lores from the middle kingdom..............

this might become the oasis........the first step towards weakening of fundamentalist and intolerant islam where radical ideas can flourish..........or this might end leaving no hope of social and cultural modernization of middle east, EVER

...it's lke a giant hug :)

it is indeed an interesting proposition to let customer decide, but how would one make a decision? There is nobody to bargain with, and the brand is arguably the best

there is a lot more to their names.............

here

For the record

As the speculation continues about Shoaib Akhtar's fate, Cricinfo presents a chronological look at the seamier side of his career.

Inside Rafael Nadal's game

NYT has put together a series of graphics that try to explain the differences in World number 2 Nadal's game, as the surface changes from clay to grass to hard court.

A Remarkable Social Phenomenon

Why are hundreds of teen-aged boys leaving their homes in this settlement?

a recognition obsessed nation........

with over a billion in headcount, people are bound to go weird ways to get noticed.
and by the way this is the 100th post on this blog, another landmark of 2000 visits has been also reached ( :P ) i hope the links were worth the time you spent on this blog..........

the connotations are scary.........

in fact you dont need to peruse through the complete article, the poster itself is enough to make the point clear. The idea not only starkly reminds of nazi philosophy but is also indicative of attitude towards migrant population.

bovine identity.....

what should i say....... the absurdity and the inherent desperation are blatantly obvious. I mean, cattle dont immigrate on regular basis.....if they are found doing so.....offcourse its illegal......whats an i card gonna prove?

.....and pretty cool too :P

here

dam, double dam :)

to what extent you consider this as wastage of resources? the planned sum is a huge amount by any means for a sitting duck :)

heave ho......all ye pirates here is your lesson in history

women are far more enterprising, conniving and revolutionary.......once in a while :P

a quiz.......

here

and its finally done.................

iphone within reach of every gadget freak in europe and asia

whoa!!!!!!!!!

this is asinine even by bush' standards.........

hairy stuff :P

whats the purpose.....some people just believe in doing weirdly absurd things....sniff sniff
indeed manages to catch attention :)

'bunny fence' ....yeah that is what they call it

might as well help understand effect on climate of certain less understood(often neglected) factors

amusing......i bet cactus sounds harsher than a lily :)

the credit for the link goes to MMP (mohan) :)
the idea is a bit far fetched though fascinating, take a look.

What are you going to be embarrassed by today?

Thailand Police thinks that Hello Kitty is the answer.

It is Potter week...

...so, some prankster decided to have a little fun: he suggests that Harry Potter was inspired by an 11 year-old Rafael Nadal...

Pythons in Florida?

Yes, and they're making their presence felt in the Everglades forests.

Do you have wis.dm?

Yet another 'social networking' (do I hate that term!) site, but one that will appeal to those who bemoan the lack of intelligence in such networks....or so they say.

Resurrection of the Russian Empire?

First up: the North Pole.

anonymity and attention ;)

this is one man who wants attention for his shadow, to tickle the imaginations and to enjoy the stir created :D

Audacious/funny/foolhardy/ingenious?

Or all of the above? Decide for yourself.

believing in the myth ;)

hype and hoopla!
we are bright spoilt kids of a talent famished nation; with world economy growing at a ravenous pace, the myth can only get bigger.

PS- every pig is allowed one day of unashamed gloating (please let me have mine :P )

how do you know someone has nothing worthwhile to do

oh lord forgive me for i have sinned.................. i was in splits when i saw thou 10 commandments for the drivers. Since, Vatican has made it clear that it hates Porche, Ferrari and Lamborghinis of this world (i mean the same place which has harboured vatican) the devil worshippers (read Merc CLK and Bugatti Veyron owners) face a new threat (other than the tree huggers who have been howling for decades against the high emissions) in form of a hostile opinion of old hags (who else cares how people show off their hard earned money) who swear by the declarations from the church.

betting large on technology

technology is changing the rules of the game in a more fundamental way then I could have imagined by myself. Although things are destined to change for better, but what irks me is that, if technology keeps on eliminating the human factor, would we be able to absorb all those rendered useless, let alone others who keep adding to the workforce every year?

a problem in the brewing

arguably islam has the sort of religious tenets which are most vulnerable to be used as tools for preaching extremism and militancy, by radicals and religious fanatics. And when your nation' younger generation subscribes to such an ideology a delicate approach is indeed necessary to take preventive measures. The only problem is how well you understand the situation and its underlying causes.

an art indeed :)

so here are a few tips to improve your skills

a new approach to build defences

in a heavily stifled democracy where bureaucratic curruption threatens to strangle the last vestiges of efficieny in the government functioning this might come as no surprise, but I still feel it's too little too late. besides the rhetorians loom in large over the utility of internet, lets see how far the sound of whistle goes...........

