(From the hindu)
Inside Satyajit Ray's little known corner of life as an aficionado of board games, from Scrabble to chess
"Father was deeply interested in word games, quizzes, and anagrams. These were just purely private preoccupations, and known to only an inner circle of family members. Sporadically, his deep interest had also entered his films,' says Sandip Ray in an exclusive interview.
Ashoke Nag
December 19, 2021 09:59:53 IST
Inside Satyajit Ray's little known corner of life as an aficionado of board games, from Scrabble to chess
Satyajit Ray
To celebrate the centenary year of Satyajit Ray, arguably the most remarkable filmmaker born on Indian soil, Firstpost will explore the lesser known aspects of his life in our column Ray-esque.
*
The world is more than familiar with Satyajit Ray, the movie auteur. But very few would probably be aware that the master, away from the shooting floors, and closetted in his famous Bishop Lefroy Road (south Kolkata) study, was also immersed in quaint passions.
"Father was deeply interested in word games, quizzes, and anagrams. He was also drawn to alliteration. These were just purely private preoccupations, and known to only an inner circle of family members, especially my mother (Bijoya Ray) and myself. Of course, sporadically, his deep interest in pastimes like word games and alliteration had also entered his films," says Sandip Ray, filmmaker and Satyajit's son.
"For instance, he incorporated a word game (the Memory Game) in the script of Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest), and an alliteration in Charulata (The Lonely Wife) in a conversation between Charu and Amal (the two protagonists). Some of these elements, embracing IQ and personality games, were also infused in some of his sleuth Feluda stories. While dwelling on Feluda, it is essential observing that the author Ray unerringly incorporated his father Sukumar Ray's Nonsense verses in his books hovering around his literary detective. But indulging in word games largely revolved around his personal life," adds Sandip.
Inside Satyajit Rays little known corner of life as an aficionado of board games from Scrabble to chess
Memory game in Aranyer Din Ratri
Among word games that Satyajit devoutly loved and relished playing were Accrossticks, Categories, memory games, crosswords, Scrabble, and Boggle. He particularly savoured the Scrabble and Boggle brand from UK's Parker Brothers. He also devised a word game himself, which reflected shades of Scrabble, but left it unnamed.
"While travelling for shoots, on trains or buses, father would play some of these games," recalls Sandip. "Categories and Accrossticks could be played with just pen and paper. One didn't require any particular formal game tools. I remember mother and father sharing a few rounds of Categories while journeying in the train to the location during the shooting of Sonar Kella (The Golden Fortress)," reminisces Sandip.
When he travelled overseas, especially to London, he would drop by at stores like Parker Brothers and Just Games. Just Games also displayed a journal called Games & Puzzles on its shelves, for word games, brain teasers, and magnetic games, to which Satyajit was a subscriber. Games & Puzzles kept him abreast of word games evolving worldwide. He would also pick up word games from Parker Brothers and Just Games if he found them fascinating, and bring them along with him to Kolkata. He was so avidly passionate about word games, he would indulge in them whenever he found elbow-room.
"If he was at home in between shoots or authoring a novel or novella, he would come across from his study, and spend a while playing a word game with mother. Mother was his prime partner in this pastime," narrates Sandip. "But occasionally, I recall Reena di (renowned actress-director Aparna Sen) visiting our home with her husband, and spending time with mother and father in a game of, let's say, Scrabble."
Incidentally, Sen broke into filmdom with her debut film Samapti (The Conclusion), which was one of the three shorts in the maestro's Teen Kanya (The Three Daughters), authored by literature laureate Rabindranath Tagore. In fact, The Three Daughters was directed by Satyajit in 1961 as a tribute to Tagore in the virtuosic litterateur's Centenary Year.
"It happens that Scrabble, which is an age-old invention, formed part of father's life, too, in our earlier home on Lake Temple Road (in south Kolkata), and migrated to our present residence on Bishop Lefroy Road (also south of the city)." Sandip agrees that the roots of his great father's fascination with word games lay in his supreme mastery over the English vocabulary. It must be documented, however, that later, the master film maker weaved puzzles in Bengali, especially in his Feluda writings.
Satyajit was also deeply interested in chess, and played games with himself on stray occasions. "But father acquired several chess books when he decided to direct Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players) to research into moves so that he got them accurately when the two unflagging chess aficionados in the film, Mirza Sajjad Ali and Mir Roshan Ali, enacted unforgettably by the late actors Sanjeev Kumar and Saeed Jaffrey respectively, went about pursuing their chess bouts," drives home Sandip.
Inside Satyajit Rays little known corner of life as an aficionado of board games from Scrabble to chess
Chess board designed by Satyajit Ray for Shatrang Ke Khilari
Inside Satyajit Rays little known corner of life as an aficionado of board games from Scrabble to chess
Storyboarding for Shatrang Ke Khilari with chess moves
Satyajit unfailingly, too, made it across to the Foyles bookshop in London, Winsor & Newton for art material, the HMV music store, and time permitting, to Selfridges for pens, refills, and cartridges. "When he fell ill after his heart attack in 1984, he would also instruct me to visit these outlets every time I went to London," informs Sandip.
In tandem, back in Kolkata, he would be found, occasionally, at Kallicharan's, Shukla's, Khanna's, and Tiwari's in the undying New Market for books and magazines, the Oxford Bookstore on Park Street for books, notebooks, and stationery, and the over century-old GC Laha store in Esplanade (in central Kolkata) for art materials.
"He fleshed out concepts and ideas from everyday life. In the family magazine Sandesh, father posed puzzles to children. These included, for example, half of the famous Bata or Coca-Cola logo, a currency note or a match box label. Sometimes, the puzzles saw a portion of Rabindranath Tagores's signature, which youngsters had to figure out in entirety. Sandesh's quizzical section also carried silhouettes of well-known characters from my grandfather Sukumar Ray's unmatched book of Nonsense rhymes, Abol Tabol, or famous landmarks like the Taj Mahal, Qutub Minar or the Machu Picchu. There were also a range of variegated games and competitions in Sandesh. Father never tired of fashioning these elements for Sandesh because he cherished them. Of course, he also penned stories and translations of Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll for the magazine," says Sandip.
From very early on in life, Satyajit used to also subscribe to comic books like Bino, Dandy, Chumps, and The Boys Own Paper, to mention just a handful. "In fact, hardly anyone would be in the know that a picture of my father on a shikara, when he visited Kashmir as a young boy, was published in The Boys Own Paper and won a prize," reveals Sandip.
The intense interest in lapping up information from a variety of journals stayed on till the end. Even when he turned a filmmaker, Satyajit was a subscriber of periodicals like Omni, Scientific American, National Geographic magazine, Life, and Look (where the world famous British movie director Stanley Kubrick began his career as a photographer), and Heavy Metal and Argosy sci-fi magazines. On his trips abroad, he would pick up periodicals edited by Alfred Hitchcock, Ellery Queen, and Isaac Asimov. Amusingly, he did not fail to be bowled over by Herge's Tintin comics, and read them till his last days. "Even when he was around 68 (just two years before he passed away), he had read Tintin and the Picaros," reflects Sandip, betraying that tinge of emotion.
A largely unfamiliar face of Satyajit could probably end with an event which the maestro treasured. A favourite occasion for him was when Sandip's birthdays arrived every year. This was, of course, till Sandip's early- and middle-school days lasted. Kolkata sported a gamut of Hollywood studio offices at that time, which were armed with some of the most fabulous movie libraries. Needless saying that officials of all these film repositories were all in constant touch with the city's grandmaster of the movies.
Sixteen mm cinematic titles, spanning Walt Disney, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Buster Keaton, Marx Brothers, and Abbott and Costello were sourced by Satyajit from movie libraries spreading across Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Warner Brothers, Paramount, Universal Studios, and 20th Century Fox, and screened during Sandip's birthdays. As Sandip grew up, Satyajit moved to films by directors like Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, and other renowned movie masters. Thus, a twist to the conclusion of these birthday evenings in the Ray family household, was the unfurling of a film for the invitees. One retired at night brimming with thoughts laced with a memorable movie.
Ashoke Nag is a veteran writer on art and culture with a special interest in legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray.
All photos by Satyajit Ray Society.
Sunday, December 19, 2021
Tuesday, November 9, 2021
bhaasha bhooshanam
The language of Hindostan
Maaz Bin Bila
Even till the late 19th century, Hindi and Urdu were one language, differentiated only by their scripts
The viral images of Virat Kohli and Babar Azam embracing each other after Pakistan's victory in the opening India-Pakistan match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 speak volumes. The two captains presumably talk to each other in the shared language that one calls Hindi and the other Urdu. The different names alter neither the mutual intelligibility nor the bonhomie of their common tongue.
Most contemporary writers of Hindi-Urdu are well aware of the underlying commonalities between their officially bifurcated tongues. Urmilesh of Badayun (1951-2005), a poet and professor of Hindi, wrote: ham na urdu meñ na hindī meñ ġhazal kahte haiñ/ ham to bas aap kī bolī meñ ġhazal kahte haiñ ("We write ghazals in neither Hindi nor Urdu/ We write ghazals only in your common tongue").
