top ten extinct birds

Top 10 extinct birds

1.    DODO

 

A flightless bird weighing around 20kgs and about 3.3 feet tall inhabited the islands of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. A Dutch sailor can be said to be the reason behind the extinction of this species of bird. He came across this bird in the year 1598 and being hungry, he started to kill these birds and eat them as his meal. To a large extent, this bird has been hunted down by the Dutch sailor, leaving barely any signs of the bird, to be discovered and noted down. Due to the lack of the details found about the bird, it has been highly addressed as a mythical creature, until the fossils were found on the island of Mauritius.

2. TASMANIAN EMU

 

A sub species of the flightless bird emu, the Tasmanian emu, could be distinguished from the other emu birds by the whitish featherless throats. The external features and the traces of certain behaviors of this sub specie of the bird can be found on the other mainland emus. The Tasmanian emu had been hunted down and killed as pests and this barbaric situation had brought about the end of this species of bird.

3. GREAT AUK

 

A large flightless species of penguin, the Great Auk used to be found in abundance in the icy regions of the North Atlantic Islands. Weighing about 5kgs, this species of birds had been hunted down for their meat, which brought about their extinction. By the 19th century, the species of this bird had been completely wiped off the face of the earth.

4. IVORY BILLED WOODPECKER

 

The Ivory Billed Woodpecker, supposedly the third largest bird, was found in the south-eastern, forest regions of the United States. They had a shiny blue coat in the body and white stripes on and around the neck and wings, with a triangular red marking on the head. About twenty inches in length and thirty inches in wingspan, this species of bird was wiped out due to the destruction of their habitat. Although there have been debates regarding their extinction, but the abundance in the number of their existence has certainly come to a standstill.

5. CAROLINA PARAKEET

 

The Carolina Parakeet was the most colorful and the most social birds of all. They were found in flocks, residing in parts of the coastal plains of Alabama, who often migrated in the form of a large flock to Ohio, Iowa, Illinois and the areas of Eastern United States. But this poor species of bird to faced their untimely extinction, when the men had burnt down the forest for the extension of their agricultural area, making these birds homeless. Adding to this, the birds were hunted down, since they were considered pests by the farmers. The birds being extremely social, and since they moved in flocks, they were easy to hunt in a large number. The call of a dying bird could be heard from a very long distance and the other birds would come to help the poor dying fellow, making it easier for the people to kill them.

6. PASSENGER PIGEON

 

People’s malicious nature and nature is not exactly the match made in heaven. When the people turn vicious, they tend to damage the ecosystem. Now that the questions are being raised, and people are getting concerned, some of us are trying to change our habits, but there were times, when the world was not much concerned towards certain species and that led to a disastrous result. The passenger pigeons are such species, which have faced their extinction due to the intrusion of people. The areas of North America were greatly inhabited by these species of bird, until they were wiped off by the people. They were hunted down for the meats that were supplied to the large numbers of African slaves who were being brought in. The last passenger pigeon that has been recorded was in the year 1914, named as Martha that was kept as a specimen in the Cincinnati Zoo Ohio.

7. STEPHEN ISLAND’S WREN

A nocturnal and insectivorous, flightless bird, the Stephen Island’s Wren inhabited the lands of the Stephen Islands, in the shrubbery and the forestland of that area. The bird, that was found in abundant has a very unbelievable story behind their extinction. The lighthouse keeper’s cat- Tibbles can be blamed for being the reason behind the extinction of this species of bird. Although it is unbelievable to consider that a cat is the reason behind the extinction of such a huge number of birds belonging to this species, but it can be stated without doubt that this cat is the reason why majority of these birds had disappeared.

8. ARABIAN OSTRICH

 

The Arabian Ostrich is such an extinct species, which used to inhabit the desert plains of Arabia around the Syrian Desert, within the regions of today’s Jordan, Israel and Kuwait. These species of ostrich, seems to be related, by DNA studies, with the North African or Red Necked Ostrich, however there is a difference between the two species of ostriches, by being smaller in size and the females having lighter colored bodies. The Arabian Ostrich, also known as the Middle Eastern Ostrich, was well known in the ancient Mesopotamia, where it was used as a form of sacrifice. Such facts were known to us through the painting and remains from the old days. These ostriches had their share of popularity by being a symbol of wealth, among the nobles residing in the area. This made them the most desirable animal for the hunting purpose, among such people. Due to World War 1, and with the invention of the guns and the other arms, it became much easier to hunt such ostriches and this lead to the extinction of the birds.

9. CHATHAM ISLAND’S PENGUIN

 

A species of penguin, that is supposed to have become extinct as late as the 19th century is only recorded through its sub fossil bones. Not much is although known about this species of penguin, but I can be said that they have had cross breeding among other species of penguins, and hence one can prove their existence. So the species can be said to share the genome with the northern and western species of penguin in New Zealand and Australia.