Green Consumerism: Shooting ourselves in the foot?

How far is our influence on our environment governed by our shopping decisions? A very good discussion on the issue, and why it might not be an open-and-shut case.

Just how difficult is it to avoid the 'Made in China' label?

Find out here.

is there really a hope

HIV has been quite an elusive virus with no known cure yet. But this study promises a hope, for the millions afflicted and of a future without AIDS.

Capitalism for Dummies

You might have read some of these definitions before, but I'm sure you'll find a few new ones. Hilarious!

MySpace vs Facebook

A UC Berkeley researcher goes deeper into the user demographics of the two otherwise similar sites, and tell us what she found.

Best of SI's Bruty

Sports Illustrated photographer Simon Bruty shares his best work here.

Click, and listen!

A personal favourite of mine! Let the music play, after you open the webpage. These guys are from India.

Born to leave

The startling case of the tiny African nation of Cape Verde, nearly half of whose citizens are immigrants in Europe and America.

Missing people...missing cars...

Missing lake? No kidding!

class distinction :D

ah! finally someone woke up to the merits of having intellingence.
still i dont see how einstein could have fared any better than george bush(too extremes of the intellingence spectrum :P ) on this new scheme.

Is your boss crazy?

Find out here!

that sure wasnt music :)

who doesnt know the beatles, i mean 'The Beatles'. Atleast, this magistrate knew them well enough to recite a few of their numbers, IN A VERDICT.

a little insight : reasons for the massacre

here

I was once stuck, similar to one of them :)

If you guess correctly, similar to which one of them, a big slab of Lindt guaranteed from my side.

PS- No, its not a multiple choice question ;)

Toilet seats and game theory ?

well, i call it quits. Any one of you geniuses able to make sense of it, kindly contact.

the 'ol man and his story

You might get a word or two of wisdom from here.
If you have around 10 mins to spare, I would suggest a read.

The Virtual Barbershop

When is a barbershop a hair-raising experience? This is an example!

Blaming bad behaviour on bad company: Do we miss the point?

Yes, says Paul Zimmermann in this article in Sports Illustrated. The characters and sub-plots may be unfamiliar to many, but the argument is universally applicable.

read the complete article, please :D

one debate i wont miss for a world. I exhort RR to contribute some technically relevant insight into the matter. For all i know this is one issue where biomechanics has as profound a role to play as ethics does.

push it, push it :D

things coudnt get any better, on a dry scorching summer day this is one thing you certainly wont mind giving a skip.

'toefl' tourism

here

How YouTube struck gold

Forbes.com presents a list of what it thinks, are the 10 most influential videos, to appear on YouTube. Thanks to Mohan for the link!

brother of the holy cow !

We Indians take every bit the India with ourselves to places we encroach upon. The desire to register our presence often manifests itself in the most weirdest of manners. The projection is sometimes reflective of the most backward and inane mentalities that Indians once harboured. Every action however good it might be, if it lacks sound reasoning is yet another tomfoolery. I dont doubt what good it might do to that poor creature but why others are left out of the perview of this sudden sympathy and holy reverance is beyond my humble reasoning. Offcourse, one might argue that tracing its lineage to the holy cow, 'Shambo' deserves all the attention and campaigning.
sigh!!!!..........somebody tell the queen.

Thief! Thief!

But what did he take? You would have never guessed!

it happens only in India

i pity blokes who are having a hard time getting H1B to realize their US dreams, but here comes their savior who defying all procedures and Visa caps can mysteriously grant them their wishes, ranging from visas, to jobs and love interests.

PS- for those putting up copies of love letters to katrina kaif please note, multiple applications with a single subject tend to get rejected to ensure impartiality ;)

Varieties of Weed!

No, not the stuff that plagues your little garden. This is the weed!

spencer tunick.......... ;) never thought getting someone' clothes off was such an easy task

people do enjoy themselves in their pristine looks, the one, before the leaves came in vogue :)
and they need the most lame of the excuses to shed all their clothes in a hurry; did i say art.

