Children in focus

The Universal Children’s Day is celebrated on the 20th of November every year. The idea is to promote the welfare of the world’s children. The date was chosen as it marks the day on which the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.
Both these declarations clearly define the rights of children, irrespective of their gender, country, socio-economic position or culture. These rights include, among many others, the right to proper food, clothing, shelter, education and upbringing.
Unfortunately, the reality is a stark contrast from all those conventions and declarations. Children all over the world are the victim of various issues. Children from South Asia are no different. Some of these issues include:

Malnutrition
The Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN estimates that the following countries have five million or more under-nourished people:
India
China
Bangladesh
Democratic Republic of Congo
Pakistan
As can be gauged from the above, four of the five top countries hail from the South Asian region, which says a lot about the kind of malnutrition that is generally prevalent. More statistics indicate that it is South Asia which has the greatest rate of child malnutrition. About 5.6 million children die every year in India alone; half of the children are underweight.

Child abuse
Constituting physical and emotional abuse, children from South Asia suffer from violence, child trafficking and discrimination.

Illiteracy and child labor
Many children do not have the luxury of acquiring formal education. They neither go to school nor are tutored privately. Others are forced to leave their education and prematurely join the workforce. The number of such children exceeds 150 million in Asia alone. Industries where they are forced to work include textiles, mining, leather, and toy-manufacturing. Most have to work in the farms and construction sites as well.

Child marriages
Marriage of a girl-child to an adult or the arranged marriage of two children comprises cultural practices of many countries all over the world. Interestingly, it is again South Asia which takes the cake in terms of figures, as it has the highest incidence of child marriages all over the world. Laws have been enacted in certain countries to curb this practice, however, it still continues unabated, especially in the rural areas.

Yes, the above does paint a very bleak picture. One might wonder, what really is the silver lining in all of this? The fact is that even though the situation is rather alarming, there are individuals and organizations, which have dedicated their life and work towards the welfare of children.

Organizations here in Pakistan include The Citizens Foundation and Society for the Promotion for Educational Welfare, which aim towards eliminating child illiteracy and providing formal education to the children. Similarly, many non-government bodies are working towards eradication of child abuse.

Internationally, particularly in the South Asian region, South Asian Initiative to End Violence Against Children is an inter-governmental body working for the alleviation of child abuse. With the head office based in Nepal, their vision is a region where “all children, girls and boys, throughout South Asia enjoy their right to an environment free from all forms of violence, abuse, exploitation, neglect and discrimination.” Their working groups deal with early marriage, corporal punishment, sexual abuse, trafficking and child labor.

Yes, one may argue that these are not enough organizations. Also, their work might not seem very significant. However, they are at least trying, and they must be commended for that. The situation does require urgent attention, and it is up to these philanthropic and conscious individuals and organizations to stand the test of time and come up with workable and practical solutions to deal with the issues that confront the children of this world today.

Now There Is Hope For Her

First, the bill defines harassment as: "any unwelcome sexual advance, request for sexual favors or other verbal and written communication or physical conduct of a sexual nature or sexually demeaning attitudes, causing interference with the work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, or the attempt to punish the complainant for refusal to comply to such a request or is made condition for employment."

If an individual's crime of harassment is proved, he can be handed a minor penalty or a major penalty, depending on the nature of the harassment. The bill mentioned a range of minor penalties, some of which include censure, withholding of increment/promotion. Some of the major penalties include demotion to a lower post, compulsory retirement, removal/dismissal from service and fine.

Who will award these penalties and how? If a complaint of harassment is made, the organization concerned will have to form an inquiry commission, which will hear the version of both the parties and submit their findings within 30 days. The committee will have to have three members, including a woman. The committee's recommendations will be submitted to the relevant authority, which will then hand the penalties.

How is the government planning to implement this bill? What concrete, practical measures have been put in place to ensure that punishments are indeed handed out to the perpetrators of harassment?

There are two major problems. The victims of harassment are almost always unwilling to come forward and report that they are being harassed. Reporting any crime means unwanted publicity and most of the people, especially working women, prefer to suffer in silence, rather than take on the "big wigs" of their organization.

The second problem is more sinister - quite often, the perpetrator does not see him/herself as someone who is doing anything wrong. This mindset dominating to an alarmingly high extent and there is very little one can do on an individual level to change that.

The law must clearly define the actions which constitute harassment, so as to ensure that the law is not abused, and the perpetrators realize that what they are doing is a crime, and they would have to be accountable for it. The law would also have to assure some sort of anonymity and protection for the woman who comes forward to report the crime.

Secondly, a mass awareness campaign is needed involving public service messages, advertisements, drama serials, etc. to ensure that the message goes across to all levels of the public. It is not enough to simply pass a bill and sit back.

Workplace harassment is definitely something that needs to be dealt with. The bill sounds like a venture in the right direction. One can definitely recommend the other South Asian nations to take a leaf out of our book and implement similar laws in their countries. While Pakistan is the first country which has taken specific steps to deal with workplace harassment and has declared it as a crime, more is needed to ensure that the bill is implemented in letter and spirit.

Welcome To Mountain Land

F and figures prove that tourism is one of the largest revenue-earning sectors in Nepal. And why not? Mount Everest is strategically placed here and the Himalayan Range offers a whole range of activities from hiking to trekking to rafting.

First and foremost is of course, trekking. The most popular trekking trails are the ones leading to the Mount Everest base camp and those around the Annapurna Mountains. Mountaineering on Mount Everest is for more serious climbers, since it is not only expensive, but also very dangerous for novices as the slopes are steep and covered in snow.

