முரளி நாயர்::In search of all things whimsical - A Quest

A Baha’i Song in Tamil – Blessed is the Spot

2012-01-01T21:11:00.000-08:00

“We long to hear ... the emergence of captivating songs from every part of the world, in every language, that will impress upon the consciousness of the young the profound concepts enshrined in the Baha'i teachings.”

- The Universal House of Justice, 12 December 2011

In the spirit of those inspiring words from the Universal House Justice, I would like to share this song, in the Tamil language, of a prayer by Baha’u’llah, much loved by all, which goes by the name ‘Blessed is the Spot’.

The last decade or so has seen a huge rise in the Tamil refugee population across much of the western world, particularly in countries like Canada, Switzerland and other member states of the EU. When I travel to some of these places and get to meet some of these folks, I’m touched by the thrill I can see in their eyes from having met someone who speaks their own language; be it that guy who worked at the sandwich kiosk at the Zurich train station, or the folks at the refugee processing facility in Switzerland who called out and waved at me from a distance when they saw me walking up some hill, or the guy who sold souvenirs near the airport in Hamburg. This song is for you.

My Baha’i friends in these countries who are trying to reach out to the Tamil population in their neighbourhood, may also find songs such as this useful in their efforts to befriend and invite these folks to participate in the institute process. So this song is for you as well.

Thoughts on Bioethics

2011-03-24T03:00:00.000-07:00

[Transcript of a talk I gave at a university nearby]

Thank you for that introduction. I come from a non-clinical science background and usually people like me are not that well versed with ethics at least as far as the philosophical underpinnings of the subject are concerned. However like many practitioners in the sciences we are subjected to a professional code of conduct that draws upon ethical principles. So although I cannot claim deep familiarity with the subject, I am aware of some of the issues associated with bioethics, and what I’m going to present here is a practitioner’s perspective, not a philosopher’s.

Let’s start from the very beginning. What is ethics? Ethics is about how one ought to behave and in this sense it is based on morality – the idea of what is right and wrong which has long been associated with religion. If you look at the history of the Middle East at the dawn of civilisation, particularly at the kinds of creation stories that went around in those days, myths about how the world came to be and how it worked, you will find very little of what we today would identify as morality. These were stories about gods who made decisions on a whim, were only concerned about themselves and had little regard for the plight and suffering of their subjects. I doubt a modern person would shed much tears over one these stories as perhaps they would if they were to read, say, the poetry of John Keats, or of that unknown author, who penned the poignant yet inspirational ‘Footprints in the sand’.

So when the stories of the Bible first made their appearance, they were nothing like the stories that had been told before. They were tearjerkers in the sense that they touched something innate in the hearts of men. In these stories the gods didn’t act on a whim. Humans in these stories were not at the periphery; they were at the centre of the universe. We had a God who was deeply interested in the affairs of men, puny though man might have appeared to a Being who had fashioned the universe out of nothing. This God distinguished between what is right and wrong, nay defined what is right and wrong and expected adherence to the highest standards of behaviour. As the Bible puts it:

“...I command you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, that I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the Lord's wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the Lord giveth you”

- Deuteronomy 11:13-21

Even in passing the stories of the Bible bear a striking contrast with those that came before. The changes in the character of these stories appear to reflect man’s growing moral capacity over time. Moral capacity is connected with our ability to empathise and this has continually evolved throughout history. As Jeremy Rifkin points out in his book ‘The empathic civilisation” our ability to empathise with our fellow human beings has not always been the same, but has changed with time to become more and more inclusive. Where previously one would only empathise with family, that circle slowly enlarged to include neighbours, tribes, cities and nation states.

The message here is that the values that give rise to ethics are not absolute, they change over time because our ideas of what is right and wrong, morality, changes over time. We may have noticed this even within our own lifetimes when we consider how notions of what is acceptable in music, in dressing, in medical technologies such as IVF (although some still do object to IVF) have changed within a single generation. As such, this mantra of change should inform the way in which we approach issues in bioethics, so that our policies are congruent with new discoveries being made in the sciences and take into account the growing challenges to our wellbeing and prosperity in the years ahead due to resource depletion, and changes in demography, climate and the environment.

Synthetic Biology

Some of you may have heard that last year, a group of scientists in the United States had created what they called artificial life. Although that is a bit of a stretch, what they had done was something almost as remarkable: they had chemically synthesised the entire genome of a microorganism and had inserted that into a cell from a different species. At first sight this work may not seem that spectacular, but it represents a major technical breakthrough. Chemically synthesising a one million base pair genome is no walk in the park. It shows that we could create entirely new forms of life, specifically engineered for carrying out certain tasks. This technology has been given the name synthetic biology. It seeks to combine advances in molecular biology with traditional engineering practice to create reusable, standardised parts (or components) with which one could build all sorts of novel biological systems; a kind of a LEGO toolbox for scientists and DIY enthusiasts to play with.

Synthetic biology promises the solution to many of the problems that society faces today. It has the potential to reduce our reliance on fossil fuel. Vast quantities of cellulosic agricultural waste could be converted to the kind of fuel we put into our cars every day, something which cannot be done efficiently today. Life forms could be created that could mop-up pollution in the environment; they could even be harnessed to clean-up radioactive waste, and the list of what could be done with this technology is only limited by our imagination. But along with the promise comes the sober realisation that these things could also wreak havoc with the environment if we are not sufficiently vigilant, and that’s before we even consider issues like bioterrorism. So along with great promise comes great risk, or as Spider-Man would have said, “with great power comes great responsibility”.

So how does one go about dealing with such developments? Possible responses could range from introducing a moratorium on research – this has happened before in the early years of recombinant DNA technology (aka genetic engineering), preventing public disclosure by restricting publication of research findings (this happened in the early years of nuclear physics), to self regulation based on ethical guidelines.

The US administration's response to the announcement of the creation of synthetic life was to ask the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues to draw up ethical boundaries for research in synthetic biology. I’m going to use the approach taken by that commission as the basis for talking about the religious dimension of ethical values.

Ethics and Principles

Ethical boundaries are based on moral principles that serve as guideline for formulating actions. As such rather than proposing a specific set of recommendations on bioethics in a forum like this, it would be more productive if we could instead examine and perhaps agree on what principles ethical guidelines for research in the biological sciences should be based upon. I’m confident that if we do this, we will find little difference between the various belief systems out there, as least as far as the broad contours of the principles are concerned.

