National Youth Day - January 12

National Youth Day is celebrated in India on 12 January on the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. In 1984 the Government of India declared the day as the National Youth Day and since 1985 the event is celebrated in India every year.

In 1984, the Government of India declared and decided to observe the birthday of Swami Vivekanand (12 January, according to the English calendar) as a National Youth Day every year from 1985 onwards. To quote from the Government of India's communication, 'it was felt that the philosophy of Swamiji and the ideals for which he lived and worked could be a great source of inspiration for the Indian Youth.

On 12 January 2013, Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told in his address at the inauguration of four-year-long celebrations of Swami Vivekananda's 150th birth anniversary.

What Gandhiji said captures the great importance of spreading Swami Vivekananda's ideas and ideals among the youth in our country today. He personified the eternal energy of the youth and their restless quest for truth. It is entirely fitting that the Government of India has declared 12th January, the birthday of Swami Vivekananda, as National Youth Day. We must work to rekindle the eternal message of this great patriot and son of India.

World Day of War Orphans - January 6

The World Day of War Orphans was initiated by the French organisation, SOS Enfants en Detresses. Held on 6^th January each year, this special day enables the International Community to recognise the plight of a particularly vulnerable group.

The usual definition of an orphan is a child who has no surviving parent to care for him or her, having lost both parents, either as a result of bereavement or by being abandoned.

In the developed world orphans are relatively rare, since most children can reasonably expect both parents to survive their childhood, but in countries that have been and are subjected to wars and great epidemics such as AIDS, there are significant numbers of orphans.

It is estimated, for instance, that World War II created millions of orphans I Europe, with 300,000 orphans in Poland and 200,000 in Yugoslavia alone.

Today in Afghanistan, after nearly 30 years of fighting, there are now over two million orphaned children with over 600,000 sleeping on the streets. Over a million suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome and the prevalence of the use of anti-personnel weaponry has resulted in over 400,000 children being maimed by land mines.

A quarter of all children in Afghanistan die before the age of five, which according to UNICEF figures is the fourth highest level in the world. Of those who continue to survive, one in ten is severely malnourished and more than half suffer from stunted growth.

There is a similarly bleak picture in other parts of the world. In the continent of Africa over 34 million children, or nearly 12%, are orphans either as a result of war or epidemics such as AIDS.

In recent years the proportion of civilian casualties in armed conflicts has increased dramatically. This is now estimated to be about 90%, half of whom are children. In the last ten years alone some 2 million children have died as a direct result of armed conflict. Many others have witnessed parents and relatives being butchered in the most appalling circumstances.

Around 20 million children have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict or human rights violations and it is estimated that 300,000 boys and girls under the age of 18 are involved in more than 30 conflicts worldwide.
In Northern Uganda, for instance, war has raged for 18 years and has left the population in abject poverty. More than 1.6 million people have been forced to leave their homes and farmers who were formerly self-sufficient are now forced to live in camps for internally displaced persons. Schools, homes, villages and families have all been destroyed and nobody knows how many have died.

The UK charity War Child quotes one particular case of a Ugandan girl called Agnes. Now 18 she was 10 years old and working in her family's vegetable garden when rebels abducted her. Her parents were killed and she was separated from the remaining members of her family.
She was 11 when she was forced to kill another child who had tried to escape from the rebels and at the age of 12 she was raped when a rebel commander took her as one of his wives.
When she was 13 she finally managed to escape and miraculously a few weeks later she was reunited with what remained of her family. In spite of all that she has suffered, she could be regarded as one of the lucky ones. Although she is an orphan, at least she has some family and the War Child charity is paying for her education so she hopes to rebuild her life. Her goal is to become a nurse and she is now looking towards the future with optimism.

This is not by any means the usual pattern for orphans. All over the world orphans usually have a very raw deal. Russia is just one example, but it is by no means exceptional. It is estimated that there are 650,000 children in Russian orphanages. As is the generally accepted pattern worldwide, the state looks after them until the age of 16, but after that they are on their own. Their prospects are poor, with 40% usually ending up homeless, 20% turning to crime and 10% committing suicide.

It should not be like this. Take the case of Michaela DePrince.
Michaela was born in Sierra Leone in 1995 and became an orphan after both her parents were killed in the Civil War. While still a toddler she endured some horrendous experiences and was sent to an orphanage. One day she found a magazine with a picture of a ballerina and she immediately decided that this was what she wanted to be.
When she was four years old she had the good fortune to be adopted. She was taken to America and enrolled in the Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia.In 2012 she graduated from American Ballet Theatre's Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School in New York and joined the Dance Theatre of Harlem. On 19 July 2012 she made her professional debut performance in the role of Gulnare in the South African premiere of Le Corsaire.

Obviously Michaela was incredibly lucky, but tragically there are many thousands of other children who will remain in orphanages or continue to live as street children, with little hope of ever achieving what they are capable of.
World Day for War Orphans is a day to remember these children. Every one of them is precious and they all deserve a future that will enable them to fulfil their dreams.

Global Family Day - January 1

Global Family Day is celebrated every year on January 1. This holiday is recognized by many people, who want to spend one day with their family.

Unlike many other observances and holidays, Global Family Day appeared spontaneously, that's why it's very hard to find the person or organization responsible for its establishment. However, this holiday gains more and more popularity and many people celebrate it.

