Trivandrum - Education and Research Thread

[ajithv]

Classrooms get a hi-tech makeover at the Cotton Hill Government Girls Higher Secondary School.

The idea of learning through videos, animation and graphics has finally become a reality, at least for the students of Cotton Hill Government Girls Higher Secondary School in the city.

Multimedia aid

It became the first government school in the State to install smart classrooms, thanks to a project funded by the school Parents-Teachers Association (PTA). As many as 16 classrooms spread in UP, HS and HSS sections have been converted into smart classrooms under the initiative which was inaugurated by Education Minister M.A. Baby recently.

If you are wondering what actually goes into the making of a smart classroom, here you go: the smart classroom tools basically consist of a laptop, screen and multimedia projector. At Cotton Hills G.G.H.S.S. these have been provided by the Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (Keltron).

“This is probably the first such initiative in the government school sector in the State. As many as five classrooms in the HSS section, 10 in the High School section and one in the UP section have been installed with multimedia facilities under this project,” said school PTA vice president, Ashok Kumar.

Teachers of the school will be making use of syllabus-based modules prepared by IT@School Project as well as multimedia resources developed by other reputed agencies for teaching in these smart classrooms. While teachers in the HS section have already been given training by IT@School for IT-enabled teaching techniques, the training for HSS teachers is currently progressing at the school.

Internet-enabled

“The idea is to enhance the teaching and learning experience through audio, video, 3D animation, graphics and pictures. Soon, we will also be getting Internet connections to each of these classrooms to enable live video streaming and use of online resources. The speciality is that all the resources will be based on free software,” said teacher Alice Skariah. The venture is also expected to encourage more participation from the students in the learning process, she added.

School HSS section Principal, S. Mini, said that the smart classrooms were also renovated before installing the facilities. “To accommodate and enhance the experience of using the multimedia facilities, each of these smart classrooms has also been revamped by COSTFORD. The project, which cost around Rs 7.5 lakhs, has been entirely funded by the school PTA,” she said.

The school already has six computer labs with 65 systems as well as a language lab, she added.

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[Ajaypp]

Originally Posted by RajeshVR

Thiruvananthapuram: Delegates from 20 countries are expected to participate in the three-day international conference on ‘Global warming, climate change, sustainable development and secular spirituality' being organised here from September 9 by the Santhigiri Research Foundation in collaboration with UNESCO, the American Centre and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), New Delhi.

[B]President of East Timor Jose Ramos Manuel-Horta, who won the Nobel Peace prize in 1996, is scheduled to inaugurate the conference

Very interesting news, I hope it is not consigned to the local news sections of the print and visual media. After all, it is not everyday that our city and State get to be honored by the presence of someone as distinguished as Senor Manuel-Horta.

[sathyalal]

Originally Posted by Ajaypp

After all, it is not everyday that our city and State get to be honored by the presence of someone as distinguished Senor Manuel-Horta.

Do you think that we have such journo's with the GK to understand who is Manuel-Horta

[ajithv]

[ajithv]

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: For the first time, a group of geologists in the State has formed a Consortium to support and promote field practices in geology. Titled Transect, a consortium of field practitioners in earth sciences, the novel venture aims to put an end to the idea of limiting field geology within animated geological models.

There is a lack of knowledge and interest in field practices among students doing under-graduation and post-graduation in geology. This has been a major drawback for pursuing a career in geology at national and international levels. The idea of forming a Consortium evolved during a casual talk in this context around two years ago, says Ramasarma, retired geology professor and chairman of Transect.

"There is an ‘ill-conceived’ idea that geology can be studied or taught using various animated models. In fact, dealing with the real situation is entirely different. Most of the students who secure a job in mines and oil fields struggle a lot as they lack field experience. The Consortium will conduct field trips on a regular basis to enable students to take up geological problems depending on their area of interest. There will be a fixed theme, including geomorphology and mineralogy for each field trips," Ramasarma said.

The chairman added that the Transect would act as a platform for real observation of natural phenomenon and would produce a data bank on the basis of the findings. "Nowadays, issues affecting the nature or earth are raised by poets or social activists or some retired persons. But, this often lacks a scientific angle. For instance, problems can arise out of silting and desilting. So, a scientific study involving a field visit is required before taking action," Ramasarma said.

Presently, the Consortium has 33 members comprising geologists within and outside the State and a few students as well. "Geologists apart, anybody interested in earth sciences can join the organisation. We are planning to have collaboration with various institutions in field geology. Transect now has an understanding with Spirifer Geological Society, Warsaw, Poland, to organise combined field work in India," said Jishnu BK, secretary of the Consortium. The Consortium has big plans to promote geosciences among students in the State. "We have plans to open a geology museum in the Science and Technology Museum here. Launching a journal is also in the pipeline. The three best dissertations by post-graduates in geology will be published in it. Another ambitious plan is to organise an international geology conference in Thiruvananthapuram," Ramasarma said.