By far, the most popular activity is rafting, since there are many rivers in Nepal. To truly enjoy a rafting trip, one must go camping for a full day, as rafts go through both forests and canyons. Also, there are around eight national parks to visit, featuring different activities for the tourists.

The Ministry of Tourism in Nepal has listed some very interesting statistics related to tourism and tourists in 2008: Most tourists arrived in Nepal by air than land. Average length of stay was more for males than females. Most of the tourists were in the age group of 31 to 45 years. Most of the tourists belonged to Asia, closely followed by Western Europe. The top five countries from which the most tourists visited Nepal were: India, Sri Lanka, China, U.K. and U.S.A. Most of the tourists came for holidays, closely followed by those who came for mountaineering.

On another very interesting note, the Nepali government has declared 2011 to be "Nepal Tourism Year." An official website has been set up, detailing the various tourist points all over Nepal. According to this website, the Nepali government has set certain targets for itself. It is aiming to welcome one million international tourists. It is also set to disperse at least 40% of the international tourists into emerging and new tourist areas. It also hopes to attract investment on tourism infrastructures.

Some of the aims and objectives of this Year, as specified by the website, include: establishing Nepal as a choice of premier holiday destination with a definite brand image, improving and extending tourism-related infrastructures in existing and new tourism sites and promoting domestic tourism for sustainability of the industry.

The website - http://nepaltourismyear2011.com/ - also lists specific holiday destinations, festivals and special events, plus a travel guide for the benefit of the visitors.

All in all, one can definitely state that Nepal is one country, which has the potential to come to mind as a potential holiday spot. However, one can easily surmise that the government will have to invest in the construction of alternative tourist spots, if the image of Nepal as a destination for mountaineers and trekkers has to be diversified. The presence of Himalayas does contribute to this image, but it must be considered that not everyone is looking to go on expeditions, trek and climb mountains. Hopefully, the Tourism Year 2011 will help broaden the image of Nepal and at the same time, encourage investors to develop a more diversified tourist infrastructure.

Fact And Fiction

So what are the facts? And how do we get them straight? It is vitally important here to actually delve into the pictures painted by Afghan writers themselves, because only they can give a first-hand account of the reality.

Abdullah Qazi, who runs a popular Afghanistan-based information portal, Afghan Web, has given a rather bleak outlook. He says that repression of women is still quite prevalent in the rural areas of Afghanistan. "They (girls) are still forced into marriages and denied a basic education. Numerous schools for girls have been burnt down and little girls have even been poisoned to death for daring to go to school," he writes. He, however, says that urban Afghan women have an easier time as they get education and participate in public life.

The economic and political conditions are not very encouraging either. The Centre for Research on Globalization, a Canada-based research organization and media group, has challenged the claim that the Afghan government is working towards a pro-women agenda. In his article, John W. Warnock has pointed to legislation passed in early 2008. "...the new legislation limited guardianship of children to fathers and paternal grandfathers, that a wife could not leave her house without the permission of her husband, that women could only inherit moveable property, and that the wife is "bound to preen for her husband, as and when he desires." A wife is allowed to work outside the house "unless her work affects the interest of the family in a negative way," he writes. Warnock is adamant that life even for an urban Afghan woman is not easy.

A report by ‘Womankind Worldwide' (UK-based group) in February 2008 reinforced this. It basically stated that the legal system in Afghanistan does not practically support women. There are elaborate laws which favor women; however, such laws are hardly implemented, with the result that quite a lot of innocent Afghan women land in jail.

Other statistics by ‘Womankind Worldwide' are not very encouraging either - 60% of marriages are enforced upon women by their families while 87% of the women surveyed had undergone abuse on a physical and psychological level.

Reading "official" and "unofficial" versions of what is really happening in Afghanistan, one does get the impression that large scale information propaganda is going on. The highly positive stories and pictures of Afghan women, which sound too good to be true, are actually as fictitious as they can get. In-depth interviews with common Afghan women portray the real side of the picture - a picture not pretty at all. Afghan women are still the victims of a patriarchal mindset, and no law can ever change that. Is anyone willing to take the government to task and make things better? Or will everyone, international governments included, continue to feed us the false stories?

Playing around with HTML

In this day and age, there are quite a few people who have their own blogs, if not a personal website. While making a blog, the blog hosting service offers its own collection of templates, from which one can choose any style that seems suitable. These templates are quite diverse in terms of layout and colour scheme and take away the whole hassle of ‘designing’ from the blogger.

However, they sometimes do seem incomplete. A blogger or a website owner can always think of changing one colour, or one font type to suit him or herself. But without adequate knowledge of HTML, this task is not possible.However, there is one website which can make things easier for you, and that is ‘HTML Playground’ where any novice blogger can generate the required HTML code. This code can then be inserted into the blog to achieve the desired effect.

It works in a simple way. As soon as you enter the website, it gives you a short demo of how you need to use the tool. Once you hit close, you are ready to go.

First and foremost, you select the HTML tag — this basically means you choose whatever you want to alter, for instance, do you want to alter the heading on your website/blog or insert a table?

Once you select the tag, you choose its attributes — what font type and size do you want your heading to be; what colour should the heading be when someone places the mouse over it? You choose your own attributes for the tag, and the code generates itself in another box. All the while, there is a description box to help along the way. Once you get your code, you can simply insert it into your blog.

While this website is definitely very handy and very convenient, there are a few things which need to be looked into. Firstly, there is no way to bring back the demo window once you hit close. One idea can be to open this website itself in two different tabs or windows, and keep the demo window open at all times for reference. This way, even if you get stuck at some point, you can refer to the demo of this website. Having said that, the layout and colour scheme of this website is definitely very appealing and well-chosen. Those who wish to explore deeper can visit the blog and forums available here.

