Got tagged by Ajit, but I'm gonna post about books rather than movies (may do movies later, but unlikely). Anyway, here goes -

1. Total number of books I own - I'd guess around 50 (Probably 100th of the actual number of books I'd like to own, and also, since my bookthirst far outpaces my ability to buy them, I have about 25 library books around me at any point...)
2. Last book I bought - Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat Gotta love Hobbes! (Have my eye on the collection, but it's rather pricey!)
3. Last book I read - I've been alternating between The Best Short Stories of William Somerset Maugham and The Warren Buffett CEO for the past couple of weeks. Don't get too much time for extracurricular reading, unfortunately...
4. Five books that mean a lot to me - (since 5 is a ridiculously small number, I'm going to cheat - )

   • "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" If you haven't read it, I can't tell you enough what you are missing... (Further Adventures... is not as good. I feel like I should also sneak in the Feynman Lectures on Physics here, even though I've read probably only a one fourth of the lectures. They are a wonderfully enlightening way of studying basic physics.)
   • The Tao of Physics - a fascinating introduction to particle physics, not to mention the weird parallels in eastern mysticism. Also see more Capra esp. The Web of Life and The Hidden Connections
   • The Tao of Leadership - I think John Heider's is one of the better (it also has great Chinese and Japanese art alongside) translation/interpretation of Lao Tse's enigmatic, often counterintuitive, and yet when you think about them, surprisingly widely applicable teachings. See here (original Chinese text too, if that's your thing ;) and here for more translations. (And in keeping with the trend above, also see - Art of War which, again, I haven't read completely)
   • The Intelligent Investor - while not as thorough or challenging as Security Analysis (which is THE original - and still incredibly valuable - book on rational investing) The Intelligent Investor can provide a sufficiently solid foundation in this area. The edition I've linked to also has modern commentary and examples by Jason Zweig.
   • Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Shareholder Letters - OK, so it isn't actually a book; but in this voluminous collection the Oracle explains his views on diverse topics (running great businesses, managing people, being long term greedy, and a lot more) is just unbelievably full of wisdom achieved over a long and successful life. (In case you still insist that it's not a book, see various books by Robert Hagstrom. They are essentially collection of tid-bits from the letters)

5. Pick five people and have them put this in their journal: Ajit [:) I'm probably not meant to tag back, but since he hasn't posted about books...] Anya, Ashish [doesn't have a blog, but WTH, maybe he'll start one for this ;)], Hrishikesh, Ashutosh [doesn't blog much, so it'll be a minor miracle if he posts... while on the subject of miracles, might as well tag Mandar >:-)]

Lessons learned from this exercise:

1. I have no regard for arbitrarily imposed restrictions
2. I don't have too many friends in the blogosphere. Not surprising since I neither visit nor comment on many blogs, and blog rather infrequently myself. (Some would mutter that I don't have too many friends in real life either ;)
3. Much as I love photography, I haven't found a book on it that's had a major impact. Suggestions are welcome.

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the NYTimes series on Class in America, an article on the growing influence of evangelical Christians in the Ivy League -

.... Now a few affluent evangelicals are directing their attention and money at some of the tallest citadels of the secular elite: Ivy League universities. Three years ago a group of evangelical Ivy League alumni formed the Christian Union, an organization intended to "reclaim the Ivy League for Christ," according to its fund-raising materials, and to "shape the hearts and minds of many thousands who graduate from these schools and who become the elites in other American cultural institutions. ....

What is going on here is that religious groups - particularly the evangelicals, are trying to break down the barrier between the church and the state by trying to saturate the next generation of influential people with a particular religious philosophy.

I'm definitely for a moral and ethical code of conduct for the society, but when, rather than scholarly and sincere introspection that takes into consideration the current situation, such a code is defined by a 2000 year old book (and moreover a near literal interpretation of the book) which was written in a completely different society, can a theocracy be far behind?

Yes, there are quite a few problems with the way we currently interact on (and with) this planet. Yes, there are some absolute values that should guide our behavior. But to think that the Bible, or any other religious dogma, can provide the solution to any and all problems in an ever changing world is a grave mistake.

These words of Ben Franklin have been quoted in other scenarios, but they seem to apply here too -
"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety"

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Took part in a MRI brain imaging study here at Vanderbilt.

Well... it's as we suspected....

X marks the spot	Notice the rich blood flow	That's a wierd shaped head*!

