M : I'm sure you're finding this a litlle funny aren't you?
V : Funny would definitely not be the word I'd like to use.
M : Odd?
V : Nah, Definitely not odd.
M : Different then? New? Fresh?
V : Yes, somewhere there. Fresh actually. It's the sort of word i wouldn't like to associate with the current scenario. Its like picking up a really good looking pebble from a river adn taking it back home. Three days down when you take it out of your bag to keep it on your desk because its going to make a nice paperweight to occupy space on your empty desk, you realise the underside actually has moss growing there. It's like how you would feel then. The moss i mean.
M : It's definitely not that dirty.
V : You think moss is dirty? Its so beautifully green and velvety. Those are two adjectives that might anything sound beautiful and nice to have. But then again everyone is repelled by moss right? Thats what i meant.
M : Soda?
V : See, that's exactly what i meant. Soda.
M : What's wrong with soda?
V : Nothings wrong with it. You are going to offer me a glass of coke and you asked me whether i wanted soda. I could get lost in here you know.
M: Uhun. Diet or Zero?
V: Ha ha.
M : Yes, now you can stop.
V : Ihave never stopped at signals you know? I've never felt like obeying rules and norms. Now I'm this righteous prude.
M : Are you wondering how this happened to you?
V : No, I'm just wondering why.
M : And?
V : And what?
M: Why did this happen?
V : Ah, I'm still searching for the answer to that.
M : It can't be all that bad, can it?
V : Maybe. It definitely is not all that bad. I'll fit in soon enough and accept it soon, but for now, I'm still pushing myself to it.
M : Beneath all that, you just like it don't you?
V : Yes, very much. I like.
M : Right, you'll start liking dogs too soon.
V : Oh yes, I'm waiting for that day. At least i can get myself to keep a dog for company then. I don't have to go around looking for it.
M : What do you mean looking for it?
V : Yes, I'm a love-slut. Aren't you one?
M : What?
V : Yes. I want someone to love me. More aptly, I want to always feel like I'm being loved. Lots of folks do. They would go miles to get there.
M : Somehow i wish i never had first thought i had met you.
V : Where did that come from?
M : So you are saying that I am your love toy, right?
V : You shouldn't be so harsh on yourself.
M : So thats what it is right?
V : Ok, let me put it this way. You know that you were one of your parents' love toys don't you?
M : How dare you?
V : You don't agree?
M : Fuck no.
V : Then you didn't know. Fine..
M : I didn't know what?
V : That you were one of your parents' love toys, thats what.
M : What the..?
V : Yes, even i found it hard to digest.
M : What will it take to shut you up?
V : Lots of sex.
M : You think you're going to get me into bed that way? Is that how you do it?
V : Hmm..
M : You think your parents gave birth to you and brought you up so that they can feel loved?
V : Exactly, and they married each other only for that reason. And every human has a friend, pet, wife, kid, parents etc. for that very same reason.
M : I'm going to throw you out of my place.
V : Every human likes being loved. And once you've been loved, you want to feel that always. It's like an addiction. It's hard to live without it. That makes us dependent on it. Very. And we whore around for exactly that sensation.
M : Your way of speaking can be obnoxious. You realize that don't you?
V : Thats probably because i think that way.
......
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Teri Deewani...:) :) :)
Dear all
This post has been pending for a very long time. It has been in my drafts for nearly two weeks or so, so i decided to put it up as my first post on blogger. One of the best songs that i have ever heard.(maybe some of you might have already listened to it).
I was unknowingly in love with this song because they sing it here in the ashram during Satsang time. I was looping it today morning and suddenly decided to look up into the lyrics. And i found that it was actually about Love itself.(the highly ranted topic but yet, the most intriguing expression and which can never be expressed in its complete form)..HAhaha.. :) :) :)
Just go through the lyrics that i have attached below and then flow with the song with your eyes closed(you can think of anyone/anything which is very dear to you...). I am sure it is bound to bring a tear or two.
This post has been pending for a very long time. It has been in my drafts for nearly two weeks or so, so i decided to put it up as my first post on blogger. One of the best songs that i have ever heard.(maybe some of you might have already listened to it).
I was unknowingly in love with this song because they sing it here in the ashram during Satsang time. I was looping it today morning and suddenly decided to look up into the lyrics. And i found that it was actually about Love itself.(the highly ranted topic but yet, the most intriguing expression and which can never be expressed in its complete form)..HAhaha.. :) :) :)
Just go through the lyrics that i have attached below and then flow with the song with your eyes closed(you can think of anyone/anything which is very dear to you...). I am sure it is bound to bring a tear or two.
And when more than 2000 people sing together in the presence of the embodiment of love..............................it is just an experience in itself. :)
It is such a beautiful feeling when you just love a song unknowingly just for what it is(with respect to any language)., but later on when you search and find out what it really means it brings about totally different dimension and a different kind of love towards it. You feel a sense of attachment towards that song and then you smile within yourself and say "Oh yeah..how could i not love this song...." It just keeps drilling in the fact that music has no boundaries/language or rather any art form for that matter. It just needs a pure heart for it to be appreciated.
Album : Kailasa
Song : Teri Deewani
Singer: Kailash Kher
Preet ki lath mohe aaisi laagi
I'M ADDICTED TO LOVE SUCH WAY NOW,
ho gayi main matwaali
THAT I'VE BECOME FRANTICALLY FRENZY,
bal bal jaaun apane piya ko
MY LOVE IS RUSHING MY VIGOR IN SUCH WAY ,
ke main jaaun vaari vaari
THAT I'D SACRIFICE MYSELF ON MY LOVE,
mohe sudh budh naa rahe tan mann ki
I'VE LEFT WITH NO SENSE OF MY BODY AND MY MIND NOW,
yeh toh jaane duniya saari
THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS THIS THING,
bebas aur laachar phiru main
I'M JUST WANDERING HELPLESSLY,
haari main dil haari
YES, I'VE LOST MY HEART,
Tere naam se jee loon
I'LL LIVE WITH YOUR NAME ONLY,
tere naam se marr jaaun
I'LL DIE TAKING YOUR NAME ONLY,
Tere naam se jee loon
tere naam se marr jaaun
teri jaan ke sadke mein kuchh aaisa kar jaaun
I'D DO SUCH THINGS HAPPILY IN THE OFFERING OF YOUR LIFE,
tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?, THAT I'VE BEEN LOST AND LOOTED COMPLETELY,
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
OH YES, TRUELY, I'VE BECOME,
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
YOUR LOVER
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Ishq junoon jab hadh se badh jaaye
WHEN THE LUNACY OF THE LOVE CROSSES ITS LIMITS,- 2
Hanste hanste aashiq suli chadh jaaye
THE LOVERS EVEN HANG ON THE GALLOWS, SMILING AND HAPPILY,
Ishq ka jaadu sar chadhkar bole
THE MAGIC OF LOVE MAKES THEM GO CRAZY,
Khoob laga lo pehre raste rab khole
EVEN IF YOU CORDON OFF IT, GOD, HIMSELF, OPENS ALL THE WAYS,
Yahi ishq ki marzi hain
THIS IS THE LOVE'S WISH ITSELF,
yahi rab ki marzi hain
THIS IS GOD'S WISH ITSLEF,
Yahi ishq ki marzi hain
yahi rab ki marzi hain
Tere bin jeena kaisa
WHAT IS THE LIFE WITHOUT YOU?,
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Ke main rang rangili deewani
I'M THE COLOURED JOYFUL LOVER- 2
ke main albeli main mastani
I'M AGILE, I'M INTOXICATED,
Gaaun bajaaun sabko rijhaaun
I'D SING, I'D PLAY THE MUSIC, AND WOULD PLEASE EVERYONE,
He se begaani
STRANGER TO THE SORROWS,
Ke main deewani main deewani
I'M THE LOVER
Tere naam se jee loon
Tere naam se marr jaaun
Tere jaan ke sadle mein
Kuchh aaisa kar jaaun
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani...
Here is the link to the song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtKodjQjIq8
Enjoy the moment... :) :) :)
Love
Abhiram
P.S: The video does not do justice to the song. I can forward the mp3 to your email. :) :) :)
It is such a beautiful feeling when you just love a song unknowingly just for what it is(with respect to any language)., but later on when you search and find out what it really means it brings about totally different dimension and a different kind of love towards it. You feel a sense of attachment towards that song and then you smile within yourself and say "Oh yeah..how could i not love this song...." It just keeps drilling in the fact that music has no boundaries/language or rather any art form for that matter. It just needs a pure heart for it to be appreciated.
