Better World Through Research

Everyone has heard about the Bose speaker systems. Some of you also know that Bose Corp has invented the most effective suspension system for cars also. Person behind all these inventions is Prof. Amar Bose. A Bengali Indian American MIT professor, he's truly a great blend of a genius researcher and an entrepreneur with conviction. I was overwhelmed by reading about him some time back.

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From Various websites:

About Audio Speakers:

Actually it started while doing graduate work at MIT in the 1950s, Dr. Bose decided to purchase a new stereo system. He was disappointed to find that speakers with impressive technical specifications failed to reproduce the realism of a live performance. He aimed to design a speaker that would emulate the symphony hall experience in the home. His speaker system was one of the first to make use of sound reflecting off walls and the ceiling.

About Car Suspension System:

For Bose, the search began with a question he asked himself several decades ago. “I wondered,” he told Popular Science magazine, “what a car suspension could do without hardware constraints, if you could have any force you wanted, at any time, between the body and the wheel.”

Bose focused on figuring out mathematically what kind of performance was theoretically possible. Five years of mathematical analysis revealed a tremendous performance gap.

Throughout his life, Amar Gopal Bose has had the avid curiosity of a child, the tenacity to follow it through, and the gumption to flout conventional thinking.

In 1980 he decided to work on it. As is his wont, he ignored the 100-year-old beaten track of automakers who had perfected fluid-based suspension hardware. He threw away the hardware model, and along with it the limitations.

His Teaching:

At his alma mater MIT, when he was hired to teach network theory, he threw away the syllabus and confronted his students with nine blackboards. He urged students to ask tough questions, expected section leaders to think out loud to illustrate the problem-solving process, abolished exam time limits and allowed open books.

William H. Brody, now the president of Johns Hopkins University, says of him: “He would walk into a lecture to 350 students, and you could hear a pin drop. He commanded a lot of respect, because of the force of his intellect and his total dedication to the students. His class gave me the courage to tackle high-risk problems; it equipped me with the problem-solving skills I needed to be successful in several careers. Amar Bose taught me how to think.”

On Bose Corporation:

At the end of the day it’s Bose’s way of thinking that remains such a unique gift: Simply put, it is just a wondrously dogged courage to chase an idea to its very limit. Bose Corporation may have a billion-dollar turnover, but Bose says he started the company to chase ideas, not make money.

“I would have been fired a hundred times at a company run by MBAs,” he told Popular Science magazine. “But I never went into business to make money. I went into business so that I could do interesting things that hadn’t been done before.”

So number crunchers’ myopic obsession with the bottom line was out, a commitment to pure research was in.

Bose says it’s the principle of allowing bright minds to search for answers that was more important to him

Popular Science, in a long, admiring essay, sums it up best about the merit of Amar Bose’s mindset and contribution.

“The value of Amar Bose—and by extension, his company—isn’t so much in the things he has invented, but in the sense of possibility he inspires,” the magazine wrote. “Bose reminds us that we could all afford to be much more skyward-looking, far-fetched and curious, and that we could all believe more strongly in our own potential to create.”

Links:

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

http://www.siliconeer.com/past_issues/2005/january2005.html

An article by Suchitra Krishnamoorthi

I found this article on the net by actress and singer Suchitra Krishnamoorthi. The truthfulness in the article can not stop me but to post the article on my blog.
-Gaurav.

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Where is the love?

Suchitra Krishnamoorthi- April 22, 2007

The world around me is changing…or perhaps it’s just me thats changing-maybe I’m finally able to see things from a more rounded perspective.

I have to admit I’m a bit jaded. I’ve been out of it for too long,
actually make that forever.

Even my parents have been encouraging me to go out –not just with my girlfriends but also to meet guys on dates etc. “It dosent have to be serious you know -just enjoy yourself” they tell me
now I know the world is really changing!!

Just the other day my teenage neice played me a song that’s a huge hit in school and college campuses all around India. Its called “Soota na Milla” supposed to be anti tobacco song… looks like the underground music scene is India is coming of age… but the lyrics…Oh my God! I’m still blushing…BC & MC & (*%^%) “so what’s the bid deal-I think its so cool “ she said ,eyes closed and her head nodding to the beat of the song, the butterfly tattoo at the base of her spine shining.
Jeans have to definitely be worn below the tattoo I’m instructed. “Cool na”?

