Monthly Archives: June 2011

City Origin Scientist Leads Insulin Jab Research

Nri's / Pio's, Science & Technology, , , , , ,

LONDON/BANGALORE:

Researchers, including one of Bangalore origin, found that a new form of insulin that needs to be taken three times a week is as effective as the once-a-day medication. Clinical trials, held in India, Canada, South Africa and the US, showed that the new longer-acting form of insulin, called Degludec, works effectively in controlling blood sugar among patients with Type 2 diabetes.

One in three patients with type-2 diabetes, whose body does not produce enough insulin, currently has to get insulin at least once a day to keep the blood sugar under check.

Researchers, led by Dr Yogish Kudva who and Dr Ananda Basu from Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in the US, said that patients might stick to their medical regime if it was less onerous. Dr Kudva, an alumni of the St John’s Medical College, Bangalore, informed Express over e-mail that the trials were held from January to August 2008. The paper had two other authors from India — Prof P V Rao of the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences University, Hyderabad, and Prof N Thomas of the Christian Medical College, Vellore, according to Dr Kudva.

Asked when the drug could possibly be available in India, Dr Kudva said it would depend on the regulatory agency review of ongoing trial data.

For their trials, the researchers recruited 245 people with Type 2 diabetes, who had not previously been prescribed insulin.

Two-thirds were told to use Degludec once a day or three times a week. The remainder had daily jabs of insulin glargine — a widely used medication. Findings showed similar control of blood sugar levels across all three groups, the researchers reported in the British medical journal ‘The Lancet’.

But those given daily jabs of Degludec had fewer attacks of hypoglycaemia or low blood sugar, they said.

Danish manufacturer Novo Nordisk hopes to apply for licensing approval to market the drug in 2013. (With PTI inputs)

 

source: http://www.expressbuzz.com / Express News Services / Mar 11th, 2011

 

City Gets First Commercial BioDiesel Unit

Green Initiatives / Environment, Science & Technology, , , , , ,

BANGALORE:

The first commercial biodiesel unit owned by Eco Green Fuels Pvt Ltd was launched here on Sunday. Inaugurating the plant, Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and BJP national president Nitin Gadkari appreciated the initiative.

Further, Gadkari said, “Starting Monday we are organising a twoday conference on bioenergy. After the conference we will have a better idea about the situation of biofuel in the state and can come up with other propositions. Our country has been importing about 90 per cent of crude oil from other countries, so biodiesel would be a good substitute for diesel.”

Julesh Bantia, director, Eco Green Fuels Pvt Ltd, said, “As of now the unit has a capacity to produce about 5,000 litres of biodiesel per day. The machine is indigenously built inhouse by our technicians and R D team. Depending on the requirement, we are planning to increase the manufacturing capacity

 

source: http://www.expressbuzz.com / Express News Service / Feb 21st, 2011

 

Bangalore is Job Hub for Engineering Graduates

Records, All, Science & Technology, , , , ,
BANGALORE:
Bangalore draws in 72 per cent of engineering graduates from all over India to pick their first job.

According to a survey conducted by Aspiring Minds Research Cell, an employability measurement and recruitment firm, the city topples even the national capital Delhi. Southern cities, Hyderabad and Chennai get third and fifth spots respectively.

The scale of the survey includes 19,000 engineering student samples across India.

Himanshu Aggarwal, founder and director, Aspiring Minds, said, “In India, Bangalore is the engineers’ Mecca. It offers growth, options and a community of like-minded people. Bangalore has undoubtedly the largest base in terms of IT companies, opportunities and an existing engineering population.” Well, that is just one part of the story. Biotechnology (BT) is another sector which attracts a huge mass of prospective employees from all over the country. Biotech pioneer Kiran Mazumdar- Shaw said, “In this field, Bangalore has the largest number of opportunities for engineering students. As there are a large number of BT firms, the ecosystem is very good. There are a lot of young engineers and scientists who come up with innovative ideas and set up organisations which makes a lot of difference in evoking interest among young graduates,” she explained.

