Book Review – The Ocean of Churn

History is the art of researching facts well and building compelling narratives based on the said facts. Few modern scholars do this better than Sanjeev Sanyal. Asian histories have been rendered in a biased manner since time immemorial. As a famous saying that goes, until an animal has its own history, the history of the hunting will always glorify the hunter. If we take any history curriculum in Indian Education system, we can read leaps and bounds of Mughal Empire, the British regime, the Sultanates and such similar accounts.

Unfortunately, we won’t be able to read the histories of Cholas, Pandyas, Pallavas in greater detail and their glories have been limited to few pages here and there. This book, one of a kind in its genre, breaks that stupor and gives us a riveting account of how the Indian Ocean has shaped the human history. Indian Ocean is itself a big mystery. It holds many unresolved or undiscovered history that is hidden deep into its core. Author Sanjeev Sanyal tried to uncover this in this vast researched and well-articulated book and succeeded in satiating his readers.

The book opens up by a fascinating tale of how the Pallava dynasty has traced an heir to their kingdom when the erstwhile King, Parameshwara Verman II died in 731 CE. A delegation of Brahmin scholars, which travelled across the Indian Ocean to the far ends of Cambodia and got back an heir that traced his roots to the Pallava dynasty from five long generations ago and reign of Nandi Verman II has started.

The Ocean of Churn begins its journey even before the formation of the Indian Ocean. It talks about the super continent called Gondwana that existed more than 270 Million years ago and the mighty Saraswati River and how it dried up due to the tectonic plate shifts, how the Himalaya has been formed, and how the races have been migrated from India to outside world. This book traces the history through the Ocean way. How people set up its civilization, how their trade hub got established, what was their commercial aspects, how they dealt with various traders inside and outside their territory and so on.

From Harappan times, Indians have been trading with the world in many ways. Maritime trading is the major aspect during those times when land routes were hardly discovered. The powerful Chola king, Rajendra Chola made a naval attack on the Sri Vijaya Kingdom of Sumatra by 1025 is one such example. Chola Empire was one of the powerful empires in the entire South Asia region during that time. There were a major geo-political-economic alliances or rivalries between Indians, Chinese and the Sri Vijaya Kingdom.

Kerala being the hub of the maritime trade have witnessed a vast amount of geo-political-economic tradeoffs. As a testimony to those, even today in Kerala, we have the world’s second Mosque and India’s first mosque (Cheraman Perumal Mosque) built by the king Cheraman Perumal by the orders of Mohammed the prophet himself in 629 AD. We also get to see the memorial of St. Thomas (doubting Thomas fame), a disciple of Jesus, who visited Kerala via sea route.

Overall, this book is a well-researched one. It starts right from the origin of India Ocean due to the tectonic plate shifts and ends right at the transformation of Bombay to Mumbai with the reclamation of land over the Ocean. This book is full of rich details of all kingdoms that throve around the Indian Ocean, Indian Coastline and several islands of the Indian Ocean that also had cultural trade ties with India and its kingdoms.

Women’s Tennis after Serena Williams

Who do you expect would square off in the women’s singles final at Wimbledon this year? It’s comparatively easy to predict the men’s final line-up. The top five players of the men’s tour account for 47 of 50 Grand Slam Titles since 2005. In women’s tennis, uncertainty is the dominant theme.

Serena Williams, who has won 72 singles titles, including 23 Grand Slams (a record in open era, starting 1968, and one short of the all-time record held by Margaret Court), has taken a break from the game as she is expecting a child. After Serena, who can be a new star in Tennis? Jelena Ostapenko – 20 year old Latvian won the French Open last month, she became the youngest woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Maria Sharapova won the Wimbledon in 2004 at the age of 17.

After winning the French Open last year, Garbine Muguruza of Spain played in 19 tournaments till the event this year. Her best performances were three semi-finals finishes. World No.1, Angelique Kerber, won two Grand Slams last year. This year, the German has hardly made any statements. Of the 12 tournaments she has played so far, her best finish was in the Abierto GNP Seguros finals in April. At the French Open, she lost in the first round.

