Monday, March 20, 2006

Endulkar?

Sachin Tendulkar has made tremendous contributions to Indian cricket. He has made many a record, whether it be cricket, endorsement or govt sops(remember the ferrari row?). He has infact come to a stage where his mere appearance in the cricketing field creates records. But the question now is , is he doing just that?.. Merely appearing in the Mumbai test and becoming the most capped player?. Imagine India's hero being booed on his way back to the pavillion, that too by his very own home crowd. His batting performance has failed to evoke the kind of fire in the heart of the cricket fan that it once did. He had quite a while, before laboring to his 35th century, and then things didnt appear rosy after. This series, his best score has been a difficult 28 not out, the rest coming in single digits. There have been many who still vouch that he is just down but not out, he would roar back and so on. Buts lets see.. After his string of injuries, he has considerably toned down his agression , or rather even fallen into the 'meek' territory. With his contemporaries such as Ganguly being shown the door, probably his time too has come. The one run which he scored in Mumbai would haunt him, not just that he didnt score enough, but as to how to struggled to even face deliveries, which a few years ago, he would have sent packing to the fence. Tendulkar a prized wicked yet?..... I hope its still yes, but that hope is fading... I just hope that he rebuffs my inferences with his bat..

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Bank Ordeal

Today will be quite a day to remember for me. It was an hour long ordeal in a nationalised bank, to obtain a pass book entry. I went very early in the morning, at about 8:30. The bank was under renovation, and when i entered, it looked as if it was going to be torn down. The officials, i could see, were unprepared for what was expected, that customers would find this grossly inconvenient. When i entered, i found my footwear stamping on something squishy; it was the freshly laid cement on the flooring inside. There were hardly any officials inside, and i found 2 people who were trying to begin their day's work. I was instructed to go to the first floor to obtain the entry, and when i went there, i found half a dozen people waiting in a queue for a person who wasn't there, the one who would record their pass books. The fans were not working, and we were sweating it out, when a man came and sat in the counter, and said, "This counter is for all savings bank transactions except recording entries, please go down". An elderly gentleman next to me sounded irritated when he said that we were being taken for a ride. We marched our way downstairs, only to find no one. After 15 minutes, the officials were trying to find out what was wrong with the computer. Then they made a startling discovery that the spike-buster was not working and fixed it with great effort. At last, now it will be over in a few minutes, i thought. But No.. The person in the counter was desperately searching for a mouse pad, poor lady, she did not know that an optical mouse requires only a flat surface such as the table, and does not mandate a mouse pad. Finally, when all was well, the first pass-book got stuck in the printer, which started making all sorts of weird noises, like a formula-1 car in the race track. The counter person called for help, then a guy came and pulled out the pass book with all force, that it almost tore. I felt as if i was in the middle of a remote village, where people were just learning to use computers. There is a serious issue here. When a majority of the employees in the bank counters have been used to giving the manual system are suddenly asked to switch over to computers, and perform operations so simple just as entering numbers, their mindsets just do not seem to aid them. I just pray that today's was just a one-off case. Imagine standing in a queue that does not move, and even when it does, it ensures that the cost of getting the work done is greater than the return got.

Monday, March 13, 2006

The Jungle - Today

In the jungle,

Every morning when a gazelle wakes up, it knows that it has to outrun the fastest lion to stay alive.
Every morning when the lion wakes up, it knows that it has to outrun the slowest gazelle, or else it would starve to death.

It doesn't matter if you are a gazelle or a lion, you'd better be running!

That is life, the jungle, today.

The Best Cricket ODI ever..

It was simply an ace, amazing, astonishing, astounding, awe-inspiring, extraordinary, fab, fabulous, fantasmo, far-out, glorious, great, prodigious, superhuman, unreal, wonderful, and incredible one day cricket match I have ever witnessed in my entire life. How many times have we seen a world record broken, created, and again broken in a span of 3 hours in cricketing hiostory?.. Australia the world champions would have liked to remember 12th March 2006 in their lives, but would have like to have forgotten it just a few hours later. They scored a record 434/4 in 50 overs, and hold your breath.. LOST!!!!... South Africa have proved that they can create a record of records.. I am already too overwhelmed by this performance to continue further.. just read on this article i came across..