*The proprtion of my frontal lobe (higer cognitive functions!) to the parietal lobe (sensory perception, language, spacial visualization) to the occipital lobe (visual perception, shape recognition) seems to be off a bit. Of course, I am no brain scientist ;), and everything seems to be going well, so I'm not going to worry...

Here are[shockwave] a few pages about the [more shockwave] human brain . . .

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Fun~ ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

An interesting thing just happened... I was playing the open beta of World of Warcraft, and they announced that the beta was now over, servers would be shutting down, all characters will be wiped out. The game opens for real on Nov. 23, but I won't be playing... too addictive..

In any case, I was trying to figure out what I would do in the last few minutes... I was almost at level 13, had just learned to make some potions... So I ran around for a bit, killing stuff, increasing xp, gathering herbs, creating potions... then it hit me... I should be fishing! So for the last three minutes, I stood by a stream and fished...

If the world were to end, I'll probably be reading a book in the last moments.. unless it's a spectacular end.. in which case I would make sure I see it. After all, there will never again be anything like it! :)

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Who the heck is this guy? [Search the page for chinmay]

... Well at least he seems to be smart...

BTW, sokgraphs [NYTimes] are cool [pdf]!

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Fun~ ~GeekStuff~ ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Staying in school all night, listening to the soundtracks from Kill Bill vols. 1 and 2, grading mid-terms, purifying nanoparticles, planning experiments.

Leaving for the Smokies tomorrow on a three day trip. Fun will be had, trails will be trodden, photos will be shot.

It doesn't get any better.

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1) Where can I get scores (for playing on the piano) of Indian and western music? Fr free of course...

2) Which is a good domain name seller/DNS hosting service? Does it work out cheaper to buy the domain name for longer term?

3) Which is a good chess book for learning basic strategies, tactics, opening and endgame moves etc?

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Arts~ ~Me~ ~ThisBlog~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

So here's a short video from the National Cancer Institute that explains in simple terms how nanotechnology will work against cancer.

In the next video, I think they'll feature my work :)

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~ ~Science~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

So here I am! Back after a long three month break!

Feels great to be back in the labs nad getting my hands all covered with nanoparticles [ok not really... we use protection ;)], but my apartment is still a mess with people moving in and out, guests and what not... But I guess the dust will settle down soon enough [and I will have to do a lot of vacuuming after that :) ].

Anyway, in a new lab now with a new comp, 17" LCD screen and Nvidia 9600 card with 256MB dedicated memory being the highlights.

Also a blazing hot Thingamablog v.1 to blog with! [BTW, it seems I have done some "cool stuff" with my blog!]

What more could a geek ask for!

So once again, come here once in a while, to see what I find as I explore my stochastic consciousness.

- Chinmay

Categories - ~GeekStuff~ ~Me~ ~ThisBlog~
Edited on: Sunday, September 05, 2004 12:38 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Off for a 3 month break now!!!
Probably won't be able to blog because of the network drive configuration here... will occasionally write some stuff in the comments box of this post... maybe...

Bye then!

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

What does your phone number spell? Mine says 'I solve' Interesting eh?
Also see urbandictionary.com for definitions of fantastic words like bleh, meh and 'fo shizzle ma nizzle'!!!
I guess it's apparent that I've submitted my thesis draft to the prof for review, and am currently in R&R mode...

Also, it seems the Vandy BME grad program is ranked 20th this year [and other Engg. grad progs are in the 40-50 range...] Let's see how OSU ranks... [and if they can give me aid...]

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Fun~ ~GeekStuff~ ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Finished! Acabado! Fertig! Fini! Rifinito! Terminado!

Off to Jacksonville now!
Will blog if I can figure out the VPN access thingy.
The professed long post is off for now...
Sorry!

Bye now...

Oh BTW, got A in Electrochemistry...

Bye...

Gone!

Really...

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~ ~ThisBlog~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Just won a Hershey's Happiness T-Shirt, when I bought a chcolate bar befor the supposedly 9am Biochem exam. When no one turned up for quite a while, I thought I was in the wrong classroom, so pulled out the schedule sheet to check.
The exam is at 3pm

Doubly lucky today I suppose! :D

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~

;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

All right! Another subject vanquished! Now for Biochem.

