Mr. M. K. Gandhi and Nathuram Godse

We recently celebrated Mr. M. K. Gandhi's 155th birth anniversary. Some people celebrate it every year, some don't, and to each his or her own. As for me:

I don't believe he was a Mahatma. I also have my disagreements with him on many counts and align myself more with freedom fighters like Subhash Chandra Bose, Chandrasekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and others. But agreements and disagreements aside, he was at least a man with some principles, he struggled for a good cause in his own way, and didn't live a life just dedicated to the pursuit of money, power and women. Not too many people qualify to this level.

I would rather befriend a thousand Gandhis than give even five minutes of my time to the person who shot him when he was old, frail and unarmed, the first terrorist of Independent India, the spineless, impotent, coward Nathuram Godse. Thhoooo!!!

I just call him Mr. Gandhi, not Mahatma Gandhi, but do respect him and think well of him. And I think this is a fair viewpoint, far more fair than those who disrespect him while they themselves wouldn't have, and do not, accept a single personal discomfort for any higher cause, leave alone going to prison in a struggle for the country's independence.

(And no, I don't think highly of Lal Bahadur Shastri.)

The Sheer Perfection in Evolution!

Here's something so simple, so in our faces in daily life, yet blows my mind every time I think about it:

Most of us know this: All solids are associated with 'elasticity' to some extent: you apply a force, it deforms, you remove the force, it regains its original shape. In contrast, fluids are associated with 'viscosity': when you apply a shear (tangential) force, it flows while offering a frictional resistance to the force.

Now, many biological tissues are 'viscoelastic'. For example, the synovial fluid in your knee joint lubricates the joint through its viscosity, while also absorbing some of the shock your knee experiences when you walk or run. It has both properties: the 'viscosity' of a fluid and the 'elasticity' of a solid!

How cool is that! How intelligent and concerned evolution has been! Every little thing taken care of so completely!

Trust me, every little detail of how our own body functions and the physics involved is no less fascinating than all the galaxies, stars and black holes out there :)!

I fell in love with fluid mechanics in my second year of undergraduate studies (1992) and continue to be fascinated with the subject (30+ years!).

Midsemester Exams and Breaks at Colleges/Universities

I've said this before, I say it again:

The right time to have a semester break in colleges/universities is right after the midsemester exams. It (a) helps the students diffuse examination stress and freshens them up for the remaining part of the semester and (b) allows faculty members to check examination answer scripts efficiently and declare marks as soon as students come back from the break.

What many colleges/universities have started doing instead is continuing classes right after exams and giving semester breaks during festivals instead. The supposed logic is that students can travel home to be with their parents during Holi, Diwali, etc. This has three drawbacks: (a) students don't get the much needed stress release right after exams, (b) answer script checking gets delayed because faculty members have to now distribute time between their lecture responsibilities and checking answer scripts and (c) students miss out on celebrating festivals with their college/university friends - something that actually goes a long way in deepening friendships that last for a lifetime!

And alongside the above, another thing I've said before and say again: Have only one set of midsemester exams in a semester. Some colleges/universities have two sets of exams during the semester and then an end semester exam. This is excessive! Education cannot only be about preparing for exams all the time! In fact, students have to be gradually brought to a point where they understand that education is important because it enhances the quality of their lives, and they need to appreciate and absorb knowledge regardless of whether someone is going to test them or not! Having too many exams is the easiest way to have students miss this point entirely!

Research Red Flags: Paper Retractions

Below is a bar graph depicting the Top 10 countries in the world when it comes to paper retractions. My remarks:

1. I've said this before and I gladly say it again: China is NOT a model to emulate when it comes to anything, leave alone a noble profession such as the pursuit of knowledge. This is not a statement on everyone from China. I've met some fine Chinese students during my graduate school years in the US. But China as a country doesn't understand ethics - period. And we Indians know this all too well from direct experience! From the Indo-China war of 1962 when they infiltrated our territory with the slogan "Hindi - Cheeni Bhai Bhai" (Indians and Chinese are brothers) before suddenly attacking our soldiers, to what they did to Tibet, to what they are still doing on our North East border, they are known to be without any sense of right or wrong. And this shows in their research ethics too. China is simply someone to be wary of as a potential predator, nothing more than that.

2. The USA needs to course correct. They've been knowledge leaders for too long, have earned too much respect globally over the last several decades, to allow themselves to be No. 2 on this list.

3. I'm ashamed that we are in the Top 3 of this list! All our talk of the great "Indian Values" just went down the toilet, didn't it?

