Aggie Nites.

Lets Play a Game! I'll say a word and then you say the word that compliments it the best!
All right.
Cricket : Sachin
Love: ... ( mm forget it) im not playing if u want to trick me into it... OK, next!

Beauty: Aish
Sookh: Hot n Spicy (ask shriram joshi)
Friday Night: Aggie Nights!
Now whats that?????
You gotto be kidding if you dont know aggienights! And if u really don't then i must take this opportunity to introduce you! Agginite is a unique celebration at Texas A&M of which we are a part every friday night. Its a time off from our regular schedules, its time to play some pool, bowling, dance on the simulator and see faces we hardly notice on week days. Its the time when we forget that theres a huge homework pending, a test is coming up pretty soon, we are out of groceries, the credit card payment is due, advisor is gonna be after that huge code which i started but cannot end - and all other worldly worries which never stop coming back to me!
Flooded with Desis, Chinks and ofcourse the natives its an once in a week opportunity to spend quality time with friends. Re-creation of sorts, it has become a part of my weekly routine and is the one thing I'll miss when I fly back home in December.
Traditions: The organisers tying an aggie band at entrance [ reminds us of Rakhi, (so keep away from them -;)]
Star events of the evening:
Joshi Vs Mamu Vs Harshad Pitsa competition.
The Patils Vs #122 Pool match.
Photoshoot in MSC.
Mamu's dancing lady on the simulator (good going Shri).
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Main aur meri Tanhai!

I cant help but mention the adorable corner in my Gradlab, with which now I share a special relation. 99.98% of the time I manage to secure the corner PC in my lab which almost surprises me every now and then. Probably by now people have have seen me here too often and let me have my space. Theres nothing so special about the corner, but it symbolises solitude unlike any other point on a line which has companionship. Guess we are sailing in the same boat and always manage to embrace each other.

Bride Bazaar!

They don’t want daughters, but they do want wives. It’s a supply crunch alright for males in Haryana. Not far from the glitzy malls of Gurgaon lie the thriving mandis of flesh— where the price of a ‘bride’ is often less than that of a cow.
- Sunday Times Special report.

Night of Submission!

I hate to recall those days, not because they were terrible but those are the treasured moments which i have lost forever and no matter what i attain in life it’s going to be really difficult to bring them back. Yeah, I am talking about the college life and "Engineering College Life in Particular". Theres so much to write about my entire college life [boat club, shopping, movies, cricket matches, overnight hostel stay, girls and (of course) studies...] - Ill have to write and entire book to summarize those wonderful four years : But for now I would love to focus on the one night in Third year Engineering when we were hell bent upon completing our design submission! No matter what , we always waited till the last moment to complete the submission work. However this time we were caught on the wrong foot as the work involved 2 full size A0 sheets of drawing assignment! Worst still very few of us had the idea on how to do it. We were 22 in the class , the submission was tomorrow morning and today at 5:30 we have decide to meet in the hostel, and this is how we went about it.
We started by dividing ourselves into two hostel rooms. Laid out our dwg sheets on dwg boards and locatedour drawing boards on whatevr feasible locations we could- Chairs, bed, tables [ the lucky ones] , buckets or floor as the last resort. Then some of us who had figured out the scheme took the lead and started carving. The others decided to follow blindly. 2- 3 guys were totally absent from the scene. They promised that once we were done they'll take just an hour to Glass trace it. So the authors had started and the rest had started to follow suite. Using our scales, dividers, compasses to take dimensions from the leader’s dwg and reproducing the sheets. We were following blindly and the only objective was to get a complete sign on the following morning. Engineering drawings sheets can eat a hell lot of time depending on intricacies and we started to realise this was no piece of cake. With the sheet only half dome we decided to take the dinner break at 10.30 pm. When we resumed we only hoped that we got it done in time. Working tirelessly [and blindly, of course] we were done with the first sheet at 2.30 am. This is when we decided to get some Tea to keep awake. I joined KD and together we went to the Shivajinagar railway stn [ adj to hostel] to fetch some tea. On our way we saw a ghastly accident scene. [Earlier, around 1 am, we had heard a loud bang but dint care much]. An empty State transport Bus had rammed into a Light truck sending it off-road down the bridge. The truck was full of poultry and the impact had killed most of the chicken inside. We could see the people in the neighborhoods helping themselves with handful of birds. We returned with Tea and resumed the second drawing sheet. People in the adjacent hostel room were still lagging behind with the first sheet only half done. Most of them had given up hope of completing in time. We continued our second sheet till 5.30 am but it was still only 1/2 done. Here some of us started to take power naps but never resumed. Seeing them sleep others followed, we decided to quit and by 6.00 am everyone was sleeping in whatever space they cud manage. Some of them were fast asleep on the very tables they were drawing. Finally when we awoke we decided to buy some time from our professor. The professor thankfully obliged and we were given a grace time of one day. Completing the sheet after that was a piece of cake.
At last it was done! Whenever I look back at that night I cannot help but laugh at our misdemeanors – but that also reminds me how smart we were to get out of that mess!

