Bandra-Worli Sea Link

Bandra Worli Sea Link Project has been one of the most highly recommended project of all the transport studies done for the metropolitan region during the last forty years.
At present, Mahim causeway is the only link connecting western suburbs to island city of Mumbai. The existing north south western corridor is highly congested and during the peak hours results in a bottleneck at Mahim Causeway.
Vehicular traffic admeasuring about 1,20,000 PCU travels on the Mahim causeway everyday and during peak hours and it takes about forty minutes to travel from Mahim causeway to Worli, a distance of about 8 km
Project Features:
An 8-lane bridge with 2 lanes dedicated for buses.

Unique bridge design for the Link Bridge to emerge as a land mark structure in the city.

Single tower supported 500 meters long Cable Stayed Bridge at Bandra Channel and Twin tower supported 350m Cable Stayed Bridge at Worli Channel for each carriageway.

Modern toll plaza of 16 lanes with automated toll collection system.

An intelligent bridge with state - of - art systems for traffic monitoring, surveillance, information and guidance, instrumentation, emergency support etc.

Development of promenade and landscaping to enhance the environment.

Official website: Bandra Worli Sea Link

Alert!!! New Web Ads Contain Hidden Viruses

On a Saturday night at the end of May, visitors to the forums section of Digital Spy, a British entertainment and media news Web site, were greeted with an ad that loaded malicious software onto their computers. The Web site's advertising system had been hacked.

A number of such attacks have occurred this year, as perpetrators exploit the complex structure of business relationships in the online advertising world, with its numerous middlemen and resellers.

Web security experts say they have seen an uptick in the number of ads harboring malware as the economy has soured and publishers, needing to boost their ad revenues, outsource more of their ad-space sales.

Viruses can be incorporated directly within an ad, so that simply clicking on the ad or visiting the site can infect a computer, or ads can be used to direct users to a nefarious Web site that aims to steal passwords or identities.

In most cases, the problem becomes apparent within a matter of hours and quick fixes are put in place, but that's not fast enough for Internet surfers whose computers end up infected or compromised.

"The system is only as safe as its least secure members, and some of these members can be strikingly insecure," says Ben Edelman, an assistant professor at Harvard Business School who researches Web security issues.

EWeek.com, a technology news site owned by Ziff Davis Enterprise, in February displayed an ad on its homepage masquerading as a promotion for Lacoste, the shirt maker.

The retailer hadn't placed the ad -- a hacker had, to direct users to a Web site where harmful programs would be downloaded to their computers, says Stephen Wellman, director of community and content for Ziff Davis.

Battlefield Robot Is a Snake

Israeli defense researchers are working on a robot snake that can sneak through cracks and into buildings to send back sound and video of enemy movements — or even plant explosives.
That's according to the Jerusalem Post, which cites a news report from Israel's Channel 2.
A video clip shows the six-foot-long robot, covered in camouflage, winding its way through rocks and tree stumps, its "head" a flat camera lens ringed by LED lights.
The "snake" can also prop up its front sections vertically to peer over obstacles.
It's remote-controlled by a soldier, who uses a laptop both to guide the robot and to see and hear what it's feeding back. The Israel Defense Forces plan to equip combat units with search-and-surveillance models, which could also be useful to find survivors trapped within collapsed buildings.
Future models might be used to plant bombs in enemy facilities.

There's little that humans fear more in the natural world than snakes. The phobia is ingrained in our DNA, some scientists think, and may have driven the evolution of our keen eyesight.
So how appropriate that a battlefield spy robot would be designed to look and slither like a snake. The 2-foot robot, with a camera at its snout, is covered in a snake "skin" and was made after researchers studied how real snakes move.
You'd have to be on the same team to love this bot (and soldiers do love their robots).
Other engineers have designed snake-like robots because they can get into tight corners to do work or inspect things. Even NASA has dabbled in Snakebots.

According to sources,the snake is also potentially able to explode on reaching a suitable target, after which it isn't good for much any more.

A good story

This is Awesome !!!

