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December, 2013

"7 Simple Stress Busters

Peace of Mind is just a Few Minutes Away"

Benets of educational technology 10 Powerful Benets of Change: Why Embrace It 8 Tricks for Reducing Computer-Related Eye Strain Career in Advertising

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Editors desk Editors desk

Dear Readers, As the news editor of this Newsletter Rendezvous I welcome all the readers and contributors, many of who are personally known to me, and many others with whom I now wish to make an ongoing acquaintance. The idea is to make the Newsletter a dynamic forum for alternative inputs on leisure, for communication and debate and for providing space for less heard voices. As such, ideas and comments are welcome! In this issue we have few interesting articles on various topics like health, Benefits of educational technology, life style, travel and adventure, career opportunity in Advertising world and many more. Through this magazine we try to educate our young readers and motivate them to do better in life. We try to guide them with various tips and counsel them. A huge thank you to all the persons who contributed writing the wonderful and inspiring articles and write ups, without which there wouldnt have been this newsletter issue. We welcome your feedback and would like to hear what you think of the newsletter thus far. We would also welcome any articles you would like to submit for future publication. Please send all correspondence to: rendezvous@fiitjee.com Warm Regards, Editor

Quick Look
7 Simple Stress Busters - Page no. 3 - 4 Benefits of educational technology - Page no. 5 - 6 10 Powerful Benefits of Change: Why Embrace It - Page no. 7 - 8 8 Tricks for Reducing Computer-Related Eye Strain - Page no. 9 - 10 Career in Advertising - Page no. 11 - 15

Adventure Sports in Andaman and Nicobar Islands - Page no. 16 - 18 Forthcoming exam list for Dec., 2013 - Page no. 19 News at a Glance Future Events Amazing Facts Question2crack - Page no. 19 - 21 - Page no. 22 - Page no. 22 - 23 - Page no. 23

Answers, Riddle & Winners of October Issue - Page no. 24

7 Simple Stress Busters

7 Simple Stress Busters
Stress happens. No matter how organized you are, how good your systems are, or how friendly your work and living environments are, stress can find a way to poke its ugly head in from time to time. What can you do? Turn to a convenient Stress Buster a small, simple activity that clears your head and calms you down. When you feel a stress attack coming on, its the perfect time to turn to one of these busters and kick that stress out the door. Here are 7 Stress Busters, but feel free to develop your own: 1. Take a walk Want a break from the office? Does your house feel like an insane asylum? Slip out the door and let your feet take you somewhere. Not only will walking give you the opportunity to clear your head and take a break from that hectic situation, but its great aerobic exercise, too. 2. Call a friend We all have someone whose voice alone system. are friends for?

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Peace of Mind is just a Few Minutes Away

http://www.startupnation.com.

perks us up. Give them a buzz, even for a few minutes. Whether with a joke or a funny story, or just by listening, they will likely put a smile on your face and calm you down. Besides, what

3. Write in a journal Expressing our feelings could be the best way to deal with stress. Keeping a journal is a way to capture those feelings at any moment. You dont have to worry about what others think or say, just let your pen do the work. By the time youre done, those feelings will be on their way out of your

4. Play a board game Remember these? Maybe there are a dozen stashed in your closet, waiting to be dusted off. Monopoly probably

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time to get it together? Or a dinner youve always wanted to make? Nows the time. Not only will you take your mind off things, but youll be spending time eagerly anticipating a great getaway or meal later. Its a winwin situation. 7 . Ta k e a h o t bath A hot bath will initially give your body a kick, which in turn will give your mind a kick too and then itll slow both down. Add bubbles and a few candles and you have the ultimate soothing atmosphere. A rubber ducky is optional.

should be saved until you have a few hours to spare, but quick kids games like Candy Land, Snakes & Ladders, Connect Four, or even Twister are always good for a smile. 5 . Wo r k u p a sweat Having some frustration? Theres no better way to get rid of them than by exercising. Pop in a workout tape, hop on your bike or grab your jump rope. Youll be too busy working up a sweat to worry about whats stressing you out. Picture the stress leaving your body through your pores. 6. Plan something fun Is there a trip you want to take but never had

