Wednesday, December 17, 2008

In a Strange Loop!

After a long time, I feel I'm in a strange loop!!!

The last time I was dwelling in such a loop was when I was reading Siddhartha by Herman Hesse. This time around, I'm reading Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas Hofstadter. In a really, really, really strange loop, indeed! Thanks to a review from a friend of mine about the book in his blog, I happened to read the review of this great book some time back.

I hit Blossoms Book House few weeks back and to my surprise, I'd only a single copy of old edition of the book to buy, which I declined thanks to the belief I'd in their promise that they would have one copy ordered for me the next week and that I didn't have to worry then. Again, I was unlucky as that was sold out, when I hit Blossoms after a couple of weeks and I cursed Blossoms for not keeping their word. The lesson learned was:
When you want to read something desperately and have time, and if you're convinced that you can't get that either at relatively lesser price or at least, in your city, don't prevent yourself from buying an old copy, after all, the content is what one should care about and not the looks and you mayn't have time to read that when you'll get a new edition!!!

Luck in my favor this time. The idea of inquiring other shops in the city struck me (Although against the opinion of Blossoms' guy) and finally, I ended up buying the latest edition of the book at Higgins and Bothams few days back!

This book is a mighty thick one. About 800 pages. I've started reading the book and I was pretty much impressed with the Preface of the book. It's all about "I", the Self, so writes the author. In his attempt to explain his central theme, he takes the aid of beautiful concepts , primarily, from the world of mathematics, music and art. He writes, "It is in the inevitable self-mirroring that arises, however impartial and imperfect it may be, that the strange loops of consciousness start to swirl." This sentence emphasizes the fact that contradiction, and self-examination, self-assessment induce you into strange loops and there are strong chances of your becoming conscious of your deeds and of your starting to think about pros and cons of your very actions. It's all about reflections and learning from mistakes...

On random scanning and reading of the pages, I find that book is full of puzzles and that the book distinguishes beautiful aspects of meaning and self-reference and their linkage to completeness of this world. Oh, yeah, lot of computer science, art, pictures, AI, neural science stuff, maths, philosophy, chess, cognition, recursion, logic, reasoning etc. You name any aspect of life and you'll have it there! It's quite impossible to derive the single point of focus in the book. It's all of them and lot more than that.

I've been dwelling on the concepts demonstrated in this book these days and it's no surprise that I'm discovering lots and lots of strange patterns in spectrum of my life and in the spectra of the lives of people around me, people in my universe!

I've just finished few pages. In the meantime, I couldn't help but post some extraordinary art work of M C Escher, from this book.

(Below) Mosaic II (lithograph, 1957) & Waterfall (lithograph, 1961) respectively...



Until next time,
Sanjeev In a Strange Loop.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Guitar Jinx

I'd to write this post much before, I mean, in September when I actually broke my jinx of not buying a guitar for long. I always had dreamt of playing an instrument right from my childhood days. I can remember, I'd gone so much crazy behind Tuttori (Sorry, I can't remember right now the English translation of it - it's the instrument that Big B had played in the movie Sholay) that I persuaded my mom then to buy that in our trip to local fair. I did try learning to play Tuttori for some time. After few weeks, my Tuttori fell into water and started producing unpleasant tones whenever I played that which was very obvious. Somehow, I lost interest in Tuttori later. During college days, flute seemed to interest me; But, I couldn't go to flute classes either. When I slowly started developing inclination towards Western Music, "Guitar Jinx" started happening.  

Ahaa Moment. Finally, after five years from the origin of "Guitar Jinx", I broke it in this Septmember when I bought my acourstic guitar. Thanks to videos in youtube.com, I've learnt few scales, chords as well! As they say, teaching through a Guru is always the best way to learn things, at least the basics. I think I should join classes, after all, I've a handful of guitar coaching centres in the vicinity of our house. 

What say?

    
                         

MS

I'm not referring to Microsoft Corp. as most would guess what MS refers to etc. It's Master of Science Degree; In particular, my MS Program in Software Systems that I'm pursuing from BITS, Pilani. 


I'd my term exams over the last weekend of September. Destiny had it that I'd to fall sick, soon after my exams, after all it was a strenuous study-schedule that I'd experienced myself over the previous week. That signifies the natural consequences of tight study schedule that "student-professional" relies on; Unlike a full-time student who can sustain low-energy levels both physical and mental post such exams, a student-professional cannot; I was no exception! The last 5 months had had me learn some new things, had my mind progressively employ techniques learnt, use engineering common sense, attain a commendable knowledge on Software Engineering and Management. Having studied courses like Pervasive Coputing, Data Structures & Algorithms has resulted in a higher degree of inclination towards research arena.

To sum it up, I've had terrific learning experience that could potentially add so much to my technical skills and confidence levels when talking about various software engineering topics in general.  

  

Sunday, August 03, 2008

WOW! What A Week!!!

Hmmm...Heaving a huge sigh of relief...