Watch the accompanying video. For the uninitiated and the Perverts, this is strictly art we are looking at, here :D

just another coin

but wait, it can buy you that ferrari you dreamt of......what do you say??? Not enough, ok go on melt it...........and poof..........it just doubled in value and after that ferrari you are left with some change to celebrate your new purchase over a bottle of that expensive champagne with caviar at ritz :D

PS- a word of caution, it is a little large to fit in your pockets :P

no ordinary advertisement.............should i be scared

well the intentions are seemingly honest but it says a lot about the problems yet to surface

yet another courtship !

we all love big fat weddings, and solitude sucks. So, this couple is contemplating a $50 billion marriage. There is just one catch, the two have some traits in common and people say this bodes trouble.

How many ICC officials does it take to change a light bulb?

As Andrew Miller concluded, the answer is not very funny.

One marriage which even I would look forward to!

Since it's the season of Celebrity unions, let's look at this one and see what it can mean for your future!

What is that dog telling you?

This article in the IHT gives some insight into what dogs communicate by the wagging of their tails.

How much longer before Kobe does an Iverson?

Kobe Bryant has carried the hopes of the Los Angeles Lakers for 3 years, ever since Shaquille O'Neal was traded to Miami. For how much longer can he keep doing it? Will he be worn out or will he simply say no? Howard Beck wonders aloud here.

Efficacy of the Lethal Injection under scrutiny

In spite of the fact that 37 states use the 3-drug injection as the legal method for execution, its use has come in for intense criticism in the light of a study that questions the claim that it is a humane form of execution. More here.

Delivering bad news in the best way possible

This article on CNN.com talks about how doctors and doctors-to-be are trained to convey bad (sometimes the worst possible) news to the kin of patients.

Automated Infilitration as the newest method to test software security

This article in the NY Times talks about one of the latest signs that the software industry is maturing.

....................they never stop

once it was Germany, then there was Korea and later it was Vietnam. It seems now US has picked them to repeat the exercise and they seem to think tat Berlin was not a mistake

"We came all this way to explore the moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth."

How many of us can even imagine what it feels like to see the Earth from so far away that it's no more than a dot on the horizon? Some of the men and women who know, tell us. Try to think of it. It's an overpowering sensation.

Is Yao Ming the most complete super-sized center in the history of the NBA?

Chris Ballard thinks so. A very well written and researched article. Read it here.

Finally, some much needed help with airline tickets!

This NY Times article focuses on some of the newest tools developed to help travellers in purchasing tickets online.

......and I am sure you would ask me for a coffee once you gather your scattered wits.

The profession is certinly unique, but my only contention is that why didn't anyone think of it before. I am planning to be the Indian franchise of the enterprise. if only we were a more civil nation i wouldn't have feared for my safety against impulsive outbursts.

Now dont ask what was i doing looking for them ;)

If I ever had reservations about the innovative and resourceful nature of Indians, they are are dispelled now by this act of their'
When you scroll down you would find some more amusing uses ;) Offcourse except the primary intended one :D

The Kabul Beauty School: I kid you not

Read this account of Deborah Rodriguez's successful venture to bring a difference to the lives of women in Afghanistan. You couldn't have dreamed this up even if you had wanted!

11 Interesting Innovations in Cricket

The Aluminium bat occupies the top slot, but the others are also guaranteed to raise their fair share of laughs!

Dennis Lillee and his Aluminium Bat

This is one of the most hilarious and farcical controversies in the history of cricket. Not to be missed!

Who let the dogs out????

Money matters :D
Although the income is not substantial at this juncture, but is still significant considering the fact that it is working only part time. And mind you, it is hard earned unlike that of others who use their antics to entertain people. Actors and actresses should take no offence :P

John Travolta was in Reservoir Dogs!!!!

Oh well, he almost was...the website NotStarring.com has this to say on the matter:

"
The role of Vic Vega (Mr. Blonde) in Reservoir Dogs was written for John Travolta, but he declined the low budget film. Director Quinten Tarantino then wrote the role of Vinnie in Pulp Fiction with Michael Madsen in mind, but when Madsen was unavailable it went to John Travolta. Thus, Tarantino gave Vincent the same last name as Vic - Vega, making the characters brothers. (A proposed Vega Brothers film featuring the two characters has been discussed but never come to be).
"

An interesting database, searchable by both actor name and movie name.

Driven crazy by your inability to remember/locate that song you heard?

Then Midomi might be the answer. This website is probably the first in the world to offer visitors an option to hum a song, from which it is able to tell them the song they have in mind. Traditionally, matching human-produced auditory signals with an existing template of sounds has been a difficult task, but Midomi uses a slighly different approach.

More on it here.
Thanks to Khushboo for the link!

