A Mother's KISS and Assembly Languages

In class today, a group was presenting on the topic "VBA and Macros"

VBA and Macros?

Ya. VBA and Macros.

Anyways, as any Computer Science or IT guy will tell you, High level languages are converted to Intermediate Languages, which are then converted into Assembly Language and then finally into machine language.

For example, the statement "Hello World" would be written like printf("Hello World"); in C++.

It would look something like pop ax, push bx , shift ah in Assembly Language

And then it would look like 01110001001011110001001001001010100100101111101001 in machine language.

But this is the only language a machine understands. And apart from a very VERY few, we don't understand it.

Back to today.

My friend Harsh said:

"Imagine a baby is crying. If the mother comes and says, 'Baby, Don't cry, Don't cry, your crying is hurting me and I love you a lot, so taking that into consideration, please don't cry', the baby will not stop crying. However, if the mother holds the baby close to her heart, a lot more is understood by the baby because the mothers hug, warmth, and probably a kiss is something the baby understands.

"Now imagine the baby is a computer. For it to understand what you want, you should be able to communicate with it on a level it understands. Hence, your high level language should be converted into machine language"

Beautiful. This process had been explained at least 50 times to me before in my life. By M.techs, Phds and multiple Doctorates and post doctorates and what not. But no one, NO ONE ever explained it to me like that. NO ONE.

Readers of my last post will know I am a critic of the education system. This is one more reason why. We spend so much time in complexities that we refuse to accept simplicity.

Simplicity. KISS. Keep It Simple Stupid.

Why do we go past this always? Is it something to be proud of when we intentionally confuse people by trying to show off our intelligence? Would it not serve everyone better if we, instead of confusing, actually tried to make people understand? Use of jargons, complexities and technical terms is good when you want to create a separate hierarchy in society which you find yourself fit to be in, along with a group of 'elite' people you would like to be associated with. But is that good?

Look at the bigger picture guys. Just because you're on the higher side of the divide does not mean you have to extend it. I'm not asking you to surrender all your wealth. Wealth is not the only type of social divide. To satisfy our egos, we want to be 'a class apart'. We want to be at 'a higher level'.

Enough with our egos. Don't get rid of your wealth, don't get rid of your pride, don't get rid of your sense of justice, but PLEASE try to get rid of the negative aspects of your ego.

Do not divide society into classes. We will not be able to survive.

Education in India.

The following is a report of the presentation by our group on Education in India.

Given the topic of education in India, our group came up with a lot of information on the state of education in India. However, what struck us the most came from personal experience. We are all products of the system. The system of education of education in India is not one which promotes free thinking, analytical thinking, expression of opinions and last but not least intelligent rebellion.

The system we are parts of cuts us up into tiny pieces and then polishes us up just to be other cogs in the machine. We are not given a chance to change the machine, let alone create something new. The education system in our country squashes dreams and ambitions by calling them too far-fetched and impractical. If one is not given a fighting chance, it is obvious that fulfilling dreams will be hard to do.

The system we have gone through in the most part consists of mugging up facts and figures to mechanically reproduce them on paper during the exams. This is sad because nothing is taught to us for the sake of gaining knowledge. Instead, the focus is on exams (as exams are the take away), and how to manipulate the system. And exams in this case are not correct evaluators of a person’s capabilities, skills, dreams, ambitions and talent. We feel that the education system in India needs to change.

We know it is very easy for us to sit here and complain about how everything in the world is wrong. However, we are not here to complain, but to change the system. Change the way education is viewed in India. And we can start only if we are willing to accept that something is drastically wrong. When was the last time a renowned philosopher was produced by India?

The onus on extracurricular activities is practically not there in India. Nor is there any onus on freedom of thought. The freedom of thought is an intrinsic right. However, the way the system breeds us in India, we tend to believe what we think is our own expression. What we feel from inside. However, it is far from the truth because our way of thinking is very heavily influenced by the system.

The system of education needs to change and it is up to us to change it.

Why my display pic will not turn green anytime soon.

Why should a display pic turn green, you might ask.

Well, I'll tell you.

Or actually, millions of tweets (Twitter messages, for those Twimpaired) will.

It's supposed to give us a sense of brotherhood with the Iran rebellion.

Or are they calling it a revolt now?

Who cares.

Well, apparently a lot of people do.

Anyways.

To show that we are united with the revolters of Iran, we are supposed to add a green overlay to our display pics.

http://www.twitter.com/greenthumbnails

If anyone reads this, which i doubt they will, I would like to tell them beforehand that I don't disrepect the revolters. Please do not misunderstand this post.

I have full support for any form of rebellion. Or atleast for the right to do so.

What I do not, however take too kindly to, is other people, from other countries, who have no idea about the political situation somewhere else, apart from hearsay, egging on and fuelling revolters.

The fact of the matter is, people in different places think differently. Feel differently. And live life differently.

What might be right for me, might be wrong for someone else. What might be a basic freedom for me, might be an unimaginable travesty of justice for someone else.

