Counterfeit currency has lately become a big problem in most countries, including India. Although there are a number of signs that can be used to differentiate between counterfeit and authentic currency, it is not easy for the common man to check each currency note during a transaction. Advancement in technology has made the difference between the two quite small, making it even more difficult. However, existence of counterfeit money in the markets for any economy is of great concern especially if it finds its way in the banks.
Suggestion:
In order to flush out counterfeit currency from the system, the government will have to take multiple measures:
The first step should be to give all banks operating within a country a time frame within which each bank has to check every bill note it has in its cash reserve for authenticity using specific devices.
The amount of counterfeit currency in each branch should be reported to the Government which will then look at tracing the funds and / or writing off the cash
Each bank has to ensure that all incoming cash deposits are also checked for any anomalies using the CVPS machines.
Establishing the amount of counterfeit currency in each bank would help establish the cities / areas which have been affected more and have perhaps become the centres for fake bill circulation. This would in turn help the police to nab those behind the entire operation.
At the same time, currency scanners should be made a mandatory requirement for all shops having a license to operate all over the country
An intensive screening is required to first flush out existing counterfeit bills and subsequently make sure that fresh counterfeit currency is not able to enter the system.
You are back from the hospital with a fractured wrist, arm, ankle or leg and a plaster cast. The cast has to stay on for several weeks and you must not get it wet! Problem : how do you keep yourself clean? Have you ever tried showering with one arm /leg out of the way of the water jet? Its almost impossible, and too much trouble.
Suggestion:
The easiest solution is to have a protection similar to that of a shower cap, so that the plaster does not get wet. However, that is easier said than done. A simple contraption that can be made at home would involve wearing a plastic bag with a rubber band to hold it in place. However, there are chances that some water will still seep through. Brown Medicals have thus come out with a product called "Active seal-tight waterproof cast covers". It works by stretching elasticated material over the plaster cast ensuring that a watertight seal is formed over the cast allowing people to have a normal shower. The only drawback: PRICE ! (The Active seals are priced at approximately $30)
Given that most people have at least one fracture in their lives, we can establish that there is enough demand and hence market for these waterproof covers. Manufacturing them cheap (in places such as India / China), could be an easy way to flood the markets with the product not only ensuring it is a big success, but also helping people live a normal life even with a cast on !!!
An easy way to maintain a clean environment is to ensure that garbage is dropped in their respective bins and not on the streets. This may seem obvious, but sadly, is not so, for lack of civic sense sometimes stems from lack of garbage bins in the city itself.
Observation:
Garbage disposal has always been a problem, not only at an individual level, but also at the level of governments. Ensuring that people do not litter the streets is possible only when sufficient grabage disposal units are provided at every other corner. But providing these big bins alone does not solve the problem. Collecting the garbage from the bins / emptying them into larger containers and more importantly, handling the potential issue of the bin itself being stolen overnight is something that requires lot of thinking. Paris (France) has done a beautiful job in tackling this problem. This post details how this has been done.
Suggestion:
The solution to the problem of garbage disposal is quite simple:
1. Instead of garbage bins, shift to garbage bags hanging from circular holders (see picture). These would be large transparent polythene bags, that are sturdy enough to hold few kilograms of garbage.
2. Ensure that the city is liberally sprinkled with garbage bags, one every 50 mts.
3. Garbage collection is made extremely simple with this design, for the bags simply need to be dumped in the trucks without the added task of emptying the bins. A new garbage bag can then be placed in the holder. This also reduces the accidental spillage of garbage from the bins that may take place when the bin is being emptied.
4. Transparent bags provide easy visibility to the contents inside. Apparently, this model was adopted in Paris after a bomb scare in the garbage cans. Transparent garbage bags also overcome the potential problem of bombs / undesirable objects being hidden inside.
5. Last, but not the least, these garbage bags hardly require much investment or infrastructure. Placing them liberally all across the town / city would instead bring down the additional cost that would otherwise be incurred in keeping the city clean.
