Inside Out

Where are the windows?

2011-12-12T01:24:00.001+05:30

On a train journey, one of my co-passengers was a very inquisitive and talkative three-year old. She kept everyone amused with her endless series of questions and answers. As an open-top goods train passed by, I asked her "Hey, where are the windows of that train?" She paused for a moment and replied triumphantly, "On the top!"

A Session at Railway Stadium, Bhubaneswar

2011-12-08T23:58:00.001+05:30

A view of the pavilion of the East Coast Railway Stadium, Bhubaneswar.

Like uncountable other Indian guys of my generation, I've grown up playing and watching a lot of cricket. All my childhood I missed watching a first-class cricket match live in a stadium. My hometown Bhubaneswar didn't have a proper cricket stadium. International matches at Barabati stadium in the neighboring town of Cuttack were few and far between.

After having shifted to Bangalore, I've witnessed the stadium experience quite a few times in all three formats of the game at the revered Chinnaswamy stadium. Yet that desire of watching a big match in my home town remained unfulfilled. This December, when I came home on vacation, the Ranji Trophy Elite match between Orissa and Karnataka was to be played at the newly built East Coast Railway stadium at Bhubaneswar. I didn't let the chance go and dropped by for the post-tea session on day three of the four-day match.

The status of the match at that point was as follows: Tea, Day-3
Karnataka - 1st innings: 278 all out (CM Gautam 63)
Orissa - 1st innings: 255 all out (BB Samantray 65, G Poddar 53, S Binny 5/51)
Karnataka - 2nd innings: 119/5

Though Orissa had failed to get the crucial first innings lead, they had the visitors in a spot of bother in the second essay. The bowling was disciplined if not incisive. But, Amit Verma and CM Gautam were defending stoutly and scoring the odd boundary. Basant Mohanty's peach of a delivery that sent CM Gautam's stump on a cartwheel was a view to behold and the take-home moment for me. All of fifty runs and a solitary wicket came in the session. Yet it was a fascinating tussle between bat and ball, the kind of old-school grinding cricket that the purist in me could appreciate. Here's the story in pictures.

CM Gautham showcases his compact defence.

Team Orissa celebrates as Basant Mohanty sent back CM Gautham with a peach.

Paresh Patel bowls to Amit Verma during a stingy spell of 6-4-5-0.

The Mancheswar electric substation can be seen in the backdrop.

That's what I call the poor man's super sopper.

Amit Verma threads one through the covers.

Amit Verma and SN Raju played through fading light

without further alarms for the visitors.

As the photos testify, the ground was a pretty sight - lovely green outfield with tall fences all around. But there are no galleries, only bushes and shrubs. Just about a hundred curious onlookers had gathered. A few years down the line I hope to see big galleries teeming with spectators witnessing an international match at the venue.

Prayaas - music album release

2011-10-26T13:00:00.000+05:30

Wish you a very happy festival of lights!

Welcome to the Diwali music release of my first album titled Prayaas. The album comprises six purely instrumental music pieces composed and rendered on FruityLoops software. Each of these short compositions was made long back in 2005-06 during my halcyon days at Rourkela. For close to six years they lay hidden in an old hard disk. Not any longer. There isn't any general theme to the album except that each piece took some serious effort from a novice musician whose knowledge of music is next to null. Hence the name "Prayaas" that loosely translates to "a try". Each track is very different from the others in terms of the image it invokes in the mind. I hope at least a tune or two strikes a chord with you!

Here are the tracks:

1. Village trail - 3:32 - download mp3

2. Just rock it - 2:12 - download mp3

3. Dark waters - 1:15 - download mp3

4. Spooky old fortress - 2:31 - download mp3

5. Arabian beauty - 2:25 - download mp3

6. DJ Lapresh - 0:58 - download mp3

Any feedback from the audience is most welcome :)

Long live Tiger

2011-09-25T11:51:00.000+05:30

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, popularly known as Tiger Pataudi, passed away a couple of days back. Although I never had the privilege to watch him play, I've read and heard enough about his folklore to know that he was a true legend of cricket. He'll always be remembered for the fearlessness and confidence he infused into Indian cricket. Here's an extract from cricketnext.in that gives an idea of the man's stature.

