Cooking has long been known as an effective stress buster and teenagers seemed to have unearthed its charms too. Several youngsters are taking refuge in the kitchen not only to beat the stress in their daily lives but also to bond with their family, who they sometimes estrange from.

Psychiatrists have maintained that the quintessential TV dinner with family can go a long way in restoring harmony in a household. Dr Sharita Shah, psychiatrist of Bombay Hospital says, “It’s not just young girls, but boys too are trying their hand at cooking, perhaps being inspired by television shows such as Masterchef Australia, Oliver’s Kitchen etc. Also most of them don’t take to cooking with a definite purpose to find peace, but once they are into it, they discover that it is therapeutic.”
School and college projects that involve cooking are also pushing teens towards culinary pass times. Says Leena Yadav, a junior college student, “I was having this rather elongated cold war with my mother and I didn’t know how to put a stop to it, when my friend suggested that I should try my hand at cooking. I followed her advice, since it was also a part of my college curriculum, and much to my mother’s surprise things began to ease out between us. This Diwali too, I am going to help her make sweets; we are both looking forward to it.”
Parents too are welcoming this change in the attitude of their children. “Cooking is a creative exercise where each can participate in their own way. My elder daughter who is 16 years old has developed a keen interest in the kitchen and also encourages my younger daughter to partake in the cooking process from time to time. I have noticed a positive change in their behaviour in recent times which is a great source of relief,” says Shikha Rajpal Singh.

Where is wife carrying a sport?
Many may find it hard to digest, but wife carrying is actually a sport, which has its roots in Finland. As the name suggests, it actually involves a man carrying his wife and finding his way through different obstacles such as wading through sand, water, muck and even fences. Wife carrying sport is actually the brainchild of a 19th century legend according to which men used to steal wives from other villages.
Believe it or not, there is also something called a wife carrying world championship which is hosted every year in the Finnish town of Sonkajärven. Whoever wins the race gets his wife’s weight of beer. Besides Finland, the sport is also widely popular in the US, Australia, Ireland and China. People are also trained in different ways to carry their wives for best results. Till today, Estonian couple Margo Usorg and Birgit Ulricht share the highest world record of finishing the race in 55.5 seconds.

Why are computerised voices female?
Ever wondered why most automated voices in electronic devices are female? Scientific studies have found that humans prefer the voice of a woman to that of a man’s.
An experiment conducted at the Stanford University has shown that right from the foetus stage, humans respond to the voice of the mother but not to that of the father’s. Perhaps that’s why, during the second World War, without having any hint of the scientific explanation, navigation devices used female voices, because a female voice was believed to stand out. And since then people have become habituated to a disembodied woman’s voice.

Who is in charity mode?
Rock star Bon Jovi won many hearts all over again, this time through a pay-what-you-want restaurant, which he open recently in New Jersey. Called The Soul Kitchen, the restaurant serves gourmet food to the hungry while encouraging them volunteer in social projects.
The menu actually lists the items without prices and paying customers can leave any amount they want in envelops left on the tables. This restaurant is the latest addition to the the musician’s charitable undertaking, the Soul Foundation.

When is the great tribal music fest ?
It’s called the Festival of 1,000 stars and takes place in Africa’s Rift Valley in the month of December every year. Over three days around 50 tribes from all over Africa enthral the audience with their traditional music. Most performances are acoustic which use traditional instruments such as bamboo horns, panpipes and sticks and drums. The performers carry spears and shields and wear exotic monkey-skin crowns and leopard skin cloaks.