This common tongue developed during the Sultanate and Mughal periods around Delhi in North India and in the Deccan. With its grammar based on the Khari Boli dialect and its vocabulary largely derived
from Sanskrit mixed with words from Persian and Arabic, the new creole acquired different names over its evolution: Hindvi, Daccani, Gujri, Rekhta, Urdu, and Hindi. The word 'Urdu' is known to have been used for the first time as recently as 1780, by the poet Mushafi (1751-1844). The greatest poet of the 18th century, Mir Taqi Mir (1723-1810), never used it, and we know that Ghalib (1797-1869) disliked the word 'Urdu', preferring Rekhta: rekhte ke tumhīñ ustād nahīñ ho ghālib/ kahte haiñ agle zamāne meñ koī 'mīr' bhī thā ("You are not the sole master of Rekhta, Ghalib,/ They say there was a Mir in the last age").
Link language
'Urdu', meaning 'camp' in Turkish, referred to Delhi in the Mughal period. Zubān-e-urdu-e-mu'alla-e-shahjehanabad — "The language of the exalted camp of Delhi" — initially meant Persian, the court language, and only later, by the time of Shah Alam II, came to represent the hybrid dialect we understand as Urdu today. It became immensely popular and increasingly worked as the link language across the subcontinent. The poet Dagh Dehlvi (1831-1905) declared emphatically: urdu hai jis kā naam hamīñ jānte haiñ 'dāġh'/ hindostāñ meñ dhuum hamārī zabāñ kī hai ("That which is Urdu, only we know, Dagh,/ All Hindostan knows the fame of our tongue").
Yet, till the late 19th century, people were hardly aware of Urdu and Hindi as being two distinct languages. The standardised urban language was increasingly being referred to as Urdu and written in the Arabic script, while North India spoke other dialects such as Awadhi, Braj, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Bundeli, and so on. Alok Rai (among others) has described in detail how one language came to be divided into two.
The word 'Hindustani' rendered in Devanagari and Nastaliq scripts.
The word 'Hindustani' rendered in Devanagari and Nastaliq scripts. | Photo Credit: Wiki Commons
The divide into modern Hindi and Urdu may be said to begin at Fort William College, the institute of Oriental studies in Calcutta, set up by the British to undertake translations from classical Indian languages into modern Indian tongues and English. They prepared separate language primers and translated Persian and Sanskrit texts into Urdu and Hindi, differentiated primarily by the script. This sowed the seeds of division, as Urdu and Hindi gradually came to be attached to two religions.
Ramlila in Urdu
The British further aided the division when the Lt. Governor of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh (present-day Uttar Pradesh), Antony MacDonnell, accepted the legal requirement of Hindi and Urdu as two separate languages for government jobs in 1900, in what Rai calls the MacDonell moment. Subsequently, the bifurcation was supported by the Nagari Pracharini Sabha (NPS), founded in 1893 to promote the Nagari script; the Anjuman-e-Taraqqi-e-Urdu, founded in response to the NPS in 1903; and the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, founded in 1910. Though there was lack of clarity over the differentiating features of the two languages, except in their scripts, the movements picked up steam and contributed in no small measure to the idea of Partition.
Progressive writers ridiculed these political stratagems. Akbar Allahabadi (1846-1921), the wittiest of humorists, poked fun at such distinctions: hum urdu ko arabi kyoñ na kareiñ hindi ko wo bhāshā kyoñ na kareiñ/ jhagde ke liye akhbāroñ meiñ mazmūn tarāshā kyoñ na kareiñ/ apas meiñ adāwat kuchh bhi nahiñ lekin ek akhāda qāim hai/ jab is se falak kā dil bahle ham log tamāshā kyoñ na karein — "Why shouldn't we turn Urdu into Arabic and Hindi into Bhasha [Sanskrit]?/ Why shouldn't we write divisive articles in newspapers to fuel the fight?/ There is no mutual animosity but an arena is prepared:/ Why shouldn't we make a scene, when this cheers the heart of the heavens?" (translated by David Lunn).
The tendency to provoke people over the Urdu-Hindi divide continues in independent India. Its recent instance is the controversy that erupted over Fabindia featuring a Diwali collection called 'Jashn-e-Riwaaz'. Politician Tejaswi Surya, among others, objected to it, terming the campaign an "Abrahamisation" of the festival. Perhaps Surya needs to be told about the many Urdu Ramlilas performed in India, such as the one in Faridabad that has been running since 1947 under the aegis of Pandit Vishwabandhu Sharma, whom we recently lost to COVID 19. It is another matter that Fabindia also (wrongly) hyper-corrected riwaaj to riwaaz in its attempt to be more Urdu than Urdu.
I leave you with a poem of mine on the nature of Urdu:
The letters begin from Arabic,
Aleph, the first, aa,
(title later of Borges's stories),
Bey, the second, a Turkish title,
by Pe, the third,
we have left the land of Bebsi, and Bizza,
having traversed through Persia,
with Fe we have brought, the fun or skill,
to differentiate the phal from the fruit,
to Hindostan, now India,
where they germinated,
took root,
gone are Persian aspirations,
Jeem and Jhe are two distinct sounds,
Jute is what you may be wrapped in, to your grave,
Jhoot's the lie that surrounds,
which causes living death.
Jogi from Sanskrit is Urdu,
One that may bless you,
Train, from English, Urdu too,
from which Raj hangs out,
pleads: love is mohabbat, ishq, uns, dosti,
main tumse pyar karta hun.
The writer's poetry collection, Ghazalnama, was shortlisted for the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar (English) 2020
Maaz Bin Bila
Even till the late 19th century, Hindi and Urdu were one language, differentiated only by their scripts
The viral images of Virat Kohli and Babar Azam embracing each other after Pakistan's victory in the opening India-Pakistan match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 speak volumes. The two captains presumably talk to each other in the shared language that one calls Hindi and the other Urdu. The different names alter neither the mutual intelligibility nor the bonhomie of their common tongue.
Most contemporary writers of Hindi-Urdu are well aware of the underlying commonalities between their officially bifurcated tongues. Urmilesh of Badayun (1951-2005), a poet and professor of Hindi, wrote: ham na urdu meñ na hindī meñ ġhazal kahte haiñ/ ham to bas aap kī bolī meñ ġhazal kahte haiñ ("We write ghazals in neither Hindi nor Urdu/ We write ghazals only in your common tongue").
This common tongue developed during the Sultanate and Mughal periods around Delhi in North India and in the Deccan. With its grammar based on the Khari Boli dialect and its vocabulary largely derived
from Sanskrit mixed with words from Persian and Arabic, the new creole acquired different names over its evolution: Hindvi, Daccani, Gujri, Rekhta, Urdu, and Hindi. The word 'Urdu' is known to have been used for the first time as recently as 1780, by the poet Mushafi (1751-1844). The greatest poet of the 18th century, Mir Taqi Mir (1723-1810), never used it, and we know that Ghalib (1797-1869) disliked the word 'Urdu', preferring Rekhta: rekhte ke tumhīñ ustād nahīñ ho ghālib/ kahte haiñ agle zamāne meñ koī 'mīr' bhī thā ("You are not the sole master of Rekhta, Ghalib,/ They say there was a Mir in the last age").
Link language
'Urdu', meaning 'camp' in Turkish, referred to Delhi in the Mughal period. Zubān-e-urdu-e-mu'alla-e-shahjehanabad — "The language of the exalted camp of Delhi" — initially meant Persian, the court language, and only later, by the time of Shah Alam II, came to represent the hybrid dialect we understand as Urdu today. It became immensely popular and increasingly worked as the link language across the subcontinent. The poet Dagh Dehlvi (1831-1905) declared emphatically: urdu hai jis kā naam hamīñ jānte haiñ 'dāġh'/ hindostāñ meñ dhuum hamārī zabāñ kī hai ("That which is Urdu, only we know, Dagh,/ All Hindostan knows the fame of our tongue").
Yet, till the late 19th century, people were hardly aware of Urdu and Hindi as being two distinct languages. The standardised urban language was increasingly being referred to as Urdu and written in the Arabic script, while North India spoke other dialects such as Awadhi, Braj, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Bundeli, and so on. Alok Rai (among others) has described in detail how one language came to be divided into two.
The word 'Hindustani' rendered in Devanagari and Nastaliq scripts.
The word 'Hindustani' rendered in Devanagari and Nastaliq scripts. | Photo Credit: Wiki Commons
The divide into modern Hindi and Urdu may be said to begin at Fort William College, the institute of Oriental studies in Calcutta, set up by the British to undertake translations from classical Indian languages into modern Indian tongues and English. They prepared separate language primers and translated Persian and Sanskrit texts into Urdu and Hindi, differentiated primarily by the script. This sowed the seeds of division, as Urdu and Hindi gradually came to be attached to two religions.
