City Today News (City today.media)

National STEM Awards 2020: Discovering STEM Talent

Posted on February 29, 2020February 29, 2020 by City Today News (City today.media)

Bengaluru 28 February, 2020. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) is a modern day approach to shape India’s future which is fast moving towards being a highly illustrious entity in an increasingly globalised world. However, the country requires to evolve expertise in these fields to compete with the technological revolution. With this clear objective in mind, STEM Learning in association with Rotary JBN, Bengaluru organized India’s biggest and first STEM competition for under- served students of Govt. and Govt- aided schools, the ‘National STEM Awards 2020’. Around 20 states, 200 schools, 400 teachers and 1800 students took part in the competition from all over India, out of which 10 states, 15 schools and 54 students made it to the Finale which was held in the city on 27 February, 2020. Students from 6th to 8th standards participated in the final round, where they had to showcase their skills in categories like Tech Quiz, Science & Mathematics Model Competition and Engineering Tinkering.

Atharva Sawant, Yashraj Dhwri & Kauntey Sawant from JNV Sindhudurg School were declared winners of the Tech Quiz Round; while Khushi, Anjali Sharma & Lovely from GGSS School, Faridabad won the Engineering Tinkering Competition and Muthu Suthis, Madhu Sri & Surya from Vivekananda School, Tirunelveli won the Science & Mathematics Model Competition. Considering that all the students displayed vast talent and zeal, Dr Suresh Mony, Emeritus Jury said the judges found it really difficult to select the winners. He said, “Every child presented something new, something unique. Their innovations were so creative and spell binding that we felt proud to be in the midst of such young talent. “

STEM Learning has been advocating for improving the quality of education since years now and this competition intended to do the same, by picking out the best STEM talent from across India. The students were judged on the basis of critical thinking, problem solving and innovative abilities. The students underwent stages like the Cluster Rounds and Zonal Rounds and the winners of the Zonals were then challenged to win the final round on 27^th February in Bengaluru.

Ms Simi Anderson, STEM Ambassador (UK), who was one of the esteemed guests during the competition, seemed awed by the matchless and unprecedented talent shown by the children. She praised the mammoth efforts put in by STEM Learning in organizing this competition successfully. She said, “It takes 8 months in UK to conduct such competition at the national level. It’s mind-blowing that STEM Learning did this in 3 weeks.” Echoing the same sentiment, Dr Sameer Hariani, the Chief Guest at the competition said, “This competition is an extremely novel measure by STEM Learning to make the students ready for the future by igniting the scientific temper in them. This is an exceptionally favourable circumstance for these students to make science a child’s play and keep pace with the advancement in the field.”

Speaking about this colossal task of bringing the best STEM minds from pan India under one roof, Ashutosh Pandit, the Founder of STEM Learning said, “The traditional approach of learning facts and figures doesn’t challenge minds and so, students do not get the required opportunities to understand and showcase STEM abilities. We at STEM believe that the students need to gain practical knowledge to learn, explore & enhance their skills. By providing them with this singular opportunity of an all- India competition, we have not just identified the best minds who beat their peers and turned out to be STEM Champs, but have also recognized other young minds who may not have reached the final round, but they did exemplify robust prowess to be titled as the great innovators of the future. We can now almost certainly say that the future of India is rightly in the hands of these extremely talented young children.”

The young minds who proved their mettle during the finale were awarded on 28^th February during the ‘Rotary Karnataka CSR Conference 2020’ by the hands of Rotary District Governor Rtn Sameer Hariani. Teachers who have contributed extraordinarily to the field of STEM education were also felicitated during the glittering Award Ceremony.

