Playables on YouTube

Image credit Freepik

Many days and weeks went by without a post. I don't want a month to go by without one.

The past couple of months have been quite hectic. 

On Nov. 13, we drove to my home town in Kerala. There was some house-related work to be attended to that required me to be there for two or three weeks.

I could do that because we now have the option of working from home, almost unheard of just three years ago!

It was after many years that we were travelling to Kerala by car. A distance of around 625 km. The highways are quite good. In fact, many cities have been getting connected by good roads over the past few years.

We got back to Bengaluru on Dec. 7.

A year-end tends to be more of work rather than a holiday for me. There are usually too many people on leave, which makes it difficult for me to take leave. Planning to take the accumulated compensatory offs next month.

PLAYABLES ON YOUTUBE

Sometime earlier this month, I got a notification on YouTube about "Playables". They are a set of games that can be played on YouTube.

I decided to check them out and promptly got hooked on a few of them, like Element Blocks, Stack Bounce, Jewels Planet, Words of Wonders, Collect Em All, and Carrom Clash.

The last time I played games on a computer was more than 20 years ago when I got a desktop. But I lost interest gradually, mainly because of lack of time, the hassles of downloading them and, on the mobile, the intrusion of ads.

One advantage of playing on YouTube is there is no need to download the games. These games, in spite of all the flak they tend to get, do help in sharpening our cognitive skills.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

What plans for New Year's Eve? 

Tomorrow is a Sunday, and I will be able to take my weekly off. We might take the metro to the CBD, stroll around a while, grab a bit or two, see the lighting, and get back home before it's too late.

Cheers to a New Year full of possibilities!

India's loss in Cricket World Cup

The way India went down yesterday to Australia was truly heart-breaking. They were the only team that hadn't lost even one single match in the entire tournament. 

The only bad day for the team had to be on the day of the final match for the World Cup. The string of 10 successive wins simply came to nought. 

How sad!

But let's give credit where it's due. The Aussie team played superbly. In fact, yesterday's victory was their ninth in a row. Their fielding was outstanding, exemplified by the catch Travis Head took to dismiss Rohit Sharma. In contrast, India's fielding looked sloppy for a change.

I guess the fact that India hadn't lost even one match gave them a feeling of infallibility, a sense of over-confidence. Australia had lost two matches, one to India (on Oct 8) and another to South Africa (on Oct 12). 

There are so many conspiracy theories about the pitch. In the end, it is unfair to expect any pitch to assist bowlers or batters, to say that only if the pitch assists will we win! After all, both teams get to play on the same pitch. 

Regardless of how a pitch might change its behaviour during the match, it's up to the players to make the best use of it. Yesterday, the Australian players extracted the best from that pitch, and they won.

While the role of the win streak was a soft skill issue, the hard skill issue was India's playing style.

Both played their role in India's defeat.

Why Angelo Mathews being declared out 'Timed Out' was a fair decision

In cricket, there is a rule that requires an incoming batter to reach the crease (that's the place where the batter stands) and receive the ball within three minutes of the previous batter having left the crease on being declared out.

This is the exact wording:

40.1 Out Timed out

40.1.1 After the fall of a wicket or the retirement of a batter, the incoming batter must, unless Time has been called, be ready to receive the ball, or for the other batter to be ready to receive the next ball within 3 minutes of the dismissal or retirement. If this requirement is not met, the incoming batter will be out, Timed out.

40.1.2 In the event of an extended delay in which no batter comes to the wicket, the umpires shall adopt the procedure of Law 16.3 (Umpires awarding a match).  For the purposes of that Law the start of the action shall be taken as the expiry of the 3 minutes referred to above.

40.2 Bowler does not get credit

The bowler does not get credit for the wicket.

© Marylebone Cricket Club 2017

This is a rule that very few knew till yesterday. That's because always the new batter is in, and play resumes with three minutes.

WHAT ANGELO MATHEWS DID

Yesterday, something bizarre happened during the World Cup match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in Delhi.

Sri Lanka batted first, and everything was fine till the fourth wicket fell at the score of 135.

The new batter was Angelo Mathews. He walked in and reached the crease as any normal batter would do.

But just before receiving his first ball, he realized that the strap of his helmet was broken. He wanted to change it and signalled to the dressing room to send a new helmet.

Just as the new helmet was being brought in, the bowling team, that's Bangladesh players, realized that the whole process was taking too much time. Definitely, more than the stipulated duration of three minutes.

Bangladesh team captain Shakib Al Hasan raised the point with the umpire. A quick discussion ensued, and Angelo Mathews was declared out "Time Out" without having played even a single ball.

Mathews spoke to Hasan and the umpires that it was a genuine problem and it was unfair to have invoked the rule.

But the umpires went by the rule book.

That was the first time in cricket history a batter was declared Times Out, and in no time, a huge controversy erupted.

WHY CONTROVERSY WAS NEEDLESS

The issue was not about the rule. Many people thought that Bangladesh should have played by the "spirit of the game" and allowed Mathews to play.

But I beg to differ.

One, a rule is a rule. We all play by the rules of a game. Why are we thinking of an exception only here?

Two, Angelo Mathews should have known the rule. Probably he didn't. Or if he did, he didn't bother. He should have informed the Bangladesh captain and the umpires about the broken helmet and sought permission to have it replaced.

Three, better still, he could have received the first ball and then told the umpire and Bangladesh captain and got the helmet replaced.

Four, Bangladesh was well within its rights to raise the issue and get the batter out. After all, teams play to win by playing within the rules. It's not that Mathews was declared in violation of a rule.

Five, if we go back to the rule, it is clear that the opponent doesn't even have to appeal as in other dismissals. In this case, the batter is out, timed out. Plain and simple. Even if the Bangladesh team hadn't raised the issue, if the umpires were alert, they would have realized the extra time taken and declared Mathews out.