Ramlila in Urdu
The British further aided the division when the Lt. Governor of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh (present-day Uttar Pradesh), Antony MacDonnell, accepted the legal requirement of Hindi and Urdu as two separate languages for government jobs in 1900, in what Rai calls the MacDonell moment. Subsequently, the bifurcation was supported by the Nagari Pracharini Sabha (NPS), founded in 1893 to promote the Nagari script; the Anjuman-e-Taraqqi-e-Urdu, founded in response to the NPS in 1903; and the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, founded in 1910. Though there was lack of clarity over the differentiating features of the two languages, except in their scripts, the movements picked up steam and contributed in no small measure to the idea of Partition.
Progressive writers ridiculed these political stratagems. Akbar Allahabadi (1846-1921), the wittiest of humorists, poked fun at such distinctions: hum urdu ko arabi kyoñ na kareiñ hindi ko wo bhāshā kyoñ na kareiñ/ jhagde ke liye akhbāroñ meiñ mazmūn tarāshā kyoñ na kareiñ/ apas meiñ adāwat kuchh bhi nahiñ lekin ek akhāda qāim hai/ jab is se falak kā dil bahle ham log tamāshā kyoñ na karein — "Why shouldn't we turn Urdu into Arabic and Hindi into Bhasha [Sanskrit]?/ Why shouldn't we write divisive articles in newspapers to fuel the fight?/ There is no mutual animosity but an arena is prepared:/ Why shouldn't we make a scene, when this cheers the heart of the heavens?" (translated by David Lunn).
The tendency to provoke people over the Urdu-Hindi divide continues in independent India. Its recent instance is the controversy that erupted over Fabindia featuring a Diwali collection called 'Jashn-e-Riwaaz'. Politician Tejaswi Surya, among others, objected to it, terming the campaign an "Abrahamisation" of the festival. Perhaps Surya needs to be told about the many Urdu Ramlilas performed in India, such as the one in Faridabad that has been running since 1947 under the aegis of Pandit Vishwabandhu Sharma, whom we recently lost to COVID 19. It is another matter that Fabindia also (wrongly) hyper-corrected riwaaj to riwaaz in its attempt to be more Urdu than Urdu.
I leave you with a poem of mine on the nature of Urdu:
The letters begin from Arabic,
Aleph, the first, aa,
(title later of Borges's stories),
Bey, the second, a Turkish title,
by Pe, the third,
we have left the land of Bebsi, and Bizza,
having traversed through Persia,
with Fe we have brought, the fun or skill,
to differentiate the phal from the fruit,
to Hindostan, now India,
where they germinated,
took root,
gone are Persian aspirations,
Jeem and Jhe are two distinct sounds,
Jute is what you may be wrapped in, to your grave,
Jhoot's the lie that surrounds,
which causes living death.
Jogi from Sanskrit is Urdu,
One that may bless you,
Train, from English, Urdu too,
from which Raj hangs out,
pleads: love is mohabbat, ishq, uns, dosti,
main tumse pyar karta hun.
The writer's poetry collection, Ghazalnama, was shortlisted for the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar (English) 2020
Thursday, October 14, 2021
Writing
It says 'importance to radiologists'
But it is of importance to everyone.
Worth a read.
Scientific writing and publishing: its importance to radiologists
WCG Peh, MD, FRCP, FRCRcorresponding author
Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract
Scientific writing and publication marks the endpoint of research that has been performed, completed, peer reviewed and accepted, and complements teaching and training, clinical service and patient care. Writing has numerous benefits, one of the most important ones being the inherent training undertaken to better appreciate and evaluate the published work of others. Effective scientific writing is an important component of a radiologist's practice, and should be cultivated at an early stage of the career.
Keywords: Academic radiology, manuscript preparation, medical publication, professional development, research, scientific writing
INTRODUCTION
The reasons for scientific writing range from noble to base reasons. Topping the list is altruism, where one writes for the pleasure derived from the creative activity of writing and from sharing one's intellectual pursuits, as well as for the desire to advance human knowledge for the benefit of mankind. For these authors, writing is a channel for expressing the joy of scientific discovery. At the bottom of the list, writing may be considered by some to be a chore where getting published is a 'necessary evil' in order to fulfil certain specific minimum requirements, e.g. for getting a job or a promotion.
Writing is one of the marks of human civilisation - an advanced means by which humans communicate with each other. A published article is indisputable evidence of research that has been performed, completed, and accepted by peers. Publication is also an indicator of achievement of a certain academic standard. Besides communication of a finalised piece of research, the written work is the basis for further opinions, views and critiques from fellow professionals and academics separated by time and distance. Most importantly, it represents the only permanent record of scientific work that has been completed.
Go to:
TYPES OF SCIENTIFIC WRITING
Scientific writing encompasses a whole range of forms, including theses, books, book chapters, grant applications, course syllabi, proffered abstracts, and journal articles. For the medical community, publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals that are indexed in a major database such as PubMed (a service of the US National Library of Medicine that includes over 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles) carries the highest weight, as accepted manuscripts are peer-reviewed and widely accessible internationally.
Go to:
BENEFITS OF WRITING
For doctors, and specifically radiologists, the benefits of scientific writing can be grouped into the following headings:
Career
Professional
Institutional
Practical
Radiologist-specific
Career benefits
The most compelling reason for many doctors to start writing is to fulfil specific job requirements by employers (e.g. hospitals or universities). These include initial appointment to an academic position, renewal or confirmation of that appointment, promotion to a higher level appointment, and granting of tenure. In some public hospitals in Singapore, having publications in a recognised journal is a requirement for appointment as a consultant. Other career benefits include professional accreditation, continuing medical education (CME) accreditation, and application for membership in prestigious learned societies. In Singapore, where obtaining a minimum number of CME points over a two-year cycle is compulsory for renewal of a doctor's practising certificate, the Singapore Medical Council awards CME points for successful publication.
Professional benefits
Publications can be regarded as an international currency that transcends political borders. For young doctors, having published articles in internationally reputable journals are a great help when applying for positions in foreign institutions and for overseas fellowships. For more established doctors, publications enable them to gain recognition and acknowledgement as experts in a particular field at national and international levels. Invitations to lecture at scientific meetings and refresher courses, and appointments as consultants to external agencies, expert panels and advisory boards, and to reviewer and editorial boards, are among the benefits of this enhanced professional reputation.
Having topic-focused publications is also regarded as attainment of a certain standard of scholarly endeavour by several prestigious invitation-only international learned societies. From the academic point of view, writing and getting published improves one's prospects of being successful in applications for research funding, extension of funding, and to obtain further funding. Grant-awarding bodies usually closely examine the publication track record of the applying investigators, when considering dispensation of funds.
The discipline imposed by scientific study, research and writing increases the depth of knowledge in the subject being investigated. This knowledge sharpens clinical skills and facilitates teaching of students and postgraduates. Through scientific writing and publication, the author achieves expertise and eventually becomes acknowledged as an authority by academic peers in similar fields of endeavour.
Institutional benefits
Publication in peer-reviewed journals is arguably the most important means to get international recognition for an individual, department, hospital, and university. The author's country, and even the region, may also derive benefit from published work, particularly if it is on a topic of major importance. Besides educating peers locally and regionally, publications on subjects of relevance or common interest also serve as a conduit to establish links with other centres, with potential for clinical referral, training and research opportunities.
Many government bodies and academic institutions use publications as a measure of academic productivity. Published papers not only contribute to an institution's academic prestige and standing; for individual academic cost centres and departments, they may be linked to, and have a critical influence on, the annual budget allocation.
Practical benefits
The most important practical reason for knowing how to write is probably the benefit derived from the inherent training to be discriminatory and critical during the process of manuscript preparation. Scientific writing entails the discipline of performing a complete literature search, gathering and analysing data, and writing and revising numerous versions of a manuscript. Following the satisfaction of having their own manuscripts accepted, authors will be better positioned to appreciate what is written in journals and other scientific publications. If asked to act as a journal manuscript reviewer, it is strongly recommended that all doctors should accept the invitation to undertake this valuable learning process.
With the huge amount of information now available in so many journals and other print material, it is vital for all professionals and academics to be able to judge the quality and reliability of published work. If one has published and appreciates the writing, reviewing and editing process, then one will be better able to read articles with the correct scientific and critical technique, and assess them for their true worth. Being able to provide a critical evaluation and learned judgement of what is written are skills that will produce a better clinical doctor. After all, medical practice is a knowledge-based profession. Patients always want to be seen by the most knowledgeable and up-to-date doctor.
Radiologist-specific benefits
Diagnostic radiology is rapidly evolving. To be able to provide the best imaging service to patients, radiologists have to be constantly up-to-date and able to influence clinicians. Most clinicians do not have in-depth knowledge of, or formal training in, imaging and interventional radiology techniques, but they may be compelled to move into the radiologist's turf, if radiologists are not providing the service to their requirements and satisfaction. The reality of radiology clinical practice is that effective communication is required. Unlike most of our clinical colleagues, our 'clients' are not laypersons but highly-qualified doctors, usually specialists and sub-specialists. Radiologists are often referred to as the 'doctor's doctors', and must therefore strive to live up to this moniker.