City Today News

(citytoday.media)

9341997936

22-year-old Bangladeshi boy suffering from avascular necrosis treated with advanced stem cell regenerative technique

Posted on February 28, 2020 by City Today News (City today.media)

Bangalore, 28th February 2020: Ahmed (name changed) from Bangladesh a 22-year-old doing his Bachelors in Law was diagnosed with a condition called Avascular necrosis of the right femoral head. A condition which occurs due to poor blood supply to the femoral head. The problem started a year ago, when he had complained that he had unbearable progressive pain in his right hip. The pain which went on for a year not only had affected his daily routine but his athletic career and his education also.

Avascular Necrosis commonly affects youngsters and is most often due to bone dislocations, fractures, alcoholism and longstanding usage of steroids for medical conditions. Even though the exact reason for this condition is still not known but the region most commonly affected is the femoral head. As the head of femur progressively get damaged until the head finally collapses leading to severe pain.
He was advised a total hip replacement at his hometown but was reluctant due to his age, limitation of his athletic activities and the chance of repeat surgery. He was looking out for other treatment options in Bangladesh but unable to find other options at his homeland. He started looking out for options online and got to know about Aster RV hospital in Bangalore.

Dr. Srinivas J. V, lead orthopaedic, Consultant, Aster RV Hospital, said, “When the patient came to us with this condition, we had to look at different options of treatment. For youngsters there are only limited options when it comes to treatment, where hip replacement is always the last option. This is because in the case of total hip replacement it may be necessary to repeat the surgery after 15-20 years due to the life span of the implant. Other than this we have core decompression and vascular strut graft, the success rates for these procedures are very low and these can limit the patient’s activities. Hence we opted for a very new and unique technique by the use of Stem Cell.”

Stem cells have the ability to regenerate the affected area, it is usually harvested from bone marrow and is processed until concentrated young stem cells are got. this is then injected directly at the affected site. In the case of Ahmed, bone marrow was harvested from his pelvic bone which was then injected into the affected region of the femoral head.
As stem cell application is a non-invasive procedure, the patient was discharged the very next day and is allowed to walk from day one. Ahmed made a full recovery within 2 months.
Ahmed who is into sports and other physical activities, said “I was always very active in class and sports as well. This one year was filled with pain which was intolerable. I am glad that the doctors from Aster RV hospital thought so much and suggested me a procedure which will serve me life-long. I’m grateful to the doctors for giving me a second lease of life.”

City Today News

(citytoday.media)

9341997936

State level Seminar on the Importance of SDMC &SDP Working towards SDG4: The 3Solution

Posted on February 28, 2020February 28, 2020 by City Today News (City today.media)

RLHP with the support of WeWorld, organizing a State Level Seminar on the Importance of SDP & SDMC on 29th February 2020 at Indian Social Institute (ISI), Benson Town, Bangalore. Members from the Districts representative of SDMCS from across the state, likeminded individuals, academicians, NGOS, officials from the Education Department are coming together for the seminar and the discussions and recommendations will be presented to the Government to provide quality education to children through effective implementation of RTE.

Rural Literacy and health Programme (RLHP) a non-governmental organization, working for the development of the empowerment of marginalized communities,rehabilitation ofstreet children, women empowerment and community health for a sustainable development in the society. Through the child line 1098, the organization has been addressing the issues of children who are in difficult circumstances. So far the organization has expanded its programmes to 60 slums, 130 villages in 8 districts of Karnataka State.

Though, India has signed the International Convention on the Rights of Children in 1992 and has declared to recognize people below the age of 18 years as children and provide them care and protection, ensure the right to participation, right for development, yet even today, education has been a far away dream for children from themarginalized and poor communities. As per the ILO survey 8.8 million children who belong under the age 14 are out of the school. In Karnataka, only 12.7% of RTE had been implemented, and also 2850 government schools are on the verge of shutting down. Education is a basic right of every child, but in our country child labour is so rampant and it is a curse to the society.

Objective of the seminar: SDMC and SDP played a key role in the effective implementation of RTE act. In order to share the experience (evidence based) with the project intervention and to encourage other government schools to replicate this model for a sustainable development.

