Matters that do matter

Wish I had a picture of this

2008-04-01T04:19:00.001-07:00

It was a beautiful rainy night back at my farm house. There was none, not a small iota of light around. Light from the stars failed to pierce the opposition of the dark clouds. But far away, where the nearest civilization dwelt, I could see something very spectacular. This small little town had a nebula of houses, all lit with mixture of colorful lights. And together, they spilt this light upwards onto a cloud that was melting into rains. The rains, which had been colored as vibrant as the cloud above them. All this I watched, alone, in awe.

Fooling around pool

2007-09-14T06:00:00.001-07:00

Youngsters of our time have a lot more access to a variety of games. And as a surprise, I have been playing a lot more kind of sports and games than I ever was, after I have begun my career as an engineer. Fooling around with a lot of sports gives you a chance to know what's your league of games. And believe me, doing what you are really good at and what you enjoy makes life happier to live ;)

Relationship status : committed

2007-09-14T05:42:00.001-07:00

My cousin told me that by changing one's relationship status to committed, the number of scraps one gets on orkut increases by an enormous amount. It did for me. I got a lot of calls, messages and scraps from 50 odd people in a short span of time.

Moral of the story: people are really interested in love life of others. They simply are. They want to know who is going out with whom, specially if they were your peers at some point in life. And when almost all your peers have had a relationship, and you haven't, that's when you realize that its high time to hook up with someone!

Why translations cannot be done by machines

2007-09-12T08:01:00.001-07:00

One of my colleagues sent me this link. Its a translation of a kannada poem by GK Adiga. I was immediately bowled over by the lovely translation. The translation reflects the inner subtleties of the original so well, that it made me understand and perhaps gave me more perspectives about the original song. And it is clear as a programmer, that with the current state of things, it is not possible to make such a translation mechanically. It would require a poetic heart filled with enough Josh and the right words flowing into at the right time.

There is actually a new field emerging called human computation. It deals with those things that humans can do, but current computers cant and probably never will. Like the captcha, for instance. Google for it, and you stumble upon some interesting theories and ideas. At least, you will feel proud that you are a human. Though a computer will find 2^19834 faster than you, only you can translate a poem with all its context and inner meaning. Because current computers cannot yet read between the lines!!

Just another Blog

2007-09-06T05:52:00.001-07:00

Its very difficult for one to keep blogging regularly and frequently, especially if one has a more serious job at hand. No offense at any serious blogger, but, this is what I felt.

I have resisted all my instincts of procrastinating my blogging here and have sat up. Blogging is turning out to be a commercial interest for many who loved to write, but did not have a medium. I read somewhere about an IITan who gave up his software job to become a mainstream blogger.

So, what is it in a blog that will make people visit it?

1. Its your friends blog.

2. It has stuff about what you care a lot, and is rarely available on the web - like a blog written in Kannada would interest me.

3. It has some really useful information - like local prices of things, reviews, travel information, piece of code, interview questions etc.

4. Its beautifully written or has amazing pictures with it.

With all these said, I am thinking on what can be done to make myself more read. Suggestions are welcome (through comments) !!

The Tilari

2007-03-12T00:20:00.000-07:00

This is the awesome falls I visited at Maharashtra. Was a great get-away from the rushy Namma Bengaluru.

The lightning Effect

2006-10-09T07:17:00.000-07:00

Sudden thoughts, Sudden ideas. Sudden enlightenment. Thats what life is all about. Keep your mind open for all those small moments and events that can change your life and put it into ( or out of ) equilibrium.

The Endless Rain

2006-10-09T07:05:00.000-07:00

With incessant downpour of rains outside the browsing centre from where I blog, I am forced to sit and think and blog. After a long time. And when I see this picture, which speaks of eternity and the feeling of total surrenderance, I am able to witness within me, the quest for peace.

The little drops of rain, when they fall from what seems like infinite height, gain infinite strength. And it looks as if the clouds have burst open ( I have heard this phenomenon actually occurs ).

With all the aroma of first rains gone, it feels like nuisance. Then I ponder upon how fast my life is moving, and is getting stuck in rain nature's way of slowing it a bit for me?

Abababababbbbbabbababbba

2006-07-29T23:42:00.000-07:00

All that the heading meaant was.. Long time no "c" !! Planning to put up lots of blogs. So please keep checking out.

Eggjams

2006-06-22T07:13:00.001-07:00

Time to work like a dog. Best of luck guys. Have great fun.

Massacre of the Kashmiri Soul

2006-05-03T07:41:00.000-07:00

22 innocent people. Who led uncomplicated lives. In the beautiful valley of Kashmir. The place where God dwelled (or atleast would have loved to).

