Saw this prg. on TV - Discovery- last weekend! It was absolutely Fantastic! Search for "Elegant Universe" + "Einstein's Dream" on Google and log into Discovery Online...I'll try and post more links later...no time to value-add now.. :(
Okay! Here's an update - I bought the book "The elegant universe" by Brian Greene the day before! It is all about man's quest to unify the theory of gravity, electromagnetism and the nuclear forces into one theory dubbed as the theory of everything/string theory/M theory....interesting stuff if you love physics/want to know more about our universe and where it began...
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Kerala's Akshaya project wins global IT award- The Economic Times
Why can't the other states in India learn from Kerala? Why aren't we making use of the concepts of Knowledge Sharing and Collaboration? Why doesn't the central government wield the stick and make it happen? Oh, God! I want to see India transform into the 'best' country on earth overnight...or at least maybe before I die...(which is hopefully not overnight! ) ;-)
Monday, August 29, 2005
Of conversations and their entertainment value...
Caveat: There's nothing profound about this post. And you may not even find it as funny as I did. It's just a conversation...reported on a blog. For variety's sake you may think...And don't ask me how I remembered the coversation down to the Ho...it's only an approximate reconstruction, that's all :)
A couple of days ago, I had a meeting to attend during my regular lunch time and therefore asked my lunch-friends to carry on for lunch without me. I finished the meeting and went in for a quick bite as I had to come back for another meeting in less than 20 minutes. Once in the lunch room, I jumped on to the nearest vacant seat where 2 guys were almost through with their lunch. They were having a conversation in Tamil. Of course, given that I understand Tamil and was very much within earshot, I’d forcibly ‘joined’ the conversation. (What do you do in such cases? It is something of an ethical dilemma. You don’t want to eavesdrop, you can’t you plug your ears, or even tell them “hey, stop talking…I am here and understand what you’re talking, so if it’s anything personal, you may want to wait till you’re alone”). So I just went about my business of eating and was in for some 'entertainment'! They were obviously in the middle of a conversation but it was one that could be ‘joined’ by anyone anytime. (Following is a rough (especially the laughter) narration of what transpired between the 2 aforementioned people,. Ha ha hee hee. :-) And, of course, the conversation has been translated into English for everyone’s benefit)
First Guy: “So, he hasn’t mentioned it to his organization?”
Second Guy: “Yes”
First Guy: “Is there a rule or something that people who join XYZ (he named an IT organization) are not supposed to get married for the first one year? Is there a bond to that effect? Ha ha ho ho”
Second Guy: “Ha ha ho ho ho ho”
{pause}
Second Guy: “Actually, the students who join organizations from Campus will want a job so badly that they might even agree if the organization instructs them to remain unmarried for life! Ha ha ha ho ho”
First Guy: “Haaaa ha ho ho ho ha”
{pause}
First Guy: “So, what’s happening? You’ve told your parents?”
Second Guy: “mmmm,…………..she’s asking me if I’ve traveled abroad, if I’ve traveled to the USA, if I have a H1B Visa!”
First Guy: “Don’t tell me! They even ask you if you’ve got a H1B Visa? Ridiculous”
Second Guy:”Yes, it’s really crazy! Looks like they’ll get married to anyone who has a H1B Visa….even if there’s nothing else!”
{long pause leading to a change of topic}
First Guy: “You know these companies, when they interview candidates, they decide on the compensation based on the behaviour! If you respect the interviewers, they assume that you are ignorant and ask you to settle for something less. If you’re arrogant and don’t respect them…say sit in an arrogant posture or something…they immediately assume that you know a lot and offer you a better pay packet!”
First Guy (again): “What kind of a policy (attitude?) is it? It is something that the company is using to belittle itself…something that the company follows to make itself look ugly!”