The state level seminar would help for a larger level advocacy for the SDMC and SDP. The state level networks and authorities would give more reach for the model across the state and the seminar may encourage other government schools to adopt the model for the development of children as well as schools We have a developing tools to implementing 3S solutions one of them hand book for PTM That is going to simple guide for parents’ teachers and HM to actively participate learning outcome for their children. Government schools.

RLHP with the support of We World GVC (We World is working for the development of vulnerable children and women in 29 different countries including India) working with 12 government schools of Mysore since last five years to ensure the children are getting an easy access towards the quality education through different methodologies In the course of our five years programme

we were able to reach more 8000 vulnerable children and their families from 20 urban and suburban areas of Mysore, In order to make an effective participation of SDMC and implementation of SDP, RLHP capacitated and strengthened the SDMC members through trainings, workshops, seminars and exposure visits on the importance of SDP and quality education with community and school authority’s participation. RLHP has identified more than 1000 children with learning deficits through conducting child assessment under the five Pillars of development (Health and Physical Development, Play and Cognitive, Communication and Literacy development, Social and Emotional development, Sensory and Motor Development) and developed Individual Education Plan (IEP) forthe deficit children with the support of teachers and parents. And conducting regular and effective PTM to evaluate the progress of the children’s health, education and overall development, as an impact of Parents Teachers Meeting, Individual Education Plan and individual attention to the child at school, family and community level led to the development of learning ability of the children from government schools.

–Saraswathi Director-RLHP,Mysore

City Today News

(citytoday.media)

9341997936

Samsung Digital Library Launched for 100 Govt Schools in Partnership With Government of Karnataka

Posted on February 28, 2020 by City Today News (City today.media)

Samsung to reach out to around 25000 students through this citizenship programme

BENGALURU, India – February 27, 2020: Samsung R&D Institute Bangalore (SRI-B), Samsung’s largest R&D center outside Korea, and Government of Karnataka today announced the launch of ‘Samsung Digital Library’, an initiative aimed at bridging the digital divide and help the Karnataka government fulfil its objective of equal education opportunities for all.

Samsung Digital Library will be implemented across 100 plus government schools of Karnataka wherein more than 2000 Samsung Galaxy Tab A and “e Education Content along with Training” will benefit nearly 25000 students.
Samsung Digital Library programme was inaugurated today in the presence of Mr. S Suresh Kumar, Minister of Primary and Secondary Education of Karnataka. Also present at the event were Mr. Heejoon Kang, Chief Financial Officer, SRI-B, and other Samsung executives.
Mr. S Suresh Kumar, Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Government of Karnataka, said, “Our focus on strengthening the primary education system will be bolstered through this partnership with Samsung. Students at this age must get an experience of the latest technology to have a holistic development. The Samsung tablets will be an ideal way to engage these kids in an interactive manner and we hope this to be a fulfilling association.”
“At Samsung, education is a cause that is close to our heart. We are committed to help students learn and bridge the digital divide with our new initiative – Samsung Digital Library. Through this partnership with the state government, we are hopeful that the students can adopt more engaging methods of learning with new age technology,” Mr. Dipesh Shah, Managing Director at Samsung R&D Institute Bangalore, said.
Samsung Digital Library is a new corporate social responsibility initiative that has been introduced by SRI- B. The initiative will focus on providing quality digital knowledge and education in government schools of Karnataka.

In the first phase of the initiative, 20 tablets per school will be distributed across 50 Government schools of Tumakuru and Ramanagar. Tumakuru is also a ‘Smart City’, and this collaboration will further the government’s initiative towards digital education. The second phase is slated for the month of August this year.
Samsung has a strong partnership with the state of Karnataka and has been acknowledged for its sustainable efforts to transform the society through multiple initiatives towards community building. Since 2015, the CSR team at SRI-B has been active in carrying out various drives like the Notebook donation drive, building of a new school in Kembodi, solar lantern distribution and many such activities across Karnataka.
Karnataka is also the home to the world’s largest mobile experience center- Samsung Opera House and the biggest R&D centre of Samsung outside Korea. Samsung R&D Bangalore is a key innovation hub in Samsung. With the best of talent from India and overseas, this centre focusses on creating cutting edge technologies across multiple areas of Samsung’s business, that transform experiences of users both globally, as well as in local markets.

