Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Back For Good
http://ewbx.blogspot.com/
Alas, I found time to upgrade to the new Blogger and tweak the template a little bit. I also embedded a Google map into my blog last week in order to test some functionality. I was rather startled to discover the features and resources offered by Google earth and maps to share and disseminate information using KML (Keyhole Markup Language).
I'm currently building a mashup-prototype, to solve the problem of information sharing during Crisis-Response situations. The URL....
I'm currently building a mashup-prototype, to solve the problem of information sharing during Crisis-Response situations. The URL....
http://ewbx.blogspot.com/
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
The Alchemist
I found this interesting review of one of my favorite books "The Alchemist";
I found this interesting review of one of my favorite books "The Alchemist";
Dreams, symbols, signs, and adventure follow the reader like echoes of ancient wise voices in "The Alchemist", a novel that combines an atmosphere of Medieval mysticism with the song of the desert. With this symbolic masterpiece Coelho states that we should not avoid our destinies, and urges people to follow their dreams, because to find our "Personal Myth" and our mission on Earth is the way to find "God", meaning happiness, fulfillment, and the ultimate purpose of creation.
The novel tells the tale of Santiago, a boy who has a dream and the courage to follow it. After listening to "the signs" the boy ventures in his personal, Ulysses-like journey of exploration and self-discovery, symbolically searching for a hidden treasure located near the pyramids in Egypt. When he decides to go, his father's only advice is "Travel the world until you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful". In his journey, Santiago sees the greatness of the world, and meets all kinds of exciting people like kings and alchemists. However, by the end of the novel, he discovers that "treasure lies where your heart belongs", and that the treasure was the journey itself, the discoveries he made, and the wisdom he acquired.
"The Alchemist", is an exciting novel that bursts with optimism; it is the kind of novel that tells you that everything is possible as long as you really want it to happen. That may sound like an oversimplified version of new-age philosophy and mysticism, but as Coelho states "simple things are the most valuable and only wise people appreciate them".
As the alchemist himself says, when he appears to Santiago in the form of an old king "when you really want something to happen, the whole universe conspires so that your wish comes true". This is the core of the novel's philosophy and a motif that echoes behind Coelho's writing all through "The Alchemist". And isn't it true that the whole of humankind desperately wants to believe the old king when he says that the greatest lie in the world is that at some point we lose the ability to control our lives, and become the pawns of fate. Perhaps this is the secret of Coelho's success: that he tells people what they want to hear, or rather that he tells them that what they wish for but never thought possible could even be probable.
"The Alchemist" is a novel that may appeal to everybody, because we can all identify with Santiago: all of us have dreams, and are dying for somebody to tell us that they may come true. The novel skillfully combines words of wisdom, philosophy, and simplicity of meaning and language, which makes it particularly readable and accounts for its bestselling status.
Source: http://bookreviews.nabou.com/
The novel tells the tale of Santiago, a boy who has a dream and the courage to follow it. After listening to "the signs" the boy ventures in his personal, Ulysses-like journey of exploration and self-discovery, symbolically searching for a hidden treasure located near the pyramids in Egypt. When he decides to go, his father's only advice is "Travel the world until you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful". In his journey, Santiago sees the greatness of the world, and meets all kinds of exciting people like kings and alchemists. However, by the end of the novel, he discovers that "treasure lies where your heart belongs", and that the treasure was the journey itself, the discoveries he made, and the wisdom he acquired.
"The Alchemist", is an exciting novel that bursts with optimism; it is the kind of novel that tells you that everything is possible as long as you really want it to happen. That may sound like an oversimplified version of new-age philosophy and mysticism, but as Coelho states "simple things are the most valuable and only wise people appreciate them".
As the alchemist himself says, when he appears to Santiago in the form of an old king "when you really want something to happen, the whole universe conspires so that your wish comes true". This is the core of the novel's philosophy and a motif that echoes behind Coelho's writing all through "The Alchemist". And isn't it true that the whole of humankind desperately wants to believe the old king when he says that the greatest lie in the world is that at some point we lose the ability to control our lives, and become the pawns of fate. Perhaps this is the secret of Coelho's success: that he tells people what they want to hear, or rather that he tells them that what they wish for but never thought possible could even be probable.
"The Alchemist" is a novel that may appeal to everybody, because we can all identify with Santiago: all of us have dreams, and are dying for somebody to tell us that they may come true. The novel skillfully combines words of wisdom, philosophy, and simplicity of meaning and language, which makes it particularly readable and accounts for its bestselling status.
Source: http://bookreviews.nabou.com/
Monday, September 24, 2007
Data Warehouse Modeling
My final presentation for the Seminars course @ my univ...
My final presentation for the Seminars course @ my univ...
Data Warehouse Modeling
View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Memento
This easily is one of the greatest movies ever made, it keeps you glued from the first frame to the last. The movie consists of two time lines, the past is played forward (in B&W) and the present is played backward (in color) which converge seamlessly. The non-linear story telling adds a great deal of ambiguity to the movie but in effect also enhances the suspense. I think this style of presentation also instigates the viewer to watch the movie repeatedly to make sense of it. This flick is indeed a modern classic.
