::the blog of ratnose::

2003-03-27T16:40:00.000-05:00

one of the better artciles I have read on the Ayodhya temple issue.
I guess Vir Sanghvi is not completely pinkofied.

2003-03-24T19:39:00.000-05:00

is he the guru of islamic jehadi terrorits.
snippets from the article:
The most useful insights into the shaping of Bin Laden may lie not in the rugged mountains of Afghanistan, or the rampant materialism of 1970s Saudi Arabia, but the biography of a long dead Egyptian fundamentalist scholar called Sayyid Qutb.
Qutb, regarded as the father of modern fundamentalism and described by his (Arab) biographer as "the most famous personality of the Muslim world in the second half of the 20th century", is being increasingly cited as the figure who has most influenced the al-Qaida leader.

Qutb seems to have rejected all kinds of government, secular and theocratic, and, on one reading at least, he seems to advocate a kind of anarcho-Islam.

2003-03-21T19:50:00.000-05:00

Am editing extensively my blog(as my regular readers would have noticed from the new format). please leave your feedback/comments on the tag board on the right of the screen.

2003-03-21T17:32:00.000-05:00

a new way to fight spam
looks like this thing will actually stop or at least control spam(if its ever implemented).
the funda is "if you are not on my buddy list you pay a small amount of money to send me a email". this money is paid to a not-for-profit website which will issue the charity stamp.

2003-03-20T11:39:00.000-05:00

Something dosent ring true about this

2003-03-17T18:24:00.000-05:00

A american young woman protests in favor of palestinians and dies for her cause
a snippet from her email to her parents

------------------------------------------
Currently, the Israeli army is building a fourteen-meter-high wall between Rafah in Palestine and the border, carving a no-mans land from the houses along the border. Six hundred and two homes have been completely bulldozed according to the Rafah Popular Refugee Committee. The number of homes that have been partially destroyed is greater.

Today as I walked on top of the rubble where homes once stood, Egyptian soldiers called to me from the other side of the border, "Go! Go!" because a tank was coming. Followed by waving and "what's your name?". There is something disturbing about this friendly curiosity. It reminded me of how much, to some degree, we are all kids curious about other kids: Egyptian kids shouting at strange women wandering into the path of tanks. Palestinian kids shot from the tanks when they peak out from behind walls to see what's going on. International kids standing in front of tanks with banners.

Israeli kids in the tanks anonymously, occasionally shouting-- and also occasionally waving--many forced to be here, many just aggressive, shooting into the houses as we wander away.
--------------------------------------------

she seems to be a honest lover of the palestinian cause.
i wonder how many palestinians have died for their cause and why their stories are never highlighted.
more links abt rachel : here and here

2003-03-16T00:28:00.000-05:00

what is this new Technical Intelligence Agency
is it going to be like NSA as suggested by the article or more like the clearing house of all collected electronic intelligence an euphemism for tapped radio signals ?

2003-03-15T23:44:00.000-05:00

Bombay Train blast
right on the aniversery of the bombay blasts there has been another blast in a local train in bombay. I am pretty worried. Is my Bombay (Mumbai wotever...) turning into another jerusalaem. was just talking to some relatives in mumbai and all of them seem pretty worried. police also seems to be taking this quite seriously. there are sniffer dogs a-plenty in Wadala and the rumors are flying thick and fast.

2003-03-12T23:52:00.000-05:00

Babies and Dogs.
i feel americans give a lot of importance to pets esp dogs and cats. they are present everywhere. There are a lot more pet food/ medicine/ litter collector/ litter deoderiser etc ads than baby food or baby medicines ads. i understand abt baby food becoming a standard product and no longer requiring ads but still it does not mean well for a society to have more pet stuff ads than baby food ads. i feel this is a mirroring of the lop-sided value structure of the american society. whats your opinion?

2003-03-12T23:44:00.000-05:00

Lest we Forget
March 12 is the 10th anniversery of the Mumbai (Bombay) bomb blasts conducted by muslim militants in conjunction with the the Pakistani intelligence agency ISI which killed over 260 people and brought the city to its knees. but due to the spirit of the people of Mumbai it was fully working the next day.
Thanks to Ravikiran for reminding me.

2003-03-09T19:27:00.000-05:00

cricket lovers read this.
why is dalmia suddenly so eager for india to play pakistan. i would goo one step ahead and say that dalmia is planning a split in icc. for this he needs a big-money tournament. nothing like a indo-pak test series. in the process he also gets the "asian votes" or asian support. as it is south africa supports india. he created the bangladesh vote too for this purpose only. am sure kenya is being dangled a vote(test-playing status..they do deserve this tough) too. this guy is amazing. trust him to make up something grand pretty soon after the WC.

non-cricket lovers who dont know wot am talking abt, please excuse.

2003-03-06T16:34:00.000-05:00

this is what i like about US (a democracy):
A sikh is harrased by a budweiser sipping "gentleman" who thinks he is Osama's helper in NY subway and other random people help him(the sikh guy) out of the situation which could have turned ugly.

and this happens in India. SO SAD.

2003-03-05T16:46:00.000-05:00

end of freedom in america
snippet::
Stephen Downs was wearing a T-shirt bearing the words "Give Peace A Chance" that he had just purchased from a vendor inside the Crossgates Mall in Guilderland, New York, near Albany.

"I was in the food court with my son when I was confronted by two security guards and ordered to either take off the T-shirt or leave the mall," said Downs.

what is hapenning to america : the land of freedom and liberty.

2003-03-03T17:55:00.000-05:00

a very intersting cricket link

2003-03-02T16:37:00.000-05:00

Cricket and Terrorism.
Prem Panicker rightly points out that:

And while flushing out the crap, let's start with that old chestnut that politics and sports should be kept separate -- each time you hear it, in context of a World Cup that has seen as much unsavory politics as cricket, you find your teeth on edge. (Did anyone ask England to keep politics from sport when it boycotted Zimbabwe for purely political reasons?)

This Cup has seen two boycotts. So how many Englishmen have died at the hands of Zimbabweans? None.

How many Kiwis have been killed by Kenyans? None.

How many Indians have died at the hands of sponsored terrorism? A small matter of 60-something thousand.

That, and only that, is the reason India has not played Pakistan in bilateral competition in three years, no matter what General Pervez Musharraf thinks or says; that is the reason why India will not play Pakistan in bilateral competition in the near future, no matter how Musharraf pleads or blusters.