Garbage bags thus seem a sure-shot way to clean up the city automatically, develop civic sense in people, make garbage collection a far easier job and also bring down the cost of keeping the city clean. So, go ahead and spread this idea in your own city and make it clean!
This post is inspired by my recent visit to the "Tulip Gardens - Keukenhof" in The Netherlands, and motivation by a dear friend who suggested that I re-start my blog after a long hiatus. So, here is a design for a seating facility that is simple, yet so creative, and blends really well with the surroundings.
Who doesn't like to sit in the garden and bask in the Sun? Not many of us have that kind of luxury. But for those who do have, this design is really simple, very friendly (no use of plastics), innovative and at the same time, blends very well with the backdrop of a nice, small garden / park. The log of the bench can be that of an old tree that has practically reached the end of its life cycle, and the back-rest of the bench can be made out of the three-pronged garden spades, with the prongs fixed to the log, and the handle serving as the back-rest (see picture) . The spades sticking on to the log gives a rustic, rural feel to the entire design. The seats are not only easy to make but as the spade handles are well rounded, they are safe for children as well.
To sum, small gardens / parks can easily be equipped with log benches that not only serve the purpose well, but employ a design that is creative, stylish, simple and also extremely practical.
Observation: Poverty is not visible to those who do not want to see it. People get comfortable with their lives, with multi-lakh pay packages, and forget about those whose income is barely sufficient for only one meal a day. Such people struggle to survive every day. For them, it is not a question of getting the best of education, or the best of clothes, but just the ability to read and write and clothe themselves. In this fast paced world, we forget about such people who are struggling for each day of their lives. An organization that is trying to keep alive this feeling of helping the poor is GOONJ.
Suggestion: GOONJ is a voluntary organization working towards making cloth a matter of concern. The organization channelises the vast stocks of everyday necessities-form clothes, utensils to medicines-lying as idle surplus in the urban homes, as a substantial economic resource for the poor in the far flung village of India.
GOONJ Started with just 67 clothes in 1998, and subsequently , its work has spread to 21 states with more than 40,000 kgs of material being channelised every month. The credit for this success goes to the many RWAs, corporates, schools and a force of over 300 enthusiastic and inspired volunteers. GOONJ looks after all the logistics of the collection camp right from providing the communication material to managing the camp and transportation of material. It would be nice if residents of sectors / societies could take initiatives, and organize collection drives in their locality, for the noble cause.
As a resident of a sector 33 of NOIDA, I have volunteered to conduct a drive like this. The camp coincides with the Independence day celebrations. I don't know how much of feeling I would be able to stir up in people to encourage them to give few surplus material to the needy, but am glad I made this effort. Irrespective of the response that I may get for this, I can sleep with the satisfaction that I tried and did whatever I could to help the poor.
The bullock cart (also known as a bullock wagon or bullock team) is a common means of transportation used traditionally since ancient times in many parts of the world. They are still used today where modern vehicles are too expensive or the infrastructure does not favor them. Bullock comes from the old English for castrated male cattle. Used especially for carrying goods, the bullock cart is pulled by one or several bullocks or oxen. The cart (or a jinker) is attached to a bullock team by a special chain attached to yokes, but a rope may also be used for one or two animals. The driver and any other passengers sit on the front of the cart, while load is placed in the back.
Observation:
The invention of the WHEEL definitely brought about a revolution of its own. It made transportation of goods much easier. Traditionally, the Bullock Cart wheels are made of different types of wood and sometimes, the rim is covered with metal sheet as well.
Suggestion:
It is a well known fact that rubber tyres fitted on wheels use lesser force as compared to wooden wheels. Charles Goodyear, and John Dunlop have established this quite conclusively. However, when the entire world is moving towards better cars and tyres every day, there are still thousands of bullock carts that still have wooden wheels.
The result:
Excessive load on the bullocks, leading to fatigue and health issues related to the animal.
Speed of the carts is slow.
Efficiency of the bullock-carts is low.