Adding more Sticks to cricket!

Whenever I play stickcricket, I always wondered how it would feel like watching a real match goin the stickcricket way! The closest that comes to it is South Africa chasing down the mammoth 434 run target against the mighty Aussies! It certainly would have been a great feast for the spectators who got their money's worth. But one has to spare a thought for the poor bowlers who now find the rules getting more and more in favour of the batsman! The bowlers are apparantly being treated as scapegoat in the whole game! 10-0-113-0 are the figures a bowler can think only in his worst nightmares! Poor Mick Lewis ended bowling them in a real world International ODI! Its time for ICC to think of some rules to make life easier for the bowlers. Adding one more STICK behind the batsman may help!

End of the Thackeray Era!

Tiger Tiger. burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye.
Could frame thy fearful symmetry? ....... William Blake!

Bal Thackeray was known as the Tiger! Gone are those days! Even a rabbit doesn’t give a damn to an old tiger! At 75 Thackeray can hardly enjoy the glory he enjoyed and command the respect of the general public and his ardent sainiks he once enjoyed. Worst for him, dissidence in the family and the direct challenge to his supremacy and charisma from his own nephew has humbled him no end! I’m neither a Thackeray basher to enjoy his fate nor his fan to lament the fall his fall from glory. What I want to consider is the scenario of a post Thackeray Era based on some facts! India has very funny political affiliations. People from the majority are divided in their supports for the 2 big national parties and the regional parties. This is where the minority vote banks come in handy and political parties go to the extremes to win their hearts. Even BJP which has been widely viewed as a Hindu party has left no stone unturned to win the minority vote banks. This is where Mr. Thackeray ideology appeals me. Is'nt he the only stanch supporter of the Hindus and has never tried to please the Muslims for the sake oft heir votes? In the post Thackeray era can we find a ardent Hindu supporter who we can say won’t care for the Muslim votes if the Hindu interests are to be protected. The situation is more grave if we consider the scenario of public agitation or communal tensions. After the Bombay blasts the tensions were high and it is said the Muslims were on a rampage. It is believed that the rage of the babri masjid demolition and the fillip provided by the blasts master minded by the infamous Muslim Don had put them on a high. Under these circumstances when the majority community in Bombay was running for cover Thackeray incited the Shiv Sainiks to protect the Hindus with their blood through inflammatory articles in Saamna! What happened after that is a gory sequence of events which blotted the secular image of the country and tarnished the Thackeray image no end. However the point here is, God forbid, but if anything similar events happen in future is there any one we can look to , to be our savior?

I'll reiterate I’m not a follower or preacher of Thackerayism, but I admire him for his undying chauvinism in a world of less and less patriotism, I admire him for his stanch principles in a world of less and less morals!

Sign of things to come!

Is this the future of the small hatch back in India? As the car market in India is growing with an enormous pace, most of the manufacturers from Europe are heading towards India with their big hatchbacks ( The segment currently dominated by TATA, Maruti & Hyundai) . The Palio and Indica represent the first major Euro-Styled hatchbacks in the country, followed by Marutis Swift ( though the car has many odd proportions signifying its Japanese character) Here is an image of the new styling cues that are emerging in the Italian design houses! History has witnessed that the European styling becomes a benchmark and is the trendsetter for designs worldwide ( Palio n Indica both were designed by same firm in Italy). The above impression could resemble a great deal to what Maruti (new hatch back) TATA Motors (new Indica) FIAT (upgraded Palio) have to offer in 2007! Till then wait n watch!

Do we really use them well?

"If you have a hammer in your hand , doesn't necessarily mean that the whole world is made up of nails" - Anonymous!

Its really funny the way we use technology now a days. The other day, a guy next to me went nuts searching for his calculator - the thing he needed to do was a 3 digit addition. Computers are keeping us more and more occupied and making us more and more dependent on 'em!