Just a few months before he became India's captain, Pataudi had lost his right eye in a car accident. Where others saw one ball, reportedly he saw two, seven inches apart. He had to pick the right one - the inner image - if he were to get bat to ball. And did he do that with panache or what. Six hundreds, including a double hundred, and 16 fifties bear testimony to his grit.

Just tells that no handicap can stop you if you have the grit and courage to fight it.

Rest in peace, Tiger.

I-day with a pinch of salt

2011-08-15T15:58:00.001+05:30

As India celebrates her 65th Independence Day, I feel a mixture of emotions. There is happiness and pride over the several achievements spanning varied fields in the past decades. Yet there's that regret, a knot in the stomach, that tells me that there's something that has gone terribly wrong.

Collectively speaking, we have become far more educated and skilled but on the way we seem to have lost character and simplicity. Note that I don't refer to corrupt politicians or inveterate criminals in third person. 'They' are also part of 'us'. They are the products of the same society and system that has produced us. They are an exaggerated reflection of the negative qualities that reside in us. There's especially one negative quality that spawns a plethora of problems. It's called greed often confused with its harmless cousin called need.

Today, greed is promoted in the name of progress. Blindly following the glorified western model of reckless consumerism has had a deeply pejorative effect on the country's resources. There's an ever increasing craving for more - more money, more power, more food, more fuel, more land, more what not.

There's a quote on the subject of road expansion that beautifully captures the essence of many of the problems that plague the society today. It says "Widening of roads to counter the traffic problem is like loosening the belt to counter obesity". It's the growing belly that's the problem and not the belt around it! Everyone's consuming more than what is required. I just don't understand the logic of associating a higher level of consumption with development. Where's simplicity gone?

You might oppose this line of thinking by saying 'what about the poor and down-trodden?'. Yes, they need to be given access to more resources to improve their quality of life. But that extra demand can be easily met if the privileged ones were to use their resources judiciously. It's possible to meet the needs of the underprivileged without a significant increase in the total consumption of resources.

But are we willing to lead a simpler life, to be more careful with our consumption patterns, to 'reduce, reuse and recycle' and to go a step further and show compassion? Only if there are enough answers in the affirmative can we say that we may achieve freedom from the many children of greed - crime, corruption, pollution and others.

The Googly!

2011-07-30T18:50:00.003+05:30

As non-professional weekend cricketers, we pride ourselves in the knowledge of the game's nuances. The best of the cricket pundits claim to be able to predict what the ball would do just by looking at the bowler's hand at the point of release. And of course, we discuss the game off the field as well. One such occasion, a team-mate wanted to test my credentials. "Tell me whether it's off-spin, leg-spin, doosra, googly or whatever" he blurted as he turned his arm over. "Back of the hand facing the batsman. Now that has to be a googly" I insisted. Pat came the retort, "Sorry, NO ball".

Of need and greed

2011-05-01T11:01:00.003+05:30

The world of contrasts. [Photo credits: Joshi Daniel, currentbusiness]

"Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed"
-Mahatma Gandhi

Poverty alleviation is about meeting man's needs. Economic growth is about meeting man's greed. And the first is definitely more important than the second. While needs are few, greed can be unending, which tells us that the first should also be easier to achieve than the second. Yet, humanity seems to be crawling towards the first goal while it's hurtling towards the second.

The joy of teaching

2011-04-20T14:26:00.003+05:30

Most broadcast emails in my institute email folder end up getting deleted but this one caught my fancy. The Parent-Teacher Association of Kendriya Vidhyala (KV) in the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) campus was looking for volunteers from among the well-educated institute community who could take a few classes in the school.

With several of the regular KV teachers away on evaluation duties, the idea was to keep the students engaged and hopefully ignite their minds by having researchers from IISc talking to them. There was no pressure to stick to any prescribed syllabi. The volunteers were literally left free to teach whatever they wish. For instance, Karthik taught lateral thinking and English to ninth grade students.

