As we in the time of the 66th Anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, August 6 1945 and the bombing a few days later of Nagasaki a grim kind of similarity is evident in Japan today.
The Fukushima nuclear reactor hit by a tsunami after one of the biggest earthquakes on record is still some 4 months later suffering meltdown and spewing out radiation many times the accepted limit. The Government and the electricity company has ordered residents to abandon a bigger and bigger area till at present the area there is a 30 km exclusion zone known as the ‘zone of alienation’. Radiation has leaked into the sea and ships are advised to avoid the area by 30 kms but many shipping lines are unsatisfied by that and are sailing some as much as 140 kms around the area.Saturday, August 6, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Summer Solstice - the longest day in northern hemisphere.
June 20-21 is a very important day for our planet and its relationship with the sun. June 20-21 is one of two solstices, days when the rays of the sun directly strike one of the two tropical latitude lines. June 21 marks the beginning of summer in the northern hemisphere and simultaneously heralds the beginning of winter in the southern hemisphere. In 2010, the solstice occurs and summer begins in the Northern Hemisphere summer begins early on June 21, at 7:28 a.m. EDT (11:28 UTC).
The earth spins around its axis, an imaginary line going right through the planet between the north and south poles. The axis is tilted somewhat off the plane of the earth's revolution around the sun. The tilt of the axis is 23.5 degrees; thanks to this tilt, we enjoy the four seasons. For several months of the year, one half of the earth receives more direct rays of the sun than the other half.
When the axis tilts towards the sun, as it does between June and September, it is summer in the northern hemisphere but winter in the southern hemisphere. Alternatively, when the axis points away from the sun from December to March, the southern hemisphere enjoys the direct rays of the sun during their summer months.
June 21 is called the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and simultaneously the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. Around December 21 the solstices are reversed and winter begins in the northern hemisphere.
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On June 21, there are 24 hours of daylight north of the Arctic Circle (66.5° north of the equator) and 24 hours of darkness south of the Antarctic Circle (66.5° south of the equator). The sun's rays are directly overhead along the Tropic of Cancer (the latitude line at 23.5° north, passing through Mexico, Saharan Africa, and India) on June 21.
Without the tilt of the earth's axis, we would have no seasons. The sun's rays would be directly overhead of the equator all year long. Only a slight change would occur as the earth makes its slightly elliptical orbit around the sun. The earth is furthest from the sun about July 3; this point is known as the aphelion and the earth is 94,555,000 miles (152172089 km)away from the sun. The perihelion takes place about January 4 when the earth is a mere 91,445,000 miles (147167010 km)from the sun.
When summer occurs in a hemisphere, it is due to that hemisphere receiving more direct rays of the sun than the opposite hemisphere where it is winter. In winter, the sun's energy hits the earth at oblique angles and is thus less concentrated.
During spring and fall, the earth's axis is pointing sideways so both hemispheres have moderate weather and the rays of the sun are directly overhead the equator. Between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5° latitude south) there really are no seasons as the sun is never very low in the sky so it stays warm and humid ("tropical") year-round. Only those people in the upper latitudes north and south of the tropics experience seasons.
The earth spins around its axis, an imaginary line going right through the planet between the north and south poles. The axis is tilted somewhat off the plane of the earth's revolution around the sun. The tilt of the axis is 23.5 degrees; thanks to this tilt, we enjoy the four seasons. For several months of the year, one half of the earth receives more direct rays of the sun than the other half.
When the axis tilts towards the sun, as it does between June and September, it is summer in the northern hemisphere but winter in the southern hemisphere. Alternatively, when the axis points away from the sun from December to March, the southern hemisphere enjoys the direct rays of the sun during their summer months.
June 21 is called the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and simultaneously the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. Around December 21 the solstices are reversed and winter begins in the northern hemisphere.
Without the tilt of the earth's axis, we would have no seasons. The sun's rays would be directly overhead of the equator all year long. Only a slight change would occur as the earth makes its slightly elliptical orbit around the sun. The earth is furthest from the sun about July 3; this point is known as the aphelion and the earth is 94,555,000 miles (152172089 km)away from the sun. The perihelion takes place about January 4 when the earth is a mere 91,445,000 miles (147167010 km)from the sun.
When summer occurs in a hemisphere, it is due to that hemisphere receiving more direct rays of the sun than the opposite hemisphere where it is winter. In winter, the sun's energy hits the earth at oblique angles and is thus less concentrated.
