ஜப்பானைப் பற்றிய அழகான தகவல்கள்

ஜப்பானில் ஓராண்டில் நூற்றுக்கணக்கான பூமி அதிர்ச்சிகள் ஏற்படுகின்றன. ஆனால் ஜப்பான் தான் உலகிலேயே இரண்டாவது பெரிய பொருளாதார வளம் மிக்க நாடாகும்.

ஜப்பானில் மாணவர்கள் தங்கள் ஆசிரியர்களுடன் சேர்ந்து ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் 15 நிமிடங்கள் தங்கள் பாடசாலை மற்றும் கழிவறைகளை சுத்தம் செய்கிறார்கள்.

ஜப்பானில் நாய் வளர்ப்பவர்கள் அதன் கழிவுகளை அகற்றுவதற்காக வெளியில் செல்லும்போது விசேஷ பை ஒன்றினை கட்டாயமாக எடுத்துச் செல்கின்றனர்.

ஜப்பானில் சுகாதார ஊழியர்கள் "சுகாதார பொறியியலாளர்" என அழைக்கப்படுகின்றார்கள். அவர்களது சம்பளம் அமெரிக்க டாலரில் 5000 முதல் 8000 வரை ஆகும். ஒரு சுத்தபடுத்துபவர் எழுத்து மற்றும் வாய்மொழி தேர்வின் பின்னரே தெர்வு செய்யப்படுகிறார்.

ஜப்பானில் இயற்கை வளங்கள் என்று எதுவும் இல்லை. அத்துடன் வருடத்திற்கு நூற்றுக்கணக்கான பூமி அதிர்ச்சிகள் அங்கு ஏற்படுகின்றன. ஆனால் ஜப்பான் தான் உலகிலேயே இரண்டாவது பெரிய பொருளாதார வளம் மிக்க நாடாகும்.

ஜப்பானில் முதலாம் வகுப்பு முதல் ஆறாம் வகுப்பு வரையான மாணவர்களுக்கு மற்றவர்களுடன் எப்படி பழக வேண்டும் என சொல்லிக் கொடுக்கப்படுகிறது.

ஜப்பான் மக்கள் உலகிலேயே மிகப்பெரிய பணக்காரர்களாக இருந்தாலும் அவர்கள் ஒருபோதும் தங்களுக்கென்று வேலைக்காரர்கள் வைத்துக் கொள்வதில்லை. பெற்றோரே வீட்டையும் பிள்ளைகளையும் கவனித்துக் கொள்கின்றனர்.

ஜப்பான் பாடசாலைகளில் முதலாம் வகுப்பிலிருந்து மூன்றாம் வகுப்பு வரை பரீட்சைகளே இல்லை. கல்வியின் நோக்கம் விஷயங்களை அறிந்து கொள்ளவும் ஒழுக்க நெறிகளை கற்றுக் கொள்ளவும் தானே தவிர பரீட்சை மூலம் அவர்களை தரப்படுத்த அல்ல என்கிறார்கள்.

ஜப்பானில் மக்கள் உணவுக் கடைகளில் எந்தவிதத்திலும் உணவை வீணாக்காமல் தமக்குத் தேவையான அளவு மட்டும் சாப்பிடுகிறார்கள். உணவு வீணாதல் என்பதே அங்கு இல்லை.

ஜப்பானில் ஒரு வருடத்தில் தொடர்வண்டிகள் தாமதமாக வந்த நேரம் சராசரியாக சுமார் 7 வினாடிகள் மட்டுமே.

ஜப்பானில் மாணவர்கள் பாடசாலையில் சாப்பிட்ட உடன் அங்கேயே பல் துலக்குகிறார்கள். அவர்களுக்கு சாப்பிடும் உணவு சரியாக ஜீரணமாக வேண்டும் என்பதற்காக சாப்பிடுவதற்கு அரை மணி நேரம் ஒதுக்கப்படுகிறது.

What is post-traumatic stress disorder?