For radiologists, scientific writing is important in different phases of a radiological career. In the initial four-to-six year training period, the importance of written communication is recognised by its incorporation into the examination and accreditation system. Most radiology examinations include a written component where the candidate has to write quickly and succinctly within a short period of time. This usually takes the form of a film reporting session. Many professional Masters in Radiology courses have a mini-thesis component, incorporating all the elements of basic research techniques and manuscript preparation. Many awarding bodies have a requirement for publication(s) as part of the exit assessment or examination.
Obtaining the exit radiological qualification and passing the various examinations may be considered a licence to continue the life-long learning process unsupervised. Written communication is an integral part of daily radiology practice. Radiologists are judged by their reports, in terms of style, accuracy and completeness. The reports should be of practical usefulness, contributing to the diagnosis and management of patients. As the radiology reports may also be read by peers from other institutions, including foreign ones, they should be clear, concise and written in a universally-understood format. Being proficient in scientific writing is therefore a necessity if one aims to be a competent international-standard radiologist.
SUMMARY
Writing is the most important means for communicating scientific work. Research and publication complement teaching and training, clinical service and patient care. There are many reasons for writing, one of the most important of which is the inherent training undertaken to better appreciate and evaluate the published work of others. Effective scientific writing is an important component of a radiologist's practice. Trainees should be encouraged to start early, and senior members of our profession should act as role models and provide support.
But it is of importance to everyone.
Worth a read.
Scientific writing and publishing: its importance to radiologists
WCG Peh, MD, FRCP, FRCRcorresponding author
Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract
Scientific writing and publication marks the endpoint of research that has been performed, completed, peer reviewed and accepted, and complements teaching and training, clinical service and patient care. Writing has numerous benefits, one of the most important ones being the inherent training undertaken to better appreciate and evaluate the published work of others. Effective scientific writing is an important component of a radiologist's practice, and should be cultivated at an early stage of the career.
Keywords: Academic radiology, manuscript preparation, medical publication, professional development, research, scientific writing
INTRODUCTION
The reasons for scientific writing range from noble to base reasons. Topping the list is altruism, where one writes for the pleasure derived from the creative activity of writing and from sharing one's intellectual pursuits, as well as for the desire to advance human knowledge for the benefit of mankind. For these authors, writing is a channel for expressing the joy of scientific discovery. At the bottom of the list, writing may be considered by some to be a chore where getting published is a 'necessary evil' in order to fulfil certain specific minimum requirements, e.g. for getting a job or a promotion.
Writing is one of the marks of human civilisation - an advanced means by which humans communicate with each other. A published article is indisputable evidence of research that has been performed, completed, and accepted by peers. Publication is also an indicator of achievement of a certain academic standard. Besides communication of a finalised piece of research, the written work is the basis for further opinions, views and critiques from fellow professionals and academics separated by time and distance. Most importantly, it represents the only permanent record of scientific work that has been completed.
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TYPES OF SCIENTIFIC WRITING
Scientific writing encompasses a whole range of forms, including theses, books, book chapters, grant applications, course syllabi, proffered abstracts, and journal articles. For the medical community, publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals that are indexed in a major database such as PubMed (a service of the US National Library of Medicine that includes over 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles) carries the highest weight, as accepted manuscripts are peer-reviewed and widely accessible internationally.
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BENEFITS OF WRITING
For doctors, and specifically radiologists, the benefits of scientific writing can be grouped into the following headings:
Career
Professional
Institutional
Practical
Radiologist-specific
Career benefits
The most compelling reason for many doctors to start writing is to fulfil specific job requirements by employers (e.g. hospitals or universities). These include initial appointment to an academic position, renewal or confirmation of that appointment, promotion to a higher level appointment, and granting of tenure. In some public hospitals in Singapore, having publications in a recognised journal is a requirement for appointment as a consultant. Other career benefits include professional accreditation, continuing medical education (CME) accreditation, and application for membership in prestigious learned societies. In Singapore, where obtaining a minimum number of CME points over a two-year cycle is compulsory for renewal of a doctor's practising certificate, the Singapore Medical Council awards CME points for successful publication.
Professional benefits
Publications can be regarded as an international currency that transcends political borders. For young doctors, having published articles in internationally reputable journals are a great help when applying for positions in foreign institutions and for overseas fellowships. For more established doctors, publications enable them to gain recognition and acknowledgement as experts in a particular field at national and international levels. Invitations to lecture at scientific meetings and refresher courses, and appointments as consultants to external agencies, expert panels and advisory boards, and to reviewer and editorial boards, are among the benefits of this enhanced professional reputation.
Having topic-focused publications is also regarded as attainment of a certain standard of scholarly endeavour by several prestigious invitation-only international learned societies. From the academic point of view, writing and getting published improves one's prospects of being successful in applications for research funding, extension of funding, and to obtain further funding. Grant-awarding bodies usually closely examine the publication track record of the applying investigators, when considering dispensation of funds.
The discipline imposed by scientific study, research and writing increases the depth of knowledge in the subject being investigated. This knowledge sharpens clinical skills and facilitates teaching of students and postgraduates. Through scientific writing and publication, the author achieves expertise and eventually becomes acknowledged as an authority by academic peers in similar fields of endeavour.
Institutional benefits
Publication in peer-reviewed journals is arguably the most important means to get international recognition for an individual, department, hospital, and university. The author's country, and even the region, may also derive benefit from published work, particularly if it is on a topic of major importance. Besides educating peers locally and regionally, publications on subjects of relevance or common interest also serve as a conduit to establish links with other centres, with potential for clinical referral, training and research opportunities.
Many government bodies and academic institutions use publications as a measure of academic productivity. Published papers not only contribute to an institution's academic prestige and standing; for individual academic cost centres and departments, they may be linked to, and have a critical influence on, the annual budget allocation.
Practical benefits
The most important practical reason for knowing how to write is probably the benefit derived from the inherent training to be discriminatory and critical during the process of manuscript preparation. Scientific writing entails the discipline of performing a complete literature search, gathering and analysing data, and writing and revising numerous versions of a manuscript. Following the satisfaction of having their own manuscripts accepted, authors will be better positioned to appreciate what is written in journals and other scientific publications. If asked to act as a journal manuscript reviewer, it is strongly recommended that all doctors should accept the invitation to undertake this valuable learning process.
With the huge amount of information now available in so many journals and other print material, it is vital for all professionals and academics to be able to judge the quality and reliability of published work. If one has published and appreciates the writing, reviewing and editing process, then one will be better able to read articles with the correct scientific and critical technique, and assess them for their true worth. Being able to provide a critical evaluation and learned judgement of what is written are skills that will produce a better clinical doctor. After all, medical practice is a knowledge-based profession. Patients always want to be seen by the most knowledgeable and up-to-date doctor.
Radiologist-specific benefits
Diagnostic radiology is rapidly evolving. To be able to provide the best imaging service to patients, radiologists have to be constantly up-to-date and able to influence clinicians. Most clinicians do not have in-depth knowledge of, or formal training in, imaging and interventional radiology techniques, but they may be compelled to move into the radiologist's turf, if radiologists are not providing the service to their requirements and satisfaction. The reality of radiology clinical practice is that effective communication is required. Unlike most of our clinical colleagues, our 'clients' are not laypersons but highly-qualified doctors, usually specialists and sub-specialists. Radiologists are often referred to as the 'doctor's doctors', and must therefore strive to live up to this moniker.
For radiologists, scientific writing is important in different phases of a radiological career. In the initial four-to-six year training period, the importance of written communication is recognised by its incorporation into the examination and accreditation system. Most radiology examinations include a written component where the candidate has to write quickly and succinctly within a short period of time. This usually takes the form of a film reporting session. Many professional Masters in Radiology courses have a mini-thesis component, incorporating all the elements of basic research techniques and manuscript preparation. Many awarding bodies have a requirement for publication(s) as part of the exit assessment or examination.
Obtaining the exit radiological qualification and passing the various examinations may be considered a licence to continue the life-long learning process unsupervised. Written communication is an integral part of daily radiology practice. Radiologists are judged by their reports, in terms of style, accuracy and completeness. The reports should be of practical usefulness, contributing to the diagnosis and management of patients. As the radiology reports may also be read by peers from other institutions, including foreign ones, they should be clear, concise and written in a universally-understood format. Being proficient in scientific writing is therefore a necessity if one aims to be a competent international-standard radiologist.
SUMMARY
Writing is the most important means for communicating scientific work. Research and publication complement teaching and training, clinical service and patient care. There are many reasons for writing, one of the most important of which is the inherent training undertaken to better appreciate and evaluate the published work of others. Effective scientific writing is an important component of a radiologist's practice. Trainees should be encouraged to start early, and senior members of our profession should act as role models and provide support.
Friday, October 8, 2021
Make the most of your day
[How to Improve Your Productivity at Work - Business Guides - The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/guides/business/how-to-improve-your-productivity-at-work)
By Phyllis Korkki
Illustrations by Antoine Corbineau
Do you often find your workday spiraling out of control? You start each day with a plan to get so much done, but soon find yourself becoming distracted, focusing on low-priority tasks and, simply, procrastinating. So how can you regain control of your time? One-size-fits-all lists on how to be more productive don't work; we'll outline productivity techniques that can be adapted to your personality and working style.
