PhD comics!

As a big fan of PhD comics and being a graduate student myself, I am posting a couple of my favorites - there are so many more that I like! Are you new to this? Check this out for a hilarious teaser! Click the images for a bigger size.

And on a seemingly unrelated note, I found this too -

I am more equal than you are

I used to have a pretty strong opinion about the whole reservation-quota-being-increased hue and cry. That was till I read this story from Tehelka.com. It gave me a shocking revelation that casteism still exists among the students of my generation. I thought the whole concept of a higher caste looking down upon a lower caste existed only among a generation that was slowly phasing out. Was I too naive?

Excerpts from this article -

I told him I had stood first on the Scheduled Caste list. The next moment I found myself outside the room, on the ground; he had pushed me out. That was just the first day.

Ever since, I have been reminded of my “low” status every moment I have been here. I was the only “Category” student in my wing. One day, I found this on my door: “Nobody likes you here. F**k off.” On another day: “Everybody can use the carom board, but not Room No 45.”

It is true that not all General Category students are casteist, but caste cuts through everything at AIIMS. They won’t talk to us.

Derogatory remarks were common: “Yeh chamar log kya karenge?” They were always trying to start fights so they could bash us up.

I knew I would fail when the only question I was asked on my viva was: “What is your involvement with the Thorat report?” Six or seven students had scored lower in the internal marks than I — all passed, I did not. I was failed in medicine in my re-professional exam by one-and-a-half marks.

How effective is the education system really when all through till the 12th grade, it has been teaching us that all are equal?

Another question - would he have faced the same problem amongst his peers and superiors had he not claimed he was a "category" student?

Is tagging one as a "category person" really helping the country? (Previous post - Living in a box)

Bayerische Motoren Werke

Keeping aside all the BMW ad-films made, I love this particular advertisement the most. The ad-films are great too, starring Clive Owen in a tight corner in each of them, but always equipped with a great looking (etc.) BMW.

Youtube video (1:01 min)

The BMW film series The Hire was a series of eight short films (each about eight minutes long) produced for the Internet in the summers of 2001 and 2002. The films were directed by renowned Hollywood and international directors. All starred Clive Owen as "The Driver". Each film's story highlighted the performance aspects of various BMW automobiles. (Source: The Hire (BMW films) - Wikipedia). All the eight videos are available on YouTube.

Lightning bolt!

Mindless web-meandering brought me to this -

The original source - http://wvs.topleftpixel.com/archives/photos_skyscapes/060803_1637.shtml

© Sam Javanrouh www.ddoi.ca

As he says, it's the view from his kitchen - terrific view! And notice how beautifully one of the lightning bolts (center) climbs back up - like it forgot something back home! :)) A high resolution image can be viewed and downloaded here.

Losing focus: Moral policing

A fable:

Nationalism - He cut it, she wore it.

First it was Sachin Tendulkar.
Now it's Mandira Bedi.

There was a cake that had the Indian flag on it.
A saree was designed with 16 flags of the countries participating in the CWC 2007.

He cut that cake.
She wore that saree, with the Indian flag located near her feet.

Verdict:
He disrespected the country.
She disrespected the country.

And now there are charges against both of them. Are the law enforcers in the country succumbing to the whims and fantasies of the ones seeking publicity? After Tendulkar's cutting-the-cake came the Gere-Shetty episode and now Bedi's insulting-the-flag is the limelight of the so called moral police.
It would fall on deaf ears if I mention the unending list of things that need fixing in the country. Corruption, rape and female infanticide to name the top few. And while I was writing about this - a thought crossed my mind - the moral policemen have decided that the reason for rape in the country is actually provocative dressing by women. So the main culprit is not anatomy of the male genitalia, instead it is the choice of dressing by women.

Is the country's attitude slowly becoming irreparable?
Have we veered off the path to overall development by defining obscure and ridiculous things as a basis of discipline... what's happening of this country where whistle-blowers are being mercilessly killed or having their lives ruined by the ones in power?

On a completely unrelated note, the sari looks awful.
And my comment on Tendulkar and the cake - when we put a birthday boy's picture as icing on his cake - are we insulting him?

Perception of beauty

"...a little reminder that even supermodels don't look like supermodels..."

My roommate had come across this video and I had to post it on my blog. It's a really good morale booster to those who are intimidated (if at all) by those amazing models on billboards. Turn up your speakers - the accompanying music is really good.

Google Video duration: 1 min 14 sec

The video is part of a campaign by Dove - A self esteem project (http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.ca) It's really nice! Quoting from their website -

In a world full of impossible beauty standards and confusing media messages, 92% of the girls aged 15-17 want to change part of their appearance. What can we do about it?

Cool. 'Like it.
However, considering that Dove is a product of Unilever which also owns brands like AXE, Vaseline, Lux and Ponds, it is paradoxical that both have conflicting campaign USPs.
Anyway, I like what Dove has done here. It's really essential nowadays and should be targeted at teens striving hard to get the Lara Croft waistline, or the Victoria's Secret Model skin tone.

Eat Mor Chikin

Somewhere during my mindless web-meandering I read that the chicken is the closest living relative to the Tyrannosaurus Rex. LOL. Surprisingly it's true! I searched for some more of such useless trivia and found these:

• You can literally hypnotize a chicken by holding it and drawing a line in the dirt over and over. The chicken will stay still right there as long as you do this.
• According to National Geographic, scientists have settled the old dispute over which came first -- the chicken or the egg. They say that reptiles were laying eggs thousands of years before chickens appeared, and the first chicken came from an egg laid by a bird that was not quite a chicken. That seems to answer the question. The egg came first.
• Chimney's used to be cleaned by dropping live chickens down them
• The closest living relative of the t-rex is the chicken which makes the phobia 'Alektorophobia' (Fear of chickens) slightly more plausible. [:D]
• In Gainesville, Georgia - the chicken capital of the world - it is illegal to eat chicken with a fork!
• If a rooster is not present in a flock of hens, a hen will often take the role, stop laying, and begin to crow.
• The waste produced by one chicken in its lifetime can supply enough electricity to run a 100 watt bulb for five hours.
• The longest recorded flight of a chicken is thirteen seconds.
• There are more chickens than people in the world!

Ooooooh. Intrigued I am. *Wow* this is.

Sources:
Eat Mor Chikin® is the award winning slogan of Chick-fil-A®.
http://www.comedy-zone.net/triviazone/animals/page8.htm
http://www.vfr.net/~tbruce/facts.html
http://www.toysbymailorder.co.uk/acatalog/TE0158.jpg (The original chicken)
http://www.toysbymailorder.co.uk/acatalog/TE0020.jpg (The original dinosaur)
Cartoon creation by me, idea rights reserved.