140 items in this section. Displaying page 13 of 14
These Boots are meant for Flying!
October 21: Two weeks ago, as the Russian government was aiming to steer history by trying to reduce the tension between Israel and Palestine in West Asia, history from below was being created in its backyard, at the rundown Salavat Ulayev sports stadium, in Moscow. The fastest boots in the world were being tested out under the watchful gaze of a ‘Sunday Times’ journalist. These Boots are meant for Flying! [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] Chief boot tester Atanov was getting ready to race Russia’s 1,500 metre national champion, 22-year-old Alexei Ivanov, to see if the stilt-like petrol-powered and turbo-charged boots would enable him to take strides nine feet long, past the athlete....
Gunning for Clouds
Where: Beijing, China July 19: The photograph in the newspaper shows a soldier handling an anti-aircraft gun. At once, an image flashes across your mind: the gun moving left to right and firing away with a deafening, staccato noise, with an aircraft bursting into flames and somersaulting to the ground. Good powers of imagination, fed on Hollywood films, but, unfortunately, completely off the mark. The anti-aircraft gun shown in the Hindustan Times is used for the purpose of cloud seeding, or making rain....
The Emperor who Hated Schooling
Emperors too were children once. Even Mughal emperor Akbar, who has been given the title of Akbar the Great. He was more interested in bunking lessons rather than learn from his tutor. Being his own master from a young age, one day he decided that he did not want to study. He made the highest minister in his father Humayun’s court tell his teacher that it was to be an off day! Later in life, he went out of his way to tell people that he was illiterate....
Swimming in Trouble
July 1: All governments and leaders talk about children as the “future” of the nation – a “strong” nation. They specially talk about the need to encourage sports among children from an early age. But if you ask the young swimmers who participated in the National Swimming Championship for the 11 and 13-year-old category recently, they will tell you how nonsensical these statements are. For they have a horror story to tell. Two weeks ago, all the star swimmers of India in the 11 and 13-year-old category travelled to Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh....
A Soldier's Death is a Soldier's Death
Where: New Delhi, India May 16, 2000: Today’s newspapers must have given some relief to Indian Army men. For, George Fernandes, the Defence Minister of India, has finally agreed to their demands. Their demand was that the family of every jawan, or soldier, killed in action must get the same compensation amount of Rs 1 million ($23,255) from the Government of India. It did not matter where the soldier died: Kargil, Srinagar, or the north-eastern part of India....
Children's Museum says no to Dolls, Yes to e-games
June 17: For many years, the Nehru Children’s Museum in Calcutta, has been a popular place for children and adults. It has a huge collection of rare Indian and foreign toys. Many of them are handmade and depict characters from the epics of Mahabharata, the Ramayana, or the Jataka tales (or tales of the Buddha). It has toys from 88 countries. The excited chatter of children has always been a familiar sound around. But not any more....
A Monster in Tokyo…
It happened one evening in May, 53 years ago, in 1947. Many people in Tokyo had switched on to the American Armed Forces Radio Station. It was two years since the Second World War had ended and Japan had been defeated. But the Americans were still around. And so was their radio station. Around 7 pm, the radio programme was interrupted. An announcer screamed that a huge sea monster had risen from the sea. A Monster in Tokyo… [] It was more than 20 feet long....
Chattering Kids and Teacher's Tape
July 8: It happened in a primary school in the city of La Plata, Argentina. There were 70 bright-eyed children in one class. Seventy chattering children, all seven years old. A school rehearsal was on for Argentina’s Independence Day celebrations. And the teacher tried her best to see that they kept quiet during the rehearsal. But, the children did not. Chattering Kids and Teacher’s Tape [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] The teacher lost her cool....
Boys' cancer unites warring people
August 5: Thirteen-year-old Kemal Saracoglu does not have much longer to live. He suffers from leukaemia or what is commonly known as blood cancer, usually a fatal disease. There had been a brief moment of hope when it was thought that his life could be lengthened, if not saved. That moment passed as the British doctors looking after Kemal in London said that the cancer had once again started attacking the young boy’s body mercilessly....
Report cards
October 21: The two news reports appeared almost at once and said a lot about the state of affairs in education in the world. One was the announcement of a whopping US$210 billion Gates Scholarship set up at England’s prestigious Cambridge University by the richest man on earth, Microsoft boss Bill Gates. The scholarship fund will enable 225 youngsters from across the world to be Gates Cambridge Scholars every year, beginning 2001. Report cards [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] Graduate students from every country in the world, barring the United Kingdom, would be eligible to apply....