All huddled into the small house of the Village Chief. Open fire. No hint of humanity. All 22 killed. Someone's father. Someone's child. Or probably mother. But someone who had life. With feelings and thoughts. And could sense pain. And fear. And death.

Life goes on here. Without worries. People discuss HOD. Or coffee day. Or the erudite(!) lecturers.

The massacre happened just yesterday. One of the bloodiest attacks ever in the Kashmiri History. And Bush blabbers about War against terrorism.
The exodus of Kashmiri Pandits has been prominently taking place from decades. The great civilization that brew art, culture and literature has been destroyed.

The cursed beauty has had it enough. The governments of both the nations should stop their act of sending buses to each other when they have such a serious issue in hand. Its not the count of deaths, but the loss of souls. I would prefer a strong step from the prime-minister to end all misery. Enough of reading about these horrific cruel brutal murders of my Kashmiri brothers and sisters.

Jai Hind.
(the pic is of a Kasmiri lady at Dal Lake)

The thought..

2006-04-11T07:16:00.000-07:00

I was taking a walk on the lovely night lane in my college. Then I thought about how people think. Why they think. I got a few ideas.
When there is no problem nobody thinks. Thinking is what you do if you are faced with a challenge; a problem.

When nobody gives you lab programs : you think and write them on your own. If they are already available then you just copy paste them.

You think when you have to gift you best friend on his birthday. Something that will surprise him. And it is a problem under hand.

You think in the exam when you feel that there is bleak chances of clearing it. You think so hard that you end up praying to get atleast 35.

You think when someone slaps you. You slap back if it is your friend. You dont, if it is your HOD.

Some times its your ego which thinks on behalf of you. When someone says you are a ******, you reply that he too is a ******. He hurted your ego. You want to hurt him back. Ego thinks. Your mouth speaks.

You think when there is nothing to do. You ask yourself what to do.
You think when you sleep. Most people do not know it. Sleeping is a nice way of relaxed thinking.

You think when you blog. So that atleast few people come back to pay a visit on your blogspot.

You think when you shop. You wonder if you have paid the right price. You ponder about the shelf life of the product.

You dont think when you are in class. You are made to "learn" things and work them out. Not solve them. Not think about them. Because ready made solutions to them exist. And your solution has to match them. Not outwit them.

Train your thoughts. But give them freedom.

Eye-Dentity

2006-04-11T06:58:00.000-07:00

Someone has said eyes are the most expressive organs of our body. I cant agree more with that anonymous.
I have been using glasses for quite a few years now. And like every other myopiac, I hate them too. It obstructs freedom. It gives a geeky look. It can be dangerous and make you look ugly. But it makes you see the beautiful things around you.
When I changed to contact lenses,I thought : here is my way to freedom from glasses. But it was not to be. Lenses are difficult to use, can be irritating at times, costly to maintain, but when you overcome these they are certainly a treat.
I would like to quote Fukuwoka's saying : " A scientist works overnight to find a solution to get a formula for spectacles; in the process acquring glasses himself ".

Life is..

2006-04-08T07:50:00.000-07:00

We all know that life is exit only. And yet we live it. In full colors. With all its flavours. Inspite of that truth glaring at us : death is sure.
People keep making wishes that they want to be rich, powerful blah blah. But least do they realize that it is the path that leads them to their wish that is most enduring and satisfying, not the end result by itself.
The "exit only" mode of life must make us experience life to its fullest, knowing that it is short, and hence living it at its best. So that we do not regret the way we lived it, when we lie on our death bed.

Romantic Revelations

2006-04-04T07:54:00.000-07:00

I saw coldplay's "The Scientist" and was totally impressed with its lovely lyrics. Thought I must share this lovely lyrics; its an amazing feeling to listen to the song. And the photo over here has the most romantic look to it, just see the eyes of the couple. It describes desire as well as contentment.

Come up to meet you, tell you I’m sorry
You don’t know how lovely you are
I had to find you, tell you I need you
Tell you I set you apart
Tell me your secrets, and ask me your questions
Oh lets go back to the start
Running in circles, coming up tails
Heads on a silence apart

Nobody said it was easy
Oh it’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said that it would be this hard
Oh take me back to the start
I was just guessing at numbers and figures
Pulling your puzzles apart
Questions of science, science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart
Tell me you love me, come back and haunt me
Oh and I rush to the start
Running in circles, chasing our tails
Coming back as we are

Nobody said it was easy
Oh it’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be so hard
I’m going back to the start

Smile is all that lasts....

