CONDUCTING original research is Pakistan is still a distant concept. There are very few people who are seriously interested in doing research that goes beyond copying and pasting from various sources. For some fortunate souls, the chance to do research under supervision comes while they are studying in universities. This is the time when they actually learn how to do it, albeit as an academic exercise.
When starting out to conduct research on any chosen topic, one of the key steps is to review the studies that have already been done on the same topic. This gives an idea about the study and whatever has been covered in your area of interest, that is, your chosen topic. Moreover, it beams on the scope and available methods with which you can conduct research.
For many, reviewing the researches seem quite a tedious task. In fact, it is quite tedious, at least at the initial level; but with the passage of time you get more and more involved. It is a quite a time-consuming activity and one is resigned to spending long hours in libraries poring over journals after journals, trying to find relevant and appropriate research studies.
The internet however, once again comes to the rescue. you can now use websites like Find Articles (http://www.findarticles.com) to access at least some of the journals and research articles.
Find Articles is a repository of research journals and research articles on almost every subject that you can imagine. Of course, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. All the journals are divided into ‘Free’ and ‘Premium’ sections. So it may happen that whatever you want to access is falling under the Premium section, which means that you have to pay a certain amount to find access to the articles in it. But there are loads of journals which are free and you can easily avail their services.
If you are new to Find Articles, the sheer amount of research material here can overwhelm you. The best way to browse is to first search for the journals which are relevant to your topic. You can choose the ‘Explore Publications by Title’ link to navigate there. You can either go through all the journals manually – they are arranged in an alphabetical order -- and by subject matter (arts, business, health, sports and technology to name a few).
The other option is to search the journals for key words. You can enter a few words or phrases in the search box and check the search results. Once you have the journals relevant to your research topic, the next step would be to go through the different issues of that journal to see if the study is relevant to you. Find Articles has several issues of the same journal with the full text of the articles (if it falls under the ‘Free’ section), so there is quite a lot of material to choose from.
But, if you do not want to go through the procedure of looking up journals first, you can always search journal articles only. There is a search box on the main page which gives the option of searching articles among the free or premium section, or both of them.
One way in which you can make use of these journal articles is to go through their list of references and check out which journals and articles were used in the preparation of that research study. Even if you cannot find on Find Articles, you can always look up Google Scholar.
Needless to say that the internet is the marvel for today and tomorrow, especially for a person surfing for educational purpose, and conducting the preliminary stages of his/her research. However, it is important that one does not copy/paste from journal articles, but simply use them for his/her literature review. This essentially means that one credit all the articles in bibliography.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Diet is who you are
his is an age of gadgets and junk food — a lethal combination for one’s health. The former ensures lack of exercise in the daily routine by means of the innovative easy-to-use devices, and the latter, in the form of gorging food or snacks on the move. They result in obvious problems like obesity, high cholesterol levels and heart diseases.
But even though, there is no dearth of literature on maintaining a balanced diet, very few actually pay heed.
But if you are genuinely concerned about what you are eating, Food Fit (http://www.foodfit.com/) is the website to bookmark and visit on a daily basis. This website is a goldmine of healthy recipes, workable diet plans and of course, a chance to interact with health buffs from around the world.
First things first: when you log onto this website, do sign up as a member. This is one step that many people may want to skip. But since there are quite a few sections which cater to members only, it is worthwhile signing up, especially since the registration is free.
On the website you will find out a variety of newsletter to which you can subscribe as per your interest. Some of these newsletters include Recipe Fest which, as the name suggests, is a collection of recipes uploaded on the website by different chefs, and Simply Food Fit which will divulge fitness tips and information on nutrition.
The website also offers quite a few detailed sections. The Top Picks basically focuses on seasonal food. At the time of writing, it is featuring healthy recipes (comprising organic food, that is, fruits and vegetables) which one can try on special occasions like Halloween and Thanksgiving. Some of you may want to skip this section altogether.
The section on Healthy Eating is definitely the one to pour over. You can go through the food guides to discover which fruits and vegetables are most appropriate for the current season. You can peruse lists of foods which are the main culprits in increasing your cholesterol level. There are also some quick tips on dinners as well. For instance, did you know that children who have dinner with their families have healthier eating habits? Plus, there is an interesting ‘Ask the Experts’ segment where you can put your questions to the resident nutritionist or go through the questions previously asked along with the answers given.