City Today News

(citytoday.media)

9341997936

CANADIAN WOOD MAKES A MARK WITH WFC (WOOD FRAME CONSTRUCTION) and T&G (TONGUE AND GROOVE) HOUSES AT INDIAWOOD 2020

Posted on February 27, 2020March 2, 2020 by City Today News (City today.media)

Bangalore, March 2020
Historically wood has been used in India for various building purposes. However, its application has been largely limited to beams and posts, roofing or other parts of construction. Canadian Wood set a new trend in India of building a complete house with wood by putting up two distinctive styles of building techniques at IndiaWood, 2020.

These two resort style houses demonstrating Wood Frame style and Tongue & Groove style of constructions were created using Spruce-pine-fir sustainably sourced from B.C, Canada. Leading manufacturers based out of Mysore and Delhi were partnered with to create these eye-catching displays. The wood for building the house has been provided by Canadian Wood, both the houses unique in their building styles were constantly supervised, improvised by the technical inputs provided by Canadian Wood to help create a robust and appealing proposition most apt for the hospitality sector.

The WFC (Wood Frame Construction) style of construction is one of the most widely used methods to build in North America. This technique optimises building process by helping reduce the time and cost involved in the construction process.

On the other hand, the T&G (Tongue and Groove) style of construction is a very organic and efficient way of building since the entire structure can be prefabricated in the factory from the drawing. A major advantage of this method is that every component can be pre-coated prior to leaving the factory with only a final coat to be done after construction.

Speaking about the T&G (Tongue and Groove) house displayed at IndiaWood 2020, Mr. Peter Bradfield, Technical Advisor at Canadian Wood said, “What set the exhibited T&G house apart was the laminated wall structure with double tongue and groove which increased the wall thickness. This added to strength, stiffness, wall span and insulation values. The beauty and appeal of T&G construction in India for resort living is the all-encompassing look and feel of wood and being part of nature.”

Further to this on the WFC (Wood Frame Construction) house he added “WFC houses are adaptable to all climates, ranging from hot and humid to extremely cold climates. When well-constructed they can meet or exceed code-established levels of fire safety and sound control. The house displayed at the IndiaWood was completely factory made and designed in modules for easy transportation.”

Also available for comment was Mr. Pranesh Chhibber, Country Director with Canadian Wood who said “The hospitality industry is increasingly looking at building resorts using wood in structural applications. Also, there is an upward trend in increased usage of wood in the home category by leading architects, manufacturers, HNIs looking at villas, country homes and farmhouses as a lifestyle statement. Canadian wood on its part is doing its bit in promoting building with wood through technical support and handholding in the T&G, WFC & Post & Beam method in addition to the hybrid method of building with wood and local stone/brick besides interior and exterior use of wood in more traditional applications such as panelling, cladding, furniture (indoor & outdoor), joinery – doors & windows and pergolas/gazebos etc.” He also added that “The cedar species of Canadian wood are ideal decking and sauna.”

Each of the houses displayed at the Canadian Wood booth in IndiaWood were embellished with furniture made using Western hemlock – a species of Canadian wood that is evolving into a preferred choice of furniture manufacturers in India due to its looks & workability. Also, the T&G house demonstrated Doors, Door Frames in Yellow Cedar which is a high-quality substitute wood in lieu of UPVC windows that cancel out noise, dust and water. To present each of the creations in their best form, different established furniture manufacturers were reached out to from across India.

City Today News

(citytoday.media)

9341997936