Three Basics of Productivity
Use these principles to help guide you through your workday.
All workers and workdays are unique. With fewer companies and employees adhering to a traditional 9-to-5 day, the differences in our workdays are becoming more pronounced. But putting those differences aside, three overarching ideas apply to all our productivity tips:
1. Trust the small increments. You can't expect to change years of working habits overnight. Small changes in how you work can gradually add up to big changes in productivity. Try one tip to start, and keep adding more as you find the strategies that work best for you.
2. Be accountable. Whether it's weekly check-ins with a co-worker or setting your own deadlines and announcing them to others, having to answer to someone else can often force you to get the job done.
3. Forgive yourself. You are human: Accept that you are sometimes going to slip up, become distracted and have a bad day. It's more important to move on than to dwell on your mistakes.
For the Multitasker
If you're trying to do three things at once, you're often accomplishing very little.
A Biological Impossibility
Think you can get more done by juggling multiple tasks at the same time? Try calling your co-worker while typing an e-mail and checking your Facebook page. You may feel as if you're being productive, but you're probably not getting any of those tasks done efficiently.
We all have a limited amount of cognitive bandwidth — the number of thoughts and memories we can hold in our minds at any given time. Your brain may delude itself into thinking that it has more capacity than it really does, but it's really working extra hard to handle multiple thoughts at once when you are switching back and forth between tasks. Your ability to get things done depends on how well you can focus on one task at a time, whether it's for five minutes or an hour.
"Multitasking is not humanly possible," said Earl K. Miller, a neuroscience professor at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
More Errors and Less Creativity
When you multitask, you tend to make more mistakes. When you toggle back and forth between tasks, the neural networks of your brain must backtrack to figure out where they left off and then reconfigure, Dr. Miller said. That extra activity causes you to slow down, and errors become more likely.
"People are much more efficient if they monotask," he said.
Trying to multitask also impedes creativity, he said. Truly innovative thinking arises when we allow our brains to follow a logical path of associated thoughts and ideas, and this is more likely when we can focus on a single mental pathway for an extended period.
The brain is like a muscle: It becomes stronger with use, Dr. Miller said. As with physical exercise, the more we strengthen our mental connections by focusing on one task to the exclusion of all others, the better we can perform.
How to Monotask
To the best of your ability, set up a work environment that encourages the performing of one task at a time. It's probably not realistic to think that we can block off hours at a time for a single task, but even committing to monotask for five minutes can yield productivity benefits.
Here are a few small changes you can make:
Remove temptation: Actively resist the urge to check unrelated social media while you are working on a task. Some workers may need to go so far as to install anti-distraction programs like SelfControl, Freedom, StayFocusd and Anti-Social, which block access to the most addictive parts of the internet for specified periods.
Work on just one screen: Put away your cellphone and turn off your second monitor.
Move: If you find yourself losing focus – reading the same sentence over and over or if your mind continually wanders off topic – get up and briefly walk around, Dr. Miller said. A brief walk around your office can lift your mood, reduce hunger and help you refocus.
Work in intervals: Set a timer for five or 10 minutes and commit to focusing on your assignment for that amount of time. Then allow yourself a minute of distraction, as long as you get back on your task for another five or 10 minutes.
When Distractions Take Over
The tendency to become distracted is primal, so forgive yourself if you do. It arose in our earliest days as humans, when we needed to respond instantly to lions, tigers and other predators that threatened us, said Dr. Miller. Every sensory input was deeply interesting, and our response to it was sometimes a matter of life or death. Our brain has not let go of this ancient survival mechanism; we still crave that informational tap on the shoulder, he said.
Fortunately, the more we work on focusing on one task at a time and ignoring distractions, the more we exercise the prefrontal cortex – the more evolved part of our brains. Then it becomes easier to focus.](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.nytimes.com/guides/business/how-to-improve-your-productivity-at-work%3Fsmid%3Dfb-share)
How to Make the Most of Your Workday
By Phyllis Korkki
Illustrations by Antoine Corbineau
Do you often find your workday spiraling out of control? You start each day with a plan to get so much done, but soon find yourself becoming distracted, focusing on low-priority tasks and, simply, procrastinating. So how can you regain control of your time? One-size-fits-all lists on how to be more productive don't work; we'll outline productivity techniques that can be adapted to your personality and working style.
Three Basics of Productivity
Use these principles to help guide you through your workday.
All workers and workdays are unique. With fewer companies and employees adhering to a traditional 9-to-5 day, the differences in our workdays are becoming more pronounced. But putting those differences aside, three overarching ideas apply to all our productivity tips:
1. Trust the small increments. You can't expect to change years of working habits overnight. Small changes in how you work can gradually add up to big changes in productivity. Try one tip to start, and keep adding more as you find the strategies that work best for you.
2. Be accountable. Whether it's weekly check-ins with a co-worker or setting your own deadlines and announcing them to others, having to answer to someone else can often force you to get the job done.
3. Forgive yourself. You are human: Accept that you are sometimes going to slip up, become distracted and have a bad day. It's more important to move on than to dwell on your mistakes.
For the Multitasker
If you're trying to do three things at once, you're often accomplishing very little.
A Biological Impossibility
Think you can get more done by juggling multiple tasks at the same time? Try calling your co-worker while typing an e-mail and checking your Facebook page. You may feel as if you're being productive, but you're probably not getting any of those tasks done efficiently.
We all have a limited amount of cognitive bandwidth — the number of thoughts and memories we can hold in our minds at any given time. Your brain may delude itself into thinking that it has more capacity than it really does, but it's really working extra hard to handle multiple thoughts at once when you are switching back and forth between tasks. Your ability to get things done depends on how well you can focus on one task at a time, whether it's for five minutes or an hour.
"Multitasking is not humanly possible," said Earl K. Miller, a neuroscience professor at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
More Errors and Less Creativity
When you multitask, you tend to make more mistakes. When you toggle back and forth between tasks, the neural networks of your brain must backtrack to figure out where they left off and then reconfigure, Dr. Miller said. That extra activity causes you to slow down, and errors become more likely.
"People are much more efficient if they monotask," he said.
Trying to multitask also impedes creativity, he said. Truly innovative thinking arises when we allow our brains to follow a logical path of associated thoughts and ideas, and this is more likely when we can focus on a single mental pathway for an extended period.
The brain is like a muscle: It becomes stronger with use, Dr. Miller said. As with physical exercise, the more we strengthen our mental connections by focusing on one task to the exclusion of all others, the better we can perform.
How to Monotask
To the best of your ability, set up a work environment that encourages the performing of one task at a time. It's probably not realistic to think that we can block off hours at a time for a single task, but even committing to monotask for five minutes can yield productivity benefits.
Here are a few small changes you can make:
Remove temptation: Actively resist the urge to check unrelated social media while you are working on a task. Some workers may need to go so far as to install anti-distraction programs like SelfControl, Freedom, StayFocusd and Anti-Social, which block access to the most addictive parts of the internet for specified periods.
Work on just one screen: Put away your cellphone and turn off your second monitor.
Move: If you find yourself losing focus – reading the same sentence over and over or if your mind continually wanders off topic – get up and briefly walk around, Dr. Miller said. A brief walk around your office can lift your mood, reduce hunger and help you refocus.
Work in intervals: Set a timer for five or 10 minutes and commit to focusing on your assignment for that amount of time. Then allow yourself a minute of distraction, as long as you get back on your task for another five or 10 minutes.
When Distractions Take Over
The tendency to become distracted is primal, so forgive yourself if you do. It arose in our earliest days as humans, when we needed to respond instantly to lions, tigers and other predators that threatened us, said Dr. Miller. Every sensory input was deeply interesting, and our response to it was sometimes a matter of life or death. Our brain has not let go of this ancient survival mechanism; we still crave that informational tap on the shoulder, he said.
Fortunately, the more we work on focusing on one task at a time and ignoring distractions, the more we exercise the prefrontal cortex – the more evolved part of our brains. Then it becomes easier to focus.
By Phyllis Korkki
Illustrations by Antoine Corbineau
Do you often find your workday spiraling out of control? You start each day with a plan to get so much done, but soon find yourself becoming distracted, focusing on low-priority tasks and, simply, procrastinating. So how can you regain control of your time? One-size-fits-all lists on how to be more productive don't work; we'll outline productivity techniques that can be adapted to your personality and working style.
Three Basics of Productivity
Use these principles to help guide you through your workday.
All workers and workdays are unique. With fewer companies and employees adhering to a traditional 9-to-5 day, the differences in our workdays are becoming more pronounced. But putting those differences aside, three overarching ideas apply to all our productivity tips:
1. Trust the small increments. You can't expect to change years of working habits overnight. Small changes in how you work can gradually add up to big changes in productivity. Try one tip to start, and keep adding more as you find the strategies that work best for you.
2. Be accountable. Whether it's weekly check-ins with a co-worker or setting your own deadlines and announcing them to others, having to answer to someone else can often force you to get the job done.
3. Forgive yourself. You are human: Accept that you are sometimes going to slip up, become distracted and have a bad day. It's more important to move on than to dwell on your mistakes.
