"Friendship has no expiry date".
This was part of a text message i received on my mobile phone, from a close friend.It set me thinking. Is it really true? Is a good friendship something that lasts forever and grows better with age? Many of us would have tales of how we have nurtured a friendship over a long period of time. But for each such special friendship that is spread over a decade or more, how many broken friendships are strewn along the path? Even people perceived as being very close to eachother have drifted apart/cant stand each other's presence.
My opinion on this is thus: Human beings always seek some gain in whatever they do. The gain need not always be something materialistic. The friends we make at any point in our life depend on our circumstances. Though one does not befriend someone having only ulterior motives( that is not friendship anyhow!), quite unconsciously almost all of us tend to be friends with people who will at some point of time be useful to us. We befriend those who share some common activity.So friends are mostly circumstantial. Once the common thread that held the friendship together, no longer exists or is no longer strong enough, the friends tend to drift apart i.e the friendship reaches its expiry date.
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Are Rule changes the cause for Ferrari decline?
Fernando Alonso’s win in Germany has all but ensured his championship victory. The performance of Ferrari and McLaren [the lack of it] also signals a likely constructor win too for Renault. When this happens, it will signal the end of an era in F1: An end of the long rein of domination by Ferrari and Schumacher.
However, many are claiming that this result is unfair, as the rules were changed to handicap Ferrari and advantage other teams.
On the contrary, the rules should have strengthened Ferrari and not weakened them. Here is why.
Ferrari had developed their car to a pinnacle - but the room for improvement for other teams was higher and they were just beginning to gain ground - when the rules were changed.
If you say that the rule changes were aimed solely at Ferrari - then it should be clear how the changes affect Ferrari more than other teams or help other teams more than Ferrari - having done this exercise on the rules after 2002 - a number of times now - the reality is that the overall result was either neutral or actually in Ferrari's favour.
Let's take a look at when the decision was made for the rule changes: end of the 2004 season. The three major changes that took place were:
1) 2 race engines;
2) One set of tires for qualifying and the same set for the race;
3) Aero changes (a general summation, but I trust you get the point).
Now let's look at what Max was seeing while he was coming up with these rules:
1) Ferrari had the best / reliable engine on the grid;
2) Bridgestone was more durable, and infact seemed to improve with wear;
3) A team was needed to test the effects of the aero changes he had in mind (whom did they pick to do the testing . . . that's right, Ferrari).
And which team was it that wanted V8 engines? And what engines will we have next year? Yes, you guessed right. It is Ferrari.
Ferrari already had the most reliable engine in the history of F1 when a rule was brought in to reward reliability - so who does that favour? Ferrari more than anyone else!
Single lap qualifying - well, let's see - drivers with proven records of being consistent and able to do near their best immediately (MS) - versus others who often needed a few shots to do their best (JPM, less experienced drivers).
When tyres became an issue - guess what - the scrutineering rules were changed - and it certainly was teams other than Ferrari who were affected.
On paper, the rule changes SEEMED to favour Ferrari. Unfortunately, someone dropped the ball and the other teams (mainly Renault and McLaren) upped their game.
It's long been said that rule instability is better for teams with more technical resources, as they have the ability to respond to the changes. Rule stability is better for the smaller and less technically equipped teams as they have a chance to catch up. Ferrari is not exactly one of the teams with poor technical resources- - the teams most able to deal with rule changes are those with the most resources. And if one team is already on top of key rule changes (such as for engine reliability) then it lets it focus on other changes.
I'm not saying that all the rule changes have advantaged Ferrari against the other teams, but certainly they've done relatively well out of them. It has just happened that this year, they dropped the ball. If Ferrari has had bad results this season, it has nothing to do with the rules. It just means that other teams did a better job than them. Period.
However, many are claiming that this result is unfair, as the rules were changed to handicap Ferrari and advantage other teams.
On the contrary, the rules should have strengthened Ferrari and not weakened them. Here is why.
Ferrari had developed their car to a pinnacle - but the room for improvement for other teams was higher and they were just beginning to gain ground - when the rules were changed.
