dextermanky's Whiteboard

Back to blogging

2011-04-24T17:16:00.000+05:30

After almost a year of break,
where a lot has happened - a lot has changed,
I have gained some amount of weight and
have few new special friend to relate :)

All this and more to follow.

Well but most importantly, what's bringing me back, well we always have :

Boredom
Willingness to share and learn.
Nothing much to do at office.
Surprisingly but true, few fan mails. (Mostly, {infact all} from : here )

The Ant Philosophy

2010-08-09T07:11:00.002+05:30

I think everybody should study ants. They have an amazing four-part philosophy, and here is the first part:

ants never quit
That's a good philosophy. If they're headed somewhere and you try to stop them; they'll look for another way. They'll climb over, they'll climb under, they'll climb around. They keep looking for another way. What a neat philosophy, to never quit looking for a way to get where you're supposed to go.

ants think winter all summer
That's an important perspective. You can't be so naive as to think summer will last forever. So ants are gathering in their winter food in the middle of summer.

An ancient story says, "Don't build your house on the sand in the summer." Why do we need that advice? Because it is important to think ahead. In the summer, you've got to think storm. You've got to think rocks as you enjoy the sand and sun.

ants think summer all winter
That is so important. During the winter, ants remind themselves, "This won't last long; we'll soon be out of here." And the first warm day, the ants are out. If it turns cold again, they'll dive back down, but then they come out the first warm day. They can't wait to get out.

And here's the last part of the ant philosophy. How much will an ant gather during the summer to prepare for the winter? All that he possibly can.
What an incredible philosophy, the "all-that-you-possibly-can" philosophy.

Wow, what a great philosophy to have - the ant philosophy.
Never give up, look ahead, stay positive and do all you can.

Source

A beautiful poem : Square root of 3

2010-01-03T16:47:00.001+05:30

i fear that i will always be
a lonely number like root 3
a 3 is all that's good and right
why must my 3 keep out of sight
beneath a vicious square root sign
i wish instead i were a 9
for 9 could thwart this evil trick
with just some quick arithmetic
i know i'll never see the sun
as 1.7321
such is my reality
a sad irrationality
when hark! what is this i see
another square root of a 3
has quietly come waltzing by
together now we multiply
to form a number we prefer
rejoicing as an integer
we break free from our mortal bonds
and with a wave of magic wands
our square root signs become unglued
and love for me has been renewed.

~ Kumar

"where's my square root 3??"

Finding my lost Chi

2009-11-01T18:09:00.004+05:30

The reason why it took me a long long time to post anything about my CAT preparation mocks is that the scores and %iles were not even worth mentioning- when u see yourself falling into pit from 95% to 55%ile, it gets crazy.

Seen a Japanese movie, they say something about Chi - if u have it correct and can control it well, nothing defeats you. As it seems finding that Chi is the most important task for me right now. I guess i have found some part of it, but still a lot is unknown.
Its like a DI whose answer "cannot be determined".

Just remember 1 thing - " every paper starts with marks ZERO".
Don't ask me what this means,
Of course its a basic fact and am not a monk who can create some fuzzy looking logic for you,
If you understand what this means then good for you,else u will just continue to survive.

"Learning from the mistakes of past and that of the success of present is essential to generate success for the future."

Now thankfully am back onto the right track,(i guess)
Just need to concentrate and
Keep the fuel within burning.

F- 99 Resignation Letter

2009-09-08T03:53:00.008+05:30

Thing of past :
Winter-2008 was spent in forming a group of engineering students, BLT racing
(obviously the original name wont be revealed).

Objective : Build an F-1 car,compete at an international platform,
Personally speaking,I didn't care about the success,
coz u put your dedication and hard work, and the success follows,

Moreover, girls like mech. engineers,(pun intended)

But due to certain unavoidable circumstance i had to leave the team.

Here is my resignation letter, which i had drafted for the same purpose.
Though it never reached the desk of the other team members,but after less than a month,
On my birthday,the Captain of the team gave me all the freedom i wanted. (yay !)

" Signing off in a style :

To the team BLT racing,

Considering the enormous peer pressure and workload,i have decided that I can not continue as a member of the team.
I regret to inform you that I’m leaving the BLT racing team/group.

I have enjoyed working with everyone and have learned a great deal.
Its just that the work didn't ranked higher in my order of priorities.
Please be informed that I am resigning as of 6th June,2009.

With this mail I am also attaching the Ansys (.dbb) file,which will help the team to continue working in the project.

BLT racing was a dream project for me,but unfortunately the things didn't work out.
If u need any help,don't be embarrassed,feel free to ask.

PS : Today' team meeting (which i could not attend) and the "Dilbert strip" helped me in arriving at this decision,
The group is already full of talented people and i am certain that the group will achieve success.
There is no point in working if u are uncertain/unwilling.
So i call it a day.

PPS: All the details and drawings will stay confidential with me,
Please be assured that these details(if any) will not be disclosed to others.

[Some random blah blah here]

PPPS : Mr. Joy Sharma, Director & CEO – M/s. Hotrod Autotech Pvt.Ltd. will be coming for an IEEE event.
Rest is up to the team to contemplate.

[again some blah blah]

Good Luck to all !!

