Thursday, May 25, 2006
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Non-Proliferation Treaty or NonPerformance Treaty?
*Disclaimer*
All views expressed in this post are those of the author. The author is only excercising his right of speech. This is not an attempt to defame/belittle countries/people. And err.. (in case there is any doubt).. by author, I mean... ME. You are most welcome to point out any flaws in my thinking. But I only ask that you do it politely. Thank you.
I was having breakfast at the dining hall last week when something on television caught my interest. There was talk of Iran's Uranium enrichment plan and how they were going against the International Community by manufacturing pure Uranium that could be used(hypothetically) to produce nuclear weapons. This TV news snippet brought back memories of a conversation I had with my Dad when I was in seventh grade.
Me: Dad, what is NPT?.. It's all over the papers, magazines and there was even a question on a quiz in school about it.
Dad: NPT stands for Non-proliferation treaty.. (sarcastically) You would know that yourself if you do not restrict yourself to only the sports page.
Me(spare the lecture look): Ok..Ok.. but what does the treaty say?
Dad: Basically the US wants India to keep away from nuclear arms research/development and testing.
Me: But America has nuclear arms!!!!?
Dad: Yes they do....
The rest of the conversation is immaterial. Though this exchange occurred ages ago, I still remember thinking of the absurdity of a nation in possession of nuclear arms trying to convince a second nation not to indulge in producing nuclear weapons. I just assumed I was too young to understand all the issues involved and promptly forgot all about it.
However, the whole concept of NPT sounds just as absurd to me today. Imagine a few select countries (United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France and China) the so called "Nuclear weapon states" (NWS) using a possible nuclear catastrophe as a ploy to demand that all other nations do not possess or develop nuclear weapons of their own.
The fact that 183 countries have signed the treaty makes it downright weird. You would think that they would have at the very least, demanded some actual disarmament from the NWS, before becoming a party to the treaty. Though it has been close to 50 years since the treaty came into being, there has been no serious disarmament activity from the NWS.
And what is more.. There has been talk of America imposing possible sanctions on Iran for breaching the treaty. They could have just said..
"We don't want nuclear weapon development in the middle east, which is brimming with terrorists, and risk nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands only to be used against us. So, as the most powerful country in the world, we are going to throw our weight around and ensure that Iran does not produce enriched uranium that may be used for nuclear weapon development."
But to say....
"You are not sticking to the treaty".
"You are endangering the International Community"
...after openly disobeying/ignoring Article VI of the NPT which essentially calls for progressive disarmament from the United States and the other NWS, is a parody of sorts.
Today, the five 'PERMANENT' members of the security council come together in Moscow to discuss sanctions proposed by the United States, to deter Iran from continuing their enrichment process. Please note that these are the only countries in the world that are 'ALLOWED' to possess nuclear weapons according to the 'NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY".
If the United Nations has the power to recommend economic sanctions on the nations that fail to adhere to the NPT, then why haven't any sanctions been imposed on the Nuclear Weapon States('the PERMANENT members') who have so cunningly postponed any actual disarmament for over 10 years now. And would those sanctions help? Would sanctions on the most powerful nations in the world affect them significantly enough? Probably not.
This post is NOT a call for all nations of the world to start nuclear arms production. It is just a call for nations to withdraw from the NPT which has failed miserably to bring about disarmament, the sole aim behind the treaty. (Not that I expect any country presidents to read this.. Just attribute this sentence to one of my fits of megalomania.. ).
For the NPT (or any other disarmament treaty for that matter) to be successful, we need to start with the Nuclear weapon states. Not the rest of the world EXCEPT the NWS. In simple terms, the problem here is nuclear weapons and obviously the best way to solve a problem is the source of the problem, namely the NWS. What is the point in getting a treaty signed by every single country that does NOT possess a nuclear weapon if the ultimate goal is the complete elimination of nuclear weapons from the face of the Earth?
If the NWS and other nuclear states(Israel and India) want to pursue disarmament with honorable intentions, they must realize that they will have to start with themselves. They brought this menace into the world and it is they who must take the responsibility of getting rid of the menace. Not by threatening/browbeating other nations into not producing nuclear weapons but by approaching the non-trivial problem of 'disarming' themselves seriously and taking concrete steps that would make the goal of 'disarmament' achievable in real-time.
For more on Nuclear Disarmament click here.
Today happens to be my Dad's birthday.. Well Dad.. Think of this post as an elaborate means of letting you know that I'm in touch with world affairs.. ;-) Happy Birthday!! I love you!
All views expressed in this post are those of the author. The author is only excercising his right of speech. This is not an attempt to defame/belittle countries/people. And err.. (in case there is any doubt).. by author, I mean... ME. You are most welcome to point out any flaws in my thinking. But I only ask that you do it politely. Thank you.
I was having breakfast at the dining hall last week when something on television caught my interest. There was talk of Iran's Uranium enrichment plan and how they were going against the International Community by manufacturing pure Uranium that could be used(hypothetically) to produce nuclear weapons. This TV news snippet brought back memories of a conversation I had with my Dad when I was in seventh grade.
Me: Dad, what is NPT?.. It's all over the papers, magazines and there was even a question on a quiz in school about it.
Dad: NPT stands for Non-proliferation treaty.. (sarcastically) You would know that yourself if you do not restrict yourself to only the sports page.
Me(spare the lecture look): Ok..Ok.. but what does the treaty say?
Dad: Basically the US wants India to keep away from nuclear arms research/development and testing.
Me: But America has nuclear arms!!!!?
Dad: Yes they do....
The rest of the conversation is immaterial. Though this exchange occurred ages ago, I still remember thinking of the absurdity of a nation in possession of nuclear arms trying to convince a second nation not to indulge in producing nuclear weapons. I just assumed I was too young to understand all the issues involved and promptly forgot all about it.
However, the whole concept of NPT sounds just as absurd to me today. Imagine a few select countries (United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France and China) the so called "Nuclear weapon states" (NWS) using a possible nuclear catastrophe as a ploy to demand that all other nations do not possess or develop nuclear weapons of their own.
The fact that 183 countries have signed the treaty makes it downright weird. You would think that they would have at the very least, demanded some actual disarmament from the NWS, before becoming a party to the treaty. Though it has been close to 50 years since the treaty came into being, there has been no serious disarmament activity from the NWS.
And what is more.. There has been talk of America imposing possible sanctions on Iran for breaching the treaty. They could have just said..
"We don't want nuclear weapon development in the middle east, which is brimming with terrorists, and risk nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands only to be used against us. So, as the most powerful country in the world, we are going to throw our weight around and ensure that Iran does not produce enriched uranium that may be used for nuclear weapon development."
But to say....
"You are not sticking to the treaty".
"You are endangering the International Community"
...after openly disobeying/ignoring Article VI of the NPT which essentially calls for progressive disarmament from the United States and the other NWS, is a parody of sorts.
Today, the five 'PERMANENT' members of the security council come together in Moscow to discuss sanctions proposed by the United States, to deter Iran from continuing their enrichment process. Please note that these are the only countries in the world that are 'ALLOWED' to possess nuclear weapons according to the 'NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY".
If the United Nations has the power to recommend economic sanctions on the nations that fail to adhere to the NPT, then why haven't any sanctions been imposed on the Nuclear Weapon States('the PERMANENT members') who have so cunningly postponed any actual disarmament for over 10 years now. And would those sanctions help? Would sanctions on the most powerful nations in the world affect them significantly enough? Probably not.
This post is NOT a call for all nations of the world to start nuclear arms production. It is just a call for nations to withdraw from the NPT which has failed miserably to bring about disarmament, the sole aim behind the treaty. (Not that I expect any country presidents to read this.. Just attribute this sentence to one of my fits of megalomania.. ).
For the NPT (or any other disarmament treaty for that matter) to be successful, we need to start with the Nuclear weapon states. Not the rest of the world EXCEPT the NWS. In simple terms, the problem here is nuclear weapons and obviously the best way to solve a problem is the source of the problem, namely the NWS. What is the point in getting a treaty signed by every single country that does NOT possess a nuclear weapon if the ultimate goal is the complete elimination of nuclear weapons from the face of the Earth?
If the NWS and other nuclear states(Israel and India) want to pursue disarmament with honorable intentions, they must realize that they will have to start with themselves. They brought this menace into the world and it is they who must take the responsibility of getting rid of the menace. Not by threatening/browbeating other nations into not producing nuclear weapons but by approaching the non-trivial problem of 'disarming' themselves seriously and taking concrete steps that would make the goal of 'disarmament' achievable in real-time.
For more on Nuclear Disarmament click here.
Today happens to be my Dad's birthday.. Well Dad.. Think of this post as an elaborate means of letting you know that I'm in touch with world affairs.. ;-) Happy Birthday!! I love you!
