I had my final exam today and the paper being easy,the exam was a breeze.So 3 weeks of rest follow for me after a busy month of classes.After my exam,I happened to read this:
http://21writersblock.blogspot.com/2007/08/youve-got-mail-again.html
Now the author happens to be someone I am very fond of,and her earnest appeal to people in general to find a way to explain the idea of arranged marriage didnt fall on deaf ears.I took upon my frail shoulders the onerous task of removing the stigma(if I may call it that) associated with an "arranged" marriage.I know that the tone of my writing puts the word "arranged" at about the same level as the word match "fixing" in cricket.A thousand pardons for that inadvertent error.At the outset, let me issue the usual disclaimers that am neither married nor in love,and any views that I may express may be taken with many grains of salt.
To any prospective girls who might have an outside chance of falling in love with yours truly--I agree that after reading this your feelings for me would probably be not far from that you share for a brick on the road,or the friendly neighbourhood bulldozer, for that matter.I hasten to add that I am a romantic at heart,and its just my other side taking over for a brief period.I may be guilty of bringing down something as intangible as love,to something as mundane as mathematics.However,there are similarities-both are abstract:)) to start with.But if you look beyond the obvious ,am sure the parable am going to narrate will prove most instructive.
I shall assume that most of my readers are familiar with some numerical techniques for finding roots of equations.But the person for whom the post is intended, though clever, almost certainly doesnt,so a quick introduction.
A function f(x) is said to have a root at c if f(c)=0.Now consider an equation like f(x,y). The point (i,j) is a root if f(i,j)=0.
Consider an equation like x-cos(x+4)=0 or better still sin(x)-log(y) +6=0
I ask you to find a root of the equation.
To come to my point,I need 2 names.Lets take,err...preetha and preethi,for want of any better names:)).I give this problem to both of them, and allow them use of an elementary calculator.
Preetha,being a highly whimsical girl and a good programmer,insists on the following idiosyncrasy.She wants to arrive at the solution by chance alone,so with the help of a random number generator,she tries out numbers one after the other and tries to find if any of them is a root.Sometimes its love,oops! sorry, root at first sight.But often the random numbers turn out too random,and try as she might,picking a root by trial seems too difficult for some equations.But she is delighted whenever she does stumble on the root by chance:)
Preethi on the other hand is a girl singularly devoid of such eccentricity.She consults a book of numerical recipes and hits upon tried and tested techniques like the Golden Search method,Newton Raphson method,bisection method or for more complicated functions,Steepest Descent method and so on.The way these methods work is as follows.
Instead of choosing at random,from the general behavior of the given function,a smaller region is identified in the search space,where a root is likely to occur.Once the region is identified,simply do what Preetha does at random-try out numbers in the region and see which one fits.Notice that in the end, you dont accept a number as a root without checking its functional value.So you are not compromising in any way:))
The general name for such techniques is quite appropriate-Directed Search methods:))
Some more comments on this technique are warranted.An equation can have more than one root.But they all might not lie in the same search space.Also let us recognise a tacit assumption we have made that the equation in question has a real root,which might even be false.(sorry!!)
Assuming that both Preetha and Preethi arrive at the same solution,lets now explore the matter further.For one thing,would you expect that Preetha is happier than Preethi just because she "found" her root by chance alone?Likely not.Now how viable is Preetha's method? If she has time till kingdom come,its a foolproof method.But if you are short of time, then trusting the God of Randomness is not highly advised.
Then there is the problem of "irrational" roots:) In such cases people stop their search once they find an integer value sufficiently close to the root.:)How close?That's decided by the Convergence Criterion -the mathematical term for this.
Also let us remind ourselves that the best method actually would be to graph the function and simply determine all the roots by inspection. But such a process is feasible if you are looking from above ,which we are not.
Having said all that,when I have an equation of my own to solve,I will give the random numbers a chance first:)To my dearest random root finder I have this to say-I do wish with all my heart that the correct number pops up soon.Randomly,or with an algorithm,does it really matter ?:)
I believe in the fact that if you wish something for others,it comes true.And I say this in all seriousness.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Friday, August 03, 2007
Important dates of the second kind ! :)
If you are starting to read it thinking its about my dates,you are wrong.I have given up on that and am resigned to the fact that nothing like that will ever happen to me :))
This post is more to remind myself than about writing anything funny or concrete.
