Moon to become next hot vacation destination?

Golden Spike, a company full of ex-NASA people, announces ambitious plans to launch commercial spaceflights to the moon by 2020.

I feel sorry for all those whoblew $20 million and only got a lousy trip to the International Space Station. If they had held out, they might have had an opportunity to invest many more millions on a trip to the moon. 

Golden Spike Company announced yesterday a venture to launch commercial voyages to the moon by 2020. Of course, this sort of experience doesn't come cheap. Golden Spike is expecting a trip to cost $1.5 billion per flight. 

At that price, most private clients would be left out in the cold. As awesome  as moon tourism sounds, Golden Spike is mainly focused on offering its  services to governments that would like a lunar lift, much like Russia helped other countries get to the space station. Still, I'm guessing Golden Spike  would think twice about turning down a multi-billionaire with the dough and desire to buy a ride.

For those of us who don't bathe in tubs full of hundred dollar bills, Golden Spike has announced its intention to make moon visits frequent and affordable. The definition of affordable is up for debate.

If you're going to take a chance on a private moon transportation company,you could do worse than Golden Spike. The chairman of the board is Gerry Griffin, Apollo flight director and former director of NASA's Johnson Space Center. The president and CEO is planetary scientist Alan Stern, former head of all NASA science missions. NASA resumes are all over the Golden Spike team listings.

On the front page of its site, Golden Spike says, "Private sector human expeditions to the moon are now feasible and profitable without government funding." That's a bold statement. Let's keep an eye on Golden Spike and see if it can deliver.

We all need a little of a lot of inspiration

We all need to feel inspired so we can continue on our journey to create and do big things. But what is inspiration and what does it really mean? What is that fuel that ignites our creative fire? Its literal definition is a ‘motivating action or influence that results in creative works and productivity of all kinds.'

This “motivating action” can be thin, fat, funny, scary, a figment of imagination, a face, a word, a number or an unidentified sound. It could be found on the street, in a book, a picture or even on a cloud.  It could visit you on the days you least expect it and sometimes you don’t get to meet it even if you desperately search for it. You could go an entire year without coming across it or find different kinds of inspiration every hour of the day.

All you have to do is keep your eyes, ears and heart open. Never discriminate against things that might inspire you because does inspiration discriminate against you? 

Things you might term as strange or unfamiliar could help you transform your inner creativity into external wonders for people to marvel at, scoff at or even laugh at. 

So you could be a writer, an engineer, an actor, a singer or someone new everyday. Your inspiration will help you move in the direction you wish to move in, helping you lead the way for others. Or in other words, become an inspiration yourself.

The Design Diaries

A collection of simple, cool stuff that people do.  

Enjoy!

The every occasion wrapping paper

Happy Drinking!

Let’s “toast” to your money.

World Cup Fever… brilliant!

That IS a gun in your pocket.

Happy camping!

Hanger T-Bags…Teariffic! 

Cuckoo or cool?

To be continued……………………………..

Waiting For World To Change

Let’s stop waiting for the world to change

Most young men and women who move back to the Motherland after studying abroad usually layer each word with venom when they talk about their country.

They  find themselves studying in  a clean, orderly, polite society  and are shocked when the airport gates open to reveal  a grand homecoming made up of gawking eyes, an overwhelming stench, and a sky that isn’t quite a shade of blue.

During their childhood, they didn’t have a problem with the colour of the sky, the dirt and the muck or fanning themselves with rolled up comic books and magazines. But today whether its traffic jams, frequent power cuts or unfriendly neighbors with unhygienic habits, everything seems to attack them. So what changed? Is it because they explored greener and less populated pastures they finally got a rude awakening? Were they fine with corruption and potholes before they saw how a country can run smoothly and how people can work together to sustain what has been given to them? Perhaps.

Maybe when they were growing up the chaos that surrounded them just became a part of who they were. They saw neither reason to want to change things nor any reason to complain. Things were just the way they were, period. But now after four, five or even ten years, they finally seeing their beloved country for what it truly is. While a new, shiny building comes up, there is someone filling his pockets with hoards of cash. While a family of five learn to order in French in a fancy new restaurant, a family of ten haven’t had clean water to drink in days. While there are people who are starving themselves to make a difference, there are people screaming into loudspeakers making false promises. These examples are now clichés and we rarely bat an eyelid when we hear words like corruption, murder, rape. We live in a country where ugly and beauty live side by side but somehow the ugliness always prevails.