10. LAUGHING OWL

 

A 36cms long species, weighing for about 600 grams, belonging to the genus of Sceloglaux, the laughing owl was named so because of its wicked form of hooting. It had originated in New Zealand. The laughing owl’s existence was greatly recorded by the European settlers, who had landed on this island in the 1840s. The males were of smaller size when compared to that of the females. The records claims, that these owls had, a reddish brown plumage, a white face and orange eyes, that added to the eerie sense of this species of owls, with its malicious way of hooting. The cause of extinction is not certain though, but probably, it can be estimated that the last specie of these laughing owls were found in 1914 in Canterbury. But then again later on, people had quoted to say that they were shaken up to their very core, when they woke up in the middle of the night hearing the laughter of a mad man, while they were camping deep inside the forests, which were considered to be coming from the laughing owls.

10 inspiring indians who are not hardly talked about

10 inspiring Indians who are not hardly talked about

Inspiration  is what keeps us going in the toughest of times. From a soldier’s gallantry on the war field to an amputee climbing the Mt. Everest, inspiration can be drawn from everything if looked closely at. But things start getting hurtful when people who have given entire lives don’t get credited or are not paid enough heed. Here, we have enlisted 10 such inspiring Indians who have gone against all odds to inspire thousands of lives but are hard talked about.    

1)  Neerja Bhanot

She was shot dead while saving passengers from terrorists on board the hijacked Pan Am Flight 73 on 5 September 1986. She even helped the pilots flee while the plane was still on the runway, saved 41 Americans by hiding their passports when hijackers specifically asked to identify Americans and helped a number of passengers get off the plane before the hijackers opened fired. She could have been the first one to jump out, but didn’t. She still remains the youngest Indian (22) to be honored by the Ashok Chakra Award.

2) R. Umadevi

She was the World Ladies Billiards Champion 2012, and surely most of you mustn’t have heard about  her until now. She is only the third Indian woman after Anuja Thakur and Chitra Magimairaj to win this title. The 47-year-old Bengaluru resident started her career in her 30s, with a regular job of senior typist with Karnataka State Horticulture department and despite of all financial failures, she became the world champion in 2012.

3) Dr. Ravindra Koelhe

Dr. Koelhe has been working in the tribal areas of Maharashtra as a community doctor and charges Rs. 2 for the first consultation and Rs. 1 for the second. When he arrived at Melghat, the infant mortality rate was close to 200 per 1,000 babies, now the count is 60. It has been 26 years now and Koelhe still continues to serve these people, half of which he confirms still have no clue about clothing. It was to serve the village of Melghat that Koelhe earned a MD in preventive and social medicine.

4) Arunima Sinha

A former national volleyball and football player, Arunima was thrown out of a moving train by a couple of perverts who tried to rape her but failed. She fell on a parallel track and was immediately run over by a passing train and lost her leg. But her disability didn’t restrain her to achieve a feat that only a few have achieved thus far, in the whole wide world. She reached the summit of Mount Everest at 10:55 am on 21 May 2013 and became the only one in doing so.  

5) Arunachalam Muruganantham

Startled by the fact that poor women were not able to afford basic sanitary napkins, Arunachalam Muruganantham invented a machine to produce low-cost sanitary pads. Despite being heavily criticized and even abandoned by his mother, he kept at it and invented a low-cost machine (Rs. 80,000 to Rs. 1 lakh) which would grind, de-fibrate, press, and sterilize the pads, and that too by the people with minimal training. He was offered millions in exchange of his revolutionary tech, but the man didn’t sell it out. His invention is now being hailed as the epitome of women upliftment in rural India.

6) Manik Sarkar

He has been the Chief Minister of Tripura since 1998. Manik Sarkar is the only Chief Minister in India who has no house or a car on his name. He donates his mere salary of Rs 5000/month to his party. Sarkar’s cash in hand and bank deposits totalled Rs. 16,120 during the last election and he even donated an inherited property passed on by his mother to him. He is often called the “cleanest and the poorest Chief Minister in the country”.

7) Rukhsana Kausar

In 2009, Rukhsana did what continues to inspire women throughout India. After watching her parents getting brutally murdered by Laskar-E-Taiba militants in her own house, she leaped up and decided to take the matter into her own hands. She overpowered the dreaded Lashkar armed commander Abu Osama using his own axe and put the bullets of justice into his head using his own AK-47. She has been awarded with a National Bravery Award.

8) Rajesh Kumar Sharma

This grocery shop owner founded a free school for slum children under a metro bridge, despite having no background in teaching. Rajesh takes out 2 hours every day from his schedule to teach these impoverished slum children. Staring from the very basics of literacy, he goes on to prepare the children for admission to government schools. He started with approximately 140 students, and 70 of them are in government schools now. He is often assisted Laxmi Chandra, a postgraduate who teaches science.

9) Bunker Roy

The founder of the Barefoot College movement which stands for education, skill development, health, drinking water, women empowerment and electrification through solar power for the upliftment of rural people. One of the shining examples of his endeavour is the village of Tilonia. It produces its own electricity via solar panels, manufactures its own lightning equipment and has its own school and a medical centre.  He was chosen as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine in 2010.