Healthy Cooking is where you can access the recipes. Some of the recipes may include ingredients that are unavailable in local markets, but if you happen to be a good cook, you can modify it to create a local version that could be equally yummy. This section has three main segments. In the first segment, featured chefs share their experiences, recipes and formula for healthy eating with the visitors. The other two feature the recipes.
In addition, people who are curious to know about the routine exercises to keep fit can check out the Fitness section which provides ample knowledge and tips. You can read up on useful stuff as well like how to get motivated to stick to a daily workout routine. There is information on how to compare the number of calories you eat versus those which you burn as well. And finally, the Community section is where you participate in discussions on various forums, and interact with like-minded health conscious individuals.
Overall, this website is extremely informative as well as useful if you are seriously concerned about the switching to a healthier lifestyle. The great advantage of Foodfit is that it focuses both on the eating habits as well as fitness routine — two main areas of concern towards healthy living.
But even though, there is no dearth of literature on maintaining a balanced diet, very few actually pay heed.
But if you are genuinely concerned about what you are eating, Food Fit (http://www.foodfit.com/) is the website to bookmark and visit on a daily basis. This website is a goldmine of healthy recipes, workable diet plans and of course, a chance to interact with health buffs from around the world.
First things first: when you log onto this website, do sign up as a member. This is one step that many people may want to skip. But since there are quite a few sections which cater to members only, it is worthwhile signing up, especially since the registration is free.
On the website you will find out a variety of newsletter to which you can subscribe as per your interest. Some of these newsletters include Recipe Fest which, as the name suggests, is a collection of recipes uploaded on the website by different chefs, and Simply Food Fit which will divulge fitness tips and information on nutrition.
The website also offers quite a few detailed sections. The Top Picks basically focuses on seasonal food. At the time of writing, it is featuring healthy recipes (comprising organic food, that is, fruits and vegetables) which one can try on special occasions like Halloween and Thanksgiving. Some of you may want to skip this section altogether.
The section on Healthy Eating is definitely the one to pour over. You can go through the food guides to discover which fruits and vegetables are most appropriate for the current season. You can peruse lists of foods which are the main culprits in increasing your cholesterol level. There are also some quick tips on dinners as well. For instance, did you know that children who have dinner with their families have healthier eating habits? Plus, there is an interesting ‘Ask the Experts’ segment where you can put your questions to the resident nutritionist or go through the questions previously asked along with the answers given.
Healthy Cooking is where you can access the recipes. Some of the recipes may include ingredients that are unavailable in local markets, but if you happen to be a good cook, you can modify it to create a local version that could be equally yummy. This section has three main segments. In the first segment, featured chefs share their experiences, recipes and formula for healthy eating with the visitors. The other two feature the recipes.
In addition, people who are curious to know about the routine exercises to keep fit can check out the Fitness section which provides ample knowledge and tips. You can read up on useful stuff as well like how to get motivated to stick to a daily workout routine. There is information on how to compare the number of calories you eat versus those which you burn as well. And finally, the Community section is where you participate in discussions on various forums, and interact with like-minded health conscious individuals.
Overall, this website is extremely informative as well as useful if you are seriously concerned about the switching to a healthier lifestyle. The great advantage of Foodfit is that it focuses both on the eating habits as well as fitness routine — two main areas of concern towards healthy living.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Brrr… it’s cold!
The winter season is upon us. Though most people argue that this part of the world hardly enjoys the full blast of winter. Common phrases heard with reference to winter include something to the effect of “You call THIS winter?” or “The temperature is not even below zero degrees Celsius.” But it would be a tad inaccurate to state outright that there is no winter to enjoy. True, the season comes for a relatively short period of time as compared to the summers, but it does come nonetheless. And winter has its own charm.
First and foremost: come winter season and there is an onslaught of warm clothes, sweaters, blankets and quilts which are taken out of the trunks where they are stored for a major part of the year. For warm clothes, there is a major spring cleaning of wardrobes under the supervision of mothers. Summer clothes are folded away and put at the back, while the warm ones are brought out to the front.
