words of wisdom....jpg (JPEG Image, 550x408 pixels)

words of wisdom....jpg (JPEG Image, 550x408 pixels)

[From : http://fabulousfake.blogspot.com/]

Sami people - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sami people - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "The abbreviation Lap(p) has been used to abbreviate peoples in Northern Scandinavia who call themselves Sápmelaš 'someone of Sami kin' or Sabme 'Sami' or Sámit 'the Samis'. However, in some Sami languages, the term Sami may refer only to speakers of these languages, e.g. Skolt Sami speakers say they speak sää´mǩiõll 'Sami language', but this term refers exclusively to Skolt Sami."
I was watching this movie called "cuckoo" it has a lapp woman in it and I didnt know who they were. The movie is pretty good with a finnish and a russian stuck with this lady in the middle of nowhere towards the end of WWII. none of them knows the other persons language.

Why Not Build a Bomb? - New York Times

Why Not Build a Bomb? - New York Times: "The problem with the N.P.T. is that it legitimates the wrong thing - not just the peaceful use of nuclear energy but the 'inalienable right' to produce your own nuclear fuel. The solution, then, is to eliminate, or at least circumscribe, that right. And this is what Washington has spurned. Last year, Kofi Annan's 'high-level panel' on U.N. reform endorsed the Proliferation Security Initiative and suggested that more nations join. It also proposed that the International Atomic Energy Agency would act as 'guarantor for the supply of fissile material to civilian nuclear users.' Nations would no longer be able to argue, as Iran now does, that they need to produce their own enriched fuel in order to ensure a steady supply for peaceful purposes. The proposal wouldn't have stopped the rogue states, but it would have delegitimated them.

The Bush administration apparently accepts the idea; it just doesn't want to see an international agency empowered to execute it. The White House has proposed that the countries that currently produce nuclear fuel - led, presumably, by the U.S. - band together to guarantee a steady and low-cost supply of uranium enriched for civilian purposes. Neither the Iranians nor other recipients are likely to accept such an arrangement. But maybe there's something halfway, or a quarter of the way, between the two systems. So far, however, the administration won't even try. Kofi Annan had good reason to describe the failure to address nonproliferation in the reform outcome document as 'a disgrace.'

When it comes to military force, the United States can, and will, act alone. But diplomacy depends on a united front. Even White House hard-liners understand this, which is why they have let Germany, France and Britain take the lead on Iran and have worked with regional powers to end North Korea's nuclear program. All this is encouraging. Still, the only way to rescue the nonproliferation regime is to rec"

Smart Investing Amidst Real Estate Mania: Why the Rich Get Richer - Yahoo! Finance

Smart Investing Amidst Real Estate Mania: Why the Rich Get Richer - Yahoo! Finance: "The angry readers should draw insight from something Warren Buffett said: 'For some reason, people take their cues from price action rather than from values. What doesn't work is when you start doing things that you don't understand or because they worked last week for someone else.'

The sage of Omaha sums up pithily: 'The dumbest reason in the world to buy a stock is because it's going up.'

Personally, I would say, 'The dumbest reason to buy anything is because the price is going up.' Yet that's what people do when they invest. They generally don't buy high-priced things when they shop."

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar heading for a Nobel

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar heading for a Nobel: "United States Congressman Joseph Crowley has nominated India's Sri Sri Ravi Shankar for the Nobel Peace Prize saying that the godman had helped bring peace to thousands of people through his Art of Living Foundation."

But :
"Are the nominations made public?

The statutes of the Nobel Foundation restricts disclosure of information about the nominations, whether publicly or privately, until fifty years have elapsed. The restriction concerns the nominees and nominators as well as investigations and opinions in the awarding of a prize." [ link ]
" Congressman Crowley has served as a Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on India. The seventh district of New York contains 55,000 South Asians, the second highest concentration of any district in the United States. Jackson Heights contains the United States' second largest Indian American community. Congressman Crowley believes that it is of utmost importance that closer ties are forged between the United States, the oldest democracy and India, the largest one. The India Caucus helps to facilitate more Indian American connectedness and involvement in the United State Congress. Congressman Crowley will work hard with members of the India Caucus and the Indian Americans in the seventh district to promote trade, technology and labor."