What can be done about it :
The Government of India can undertake replacing all the wooden wheels with that of rubber tyres suitable for farming. This would not only decrease the load on a vast majority of animals , but also increase the efficiency of work (be it transportation or farming). A small increase per bullock-cart would accrue to a huge amount for the entire country. Second hand tyres are not that exorbitant. The owners of the bullock cart may not be financially well off to invest in the tyres themselves. However, where the government can spend millions, a few thousand more for the 'common man' would go a long way in improving the condition of people and the bullocks in many villages of the country.
The credit for this post goes solely to my good friend NandiniPaniker. She wrote to me about the reusable cloth bags in response to an earlier post of mine titled "Multi-compartment Shopping Bags". Her idea is as follows:
Observation:
Vegetables and fruits when bought from the daily vegetable market, or even the supermarket, need to sorted later. This not only is an added burden on time and energy, but is also quite a monotonous task. The other alternative is to use 'Plastic / Nylon Covers' which again is not advisable from an environmental point of view.
Suggestion:
Nandini suggested carrying cloth bags to the markets, which would be extremely helpful in segregating the groceries right from the point they are picked up. The cloth for these bags need to be really thin, so that they can be directly put into the refrigerator, and the vegetables can have ample ventilation to breath.
Citing example of her mother, Nandini also suggested that these cloth bags can be readily made at home from old saris. My mother, too, on hearing this idea has made many such bags, and is having a much simpler time sorting vegetables every week. (A photograph of the bags that she stitched is uploaded above) A sample bag can be given to the local tailor, who can then churn out such small bags out of the surplus cloth left after stitching. It would not only lead to an increase in his revenue, but will also help people become more aware of the environmental issues related to use of plastic.
The "Cycle Rickshaw" or the "Pedi Cabs" is a very important and basic means of transportation for the common man, especially in developing countries. Not only does it provide pollution free means of conveyance, but also one that is affordable. The only place that it may really lag when compared to other means of transportation is the speed.
It is estimated that close to 2 million cycle rickshaws ply on Indian roads, carrying about 6–8 billion passenger / year. The exact number could be even greater, since there are no reliable records available. In some cities and small towns, they are the major means of transport. They provide employment to more than two million rickshaw pullers, are maneuverable, completely non-polluting and hence an environment-friendly means of transport.
Observation:
A normal pedi cab, as shown in picture, would have a speed of about 10 km/hr. The driver sweats it out in the Sun, gets tired due to the laborious nature of his work, but is still not able to earn enough since the rickshaw does not achieve the desired efficiency.
If I understand correctly, the height of the rickshaw body has a direct effect on the speed and efficiency of a vehicle. If the height is decreased, the torque decreases, the stability increases, and hence the speed increases. Bases on these observations, there are a few suggestions.
Suggestion: In an attempt to bring back the glory days of the Cycle rickshaw, the structure of cycle rickshaw needs to be changed.
The early models used to weigh over 120 kgs, but this can be reduced to 90 kgs by means of an integral tubular frame that has excellent structural qualities. The weight can be further reduced by a fiber glass body which is so popular in VELO TAXIS (Germany).
The provision of a multi gear system specifically designed for rickshaws will give the rickshaw driver a tremendous advantage. He will gets less stressed and can ply more in a day without harming his health.
Most importantly, reducing the center of gravity by lowering the seating area of rickshaw or peddy cab would not only improve the stability of vehicle, but also increase efficiency. Independent studies on the rickshaw drivers plying these modern rickshaws have shown that they can ply them for a third longer and average earnings have gone up by close to 60%. Not only this, the speed of these rickshaws would greatly increase from 10kmph to 15-20 kmph.
A live example of the disparity in designs of Rickshaws can be seen in the pedi cabs of Delhi and that of Nanital. The ones in Delhi are built much higher off the ground, and hence are much slower. On the other hand, the ones playing on the roads of Nanital are faster due to a minor change in design. A lot many variations have already been proposed for Pedi cabs, right from having a small motor, to solar powered ones. A lot of work is already being done to improve the Pedi Cabs. However, until the time VELO TAXIS or its equivalent is introduced in India, steps can definitely be taken to improve the efficiency of Rickshaws by a simple lowering of the foot board and the seat , making the lives of drivers much easier and better!