Mark Creamer, The University of Melbourne

A history of childhood trauma can make someone more at risk of developing PTSD. Image:Andrii Kondiuk/Shutterstock  People have probably always known about the psychological effects of experiencing life-threatening events such as military combat, natural disasters, or violent assault. Literature through the ages – some of it thousands of years old – provides many vivid portrayals of these internal struggles to recover from horrific experiences. It was not until 1980, however, that these reactions were formally recognised by the international psychiatric community. The name chosen was post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and the diagnostic criteria were agreed. Before discussing the nature and treatment of PTSD, it’s important to emphasise that human beings are generally resilient. Most people exposed to potentially traumatic events recover well with help from family and friends, and don’t develop mental health problems. For those who don’t recover so well, PTSD is only one possibility, with depression, substance abuse, anxiety, and physical health problems also common. But PTSD is the only condition specifically tied to a traumatic experience. SymptomsPTSD is a serious psychiatric disorder characterised by three groups of symptoms: Reliving the traumatic event. People with PTSD describe vivid, painful images and terrifying nightmares of their experience. Avoidance. People with PTSD try to avoid reminders of what happened. They become emotionally numb and socially isolated to protect themselves from the pain. Being constantly tense and jumpy, always on the look-out for signs of danger. PTSD is associated with significant impairment in social and occupational functioning. Causes and risk factorsThe latest Australian National Mental Health Survey reported that over 4% of the population experienced the symptoms of PTSD in the last year. The incidence of PTSD varies considerably depending on the type of trauma, with sexual assault consistently the highest (around half of rape victims will develop PTSD). Accidents and natural disasters – events that do not involve human malevolence – tend to be the lowest at around 10%. About half the people who develop PTSD recover over the first six to twelve months. Unfortunately, in the absence of treatment, the other half are likely to experience chronic problems that may persist for decades. So why do some people develop these problems and not others? The answer is a combination of what the person was like before the trauma, their experiences at the time, and what has happened since. In terms of pre-trauma factors, genetic vulnerability plays a part, along with a history of trauma, particularly in childhood, as well as tendencies towards anxiety and depression. Not surprisingly, the more severe the traumatic experience (the higher the life threat or exposure to the suffering of others) the more likely the person will develop PTSD. The final group of risk factors appear after the event, with the most important being social support: people who have a strong network of friends and family to support them after the experience are less likely to develop PTSD. Other life stressors during this period (such as financial, legal, health, or relationship problems) can also interfere with recovery. Treatment We have come a long way in improving treatments for PTSD and now have a large body of research evidence to guide our decisions. The most effective treatment is trauma-focused psychological therapy. There are a few different forms, including cognitive behavioural therapies (CBT), as well as something called eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR). The thing they share in common is providing the survivor with an opportunity to confront the painful memories, and to “work through” the experience in a safe and controlled environment. This therapy is not easy for either the patient or the therapist, but it is very effective in most cases. Pharmacological treatment can also be useful in PTSD, especially in more complex cases and as an adjunct to trauma-focused psychological therapy. The most effective drugs for PTSD are the new generation anti-depressants – the selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors or SSRIs. Other drugs can also be useful, depending on the clinical presentation. The bottom line is that effective treatment is available if the PTSD sufferer can find their way to an experienced clinician. We’ve come a long way in our understanding of mental health response to trauma in the last couple of decades, but many challenges lie ahead: Can we prevent the development of these problems? How should we respond with whole communities following widespread disaster such as bushfires, floods or terrorism? And can we improve the quality and availability of treatment? As we address these challenges, we must strive to make sure the best possible care is available to those whose lives have been devastated by the experience of severe trauma. Editor's Note: This article was originally published by The Conversation, here, and is licenced as Public Domain under Creative Commons. See Creative Commons - Attribution Licence.

