MANGO

 MANGO

Currently, we are through Mango season, marked by the arrival of a variety of mango fruits big and small, yellow, greenish yellow, Greenish red, Reddish yellow, nearly ball like, bell like, perfect globose, and so on. Each of them is marked by a typical fragrance known for the variety. In all some 24 varieties are identified as best fruits; the subcontinent is said to have over 1500 varieties, owing to the best fit climate for mangos. Mango has the status of a product for an industry, in view of the massive network handling the fruit from its origin to its ultimate destination in markets - local, provincial, regional, national and International.  Proudly, India is a major exporter of mangos to near and far continents, obliging the needs of mango-lovers, as a national event of marketing.  A large number of mango varieties are cultivated and fielded for consumption –right from the state of early formation [the ‘vadu’ stage], unripe green state for pickle making, ripe fruits as delicacies and completely ripe ones for industrial fruit pulp production for export in cans. Undoubtedly mango is a ‘darling’ of our country’s population who throng markets to buy the item. In northern states, mango marketing is an elaborate activity and about 10 fruits are ‘packed’ in hay containing cartons with the name of the variety prominently printed. Families buy any number of cartons for different varieties. Somehow, southern India continues to follow the old practice of selling by vendors and pricing prescribed by weight in Kg or per dozen fruits. People buy in limited number by weighing the fruits and pay for the weight.

Since mangos hit the market right from the juvenile state to the ripened state, the season for mango lasts from March to early or mid July. As the season progresses, different varieties come to market and a few varieties appear simultaneously.  Buyers in Southern India prefer to pick fruits by their choice of pieces and not as a pack. Another general happening is, some years witness mango boom while some years find low yield. The high and low yield seasons occur in successive years.  Also, Tamarind and Mango years for rich yield occur alternately. There is an observation that if Mangos abound, Tamarind yield declines and vice-versa.  Possibly, factors ideal for mango by way of shine / rainfall are not helpful for Tamarind yield. Also, there are some mango varieties that flower once in 2 years and thus, those varieties yield only in alternate years.

Yet another criterion that determines flowering in Mango orchards relates to late evening ‘lightning’ during late October/ November / early December. Why is it important?  Late evening ‘lightning’ means that in dark, a sudden pulse of lighting [a very brief spell of light] disrupts the dark cycle. That is, instead of a ‘Dark continuum’ the dark phase is split into 2 distinct phases interrupted by a quick flash of light from lightning. Disruption of dark phase induces the formation of flowers and all branch tips are rich in flowers, inviting insects to flowers from the fragrance of flowers. Some such insects have intimate link to fruit cycle of mango ; they leave their  eggs in flowers . Later when we open the ripe fruit the beetle/ insect emerges.  It is a case of excellent co-ordination of plant-animal life cycles.

Besides its popularity as a delicacy mangos do help human nutrition through Proteins, Copper and some antioxidants and vitamins. It would be opportune to indicate here that ‘please do not cast off the fruit skin for obliging your tongue buds. The fibre and associated components there of help your digestion.

 Nutritional value

Mangos –though a ‘forbidden item’ for the Diabetics, the fruit does have its own value as a nutritive supplement.

 Approximately Mangos can provide

About 3 gms fibre, 24 gms of sugar, 1 gm Protein, about 25%of our daily need of Vit- A,  about 75% of our daily need of Vit- C, Potassium about 250 mg and 0.2 mg of Vit- B₆  and about 105 calories energy. That it does not add to our Cholesterol, or any other fat or Sodium is a virtuous feature of Mangos.

Prof. K. Raman

SOMETHING TO UNDERSTAND

 SOMETHING TO UNDERSTAND

The current item is a deviation from the present series addressing some aspects of plants in our daily life.  More as a ‘relief’ from rigidities of Science information, I thought of bringing out the ‘seemingly alike but not so' items “SPOONERISM” and” MALAPROPISM”  known in the English language.