Notwithstanding the limited experience I had – on occasions, I’d taught my own classmates in school and college just before exam days – I always enjoyed teaching. It gave me immense satisfaction to be able to make someone understand something. Since my early days of education, I’ve been secretly taking mental notes of what I liked in a teacher and things that I disliked. Now it was time to put it all into use in a real classroom, albeit with a bunch of eleventh standard pupils.

Keeping my crippled condition in mind – I was convalescing from a knee surgery - I opted for a solitary lecture of one hour duration. I chose “Physics in Daily Life” as I wanted my pupils to look at physics not as yet another subject to mug up and score off but as a powerful weapon that when wielded with skill can explain much of the phenomena we see around us.

Eleventh grade students can be really unruly and obstreperous I was told. A fellow volunteer apprehended that somebody could possibly run away with my crutch leaving me stranded! I was expecting the worst. But I was in for a pleasant surprise.

The first thing I noticed when I entered the class was that the girls far out-numbered the boys. I’d never seen such a thing in all my education. I tried to make my pupils feel comfortable by starting off with some small talk and slowly delved into the subject matter. Most of them were very receptive and enthusiastic. Their eagerness and inquisitiveness fuelled my own urge to put the concepts across.

Throughout the class, the modus operandi was - present an example from daily life, discuss and explain why it happens with a liberal dose of hints and humor, and then unearth the law behind it. I won’t say I 'covered' such and such topics. But at least I managed to touch upon the humble yet profound concepts of Newton’s Laws of Motion and Newton’s Law of Gravitation.

I used to hate it in school when teachers used to go on lecturing several minutes beyond the stipulated time. Hence I made it a point to stop dot on time. And as I bid them good bye, I got what I shall call the icing on the cake. They applauded with smiles and claps. If that’s what they call the joy of learning, I wish I could tell them the joy of making someone learn. Thank you XI ‘A’.

Ashfaque ton ousts IISc

2011-01-20T23:17:00.000+05:30

16 January 2011, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: A swashbuckling century from Ashfaque (111*) coupled with some inept bowling and catching from IISc brought an end to what had been a dream season for IISc. Indiranagar Cricketers thus go through to the semi-finals of the KSCA IV Division League 2010-11. The end of the season also marks the passing of the baton - team IISc now has a new captain and vice-captain.

Catch the details here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2011/01/ashfaque-ton-ousts-iisc.html

A 'vice' anecdote

2011-01-12T00:56:00.004+05:30

People in our laboratory use a bench vice every now and then to hold a circuit board in place while soldering or de-soldering. While taking stock of all the stuff we had in the lab, a lab-mate asked a pertinent question "How many vices do we have?" to which my matter-of-fact answer was "innumerable".

Didn't get it? Check this out:

Vice - 1st meaning

Vice - 2nd meaning

Ace Cricketers shock IISc

2011-01-12T00:18:00.000+05:30

9 January 2011, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: The game never ceases to amaze. IISc went into the match on the back of a five-match winning streak while Ace Cricketers came in having been beaten twice in the Super League stage to be all but out of the KSCA IV Division League 2010-11. The match seemed to be going according to script with the latter being skittled out for 115. Yet, the visitors pulled the proverbial rabbit out of the hat by bundling out IISc for a dismal 81 thus securing a 34 run victory.

Catch the match report here:
http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2011/01/ace-cricketers-shock-iisc.html

IISc win Boxing Day bout

2010-12-28T13:11:00.000+05:30

26 December 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: The KSCA Metro Shield Super League match between IISc and Sirur Park was much like a boxing bout. Both sides threw measured punches and jabs at opportune moments. It was a hard-fought battle till about 20 overs into the second innings when IISc started the hijack and took total control. Debajit (4/38) and Ashith (4/39) did the trick for IISc with a veritable exhibition of swing bowling.

Catch the match report here:
http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/12/iisc-win-boxing-day-bout.html

Young Lions hunt down IISc

2010-12-21T21:43:00.000+05:30

19 December 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: Masterful half centuries from Nihal (78) and Santosh (53) coupled with some inept fielding from IISc helped Young Lions Cricket Club prevail over IISc in a friendly match here.