A typical approach in dealing with problems in bioethics, called the ‘Georgetown School’ approach, relies on the following principles:

i. Beneficence

ii. Non-malfeasance

iii. Autonomy

iv. Justice

These principles are mirrored by those used by the Obama commission to draw up ethical boundaries for synthetic biology:

i. Public beneficence

ii. Responsible stewardship

iii. Intellectual freedom and responsibility

iv. democratic deliberation

v. Justice and fairness.

Let us now consider some of these principles in greater detail. In doing so I will be drawing upon my understanding of the teachings of the Bahá'í Faith.

Beneficence

The principle of beneficence leads to formulating actions that bring about the greatest good to society (i.e. an increase in the happiness, safety and wellbeing). It is a utilitarian approach and it sounds entirely reasonable. However the weakness in this approach becomes apparent when we realise that what brings about the greatest good to society in the aggregate is not necessarily what is morally ‘right’ based on our intuitive understanding of what is right and wrong. An example would be smoking. Let us say that a majority of people in society enjoy smoking, and ignoring for the moment the dangers of smoking, the obvious move in the utilitarian scheme of things would be to allow smoking in public places, even if that causes a great deal of distress to a minority who find the smell of cigarette smoke noxious and unbearable. Why? Because doing so will make a greater number of people happy.

It is clear that a utilitarian approach alone, which seeks to maximise the overall good can lead to situations where some people, the minority are harmed. For most of us this is morally unacceptable.

Conversely, can we deny people access to something that is good for them but which does not harm others, purely on the basis of ideology or some notion of what we think ought to be right or wrong (examples could be blood transfusion, contraceptives, IVF etc.)?

This dilemma was captured remarkably well in a scene from the Tamil film ‘Sacchein’ that I happened to watch not too long ago. In the film, which chronicles the challenges of student life, there is a scene where the protagonist, Vijay, tells his classmate that “any action that makes you happy but does not cause harm to others is acceptable. A smile, no matter how slight and fleeting is unacceptable if it causes the least degree of distress in others”. I was pleasantly surprised at that deep and meaningful piece of dialogue that the scriptwriters had somehow managed to weave into an otherwise ordinary teen flick. So when next time someone sneers at you for watching a Tamil film, remember, you can always tell them you’re learning philosophy.

Now, the surprise is that some people will find it difficult to agree with or put into practice what Vijay preaches in the film ‘Sacchein’. Why should this be? The answer, in one word, is ideology. History has shown time and again that undue deference to ideology or strong beliefs can be disastrous when dealing with issues that concern public welfare. There is a need therefore to constantly remind ourselves of what Shoghi Effendi so pithily expressed:

“For legal standards, political and economic theories are solely designed to safeguard the interests of humanity as a whole, and not humanity to be crucified for the preservation of the integrity of any particular law or doctrine.”

- Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah, p. 42

Non-Malfeasance

Above all do no harm. That’s the basis of the Hippocratic oath. You find it in the Ten Commandments. Google uses a form of it in its informal motto ‘Don’t be evil’. I think you’ll hardly find any reasonable person who disagrees with it. However, problems arise when we try to determine whether a particular technology, say genetic engineering, can cause harm. Scientists have great difficulty in communicating to the public that it is not possible to proof that something is safe. What we can do is show that something is unsafe.

With synthetic biology, although there is the possibility of causing great harm, it is not always clear whether this can happen with the current state of technology or with one we are likely to be in possession in the immediate future. It is all too easy to kill off a nascent field of science by exaggerating the risks. How so? Let me give some examples.

When the fission/fusion bomb was about to be tested, many otherwise educated people thought that exploding one could set the whole atmosphere of the Earth on fire in a runaway chain reaction. Another more recent example was the fear associated with the operation of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. This particle accelerator was thought capable of producing microscopic black holes that could conceivably grow and engulf the entire Earth. The machine was switched on, and as you would no doubt appreciate, nothing ominous took place. We are still here.

Exaggerated fears have led both scientists (who are not immune to it) and statesmen to make all kinds of unreasonable statements why a particular technology or research should be banned. Bill Joy, a famous computer scientist called for a moratorium on certain kinds of research that he deemed too dangerous. Prince Charles thought that nanotechnology could turn the world into a goo. The problem with such views is that if we do not venture into carrying out research in these emerging fields we will be robbing humanity of whatever benefits that could be gained from them. And we won’t know what it is that we have missed out on.

Where risks are concerned, the Obama commission recommended adopting a pragmatic approach and called for responsible stewardship and prudent vigilance. There was no need to overdo things and call for unnecessarily stringent rules and regulation: just imagine, if the Wright brothers had to operate under existing FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) rules, the first airplane may have never flown.

Prudent vigilance calls for continuous evaluation of risk and of the existing state- of-the art. Ethical guidelines need not and should not be etched in stone. They could and should change with time according to the ever changing needs and capacity of man. Capacity includes both technical capacity, including the state of material development of society, and spiritual capacity.

In the Bahá’í writings, Abdu’l-Baha says that humanity’s material development has outstripped its spiritual development and not only will this limit further material progress but it can have dangerous consequences:

“Material civilization has reached an advanced plane, but now there is need of spiritual civilization. Material civilization alone will not satisfy; it cannot meet the conditions and requirements of the present age; its benefits are limited to the world of matter. There is no limitation to the spirit of man, for spirit in itself is progressive, and if the divine civilization be established, the spirit of man will advance. Every developed susceptibility will increase the effectiveness of man. Discoveries of the real will become more and more possible, and the influence of divine guidance will be increasingly recognized.”

“...until material achievements, physical accomplishments and human virtues are reinforced by spiritual perfections, luminous qualities and characteristics of mercy, no fruit or result shall issue therefrom, nor will the happiness of the world of humanity, which is the ultimate aim, be attained. For although, on the one hand, material achievements and the development of the physical world produce prosperity, which exquisitely manifests its intended aims, on the other hand dangers, severe calamities and violent afflictions are imminent.”

- Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 283

It is the Bahá’í belief that any religious law that aims to govern effectively the affairs of man should change with time to take into account the changing needs of society, and of man’s growing capacity for a more perfect understanding of the world in which he lives. Even among humans, where social dynamics are concerned:

“Not everything that a man knoweth can be disclosed, nor can everything that he can disclose be regarded as timely, nor can every timely utterance be considered as suited to the capacity of those who hear it.”

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 176

If that is true of human affairs, what more of divine instruction?