An open race to the No.1 spot could be good news for the rest of the field. World No.2 Simona Halep of Romania, after a slow start this year, Halep was the runner-up at the 2017 French Open. Karolina Pliskova, the world No.3 from the Czech Republic, is another contender for the year-end top ranking, having won four titles so far this year. Still, the field is wide open.

Of the 33 tournaments played this year till 26 June, only Elina Svitolina from Ukraine has won four titles. Three others – Karolina Pliskova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Johanna Konta – have won two titles each and a staggering 23 women have won a title each this year. The return of Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azerenka from Belarus and Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic could help the WTA Tour. 

Countries that tried GST before India

The Goods and Services Tax (GST), India’s biggest tax reform since Independence, will unify a $2 Trillion economy into a single market. This big tax overhaul will be a test for India. Not only does the country’s size and diversity make the challenge daunting – 1.3 Billion people, 29 states, 22 official languages – it’s also implementing multiple rates. Here are some countries who had implemented GST are –

Canada – When Canada implemented its goods and services tax in 1991, retailers offered customers “Don’t Blame Me for the GST” stickers amid cash-register snafus and vending machine meltdowns.

Australia – Three years after pledging in 1995 to “never” introduce a GST, Australia PM John Howard reversed his policy for the 1998 election, saying he was seeking a mandate to implement a 10 percent tax on most Goods and Services. He barely won amid a voter backlash, but that narrow victory was enough to legislate a GST that’s been used to fund health care and schools funding for the states. It excludes some politically contentious items such as fresh food, pre-owned real estate, medical and education services. Current PM Malcolm Turnbull toyed with the idea of increasing the tax to 15 percent, but ruled that out in February 2016.

South Korea – Following the introduction of a value added tax in 1977, a game of hide and seek broke out between tax officials implementing the new system and market vendors seeking to avoid taxation, prompting newspaper Dong-A llbo in 1978 to describe the year as a “365-day nightmare”. The day the indirect tax regime applied some taxi drivers thought the new system applied to taxi fares and argued with customers that they need to pay 10 percent more than the price on the meter.

Malaysia – Following the implementation of GST in April 2015, there were reports cash registers weren’t calibrated to deal with the new regime, government agencies weren’t ready and GST refunds were delayed.

What is Lidar Technology?

Spacecraft use it to measure distance. Farmers use it to work out which fields need fertilizer. Archaeologists use it to map topography. And, crucially for Uber Technologies Inc. and Alphabet Inc. Waymo, self-driving cars use lidar to navigate.

As carmakers and technology entrants scramble to develop autonomous vehicles, lidar has become a highly coveted technology. And now it’s at the center of a lawsuit pitting Waymo against Uber, the ride hailing seeking to create its own autonomous vehicle empire. Waymo, the self-driving car business of Google parent Alphabet, accused Uber of stealing its lidar designs.

Lidar is a radar-like system that uses lasers instead of radio waves to build a 3-D image of the surrounding landscape. Since satellite navigation systems are only accurate to within a 16 Feet and can be easily flummoxed by high rise and glass fronted buildings, autonomous vehicles require an array of other sensors to position themselves precisely and maintain awareness of nearby pedestrians, vehicles and other objects.

Lidar comprises a series of rotating, stacked lasers that shoot out at different angles. Each layer is called a channel, and is made up of two laser beams. The signal from each individual channel creates one contour line, and together, those lines generate a 3-D image of the surrounding environment. That means that, the more lasers in each stack, the higher the resolution. Velodyne, for instance, manufactures products with 16, 32 and 64 laser channels.

The main hurdle to lidar becoming a widely adopted technology in mass-produced cars is cost. A 64-channel unit from Velodyne can cost more than $50,000, while the lower end 16-channel product sells for $7,999. Since a car might require several lidar units, it quickly makes the cost prohibitive for anything but the most expensive luxury cars. Velodyne and competitors such as Quanergy Systems Inc. are working to reduce the price. That would be accelerated by major orders for mass market cars.

The appeal of lidar has prompted a race for the technology. Automotive supplier Continental AG bought a lidar business from Advanced Scientific Concepts Inc. in 2016, while France’s Valeo SA has teamed up with Canada’s LeddarTech to supply the product.

