Monday, September 28, 2009

The Equation for Contentment Function

I suddenly came across this enlightening moment. May be I am out of mind or perhaps I am overworked and need some sleep. Nevertheless, I think it is worth mentioning. I have discovered equation for contentment function of life !
Contentment in life is a function of following factors:
1. Imaginary part -- expectations, desires, wishlist etc etc
2. Phase of life (will explain it later)
3. Progression of Life

These factors are related through Euler's formula as:

Progression of Life = e


eiθ = cosθ + i sinθ -- (Euler's Forumla)

Here, i = sqrt(-1) -- imaginary number.

Plot of this function looks as follows:


θ, is the most significant determinant of the outcome. θ, is the phase difference w.r.t benchmark criterion in life. Benchmark criterion is individual specific, and in most common ways defined by peers of the individual.

Real part of this function is Contentment.

Imaginary part is expectations, wishelist etc.


Few important corollaries:

1. Expectation and reality always differ in phase. (sin θ and cos θ differ by 90 deg)

2. Your life will always revolve around center point in real and imaginary domain.

3. Radius of circle will always be one.

4. Your satisfaction levels will depend upon your confirmity with your benchamark criterion.




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Sunday, September 27, 2009

All for This One Drop of Water

It ended like a Bollywood movie. For some weeks everyone thought that it was over with “limited success” and then came this Baazigar moment when two separate press briefings-- one in Florida and other in Bengaluru, announced one of the most important findings in the moon exploration history – some drops of water on lunar surface!

This may be one of the numerous important discoveries for the West. But for us, it’s the defining moment in the history of our technology. Akin to what Sputnik launch meant to Russia or what Apollo 11 meant to the USA. Discovery of water on moon by our own Chandrayaan (in collaboration with NASA), has caught the imagination of entire nation. It is the first major manifestation of our technological capabilities towards meaningful discoveries for entire mankind making ISRO the star of the day.

In a true movie style, ISRO’s tryst with destiny started in the dark ages of 1960s – in a workshop shed in Banaglore with extremely limited resources. In its early days, scientists used bicycles totransport rockets which would launch a satellite into outer space! For ISRO it’s Bollywood-ly journey from its early days to the days of Chandrayaan for ISRO. In right sense, the project Chandrayaan started not in 2005 but in 1969 and it took bicycles, workshop sheds, 40 years and one million ton of sweat to make our mark on moon!

Such type of things happen only in movies. A masala movie on this topic might have been over by now … But for ISRO a sequel is due :)

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Sunday, September 13, 2009

Defusing The Population Bomb

"The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s and 1980s hundreds of millions of people will starve to death in spite of any crash programs embarked upon now. At this late date nothing can prevent a substantial increase in the world death rate"
"India couldn't possibly feed two hundred million more people by 1980 .... I have yet to meet anyone familiar with the situation who thinks that India will be self-sufficient in food by 1971... "
The Population Bomb, 1968 Paul R. Ehrlich
In the dark ages of of '50s and '60s, world believed it will not be able to feed the rising population in Indian sub-continent which will led to starvation deaths of millions by 1980. A grim situation with no solution in sight.
A professor in Texas A&M Univ stood up against the prevalent academic opinion that million of Indians shall starve due to lack of food. He was not an Indian or a Pakistani to have a jingoistic view, but a scientist, who believed in his research and in the soil of Punjab. Norman Borlaug, known as the father of green revolution, made matchless contribution to humanity by eradicating 'hunger' from the Indian sub-continent. He helped India and Pakistan achieve food security in less than 10 years of Green Revolution: A task deemed impossible by his peers.

Any analysis on post-colonial India would be incomplete without mention of the Green Revolution and of Norman Borlaug. At a time when India aspires to be a leading economy on the global level, we must not forget the great achievements we made through the Green Revolution that has enabled us to even think of becoming one of the leading economies.

Norman Borlaug passed away last week at the age of 95. This is a tribute to him and his matchless contributions to India.