Dealing with Change

Knowledge governs everything we do, including deciding on ethical matters. The Bahá’í Faith teaches that there are two kinds of knowledge: that obtained through observation of nature and that which is received through Revelation. Science is a method for systematically uncovering truths concerning natural phenomena while religion deals with spiritual truths.

We can envision how changes in social conditions that require changes to ethical laws, can be dealt with by science due to its self-updating and self correcting nature. But science only deals with the material aspects of reality. It does not for example deal with values. It does not take into account the full panoply of forces that motivate people and determine human behaviour. Science restricts itself to addressing only those forces that are material in origin. It does not provide a prescription for how we ought to live our lives. It is incomplete. In this respect religion complements science by dealing with issues that science ignores due to the limitations of the scientific method.

So we need religion to venture into those areas where science fears to tread. But how does religion cope with change? The code of laws that regulate conduct in religion are based on scripture or teachings that remain fixed and unchanging over long periods of time. This fact can be immensely frustrating for those who look to religious texts for answers to social problems and find that these problems have not been adequately addressed due to their novelty. One could of course depend on the device of interpretation to provide an answer, but as history has shown, because of divergent interpretations, this approach usually leads to division, disunity and in extreme cases, violence.

In the Bahá’í faith there is recognition of the need for a mechanism to deal with matters not explicitly dealt with in scripture, thus preserving the unity of the body politic. This mechanism finds its embodiment in the institution of the Universal House of Justice whose members are elected by universal suffrage from amongst the Baha'is once every 5 years. The Universal House of Justice has the authority to legislate on matters not dealt with in the Baha'i sacred texts. Thus Baha'i laws are able to respond to the changing needs of the Baha'i community as it matures and society itself undergoes transformation over time.

Autonomy and Justice

Application of justice requires one to be capable of walking in the other person’s shoes. It calls for the capacity to empathise. And that capacity to empathise, as Jeremy Rifkin has pointed out, is related to our sense of person hood. People had not always thought of themselves as autonomous agents as we do today. In more primitive societies, say hunter gatherers, people thought first and foremost as ‘We’ rather than “I”. Only when we are able to think of ourselves as separate individuals does the idea of justice makes sense. On this matter, the Bahá’í writings have this to say:

'O Son of Spirit! The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbour. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behoveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine eyes.'

- Baha'u'llah, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 36

As mentioned previously, the ability to judge and render justice is dependant our ability to empathise, and the degree to which we are able to do so is a token of how far we have progressed in becoming a more humane and civilised society:

“Every imperfect soul is self-centred and thinketh only of his own good. But as his thoughts expand a little he will begin to think of the welfare and comfort of his family. If his ideas still more widen, his concern will be the felicity of his fellow citizens; and if still they widen, he will be thinking of the glory of his land and of his race. But when ideas and views reach the utmost degree of expansion and attain the stage of perfection, then will he be interested in the exaltation of humankind. He will then be the well-wisher of all men and the seeker of the weal and prosperity of all lands. This is indicative of perfection.”

- Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 69

Within the context of bioethics, the application of the principle of justice requires sharing the fruits of discovery as well as burden and risks in a just manner. That may sound like circular reasoning, so let me clarify by saying that 'just', as a first approximation, could mean 'equal'; equal access to the benefits and the equal sharing of risks and burden associated with discoveries in the biological sciences. A more appropriate conception of justice would have to take into account social circumstances, but as a starting point one could not go very wrong by treating everyone as equal.

Conclusion

The moral principles addressed at length in this talk represent the most common basis for making decisions on questions of ethics. One could go on plumbing the depths of these principles for meaning and yet never completely exhaust the insights into human nature they are capable of producing. Yet these principles are implicitly evaluated within the wider context of epistemology and are subject to its limitations: that which we can know is circumscribed by where we live and the times in which we live. It is appropriate then given such limitations for us to put on the garb of humility when seeking resolution to ethical questions. Humility helps because it is the very antithesis of strong ideological beliefs, beliefs that often lead to excessive love or hate, both of which can blind our eyes to the truth. And truth is what we are trying to consecrate when deliberating on ethical issues.

As a concluding thought, because of its importance in all human affairs, I would like to share with you a quote from the Bahá’í writings on the qualities a person should possess when seeking truth:

“O my brother, when a true seeker determineth to take the step of search in the path leading to the knowledge of the Ancient of Days, he must, before all else, cleanse and purify his heart, which is the seat of the revelation of the inner mysteries of God, from the obscuring dust of all acquired knowledge, and the allusions of the embodiments of satanic fancy. He must purge his breast, which is the sanctuary of the abiding love of the Beloved, of every defilement, and sanctify his soul from all that pertaineth to water and clay, from all shadowy and ephemeral attachments. He must so cleanse his heart that no remnant of either love or hate may linger therein, lest that love blindly incline him to error, or that hate repel him away from the truth. Even as thou dost witness in this day how most of the people, because of such love and hate, are bereft of the immortal Face, have strayed far from the Embodiments of the divine mysteries, and, shepherdless, are roaming through the wilderness of oblivion and error. That seeker must at all times put his trust in God, must renounce the peoples of the earth, detach himself from the world of dust, and cleave unto Him Who is the Lord of Lords. He must never seek to exalt himself above any one, must wash away from the tablet of his heart every trace of pride and vainglory, must cling unto patience and resignation, observe silence, and refrain from idle talk. For the tongue is a smouldering fire, and excess of speech a deadly poison. Material fire consumeth the body, whereas the fire of the tongue devoureth both heart and soul. The force of the former lasteth but for a time, whilst the effects of the latter endure a century.”

- Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 192

Thank you.

Refresh and Gladden My Spirit

2010-12-06T21:55:00.000-08:00

This prayer by Abdu'l-Baha has always been a favourite in Baha'i circles.

O God! Refresh and gladden my spirit. Purify my heart. Illumine my mind.
I lay all my affairs in Thy hand. Thou art my Guide and my Refuge.
I will no longer be sorrowful and grieved;
I will be a happy and joyful being. O God!
I will no longer be full of anxiety,
nor will I let trouble harass me.
I will not dwell on the unpleasant things of life.O God!
Thou art more friend to me than I am to myself.
I dedicate myself to Thee, O Lord.