During spring and fall, the earth's axis is pointing sideways so both hemispheres have moderate weather and the rays of the sun are directly overhead the equator. Between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5° latitude south) there really are no seasons as the sun is never very low in the sky so it stays warm and humid ("tropical") year-round. Only those people in the upper latitudes north and south of the tropics experience seasons.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Endosulfan- A meeting under the Canopy (thick leaf cover of a tree)
A group of teachers go in hand with the common people............
they share their experience....
their expetations....
from Karapuzha, kottayam
they share their experience....
their expetations....
from Karapuzha, kottayam
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Why Endosulfan should be banned in India?
There are a number of reasons to state Endosulfan should be banned globally. We are pointing out some of the reasons herewith.
1. There are more than 150 health studies published in the international medical journals. All these papers prove scientifically that Endosulfan causes serious health issues.
2. In Kerala, the use of Endosulfan caused the death of more than 500 persons and around 5000 victims are living with serious health issues. The latest epidemiological study (2011) conducted by the Govt. Medical College, Calicut, Kerala has revealed the long term health issues caused due to Endosulfan.
Major conclusion of the study • The reproductive health events including infertility, precocious puberty, abortion, intra uterine death (IUD)/ still birth, neonatal/ child death were found significantly higher in study population when compared to control population.
• Among the youth population (below the age of 40-) the rate of surgery for any heart diseases , hernia and genito urinary causes were higher in area study group than control group.
• When the prevalence of morbidity in adolescents were assessed it was found that any organ anomaly , birth defects, congenital heart disease, seizure, skin problems and reproductive disorders were significantly higher in study group when compared to control groups.
3. The United Nations 6th POP Review Committee (2010) recommended the Global phase out of Endosulfan, by considering its long range environmental transport and significant adverse human health and environmental effects. UNEP also declared it as a Persistent Organic Pollutant. Endosulfan will travel a long distance through the water and pollutes the environment, where ever it reaches. The continuous use in any single country will affect the whole world and its environment badly.
4. The previous experiences of banning dangerous pesticides have proved that such ban would not affect agricultural production in any way. It would only trigger the use of alternatives. BHC, a pesticide similar to Endosulfan was banned in 1996, without consulting with any states. At that time, the consumption of BHC was 40% of the total pesticide use. The then counter arguments were the same like broad spectrum used, cheap pesticide, no alternative, no scientific proof for health issues etc. But BHC was easily replaced by less harmful alternatives.
5. 81 countries have either banned or declared phase out of Endosulfan. 12 countries haven’t even used it. All the nations those who banned it have done this based on the expert opinion and scientific papers.
6. There is alternative for every single recommended use of Endosulfan in India. In Andhra Pradesh, Non-pesticides management program has been running over 2.3 million acres of land. More than 3000 villages are cultivating crops without any pesticide.
7. Field guide hand book published by PAN, an international environmental organization says “How to grow crops without Endosulfan”.
8. By considering a lot of long term scientific studies including NIOH study, the National Human Rights Commission has recommended for a complete Ban on Endosulfan within the country (2011) and to join the global phase out in the 5th conference of parties of the Stockholm Convention.
9. The famous scientists including Dr.M.S.Swaminathan (advisory Board member of UPA Govt.) have already advised to ban Endosulfan.
10. India had always kept its head high in Stockholm conventions, by declaring its bold stand to protect the environment. Any deviation from such stand will badly affect the reputation of the country among the international community.
Based on the merit of these facts, scientific papers and decisions, we humbly request the Nation to ban Endosulfan at the earliest. We also request to support the Global Ban on Endosulfan in the 5th conference of parties of the Stockholm convention.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Geo-Literacy
What is Geo-Literacy?
Geo-literacy is the ability to use geographic understanding and geographic reasoning to make decisions. Whether we are making decisions about where to live, what precautions to take for natural hazards, or how to set up a manufacturing supply chain, we are all called upon to make decisions that require geo-literacy throughout our lives.
Why is geo-literacy important?
Geo-literacy enables people to steer away from choices that will be costly for themselves and others. For example, individuals and communities bear costs every time a poorly-located business fails, homes and crops are damaged by flooding, and drivers get stuck in snarled traffic. We pay even larger costs for geo-illiteracy in the form of job loss in a competitive global economy and loss of life from natural hazards and military conflict.
