Thursday, December 27, 2007

பணம் பணமறிய அவா!

கொடுவாயூர்: ஜாஃபர் சாதிக், பாகவி

அன்னை தேசத்து
அகதிகள் நாம்
எண்ணெய் தேசங்களில்
எரிந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறோம்!

அடி வயிற்றில் பதிந்த
வறுமைக் கோடுகளின்
மர்மக் கரங்கள்
அறித்தெறிந்து வீசிய
ஜீவனுள்ள மாமிசத்
துண்டுகள் நாம்!

கண் தெரியா தேசத்தில் விழுந்து
காயங்கள் தலை சாய்த்துக்
கண்ணீர் வடிக்கிறோம்!

மொத்தக் குடும்பத்தையும்
முதுகில் சுமந்து
இன்னும் தீர்மானிக்கப்படாத்
திசைகளில் தொடர்கிறது
நம் பயணம்!

ஒவ்வொரு முறையும்
நலம் நலமறிய அவா
என்றுதான் கடிதம் எழுதுகிறோம்!
பணம் பணமறிய அவா
என்றல்லவா பதில் வருகிறது!

நமக்கு மட்டும் ஏன்
பணம் பந்த பாசங்களின்
சமாதியாகி விட்டது!

ஒரு டெலிபோன் கார்டிலும்
ஒரு பொட்டலம் பிரியாணியிலும்
முற்றுப்பெற்று விடுகிறது
நம் பெருநாட்கள் ஒவ்வொன்றும்...

உயிரை பிழிந்து பிழிந்து
பாசத்தால் ஒத்தடம் தந்த
உறவுகளைப் பிரிந்து
இன்னும் எத்தனை நாட்கள்
இந்த ஏகாந்த வாழ்க்கை?

கலவரத்தில்
கைக் குழந்தையைத் தொலைத்த
தாயின் பதற்றத்தைப்போல்தான்
ஒவ்வொரு முறையும் போன் பேசிய
பின்னால் அடையும் அவஸ்தைகள்...

நம்மில் பலருக்கு
தாம்பத்திய வாழ்க்கைகூட
தவணை முறையில்தான்
தட்டுப்படுகிறது...

தொலைபேசியிலும்
தபாலிலும்
கொஞ்சலும், சிணுங்கலுமாய்
இன்ஸ்டால்மெண்டில்
இல்லறம் நடக்கிறது...

மனைவியின் மூச்சுக்காற்று தந்த சுகம் கூட
இந்த ஏசி காற்று தருவதில்லை!

குடும்ப விளக்குகளை
கும்மிருட்டில் தவிக்கவிட்டு விட்டு
தீக்குச்சிகள் நாம்
தன்னந்தனியாய்
இந்தத் தீவுகளில்...

வீடுகூடும் நிஜம் தொலைத்து
ஒரு வீடு கட்டும் கனாவில்
இன்னும் எத்தனை ஆண்டுகள்
இந்த பாலைப் பிரதேசங்களில்?..

உயிரோடு இருக்கும்
பெற்ற குழந்தைக்கு
புகைப் படத்தில்
தான்கொடுக்க முடிகிறது
செல்ல முத்தங்கள்!

என்ன இருந்தாலும்
காகிதங்கள் உணருமா
பாசத்தின் ருசி

ஒவ்வொரு முறையும்
ஊர் சென்று திரும்பும்போது
மறக்காமல் எல்லாவற்றையும்
எடுத்து வர முடிகிறது
மனசைத் தவிர...

காலத்தின்
இந்த பசை தடவல்கள்
நம்மைக் கட்டிப் போடாமல்
வெறும் கடிதம் போடத்தானா?

பாலைவன ஜீவன்கள் நாம்
தாகத்தோடு காத்திருக்கின்றோம்
தண்ணீருக்காக அல்ல
தபால்களுக்காக...

வாழ்க்கையின் பாதி
விரக்தியிலும் விரகத்தீயிலும்
எரிந்துபோகும் நம் வாலிப வாழ்க்கை
கடைசியில் நரம்புகள் அறுந்துபோய்
முகாரி பாடும் வீணைகளாய்...

என்ன சொல்லி
என்ன பயன்
தண்ணீரில் மீன் அழுதால்
கண்ணீரை யார் அறிவார்?

சுட்ட இடம் : www.pottalputhur.com

Google Transliterate

This is a great service from google...I've planned to use this for posting data in Tamil letters...
http://www.google.com/transliterate/indic/Tamil

Monday, December 24, 2007

A letter to the teacher


This is a letter the late American president Abraham Lincoln once wrote to his son’s teacher. A good example for parents.