First Guy and Second Guy: Ha ha haaa ha ha ho ho
__________________
:-) That’s all folks! (Yours truly made her exit at this point)
A couple of days ago, I had a meeting to attend during my regular lunch time and therefore asked my lunch-friends to carry on for lunch without me. I finished the meeting and went in for a quick bite as I had to come back for another meeting in less than 20 minutes. Once in the lunch room, I jumped on to the nearest vacant seat where 2 guys were almost through with their lunch. They were having a conversation in Tamil. Of course, given that I understand Tamil and was very much within earshot, I’d forcibly ‘joined’ the conversation. (What do you do in such cases? It is something of an ethical dilemma. You don’t want to eavesdrop, you can’t you plug your ears, or even tell them “hey, stop talking…I am here and understand what you’re talking, so if it’s anything personal, you may want to wait till you’re alone”). So I just went about my business of eating and was in for some 'entertainment'! They were obviously in the middle of a conversation but it was one that could be ‘joined’ by anyone anytime. (Following is a rough (especially the laughter) narration of what transpired between the 2 aforementioned people,. Ha ha hee hee. :-) And, of course, the conversation has been translated into English for everyone’s benefit)
First Guy: “So, he hasn’t mentioned it to his organization?”
Second Guy: “Yes”
First Guy: “Is there a rule or something that people who join XYZ (he named an IT organization) are not supposed to get married for the first one year? Is there a bond to that effect? Ha ha ho ho”
Second Guy: “Ha ha ho ho ho ho”
{pause}
Second Guy: “Actually, the students who join organizations from Campus will want a job so badly that they might even agree if the organization instructs them to remain unmarried for life! Ha ha ha ho ho”
First Guy: “Haaaa ha ho ho ho ha”
{pause}
First Guy: “So, what’s happening? You’ve told your parents?”
Second Guy: “mmmm,…………..she’s asking me if I’ve traveled abroad, if I’ve traveled to the USA, if I have a H1B Visa!”
First Guy: “Don’t tell me! They even ask you if you’ve got a H1B Visa? Ridiculous”
Second Guy:”Yes, it’s really crazy! Looks like they’ll get married to anyone who has a H1B Visa….even if there’s nothing else!”
{long pause leading to a change of topic}
First Guy: “You know these companies, when they interview candidates, they decide on the compensation based on the behaviour! If you respect the interviewers, they assume that you are ignorant and ask you to settle for something less. If you’re arrogant and don’t respect them…say sit in an arrogant posture or something…they immediately assume that you know a lot and offer you a better pay packet!”
First Guy (again): “What kind of a policy (attitude?) is it? It is something that the company is using to belittle itself…something that the company follows to make itself look ugly!”
First Guy and Second Guy: Ha ha haaa ha ha ho ho
__________________
:-) That’s all folks! (Yours truly made her exit at this point)
Business without ethics...
Did you know this? (Saw it on a programme on Richard Branson in the History Channel)
British Airways felt threatened by Virgin Atlantic when the latter captured a huge pie of the sky and went on what is apparently known as the ‘Dirty Tricks Campaign’ at Virgin Atlantic. The campaign was about spreading false stories about Virgin – posing as Virgin to tell customers that flights were cancelled, and stealing information! I was shocked! Talk about Business without ethics! BA also paid close to $1 Mill as settlement (I don’t know if it was outside the court). It takes me back to my previous post about organizations not chasing money but an ideal…
British Airways felt threatened by Virgin Atlantic when the latter captured a huge pie of the sky and went on what is apparently known as the ‘Dirty Tricks Campaign’ at Virgin Atlantic. The campaign was about spreading false stories about Virgin – posing as Virgin to tell customers that flights were cancelled, and stealing information! I was shocked! Talk about Business without ethics! BA also paid close to $1 Mill as settlement (I don’t know if it was outside the court). It takes me back to my previous post about organizations not chasing money but an ideal…
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Motivation - Money or Passion?
Q. Money, position and power have limited scope in sustaining a high level of motivation. Then from where should the source of motivation stem from?