There is one, and only one, correct approach to research: Get onto a problem that really interests you, or a problem that you genuinely believe is important to solve, and keep at it till you have something significantly useful to say. Then, and only then, put it out as a research paper or conference presentation. Every other approach is dishonest at some level or another and belongs in the dustbin. (And stay assured: All lies eventually surface and bring shame. Far better to climb rankings steadily and solidly than try to cheat our way up and get embarrassed on the world stage like this!)

Note: Further below are the worst offenders from our country. Dig up the names and email addresses of Directors, Chancellors, Vice Chancellors and CEOs of these universities and send them love letters. Congratulate them on setting an example for our students and inspiring them to get ahead by cheating their way up instead of sustained, steady, hard work.

Vegetarianism NOT Essential to Hinduism

I'm surprised that Hinduism is still being correlated with Vegetarianism! This is just plain nonsense!

We Punjabis are non-vegetarians, Marathis are non-vegetarians, Bengalis are non-vegetarians, Telugus are non-vegetarians, Assamese are non-vegetarians, Orriyaas are non-vegetarians, Malayalees are non-vegetarians, and dear Idiots, even Kashmiri Pandits are non-vegetarians!

Have we gone mad or something?

A certain amount of meat is needed for a healthy and strong body. By all means we must eat that much meat. If you eat more than what is necessary, it's a problem. Not otherwise.

The article below is an example of what this vegetarianism myth leads to 👇:

Gujarat more audience of war than participant? State has high nationalistic fervour, but ranks low on army recruitment – Firstpost

I have no desire to see our nation becoming a Khakhra-Dhokla nincompoop nation that is devoid of all strength and valour!

Every so called "Guruji" who preaches vegetarianism as a pre-requisite for spirituality and religion needs to be rejected. These fools simply don't know what they're talking about! They'll weaken the whole nation with this nonsense!

No wonder we've been invaded so many times! No wonder!

A Case for Course Correction: Navratri and Garba

As Navratri celebrations unfold every year, we see the following three things happening. All three are distortions of the truth and we need to be on our guard and not let our minds get swayed. Here goes:

1. Most Garba Dance events use film songs. This is a complete nuisance. Navratri is a celebration of the Nine Nights of Mother Durga. The whole point is to worship the Mother. We come together and celebrate Her Divinity with Devotional Songs (Bhajans) and Dance joyfully to the same. That's Garba. It is an opportunity to remind ourselves that there is a joy and celebration higher than worldly pleasures. In fact, it is our understanding and appreciation of this higher joy that enables us to stay steady as we go experience the joys and sorrows of the world. Dancing to film songs during Navratri celebrations defeats this whole purpose!

2. In recent times there has been a push for vegetarianism and poultry and meat shops face resistance. This has no context whatsoever. There are many Hindu communities - Bengalis, Orriyas, Assamese, Rajputs, Kashmiri Pandits - that do not forsake poultry and meat products while celebrating divinity. This is a personal and community choice that is best not interfered with. To each individual his or her own and to each community its own. (And how do you expect poultry and meat businesses to make a living every time you force them to shut their shops?)

3. In recent times there has also been a whole lot of hullabaloo every time a Muslim is spotted at a Garba event. This is madness! I reject Islamic extremism as stubbornly as anyone else (I also reject Sikh, Christian and Hindu extremism with the same stubbornness) and am perfectly alright with exercising caution and not allowing extremist elements to disrupt celebrations anywhere. But those who want to celebrate with us must be welcomed with open arms. And examples abound of Muslims participating in Hindu festivals not only at the level of celebrating but also at the level of helping with decorations (many Muslim women are experts at Rangoli designs) and singing devotional songs for the Mother.

There is a reason why we celebrate Divinity frequently in the din of our life and challenges in the world. Let's not forget that reason and miss the whole point.

Dating and Choosing Partners!

I've always found it strange how most people date and choose their partners.

I too feel that a basic level of fitness and upkeep needs to be a part of one's personality because these aspects say something about how much you value yourself. But this much in place, love and relationships are matters of the heart! One needs to be with someone who has a beautiful and caring heart, and then just love them with all your heart! This is beautiful even when life is going well, and it is everything when life takes a downturn (it usually does at some point in time or the other!) because then such people stay even when others don't (which too happens!).

And most people seem to completely miss this! Instead they make their choices based on just physical attributes! Boobs, Butts, Biceps, Phallus! And some stretch the physical attributes part to a whole another level - they go for stuff like "the Exotic look", "the Asian look", "the Brazilan look", etc. etc. etc. Then others are obsessed with "what someone reads", "what kind of music one listens to", and so on and on... As if one were ordering a dish off a menu!

None of this is important at the core. Only the heart is. A heart that loves is beautiful, charming, attractive.

Haven't you ever looked into someone's eyes and seen love just beaming out? That! Go for that!

Article 370 Needs to Stay Gone!

