Worthy work  The essence of education lies in acquiring wisdom from which flows discipline, devotion, dedication, contentment and other traits required for a total personality. Yes, the new book titled Tini Maharathir Galpa Sankalan, a collection of translated short stories written by Rabindranath Tagore, Munchi Premchand and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyaya, is precisely the result of wisdom inherent in the translators, the husband-wife duo of Girish Chandra Phukan and Kiran Devi Phukan. Published by Utpal Hazarika of Bani Mandir, the book, priced Rs 90, consists of 15 selected and highly acclaimed short stories of the three greats. Those have been translated by the Phukans after their retirement, and which were published in different newspapers and magazines receiving accolades. In fact, writer Kamakhya Sabhapandit has mentioned this in his foreword to the book. An applied geophysicist, who retired as an assistant general manager of ONGC, Girish Phukan is a ‘silent literary activist’. His other published works are Upaban (poetry), Dikhour Para Houstonoloi (travelogue), and Kusum (translation of Premchand’s stories). His wife Kiran Devi is an Arundale Montessori-trained teacher who retired as founder principal of Dipankar Vidyapeeth, Jorhat. She has earlier translated Premchand’s novel Nirmala. Their endeavour in reading and writing to give something to society is really worthy of emulation by the retirees many of whom break down mentally and physically due to so-called lack of avenues to carry on in their later life.

Litho legend  Are you interested in the science of sound or for that matter, music? If yes, then here’s one interesting ‘musical instrument’ that has been put up in the Regional Science Centre (RSC) in Guwahati. It’s lithophone, an ancient tool made of stone and used for producing different musical sounds. Keeping its original flavour intact, this recent installation amidst the scientific charts, models and apparatus in the RSC has become an instant hit with the visitors to the science museum, especially the student community. It is made up of eight different sized stone slabs fixed on a frame and when these stone slabs are hit with a hammer, different musical sounds can be produced. And for those having a fair knowledge of musical notations, it is not that hard to create a ‘piece of music’ on this lithophone.

Smart stuff  Ginger, the hotel chain of India with ‘smart basics’ has recently opened its nineteenth unit at Borbari, Guwahati. With a horde of facilities and features, this no-frills Tata Enterprise hotel offers unmatched comfort and convenience to make one feel at home as its tagline rightly says — please help yourself. This 70-room hotel, besides having AC rooms with electronic locks, wall-mounted LCD TV, wi-fi internet connectivity, multiple dining options and other guest facilities, will also offer limited room service — Ginger’s latest attempt to understand the evolving needs of the modern-day traveller.

Simanta / Mridumoloy