This New Scientist essay uses the classical characters of Bob and Alice along with their pet elephant,unfortunate enough to fall into a black hole,to explain some extremely interesting work in the realm of astrophysics.
Friday, October 27, 2006
An Elephant and a Black Hole ---- poignant astrophysics
When any object falls into a black hole the information can't be destroyed yet if any information escapes a black-hole then its a contradiction of one of the most basis tenets of physics. This Black hole Information paradox, is one of the many conundrums puzzling scientists in their quest to unify Quantum mechanics and gravity. Giddings says. "It's likely that this black hole information paradox will lead to a revolution at least as profound as the advent of quantum mechanics".
This New Scientist essay uses the classical characters of Bob and Alice along with their pet elephant,unfortunate enough to fall into a black hole,to explain some extremely interesting work in the realm of astrophysics.
This New Scientist essay uses the classical characters of Bob and Alice along with their pet elephant,unfortunate enough to fall into a black hole,to explain some extremely interesting work in the realm of astrophysics.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Futuristic Road Signs
A briliant piece by an artist that touches upon almost all the technologies and events that our brightest minds forsee, in the form of images. (Link via Neatorama)
Thursday, October 19, 2006
How Bubbles never forget and 20 office commandments
It seems after elephants , some species of the fairer sex and human camera savants, bubbles are the next big thing in the realm of memory retention. Physicists say this has an impact on determining how the Universe which also formed as a bubble from a singularity and the manner in which it may end.
Also courtesy Digg, here are some cheeky commandments for the quintessential professional.
Also courtesy Digg, here are some cheeky commandments for the quintessential professional.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
A Vitriolic Diatribe against Chainmailists
IMP : I am a chronic link aggregator and sender. This post is only against Chain mails and people who forward them. No ill-will doth I bear against the innocent; just my personal opinion that one must think instead of acting blindly. Chain mail forwards are not the Ganges that will wash all sins instantly.
It'’s been nearly 7 years I have been using the World Wide Web and I agree that it'’s an amalgamated democratic environment. So one comes across equal amounts of stupidity and intelligence. And although I am a closet "stupidity-hater-fanatico" I have always tried my best to not let this come in the way of my interactions with the denizens of the net or the world. Of course I have to admit the reasons were purely based on survival instinct. Most of the people one interacts with in day-to-day life, using the proper politically correct term 'do not make sense'’. But as all the prophets have said (last heard Gandhiji also said this) that God's creatures must be treated equally and hence I am usually uniformly cranky or cheerful.
But to come to the point and what this post is all about; I find explanations for the stupidity seemingly normal people exhibit the moment a forward drops into their mail box or a link is forwarded to them by their intellectual brethren with the message that "If this message is not forwarded within some specific time you are doomed to celibacy till death" or or some thinly-veiled threat to one's moral sense of judgement, goodwill, faith etc. Now these are the same people who would not pay alms to a beggar and justify their actions but would lamely fall for such moronic mails. I can understand when dumb babes forward oh-so-cute chain mails which they think accentuate their physical curves in an intellectual manner (What is a curve that is too curvy? ----- a zero), which their drooling receivers sincerely peruse (looking for that secret message that never comes). But when bright engineers, diligent doctors, erudite scholars, smart executives keep falling for such emotional blackmail scams and dragging their equally gullible friends into this abyss its a travesty of humongous proportions.
To be honest all of us have been guilty of forwarding chain mails at some point of time but I guess within a year on the Web one realizes the futility and stupidity of this activity. Ok admitting some are slow learners, I guess 6-7 years is too long a time. Some of my friends and acquaintances alas are still suckers in this matter.
What is more befuddling is the sensitivity people exhibit if you tell them to stop and ponder before blindly pressing the forward button! It would seem you are hurting their very core beliefs. So after trying my best to convert people I realized it was a lost cause and also started to appreciate the God's crusaders who keep converting people's religions; but then that must be easier.
So I just keep deleting these mails everyday when I open my mailbox or Orkut messages, all the while praying for the senders' souls who are motivated to reform by idiotic mails but not by the injustices, wrongs happening all around us. But then as in physics so in real life; the path of the least resistance is always chosen. In our sinful lives such chain mails provide us a short cut to a few karma-points and as we pick a cola from the cafeteria without submitting the coupon, we know that we will be safe in the orgasmic epiphany experienced as we press the forward button. I feel this feeling extrapolated, is what encourages America to reform the world but let's leave that for another day. So people, who read this, please ask your friends to go through this post or as Samuel L Jackson tells the poor crook in 'Pulp Fiction', "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee".
It'’s been nearly 7 years I have been using the World Wide Web and I agree that it'’s an amalgamated democratic environment. So one comes across equal amounts of stupidity and intelligence. And although I am a closet "stupidity-hater-fanatico" I have always tried my best to not let this come in the way of my interactions with the denizens of the net or the world. Of course I have to admit the reasons were purely based on survival instinct. Most of the people one interacts with in day-to-day life, using the proper politically correct term 'do not make sense'’. But as all the prophets have said (last heard Gandhiji also said this) that God's creatures must be treated equally and hence I am usually uniformly cranky or cheerful.
But to come to the point and what this post is all about; I find explanations for the stupidity seemingly normal people exhibit the moment a forward drops into their mail box or a link is forwarded to them by their intellectual brethren with the message that "If this message is not forwarded within some specific time you are doomed to celibacy till death" or or some thinly-veiled threat to one's moral sense of judgement, goodwill, faith etc. Now these are the same people who would not pay alms to a beggar and justify their actions but would lamely fall for such moronic mails. I can understand when dumb babes forward oh-so-cute chain mails which they think accentuate their physical curves in an intellectual manner (What is a curve that is too curvy? ----- a zero), which their drooling receivers sincerely peruse (looking for that secret message that never comes). But when bright engineers, diligent doctors, erudite scholars, smart executives keep falling for such emotional blackmail scams and dragging their equally gullible friends into this abyss its a travesty of humongous proportions.
To be honest all of us have been guilty of forwarding chain mails at some point of time but I guess within a year on the Web one realizes the futility and stupidity of this activity. Ok admitting some are slow learners, I guess 6-7 years is too long a time. Some of my friends and acquaintances alas are still suckers in this matter.
What is more befuddling is the sensitivity people exhibit if you tell them to stop and ponder before blindly pressing the forward button! It would seem you are hurting their very core beliefs. So after trying my best to convert people I realized it was a lost cause and also started to appreciate the God's crusaders who keep converting people's religions; but then that must be easier.
So I just keep deleting these mails everyday when I open my mailbox or Orkut messages, all the while praying for the senders' souls who are motivated to reform by idiotic mails but not by the injustices, wrongs happening all around us. But then as in physics so in real life; the path of the least resistance is always chosen. In our sinful lives such chain mails provide us a short cut to a few karma-points and as we pick a cola from the cafeteria without submitting the coupon, we know that we will be safe in the orgasmic epiphany experienced as we press the forward button. I feel this feeling extrapolated, is what encourages America to reform the world but let's leave that for another day. So people, who read this, please ask your friends to go through this post or as Samuel L Jackson tells the poor crook in 'Pulp Fiction', "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee".
Sunday, October 15, 2006
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