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Rang De Basanti - A few reflections
*Disclaimer*
It has been more than a month since Rang De Basanti has hit the screens and I assumed (wrongly as the first comment indicates) that this disclaimer was unnecessary. So here goes.. Those of you who haven't seen the movie yet, please be forewarned that this post, though not a review of the movie, does contain some spoilers.
Without doubt Rang De Basanti is a pleasant watch. There are a lot of fun-filled moments interspersed with some absorbing and thought-provoking ones. Since we went in a gang of 14 to watch the movie, I didn't get much of a chance to reflect after the movie ended. The other day however, I was listening to the 'Rang de basanti' soundtrack and it triggered a few reflections that I would like to share.
It has been more than a month since Rang De Basanti has hit the screens and I assumed (wrongly as the first comment indicates) that this disclaimer was unnecessary. So here goes.. Those of you who haven't seen the movie yet, please be forewarned that this post, though not a review of the movie, does contain some spoilers.
Without doubt Rang De Basanti is a pleasant watch. There are a lot of fun-filled moments interspersed with some absorbing and thought-provoking ones. Since we went in a gang of 14 to watch the movie, I didn't get much of a chance to reflect after the movie ended. The other day however, I was listening to the 'Rang de basanti' soundtrack and it triggered a few reflections that I would like to share.
In the recent past and the not so recent past, several movies, the most prominent of which are "Gentleman", "Indian" (Hindusthani), "Mudhalvan", "Ramana" and "Anniyan" portray violence of some sort as a means of doing away with corruption. Not just violence but 'Glamorous violence' in which 'heroes' accept credit for gruesome killings as if they were being offered the bharat ratna award. While this glorified violence is stylish to watch, does it make any sense?
Rang De Basanti draws a parallel between pre-independence revolutionaries who sacrificed their lives in the freedom struggle and five youngsters who fight corruption after experiencing a mental awakening brought about by the untimely demise of a good friend. In the movie, five perfectly normal college students turn killers, which of course means that they weren't normal in the first place. It takes a lot for a stable human being to turn into a killer. A LOT.
If the movie makers are suggesting that we follow in the footsteps of the revolutionaries in our fight against corruption, they're wrong. In fact history suggests otherwise. It is common knowledge that our Independence was won through the non-violent MASS MOVEMENT rather than the scattered bursts of attacks by the revolutionaries. Keeping this in mind, the protest that Ajay Rathod's mother leads makes much more sense than the assassination of the Defense minister. The resulting lathi charge (I doubt if it would have happened in real life) would have made big headlines and garnered sympathy from all sections of society.
Anyways, coming to the issue of corruption itself..
So long as there is evil in the world (And I believe this will always be the case) corruption will exist in some form or the other. The question that begs to be answered is.. Why is corruption prevalent to such a large degree in our country?
Personally, I feel that a lack of deterrent is the main reason for this all-pervasive corruption in India. If people are caught for a misdemeanor they would much rather pay 50 Rupees to a policeman than 500 Rupees to the government. What do they care about where the money goes? Ditto for the policeman who would rather take 50 Rupees from the law-breaker than write out a ticket that would ensure that the 500 Rupees reaches the government. This is where the deterrent comes in. If the cost of 'attempting to bribe' is very high.. MUCH HIGHER than the 450 Rs that might be saved, most people wouldn't attempt to bribe. Obviously I wouldn't try to bribe customs if I KNOW that the minimum penalty would be a term in jail. Also, the bribe taker would think twice if his pension or job were at stake. With high cost deterrents in place the briber and the bribe seeker would be shit scared of each other even assuming the absence of all other witnesses.
I do believe we are making progress, albeit slowly. For instance when I turned 18, I wanted a driving license. Only, it was inconvenient for me to take the driving test because I was studying in Chennai at the time. Paying a few hundred bucks to a driving school did the trick. Note that I hadn't taken a single class from the driving school. The license arrived in my absence and my Dad signed for it! However, the very next year when my sister needed a license, even the driving school from which she had taken lessons for months could not get her a license without her taking both the written and driving exam. The cost of issuing a license without a record of an exam has gone up. Deterrents have been put in place.
I do believe we are making progress, albeit slowly. For instance when I turned 18, I wanted a driving license. Only, it was inconvenient for me to take the driving test because I was studying in Chennai at the time. Paying a few hundred bucks to a driving school did the trick. Note that I hadn't taken a single class from the driving school. The license arrived in my absence and my Dad signed for it! However, the very next year when my sister needed a license, even the driving school from which she had taken lessons for months could not get her a license without her taking both the written and driving exam. The cost of issuing a license without a record of an exam has gone up. Deterrents have been put in place.
I'm confident corruption will decrease gradually. Only, given the extreme differences between the rich and the poor and the high illiteracy levels in our country, it is going to be an agonizingly slow process. I don't see any shortcuts.. :-(. No amount of killing (glamorous or otherwise) is going to help.
If you ask me, Rang De Basanti may have been entertaining, may have resulted in an adrenaline rush and may have had some touching moments. But does it pass on a meaningful message for the general public? NO. Period.
*Today happens to be the birthday of a very close friend of mine..
Happy Birthday Murali!!! Thanks for all those great times we had*
If you ask me, Rang De Basanti may have been entertaining, may have resulted in an adrenaline rush and may have had some touching moments. But does it pass on a meaningful message for the general public? NO. Period.
*Today happens to be the birthday of a very close friend of mine..
Happy Birthday Murali!!! Thanks for all those great times we had*
Monday, February 20, 2006
The Jupiter String Quartet Concert
I am about as far from being a musical instrument enthusiast as Proxima Centauri is from the earth. In fact banging my big toe against the leg of a piano (and almost fracturing it in the process) has been my most intimate encounter with an instrument of any kind. By a quirk of fate, a professor of a friend of mine living in Babcock (Let's call her M) gave her two tickets to a string quartet concert. Note that she wasn't any great fan of musical instruments either. Since the tickets were 27 bucks apiece and both of us are not the type to spend that kind of money on concerts, we thought we would make best use of this opportunity.
We find our way to the Theatre and to our delight our seats were front-row center stage seats. Congratulating myself for having brought my camera along I think I'm going to get some great pictures. The stage was set up and the program was about to start. After looking all around and seeing that no one had bought a camera along, I very hesitantly took a picture of the stage after turning the flash off. That was the only picture I got that night, because the very next minute an announcement was made about "photography of any kind" being prohibited.
I was initially worried about displaying my abysmal ignorance of music to M but much to my delight I found that I might even be considered a musical maestro when compared to her. The names 'Mozart' and 'Beethoven' on the agenda did not strike a chord in her head. Not even after I hinted 'Moonlight Sonata'. Chuckling in glee I relaxed while she looked at me with great respect not knowing how little I knew myself.
The artistes walk in and there is a pin-drop silence. The kind of silence that produces a dull ringing noise in your ears. It was hard to believe that a crowd of several hundred could be that silent. After a bow, the artistes take their respective seats and begin the first piece. It was a Mozart composition. After concentrating intensely for 20 minutes, I find my eyes begin to close. But I control myself. "Nirmal", I tell myself.. "this is going to be your first and last concert. Enjoy it to the fullest." All of a sudden, everyone in the audience started clapping and that was when we realized that the piece had ended. The second piece by one Frenchman "Henri Dutilleux" was a little better in that it didn't put me to sleep. But perhaps that was because I had stopped focussing on the music itself and had immersed myself in observing the movements and funny expressions made by the artistes.
Strangely, unlike Hollywood movies, this concert had an intermission. We do not know what the elite audience discussed about the performance of the artistes during the break but some excerpts of the conversation between M and me follow:
M: So.. what did you think?
Me: Hmm.. It was a different experience.. I kinda dozed off for a few minutes during the first piece though. Did you like it?
M: Oh.. yeah.. It was interesting.. Did you notice the strange facial expressions the artistes were making.
Me: Yeah.. I could hardly prevent myself from laughing. I got used to it after some time though. M(pssst): The guy in the middle was cute na..
Me(sarcastically): Oh really..
M: Yes.. And I liked the way he made way for the girl before leaving.
Me: I would do that too..
M: hehe haha.. hoo hoo..
Me (ominously): Are you saying I wouldn't?
M: Well.. let's put it this way.. I would have believed you if you hadn't let the door bang into my face on our way in.
Me (sheepishly): Oh that.. it was a genuine mistake.. I forgot you were coming in after me.
M (sarcastically): Well given the fact that I didn't go ahead of you and the fact that we came together I must have been behind you right?
Me (grumbling): Well.. I must've been thinking of something else.. Never mind.. Did you notice the girl at the extreme right?
M (suspiciously): Yes.. she was cute.. and her dress was awesome too.. what about her?
Me (softly): Did you notice how her calf muscles moved while she was playing?
M: No.. I had better things to do..