2006-04-04T07:42:00.000-07:00

Everyone has something to give to the world. It may be a golden crown to ones favorite God. Or it may be just a simple smile to cheer someone up.
Some give vulgar abuses, while some offer stares of disbelief. While these kids from Kerala, after having to undergo the Tsunami disaster, are ready to be all smiles. The camera posing happened to be the most interesting and feel-good experience they had in months. Just thought you all would like to be involved in their fun. As you did in their grief.

Bonds of friendship

2006-03-29T05:42:00.000-08:00

It happens so many times that due to silly reasons, we forego long sought freindships. Ego clashes, mis-understandings, plain foolishness, communication gap/lapse are some fundamental reasons for this.
Through my 20 years of experience in life, what I have learnt is that there is nothing as sweet as friendship (note to diabetics : replace sweet by beautiful). And friendships can resist distance, cannot be bound by money, and can stay through life and add to your bounty of wealth.
I am not just writing this philosophy, but I have decided. I have decided to reinvent those friendships that have sunk, renovate those that were masked by dusts of time. And tie the bonds again, but this time, for life....

Mental challenge

2006-03-29T05:25:00.000-08:00

This one is a nice mental exercise: Try rotating your left hand in big clockwise circles and your left leg in anticlockwise manner. Then keep your hand rotating and try with your right leg in the direction opposite to that of your hand rotation. I could deduce a lot of things about brain and its control features from this, can you?

Those beautiful hands

2006-03-29T05:19:00.000-08:00

When we lose interest in everything else, we turn to art. And there are some, who were turned by art to everything else.
The very nature of creativity has bugged cognitive scientists. It is well known that Artificial Intelligence is a field of ongoing research, but what about injecting creativity to machines?
There has been a lot of debate on this matter, and papers published. Nonetheless, they are philosophical deductions only, resulting from present day assumptions. Hardcore scientific results\ideas have not come up.
Even I cannot put creativity to words. The idea that a painter has about a painting he just started evolves and the final look may be substantially different from what he initially visualizes it to be.
Creativity does not have planning. Generally it does not have limits too. And "beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder" perfectly applies here.
There is one scientifically established fact though. Left brain is responsible for logical, rational thinking, while right brain is responsible for creative and intuitive thinking.

Celebrations and thoughts

2006-03-26T04:24:00.000-08:00

The world was immersed in celebration with nature. Atop the hill, where the famous Mata's mandir resided, I had been to join the celebration.
The sun was about to set, and it seemed to be another beautiful day.
I saw a child with her granny, who had come to enjoy the grandeur. I overheard their conversation.
Child : Gran, you see that sun setting? Its so beautiful isnt it?
Granny : True beta.
Child : Is it possible for me to take it home and keep it, it will make such beautiful toy.
Granny : But Beta, if someone like you had taken it yesterday, we would not be able to see it today. And if you take it today, what about those who will come tomorrow?

Conserve nature today, else there will be no tomorrow

War in the World

2006-03-22T08:17:00.000-08:00

Violence was man's basic instinct. It sprouted from the basic law to live "Surviver of the fittest". But as we have evolved we need to look at newer theories : "Live and let Live". Statistically, there is enough for all of us to live with a decent standard of living, that is, only if we do not grab each other's share.
Many would not know that a major percent of India's budget goes into military installations, establishments and things of that ilk. I flinch with fear when I imagine my city becoming a Hiroshima. All I ask is what the picture asks.

Oogly Googly blob

2006-03-22T08:06:00.000-08:00

Bubbles are an amazing physical phenomena. One thing good about them is that they are optimistic. They look upwards into the sky and follow one aim : "The Sky".
MAKE SKY YOUR LIMIT. YOU WILL ATLEAST TAKE OFF!

Leave your steps behind.....

2006-03-22T07:56:00.000-08:00

I remember having read in my highschool days, a poem that said, "One must live his life such that there is something for others to learn from it". It was not the exact words, but the gist was essentially the same. After all these years, I ponder, that there is no such thing in my life that I have done worthwhile, that others can follow.
So I have made a mental note to implement this noble thought.

Fountain Uncensored

2006-03-22T07:21:00.000-08:00

Well, talk about interesting photos. Rather clever ones. I present you one of them. Having a humorous touch with it, the photo also depicts the innocence of the boy and his seemingness to enjoy it. Enjoy maadi!

Immaculate Beauty

2006-03-22T06:50:00.000-08:00

Immaculate beauty of nature. The more you see it, the more you want to be with its real world counter part.
Flowers have always amazed mankind. Their vivid colours, soothing fragrance and pleasant radiance leaves one mystified.
I look through this flower to find the meaning of life. The dew drops on the flower petals indicating that flaws add to the beauty and essence of life.