A good friend of mine came up with this unique idea of connecting people and went on to start a new venture called Mentorpolis. A blog dedicated solely to applaud months of his hard work. His venture only reiterates that efforts do pay off....
Observation:
Most of the time, we are unable to get into good institutions both in India/abroad because of "Lack of Information" or "Guidance". Preparation for entrance exams of all levels can also turn directionless, if we don't know how to go about preparing for that particular exam. Mentorpolis is an effort in that direction to help plug that gap on an individual basis.
Suggestion:
Mentorpolis is an effort to establish a new communication channel that connects mentees who seek academic / professional advice, with accomplished and suitable mentors, via one-to-one interaction. It provides mentees with personal guidance and direct access to mentors, who can help them make informed decisions.
Mentees could be high school students, undergraduates, young professionals, whereas mentors are students and professionals who once were in the same situation, but have now made it big : and thus precisely understand problems faced by mentees and want to share their wisdom in a nurturing manner.
I am sure all aspiring students would greatly benefit from this venture, since this is not just an online portal where one can post their queries, but it also provides a great opportunity for aspiring students to connect to a mentor of one's choice on a one-to-one basis.
The vocational training is predominantly the responsibility of the Government. However, the growth in training facilities is far behind the actual requirement and this has resulted in huge shortage of trained, certified artisans. This is primarily because of a mismatch between the vocational training needs and training facilities. The training facilities are mainly located in cities and big towns whereas the requirement is at the ‘Kasba’ or ‘Moufissil’ town levels or even at village level.
Suggestion:
Individually, the requirement of training artisans at these places is small and the training requirement gets saturated in a short period. Creation of fixed training facilities will be costly and will not be fully utilized. To meet this special requirement it is important that a flexible approach in delivery of training is adopted using “Mobile Training Units”.
This will facilitate imparting of vocational training to a very large number of artisans who are not able to join mainstream education through Industrial Training Institutes. There is a huge untapped market which is available for training and certification of artisans. There is also space for large number of players in this market because of the special demographic condition in India and South East Asia.
The outcome can be measured by the unemployment rate of the area where the project has been launched after a few months of providing the vocational training to artisans along with the increase in the average earnings of these men after training.
The “Mobile Vocational Training Unit” model is proposed to be implemented in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in India, which has a large youth population, and severe shortage of training / higher education facilities. This can subsequently be replicated in other states of India/Countries after necessary fine-tuning.
Business Model:
Engage retired railway and defense personnel who are master craftsman as Instructors and provide them with “Mobile Training Units” on partnership basis.
The training software and hardware to be centrally procured and disbursed.
The training curriculum to be kept uniform with large component of multimedia modules.
Get Government registration for Certification.
Local personnel to be given preference for such assignments as they are familiar with the geography of the region.
The above model will keep the cost of operation minimum.
Infrastructure: Mobile training vans (e.g. Eicher LCVs converted to accommodate two related trades.)
Partnerships: With local Primary/Secondary schools, Panchayats.
Customers: Youth in the age group of 16-30 years.
Revenue model: Fees from the students (artisans), government aid, certification fees and sponsorship from Corporate.
Cost of Capital: (Assumptions)
Capital cost of one “Mobile training unit” will be approximately Rs. 6 lakhs.