Me: Like watch the guy in the center I presume.
M (haughtily) : Exactly..
... and so the conversation went.. Not exactly a discussion of the remarkable performance we had just witnessed. The intermission was longer than we expected and we cracked jokes in Hindi about the artistes having dinner.
Soon afterwards the troupe entered and began playing the last piece of the day. It was a piece by 'Beethoven' and having read some very inspiring anecdotes about him, I resolved to listen carefully to this final composition. In fact I sshhhhhed 'M' and said very importantly "Beethoven", "Beethoven" like he was my good old friend. Luckily for me the composition was truly wonderful. Something that even amateurs could enjoy. The climax of the piece was especially breathtaking with the artistes reaching a crescendo of sorts.
All in all a memorable evening...
We find our way to the Theatre and to our delight our seats were front-row center stage seats. Congratulating myself for having brought my camera along I think I'm going to get some great pictures. The stage was set up and the program was about to start. After looking all around and seeing that no one had bought a camera along, I very hesitantly took a picture of the stage after turning the flash off. That was the only picture I got that night, because the very next minute an announcement was made about "photography of any kind" being prohibited.
I was initially worried about displaying my abysmal ignorance of music to M but much to my delight I found that I might even be considered a musical maestro when compared to her. The names 'Mozart' and 'Beethoven' on the agenda did not strike a chord in her head. Not even after I hinted 'Moonlight Sonata'. Chuckling in glee I relaxed while she looked at me with great respect not knowing how little I knew myself.
The artistes walk in and there is a pin-drop silence. The kind of silence that produces a dull ringing noise in your ears. It was hard to believe that a crowd of several hundred could be that silent. After a bow, the artistes take their respective seats and begin the first piece. It was a Mozart composition. After concentrating intensely for 20 minutes, I find my eyes begin to close. But I control myself. "Nirmal", I tell myself.. "this is going to be your first and last concert. Enjoy it to the fullest." All of a sudden, everyone in the audience started clapping and that was when we realized that the piece had ended. The second piece by one Frenchman "Henri Dutilleux" was a little better in that it didn't put me to sleep. But perhaps that was because I had stopped focussing on the music itself and had immersed myself in observing the movements and funny expressions made by the artistes.
Strangely, unlike Hollywood movies, this concert had an intermission. We do not know what the elite audience discussed about the performance of the artistes during the break but some excerpts of the conversation between M and me follow:
M: So.. what did you think?
Me: Hmm.. It was a different experience.. I kinda dozed off for a few minutes during the first piece though. Did you like it?
M: Oh.. yeah.. It was interesting.. Did you notice the strange facial expressions the artistes were making.
Me: Yeah.. I could hardly prevent myself from laughing. I got used to it after some time though. M(pssst): The guy in the middle was cute na..
Me(sarcastically): Oh really..
M: Yes.. And I liked the way he made way for the girl before leaving.
Me: I would do that too..
M: hehe haha.. hoo hoo..
Me (ominously): Are you saying I wouldn't?
M: Well.. let's put it this way.. I would have believed you if you hadn't let the door bang into my face on our way in.
Me (sheepishly): Oh that.. it was a genuine mistake.. I forgot you were coming in after me.
M (sarcastically): Well given the fact that I didn't go ahead of you and the fact that we came together I must have been behind you right?
Me (grumbling): Well.. I must've been thinking of something else.. Never mind.. Did you notice the girl at the extreme right?
M (suspiciously): Yes.. she was cute.. and her dress was awesome too.. what about her?
Me (softly): Did you notice how her calf muscles moved while she was playing?
M: No.. I had better things to do..
Me: Like watch the guy in the center I presume.
M (haughtily) : Exactly..
... and so the conversation went.. Not exactly a discussion of the remarkable performance we had just witnessed. The intermission was longer than we expected and we cracked jokes in Hindi about the artistes having dinner.
Soon afterwards the troupe entered and began playing the last piece of the day. It was a piece by 'Beethoven' and having read some very inspiring anecdotes about him, I resolved to listen carefully to this final composition. In fact I sshhhhhed 'M' and said very importantly "Beethoven", "Beethoven" like he was my good old friend. Luckily for me the composition was truly wonderful. Something that even amateurs could enjoy. The climax of the piece was especially breathtaking with the artistes reaching a crescendo of sorts.
All in all a memorable evening...
Sunday, February 12, 2006
My vacation
Now that I am done with cribbing, let us move on to happier things. This past winter break was one of the most pleasant vacations I have ever had. Loads of travelling, loads of good food, loads of shopping, loads of movies, loads of get-togethers. In fact the only thing missing in that list is probably 'loads of sleeping' but then one can't get loads of everything and still get the sleep one wants... ;-). I wonder why my sis finds this so hard to understand.. grr.
Some pictures follow..
I took this picture of Downtown Washington DC standing right in the middle of the road after the pedestrian signal had changed. Luckily, I wasn't arrested.. I was honked at a couple of times though..
The Capitol Building
The White House was the least impressive of all the architecture in DC. I wasn't even tempted to take a peek inside though they were allowing visitors on the day we were there.
The Lincoln Memorial
The Washington Monument
Both the Lincoln Memorial and the Washinton monument were breathtakingly beautiful.
Some pictures follow..
I took this picture of Downtown Washington DC standing right in the middle of the road after the pedestrian signal had changed. Luckily, I wasn't arrested.. I was honked at a couple of times though..
The Capitol Building
The White House was the least impressive of all the architecture in DC. I wasn't even tempted to take a peek inside though they were allowing visitors on the day we were there.
The Lincoln Memorial
The Washington Monument
Both the Lincoln Memorial and the Washinton monument were breathtakingly beautiful.
Friday, February 03, 2006
Blog updates
1) Atleast for this semester this blog will be more of a tool to keep in touch with friends than to entertain readers. I guess I am chasing away readers by saying this but it can't be helped. For now it will have to be this or nothing.
2) In case you haven't noticed, the christmas tree has been edited out of the background image to improve readability. Thank you Camphor, for photoshopping the image! :-).
3) I was listed under the humor category on Indibloggers. I have reverted back to the personal category because that is what this blog is and will be. (Having a single digit rank on the Humor bloglist was kinda tempting a couple of months back.. hehe)
2) In case you haven't noticed, the christmas tree has been edited out of the background image to improve readability. Thank you Camphor, for photoshopping the image! :-).
3) I was listed under the humor category on Indibloggers. I have reverted back to the personal category because that is what this blog is and will be. (Having a single digit rank on the Humor bloglist was kinda tempting a couple of months back.. hehe)
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
A damn shame
I don't normally crib much on my blog and it is unfortunate that my first post of this calendar year should be a criticism of practices, specifically university practices and even more specifically, departmental practices.
The best thing about America is freedom. Freedom to do whatever you want to without caring much about what the people around you think. Freedom to tell your prof that you want to visit your girlfriend instead of lying about being sick and visiting her anyway. Freedom to tell your boss that you can't make it at the time he proposed because you've committed yourself to some other task however trivial it may be. Freedom to wear a daring dress and not get ogled at. Freedom to wear a cap similar to Jughead's and not get weird looks.
I have experienced this freedom to the fullest for over one and a half years now and it just about made up for being so far from home. For the first time when I least expected it, I found opposition and surprisingly it was from my own department. All for a course I was interested in doing. To cut a long story short.. I wanted to do a 3 credit course well suited to my field of research offered by the Electrical and Computer Engineering(ECE) department. This course was open to all graduate students. Seeing no problem I proceeded to register for the course but when I confirmed with my department I was told that I could take the course but would not get any credits for it. I was stupefied. Why the hell would I want to take a semester long course without receiving any credit for it? I was still not mad though. I just assumed there must be a logical reason for their opposition.
It was only later that the true reasons behind this opposition were brought to my attention and it makes me see RED. It appears that at the end of every year the Dean of the University gets a detailed statistical analysis of registration trends. Funds are allocated to a department based on the number of students registering for courses within that department. This makes sense alright but not at the cost of not letting a student do what he/she wants to do, especially if the course is interdisciplinary. The fact that I was refused credits because my department wants me to be in the "Computer Science" section of the pie-chart presented to the Dean and not in the "ECE" section is irritating to say the least.
I AM NOT A NUMBER NOR DO I WANT TO BE ONE. I am human and I don't care if I exist on their pie charts or not. All I know is- I haven't been able to do what I want to. Clearly departmental politics in some form or the other are omnipresent.
The best thing about America is freedom. Freedom to do whatever you want to without caring much about what the people around you think. Freedom to tell your prof that you want to visit your girlfriend instead of lying about being sick and visiting her anyway. Freedom to tell your boss that you can't make it at the time he proposed because you've committed yourself to some other task however trivial it may be. Freedom to wear a daring dress and not get ogled at. Freedom to wear a cap similar to Jughead's and not get weird looks.
