thescian | November 30, 2007Nature talks of the paradox where military generals have helped science more than politicians.
Next year will be the 50th anniversary of Pakistan's first fully fledged military coup. In 1958, it fell to General Mohammad Ayub Khan to "save the nation" from what he called "discredited politicians", and later to offer himself up for election to consolidate his power. Today's general is a different one, but the justification for continued martial law sounds depressingly familiar.
Such governance may be undemocratic, but both science and education tend to receive more investment when the generals…
thescian | November 29, 2007Starting shortly at The Royal Society. I am going to see if I can plug into the webcast.
thescian | November 28, 2007Why do Indian women drape their sari on the left shoulder normally? Is it just because of the preponderance of right handedness (so draping over left shoulder is just a bit more convenient) or is there some other reason?
thescian | November 27, 2007 An eligible beebs reporter tries out scientific algorithmic superior proven and utterly amazing match-making advertised in some websites.
"The website then uses what statisticians call a regression equation to determine what sort of person I would be best matched with, according to my character and how that fits with historical data about other people's relationships.
The company says it's identified 99 distinct factors found in successful relationships. Another dating site says there are 29 - its mathematical match-making is based on research it says it's done on 10,000 married couples…
thescian | November 27, 2007A summary in WSJ about the state of affairs for OLPC.[via reddit] The discussion is not very much about what really makes an OLPC. It is more about how Intel, Microsoft and other companies are actively subverting it and how governments in many countries are weighing their options - not all in favor of OLPC.
The decision to buy Intel's Classmate over OLPC, someone is quoted as saying, is a no-brainer. And, it's precisely that. If kids and those in government have no brains, they should buy a proprietary system with a proprietary hardware/software and sign-up for multi-year maintenance…
thescian | November 26, 2007Only in Singara Chennai. During my seven years of madras monkey business I traveled by hanging onto a window rail with my left hand small finger like a gibbon. Never once did I have the privilege of seeing a wheel coming off, or even a screw popping out. Although, once the axle connecting the back wheels snapped and I sort of laid on the rails at a degree and grinned at those profusely sweating and praying for their lives inside the bus. Glory days in homeland...
thescian | November 26, 2007The Big Sleep at NY Times
Until the 20th century, few people needed money. Apart from salt and iron, everything could be paid for in kind. Economic activity was more a means of making the time pass than of making money, which might explain why one of the few winter industries in the Alps was clock-making. Tinkering with tiny mechanisms made time pass less slowly, and the clocks themselves proved that it was indeed passing.
The last bit is an astute observation! It could, of course, be completely wrong, but still..
thescian | November 25, 2007 The past week has been one long workout. Over the course of the week, I've wrestled with instruments of great power: two electric saws (one light weight, one heavy duty), sander, drill, and a few others for whom I haven't yet worked out what their purpose is. Along the way I have learnt plastering techniques, sanding, using a plumbline (just hang it from above, and don't breath hard on it), wallpapering around an unreacheable corner (you don't do it), floorboarding, and more. We could've hired someone to do it, but the opportunity to learn and sort out things for yourself is hard to let go…
thescian | November 21, 2007I was listening to The Salmon of Doubt, the posthumously published book with material collected from the computer used by Douglas Adams. Douglas Adams: what a brilliant, witty and fabulously engaging man!
His sharp and hilarious analysis of the phrase "it turns out" is a great Adamsian moment:
"..am I alone in finding the expression 'it turns out' to be incredibly useful? It allows you to make swift, succinct, and authoritative connections between otherwise randomly unconnected statements without the trouble of explaining what your source or authority actually is. It's great. It's hugely…
thescian | November 19, 2007Day before yesterday we locked ourselves out of our home. We left the key in the keyhole on the inside and closed the door on our way out. When we came back, our spare key refused to go help because the keyhole was being occupied. Damn keys! Can't they all get along! After some minutes of me wrangling with the door and being impolite to it, Ramya's nimble hands came to our rescue. She sent her thin hands in through the mail opening in the door and used a long forceps to gently shake the inside key out. We had a few people on the road wondering if they should call the police about a possible…
thescian | November 14, 2007I made an error - corrected hastily before anyone could notice - in the last post that Ramya (wife, proof reader, grammar nazi) noticed, and then proceeded to give me a grave and admonishing look.