Album : Kailasa
Song : Teri Deewani
Singer: Kailash Kher
Preet ki lath mohe aaisi laagi
I'M ADDICTED TO LOVE SUCH WAY NOW,
ho gayi main matwaali
THAT I'VE BECOME FRANTICALLY FRENZY,
bal bal jaaun apane piya ko
MY LOVE IS RUSHING MY VIGOR IN SUCH WAY ,
ke main jaaun vaari vaari
THAT I'D SACRIFICE MYSELF ON MY LOVE,
mohe sudh budh naa rahe tan mann ki
I'VE LEFT WITH NO SENSE OF MY BODY AND MY MIND NOW,
yeh toh jaane duniya saari
THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS THIS THING,
bebas aur laachar phiru main
I'M JUST WANDERING HELPLESSLY,
haari main dil haari
YES, I'VE LOST MY HEART,
Tere naam se jee loon
I'LL LIVE WITH YOUR NAME ONLY,
tere naam se marr jaaun
I'LL DIE TAKING YOUR NAME ONLY,
Tere naam se jee loon
tere naam se marr jaaun
teri jaan ke sadke mein kuchh aaisa kar jaaun
I'D DO SUCH THINGS HAPPILY IN THE OFFERING OF YOUR LIFE,
tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?, THAT I'VE BEEN LOST AND LOOTED COMPLETELY,
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
OH YES, TRUELY, I'VE BECOME,
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
YOUR LOVER
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Ishq junoon jab hadh se badh jaaye
WHEN THE LUNACY OF THE LOVE CROSSES ITS LIMITS,- 2
Hanste hanste aashiq suli chadh jaaye
THE LOVERS EVEN HANG ON THE GALLOWS, SMILING AND HAPPILY,
Ishq ka jaadu sar chadhkar bole
THE MAGIC OF LOVE MAKES THEM GO CRAZY,
Khoob laga lo pehre raste rab khole
EVEN IF YOU CORDON OFF IT, GOD, HIMSELF, OPENS ALL THE WAYS,
Yahi ishq ki marzi hain
THIS IS THE LOVE'S WISH ITSELF,
yahi rab ki marzi hain
THIS IS GOD'S WISH ITSLEF,
Yahi ishq ki marzi hain
yahi rab ki marzi hain
Tere bin jeena kaisa
WHAT IS THE LIFE WITHOUT YOU?,
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Ke main rang rangili deewani
I'M THE COLOURED JOYFUL LOVER- 2
ke main albeli main mastani
I'M AGILE, I'M INTOXICATED,
Gaaun bajaaun sabko rijhaaun
I'D SING, I'D PLAY THE MUSIC, AND WOULD PLEASE EVERYONE,
He se begaani
STRANGER TO THE SORROWS,
Ke main deewani main deewani
I'M THE LOVER
Tere naam se jee loon
Tere naam se marr jaaun
Tere jaan ke sadle mein
Kuchh aaisa kar jaaun
Tune kya kar dala marr gayi main mitt gayi main
Ho ri ha ha ri ho gayi main
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani
Teri deewani deewani...
Here is the link to the song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtKodjQjIq8
Enjoy the moment... :) :) :)
Love
Abhiram
P.S: The video does not do justice to the song. I can forward the mp3 to your email. :) :) :)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Post #10
Alive and Dead...part 4
I never really written a part 4 of anything before...this is a first for me...yayy!! Actually I have never written a part 2 or 3 either...I apologise for taking a little longer than i expected but with Valentines day just over, I was for the large part mulling over suicide...Quantum suicide that is :) (I get the feeling this is going to be a very very long post...so if u have some work to do, finish it and then sit down)
Now before I get down to it,I am going to have to repeat a couple of things which some of you might have already realised(if u have, dont read the next few lines) but for the benefit of those who did not---> the coin toss example I gave you was just an example, an analogy. It seemed simpler to explain with a coin toss rather than to start off with atoms and electron states. What did you people think?? That there exists states which were actually both head and tails for a coin?? Ridikulus!! :P
In my last post, I had talked about the cat experiment and the famous Copenhagen interpretation. Before I explain the concept of quantum suicide, lemme introduce another interpretation of QM which is very quickly gaining ground on the Copenhagen one. Lets first talk about what an "interpretation" means.
In science, a theory is accepted when in a very basic sense its internally consistent ie one idea of the theory doesnt contradict another and the theory can predict with great accuracy the results of experiments. Over the course of our existence, scientific theories have always sprung out in the pursuit of explaining our observations. Newton did not get up one fine day and formulate his 3 laws of motion or his theory of gravity. They came about by extensive observations of movement of the planets and comets (pls dont tell me you actually beleive the Newton-apple story!!). Bohr and other QMists did not out of the blue, come out with the basic postulates/ideas I had given before. It was how they believed the systems should work to explain the results they had obtained thru experiment and as long as their ideas were internally consistent and would explain the results they have already as well as predict for future experiments, the ideas or their "interpretations" is assumed to be correct. But that does not mean that there cannot be other interpretations. If you and I can come up with a new set of ideas which would satisfy the basic constraints that a theory should very rigorously, then voila!! we have a new theory in our hands and the coveted 3AM call from Stockholm
not far away.:)
I would be right in assuming that the idea of a "collapse" at first and maybe even now does not sit well with many of you. It didnt either for Hugh Everett III, one of the most brilliant minds of our time and probably one with the saddest of stories(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Everett_III). For his PhD dissertation, Everett suggested another interpretation of QM which went to form the infamous Many Worlds theory!! (Now thats a PhD dissertation!!). When Everett proposed this idea and spoke to many of the Copenhagenists like Bohr, etc he was ridiculed and termed an 'amateur' with no idea what QM really meant. This eventually led to him quitting his research in physics and moving onto algorithms for optimisation( OR and EM students might come across his work sooner or later). However for a while now, his many worlds theory is gaining increasing popularity and catching up with the Copenhagen interpretation( and for whats its worth, it has definitely won me over).
The many worlds theory is an idea which sounds a lot more appealing cos we have come across it a lot, in movies, on TV, fiction stories, they make a very good read. But trust me, the concept of many worlds isnt just fiction. It is a very real science and one whose mathematics is a little simpler than the one related with the old interpretations(one of the main reasons why its gaining a lot of popularity nowadays). As the name suggests, the theory implies that there exists many worlds, probably infinite in number in which one of every possible outcome has occurred and these multiple universes do not interact. That is anything that could have possibly happened in the past did actually happen but in different universe to the one you are in. To put it simply, consider the Schrodinger cat experiment again. The old interpretation means that the cat will be "alive" or "dead" only after you observe it. This means you, the observer caused that. But in the many worlds theory, the cat is either "alive" or "dead" even before you observe but you in THIS universe will see only one of the two outcomes.Still confusing? Very simple, if I opened the box and saw a dead cat it means the cat was dead even before I opened the box BUT in another universe (which is instantaneously created by the mere fact that the cat could have been alive) I will open the box to see a live cat but since the two universes cant interact or communicate with each other, we only behave as though one of the things happened!! Think about it, makes sense doesnt it?
This effectively means, everytime you perform an experiment and it can have any one of possible outcomes, everyone of the outcome does occur but you continue to exist in the universe where you see the outcome that you get. And the 'you' in the other universe might have got a different outcome but to him/her that is the outcome of the experiment.OMGGG!!! this means the power of choice literally SPLITS the universe everytime!! My friends, do not underestimate the power of choice that you possess!!
Now lets get down to the fun part of what this means. I started off, talking about Quantum suicide. This is an infamous implication of the many worlds theory. Lets say one day a person A suffering from a broken heart, decided enof's enof and takes a gun to kill himself. He pulls the trigger and one of two things can happen. The gun either fires or it doesnt, which implies the A either lives or dies. Now the many worlds theory states that the universe splits to accomodate both outcomes, ie both events occur but we in this universe experience only one of them. If the gun fires and A dies, he is dead and the universe cannot split based on him pulling the trigger anymore but it can continue to split based on other things like say B who is in love with A decides to take up that gun and pull the trigger.
But but..its a lot more interesting if the gun doesnt fire and A lives. It means we are in the universe where A lives and... Now A can once again pull the trigger==>there is a chance of one of two possible outcomes happening AGAIN!! Again the universe will split and will continue splitting till he dies.This is the concept of Quantum suicide. But waaaaaiiiittt a minute, even if he dies, it means the act of pulling the trigger has created an universe where he lives and if we just kept doing this, there will always be an universe where he continues to live. Does that mean the person will live forever?? Infact thats exactly what it means. The person will infact attain what is called QUANTUM IMMORTALITY!! uahahahahahahahaha but it will occur in only one of infinite universes!!
Its quite amazing to think that reality isnt a straight line but infact a brach in a huge tree of time!! Anyways this theory and the Copenhagen interpretation predicts results which are the same or very similar for a wide range of experiments and hence there is no way for us to correctly determine which one is right and the other wrong. Infact finding actual cases where one theory might usurp the other is focal point of research nowadays and is a sure shot way to win the Nobel. Maybe they are both wrong!! Maybe there is something out there that we have all been missing!! Ahh the wonders of this universe!!
