Anurakte

The Handbook of Astrophotography is the first book dedicated to Astronomical Imaging through modest equipment, and the first to be published in India. It is a chronicle of the techniques learnt and employed by the author and is by no means proprietary. It is assumed that the reader is equipped with the basic knowledge to use a digital camera. After showing the many methods to capture the Cosmos, the book shows how to process these images. It is designed to be a handbook and not a user manual. The author hopes that the reader will be confident in astronomical imaging and develop his/her own techniques after reading the book. Sathyakumar started Astrophotography in January 2006 with a homemade wooden star-tracking mount and a camera borrowed from a friend. He later used his homemade Newtonian reflector telescope and an inexpensive digital camera to capture photos of the Moon. With an MSc in Aerospace engineering from the University of Salford, Manchester, he joined Opticstar Ltd, as a design engineer. There he was trained on the latest of astronomical instruments available for the amateur astrophotographer and eventually purchased the Celestron C8 Schmidt cassegrain telescope and the CG-5 Equatorial mount. Currently, he uses a GSO 6 inch RC telescope and an HEQ5-PRO computerized mount as well as an Orion 80ED Apochromatic telescope for astrophotography. He also owns an Astrotrac to take wide field vistas of the Cosmos. He is now employed as a Scientific Officer at Karnataka Science and Technology Promotion Society, Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of Karnataka.

Dhvani and Epiphany examines the work of major Indian poets like Nissim Ezekiel and Arun Kolatkar; the struggle of young poets to find an audience; and the art of fiction. But its main focus is on the nature of creativity. How does an artist communicate his meaning? What makes a work genuinely creative? Through a sensitive exploration of poetry ? ranging from the simple poems of a child, Poorna Prajna, to the complex ?Byzantium Poems? of Yeats ? the first seven essays try to show how a poem comes to life when it speaks to us and we listen to its dhvani and respond. Even in fiction, it is not all realism. There is irony in exploring the paradoxical nature of reality; events taking on symbolic overtones; and epiphany, moments of illumination and insights ? when surprising correspondences are seen. Writers cannot surprise and delight their audience if they themselves are not surprised and delighted by such insights.

The third edition of A Birder’s Handbook to Manipal documents 260 species of birds observed in Manipal since 2009. It is more concise and informative than the previous editions, covers more species and has up-to-date maps and documentation notes. This edition also comes with a waterproof quick-ID guide for easy use in the field, as well as bird sounds. Ramit Singal is a former student of Manipal Institute of Technology. He founded the Manipal Birders’ Club and authored the first and second editions of this book. In the past, he has been associated with Centre for Wildlife Studies and Nature Conservation Foundation as well as a number of short-term projects across the country. He enjoys spreading the love for birds amongst others and has been working with bird-related citizen science projects over the past few years.

Vaidehi Kathana is the first full-length literary critical study of the fictional, non fictional and poetic narratives of Vaidehi, who is considered to be one of the most celebrated contemporary Indian writers in Kannada. This work reviews, introduces, discusses and interprets all the writings of Vaidehi, which include short stories, poems, essays and a novel. The book examines how this great Indian writer has been reacting and responding to her time and space for the last four decades. The book shows how Vaidehi?s poetics has so subtly blended with her politics thereby creating some of the outstanding masterpieces in poetry and fiction of our times. The book discusses the special features of Vaidehi?s feminist perspectives as well as the uniqueness of her narrative skills. Arguing that Vaidehi?s spiritual triumph is demonstrated in her technical triumph, the book draws the attention of the non-Kannada readers to the entire body of Vaidehi?s writings. Lucidly translated into English by the noted translator O L Nagabhushana Swamy, T P Ashoka?s Vaidehi Kathana provides a meaningful opportunity for the non-Kannada readers to familiarize themselves with one of the greatest contemporary writers of India. T P Ashoka?s Vaidehi Kathana is a significant contribution to modern Indian literary criticism. The book provides an interesting reading not only to the students of literature, researchers and teachers but also appeals to the general readers.