The history of Global Family Day begins with the UN General Assembly proclamation of the first year of the millennium to begin International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World. This event ushered celebration of One Day in Peace and, subsequently, Global Family Day, that is also known as One Day of Peace and Sharing.

Although Global Family Day is celebrated only in the USA, all families around the world are also encouraged to participate. Regardless of country, religion, race or political affiliation, all families should gather together on the first day of the year to spend this time in peace and share love with each other.

World Day of Peace - January 1

The World Day of Peace is a feast day of the Roman Catholic Church dedicated to peace, held on 1 January, on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. It was introduced in 1967 by Paul VI, inspired by the encyclical Pacem in terris of John XXIII and with reference to his own encyclical Populorum progressio. The day was first observed on 1 January 1968.

The World Day of Peace has often been a time when popes make magisterial declarations relevant to the social doctrine of the Church. Paul VI and John Paul II have each year made important statements on the United Nations, human rights, women's rights, labor unions, economic development, the right to life, international diplomacy, peace in theHoly Land, globalization and terrorism.

In England and Wales, 'Peace Sunday' is traditionally kept on the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, which is the Sunday falling between 14 and 20 January inclusive. Suggested material is prepared each year by the UK branch of the Pax Christi movement.

How is Gorilla Glass Made?

FUSION PROCESS

Corning’s proprietary fusion manufacturing process is at the core of our leadership in glass technology and the cover glass industry. This extraordinarily precise, highly automated draw process produces a thin sheet cover glass with pristine surface quality, outstanding optical clarity and inherent dimensional stability – qualities essential for cover glass for consumer applications.

The process begins when raw materials are blended into a glass composition, which is melted and conditioned. The molten glass is fed into a trough called an “isopipe,” overfilling until the glass flows evenly over both sides. It then rejoins, or fuses, at the bottom, where it is drawn down to form a continuous sheet of flat glass that is so thin it is measured in microns. The glass is untouched by human hands or anything else that will introduce flaws into the surface.

This same fusion process is at the heart of Corning’s industry-leading LCD glass. The composition of Corning® Gorilla® Glass enables a deep layer of chemical strengthening through an ion-exchange process where individual glass parts are cut from the “mother sheet” and undergo an ion-exchange process.

ION-EXCHANGE PROCESS

Ion exchange is a chemical strengthening process where large ions are “stuffed” into the glass surface, creating a state of compression. Gorilla Glass is specially designed to maximize this behavior. The glass is placed in a hot bath of molten salt at a temperature of approximately 400 degrees C. Smaller sodium ions leave the glass, and larger potassium ions from the salt bath replace them. These large ions take up more room and are pressed together when the glass cools, producing a layer of compressive stress on the surface of the glass. Gorilla Glass’ composition enables the potassium ions to diffuse far into the surface, creating high compressive stress deep into the glass. This layer of compression creates the surface that is more resistant to damage.

Corning’s innovations don’t end on the manufacturing floor. One of Corning's greatest strengths is our focus on developing the technology behind the glass. Our research has delivered such life-changing innovations as the glass envelope for Edison's light bulb, the glass envelope for cathode ray picture tubes (CRTs) and liquid crystal displays (LCDs), as well as the first low-loss optical fiber capable of use in telecommunications. We continue to investigate new glass compositions and process innovations at our three major research facilities: Sullivan Park in Corning New York; Corning Technology Center in Shizuoka Japan; Corning Research Center Taiwan in Hsinchu, Taiwan.

Scientists in these facilities work closely with the Gorilla Glass commercial, engineering, and manufacturing staff to anticipate industry trends and deliver new or improved glass technologies that add value to customers’ products and processes. Through this ongoing process, Corning Gorilla Glass continues to lead through glass technology innovation in the fast-paced consumer electronics industry.

Why Photographs of Watches and Clocks Show the Time 10:10 ?

First things first, let's get the myths out of the way. There are plenty of people out there who think that clocks in advertisements and in-store displays are set this way to memorialize Abraham Lincoln/John F. Kennedy/Martin Luther King Jr. because that was the time at which they were shot or died. In reality, Lincoln was shot at 10:15 p.m., and died the next morning at 7:22 a.m., JFK was shot at 12:30 p.m. CST and was pronounced dead 1 p.m. and MLK was shot 6:01 p.m. and pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m.

Another theory has it that 10:10 was the time that an atomic bomb was dropped on either Nagasaki or Hiroshima, and that the setting is in memory of the casualties. The Fat Man bomb was actually dropped on the former at 11:02 a.m. local time and the Little Boy on the latter at 8:15 a.m. local time.

The real reason for the setting? Aesthetics. The 10:10 position gives the clock or watch a number of benefits:

• The hands are not overlapping, so they're fully and clearly visible and their styling can be admired.

• The arrangement of the hands is symmetrical, which people generally find more pleasant than asymmetry, making the product more appealing to customers.

• The manufacturer's logo, usually in the center of the face under the 12, is not only visible but nicely framed by the hands.

• Additional elements on the face (like date windows or secondary dials), usually placed near the 3, 6, or 9, won't be obscured.

According to the folks at Timex (who set their products at 10:09:36 exactly), the standard setting used to be 8:20, but this made the face look like it was frowning. To make the products look "happier," the setting was flipped into a smile (occasionally, you'll still see the 8:20 setting on some clocks or watches where the manufacturer's logo is at bottom of the face above the 6).