Unclassified

Some god-man in India declared that there is a hoard of gold under a ruined fort. The ASI took the bait and did some research. And then began the mad digging. Even if the fort is ruined isn't it still a national heritage? Based on hearsay we seek to destroy it!!!
Reminds me of a chat I had with a friend. I was thoroughly perplexed how come whoever who found Harappa knew exactly where to dig. My friend reminded me that they were doing some construction work there anyways. So how come illiterate masons knew the magnamity of the few pots and pans. My friend opined that as soon as they must have spotted pots and pans they must have jumped to conclusions about hidden treasure and on digging further spotted the different kind of treasure. I was not sure why would any poor mason would tell his British supervisor that they are investigating a potential treasure but I will let it rest.
Coincidently I was reading a novel "The last Templar" when this news about the digging frenzy came in. In a way this whole premise of digging randomly is unsettling. But the conclusion of the novel tops the charts in the unsettling category. So an archeologist apparently finds in the lost Templar treasure twenty thousand leagues under the sea. And she decides to destroy it!!!! Because she feels that the discovery will destroy faith. And the author chooses this ending when a few pages back hd himself writes that the find will debunk miracle stories but nothing can do away with the teaching. 

Bachelor's level coursework rtl codes

These are the vhdl labs from my BE E&TC course VLSI design. I was in the 4th year of engineering at that time. Having seen the undergrad coursework from my Master's university in the US, these seem too childish assignments. Its high time we revamp the course, and really really notch up the difficulty level of the course. Engineering colleges in India pop up like mushrooms, and the whole system is a disaster. Around 6 lakh students of my batch graduated from Engineering in Maharashtra alone!!

//-----------2 bit comparator------------
// This blog is not meant to spoon feed any juniors to a ready made code.
// Please write the truth table yourself, and that is your dataflow architecture for the comparator.
altb = a1b.b1 + a1b.a0b.b0 + b1.b0.a0b
aeqb = (a1 exnor b1).(a0 exnor b0)
agtb = a1.b1 + a1.a0.b0b + b0b.b1b.a0

architecture behav of 2bcomp is
begin
process (a,b)
begin
    if (a=b) then
        aeb<='1'; agb <='0'; alb<='0';
    elsif (a<b) then
        aeb<='0'; agb <='0'; alb<='1';

    elsif (a>b) then
        aeb<='0'; agb <='1'; alb<='0';

    else
        aeb<='0'; agb <='0'; alb<='0';

        end if;
end process;
end behav;

struct: define for exor, or3, inv, and3
declare as components, connect using port map


//------------delay ff-------------------//
clear input: highest priority

library IEEE;
use IEEE.STD_LOGIC_1164.all;

entity DFF is
    port( D, clk, pre, clr: in STD_LOGIC;
          q, qb: out STD_LOGIC);
end DFF;

architecture DFF of DFF is
signal s: std_logic;
begin
    process(D, clk, pre, clr, s)
    begin
        if clr='0' then s<='0';
        else if pr='1' then s<='1';
             else if clk'event and clk='1' then s<=d;
                   end if;
             end if;
        end if;
    end process;
    q<=s;
    qb<=not s;
end DFF;

//-----T FF: T = 1 output toggles-------//

architecture TFF of TFF is
signal s: std_logic;
begin
    process(T, clk, pre, clr, s)
    begin
        if clr='0' then s<='0';
         elsif clk'event and clk='1' then
            if pre='1' then s<='1';
            elsif t='1' then s<= not s;
            else s<=s;
                end if;
        end if;
    end process;
    q<=s;
    qb<=not s;
end TFF;

Note: D-FF is already a component of FPGAs. 
T FF using D FF
clr =0, pre =0, clk = rising: T=0 q+ = q
                  T=1 q+ = qb
feedback D-FF q to input thru XOR

//----------shift resi--------------//
entity shift is
    port ( clk, clr, load, dir, bs: in std_logic;
        din: in STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0);
        dout: out STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0));
end shift;

architecture shift of shift is
signal s: STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0);
begin
    process(clk, clr, load, dir, bs, din, s)
    begin
        if clr='0' then s<="0000";
         elsif clk'event and clk='1' then
            if load='1' then s<=din;
            elsif bs='0' then
                if dir='1' then s<=s(2 downto 0) & '0';
                else s<='0' & s(3 downto 1);
                end if;
            else
                if dir='1' then s<=s(2 downto 0) & s(3);
                else s<=s(0) & s(3 downto 1);
                end if;
            end if;
        end if;
    end process;
    dout<=s;
end shift;


//--------up/down adder------------//
entity cntr is
    port (clk, rst, sel, load: in STD_LOGIC;
        din: in STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0);
        dout: out STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0));
end cntr;

architecture behave of cntr is
signal count: STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0);
signal clk1: std_logic;
signal count1: STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(19 downto 0);
begin
    process(clk1, rst)
    begin
        if(rst='0') then count<="0000";
        elsif (clk1='1' and clk1'event) then
            if load='0' then count<=din;
            elsif load='1' then count<=count;
            end if;
           
            if(sel='0') then count<=count+1;
            elsif(sel='1') then count<=count-1;
            end if;
        end if;
    end process;
    dout<=count;

    process(clk)
    begin
        if (clk='1' and clk'event) then
            count1<=count1+"0000_0000_0000_0000_001";
        end if;
        clk1<=count1(19);
    end process;
end behave;

//----------bidi buffer---------------------//
architecture bidi_buf of bidi_buf is
begin
    b<=a when (mode='1')
    else "zzzz";
    a<=b when (mode='0')
    else "zzzz";
end bidi_buf;

//-----------Traffic light controller FSM------------//
Description: green path 1: 20 sec, other 3 paths: red
yellow: 5 sec
green path 2: on 20 sec, other 3 red n so on


I need to code FSM and D-FF day in and day out at work. But my "highly accredited" Bachelor's engineering course never taught me to code FSM. :x 
My coursework took a shortcut approach to generated code from the tool using state diagram.

2 fsms in total: 1st is 8 state fsm outputs of which control the 12 lights
2nd is a clock gen
Reset -> S0 clk=0 -> S1 clk=0 -> S2 clk=0 -> S3 clk=0 ->
S4 clk=0 -> S5 clk=0 -> S6 clk=0 -> S7 clk=1 ->
S8 clk=1 -> S9 clk=0 -> S10 clk 1 -> S0

//------------FSM as generated by the tool-----------
entity traffic is
port (clk, rst: in std logic;
    light: out STD_LOGIC_VECTOR911 downto 0));
end traffic;

architecture arch of traffic is

signal clk2: STD_LOGIC;

type Sreg0_type is (S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8);
signal Sreg0: Sreg0_type;

FSM1: process (clk2, rst)
begin
    if rst='1' then Sreg0 <= S0;
    elsif clk2'event and clk2='1' then
        case Sreg0 is
            when S0 => Sreg0 <= S1;
            when S1 => Sreg0 <= S2;
            when S2 => Sreg0 <= S3;
            when S3 => Sreg0 <= S4;
            when S4 => Sreg0 <= S5;
            when S5 => Sreg0 <= S6;
            when S6 => Sreg0 <= S7;
            when S7 => Sreg0 <= S0;
            when others => null;
        end case;
    end if;
end process;

light <= "100_001_001_001" when (Sreg0 = S0) else
     "010_001_001_001" when (Sreg0 = S1) else
     "001_100_001_001" when (Sreg0 = S2) else
     "001_010_001_001" when (Sreg0 = S3) else
     "001_001_100_001" when (Sreg0 = S4) else
     "001_001_010_001" when (Sreg0 = S5) else
     "001_001_001_100" when (Sreg0 = S6) else
     "001_001_001_010" when (Sreg0 = S7) else


FSM2: process (clk, rst)
begin
    if rst='1' then Sreg1 <= SS0; clk2<= '0';
    elsif clk'event and clk='1' then
        case Sreg1 is
            when SS0 => Sreg1 <= SS1; clk2<= '0';
            when SS1 => Sreg1 <= SS2; clk2<= '0';
            when SS2 => Sreg1 <= SS3; clk2<= '0';
            when SS3 => Sreg1 <= SS4; clk2<= '0';
            when SS4 => Sreg1 <= SS5; clk2<= '0';
            when SS5 => Sreg1 <= SS6; clk2<= '0';
            when SS6 => Sreg1 <= SS7; clk2<= '0';
            when SS7 => Sreg1 <= SS8; clk2<= '0';
            when SS8 => Sreg1 <= SS9; clk2<= '1';
            when SS9 => Sreg1 <= SS10; clk2<= '0';
            when SS10 => Sreg1 <= SS0; clk2<= '1';
            when others => null;
        end case;
    end if;
end process;
end arch;


//--------------Static RAM----------
holds data till power is there, dynamic ram: needs refresh
ram contains address decoders, memory address array, out_en, rd/wrb

architecture behav of ram is
type vector_array is array (0 to 255) of std_logic_vector(7 downto 0);
signal memory: vector_array;
begin
    process(clk, rwb)
    begin
        if rwb='0' then
            if clk'event & clk='1' then
                memory(addr)<=data_in;
            end if;
        else
            if clk'event & clk='1' then
                data_out <= memory(addr);
            end if;
        end if;
    end process;
end behav;

synchronous read would allow you to use existing block RAM resources in FPGA for optimum device usage, improved timing.

Disclaimer: This is not even my code! I do not take any responsibility for its correctness. There are many better ways to code the same stuff esp the FSM. Please google for coursework from other Engineering colleges abroad/ use code examples from good authors like Frank Vahid etc.

SV testbench try 1

Was shifting to a new apartment for the umpteenth time since I moved to Melbourne. While gathering my stuff I came across my Bachelor's files for VLSI design, Embedded stuff etc. My parents had shipped all that to US, and though it will be landing into recycling I decided to go through the programs once before parting ways with the files. Coincidently, they sent my friend Sonaki's VLSI file, some more happy memories from my Bachelor's.
I will be starting SV soon at work, and I decided to use the same undergrad simple kiddo programs to start with SV testbenches. So here it goes.

