Kindly friends, 

Hope all of you are well. Here I am, on another beautiful day of this
magical time of the year when summer is almost a memory but the leaves
are still green, writing to you in lieu of conversation. Oh well, I
hope you enjoy reading this and demonstrate your kindness with a reply.

Last week two wonderful things happened here in DC. First, the skies
attained weather nirvana. I mean, if the weather had become any more
perfect it would have been imperfect. Complete with wispy clouds and
all (Pity I was still recovering from a virus, caught during the
travels). Second, football season started, especially here where the
Spurrier era began with a bang (sorry, Arizona!). Now millions of
Americans can vicariously go to battle every weekend and stay in touch
with their inner animal, not to mention compensate for the lack of a
life. I must say there is more to it, and I have gained a lot from
participating in this five-month long frenzy, but I wouldn't risk
sounding hypocritical and self-serving by describing them here. Let me
just say that I get a lot of inspiration just by watching Coach
Spurrier in action. If you set aside the facile prejudices and hype in
this latest act of the media circus, he is a truly great character, in
every sense of that overused word.

Sankar

Random Thoughts (16)
9/10/02

1. Linebackers are football's version of superman. Built like
heavy-weight boxers, they launch themselves with impunity and deadly
force at opposing receivers and running-backs, moving at lightning
speed from sideline to sideline.

2. It is very hard to watch a Hitchcock movie on fast forward. Every
detail in every frame counts, though that makes it look a little bit
contrived at times. On the other hand, I watched the whole 2 hours of
the French period movie "Ridicule" on fast forward. I can say I didn't
miss much because the action didn't look go too fast and I could read
the subtitles clearly. It must have taken less than 45 minutes.

3. There are two types of students who learn a lot in class and also
make you think. One is the intellectually curious type, genuinely
excited by every little detail of the subject. The other is the
ornery, arrogant type who is confident he knows better than you and
spends all the time critically analysing every sentence you utter or
write, ready to pounce at the slightest slip-up, always trying to come
up with the most uncomfortable question. If even one student of either
type is present in the class, it becomes very exciting to teach.


4. Now that there is talk of war in the air, I am not sure what to
think or what to support (too busy watching football :-) ), but I do
wonder why someone like Ramsey Clark doesn't get much air-time. He is
no fringe character either! The man was Attorney-general of the U.S,
for crying out loud! I happened upon a speech of his on C-SPAN, and
that too because I was awake for some strange reason at 5 am in the
morning. Makes you wonder if there is any voice for a truly
conscientious person in the media today.

5. When it comes to mathematics, I have been too lazy or stupid (or
both) to follow the construction of this magnificent edifice with
layer upon layer of great ideas and methods, and all the
embellishments and decorative artifacts that adorn it. I am content
just to admire it from a distance and chip away in my own tiny little
niche. Also it means I come upon everything with a very fresh (some
would say empty :-) ) mind. On the other hand when it comes to
religion I have been a keen follower of all the ideas that I learnt
from my family, friends, teachers and assorted preachers. I accepted
many of the tenets of Advaita without much question and still believe
in its veracity, and am confident of its ability to withstand the test
of time and experience. I've been lucky to learn some new ideas and
gain a broader perspective, but I wonder if I should consider myself
truly fortunate to have been interested in something like Advaita from
the beginning. What if the situation had been reversed--would I be
even capable of understanding spirituality after learning science
well? I am guessing the answer is yes, but am not too worried about
finding it out.

6. If the following had not appeared in the "Scientific American" (Sep
02 ) it would be 
very funny:

Other scenarios have been found to permit travel into the past. For
example, in 1974 Frank J. Tipler of Tulane University calculated that
a massive, infinitely long cylinder spinning on its axis at near the
speed of light could let astronauts visit their own past, again by
dragging light around the cylinder into a loop.