He will have to learn, I know, that all men are not just, all men are not true, but teach him also that for every scoundrel there is a hero, that for every selfish politician there is a dedicated leader. Teach him that for every enemy there is a friend.
It will take time I know, but teach him if you can that a dollar earned is far more value than five found, teach him to lose and also to enjoy winning. Steer him away from envy. If you can, teach him the secret of quiet laughter. Let him learn early that the bullies are the easiest to lick. Teach him if you can the wonder of books. But also give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery of birds in the sky, bees in the sun and flowers on a green hillside.
In the school teach him it’s far more honorable to fail than to cheat. Teach him to have faith in his own ideas even if everyone tells him they are wrong. Teach him to be gentle with gentle people and tough with the tough.
Try to give my son the strength not to follow the crowd when everyone is getting on the bandwagon. Teach him to listen to all men, but teach him also to filter all he hears on a screen of truth and take only the good that comes through. Teach him if you can how to laugh when he is sad. Teach him that there is no shame in tears.
Teach him to scoff at cynics and to beware of too much sweetness. Teach him to sell his brawn and brain to the highest bidders, but never to put a price tag on his heart and soul. Teach him to close his ears to a howling mob and to stand and fight if he thinks he is right.
Treat him gently, but do not cuddle him because only the test of fire makes fine steel. Let him have the courage to be impatient… let him have the patience to be brave. Teach him always to have sublime faith in mankind.
That’s a big order, but see what you can do because he’s a fine little fellow, my son.

Saturday, December 22, 2007

The skills you need to succeed


By Bill Gates


One of the most important changes of the last 30 years is that digital technology has transformed almost everyone into an information worker.
In almost every job now, people use software and work with information to enable their organization to operate more effectively.
That is true for everyone from the retail store worker who uses a handheld scanner to track inventory to the chief executive who uses business intelligence software to analyze critical market trends.
So if you look at how progress is made and where competitive advantage is created,
There is no doubt that the ability to use software tools effectively is critical to succeed in today’s global knowledge economy.
The solid working knowledge of productivity software and other IT tools has become a basic foundation for success in virtually any career.
Beyond that however, I don’t think you can overemphasize the importance of having a good background in Maths and Science.
If you look at the most interesting things that have emerged in the last decade whether it is cool things like portable music devices and video games or more practical things like smart phones and medical technology - they all come from the realm of Science and engineering.
Today and in the future, many of the jobs with the greatest impact will be related to software whether it is developing software working for a company like Microsoft or helping other organization use information technology tools to be successful.
Communication skills and the ability to work well with different types of people are very important too.
A lot of people assume hat creating software is purely a solitary activity where you sit in an office with the door closed all day and write lots of code.
This isn’t true at all. Software innovation, like almost every other kind of innovation, requires the ability to collaborate and share ideas with other people and to sit down and talk with customers and get their feedback and understand their needs.
I also place a high value on having a passion for ongoing learning. When I was pretty young, I picked up the habit of reading lots of books.
It’s great to read widely about a broad range of subjects. Of course today, it’s far easier to go online and find information about any topic that interests you.
Having that kind of curiosity about the world helps anyone succeed, no matter what kind of work they decide to pursue.

(Bill Gates is chairman, chief software architect and one of the founders of Microsoft, the world’s largest software company. From July 2008 he will end his day-today involvement in the company and focus on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and its global health and education work)

Top 10 IT Stories of 2007

Top ten IT stories of 2007

Friday, December 21, 2007

The Shepherd of Hermas

The Shepherd was a book written by Hermas between 88 and 97 A.D at Patmos, near Ephesus. Like the Gospel of Barnabas, it affirmed the Divine Unity, and it was for this reason that concerted efforts were made to destroy it, once the doctrine of Trinity had become firmly rooted in the established Pauline Church. It was one of the books which were banned as a result of the decisions made by the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.
Up until the Council of Nicea, the book was accepted and widely used by the earlier followers of Jesus, who regarded Hermas as a prophet. Towards the end of the second century A.D., it was accepted as part of the New Testament by Clement of Alexandria. Origen (185-254 A.D.) also accepted it as a revealed book, and it was placed at the end of the Codex Sinaticus which was in use in the middle of the fourth century A.D.
The Shepherd was a book which obviously could not be ignored and which was accepted as a revealed book by the majority of early Christian thinkers and lovers of God. It was written when the movement to ‘Hellenise’ the teachings of Jesus was in its infancy, and at a time when many of those who followed Jesus were still aware that Jesus had come to restore and expand the teaching which Moses had brought to the Jews. Like Jesus, they were practicing Jews whose understanding of what they were doing was illuminated by the knowledge Jesus had brought. They still believed in and followed the writings of the Old Testament and since The Shepherd affirmed what they already knew, they accepted Hermas’s book into their body of Scriptures.
It was found that the Greek used by Hermas was a simple vernacular. The language could be understood by the common people and it is clear that the book was written for everyone and not for an intellectual elite. His style was frank and informal and he possessed an originality of expression which made the book easy to read.
Hermas begins by telling four visions he experienced, the last of which he calls revelation since on this occasion an angle visited him dressed as a shepherd. The angel informed Hermas that he had been sent by the “most reverend angel” (that is the angel Gabriel) to live with Hermas for the rest of the days of his life.
The angel then ordered Hermas to write down all “the Commands and the Parables.” Since these were dictated to him by the angel, who only related what he was to say by the “most reverend angel” it was accepted as a revealed book by the earlier Christians.
The commands he was told to write down were these:

I. First of all believe that God is One and that He created all things and organized them and out of what did not exist made all things to be, and He contains all things but Alone is Himself uncontained. Trust him therefore and fear Him and, fearing Him be self controlled. Keep this command and you will cast away from yourself all wickedness, put on every virtue of uprightness, and you will live to god if you keep this commandment.

