http://timberry.bplans.com/2010/11/facts-facts-everywhere-but-truth-is-scarce.html
"become a paid data liar, by offering to find facts to fit any point of view your clients want to put forth. Call it facts for hire. "
Its kinda sad that this is the truth!
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Tuesday, November 09, 2010
Rules and Exceptions
Long ago my friend and I had a discussion on how one will go about designing the size of a mail box for a household. The case goes like this. Everyday a family gets a bunch of letters such as bills, news papers, magazines, etc. But on Christmas they may get gift packets wrapped up in cardboard boxes. So do you design the mailbox by the size of the biggest gift packet or as a small box that can hold say about 10 or 15 letters? Optimal solution is to build a smaller mail box and handle the once a year anomaly as an exception outside of the box. So strictly speaking a solution or rule that addresses 100% of the problem may not be optimal or preferred in most cases.
"A time to kill" is a popular novel (movie) by John Grisham that takes you through a situation where a brutal murder as revenge gets justified. The author argues successfully that the situation is an exception and needed to be handled as such, by bending the law/rule for that case.
The recent kidnapping/murder in Coimbatore and eventual encounter killing of the accused is one such exception. The horrific crime was handled out of the law by the law enforcement authorities with popular support. Although it is sad that such 'encounters' indicate lack of faith in the justice system, in this particular case people seem very happy with the result. The crime has touched such a nerve among the masses, swift justice was openly welcomed on the streets. A true exception I guess. If you don't believe in death penalty under any circumstance this will be a problem.
"A time to kill" is a popular novel (movie) by John Grisham that takes you through a situation where a brutal murder as revenge gets justified. The author argues successfully that the situation is an exception and needed to be handled as such, by bending the law/rule for that case.
The recent kidnapping/murder in Coimbatore and eventual encounter killing of the accused is one such exception. The horrific crime was handled out of the law by the law enforcement authorities with popular support. Although it is sad that such 'encounters' indicate lack of faith in the justice system, in this particular case people seem very happy with the result. The crime has touched such a nerve among the masses, swift justice was openly welcomed on the streets. A true exception I guess. If you don't believe in death penalty under any circumstance this will be a problem.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Motivation and setting expectation
I realized there are two perspectives on this topic. Both motivation and expectation can be Internal or External.
Often times I find a colleague refer to a motivation that is tied to strong leadership. When you know you are being lead on a path to something great and meaningful, something that will have a big impact beyond your personal life, that is very motivating for anyone to be part of that work. Capable people yearn for such leadership in general. Other external motivators are money, power, fame, etc.
Similarly, we are driven by expectation that are set on us from time to time. We try to live up to our parent's expectations, then probably our teacher's expectations, in the rare case a boss's expectation if we find an inspiring soul in that position. We expect our children to live up to our expectation.
I often remember this Mahatma Gandhi's quote.
"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problem."
I find this quote motivating from inside. It is a state of self-actualization to realize that we all can do even better than we do whatever it is that we do. Not for the sake of the benefits, but for the inherent value of doing the best. To be sloppy and mediocre is a choice. "To be the best" is a motivator. The expectation here is not set by any external source, but by oneself. Our conscience is the mirror of us and we know exactly how we do up on our own personal scale. Even if we may not solve the world's problem, we will be well on our way to be the best and do the best. I believe, the result of such being will yield a very productive, useful and rewarding life.
Often times I find a colleague refer to a motivation that is tied to strong leadership. When you know you are being lead on a path to something great and meaningful, something that will have a big impact beyond your personal life, that is very motivating for anyone to be part of that work. Capable people yearn for such leadership in general. Other external motivators are money, power, fame, etc.
Similarly, we are driven by expectation that are set on us from time to time. We try to live up to our parent's expectations, then probably our teacher's expectations, in the rare case a boss's expectation if we find an inspiring soul in that position. We expect our children to live up to our expectation.
I often remember this Mahatma Gandhi's quote.
"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problem."
