My dear, perceptive reader, I come back to you today with more of my inchoate musings about the mundane. Perhaps in no other thing is displayed as clearly incontrovertible proof of the takeover of the technological age and its associated social implications as in the morning routine of a typical IITian. Consider, for instance, yours truly, I wake up in the morning, thanks largely to a voice alarm which, trust me, is as irritating as it is effective. My first action in the morn is to yawn and sleepily toggle the switch on my desk onto the ‘ON’ position, do the same to my UPS device and switch on my computer. (Note that I make no mention of performing my morning ablutions prior to this)
Thankfully, I have a fast, reliable for the most part, internet connection available in my room at all not-so-unearthly hours. I shudder to think of how my life would be without the internet. For those as intensely private as yours truly, it is a godsend, no less!! It allows me to maintain the essential interaction with other members of the human race, but yet it allows me to have it on my own terms.
Consider, for a moment, my dear reader, the vast myriad of social networking websites and instant messaging (IM) services. I myself use way too many of the afore-mentioned for my own good. Anyway, I am reasonably certain that the creators of this concept had in mind not its use by people like me, but rather by those extroverts who like nothing better in life than to make new friends. But, foreseen or otherwise, my kind owes an eternal debt to the creation and its creators.
But I digress. The reason for this post was another. I wished to highlight the point that say, GTalk, provides an interface for interaction which is intensely comfortable. I do not have to subject myself to the actual presence of the person with whom I wish to converse or vice versa. (No offense intended, of course) There is an indescribable romance, a mystery to IMing which for some reason, chooses not to reveal itself to me. Yet, I sense that it is there, teasingly, tantalizingly just outside my reach. Don’t you feel it too, my dear reader? Don’t you feel the charm of the chat window, the mystique of multiple interpretations to every line typed, the incredible convenience (to those insecure few) of being able to consider what you say before you actually say it!! Aren’t you, with such a interface, much less likely to put your overly large foot in your mouth??
A case in point for this argument is the use of the call function of GTalk. How many of us actually use it? And when we do use it, it is rare to do so for a full blown conversation rather than a few terse statements, very breve and business-like.
And yet, it is not without its drawbacks. Over such an interface, you see but a façade, only that part of the other the other wants you to see in the first place. You have to inkling of the true nature of the man behind the words. (Or woman, I shall not be accused of sexism) IM is, borrowing from an old fable, the golden fleece which can make the wolf seem a lamb.
One wonders about the cause of this unprecedented comfort level experienced over this interface. As always, I have my own opinions. (Yeah right, big surprise!!) I believe that no one ever truly opens up in a conversation, be t face to face or otherwise. A shield is always raised, invariably. It is just that in a face to face conversation, your counterpart has many more opportunities to sneak peeks of the real you. On the other hand, in an internet conversation, the benefits are dual; the shield can be raised with less effort and also the other cannot penetrate it without substantial effort.
Well, I’m afraid I shall have to truncate this discussion abruptly. I leave it to you, my dear perceptive reader, to form your own opinions and, as always, live on the hope that you shall share them with me.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Saturday, August 11, 2007
WHO SPEAKS FOR EARTH?
We look back through countless millions of years and see the great will to live struggling out of the intertidal slime, struggling from shape to shape and from power to power, crawling and then walking confidently upon the land, struggling generation after generation to master the air, creeping down into the darkness of the deep; we see it turn upon itself in rage and hunger and reshape itself anew, we watch it draw nearer and more akin to us, expanding, elaborating itself, pursuing its relentless inconceivable purpose, until at last it reaches us and its being beats through our brains and arteries … It is possible to believe that all that the human mind has ever accomplished is but the dream before the awakening … Out of our … lineage, minds will spring, that will reach back to us in our littleness to know us better than we know ourselves. A day will come, one day in the unending succession of days, when beings, beings who are now latent in our thoughts and hidden in our loins, shall stand upon this earth as one stands upon a footstool, and shall laugh and reach out their hands amidst the stars.
-H.G.Wells, “The Discovery of the Future,”
It’s good to see you again, my dear perceptive reader. I hope you’ve been well, as have been I. For my humanities elective, I chose a course called ‘Literature and the Environment’. Great course, excellent teacher. But even though I really enjoy the classes, somehow I feel uncomfortable with the philosophy of the course.