2003-02-28T23:34:00.000-05:00

see this amazing reconstruction of the night sky from space. it is said that the relative deveopment of regions can be seen from the areas which are lit up or not. all tough it cant be taken over one night i believe it does have some value. notice the contrast between north and south korea, india and pakistan, coastal china and its interiors, density in japan, along the nile and in coastal europe. the dark continent is truly dark. northa america is truly astonishing(no ednsity of population but amazing density of light/development/wotever)

2003-02-28T17:14:00.000-05:00

your comments on today's india-pak match.

2003-02-28T07:44:00.000-05:00

in keeping with the mood (24 straight hours of algorithm complexity analysis and coding a maxflow push-relabel algo)

(Imagining a situation when I am left alone in the company of a goat and I have nothing to do. The goat, interestingly can talk, and that makes me curious. The following is an excerpt from one of the conversations that I had with the goat)

Goat: Let me ask you something. Do you think you are superior to me in anyway? “Superior” – within quotes, like mini me does in Austin Powers!

Me: Oh yeah I do! But very well, after you mentioned you are fan of Austin Powers, I may have to rethink the whole thing. *sheepish grin*

Goat: Now you thought that was funny? Can I ask you why exactly do you think you are superior?

Me: Well if you are giving me a choice there, I would opt for you not asking! I am not really looking forward to an intellectual argument with – of all things in this far and wide world – a GOAT!

Goat: Don’t ever dare you say that, dimwit! You don’t think you have two horns extra, do you? For the fact of it, I do! *proud laughter – something that goes muhaahaahaahaa*

Me: Aargh! I never imagined a goat could laugh that way. Or for that matter any way!

Goat: And before you skip the point, and this time I don’t give you a choice – c’mon tell me what makes you superior?

Me: You know something – now this is so ridiculous! I mean, I don’t understand why I have to answer this!

Goat: I will probably explain why at the end of it all, but first answer me – you Bozo!

Me: *frustrated and helpless* Well then, if that is what it is, let me try some inspired guessing. Goatie, you can’t drive a car and I can! Simple eh?

Goat: Duh – and you talk about training! Has anyone ever tried training me to drive a car? Try doing that and I bet I will learn quicker than you! Not to mention the bribe you gave to that officer to get your license *blurp!*

Me: Now look here! I know I am throwing arrows in the dark. But do you really think we have something to debate here? I mean this is so outrageously obvious!

Goat: I don’t think so! So better get serious on this!

Me: Okay then! * a brief pause for some gasping * Now this is serious! I mean, serious trouble!!

Me(again): I can sum up a huge list of numbers and tell you what the total is – atleast approximately – if you know what I mean! Believe me, I have never seen a goat do that! Uh!! * sense of relief *

Goat: Same thing again. Teach me how numbers work and what you mean by “summing” them up and I will do the total for you! Accurately, for that matter!

Me: Hmm.. playing smart eh? Don’t know anything and blame it all on me? Am I committed to be some kinda life long coach for ya? I have other things, you bet!!

Goat: Now gimme a break! I thought we were debating this on paper! I ask you – theoretically – what is it that makes you superior than me? See if you can answer that! Don’t complain on training issues – and by the way, I can find better trainers than you – if at all I choose to get trained! * evil grin *

(And as the argument reaches fever pitch one Mr. Alan Turing passes by the wayside! Being the eternal supporter of the human race, he inquires me what’s the trouble! I cry out the whole thing to that guy. He smiles gracefully (though I didn’t seem to like it) and whispers a solution in my ears. And here I go.. )

Me: Ok you goatie demon! If you think it is all about training and experience, let me tell you this! If you and I were born at the same time; And if you and I were given similar training to walk talk and do things; And if you and I – after sufficient training – were presented with a maze which we had to solve; And if that maze was an impossible maze – in the sense that it did not have a solution – and we were never told that; I claim that after sometime, I will come out with a decision and announce in all glory that this maze cannot be solved; While you will still be trying to solve the impossible maze!!

* punching my fist and hugging Alan Turing *

Goat: * In deep thought *

2003-02-28T07:15:00.000-05:00

i chanced upon this article on sulekha. its pretty goood. it reflects what i want to say exactly. this is totally in line with my earlier posts abt life, its meaning etc.
refer to : [10/11/2002 3:55:14 PM ]
Meaning of life 3 : Existence of soul
and what thinking now said:
10/10/2002 7:34:44 PM | thinking now]
i guess it all boils down to ones perception of joy, happiness, sadness, sorrow, et al. your perception of joy would be different than mine and so would the case with someone else. at this point of time, i wouldn't like to be like mother teressa or do some social work because i know i am not going to be happy by doing that. maybe you would be or somebody else would be. i hope we could have some kind of an agreement here. it is solely upto an individual about how he/she feels about the struggle/fight/drudgery etc etc. and i guess that would be one of the reasons why people go into depressions, have nervous breakdowns, become psychics or even commit suicide. when people start thinking that whatever they are doing is not worthwhile and is not going to bring them happiness or joy which they desire, that is when they start questioning their very existance. you say that the pleasure achieved is short lived and is not what you deserve after all the hardships you go thru. then how do you decide what you really deserve, what you are really meant for. it is i guess this short lived, temporary happiness that drives you. again its a matter of perception of what you think about this joy or happiness that you achieved. it could be long lived for many. but whatever it is, it is this very thing which makes you go in this search for happiness, sometime, someday you would achieve what you thought of and you would be happy. but then you can't be complacent and you desire to be more happy and go in search for more happiness and in turn face more hardships, more bitterness... but then at the end of the day you want to be happy and hence you go thru the hardships to achive it. and it is these small, temporary, short lived everyday pleasures which make you strive for better pleasures of life.

2003-02-27T20:40:00.000-05:00

i am very saddened by the lack of hype(not i take that back. lack of information or interest) by america in cricket. for gawd's sake the game is palyed by about 1.5 Billion people. after the win over england we(my friends and me) who were watching the match in a stadium type atmosphere were so excited abt it. but came out of the building and reality hit us. nobody else is interested. felt sad. i heard some matches of the next world cup (to be held in the west indies) will have some matches in florida and the icc is trying to rpoe in america as a participating team (this is purely for financial reasons am sure). hope this generates interest in this country abt cricket.

2003-02-27T20:36:00.000-05:00

why am i seeing more and more blogs having long write ups which are modelled as romantic stories(see i said modelled as romantic not romantic). the authors of the blogs themselves write the stories. they are long and deal with every day life situations. that means that the authors have thought abt them a lot. but they are not good. actually they are bad. but i guess as first time writings they must be ok. but i dont understand why this sudden urge to write romantic stories. point to be noted all the bloggers engaging in such activities are indian.