I find this quote motivating from inside. It is a state of self-actualization to realize that we all can do even better than we do whatever it is that we do. Not for the sake of the benefits, but for the inherent value of doing the best. To be sloppy and mediocre is a choice. "To be the best" is a motivator. The expectation here is not set by any external source, but by oneself. Our conscience is the mirror of us and we know exactly how we do up on our own personal scale. Even if we may not solve the world's problem, we will be well on our way to be the best and do the best. I believe, the result of such being will yield a very productive, useful and rewarding life.
Monday, October 04, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Standards and Context
I have always wondered about some of the written and unwritten standards practiced in US. A joke goes like this.
A cop spots a young girl on the back seat of a car knitting a sweater and a young boy on the driver seat listening to music at night around 11'o clock. The cop approaches the car and asks what is going on...The boy replies "she turns 18 at 12 o'clock and we are waiting for that!"
Once someone is past 18 yrs old, anything goes between consenting adults in general. One sees all kinds of relationships like a 20s something guy marrying a 40s something women, a 60s guy marrying a just 18 women, same sex relationships, etc. Yet if you are the President (Clinton) messing around with an adult intern or a Governor (Spitzer) engaging in paid sex, all hell breaks and severe consequences follow.
The latest controversy is with this children's show hosted by a young singer Katy Perry.
The whole country objected to the dress of this women so much that the show has to be canceled from the Sesame Street show! If you look at the video, you will notice that the dress is somewhat edgy, but not vulgar or obscene. Yet it is banned here because this comes as part of a children's show and parents want their children to grow up free from sex and violence.
I could not resist but contrast this with some of the Indian TV shows. We recently subscribed to Tamil channels on TV to entertain my mother. It is incredible to see what our children grow up watching. The costumes, dance moves, projected personality of women in the serials and the general violence in the movies and shows are shocking. It is like people are desensitized to human feelings and pain systematically from the childhood. We routinely see images of people hurt in accidents and a crowd standing around and watching them as if it is a movie. I believe not rating our TV shows and lenient movie ratings contribute to such insensitivity to hurt and misery in life.
A cop spots a young girl on the back seat of a car knitting a sweater and a young boy on the driver seat listening to music at night around 11'o clock. The cop approaches the car and asks what is going on...The boy replies "she turns 18 at 12 o'clock and we are waiting for that!"
Once someone is past 18 yrs old, anything goes between consenting adults in general. One sees all kinds of relationships like a 20s something guy marrying a 40s something women, a 60s guy marrying a just 18 women, same sex relationships, etc. Yet if you are the President (Clinton) messing around with an adult intern or a Governor (Spitzer) engaging in paid sex, all hell breaks and severe consequences follow.
The latest controversy is with this children's show hosted by a young singer Katy Perry.
The whole country objected to the dress of this women so much that the show has to be canceled from the Sesame Street show! If you look at the video, you will notice that the dress is somewhat edgy, but not vulgar or obscene. Yet it is banned here because this comes as part of a children's show and parents want their children to grow up free from sex and violence.
I could not resist but contrast this with some of the Indian TV shows. We recently subscribed to Tamil channels on TV to entertain my mother. It is incredible to see what our children grow up watching. The costumes, dance moves, projected personality of women in the serials and the general violence in the movies and shows are shocking. It is like people are desensitized to human feelings and pain systematically from the childhood. We routinely see images of people hurt in accidents and a crowd standing around and watching them as if it is a movie. I believe not rating our TV shows and lenient movie ratings contribute to such insensitivity to hurt and misery in life.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Pictures worth pondering...
The latest report, known as “Trends in Maternal Mortality”, is jointly released by WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Bank
- Women in developing countries are 36 times more likely to die of pregnancy-related complications than women in developed nations.
- Developing nations accounted for 99% of all maternal deaths, with 57% in sub-Saharan Africa and 30% in South Asia.
- The study shows progress in sub-Saharan Africa where maternal mortality decreased by 26%.
