We ask ourselves this question everyday :- What is life ? When someone gives an answer that life is a collation of those imperfections that annoy you everyday, we shrug away from it and work even harder at things around us, trying to make them perfect. We try our best to redefine things, at least in our lives, so that we can match them to our definition of perfection.
What happens next, is what we believe in. It depends on our definition of perfection given the things around us.
If we are able to define "our perfection" based on the things around us, we're good to go.
But if fail to accept the imperfections around us, we stuck in a dark tunnel. Whether we should accept the imperfections ? Well I'm not sure. I strongly believe acceptance is something that comes deep down inside and one can't do much about it. But there is one thing about life which I'm pretty sure of.  One thing which is common for all of us.
We are scared of losing life.
We work day in and day out, to build it better.We compromise a lot to let it flow better. But we miss out the single most important truth. Life was there even before you did anything. In fact it has been there with you ever since you were born. Whether you have money or not, whether you have job or not, whether you have grades or not, whether you have friends or not, there is one thing that is always there with you and that is life ! As long as you're breathing, you'd feel it.
I can say one thing for sure, a person like me usually is pretty lucky to have things going the way they are.
Maybe most of us are. We just don't know it yet.

Today I went to SoundGlitz Shop.... Got a hands on exp with the YAMAHA P70 digital piano...
GOD DAMN IT its awesome !!!! I'm buying it in sometime.....its 40 K.
God help me in this recession time !

 

Today I was searching for a song which I used to listen to, a long time back. Probably some two decades back, when I was less than 5 years old. Me and my family used to stay in F-26 block in Shyamali colony Ranchi. The only source of music in our house was a Bush Cassette player, which was a MONO device. Playing any cassette in that, was a struggle between humans and technology. Technology usually got the better of Humans.
That cassette player never worked properly. My dad had to repair it almost every week. The cassette holder was a little weak, so we had to push it, pull it, and do all sorts of things with it so that the sound comes perfectly. Or else, the music would conspicuously degrade. While playing a cassette, there was a position where the Cassette holder was slightly raised, with a pen inserted in it. Once this was done, the sound used to be perfect (of course, until the holder itself broke off). Doing a Rewind or Fast Forward was strictly prohibited on it, as it would ruin the cassette, and surely, it will reduce the players Net lifetime !!

Often the player hanged with a grating noise, whenever we did a rewind. We had some 5 to 6 Blank HMV cassettes which Dad had bought from Russia.We used to record our favourite songs on it. Given the limited length of the track, we had to choose which songs from a particular movie do we want. We were not allowed to record all the songs as it will eat up the cassette space. Now, even though I am saying WE, this decision was autocratically made by my eldest sister. I was small and my other sister did not have so much interest in music, so probably it was probably correct.
One cassette used to survive some 4 to 5 rounds of recording(over and over). After that, you have to listen to the last recorded songs. From the distorted sound of the newly recorded songs, you can easily  make out which phase of its life the cassette is in. Officially though, my Sisters used to proclaim, which cassette will not be used for further recording.
All this because, Cassettes were costly at that time. 30 Rs for T-series and HMV Cassettes(Re-Recording capability some 6-7 times) at 90 Rs. Music never was at the tip of your hands (as it is these days). Certainly Choice was curtailed by availability.

Now getting back to the motif of this blog, I remember in one of the cassettes, we had a few songs by Alisha Chinai. Now this is like 21 years back when Alisha's first album came in 1987 "Baby doll". I used to be crazy after that song. I don't remember how much I listened to, or how often I listened to Alisha; but surely I do remember how much I liked it. Things were different at that time, as you could not listen to one song over and over many times (As rewind and fast-forward was forbidden). So if you wanted to listen to a song again, you must change the side of the cassette, and listen to one song from the other side. And then  reverse the cassette again. Probably this is why, some of the songs lingered in our memory much longer,because we really waited for the song.

Now a days, if you want a song, its there on Youtube.

I have written in the past, how people never remember things and events, they always remember how they felt at say one particular time, or with someone. Same with me. I do not remember all the songs in that cassette. But I do remember how awesome it used to be listening to Alisha at the age of 4.

Her song Baby Doll starts in a very soft and high note. Her voice and the rythmic background bells softly echo for a few seconds. And then the scale suddenly changes by one note, and then quickly to the third followed by a complete silence, for a few seconds. After this, the real song begins which is kind of Indian pop by genre. However to me, the first part was heavenly, whenever I heard it.

 

Music is a wonderful thing. But the problem is, it is limited in its variety. Notes, scales etc etc are all fixed. Out of that, creating something new and good is certainly a difficult job. Hats off to good music directors.

Remember the first time when you listened to some very different song that touched your heart ? Listening to a new tone or a different piece of music for the first time is always special.You may hear the same notes and scales in many songs, but that song won't appeal to you in the same way as it did for the very first time.

 

My point is, what Alisha sang in Baby Doll is a very basic and simple music, sung with a soft background instrumentals. And the tune is decent. Something similar to the beginning of  "Jabse dekha hai tere Haath ka chand" , a song from Mujhe kuch keha hai (which technically is better equipped to appeal to me at the age of 4). Beginning of both the songs can be considered to be very good. But Alisha's music has emblazoned into my memory like nothing ever did.

