Talentime 2011 hits town! This management fest, hosted by the School of Management Studies, CUSAT (Cochin University of Science and Technology), was first initiated in the year 1982. With a futuristic vision to bring together talents and brains from across the country, Talentime 2011 has the best programmes this year too. Talentime 2011 is the 28^th edition of the fiesta. Being the oldest management and cultural fest in South India, over the years, the event has attained an iconic stature. The event also known as the Olympiad of wit and skill provides an ideal battlefield for the strategic and tactful warriors. The event boasts of a wide coverage of people from all walks of life. Talentime transcends the boundaries from being just a college meet to a festival celebrating talent and skills. The theme for the fest this year is Disaster Management.

Games and events hosted by the fest can get you quite a fortune too! Prizes are worth 1,57,000 rupees, this is one of the best management fests held in Kochi. It is not just games alone, you have many cultural events to look forward too. You can also listen to awesome live music being performed by bands. The fest will be held from the 14^th of October and will be on till the 16^th of Oct.

There is something for young painters as well. ‘Rangoli’, a painting competition will be held on the 8^th of October as part of the fest. Prizes are worth 10,000 rupees. There are two categories- Juniors (9-12 years), and Seniors (13-18years). Participants must stick to the theme (Juniors-Floods and Pollution, Seniors- Tsunami and Earthquake). The competition will be held at School of Management Studies Auditorium at CUSAT Campus.

For more details, log onto www.talentime.in. You can mail them at events@talentime.in. Call them at: Hashmi- 8089612938 or Nipin Joseph- 9846930507.

The Division of Information Technology, School of Engineering, Cochin University of Science and Technology proudly present to the people of Kochi with an opportunity of a lifetime. A workshop on Ethical Hacking will be conducted by the king of the subject Mr. Ankit Fadia, a child prodigy who made this art his very own in India, and has ever since developed upon his knowledge and control over Hacking. This Event will be the best workshop on hacking ever held in CUSAT. Interested people from OUTSIDE CUSAT ARE EQUALLY WELCOME!!! It will be conducted by Ankit Fadia who we all know is the pioneer of Ethical Hacking in India. So grab this opportunity!

If you are a regular MTV music channel viewer, you woudn’t have missed his show ‘What the Hack’. Those who will attend the workshop will get certificates from Mr. Ankit Fadia which will carry great significance, as he is a very prominent name in IT industry. You need to pay a registration fee of 1300 rupees.

Venue: Department of Polymer Science and Technology, CUSAT, Kochi.

Date: 1st October

For more details on the event, log onto http://bit.ly/nAenLd. You can also visit him at www.ankitfadia.in.

We have more Miss Kerala contestants of the previous years here at Kochivibe, and they have much to share with the contestants for the year 2011. Today, we have the very pretty, charming, petite and smart lady Priyanka Rao speaking to Kochivibe on what to expect, what not, and more for contestants this year. Priyanka had appeared for the Miss Kerala contest in the year 2009, and was one amongst the finalists for the Miss Kerala finale evening. She recalls that the pageant has helped her immensely in boosting her confidence. And yes, it changed her outlook towards life as well. “You learn a lot from this contest. Meeting new people and knowing their different perspectives are all lessons which would help you later in life”, said Priyanka.

Being awarded the titles Ms. Photogenic and Ms. Beautiful skin, Priyanka has had her share of film and ad makers approaching her to cast her in their works. Apart from modeling for a few magazines, and being the model in their cover page, including magazines like ‘Vanitha’, Priyanka has not really felt the need to do modeling. Currently working with a company in Bangalore, Priyanka had done her under graduation in B.Com from St. Teresas College in Ernakulam.

Having given education a bigger priority, this young lady came back from the limelight to do her MBA in CUSAT. “Miss Kerala contest helped me realize my inner talent. I never knew I could go out there and make myself heard. Thanks to the pageant, I can face anything that comes by my way now”, added Priyanka. She recalls that the grooming sessions from Ms. Mayuri Joshy, former Ms. Pune, had helped her a lot.