2003-02-25T20:51:00.000-05:00

the Obuya story
perfect for a trivia quiz.
It's Obuya for the record

2003-02-21T03:30:00.000-05:00

Arvind Lavakare on the Chief Election Commissioner

I guess we always end up getting strong election comissioners. first there was T.N. Seshan, then came Mr. Krishnamurthy and now Lyngdoh. but it seems as if Mr. Lyngdoh is overstepping his limits. he has no say in what issues make up the election campaign and this is precisely what he is trying to do.
a snippet from the article

That day he first described HP as an orderly state where people are well behaved. Then came the antagonism and the allergy. 'Himachal must ensure,' he said, 'that people should not allow outsiders from other states to communalise the election campaign...'

He was responding to queries regarding the possibility of the 'Hindutva' card being played by the Bharatiya Janata Party.

for not-so-politically-mided, chief election comisinner is the head of the 3-member totally independent body which oversees all indian elections. all troops and officers deployed during elections report to them and they are responsible for conducting free and fair elections.

2003-02-21T01:52:00.000-05:00

my rant
Would somebody explain the new FCC decision to me or point to a link. Has anybody clearly understood the telecom act of 1996? its too confusing for me.

2003-02-20T15:05:00.000-05:00

Strippped for parts
A very good article on how transplants really are done. the writing is amazing with details that you would not think of. Changed the way i think of the brain-dead.

Its articles like this which make wired such a great read.

2003-02-20T14:19:00.000-05:00

Plane carrying the Pak Air Force chief carshes.
what is interesting is that a similar thing happened with the pak ruler Zia some years back. there is a strong possibility that it was a silent coup or an assasination.
theory abt the crash
It is amazing how these things happen in pak-land without any sort of public protests. forget protests what about public concerns or responses. I guess they have not
come out of the feudal mindset yet.
ps:- thanks to teshu for the link.

2003-02-20T13:54:00.000-05:00

A very good article on Intelligence sharing between the spookes of different countries by B. Raman.
Some snippets:

It was the Mumbai bomb blasts in March 1993, in which over 200 civilians were killed, that first provided Indian intelligence with evidence against Pakistan in the form of an unexploded explosive device with a detonator and a timer of US origin. The FBI admitted these were part of the stock given by the CIA to Pakistan's ISI in the 1980s for use against Soviet troops in Afghanistan.

Besides, they do not hesitate to withhold intelligence against commonly perceived adversaries as well, if they consider it to be in their national interest. The US, for example, did not alert India to the Chinese troop build-up in Tibet and Yunnan before the 1962 Sino-India war. Washington DC had calculated that an Indian defeat would make New Delhi more amenable to US influence.

Sincerity in intelligence sharing, whether vis-a-vis State or non-State actors, is never total. Deliberate misleading and cheating are part of the game. Intelligence agencies are not charitable organisations. For every piece of intelligence shared, they expect a quid pro quo, which could be a piece of intelligence or political support or other gestures. The US, which is the sole superpower now, dictates the rules of the game.

When spooks of the world unite

2003-02-14T17:51:00.000-05:00

Rajeev Srinivasan on "free trade"
here the rediff writer talks about global free trade in terms of labor too. this is a issue very close to my heart as i believe it affects all of us. he talks about how huge agricultural subsidies in the developed world affect negatively farmers in the third world countries and how the west is trying to curb the movement of service oriented jobs to counries like india. link to rajeev's article

i have addressed my concerns on this issue here

2003-02-14T17:28:00.000-05:00

a very good post on how 38 goats were cut before his eyes. thanks bijoy for an excellent write-up. reading it moved me.

2003-02-14T16:06:00.000-05:00

Thomas Friedman
Thomas Friedman is a thinker and foreign affair analyst with the new york times. he is one of the few people who has understands the post-9/11 world. yesterday i saw him talking to charlie rose and was amazed by how well he analyses the situation. according to him the main reason america is going to war is to set an example in the middle east of a decent country with a decent ruler (see its not democracy but decency). hopefully america will be able to this. but he argues that america will not be able to do this alone (the setting up of the regime) even if it wins militarily. so its even more important that most ppl in america and the world must be convinced that the ambitions of america are not oil but establishment of a just leadership.

he also states that bush with his team does not have the experience to build a global coalition. they are stupid and impatient (his words not mine). during the last gulf war the secretary of state james baker made three world trips visiting all the main countries. this time not even one leader has made one trip. this shows the lack of maturity and depth in the present administartion.

henry kissinger who was a part of the program aslo made the same point about setting an example regime in middle east. he predicted that once the new country is up and working there will be a change of direction in many countries like egypt, saudi arabia etc.

2003-02-13T20:01:00.000-05:00

aap ko dekh kar dekhataa rah gayaa
kyaa kahuu.N aur kahane ko kyaa rah gayaa

unakii aa.Nkho.n me.n kaise chhalakane lagaa
mere ho.nTho pe jo maajaraa rah gayaa

aise bichha.De sabhii raah ke mo.D par
aaKharii ham-safar raastaa rah gayaa

soch kar aao kuu-e-tamannaa hai ye
jaaneman jo yahaa.N rah gayaa rah gayaa

For an exhaustive listing of jaggu bhai's works see
one of the best links on this subject
i guess its works like these due to which i miss not knowing urdu.

2003-02-13T19:19:00.000-05:00

Flushing problems
today after my daily dose of wall street journal when i got ready to stand-up; i flushed. nothing happened. no water sound, nothing, zilch.
then terrible anxiety. whazzap??!!
how will i get rid of my output. shouted out to my roomie. he so non-chalantly says. its like that only. you will have to fix it. it was like that when he went to sleep. he noticed it before he went to pee. so he peed in his friends house(our neighbor). wow. this was a nice situation. then my 6+ years of engineering education took over. decided to fix the damn thing.
first things first. cover the water+solid mass. lower the cover. open the water container. study it for all of 3 mins. remove the rubber plug. hear the amazing sound of water rushing into the receptable below. now hook the chain back in with the outside lever.
amazed by such low tech stuff. i guess the only reason i could debug it was bcos its low tech. imagine if it were a microprocessor controlled system.