No more Sorrows :)
Gone Numb :)

Sincerely,
dextermanky [that's right] "

PPS : the views written above are completely the views of the author.
One is not supposed to assume/follow anything against the BLT group.
Its a group of talented people,and am gald i had an opp0rtunity to work with them.
The experience and knowledge i gained working with the team is unfathomable.

PPS : anything written above in not to demean the BLT group,
Even without my presence the team has been able to reach heights which i even hadn't dreamed about.
And i respect them for the same.

[

Things of past...
i don't want the things of past...,they haunt a lot...
they say the history repeats itself...
why it does so...
i dont understand....

-- Yours Truly

]

Got Placed : Futures First

2009-09-03T02:05:00.007+05:30

That's right,your's truly got a job: i got placed
Date of Placement : 30th August,2009

It was a rainy day,was supposed to reach NSIT by 8:30 in the morning, and with such a heavy rain,it felt like an uphill task. Ofcourse there was no way i would have let the rain spoil the plans and/or my formal interview dress.
It was 7:00 Am and it was raining outside,
Papa saying it loud, "aaj late ho jayega,paper chut jayega"
This company was important for me,for it wasn't just testing me as a general candidate but it also tested my abilities,particularly which sets me apart from others.
"Dress kharab ho jayegi",said papa.
"Rain suit pehen leta hun",was my reply and ofcourse the only alternative.
"Jaldi ja,humein bhi ashram jana hai",mummy ordered.
It was difficult to wear that rain suit over my formal dress,but with little help frm mamma it wasnt a problem.

7:30Am,boarded the metro from Yamuna Bank Metro Station,
It was a usual morning but with some unusual promises it behold for me,was quite confident for the first test.

The reason for my confidence : see let me put it very plainly :
'Its easier to give birth to another set of Einstein or Galelio,but difficult to beat me in calculations'
And the first paper was just a 6 minute test having 40 questions,how it went,read further to know .

8:25 Am,VK called :
VK : " Sharma Ji,kahan pahun gye ?"
MS : "Main abhi metro mein hun...tu pahunch gya kya"
VK : " Haan par abhi koi aaya hi nahi.."
MS: " barish mein shayad 10-15mins late aayenge.."
VK: " Main to kehta hun,koi bhi na aye" (PS : I made this up)

VK kabhi kabhi Vinod khera,he is a gr8 friend,and this day wouldn't have been that awsome if he wouldn't have been by my side,till the end. (I owe u dude !)

8:35Am,Met Prateek Dudeja,a handshake and were good to go..
PD : " wah kya formals hain ! LOL"
actually i was wearing my formal shirt with my Rain Suit pyajamas.
MS : " LOL"
PD: " tu inhi shoes mein paper dega ??? "
MS: " WTF ! i fogot to bring my formal shoes"
MS Mind : " yaar jiska paper clear nahi hoga usse maang lunga"
actually was very much sure,no one can beat me in the first paper.

Got in an Auto,me and PD reached the Campus by 8:45,there were many students waiting for the procedure to begin.I just chanced my clothes,combed my hair and was ready for the PPT presentation by the company.

approx. 9:10 Am, the ppt began,followed by queries and clarifications and what not,both from the students and FF recruiting staff.

approx 9:30 Am,after the ppt it was time for the most interesting test of my life,40 questions in 6 mins.
obviously they had to be simple,even the cutoff in DCE was around 21-22.
VK was with me before the paper began,and when it started everyone was running into their own world,360 seconds and 40questions when thats the figure things can go insane !
but thankfully that wasnt the case,after approx.5 mins,one of the persons frm FF said
"45 secons left"
My reaction: "ben***",
i was already sure that i had cleared the cutoff,but i was chasing something bigger than that,the target was to make a new record for FF or atleast be the topper in NSIT.
The more i am sure that i missed the record,i am equally sure that i was the highest scorer.

9:36Am :
VK: smiling in a confused manner
MS: (almost breathless)"Kitne kiye ?".
VK: "22 ke aas-pass,..tune?"
MS: (confident,but still finding breath) "31" !
VK: "31 ? tera ho gya bhai..."
MS: "bus sahi hone chahiyein"
VK: "o,tera ho gya.."

Meet my other frnd Raman Bharihoke,a laconic person.
Raman: "Kaisa gya?"
VK : "22 ke aas-pass..tune?"
Raman: "17"
VK: "kafi kum kiye hain,mushkil hoga paar karna cut-off"
Raman: "haan,pata hai,beech mein fas gya tha..."
VK: " MS did 31"
Raman: "wah yaar,MS tera ho gya clear..."

An Announcement in Audi : "Results would be declared after 45 mins"

went to Raman's den: his room in BH1,
MS : "yaar resume ke print nikalne hain"
VK : "abe,karwa ke nahi laya"
MS: " nahi !"
VK : "BH2 se karwa le"
went to BH2,but the shop was closed,thank god i had an extra pair of resumes.
but they weren't the resumes i had planned for submission,will discuss that later.

In the hostel,we watched a weird-scary horror movie,HOSTEL !
why the hell VK showed that movie ,still remains a secret,
was that part of some strategy by VK ????
chad yaar dost hai apna..jaan lega kya ?

Had my breakfast in Raman's room,Allo ke paranthe,were precious coz i didn't anything for the next 8 hours.

