Reach out’13

Part- 2

Previous parts- 1

          One of our plan was to prepare some simple and interesting experiments in the laboratories. As we have 5 different branches of Engineering stream in our college (Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Electronics & Communication Engineering, Computer Science Engineering, Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering), all the departments decided to prepare their own experiments and models for the students.

          

         Duties were assigned to every staff members and we started working on it. I have been assigned the duty of preparing a Lab manual ( of course with the help of my friend and colleague, Deepthi )and  demonstrate some of those experiments . As I belong to the Electrical & Electronics Engineering department, the experiments and models that we arranged were related to electricity. We have planned to familiarize the various electrical equipments to them and make them understand the basic principles of electricity. Some of them were;

1. Study of intensity of light in an Incandescent lamp and Compact Flourescent lamp (CFL) with variation in voltage.
2. Electric power generation from sun using solar panel.
3.  Demonstration of wind speed measurement
4. Demonstration of principles of magnetism
5. Conversion of ac voltage to dc voltage using rectifiers.

etc..

We were very eagerly waiting for the day.. 15^th April. The inaugural day of “Reach out’13”....

                                     

               To be continued.........

Reach out ‘13

Part-1

   Last Week, was so busy for me. Not only for me, but also for all my colleagues @ college. We were conducting a one Week Workshop for the high school students. As you know, I am working in an Engineering college, and dealing with students elder and different than the school students. The management and the staff together had taken the program- named as “Reach out’13” as a social commitment, and that was a grand Success.

          

      The aim of the ‘Reach out 2013’ was to make the high school students aware of the technology in a practical aspect. We wanted to show and make them experience the things that they study in text books. We want them to understand the importance of technology in the day today life.  That too, in the most possible simple way. They should enjoy the session...

         

       When we first heard about this idea from the management, we were not sure whether this can really work. We really wondered, what we can arrange for them to explain and make them understand and enjoy completely. And worried about whether we can manage these kids, as we are not used to the students of their age. There may be over dynamic kids, and it can be difficult to control them since there can be a lot of safety issues in the lab (like, electric shock, or putting finger inside a working machine etc).

          Even though, we had doubts regarding “How this will work?”, we decided to go ahead with the plan. The first step was to convince the students so that they are ready to come and attend a workshop during their summer vacation. First, we have contacted the teachers in the nearby schools and invited them to our college, and conducted a workshop for one day. We have introduced the various laboratories and machines to them, and they found the session very interesting. We got very good feedback from them. They said, they would really like their students also get an opportunity of this kind.

               

            Thus, we have selected above 200 students from 10 schools and started working on the preparation. ...........

                                                          

                                                                        To be continued...

A visit to Idamalyar

Blogathon- Count down # 23

  I have returned from the industrial visit to Idamalayar power Generating station with my students. So, today I’m thinking about sharing some of the interesting things about the trip.

            We were 47 people in total. 40 students+5 Faculties+ 2 Drivers. We all set out in our College bus( it’s not a less thing. Airconditioned, videocoach-Marcopolo). Students were so much excited about the trip. This is my first industrial visit as a teacher. I have gone for some I.V’s before, but that all were when I was a student. So, this is special for me too.

            As you can expect, the girls were (Our’s is a girl’s only college) enjoying their freedom. They were singing and dancing and making so much noise. We teachers let them enjoy the trip fully, and made some control over them whenever needed. (ha,! I’m talking just like a teacher. ! smiling when remembering my own college days, and our feelings towards teachers when they try to control us).

            The destination is not so far from our college. After going the 3/4^th of the way, the road was becoming  more and more narrow. Then we are in the jungle. Hey, we were travelling through the jungle. Somebody told that, there is chance of seeing some of the animals. We have seen some little monkeys, on the trees on roadside. Our Good luck to say, no any Elephant thought about coming between our way, and make things difficult. But, watching the road becoming narrower again,we were thinking, that road finally may shrink to nothing and we will lost. But, thank God, somehow we made it!. Our big bus managed to reach there. Idamalayar Power Station.

            There was a police check post. Without prior permission, nobody is allowed entering the respective area. We had their permission letters ready with us, and that was not an issue then. Cheers!! We passed our first milestone.

            Then after some formalities there, we have arranged the children in four different groups each group with 10 students, and 1 faculty. Our HOD Mam also accompanied the first group. Then we entered the power station. Each group is allotted with a guide to make the tour of the place.