Six, should the Bangladesh captain have requested the umpire to "pardon" Mathews? If he had, that would have been definitely "magnanimous" and "generous". But that was his call. Considering the stakes involved, he didn't do that, and one can't fault him. He didn't do anything wrong by not letting Mathews continue to play. 

Seven, what about the spirit of the game? Well, but how are we defining the spirit of the game? If we are going to play games allowing for rules to be bent based on "compassionate grounds" and "spirit of the game", won't many matches end in total chaos?

I don't think it's fair to blame Bangladesh, and there was nothing wrong with Angelo Mathews being declared out timed out.

It would be nice to know your thoughts on this.

New Zealand vs Pakistan: Run Feast in Bengaluru

Yesterday, I went to watch the cricket World Cup match here at the Chinnaswamy Stadium -- New Zealand vs Pakistan. 

On many counts, I was looking forward to the match.

One, it was after a long time I was going for a day match. All the matches I had been to in the recent past were either the ODIs or the IPLs that are played under lights.

Two, it was the first time I was going to a match in which India wasn't playing.  

MATCH FEATURING PAKISTAN

Three, one of the teams in yesterday's match was Pakistan. I never got an opportunity to watch a match in which Pakistan was playing. 

The last time the two teams played a Test series was way back in November 2007, and a One-Day International and T20 series was in December 2012.

The bilateral tournaments remain suspended, and I don't think the sporting ties will be resumed any time soon. 

But the two teams have been playing against each other in multinational tournaments, like the World Cup and Asia Cup.

In the ongoing World Cup, India played against Pakistan on October 14 in Ahmedabad. I wanted to go for it, but I couldn't. India won by seven wickets.

RUN FEAST

In yesterday's match, New Zealand started off aggressively. They piled up 401/6 runs in their 50 overs. The bulk of the scoring was by Rachin Ravindra (108) and Kane Williamson (95). (The video above is of Rachin scoring his century.)

In reply, Pakistan, undaunted by the high score that they had to chase, was off the mark from the word go. Opener Fakhar Zaman belted the NZ bowlers all over the place. His captain, Babar Azam, gave him good support.

Around 5 pm, the rain started. The play was interrupted twice. Finally, at 7 p.m., Pakistan was declared the winner by 21 runs based on the DLS (Duckworth-Lewis-Stern) method.

Even if there wasn't rain, Pakistan would have easily chased the target successfully. In 25.3 overs that were possible, they amassed 200 for loss of just one wicket.

CHEERS FOR CRICKET

Even though India wasn't playing, there was a near-capacity crowd. It was great cricket on display. Not much was lost due to rain, only a quarter of the playing time.

There were loud cheers for both teams -- when there was a good shot, or a good bowling, or a good catch, or a good piece of fielding. 

New Zealand's Rachin Ravindra and Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman scored centuries. On both occasions, the entire stadium was on its feet, giving the batter a standing ovation.

When it was announced on the public address system that Pakistan had been declared the winner, the cheers were no less!

Cheering for a team other than India is okay. But when it's Pakistan, it's not the same, because of obvious reasons. That is the notion a lot of people have.

It was proved wrong yesterday, and the experience was extremely heartening. It was also a sort of revelation that common people are very discerning.

They came to watch cricket. Nationalities didn't matter.

That's the way it should be.

Spoilt for choice

Our house is in a mess, with renovation of bathrooms going on. We are doing this not by choice but by compulsion. 

The reason: the water pipes running inside the walls have to be changed because they have corroded over the past 20 years since the building was built and water is dripping into the storey below.

The pipes then were GI (galvanised iron) pipes. They are now being replaced with PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipes. 

We were told that the entire bathroom would have to be broken down and rebuilt with new tiles and fixtures/fittings/accessories.

Actually, only one wall and the floor would have to be broken to replace the pipes. 

But then it would have looked really bad to have just one wall and floor with new tiles and others with 20-year-old ones. 

We had no choice but to go for a complete renovation, though even after 20 years, neither the wall/floor tiles nor the bathroom fixtures were in such a condition that they had to be replaced.

Felt quite bad at the thought of the bathrooms being broken down. We had no choice.

After the new pipes were laid, the time came for us to buy the tiles and bathroom fixtures. 

It's the first time in our life that my wife and I were visiting a showroom to shop for such things!

When the flat was built, unlike some of our neighbours, we went along with the choice of the builder since they were good.

At the showroom, we were spoilt for choice. 

The washroom fixtures/fittings were of various sizes and shapes in all sorts of designs. The tiles were more difficult to choose because there were too many combinations of colours and designs. 

We realised it was pointless to spend too much time looking at everything. We quickly narrowed down the entire range to a few that served the basic functional purpose of those fixtures and fittings, which came within our budget and which looked good.

The whole exercise must have taken at most 30 or 45 minutes. 

We were surprised when the showroom executive told us that some customers took three or four days to make their choices!

I don't think we would have made any better choices if we had spent three or four days!

What about you? Have you been in such situations? Do you make such choices quickly, or do you take a very long time?

Microsoft's Notepad finally gets autosave feature

We always run into a situation when we have some small bit of information that we have to jot down somewhere. Gone are the days when we used to carry a pen and a scrapbook or a pocket diary.

In this age of electronic devices, there are plenty of notetaking apps. Microsoft has Sticky Notes and One Note, which come with the Windows operating system. Google has Keep, and there are others like Notion and Evernote. 

All these are popular because they have an autosave feature, and the file is stored in our account in the cloud, enabling us to access it anytime, anywhere.

Besides Sticky Notes and One Note, an app that comes along with Windows is the good old Notepad. It's so basic that very few people use it.

But since it's one of those very early Microsoft Windows apps (from the pre-cloud era), it's always on the top of my mind, and instinctively, I open it when I have something quickly to jot down. 

