From The Blurbs

The secret life of streets by Sarayu Ahuja, Penguin, Rs 295 Streets impart a personality to cities. Some are broad and indolent, others brisk and efficient. Sarayu Ahuja strolls through streets in cities as different as Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Mumbai, viewing them not in terms of design alone but also in the context of their history and their sights, smells, sounds and people. Vulnerable India by Anu Kapur, Sage, Rs 850

First barbecues

Book>> Catching Fire • by Richard Wrangham • Basic Books • Indian Price Rs 450

Myth of compliance

Report>>  Calling the Bluff • by Kanchi Kohli and Manju Menon • Kalpavriksh • Price Rs 150

Uncelebrated entrepreneurs

book>> Of Poverty and Plastics • by Kaveri Gill • OUP • Rs 695 What happens when poverty meets plastic? Economist Kaveri Gill’s research suggests the result is entrepreneurialism—hard-won and struggling still—plus a greening of the city. In her book, Of Poverty and Plastics, this idea, among several others, is backed by several years of research and innovative methodology.

News Snippets

>> Germans have found a novel way of recycling thousands of used and unsold Christmas trees: to give them to the local zoo to feed the animals. "Elephants around the country will have a delicious lunch of five Christmas trees each," Berlin zoo spokesperson Ragnar Kuehne informed the news agency Reuters. Camels, deer and sheep would also be dining on the leftover trees which could aid digestion since they contain a lot of essential oils," the zoo spokesperson added.

Antarctic explorer Robert Scott's last letter put on display

The last letters written by Antarctic explorer Robert Scott to his wife and young son before the adventurer died on his South Pole expedition are to go on display for the first time. On January 17, they went on display at Scott Polar Research Institute, which was established at Cambridge University in the explorer's memory.

High nicotine in US cigarettes perpetuates tobacco pandemic

The amount of nicotine that us smokers typically inhale per cigarette rose by 11 per cent from 1998 to 2005, perpetuating a "tobacco pandemic" that makes it harder for smokers to quit, according to a study by Harvard School of Public Health. The researchers analysed data submitted by major cigarette brands to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Massachusetts has required tobacco companies to submit annual reports on cigarette nicotine yields since 1997.

Bush, global warming and media

A us official denied a British newspaper report that President George W Bush was preparing to announce a dramatic policy shift on global warming in his State of the Union speech.

Online<br><br>www.genderspace.org

The site under review introduces us to the work of the Gender and Space Project. Undertaken by the Mumbai-based Partners for Urban Knowledge Action and Research, the project focuses on gender as a category to examine the ordering and experience of the city and its varied spaces, particularly public spaces.

Review <i>Blood Diamond</i>

Film>> Blood Diamond directed by Edward Zwick 143 minutes