I believe in freedom. Of thought. Of speech. Of action. So, I have no issues with other people if they feel differently from me, even if it is about the same freedoms mentioned above.

We should not butt into Iran. We should not blow oxygen onto the fire. The reasons will be apparent in the days to come.

We want to globalize the world.

We think that globalization is a good thing.

Well, the entire world being owned by big oil corporations is not really the type of world I want to

live in.

No disrespect to those who do.

This is one more reason why I wont be turning my display pic green.

I feel, deep inside, not that I am anyone to feel such things, that the U. S. of bloody A is behind this revolt. To overthrow a govenment why they deem not favourable. To replace it with a sypathetic government which can sell oil cheap and give lots of construction projects.

But lets not get into that now.

I feel for the people in Iran. I empathize with them.

If they want change, they should have change.

But, going on a massive revolt being egged on by unmuted bystanders the world over, is not the type of change any of us want to see.

If they want change, they should know what exactly it is that they want to change, and how they should change it.

Not just ride on a tidal wave of emotion.

Fuelled by external sources.

This is very unfortunate.

Let the people in Iran decide on their own war for freedom.

Twitter was created to be the peoples media. So that people could trust a source of information that was not 'corrupt'. That was not altered or hindered by unjust means. That was pure.

Don't become that which you sought to remove in the first place. I beg of you, Twitter. Don't.

War and Peace (and maybe some Pain)

If someone asks me what I gained from college life at VIT, (s)he would be in for a shock.

So, without further ado, in no order of preference whatsoever, we have

• Ability to mug up large amounts of information (actually its just data, it never made any sense)
• Realizing that not studying for term end exams (yes, I mean Data Structures, Object Oriented Analysis, Network Administration, Multimedia, Graphics, Decision Support systems, Management Information Systems, Web Services,etc... ) helps you score more marks and be at peace with yourself, all at the same time.
• A certain someone (for those of you who think you know who, you're wrong; for those of you who don't know, you're right)
• A great appreciation for music and the musicians in VIT
• Dota ( Yes, I mentioned it )
• And ..... Naruto

The capers of a young orphaned ninja hell bent on becoming Hokage.

Oh ya, if you have no idea what I'm talking about,  visit http://www.onemanga.com/Naruto/1/

Read all 440 chapters.

Then get back to this post.

Naruto is pure awesomeness.

You have everything you could ever want.

However, for the select minority for who the above statements do not hold true, I shall go into a few details.

Naruto lives in a world which is torn by war. And in this world exist 9 Bijuus, or demons, each one having a number of tails ranging from 1 to 9.

Most of the Bijuus are trapped inside human containers called Jinchurkis. Naruto is one such  Jinchurki, and he contains the 9 tailed demon fox.

Now, fast forwarding through the story, we have Naruto meeting a character called Pain. 

Pain is a relic from the past. He too was orphaned and trained under the same master as Naruto, Jiraiya. And his main objective was to capture all the Bijuus and use them to make the most destructive bomb known.

Pain, as can be figured out from his monologues, wants peace. Now why would someone who wants peace create the deadliest weapon known to man?

According to pain, love breeds hate. When you lost something you love, you get hurt, and seek revenge. So, if there are two parties involved, what might be seeking revenge for one party for something that they have lost, would be losing something for the other party. Now, the second party, trying to seek revenge, would cause a loss for the first party.

This is where my active reference to Naruto ends.

Life is indeed a vicious cycle.

What is good for someone will invariably be bad for someone else.

Now where do we draw the line and say enough is enough?

Do we, like Pain, try and create something (in his case a weapon) which when used will scare everyone into loving everyone else? Do we, a cultured species, really need demonstrations of what can go wrong to scare us into submission for our own good?

I have tried to find an answer to the above question.

And till now, I have failed.

I know I generally do not post serious topics on my blog. So, I must apologize to everyone for this post.

But, if you feel you can help me answer this question, please do so in the comments section.

Think of it as a personal favour to someone who just wants to know the truth.

Thanks.

Read from right to left

 

Culture. And today's world.

Culture is the sum total of our ancestors. It is what our forefathers taught us.

It is what we carry forward from our previous generations.

Culture can be defined as a set of tasks, which after being repeated a number of times, with time being the greatest teacher, has been accepted by us as a way of life.

People learn from mistakes. People adjust themselves. People adapt to different situations. People change.

Culture is defined by the people.

Culture changes.

Everything in life has it's own cycle. Everything has its ups and downs. 

Normally people tend to bank on tried and tested techniques. Most people would like to live life in a low risk environment. 

Where they can feel safe and secure. That is why people bank on tradition. That is why people bank on culture. After all it's the culmination of what we've learnt from the past.

The problem with culture however is that even if a solution works it might not be the best one.

This is why culture changes.

As mentioned in the audio clip, this is due to the intermingling of cultures.

Now this intermingling of cultures is supposed to preserve the positive aspects of the base culture, overriding it's negative aspects with the positive aspects of some other culture.

But, who is to say what is good or bad ??