II. Be sincere and simple minded. Speak evil of nobody and do not enjoy hearing anyone do so. Do right and give generously.

III. Love truth.

IV. Observe purity. Be pure not only in action but also in thinking.

V. Be patient and understanding. The Lord dwells in patience, but the devil in ill-temper.

VI. Trust what is right and do not trust what is wrong. Uprightness has a straight and level way, but wrongdoing is a crooked one. There are two angels with men, one of uprightness and one of wickedness.

VII. Fear the lord and keep God’s commands.

VIII. Be self-controlled about what is wrong and do not wrong. But do not be self-controlled about what is right, but do what is right. Restrain yourself from all evil and follow the right path.

IX. Cast off doubt from yourself. Ask the lord without doubting, and you will receive everything. God is not like men who hold grudges, but He is forgiving and feels pity for what He had made. So cleanse your heart of all vanities of this world.
X. Put sadness away from you, for it is the sister of doubt and bad temper.

XI. A man who consults a false prophet is an idolater and void of the truth.
Hermas asked the angel how to distinguish a true prophet from a false. The angel replied that in the first place the man who has the spirit that is from above is gentle, quiet and humble. He abstains from all wickedness and the futile desires of the world… (He) does not speak by himself… but speaks when God wishes him to speak… but all power belongs to the Lord.

A false prophet exalts himself and wants to have a front seat. He is bold, shameless, and talkative, lives in great luxury and accepts pay for his prophesying. Can a divine spirit accept pay for prophesying? The false prophet avoids upright men and attaches himself to those who are doubtful and vain; and he says everything to them falsely in line with their desires. An empty vessel put among empty ones does not break, but they harmonize with one another. Take a stone and throw it up to heaven; see if you can reach it. The earthly things are impotent and weak. On the other hand, take the power that comes from above. Hail is a very small grain, yet when it falls on a man’s head what pain it causes! Or again, take a drop of water which falls on the ground from the roof and makes a hole in the stone. So divine Power that comes from above is mighty.

XII. Cast off from yourself every evil desire and clothe yourself in good and holy desires. God created the world for man’s sake and made his whole creation subject to man, and gave him complete authority to have dominion over all things under heaven. A man who has the Lord in his heart is able to master all things.
Behave as a slave of God. The devil cannot get control of the slaves of God. The devil can wrestle, but cannot throw them.

Source: “The Apostolic Fathers, Edgar J. Goodspeed”, from the book “Jesus Prophet of Islam by Muhammad Ata Ur Rahim”

Monday, August 13, 2007

Simple Machines

I had this idea of posting information of this device which I implemented sometime back with the help of my fellow class mates. A device which explains the functions of simple machines and energy transmission. It was intended to assist students at school understand the way those simple machines work in an enjoyable manner.

During my childhood days I had a desire of playing with small marble balls with my friends and cousins. We would collect old Video & Audio Cassettes, PVC tubes etc to make various settings by arranging all the cassettes vertically in some pattern and setting a tube on front of the first cassette. Then we say "1...2....3...go.." and we let a marble ball travel through the tube and it bangs the first cassette and way it goes on making falling all the other cassettes "thud thud" which was very fascinating to watch and we do not miss the banged ball which we route it to some destination which inturn bangs another set of cassettes. We enjoy the game and go for another different arrangement with same instruments we have.

I've seen similar activities in TV shows where they do it at a big level also in some films(like in the final scene of the Tamil film Apoorwa Sahodararhal) the concept was applied. Those things were encouraging me to myself do something big someday.

And yes the event and moment came. It was a provincial level exhibition (Thambapanni 2001) during my O/Ls(2001). I initiated the idea among my friends with a initial sketch which look like the following figures to do something useful for our next generation to learn. There was "oks" & "uhmms" coz no one was aware how it's gonna function. I explained it to my Science teacher, and she explained it to the class and gave the permission to do so. Luckily we implemented within three days with all the old & used stuff we collected to avoid expenses, and took it to the exibition.

I was nearly jumping on my feet when I heard the news that the device we implemented has been selected for the National Level Exhibition at Issipathana College Colombo 4. Unfortunately I wasn't able to participate in it due to another quiz competition I had to participate. A couple of classmates represented our school on behalf of our school. It was a great achievement for my efforts..