If you say that the rule changes were aimed solely at Ferrari - then it should be clear how the changes affect Ferrari more than other teams or help other teams more than Ferrari - having done this exercise on the rules after 2002 - a number of times now - the reality is that the overall result was either neutral or actually in Ferrari's favour.
Let's take a look at when the decision was made for the rule changes: end of the 2004 season. The three major changes that took place were:
1) 2 race engines;
2) One set of tires for qualifying and the same set for the race;
3) Aero changes (a general summation, but I trust you get the point).
Now let's look at what Max was seeing while he was coming up with these rules:
1) Ferrari had the best / reliable engine on the grid;
2) Bridgestone was more durable, and infact seemed to improve with wear;
3) A team was needed to test the effects of the aero changes he had in mind (whom did they pick to do the testing . . . that's right, Ferrari).
And which team was it that wanted V8 engines? And what engines will we have next year? Yes, you guessed right. It is Ferrari.
Ferrari already had the most reliable engine in the history of F1 when a rule was brought in to reward reliability - so who does that favour? Ferrari more than anyone else!
Single lap qualifying - well, let's see - drivers with proven records of being consistent and able to do near their best immediately (MS) - versus others who often needed a few shots to do their best (JPM, less experienced drivers).
When tyres became an issue - guess what - the scrutineering rules were changed - and it certainly was teams other than Ferrari who were affected.
On paper, the rule changes SEEMED to favour Ferrari. Unfortunately, someone dropped the ball and the other teams (mainly Renault and McLaren) upped their game.
It's long been said that rule instability is better for teams with more technical resources, as they have the ability to respond to the changes. Rule stability is better for the smaller and less technically equipped teams as they have a chance to catch up. Ferrari is not exactly one of the teams with poor technical resources- - the teams most able to deal with rule changes are those with the most resources. And if one team is already on top of key rule changes (such as for engine reliability) then it lets it focus on other changes.
I'm not saying that all the rule changes have advantaged Ferrari against the other teams, but certainly they've done relatively well out of them. It has just happened that this year, they dropped the ball. If Ferrari has had bad results this season, it has nothing to do with the rules. It just means that other teams did a better job than them. Period.
Sunday, July 24, 2005
The last month has been pretty slow. After the rush of completing final semester project, then going through the chore of giving the exams.... life has been pretty slow. Though i have been out of staion already a couple of times i find myself with nothing to do and am looking forward to the day i can begin a new chapter in my life at iiit and my first experience of hostel life.
It has not been too long since i stopped going to MSRIT, but i already misss the place. Not because i loved the "education" imparted there, but for other reasons which i will elaborate soon.
Education must have two aspects embedded in it
1. Imparting knowledge
2. Building character to mould students into good citizens and human beings.
The "knowledge" aspect is what is empasised in most educational institutes.However, in my opinion the process of building character is much more important. We can aquire knowledge even without teachers(anyhow, that has been the case for the last 4+2 years--more self study than any class room teaching). What is regrettable is that these days the "teachers" are unable to impart knowlwdge let alone build the character of their wards.
Now that i have got that small rant on education out of the way, let me elaborate why i will/am missing MSRIT already. I never did hang out in the college canteen or other favoutite hangouts. However, one of the places in college that i will miss is the college library. Not because of the books ( i never read any of them completely anyway---the photo-copied stuff from Krishna Xerox was more than enough), but because the library gave me an opportunity to observe lots of people and learn a lot about human behaviour.
I will miss the hours of cricket we played on weekend's..
The endless battles for supremacy in Age of Empries(Conquerors)..the week long startegies..discussions.. only to get the better of the guys in the other section of the class [for the record..My class beat the other more often ]
The long winded discussions and arguments with some of my classmates on a wide ranging number of topics.
I will miss the ever present smile of MSS(J), the nonsensical talk of HOD, the inspirational speeches from KM.
I will also miss SL..(but for exactly opposite reasons as the others already mentioned ).
Most of all i will miss the three other members of The Fantastic Four.....Hari,Badari and Girish.Each of us is going our own way....IISc,Job,IIT......
If i never forget MSRIT, it will be because of all my friends there. I learnt more from them than possibly any sort of formal teaching could ever teach me.