Father : "I want you to marry a girl of my choice"
Son : "I will choose my own bride!"
Father : "But the girl is Bill Gates's daughter."
Son : "Well, in that case...ok"

Next - Father approaches Bill Gates.
Father : "I have a husband for your daughter."
Bill Gates : "But my daughter is too young to marry!"
Father : "But this young man is a vice-president of the World Bank."
Bill Gates : "Ah, in that case...ok"


Finally Father goes to see the president of the World Bank.
Father : "I have a young man to be recommended as a vice-president. "
President : "But I already have more vice- presidents than I need!"
Father : "But this young man is Bill Gates's son-in-law."
President : "Ah, in that case...ok"

This is how business is done!!
Moral: Even If you have nothing, You can get Anything. But your attitude should be positive
Think +ve !!!!

Recession Effect-ads which remakes researchers to rockstars

There have been some cool ads recently, after the chapter zoozoo’s for Vodafone now its time for the IT biggies to bring out their own. The coolest of em all is the Intel’s ‘Our Kind of Hero’ ad. The ad shows Ajay Bhatt (Sadly the one in the ad is not the real Ajay Bhatt) co-creator of USB (Universal Serial Bus), walking to get coffee amid adolation from his Intel junior collegaues. They have T-Shirts with his picture,autographs and more.

who's Ajay Bhatt ??
• Title: Intel fellow, and chief client architect for Intel's mobile platforms
• Claim to fame: Co-inventor of the Universal Serial Bus (USB), a standardized outlet for connecting devices to computers. He's currently working on highly efficient, high-performance laptops.
• Age: 52
• Family: Married, with a daughter in college
• Background: The son of a university professor, Bhatt moved from Baroda, India in 1981 to study in the U.S. He's been with Intel since 1990, and moved to Oregon in 1996.

Ajay Bhatt, Chief Platform Architect at Intel, and co-creator of the USB port on PCs and laptops, is featured in one of Intel's new global ad campaigns. The tag is "our rock stars are different from your rock stars." Only, the rock star in the ad is an actor, playing a too-cool Bhatt.

Intel picked the Beaverton researcher as one focus of a national ad campaign that launches Monday, highlighting the people behind the chip maker's technology and making light of the obscurity in which they labor.

The concept is simple: What if Bhatt, and Intel's other scientists, were treated like rock stars?

In the commercial, which will air coast-to-coast and around the globe, Bhatt struts into an Intel cafeteria and is greeted by a loud guitar riff, as womenswoon and colleagues press in for his signature.
Except it's not Bhatt, but an actor.
Intel's ads, dubbed "Sponsors of Tomorrow," represent the company's biggest marketing campaign in three years. Hoping to draw a parallel between itself and its researchers, Intel is making a lighthearted argument that they play a key role in creating new technologies, a role that generally goes unseen in PCs, laptops and other high-tech gadgets. It's a tricky pitch, inasmuch as Intel doesn't sell anything the everyday consumer can buy.

It isn't always. For example, Microsoft recently began its own "I'm a PC campaign," showing everyday consumers choosing inexpensive PCs over Apple's Macintosh brand.
Unnoticed in the ads, except by techies, is that some of those consumers pick bargain PCs with chips by Intel's much smaller rival, Advanced Micro Devices. (All Macs use Intel processors.)

A R Rahman- A Music Maestro

A. R. Rahman is the man who has redefined contemporary Indian music, is the pride of the Indian nation and a role model for millions around the world. Rahman, hailed by time magazine as the ‘Mozart of Madras’ is one of the most successful artistes of all time and according to a BBC estimate, has sold more than 100 million albums of his works comprising of music from movies.

Early Days Rahman was born in a musically affluent family and he started playing the piano at a very young age. His father, R K Shekhar was a composer, arranger and conductor for Malayalam movies. Unfortunately, his father died when he was only 9 and the family started renting out musical equipment to make ends meet. Young Rahman then joined noted composer Ilayaraja’s troupe as a keyboardist and computer programmer. After working with several renowned composers like Ilayaraja, Vishwanathan-Ramamurthy, Zakir Hussain and L Shankar, he set out on his own to compose jingles and scores for popular Indian television features. During this period, he also obtained a degree in western classical music from the Trinity College of Music, London and went on to set up his own in-house studio called Panchathan record- inn at Chennai which is arguably Asia’s most sophisticated and hi-tech studio.

