I took a call to let go and hopefully it is the right one. Was reminded of a beautiful song by Stereophonics. The song is called "Maybe Tomorrow". It was used during the closing credits in the movie "Crash" another amazing piece of art. The lyrics goes like this.
I've been down and
I'm wondering why
These little black clouds
Keep walking around
With me
With me
It wastes time
And I'd rather be high
Think I'll walk me outside
And buy a rainbow smile
But be free
They're all free
So maybe tomorrow
I'll find my way home
So maybe tomorrow
I'll find my way home
I look around at a beautiful life
Been the upperside of down
Been the inside of out
But we breathe
We breathe
I wanna breeze and an open mind
I wanna swim in the ocean
Wanna take my time for me
All me
So maybe tomorrow
I'll find my way home
So maybe tomorrow
I'll find my way home
Hopefully things will start looking up again and I start moving on with my life. I hope...
Birds flying high You know how I feel Sun in the sky You know how I feel Breeze driftin' on by You know how I feel It's a new dawn It's a new day It's a new life For me.. And I'm feeling good
Fish in the sea You know how I feel River running free You know how I feel Blossom in the trees You know how I feel It's a new dawn It's a new day It's a new life For me... And I'm feeling good
Dragonfly out in the sun You know what I mean, don't you know Butterflies all out having fun You know what I mean Sleep in peace When, the this day is done And this old world Is a new world And a bold world For me...
Stars when you shine You know how I feel Scent of the pine You know how I feel yeah, freedom is my lie When you know how I feel It's a new dawn It's a new day It's a new life For me... - Feeling Good by Muse
And I thought 31st Dec 2008 was bad! This time I got ready to go out for a party but didn't even step out of the hostel. Felt very disappointed. On top of that a few things really pissed me off but as usual I didn't express it. Didn't know what to have for dinner so I cooked something for myself with a few additions from outside, lit a candle and ate all by myself with the wall across the table.
Nevertheless I always have believed guys have more fun than girls and that's what we did in the boy's hostel. We screened a Rajnikant movie! None of us got a single dialogue but we understood his "action"! Off-course as the movie progressed Shriya Saran's dances received more whistles from the audience.
In breaks we danced, clicked photos, burst crackers and bugged each other. People ran away with my laptop and God knows what all they did with it.
2009 was a year where I always put my loved ones before myself but nobody cared a dam so this year I will try and put myself first. Got a lot of shit from people now its time to return it ;) I appear to be pissed off.
In a few months time I go to a different place, get over with this MBA. Fed up of this rat race. Hopefully I don't repeat the same mistakes like I did here and most importantly never get attached to anyone - this is the key to mental satisfaction.
I just want to get out of this country and be in a totally new environment, experience something which I have never done before and that too all alone.
This post has been like a frustration venting tool and I don't think it is wrong. I am human after all and the good part is that I am not taking it out on some person.
Anyways Happy New Year. Enjoy every moment of the year because you never know what could happen the next day. A little advice: be a little selfish otherwise you are going to be taken for granted and kicked around like a used substitute football.
When I was a student in DPS R K Puram we used to go for breakfast in the girl's mess. There used to be a separate queue for the hostel boys and on one of the walls in the corridor there were a number of posters put up. One of them read:
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: One belonged to him, the other to the Lord.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of foot prints. He also noticed that it happened at the lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you you would walk with me all of the way But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times of my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why, when I needed you the most, you would leave me."
The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.
This was an innocent question asked by my little friend. I googled a bit and made a little document. Here it is. I hope it answered the question :)
Introduction
Definition: Eclipse is a Greek word meaning "to cease to exist".
An eclipse occurs within a stellar system (e.g. Solar System),a type of “syzgy”(unity or alignment- there is an application in number theory also :) )—the alignment of three or more celestial bodies in the same gravitational system along a straight line.
First a general look at how shadows are cast when three objects come in a straight line with the illuminator at one end ( if the object which generates light is in the centre in a three way alignment eclipse will not occur).
Three types of shadows are formed:
1.Umbra:where the light(radiation) is completely blocked.
2.Penumbra: a portion of the light is blocked.
3.Antumbra: Beyond the end of the umbra. The planet or moon will be seen transiting across the star but not completely covering it.
Phases of the moon
The Moon orbits Earth about once every 29 and a half days. As it circles our planet, the changing position of the Moon with respect to the Sun causes our natural satellite to cycle through a series of phases:
New Moon > New Crescent > First Quarter > Waxing Gibbous > Full Moon >
Waning Gibbous > Last Quarter > Old Crescent > New Moon (again)
The phase known as New Moon can not actually be seen because the illuminated side of the Moon is then pointed away from Earth. The rest of the phases are familiar to all of us as the Moon cycles through them month after month. Did you realize that the word month is derived from the Moon's 29.5 day period?