But I have never been happy with it because when I close the app, it asks me to save it, and I have to give a name for it. 

Additionally, it's on the device; I can't access it on the go unless I save it in a folder that is backed up to my account. 

Notepad is best when we have to paste some text as "plain text", especially when we have to copy and paste the text from one interface onto another.

Anyway, finally, after more than two decades, Microsoft has paid some attention to Notepad. A few days ago, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw a notification regarding the autosave feature. No need to give even a file name. No need to save it in a folder. 

Open Notepad. Key in anything. Close it. Next time, when you open it, you can resume from where you left off.

Besides this, there is a feature to open new tabs. If you close an individual tab, then Notepad will ask if you want to save the changes. If we say "yes", then it gets saved to a folder.

But still, it's saved only on the device and not in the account. Yet, it's a very good user-friendly update that Notepad has got.

One Nation One Election: Will it work?

The electronic voting machine
and the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail 

In India, the talk of having simultaneous elections to both the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) and Assemblies in all 28 states and 8 Union Territories is back.

Not a new idea. India did have simultaneous elections in 1951, 1957, 1962 and 1967. After that, it has never worked out.

The issue is back on the centre stage now because the Union government yesterday appointed a committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind to look into the feasibility of what is called "One Nation One Election".

The members of the committee were announced today:

1. Home Minister Amit Shah
   
   
2. Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury (but he declined to join the panel)
   
   
3. Former Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad
   
   
4. Former Finance Commission chairperson N.K. Singh
   
   
5. Senior advocate Harish Salve
   
   
6. Former Lok Sabha Secretary General Subhash C. Kashyap
   
   
7. Former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal will attend the meetings as a special invitee

Legal Affairs Secretary Niten Chandra will serve as Secretary to the panel

PROS

• Simultaneous elections can cut expenditures. So many processes are repeated for each election, and it costs crores of rupees, affecting the nation's economy on the whole.
  
  
• Less disruption. Elections are like a festival in India, with so much excitement, disrupting the normal pace of work in various sectors. Besides that, during the election season, governance pretty much comes to a standstill. No important policy decisions are taken.
  
  
• The idea that people have to vote only once in, say, five years might boost the number of people who will turn up to vote.

CONS

• National and State Assembly elections are fought on totally different issues. Holding both elections together will result in a mixing up of both issues during the election campaigning, leading to confusion among voters. The final verdict might not be representative.
  
  
• The predictability of elections will bring in a sense of complacency among the elected representatives.
  
  
• Presently, individual States have the autonomy to decide when to hold elections. That will cease to be the case. The diversity of different dynamics each State brings to the Union of India will be significantly diminished.

CHALLENGES

• What if the incumbent government loses the majority or is voted out by a no-confidence vote, and no one is able to form a stable government? Who will then rule the country or the State? If it happens close to the end of the tenure of the incumbent government, it might not be a big issue. But if it happens within a year or two of the elections, then it will be a full-blown crisis.
  
  
• The One Nation One Election will require a major constitutional amendment that will require ratification by a majority of States of the country. It might not be that easy.
  
  
• Considering the vastness of India and the complicated nature and issues each region has, it might not be possible to hold elections on one single day or even a single month. It might have to be spread over at least two or three months to take care of logistic challenges like moving security forces and ensuring the presence of election officials. Whether we have enough resources is a moot point.

HAS IT WORKED ELSEWHERE?

• Only three nations in the world have simultaneous elections - Belgium, Sweden and South Africa.

WILL IT WORK IN INDIA?

It's not going to be easy, though the advantages are very clear and significant. It can work if there is an across-the-board consensus and all the challenges are addressed.

India on the Moon, over the moon

Goosebumps and moist eyes. I couldn't contain my excitement as the lander Vikram steadied itself to the right position, decelerated from 1 km per second to near zero, and then touched down near the south pole of the Moon, exactly at 6.03 pm today.

That's a place on the lunar surface where no spacecraft has ever landed. 

As scores of ecstatic scientists broke out into applause, the enormity of their collective achievement was only sinking in.

Lander Vikram approaching the Moon

Vikram after it steadied itself to the right position.

Vikram touches down on the Moon.

This is no mean achievement. One, remotely landing a craft on the Moon is more difficult than getting it to just go around the Moon. Two, the southern areas of the lunar surface are uneven with boulders and crevices. 

The failure of Chandrayaan-2 in 2019 when scientists lost contact with the lander seemed like a bad dream in the distant past. I had blogged about it here. 

(The most critical moments in the above transmission are from 38 minutes to 45 minutes)

There was a quiet race to the south of the Moon because it's believed that there are water molecules (in a solid state) there.

Over the next 14 days, Indian scientists will be studying data relayed by the rover, Pragyan (the Sanskrit word for knowledge). 

India is part of the 28-nation Artemis team. The probes by Pragyan will be beneficial to space scientists across the world in their relentless quest for knowledge and to look beyond the obvious. 

This huge lunar leap will also boost interest in science in general, and astrophysics and related subjects in particular, among students.

Oppenheimer: Free speech and political correctness

I recently watched Oppenheimer. It was after a long time that I went to a cinema.

Needless to mention, it's such a well-made film, with excellent acting, photography, editing, and direction.

What struck me the most was how little has changed when it comes to socio-political dynamics. Everything has remained the same; only situations, issues, organisations, and people have changed.

Oppenheimer's political views and activities were at odds with what prevailed at that time. He was closely monitored and was the subject of many an investigation.

It's said that being politically correct need not be a total infringement of free speech and that it means being respectful of other viewpoints and avoiding language that can be disrespectful.

However, balancing freedom of speech and being politically correct can be a tightrope walk. Plenty of examples in these times, aren't there?

Did Oppenheimer accept the invitation to join the Manhatten Project only because the scientific challenge was irresistible? 

What if he hadn't joined the Manhattan Project citing the dangers of developing the atomic bomb? 