VK: " sahi bata rha hun MS,teri story ban rhi hai...tu aaj le ke hi ja naukri"
"bada hoke bachon ko sunayio...."
"Rainy day tha,na mere pass resume tha na mere dhang ke shoes the....bata rha hun teri mast story ban rhi hai"

MS and Raman : grinning

10:45Am : Results for first test is out
Only 35selected for next round,only 3 from MPAE : Me(MS) , VK and Prateek Srivastav.
It was sad that Raman couldn't clear the test.

11:15 Am : Next test "Aptitude Test" begins,having 30 questions to be solved in 30 minutes.
Did around 14-15 questions in the paper,thought it to be a complete disaster.
Was sure the journey with FF ends,but it wasn't what the BIG brother had planned,
VK: (as usual) "tera ho jayega,bataya na..story chal rhi hai..."
MS: (as usual) "yaar kam attempt kiye hain"

12:15 Am : Results for next round were out and only 11 were selected for the 1st round of interviews.
Only 2 from MPAE now,Me and VK.
Prateek Srivastav could not make it to next round.

Me and VK were consecutive for interviews calls,
How it went...
you might wanna know about it ?

Follow up in next post.....

Mocking August

2009-08-26T02:02:00.013+05:30

Month of August is about to end,and yes am aware about my absence on this blog,

A lot of stuff happened this month,and they say : "Season has just begun".
[Seriously dude,who are they,
well no one that's just me.]

The same me who at this point of time in love with Schrodinger's CAT,
not because am a Cat person,fact is am a dog person,but more on that later.

Currently enrolled in following test series :
IMS SimCATs
TIME AimCATs
CL Proc mocks
PT Prac CATs

There is nothing much to discuss about IMS though,they do not deserve a mention,a whole month has gone,and no test so far,c'mon give me a chance to improve on my Ghanchakkar Performance.

I am pretty sure I can do things better,but am done writing about them,they simply do not deserve a mention.

TIME and CL people are simply idiots,no not because their test series ain't good,infact their test series is awesome.But there is something,me and my friends know about,and you here reading this post don't know and that something is what make them idiota.

by the way,btw,i got their whole series at an almost free cost, but that's something comprehensive,and i expect you wont tell these idiots that i got their test series officially at
Rs 100 (CL-original cost Rs 2000) and
Rs 300 (TIME-original cost Rs 2500).
Totally nailing it.

PT Pracs are good,but they dont have that much of competition,though they are offering the whole test series at a take away price of Rs 99. (PS :no fraud here),but only some 13k to 14k people in whole of India take these tests.Even if some people say that the battle field in PT test is not competitive enough,but who cares when you get all the 10 tests for just Rs 99, and what adds most to the value is the online CBT test practice one gets.
(off topic: by the way,the Receptionist at the PT desk is kind of cute.)

In all the month had me giving 1 CL mock (twice), 2 TIME AimCATs (1015&1014), 2 PT Pracs.

following my report of the August in the next post,
which will be followed by another post (i hope so), before we see September.

And they say...

[The season has just begun...]

CL Proc Mock 3 : Regained lost touch

2009-08-02T23:06:00.002+05:30

All thanks to Career Launcher,for coming up with an online test when i needed it the most.

The results are nowhere at par with the requisite score one must have in order to hope for any kind of scope into getting into one of the seven IIMs,but am still happy with my performance,given the fact,how i had screwed up my previous IMS mock (SimCAT 1) with my senseless experimentation.

But that does not mean the era of experimentation has gone forever,
the next Mock will see me experimenting even more than what i did in Sim1.

Here is what the CL Percentile Predictor says :

Not Happy - Not Sad,
quite like in an ambivalent state,
planning to make the things further accelerate,

Not a time to pretend as the best or worst,
With thrust and thrust,
Time to quench the deeper thirst.

-- Yours Truly

[The season has just begun...]

SimCAT 1: Ghanchakkar Perfrormance

2009-07-30T21:59:00.007+05:30

PS : I am partially drunk while writing this post,high on Coca Cola .

PPS : No Cheers !!

Paper Analysis:-
The easiest VA and DI sets i would have ever seen,and i still managed to screw up both.
(ab to hadd hi ho gyi yaar)

QA was one of the most difficult ones,IMS guys were able to make it more difficult than TIME,

and that is i think one of the reasons i was able to clear the cut-off in it

How i wasted and will always be embarrassed of those 150 minutes ?

Well long story short,started the paper very happily,
thinking that i have been able to crack the algorithm to clear all the sectional cut-offs.
But as they say : "dude its CAT ! "
who are "they" ?

But Khuda ko kuch aur hi manzoor tha,
pata nahi shayad wo din hi manhoos tha.

How everything went into pieces:
Started off with RC solved one RC and attempted a couple of VA questions,
obviously its not about solving large no. of questions,but about accuracy even if the attempts are very low.

(What i learned : This is Not always true!...LoL)
Now 25 mins were over and i felt that i should better head off to DI,

During the entire paper i thought that DI was difficult and again Low attempts - High Accuracy shall rule,
"Sob !"
Now 75 mins had gone,it was Half Time.
Time to go for the kill- Quants ! (My Strongest Section, always true)
I will always be thankful to IMS for making such a difficult Quants section,
Automatically it was again like: Low attempts - High Accuracy shall rule,
Coz if it would have been easier then i would have to solve many more questions,
which i did not,had to just attempted 8 simple questions.
It was all about looking for Sitters.
(all my friends did more questions,and they payed ..mu ha ha ha ha!!)