Ok what's this device about? I'll explain from the following figure:





It is a device which explains the functionalities of simple machines and energy transmission. Energy cannot be created or destroyed,but transformed to other forms. Initially some wooden blocks are arranged as above,the tap like structure at the Wheel & axis section is closed, two marbles are placed at one end of the lever, while another heavier marble ball is placed on top of the last wood.Then we hold a marble which means it is static and at some height. So some amount of potential energy is saved at that point.

When we release the marble ball at the tip of the tube by the accellaration of gravity it travels and the energy tranforms into Kinetic energy. The ball bangs on the first wooden block it encounters and falls in to the funnel and drops into a cup on the other side.The blocks fall on one another till the last block which has a heavier ball falls and drops on the Inclined plane(a sort of simple machine). That ball travels down the slope and drops on to the empty end of the Lever(another simple machine). Because of the force of fall, the other two balls at the other end of the lever jump and travel together with the heavier ball into the Wheel & Axis area(A simple machine). The functionality of the simple machines are well understood as the balls travel which is more easier for the learning student. We open the tap which directs the three marble balls to the cup which the very first marble landed. Now we've got all four marbles in one place. There is one more machine to explain as we move to the side of the device:


The last simple machine of our device is the Pulley. We show that the pulley is very handy to carry the bucket to the top. That concludes the explanation of energy transmission and functionalities of simple machines in a brief manner. But it would be appealing to see it work directly...:)

You want to know more about simple machines go to this site http://www.coe.uh.edu/archive/science/science_lessons/scienceles1/finalhome.htm

Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Microsoft product & technology tutorials..

Microsoft Technologies are everywhere in the globe.No doubt about it.Something to grasp and learn a little by the founders of their technology.
http://www.microsoft.com/education/tutorials.mspx

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Mathaka the starting...


I'm very proud and happy to see my fellow colleagues Gehan, Supun & Nadeesha along with a junior Akila earning a name in the IT industry of Sri Lanka. They were placed 1st runner's up during the Microsoft Inagine Cup 2007 finals, a competition by Microsoft inorder to motivate youngsters towards real world software development..

Their project KAMZA which addresses how organizations can preserve a person’s intellectual gain, in a way which the organization would not be affected even though that the particular person is no longer in service. KAMZA attempts to centralize the knowledge of professionals in service, where even if the person has left the company, “the knowledge” will be stored and reused within the organization itself.

A great achievement..

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Human Factor-A major challenge

We see many sorts of people around us daily. Each person is of some kind by nature. Project managers in the industries face the problem of co-operating with employees as a big challenge. A slight slippage of a word could cause severe problems in an industry. It would lead to the degradation of the pride of the company too. The following may be the cause of conflicts in an organization:
· Less encouragement of employees
· Trying to show something done by sole contribution of a single person or showing self pride.
· Being dishonest
· Not punctual
· Laziness
· Jealous of one`s work or performance, vengeance
· Not considering the profession as an ethical responsibility
· Working just for money, without considering other factors (environment, co-employees, his/her company)
· Negligence of responsibility

There could be more factors, but above were a few that clashed my mind. I could point out a small example for jealousy. Recently a friend of mine was discussing problems at his office. Before he assumed duties at office, things were quite slow. A lot of projects were in pending. Actually it is a regional office, and it was frequently being criticized for inadequate management by the head office.
After my friend assumed duties as district coordinator of the office, things were changing dramatically. Projects scheduled for longer periods by earlier coordinators were done within months by him. Budgets were reduced, unnecessary expenditures were controlled, which lead to discovering the corruption of earlier coordinators and existing management. The head office was amazed to see his performance, and congratulated him of his achievement. This created a sense of vengeance among existing members. So they started working against him to create a bad image about him to the upper management. Luckily those people succeeded. As a result my friend’s salary of two months was frozen. He concludes his sorrow discussion with a determination to face the challenge. I appreciated his move.

The moral I learnt was, god has purposely created people with different qualities and characteristics. A person, who has the ability to read other peoples’ minds with reducing conflicts, facing all sorts of challenges, is the successful one I would see. A quote by Howard Newton regularly flashing in my mind is worth to note:

“People forget how fast you did a job, but they always remember how well you did it”

Monday, May 28, 2007

The scientific accuracy of the Qur'an

This message is based on an article entitled "Highlights of Human embryology in the Qur'an and Hadith" written by Dr. Keith Moore, Professor of Anatomy and Chairman of the Department, Faculty of Medicine, at the University of Toronto, 1982.

Dr. Moore points out that the study of how the human embryo develops in the mother's womb could not progress significantly without the use of microscopes. Microscopes were not invented until the 17th century C.E., and were not used in this field of study until the l8th century. Therefore, when Dr. Moore studied certain verses in the Qur'an that tackles this subject, he remarked, "I was amazed at the scientific accuracy of these statements which were made in the 7th century C.E."