So, here's the rule for when to use "it's" and when to use "its": Use "it's" when you can use "it is", eveywhere else use "its".
Now, venture forth and conquer the world, thou proud grammaticus constructivus!
thescian | November 14, 2007If there's a comet that should contain its enthusiasm, it's this. Such a large ego in so little a package, like a baby wearing adult's shirt and gaily roaming around the house! From the linked page: Formerly, the Sun was the largest object in the Solar System. Now, comet 17P/Holmes holds that distinction.
Spectacular outbursting comet 17P/Holmes exploded in size and brightness on October 24. It continues to expand and is now the largest single object in the Solar system, being bigger than the Sun
I suppose, like me, you have a minor quibble with how 'big' is defined. I mean, where do you…
thescian | November 13, 2007RustyNeurons fired (previous post comment) a timely reminder. Ah. Prompted by my empty purse, I had deliberately forgotten ;-).
Here's the update: I have read all the stories and have written out detailed comments for three stories (one placed at first, two at second). I have also planned to write out comments for a few other good stories.
The comments will be sent out to the authors in another few days and I will bug them every day for an updated/polished version by the month end. Then, we shall have them up for your reading pleasure. Winners will get their prize by december along with a…
thescian | November 11, 2007Ladies and gentlemen, on this depressing monday morning of overcast skies and sullen dew drops, I present to your ungodly eyes a technology offering found at the beebs. A n Islamic car.
The Malaysian carmaker Proton has announced plans to develop an "Islamic car", designed for Muslim motorists.
Proton is planning on teaming up with manufacturers in Iran and Turkey to create the unique vehicle.
The car could boast special features like a compass pointing to Mecca and a dedicated space to keep a copy of the Koran and a headscarf.
A demostration of our remarkable ability to co-opt technology…
thescian | November 9, 2007A moving and passionate presentation. Watch and learn.
[link via Abi]
A few lines I noted down to think about:
ACCESS TO CULTURE, NEUTRAL PLATFORM TO SHARE BOTH FREE AND NON-FREE CONTENT
WE MUST LEGALIZE WHAT IT IS TO BE YOUNG, LET THE KIDS PLAY
THIS AGE OF PROHIBITIONS IS CORROSIVE TO KIDS, IT IS DEEPLY DEEPLY CORRUPTING, EXTERME BEGETS EXTREME
thescian | November 9, 2007Well, forget about it. You haven't got it, whether you tried exercising it or not.
Police in India wrongfully arrested and detained a Bangalore man for 50 days after internet service provider Airtel mis-identified him as the person who posted images on Orkut that insulted a revered historical figure.
Lakshmana Kailash K., a 26-year-old techie, was arrested at his home on August 31 and transported to Pune, more than 10 hours away, according to news reports. He was held for 50 days and was released three weeks after police claimed to have apprehended the real people responsible for the posting…
thescian | November 7, 2007Register reports of a pilot program to monitor kids using RFID in Doncaster. The boss of the firm that did the pilot sez
"The system saves valuable lesson time, often wasted in registration and monitoring, while ensuring parents of their children's security. And there's the additional benefit of reduced costs in replacing school uniforms that have gone astray."
Bullshit. And, muhaha. If that's the sales pitch and schools are falling for it, britons have buried Orwell and 1984 once for all. The technology has its uses but schoolkids ain't it. We don't need to scar children with our…
thescian | November 5, 2007I found out today that it's the kitchen through the process of looking and then looking closer. Here's a nominal list of places to verify this truth:
1. Behind the refridgerator
2. Under the kitchen cabinets, near the wall-end
3. Behind the sink tap
4. On the wall right behind the sink tap
5. Wall and counter top around the mixer/grinder
6. Mixer and grinder
7. Around the supporting legs of the kitchen cabinet
8. Under the dirty feet of humans, cats and canines raiding the kitchen
Our kitchen is like a miniature amazon forest, full of bacterial colonies that literally thrive under our noses.…