History of Thailand

The region known today as Thailand has been inhabited by humans since the paleolithic period (about 500,000 – 10,000 years ago). Prior to the fall of the Khmer Empire in the 13th century, various states thrived there, such as the various Taj,Mon,Khmer and Malay kingdoms, as seen through the numerous archaelogical sites and artifacts that are scattered throughout the Siamese landscape. Prior to the 12th century however, the first Thai or Siamese state is traditionally considered to be the Buddhist kingdom of Sukhothai, which was founded in 1238.

Following the decline and fall of the Khmer empire in the 13th – 14th century, various Buddhist Taj Kingdoms of Sukhothai, Lanna and Lan chang were on the ascendancy. However, a century later, Sukhothai’s power was overshadowed by the new kingdom of Ayutthaya, established in the mid-14th century.

After Ayutthaya fell in 1767 to the Burmese, Thonburi was the capital of Thailand for a brief period under King Taskin the Great. The current (Rattanakosin) era of Thai history began in 1782 following the establishment of Bankok as capital of the Chakri Dynasty under King Rama I the Great.

Siam retains an immemorial tradition of trade with its neighboring states and the cultures of the Indian ocean and the South china sea.Europian trade and influence arrived to Thailand in the 16th century, beginning with the Purtgessse. Despite European pressure, Thailand is the only South east asian nation never to have been colonised. Two main reasons for this were that Thailand had a long succession of very able rulers in the 1800s and that it was able to exploit the rivalry and tension between the French and the British As a result, the country remained as a buffer state between parts of South east asia that were colonized by the two colonial powers. Despite this, Western influence led to many reforms in the 19th century and major concessions, most notably being the loss of large territory on the east side of the Mekong to the French and the step by step absorption by Britain of the Shan (Thai Yai) States (now in Myanmar) and the Malay Peninsula. The loss initially included Penang and Tumasik and eventually culminated in the loss of three predominantly ethnic-Malay southern provinces, which later became Malaysia’s three northern states, under the Anglo-Siamese treaty of 1909.

In 1932, a bloodless revolution resulted in a new colonial monarchy. During World war II, following an invasion and brief resistance, Thailand became an ally of Japan while at the same time maintaining an active anti-Japanese resistance movement known as the Seri thai, After the war, Thailand emerged as an ally of the United States. As with many of the developing nations during the Cold War, Thailand then went through decades of political transgression characterised by coup d’etat as one military regime replaced another, but eventually progressed towards a stable prosperity and democracy in the 1980s.

In 1997, Thailand was hit with the Asian financial crisis and the Thai baht for a short time peaked at 56 baht to the US dollar compared to about 25 baht to the dollar before 1997. Since then, the baht has regained most of its strength and as of 23 May 2007, is valued at 32 baht to the US dollar.

The official calendar in Thailand is based on Eastern version of the Buddist Era, which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar. For example, the year AD 2008 is called 2551 BE in Thailand.

History of Concrete

Today lets talk about concrete, many of us know that “pozzolana” word for ‘pozzolona cement’ come from its origin at POZZOLANA but, do you know from where this word concrete came? The word concrete comes from the Latin word “concretus”, which means “to harden”.

In Serbia, remains of a hut dating from 5600 BC have been found, with a floor made of red lime, sand, and gravel. The pyramids of Shaanxi in China, built thousands of years ago, contain a mixture of lime and volcanic ash or clay.

The Assyrians and Babylonians used clay as cement in their concrete. The Egyptians used lime and gypsum cement.

During the Poman Empire roman concrete was made from quicklime, pozzolana, and an aggregate of pumice; it was very similar to modern Portland cement concrete.

The secret of concrete was lost for 13 centuries until 1756, when the British engineer John pioneered the use of hydraulic lime in concrete, using pebbles and powdered brick as aggregate. Portland cement was first used in concrete in the early 1840s.

Recently, the use of recycled materials as concrete ingredients is gaining popularity because of increasingly stringent environmental legislation. The most conspicuous of these is fly ash, a byproduct of coal-fired power plants. This has a significant impact by reducing the amount of quarrying and landfill space required, and, as it acts as a cement replacement, reduces the amount of cement required to produce a solid concrete. As cement production creates massive quantities of carbon dioxide, cement-replacement technology such as this will play an important role in future attempts to cut the amount of carbon-di-oxide produed as a by product by cement factories.