- In Asia, the number of maternal deaths is estimated to have dropped from 315000 to 139000 between 1990 and 2008, a 52% decrease.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Another passport episode
No, this time the experience is not from me, the guy who presumably has no right to speak up against Indian bureaucracy since I live abroad. This is from a successful entrepreneur from Mumbai.
http://emergic.org/2010/09/07/passport-office-part-1/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/08/passport-office-part-2/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/09/passport-office-part-3/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/10/passport-office-part-4/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/07/passport-office-part-1/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/08/passport-office-part-2/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/09/passport-office-part-3/
http://emergic.org/2010/09/10/passport-office-part-4/
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Song and Dance
Have you ever heard a song, liked it and wanted to see the video of the song...? Sometime it turns out to be a mistake! Over the years it happened to me a couple of times. Some of the best songs are poorly portrayed on the screen. This one is the latest for me. I was so impressed by the poetic lyrics of the song, it drove me to hunt for the song on youtube only to become disappointed by the way the song was picturized. I don't know what is the best way to bring on screen a song so beautiful as this one, but it ain't this way. Well, close your eyes and listen to the song first and then watch it the second time, you will know what I am talking about.
If you have any such experience, please feel free to share. I almost feel like we should collect such beautiful songs and remake them just to do justice to the poetic lyrics.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
One man's incredible work
A library of knowledge on various subject matter. Talent diverted from hedge fund into education.
http://www.khanacademy.org/
Thank you Salman khan
http://www.khanacademy.org/
Thank you Salman khan
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
This is what it has come down to now?!
I knew water problem was bad in India. IMHO this is an awful solution to the problem. It makes India more dependent on foreign resources especially such vital resources. This is not a sustainable solution. Instead we should explore cheaper desalination plants to convert sea water into usable water.
""Like so many other commodities, water is going global. A number of recent news articles have described water as "blue gold" and the "the oil of the 21st Century". Entrepreneurs are responding to supply and demand imbalance by seeking ways to transport water from countries and regions with plentiful amounts to areas in short supply," wrote Terry Anderson and Clay Landry of what is now known as the Property and Environment Research Center way back in 1999. "John Hayward, a water expert for the World Bank, commented that 'water will be moved around the world as oil is now.'"
""Like so many other commodities, water is going global. A number of recent news articles have described water as "blue gold" and the "the oil of the 21st Century". Entrepreneurs are responding to supply and demand imbalance by seeking ways to transport water from countries and regions with plentiful amounts to areas in short supply," wrote Terry Anderson and Clay Landry of what is now known as the Property and Environment Research Center way back in 1999. "John Hayward, a water expert for the World Bank, commented that 'water will be moved around the world as oil is now.'"
Saturday, July 03, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Carnatic music lessons
There are many sites with Carnatic lessons. I find this one to have an excellent coverage of foundational materials.
http://www.ecse.rpi.edu/Homepages/shivkuma/personal/music/varnams/index.html
With materials like this and a local music teacher as a coach, students anywhere can set sail into the world of music.
Speaking of music, here is an excellent analysis of Ilayaraja's contributions to popularizing Carnatic music in films.
http://www.s-anand.net/blog/category/classical-ilayaraja/
http://www.ecse.rpi.edu/Homepages/shivkuma/personal/music/varnams/index.html
With materials like this and a local music teacher as a coach, students anywhere can set sail into the world of music.
Speaking of music, here is an excellent analysis of Ilayaraja's contributions to popularizing Carnatic music in films.
http://www.s-anand.net/blog/category/classical-ilayaraja/
Monday, May 31, 2010
Does everyone like you?
everyone...?! Here is a related question. Have you ever been in a position where you have to make decisions for or on behalf of others? Here is an explanation.
'Leading' is making decisions.
Making decisions is choosing between difference choices.
Choosing is rejecting some choices.
Rejection affect people who stand to gain from those choices.
People who lose by your decision usually don't like you! :-)
In an ideal world where everyone is equally smart and appreciate the rational behind decision making, everyone will like everyone else in spite of any loss to their income, prestige, fame, etc. Our world is far from ideal.
So if you are a leader, not everyone likes you. That is guaranteed.
'Leading' is making decisions.
Making decisions is choosing between difference choices.
Choosing is rejecting some choices.
Rejection affect people who stand to gain from those choices.