But like the ‘foreign return’ students, we can go on listing everything that is wrong but that will never make things right, will it? Instead of sitting on our cushioned behinds and now fanning ourselves with our fancy degrees, hiding behind articles of corruption, filth and horror and periodically shaking our heads in despair, let’s start doing something.  Let’s use our education and our awareness to make that change. Today the world ( like so many ads have aptly used to their product benefit) is truly at our fingertips. We have tools and platforms like social media to help us be heard. We no longer need to stand outside and have huge rallies and walk a thousand miles, we can use the mighty world wide web to ensure that we are heard loud and clear.

So even if you go to London, New York or the moon, don’t wait, point fingers and hide. Even if you feel you can’t do something big, just start with the small things that include donating time and money to charities, feeding hungry animals, voting, dedicating an hour a day to educate a young boy or girl, being helpful, smiling at strangers. Such simple things can make such a big difference and you’ll find that this list too is endless. 

Ten Things to do on a rain day

The rain gods have answered our prayers and even though some of us pray for the “rain rain to go away…” just for a little while so life can return to normalcy there is no better gift than the monsoons. So instead of waiting for sunlight to shine through the dark clouds so you can do all the fun or important things you have planned, here are a few things that you can do at home, in your room or even on campus (indoors of course ) that will help rescue your drowning spirit.

-     Trace your family tree - It is really interesting to trace back the entire history of your family and discover relatives you haven’t met and map out things you didn’t know. Let’s see how far back you can go.

-      Rewind - If you have access to you old tapes that CDs and if you can’t find a tape recorder that works, youtube all your old favourites and you’ll immediately be transported back in time.

-      Solve a puzzle - It can suck you in before you know it and you’ll have an amazing 10,000 piece puzzle solved in record time. It really is the most constructive “time pass.’

-     An indoor treasure hunt - It’s something you probably haven’t done since you were 12 but if you can get a few of your friends together, you can divide into teams and solve the clues and uncover the treasure.  Just be sure to make the treasure worth your while.

-      A one-word story - Sstart with “once upon a time” and go around the room and have all your friends add one word to the story. It’s more fun if you add some crazy imaginations to the mix.

-    Good ole Antakshari -  A competitive game of Antakshiri never gets old. The sound of rain adds a nice background track.

-     Get Beautiful - No, this doesn’t only apply to girls. We barely have time to ourselves these days so let’s use the rain as an excuse to get beautiful (or handsome). Apply a face mask, soak your feet, and unclog those pores. Don’t worry boys, no one has to know.

-      Take a tech break - Put away your laptops, tabs, phones and the never ending technology list. Open the door and just sit and listen to the sound of the rain. It is the most beautiful sound in the world.

-        Chai party - Call some friends over and have a desi version of a tea party. Serve it with Maggi, pakoras and gossip.

Bollywood Grew up

In the eighties and nineties, Hindi movies became three hours long. One hour was dedicated to the dhishum-dhishum, another to song and dance that included running around trees and getting soaked in the rain which magically appeared on a cloudless day. And one hour was for cliché dialogue and dramatic long pauses. But we still managed to leave the theatre feeling happier and lighter. We’d escaped the real world for three hours and entered a world built on fantasy, humour and too much make up.

But in the last decade, the typical Bollywood masala Philum has had a complete Michael Jackson-ish make over. Now the song and dance routine actually fits into the story. The bad guys have become more Hollywood-ish. They perform cool I –can’t-watch stunts, don’t repeat phrases like “Mogambo Khush hua’ and have scars that look real and don’t change place during every shot.

Today our Heroes no longer needs to beat the cr*p out of a villain to prove that they are indeed hero worthy nor do they do have to be an angry young men with a miserable pasts. Nope. It doesn’t matter if they have to cry with snort oozing out of one nostril or both. They don’t mind sharing equal space with a heroin, going bald or trading in their six pack for a jiggling, protruding belly button. As long as they can do “good cinema” or bag a role like a Saif in Omkara or an Abhishekh in Guru, our heroes will surrender their title for a more prestigious one. They want to be actors, who can act.

