An escape ...

I felt like I was in some kind of stupid adventurous reality show and felt like bumping myself on that hard shell of murky den. Meanwhile, I consoled as my faith did. Nonetheless, my destiny overturned me. Hell out of the bloody world I tried and escaped, but couldn't gear up my lanky legs. The rescuer heard my breath but unaware he was standing there quite. Harder my fingers tried to speak but his ruffled mind did not respond at all. I coerced my vision to steal a look and there I reach an absurd state of my mind, I break a creepy laughter, because all sides with intimidating darkness had enfolded me.
And then, I landed on a huge platform after years of my flight, nobody beside and in the front, neither at the furthest horizon I saw birds flying towards anywhere. But I had to land to rule that exotic settle. Bells ringing, faintly, I could hear, far away somewhere, god knows where. I climbed a cliff, daringly trying to reach the bell. My feet went cold and numb. Eventually, I gained consciousness and found radium stars twinkling green on my ceiling, and there my alarm playing the most irritating track. Thank god, it was just a dream.

Father's Day Letter!

Dear daddy,

I'm so proud to be your daughter DADYY ...
It's u who encouraged me pedal my first ride, I remember how I rushed to embrace you after my first day at school, solved the most difficult mathematical problems back home (oh! how I hated homeworks), watched those terrifying horror midnight shows on your comfy lap, experienced with you the most tricky times of life (esp. my first blood test), how I missed singing 'goodnight' songs to eachother during my hostel days; how your sleep snores swayed away my so called silly 'nosocomephobia' (m not shy to say tht m afraid of hospitals); your happy eyes when I first got my car license. Even today, at this 23rd year of my life, Dadu, you've been an antiseptic to my aches; u never denied or failed to fulfill my lil to big wishes ... & I promise to keep that pride forever and always be the same caring dady's lil daughter.
I Love You Daddyyy :)

♥ Your's loving daughter ♥

# EXAM TIME #

Q. How does online redefine the notion of mass communication? Discuss with suitable examples.

Ans: Mass communication is simply a process to influence (inform, entertain and persuade) a large group of people (audiences) by disseminating the messages employing technical mediums that involve electronic media and often print. It is considered to be one of the branches of communication that through communication process affects the widely dispersed audiences.

Mass communication generally, in a broader sense defines the process of message dissemination via traditional media like newspaper, magazines, films, radio, television, etc where as online, technically, is introduced as an emerging trend of two way communication, in the field of mass communication. Online is a term that is connected to the internet. With the access to internet the whole world is in the state of experiencing media convergence. Online has evolved the sense of virtual reality. With the benefits of accessing internet, socializing and commercializing has progressed. Online has also accommodated the freedom of expression.

As said, ‘nothing in this world is permanent but the change’, media-morphosis is actually taking place. With the development of traditional media, the practice and medium is transforming simultaneously, and ‘online media’ is strong evidence.
Online media stands alone as a mass communication medium that embodies the convergence of electronic and print media. The merging of audio, video, text and graphics with animation creates communication among individuals providing them with news, entertainment and information. Advanced computer technologies and internet connectivity has revolutionized the world of gathering, organizing, presenting and disseminating information. For example, Youtube is considered to be the most popular video sharing website, where millions of videos in the form of news/entertainment/education/information are uploaded and shared every single day. Facebook is considered to be the most popular social networking sites that connects millions of families, relatives and friends together, also allowing the service to share and upload videos, photos and text in the form of comments likewise, twitter is another social networking site. Online news portals shares all kinds of news and informations allowing two way communication in the form of feedback and comments. Today, many of us download books from internet that are called e-books, we download journals, documents, etc. We have online newspapers and magazines; for example, Kantipur publishes its print as well as runs an online version at ekantipur.com. Along with a rise in cyberspace and virtual community, Video logging and blogging has turned out to be well surfed expression sites. We are aware of all the incidents, events and affairs that are happening beyond pacific ocean, because of convergence.

Asia has the largest percentage of internet users in the world that’s exactly 44% of the total whereas Europe is the second largest. Yet, we cannot deny the fact that Nepal being an Asian country still lacks behind. Many parts of this country lag electricity power, internet access is beyond imagination. Illiteracy and ignorance have blocked the reach of traditional and online media content.


Q. Discuss citizen journalism. Also discuss how the online media have been vital in the development of citizen journalism.

Ans: Citizen journalism is the voice of the citizen expressing, analyzing and debating on certain issues, situation and events. Citizen journalists are those individuals who play an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information. In the world of uncertainty, incidents can occur in a while; accidents can happen in a blink, professional reporter may not timely show their presence to report the actual incident. A citizen can report by himself the actual story. Citizen journalism with certain delimitation allows a citizen to express and share their own views and opinions via posts, comments on blogs and websites or by uploading and sharing videos and photos. For example, in context to some Nepalese way of expression, different satirical cartoons have been published in newspapers regarding political instability in the country. Likewise, we can find people sharing photos regarding accidents, events ad notes in social networking sites.