Ans. It must stem from a conviction or ideal that is deeply and strongly embedded in our heart. This makes it easy for the individual to dedicate any results and sense of being the doer at the alter of one's ideal or conviction. The institution's interest must be the uppermost objective, overriding the individual's ego. Then, the ideal will bring glory to the institution, society or nation. It is this attitude which has caused great achievements in the fields of science, history, art, literature,engineering and others. Great persons effortlessly spent lifetimes in serving their chosen ideal, and as a result, served society at large by their dedicated work and inspired actions. Ideals and convictions are powerful motivational sources when aligned with an organisation's values.
- R.K. Srinivasa Murthy
_______________________________________
I think the world would be a great place to live in if organizations stopped chasing money and instead focused on making the world a better place to live in...if they started focusing on their passion...I've a lot more to say on this topic. I shall come back....
Ans. It must stem from a conviction or ideal that is deeply and strongly embedded in our heart. This makes it easy for the individual to dedicate any results and sense of being the doer at the alter of one's ideal or conviction. The institution's interest must be the uppermost objective, overriding the individual's ego. Then, the ideal will bring glory to the institution, society or nation. It is this attitude which has caused great achievements in the fields of science, history, art, literature,engineering and others. Great persons effortlessly spent lifetimes in serving their chosen ideal, and as a result, served society at large by their dedicated work and inspired actions. Ideals and convictions are powerful motivational sources when aligned with an organisation's values.
- R.K. Srinivasa Murthy
_______________________________________
I think the world would be a great place to live in if organizations stopped chasing money and instead focused on making the world a better place to live in...if they started focusing on their passion...I've a lot more to say on this topic. I shall come back....
Friday, August 26, 2005
Mr.AB!
Big B, Amitabh Bachchan, is a man that I admire a lot. I have not really been influenced so much by his acting skills or his movies as much as his character. Though there are some movies of his which I’ve enjoyed immensely and I thought his characterization and performance were particularly good in Sholay, Chupke Chupke, Anand and Satte Pe Satta. (Note that I am not a movie buff and haven’t watched all his movies. There may be better movies of his which I’ve missed). What I like him for and what I am enamored by is that he’s a guy who seems to blend sophistication and simplicity with so much ease that it is almost unbelievable. He has an air of dignity and humility, all at the same time! He’s a bundle of nicely amalgamated paradoxes. And, methinks, that’s so difficult to achieve!
Maybe, I’ve posted this before, but I wouldn’t mind saying it again - The first time I was actually impressed was when he said this about his son, Abhishek Bachchan, when asked by an interviewer as to whether he was worried about Abhishek’s image of being a silent and ‘unaware’ person - “I’d rather my son be an ignorant (read ‘a person who doesn’t understand politics’) person than a cheap and cunning fellow!” To add to this, it is inspiring to realize that he is now living his second life or perhaps third life after the famous freak fire accident earlier in his career and of course his well-known losses in business, after an interim retirement from acting, a decade or so ago. It’s amazing how nature has rewarded him for his patience and resilience by getting Bollywood to actually create new movies FOR him - REVOLVING around a man his age and makeup, when there are so many young heroes struggling to make a mark! Life is wonderful and stunning in its methods!
Maybe, I’ve posted this before, but I wouldn’t mind saying it again - The first time I was actually impressed was when he said this about his son, Abhishek Bachchan, when asked by an interviewer as to whether he was worried about Abhishek’s image of being a silent and ‘unaware’ person - “I’d rather my son be an ignorant (read ‘a person who doesn’t understand politics’) person than a cheap and cunning fellow!” To add to this, it is inspiring to realize that he is now living his second life or perhaps third life after the famous freak fire accident earlier in his career and of course his well-known losses in business, after an interim retirement from acting, a decade or so ago. It’s amazing how nature has rewarded him for his patience and resilience by getting Bollywood to actually create new movies FOR him - REVOLVING around a man his age and makeup, when there are so many young heroes struggling to make a mark! Life is wonderful and stunning in its methods!