Chal, I shall take up no more of your time. Hope u guys enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed it writing it. I shall see you in part 5 :)
Natesh
ps: a little cartoon explaining the many worlds theory. one of my favorites. I had put this up in FB a while back. Note the reference to the cat right at the end :D
http://abstrusegoose.com/240
Now before I get down to it,I am going to have to repeat a couple of things which some of you might have already realised(if u have, dont read the next few lines) but for the benefit of those who did not---> the coin toss example I gave you was just an example, an analogy. It seemed simpler to explain with a coin toss rather than to start off with atoms and electron states. What did you people think?? That there exists states which were actually both head and tails for a coin?? Ridikulus!! :P
In my last post, I had talked about the cat experiment and the famous Copenhagen interpretation. Before I explain the concept of quantum suicide, lemme introduce another interpretation of QM which is very quickly gaining ground on the Copenhagen one. Lets first talk about what an "interpretation" means.
In science, a theory is accepted when in a very basic sense its internally consistent ie one idea of the theory doesnt contradict another and the theory can predict with great accuracy the results of experiments. Over the course of our existence, scientific theories have always sprung out in the pursuit of explaining our observations. Newton did not get up one fine day and formulate his 3 laws of motion or his theory of gravity. They came about by extensive observations of movement of the planets and comets (pls dont tell me you actually beleive the Newton-apple story!!). Bohr and other QMists did not out of the blue, come out with the basic postulates/ideas I had given before. It was how they believed the systems should work to explain the results they had obtained thru experiment and as long as their ideas were internally consistent and would explain the results they have already as well as predict for future experiments, the ideas or their "interpretations" is assumed to be correct. But that does not mean that there cannot be other interpretations. If you and I can come up with a new set of ideas which would satisfy the basic constraints that a theory should very rigorously, then voila!! we have a new theory in our hands and the coveted 3AM call from Stockholm
not far away.:)
I would be right in assuming that the idea of a "collapse" at first and maybe even now does not sit well with many of you. It didnt either for Hugh Everett III, one of the most brilliant minds of our time and probably one with the saddest of stories(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Everett_III). For his PhD dissertation, Everett suggested another interpretation of QM which went to form the infamous Many Worlds theory!! (Now thats a PhD dissertation!!). When Everett proposed this idea and spoke to many of the Copenhagenists like Bohr, etc he was ridiculed and termed an 'amateur' with no idea what QM really meant. This eventually led to him quitting his research in physics and moving onto algorithms for optimisation( OR and EM students might come across his work sooner or later). However for a while now, his many worlds theory is gaining increasing popularity and catching up with the Copenhagen interpretation( and for whats its worth, it has definitely won me over).
The many worlds theory is an idea which sounds a lot more appealing cos we have come across it a lot, in movies, on TV, fiction stories, they make a very good read. But trust me, the concept of many worlds isnt just fiction. It is a very real science and one whose mathematics is a little simpler than the one related with the old interpretations(one of the main reasons why its gaining a lot of popularity nowadays). As the name suggests, the theory implies that there exists many worlds, probably infinite in number in which one of every possible outcome has occurred and these multiple universes do not interact. That is anything that could have possibly happened in the past did actually happen but in different universe to the one you are in. To put it simply, consider the Schrodinger cat experiment again. The old interpretation means that the cat will be "alive" or "dead" only after you observe it. This means you, the observer caused that. But in the many worlds theory, the cat is either "alive" or "dead" even before you observe but you in THIS universe will see only one of the two outcomes.Still confusing? Very simple, if I opened the box and saw a dead cat it means the cat was dead even before I opened the box BUT in another universe (which is instantaneously created by the mere fact that the cat could have been alive) I will open the box to see a live cat but since the two universes cant interact or communicate with each other, we only behave as though one of the things happened!! Think about it, makes sense doesnt it?
This effectively means, everytime you perform an experiment and it can have any one of possible outcomes, everyone of the outcome does occur but you continue to exist in the universe where you see the outcome that you get. And the 'you' in the other universe might have got a different outcome but to him/her that is the outcome of the experiment.OMGGG!!! this means the power of choice literally SPLITS the universe everytime!! My friends, do not underestimate the power of choice that you possess!!
Now lets get down to the fun part of what this means. I started off, talking about Quantum suicide. This is an infamous implication of the many worlds theory. Lets say one day a person A suffering from a broken heart, decided enof's enof and takes a gun to kill himself. He pulls the trigger and one of two things can happen. The gun either fires or it doesnt, which implies the A either lives or dies. Now the many worlds theory states that the universe splits to accomodate both outcomes, ie both events occur but we in this universe experience only one of them. If the gun fires and A dies, he is dead and the universe cannot split based on him pulling the trigger anymore but it can continue to split based on other things like say B who is in love with A decides to take up that gun and pull the trigger.
But but..its a lot more interesting if the gun doesnt fire and A lives. It means we are in the universe where A lives and... Now A can once again pull the trigger==>there is a chance of one of two possible outcomes happening AGAIN!! Again the universe will split and will continue splitting till he dies.This is the concept of Quantum suicide. But waaaaaiiiittt a minute, even if he dies, it means the act of pulling the trigger has created an universe where he lives and if we just kept doing this, there will always be an universe where he continues to live. Does that mean the person will live forever?? Infact thats exactly what it means. The person will infact attain what is called QUANTUM IMMORTALITY!! uahahahahahahahaha but it will occur in only one of infinite universes!!
Its quite amazing to think that reality isnt a straight line but infact a brach in a huge tree of time!! Anyways this theory and the Copenhagen interpretation predicts results which are the same or very similar for a wide range of experiments and hence there is no way for us to correctly determine which one is right and the other wrong. Infact finding actual cases where one theory might usurp the other is focal point of research nowadays and is a sure shot way to win the Nobel. Maybe they are both wrong!! Maybe there is something out there that we have all been missing!! Ahh the wonders of this universe!!
Chal, I shall take up no more of your time. Hope u guys enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed it writing it. I shall see you in part 5 :)
Natesh
ps: a little cartoon explaining the many worlds theory. one of my favorites. I had put this up in FB a while back. Note the reference to the cat right at the end :D
http://abstrusegoose.com/240
Thursday, February 11, 2010
A boy’s best friend
A dog may well be a man’s best friend, but before he became a man, the boy had a friend who was just as close, if not more – his bicycle. Yes, the bicycle is undoubtedly a boy’s best friend and faithful companion. I myself was thoroughly addicted to my cycle(s) and now long to get a new one. Owning a cycle is quite unlike owning a bike, car or any other fancy automobile.I am almost 22 and have owned a couple of cycles, a scooter and have driven my dad’s cars without a valid license (both from him and from the state). I can say without the slightest hesitation that my cycle days were the best.
My first cycle was red in color, had three wheels and was, for the most part, made in plastic. I must have been 3-4 years old when I rode that. I confess I don’t remember having a lot of fun memories on it, but to be fair, I couldn’t have expected to have any, under my mom’s watchful eyes. I was never meant to have fun on a tricycle. I was put on one to keep me occupied, to make me go around in circles till I got tired and ate – or better still, got disoriented and slept off. No, tricycles don’t count. Boys want the real thing, they want the two-wheeled beasts. We want bicycles.
I believe that the cycle days are when boys have their first tryst with sexism. Boys are very touchy when it comes to the cycles and their relationship with their cycle is a sacred one, albeit, macho. For us, its about the speed, about the adrenaline rush and the falling down. For girls (from what I’ve seen) its an achievement, a credential. They learn to ride a cycle and they go tell their friends about it and get admiring, appreciative nods. It goes on their resume. So they have to be careful while learning to ride a cycle. They have side wheels – yes, the 2 words that make a boy cringe. The two words that question a boy’s masculinity.
My first bicycle was a BSA Champ and I shared it with my cousin Sharanya. Yeah, you guessed right – incessant fighting, bruises to limbs and egos, gender abuses. I hated the side-wheels on the cycle. The extra wheels defamed the cycle, made it effeminate and on some level sexually abused it. I would bend the wheels upwards or remove them completely when it was my turn to ride the cycle. I longed to grow up and get a cycle for myself, not one that I had to share with a girl, not one over which I had only partial right over, not one that had stickers on it, not one with side-wheels!
Finally, when I was in class 8, my dad gifted me my very own cycle. Well, he didn’t gift it in the traditional sense. I had to argue, cry, protest, boot-lick, go on a hunger strike, lock myself up in my brother’s room (for which I got into further trouble) and plead for it. But when at the end of all that, you get a friend for life, you just do it! It was a blue Hercules MTB Oversize 9000 and man, it was phenomenal! Of course, for having forced my dad to gift it to me, I couldn’t ride it to school. Parents’ idea of a win-win situation. Well, anyway, he had to be content being my friend at home and around the neighborhood. I used to ride my cycle all the bloody time. I offered to help my mom with domestic shopping so that I could take my cycle out. I would cycle to tuition classes and tennis coaching, despite them being at a proximity that would actually make the cycle ride a shame. But I didn’t care.