I have experienced this freedom to the fullest for over one and a half years now and it just about made up for being so far from home. For the first time when I least expected it, I found opposition and surprisingly it was from my own department. All for a course I was interested in doing. To cut a long story short.. I wanted to do a 3 credit course well suited to my field of research offered by the Electrical and Computer Engineering(ECE) department. This course was open to all graduate students. Seeing no problem I proceeded to register for the course but when I confirmed with my department I was told that I could take the course but would not get any credits for it. I was stupefied. Why the hell would I want to take a semester long course without receiving any credit for it? I was still not mad though. I just assumed there must be a logical reason for their opposition.
It was only later that the true reasons behind this opposition were brought to my attention and it makes me see RED. It appears that at the end of every year the Dean of the University gets a detailed statistical analysis of registration trends. Funds are allocated to a department based on the number of students registering for courses within that department. This makes sense alright but not at the cost of not letting a student do what he/she wants to do, especially if the course is interdisciplinary. The fact that I was refused credits because my department wants me to be in the "Computer Science" section of the pie-chart presented to the Dean and not in the "ECE" section is irritating to say the least.
I AM NOT A NUMBER NOR DO I WANT TO BE ONE. I am human and I don't care if I exist on their pie charts or not. All I know is- I haven't been able to do what I want to. Clearly departmental politics in some form or the other are omnipresent.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Yuletide...
Mary's boy child Jesus Christ,
was born on Christmas Day,
And Man will live for ever more,
because of Christmas Day!
To say that I'm not a very religious person would be an understatement. In fact, if not for my Mom who has made my habit of going to Church every Sunday a regimen after much gentle coaxing in the form of ear-pulling, I might almost be an agnost. For eleven months of the year that is. Then the Christmas season comes around and it err.. does things to me. Things that my Mom would have never imagined possible. I clean up my room. I don't have as much of a problem getting up in the morning. I smile a lot more than I usually do. I greet people I've never met... and the list goes on.
Of all the fond memories that Christmas brings to my mind, decorations are the most striking. Every year my sis and I ask Dad for money to buy decorations. We normally get what we want. After all Christmas decorations are a far nobler cause than chocolates. After much haggling we decide on what to buy. "Shopper boy" (yours truly) is dispatched with disdain to do the actual purchasing and we then get down to the task of putting the decorations up. This is where the fun starts.
Obviously one can't start hanging things randomly all over the place. So we sit around and brainstorm on possible arrangements. Now this is not as easy as you guys might think. If I want the Christmas tree in one corner of the room, it would turn out that Nish would want it in any corner but that corner. If Nish wants the "Merry Christmas" sign on the wall facing the main door and the "Happy New Year" sign on the wall parallel to the door, I want just the opposite. If I want a diamond steamer arrangement across the ceiling, Nish wants a rectangular one. If Nish wanted to twirl the streamers before putting them up, I would want them straight. I must reluctantly state here that she gets her way most of the time except when she loses her temper and lets out a piercing scream, in which case Mom comes over and settles the issue in my favor to punish her for screaming. (*rubbing hands in glee*)
Of course some ridiculous proposals are vetoed at the very start by mom and dad.. like my proposition that we put up the longest hanging we had in the middle of the room where it would hit the heads of everyone taller than 5 feet. (All I wanted was to stand under the hanging and jump up and touch it with my head *hurt look*). Or the one where I thought that the TV and the refrigerator could do with some decoration. That proposal didn’t last long either.
The actual menial job of "putting up" everything, I'm ashamed to say was done by my sister. My role was restricted to holding the stool on which she was standing. Now before you begin to ridicule me, I would like to explain the logic behind this. Both of us had not grown to our full height then and quite often the height of one stool was insufficient. So we ended up putting one stool or chair on top of another which resulted in a highly unstable setup. Before your scorn for me intensifies, let me draw your attention to two facts. 1) I weighed more than my sis. 2) I was stronger. From 1) and 2) it follows that it would be safer for both of us if the lighter person got on to the "contraption" and the stronger person held it to prevent it from toppling over. I don't know if this logic appeals to you, but thankfully it did to my sister and she dutifully climbed up whenever needed.
Setting up the crib is perhaps the most herculean task of all. Work on this starts over two weeks before Christmas when we spread mustard seeds on soaked cotton. The figures of the Holy Family, shepherds, magi and animals are placed among the greenery after the seeds have sprouted and reached a size of about three inches. After midnight mass on Christmas eve, the 'baby Jesus' doll is placed in the center and our Christmas kicks off!
One last thing.. I NEED a break.. from studies, from work and most of all from computers of any kind. So I am now taking off for a vacation.. NO Internet, NO emails, NO chatting, NO online gaming. I'm off to gallivant around the country with my sis.. Take care everybody..
I wish you a Merry Christmas;
I wish you a Merry Christmas;
I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Good tidings I bring to you and your kin;
Good tidings for Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Oh, bring me a figgy pudding;
Oh, bring me a figgy pudding;
Oh, bring me a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer
I won't go until I get some;
I won't go until I get some;
I won't go until I get some, so bring some out here
I wish you a Merry Christmas;
I wish you a Merry Christmas;
I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
Sunday, December 11, 2005
TITANIC II
"The discovery of two large pieces of the Titanic's hull on the ocean floor indicates the fabled luxury liner sank faster than previously thought, researchers said Monday."... is the gist of an article that appeared on CNN.com a few days ago. 5th December 2005 to be exact.
You can find the original article on CNN here..
Close to a hundred years after the tragedy, the Titanic still fascinates..
A tentative timeline for future findings about the Titanic and their corresponding news clippings follow:
April 18th, 2055
Scientists discovered yesterday that the iceberg that struck the Titanic was actually not an iceberg but a meteor that crashed into the earth around 1000 years ago. Matter embedded in the hull tells researchers that this meteor was made of a strange element that has not been discovered yet. The porous nature of this element enabled the meteor to float. There is an on-going search for a suitable name for the element. Unfortunately, though 'titanium' is the most logical name, it already exists. Most scientists are currently leaning towards 'titanicium'.
September 7th, 2082
Recent studies of depressions on the ocean floor have refuted previous claims made in 2005 that the Titanic split into two before sinking. The size of the depression indicates clearly that the Titanic was still in one piece at the time of impact. This of course means that she sank much slower than she was thought to have in 2005. However, the reason for the existence of the two large pieces remains unknown. A twenty member research group, funded by a twenty million dollar grant from the National Science foundation (NSF), has been formed to determine the reason for the split and the possible time-period of its occurrence.
October 11th, 2091
The members of the research group sanctioned to investigate the reasons behind the split hull of the Titanic nine years ago, are said to be divided in their interpretation of what exactly happened.The first group proposes the 'Earthquake theory' which claims that the split was a result of an undersea earthquake that occurred in the vicinity in the 1940s. From the surrounding damage and effect, seismologists estimate the earthquake in question to have been atleast 8.1 in magnitude on the Richter scale. The second group proposes the 'Blue Whale theory', which claims that a blue whale pair migrating south to mate and have babies in the warmer water collided head on with the wreck of the Titanic and caused the split. 'Two distinctive dents' are quoted as proof of this occurence. The sharp edges around the dents, seem to indicate that the collision occurred relatively recently, probably sometime in the 1980s. An additional one million dollars have been sanctioned to resolve this issue and bring to light the actual happenings.
November 14, 2093
Late last afternoon, markings on the hull revealed that the name of the Titanic was not really Titanic but "Some-very-very-very-long-name-like-this". The markings are too faint to be sure of the name. It is thus surmised that the popular name Titanic reflects the size of its name and not the actual size of the ship. This discovery resolved long-standing doubts in the minds of scientists about the authenticity of the 'largest-ship' claim. These doubts have been lingering ever since intense underwater research seemed to indicate that the hull did not seem to be big enough for such a claim, even if the two pieces were put together.
July 8th, 2094
John Cameron, grandson of James Cameron has announced plans for "Titanic II" scheduled to be released in the summer of 2097 exactly one hundred years after "Titanic" hit the screens. This movie will take into account recent findings since the original movie was released. In addition it will be by far the most expensive movie ever made. This time the ship itself will not cost as much since it will be smaller. However, 'titanicium', the element the meteorite was made of is considerably more expensive than ice and so will cost a mammoth one billion dollars. In order to increase the footage of this extravagant meteorite set, the movie will include a scene in which 'Leonardo di Caprio' and 'Kate Winslet' look alikes make out in a cave on the huge meteor. This is already hyped as the major attraction of the movie. Something to watch out for!! Speculation is mounting on whether the much acclaimed sketching scene of Kate Winslet in the nude will be reproduced in this version of the movie. Only time will tell. Keep your fingers crossed.