Our leading ladies are not far behind for they too, have metamorphosed into better actors. They can carry complete movies on their pretty little shoulders and don’t need a muscular hero or a stammering buffoon to make their movie a ‘super hit.’ In the past, actresses like Nargis, Nutan, Madhuballa, Rekha and even a Sridevi and a Madhuri were talented enough to captivate audiences with or without their thumkas and beautifully kohled almond shaped eyes, but they could never be bigger than their male co-stars. But today they have finally come into their own. Soon actresses like Kalki and the girl from Ishaqzaade are going to give Katrina’s overly plumped lips a run for her money.  

It’s amazing how the Bollywood formula just stopped working and experimental cinema and brilliant films Dev D, LSD and Gangs of Wasseypur  have started to truly resonate with every movie watching, pop corn eating aunty, uncle, teenager, BTM, ishtud, and even rickshaw vaala.. We no longer care much for Salamn’s biceps and perfectly waxed chest. We want to discuss very scene and analyse every emotion. The movie doesn’t end when the lights come back on, we take it wit us for coffee, dinner or on a long drive home.

To sum it up plain and simple, we just want good and gratifying cinema. Even if it means that we don’t leave the theatre feeling happier and lighter. Our movies are now telling our stories. So I guess somewhere along the way, we grew up and Bollywood just had to follow.

We are the champions

The closing ceremony of the Olympics is always a sad day as we watch athletes from all over the world go back home. Some with shining wins clinging to their chests, and some just with a bagful of memories. They will reunite four years later with new goals, greater determination and renewed energy. Of course new athletes will be brought to the mix to compete for gold, silver and bronze and Manav Rachna is doing its bit to ensure that aspiring talent will find their way to the Olympics.

Dr. O.P. Bhalla, the Chancellor of Manav Rachna International University (MRIU) strongly believes in all rounded development of students and keeping them confined to books will not serve much purpose in the fast moving times. With these values in mind, the University is constantly improving existing sports facilities and infrastructure and adding new ones along with a series of camps and coaching from world- renowned athletes and sportsmen. Manav Rachna enables students to balance academics and sports gracefully, so that they don’t have to look elsewhere for training or practice.

In the recent past, Manav Rachna Educational Institutes have made many new initiatives to help harness and showcase the potential of our students that includes the opening of its very first, state-of-the-art cricket academy. World renowned cricketer Mr. Virendra Sehwag inaugurated the Manav Rachna Cricket Academy and recognized the Universities efforts by stating that Manav Rachna International Schools are one of the very few institutions that have a futuristic approach towards sports in India.

Another recent initiative was a joint one between Manav Rachna Sports Academy and Yonex-Sunrise. A one day long Badminton Training Clinic under guidance of Asian junior champion P V Sindhu and former junior national coach Sanjeev Sachdeva was held at the Manav Rachna Sports academy. The clinic was divided into two sessions, held at Manav Rachna Sports Academy at Manav Rachna International School, Sector 14, Faridabad. Several youngsters took part in this special training clinic. It was a tremendous experience for them to be able to play and learn from the teen sensation and take home valuable guidance.

 In the month of July the five-time World champion and six- times European champion Peter Karlsson conducted a three-day table tennis workshop at the Manav Rachna Sports Academy in Faridabad . The clinic which began on July 8 was a jointly held by Manav Rachna Sports Academy and Stag Table Tennis. It’s needless to say that the students were beyond thrilled. It’s not everyday that they get to rub shoulders and play table tennis with a world champion.

MRIU has a state-of-the-art 25 metre shooting range and a 10 metre indoor AC shooting range which is one of its kinds in any university in the country. These shooting ranges were inaugurated in the year 2009 by olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra.  Gagan Narang, a MBA student of Manav Rachna had been visiting regularly at Manav Rachna Rifle Club and had been training and guiding budding athletes and shooters with world class facilities and infrastructure.

   

The University will continue to nurture sports talent so superstars like Gagan Narang, can continue to make the country proud.