- Abdu'l-Bahá

Georgia On My Mind

2010-11-11T14:46:00.000-08:00

Georgia on my mind has everything that makes a song great, and it happens to be the official song of the US state of Georgia. Music videos and lyrics follow. The first video is of an instrumental version by the jazz Guitarist Martin Taylor and the second a rather lame version that I sung to prove to myself that it just cannot be done :-)

Music Videos

Lyrics

Georgia, Georgia
The whole day through
Just an old sweet song
Keeps Georgia on my mind
I said Georgia, Georgia
A song of you
Comes as sweet and clear as moonlight through the pines
Other arms reach out to me
Other eyes smile tenderly
Still in peaceful dreams I see
The road leads back to you
I said Georgia, oh Georgia, no peace I find
Just an old sweet song
Keeps Georgia on my mind

My Favourite Things

2010-10-27T20:06:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favourite songs from childhood. I remember singing them and other songs from the Sound of Music in front of of my class for which the teacher usually rewarded me by allowing me to leave for home early.

For those of you who teach children’s class, the Hammerstein and Rodgers song can serve as the basis for devising children’s class activity. For example all those references to material objects in the song could be replaced instead with spiritual qualities, and these could be suggested by the children themselves. The children could be asked to suggest virtues or personal qualities that they would most like to be identified with and this will be a good way to foster creativity and teach them about spiritual things at the same time.

Everyone’s a shrink these days...

2010-10-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

When I read the talk given by Abdu’l-Baha in Boston in 1912, I’m reminded of that pithy line from England Dan and John Ford Coley’s song about ‘worlds of wisdom’ being held a prisoner in a cell while the rest of the world goes marching on, oblivious to its loss. In a society where psycho babble is spewed out ad nauseam by all manner of folk, Abdu’l-Baha’s words cuts through the chaff and provides clarity and a convincing perspective on which any realistic understanding of human nature must be based:

"Man possesses two kinds of susceptibilities: the natural emotions, which are like dust upon the mirror, and spiritual susceptibilities, which are merciful and heavenly characteristics.
There is a power which purifies the mirror from dust and transforms its reflection into intense brilliancy and radiance so that spiritual susceptibilities may chasten the hearts and heavenly bestowals sanctify them. What is the dust which obscures the mirror? It is attachment to the world, avarice, envy, love of luxury and comfort, haughtiness and self-desire; this is the dust which prevents reflection of the rays of the Sun of Reality in the mirror. The natural emotions are blameworthy and are like rust which deprives the heart of the bounties of God. But sincerity, justice, humility, severance, and love for the believers of God will purify the mirror and make it radiant with reflected rays from the Sun of Truth.
It is my hope that you may consider this matter, that you may search out your own imperfections and not think of the imperfections of anybody else. Strive with all your power to be free from imperfections. Heedless souls are always seeking faults in others. What can the hypocrite know of others' faults when he is blind to his own? This is the meaning of the words in the Seven Valleys. It is a guide for human conduct. As long as a man does not find his own faults, he can never become perfect. Nothing is more fruitful for man than the knowledge of his own shortcomings. The Blessed Perfection says, "I wonder at the man who does not find his own imperfections."

Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace

First Flight - Boeing 787 Experimental

2010-10-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

It’s the moment everyone's been waiting for. Does this thing work? Time to find out. Engines spool up. Brakes released, left rudder applied to keep nose on centre line and down the runway she rolls, picking up speed. 136 knots -V1, there’s no turning back now. Wing tips start to flex visibly. 140 knots -Vr..nose wheel lifts off the runway. 150 knots -V2...she’s airborne, soaring up against the sky as graceful as an eagle. Ain't she a beaut!

The Wind is My Music

2010-09-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

I have heard of many descriptions of synesthesia but none as enchanting and magical as that provided by the poet David Wright (David Wright is deaf):

“Suppose it is a calm day, absolutely still, not a twig or leaf stirring. To me it will seem quiet as a tomb though hedgerows are full of noisy but invisible birds. Then comes a breath of air, enough to unsettle a leaf. I will see and hear that movement like an exclamation. The illusory soundlessness has been interrupted. I see as if I heard, a visionary noise in the wind in a disturbance of foliage...

I have sometimes to make a deliberate effort to remember I am not 'hearing' anything, because there is nothing to hear. Such non-sounds include the flight and movement of birds, even fish swimming in clear water or the tank of an aquarium. I take it that the flight of most birds, at least at a distance, must be silent.... Yet it appears audible, each species creating a different eye-music..."

How to light a Cigarette (safely) with a Nuclear Bomb

2010-09-03T20:32:00.000-07:00

I don’t smoke. I know very little about cigarettes and even less about the various kinds of cigarette lighters out there. But of this I’m sure, none of them are likely to be powered by a nuclear detonation. So I was somewhat intrigued when I came across this really outrageous story about a nuclear weapons designer who used a fission bomb to light his cigarette. The story as far I can tell is true. As true as any story can be because of its provenance – told by one John McPhee (heard of him?) of Princeton in his book The Curve of Binding Energy. The book is unlikely to be found in the glitzy shopping malls of ~~nameofasiancityremoved~~, but if you happen to live in the cultural capital of the world, Calcutta, then you are in luck. All you have to do is stroll along College Street and in all probability you’ll be able to pick up a copy.

The name of the weapons designer in the story is Ted Taylor. This was the guy responsible for miniaturising nuclear weapons so that instead of weighing several thousand pounds and requiring large aircrafts to carry them to their targets, they can fit snugly into say, the cone of a Tomahawk cruise missile (e.g. the W80 nuclear device, itself a derivative of the B61 designed by the Los Alamos National Laboratory where Taylor worked).

According to McPhee, Taylor had come up with an idea for a nuclear device that could be made lighter by using unconventional materials in its construction. The device was called Scorpion and like any new idea it had to be tested to prove the concept.

So Scorpion was fabricated and hung on a tower somewhere in the Nevada dessert. Ted Taylor and the other observers watched from a safe distance away. The flatness of the dessert meant that this distance could be really, really large. The test was delayed for some technical reason or the other and during the wait Ted Taylor got bored. In an impulsive act he got hold of a parabolic mirror which happened to be lying around, aimed it at the test site where Scorpion was located and placed one end of a Pall Mall cigarette at the mirror’s focus. When the nuclear device was finally detonated, the light emanating from the explosion bounced off the mirror and fell on the cigarette, its intensity such that it instantly burned the exposed end of the cigarette. Taylor reached for his smouldering Pall Mall and drew in a puff. Now how’s that for style?

