Awe[ful] @ Science !!?!??!

I was at the B.M Birla Science Musuem yesterday… it was calm with no one in there.. the only people i could see were the sweepers and cleaners.. the place was dull and lifeless… I dint like it.. but slowly.. as the afternoon progressed.. people started coming in and by 5 in the evening.. there were quite a few in. The museum seemed to have sprung to life suddenly… there was a lot of action all around with people enjoying in ( and trying to understand) the wonderful world of science….

A lot of kids had come along with their parents… to dive into the world of science… they were enjoying it… the parents also turned into kids and were having great fun… it was a great sight… the parents tried their best to demistify the happenings… those with a science background did it from thier knowledge.. the others patiently went through the explanations…

The kids were thoroughly enjoying it… I don’t know if they would later on in life remember what they learnt now… but definitely a love for science and physics will be ignited in their hearts, it will fill their consciousness… the spirit of curiosity will have multiplied manifold… even the elders..connected with the child somewhere deep within themselves… they too enjoyed the wonders of the world of science…[and ofcourse the company and thrill in the eyes of their kids..] I too enjoyed the experience… the experiments and the thrill of the others brought a smile to my face too…. but it set me thinking…

If science can inspire so much awe.. what’s happening at our engineering colleges? When people have the chance to learn a whole lot of science and put it to practical use… why isn’t it that they are excited about it? Why is it that people just endup mugging a few formulae just before exams and get over with it? Where’s the problem? Where is that curiosity, all of us had as a child, lost?

I can recollect, in the last sem while doing experiments in the MT lab there wasn’t even a tenth of the awe or joy… that i could see and feel at the museum… why?? Is it that the child within us.. [the future engineers] dead? { If that’s true.. then the country is in deep trouble..} But I don’t think that’s true… I enjoyed my visit to the museum totally…and I am sure every other ‘to be engineer’ would have too.. then where’s the trouble?

I don’t know exactly… but I wonder if its because everything is equated to marks and grades… all that matters to an engineering student [and the world around him/her..] is his/her CG or %age… Is this what the country needs? Were the ‘temples of Learning’- the IIT’s and a whole lot of other technical institutions set-up for this very pupose? Of what use are those engineers to the country, who aren’t in awe of science and engineering, whose spirit of curiosity has been overpowered and suppressed by the present education system?

Isn’t it time we have a closer look at our education system… why are we still sticking to the ‘British sytem’ introduced during a colonial rule.. to break the back bone of our nation… to supress our ability to think rationally.. to produce third rate clerks to work for them at lower wages? Why is the emphasis on marks and grades growing exponentially? Shouldn’t we start working to cut this growth at its root? Is this sytem good enough to produce “real” engineers, doctors, lawyers, journos, CA’s, architects, designers, writers, artists etc etc..

Where have all the gurukuls of the ancient past and the Santiniketans of the recent past gone? Isn’t the country in desparate need of more of these ‘temples of learning’??

The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence.
– Rabindranath Tagore

Science is a wonderful thing if one does not have to earn one’s living at it
–Albert Einstein

Filed under: Ramblings , kids, life, science

The Journey minus "The Man!"

I am back Home!! After one more ordinary semester, (academically, otherwise quite a dramatic one actually) finally i’m back home! On my way back home……

It was 3:30 am. After about half an hour’s struggle to put myself to sleep, I gave up. I don’t know if it was the chill of the night, the stink of the urinals or the shared berth that I slept on, I couldn’t sleep. I decided to get up and have a stroll around. After some random walks, I sat down at the TTE’s seat and waited and waited and waited….

My last journey home, at the end of second sem was also quite similar. I spent a lot of time at the TTE’s seat…unable to sleep… waiting, waiting and waiting.. but it was quite different…. I was in the elite company of Hari (Hari Charan a.k.a Prongs… his nick in CS)

That journey is still very fresh in my memory… I spent most of it with him; The morning was busy and lively with DumbC’s n stuff like that. In the afternoon while the others were enjoying a good nap, we tried studying some C programming. [ he just loved programming and was excited about doing a lotta cool stuff during the summer] But the afternoon heat got the better of me and eventually i fell asleep…{I think, I induced a bit of sleep to him too }

That night is a most unforgettable one… after all our guys went to sleep, both of us decided to spend some time listening to songs and try to put ourselves to sleep. [ The songs of RDB aren't lullabies by any measure! and the train was running too fast: we couldn't hear clearly with just one earphone each, even if we were on the top berth]

So, we ended up discussing matters of common interest… we chatted on topics ranging from Movies to Religion and Culture to Dan Brown [he told me the whole story of Deception point in his trademark style!] to Games and Programming. I spoke my heart out… {and so did he; as he always did} [haven't had any other discussion which comes close to it] After a couple of hours, we decided to get down and move around, to enjoy the cool breeze, to look at the villages and the fields going past… We shared the seat of the TTE for about an hour [that was the only window where we could sit : all the others had ppl sleeping beside them] … looking out of the window… enjoying the breeze.. [and each other's company : I thoroughly enjoyed his.. hope it was the same with him too] and waiting, waiting and waiting…

We had already spent three nights waiting for him, but still didn’t lose hope. We hoped he would some how return or would be found safe somewhere under the sun. But that was not to be. He never returned… and all that was ever found was his body : lifeless… The rough seas had him their victim… “There’s no more Hari Charan, ra!”. Those were the words of nine.

Yes he is no more.Yet he is always here, immortal within our hearts… his memories we cherish with pride… proud to have known him and known by him… with awe and reverence we think of him… we just love him! But I’ll always miss that call of his, “Chogni!”

Luka Chuppi bahut hui…
saamne aa ja naa…
kahan kahan dhoonda tujhe…
thak gai hai ab teri maa…

Edit:1. 9’s Post on Hari is here
2. Arunodai’s Post on Hari is here

Filed under: College, Tribute , journey, loss