//----------------------------------------******************----------------------------
//8:1 mux, with enable
//-----------------------------------------****************-------------------------------
//Dataflow
//note: if you are using ncvhdl, the ports will be of type std_ulogic, and std_ulogic_vector.
library IEEE;
use IEEE.STD_LOGIC_1164.all;

entity mux is
    port( EN, S0, S1, S2: in STD_LOGIC;
        I: in STD_LOGIC_VECTOR(7 downto 0);
        Y: out STD_LOGIC );
end mux;

architecture dataflow of mux is
signal S0b, S1b, S2b, t0, t1, t2, t3, t4, t5, t6, t7, Y1, Y2: std_logic;
begin
S0b <= not S0;
S1b <= not S1;
S2b <= not S2;
t0<= I(0) AND S2b AND S1b AND S0b;
t1<= I(1) AND S2b AND S1b AND S0;
t2<= I(2) AND S2b AND S1 AND S0b;
t3<= I(3) AND S2b AND S1 AND S0;
t4<= I(4) AND S2 AND S1b AND S0b;
t5<= I(5) AND S2 AND S1b AND S0;
t6<= I(6) AND S2 AND S1 AND S0b;
t7<= I(7) AND S2 AND S1 AND S0;
Y1<= t0 OR t1 OR t2 OR t3;
Y2<= t4 OR t5 OR t6 OR t7;
Y <= (Y1 OR Y2) AND EN;
end dataflow;

//------------------*********------------
//Mux test bench - in verilog
//--------------------------------------------
`timescale 1ns/1ps

module test_mux(EN, bit3ctr, I, Y);
output reg EN; //DUT inputs reg
output reg [7:0] I;
input wire Y;  //DUT outputs wire
output reg [2:0] bit3ctr;

mux DUT(
    .EN (EN),
    .S0 (bit3ctr[0]),
    .S1 (bit3ctr[1]),
    .S2 (bit3ctr[2]),
    .I (I),
    .Y (Y)
);

//assign S0 = bit3ctr[0];  //got error that A reg is not a legal lvalue in this context

initial begin
    $monitor ("At t=%t, EN=%b, sel = %b, I = %b, Y = %b", $time, EN, bit3ctr, I, Y);
     EN = 0;
        bit3ctr = 3'b000;
    I = 8'h38;
    #55 EN = 1;
// while {} does not seem to work, took really long time but never went to next step!
// cannot use while (bit3ctr != 3'b000) begin #5 end because once u use begin, it expects a statement
// while (bit3ctr != 3'b000) #5 kind of acted like a if loop, when bit3ctr wasnt 0, it just went to next statement: I =AA
    while (bit3ctr != 3'b000) begin I = 8'h83; #5; end
//zero delay stuff creates problems. If you dont add some delay between the 2 whiles, it never enters while 2
     #5;
    while (bit3ctr != 3'b000) begin I = 8'hAA; #5; end
    #5;
    while (bit3ctr != 3'b000) begin I = 8'h55; #5; end
    #55 I = 8'hA5;
    #55 I = 8'h5A;
     #55
    $finish;
end

always
begin
    #5 bit3ctr = bit3ctr + 3'b001;    
end

endmodule


//-----------------------Commands to run------------
ncvhdl mux.vhd
ncvlog mux_test.v
ncelab test_mux         //test_mux is the name of testbench module
ncsim WORKLIB.test_mux:module

//-------I ran the testbench till 325 ns, some select Results to keep the blog short-----
At t=                   0, EN=0, sel = 000, I = 00111000, Y = 0
At t=               55000, EN=1, sel = 011, I = 10000011, Y = 0
At t=               75000, EN=1, sel = 111, I = 10000011, Y = 1
At t=              105000, EN=1, sel = 101, I = 10101010, Y = 1
At t=              140000, EN=1, sel = 100, I = 01010101, Y = 1

//----------------Some other design architectures for mux----
architecture structural of mux is
component inv
    port (A: in std_logic;
          B: out std_logic);
end component;

component and5
    port (A0, A1, A2, A3, A4: in std_logic;
          Y: out std_logic);
end component;

component or8
    port (A0, A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7: in std_logic;
          Y: out std_logic);
end component;

signal S0b, S1b, S2b, t0, t1, t2, t3, t4, t5, t6, t7, Y1, Y2: std_logic;
begin
    U_I0: inv port map (S0, S0b);
    U_I1: inv port map (S1, S1b);
    U_I2: inv port map (S2, S2b);

    U_A0: and5 port map (I(0), S2b, S1b, S0b, EN, t0);
    U_A1: and5 port map (I(1), S2b, S1b, S0, EN, t1);
    U_A2: and5 port map (I(2), S2b, S1, S0b, EN, t2);
    U_A3: and5 port map (I(3), S2b, S1, S0, EN, t3);
    U_A4: and5 port map (I(4), S2, S1b, S0b, EN, t4);
    U_A5: and5 port map (I(5), S2, S1b, S0, EN, t5);
    U_A6: and5 port map (I(6), S2, S1, S0b, EN, t6);
    U_A7: and5 port map (I(7), S2, S1, S0, EN, t7);
    U_O1: or8 port map (t0, t1, t2, t3, t4, t5, t6, t7, Y);
end structural;

now you need to add entity + architecture description for all components: inv, and5, or8

//---------------behav architecture of mux-------
//Note: S is a vector in behav, S: in STD_LOGIC_VECTOR (2 downto 0);
architecture behav of mux is
begin
    process(S0, I, EN)
    begin
        if EN='0' then y<='0';
        else
            case S is
                when "000" => y<=I(0);
                when "001" => y<=I(1);
                when "010" => y<=I(2);
                when "011" => y<=I(3);
                when "100" => y<=I(4);
                when "101" => y<=I(5);
                when "110" => y<=I(6);
                when "111" => y<=I(7);
            end case;
        end if;
    end process;
end behav;

//-------Comments on the testbench--------
// In this test bench user needs to check each output against Inputs and selects. I shifted next to //System Verilog because you can use "assert" and make your job much easier.


//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
//2:4 decoder
//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
//2:4 decoder combinational = dataflow
//Y(0) = S1b.S0b
//Y(1) = S1b.S0
//Y(2) = S1.S0b
//Y(3) = S1.S0

library IEEE;
use IEEE.STD_LOGIC_1164.all;

entity dec24 is
    port( EN: in STD_uLOGIC;
        S: in STD_uLOGIC_VECTOR(1 downto 0);
        Y: out STD_uLOGIC_VECTOR(3 downto 0));
end dec24;

architecture behav of dec24 is
begin
process(S, EN)
begin
    if EN ='1' then
        case S is
            when "00"=>y<="0001";
            when "01"=>y<="0010";
            when "10"=>y<="0100";
            when "11"=>y<="1000";
            when others=>y<="0000"
        end case;
    else
        y<="0000";
    end if;
end process;
end behav;

// structural architecture of 2:4 decoder
//UI1: inv port map (S0, S0b);
//UI2: inv port map (S1, S1b);
//UA0: and3 port map (S0b, S1b, EN, Y(0));
//UA1: and3 port map (S0, S1b, EN, Y(1));
//UA2: and3 port map (S0b, S1, EN, Y(2));
//UA3: and3 port map (S0, S1, EN, Y(3));

//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
//My 1st system verilog testbench: for 2:4 decoder
//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
`timescale 1ns/1ps

module test_dec24(EN, S, Y);
output reg EN; //DUT inputs reg
output reg [1:0] S;
input wire [3:0] Y;  //DUT outputs wire

dec24 DUT(EN, S, Y);

initial begin
repeat(15)
    begin
    #2 S = $random ; EN = $random;
        #3
        if (EN==1'b0) assert (Y == 4'b0);
    else
    begin
        if (S==2'b00) assert (Y== 4'b0001);
        if (S==2'b01) assert (Y== 4'b0010);
        if (S==2'b10) assert (Y== 4'b0100);
        if (S==2'b11) assert (Y== 4'b1000);
    end
    $display("EN=%b, S=%b, Y=%b", EN, S, Y);
end
$finish;
end
endmodule

//---------commands to run---------
ncvhdl demux.vhd
ncvlog -sv dec24_test.sv
ncelab test_dec24
ncsim WORKLIB.test_dec24:module 



//----select output, to keep the blog short
EN=1, S=00, Y=0001
EN=1, S=01, Y=0010
EN=1, S=10, Y=0100
EN=0, S=01, Y=0000

//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
//Full adder
//-----------------------------*****************-----------------
// Note: if you are using this code on FPGA, Sonaki wrote in her report that less macrocells were used up with dataflow architecture.

architecture dataflow of fadd is
signal c:std_logic_vector(3 downto 0);
begin
    process(a, b,cin, c)
    begin
        s(0)<=a(0) xor b(0) xor cin;
        c(0)<=(a(0) and b(0)) or (b(0) and cin) or (a(0) and cin);
        s(1)<=a(1) xor b(1) xor c(0);
        c(1)<=(a(1) and b(1)) or (b(1) and c(0)) or (a(1) and c(0));
        s(2)<=a(2) xor b(2) xor c(1);
        c(2)<=(a(2) and b(2)) or (b(2) and c(1)) or (a(2) and c(1));
        s(3)<=a(3) xor b(3) xor c(2);
        c(3)<=(a(3) and b(3)) or (b(3) and c(2)) or (a(3) and c(2));
        cout<=c(3);
    end process;
end dataflow;

// Side note: I wrote a SV testbench, and assigned values to a,b using $random. I forgot to assign a //value to cin, and look what happened :) :
//Assertion test_bit4fadd.__assert_1 has failed a=0100, b=0001, sum=001xx
//Assertion test_bit4fadd.__assert_1 has failed a=1001, b=0011, sum=0110x


//--------------Testbench that tests Adder + mux-------
// Output of adder is input of mux
`timescale 1ns/1ps

module test_fadd_mux(cin, a, b, sel, Y);
output reg cin; //DUT inputs reg
output reg [3:0] a, b;
output reg [1:0] sel;
input wire Y;  //DUT outputs wire