Developing human kidney cells

Agency for Science, Technology and Research

Using human embryonic stem cells researchers produced human kidney cells. This advancement will have applications in toxicology, disease models and regenerative medicine. Image :Pan Xunbin/Shutterstock Researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) have successfully generated human kidney cells from human embryonic stem cells in vitro1. Specifically, they produced the renal cells under artificial conditions in the lab without using animals or organs. This has not been possible until now. According to IBN Executive Director, Professor Jackie Y. Ying, “This discovery has wide-reaching implications for in vitro toxicology, drug screening, disease models and regenerative medicine. In particular, we are interested in applying our technology to develop predictive in vitro drug testing and renal toxicity models as alternatives to animal testing.” IBN Team Leader and Principal Research Scientist Dr Daniele Zink elaborated, “The kidney is a major target organ for drug-induced toxic effects. Therefore, it is important for pharmaceutical companies to find out early in the development phase whether their drugs would cause nephrotoxicity in humans. However, animal models are of limited predictability, and there is currently no regulatory accepted in vitro assay based on renal cells to predict nephrotoxic effects. A major problem is the lack of suitable renal cells, which may now be resolved through our discovery.” At present, human kidney cells are extracted directly from human kidney samples. However, this method is not efficient because such samples are limited, and the extracted cells die after a few cell divisions in the petri dish. Also, cells obtained from different samples would display variable features, depending on age, gender, health status and other conditions of the donor. Therefore, cells that have been isolated from human samples are of limited suitability for research and applications in industry and translational medicine, which require large cell numbers. An alternative approach is to use human renal cell lines that have been rendered immortal, i.e. they can be reproduced indefinitely in the lab. However, such cells may not be used in many applications due to safety issues, and their functional features have usually been changed so profoundly that they may no longer be useful toward predicting cell behaviour in the human body. IBN’s technique, on the other hand, enables human embryonic stem cells to differentiate into renal proximal tubular-like cells. This particular kidney cell type plays an important role in kidney disease-related processes and drug clearance. Results showed that the renal proximal tubular-like cells generated by IBN were similar to the renal proximal tubular cells isolated from fresh human kidney samples. For example, they displayed very similar gene and protein expression patterns. Also, since human embryonic stem cells may grow indefinitely in cell culture, the IBN researchers have discovered a potentially unlimited source of human kidney cells. “We are currently adapting our approach to use induced pluripotent stem cells as the source,” shared Dr Karthikeyan Narayanan, IBN Senior Research Scientist. “We are also planning to modify our protocol in order to generate other renal cell types from stem cells.” The IBN researchers have tested the renal cells they generated in in vitro nephrotoxicology models developed by the Institute, and have obtained very promising test results. They welcome industry partners to collaborate with IBN on commercializing this technology. IBN has recently received a grant from A*STAR’s Joint Council Office Development Program to further develop predictive in vitro models for liver- and kidney-specific toxicity. This project will be conducted in collaboration with the Experimental Therapeutics Centre, the Bioinformatics Institute and the National University Health System. Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.

Sai naam Bada Hai Pyara

A World Full Of Robots

“God does not interfere with the little independence of the living entity. In Bhagavad-gita, the Lord has explained in all respects how one can elevate his living condition.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Bhagavad-gita, 18.63 Purport)

“I hate it when people are mean to me. Why can’t everyone be nice? I try to be nice to others. I bear no malice towards anyone. I don’t hold grudges. In fact, after a few days, I forget about most things. Whether something good happened or something bad, I move on fairly quickly. Why can’t others do the same? Also, why does everyone have to drive so poorly? They don’t signal when changing lanes, don’t slow down when they’re behind me, and don’t maintain their speed when they see flashing lights on the other side of the road. It would also be nice if others didn’t chew with their mouths open. I hate that! That sound makes me cringe. It would be nice if everyone behaved the way I wanted them to.”

Naturally, the reaction to frustration is the desire to get others to behave the way that you wish. Why would you want to live in danger or discomfort? We get angry at our children precisely to get them to alter their behavior. The same naughtiness in other young children puts a smile on our face, but when we see our child we think, “Why can’t you do things right?” We also worry that they won’t learn proper values if they continue along this path.

But what if you could control everyone’s behavior? Not just the odd person who wronged you or the child who is under your care, what if you could dictate how every single person in this world acts? This means that people would be nice to you, they would give you what you want, whenever you want, and you’d never be frustrated in your efforts.

While it may be nice to ponder this idea, the reality is that the world full of robots would be terribly frightening. You wouldn’t have anyone real to go to. If you have a problem with something personal, if you wanted to share your experiences from the day, or if you just wanted someone to be by your side, the robot, the person trained to act only according to your wishes voiced at a specific time, isn’t going to provide the proper companionship. If such a thing were possible then you’d be happy just going up to a tree and talking to it.

The human being’s association is enjoyable precisely because there is some independence. Actually, that independence is tied to life. That which has the ability to act freely to some degree or another, sometimes relying on intelligence at the local level, is a life force. The lower species are considered inferior because their freedom is severely limited. The same life force is there, but the ability to act is hindered either by the lack of bodily features or the stunted growth in intelligence. The hog will jump around in stool and the tree can’t move or communicate.