A great advt.!
Have you seen this new ad on TV for Surf Excel? It was telecast, I think, for the very first time on the eve of Raksha Bandhan. I should say that the ad has bowled me over completely. The kids, the concept, the expressions….everything about it is cute! Kudos to the people who conceptualized the whole thing and to the folks who picked the children out from GOD knows where and got them to act it out so well! I was contemplating narrating the ad on this post, but no, on second thoughts, I decided I ought not to deprive you of the pleasure of watching the original on TV and experiencing it first hand! :). Don’t please miss it; especially if you are either a loving sibling or for that matter a loving parent.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Live Music...on the move
It feels pretty nice to think about how some folks make all the difference to people around them by doing their bit, however small a thing it may be. When I worked with an IT organization in Chennai a few years ago, I used to commute between Purasaivakkam and Egmore everyday. The bus that I used to take was so crowded that it seemed more like we were ‘moving’ the vehicle rather than the other way round. There was a bunch of youngsters –regulars – that traveled on the footboard and dangled on to the bus by (I often think) their nails. Amongst these youngsters were 3 boys who used to sing hit songs from the latest Tamil movies and sometimes add to it an oldie as well! They were loud enough for everyone in the bus to hear and the sound waves reached us folks in the front through the air outside the bus…uncontaminated by the cacophony (if any) inside the bus. It was pretty entertaining because the prerequisites were all in place - The singers had good voices and perhaps some ‘technical’ training as well. Some people in the bus did give them a lukewarm response, perhaps because they were more surprised than entertained and maybe had their share of problems that prevented them from enjoying music. But some of us just loved the entertainment as it made up for lack of radio in the city bus. It was like our very own Top 3 countdown while on the move. :) I am sure it brightened many people’s days and helped them start the day with a (musical) bang.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Culture and Knowledge Management
I’ve been pondering over KM as related to the organizational culture once again... Knowledge Management is only for people and organizations that think long-term and are non self-centered (couldn’t think of a better term!). It’s only for people who look beyond the obvious. There is an inherent happiness in sharing knowledge which extremely self-centered/insecure/’once bitten twice shy’ people find it difficult to see. Knowledge sharing is actually a process of learning – one involving the consolidation of thoughts. If the person learning from one is a novice, the questions that one faces are sufficient to add to one’s knowledge and also to revisit the fundamentals. If the person listening to one is an expert, then the challenges that she poses are once again sufficient for one to keep learning and discovering newer things.
But one still has to be alert. We ought not to give knowledge away to people (read blood-sucking parasites) that don’t deserve it, people whose purpose is to simply get it out of you and make their way up by stepping on your corpse. (How certain people live so happily in such a crematorium beats me) For which we need to also be a good judge of character and objective. Well, the spiritualist in me reminds me about being kind to one’s enemies as well, but in today’s cut-throat/dog-eat-dog world, it doesn’t seem to make sense to knowingly walk into a trap. Needless to say, the organization will have to follow its KM policies in word and spirit. Lack of reinforcement and recognition of the person who shared his knowledge can be a disaster. If the organizational policies and systems let people who’ve taken advantage of knowledge sharing practices to build corner offices for themselves thrive, there is no way in which KM will be a success in the organization. KM is only for organizations where people give credit to the mentors and build teams rather than pursue selfish-objectives. If the manager wants a great team rather than a ‘team’ of individuals good at only their own things, she needs to reward team-players and not individuals who’ve either built their empires on corpses or those who’ve built their empires without a care for the higher purpose.