Book Review – The Fountain Head

“The Fountain Head” is definitely one of the best books I’ve ever read. It tells the story of a few people in New York of the 20s – 30s. There are 5 characters about whom a lot is written, and these are main characters of the book. The characters are Howard Roark – a brilliant architect. He keeps faithful to his beliefs and ideology. It’s a story of his struggle against people and opinions that oppose that ideology.

Dominique Francon – Newspaper women. Throughout the book she gets married with most of the main characters Keating, Gail Wynand and Roark. Each marriage is, in my eyes, a symbol of a different union. She magnifies the difference between the people she marries. Gail Wynand - one of the most influential people in the city. Owner of a huge press empire, and in particular of "The New York Banner" - the most widely circulated paper in the city. Peter Keating - begins as an excellent architecture student and rises as a famous architect. Eventually falls to pieces. Ellsworth Toohey - a reporter and organizer of communities in unions.

Howard Roark’s strength lies in his work. He an honest man, never distracted by the worldly entities, dedicated and focused, behaving bluntly, mostly take him for being rude, clear mind, and emotionally strong. Work gives him joy. He enjoys his work. On the other hand, there is Peter Keating. He is one of the most realistic characters of the book. Believe in success, but his way of achieving it is not so a likeable method yet fondly practiced all over the world. 

The main theme of "The Fountainhead" is the struggle of the free mind, creativeness and individualism (all symbolized in Roark) against the common opinion, "second-handers", people who think only about what other people think. This main theme is very important, as it is the philosophical main idea of the book and most of the characters revolve around it. He is an independent architect, caring little about the opinion of others. He builds in order to build, to create "right" buildings. Dominique, Wynand and Toohey all "understand" the theme, but differently. Wynand raises himself about all others. He is a freak of power, caused by a difficult childhood. He despises all "second-handers" and aspires to rule them, bending their opinions at his will. Toohey is a very smart and sleek man and he understand how to influence "second-handers", and builds a great supporting around him, which isn't really explicitly felt as supporting by anyone. Eventually, it becomes clear that he wants to take over Wynand Empire.

The narrative is straight and the dialogues exchange between the characters of the book is what droves the plot forward. Not at a single point the book disappointed me, but rather after every chapter it made me curious that helped to read it with more eagerness. Rand’s characterization is well thought and maintained throughout the book. Objectivism is the professional theme of the novel. One might say that Love is a sub theme but I did not see it is a sub theme.

The book enlightened me on the subjects of Collectivism, Individualism, Altruism, and provoked the thought about how society works is a rat race gone all wrong. It will enlighten you about the human parasites/second-handers. Also, it unmasks those who are hell bent on killing the spirit of individualism and want to empower mediocrity because individualism promotes the genius of human mind and mediocrity kills that genius. 

India GST Rates in 2017

The Goods and Services Tax has been one of the key things that have caught the attention of the market given its implications on earnings of companies. The government has kept a large number of items under 18% tax slabs. The government categorized 1211 items under various tax slabs. Here is a low-down on the tax slab these items would attract. Gold and Rough diamonds do not fall under the current rate slab ambit and will be taxed at 3% and 0.25% respectively.

No Tax Goods & Services – No tax will be imposed on items like Jute, Fresh Meat, Fish chicken, Eggs, Milk, Butter Milk, Curd, Natural Honey, Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, Flour, Besan, Bread, Prasad, Salt, Bindi, Sindoor, Stamps, Newspapers etc. Hotels and Lodges with tariff below Rs 1,000, grandfathering service have been exempted under GST.

5% Goods & Services – Items such as Fish Fillet, Apparel below Rs 1000, packaged food items, footwear below Rs 500, cream, skimmed milk powder, branded paneer, frozen vegetables, Coffee, Tea etc. will attract tax of 5%. Transport Services, small restaurants will be under the 5% category because their main input is petroleum, which is outside GST ambit.

12% Goods & Services – Apparel above Rs 1000, Frozen meat products, butter, Cheese, Ghee, Dry Fruits in packaged form, Animal Fat, Sausage, Tooth Powder, Ayurvedic Medicines, Umbrella etc. will be under 12% tax slab. Non – AC hotels, business class air ticket, fertilizers, Work Contracts will fall under 12% GST tax slab.