Concrete additives have been used since Roman and Egyptian times, when it was discovered that adding volcanic ash to the mix allowed it to set under water. Similarly, the Romans knew that adding horse hair made concrete less liable to crack while it hardened, and adding blood made it more frost-resistant.

In modern times, researchers have experimented with the addition of other materials to create concrete with improved properties, such as higher strength or electrical conductivity.

Bigb theory :The Dead Cosmonaut

During the 1960s, the Soviet Union and United States raced to become the world leader in space exploration. The winner would be able to claim technological superiority over the other. The Soviet Union had the early edge: In 1957, it launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite. In 1961, the Soviet Union dealt the American space program another blow when cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space. But, according to the Judica-Cordiglia brothers from Italy, Gagarin wasn’t the first.

The brothers set up a listening station in Italy to intercept communication transmissions between ground operations and spacecraft for both American and Soviet missions. Weeks before Gagarin’s successful flight, the brothers claimed to have detected and recorded radio transmissions of a cosmonaut slowly dying while adrift in space. The Soviet Union denied the brothers’ claim. Supporters of the theory believe the Soviet government hid the cosmonaut’s death to preserve the country’s reputation as a leader in space exploration. The truth remains a mystery, though the recordings are available online, if you’re curious to hear for yourself.

PLANET-X THE BIGGEST PLANET OF SOLAR SYSTEM

We always think some extraordinary people may come from another solar system and may harm us but do we know all about our solar system, it is possible that we don’t know. So there comes a theory named as Planet -x theory though very small group of persons believe on it but the reason here to believe is given.   
Does our solar system contain a giant, unnamed planet? It does, according to the Planet X theory. This theory says that our solar system has a 10th planet (if you count Pluto as a planet, otherwise the mystery planet is no. 9). The planet is supposed to be enormous and on an orbital path that will bring it close to Earth soon. Proponents of this theory cite earthquake and weather data as evidence of this planet’s growing influence on Earth. They also claim that the government is forcing observatories to close to keep the planet’s approach secret and prevent panic. Several astronomers have said that there’s no evidence for the Planet X theory, and that if the planet did exist, humans would be able to see it even without a telescope.

A timeline of the Kashmir crisis Related StoriesPacts and Agreements

A timeline of the Kashmir crisis Related StoriesPacts and Agreements.After four Indo-Pak wars Jammu and Kashmir.

August 15-October 26, 1947: Jammu and Kashmir still a sovereign state.

August 12, 1947: Kashmir’s ruler Maharaja Hari Singh offers a Standstill Agreement, proposing a hands-off policy by India and Pakistan on Kashmir. Accepted by both countries.

October 24, 1947: Tribals from Pakistan invade Kashmir. Responding to Hari Singh’s request, the Army’s 1st Sikh Regiment lands at Srinagar on October 27. Some Kashmiri elders still refer to all Armymen as ‘‘Sikhs’’.

October 26, 1947: Maharaja Hari Singh signs the Instrument of Accession with India.

January 1, 1949: Ceasefire declared between India and Pakistan.

January 5, 1949: UN passes a resolution for holding plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir. Asks Pakistan to vacate Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

October 17, 1949: Article 370 adopted, confers special status on J&K in the Constitution.

October 1951: Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah of the National Conference elected unopposed as Prime Minister in a 75-member Assembly.

July 24, 1952: Nehru announces special position for J&K under Delhi Agreement between India and J&K.

August 7, 1952: Nehru declares in Parliament that ‘‘the people of Kashmir are sovereign’’ when the agreement was discussed.

August 9, 1953: Sheikh Abdullah arrested at Gulmarg, charged with conspiracy against the State.

June 22, 1953: Jana Sangh founder Dr Shyama Prasad Mookherjee dies in custody in Srinagar. Mookherjee was arrested after he violated the permit system for entry into J&K. He was accompanied by his then secretary, Atal Behari Vajpayee.

October 20, 1962: China attacks Ladakh, occupies around 15,000 sq miles before declaring a ceasefire in November.