Would that have been cited as him being unpatriotic, especially in light of his political views?

The train chase

It was a race against time. We had to board a train, but we were running late.

Four of us -- my friend PP, his wife RP, my wife SK, and I -- were on a temple hop yesterday. Early morning around 5.30 am, we reached Palakkad railway station from Bengaluru.

After freshening up, we visited two small temples, the Thiruvara Shiva temple in Kizhakkencherry; and then the Kodikkattu Bhagavathi temple in Vadakkancherry.

View of the Theevra River on the banks of which
is the Triprayar temple.

After breakfast, around 9.30 am, we headed to the Sree Ramaswami Temple in Triprayar, located on the banks of the Theevra or Purayar River. This is one of the well-known temples dedicated to Lord Ram. (More about the temple.)

From there, after lunch, around 12.30 pm, we went to the famous Krishna temple in Guruvayur.

THE LONG WAY BACK AND THE CHASE

Our return trip to Bengaluru was in the evening by the 16525 Cape-SBC Express train, and we were to board it from Palakkad, where it reaches at 9.17 pm.

Since it would take around at least 2 and a half hours from Guruvayur to Palakkad railway station, the plan was to leave Guruvayur no later than 6.30 pm.

However, we got delayed as we were lucky enough to be able to stay back in the temple to see the full 'Deeparadhana' (an auspicious time when the deity is worshipped using the light of a lamp).

After that, we made a dash to our car. 

LIVING ON THE EDGE

It was around 7.10 pm when we started our road trip from Guruvayur to Palakkad railway station.

That would mean we would definitely miss the train since we would reach the station only around 9.40 pm, while the train's ETA was 9.17 pm. 

We then checked if the train was running on time. 

We opened three train-tracking (spot your train) apps. So desperate we were to know where exactly our train was and, more importantly if it was running sufficiently late for us not to miss it.

Why three apps? That's to reduce the margin of error. The apps aren't always right since sometimes there is a lag.

All three apps showed that the train was running late - around 15 to 20 minutes. That meant the train would reach the station around 9.35 pm - 9.40 pm.  

That was a relief, but still, it would be a close call.

PLAN B

The evening traffic was only adding to our worries, and we devised a Plan B. 

If we miss the train, we will stay over in a hotel in Palakkad, and the next day morning, take a bus to Kochi and then a flight to Bengaluru.

CHANGE IN PLAN

As we tracked the train on the apps and the progress of our trip on Google Maps, we realised that we stood a better chance of making it if we boarded the train at Ottappalam, the station just before Palakkad.

Our decision was also influenced by another factor. At Palakkad, we would have had to board from platform 4, but at Ottappalam, it would be platform 1. 

Going to platform 4 at Palakkad would mean taking an elevator resulting in further wastage of precious time. At Ottappalam, since it's platform 1, we would be able to get into the train just at the entrance itself.

A SLIVER OF HOPE

In our desperation to know how good our chances are, we even called up a friend who works in the railways.  We thought he might have a more authentic and accurate idea of how late the train was running.

But, his estimation of the train's ETA wasn't very different from what the apps showed. 

However, he did give us some hope. 

If there was an oncoming train, then our train could be held over at the Bharathapuzha station for the oncoming train to pass.

The app indicated that the train's expected time of arrival at Ottappalam was around 8.55 pm. That was our ETA as well, according to Google Maps.

So, to be sure that we would get the train, either we would have to reach earlier, or the train would have to be delayed for some reason.

THE EXIT PLAN 

Since our train journey booking was from the next station (Palakkad), we had to buy a ticket to travel from Ottappalam to Palakkad. What if there is a long queue at the ticket counter?

If we are lucky, there would be barely a minute to alight from the taxi, take the luggage, buy the ticket, and board the train.

So, we planned that upon reaching the Ottappalam station, my friend PP would rush to the ticket counter, while two of us would get the luggage out, and the fourth would settle the bill with the cab driver.

All four of us would then make a dash to the door of any compartment that's right at the entrance and board the train.

So anxious we were that I had to caution PP (though in a lighter vein), "Don't get out of the car before it stops!" 

Everyone laughed, reducing the tension. 

THE ONLY HOPE DASHED 

Meanwhile, our eyes were fixed on the apps to see if the train had crossed Bharathapuzha or not. If it hadn't, then there was hope; if it had, then it would still be a close call.

Our hopes were dashed when we noticed that the train had crossed Bharathapuzha station. That meant our train wasn't held over there. So, it would still be a close call.

Screenshot from the Ixigo app
tracking yesterday's train

CRUCIAL 5 MINUTES

Our hopes, however, brightened some 10 minutes later when we noticed on Google Maps that our ETA at the station had moved from 8.55 pm (the same as the train's ETA) to 8.53 pm and a while later to 8.50 pm. 

This meant we might reach about 5 minutes before the train arrived. 

The saving of time was because of two reasons. 

One, the road was traffic-free, and two, the driver being a local person, knew shorter routes than what Google Maps was aware of. 

TOO EARLY TO REJOICE

There was a big if, still. What if the train-tracking apps were wrong, and the train arrived at 8.50 pm, and we weren't able to board?

So, we told the taxi driver not to leave but to wait till we had actually boarded the train, after which we would give him a call.

As we were approaching the Ottappalam station, we looked to the left. We could see the rail tracks at the station. The train hadn't yet arrived.

But it was too early to rejoice.

What if the train was approaching, and the taxi and the train reached the station exactly at the same time?

We reached at 8.50 pm exactly. The train's ETA was 8.54 pm.  

But, we left nothing to chance. PP rushed to the counter. Two of us took the luggage out. The fourth paid the taxi driver.

THE BIG RELIEF  

There was no queue at the ticket counter. The train was nowhere in sight.

Finally, the train pulled in at 8.54 pm. Those four minutes seemed like 4 hours.