It is quite interesting to note that even though it is quite fun to step out of the house each morning and pull one’s sweater tightly around oneself to guard against the chilly winds, there are some young people who take immense pride in not wearing any warm clothes at all. There must be at least a couple of such people in your own school if you look around carefully. One cannot imagine what is so cool about not wearing sweaters, especially if the temperature is indeed quite low. But not wearing sweaters is something that is bragged about to no limit.
Of course, winter is also the time to bring out and wear fancy shawls. They can be worn at all occasions and several varieties of shawls are available to choose from. In fact, there are some people who have genuine allergies to wool and they end up with rashes on their arms if they try to wear one. Shawls are indispensable in such cases. But, as with any item of clothing, shawls too sometimes become a fashion statement and hence, the “cool factor” comes in again. However, if you compare shawl-wearing-for-fashion to non-sweater-wearing, the less desirable option is quite clear.
Apart from warm clothes, a major charm of winters is the delectable selection of dry fruits. Yep, there are all those peanuts, walnuts and cashew nuts which your mother doesn’t allow you to eat the year around stating that these shouldn’t be eaten during summers. Well, now is your chance to gorge on them. You can either gather around a heater with your family after dinner and enjoy these delectable items, or curl up on your favourite arm chair with a bowl of mixed dry fruits. Or you can have a sleepover with your friends or cousins, and make a midnight snack out of these dry fruits. The choice of food, however, is not limited to dry fruits. There is a wide variety of winter food which you can enjoy from coffee and hot chocolate to bars of chocolate and simmering chicken corn soup.
And who can resist the hoards of juicy oranges? If kino is a bit sour, you can enjoy the sweet malta. Eat it or savour the frostly squeezed juice — the choice is yours.
A close synonym of food at least in the Pakistani context is a wedding. Come the more chilly weather and suddenly there is a spurt in the number of wedding invitations. Winter weddings have their own charm and their own issues. First and foremost, there is the extreme reluctance on the part of most young people to wear something warm over the fancy dresses. Then, there’s a very annoying yet regular sight at most of the winter weddings. When dinner is served, people pile up their plates with food only to discover that it goes cold within minutes. Hence, they go fill up their plates again.
Alas, all isn’t totally hale and hearty when it comes to winters. It is all too well to snuggle up in blankets with a book or munch on dry fruits after dinner. However, the beginning of the winter season also means the start of a dreadful flu. For some, it is a routine sinus problem. For others, it is the change of weather. Whatever the reason may be, you are sure to hear quite a lot of sneezing and sniffles around you as people brave through a bout of flu. And if you happen to be one of those people, then all you can do is wait patiently for it to run its course as this flu is usually viral. Of course, if you are into home remedies, then honey and white pepper combined does work wonders.
Another very difficult thing to do during winters is to wake up in the morning. Nothing is more irritating than the sound of the alarm clock on a winter morning. It is an absolute torture to pull oneself out of the warm blanket or quilt, and then stand shivering in front of the basin, waiting for hot water to wash one’s face.
Woes aside, there are some things which seriously constitute a to-do list for winter. If you haven’t already tried some of these things out, then take this winter season as an opportunity to do the same.
• Make a list of books to constitute your winter reading. When the temperature drops to the extent that you don’t feel like doing anything, it is always a good idea to curl up with a book.
• Don’t miss out on a winter walk. Even if it is just a stroll around the neighbourhood park, do make it a point to go. Winters are one time when early morning walks can be enjoyed to the fullest. Of course, dragging yourself out of bed and then willing yourself to step out of the house may require a huge effort, but in the end it is well worth it.
First and foremost: come winter season and there is an onslaught of warm clothes, sweaters, blankets and quilts which are taken out of the trunks where they are stored for a major part of the year. For warm clothes, there is a major spring cleaning of wardrobes under the supervision of mothers. Summer clothes are folded away and put at the back, while the warm ones are brought out to the front.
It is quite interesting to note that even though it is quite fun to step out of the house each morning and pull one’s sweater tightly around oneself to guard against the chilly winds, there are some young people who take immense pride in not wearing any warm clothes at all. There must be at least a couple of such people in your own school if you look around carefully. One cannot imagine what is so cool about not wearing sweaters, especially if the temperature is indeed quite low. But not wearing sweaters is something that is bragged about to no limit.