Catch the match report here:
http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/12/young-lions-hunt-down-iisc.html

"Play and break the thinking loop"

2010-12-14T22:14:00.001+05:30

Arindam Ghosh reveals the sportsman behind the scientist.

Interview by Lalit Patnaik
23 October 2010,

few days after IISc made it to the Super League stage of the KSCA Metro Shield 2010

[Download pdf file of this interview article here]

Arindam Ghosh, Assistant Professor of Physics, Indian Institute of Science is an accomplished scientist in the field of low-temperature nano-electronics. Amidst all the duties and responsibilities that entail his position, he always manages to find time for sports. The IISc cricket team has had his distinguished services for fourteen years now. Here's an attempt to get to know his story as a researcher who never gave up sports, more so cricket... read more

Dominant IISc decimate V.V.Puram

2010-12-12T19:37:00.000+05:30

12 December 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: A red hot IISc nonchalantly dismissed a clueless V.V.Puram Cricket Club for a paltry 119 and then chased it down with close to 30 overs to spare. This has to count among one of their most comprehensive victories in recent past.

Catch the match report here:
http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/12/dominant-iisc-decimate-vvpuram.html

IISc go down fighting

2010-12-08T23:17:00.000+05:30

5 December 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: In a closely fought 50-overs friendly match against BEL Colony Recreation Club, IISc lost by a slender thirteen run margin. It was a match in which IISc tried out quite a few experiments - new opening pairs in bowling as well as batting departments.

Catch the match report here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/12/iisc-go-down-fighting.html

IISc beat Basvangudi CA

2010-11-30T22:34:00.000+05:30

28 November 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: A clinical team effort helped IISc beat Basvangudi Cricket Academy by three wickets in a 50 overs friendly match here.

Catch the match report here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/11/iisc-beat-basvangudi-ca.html

IISc Cricket Updates: Oct-Nov 2010

2010-11-26T23:52:00.000+05:30

The super league matches of the KSCA Metro Shield 2010 are tentatively expected to start from mid-December. In the mean while, team IISc played four friendly matches, losing one and winning two, while one match was washed out. The brief scores can be accessed here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/11/updates-oct-nov-2010.html

Race of Truth

2010-10-13T23:46:00.017+05:30

... the bicycle is the most energy efficient transportation mode. It is 3 times more efficient than walking, 5 times more efficient than using the train and 15 to 20 times more efficient than driving a car. [Source: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/10/quote_of_the_da_9.php]

Cycling is as healthy for the rider as it is for the planet. What's more, it's enjoyable too. Although I cycle my way around the campus everyday, I'd never taken part in any cycling race or cycling tour. The 'Race of Truth' organized by the IISc Bikers Network and Students' Council provided the opportunity to change that. It was an individual time-trial format bicycle race. There were separate race categories for single-speed (non-geared) and multi-speed (geared) cycles.

As it was to be an on-road event, it wasn't wise to use my old and faithful Hercules Thriller. In search of a thin-tyre bicycle, I borrowed a friend's humble BSA Photon. I was told that for the 13.5 kilometer long race, 30 minutes is a good time to log. Anyway, I went into the race not to compete but to complete. On my third and final lap, the chain came off the sprocket while I was going up the unforgiving slope of Silver Oak Marg. I tried putting it back in place but ended up only with greased hands. Too bad!

The organizers were generous though. Since it was a breakdown of the bike and not of the biker, they gave me a second chance. But I had to start afresh. This time I borrowed Abhijit's Hero Hawk. Crouching on its drop handles was kind of weird for someone used to cycling upright. But I had a race to complete. And so I did clocking 30 minutes, 27 seconds. Phew! That somehow ended up being the fifth best time in the men/single-speed category. Here's the full list: https://sites.google.com/site/iiscraceoftruth/timings-category-wise

After the unexpected but encouraging results of my experiments with the Race of Truth, I'm looking forward to the next chance. This time I shall think beyond just completing.