10) Chitresh Tatha

 A class VII student, Chitresh Tatha from Chennai is India’s youngest athlete ever to participate at the 2014 Asian Games being held in Incheon, South Korea. At a tender age of 12, this little sailor has won championships across Ireland, France, UK, Malaysia, Turkey, the Netherlands, Bahrain and Malta. 

Top 10 common reasons for depression

Top 10 common reasons for depression

1.   Not doing what you love:
Somebody once said that if you do something you actually love then you wouldn’t have to work for a moment in your life. Today the pressure of becoming successful has reached its peak that a person who wanted to be an actor is studying medical, someone who wants to be a writer is actually studying engineering and a law students is the Master of Arts. But they do not do what they love; instead they are doing something completely different. As a result, they do become engineer, doctor or lawyer but they do not love their job, they loathe it. Also they would never to able to completely accept their profession. This also leads to depression.

2. Lack of good looks or beauty:
Believe it or not but good looks matter a lot, those who have good looks enjoy a very warm attention for public but not so good looking people are often side tracked. In professional life good looks do not matter much because there people know you by your skills and abilities but in school, college and other places people often get depressed because they are not admired by others. Especially in youth when the person is going through a complete romantic phase of life.

3. Illness:
Life is incomplete without health; in order to enjoy life fully you must have a very good health. Illness is a part of life, it is normal for a person to get ill but if the person suffers from very serious extended diseases then it is natural for him to get despondent. Poor health ruins leads to cautions and they ruin all the excitement of life. Continuous and serious diseases also generate the symptoms of depression.

4. Broken relationships:
A man and a woman are meant to be together, they are made for each other and they are incomplete without each other. Love is the most ravishing phenomenon, when we meet our soul mate our entire universe is completed. That one person becomes your entire universe, but when that relationship breaks apart, our heart breaks at the same time. Some people easily come out of it but some people find it very difficult to get over their past relationship. These broken relationships have a very strong impact on their heart, and when they are unable to get over it they gradually fall into depression.

5. Unfilled expectations:
Life is beautiful for those who do not expect anything from others because if you expect things from others then you will definitely face disappointment. When we start expecting from others we give them the authority to hurt us. Not only with other peoples but the expectations which we have from our life and from our self also becomes a source of impasse. Things do not always happen the way we want them to be, our fate takes unexpected turns and brings us very strange situations in life. These things also lead the person towards depression.

6. Death of someone close:
It is true that life is beautiful only when our surroundings are beautiful, the surrounding refers to the work we do, the place we live, the people we hang out with, our friends, family and loved ones. A loss of someone with whom you were very close takes a person towards depression. Death is bitter reality and it is very hard to accept that the person with who whom you have spent such a long time, whom you loved so deeply is now gone forever and is never coming back. If something like this happens then the places and things which you loved so much become an object of torture for you, and without that person you start feeling lonely or sometimes it becomes very difficult to get over it. Loosing someone also drags a person towards depression.

7. Facebook:
The usage of facebook has grown so much these days that for majority of the facebook users their socializing on facebook is much more important that their real life. It has been find out that the people who have very attractive facebook profile actually suffer from depression and loneliness. It has also been found out that the people who use facebook too much are mostly suffering from depression. The life which is displayed on facebook is fake and it has no reality.

8. Sleeping habits:
Our sleeping habits play a very vital role in the generation of Depression, God has made the night to sleep and the day to work. Our body cycle is in such a way that it get maximum energy only when we sleeps at the proper time and then get up at the proper time. Most of the people stay awake entire nights and then they sleep late the next day. By doing this our body cycle get disturbed and this becomes a source of depression for our body.

9. Chicken:
Chicken has become a very common ingredient in our diet; most of our dishes are made up of chicken. The demand of chicken is increasing so rapidly that the suppliers have to use artificial means for the growth of chicks; they use medications and high laser bulbs which are used as a catalyst to accelerate the growth of chickens. When we eat the chicken, all the effects of the chicken and the medications are experienced by our body and they trigger depression.

10. Medications:
Everything has which is giving you a benefit has few draw backs, although there are medications available for all the diseases but those medications do have some drawbacks because they have a very high power, most of the medications have side effects such as lack of sleep, acidity, nausea etc. As a result the person suffers from depression.

Top 10 healthy energy drinks

Top 10 healthy energy drinks

1. RED BULL ENERGY DRINK

Topping the list of the most well-known and healthy energy drinks in the world, Red Bull energy drink is sold by 1987 established Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With the famous slogan “it gives you wings” it is considered to have started the craze of energy drinks among the younger generation. The energy drink has a bitter-sweet citrus flavour and a lighter bitter after taste. Red Bull contains synthetic ingredients along with B complex vitamins, caffeine, energy supplements and sugar which gives you the extra energy to work the whole day or wake up till whole night. There are only 2 types and sizes of Red Bull which is with sugar and without sugar respectively. In spite of no choices, it is popularly used in bars and night clubs as a great alchohol mixture.

2. ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK

Joined the market in 2001, Rockstar is the 2nd largest energy drink brand being sold in USA after Red Bull whose main company is located in Las Vegas, Nevada. This energy drink includes ingredients such as ginko, milk thistle, guarana and ginseng that leads to the increase of your energy level. Rockstar has 3 different sizes along with 3 coffee versions and 1 alcoholic version. The original drink tastes like carbonated cotton candy whereas all the other flavours are too sweet in taste and is even available in sugar free and zero carbohydrate version of its original flavour. As of 2013, Rockstar energy drink has more than 12 different flavours in the market making it popular among the youth and is now being sold in more than 30 countries.

3. MONSTER ENERGY DRINK

Launched by Monster Beverage Corporation in 2002, Monster energy drink contains caffeine, guarana and glucose which are known to provide high energy. It even has low carbohydrates with B complex vitamin sources. Like some energy drinks that come with a lot of caffeine and sugar, even Monster energy drink consumer experiences energy break down once the sugar boost ends. But its smell and after taste are much stronger than the other energy drinks. Earlier version of Monster had a medicine like taste but the new version tastes much better like carbonated sweet citrus flavour. There are around 6 low carbohydrate versions of Monster with 8 different categories of coffee versions: Originale, Nut Up, Irish Blend, Lo-Ball, Chia-Hai, Russian, Loca Moca and Mean Bean. Monster has now become popular among youth because of its different flavours along with new Java series.

4. 5 HOUR ENERGY SHOT DRINK

Made by Living Essentials in Wabash, Indiana, 5 Hour energy is a flavoured energy shot drink. The ingredients include taurine, malic acid, caffeine, citicoline etc. but no sugar or herbal stimulants and zero net carbohydrates. As a result of this, it gives the ability to provide a high degree of energy. 5 hour ENERGY shot has been referred as a dietary supplement which is vegetarian. This energy drink introduced by the company in 2004 comes in a small container containing only 2 ounces shot which gets in your system fast in seconds and within minutes provides you with full energy to be awake for hours. It is non-carbonated and has 4 calories along with B complex vitamins and amino acids. Since it is sugar free, 5 hour ENERGY drink wears off gradually. Different types of 5 Hour energy shots are Original 5 hour ENERGY shot, Extra Strength 5-hour ENERGY shot, Decaf 5 hour ENERGY shot.

5. XYIENCE XENERGY ENERGY DRINK

Xyience was established in 2004 in Las vegas, Nevada as a sports and nutrition supplement company who later in 2006 launched its energy drink by the name Xenergy. Xyience xenergy is now the official energy drink of Ultimate Fighting Championship having great taste with 100 % natural colours and flavours. Contains B complex vitamins providing enduring energy to the consumers which is little less than other major drinks but has no major side effects as it has no sugar and is low in calories. It currently has 6 different flavours: Cran Razz, Citrus Clear, Big Apple, Mango Guava, Blu Pom and Pink Lemon. All these drinks contain artificial sweetener in them so only people who need to quickly boost their physical energy can have it.

6. CRUNK ENERGY DRINK

Co-created and launched in 2004 by creator of Grey Goose vodka, Sidney Frank along with Lil’ John as its Chief Brand Advisor, Crunk energy drink includes pomegranate juice, high fructose corn syrup, B complex vitamins as well as natural herbs such as ashwaganda, ginseng, guarana etc. It currently has 3 different types of flavours which are original, citrus and sugar free respectively. While the original is pomegranate that tastes like grape and cranberry, the citrus flavour tastes like lemon. The sugar free drink tastes better than other sugar free drinks. The original Crunk energy drink’s energy is intense that lasts up to 3 hrs. It not only provides you with energy boosting but also provides your immune system a support and is great mixture with other alcohol flavours. Though not recommended for health conscious people but can be consumed by those who want to stay awake till long hours and boost their energy quickly.

7. XS ENERGY DRINK

Manufactured by Logic Nutrition, company in California XS energy drinks are sold by Amway/Quixtar. These energy drinks are low in carbohydrates and calories and most of them have no sugar except the Gold Energy Plus flavour. The main form in XS energy drinks that boosts your energy comes from the B complex vitamins which gives the consumer high endurance energy. According to health experts, its B-12 vitamins are of high level synthetic chemicals where most of them are 4,900 per cent of the per cent daily value whereas XS Gold Energy Plus provides 8,000 per cent of daily value. All the XS energy drinks consist of sucralose which is many times sweeter than sugar but has very little calories. There are currently 11 different XS flavours with 3 non-caffeine versions that means you get choices for around 14 different flavours.