Then the unthinkable happened. I lost my cycle. Some slimy son of a bitch stole it from the parking lot in my house! I was so devastated, I thought I’d never recover from it. I went through what Tamil movies have made so popular – love failure. At long last, I drew myself out of the depression. With a feeling guilt, that only devoted husbands have when they give in to a sexy personal assistant, I bought a second cycle. With a feeling of shameless, remorseless submission that only consummate two-timers have, I fell in love with my new cycle – a stunning black-gray Hercules MTB Thriller. This love was to last.
Cycling meant the world to me. Cycling fast meant I was independent. Cycling slowly meant the world belonged to me. Cycling in a group made us cool. Racing made us men. Losing the cycle key (which happened more often than actually riding) taught us responsibility and breaking the lock open brought back our heartbeats. Cleaning the cycle made us fathers. It was not difficult to maintain a cycle at all and often, not necessary. After all, muddiness meant your cycle has seen action. I washed my cycle once a month on Saturday afternoons. I used to park it in my courtyard, bring a hosepipe and blast water on the dirty mudguards. I oiled the chain, cleaned the spokes and tightened the bell (which never seemed to clinked the way it did on the first day). I even employed my cousin Shravan as the helper boy. When my grandfather visited, I was the happiest boy on earth. He is the smartest, most technical man I have met. He used to dismantle the cycle, clean it thoroughly and put it back exactly the way it was! He seemed to understand my cycle and from the way he looked at my cycle I could see the remnants of a similar boyhood in his old gray eyes.
Cycles were never a mark of a social standing because we understood the evils a boy had to brave to get one. If one had a cycle, he was admired. If one didn’t, he was content with going doubles, without being judged unfairly. He was the partner in crime. He had to stand faithfully by the rider through the traffic, beat-the-clock speeds, chain malfunctions and bad roads. And we never defiled the purpose of our cycles. It was not for showing off or impressing girls. No, that was for morally corrupt bikers and car-owners. We respected our cycles. And like a true friend, he helped us back. Whenever I was late, all I had to do was to rub my hands over the chain till it was black with grease and tell my mom “the useless cycle let me down again”. Or take money for the innumerable air-fillings and cycle-services. It was a friendship only boys understand (And no matter how liberal you are, when it comes to cycles, men will always be sexists). It was a friendship that would have made Rajni and Mammooty submit meekly. I am proud to have had such a friend.
A boy’s relationship with a cycle is karmic, one that grows till they finally have to part ways. The boy moves on to the next stage in his life, forever longing to go back in time. And the cycle enters another boy’s life, making it as colorful as it made its old friend’s.
Why I’m still not an SRK fan and will never be a Thackrey fan
I surprised a few friends by not becoming an SRK fan after the recent clash with the Sena. While it is true that the entire episode has not particularly made me respect SRK, I still laud him for standing up against Thackrey (though he needs to be a lot more forceful). It has also made me realize why I will never ever respect Shiv Sena and its ilk.
I will not go into why I don’t like SRK, but it is important for anyone getting into an argument with me after reading this to know that I don’t hate him either and I have not allowed either to influence my view on the topic.
Why I have not become a fan of his after his comments is simply because I do not agree with his view point. I honestly believe India should put all non-political ties with Pakistan on hold till we ease the political tension. Now, many of you may argue that this is precisely why arts and sports should carry on, I think not. I believe that cultural ties (broadly speaking) with Pakistan will not heal the wounds of the past, instead, will numb it. To draw a line from The Last Lecture, treat the disease, not the symptoms. I understand the need to nurse the symptoms and it seems logical – when the disease is finally cured, these symptoms may trigger a new disease altogether.
Sorry, I just love analogies. What my euphemism implied was that, these cultural connections will help ease the tension on a people-level (the symptoms); they wont stop terrorism or solve the border problem(the disease). So when finally the latter problems are solved, we may find that the people still hate each other and the cause is lost. While this seem logical, I feel this is insufficient. The problems are over 60 years old now and do not seem to improve. Cricket has helped argue some, but I doubt it. I honestly think sports and arts are far too insignificant when the flip side is carnage. And boycotting miscreants is not new to sports – South Africa was banned from a majority of the sports during the apartheid regime, the Moscow Olympics was boycotted during the Afghan invasion and many more such instances. Unfortunately for my argument, but positively overall, art has no boundaries and it is not practical to ban one country’s art in another, though even that has been done in the past by oppressive regimes (which I do not support). Having said that, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s contribution to ARR’s Vande Mataram did not endear us to Pakistan. We applauded Nusrat’s nice gesture and enjoyed his music, but were very clear where we stood a couple of years later during the Kargil War. So, my point is this, arts and sports and trade and cultural exchanges are amazing and I fully support them, but not when the sincerity of the target government is in question.
So am I profiling all Pakistanis unfairly and saying that the players are to be treated hostile? Hell no! I am just of the view that governments of both countries are using non-political contact in the wrong sense. They should be used to promote and maintain good relations, not be used as a cover for political incompetence. The bottom line is that these ties are not helping the big picture. And let’s face it – IPL is not a cultural endeavor by either governments, and to debaters who say peace talks need not be government initiated, let me say not for a moment do I think IPL is a any form of peace talk between the two countries. It is just a big, starry, fun-filled show out of which people make huge sums of money. I don’t think Modi or any of the team owners or the players themselves think of it otherwise. It’s no more a contact building endeavor than the Oscars.
All this could have been avoided had the Indian government been bold enough to take a stand on the whole Pak players in India. None of the politicians had the balls to say Pak players are banned or for that matter assure them and the teams that they are safe were they to come to India. The government was and still is an embarrassment in this particular aspect. Things were not helped by the slimy BCCI either. And who can blame the team owners for not taking Pak players? Imagine they pay dear money to buy a Pak player and there are visa issues or Sena tantrums and are not allowed to play. I mean, they are businesspeople and nothing more should be expected of them. But we needn’t have humiliated the Pak players by taking them in for the auction and not picking them. That is unforgivable.
Coming to the Seniacs (note my word play on maniacs). I think they are unreasonable, undemocratic, regressive people who should be banned. Although I may seem to agree in principle to what Thackrey has been shouting about, as far as this issue is concerned, I have nothing but disapproval in response to the kind of tactics he employs to convey it. What has the country come to when a Minister has to go to a thug and give a presentation for his ‘approval’ for playing in a state that he does not govern in the first place? He is not in power, he is not a cricketer, he has not invested in the League and more importantly, has done absolutely nothing for him to label an Indian unpatriotic. I respect democracy far too much for me to ever support his ways. I am not a Maharastrian, so cannot say how legitimate his ‘fight’ for the Marathi manoos is, but whatever the justification, I cannot digest autocracy. A big no to moral policing, a big no to regionalism, a big no to racial profiling and a huge-ass no to Shiv Sena and its ilk.
So what do I feel about the whole episode?
Phew! So, who do you think is gonna win the IPL this year?
I will not go into why I don’t like SRK, but it is important for anyone getting into an argument with me after reading this to know that I don’t hate him either and I have not allowed either to influence my view on the topic.
Why I have not become a fan of his after his comments is simply because I do not agree with his view point. I honestly believe India should put all non-political ties with Pakistan on hold till we ease the political tension. Now, many of you may argue that this is precisely why arts and sports should carry on, I think not. I believe that cultural ties (broadly speaking) with Pakistan will not heal the wounds of the past, instead, will numb it. To draw a line from The Last Lecture, treat the disease, not the symptoms. I understand the need to nurse the symptoms and it seems logical – when the disease is finally cured, these symptoms may trigger a new disease altogether.
Sorry, I just love analogies. What my euphemism implied was that, these cultural connections will help ease the tension on a people-level (the symptoms); they wont stop terrorism or solve the border problem(the disease). So when finally the latter problems are solved, we may find that the people still hate each other and the cause is lost. While this seem logical, I feel this is insufficient. The problems are over 60 years old now and do not seem to improve. Cricket has helped argue some, but I doubt it. I honestly think sports and arts are far too insignificant when the flip side is carnage. And boycotting miscreants is not new to sports – South Africa was banned from a majority of the sports during the apartheid regime, the Moscow Olympics was boycotted during the Afghan invasion and many more such instances. Unfortunately for my argument, but positively overall, art has no boundaries and it is not practical to ban one country’s art in another, though even that has been done in the past by oppressive regimes (which I do not support). Having said that, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s contribution to ARR’s Vande Mataram did not endear us to Pakistan. We applauded Nusrat’s nice gesture and enjoyed his music, but were very clear where we stood a couple of years later during the Kargil War. So, my point is this, arts and sports and trade and cultural exchanges are amazing and I fully support them, but not when the sincerity of the target government is in question.