May 1964: Sheikh Abdullah sent to Pakistan where he meets Ayub Khan. But the parleys are cut short following Jawaharlal Nehru’s death.

March 30, 1965: State Constitution amended; Sadar-e-Reyasat and Prime Minister now known as Governor and Chief Minister.

August 1965: War breaks out between India and Pakistan.

January 11, 1966: Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri signs Tashkent Agreement with Pakistani Prime Minister Ayub Khan. Shastri dies in Tashkent itself immediately after.

January 8, 1971: Sheikh Abdullah and his colleagues externed from the state. That month, J&K police smash Alsafa, a militant group formed in 1970.

December 1971: Second Indo-Pak war, Bangladesh is born. Assembly elections declared in early 1972, Jamat-e-Islami contests for the first time. Sheikh Abdullah waters down his stand on plebiscite.

July 2, 1972: Simla Agreement signed, Ceasefire Line converted into Line of Control (LoC).

November 3, 1974: Sheikh Abdullah inks an agreement with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In February 1975, he takes over as Chief Minister, replacing Syed Mir Qasim. Dissolves Plebiscite Front on July 5, 1975.

Plebiscite plea revived in the early eighties: Maqbool Bhat’s Liberation Front launches an underground anti-India campaign. Violence as a means to an end makes its debut in Kashmir.

February 11, 1984: Maqbool Bhat hanged in Tihar Jail on charges of murder and conspiracy.

August 1, 1988: Two blasts take place at Central Telegraph Office and Srinagar Club.

September 18, 1988: AK assault rifles used for the first ever time when militants storm residence of then DIG of Kashmir, A M Watali. Officials says between 1988-2000, 35,000 have been killed. Groups like Hurriyat claim 80,000 casualties.

February 21, 1999: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee signs Lahore Declaration with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

May 5, 1999: First Pakistani troops spotted on Batalik Heights by two shepherds.

May 6, 1999: Army patrol send to flush out troops, doesn’t return.

May 26, 1999: Indian Army launches Operation Vijay.

July 26: 1999: Kargil war is officially over.

November 26, 2000: Prime Minister Vajpayee declares a unilateral ceasefire, extended thrice.

May 21, 2001: Centre calls off ceasefire, invites General Musharraf for talks.

Judgement and prejuidice

Liberty is something which people from the starting stages of life is trying to achieve. It is really a day when people think they are getting at very high speed they have attained but because of this development have they forgotten the real theme of life. According to my opinion the real taste of life is what and how much free they are? But do they care what they do for the life of other they might have no time to think so. But if you think you are generous then let me remind you that if you really want to measure your generousness then think what have you done for others. When going to bed think what and for how much quantity I have served for my colleague, my society, my nation and for humankind. How much life of the people is going to be affected by it, try to improve it out and after some day you will be feeling that much happiness that never have you seen before. That is also the real secret to the great sleep. Many things are joined with it.
Do people ever think of those countries which are developing or are under developed? How they cope up with every- thing people have to think upon that. Then only this human race is developed otherwise it will be development of those some people only. They should take care of them and try to give them only those much help which is necessary for their proper and sustained growth.
If somehow they are less fortunate then nothing can be done but what if they are not getting right oppurtunity to show their talent. It is might possible that they may do better than us for the developement of the mankind.

Ruhr

The Ruhr is a medium-size river in western Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia), a right tributary (east-side) of the Rhine. Its source is at an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet (670 m), near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, and it flows into the lower Rhine river at an elevation of only 56 feet (17 m) in the municipal area of Duisburg. Its total length is 217 km (135 miles), its average discharge is 79 m³/s (cubic metres per second) at Mülheim near its mouth. Thus its discharge is comparable to that of the Thames river.

 Towns
The Ruhr first passes the towns of Meschede, Arnsberg, Wickede, Fröndenberg, Holzwickede, Iserlohn and Schwerte.

Then the river marks the southern limit of the Ruhr area, passing Hagen, Dortmund, Herdecke, Wetter, Witten, Bochum, Hattingen, Essen, Mülheim and Duisburg.

The Ruhr was the main industrial zone of Germany during the early 1900s. Most factories were situated there. Occupation of the Ruhr in the 1920s by French forces caused Passive Resistance which saw production in the factories grind to a halt. As a result the hyperinflation crisis grew even worse.

