Dr Penna

A new range of super super computer is being built by Computational Research Laboratories (CRL), a subsidiary of Tata Sons in India. The architect of this programme is Dr Narendra Karmarkar, who is renowned for kamarkar algorithm (which is renowned for solving linear programming problems in polynomial time(3). The current project would cost 400 crore rupees (80 Million $). the project would result in super super computer with performance achievement up to one petaflop(1015 teraflop). Tata’s are putting money in to this project and Indian government has expressed the interest in such machines.

The design will make use of the off-the-shelf fast 64-bit processors (of Itanium 2 family) developed jointly by Hewlett-Packard and Intel. The implementation of the interconnect architecture will be done using a new high-speed switching chip made in Israel.

The new architecture, according to Dr Karmarkar, uses a new theory of interconnects based on the mathematical principles of `projective geometry to overcome bottleneck caused by the numerous interconnects between the many parallel processors.

Source

Indiatimes
Hindu
Wikipedia

Clifford Chance, London based world’s largest law firm has announced that it would outsource its administrative work to India. It is hoping to save around 18 million dollars per annum by this move. A service centre of size of 4000 square foot is being built in New Delhi to accommodate 300 people.

Source: Times of India

Much awaited release of the both internet browsers has happened. Lot of interesting feedback some good, but some highlighting their weakness. But what are the differences in the both browsers, I would say they are many including who makes them, to what kind of the job they do, and kind of audience they have. It is an interesting comparison, because in the same browser market Microsoft tried to oust the Netscape navigator in the past by using various tactics. Now the fight is on again this time between Firefox and Internet Explorer, who will win time only will decide. Comparing who makes the browsers for Firefox and IE, there is lot of difference between Microsoft and Mozilla foundation. The way the Microsoft works is like an institutional communism. End users have no way of getting involved in the product they use. But Mozilla foundation works more like an open democracy with every one having a say in the making of Firefox. Regarding the size of the IE it weighs little over 28 MB compared to Firefox’s weight of 5.6 MB. There are many new features in IE 7 but they were all like catching up with the Firefox’s old edition. So what is the new thing Microsoft is offering to their consumers. Microsoft proudly announced that there were around 3 million downloads in 4 days what a massive number ( but consider how many happened automatically) this number appear in small compared to 2 million downloads in 24 hours. I thinks there is a massive difference.

After trying to compare both I thought I would install both in my home computer and use them. Firefox worked great with out a problem. But Internet Explorer dint work, After discussing with some tech savvy friends I realized that I need Windows XP with service pack 2 or Windows vista to work. What a shame! I did not have a recent windows. Any way I will survive, I am planning to move to Linux very soon.

Sreeram Penna

www.svmcalumni.com

I have studied my medicine at Sri Venkateswara Medical College (SVMC). I have been waiting for some kind of website to come up for our college. So long I have waited but there is no decent website for either college or old students (like alumni website). So I have set up the website svmc alumni dot com.

Good intention behind setting up this Sri Venkateswar Medical College Alumni Website is to help old students of SVMC interact with their friends and their batch mates. It is being so hard work that I am trying to contact every one by email asking them to join the website. I Never mind the hard work because it will serve for a good purpose.

The Sri Venkateswar Medical College Alumni Website it self requires bit more working on to make it look better.

Other similar websites for our college, Sri Venkateswara Medical College or other wise Known as SV Medical College are svmedicalcollege.com, svmedicalcollege.org. Both seem to be pretty beginning in their phases of construction.

www.plasurg.net

This website is being developed to network all the Plastic Surgeons across the world. This website hope to bring the information of their sub speciality, practice clinic. Also as a member of the network the surgeons are encouraged to discuss difficult cases, training scenarios and share the operative videos. The website will host a e-journal where surgeons can submit abstracts and also papers. This website is being developed so any suggestions regarding the development are welcome.

Medical tourism is growing trend all across the world. Lots of the hospitals in developing countries are eyeing for a part of this so called business because it brings lots of money and profits to the hospitals. For example the share of medical tourism revenues in Asia are assumed to be staggering four billion dollars by 2010. That is a staggering amount of money.This interest in this particular topic comes because amount of money an individual saves if patient has his or her procedure in these places, compared to huge sums they have to pay in their own countries or to wait for more than a year to have their surgeries in National Health Service in UK.

