Bangalore Calling

After a semester (rather eventful one), I find myself in Bangalore this summer, as a research intern at SERC(Supercomputer Education and Research Centre), IISc.

Barely did I come here that it began to rain. A glad respite from the unrelenting heat in goa.

Just got my accommodation fixed up at a pretty decent dorm.
Still waiting for more bitsians to join me. Itll definitely not be lonely with friends and college-mates around. Some will be coming around the end of this month, while others will be coming in july (PS2). Till then, its working time. (The pic on the left is the main building - IISc)


Bangalore is a pretty nice place to be, quite contrary to what one would expect of a growing metropolitan. The photograph on the left is that of a botanical garden close by. I would love to share my experience here at bangalore (or rather bengaluru now), but that will be some other day. Here is a short description by a once-upon-a-time blogger; but IISc has changed a lot since then.

A pretty random post. So ill end it up pretty randomly with a song that echoes through me right now:

Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.
Enjoy yourself, while you’re still in the pink.
The years go by as quickly as a wink.
Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself. It’s later than you think.

(180 version of Enjoy Yourself from The Specials)

On Letting go...

To let go isn't to forget, or to ignore. It doesn't leave feelings of anger or regret. Letting go isn't about winning,losing ,giving in or giving up. It isn't about loss or defeat. To let go is to cherish the memories, &to overcome and move on & have confidence in d future. Letting go is learning & experiencing. To let go is to 2b thankful for the exp that made you laugh, made you cry, and made you grow. It's about all that you have, all that you had, and all that you will have. To let go is to open a door, and to clear a path 2 set yourself free.

The 3rd year

This post is a later update to serve as a substitute for the missing continuum in my sporadic posts...

The 3rd yr whizzed by with Quark 2k8 occupying most of the time and effort spent.
Was also involved in Evangelizing sun technologies and learning and using them as the Sun Campus Ambassador and coordinator of Sun Club.
LUG-BITSGoa (Linux Users Group) also grew in activities and structure.
Also qualified for the nationals of IC08. Waves and Spree also fell in the same semester, so activities were on a high.

Next, looking ahead into the internship @SERC, IISc, Bangalore.

End of update...

Hypocrisy as a way of life

Yes, thats true. Hypocrisy has come to become a part of our lives whether we like it or not. Hell, we might as well like it, considering the kind of hypocrites we've become.

First, its the sena against valentines day. Then its the BJP against the cheerleaders in IPL (although the very same members of the party prolly enjoy the item numbers on bollywood). The double talk by ppl like mayawati and the enforcement of 'standards' by the mumbai police. As gowry puts it,

"Ur Free to piss on the streets, but not kiss"

Its everywhere around us. Those who deny it are the worst of the hypocrites.

And it doesnt end there. Even at BITS, with the self proclaimed aim of nurturing its students enabling their self development to the fullest, the treatment actually is akin to that of a prison cell. With specific time (4 hours each day on a weekday) where students are allowed out of campus, and a lockdown of hostels at 11! The ban on birthday parties in hostels by the chief warden and the clear and distinct expression of dislike at any activity that indulges the students in any kind of pleasure. But ofcourse, as they always claim, they dont mean to harm the students, neither do they intend to keep us from doing what we like. They 'want' us to be 'happy'. And they're doing whatever they are, coz its good for us! Welcome to the age of hypocrisy.

But looking at the bright side of things, it brings out the rebellious and brave front within us. An irony of sorts, but yes, the reality. The last day of waves and all the people who were a part of it and witnessed it will agree.


It started off on the usual note. Events galored and everyone had fun. Ofcourse we as an educated institute denied the display of blatant hooliganism during shows like fashp. But thats just the tip of the iceberg. More than 3/4th of the campus probably wouldnt know what actlly went on during those 3 days at the J. Or in the parking lot. Neither do they know about the quarrel on the maingate that led to the police arrival.
But what everyone does know, is that the wonderful performance by Junkyard groove on our own open air stage, was interrupted by the arrival of the police van with its interminable echoing of the siren amid growing silence. And soonafter everyone was dispersed back to the hostels within 5 minutes. And that is when DC came in to feed on the rumours. Within half an hour of the incident atleast 10 different stories, all claiming credibility, were floated and discussed on mainchat freely as though they were matter-of-fact.
I do join everyone in condemning the way the night ended. Everyone seemed to be looking for a scapegoat to dump the blame on. Of course, what could you expect? But that is the kind of end that the festival had. Waves '08. The only way one could be oblivious to it, is by attaining Nirvana; the state of statelessness that the cultural festival claimed to be all about.

