Physiological aspects of competitive cross-country skiing.

The physiological demands of cross-country skiing require competitive skiers to have high maximal oxygen uptakes and anaerobic thresholds. Anaerobic capacity has a relatively less important role, but may be of greater importance today with the faster race velocities resulting from the new skiing techniques of ski skating. Although use of the ski skating techniques results in faster race velocities than the classical techniques, it has been found that under some conditions the double-pole technique is more economical than other skiing techniques. It is suggested that this results from a more effective storage and recovery of elastic energy, a greater proportion of the forces being directed along the line of travel, and a lower air resistance due to greater trunk and hip flexion with the double-pole technique. The greater economy of the double-pole technique suggests that this may be advantageous in certain race conditions if the upper body is adequately prepared. The greater propulsive forces generated with the upper body with ski skating also suggest that training of the upper body should receive more emphasis. The potential cardiovascular adaptations from cross-country ski training appear to be similar for the classical and skating techniques, yet training specificity is important for optimal performance.     

An Overview of Modern Technologies Applications in Indian Libraries (Brief Communication)

India is one of the oldest civilizations with a kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage. It has achieved multi-faccted socio-economic progress during the last 47 years of its independence. This article reports on a survey of the usage of modern technologies (e.g. photocopiers, microfilming, computers, facsimile transmission, audio-visual, online searching and CD-ROMs) in Indian libraries. These libraries include university, engineering, scientific, medical, government and public libraries. The study used a questionnaire, personal visits to many libraries and interviews. The paper examines the impact of modern technologies on these libraries. It concludes with a summary of the problems faced by the librarians in adopting the modern technologies and suggests measures for implementation of modern technologies.