Now approx. 20 minutes left and still VA left to solve,now under such circumstances no one would consider solving RC as an option,hence had to solve Verbal in less time and accuracy gone for a toss !!

Scores : "Not Worth Sharing"
%ile : "Jane bhi do yaron,Jaan kar kya karoge"

Way Ahead :

Now after this kind of performance i needed something to satisfy myself,
And the answer lied in AimCAT 1016 by TIME,which coincidentally was on the very same day,
I took the question paper from one of my friend and solved it with a new algorithm :
"Sticking to the Basics - No time for experimentation"

Well this was the same algorithm which i applied in SimCAT Zero and got 95.12 %ile.
Now the results of the 1016 is out and i have managed to clear all the cut-offs,but can't be confident enough,took the test at Home and not under some official Proctored environment,obviously the scores will vary under different circumstances.
(Environmental conditions like Temperature,Atmospheric pressure and humidity also play a crucial role,
Mind It !)

[The season has just begun...]

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

2009-07-21T02:30:00.002+05:30

N.P.H is totally awesome!!
Seen him in HIMYM,
then in Harold and Kumar movie,

has already written "Bro Code",
and,
now Acting + Singing in a single documentary. Incredible !

The soundtrack is also great,can't stop listening to the songs: "Brand new day", "Laundry day", "On the Rise", "Slipping".

Premiered exclusively on the Internet -- for free! -- in July of 2008, the three-part web series Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is an absolutely wonderful gem of a comedy. The relatively brief super-villain musical brings needed mirth and frivolity to a field clogged with brooding "dark" comic sagas ... we keep waiting for a noirish, nightmarish film adaptation of Dagwood and Blondie or Nancy and Sluggo to appear.

Originally brainstormed as a creative activity to fill time wasted by the writers' strike, Horrible showcases the talent of Joss Whedon & company and points toward the future of entertainment.

Beware : " He has a Ph.D. in horribleness! "

Flickr

2009-07-20T18:35:00.003+05:30

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

"dextermanky Whiteboard" is also now on Flickr !!

Verbal Shots

2009-07-20T17:04:00.007+05:30

As in my previous post i had mentioned about the new Mentor and the POA thing,now it seems they want me to regularly practice the IMS word list.

Target: "30 words a day"
"That's Extreme " is what i thought when i heard this target for first.

Plan :
For the next few days its going to be only the alphabets "E-X-T-R-E-M-E" that i will be doing.
This kind of a plan will be implemented on a weekly basis,with change of alphabets,they say its always good to keep knowing words as in mystery than to cram the word list in alphabetical order,so they say :)

The Word list "Lexicon" from IMS is quite a big and exhaustive study material having 3500 words (approx.),
It also covers many Supplementary lists:
Frequently Misspelled Words,
Prefix and Suffix list,
Foreign terms in English,
And many special lists for -Manias,-Phobias,Animal terms,Economic terms etc. etc. etc.

Lets see how that helps...more to follow !!

[The season has just begun...]

New Mentor : New Direction

2009-07-19T23:30:00.003+05:30

“Mentor: Someone whose hindsight can become your foresight”
This just in,IMS is providing the top 100 scorers(or so) of SimCAT Zero ,a special mentor.
Mentor to help and guide the students in order to cross the barrier between the 95+ to 99.

My Mentor : Amrita Dutta(Regional Mrktg. Manager,IMS)
Just one session with her,and it has been a complete phase transition in my seriousness towards studies, started taking my mocks very seriously, (u can see that : 2 posts on a single day)

A new POA will be made and i must follow it,beginning with the completion of BRMs
(Basic Reference Material).

[The season has just begun...]

The season has just begun...

2009-07-19T17:25:00.006+05:30

Its too hot right now in India,temperature in Delhi is reaching new heights,rainfalls are the blessings of GOD and it seems the Indra devta(deity) is not in a good mood these days,and Surya devta is enjoying every bit of it.
LoL
The summer has already passed,the monsoon (well usually) starts in mid-June,
then which season i am talking about ?

Well not any other season,
Here i am referring to the Mock CAT season- Season to test and strategize yourself for that C-Day : CAT day, the day of reckoning when you appear for the CAT exam.

As of now i have appeared for 4 mock tests
1) IMS SimCAT Zero ..................................: 95.12%ile
2) TIME AimCAT .......................................: 90.18%ile
3)IMS AceCAT 1 ........................................: 88.30%ile
(i seriously doubt the %ile mapper for this one,more on this later)

4)TIME AimCAT 1018 .............................. (just took it today) !!

So much to work on,more about these in later posts.

My dig into the Yashpal Report

2009-07-16T17:25:00.003+05:30

The Government has finally realized that something is wrong with our Educational system. And this is not the first time. However, with the abolition of AICTE and UGC and the implementation of the Yashpal Report within the coming 100 days, it wants to make sure that something substantial does happen this time. A big hoopla surrounds the Yashpal report and it is the current ‘new’ topic of discussion. However, as was with the nuclear deal,
do we really know how it will affect us once it is implemented?

The Yashpal report is a comprehensive document that lists out the proposed changes that need to be undertaken by the Indian Education System in order for it to be viable in the changing face of education. However, it has come out to be as vague as the Government’s whole idea of quality education.