To tweak the HTML of any of your websites or blogs, use the handy tool available at http://htmlplayground.com/

Risks, risks everywhere!

Another year means yet another Earth Day. Like the previous years, this year’s Earth Day will also see more and more appeals by environmentalists to pay heed to the state of our planet. There will be yet another call to ‘go green’. More and more people will join the cause, albeit virtually, to do something about global warming at an individual level.

However, as proven by current scientific research, all that is being done to improve the state of the planet is clearly not enough. Every single slip has huge repercussions, whether those slips occur on an individual or on national level. The bigger culprits are, of course, the corporations to whom ‘going green’ also means a decline in profits.

So what does research say anyway? What is the current state of our environment? What is this planet going to be like for the generations to come? Following are some of alarming news stories, based on the latest scientific research, which have been collect from Science Daily (http://www.sciencedaily.com)

Read the rest of the article here:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/in-paper-magazine/sci-tech-world/earth-matters-risks-risks-everywhere

Spell Well

It goes without saying that the ability to spell words correctly is definitely as much of a skill, as are reading and writing. At first glance, it does seem as if learning to spell and becoming a wiz at spelling is a piece of cake, at least when compared to writing. However, in this day and age, spelling is an art in itself.

This is mainly because of two reasons — firstly, more and more young people are exposed to both British and American spellings, and it has become ever more important to learn to distinguish between the two. And, secondly, the age of the internet and cell phones means that the correct spelling of words is one of the major casualties, as young people resort to shorthand as much in their SMSs as in their examination paper.

And yet, it is the internet which comes to the rescue when it comes to improving one’s spelling skills. There are a myriad of websites out there that can do wonders for you. Whether you are a beginner, looking to start improving your spellings, or an expert, who just wants to revise, there is something for you in the form of a whole collection of websites out there and they can easily be categorised under the following sections.

Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/in-paper-magazine/young-world/spell-well-become-a-spelling-wiz

Making Technology Work for You

When someone starts talking about the internet or computers in general, how do you join in? What are the first few phrases which pop up in your mind? Can you spot your likely response among the following?

“Ooh, are you going to tell me about a new game?”
“Do you know of a website from where I can download free essays?”
“I need a really unique poem for my elocution. Can you search it for me?”
“My teacher makes me write all my assignments — we can’t submit a typed one.”

Complains, grumbles and requests — when it comes to technology, don’t you all just love to complain that your teachers cannot keep up with you, or that your friend took the elocution poem from the website which you wanted for yourself? Or maybe, your parents don’t give you enough time for gaming, and you are always itching to go and play at every odd time.
Interestingly, while games definitely top the list of things which you love to do over the internet, there are a lot of other things which you can do in order to benefit from technology. After all, there is a lot more to the internet, or any communications technology for that matter, than just games.

Here are some of the ways you can use the technologies available to you, and improve your skills in the classroom.

Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/in-paper-magazine/young-world/cover+story+making+technology+work

What a Joke

Those of you who have read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, will fondly recall the scene where Cho Chang chances upon Harry in the Hogwarts Express when he is covered with Stink-sap. What does Harry think at that point? He wants Cho to run into him at a time when he is surrounded by cool people laughing at a joke he just cracked.

The incident is indeed very close to real life and J. K. Rowling has aptly captured the mindset of most highschool students of today in that chapter.

These days, it is considered highly cool to be able to crack jokes every minute and make people laugh. Students, who have witty one-liners at the tip of their tongue, are usually the centre of attention and the object of much awe and admiration from those who lack that kind of confidence.

The question, however, is that whether “cracking jokes every minute” and “making people laugh” are synonymous with one another other. The answer is both yes and no. While on the one hand, well-timed and well-placed jokes can make people laugh, on the other, they can irritate, annoy, disappoint or even offend a person.

So where does one draw the line? How do you decide which joke to narrate and which witty remark to keep to yourself? Here are a few questions you need to ask yourself before you make your final decision.

Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/in-paper-magazine/young-world/cover+story+what++a++joke

Cook what you have

There are some people for whom cooking brings sheer pleasure. They are ever ready to meticulously plan their grocery purchases, set out the monthly menu and cook with an enthusiasm which reflects in the taste of the dishes that they prepare. For others, however, cooking is a tedious chore. They would rather spend as little time as possible on it.

Yet there is one characteristic similar to both, which is their expertise in cooking up something from the leftovers, especially now that food prices have taken their toll on the budget of many households. But those confused about how to make the most f the veggies or anything in the fridge, Cooking by Numbers is a site that will prove to be an aid.

Just select the food items which are in your refrigerator — and pick the same on the website, there is quite a long list to choose from, like butter, chicken, cheese, salad, beef, steak, etc. The next step is to select the items which are in your kitchen cupboard. You can select from flour, lentils, noodles, pasta, bread, coffee and loads more. Once you are done, you can point and click to find out which recipes you can try out.

The recipes are ranked in a unique way, like the recipe containing the most number of items that you are looking for is ranked first — with the percentage showing next to it. The percentage will tell you the extent to which the recipe contains the ingredients that you have specified.

While you are here, you can also try a tomato game available for free. There is also a segment on general cooking tips. If you are a beginner in the kitchen, this section will fill you in on the correct way to chop an onion, make bread crumbs, how to peel citrus fruits and how to get many other basic things done.