The movie will also talk of the split of the Titanic after its sinking where 'Rachel Weisz' and 'Brendon Fraser' look alikes will take on the roles of 'researchers', who during an intense making out session, chance upon the true reason behind the splitting of the hull of the Titanic. There has already been a lot of controversy over which theory will be used. At the current time, it is rumored that John(to his credit) favors the 'Earthquake theory' over the 'Blue Whale theory'. However, it is almost certain that the ending will be finalized only after the concerned research group submits its report in late 2096.
And I thought I had nothing worthwhile to do.. :D
Close to a hundred years after the tragedy, the Titanic still fascinates..
A tentative timeline for future findings about the Titanic and their corresponding news clippings follow:
April 18th, 2055
Scientists discovered yesterday that the iceberg that struck the Titanic was actually not an iceberg but a meteor that crashed into the earth around 1000 years ago. Matter embedded in the hull tells researchers that this meteor was made of a strange element that has not been discovered yet. The porous nature of this element enabled the meteor to float. There is an on-going search for a suitable name for the element. Unfortunately, though 'titanium' is the most logical name, it already exists. Most scientists are currently leaning towards 'titanicium'.
September 7th, 2082
Recent studies of depressions on the ocean floor have refuted previous claims made in 2005 that the Titanic split into two before sinking. The size of the depression indicates clearly that the Titanic was still in one piece at the time of impact. This of course means that she sank much slower than she was thought to have in 2005. However, the reason for the existence of the two large pieces remains unknown. A twenty member research group, funded by a twenty million dollar grant from the National Science foundation (NSF), has been formed to determine the reason for the split and the possible time-period of its occurrence.
October 11th, 2091
The members of the research group sanctioned to investigate the reasons behind the split hull of the Titanic nine years ago, are said to be divided in their interpretation of what exactly happened.The first group proposes the 'Earthquake theory' which claims that the split was a result of an undersea earthquake that occurred in the vicinity in the 1940s. From the surrounding damage and effect, seismologists estimate the earthquake in question to have been atleast 8.1 in magnitude on the Richter scale. The second group proposes the 'Blue Whale theory', which claims that a blue whale pair migrating south to mate and have babies in the warmer water collided head on with the wreck of the Titanic and caused the split. 'Two distinctive dents' are quoted as proof of this occurence. The sharp edges around the dents, seem to indicate that the collision occurred relatively recently, probably sometime in the 1980s. An additional one million dollars have been sanctioned to resolve this issue and bring to light the actual happenings.
November 14, 2093
Late last afternoon, markings on the hull revealed that the name of the Titanic was not really Titanic but "Some-very-very-very-long-name-like-this". The markings are too faint to be sure of the name. It is thus surmised that the popular name Titanic reflects the size of its name and not the actual size of the ship. This discovery resolved long-standing doubts in the minds of scientists about the authenticity of the 'largest-ship' claim. These doubts have been lingering ever since intense underwater research seemed to indicate that the hull did not seem to be big enough for such a claim, even if the two pieces were put together.
July 8th, 2094
John Cameron, grandson of James Cameron has announced plans for "Titanic II" scheduled to be released in the summer of 2097 exactly one hundred years after "Titanic" hit the screens. This movie will take into account recent findings since the original movie was released. In addition it will be by far the most expensive movie ever made. This time the ship itself will not cost as much since it will be smaller. However, 'titanicium', the element the meteorite was made of is considerably more expensive than ice and so will cost a mammoth one billion dollars. In order to increase the footage of this extravagant meteorite set, the movie will include a scene in which 'Leonardo di Caprio' and 'Kate Winslet' look alikes make out in a cave on the huge meteor. This is already hyped as the major attraction of the movie. Something to watch out for!! Speculation is mounting on whether the much acclaimed sketching scene of Kate Winslet in the nude will be reproduced in this version of the movie. Only time will tell. Keep your fingers crossed.
The movie will also talk of the split of the Titanic after its sinking where 'Rachel Weisz' and 'Brendon Fraser' look alikes will take on the roles of 'researchers', who during an intense making out session, chance upon the true reason behind the splitting of the hull of the Titanic. There has already been a lot of controversy over which theory will be used. At the current time, it is rumored that John(to his credit) favors the 'Earthquake theory' over the 'Blue Whale theory'. However, it is almost certain that the ending will be finalized only after the concerned research group submits its report in late 2096.
And I thought I had nothing worthwhile to do.. :D
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
The Big Apple
I just love it up the Empire State Building. Makes me feel like I rule the world. (Though I played no direct part in it's construction.. err.. no indirect part either I think, but wouldn't be able to tell for sure.. :D) Getting up there is very easy. Just follow the simple steps outlined below...
- Stand in a queue to enter the building. This queue is the fastest moving. Thankfully so, because you might just add to the architectural beauty of New York by freezing into ice-men/ice-women if the wait were even a wee bit longer.
- Stand in a queue to clear security. Remember to hold your pants up while removing your belt. Also, note that you will be asked to turn on your laptop to confirm that it is not a bomb. This step kind of puzzles me. What if turning it on sets off the bomb or better still triggers a timing mechanism? DO NOT turn it on if it IS a bomb. Or atleast make sure I'm not in the vicinity before doing so.
- Stand in a queue for purchasing the ticket. Shell out 14 dollars.
- Stand in a queue for the elevator to the 80th floor. This queue moves at an agonizingly slow pace which is surprising given the fact that everyone in the huge building is packed into the elevator at one go. Atleast, that is the impression I got when I had to stand with my face pressed into the back of this enormous man and my hands and legs stretched out at unnatural angles. To it's credit the elevator was fast else I might have died of suffocation.
- Stand in a queue to have your picture taken in front of a picture of the Empire State Building. I wonder if they realise this could be done anywhere.. in India, on a ship or on the moon dammit.
- Stand in a queue for an elevator from the 80th to the 86th floor. Get crushed again.
- This is it! Step out for a view from 1050 feet above ground level!
New York during the Day.
New York during twilight.
New York in the night. (Taken on an earlier trip.. I'm really proud of this pic)
This is the pic I was talking about.. in front of the picture of Empire State.. lol.
Times Square!A trip to New York never fails to bring back memories of good old India. The same old dirty streets of Chennai, the same bumper-to-bumper traffic of Bangalore and more people than you would find around Charminar in Hyderabad. Random incidents:
- I walk upto a guy and ask him directions to a certain parking garage. He looks at me scornfully and turns away to attend to something else leaving me wondering if I'd said something wrong.
- A guy bangs into my friend and then glares at him as if it were all his fault! Contrast this with an incident near my university where I was looking over my shoulder and collided with this girl so hard that she fell down. Even as I helped her up, SHE was apologising profusely though it was clearly MY fault!!!
- We had a rushed dinner in a Punjabi Dhaba that reminded me of the numerous 'fast food' centers in Chennai. And err.. the restroom was messier than the ones that could be found in the bus stand and railway stations back home.
This last picture is for Silverine, the girl whose dreams I'm haunting in my nice new crew cut.. hehe. Please note that if you look carefully enough, you should be able to see my scalp. That's short enough don't you think?... :p
Saturday, December 03, 2005
Vingt faits aléatoires sur moi
NO! There are no prizes for guessing what that means..
I was flattered into doing this tag when Neeta said "It'll be fun to know stuff about ya". (I know.. Flattering me is easier than tying your shoelaces.. there's one fact for you.. ;-)). She was right about it not being a tough task. Having lived for over twenty years now, it wasn't all that difficult to come up with a measly twenty facts. Of course, the facts would be more random if I jotted down my observations over a long period of time. However, I have tried to avoid stating obvious facts about myself like "I love driving", "Yes Minister is my favorite book" or "I love travelling". Here goes..
1. I like to think most people are good at heart by the simple logic that if there were more bad people in this world than good people, the world would have been destroyed long long ago..
2. I think anti-viruses are a pain in the.. err... I just format my system once in a while..
3. I will eat fruits only if there is someone around to peel the skin off for me and cut them into little pieces that will comfortably fit in my mouth. Bananas and seedless grapes are the only exception. Mom, I miss you.. sob..
4. Trust is important for me. I cannot emphasize just how much.. I hate it when people ask me for something and then keep pestering me about it. They should trust me to get things done. I also dislike it when people mistake my intentions. Either TRUST me or just stop talking to me.
5. The hair on my head is denser than the Amazon Rain forest. My hair has another peculiar quality. It represents the perpendiculars to all possible tangents that can be drawn to the surface of my head. (For the non-mathematically inclined- My hair POKES). Hence the nick name 'Porcupine'. You definitely do NOT want to run your hand through my hair. Several people have had to pay for their affection by going around with bandaged palms for a whole month.
6. No one has beaten me yet in scrabble.. :p
7. I like being alone sometimes and don't understand why people find this more difficult to understand than even the most complicated physics theorems.