Today is August 3rd.Exactly a year ago on this day, I got my visa. Maybe not everyone will think that event noteworthy,but I know otherwise.I was put through an emotional shredder for a month before finally getting it.And so how does it feel,I ask myself, a year hence?
Well, it mostly feels like a dream, as though all that never happened.And yet there is a residue of the disappointment, the uncertainty,the prospect of seeing your dreams crumble, that gets me disturbed simply by thinking.Now sitting in the future,it sometimes feels that it was not anything to worry about.And thats the peculiar quality of the human psyche.
I once read a book by Dan Gilbert titled Stumbling on happiness,and it is this quality that he often talks about.
The inability of the human mind (or heart, whichever you prefer) to reconstruct effectively or accurately the emotions felt in the past.I have felt dissapointment before, joy and elation too,but every time is like a first time. It is as if my own past experiences are vicarious to my own self.
As I wrote once before, I remember dates.So it is that I recall some important events that happened in August in my life.
Two years ago I wrote the GRE exam on August 1st. I rushed back to college immediately from Bangalore because Delphi was coming to campus on the 2nd.I remember walking bleary eyed past the ad-block as I saw my friends ,dressed smartly, rush towards A-2 hall.I remember being congratulated for what then seemed like a great score.Next thing I saw was the written test paper- had lots of microprocessors and programming in it and so that was the end for me:)).
However it was not the end for Pattu.The only mech guy who cleared the written,I can recall vividly,his face flushed, outside my room window,waking me up from my afternoon nap,saying: "Shriram mera ho gaya!!!" :-) There are few times in ones life that you really,and I mean really feel delighted at another's success, but life in college gave me numerous such occasions.
There were more things that happened that month.On the 10th I wrote the TOEFL.On the 27th,Pawan and I got placed (but never joined the Tatas:). Infact I landed here on the 13th last year.Maybe August is a great month for me!
But Pattu's story doesnt end there. Very soon after there was a report in the ET that Delphi filed for bankruptcy.There is no end to the fun it brought us at Pattu's expense.I kept the copy of the newspaper in Pawan's room, and whenever this pest would bother us as we were having some discussion of great import (generally of a nature too scandalous to be mentioned in a blog:), Pawan would point to that newspaper by the corner.Pattu the Pest would then slink away sheepishly ;)
Let me dedicate this post to Pattu-that pestilential creature who figures in most of the good times that I have had- and due to whom I gained so much and despite what am gaining now, realise all that am losing.
This post is more to remind myself than about writing anything funny or concrete.
Today is August 3rd.Exactly a year ago on this day, I got my visa. Maybe not everyone will think that event noteworthy,but I know otherwise.I was put through an emotional shredder for a month before finally getting it.And so how does it feel,I ask myself, a year hence?
Well, it mostly feels like a dream, as though all that never happened.And yet there is a residue of the disappointment, the uncertainty,the prospect of seeing your dreams crumble, that gets me disturbed simply by thinking.Now sitting in the future,it sometimes feels that it was not anything to worry about.And thats the peculiar quality of the human psyche.
I once read a book by Dan Gilbert titled Stumbling on happiness,and it is this quality that he often talks about.
The inability of the human mind (or heart, whichever you prefer) to reconstruct effectively or accurately the emotions felt in the past.I have felt dissapointment before, joy and elation too,but every time is like a first time. It is as if my own past experiences are vicarious to my own self.
As I wrote once before, I remember dates.So it is that I recall some important events that happened in August in my life.
Two years ago I wrote the GRE exam on August 1st. I rushed back to college immediately from Bangalore because Delphi was coming to campus on the 2nd.I remember walking bleary eyed past the ad-block as I saw my friends ,dressed smartly, rush towards A-2 hall.I remember being congratulated for what then seemed like a great score.Next thing I saw was the written test paper- had lots of microprocessors and programming in it and so that was the end for me:)).