For the Multitasker
If you're trying to do three things at once, you're often accomplishing very little.
A Biological Impossibility
Think you can get more done by juggling multiple tasks at the same time? Try calling your co-worker while typing an e-mail and checking your Facebook page. You may feel as if you're being productive, but you're probably not getting any of those tasks done efficiently.
We all have a limited amount of cognitive bandwidth — the number of thoughts and memories we can hold in our minds at any given time. Your brain may delude itself into thinking that it has more capacity than it really does, but it's really working extra hard to handle multiple thoughts at once when you are switching back and forth between tasks. Your ability to get things done depends on how well you can focus on one task at a time, whether it's for five minutes or an hour.
"Multitasking is not humanly possible," said Earl K. Miller, a neuroscience professor at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
More Errors and Less Creativity
When you multitask, you tend to make more mistakes. When you toggle back and forth between tasks, the neural networks of your brain must backtrack to figure out where they left off and then reconfigure, Dr. Miller said. That extra activity causes you to slow down, and errors become more likely.
"People are much more efficient if they monotask," he said.
Trying to multitask also impedes creativity, he said. Truly innovative thinking arises when we allow our brains to follow a logical path of associated thoughts and ideas, and this is more likely when we can focus on a single mental pathway for an extended period.
The brain is like a muscle: It becomes stronger with use, Dr. Miller said. As with physical exercise, the more we strengthen our mental connections by focusing on one task to the exclusion of all others, the better we can perform.
How to Monotask
To the best of your ability, set up a work environment that encourages the performing of one task at a time. It's probably not realistic to think that we can block off hours at a time for a single task, but even committing to monotask for five minutes can yield productivity benefits.
Here are a few small changes you can make:
Remove temptation: Actively resist the urge to check unrelated social media while you are working on a task. Some workers may need to go so far as to install anti-distraction programs like SelfControl, Freedom, StayFocusd and Anti-Social, which block access to the most addictive parts of the internet for specified periods.
Work on just one screen: Put away your cellphone and turn off your second monitor.
Move: If you find yourself losing focus – reading the same sentence over and over or if your mind continually wanders off topic – get up and briefly walk around, Dr. Miller said. A brief walk around your office can lift your mood, reduce hunger and help you refocus.
Work in intervals: Set a timer for five or 10 minutes and commit to focusing on your assignment for that amount of time. Then allow yourself a minute of distraction, as long as you get back on your task for another five or 10 minutes.
When Distractions Take Over
The tendency to become distracted is primal, so forgive yourself if you do. It arose in our earliest days as humans, when we needed to respond instantly to lions, tigers and other predators that threatened us, said Dr. Miller. Every sensory input was deeply interesting, and our response to it was sometimes a matter of life or death. Our brain has not let go of this ancient survival mechanism; we still crave that informational tap on the shoulder, he said.
Fortunately, the more we work on focusing on one task at a time and ignoring distractions, the more we exercise the prefrontal cortex – the more evolved part of our brains. Then it becomes easier to focus.](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.nytimes.com/guides/business/how-to-improve-your-productivity-at-work%3Fsmid%3Dfb-share)
How to Make the Most of Your Workday
By Phyllis Korkki
Illustrations by Antoine Corbineau
Do you often find your workday spiraling out of control? You start each day with a plan to get so much done, but soon find yourself becoming distracted, focusing on low-priority tasks and, simply, procrastinating. So how can you regain control of your time? One-size-fits-all lists on how to be more productive don't work; we'll outline productivity techniques that can be adapted to your personality and working style.
Three Basics of Productivity
Use these principles to help guide you through your workday.
All workers and workdays are unique. With fewer companies and employees adhering to a traditional 9-to-5 day, the differences in our workdays are becoming more pronounced. But putting those differences aside, three overarching ideas apply to all our productivity tips:
1. Trust the small increments. You can't expect to change years of working habits overnight. Small changes in how you work can gradually add up to big changes in productivity. Try one tip to start, and keep adding more as you find the strategies that work best for you.
2. Be accountable. Whether it's weekly check-ins with a co-worker or setting your own deadlines and announcing them to others, having to answer to someone else can often force you to get the job done.
3. Forgive yourself. You are human: Accept that you are sometimes going to slip up, become distracted and have a bad day. It's more important to move on than to dwell on your mistakes.
For the Multitasker
If you're trying to do three things at once, you're often accomplishing very little.
A Biological Impossibility
Think you can get more done by juggling multiple tasks at the same time? Try calling your co-worker while typing an e-mail and checking your Facebook page. You may feel as if you're being productive, but you're probably not getting any of those tasks done efficiently.
We all have a limited amount of cognitive bandwidth — the number of thoughts and memories we can hold in our minds at any given time. Your brain may delude itself into thinking that it has more capacity than it really does, but it's really working extra hard to handle multiple thoughts at once when you are switching back and forth between tasks. Your ability to get things done depends on how well you can focus on one task at a time, whether it's for five minutes or an hour.
"Multitasking is not humanly possible," said Earl K. Miller, a neuroscience professor at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
More Errors and Less Creativity
When you multitask, you tend to make more mistakes. When you toggle back and forth between tasks, the neural networks of your brain must backtrack to figure out where they left off and then reconfigure, Dr. Miller said. That extra activity causes you to slow down, and errors become more likely.
"People are much more efficient if they monotask," he said.
Trying to multitask also impedes creativity, he said. Truly innovative thinking arises when we allow our brains to follow a logical path of associated thoughts and ideas, and this is more likely when we can focus on a single mental pathway for an extended period.
The brain is like a muscle: It becomes stronger with use, Dr. Miller said. As with physical exercise, the more we strengthen our mental connections by focusing on one task to the exclusion of all others, the better we can perform.
How to Monotask
To the best of your ability, set up a work environment that encourages the performing of one task at a time. It's probably not realistic to think that we can block off hours at a time for a single task, but even committing to monotask for five minutes can yield productivity benefits.
Here are a few small changes you can make:
Remove temptation: Actively resist the urge to check unrelated social media while you are working on a task. Some workers may need to go so far as to install anti-distraction programs like SelfControl, Freedom, StayFocusd and Anti-Social, which block access to the most addictive parts of the internet for specified periods.
Work on just one screen: Put away your cellphone and turn off your second monitor.
Move: If you find yourself losing focus – reading the same sentence over and over or if your mind continually wanders off topic – get up and briefly walk around, Dr. Miller said. A brief walk around your office can lift your mood, reduce hunger and help you refocus.
Work in intervals: Set a timer for five or 10 minutes and commit to focusing on your assignment for that amount of time. Then allow yourself a minute of distraction, as long as you get back on your task for another five or 10 minutes.
When Distractions Take Over
The tendency to become distracted is primal, so forgive yourself if you do. It arose in our earliest days as humans, when we needed to respond instantly to lions, tigers and other predators that threatened us, said Dr. Miller. Every sensory input was deeply interesting, and our response to it was sometimes a matter of life or death. Our brain has not let go of this ancient survival mechanism; we still crave that informational tap on the shoulder, he said.
Fortunately, the more we work on focusing on one task at a time and ignoring distractions, the more we exercise the prefrontal cortex – the more evolved part of our brains. Then it becomes easier to focus.
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Satisfaction
Excerpt
"It's not terribly shocking that respect and decent wages make people happier at work, but what if you want to find a job that not only clears the "not miserable" bar but actually makes you happy? Brooks says he tells young people who come to him for career advice to think less about title, prestige, and sector, and instead look for these two qualities in a job:
Earned success. Few things make people happier than a sense that their hard work has paid off in recognition and rewards, so look for a job where your effort will bear tangible fruit. "Employers who give clear guidance and feedback, reward merit, and encourage their employees to develop new skills" are your best bet, writes Brooks, so "look for a boss who acts that way--and if you have the opportunity, be that kind of boss."
Service to others. What's the only thing that humans generally like more than being able to help themselves? Helping others. Which doesn't mean you need to find a do-gooder career at a charity, Brooks insists. "My own research has shown that nonprofit work is not more inherently satisfying than working for a for-profit or for the government," he points out. "On the contrary, you can find service in almost any job." Whether you're a janitor or a CEO, if you can see how what you do every day makes the world a better place, you're far more likely to be happy with your job.
Not just for job seekers
As Brooks himself points out, his roundup of the science of happiness at work isn't just of interest to college grads and burned-out professionals pondering a career change. The two factors above can guide you to finding a better job, but they can also guide you to designing a better job.
If you're looking to retain staff or attract talent, salary and seniority are certainly nice carrots. But to keep talent around and truly engaged, make sure you offer a sense of accomplishment and service, too."
"It's not terribly shocking that respect and decent wages make people happier at work, but what if you want to find a job that not only clears the "not miserable" bar but actually makes you happy? Brooks says he tells young people who come to him for career advice to think less about title, prestige, and sector, and instead look for these two qualities in a job:
Earned success. Few things make people happier than a sense that their hard work has paid off in recognition and rewards, so look for a job where your effort will bear tangible fruit. "Employers who give clear guidance and feedback, reward merit, and encourage their employees to develop new skills" are your best bet, writes Brooks, so "look for a boss who acts that way--and if you have the opportunity, be that kind of boss."