2003-02-13T17:54:00.000-05:00

the man behind Godhra
finally it seems to have been proved that the attack on the train carrying Hindu devotees in Godhra, Gujarat,India was a premeditated attack by led by a Muslim cleric who has been detained by the police.

link to article

2003-02-11T22:20:00.000-05:00

My exam
today i had a small exam. i screwed up badly. but the real reason i am upset is, i knew some answers(to some extent) but i didnt write them. i know am going to get very low on this test. incidentally my worst performance till now in graduate school is also under the same prof. so i was apprehensive from the beginning abt this course. am really really sad. have not been like this for quite sometime. more than 3 years i guess. i know am more knowledgable/intelligent than what my results will show but thats what the results show. period. what to do.

i can always say i will do better in the next exam. but then what abt this one and will i really do better next time. this is an attitude i hate and i myself have this attitude.

its sick how a guy who has spent a quarter century in this world still is upset abt his performance in a exam. but thats the way it is. i hope at least something good out of this angst. maybe its times like this that believing in god helps.
ok. end of my rant.

2003-02-10T16:19:00.000-05:00

no posts till wednesday
hi, my loyal fellow bloggers. am having quite a busy time till wednesday so i will not be updating my blog till wednesday evening 10 pm EST.
but as usual i will keep tabs on the blogs of my regular visitors.

2003-02-10T01:45:00.000-05:00

Friedman's lecture in Yale
wow. thats all am going to say. a big thanks to jim for the link.

Anti-Terror Fight Has to Be a Marathon Run on Wilsonian Principle, Not Cheap Oil

2003-02-05T16:48:00.000-05:00

Comment out
hey whats hapenning to my comments. they are dissapearing. i remember having comments in the last few posts yesteday. today there are none. another case for the X-files.

2003-02-04T14:52:00.000-05:00

There is this interesting table on the blog i visited which places india as the world's 4th largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity. also note the interesting coloring scheme. note also the ratio of ppp gdp to exchange rate gdp for both china and india.

i guess as the ratio is more or less equal it means that india has not done badly as compared to china in growing the economy. keep in mind that china started its liberalisation more than ten years before india. so i guess all the noise about how china is "so far ahead" of india is just hot air.
link to table

2003-02-04T14:34:00.000-05:00

Got this from roshanpaul.blogspot.com
he has mouthed exactly the words that i was thinking.

State of the Union critique? First, 'tis hard to critique something that doesn’t say much.

It’s inexplicable (though amusing) to me that the most powerful man in the world can actually mispronounce nuclear (nukular), peninsula (penininsular) and uranium (iranium), not to forget the classic subliminable (subliminal). Sigh...can anyone think of a more apt metaphor for the state of the world today?

your say?

2003-02-04T14:28:00.000-05:00

Online Death

this is an interesting article about a person who showcased his own death. there are also reports of other things like suicide, murder of girlfriend etc. all this out of the closeness that online communities breed. closeness without any actual commitment according to some. i wonder how blogging is going to affect me.

Link to Article

2003-02-03T16:27:00.000-05:00

My say on the Iraq war

why did US choose to act now against Iraq. Why not a year earlier or when Clinton was in office. Why now? what prompted Bush to act on Iraq now?

2003-02-03T16:04:00.000-05:00

Privacy : The American Way

I think privacy is an uniquely american(or western) concept. it dosent exits(of any consequence at least) in India and am sure its very less prevelant in Europe. by privacy here i dont mean the close the door while pissing variety but the variety where we dont know who our neighbors are, what they do for a living etc. ppl in america dont seem to be very concerened about the lives of others. they give each person their own private space. this can be seen everywhere, in trains(ppl avert their eyes and direct eye-to-eye contact is not a social thing). this is in total objection to the Indian way of things. going on the trains everyday for 4 years i made lotsa "train friends", ppl who i meeet only on the trains(that two the timing and destination specific ones). for example i had the 7:57 Belapur friends. these are some close friends(a few of them saved my lives once when i slipped while getting on the train and i have did the same to many of them). i came to know many things abt them only through the talks we had everyday. we talked abt all kinds of things with no inhibition. this is not possible in USA.

here i dont know who my neighbors are. but at the same time americans are open about things which i would think are personal and private. like having open showers in gyms and ppl going abt completely naked in the locker rooms. it intrigues me a lot. i cant believe that americns wouls have had a look at a guy's private parts but wouldnt know his name or anything else about him. i guess its a very cultural thing.

2003-01-27T19:20:00.000-05:00

simul-read
wouldnt it be usefull if there were a software which would let me talk with other readers of a particular website that i am reading at that slice of time? like a IM program but geared towards the readers of websites rather than through buddy lists. the we can talk abt common interests(if there were not common interests they wouldnt be on the same web page). i am sure it would not be too difficult to write such an application.

2003-01-18T14:14:00.000-05:00

Globalisation : The true sense of the word for both Capital and Labor
in the past post the issue was raised about the free flow of capital and i talked by flow of labor. this needed some expanding. so this post.
i guess we all agree that globalisationa and the integrating of thw world (economically at least) is the way to the future. thats the aim of wto(at least theoretically) and all western nations strive towards it. now a days this include the developing world. china is also the member of the wto now. in india the terms of wto have led to great lowering of tariffs(still compared to western standards) and the complete removal of all quantitative restrictions. india fights for its trading rights in the wto and trecently won a case against the us which was giving subsidies to the industries which get affected by a more integrated trade regime(like steel, textiles etc). at the same time the farmins industry is in the infancy stage in india and requires some protection. this is the case in europe too and all EU countries have high tariffs against the agri-products(france is notorious for this). us is also not too behind this. the per capita subsidy for a western farmer far outweighs the per capita subsidy for the india farmer(it actually is many times the magnitude of per capita income...yes yes..per capita income of the indian farmer). but still the developed western world calls for free unhindered flow of capital everywhere in the world. this is so that the developing world is developed not only as its market but also as its source(producer) of raw materials. this is natural according to me. every country strives for its own good. nobody is a saint.

well now that i have build up a base(a big story some might say) let me come to my point. if the western world wants free unhindered flow of capital they should also allow free unhindered flow of labor. i mean if an indian guy wants to work in us and there is a job in us for him, the us govt should not prevent him from coming and working in us(quotas on H1B visas should be removed and whatever jobs are available for indians should be granted visas. be it computer coding or teaching or even a maid service). this will increase competitives in general(the same argument proposed for free flow of capital). its like free flowing water trying to find its equilibrium. so what if that means losing of jobs for american people. if this is not logical then how can one justify the losing of jobs in the developing world when capital flows there from the western world increase the efficiency of a industry and lead to layoffs. i believe in both the cases(capital flow into developing world and labor flow into western world) the general competitiveness increases. if companies want to hire a person from X country instead of local talent is should be permitted(if not supported). let capitalism provide the solution.

i know not many will like this idea. so lets argue on this if thats what is needed to get to a solution(need not be the solution i propose as long as its logical).