18% Goods & Services – Most items under this tax slab which include Footwear costing more than Rs 500, Biscuits, Flavored refined sugar, Pasta, Cornflakes, Jams, Sauces, Tampons, Camera, Speaker and Monitors etc. AC Hotel that serve liquor, telecom services, IT services, branded garments and financial services will attract 18% tax under GST.

28% Goods & Services – Chewing Gum, Bidis, Pan Masala, Chocolate not containing Cocoa, Hair Shampoo, Ceramic Tiles, Water Heater, Washing Machine, ATM, Vacuum Cleaner, Shavers, Hair Clippers, Automobiles, Motorcycles, Aircraft for personal use etc. will attract 28% tax – the highest under GST system. 5-Star hotels, race club betting, cinema will attract tax 28% tax slab under GST.

Future of Electric Vehicles in India

Electric Vehicles are growing in popularity and certainly in mind space. They are cleaner and more efficient and even fun. Their growth, however, is still considered just a market problem. The end user should choose on the basis of what it costs to buy and run, or how it performs, etc. Markets matter but there is also a need for government and policy inputs. EVs, after all, operate within broader energy and transportation ecosystems with their own distortions. Unless we understand Indian-use cases, driver limitations and opportunities, we risk ambitious targets that remain aspirational.

Indians are famously value conscious. This is why consumers love diesel cars, despite their higher MRP and pollution relative to petrol counterparts. Even at today’s low oil prices, running a diesel sedan can cost about Rs3.8 per kilometre versus petrol’s Rs5.5. In contrast, CNG costs roughly Rs1.9/km, but it’s not widely available. The cost of EVs depends on electricity price, which varies significantly. At Rs7/kWh (kilowatt hour) of power, they cost only about Rs1.1/km. This saves consumers driving 5,000km per year over Rs 20,000 annually, and taxis much more as they drive 10-15 times as much.

The catch is the upfront cost. EVs are expensive, primarily because of the battery. A single kWh of electricity is enough to go about 6km, so a 200km “full tank” range requires about 35 kWh of battery. Today’s prices for lithium ion batteries are about $250/kWh globally, which comes to Rs 5.7 lakh in battery costs, excluding import duties. Even with an eight-year lifespan and a 12% interest rate, justifying the battery costs on per kilometre savings alone means one would have to drive over 25,000km per year. However, when battery prices fall to $100/kWh, as projected a few years out, EVs can become a game changer.

Range turns out to be key: 5,000km per year is only about 15km per day on average, while an urban taxi may do 300km daily. Higher range means not only more battery cost but weight as well. In an ideal world, we would have a smaller battery pack and simply recharge periodically. In practice, taxi and fleet vehicles can only charge overnight, and even private users may have limits on charging options. Without fast-charging infrastructure—fast-charging an EV requires much more power than household 15 amp sockets, which can only offer about 3 kW of power, so 35 kWh takes almost 12 hours to charge—one inevitably has “range anxiety”. Unlike the US, most Indians don’t have a personal garage. Hence, widespread and company-agnostic public charging infrastructure becomes a key policy choice.

Not only are EVs efficient – with regenerative braking capturing energy otherwise wasted and also due to the inherent efficiency of motors, especially at low speeds they pollute less. We should value such environmental co-benefits, not just carbon reductions. We could compensate cleaner vehicles through reduced registration charges, or even aim for mandating EVs for taxis and selected public transport vehicles. These are often diesel and thus far worse polluters.

There are other distortions to consider. Over half of petrol’s pump prices are for taxes. Petrol taxes are 1% of GDP and diesel 2% and fully switching to EVs means affecting 2% of GDP. Of course, oil is predominantly imported, so moving to EVs should be a worthwhile trade-off. Plus, over-time more and more electricity will come from renewable sources.

What is Ransomware?

Computers across the world were locked up and user’s files held for ransom when dozens of countries were hit in a cyberattack that targeted hospitals, companies and government agencies. Malware is a general term that refers to software that’s harmful to your computer. Ransomware is a type of malware that essentially takes over a computer and prevents users from accessing data on it until a ransom is paid.