Benets of educational technology

Educational technology can be defined as the integration of Internet and other types of information technologies into learning experience. Technology has caused a revolutionary change in the classroom and teaching methods all over the world. This term grows along with advancements made in the field of education. With the increased use of technology in education, the methods and aids used for learning and teaching have drastically changed in the past few years. Apart from this, there are many benefits of incorporating technology into education. Some of these benefits include: 1. Accessibility One way technology allows students and education to improve is through the accessibility of instruction and courses. Online courses allow students to have access to courses the school they attend does not offer. It also allows students who are unable to attend school for health and other complications to still be able to obtain an education in a convenient way. 2. Individualized Instruction

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Benets of educational technology

http://rynbaj.wordpress.com

Another benefit I have noticed from educational technology is its ability to automatically adjust to student needs. Technology can allow students to receive instruction that is individualized to their level of understanding. It allows students to progress at their own rate and pace. It allows gifted students and struggling students to move at a pace that does not leave them with feelings of frustration. 3. Reporting and Analytics Technology-based education is also beneficial because of the analytic and reporting abilities technology provides. Teachers do not have to spend valuable time assessing each student and grading assignments that could easily be assessed with the right technological tools and programs. Also, with immediate assessments of student progress, technology-based instruction can instantly provide students with the material that best promotes their individual learning. 4. Popularity to distance learning.

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6. Accessible to all. In earlier times education was considered as an limited privilege. With the inclusion of technology, education has become accessible to the common masses as well. The information available on the Internet can be used by all people who know and have the necessary equipment to access it. There is no discrimination on the basis of any factor and people of all strata have equal rights to education. 7. Ease of teaching. Education technologies have made teaching quite easier for the instructors. Virtual classrooms allow an instructor to instruct and teach in any location around the world and reach students residing in remote locations where his physical presence is almost impossible. 8. Enjoyable experience. The inclusion of technology in education has made the teaching-learning process an enjoyable and beneficial experience for the instructors and the learners. There are so many benefits of using technology in education that this method of having virtual classes is now preferred by people all over the world.

The increased use of technology in education has brought popularity to the concept of distance learning. It is now one of the most preferred methods of learning and teaching all over the world. Actual classrooms have been replaced by virtual classrooms. Online classes, which employ file transfers, chat rooms, and message boards facilitate students interactions to maximize their learning experiences. Another benefit of this is that students can maintain a flexible education schedule along with their jobs. 5. Enhanced potential. The use of technology in education today has made a huge wealth of knowledge accessible to students. This provides them a great potential in the speed and requisite style of learning. With the use of technology, information can be presented in many ways thus, facilitating learning for varied types of people. Any kind of learner, whether intelligent or disabled, can find appropriate study materials that can be used for enhancing knowledge. The term technology is very broad and not only includes the use of the Internet but includes other technological improvements such as smart boards and handheld dictionaries.

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If you do not create change, change will create you. ~Unknown

10 Powerful Benets of Change: Why Embrace It

10 Powerful Benets of Change: Why Embrace It
You grow and learn new things every time lessons even from changes that did not lead you to where you wanted to be. 2. Flexibility As a result you do not freak out when something unexpectedly shifts. 3. Improvements

http://tinybuddha.com

something changes. You discover new insights about different aspects of your life. You learn

Frequent changes make you easily adapt to new situations, new environments, and new people.

We are often resistant to change, and we dont realize that change itself is constant. Even if you resist or avoid it, it will enter your life just the same. When you initiate the change yourself, its pretty easy to adopt to it, since its a wanted one. At first it is a bit difficult and annoying, but after a while you get used to the change so much that if it doesnt come for a while, you end up moving the furniture at home in order to feel something changing. In general, when looking back, we realize that all the good things in our life are the results of changes that occurred in the past. Below are just few benefits of change: 1. Personal Growth

We all have things in our lives wed like to improvefinances, job, partner, house, etc. All of us know that nothing will improve by itself. We need to do things differently to make that happen. Without change, thered be no improvements. 4. Life values From time to time changes make you reevaluate your life and look at certain things from a different perspective. Depending on

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life values.