The Qur'an in (39:6) states that God made us in the wombs of our mothers in stages:

Allah says:

"God is the One who fashioned you from a single person and from that (person) created his wife, and He made for you from the cattle, eight pairs. He fashions you inside the bodies of your mothers, formation after formation, in three (veils) of darkness. This is your God, your Lord, His is the Dominion, there is no god but He, so how are you turned away." Qur'an (39:6)

Dr. Moore comments: "The realization that the embryo develops in stages in the uterus was not introduced until the 1940's, and the stages used nowadays were not adopted worldwide until the 15th century C.E."

Furthermore, he says: "The idea that development results from a genetic plan contained in the chromosomes, of the zygote was not discovered until the end of the 19th century C.E. The verse from the Qur'an (80:18-19) clearly states that the nutfa (i.e. the initial drop of fluid) contains the plan or blueprint for the future characteristics and features of the developing human being".

Allah says:

"Of what did He create him. From a small quantity of liquid, God fashioned him in due proportion and ordained his fate" (80:18-19)

The Qur'an (23:12-16) describes that there is a lag or a gap between two of the early stages of growth. How does that compare with modern scientific knowledge? Remarkably! Says Dr. Moore: "It is well established that there is a lag or a delay in the development of the embryo during the implantation... The agreement between the lag or gap in development mentioned in the Qur'an and the slow rate of change occurring during the second or third weeks is amazing. These details of human development were not mentioned or introduced about 40 years ago", yet it is mentioned and clearly described in the Qur'an.

Allah says:

"And certainly We fashioned mankind from the quintessence of a clay. The We placed (mankind) as a small quantity of sperm in a safe lodging firmly established- Then We fashioned the small quantity of sperm into something which clings, and then We fashioned the clinging thing into a chewed lump of flesh, then We made out the chewed flesh bones, then We clothed the bones with intact flesh, then We developed out of it another creature; so Blessed be God, the Best to Create. Then after that you shall surely die; Then on the Day of Resurrection you shall surely be raised up." Qur'an (23:12-16)

The above evidence shows that the Qur'an is indeed from Allah, The One and The Only God.

Allah says in the Qur'an:

"You and every human being should consider this book with care. Had it been from anyone other than God, you would have found much discrepancy in it". Qur'an (4:82).

Wednesday, April 4, 2007

PowerPoint presentations

Most of us use powerpoint presentations in our daily activities...It's a useful tool to demonstrate ur ideas in a simple manner. Here is some information about

Even there are Drawbacks in using PowerPoint presentations...I was very upset to see this research...

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/04/powerpoint_bad/

Monday, March 19, 2007

Dr. A P J ABDUL KALAAM'S SPEECH

Even though this speech is more suitable for indians, It applies to all developing nations with citizens with open minds...Very Inspiring speech i read from a mail I received.
Dr. A P J ABDUL KALAAM'S SPEECH
IN HYDERABAD
A must read for every Indian.
" I have three visions for India. In 3000 years of our history, people from all over the world have come and invaded us, captured our lands, conquered our minds. From Alexander onwards. The Greeks, the Turks, the Moguls, the Portuguese, the British, the French, the Dutch, all of them came and looted us, took over what was ours. Yet we have not done this to any other nation. We have not conquered anyone. We have not grabbed their land, their culture, their history and tried to enforce our way of life on them. Why?

Because we respect the freedom of others. That is why my first vision is that of FREEDOM. I believe that India got its first vision of this in 1857, when we started the war of independence. It is this freedom that we must protect and nurture and build on. If we are not free, no one will respect us.

My second vision for India is DEVELOPMENT. For fifty years we have been a developing nation. It is time we see ourselves as a developed nation. We are among top 5 nations of the world in terms of GDP. We have 10 percent growth rate in most areas. Our poverty levels are falling. Our achievements are being globally recognized today. Yet we lack the self-confidence to see ourselves as a developed nation, self- reliant and self-assured. Isn't this incorrect?

I have a THIRD vision. India must stand up to the world. Because I believe that, unless India stands up to the world, no one will respect us. Only strength respects
strength. We must be strong not only as a military power but also as an economic power. Both must go hand-in-hand. My good fortune was to have worked with three great minds. Dr. Vikram Sarabhai of the Dept. of space, Professor Satish Dhawan, who succeeded him and Dr.Brahm Prakash, father of nuclear material. I was lucky to have worked with all three of them closely and consider this the great opportunity of my life.

I see four milestones in my career:
Twenty years I spent in ISRO. I was given the opportunity to be the project director for India's first satellite launch vehicle, SLV3. The one that launched Rohini.
These years played a very important role in my life of Scientist. After my ISRO years, I joined DRDO and got a chance to be the part of India's guided missile program. It was my second bliss when Agni met its mission requirements in 1994. The Dept. of Atomic Energy and DRDO had this tremendous partnership in the recent nuclear tests, on May 11 and 13. This was the third bliss.

