Remember your science teacher categorically mentioning in the class, 'light travels faster than sound.' (Of course you sheepishly ignored it). So, here's a reminder, but in a new format. 'Technology advances faster than sound'. One thing that technology has lead to, in addition to a number of benefits is the reduction of manpower.

Rather than 2-3 people running around, employees can now handle most of the work single-handedly. But, but…one thing that it hasn't been able to affect is the work profile of a 'secretary'. Despite the self-management happening around, a secretary still enjoys a vital and much-trusted position in certain organisations.

From scheduling meetings, screening incoming calls and messages, taking notes, priortising bosses personal schedule, a personal secretary sifts the wanted and important from the unimportant and useless. No mater how good you are at organising things single-handedly, an alter ego (a secretary) can make working simpler. Result, your cholesterol and blood pressure, everything in control. Take it from the horses' mouth.

Suresh K Nair, secretary to the regional officer, CII, Chandigarh chapter clearly defines his role. Though he tells is it much more than what meets the eye. He opens conversation with a quote by Donald Trump. 'The first thing a secretary types is the boss.' "This clearly conjures up an image of a secretary- loyal, sincere, diligent, multi- tasker, pleasant who owes allegiance to his/her boss. 

Jarnail Rana

"My work is to simplify things for my boss so that there is no problem in functioning. Setting personal appointments, co-ordinating with the head of the departments, scanning mails (almost 60-70 mails per day), establishing a friendly correspondence with the staff, and outsiders are part of my job," says Suresh, who believes in strong work ethic. "I feel the responsibility even when my boss is not around. The fact that he trusts with many confidential details is something that keeps me up, and on my job all the time."

For Jarnail Rana, 31, personal secretary with the owner of Sonalika Tractors, it's a job that entails maximum confidentiality and multi-tasking. " In addition to maintaining records, organising traveling records, accompanying them to various meetings and seminars, as a secretary also runs personal errands for the boss," remarks Jarnail.

Does this place secretaries job on the most confidential level in the hierarchy of a work place. "It does," nods S K Roy, secretary with the Semi Conductor Laboratory, sector-72. "A personal secretary shares a different camaraderie with the boss, as compared with the rest of the employees. 

Because, the boss trusts him or her with official and personal work as well." "Not only official matters, my boss also discusses personal matters with me. Ditto for me as well," adds Roy. Nevertheless, Roy feels that a secretary has to maintain a balance between personal and professional relationship. "This depends on the boss. Some like to stick to professional matters, whereas others go an extra mile to be friendly."

As easy and advantageous the position of personal assistant may sound, there are some drawbacks to consider. The average personal assistant may put in anywhere from 40-80 hours a week or more. If the working relationship between the boss and the personal secretary is strained, then it could create a stressful environment. All the same, a personal assistant can rejoice over certain things. Says Jarnail, "Outsiders have to meet me, in order to get to the boss. I guide them how to go about." Lastly, if you are a secretary to a film star- this is what we call basking in the limelight.

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R&B singer Beyonce Knowles has revealed that she is in ho hurry to give up her singing career to start a family with her hip hop artist husband Jay-Z. Beyonce, 27, who celebrated her one-year wedding anniversary with Jay-Z, 39, recently, does admit that she would like to have at least one child.

The Irreplaceable hit maker, who is launching the U.S. leg of her I Am... world tour on June 21, is for now just content to play aunt to her sister Solange's four-year old son, Daniel. "I definitely want one (a child) but I'm not ready for all that.

I don't think a person should see that before their time. I fall in love with my nephew every time I see him," she was quoted as saying. — ANI

Indian police has dropped the investigation against Slumdog Millionaire star Rubina Ali's father over allegations he attempted to sell his daughter. The authorities insist that they have failed to find any evidence to back claims that he offered to auction off the nine-year-old for 200,000 pounds.

Rafiq Qureshi was arrested and quizzed by police in Mumbai earlier this week after British publication broke the news. Qureshi protested his innocence throughout the scandal, telling a website the story was a "lie made up by foreign journalists playing games with me." 