I learnt from them the natural way. i.e watch - imitate -learn. I have watched a lot of really amazing people.......... I have picked up a few things from each of them (mostly unknown to them). I learnt to work hard, to Chill out, to work out a balance between my various activities.... i have benifitted immensely from all these people.
Now all these experiences of over 4 years will be memories which i will surely cherish. I am thankful that i have not made any enemies or hurt anyone's feelings during my time in MSRIT.I am sure i will be happy to meet up with all my classmates or teachers anytime in the future and i guess the feeling will be mutual.
Now it is time to move on............ new place, new challenges, new friends,new experiences...i hope it is as rewarding as the last few years have been.
It has not been too long since i stopped going to MSRIT, but i already misss the place. Not because i loved the "education" imparted there, but for other reasons which i will elaborate soon.
Education must have two aspects embedded in it
1. Imparting knowledge
2. Building character to mould students into good citizens and human beings.
The "knowledge" aspect is what is empasised in most educational institutes.However, in my opinion the process of building character is much more important. We can aquire knowledge even without teachers(anyhow, that has been the case for the last 4+2 years--more self study than any class room teaching). What is regrettable is that these days the "teachers" are unable to impart knowlwdge let alone build the character of their wards.
Now that i have got that small rant on education out of the way, let me elaborate why i will/am missing MSRIT already. I never did hang out in the college canteen or other favoutite hangouts. However, one of the places in college that i will miss is the college library. Not because of the books ( i never read any of them completely anyway---the photo-copied stuff from Krishna Xerox was more than enough), but because the library gave me an opportunity to observe lots of people and learn a lot about human behaviour.
I will miss the hours of cricket we played on weekend's..
The endless battles for supremacy in Age of Empries(Conquerors)..the week long startegies..discussions.. only to get the better of the guys in the other section of the class [for the record..My class beat the other more often ]
The long winded discussions and arguments with some of my classmates on a wide ranging number of topics.
I will miss the ever present smile of MSS(J), the nonsensical talk of HOD, the inspirational speeches from KM.
I will also miss SL..(but for exactly opposite reasons as the others already mentioned ).
Most of all i will miss the three other members of The Fantastic Four.....Hari,Badari and Girish.Each of us is going our own way....IISc,Job,IIT......
If i never forget MSRIT, it will be because of all my friends there. I learnt more from them than possibly any sort of formal teaching could ever teach me.
I learnt from them the natural way. i.e watch - imitate -learn. I have watched a lot of really amazing people.......... I have picked up a few things from each of them (mostly unknown to them). I learnt to work hard, to Chill out, to work out a balance between my various activities.... i have benifitted immensely from all these people.
Now all these experiences of over 4 years will be memories which i will surely cherish. I am thankful that i have not made any enemies or hurt anyone's feelings during my time in MSRIT.I am sure i will be happy to meet up with all my classmates or teachers anytime in the future and i guess the feeling will be mutual.
Now it is time to move on............ new place, new challenges, new friends,new experiences...i hope it is as rewarding as the last few years have been.
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
F1 aerodynamics- adverse effects on overtaking?!
Formula One racing has recently come under scrutiny due to a lack of overtaking, and rules are constantly being changed in an effort to reduce speeds and increase overtaking. The lack of overtaking was conspicuous by its absence at Silverstone this week as this track is known to be one of the best tracks for overtaking as it provides wide roads and the fast sweeping corners.
Aerodynamics plays a big part in the problems of overtaking, and since the introduction of aerodynamic principles into Formula One, they have become of ever increasing importance to the car's performance. The aerodynamic requirements of the F1 car are high downforce at minimum drag - but the more downforce you have, the more drag you incur. This drag is due to air being disturbed as it flows over the vehicle, and as the air does not have the energy to sort itself out, it ends up following the car as its wake.
In an F1 car all the aerodynamic devices are so close together that there are large interactions, and the rear wing, rear wheels and floor-level diffuser contribute significantly to the shape of the wake. As the air travels over the car, it will lose energy, and cannot return to its initial values of speed and pressure, and this is what the wake is.