As a part of growing trend there are many insurers in USA who are starting to cover for procedures abroad for example United Group Programs (UGP) of Boca Raton, Fla., a third-party administrator that sells a low-premium, bare-bones form of coverage called a mini–medical plan has began promoting Bumrungrad Hospital as a preferred provider to its customers.

Also many employers are looking to these medical tourism destinations for cost cutting like Blue Ridge Paper Products of Canton. And many more following their way. The main ideology is that if you send the people for uncomplicated medical, surgical treatments and investigations across to countries like India the potential saving could well be more.

In my view the interest in medical tourism will only grow and not decrease.

For a long time NHS (National Health Service, UK) depended on overseas doctors (or International Medical Graduates) especially from developing countries. Whether it is acute shortage of doctors needed for expansion of services or to cope with introduction of European working time directive or to fill in places where local graduates don’t want to fill or don’t want to go. Many doctors from developing countries tried to come to UK for better job, better salary and better training opportunities in NHS. So for long time there has been good symbiosis between NHS and overseas doctors for long time.

Although the symbiosis was good for both, there were some hiccups. Like exploitation of overseas doctors by General Medical Council(GMC, London) and Home office. For example GMC has collected fees approximately 800 pounds for conducting both parts of PLAB exams (but can you ever imagine irony of passing both exams, you are not given registration, but are eligible for registration). Home office on other side charged 500 pounds for every visa extension ( an overseas doctors on average extend visa twice an year, that helps home office exploit each doctor around 1000 pounds in a year).

This emigration of doctors have no direct problems or consequences on their home country, but if you think ethically these people are now serving rich and advantaged rather than doing their job serving poor and disadvantaged. (This is my view)

The present symbiosis is going to rapidly come to an end following an announcements by Lord Warner one in March and recently. In March Lord Warner announced that there no more visas for overseas doctors hoping to train in UK. This decision will help to put the exploitation of and by overseas doctors. But I think there is also hidden, secretive, and a very mean reason behind this decision. All the doctors who have left their home country and what ever little fortune they had to look for better life and training opportunities to UK have no where to go. Some of these overseas doctors have mortgages to pay and kids to raise. Now all the hope of a nice future is gone. Now no one can apply for a specialist registrar (SpR) job. So what can they do try to join some thing to just stay here, the alternatives are service jobs with less money and no progression, that is staff grade and trust grade jobs. That is forcing people to go in that way, only mean people can do that.

This mean nature is more obvious with recent announcement by Lord Warner when he said that people with HSMP are not to be short-listed if their visa does not cover the duration of the whole job. What an intelligent way of saying you guys you are not allowed to apply for SpR jobs or General Practice requirement, because they are the only jobs that require visa more than 3 years and at best a HSMP visa holder can have 3 years or less of visa.

So dear overseas doctor friends we are been forced go to menial jobs, thanks to hypocrisy of British Raj. Dear friend what can we do. Can we negotiate our way, but we need very good support from various people including local people, doctors, politicians, and policy makers and overseas doctors associations. But 7 months after initial announcement we are still getting more bad news, still no light at the end of tunnel.

What do we do now. Shall we move to better shores and forget this as a hiccup in life, yes forget it, this is the easiest thing to do. It is a cowardly move but is worth for oneself or for family. Or think about your family and children’s future and go for menial jobs, yes may be your kid will fulfill your dreams. Or fight against it, legally - go for it is risky and costly but may have good results. What is the fate of people protesting and fighting legally - I don’t know.

Dear friends I have thought about all the problems and still thinking and breaking brains regarding what can we do. Can we fight against all these with out having to lose any thing in our lives. Can we prevent emigration and make people stay in our home land, probably by improving better training and better life and better salary (yes it is possible think about medical tourism). Friends let us share the ideas to fight, to survive and to have better life. To contact please leave a comment or discuss at forums.

Dr Sreeram Penna

Carbon dollors are new ways of earning cash and profits to the company. The concept is way forward for the future because it helps to curtail the amount of green house gas being emited to our enviournment, there by protecting our excistance in future. Some countries still oppose the concept of decreasing the carbon emissions (if I remember right it is America).

Indian companies are doing pretty good in this field by earning aproximately 1500 crore rupees last year (according to estimates available with accounting firm Ernst & Young).The value of the accumulated stock of carbon emission reduction (CER) units in India is estimated at approximately Rs 4,500 crore. Only China and Brazil are ahead of India at this point of time in accumulating CERs. (Source: Economic Times)