So I’m trying to catch up with cool.
In an effort to expand my universe and throw my blinkers out, I’ve been going out a lot. Travelling, partying, doing things I’ve never done before, trying to overcome my fears and inhibitions, putting myself out there and trying to see the world devoid of my earlier conditioning.The judge has fallen off the moral highhorse and is slowly turning into a dinosaur

I discover
there is a communication explosion
The demarcations of age, sex, economic status etc are blurring and people are suddenly happy to just be people. The online friendship and dating sites have miraculously shrunk the world, and no one is a stranger anymore. People are feeling less isolated.

Some are single, some are attached, some are dangling at a precarious angle between single- double, single- triple, while some are multiple only please etc. And yes some are happily married and monogamous too.
One repeatedly announces that she is a lesbian when asked what she does. Hello-since when did that become a profession? Whatever… I’m learning to not ask too many questions
I’m also learning to be anonymous, blend in, and play the part of observer.
Sometimes my face comes in the way. When people ask me if I’m Suchitra I deny it & announce myself as her twin sister Sitara!
Some actually believe me, while most don’t ,but the hilarity of it seems to set the tone for the interactions that follow.

I discover
sexuality is open.
People talk about it in very simple terms.
It is refreshingly candid and a far cry from the cloak and dagger hypocrisy of the past.
I learn that to some sex is merely a bodily function-almost like going to the toilet. They just have to let it out.There is no thought or emotion attached to it.
Many do it for proffesional gain –and no they don’t see anything wrong in it. So what if the boss has a wife/ husband-that they say is the bosses problem.
After all isn’t “I saw losing my virginity as a career move” one of Madonna’s most famous quotes?
Discussion of these issues is no longer taboo
Yes people watch porn-and log on to porn sites
There seems to be no guilt or shame in anything anymore.
Everything is consensual and to each his own.
Some people are dating with a vengence while some people are dating till they find the right one
More and more older women are dating younger men- economic independence has erased the lines of earlier traditional norms.
People meet on line and meet up on holidays across the country or sometimes the world.
People are determined to enjoy themselves.

I discover a whole new vibe.
There is a controlled aggression in the way people are going about their lives.
Everybody is fiercely individualistic. As long as they get what they want their world is a happy place.
They are out there, working hard, earning well, partying hard, exercising hard, and living life on their own terms.

I discover a whole new vocabulary where
Attitude is the key word.
Memory is a selective word
Promiscuous is definitely not a bad word
Honest is an untrue word
Selfish is a good word
Morality is a debatable word
Friendship is an all encompassing word

I have been discovering so many things
and though I’m still wildly oscillating between being jaded and catching up with cool
I’m actually having myself a really good time… but yet, I cant help thinking…
In all this… where is the love?
Is this my tipping point? :-) am I on the verge of discovering a brand new meaning of love…

Jin par naaz hai Hind ko woh kahaan hain?

Last night I was watching Star News when the story of a college principal came who was murdered by goons of a local MLA since he did not take back the suspension of some MLA affiliated corrupt students who were caught in some serious criminal activity in the campus. People were telling that the phone from the MLA told the principal to re-admit his people in 8 days, otherwise aapki izzat neelaam kar dee jaayegi... but the man of principle didn't heed and was murdered in the daylight within the campus.

Our Police, Judicial System... all seem to have been filled by the people of dead character. The biggest idiots are the people of India who vote for such politicians and make them attain power.


Another similar incident which occurred one year back reported on a blog:
http://www.intentblog.com/archives/2006/09/help_komal_sing.html

Bangalore's Live Traffic Update

You can check the live Bangalore traffic at www.btis.in. It uses the concept of density of mobile phones at a predetermined place to evaluate traffic jam situation etc. on roads.

Excellence

For Adam Gilchrist it's that split-second when he connects sweetly with the ball to send it skywards for a six that gives him the best adrenaline rush in cricket.