Say, for instance, an extraterrestrial intelligence comes to earth and asks for one sentient life being to represent the planet. Surely you can imagine the strife among the factions of our society as to who represents us. But ponder this; do we ever consider that the planets representative be any other life form other than humans? What leads to this specio-centrism? Are we the dominant life-form on this planet? Surely not. We are nowhere close to, say, bacteria. It has always been the Age of Bacteria. There has never been a time in life’s history when they have not been the most abundant life form. What is it then? Yes, it is the fact that we are the most intelligent species on the planet.
Well then, who does the planet belong to? Most would give me one of two answers: either no one at all or all the beings that inhabit the planet. I, on the other hand, beg to differ. I believe the planet belongs to us, humans. By what virtue, by what right, ask you? Do we have a ‘divine’ birthright which gives us control? Certainly not. We have the right because we TAKE the right. I ask people, what is the reason people pursue environment conservation and all that? Again, two answers. One, because plants and animals, (I use the phrase generically, science students please don’t contradict me about the bacteria and the like.) are useful to us. I have no problems thus far. I more than agree, in fact. Later, people tend to get into the divine right of all life to live. This is where I must jump in. We are the most intelligent species on the planet. We are the ones who will eventually colonize the galaxy. I do not believe in the sacrament of life, but in that of intelligence.
We are the local embodiment of a cosmos grown to self-awareness. We have begun to contemplate our origins: starstuff pondering the stars; organized assemblages of molecules raised to consciousness. Our loyalties lie towards our species, towards intelligence itself. We have an obligation to survive. WE speak for earth.
-H.G.Wells, “The Discovery of the Future,”
It’s good to see you again, my dear perceptive reader. I hope you’ve been well, as have been I. For my humanities elective, I chose a course called ‘Literature and the Environment’. Great course, excellent teacher. But even though I really enjoy the classes, somehow I feel uncomfortable with the philosophy of the course.
Say, for instance, an extraterrestrial intelligence comes to earth and asks for one sentient life being to represent the planet. Surely you can imagine the strife among the factions of our society as to who represents us. But ponder this; do we ever consider that the planets representative be any other life form other than humans? What leads to this specio-centrism? Are we the dominant life-form on this planet? Surely not. We are nowhere close to, say, bacteria. It has always been the Age of Bacteria. There has never been a time in life’s history when they have not been the most abundant life form. What is it then? Yes, it is the fact that we are the most intelligent species on the planet.
Well then, who does the planet belong to? Most would give me one of two answers: either no one at all or all the beings that inhabit the planet. I, on the other hand, beg to differ. I believe the planet belongs to us, humans. By what virtue, by what right, ask you? Do we have a ‘divine’ birthright which gives us control? Certainly not. We have the right because we TAKE the right. I ask people, what is the reason people pursue environment conservation and all that? Again, two answers. One, because plants and animals, (I use the phrase generically, science students please don’t contradict me about the bacteria and the like.) are useful to us. I have no problems thus far. I more than agree, in fact. Later, people tend to get into the divine right of all life to live. This is where I must jump in. We are the most intelligent species on the planet. We are the ones who will eventually colonize the galaxy. I do not believe in the sacrament of life, but in that of intelligence.
We are the local embodiment of a cosmos grown to self-awareness. We have begun to contemplate our origins: starstuff pondering the stars; organized assemblages of molecules raised to consciousness. Our loyalties lie towards our species, towards intelligence itself. We have an obligation to survive. WE speak for earth.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
THE CRADLE OF COMFORT
My dear, perceptive reader; almost exactly a week ago today, I returned to the sprawling, scenic IIT-M campus to embark on the 3rd installment of my journey towards an engineering degree. Of course, before that, I spent 3 months at home, being pampered like the little prince I was 10 years ago(annoyed frown). Its not that I’m not grateful, because trust me, I am. It’s just that Mom has got to realize that I neither need nor want someone at my beck and call 24*7. Anyway, I digress. Point is, one would think that after home, I would find it hard to adjust to insti life, wouldn’t one? Surprisingly, reality had quite the contrary in store for me.