However, the most irritating thing is its blue background which hits you in the face — and yes, this background is there on every single page. Moreover, it is again apparent that the basic layout design has not been considered closely, and lacks the pictorial aspect as well. There are many web pages which are titled “Untitled Document” — which does look highly unprofessional. Moreover, the steps in the recipe are not numbered — they appear as one paragraph.

But as far as the functionality goes, this is definitely a very handy website. If you are blessed with a cable or DSL connection, you can log onto this website whenever you are stuck anywhere in the kitchen.

To find out how you can convert leftovers into exotic dishes, log onto http://www.cookingbynumbers.com/

Sharing Made Easy

Hafsa Ahsan recommends Upload.sc, a website that is handy when trying to send heavy attachments in emails

How many times have you gritted your teeth in sheer frustration because the email service you use refused to send your attachment?

How hard do you have to work to zip your documents and compress your photographs just because you know your email server will not let heavy files get through easily?

If the above accurately spells out your predicament, then you definitely need to access a website which can easily send your attachments, and Upload.sc is one of the options you can avail.

This website is extremely handy and the best part is that there is no hassle here. All you have to do is log on to this website, select the file from your computer, specify the email address of the individual for whom the file is intended and hit Send. It is actually as simple as that. You need not reveal your email address or describe the file. But yes, you can enter a personalised message for your intended recipient lest s/he discards your email, believing it to be spam.

And if you are wondering what the catch might be in this whole procedure, then do remember that the file size has a limit. Unfortunately, you cannot use this website to email files which are more than 100 MB in size. This does eliminate heavy videos – but no worries, 100 MB is quite a lot and does indicate that you can send large files without much hassle.

Apart from the file sending facility, this website has an extensive help section which will guide you through the process, and help you in case you run into any glitches. You can also discover new things about using the website here. For instance, there is no such thing as the maximum number of files you can upload in one day. You can upload and send as many files as you like in just one sitting. There is also the facility of sending one file to multiple recipients.

As far as the layout of the website is concerned, it is done very simply with bright colours on a white background. There is absolutely no clutter here – no intruding advertisements on pop-ups. However, there are a few things that do not work, like the “Report Abuse” link on the sidebar – with a facility like this, there is always the chance of abuse as people might send pirated files to others; or some people might use this facility to spam a large number of people. In such a scenario, it is vitally important for the Report Abuse option to work properly.

Secondly, the website does not mention the kind of policy that it follows. People have to enter the email addresses of their intended recipients and even though most of them would not care, it is important that it is stated somewhere that the webmasters will not sell these email addresses to a third-party.

But, apart from these minor glitches, this website is definitely a useful one and come in handy when the email server fails to deliver. To upload and email heavy files, log onto http://www.upload.sc/

The Marvels And The Misfortunes

Hafsa Ahsan looks at some scientific and environmental issue that made news last year

This is the beginning of 2009, and looking back, one can only marvel at the many achievements that this year has witnessed. From scientific discoveries to medical breakthroughs and space-related insights, science and technology in 2008 have been there and done almost everything.

Here is a brief flashback of the major events that took place in the course of last year, which will surely have a much bigger impact in the years to come.

NATURAL DISASTERS
ReliefWeb’s listing of the natural disasters of 2008 illustrates that many countries were on the receiving end of nature’s wrath this year. Earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and volcanic eruptions took place all over the world.

The earthquake which caused the most damage hit Central China in May 2008, killing over 80,000 people and rendering 10 million people homeless (according to Reuters). CNN reported the earthquake as being the worst-ever in a generation. Measuring 7.9, the epicentre of the quake was Sichuan Province. Poor weather combined with equally poor logistics delayed the rescue and rehabilitation efforts. Moreover, the constant aftershocks triggered landslides as well, adding to the misery of the victims.

Pakistan, too, was not spared this year when it came to earthquakes. The Baluchistan province was hit by a 6.4 earthquake, followed by another one, again measuring 6.4. Over two hundred people lost their lives, while 120,000 were rendered homeless. Countries like Iran and the island of Simeulue, in Indonesia, were also hit by very powerful earthquake. Volcanic eruptions happened in Chile and Columbia.

SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES
Thanks to UC Berkeley, the Invisibility Cloak has an existence outside the world of Harry Potter. The university scientists used nanowire grown inside a porous aluminium tube to create a sheeting 10 times thinner than a piece of paper. Once an object was wrapped in this sheet, it would be invisible in light. Now this is something a lot of people would love to get their hands on!

When it comes to security systems, face recognition technologies are invaluable. Till now these technologies were not 100 per cent accurate because of variations in the images that were captured. This year, R. Jenkins and A. M. Burton from the University of Glasgow, discovered that if the camera captures multiple images of the same individual and produces an average image of sorts, the result would be more accurate than when only one image was captured.

As the price hike of petrol continues the world over, there is an increasing emphasis on discovering new ways in which fuels can be generated. The latest means on the block through which it can be done is sugar. A group of researchers discovered there is a process whereby sugar from plant biomass can be converted into liquid transportation fuel. Now this is surely a sweet way to travel!

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
It is disheartening to note that the call to “go green” still has not found commercial backing.

This year, researchers David B. Lobell, Marshall B. Burke, Claudia Tebaldi, Michael D. Mastrandrea, Walter P. Falcon and Rosamond L. Naylor combined statistical crop models with global climate projections for 2030 to analyse the risks of crops in 12 regions across the world. These 12 regions are already home to malnourished populations.

And the results of this research indicate that there is a possibility of a harmful impact on crops in the regions of South Asia and South America. On a more heartening note, a team of researchers discovered that high levels of carbon dioxide, which increase ocean acidification, do NOT decrease the process of calcification by marina organisms, as was previously thought. And a pressure of carbon dioxide actually increases this process, thus increasing the production of calcium carbonate.