So am I profiling all Pakistanis unfairly and saying that the players are to be treated hostile? Hell no! I am just of the view that governments of both countries are using non-political contact in the wrong sense. They should be used to promote and maintain good relations, not be used as a cover for political incompetence. The bottom line is that these ties are not helping the big picture. And let’s face it – IPL is not a cultural endeavor by either governments, and to debaters who say peace talks need not be government initiated, let me say not for a moment do I think IPL is a any form of peace talk between the two countries. It is just a big, starry, fun-filled show out of which people make huge sums of money. I don’t think Modi or any of the team owners or the players themselves think of it otherwise. It’s no more a contact building endeavor than the Oscars.
All this could have been avoided had the Indian government been bold enough to take a stand on the whole Pak players in India. None of the politicians had the balls to say Pak players are banned or for that matter assure them and the teams that they are safe were they to come to India. The government was and still is an embarrassment in this particular aspect. Things were not helped by the slimy BCCI either. And who can blame the team owners for not taking Pak players? Imagine they pay dear money to buy a Pak player and there are visa issues or Sena tantrums and are not allowed to play. I mean, they are businesspeople and nothing more should be expected of them. But we needn’t have humiliated the Pak players by taking them in for the auction and not picking them. That is unforgivable.
Coming to the Seniacs (note my word play on maniacs). I think they are unreasonable, undemocratic, regressive people who should be banned. Although I may seem to agree in principle to what Thackrey has been shouting about, as far as this issue is concerned, I have nothing but disapproval in response to the kind of tactics he employs to convey it. What has the country come to when a Minister has to go to a thug and give a presentation for his ‘approval’ for playing in a state that he does not govern in the first place? He is not in power, he is not a cricketer, he has not invested in the League and more importantly, has done absolutely nothing for him to label an Indian unpatriotic. I respect democracy far too much for me to ever support his ways. I am not a Maharastrian, so cannot say how legitimate his ‘fight’ for the Marathi manoos is, but whatever the justification, I cannot digest autocracy. A big no to moral policing, a big no to regionalism, a big no to racial profiling and a huge-ass no to Shiv Sena and its ilk.
So what do I feel about the whole episode?
- The Pak players should have been treated far more courteously.
- The disease needs to be treated and the symptoms will treat themselves.
- The governments have to get a pair of balls each.
- The Shiv Sena and MNS (to name a couple) have no right to tell the rest of the country (or other countries) what to do.
- The entire episode should not be confused with patriotism, or the lack of it.
Phew! So, who do you think is gonna win the IPL this year?
Alive and Dead...part 3
This was supposed to be the last post in this genre of sorts but due to the encouragement i have got from most of you, I intend to continue writing on related topics as long as i can. Plus it wouldnt be fair, if i spent soooo much time discussing the basic postulates and ideas of QM and only spend little time on all the weird things it predicts which is where ALL the fun lies :) (rubs hands in glee)
After i used the coin toss experiment as the example to state the basic ideas, i was asked by those who already had a fair idea of QM why i didnt use the infamous Schrodeingers cat example. Well i had my reasons. For one, i was saving the best for last and the cat is definitely one of the best :) and i did not want to confuse anyone (lol as if i have not already!!). I did plan to use the cat as the example to explain the basic ideas but then i felt it would be ironic to use the very thought experiment that the legendary Schrodinger came up with to ridicule the results we would get if we simply extended QM to the world around us.
Before I explain what the worlds most famous cat is all about, I need to tell you people about something called the Copenhagen interpretation. It is just how a bunch of scientists, notably Bohr decided to interpret QM in..well u guessed it..Copenhagen (these physicists arent very creative with names are they??). It is the most widely accepted interpretation of the ideas.In short its what I have stated already in part-2 but these guys decided to give it a really really cool name.
A quick review of what these guys said, so that u dont have to go to part-2 and recheck it: 1) if the 2 possible states of a system is X(like heads) or Y( like tails), then any in between state called the superposition is also possible(and there are infinite number of them!!)-->which is like both X and Y at the same time!! 2)the moment u try to observe/measure the system it will "collapse" and give you either X or Y only!! Cool??
The Schrodinger cat experiment is just an experiment to oppose the way the Copenhagen gumbal interpreted QM.Ok now this is how the experiment was setup (note: no real animals were actually used in the experiment!! lol its just a thought experiment like Einsteins box, Wieners friend and my personal fav Maxwells demon) Now lets say there is this big big box in which this experiment is going to take place. We are outside the box and there is no way for us to know whats happening inside until we open and see. Now inside the box there is a substance(lets call it chemical X...aah i do miss the powerpuff girls!!) ,a cat and a Geiger counter( which is just an instrument to measure radiation/light whatever..nothing fancy!!) which is connected to a gun or laser or bomb or poison or knife..ur choice, as long as it can kill a cat!! Notice i said just a cat..i will not mention live or dead cat, because i cant possibly know yet!! I am on the outside :) (cue on the outside by stained!! \m/ )...confused already?? read on...
Now lets say this chemical X is such that, it may emit radiation( light is very simple terms) or it may not. And the counter is such that if it detects light it will activate the poison gas and kill the cat and do nothing if it doesnt detect anything. So this basically implies if X gives out light, the cat dies and if it doesnt,the cat lives. Since X can be in a state where it gives out light or in a state where it doesnt, the Copenhagen interpretation implies that the chemical can be in any state between the two: a state where it is giving out light and not giving out light at the same time.
Now just extend this to the cat and behold what happens!! Since the cats life depends on chemical X, its in state "alive" when X doesnt do anything and "dead" when X emits light. Sooooo if X is in a state between those two, then so is the cat!! Its somewhere in a state when it both alive and dead at the same time!!
"Ooooohhh that sounds incredible!!! Cant i just take a quick peek in and see what an "alive and dead" cat looks like very quickly? I promise to make it real quick." Hmmm well go ahead, you can try but u wont be able to!! Why not?? Simple, the other part of the Copenhagen interpretation, you observing will destroy the system and what you will find is either a live cat OR a dead one.
Hmmm so what does this all mean?? That if we dont look, QM predicts that zombies exist?? :D Definitely NOT!! Like I said, it was just Schrodingers way of ridiculing the Copenhagen interpretation. Does this mean QM is of no real use to us?? Can it never be applied to the everyday world around us??Yes it can , QM can be extended to the world around us but it must be done properly. CM can be obtained as a special case of QM...hmmm let me put it in a better way...QM will behave a lot like CM when its applied properly. But because CM works so well for the things around us, it is in no danger of being replaced by QM. Trust me, you do not want to be calculating complex vector products and applying Hermitian operators if someone asked you to find the velocity of a something say a car...as tempting as it might be!! :)
But as we go to the smaller and smaller things, like my prof says, CM fails miserably!! and as out there as it sounds QM very beautifully explains all experimental results.
Anyway I have explained the Schrodinger cat experiment as simple as I can to the best of my knowledge. Like before, if you guys have any questions, hit me on gtalk or leave a comment and i will try and answer to the best I can. oh w8...or else u can BUZZ me :D lol its kinda nice...lets see if it catches on....
natesh
...solving a 12800x12800 matrix :(
ps: this post will definitely not be the last in this miniseries... there are a LOT more fun things to talk about :) trust me if u liked this, u will love what i have planned next :)
After i used the coin toss experiment as the example to state the basic ideas, i was asked by those who already had a fair idea of QM why i didnt use the infamous Schrodeingers cat example. Well i had my reasons. For one, i was saving the best for last and the cat is definitely one of the best :) and i did not want to confuse anyone (lol as if i have not already!!). I did plan to use the cat as the example to explain the basic ideas but then i felt it would be ironic to use the very thought experiment that the legendary Schrodinger came up with to ridicule the results we would get if we simply extended QM to the world around us.
Before I explain what the worlds most famous cat is all about, I need to tell you people about something called the Copenhagen interpretation. It is just how a bunch of scientists, notably Bohr decided to interpret QM in..well u guessed it..Copenhagen (these physicists arent very creative with names are they??). It is the most widely accepted interpretation of the ideas.In short its what I have stated already in part-2 but these guys decided to give it a really really cool name.
A quick review of what these guys said, so that u dont have to go to part-2 and recheck it: 1) if the 2 possible states of a system is X(like heads) or Y( like tails), then any in between state called the superposition is also possible(and there are infinite number of them!!)-->which is like both X and Y at the same time!! 2)the moment u try to observe/measure the system it will "collapse" and give you either X or Y only!! Cool??