How computer is infected - In most cases, the software infects computers through links or attachments in malicious messages known as phishing emails. The software usually is hidden within links or attachments in emails. Once the user clicks on the link or opens the document, their computer is infected and the software takes over. Ransomware, like the name suggests is when your files are held for ransom. It finds all your files and encrypts them and then leaves you a message. If you want to decrypt them, you have to pay.

How it works - The ransomware encrypts data on the computer using an encryption key that only the attacker knows. If the ransom isn’t paid, the data is often lost forever. When the ransomware takes over a computer, the attackers are pretty explicit in their demands. In most cases, they change the wallpaper of the computer and give specific instructions telling the user how to pay to recover their files. Most attackers demand between $300 and $500 to remove the malicious ransomware; the price can double if the amount isn’t paid within 24 hours. Law enforcement officials have discouraged people from paying these ransoms.

How to avoid it - Users should regularly back up their data and ensure that security updates are installed on your computer as soon as they are released Up-to-date backups make it possible to restore files without paying a ransom. Users should also look for malicious email messages that often masquerade as emails from companies or people you regularly interact with online. It’s important to avoid clicking on links or opening attachments in those messages, since they could unleash malware.

Bitcoin – The Digital Currency

It’s worth more than an ounce of gold right now. It’s completely Digital and it’s the currency of choice for the cyber attackers who crippled computer networks around the world in recent days. When the attackers' "ransomware'' sprang into action, it held victims hostage by encrypting their data and demanding they send payments in Bitcoins to regain access to their computers. Bitcoin has a fuzzy history, but it's a type of currency that allows people to buy goods and services and exchange money without involving banks, credit card issuers or other third parties. 

How Bitcoins work – Bitcoin is a digital currency that is not tied to a bank or government and allows users to spend money anonymously. The coins are created by users who ‘mine’ them by lending computing power to verify other user’s transactions. They receive Bitcoins in exchange. The coins also can be bought and sold on exchanges with U.S dollars and other currencies.

Why are Bitcoins popular? - Bitcoins are basically lines of computer code that are digitally signed each time they travel from one owner to the next. Transactions can be made anonymously, making the currency popular with libertarians as well as tech enthusiasts, speculators and criminals.

Is it really anonymous - Yes, to a point. Transactions and accounts can be traced, but the account owners aren't necessarily known. However, investigators might be able to track down the owners when Bitcoins are converted to regular currency. For now, the three accounts tied to the ransomware attack appear untouched and it'll be difficult for perpetrators to cash in anytime soon without getting traced. 

Who's using bitcoin? - Some businesses have jumped on the bitcoin bandwagon amid a flurry of media coverage. Overstock.com accepts payments in bitcoin, for example. The currency has become popular enough that more than 300,000 daily transactions have been occurring recently, according to bitcoin wallet site blockchain.info. A year ago, activity was closer to 230,000 transactions per day. Still, its popularity is low compared with cash and cards, and many individuals and businesses won't accept Bitcoins for payments. 

How Bitcoins are kept secure? - The bitcoin network works by harnessing individuals' greed for the collective good. A network of tech-savvy users called miners keep the system honest by pouring their computing power into a Blockchain, a global running tally of every bitcoin transaction. The Blockchain prevents rogues from spending the same bitcoin twice, and the miners are rewarded for their efforts by being gifted with the occasional bitcoin. As long as miners keep the Blockchain secure, counterfeiting shouldn't be an issue.

How bitcoin came to be - It's a mystery. Bitcoin was launched in 2009 by a person or group of people operating under the name Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin was then adopted by a small clutch of enthusiasts. Nakamoto dropped off the map as bitcoin began to attract widespread attention. The currency obeys its own internal logic.

What is Blockchain Technology?

The Blockchain is an undeniably ingenious invention. By allowing digital information to be distributed but not copied, Blockchain technology created the backbone of a new type of internet. The Blockchain is an incorruptible digital ledger of economic transactions that can be programmed to record not just financial transactions but virtually everything of value.