The ideas presented, though noble, are certainly not clear. For example, an excerpt from the report under the head “The idea of a university” reads as follows:

Apart from resisting fragmentation of knowledge, the idea of a university should aspire to encompass the world of work in all its forms. Work constitutes the human sphere where knowledge and skills are born, and where new knowledge takes shape in response to social and personal needs. Indeed, the experience and culture of work represents that core space where the humanities and the sciences meet.

As can be seen, there is a lot of thought but absence of an implementable idea.

Further, the report discusses the ‘Problems of the Education Sector’. Though the identification of the problem areas is right, there is a failure in quantification of the amount of damage done. Explaining the teaching method and mode of transmission in class rooms, it says: “mode of transmission is generally quite poor”. This kind of generic terminology might undermine the immediacy of the need to address the issue and thus affect the motive of the report.

The report has little or no data to prove or corroborate many of its claims. For example, it says that in the past, some institutions after being declared as universities had promised to give degrees for a certain amount of money; however, there is no data present to prove such an allegation. In the absence of data, all claims just become mere observations which do not have the capacity to bring about any change.

The report proposes an end to the ‘Deemed University’ phenomenon. If, implemented, no new institution will be accredited with the ‘deemed university’ status and the existing ones will be given a period of three years to develop into a university (fulfilling all the prescribed norms), failing which their deemed university status will be withdrawn. It is a difficult idea to implement as it is unfair to expect an institution to start with university level standards. A better idea would have been to declare an institute a university in stages; the first stage being a deemed university.

In the Indian higher education scenario, there is one regulatory body to cover all possible areas of education. For example, University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), Medical Council of India (MCI), Bar Council of India (BCI), Council of Architecture (COA), National Council on Teacher Education (NCTE), Indian Nursing Council (INC) and Pharmacy Council of India. The Yashpal Report proposes the development of a single regulatory body called the ‘National Commission for Higher Education and Research (NCHER)’ to overcome the chaos created by the confusing rules of a large number of bodies. This will certainly make regulation more effective and transparent and also reduce corrupt practices by institutes. According to the report, the new regulatory body will move from the current method of the ‘inspection-approval’ to a new method of ‘verification and authentication’. This will ensure that the educational institutions work in co-ordination with the regulatory bodies and the upgradation of an institute becomes an ongoing instead of a one time process.

The report lays down the objectives for higher education which indicate that there will no more be any confusion in policy decisions as there will be a single point of contact of all policy related queries. Also universities will become autonomous which will give them more freedom. It has mentioned continuous reforms in education, although again specific details about them are missing.

Amongst all other recommendations of the report, the one that grabs attention is the proposal to convert universities like IITs and IIMs into full fledged universities imparting knowledge in all areas. This proposal, if not implemented with caution can ruin the engineering or the MBA education of the IITs and IIMs.

The ideas presented in the report can improve the quality of higher education in India only if it provides tangible ideas that can be implemented in reality. Although it has started a debate which is necessary for reform, resenting merely ‘what needs to be done’ will not help any one.

Source :[PaGaLGuY : My dig into the Yashpal Report ]

Recess from Recession

2009-07-10T23:27:00.006+05:30

The day started usual,read a few editorials from the Hindu, just in order to keep myself at bay from the regular "YADA YADA" of the other newspapers,and then headed off to read the news on the Internet,and then i came across this particular news, a news of everyone's interest.

"The International Monetary Fund’s latest forecast upgrades its global economic growth predictions for next year by 0.5% from its predictions three months ago, but warns that the pace of recovery remains uncertain."

Hell yes!! finally the economy is coming out of recession, well of course it will take some time for an overall settlement or more precisely put as "creation of balance in the global economies,"but the good news that stays at the top is the tough times are about to be over.

Well if u are "still" employed this news is like Christmas,the layoffs which tormented the lives more fiercely than any cyclone are to be reduced by the issue of this report. (Fingers Crossed)
In times of crisis companies appear to be cutting back even on false hopes of career progression.

A Strip from the Dilbert clearly signifies how difficult it has been for those which are "still" employed,forget the promotions:
"Who needs shelter, food or health care? We should be happy to have a job."

Result declared

2009-06-11T02:21:00.007+05:30

The university result has been declared,
"I am Devastated,Destroyed,Sabotaged and Savaged...."

The result didn't turn out to be like the way i had expected,in fact almost a shocker,

I wont quote the exact numbers or details,but there seems to be some mis-interpretation or some improper data-handling by the university staff,
will file a re-evaluation for a subject.

A student who has already got an increment of 22 marks
(changeover from sad-52 to a respectable-74 in Electromechanics),has no faith in the university grading and checking system.

Good news is that thought the marks are not great,but am still not out of the league of the 65%ilers.
"Down,but Not-Out"

Now in just a few months,placement season will begin,the companies will come and visit the campus,conduct rounds of interviews,HR rounds ,etc etc et-cetra.

Got to buckle up and work hard for this process.

In the end all i have to say is.....

I am Devastated,Destroyed,Sabotaged and Savaged....,
but i will rise,because :

I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

[There are too many Prophets Here..]

Is this vedic mathematics?

2009-06-05T15:31:00.005+05:30

Is this vedic mathematics? !@!#!@#$#%^%^%

Time and again,the age old rules of mathematical operations have contributed to the field of mathematics and science,but those who know me would be aware that for me,it is the most detestable and abhorrent thing,

Let me make this very clear that I am not against what Rishis and Munis did in that era,they were the Newton's and Galileo of those days,also I am not undermining the contribution of vedic system of mathematics,its just the "Kalyug's" 21st century preaching of vedic maths is what making the heckles rise.

