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A Green Olympic Village
August 19: Where will the world’s best sportspersons go when they stride away from the sporting venues at the coming Sydney Olympic Games? The answer is, the Olympic Village. A Green Olympic Village [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] As many as 15,000 athletes will live in a specially created residential complex designed to satisfy each and every whim of theirs. The village will have 800 houses, 355 apartments and 336 modular homes. What’s more, it will be an eco-friendly village, running with the help of solar power....
Smart Future
August 12: Do you know that there’s a possibility you may live forever? And that you will have computers that are 1,000 times more intelligent than Albert Einstein, generally known as the smartest scientist ever! That all these miracles may happen in 15 years or more? These are the predictions of Ian Pearson, a top British futurologist. A futurologist is a person who tells what life will be in the future. He is a kind of professional day-dreamer....
Schools of Failed Teachers and Students
September 6: Three schools in Hyderabad are changing people’s views of government schools – they showed a 90 per cent pass percentage in this year’s Senior Secondary Certificate (SSC) examination. At the same time 12 government schools in Hyderabad have set another record of sorts. All students of the schools appearing for the SSC exam flunked the exams. The SSC exam is the most important exam of a school student’s life. It marks the end of a student’s school life and the beginning of college life – which in many cases decides the student’s future course in life....
The Slum Hero
August 5: Last week, we had written about social worker Aruna Roy who has been tirelessly working to promote the rights of villagers in Rajasthan. And for her work, she has been awarded the Magsaysay Award for the year 2000. Keeping her company is 53-year-old Arputham Jockin. Arputham has only one objective in his life — to ensure the rights of slum dwellers in Mumbai. For this purpose, he has also founded the National Slum Dwellers’ Federation (NSDF), says a report in ‘The Hindu’....
The Woman who Builds Sand Castles
July 31: Ever made castles in the sand? Fun. Isn’t it? All you need are your hands and a little imagination? Marjon Katerberg builds castles in the sand all the time. And gets paid for it, too. It’s her job. Marjon is an international sand artist. She has just carved the largest sand sculpture park in the world, according to a report in ‘The Indian Express’. The park is located at a place called Almeerderzand near The Hague in the Netherlands....
India's First Female Grand`master'
July 31: What does a person achieve at 21? A college degree or, maybe, a job if she is lucky. How about the title of Women’s Grandmaster in chess? S. Vijayalakshmi is 21. And she has just won this title to become the first woman Grandmaster of India. It is a record which will never be challenged as other women aspirants can only follow her achievement. To win Vijaylakshmi, or Viji as she is known, had to defeat International Master P....
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....
Fire in Water
July 8: A flame moved through water! Unbelievable? But it is true. Fire in Water [Illustration by Sudheer Nath] This was the Olympic flame. It was carried under water last week. Why, one would ask. Because the games are being held in Sydney this year. The Olympic Games are held once in four years. And each time it is held, the Olympic flame is lit in Athens, the birthplace of the games, and carried to the venue of the games....
Earth Heroes
July 15: Heroes are people admired for certain noble qualities. Like standing up to wrongs committed by others. And doing something to right those wrongs. Recently, a few men were honoured as earth heroes for what they have done for wild animals. They were awarded Millennium Awards for Wildlife Service reported The Asian Age newspaper. The awards were started this year by Sanctuary magazine and ABN AMRO Bank. The earth heroes have fought several battles. With authorities who don’t care what happens to animals....
Operation Rescue of Penguins
July 8: Last week, the South African government was engaged in a very important task – transporting 19,000 penguins from their home in Dassen Island near Cape Town, to safe waters. It was an emergency. Operation Rescue of Penguins [Illustration by Kusum Chamoli] The short legged, big bodied birds with pointed beaks did not have the “cute” look that we always see in them. Most of them were covered in slimy oil....