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happiness and fulfillment. 9. New Beginnings Each change is a turning page. It is about closing one chapter and opening another one. Changes bring new beginnings and excitement to life.

what the change is, it may also reinforce your

5. The Snowball Effect Often we give up because we cannot accomplish the difficult task of making a huge and immediate change. That is when small changes become extremely valuable. One shift at a time, small changes will eventually lead you to the desired big one. 6. Strength Not all changes lead you to pleasant periods of life. Unfortunately we do not live in fairy tale and sad things happen, too. Overcoming the tough period will make you stronger. 7. Progress Changes trigger progress. Things move forward and develop because of them. 8. Opportunities One never knows what each change may bring. When you turn from your usual path there will be plenty of different opportunities waiting for you. Changes will bring new choices for 10. Routine Remember the movie Stranger than Fiction? The main character Harold Crick does the same things in exactly same time for years. He leads a completely dull, extremely predictable, and uninteresting life. That is how your life would be without changes. So next time you get the temptation to avoid or resist the change, aim instead to initiate the ones that will lead you to where you want be. And rememberif there were no change, there would be no butterflies!

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With today's dependence on electronics for

work, play and just about anything to do with at screens for more than 10 hours a day. With this in mind, it's important to protect your eyes by minimizing harsh whites and enlarging text size in common programs, regardless of how old you are or how good your eyesight might be. To lessen the long-

productivity, you may often find yourself staring

8 Tricks for Reducing ComputerRelated Eye Strain

8 Tricks for Reducing ComputerRelated Eye Strain
levels in no time.

http://mashable.com

If you're still unable to find any documentation for your monitor or television, all models come with buttons that allow the user to explore menu options that are often hidden. Experiment with these, and you should be able to reduce your monitor's brightness

2. Invest in a Pair of Computer Readers Computer readers are glasses that have protective coatings on their lenses designed to lessen the harsh whites that screens can emit. Most readers have a magnifying effect, so you're practically getting a two-for-one deal. 3. Use the Magnifiers Microsoft is aware that sometimes computer text isn't the easiest to read. Found with almost all versions of Windows, Magnifier is a versatile program that can enlarge certain parts of the screen wherever your mouse or keyboard cursor is located. If you have a Mac, use the included Zoom software to make reading text a little easier on the eyes. 4. Increase Your Browser Display Size

term damage computer screens could cause to your eyes, or if your vision isn't strong enough to read tiny text on your screen, try these tips for PC, Laptops or Mac computers to make things easier on your oculars. Most of these tricks are simple enough. 1. Drop Your Monitor Brightness Your screen is the culprit, so why not adjust it to fit your ergonomic needs? Your monitor should come with a how-to guide that will show you how to adjust brightness, contrast, color and other features, allowing you can tweak levels to reduce levels of eyestrain. If you can't find a guide, a brief search on Google for the screen's manufacturer manual should prove fruitful.

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should bode well for anyone trying to save their eyesight. 7. Give Your Eyes a Break Staring at a screen for too long certainly isn't healthy and can give you computer vision syndrome or CVS (not the pharmacy). If you find yourself locked onto a screen for too long, look away from the screen, focus on an item in the distance for approximately 10 to 20 seconds, and then focus on an item closer to you. Repeating this a few t i m e s should keep your eyes from getting tired. 8. Go Outside Being inside all day not only messes with your sleeping rhythms, it can also have an effect on your eyes. Expose your eyes to different levels of light. This can also kill the monotony of a day's work at the office. Whether you have poor or eagle-eyed eyesight, these steps can certainly help you keep the effects of long-term screen exposure at bay. They won't prevent eyestrain completely, but combining all these steps will significantly save your eyes so you can keep staring at screens for several years to come. http://mashable.com