The joy of participating with my team in these nuclear tests and proving to the world that India can make it, that we are no longer a developing nation but one of them. It made me feel very proud as an Indian. The fact that we have now developed for Agni a re-entry structure, for which we have developed this new material. A Very light material called carbon-carbon. One day an orthopedic surgeon from Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences visited my laboratory. He lifted the material and found it so light that he took me to his hospital and showed me his patients. There were these little girls and boys with heavy metallic calipers weighing over
three Kg. each, dragging their feet around. He said to me: Please remove the pain of my patients. In three weeks, we made these floor reaction Orthosis 300-gram calipers and took them to the orthopedic center. The children didn't believe their eyes. From dragging around a three kg. Load on their legs, they could now move around! Their parents had tears in their eyes. That was my fourth bliss!

Why is the media here so negative? Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why?

· We are the first in milk production.
· We are number one in Remote sensing satellites.
· We are the second largest producer of wheat.
· We are the second largest producer of rice.

Look at Dr. Sudarshan; he has transferred the tribal village into a self-sustaining, self driving unit. There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters. I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert land into an orchid and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news.

In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime. Why are we so NEGATIVE?

Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? We want foreign TVs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology. Why this
obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that self-respect comes with selfreliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture, when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is. She replied: I want to live in a developed India. For her, you and I will have to build this developed India.

You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation.

Do you have 10 minutes? Allow me to come back with a vengeance. Got 10 minutes for your country? If yes, then read;

Otherwise, choice is yours.
YOU say that our government is inefficient.
YOU say that our laws are too old.
YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage.
YOU say that the phones don't work; the railways are a joke,
The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination.
YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits.
YOU say, say and say.
What do YOU do about it? Take a person on his way to Singapore.
Give him a name - YOURS. Give him a face - YOURS.
YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores.
YOU are as proud of their Underground Links as they are.
You pay $5 (approx. Rs.60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Peddler Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM.
YOU comeback to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity. In Singapore you don't say anything,
DO YOU?
YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai.
YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah.
YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds (Rs.650) a month to, "see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else."
YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, "Jaanta hai sala main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. Take your two bucks and get lost."
YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand. Why don't YOU spit paan on the streets of Tokyo? Why don't YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston?
We are still talking of the same YOU.
YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be the same here in India?

Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay, Mr.Tinaikar, had a point to make. "Rich people's dogs are walked on the streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place," he said. "And then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels the pressure in his bowels?
In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan. Will the Indian citizen do that here?" He's right.

We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility. We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms.

We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity. This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public. When it comes to burning social issues Like those related to women, dowry, girl child and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse? "It's the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my sons' rights to a dowry." So Who's going to change the system? What does a system consist of? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbors, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU. When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr. Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away.

Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England. When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is mortgaged to money.
Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too....I am echoing J.F.Kennedy's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians.....

"ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE
TODAY"
Thank you
Dr. A P J Abdul Kalaam
Honorable President of INDIA

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Godfather- a masterpiece!

I recently happened to view all three parts of the once famous MAFIA blockbuster Godfather. At first I thought it's all just about killing. But it really is just not about only bloodshed, but a story of a family business. Very emotional too.. The famous actor Alpacino has done 1st class acting in all three parts.Got to see..
The Godfather

Friday, February 23, 2007

'C At Work: Rationales, Highlights, and a Farewell'

'C At Work: Rationales, Highlights, and a Farewell'
"What's the deal with const functions, and lots more on the reasoning behind the design of the C /CLI."

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Why is the eating of Pork forbidden in Islam?

by Dr.Zakir Nayak(www.irf.net)
The fact that consumption of pork is prohibited in Islam is well known. The following points explain various aspects of this prohibition:

1. Pork prohibited in Qur’an
The Qur’an prohibits the consumption of pork in no less than 4 different places. It is prohibited in 2:173, 5:3, 6:145 and 16:115. "Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah." [Al-Qur’an 5:3]

The above verses of the Holy Qur’an are sufficient to satisfy a Muslim as to why pork is forbidden.
2. Pork prohibited in the Bible
The Christian is likely to be convinced by his religious scriptures. The Bible prohibits the consumption of pork, in the book of Leviticus
"And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be cloven footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you".
"Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch, they are unclean to you."[Leviticus 11:7-8]
Pork is also prohibited in the Bible in the book of Deuteronomy
"And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you. Ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcass."[Deuteronomy 14:8]
A similar prohibition is repeated in the Bible in the book of Isaiah chapter 65 verse 2-5.