The Schrodinger cat experiment is just an experiment to oppose the way the Copenhagen gumbal interpreted QM.Ok now this is how the experiment was setup (note: no real animals were actually used in the experiment!! lol its just a thought experiment like Einsteins box, Wieners friend and my personal fav Maxwells demon) Now lets say there is this big big box in which this experiment is going to take place. We are outside the box and there is no way for us to know whats happening inside until we open and see. Now inside the box there is a substance(lets call it chemical X...aah i do miss the powerpuff girls!!) ,a cat and a Geiger counter( which is just an instrument to measure radiation/light whatever..nothing fancy!!) which is connected to a gun or laser or bomb or poison or knife..ur choice, as long as it can kill a cat!! Notice i said just a cat..i will not mention live or dead cat, because i cant possibly know yet!! I am on the outside :) (cue on the outside by stained!! \m/ )...confused already?? read on...
Now lets say this chemical X is such that, it may emit radiation( light is very simple terms) or it may not. And the counter is such that if it detects light it will activate the poison gas and kill the cat and do nothing if it doesnt detect anything. So this basically implies if X gives out light, the cat dies and if it doesnt,the cat lives. Since X can be in a state where it gives out light or in a state where it doesnt, the Copenhagen interpretation implies that the chemical can be in any state between the two: a state where it is giving out light and not giving out light at the same time.
Now just extend this to the cat and behold what happens!! Since the cats life depends on chemical X, its in state "alive" when X doesnt do anything and "dead" when X emits light. Sooooo if X is in a state between those two, then so is the cat!! Its somewhere in a state when it both alive and dead at the same time!!
"Ooooohhh that sounds incredible!!! Cant i just take a quick peek in and see what an "alive and dead" cat looks like very quickly? I promise to make it real quick." Hmmm well go ahead, you can try but u wont be able to!! Why not?? Simple, the other part of the Copenhagen interpretation, you observing will destroy the system and what you will find is either a live cat OR a dead one.
Hmmm so what does this all mean?? That if we dont look, QM predicts that zombies exist?? :D Definitely NOT!! Like I said, it was just Schrodingers way of ridiculing the Copenhagen interpretation. Does this mean QM is of no real use to us?? Can it never be applied to the everyday world around us??Yes it can , QM can be extended to the world around us but it must be done properly. CM can be obtained as a special case of QM...hmmm let me put it in a better way...QM will behave a lot like CM when its applied properly. But because CM works so well for the things around us, it is in no danger of being replaced by QM. Trust me, you do not want to be calculating complex vector products and applying Hermitian operators if someone asked you to find the velocity of a something say a car...as tempting as it might be!! :)
But as we go to the smaller and smaller things, like my prof says, CM fails miserably!! and as out there as it sounds QM very beautifully explains all experimental results.
Anyway I have explained the Schrodinger cat experiment as simple as I can to the best of my knowledge. Like before, if you guys have any questions, hit me on gtalk or leave a comment and i will try and answer to the best I can. oh w8...or else u can BUZZ me :D lol its kinda nice...lets see if it catches on....
natesh
...solving a 12800x12800 matrix :(
ps: this post will definitely not be the last in this miniseries... there are a LOT more fun things to talk about :) trust me if u liked this, u will love what i have planned next :)
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Life
Guys,
I wanted to write about something on which I had invested almost 5 years of my 22 year old no expiry wine bottle (read life, I am sure many of you must have also) on the highly ranted topic of love. So, going by wiki, love would be classified with three attributes - lust, attraction and attachment. I believe that lust and attraction are basic animal instincts while attachment is what holds a relationship together - brought about by various social procedures, marriages for instance.
As it turns out, there is always a reacher and settler in a relationship. And there is always this unbalanced control of power involved. So the reacher mostly tries to control the settler because he/she knows that she/he is too good for him. In this way, the other half starts living your half and you literally lose your individuality ! That's pretty much what happened to me over the last few years !
Men and women you know obviously look for different things. I love the way John Nash put it in the movie "A beautiful mind" - I find you attractive. Your aggressive moves toward me... indicate that you feel the same way. But still, ritual requires that we continue with a number of platonic activities... before we have sex. I am proceeding with these activities, but in point of actual fact, all I really want to do is have intercourse with you as soon as possible.
People who wish to get into relationship please give a thought on what you are going out for - perhaps all you need is a physical help to your chemical excess and nothing else. I believe friends are the best company you can ever get. Treasure them!
Cheers
VJ
AnjuMani- VM derbys
It is really nice to see Nut actively blogging with his excerpts from Quantum Mechanics; enjoyed reading it, keep it coming. The following write up is strictly devoid of the Newton's, Bohr's and the Heisenberg's; strictly for us lesser mortals.
First, let me give you an introduction about the AnjuMani tournament. Sometime in late Oct-2004, Anuj ( Anju- 12 C ) and Subramanian ( mike mani- 12 A ) decided that a tournament had to be organized in order to determine the best football team in all of the four 12th std sections. They initially named it "AnjuMani memorial tournament"; after getting to know the meaning of memorial and the consequences of the namesake, they changed the name to " AnjuMani". Mani started to write the rules onto the holy grail ( last page of his KPR tuition notebook ) and they were 1. matches would take place under the watchful eyes of Anuj and Mani ( the referees ) 2. matches would be played before after and in-between special classes only on weekends 3. Matches will not be cancelled come rain or snow 4. 2 teams for A section ( due to the large number of footy players), 1 for 12 B and 1 combined team for 12 C and 12 D ( weakest team as each section hardly had any football players ). 5. Seven players in each team including the goal keeper.
Now the team line ups ( to the best of my memory ).
A section " the dependables"- Bajji and Hruday - a dream midfield duo, a left right combination and a goal keepers nightmare; KV- the mini wall ( if I say wall then it will be too much for that face)in defence; Souvik Sen - Gattuso; Vichar- had the goal "covered" ( just for jolly); Bgav- toe poke specialist and " VM volleyball captain"( undisputed LK )- only for verbal reasons .
B section " Inglorious ........" - Nut- Ultimate striker known for his stepovers, Chang- the human treadmill and the best midfielder you can ask for ( my personal favorite ), NK- warning " strikers dont step past him else be ready to face the consequences " , Maggi- goalkeeper par excellence, nothing gets past him.
C and D " the underdogs "- Agent - 100% skill and speed , can win a dying game; Dikki-" bullet shot" goalkeepers beware, you don't want to come between his shot and the goal; Ajoy- " thunder thighs" goal fortified, school's best defender; Panju-" Pires" brilliant in free kicks and crosses; Patt- known to pull off unimaginable saves when least expected; Prashanth- C sections very own NK; Rohit and myself.
For those who played the tournament, here are some unforgettable moments,
1. LK destroys KV: The match was between A and B, the scores were 0-0 , in the final few minutes KV manages a handball. Nut steps up and hits a rocket past vichar. A section won. In the post match session near the cement benches,
LK:" KV bloody bas ne venumne thane hand ball panine, match fixer da ne "
KV( already serious and with loads of guilt): : moditu velaiya paru "
LK: " oru canteen gobi kaga ipidi ya, cha"
KV:" dai ( tears forming )"
LK:" worst da ne, "
KV starts feeling bad, everybody around are happy and start clapping.
2. NUT dikki kita vechukadhey - Finals of AnjuMani between CD and B, scores are 1-1. Nut scores a great goal with 4 minutes or so left. After scoring he comes to Dikki starts swearing at him and shows all possible fingers. Dikki is calm, its our kick off next. I roll the ball to dikki, he shoots from the halfline ( volleyball posts to Bhavani cage ), its an unbelievable goal- a scorcher.
The celebrations begin, dikki gives it back to NUT with interest. Agent me Joy and Patt could not stop laughing. Wat a retort. Guys I am sure you remember this.
Please add as comments your own memories of the tournament.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Alive and Dead...part 2
Alright guys, i am back again after a couple of Lost episodes... I just realised I have been building and hyping the subject up without actually giving anything that can make you go oooooohhhh and aaaaahhhh...i shall not waste anymore of your time, but at this very last moment i shall repeat this---> QM unlike CM is very abstract and something we cant easily relate to, even though i wont be going into the related mathematics of it. QM does lack that intuitive appeal i mentioned before and will be anything but obvious. Ok? Lets start...
Since I am avoiding talking about atoms and electron states, the simplest eg i can think of is that of a simple coin toss. Now this can be heads or tails, which is pretty clear (and this is what CM will equivalently predict) but what QM says is that not only is head and tails possible but so is any "state" between head and tail!! "omggwtff??" you ask... very simple, if u say heads and tails are two possible things a coin toss can give you, the postulates of QM will prove that a state in the form of 0.6head and 0.4tail is also possible!! Note: this is not heads or tails...this is both heads AND tails at the same time!!! What thats just ridiculous?!!?That doesnt even make sense!! Well guess what... its actually possible!!