Techie Chandi Prasad of Orissa now settled in Bangalore said, “Compared to Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, Bangalore has more opportunities.” Bangalore has a range of jobs and there is a demand for good people, said Mohandas Pai, Director, HR, Infosys Technologies.

 

source: http://www.expressbuzz.com / Chokkapan S / Express News Service / Mar 03rd, 2011

 

Kempegowda’s Mark on Bangalore

About Bangalore(Bengaluru) / Karnataka, , ,

BANGALORE:

“A hundred thousand years ago Bangalore was a village. It has been in existence since 900AD. In the 13th century in the Tamil inscriptions at the Someshwara temple, the city is mentioned as ‘Vengaluru’. After Kempegowda the chieftain of Yelahanka Nadu a feudatory of the Vijayanagara Empire founded this city, he named it as Bengalooru and made it the capital.” said professor Devara Kondaiah Reddy.

He was speaking at the lecture, ‘Future Vision of Kempegowda on Growth of Bangalore city,’ organised by the Institution of Engineers, Karnataka State Centre in association with The Institution of Valuers, Bangalore branch. The lecture covered the story of Bangalore’s development as a trade centre and also threw light on the many invasions the city saw, due to its location and resources.

“From the 15th century Bangalore became a trade centre attracting many people from the surrounding areas. People from Hikari and Mysore came to Bangalore to do their business. Kempegowda then built many tanks in the city some which even exist today, so that these people could live here and use water for everyday purposes. Also he built four towers to mark the boundaries of the city. Further he constructed many roads like the one from Shivagange to connect the city. Vijayanagar dynasty was prosperous because they emphasised on trading,” professor Reddy further added.

 

The city developed each time new invaders conquered it. After Kempegowda there were many invasions. “At the time of Tipu he invited many people for trading purposes as well. He built an army training centre and also dealt with the trading of silk in a big way. He further developed the city. He encouraged people to engage in business and network through different cities,” said Reddy.

Bangalore as a city that we know today still remains a trading hub. One of the primary reasons for that is  the city retains a majority of its historic significance and speaks volumes about the its rulers.

“Bangalore is not like any other city in the country. A look around the city will give you a glimpse of its iconic past. When the British invaded and defeated Tipu, they built the Cantonment area which still exits. The British wanted to further modernise the city and connect it through railways,” Reddy explained. He maintains that Bangalore which is now called Bengaluru attracted the many invaders because Kempegowda found the city’s potential and enhanced it further.

“The primary reason that prompted people to come to  Bangalore was the amenities built and explored by Kempegowda. It was during his time that the city came into existence,” he said.

source:http://www.expressbuzz.com / Express News Service / May 14th, 2011

 

Google to Launch Street View in Bangalore

Science & Technology, , , , ,
BANGALORE:
Citing Bangalore’s status as the country’s tech capital, Google announced on Thursday that it will begin imagery collection in the city for the Street View feature on Google Maps.

Sharing their operational model, company officials said Google’s cars and Trikes, a specially designed three-wheel pedicab with a camera system mounted on top, will begin driving and taking street-level photographs of public locations around the city.

The images will be made available in the coming months in Street View on Google Maps. The company did not the reveal the exact day of the feature’s launch.

Stating that the maps technology was already available in 27 other countries, they said this allows users to virtually explore and navigate a neighbourhood through panoramic street-level images. They added that the product would be available on Google Maps for mobiles. Company officials said they would start gathering images from select locations in the area over the next few weeks.

Speaking about their new venture, product head of the company, Vinay Goel said they had decided to start driving in Bangalore because it is the IT capital of India and feel that IT-savvy users will be able to leverage the benefits of the product to the fullest. He said Street View was also useful for urban development planners, law enforcement agencies, house hunters and travellers.

Addressing concerns of security and privacy, he said the product will respect privacy and has developed highly sophisticated technology that blurs faces and number plates of vehicles.

Goel said the product was designed to comply with local laws, including those of security and privacy

 

source: http://www.expressbuzz.com / Express News Service / May 27th, 2011