People who lose by your decision usually don't like you! :-)
In an ideal world where everyone is equally smart and appreciate the rational behind decision making, everyone will like everyone else in spite of any loss to their income, prestige, fame, etc. Our world is far from ideal.
So if you are a leader, not everyone likes you. That is guaranteed.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Eating with hands!
Eating with hands is somewhat uniquely Indian. While people around the world invented tools like spoons, forks, chop sticks, etc, we are comfortable eating with our hands. What's up with that? We are bunch of smart people why didn't we invent a tool? We do use different types of spoons for cooking. So why not one for eating?
Last winter I realized an answer to this question. Even if the food is served hot in the plate, when the temperature outside is freezing, very quickly the food becomes cold. If you eat with your fingers in the freezing cold weather, you fingers start to hurt by the time you finish eating! It is pretty uncomfortable. Cold food in mouth goes down without much discomfort. But touching the cold food is not a comfortable feeling. So if you can pick up the food with a tool and drop it in your mouth, that serves as a comfortable meal. In India, we are used to warm weather all around the year. If the food is hot, let it cool for a few minutes and you can pick it up comfortably with your hands to feed yourself. So there is no need to invent a tool!
Incidentally, we have food like Dosa that is difficult to eat with a standard tool like spoon or fork, especially if it is crispy. Either we have to invent a Dosa eating tool or make bite size Dosas just like mini idlies.
People eat sandwiches here with their hands. So it is not completely an alien behavior. The thing that beats me is why the fast food sandwiches are so big that it never fits in your mouth. Eating a sandwich is a scene. You have to wide open your mouth to take a bite. Restaurants boost showing their sandwiches with a huge stack of stuff layered with some bread or bun on the outside. If I am going to pick up loosely assembled stuff to eat, I would rather pick up a bite size sandwich piece and eat it at once. Oh well.... perhaps we need to modernize our food and eating tools...?! :-)
Last winter I realized an answer to this question. Even if the food is served hot in the plate, when the temperature outside is freezing, very quickly the food becomes cold. If you eat with your fingers in the freezing cold weather, you fingers start to hurt by the time you finish eating! It is pretty uncomfortable. Cold food in mouth goes down without much discomfort. But touching the cold food is not a comfortable feeling. So if you can pick up the food with a tool and drop it in your mouth, that serves as a comfortable meal. In India, we are used to warm weather all around the year. If the food is hot, let it cool for a few minutes and you can pick it up comfortably with your hands to feed yourself. So there is no need to invent a tool!
Incidentally, we have food like Dosa that is difficult to eat with a standard tool like spoon or fork, especially if it is crispy. Either we have to invent a Dosa eating tool or make bite size Dosas just like mini idlies.
People eat sandwiches here with their hands. So it is not completely an alien behavior. The thing that beats me is why the fast food sandwiches are so big that it never fits in your mouth. Eating a sandwich is a scene. You have to wide open your mouth to take a bite. Restaurants boost showing their sandwiches with a huge stack of stuff layered with some bread or bun on the outside. If I am going to pick up loosely assembled stuff to eat, I would rather pick up a bite size sandwich piece and eat it at once. Oh well.... perhaps we need to modernize our food and eating tools...?! :-)
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Wisdom and Instinct
The good and bad in life are not black and white as in the movies. They are shades of grey. It is only after the fact, well into the future, you realize if something turned out good or bad. Randomness influences life in a big way. So conventional wisdom is subjective and sometimes one has to completely ignore it. Here are few examples of how some famous people ignored their stumbling blocks and got ahead to make history simply by following their instincts.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Fascinating Facts - The floating Earth
As you may know, Einstein's general theory of relativity completely changed the way we think about space and time. Instead of objects sitting in space as time tics and tocs, objects distort and interact with space and time together. The theory predicts that earth, stars and other galactic objects bend the space around them.
NASA’s Gravity Probe B satellite proved the theory's predictions.
http://einstein.stanford.edu/SPACETIME/spacetime4.html Don't miss the great video explanations on the link.
NASA’s Gravity Probe B satellite proved the theory's predictions.
http://einstein.stanford.edu/SPACETIME/spacetime4.html Don't miss the great video explanations on the link.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
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