SPB and Edward Van Halen

Within a span of 2 weeks two of my favorite music legends, SPB and Edward (Eddie) Van Halen, decided to bid goodbye to this world. SPB’s struggle with COVID has been in the news, so was partially prepared I could say (no one is fully prepared for these things, we always hope there will be a miraculous turn around in the corner of our heart). But Eddie’s news came as

 

On Habits and Efficient Prisons

(Author: Jay Ramalingam) Good old chap Jeremy Bentham, in 1780s England, designed a clever prison building called Panopticon. He designed a prison to reduce the number of guards needed and their salaries. This design did not allow prisoners to know when they were being watched. Prisoners in such situations behaved well even when there were no guards watching. This made prisoners to become their own guards. Does this sound familiar?

 

COVID-19, WFH, and D & I Reflections

Disclosure: A modified version of this article published within the organization I work for. NOTE: D & I: Diversity and Inclusion, WFH – Work from Home It may be too early to say whether COVID-19 will be viewed as a significant event of 21st century when our future generations look back, but I am sure COVID-19 will be a contender for that spot. It has been more than 6 months

 

We are the Songs of the Universe

(Author: Jay Ramalingam) Music continues from my previous short blog Plurality of Music or Unity of Vibes?… Everything seems to be energetic vibrations of points and space all the way down.  Some groups of vibes consonate or dissonate with each other and synthesize new music just as multiple ripples combine to make new patterns. Music is movement, causing continuous interpenetrating movements. One music group causes another to morph. When the other

 

Rashomon and Rashomon Effect

“Human beings are unable to be honest with themselves about themselves. They cannot talk about themselves without embellishing.”   — Akira Kurosawa Official Trailer: In the words of Richard Feynman: “From a long view of the history of mankind – seen from, say, ten thousand years from now – there can be little doubt that the most significant event of the nineteenth century will be judged as Maxwell’s discovery of the

 

COVID, WFH, and OTT Picks

With a mix of continuous and on/off lockdowns, WFH (Work From Home) one worthy thing happened is more time for family, work, books, movies, and friends (video chats), not necessarily in that order. Yes, there is frustration and gloomy feeling that hits observing the happenings near and around us, lack of state capacity, and leaders continuing with their politics and optics even in these times when millions of people are

 

Music or Vibes?

(Author: Jay Ramalingam) Do you hear the music or the vibrations that produce the music?                 Do you see the table or the wood that makes up the table? Do you inhale the life-nourishing air or the electrons and protons that make up oxygen?                Do you feel the emotions or the pattern of neuronal firings that

 

Ennio Morricone (1928 – 2020)

If you are from 70s & 80s movie goers, you would remember few single screen big theatres had the ritual of raising the screen curtain when the movie is about to start. Usually red curtain that will raise to the theme music of For a Few Dollars More (FFDM). Of course, I didn’t know nothing about FFDM or Ennio Morricone that time. Saw The Mission movie in Chennai 85/86, liked

 

IR and MR – my journey

IR celebrated his 77th birthday June 2, 2020. Even though I wanted to write about him, I held back since I don’t have anything new to say about them. IR has been in the industry for more than 40+ years. His life has been pretty much an open book, meaning, everyone from last 3 generations of people from South India know about him. So much has been written about him.

 

ஒரே ஒரு முறை சுவாசித்துக் கொள்கிறேன் – சௌம்யா

ஜடப்பொருட்கள் வாங்கும் பொழுது நிறத்தில் பேதம் பார்க்காத நீ அரிதான பிறப்பான மானிடப் பிறப்பில் நிற பேதம் பார்த்ததேன் ஒரே ஒரு முறை சுவாசிக்கத்தானே அவன் கேட்டான் உன் சொத்தையா கேட்டான் சுவாசித்தல் இயற்கையின் நியதி சுவாசித்தல் அவன் பிறப்புரிமை அதை மறுத்தது உன் கீழ்மை சுற்றி நின்று வேடிக்கைப் பார்த்தது ஒரு கூட்டம் அவற்றை மனிதன் என்று கூறுவதில் பெறும் வெட்கம் தன் இனத்திற்கு தீங்கு என்றால் கொதித்து எழும் விலங்கினம் உன் சதை கூட ஆட மறுத்ததே மனிதனே நீ ஈனம் உன் குருதியுன் சிவப்பு தான் அவன் குருதியும் சிவப்பு தான் அகத்துனுள் உறையும்