Service to others. What's the only thing that humans generally like more than being able to help themselves? Helping others. Which doesn't mean you need to find a do-gooder career at a charity, Brooks insists. "My own research has shown that nonprofit work is not more inherently satisfying than working for a for-profit or for the government," he points out. "On the contrary, you can find service in almost any job." Whether you're a janitor or a CEO, if you can see how what you do every day makes the world a better place, you're far more likely to be happy with your job.
Not just for job seekers
As Brooks himself points out, his roundup of the science of happiness at work isn't just of interest to college grads and burned-out professionals pondering a career change. The two factors above can guide you to finding a better job, but they can also guide you to designing a better job.
If you're looking to retain staff or attract talent, salary and seniority are certainly nice carrots. But to keep talent around and truly engaged, make sure you offer a sense of accomplishment and service, too."
Friday, September 17, 2021
Saturday, April 24, 2021
make your shake!
<From Hindu>/Chitra Anantharam
Every region in India has that one go-to drink it turns to when the sun shines its brightest. We take a minute to appreciate three such local favourites, beyond the mainstream bounty of mango and watermelon
The hottest days of summer are here, and it is time to pay attention to staying hydrated while replenishing nutrients.
There are various healthy summer coolers which help us to stay refreshed and energised as the mercury rises. The traditional choices of the hot season: musk melon, watermelon, lemon and tender coconut water are also pocket friendly. Here are some more juices that have been part of southern India's cuisine for many generations.
"It was nungu paal (ice apple-based) and nannari sherbat that we had during my childhood in Thanjavur, but now the options are wider and healthier," says Devi Bala Chandrasekar, whose foodblog, KitchenDB focusses primarily on traditional, healthy family recipes.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
"Each region in our country has special cool drinks and I have tried Nellai pazharasam (mixed fruit punch) and the much easier neer moru (spiced buttermilk) during summer," she adds.
Devi Bala shares recipes of herbal summer drinks like lemongrass lemonade, orange and oregano juice, tulsi sherbet and variyali sherbet (fennel seeds and raisin) on her blog.
Nandita Shah, a homeopath suggests juicing vegetables. "In North India, aam panna (made with raw mango and jaggery), sol kadhi (a coconut milk drink laced with herbs) and jal jeera (herbs and lemon juice) are popular. But we can also try blending nutrient-rich vegetables with a little lemon juice and mint in a sugar-free drink," she says.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
She says sugar can be substituted with dates paste or raisins. She also suggests drinking tender coconut chaas, made by combining half a cup of creamy tender coconut kernel, eight drops of lemon juice, two-and-a--half cups of water and one teaspoon chaas masala.
"When it comes to vegetable juices, everyone prefers carrots and beetroots, which are naturally sweet . But try blending any kind of gourd along with raw mango (the kilimooku variety) and you will enjoy it," says Sreedevi Lakshmikutty of Coimbatore-based Biobasics.
Electrical mixer/blenders have made fresh juices easy to make at home. "But we must aim at making these without sugar or at least substituting it with palm sugar or jaggery," she says.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
Sreedevi suggests trying blending curry leaves with coconut milk seasoned with some salt and palm sugar and adding little water to make it a nutrient loaded drink for the season. "I wonder why people have stopped drinking the ragi koozh (fermented porridge) or the simple lemon water with a pinch of salt," she adds.
Pune-based Neha Mathur, who blogs at The Whiskaffairs says "In Pune, chaas, shikanji and Jeera soda are a daily affair during summer months. I make beetroot chaas which looks great, tastes good and kids simply love it. Also cucumber blended with tender coconut flesh can also be added to the regular chaas as it can cool the body," says Neha.
Down South, it has always been the neeraagaram or pazhaya sadam (cooked rice fermented in water overnight) that has been the saviour for many during the harsh weather, says Seethalalshmi N, of Organic Farmers Market, Chennai.
She adds, "Using heritage rice and making sure to soak few fenugreek seeds along with the rice can promote health and keep the body cool and has numerous health benefits." She adds that "soaking sabja seeds and almond gum overnight in water, and adding lemon juice and water and a pinch of salt makes a wonderful drink."
Ice Apple Milk Dessert
Ingredients
5 palm fruit/nungu, skinned/chopped
200 ml milk, boiled/chilled
4 tbsp organic brown sugar
1 tbsp edible rosewater
A few rose petals
A few pistachios
Method : Chop the skinned palm fruits into fine pieces and keep aside, add it to the chilled milk in a bowl. To this add sugar and rosewater and mix well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes and while serving, garnish with rose petals and pistachios. @Kitchen_db
Ash gourd and Raw Mango Cooler
Ingredients
300 grams ash gourd, peeled and cubed
1 medium size raw mango (kilimooku) peeled and sliced
3-4 sprigs of curry leaves
8-10 peppercorns
Salt to taste
3 cups water
Method: Blend all the ingredients by adding a cup of water, and finally add two more cups of water and mix the juice well and serve. @biobasicsin
Beetroot Chaas
Ingredients
2 cups yoghurt
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup beetroot peeled and cubed
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp green chilli chopped
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
10-12 curry leaves
Method: Add beetroot and half cup of water in a pan, boil for five mintues, and once cooked allow to cool. Then blend it in a mixer with water, ginger and green chilli into a smooth paste, and strain. Whisk the curd in a big vessel, add water, salt and the puréed beetroot, and set aside. Heat a tablespoon of oil, add the mustard and curry leaves and once they splutter, add to the chaas. Serve chilled. Recipe: @whiskaffair
Every region in India has that one go-to drink it turns to when the sun shines its brightest. We take a minute to appreciate three such local favourites, beyond the mainstream bounty of mango and watermelon
The hottest days of summer are here, and it is time to pay attention to staying hydrated while replenishing nutrients.
There are various healthy summer coolers which help us to stay refreshed and energised as the mercury rises. The traditional choices of the hot season: musk melon, watermelon, lemon and tender coconut water are also pocket friendly. Here are some more juices that have been part of southern India's cuisine for many generations.
"It was nungu paal (ice apple-based) and nannari sherbat that we had during my childhood in Thanjavur, but now the options are wider and healthier," says Devi Bala Chandrasekar, whose foodblog, KitchenDB focusses primarily on traditional, healthy family recipes.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
"Each region in our country has special cool drinks and I have tried Nellai pazharasam (mixed fruit punch) and the much easier neer moru (spiced buttermilk) during summer," she adds.
Devi Bala shares recipes of herbal summer drinks like lemongrass lemonade, orange and oregano juice, tulsi sherbet and variyali sherbet (fennel seeds and raisin) on her blog.
Nandita Shah, a homeopath suggests juicing vegetables. "In North India, aam panna (made with raw mango and jaggery), sol kadhi (a coconut milk drink laced with herbs) and jal jeera (herbs and lemon juice) are popular. But we can also try blending nutrient-rich vegetables with a little lemon juice and mint in a sugar-free drink," she says.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
She says sugar can be substituted with dates paste or raisins. She also suggests drinking tender coconut chaas, made by combining half a cup of creamy tender coconut kernel, eight drops of lemon juice, two-and-a--half cups of water and one teaspoon chaas masala.
"When it comes to vegetable juices, everyone prefers carrots and beetroots, which are naturally sweet . But try blending any kind of gourd along with raw mango (the kilimooku variety) and you will enjoy it," says Sreedevi Lakshmikutty of Coimbatore-based Biobasics.
Electrical mixer/blenders have made fresh juices easy to make at home. "But we must aim at making these without sugar or at least substituting it with palm sugar or jaggery," she says.
How about these traditional summer drinks that are loaded with nutrients
Sreedevi suggests trying blending curry leaves with coconut milk seasoned with some salt and palm sugar and adding little water to make it a nutrient loaded drink for the season. "I wonder why people have stopped drinking the ragi koozh (fermented porridge) or the simple lemon water with a pinch of salt," she adds.
Pune-based Neha Mathur, who blogs at The Whiskaffairs says "In Pune, chaas, shikanji and Jeera soda are a daily affair during summer months. I make beetroot chaas which looks great, tastes good and kids simply love it. Also cucumber blended with tender coconut flesh can also be added to the regular chaas as it can cool the body," says Neha.
Down South, it has always been the neeraagaram or pazhaya sadam (cooked rice fermented in water overnight) that has been the saviour for many during the harsh weather, says Seethalalshmi N, of Organic Farmers Market, Chennai.
She adds, "Using heritage rice and making sure to soak few fenugreek seeds along with the rice can promote health and keep the body cool and has numerous health benefits." She adds that "soaking sabja seeds and almond gum overnight in water, and adding lemon juice and water and a pinch of salt makes a wonderful drink."