2003-01-16T15:32:00.000-05:00

Yet another article about a hi-tech indian company(this time wipro) and how its moving up the ladder of outsourced software work.

The New Face of Global Competition

2003-01-16T15:02:00.000-05:00

a report which brings much sadness and anger in me. Dow chemicals(owners of union carbide) are suing non-violent protestors for money. It was a union carbide factory which caused the bhopal gas tragedy killing more than 8000(yeah its eight thousand people) overnight and more than 20,000 in the long run. the number of people who lost their limbs, or functioning of limbs or other organs is countless.
News Details

Another detailed website on the Bhopal gas tragedy and the struggle thereafter

this is what i mean when unbrindled capitalism is not good for society. capitalism in the non-presence of accountability is disastrous.

2003-01-13T17:00:00.000-05:00

The American Way: Rule of Law
continuing in my series of write-ups the altest one is about how the rule of law exists in america or US.

here the law is written well. i mean the constitution is clear in the basic principles like equality, liberty and freedom(all kinds like to live, work, own property, and to express oneself.) i believe this was not the case earlier. till the sixties segregation was a way of life. it was everywhere and the law was also like that. this is very shocking for people from outside from outside US. Esp for a person like me whose home country(India) has practiced universal adult suffrage from its day of independence.but the way freedom of expression is carried to extremes is seen to be believed.

but even more remarkable fact is the way the law is implemented. it can serve as a model for most nations of this world i believe. first of all everybody here is identified uniquely(through a social security number) and can be tracked anywhere in the nation. this is a very good concept but the way it has been implemented is even more astonishing. anybody cant do a crime in city A and escape to city B and be safe(like in india). in india its only dilligent public prodding of the police services which will solve the crime. in us the authorities do this proactively. but i believe the concept of human element is missing.lack of informers and the loosing fight against drug trade are examples. the police here are firm but polite.I guess when the concept of universal identification card is implemented in india tings will turn for the better.also the way impotant leaders(be they political-trent lott or economic like david kozlowsky) are punished when they do wrong(or get caught). on the whole i thing many nations have a lot to learn from US in this field.

2003-01-13T13:21:00.000-05:00

a very nice but long piece by B. Raman on Kao the father of RAW(research and analysis wing): the intelligence agency in India. contains anecdotes and his thoughts about india, usa, china and india's neighbours. one interesting thing is the concern he displays that the indian masses might get restless with the indian elite and its consequences. the gujarat election and its results might be a reflection of this.

B Raman on India's Legendary Spymaster

2003-01-13T11:41:00.000-05:00

My thoughts
when walking from my house today morning i saw a poster for a march against the war(proposed) in iraq. it was a march in washington dc on jan 18th . iwas thinking : "wow, this is a great country. so unlike iraq. here people can hold a propagate a view which is totally against the views of the governing elite and the country's constitution and public institutions allow this. this is democracy, freedom and liberty." immediately behind me two guys came over and tore up the poster. i guess they want to live in a country like iraq.

2003-01-11T16:29:00.000-05:00

Hey, I have found the formula for hapiness. and its :
Happiness = P + (5xE) + (3xH) ..yeah its as simple as that.

BBC NEWS | Health | The formula for happiness

2003-01-09T17:50:00.000-05:00

Hey democracy works even in the animal world. or is it pure logic?

New Scientist

2003-01-08T14:25:00.000-05:00

of the 10 fifties that Yuvraj has made india has won in 9 of them. yesterday's match in new zealand is ranked by me as a true test of yuvi's and zaheer's mettle. happy to see india break the five match loosing stretch. maybe we still can win the world cup.

Zaheer excels as India finally taste victory

2003-01-06T16:04:00.000-05:00

Fight Club: The movie
saw the movie Fight Club yesterday. it was based on an interesting premise. People are just tired of their present lives..they just exist and dont live. so they seek out some form of entertainment/thing to do which will give them some sense of purpose in life. bpitt's acting in this movie was good. but the screenplay and the end of the movie were not good at all. see the first few blogs of this(you can get there from the archives drop-down box) for some earlier posts of mine which will give you a better idea of what i think about the meaning of life.

2003-01-05T17:26:00.000-05:00

Political Compass :: According to the PoliticalCompass website I am a libertarian left. answer the list of questions and tell me what type you are? interesting website

2003-01-04T17:24:00.000-05:00

mysterious seismic activity in gujarat,india
see this report in conjunction with my earlier post an possible connections between the cosmic heavy matter and seismic activity in earth.
Post from ratnose archive

Mysterious bursts of energy rattle Rajkot
Vinay Menon
New Delhi, January 4
from hindustantimes.com

For close to two months, Rajkot has been experiencing incidents that could well have come out of a sci-fi movie: inexplicable bursts of energy that emit no light, but rattle windows, crack concrete structures and rip floor tiles off.Tests conducted by a team of seismologists from the Indian Meteorological Department have so far been unable to unravel the mystery.
On Friday, the team submitted a preliminary report to deputy director-general of meteorology, H.V. Gupta, but it had no answers.
"The observatory we set up at Rajkot has not thrown up any definite clues yet," Gupta said. The team had set up workstations to monitor the blasts, but on January 1, when yet another "explosion" rocked Rajkot, they recorded no significant data.
Three theories have been floated. First, the "explosions" are sonic booms from fighter jets as they cross the sound barrier.
But the Indian Air Force (IAF) dismisses this theory. The IAF has a fighter squadron at Jamnagar, but none at Rajkot. "A fighter jet moving from a subsonic to supersonic speed is always a planned operation and can never be undertaken over inhabited areas," said a senior IAF officer.

Second, "artillery fire" or mining detonations have also been cited as possible causes. But the Rajkot collector says no mining or military activity has been held in the area.

The third is that some rare form of seismic activity is at work. "Shortly before the devastating Bhuj earthquake similar blasts were reported from Bhavnagar," claims Santosh Mehta, a Rajkot resident. "This being an earthquake-prone area, we hope this is not a fresh warning."