Of course, winter is also the time to bring out and wear fancy shawls. They can be worn at all occasions and several varieties of shawls are available to choose from. In fact, there are some people who have genuine allergies to wool and they end up with rashes on their arms if they try to wear one. Shawls are indispensable in such cases. But, as with any item of clothing, shawls too sometimes become a fashion statement and hence, the “cool factor” comes in again. However, if you compare shawl-wearing-for-fashion to non-sweater-wearing, the less desirable option is quite clear.
Apart from warm clothes, a major charm of winters is the delectable selection of dry fruits. Yep, there are all those peanuts, walnuts and cashew nuts which your mother doesn’t allow you to eat the year around stating that these shouldn’t be eaten during summers. Well, now is your chance to gorge on them. You can either gather around a heater with your family after dinner and enjoy these delectable items, or curl up on your favourite arm chair with a bowl of mixed dry fruits. Or you can have a sleepover with your friends or cousins, and make a midnight snack out of these dry fruits. The choice of food, however, is not limited to dry fruits. There is a wide variety of winter food which you can enjoy from coffee and hot chocolate to bars of chocolate and simmering chicken corn soup.
And who can resist the hoards of juicy oranges? If kino is a bit sour, you can enjoy the sweet malta. Eat it or savour the frostly squeezed juice — the choice is yours.
A close synonym of food at least in the Pakistani context is a wedding. Come the more chilly weather and suddenly there is a spurt in the number of wedding invitations. Winter weddings have their own charm and their own issues. First and foremost, there is the extreme reluctance on the part of most young people to wear something warm over the fancy dresses. Then, there’s a very annoying yet regular sight at most of the winter weddings. When dinner is served, people pile up their plates with food only to discover that it goes cold within minutes. Hence, they go fill up their plates again.
Alas, all isn’t totally hale and hearty when it comes to winters. It is all too well to snuggle up in blankets with a book or munch on dry fruits after dinner. However, the beginning of the winter season also means the start of a dreadful flu. For some, it is a routine sinus problem. For others, it is the change of weather. Whatever the reason may be, you are sure to hear quite a lot of sneezing and sniffles around you as people brave through a bout of flu. And if you happen to be one of those people, then all you can do is wait patiently for it to run its course as this flu is usually viral. Of course, if you are into home remedies, then honey and white pepper combined does work wonders.
Another very difficult thing to do during winters is to wake up in the morning. Nothing is more irritating than the sound of the alarm clock on a winter morning. It is an absolute torture to pull oneself out of the warm blanket or quilt, and then stand shivering in front of the basin, waiting for hot water to wash one’s face.
Woes aside, there are some things which seriously constitute a to-do list for winter. If you haven’t already tried some of these things out, then take this winter season as an opportunity to do the same.
• Make a list of books to constitute your winter reading. When the temperature drops to the extent that you don’t feel like doing anything, it is always a good idea to curl up with a book.
• Don’t miss out on a winter walk. Even if it is just a stroll around the neighbourhood park, do make it a point to go. Winters are one time when early morning walks can be enjoyed to the fullest. Of course, dragging yourself out of bed and then willing yourself to step out of the house may require a huge effort, but in the end it is well worth it.
• As the winter season approaches, there are calls for donations by many welfare organisations. Find the one which you can trust, and do give some of the warm clothes for those who are not as privileged as you are. For the poor people, winters are a trial and your spare blankets and quilts can do wonders.
In short, try and make the most out of the winter season instead of grumbling about how cold (or otherwise) you are and how your flu is making it impossible for you to do anything else. After all, winter does come for only a very few months, and before you know it, it is summer time again. So be positive and make this winter season a truly fulfilling one, not just for yourself but for others as well.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Up, up and away
There are some people for whom travelling in different countries is not a novelty anymore. And then, there are those who get excited even if they are visiting another city in the same country. If you happen to fall in the latter category, you will find that there are many websites in cyberspace to help you plan the perfect vacation, or a simple get-away for a few days from the routined, stressful life. And if you cannot even think about travelling, courtesy a limited budget, then you can simply sigh wistfully at the all the wonderful places and plan a dream cruise around the world.