What can we do to advance geo-literacy?
Geo-literacy education should be a priority in schools, communities, and homes. In schools, geo-literacy is taught in both social studies and science. In Earth science, environmental science, and ecology. In history, civics, economics, and geography. None of these subjects receives the attention it deserves in today’s schools, and the teaching in these subjects does not focus sufficiently on preparing students for 21st century decisions. To advance geo-literacy, we need to re-prioritize what we teach, and change how we teach it. We also need to cultivate geo-literacy in our homes and in out-of-school settings.
Earth Day 2011
Earth Day: The History of A Movement
Each year, Earth Day -- April 22 -- marks the anniversary of what many consider the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.
The height of hippie and flower-child culture in the United States, 1970 brought the death of Jimi Hendrix, the last Beatles album, and Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. Protest was the order of the day, but saving the planet was not the cause. War raged in Vietnam, and students nationwide increasingly opposed it.
At the time, Americans were slurping leaded gas through massive V8 sedans. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of legal consequences or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. “Environment” was a word that appeared more often in spelling bees than on the evening news. Although mainstream America remained oblivious to environmental concerns, the stage had been set for change by the publication of Rachel Carson's New York Times bestseller Silent Spring in 1962. The book represented a watershed moment for the modern environmental movement, selling more than 500,000 copies in 24 countries and, up until that moment, more than any other person, Ms. Carson raised public awareness and concern for living organisms, the environment and public health.
Earth Day 1970 capitalized on the emerging consciousness, channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and putting environmental concerns front and center.
The idea came to Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, after witnessing the ravages of the 1969 massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. Inspired by the student anti-war movement, he realized that if he could infuse that energy with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution, it would force environmental protection onto the national political agenda. Senator Nelson announced the idea for a “national teach-in on the environment” to the national media; persuaded Pete McCloskey, a conservation-minded Republican Congressman, to serve as his co-chair; and recruited Denis Hayes as national coordinator. Hayes built a national staff of 85 to promote events across the land.
As a result, on the 22nd of April, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.
Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. "It was a gamble," Gaylord recalled, "but it worked."
As 1990 approached, a group of environmental leaders asked Denis Hayes to organize another big campaign. This time, Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage. Earth Day 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It also prompted President Bill Clinton to award Senator Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1995) -- the highest honor given to civilians in the United States -- for his role as Earth Day founder.
As the millennium approached, Hayes agreed to spearhead another campaign, this time focused on global warming and a push for clean energy. With 5,000 environmental groups in a record 184 countries reaching out to hundreds of millions of people, Earth Day 2000 combined the big-picture feistiness of the first Earth Day with the international grassroots activism of Earth Day 1990. It used the Internet to organize activists, but also featured a talking drum chain that traveled from village to village in Gabon, Africa, and hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Earth Day 2000 sent world leaders the loud and clear message that citizens around the world wanted quick and decisive action on clean energy.
Much like 1970, Earth Day 2010 came at a time of great challenge for the environmental community. Climate change deniers, well-funded oil lobbyists, reticent politicians, a disinterested public, and a divided environmental community all contributed to a strong narrative that overshadowed the cause of progress and change. In spite of the challenge, for its 40th anniversary, Earth Day Network reestablished Earth Day as a powerful focal point around which people could demonstrate their commitment. Earth Day Network brought 225,000 people to the National Mall for a Climate Rally, amassed 40 million environmental service actions toward its 2012 goal of A Billion Acts of Green®, launched an international, 1-million tree planting initiative with Avatar director James Cameron and tripled its online base to over 900,000 community members.
The fight for a clean environment continues in a climate of increasing urgency, as the ravages of climate change become more manifest every day. We invite you to be a part of Earth Day and help write many more victories and successes into our history. Discover energy you didn't even know you had. Feel it rumble through the grassroots under your feet and the technology at your fingertips. Channel it into building a clean, healthy, diverse world for generations to come.
go green...
love our mother earth....
Each year, Earth Day -- April 22 -- marks the anniversary of what many consider the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.
The height of hippie and flower-child culture in the United States, 1970 brought the death of Jimi Hendrix, the last Beatles album, and Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. Protest was the order of the day, but saving the planet was not the cause. War raged in Vietnam, and students nationwide increasingly opposed it.