Many times contradictory issues are also expressed because of which there is a contested debate on citizen journalism challenging the professional traditional journalism.

Main stream media, which was the only primary news source in pre-internet era has been challenged today with an emergence of online media. Online journalism has widened its scope in journalism, also broadening the quality and quantity of its content. It stands out merging the crowds of main stream contents. Online journalism is all about reporting the facts and informing the audiences at large scale. Online media have played a fundamental role in developing citizen journalism. It is all about placing critical and personal views, thoughts and opinion by methods of blogging, posts and comments in websites and portals and media channels, sharing photos and videos on personal blogs and social networking sites, etc. all these are possible and active only during online connectivity. Online connectivity allows to create one’s own blogs and wesites where people can express their views and comments, fundamental to citizen journalism.


Q. Discuss functions and dysfunctions of Web 2.0 and social media with suitable examples.

Ans: Web2.0 is considered to be just another version of World Wide Web. Its website allows the users to do more than just retrieve information. Web2.0 and social media is internet based service of second generation that helps in online collaboration and sharing things in internet with the help of wikis, podcast, micro blogging, weblogs, social blogs, etc. Social networking sites come inside. It can be used to communicate online with people and the main advantage is that not only people can use this service but service can be used in podcasting, blogging, social networking and social bookmarking.

Functions:
-Individuals can express to the society via their own blogs. Citizen journalism can take a huge leap.
-Individual can open up their creativity and ways of expression by creating their own websites.
-Photos and videos sharing allows a maximum news/information/entertainment flow.
-Social bookmarking stores and allows users to comment on their favourite web resources and share them with others.
-Networking is effective. With the help of social networking sites people can connect to their relatives and friends staying far away. It also helps find a lost friend.

Dysfunctions:
-Errors can introduce once there is an overload of information or any kind of files.
-High chances of introducing false notifications and informations.
-Its ineffective usage or misuse can lead to harm in the self reputation.
-The informations are transparent.
-Fake authority and identity
-Too complex and contradictory expression may lead to trouble.


SHORT NOTES:

Q. Mark Zukerberg

Mark Zukerberg is a well known personality, known to be the co-founder, chairman and a chief executive of the most popular social networking site called ‘Facebook’. He is a computer programmer and an internet entrepreneur. After facebook he also launched a peer-to-peer file sharing service called Wirehog, which was known to be the precursor to Facebook platform application. Since his childhood, he had keen interest in computers and used to create new programs. When he was 12, he used AtariBASIC to create a messaging program and named it ‘Zucknet’ which was used by his father later in his dental office. To keep his interest in computers his parents hired a personal tutor.

Zukerberg, in 2007, was announced as one of the top 35 innovators in the world under the age of 35 and he was named to MIT Technology Review TR35. Zuckerberg is also considered to be one of the 100 wealthiest man and most influential people in the world by Time magazine’s Person of the Year.

TIME takes TIME

Time is temporary
But wen it comes back, brings a new time along
Everything may not be perfect for this time
But the right time is always near
Time flies
In a blink, everything is changed
Time transforms
For nothing remains the same
Time gives and time takes
Abandons and forgive to make ...

Nepal's biggest 'Bottle House' at Pharping

Riju Shrestha
Lalitpur

Can you ever imagine of a house made of bottles? Not indeed but only in imagination, right? To many of you, this may come as an unrealistic package but today, creativity has dragged evolution beyond the imagination. 'Bottle House' in the rural Pharping is a living edifice that has ingeniously employed thousands of waste bottles that are of no use.

This eco-friendly house construction project was conceptualized by an American professor and an eco-architect Bill Hutchins, who has also worked in a waste management sector. Before construction of Nepal’s biggest bottle house at Sheshnarayan VDC, he had developed a concept and demonstration of ‘a poor man house’ at Khahare in Chalnakhel VDC of Pharping.

“Demonstration of this poor man house concept, when proved to be inexpensive to the poor people, inspired for the replication of Nepal’s biggest eco-friendly bottle house at Sheshnarayan’’ said Sandesh Subedi, who was involved in the project since its inception.

The idea of the project was put into action with a mutual aid of A School for Community (ASC) and Shikharapur Community Learning Centre (SCLC) and also with an equal technical co-operation and assistance of Kevin Rohan Memorial Eco Foundation in Chalnakhel.

The construction process took nearly six months. It involved used and thrown 9000 empty glass bottles collected from various dumping sites. They are stacked one on top of the other, each attached to the mixture of sand, straw and waste hairs of human and animals. The bottles are placed in such a way so that the opening of the bottles forms the outer side of the walls. “According to a research conducted by the team, a restaurant dumps 100-150 bottles per week from places like Pharping, Lalitpur, Nuwakot and Balaju”, said Subedi.






‘’This alternative brick house perfectly suits the varying climate and temperatures inside and outside, providing earthquake resistant walls. The most overwhelming aspect about the house is that it twinkles at night when the lights are put on inside and the only fear is the probable damages caused to the bottles’’, shared Subedi.

