Hopes of a weary man

A Hope For A Better Tomorrow, A Hope For A Better World

Arushi Gupta, AIS Noida, Alumna

To my favourite (and only) grandson

Today marks the first anniversary of the best moment of my life. You turn one today. I hope that a few years down the line, when it is not too late, you will open this letter, and you will understand everything. Unlike you, my child, I grew up in a time when people used to sleep on rooftops and count stars under the black night, when the only channel on TV was Doordarshan, when you could see nothing for miles but the horizon and a gleaming sun bleeding into a scarlet sky. Over the years, I’ve seen forests turn into housing complexes, homes into houses, and the people living in them turning into robots. Today, out of things that I pass down to you, I regret leaving behind humans who could’ve been a little more human.
A few decades ago, when we cared little about the glamour of materialism, we spent more time the sun rather than soaking up the screen light. Crossing continents in a few hours was a far-fetched dream, and the only food delivery system we had was the milkman. We did not have everything available at the beck of our call. We have now become so used to impatience that a simple act of waiting is an annoyance. I hope that somewhere along the lines of growing up, you don’t forget the pleasure of pausing and appreciating the moment. Life is not a race but a slow beautiful journey which needs to be appreciated.
I hope you care more about the people around you than the people on the other side of your screen. I hope you care more about the relationships and friendships you have, rather than the number of likes you gain or the money in your bank account.
It saddens me to know that you will grow in a world that has begun collapsing into dead fragments. I have grown old and weary; there is not much I can do. But I hope you make a difference, or at least make an effort to do good to your surroundings. I hope you put your best foot forward. I hope you have a big life and a big heart. Above all, I hope you remember to love people, not things. As I write this, I wish you could see the milky way illuminating the night sky like it once used to, with all the wonder it possesses, unobscured by the fake charm of blinking city lights.
I hope you become a human and not just a robot living in a body.
Love,
Dadu

With love...

...Sharing The Great Experience From YRoNS

Nora-Victoria Soby-Arnesen, Arendal Videregaende Skole, Norway

This spring approximately fifty students from India, Hungary, Germany, Slovenia, Norway France and Holland visited Amsterdam for the 12th annual YRoNS conference hosted by Amity International School, Amsterdam. Students presented projects in a scientific conference setting, learned about the culture of Holland and made many new friends during the four days they were in Amsterdam. Here is what the experience was in the words of a student.

New people
Personally, I am certain that I speak for a great number of participants when I say that our overall impression of the days at the Young Researchers of Natural Sciences conference was incredible. Every single day was filled with learning and social activities challenging our own thoughts and views. We all grew, not only as people, but also as students, future scientists, great thinkers and supportive friends. During all the activities we had some free time where we got to interact with people, who with their different views, ideas and cultures taught us a lot about life. I would like to thank Amity for hosting such a fantastic conference.

New lessons
One of the other main purpose of YRoNS is to develop an arena for young minds to share brilliant ideas within a wide range of scientific branches and backgrounds, based on a specific theme. This year the theme was ‘The world of colours.’ As different schools participating in the conference, focused on different subjects and presented their YRoNS project around these subjects, we got to see the topic ‘The world of colours’ presented through the lens of Physics, Chemistry, Technology and Biology. It was at YRoNS that I realised that there are endless perspectives on the relationship between science and colours. Another activity that I found highly entertaining was the cultural festival where we learnt about different facts, stereotypes, music and folktales of seven different countries.

New places
Apart from the scientific events, we also visited different museums, parks and science centres in Amsterdam. I loved the historical areas around this interesting city. My favourite ones were- NEMO museum and the Madurodam park. At the NEMO museum’s interactive science centre, we had a few hours to walk around a five-floor building. Each floor covering different areas of science, featuring their own activities and games for us to try out. Madurodam is home to 1:25 scale model replicas of famous Dutch landmarks. We had the opportunity to walk around this park, observe and discuss the miniature buildings and the great history behind them. Another attraction I enjoyed was our trip to the canal boat. I truly loved this experience.