Mangalore Approach

2010-05-22T07:48:00.000-07:00

“Some totally unrecognisable genie has once again unbuttoned his pants and pissed on the pillar of science”
– Ernest K. Gann (Fate is the Hunter)

It's always sad when something like this happens. A Boeing 737-800 crashed while attempting to land at Mangalore’s infamous table top airport. Although I have never been to Mangalore, I’ve heard of its short, challenging runway (Runway 09/27). It’s still too early to know what chain of events led to the accident. Mangalore airport now has a new longer runway but it’s not known (as of writing) on which runway the landing attempt was made or whether the approach was visual or on ILS

Out of curiosity I decided to have a look at what a simulated approach to land on Mangalore’s runway 09 would have looked like. The approach was visual and below the glide slope as I was landing heavy and wanted to avoid missing the runway threshold. In the video (shown below) you will notice the 'below the glide slope' approach in the way the PAPI (Precision Approach Path Indicator) lights up.

I found that the table top terrain made a visual approach tricky since it was difficult to intuitively judge height and distance. The software I used for the simulation was Fight Simulator X. The local time was set to 6.30am and weather conditions were set to mimic moderate rain.

Lift Me Higher

2010-05-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

I put away the calculations for a new reactor design that I had been working on and head out to the nearest mall for lunch. The temperature outside is 34°C, but inside the mall it’s a pleasant 25°C. As I step on to the escalator leading to the shops, I hear this song piped through the mall’s speakers. It adds a spring to my step and I think “This is what I should really, really be doing...trying to write songs like this. The kind that lifts my spirits higher."

Here’s Train with ‘Hey, Soul Sister’:

The Master

2010-05-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

I can never tire of reading about the life of Abdu’l-Baha and being inspired by it.

In H.M.Balyuzi’s superb biography on Abdu’l-Baha there is this beautiful passage in which he relates Abdu’l-Baha’s parting words to the first group of Western pilgrims to visit Him in the Holy Land:

“And now I give you a commandment which shall be for
a covenant between you and Me - that ye have faith;
that your faith be steadfast as a rock that no storms can
move, that nothing can disturb, and that it endure through
all things even to the end; even should ye hear that your
Lord has been crucified, be not shaken in your faith; for
I am with you always, whether living or dead, I am with
you to the end. As ye have faith so shall your powers and
blessings be….

Another commandment I give unto you,
that ye love one another even as I love you . . . look at
one another with the eye of perfection; look at Me,
follow Me, be as I am; take no thought for yourselves
or your lives, whether ye eat or whether ye sleep, whether
ye are comfortable, whether ye are well or ill, whether
ye are with friends or foes, whether ye receive praise or
blame . . .

Look at Me and be as I am; ye must die to
yourselves and to the world, so shall ye be born again and
enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Behold a candle how it
gives its light. It weeps its life away drop by drop in order
to give forth its flame of light.”

- (from May Maxwell, An Early Pilgrimage)

Physics is Beautiful

2010-04-26T23:15:00.000-07:00

While writing this post I was tempted to use ‘Physics is now beautiful’ for the title, and you will see why in a moment. If you are like me, who has friends who are physicists you would have probably heard them wax lyrical over the years about how beautiful physics really is. They’ve got to be kidding right? Physics, beautiful? How about cruel…here’s what one spouse of a very famous physicist complained to an LA court (reported by Time magazine):

“In Los Angeles, Mrs. Mary Feynman … testifying that her physicist husband's Congo drums were the only things that could take his mind off mathematics. She told the court: "He begins working calculus problems in his head as soon as he awakens. He did calculus while driving his car and lying in bed at night. The only thing that would distract him was his African drums.”

… and this was the view of an erudite and accomplished lady no less. God help the rest of us!

This being the case where physics and the bulk of humanity is concerned, I was delighted by the 'literal' approach taken by Benjamin Crowell to convey to the rest of us something of the beauty of physics. I say ‘literal’ because in trying to explain the need for the conservation of momentum (as a consequence of the underlying translational symmetry of physical laws) the protagonist he chose to make his case was non other Jen Yu (played by the beautiful Zhang Ziyi in the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). Here’s how he puts it:

“In the martial arts movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, those who have received mystical enlightenment are able to violate the laws of physics. Some of the violation, such as their ability to fly, are obvious, but others are a little more subtle.

The rebellious young heroine/antiheroine Jen Yu gets into an argument while sitting at a table in a restaurant. A young tough, Iron Arm Lu, comes running toward her at full speed, and she puts up one arm and effortlessly makes him bounce back, without even getting out of her seat or bracing herself against anything. She does all this between bites. It's impossible, but how do we know it's impossible? It doesn't violate conservation of mass, because neither character's mass changes. It conserves energy as well, since the rebounding Lu has the same energy he started with.

Suppose you live in a country where the only laws are prohibitions against murder and robbery. One day someone covers your house with graffiti, and the authorities refuse to prosecute, because no crime was committed. You're convinced of the need for a new law against vandalism. Similarly, the story of Jen Yu and Iron Arm Lu shows that we need a new conservation law.” (Ben Crowell, Conceptual Physics, page 39)

If only my teachers had sought to explains things like that I suppose I would have spent more time paying attention in class and doing all my homework and getting better grades. As it was there were simply too many distractions to deal with while growing up. *sigh*

Words to Live By

2010-04-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

I like this song...now should that be surprising? :-) I find the Words of Baha’u’llah that the song uses just beautiful. They are a great way to teach children about individual conduct so that they can become truly as brilliant stars. Adults too stand to learn a thing or two from it :-)

Here are the words in full:

Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity. Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbor, and look upon him with a bright and friendly face. Be a treasure to the poor, an admonisher to the rich, an answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge.

Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men. Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression. Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts.

Be a home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering, a tower of strength for the fugitive. Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring. Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of righteousness, a breath of life to the body of mankind, an ensign of the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of humility.

A Pure Heart

2010-03-10T01:45:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not this song came out of a discussion on 'The Language of Description' (by FUNDAEC) that I was facilitating a couple of years ago. During break time, I naturally gravitated to a guitar that was in the corner of the room and one of the friends suggested that I use this prayer by Abdu'l-Baha for a song.

The trouble is when the song was completed, no one really liked it. Even I had some misgivings about it. So the song remained somewhat forgotten, adding to the gathering digital detritus in some corner of my mp3 player.

But I suppose that musical tastes change with time because when I listened to the song again recently I kind of liked it. So here’s the song for your listening pleasure:

The words are from the following prayer by Abdu’l-Baha:

He is God, O God my God.
Bestow upon me a pure heart
like unto a pearl.