Currently, this eco-friendly house has been transformed into an agriculture teaching school named as “Shikharapur Sustainable Farmers School” and is successfully imparting pragmatic knowledge on organic farming and agriculture to the local inhabitants.

RADIO

भनु कसलाई ?

माया मोहको यो दल्दलमा
त्यागुँ कसलाई, अप्नाउँ कसलाई

जीवनको यो जनजालमा
मानु कसलाई, विश्वास गरूँ कसलाई

हृदय र दिमागको खेलमा
जिताउँ कसलाई, हराउँ कसलाई

मानिस र मुकुटको यो मेलामा
असली मानु कसलाई, नकली कसलाई

प्रतियोगीहरूको यो मैदानमा
अह्राउ कसलाई

दुखी पात्रहरूको यो दुनियाँमा
हसाउँ कसलाई

चिस्सीरहेछन् सबै रमाइला मन
नचाउँ कसलाई ।।।

- अब यो गुनासो सुनाउ कसलाई -

~ Her Perfect Wedding Bells ~

1st May 2012

This shouldn’t have been a shocking news for me but it was. Early morning around ten, I got a call from an unknown number, I quickly prepared my brain during four seconds of ring and another two seconds I collected all curses to spit on that bluffer. I quickly pressed on my answer button, and threw a bold ‘Hello’. She answered ‘Hello, Riju? Ma Shweta…’ Oh yes, she was ‘her’ on the phone. I din’t recognize her heavy voice. I mumbled for few seconds to myself and finally she came up with destination ‘Bhadrapur ko!’. Yes, it was her, Shweta, my school friend. No, no don’t guess, its not her wedding. It was after like two years I had heard from her. She sounded so different. In fact, she never had a perfect nepali tone in school as well, we often teased her for fun. And then all my curses swayed away.
She had called in to invite us for Rucha’s wedding. Rucha is also my school friend. We all were class mates for like big thirteen years. We knew about her engagement but wedding was supposedly too soon. I thought she could wait for like a year or two. Anyways, she was getting married that sort of news poured heavy excitement in me. Actually, Most of my school friends got married but this was the first one I was attending and that filled double excitement in me. And multiple excitements evoked when I realized that I’ll be meeting most of my school friends there.

Girls are girls. Nomatter what, they have to look preety, I think that’s too cute to use, they have to look ‘beautiful’. Reception ground turns out to be a competition field, imagination begins, make-up, dresses, accessories ‘Ow I don’t have a match! My pair is missing’ and stuffs and finally, when you end up planning with a saree to wear, you don’t find better heels and at last when you are done with all ‘Aww, I can’t walk in heels’ drives you god knows to which heaven. That din’t create much of a problem to me coz I was pretty sure about my picture the people would get to see that night. In fact, I wasn’t sure about Rucha. Honestly, I couldn’t even scribble a bridal picture of her in my mind, forget about the sketch, I mean she was totally a tomboy and I liked her carefree attitude. I couldn’t stop thinking about her, though my night ended perfectly.

I set all ready to move. I blushed and bloomed myself as I had planned. My hair got a perfect touch up with a high puff and my very old style of slight fringes in front. I needed in fact, they are worst than the split ended brooms, sometimes, especially during occasions, when I have no time and no plans for any kind of hair do. But this time, all was set. I had plenty of time to decorate myself. Saree has always been my favourite, heels never attracted me the most, but I put them together always.

I tell you, a dream wedding it was. The set up so perfect and grand, I couldn’t stop myself imagining one for me. We arrived a bit early, so we had plenty of time for posing in front of lenses, which I always loved. Rucha, arrived. She was surrounded by beautiful ladies, I must say. I recognized two of them, one was her aunt and her elder sister. All were dresses perfectly. My eyes din’t even deceive a glance from Rucha. She was fully decorated top to bottom but she wasn’t wearing red. It was weird but some people have different culture of bridal dresses I suppose. She was wearing this heavily decorated pinkish gorgeous lehenga, a natthi, and line of preety bindiz above eyebrows. She looked pretty nervous, her smile covered limited space on her face, I guessed because of make-up. I can say, she was uncomfortable but it suited her and she was happy. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Meanwhile, I got engaged in my hanky-panky talks that wore non-sensible philosophical attire, at least it could mask those boring talks about business and studies. We all had gathered after a very long time, nodoubt a perfect vegetarian dine and most appreciably luscious dessert followed to add some more fun.

Music men played a typical song about groom, we quickly guessed he was here. Everyone gathered around a huge circular stage, prepared for warmala ceremony. Both bride and the groom steadily moved towards each other and placed warmala on each other. Rucha’s delicate bridal smile was noticeable. They looked perfect together like they say ‘a match made in heaven’. Meanwhile, the stage started rotating slowly, and the most attractive part was the blossom shower, totally filmy yet adorable.

We all wished her the best of the best wishes. Every threads of life is weaved beautifully, one should only realize as to when and where should the knots be tied. Every wedding bells look beautiful, sounds beautiful, one should only realize as to when and how should they be played and led.