A banner I saw made me chuckle all the way to school:POSH ROOMS AVAILABLE ON COT BASIS … [Read more...]
Theory of Knowledge
I teach 'Theory of Knowledge'. That's part of my job description now. We have many questions that count as TOK questions. Epistemological questions, ethical questions, ontological questions, the works.For once, though, I have a very strong TOK answer rather than a TOK question. The question is, "Can I explain humour?" The answer is 'no'.Discussing existentialism in class, I naturally spoke about René Descartes and his famous 'I think, therefore I am.'Very stupidly, I decided to tell a joke as well about how Descartes walked into McDonald's and ordered a burger. "Do you want fries with that?" asked the waiter. "I think not," replied René, and he disappeared.I waited for smiles, chuckles, or at least some measure of comprehension.Blank faces.Even more foolishly, I explained the joke.Some shrugs. So, how is that funny anyway? That was the unspoken response.I had no answer. … [Read more...]
Movies and Me
I don't like horror movies. Or even thrillers, or anything remotely frightening.I don't find them funny, the way most people seem to. They don't make me laugh and say, "How lame! That's not scary at all!" I get scared. It's as simple as that.I remember a time we got together to watch Hide and Seek. We were spending the night at a friend's place, and, as is meet, we started watching the movie at night. I was determined not to be afraid. I kept telling myself, "This is just a movie." I drew my eyes off the screen over and over again. "It's just a movie. It's not real." I thought about happy things. "They're just actors. Why should I be afraid?"And then, a friend of mine screamed and clutched my bare leg with ice-cold hands.That did it.I don't watch scary movies any more, even if people try very hard to convince me that it's only pseudo-scary. … [Read more...]
The Decimal System
I was just thinking about how glad I was that the decimal system was in place.With the wonderful zero, 10 mm conveniently make a cm, 100 cm make a metre and all of that - how beautifully easy. No more thoughts of 12 inches to a foot, and complicated measurements for yards and miles.Coming to weight - no pounds and ounces. Only grams and kilograms. Count in tens; everybody's happy. Leave all the peculiar twelves and other such-likes out.Sure, the world is a simpler place with the decimal system, but there's one thing that had better stay old-fashioned and not become happily divisible by ten.And that's a week. Unless I get a five-day week and a five-day weekend, I'm happy with an odd, non-decimal, seven-day week, thank you very much. … [Read more...]
Guess what I received today!
A very dear, thoughtful friend of mine sent this to me!I know it's unclear! But aren't telegrams supposed to be? (Clicking on the picture does open a clearer image) … [Read more...]
What is literature?
I asked my AS Level class, "What is literature?"One by one, students came and wrote on the board what they thought. 'The study of a language.' 'The study of poetry and drama.' 'The study of a language, poetry, prose and drama.'"What about a diary or travelogue?" I hinted. 'Anything that is written.'"What about a story passed down from my grandmother? Is that literature?" 'Anything that has grammar/ words.'Eventually, we came to the next question, "What is poetry?" "Something with lines that rhyme," suggested one student. "Does it have to rhyme?" I asked. "No... Okay, so something that has a set rhythm," said another. "What about blank verse?" I asked."Something that has a deep meaning about nature." "Or emotion." "What about a nursery rhyme or a song?" I asked. "Something that has a deep meaning," insisted one student. "Something that means something," corrected another … [Read more...]
On Being Modern
With older relatives, I often get high praise for my ability to use technology efficiently. With great pride, my grandparents and great-aunts and great-uncles, sing praises of my abilities. Some of my abilities that my family advertises:Varsha can fix the speakers! (I put the cable into the socket) Varsha can fix the camera! (I uploaded photographs)Perhaps I could add to my resume - I can find 'Contact Us' on a website. I can change a printer cartridge. I can download and use Skype. I can burn a CD (and a DVD). I can use a pen drive to carry files from the computer to the laptop. I can send music via email. I can use a DVD player. I can attach speakers to a music system. I am, apparently, the source of knowledge and information about everything technological, including how to use Bluetooth, 'Download App', touch-screen, wireless internet . . .What an interesting resume that would … [Read more...]
Getting a Promotion
In the Air Force, it is compulsory to speak Hindi to get a promotion. Commands must be given in Hindi.So my grandfather, a recipient of the AVSM (Ati Vishisht Seva Medal) had to prove he could speak at least a little Hindi in order to be promoted. The problem was that he could not speak Hindi. (For my foreign readers: that happens a lot in the south. Many south Indians - particularly in my grandfather's generation - find Hindi and other north Indian languages hopelessly difficult. No one around them speaks Hindi; it was not even compulsory to study it in school. Sounds, grammar and gender - they're all complicated.)My grandfather was told, "Tell that soldier to come here."Proudly, my grandfather said, "Idhar aao!""Good! Now send him back there."That was a difficult one. My grandfather had no clue how to say 'back' or 'there'. So he did the only thing he could think of doing. He … [Read more...]
Prized Modern Inventions
I remember my great grandfather (who, incidentally, lived to be 105) watching cricket on TV. The volume was very low and that, for some reason, used to annoy me. It was like a constant buzz - neither silent nor noisy. His logic was that he was deaf and would not be able to hear anyway, so the television might as well be soft instead of adding to the noise around him. My grandfather has become like that too. He watches the news; he does not listen to it. It does not bother me so much because at least there's no annoying buzz.My grandfather, of late, has started talking very slowly, thinking things through, weighing his words and all that. Two days ago, he said to me, "You know ... the modern generation ... the twentieth century ... even the twenty-first century ... the world has seen many, many technological advancements." I nodded, wondering where he was going from here. A point … [Read more...]
Imagination
I sometimes think about what other people must be thinking about what I'm thinking. Cycling home from my grandfather's place early this morning, I was amused at bystanders waiting for buses. I thought about what they would be thinking about how dedicated I was about exercising everyday. I imagined conversations with real people and recollected a real conversation with someone who was actually curious enough to stop me and ask.And then I thought about how wild my imagination was when I was younger.When I saw men (they were probably young, but child-Varsha thought they were all uncles) on bikes, how I loved to imagine! I imagined that they had just robbed a bank and were running away. I imagined that they were policemen in disguise. I imagined they had stolen other people's bikes. I imagined that they had murdered someone or performed some nameless crime.I never imagined that they … [Read more...]