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[vinodtnt]

Thanu Padmanabhan, professor and dean of core academic programmes, at the Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune, speaking after inaugurating the Science Exploratorium at the Kerala State Science and Technology Museum. Looking on is the education minister M. A. Baby. Photo: S. Mahinsha

In keeping with its egalitarian philosophy, the government has provided generally equal support to all of the universities and has not identified any one of them as a “flagship.” Thus, there are few nationally or internationally prominent universities in the State. One exception is the Cochin University of Science and Technology. The Central Ministry of Human Resource Development recognised its excellence and supported its upgradation to the level of an Indian Institute of Technology. However, a campaign against its conversion into an IIT forced the authorities to shelve the plans. The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology was recently established by the Central government in Thiruvananthapuram, the State capital. The Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology in Thiruvananthapuram is another exception: it has the status of a university and offers postdoctoral, doctoral, and postgraduate courses in medical specialties and health care technology. It is under the administrative control of the Department of Science and Technology of the Government of India. The Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in Thiruvananthapuram, established in 2008, can also be considered to be nationally prominent. It is an autonomous institution affiliated to the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development. Kerala might be well served if these high-quality institutions were closely linked or even merged in order to produce a world-class scientific institution.

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[vinodtnt]

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala education department is all set to take the "reality TV route" to children's minds. In perhaps a first of its kind attempt, the department's technology arm it@school has announced holding of a 75-episode reality show on its education TV channel VICTERS.

The daily 40-45 minute interactive educational reality TV Show involving students and teachers of classes I to X of Government & Aided schools, will be aired from November 2010 to January 2011.

An official communication said "this educational reality show being first of its kind in the history of TV shall obtain a great interest due to the unprecedented nature of its substance and form".

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[RajeshVR]

METEOROLOGICAL CENTRE, Thiruvananthapuram caters to the meteorological requirements of Kerala state and Lakshadweep Islands by supervising and coordinating the weather services in the state. Weather forecast (both aviation and non-aviation) for optimum operation of weather sensitive activities like agriculture, irrigation, aviation etc. and warnings against severe weather phenomena (over the state and nearby sea area) like heavy rains, thunderstorm, strong winds etc., which cause destruction to life and property are rendered by this centre under the technical advice of Area Cyclone Warning Centre of Regional Meteorological Centre at Chennai.

Necessary Meteorological services for air navigation, towards the safety of aircraft operation in the state, is provided by Airport Meteorological Office - the Aviation section of this office.


The Challenging task of Weather forecasting is done effectively by taking meteorological observations (both at surface and in upper air) through about 14 observatories and about 70 raingauge stations all over the state and Lakshadweep Islands. 10 Surface observatories are maintained by IMD and the Part-time observatories and raingauge stations are located in the premises of State Government Offices, Railways and other organisations. The raingauge stations are maintained under District-wise Rainfall Monitoring Scheme (DRMS). Accuracy of meteorological observations is ensured by periodical inspection of observatories and raingauge stations by this Centre. Calibration of all instruments at observatories are checked at least once in two years. 5 automatic weather stations in Kerala and one each in Karnataka and Lakshadweep Islands (transmission of hourly data to HQ is carried out automatically through INSAT) are also maintained by this office.


http://www.imdtvm.gov.in/

http://www.imdtvm.gov.in/index.php/d...lforecast.html

[rahulkr]

Thiruvananthapuram: The Bangalore-based Christ University is opening a nodal office in the city with a view to promoting research in Management studies and Computer Science and Education, among other subjects.

A statement quoting the varsity Vice-Chancellor said here on Thursday that the nodal office (to be located near All India Radio, Vazhuthacaud) will be a knowledge laboratory. It will enhance the research culture in the State. The inauguration will be on Saturday.

Christ University, formerly Christ College, was established in 1969 by the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI). The college, affiliated to the University of Bangalore, got autonomous status by the University Grants Commission in 2004.

The university offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Humanities and Social Sciences, Pure Sciences, Commerce and Management, Law, Education and Engineering.

SOURCE: http://hindu.com/2010/09/03/stories/...0358810200.htm

[vinodtnt]

The regional cancer centre Trivandrum, organising an international workshop on ‘Colonoscopy and treatment of precancers of uterine cervix’ at RCC Trivandrum on November 6th and &7th. The workshop is being jointly organised by RCC and International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, Lyon France).

Gynaecologists, gynecology postgraduate students and other general practitioners who are interested in attending the workshop should contact Dr Ramani S Wesley, professor and head, Community Oncology Division, RCC by email ramaniwesley@yahoo.com or over telephone numbers 0471-2522376 or 9447192171 on or before November 1.

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[vinodtnt]

Statue, Trivandrum: Without energy, there is no movement, no universe. It is with this thought that a new international project to create public awareness about energy is being launched by the charitable service organisation, Isa Viswa Prajnana Trust (IVPT).