We boarded one of the general (unreserved) compartments. It was luckily not crowded.

We called our driver and thanked him for taking us to the station in time.  

AT PALAKKAD

We reached Palakkad at 9.19 pm. We got off the general compartment and boarded our reserved coach.

It was a good decision to board from Ottappalam, as we would surely have missed the train had we decided to go to Palakkad. We wouldn't have reached before 9.30 pm.

There was one problem, though. 

We hadn't had our dinner. We thought we would get a takeaway from one of the food counters on the platform at Palakkad. 

But there was nothing. We had to be contented with a few biscuits and water. That's okay. 

We were so relieved and happy.

The train chase that we won.

A small world

On Monday, I was travelling on a train -- from Thiruvananthapuram to Bengaluru -- after attending my school alumni get-together. (I shall write about the alumni meeting soon.)

One of the passengers was an elderly woman who was reading a book. Unusual, considering that most people (even elders) are glued to their phones these days.

When I noticed that it was a copy of Reader's Digest that she was reading, I couldn't help but strike up a conversation.

The woman told me that she was reading a physical book as an escape from mobile screen exposure. 

We then started talking about Reader's Digest, and she told me that she had grown up reading it. 

I told her that it was the same with me as well.

We talked about how the magazine had changed over the years, and we discussed some of our favourite columns. 

I told her that I still read Readers' Digest online and that I have subscribed to an app called Magzter that offered the magazine.

We talked about some of our favourite columns, like Quotable Quotes, Humour in Uniform, All in a Day's Work etc.

After about 15 minutes of conversation, the woman asked me where I lived in Bengaluru and where I worked.

Then came the surprises, one after the other. 

She asked me if I knew AB. I said yes. 

Then another person, CD, whom also I knew. 

Finally, it turned out that there are half a dozen people who are our mutual friends!

They are all either her school/college mates or neighbours.

I couldn't believe this! It's indeed a small world! 

Look at what a conversation that began with Reader's Digest led us to!

Bairstow was out. Ball wasn't dead

The Ashes series is continuing to keep us all entertained. The 5th day's play of the 2nd Test on July 1 was the most interesting.

Thoroughly enjoyed Ben Stokes' batting. He changed the dynamics of the play so much with aggressive batting. From sensing victory, Australia was struggling to get Stokes out of the way. 

He smashed 9 sixers and 9 boundaries (that's 90 runs) on his way to 155. I thought we were going to see a repeat of his performance in 2019 when he dramatically turned the tables on Australia to pull off an unbelievable victory.

That was overshadowed by the controversial dismissal of England's Jonny Bairstow. 

The last ball of the 51st over. Cameron Green bowled a bouncer that Bairstow ducked. 

The ball was taken by the keeper Alex Carey, who then quickly threw the ball at the stumps. 

Bairstow was outside the crease.

On hearing the stumps getting hit, Bairstow looked puzzled. 

Australians appealed, which was sent to the TV umpire, who ruled Bairstow out.

This became an unfortunate controversial dismissal since Bairstow and his England teammates thought the ball was dead. 

I saw a few replays and read the rules regarding when is the ball dead.

One of the basic rules is that the batter has to be always inside the crease unless s/he is convinced that the ball is not in play.

Rule 20 explains when is a ball dead and when is it alive. 

One,  the ball should have settled in the hands of the wicketkeeper or the bowler. 

Two, the umpire at the bowler's end is convinced that the fielders and the two batters have ceased to consider that the ball is in play.

In this particular incident, Carey threw the ball in one action at the stumps. Clearly, there was no time gap between the ball landing in the gloves and him throwing at the stumps. The ball was in play.

Additionally, Bairstow had strayed outside the crease twice before. So, Carey's action wasn't unfair.

I know my British friends will be very upset. It was sad to see a few of the disappointed spectators letting things go out of hand and shouting quite unsporting comments at the Aussie players.

But here, I don't think there were two ways about it. 

I would have really liked Ben Stokes to go on to get a double hundred and England valiantly chase down that target to pull off an amazing win.

Sadly, that was not to be.

The day the world was on tenterhooks

Russian President addressing his nation 
on June 24. (BBC)

Saturday, June 24, 2023. Surely a red letter day in world history.

The day when a Russian mercenary group took on the country's powerful army and seemed to have had a free run -- encountering no resistance -- smashing their way to Moscow and coming very close to the seat of power.

Then came another dramatic development. They called off their march to the capital and retreated.

The previous night, I knew there was trouble brewing as the news ticker on the TV screen said Wagner group soldiers were crossing over to Russia from Ukraine. The reports said that these were very unusual movements.

On the morning of Saturday, news was coming in thick and fast -- on social media -- from mostly unverifiable sources that Wagner Group had launched a mutiny and were battling Russian forces.

Yevgeny Prigozhin -- oligarch and close confident of Russian President Vladimir Putin -- was topping headlines.

Why did he launch this? What was his endgame? We knew Prigozhin had problems with the top brass of the army. But would he launch something massive like this for that?
Answers were hard to come by.

Then came the news that the group had taken control of Rostov-on-Don. After that, reports of the mercenaries heading to Moscow.

This was not just sensational. It was worrying because of one single reason -- the chaos and instability that seemed to be looming in the region and all the aftereffects of that in the geopolitical sphere, besides, of course, the possible bloodshed and destruction that all this would entail.

Is Moscow going to fall?

Now more questions -- where is the Russian army? Are they so depleted that a rebellious mercenary group is having a cakewalk all the way to Moscow?

By evening, we were getting reports that Russia was summoning the full might of its military to stop the march and quell the mutiny.

Very soon came the news of Yevgeny Prigozhin telling his men to turn back following an intervention from Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko.

What we are hearing is that Prigozhin is in exile in Belarus, and his men are being absorbed into the Russian military.

That itself is a dramatic development.