8. If I talk pleasantly to you all the time you're probably mistaken in assuming that I'm a great friend of yours. If on the other hand I argue a lot with you and keep making suggestions for your betterment then I probably care for you a lot more than I could ever put into words.
9. I have never had a crush on a celebrity. Only on real people I happen to meet. Or atleast talk to.. ;-).
10. I need two pillows to sleep. One for my head and one to hug. (Though one will probably suffice after I get married... ;-)).
11. I mess up my desk pretty often but I can't bring myself to make a mess of my bed.
12. I tend to get attached a tad too easily.
13. I speak at a speed comparable to the good old Concorde of the yesteryears.. I have to make it a point to slow down when compering so people can actually catch atleast 50% of what I'm saying.
14. I can be a bundle of contradictions sometimes. For instance, I want a wife who would make me coffee every morning, pack a nice lunch for me and return home before I do in the evening to welcome me. Yeah.. Who doesn't? The problem is I also want someone who can kid me around, fight with me and take sarcastic digs at me. There's your contradiction for you.. :D
15. I find it very hard to say NO.
16. I love having a lot of credit cards in my wallet, though I don't have the heart to use them very often. I've got some beautiful designs. One of my university, one of a lightning strike and a transparent one.
17. I dislike most computer games. Real time strategy games are an exception though. I once played Age of Empires for over 20 hours at a stretch! But those days are gone.. sigh.
18. The last time I watched television for more than a few hours at a stretch was during the first innings of the World cup 2003 finals. TV has been a strict no-no since then.
19. I have spent more time collecting/downloading songs than actually listening to them.
20. I normally like to plan well in advance but find some on-the-spur-of-the-moment decisions adventurous. We discussed going to New York over a late dinner today and we're leaving in 4 hours from now! I better catch some shut eye now...
But before that.. I've got some unfinished business to attend to.. (laughs devilishly). I regret not tagging anyone the last two times. This is where I get back at my previous taggers.
I hereby declare..
Silverine
Sayesha
Vidya
Camphor
Prasanna
Vibha
Harish
as tagged by moi! DO IT OR I WILL COME TO HAUNT YOU IN YOUR DREAMS!!
I was flattered into doing this tag when Neeta said "It'll be fun to know stuff about ya". (I know.. Flattering me is easier than tying your shoelaces.. there's one fact for you.. ;-)). She was right about it not being a tough task. Having lived for over twenty years now, it wasn't all that difficult to come up with a measly twenty facts. Of course, the facts would be more random if I jotted down my observations over a long period of time. However, I have tried to avoid stating obvious facts about myself like "I love driving", "Yes Minister is my favorite book" or "I love travelling". Here goes..
1. I like to think most people are good at heart by the simple logic that if there were more bad people in this world than good people, the world would have been destroyed long long ago..
2. I think anti-viruses are a pain in the.. err... I just format my system once in a while..
3. I will eat fruits only if there is someone around to peel the skin off for me and cut them into little pieces that will comfortably fit in my mouth. Bananas and seedless grapes are the only exception. Mom, I miss you.. sob..
4. Trust is important for me. I cannot emphasize just how much.. I hate it when people ask me for something and then keep pestering me about it. They should trust me to get things done. I also dislike it when people mistake my intentions. Either TRUST me or just stop talking to me.
5. The hair on my head is denser than the Amazon Rain forest. My hair has another peculiar quality. It represents the perpendiculars to all possible tangents that can be drawn to the surface of my head. (For the non-mathematically inclined- My hair POKES). Hence the nick name 'Porcupine'. You definitely do NOT want to run your hand through my hair. Several people have had to pay for their affection by going around with bandaged palms for a whole month.
6. No one has beaten me yet in scrabble.. :p
7. I like being alone sometimes and don't understand why people find this more difficult to understand than even the most complicated physics theorems.
8. If I talk pleasantly to you all the time you're probably mistaken in assuming that I'm a great friend of yours. If on the other hand I argue a lot with you and keep making suggestions for your betterment then I probably care for you a lot more than I could ever put into words.
9. I have never had a crush on a celebrity. Only on real people I happen to meet. Or atleast talk to.. ;-).
10. I need two pillows to sleep. One for my head and one to hug. (Though one will probably suffice after I get married... ;-)).
11. I mess up my desk pretty often but I can't bring myself to make a mess of my bed.
12. I tend to get attached a tad too easily.
13. I speak at a speed comparable to the good old Concorde of the yesteryears.. I have to make it a point to slow down when compering so people can actually catch atleast 50% of what I'm saying.
14. I can be a bundle of contradictions sometimes. For instance, I want a wife who would make me coffee every morning, pack a nice lunch for me and return home before I do in the evening to welcome me. Yeah.. Who doesn't? The problem is I also want someone who can kid me around, fight with me and take sarcastic digs at me. There's your contradiction for you.. :D
15. I find it very hard to say NO.
16. I love having a lot of credit cards in my wallet, though I don't have the heart to use them very often. I've got some beautiful designs. One of my university, one of a lightning strike and a transparent one.
17. I dislike most computer games. Real time strategy games are an exception though. I once played Age of Empires for over 20 hours at a stretch! But those days are gone.. sigh.
18. The last time I watched television for more than a few hours at a stretch was during the first innings of the World cup 2003 finals. TV has been a strict no-no since then.
19. I have spent more time collecting/downloading songs than actually listening to them.
20. I normally like to plan well in advance but find some on-the-spur-of-the-moment decisions adventurous. We discussed going to New York over a late dinner today and we're leaving in 4 hours from now! I better catch some shut eye now...
But before that.. I've got some unfinished business to attend to.. (laughs devilishly). I regret not tagging anyone the last two times. This is where I get back at my previous taggers.
I hereby declare..
Silverine
Sayesha
Vidya
Camphor
Prasanna
Vibha
Harish
as tagged by moi! DO IT OR I WILL COME TO HAUNT YOU IN YOUR DREAMS!!
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Why did I come to the United States?
In all honesty, the answer to that question must be..
"I DON'T KNOW"
All I know is: ever since I was a small kid, I had wanted to come here. I consider myself logical in most respects, but in this case I must admit that logic has very little to do with it.
I did not come here to obtain a first class education in my field of study. I did not come here with the intention of expanding my knowledge by putting to good use the technology at hand. I did not come here because of a lack of work/study opportunities back home. I did not come here because there were no institutions of higher learning back home in India that were worthy of me. I did not come here because of the much acclaimed work environment.
I came here because, I was naive enough to fool myself into believing that it would be a whole new world. Oh.. it's a whole new world alright. Only, I do the same things here that I did back home.. lol.
- I still study at the last minute.
- I still spend hours before the computer. (outside of classes/work)
- I still drive anytime I get a chance.
- I still accept any invitation to play games, irrespective of my workload.
- I still to listen to Hindi/Tamil music and watch Hindi/Tamil movies.
- I still dress like I used to. (No cargos and the like)
- I still have more Indian friends than American ones.
And most importantly,
I STILL THINK THE SAME WAY!
I guess I always will.... :-).
"I DON'T KNOW"
All I know is: ever since I was a small kid, I had wanted to come here. I consider myself logical in most respects, but in this case I must admit that logic has very little to do with it.
I did not come here to obtain a first class education in my field of study. I did not come here with the intention of expanding my knowledge by putting to good use the technology at hand. I did not come here because of a lack of work/study opportunities back home. I did not come here because there were no institutions of higher learning back home in India that were worthy of me. I did not come here because of the much acclaimed work environment.
I came here because, I was naive enough to fool myself into believing that it would be a whole new world. Oh.. it's a whole new world alright. Only, I do the same things here that I did back home.. lol.
- I still study at the last minute.
- I still spend hours before the computer. (outside of classes/work)
- I still drive anytime I get a chance.
- I still accept any invitation to play games, irrespective of my workload.
- I still to listen to Hindi/Tamil music and watch Hindi/Tamil movies.
- I still dress like I used to. (No cargos and the like)
- I still have more Indian friends than American ones.
And most importantly,
I STILL THINK THE SAME WAY!
I guess I always will.... :-).
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
It's a small small world!
A few weeks ago, someone mailed me out of the blue and said.. "You mentioned something about National Public School, Bangalore in one of your posts. Did you study in the Indiranagar branch? I don't remember you, but I am 23 and I studied there from 1986-2000."
I replied saying that I was indeed from the same branch and that I studied there from 1986-1994, but that I didn't recollect her either. We then exchanged a couple of mails about our teachers and classmates and concluded from their names that we only studied in the same section in the first standard! Since we had never known each other in school, the emails died down soon. But I was left wondering about my really close friends back then.