“This is the perfect platform to showcase your talent. You need not turn back. Give your best shot”, says Priyanka to all the aspiring contestants out there. “The pageant would be something which you can cherish till your end. It would present you lovely memories. Go for it!”, adds this charming lady.

So, all you need to do now is, gather all the confidence and make sure you are seen out there. You can be the next Miss Kerala, with that little bit of effort!!!

Here are the pictures from the rock show that took place at Cochin University of Science and Technology! Berserk, a part of Disha 2011 looked like it kicked some major ass!

As a part of Disha, CUSAT is organizing a rock festival on 5th March 2011 at 5:00 P.M. See all your metal heads there!

The Culture & Heritage Department, CUSAT in collaboration with The Italian Cultural Institute, New Delhi provides you the opportunity to learn Italian. The ten month course would help in developing wide awareness about the language through their well-developed program which would enable achieving standard Italian language skills.

Their aim, by the end of the course, is to make you understand and familiarize on matters regularly encountered at work, school,leisure etc. The course would also help produce basic text on topics and describe experiences, events or provide explanations. Classes would be held from Monday to Thursday (morning or evening time)

The course would commence by mid July 2011 and end in May 2012. Admission are open up to June.
Location: Department of Culture and Heritage, CUSAT
You can contact 0484- 2575180 / sarandreis[at]hotmail[dot]com for more information

The Cultural Centre of Italian Embassy, New Delhi and the Department of Culture and Heritage, CUSAT together have organized an Italian film festival at the Polymer Sciences Auditorium   on the CUSAT campus. Head to their campus on 11th and 12th of February and watch the 3 Italian Films selected for the festival. The festival is being inaugrated by Dr. Ramachandran Thekkedath (Vice Chancellor, CUSAT) on 11th at 04:00 P.M. Entry to the festival is free. The movie schedules are as follows:

Friday, February 11 at 06:00 P.M : My Brother is an only Child (IMDB)

Saturday, February 12 at 03:30 P.M : I’m not Scared (IMDB)

Saturday, February 12 at 06:00 P.M : 100 Steps (IMDB)

The Department of Physics at Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) is providing an opportunity for budding talents to improve their knowledge in the subject. From April 19 to 29, they will get a chance to interact with experts and clear their doubts in physics.The programme is being jointly organised by the Department of Physics, Cusat; SPIE-Cusat chapter; ECS-Cusat chapter; IRC-Cusat, and IUCAA, Pune. Titled ‘Physics: Scope and Awareness’, the 10-day workshop will be an occasion for students to widen their interests in some of the exciting topics in physics.

M.K. Jayaraj, convener of the event, said that students completing 9th standard in 2010 are eligible to apply for the workshop. The aim of the workshop is to give students exposure to various interesting areas in physics.It will also provide them hands-on experience on various experiments, and telescope making. The workshop also gives an opportunity for students to see some of the experiments in the frontier areas being carried out at the Department of Physics, Dr. Jayaraj said.

Students can apply in the format designed by the organisers. The workshop will be held at the Department of Physics in Cusat. More details about the programme can be had from http://physics.cusat.ac.in/spie/. Phone: 9946149369, 9447719716.

The recession bug seems to have bitten  Cochin University of Science and Technology ( CUSAT ) . Nearly 120 seats seem to be vacant in the Software streams , being CSE and IT ..!

Now , what has the CUSAT done to tackle the situation ? CUSAT has always been known for their smart administrartion ..! ( who am I kidding..  ) . Well , they have decided to permit students who have not attended the entrance tests..! How smart is that ?

Students who have appeared for the Common Admission Test ( CAT , conducted by the Kerala Govt ) , can now apply. And what if the seats are still vacant ? Theres a solution to that as well .. CUSAT will be taking in students who are ” keen” on joining the course.. So , all you CUSAT fans out there , now is the time to get smart..!!  lol…

Heres more ! Students who have registered before Aug 27th will be given preference  ..! an early bird scheme ?? Desperation , I should say..!!  :)

The admission procedure will begin at the Kunjali Marikkar campus on September 16 at 10 a.m. So , if you dont have a seat reserved for yourself yet , get going.. and prevent CUSAT from coming up with smarter ideas , like Mega Draw etc..  lol..