What the Rishi's did was they established their own system of mathematics,and they wanted this system to develop,not just pass from one generation to another.

"Being Indian doesn't compels me in anyway to love the vedic's way of mathematics."

It is of utmost importance to anyone who follows or will follow this system,that they are aware of not just the tricks but also how the tricks enabled them to reach the solution i.e. they should be able to justify these tricks,may be via proofs not just be examples.

For CAT takers :
I personally do not recommend anyone doing the vedic or any other shortcut way of multiplication and/or for any other arithmetic operations ,

Yes i am aware DI involves a lot of calculations,but if these "non-conventional" methods are not applied properly,these may lead to incorrect answers, also an important parameter wil be that it will make you awry of the usual routine practices of calculations and this will be a major factor in losing marks in the Quants section,
and I continue to believe that we all are comfortable with Mathematical Tables upto 20,
if yes then the rest of the tricks are just CRAP !!,
so no need of these in CAT or other "good" Management entrance examinations.

Some will say that "a minute saved is a minute earned",but let us put this into the perspective,
how much time will this save and how much minutes will it waste.

[Just a humble and honest opinion.]
[There are too many prophets here...]

There are too many prophets here : HIMYM

2009-05-22T02:18:00.005+05:30

Now just a week after BBT ended its season,its time now for the HIMYM.

HIMYM has ended its season 4 with a great episode,an end which ensure that you are glued to the screen when the next season shows up and its going to be "Legen---Dary".

The best thing i ever got from this show is what Barney said to Ted in the 1st episode "Am going to teach you how to live",while i thought i don't really need anyone to teach me the arts of survival, but i was not completely wrong and at the same time not completely correct.

(Wow ! even my speech is now of the Show style,What up? High 5!)

There is an enigma,which the show has been able to create right from the season one,season where we meet the GANG and now the magic is still there,till the end of the season 4,an end where we finally meet the GOAT !!,

where we know that the Ted has changed his profession and is now a professor of architecture.

Well am happy for him and happy that the Barney-Robin relationship finally getting into some good shape,

and what a Leap that was !!

The finale had a beautiful background score - "Prophets" by A.C. Newman.
One of the finest and the most beautiful songs i have ever listened.

Lyrics of the song :

I was a silent partner I found
Myself with the rabble that stood on a mound
Hipshot thinking but not out loud
There are too many prophets here

On the upper side of the sound of the dark
I took it in silence I took it to heart
I carried it quietly over the wall
There were too many prophets there
I was behind it

One by one by one by one
One by one by one by one
Stand by zero
Stacked on zero
One by one by one by one
One by one by one by one

I was a silent partner for once
And I was split into two sections
Here is my heart and here is my song
There are too many prophets here
I am divided

One by one by one by one
One by one by one by one
Stand on zero
Stacked on zero

I was the silent partner I know
The part of the forrest where you shouldn't go
Now out of the woods and out in the day
I see there's too many prophets here

One by one by one by one
Stand on zero
One by one by one by one
Stacked on zero
One by one by one by one
Stand on zero
One by one by one by one
Stacked on zero
One by one by one by one

How to get this song? well you can always get it from Amazon or other sites,just search the internet. Its 21st century there are ways of getting something one wants.

and remember "No one is hotter than GOD !!"

Indian general election,2009

2009-05-17T22:51:00.005+05:30

We finally have the results of the Indian General elections,2009 :

The Congress led UPA swept 261 seats up from 218 last election.
The BJP led NDA stood with 158 down 181.
The CPM led Third Front made only 68.

A brief analysis :

India held general elections—the largest democratic election in the world—to the 15th Lok Sabha in five phases on April 16, April 22/23, April 30, May 7 and May 13, 2009. The results of the election were announced on May 16, 2009.

On May 16, 2009, after poor showing in early trends that showed Indian National Congress and the United Progressive Alliance, with 250+ seats, Bharatiya Janata Party conceded defeat, and acknowledged that they could not be the single largest party or a single largest alliance.
After a surprising showing in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, the UPA was given a mandate, and the Indian National Congress are set to form the government under the incumbent prime minister candidate Manmohan Singh, who is the first Prime Minister of India since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1962 to win re-election after serving a full five-year term.

Indian election at a glance

Eligible voters: 714 million voters
Polling centres: 828,804
Voting days: 16, 23, 30 April; 7, 13 May
Vote counting: 16 May

Alliances	Party	Seats won	Change
United Progressive Alliance Seats: 260 Seat Change: +79	Indian National Congress	206	+61
	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	18	+2
	Nationalist Congress Party	9	-
	All India Trinamool Congress	19	+17
	National Conference	3	+1
	Jharkhand Mukti Morcha	2	-3
	All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen	1	-
	Republican Party of India (Athvale)	0	-1
	Indian Union Muslim League	2	+1
	Kerala Congress (Mani)	1	+1
National Democratic Alliance Seats: 159 Seat Change: -17	Bharatiya Janata Party	116	-22
	Janata Dal (United)	20	+12
	Shiv Sena	11	-1
	Rashtriya Lok Dal	5	+2
	Shiromani Akali Dal	4	-4
	Asom Gana Parishad	1	-1
	Indian National Lok Dal	-	-
	Telangana Rashtra Samithi	2	-3
Third Front Seats: 78 Seat Change: -27	Left Front	24	-29
	Bahujan Samaj Party	21	+2
	Biju Janata Dal	14	+3
	All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	9	+9
	Telugu Desam Party	6	+1
	Janata Dal (Secular)	3	-1
	Haryana Janhit Congress	1	+1
	Pattali Makkal Katchi	0	-4
Fourth Front Seats: 26 Seat Change: -38	Samajwadi Party	22	-14
	Rashtriya Janata Dal	4	-20
	Lok Janshakti Party	0	-4
Other Parties Seats: 18		18	-