"There is not any crime. The matter is closed. No money changed hands. Rubina is here. There is no crime," a website quoted senior police inspector Rahim Shaikh as saying. — ANI

Flying Cats, airhostess training school, with a unique blend of aviation training and total personality make over which was flagged off by the queen of silver screen, Kareena Kapoor, 35,000 feet above sea level in a chartered aircraft holding true to its name and work is offering cabin crew training to a specially selected batch of students absolutely free of cost in the city under a charitable cause, in the memory of late Champa Khosla.

As part of this special charitable offer Flying Cats would provide state of the art training to 30 students absolutely free of cost, thereby preparing them to join the aviation sector which is the dream of many youngsters. 

Flying Cats is committed to provide to this special batch quality training and exposure through its practically designed courseware to train and groom students not just for the aviation, hospitality and tourism sectors but the entire service sector at large.

On successful completion of this free of cost course which is worth Rs 1 lac and would be funded by Champa Khosla Memorial Trust, in which the students would be trained for a year and receive certification for 12 months Certificate Course in Cabin Crew and ground handling. 

The students who would be applying for this special batch would have to undergo a selection criterion which includes an aptitude test, followed by a personal interview to gauge the students ability to be part of the aviation sector and also to confirm if they meet the basic eligibility criterion of the airline industry like minimum height, weight, demeanor etc.

The institute has pledged to carry forward this charitable cause every year and this special batch of 30 students would be trained free of cost annually, thereby empowering them to join the aviation industry. — TNS

Battles and life have a lot in common. While both come with high uncertainty and demand courage, they leave behind lessons to learn and change as a residue. Well, all that and more was the topic of interest at the annual general body meeting of the Georgian Association (North) held on Sunday.

An active role player in the region when it comes to social issues, the association has its members spread over the country and across the seas as well. And calling for change in the society and fighting battles against elements of social evil was the aim in mind.

Going by their tradition of serving the nation, Georgian association has contributed a large number of defence officers to the nation, prominent ones include, Lt Gen Thamburaj, vice Chief of Army, Lt Gen SS Kumar, QMG and others like Ashok Lavasa, secretary, Power, Haryana.

Discussing issues that have plagued our society like female feoticide, the efforts were directed towards creating an awared atmosphere and taking strict measures to root them out. Other social issues that surfaced in the discussion were environment and water conservation. — TNS

Mere cooking is now a passé. It is more about where you cook. Like your living room and bedroom, the kitchen also needs to be trendy. Everyone appreciates good food, but those who love cooking appreciate good kitchen gadgets just as much. Your kitchen says a lot about you.

Create your unique style statement with Hindware’s latest Italian collection of island Hoods and built in Hobs. The island hood range has three simple and chic looking designs- Olivia 90, Slender and Coral. The hobs range has three different designs—Stylo (GL-900), Trident- G and Cathy.

The new range of island hoods come in a pure stainless steel finish. They have a specifically designed wind tunnel for efficient air suction capacity of 1200 m3/hr to give a really clean, smoke-free and extra fresh environment in your kitchen.  They have an oil collection feature that is best suited for Indian cooking, which includes a lot of frying. 

The finest feature of these chimneys is that they give a silent performance.  They do not pose as a nuisance to the woman working as it has a noise level of around 57dba. There are 4 halogen lamps fitted to the hoods for proper illumination while cooking.

The elegantly designed Hobs come in both stainless steel finish and tempered glass worktops. They have multi features like soft knobs, different sizes of burners and automatic ignition. They are purely anti rust as they are made of pure stainless steel and come with an enameled pan support for easy balance. 

The different sizes of burner have different functions like the triple ring burner for heavy duty cooking, the rapid burners for the daily rush hour cooking and semi rapid burners for moderate flames. The hob Stylo comes in a tempered glass worktop with 4 burners and Trident with 5 burners. Cathy has a stainless steel finish and has 4 burners. —TNS

With the hype over size zero, fab abs and certain role models, people are bound to get confused about fitness. Dr. Vikas Bhutani, MD Consultant - Internal Medicine, Fortis Hospital clears the fog: "If all your organs function well and your mind is strong enough to handle daily stress, you are fit." Even the World Health Organisation recognises fitness as not only the absence of infirmity and disease but also a state of physical, mental and social well-being. Mental fitness is an important part of being fit.