//intermed
wire [4:0] SUM;  //DUT outputs wire


bit4fadd DUT1(
.cin (cin),
.a (a),
.b (b),
.cout (SUM[4]),
.s (SUM[3:0])
);

mux DUT2(
    .EN (1'b1),
    .S0 (sel[0]),
    .S1 (sel[1]),
    .S2 (cin),
     .I ({3'b0, SUM[4:0]}),
    .Y (Y)
); 

initial begin
repeat(15)
    begin
    a = $random ; b = $random; cin=$random; sel=$random;
        #4
        assert (SUM == a+b+cin);
    //assert (Y==SUM[sel]);
    if (cin==1'b0) assert (Y==SUM[sel]);
    if (cin==1'b1 && sel==2'b00) assert (Y==SUM[4]);
    if (cin==1'b1 && sel>2'b00) assert (Y==1'b0);
    $display("a=%b, b=%b, cin=%b, sum=%b, sel[2]=%b, sel[1:0]=%b, mux_output Y=%b", a, b, cin, SUM, cin, sel, Y);
end
$finish;
end
endmodule

//--------commands to run----
ncvhdl 4bitadder.vhd  
ncvhdl mux.vhd
ncvlog -sv fadd_mux_test.sv
ncelab test_fadd_mux
ncsim WORKLIB.test_fadd_mux:module 


Parting thoughts:
Assertion based test will only check code + functionality. We still have a long way to go in verification. If we were to test, say an FSM with a assertion based test case, we are essentially only checking it at discrete time stamps. We need a better test case, to test the rtl at each instant of time.
Its called self checking test, I am yet to try my hand at that. 

दृष्टी

 घरी बसून असंच बोर होत होतं, त्यातून बस पास तर काढलाय पण महिनाभर निघायच्या वेळी नेमका पाउस असायचा, म्हणून पास असाच पडून होता. इथून ३६ मैल दूर असलेल्या गावापर्यंत बस जाते, म्हणून तेथील एखाद-दोन संग्रहालय बघून येण्याचा घाट घातला. शनिवार म्हणल्यावर उशिरा उठणार, पहिली बस सुटणारच, दुसरी बस त्यातल्या त्यात वेळ वाचवून पकडावी म्हणून विमानतळापर्यंत गाडीने गेले आणि अगदी चुकता चुकता बस गाठलीच. 

Plan:
१०  - १२ : बस १
१ २ - ३ : संग्रहालय
३-५ : शेवटची बस ३ वाजता सुटते आणि ५ ला घरी पोहोचते. ती बस चुकली तर ४ ला अजून एक बस २५ मैल दूरच्या मधल्या एका गावी सोडेल. हे दुसरे गाव gives me dangerous vibes, म्हणून मला शक्यतोवर ३ ची बस गाठायची होती. एक संग्रहालय मी आणि खेयानी पूर्वी जाता-येता बाहेरून पाहिलं होतं म्हणून परतीची बस चुकलीच तर मला घ्यायला कुठे यायचं ते खेयाला hopefully माहिती होतं.

 "कमजोर कडी" एकाच बस वर अवलंबून आहे म्हणल्यावर मी सायकल न्यायला हवी होती, पण असाच plan मागे एकदा मी पार पाडला होता म्हणून जरा overconfidence झाला.
चुकले कुठे: संग्रहालयात जायला 12 वाजता बस २ पकडायची होती. म्हणजेच परत यायची बस २ गाठायला संग्रहालयातून २ वाजताच निघायचं होतं. म्हणजे खरी "कमजोर कडी" मी हेरलीच नव्हती. 

संग्रहालय १ ठीकठाक च होते. ते म्हणे अठराव्या शतकात ते गाव कसे होते व त्यातले लोक कसे राहायचे याचे जतन करणारे संग्रहालय होते. म्हणजे लहान मुलांचे कपडे, दुपटी, स्वयंपाकघरातली उपकरणे, नकाशे अश्या गोष्टी त्या संग्रहालयात होत्या. जाता जाता मी त्यांच्या वहीत लिहिले - माझे घर देखील आज १०० वर्षांचे आहे. आज घरातल्या अनेक outdated गोष्टींना मी भंगार समजत होते, तोही एक वारसा आहे याची दृष्टी मला या संग्रहालयाने दिली. (म्हणजे चोर चिलटांनी भले थोरले पितळी घंगाळ वगैरे गोष्टी already लुप्त केल्या आहेत, बाकी जे उरले ते जतन करायची दृष्टी).

संग्रहालय २ अक्षरश: शेजारच्या गल्लीत होते. हा space coast असल्याने space programs शी संलग्न अनेक गोष्टी या संग्रहालयात आहेत. हे खूपच मनोरंजक व माहितीदायक संग्रहालय आहे. जाता येता असेच "Liberty Bell Museum" दिसले होते पण "Liberty bell" कौनसा pokemon आहे ते मला येथे कळले. सुमारे 1.50 वाजता मी निघाले. त्या curator स्त्रीने मला बस कुठे मिळेल ते दाखवलं. पण अस्मादिकांना त्या स्त्री पेक्षा स्वतःच्या Iphone वर जास्त विश्वास! तर मी Iphone ने दाखवलेल्या बस थांब्यापाशी, म्हणजे संग्रहालय १ जवळ उभी राहिले. १५ मिनटात मला बस शेजारच्या गल्लीत जाताना दिसली. घाई घाईत डबा कोंबून मी नीट विचार करेपर्यंत बस चुकली होती!

4G वर संग्रहालयात कसं जायचं पाहण्यात, घरी बोलण्यात, दोन्ही ठिकाणी Iphone ने photo काढण्यात   battery 45% वर आलेली. मी पुन्हा 4G लावून Taxi वाल्यांचा फोन हुडकून त्यांना फोन करू लागले. पण नशीब पहा! हे गाव २ शहरांच्या मध्ये, म्हणून taxi इथल्या किंवा तिथल्या विमानतळावर सोडण्यापुरती. त्या वेळी ५-६ taxi वाल्यांपैकी कुणाकडेही गावात taxi हजर नव्हती. मी संग्रहालय १ मध्ये गेले आणि तिथल्या (चार) वृद्ध volunteer ना मला बस १ पर्यंत सोडायला सांगितल. त्या वेळी मी सोडून दुसरे कोणीही पर्यटक तेथे नव्हता. तरीही त्यांनी मला ३ च्या आधी त्यांना निघता येणार नाही असे सांगितले. आता मात्र मी जरा रडवेली झाले होते. मी संग्रहालय २ ला फोन लावला. Curator स्त्रीने मी सोडेन असे सांगितले. त्या संग्रहालयात त्या वेळी ७-८ पर्यटक आणि १ मदतनीस होते, तरी देखील ती स्त्री मला सोडायला आली, इतकच नव्हे तर मला बस १ मिळेपर्यंत माझ्यासोबत बसथांब्यावर थांबली. America capitalist देश आहे, स्वतःचा फायदा होणार नसेल तर कोणी काही करत नाही असा काहीसा माझा समज होता. या घटनेने थोड्या अंशी तरी अमेरिकेकडे बघायची नवी दृष्टी लाभली.  

Post trip back home

Funny things one does when visiting India after a stay in US/ after one is back in US:
That milk needs to be boiled after its delivered home seems to be a massive waste of time.
(When I 1st came to US, the mere thought that milk will be staying intact in fridge for 15+ days sounded like an overload of preservatives or whatever pasteurization step that achieves that. )

For a second I looked around my US kitchen to see where the gas lighter was.
(But that never happens in India, that I turned the burner on and forgot to use the lighter. Could be attributed to that characteristic LPG smell, or more importantly to my granny's super organized kitchen, where the gas lighter stares in your face when you look at the burner. )

You give your favourite top, which has so far always been washed in a washer, to the bai for washing. Post being scrubbed with the detergent soap, it comes out looking a ghost of its former self with its cotton lints bunched up.
No comments about the washing, but when I first landed in US, I thought drying clothes in a dryer and not in the sun is pure unhygienic. When the building management makes you sign the lease agreement which mentions that not drying your clothes out is for aesthetic enhancement of the building you LOL at their choosing appearance over utility.

Am I growing roots here? Or is it just that I see both from a 3rd person perspective now? 

Toastmasters

Life in the US can get a bit lonely at times, and my friend from DC, Teja, found the perfect solution with meetup.com. He is a programmer and joins meetups to learn different languages, but he told me there are several other categories of meetups too. UF had a group of outdoor enthusiasts, and ever since I graduated I wish every day that I found such a group where I am. Unfortunately the University here is made up of boring people who only have academic/ religious student groups, and very few recreational groups like sailing club, and climbing group. (They don't even have anything akin to Gator nights!!!) The average age here is 42 and I wasn't comfortable even with the idea of going on a remote hike with 42 year olds. But I did browse other meetups and found a group of coders and hackers, and the toastmasters. 

I RSVP'ed for a toastmasters meeting near office. As soon as I stepped in, a lady welcomed me. It was the 1st day of their yearly session, and they began with inducting the new officers. Then they started with the speaker of the day, and his evaluations. One very good point that the evaluator mentioned was that hand gestures should be symmetrical. Most people are right handed and end up gesturing exclusively with their right hands. But the speakers should bear in mind that the audience are seated on both sides, and so they should also try using the left hand once in a while.