The human being also has independence, and the real potential within an existence can be exhibited by them. We enjoy the company of our children because they don’t have the same inhibitions that we have. They aren’t as shy, and they haven’t lost their innocence. We don’t behave like them because we care what others think about us a lot more. The child likes to have fun in a free spirit, and it is nice for the adults to see this.

The paramour is also an independent person who voluntarily chooses to be with us. They have made the choice that we are important to them. We have made the same choice regarding their association. Since they are the same as us constitutionally, they feel the same happiness knowing that someone else loves them. If either party were forced into the relationship, brought in against their will, the feelings wouldn’t be the same.

This review helps to explain the relationship we have with God and why He would ever allow us to separate from Him. According to the Vedas, all life forms are originally with God. They are spirit souls at the core, and the origin of spirit is God, who is also known as the Supreme Spirit. One of the properties of spirit is independence, though in the expansions that are the individual spirit souls the ability to act on independence is limited. In simpler terms, the Supreme Lord, who is the most independent, makes concessions to allow for the individual spiritual fragments to act on their independence, depending on which choice they make.

This brings us to residence in the material world, the place where we witness such horrible things as death, old age and disease. These come at unexpected times too and sometimes for the people who seem to least deserve it. This is all bewildering to someone who doesn’t see with the spiritual vision. If one thinks that life begins at birth and ends at death, they will be greatly troubled by what they see in this world. Through the eyes of shastra, or scripture, however, one can see that life has its origin in life and that the origin of all life is God.
As soon as any fragment of spirit desires to separate from God, they are allowed to do so. They fall to the material world, where the Lord’s presence is hidden. This is on purpose, as the initial desire was to separate. As soon as the desire changes, as soon as it flips back in the other direction, the same Creator manipulates events in such a way that the masked presence suddenly becomes clearer. He keeps the secrets about Him and how to return to His land safely within the Vedas and other authentic spiritual traditions emanating from them. Those who know these secrets and act upon them are thus the ones who can reveal them to us.
The common complaint lodged against the Lord, who in His original form is known as Krishna because He is all-attractive, is that it was wrong for Him to allow anyone to descend to the temporary and miserable material world. “If He really loved us, He wouldn’t let us go somewhere that isn’t good for us.” But if you think about it, His consent makes sense. If we would hate living in a world full of robots who do whatever we want, all the time, why wouldn’t God dislike the same thing? And on the flip side, if we feel pleasure when someone voluntarily accepts our companionship, why wouldn’t Krishna feel the same way?

Indeed, the most exalted servants are those who voluntarily interact with Krishna in a mood of love. In the spiritual world’s topmost planet there is every variety we see in our present land, except the influence of the nature is different. The effects of time are nonexistent, and so one can stay there forever if they like. Clever people like Vrinda Devi and Paurnamasi scheme every day on how they can arrange events so that Krishna and His friends will have the most fun. And thus sometimes through unexpected interactions, where it looks like nothing is controlled by anyone, the relevant parties meet and feel much joy.

The robot idea also doesn’t hold because what we want is not always what is best for us. Sometimes not getting what we want turns out to change our life for the better. It may seem that following real religion, which is known as bhakti-yoga, is a waste of time, but if we offer a little sincerity at first, even begrudgingly, then we can slowly realize that we are indeed full of life and its accompanying potential for action. And we can use that potential for serving God, which will give us the most pleasure at the same time.

In Closing:

To make all obey me if I had the choice,

Others to do as a say, speak with one voice.

World full of robots seems appealing,

But pleasure of association won’t be feeling.

Independence is what friendship makes,

Prefer one who choice to associate takes.

The Supreme Lord similar the Vedas say,

Of our tiny independence never He’ll get in the way.

When we choose Him to have as our friend,

All our troubles He promises to mend.

Finally a return trip to His land we’ll get,

In choosing eternal ecstasy never a regret.

தமிழர்கள் காலத்தை வகுத்த விதம்

தமிழர்கள் காலத்தை வகுத்த விதம் பிரம்மிப்பானது. தமிழர்கள் இயற்கையை ஆதாரமாகக் கொண்டு காலத்தைப் பிரித்தார்கள்.