The Musical Journey
In 1991, noted film maker Mani Ratnam offered Rahman a movie ‘Roja’ which was a run-away success and brought nationwide fame and acclaim to the composer. The movie also led Rahman to receive the Indian National Award for the Best Music Composer, the first time ever by a debutant. Time magazine rated the soundtrack of ‘Roja’ in their top ten compilations of the all time 100 best movie soundtracks of the world.

Rahman is widely considered as the man who single-handedly revived public interest in Indian film music in the nineties. Rahman followed up ‘Roja’ with ‘Gentleman’, ‘Thiruda Thiruda’, ‘Kaadhalan’, ‘Bombay’ and ‘Minssara Kannavu’ all of which were huge chartbusters and were dubbed in Hindi as well. Some of the other hits in Tamil include ‘Alaipayuthey’, ‘Kandukondein Kandukondein’, ‘Jeans’, ‘Mudalvan’, ‘Kannathil Muthamittal’ & ‘Boys’. His foray into Hindi movies started off with a big bang with ‘Rangeela’ followed by ‘Dil Se’, ‘Taal’, ‘1947 Earth’, ‘Pukar’, ‘Lagaan’ , ‘Zubeida’, ‘Meenaxi’, ‘The Legend of Bhagat Singh’, ‘Yuva’, ‘Tehzeeb’ ‘Swades’, ‘Bose: The Forgotten Hero’, ‘Water’ and ‘Rang De Basanti’ all of which have been critically acclaimed and well received.

In 1997, to commemorate 50 years of Indian Independence, Sony Music signed up Rahman as its first artiste in South Asia. The result was ‘Vande Matram’, an album that instantly made Indian youth relate to it and succeeded in rekindling the spirit of patriotism.

Global Calling
In 2001, Andrew Lloyd Webber, the well known composer of musicals like ‘Phantom of the Opera’, ‘Cats’, ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ etc., invited Rahman to compose for the musical, ‘Bombay Dreams’. The first time he would produce a musical he did not compose for. Bombay dreams opened to packed houses at London’s West End. The show had an unprecedented run for 2 years and later premiered at New York’s Broadway. Rahman also composed the score for a Chinese film, ‘Warriors of Heaven and Earth’ and a piece for the award winning violinist/musician Vanessa Mae called ‘Raga’s Dance.

His most recent work was for the stage adaptation of J R R Tolkien’s ‘Lord Of The Rings’ that premiered in Canada in 2006 and in London in 2007.


The ‘Bombay Theme’ from the movie ‘Bombay’ features was most prominently noticed in the movie ‘Lord of War’ starring Nicholas Cage. The track, ‘Chaiyya Chaiyya’ from the movie ‘Dil Se’ features in the Spike Lee movie, ‘Inside Man’, starring Oscar winner, Denzel Washington. Recognition Rahman has won 18 Filmfare Awards, 3 MTV Awards, 4 IIFA Awards, 6 Tamil Nadu State Awards, 6 Zee Awards, 4 Screen Awards and lots more. He has also been conferred the prestigious ‘Padmashree’ ,the highest civilian honour in India by the Government of India in the year 2000 for outstanding contribution to the Indian film industry.

Philanthropy
Rahman is also involved with charitable causes. In 2004, he was appointed as the global ambassador of the Stop TB Partnership, a project by the World Health Organization (WHO).

As a producer on the single ‘We can make it Better’ by Don Asian alongside Mukhtar Sahota, he showed his charitable side with all the proceeds going to the tsunami victims, as did his 2004 tsunami relief concert in India.