I think any one who watches this movie would think of more idealistic ways of dealing with a similar situation (in a hypothetical sense) i.e. with a 15 minute memory buffer. I did certainly think of it and came up with this list of Do(s) and Don't(s).
Do(s)
Don't(s)
I think any one who watches this movie would think of more idealistic ways of dealing with a similar situation (in a hypothetical sense) i.e. with a 15 minute memory buffer. I did certainly think of it and came up with this list of Do(s) and Don't(s).
Do(s)
- Pick up a Blackberry; easier to make notes and memos, set alerts, camera, GPS in case you get lost etc.
- Todo List; to keep in track of day to day events and remainders.
- Blog; Micro-blogging through Twitter and blogging through Blogger/Wordpress.
Don't(s)
- Tattoos; on the long run you'll run out of space...but ofcourse getting your phone no., the url of your personal Todo list and Blog tattooed is a great idea! (also the passwords)
- Collage; could sometimes get confusing based on the amount of information that has been collated...more efficient visualization techniques need to be used. An e.g. is my timeline at a social networking site called Lifeblob (http://www.lifeblob.com/user/vivekjv/view/timeline)
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Casablanca
One of the best movie ever made, if any movie was to be singled out as the most laudable and classic picture of all time there is no doubt that Casablanca would be right up there. Nobody associated with the film guessed that it would become a screen classic. It went on to win the Oscar for Best Film of 1943 with an award for Michael Curtiz' taut direction.
Oddly enough, the film's memorable airport ending was written and conceived just shortly before filming wrapped up, with neither Bergman nor Bogart knowing whether or not she would leave him for husband Paul Henried. Sydney Greenstreet, Conrad Veidt, Victor Francen and Peter Lorre all gave sterling performances.
An added bonus is hearing "As Time Goes By" throughout the film, a haunting song played by pianist Dooley Wilson. I happened to find this song on YouTube which also happens to be one of the memorable scenes in the movie.
The other most memorable scene is the ending which makes this movie so endearing. Casablanca will be seen and loved by filmgoers for generations, as time goes by.
Oddly enough, the film's memorable airport ending was written and conceived just shortly before filming wrapped up, with neither Bergman nor Bogart knowing whether or not she would leave him for husband Paul Henried. Sydney Greenstreet, Conrad Veidt, Victor Francen and Peter Lorre all gave sterling performances.
An added bonus is hearing "As Time Goes By" throughout the film, a haunting song played by pianist Dooley Wilson. I happened to find this song on YouTube which also happens to be one of the memorable scenes in the movie.
The other most memorable scene is the ending which makes this movie so endearing. Casablanca will be seen and loved by filmgoers for generations, as time goes by.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Children Of Men
A brilliant movie based on the the P D James book "Children Of Men". Clearly of all the visions of the future movie audiences have been treated to over the past few years, the world of Children of Men may be the most frightening and allegorically effective yet.
Theo, a journalist with connections to the top, is persuaded by his ex-wife and fish member Julian to obtain some exit papers for Kee a young black woman, who, it turns out, is pregnant. Theo is swept up in Kee's escape across a grim decaying landscape. Not only are there the security forces to contend with, but some equally ruthless insurgents. Cuaron builds the tension exquisitely, interspersing the adrenaline fueled bits with quieter bits.
As a thriller, the film is blisteringly intense and incredibly effective. From the bomb blast that caps off the opening credits to the frenzied urban warfare sequences that dominate the film's closing thirty minutes, Cauron never lets the film lag. Though it slows down enough to deal with character development and exposition, the film maintains a running intensity as Theo and Kee try to stay one step ahead of terrorists, the police, the army and random opportunists. Several action scenes are shot in continuous takes, and make for compelling and electrifying viewing.
The film has a great look and feel to it, the cinematography and the use of the environment is great. This movie is also compared to Casablanca in many aspects (read an interesting review - http://www.alternatetakes.co.uk/?2006,12,116 ).
Theo, a journalist with connections to the top, is persuaded by his ex-wife and fish member Julian to obtain some exit papers for Kee a young black woman, who, it turns out, is pregnant. Theo is swept up in Kee's escape across a grim decaying landscape. Not only are there the security forces to contend with, but some equally ruthless insurgents. Cuaron builds the tension exquisitely, interspersing the adrenaline fueled bits with quieter bits.
As a thriller, the film is blisteringly intense and incredibly effective. From the bomb blast that caps off the opening credits to the frenzied urban warfare sequences that dominate the film's closing thirty minutes, Cauron never lets the film lag. Though it slows down enough to deal with character development and exposition, the film maintains a running intensity as Theo and Kee try to stay one step ahead of terrorists, the police, the army and random opportunists. Several action scenes are shot in continuous takes, and make for compelling and electrifying viewing.
The film has a great look and feel to it, the cinematography and the use of the environment is great. This movie is also compared to Casablanca in many aspects (read an interesting review - http://www.alternatetakes.co.uk/?2006,12,116 ).
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