ஒரு நாளைக்கூட ஆறு சிறு பொழுதுகளாக பிரித்து வைத்திருந்தார்கள.

1. வைகறை

2. காலை

3. நண்பகல்

4. எற்பாடு

5. மாலை

6. யாமம்

-என்று அவற்றை அழைத்தார்கள். அது மட்டுமல்ல, அந்த ஆறு சிறு பொழுதுகளின் தொகுப்பையும் அறுபது நாழிகைகளாகப் பகுத்துக் கணக்கிட்டார்கள். அதாவது ஒரு நாளில் ஆறு சிறுபொழுதுகள் உள்ளன. அந்த ஆறு சிறு பொழுதுகள் கழிவதற்கு அறுபது நாழிகைகள் எடுக்கின்றன என்று தமிழர்கள் பண்டைக் காலத்தில் கணக்கிட்டார்கள். ஒரு நாழிகை என்பது தற்போதைய 24 நிமிடங்களைக் கொண்டதாகும்.

அதாவது பண்டைக் காலத் தமிழர்களது ஒரு நாட் பொழுதின் அறுபது நாழிகைகள் என்பன தற்போதைய கணக்கீடான 1440 நிமிடங்களோடு, அதாவது 24 மணிநேரத்தோடு அச்சாகப் பொருந்துகின்றன.

தமிழர்கள் ஒரு நாள் பொழுதை, தற்போதைய நவீன காலத்தையும் விட, அன்றே மிக நுட்பமாகக் கணித்து வைத்திருந்தார்கள என்பதே உண்மையுமாகும்.

எம்.ஜி.ஆர். தோட்டம்

பரங்கிமலையிலிருந்து பூவிருந்தவல்லி போகும் சாலையிலிருக்கும் தமது தோட்டத்தில், எங்களை இன்முகத்தோடு கை கூப்பி வரவேற்றார் திரு. எம்.ஜி.ராமச்சந்திரன். படப்பிடிப்பு முடிந்த களைப்பு தீரக் குளித்துவிட்டு 'ஜில்'லென்று காட்சி தந்த அவரைப் பார்த்ததுமே மனத்திற்குக் குளிர்ச்சியாக இருந்தது. 'எம்.ஜி.ஆர். தோட்டம்' என்று புகழ்பெற்ற அந்த இடத்தைக் காண வேண்டும் என்ற ஆவலில் 'தோட்டத்தைச் சுற்றிப் பார்க்கலாமா?' என்று கேட்டோம்.

''தோட்டத்திலே என்ன இருக்கு? ரொம்ப சாதாரணமா ஏதோ...'' என்று அடக்கத்துடன் கூறினார் அவர்.

''ஒரு கரடி இருக்கிறதாமே...''

''இருந்தது. பாவம், அது பத்து நாட்களுக்கு முன்னே இறந்துவிட்டது. அது ரொம்பப் பொல்லாத குட்டி! அடங்கவே இல்லை. மூக்கு குத்தி வளையம் மாட்டி, கயிறு கட்டினால்தான் வழிக்கு வரும்னு ஆஸ்பத்திரிக்கு அனுப்பிச்சேன். அங்கே துளை போட்டதும், ரத்தம் கொட்டி செத்துடுத்து. அதை மிருகக் காட்சி சாலைக்குக் கொடுக்கணும்னு நினைச்சுக்கிட்டிருந்தேன்... என்ன செய்யறது? இதோ பார்த்தீங்களா, மான் குட்டிங்க. அறந்தாங்கி தோழர்கள் அன்புடன் கொடுத்தாங்க'' என்று அருகிலிருந்த மான்களைச் சுட்டிக் காட்டினார். அந்தக் குட்டிகளும் ஒரு துள்ளுத் துள்ளி எழுந்து, கண்களை உருட்டிப் பார்த்தன!

ஏழரை ஏகரா பரப்புள்ள அந்தத் தோட்டத்தில் வாழை மரங்களையும் மாமரங்களையும் தவிர, காய்கறிகளும் பயிரிடப்படுகின்றன. நெல் விளைச்சலும் உண்டு. மத்தியில் ஒரு நீச்சல் குளம் இருக்கிறது. படம் போட்டுப் பார்க்க ஒரு சிறு தியேட்டரும் இருக்கிறது. தேகப் பயிற்சி செய்வதற்காக ஓர் இடம் ஒதுக்கப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.

