Read?

I am sure internet can let imagination run riot, as it is happening these days. For example, look at this. ".. gas chambers were for fumigating the used clothes of inmates.." Did people get in to get cleaned with clothes on?

Thought for the Day

My Predictions

As days go by, my predictions regarding the future of humans, especially of the females and mainly focused on the intimidations directed against them, seem to be becoming true. Irrational events are regularly taking place, which we constantly misjudge. Naming those as sexist, religious intolerance, economic greed, etc., etc. Furthermore, much respected constituents of society, like teachers and guardians, are also joining the spree.

A Doubt

I am sure everyone can notice this. 

Think of all those in the upper half of society, whether in education, wealth, or health. They constantly needs to be to reminded of their lucky position, and the need to devote their time to something more. That there is a need to enjoy life. 

Now think of those at the bottom half. They get constantly reminded of time, they keep on wasting on many forms of  'wanton' celebrations. That there is something to life more than enjoyment.

Why so..

Book Review: Are Men The Weaker Sex?

'Are Men The Weaker Sex?' by Josette Sona

This is an interesting book. It rightly mentions women as more faithful in relationships, sees women more often with self control, and credit women with better manners. The difference between men and women, the book correctly points out, is that when boys are abused, they often grow up to be abusers, while when girls are abused, they often grow up to be abused themselves.

Some observations may be controversial, like, men are not strong enough to be faithful. The book also peeps into the double standards society has, like an imposing  woman is called a troublemaker while such a man is called assertive. And why is society like this?, the book then asks. "It can be traced back to the origins of the human race", it comes up with an answer. Here I disagree. The popular vision of a weaker female sex coupled with a role of greater responsibility, the male had to face while formation of the initial human societies, is the reason, says the book. Which, like all the other books on such topics, presents and strengthens a popular idea without a real proof. 

Except for a few minor comments like this, I am in agreement with the author. Who can disagree, when the book says "one of the reasons there is sexism/misogyny is because women are the stronger sex - even though we've been told repeatedly, throughout history, that women are the weaker sex. And a lot of men are often jealous of, threatened by, and even have a hatred for women because of this." 

Arrow of Evolution

Arrow of evolution interests me. Going by the well known principle of increase in entropy over time, life should have been moving in a direction of increase of liveliness, as newer and newer species evolve. Liveliness, for each form of life, can be taken as the sum of, housekeeping efforts and the wide range of activities resulting from its interaction with the environment. For later species of life, like mammals, there being greater and wider interaction with environment as we go forward in the tree of evolution, housekeeping efforts show a decline. So for humans, even lesser should have been the time and energy spent for housekeeping activities. 

In reality, it is not so. Human is devoting the lion's share of its activities towards management and control of the current organization of the species, like its rearrangement, cosmetic changes, and other issues related to daily subsistence. Either the principle of entropy is incorrect, or the excess housekeeping is for escaping from something else, or the arrow of evolution is wrong. One can take the first, as well as the last mentioned causes as highly improbable, both being supported by well established theories. In such a case, the second one becomes the real cause. Which again proves my theory of The Unsure Male, correct!

The Need of Approval

The constant need for 'approval' is another distinct feature of humans. It impacts our life in a variety of ways, and is a fundamental need. From the child looking for the approval of parents, to an officer waiting for the approval of the boss, there is no instance of a social transaction, where it cannot be seen. But, I have never come across an incident, where an animal waits for, or asks approval before proceeding with whatever is one's job.  

It plays a significant part in our life. Many a great sage, as well as a lot of big criminals, owe their position, to the encouragement they received or the approval they missed in their formative years. No other want of the humans, be it food, clothing, or shelter, can cause such a significant and long standing effect on one's fortune. What is giving rise to this need? Where does it come from? How is it related to our metabolism?

Book Review: The Evolution Cruncher

'The Evolution Cruncher' by Vance Ferrell: Scientific facts which annihilate evolutionary theory, a collection of facts to help insulate one from the desolating effects of evolutionary theory. 

The author tells in the beginning about the order to Graduate School of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR), that it would have to close its doors if it did not begin teaching evolutionary origins and processes in its science classes, is the spark, which led to this book.

Chapter 1 presents the evolutionary theory, and its position of disadvantage, in brief, through crisp statements like, Nothing + nothing = two elements + time = 92 natural elements + time = all physical laws and a completely structured universe of galaxies, systems, stars, planets, and moons orbiting in perfect balance and order. 

Or how, Mendel’s work laid the basis for modern genetics, and his discoveries effectively destroyed the basis for species evolution. The ardor shown by a few opposed to evolution contributed to its fame, he tells further. For example, "Someone inserted various dead microbes, and then covered it over with a surface appearing like the meteorite. The objective was to show that life came from outer space. But the hoax was later discovered". The next chapter is about the Big Bang and stellar evolution, where the elements of that theory is debunked one after the other. Like "The Big Bang should have produced a “homogeneous” universe of smooth gas ever flowing outward with, at best, almost no “non-homogeneities,” or “lumps” such as stars and island universes" Other theories like, the steady state universe, the oscillating universe, origin of solar system, etc are then disproved one after the other.