What a week it was: Sit-and-Study-at-home job for 8 days; No office work; Mid-sem Exams over the weekend; "Bheemana Amavasya" celebrations; Solar Eclipse on Friday; Visit of Rayara Math Seer to the house on Sunday, the D-day. All blissful events and some really, really, really nervous and tense moments! :-)

The most fascinating and long-awaited event, perhaps, was the mid-sem exams of my first sem MS Program. While I did reasonably well in 3 papers off the total 4, I couldn't do so in the 4th. Data Structures and Algorithms, per se, is a tough course. BITS, Pilani did a Marat-Safin-act in framing "Data Structures and Algorithms" question paper (For the uninitiated: Marat Safin is a Tennis player from Russia who is known for his tennis game that's so much unpredictable that he, sometimes, ends up beating the best players in the world at major tennis tournments, let alone the contradiction he makes for his game some other times when he loses to an incompetent tennis player!). Unpredictable questions, that, too, from the relatively less-scoped text of the book. My hopes of getting a respectable grade in the course rest on the comprehensive exams to be held during September last week.
...

Well, the last few weeks of intense academic activities have made me realize that a Masters degree, no matter whether it's offered in Distance Learning mode or Regular or Correspondence modes, keeps one really busy. Evident is the fact that, I'm writing a post, after such a long time, on my blog, although I'd made up my mind to frequently post wanderings of my mind on this blog!

Ooofff....Will pause now...Gotta catch up with some relaxation;Long time, you see!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Pointless Code

In a Java Bean class:

(I came across this recently in the code-base)
...
public String string( ) {
if (someCondition) {
return new String("someString")
}
return null;
}

In the code above, new String("string") creates two objects:one, for someString itself - JVM handles strings in a unique way, every string literal is a string object, per se and two, for new String(" ") operation - someString can be a field, an instance variable or a hard-coded string value.

It's pointless to return an explicit copy of String instance when none is needed and the case in point is the java bean class which is to be written only for setting and getting properties and nothing else.

Nirvana - Enlightenment - Jnanodaya

I've finished reading Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse. It only draws me back to re-read those pages again and again, because the philosophy behind this, although I could mostly identify my very own with it, could only be grasped by an immortal or at least, it could take a mighty long time for me to grasp the whole. It's no less than a cult literary work. Here's my review on this book.

Set during the time of Goutama Buddha, this novel talks about the events that occur in the lifetime of Siddhartha(Not Buddha, who was earlier known as Siddhartha), a young Brahman, who leaves his family for a contemplative life and undergoes radical transformations in his body and soul, comes across people whose characters are reflective of different spheres of life, learns a lot of things from things and not words, discovers beauty of nature and tries to find peace with nature, and near despair, in his old age, attains perfect wisdom and Nirvana or Jnanodaya or Enlightenment. It's a story of timeless truths cleverly depicted with great degree of simplicity and authenticity.

The fact that Hesse, the writer, from an alien land(Germany) talks about Hinduism, surely, is an eye-brow raiser. His effort in bringing out some of the subtle facets of Hinduism in a simplistic manner is truly exceptional. I should admit that Hesse displays a wonderful knowledge of aspects of Hindu philosophy. He quotes Vedas, Upanishads. It's his knowledge and not his wisdom though. As far as wisdom is concerned, here's what he's to say:

(When Siddhartha is confronted by Govinda, his best friend in the discussion about Knowledge and Wisdom)

...

Look, my dear Govinda, this is one of my thoughts, which I have found:
wisdom cannot be passed on. Wisdom which a wise man tries to pass on
to someone always sounds like foolishness."

"Are you kidding?" asked Govinda.

"I'm not kidding. I'm telling you what I've found. Knowledge can be
conveyed, but not wisdom. It can be found, it can be lived, it is
possible to be carried by it, miracles can be performed with it, but it
cannot be expressed in words and taught. This was what I, even as a
young man, sometimes suspected, what has driven me away from the
teachers.

I have found a thought, Govinda, which you'll again regard as a joke or foolishness, but which is my best thought. It says: The opposite of every truth is just as true! That's like this: any truth can only be expressed and put into words when it is one-sided. Everything is one-sided which can be thought with thoughts and said with words, it's all one-sided, all just one half, all lacks completeness, roundness, oneness.

...


About learning from teachings and "things", he's this to say:


(Again during an argument that Govinda throws up, when both of them meet during their old ages)

.....
...

Govinda said: "But is that what you call `things', actually something
real, something which has existence? Isn't it just a deception of the
Maja, just an image and illusion? Your stone, your tree, your river--
are they actually a reality?"

"This too," spoke Siddhartha, "I do not care very much about. Let the
things be illusions or not, after all I would then also be an illusion,
and thus they are always like me. This is what makes them so dear and
worthy of veneration for me: they are like me. Therefore, I can love
them.

And this is now a teaching you will laugh about: love, oh
Govinda, seems to me to be the most important thing of all. To
thoroughly understand the world, to explain it, to despise it, may be
the thing great thinkers do. But I'm only interested in being able to
love the world, not to despise it, not to hate it and me, to be able to
look upon it and me and all beings with love and admiration and great
respect."

.....
...