Say, for example, I believe that belief in God helps one to focus in life.

To another person it could be a waste of time, as he might have done something productive in that period of time.

With this amount of doubt existing at the lowest level of reason, it is no surprise that when one culture tries to get rid of it's negatives, it could get rid of it's positives as well. When it tries to accept the positives of others, it could accept the negatives of others as well.

Today's world is constantly changing. Tried and tested techniques are being thrown out of the door as newer, better ways of doing things are coming up.

Does this mean that culture has no role to play in today's world?

Culture never had a role to play in the present. Culture is always created in the past and applied in the relative future. As our thoughts become more free, so does our culture.

The culture created yesterday has an effect on us today. If anyone wishes to tell me that people are not behaving in a manner which does not reflect their culture, then in my opinion is wrong.

Everyone acts, already having the burden of culture in built in them. Whatever decisions one makes, it is knowing whatever happened in the past. If any mistakes are made, they will be corrected by future generations. 

That is the beauty of culture.

Culture is the way we think, the way we do, the decisions we make.

Culture is human nature, on a slightly personal basis.

Everything we do today is based on human nature.

The world will change

So will culture.

The topic of todays speech was the implications of culture in todays world.

Todays world is a result of culture based on yesterday.

Tomorrows world will be a result of culture defined by today.

Don't worry. Nothing you ever do will be against your culture. It will be a result of your culture.

The Bathtub Curve

The Bathtub Curve.

Yes I'm writing about the bathtub curve.

Yes, that would be the graph which looks like a bathtub.

There is the initial high.

Then there is the trough ... the lowest part... kinda flat and stretched out (just imagine a bath tub).

And the final high.

In my opinion, everything in life can be represented using a bath tub curve.

But, today my topic of discussion is very narrow.

You've probably never heard of a band called The Killers.

Well, I can't really blame you. Not much is known about them outside USA and Europe.

I'm one of their biggest fans.

Their first album "Hot Fuss" was amazing. From songs like "Mr. Brightside" to cheer you up, there was the nonsensical "Somebody Told Me", the groovy yet sad All The Things I've Done, which spawned the famous line "I've got soul but I'm not a soldier", the evergreen "Jenny was a friend of mine". I could go on and on. Yes I really do like them that much. So did all the award shows.

But like them enough to dedicate an entire post to them ??

Well no.

My point brings us to their second album called Sam's Town. Listening to Sam's Town one would feel a bit let down ... the raw power was missing. The thumping basslines were missing. Although "Read my mind" could probably move even the most coldhearted person to tears.

Their next effort was much worse. It was a compilation of B-Sides and covers called Sawdust.

Apart from their amazing collaboration with Lou Reed on "Tranquilize" and their less than impressive (only slightly though) cover version of the Dire Strait's classic "Romeo and Juliet", not much to talk about.

Now they've released their fourth attempt called Day and Age. I hated the album. Initially.

After hearing it around five to six times running ovals around the park in National Games Village, I started loving it. I think it's one of the best albums I've listened to.

Now, this could mean two things.

Firstly, they might have found the slope back up to their initial level.

Or, maybe I've lost my sense of judgement, due to accomodation, the constant changing force which society instills in us.

I'll assume it's the first point to avoid confusion and drive home my point.

Okay, so now you'd be thinking ... what the hell is this guy sayin ??

Does he have any idea what he's talking about ??

Is there any point that he's trying to make ??

God this is more confusing than calculus.

Well. It isn't more confusing than calculus. And yes, there is a point I'm trying to make.

Maybe it just so happens that the Killers just so happened to fit into the curve (which also just so happens to be there).

Life, in fact, is just opinion.

Lets talk about another of my favourite bands, the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Initial high of One Hot Minute, Mother's Milk and Blood Sugar Sex Magik.

The all time lows of Californication and By The Way.

And now they're back in form with Stadium Arcadium.

If you've had the patience to read till here, you'd probably be asking... why just musicians ? why just bands ?

Because, I feel, one of the best ways to get an accelerated view on life is to follow a band.

Why?

Because, once again it's just my opinion, that they feel the pressures of society and need to conform. More than individuals and couples. Imagine trying to hold together a marriage of four to six people. Then, in that pressure, churning out albums which are to be accepted by society. Then, trying to do it for the rest of your life.

Yes, the bath tub curve applies to life.

In a bigger way than you would imagine.

We all start with an initial high. Be it life or some personal endavour.

When we're born, we are care free.

The initial high.

Slowly, what society expects of us comes to the fore. We are "groomed". This has to be the low.

Normally, this period extends for a long long time. Till we are independent.

The sad part about all this is that we give up when we're at the bottom. It's not like anyone can blame us though. After the initial high, everything seems bad. So we quit.

We fail to recognize that there is the crest at the end, waiting for us.

This is not intended to be a motivational speech.

I quite frankly hate motivational speeches.

I'm just stating something I've noticed.

And who am I to write about life?

You're right. I'm no one. And I admit it.

I have no business writing this.

I don't.

I really don't.

But hey, it's just my opinion....