SOUTH AFRICA CREATE ODI HISTORY!!!!!
South Africa clinched a dramatic 3-2 series victory over Australia after what will surely come to be known as the greatest one-day international of all time.
Ricky Ponting seemed to have led Australia to an unassailable position when his 164 off 105 balls set up a ODI record total of 434 for four.
But Herschelle Gibbs led the fightback with an exhilarating 175 off 111 balls and Mark Boucher hit the winning runs as South Africa remarkably broke the record once more, scoring 438 to win with one ball and one wicket to spare.
Boucher finished 50 not out off 43 balls to see his side home, while number 11 Makhaya Ntini scored the most important single of his career to date.
Gibbs' 175 was the highest individual score in a ODI in South Africa - the 32-year-old smashed 21 fours and seven sixes in his breakneck innings, before lofting Andrew Symonds straight to Brett Lee at long off.
He shared a stand of 187 for the second wicket with captain Graeme Smith, who bludgeoned 90 off only 55 balls as his country set about overhauling Australia's mammoth total.
Johan van der Wath then slammed 35 off 18 balls, including three sixes, to resurrect the run chase after a steady fall of wickets in the latter half of the innings.
Australia's Nathan Bracken, amazingly, claimed bowling figures of five for 67 in the midst of the mayhem, but dropped a simple chance proffered by Gibbs on 130.
Mick Lewis claimed another, unwanted, record with the most expensive bowling figures in ODI history, his 10 overs costing 113 runs.
It all looked so different at the halfway stage after Ponting's explosive innings left South Africa facing the biggest run chase in ODI history.
The captain smashed 13 fours and nine sixes - itself an Australian record - and was ably supported by the rest of the top order.
Openers Simon Katich and Adam Gilchrist laid the foundations with a stand of 97 before Gilchrist fell for 55 off 44 balls.
Katich went on to make 79 off 90 balls as he also shared in a 119-run stand with his captain, while Mike Hussey belted 81 off just 51 balls and Andrew Symonds clubbed 27 off 13.
Roger Telemachus was the pick of a demoralised South African bowling attack with two for 87 off his 10 overs, but the real drama was still to come as Gibbs launched the hosts' unbelievable recovery.


Here are some post match reactions.....

Mark Boucher hailed South Africa's stunning 3-2 one-day series victory over Australia as "one of my best moments in cricket" after hitting the winning runs to secure a last-gasp record-breaking victory.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting seemed to have led Australia to an unassailable position when his 164 off 105 balls set up a ODI record total of 434 for four.
But Herschelle Gibbs led the fightback with an exhilarating 175 off 111 balls and Boucher hit the winning runs as South Africa remarkably broke the record, scoring 438 to win with one ball and one wicket to spare.
"It's one of my best moments in cricket so far," Boucher told Sky Sports.
"We always knew we'd be up against it. We tried to keep it simple, we knew we had to get a good start and Herschelle and Graeme (Smith) did fantastically well. It was something special to watch. It's fantastic.
"It's a bit of a short boundary but you can't take anything away from the Aussies, they played fantastically.
"I'm lost for words."
Boucher is now looking forward to what promises to be an entertaining Test series.
"Test cricket is a different ball game but I really enjoyed it tonight and hopefully we can take some of that momentum into the Test series."
Ponting was gracious in defeat and paid tribute to Gibbs' stunning role in the match."I'm sure everybody here today had one of the greatest days of their lives," he said in the post-match presentation, televised by Sky Sports.
"It was a great game of cricket.
"We played really well and got an unbelievably big total but Herschelle and the boys have just been too good. Herschelle deserves (the man of the match award) more than me after making 175 and being on the winning team.
"You couldn't ask for a more exciting one-day match, it had plenty of boundaries, plenty of sixes, it was great."
After his brilliant knock Gibbs said: "I think I'm going to keep smiling for a while - I'll have no energy tomorrow."Cricket is getting bizarre these days with some of the scores made.
"We needed something like that from somebody and it happened to be my day today," he said.
South Africa all-rounder Shaun Pollock was named man of the series and said on Sky Sports: "You feel on top of the world, to see a game like that was great.
"The boys came through and we managed to win the series. It's been nice, I've enjoyed it. It's a pity I couldn't get out there today, it looked like a good runway for bowlers."
Winning captain Smith admitted it had looked bleak when Australia posted the massive 434 total.
"I think we were a little down in the dressing room at that stage," he confessed.
"But it was an unbelievable wicket, credit to the groundsmen. And what an atmosphere.
"It's huge (the victory). We have got to come back down to earth. We're all over the moon and want to savour the moment."