"There is a split-second, a nano-second, just a moment in time when you are the only person in the whole world who knows that you've hit it right in the middle (of the bat)," Gilchrist said

"A second later everyone else knows but that's just the best feeling as a batsman because you've probably taken a bit of a risk (to hit it)"

"When I'm not thinking about trying to be overly aggressive and not trying to hit the ball over the fence that's when my natural instincts come in and it happens a bit more"

Click here for Full Article

confidence

संसार का इतिहास उन चंद लोगों का इतिहास है, जिनमें आत्मविश्वास था|

-स्वामी विवेकानंद

Rubiyat e Omar Khyaam

Oh threats of hell and hopes of paradise!
One thing at least is certain: This life flies.
One thing is certain and the rest is Lies;
The Flower that once is blown for ever dies!


The Moving Finger writes: and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it


-Piety: Piousness, Wit: Intelligence. Sent to me by my friend Lokendra.

ये दुनिया अगर

ये महलों ये तख्तों ये ताजों की दुनिया
ये इंसाँ के दुश्मन समाजों की दुनिया
ये दौलत के भूखे रवाजों की दुनिया
ये दुनिया अगर मिल भी जाये तो क्या है

Life of a language

A language that doesn't give bread, will die.

-Josh, a famous Urdu poet.

Quote-Unquote

The best time to be in the market, is now. When it dips, you wont be able to buy because of the fear of further dip. When it is up, you wont be able to buy because of the feeling of loss. -Anon.


Only one thing is known in the market- That it will go up in the long run. -Anon.


Aim: To win all wars despite losing many a battles. - RJ.

Steve Jobs Speech @ Stanford University

Steve Jobs is the CEO of Apple Inc. From electronic circuits to computer softwares to spirituality, he has an interest in all. An innovator and entrepreneur, this address of Steve Jobs delivers the wisdom he gained through his life's experiences. It was really a kind of address I heard in many years now.

You can google to know more about him.


".....And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on."- from the same speech.

"Let me tell you guys...........it was the best speech I have ever heard in my life............ Hope you all will also like it.........." -My friend Nitish after watching it.


Click on the link below to see the video.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA

अब मैं बस...

कभी उठता हूँ, कभी गिरता हूँ
अब मैं बस भागता फिरता हूँ


दुख मुझको एक ठहराव देता था
कहाँ उसके जाल में घिरता हूँ!


अब मैं बस भागता फिरता हूँ

Procrastination

I will keep no work pending henceforth.

Perfection

"I take great joy in doing things well. Whether it's studies, playing any sport or captaining, I like to be focused and enjoy doing things nicely, to the best of my ability".


-Rahul Dravid. Read this quote with Deepak Chopra's quote posted below in past .

Silence

"All man's miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone."

-17th century French scientist Blaise Pascal, best remembered for his contributions to pure geometry and inventions such as the syringe, the hydraulic press, and the first digital calculator.


What sleep is to the mind, silence to the soul.

-Unknown


Q: What do you like second most after the music?
A.R. Rehman: Silence.

Javed Akhtar's Autobiography

Javed Akhtar's Autobiography. I have read very little prose, but I think this must be one of the finest pieces of prose that I'll ever read.


Click here to read it!

lagta hai..

lagta hai, jaise zindgi mein kuchh kiya hee naa ho...

Liked it!

Egocentricity of man today is the reason behind the process of breaking – taking man away from nature, away from the society and away from his family….so where does the way out lie?? How to stop this process of breaking??? The solution lies in ‘sacrifice’….the truth which holds the roots of our culture. Quoting the analogy of electrovalent and covalent bonds, he said that in case of electrovalent bonding, there is complete donation of electrons from donor to receiver, an example of sacrifice…and hence electrovalent bonding is much more stronger than covalent bonding. Same being the case with human bonds too. “Tyaag” is the reason behind eternity.

- A speaker, Sudhanshu Trivedi, as reported by a correspondent, in an alumni meet of my friend Ramanuj.

Education

We need to make education joyful, interesting and meaningful so that children develop a desire to go to school.

-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in an address to nation on 15th August 2005.

Free coaching for poor but brilliant IIT aspirants

I read this article in a magazine. This is about a rich NRI in US who has established a free coaching institute in Kota for IIT aspirants from economically weaker families. Hats off to you, Mr Pabrai !!!!


Click here for the article