These two relate to practical ‘defects’ while speaking.   Are these deliberate are just ‘slips of the tongue or a ‘ploy to mislead’ any recipient can be tricky to decipher. Quite some confusion persists [at least among ‘non-native’ speakers of English] as to when to use which name for the phenomenon.  At the outset, let us figure out what the definition for these terms suggests.

SPOONERISM [MIXING OF SOUNDS]

Spoonerism  gets into a conversation or a stage play when the character[s] commit or seemingly so  make phonetical error of mixing sounds of different words leading to  a feeling of humour  apparently unintended. But playwrights use it as a method of portraying some characters as ‘slipshod’ ones. The words uttered are made to look slips of the tongue; they are presented by mixing of sounds from different words.                 Examples

Wave the sails [is uttered] but it should have been ‘save the whales’.

‘It is kistomary to cuss the bride‘  but, should have been ‘it is customary to kiss the bride’

‘Three cheers for our queer old dean’ but should have been ‘Three cheers for our dear old Queen’

‘Pain is roaring’ but should have been ‘Rain is pouring’

MALAPROPISM

Malapropism has acquired its name from that of a woman stage character named ‘MALAPROP’. The character used to interchange words and deliver them in sounds appropriate for the old world in place.

Malapropism is a non –sense by   utterance but humorous in effect.

For instance

 ‘A blushing crow” for ‘A crushing blow’

‘Eat meeting people’ for ‘Meat eating people’

‘Banging hell‘ for ‘Hanging bell’

Cady in lurch for ‘Lady in church’

In stage plays, such seemingly casual utterances have been conceived well and executed to perfection so as to bring forth spontaneous laughter. As for a Tamil example ; actor Baliah in that movie ‘Kadhalikka neramillai ‘ said “Thambi gunam irukke - ‘Thamba kkambi’ for Thangakkambi”  and quickly makes amends describing the merits of a youngster –presumed to be his own  ‘son-in –law’ to be.

Prof. K. Raman

SIGNAL SENSING AND BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

 SIGNAL SENSING AND BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

Every living system should ‘understand’ what is happening around. The term ‘understand’ as used here refers to several levels of ‘recognizing‘ the events in the immediate surroundings. As such, ‘understanding’ may be by contact stimulus, receiving the physical pulse of light, responding to thermal variation [temperature] and action of gravitational pull and so on. One or many or all of these together cause ‘understanding’ by a biological system.

 Accordingly, the system may respond slowly or quickly based on the strength of the trigger and its impact on a select component like cell[s], pigments or on select enzymes and so on. Each such response can help ‘development’ in a plant or animal. So, different plants or animals respond differently to a common signal or pulse. Unravelllng the role of different signals is a complex study named ‘Developmental biology‘   [DB].DB itself constitutes a multi-disciplinary domain involving biochemistry, physiology, Genetics and cell biology/ molecular biology.  Biology has made rapid strides, availing of the advancements in several domains like Electron microscopy, membrane chemistry, electro physiology , energy processing moieties and energy transduction schemes and pathways. In view of the intricate balancing of interdisciplinary concepts, students from India are among the sought after across USA research laboratories in view their clarity of the overall processes as taught in some Indian universities especially in research schools / Biotechnology laboratories. We need to acknowledge the innate ability of our boys and girls to co-ordinate several inputs to derive or infer a gross picture by synthesis. Not without reason students from Northern states/ Kolkata/ Andhra regions and also from Bangalore, Mysore manage to gain research placements in US / UK / Australia. Select institutions in these places offer excellent training in all essential concepts that matter in domains of higher research.  Drug-designing / formulation to ‘personalized therapy’ is gaini9ng ground and is an interdisciplinary domain in its own right. Alert students would do well to look for such venues for study and avenues for research or employment

Now, it should be clear that ‘overseas assignments’ are not the exclusive domains of Doctors, Engineers or Software professionals. Even among them, only those who reveal outstanding functional merits stand a chance. Science education along proper lines is another area to explore for contributory research efforts.  Dear parents, please keep options open and let your son / daughter pursue domains which interest them. Avoid imposing ‘your preferences’ on them. In the ultimate analysis , any knowledge- acquired by right learning and to its full potential is better than ‘half baked ‘ incomplete acquisitions  even if in  frontline  subject domains of job –seeking. Learning languages is not any inferior either, provided the learner goes all out to be among the best in that field.