Then we started with the table topics, in which multiple speakers have an extempore speech of 2 minutes, and I did speak up. I was good, but by no means was the best speaker in that meeting, yet ended up winning the Best Table Topics speaker. Haha, unfortunately, the new President, in his acceptance speech, had said that he won the prize on his 1st day, and so I knew it was just a lollipop to attract me to the club, and since I am no longer a kid who will be attracted solely by lollipops, the plan backfired. Then 3 different people approached me to tell me about the benefits of the club, and how I should join. BTW, I was looking for a free activity. I think they would need some membership fees for booking the meeting venue etc, but then the meeting can be held in any starbucks, or for that matter anywhere! Again, it is a very structured thing, because the evaluated speaker has to speak exclusively from the 10 topics enlisted in the toastmaster's syllabus. Even the table topics are chosen off a "suggested table topics" list, and so once you have the "syllabus" booklet, there is little scope for extempore. This starting and ending of every other sentence with "Madam toastmaster, or Mr Competent Communicator, or Distinguished toastmaster" seemed too pompous for me. (Imagine that I am in a meeting tomorrow, and every now and then I call people Mr. Program manager, or Mr Chip lead, they would think that I am being condescending or something.) What really pissed me off is that they expect "interjectors" to raise their hands and speak only when permitted. Needless to say, since I am no longer a school-kid, this raising hand business is a thing of past to me, and I was the "interjector", and someone among the members was actually counting the number of "interjections". (In the past year + 3 months of internship of attending meetings, that too, some over the phone, I don't remember a single instance that I had to "raise my hand" to let the speaker know that I wish to interject. :) ). "Again the 3 people mentioned that they will follow up with me by phone regarding the membership, and insisted that I get the membership. (Lol, one of the reasons to get the membership was that I will get an monthly magazine. I asked them if I can get the magazine online and save a few trees.) I think whether I want to improve my life or not should be upto my discretion. All in all, my first impression of toastmasters was not so favourable.

My next was a Coders meetup to learn python, and it was a real fun + learning experience. There was a 8 year old home-schooled boy competent in programming and that really impressed me. I agree, there are advantages of structured learning, but  this development of "other" skills is possible in a open learning environment. Hats off! Not just to the mom, but also to the American system, which will accept the boy later in his life when its time to join, say a college, once he has completed the requisites.

I decided to give the toastmasters another shot, and I attended another group's meeting. This time it was in a public library, and I asked the librarian if they need to pay for the meeting room. The librarian told me that it is a "public" library, and all the facilities are free of charge, one just needs to book the meeting room in advance. This group was much more informal. The interjections were a regular part of the meeting and not something to be frowned upon. Infact, there were much more laughs going around. The speaker to be evaluated not just had a structured speech, but followed it up with a unstructured Q&A. Again I was given a very good feedback, that non-native English speakers tend to omit articles (especially "the") because there is no "the" equivalent in the native Indian language. (hah, even in this sentence it should have been "the non-native English speakers". Now that I think about it, my intern supervisor had pointed this out too when I was writing the datasheet and the user guide as a System Engineer.) They were open enough to say that I can attend meetings if I want to, and the membership is just to get me started in leadership positions. Ah the freedom of speech :P

Habitat for the homeless

Was reading an article on Yahoo.com about a Master's student who lived as a homeless guy in a van in his college campus and thus was able to live debt free. He had essentially paid for the college parking, yet lived under the constant fear of being caught. I had wondered why because he was paying for the parking, and his tuition had a part to pay in the college infrastructure like the washrooms from the gym, or wifi from the library that he was using. I was pretty intrigued by the article and read few more articles/ blogs, which turned out to be an eyeopener.

1. Not all homeless guys are drug addicts. The homeless guy can be a guy with a day job who got evicted from his home for which he couldnt pay the mortgage. Or he can be any guy who lost his job and didnt have too many in savings.
The blogger who wrote from his experience said that its easier for women to move in with their parents, but not so much for the men. No no, no male ego popping up its ugly head - parents are more likely to open their arms to their daughters than to their sons. So atleast this % of homelessness was completely preventable had their been better friends/ parents or whatever. (A sidenote: I keep reading this: so and so did this good thing because he is a christian!! One does not need to be affiliated to any religion to be a good human.)

2. The same guy also mentions that many homeless are kids who ran away from their abusive homes. Kids, women, aged homeless and homeless with disabilities are more vulnerable to the homeless violence out there. Well basically this blogger ran away himself when he was 12. He has a blog titled something like "how to survive homelessness". He pointedly remarks that however abusive the home is you are safer home than running away.
Having read Oliver Twist, I am cynical about government / any institution having a place for run-away kids. But then having seen Slumdog Millionaire, if the kids are out, they are vulnerable to utmost violence - remember the scene in which they gouge out the guy's eyes so that he can beg better?

3. Is there any way we can help? That homeless blogger says he needs a secure place to sleep, and recommends low cost homeless hostels. He also requests other better-off people not to avert their eyes when they see a homeless someone. Just acknowledging that the problem exists in itself will help people. Not sure how, but I am guessing he was hinting at the Conservative Vs liberal view? The people I meet here in FL are conservatives, and they feel that people should work to feed themselves and not rely on food stamps.
Once I was just fasting for 1 day..still felt pretty run down at the end of it; I cant' even imagine how people stay alive eating half meals everyday. Sure, many homeless people out there may have that internal drive to work and to get out of their situation. But they also need food to fuel that drive. In a way, I feel food stamps are justified, provided they are not being misused. I am neither a conservative nor a liberal in the US sense, my observations are just based off the ration system in India.


I think the food that we pack as take home can be given to these guys (though my friends vehemently prevent me giving food to poor). I know there is  afood helpline in India, where wedding parties and all can donate their leftover food. But unfortunately there is no such concept in the US. My friends who used to work part-time in restaurants had told me that at the end of the day the restaurants just dump everything in the garbage can. And that's how I saw a homeless man scouring garbage cans in Gainesville. Dumping things in garbage can is simply racoon-inducive if nothing else. If only there was some way by which all the restaurants in a city could contribute the food to poor :( 

बहिरा कानून

सध्या FL मध्ये एक केस गाजत आहे, Citizen journalism सारखीच Neighbourhood Watch ची संकल्पना आहे. एक मुलगा घरी परतत असताना त्या सोसायटीच्या Neighbourhood watch वाल्या इसमाने त्याला पहिला, त्याला तो संशयास्पद वाटला. त्या इसमाने  पोलिसांना फोन लावला, आणि पोलिस येयीपर्यंत तो मुलगा "पळून जाऊ" नये म्हणून त्याचा पाठलाग केला. पोलीसाने त्याला निक्षून बजावलं की तू पाठलाग करू नकोस. तरीही तो त्या मुलामागे जात राहिला. पुढे काय घडलं ते फक्त २ लोकांना माहिती आहे - त्या इसमाला, आणि त्या मुलाला, ज्याला त्या इसमाने गोळी घालून ठार मारले. काल या केस चा निकाल लागला आणि त्या इसमाला "बा-इज्जत बरी" करण्यात आले आहे.

१. एखादा अनोळखी इसम पाठलाग करायला लागला म्हणून तो मुलगा पळायला लागला यात त्या मुलाने काय चुकीचे केले? त्या इसमाने स्वत:च कबूल केले की मी neighbourhood watch वाला आहे असं  त्याने मुलाला सांगितलं नाही . मग अश्यावेळी त्या मुलाला तो इसम चोर आहे असंच वाटलं असणार.
२. त्या इसमाच्या मते त्या मुलाने त्याच्यावर हल्ला केला. त्याच्या वकिलांनी न्यायालयात म्हणलं की मुलाने पदपथाचा वापर हत्यारासारखा केला.
त्या रात्री पाउस होता. Wikipedia वर त्या इसमाच्या जखमेचा फोटो आहे. एखादा माणूस पदपथाच्या चिखलावरून पाय घसरून पडला तर जसं खरचटेल तशीच जखम फोटोत दिसते. त्या मुलाने जर त्या इसमाला खाली पडून त्याच्या नाकावर बुक्के मारले असते तर कवटीचा थोडातरी चेंदामेंदा झाला असता. अशी कोणतीही जखम त्या इसमाच्या डोक्यावर नव्हती.
३. पोलिसांच्या फोन वर किंकाळ्या दर्ज झाल्या आहेत. इतके भारी signal processing softwares असताना तो आवाज नुकताच आवाज फुटायला लागलेल्या तरुण मुलाचा आहे, की matured माणसाचा आहे एवढही कळू नये?

त्या जखमांवरून काय घडलं असेल याचा अंदाज पहा: त्या इसमाने मुलाचा पाठलाग केला, मुलगा पळू लागला, इसम अधिकच जोरात पळू लागला, मुलगा मागे वळला आणि त्याने त्या इसमाच्या नाकावर बुक्का मारला. तो इसम चिखलावरून पाय घसरून पडला, पडता पडता त्याने मुलाचा sweater आधारासाठी ओढला, चिखलच तो! त्यामुळे मुलगा पण घसरून त्या इसमाच्या अंगावर पडला. आपला डाव आपल्यावर उलटू शकतो असं वाटताच त्या इसमाने मुलावर गोळी झाडली.

भारतात गरीब बिचारे public prosecutors Vs धनदांडगे criminal lawyers असतात म्हणून गुन्हेगार सुटतात असं वाटायचं. अमेरिकेसारख्या देशात पण गुन्हेगार सहजासहजी सुटतात ते वाचून अक्षरश: न्यायव्यवस्थेवरचा विश्वास कमी झालाय! कधी कधी वाटतं भुतं असायला पाहिजे होती - त्या "आप बीती" सिरीयल सारखं !