2003-01-03T20:43:00.000-05:00

The American Way: Democracy
Democracy forms the bedrock of the american way of life. nobody imposes anything on anybody else. all decisions are taken in a democratic way. Well.. at least thats the idea. this is followed in a big way in many spheres of life. for example in everyday interactions this might be largely true. autocratic decisions are avoided as much as possible. But then there is a big gap between the theory and practice. i believe the american goverment is not truly democratic at all. maybe this is beacuse of the presendential form of the goverment. but when a governor can appoint a representative in case of death of the active person, according to me thats not democracy. and how is that judges are appointed by the president who chooses them taking into consideration their political views. many supreme court judges can be said to be republican or democratic. how is this true democracy. this is unthinkable in india. I cant swallow this idea and call it democracy.

another topic close to my heart is the tough time one faces if one wants to promote a line of thought which might not be shared by either the democratic or the republican parties. i mean to say such contrarian thoughts are never easy to propagate. i guess thats the reason the green party(headed by mr. ralph nader) is doing so badly. at the same time if one has money, people like ross perot can easily muscle into the process.

i used to think elections are not rigged in USA. but after seein the florida counting in 2000 and more subsequent problems i am having second thoughts about this issue too. in india this rigging of elections is now more or less done away with, thanks to truly independent election comissioners like Mr. seshan, krishnamurthy and the lyndogh. Technology in the form of electronic voting has also accelerated the process. now a days all indian elections are fully in the form of electronic voting.

however riddled with holes this system might be democracy is the bext system of governance in modern societies and this is followed in a big way in america. i seem to have highlighted only the bad points of american democracy and not the positive ones as i believe that the positive ones are too many to be recounted. the system is 60% ok according to me.

Democracy brings in the rule of law. this is fully implemented in USA. thats one big good thing about this country. Will write about this thing in the next column.

2003-01-03T20:26:00.000-05:00

The American Way
This is going to be a series of write ups i hope to write comparing and contrasting the differences and sim ilarities between life in India and America. I hope to make this a regular sort of column.

2003-01-03T04:28:00.000-05:00

Matrix : the sequels
both the sequels of matrix: “The Matrix Reloaded” and “The Matrix Revolutions” will be hitting the theaters in 2003. I hope to see both of them on big screen. early reports suggest fantastic action.
excerpt from an article:
The ensuing sequence may be the most audaciously conceived, thrillingly executed car chase ever filmed. Sounds like hype, yeah. But you’ve gotta see this thing. The scene features two kung fu battles in speeding vehicles—one in the back seat of a Cadillac, the other on the roof of an 18-wheeler truck. There’s also a heart-stopping motorcycle chase through oncoming traffic and enough wrecked cars to keep a junkyard in business for years. Fans will go particularly bonkers over one shot of an agent leaping from atop a moving car onto the hood of another and, with his feet, crushing the entire thing into a pretzel. Says cinematographer Bill Pope: “It’s going to make ‘The Fast and the Furious’ look like ‘The Slow and the Dimwitted’.

For the full article go here

2003-01-03T02:44:00.000-05:00

Philadelphia : The Movie
Saw the movie Philadelphia in Philadelphia, the City. the acting in the movie is amazing. Tom Hanks won a well deserved oscar for his acting in 1993. I think Denzel Washington also deserved a Oscar for his admirable acting. The quick change in expressions, the genuineness of facial expressions....just won my heart. seeing this movie in philadelphia after living here for about two and a half years was another treat for me. i could connect with so many of the background shots shown. The opening number of "streets of philadelphia" was very apt for the movie. The story was very sensitively potrayed and no actor was given to any sort of over the top acting. in the whole the movie was good altough i feel the editing could have been a bit more tight.

Philadelphia(1993)

2003-01-02T15:20:00.000-05:00

this article from washintonpost says that great minds will flourish anywhere. they need not attend great schools to get noticed. Their hard work, dedication and intelligence will take them to the heights that they deserve. Highly recommended article for youngsters or people starting in life.

Spielberg Effect: Success in Life Without Prestigious Degree (washingtonpost.com)

2003-01-01T20:12:00.000-05:00

Apartment agents
seeing apartments has an added benefit of being able to look at apartment agents in a closer way. the first agent we saw was a typical Bond-Girl. at least she thought so. was wearing a bra and practically nothing on top of it. we could even read the brand of the undergarment(which was no longer an undergarment) and my friend being a married man could not do anything much. i tried a lot to engage in some sort of conversaiton with her but it was all in vain(she was fighting with her boy-friend over the phone).
the second agent we saw was the typical opposite of the first one. seems like she had just got out of a marriage and she was cursing her ex-husband over the phone. she seemed to have her mother's full support in this matter. she also said that she hated all guys over the phone. we made a quick and quite exit and very wisely we have not shown any interest in that apartment complex.

2003-01-01T19:56:00.000-05:00

Apartments in US
i spent last weekend searching for apartments for a married friend of mine in New Jersey. I saw more 9 different apartments in the Middlesex county - the typical desi(east indian for the non-desis among us) neighbourhood in central-north jersey in the Edison-Metropark-Woodbridge area. ALL the apartments were of the same design. yeah read it again "all the apartments were of the same design". for any Indian this would come as a great surprise. they all had the same dimensions more or less and the rates varied only due to the difference in distances from tne nearest train station and highway. In india the dimensions and design vary a lot. I guess here the apartments are mostly made from pre-fabricated materials.

2002-12-22T16:37:00.000-05:00

The story of the telecom dream and implementation of the reliance group in india. long distance calls for 15 paise per minute (0.3 cents per minute)...yeah its not a type...this will sweep india...am waiting to see the results..

Say Hello to the Telecom Dream

reliance uses WLL(wireless in local coop) based on CDMA. what is WLL and how does it compare with CDMA.

WLL

2002-12-22T16:05:00.000-05:00

not a review of "Die another Day"- the new Bond movie
saw the new bond movie yesterday. was surprised that M cant make any futuristic gadgets anymore. the camera phone the north korean general has is now available off the shelf(sony ericson T300 with a MCA-25 camera attachement). common they can do better than this. the "missiles" on the cars are pure and simple silly. the invisible car will be a reality(i believe) in another 10 years or so. the high freq sound emitting ring might be available now(at least no new technology there). ok..ok..the icarus satellite which can concentrate the sun's energy onto earth might be something. but there were some proposals by the erstwhile soviet union for lighting up the earth during the night using such a satellite.

the figths were pretty good. sword fighting(fencing) seems to be hip again(MGR-a famous tamil actor will be a macho hero again). the girls are good(in the last scene halle berry mysteriously looses the fab breasts she has during the whole movie), rosamund pike is amazing. madonna's rendition of "die another day" deserves some applause. clap...clap..brosnan is ok.