However it was not the end for Pattu.The only mech guy who cleared the written,I can recall vividly,his face flushed, outside my room window,waking me up from my afternoon nap,saying: "Shriram mera ho gaya!!!" :-) There are few times in ones life that you really,and I mean really feel delighted at another's success, but life in college gave me numerous such occasions.
There were more things that happened that month.On the 10th I wrote the TOEFL.On the 27th,Pawan and I got placed (but never joined the Tatas:). Infact I landed here on the 13th last year.Maybe August is a great month for me!
But Pattu's story doesnt end there. Very soon after there was a report in the ET that Delphi filed for bankruptcy.There is no end to the fun it brought us at Pattu's expense.I kept the copy of the newspaper in Pawan's room, and whenever this pest would bother us as we were having some discussion of great import (generally of a nature too scandalous to be mentioned in a blog:), Pawan would point to that newspaper by the corner.Pattu the Pest would then slink away sheepishly ;)
Let me dedicate this post to Pattu-that pestilential creature who figures in most of the good times that I have had- and due to whom I gained so much and despite what am gaining now, realise all that am losing.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Zipcodes and other matters of national importance
Its that time of the year again,when young men(women too before a feminist disapproves) with dreams in their eyes board flights to this land of 2% reduced fat milk and orange blossom honey.So naturally the question of my address came up, for hosting these new kids on the block.Incidentally, with several people of my college coming,it should be fun.But anyway while typing out my address the zip code caught my attention.
What a peculiar word- Zip code.
Instantly my fertile imagination began to conjure up appalling images of zips which open only with codes.What a cataclysm to befall the male bastion, I pondered.If zips were ever coded.Getting my cycle lock opened when its raining itself takes time, as I found out to my anguish a couple of days back.If nature ever puts you on notice, getting the....err..... zip( for once the author is short of words,and his alternatives all appear most inappropriate:) open in time can often be most challenging as most of you must definitely have found out a few times in your life.And imagine a three digit number lock on it, to compound matters.The prospect chills my bones to the very marrow.
And while we are at it let me digress and expound my views about the zip.A most versatile thing,the zip.Have any of you ever wondered why the zip was named the zip?Am sure you never have so I will proceed to elucidate my line of thought. Imagine trying to explain to a 4 year old boy what the zip is,without using the word zip.
The car zipped down the road. He zipped past in his cycle. Are these descriptions based on the the way the"zip" moves? Or indeed is the zip called zip because it goes "zip-zip-zip" when you pull it up or down?Does it indeed go "zip" or are we conditioned to hear it as zip because we named it zip?You see what I mean-I have run rings around you with this profound tautology.
Of course I with my infinite wisdom can define it purely as a mechanism with interlocking teeth moving on a blah blah blah....but the child wont be impressed and probably ask me if I have been eating locoweed.
I can hear cries of people in my mind already, shouting-
chaat! (dismissive)
chattttttttttt !! (irritating)
chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat !!!( means if I could get your neck in my hands right now I would love to apply a sufficiently high moment so that torsional failure occurs:)
The last of these is typically reserved for me when I am in one of these moods. :-) One of my specialities and delights was to extract the above mentioned sentiment from perfectly nice people.Like Montmorency in 3 Men in a Boat, my day is never complete or satisfying if I don't do this to atleast one person.
By the way,the different contextual usages of the word chat is what distinguishes the NITTwit from his lesser brethren.But again if one is a nitwit by nature,you cant teach one to be a NITTwit.So I desist.
But to round up this matter of import-I finally found a solution that allowed me to breathe easy somewhat. I remember when I was a kid,if your..errr..zip wasn't properly zipped up,the concerned person used to be alerted that "his postbox is open".(I desist from talking anymore about this most wonderful metaphor)
And there you have it!! A perfectly close formed solution to our problem! Zip Codes...post boxes...the connection would be obvious even to morons!
For others motivated by this monograph,I would suggest that the word "pin code" as used in India might also yield interesting solutions upon introspection.That might be a rewarding line of thought.In fact if I could I would myself pursue it :)
What a peculiar word- Zip code.