More recently, Rahman launched the A R Rahman Foundation, which is a step towards eradication of hunger and poverty. The aim of the foundation is to tackle the issue of poverty by providing education to the poor and equipping them with knowledge and skills to earn a living.

An immediate outcome of this initiative was Rahman’s first single in the English language called ‘Pray for me brother’, which released in early 2007 wherein all proceeds from sales are towards the A R Rahman Foundation.

Awards

Academy for Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Oscars)
Best Achievement in Original Score for a Motion Picture - Slumdog Millionaire (2009)
Best Achievement in Original Song for a Motion Picture - Jai Ho, Slumdog Millionaire (2009)
BAFTA
Best Music(Slumdog Millionaire)
Golden globe awards
Best Composer(Slumdog Millionaire)
Civilian Awards
Padmashree (Jan 2000) Title awarded by the Government of India
Awadh Sammaan (May 2001) awarded by Uttar Pradesh government
Al-Ameen Education Society Community Award (2001)
Amir Khusro Sangeet Nawaz Award (2002)
Lata Mangeshkar Samman, awarded by Madhya Pradesh Government 2005
Mahavir Mahatma Award Awarded by the Oneness Foundation, April 2005
Stanford University Award for Contribution to Global Music Jan 2006
National Awards
Roja (1993)
Minsara Kanavu (1997)
Lagaan (2002)
Kannathil Muthamittaal (2003)
FILMFARE Awards
Best Music Roja (Tamil, 1993)
Best Music Gentleman (Tamil, 1994)
R D Burman Award for Best new musical talent (for Roja, Hindi; 1995)
Best Music Kadhalan (Tamil, 1995)
Best Music Rangeela (Hindi; 1996)
Best Music Bombay (Tamil, 1996)
Best Music Kadhal Desam (Tamil, 1997)
Best Music Minsara Kanavu (Tamil, 1998)
Best Music Dil Se.. (Hindi; 1999)
Best Music Jeans (Tamil, 1999)
Best Music Taal (Hindi; 2000)
Best Music Mudhalvan (Tamil, 2000)
Best Music Alai Payuthey (Tamil, 2001)
Best Music Lagaan (Hindi; 2002)
Best Background Score Technical Award The Legend of Bhagat Singh (Hindi; 2003)
Best Music Saathiya (Hindi; 2003)
Best Background Music Swades (Hindi, 2005)
Best Music Rang De Basanti (Hindi; 2007)
Best Music Sillunu Oru Kadhal (Tamil; 2007)
Best Music - Guru (Hindi, 2008)
Best Background Score - Guru (Hindi, 2008)
Best Background Score - Jodhaa Akbar (Hindi, 2009)
Best Music - Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na (Hindi, 2009)
Screen Awards
Kadhal Desam (South - Tamil; 1997)
Minsara Kanavu (South - Tamil; 1998)
Vande Mataram (Non-film; 1998)
Taal (Hindi; 2000)
Best Background Score Rang De Basanti (Hindi, 2007)
Best Composer Guru (Hindi; 2008)
Best Background Score Guru (Hindi; 2008)
Best Music - Guru (Hindi, 2008)
Best Background Score - Jodhaa Akbar(Hindi, 2009)
Best Music category - Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na(Hindi, 2009)
Dinakaran Cine Awards
Minsara Kanavu (1998)
Jeans (1999)
Mudalvan, Kadhalar Dhinam (2000)
Tamil Nadu State Award
Roja (1993)
Gentleman (1994)
Kadhalan (1995)
Bombay (1996)
Minsara Kanavu (1998)
Sangamam (2000)
Cinema Express Award
Roja (1993)
Gentleman (1994)
Kadhalan (1995)
Kadhal Desam (1997)
Jeans (1999)
Kalasaagar Award
Roja (1993)
Gentleman (1994)
Kadhalan (1995)
Bombay (1996)
FilmFans' Award
Roja (1993)
Gentleman (1994)
Kadhalan (1995)
Bombay (1996)
CineGoers' Award
Roja (1993)
Gentleman (1994)
Kadhalan (1995)
Bombay (1996)
Zee Awards
Zee Cine Awards (2008) Best Composer and Best Background Score Guru
Zee Sangeet Awards (1999) Dil Se.. Zee Cine Awards (2000) Taal
Zee Gold Bollywood International Awards (2000) Taal
Zee Fairglow Awards (2002) Best Music Lagaan
Zee Gold Bollywood Awards (2002) Lagaan
Zee Cine Awards (2003) Best Music Saathiya
Zee Gold Bollywood Awards (2003) Best Music Saathiya
Zee Cine Awards 2003 Best Background Music The Legend of Bhagat Singh
Zee Cine Awards 2007 Best Composer Rang De Basanti
International Indian Film Awards (IIFA)
Best Music Taal (2000) Best Music Lagaan (2002)
Best Music Saathiya (2003)
Best Background Score Saathiya (2003)
Best Background Score Rang De Basanti (2007)
Best Song Recording Rang De Basanti (2007)
Best Composer Rang De Basanti (2007)
Best Music - Guru (Hindi, 2007)
Global Indian Film Awards (GIFA)
Best Background Music Rang De Basanti, 2007
Best Music Rang De Basanti, 2007