Most screens nowadays come in wide-screen format, and that doesn't adapt well for documents. Browsers often display websites in a column fashion as well, leaving wide, empty margins. Remove the margins and zoom in on your page by holding down Control and scrolling up with your mouse until the page fits your monitor nicely. On the Mac side, you can increase most browser window sizes by pressing Command and + a few times. 5. Lower the Desktop Resolution Your resolution is what makes up your screen in vertical and horizontal "lines." The more lines the screen has, the smaller images and text will appear. By right-clicking on your desktop in Windows, you can adjust your screen resolution to a lower setting and make those images and text blocks pop. On a Mac, you can find a list of supported resolutions under the Apple logo, System Preferences, and then Display. 6. Increase the Windows Text Size Windows 7 has an option to change the text and other items on-screen under the Display option under the Personalize menu, found by right-clicking on the desktop. This option is just limited to three settings: smaller, medium, and larger. Fortunately, an adjustment here

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Introduction

Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising. Mark Twain Advertising is the art of conveying a message to the masses. Advertisements generally persuade people about commercial products, services and even draw attention towards social issues. Advertising is one of the ch i e f d i v i s i o n s of any industry that ensures the industrys competitiveness in the corporate milieu. Indian

Career in Advertising
Career in Advertising

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http://www.jagranjosh.com/careers

a successful career. Step-by-step Advertising firms employ people with different educational backgrounds in various departments at various levels. Possessing a professional Degree or Diploma in a particular field of study can give you a head start in this industry. F u r t h e r, f l a i r f o r language and excellent communication skills are other factors essential for breaking into the realm of the advertising business. To get into a specific department of an advertisement agency, you could choose from the following courses: 1. Client Servicing: A post graduate diploma

advertising industry is on a roll and is all set to provide quality job to thousands of individuals in next few years. A career in advertising is a lucrative employment option that one can choose in the rapidly growing Indian economy. Advertising agencies generally prefer highly creative and talented individuals who can think independently and at the same time work as excellent team players. If you are interested in pursuing a career in advertising, you must be highly target oriented and willing to work in a pressure cooker like environment. Since this industry is very competitive, you must be willing to give your best at all times to make

or an MBA in marketing 2. Studio: Course in commercial art or fine

arts (BFA or MFA) 3. Media: Journalism, Mass Communication

or an MBA 4. 5. 6. Finance: CA, ICWA, MBA (Finance) Films: Specialization in audio visuals Production: A course in printing and pre

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press processes.

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client needs and also helps in effective decision making. An institution running advertising related courses can help train and develop students to pick up traits such as: 1. Effective communication 2. Presentation and management 3. Team and leadership skills 4. Stress and pressure management 5. Persuasiveness 6. Confidence 7. Competitiveness Various domestic and multinational companies in India certainly need highly qualified and experienced manpower for advertising. However, individual creativity and capability for innovation any day counts more than academic degrees in this fast paced business. What would it cost Studying at institutes such as the MICA (Mudra Institute of Communication, Ahmedabad) could cost you up to Rs.1 lakh per year. But at government and some other private institutions, the fee is much lower.

The best way to get into this field after a course is to get on- the- job training. All good institutions offer internship as part of the curriculum. Start early The first and the foremost requisite to take up a position in advertising world is to have a creative spark in ones life. This creativity can be in any form, be it in language, communication skills, drawing, innovative thinking, and so on. Eligibility for most of the advertising postgraduate courses is graduation in any discipline with a minimum of 50 percent marks. Admission to most of these courses is based on an entrance exam and/or interview. Some institutions also offer graduate level courses in advertising, for which they admit students who have cleared class XII. Is it the right career for me? If you are enthusiastic, naturally driven, creative, optimistic, and have the ability to multi task then advertising is the best career option for you. People skills are a vital requirement for this career as it makes one understand what a

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Funding/Scholarship Earning a scholarship may be a difficult task. In most cases, scholarships are awarded to applicants on the basis of excellent academic performances. Job prospect Job opportunities in advertising include openings in private advertising agencies; advertising departments of private and public sector companies. Job seekers can also find openings in newspapers, journals, magazines; commercial section of radio or television; market research organizations and so on. One can also work as a freelancer. Advertising manager, sales manager, public relations director, creative director, copy writer, and marketing communications manager are some of the major job opportunities in this field. Pay packet Pay Structure can vary from one agency to another depending on the size and turnover. Accredited agencies have a large set up while small agencies may have just a handful of employees looking after all the various jobs. Salary is generally not a constraint for the suitable