''அண்ணாச்சிக்கு எடை அதிகமாயிடுச்சுன்னா இங்கேதான் எக்ஸர்ஸைஸ் செய்வார்'' என்று, உடன் வந்த பழைய நடிகர் திருப்பதிசாமி விளக்கம் கொடுத்தார்.

அந்தத் தோட்டத்தினுள் இருக்கும் அழகான பங்களாவுக்குத் தாயின் நினைவாக 'அன்னை நிலையம்' என்று பெயரிட்டிருக்கிறார் எம்.ஜி.ஆர். அதற்குக் கிழக்கே ஒரு மண்டபம் தென்பட்டது.

''அது என்ன மண்டபம்?'' என்று கேட்டேன் நான்.

''அதுதான் கோயில்?''

''என்ன கோயில்?''

''என் தாயாருடைய கோயில். அங்கே என் அன்னையின் படம் தான் இருக்கிறது. அவர்தான் நான் வணங்கும் கடவுள்.''

= 2 - 8 - 1964 , ஆனந்த விகடன் இதழில் .

ராச ராச சோழன் சமாதி

உலகிலேய மிகபெரிய யானைப் படையை கட்டி ஆண்ட சோழ மன்னன் , தென்னிந்தியா முழுவதும் , தெற்காசியா வரை வேர் பரப்பி தன் மகன் வெற்றி கொடி நாட்ட வழிவகுத்த மாமன்னன் ராச ராச சோழன்,
1000 வருடமாக கம்பீரமாக நிற்கும் பெரியகோவிலை கட்டிய மன்னன்,உலகின் முதல் கப்பல் படையை நிறுவிய மன்னன், இன்னும் அடுக்கிகொண்டே போகலாம் இவருடைய புகழை, இப்படிப்பட்ட மாமன்னன் சமாதியை பாருங்கள்.

தமிழனுக்கு உலக அளவில் அடையாளம் கொடுத்த பேரரசனுக்கு நாம் கொடுக்கும் மரியாதை இது தானா ?
ஒரு வயதான ஏழை விவசாயி தன் வீட்டின் கொல்லைபுறம் இருக்கும் சமாதியை தினமும் மலர் சூட்டி மரியாதை செய்து வருகிறார்!!!!!

Document Management System (DMS)

Document management is one of the oldest of the content management disciplines - and was essentially born out of the need to manage ever-growing amounts of information being created within organisations. In a world where only hardcopy information existed - there was always a physical limit to the amount of information that could be stored and retrieved. It could be argued that Microsoft with the introduction of MS-Office and MS-Windows released users from this physical limit - and with the exponential increase in information that has resulted, document management software has become an intrinsic part of most organisations as they seek to manage the vast quantities of data they hold.

Defining a Document Management System (DMS)

At the simplest level - all users who have a PC who set up folders into which they store word docs, PDFs, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets etc are effectively generating a basic document folder structure to allow them to easily store, retrieve and expire document content. The difference between this type of document management and that provided by DMS vendors is effectively the scale of what is being managed. Document management systems are designed from the ground up to assist entire organisations seeking to manage the creation, storage, retrieval and expiry of information stored as documents. Unlike a file structure on your PC, a DMS revolves around a centralised repository that is used to manage the storage of any type of information that could be of value to an organisation - and protect the same against loss.

As content stored within a DMS is typically self contained (id est it cannot be assumed that it has any relationship with any other stored information), a well-designed document management system promotes finding and sharing information easily. It does this via sophisticated search tools - and the adding of classification schemes or taxonomies to the document information being stored.

There are many different levels of document management software available on the market - but 'best of breed' document management systems will have the following features:
• focused on managing documents, though they are often capable of managing other 'electronic information' such as images, movie files etc.
• each unit of information (document) is self-contained
• there are few (if any) links between documents (they may be associated by 'grouping' the items using a classification scheme or taxonomy)
• focused primarily on storage and archiving and document life-cycle management including document expiry
• includes powerful workflow for incorporating business processes into the management of the documents.
• targeted at storing and presenting documents in their native format (not limited to MS-Office products but including many different information types)
• document access may be restricted at a folder or document level - and other security models may be applied
• limited ability to create web pages (suitable for intranets but not internets) typically produces one page for each document                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

  DMS benefits break down into two main types;

  Tangible and Intangible.