Picture a spreadsheet that is duplicated thousands of times across a network of computers. Then imagine that this network is designed to regularly update this spreadsheet and you have a basic understanding of the Blockchain. Information held on a Blockchain exists as a shared — and continually reconciled — database. This is a way of using the network that has obvious benefits. The Blockchain database isn’t stored in any single location, meaning the records it keeps are truly public and easily verifiable. No centralized version of this information exists for a hacker to corrupt. Hosted by millions of computers simultaneously, its data is accessible to anyone on the internet.

Blockchain technology is like the internet in that it has a built-in robustness. By storing blocks of information that are identical across its network, the Blockchain cannot: Be controlled by any single entity and has no single point of failure. Bitcoin was invented in 2008. Since that time, the Bitcoin Blockchain has operated without significant disruption. The Blockchain network lives in a state of consensus, one that automatically checks in with itself every ten minutes.  A kind of self-auditing ecosystem of a digital value, the network reconciles every transaction that happens in ten-minute intervals. Each group of these transactions is referred to as a “block”. Two important properties result from this: Transparency and it cannot be corrupted.

By storing data across its network, the Blockchain eliminates the risks that come with data being held centrally. Its network lacks centralized points of vulnerability that computer hackers can exploit. Today’s internet has security problems that are familiar to everyone. We all rely on the “username/password” system to protect our identity and assets online. Blockchain security methods use encryption technology. The basis for this is the so-called public and private “keys”. A “public key” is a users’ address on the Blockchain. Bitcoins sent across the network gets recorded as belonging to that address. The “private key” is like a password that gives its owner access to their Bitcoin or other digital assets. Store your data on the Blockchain and it is incorruptible.

With Blockchain technology, the web gains a new layer of functionality. Already, users can transact directly with one another — Bitcoin transactions in 2016 averaged over $200,000 US per day. With the added security brought by the Blockchain new internet business are on track to unbundle the traditional institutions of finance. Goldman Sachs believes that Blockchain technology holds great potential especially to optimize clearing and settlements, and could represent global savings of up to $6bn per year.

History behind International Labour Day

What started as International Workers Day in Chicago in May 1886 further spread to other parts of the world, India being no exception. The first celebration of Labour Day in India took place in Chennai on May 1, 1923. Organized by the Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan, the red flag, an emblem of the labour class, was also used in India.

The party's leader, Singaravelu Chettiar, conducted 'May Day' celebrations in two places — one at a beach opposite Madras High court and the other at the Triplicane beach. He later presided over the meeting and a resolution declaring a holiday on the occasion was passed here. Certain other pointers explaining non-violent principles of the party, request for some financial aid and achieving independence for the workers of the world were discussed, too.

A nationwide public holiday, it highlights the labour movements for communist and socialist political parties. It is known by various names like Kamgar Din (Hindi), Kamgar Divas (Marathi) and Uzhaipalar Dinam (Tamil), the 'Antarrashtriya Shramik Diwas'.

Until the official declaration in 1917, Russians celebrated the day illegally. Post this year, these celebrations were boycotted by Left Socialist Revolutionaries, anarchists and Mensheviks. It went on to become a significant official holiday of the Soviet Union, which they celebrated with parades in major cities. Since 1992, it is officially termed as 'The Day of Spring and Labour' and is a major holiday.

In Japan, while there's no officially designated holiday on the day, most people take their day off since it falls between other national holidays. Starting from April 29, the 'Golden Week' begins. This day is celebrated as Showa Day, the birthday of Emperor Showa, who reigned between 1926 and 1989. May 3, 4 and 5 are celebrated as Constitution Memorial Day, Greenery Day and Children's Day, respectively.

In New Zealand and some parts of Australia, this day is celebrated on the first Monday of October, while in US and Canada; it takes place on the first Monday of September. Every year, a theme is planned by the members of the International Labour Day, this year being 'Celebrating the international labour movement'. This theme becomes the centre point of the celebrations and activities like crossword puzzle, anagram puzzle, word search puzzle, code cracker puzzle, word scramble puzzle take place.