Any vehicle which produces lift (be it positive in most road cars, or negative in racing cars) will produce vortices - the phenomenon you see when water swirls down a plug hole. The F1 rear wing, for instance, will produce a significantly large pair of strong vortices called trailing vortices which last a large distance behind the wing which created them. There are often seen as swirls of white on the edges of the rear wing when the air is moist. In an F1 car, they rotate in such a way as to produce an upwash (air travelling rearwards and up relative to the ground. In addition to this, the flow underneath the car plays a large part in the shape of the wake. The F.I.A. Regulations state the major percentage of the car floor must be flat, but diffusers are allowed. The air channels out of the diffuser and is immediately sucked upwards due to the influence of the rear wing, adding to the already large upwash in the centre of the wake, which creates a low pressure in that area. As the wake moves with the car, this causes a drag upon it, and will also cause problems for the vehicle behind.
The effect on the following car is beneficial in a straight line as it will get a 'tow' from the car in front, and its drag will be reduced by following in this turbulent air. Drivers say the 'tow' from the low pressure wakes (often referred to as a slipstream) can be felt up to six car lengths behind, but it is only significantly large when trailing by approximately one to two car lengths. However, it has been suggested that tows from older F1 cars were larger (which makes sense, as they had more downforce), and this is one problem suggested for the lack of overtaking in present day Formula One. Down a straight, a bigger tow makes it easier to close on the car ahead, and if you have less tow, it is harder to get close to the car at the end of the straight when you are coming into the corner, so harder to get into a good position to overtake.
In cornering, however, the effect of the wake is very detrimental, and drivers complain of understeer (brought about by a loss of downforce due to wake effects) up to three or four car lengths behind. The car's downforce decreases because the air the car (especially the front wing) is working in has less energy than normal, and the air separated from the wing surfaces earlier than normal. The car cannot sustain wheel side forces similar to the car ahead, so cannot travel as fast through the corner. It will therefore drop back and not be in a position to overtake once on the straight - another aerodynamic problem once again giving the upper hand to the car in front (not the best plan if overtaking is required!).
In simple terms, if one car follows another closely at high speed, the front car punches a hole in the air, allowing the second car to travel at the same speed while using less engine power and it is thus able to pull out of the slipstream, apply more power and overtake. However, the complex aerodynamics on an F1 car means that the following car’s balance is upset by this and either cannot get close enough to pass, or loses downforce which can lead to loss of grip and a crash.Air on the car creates dynamic pressure and if there is a car in front of you, it has two effects. The air on the car is reduced and so the car generates less downforce and the air coming towards you is not "clean" it is turbulent (sometimes referred to as ‘dirty air’). Cars do not like that. As a car closes to the one in front, the following car loses more downforce because of the turbulence of the air and there is an upwash from the car in front so air hits the car from an angle it is not designed to deal with
Aerodynamics plays a big part in the problems of overtaking, and since the introduction of aerodynamic principles into Formula One, they have become of ever increasing importance to the car's performance. The aerodynamic requirements of the F1 car are high downforce at minimum drag - but the more downforce you have, the more drag you incur. This drag is due to air being disturbed as it flows over the vehicle, and as the air does not have the energy to sort itself out, it ends up following the car as its wake.
In an F1 car all the aerodynamic devices are so close together that there are large interactions, and the rear wing, rear wheels and floor-level diffuser contribute significantly to the shape of the wake. As the air travels over the car, it will lose energy, and cannot return to its initial values of speed and pressure, and this is what the wake is.
Any vehicle which produces lift (be it positive in most road cars, or negative in racing cars) will produce vortices - the phenomenon you see when water swirls down a plug hole. The F1 rear wing, for instance, will produce a significantly large pair of strong vortices called trailing vortices which last a large distance behind the wing which created them. There are often seen as swirls of white on the edges of the rear wing when the air is moist. In an F1 car, they rotate in such a way as to produce an upwash (air travelling rearwards and up relative to the ground. In addition to this, the flow underneath the car plays a large part in the shape of the wake. The F.I.A. Regulations state the major percentage of the car floor must be flat, but diffusers are allowed. The air channels out of the diffuser and is immediately sucked upwards due to the influence of the rear wing, adding to the already large upwash in the centre of the wake, which creates a low pressure in that area. As the wake moves with the car, this causes a drag upon it, and will also cause problems for the vehicle behind.