Matrimonial Website नावाचा जुगार -Part 2

४ . Trigger happy individuals
पहाटे पहाटे ६ ला एक फोन आला - मी अहमदनगर हून डॉक्टर So and So बोलतोय. त्या १ मिनटात अक्षरश: heart attack च्या पुढे मागे जे काही सगळे अवयव थिजायची प्रक्रिया असते ती अनुभवून झाली. पण छे छे, कोणतीही वाईट बातमी सांगण्यासाठी नव्हता तो फोन, "आमचा मुलगा डॉक्टर So and So" याच्या स्थळासाठी त्याच्या बाबांनी मला फोन केला होता. Unfortunately नगरचा आणि डॉक्टर माणूस म्हणून ६ वाजता दचकून उठल्यावर देखील मी त्यांच्याशी आदबीने बोलले. सर्वात height म्हणजे  असंही नाही की त्यांना US - India time conversion माहिती च नाही, कारण  त्यांचा मुलगा Virginia ला असतो.
मनात आलं स्वतःच्या मुलाला तरी सकाळी ६ वाजता फोन करायची हिम्मत झाली असती का त्यांची? मग ज्या वेळेला मुलाला फोन करू नये अश्या वेळी अनोळखी मुलीला फोन करवतोच कसा? दिसली profile आवडली profile, दिसतोय फोन नंबर तर लावला लगेच फोन? लग्नाच्या आधी तर सोडाच मुलीला approach करतानाच तिच्या वेळेची तिच्या झोपेची ज्यांना काडीमात्र किंमत नाही आहे ते लोक लग्नानंतर काय जाच करतील याची कल्पनाच केलेली बरी.
अजून काही आयांनी रात्री १२ नंतर, किंवा सकाळी १० वाजता office मध्ये असताना वगैरे फोन केलेत - ते आता या तुलनेने खूपच mild वाटतंय. (त्यातून आयांनी किती वाजलेत कळल्यावर at least sorry म्हणलं होतं)
P.S: खूप आधी मी एकदा एका मित्राला २ वाजता वगैरे फोन केला होता. In my defense, त्याआधी त्याने मला West Coast वरून सुट्टी असताना फोन केला होता, म्हणून नंतर मी सुमारे त्याच वेळेला त्याला फोन केला, तेव्हा नेमका तो CST ला होता. And again in my defense, हे सगळे PST/ CST/ EST चे किडे माहिती असायला त्या वेळी माझं कोणीही सख्खं US ला नव्हतं.

५.  संसार Vs career
आज मी कोणत्याही दृष्टीने मुलगा -engineer पेक्षा कमी नाही आहे, किंबहुना IQ Test च घ्यायचीच झाली तर I am among the top 1000 students of all branches in my batch in the nation, तर माझ्या batch च्या ६ लाख engineers पैकी किमान ५.५ लाख Engineers पेक्षा मी नक्कीच जास्त हुशार आहे. पण Shaadi.com वर profile टाकली रे टाकली, आणि मला एका US Master + Qualcomm Engineer मुलाने प्रश्न विचारला की "I seem to be very focused and career-oriented, then what made me open an account on Shaadi.com." आता याचे २ connotations निघू शकतात :माझं career भारी चाललय म्हणून  माझ्या आई बाबांनी मुलगा पहिला पाहिजे (जे मला हास्यास्पद वाटतं) किंवा  माझं career एवढंच जर भारी चाललय तर मला लग्न का करायचंय (आवरा!!!!)
आणि घरी आल्यावर हातात चहा देणारी बायकोच पाहिजे असेल तर मुलांनी Expectations मध्ये Engineer लिहू नये. मुलांनी संसार + career आणि मुलींनी मात्र (particularly मुलं झाल्यावर) संसार अथवा career हा काय न्याय आहे?

In search of the one - Part 2

The typical Chick-flick fan in me wants to quote a scene from My best friend's wedding. Rupert and Julia are out boating in Chicago, and Rupert says: when you love someone, you just say it. Then and there, loud and clear. Otherwise the moment just passes you by.
Obviously, my guy friends will have a different take to it. While my close buddy was narrating his "no more single" story to me, I told him about this scene, and he felt if not done right, it would scare the girl. (BTW my close guy friend should be the one to give out hints to my guy, so VJ if you have forgotten all that we have ever talked, and if that time comes, please ask the guy to ask me for a hint or 2!!) But when the situation is "guy meets girl in an "for arranged marriage" setting, the guy better speak up. And speak up soon. (As my other guy friend KK pointed out, the onus is equally the girl's. If she likes him, she better say so too)

The second guy I met in the course of my search told me about his life's goals. No communication for multiple days till recently. All this while, he was working on his goals, and has actually attained a couple of those. Had he let me know, I would have understood the reason behind the reticence, appreciated the cause and would have encouraged him too. But sadly, that was not to be, and by the time he re-contacted me, I had assumed he had moved on, and so had I.
  
Speaking up is not my only expectation though. I have mentioned it on both of my matrimonial profiles that I am a blogger. Any guy who did not take pains to know me better is automatically rejected. I mean come on, i would think it would be there in the 1st page of google search links. 

Had a dream a few days back. My dream guy's name is "Drumil". He finds out about my interest in Sanskrit, and pursues me, and literally wins me back. The previous "dream guy" named Sumedh turned out to be the MTS topper of my batch. Is it destiny at play? Or it is some long lost memory (11 year old) from my elephant-sized memory that simply forwarded the name to my subconscious? 

I know Drumil is a very rare name, so I will pass that criteria :P. But, Mr Persuasive Seeker, if you are reading this blog, then do let me know.
Waiting in anticipation.. 

Warbird museum

Typical Deepika style on-the-go trip planning.. Was returning from Orlando after meeting my roomy's family, took a break at Cocoa FL -> tried my luck visiting Brevard Museum of Natural Science -> was closed -> new smartphone being put to use to search other events -> Warbird museum was open free for Memorial day.

The museum is located in the premises of Brevard County Regional Airport, frankly I didnt know such an airport even existed. Typically, local museums dont have a huge collection, but Brevard county has a unique place in History of Avionics thanks to the Cape Canaveral, and hence is called Space Coast. Initially, I just saw the indoor museum, which would fit the usual scene of any local museum (oversight :x). But thanks to some guy stepping out,  I spotted the hangar. As soon as I stepped inside the hangar, some 20 aeroplanes awaited me.

Frankly, I dont know anything about the history of aeroplanes or flying except for Kitty Hawk, Bernoulli's principle, Newton's 3rd Law, Amelia Earhart and the MIGs. So my 1st round around the hangar was strictly appreciating the specs of the engines on display (oversight again!!) Some plane's description mentioned "bazooka"; on querying, the volunteer pointed it out to me.  (In laymen terms, bazooka is a sort of missile launched from underneath the wing). There was another flight simulation plane, where we could marvel at all the instrumentation needed. Mostly it looks kind of straightforward, altimeter, radio tuning equipment etc. One of my ex-roomy's is a pilot and she had said, in normal conditions, flying  a plane is like a driving a car, all the skill and training is how to handle emergency because there is no time to open a manual and read.

I was looking for a model plane for my friend, when I decided to take another look around. Round 2: I stepped outside hangar in the runway area, spotted more planes, and 2 special areas - 1. the Vietnam war memorial and 2. the restoration area.

The 1st plane was a propped up WW2 plane called Tico Belle. We could check out its interiors. I next went to the restoration area where the volunteer was just about to give a guided tour. He started with the history of Tico Belle, how they have confirmed its participation in various missions based on its number on its tail. One of its mission was to drop off the soldiers at night, the soldiers then laid directional radios to guide other planes flying in the next day. The other was a type of plane George Bush Sr was in. Another plane of the same type was the one lost in the Bermuda triangle with "x" crew members killed. The restored plane sports the number "x+1" on its tail as a homage to the x guys killed. There were several planes being restored, and the stark white aluminium of the yet-to-be-restored planes was a far cry from the colourful planes once restored .

Once me and my friend KC were discussing why there arent so many famous jadugars anymore. She said that we now know the trick behind the magic trick, so famous magicians like Houdini gain their fame by their performance and not by the tricks. The volunteer was a good example of how just adding a personal story can change the same plane from a machine to a museum exhibit.

Tax filling in the year you transition F1 to H1B

We think that there are so many Indian / foreign students coming to the US that the tax calculating softwares already know about all the special cases. But as I soon found out, that is not the case. Going to a Tax consultant does not help either, because, as I said this is a special case. What we need to do is do some online search, and fill up your own forms. And it is not at all difficult.

I have to thank my senior friend who had told me long time ago, that tax is less while on F1. Thanks to that, I did not rely on the tends to zero number quoted by the tax software, and crunched my own numbers. This is just a summary of my net search to help other fellows in the same boat.

1. Medicare, Social Security:
No tax should be cut while on F1 for Medicare and Social Security. If it is cut, then you will get it back from the company itself once you point it out to the HR.

2. Resident alien or Non resident alien: 
Note: this is for tax purposes 
Substantial presence test: If days of stay in US while on H1 <  183 then you are non resident for tax purpose
Note: This applies only for the 1st year, when you are transitioning from F1 to H1. You will get the H1 sometime in October. So for the 1st year of transition you are a non-resident alien.
Forms: 1040 NR 
Form 8843 to prove that you are Non resident alien: there will be columns to count your days in US while on H1B.

3. Tax Treaties
According to the country of residence, you are eligible for Tax treaties.

4. How to fill the form:
For Students from India: Refer worksheet 5-1.   page 28 pub 519.
This number is your Standard Deduction.
Write the description for that as US-<your country> Tax Treaty
Write this number in form 38 of 1040NR or line 11 of Form 1040 NR EZ. 

You can only use one deduction at a time, so if you have donated to charities etc you cannot claim tax benefit for that this year when using the tax treaty.

Rest of the form is pretty straightforward once you know the number in Line 38/ Line 11.
Gross Income - Standard deduction that you just found out = Taxable Income
There will be a huge table in the tax instructions (i1040nr.pdf). It is called Tax Table. See the tax according to your Taxable income range and Marital status.

Tax return = Tax that was cut from your salary - Tax according to the Tax table.