"Hmmm ok ok, i have known u for years nut and i believe what u just said, as ridiculous as it sounds.Now if these "superposition" (thats what they are called) is also possible, then how come we have never measured it?? surely its not possible that everyone over the course of 1000's of years making millions of measurement missed something so different" Good question!! This is where another postulate of QM kicks in. Lets see if we all agree what measurement is. A measurement in a way is like taking a really really long stick and poking the thing you wanna measure from a distance and see what reading you get. CM assumes that you making a measurement or taking this stick and poking the thing doesnt actually make a difference. A fairly sane assumption if you promise not to poke too hard or for too long. If this actually was true, then your question would be very valid and we should have seen this "superposition" states by now. But QM is more detailed and says you observing( ie measuring) actually does affect the system, infact it affects in a very big way. In such a big way, you actually destroy it!! YOU have caused the system to collapse!! (For those who are really interested, look for the phenomenon of wave collapse) Hmmm so if i destoyed it, will i always get zero as the answer you ask?? Not really, when i say the system collapsed, I meant it collapses to give you a certain set values. Am i sounding too out there?? Cool,I will get back to the coin toss example...what this last few lines means is, if the coin actual could be in heads AND tails (superposition) state,you trying to measure it will cause it to "collapse" and it will end up giving you heads or tails like CM!!
"Aaaahhh thats just highly convenient da nut!! U are effectively saying this "superposition" state exists but you cant show it to me because trying to show me will destroy everything!! yaaru kadhula poo suthare??" My thoughts exactly and ejjactly what i asked my prof but i didnt quite pose it that way!! lol Since i promised not too go into the deep maths of this, my best answer is to just trust me, its how it is, no matter how counter intuitive it sounds. (For those read more on wiki but have some questions, hit me on gtalk and i am up for a talk anytime!! :D ) Now lets stick with the whole coin analogy. QM says if we did the whole coin toss act a very large number of times and find out how many times heads turned up and how many times tails turned( in short there probabilities), you have mathematical thingamajings to back calculate exactly what superposition state it was in!! But I gave you this to indicate that while CM is "deterministic" ie you can say for sure that this what you have, QM is what we called "probabilistic" or everything is a probability!! Yep everything is a probability. It can have a very high probability or low probability but everything comes with a probability!! You dont say anything for sure!!
You can ask me "will you come to school today?"
CM answer: " i will!!" QM answer: "the probability of me coming to school is pretty high"
I think i have basically covered everything as simple as i can possibly can (ps: the truth is, it was put to me in an even simpler way but i am not as good as my prof). I am going to let you guys read over this a couple of times before it makes sense because it took me several days involving sleepless nights and banging my head on the wall kinda action before it started making sense. I will end my mindless rambling with one last post on the various weird things QM can actually predict..some of which is plain ridiculous (even by QM's standards) and some which actually turn out to be true...
Natesh
...trying to calculate the band structure...
PS: To those science students who have come across eigenvalues and the eigen equations, lemme continue a little bit more. The rest,I warn you, I have been raring to become technical and I shall do so here. The various values that system can collapse to is obtained by solving the corresponding eigenvalue equation when acted upon by the respective operators(dont ask...long story!!!)
Why these values?? the truth is we actually dont know!! YES!! A fundamental postulate in the most researched theory in physics and we dont know!!
Why does the system collapse? This was unexplained for a very long time till the theory of decoherence was proposed (a while back).I shall not even try and explain what this is because it gets very very messy and confusing!!
Since I am avoiding talking about atoms and electron states, the simplest eg i can think of is that of a simple coin toss. Now this can be heads or tails, which is pretty clear (and this is what CM will equivalently predict) but what QM says is that not only is head and tails possible but so is any "state" between head and tail!! "omggwtff??" you ask... very simple, if u say heads and tails are two possible things a coin toss can give you, the postulates of QM will prove that a state in the form of 0.6head and 0.4tail is also possible!! Note: this is not heads or tails...this is both heads AND tails at the same time!!! What thats just ridiculous?!!?That doesnt even make sense!! Well guess what... its actually possible!!
"Hmmm ok ok, i have known u for years nut and i believe what u just said, as ridiculous as it sounds.Now if these "superposition" (thats what they are called) is also possible, then how come we have never measured it?? surely its not possible that everyone over the course of 1000's of years making millions of measurement missed something so different" Good question!! This is where another postulate of QM kicks in. Lets see if we all agree what measurement is. A measurement in a way is like taking a really really long stick and poking the thing you wanna measure from a distance and see what reading you get. CM assumes that you making a measurement or taking this stick and poking the thing doesnt actually make a difference. A fairly sane assumption if you promise not to poke too hard or for too long. If this actually was true, then your question would be very valid and we should have seen this "superposition" states by now. But QM is more detailed and says you observing( ie measuring) actually does affect the system, infact it affects in a very big way. In such a big way, you actually destroy it!! YOU have caused the system to collapse!! (For those who are really interested, look for the phenomenon of wave collapse) Hmmm so if i destoyed it, will i always get zero as the answer you ask?? Not really, when i say the system collapsed, I meant it collapses to give you a certain set values. Am i sounding too out there?? Cool,I will get back to the coin toss example...what this last few lines means is, if the coin actual could be in heads AND tails (superposition) state,you trying to measure it will cause it to "collapse" and it will end up giving you heads or tails like CM!!
"Aaaahhh thats just highly convenient da nut!! U are effectively saying this "superposition" state exists but you cant show it to me because trying to show me will destroy everything!! yaaru kadhula poo suthare??" My thoughts exactly and ejjactly what i asked my prof but i didnt quite pose it that way!! lol Since i promised not too go into the deep maths of this, my best answer is to just trust me, its how it is, no matter how counter intuitive it sounds. (For those read more on wiki but have some questions, hit me on gtalk and i am up for a talk anytime!! :D ) Now lets stick with the whole coin analogy. QM says if we did the whole coin toss act a very large number of times and find out how many times heads turned up and how many times tails turned( in short there probabilities), you have mathematical thingamajings to back calculate exactly what superposition state it was in!! But I gave you this to indicate that while CM is "deterministic" ie you can say for sure that this what you have, QM is what we called "probabilistic" or everything is a probability!! Yep everything is a probability. It can have a very high probability or low probability but everything comes with a probability!! You dont say anything for sure!!
You can ask me "will you come to school today?"
CM answer: " i will!!" QM answer: "the probability of me coming to school is pretty high"
I think i have basically covered everything as simple as i can possibly can (ps: the truth is, it was put to me in an even simpler way but i am not as good as my prof). I am going to let you guys read over this a couple of times before it makes sense because it took me several days involving sleepless nights and banging my head on the wall kinda action before it started making sense. I will end my mindless rambling with one last post on the various weird things QM can actually predict..some of which is plain ridiculous (even by QM's standards) and some which actually turn out to be true...
Natesh
...trying to calculate the band structure...
PS: To those science students who have come across eigenvalues and the eigen equations, lemme continue a little bit more. The rest,I warn you, I have been raring to become technical and I shall do so here. The various values that system can collapse to is obtained by solving the corresponding eigenvalue equation when acted upon by the respective operators(dont ask...long story!!!)
Why these values?? the truth is we actually dont know!! YES!! A fundamental postulate in the most researched theory in physics and we dont know!!
Why does the system collapse? This was unexplained for a very long time till the theory of decoherence was proposed (a while back).I shall not even try and explain what this is because it gets very very messy and confusing!!
Alive and Dead...part 1
No no no, i am not talking about blog...its pretty much heading towards the dead side but NOO we shall not let it...COME ONNN!!
I was hoping the blog would be overflowing with posts by now...tch tch...but since its not,u are forcing me to do the unthinkable...I wanted to post some mindless timepass but i am actually going to post something that could be useful, maybe even a little educational...
Before I dive into what i was about to write, I want to share a small anecdote which now brings a smile to my face everytime I think about it. It was about 5 yrs ago and many of you here were sitting with me in KPR's sirs class(I respect that man too much to even imagine not calling him sir even on paper!!) ...anyways i am digressing, it was before the board exams and we were discussing one of his revision papers which we had answered a while ago. As he was giving out the answers, one of our pasanga(think adi it was you) gets up and asks sir if the answer could be X and Y. He looks up and in his usual low voice says "U can be either be dead OR alive but not dead AND alive at the same time". It was a good analogy to counter the doubt and we had a good laugh.
Fast forward many years ahead, to about a few months before i write this and I open the wikipedia page for Schrodingers cat--> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrödinger's_cat To those who did get this and its immense significance, u need not read on but for those who this page left you with more questions than answers, let me introduce you to the wonderful journey that is Quantum Mechanics(QM). No no do not worry, the rest of this post will not be technical and filled with complex equations, though they do form an integral part of it. I shall for the most part explain the basic ideas in simple words and convey what i know and leave you wondering on how beautiful and mysterious the world around us works.
U might ask...now wait a second, werent you studying electrical engineering?? Isnt quantum mechanics a very "physics" like subject? When and how did you end up learning it? and is it possible to even put something that is sooooooo scary in simple words??
