Earth Day’23 assembly

Amity Prepares The Groundwork To Preserve Our Planet

AIETSM

On the occasion of World Earth Day, observed every year on April 22, Amity Institute for Environmental Toxicology, Safety and Management (AIETSM) organised a webinar on the topic ‘Global warming and climate change: sustainable adaptation and mitigation strategies’. The webinar, conducted on April 22, 2023, was held under the visionary leadership of Dr Ashok K. Chauhan, Founder President, Amity Universe, and Dr Atul Chauhan, chancellor, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh. It was attended by directors, various eminent scientists, faculty members, research fellows, PhD scholars, and students in large numbers. The insightful gathering was also graced by a variety of esteemed guest speakers, making the event a resounding success.
Addressing the gathering, Prof Tanu Jindal, group additional pro vice chancellor (R&D) and director, AIETSM, talked about the policies and strategies to integrate biodiversity conservation and restoration into the many uses of terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. Prof DK Bandyopadhyay, chief advisor (FPO), and chairman, Amity Law School, talked about climate change mitigation, stressing upon the need to replace GHGs and conventional energy resources with the renewable and more energy efficient ones.
Talking about climate smart societies and role of climate services, Dr Rupa Kumar Kolli, president, Indian Meteorological Society, insisted upon achieving a climate smart society with  comprehensive plans and collective action at both local and global level. Key issues surrounding the science of climate change were highlighted by
Dr R Krishan, director, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. He talked about ways to assess the effects of climate change, and future plans for the development of high-resolution climate change projections. Dr Jagvir Singh, scientist with the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), spoke about ongoing government initiatives and programmes to save Earth, and exhorted researchers, academicians, and user groups to collaborate and achieve the same.

Living with cartoons

Vihaan Tyagi, AIS Vasundhara 1, IX D

Fact file

• Mickey Mouse, one of the most famous cartoons of all time, is the first animated figure to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• The Simpsons premiered in 1987 and is the longest-running primetime animated series.
• Before being overthrown by The Simpsons, The Flinstones was the most profitable network cartoon franchise for 30 years.
• A few cartoons like Bob The Builder were edited in Japan to add a fifth finger to the character’s hands, as four fingers implied membership of the Japanese Mafia.
• Glen Klare, the animator of the fairy tale Beauty And The Beast, drew the character of the beast using six different animals, which included a lion’s mane, a wild boar’s tusks, a gorilla’s brow, a buffalo’s head and beard, a wolf’s legs and tail, and a bear’s body.
• Minionese, the enigmatic language used by the Minions, is a fusion of English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese.
• Due to certain broadcast regulations, He-Man was never able to kick or punch anyone or even use his sword as a weapon of war, making it the most non-violent cartoon of the time.
• Pig-Pen from the comic strip Peanuts was a parody of Piggy from Lord Of The Flies.

 

Not just make-up

An Unabridged Story Of The Kajal That Adorns Our Eyes As Well As History

Anushka Aneja, Alumna & Madhav Raman, XII C
AIS Mayur Vihar

The make-up artist gave her finishing touches, and lo and behold, this was perhaps the most beautiful bride the world had ever seen; the elation was evident on her face. “Oh wait!” said the artist and took out a kajal to make a black dot behind the bride’s ear. “And now we are good to go.” Just as the two left, a faint whisper could be heard…
Phew! That was a close call. For a moment I thought they almost forgot me. How inauspicious that would have been! I am more than just what meets the eye. You could call me a tradition for I have been warding off evil eye since the very time of my birth; my legacy runs deeper than any of these make-up items. They call me ‘kajal’.
I am sure you remember your mother putting kala teeka on you as a kid, courtesy - yours truly. And dare not think that has anything to do with Indian superstitions, because my prowess is acknowledged across borders. Residents of North Africa swear by me to keep evil at bay. It is my superpowers that make me the symbol of Kaaba in Morocco and holy black stone in Mecca.
Let’s be honest here. I don’t really know the truth behind these claims about my ability to offer protection from the malevolent, but what I do offer for sure is protection from the sun. In fact, that is how I came into being when people in Egypt in 3100 BCE (yes, I am that old) used a powdery version of me to protect their eyes from the harsh sun rays. Women of Somalia and Ethiopia would slather their eyes with me to cleanse their eyes and lengthen their eyelashes. I am known to keep the eyes cool and clean, and improve vision. I have marvelous healing capabilities and have been used for the prevention and treatment of several eye diseases such as blepharitis, cataract, conjunctivitis and so forth.
Like I told you, I am way more than just a make-up item. And while we are on the subject of my deeper than thou soul, let me acquaint you with my cultural connotations. I hold utter significance in several communities like Muslims of West Africa, for one, use me during ceremonies and Friday prayer. Indian classical dancers, au contraire, douse their eyes with me to draw attention to their expressions as they prance around
the stage.
So, to see my impeccable repertoire being sabotaged at the hands of these commercial makeup companies was nothing short of heartbreaking. Adding lead to my pure form, they made me the culprit of several health issues, weaning young babies off me and even banning me in the US. Now, my only hope lies with these new age companies that use safer ingredients like castor oil and cocoa butter to produce me.
‘Surma’ in Urdu and Punjabi; ‘Kanmashi’ in Malayalam; ‘Kaadige’ in Kannada; ‘Kaatuka’ in Tamil… I am an object of many names and many connotations. So, dare you label me as ‘just make-up’ the next time.