Instantly my fertile imagination began to conjure up appalling images of zips which open only with codes.What a cataclysm to befall the male bastion, I pondered.If zips were ever coded.Getting my cycle lock opened when its raining itself takes time, as I found out to my anguish a couple of days back.If nature ever puts you on notice, getting the....err..... zip( for once the author is short of words,and his alternatives all appear most inappropriate:) open in time can often be most challenging as most of you must definitely have found out a few times in your life.And imagine a three digit number lock on it, to compound matters.The prospect chills my bones to the very marrow.
And while we are at it let me digress and expound my views about the zip.A most versatile thing,the zip.Have any of you ever wondered why the zip was named the zip?Am sure you never have so I will proceed to elucidate my line of thought. Imagine trying to explain to a 4 year old boy what the zip is,without using the word zip.
The car zipped down the road. He zipped past in his cycle. Are these descriptions based on the the way the"zip" moves? Or indeed is the zip called zip because it goes "zip-zip-zip" when you pull it up or down?Does it indeed go "zip" or are we conditioned to hear it as zip because we named it zip?You see what I mean-I have run rings around you with this profound tautology.
Of course I with my infinite wisdom can define it purely as a mechanism with interlocking teeth moving on a blah blah blah....but the child wont be impressed and probably ask me if I have been eating locoweed.
I can hear cries of people in my mind already, shouting-
chaat! (dismissive)
chattttttttttt !! (irritating)
chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat !!!( means if I could get your neck in my hands right now I would love to apply a sufficiently high moment so that torsional failure occurs:)
The last of these is typically reserved for me when I am in one of these moods. :-) One of my specialities and delights was to extract the above mentioned sentiment from perfectly nice people.Like Montmorency in 3 Men in a Boat, my day is never complete or satisfying if I don't do this to atleast one person.
By the way,the different contextual usages of the word chat is what distinguishes the NITTwit from his lesser brethren.But again if one is a nitwit by nature,you cant teach one to be a NITTwit.So I desist.
But to round up this matter of import-I finally found a solution that allowed me to breathe easy somewhat. I remember when I was a kid,if your..errr..zip wasn't properly zipped up,the concerned person used to be alerted that "his postbox is open".(I desist from talking anymore about this most wonderful metaphor)
And there you have it!! A perfectly close formed solution to our problem! Zip Codes...post boxes...the connection would be obvious even to morons!
For others motivated by this monograph,I would suggest that the word "pin code" as used in India might also yield interesting solutions upon introspection.That might be a rewarding line of thought.In fact if I could I would myself pursue it :)
Saturday, July 07, 2007
Idle ramblings
This is being written as a comment to this-
http://a-mavericks-foghorn.blogspot.com/2007/07/of-nit-t-niit-and-it.html
If you have finished reading that then you may proceed to read what I have to say.
I must say my friend had a perfectly acceptable explanation as to why he went about reading the same news item ,or rather different versions of the same news (should I use new as the singular of news??Very singular word -news..pun intended of course..How does this sound-sensational new,hot new etc..Anyway never mind!. He assures me its not because he is sitting jobless in summer at the very least(?)
The news item hardly surprised me-the branding of NITT as NIIT.Being the busy man that I am(!) I just laughed it off with typical sarcasm,but my friend here could not stand the perpetration of this outrage.After all a gold medal with NIIT inscribed on it is hardly worth the glister is it?:)
To continue-let me play Devil's Advocate.Let me try to explain that such errors are quite possible.It is all attributed to The Printer's Devil .(no relation to Devil's advocate,mind you)
To illustrate let me tell you a most instructive story.
Once upon a time,The German crown prince was in England for a visit.
The newspaper headline went- "German crow prince in London"
Understandably outraged,the Germans demanded an apology which was duly tendered by the newspaper the next day.It read:" We apologise for our error in the story of the German clown prince".
Well,need I say more?.The Germans didnt ask for another apology.
That was my point, and may your cup of woe brimmeth, if you didnt get what I meant!!