2002-12-18T17:39:00.000-05:00

This is an article from business week on the reliability and trust worthiness of the code written by non-US companies being used in US military services. In the end the author concludes that reliable code is the code written by oneself. How true. I totally agree with the author. Thats why i guess in india(at least in the department of atomic energy) almost all coding of critical services is done in-house.

BW Online | December 17, 2002 | Software, Security, and Ethnicity

2002-12-11T22:47:00.000-05:00

is it threatening when somebody brandishes a burning cross, what about a burning torch(the one which burns...fire...you get me...) what about a gun being brandished... what about a unloaded gun...is it legal to burn a cross in one's bedroom...what about in an isolated spot when nobody is present...what about bruning it in a highway...

read the (partly)humorous transcripts of a US supreme court case which deals with burning of crosses...enjoy the dialogue between the different justices.

Virginia burning

2002-12-11T19:09:00.000-05:00

neutrinos have mass...ok its only 0.1 eV...for comparison the electron has 0.5 eV.

PhysicsWeb - Neutrino mass discovered

2002-12-10T04:40:00.000-05:00

amazing developments in wearable networked devices which can form mobile ad-hoc networks. what this means is that finally you can have a portable wireless device which can communicate with others of its kind and exchange relevant information. lets take an example: if am going to the library and i indicate this through my device, others(my trusted group/friends/geographical partners etc) will come to know this through their wireless devices and they can indicate their book pick-ups to me through the devices and i can swap/auction/buy/sell chores. can be used at the basic level for dating, targeted advertising(i pass though a aisle of cds and the shelves talk to my wireless device as they know that i am interested in that type of music through my preferences list on the device- kind of "minority report" scenario) etc.

Clothes Make the Network

2002-12-10T01:55:00.000-05:00

a very good article about how new immigrants in america are coping with life and how high the expectations are from their children. a case of a vietnamese girl expected to become a doctor is analysed with anecdotal daily details. very good read.

The Weight of a Family's Hopes (washingtonpost.com)

2002-12-09T16:14:00.000-05:00

Largo, A city in Florida is using linux only for all its computing work. This srticle gives a hardware and software description of the system they are using.
ZDNet: Tech Update: Networking / City saves with Linux, thin clients Total cost of ownership must be really low if you buy $5 thin clients on ebay in lots of 10 and 15.

The followup article from SourceForge . The interesting thing is that their sysads seem to have a good time with minimum emergency calls.

2002-12-06T17:44:00.000-05:00

A good paper from NASA on the feasability and technologies reuired/available, motivations etc on the idea of a space elevator. These are structures which connect the earth's surface to some point in space.

Study on space elevator

2002-12-04T18:56:00.000-05:00

I took this photo on top of the empire state building. I have never been on top of the world trade center so this photo has a special meaning for me.

click on photo for a clearer view. If the photo is not seen please click on the comment "Photo not available"

I took this photo at a friend's party. notice the transparent nature of the vodka bottle and how the colors and shapes are distorted for effect. I thikn the composition is ok but lighting is lacking.

click on photo for a clearer view. If the photo is not seen please click on the comment "Photo not available"

2002-12-04T18:23:00.000-05:00

one of the best websites on super string theory. do check it out if you are into this type of stuff

The Official String Theory Web Site

2002-12-04T18:14:00.000-05:00

a neat website explaining what is analemma. yeah yeah...i know... go to the website to read abt it. its a very good one. I picked up this link from nilesh.org. i dont know if this is right or wrong. i pick up a interesting site from another blog and then i link it on my blog(as if it was i who discovered the link. but i guess giving the credit to nilesh.org solves the mental dilema.
Introduction

2002-12-04T14:32:00.000-05:00

the true periodic table table. this is actually a table of periodic table of elements. very interesting. what we will do without the web. how would i have ever seen this interesting site??!!
The Wooden Periodic Table Table

2002-11-30T20:06:00.000-05:00

how the columnist's predictions turned out for 2002.
Mercury News | 11/25/2002 | Looking back at 1992's look forward

2002-11-30T20:05:00.000-05:00

the columnist makes predictictions about what tech will be around in 2012. very interesting. i see many of them around 2009 itself.
Mercury News | 11/30/2002 | Bold technology predictions for 2012

2002-11-26T13:34:00.000-05:00

This is an amazing theory. Somebody will have to check it out. Maybe this will solve the problem of proving the superstring theory experimentally.

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Did quark matter strike Earth?

2002-11-23T19:37:00.000-05:00

How hindus are proseccuted in Belarus!! other than the mainstream religion everybody else is discriminated upon including hindus. and Belarus is suposed to be a european country

New Belarus Law Codifies Rising Religious Repression

2002-11-23T19:01:00.000-05:00

an article about bollywood. figures about bollywood movies and tyical budgets and size of market given.

BW Online | December 2, 2002 | Bollywood

2002-11-23T13:56:00.000-05:00

A very good write up by indian express editor Shekar Gupta on how the fringe(radical) leaders can quickly occupy the center. correlation between the punjab problem and indian hindu fringe leaders today.

There are no fringe benefits

2002-11-21T20:42:00.000-05:00

aaahhhh...my tiype of game...
read on..except:

Peeball takes advantage of something all men have to do - urinate. A ball is placed at the base of a urinal and contestants must demolish it as quickly as possible. The game can be played solo or with friends.

Guardian Unlimited Observer | UK News | Peeball is big hit in little boys' room

2002-11-21T19:01:00.000-05:00

Robotic heart surgery has lots of benefits not the elast being low recovery time. Except:

Patients recovering from the traditional approach usually have several inactive weeks before they're able to resume regular activity, but patients who undergo robotic surgery only spend a couple of days recovering from local wounds.

i am pretty sure in future robotic surgery will be very common and i mean much earlier than expected maybe by 2015 even.