  Tangible benefits are those things that can be measured in the sense that the benefit can be quantified.

  Intangible benefits are things that its going to be hard to measure and attribute to the use of a DMS, but are nevertheless known benefits that occur indirectly through the implementation of a DMS.

  Tangible benefits would include the following;

  Reduced Storage

  The cost of commercial property and the need to store documentation for e.g. retrieval, regulatory compliance means that paper based document storage competes with people for space within an organisation. Scanning documents and integrating them into a document management system can greatly reduce the amount of prime storage space required by paper. It also allows any documents that still have to be stored as paper to be stored in less expensive locations.
  

  Flexible Retrieval

  Retrieving documents stored as hard copies, or on microfilm absorbs time. A DMS increases creates electronic images of documents and stores them centrally. Less time is spent locating the documents as they can be retrieved without leaving a desk. DMS users can also access other systems available from the desktop at the same time as retrieving documents. With paper-based solutions documents are often removed from storage and taken back to the desk to access other systems (which can lead to loss, prevents others finding the same file, can be viewed by others).
  

  Flexible Indexing

  Indexing paper and microfilm in more than one way can be done, but it is awkward, costly and time-consuming. Images of documents stored within a DMS can be indexed in several different ways simultaneously
  

  Improved, faster and more flexible search

  Document Management Systems can retrieve files by any word or phrase in the document - known as full text search - a capability that is impossible with paper or microfilm. A DMS can also apply single or multiple taxonomies or categorisations to a document of folder that allow documents to be classified and stored in more than one way from a �single instance� � something which is not possible with paper or microfilm.
  

  Controlled and Improved Document distribution

  Imaging makes it easy to share documents electronically with colleagues and clients over a network, by email or via the Web in a controlled manner. Paper documents usually require photocopying to be shared, and microfilm requires conversion to paper. This provides a cost saving by reducing the overheads associated with paper based document distribution, such as printing and postage and removes the typical delay associated with providing hard copy information.
  

  Improved Security

  A DMS can provide better, more flexible control over sensitive documents. Many DMS solutions allow access to documents to be controlled at the folder and/or document level for different groups and individuals. Paper documents stored in a traditional filing cabinet or filing room have the same level of security i.e. if you have access to the cabinet you have access to all items in it. A DMS also provides an audit trail of who viewed an item, when � or who modified an item and when, which is difficult to maintain with paper or microfilm based systems. A DMS also removes the possibility of having confidential material or trade secrets lying around unattended in an office.
  

  Disaster Recovery

  A DMS provides an easy way to back-up documents for offsite storage and disaster recovery providing failsafe archives and an effective disaster recovery strategy. Paper is a bulky and expensive way to back-up records and is vulnerable to fire, flood, vandalism, theft and other 'Acts of God'
  

  No Lost Files

  Lost documents can be expensive and time-consuming to replace. Within a DMS, imaged documents remain centrally stored when being viewed, so none are lost or misplaced. New documents are less likely to be incorrectly filed and even if incorrectly stored can be quickly and easily found and moved via the full-text searching mechanisms
  

  Digital Archiving

  Keeping archival versions of documents in a document management system helps protect paper documents, that still have to be retained, from over-handling and keeps electronic documents in a non-proprietary and native format, such as Microsoft Word or Excel
  

  Improved Regulatory Compliance

  The risk of non conformance leading to fines, a withdrawn licence to operate, or in certain circumstances custodial sentences when an audit takes place is reduced and in most cases removed. A combination of security control, audit trails, archiving and disaster recover ensure that an organisation is able to authenticate the validity of information stored and demonstrate compliance with regulations and requirements.
  

  Improved Cash Flow

  The increased productivity of processing document-based processes such as invoices, debt collection and other "cash critical" business documents, ensures that the flow of cash can be controlled centrally and all documentation required to make cash flow decisions can be accessed immediately.