            So, about the power station- Idamalyar Power Generating station is a hydro electric power station, which uses the water stored in the Idamalyar Dam (4km from Generating station). The total generating capacity is 75 Mega watts, with the help of two generators of 37.5 Mega Watts each. The turbines used were  two ‘Francis turbines’.

            There is only one floor above the ground , which is called as ‘ Service Bay’. It is the top most floor (the rest of the 3 floors are under the ground). The servicing or maintenance is carrying out on this floor. At the time when we reached, one of the generator is under maintenance, and the other was not made operating at that time (That will be made working, when the authorities tell them to do so, as per the energy demand). As, one of them is under  maintenance, we could see the huge parts of the huge machine, that we have read in text books. Students looked so much surprised on the huge size of the generator, which occupy one complete floor, the very next floor under the ground- the “Generator Floor”. We could enter inside the machine, that was on maintenance. I felt a bit suffocation, as we went down and down from earth. The next floor is ‘Turbine floor’- containing two Francis type turbines.This floor also manages the cooling and insulation of the machines and  the bottom most floor does the draining of the used up water.

            I will explain the working of the generating station briefly. How, electricity is generated in a hydro electric power station. The water reservoir (Dam) is at a higher level compared to the turbine level. The water at a high head have a high value of potential energy. (the potential energy of a steady thing increases with increase in height). The water is carried to the power station through two large steel pipes called ‘penstocks’. This water is directly given to the turbine floor, which in turn rotate the turbine wheels. The turbine is rotated making use of the energy of the flowing water. This turbine rotates the rotor (rotating part in the generator). The rotor is rotating inside a magnetic field, inside the stator windings( stationary part). Whenever a conductor moves in a magnetic field, a potential (voltage) is generated. Thus, in this way electricity is generated in a generator. A generator is a machine that converts mechanical energy (which causes rotation) in to electrical energy, whereas a motor is a machine which converts electrical energy in to mechanical energy.

            The water, after using its energy should be made to come outside. As the water comes in the floor under the ground, there should be some special arrangements to drain the waste water (waste-in the sense, the water left after using the energy in it). This left over water is stored a well. the water from the well is pumped to outside where it is known as "tail race". The generators also need some cooling arrangement as the working parts got heated during the operation. The cooling is provided by arranging some oil flowing through small tubes,that surrounds the copper parts. The heat of the parts are first transferred to the oil and and then to water through which the oil tubes are passed finally. There are automatic arrangements for the controlling of this cooling and insulation.

            All the four groups again gathered on the ground floor after visiting all the floors. My students were very much curious about all the things there, and were asking questions and making notes, as they have to submit a report about the I.V.

            You may be knowing that, the voltage generated in every generating station is 11Kilo Volts. And this 11 KV is stepped up to the high transmission voltage using transformers. Idamlayar power station has got a transmission voltage of 110 Kilo Volts. There are a total of 6 transformers, with 3 transformers for each generator. They are equipped on the ground floor, outside the building.

            The power station also take supply from other source, for the working of the entire station, when the generators are idle. When the machines starts generating voltage, the supply source is replaced by the supply that generated by the station itself.
             Before we left the place, we got a chance to see one of the machine working, and the water flowing to the tail race. 

            Thus, our visit to the power station is over. Neglecting some of the problems we faced (2 of the students was about to faint), everything was okay.

            Then we set out for seeing the ‘Idamalayar Dam’. We had planned to have our lunch there. We have been said not to have lunch inside the bus. But, when we were just about to start, there came, without any prior notice, the rain.. It got started raining heavily, and we all scattered to get a shelter. Most of the students got in to the bus, and we faculties got another shelter, which was opened for us by the security staffs there. Then we all had our lunch between that, heavy rain. Thank God! There was no any lightning or thunder (I am so scared of both).

            Then we got the call from college that, we have to reach college before the scheduled time, as all the college buses has to leave at that time because of some unexpected thing. So, we have left our idea to stay some more time, to visit another dam called “Bhoothatahan kettu”(English translation- ‘Beast Dam”). The return journey was also nice. Students were not ready to return so fast. They wanted to stay some more time. So, they were enjoying the return trip to the maximum.

            ..........................................................................................................................................

            I didn’t expect such a long post. So, I’m winding up here. Pardon, if you find this a bit boring..

Sikha

Always be shining stars....