Human Behaviour as seen by Social Psycology

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. this definition of social psycology was given by Allport, in 1985. By this definition, scientific refers to the empirical method of investigation. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all of the psychological variables that are measurable in a human being. The statement that others may be imagined or implied suggests that we are prone to social influence even when no other people are present, such as when watching television, or following internalized cultural norms.

Social psychologists typically explain human behavior as a result of the interaction of mental states and immediate, social situations. In Kurt Lewin’s (1951) famous heuristic, behavior can be viewed as a function of the person and the environment, B=f(P,E). In general, social psychologists have a preference for laboratory based, empirical findings. Their theories tend to be specific and focused, rather than global and general.

Social psychology is an interdisciplinary domain that bridges the gap between psychology and sociology. During the years immediately following World War II, there was frequent collaboration between psychologists and sociologists (Sewell, 1989). However, the two disciplines have become increasingly specialized and isolated from each other in recent years, with sociologists focusing on “macro variables” (e.g. social structure) to a much greater extent. Nevertheless, sociological approaches to social psychology remain an important counterpart to psychological research in this area.

In addition to the split between psychology and sociology, there has been a somewhat less pronounced difference in emphasis between American social psychologists and European social psychologists. As a broad generalization, American researchers traditionally have focused more on the individual, whereas Europeans have paid more attention to group level phenomena.

Alien or Unidentified flying objects

An extraordinary 95 percent of all Americans have at least heard or read something about Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), and 57 percent believe they are real. Former US Presidents Carter and Reagan claim to have seen a UFO. UFO-logists–a neologism for UFO buffs–and private UFO organizations are found throughout the United States. Many are convinced that the US Government, and particularly CIA, are engaged in a massive conspiracy and coverup of the issue. The idea that CIA has secretly concealed its research into UFOs has been a major theme of UFO buffs since the modern UFO phenomena emerged in the late 1940s. Anyway if there is some reality then this must be put before public and for this thing CIA the American Intelligence Agency did some work in the past there is some detail about it.

In late 1993, after being pressured by UFOlogists for the release of additional CIA information on UFOs, DCI R. James Woolsey ordered another review of all Agency files on UFOs. Using CIA records compiled from that review, this study traces CIA interest and involvement in the UFO controversy from the late 1940s to 1990. It chronologically examines the Agency’s efforts to solve the mystery of UFOs, its programs that had an impact on UFO sightings, and its attempts to conceal CIA involvement in the entire UFO issue. What emerges from this examination is that, while Agency concern over UFOs was substantial until the early 1950s, CIA has since paid only limited and peripheral attention to the phenomena.

The emergence in 1947 of the Cold War confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union also saw the first wave of UFO sightings. The first report of a “flying saucer” over the United States came on 24 June 1947, when Kenneth Arnold, a private pilot and reputable businessman, while looking for a downed plane sighted nine disk-shaped objects near Mt. Rainier, Washington, traveling at an estimated speed of over 1,000 mph. Arnold’s report was followed by a flood of additional sightings, including reports from military and civilian pilots and air traffic controllers all over the United States. In 1948, Air Force Gen. Nathan Twining, head of the Air Technical Service Command, established Project SIGN (initially named Project SAUCER) to collect, collate, evaluate, and distribute within the government all information relating to such sightings, on the premise that UFOs might be real and of national security concern.

The Technical Intelligence Division of the Air Material Command (AMC) at Wright Field (later Wright-Patterson Air Force Base) in Dayton, Ohio, assumed control of Project SIGN and began its work on 23 January 1948. Although at first fearful that the objects might be Soviet secret weapons, the Air Force soon concluded that UFOs were real but easily explained and not extraordinary. The Air Force report found that almost all sightings stemmed from one or more of three causes: mass hysteria and hallucination, hoax, or misinterpretation of known objects. Nevertheless, the report recommended continued military intelligence control over the investigation of all sightings and did not rule out the possibility of extraterrestrial phenomena.