Although most events and people so far back in the past are hazy memories, I never could forget this girl who used to sit next to me in the fifth standard. The reason being that I used to make her cry almost every single day with some prank or the other. I would place my pencil box on her seat when she stood up to answer a question. I would imitate her voice. I would steal her pencils, rubbers and sharpeners. I must also mention here, the competition we had on who could write in a "smaller" print.. lol. You would need a microscope to read what we had written.
So I decided to try and look her up on Names Database. And *surprise* *surprise* it worked. I found the matching first and last name! I crossed my fingers and dashed away a quick message. A few days later.. I get an email that started.. "Hi Leon, This is the same stupid girl who used to sit next to you in fifth standard..." That made my day.. :-)
Of course, I don't expect to be in touch for very long. She studied with me 11 years back.. So what? We have gone our different ways since. No friends in common, no events in common, no classes in common, no job in common. We have probably grown up very different from what we were. She is as good as a stranger now. In fact, if I happened to meet her, I wouldn't have anything to say!
But that still doesn't take away the thrill of having communicated in some way with someone you never in your wildest dreams imagined you would ever talk to or hear of again...
To think my blogging triggered this.. :D.
I replied saying that I was indeed from the same branch and that I studied there from 1986-1994, but that I didn't recollect her either. We then exchanged a couple of mails about our teachers and classmates and concluded from their names that we only studied in the same section in the first standard! Since we had never known each other in school, the emails died down soon. But I was left wondering about my really close friends back then.
Although most events and people so far back in the past are hazy memories, I never could forget this girl who used to sit next to me in the fifth standard. The reason being that I used to make her cry almost every single day with some prank or the other. I would place my pencil box on her seat when she stood up to answer a question. I would imitate her voice. I would steal her pencils, rubbers and sharpeners. I must also mention here, the competition we had on who could write in a "smaller" print.. lol. You would need a microscope to read what we had written.
So I decided to try and look her up on Names Database. And *surprise* *surprise* it worked. I found the matching first and last name! I crossed my fingers and dashed away a quick message. A few days later.. I get an email that started.. "Hi Leon, This is the same stupid girl who used to sit next to you in fifth standard..." That made my day.. :-)
Of course, I don't expect to be in touch for very long. She studied with me 11 years back.. So what? We have gone our different ways since. No friends in common, no events in common, no classes in common, no job in common. We have probably grown up very different from what we were. She is as good as a stranger now. In fact, if I happened to meet her, I wouldn't have anything to say!
But that still doesn't take away the thrill of having communicated in some way with someone you never in your wildest dreams imagined you would ever talk to or hear of again...
To think my blogging triggered this.. :D.
Monday, November 21, 2005
Yours truly in a tux.. :D
I just got back from our Diwali function.. It was AWESOME!!! As promised.. here are a couple of pictures of me in a suit.. (sob.. I've lost my anonymity totally now.. :D).
ALL of us!
A picture of me after the event..
I haven't got a chance to look at all the pictures.. will post more later!
ALL of us!
A picture of me after the event..
I haven't got a chance to look at all the pictures.. will post more later!
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Pennies - A royal pain
If you are new to America, the first thing that catches your attention when you are visiting a friend's house is a mountain of ancient coins. It could be anywhere, though more often than not in a prominent location in the living room. In a cover or in a bowl. Your curiosity is aroused. As you move in for a closer look, wondering if your friends are hardcore numismatists or have struck treasure of some kind, you see "1 cent" written boldly across the centre of a coin in the pile and realisation strikes.. Pennies!
Before we move on let me tell you what I think of pennies.
I THINK PENNIES ARE A ROYAL PAIN IN THE ..... In keeping with the tradition of this blog, I will steer clear from profanity and resist my urge to use an expletive here. But you get my point. Quite literally, in fact. I should know. Everyday, I squirm around in my chair cursing the ten odd pennies I've forgotten to remove from my wallet the previous night. Every night I find a new hole in my pant pockets courtesy the same pennies, that I had moved from my wallet to my pockets after violent protests from my err.. behind. Now don't get me wrong. I am not a coward who shirks at the very mention of pain or discomfort. I would gladly go through a lot of pain for a worthy cause but for something I consider to rank among the top 10 of all useless things in the world.. I REFUSE.
America is supposed to be the richest country in the world. Looking at the number of pennies being passed around, you would think she is a nation of beggars. Quite frankly, even beggars would have no use for pennies and I'm sure they have their own unusable collections of pennies stashed away. The onus is on the word "unusable". If all the unused pennies in America were melted we would have enough metal to lay a railway track from Los Angeles to New York.
At the current exchange rate, 1 cent would translate to ~40 paise. For ~2 cents in India, you could get ONE banana. In the US however for 2 cents you would get ZERO bananas. In fact, zero of everything. You would need ~20 cents to buy a banana. And I really can't think of anything much cheaper than that. I'm sure you will agree with me that any sane person would prefer to pay in a higher currency than carry around 20 coins. Lest there be any doubt, let me also state that I am as sane as my next door neighbor(Who is quite sane, let me assure you). So the coins in my wallet/pocket are dumped on my desk. I pay for a banana or anything else for that matter in a higher currency say quarters or dollars. What do I get in return? More pennies!!! grrrr... The height of the mountain on my desk is still rising. I'm afraid it will touch the ceiling before I graduate.
In the highly unlikely event that an American Senator or Congressman reads this post and decides to do something drastic like propose a bill abolishing pennies, he couldn't. Why couldn't he? Because of the abominable practice of pricing items in the following fashion:
Gas (1 gallon): 1$ 99c or after the recent increase 2$ 47c
Milk (1 gallon): 1$ 59c
Bananas (1 pound): 59c
Tomatoes (1 pound): 99c
Items on restaurant menu: 2$ 99c to 19$ 99c (but not a single round figure)
Note that every transaction REQUIRES that you get 'useless' pennies back. Do marketers seriously think that consumers are fooled by this "psychological pricing" gimmick? Do they really think that people would think of a 9$ 99c purchase costing them in the range of 9$ and not 10$. And by any chance do such people exist? If so, in which country? I would like to settle there and replace Bill Gates as the richest man in the world.
I thank the stars for the widespread use of credit/debit cards, for in their absence, utter chaos would reign in the United States; caused not by hurricanes "Rita" or "Katrina" but the force generated by continuously passing pennies back and forth.
What prompted this post:A few months ago, a friend of mine, Sunil, left UNH to study at a university in Florida. He left me some stuff that he thought I could use. I was rummaging through them today and found this polythene bag filled with pennies!!! With friends like him, who needs enemies?
If any resident of America reading this post would like to claim that she/he has never been in possession of more than a hundred pennies at some point in time, please post a comment with your contact information. I would like to set up an appointment with you for I have never had the privilege of meeting an insane person.
I'm attaching a picture of the pile of pennies on my desk for added emphasis...
Before we move on let me tell you what I think of pennies.
I THINK PENNIES ARE A ROYAL PAIN IN THE ..... In keeping with the tradition of this blog, I will steer clear from profanity and resist my urge to use an expletive here. But you get my point. Quite literally, in fact. I should know. Everyday, I squirm around in my chair cursing the ten odd pennies I've forgotten to remove from my wallet the previous night. Every night I find a new hole in my pant pockets courtesy the same pennies, that I had moved from my wallet to my pockets after violent protests from my err.. behind. Now don't get me wrong. I am not a coward who shirks at the very mention of pain or discomfort. I would gladly go through a lot of pain for a worthy cause but for something I consider to rank among the top 10 of all useless things in the world.. I REFUSE.
America is supposed to be the richest country in the world. Looking at the number of pennies being passed around, you would think she is a nation of beggars. Quite frankly, even beggars would have no use for pennies and I'm sure they have their own unusable collections of pennies stashed away. The onus is on the word "unusable". If all the unused pennies in America were melted we would have enough metal to lay a railway track from Los Angeles to New York.
At the current exchange rate, 1 cent would translate to ~40 paise. For ~2 cents in India, you could get ONE banana. In the US however for 2 cents you would get ZERO bananas. In fact, zero of everything. You would need ~20 cents to buy a banana. And I really can't think of anything much cheaper than that. I'm sure you will agree with me that any sane person would prefer to pay in a higher currency than carry around 20 coins. Lest there be any doubt, let me also state that I am as sane as my next door neighbor(Who is quite sane, let me assure you). So the coins in my wallet/pocket are dumped on my desk. I pay for a banana or anything else for that matter in a higher currency say quarters or dollars. What do I get in return? More pennies!!! grrrr... The height of the mountain on my desk is still rising. I'm afraid it will touch the ceiling before I graduate.