Some disturbing findings, with regard to global warming also came to light. It was discovered that as the world climate becomes warmer, the solubility of oxygen in ocean water will significantly decrease. This will spell disaster for marine organisms and, eventually, for those on land.

Furthermore, a team of researchers studied 704 reef-building micro organisms and then rated them according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) standards of extinction risk. It was discovered that one-third of these species are at a threat for extinction, due to factors such as pollution, over-fishing and increased sea surface temperatures. And this in turn puts the coral reefs at a risk of extinction too.

OUT IN SPACE
In May, Nasa’s Phoenix Lander visited, for the first time ever, the polar region of Mars. However, it did not really find anything that could change the image of Mars as a “dead world.” In June, Swiss astronomer Michel Mayor got luckier than that — he discovered 45 exoplanets with extremely hot orbits.

MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Stem cell research is one of the most exciting and most controversial avenues of science. In July, researchers at Harvard and Columbia University generated the first motor neurons from stem cells in two elderly women with Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as ALS. The method they used did not require the use of embryos at all — instead, they simply built upon a technique developed in 2006 by Shinya Yamanaka, a scientist in Kyoto University. This technique involved reprogramming a patient’s ordinary skin cells, causing it to behave like stem cells.

Later, these cells would be coaxed into the desired tissue-specific cells. This breakthrough means that scientists can now closely study the progress of ALS disease. This will enable them to suggest a more effective treatment for it.

Alzheimer’s disease is definitely a painful one, and there is no cure for it. However, 2008 witnessed the discovery of four new genes which emerged after a study of 1300 plus families. Although their exact role in Alzheimer’s is not known yet, researchers think they may contribute to the death of nerve cells. The newly identified genes may shed light on how to keep those nerves alive, something which may be an important target for future therapies.

All children and many adults hate receiving immunisation injections. There is good news for such children and their parents as a new vaccine Pentacel was discovered which will collectively immunise children from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio and haemophilic influenza type B.

It has to be administered in four different doses and the toddlers who have received this injection so far have showed minor side effects like fever and swelling.

The above was by no means an exhaustive list. There were many milestones in the field of science and all of them have, in some way or another, contributed to make 2008 a remarkable year.

Books on the Blog

Hafsa Ahsan zooms in on a book blog that is a perfect treat for book lovers

Blogging is a phenomenon which has increasingly gained pace in the past few years.

As each year passes, the types of blogs too increase along with the numbers. From personal blogs, the focus has now shifted to more impersonal blogging — with blogs as diverse as food and political blogs.

Literary blogs in general, and book blogs in particular, have also become common place now. While book blogs are still a distant concept on the local scene as far as the Pakistani blogsphere is concerned, internationally more and more publishing houses are dedicating their website space to blogs where they publish news and views for crazy bookworms.

The Millions Blog is one such blog which not only makes an interesting read, but apparently it is a blog with some influence. According to the description, it has been featured in the UK’s mainstream media as well. The blog, instead of being maintained by one person, it is a group blog. Hence, a visitor to this blog can read a large variety of posts and opinions. There are also many guest bloggers here, with their own different outlooks reflecting in their posts.

You can either read this blog in the reverse chronological order — or you can simply point and click at some of the many categories in which the posts have been divided. Interestingly, in stark contrast to the conventional way in which blog posts are organised, The Millions has divided its posts quite uniquely. Blogs usually use the tag option to put specific labels on that post — one can then point and click at that label to access the posts pertaining to a specific subject.

The Millions has categories like “Books that I read in 2006” and “Books that I read in 2007”. The books have mainly been reviewed between 2004 and 2008. Moreover, there is a “Book Question” category that include all the questions which have been asked about books and publishing — and the answers that bloggers have given. There is also a segment of Quarterly Reports — analysing the trends in the publishing industry published by Barnes and Nobles.

There are, however, some aspects of the layout which can be improved. For starters, the sidebar is extremely cluttered. Though the headings and their text are distinguishable from each other, it becomes a little tiresome to scroll through the huge list of books reviewed in the past. It would have been neater to have links for the years in which the books were reviewed, and then the list of books would appear on a separate page.

But apart from this minor glitch, the information on this website is comprehensive and the website itself can easily be considered as a haven for an average book lover. Each post is appropriately linked to the concerned website, and even though the posts are quite long, they make for an extremely interesting read.

To find out more about the world of books and publishing, log onto http://www.themillionsblog.com/

The Road To Wordscraper

Hafsa Ahsan analyses the outcome of banning Scrabulous, a board game that literally made people come out in the street.

Most of you who were passionate about playing Scrabulous on Facebook must have found that the Scrabulous application is no more there, and the link to the page says, “Sorry, but your use of this application has been restricted.”

This apparent taking down of the website was quite intriguing. The brainchild of Indian brothers, Jayant and Rajat Agarwalla, Scrabulous (launched in 2005 as a website and in 2007 as a Facebook application) was essentially inspired from the Scrabble board game.

The layout of the board and the style of scoring were similar to the traditional Scrabble board. But Scrabulous offered something which went down very well with the general public — their application on Facebook not only enabled people to play the game with their friends online, but also play random games with people from around the world. Based on the number of games won or lost, each player would be assigned a rating.

However, the real Scrabble, unfortunately, did not look upon this ‘plagiarism’ of its board game too kindly. And one can argue that they had a good reason. Scrabulous was essentially a rip-off of Scrabble – the same board, the same tiles and the same scoring. What was attractive about it was the functionality and diversity of options that it offered to online users. But copyright infringement is not something a corporation takes lightly, so before long, Scrabble and Scrabulous were at war – both offline and online.