Fireflies

2010-02-15T08:42:00.000-08:00

This music video by Owl City sure does bring back memories...like the organ we used to have at home. My dad gave up on waiting for me to upgrade the organs's sound generation circuitry and got rid of the antique 80s hardware as scrap since it was taking up too much space at home.

I suppose I could have upgraded the electronics in time provided we were living in the same city which we were not. Surely a micro controller and some customised audio circuitry would have got the job done? Nah, that would have been a bad idea, taken too much time and too much effort. Best to just gut the innards of a cheap Casio keyboard and use its electronics instead.

Here's Owl City...

Of Letters and Email

2010-01-05T04:04:00.000-08:00

I love reading those long letters that people used to write before the advent of email, tweets and what have you. And I used to write such long letters and email myself. But given that the average attention span of most adults these days seems to be limited to 140 characters or less, that’s one way to turn people off quickly. So my emails are getting shorter (and some would say to the point!) and I find myself increasingly resorting to short tweets. There is always the blog if you want to share your thoughts in greater depth.

But I still miss those lengthy emails, both the act of reading as well as writing them. But what’s there to be missed you may wonder? Well to find out, I started sifting through my emails to find which was the longest I had written in recent times and found one that made me laugh, laugh at the sheer zaniness of its contents and its serious tone which I found to be comical. Ahh, now I know what I truly miss… :-) I’m reproducing that email here for your entertainment...:

[personal details have been removed for reasons of privacy ]

To: ....
Subject: Re: ....

…. [r]ecently in the midst of …...........I have been revisiting some topics in complexity and how it relates to reductionism etc. and I have gotten interested in some of the work that philosophers have been doing in this area - something that practitioners in the 'field' are usually ignorant of - for example the work done by Herbert Simon etc. Something is pulling me towards this subject. And I have also started brushing up on statistical mechanics in anticipation - a really wonderful subject - however having read what the philosophers have said I'm beginning to become more aware its limitations - it's all conceptually blurry at the moment but the picture is beginning to come into focus.

I have also been reading up on this book on Quantum mechanics which I first came across many years ago whilst an undergraduate - but now I'm able to marvel at the lucidity of the presentation of its mathematical foundation by the author of the book - Shankar - I like the way in which he introduces the Dirac notation etc.

By sheer coincidence, last week I started reading Wheeler (one of the greatest American physicist of the 20th century) who has spoken about Baha'is and had mentioned them in a popular Physics (?!!) book he wrote. Wheeler's textbook on Gravitation is perhaps the most accessible book on General Relativity. The way in which Wheeler & co introduce the mathematical notation for GR as well as the physical insights they share (which ultimately must guide the math) makes it all seem like child's play, which in a sense it is. I say coincidence because, when I got home last weekend and switched on the telly the first thing in the morning, there was this really good documentary on Einstein - accessible to the layman but with little of the usual 'dumbing down' of the subject matter. The historical perspective provided by the documentary helped clarify what I had been reading in Wheeler's book and there were a number of aha moments.

Sorry for this stream of consciousness style of writing - I usually do not do this - but I hope what I've said comes across as being somewhat sensible :-)

I hope you have a good week ahead and yup before I forget ….........You may recall that Obama recently spoke of extending the number of weeks that children spend in school and the positive impact that would have - when I heard this I remembered Malcolm Gladwell's argument in his recent book that disadvantaged kids from lower income/ broken families would stand to gain most from [such a move] and this would [counter] the effects of their social condition. Gladwell supports his arguments with compelling story.

Ok, I better stop here.

Say God Sufficeth

2009-09-09T23:14:00.000-07:00

This prayer by the Bab is quite popular in prayer gatherings where it is usually chanted or sung, and it also serves as a good starting point for discussions on a variety of topics such as detachment, the nature of the Logos, and in that context what Shoghi Effendi calls ‘That God-born Force’ which is ‘irresistible in its sweeping power, incalculable in its potency, unpredictable in its course, mysterious in its workings, and awe-inspiring in its manifestations…’

Here is a rendition of the prayer as a song which you may want to use in your own prayer gatherings:

[I'm writing this post without access to youtube for the correct embedding code so if the video doesn't appear above, try this direct link ]

To help out with the discussions here are some excerpts from the Baha’i writings and the Bible which may be useful:

Aspects of the Logos

The Gospel of John:

‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God’

Shoghi Effendi, The Advent of Divine Justice:

"The Báb," 'Abdu'l-Bahá, moreover, has written, "hath said: 'Should a tiny ant desire, in this day, to be possessed of such power as to be able to unravel the abstrusest and most bewildering passages of the Qur'án, its wish will no doubt be fulfilled, inasmuch as the mystery of eternal might vibrates within the innermost being of all created things.' If so helpless a creature can be endowed with so subtle a capacity, how much more efficacious must be the power released through the liberal effusions of the grace of Bahá'u'lláh!..."

That God-born Force, irresistible in its sweeping power, incalculable in its potency, unpredictable in its course, mysterious in its workings, and awe-inspiring in its manifestations -- a Force which, as the Báb has written, "vibrates within the innermost being of all created things," and which, according to Bahá'u'lláh, has through its "vibrating influence," "upset the equilibrium of the world and revolutionized its ordered life"

On Detachment

From ‘The Selections from the Writings of the Bab’:

‘Rid thou thyself of all attachments to aught except God, enrich thyself in God
by dispensing with all else besides Him, and recite this prayer:

Say: God sufficeth all things above all things, and nothing in the heavens or in the earth or in whatever lieth between them but God, thy Lord, sufficeth. Verily, He is in Himself the Knower, the Sustainer, the Omnipotent.

Regard not the all-sufficing power of God as an idle fancy. It is that genuine faith which thou cherishest for the Manifestation of God in every Dispensation. It is such faith which sufficeth above all the things that exist on the earth, whereas no created thing on earth besides faith would suffice thee. If thou art not a believer, the Tree of divine Truth would condemn thee to extinction. If thou art a believer, thy faith shall be sufficient for thee above all things that exist on earth, even though thou possess nothing.’

