OUR DREAMS

 

Dreams are wonderful thoughts of one’s mind. Some dreams are scary, some are fearful, some are pleasurable and some are filled with such joy that one goes in a state of euphoria. Looking deep inside, one will find that good dreams are the manifestations of one’s wish to create that fantasy. Any dream which in the future manifests itself in the form of new creation; is a blessing. Blessed are those who see dreams with open eyes and create a better world for themselves as well for the future generations.

Everyone dreams and there are various forms of dreams. Some dreams to live a better life, some for better opportunities and some for better financial income. There are others who dream for newer innovations which may affect directly or indirectly the lives of masses in a better way. Whatever the type of positive dreams may be, it always brings forth a sense of ‘hope’.

Hope is a positive attitude through which one soul moves ahead inspite of challenges and make ones dream real. However, the question arises if one feels happy after ones achievement. To me personally personal achievements for oneself will lead to happiness but also will give rise to desires. So, the next time when ones second level of desire is not fulfilled, the same soul tends to remain unhappy.

So, what is true happiness? True happiness is achieved when ones dream unites with higher good and serves humanity. It is felt when you watch your actions perform greater good. If your actions affect even one individual in a positive way, then your dream is blessed. The level of happiness in serving others is so high that its above any form of desires, ego and pride.

When we reach our office to perform, our soul works either to do our duty as the opportunities’ may be good or there is an opportunity to serve higher good. There is significant difference between the two. In both the cases, there will be salary involved, but the type of duty is different.

So, the next time you reach your work place, it is good to leave behind your ego  and to focus on to find ways to serve higher good through ones work.

Even a sweeper find solace that he/she works daily to remove dirt and that’s a requirement to live a good life, a clerk may do that extra work to clear files which are pending for long and thus help those in need, a manager whose duties may be diverse, may walk that extra mile to work towards better brand at lesser cost and innovative ideas through which good products may reach masses at much lesser price, a telecaller holds call and work towards solving problems.  There are thousands of fields in which a little bit of extra work and passion can really make wonders. Its not hard, but it’s the determination to move ahead towards creation of a better society.

So, getting true happiness from your work depends on how you serve higher good through your work. This is a challenge but personally speaking true happiness can be felt when your work helps others. Its also true that not all innovations are good, but blessed are those who have changed the lives of every human for better. That’s the reason, we remember names of icons who had toiled for us in the fields, have done that extra work so that we live a better life, the fruits of which we still cherish today.

Next time you see someone doing good things for you, try to pass the same good karma to someone else and the chain of good deeds will create a better life for all. Lets dream for a better future for us as well as for our future generations.

(Above is my personal opinion)

Mainak Majumdar

CREATING LIFE: IS IT A BLESSING OR A CALL FOR AN UNKNOWN DISASTER?

Life was formed 3.6 billion years ago. Some scientist’s are of different view. There are various models for origin of life and is a debatable issue. Religious groups take a different stand. But whatever it is, evolution of life is still a mystery. Scientists after their experiment had arrived at a conclusion that life arose from a single cell. That which has the capacity to replicate, and its progeny replicated them, and so on, with lots of genetic twists and it is carried on from generations to generations and thus we find the living beings in this world.

Imagine all this started with just a DNA (Deoxy Ribo Nuclic Acid)!

Today, every living organism – every person, plant, animal and microbe – can trace its heritage back to that first cell.

Imagine amongst this present day species, arrives some new comers and here we are not talking of some extraterrestrials. Scientists in the last couple of years have been trying to create novel forms of life. They’ve forged chemicals into synthetic DNA, the DNA into genes, genes into genomes and built the molecular machinery of completely new organisms in their lab, such type of organisms that are nothing like anything Nature has produced before. We do not know, what forms of life that would be. Will the new species succumb us or it will help us to move our life with more ease is a question, which time can only answer. If the earlier fact is true then we are into trouble. As, it would be the reason for a new disaster!

If the latter part is true, we can live a better life. The notion of creating life in the lab has plenty of detractors. Some Scientists aren’t convinced it can be done and religious leaders and environmentalists are in arm against this move. But there are also lots of advantages to it. Jay Keasling at UC Berkeley received $ 42 million from Bill Gates to create living microfactories that manufacture a powerful antimalaria agent. (Newsweek). Imagine that a microbe being created that would circulate in the blood and hunt down Cancer Cells, Imagine such type of bio devices that could conceivably have enormous advantages over traditional manufacturing processes and sources of material. Cell machinery that could operate the equivalent of multistep production lines at molecular level, fabricating complex chemical products precisely, atom by atom.  They would also work cheaply and efficiently, fed by simple safe substances like sugar. A few such types of projects are already giving us a glimpse of the power of this new field. The most extraordinary effort is to create a microbial organism that would produce a powerful antimalarial drug.

New York Times newspaper reports: ‘Such Biofabs produce made- to- order genes, the stretches of DNA that contain the instructions for living creatures.’ Sale of gene-synthesis industry are estimated at only $ 50 million a year, but they are growing rapidly. One foundry in Germany, has gone public. It says it expects sales this year to increase at least 60% , to 12.5 million euros, or about $17 billion, New York Times report.

The ability to make genes has given rise to a new subject called synthetic biology, which might lead to artificial life in very few years. Genetic Engineers extract a gene from an organism. Then they might modify it and put it in a different organism. There is certainly a behavior change in the organism. It then acts in the desired way. And once this bio device is designed and properly fabricated, the hard work becomes over – its users can instruct it to make as many copies of itself, by itself, as are needed. This Biodevices could make impossible drugs, including ones that are quite impossible to create through traditional chemistry. While there might be some other biodevices created that act as sensitive environmental biosensors, programmed to detect and degrade specific toxic organisms or  act as indicators like glow in the proximity of a biological, chemical or radioactive weapon. Anything is possible with these genetically modified organisms.

An organization is eyeing an even bigger prize: a self sustaining, highly efficient biological organism that converts sunlight directly into clean biofuel, with minimal environmental impact and zero net release of greenhouse gases (Newsweek).

Now, look at it in this way. Imagine that any of these mutated forms of biodevice doesn’t obey orders.

A species, which becomes an enemy of its own masters, it’s own Gods.

Probably, it would be a day, when humans have to wage war against that unknown species, which if wins, would lead to our extinction. Pope Benedict XVI has expressed outrage at scientists who “modify the very grammar of life as planned and willed by God.”

Some critics point out that Government should devise some regulations for saving Humans from any such mishaps.  “The result is not bioterror,” ETC Group, a technology watcher said in a report, “but BIOERROR” and we write our own annihilation story.

——

Please send your feedback in the e-mail address given below.

Thanks and Regards,

Mr. Mainak Majumdar

Disaster Management Specialist and Consultant