About e-Cigarettes - Electronic Cigarettes

There is a new product available thanks to high technology; the e-Cigarette. The electronic cigarette is a revolutionary device that acts much the same way an ordinary tobacco cigarette would, but rather than producing smoke from combustion, it produces vapor from atomization.

Update:
INSTEAD Electronic Cigarettes is proud to offer the most unique e-cigarette kit on the market. You won't find anything like it elsewhere. Our sets come in a water resistant tin with everything an e-smoker needs: 2 Batteries (blue LEDs), 2 atomizers, 1 AC charger, 5 empty cartridges and a bottle of ELiquid to fill/refill those cartridges. We also provide a velvet carrying pouch for electronic smoking on the go.

To buy this,visit http://www.e-cig.org/sale/

Man Jailed 153 times

A man from Portsmouth, New Hampshire was arrested Sunday for the 153rd time, one week after his release from a one-year jail term on a theft charge.

Paul Baldwin, 49, was arrested over the weekend for allegedly punching someone in the face. He told a judge Monday that he plans to plead guilty to the assault, along with trespassing and alcohol charges. He said he has had a long battle with alcohol and was trying to correct the problem during his most recent one-year jail term.
“All I need is help with the drinking, your honor,” he told the judge."
Bail was set at $1,500 cash and Baldwin was ordered to have no contact with the alleged assault victim. If he is able to post bail, he is also court-ordered to observe a 7 p.m. curfew.
Last May he was described in the district court as “a leech on the resources of this community” after he was caught stealing a can of beer from a Mobil station.

Acccording to the Foster's Daily Democrat newspaper, Baldwin's record dates to 1984 and includes 152 other arrests, eight trespass orders, 75 citations, four Social Security aliases and 17 name aliases.

Top Mobiles

Looking out into the mobile landscape, it would seem that it’s the end of the PDA and the beginning of a whole new era where smartphones merge with multimedia monsters to reign the prosumer’s heart.

Whether you need something to keep track of your emails, or something to edit documents on the move, there’s something out there that caters for both these needs. But all work and no play would make Jack a dull boy, so it’s only natural manufacturers include some features to bring joy into your day. Here’s our rundown of the top 10 handsets that merge work with the all-important play.

Apple iPhone 3G

There’s no doubt about it; the iPhone 3G is the ultimate play gadget. Not only does it feature direct links to the iTunes store, a hefty hard drive, stunning touch screen and seamless interface, but you can also download a whole host of work applications too. The iPhone 3G has one up on the original with push email and a third-party document viewer can also be downloaded. The browser is yet unmatched on other devices but a decent keyboard would be welcomed.

HTC Touch Diamond



The Touch Pro may be impressive, but the original Touch does well too. There’s no Qwerty keyboard, but this handset does have stunning looks. HSDPA and Wi-Fi make an appearance, as does Pocket Office and GPS. And, this handset also office the kind of out-of-office gaming fun the Renoir does with its motion gaming feature. You’ll have to get used to not being able to view your photos from the 3.2-megapixel camera or videos on your TV mind, as sadly you’ll find no TV out support here.