Has Prigozhin got what he wanted? Has Wagner Group been disbanded? Is Putin now stronger or weaker?

No clear answers. Only time will tell.

Test cricket is real cricket

England's Joe Root in the 1st Ashes Test.
Source: Sky Sports

Anyone who watched the first Ashes Test match between Australia and England last week (from June 16 to 20) would have been thoroughly convinced that the 5-day version of cricket, the original version of the game in play since 1877, is alive and kicking. 

It ended in a dramatic victory for Australia by two wickets.

There was a packed crowd at the Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham. The Eric Hollies Stand kept up its reputation of being the noisiest.

But the best part was the intense battle between the bat and the ball. That's something we don't get to see in the truncated versions -- the 50-over or the 20-over.

Test cricket matches -- that last five days and around 30 hours of playing time -- test not just the physical abilities of the players but also their mental endurance. Very often, players bat for one whole day or even more than that.

In England's first innings, Joe Root, who struck an unbeaten 118, faced 152 balls (25.3 overs) and stayed in the crease for 269 minutes (close to five hours).

Similarly, in Australia's reply, Usman Khawaja batted for 478 minutes (nearly 8 hours) for his 141 in 321 balls (53.5 overs).

Similarly, for the bowlers, it's not just five or 10 overs. Australia's Nathan Lyon, who scalped 4 English wickets in the 1st innings, bowled 29 overs.

England's Moeen Ali bowled as many as 33 overs in the 1st innings. Similarly, Stuart Broad bowled 23 overs, and Ollie Robinson sent down 22.1.

Unlike the limited-over versions, there is more of a mind game at work with plenty of opportunities for creativity and variety. There is more time to experiment with bowlers and field positions with no fielding restrictions.

Test cricket is also seen as the more serious form of cricket, in which fair play and sportsmanship are much valued.

Currently, a one-off women's Test match is ongoing between England and Australia at Nottingham.

Very glad to see that the following for Test matches hasn't diminished one bit, though when the shorter versions were invented, there was a fear that this longer, real form of cricket will ebb into mere memories.

What happened to my previous post?

My previous post has had surprisingly very few page views. It's less than one-fifth of the usual. 

I suspected this because I didn't get the comments from some of my blog pals who have been so kind enough to not only regularly read my posts but also let me know what they felt about it.

I am just wondering what could have happened. Something seems to have gone wrong affecting the visibility of my post.

Was something wrong with Blogger when I published my post? Or is something wrong with the feed of the post and the post is not showing up? 

I have to see if it was a one-off case.

Rising cost of air travel

Everyone is talking about how costly it is now to fly. Ever since borders opened post-Covid, flight tickets have been expensive. But it looks like it's getting more expensive.

Once upon a time, in India, only the really rich could fly. But over the last 25 years, air travel has become more affordable, and there is now a growing number of people who are choosing to fly rather than go by bus or train.

But buses and trains are far less expensive. For example, Bengaluru - Thiruvananthapuram flight will now cost an average ₹5,000. Bus fare is around Rs 1,800, while the train fare is around ₹1,200 (for A/c coaches) and just around ₹500 (for non-A/c coaches).

Still, many choose to fly because they can save time. Flight to Thiruvananthapuram will take a little over one hour, but a bus or train journey will take over 15 hours. The distance is around 700 km.

International fares, too, have skyrocketed.

When seen globally, still, India is among the countries where airfare is low. But, comparison of airfares in different countries can be tricky. In some countries, airfares might look costlier, but the average income there could also be comparatively higher.

Still, here are some figures I got with a web search. They might not be very accurate.

Of course, we all know the multiple reasons for the spike: the increasing cost of fuel and the financial crunch faced by airline companies.

I wonder if the airfares will come down any time in the near future.

Big win for Congress in Karnataka

A huge setback for the ruling BJP, as the opposition Congress party is all set to form a government on its own in this southwestern state of Karnataka.

The counting of votes cast on May 10 began at 8 am today, and about five hours later, the trends were so clear that BJP conceded defeat.

Results on the Election Commission website

I am glad that we have a decisive mandate. That's good for governance. 

A big worry all these days was if the election would throw up a fractured verdict, as has been the case in the past. Unstable coalition governments are no good. 

BJP ERRED

It's a huge setback for the BJP, which had staked so much on this election. They were the incumbent and were facing allegations of massive corruption.

BJP, which has all along been saying that Congress is a party of corrupt leaders, probably never expected that the refrain would boomerang on them. BJP never addressed the issue of corruption in the state, and they have paid a huge price. 

The second big mistake BJP made was that it ignored regional issues and leaders. They went with a macro view and national leaders. 

There was a high-voltage campaign led by none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union home minister Amit Shah for the BJP. 

There was a perception all around -- hope in BJP and fear in Congress -- that Modi's charisma and oratorical skills would decisively swing the votes in favour of the BJP.

One of their pitches was that if the same party is in power in the centre and the state, that would aid development, which they sloganised as "double-engine government".

This argument attracted a lot of criticism since it implicitly means that state governments in India have no major role.

CONGRESS CAPITALISED

Congress focused on the failings of the government. They micro-managed the campaign with local issues and leaders. They were proactive rather than reactive.

Finally, after all the speeches and roadshows, people voted the way they felt was right, resulting in an outcome that jolted the BJP.

I am also happy that all the cherished values like diversity and democratic choices are very much alive in our country. People don't get swayed by rhetoric; they think independently.

They opted for change and gave Congress a chance to rule the state for the next five years.

Congress will now call a meeting of its legislative party (comprising the lawmakers who have been elected), and they will choose their leader, who will be sworn in as the chief minister.

Karnataka elections: Why you should vote, and what if you don't want to vote

The state assembly elections in Karnataka on May 10 are just a couple of days away. 

There is now full-throttle campaigning by the two big parties -- BJP, which is in power, and the opposition Congress.

