important role in this challenging quest."

Meet The Four Indian Scientists Behind Gravitational Waves Discovery

In what can be considered as a landmark discovery earlier this year, 60 scientists from India have contributed in successfully detecting gravitational waves, first hypothesized by the genius Albert Einstein almost a century ago.

Opening a new window to the world of studying the cosmos, the discovery is a fruit of a worldwide collaboration between scientists.

Here are the front runners from India who made this discovery possible:

1) Name: Sanjeev Dhurandhar

Age: 64
Occupation: Emeritus professor, IUCAA, Pune

Pune born scientist Sanjeev Dhurandhar was one of the 1,000 key scientists actively involved in discovery of the gravitational waves. As early as the 80's, when the whole world was obsessing on electromagnetic wave, Sanjeev was sure about this scientific marvel's existence.

While Dhurandhar was adamant about his belief, the scientific community wasn't very welcoming to him initially. During his PhD, when he tried seeking funds for building the world’s biggest 100-metre interferometer to detect gravitational waves, he was politely turned away for not having enough credibility. For the unaware, Interferometers are basically investigative tools used in various fields of science and engineering.

Fast forward today, the Pune born scientist is now considered as the foundation holding up the country's gravitational wave research. He has successfully developed novel algorithms on the way to extract gravitational wave signals from the noise created from sources such as black holes, and how to do the same with several detectors – all of this has been put to use in discovering the gravitational wave.

2) Name: Anand Sengupta

Age: 40
Occupation: Faculty, Physics, Indian Institute of Technology - Gandhinagar

When Anand Sengupta was first informed about the first gravitational wave, he didn't believe it to be to be true and thought of it as a mere “injection”. He thought that it was just another case of textbook injection to make sure that the search groups are doing their working properly, all the protocols are in their proper place for due diligence and that frequent checks are being carried out by various programmes.

But, when he finally realised it was true, he was very joyous for his and his team's efforts. He does however feel that though the discovery is a historic one, it is just an isolated one in nature. He believes that more detections are needed and there is also a requirement to locate the sources by using other telescopes.

He and his group meticulously worked on matched filtering algorithm in order to pull out the weak signals.

The group is currently working on an algorithm that will be able to successfully separate background noise from the true gravitational wave event by making use of machine learning.

3) Name: Parameswaran Ajith

Age: 35
Occupation: Leads astrophysical relativity group, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences – Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore

Ajith was vacationing in Kerala when he got informed about a “trigger” in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors that primarily looked as it was from a binary black hole. The trigger in the LIGO detectors triggered Ajith to cut short his vacation in Kerala and come back to work in Bangalore. It was after three weeks of continuous work that his team was successfully in getting its first results. After this, the team's preliminary results came out in just ten days which were then sent for further revision and review.

In what could be considered a major coincidence, just three months prior to the discovery, Ajith and his group at ICTS-TIFR had released a paper where they had talked about the method to infer the mass and spin of the black holes that determines the shape of the gravitational wave.

4) Name: Archana Pai

Age: 42
Occupation: Faculty, physics, Indian Institute of Science Research and Education, Thiruvananthpuram

A faculty of physics at the Indian Institute of Science Research and Education in Thiruvananthpuram, Pai believes that even more than the event itself, the fact that the discovery was made in the 100th year since Albert Einstein first predicted it, matters more to her.

According to her, even though her group did believe that the detection of the gravitational wave would require more sensitivity and that would possibly happen in the advanced LIGO, she didn't expect the first defection to happen this soon. But, after the initial awe and surprise, they started following what the data was meaning to communicate. Pai and her group of talented scientists tested the gravitational wave from the event and found it to be in consistency with Einstein’s theory of general relativity.

Even India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi was joyous about India's contribution in this discovery and tweeted, "Immensely proud that Indian scientists played an important role in this challenging quest."

India Will Give Free SIM Cards to Tourists

Nowadays, our smartphones have become our constant companions. In addition to providing us the luxury to call, message and surf the Internet, they also provide us a sense of security 24x7. They become all the more important when we're in a foreign land where we may not know many people or might not even understand their language at all. The Indian tourism Ministry seems to understand this plight of the tourists, and has hence decided to give out free SIM cards to tourists on arrival in India.

The free SIM will only be made available to tourists who arrive in India using electronic tourist visas, which currently covers an impressive 150 countries.

The Indian Ministry will hand out the Welcome-to-India SIM card as a part of a welcome kit that includes maps.

With this move, the Indian Tourism Ministry is hoping to attract more tourists to the Indian subcontinent and enhance their stay and experience in the country, without worrying about running long phone bills.

Currently, the process of getting a local SIM in India may take a tourist anything between 24 hours to a week. In addition to the wait, the process is quite cumbersome. One has to submit a pile of documents to their SIM vendor in order to score a local Indian SIM. These documents include an application form for the SIM, colored passport photographs, a photocopy of the personal details page of their passport, a photocopy of the proof of their home address in their home country (passport, driver’s license or any other Government issued document would suffice), a proof of where they will be staying in India and a photocopy of their Indian visa. Once all the documents are duly submitted, they are "verified" and you're handed over a SIM along with a 10-digit Indian mobile number. According to paper, the number should be operational within 24 hours of the purchase, but unfortunately, that is often not the case.

