Cerebral Shangrila

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Tech trivia

What is special about symbolics.com?


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Sunday, March 28, 2010

Tata Crucible Quiz - Chennai Edition Questions

Give it a shot. Answers in a few days.

1. How does the world better know the Waterbury clock company?

2. Maheshwar Hydro Electric project is a diversification project of which textile major in India?

3. With which chocolate maker you will associate the tagline “the sweetest place on earth”?

4. Which form was founded in 1907 by Eugene Schuler ?

5. Which auto major is a major investor in Juventus?

6. Which organisation known for pioneering industrial standards was started in Feb. 1947?

7. One Italian word for maker of coffee

8. Your lungs, your heart, your legs, your will. Running isn’t a team sport – Adline for what ?

9. Theory propagated by a famous business leader during his tenure at GE called One-Two theory of Mgmt. Who and explain?

10. This term coined by Gifferd and Elizabeth gives the description of an employee who contributes to the business success of the organisation and innovation culture.

11. Term was coined in 18th century – comes from the French word of quarter master – extensively used in military management.

12. Believed and accepted to be first done by Simon Stevin from Belgium as early as 16th century -called it as “the Fair statement”. What?

13. Directors of this company thought that the length of the name was longer – so they had an acronym TTK – then they changed to a name of Latin origins to make a short and crisp name. Which company?

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Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Thomas Friedman on " Immigration"

Friedman hits the nail on the head with this article. It is a clever piece, using an interesting story to drive home a critical point.

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Saturday, March 20, 2010

Tns- live at Khoo auditorium, Singapore


Yet another briiliant concert by the inimitable TNS. My picks were the yadukula kambodhi, shanmukhapriya and the thillana. Since it was a GNB memorial concert ( to commemorate the birth centenary of that genius) , TNS penned the main kriti on GNB. Though his voice has aged, the "vidwat" was all too visible. Listening to " thalaivar" on any day is a pleasure!

Here is the song list:


1. Intha - begada
2. Thelisi Rama - poorna chandrika
3. Enna kaadu - panthu varali
4. Para mukham - kanada
5. Mara koti sundari - bahudari
6. Ninnu - yadhukula kambodhi
7. Giri priyam - kadanakudukalam
8. Guna nidhi balasubramaniane - shanmukhapriya
Swaras in bagesri, hamsanandi, neelambari, kapi
9. Sayangale - ragamalika ( ahir bhairav, mohanam, kamas, bilahari,k. Goula, bhupalam,subapantuvarali, ahiri, neelambari, hamir kalyani, sahana,sindu bhairavi ( thillana)
10. Pazhani - behag
11. Pavamana - sowrashtram


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Friday, March 19, 2010

Trivia

Which country has the longest life expectency in the world? ( clue: it isn't japan - japan is second)


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Thursday, March 18, 2010

KL trip

How to make a boring one day business trip to KL interesting?
Try flying the Firefly ( subsidiary of Malaysian airlines) turboprop flight to subang. It's a smaller yet cool looking aircraft which offers an adventurous short hop.

Here is my experience:

1. Check-in & boarding was a breeze. Being a smaller plane with just 72 seats, its easy to fill the plane fast.

2. The plane looks like a cross between a chopper & glider. The ground clearance is low and the noise is huge. It flies slower ( 80 mins flying time to subang ) and at a lower altitude.

3. They offer upto 15 kg check-in and serve muffin & cool drinks.

4. Immigration at subang was very quick. I got out of the airport in 5 mins and it was a 15 mins taxi ride to the city.

5. Tip: sit in the rear - that is where the exit doors are.


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Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Nyepi - Balinese New Year

How different can Bali and Balinese be? How about this for a sample - the new year (Nyepi) is celebrated as a day of silence, fasting, and meditation. Observed from 6 a.m. until 6 a.m. the next morning, Nyepi is a day reserved for contemplation and as such, anything that might interfere with that purpose is restricted. The main restrictions are Amati Geni (no lighting fires); Amati Karya (no working); Amati Lelanguan (no entertainment or pleasure); and Amati Lelungan (no traveling); and for some, no talking or eating at all. The roads are completely deserted and the airport closes for 24 hours.

Why a new year is celebrated with silence and contemplation?

According to Balinese folklore, on this sacred day, after the eve’s festivities and rituals, the evil spirit is drove away from heaven by God. They are homeless now. They seek vengeance on those who drove them from paradise. These angry evil spirits roam the heavens seeking a new home in the world. The evil spirits take to the sky, their eyes wide open looking down at earth, especially Bali. However, they see nothing on the island because Balinese people do nothing on Nyepi and stay in their homes. The spirits think Bali is empty of people because there is no human activity. When they have seen enough, they fly off and Bali is safe for another year.

Today is Nyepi. Without much fanfare and ostentation, Bali is teaching the world the true meaning of "reflection" and " earth hour".

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Saturday, March 13, 2010

@ KL this weekend

I am at KL ( Kuala lumpur) this weekend, having brought my dad for a sightseeing trip. KL never feels like " foreign" since I have been more than 25 times. But everytime there is something new to discover - this time it's the Petrosains museum at KLCC. They have got a massive dinosaur!


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Thursday, March 11, 2010

10 Most Dangerous countries to Visit

Interesting list from Howstuffworks. Of these - Kenya, Brazil and Russia are in my must-visit list.

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Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Cold, Colder & Coldest

I can forget my dream of going to Alaska during a winter. Having arrived from London with a sore throat and cold, I thought Macau at 10c might be a respite from the 3c at London. Do u know that Macau at 10c can be colder than London at 3c? It puzzles me but weathermen can explain it with two terms -" cold gusty winds" & " feels like zero".

Macau's weather can be as unpredictable as sehwag's form. It was 10c on Tuesday, 14c today and 20c tomorrow. Is this weather data or data from slot machines? - beats me either way.

The odyssey doesn't seem to end. I might travel to Boston next week where I heard the temperature is actually zero! Americans will make it sound better by saying it's not zero but 32f - thanks for that.


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Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Busy with travel

It has been hectic past week with a business trip to London and Macau in china. Plenty of work but some quality time for sight seeing too. I am not complaigning !


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Monday, March 01, 2010

Akshaya Patra: Improving Education, One Meal at a Time

Case Study of the Indian NGO - Akshaya Patra , the world's largest NGO school meal programme.

Source : Knowledge@Wharton

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