Reference: 
http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Substantial-Presence-Test
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum6-non-immigrant-visas/23171-f1-opt-h1b-tax-filing.html

http://www.quora.com/Taxes/Is-Standard-deduction-benefit-under-US-India-Tax-Treaty-available-for-someone-going-from-F1-to-H1B-visa-in-a-tax-year

http://taxes.about.com/b/2007/01/31/refund-of-social-security-and-medicare-taxes-for-nonresident-aliens.htm

http://www.visataxes.com/form1040nrez_home.php

http://www.askmehelpdesk.com/advice/t-10381.html

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110720125858AA6MsBq

http://www.irs.gov/publications/p519/ch05.html

http://www.askmehelpdesk.com/taxes/us-india-tax-treaty-f1-opt-h1b-448705.html

http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/pay/nonresident/taxtreaty/index.html

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/finance/1079356/

http://www.askmehelpdesk.com/advice/t-10%3C/t-7993.html.

http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Claiming-Tax-Treaty-Benefits

http://www.irs.gov/Help-&-Resources/Tools-&-FAQs/FAQs-for-Individuals/Frequently-Asked-Tax-Questions-&-Answers

4S unbiased review

So far everything I read is gushing by Iph fans. This 4S review is a bit late when S4 is out, but it still needs to be out there because some of these observations are related to iph in general. With that said, here is a balanced review of a un-hypnotized person.
1. Closing tabs: To close background tabs you have to press down home key, then press the active icons till they shake and then press minus sign to close them. WHAT!! How inefficient this closing apps procedure is.. why couldn't there be a simple way to just use the app and close it after you are done? Say a "minus" sign in a red circle at the top right always?

2. Cannot YouTube in background (maybe not the phone's fault?): Say you are playing something on video using the app, and just need to quickly check a message, the video pauses!! When you return to YouTube, you have to un-pause manually :x :x
Haven't tried Pandora yet and Grooveshark wasn't in app store, (but is free downloadable to a jailbreaked phones, 9$ a month for full version!! WHAT!! )
Tried to stream mp3 from Lyricsmasti: needs Flash player :P
Used Grooveshark from website: music to my ears while eyes look London, while screen locked <3 
I got a call during Pani da rang.. it picked up where it had left, all from the locked screen <3 <3

3. Free calling apps don't work well in WiFi: If google voice could work well with the same WiFi on my laptop, how come it keeps dropping calls when used on the phone? And the problem is not just with GV, viber, tango, facetime, Skype all had a droppy performance in the WiFi, whereas Skype, hangout and GV worked on laptop. So if someone is on a limited data plan, and is on a go, and wants to call his/ her parents abroad using  GV using the hotel's WiFi, good luck with that!
You need a different GV number to use GV on phone, though that's not the phone's fault.

4. Camera - and battery performance goes hand in hand. When I went to DC and we were using Teja's NL920 for the DC pics we took 1000 pics in 2 days. So lets average that to 500 pics per day, and that still left enough juice on Teja's NL920 to search for restaurants nearby, and to call Taxi to go home. Iph4S barely took 100 pics, with just a few minutes of google maps use.
All those false reviewers who babbled about NL920's battery life!! You liars!!
Photo quality: There is a lot of noise compared to my Canon 14 MP. Picture sharpness I cannot comment a lot about it.

Update 1: Just back from Smokeys trip. Battery lasted a whole day of taking loads of photos (= 200 photos) - with the phone in Airplane mode. 

5. Free imessage (not really): For it to be "free" I need to use WiFi/ 4G. I could have might as well pinged someone online free once i am in 4G/ WiFi.

6. Size of letters/ numbers while typing: Once upon a time, I was a messaging addict with almost 200 texts a day, yet no finger ache even when using buttons, plus when u need to press a button multiple times to get a desired letter if using vernacular words/ dictionary cannot find the word.
I agree I am not the same old ( I mean same younger) texting genius I used to be. Nevertheless, pressing the correct letter on the touchscreen needs some precision. Might need a stylus if I am going to be texting a lot on this phone.

All in all, sure it can replace GPS in car, but I don't think 4S is as good as a Point and Shoot. Net on the go is the only biggie. As far as I know phones were accessing net through GPRS and all in 2007 when I bought my 1st phone, so one day or the other everyone would have got to WiFi, 3G, 4G etc. So I don't see this as a groundbreaking product or anything.

A good product becomes a great product when it is advertised well. I had seen a painting at an art shop in St Augustine, it was a sunset painting and I had liked it. The lady in the museum saw me looking at the painting. She showed me the adjustable lights overhead and pointed out that the painting looked different in different light setting - it can emulate noon to sunset with varying lights. I was impressed!! Apple guys have won hands down in just making people look at their product in a different light.

object so close all cameras would have fumbled

For photos like this, no optical zoom in the phone camera is a scream. The birds had a red head..couldnt get that in pic

You can spot the peocock only if you peer closely.. again lack of optical zoom makes its presence felt

 

Takes 2 pics HDR one and non-HDR one, I am guessing this one was the HDR one

Loved this one.. Malgudi days :)

 

some memories you just have to hold in the "flash of your inward eye" because no machine can capture that green of the far-away water, and the gold of the sun. This one did an okay job with the red head

larger f number = worse performance in low light, ISO needed = noise added

To counter this low light Vs need to use higher ISO dilemna, a camera just needs a larger aperture to let in more light :)

Dynamo attempt1

I havent fiddled with anything for a long time. Trying to build a dynamo has been on my mind for years. But forgetful me forgot to buy electronics stuff like resistors etc from good old Rajeev Electronics when I went to Pune. The result? What I would have paid a rupee for in India for say a LED, i paid a dollar or two here.

Anyway, here's my dynamo trial.
All equipment from Radioshack.
Magnets: are a set of 4 disk magnets
Coil: Is a wire, more about that later.
LED: Red led, 1.8 V (I am like whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!! I am damn sure I have used a 1.2 V white LED in India. With the tiny magnets I am not sure how much voltage is going to be generated, and the 1.8 V led is the least voltage one I could find in Radioshack.
Resistors: My calculation is 1.8V / current needed by LED. My friend (will be called MF ahead) berates me, it should be (system vtg - 1.8) V / current needed. Eeks :P

MF's try 1, what MF calls simulation: Unstripped wire wound against a reynold's pen, then moves the magnet around it. LED doesnt light. MF gives up. Now it is my turn to berate MF. Hah! Revenge complete. I remind the stupid MF, that even if LED doesnt light, theoretically Mr. Faraday can prove voltage generated using a DMM. Voltage created = 0.8 V.

Deepika's try 1: I strip the wire. My logic is that we need uninsulated wire. MF wins back the chance to call me stupid. Points out that electrical insulation and magnetic insulation are 2 different things. My simulation doesn't light the LED either.
Deepika's try 2: So to increase the voltage generated we either need to use a stronger magnet = more money outta pocket, or increase the number of turns of coil. (accompanied by a "Oh I am so smart that I remember my 12th standard Physics" smile)
Ok so electrical simulation != magnetic simulation. I use the whole 150 ft of the wire, thankfully American smartness is such that the other end of wire is accessible in the spool.
Voltage generated is still around 0.8 V.

I say that we need a better coil or use a legit inductor. Maybe i need to strip out the wire and wind it real well with a extremely thin layer of insulation. I can think of nail paint as maybe something that I can coat thinly enough on the coil. Obviously, I can just go and buy a legit inductor, but this dynamo building is supposed to be hands on tinkering that I have not done in a while.

Now that I think about it, I picturize a transformer. It is wound around iron? Certainly it is very heavy to hold. So instead of a reynold's pen, let me try wrapping the wire around a piece of iron.

Basically, MF's idea of simulation sucked. If I had started directly, I would have wrapped the wire across the cycle metal, and there is a possibility that it would have worked. 

अतुल आत्ता वाचून डोकं आपटत असेल, but ever since Atul has told me about the foxhole radio, I am enchanted by it. If the soldiers scouring regular household stuff could build a radio (doesnt that need an antenna = something to resonate = a coil somewhere? ), surely I can make a coil that works.
Take-aways from the attempt:
1. electric insulation != magnetic insulation
2. inspired me to make a coil.. This is what I love about electronics, it gives you a high. Till I recover from my coil-making obsession..adios!

Matrimonial Website नावाचा जुगार

१. स्थळ संशोधन आई-बाबा करत आहेत : Quoting Sushmita Sen: Each person has a public side and a private side. आपला मुलगा कसा आहे हे खरंच घरच्यांना १०० % कळलेलं असतं ? भारतात गरीब गाय / श्रावण बाळाचा अवतार असलेल्या पोरांनी US ला येउन काय काय दिवे लावलेत ते मी प्रत्यक्ष पाहिलंय. इथे लावलेल्या सगळ्या दिव्यांचा उजाळा भारतापर्यंत तर नक्कीच पोचला नसतो ना?
आणि सगळ्यात महत्त्वाचं म्हणजे आपल्या मुलाबरोबर कोण compatible असणार आहे याचा निर्णय मुलगा सोडून दुसरा कोणी घेऊच कसं शकतं ? उदाहरणच द्यायचं झालं तर माझा एक श्रावणबाळ मित्र म्हणजे "शुक्रवारी फोन केला तर उचलला जाणारच नाही कारण म्हणे महाशय दारू पिउन पडलेले असतात". महाशयांची girlfriend कडून एकच अपेक्षा आहे - ती पण 'cheers' करणारी पाहिजे. आता ह्या तळीरामाला त्याच्या एवढीच, पाहिजे तरी त्याच्यापेक्षा पेताड  girlfriend मिळालीये आणि त्यांचं लग्नदेखील ठरलंय ती गोष्ट अलाहिदा. पण समजा जर महाशय काल लग्नाच्या बाजारात उभे असते तर त्याच्या आईबाबांच्या आदर्श सुनेच्या व्याख्येत त्याला हवी तशी जोडीदारीण बसणारच नव्हती, मग अश्यावेळी आईबाबांनी "initial filtering" करण्यात तरी काय  तथ्य आहे?

कारण क्रमांक २ : मुलगा त्याच्या कामात गर्क असल्याकारणाने आईबाबा मुलगी बघत आहेत : ज्या मुलाला स्वतःच्या आयुष्यातल्या एवढ्या मोठ्ठ्या निर्णयासाठी वेळ नाहीये तो मुलगा पुढे बायकोला काय वेळ देणार आहे?

मुद्दा क्रमांक ३: मागे  एका UF मित्राशी बोलत होते. त्याचं म्हणणं आहे की आत्ता जे US मध्ये आहेत त्यांच्यासाठी अजून लग्न ही priority च नाही आहे. मग मुलगा आत्ता लग्नाच्या बाबतीत serious च नसेल तर आई बाबांनी कितीही गळ घालून काय फरक पडणार आहे?