Depreciated over 5 years : Rs. 6 lakhs/5 =Rs. 1.2 Lakhs per annum
Interest burden @ 10% p.a. = Rs. 0.6 Lakhs per annum
Total cost : Rs. 1.8 Lakhs per annum
Cost of Operation: (Assumptions)
Cost of instructor: Rs. 10,000 per month
Cost of helper : Rs. 4000 per month
Running cost of unit: Rs 10,000 per month
Total : Rs 24,000 per month
Overhead: 50% of the above = 0.5 * Rs. 24,000 = Rs. 12,000
Total cost of Operation per MU p.a.= (Rs. 24000+Rs 12000) * 12 = Rs 36000*12 = Rs 4,32,000
Revenue generated: (Assumption)
Training per unit per day in hours= 8 hours
No of days per month = 25 days
Batch Size = 15
Total no. of trainee hours per unit = 25*8*15 = 3000 trainee hours per unit per month
Fees per trainee hour = Rs. 20
Total fees per unit per month = 3000 * 20 = Rs. 60000
Total Revenue per annum = 12 * 60000 = Rs. 7,20,000
SURPLUS = Revenue – (Cost of Capital + Cost of Operation)
An idea that my sister came up with while shopping for vegetables in a weekly market :
Observation:
The only reason why I use plastic:
When I buy vegetables like okra, beans, green chilies etc., plastic bags come in very handy ensuring an ease of putting things away without first having to go through the painstaking task of separating each type. I recall the time when I newly returned from Germany, and after seeing their care with reusing plastic, I made my mother go to the market with just a cloth bag. We came back with a week’s worth of green veggies and to my mortification the greens were so well mixed together that it looked as if they were meant to be that way. My sister couldn't help chuckling at my musings and commented that it is the law of physics, entropy of the universe…dodging the potato that I threw at her. It took me larger part of an hour to separate and stock our refrigerator.
I wanted to apply methods that have worked somewhere else, without realizing that each problem has to be tackled individually. What worked for me in Germany did not work in India. My brain working in overdrive, I wanted to prove it to my mother that there had to be a better way of doing this. She had laughingly handed me the bag after getting home to organize the mess that I had inadvertently created.
Suggestion:
Necessity is the mother of all invention. I hit upon the idea that we could at least reuse the plastic bags. No sooner than I had said it , the idea seemed like a halfway attempt. It was then suddenly seeing my mom sitting at the sewing machine that I hit upon a better solution. We see plastic everywhere and reusing them also is not going to reverse a trend. What needs to be done is designing specific shopping bags with various compartments ( made out of cloth !! eureka!!) that can handle all the veggies but still make sure that nothing gets mixed up. The vendors can be given these free or at nominal costs to promote the use of such "Multi compartment Bags". Over a period of time, plastic needs to be completely banned. I wish it happens soon because I crave a country without plastic bags littered over its landscape.
Well, this post is totally inspired by my new work profile : that of a lecturer. Venturing into a new line of work has made me think about the education system and the number of people who are fortunate enough to make use of it. The remaining, especially those who in no manner can afford it, remain illiterate.
Observation: First and foremost, the problem arises as people don't have enough money to buy their way to even Primary schools. Though the government has started a number of municipal schools, the system suffers from lack of teachers as well as students willing to study when they can probably earn by begging/adhoc jobs.
Well, obviously, everyone does not have a socialistic approach to life, and truthfully, it is quite difficult to devote one's life to the upliftment of the society.
Suggestion: I feel that Primary/Basic education is really not that difficult to impart. Students enrolled in all types of undergraduate and graduate programme (Be it Arts, Science, Engineering Medicine or Law) can be used to impart basic knowledge of different spectrum to children. Even a voluntary contribution of 1 hr per person per week to educate a child is a good amount. In an engineering college with a 4 yr degree programme and an intake of 500 could mean 2000 hrs per week, which is a HUGE amount if all are willing for this. (But that is being too optimistic)To add, if the students are taught during the college hours, it would give college students too some incentive to be part of a revolutionizing process.
What I am proposing is groups of say 5 universities/colleges to get together depending on the their location, identify and adopt a group of 50 students amongst them, and then proceed to teach them the basics of education, using the help of their own students. 50 students divided amongst 5 colleges can even be given enough old clothing, and perhaps a one time meal as well, which could be incentive enough for the children to come to study.
I am not saying this would be easy. Identifying potential students, connecting to them, managing the whole process, is definitely going to be very difficult. But basic education can definitely be imparted to all those who don't know how to read/write. This would surely go a long way in improving the literacy level of our country and making people more aware on a variety of issues.