 

Think about how you felt, when you heard a pianist play the piano, for the first time in your life. The chords he/she played might have been the simplest ones. But they sounded amazing to you because music from a Piano was something you heard for the very first time. After this you may hear many pianists play. But none may appeal to you in the same way.

What I have also observed is, when a song touches you deeply (may not be the first time you hear MUSIC), you can sometimes remember the moments with it as well. And when you listen to this song again, you might be reminded of something in the past. 

Today after almost Two decades, I thought of searching for those songs , on the Internet.

 

Everyone knows, that Internet has everything. But as of now, after a whole day of search, I could not find that album by Alisha Chinai. Maybe I don't know the sites to download or buy the album, but I did get a chance to listen to the song "Baby doll" on in.com.

I was expecting myself to be carried back in time and once again reminded of my childhood , which lay completely dormant in my heart for years. And as the song started, I could feel the specialty of this song. If I would have heard this song today for the first time, it would have been a  SIMPLE song with very basic tunes. But, through this song, music was introduced in my life ! This was the inception of music for me. And yes, I could immediately feel it.

Unfortunately I could not be transported back in time, but once again, I did remember the feelings, Crystal Clear. The reason for me not remembering anything more of those days (usually I'd see a clear visual) while listening to this song, was because I was too small at that time to remember anything. But with every word and every second passing, listening to that song, I was thinking...WOW !! I listened the first part which had once appealed to me, many times. It sounded great.
But I could clearly remember how hypnotized I was when I was small.

 

I have noticed that sometimes, music reminds you of a particular time. It might remind you of place, where you used to stay. Maybe this applies to people with a so called "visual memory" (which I'm full of). It might remind you of a person you loved. But if the song is really special, and the moment is right,  It might just be enough to take you IN that moment. It might be because all you did at that time was listen to this song over and over. Of course, this applies to those who are music lovers. I am one of them. Let me try to explain with an example. ( If I can, given my simple English !! ).
 
I saw the movie Swades after my S-5(Fifth semester) exam after a foundering Power Electronics exam. Songs like "aahista aahista " and "Dekho na" somehow got associated with the moment and my feelings at that time. So whenever I listen to these songs. I remember the days around the 5th semester. The songs of Swades were absolutely amazing. This was just the kind of album you would listen to everyday. And we did. Now, the six of us who stayed together, bonded with one another at a certain different level , with each semester, as time passed by. The moments and memories of each semester, or maybe year, can be clubbed into something different from the previous six months. Whatever be the memories, good , bad, tensed , they were all unique in their own way. Like, the first year has something to do with Hostel and a lot of friends. The next semester was the third, which we remember because of all the hard work we put in studies. The final semester is absolutely special, because of the fun we had. And me, in the final semester was a totally different person, compared to the first. There is a different degree of every human emotion associated with me during these two different times. And during each of those times if you listen to one separate song over and over again,everyday, somehow, you can begin to associate the song with your feelings at that time. Maybe not much, but a little. I am concentrating on that little only !! This is what happened when I listened to Swades during 5th semester. Now, whenever I listen to the song Aahista Aahista, I am reminded of  those simple, and happy times.

 

Right now, I am playing the song Aahista Aahista on my PC, and I am reminded of my PC that used to be in that musty Room, in which Sandeep also used to stay with me. A green/yellow painted room, with brown door. Two tables, one behind the other. A wardrobe, that can barely open, because Sandeep's table is shoved into it.Clothes lying on my bed.Sandeep sitting on Orkut, when there is an internal test tomorrow, and Dark Side of the Moon playing on My PC. I mean, Just by listening to this song, I can actually picture myself  there in my room !! I can even see a rainy evening in Kochi, out of the window, and my Bike standing outside. I can see a lot, which I don't know how to put in words.And more than that, I can feel a lot. And, all this just by listening to this one song. Now I'm not saying that this song  is the best way to reminisce. Of course, if  I go to the house, I'll remember much more. But what this one song can do, is also not refutable.

Moving back 20 years once again, looking back at the "Alisha Days". There were a few songs in the cassette that I mentioned, which I to remember even now. But the problem here is, with Memory You can never be sure. Like there was a song from from a lady singer, which I used to listen at almost the same time "two decades back". I never had an idea who the artist is. Now, considering I was very small at that time, over the years, the title of this song had become "Mysterious " instead of "Experience. And I remembered this song as "Mysterious" instead as "Experience". And, today I figured out that the whole lyrics were completely lopsided in my mind. I had tried to search this song on the Internet  many times, since I started by putting in the lyrics that I remembered, and googling it. But to no avail. To me, this was very odd. As I was completely confident with my memory. But today, somehow some part of the lyrics was ACTUALLY correct as I was searching on Google and Bingo !! I could find the the song and hence the artist, Diana Ross, for the very first time.

This reminds me of  a show I saw in which some analysts had done a research on a similar thing.Their research was on how much people remember about an incident over the years. The motive for doing such a research being :- "Were aliens spotted on Area 51 in the 1950s  or not ?" The American Army claimed that that the whole Alien thing was nothing but a distorted version of peoples memories of an ordinary Jet Crash incident. Obviously, the people who claimed to have seen the Aliens, thwarted such theory.