8. FULL THROTTLE ENERGY DRINK

Owned by the Coca Cola Company, it came into the market inn late 2004 in both USA and Canada. Full Throtle energy drinks contains active ingredients like caffeine, ginseng, taurine, guarana, carnitine, B6 and B12 vitamins. It has a citrus like flavour often mixed with some other alcohol flavours. According to a consumer, after drinking this Full Throttle he experienced an energy break down and it consists of synthetic chemicals. So, this drink is good for those people who want a quick energy boost and are not viable to caffeine content. There are 5 different flavours of Full Throttle along with a sugar free flavour.

9. GURU ENERGY DRINK

Developed by GURU Beverage Company which is situated in New York, USA, GURU energy drinks serves 6 different flavours: GURU Energy, GURU Lite, GURU Juicy Tangerine, GURU Juicy Superfruit and GURU Full On Lemonade. These do no contain taurine ,no preservatives and are non-carbonated but only its original form and sugar-free are carbonated. According to health experts GURU energy drinks taste similar to organic fruit juices which are different from the other health energy drinks that contain the bitter and sweet flavours. Because of this GURU energy drink is highly recommended for the health conscious people who can replace any organic juice with this energy drink.

10. VERVE ENERGY DRINK

Created by Vemma Nutrition Company, situated in Arizona, USA, Verve energy drink is a light carbonated beverage with great taste and an insanely healthy drink. It provides with B-12 complex vitamins which are synthetic and over 65 major herbal minerals. This energy shot drink delivers 80 miligrams natural caffeine that provides a smooth healthy energy to your body as a part of dietary supplement. Verve flavours consists of citrus, tangerine and mangosteen which leaves a light bitter tea after taste. It is also available in low natural sugar or sugar free version.

Top 10 most bizarre phobias

Top 10 most bizarre phobias

1. Nomophobia – Fear of Not Having Mobile Phone Access

If the mere thought of losing contact with your mobile phone gives you jitters and sets you in a panic mode, you are officially a Nomophobic. This irrational fear is a consequence of an over dependency on the device and fits snugly in today’s lifestyle. Studies have shown that smartphones can produce practically the same withdrawal symptoms as some of the addictive drugs. A UK study has revealed that more than 53% of mobile users get unreasonably anxious at the loss of a phone, battery issues, network problems or used credit. The symptoms also include an inability to switch off the phone, obsessive checking for missed calls, emails and social networking sites. An average case of nomophobia can lead to a serious surge in stress levels as well as numerous health problems. The person always has to be able to keep in touch or they are left feeling paralyzed.

2. Turophobia – Fear of Cheese

Yes, there is an official term for the fear of cheese because people can actually detest even the sight of this otherwise delicious culinary ingredient. Given a chance, most of us wouldn’t mind guzzling cheese in its various forms but Turophobics do not seem to share the same love for it. Generally, lactose intolerant people are more likely to have this fear. They may be averse to the taste, texture or look of cheese and this strong dislike develops into phobia. Almost always, a previous unfavorable childhood experience with the consumption of cheese triggers this fear. Although a fear of cheese might not necessarily be life altering but considering its wide usage and the awesomeness of it, these people surely have to miss out on a lot.

3. Alektorophobia – Fear of Chickens

It is pretty normal if you are scared of a cobra or a lion, everyone is. But chickens? What possible harm can these rather benign, largely consumed fowl pose to the human survival? But Alektorophobics are petrified not only of live or dead chickens but even thinking, talking, looking at pictures of them and other feathered creatures such as roosters can make them perspire. Fortunately, they are generally not scared of cooked chickens (thank god for that). A few probable reasons for this fear could be having been pecked or hurt by them or having witnessed a somewhat aggressive behaviour of these fowl. Some Alektorophobics may go in a state of frenzy even at the sight of an egg. Oh, the misery!

4.  – Fear of Mirrors

Mirror, mirror on the wall, please stay away for once and for all. Who would have thought mirrors could be the least bit frightening? Spectrophobia is a morbid fear of mirrors and looking at one’s own reflection. People with this fear dread their own reflection because they link it to supernatural and believe they have seen ghostly apparitions. The origins of this phobia can be traced to a traumatic past where the person may have had unfortunate encounters with mirrors. Some may believe that mirrors will reflect their soul which terrorizes them or they have a fear that they are being watched through the mirrors. Horror movies, supernatural stories, nightmares, bad experiences in one’s early days are all plausible causes of this phobia which may have a person experience a full blown panic attack. Pamela Anderson is one of the popular known victims of this peculiar phobia.

5. Ablutophobia – Fear of Bathing

Ablutophobia is the persistent fear of anything to do with bathing, cleaning or washing although it is not to be confused with hydrophobia, which is the fear of water. Bathing might be a necessity for us but for people with Ablutophobia, the very mention of cleaning can send chills down their spine. This can lead to highly unhygienic conditions which may further lead to major problems. A person with this disastrous fear may start experiencing nausea and breathlessness whenever the issue of bathing is brought up. The cause of this phobia is rooted in past incidents and more often than not, women and children are more prone to developing this fear than men.