This idea again is not new. A lot of work is being done by Volunteers of National Service Scheme (NSS). IIT Madras is doing quite a commendable work on this. However, it is just a few individuals who are trying to help the poor in this regard. Most of us are not even aware of schemes such as NSS, and even if we are, have no guidance how to go about helping. Making something like this available at college /university level would really help students connect to needy people via these Universities and partner NGOs. The Government's 'Education for all' (Sarv Siksha Abhiyaan) is a similar step wherein a number of schools have been set up with Governmental aid. Also, a similar programme called Teach India has also been launched (on the lines of Teach America). However, in all these, the participation of already established educational institutions is quite negligible and the involvement of college students is negligible. They definitely can contribute and make a huge difference, not only by teaching others, but in the way they perceive the society after experiencing the difficulties while teaching a child.
To conclude, I strongly feel that each one of us, who has had the privilege of receiving education, should help someone else too get it.
The earth is covered only with 1/4 th of land, while the remaining 3/4th is purely water. Arable land is an even smaller percentage of the total land available. There is indeed scarcity of land for both habitation, and cultivation. With population growing by leaps and bounds, there are bound to be issues arising from using agricultural land for habitation purpose. Consequently, the agricultural produce is hardly sufficient for all in this world.
Suggestion:
Oceans receive ample amount of rainfall (fresh water) which largely goes untapped. Also, the sunlight received in may parts of the ocean is in abundance and also suitable for growth of plants. The problem: there is no land there to tap the rainfall and sunlight
The idea here is to make small floating platforms, about 2 feet deep (since most vegetables do not really require depth more than that) appropriate material. These farms can be self sufficient making use of the solar/wind energy for power requirements. These small blocks can be then joined together to make a large farm / garden which can be positioned in the oceans that receive good rainfall and sunlight. During some change of weather, these platforms can be relocated to a different part of the world. These can even be brought to the shores from time to time, the produce harvested, and a new crop planted again.
This same technique can be used for creating huge gardens of flowers, vegetables, pulses, corn , poultry farms to rear chickens and pigs etc. This methodology would specially be useful for countries that are suffering from serious shortage of food, or those which do not have enough land for cultivation.
Similar projects have been implemented by countries such as Japan for making "Floating Airports". Although, the platforms here are not quite floating in this case, and cannot be relocated, but these definitely solve the problem of not having enough land.
An elementary research shows that people have already come up with this kind of an idea, there are even books on this , and if I am not wrong, there are a few places where "Floating Fish Farms" have been implemented as well. However, I still feel that not many people are aware of this and this methodology to increase agricultural produce is still largely untapped. If implemented, millions of people would benefit from it!!
Almost all vehicles manufactured these days come with a built in Air Conditioner and a Heater. This is quite essential, given the excessive heat/cold outside, especially during certain times of the year.
However, as soon as the Air conditioner is switched on, the load on fuel consumption increases drastically. The main reason being: the car shell itself becomes quite hot when it absorbs the radiations from the sun. The AC goes into an overdrive, not only trying to cool the air inside, but also the metallic shell. Also, since darker colours absorb more heat, the fuel consumption for them is much higher as well. Hence, a Black BMW, though may look sleeker than a White BMW, consumes much more fuel than its white counterpart.
Suggestion:
By law, all the vehicles should be made to have their rooftops as a "Reflective Surface" that would reflect the Sun's radiations instead of absorbing them. Also, the colours permitted for the external shell of these vehicles should only be light colours. People might argue that few cars are hardly going to make much of a difference in the level of fuel consumption. However, we are not talking of few cars, but of millions. A simple reflective paint on these vehicles can do wonders!!
Extrapolating this very idea, even office buildings, institutions for education, health care etc, where Air conditioning is extensively used, should go for Reflective Rooftops, so that the load on the AC can be brought down. Roofs should include high reflective surfaces which reduce the cooling load on the buildings and therefore reduce fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.
This would esspecially be of great economic importance in countries that are generally warm throughout the year and require lot of Air conditioning due to the weather conditions there. Also some form of economic incentives can be provided to people such as lower taxation, import duties etc. to get them to follow such energy saving methods.