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candidate in this industry. This will, of course, depend on the individual's merit, qualifications, and experience. As a beginner, you get to do the basic stuff but experience enables you to negotiate deals. You can easily get into an agency at the lowest levels but sheer quality is demanded as you move up the ladder. However, the pay packets get heavier and heavier as the workload and level of experience rises. A beginner in the creative department usually starts with an average monthly salary of 8 to 15 thousand rupees. Demand and supply There is ample scope for talented individuals in the advertising industry in India. Those who are qualified in commercial art have great opportunities. MBAs can also play a significant role in client servicing. The advertising industry always has a perennial demand for creative talent. In order to succeed in the advertising

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market research, marketing, public relation services, and branding. With all these services, there is definitely no looking back for the Indian advertising industry that is all set to win accolades worldwide. Positives/Negatives +ives Challenging and satisfying job Hefty growth prospects that are one of the best in the country Heavy pay packets with dollops of project related incentives Chances of meeting the legends of advertising -ives An industry that is known for its extremely long working hours High pressure and stress inducing work environment Different roles, different names Advertising field offers a range of lucrative and interesting careers. The job in this field is categorized into two broad categories, namely, Executive and Creative.

arena, one has to have proficiency that is accompanied with varied talents. Market watch The Indian economy is on the move in spite of the global financial meltdown and the ad market is on a continuous trail of expansion. Growth in businesses has lead to a consecutive boom in the advertising industry as well. Advertising in India is quite superior and the local talent boasts of high production values with interesting ideas and concepts. All this has made India a desirable hub for recruiters within the country as well as internationally. International focus The global impact of the Indian aptitude with respect to the advertising industry is not only being noticed but appreciated worldwide. Indian agencies today handle both national and international assignments. This is primarily because of the reason that the industry offers a host of functions to its clients. Some of the offerings include endto-end solutions that consist of client media planning, servicing, media buying, pre and post campaign analysis, creative conceptualization,

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Executive: The executive side includes: Client Servicing, Market Research and Media Research. The executive department understands client requirements, seeks new business opportunities and retains existing business. This department also selects the appropriate media, analyses timing and placement of advertisements, and negotiates the financial aspects of a business deal. Creative: The creative team comprises of copywriters, scriptwriters, visualizes, creative directors, photographers, typographers, animators, and so on. The creative department creates the actual advertisement in different media formats. They verbalize and visualize the specific need of the client. Since ads are of different kinds depending on the media- print (newspapers, magazines, billboards,etc) and broadcast(radio, television and the internet), you can choose the area of specialization depending on your interest. Top companies Some of the giants in advertising and media planning that most students dream of working with are as follows: Hindustan Thomson Associates (HTA), McCann Erickson, Leo Burnett, Grey, R K Swamy BBDO, Bates, Redifussion Dy and R, Lintas India Ltd., Ogilvy & Mather Ltd., and Mudra Communications Ltd.. Tips for getting hired

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1. For many people interested in a career in advertising or public relations, internships are the key to unlocking the door to the industry. 2. The advertising industry has a voracious appetite for creativity and innovative thinking. Though the industry is said to be in its infant stage as compared to the western world it has been receptive to the changing times. 3. Excellent communication skills along with a specialization in your field of study from a reputed institution give you a cutting edge over fellow job seekers in this industry. Institutes to watch out for 1. Indian Institute Of Mass Communication, www.iimc.nic.in 2. Mudra Institute Of Communications (MICA) www.mica-india.net 3. Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, www.nmims.edu 4. Xavier's Institute Of Communication www. xaviercomm.org 5. Symbiosis Institiute of Media and Communication www.simc.edu