BJP campaign is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress has deployed a battery of both national leaders like its president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party president Rahul Gandhi, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, as well as regional leaders like the leader of the opposition Siddaramaiah and state Congress president D K Shivakumar.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading BJP campaign

What BJP is banking on:

- Oratorical skills and charisma of Narendra Modi.

- Many developmental and social welfare schemes that the current BJP state government and BJP federal government have implemented.

- The hope that people will like the status quo to continue.

Congress leader and former chief minister Siddaramaiah.

What Congress is banking on:

- Allegations of corruption against BJP leaders in the state.

- Perception that BJP is ignoring local issues and sentiments in favour of a national narrative.

- Hope that people would want a change and many previous instances of the incumbent party losing.

WHY YOU SHOULD VOTE

Democracy is not perfect, nor are our democratic governments. But we are certainly lucky that we have that form of governance. 

That's because it gives us the freedom to be who we are and to do what we want to, of course, within the ambit of the law.

If that freedom is misused, the fault is ours and of the system.

In a democracy, we elect our representatives who form the government. So, we have a responsibility to participate in the political process. 

We must come out and vote because it is a fundamental aspect of democracy. When we vote, we are exercising our right to shape our own lives and communities.

On the left is the voting machine and, on the right,
is the VVPAT, a unit to indicate that the vote
has been cast correctly.

WHAT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO VOTE

In India, voting is not mandatory, and many people don't vote. While some places record around 90% polling, there are others that register just about 50%.

Two reasons why people choose not to vote.

One, no candidate is good enough.

Two, elected representatives never do their job well, so there is no point in electing anyone.

'Whom do I vote for?'

It's quite possible no candidate measures up to the electorates' expectations. In such cases, they choose not to vote. 

There is a solution to this problem. You can still vote. 

In 2009, the Election Commission of India introduced an option of "None of the Above" or NOTA in the electronic voting machines. If you choose that, it means you haven't chosen to vote for any candidate.

However, NOTA has no electoral value. If NOTA votes are in the majority, still the candidate who has secured the most votes will be declared the winner. 

There have been suggestions that in such a case, the election should be annulled and fresh voting held.

So far, there has never been an instance when NOTA secured the most votes. But NOTA has always picked up votes. And that does indeed send out a message.

'They are irresponsible'

It's a fact that there is disenchantment with legislators' commitment. Many feel that they are not doing their job well. 

But the counter to that is not we also not doing our job well. 

If someone is irresponsible, that doesn't mean we also should be irresponsible.

When we do our part well, we have the moral right to insist that lawmakers also do their job well.

VOTING DAY - MAY 10

This time the Election Commission took care to ensure that the voting day is mid-week to obviate the possibility of people clubbing polling day with the weekend and taking off on holiday.

So, on May 10, let us do our part of the job well. 

It's very simple.

Go out and vote.

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Image credits

Narendra Modi - Hindustan Times

Siddaramaiah - NDTV

Electronic voting machine - Wikipedia

A to Z Challenge - Reflections

The month of April just flew by. I am sure one of the reasons was the one-post-a-day routine.

I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of posting 26 articles on "chemicals in our everyday life". 

I chose the topic because of my interest in chemistry in particular and science in general.

If you want to go over them, they are all here. 

I knew that science and chemicals are a part of our lives. But what I discovered in April, during the course of research for the posts, was its extent.

The A to Z Blogging Challenge, in a way, rekindled my interest in science which was sort of lying dormant all these years.

It wasn't easy putting up those posts. Time was a big challenge. But somehow, I managed to do it.

On the flip side, unlike the previous years, I couldn't visit as many fellow participants' posts as I wished to. Even if I managed to read, I didn't find enough time to key in a comment.

That can be made up in the coming days, and I hope to make up for what I missed.

I hope the April Challenge is just the beginning and we continue to read other posts as we share and learn new facets of everyday life. 

Z for Zinc

This is the last in the series of 26 posts this month, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. 

My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry.

For the last letter, I will go with this well-known element, which is not only critical for good health but also has many uses in medicine, industry and agriculture. 

The symbol is Zn, and the atomic number is 30. It has a bluish-white colour and a lustrous appearance. 

Zinc is brittle at room temperature but becomes malleable and ductile when heated. It has a high melting point of 419.5°C and a boiling point of 907°C.

It's important for immune system function. That's why for Covid, patients, at least here, were given multivitamin tablets containing zinc. 

Zinc deficiency can cause various problems, such as impaired taste, poor healing of wounds, hair loss, and skin infections.

Zinc is a component of many common alloys like brass and bronze. Brass is an alloy of zinc and copper, while bronze is an alloy of zinc, copper and tin. 

It is also used to make batteries, cosmetics, paints, etc.

Zinc helps plants grow and resist diseases, and it is added to fertilizers to improve crop yield and quality.

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The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.

Y for Yttrium

This is the 25th in the series of 26 posts this month, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. 

My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry. 

Yttrium is a silvery-metallic element with the symbol Y and the atomic number 39. It has often been classified as a "rare-earth element".

It is not very common in nature, but it is widely found in minerals like monazite and xenotime.

It was first isolated in 1828 by a Swedish chemist Friedrich Wöhler, and the element probably gets its name from the Swedish town of Ytterby. 

Yttrium finds use in automobiles and television.

In automobile exhaust systems, it works as an oxygen sensor. Yttrium oxide can measure the oxygen content in the exhaust gas and adjust the fuel injection accordingly. This helps to reduce the emission of harmful pollutants and improve engine efficiency. 

In older TV models, which used cathode ray tubes, yttrium was used as a host for red phosphors. (Phosphors are substances that emit light when exposed to some form of energy.)

However, in modern LED TVs, yttrium aluminium garnet is used as phosphors. 

Yttrium metal is also used to improve the strength of aluminium and magnesium alloys.

