Chitkul, a village in the mountainous Kinnaur district of the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, does not have the usual “tourist spots” like other Indian hill towns. What it does have, however, is clean air, scenic views and a unique four-story wooden fort. This picturesque hamlet of just 582 people, nestled between the Himalayan mountains on three sides and a river flowing down between the peaks, is a big draw for travelers looking for an off-the-grid experience. Chitkul is the last inhabited Indian village before the Indo-Tibetan border. (Daksh Malhotra)Nayan Thakur, owner of Travellers Homestay in Chitkul, told Zenger News that…
Author: zenger.news
With no laptop and no smartphone, but with a fascination for Wikipedia, a young carpenter from the village of Thadiya in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan, India, has become a key contributor to Hindi Wikipedia. Raju Jangid started out by sending articles from a primitive mobile phone that had a keypad. “I did not have a smartphone, so I couldn’t write any articles beyond 150-200 words. The phone kept crashing, and whatever information I had typed till then would thus be deleted,” said the 22-year-old, who had to drop out of school after the second year of high school because of…
Del japonés ‘ori’ que significa ‘doblar o plegar’ y kami’, que es ‘papel’, tenemos el origami. Es una actividad para reducir el estrés, la ansiedad, la depresión u otras dolencias, tanto físicas como emocionales. El origami, o papiroflexia, es una forma de expresión artística por medio del papel. Esta disciplina de doblar papel data del siglo I o II en China, y se integró en las tradiciones japonesas en el siglo VI. Se trata de crear figuras geométricas a base de papel doblado; es una actividad que se ha manifestado desde hace años, pasando de generación en generación, en el…
One of history’s greatest misconceptions is the Aztecs’ human sacrifices. Though viewed as barbaric to modern-day eyes, such rituals were an essential part of the civilization’s religion and had massive spiritual symbolism. There were three kinds of sacrifices: self-sacrifices (effusions of blood); those associated with war; and agrarian ones. Contrary to modern belief, the sacrifices were not a daily occurrence. Instead, they were part of festivals or offerings to a deity. Such rites were part of Aztec philosophy, an introduction to their gods’ world, where people would give something valuable so that gods would give something back to them. The…
TEL AVIV, Israel— Biotech startup Matricelf will compete for the $1 million grand prize in the Startup World Cup in November, a global competition sponsored by Silicon Valley’s Pegasus Tech Ventures . The Startup World Cup includes finalists from more than 70 countries, and Matricelf will be the first Israel-based company to compete in it. The startup is a personalized regenerative medicine firm founded in 2019. Its ultimate goal is “find the cure for disabled patients with spinal cord Injuries,” the company’s website said. Matriceif made its way to the global competition by winning the first-ever Startup World Cup Israel pitch…
A new solution in the battle against sugar cravings is hitting store shelves. Sweet Victory, a patented mint-flavored chewing gum, takes just two minutes to block sugar receptors on the tongue for up to two hours, during which sweet treats taste anything but appetizing. “We want people to have more control over their nutrition because we both went through times when we had no control,” said Gitit Lahav, an Israeli psychologist who started the company with her friend Shimrit Lev, a Chinese medicine practitioner. “We noticed that for most people, especially women, the biggest issue is around sweets,” Lahav said.…
In a first-of-its-kind surgery, doctors used augmented reality and three-dimensional technology to repair a fracture in the floor of a patient’s eye socket. The 31-year-old patient’s severe injury was causing double vision and impaired the symmetry and aesthetics of his eyes. Prior to the surgery at the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, Israel, doctors created a 3D model of the patient’s skull and designed and printed out a titanium plate made according to his CT imaging. Doctors at Galilee Medical Center used AR glasses to accurately insert a titanium plate in the fractured eye socket of a patient. (Roee Belchens/Dental…
The Good Food Institute Israel reports a significant rise in the purchase of “alternative protein” — plant-based rather than animal-based — during 2020. StoreNext data collected from all physical and online retail chains in Israel shows that while both animal-based products and alternative protein products enjoyed a spike in the pandemic year, the increase in the alternative protein market was 13 times larger. “My estimate is that Israel is one of the fastest-growing alternative protein markets in 2020,” said Nir Goldstein, managing director of GFI Israel. That educated guess will be confirmed in March, when other countries follow GFI Israel’s…
The novel coronavirus has prompted unprecedented cybersecurity threats in all parts of the economy, says Roi Yarom, head of industry empowerment at the Israel National Cyber Directorate. Israel’s cybersecurity startups have jumped to the challenge — posting a 70 percent growth in funding in 2020, raising a record $2.9 billion in 100 transactions. Israel’s cybersecurity industry accounted for 31% of global investments in the sector last year, second only to the United States. Exports of cybersecurity products from Israel in 2020 totaled $6.85 billion, up from $6.5 billion in 2019. Five Israeli cybersecurity firms — Snyk, SentinalOne, Cato Networks, Forter…
CHENNAI, India — In southeastern India, the former French colony of Pondicherry features cobbled pathways, quaint local retailers and religious institutions, all housed in European-style colonial buildings in “White Town.” Here, in the European manner, lunches often last for three hours, a hushed tone is mandatory (patrons are subtly quieted by a glowering look if their voice crosses acceptable decibel levels), and there is an unhurried approach to life. Pondicherry, also called Puducherry, celebrates its unique culture during the annual Pondicherry Heritage Festival, which this year runs from Jan. 22-Feb. 21. It wasn’t until Ang Lee’s award-winning film “Life of Pi”…