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Travel
Adventure Sports in Andaman and Nicobar Islands
The Andaman and Nicobar islands are bestowed with the reputation of housing some of the most delectable and gorgeous islands in this entire planet. Thus it constitutes one of the major temptations for the anxious holiday-makers. Basically, these water sports and related activities are most enjoyed by the adrenaline freaks who prefer to take risks. But there are other water sports as well which are suited for the ones who are not so much adventurous. The Andaman Water Sports Complex is a spot which remains filled with people who like to try their hands at the adventure sports and activities in Andaman and Nicobar islands. There are options like water skiing, Aqua-cycles, speed boating, Gemini boating, kayaking, wind-surfing and many more. Snorkeling is another water sport that is considered to be one of the most coveted amongst all the adventure sports and activities of Andaman and Nicobar islands. In this, the snorkeler has to swim on the surface of the sea with his head immersed in the water. The chief snorkeling equipments include a snorkel, a wet suit in case the temperature of the water is low and a diving mask along with a pair of

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swim fins. Among other adventure sports and activities at Andaman and Nicobar Islands is scuba diving which is practiced by many water sport enthusiasts. In this the scuba diver has to carry an artificial breathing apparatus beneath the surface of water to observe the marine life without any hindrance. Snorkeling The recreational activity designated as snorkeling is slowly but surely gaining immense popularity as there is a provision to practice it at numerous venues in the Andaman and Nicobar islands. Snorkeling at Andaman and Nicobar islands procures a great means of exploring the baffling and enigmatic marine territories which are home to spectacular species of flora and fauna. Especially if you are intrigued by multicolor corals, the islands of Jolly Buoy and Red Skin would definitely live up to your expectations. In the water sport of snorkeling at Andaman and Nicobar Islands you get to glide across the surface of the water while having a diving mask on. You would also require an extremely uncanny device regarded as a 'snorkel' which is at the basic level a j-shaped tube which

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is approximately 12 inches long. The chief material used in the manufacture of this bizarre equipment is either plastic or rubber. The snorkel also consists of a mouth-piece that enables the snorkeler to draw in precious breaths of air while being submerged in the

emerald blue waters of the immense seas. You also need to include swim fins in you snorkeling gear as they are indispensable because they aid you to remain afloat on the surface of water with absolute ease. You can witness many gorgeous under-water creatures with the aid of snorkeling. Like there is a possibility that you might come across a sting ray, shrimp, sea turtles or seaweeds while engaged in this fun-filled recreational activity. While snorkeling in chilled waters it is mandatory to put on a wet suit. The best locales for snorkeling in Andaman and Nicobar islands are the tepid and less turbulent waters

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of the deep blue seas. Scuba Diving

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deserves to be praised. One advantage of scuba diving at Andaman and Nicobar islands is that the confluent coral life-forms that dominate the under-water territory have not been exposed to any sort of damage or catastrophe as a result of which water-sport enthusiasts from all over across the globe assemble here to view the enchanting marine fauna.

Scuba Diving in Andaman and Nicobar islands is a truly popular water sport in the islands of Andaman and Nicobar as the immense seas spanning these delectable locales house a huge variety of corals that come in different colours. The coral reef that is harboured in the abstruse waters of the sea is truly something that

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Important Days & Dates to Remember

Date
December 1, 2013 December 16, 2013 Sunday Monday

Day

Exam
RMO 2013-14: Exam Day (1:00 pm to 4:00 pm) IIT-JEE 2014 (Mains) : Closing of Online Application Process of JEE(Main)-2014

News at a Glance
4.5 cm meteorite to answer 'how Mars turned to stone'
A meteorite may help explain as to how the Red Planet became a cold, rocky desert after losing its thick, carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere, according to researchers. The researchers said that the Lafayette meteorite showed carbonation signs - minerals absorb carbon dioxide in a reaction with water. The researchers said that carbonation may be the key to understand why Mars lost its protective blanket about 4 billion years ago. The 4.5cm Lafayette meteorite was found in Indiana, US, in 1931, after plummeting to Earth about 3,000 years ago. The meteorite formed in Mar's crust about 1.3 billion years ago, and was thrown out of the surface by a massive impact.

A research team from the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (SUERC) performed microscopic analysis on a section of the rock - borrowed from the Natural History Museum in London - and found that silicate minerals, like olivine and feldspar, had interacted with CO2-rich liquid water to form siderite crystals. Researchers said that the new finding suggests that liquid water may have present on the Red Planet more recently than believed. They also said that it represents the first direct proof for carbonation on Mars - and ties in with the finding of carbonates by Nasa's Curiosity Mars rover. The study has been published in journal Nature Communications. (Source: http://zeenews.india.com ANI, October 2013)

Six-month-old babies maths skills forecast their potential

A new research by US scientists has found that

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developing maths skills.

