14th aUGUST

Completed 40 minute brisk walk. Met Pravesh. In chamber from 1.15 to 3.45 pm.

 The Institute of Social Sciences  organized a talk by Dr. Mark Jeurgensmeyer, Professor of Sociology, Global and International Studies and Director,  Orfalea Center at University of California, Santa Barbara on  “One Year Later, Whither the Arab Spring”   at 3.30 pm today. Attended it. After the talk interaction with him continued up to 5 pm. His thesis is that "religion has returned to public sphere with a global vengeance and with a global moral critique."

"Prof. Jeurgensmeyer is the author of dozens of widely-acclaimed books including - Global Rebellion: Religious Challenges to the Secular State, from Christian Militia to Al Qaeda.; Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence;  Gandhi's Way: A Handbook of Conflict Resolution; The New Cold War? Religious Nationalism Confronts the Secular State and God and War: Imagined Enemies and Global Struggle.

The News of f the Day."The Indian myna bird which was introduced in Australia in 1862 to control insects in Melbourne's market garden is now posing a threat to some of the signature species of the country, a new study has claimed. 
Researchers from Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre and Australian National Universityfound that the myna bird in Australia is threatening native species including laughing kookaburra, crimson rosella and sulphur-crested cockatoo,'The Age' reported. 
These species have reduced in numbers as they can not compete with the aggressive nature of common myna bird for nesting sites and food, researchers believe.
The myna is a bird of the starling family (Sturnidae) and occurs naturally only in southern and eastern Asia, especially in North India" The Economic Times, dt.,14th August  2012 on line.
Retired to sleep at 10.30 pm