The Matrix Uncovered 7: The Twins

They are exiled programs that emulate the human myth of ghosts as the Oracle explained. They are programs behaving badly. Persephone killed one of the Merovingian's bodyguards with a silver bullet because he was emulating a werewolf. So if the Twins could phase into ghost form, why didn't he when his arm was trapped in the door of the garage? Was it because he was wounded or because he can't phase when his arm is trapped? No of course not. The doors of that building, when shut, always led somewhere else (usually in the mountains) when opened again without the Keymaker's key. So if it were slammed shut due to the Twin phasing into ghost form, the Twin's arm would've ended up god knows where, but certainly not attached to the Twin's body.

Sunday, March 12, 2006

The Matrix Uncovered 6 : Seraph

The reason Seraph (the chink guy Neo meets before meeting the Oracle) had golden code and was so spectacular is that he came from the first incarnation of the matrix, which was heaven. "Seraph" is singular for the plural "seraphim". The seraphim are the highest choir of angels and included amongst others: Lucifer, Gabriele, Raziel and Malaciah, and they sit on the 8th level of Heaven just one below God.

The Matrix Uncovered 5 : The Mother

The Architect says, "Please," in an almost disapproving sense when Neo suggests the Oracle, but does not reveal who it really is or even directly that Neo is wrong. The architect was the one who created the Matrix; the co-creator is neither Persephone nor the Oracle. Both of them are only programs that have a purpose in the matrix, just like the rest. The Architect is in charge of the Matrix world and the co-creator is in charge of Zion. She has almost the same age as the Architect. Therefore, that woman is the Head Counselor, the only woman of importance that lives in Zion and the one who asked for the two captains to volunteer at the council meeting. She's the one who knew all along about the Matrix. She was the one who told Zion's Defense Minister to cool off and to let Morpheus do his work so things could go as planned. Or alternatively, it could indeed be the Oracle. She is the only program that truly wants humans to have a free choice... at the same time, she sees the future, because she knows the program code - she is like God - which is why Seraph protects her

The Matrix Uncovered 4 : The Equation

The Keymaker refers to the window of time to open the door to the mainframe as 314 seconds. 3.14 is pi to three sig. figs., or the number of radians in half a circle. Half a circle is like the cross-section of a womb, similar to the alcove of Neo and Trinity's love scene - conceiving the next One? "NEO", incidentally, is an anagram of "ONE". Trinity and Neo - one on one; a choice - one or one. Leads us to 101. "101" is mentioned numerous times in Matrix 1 and Reloaded. Neo's room at the beginning, Merovingian is on the 101st floor, the 101 freeway of the car chase in Reloaded, then when Trinity is hacking into the power plant system, she resets the password to Z10N0101. Freaky. Indicates that she is a program because that's not some random password she's put in. 101 is binary for 5, which in zero based binary counting: 000 is 1, 001, is 2, 010 is 3, 011 is 4, 100 is 5, 101 is 6 - And this is ! the 6th version of the Matrix! Then there's 303. 303 is the room Neo got shot in Matrix 1, the Oracle lives in room 303, it's also the hotel room number Trinity is in in Matrix 1 and it's seen at the end when Neo fights the Agents and Smith and begins to literally see the code that makes up the Matrix. 101 x 3 = 303, a trilogy, 3 + 0 + 3 = 6 = the 6th Matrix. Trinity means 3.