But one still has to be alert. We ought not to give knowledge away to people (read blood-sucking parasites) that don’t deserve it, people whose purpose is to simply get it out of you and make their way up by stepping on your corpse. (How certain people live so happily in such a crematorium beats me) For which we need to also be a good judge of character and objective. Well, the spiritualist in me reminds me about being kind to one’s enemies as well, but in today’s cut-throat/dog-eat-dog world, it doesn’t seem to make sense to knowingly walk into a trap. Needless to say, the organization will have to follow its KM policies in word and spirit. Lack of reinforcement and recognition of the person who shared his knowledge can be a disaster. If the organizational policies and systems let people who’ve taken advantage of knowledge sharing practices to build corner offices for themselves thrive, there is no way in which KM will be a success in the organization. KM is only for organizations where people give credit to the mentors and build teams rather than pursue selfish-objectives. If the manager wants a great team rather than a ‘team’ of individuals good at only their own things, she needs to reward team-players and not individuals who’ve either built their empires on corpses or those who’ve built their empires without a care for the higher purpose.
Innocence!
‘STOP BEING INNOCENT’ – was a feedback that I got from one of my ex-team members. Though, unfortunately, I don’t really think I am as innocent as I was when I was a kid, ‘you don’t know what you are asking for’, was how I reacted within myself. Ignorance may not really be bliss at all times. But innocence, I think, is. At all times.
Innocence is bliss and more. It is happiness. It is satisfaction. It is learning. It is peace. It is joy. It is intrinsic; the natural state of man. Innocence is GOD. All of us have come away from our natural states…and maybe not for the better. We have lost our innocence and instead substituted it with manipulation, cunningness, Machiavellianism, selfishness, cruelty and what not. One reason why the ‘grown-up’ man talks about learning from children is the fact that they have something that we don’t - innocence. The face of the baby on my blog perhaps says it all.
Innocence is bliss and more. It is happiness. It is satisfaction. It is learning. It is peace. It is joy. It is intrinsic; the natural state of man. Innocence is GOD. All of us have come away from our natural states…and maybe not for the better. We have lost our innocence and instead substituted it with manipulation, cunningness, Machiavellianism, selfishness, cruelty and what not. One reason why the ‘grown-up’ man talks about learning from children is the fact that they have something that we don’t - innocence. The face of the baby on my blog perhaps says it all.
Another of Calvin's (Hobbes') philosophical pieces...
Apart from the substance in this cartoon strip, the pictures have come out very well too! The first box looks awesome....and not to forget the portion where Calvin has been 'circled'...where the message perhaps hits him hard!! :)
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Calvin's View of the World... :)
Another of those profound quips from Calvin....(read Bill W).
I own almost all the P.G.Wodehouse books that are available for sale in India, which works out to be close to 80% of the total number of books (91)written by the comical genius . My eyes are now set on C&H. Got only 3 of them so far...
PS: If you're thinking of giving me any gifts, you know what to buy... ;-)
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Friday, August 12, 2005
A Sudden Change!
Something that happened to me this morning makes me feel a little disorientated about the changes I am going through...
I normally break down when I see a dying/dead dog (not to mention other animals and birds). My eyes start welling up with unrestrained tears and I cry like a baby. More so when the dog has met his/her end because of being run down by a vehicle (driven by a cruel and merciless rogue, I ought to add. GRRRRR!). I am not even able to type this out, feels like I am committing a crime….
This morning, I had the misfortune of laying my eyes on one such gruesome spectacle. But, it was all over when I saw it. I only saw the ‘signs’ of it. (God!). I was almost about to break down when I heard a stern voice in my head. “It’s just the body!” It was as if someone had brought my emotions to a screeching halt. That was not all. As I realized that I’d actually recovered from my emotions in less than a minute, the voice returned to say “Remember, nothing is permanent!” If there were any emotions left in my heart, even they were wiped clean at that instance. I returned to my book. But, as I began to read, I couldn’t help wondering whether I ought to feel good about being detached or feel bad about taking the death of a dog so lightly...almost indicating a lack of humanity/compassion. Any answers?! Please be generous with your thoughts. I want them thoughts! (But I have to admit that I found it challenging to write the first part of this post despite such ‘spiritual developments’ indicating that it may be the transitional phase)
I normally break down when I see a dying/dead dog (not to mention other animals and birds). My eyes start welling up with unrestrained tears and I cry like a baby. More so when the dog has met his/her end because of being run down by a vehicle (driven by a cruel and merciless rogue, I ought to add. GRRRRR!). I am not even able to type this out, feels like I am committing a crime….