Abdul-Baha, in the Divine Philosophy:

‘All that has been created is for man who is at the apex of creation and who must be thankful for the divine bestowals, so that through his gratitude he may learn to understand life as a divine benefit. If we hold enmity with life, we are ingrates, for our material and spiritual existence is the outward evidences of the divine mercy. Therefore we must be happy and pass our time in praises, appreciating all things. But there is something else: detachment. We can appreciate without attaching ourselves to the things of this world. It sometimes happens that if a man loses his fortune he is so disheartened that he dies or becomes insane. While enjoying the things of this world we must remember that one day we shall have to do without them.
Detachment does not consist in setting fire to one's house, or becoming bankrupt or throwing one's fortune out of the window, or even giving away all of one's possessions. Detachment consists in refraining from letting our possessions possess us. A prosperous merchant who is not absorbed in his business knows severance. A banker whose occupation does not prevent him from serving humanity is severed. A poor man can be attached to a small thing.

A rich man and a poor man lived in the same town. One day the poor man said to the rich man, "I want to go to the Holy Land." The rich man replied, "Very good, I will go also," and they started from the town and began their pilgrimage. But night fell and the poor man said, "Let us return to our houses to pass the night." The rich man replied, "We have started for the Holy Land and must not now return." The poor man said, "The Holy Land is a long distance to travel on foot. I have a donkey, I will go and fetch it." "What?" replied the rich man, "are you not ashamed? I leave all my possessions to go on this pilgrimage and you wish to return to get your donkey! I have abandoned with joy my whole fortune. Your whole wealth consists of a donkey and you cannot leave it!" You see that fortune is not necessarily an impediment. The rich man who is thus detached is near to reality. There are many rich people who are severed and many poor who are not.’

Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah:

‘O peoples of the earth! God, the Eternal Truth, is My witness that streams of fresh and soft-flowing waters have gushed from the rocks, through the sweetness of the words uttered by your Lord, the Unconstrained; and still ye slumber. Cast away that which ye possess, and, on the wings of detachment, soar beyond all created things. Thus biddeth you the Lord of creation, the movement of Whose Pen hath revolutionized the soul of mankind.’

Ammama

2009-07-05T21:36:00.000-07:00

I lost my grandma recently, but my sadness is assuaged by the many happy memories I have of her. She loved to sing and I remember trying to accompany her singing on my guitar. She also made the best coffee around which I loved to have even though late at night to help me get through my control engineering textbook. Somehow that coffee, brewed in the best of traditional South Indian style, made all the difference and those mathematical formulae became as a result a little easier to digest.

A few months ago when I wrote the music for a Baha’i prayer in Tamil, Innel Thirpon (Remover of Difficulties) she was one of the first persons I played the finished song and video to. And although by this stage in her life she was not cognitively alert, there were windows of lucidity in her thinking and she was able to recognise the prayer. After listening to the song and with a little help, she managed to recite the prayer in its entirety. It is a prayer she knew (although she was not a Baha’i) and after saying the prayer she spoke of Baha’u’llah and the many sufferings He underwent. It is she who appears in the music video for Innel Thirpon:

Thinking about her, I’m reminded of the beautifully crafted words and melody that Christopher Cross uses in his song “Think of Laura”. In one of the more poignant moments in the song, he sings:

"I know you and you're here
In every day we live
I know her and she's here
I can feel her when I sing"

I can certainly attest to the truth of those words.

Muthal Arrivurai

2009-03-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Here is a song I did to help out those conducting Baha'i devotionals in Tamil. The song is based on the Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah. The Tamil translation is given after the video.

Muthal Arrivurai

Aaviyin Puththirane!
Emadhu mudhal arrivurai idhuveh!
Thooymaiyum anbum, pragaasamum niraindha
Ulhlhaththinaik kondiruppaayaaga
Adhanaal Thonmaiyum, azhiyaath thanmaiyum vaayntha
Endrum nilaiyaana raajjiyam unakkeh
uriththaagumagga

In English:

O SON OF SPIRIT!
My first counsel is this: Possess a pure, kindly and radiant heart,
that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishable and everlasting.

Remover of Difficulties - Innel Thirpon

2009-02-14T23:23:00.000-08:00

When I asked my mom recently what Baha’i prayer she would like me to write music to, she suggested ‘Remover of Difficulties’, a prayer revealed by the Bab. Here is the version that I recorded in Tamil:

Guitar Chords

For those of you who would like to play the music on the guitar, the chords are given below together with the words to the prayer in English letters. The chords are for the unembellished version:

[A] Innel thirpon
[F#m] Iraiven andri ya-rular sol
[D] Iraivenei po-tri
[F#m] Avarai Kadavul
[A] Yavarum Avar uliyar
[F#m] Yavarum Avar sop-panivar
[D] Yavarum, [E] Yavarum
Avar [A] sop-panivar

I hope you find these instructions useful. Let me know how it goes.

Make Me a Brilliant Star

2009-01-03T04:15:00.000-08:00

This prayer by Abdul-Baha is one of my favourites. It also happens to be the very first prayer I learned as a child.

I had for a long time wanted to put those beautiful words of Abdul-Baha to music and I got the chance recently when I was back in my home town and had some leisure time on my hands. So one afternoon I picked my guitar and started strumming some chords purely on a whim and soon the melody for the song took shape.

A quick recording of the song was made with just the guitar for accompaniment. The final mix had to wait as I had to leave town to attend the Regional Conference held in KL.

Once the final mix was ready I sent the mp3 file of the song to my sister who played it to my nephews. It received an enthusiastic response from my youngest nephew who is just beginning to talk. It was reported to me that he started clapping his hands and was trying to sing along when the song was played to him!

This prayer of Abdul-Baha’s also happens to be my nephew's first prayer and whenever he is asked to recite it he responds by clasping his hands together and saying ‘O God’. It’ll take him a little while more to learn to say the rest of the words but I think it is a great start!

Here’s the music video for the song:

A Little Learning...

2008-12-20T06:05:00.000-08:00

There was a time when I was growing up, when I used to read math books the way most people read novels. That was until one day when I was asked to help out on a pretty straightforward math problem and to my utter embarrassment failed to get it solved. Somehow I was unaware of an essential concept required for solving the problem, and what was worse I didn’t know that I didn’t know that.

Such are the perils of learning new stuff without the right kind of context. You end up gaining only a superficial understanding of the subject, which would be alright I suppose if it were only not a little dangerous as this delightful little quote from Alexander Pope so marvellously puts it:

"A little learning is a dangerous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring:
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us again"

A piece of knowledge cannot be truly made one’s own until it has been tried and tested under battle conditions (i.e. real life, or simulated real life in the case of schools). So no matter how much students may hate the idea of doing the end of chapter problems in their textbooks, doing those problems remain indispensable for gaining mastery over the subject of their study.