To talk of more random issues regarding NITT, I think its fated that the NITTwit will never get his due. Back home in Calcutta in the days of yore when I was a young boy having just secured admission to NITT/REC Trichy,I remember friends of my dad in his office asking "Chele kothai podche?"( as in where is your son studying)
My dad, with suitable pride in his voice would reply to which they would ask:"Oita kothai, Bangalore?"(is that in Bangalore?:) My dad would be suitably miffed,while my ever present sarcasm would make me laugh.
There you have it- the tragedy of it all, NITT being reduced to a no entity near Bangalore.The joke is on Bangalore more than on NITT -this for the benefit of those among my readers whose heads are virtually cathode ray tubes (and I always suspect Iblog to belong to that set:)
The incident I narrated has happened too many times to pay any attention to.But now for an interesting case.
At the end of 3rd sem perhaps,I was bankrupt.But worse-Pattu and Ashwini were also bankrupt-worst of all I was bankrupt because I had lent money to Somnath (the eternally poor:).
I asked my dad to send me a DD.My dad, with his customary pride, addressed it to NIT Trichy instead of REC Trichy despite my warnings.The inevitable happened-the DD reached home after I came home for my holidays.
With that anecdote,this proud NITTian takes leave of you.I thoroughly enjoyed myself, pulling lots of legs in this post.
On a more serious note-congrats to the guy joining PSU and saying no to 23lpa.You will go places !Dont you worry!
http://a-mavericks-foghorn.blogspot.com/2007/07/of-nit-t-niit-and-it.html
If you have finished reading that then you may proceed to read what I have to say.
I must say my friend had a perfectly acceptable explanation as to why he went about reading the same news item ,or rather different versions of the same news (should I use new as the singular of news??Very singular word -news..pun intended of course..How does this sound-sensational new,hot new etc..Anyway never mind!. He assures me its not because he is sitting jobless in summer at the very least(?)
The news item hardly surprised me-the branding of NITT as NIIT.Being the busy man that I am(!) I just laughed it off with typical sarcasm,but my friend here could not stand the perpetration of this outrage.After all a gold medal with NIIT inscribed on it is hardly worth the glister is it?:)
To continue-let me play Devil's Advocate.Let me try to explain that such errors are quite possible.It is all attributed to The Printer's Devil .(no relation to Devil's advocate,mind you)
To illustrate let me tell you a most instructive story.
Once upon a time,The German crown prince was in England for a visit.
The newspaper headline went- "German crow prince in London"
Understandably outraged,the Germans demanded an apology which was duly tendered by the newspaper the next day.It read:" We apologise for our error in the story of the German clown prince".
Well,need I say more?.The Germans didnt ask for another apology.
That was my point, and may your cup of woe brimmeth, if you didnt get what I meant!!
To talk of more random issues regarding NITT, I think its fated that the NITTwit will never get his due. Back home in Calcutta in the days of yore when I was a young boy having just secured admission to NITT/REC Trichy,I remember friends of my dad in his office asking "Chele kothai podche?"( as in where is your son studying)
My dad, with suitable pride in his voice would reply to which they would ask:"Oita kothai, Bangalore?"(is that in Bangalore?:) My dad would be suitably miffed,while my ever present sarcasm would make me laugh.
There you have it- the tragedy of it all, NITT being reduced to a no entity near Bangalore.The joke is on Bangalore more than on NITT -this for the benefit of those among my readers whose heads are virtually cathode ray tubes (and I always suspect Iblog to belong to that set:)
The incident I narrated has happened too many times to pay any attention to.But now for an interesting case.
At the end of 3rd sem perhaps,I was bankrupt.But worse-Pattu and Ashwini were also bankrupt-worst of all I was bankrupt because I had lent money to Somnath (the eternally poor:).
I asked my dad to send me a DD.My dad, with his customary pride, addressed it to NIT Trichy instead of REC Trichy despite my warnings.The inevitable happened-the DD reached home after I came home for my holidays.
With that anecdote,this proud NITTian takes leave of you.I thoroughly enjoyed myself, pulling lots of legs in this post.