Source: Election Commission of India

The Big Bang Theory : Season 2 ends

2009-05-13T21:05:00.005+05:30

"Our whole universe was in a hot dense state, then nearly Fourteen billion years ago expansion started, Wait!
The earth began to cool, the autotrophs began to drool, neanderthals developed tools,
we built a wall, we built the pyramids,
math, science, history, unraveling the mystery that all started with the big bang, BANG!"

If u are a BBT fan,this song needs no introduction
Oh dear god,one of the greatest sitcoms...The Big Bang Theory

Maybe you don't have a 300 I.Q. (then again, maybe you do), but there must be something that you identify with in the Geek Musketeers of The Big Bang Theory.
Maybe you're a people person like Sheldon, a ladies man like Howard, the center of conversation in a room of beautiful women like Rajesh or perfectly adept in any social situation like Leonard,but whatever it is,if you are a fan of this show,then this must be really sad for you that the season 2 has end.

This show was at S02 E05,when i started viewing it and since then i have been a die hard follower. Weeks were difficult to pass,when there was no new BBT episode.And now the season has ended,but the great thing is that before the season went off,CBS renewed the show for not only the 3rd season,but for also the future seasons 2010-2011,Yippee!!.
The third season is expected to air in fall 2009.

About the Show :
The Big Bang Theory is an American situation comedy created and executive produced by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, which premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007.

It concerns two male Caltech prodigies in their twenties, one an experimental physicist (Leonard) and the other a theoretical physicist (Sheldon), who live across the hall from an attractive blond waitress with show-biz aspirations (Penny).

Leonard and Sheldon's geekiness and intellect are contrasted with Penny's social skills and common sense for comedic effect. Two equally geeky friends of theirs, Howard and Rajesh, are also main characters. The show is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions.

Here is a fun tribute to the great season ,a great show.

My Robotics Exam

2009-05-11T21:24:00.005+05:30

Subject : Robotics and CAM I
Date : 11 May,2009

I love robotics

One of the first few things,which i was made aware of, when i joined engineering was that some day we would imbibe the great knowledge of working with Robots,the language of robotics and etc. This I call as the the "Automation factor",some kind of a "placebo effect".
The wait was big enough,...two and a half years.

But i was still happy with the belief that the knowledge would be given in the most effective way,that i will do the best of my hard work and all this wait would be nothing compared to the happiness that i will attain,but things never went the way they were expected to.

There are days,when the dreams of many are shattered,all the beliefs and hopes are smashed and hit hard at,yes today was "that" kind of a day, this feeling was always there when i attended this lecture and also when i gave my mid term exam.

No,the subject is not tough to study, humans have and will continue to study it,so will I.

Now about the examination :
The paper was designed in a really awkward manner,the level of difficulty was not taken care about for all the questions,few questions were like which were really really silly and easy and then there were questions who were relatively of a much higher difficulty level. And guess what ,both kind of questions were worth the same score.

How the paper went for me :
From my previous lines it would have already been clear that i didn't fair well,but that is not the fact,actually it was the same varying level of difficulty which saved me, and must would have saved many other students.
But still the paper continues to be the most awkwardly set paper i have seen.

Lets hope for the best.
Exams have come and blogging has begun.

ASIMO

2009-05-10T21:03:00.005+05:30

ASIMO is a humanoid robot created by Honda. Standing at 120 centimeters weighing 54 kilograms, the robot resembles a small astronaut wearing a backpack and can walk or run on two feet at speeds up to 6 km/h.

ASIMO was created at Honda's Research & Development Wako Fundamental Technical Research Center in Japan. It is the current model in a line of eleven that began in 1986 with E0.

Officially, the name is an acronym for "Advanced Step in Innovative MObility". Honda's official statements claim that the robot's name is not a reference to science fiction writer and inventor of the Three Laws of Robotics, Isaac Asimov.

As of February 2009, there are over 100 ASIMO units in existence.Each one costs just under $1 million to manufacture, and some units are available to be hired out for $166,000 year.

I had the experience of shaking hands with this cute and highly intelligent humanoid robot,when it was brought to India for a Robotics exhibition back in 2008. It performed a "robotwalk" for the audience.That was a great show and I am glad i was there.

This is one of the reasons i love Engineering, you actually experience a lot of things even before u are a graduate,which other people can only look with an awe !!

I look forward to my further interactions with such robots,
For now i have a Robotics exam tomorrow.

More About Asimo can be found out here

Not just CAT,now its...."CAT and MOUSE"

2009-05-10T20:10:00.011+05:30

"CAT goes online", screamed all the newspapers a couple of weeks back. Though, the IIMs have not come out clearly on the 'what and how' of CAT Online, Here is what IMS contemplates :

Paper Based Tests v/s Online Tests

With the CAT going online, the question on top of everyone's mind is
"How will the computer based test be different from the traditional paper based test?"

