Gupta Tutorials, a popular IIT JEE coaching center, JEE 1999 preparation batch

Everyone use to say "he can solve anything on probability or permutation and combination and he doesn't care about any other subject", "no matter what he is going to do or not do in JEE, atleast he will get 10 marks in the mains by solving the prob. question, thats guaranteed". I use to think the same...

Inspite of being able to solve the toughest of probability and permutation and combination questions, in JEE 1999, much to my surprise and a surprise to others, I committed a mistake in the probability question. It is thing I haven't forgotten till date. Not that I would have been selected in JEE if I would have solved that, no, getting in needed MUCH MUCH more than that; but the point that I failed in my area of expertise n interest was the reason the memory got deeply carved in my mind.



Dec 2009, IIT Bombay, placement test, Directi
I am taking the online test which is expected to have 3 ten mark questions embedded in a bunch of 28 1-or-3-mark questions. After solving the first two ten mark ones I eagerly hunt for another 10-mark-one and BANG !! There it is, the same question, and with a VERY high weightage. First thought "this is the time to erase that memory and write a fresh one". I work on it and write the answer, which comes out to be 24/35, only to realize after the test that I had forgotten to divide the number by a factor of 6...

I am pretty sure, as of now, that solving this one right would have got me in.

And now, here I sit, with another memory of defeat against the question; smiling widely on myself and the incident, and writing this blog.....not getting the right word for what I am feeling, may be it the thought "how interesting strange funny ironic nostalgic..this incident is".

Question:  " What will you do if I give you Rs. 500 ? "
Answer : 

Watch the video Baz Luhrman - Sunscreen  !!!. Truly beautiful song on life and how to live it. Though video is very beautifully made but the lyrics are the crux of the song. Here are a few excerpts to get one going(please don't think that these are the better parts of the song. Others are at the least equally good):

"Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with
people who are reckless with yours."

"Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes
you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with
yourself."

"what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either"

"Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for
good.
Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the
people most likely to stick with you in the future."

"Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who
supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of
fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the
ugly parts and recycling it for more than
it’s worth."

In response to parwana 's comment to  Before we crown someone as India's very own Obama...
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The young, aware and  edcuated in India are not getting into politics. I think this is one of the challenges that India faces.

Of all the colleagues I have had since class one in school, only one person (a BHU grad.) has chosen politics as a career. Of the rest I can count on "A" finger, the people who aspired for and sincerely took tests such as IAS. From these, if I remove those who are eligible for some quota the count falls to zero. Many of these civil service aspirants are those who have become so dependent on using their quota privilage that their options and decisions in life are heavily dependent on whether they will be able to use their quota or not to get in easily into a place and enjoy life.

The people whom I see getting into politics, are most of the times the road side netas who have spent majority of their college life doing dadagiri on all those around them in the society.

It is not the case that the educated are not interested. While discussing these issues all accept that something needs to be done, and that they will like to be a part of it. But the story ends on notes such as "one alone can't really do much in this system", "getting in itself will make you do things which will make you as good/bad as those already there". Also are the less talked but more realistic factors like ignorance, waiting for someone else to carry the torch, lack of true aspiration/will.
There are many who have all the will and passion but due to some genuine reasons such as  "risk of finaincial security and stable career" can't get into polictics.

In such circumstances initiatives such as Times of India Lead India and Times of India Teach India are excellent and much needed programs that help those who are sincere about these issues. The response that Times of India Teach India got clearly shows that there are sufficient people who if given a platform will like to contribute to the society and nation. Though Times of India Lead India didn't really live upto my expectations, its success and the enthusiasum of people for it was another example for the same. (Personally, I expected them to select more than one person and unite the final winners as a policitical party.)

I think what we currently need are programs like Times of India Lead India and Teach India, and what we wait for is the time when we will be stable enough to take the plunge into politics as a career.</lj>

Recently the Computer Center at IIT Bombay came across a page, which had been using the IITB's logo along with text such as "Welcome to IIT Bombay" and "IIT Bombay webmail powered by Google". IIT Bombay has no webmail that is powered by google. The page opened when one of the users tried to access a google doc link in the doc sharing invitation sent to the inbox. Apparently the site even asked the user to enter their IIT Bombay's username and password(used for webmail, internet access, payment of semester fee and mess fee, etc).

The site(which has now removed the IIT Bombay's logo and exchanged the word "IIT Bombay" with  "iitb.ac.in") comes from Google apps. A feature provided by Google for online collaboration.

Since the site looked like a phishing site IITB got in touch with Google informally (The Google India chief  is an IITB alumni and friend of Head Computer Center) and asked them to remove the site as they are the administrators. The first response was that they can't do it, but some one from IITB can create and account and modify the site. Disappointed, the head computer center replied that it will leave no option for IIT other than to take the matter to court.

I have not been able to catch up with the head on what happened next, but currently the logo is gone and so are the words "IIT Bombay".
 

Although some of my friends said that even the earlier site should not offend IIT Bombay in anyway, I think it was misguiding an IITB person into entering his iitb's loginid password and misguiding others to mistake the site to be from/of IIT Bombay.  It is Google's responsibility to remove such sites if one is created with its tools and in its webspace.

As the site no more has the logo and the name, the question is: Is it ok for Google to use "@iitb.ac.in" for its user  id without IIT Bombay's consent ?

I clicked "forgot my password" on the login page of www.livejournal.com
On the following page I found the message:

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LOST INFORMATION
Proof that you are human

-- some image --
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"WHAT ????", I read it again, only to find that what actually written was :

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LOST INFORMATION
Prove that you are human

-- a captcha followed --
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