Trip Advisor is one such websites which will definitely come in handy whether you are planning an actual trip or just dreaming about one. This website has information on just about everything related to travelling – details on different destinations, hotels, tourist spots, airline tickets and more.
If you are visiting the website for the first time, it can get a little confusing. This is because there is a massive amount of information, and quite surprisingly, not very user-friendly categories. The first thing that hits you is the search for flights and hotels, and if you are here simply to browse, it can put you off very easily.
For your convenience, it would be helpful to access the list of popular destinations given at the bottom of the homepage. These popular cities are divided into featured destinations, recommended vacations, best beach vacations and trips to Europe.
Once you have selected a country or city of your choice or interest, you will be directed to a webpage which has anything and everything regarding that city. There is a plethora of information here which will not only help you decide on you vacation destination, but will also give you all the information you may need when travelling to that place. If you are accessing the information on a particular country, you will discover that the section has been sub-divided by cities.
Some of the information that is given on each city featured on Trip Advisor includes details of hotels and there is a special section on hotels where you can get concessional rates as well, in case you have a limited budget. This section has reviews of different hotels – these reviews have been written by those who stayed there. Hence, you will have first-hand view of these hotels to help you decide which one to book for yourselves. The rates of the hotels have also been mentioned.
Then there are the details of the different tourist attractions. There is a long list of activities which you can do in that particular city. There are detailed maps of the city, along with a search facility which you can use to hunt down the flights towards that particular destination at your required time.
There is a great deal more that you can do on Trip Advisor. If you are one of those who travel a lot, then you can ensure that other people around the world benefit from your knowledge. Yep, you can create an account here, which will enable you to write detailed reviews of the hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions of the places you have visited. You can inform people which option to go for in a particular country and the list of things to watch out for. Also, you can upload your own photos and videos of the vacations – keeping your privacy concerns in mind of course.
So basically, there is a lot that you can do on this website. In fact, you can easily spend hours here. But of course, while this website is good for information on flights, hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, you must go through a reliable ‘offline’ travel agent to actually make your booking. Bon Voyage!
To plan your next vacation, log onto http://www.tripadvisor.com/
Trip Advisor is one such websites which will definitely come in handy whether you are planning an actual trip or just dreaming about one. This website has information on just about everything related to travelling – details on different destinations, hotels, tourist spots, airline tickets and more.
If you are visiting the website for the first time, it can get a little confusing. This is because there is a massive amount of information, and quite surprisingly, not very user-friendly categories. The first thing that hits you is the search for flights and hotels, and if you are here simply to browse, it can put you off very easily.
For your convenience, it would be helpful to access the list of popular destinations given at the bottom of the homepage. These popular cities are divided into featured destinations, recommended vacations, best beach vacations and trips to Europe.
Once you have selected a country or city of your choice or interest, you will be directed to a webpage which has anything and everything regarding that city. There is a plethora of information here which will not only help you decide on you vacation destination, but will also give you all the information you may need when travelling to that place. If you are accessing the information on a particular country, you will discover that the section has been sub-divided by cities.
Some of the information that is given on each city featured on Trip Advisor includes details of hotels and there is a special section on hotels where you can get concessional rates as well, in case you have a limited budget. This section has reviews of different hotels – these reviews have been written by those who stayed there. Hence, you will have first-hand view of these hotels to help you decide which one to book for yourselves. The rates of the hotels have also been mentioned.
Then there are the details of the different tourist attractions. There is a long list of activities which you can do in that particular city. There are detailed maps of the city, along with a search facility which you can use to hunt down the flights towards that particular destination at your required time.
There is a great deal more that you can do on Trip Advisor. If you are one of those who travel a lot, then you can ensure that other people around the world benefit from your knowledge. Yep, you can create an account here, which will enable you to write detailed reviews of the hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions of the places you have visited. You can inform people which option to go for in a particular country and the list of things to watch out for. Also, you can upload your own photos and videos of the vacations – keeping your privacy concerns in mind of course.
So basically, there is a lot that you can do on this website. In fact, you can easily spend hours here. But of course, while this website is good for information on flights, hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, you must go through a reliable ‘offline’ travel agent to actually make your booking. Bon Voyage!
To plan your next vacation, log onto http://www.tripadvisor.com/
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