From Milan to Zurich, via the world's longest tunnel

The Swiss are in the process of boring through the Alps in an attempt to establish a rail link between the two parts of Europe divided by the mountain range. Once completed, this route will allow the journey to be made in just 2.5 hours, as compared to the 4-hr flight between the cities. Trains will run at speeds up to 240 km/h, and the Gotthard Base Tunnel between the Swiss towns of Faido and Biasca will be a record 57 kilometres long.

More here.

20 Questions about Albert Einstein

A little sketchy, but still a handy list of FAQ's. I will definitely not be surprised if many of you know the answers to these questions. Read this Time magazine feature here.

Enforcing Civility in 'Blogosphere'

With several million bloggers actively pursuing their hobby, and in many cases, very seriously and with economic interests as well, there has been a rise in the cases of harassment, also called cyber-bullying, of some prominent as well as occasional bloggers. Concern over this has led to a campaign for adopting rules and guidelines for the audience of these blogs.

Read about it here.

The CEO Bill of Rights 2007

Unfortunately, I missed it when it was still fresh. Alas! But nevertheless, the Motley Fool's exercise on charting a Bill of Rights for CEO's makes for a very very interesting read :)

Here's what they say:
"We're proud to announce that we've been working tirelessly with key members of the U.S. Congress to draft H.R. 401, The CEO Bill of Rights Act of 2007. This is important and necessary legislation because America's CEOs are under attack. Our corporate leaders -- all in, making a precious few hundred times the average worker today -- are being labeled greedy, self-dealing scoundrels. And who stands up on their behalf?"

Read it here!

I am curious to know whether you went to a dentist recently

If you did, it's better to ascertain if he too has similar habits, for your own good.

Now you don't need Mommy to tell you where not to go!

All you need are these clothes, which alert you if you approach a location that fits your adjustable parameters of discomfort. The idea is pretty zany, but I had my share of laughs imagining what it can be possibly used for!

Simply funny, too funny

I can't describe this stuff, it defies description. Go down the page and click on any of the links under the heading "16th Checklist".

Thanks to Harsh for the link!

Doctor vs Patient: Is either really wrong?

In this article in the New York Times, a doctor describes a class of situations in which a patient demands a certain method of treatment (which he/she has a right to), but which is unacceptable to the doctor. In some cases, the stand-off is harder to resolve than you might think.

The Gavaskar-Ponting joust: Looking beyond the quotable quotes

An excellent analytical article by Ashok Malik in Cricinfo, a must-read that took longer coming than I would have expected because of the goings-on at the WC.

We are a world of 5million people, you can touch none of us

They have their own economy, they have classrooms from Harvard and INSEAD, Swedes are hoping to be the first to open their embassy there, its not illegal to make out in open, you can teleport from one place to another in an instant. Find out about this atlantis, here
The boundaries with Virtual reality are fading fast and the phenomenon has given rise to some questions with profound implications.................................

A Cockroach Can Live without Its Head

This article in the Scientific American tells us how it is possible.

The frogs went silent in the night !

Well, if I were a frog eating snake, I would be worried to death to hear this. But since I am not, I am not in a hurry so as to leave you stranded without details. 'Tree huggers', as some people affectionately call environmentalits, have cried out hoarse about the catastrophe humans are inviting by so rapidly altering our planet. It seems now, that they were a little inaccurate in their doomsday sayings, the danger is manifesting itself sooner than previously thought.

I think now I know what it means to be secular.......

I am back with yet another controversial issue, though this one is a lesson of sorts. This is not merely about a church or a mosque but the openness in the British culture. To embrace and recognise the immigrants and their sentiments is no mean feat in a largely Christian nation.
The thing which humbled me was the method adopted by the handful of people to get things right. I dont know what future has in store, and there are sure going to be some repercussions after this publicity, but one thing I am sure of is that there is no bitterness in relations among the people of two communities, although many might disagree with the decision. If issues in India can be resolved this way, how better things could have been.

Has Guillermo Canas just dropped out from the sky?

No, says Justin Gimelstob, even though many are thinking on the same lines after Canas beat Roger Federer twice in two weeks. How was the world no. 55 able to achieve what only Rafael Nadal has in the past 2 years? What do we know about him? Read it here.

Thanks to John for the link!

Is Indian cricket heading the same way as Indian Hockey?

In this article in the Business Standard, Devangshu Datta notes some parallels and talks about how we have fallen behind in the race to enter the new generation of cricket.

See for yourself......