I invite you to read this article: Omar Abdullah Article 370: "J&K Faces Existential Threat": Omar Abdullah On Article 370 Scrapping (ndtv.com)

Ha ha...the sheer nerve 😅!

I've been opposed to a lot of actions of the NDA government over the last ten years. But one thing I have supported wholeheartedly is the scrapping of Article 370. Even us secularists know that Kashmir before January 1990 and Kashmir after January 1990 are two different Kashmirs with two different political realities.

The minute you drove out Kashmiri Hindus (and how! my residential society and school absorbed some of them in early 1990s, so we know the truth!) you lost all moral right to expect any special status of any kind! Simply forget about it. A far better question to mull over is: Itna behudaa kaam karne ke baad bhi hamaari namaaz qabool hoti hai kya?

All citizens will live with equal rights and privileges in this country. There will be no special status for any religion, no reservations based on religion, no special status for any state with this religious majority or that religious majority, no part of this country is going to succeed in any separatist agenda. We are, and are going to stay, the Secular Republic of India. Those who don't like this are certainly welcome to emigrate to other parts of the world! With our very best wishes!

Left Hand vs Right Hand Driving

I invite you to read this article: Left-Hand Drive Vs. Right-Hand Drive – Which Is Better? - Newspatrolling.com

Then reflect on the following points:

1. A right hand car is easier to control, and hence safer, for a right handed person. Similarly a left hand car would be easier to control and safer for a left handed person.

2. It's far more intuitive to think of the "right side of the road" as the "right side to drive" when learning driving.

Instead of trying to choose between driving conventions in the USA vs driving conventions in Europe, why not simply do the following:

Drive on the right side of the road using a right hand or left hand vehicle depending on whether one is right handed or left handed. Since the majority of the global population is right handed, this would mean, for the most part, right hand vehicles driving on the right side of the road. And for the left handed folks, all we will need is a big sticker on the back of the car letting the vehicles behind clearly know so that they don't have a problem with hand signals in case indicators fail for some reason.

Doesn't this make simpler, more intuitive, sense?

The Varied Names and Colors of Terrorism

I invite you to read this article: Germanwings Flight 9525 - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The wikipedia article above describes the deliberate crashing of an aircraft by Andreas Lubitz, a German Copilot.

This article classifies the act as a murder-suicide. I have read other articles that let us know that Andreas Lubitz was suffering from some psychiatric problem (but still had a license to fly).

Now just imagine if this guy's last name was Khan or Hussain or some other Muslim name.

What would the conclusion then be, how long would this crash have stayed in the news, and what would be the repercussions?

As far as I'm concerned I classify Andreas Lubitz as a terrorist. Ditto for gunmen who open fire on innocent folks in classrooms, shopping malls, and anywhere else. If you kill unarmed people who pose no threat to you, you are a terrorist.

I'm guessing he was White Caucasian Christian - but do not believe these are important details. A terrorist is a terrorist is a terrorist.

Flight Safety and Cell Phones

To this date, fliers have to be cajoled and reminded into switching off their cell phones in Indian skies. Just a couple of weeks ago I had to snap at a fellow passenger who was on his phone even when the aircraft was already in final position for take-off.

We need a mechanism to detect active cell phones and have them switched off before push back from the boarding gate. Anyone who doesn't comply: de-board them and suspend them from the skies for a few months.

Likewise, a check during the flight for any cell phones that might not be in Aeroplane Mode and a check for all phones switched off before descent starts. Suspend defaulters from the skies for a few months.

Safety first, then cell phones, gizmos and gadgets.

Baseball vs Cricket

Some 20 something years ago when I was a grad student in the US I used to insist in my arguments with my American friends that cricket is a better game than baseball.

I stand corrected.

Baseball is more interesting! And safer! (the penalty for a pitcher trying to hit the batter on the head is immediate ejection from the game - as it should be)

[Although I do still maintain that American Football is a no-good, over aggressive, hyper macho sport that is incorrectly named. Soccer is the real football.]

Information Technology vs Computer Science

For students wondering about the difference between doing a B. Tech. in Information Technology vs B. Tech. in Computer Science:

Information Technology is just one subdiscipline of Computer Science. If you do a B. Tech.. in Computer Science, IT jobs are always available to you.

On the other hand, if you do a B. Tech. in Information Technology, many jobs in Computer Science may be beyond your training level.

B. Tech. in Computer Science is the better option - any day.

This is why even IIITs offer Computer Science programs, not Information Technology.

Don't just go by whatever buzzword is in vogue at any given time. Go for what will train you for a broader range of jobs in your overall area of interest.

Computational Sciences at IIITs

Here's a suggestion that might be helpful for information technology institutes:

Start Masters and PhD programs in Computational Sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Biology). This will (a) open up computer applications in a variety of research topics at your institutes and (b) bring in faculty members who can offer a range of electives for your undergraduate students and make their academic programs more interesting.