6.Arachibutyrophobia – Fear of Peanut Butter

A phobia of having peanut butter stuck to the roof of one’s mouth. Agreed, it might not be a very pleasant thing either but having an all consuming fear of it is absolutely ludicrous. This phobia stems from a fear of being choked or suffocated with the peanut butter stuck to the mouth or a deeply unsettling sensation the person associates with its sticky texture. Arachibutyrophobics may be able to consume peanut butter in modest quantities depending on the severity of the phobia. As for the extreme cases, peanut butter is not an essential and it shouldn’t be very hard to stay clear of it altogether.

7. Scopophobia – Fear of Being Stared At

It is quite unthinkable- how can someone not bear being stared at, it is inevitable after all. But Scopophobics are extremely wary of being seen or drawing attention to themselves. These people become reclusive and trap themselves in their own world, obviously dreading any social contact and unwilling to leave their homes.  This phobia mainly arises from terrible past events wherein the sufferer had been publicly ridiculed or has a physical impairment which they fear to be a subject of mockery and staring. The paranoia and anxiety of Scopophobics can completely disrupt their daily functioning.

8. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia – Fear of Long Words

Can it be any more atrocious? People with the fear of long words would be terrified to even name their disorder! This fear is actually quite rare but those afflicted with it would know how crippling and psychologically devastating it can prove to be. The severity and effects of this phobia would vary from person to person.  Students and academically inclined people will suffer the most which can lead them to a state of isolation and depression due to not being able to cope up. Any confrontation with long or for some people even medium length words can be a mental torture for them. Well, it would have been a tad bit easier if the fear of long words wasn’t termed as a sarcastic 35 letter word itself. Seriously now, is this supposed to be a joke?

9. Chorophobia- Fear of Dancing

Dancing is an integral part of social interaction, a popular form of exercise and for some people a way of expressing themselves. A lot of us would begin dancing at the start of a beat while many are shy at the prospect of dancing in presence of others or simply because they believe they have two left feet which makes them hesitant. However, people suffering from Chorophobia have an irrational fear of dancing which is more than just a result of social awkwardness. They are absolutely repelled by the idea of it and will try to avoid any place, event or occasion even remotely associated with dance. They are unwilling to be exposed to the feeling of excitement and ecstasy that comes with it and will start experiencing anxiety if unduly pressurized to dance.

10. Phobophobia – Fear of Phobias

Ok,  so here is a conundrum which ought to give you a hard time. You will probably end up plucking a hair or two out of your head trying to analyze this phobia in depth. So, to keep it simple, Phobophobia is an abnormal fear of fear or of acquiring one. It is a resultant of internal sensations created by the unconscious mind due to an earlier intensely traumatic experience with a particular phobia which makes the person anxious at the thought of going through that ordeal again. The person lives in a constant fear of reliving those horrid responses or developing new ones. What makes it perplexing is the fact that this fear is not a response to an external environmental stimuli but it works on a psychological level.

Top 10 most dangerous computer viruses ever

Top 10 most dangerous computer viruses ever

1. My Doom

My Doom explored its way to the malware world on 26th January 2004 and sent a shockwave around the world as it scattered exponentially via e-mail with random senders’ addresses and subject lines. My Doom also known as “Novarg” is reported to be the most dangerous virus ever released, breaking the previous record set by the Sobig F worm. My Doom swiftly infected some two million computers and instigated a huge denial of service attack which smashed the cyber world for sometime. It transmitted itself in a particularly deceitful manner through e-mail as what receiver would first reckon to be a bounced error message as it reads “Mail Transaction Failed.” But, as soon as the message is clicked upon, the attachment is executed and the worm is transferred to e-mail addresses found in user’s address book. The damage caused by this fastest-spreading mass mailer worm was a whopping $38 billion.

2. ILOVEYOU

Back in 2000, one of the trickiest computer malware ever was detected on May 4 in Philippines. Around 10% of the internet users committed a huge mistake by going on the name of this hazardous worm. The virus played on a radical human emotion of the need to be loved because of which it became a global pandemic in only one night. The bug was transmitted via e-mail having a subject line “ILOVEYOU” – a notion appealing to many of us with an attached file to it which reads as – Love-Letter-For-You.TXT.vbs. As soon as the file was opened, the virus took the liberty of e-mailing itself to the first 50 contacts present in the Windows address book and also infected the multimedia files saved in the system causing damages that amounted to $5.5 billion.

3. Sobig F

August 2003 turned out to be the miserable month for corporate and domestic computer operators around the world as the sixth and most destructive deviant of Sobig series hit the internet. Sobig F infected host computers by fooling the users that the corrupt e-mail they received is from a legitimate source. If the user opens the attachment it exposes a security hole in the system allowing the intruder to send messages via the trapped user’s e-mail address. Within 24 hours, Sobig F set a record of replicating more than one million copies of itself which later was broken by yet another mass mailer worm – My Doom. However, Sobig F caused an extensive damage of $3 billion – $4 billion leaving infections in over 2 million PCs worldwide.