            That was another FDP session in our college. It was on the same day, I have stood up myself to make a comment on the sessions done by two of my colleagues. I am coming to the details;

    There were two seminars on that day. The 1^st one was on the topic “Stars- our friends”, and the 2^nd was on “stress management”.  The former one explained the life cycle of stars, mainly the death cycle in which the stars first become ‘Red Giant’, then ‘white dwarf’ and lastly ‘ black dwarf’ which means the end of the life of a star. Due to some reactions happening for a long time  in the stars, some pressure will cause them to shrink inwards, which makes them decreasing their size. Gradually it become smaller, which is called as a ‘white dwarf’ And the  final state is “ black dwarf” which is the death of that star. This was very informative and new to most of us.

            The latter topic covered what is called ‘stress’ , its symptoms, types of stresses, how positive stress helps us, and how we can get rid of the negative stress. It was also an interesting seminar.

  We all enjoyed both the sessions; they were presented very well by my friends. And, after finishing both, started the interactive session. The seniors started talking about the stress in teaching profession. Somebody said that, it is the most stressful profession, but one opposed by saying, it is not a stressful job, rather it is an easy job. And there is somebody else pointed out that, if we are passionate about teaching, then it can never be stressful. Likewise, different types of opinions were coming. But, I think, it was only me, who was not thinking about that point. I was thinking about something else. I was feeling so tensed, my heart started beating so fast, and I was almost up from my seat. I got understood what my mind trying to do then. I agreed.. I couldn’t resist the urge to go the stage and tell something. But, there was serious discussion going on. But, I couldn’t wait. I called principal Mam, and told her that “Mam, I just want to say something”. She looked at me in surprise, and told me that, “ Come forward Mam, you don’t have to ask permission”. Then, I found myself on the stage( Actually I don’t remember how I reached there).

            I started with congratulating both of my friends, and then I said- “ when I heard both of the classes, I just found a relation between both the topics. I want to relate the dying star to a negatively stressed person. When he is at the peak of his stress, or mental pressure, he is in the same position as the ‘Red giant’. And if he continue to be in that state, after some time, he will shrink to a ‘ white dwarf’ and then to a ‘black dwarf’. And friends, what I want to tell  that, we should never allow us to continue to be a ‘Red giant, then to become a white dwarf and at last a ‘black dwarf’. I wish all of us,to be ‘shining stars’ always....”

   It was my first comment, that I have made myself (the very 1^st one was made by me when Principal Mam called out my name on stage, and I had no other option). And, you know what, all the rest of the appreciation was about my statement. They congratulated me saying that, it was a creative thought, and they liked that. I was so happy then. “Everybody like to be appreciated” – it is true. Actually, that day helped me to make me noticed by everyone. And, then in all the next FDP’s I have tried to say something. And I can feel the difference ; FDP have improved my confidence to speak before public. Nowadays, I don’t feel the tension which I had on the first time. My heart beats are normal when I stand up for saying something. Actually, this is the purpose of the FDP (Faculty Development Program). I am happy to say that, our principal Mam pointed me out saying, I am the best example for the FDP utilization.

      Thank you friends, for all your patience. I will come later with another FDP story.. 

A rare luck

             Last day, I posted something about 'Luck'..and  now, I am here to tell you that, I am lucky to have a rare opportunity, that most of the people don' get..

       You all may  be knowing that, currently I am working as an Assistant Professor in an Engineering college. I have told you about the college, and the some of the things that is going on there. But, I didn't told you about this. You know something?, that one of my own sister studies in the same college. 'so what..?' you may ask. But, do you know, I am teaching in her class also. Actually, I am their group tutor/counseller till their final year. Isn't that exciting? .To be a teacher of your own sister?.I should say,'yes, it is..really exciting, and a good feeling' and some of my colleagues said that, it's a rare chance or 'luck'.. What do you feel my dear ones..?

A gift brought by FDP

In one of my previous posts, I was saying about the FDP (Faculty Development Program) in my college. Today I got something to share with you. The FDP program made me get a valuable gift .Let me tell the story. It was on last week.....

That day one of my colleague was taking a seminar on the topic “Luck”. She had explained some interesting things about ‘luck’, and finally there came the  time for making comments. I got up myself  and faced the audience to make a comment. I started with congratulating her for taking such an interesting topic. Then I told them about the book “The Monk Who Sold His Ferari”, by Robin Sharma, and continued like this...