Ice Apple Milk Dessert
Ingredients
5 palm fruit/nungu, skinned/chopped
200 ml milk, boiled/chilled
4 tbsp organic brown sugar
1 tbsp edible rosewater
A few rose petals
A few pistachios
Method : Chop the skinned palm fruits into fine pieces and keep aside, add it to the chilled milk in a bowl. To this add sugar and rosewater and mix well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes and while serving, garnish with rose petals and pistachios. @Kitchen_db
Ash gourd and Raw Mango Cooler
Ingredients
300 grams ash gourd, peeled and cubed
1 medium size raw mango (kilimooku) peeled and sliced
3-4 sprigs of curry leaves
8-10 peppercorns
Salt to taste
3 cups water
Method: Blend all the ingredients by adding a cup of water, and finally add two more cups of water and mix the juice well and serve. @biobasicsin
Beetroot Chaas
Ingredients
2 cups yoghurt
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup beetroot peeled and cubed
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp green chilli chopped
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
10-12 curry leaves
Method: Add beetroot and half cup of water in a pan, boil for five mintues, and once cooked allow to cool. Then blend it in a mixer with water, ginger and green chilli into a smooth paste, and strain. Whisk the curd in a big vessel, add water, salt and the puréed beetroot, and set aside. Heat a tablespoon of oil, add the mustard and curry leaves and once they splutter, add to the chaas. Serve chilled. Recipe: @whiskaffair
Wednesday, April 7, 2021
Wednesday, March 24, 2021
Cat-a-logues
Cat-aloguing the Neighbourhood
Our crack commando unit is called Black Cats. I also recently discovered that, CATS is an acronym for 99 phrases, among them South Africa's Crimes Against The State. All of us could list several Crimes Against Neighbours, but I'm still figuring out if an altercation last week can be booked under this cat-egory. The trigger was a photograph posted on the WhatsApp group of our gated community by Zubin Mehta (not THE one, but a despairing resident). Hearing strange, faint sounds emanating from the front of his car, he lifted the bonnet to find a furry bundle. Five tiny kittens peered back at him in worried bemusement.
His post had asked the management committee to deal with the stray cat menace in the basement parking areas. He added a further request to the concerned residents to 'please stop feeding them, or else keep them in your house and feed them there'. This set off yet another verbal fusillade between the society's cat-champions, led by our Billi ki Rani, Rita Maker, and their equally dogged opponents. The comments fell into the usual polar positions: 'Love all God's creatures' countered with 'Sure, as long as they don't mess up public spaces'.
Every housing colony has the tug of war 'twixt the Pet-lovers and the Petrified (or merely Petulant). The anti-group doesn't want to share a cramped lift with a monstrous — and jumpy — canine. The other usual grouse is over unseemly poo left behind unwittingly, unknowingly or downright uncaringly by the dog-walker. Pet cats are almost always housebound. But stray cats are quite another kettle of fish. And were the cause of our recent cat-atonic exchange.
They are assiduously shooed out of swanky SoBo societies, but they easily infiltrate into large gated communities. They are anatomically designed to squeeze through the narrowest space between the railings that separate the compound from the street. It takes just one cat and a passing tom, to become a living example of Bobby Darin's 1961 hit, 'Multiplication': 'Two butterflies/Casting their eyes, /Both in the same direction. /You'd never guess/ That one little yes/ Can start a butterfly collection.' That flitting proliferation would be universally welcome. But cats don't emerge from caterpillars.
Several generations now have squatting rights in our complex. They are not liable for quarterly maintenance and, unlike pesky human tenants, immune to eviction efforts. In fact, they behave more like the 'monarch of all I survey', strolling, stretching, sringar-ing with languid elaboration. Podium garden, clubhouse, basements, lobbies, in all our public spaces you can find an Indian version of TS Eliot's delightful Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, the inspiration of Andrew Lloyd Weber's memorable musical. Cats in every possible combination of black and white, ginger cats, calico cats, tabbies — and the fat-jowled tom who jumps down from the night-hidden boundary, shoots and leaves. Soon enough arrive those riveting kittens, the darling of little children who pet, cuddle, lug them around, and occasionally get scratched. But then you should recall the astute Ogden Nash's observation: 'The trouble with a kitten is that/ Eventually it becomes a cat.' Applies to humans too.
How those kittens were deposited under Zubin Mehta's closed car bonnet will not be a mystery to anyone whose home has been the free labour room for pregnant felines. Growing up in a sprawling old house that was also my family's printing press, it was a perennial headache to extricate the skinny, whining creatures from under the inaccessible spaces behind the racks and reams. Btw, we had inherited all these generations from the pet cat of the Nepali ayah of the adjacent house. The latter left and went back to her native hills. The cat being an urban animal merely strolled across the common terrace, and unilaterally took possession of her new home. A caterwauling street tom did the rest.
The literal stray cat can be found across the history of human settlements. But I want to present it as a double metaphor. One, this feline squatter nonchalantly occupying public spaces can be seen as yet another example of encroachment, that immutable marker of urban life, regardless of socio-economic classifications. Two, the stray cat symbolises class prejudice. While that trait is as old as society itself, this one is specific to the new housing societies which now spread across gentrifying areas such as our Sewri. Their residents live in a rarified bubble totally unrelated to the raucous surroundings. The street and all its lowlier occupants — other than those who serve our needs — must be kept beyond the Lakshman Rekha of our ornate gates. The rastey ki billi is arguably the only outsider that couldn't care two meows for our snobbery, indeed saunters around our property with a snooty air of its own. Cool cat.
Our crack commando unit is called Black Cats. I also recently discovered that, CATS is an acronym for 99 phrases, among them South Africa's Crimes Against The State. All of us could list several Crimes Against Neighbours, but I'm still figuring out if an altercation last week can be booked under this cat-egory. The trigger was a photograph posted on the WhatsApp group of our gated community by Zubin Mehta (not THE one, but a despairing resident). Hearing strange, faint sounds emanating from the front of his car, he lifted the bonnet to find a furry bundle. Five tiny kittens peered back at him in worried bemusement.
His post had asked the management committee to deal with the stray cat menace in the basement parking areas. He added a further request to the concerned residents to 'please stop feeding them, or else keep them in your house and feed them there'. This set off yet another verbal fusillade between the society's cat-champions, led by our Billi ki Rani, Rita Maker, and their equally dogged opponents. The comments fell into the usual polar positions: 'Love all God's creatures' countered with 'Sure, as long as they don't mess up public spaces'.
Every housing colony has the tug of war 'twixt the Pet-lovers and the Petrified (or merely Petulant). The anti-group doesn't want to share a cramped lift with a monstrous — and jumpy — canine. The other usual grouse is over unseemly poo left behind unwittingly, unknowingly or downright uncaringly by the dog-walker. Pet cats are almost always housebound. But stray cats are quite another kettle of fish. And were the cause of our recent cat-atonic exchange.
They are assiduously shooed out of swanky SoBo societies, but they easily infiltrate into large gated communities. They are anatomically designed to squeeze through the narrowest space between the railings that separate the compound from the street. It takes just one cat and a passing tom, to become a living example of Bobby Darin's 1961 hit, 'Multiplication': 'Two butterflies/Casting their eyes, /Both in the same direction. /You'd never guess/ That one little yes/ Can start a butterfly collection.' That flitting proliferation would be universally welcome. But cats don't emerge from caterpillars.
Several generations now have squatting rights in our complex. They are not liable for quarterly maintenance and, unlike pesky human tenants, immune to eviction efforts. In fact, they behave more like the 'monarch of all I survey', strolling, stretching, sringar-ing with languid elaboration. Podium garden, clubhouse, basements, lobbies, in all our public spaces you can find an Indian version of TS Eliot's delightful Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, the inspiration of Andrew Lloyd Weber's memorable musical. Cats in every possible combination of black and white, ginger cats, calico cats, tabbies — and the fat-jowled tom who jumps down from the night-hidden boundary, shoots and leaves. Soon enough arrive those riveting kittens, the darling of little children who pet, cuddle, lug them around, and occasionally get scratched. But then you should recall the astute Ogden Nash's observation: 'The trouble with a kitten is that/ Eventually it becomes a cat.' Applies to humans too.
How those kittens were deposited under Zubin Mehta's closed car bonnet will not be a mystery to anyone whose home has been the free labour room for pregnant felines. Growing up in a sprawling old house that was also my family's printing press, it was a perennial headache to extricate the skinny, whining creatures from under the inaccessible spaces behind the racks and reams. Btw, we had inherited all these generations from the pet cat of the Nepali ayah of the adjacent house. The latter left and went back to her native hills. The cat being an urban animal merely strolled across the common terrace, and unilaterally took possession of her new home. A caterwauling street tom did the rest.
The literal stray cat can be found across the history of human settlements. But I want to present it as a double metaphor. One, this feline squatter nonchalantly occupying public spaces can be seen as yet another example of encroachment, that immutable marker of urban life, regardless of socio-economic classifications. Two, the stray cat symbolises class prejudice. While that trait is as old as society itself, this one is specific to the new housing societies which now spread across gentrifying areas such as our Sewri. Their residents live in a rarified bubble totally unrelated to the raucous surroundings. The street and all its lowlier occupants — other than those who serve our needs — must be kept beyond the Lakshman Rekha of our ornate gates. The rastey ki billi is arguably the only outsider that couldn't care two meows for our snobbery, indeed saunters around our property with a snooty air of its own. Cool cat.
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