It'll be worthwhile to remember once in a while that: "Computers do only what you tell them to do and not what you want them to do"

Think about it!

Mr Finance Minister!

A little more patience, a little more charity for all,
a little more devotion, a little more love;
with less bowing down to the past, and a silent ignoring of pretended authority;
brave looking forward to the future with more faith in our fellows,
and the race will be ripe for a great burst of light and life.

--Elbert Hubbard

No better word than saying "outstanding" as India Inc comes together to celebrate the the foresighted budget of our foresighted Finance minister. The sensex has given a 200 point standing ovation and now 15,000 doesnt seem too far. Champaign have been uncorked and the party has just begun. Car prices are down by over 20K. I wish that even bead had got that cheaper!!

2006 F1 Engine!

Only 4-stroke engines with reciprocating pistons are permitted.
Engine capacity must not exceed 2400 cc.
Supercharging is forbidden.
All engines must have 8 cylinders arranged in a 90º “V” configuration and the normal section of each cylinder must be circular.
Engines must have two inlet and two exhaust valves per cylinder. Only reciprocating poppet valves are permitted. The sealing interface between the moving valve component and the stationary engine component must be circular.
The total amount of recoverable energy stored on the car must not exceed 300kJ, any which may be recovered at a rate greater than 2kW must not exceed 20kJ.
Engine dimensions:Cylinder bore diameter may not exceed 98mm. Cylinder spacing must be fixed at 106.5mm (+/- 0.2mm).The crankshaft centreline must not be less than 58mm above the reference plane.
Weight and centre of gravity: The overall weight of the engine must be a minimum of 95kg. The centre of gravity of the engine may not lie less than 165mm above the reference plane. The longitudinal and lateral position of the centre of gravity of the engine must fall within a region that is the geometric centre of the engine, +/- 50mm.
Only one fuel injector per cylinder is permitted which must inject directly into the side or the top of the inlet port.
Electrical systems: Ignition is only permitted by means of a single ignition coil and single spark plug per cylinder. The use of plasma, laser or other high frequency ignition techniques is forbidden.
Only conventional spark plugs that function by high tension electrical discharge across an exposed gap are permitted. Spark plugs are not subject to the materials restrictions
The primary regulated voltage on the car must not exceed 17.0V DC.
Engine actuators: With the following exceptions hydraulic, pneumatic or electronic actuation is forbidden: a) Electronic solenoids uniquely for the control of engine fluids; b) Components providing controlled pressure air for a pneumatic valve system; c) A single actuator to operate the throttle system of the engine.
Engine auxiliaries: With the exception of electrical fuel pumps engine auxiliaries must be mechanically driven directly from the engine with a fixed speed ratio to the crankshaft.
Engine intake air:
Other than injection of fuel for the normal purpose of combustion in the engine, any device, system, procedure, construction or design the purpose or effect of which is any decrease in the temperature of the engine intake air is forbidden.
Other than engine sump breather gases and fuel for the normal purpose of combustion in the engine, the spraying of any substance into the engine intake air is forbidden.
Materials and construction – Components:
Pistons must be manufactured from an aluminium alloy which is either Al-Si; Al-Cu; Al-Mg or Al-Zn based.
Piston pins must be manufactured from an iron based alloy and must be machined from a single piece of material.
Connecting rods must be manufactured from iron or titanium based alloys and must be machined from a single piece of material with no welded or joined assemblies (other than a bolted big end cap or an interfered small end bush).
Crankshafts must be manufactured from an iron based alloy. No welding is permitted between the front and rear main bearing journals. No material with a density exceeding 19,000kg/m3 may be assembled to the crankshaft.
Camshafts must be manufactured from an iron based alloy. Each camshaft and lobes must be machined from a single piece of material. No welding is allowed between the front and rear bearing journals
Valves must be manufactured from alloys based on Iron, Nickel, Cobalt or Titanium. Hollow structures cooled by sodium, lithium or similar are permitted.
Reciprocating and rotating components: a) Reciprocating and rotating components must not be manufactured from graphitic matrix, metal matrix composites or ceramic materials. This restriction does not apply to the clutch and any seals; b) Rolling elements of rolling element bearings must be manufactured from an iron based alloy; c) Timing gears between the crankshaft and camshafts (including hubs) must be manufactured from an iron based alloy.

-Source (FIA Website)