Although we cannot see the Moon during New Moon phase, it has a very special significance with regard to eclipses.
The moon’s two shadows
An eclipse of the Sun can only occur at New Moon when the Moon passes between Earth and Sun. If the Moon's shadow happens to fall upon Earth's surface at that time, we see some portion of the Sun's disk covered or 'eclipsed' by the Moon. Since New Moon occurs every 29 1/2 days, you might think that we should have a solar eclipse about once a month. Unfortunately, this doesn't happen because the Moon's orbit around Earth is tilted 5 degrees to Earth's orbit around the Sun. As a result, the Moon's shadow usually misses Earth as it passes above or below our planet at New Moon. At least twice a year, the geometry lines up just right so that some part of the Moon's shadow falls on Earth's surface and an eclipse of the Sun is seen from that region.
The Moon's shadow actually has two parts:
1. Penumbra
The Moon's faint outer shadow.
Partial solar eclipses are visible from within the penumbral shadow.
2. Umbra
The Moon's dark inner shadow.
Total solar eclipses are visible from within the umbral shadow.
When the Moon's penumbral shadow strikes Earth, we see a partial eclipse of the Sun from that region.
What is the difference between a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse? A lunar eclipse is an eclipse of the Moon rather than the Sun. It happens when the Moon passes through Earth's shadow. This is only possible when the Moon is in the Full Moon phase.
Total Solar Eclipses and the Path of Totality
If the Moon's inner or umbral shadow sweeps across Earth's surface, then a total eclipse of the Sun is seen. The track of the Moon's umbral shadow across Earth is called the Path of Totality. It is typically 10,000 miles long but only about 100 miles wide. It covers less than 1% of Earth's entire surface area. In order to see the Sun become completely eclipsed by the Moon, you must be somewhere inside the narrow path of totality.
The path of a total eclipse can cross any part of Earth. Even the North and South Poles get a total eclipse sooner or later. Just one total eclipse occurs each year or two. Since each total eclipse is only visible from a very narrow track, it is rare to see one from any single location. You'd have to wait an average of 375 years to see two total eclipses from one place. Of course, the interval between seeing two eclipses from one particular place can be shorter or longer. For instance, the last total eclipse visible from Princeton, NJ was in 1478 and the next is in 2079. That's an interval of 601 years. However, the following total eclipse from Princeton is in 2144, after a period of only 65 years.
Annular Solar Eclipses
Unfortunately, not every eclipse of the Sun is a total eclipse. Sometimes, the Moon is too small to cover the entire Sun's disk. To understand why, we need to talk about the Moon's orbit around Earth. That orbit is not perfectly round but is oval or elliptical in shape. As the Moon orbits our planet, it's distance varies from about 221,000 to 252,000 miles. This 13% variation in the Moon's distance makes the Moon's apparent size in our sky vary by the same amount. When the Moon is on the near side of its orbit, the Moon appears larger than the Sun. If an eclipse occurs at that time, it will be a total eclipse. However, if an eclipse occurs while the Moon is on the far side of its orbit, the Moon appears smaller than the Sun and can't completely cover it. Looking down from space, we would see that the Moon's umbral shadow is not long enough to reach Earth. Instead, the antumbra shadow reaches Earth.
The track of the antumbra is called the path of annularity. If you are within this path, you will see an eclipse where a ring or annulus of bright sunlight surrounds the Moon at the maximum phase.
Annularity can last as long as a dozen minutes, but is more typically about half that length. Since the annular phase is so bright, the Sun's gorgeous corona remains hidden from view.
Annular Solar Eclipse of 2010 January 15
Once my telescope gets repaired and I get an adapter to watch eclipses. We can try this out :)
On Friday, 2010 January 15, an annular eclipse of the Sun is visible from within a 300-km-wide track that traverses half of Earth. The path of the Moon's antumbral shadow begins in Africa and passes through Chad, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, and Somalia. After leaving Africa, the path crosses the Indian Ocean where the maximum duration of annularity reaches 11 min 08 s. The central path then continues into Asia through Bangladesh, India, Burma (Myanmar), and China. A partial eclipse is seen within the much broader path of the Moon's penumbral shadow, which includes eastern Europe, most of Africa, Asia, and Indonesia.
We will be able to see the antumbral portion partially I guess from Bombay but it wont be clear as it is towards Madurai, Nagercoil area.
References:
1. Wikipedia
2. NASA
3.http://www.mreclipse.com
update: i have decided to buy a new telescope and have talked to the suppliers also. but now i have to move my lazy butt to the store!