Next chapter examines the origin of earth. Here, the book lists down a large number of inconsistencies in the observed parameters, like age indicating rings of trees, to make a conclusion that the existing astronomical and other human records do not support evolutionists' data. Chapter 5 and the inconclusiveness of time causing the evolutionary changes, comes next. The production of DNA, how, protein and other essentials of life cannot happen as a random event, mutation, and its limits, etc. are discussed in the next few chapters. How unsatisfactory is the data we have gathered from fossils, the book then shows. Since there is no blending between them, evolution cannot occur today, and it never occurred earlier, it concludes. Finally the book examines the two pillars of evolution and the two laws that destroy them: 

"(1) Evolution teaches that matter is not conservative but self-originating; it can arise from nothing and increase. The First Law of Thermodynamics annihilates this error. 

(2) Evolution teaches that matter and living things keep becoming more complex, and continually evolve toward greater perfection. 

Just as inorganic matter becomes successively more ordered and perfect (via the Big Bang and stellar evolution), so living creatures are always evolving into higher planes of existence (via species evolution). The Second Law of Thermodynamics devastates this theory.

I found this book presenting a lot of arguments based on rather premature assumptions, and not according due allowance to the dynamic nature of knowledge. All scientific theories are consistent only with the known science of the day, anyone can say. A giant leap in one area can alter many things, and such alterations rather than posing a question, should be making scientific views more acceptable. Looked at this way, even if evolution cannot be named as a theory, it is a good hypothesis. Even then, the tone and tenor of the opposing arguments  presented in this book do not do a good job of dethroning evolution from its pedestal of eminence. Most of those express distaste rather than sound reasoning. For example, 

"Dirt + water + time = living creatures." or

"According to the evolutionary theory, life began in this way: 

(1) There was just the right atmosphere—and it was totally different than the one we now have. 

(2) The ground, water, or ocean where life began had just the right combination of chemicals in it—which it does not now have..." 

can at best lead to a scornful smile, on those less aligned with evolution. It is true, evolution is not a theory like the other theories of science. The arguments against it, especially those like the ones presented here, effectively adds mettle to it.

Book Review: The Future of the Internet

'The Future of the Internet — And How to Stop It' by Jonathan Zittrain. 

This book confronts the most important issues facing the future of the Net. The author says, "Both the internet and the PC were designed by people who shared the same love of amateur tinkering and love of enterprising" Both platforms are therefore poised to continue its growth during its lifetime, mainly, by relying on their users to figure out what to do with them—and to deal with problems as they arose." Grow, it did, but the future path is not very clear. "In fact rather wholesale revision to the Internet and PC environment is happening every moment. And, since we cannot stop it, let us study it".

The book starts by mentioning the successes that led to Internet and the PC and how the technologies are today in a wholesale shift away from the original chaotic design that has given rise to the modern information revolution. How this will limit its innovative capacity—and, for better or worse, heightening its dependence on orderliness. This needs to be read in the light of current visible tussle in the information highway. And, we need to learn about different possible futures. Part I of the book thus give an overview of the PC's growth so far and way the new technology of information processing capable appliances and consoles are driving people away from PCs. 

Next part deals with the opportunities and challenges of designing appliances that can share the internet. Mentioning about an unusual experiment in tra?c management in Dutch city Drachten, where, the management consisted of replacing all traffic rules with wo rules. One, drivers should yield to those on their right at an intersection, and two, parked cars blocking others will be towed.

 The possibility of a changed cyberspace is then discussed, social editing and wikepedia serving as an example.

More revolutionary changes are then forecasted. With the impetus to innovate experiments in a distributed neighborhood the future is anything but predictable, the book concludes.

A wholesale revision to the Internet and PC environment we’ve experienced for the past thirty years is in the offing, I am sure. Our tinkering nature gave birth to the Web, instant messaging, peer-to-peer networking, Skype, Wikipedia etc. 

Now that these are on the way out, we need to look for alternatives. 

Book Review: THE TRUE BELIEVER

'THE TRUE BELIEVER: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements' by ERIC HOFFER

 is a book dealing with some peculiarities common to all mass movements. While discussing this, the author comes with a lot of gems about our society in general, and its volatile state, in particular. I give below a few of those as examples to this fertile mind. (I myself have felt like this, though not in so many words)

"Those selfish are particularly susceptible to frustration, since, the more selfish a person, the more poignant his disappointments. It is the inordinately selfish, therefore, who are likely to be the most persuasive champions of selflessness.

 The fiercest fanatics are often such people who were forced, by innate shortcomings or external circumstances, to lose faith in their own  selves. 