On a more serious note-congrats to the guy joining PSU and saying no to 23lpa.You will go places !Dont you worry!
Tagged !
Rules:
1.Players start with 5 random facts about themselves.
2.Post these rules along with your 5 random facts.
3.Tag 3 other people and notify them that they have been tagged.
Well, here goes 5 random facts about myself-
1. When you talk to me,I often go off on a tangent, carried away by some word or phrase .This is at times irritating to people (though not to my best friends, I imagine:)For starters-when I was "tagged"-the first thought was Orkut, Gazzag,Zorpia, Jhoos and now this new thing called Tagged, which is spamming my inbox like crazy:-)
2.I have got a great memory for people,places and events-I can recall with vivid details what I was doing, what we were eating, what each person said and so on.But no!I do not remember the difference between upmilling and downmilling,or the intimate(!) details of an engine lathe,or what is the pitch of an M10 screw/nut/stud/bolt ;)
3. I love puns-especially of the raunchy kind.I love to play with words, and manufacture innuendos out of the most commonplace statements.A particularly well documented habit ,no more on this!!
4.I love food and eating-and can go to great lengths for that.It has been said (rather unkindly by Somnath,I should add) that I never say no to food.
5.I am a nice guy!!! (Yes, really...:)))
I tag-Maverick,Lassie,Ranjiv
1.Players start with 5 random facts about themselves.
2.Post these rules along with your 5 random facts.
3.Tag 3 other people and notify them that they have been tagged.
Well, here goes 5 random facts about myself-
1. When you talk to me,I often go off on a tangent, carried away by some word or phrase .This is at times irritating to people (though not to my best friends, I imagine:)For starters-when I was "tagged"-the first thought was Orkut, Gazzag,Zorpia, Jhoos and now this new thing called Tagged, which is spamming my inbox like crazy:-)
2.I have got a great memory for people,places and events-I can recall with vivid details what I was doing, what we were eating, what each person said and so on.But no!I do not remember the difference between upmilling and downmilling,or the intimate(!) details of an engine lathe,or what is the pitch of an M10 screw/nut/stud/bolt ;)
3. I love puns-especially of the raunchy kind.I love to play with words, and manufacture innuendos out of the most commonplace statements.A particularly well documented habit ,no more on this!!
4.I love food and eating-and can go to great lengths for that.It has been said (rather unkindly by Somnath,I should add) that I never say no to food.
5.I am a nice guy!!! (Yes, really...:)))
I tag-Maverick,Lassie,Ranjiv
Monday, June 04, 2007
The finer points of American life
The past ten months or so, my writings have mostly dealt with nostalgia, depression, and occasionally,some cheerful things like entropy (only mech engineers need try to understand how entropy can be cheerful,of all things.In fact,if you think my senses are isotropically atrophying,you are probably right:-)That atrocious sentence is just a taste of things to come in my future posts.
But you will live through this one all right.For am going to write about the things that I find quite admirable here, something that I should have done quite a while ago.
Karmanya vadhikaraste, ma faleshu kadach na. Perhaps the essence of The Gita. And yet, I comprehend those lines only after coming here,in a capitalistic country,ironically.Nothing exemplifies what I say better than exam/submission time. Americans work diligently and come what may, they wont pull the typical Indian stunt of a nightout.Once night falls, they will leave at that point,irrespective of how they have done. The code may or may not run.The plots might be wrong.The proof may be awful.But they wont go on.They start work early and finish on time. In contrast Indians, typically will let the grass grow under their feet first.Once enough has grown,they will then toil night and day, colonise the computer lab, all the while keeping their eye fixed on what they want,namely the output/grade.Hardly the followers of The Gita, are we? The American's careless indifference to grades and results is something that I admire. Of course I also understand that in India now we cant survive without being result oriented.Its the way we are brought up, and incidentally most last minute desi submissions often turn out better than the others. In India academic success is almost the only way to make a career.Yes, there are very successful people in other careers too,but lets not kid ourselves and be romantic. For every successful cartoonist, sportsman, artist, or people like that, there are thousands who have fallen by the way side. In the U.S.A, you can make your living as a carpenter or plumber, and live comfortably. Also, the fact that we have come so far for an education means that we obviously are more driven to succeed.So if seen that way, perhaps our behaviour can be rationalised.