4. Code Red

In the summer 2001, a computer worm most commonly referred to as “Code Red” was unleashed on the network servers on July 13. It was a very sneaky virus which took advantage of a flaw in Microsoft Internet Information Server. This virus was for the first time detected by two of the eEye Digital Security employees and at the time when they found out about the virus, they were drinking Code Red Mountain Dew; hence the name “Code Red.”  The interesting thing about this deadly virus is, it did not require you to open an e-mail attachment or run a file; it simply needed an active internet connection with which it defaces the webpage you open and display a text string “Hacked by Chinese!”  In less than a week “Code Red” brought down more than 400,000 servers including the White House web server. It’s estimated that the total damage was of approximately $2.6 billion dollars with as many as one million computers hit by the virus.

5. SQL slammer

SQL Slammer, a standalone malicious program also known as “Sapphire” appeared at the starting of the year 2003 and was the first fileless worm which rapidly infected more than 75000 vulnerable hosts within10 minutes on 25thJanuary. Through a classic denial of service attack, it dramatically slowed down global internet traffic and brought down South Korea’s online capacity on knees for 12 hours. Sapphire mainly targeted on the servers by generating random IP addresses and discharging the worm to those IP addresses. The abrupt release of infected network packets had a huge impact on the significant services provided by Bank of America’s ATMs, Seattle’s 911 emergency response systems and Continental airlines. All in all, the worm caused between $950 million and $1.2 billion in lost productivity which is not much compared to what would have happened if it erupted on a week day and not on a Saturday.

6. Melissa

Melissa was the first mass-mailing macro virus for the new age of e-mailing which became the breaking news across the world on March 26, 1999. The estimated damage accounted to 300 to 600 million dollars after which FBI launched the largest internet manhunt ever to catch the author of Melissa – David L. Smith which of-course they did and after the arrest, he was sentenced 20 months in federal prison and was ordered to pay a fine of $5000 for unleashing the fastest virus of its time. The virus was distributed as an e-mail attachment and when the attachment “list.doc” is clicked upon, the virus seeks for the Microsoft Outlook address book to e-mail itself to the first 50 names on the list with a message “Here is that document you asked for…don’t show anyone else. ;-)”

7. CIH

A destructive parasitic virus CIH also known as “Chernobyl” was first emerged in the year 1998 in Taiwan and quickly became one of the most dangerous and destructive viruses to ever hit with a payload that corrupts data. The CIH virus infects Windows 95 and 98 executable file and after doing that it remains a resident in the machine’s memory, where it infects other executables. Once activated, the virus annihilates the data on the hard disk and overwrites the computer’s Flash BIOS chip, rendering it completely inoperable and unless the chip is reprogrammed the user will not be able to boot the machine at all. Although with increased awareness and advancement in technology the virus does not pose a serious threat today but we can never forget the $250 million worth of destruction it caused.

8. Strom Worm

The dreaded Storm Worm struck the cyber world as a malicious Trojan horse program in late 2006 when users began receiving e-mails with a subject line “230 dead as storm batters Europe.” It was without a doubt one of the most sophisticated and greatest cyber fraud networks ever constructed. It tricked the victims into clicking the fake links in an e-mail that was infected by the virus which could easily turn any Windows PC into a botnet, letting someone offsite operate it remotely for sending spam mails across the internet. In January 2007, it was estimated that out of all global malware infections, 8% is due to the Storm worm as the number of this dangerous malware infected PCs was close to 10 million.

9. Conficker

In 2009, a new computer worm Conficker also known as Downup, Domnadup and Kido crawled its way into as many as fifteen million Microsoft Windows operating systems around the world without human intervention using a patched Windows flaw. Conficker virus is very difficult to detect without running an upgraded version of original anti-virus and malware scanner. It might spread via removable drives like hard disks, smart phones and other thumb drives adding a corrupt file to it so that when the device is attached to another computer, the AutoPlay dialog box display an additional option. Conficker has assembled an army of zombies which has the potential to steal financial data and other important information from your system.

10. Nimda

 Nimda first surfaced in 2001.The name of the virus is derived from the word “Admin” spelled backwards. It just took 22 minutes for this dangerous virus to propagate via four different ways – e-mail, server vulnerabilities, shared folders and file transfer. The worm was released on September 18, 2001, a week after the 9/11 attacks which forced many people to believe that Nimda is a Cyber Terror attack as it quickly captured almost all the sources via which the virus can infect maximum number of computers. Albeit, the primary purpose of this virus was to slow down the internet traffic considerably causing a denial-in-service attack.

Top 10 health hazards with the use of cellphones

Top 10 health hazards with the use of cellphones

1. Brain cancer

    Cell phone radiation may be slowly damaging your brain. Using a unique technique for determining electromagnetic radiation, researchers came to a conclusion that the radio-frequency field generated by your cell phone triggers heating up of brain tissue. The fact proves that your brain absorbs the radiation emitted by your mobile. The WHO has classified these radio-frequency fields as possibly carcinogenic. This means that the exposure to them may cause an augmented risk of Brain Cancer. I know it’s totally impossible in today’s tech scenario to get rid of your cell phone. One can only aim to minimize it’s usage by switching it off whenever possible. Also, keep the phone away from you while you are sleeping. It will be good for your health...!!!