Embracing diversity

Our world is enchanting with such an immense cultural, linguistic and natural diversity, that one life really doesn’t seem enough to imbibe the whole of it. Right from huge sequoia trees to microscopic bacteria which keep us healthy, from Sa Re Ga Ma to Do, Re, Mi, Fa, from AR Rahman to Lucciano Pavvarotti, the world mesmerises us and it is my dream to have all my children at Amity experience this innately diverse world in all its magic and glory.
My dream finds expressions through various international exchange programmes we have at Amity, YRoNS (Young Researchers of Natural Sciences - Read pg 11 ) being one such paragon program. Our newest campus, Amity Amsterdam, was the proud host of this unique  Science learning programme this year. In its 12th year of inception, YRoNS turns out to be an ideal platform for holistic learning and inclusive development of learners, inculcating in them respect for nature and diversities.
YRoNS is rooted in exploring the scientific intricacies of the nature while imbibing cultural variations as a part of self.  What enthuses me most is the learning and cultural exchanges which happen at YRoNS. It’s a sheer delight to see the exciting and immersive exchange of methods of learning and teaching science, the ways to understand concepts, the embracing of diversities and the appreciation of cultures and languages that happens when learners from various nations congregate at one place. Same concepts but different ideas to explore, different music but same rhythms to dance, this is what enchants me about YRoNS. As we move ahead, I wish that all my children at Amity continue learning and exploring the world, embracing diversities, unifying humanity.

Silent story

Candid shots and conscious pose…over 300 entries received, each capturing different ‘flavours of India’- the theme for GT Picture-it Photo Contest, organized by your very own newspaper, for the eighth consecutive year. The beauty and variety with which Amity’s lensmen framed the gastronomic essence of our nation, is worth a look (page 6-7).
Moments create memories, and memories captured by lenses, script timeless stories. And such two momentous photographs of the launch of India’s first satellite carried by ISRO scientists on a bullock cart (Pg 8) to Chandrayaan-2, narrate the whole story of the space sojourn of our great nation. These two photographs tell us about 44 years of  team effort, hard work and perseverance of the scientists and staff of ISRO to conquer the world. That’s what the beauty of a well-timed and well-captured picture is, it is ‘silent’ but speaks volumes, it is ‘still’ but moving. It holds memories which create legacies. It tells stories in chromes and weaves nostalgia in sepia tones. A picture is more than just a ‘click’, it is a ‘shot’ of the ‘tale’ which would one day become the ‘narrative’ of a family, the ‘memoir’ of a society and the ‘heritage’ of a nation. This is the reason why GT Picture-it Photo Contest has been designed to encourage our young lensmen to see the world through their lenses and weave a powerful pictorial narrative. A picture can change the world and I am sure that each one of us will try to explore the beauty of the world through the eye of the lenses.

GT M@il

Dear Editor,
This is with reference to GT Awards that was held on August 9, 2019 at Amity University, Noida. I was unable to make it to the event because of my college, but when I received the news that my school has bagged the winner’s trophy, I exclaimed with joy! I am very happy that my school and team were honoured with Best School Newspaper Award. I genuinely want to thank the entire GT team, not only for the opportunities and the platform but also for providing me an extra edge in this increasingly competitive world.
Here, at my college, IIT Roorkee, I have already been recruited as one of the writers because of my past experience and work. And just to specify, it is a huge deal in itself. All the grooming I had undergone in school because of GT has been helping me out in ways that I could never even think of. I could see myself growing and evolving as a writer throughout the years I spent with Amity and GT. Considering that I have published work in the only registered school newspaper in India, I can stand with confidence in my college because of GT. As an alumna, I am proud to say that I am and will always be a part of the GT legacy!
Yavnika Garg, AIS Gur 46, Alumna