IIT post-graduate gives Rupee its symbol

The jury has given its verdict: the rupee will retain its Indian character with an international flavour. The five-member panel has chosen IIT post-graduate D Udaya Kumar's design from among five shortlisted symbols and recommended it for Cabinet approval.

Kumar's symbol (on the left) is an amalgam of the Devanagari 'Ra' and the Roman capital 'R' without the stem, very much in line with what Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had envisioned. "We intend to formalise a symbol for the Indian rupee which reflects and captures Indian ethos and culture," Mukherjee said in his Budget speech this year.

The chosen symbol has the Finance Minister's approval, said a Ministry official.

The Ministry had organised a symbol design competition with a prize money of Rs 2.5 lakh with the condition that it should be applicable to the standard keyboard, be in the national language script or a visual representation and should represent the historical and cultural ethos of the country.

While the basic aim of the new symbol is to provide the Indian rupee international recognition as the country's economy exerts more influence in the global space, the unique sign will also help isolate the currency from the current abbreviation 'Rs' which is used by neighbouring Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Kumar's concept, an official said, is based on the Tricolour and "arithmetic equivalence". While the white space between the two horizontal lines gives the impression of the national flag with the Ashok Chakra, the two bold parallel lines stand for 'equals to', representing balance in the economy, both within and with other economies of the world.

When contacted, Kumar said he was unaware of his design having been ranked first by the jury. "I hope your news is real," he told The Indian Express from IIT Bombay. He joins IIT Guwahati as a faculty member in the Department of Design tomorrow.

Useful Info. BLOOD GM

This is very useful information pass, it on to everyone you know.

Now it has become easier to get the blood we need. All you have to do is just type "BLOOD and send SMS to 96000 97000" EX: "BLOOD B+" A BLOOD DONOR WILL CALL YOU!! So please pass this message to all. It certainly would save many lives. Its a Must to Know & Share. Do it now.... Forward this to all your friends whom you care ......as the minute you spare to share this information can save somebody's life with rare Blood Group! If you couldn't be a Donor be a Communicator.

Names of things you never knew had names

· AGLET - The plain or ornamental covering on the end of a shoelace.

· ARMSAYE - The armhole in clothing.

· CHANKING - Spat-out food, such as rinds or pits.

· COLUMELLA NASI - The bottom part of the nose between the nostrils.

· DRAGÉES - Small beadlike pieces of candy, usually silver-coloured, used for decorating cookies, cakes and sundaes.

· FEAT - A dangling curl of hair.

· FERRULE - The metal band on a pencil that holds the eraser in place.

· HARP - The small metal hoop that supports a lampshade.

· HEMIDEMISEMIQUAVER - A 64th note. (A 32nd is a demisemiquaver, and a 16th note is a semiquaver.)

· JARNS, NITTLES, GRAWLIX and QUIMP - Various squiggles used to denote cussing in comic books.

· KEEPER - The loop on a belt that keeps the end in place after it has passed through the buckle.

· KICK or PUNT - The indentation at the bottom of some wine bottles. It gives added strength to the bottle but lessens its holding capacity.

· LIRIPIPE - The long tail on a graduate's academic hood.

· MINIMUS - The little finger or toe.

· NEF - An ornamental stand in the shape of a ship.

· OBDORMITION - The numbness caused by pressure on a nerve; when a limb is 'asleep'.

· OCTOTHORPE - The symbol '#' on a telephone handset. Bell Labs' engineer Don Macpherson created the word in the 1960s by combining octo-, as in eight, with the name of one of his favourite athletes, 1912 Olympic decathlon champion Jim Thorpe.

· OPHRYON - The space between the eyebrows on a line with the top of the eye sockets.

· PEEN - The end of a hammer head opposite the striking face.

· PHOSPHENES - The lights you see when you close your eyes hard. Technically the luminous impressions are due to the excitation of the retina caused by pressure on the eyeball.

· PURLICUE - The space between the thumb and extended forefinger.

· RASCETA - Creases on the inside of the wrist.

· ROWEL - The revolving star on the back of a cowboy's spurs.

· SADDLE - The rounded part on the top of a matchbook.

· SCROOP - The rustle of silk.

· SNORKEL BOX - A mailbox with a protruding receiver to allow people to deposit mail without leaving their cars.

· SPRAINTS - Otter dung.

· TANG - The projecting prong on a tool or instrument.

· WAMBLE - Stomach rumbling.

· ZARF - A holder for a handleless coffee cup.