After all, fuel such as Petrol/Diesel is a Non-Renewable form of energy. We have limited resources, and it is the duty of each one of us to use it judiciously. However, to expect each individual in the world to be concerned about the environment, is probably being too optimistic. Thus, in my opinion, it is imperative that laws must be passed that ensure use of such reflective surfaces.
How many of us like to be praised? I think, ALL. It is human tendency to want to listen to few good words about themselves. The simplest of praises, like, a good dress, nice pair of shoes, a lovely smile, a beautiful hairstyle, good work etc. all boost our confidence levels, and makes our day beautiful. But then why are people so frugal in praising others? Each individual on the face of this earth has certain qualities, and no one is perfect in this world. Then what makes us hold back in the act of praising and appreciating people?
People over a period of time tend to take others for granted. In short, they become ungracious, without realising. How many of us thank the waiters for getting us food? Or the cab driver ferrying us around. Not many, I would say....Agreed, it is their job. But a bit of appreciation makes it much more enjoyable.
Suggestion:
A cheerful person would spread cheer and happiness to others in turn, and people would be happier and better mannered, not to mention more productive. I am not talking about incessant praise, but few words of genuine appreciation that one might feel meeting someone during the course of the day.
I came across a cheeky video that demonstrates how few words of praise changes the life of so many people. The 'change' here may not be drastic, but the person in question is definitely a happier human being. To be able to make someone smile, not by a comic act or some joke, but by making them feel GOOD about themselves is not so difficult, and is , in my opinion, definitely a very simple and cost free method to make the world a much happier place to be in.
An interesting use of old tyre that my sister came across while touring Switzerland.
Observation: Punctured, eroded tyres are of little use on the road. The material that they are generally made of is difficult to re-cycle and re-mould, and burning then produces a horrible smell. The best way to use them is either cut it and make some contraptions, or to use it as it is, for different purposes.
Suggestion: The old tyres can be filled with concrete, with an upright signpost in the center. This type of contraption can be really useful where mobility of signpost is required. The signposts can be picked up and put in different locations in no time. These can be quite useful in fairs and exhibitions as well.
I did a casual search on the net, and came across quite a lot of other useful suggestions on the uses of old tyres. The links are as follows :
There was also an article that mentioned the Government of Spain thinking of passing a law to use old tyres while building roads. If other governments could also pass such laws, it would really help in preserving the environment by re-cycling products that have once served its purpose.
The light source in modern world is synonymous with a "Tubelight" or a "Bulb". However, one might have noticed how insects and moths tend to agglomerate near any light source, and that too during specific time of the year, such as fall and spring.
When the light source is inside a house, it can get very difficult to ward off small moths during specific seasons. Also, one never know if each species of these insects is harmless.
Suggestion:
The idea is to combine a tubelight with an insect repellent. This can be done as 2 devices in a combination pack, operated separately, so that the insect repellent can be switched on only when necessary. Moreover, if the insect repellent has a refill option, it provides even more flexibility.
There is already a device with a purpose as the above, wherein the light source is generally inside a cage that has electical curents passing through it. Insects such as flies that come close are electrocuted. However, this device is large and bulky, and is generally kept at entrances / lobbies. Moreover, the electrolution produces loud crackling noises. These are definitely not appropriate for the comforts of a bedroom or study area.
Thus, a light source with an insect repellent would be quite useful in areas that have high vegetation, and insect population especially during certain seasons of the year!
A beautiful story that was published in the Economic Times. The link for the same is: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Cosmic_Uplink/Dont_worry_be_blissful/articleshow/3734367.cms#write (Please paste this URL to open the article in Economic Times)
Definitely worth reading it!
"There was a wise and compassionate king. All his subjects came to him for advice. Once a woman came and complained to him that her husband was ill-treating her because she could not bear a child. Another man came to him and grumbled that his chlidren were greedy. They were after his wealth and ill-treating him. A poor man petitioned him for money and lamented saying how wretched he was to be poor. A rich man came to the king and complained that he had no real friends. Every one he knew was nice to him only because of his wealth.