 

So, in order to prove their theory, the Army got hold of a few people who had witnessed the Challenger disaster, right after it happened. They asked the test subjects to write about the incident on a piece of paper . After 15 years they approached the same people and asked them to describe the incident again. To everyone's amazement, details of the events in their current description were completely different from what they had written 15 years back. The people who once saw the event in a sunny day were describing the day as overcast. Even the position from where they witnessed the disaster had completely changed. Every teeny tiny detail of the incident was unquestionably altered in people's mind over all these years. And none of these test subjects were ready to believe that it is them, who has written the description 15 years back. And when the analysts showed these people their Old description, All the test subjects were gaping in Shock. Their mind had glibly distorted the image of the challenger experience  to such an extent that even they could not believe their own words.

 

Based on this example (An intriguing one ) ,the Army said that what the people had seen in the 1950s, was a simple Army Jet crash and slowly with time, in two decades or so, it became an Alien Story within their mind. Now, this claim in also very contentious, as a Jet crash probably would not become an Alien story. I mean people would forget the colour of the Jet, but do you seriously think they'd mutilate their memory to such an extent so as to confuse an injured pilot with an Alien ? I don't think so.

Ironically I've seen this show some 10 years back.....so.... no comments.

After swaying from 2008 to the 1990 ,1950s and 1980s, lets get back to present, and let me tell you what YOU can do to help me. I'm posting the lyrics of two songs which were in the same cassette. I don't know if the lyrics are correct or not, but lets say if someone googles for these songs. He/She should find at least one result ( I found zero results, when I googled ). I know these songs exist. Either the lyrics have been distorted in my mind, or there are no Hindi lyrics on the web for these songs. Either ways, if you find a clue about it, Please Please Please Please contact me on my mail [utkarsh.kumar@gmail.com], or reply to this post

Both are hindi songs.

 

SONG 1. :- Maine kal sapne mein , dekha ek ladke ko, thora sa deewana tha, thoda mastana tha aa aa aa. Uspe sharma gayi,

main to , ghabra gayi , bahon mein leke tune , naa jaane kya kiya, ye nasha cha gaya.

SONG 2 :-Bikhra hua sa hai ye kaarwan , tum aa gaye zindagi mein. Jaane jaana aaa aaa aa aaaa. Jaane jaana
Aise mein hum , kisko pukare , tum hi batao zara.

This question appeared in TIME CAT :-

There are many ways to solve a question .Sometimes the TIME method is so insane ! They just start off with the solution directly.

Like they may say As we can clearly see , XXX happens only when YYY and ZZZ happen hence the answer. WTF ! 

 

The question is as below

 

For three natural numbers a , b , c > 0 it is given that a+b+c=12.

For what values of a,b,c would the expresssion M=(a)(b^2)(c^4)attain its maxima, and what is its value.

 

----Skip this section if you want to go directly to the solution-------

Here I'll just discuss my life.

I come from a city called as Ranchi. A place where children are encouraged to study for IIT and medical exams, especially if you were staying in my colony , SHYAMALI colony. The equaton is very simple,

After class 10th is over ,according to the parents there, the only aim in a teenage body should be only and only IIT/AIIMS. No matter what your standard is, no matter how good/bad you are in it, no matter what you like...Aim for IIT /Medical entrance. Our school DAV is equally famous for a lot of people getting through into IIT. My house was nothing different. Dad and mom were pushing me each and everyday to work hard, to crack through IIT. Although I got through screening , I never cracked through Main entrance.

Its more than seven years since that day. As i look back at those days ,there are several things I remember which reflects on how I used to see the world at that time.

Now lets bring a little perspective into picture.

At certain age, certain things may be important to you in your life, and only those things will excite you.

Lets take me for example. In my case, when i was 16, IIT was important to me. And I was excited by things which were related to IIT, like for ex. A nice Mechanics question, or a wonderful solution using calculus, or a person who got good Rank in IIT .

Seven years down the line, my interests have changed.

Like today, while writing this blog, I am interested in the Person who prepared for IIT(me) and not IIT.

Seven years back(during 11th and 12th), I saw the world only in one way . The only thing important in my life was IIT .My parents had done a wonderful job to keep me oblivious of the world other than IIT. Not to mention, that helped me a lot.

Other pleasures of life like girls during that time, were totally invisible to me. There were a few hotties to whom I was invariably attracted to like Mrs ******** . Now however strong a guy is ,If you see a hot girl ,everyday in your class and you are 16 !! You WILL think about her when you get home, however motivated you be towards studies. You can't do anything about it. I do remember I used to think about girls , in between the studies.You know, suddenly the face pops up, out of nowhere ! But seriously , I was totally convinced that all this, woman and stuffs, is sheer crap, however interesting it may look. The only thing that matters was still IIT.

We all know that To get through IIT you need to be good in three subjects Maths Physics and Chemistry.  You need to be creative when you are writing the exam. You need to somehow, think differently, which others cannot. There is not much to Mug up, in Physics and maths. You need to apply the concepts that you know already. And this you can do only if you appreciate the concept, and you understand why its there !