We –humans [biological systems ourselves] should sense the signal that ‘learning is not scoring marks; rather it is for soaring high in advanced areas of knowledge. Shake off your mind any imaginary feeling that xx subjects are superior to yy subjects or zz domains. Encourage your wards’ ability to communicate and provide for learning as many languages.  No knowledge can help our ascension unless we prune our skills for excellent communication.  I trust the message is clear.                   GOOD LUCK

Prof. K. Raman 

 

CONFIDENCE BUILDING –II

 CONFIDENCE BUILDING –II

Having understood the problems that erode confidence, it is logical to review the necessary correctives which may help us to retrieve some ‘lost ground’ if not to raise us sky high in no time. First of all, let us realize that we are recuperating our confidence level by appropriate amends to the earlier inadequacy that was nurtured by ‘assumptions’ of accomplishments that were just non-existent. So, it begins with a reorganizing phase of ‘giving up’ all wrong learning by re-checking every item which we imagined to have learnt. We need to put every idea to ’validity’ assessment; if invalid let us throw it off and regroup our information to reorient the idea to its correct value by amending  our understanding.  

While the subject matter of our profession must be updated, we also need to strengthen the profile of our delivery module. It begins with the apt technical jargon presented through a legitimate lexicon. We can ill afford to be lax, poorly organized especially in diction and phonetics.  Too often regional whiff dominates even our expressions in English. These are best corrected by a strenuous and systematic  approach, utilizing the right / accepted norms of pronunciation. Never listen to parochial critics who have no value for anything. They neither laud nor applaud any effort to acquire lingual prowess. But, if you manage to hit headlines one day, the very same detractors would shamelessly rush to display kinship with you on flimsy criteria like your place of birth or your mother tongue or similar points to justify their claims of proximity to you!

Never look back if progress is what you desire.  I do not suggest that you disown your land or language; be alert enough to keep such ‘new found allegiance claimants’ off your territory.  After all, such ill- conceived ideas in [y]our early phase had knocked off the spirit of learning in youth. It must dawn on everyone, even if late, that there is nothing of any collective wisdom on matters of learning. Learning and success are items of personal effort and reward. There are no shareholders in either of these.

There could be joint ventures between Governments or agencies of distinct identities in projects; not in processes of learning and equipping self. Collective efforts in a way impede the drive for acquiring skills. In every aspect of life, like eating, sleeping, facing examinations etc., the individual matters the most. How can ‘learning’ be any different when it is an item of equipping the individual? 

Unless, everyone realizes the need to be ’equipped’, possessing degrees or titles would turn mere rituals of long schedules. None of those claims of ranks / scores can win a job for you. Your prowess to convince the employers would matter the most, especially if your aim is to win high placements. Right from middle-school stages, students must devote time and effort to learn as many languages and work skills, so as to stand an edge among fellow competitors. Competence is a determinant of scope to success. Confidence blossoms in minds enriched by correct information and ability to express ideas fluently.

GOOD LUCK.                           Prof. K. Raman

 

Readers respond and I too

Readers respond and I too

Teacher –a creature

All my answers are in italics. Observations invite more serious issues for blog writing. Thank you all. Prof. K Raman

Dr. R. Kannan  over phone] pointed out from the blog post on                                      ‘Teacher – A creature’

“For several years they were the least paid, which was another reason for their being ‘down-ratied’ even by lesser mortals”.

Yes, a stupid typographic error by one vehemently advocating appropriate language/ use of Dictionary / abiding by lexicon and what not. A typical case of Homer nods [the English equivalent for “யானைக்கும் அடி  சறுக்கும்” though I do not deserve imagining self of any elephantine scale”] I owe the usage ‘’Homer nods’ to Dr. Kannan – a brilliant exponent of English. Thank you sir. Correction made in my text.

