A Penchant For Quirk

¬ By John Green I am overwhelmed in a sense that I can't even breathe properly right now, having just finished the book. Being an avid reader comes with its own set of disappointments, once you realise not all books are good enough to be read, you begin to sort and choose and trust me, this is one story that you'll always sort into the category that deserves to be read at any cost. The plot has already been written down numerous times, but it's not the plot. In a good book, it's never the plot.  By a good book, I mean something that touches your inner soul and shakes it so hard that you're left too overwhelmed to even breathe, something like what this book did to me. You're a reader. In your lives on the protagonist of the books you read. Since I have promised myself to read only one book a week in order to be able to give proper attention to my studies, Aza will live on in my mind for a full 7 days... No, I will feel, think, behave like Aza. For the...

There is a (not so) fine line between obsession and addiction. Both have existed simultaneously for millennia. The older generations are now worried for the younger because of their obsession with PubG, were once themselves smitten by rock music or cul tural icons of the late 80s. We have heard of older generations spending all their cash on gaming arcades. But they eventually moved on, didn't they? While a ban wouldn't be a completely ridiculous step taken to curb PubG addiction, it's efficiency is doubtful. How does one propose such a ban? Will, they tie-up with companies to remove all references from the internet? Will that even minutely affects anyone who knows enough about the internet to use a proxy network? Will they try to censor our internet consumption like China? Will they start arresting YouTubers who publish gameplay videos? Regulation might boast of greater efficiency. PubG recently declared that they would limit an individual's gaming time...

By Nessa Carey Columbia University press There are no truths, no dogma in science, and as Carey says, the declaration of DNA being the ultimate language of life was "at best, premature". She starts by giving the example of Dutch hunger winter and asks us to reconsider the validity of Lamarckism. After all, 98% of our DNA does not code for proteins, and one twin suffering from Schizophrenia does not imply that the other would too. Carey introduces the world of Epigenetics- The science of genomic influences that are not encoded in our genes. She explains how epigenetics explains why the attempts at cloning animals Haven't entirely been successful, how a parent's imprint on the DNA they pass on to their child balances the two conflicting chaos taking place while the development of a fetus and how it affects the child later. Rett, Kabuki, Prader Willis', Angelman's and Tourette's syndrome, all have their explanations in Epigenetics (and how Autis...

By Jennifer Niven I'll reveal it in the beginning- you need to read this book twice. The storyline might feel somewhere along the lines of John Green, and that it makes it better. I didn't realise that the protagonist, Theodore Finch, through his diary entries, exhibits symptoms of Bipolar disorder, much like how we fail to identify mental issues in and around ourselves. Even Violet Marky, the other protagonist doesn't, while fighting demons of her own, struggling to get over the death of her sister. This book has an ending but whether happy or not, will be a personal opinion, such are the endings of stories in our lives. With few side characters, this book focuses on two souls only. Theodore Finch can't sleep and loves collecting morbid facts about the way people die. Violet Markey was supposed to be that popular girl who has everything in her life sorted, but her sister's death kills her will to live too. One goes wayward without the stability of life i...

-Andre Acimen Farrar Straus & Geroux publication I was drawn to "Call me by your name" first by Sufjan Stevens and then by Timothee Chalamet, back in December. There was nothing not to love about the movie. When Elio cried, I cried with him. I got my hands in the book much later- now. There's this raw desire described by Acimen throughout the book that I could never find in any other romance (I gave up on this genre quite early). I can neither remember any other book that could incite a longing for the male body as much as this book succeeded in doing effortlessly. This story is complete in every sense. Elio, a 17 years old boy, discovers his bisexuality, trysts with the norms society expects from him and then discovers the happiness of a lifetime in the brief period of time that he spends with Oliver, being his. He is supported by his father and the landscapes of Italy. There's a longing in the first part of the novel for the mysterious Oliver, wh...