Called the ‘Global Energy Parliament’ (GEP), the project proposes to bring together scientists, leaders, organisations, and experts in all areas, to find practical solutions for ‘equilibrating the individual, society, nature and our universe’.

The first session of the parliament is being held on 12-14 November in Trivandrum. It will focus on education, environment, agriculture, economy and sustainable development, medicine and health, language and arts. There will be student and public events with outcomes expected to charge off local energy action groups, research centres, publications etc.

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[Ajaypp]

M&M inks MoU with College of Engg

Our Bureau

Thiruvananthapuram, Sept. 6

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has chosen the College of Engineering-Thiruvananthapuram (CET) from a list of 10 academic institutions for a pioneering industry-academia initiative.

This partnership would seek to upgrade the training infrastructure at CET to keep pace with the robust growth in automobile industry. It would also provide necessary training to faculty and enhance the employability of students.

A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed here on Monday by Mr Prince M. Augustin, Executive Vice-President (Human capital, Automotive and Farm Equipment Sector), M&M, and Dr J. Letha, Principal, CET.

The college has also been bestowed with the ‘most preferred T-school' status by the company after evaluating the students and the diversity of the faculty and facilities available. Mr Augustin told journalists here that there has been an increasing need to meet the demands arising as a result of the boom in the automobile industry.

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Yet another tie-up between Kerala's oldest and most prestigious engineering college and a corporate giant. It's time that the Industry-Institute Interaction channel is taken up seriously in our State.

[RajeshVR]

Govt. Of Kerala is planning to set up a technical university with the state capital Trivandrum as it's headquarters. This is a major step for the technical education of Kerala. Once it happened all the engineering colleges in the state will be affiliated with this university. We have already lost the medical university. Previously the Directorate of medical education was functioning within the TVM medical college campus.That has ben moved to----. Now we have to to be vigilant against the ani-Tvm lobby.

http://www.metrovaartha.com/2010/09/...m20100907.html

[BabuCS]

The 10th awardees meeting of the Human Frontier Science Program, one of the most prestigious grouping of world scientists including many Nobel laureates, will be held at Leela, Kovalam, during the first week of November.
This is a great opportunity for students of TVM to interact with top scientists .. not sure whether our media guys are aware of this meeting!!

The last such meeting was held in Tokyo.

TDF, please highlight this event in your newsletter, truly a land mark event for scientific Trivandrum.

http://hfsp.ncbs.res.in/

[rajkrish]

Top NAAC grade for University College

Staff Reporter
Rating under new system valid for five years
On a point scale of four, college bags 3.16

Focus on research a prime reason for rating

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The University College Thiruvananthapuram has been re-accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council and given grade ‘A,' the highest ranking under the Council's new system of rating academic institutions.

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[rajkrish]

Permanent campus: IISER-TVM gets Centre's nod
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has given environmental clearance for the construction of a permanent campus for the Indian Institute of Science Education & Research (IISER-TVM) at Vithura. The clearance was given during the 88th meeting of the expert appraisal committee for building construction, coastal regulation zone, infrastructure development and miscellaneous projects held in Delhi recently

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[vinodtnt]

Edwise overseas education Consultant is organising a world education fair on September 19 at Mascot Hotel, Mascot Square . The education fair is a platform for interacting with internationally renowned university delegates. Seminars on education at specific countries will be there at the fair.

The education fair will see the participation of more than 50 renowned institutions from UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Switzerland.

http://worldeducationfair.com/trivandrum/index.htm

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[ajithv]

The eighth Trivandrum Sahodaya Complex Youth Festival for students of CBSE schools in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Kanyakumari districts will be held at MGM model school, Varkala on September 16.

The three day event named Drisyotsav 2010 will have participation of around 3000 students from 50 schools. The opposition leader Oomen Chandy will inaugurate the event in presence of Varkala Kahar, MLA, and cine actor Sarath. Sahodaya Complex president K.M. Mathew would preside over the function.

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[vinodtnt]

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: The capital city is to witness a two-day IT job fair. The fair will be held on September 18 and 19 at Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium Hall. It will be organised by G-Tech Computer Education. G-Tech Jobfair 2010 will have about 30 IT companies recruiting candidates.

Candidates with MCA, MBA, B Tech, BE, BSc, BA, diploma and plus-two can take part in the job fair. The selection will be on the basis of written test, group discussion and interview.

Major IT firms like Wipro, Infosys, Ernst & Young, RR Donelley, Hinduja GLobal, Sutherland, Accentia SeaView etc will take part in the recruitment. The registration will be free and each candidate can attend interviews in two companies.

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[vinodtnt]

The National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology is organising, Innovation in Science pursuit for inspired research (INSPIRE) , an internship science camp on September 20 to 24 at the NIIST Auditorium. The camp will be inaugurated by IIST director B N Suresh on September 20. The function will be presided over by Kerala University Vice-Chancellor A Jayakrishnan.

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