At the time, Americans were slurping leaded gas through massive V8 sedans. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of legal consequences or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. “Environment” was a word that appeared more often in spelling bees than on the evening news. Although mainstream America remained oblivious to environmental concerns, the stage had been set for change by the publication of Rachel Carson's New York Times bestseller Silent Spring in 1962. The book represented a watershed moment for the modern environmental movement, selling more than 500,000 copies in 24 countries and, up until that moment, more than any other person, Ms. Carson raised public awareness and concern for living organisms, the environment and public health.
Earth Day 1970 capitalized on the emerging consciousness, channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and putting environmental concerns front and center.
The idea came to Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, after witnessing the ravages of the 1969 massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. Inspired by the student anti-war movement, he realized that if he could infuse that energy with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution, it would force environmental protection onto the national political agenda. Senator Nelson announced the idea for a “national teach-in on the environment” to the national media; persuaded Pete McCloskey, a conservation-minded Republican Congressman, to serve as his co-chair; and recruited Denis Hayes as national coordinator. Hayes built a national staff of 85 to promote events across the land.
As a result, on the 22nd of April, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.
Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. "It was a gamble," Gaylord recalled, "but it worked."
As 1990 approached, a group of environmental leaders asked Denis Hayes to organize another big campaign. This time, Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage. Earth Day 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It also prompted President Bill Clinton to award Senator Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1995) -- the highest honor given to civilians in the United States -- for his role as Earth Day founder.
Much like 1970, Earth Day 2010 came at a time of great challenge for the environmental community. Climate change deniers, well-funded oil lobbyists, reticent politicians, a disinterested public, and a divided environmental community all contributed to a strong narrative that overshadowed the cause of progress and change. In spite of the challenge, for its 40th anniversary, Earth Day Network reestablished Earth Day as a powerful focal point around which people could demonstrate their commitment. Earth Day Network brought 225,000 people to the National Mall for a Climate Rally, amassed 40 million environmental service actions toward its 2012 goal of A Billion Acts of Green®, launched an international, 1-million tree planting initiative with Avatar director James Cameron and tripled its online base to over 900,000 community members.
The fight for a clean environment continues in a climate of increasing urgency, as the ravages of climate change become more manifest every day. We invite you to be a part of Earth Day and help write many more victories and successes into our history. Discover energy you didn't even know you had. Feel it rumble through the grassroots under your feet and the technology at your fingertips. Channel it into building a clean, healthy, diverse world for generations to come.
This year’s theme is
“A Billion Acts of Green.”
love our mother earth....
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Population Projection 2100
Population projection is a scientific attempt to peep into the future population scenario, conditioned by making certain assumptions, using data relating to the past available at t hat point of time.Assumptions used and their probability of adhering in future, forms a critical input in this mathematical effort. Predicting the future course of human fertility and mortality is not easy, especially when looking beyond much further in t ime. Medical and health intervention strategies, food production and its equitable availability, climatic variability, socio-cultural setting, politico-economic conditions and a host of other factors influence population dynamics, making it a somewhat unpredictable exercise. Therefore, much caution must be exercised when either making or using the population projections and the context of various conditions imposed, should not be lost sight of on the basis of past behaviour and the likely future scenario assumed.
The Population Reference Bureau is reporting on the release of preliminary data from the United Nations Population Division projecting population in the year 2100. The United Nations expects India, which is likely to surpass China as the world's largest country by 2030, to reach more than 1.55 billion people in 2100. Here's the list of the world's largest countries in 2100...
- India - 1,557,468,000
- China - 944,380,000
- Nigeria - 756,007,000
- United States - 478,047,000
- Tanzania - 314,197,000
- Pakistan - 262,149,000
- Indonesia - 254,590,000
- Democratic Republic of the Congo - 212,000,000
- Philippines - 178,256,000
- Brazil - 178,134,000
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Panjal Athiraathram
'Athirathram', an ancient Vedic ritual that is considered to be the ultimate invocation of scriptures, the Yajamanan (Puthillathu Ramanujan Akkithiripad) and Yajamanapathni (Dhanyapathanaadi) of the ritual ceremonially left the Yagashala carrying the fire from the altar to their house, where they would keep it burning. Twelve days of ‘chanting of mantras’ and ‘performing homam’ at the panoramic village of Panjal,Thrissur'
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