What happened at NRSMC didn’t begin at NRSMC. It didn’t even begin at Kolkata. The brutality that the hospital staff faced on duty on 10th June starts at the failure of the Indian government to implement rigid family planning and to protect India’s borders from infiltrators. Infiltrators flock in huge numbers from adjoining Bangladesh to all parts of India. They are mostly uneducated and are provided with almost all benefits that a Citizen of India receives and in return, they vote for the communist parties, helping them stay in power. These are the people who decided it was fair to attack a hospital to avenge the death of an old, dying man. Coming to the former, India now has exactly ½ health personnel per thousand. This is nowhere enough. Every doctor is human; it is only fair that the accomplished doctors work for fixed hours and encash lakhs per month. With the hard work they put; they deserve it. Problems arise when people take their frustration with a fixed-hours doctor, o...

It is easy to see why disposable sanitary pads have taken the world by a storm. They are low maintenance and do a satisfactory job in protecting its users from Urinary tract infections. Why you might then ask, should we look for alternatives? The arguments are simple. Chemicals. The better a sanitary napkin is, the more chemicals it asks you to tolerate. Alternate products use a minimal number of raw materials. Disposal. Sanitary waste often ends up polluting water sources. The alternate products do not need disposal for a long time.    Plastic. The plastic content present in disposable pads is not recyclable, whereas the new products do not use plastic or use it to the minimum. Most importantly, Comfort. Sanitary pads are comfortable for a sedentary lifestyle. The moment you start walking, they feel restrictive. We need better products that will not make menstruation a liability. Some of the highest performing period products worthy of a second...

Maintaining a garden in summers can be quite a job, but it is one of the most satisfying hobbies. There cannot be a better break to hectic lives than connecting with nature. One often runs into the problem of drying flowerpots in summers. However, it is quite manageable, and one only needs to keep a few things in mind. Read on for some verified and scientific ideas for maintaining the precious garden flowers in the summer. 1. Choosing the Flowers : The first thing to do in a garden is to know what plants there are. The typical summer flowers suitable for Indian climate are- ·        Bougainvillea   ·        Peonies ·        Daffodils ·        Lily ·        Dahlia ·        Tulips ·        Pansy ·        Hibiscus · ...

One of India’s biggest mineral reservoirs Chotanagpur Plateau covers the better part of Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal. The place provides a home to the largest tribal population and to one of the most significant deciduous forests of East India. Still, in touch with nature, this place boasts of a plethora of pagan religions, culture and diet rooted in the seasonal cycles of a place located in the transition zone of tropical and temperate zones. The local food of Jharkhand, sadly, does not have national recognition, owing to its seasonal nature but flows through the veins of millions living in the laps of Chotanagpur forests. KHAPRA ROTI Khapra rotis get their name from the traditional clay pots they are made in. Clay allows limited ventilation that helps the batter of rice and lentils take the shape of pancakes without using oil and avoiding the wetness of an idli. The spongy, chewy rotis are a delight to eat with local mutton curries. Source: fa...

All of us may have planned getaways with friends, and many of us cherish the movie “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara,” fantasizing about daring to break the monotony of routine life. The Goa trip has now become a symbol of crushed travelling dreams. Nevertheless, travelling is a lot more than a getaway. It is an awakening. To travel is to find your calling, like Elizabeth of Eat, Pray, Love. It may also be a way to fetter away your chains as Rani did in Queen. There is no set formula for travelling. You can be a tourist, visit famous destinations, shop ‘til you drop, eat the best food, and be back in a week with plenty of beautiful pictures. You can also be a wayfarer by traversing through dusty roads and inland waterways to observe communities and nature. Expatriates are not recognized as travellers, but if you ask me, shifting to a different place for work is perhaps the best deal a traveller can get. Work on weekdays, explore on weekends. If expatriation seems too worldly, there ...

Witch-hunting. The idea sounds like the faraway land of Britain and the Americas of the 17th century. The last witch-burning occurred in 1722. Then came the era of corsets and "hysteria," where women complaining and gasping from discomfort were considered crazy. Between then and now lies the hushed period of frontal lobotomies done on chirpy women to "culture" them down. It is, however, the story of western civilization. The east never moved past the age of witch hunt. The first reported incidents originate in the 15th Century Assam, where the town of Morigaon allegedly became famous as the capital of black magic. The menace soon spread over Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Rajasthan. The general pattern of the events begins with an undesirable incident, such a death due to illness, an accident, a failed crop, or a pandemic. The sufferers then approach an "Ojha" or a witch doctor who tells them who in the village is p...