HTC Touch Pro




HTC leads its class in the business market and that’s no mean feat. And the HTC Touch Pro is a handset that certainly mixes business with pleasure.

Document viewing and editing? Check. Push email? Check. Fast internet? HSDPA sir. To top it off, there’s a slide out Qwerty keyboard. So, what’s in it for those looking for a little something for the weekend and out of hours? A 3.2-megapixel camera is nothing revolutionary, but with TV-out support, you can view your photos on your widescreen plasma. Of course, there’s also a stereo radio with RDS and GPS too.

Samsung Omnia (i900)



Samsung’s first Windows Mobile device certainly takes its looks from the LG design school. Like the Renoir, there are minimal buttons, but it also plays home to a stunning touch screen.

Samsung has terrifically skinned the Windows Mobile interface to make it more bearable with the essential business applications still present and correct. A five megapixel camera, GPS and a top-class media player (with DivX and Xvid support) goes a fair way to top up the play features, but the Windows interface makes it a little slow at times in comparison to Samsung’s other business-ready device, the i8510.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1

Sony Ericsson’s Windows Mobile handset could almost be a mobile office, with a Qwerty keyboard and full Windows Mobile functionality. The huge screen and optical track pad makes browsing a doddle and push email will ensure you get those all-important emails instantly. Multimedia wise, there’s Windows Media player to play music and videos, plus an FM radio with RDS coupled with a 3.5mm headphone jack to while away those non-business moments.

LG KC910 (Renoir)

The LG KC910 (Renoir) isn’t the most business savvy handset, but it’s LG’s best. The document viewer lets you take a peek at email attachments, while easy email set up will get your business on the move in seconds. The eight megapixel camera features more photo tweaking functions than you’ll ever use and video recording in VGA resolution at 30fps means you can record in slow or fast motion. GPS and Google Maps will guide you from A to B, and Dolby Mobile gives you eardrum-puncturing sound – which could come in handy for drowning out the verbal blurb that normally accompanies death by PowerPoint situations.


Nokia N96

The N96 is the most hyped up Nokia multimedia device out there. Fact. But it’s no surprise because the multimedia beast boasts a five megapixel camera, 16GB of beefy storage, a huge range of video playback formats, an iPlayer application for on demand TV services on the go, plus a stunning 2.8-inch screen for watching this all on. Because it’s a Symbian device using the S60 interface, the N96 naturally features a document viewer, push email service, Nokia’s impressive browser and Wi-Fi connectivity for business users on the move.


Nokia E66

It’s not surprising the E66 is one of the top 10 handsets out there for work and play. The slider features a 3.2-megapixel camera with flash and auto focus. It'll record video to VGA quality at 15fps too, which isn’t bad for a business-centric smartphone. Two customisable home screens mean you can switch easily between business and personal configurations, plus business software highlights include Nokia's ActiveNotes, a PDF reader, a version of QuickOffice for reading Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents, plus the all-important HSDPA.


Samsung i8510

Samsung’s move to a Symbian handset with the S60 interface is certainly a bold move for a mostly consumer market - but the flexibility provides a major advantage. On the fun front, there’s DivX support, plus an eight megapixel camera and 8GB of internal memory. GPS, 3D games and the Google Apps make this handset fantastic for play, but on the work side, there’s a document viewer and editor, push email and a fantastic browser with optical joystick navigation.


BlackBerry Bold

BlackBerry’s multifunctional Bold takes business features seriously, but doesn’t miss out on multimedia in the process. The Qwerty keyboard is heaps easier to use than its predecessor’s SureType alternative and BlackBerry’s Enterprise Server allows you to hook your email for communication on the move. There’s a Facebook client, Google Maps and a few games thrown in for good measure plus a revamped browser for seamless surfing. There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack, which is quite frankly music to our ears.