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The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.

X for Xenon

This is the 24th in the series of 26 posts this month, one post a day, barring four Sundays, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry.

I will give tomorrow a miss, and the 25th and the 26th parts of this series will appear on the 29th and 30th.

Xenon is a rare, odourless, colourless, and tasteless gas and is represented by the symbol Xe and has an atomic number of 54.

It was discovered in 1898 by Scottish chemist Sir William Ramsay.

Xenon, which is found in trace amounts in the atmosphere, is a heavy gas.

It is one of the most unreactive elements known and is inert to most chemical reactions.

Xenon is a good insulator of heat and electricity and is used in specialized lighting systems, such as flash photography and strobe lights.

It is also used in the automotive industry as a component of xenon headlights, which are brighter and more energy efficient than traditional halogen headlights.

These headlights produce a more natural light that is closer to daylight and is less likely to cause eye fatigue during long drives. Xenon headlights are also used in high-end cars because of their aesthetic appeal.

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The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.

W for Water

This is the 23rd in the series of 26 posts this month, one post a day, barring four Sundays, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry. 

Let me go with this obvious choice - water. It's not only the most well-known chemical compound but also the most important. Without water, there is no life.

Though it's so important for our health, since water is so ubiquitous, we take it for granted without paying much attention to it. 

Water makes up approximately 60% of our body weight. It regulates body temperature; it is essential for metabolism and for the proper functioning of all our organs.

Approximately 70% of the earth’s surface is covered by water, but only 3% of that is fresh water suitable for human consumption.

Besides the fact that it's the most essential drink, water is used for a lot of activities in our daily lives, like cooking, bathing, gardening, cleaning, flushing etc., besides for farming and in industries. 

According to the World Health Organization, an average person uses approximately 20-50 litres (5.3-13.2 gallons) of water per day for basic human needs such as drinking, cooking, and hygiene. 

However, this can be more or less depending on factors such as location and lifestyle, with consumption lesser in poorer regions and more in richer ones. 

A lot of water is wasted as well. We might not actually run out of water on the planet, but specific regions do and can experience a shortage of water. 

In fact, all major conflicts currently raging in various parts of the world, like Syria, Sudan, West Asia, etc., have an element of conflict over water within them.

Many modern development policies actually result in the wastage or deprivation of water, leading to a series of consequences ranging from desertification to social and political conflicts.

It's ironic that the availability of good water should be such an issue in many parts of the world.

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Image of water jug from Pixabay

The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.

V for Vitamins

This is the 22nd in the series of 26 posts this month, one post a day, barring four Sundays, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry. 

This is not about one element or one compound. It is about a group of organic compounds called vitamins that are made up of different elements, small amounts of which are essential for various metabolic processes, such as growth, development, immunity, and energy production.

Right from the time I was a child, my father used to give me vitamin supplements, B and C, on alternate days.

He believed in the need for supplements because he used to say that food alone doesn't provide us with the required quantity of vitamins. 

He was also influenced by the work of Nobel laureate and American biochemist Linus Pauling on the role of vitamin C in boosting the body's immunity against common respiratory infections like the common cold.

Having daily vitamin supplements is a habit I still have, and I have passed that on to my wife as well. We used to give them to my son, too, when he was with us, but now since he is away in another city, I am not sure if he is regular with them.

The breakout of Covid created an awareness of the need for immunity-boosting vitamins, and many people began having supplements.

Whether vitamin supplements are good or not is disputed, and not even all doctors and nutritionists agree. 

I have my doctor's approval for taking the vitamin supplements. Make sure you also have a physician's go-ahead before you start on them because excessive quantities of vitamins can be harmful.

DIFFERENT TYPES

There are 13 vitamins that are classified into two groups: fat-soluble and water-soluble.

Fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K. 

They can be stored in the body's fat tissue and liver for a long time. They help with vision, bone health, blood clotting, and antioxidant activity.

Water-soluble vitamins are B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, B12, and C. 

These are not stored in the body for a long time. They need to be replenished regularly through food or supplements. 

They help with energy production, nerve function, red blood cell formation, DNA synthesis, and collagen production.

Vitamins are found in fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy products, meat, eggs, and fish. Some can also be synthesized by the body. 

Vitamin deficiencies can cause various health problems, such as anaemia, scurvy, rickets, night blindness, and beriberi.

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Image of fruit from Pixabay

The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.

U for Uric acid

This is the 21st in the series of 26 posts this month, one post a day, barring four Sundays, each on a theme corresponding to a letter of the English alphabet. My theme this year is "Chemicals in our life", spurred by my interest in chemistry. 

Uranium was the obvious choice. But I thought of doing uric acid because it's far closer to our daily lives. 

Like cholesterol, this is a chemical that's present in our bodies. Its formula is C5H4N4O3. 

Uric acid is formed when the body breaks down substances called purines.

Purines are a type of organic molecule that is found in our DNA and RNA. They are either made in the body by natural processes, or we get them from food.

Foods like meat, seafood, beans, and beer have purines.

When purines are broken down, uric acid is formed. 

Does uric acid have any use? I am not quite sure.

Like cholesterol, it's known more for the harm it does to the body than for any possible use.

Uric acid dissolves in blood and is expelled from our bodies by the kidneys through urine.

But in certain conditions, it can form crystals and salts.

Too much uric acid can cause problems such as gout, kidney stones, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.

Usually, a regular health check-up shows the amount of uric acid, and it's important to keep it at a healthy level.

Common advice that's given by doctors to keep it in check is to reduce intake of food that has a high level of purines, drink a lot of water, and exercise regularly.

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The information provided in this post has been obtained from multiple authentic resources. However, it is presented in an abridged format and might not have all the details. Therefore, before acting on any information, readers are requested to exercise caution and do further research.

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. I am also on A2Z April Challenge.