  
  

  Other less 'tangible' benefits of a DMS might include;

  Improved Internal Operations

  The reduced time to complete processes provided by the tangible benefits, improves the day to day operations of all functions within an organisation, leading to an improved flow of information, an increased perception of staff in their ability to solve questions and tasks and a general 'feel good' factor.
  

  Competitive Edge

  The same information that was previously stored as paper or microfilm, can now be distributed to customers and target audiences electronically. The 'reduced time-to-market' effect can be for products, services, support - all of which improves the impression the external recipient has of the organisation and provides a competitive edge over your competitors (or it removes a competitive disadvantage if they have already deployed a DMS).

  

  Improved customer service and satisfaction

  Reduced response times, a more professional response, a more accurate response with more controlled processes reduces the time spent on 'manually' ensuring customer satisfaction and allows staff to allocate resource to other core business activities.
  

  Preserve Intellectual Capital - Organizational Knowledge

  New or changed documentation can be 'pushed' to employees and no longer relies on 'hallway conversations' or 'round robin' emails. The locality of information is not locked away in the 'heads' of specific individuals and can be easily shared across departments and physical locations increasing the value of that information to the organisation.
  

Kepler 37-b: tiniest planet spotted

The University of Sydney

The detection of exoplanet Kepler-37b demonstrates that sun-like stars in our galaxy are able of hosting much smaller planets than anything seen before in our solar system. Image: NASA/Ames /JPL-Caltech/ The detection of a tiny planet has shown for the first time that stars in our galaxy are able to host much smaller planets than anything seen in our own solar system. The existence of the planet, Kepler-37b, the innermost of three planets that orbit the sun-like host star, Kepler-37, is announced in the journal Nature. The University of Sydney's Professor Tim Bedding, Head of the School of Physics, and Dr Dennis Stello, an Australian Research Fellow in the School, contributed to the discovery effort of an international team. "That we have found one of these small and hard-to-detect planets suggests that they are abundant around other stars and lends weight to the belief that as planet size decreases their occurrence increases exponentially," said Dr Stello. Kepler-37b is an exoplanet, or planet located outside the solar system, and is estimated to be a similar size to Earth's moon, which is only 3475 kilometres in diameter. Owing to this extremely small size and its highly irradiated surface, Kepler-37b is believed to be a rocky planet with no atmosphere or water, similar to Mercury. The Kepler spacecraft made the Kepler-37b finding possible. The spacecraft was launched in 2009 with the goal of determining how often rocky planets occur in the habitable zone around sun-like host stars in our galaxy. Over 150,000 stars are continuously monitored for transits of planetary bodies. Over the course of 978 days of observations by the Kepler spacecraft, transit signals of three planets of the star Kepler-37, a slightly cooler and older star than our sun, were identified. "While theoretically such small planets are expected, detection of tiny planet Kepler-37b is remarkable given its transit signal is detectable on less than 0.5 percent of stars observed by Kepler," Professor Bedding said. "Since the discovery of the first exoplanet we have known that other planetary systems can look quite unlike our own, but it is only now, thanks to the precision of the Kepler space telescope that we have been able to find planets smaller than the ones we see in our own solar system." Professor Bedding and Dr Stello contributed to the analysis of Kepler-37, the star Kepler-37b orbits. "We analysed the frequencies of standing sound waves inside the star to tell its size in the same way that you could tell the difference in size of a violin and cello by the difference in the pitch of the sound they produce," said Dr Stello. This asteroseismic analysis showed that the radius of Kepler-37 is about 20 percent smaller than the sun. "Knowing this stellar radius is very important because the accuracy with which we can measure the radius of the planet Kepler-37b is limited by how accurately we can calculate the radius of Kepler-37," said Dr Stello. "Our work from here is to keep working with the planet team at NASA to make seismic analyses of planet-hosting stars, and there are some exciting results in the pipeline," said Dr Stello. Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.

Jai Sri Shirdi Nadha Song - Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Mahathyam Movie Songs - ...

MICHAEL O'TOOLE PAINTINGS

MICHAEL O'TOOLE, S.F.C.A.,. is a native of British Columbia, born in 1963. He studied architectural design at a technical institute, then worked with firms in that field. In 1991, he won a prize for "Best Home Design." Later, painting became Michael's all-consuming passion. As an artist he paints mainly impressionistic acrylics with landscape, seascape and architecture as his chief subjects.