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who had gazed more at the screen that shows changes in number of dots when they were six-month-old scored consistently higher in the tests at three-and-a-half-years age.

baby as old as six months of age has started

The study published this week in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences was done by Elizabeth Brannon, a neuroscientist at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and her colleagues. In a 2010 experiment, Brannon and colleagues had shown that six-month-old babies did have a number sense in varying levels. In the study, six-month-old babies were given two screens- one shows a constant number of dots that change in appearance and the other shows changes in the number of dots as well as change in appearance. Researchers found that infant who has a good primitive number sense will spend more time gazing at the screen with changing number of dots. In the latest experiment, Brannon and colleagues took a group of 48 babies who had been tested at six months of age and again tested them three years later for maths skills using the same dot test and some standard maths like - ability to count, classifying the larger number in a pair and some basic calculations. Interestingly, the team found that infants

The team found a correlation between the infants scores for early approximate number systems and later mathematical abilities that is totally mind blowing, Justin Halberda, a neuroscientist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, who was not involved in the study was quoted by Nature as saying. The findings do not prove that numerical acuity is entirely innate, Brannon notes. Even in the first six months of an infants life, theres plenty of opportunity for environmental influence on mathematical abilities, she says as quoted by Nature. (Source: http://zeenews.india.com)

Earth to be habitable for another 1.75 billion years

Earth will remain habitable for at least another 1.75 billion years, a new study suggests. After this point, our planet will be in the 'hot zone' of the Sun, with temperatures so high that the seas would evaporate, causing a catastrophic and terminal extinction event for all life, researchers said.

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Using recently discovered planets outside our solar system (exoplanets) as examples, researchers investigated the potential for these planets to host life. "We used the 'habitable zone' concept to make these estimates - this is the distance from a planet's star at which temperatures are conducive to having liquid water on the surface," said Andrew Rushby, from University of East Anglia (UEA)'s school of Environmental Sciences. "We used stellar evolution models to estimate the end of a planet's habitable lifetime by determining when it will no longer be in the habitable zone. We estimate that Earth will cease to be habitable somewhere between 1.75 and 3.25 billion years from now. "After this point, Earth will be in the 'hot zone' of the Sun, with temperatures so high that the seas would evaporate. We would see a catastrophic and terminal extinction event for all life," said Rushby. Rushby said conditions for humans and other complex life will become impossible much sooner - and this is being accelerated by anthropogenic climate change. "Humans would be in trouble with even a small increase in temperature, and near the end only microbes in niche environments would be able to endure the heat," said Rushby.

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"Looking at habitability metrics is useful because it allows us to investigate the potential for other planets to host life, and understand the stage that life may be at elsewhere in the galaxy. "Of course, much of evolution is down to luck, so this isn't concrete, but we know that complex, intelligent species like humans could not emerge after only a few million years because it took us 75 per cent of the entire habitable lifetime of this planet to evolve. We think it will probably be a similar story elsewhere," said Rushby. Almost 1,000 planets outside our solar system have been identified by astronomers. The research team looked at some of these as examples, and studied the evolving nature of planetary habitability over astronomical and geological time. "We compared Earth to eight planets which are currently in their habitable phase, including Mars. We found that planets orbiting smaller mass stars tend to have longer habitable zone lifetimes," said Rushby.

