tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35170100993769985262009-12-06T13:26:28.497-05:00optimism vs rationalism vs pragmatism«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.comBlogger220125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-73428403569362623232009-11-08T01:15:00.003-05:002009-11-08T01:32:05.240-05:00

I watched Motor Sundaram Pillai a long long time ago, but what I remember most from it is that Sivaji Ganesan used to have a factory in Burma. I have come across several references to the cultural and trading connections between Burma and India not only in articles but also in familial anectodes, mostly recalling the days of the Raj.With pro-democracy protests and a military junta in rule, I

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-12586430113809046582009-11-08T00:33:00.006-05:002009-11-08T00:47:04.665-05:00

Internet discussion is all about disagreeing with one another, denigration is uncommon and unavoidable at times.This image(click for larger view) coaxes us not to degrade ourselves and judge the efficacy of other comments. It is a one-stop guide to countering another person's argument - maintain the upper hand at all times.Original text written by Paul Graham and image Loudacris. Image used via

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-41629324538557254872009-11-08T00:04:00.003-05:002009-11-08T00:44:23.694-05:00

To use or not? Adblock Plus is an addon for Firefox which removes all ads from webpages by blocking ad links as it loads. That's just the simple part.At first it didn't seem very different: I already use Flashblock to stop Flash content on a page from loading automatically and have blocked images from a handful of ad sites, leaving text ads to appear, but you will feel the change when you disable

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-26980707588418793012009-11-07T23:25:00.003-05:002009-11-08T00:01:07.648-05:00

In a social gathering, referencing other people is easy amongst peers - you could even say 'that guy' or just call him by name, 'Bala'. With elders, though, it is difficult with the elderly ladies. I've always had a bit of hesitation in naming a person - 'Who prepared this dish?' 'Ms/Mrs XY'.Depending on their marital status, the answer can vary: the Guardian style guide says use Ms unless they

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-30920136240259193762009-10-10T16:44:00.001-04:002009-10-10T16:46:35.343-04:00

While rearranging at home, we had to move a dressing mirror(tall one) outside, where the dogs happened to find it.The Dachshund is ferocious by nature, while the G. Shepherd is semi-mellow. The difference with which they approached the mirror is a telling lesson in how we perceive others and how they reciprocate to us.The Dachshund, sighting another dog in the mirror, immediately started growling

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-27197018974598065572009-10-10T15:43:00.003-04:002009-10-10T16:36:42.118-04:00

My physics teacher once narrated a tale of how politicians were misleading villagers by telling them 'remove power from the water', hence crops would not grow properly.The politician was supposedly referring to the electricity generated upstream, hence 'power removed', there would be 'lesser power' left for the crops to grow.So, my teacher said, villagers must be given proper information about

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-68150649477930621642009-10-01T21:14:00.002-04:002009-10-01T21:40:04.542-04:00

Faux Wire ServiceWichita, KS. Sep 29: Normal playing cards, used by millions of people daily, are racist and sexist, the Group for Proper Treatment of People(GPTP) said in a press conference today.According to spokeswoman Scarlett Butler, the suits in modern playing cards are in red and black and an absence of white suits indicated that these cards were intentionally ignoring that color."That

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-10624227860560679422009-10-01T21:10:00.002-04:002009-10-01T21:33:45.085-04:00

These pictures were taken on the premises of the Sri Venkateswara temple in Pittsburgh.As you can see, those drivers didn't want to park some distance away, drove up to this spot, found the adjoining parking spaces occupied and decided to park in the No Parking zone(granted the pickup may not belong to an Indian). There were many more improperly parked cars all around.It highlights the lethargic

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-22373224367318716852009-10-01T21:03:00.003-04:002009-10-01T21:10:13.642-04:00

If you are a pure vegetarian, please don't step into McDonald's. There's nothing in there for you. First off the personnel in fast food chains do not understand 'vegetarian'. You have to tell them 'no meat', otherwise you will end up like my roommates who ate a Filet-o-fish sandwich with the fish even though they said 'vegetarian'(and no meat I think).The point is McDonald's doesn't have anything

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-74689138682865565032009-10-01T19:17:00.007-04:002009-10-01T21:00:11.206-04:00

My first thoughts, aside from the insane heat generated from the processor and the materials lining the cooling unit, were, how badly they fail in basic safety.Handling liquid Nitrogen is no small joke, mainly because it freezes anything it touches in an instant - so for these 'engineers' to use the flask without gloves and goggles should get them an F.My friend Sunil had a one-on-one experience

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-46736918906331783002009-09-12T10:36:00.002-04:002009-09-12T11:22:22.937-04:00

Getting milk in one gallon jugs and infrequent visits to the grocery store mean timing your consumption to coincide with a trip worth the time, so it took awhile to counter the milk jug illusion which tends to throw off scale visual levels for judgement.These jugs(also called milk gallons) have pseudo-conical top halfs, so when pouring out milk, that half seems to empty faster, instructing you,

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-21712319727435894902009-09-10T23:04:00.004-04:002009-09-10T23:17:08.571-04:00

I should have written this months ago, here it is, regarding flash cookies stored on your computer.It all started when I reduced the volume on a YouTube video, then cleared all my cookies, temp files later and opened that site again. To my surprise the volume was still reduced, which indicated that the settings were stored elsewhere, not in the browser. A little searching showed that flash

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-66284491396671250112009-09-10T21:42:00.004-04:002009-09-10T23:03:46.886-04:00