‘In that book, the narrator of the story,John asks the central character Julian, “what is called ‘Luck’ my dear friend?”. Then Julian replies, “It’s nothing more than the marriage of preparation with opportunity”. As we see, preparation plays an important role in life success. When opportunity comes to a person, who is prepared, he can take the opportunity. This is what Julian Mantle considered as luck. So, if the luck knocks an unprepared mind, there is a high probability that, he miss his opportunity and misses his luck. So to be the lucky person, we all have to be well prepared ...Good luck to all of you’.... I stopped saying like this.

Then, the next day, the  Mechanical Department HOD(Head of the  Department) asked me about my interest in reading, and about the type of books I used to read. He looked so impressed on me..

The next day, he called me in his department, (Me belongs to Electrical Engineering Department), and gifted me something..You know what was that..? An “e-Reader”... Kobo e-reader. I was so happy and excited on seeing that. I also wanted to get one like that..and God is great! I got it as a gift.. I thanked him so..much for this wonderful present. I asked him , whether I can show this to our Principal Mam..He said “Oh..yes, go on..”. Then I showed Mam, and she said a “Wow!!”, and Sir explained why he had given me this gift.. Mam said “Look, how happy she is!!”..She was right.. I was so..so..happy..

Have a look at my new e-reader..

Good Spirit, please come..

            In our hostel days, we used to talk about anything in the world. It was just like another day, busy with chatting. We were in our room. There were some other friends from the nearby room. We neighbours are having a group chat.. the topics were vast and wide, no limits..Then, somebody told about a new thing, that we have seen in a movie, but neither discussed about it, nor experienced..

It was “OJOBOARD”.. The game with the spirits...!!!

            In that movie named ‘ Aparichithan’ ,the heroine and friends got an ojoboard, from a witch’s place. They had seen her calling spirits of dead persons and talking to them . One night, they had stolen the ojoboard and tried to play the game in their place. The only light was provided by a candle.Placing the ojoboard coin at the centre of the board, they called out a spirit. To be safe, they called out a good spirit ,who won’t make any harm. “Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come............”  They felt a change in the surroundings .But, they continued,..they continued, till the coin started moving itself. Yes!! The spirit had come. They asked it whether it is dead or alive, and man or a woman, and name.. The spirit’s name was said as ‘Ram’. Then one of the girls got scared and disturbed all the arrangements. And the surroundings got changed in to normal. But, they didn’t know, the spirit they called couldn’t return from where he came. He was with them, till  the end, having a purpose..rest the story of movie..

            So, coming back to our chatting in the hostel room... When we started discussing about the movie, the topic changed to ojoboard only. “is it a real thing” was our doubt. To my surprise, the girls in the next room had more knowledge about this. They had told us many real stories (they claimed them as real) regarding this, and two of them told, they had experienced that. And, told us, how to try this in our way, as we don’t have the real ojoboard.

            At last, came the idea of trying it.. “just try it”..said some, who considered themselves brave and like to do risky adventures [they think themselves like that! It’s their first adventure any way ): ], “yeah, let’s try it”, said some who don’t believe in such things, and need to prove that, that was a fake idea and won’t work. But, there are the rest of the girls..” Oh no..Please don’t do this, we don’t have to try this. What if the spirit really came? What if it is not a good spirit? We don’t have to risk our lives”. There were some other people who don’t have any particular opinion. They think “let it be”, whether the decision is ‘to go for a try’ or ‘the deal is over(“we can stop this nonsense)”.

            And, finally it is decided that, its a “No Deal”. We don’t have to risk other’s life, though we are ready to put risk to our lives. And the meeting ( chatting), dispersed as it was time for the dinner.

            Everything was normal, from then. We all had our dinner, our usual things before going to bed. Some have assignments to do, two of them reading some novels or something, some were in the study hall, as they have a test on the next day. And, among the rest, one went to bed already, and a group of four was discussing something. ‘Ojoboard’?? Hey, no.. Me  went back to my assignment. It was almost 12.00 am , when everything  got settled and everybody on their beds.

            Me always have some problem with sleep. The sleep won’t bless me as soon as I get  my bed. I need to wait, sometimes with some books, or some music.. but, as the lights were already switched off by our hostel warden, no more deal with books. So, I closed my eyes and waited for sleep......