3. Consumption of pork causes several diseases
The other non-Muslims and atheists will agree only if convinced through reason, logic and science. Eating of pork can cause no less than seventy different types of diseases. A person can have various helminthes like roundworm, pinworm, hookworm, etc. One of the most dangerous is Taenia Solium, which is in lay man’s terminology called tapeworm. It harbours in the intestine and is very long. Its ova i.e. eggs, enter the blood stream and can reach almost all the organs of the body. If it enters the brain it can cause memory loss. If it enters the heart it can cause heart attack, if it enters the eye it can cause blindness, if it enters the liver it can cause liver damage. It can damage almost all the organs of the body.
Another dangerous helminthes is Trichura Tichurasis. A common misconception about pork is that if it is cooked well, these ova die. In a research project undertaken in America, it was found that out of twenty-four people suffering from Trichura Tichurasis, twenty two had cooked the pork very well. This indicates that the ova present in the pork do not die under normal cooking temperature.

4. Pork has fat building material
Pork has very little muscle building material and contains excess of fat. This fat gets deposited in the vessels and can cause hypertension and heart attack. It is not surprising that over 50% of Americans suffer from hypertension.

5. Pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth
The pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth. It lives and thrives on muck, faeces and dirt. It is the best scavenger that I know that God has produced. In the villages they don’t have modern toilets and the villagers excrete in the open air. Very often excreta is cleared by pigs.
Some may argue that in advanced countries like Australia, pigs are bred in very clean and hygienic conditions. Even in these hygienic conditions the pigs are kept together in sties. No matter how hard you try to keep them clean they are filthy by nature. They eat and enjoy their own as well as their neighbour’s excreta.

6. Pig is the most shameless animal
The pig is the most shameless animal on the face of the earth. It is the only animal that invites its friends to have sex with its mate. In America, most people consume pork. Many times after dance parties, they have swapping of wives; i.e. many say "you sleep with my wife and I will sleep with your wife." If you eat pigs then you behave like pigs. We Indians look upon America to be very advanced and sophisticated. Whatever they do, we follow after a few years. According to an article in Island magazine, this practice of swapping wives has become common in the affluent circles of Bombay.
-----------------------------------------end of discussion-----------------------------
So if u see a pig, make sure to close ur nostrils.... :D

Monday, February 12, 2007

Silent Love

This was a nice mail i enjoyed recently...

From the very Beginning, the girl's family objected strongly on her dating this guy. Saying that it has got to do with family background & that the girl will have to suffer for the rest of her life if she were to be with him.
Due to family's pressure, the couple quarrel very often. Though the girl loved the guy deeply, but she always ask him: "How deep is your love for me?"
As the guy is not good with his words, this often cause the girl to be very upset. With that & the family's pressure, the girl often vent her anger on him. As for him, he only endured it in silence.
After a couple of years, the guy finally graduated & decided to further his studies in overseas. Before leaving, he proposed to the girl: "I'm not very good with words. But all I know is that I love you. If you allow me, I will take care of you for the rest of my life. As for your family, I'll try my best to talk them round. Will you marry me?"
The girl agreed, & with the guy's determination, the family finally gave in & agreed to let them get married. So before he left, they got engaged.

The girl went out to the working society, whereas the guy was overseas, continuing his studies. They sent their love through emails & phone calls. Though it's hard, but both never thought of giving up.
One day, while the girl was on her way to work, she was knocked down by a car that lost control. When she woke up, she saw her parents beside her bed. She realised that she was badly injured. Seeing her mum crying, she wanted to comfort her. But she realized that all that could come out of her mouth was just a sigh. She had lost her voice......
The doctors says that the impact on her brain has caused her to lose her voice. Listening to her parents' comfort, but with nothing coming out from her, she broke down.
During the stay in hospital, besides silence cry,.....it's still just silence cry that companied her. Upon reaching home, everything seems to be the same. Except for the ringing tone of the phone. Which pierced into her heart everytime it rang. She does not wish to let the guy know. & not wanting to be a burden to him, she wrote a letter to him saying that she does not wish to wait any longer.
With that, she sent the ring back to him. In return, the guy sent millions & millions of reply, and countless of phonecalls,.. all the girl could do, besides crying, is still crying....
The parents decided to move away, hoping that she could eventually forget everything & be happy.
With a new environment, the girl learn sign language & started a new life. Telling herself everyday that she must forget the guy. One day, her friend came & told her that he's back. She asked her friend not to let him know what happened to her. Since then, there wasn't anymore news of him.
A year has passed & her friend came with an envelope, containing an invitation card for the guy's wedding. The girl was shattered. When she open the letter, she saw her name in it instead.
When she was about to ask her friend what's going on, she saw the guy standing in front of her. He used sign language telling her "I've spent a year's time to learn sign language. Just to let you know that I've not forgotten our promise. Let me have the chance to be your voice. I Love You. With that, he slipped the ring back into her finger. The girl finally smiled.

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Study: Video Games Good For Your Eyes

hey most of the time we get scold by parents for sitting in front of the screen playing games..But this case study is controversial....

SINGAPORE, Feb 7 (Reuters Life!) - Video game addicts, rejoice: U.S. researchers have found that playing is actually good for your eyes, and despite all those dire warnings from your parents, it won't make you blind.

