learnings

  4. Our brain on ROAD RAGE Why road rage? Well it is the most common behaviour among us. Abusing, yelling, being fined are common and we blame it on bad drivers, bad roads and traffic. Just a minute. Our brains are built to overreact to a perceived threat. The same neuronal machinery that protected our ancestors from a charging animal eons ago is activated when we encounter ordinary stresses like traffic! Our body releases cortisol, a hormone which sets off the brain’s alarm bells by stimulating the emotionally charged amygdala while damaging neurons in the hippocampus, which in turn shrinks the calming part of the brain that puts things in perspective. To bring this stress response under control we can take the help of our newer brain i.e. the frontal cortex to regulate the older ones. Another common example is, nearly everyone has an involuntary reaction to a stressful situation like public speaking. We feel our stomach churning, our mouths going dry because that’s how evolution...

Our brain is  about 1300 grams in weight and has a 100 billion neurons sloshing around. This amazing organ has been evolving for millions of years which is similar to scoops of ice cream being added to a cone. The lowest part of the brain(thalamus and cerebellum) is similar to that of a lizard’s.It hasn’t evolved much. It handles the survival –oriented behaviour like hunger and sex. The middle part of the brain is involved in emotional processing. This part of the brain ( hippocampus and amygdala) is similar to that of the mice’s which is much more evolved than that of a lizard’s. The third and the newest part of the brain which is also the largest is the complex cortex and is the home to our thoughts and language. The evolution of our brain can be compared to this example.If someone asked you to construct a racing boat but they gave you a wooden rowboat and said you could add things to it to make it into a racing boat!  That’s what our brain evolution has been.We can’t cha...

  A child breaks a cup/ a child snacks when he is not supposed to.. common scenarios. Is the child bad? Has he or she said ‘no’ when you confronted? Is he or she lying? Does it make him/her bad? The children aren’t bad neither are all lies bad! All lies aren’t even lies!! Why do children lie? Do attempt to make a difference between lying and make-believe. Children below five years are prone to make up things as an extension of their creative minds. They love to live in a fantasy world. It is part of their wishful thinking when they say things like,’ I was the best at school’/ ‘all are having pets’! To Avoid Hurting Someone After the age of 10 children are usually aware of the black and white. Adults use the ‘white lie’ option a lot to escape unfavourable situations and to be diplomatic. Children observe this and absorb the behaviour and use it. Peer Pressure This is universal. Children ‘always’ want to fit in. It is imperative they are accepted in their friends’ circle, the ‘gang’...

I am dismayed that you had to utter such nonsense. I am not surprised though. Though you live in New York, your heart belongs to the typical Indian male. Why is it I wonder that you men only think of justifying your actions either individually or on behalf of your gender. Freud has theorized that this is called rationalization. Why is it that no man has been MAN enough ( excepting Pritish Nandy) to caution men from indulging in ogling/abusing/voyerism etc? It is always us, ironically the victim here, who are implicated! In all other crimes the perpetrator is questioned/taken to task/reprimanded/punished. Today’s paper carries an article of a middle aged man having sexually assaulted a three year old baby girl. Was the child wearing jeans? Was she sensually dressed? Was she showing skin? Why don’t you men just live and let live? Do women tell you men what to wear?  That mundu reveals skin/ That facial hair is disgusting/ That you flaunt your paunches is ugh/ We are not pets to...

  3 of us women friends decided to go on a heritage trip. We went through several touristy stuff. It was then we realised that a young friend of ours had been on this ‘different’ trip with a new upcoming group http://www.f5escapes.com/about/ . Intrigued we began communication with Malini of f5 escapes. Communication exchange was prompt. All the arrangements were taken care of without a hitch. we took the double decker train to Bangalore from Chennai. It is a good train to travel in. Food is sold in plenty so we never went hungry. The train is also maintained well. Seats are like the economy class of a low cost airline. We got off at Bangalore and rested for a couple of hours at the nearest YMCA. The evening train Gol Gumbaz express arrived on time and transported us to Badami.  It is wise to get a porter for Rs 120 at Bangalore station as we have to negotiate climbs up and down. Badami station looked run down. I couldn't believe that this quaint place was once the thriving...

A parent owned up for not spending quality time with his son. He did not turn blind to his son's irresponsible behaviour. He did not blame other classmates for the same. Oh this is not a fairy tale. It is an event that took place at my workplace. Rarely do I come across parents like this. Yet another parent is constant denial regarding her son. She constantly blames the influence of other classmates. I can work with the first parent. I know for sure that we will be able to bring about a positive behavioural change. Well not surprisingly the other parent has requested for a transfer certificate. She has found escapism a route. Is it a small wonder that the child does the same?

I do not know how I should feel now. On one side everyone is jubilant about the latest Mars mission. Indeed it is a proud moment. On the other side is the terrible episode that took place at the Delhi Zoo. A 22 year old man falls into the tiger's enclosure. 15 good minutes elapsed. There was nothing done. The naive crowd began to holler and scared the animal so much that it took out its fear and anger on the helpless man. It was a crule death. Ironically today's papers report that he was mentally deranged, a drug addict, separated from his wife and child. Was the media washing its hands off? were the Delhi officials washing their hands off? There has been no inquiry and nor will there ever be.. After all he was a common man. And labelled mentally unstable and an addict. It seemed as if the media and the Zoo officials were justifying their act of negligence. The security guards did not know what to do! They had to go to a vet hospital 1/2 km away to get a tranquilizer gun. ...