Before I write anything I must apologize to the few readers who visit this blog that I have not stuck to my plans of writing on a few topics but have gone on to pen down what came to me impulsively.
This quote struck a chord. I can associate with it somehow.
"My love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods. Time will change it, I'm well aware, as winter changes the trees - my love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath - a source of little visible delight, but necessary."
Tomorrow will be my first day at office. That is bothering me a little but what has upset me in the last few days is a sense of loneliness, a hollowness. I really don’t know the reasons. In addition to this staying in my room all alone has depressed me. I feel I have nobody to share whats on my mind. Whomever I have, seem to be bored and disinterested in me.
Sitting all alone has given me a lot of time to think and introspect. I realized I am not able to jell with any group very well probably because I am not able to associate with anybody. Earlier I believed I could fit in anywhere but it is actually not so. I was just compromising. Unfortunately I am not good with people and sometimes I say things without giving it a second thought. How I wish I could rewind and take those words back.
Right from my boarding school days I use to spend all of my free time in the library or the computer centre. Then in Delhi I was fascinated by physics and organic chemistry that left very little time for “friends”.I have probably lived in an illusion that I was having a great time with other fellows but it now seems like a mirage. The only time I had great fun was at Chennai with my close group of friends. None of us were ambitious we simply wanted to enjoy the moment. I love that place now just because of the memories. Although sometimes I criticize Chennai because of its weather, I really would not mind going back there.
I hope something happens soon for the better.
Anyways I had been to Alibaugh, Kashid Beach and the MulundJanjira Fort a few days back. Nice outing with a really “childish” group of friends. Relaxing away from Mumbai. Here are some of the photographs.
In the last few interviews I have faced they have always asked me about number theory specifically Fermat's Last Theorem. So I thought it might be nice to share it with you. I know people don’t like maths but just read on it does not involve any “calculation” its simply a story.
In the 17th century there were these intellectual chaps like Mersenne,Descartes, Euler, Pascal, Fermat and so on who basically had these ego clashes. They used to make problems with numbers which appeared simple on the exterior but required tremendous intellectual capability to arrive at the solution. They use to publish them and wait for someone to solve it.
Fermat, a lawyer by profession, maintained a diary of these problems and this specific problem was on the last cover page where he had no space to write the solution. This is what he wrote there “It is impossible to separate a cube into two cubes, or a fourth power into two fourth powers, or in general, any power higher than the second into two like powers. I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of this, which this margin is too narrow to contain.” He attached a piece of paper in which he put the solution. The year was 1637 then. This diary when opened next after a couple of 100 years did not have that paper and since then this problem has been called the fermat’s last theorem.
It is so simple to understand the problem that people are not able to believe how complicated its solution can get.
Say we have three numbers x,y,z Є {N} basically x,y,z are natural numbers (1,2,3 and so on) then if we have the equation x1 + y1 = z1 we have infinite solutions to this equation (eg 1+2=3) but when we raise the power to 2 then it becomes the Pythagoras equation x2 + y2 = z2 this also has integral solutions (32 + 42 = 52) now try finding an integral solution to this equation x3 + y3 = z3. Leave it none of us can because there is no such solution. Its that simple. So in short the problem requires us to prove that in the equation xn + yn = zn for n>2 no integral solution exists.
There were many attempts to solve this. Specific cases like for power 3 then 4 were solved. Then for numbers below 100 but none could make a generic proof. Its actually iterative to solve for specific cases. I hope you know what is hypothesis, conjecture and theorem.This question was a hypothesis but when a few cases were solved it became a conjecture then when a complete generic proof was given it became a theorem. That is how a theorem evolves.
If you remember a bit of coordinate geometry you will find the equation a little similar to that of an ellipse. Ok I will cut the technicalities. Basically the equation represents an ellipse rotated in 3d space forming an ellipsoidal curve. Mathematicians in this field were most likely to solve this. There was a chap called Andrew Wiles at Cambridge I think Trinity college (Newton also studied there) who took up Maths just because he was fascinated by this problem as a child. His aim in life was to come up with the solution to this problem.
In 1993 he came up with a solution using a conjecture called the Taniyama Shimmoura conjecture (two Japanes ellipsoidal guys. One of them was so upset that he committed suicide! ). But when a solution is given it is verified by mathematical elites across the globe. It was found to be faulty. Then professor Wiles got "mad" and spent the next 2 years in one room at Cambridge where his wife would just give him food that’s it. He was so determined to solve the problem. Finally in 1994 he got the correct solution which was verified in 1995. He was knighted by the Queen for this.