ADVERTISEMENT A study by the University of Rochester showed that people who played action video games for a few hours a day over the course of a month improved their vision by about 20 percent.

"Action video game play changes the way our brains process visual information," Daphne Bavelier, professor of brain and cognitive sciences, said in the study published on the university's Web site, www.rochester.edu, on Tuesday.

"These games push the human visual system to the limits and the brain adapts to it. That learning carries over into other activities and possibly everyday life."


Bavelier and a graduate student tested college students who had played very few, if any, video games in the last year.

Test subjects were given an eye test similar to the one used at regular eye clinics and then divided into two groups—one played shoot-em-up action games for an hour a day while the control group played a less visually complex game.

Their vision was tested after the study, with those who played the action game scoring better in the eye test.

The researchers said their findings could help patients with several types of visual defects.

Friday, February 2, 2007

Windows Vista to Ship in 33 Different Versions..!

By Russell Skingsley

Redmond, WA - Microsoft announced today that its new operating system Vista will ship in 33 editions to enable consumers to get exactly which version they need. Barry Goffe, a director of Microsoft's Windows client unit announced this innovative move from Microsoft earlier today.

"We're trying to make sure we have the right set of offerings for different customers," said Goffe. The impressive list of Vista Editions follows:

  • Vista Professional Edition
  • Vista Semi-Professional Edition
  • Vista Slightly Professional Edition
  • Vista Complete Amateur Edition
  • Vista Server Edition
  • Vista Server Premium Edition
  • Vista Server Not Bad But Not As Good As Premium Edition
  • Vista Server My Other Edition Is Premium Edition Edition
  • Vista 5 User License Edition
  • Vista Site License Edition
  • Vista Country License Edition
  • Vista Planetary License Edition
  • Vista Galaxy License Edition
  • Vista Universe License Edition
  • Vista Universe License Without Windows Media Player Edition*
  • Vista Home Edition
  • Vista Home Premium Edition
  • Vista Home Premium Edition With Some Server Features
  • Vista Home I Can't Believe It's Not Server Edition
  • Vista Away From Home But Have My Laptop With Me Edition
  • Vista Gamers Edition
  • Vista Mostly Play Games but Also Like to Surf the Net Edition
  • Vista Boot Straight Into World of Warcraft and Never Be Seen Again Edition
  • Vista Just Read Email And Clean Up Viruses Edition
  • Vista Downloaded Via Bittorrent Just Wait For The Subpoena Edition
  • Vista Erases Your iPod Edition (with Free Creative Player Voucher Included)
  • Vista Beginners Edition
  • Vista Intermediate Edition
  • Vista Advanced Edition
  • Vista Write My Own Drivers Edition
  • Vista One Finger On The Reset Button Edition
  • Vista Uninstall And Reinstall XP Edition
  • Vista ME Just Joking! Practical Jokers Edition

*Only Available In Europe

"There should be something there for everyone," said Goffe. When asked when the editions would be shipping, Goffe replied, "I can't really say, we haven't finished coding any of this yet."

Friday, January 26, 2007

Mohammed Mafaz has sent you a LiveScience News Story -- Daydreamers: Scientists Find Our Bored Baseline

Mohammed Mafaz (sm2mafaz@gmail.com) thought you might be interested in this news article from LiveScience.com.
(Email address has not been verified.)
------------------------------------------------------------

Daydreamers: Scientists Find Our Bored Baseline
http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070118_day_dreaming.html

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Visit LiveScience -- http://www.livescience.com

Thursday, January 11, 2007

The new iterator...

I was exposed to C# nearly seven months ago. Then only I got to know about this amazing cool loop in C#.., the foreach loop. Then later at a course in my undergraduate program, i saw it appear in Perl scripting. It was cool. During my second year projects at my campus I used it extensively, mostly for database programming.
But later i began to worry...Can't we survive without it? Because programming languages like C & C++ have survived for some years without that loop i guess. But my guess was wrong, because C++ did have a for_each function as in this link:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreach

But is it just because only this mistake we have to shift to the foreach loop..
However i believe it depends on the preference of the programmer...

Tuesday, January 2, 2007

Does Islam tolerate other beliefs?

The Quran says: God forbids you not, with regards to those who fight you not for [your] faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them; for God loveth those who are just.
(Quran, 60:8)

It is one function of Islamic law to protect the privileged status of minorities, and this is why non-Muslim places have flourished all over the Islamic world. History provides many examples of Muslim tolerance towards other faiths: when the Caliph Omar entered Jerusalem in the year 634, Islam granted freedom of worship to all religious communities in the city.

Islamic law also permits non-Muslim minorities to set up their own courts, which implement family laws drawn up by the minorities themselves.34, Islam granted freedom of worship to allowards other faiths: when the Caliph Omar entered Jerusalem in the yera er the Islam