            “Hey, make your sound low, they will wake up”- a husky sound heard. And that followed some other sounds also. “bring that candle, oh..and the steel glass too..” the conversation was between more than two “yeah, everything is ready” some other’s voice. ‘what is happening’ I couldn’t figure out first, whether I was seeing a dream. But, it was sure, I was not blessed then..

            Okay, then some thing is there. I just turned the other side slowly and , watched out..There were 4 of my roommates, they are doing something in the dark, in candle light. “Oh..No!!” they were trying to play ojoboard!!.. ‘What should I do? Shall I stop them?  Or silently watch this? And if the spirit come, what if it caught me first?” .. “ Oh, what am I thinking? There is no such spirits or something. We are engineers, believe in science and technology. Don’t be stupid”,  I scolded myself.

            I wake up, making them notice . They all got startled, seeing me. But, when I neared them, I was also in the group, trying to arrange the settings. A small candle, a steel cup, a sheet of paper, on which all the alphabets and numerals are written on periphery and at the centre there was a circle, to place the coin, and on two sides, written ‘YES’ and ‘NO’ . The ojoboard got ready to play. It was like, we play this every night. Everybody seemed so confident and brave (what about me..? ). Then, one of us explained the rules on ‘how to call a spirit’. That was Sari, the bravest one among us. So, everything was ready..it was set..and we went for it..

            We sat down on the floor making a circle.  Then we lighted the candle,  a small candle as  we have to cover the candle using the steel cup, as per the rules. The candle was placed on a coin . These all, the coin, candle, the s teel cup, all on the sheet of paper , which we have converted in to an ojoboard not any less than the real one.

            12.30 am. The silence of night..we have done everything as per the plan. Now, its time for calling the spirit. Remember, ‘ Good spirit’..   We have hold our hands stretched, with the forefinger pointing to the steel cup. We repeated the words from the movie “Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come.. Good spirit please come..”...And........

            We were reciting those words with full concentration...suddenly....” Stop this nonsense..” somebody screamed..and put down the cup, tore the paper..the candle was already turned off. One of us switched on the lights. Thank God, nobody wake up from sleep. And, we were looking each other ,’what happened’ ‘who screamed?’  ..you know, who was that? It was Sari, the bravest girl among us.  She looked so frightened, looking on something on the floor. We couldn’t find anything there. We were still sitting on the floor. We called her ,shaking her body? We all were scared..then she said “ Something is rotten somewhere....”  .... “WHAT??????”  We all asked in unison and burst in to a laughter.. What does it mean..? .

            After we settled from the laugh, we asked her, what actually happened to our ‘Brave little woman’? . As we laughed, on her that strange wordings, the situation got loosened. She was feeling a little shame, and said that, she felt something strange that time, felt the steel cup moving itself and don’t know how that words came to her mind...

            We told her, there was nothing like that, and we didn’t feel anything strange.. and assured her that, may be someone among us had touched the cup, and made it move.. We finally managed to get in to the normal. And, it was already late, and we went to sleep....

....................................................................................................................................................

The next day, the girls in the other room had asked us whether we tried ojoboard ,last night. And told us that, they expected that. But, we told them..” No, and never..”..and we looked for Sari..She was there , busy in something..

“BAVRANS”

  The word meaning of BAVRANS is ‘butterflies’…and I am going to talk about some butterflies, who were brought together at the same place by destiny. I am happy to say that me also belongs to this ‘family’.

   When I got admission in a college far from my home, the only thing that I felt as a problem was.. i have to stay in a hostel. Until  then, I never had a chance to stay away from my family. So it was a new experience for me to be in a hostel…and it was thrilling too, to meet new faces, to have new friends, and to be in a new atmosphere..

  

  Then I got admission in a hostel very near to my college… our college. There was 9 friends waiting for me in the room which was  numbered as 408. Some of us were very much home sick, but just after a few days, everyone got adapted to our new world, and started living as a single family under the same roof..

  

    One day one of us came with an idea of giving a name to our room (may be we are not satisfied with just a number), and every one agreed to that. We got a nice name also.. ”DOVECOT”- which means dove’s nest..

  

  It was  a  holiday-  we have nothing to do and we were just talking and discussing on a lot of topics ,then came the idea of making a new word joining the first alphabets of our names. We are in search of not just a word ,but a meaningful word.. Then by avoiding the repetitions of some letters finally we got the name “BAVRANS”, which means ‘butterflies’…