At that age, I used to think the only way to get through IIT was hard work. But frankly, I was a little novice for IIT at the age of 16. I just worked hard, where ever i wanted to. I simply drifted towards places where I was comfortable. I liked mechanics and calculus. And It turns out, even today I'm pretty good in solving questions of Mechanics. They used to seem so damn interesting to me, whenever I used to get time to study, I would simply open books of Mechanics and see the questions there. I could grasp how a pulley moves and what the tension in a string would be, because i could somehow feel it. If I did not like a subject, I never put an effort in it. Like Thermodynamics or Waves, I never understood them so nicely.For me , It was because , you need to accept a few facts and then work on it. And i was simply not ready for it(This was partially because I started with mechanics, and Mechanics was not like that, And I wanted things to be like mechanics , which was not the case). People all around me kept saying that Volumetric Chemistry is very very easy. But for me it was a nightmares. My thought process changed a lot during engineering where I had to learn a lot of facts and then on the top of it, apply new things/concepts ( If I had not done that I would failed in probably everything ). This is where I learnt that its not necessary to question everything that you read in the book. Now please don't get me wrong on this, I know its a wrong attitude. But the truth is if only you do that, you would be able to crack through IIT or do well in studies at least in India. Its not up to you to read what you like or do what you want. And I think its natural for everyone to digress and study what you like.

So the real contest sometimes lies within you.

During the IIT exam, I was almost certain which question to attempt or not to attempt. I never touched the question on waves and Thermal equilibrium, I knew I wouldn't be able to do anything with it.
But I never looked back after the IIT exam and question , as to why I could not solve those questions(until today of course).

Let me elaborate, totally from my eyes, from the way I see things now.

Whenever you study a new modules , you need some basic concepts to start with, you must understand those concepts first. Lets take Mechanics,for example. You need to understand what Acceleration is, what is velocity and how it is different from speed. What is force. You need to understand questions like , How does a rolled up carpet on the floor unroll itself with just a slight push. And the same carpet will not roll itself upwards in the opposite direction with the same push.

Now to be frank, All the basic concepts like Force, Acceleration etc etc were something which I could see in front of my eyes, and feel it. I knew that there is a certain minimum speed at which we should push the pendulum so that it completes the circle. I could clearly sense that it depends on the radius of the string . So the answer should be in terms of r .

Now let look at The periodic table. What is Hydrogen ?  Have you seen it ? What is molecular weight ? OK, you may as well accept those facts without actually seeing the element,  but what about SN-1 and SN-2 reactions in organic chemistry ? So , you are supposed to accept the fact that it just HAPPENS ? People said UNDERSTAND organic chemistry. I still consider thats is a bullshit . And of course , I do have a reason. "UNDERSTANDING" in organic chemistry,  is actually nothing but to accept a few facts and learn them. And then use those facts in other complex questions to arrive at answers. Ironically, I was very good in Organic chemistry .Because I could learn those facts!

And What about the Physical chemistry. There were people who used to say its very easy. These were the people who could mug up practically anything. I really don't see any other god damn reason how you can call it easy. Because I  don't know the way I can learn the chemical properties of NaOH using my BRAIN. I mean , if there is, you are probably abhimanyu who was listening to some chemist in your mothers womb.

I still question why were taught subjects like that. The question being, is there not a better way ?

My question is, what is an institute like IIT checking by asking these questions, if its not the mug-up skills , what could it possibly be ?

Its a general tendency of a human being to run away from thing that he/she is slightly uncomfortable in.

It's pretty clear that I was totally uncomfortable with mugging up, and accepting the thermodynamics concept, which looked baseless to me initially .

The answer is , IIT was not looking for people who mug-up things, perhaps they were looking for people who can adapt, to their methods !

The truth is that if you want, you can make things comfortable(at least to a manageable extent). And if I look back I never made myself comfortable in those few things in Two damn Years.  That's more than 700 days. All i needed was somehow understand these things by giving in my best !!! 

Let go of the favorite subjects , and take all possible help, ask all possible questions, and clear all the possible doubts in those modules which are still unclear.  But all I did was to never touch the topics which i did not understand initially or which were a little spooky !

I needed myself to adapt to what the exam demanded. And that is what perhaps the exams demanded.

 

I mean, they don't want people who are good only in Mechanics or Calculus ! They want people who can be good in anything ! Which is absolutely OK, because if you see the curriculum in Engineering, it demands efforts at all ends.

I can say that this is where I lacked the smartness. I used to think that I am working hard. but I was never working hard correctly. I know that I did well in the subjects that I liked .This I can tell  because even after seven years from the day I had solved my last calculus question., today when I see another question which may require calculus, I can apply it correctly . And if you ask me what were my subjects in the third year of Engineering ? I will not know (Not denouncing engineering,  but only comparing my interest). This is the power of interest. If you have it, you can go miles. If you don't you'll be nowhere. But you need to be careful not to miss out on other things that might be important along with it.Another reason why I can say that I lacked smartness, is because I never looked back to see why I am not doing well in IIT preparation, during those two years.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Solution :-

Let us generalize the question to something like this below:- 

 

If a+b+c=r

How should you choose a,b and c so that you attain a maxima in M . Where,

M=(a^x) * (b^y) * (c^z). Here x , y and z are constants.

 

The TIME solution :-

Clearly M is maximum when

a/x= b/y=c/z

And hence the solution is ......

After this the continue on.. I dont know why do they even write the solution if its supposed to be so concise . They might as well just write the answer.

The solution is as under (slightly long, but convincing in all respects):-

substitute for a in M.

you get

M=((r-b-c)^x) * (b^y) * (c^z)

This we are doing so as to reduce the number of variables in the equation. Note that we need to find a , b and c so that M is maximized. We just got rid of a. Now there are 2 variables in the equation, b and c

 

A little bit of googling and you can find out how to find a maximum or mimimum for a 2 variable equation. I want to refrain from the discussion of how to get to it , because you may as well remember this as a theorem and if you are from engineering / mathematics background , you will know it.

 

M(b,c) attains its maxima/minima. In this case its maxima (Minima is when you put a Zero. Finding the second derivative would lead you to this , but it would be needless to do it in this case.)

So , the maxima is when

dM

----=0 ---------------------(1)

dc

and 

dM

----=0----------------------(2)

db

 

Now, M=((r-b-c)^x) * (b^y) * (c^z)

 

All you need to do is differentiate M w.r.t. b and get two equations and solve them.

Applying (1) we get..

 

(b^y) [{(r-b-c)^x}{z.c^(z-1)} - {x(r-b-c)^(x-1)}{(c)^(z)}]=0 ...............(d(u.v)/dx = vdu/dx + udv/dx)

or,

[{(r-b-c)(z) - (x)(c)]=0 .....We can cancel the variables as they are not zero.

c(x+z)+bz=zr------------A

 

Similarly applying (2) we can get a similar equation.

(c^z)[{(r-b-c)^x} *  (y.b^(y-1))  - {x(r-b-c)(x-1)}{(b)^(y)}]=0

or,

[{(r-b-c)(y) - (x)(b)]=0

or

 

c(y)+b(x+y)=yr--------------B

Solve A and B

 

b=ry/(x+y+z)

and similarly

c=rz/(x+y+z) and a= rx/(x+y+z)

 

And this is what a,b and c should be to maximize M for any x y and z. Just substitute x,y,z and you will get the answer.

If someone can think of a better and simpler solution without calculus , please do post it here.

I'm pretty sure it exists.

While preparing for CAT I came across a very simple but good question.
I would like to discuss it here, with a completely mathematical approach. NO EXTRA BRAINS REQUIRED.
As somtimes the solutions of CAT Paper depict.
The question reads like this :-

In a college of 525 students , each student takes at least two items from among idly dosa puri and chapatti for his breakfast. If 375 students take idly , 375 students take dosa , 375 students take puri and 375 students take chapai for their breakfast. The number of students who take all the four items is at most how much ?

The question looks pretty easy but is slightly tricky.

We will come across 2 new things in this question.
1.) How do you represent a 4 dimensional Venn Diagram ?
2.) What is the deal with At most ?

It took me a little while to figure out the best way to make a venn diagram for 4 variables (Probably i should have instead looked into some algebra book, but i like it this way). It looks like above
All we need to keep in mind is that we need to cover all the possibilities. For example in a 3 variable venn diagram we need to cover possiblilties of the exitance of Single variable , Two - Intersection , Triple -Intersection . Keep this in mind and create your own inventive Venn diagram .
There are many ways to do it. However i did it in the way shown in the diagram above:-
Clearly the Idea is to include all possibilities. I represent the 4th variable in a square.And hence we see a new type of Venn diagram.
The presumption here is that , the 2-Intersection 3-Intersection and Standalone sections for each variable are equal(represented by a,b and c). In this case even if you assume all the intersections as different variables. You would end up proving them as same given the four 375s in the question. If you are smart enough start off from there.
Now the venn diagram has two sections . One under the square and one outside it.
The sum is 525. ( Notice the standalone "a" in the square. This represents the number of people who only take chapatti, which is assumed to be same as the number of people who take idly and so on. Similarly b is intersection of 2 variables and so on. )
In the second section  under the square , we just change the positions of a b and c . Depending only and only on whether the region represents intersection of 2 variables or three. y is appearing only once, it represents the intersection of all the 4 variables . Similar to how the intersection of three variables appears only once in a three variable Venn Diagram.
Once we have drawn this Venn diagram :- The idea is fairly simple.
Just write equations and see where we go.
Clearly we can see 525=4a+6b+4c+y------------------------1
and                        375=a+3b+3c+y -------------------------2
Adding the contents inside the square , or just add the contents in IDLY in both the adjacent diagrams, you must reach the same result as in equation 2.

The question clearly states a=0.
The question says The number of students who take all the four items is at most how much?
In Mathematical terms, all we need to do is maximize y. This is the point where you can completely forget what a,b and c stand for. Instead just see how and when y is maximum. The question boils down to this.
For these 2 equations In the meantime let us assume a is not 0(So that we understand equations better)
525=4a+6b+4c+y------------------------1
375=a+3b+3c+y -------------------------2
how can y be maximized.
Solving the equations :-
525=(a+3b+3c+y) +3a+3b+c
or 3a+3b+c=150.----------------3
Now we need to choose a,b and c in such a way such that y is maximized in equation 1 above.And 3 is satisfied.
Clearly we will look for options where one or two of these a,b and c are 0.Boundary conditions are checked with putting variables as either maximum or minimum.We want to maximize y. Which inturn means we want to minimize the other three variables. So we make them tend towards 0.
See All the options one by one.
Put a=0 and c=0
We get b=50 from (3)
Substitute this in either 1 or 2 we get y = 225.
Put a=0 and b=0
We get c=150 from (3)
Substitute this in either 1 or 2 we get y = -ve Value
Put c=0 and b=0
We get a=50
Substitute this in either 1 or 2 we get y = 325.
Now try the options by putting only one variable as 0
Put a=0-----------------------------4
You get 3b+c=150.
From Equation 2
y=225-2c (which is less than 225)
Put b=0
You get 3a+c=150
Substitute this in either 1 or 2 we get y = Non-Integer value.
Put c=0
You get 3a+3b=150
Substitute this in either 1 or 2 we get
y=225-2b (Less than 225)
In this qustion we were told a=0 so the solution is pretty straighforward . The answer is 225.Notice that if a was not 0,the answer would have been 325. This you can arrive also directly from equation 3 .When you put a=0 you directly reach equation 4
you get y=225-2c. In this simply put c=0. You get the answer.
Thats how you can solve 4-D Venn diagrams. With a little practice, you will not need such long calculation. You may directly write equations and solve them.

Today I'm going to talk about Some special moments in sasken:-

It starts from the day one in Sasken :- Oct 3rd 2006. Sasken was a dream company for me when I got through in college. Apparently some 29 people were selected out of probably more than 5K in kerala.
I still remember when we were about to enter inside Sasken, it was a bright sunny day. I distinctly remember that scene. And, probably I'll remember it forever. The first day at work.

 

First day was scary. New place new people , its always intimidating.
But as the days passed by Sasken became more and more familiar, and a nice place too ; and you know what ? The interesting thing I learned ? People are the same everywhere. There is always a blend of beautiful and ugly everywhere. There is nothing like a NEW PLACE in this world . You just need time to fit in.

The Person I am going to describe today is Gauri . She is there on the top of the list because of many factors. One, because She is the one who has influenced my career...a lot ..
I just hope she doesn't read this, ever !!

So the story is, After training, we were on bench for almost 4 months. There was no work. The managers and other senior colleagues were consistently showing their concerns saying " You should not feel bad that there is no project for you all . You people will get nice projects". It used to work pretty well.

Fact is, If you tell a 2 year old child that 2+2= 5 he'll surely say yes if he doesn't know mathematics. And we really were children in the corporate world.
Things were fine for sometime.We were involved in a CDC project.but very soon we realized that we ARE on bench and other are into projects( there is a gross difference in knowing and realizing things; we realized :- Its when the inner agony takes over).

So, after the mega-realization that there may be no project for us for days or maybe 3 or 4 months, we were demented. Just then out of nowhere came Gauri (doobti nayiya ka sahara) . I don't remember how she came in my team , or was she properly introduced or something , but she was a part of the team suddenly. The team as I say was of some 15 people who were all in bench at that time + Gauri .

 

Oh by the way, she was my team leader.
Somehow, she was completely Bindaas ! This woman never cursed life, and with her you can talk anything and really enjoy it. Given that I am like 10 years younger to her, I knew where I should be 10 years from now.

We all look for something special in our lives, something different. In a very "corporate" world she was probably the "corporate+fun" entity.

Why I so admire her is because inspite of all this she was technically profound ! My perception about people who are fun loving was that they are probably carefree to an extent that they don't know much (a stupid biased opinion for sure). Now here's an eye-opener for me. You can be both.
She is the one who guided me to take this project under which I am working, which I must admit is really nice one !

In a very stoic life of mine, which continued until the end of my college days, I never put any credence in Inter-personal qualities of a human being. To me, it was as if Virtue and results speak for themselves, and it really doesn't matter how you talk or present yourself. In fact to a Hardcore techie, that's absolutely correct . But what I failed to realize was that I was not a Hardcore Techie.

To me, simple qualities like talking and behavior always appealed more than The "C" code that prints something without a semicolon !!! (Don't go and try it)

I don't blame anything for this unawareness, but probably that's true for so many engineers across the country.

They don't think beyond technical stuffs..Sometimes personal abilities and Individual power is transparent to them.(On second thoughts, try that code... its interesting)

Gauri was an engineer too, but the very moment she joined my team, It was pretty clear that She's far better than an ordinary engineer. She actually used to live through a project. When she is around working on a project, you can feel things.Somehow things became more interesting just by her presence.
That's something difficult to put forth in words, but sometimes when you meet such a person, you'd know it too. When she talks about XYZ, its not just XYZ ....... its Gauri telling XYZ and its like, "well to hell with everything else, Let's just do it" Being on bench for 5 months is really really frustrating. and the only reason I got through it was because she as a team lead guided us really nicely, showing us the truth of the IT world at each step but in a very different and acceptable way. After 8 or 9 people went for the IMS project there were eventually 4 people remaining. Our fate was :- We would be on bench for a month and a half more. She was also out of project. This phase was bad, because we had a one year bond, and there was very little could do, in terms of leaving the job. In this phase, more than anything else you need is someone to tell you that life is not so bad as it looks ( Which is true given that freshers in bench are really unreasonably frustrated ), and you can actually make a lot out of the time !!

She had some 6-7 years of experience, believe me more than technical she knew how to handle people, and precisely that was needed at that time.

It was so interesting. When gauri used to say "take it light ... project mil jayega" we actually used to worry less. Had it  been someone else telling the same things, things may have become worse. Talking something when you mean it pretty different from just saying it !!But talking cogently in order to convince others, is a quality which very few have, and I feel its integral for a Manager.

The way we were under her was very different. It never felt like being on the bench. We used to study UMTS. There used to be presentations. and she personally used to teach us UMTS like a teacher teaches in a college. And inspite of all this, it felt professional.

Whatever be the reason, maybe style of her speech,or experience it all worked in one direction, to take you through that day. I know that she might have been told by her manager Mukund to make sure freshers like us don't get agitated. The time and commitment towards the same she put in was phenomenal. And probably that is the sole reason why whenever I go to FAC-W(My old office), I'm still reminded of those days because those days were different from today. It feels like a  home. Somehow that's special.

So eventually after our bench days we were pulled into projects I went into Anite along with Suja and Seithal. and George went to IPAccess.We were into project in march. We probably were the only ones in bench till that time. In a normal company with normal manager, frustration would reach such a height, that I might have resorted to something outrageous and desperate. But for me, whatever I studied in those 5 months really emblazoned in my memory, because of the interest generated while studying.

 

Let me digress now to a philosophical perspective.

People never remember what you said, but they do remember how you made them feel.
Its been one year, the last time I talked to gauri was probably in march., but I still remember how we felt during the BENCH TIMES, and frankly....no regrets. I'd love to go back to those days anytime.

Being on bench is equally frustrating for everyone. But you know what I learned from her was, how to conquer the regrets, and just enjoy what you have and make the most of it.
I have discussed with Gauri everything in the world that a person can discuss with another person. Bears ,Girls, Switching company, Sasken plus and minuses, you name it its there. Now I know thats a little unprofessional, but i'm just trying to point out the comfort level.  And considering she was a team lead. Its a real big deal. Because you don't see people with so much verve and energy at that level.  Its all about the kind of person she was . I've seen the corporate world for 1 year now. I think I know the intent she had. It was one very simple thing.
To really live through with what you do. And that's why she had such connections with us. She might have had concerns too that she is not in any project( she was waiting for some Airvana thing ; so effectively on bench), but she never let it take over her, and more importantly, because of her, that thought never took over us too. 
There might have been someone else, who would have cribbed for entire 5 months when on bench and missed some of the most wonderful moments, and knowledge too. But fortunately the four of us were not that. We were actually happy to some extent that there is no work, and being happy was a gift to us !! Trust me, you hear many things, you read many mails, about how to stay happy and keep yourself lively through the day. But when its comes to really doing it, Its pretty difficult. And in such a case, the environment around you matters a lot.

This is what I think of Gauri as a person and a Team Lead.

Come to think of it , the key special thing that she had was inter-personal skills. Maybe this is the quality that makes her what she was. She always brought life to work.

I think, if you begin to delineate life and work, it'll probably not work. Life and Work are not two separate things. People keep telling, keep your work in office and live at home. Don't bring work to home and vice-versa. But after being under Gauri for 5 months, my thoughts changed. You can actually live with your project as well !! You don't have to put boundaries in work and life !!! It is possible to do them all together. And once you do that, It doesn't matter whats happening around you, you'd always enjoy work.

Corporate world isn't really  about your knowledge only. What an engineer fails to understand is , there is more to Business than just your technical knowledge. What the IT industry does, is not coding, its  Business. If your Business in down, however good technically you be, no-one would probably give a damn. And again, if you have the knowledge, and you don't know how to show it to the world, and all you can do is only wait for the right time till you're Virtue speak for themselves, You'd probably fail too .On the other hand, If you have the ability to impress people, influence them, It really doesn't matter if you know a little less than others !!
Its one of the most unfair thing you can tell to a dedicated engineer. But everyone learns it one day. Consider my Job, I'm in the telecom industry.We make Phones and sell it to people. Eventually, it is the consumer who has to like what we have in store. People do not care how much effort went in preparing the product, what matters is, how much they likes it. Eventually looks, aesthetics, and belief which is influenced by advertising drives a business. The truth of the business world is that it does not matter how much work goes into a product, the only thing that matters is whatever you do, people must like it, or it should have a business value. This is the top layer of business. What lies below it is the  engineers who create these products. If you don't have life in your project, its simply worthless. And if you don't have it in you while working, you as a person can never bring life into a project, and if your product succeeds, it means, all you did was what you were told to do and someone else brought the Life in your project. Look around you ! That person probably is the most famous person in the team, even though you're the genius. And that person deserves more credit than you, even though you are more intelligent/hardworking.

Eventually you as an engineer are a part of business, and your company that's paying you money for your work, is not paying you because you write brilliant codes. Its paying you only because your codes are important today in the Business world. Your employer is also doing a "Business" with you. So for you to succeed, you need to understand to some extent how to do business far more than how to write codes.

Unfortunately( I say because i used to be a Dedicated engineer too), If people have faith in you, if you have that charisma or talent to "make believe", and you know how to use it, you can succeed in any organization ,especially IT, despite of not being not so good technically(Not referring to Gauri as she was technically very sound too).
If you know how to get work done, You are the most important person of the organization !! And I'm sure we all agree to this.

Now let me point out the power of "Inter-personal Make Believe Characteristic"

To a fresher like me when I was on bench, things could have been worse, I could have been a rebel saying I want a project, or else let me out of this place. If it was not for Gauri probably it would have been that, and probably landed in some shit !

Now see the irony, Gauri was , in an ingenuous way  slightly more enthusiastic and charismatic, than an ordinary Team Lead. She was a picture of liveliness in an adverse situation. She used to really enjoy work. This is who she was. She never tried to console us that we are on bench. We were automatically cooled down by her presence.

Believe me , I'm not exaggerating, to Sasken a person like her would be far more important than a tech genius. If its time for appraisals, she'd have an upper hand over the tech genius. If Sasken is throwing out employees The tech genius would be the first to go out and People like Gauri the last.

So I throw the question wide open, who's the better Engineer ?

In my opinion to become something like Gauri, all you have to do is, just be yourself at your workplace, and enjoy what you do. Because by default people want to be happy, and if you can bring this happiness to your workplace, and work with it you will succeed in whatever you do. And if you think, smiling or being happy at your work place one day might be a deterrent to your success or concentration, it means you're already dead. You would probably write the best code in the world, but Right in front of your eyes, someone else would win the trophy.

Trust me, (if you can) he/she deserves it more !! That is what personal qualities are all about.

Maybe some part of it I learned from Gauri.

Or.... Maybe it was the time for me to learn that,even without her, I don't know. But whatever i took from those 5 months was really big.

This is me, as of now. But as I again said, a lot in life depends on people and things around you, whether you like it or not. So you know, I might change in coming days. Till now, I must confess, the effect of those bench days is still there in me, and it still reflects in my life ( I distinctly mention life and not activities ). And I must thank Gauri on behalf of all the four of us, because we learned a lot from her!!

went on straight for 10 hours watching X-Files...and then slept straight for 12 hours.
the episode 6 X 03 its awsome...people who do watch X-Files there is a scene ...in which dana scully goes on 10 minutes acting. in the F.B.I. Office..without a break and. in the end she kisses skinner !!!!
its simply awsome ! Not the kiss , but the sequence of events..
Scully if you're reading this!! you rock !

 

Its the fourth day since I came home. B-tech is over.

All the Suppli's cleared, Final year exams are OK OK  ! Cant tell exactly I'll pass or not, Well the thing is that no one can.

Simple calculations say If I pass I'll make 75% aggregate... .

So ? whts the deal here ?

Well If you're from a B'lore Engg college, there is nothing in it !!! But for people like Us from Cusat it means a lot !

 

Anyway...so in my last post you see...some Drinks n things...

Well nothing much happened ! Everyone was drunk...My job was to act drunk....and pretend I'm out , and seeing me people will tell the tuth about life and bla bla bla !

So lets start with Dushyant !!

He told me wht friendship is....every third line he spoke was:-Utki main jaanta hoon ki tu nautanki kar raha hai !! lekin mujhe batane mein koi gham nahi hai !

He told me about how he sees friends..actually thts top notch !! He considers friends everything !

Well I dont think....he was lying !

Sandy ! My roomie...slept after 3 BOMBS !

BOMB implies when you are using beer instead of water !

so you can see it was strong for all the new comers!!

Sahu ! Modesty man ! nothing ...sala na to piya nahi kuch hua usko

Anubhav...tanker !no comments !

Vivek..My faourite ! is sale ko itni chadhi thi ki he was sleeping @ practically all points in the beach over the night span!

Tiwar..he's a Hunk !!! so when a hunk falls after getting drunk...its difficult to control anything ! anyway...you were free to do anything you want !The whole sea is yours...

To bring the attention of others...last time @ Cherai  I used to run into the sea..and cry out loud...I'll go n catch the ship !!

All the good friends...used to come over and hold my hands and pull me back....

Actually wht I believe is to get full masti....you need a lil bit of nautanki as well !

Well this time I had to play the matured role ! no nautanki.....

Oh n how can i forget ! LAMBU....Well he cares a little about of the world ! his girlfriend was on the phone ! TO HELL WITH THE WORLD.

The thing is they say I luv you to each other a thousand times....in a hour ! Soon telephone giants like AIRTEL may sponser all their calls !

Rama as usual the good guy ....DRINKS illa !!

Mr Vivek was out for the whol next day

the only cry he ever made was...ANUUUUUBHAAAVVVVVV

ANUUUUUBHAAAVVVVVV ANUUUUUBHAAAVVVVVV ANUUUUUBHAAAVVVVVV !!!

Great moment !!