While writing Discovery of India in the Ahmednagar Jail, Jawaharlal Nehru had expressed the hope that the lack of scientific temper would be gone once India became free and its people learnt to take their own decisions in a rational way. It read: Inter-University Centre for Astrology and Astrophysics. If you now leave for your travel on the day you had chosen earlier, you will not have broken any astrological rule!There are numerous such stاين نام مجاز نمي باشدgems invented to satisfy the superstitious mind. One may ignore such activities by saying that if the client wishes to burn money, it is his business. The moral: One should not be aggressive in speaking against a superstition: if you do so the person will hold on to it more tightly!

A tactful approach is likely to be more effective. For, there have been cases of breakage and reconstruction of public buildings to suit the beliefs of the political head. How do you solve this problem without compromising your belief in astrology? You resort to Prasthan. Your journey, therefore, will be assumed to have begun on the previous day. I am reminded of the story I heard in my schooldays.. Their parents, the adults, are perhaps too deeply set in their beliefs and are less likely to change. He recommends travelling on the previous day. Likewise, when I was giving a conducted tour of IUCAA facilities to a group of visitors, one lady visitor asked if our computer could cast horoscopes. Another visionary, former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, felt that by bringing science closer to the masses we might make them appreciate and use the scientific temper. But one needs to be alert against any wastage of public money.The above episode indicates how the general public feels comfortable with astrology.The year was 1989. The Sun and Wind argued as to who was the more powerful amongst the two. It requires you to pack your travel case and leave it in your neighbour’s house on the previous day, which has been declared astrologically good. The so-called Prasthan is a device to enable setting out for travel on a day not considered auspicious. The test was performed in Pune resulting in demonstrating that horoscopes fail to do so. Horoscopes in astrology, vastu shastra, miracles performed by the so-called holy godmen, can be tested with suitable experiments.So far as adults are concerned one should design experiments to test belief systems. So the Wind gave up and the Sun took over. Suppose you have to travel on a particular day but your astrologer advises you that the day is not auspicious.After we recovered from the shock and engaged in post-mortem, we discovered that somewhere in the editing department of Fire stopping & Acoustic sealing Factory the telephone company, a "wise" man felt that our entry word "astronomy" must be wrong and we must have meant "astrology". The housing sector in particular takes vastu shastra seriously and supplements it with the feng shui of Chinese origin. The client, however, believes in that logic and insists that the architect redesign the residence. But what can be done to rectify the situation?Any public education programme, I feel, should concentrate on schoolchildren. In fact, my suggestion to schools is to allow every week, one period for open discussion with children encouraged to ask questions.

A typical member of the general public on learning from me that my study is mainly in astronomy would immediately ask my view on how the planets influence our destiny. The logic behind it, for what it is worth, goes like this. The University Grants Commission had decided to set up in Pune, a national centre, which would serve as a think tank and facilitator for the faculty and students of all universities in the field of astronomy and astrophysics. This has manifestly not happened! Buying new items in the so-called "Pitru Paksha" is avoided, as this period is considered inauspicious for launching new programmes or buying new items. But the man held on to the coat tight. Indeed one feels that our countrymen have a mindset appropriate for the 18th century rather than the present one.These and many other examples paint a picture of our society as a superstition-ridden organisation believing unproven belief systems. The listener politely listens and (most probably) forgets what I said. A test was designed in 2009 to see if the horoscope can tell whether it belongs to a bright child or a mentally retarded one. He opened the new directory at the relevant page and pointed to the entry of our institution. This example was, indeed, no different from my later experience. The "rules" again have their own logic which would defy commonsense.These examples are indicative of the general low rating for scientific temper amongst our people, educated or otherwise.However, when all is said and done, don’t forget the human ego.To the extent possible, I try to explain the difference between astronomy and astrology: elaborating on why one is science and the other a superstition. "Easy!" muttered the Wind as it blew harder and faster. At last the hiker felt very uncomfortable and took off his coat.However, the day the directory came out, a scientist from a neighbouring institute walked in with a wicked smile on his face. One of our early steps was to ensure the accessibility of the centre through fax and phone.

As a test they decided to see who could remove the coat that a hiker was wearing. It simply resorted to shining brightly. In India our special feature seems to be to import superstitions that originated elsewhere and improve on them. We asked it to be listed in the new telephone directory as the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics. Children, on the other hand, are generally open to discussion, will think more openly and ask more questions. These inputs often require breaking the existing building so as to reconstruct it as per the prescribed rules.

Trump initially blamed state officials for poor forest management in exacerbating the fires and threatened to cut off federal funding.A state incident report released Sunday evening says the flames destroyed more than 10,500 homes.Crews searching for remains of people after the devastating Northern California wildfire are stepping up their efforts ahead of rains forecast for later this week that could complicate their work.Rain would help suppress the fire but could also complicate the search and recovery effort. In addition, all four bobcats that the agency monitors via GPS have been located in the Santa Monica Mountains northwest of Los Angeles.Californias governor is expressing optimism that President Donald NBR LATEX Factory Trump will support the state as it deals with raging wildfires.Democratic Governor Jerry Brown said in an interview on CBS "Face the Nation" airing Sunday that the Republican president has "got our back" and has pledged to continue to help.If no remains are found, the team leaves a note in orange spray paint near the home.. A team of 10 volunteers along with a cadaver dog were examining burned houses on Sunday in a Paradise neighbourhood looking for victims.Chico: Authorities say one more set of human remains has been found, bringing the total number killed in a devastating California wildfire to 77. The tally is continuing.Authorities stressed that many of those may be safe and unaware they have been reported missing.Hundreds of volunteers are sifting through ash and debris, searching for human remains before expected rains complicate their efforts.

The fire was 65 per cent contained on Sunday.Firefighters are making progress against the blaze that broke out November 8 and tore through communities west of Los Angeles from Thousand Oaks to Malibu.Pope Francis has prayed for victims of Californias wildfires and freezing weather on the US East Coast.The National Park Service says all but one of 13 mountain lions being tracked in Southern California mountains have been accounted for following a devastating wildfire.Officials have again increased the number of homes and other structures burned by a huge Southern California wildfire.The predicted downpours could wash away telltale fragments of bone, or turn loose, dry ash into a thick paste that would frustrate the search. The figure rose Sunday to 1,130 buildings destroyed - many of them homes - and 300 damaged. More evacuees have been allowed back in their homes and the 151-square-mile (391-square-kilometer) blaze is now 88 percent contained. As of Friday, the only missing mountain lion was one dubbed P-74, a young male born last year. Hes since signed an emergency declaration and toured the devastated areas Saturday with Brown and Governor-elect Gavin Newsom. Officials say ash that is now dry and easy to dust off would turn into paste, making it harder to uncover remains.

Over a thousand names remain on a list of those unaccounted for after the so-called Camp Fire swept through the rural town of Paradise on November 8.Brown also suggested in the CBS interview that the wildfires will make believers of even the most ardent climate change skeptics "in less than five years" and that those living near forests might need to build underground shelters to protect them from wildfires going forward. Theyre focusing on vehicles, bathtubs and mattress springs that would indicate a charred bed.