While I've watched the movie by same name, based on the same novel directed by Conrad Brooks , I found the book more interesting and more meaningful, for the book does more justice to the spirit of Siddhartha than the movie; This book's a bundle of wonderful nuggets of knowledge, of wisdom, of aspects of life that're central to Greek, Egyptian philosophy or civilizations and so on, so forth. What's of more relevance and of appeal is Hinduism though. This, by far, is my most favorite read and sits right at the top in my classics' collection.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

God, Are you examining my 'Considerate' nature?


Not once, not twice, at least 5 times when travelling, if my memory serves me right, as I'm writing this post!
Here's how the testing times unraveled...

(In the order of occurence of events: Please read AP as Anonymous Person and so on, so forth.)

Scene 1:
I was travelling in KSRTC Rajahamsa Bus from Koppal to Bangalore - approx 8 hrs' journey....

AP: Please allow me to sit in your seat since I've back-ache problem. My seat number is 17.

Me: Alright. Your seat...Above the tyre of the wheel?
AP: Yes, sir. Thank you.
Me: You're welcome. I can sense your pain.

I moved to seat number 17. I found that the knob
mounted to left arm of the seat, that causes the to-and-fro movement of the seat, was broken. Sadly, the handle of the knob itself was too rigid to move by a centimeter! As a result, it behaved like a firm wooden chair!!!

Scene 2:
I was travelling in VRL bus from Koppal to Bangalore.....

AP1: Your seat?...
Me: (Failing to notice her intentions...was in a hurry as well) Yes, my seat number is 1(equivalent to sleeper class in the train). I quickly move to my mom's seat to chat with her.
AP2: Sanjeev...
Me: Hey, how're you doing?
AP2: I'm doing good....BTW, my sister has a *kid* baby and so, could you please allow her to take your seat?
Me: Hmmm... (Thinking for a while)...Alright. What's her seat number?
AP2: Seat number 6. Thanks, buddy.

It turned out that
AP2 was my school friend and the young lady for whom he had asked me to do a favor, had a healthy kid and not a baby, mind you. Moreover, she was too healthy to be in need of 'sleeper class' seat!

Scene 3:
I was travelling in Shatabdi Express from Bangalore to Chennai for my US B1 VISA interview. Window seat was reserved for me. That would be my first ever experience travelling in the Shatabdi Express.....

AP1: Could you please sit in the seat closest to the aisle in the next row?
Me: Why?
AP1: We're a family of three and we can all sit together.
Me: (Arisen by the impact of such previous incidents and also by the fact that sitting in the aisle seat with so many tea/coffee/snacks' vendors taking turns by your side,
every now and then, throughout the next 5 hours, would be such a terrible experience) Sorry. I need proper rest - I've my interview tomorrow.

It turned out that AP1 was a middle-aged lady and there was no genuine reason behind her asking for the window seat except *in her opinion* for the so-called family-sitting-together experience, which, I later thought , would be a disaster anyways, since the woman was not a talkative type and neither were her daughter and her brother!

How can you deny somebody his deserved comfort when you don't have any genuine reason behind your asking him for the compromise?
Should all young men always sacrifice their comfort? At least, me?

Scene 4:

This time on my way back from Chennai to Bangalore. I was travelling in Lalbagh Express from Chennai to Bangalore. Although, Window seat was reserved for me, it turned out that seat numbers were swapped in reality.....

AP1: My seat number is 3 and I'm sorry it's not my mistake.
Me: (Grinning at the Railways Administration in mind) Let me ask the Ticket Collector regarding this.
AP1: Alright.
Me: (Going to Ticket Collector(TC)) Sir, mine is a window seat and it was reserved long before AP1 reserved his seat.
I should be sitting in that seat.
TC: Look Sir, it happens(holding the Reservation Guys guilty, perhaps) sometimes. It's all a matter of adjustment.
It's like Kannadigas asking for more share of Kaveri water than Tamil Nadu, since that took birth in Karnataka (laughs
sarcastically)
Me: AP1, (Narrating TC's story) I guess, I should be sitting there.
AP2: (Jumping in her brother's defence) This has happened with us several times and we're sorry.
Me: (Although sure, I could win an argument over her) Alright. Have a nice journey :-) ... :-(

AP3: Could you please let me sit here in the aisle since our whole family could be sitting in the same row and you can get back to the window seat number 45 (in the behind rows)?
Me: Sure. Thanks. :-)
Me: (Closing in on to Window seat) Hmmm... Aisle again. This time aisle in 3-seater row :-( .

It turned out that some seat adjustment
had happened again, amidst all the hustle-bustle in the process. As Lalbagh Express doesn't have better logistics facilities compared to Shatabdi, it was a terrible experience journeying in the train on my return.

And, God, why me again?

Scene 5:
I was travelling in Volvo bus for work. I was seriously reading architecture document of our project....

AP1: Excuse me, I want to sit here (Gutsy).
Me: (Caught by surprise), Hmmm...alright... (Leaving my seat..)
AP1: Thank you.
Me: You're welcome!!!

It turned out that AP1 was a healthy young woman who was quite aware that there was no reservation-for-women kind of thing in Volvo buses.

...And, God, why me, again and again?

To be continued... :-)