Salil's defiant ton seals momentous victory

2010-10-12T23:49:00.000+05:30

10 October 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: In a epic battle that swayed from one side to the other, IISc wrestled out Rajajinagar Colts to win by a slender two-wicket margin with barely two balls to spare. A fine unbeaten ton by Salil (108*) and his stubborn partnerships with Varun (26) and Teja (47) were the cornerstone of IISc's victory, their fourth successive win that propels them into the Super League stage of the KSCA IV Division League for the first time since 1997.

Catch the match report here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/10/salils-defiant-ton-seals-momentous.html

IISc drub Sangam

2010-10-04T23:19:00.000+05:30

3 October 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: Riding on a sparkling unbeaten century by guest-player Vasanth (109*), IISc drubbed Sangam Cricketers by four wickets in a friendly match.

Catch the match report here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/10/iisc-drub-sangam.html

Short Film - Stolen Dreams

2010-10-02T15:48:00.002+05:30

Most of us are used to watching movies that are anything between 80 and 180 minutes long. Boasting of big production houses and accomplished artists, they steal all the lime-light. Then there is the world of short films that's of interest mostly for the film connoisseurs and screened to a limited audience in film festivals. Many such films carry a terse yet impressive message. Through a creative and imaginative portrayal of a mundane matter or a burning issue, they can leave an indelible mark in your minds.

One of my friends, Adarsh B Hegde, has made a debut short film under the banner of the production house 'Talking Cherry' that he co-owns with his friend Abhijit Jayanthi. The name of the movie is "Stolen Dreams". It depicts the story of a poor football crazy kid. It's a Kannada film with English subtitles. Here's the trailer of the thirty-minute film.

Check out the performance of the child actor Nishant who has already acted in some serials and is studying acting since childhood. The thrilling back ground music is composed by Arya. For now, Adarsh is targeting a screening at the Goa film festival. He's also on the look out for other international film festivals having themes into which his film can fit in. Taking time out from a full-time job, it took him almost one and half years to complete the movie. "Another major reason for taking this much time is that I had to push the people very hard to get the quality I needed", says Adarsh. I wish him all success!

'Friendship Tips' from China

2010-09-20T22:35:00.003+05:30

A humble Chinese make LED lamp can give you much more than mere light. Yes, here's some really enlightening "friendship tips" printed on the box.

[Photo courtesy: Abhijit K]

Friendship Tips
AC: When the light bulb to use AC directly
DC: DC calls automatically recharge when power light bulb

Jokes apart, the product does a decent job of lighting up a room much like an emergency lamp does during power failures - not as bright as a fluorescent lamp but good enough to keep you from colliding against furniture in the room.

What flower is this?

2010-09-16T23:43:00.013+05:30

Many a time, I've come across a lovely flower and am left wondering what it's called. It's a bit like coming across a beautiful girl and not knowing her name. As one who has always been botanically challenged, I urge upon my knowledgeable readers to dispel my ignorance.

Do you know any of these flowers? All of them have been photographed inside the picturesque campus of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

Answers

No.3: Belongs to the genus Zinnia which comes under the Asteraceae family (daisies) -- Answered by Igor Darwin and indisch

No.4: Ageratum houstonianum, commonly known as Floss Flower -- Answered by Igor Darwin

No.6: Daisies again -- Answered by indisch

Note: The genera (plural of genus) marigolds, chrysanthemums, dahlias, zinnias, and heleniums come under the Asteraceae family. So they are all daisies.

Fancied Malleswaram SC surrender to IISc

2010-09-13T21:18:00.001+05:30

12 September 2010, IISc Gymkhana Ground, Bangalore: Spurred by Ashith's all-round heroics, team IISc thumped fancied opponents Malleswaram Sports Club by a resounding six-wicket margin thus completing a hat-trick of victories in the ongoing KSCA Metro Shield. They are now strong contenders for making it to the super-league stage of the tournament for the first time in fifteen years.

Catch the match report here:

http://cricket-iisc.blogspot.com/2010/09/fancied-malleswaram-sc-surrender-to.html