 

Cdr V Krishnan

Well written article, bringing the plight of the teachers today. Teachers are like catalyst, who are instrumental in nurturing a student and help them come up in life. They need due respect and position in the society. All of us owe our success to teachers at all levels.

Mr V Krishnan your observation presented in bold should after all be realized by teachers by trimming their professional presentation  to one of respectability, instead of resorting to cheap gimmicks assuming that students are naïve and incapable of reading through. Students read and rate their teachers faster than the fastest computers and some stupid teachers play to the gallery as they can do nothing better.

Dharini

I agree with every view of yours. Very well said. Teaching profession requires passion. It should be supported with a motivational pay package. There's a dwindling % of teachers who are revered and respected.

 Madam,

I think you have responded only now. I am not aware of your opinion on other pieces.

I read your observation on my blog post. All teachers are aware of the duties but a few are devoted.  Your observation that a dwindling % of teachers is respectable, owes it to teachers themselves. All respectable teachers have always been respected; if not respected, it is due to non-respectable trends in the teacher individual.

Priya commented on "THE CREATURE NAMED ‘TEAC

These days we are coming across student appeasement by some teachers. These teachers try to become overtly friendly with students... sharing information that need not be shared with students. The rot is at all levels

Teachers must be chosen based on 2 major components – Comprehension and Communication. Precious little is done to ascertain these 2 vital facets. Agencies like UGC advocated fielding of only Ph. D qualified personnel as teachers in Colleges and Universities instead of appropriately evolving guidelines for picking the best-fit talent. Getting a Ph.D by hook or crook [often by the latter] for recruitment opened the Pandora’s box ‘rot at all levels’ . In fact several Ph.Ds have miserably failed as teachers as to have invited an expansion “ phenomenally dull’ as performers. Incompetent teachers buy class room peace by appeasement through winking at mistakes, award marks by liberal donation irrespective of the answer quality.

K. Venkataraman commented on "THE CREATURE NAMED ‘TEACHER’"

22 hours ago

Your statement holds good for teachers who are ill equipped. In many schools and colleges we come across with teachers who are nick named.Giving respect to teachers inside or outside the class is all the days of yore. I remember that we go and hide if our teacher passes through our street.Yet there are teachers who are worshipped and revered. K.Venkataraman

Dear K V

Even good teachers also are nick-named on non-academic parameters. If ill equipped teachers are nick-named –no regrets. It is only in academy that the learner makes fun of the learned. That is my observation

K. Venkataraman commented on "CONFIDENCE BUILDING"

5 hours ago

Get any degree and get a job , This is the motive of 90 percent students. Those days if you get a BCom degree you are likely to be appointed in banks.But now we come across with students with PhD degree working as clerks in banks . Those who study an apt subject for an apt job students get some confidence hoping to settle in life. Confidence development is a separate subject to deal with. Those days in schools moral science was a period in which all aspects of good things are taught. The absence of this results in decay in educational system. In foreign countries mentally retarded students are cared separately. Seat allocation in all fields is also a factor for losing confidence among students. K.Venkataraman

 

Dear Dr KV

A labyrinth of criss –cross ideas is presented in one stroke, as they came to your mind. But, the issue is, people aspire for more but do not equip self to deserve the aspiration. Conflict begins from the gap between desire and desirability.

Dear Readers,

I profusely thank all who have presented their views on select aspects of the topics. It is real pep to know the minds of readers, especially the ones who are not personally known to us. It is a form of encouragement for the writer to strive for better. Please do not hesitate to present your view points. My earlier appeal for suggestion of titles for blog write-up stands; anyone can suggest. But, unless I am confident of providing justice to the theme, I shall not venture without justification thereof.   I earnestly thank everyone of you who have spent time for me to grasp perceptions of others. Thankfully I remain—K.Raman. 

