A gift from my Alma Mater

O God help us to be gentle,
Walking softly with one another,
Help us to be understanding,
Lest we should add to the world's sorrow,
Or cause to flow one needless tear,
Help us to stand for what is right
Not because we may gain by it
But because it is right.
Help us to be eager to forgive others
As we are to ask forgiveness.

Prosper with by blessing
We beseech Thee Oh Lord,
The work of this our school
And grant that those, that serve Thee here
May set Thy Holy Will
Even before them.
And do that which is
Well-pleasing in the sight
And persevere in Thy service
Until the end.

Into the wild

There is a pleasure in the pathless woods;
There is a rapture on the lonely shore;
There is society, where none intrudes;
By the deep sea, and music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but nature more...

-Lord Byron

While watching the movie "Into the wild" I thought of scribbling about my closest tryst with mother nature. It has been until now the most exotic trip of my life to a place called Kiruna (Lapland-northern part of Scandinavian paradise). For any of you who happen to reach that north must not miss the beautiful train journey from Kiruna(Swedish lapland) to Narvik(Nowegian Lapland).

Mobile Handset Industry

Finally some air to breathe after a hectic week of studies and accomplishing status "finished" for three more subjects got me thinking about my blog. The concept of B.O.P (Bottom of pyramid) has got many multinational firms thinking who are looking out to expand their business. Mobile handset industry seems like a promising industry in such a sector with the need for mobile handset changing from a luxury to a necessity. 

As the devices get equipped with more and more features, industries-once separate-find themselves competing against each other. The growing use of the 3G standard mobiles is a major step towards convergence leading to a change in focus towards emerging countries such as China and India. The emergence of wireless local networks (WLANs and WiMax) and development of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) nurture convergence of mobile handset devices. Mobile handsets market once easily distinguished market is slowly falling to be a part of consumer electronics market with slower growth rate, intense price pressure and intense competition.

Convergence is the single most important trend to reshape the mobile handset industry. It is technology driven and is taking place in four main areas: devices; operating systems; wireless network standards; and wireless, wireline, Internet, and cable networks.

Once separate markets, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and mobile phones are no longer distinct devices. Both markets have appropriated the other market's functions and features to such an extent that the two industry segments have blurred. As an increasing number of handsets incorporate digital cameras as a standard feature, for example, such handsets are increasingly replacing cameras altogether.

This situation in this industry like other saturated industries has lead to the emergence of three business models: global leaders, cost leaders and followers.

AccentureMobileHandsetStudy

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Mumbai Mayhem

26th Nov. turned out to be the most horrifying day in the history of India. Around 12 terrorists entered into the heart of Mumbai and took the city under siege. Claiming 183(declared officially by the home ministry) lives and injuring hundreds, this attack is a spit on the face of Indian ministry of home affairs which was being lead by Mr. Shivraj Patil. Lasting for over 3 days it was tough battle between NSG and the terrorists who came with the motive of claiming 5000 lives and blowing up the jewel of Mumbai, Hotel Taj Palace.

On the political front tensions between India and Pakistan are rising as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh suggests Pakistani links have been found behind these attacks, although the government was not involved. In a remarkable turn of events Mr. Shivraj Patil has tendered his resignation as the post of home minister which would be now taken over by Mr. P. Chidambaram. What might lead out of this situation are border tensions across the LOC with the prime minister deploying troops on the border and cancelling the ceasefire. If such a situation takes place it would require Pakistan to re-deploy its troops to Indian border creating an entry path for terrorists across the Afghan border which is something U.S. and NATO won't let happen.

Increasing tension between India and Pakistan:

But, whatever happens in the world of politics would not be able to bring back the innocent victims who lost their lives in this horrifying act of terror.

The wait for the 5th Screen!!

This video displays the evolution of screen from a movie theatre(1896), to understand the present and see visions of the future, sharing emotions and experiences that shaked our lives. Then came the television(1907) followed by the computer and the internet age. We are currently living in era of the fourth screen, where everything comes in a device that can fit into our pockets, the mobile phone. But with world and technology changing at such a rapid pace the wait for the fifth screen won't be a long one!!

Social Networking Anxiety Disorder(SNAD)

Social phobia, also known as social anxiety disorder is a diagnosis within psychiatry and other mental health professions referring to excessive social anxiety (anxiety in social situations) causing abnormally considerable distress and impaired ability to function in at least some areas of daily life.

SNAD, on the other hand, is caused by stress from the pressures of social networking: the constant Friend requests, Scrabulous requests, photo tag requests, group and event invitations... Consider also the anxiety of creating things like "limited profiles," carefully managing how much of ourselves to reveal to our virtual associates -- and that accompanying, nagging, guilty question: "Will this person realize I restricted his ability to see my Super Wall?"

Not sure if you're suffering? Here are three symptoms of SNAD to look out for. If you have any of these, you should contact your mental-health-professional avatar immediately.

1. You were considering breaking up with your significant other, but decided to stick it out because of the anxiety associated with changing your Relationship Status on Facebook and de-tagging hundreds of photos.

2. You currently have 36+ Friend requests festering on Facebook or MySpace, which have built up month over month because you don't want your rejection to send these strangers on a downward, emotional spiral.

3. You belong to several groups including "I Skin Cats on Sundays" and "Cousins Make Great Husbands," because, well, they were nice enough to invite you.

Next time you log on to Facebook, MySpace or any of those thousands of Social Networking website think about this disorder and draw a line for yourself.

"Scar Tissue"

Formed in 1983 in Los Angeles, California and having been survived for over two decades Red Hot Chilli Peppers is my favourite rock music band. The band consists of vocalist Anthony Kiedis, guitarist John Frusciante, bassist Michael "Flea" Balzary, and drummer Chad Smith. RHCPs varied style of music comprising of alternative rock, funk rock had impressed its millions of fans worldwide. The group originally featured guitarist Hillel Slovak and drummer Jack Irons. Slovak, however, died of a heroin overdose in 1988, resulting in Irons resigning. The band has seen many lead guitarists and drummer but the current line up has been together for the longest preiod of time.

So far the band has released 9 record albums: The Red Hot Chili Peppers(1984), Freaky Styley(1985), The Uplift Mofo Party Plan(1987), Mother's Milk(1989), Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991), One Hot Minute (1995), Californication (1999), By the Way(2002), Stadium Arcadium(2006).

"Scar Tissue" is the autobiography of Red Hot Chili Peppers vocalist Anthony Kiedis. The story follows Kiedis from his birth in 1962 to the (then) present day of early 2004. It follows Kiedis into the depth of his experiences with drug addiction. The title name was taken from the single "Scar Tissue" released nine years earlier on the Chili Peppers' album Californication.

The most damning indictment of the book is that there is literally no narrative structure here; Kiedis does not impose any sort of dramatic development on his story, so unless one is familiar with the outlines of Chili Pepper history, this is just one really long picaresque. One of the more chilling moments in reading the book is realizing that the overdose death of Hillel Slovak (the Chili Peppers' original guitarist), who Kiedis refers to as his best friend and "soulmate", prompts approximately a page of reflection from Kiedis. That's it. After that, it's on to further bouts of drug-taking, startlingly dysfunctional relationships with women and occasional musings on sobriety.

Though a bit long(comprising of 400 pages), I would recommend this book to all RHCP fans which enlightens about the history of this band.