The Matrix Uncovered 3 : The Anomaly

The anomaly is all the humans that do not accept the Matrix. The Architect says "Your life is the sum of a remainder of an unbalanced equation inherent to the programming of the matrix. You are the eventuality of an anomaly, which despite my sincerest efforts I have been unable to eliminate from what is otherwise a harmony of mathematical precision. While it remains a burden to sedulously avoid it, it is not unexpected, and thus not beyond a measure of control." This includes Neo, but Neo's Matrix avatar is attached with the One program so that he can follow his purpose as explained earlier in part 1. However, he is also supposed to protect himself and destroy anything that gets in his way - i.e., Agent Smith - so that he may fulfill his purpose. Further proving Neo - and other non-accepters of the Matrix - are the anomaly, the Architect says, "Your life is the sum of a remainder of an unbalanced equation inherent t! o the programming of the matrix." The clue here is Neo's program name - "The One". Take one-third for example. 1 over 3 is 0.33333 recurring. A computer cannot deal with recurring numbers, so must accept a limit, let's say 0.33333 for argument's sake. Multiply by 3, you get 0.99999 - never 1.00000, where has the "remainder" 0.00001 (One) gone? This is the limitation of computers, this is the mathematical imprecision inherent in programming (of the Matrix) and the eventuality of the One anomaly unable to be eliminated.

The Matrix Uncovered 2 : Agent Smith

Agent Smith is the only "human" in this world. He's the one spreading himself like a virus replicating himself over and over until the Matrix will finally get overloaded and fail. Smith is the one who wants to get out of the Matrix for good. He said so in the first Matrix, "I must get out of here, I must get free! And in this mind, is the key," squeezing Morpheus's temples, "my key! Once Zion is destroyed, there is no need for me to be here!" Smith knows that by killing Neo he can escape the Matrix because Neo is the key to resetting the Matrix, or to shut it off. It was originally killing Neo (in the first Matrix) that allowed Smith to become powerful (cloning ability) - so killing Neo again will allow him to gain Neo's powers completely, and thus gain the power to shut down the Matrix. So where the hell did Smith come from if he wants to destroy the Matrix? He's obviously not meant to be there - he's a computer virus as he has every characteristic of a virus - he multiplies and spreads and infects (and emulates) other programs like one. He is exactly as he described humans at the end of the first Matrix - "You move to an area and you multiply and multiply until every natural resource is consumed and the only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern.I'm betting on humans in the real real world, i.e., outside of Zion and the Matrix. They're at war with the machines and trying to destroy them by infecting them with this virus - Agent Smith. So the irony with this theory is that Agent Smith represents the human race!! Neo represents the machines! Agent Smith says to Neo just after he's seen the Oracle that he became free when Neo destroyed him in the first Matrix (remember when Neo entered his body and exploded him from inside out) - as a virus, Smith has the ability to "inherit" other programs' abilities and thus inherited some of Neo's.