CNN.com - Researchers laud robot-guided heart surgery - Nov. 19, 2002

2002-11-21T17:45:00.000-05:00

pigeon on top of empire state building in NY, USA
::link opens in new window::

2002-11-21T15:32:00.000-05:00

Procrastination
I have this horrible habit of procrastination. I put off whatever I can put off till the last moment. Sometimes this happens literally. I have finished assignments/projects within 5 minutes of submission time/deadline. I know that I procrastinate but still I do it. Why?
I guess am more happy doing others things than doing the things I procrastinate. This is the only explanation I can come up with for my bad habit. I read lot of books. I waste a lot of time in this. I really like to read books. I never put off reading a book. Maybe this explains why I procrastinate most other things. I have put off many important things because I like reading a particular book so much that I cant keep my hands off it. So I just go on reading books(now a days its also the web), I just keep putting off the thing that I am supposed to do till the last minute.Then I do it in a rush to the satisfaction of nobody(myself included). I want to change this habit but am unable to do so. I guess I need help. Maybe I am too addicted to books. Maybe I should consult somebody who can help me out. To avoid this I don't read any fiction now a days. i have totallly stopped reading them. but then i have started reading other types of books. philosophy mostly, but also physics and spirituality.
i was gifted a some physics books and two fiction books lately on my birthday by my friends. so this habit has reared its head again. for he past 3 days i have spent more time on reading the boks than on anything else. combined in the three days i must have spent more than 24 hours reading these books(this is while i have lotsa work left). i hate that i have this habit.
i think its a serious character flaw. i cant control my mind and its wanderings and wishes.

2002-11-21T14:37:00.000-05:00

this article as usual says that jobs will go to india and china from us but what is unusual is that it says that there will be differentiation in terms of profiles of jobs. countries like vietnam and uruguay will take the lowest paid jobs while india will move up the chain.

rediff.com: US services to lose 3.3 mn jobs to India, China

2002-11-19T23:16:00.000-05:00

My cooking

before i came to us when i was in idnia i used to occasionally make stuff like tea,coffee and sometimes dosa etc. never cooked a whole meal in my life. B4 coming here(US) my mom wanted to give a through training to me. but i resisted. ended up cookig some bhajis on the last 3 days...more likely watched my mom cook everything. when i landed here was hitched up with two roommates who didnt give much importance on cooking. consequently the drive in me too towards this end was minimal. 6 days a week we would have beans...yeah thats right beans...no not the beans vegetable as we know in india but beans as in garbanzo beans(chole) kidney beans(rajma) balck eyed beans(chavli) etc....you get the idea and sometimes they were really bad expecially the butter beans...have never seen it in desh...to add to it one of my roomies was a bad cook...i mean reallly bad cook...soemtimes i would have to eat at other friends place because of his cooking...that bad a cook..but sometimes i made dosa and once i made idli...they came out decent...thought i was not such a bad cook ....then after a year of living like this i lived alone in a room for 6 months without a kitchen...i had just a microwave owen and a fridge..could use a cookinng range once a week...so my cooking was restricted ..basically noodles and some rice with curd etc...miserable..then i landed up with two new roomies. one of them is a great cook. really puts heart into cooking...learnt from him wot it really means to cook. started cooking in all earnest

started making all types of dal,bhaji etc. also started cooking dishes like dosa,idli,sambar etc more regularly. i even had a party for 38 people where i cooked idli,sambhar,two types of chutney and falooda for everybody. it meant making abt 200 idlis..worked my ass of for more than 18 hours for that...i have never worked that hard for anything...honestly...i moved up the scale of things. i experimented with different stuff. i tried cooking in a minimalistic way. that was really good. minimum spices, no oil and things like that. the natural flavor of the vegs and other stuff is preserved. i also tried the other extreme. let me call it heavy coiking. liberal use of oil and spices. this also tasted pretty nice. but this type of cooking requires patience and slow heating, frying in needed. now i can say with some honesty that i am a pretty decent cook. maybe the next step is to venture out of desi cooking and try maybe thai or mexican stuff....so next time you are near my house you can expect strange new smells originating fron apt#C4...

2002-11-19T17:14:00.000-05:00

nuclear rocket propulsion: use small nuclear explosions to propell(in the most literal sense of thw word) a space craft). it seems a manhole cover was launched into space during a nuclear test in earth. believable but just believable!!

Operation Plumbbob

2002-11-19T16:19:00.000-05:00

Mumbai Police using the services of a Hacker for tracking online payments and cracking passwords

Mid Day - City - City hacker helps trace D-gang cash

2002-11-19T16:10:00.000-05:00

Japanese restaurant uses naked girls as tables: But the guests are not expected to touch the females. Very interesting. A novel form of stip club with food thrown in for equal measure.
Ananova - Restaurant uses naked girls as tables

2002-11-19T15:03:00.000-05:00

intercarrier rates of ILD calls in india

VSNL, BSNL ink interconnect deal - The Times of India

2002-11-17T17:54:00.000-05:00

A bizzare story in Madhya Pradesh where a producer for publicity sake arranged to be manhandled by Bajrang Dal activists. Story of movie includes a Muslim who plays the priest in the film and that in one scene he rapes the lead actress inside a temple.

the producer actually arranged the bajrang Dal activists through his Congress contact. Can you be more weird...!!!!

Producer's hit plot kicks back : HindustanTimes.com

2002-11-17T17:50:00.000-05:00

Article stating that India has the maximum number of students in US: more than china. The figures are:
From students in 2001-2002

India - 66,836
China - 63,211
Korea - 49,046
Japan - 46,810
Taiwan - 28,930
Canada - 26,514

seems 9/11 has not affected Indian students much.

India emerges No. 1 in US varsity enrolments : HindustanTimes.com

2002-11-16T23:54:00.000-05:00

a very good analysis of michael's(jackson) facial features and how they have changed so dramatically over the years. Check out the Nov 13 2002 photo. weird. really weird.

The HisTory of Michael Jackson's face

2002-11-14T14:31:00.000-05:00

the complete story of Micorsoft and Bill Gates

William H. Gates IV Page

2002-11-14T13:54:00.000-05:00

The article is a fictionalised account of Adi Sankaracharya's journey to the Narmada river to become the disciple of Govindapada.
From Sulekha.

The Master by B.S.V. Prasad on Sulekha.com

2002-11-13T12:57:00.000-05:00

A very good article o the symbolism in mahabharata and geets in particular. Inspiring. Goes very well with my limited understanding og Geeta.

The Story of the War of Kurukshetra by Nilesh Nathwani on Sulekha

2002-11-12T22:04:00.000-05:00

We may be closer to destruction than we think. Experts say the earth's magnetic poles will dissapear/shift in 1000 years. This has happened before. This leads to intense heat due to solar and cosmic rays penetrating the Earth's atmosphere and causing widespread destruction.

Guardian Unlimited Observer | International | Sun's rays to roast Earth as poles flip

2002-11-12T14:00:00.000-05:00

Wot happend when one puts dry ice in acidic liquid in a airplane commodore. very amusing

Salon.com Technology | Ask the pilot

2002-11-12T00:56:00.000-05:00

the vulture-baby photo by Kevin Carter

Wanting a Meal