MCI has notified a single National Entrance Test for admission to medical colleges all over India. This is the same test for the government colleges or those run privately without any distinction. The marks obtained in CBSE maths will also be counted. All the students will be benefited because this eliminates the evil of the capitation fees- MCI, representing whole country, has a stake in the proper education of our doctors. They have the responsibility to recognize the degrees awarded by various institutions and maintain by constant supervision and interaction with the institutions. The centrifugal forces generated by the formation of linguistic states are still not controlled totally. A single minimum standard of education throughout India, common entrance exams, public service exams for IAS, IFS, IPS for accountant general's office, and most important of all, our army, air-force and navy - these are the factors for binding India into a more...

We congratulate Dr. Shuvo Roy for his brilliant research. Dr. Roy and his team at the University of California have made a very important discovery, eliminating the need for dialysis, though more research has to be performed now on human beings. This artificial kidney has only the size of a coffee cup and can be implanted inside the body. This can mimic the functions of the real kidney such as filtering the toxins from the blood stream, produce vitamin D and also regulate the blood pressure. This also avoids the kidney transplantation. The Man-made kidney has a silicon membrane which filters the blood to remove the toxins-These toxins pass as waste to the bladder. Further, a bed of kidney cells regulate the chemical balance of the blood. The bed of kidney cells are grown by tissue culture. Now stem-cell research and tissue culture have come to stay. This will also more...

Homo sapiens are not very much different from other species of creation. Crops and vegetables can be modified genetically. But whatever may be the seed, the soil climate and other environments, and the care taken by the farmer to water them in lime, add fertilisers and have good pest control and removing the weeds that stunt the growth of the plants-all contribute towards the healthy growth and yield of the crops and their quality. Recent studies in USA have shown that in a particular sample, certain genes of the persons who are very miser and those of the parents are the same. The parents are also found to be miser. Such characteristics are transmitted through parents. Research is a powerful method for analysis. We have also seen how improper deductions from the same results can lead to absurd conclusions. In a particular study of the concentration of elements as a more...

Professor Robert Edwards of Britain has won the prize for his pioneering work and practice of IVF since 1958 till today, when he is 85 years old. Since his first field experiment successfully performed in 1978, Professor Robert had been instrumental in wiping off the tears of lakhs of mothers who could not have children of their own. More than 15,000 in France have benefited by Prof, Robert's discovery. The scientific community all over the world will be joining us when we say that Robert Edwards has-brought as much glory to the Nobel Prize as the Nobel Prize has brought glory to the scientists. Starting from stimulation of egg production by fertility drugs for 1-8 days. 9-13 days are spent to monitor with ultrasound the ripening of the eggs in the ovaries, 14-15 days are utilized to remove the eggs from ovaries and mixed with a sperm in a petridish. more...

Of late, often we read in our dailies, as a routine, our doctors have saved the lives of persons whose complicated problems were not treated elsewhere. We are particularly happy that a large percentage of foreigners who come to India for treatment are from the middle east. The reason for our happiness is simple. When they had the option to go lo the biggest hospitals in the West they chose to come here. Money is not a constraint for them. They can afford to go to any hospital. But the trust in our doctors' ability, the reputation of our doctors and the treatment they get in hospitals are the reasons for this. Our doctors do not mind any marathon operation lasting many hours. Their dedication to their job is amazing. Now they have been able to perform successfully a brain stem implant to cure a child born deaf. A damaged more...

Whether it is nuclear radiation, hormones, insecticides or chemicals, it is good to know their effects - good or bad. Science is studied for the sake of science. But the smart people who want to make a quick buck, do not care about the methods used by them. Radiation prevents seeds from germinating. When this became the latest toy, this was used for preserving food materials without sufficient prior studies on the effect on human beings. Creation of colour centres by radiation is being used by jewellers to irradiate gems to make 'rays' inside ruby-or other stones- Have we tested the jewels for activity when selling them? Hormone treatment produces better quality cotton. But when hormone treatment is given for human beings, particularly by physicians who are not aware of the research that is performed on their effects, this is dangerous to the patients. When the same treatment is given more...

This is one more step in The optimisation of the energy of the students, economy of parents and the feeling of one-nation. If AIEEE and AlPMT are merged and a common exam held through out India, this has an advantage. Physics and chemistry are common to both and only mathematics and biology are particular to Engineering and Medical groups. It is illogical why the physics and chemistry tests should be separate for the two streams and in addition, students should shuttle from Kolkata to Kozhikode and from Ladakh to Lakshadweep, all for appearing in exams. One nation, one exam should be the motto. Even many private institutions will get better students by this process as anyway now capitation fee is a danger mark for institutions with the sword of de recognition over the head. It is high time that for the sake of students and also for the benefit of more...

Following the carriers of our students, we find biologists are doing well, equally well as IITians. Whatever be the subject, for the dedicated students, there is no limit of choices. The only advice is, having chosen a career for research one has to wait patiently to get results. We all know that in a circular pattern of action, one does not know whether A follows B or leads B. For a agricultural scientist, planning to grow a crop comes first. The ground has to be prepared depending on whether one is going to grow paddy or papaya. Ploughing, breaking the hard soil, harrowing, sowing, and so on, have to be all performed before harvesting. Research is the same. Agronomical research, food processing, specific research for cotton, silk, jute, rice, wheat, fruits such as mangoes, spices like pepper, coconut growing, bananas, horticulture, particularly flowers and also for rediscovering the properties of more...

Walking through crowded areas of any one city in India, some of the prominent sign boards are in the name of foreign universities for which degrees will be given by the institutes. Now these universities are giving their degrees through universities or deemed universities in India of 150 universities which are collaborating, more than 75 have no accreditation and they have no standing in their own countries. One of the bills introduced in the Parliament by the Ministry of Human Resources is for regulating These institutions. The Ministry is also keen to collaborate with the famous institution in other countries. The root cause for the sudden rise in the cost of medical treatment is the system of private education. To take a post-garduate degree and further specialise in different branches, one pays about 20 to 50 lakhs of rupees or more. This amount can be paid only by very rich more...

Over the last few years, Electronic Data Capture (EDC) has strengthened its usage and it is predicted that it will replace paper for capturing clinical trial data. Will we see a paperless world in the near future, or certain obstacles such as not realizing the true value of EDC will act as a barrier? Clean, high-quality data is one of the most critical elements of any clinical trial and to obtain this most companies engaged in clinical research have a robust Clinical Data Management System (CDMS) in place. CDMS is a tool used in clinical research to manage the data of a clinical trial and can be broadly divided into paper-based and EDC system, historically, the collection of clinical trial data has been a very manual, paper-based process. The clinical trial data is gathered at the investigator site in the Case Report Forms (CRFs) and sent to the more...