२ . पत्रिका: ज्याचा विश्वास आहे त्याने जरूर बघावी, पण ज्याच्याकडून बघून घेणार तो कितपत माहितगार आहे ते कसं कळणार ? आता तिचं लग्न झालं, पण शोधात होती तेव्हा एका मैत्रिणीने  खूप मार्मिक मुद्दा काढला कि बघायची असेल तर बोला-भेटायच्या आधी पत्रिका बघावी. भेटल्यावर उगाचच नकार द्यायला गुळमुळीत excuse म्हणून / नकार देताना मुलगी दुखावली तरी आपल्या ego साठी ढाल म्हणून पत्रिकेचा विषय काढू नये. तिच्या case मध्ये तिचे बाबा मुलाच्या बाबांशी फोनवर बोलत असतानाच मुलाच्या बाबांनी जन्मतारीख मागून, computer वर खुड-खुड करून पत्रिका जुळत नाही पाहून फोनच ठेऊन दिला! 

पण अजूनही लोकं पत्रिका बघताहेत हे  at least मला तरी खूप हास्यास्पद वाटलं. एखाद्या situation मध्ये एखादी व्यक्ती  कशी असणार आहे हे फक्तं  ती व्यक्ती किती समंजस Vs  आतताई आहे, यावरच अवलंबून आहे नाही का? पंचवीस वर्षांपूर्वी एखाद्याच्या स्वभावाचा अंदाज कोणी कसा लावला असणार आहे ? लग्नानंतर भारतात असणार आहे की US मध्ये वगैरे गोष्टी ती  + other half + available career opportunities + कंपनी ठरवणार आहे की ते पण पत्रिकेत लिहिलं असणार आहे?

३. Photo Request: Quoting my Dallas roommate: "अरे कोणी कसं दिसतंय त्यावरून भाळायला / infatuation ला आता काही आपण teenagers नाही आहोत". एका मित्राने तो अगदी खास मुलगी बघण्यासाठी भारतात गेला असताना मुलीचे दात पुढे आहेत म्हणून नकार दिला. आता तो मित्र म्हणून मी त्याला काही बोलले नाही पण मला हे नक्कीच खटकलं. आणि हो, मित्राने नकार देताना कारण 'पत्रिका जुळत नाही' असंच सांगितलं.
 चष्मा: आजकाल कुणाला नसतो?

माझ्या २ जिगरी सख्यांना त्यांचा जान-ए-जिगर online गावलाय. शेवटी blind shot आहे, especially when the "target" is unknown :P

Because each one of us is an accomplice

The recent news is about 3 teenage girls, who were kidnapped, and were imprisoned over 10 years. The kidnapper has a family, his brothers or sons often visited the same house where the 3 were jailed. Everyone noticed that the guy had locks on several rooms, but no one questioned him why. Oh no no, this is not some regular guy, this is the same guy whose wife seeked divorce from him because he abused her, and imprisoned her. Yet, given his history, not one bothered checking what/ who was behind those padlocks. Neighbours complained about weird things going on, the police just questioned him at the doorstep and never bothered stepping inside the house to check. Only if there was a tiny bit of vigilance from the guy's brothers/ son/ police, the 3 kidnapped women's story would have had a lot less gruesome ending.

But, more often than not, we turn a blind eye. We see our female colleagues sporting bruises that are so obviously not from a bathroom fall. But we never even ask her if anyone has beaten her. In our closely located apartment communities, we do hear screams at night, but we are too scared to check out.

A group of men stab / shoot someone in front of  a crowd, yet there are no witnesses.

By keeping mum, we are encouraging and emboldening the wrong-doers. In the age of recording devices on every phone, now you can don a veil of anonymity and still report a crime. There still needs to be a website where you can post the proof anonymously for everyone to see, there still needs to be a judicial system which will agree to treat that as an evidence, there needs to be a software which will erase your personal stamp from the crime-evidence photo that you are posting. But in the process, at least one man has stepped out of his fear zone. A start, no matter how small, might help a tiny bit in changing the face of crime.  

Inspired by Art

Went to the Melbourne Art festival yesterday. Saw some amazing paintings in oil + acrylic, and also  interesting mixed media creations. Some interesting artwork were car paint on aluminium, traditional paintings on rice paper - the japanese style uses a lot of warm colours and golden colours. Other artforms like glass menagerie, which we liked a lot because the glass fish had coloured patterns inside it! There were several arty jewellery tents too - one had glass jewellery backed with silver which reflected light and made the jewellery real shiny. Another had jewellery made from small hand painted silk screens

One guy used things like strings, pulleys in a stacked art form. For instance, one that I liked a lot was a stack of 4 canvasses. The top canvas placed horizontally was the hands of an artist holding puppet strings. Just beneath that, on  a vertical canvas was a smoky image of a human - as if it is a spirit, the adjoining vertical canvases had pieces of real string coming out from the top canvas placed artistically. The other one I liked was the Nokia-type image, the human hand touching divine hand image.. the divine hand was backlit through vibrant colours - and guess what! a piece of electric wires :)

But what inspired me the most was the photography section. I take a lot of photographs myself, and I could take it up. As my mom says: स्वान्त सुखाय । 

Peter Pan and Wendy the mom

I am a great fan of Enid Blyton, but that doesnt mean that I loved all her characters. Inspite of being a woman author, she stuck to the gender roles. There was atleast one character in all her series which was a typical girly girl, and she would play mom to the other kids. But Wendy in Peter Pan takes this mothering role to an entirely new level.

Peter Pan is seeking a girl so that she can be  a mother to the Lost Boys. In other words, someone who will tell them not to fall for poisoned cakes, someone who will tuck them to bed, tell them bedtime stories- if Grimm bros could compile a fairy tale collection, i am sure boys can tell stories too, and, wait for it, someone who will darn their stockings. Eww! I agree that the character is created in 1912, when lets face it, most women were housewives. But wasnt 1912 also the year of Amelia Earhart?

Recently, my colleague and his wife have a baby. He was telling us how it needs to be fed every 3 hours. And each feeding session is around an hour long. So he was stressing how motherhood is a triple duty full-time job. But at what point in the evolution chain did women become solely child-bearers and child/home-rearers and just gave up doing anything else?

Funnily enough, Peter Pan's author portrays boys as completely devoid of any common sense too. For instance, when Peter Pan wants his shadow back, he doesnt look around for a gluestick, but tries to stick it with a SOAP for god's sake. This otherwise lame Wendy stands up to Peter Pan in their first meeting saying he is not the captain in her house, and so he should behave himself.

What strikes me odd is that the Darling kids forget all about their parents. Only Wendy has a hope in her heart that her mom will never forget them and will always have a window open for them to fly back in. Personally, that scene was the cutest in the book, the real "awwww" scene Vs all of Wendy's irritating motherliness.

In one of the scenes Wendy points out that she thinks Peter is the "father" of the Lost Boys and she the mom, and a hint of romantic feelings towards Peter. How Peter returns it is immaterial, when Peter asks that Wendy should visit him once in a while, its Wendy's mom who says that Wendy will come and do Spring Cleaning for Peter. And not just Wendy, Peter ends up taking all of Wendy's female descendents to do spring cleaning for him. Gulliver's travels made me realize that what we read as children's stories could actually be allegory/ political satire. If this is not some sort of a bonded slavery then please explain what it is!

Dear children's authors, it is bad enough that girl kids are given dolls and boys Lego kits, but please dont reinforce the notions through stories too. I am no "feminist" in the political sense of the word, but I know girls can make excellent engineers too. Dear adolescent book authors, you dont have to tone down Nancy Drew's sarcasm to make her "acceptable" to readers, if we can love Chandler Bing surely we can learn to appreciate Nancy Drew?   And dear Adult book authors, there is so much more to a woman's life than being a beautiful blonde and attracting the man of her dreams. 

Dentist - 2

Tuesday 23rd April: A month after I knocked out my fillings, it is hurting just a bit.
Trip to Christie Dental for a 2nd opinion. 39$ new patient exam, sans x-ray because I have quite a recent one. What I liked about Christie is that they gave me a sheet detailing what is wrong with each tooth + their estimate for it. Now stupid me mixed up rights and lefts.. hell i am an engineer and was exposed to this numbering few days ago. Now the thing is I have lost fillings in the 6th tooth on L + R from centre in the lower jaw (numbered 19 and 30, and 30 is the one which is aching + the one Aspen lady said could grow to a root canal + the filling is from back surface and so I cannot see how bad it is = paranoia).  Thanks to the mixup, i got appointment to fix 19, which means I am spending 300$ more to cover something which isnt so serious.

Friday 26th April:
Step 1: Dentist's assistant dabs a pre-number on a big earbud-like thing and i am to hold it for 5 mins. I gag on it in the first minute. The lady replaces it with a smaller earbud. Few mins later, doc walks in with a machine that will give me the "shot" of the "real" anaesthetic. Wait for a long time for numbing to kick in.

Step 2: drilling ..the scariest thing for me
Step 3: Doc cleans the cavity with "hypochloride". I see the instrument which he uses. This is my 1st indication that the cavity is not a teeny weeny cavity that it originally was but a gaping hole by now.
Step 4: Filling in , light cure, test bite and I am out.

Step 5: I ask to see a mirror. Shock Shock Shock, for a little cavity, I have lost a large part of my tooth. The filling now covers not only a teeny weeny 2 mm max hole but covers half my tooth. No wonder the bite feels off.
The bite is meant to interlock the triangular serration of tooth with ridges in the opposite tooth. The filling is not a ridgy topography but a flat/ straight one. That's how my bite is off. Like my upper jaw is hanging on a single tooth instead of the 16 teeth that usually support it.

Step 6: I go back in and ask to be fixed. It still doesnt feel perfect, but I am too numb.
Takes about 4-5 hours for the numbness to wear off. I eat a burger for lunch. Bite is definitely off. Thanks to the elevated filling thing, my biting surface is reduced to only 2 teeth instead of the 6 sets of molars. Call the office for another appointment to refix my teeth.