The effect on the following car is beneficial in a straight line as it will get a 'tow' from the car in front, and its drag will be reduced by following in this turbulent air. Drivers say the 'tow' from the low pressure wakes (often referred to as a slipstream) can be felt up to six car lengths behind, but it is only significantly large when trailing by approximately one to two car lengths. However, it has been suggested that tows from older F1 cars were larger (which makes sense, as they had more downforce), and this is one problem suggested for the lack of overtaking in present day Formula One. Down a straight, a bigger tow makes it easier to close on the car ahead, and if you have less tow, it is harder to get close to the car at the end of the straight when you are coming into the corner, so harder to get into a good position to overtake.
In cornering, however, the effect of the wake is very detrimental, and drivers complain of understeer (brought about by a loss of downforce due to wake effects) up to three or four car lengths behind. The car's downforce decreases because the air the car (especially the front wing) is working in has less energy than normal, and the air separated from the wing surfaces earlier than normal. The car cannot sustain wheel side forces similar to the car ahead, so cannot travel as fast through the corner. It will therefore drop back and not be in a position to overtake once on the straight - another aerodynamic problem once again giving the upper hand to the car in front (not the best plan if overtaking is required!).
In simple terms, if one car follows another closely at high speed, the front car punches a hole in the air, allowing the second car to travel at the same speed while using less engine power and it is thus able to pull out of the slipstream, apply more power and overtake. However, the complex aerodynamics on an F1 car means that the following car’s balance is upset by this and either cannot get close enough to pass, or loses downforce which can lead to loss of grip and a crash.Air on the car creates dynamic pressure and if there is a car in front of you, it has two effects. The air on the car is reduced and so the car generates less downforce and the air coming towards you is not "clean" it is turbulent (sometimes referred to as ‘dirty air’). Cars do not like that. As a car closes to the one in front, the following car loses more downforce because of the turbulence of the air and there is an upwash from the car in front so air hits the car from an angle it is not designed to deal with
Friday, June 24, 2005
My Vacation PART II
We started for Mangalore from Mercara early morning...6.15 AM (17th June '05).The distance to cover was around 130 kms..but the road was not too great .... we reached Mangalore by around 11.. and were welcomed by a steady drizzle. Anil took us to a gr8 icecream parlour...."pabba's"..........The rain wrecked our plans a little....St. Mary's Island was closed due to the rains..so we canceled going to Malpe. We instead headed to a nearby beach "Panambur beach". It was a nice little place...surprisingly empty and also pretty clean. We practically had the whole beach to our selves. We decided to be brave and venture out into the sea..we walked a stone path which was roughly 2 kms into the water..then Pradeep experienced a HUGE scare..due to sudden rain and winds the waves got BIG on him all of a sudden and nearly knocked him off the rocks and almost into the water. ..hehe and he got bruised big time!...but the brave-heart pradeep refused medical attention! We went to Anil's house ..had a nice bath ..lunch and then shot off towards Kudremukh.....another 130 kms of journeying.
This time the journey was very pleasurable..amazing scenery. We stopped a few times to let the shutter bug- Rithesh- take a few shots of mother nature in all her splendour.It felt like we were in paradise.....greenery all around..cool winds....nice roads(hehe).........The best part of the journey was the stop-over at Hanumangundi falls. It was a damn steep climb down and an equally difficult climb back up. But the effort was worth it..the waterfall was breathtaking to say the least! After a 45 minute break at the Hanumangundi falls we moved on to reach Kudremukh by 7 PM.
..................The rest of my journey is another story........for another day another time.
This time the journey was very pleasurable..amazing scenery. We stopped a few times to let the shutter bug- Rithesh- take a few shots of mother nature in all her splendour.It felt like we were in paradise.....greenery all around..cool winds....nice roads(hehe).........The best part of the journey was the stop-over at Hanumangundi falls. It was a damn steep climb down and an equally difficult climb back up. But the effort was worth it..the waterfall was breathtaking to say the least! After a 45 minute break at the Hanumangundi falls we moved on to reach Kudremukh by 7 PM.
..................The rest of my journey is another story........for another day another time.
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
My Vacation PART I
4 guys..Pradeep,Rithesh,Anil and myself..started out on a trip to some of the places in the western ghats.