(Source: http://www.indianexpress.com)

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flew aboard the orbiter on its STS-60 mission in 1994, the first effort in the joint U.S./Russian Shuttle-Mir program. 3. Discovery was the first American spacecraft to be piloted by a woman. NASA astronaut Eileen Collins piloted the shuttle's STS-63 mission in 1995, which rendezvoused with Russia's Mir space station. (Collins became the first female shuttle commander in history on Columbia's STS-93 mission in 1999, which deployed NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory.) 4. Work began on Discovery in 1979, and the shuttle wasn't completed until October 1983 in Palmdale, Calif. It was then flown aboard a 747 carrier aircraft to NASA's Kennedy Space Centre, where it launched on its maiden mission in August 1984. 5. Discovery is the only shuttle ever to fly one of the Mercury Seven NASA's first astronaut class, which was chosen in 1959. The orbiter carried John Glenn on its STS-95 mission in October 1998, when the astronaut was 77. Glenn thus became the oldest person ever to reach space; 36 years earlier, in 1962, he had become the first American to orbit Earth. 6. Discovery was the first shuttle to launch after each of the shuttle program's tragedies, the January 1986 explosion of Challenger and the February 2003 destruction of Columbia as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere. Each disaster took the lives of all seven astronauts aboard. In both cases, the shuttle program took several years to get back on its feet.

Future Events
FIITJEE Admission Test Date : 29th December, 2013

Amazing facts
10 Cool Facts about NASA's Space Shuttle Discovery
1. NASA's space-flown orbiters were all named after historic oceangoing research or exploration vessels. Discovery takes its name from two ships that loom large in the history of exploration. One was sailed by Henry Hudson in 1610-11 to search for a northwest passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and the other was helmed by James Cook on an 18th-century voyage during which he discovered the Hawaiian Islands. 2. Discovery also carried the first Russian cosmonaut ever to launch in an American spacecraft. S e r g e i Krikalev

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Discovery's return-to-flight missions launched in September 1988 and July 2005, respectively. 7. Astronauts aboard Discovery deployed NASA's Hubble Space Telescope on the shuttle's STS-31 mission in April 1990. Twenty-two years and numerous repair missions later, the instrument continues to snap stunning photos that help reshape our understanding of the cosmos.

Rendezvous

on its odometer, another space shuttle record. The miles travelled by Discovery could have carried it to the moon and back more than 300 times. 10. Discovery flew 39 space missions during its operational life, the first in 1984 and the last one in 2011. It notched more spaceflights than any other space shuttle, or any other spacecraft for that matter. http://www.space.com

Q.
8. Discovery's somewhat dingy appearance surprises many people who see the venerable orbiter up close. The many marks on the shuttle are a testament to its long career and many spaceflights, NASA officials say. "When you look at her up close, she does look worn," said NASA's Stephanie Stilson, who managed Discovery's processing flow between the orbiter's missions from 2000 to 2011. "There are discolorations and streaks from going from orbit back into our environment here." 9. Over the course of its 39 missions, Discovery logged a total of 365 days in space. It also put 148,221,675 miles

Question crack

Brian, Rennie, and their dog start walking down a road in the same direction. They start at the same point and at the same time. Brian walks at 12 km/h, while Rennie walks at the speed of 10 km/h. Their dog runs from Brian to Rennie and back again with a constant speed of 15 km/h. How far does the dog travel in 1 hour?

{Send us your reply to rendezvous@fiitjee. com and check the January, 2014 issue for the answers and the names of first 10 winners who answer both the questions correctly. Please mention your details in the mail.}

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Answer of October Issue

Answer: Totally there are 10 barrels. Take 1 coin from first barrel, 2 coins from second barrel, 3 coins from third barrel, as on for ten barrels. Now consider that if every barrel contains 1 gram coins, the total weight of the coins picked from the barrels will be 55 grams. If the 2 gram coin is in the first barrel, then the total weight will be 56 grams. If it is in second barrel, the total weight will be 57 grams. Just subtract the considered weight 55 from the total weight, you will get the barrel which contains 2 gram gold coins.

Winners of October Issue Question

1 Vishal Kumar Durgapur Centre 2. Anurag Priyadarshi - South Delhi Centre 3. Suraj Verma 4. Kiran Rao - Delhi 5. Mohd. K - Chennai 6. Yogita Sharma Faridabad 7. Sukumar Bhubaneshwar Centre 8. Prashant Amritsar

Riddle
If I say "Everything I tell you is a lie," am I telling you the truth or a lie?

9. Divya Dutta Bokaro 10. Kuldeep Kharbanda- West Delhi

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