CONFIDENCE BUILDING

 CONFIDENCE BUILDING

Confidence building ought to be a natural corollary to the process of education. That people are not confident after acquiring degrees / titles up to and beyond the level of post-graduation suggests a few important things. What are those?

Learning has not been on the right lines.  2  A mere ‘tentative’ memorizing  has so far been used as a strategy for ‘remembering’ a few essential items considered important for facing ‘examination’.  3 The examination process has not ‘probed’ the knowledge component of the examinees. 4. A cursory approach by way of ‘answering’ the question[s] has fetched tall scores far disproportionate to the mental skills of the examinees. 5 A clear band wagon approach has been in vogue at all levels of Teaching/ Learning / Evaluation. 6  A glaring absence of ‘enthusiastic teaching’ triggering inquisitive pursuit of ‘understanding’ the theme of any lesson at all stages of learning for the students.   A  human product of ‘cumulative defects’ can just be a biologically grown person, oblivious of the skills anticipated and the ones acquired segregated by an unfathomable gulf.  A catastrophic outcome is, the candidates are ego-enriched until a genuine evaluation during job-seeking effort, exposes all inadequacy ending up in frustration.  Well, the frustration referred to here is for both the job-seeker and the job-provider, for having undertaken an un productive exercise of conducting personal interview.

Of late, employers do not wish to spend time on viewing the candidates; they are ready to invest money on ‘selection firms’ which assess candidates for varied job profiles and furnish a shortlist of a few prospective candidates worthy of a trial by appropriate experts  on the suitability of ‘employability’.  Shamelessly our authorities project narratives that the ‘quality’ education provided ranks among the best. The ‘products’ of the ‘quality education’ so imparted are so nervous at the suggestion of terms ‘competitive examinations’, Group discussion and personal interview’ at a prestigious campus. They literally shiver and tremble in their shoes.  What bucks them? Just they need to speak, speak fluently but precisely to the point bucks them. These seem to be anathema to our graduates after a 15-16 year education in English medium.  What has gone wrong? The issue is nothing went right along the course of this form of education.  

What is the remedy?

The foremost requirement for anyone to improve self is to ‘concede’ that precious little is known. Secondly, identify all domains that need being refurbished in right earnest.  It could be your professional  domain WHERE ‘UPDATING’ MUST BE  carried out periodically, without  taking a ‘relaxed stand ‘ that I graduated just three months ago. Please remember that the syllabi prescribed in most plans are not updated and they generally cater to essential basics. So, to be among the real good contenders one has to make personal efforts of ‘knowledge acquisition’ at least in specific domains of your job interest.

There is a basic defect among job hunters in presuming that your job providers graduated several years ago and that they may not be updated. Please keep in mind that being themselves in the industry, the senior bosses are professionally updated in application of work strategies while graduates know only theory  and not its true application. They would easily peg your functional defects. So, updating for job is to be alert about functional upkeep in application of technology and not in scoring marks by repetition of set phrases defending a theory.

The second component that deserves attention is ‘ability to communicate’.  It calls for neat flawless expression of ideas in minimum words organized to present the idea. Too long and mundane expressions like ‘not only but also’ fail to evoke respect among senior professionals who look for polite and well mannered disposition. These should come into play as a natural exposition of any idea. Remember that you had liberally failed to gather the best strategies as a learner. Now you have to catch up with time, lest should settle for far lower compensations, unless ready to  take colossal efforts to  strengthen your profile by communication. Realities of life are always harsh. Soft pedaling never helps.

Prof. K. Raman

THE CREATURE NAMED ‘TEACHER’

 HAVE THESE EVER COME TO YOUR MIND?

Under the prevailing dispensation by way of provisions and punishments, it is a self inflicted wound to be a teacher. I am not holding a brief for all those ill equipped, well dressed men and women who parade as teachers with very little mental equipment to pass muster as ‘teachers’. My concern pertains to those who by the sweat of their eyebrows toil day in and day out to ‘stand up’ to the need of the hour. It is they who keep the flag aloft in the domain of ‘true teaching’.  Please do not brush aside the following questions / arguments as of no consequence to you. 