But thousands of young women who are desperate for a 'size zero' figure are subjecting themselves to health risks, which they are unaware of, said Dr. Vikas Bhutani, MD Consultant - Internal Medicine, Fortis Hospital Mohali.

The trend, especially seen in young girls might lead to an increase in an unhealthy obsession over losing weight and the possible resultant damage to health. It is normal for the affected young girls to skip up to two meals a day, coupled with vigorous exercise to attain the zero figure but can prove dangerous as it can lead to deficiency of vitamins, calcium and other vital nutrients of the body.

This can result in loss of skin texture, glow of young face, wrinkling of skin, enhancement of ageing process, predisposing to chronic illnesses at an early age, and even complications during the pregnancy in later years of life, he said. Women also run a higher risk of becoming anemic if they go on crash diets to shed weight, he added.

Any weight loss, if indicated in high BMI > 25, should be gradual and a combination of diet and physical exercises should be used for the purpose. Girls also tend to consume laxatives with the intent of losing weight fast but are ignorant of the risks it can pose to their health, said Dr Bhutani.

"Excessive or unwarranted use of laxatives rob the body of vital vitamins, micronutrients and minerals and most significantly, potassium, which can lead to generalized weakness, arrthymias and even heart failure in those with pre-existing heart diseases," he said.

The age group that is most vulnerable to such disorders is the teenagers. If they just want to maintain a normal, presentable figure it is important that they have regular small meals and do their daily activities with all their abilities.

But if someone's ambition calls for an absolute zero-figure, then its time for them to follow the weight loss plans for teens. Such programs specialize in the needs and requirements of the teenage body. Since the teenage years are an important part of the growing phase, it is essential to maintain a good diet and provide the body all essential nutrition.

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Adding some walnuts to an otherwise healthy diet may help older people improve memory and behavioural skills, according to an animal model study. Walnuts contain polyphenols and other anti-oxidants and essential fatty acids. Polyphenols are the most abundant group of plant phenolic compounds, known to provide much of the flavour, colour and taste to fruits, vegetables and seeds. 

The study was conducted by researchers with the Human Nutrition Research Centre on Ageing (HNRCA) at Tufts University in Boston.

The ageing brain undergoes many changes resulting in altered or impaired neuronal functioning. In aged rodents, these impairments are seen as poor performance on age-sensitive tests of balance, coordination, and spatial working memory.

For the study, weight-matched, aged rats were randomly assigned to one of four diet groups. For eight weeks, the rats were fed special chow mixes that contained either two, six or nine percent walnuts - or no walnuts - before undergoing motor and memory tests.

For comparison, the six percent walnut study diet is equivalent to a human eating about seven to to nine walnuts daily. That counts as both a two-ounce equivalent from the "meat and beans group" and two teaspoons toward a daily allowance of dietary oil, said a HNRCA release.

The study found that in aged rats, the diets containing two or six percent walnuts were able to improve age-related motor and cognitive shortfalls, while the nine percent walnut diet also improved memory.

These findings were published in the British Journal of Nutrition. — IANS

Pregnancy and childbirth take a great physical toll on a women's body. A postpartum exercise program is a great way to start feeling more like your old self, as exercising is beneficial both physically and psychologically for most new mothers. It helps work off the extra pounds gained during the pregnancy while increasing the energy levels and improving self-esteem.

Forget dieting and gruelling exercise regime - just have a positive image of your body and you'll be able to shrink your waist line and kick the butt, say researchers. The research team from Temple University has shown that positive body image is more effective than exercise in helping young women lose weight and quit smoking.

Its suggests that a little bit of dialogue and support can be more effective than an exercise plan in helping women not only keep off the weight, but also stay smoke-free.

"A lot of college-age women report smoking to keep their weight down and for body image reasons, and we think that by providing them with the tools to make them feel better about themselves, it alleviates some of those stressors," said Melissa Napolitano, a clinical psychologist at Temple's Center for Obesity Research and Education. —ANI