We left Bangalore at 11.30 P.M on wednesday night(15th June '05). we used a TATA Indica for travelling,booked from Pooja travels.
Our first destination was Madikeri(roughly 260 kms from Bangalore). We moved at a stately pace in the dead of night to reach Virajpet by about 5.30 AM on thursday.We made a brief stop-over at Anil's relatives' place,had a cup of hot coffee and set off on our way to cover the remaining 30 odd Kms to the town of Madikeri...the Scotland of India. The weather was surprisingly not as cold or as wet as we expected. The locals told us that rain was expected any time soon and we would be lucky if we managed to escape it. We arrived at madikeri by 7.30 AM and checked into the hotel "Rajdarshan", located right opposite RAJA SEAT, a spot meant for viewing the scenic beauty of Coorg. We walked around the town and visited the Madikeri fort, which has been converted into the Govt. offices' administrative block. Later, after breakfast we went to Abbe Falls, also called Jesse falls. Due to lack of adequate rainfall, the water was but a faint trickle. Having seen the water falls at its glorious best earlier,I was disappointed with what I saw.The water falls from a height of 21.3 metres and really makes a wonderful sight to behold when in full flow. We then went back to our hotel rooms, had lunch and caught up with some much needed sleep....considering that we had travelled through the night with hardly a wink of sleep. We then set off to Talacauvery, the point of origin of the river Cauvery. The drive is a pretty tough one..uphill on the notorious Ghat sections. We felt the full fury of the Monsoon in this part of the malnad region as we climbed higher. The rainfall was torrential and we could hardly see a thing. However, we braved the rain and got out of our car to have a look at the origin of river Cauvery and got drenched in the process.The mist was so dense that we could not even see a few feet ahead of us. Due to the rain we did not stop at Bhagmandala. We went to our rooms drenched to the bone. It was well past evening by then. Already tired, we decided to skip the Omkareshwar temple. After having rested for a while we decided on a late night walk after dinner at hotel "east end point".This was what we came to Madikeri to experience....a slight drizzle....then heavy rains....cold winds .
Next stop Mangalore....more about that later...................
We left Bangalore at 11.30 P.M on wednesday night(15th June '05). we used a TATA Indica for travelling,booked from Pooja travels.
Our first destination was Madikeri(roughly 260 kms from Bangalore). We moved at a stately pace in the dead of night to reach Virajpet by about 5.30 AM on thursday.We made a brief stop-over at Anil's relatives' place,had a cup of hot coffee and set off on our way to cover the remaining 30 odd Kms to the town of Madikeri...the Scotland of India. The weather was surprisingly not as cold or as wet as we expected. The locals told us that rain was expected any time soon and we would be lucky if we managed to escape it. We arrived at madikeri by 7.30 AM and checked into the hotel "Rajdarshan", located right opposite RAJA SEAT, a spot meant for viewing the scenic beauty of Coorg. We walked around the town and visited the Madikeri fort, which has been converted into the Govt. offices' administrative block. Later, after breakfast we went to Abbe Falls, also called Jesse falls. Due to lack of adequate rainfall, the water was but a faint trickle. Having seen the water falls at its glorious best earlier,I was disappointed with what I saw.The water falls from a height of 21.3 metres and really makes a wonderful sight to behold when in full flow. We then went back to our hotel rooms, had lunch and caught up with some much needed sleep....considering that we had travelled through the night with hardly a wink of sleep. We then set off to Talacauvery, the point of origin of the river Cauvery. The drive is a pretty tough one..uphill on the notorious Ghat sections. We felt the full fury of the Monsoon in this part of the malnad region as we climbed higher. The rainfall was torrential and we could hardly see a thing. However, we braved the rain and got out of our car to have a look at the origin of river Cauvery and got drenched in the process.The mist was so dense that we could not even see a few feet ahead of us. Due to the rain we did not stop at Bhagmandala. We went to our rooms drenched to the bone. It was well past evening by then. Already tired, we decided to skip the Omkareshwar temple. After having rested for a while we decided on a late night walk after dinner at hotel "east end point".This was what we came to Madikeri to experience....a slight drizzle....then heavy rains....cold winds .
Next stop Mangalore....more about that later...................
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