Apps to keep yourself Fit and Healthy

Obino: For real-time Health

Among the myriad health and weight stands out with its personalised approach a dedicated coach will monitor your eating habits real time, interact with you through the app, and prescribe tailored diets and lifestyle changes. While a pedometer in the app tracks your steps during the day, another fitness coach will guide you on activities and weight loss exercises. But all that's not going to work without that extra ounce of commitment on your part.

Noisli: For customizable ambient Noise

The app plays a selection of sounds including rain, a stream, storm, and others to help you concentrate while working or studying, or relax before going to sleep. The sounds can be mixed and there's a color changing background to help with your relaxation. Other features include offline sounds and timer with a fadeout function.

Poccare: For appointment with doctors, hospitals and wellness chains

It's a patient-centric app that not only helps you with a hassle-free appointment with doctors, but also allows consulting them through video call and live web chat. You can set medicine reminders, access your medical records including diagnosis and test records, and get answers to common health questions.

Sleep Cycle: For Intelligent sleep analysis

A good night's sleep is just as important as eating healthy and exercising. If you have trouble sleeping, this app can tell you when you were in a deep sleep or awake during the night, how much sleep you got, your sleep quality, sleep quality affected by weather, activity and more. It comes with a lot of features, data charts and customization options.

Calm: For guided meditation sessions

If you are looking for an app that can help you relax, improve concentration and sleep better, download Calm. It has a library of meditation audios and 'scenes' that you can watch. If you register, you will be able to access a seven-day program to get into the practice of meditation. Once you feel ready for more programs, you can subscribe it to access its entire library.

RunKeeper: For sports and fitness activity tracking

The app tracks your workouts as well as weight loss. It has planned routes and set workouts, though you can create your own with audio coaching. You can create a custom fitness challenge, invite friends, track each other's progress, and cheer each other on chat. It can be synced with other tracking apps like MyFitnessPal's Calorie Counter and Fitbit.

Change in Planning Commission

A key component of the Nehruvian socialism – the economic approach by India’s First Prime Minister – the Five Year Plans have been laid to rest by the NDA Government. The 12^th Plan, the last of the Five Year Plans, had come to an end on March 31, though it has been given an extension of six months to allow ministries to complete their appraisals.

The decades old Five Year Plans will make way for a three year action plan, which will be a part of a seven year strategy paper and a 15 year vision document. The Niti Aayog, which has replaced the Planning Commission, had launched a three year action plan from April 1.

Five Year Plans – FYP were centralized economic and social growth programs. Joseph Stalin, president of the USSR implemented the first Five Year Plan in the late 1920s. India too followed the socialist path but here the planning was not as comprehensive since the country had both public and private sectors. The Planning in India was only about the public sector. The first Five Year Plan was launched in 1951. The idea was to plan public spending for equitable growth rather than leaving expenditure to the market forces.

The Five Year Plans played a great role in lifting India’s social sector and building of heavy industry. A centralized planning system could ensure that the money gets spent where it was the most needed.

For a long time, there had been a feeling that for a country as diverse and big as India, centralized planning could not work beyond a point due to its one-size-fits-all approach. Moreover, since the Planning Commission used to be controlled by the Central government, it often ended up as a tool to punish states ruled by the opposition parties when it came to allocating funds. Due to the top-to-bottom approach in centralized planning, it was felt that the states needed to have greater say in planning their expenditure. The planning commission was seen to be imposing its diktats on states who could have better known what and how much they needed.

The Niti Aayog, which has replaced the Planning commission, is the new body that gives policy direction. Its founding principal is cooperative federalism. Most important difference is that Niti Aayog has no power to grand funds or makes decisions on behalf of states. It is only an advisory body.

IPL 2017: New Ad Campaigns

Completing a decade of revolutionizing Cricket in India, the Indian Premier League (IPL) continues to attract immense advertiser interest. Brands pay hefty fee to air commercials during the sports extravaganza making the event similar to the Super Bowl in US, which is known for Brands showcasing their biggest campaigns of this season. Let’s take a look at the five brands which aired new campaigns during the ongoing league.

Amazon – The online marketplace along with its advertising agency Ogilvy and Mather created a fictional cricket team called Chonkpur Cheetahs for this IPL season. Through a series of films, the campaign portrays the journey of this aspiring team to reach their goal of playing T20. It also communicates how in various small ways Amazon enables them to get a step closer to their dream of playing T20. The dreams of the Chonkpur Cheetahs is a metaphor for the dreams of millions of Indians and how Amazon can enable them by providing access to different products.