The Matrix Uncovered 1 : The One and The Choice

"The One" is a program, but has to be "attached" to someone in the Matrix. So Mr. Anderson got it in the 6th version of the Matrix. Then "The One" program's purpose is to allow Zion to be destroyed then to rebuild it. The reason for this is because of anomalies - the 1% of humans that don't accept the Matrix. These are all brought out of the Matrix program and into the Zion program by the "Morpheus" program and other similar "ship captain" programs. Then once all the anomalies are out of the Matrix (and in Zion), that is the time for Zion to be destroyed, thus killing all the anomalies off. The Matrix is then upgraded, thus creating the next version of the Matrix, but Zion must be rebuilt so that the next lot of anomalies can be brought out again so that they can be destroyed. This is the feedback loop, and is the reason to retain a handful of people so that Zion can be rebuilt. So this is why Neo said the prophecy was a lie - the One's purpose was not to end the war as the prophecy stated. Unfortunately, "The One" program must be re-used each time, or copied, so it can be "attached" to a new anomaly inside the Matrix. So what happens to the old "The One" program? It faces deletion, and as the Oracle explained, it goes into exile instead, just like the French bloke (the Merovingian) did. He was the first One (probably from the second version of the Matrix), and once he fulfilled his duty, he became an exile program and "abdicated" his "Oneness" by choosing Persephone and power. This is evident in the bogs when Persephone asks Neo to kiss her. She says she wants him to kiss her so she can feel what it is like again to be kissed by something close to human, just like the Merovingian used to be. Then she says to Trinity that she envies her, but that these things are not meant to last. So the Merovingian used to be just like Neo - a One - thus proving further the feedback loop explained earlier. The correct door in the Architect's room: Now there are two possibilities here: 1. All the previous One's chose the right door allowing a "temporary dissemination" of their code into the Matrix (i.e., the code they "carry" thus indicating Neo is indeed human), then he must select (unplug) 23 people from the Matrix to rebuild Zion. This takes away the possibility that stories from previous rebuilds of Zion will be carried through. But Morpheus indicated in the first Matrix that this is the case anyway. He said, "there was a man born inside, able to change things, it was he who freed the first of us," - basically the One previous to Neo. And this proves that the previous One chose the right door also. Neo's purpose is also to choose the right door, but he does not because he faces deletion afterwards and has the choice of going into exile - programs choosing to go into exile is the one thing that can't be accounted for in program parameters. Thus, he chooses the left door instead this time. How was Neo able to c! hoose the other door? Because of his extrem e willpower? - Even the Architect indicated that he'd noticed this - "Interesting. That was quicker than the others." Or more likely, because the Oracle upgraded his coding with the candy on the park bench. The candy/cookie was a method to change the One's program. She said he has made a believer out of her - this is quite human like and perhaps the previous One's didn't accept the upgrade candy, now she has hope... hope that Neo will finally choose the other door. 2. All the previous One's chose the left door, saving Trinity and letting Zion fall. So this time is no different. But the Architect does say, "You are here because Zion is about to be destroyed. Its every living inhabitant terminated, its entire existence eradicated," and also, "this will be the sixth time we have destroyed it, and we have become exceedingly efficient at it," - assuming the Architect isn't lying, then they have already destroyed Zion (i.e., Zion has fallen) five times - i.e., the result of going through the left door. Morpheus and Trinity are programs. Morpheus's purpose was to find the One and deliver him to the Architect. Trinity's purpose is to control the One by getting in love with him. Trinity is supposed to be the mother of the new One every time the Matrix is Reloaded. That's why she was named Trinity. The Architect says, "she is going to die, and there is noth i! ng that you can do to stop it." He was correct though because she did die just like Neo did in the first Matrix (Oracle said he or Morpheus would, and she didn't lie, but he came back to life). Trinity dies, but comes back to life (we are using medical definition of death in all this of course!). The Architect has already laid down an ultimatum for Neo choosing the left door: The Architect - "Failure to comply with this process will result in a cataclysmic system crash killing everyone connected to the matrix, which coupled with the extermination of Zion will ultimately result in the extinction of the entire human race." Neo - "You won't let it happen, you can't. You need human beings to survive." The Architect - "There are levels of survival we are prepared to accept. However, the relevant issue is whether or not you are ready to accept the responsibility for the death of every human being in this world." Looking at this further, the Architect does say "coupled" with the extermination of Zion will the human race be exterminated. So he says everyone connected to the Matrix will die, but if Zion is not exterminated, the human race will not necessarily die. Also, there is likely to be a time window between not going through the right door, and the cataclysmic crash, thus allowing Neo to unplug as many as possible from the Matrix, then those people won't die. This will be the start of the next Zion. As for the Matrix, a cataclysmic crash doesn't mean the end of the Matrix - just needs rebooting or reloading!

mind reloaded: Coming Soon....The Matrix Uncovered : A Blog Series

whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com

Coming Soon....The Matrix Uncovered : A Blog Series

This series of blogs will deal with one of the most famous movie series.. featured in the cover of TIME.. The Matrix.. I cam across some interesting information and that would be the content of this series.. It would feature details about major characters and events in the trilogy..