Conclusions:
1. Indian dentist can accurately fill a 2mm cavity with 2 mm filling.
2. I now realize what that "crown" was all about. The US crown is not what an Indian dentist will put after a root canal, a US crown is a filling that covers your teeth and basically renders it useless unless it is going to be fixed in the next appointment.

Invisible scars of bullying

The hurt from some comments stayed with me for years. Hey, I am not someone who holds grudges or anything. Then why! Because it was not a healthy criticism, though I did not realize it at that time, it was blatant bullying.

Your desk was behind mine in 6th. Once I felt a weird touch. Hey it is disgusting enough to be touched by a guy here and there in your adolescence, but having the size of my waist being measured is a bit too much dont you think? And then to have my "measurements" broadcasted to your sneering gang of super-rich snobs is even worse. It had taken our class teacher to quell my discomfort, of course you wont remember her words. You were the so-called handsomest dude in the class, you didnt care whom you hurt and whom you didnt.

You are my best friend, surely you knew me enough to know what would hurt me and what wouldnt? Hey you dont look too perfect either, so no one gave you a right to comment on whether my vital assets are like "godrej chi safe".
And back to you, my super-rich snobby classmates, how does it matter to you whether or not my neck is longer than yours?

I know it will give you immense pleasure to know how low esteem I had about my body for most of my growing up years. And thank God I stumbled across an article on Giselle Bundchen - how swanlike her graceful neck is. It took even longer to realize that my cheeks that look so hollow and emaciated to you, are actually called having high cheek bones, and is one of the most sought after beauty features.

You are family. You criticized my "bhurkul kes" simply because they dont fit your era's standard of black-as-raven = beautiful hair.

One of the guys in your super-rich gang is an amazing artist, can play n number of musical instruments with ease, and is now a renowned music director. But just because he was so good, that didnt make my harmonium playing any bad. But that didnt stop you from taunting me in front of the entire music group did it? 

And you Miss. I think you knew more Medicine than my doctor parents when you told them that I should get my thyroid checked because I didnt start my girl stuff as early as you? Guess you dont know that doctors are more concerned about the trend of things starting early, but of course you had to tell tales.

You were my teacher. Whether or not I while away my time outside of school hours, how is it justified that you give me your B.Ed notes to copy them down for you, plus give me a deadline of how soon the task should be done? Sure, I did homework of my friend in school, but I did that because I wanted to, not because she forced me to, plus gave me a deadline.

I thought all this shit was a thing of past, but you guys never grew up did you? You had to pursue me till US and spread tales about me back home. Just because I grew up with my granny didnt mean my parents didnt care for me. Hey when someone comes for the 1st time to the US, very few have a laptop. Just because I used yours to let my parents know that I have reached safely, you thought I was clinging to your resources? What's worse you relayed that info. to your parents back home? And when my parents called you to ask a simple thing like through which courier your sister sent you rakhi, your parents and grandparents refused to even speak to my parents because you told them to stay away from my parents who have left me on streets uncared for? By the way..me and my parents had a good laugh over it. Know what, it reflects not only how immature you are, but it reflects a great deal about your parents too.

Whatever shit you threw at me, over time I learnt to ignore it. Sure the old scars still are there, but once I recognized that the problem was YOU, the scars dont bother me any more. You failed bullies.. you massively failed.

Extempore स्वप्नी

I had a dream yesterday - Since I cant see myself in the dream, I don't know how old I was in the dream. But the premise of the dream was that I participated in an extempore about "which virtues do I think are most important in contemporary life" or something of that sort.

नेतृत्त्व आणि नेतृत्त्वासोबतच दुसऱ्याचे सुयोग्य नेत्तृत्व खुल्या दिलाने स्वीकारायचं मोठेपण - आत्ता माझ्या डोक्यात सरदार पटेल आणि नेहरू यांचं उदाहरण आहे, पण भर सभेत असं उदाहरण देणं "politically incorrect" आहे, त्याहीपेक्षा असं उदाहरण द्यायची मला भीती वाटते.

म्हणूनच जीवनातला दुसरा अतिशय महत्त्वाचा गुण म्हणजे निर्भयता. ब्रिटीशांच्या अन्यायाविरुद्ध आवाज उठवायची निडरता आपल्यात नसती तर कदाचित आपण अजूनही पारतंत्र्यात खितपत पडलो असतो. आज आपल्यावर स्वराज्यातसुद्धा  पाउलोपावली अन्याय होतो, आपल्याला वाचवायला कोणीही मसीहा येणार नाहीये आणि म्हणूनच आपल्यात  निर्भयता हवी.

पण नुसतं एक माणूस निर्भय असून जगात काहीच घडणार नहिये. 1857 च्या संग्रामात लोक शूर नव्हते किंवा नेतृत्त्व कुठे कमी पडलं असं नव्हतं, पण "short term gains" साठी आपल्याच लोकांनी आपल्या विरुद्ध फितुरी केली. आजही असे पाठीत खंजीर खुपसणारे महाभाग कमी नाहीत. "एकमेकांचे पाय खेचू" मनोवृत्ति टाळण्यासाठी आणि एकमेका सहाय्य करू अवघे धरू सुपंथ घडण्यासाठी "team spirit" महत्त्वाची अहे.

Now as everyone knows, as soon as you wake up one snaps out of the dream. So this is all that I remember from the dream.

The internet handyman

Washer stopped working in spin cycle. Had to draw out water using a foam cup, and then mop dry the rest. Called the company's customer service. She asked to unplug cord, switch off circuit breaker for a minute and then try again. Did not work. This month has been so full of stupid expenses that I nearly broke down. After I was done wringing all clothes, mopping the last drops of water from the washer, asked good old google for help. Yahoo answers rock!! Someone 6 years ago had replied that there is a lid switch. Bend down and see if its working. Haha.. problem source identified. Thank you Yahoo answers :)


Remember one of my 1st electronics practicals 7 years ago.. we used a and gate chip etc etc to create a compound gate. The question was what do you think is more reliable..the breadboard circuit or an integrated circuit. The irreverent answer not to be answered in the lab report was : discrete circuit because if any wire fails at least I can replace the wire myself :P

Ooh 7 years ago! I already feel old!!!! :( :(  

The Conflicted Solitary Reaper

I don't remember what triggered the conversation - it was either rain or non-vegetarianism.. either ways the emotional turmoil it led to stayed with me long after.

#1.
मी : तू लहानपणापासून ते आत्तापर्यंत किती कोंबड्या मारल्या असणारेस?
ससा:  तू आत्तापर्यंत किती plants मारले असणार आहेस?

To be honest, the guilt has been with me since many years. My Cummins friend Gauri opined that all the so-called vegetarians are hypocrites because even the plants have life. A friend Atul told me that this moral debate has been discussed in Dnyaneshwari, the work of a great thinker Dnyaneshwar. A UF friend Kapil, has an interesting hypothesis, which he shared one day over Krishna Lunch - If we were to be self-reliant, we would have been green like plants and doing our own photosynthesis. To sustain our life, we HAVE to kill something, either a plant or an animal.

Inspite of Kapil's logical observation, the dilemna stayed with me. One day, the American guy, Ben, who taught me driving, dropped by for lunch. I shared my dal-rice with him, but politely refused his chicken-tiffin citing religious reasons. I explained that Hinduism is a very peaceful, non-violent religion, and hence meat is prohibited. I further shared that Hinduism is a very ancient philosophy and later Indian religions like Jainism built over it. Jains don't eat "roots" like onions, potatoes or garlic because a plant is killed in the process. In fact, Maharashtrian Hindus too ideally + ideologically do not eat onions n all during 4 months of "चातुर्मास". It is interesting to note that "Chaturmas" falls during the rainy season in India. Is it a coincidence that Onions, garlic are sort of dry things and can be stored to be eaten later?  Maybe take them out of soil after they have led their life and then one can have them year-round?

It is okay to have my own misgivings at the back of my mind, but when Sasa directly accuses me that the food I eat has also led to wheat plant deaths, I take it as an effrontery and argue against it.

Me: The farmer only cuts out the flower that has the wheat seeds. Why will that kill the plant?
Note: My argument is based off the basil plant. My granny regularly cuts off the "मंजिरी" or tulsi seed agglomerate, yet that tulsi plant has been with us for 15+ years.
Sasa: If that did not kill the plant, why would the farmer need to sow seeds every year?
Me: Maybe the plant dies because of natural end of life cycle a few days/ months post the harvest.
Sasa: Or maybe the farmer cuts off a lot of plant during reaping, and so the rest of the plant just withers away.

One of the jokes that does rounds in India is that the cyberkids believe "plastic tetrapak yields milk" because they have never seen a cow being milked. Laugh as we may at their ignorance, we are no different. We come from a primarily agrarian country, but have no clue about how the food is grown. Never having seen the hardships of a farmer, we take things for granted.

#2.
.....yapp yapp yapp...
Me: So are the farmers gonna flip open their mobiles to check when would it rain?
Sasa: why do you think farmers wont have mobiles/ use technology?
Me: I think farmers don't need government or anyone to tell them when it will rain and all.
If I have to know a tool as a vital part of my career, I will learn it by myself if there is no tutorial.
Similarly, when their entire life-saving is rain-dependent, farmers will obviously learn to predict things in a year or two.
Why I think so: My granny grew up in Konkan, the East coast of Maharashtra. She can accurately calculate high tide/ low tide timings based on the phase of moon. When I had been to Dapoli, another place in Konkan, any random local person could warn us when to stay off the beach thanks to the low tide.
Sasa: Government puts so many satellites and all to forecast. US has such an advanced farming because they tell people so much about weather.

In retrospection, if they really knew when and when wouldn't it rain, the farmers wouldn't have sowed seeds only to have no rains later! And if really all the Government had to do was to put up more satellites, and broadcast info. to farmers, and it still couldn't do the job...........

One solitary lass's anguish wont change anything yet she seeks her answers.