This morning, I had the misfortune of laying my eyes on one such gruesome spectacle. But, it was all over when I saw it. I only saw the ‘signs’ of it. (God!). I was almost about to break down when I heard a stern voice in my head. “It’s just the body!” It was as if someone had brought my emotions to a screeching halt. That was not all. As I realized that I’d actually recovered from my emotions in less than a minute, the voice returned to say “Remember, nothing is permanent!” If there were any emotions left in my heart, even they were wiped clean at that instance. I returned to my book. But, as I began to read, I couldn’t help wondering whether I ought to feel good about being detached or feel bad about taking the death of a dog so lightly...almost indicating a lack of humanity/compassion. Any answers?! Please be generous with your thoughts. I want them thoughts! (But I have to admit that I found it challenging to write the first part of this post despite such ‘spiritual developments’ indicating that it may be the transitional phase)
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Legacy
Yesterday, I went home to find an old, brownish and slightly tattered book on my bed. I pounced upon it and gingerly flipped through the pages. (Doesn’t that sound like an oxymoron?). The book I found on my bed and gingerly flipped through - “Heroes who made history”. (It’s a book with a dozen chapters covering a dozen Indian Heroes…mostly kings/princes and the like) The author who wrote the book that I found on my bed and gingerly flipped through – V.B. Kulkarni.
V.B. Kulkarni was the then editor of the now Indian Express which was then called the National Standard. (What a sentence! But I like to ‘complicate’ sentences as much as possible…after all I need to justify being one of PLUM’s * biggest fans!) My mom got it as a prize for having stood first in her village school (lower primary school). :). How cute! But she never touched the book because she studied in a Tamil medium school and found it difficult to read books in English. She did have English as a subject but the standard was too ‘simple’ for her to read books and moreover she was too young and playful to read such ‘outside-the-school-syllabus’ books, I guess. (If you don’t find me blogging anymore, you’ll know my mom has been reading my blog ;-) )
* P.G. Wodehouse is known as PLUM to his fans. If you don't know who P.G.Wodehouse is, then I suggest that you do one of the following. (You have lots of options to choose from). Hang yourself with a rugged rope after ensuring that the door to your room is locked from inside/go away to a place that doesn't have any hospitals whatever and consume the deadliest of poisons/ jump from the tallest building in your city/shoot yourself at point-blank range with a gun that cannot fail/stand in the middle of a busy road when the traffic is at its peak....
V.B. Kulkarni was the then editor of the now Indian Express which was then called the National Standard. (What a sentence! But I like to ‘complicate’ sentences as much as possible…after all I need to justify being one of PLUM’s * biggest fans!) My mom got it as a prize for having stood first in her village school (lower primary school). :). How cute! But she never touched the book because she studied in a Tamil medium school and found it difficult to read books in English. She did have English as a subject but the standard was too ‘simple’ for her to read books and moreover she was too young and playful to read such ‘outside-the-school-syllabus’ books, I guess. (If you don’t find me blogging anymore, you’ll know my mom has been reading my blog ;-) )
* P.G. Wodehouse is known as PLUM to his fans. If you don't know who P.G.Wodehouse is, then I suggest that you do one of the following. (You have lots of options to choose from). Hang yourself with a rugged rope after ensuring that the door to your room is locked from inside/go away to a place that doesn't have any hospitals whatever and consume the deadliest of poisons/ jump from the tallest building in your city/shoot yourself at point-blank range with a gun that cannot fail/stand in the middle of a busy road when the traffic is at its peak....
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