Monday, March 06, 2006

Variety.. too much?

Repetition is boring. Expect the unexpected is the new jingle. But if you expect the unexpected, then what is the unexpected?.. everything in the realm of the imaginable, need to come to reality, for the sole reason.. variety.. i want more.. everybody wants more. Just imagine in the rapid increase in product variants in brands.. just for a toothpaste, we have hundreds of variants.. variations in colour, taste, feel, freshness and what not!.. But so many variants actually leaves the customer in a sort of a dilemma.. the customer might feel..' after all whats the difference in a light blue variant and a dark blue variant?'.. and the varieties go overboard,, ironical since what was demanded, was given, and once it was given, it was no more needed!.. variety is wanted as a want that would never be satisfied.. unless we know what we really want..

Spending time with the self

In this fast-paced world, when we wake up, we are so hard wired to just rush into things from time zero. We brush our teeth as a mundane activity, bathe, dress up and be of to work or school. We are constantly bombarded with facts, figures, data, estimates, forecasts and of course, a whole range of opinions. Do we really spend time with ourselves? How many of us, even try to come out of this world web of stress, to just take a few deep breaths, and just think of what we did through the day?.. Of course, most of us are so exhausted that we dont even find time to think of ourselves. We just feel that all hell has broken loose, and become a victim of forgetting our own selves. We should definitely spend time with ourselves; Every one of us has a purpose in life, and we need to check if we are on the right track, in our own opinion. Just getting to know our self better, would be just great!.. and by the way, who am I?.. oops!.. i am off to meet me!

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Beyond the invisible.. chaos

Thoughts do not always result in actions. Perceptions vary. These are well known. But what about communication that is clear cut in the brain while processing but fails to be received in the way it should be. There are certain aspects which, for explanation , needs to be explored , but with vain. Chaos is the cause, chaos is the catalyst, chaos is the process. Chaotic situtations, (what i refer here is what happens in the mind of people), often do not result in the same level of physical exhibition in the human mind. 'Ignorance is bliss!'.. this statement is very true. Just imagine if one could gain access to what is happening in evryone else's mind... what they think etc..The persone could fall a victim to sheer information overload, perceptions that change by the second, and then chaos. There is a limit to the depth to which we can go, but do we know it?.. too much is too bad, it is said, but is it always?... i can feel the chaos in the reader's mind.. neurons at overtime..

Biz quiz debut

I could never forget the day when I made it to my first B-school quiz final. It was actually touch and go, with my team mate Syam providing vital breakthroughs. IFMR had hosted their b-school fest in Feb 2006, and it was like a dream come true for me to be in the finals. Actually, IITM had 4 teams out of the 6 finalists. The questions were very interestig and challenging, and we finished a respectable 4th. I can remember how some of our answers were literal improvisations, and we did get most of them right!.. We could have done much better, had it not been for the bright young kids from Anna University, who just gave the answers before we could, when the questions were passed. It was a great learning experience and a very self-satisfying moment.

I am back.. blogging... my views

I had started this blog quite some time ago. But I was unable to sustain the initial spark which i had months ago. Somehow, I feel this could be my real first step in blogging. Some of my classmates are into blogging seriously. More than anything else, I feel blogging enables a person to be more systematic, at least from what I understand, in documenting activities, view points etc. It provides an organised way to record incidents, activities and of course one's outbursts and viewpoints.Well, thats it for the intro.