" Unlike many other awards, the Nobel Prize nominees are never publicly announced, and they are not supposed to be told that they were ever considered for the prize. These records are sealed for 50 years.

After the nomination deadline, a Committe compiles and screens the nominations to a list of around 200 preliminary candidates. The list is sent to selected experts in the field to each nominee's work and the list shortened to around 15 final candidates. The Committee then writes a report with recommendations and sends it to the Academy or other corresponding institution, depending on the prize. As an example of institute size, the Assembly for the Prize for Medicine has 50 members. The members of the institution meet and vote to select the winner(s)." [source]

Sania Mirza gets Padma Sri

Sania Mirza gets Padma Sri: "Sania Mirza was conferred with prestigious Padma Sri award for her contribution to tennis on the eve of the Republic Day on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old was one of the six sportspersons who got Padma awards today. The others were Vijaypat Singhania (aviator), Bahadur Singh (shot putter), Madhumita Bisht (badminton player), MC Mary Kom (boxer), Mohan Singh Gunjyal (adventure sports).

Singhania got Padma Bhushan while others got Padma Sri."

Is she that good ? I havent see her play yet

Tech tonic: IITians form political party- The Economic Times

Tech tonic: IITians form political party- The Economic Times: "Seems like Mani Rathnam’s Yuva is getting off the reels. Five IITians, all in their 20s, have decided to take up mainstream politics. The youths, based in Jodhpur, will be in the city to campaign for their national party, “ Paritrana’’ , which was launched in Jodhpur on Friday.
“Giving up handsome pay packages, comfort of family and support of friends wasn’t that easy,’’ says Tanmay Rajpurohit, the national president of the party and B Tech in aerospace from IIT Bombay followed by an MS from GeorgiaTech and double masters in arts."

Very nice !!

In a Richer China, Billionaires Put Money on Marriage - New York Times

In a Richer China, Billionaires Put Money on Marriage - New York Times: "For centuries, Chinese practiced arranged marriages, complete with dowries, leaving little place for Western-style notions of romance. During the long decades of hard-line Communism, these practices were updated with an infusion of Maoist social control methods. Work brigade commissars, rather than parents and clans, decided who could date and marry and who could not. Neighborhood committee bosses even had a say in the matter. Only recently has the idea of living together unmarried gained limited social acceptance in China.
In a breathtakingly short period of time, though, sexual and romantic opportunities have sprung up everywhere in a society that still thinks of itself as conservative in such matters. Prostitutes work openly in almost every hotel in China. The Internet has made possible everything from online dating to nude Web-cam dancing, sprouting a vocabulary all its own, like M.B.A., or married but available. And, unsurprisingly, divorce rates in big cities like Shanghai are skyrocketing.
When the newspaper Nanfang Zhoumo, or Southern Weekend, published a report recently about billionaires seeking brides, online discussion groups were flooded with commentary from readers, often focusing on the matter-of-fact comments of one woman who applied but was passed over by a billionaire. 'Isn't the purpose of saving our virginity to get a good price?' she asked."

I have seen people in India and China become richer and become more like Americans in their social outlook i.e. w.r.t marriage, money, consumption, independence, concept of free will, materialisim. Is this is the only way ? Or is it the cultural influence which makes us ape the Americans

Energizing

Getting back early does give you a boost of energy do something more with the rest of your time, other than glue your eyes to the tube. And I am more interested in the work.
Bought tickets to the Brian Greene lecture ... hope its worth it. He sure seems to be a good speaker. I heard him present the PBS documentary on his book.

Funny how all the investment advisers repeatedly make you aware of risk. Seems as if greed can make people pay no heed to warnings. Well extra caution isnt the answer to stay ahead of inflation.

Mother's Cafe and Bangkok Cuisine in Austin .... good food :) I am becoming a laughing buddha :))

Noise Cancelling Head Phones - Sony + Money

I got these Sony headphones about 4 months back. Finally I decided to be not lazy (infact since I got back from India , I have been wanting to buy stuff and not wanting to spend time reading. ) I am slowly getting back to normal (?). With all the time at hand in India I started to think about what I should do with the money I am starting to accumulate. Its a pain to invest. Why arent we armed with these skills when we get out of school ? Schools are the right place. Any job you do you need to take care of your money. Banks should influence the education board to include this, they will get more potential investors.