However no rationalisation can excuse unethical behaviour,of the kind that am about to describe.
The true meaning of honour and ethics too I discovered after coming here. There is a code of honour that we sign on every assignment and I used to do that with typical cynicism .However during exams I found there were no invigilators!We were just left to ourselves !It was understood, and taken for granted, that nobody would resort to unfair means. To repose such trust made me feel rather ashamed of my earlier cynicism. And there were a few infamous instances that I came to hear about, in classes, with a predominantly Indian population.Assignments were copied en masse , and instructors had to take drastic measures.In one of my courses, two desis had suspiciously similar(correct) answers to a crucial problem, one that had felled the best. The professor called them and asked about it,and these two fed him a cock and bull story.However their story was taken at face value,which again told me something.It is so easy to take advantage of this trust,and I really find it most disgusting when people do that. Not everyone does it , only some do, but almost everyone who does seems to be Asian, which doesnt do us or our country any favours. But it is a wonderful thing isn't it, to pass the responsibility onto you , and assuming that you will act ethically. Such a change from back home!
But you will live through this one all right.For am going to write about the things that I find quite admirable here, something that I should have done quite a while ago.
Karmanya vadhikaraste, ma faleshu kadach na. Perhaps the essence of The Gita. And yet, I comprehend those lines only after coming here,in a capitalistic country,ironically.Nothing exemplifies what I say better than exam/submission time. Americans work diligently and come what may, they wont pull the typical Indian stunt of a nightout.Once night falls, they will leave at that point,irrespective of how they have done. The code may or may not run.The plots might be wrong.The proof may be awful.But they wont go on.They start work early and finish on time. In contrast Indians, typically will let the grass grow under their feet first.Once enough has grown,they will then toil night and day, colonise the computer lab, all the while keeping their eye fixed on what they want,namely the output/grade.Hardly the followers of The Gita, are we? The American's careless indifference to grades and results is something that I admire. Of course I also understand that in India now we cant survive without being result oriented.Its the way we are brought up, and incidentally most last minute desi submissions often turn out better than the others. In India academic success is almost the only way to make a career.Yes, there are very successful people in other careers too,but lets not kid ourselves and be romantic. For every successful cartoonist, sportsman, artist, or people like that, there are thousands who have fallen by the way side. In the U.S.A, you can make your living as a carpenter or plumber, and live comfortably. Also, the fact that we have come so far for an education means that we obviously are more driven to succeed.So if seen that way, perhaps our behaviour can be rationalised.
However no rationalisation can excuse unethical behaviour,of the kind that am about to describe.
The true meaning of honour and ethics too I discovered after coming here. There is a code of honour that we sign on every assignment and I used to do that with typical cynicism .However during exams I found there were no invigilators!We were just left to ourselves !It was understood, and taken for granted, that nobody would resort to unfair means. To repose such trust made me feel rather ashamed of my earlier cynicism. And there were a few infamous instances that I came to hear about, in classes, with a predominantly Indian population.Assignments were copied en masse , and instructors had to take drastic measures.In one of my courses, two desis had suspiciously similar(correct) answers to a crucial problem, one that had felled the best. The professor called them and asked about it,and these two fed him a cock and bull story.However their story was taken at face value,which again told me something.It is so easy to take advantage of this trust,and I really find it most disgusting when people do that. Not everyone does it , only some do, but almost everyone who does seems to be Asian, which doesnt do us or our country any favours. But it is a wonderful thing isn't it, to pass the responsibility onto you , and assuming that you will act ethically. Such a change from back home!
Monday, May 21, 2007
The clock chimes the hour....
I am near New York City.
Today is my birthday.
And if you think that alone is enough to have a blast, you are as wrong as wrong could be.For am alone, feeling desolate and empty.
Nobody around to talk to even. Solitude today has driven me mad. And its nobody's fault, not even mine.