Meanwhile, taking inspiration from my roomie I've started collecting the US State Quarters series. I've managed to collect 12, I think, out of the 25 released till now... I was thinking that would be a good list to fill up the space on the left :D So there it is! Will update with numbers soon...
Also, since I'll probaby not be able to post for the next two weeks, I think I'll dig up somehing big and post it to compensate for that ;-)

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~ ~ThisBlog~
Edited on: Friday, December 19, 2003 12:28 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Just got back from the Electrochemistry exam... not bad.. should get an A. Now the Electron Microscopy exam tomorrow [I know not at what time] and Biochemistry on Saturday 9:00 am. Then a glorious two week break in Florida!

Haven't had much time to read the latest issue of Nature, but the concept article on the evolution of Gaia Hypothesis is interesting. Plus is alwasy good to know such gems as "even among the beneficiaries of a college education [in USA], only 16.5% are prepared to concede that Homo sapiens is a product of evolution, unaided by the hand of God."
I'm now convinced that I'm in a good place for higher education in Science! :P

Oh BTW, did you know that "there is a great deal of structure in the Universe; the galaxies are not laid out randomly, but form in clusters, and super-clusters; and
these clusters and superclusters are laid out along walls and filaments, with huge empty voids between them." !!!

Just found that out when I was trying to understand what Dark Matter is. [No, it's not the stuff Darth Vader is made of... :-| ]

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~ ~Science~
Edited on: Thursday, December 18, 2003 5:07 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much to the chagrin of my regular and loyal readership [the same numbering around 3], the blog has been silent for a week and a day now, so this is the time to put things right. As you might have noticed, I was busy stirring a storm in a few e-cups for the past week. After that, I suppose I was just plain lazy.
Don't have much to write even now, since I spend most of my time looking at F828 on sony's website [not sure the link will work, they prbably have session ID], and dreaming about the moment when I will first hold it in my hand ;-).
But in any case, I'm back, and will post more or less regularly henceforth. Meanwhile, I've just added one more short paragraph to the story.

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~ ~Photo~ ~ThisBlog~
Edited on: Sunday, January 11, 2004 9:05 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Too melancholy to write anything meaningful [besides, sprained my bad wrist AGAIN... anything more than a mouse click is rather painful ;-)]... a number of interesting news from various places, maybe later... Now going to go home and drown myself in Seinfeld [and Chips Ahoy! :D]
This one is too well written to stave off for later. "Destination!" she says, amazed. "Destination!"

- Chinmay

Categories - ~GeekStuff~ ~Me~
Edited on: Friday, October 24, 2003 2:19 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Had an OK exam. Off to Jacksonville now...
Some interesting news/articles and thoughts on Sino Indian space race when I come back Tuesday [21^st]
Check out the purple frog for now though... Definitely a mascot for my future research group :D

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~
Edited on: Friday, October 24, 2003 2:19 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Why that title?.. Vaguely referes to finishing most of my disastrogenic ingradients er...commitments and the bit of rain that we had today in Nashville, I think.... Also discovered today during my presentation that most of what I've been doing is OK but I'm going to have to repeat it anyway... ergo this is the perfect time to say C'est le vie. But it feels good to be relatively freeer. Now two days of extreme biochemistry [enzyme regulation, anyone?] and then a four day break! In Florida!!! With Uma!!!!! :D

My heart longs for the break like -something-about-a-deer-or-some-such-creature-longing-for-a-stream-after-a-chase-or-something or some such excerept (from a classic literature?) on those lines... Anybody know what I mean? It appears in Wodehouse quite often I think... Hmmm. Too tired to think right now! Gonna go home and try to do a first reading of all the Enzyme and Nucleic acid caboodle.

Anya's blog has a nice new format. I think I want to steal it...

I-) zzzz ZZZZ ^ZZZZ

- Chinmay

Categories - ~Me~
Edited on: Friday, October 24, 2003 2:20 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Some Bengal related stuff today. Came across an interesting article about Rabindranath Tagore by Amartya Sen while browsing the Nobel Prize website. Sen's Prize Lecture is also worth reading.
To read Tagore's Gitanjali [translation] in original Bengali, here's how you can start learning Bengali. [Uma and I started learning a while ago, but it's fallen by the wayside...]

In passing: Apparently, I rock! Midsem results till now: Biochemistry - 90/100 => 4^th in a class of ~100. Electrochemistry - 88/100 4^th[?] in a class of ~20. Feels good! :D

- Chinmay

Categories - ~India~ ~Me~
Edited on: Tuesday, October 07, 2003 4:15 PM
;  permalink
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~