In this section, we try to highlight the possible implications of the CAT going online. Note that the following is only indicative and a better assessment will only be possible after the IIMs give out more information on the testing process to be followed this year.

Paper Based Tests

Online Tests

Pre-test	Application Buying	Offline : Available at Axis Bank branches	Online / Offline
	Application Submission	Offline: Mail to IIMs	Probably Online with offline verification process
	Test Date	3rd Sunday of November	10 day window towards the end of this year (sometime in Nov/Dec)
	Test Centres	23 Test Centres	23 Test Centres*
	Test Time	10:00 am - 1:00 pm	Different time slots available over a 10 day period, to be booked on a first come first serve basis
	Admit Card	Mailed to candidates mailing address/ Available online	Will Probably be available online

Test Day	Test Registration	Details to be marked on a OMR	Details to be entered online
	Sectional Time	No sectional time limits, Sections can be answered in any order, candidate can also jump to and fro across sections	Test can enforce sectional time limits with sections to be answered in a fixed order: candidate may not be allowed to go back to previous sections In this scenario, test takers can no longer spend more time on their areas of strength to maximise their scores
	Navigation	Student can view all questions at a time : may choose to solve questions in any order	Candidate may be able to view only one question at a time: may need to solve questions in a fixed order Candidates may be allowed to flag a question so that they may return to it later
	Test Questions	Same for all students	Different set of questions (with similar level of difficulty) will be administered to students Alternatively, the test may have an adaptive logic ala GMAT
	Test Format	CAT keeps changing, and the candidates do not know the same until they get the test paper in hand.	The test will most probably have a fixed format that will probably be specified in the CAT bulletin
	Time per Q	There is no mechanism to capture time spent on each question by the student	In an online format, the testing body can capture and analyse the time spent on each of the questions to arrive at some meaningful information
	Readability	Easy to navigate, especially while solving Reading Comprehension passages and Data Interpretation caselets	Candidate may need to scroll up/down to read the entire passage, thereby causing inconvenience.
	Working Notes	Marking important lines, making working calculations besides the question is easy with pen and paper	Candidate will now have to read the test online and make notes offline, which probably need more time than the corresponding paper based process
	Essay	Test does not include an essay, simply because it would be difficult for the test body to evaluate the same	Like GMAT and GRE, a candidate may now have to submit an essay online. However, the essay might be used only at the second stage of evaluation.

Test Prep	Skills required	Verbal Ability, Quantitative Ability, Data Interpretive and Logical Ability	Additionally, one would need basic computer skills : the candidate should be comfortable using the keyboard and mouse
	Concept Learning	Candidate needs to be thorough in concepts tested in the CAT: complete the BRMS, attend classes, use helplines, take the support of your instructors/mentors	Nothing changes really!!
	Practice	Test one's conceptual understanding by solving questions that require you to apply them.	Additionally, one should hone one's basic computer skills by making the practice comp-based.
	Simulation	One needs to take sufficient number of tests in a truly simulated environment	Nothing changes except that the candidate now needs to get acclimatized to a comp-based testing environment

Post Test	Analysis	One can go on and on with question by question analysis of the test, detailed test solutions, possible good scores/percentiles…	Limited scope for analysis, as there would be no test paper to be carried back home for such a detailed analysis
	Results	Available after one and a half months	May be available within a very short span of time
	Frequency	CAT is conducted only once a year, scores are valid for current year only	CAT may be conducted multiple times with validity over an extended period

Source : IMS Learning Resources Pvt. Ltd

What is most important : Concept Learning,nothing changes !!

Exams are here !!

2009-05-10T00:04:00.011+05:30

Exams are here
and these are the few quotes i must agree upon:

"80% of the final exam will be based on the one lecture you missed and the one book you didn’t read
If you are given an open-book exam, you will forget your book.
If you are given a take-home exam, you will forget where you live."

Me vs the Rest of the subjects begin on 11th May
(will be a ten day "Test" match with 5 innings of 70 overs each)
The pressure will be equal on both the sides.
Profs will ensure that this continues to be a great contest,like the Mid term examinations,and I must ensure full commitment towards my preparations.

Mid term examinations were like 5 matches of T-20 cricket :
Batsman : Me
Bowler : Professor
The bowler was consistent (so was the batsman :) ),the match was full of Pace bowling,Spin and skillful use of Doosra was ensured by the experienced bowler.
Batsman was inexperienced, bouncers from the bowler always kept him on the back foot,but a few top edges and mishits delivered the most cherished boundaries.

The week before examination has been spent watching HIMYM and IPL,
watched almost all the episodes and the matches .........LEGENDARY !!
BTW...i support Chennai Super Kings, Big Fan !!

Wish me and the CSK a best of luck !!!

Whiteboard Launches

2009-04-11T01:13:00.000+05:30

Writing the first post for the blog itself made me nervous.....:)
After all everyone wants to make his first line..his first step to be perfect ..considering themselves to be "perfectionist",

Stay True !!

by the time i am reaching the end of the note,i am feeling more satisfied.....more secure.
Sort of feeling one develops when around a best friend.

The search for my friend is still on,
Might this blogosphere fill this void.....Amen!!