Some of the things that might not seem so much welcoming to the tourists in these Welcome-to-India SIM cards is the fact that they will be valid for 30 days only. Though they will come with pre-loaded talk time and data, they won't offer international roaming facility. This means, in order to make a call to their home country, they will have to make use of their home number.

India's tourism minister Mahesh Sharma has confirmed that the Indian Home Ministry has already given its nod to the project and the work on the project has already started. Sharma is hoping that the initiative could be launched on September 27, on the occasion of United Nation's World Tourism Day.

Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg Join Hands To Build Foundation For Indian Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan

The world recently observed the 96th death anniversary (26th April, 1920) of Mathematics' genius Srinivasa Ramanujan, who died at a young age of 32 due to a severe case of tuberculosis and vitamin deficiency. Ramanujan is known for his great contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series etc. and is credited with all the major developments that took place in the field of Maths in the 20th century.

Inspired by the great personality that Mr. Ramanujam was, well-acclaimed director Matthew Brown has directed a biopic on the Mathematics' Marvel by the name "The Man Who Knew Infinity." The biopic was recently screened at Silicon Valley over a weekend and got a massive response from the audience. Arranged by Russian billionaire and founder Yuri Milner, the screening was attended by a lot of top names in the Silicon Valley, who were spell-bound by the mathematicians' life journey.

Now, the news that is making buzz in the industry and has caught everyone's attention is, that inspired by the movie Google's Sundar Pichai and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg have decided to form a foundation to honour the legendary Indian mathematician.

According to a newspaper report, Sundar Pichai (CEO, Google), Sergey Brin (founder, Google), Mark Zuckerberg (founder, Facebook), Brendan Iribe (CEO of Oculus VR), and some other fifty other '1 percenters' of Silicon Valley were at Yuri Milner's house in Los Altos this weekend to attend a private screening and dinner for the biopic and they all were filled with emotions towards the end of the film.

Some of the attendees, including Zuckerberg and Pichai, were so moved by the film that they then and there pledged to form a foundation in Ramanujan's name.

Set in the year 1913, the biopic beautifully captures Ramanujan's journey from anonymity in his small village in Tamil Nadu, India to towering fame in England. In the movie, Ramanujan's character is essayed by actor Dev Patel, globally acclaimed for the Oscar wining Slumdog Millionaire.

Ramanujan who had almost no formal training in pure mathematics field, was a self-taught genius, who failed out of college due to his obsessiveness for mathematics as a subject.
He only liked reading and studying Mathematics and would end up failing most of the subjects due to this.

"The Man Who Knew Infinity" hits the Indian theatres on Friday, April 29.

Who all can't wait to watch the biopic? Let us know in the comments below.

[Top Image - Shifter.pt]

Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg Join Hands To Build Foundation For Indian Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan

The world recently observed the 96th death anniversary (26th April, 1920) of Mathematics' genius Srinivasa Ramanujan, who died at a young age of 32 due to a severe case of tuberculosis and vitamin deficiency. Ramanujan is known for his great contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series etc. and is credited with all the major developments that took place in the field of Maths in the 20th century.

Inspired by the great personality that Mr. Ramanujam was, well-acclaimed director Matthew Brown has directed a biopic on the Mathematics' Marvel by the name "The Man Who Knew Infinity." The biopic was recently screened at Silicon Valley over a weekend and got a massive response from the audience. Arranged by Russian billionaire and founder Yuri Milner, the screening was attended by a lot of top names in the Silicon Valley, who were spell-bound by the mathematicians' life journey.

Now, the news that is making buzz in the industry and has caught everyone's attention is, that inspired by the movie Google's Sundar Pichai and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg have decided to form a foundation to honour the legendary Indian mathematician.

According to a newspaper report, Sundar Pichai (CEO, Google), Sergey Brin (founder, Google), Mark Zuckerberg (founder, Facebook), Brendan Iribe (CEO of Oculus VR), and some other fifty other '1 percenters' of Silicon Valley were at Yuri Milner's house in Los Altos this weekend to attend a private screening and dinner for the biopic and they all were filled with emotions towards the end of the film.

Some of the attendees, including Zuckerberg and Pichai, were so moved by the film that they then and there pledged to form a foundation in Ramanujan's name.

Set in the year 1913, the biopic beautifully captures Ramanujan's journey from anonymity in his small village in Tamil Nadu, India to towering fame in England. In the movie, Ramanujan's character is essayed by actor Dev Patel, globally acclaimed for the Oscar wining Slumdog Millionaire.

Ramanujan who had almost no formal training in pure mathematics field, was a self-taught genius, who failed out of college due to his obsessiveness for mathematics as a subject.
He only liked reading and studying Mathematics and would end up failing most of the subjects due to this.

"The Man Who Knew Infinity" hits the Indian theatres on Friday, April 29.

Who all can't wait to watch the biopic? Let us know in the comments below.

[Top Image - Shifter.pt]