Computer programming applications stretch far far beyond developing apps - and its in our best interests to not lose sight of this!

Web Series Review: Maharani

Saw the web series Maharani recently. My comments:

The purpose of cinema and TV/web series isn't just to reflect society's reality as it stands today. It is partly that, but also to set higher benchmarks of aspirations in society.

We need politics based movies and series that show the public demanding, and politicians delivering, on opening schools, colleges and universities, opening hospitals, setting up industries and factories so that people get more employment, cracking down on corrupt policemen and policewomen, setting up more courts and increasing the number of judges so that trials end sooner.

Politics can't be just about religion and caste. Well made movies and series can start bringing about this change. This series not only completely fails on this count but further fuels the caste-religion political mess we've been embroiled in for the last few decades. Two thumbs down 👎 👎.

Note: My views on combatting backwardness are here: A Four Point Algorithm to Combat Backwardness

Gurugram: Unwarranted Hindi-ization of Gurgaon

The name Gurgaon comes from Gurgaanwa in Haryanavi. It is the correct name to keep in Haryana.

Gurugram is a forced Hindi-ization that is both unnecessary and ought to be unwelcome anywhere outside the Hindi belt.

The way forward in a multi-lingual, multi-cultural, country such as ours is being open to learning a bit of each other's languages. For example, we've lived in Bengal and Maharashtra for extended periods of time. And although I can't speak either language fluently, I've picked up a bit that makes it possible for a Bengali or Marathi who doesn't know Hindi or English fluently to still communicate with me. A bit of effort from my side, a bit theirs, and we shake hands - as friends 👍.

5 Day Week: A Different Interpretation

Here's a simple thought that I believe is seriously worth considering:

365 is perfectly divisible by 5: 365/5 = 73.

If we redefine the week to be 5 days long, and have a holiday to rest after every four days of work, then we have a perfect 73 week year with a perfectly fine work-rest balance.

And every leap year, we have one extra day with a different name at the end of the year (say "leap year day") to adjust for the extra day. And then simply continue with 1st day of the week on 1st January as the year changes.

This seems more consistent to me with the natural cycle of Earth competing one trip around the Sun every 365 days.

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments fields below.

What are we teaching our children?

Several years ago when I was on the faculty of IIT Delhi I went for an IIT-JEE Exam Invigilation duty to a school in Delhi. As you entered, there was a quotation in large font for all students to read everyday. It went something like: "Power is not given, it has to be snatched."

What you are seeing today in the society at large is nothing but the result of such rubbish put into children's heads early on.

You and I are here only for a few decades. What is our short lifespan in the context of life on Earth?

Forget power! What power? Look around you, resolve to leave this world a bit better, a bit more beautiful, when it's time to leave. And work towards that objective incessantly, relentlessly. That's a life well lived.

Blind Children and Their Parents

A thought that might be worth mulling over by parents of blind children:

Maybe, if it doesn't affect one's profession and livelihood and only with the advice and approval of an eye specialist, one of the parents can donate one eye (and the other step in if there's any complication for the receiver or donor in the years to follow). If there's an issue with matching blood types or something else, have a donor registry that allows parents of different children to cross donate.

I don't think this is a big sacrifice to make if your child can experience vision. And it can open up the child's life and life experience profoundly...

Thoughts?

Adopt a child!

Here's a thought I've held for a long time because I really feel it has merit:

There are many many children in orphanages/foster-homes awaiting adoption by a good family. Some who might have lost their parents, some perhaps abandoned.

Maybe we are too caught up with the notion of "bearing our own children", maybe we can consider adopting a child instead. For what or who is one's own child but someone you love and raise?

For those who wish to have children, this completes your dream as well as gives a child a home and parents and loved ones he/she will call their own.

And those who don't want to have children: See if you can locate a well meaning orphanage/foster-home and help them with improving their facilities and amenities and spend time with the children there.

Think about it.

Fabindia: An Initiative I'm Proud Of!

This is one initiative I'm endlessly proud of 😊: https://www.fabindia.com/

Personal comfort and style preferences aside, to which each of us is obviously entitled, purely on aesthetic merit, I throw an open fashion challenge:

Come, bring as much global fabric and fashion as you can muster. Indian, hand drawn, designs on fabric will match whatever you have :).

What this part of the world has done with fabric is simply nothing short of genius :).

[Food for thought: The Euro-American fashion #industry has impacted the whole world. The East, while no less brilliant with fabric, form & color, hasn't responded in proportion, hasn't invested enough in #advertising what it has to offer. One doesn't see too many Europeans & Americans wearing Eastern ethnicwear. Isn't this interesting?]