Amid mounting UFO sightings, the Air Force continued to collect and evaluate UFO data in the late 1940s under a new project, GRUDGE, which tried to alleviate public anxiety over UFOs via a public relations campaign designed to persuade the public that UFOs constituted nothing unusual or extraordinary. UFO sightings were explained as balloons, conventional aircraft, planets, meteors, optical illusions, solar reflections, or even “large hailstones.” GRUDGE officials found no evidence in UFO sightings of advanced foreign weapons design or development, and they concluded that UFOs did not threaten US security. They recommended that the project be reduced in scope because the very existence of Air Force official interest encouraged people to believe in UFOs and contributed to a “war hysteria” atmosphere. On 27 December 1949, the Air Force announced the project’s termination.

With increased Cold War tensions, the Korean war, and continued UFO sightings, USAF Director of Intelligence Maj. Gen. Charles P. Cabell ordered a new UFO project in 1952. Project BLUE BOOK became the major Air Force effort to study the UFO phenomenon
throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The task of identifying and explaining UFOs continued to fall on the Air Material Command at Wright-Patterson. With a small staff, the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) tried to persuade the public that UFOs
were not extraordinary. Projects SIGN, GRUDGE, and BLUE BOOK set the tone for the official US Government position regarding UFOs for the next 30 years.

Tamilflu

From many days we are hearing a lot about Birdflu but today i got to know about Tamiflu, it is not a disease but it is a drug.  Oseltamivir (INN)  is an antiviral drug that is used in the treatment and prophylaxis of both Influenza virus A and Influenza virus B. Like zanamivir, oseltamivir is a neuraminidase inhibitor. It acts as a transition-state analogue inhibitor of influenza neuraminidase, preventing progeny virions from emerging from infected cells.

Oseltamivir was the first orally active neuraminidase inhibitor commercially developed. It is a prodrug, which is hydrolysed hepatically to the active metabolite, the free carboxylate of oseltamivir (GS4071). It was developed by Gilead Sciences and is currently marketed by Hoffmann-La Roche (Roche) under the trade name TAMILFLU. In Japan, it is marketed by Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., which is more than 50% owned by Roche. Oseltamivir is generally available by prescription only.

Roche estimates that 50 million people have been treated with oseltamivir. The majority of these have been in Japan, where an estimated 35 million have been treated.

With increasing fears about the potential for a new influenza pandemic, oseltamivir has received substantial media attention. Governments, corporations, and even some private individuals are stockpiling the drug. Production is currently sufficient to meet the demand for seasonal influenza and for government stockpiling. It is possible that shortages could re-emerge in the event of an actual influenza pandemic.
But as every drug has good and bad effects it also have some side effects. I would only talk about  Neurological effects. There are concerns that oseltamivir may cause dangerous psychological side effects in some people. This stems from cases in Japan, where the drug is most heavily prescribed. Concern has focused on teenagers, but problems have also been reported in children and adults.

In March 2007, Japan’s Health Ministry warned that oseltamivir should not be given to children aged 10 to 19.  The Ministry had previously decided, in May 2004, to change the literature accompanying oseltamivir to include neurological and psychological disorders as possible adverse effects, including: impaired consciousness, abnormal behavior, and hallucinations.

According to Japan’s Health Ministry, between 2004 and March 2007, fifteen people aged 10 to 19 have been injured or killed by jumps or fallen from buildings after taking oseltamivir, and one 17-year-old died after he jumped in front of a truck. A renewed investigation of the Japanese data was completed in April 2007. It found that 128 patients had been reported to behave abnormally after taking oseltamivir since 2001. Forty-three of them were under 10 years old, 57 patients were aged 10 to 19, and 28 patients were aged 20 or over. Eight people, including five teens and three adults, had died as a result.

In November 2006, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amended the warning label to include the possible side effects of delirium, hallucinations, or other related behavior.  This went further than the FDA’s previous pronouncement, from a year before, that there was insufficient evidence to claim a causal link between oseltamivir use and the deaths of 12 Japanese children (only two were from neurological problems, although more have died since then).  The change to a more cautionary stance was attributed to 103 new reports that the FDA received of delirium, hallucinations and other unusual psychiatric behavior, mostly involving Japanese patients, received between August 29, 2005 and July 6, 2006. This was an increase from the 126 similar cases logged between the drug’s approval in 1999 and August 2005.