I found that I adjusted faster to insti life when I got back from home rather than vice-versa. This, my friends, is where I belong. Of course, life here is very humdrum, hectic and sorts. Quite the contrast to the laid-back I have no worries; I have no goals life I led for the three months I spent at home. But, you know what, I like it this way. I like having things to do. I like not wallowing in my boredom. I like getting up in the morning and knowing that I have goals to achieve before the day is done and gone. You know, the clichéd “Miles to go before I sleep” situation.
Again, you would think that the pace of life here, if maintained over long periods of time, would drive one crazy. And, you would be right!! Well then, what keeps me sane? (Of course, there will be some among you who might argue that sane isn’t exactly an appropriate word to describe me, but lets just say, for the sake of argument, that I am sane, shall we?) Anyway, coming back to the matter at hand, what keeps me sane is, in fact, my room!! Of course, most among you would consider the preceding statement to be incontrovertible proof that I am deranged, but I implore you, hear me out.
My room is a unit, which runs best in symbiosis with me. I do not know how to explain this to another, but I shall do my very best. You know how when you are concentrating, when you are doing something important, the muscles and tendons on your neck and shoulders somehow are perennially tense and taut. But when I get to my room, everything suddenly goes so slack and I actually let out a sigh!! It is like a cradle or a womb, a comforter, so to speak. It is where I feel immune to the world around me. It is my own space, my own Agam, so to speak, for those familiar with the concepts of Sangam literature. It is a base camp, a command center, from where I regulate my links to the outer world. I let in only those I choose, I go out only when I choose. I am the master, and yet I am at the mercy of my room! When I came back, I had to reorganise my room from scratch. I realised, of course, that there were a million better ways to do it, but I had to chose the exact same arrangement I had during the second semester. It was a compulsion, know what I mean?
Well, I guess I’ll bring an end to my awkward chain of thought here, and also to your misery, my dear reader. After all, I wouldn’t want to scare you away from this blog. But, I would appreciate your comments and thoughts, as always. Bye for now, see you in a bit!!
I found that I adjusted faster to insti life when I got back from home rather than vice-versa. This, my friends, is where I belong. Of course, life here is very humdrum, hectic and sorts. Quite the contrast to the laid-back I have no worries; I have no goals life I led for the three months I spent at home. But, you know what, I like it this way. I like having things to do. I like not wallowing in my boredom. I like getting up in the morning and knowing that I have goals to achieve before the day is done and gone. You know, the clichéd “Miles to go before I sleep” situation.
Again, you would think that the pace of life here, if maintained over long periods of time, would drive one crazy. And, you would be right!! Well then, what keeps me sane? (Of course, there will be some among you who might argue that sane isn’t exactly an appropriate word to describe me, but lets just say, for the sake of argument, that I am sane, shall we?) Anyway, coming back to the matter at hand, what keeps me sane is, in fact, my room!! Of course, most among you would consider the preceding statement to be incontrovertible proof that I am deranged, but I implore you, hear me out.
My room is a unit, which runs best in symbiosis with me. I do not know how to explain this to another, but I shall do my very best. You know how when you are concentrating, when you are doing something important, the muscles and tendons on your neck and shoulders somehow are perennially tense and taut. But when I get to my room, everything suddenly goes so slack and I actually let out a sigh!! It is like a cradle or a womb, a comforter, so to speak. It is where I feel immune to the world around me. It is my own space, my own Agam, so to speak, for those familiar with the concepts of Sangam literature. It is a base camp, a command center, from where I regulate my links to the outer world. I let in only those I choose, I go out only when I choose. I am the master, and yet I am at the mercy of my room! When I came back, I had to reorganise my room from scratch. I realised, of course, that there were a million better ways to do it, but I had to chose the exact same arrangement I had during the second semester. It was a compulsion, know what I mean?
Well, I guess I’ll bring an end to my awkward chain of thought here, and also to your misery, my dear reader. After all, I wouldn’t want to scare you away from this blog. But, I would appreciate your comments and thoughts, as always. Bye for now, see you in a bit!!
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