The Indian Panorama

Tag: Indins abroad

  • Queens Indian American community extends a reception to Melinda Katz

    Queens Indian American community extends a reception to Melinda Katz

    RICHMOND HILL, NY(TIP): The Queens Indian American community organized a reception to Melinda Katz, the Queens Borough President who is completing two terms this year.

    Melinda is now eying the post of District Attorney of Queens. It was a public relations exercise for Melinda who is admired for her work, in particular by the Punjabi community.

    Jarnail Singh Gilzian and Melinda Katz

    A Punjabi community leader Jarnail Singh Gilzian who owns the famous banquet and Restaurant Richie Rich in Richmond Hill hosted the reception which was attended by a large number of community leaders from Queens and Long Island.

    The more prominent amongst them who also spoke on the occasion included Mohinder Singh Gilzian, President of Indian Overseas Congress, Harbans Singh Dhillon, former Election Commissioner, Gurdwara Sikh Cultural Society, Harpreet Singh Toor, former Chairman, Gurdwara Sikh Cultural Society, Satnam Singh Parhar, Former President, India Association of Long Island, and Bhinda Begowalia, President of Begowal Society. Each speaker spoke highly of Melinda and pledged support in her bid for District Attorney of Queens.

    Melinda Katz addresses the gathering. Seen to her right is Jarnail Singh Gilzian

    Speaking on the occasion, Melinda spoke of her work as Queens Borough President. She pledged her support to the community which had always supported her. She thanked Jarnail Singh Gilzian for organizing a reception to enable her to reach out to a large number of her supporters and voters.

    Sections of the gathering
    Sections of the gathering
    Sections of the gathering
    Sections of the gathering

    Earlier, on her arrival, Melinda was welcomed with a bouquet presented to her by Jarnail Singh Gilzian’s family.

    During her more than an hour- stay, Melinda went around meeting everyone individually and obliging them with photographs.

    Melinda Katz poses for a photograph with community leaders
    Gilzian family with Melinda

    Prof. Indrajit Saluja emceed the event.

     

     

     

     

  • Indian-Origin US Student to get ‘Young Scholar’ Award

    Indian-Origin US Student to get ‘Young Scholar’ Award

    WASHINGTON(TIP): India-origin scholar in the US, Rajalakshmi Nandakumar, has been chosen for a prestigious award for her work to help detect potentially life-threatening health issues using smartphones.

    Ms. Nandakumar, studying at the University of Washington, has created a technology that turns an ordinary smartphone into an active sonar system capable of detecting physiological activities, such as movement and respiration, without requiring physical contact with the device.

    She has been selected for the 2018 Marconi Society Paul Baran Young Scholar award.

    She took inspiration from bats, which use sonar technique to navigate in the dark by sending out acoustic signals and using the reflections to identify objects.

    Her system works by transmitting inaudible sound signals from the phone’s speaker and tracking their reflections off the human body. The reflections are then analyzed using a combination of algorithms and signal processing techniques, a media release said.

    Ms. Nandakumar received her bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering from Chennai.

    She worked for Microsoft Research India before beginning her graduate work at the University of Washington in 2013. Her Madurai-based parents founded a company for distribution of diagnostic medicines to hospital laboratories in Tamil Nadu.

    Young scholars are selected by an international panel comprising engineers from leading universities and companies and receive a USD 5,000 prize plus expenses to attend the annual awards event.

    Three other young scholars were also selected this year. Being named ‘Young Scholar’ brings valuable mentorship and guidance by Marconi Prize winners who include some of the world’s leading scientists and researchers.

    “I always wanted to find a way to detect physiological signals, like breathing and heart rate, because they are the most commonly used signals for healthcare applications,” said Ms. Nandakumar.

    Her system is disrupting the sleep industry by creating a non-intrusive, low-cost application ApneaApp for detecting sleep apnea, a breathing disorder affecting millions of people worldwide that often goes undiagnosed, a media release said.

    “Rajalakshmi has a knack for selecting problems with high social impact,” says Dr Shyam Gollakota, an associate professor at the Allen School.

    “Our Young Scholar award attracts the world’s brightest young communications researchers,” said Dr Vinton Cerf, Chairman of the Marconi Society and ‘Father of the Internet’.