On the crest of a wave!

“Do the best you can in every task, no matter how unimportant it may seem at the time. No one learns more about a problem than the person at the bottom.”

― Sandra Day O'Connor

It happens all the time. Every other day, we hear about the underdog companies that come up in the market and strive to survive. But seldom have we found any student, who is the brain behind the idea, getting recognition. Shantanu, pursuing fourth year Bachelor of Technology, is one such young enthusiast, who has the bee in his bonnet about proving his worth in his field.

A brilliant student, an ardent player of soccer and a keen learner, Shantanu has come a long way and has three applications registered in his name. These applications cater to the daily needs and might come in handy.

Let’s have a sneak peek into what these applications are all about:

Mup

Mup gives you the accessibility to know about your favourite music artist with just one click. Mup has an inbuilt music player and is filled with vibrant colors. What's more? Stuck on something or need to know anything extra? Mup gives you the feature to browse the internet simultaneously!

Download link - click here

Catnap

Has your phone's ringtone become ball and chain? We present Catnap - an application that follows your command. You can set the timer and let your phone sleep, while you engage yourself in an important work/ meeting. Catnap is the brain behind the whole idea of not interrupting the user when they are in the midst of something important. You can customize the timer and the moment the clock strikes, Catnap puts your phone on vibrate mode. So, sit back and relax, your personal caretaker is here!    

Download link - click here

Amigo (Beta)

Amigo is a newly conceptualized social network. You can like, comment and also share 'pins' of your amigos (Friends). Amigo is designed in such a way that it is visually appealing.

1. Introducing - "The board" and "The Pins"

"The board" is a new feature implemented in Amigo which keeps a record of your friends' activities. While some may call them 'posts', we like to call them 'pins'. You can add a 'pin' to your friends' boards by just choosing the most suitable cover and the related thought. Seems pretty normal? No. For every pin you submit, we modify your Amigo Social Quotient*. Your Amigo Social Quotient defines how socially active and famous you are. Being socially famous, will make you eligible for the 'Notoriety' wall pinup, which is displayed in the app and can be seen by anyone.

2. Introducing - "Casual Chat"

We know that you get a little bored while surfing the network, that's why we have designed this feature specially for you. Casual chatting is just like random stranger to stranger chat. You can just tap one button and Amigo will search a totally random stranger for you to chat with. Yes, your Social Notoriety* also plays a major role in the selection of random strangers.

3. Introducing - "Social Notoriety"

Social Notoriety is the WOW factor of Amigo. Your social notoriety is determined by your Amigos. Yes, your amigos can vote for which personality suits you the most. They can choose from a given list of personalities/traits that suit you the most like charming, charismatic, nerdy etc. While this can make you super popular, social notoriety can backfire too, therefore it's important who you make friends with.

4. Introducing - "Social Quotient"

A sub feature of Social Notoriety, Social Quotient is designed and implemented to maintain the psych balance. Your Social Quotient is determined by Amigo itself. For every pin that you create, Amigo will monitor the comments, the likes and the shares that it fetches. Depending on that, Amigo will modify your social quotient.

So, are you ready to know how much socially notorious you are and become famous? Download Amigo now :)

Download link - click here

Wow! That is some cool stuff! No doubt the young minds are dab hands at coming up with ideas that serve our interest. Shantanu, you have proved that you are a class act. Keep up the good work!

A feather in nature's cap!

Okay, here is a write-up on the present day activities of humans that are intervening with the laws of nature. Recently, I read on a scientific website, about a hybridized tree that could produce 40 different kinds of fruits simultaneously. Isn't this amazing? Well, the actual news is that, this tree is capable of producing forty different kinds of fruits ranging from peaches, plums, etc. If you are wondering that this effort was made by some scientist or researcher, then you are wrong. An art professor, Van Aken, compiled all his knowledge and saved an old tree by renovating it and making it more useful. What I came to know after reading several articles was that a research institute had this orchard, but since the institute had funding crises, it was being shut down. Mr. Van realized the importance of this tree and saved it by buying it. He then worked on it for several years and applied the fundamentals of plant growth (basically he tried to incorporate grafting methods and took various scions from different stone fruit plants). Eventually, the idea of chip grafting worked and the tree gave splendid results.

It took about five years of research and sweat, pain and money to give shape to the whole idea and Mr. Van was successful in his effort. This tree looks like a normal tree during most of the seasons, but during spring it develops a unique patchwork of mixed shades of pink, red and purple. Thus, during this time, there is abundance of peaches, plums, nectarines, almonds and cherries.

Well the purpose of this article cum information is to incite the young minds and readers to work towards innovation and likewise yield productive outcomes. Although not all human interventions may sound beneficial or ethically right, but definitely the ones which aim at salvaging the nature are. Van Aken has grown 16 of such trees till now and planted them in areas like the museum parks, community centers or private art collections, in US. The 40 fruit tree has helped in preserving the diversity of the stone fruit. Some of these fruits are commercially viable and therefore, also offer a source of income for people. Anyway, the concluding remark is that it is overall a great effort by Aken and kudos to his creative and rational objective. After all, a rising tide lifts all the boats!