Attn:

Jerry Sienfeld,
David letterman
Jay Leno
Carlos Mencia
Russel Peters

Stand up and take notice……There’s a new comedian in town, and it so happens that he is also the most powerful person on this planet.


Take it away, G.W. Bush

Believe it at your own risk

I quote:

"Sick of paying for broadband that you have to, well, pay for?

Introducing Google TiSP (BETA), our new FREE in-home wireless broadband service. Sign up today and we'll send you your TiSP self-installation kit, which includes setup guide, fiber-optic cable, spindle, wireless router and installation CD."

Find it here.

BTW, what's the day today?

A Mystery that defies both death and decipherment

On July 2, 1937, famed aviator Amelia Earhart disappeared over the South Pacific Ocean, while attempting to become the first person to circumnavigate the globe by air. Along with her was her navigator Fred Noonan. They were nearing the end of a journey that had been 44 days long till that point, and would terminate in Oakland, California, but never did.

Now, 70 years later, new clues are continuing to surface, leading investigators to believe that the end to the puzzle may be close by. This CNN story has details and some essential background on the case.

Arresting Images

I quote from the page itself:
"Without the aid of fancy lighting, makeup, and wardrobe, these little works of mug shot art--taken with Instamatic, Polaroid, and digital cameras at law enforcement agencies nationwide--are perhaps the most candid photos of celebrities (and other public figures) that you’ll see."

Here it is!

The sky is falling !

Though i have my reservations about the veracity of this report. But, since it is not 1st april yet and Pravda is not Punjab Kesari either, one might get inclined to believe it.
Though this photo article just claims about the UFOs, the details are expected to be found on French space agency' website. I havent had the time to read about it more and to find out what was the motive of releasing these pictures. Whether they are just releasing them as records of claimed UFO sightings or publishing them as evidence of their existence, is not yet clear.
we are living in troubled times, UFOs apperances are given goverment recognitions, Popes are curing Parkinson's disease, TATAs are making a 1 lakh car, Saudis are ridiculing america, the mightiest country is ruled by an imbecile, china is mulling over curtailing the one child policy....................nothing makes sense to my addled mind. while you dig out further over the UFO issue. I'll try to calm my nerves :P

The Birthday Paradox

It can be proven that you are more likely to find 2 persons having the same birthdate in a randomly chosen group of 23 people, than not. If you don't mind mathematics, this Wikipedia article should appeal to you.

Individual rights vs religious identity

This article brings forth an important issue.
How is the sikh community at large going to react to the situation? It is not so hidden a fact that an increasing number of sikhs have embraced trimming of their beards, and the SGPC has averted its eyes to accomodate it in name of changing times. But when it comes to not wearing turbans, a crucial element of Sikh identity is in danger of extinction.
With changing times, changes in customs and outlook, have been accomodated by various religions so far it does not clashes with the core beliefs. Perhaps because these are necessary to keep the base intact and in the first place they dont defy the religious identity so blatantly.
A clarification here is important. I am indeed in favor of changes whether they be radical or subtle as far as they confirm with reasoning and logics. Afterall you need to move forwards as the civilization progresses, and the perspective and beliefs of our ancestors were a function of the knowledge under their domain.
Coming back to my main contention, which is, when you have always preached some element to be part of your unique identity you cant denounce it overnight. But also there is no way you can make people wear something they dont want to, encroachments on individual freedom will only result in defiance.
Let us see are there any real sikhs (that is subject to my definition of a sikh, which is the same as been traditionally believed) left after this new wave of cultural revolution.

Has Agarkar failed Indian cricket, or has Indian cricket failed him?

Anand Vasu deliberates upon the question which so many people have asked, looks at the statistics, and gives us an answer in this article in Cricinfo.

What were they thinking !

This IHT article gives an amusing account of a new approach towards green revolution in China. Though the thinking is seemingly sincere, the methods to achieve the goal are unprecedental.
We Indians can sure take a lesson or two from the Chinese, in increasing our country's green cover which has seen a steady decline over the decades :)

When you have no option but to set a record

This CNN article describes how US astronaut Sunita Williams will end up breaking the record for most number of days in space by an American. The interesting thing is, it's not her fault!

Ecstasy by Asphyxiation

This is an article in the New York Times discussing the growing prevalence among children in their teens, of suffocation-related 'games'. The objective of these life-threatening activities is to first starve the brain of blood, taking it to the point of loss of consciousness, and then releasing the airflow, which gives a rush, or a high moment. The article also narrates the case of a 16-year old who came back to life after 3 days in a coma, as a result of such a game.