That fateful day changed the course of recent history in ways we would not have imagined. Two wars, a dramatic shift in geopolitics and an unprecedented election victory later, things are still not normal. Where was I that day?An evening back from school, listening to the noon Newshour(with Julian Marshall I think) on BBC World Service, from 6.30 pm to 7.30pm. The first report was 'a helicopter

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-53103464089573606042009-08-23T15:13:00.002-04:002009-08-23T15:16:19.658-04:00

My parents were right about photographs: it's a waste if you aren't in the picture. For one it shows that you were there, and second there is something to look at. This particularly applies to fireworks, where all of them are just like the others. It will be better if someone actually stood in front of them. Taking a picture of a beautiful mountain range? Stand at a corner. I am sure it'll be a

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-56616619255018107512009-08-23T14:08:00.009-04:002009-08-23T15:13:43.053-04:00

Are we living in an era of cheap if not free information?The way the internet has been embraced by everyone is leading to a new phase in how information is shared. Just over a decade ago you had to get the news from a TV channel or a newspaper. You could show your ire by writing a letter to the editor or Government. Want to sell something? Place an ad in the classifieds and hope someone is

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-64452379782367669702009-08-23T12:34:00.005-04:002009-08-23T14:08:01.077-04:00

In this post: a short comment/review on the movie starring Vikram and Shriya.To best describe Kanthasamy is to quote another online review: a mix of Anniyan and Sivaji The Boss. Well, the problem is that the director had too many ideas and wanted to achieve them all - it was like trying to save a spoilt curry. You've added too much chilli powder and salt, so to counteract you add more water, but

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-41883507884191239802009-08-01T07:43:00.001-04:002009-08-01T07:46:14.298-04:00

This article in the NYT reflects my opinions that Firefox faces a very tough future with the introduction of Google Chrome.I doubt that Google will hesitate to push its own browser and end the agreement with Mozilla.Mozilla does say that they will 'look for other sources' of investment, but keep in mind that this 4 way match is between 3 behemoths who mint money and one who depends on one of

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-28450617528082432552009-06-02T11:02:00.018-04:002009-06-04T02:50:49.476-04:00

Any person watching some of the fringe news channels(read Times Now, Headlines Today) will be convinced that an Indian landing in Australia will be immediately put in a sack, beaten and then let out. It is just Australia's bad luck that publicity they could have treated differently got out of hand and before they reacted sufficiently, the damage had been done.The blaze of 'Indian pride' and how

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-70972854753689836232009-06-02T11:02:00.011-04:002009-06-02T13:21:21.103-04:00

Jay Leno moves to make space for a fresh face, Conan, for the revered late night brand, The Tonight Show. That is just the last page in the voluminous book documenting the high-stakes talk show. Some of the following, you will find interesting if you watched Leno, including the censored and delayed version on Zee Cafe.Pre-1992, The Tonight Show was hosted by Johnny Carson, who was absolute king,

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-14627402659789699312009-06-02T11:02:00.007-04:002009-06-02T13:02:10.956-04:00

With the advent of an all-consuming Facebook, later with undeserving media darling Twitter, hiterto unknown, and sometimes unnecessary details about our lives are being displayed on a universal noticeboard, ready for anyone to misuse or judge inappropriately.Earlier any grudges would be discussed with friends over the phone or would be swallowed in teeth clenches. Sitting in the privacy of our

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-15971245145941715532009-06-02T11:02:00.003-04:002009-06-02T11:24:02.232-04:00

Evil begets evil. Always. Examples abound from recent history relating to vested interests.1980's: LTTE is funded by the Indian state, partly to offset the US influence in Sri Lanka and partly due to ethnic relations in that country. Things fall apart, LTTE decides India has done enough and assassinates a senior politician, India washes its hands clean of the issue till very recently.Saddam

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-36568963401250216842009-05-12T11:11:00.003-04:002009-05-12T11:26:48.079-04:00

The wild swing of temperatures in Akron from -16 deg C to 35 deg C with daily swings of around 15 deg have allowed me to observe the effect of an inner vest in my not-so-temperature-controlled room.At temperatures less than 22 deg C, the inner vest, worn with a shirt above, acts as an insulator, keeping the body warm.Between 22 deg C and around 28 deg C, the inner vest keeps the body heat,

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-81238593234327020182009-05-12T10:55:00.003-04:002009-08-20T18:26:05.644-04:00

This is a supposedly 'India' election train being brought out by the BBC, which is a sham for the basic fact that it does not cover south India. Hyderabad in itself does not reflect in any small sense all of south India, I expected atleast Bangalore, if not the four metros. Madras(Chennai) and Bangalore have been left out. To any foreigner who does not know much about India this 'train' gives the

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-46864348858041167442009-04-24T16:46:00.004-04:002009-04-24T17:04:24.343-04:00

CNN reports that GM, undergoing a severe cost cutting shake-up, is going to kill the Pontiac brand.I always liked the looks of a Pontiac; it was undoubtedly the most glamorous in the GM family, and Sr said it was amazing to drive too. This is one bitter pill to swallow. Spot reactions:Sr: "I am out of words... appalled"VS: "That's horrible"Su: "What??"VK: "Sad"

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3517010099376998526.post-87774416035578560482009-04-23T18:35:00.006-04:002009-04-23T19:07:59.443-04:00

At first it will seem like insulated glass tubes connected to complex front end dials and knobs and valves and software.A day or two running up and down the stairs along the height of the column, and it's just another peaceful system offering no complicated resistance.Running the column is one thing, understanding it is another. Mixing solutions and then letting the column unmix them is

«AM»http://www.blogger.com/profile/00058435311642264119noreply@blogger.com1