By Vidya Pradhan One legend has it that the priest of a Spanish exploration group was found dead at the summit of this mountain, after some negotiations with local natives went sour.  The more conventional explanation is that the peak derives its name from the 1805 escape of several Chupcan Native Americans from the Spanish in a nearby willow thicket. The natives, who were surrounded by the Spaniards, seemed to mysteriously disappear, and the Spanish soldiers thus gave the thicket the name "Monte del Diablo", meaning "thicket of the devil." Over time, it  became corrupted to Mount Diablo, or Mountain of the Devil. This beautiful mountain, located in Contra Costa County, is visible from most of the San Francisco Bay Area and much of northern California. On an exceptionally clear day, it is possible to see Half-Dome in Yosemite National Park, about 125 miles to the east, with a telescope.( info courtesy Wikipedia) Half-Dome is where our intrepid band of middle-aged hikers had been training towards for the last 10 weeks, and it seemed fitting that Mt. Diablo be our last long hike before the big day. At 15.5 miles round trip with an elevation gain of about 3500 feet, Mt. Diablo was the closest we could get to the Half-Dome experience near our homes in the East Bay.

By P.R. Ganapathy I was in India on a business trip recently and some friends took me to a night club in Bandra. It was Friday evening, and while the place was relatively empty when we got there at 9 pm, it quickly filled up with young office workers in their twenties and thirties. Since smoking in bars is not prohibited in India (or at least not enforced), the entire place quickly acquired a thick haze of cigarette smoke. What was particularly striking was the number of women who were lighting up. Over the years, smoking seems to have become especially fashionable among young professionals in general, and women in particular. Anecdotally, smoking rates in general seem much higher there; I have few friends who smoke here in the US, but in India, I frequently ran into colleagues on their way out of the building for a smoke, or on their way back from one.   A recent New York Times article talks about the strong correlation between years spent in school and life expectancy. Interestingly, researchers have found much lower levels of correlation between race, or wealth, and longevity; education stands out as the single largest factor.   So what marks the difference between the more vs. the less educated?

By Vidya Pradhan What is the sound of ballot papers rustling if no one’s around at the polls? Caught up in the rapidly evolving drama of the Democratic primaries, even the most die-hard political junkies in California apparently were oblivious to the fact that an election was conducted this Tuesday. It so happened that I was at the polls as a “Judge”, electing to spend the day at my polling place observing democracy in action.

By Isheeta Sanghi The three words that I hear every time the electricity goes out from my Dad are ‘Welcome to India.’ If India had a door the sign on the door knob would read ‘PROCEED WITH CAUTION.’ I say this because really, there are some things that you need to be aware of before moving/relocating here here.

By Laxmi Natarajan Reduce, Reuse and Recycle : we hear this everywhere today. Small changes in our everyday life go a long way towards a better environment and prepare us for a greener lifestyle.  Driving hybrid cars (or not driving a car), using alternate modes of transport, conserving electrical energy at home (insulation, using lights only when you need it, using green lights) and yes, using a clothesline, particularly in summer season, are all the things to do to be green. Last weekend I visited a green event hosted by the City of Belmont and was fascinated by the number of green vendors.   The green industry is taking off in all walks of life.  From the smart car to Segway, Argon filled double paned windows to Compost bins - all these contribute to having clean and less polluted air and a healthier planet.