Unlimited opportunities can be as potent a cause of frustration as a paucity or lack of opportunities. A feeling, “All that I am doing is chicken feed compared with what is left undone”, results.

One of a minority bent on assimilation, is at a disadvantage. The individual stands alone, pitted against prejudice and discrimination, and deserves greater assistance from the majority.

Mass movements not only need their daily bread, but also their daily illusion.

There is perhaps no surer way of infecting oneself with virulent hatred toward a person than by doing a grave injustice to that one. That will cause the other one to have a just grievance against us, and that is a more potent reason for hating them than that we have a just grievance against them.

Every religion generates a strong feeling of guilt, which promotes hate and brazenness. Thus it seems that the more sublime the faith the more virulent the hatred it breeds.

We tend today to exaggerate the effectiveness of persuasion as a means of inculcating opinion and shaping behavior. Whereas, the fact is, propaganda serves more to justify ourselves than to convince others."

I am sure, one can agree with the way this book portrays the present state of our societies. There cannot be a better assessment of the social fabric of in all countries, and its disarray. Every contentious decision that goes on at various planes of governance of the society, like those of religious matters, or of communication, of social balance between conflicting groups, or of the establishment of defence, can find an easy and logical eplanation here, I am sure. 

(Author, however does not offer an explanation regarding the origins of, say, nonlinearities of our society that should be accounting for the above. I notice that my theory, the unsure male, fits here well, since I offer a valid reason for the perennial and widespread occurrence of frustration, the root cause.)

Stray Thoughts

All of us tend to go irrational, though we would like to identify ourselves as rational beings. Sometimes it is nothing but stretching a rational idea to the irrational extent. Sometimes the idea itself is irrational, but we invent imaginative excuses. Or it can be a combination of these. 

Then we take different ways to amalgamate the irrational with our life. One popular way is to choose paths like benevolence, religion, or violence(terror), where there is no need for prior preparation. Some stick to more complex ones like unknown or imaginary entities (if those turn out to be right sooner or later, they get rewarded immensely in arts or science), which perhaps involves considerable efforts, and  also are resource intensive. But the easiest way is to go for terrorism. Where extremes of anything is a good fit.

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Book Review: In the Light of Evolution

In the Light of Evolution, Volume VII: The Human Mental Machinery, by National Academy of Sciences. 

The book begins with a good discussion about our current idea of human mind and how it evolved. The ruling theories about consciousness and its applicability to nonhuman species are some of the areas covered here. This is followed by chapters about the evolution of memory. Memory is seen as a homologous trait shared by humans and nonhuman primates, although our species is unique in aspects like inner speech. Differences in social behavior between various species and its link to neuroanatomy is examined in the next couple of chapters. Which also discuss memory structures and its manifestations like episodic memory.

The next chapter is about evolution of the sense of justice. Although it is absent among nonhuman primates, comparative studies show its origin well behind the early humans. Evolution of the idea of co-operation, and its immediate successor/predecessor, reputation, is analyzed. As the author points out “For direct reciprocity you need a face, for indirect reciprocity you need a name" What follows that is the neurobiology of musical cognition, and how we mastered the art of looking for things.

Next chapter is about the evolution of our idea of beauty. A functional magnetic resonance imaging study examines how, systematic variation in contour impacts aesthetic judgments and approach-avoidance decisions, outcome measures of interest to both architects and users of spaces alike. How different appearances, like curvilinear, rectilinear, etc., impact our decisions. Neural processing and its part in our aesthetic choices is discussed in the last chapter. Different regions of the brain and its performance is experimentally determined in activities connected to (i) reward/pleasure and emotion, (ii) judgment/decision making, and (iii) perception.

I found this book a bit heavy. Though it dealt with some of my most beloved topics, most of the discussion went over my head. I have decided to come back to the book after updating my brain, a little more about brain.

Review: 'Latent heat' of traffic

Paper Review: Latent heat of traffic moving from rest, S Farzad Ahmadi, et al.,  New Journal of Physics, 19.113034, IOP Publishing Ltd. This paper analyses the behavior of vehicles when those are stopped/started at traffic junctions and the resulting delay. Using a drone camera and drivers queued at a red light on a Smart Road, it shows that vehicles jamming into a ‘solid phase’ at stoppages do not increase the efficiency of resumed flow. There exist a delay, akin to latent heat, inherent to phase-transitions from free flow of traffic to the flow waiting for the signals, and vice versa, at each traffic junction.  The larger bumper-to-bumper spacings that cars maintain when driving at speed can therefore be largely preserved at stoppages too, to minimize the risk of rear-end collisions with no loss in travel efficiency.

I think the paper effectively suggests a new and changed approach to design of traffic control elements. Why can't we have the traffic signals distributed to all drivers/vehicles? The vehicles being brought to a stop/start in response to the appropriate signal, wherever the vehicle is? Won't this fit the future, the new developments in propulsion, cruise control and autonomous vehicles is certain to bring?