The offline war was a legal lawsuit that was filed by Hasbro (the owners of Scrabble in the USA and Canada) and Mattel (owner of Scrabble worldwide). In cyberspace, Electronic Arts, creators of the electronic version of Scrabble, worked on producing a similar application for Facebook users. When news of the lawsuit became public, along with the possibility of Scrabulous being banned, there was a public outcry.

Users of Scrabulous were outraged at the potential “Scrabulous blackout” that they faced. Fans of Scrabulous gathered and rallied together under the “Save Scrabulous” banner. Many groups were created with the same rallying cry — Mattel and Hasbro should strike some sort of deal with the Agarwalla brothers, and let people enjoy the game. There were many others, of course, who felt that copyright infringement should not go unnoticed. However, Scrabulous fans remained adamant on their stance.

One of the arguments put forward by the “Save Scrabulous” members was that in the long run, Mattel and Hasbro were benefiting from Scrabulous. Many parents admitted that after being hooked to Scrabulous, they went out and purchased the Scrabble board game for their children. In a way, Scrabulous was marketing the board of Scrabble. However, it appeared that this argument was discarded as well.

Facebook took down the Scrabulous application, only for American and Canadian users first, and then for the entire world. The beta version of Scrabble application was launched on Facebook. On the face of it, Scrabble seemed to have won the battle.

But, in the long-run, did it really? Following the Scrabulous blackout, there was another rallying cry — “Boycott Hasbro/Mattel.” Many people who were part of the “Save Scrabulous” campaign vowed that they will never purchase a Scrabble board again. As one can imagine, if scores of people can make and stick to this vow, it does not spell very good times ahead for Hasbro/Mattel.

Moreover, even though the Scrabulous website (http://www.scrabulous.com) was banned, it re-emerged under another name. Scrabulous is now Lexulous (http://www.lexulous.com).

Interestingly, they have not made many changes; except changing the website’s name and layout. However, the room names, rating system and, essentially, the functions have remained intact. A court ruling in New Delhi forbids the Agarwalla brothers and their company from using any name that was similar to Scrabble for their games.

On Facebook, the features of Scrabulous have been transferred to Wordscraper, another board game. Here, users have the option of creating their own board and defining their own rules. The option of playing multiple games with random users around the world is very much intact. Many users of Scrabulous are delighted with this refreshing approach to Scrabble. And the best part is that no one can accuse Wordscraper of being a rip-off.

Wordscraper has been around since January 2008, but has only recently gained popularity. This is because it gives the players options to create their own games. And obviously, anyone who wants to emulate an original Scrabble board can easily do so (minus the two blank tiles).

Sci-tech World got in touch with some Wordscraper users to ask them how they are enjoying the new application, and how they would compare it with the ‘official’ Scrabble application. This is what they had to say:

“I love Wordscraper, especially the fact that there is an option for random rules, making each game different. I loved Scrabulous and was totally addicted. I hate Scrabble on Facebook, with its stupid glitzy stars when you get a word and the awful colours! I still have a few games to finish and then I will never use it again,” declared Lee-Ann Wilson, a player from Cape Town, South Africa.

“I think the whole feud is stupid and greedy,” said Savannah Jordan, from New York. “As it was said before, having Scrabulous on Facebook had a lot of people going out and purchasing the board games when they would not have done so before. I do not like the new Scrabble application because you cannot play with people from other countries and the whole point was to meet people from other places.”

“Wordscraper is even better than Scrabulous. For example: the ‘random board’ option gives it a twist and makes it even more challenging, as does the ‘create your own board’ option,” explained G Jane Bradford from Canada.

Raihana Sideek, from Singapore is not too fond of Wordscraper, “The classical scrabble board is always unique and that’s where you can see a talented player,” she said. “Wordscraper is only good for people who are looking for something fun and a change. You cannot use your playing skills on this board. It all depends on where the tiles are placed and you can have some unfair advantages. There are weirdoes creating all sorts of senseless boards as well. The scrabble board will always be my first choice.”

To sum it up, this is not just another example of copyright infringement and online piracy of games. It is about how an issue should be handled — and how the general public has to be appeased and taken into confidence. Mattel/Hasbro tried to clamp down on Scrabulous to the best of their efforts, however, it just bounced back with a different name, and loads of other options which has made it even more popular with the users. At the end of the day, this is all that matters.

The Joy Of Parenting

Here is a website that gives some useful information on child development and education, with fun-filled activities for both children and parents

It is a common belief that one can never imagine the rollercoaster ride that is parenthood until one actually becomes a parent.

And through this rollercoaster ride numerous advices and cautions given to the parents by the elder generation of the family, especially to young, first-time parents. Interestingly, now with more nuclear family setups around, parents are now turning to the internet to read up on the different aspects of parenting and then try out whatever suits them best. Apparently, seeking the advice of elders and trying the methods of the older generation is no more in vogue.

And frankly speaking, with elaborate websites such as PBS Parents on the block, who can really blame these parents? PBS Parents is highly illustrative, rich in content and has all the nitty-grittiness of parenting which would make any website surfer want to visit it again and again. This is not surprising, considering that the wealth of information which is here can only be digested over a nice, long span of time.

PBS Parents has categories which ensure that you go directly into the section of your interest. There is Child Development, Education, Fun and Games, Advice and many other sections. It is actually quite difficult to decide where to start from — probably the best place to begin will be determined by the age range which your children fall in.