Vodafone – The telecom company, which has been associated with the league since its inception, brought back animated character ZooZoos in the new campaign made by Ogilvy & Mather. First introduced during the second season of IPL in 2009, the cute animated characters are shown in three different ads celebrating Indian team’s famous huddle, run outs and boundary moments.

Pepsi – PepsiCo India’s cola brand launched its summer campaign during the IPL, featuring Indian cricket team’s captain Virat Kohli made by Advertising agency JWT India, the spot features Virat Kohli giving it back to Australian fans by stopping a boundary during an intense match. Pepsi has been associated closely with IPL; it has been the league title sponsor for three years between 2013 and 2015 and was eventually replaced by Chinese handset maker Vivo.

Maruti Suzuki – The country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI), which is also the associate sponsor of IPL, has rolled out a new campaign for its compact SUV Vista Brezza. The television campaign, made by Dentsu Creative Impact, highlights the stylish built and advanced features of the car.

Parle Products – To establish the wide array of products the company has to offer, IPL’s associate sponsor Parle Products has launched a new ‘Naam Toh Suna hi Hoga’ campaign along with its advertising agency Taproot Dentsu. The films are a humorous take on the daily lives of Indians stuck in awkward situations – an employee being questioned by his boss, a school principal complaining to a student’s mother and two women bragging about their lifestyle.

Some Essential Life Skills

If you haven’t mastered some of the most essential life skills already, it may be time to take a different approach. Whether you’re looking to listen better or negotiate for a raise, here are some of the most surprising ways you can master essential life skills.

Listening – it’s a surprisingly simple yet underused concept. If you want to listen better, keep your mouth shut. As Austrian pianist Alfred Brendel once said, “The word listen contains the same letters as the word Silent.” Not only does thinking about what you’re going to say next take your attention away from the speaker, but hijacking the conversation shows that you think you have something more important to say.

Conserving Willpower – the Greatest Human strength, “we all have a finite amount of willpower in a given day. The key to conserving it is to limit the number of decisions you have to make.

Time Management – The difference between successful people and very successful people is that very successful people say ‘no’ to almost everything. If you don’t prioritize your time over others, you’ll find your productivity will suffer and resentment will mount.

Honesty – If you don’t have anything nice to say, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t say it. HHPP to remember, Radical candor is humble, helpful, and immediate, in person and it doesn’t personalize.

Creative Thinking - The best way to come up with your next big idea may be to simply stop trying. During a 2011 study, researchers found study participants to be more creative at times when they were relaxed or unfocused.

Public Speaking – Most people think that trying to calm down is the best way to cope with public speaking anxiety, but research suggests that this doesn’t work. A better strategy is to stop trying to relax and instead reframe your jitters as excitement.

Negotiating – Recent research suggests that it’s better to emphasize what you’re giving the other person as opposed to what they’re losing in any negotiation.

Reading More – Assuming that most books are average, not great, then there are really only one or two major ideas to get out of them, which can take you less than three hours to ascertain if you skim. Start by reading the table of contents to understand the ideas dispersed within the book, make notations on the pages you want to revisit, read more deeply for 30 minutes on your second visit, and if the book is worth another read, take an hour or two to read the best parts again.

Learning a new Language – A growing body of research suggests that the best way to remember something forever is to practice remembering it. Rather than reading a new word over and over, read it once and practice recalling it several times.

Stress Management – Rather than letting stress hurt productivity and focus, the idea behind resilience is using stress to your advantage as energy to help you perform in high-pressure environments like investment banking.

Making Friends – It’s hard to make new friends as an adult, but joining a choir could help. Recent research suggests that singing can be a great icebreaker among large groups of strangers and can facilitate friendships down the line.

Asking for Help – A recent study suggests that asking for advice makes you look more, not less capable. Author Tim Ferriss says that the biggest mistake is asking conventionally successful people for help. Instead, he suggests consulting those who’ve gone from zero to expert in about six months.