Yes quantum theory for the most part deals with atoms,molecules and all the small thingys but with our electronic gadgets becoming smaller by the day, the need for electrical engineers to know this theory is quickly becoming very relevant. And yes, believe it or not, it is actually POSSIBLE to state the basic ideas of quantum mechanics in simple words. For many yrs now, like many others, I too have related the vast subject of QM with complex equations and derivations running for miles but over the course of the last 6 months, I have been shown that it is only one small part of what is undoubtedly the most powerful theory available!! And for this I shall forever be thankful to Prof.NGA, my QM teacher and academic advisor.
If you guys havent realised it already, I have developed an unhealthy obsession for the subject devouring whatever i can get my hands on, and it gets me excited everytime i find something new that it so brilliantly predicts!!(yes yes i need a life, and maybe a girlfriend as well lol). As gun once said, "i will marry QM if i can"!!, well he didnt say QM, he was talking about math but i definitely will!!
Lets start with a little history shall we...we all know our Newtons laws and the physics based on those 3 laws is referred to as Classical mechanics(CM). For a very very long time, to almost about 120 yrs ago, CM was considered to be the end of physics, it seemed to explain everything so nicely-from planetary motion to our everyday world with a very good degree of accuracy and the 3 laws had what we scientists (ahem ahem :P ) call "intuitive appeal". U read newtons laws and it makes sense dont they? It makes sense to a level that you think "hmmm thats quite obvious, why did he have to call that a law!! its common sense!! stoopid newton!!" The reason for this is that the laws fit beautifully with things around you and u can relate to them. You see a table in your room and if your not moving it with some force, it wont move but always stay there aka Newtons 1st law. I will come back to this intuitive appeal again. Anyway we had CM and everyone was happy, but...but... a few scientists went poking around with atoms and did this experiment and that and found that the experimental data was quite contrary to what CM says it would be. (To the science students, these will include experiments with black body radiation, the photoelectric effect, atomic spectrum, etc) Anyways the most notable among those who proposed a quantum theory( note: quantum comes from the greek word 'quanta' meaning discrete amounts) include Max Planck (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Planck) and Niels Bohr(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Bohr). Note that both went onto receive the Nobel for there work in this theory. However their ideas werent so widely accepted at first because it meant leaving the safety and comfort of CM and embracing something new and possibly dangerous (in its implications) :)
If you were to look into the history of science, the stories of Bohr is actually quite interesting. The final boost to QM came from Einstein himself who suggested something quite revolutionary (which later is the wave-particle duality proved by DeBroglie in his Phd dissertation!!! oops.. getting a little too technical??) Anyway Bohr strongly opposed Einsteins idea even though it would perfectly support the idea of QM. However Einstein later went on to prove his idea(through photoelectric effect) and receieved the Nobel for it.(Yes it is amazing that Einstein did not actually get the Nobel for his e=mc^2, the worlds most famous equation!!) Anyway Bohr did an whole 180 shift and embraced the idea which he had once vehemently opposed(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohr–Einstein_debates). To balance the books, Einstein became less loyal to the QM he had helped prove when Heisenberg came up with the very famous Uncertainity Principle...the very famous statement by Einstein "God doesnt play dice" is a small jab at this principle. Anyway this is how the theory began and from then onwards, it hasnt stopped with more and more scientists coming up whole new ideas that shook the very way we viewed things, soon leaving the realm of science and venturing into the philosophical and metaphysical!!
I promised to state the basic postulates but digressed a little too much into the history...I shall stop here and let you catch your breathe and prepare yourself for the mind boggling journey ahead(if you are brave enof to take it)...
natesh
how deep does the rabbit hole run??
ps: agent, i hope u are reading this...hopefully it should help you understand the QM part in study of dreams if you come across it..
I was hoping the blog would be overflowing with posts by now...tch tch...but since its not,u are forcing me to do the unthinkable...I wanted to post some mindless timepass but i am actually going to post something that could be useful, maybe even a little educational...
Before I dive into what i was about to write, I want to share a small anecdote which now brings a smile to my face everytime I think about it. It was about 5 yrs ago and many of you here were sitting with me in KPR's sirs class(I respect that man too much to even imagine not calling him sir even on paper!!) ...anyways i am digressing, it was before the board exams and we were discussing one of his revision papers which we had answered a while ago. As he was giving out the answers, one of our pasanga(think adi it was you) gets up and asks sir if the answer could be X and Y. He looks up and in his usual low voice says "U can be either be dead OR alive but not dead AND alive at the same time". It was a good analogy to counter the doubt and we had a good laugh.
Fast forward many years ahead, to about a few months before i write this and I open the wikipedia page for Schrodingers cat--> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrödinger's_cat To those who did get this and its immense significance, u need not read on but for those who this page left you with more questions than answers, let me introduce you to the wonderful journey that is Quantum Mechanics(QM). No no do not worry, the rest of this post will not be technical and filled with complex equations, though they do form an integral part of it. I shall for the most part explain the basic ideas in simple words and convey what i know and leave you wondering on how beautiful and mysterious the world around us works.
U might ask...now wait a second, werent you studying electrical engineering?? Isnt quantum mechanics a very "physics" like subject? When and how did you end up learning it? and is it possible to even put something that is sooooooo scary in simple words??
Yes quantum theory for the most part deals with atoms,molecules and all the small thingys but with our electronic gadgets becoming smaller by the day, the need for electrical engineers to know this theory is quickly becoming very relevant. And yes, believe it or not, it is actually POSSIBLE to state the basic ideas of quantum mechanics in simple words. For many yrs now, like many others, I too have related the vast subject of QM with complex equations and derivations running for miles but over the course of the last 6 months, I have been shown that it is only one small part of what is undoubtedly the most powerful theory available!! And for this I shall forever be thankful to Prof.NGA, my QM teacher and academic advisor.
If you guys havent realised it already, I have developed an unhealthy obsession for the subject devouring whatever i can get my hands on, and it gets me excited everytime i find something new that it so brilliantly predicts!!(yes yes i need a life, and maybe a girlfriend as well lol). As gun once said, "i will marry QM if i can"!!, well he didnt say QM, he was talking about math but i definitely will!!
Lets start with a little history shall we...we all know our Newtons laws and the physics based on those 3 laws is referred to as Classical mechanics(CM). For a very very long time, to almost about 120 yrs ago, CM was considered to be the end of physics, it seemed to explain everything so nicely-from planetary motion to our everyday world with a very good degree of accuracy and the 3 laws had what we scientists (ahem ahem :P ) call "intuitive appeal". U read newtons laws and it makes sense dont they? It makes sense to a level that you think "hmmm thats quite obvious, why did he have to call that a law!! its common sense!! stoopid newton!!" The reason for this is that the laws fit beautifully with things around you and u can relate to them. You see a table in your room and if your not moving it with some force, it wont move but always stay there aka Newtons 1st law. I will come back to this intuitive appeal again. Anyway we had CM and everyone was happy, but...but... a few scientists went poking around with atoms and did this experiment and that and found that the experimental data was quite contrary to what CM says it would be. (To the science students, these will include experiments with black body radiation, the photoelectric effect, atomic spectrum, etc) Anyways the most notable among those who proposed a quantum theory( note: quantum comes from the greek word 'quanta' meaning discrete amounts) include Max Planck (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Planck) and Niels Bohr(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Bohr). Note that both went onto receive the Nobel for there work in this theory. However their ideas werent so widely accepted at first because it meant leaving the safety and comfort of CM and embracing something new and possibly dangerous (in its implications) :)
If you were to look into the history of science, the stories of Bohr is actually quite interesting. The final boost to QM came from Einstein himself who suggested something quite revolutionary (which later is the wave-particle duality proved by DeBroglie in his Phd dissertation!!! oops.. getting a little too technical??) Anyway Bohr strongly opposed Einsteins idea even though it would perfectly support the idea of QM. However Einstein later went on to prove his idea(through photoelectric effect) and receieved the Nobel for it.(Yes it is amazing that Einstein did not actually get the Nobel for his e=mc^2, the worlds most famous equation!!) Anyway Bohr did an whole 180 shift and embraced the idea which he had once vehemently opposed(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohr–Einstein_debates). To balance the books, Einstein became less loyal to the QM he had helped prove when Heisenberg came up with the very famous Uncertainity Principle...the very famous statement by Einstein "God doesnt play dice" is a small jab at this principle. Anyway this is how the theory began and from then onwards, it hasnt stopped with more and more scientists coming up whole new ideas that shook the very way we viewed things, soon leaving the realm of science and venturing into the philosophical and metaphysical!!
I promised to state the basic postulates but digressed a little too much into the history...I shall stop here and let you catch your breathe and prepare yourself for the mind boggling journey ahead(if you are brave enof to take it)...
natesh
how deep does the rabbit hole run??
ps: agent, i hope u are reading this...hopefully it should help you understand the QM part in study of dreams if you come across it..
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