And the ripples that it started off are felt even today... But nevertheless, the day was entertaining in the least expected manner. And denying that I enjoy entertainment would be hypocritical.
I'm just happy Quark didnt end up in a mess like this.

Yes, even I'm Hypocritical at times. And I dont admit it.

Random Musings...

A man piloting a hot air balloon discovers he has wandered off course and is hopelessly lost. He descends to a lower altitude and locates a man down on the ground. He lowers the balloon further and shouts, "Excuse me, can you tell me where I am?"

The man below says, "Yes, you're in a hot air balloon, about 30 feet above this field."

"You must work in Information Technology," says the balloonist.

"Yes I do," replies the man. "And how did you know that?"

"Well," says the balloonist, "what you told me is technically correct, but of no use to anyone."

The man below says, "You must work in management."

"I do," replies the balloonist, "how did you know?"

"Well," says the man, "you don't know where you are, or where you're going, but you expect my immediate help. You're in the same position you were before we met, but now it's my fault!"

-----------------------------------------------------

A radio conversation between a US naval ship and Canadian authorities...

Americans: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision.

Canadians: Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.

Americans: This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.

Canadians: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course.

Americans: This is the aircraft carrier USS Lincoln, the second largest ship in the United States' Atlantic Fleet. We are accompanied by three destroyers, three cruisers and numerous support vessels. I demand that you change your course 15 degrees North, that's ONE FIVE DEGREES NORTH, or counter-measures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.

Canadians: This is a lighthouse. Your call.

-----------------------------------------------------

Three engineering students were gathered together discussing the possible designers of the human body.

One said, "It was a mechanical engineer. Just look at all the joints."

Another said, "No, it was an electrical engineer. The nervous systems many thousands of electrical connections."

The last said, "Actually, it was a civil engineer. Who else would run a toxic waste pipeline through a recreational area?"
-----------------------------------------------------

Reaching the end of a job interview, the human resources person asked a young engineer fresh out of Stanford,

"And what starting salary were you looking for?"

The engineer said, "In the neighborhood of $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."

The interviewer said, "Well, what would you say to a package of 5-weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every 2 years--say, a red Corvette?"

The engineer sat up straight and said, "Wow! Are you kidding?"

And the interviewer replied, "Yeah, but you started it."
-----------------------------------------------------

When my three-year-old son opened the birthday gift from his grandmother, he discovered a water pistol. He squealed with delight and headed for the nearest sink. I was not so pleased. I turned to Mom and said, "I'm surprised at you. Don't you remember how we used to drive you crazy with water guns?"

Mom smiled and then replied..."I remember."
-----------------------------------------------------

An astronomer, a physicist and a mathematician (it is said) were holidaying in Scotland. Glancing from a train window, they observed a black sheep in the middle of a field.

"How interesting," observed the astronomer, "All Scottish sheep are black!"

To which the physicist responded, "No, no! Some Scottish sheep are black!"

The mathematician gazed heavenward in supplication, and then intoned, "In Scotland there exists at least one field, containing at least one sheep, at least one side of which is black."
-----------------------------------------------------

One day, a professor was giving a big test to his students. He handed out the tests and went back to his desk to wait. Once the test was over, the students all handed the tests back in.

The professor noticed that one of the students had attached a $100 bill to his test with a note saying: "A dollar per point."

The next class the professor handed the tests back out. This student got back his test...and $64 change!

Of the era that was and the age that is: electronics

Its funny that I pen down a title like that (above) when what I really intend to do is write about my experience at Pilani during my summer internship.