Is there some ‘position’ where his /her trainees make fun of their mentor? But teachers face the ignominy of being ‘nick-named’, made fun of for even congenital deformities. Teacher is viewed as butt of a ridicule, largely emboldened by the projection made of them as comic personalities in movies , besides as embodiments of stupidity. Yet, there are brilliant ones who keep shaping the career of countless boys and girls by appropriate grooming. For several years they were the least paid, which was another reason for their being ‘down-ratied’ even by lesser mortals. Now, consider these questions. 

Be that you are a graduate / Post Graduate of the Glorious University of Madras’ some 20 years ago.

Have you been able to ‘make your child understand’ how number 2 is smaller than number 4 or 5 or 3?

Has it been ever possible for you [includes your spouse as well] to tell your child how to read letters in different languages? Worse still, have you managed to explain   some poem in 3^rd standard or some math problem of standard 8? 

 Can you help your son to complete some assignments in Biology for Standard 10 or 12? Leave alone his understanding of I B.Sc., Microbiology chapter on Bacterial metabolism. What bothers you when it comes to ‘enlightening’ your son or daughter on some such situations portrayed above?

Lend your thought:

Only when some lesson has to be learned –the boy or girl suffers from digression. Digression begins from within and spreads like wild fire ably aided by other items of visual disturbance or some verbal noise around etc., leaving in disarray every genuine effort by you or that of your child. Nothing could ever be done to contain such ‘menace’ from every source known or unknown.  If just 2 children [son / daughter] learning at different levels cause so much agony, proving beyond doubt that ‘we can never teach these children, we want the teacher to do it. Every parent also has the same demand on ‘that’ teacher. How many of the students [s]he handles on a day. I speak only of and for the teachers who are honest in efforts.   With the future in mind for our own child, we are clueless as to how to go about.  But, have we ever considered the constraints which dampen the ‘spirit’ of earnest teaching?  Also, the teacher has to deliver the idea for all students who represent a wide range of learning difficulties. [S]he has to somehow ensure that the majority gathers the idea, It is an enigma of sorts as to how  some articulate teachers make a headway  into that ‘impervious’ shield of recalcitrance for learning.  Such teachers are needed everywhere, if teaching/ learning should peacefully blossom  in all institutions.

How do they accomplish it?

Have we not heard of  ‘uniform ‘ acceptance of some teachers by students year after year, as if they were all under  a magic spell  cast by those legendary  teachers.  Yes, their spell of magic is based on thoroughness of approach. Their thoroughness is multi-dimensional.  [S]he understands the message clearly for self.  Next, [s] he plans the method to explain the idea with well-known examples .Any successful explanation of an idea largely depends on ‘on the spot’ assessment of ‘understanding by all’.  Eye-contact with the wards while speaking infuses seriousness of interaction in a session. Confused faces of wards imply the need to resort to simpler and better clarification of the idea.  By instantly satisfying such requirements  teachers bring total command into play and help students to learn better and quicker;  without genuine concern for learners , no teacher can register success however glorious his/her academic track record as a student had been.  That is why some glorious rank holders miserably fail in teacher-career.  Understanding for self is far different from making others understand the same.

The critical facet of ‘maturing’ into a dominant performer as a teacher  is to conceive the difficulties of the learner in deciphering the intricacies of a lesson ; that is the right orientation for a teacher to grasp as to why students fail to perceive an idea the way that the lesson planners want the student to understand. If such an attempt to view things from ‘learners’ perspective’ is cultivated by teachers, in no time they can put the record straight and win the battle before it begins. I have noticed this professional etiquette in all teachers/ Professors who have registered an indelible stamp of excellence in teaching. It boils down to the idea that ‘to be a teacher of formidable stature’ the teacher should make it a point to be clear in all utterances and quick to solve learner problems.  So friends, please do not think that a teacher is a person, rather [s]he is a personality, thoroughly self made and infallible in pursuit.

Prof. K. Raman