Pari Talks

Celebrating Christmas. P.K.Ghatak, MD No.50 The world celebrates Christmas on 25 th December to mark the birth of Jesus. But Jesus was not born on 25 th December. The Bible does not mention Jesus' date of birth, the description of the season at the time of birth was not definitely winter. The astrologers, and religious scholars by studying the appearance of a bright star on the night sky, calculated Jesus was born in between 6 th BC and 4 th BC. The ancient church in Rome decided to celebrate Christmas on 25 th December because it was already a holiday in the Roman empire. That day Romans celebrated Saturnalia, a popular winter solstice festival in honor of Saturn, their god of agriculture and harvest. First Christmas celebration. Romans celebrated Christmas in 336 CE for the first time. In Russia and other places where the Julian calendar is followed, Christmas comes 13 days behind December 25, on January 7. The Eastern Orthodox church celebrates Christmas on 7 th January. T...

How Bone Grows and Fracture Heals. P.K.Ghatak, MD No 49. Bone is the main load bearing structure of the skeletal system. Two types of bones make up the skeleton. One is the long ones – arms and leg bones, the other one is the flat bones of the skull, jaw, sternum, spine, pelvis and small bones of the wrists and ankles. The Periosteum is a double layered outer covering of bones. In long bones the periosteum covers the entire bone. In the flat bones, the periosteum is thin and incomplete in certain bones. The outer layer of the periosteum is fibrous and acts as anchoring tissue of tendons and ligaments. The inner layer is very vital for the growth and healing of fracture, and this layer is made up of cells, nerve fibers and blood vessels. This layer is compared with the cambium layer of the barks of trees that deposits wood tissues in a ring form. The scientists count the rings to determine the age of the tree, and the prevailing nutrients and sunshine were present for that time p...

  Immediate and Habitual Low Oxygen Adaptation. P.K.Ghatak, MD No.48. Oxygen in the air is 21 % and exert 160 mm of mercury (Hg) partial pressure at the sea level. The pressure falls as we climb higher and higher from the sea level. At 10,000 ft the partial oxygen pressure is 110 mm Hg, at 20,000 ft it is 73 mm Hg and at 30,000 ft it is only 48 mm Hg. Oxygen moves from higher presser to lower pressure. Inside the body, the oxygen is carried in the arterial blood, about 20 ml per 100ml, almost all of it is in a loose combination with hemoglobin as oxyhemoglobin, and only 0.31 ml per 100 ml dissolved in the plasma. In the venous blood, the oxygen is 15 ml /100 ml. The dissolved oxygen exerts pressure for oxygen molecules to move out of blood to the tissue where O2 pressure is lower. When the body at rest, it uses 250 ml of oxygen in an hour. The brain uses 50 ml/hr., the heart 40ml/hr. and the Kidneys 40 ml/hr. Immediate Adaptive Mechanism to Low Oxygen conditions: In an ...

Electricity from Ocean currents. P.K.Ghatak, MD No.47 The oil embargo placed on the USA and Western European countries by the Petroleum Producing Arab countries in 1971, lasted for a while. These countries realized a more dependable energy source must be found and rather than depending on one technology and one source, multiple ways to generate electricity is more desirable to have. Utilizing ocean current thus far, remained untapped even though massive hydroelectric dams were in use for a number of decades in so many countries. The potential power that could be generated from the ocean is huge; in one estimate 20,000 times electricity generated at Niagara Falls could be achieved by utilizing only 0.1 % of the Gulf Stream. The turbines and technology are  tested and reliable and function efficiently for decades in  non-saline water but the corrosive power of ocean water on the submerged machineries, barnacles blocking water inlets and outlets and stormy sea with change of dire...

How Dark Matter Came to Existence. P.K.Ghatak. MD No.46. Dark matter existed ever since the moment of Creation. The Scientific world did learn about this until Einstein published his Theory of General Relativity in 1915 and in 1916 a more expanded version of it  At that time such questions were limited to Theology and Religion.  In India, the Sanatan Dharma proclaimed that the universe always existed and will always exist in the future, however the universe goes through cataclysmic periods, the universe reemerges as new.  The Abrahamic religion of the West says, God created this universe 4000 years ago from nothing.  Einstein's Theory of General Relativity states that the creation took place with a huge explosion. After the explosion Time, Space, Matter and Energy came into existence. It further states, the universe is static due to cosmological constant. The Gravity is the result of mass and energy which forms a four-dimensional Curvature of Spacetime.  In 1927...

Does Humility have a Place in the Present Society. P.K.Ghatak, MD No. 45. Everyone should have an answer to this question because, it is such an important and relevant question for humanity, especially now that a Munachimso attitude is sweeping the world. Humility, according to Webster Thesaurus is, - Absence of any feeling of being better than others. It really describes what humility is not. So let us examine antonyms of humility. The same Thesaurus lists - arrogance, conceit, egoism, pompousness, superciliousness as antonyms of humility. Do you see any recognizable sings of arrogance, conceit, egoism, pompousness and superciliousness in the Head of State of the most powerful country of the world?  If that is a norm then why not all of us should be like him. If you have taken classes for public speaking or the company you work for sends you for a preparative course for a leadership position in the company, then you know. They teach you assertiveness, and aggressive ways of speak...

  Ferrell's Law. P.K.Ghatak, MD No.44. Modern warfare, to a large extent, depends on the precise computation of the target because the missiles are most effective when it hits the intended target and a miss means waste of several million dollars gone to manufacturing the missile. In the earlier times when goods moved by boats utilizing the “trade wind” according to Ferrell's law was essential for safe navigation. It kind of lost its luster with the introduction of steam ships and transport planes. Nowadays, only the weatherman knows and uses Ferrell’s law, and the also the engineers engaged in planetary missions and electronic warfare. Ferrell's law is modifications of Coriolis effect for much larger masses of air and sea currents. Gustave Coriolis was a French mathematician and mechanical engineer in the eighteenth century, he solved the commonly observed phenomenon of objects, taking a curved path in reference to Earth rotatory motion. Mr. William Ferrell was an American ...