Within each section, there are loads of self-help and how-to articles detailing how you can deal with different issues related to your children. There are also many different tools in each section — for instance, the Child Development Section has a tracker.

You can select the age of your child from the tracker and read up to analyse whether s/he falls into the defined, specific characteristics which are normal for children of his/her age. Moreover, in the Education section, the Book Finder tool will help you to get hold of books according to your child’s age.

There are many different blogs here as well. These blogs are maintained by people who want to share the joys and pains pf being a parent. Interestingly, reading up on real-life cases is always more reassuring — of course, you may feel differently. In any case, it is good to know that this website has considered both ways of disseminating information.

On the layout side, the website is definitely very aesthetically designed. It will appeal to you and make you want to visit it repeatedly. However, the sheer amount of information can seem a bit overwhelming at first. Also, the website seems cluttered at times – you can be at a complete loss as to where to go. The first thing would be to take one section at a time and then move to the other.

The website offers interesting ways to break away the conventional role-playing of parents by providing loads of fun activities to download and play with children. Certainly some activities might have to be tailored to make them suitable to children in the local context. To find out all the different activities you can engage in with your children, log on to http://www.pbs.org/parents/ — H.A

The Power Of Words

Words have the creative power to build up and to tear down... Here is a website that features beautiful quotes. Find out which one inspires you, writes Hafsa Ahsan

How often does it happen that you are totally down in the dumps because nothing seems to go right in life. Well, most of the time, the feeling is usually the result of a bad day. But sometimes, there does seem to be a genuine need for something to lift one’s spirits and give one a dose of motivation. At such times, people turn to different things, depending on their personality and inclination.

For at least some of those people, different quotations by others, some well-known and others not quite famous, are a way of finding that silver lining in the clouds of their life. World of Inspiration is one website which is designed to cater to these people.

As the title suggests, this website has a comprehensive collection of quotations mainly divided into 14 categories – ranging from business, character and enthusiasm to happiness, romance, leadership and success. Most of the quotations are indeed beautiful and would definitely serve to make you think and ponder over them.

The website is laid out beautifully and you will not find any unnecessary information. There is one menu of links on the homepage, along with a list of recently added quotations; and even though Google Ad Sense does have a presence here as well, it does not look quite as intrusive and out of place as it does on some of the other websites.

However, at times, it does feel as if this website is too empty. The simply, uncluttered look is definitely commendable, however, one does feel that some extra titbits could have been added to give more functionality to the website and motivate first-time visitors to log on it again.

As it should happen, once you have gone through the quotes, there is very little to do here. Some links to similar resources on the web or a blog detailing the updates to the website and inviting comments from visitors could have been added to make the website a more useful resource. Moreover, the latter would have added a much-needed element of interactivity to the website.

But one must not take credit from where it is due. The website is definitely a very motivating one and just the place to come when you need a dose of inspiration. To get your dose of quotable quotes, log onto http://www.worldofinspiration.com/

Fun With Words

Hafsa Ahsan takes you to a website where you can play interesting word games and enhance your vocabulary

Quite often when you are trying to write something, say an essay or a speech, suddenly you are stuck for words. Sure, you know what you want to say — and the Urdu equivalent might even be floating in your brain at that particular point — but that particular word eludes you.

This is only one of the signs that you need to improve your vocabulary. Interestingly, there are loads of websites out there which are designed to help you do just that. There is yet another category of websites which contain hints and tips towards the same end, for instance, use flash cards, read books, etc. The list is endless and so are the possible places where you can look for help and things you can do to add to your word bank.

Among some of the better websites is “Learning Vocabulary.” This website contains loads and loads of different word games which are specifically designed to help you improve your vocabulary. At the same time, these games also ensure that you do not just learn the meaning of a new word — you also learn how to use it. The latter part is way more productive and it would ensure that you actually make good use of the words which you add to your bank.

The games which you can choose from include crossword, hangman and word search. All these games require flash, so do make sure you have it installed on your PC. Once you are here, all you need to do is select the game, then select the word list and you are ready to go.

It is great to be able to choose the word list from which you want the words to be included in the game you are playing. This ensures that the games are relevant to all age groups. You can choose an easier word list if you are in the younger age group. And if you are applying to foreign universities and giving exams like SAT or IELTS, you can choose a difficult level and revise your vocabulary through these games.

While you are here, you might also want to check out the Vocabulary Blog which is updated with hints and tips as to how to improve your vocabulary. Apart from that, the blog will also guide you to similar resources around cyberspace, which you can avail according to your level.

What makes this site a bit unwelcoming is the colour scheme that can end up making you pine for a pair of sunglasses. The bright yellow and blue scheme might just put some of you off. Apart from the glitch with the colour scheme, the website is pretty much to-the-point – with instructions on the main page as to how you can effectively use word games for a higher purpose. Unfortunately, one cannot call this website uncluttered as Google Ads make an unceremonious presence right on top of the homepage.

At the end of the day, however, don’t let the minor faults deter you from playing the games themselves. These are quite interesting games and apart from relieving your boredom, will definitely help you increase your word bank

To improve your vocabulary the fun way, log onto http://www.vocabulary.co.il/

Let’s Fix It

Troubled with sudden breaking down of appliances? Here are some simple ways to correct and amend things on your own, writes Hafsa Ahsan

Imagine the following scenarios: just when you start pressing your clothes for the party and your iron breaks down and when you are making toasts for the kids in the morning, your toaster gives up on you.

In scenarios like these and many others, the common sequence of events which follows is usually that you call up the respective company and ask them to send over a technician to check out your malfunctioning appliance, or take it to the repair shop yourself. At other times, you avail the service of your plumber or electrician. Either way, the process costs you both your precious time and a lot of money.