In the highly unlikely event that an American Senator or Congressman reads this post and decides to do something drastic like propose a bill abolishing pennies, he couldn't. Why couldn't he? Because of the abominable practice of pricing items in the following fashion:
Gas (1 gallon): 1$ 99c or after the recent increase 2$ 47c
Milk (1 gallon): 1$ 59c
Bananas (1 pound): 59c
Tomatoes (1 pound): 99c
Items on restaurant menu: 2$ 99c to 19$ 99c (but not a single round figure)
Note that every transaction REQUIRES that you get 'useless' pennies back. Do marketers seriously think that consumers are fooled by this "psychological pricing" gimmick? Do they really think that people would think of a 9$ 99c purchase costing them in the range of 9$ and not 10$. And by any chance do such people exist? If so, in which country? I would like to settle there and replace Bill Gates as the richest man in the world.
I thank the stars for the widespread use of credit/debit cards, for in their absence, utter chaos would reign in the United States; caused not by hurricanes "Rita" or "Katrina" but the force generated by continuously passing pennies back and forth.
What prompted this post:A few months ago, a friend of mine, Sunil, left UNH to study at a university in Florida. He left me some stuff that he thought I could use. I was rummaging through them today and found this polythene bag filled with pennies!!! With friends like him, who needs enemies?
If any resident of America reading this post would like to claim that she/he has never been in possession of more than a hundred pennies at some point in time, please post a comment with your contact information. I would like to set up an appointment with you for I have never had the privilege of meeting an insane person.
I'm attaching a picture of the pile of pennies on my desk for added emphasis...
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Bhangra... and me!
Preparations are in full swing for Diwali. Yup you heard right.. Diwali may be long gone for the rest of the world but it isn't over yet for UNH. A couple of days ago yours truly was asked to participate in a Bhangra dance. Yours truly very enthusiastically reported for a practice session. It must be noted that I have not done much dancing in the last 10 years except for swinging my arms and legs like a madman at a few dance parties. Much to my dismay I discovered that Bhangra required feats of a greater magnitude.
Firstly, it was expected that I would get my hands and legs to move simultaneously. I tackled this problem very intelligently using the divide and conquer method. I first got my leg movement right. Then I got my hand movement right. Finally, I tried to put both together. "Tried" is right, because I couldn't. When my legs moved, my hands would be paralysed and vice versa. It was downright frustrating.
On top of that, I was expected to get my shoulders to shake. However hard I tried, my shoulders remained rigid and unmoving and only my hips would shake. I guess I've seen too many of those tamil songs. Imagine concentrating hard to move your shoulder muscles and your hips shaking instead. After giving serious thought to the matter, I tried to consciously move my hips to see if my shoulders would move but they didn't. More frustration.
After the one and a half hour practice session, I was offered feedback from several members of the audience(participants in other dances). Comments ranged from "It would look as if we were short of people, if the compere had to step on stage to perform" to "Perhaps you would be more suited to a break dance or a tamil folk dance."
I sat pondering over the hidden comments for some time and then decided to gracefully withdraw from the dance and stick to compering, administrative tasks and a skit. The sigh of relief that emanated from the gathering could probably have been heard as far as India.
All's well that ends well.. :-)
Firstly, it was expected that I would get my hands and legs to move simultaneously. I tackled this problem very intelligently using the divide and conquer method. I first got my leg movement right. Then I got my hand movement right. Finally, I tried to put both together. "Tried" is right, because I couldn't. When my legs moved, my hands would be paralysed and vice versa. It was downright frustrating.
On top of that, I was expected to get my shoulders to shake. However hard I tried, my shoulders remained rigid and unmoving and only my hips would shake. I guess I've seen too many of those tamil songs. Imagine concentrating hard to move your shoulder muscles and your hips shaking instead. After giving serious thought to the matter, I tried to consciously move my hips to see if my shoulders would move but they didn't. More frustration.
After the one and a half hour practice session, I was offered feedback from several members of the audience(participants in other dances). Comments ranged from "It would look as if we were short of people, if the compere had to step on stage to perform" to "Perhaps you would be more suited to a break dance or a tamil folk dance."
I sat pondering over the hidden comments for some time and then decided to gracefully withdraw from the dance and stick to compering, administrative tasks and a skit. The sigh of relief that emanated from the gathering could probably have been heard as far as India.
All's well that ends well.. :-)
Thursday, November 10, 2005
A new look
Exams were announced today for two of the three courses I'm taking this semester, 'Distributed Operating Systems' and 'Interactive Data Visualization'. Almost immediately, I inexplicably developed a passion for CSS and HTML, both of which would at best fetch me zero points on the above mentioned exams. Hence this 'new' look.
I have deviated from a rule of thumb I normally follow very strictly, "black text on a white background". But I thought a change would help, just as moving furniture around your room once in a while makes you feel good. The Christmas season is fast approaching and I would like to keep this background until after Christmas. But go ahead and yell at me if the background sucks so I know that a change to a more subtle background is called for.
I have deviated from a rule of thumb I normally follow very strictly, "black text on a white background". But I thought a change would help, just as moving furniture around your room once in a while makes you feel good. The Christmas season is fast approaching and I would like to keep this background until after Christmas. But go ahead and yell at me if the background sucks so I know that a change to a more subtle background is called for.
Monday, November 07, 2005
I bought a car!!!
Yup.. A "Volkswagen Passat". It's been about three weeks now... Seven silly things I did after I bought my car..
- Went round and round the parking lot 10 times before having the heart to park.
- Purposely missed an exit, drove 10 miles to the next exit and payed a damned toll in between.
- Drove through campus playing hindi/tamil music at a volume that almost shattered the windows AND my ear drums, getting dirty looks from all and sundry. (I didn't give a damn though.. )
- Drove 5 miles to 'Dunkin donuts' for hot chocolate, three days in one week at 3 am in the morning.
- Spent most of last month's pay cheque on gas. (sigh)
- Drove to the dining hall, downtown store and church all of which are not more than 500 metres from my dorm.
- Took a cloth and wiped the dust off my car.. (This takes the cake for being the most unusual thing I've ever done.. It is so unlike me to do something like that.. hehe)
Right now, I'm thinking of a name to christen my car with... ;-)
Friday, November 04, 2005
The London 'tube'
I was doing some research for my graphics project when I came across something interesting. A map of the London underground also called 'the tube'...
Now that you've seen the picture and are wondering at it's significance, let me tell you that it was designed in 1931 by 'Harry Beck' who first realized that "when you are underground it doesn't matter where you are." He proceeded to distort the scale and in doing so created an entirely new London totally different from the disorderly geography of the city above. If the tunnels were modeled geographically, this is how the map would look..
The 'tube map' has since been copied widely by all major cities in the world in maps of their respective undergrounds. Until 1931 however, all maps were geographic and confused the users to no end. No wonder they lapped up the 'tube map' when it was released.. lol..
I was just wondering about how things that were previously unknown seem so perfectly obvious to us.. so much so that we fail to value the creative efforts of our predeccessors.
Now that you've seen the picture and are wondering at it's significance, let me tell you that it was designed in 1931 by 'Harry Beck' who first realized that "when you are underground it doesn't matter where you are." He proceeded to distort the scale and in doing so created an entirely new London totally different from the disorderly geography of the city above. If the tunnels were modeled geographically, this is how the map would look..
The 'tube map' has since been copied widely by all major cities in the world in maps of their respective undergrounds. Until 1931 however, all maps were geographic and confused the users to no end. No wonder they lapped up the 'tube map' when it was released.. lol..
I was just wondering about how things that were previously unknown seem so perfectly obvious to us.. so much so that we fail to value the creative efforts of our predeccessors.
Thursday, November 03, 2005
The title of my blog..
When I first started blogging, there were mixed reactions about the title of my blog. Some thought I couldn't come up with anything else. Others thought I was trying to be pompous. A few credited me with a little more 'thinking' and asked me what my title meant. Their questions ranged from "respect to whom or what?" to "why greatest possible"? "with respect" would do if you want to be polite and courteous and state that you respect the views of your readers.
Though politeness and courtesy are important to me, they are NOT the reason behind this title.
To cut a long story short, the title has been picked from the "Yes Minister" series which I talked about here and here. However, I am not yet willing to spell out the context in which the phrase has been used.. After all, I have waited four months hoping that someone as great a fan of that book as I, would come by and spot that term immediately.. I can wait a little longer. A 50$ prize to the first person who discovers the context.. And I'm not KIDDING. :D
Clue 1: I guess I WAS trying to be a little pompous.. ;-)
Clue 2: The underlying theme of most of my posts (atleast until date)..
Though politeness and courtesy are important to me, they are NOT the reason behind this title.
To cut a long story short, the title has been picked from the "Yes Minister" series which I talked about here and here. However, I am not yet willing to spell out the context in which the phrase has been used.. After all, I have waited four months hoping that someone as great a fan of that book as I, would come by and spot that term immediately.. I can wait a little longer. A 50$ prize to the first person who discovers the context.. And I'm not KIDDING. :D
Clue 1: I guess I WAS trying to be a little pompous.. ;-)
Clue 2: The underlying theme of most of my posts (atleast until date)..
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