Anyways the aim of this entry was to register my surprise at the way these head phones work. They dont really shut-out all the noise. You can still understand what someone is saying. But you need to concentrate a bit harder than usual. So I wouldnt have bought these had I tried them out at the store, but they do job pretty well. (This is not a complex idea, but I find myself using so many words to describe it. Ironically I call this blog parsimony)

BBC NEWS | UK | Education | Science 'not for normal people'

BBC NEWS | UK | Education | Science 'not for normal people': "Dr Stylianadou said: 'These results are worrying for UK science but also hold out hope. Young people see science as important and exciting. But they don't see themselves doing it.
'If we can keep young people positive about science but help them to see the full range of scientific careers, more of them may realise that a career in science can be satisfying - and for them.'
Lord May of Oxford, president of The Royal Society, which promotes science, has said 'proper targets' for the numbers of pupils opting to take science at GCSE and A-level are needed.
The number taking A-level physics dropped by 34% between 1991 and 2004, with 28,698 taking the subject in that year.
The decline in numbers taking chemistry over the same period was 16%, with 44,440 students sitting the subject in 1991, and 37,254 in 2004.
The number of students taking maths also dropped by 22%"

Well this doesnt seem shocking. Age old tale of scientists not bein marketting gurus. Well, they are NOT. I am contemplating paying for a Brian Greene lecture in Austin myself. Its soo bloody expensive. These guys should be giving free public lectures, unless they want the knowledge to remain exclusive.

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Chilly welcome for Indian 'ghost'

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Chilly welcome for Indian 'ghost': "An Indian man is being refused entry to his house - because his family say he is a spirit come back to haunt them.

Raju Raghuvanshi was greeted with cries of 'ghost' and neighbours locking doors when he returned from a short spell in jail to his village in Madhya Pradesh.

He had fallen ill in prison and was taken to hospital. Relatives heard he had died and performed his last rites.

Now, unable to convince them he is alive and well, he is staying nearby and has asked the police for help."

Dogs Excel on Smell Test to Find Cancer - New York Times

Dogs Excel on Smell Test to Find Cancer - New York Times: " In the small world of people who train dogs to sniff cancer, a little-known Northern California clinic has made a big claim: that it has trained five dogs - three Labradors and two Portuguese water dogs - to detect lung cancer in the breath of cancer sufferers with 99 percent accuracy.
The study was based on well-established concepts. It has been known since the 80's that tumors exude tiny amounts of alkanes and benzene derivatives not found in healthy tissue.

Other researchers have shown that dogs, whose noses can pick up odors in the low parts-per-billion range, can be trained to detect skin cancers or react differently to dried urine from healthy people and those with bladder cancer, but never with such remarkable consistency.

The near-perfection in the clinic's study, as Dr. Donald Berry, the chairman of biostatistics at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, put it, 'is off the charts: there are no laboratory tests as good as this, not Pap tests, not diabetes tests, nothing.'

As a result, he and other cancer experts say they are skeptical, but intrigued. Michael McCulloch, research director for the Pine Street Foundation in Marin County, Calif., and the lead researcher on the study, acknowledged that the results seemed too good to be true. (For breast cancer, with a smaller number of samples, the dogs were right about 88 percent of the time with almost no false positives, which compares favorably to mammograms.)

"

Idiot Box

Spent the whole day in front of my(??) machine at work. Just another usual day.
Unable to tear myself away. Feel this is the minimum I should be doing. Dont know how to measure relative performance and fruits of effort.
Need to devote more time to developing other faculties. Inability to walk away from the chair is a comfort zone thing.
Hopefully APIE is a good shakeup, eventhough I have no clue of what SAT prep involves.

Mangal Pandey rocks. Hahaha couldnt resist drawing lines between today's corporations and the company Raj 100 years back. Bloody bloodsucking leeches !! Capitalism leading to unbridled greed.