I thought I would go alone to a museum. But that doesnt appeal to me. There are 2 Tamil movies that I could watch.But that doesnt sound good either. So here am, still sitting -the bus has gone even as I speak. This has surely been my worst birthday ever- forgotten by people around and best forgotten by my own self.
How frail the mind of man, and how potent the curse of solitude!!I find it so stifling, to listen to the reverberations of my own thoughts jangling in disharmony.Perhaps its time I learn to live with myself. To accept that times like this are here to stay.
And yet another year ticks by my life.I turn 25..I find it amusing to think of class 6 history lessons.Of Aryans and their life expectancy of a 100 years. Of the first 25 years of life known as Brahmacharya. Never mind that I have been a far from ideal brahmachari (except in the things which matter, that is :-) I find it amazing that the feelings on the age scale are so logarithmic. Turning 25 feels so different from turning 20. I was excited about 20, because it meant more freedom but as you inch along you dont feel so good about 25. I think its because you realise that the course of your life is well set and there is no more a bewildering array of possibilities or wonder about the future anymore. There can be minor changes but you cant really surprise yourself, can you, a few years from now? That way there is a sort of helplessness about it now whereas at 20 you felt you could do anything and you were the master of your fate. And yet, how many times in the past have I found myself saying: "If only time would pass by, and I could be transported into the future, when the uncertainties have blown over and things have settled.."
Such are the foibles of the mind and the heart. I want my tomorrow today and tomorrow I will want my yesterday.
I believe I am not unique in my feelings. Perhaps there are others like me who feel the way I do,a vague discontent with life for no discernible reason.
Despite my depressing mood, I must thank all friends of mine who went out of their way for me.In particular, Pawan and Malavika- you are killing me with curiosity, and Preethadi - I am really touched by your invitation.Thank you so much for making me feel wanted.
As I see the numbers on the wheel of life spinning by,I wish for myself and my friends that our lives transcend the mundane and become meaningful and extraordinary.
Today is my birthday.
And if you think that alone is enough to have a blast, you are as wrong as wrong could be.For am alone, feeling desolate and empty.
Nobody around to talk to even. Solitude today has driven me mad. And its nobody's fault, not even mine.
I thought I would go alone to a museum. But that doesnt appeal to me. There are 2 Tamil movies that I could watch.But that doesnt sound good either. So here am, still sitting -the bus has gone even as I speak. This has surely been my worst birthday ever- forgotten by people around and best forgotten by my own self.
How frail the mind of man, and how potent the curse of solitude!!I find it so stifling, to listen to the reverberations of my own thoughts jangling in disharmony.Perhaps its time I learn to live with myself. To accept that times like this are here to stay.
And yet another year ticks by my life.I turn 25..I find it amusing to think of class 6 history lessons.Of Aryans and their life expectancy of a 100 years. Of the first 25 years of life known as Brahmacharya. Never mind that I have been a far from ideal brahmachari (except in the things which matter, that is :-) I find it amazing that the feelings on the age scale are so logarithmic. Turning 25 feels so different from turning 20. I was excited about 20, because it meant more freedom but as you inch along you dont feel so good about 25. I think its because you realise that the course of your life is well set and there is no more a bewildering array of possibilities or wonder about the future anymore. There can be minor changes but you cant really surprise yourself, can you, a few years from now? That way there is a sort of helplessness about it now whereas at 20 you felt you could do anything and you were the master of your fate. And yet, how many times in the past have I found myself saying: "If only time would pass by, and I could be transported into the future, when the uncertainties have blown over and things have settled.."
Such are the foibles of the mind and the heart. I want my tomorrow today and tomorrow I will want my yesterday.
I believe I am not unique in my feelings. Perhaps there are others like me who feel the way I do,a vague discontent with life for no discernible reason.
Despite my depressing mood, I must thank all friends of mine who went out of their way for me.In particular, Pawan and Malavika- you are killing me with curiosity, and Preethadi - I am really touched by your invitation.Thank you so much for making me feel wanted.
As I see the numbers on the wheel of life spinning by,I wish for myself and my friends that our lives transcend the mundane and become meaningful and extraordinary.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)