In one way, May 15 - July 15 brought about a myriad of experiences, each unique in its own right.
Although this fact alone should have accounted for my jubilation when I first received my confirmation mail, the fact that it is one of our reputed research institutes got me excited.
Pilani is about 5 hours from Delhi - by road - and there is no other means of transport to get there. So, after a 5 hour grueling bus journey, I finally arrive at my destination: A land full of camels and the desert wind. The land of the Rajahs, as they say, and the town for education - Pilani. It took me a bit of time to adjust to the extreme climate, not to mention that adjusting with peacocks as your friendly neighbourhood stray animal was a pretty formidable task in itself! An oasis in a desert, It could put many fairylands to shame.

Of course the most striking factor about the place was the pace of its functioning. Time would literally stay still as you would take your own sweet time to adjust and go on.
Hardly a few days of stay, and I was already convinced that I had entered a new world.

And then, I was proved wrong when I entered CEERI - the real new world! A lot more than what it appears on first sight: A modest research institute established under the CSIR. The History attached with the place is compelling: A lot of technical breakthroughs without which the country would probably have had to shelve lumps of money for technology transfer; and of course, live without television! But again it was a new experience, a new way of life and a new world to enter.

A glimpse into the developments that are going on here, and I begin to wonder about the era that was and the age that is: electronics. Since the turn of the century we have had numerous breakthroughs and path breaking findings, even revolutionary progress; yet we seek to answer the same fundamental questions and are groping for the still more fundamental answers.
One begins to question the nature of revolutions themselves, based on the scope that they claim to affect.

"New hopes, new styles, and, most important, a new way of seeing. Revolutions do not come piecemeal. One account on nature replaces another. Old problems are seen in new light. Something takes place that resembles a whole industry retooling for new production. It is rather as if the professional community had been suddenly transported to another planet where familiar objects are seen in a different light and are joined by unfamiliar ones as well." - CHAOS, James Gleick

And this is the situation that people at CEERI try to address and bring about all the time. We may talk about the next big breakthrough, the next big Silicon revolution, even path breaking findings that may allow us to look back and laugh at what we currently regard as the highest achievements we have made.
Yet, in the foreseeable future, I cant help but see a fraction of us smirk at those who laugh, for we still, as always will, remain in an endless pursuit of answering the fundamental questions that stare at us.

A new start

Lights go out, and I cant be saved
Waves that I tried to swim against
have drowned me in this sea of change

Long time to cover up, lots of spaces to fill in but the composition more or less sums it up. Last couple of months have been a helluva lot of first-time-experiences jam packed into one hell of a ride.

Well, lets see, It all started last semester with the Imagine cup national finals. In concurrence with murphy's laws, it happened to be bang in the middle of our compre exams and we had to be given a makeup for it. The going was great, though not amazing, we managed to get our project working despite faulty net connections, Windows config problems, many of those [dangerous bugs that dig their tentacles deep into your app and plan to surface at the perfect time they could cause the maximum possible damage], and of course, pathetic luck. It was pretty amazing, believe me, the we finally did get it working on d D-day! The ordeal went fine, and as luck has it, we managed to come second (well actually, its National first runner-up, to be precise :)).

Experience is the only thing that one can take out of time spent. This summer found me as a project trainee at CEERI, Pilani. A fresh experience - that; besides the rajasthan climate, that is. (The hottest place ive ever been, and probably will ever be: regularly touched 48+ degrees in d aft). But you cant take the credit away from the land of the 'rajahs', an oasis in the desert, swarming with peacocks as your friendly neighbourhood animal. And of course, the camels.
It really does put fairylands to shame, doesnt it?

Well, I did manage to get out of fairytale and back to reality, and gladly! Now I have a fresh semester to face and the entire 3rd year of college beckoning. The single most effect that this summer has had on me is the change of perspective. A fresh new way of looking at things, some say, can mean a world of difference. Change is the only thing constant and the only thing that prevails.

The all-pervasive power of change
will break you free of all your chains
and slowly, but surely, before long,
It will take you where you truly belong