The king, after talking to many people, found that the same things, children, money, and health, repeatedly induced people to worry and be sad. Money was needed by one, but was causing sorrow to another. The king hit upon a novel idea, he called his ministers and said: what if we open a Worry Exchange (WE), can’t people come and exchange their worries? A person who was unhappy without children could exchange his or her worry with another who was unhappy because he or she had children? A rich man who was unhappy could trade his worry with a poor man who needs money.
His ministers thought it was a brilliant idea. So the WE was inaugurated. On the appointed day all the king’s subjects arrived at the WE, long before it was to open. They stood around and talked, talked and talked. WE stayed open until dusk. Not asingle trade materialised. Not one person came forward to barter or swap his own worry with another’s worry. The king was disappointed. However, instead of being angry, he enquired from his subjects why no one came forward to trade worries, though they had all said the WE was a brilliant idea.
The subjects replied in one voice: we prefer to live with the worries we know, rather than exchange them for something that we do not know! Worries become, over time, our crutches, ourcompanions. We feel lost without them. We need them to justify our behaviour and depend on them to lead our daily life. Our worries have no meaning or purpose. I tell people to write down their worries in our Life Bliss Courses. I tell them to look at this list after three or six months. They then tell me that 90% of the worries never materialised. The 10% that did were good for them!
If we allow ourselves to release our grip from worries and relax in the present, then we can begin an intimate, spiritual journey. The purpose of our life is to journey inwards and experience bliss, not to indulge in wasteful worries."
He came up with a fascinating idea wherein the expired explosives of the military can be put to CONSTRUCTIVE AND GOOD use.
Observation:
There are huge masses of rocky lands in the country, wherein there is dearth of green cover. The main reason for the lack of growth of plants in these areas is that the surface is ROCKY, and hence not suitable for germination, and the roots of the plants to penetrate the hard surface.
Suggestion:
The idea is to drill holes in these rocky areas and use the expired explosives to blast the rocks. This would lead to appearance of CREVICES which would be sufficient for the seeds to germinate and the roots of the plants to seep in. The rains during monsoon would provide the adequate water required, which would now seep down these crevices instead of getting washed away.
Purpose served: Expired ammunition has been put to good use to increase afforestation, and the water table too would increase at almost no additional cost.
The results may take some time to show as it would require the plants at least a couple of cycles to grow and survive. But an increase in vegetation by even 10% in an otherwise rocky and barren area completely devoid of vegetation is worth the wait !!!
The print media is on a roll!! The world over, a number of dailies/magazines are being published, in a wide range of languages, that bring the happenings of the world to our doorstep.
Observation:
How many of the newspapers/magazines are positive? Most of them have related to political happenings, financial crisis, sports / entertainment industry and what the who's who did during the week, murders, or opinions of the columnists. All these make good reading material, and are definitely good for sales, but what has not been reported is the positive development that is happening around the world.
It is my strong belief that there are more good people than bad. If a murder happens at some place, there is definitely a family adopting a young one at some other part of the world. If a bridge collapsed somewhere, there is surely another one that is coming up.
Suggestion:
Why is there no newspaper that is committed to publishing news about the positive developments happening around the world? As a citizen of this country (India), I am very keen to know how the Metro work is progressing, including a map to show all routes that are functional now, and what processes go into building a metro rail. As a citizen of this country, I would love to know about India's Moon mission, all the launch vehicles till date. I would love to know about the architectural wonders around the world, and how people have accomplished this feat. As a music lover, I would like to know about different instruments, and how to go about learning them. As a citizen of the world, I am really keen on knowing how people are helping the needy and poor. As an entrepreneur, I would love to know about people who have made it big on their own mettle and have succeeded in life. The list is endless...
What I would like to emphasise upon is that we can use the media as a place to just report the sensational happenings around us, and we can use it to inspire people around us by making them aware of the 'Positive' things that are happening around us. The choice is solely ours....
Observation:
