What's better or What's bitter??
Working in a good company under a bad boss or Working in a bad company with a good boss.
This has been a question which I think have plagued all professionals at one point or the other during their tenure at any particular gig.
GE's Jack Welch think its always prudent to work for a good company with a bad boss as the company by virtue of being good will weed out the bad boss....well is it always true in the corporate world??
Waiting for the replies.....
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Sunday, August 20, 2006
The Ethanol Myth
Ethanol is a clean-burning (reduces CO2 emissions), renewable, fuel mix made from fermented agricultural products such as corn.It does not even require alteration of your car engine. And since it is not derived from fossil fuel it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and eventually reduce America's dependence on Middle Eastern gas reserves (hence no warfares) . So ethanol is the choice for tomorrow. However it seems that few important facts are being purposefully missed here in the craze for eaze fuel.
Fact #1 It takes fuel to convert corn to ethanol. An acre of U.S. corn can be processed into about 328 gallons of ethanol. However planting, growing and harvesting so much of corn requires about 140 gallons of fossil fuels and costs $347 per acre (as per Stanford University research) and then there is the energy expense for distallation cycles to make it ready to be mixed with fossil fuel (http://pangea.stanford.edu/ESYS/Energy%20seminars/patzek_ethanol.pdf#search=%22corn%20and%20ethanol%22).
Fact#2 The drive to produce food-based biofuels is anachronistic; even if all US corn and soybeans were used, it would meet only 11 percent of gasoline demand and about 9 percent of diesel demand. So in order to satisfy few million motorists, the grocery bill will go up for all of America. .
Fact#3 Believing that corn is the answer to the great American craving for food and speedier cars and bikes unsurprisingly can spell economic disaster when the food export volumes would go down too. And more and more land would be devoted to corn rather than other crops which eventually might need to be imported resulting in a agricultural trade deficit.
Hope the scientists/industrialists will soon find something so that the choice never boils down to food vs fuel.
Fact #1 It takes fuel to convert corn to ethanol. An acre of U.S. corn can be processed into about 328 gallons of ethanol. However planting, growing and harvesting so much of corn requires about 140 gallons of fossil fuels and costs $347 per acre (as per Stanford University research) and then there is the energy expense for distallation cycles to make it ready to be mixed with fossil fuel (http://pangea.stanford.edu/ESYS/Energy%20seminars/patzek_ethanol.pdf#search=%22corn%20and%20ethanol%22).
Fact#2 The drive to produce food-based biofuels is anachronistic; even if all US corn and soybeans were used, it would meet only 11 percent of gasoline demand and about 9 percent of diesel demand. So in order to satisfy few million motorists, the grocery bill will go up for all of America. .
Fact#3 Believing that corn is the answer to the great American craving for food and speedier cars and bikes unsurprisingly can spell economic disaster when the food export volumes would go down too. And more and more land would be devoted to corn rather than other crops which eventually might need to be imported resulting in a agricultural trade deficit.
Hope the scientists/industrialists will soon find something so that the choice never boils down to food vs fuel.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
New planets beyond the horizon
Q: How many planets are there in our solar system?
Ans: 9
Q: Which is the smallest planet in our solar system?
Ans: Pluto
Both the above answers can get you negative marking in your IQ tests soon; 2500 active member of the IAU (International Astronomical Union) from 75 different countries are meeting at Prague to plausibly update both these time tested answers. They are also supposed to redefine the word 'Planet'.
According to most members, cold ice wrapped Pluto is not a planet because of it miniscule size. However they want Pluto to be a planet just because its known as a planet for so long. And they want to increase the number of planets in the solar system to 12 (including an asteroid called 'Ceres', pluto's moon called 'Charon' and a newly discovered object 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena). As soon as these amedments will be voted by IAU members, textbooks and charts in thousands of classrooms will go out of date.
Beside this 12, there are at least 12 more solar system objects waiting in the wings to be invited in the planethood; according to new definition a planet is that an object massive enough to create gravity which has transformed it into a sphere and that it circles a star and not some other planet.
The new order listed in order of their proximity to the sun would be Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Charon and the provisionally named 2003 UB313.
Ans: 9
Q: Which is the smallest planet in our solar system?
Ans: Pluto
Both the above answers can get you negative marking in your IQ tests soon; 2500 active member of the IAU (International Astronomical Union) from 75 different countries are meeting at Prague to plausibly update both these time tested answers. They are also supposed to redefine the word 'Planet'.
According to most members, cold ice wrapped Pluto is not a planet because of it miniscule size. However they want Pluto to be a planet just because its known as a planet for so long. And they want to increase the number of planets in the solar system to 12 (including an asteroid called 'Ceres', pluto's moon called 'Charon' and a newly discovered object 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena). As soon as these amedments will be voted by IAU members, textbooks and charts in thousands of classrooms will go out of date.
Beside this 12, there are at least 12 more solar system objects waiting in the wings to be invited in the planethood; according to new definition a planet is that an object massive enough to create gravity which has transformed it into a sphere and that it circles a star and not some other planet.
The new order listed in order of their proximity to the sun would be Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Charon and the provisionally named 2003 UB313.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Fair or Tanned??
Indian womens' obsession with fair and lovely still continues and so does the attachment of Western (white) women to tanning beds and lotions.
Increasing public criticism over years has definitely fostered change in cultural attitudes towards whitening of skin in India, a country where the fairness industry accounts for 60% of skincare sales, about $140 million a year (2003 estimates). However the Indian matrimonial ads still reflect the 'inner desire' ; the "grooms" and "brides wanted" sections for arranged marriages highlight the country's obsession with appropriate religion, caste, professional qualifications, and more frequently, skin color.On the contrary, if you ask the Indian urban men, more often than all they would still like to go for a Kajol or Halle Berry who definitely are not fair.
This obsession of the Indian women tribe can be very well compared with the desire of the Western women to get tanned. Their quest for the golden brown hue has given rise to uncountable number of indoor tanning solutions. Check out what these tanning beds can do to your skin.
Weather and climate conditions the skin color than anything else but it seems no one is satisified with what has been provided by nature.The attempt to use fairness lotion or a tanning bed, both of which can be harmful to the skin in the long term continues unabated.
Increasing public criticism over years has definitely fostered change in cultural attitudes towards whitening of skin in India, a country where the fairness industry accounts for 60% of skincare sales, about $140 million a year (2003 estimates). However the Indian matrimonial ads still reflect the 'inner desire' ; the "grooms" and "brides wanted" sections for arranged marriages highlight the country's obsession with appropriate religion, caste, professional qualifications, and more frequently, skin color.On the contrary, if you ask the Indian urban men, more often than all they would still like to go for a Kajol or Halle Berry who definitely are not fair.
This obsession of the Indian women tribe can be very well compared with the desire of the Western women to get tanned. Their quest for the golden brown hue has given rise to uncountable number of indoor tanning solutions. Check out what these tanning beds can do to your skin.
Weather and climate conditions the skin color than anything else but it seems no one is satisified with what has been provided by nature.The attempt to use fairness lotion or a tanning bed, both of which can be harmful to the skin in the long term continues unabated.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
ATM,SIM and TV
Its been more than a month now...hence there is a lot to catch up.....office work sucked most of the usable time during this interval with UAT being underway. Also proposals are being worked around new prospective clients in the pipeline (spending toomuch time with sales guys??) and I am actively working on them too.
Other glaring news were the disappearance of my ATM card in to the hungry belly of the Teller machine located in-situ at the office; sudden blanking out of the Cingular SIM card in my cell phone leaving me in utter desperation as I could not make or receive any calls; and watching the World Cup Soccer on my new Toshiba 34" LCD flat screen, wall hanging Television receiver.
The ATM card just disappeared into the teller machines card slot without any warning messages and First National Bank of Fort Smith returned it over normal USPS mail (boos to the security) only after 4 days without any explanation and 2 follow up calls from me. I am seriously considering terminating the account there asap.
The Cingular SIM card suddenly ran out of juice on a Sunday evening. And I had to get the card replaced from the dealer next day early morning (free of cost, thats good service though the blanking out was unexplained)
And the TV just takes up so much of my time now in the evening, that I am planning to put it off hook so that I can concentrate on reading/writing more. Back to basics.
Other glaring news were the disappearance of my ATM card in to the hungry belly of the Teller machine located in-situ at the office; sudden blanking out of the Cingular SIM card in my cell phone leaving me in utter desperation as I could not make or receive any calls; and watching the World Cup Soccer on my new Toshiba 34" LCD flat screen, wall hanging Television receiver.
The ATM card just disappeared into the teller machines card slot without any warning messages and First National Bank of Fort Smith returned it over normal USPS mail (boos to the security) only after 4 days without any explanation and 2 follow up calls from me. I am seriously considering terminating the account there asap.
The Cingular SIM card suddenly ran out of juice on a Sunday evening. And I had to get the card replaced from the dealer next day early morning (free of cost, thats good service though the blanking out was unexplained)
And the TV just takes up so much of my time now in the evening, that I am planning to put it off hook so that I can concentrate on reading/writing more. Back to basics.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Prius and iPod
Prius and iPod--the two latest technology icons thats reshaping our daily life; and believe it or not I have both. However the problem started when I thought of hooking them together in an unceremonial knot. They just don't believe in peaceful coexistence.
The AM/FM 6-disc in-dash CD-changer (with nine speakers in seven locations) in Prius 2005 doesn't come with an auxiliary audio jack or MP3/WMA playback capability and that triggers the exploration to find tools/devices that can hook up the ubiquitous iPod to this hybrid car. The options are more than one (check them out) however as per the pundits the best is yet to come. So I believe the options now are to either a. wait and watch for the best or b. spend some good dough to keep these two in the same place.
The AM/FM 6-disc in-dash CD-changer (with nine speakers in seven locations) in Prius 2005 doesn't come with an auxiliary audio jack or MP3/WMA playback capability and that triggers the exploration to find tools/devices that can hook up the ubiquitous iPod to this hybrid car. The options are more than one (check them out) however as per the pundits the best is yet to come. So I believe the options now are to either a. wait and watch for the best or b. spend some good dough to keep these two in the same place.
Eazee Indian Cooking in USA: Chapter 3
Based on requests, we are going to cook some Daal. Before we embark on this great journey, let us understand what is daal. Daal is a kind of lentil and the soup made of this lentils/spilt pulsesis also called Daal in India. There are numerous types of Daals, you can find their variety at here. However, if you want to buy it, get it from an Indian grocery like this.
Chapter 3: Masoor Daal
Ingredients:
2 tea cup full of yellow Masoor Daal
1 Red Onion - finely chopped
2 spoons salt.
1 spoon turmeric, ground cumin
1 spoon of finely chopped garlic and green chilli
2 spoons garam masala
2 spoons ground coriander
2 spoons of tomato puree
1 big spoon of butter
2 large spoon fulls of any cooking oil (my preference Olive oil)
6 cups of water (approximate)
Process:
Wash the lentil seed (from now on daal) in fresh water and slow boil them in a deep pot (wok)
Add enough water to cover the daal. Boil the stuff till its mushy.
Fry all the spices with onions in olive oil in a deep skillet.
Add the fried and spiced onions and chillies to the mushy daal
Add some more water and slow boil the stuff with intermittent stirring.
Boil it till you a get a medium thick consistency ( lentils are soft and tender). Add the butter and boil it some more.
How to Serve and Eat:
Eat this daal with basmati rice.
Ahh!
Chapter 3: Masoor Daal
Ingredients:
2 tea cup full of yellow Masoor Daal
1 Red Onion - finely chopped
2 spoons salt.
1 spoon turmeric, ground cumin
1 spoon of finely chopped garlic and green chilli
2 spoons garam masala
2 spoons ground coriander
2 spoons of tomato puree
1 big spoon of butter
2 large spoon fulls of any cooking oil (my preference Olive oil)
6 cups of water (approximate)
Process:
Wash the lentil seed (from now on daal) in fresh water and slow boil them in a deep pot (wok)
Add enough water to cover the daal. Boil the stuff till its mushy.
Fry all the spices with onions in olive oil in a deep skillet.
Add the fried and spiced onions and chillies to the mushy daal
Add some more water and slow boil the stuff with intermittent stirring.
Boil it till you a get a medium thick consistency ( lentils are soft and tender). Add the butter and boil it some more.
How to Serve and Eat:
Eat this daal with basmati rice.
Ahh!
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Eazee Indian Cooking in USA: Chapter 2
Since the last one was Non-veg I thought of making this chapter vegetarian; I am just being lazee so the recipe stays the same as Chapter 1, where you replace the chicken with corn (frozen corn is available at Walmart) to make Alu-Chana Corn Mix.
The rest remains the same as Chapter 1.
Sorry if I disappointed you; I would make it up soon with chapter 3.
Happy cooking.
The rest remains the same as Chapter 1.
Sorry if I disappointed you; I would make it up soon with chapter 3.
Happy cooking.
Friday, May 05, 2006
Eazee Indian Cooking in USA: Chapter 1
Indian cooking can be so easy if you know what to use and how to use; so I have taken upon myself the responsbility of satiating the appetite of young, single Indians (H1b holders or otherwise). The first item in our mission is Non Vegetarian (approx cooking time 25 minutes); however you can always avoide using the Chicken (that will save your cooking time too :)). And all the stuff is available at Walmart or at your big local grocery store.
Chapter 1: Alu-Chana Chicken Mix
Ingredients:
1 can of Diced Potato (Alu)
1 packet of fully cooked frozen Diced Chicken (you can use fresh chicken if you have time)
1 can of Chick Peas (Chana)
1 large Red onion (No white onions: they are not for Desis)
1 Green chilli
4 large spoon fulls of any cooking oil (my preference Olive oil)
2 large slices of tomato, 2 spoons of tomato puree, 1 spoon of minced garlic, 1 and half spoons of ginger paste.
Plus 1 spoon each of red chilli powder, garam/curry masala, turmeric powder,cumin seeds;
salt to taste.
Coriander leaves (for garnishing)
Process:
Cut the onions fine.Cut the green chilli into small pieces.
Fry the onions over red heat in a medium deep non stick skillet with olive oil (3 mins)
Add the cumin seeds and fry some more (2 mins)
Add the garlic, ginger and tomato puree.(1 min)
Add the diced potato. Add green chillies.(1 min)
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, pinch of salt (1 min)
Add tomato slices (1 min)
Fry on low heat with the chicken pieces (5 mins)
Add all the Chick peas with the juice in the can slowly (2 mins)
Add a small cup of water if you need gravy (optional)
Add Garam Masala/ Curry Masala and cook thoroughly (6 mins)
How to Serve and Eat:
Serve medium hot in a elongated bowl with some coriander leaves for garnish.
Eat with Tortillas or Pita bread.
Let me know your feedback. Bon Appetit
Chapter 1: Alu-Chana Chicken Mix
Ingredients:
1 can of Diced Potato (Alu)
1 packet of fully cooked frozen Diced Chicken (you can use fresh chicken if you have time)
1 can of Chick Peas (Chana)
1 large Red onion (No white onions: they are not for Desis)
1 Green chilli
4 large spoon fulls of any cooking oil (my preference Olive oil)
2 large slices of tomato, 2 spoons of tomato puree, 1 spoon of minced garlic, 1 and half spoons of ginger paste.
Plus 1 spoon each of red chilli powder, garam/curry masala, turmeric powder,cumin seeds;
salt to taste.
Coriander leaves (for garnishing)
Process:
Cut the onions fine.Cut the green chilli into small pieces.
Fry the onions over red heat in a medium deep non stick skillet with olive oil (3 mins)
Add the cumin seeds and fry some more (2 mins)
Add the garlic, ginger and tomato puree.(1 min)
Add the diced potato. Add green chillies.(1 min)
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, pinch of salt (1 min)
Add tomato slices (1 min)
Fry on low heat with the chicken pieces (5 mins)
Add all the Chick peas with the juice in the can slowly (2 mins)
Add a small cup of water if you need gravy (optional)
Add Garam Masala/ Curry Masala and cook thoroughly (6 mins)
How to Serve and Eat:
Serve medium hot in a elongated bowl with some coriander leaves for garnish.
Eat with Tortillas or Pita bread.
Let me know your feedback. Bon Appetit
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Being 'Cool'
If being cool means having innovative desktops, then I am quite good at that. Below are few samples on my Windows XP desktop. So is this cool??
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