How would you feel when you know that you can actually amend anything that has broken down? Of course, unruffled! But for this, you need to log on to How to Mend It — a website that can actually make you good enough to repair your appliances whenever they start to act up. This is a comprehensive how-to website which will help you get most of your malfunctioning things working again — or so the website claims.

The site is pretty user friendly. To choose the correct category of appliances, you have a set of instructions on the homepage. Of course, you can easily use the search option if you are in a hurry. However, if you are here to browse, the list of categories is quite interesting, ranging from bathroom appliances, cameras and computers to kitchen and office appliances, to security systems and telephones. In a nutshell, even if something has not broken down, you can still come here and check out what can be done if it ever does.

Within different categories, there are various questions — where you just need to check if the information you are looking for has already been answered. If not, you can follow the steps to post your question and then wait for the answer.

However, the layout of the website is definitely a bit confusing. The categories have been set out vertically instead of horizontally which would have given it a neater look. Yet, the search box and instructions right at top of the homepage are two pros of the website.

At the end of the day, there would be no harm in trying out some of the steps mentioned here. If that works, you can actually save up on both time and cost. But remember, if you are not confident enough in these technical matters then do not try to take any risks for something that could result in a mishap.

To find out how to repair anything which has broken down in your house, log onto http://www.howtomendit.com/

Health Check

Do you consider your health as an important issue? It’s never too late to start doing so and there are many sites you can turn to for guidance, suggests Hafsa Ahsan

There are quite a few studies which have established that what women mostly search for on the internet, news and magazines, among other things, are ‘health issues’.

This should come as no surprise considering the fact that women are quite sensitive about this issue. The web offers anonymity as well as information from different sources. And, more often than not, individuals using their pseudonyms are usually willing to post their health concerns and experiences online and hence offer advice, relief and reassurance to other women who are going through a similar experience.

You may have come across websites dedicated to common daily life health-related issues and their remedies, as well as specific health concern like sinus, head and back aches. Women Health Questions is one such website that focuses on common health issues faced by women and carries many frequently asked questions.

The question of where to navigate first will be determined by what your chief health concern is. If you are concerned about weight, then you may find the section on exercising helpful, as there are loads of tummy exercises, along with their illustrations, to give people a clear picture of what is to be done and how.

Dieting is very much a part of almost every weight-related discussion or plan. And so is the case here. The section on diets will guide you through the different types of diets which are followed all over the world, along with a step-by-step guide as to how you can embark on a journey towards healthy eating without making yourself miserable.

Apart from weight concerns, most women are faced with some sort of skin problem — usually related to the face. There are different sections devoted to skin issues. Then two sections are dedicated to pregnancy-related issues. One section has detailed descriptions of the symptoms of pregnancy, while another section will guide you through the details and ‘how-to’ of the pregnancy week by week.

The layout of the website is quite uncluttered, as compared to other websites carrying a lot of information on their homepages. However, once you start digging on this website, you will see the layout does get a little monotonous, as only some sections are illustrated while others are mostly text-based.

However, even with all this information, the main precaution remains — never treat websites as an alternative to medical advice. The section on supplements must especially be treated with caution — never intake anything without consulting a doctor. Health-related websites such as this one are always helpful for advice — but your doctor is more credible at all levels.

To get an overview of some of the common health issues faced by women, log on to http://www.womens-health-questions.com/

What’s Your Extension?

Searching and downloading a file extension software may take your time but it can save you from a terrible headache over not knowing weird file extensions’ titles, advises Hafsa Ahsan

How often does it happen to you that you ask for a file to be sent to you via email? You must have made the request countless times and you might also have been struck with some weird file extensions that you may not be able to open.

For instance, you receive an email — you open it and try to download the simple MS Word document, but fail. Then you realise that the extension of the file is ‘name.docx’ instead of ‘name.doc’.

If you are an expert computer user, you will immediately realise that you have an older version of MS Word which will not let you open the file. However, if you are a novice, then you are mostly likely to be stumped than anything else. And this is where websites like ‘File Extensions’ come in. This website has a massive collection of various file extensions along with their definitions. You can look here for the name and description of any file extension which you want to use and know about.

There are three ways to hunt down a file extension. You can search for the extension, which, of course is the simplest; can browse through different file extensions alphabetically, or you can go through the different categories to locate your desired extension. All these file extensions are divided into different categories, e.g. audio files, binary files, database files, document files, system files, text files and many, many more.

This website not only tells you what the file extension stands for, it also lets you know what might be the best software to open any particular file. It also offers links to the homepage of the software which is needed to open that particular file extension, so you do not have to search for it separately.

If you are here mainly out of curiosity, then you should consider browsing the section on the most visited file extensions as well as the section detailing common file extensions.

The website also offers a free scan of your registry — once you do that, it can fix the file extension errors, if it finds any. However, you must remember that editing the registry has its own issues, so use this feature carefully, and it is better if you know how to make a backup of your registry, so that you can roll back any changes if they cause problems later.

As far as the layout of the website is concerned, the homepage can make your head spin. For instance, there is a main left hand menu pointing to the different types of the files extensions, the presence of search boxes, links to the top 10 file extensions and all their title names will add to your headache. However, the good part is, once you locate the search box, you can directly search for your desired extension the next time you visit the website.

Overall, this website definitely comes in very handy when you try to open a file and you get that ever-annoying dialogue box, asking you to specify the software needed to open the file. In that case, go onto this website, search for the file extension, download the required software and that is all. To find out more about different file extensions, log on to http://www.file-extensions.org