2. Loss of hearing

    The radiation emitted by cell phones can damage delicate workings of the inner ear. People who are subjected to long-term mobile phone use are at a higher risk of developing hearing loss.Today, there are ever-increasing numbers of people between 18 and 25 years suffering from hearing loss. Doctors consider excessive use of cell phones and other gadgets a major reason behind it. A person who spends more than two to three hours on the cell phone every day runs the risk of partial deafness over three to five years. Apart from trying to reduce the mobile phone use, slow down the ringer volume. Avoid hearing too much music on the phone.

3. Reduced fertility

    “That ringing in your pocket might turn out to be a death knell for your sperm”, says a research. Several studies have shown that men who excessively use cell phones have suffered from slower or damaged sperm and decreased sperm concentration. One reason could be mobiles heat up when in use and so they increase the temperature in and around crotch. This is not good for sperm health as they survive in temperatures less than 4 degrees the body temperature. Another reason could be the Electromagnetic Frequency (EMF) emitted by both the mobile and your body. EMFs emitted by mobiles penetrate your body hindering the useful EMFs  emitted by your body which in turn leads to abnormal sperm. In the nutshell, excessive use of mobiles could come in way of your desire of cute kids.

4. Heart risks

    According to a report published in European Journal of Oncology, radiations from cordless phones (including mobile phones) can cause irregularities in normal functioning of heart. It was found that cell phones emit radiation which forces red blood cells to drip hemoglobin.  The hemoglobin then builds up in the body and this can result in health complications including heart diseases. Probably that is why whenever you keep the cell phone in the front pocket of your shirt; some elderly person will tell you not to do so! People with a pacemaker are strictly forbidden by the cardiologist to keep the phone near their heart.

5. Neurodegenerative disorders

    The harmful radiations emitted by the cell phones can damage DNA. DNA damage in brain cells can affect neurological functions. This can possibly lead to neurodegenerative diseases. The radiations from mobiles have been tested to reduce melatonin levels which can cause neurological disorders. Also, it has been scientifically proven that exposure to Electromagnetic radiations emitted from a mobile phone can cause sleep disorders and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

6. Risks to unborn 

    Another Research says that usage of Cell phones during pregnancy slows down the rate of brain development of the fetus or may lead to hyper activity. In a renowned research, there were two cages of pregnant mice one with a mobile phone and the other without it. When the mice gave birth, the offsprings of the two cages remarkably differed.  The progeny of the mice who were kept in the cage with cell phone were more active and their memory was lesser than those born of the mice in the cage without mobile phones. The scientist had enough biological reasons to explain that why and how the results could be duplicated in humans! The rise in behavioral disorders in children these days could be partly attributed to the fact that their mothers must have used Mobiles during pregnancy. Also, radiations emitted by mobile phones can lead to miscarriage.  One should avoid cell phones during pregnancy and in case of a necessity; the safest bet is to keep it as far as possible.

7. Increased stress

    You bought your phone so you will be reachable 24X7. Consequently you never have the time to relax., Why? Because you’re never inaccessible.  You are constantly expecting someone to access you via your cell phone. This is building up the stress ( You don’t realize it though!). In fact, a University of Worcester study showed that this constant stress can actually make people believe that their phone just vibrated from a new call or message when in reality it didn’t! Start by switching off your phone for an hour every day. It would help you to unwind.

8. Eye problems

    The combination of holding your phone too close to your eyes along with staring at its viciously small font can lead to eye strain, headaches, dry eye and blurred vision. This has been proved by the College of Optometry research from the SUNY State

As a measure of prevention, Increase the font size to twice the smallest size you’re able to read. Also, maintain a distance of at least 16 inches between the mobile screen and your eyes. If you’re reading for longer time ( More than a few minutes) , take a regular 20-second breaks.

9. General sickness

    It won’t be wrong if I say that Your cell phone is making you sick! All that tapping, typing, and swiping may make your mobile screen as germ-packed as your computer keyboard, You have just washed your hands from a disinfectant soap and it is the time for your meals when the mobile screen flashes. There’s a text, you read and reply and begin to gallop the healthy meal. Well! Everything ain’t  as healthy as you have assumed it to be. The moment you touch the mobile screen, 20% to 30% of all virus and bacteria were transmitted to your hands and finally into your body. You might not fall sick the very next day but believe me it has hazardous long- term consequences.

10. Impaired concentration

      You own a cell phone ? No No! it’s the cell phone that owns you..! During a study, Reaction times in an emergency were 23 per cent longer when texting than normal. Probably that is why talking on mobile phone while driving is against the laws in many countries. Use of mobile phones reduces your ability to focus. You take more time to do a task whether  it’s solving a mathematical question or approaching the car breaks to avoid an accident.