Outside of the classroom, the danger of possessing only a superficial understanding assumes more serious proportions when lives are at stake, such as in the understanding and interpretation of scripture over which tragically, many wars have been, are being, and are yet to be fought.

In case you’re wondering the direction this post is taking, I would like to assure you that it’s not going to be another half baked sermon on matters of epistemology but rather about a new piece of video editing software that I purchased recently.

Experience from reading math books among other things :-) tells me that the most efficient way of mastering the software is by not reading the product manual from cover to cover, but to start using it on an actual video editing project. So I made two short music videos in an attempt to get up to speed on the video editor. Here's one of them:

A note about the song: The words are from the Baha'i writings. I had recorded a more subdued version a year or so ago, but for this new project I wanted a much more upbeat tune. The idea for the tune came about while I was fooling around with my guitar playing a few bass lines at random. The song is driven primarily by the bass.

In the Beginning...

2008-11-06T20:10:00.000-08:00

It was an extraordinary moment in the Apollo space program, the historic and symbolic significance of which could not have been lost on the many who tuned-in to watch NASA’s Christmas day broadcast in 1968.

NASA’s accomplishment was the only silver lining in what had otherwise been a dreadful year. The Vietnam War was by then going badly; there were violent protests by students on streets and in campuses; and dreams were shattered in the shooting of Robert F. Kennedy.

Amidst these upheavals, NASA had risen phoenix like from the ashes of the Apollo 1 fire which only the year before had threatened the entire manned spaceflight program with cancellation.

George Mueller had just introduced to NASA and to the engineering fraternity, the idea of all-up-testing in order to speed-up the deployment of Apollo hardware, placing John F. Kennedy’s goal of landing a man on the moon before the end of the 1960s firmly within reach.

1968 was the year man first went to the moon.

GENESIS 1:1-1:10
As the Apollo spacecraft emerged from the shadow of lunar darkness and into the bright sunlight on its orbit around the moon, astronaut Bill Anders’ voice came in loud and clear from across a quarter of a million miles:

"We are now approaching lunar sunrise and, for all the people back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message that we would like to send to you.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness…”

(the rest of the passage can be read here)

Commander Frank Borman:

“And from the crew of Apollo 8, we close with good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas – and God bless all of you, all of you on the good Earth.”

Thy Name is My Healing

When I first saw and heard that Christmas day broadcast decades later it felt electrifying. So it was only natural that when I started looking for a suitable intro to a music video of Baha’u'llah’s healing prayer, that I should turn to this extraordinary reading of the book of Genesis.

Here’s the prayer and the Apollo video as intro on YouTube:

Of Fairies and Muses

2008-10-01T02:58:00.000-07:00

The majesty of mountains has always inspired me. So when I set out to write the music for this rendition of Blessed is the Spot, I wanted to somehow capture that feeling in my choice of tempo, and phrasing of the melody. I wanted to use this song to teach my nephew a Baha’í prayer, and I wanted him to be inspired by the beauty of Bahá'u'lláh’s matchless words.

The music video for the song contains two clips of a trip through mountainous country. Any guesses as to where they were taken? Here’s the video:

Why I Love Mountains

It all started when I was getting bogged down at work. Nothing exciting was happening in the lab; there were no new ideas to get me going, and I’m someone who lives on ideas, hare-brained schemes included.

So I decided to hang up my lab coat and get away as far as possible from the grey and dreary conditions of the town I was then living in. It turned out to be one of the wisest decisions I made.

The rolling hills, snow capped mountains, and the pure and sweet smelling mountain air of the place I visited made a lasting impression on me. That’s where I found my muse. Some dear old fairy must have brought it to me. Mountains are magical places.

When I finally got back to work, it was with zest and electricity. The very air seemed to crackle about me (not surprising since by this time it was getting late in fall!). But I never forgot the mountains. So don’t be surprised if one of these days you hear that I’ve traded in my lab coat for a geologist’s hammer and have gone fossil hunting on some ancient mountain range!

Tangled Melody: Reflections on Pachelbel’s Canon

2008-09-26T00:54:00.000-07:00

WHAT greater bliss is there, than spending a lazy Saturday afternoon doing absolutely nothing of consequence? I had just settled down to watch the afternoon matinee on TV one such Saturday, hoping that the movie would be good. Well Vijay's films are usually good, and I looked forward to being entertained. Sipping a cup of ginger laced coffee– ahh the aroma is just heavenly – my eyes wandered to the guitar at the corner of the room. I picked it up, intending to amuse myself during those incessant commercial breaks.

It had been a long time since I played a classical piece on the guitar. One of my favourites happens to be Barrios' El Ultimo Tremolo, also known as Una limosnita por amor de Dios. So I started playing this piece, expecting to revel in its hauntingly beautiful melody and harmonic texture, but boy was I in for a big disappointment. I was unable to maintain a smooth tempo and had difficulty holding down the notes. By the time I reached the end of the first section, I was already huffing and puffing. My muscular memory had truly atrophied below the level of respectability. Here's a sample of what my hands wrought:

"I gotta do something to remedy this," I thought, "and do it soon".

So with my eyes still on the TV - it was an excellent Vijay story, by the way - I started to practice the tremolo – the art of repetitively hammering away on a particular string on the guitar until the notes almost begin to merge. I started the tremolo exercise with the C chord and let my fingers wander among the various chord shapes without consciously thinking about them. I found myself playing the following chords in sequence C, G, Am, Em, F, C, F, G. The resulting sound had an uncanny resemblance to something I'd heard before. See if you can spot it:

I played the sequence again, this time allowing my fingers greater latitude to play notes not commonly used in the triads. Here's the result:

There could be no doubt now as to what this was or was attempting to be. It was a caricature of George Winston's Variations on the Kanon. It is not that I particularly cared for the Kanon, or the Canon in D (Pachelbel's original, George Winston plays it in the key of C). In fact, whenever I get to the Kanon on my mp3 player, I quickly skip to the next track. George Winston's rendition of Vince Guaraldi's Cast your Fate to the Wind is more the kind of music I prefer.

What's surprising is that my seemingly random choice of chords could result in a sequence characteristic of Pachelbel's Canon. Does this mean that at some subliminal level I have affections for the Canon in D? I don't think I'll ever know for sure, but the experience has got me thinking about how our minds seem to prefer particular sequences of notes or chords. Such preferences surely reflect the dictates of biology as well as the influence of cultural exposure.

In my line of work I sometimes find myself resorting to computational constructs known as Finite State Machines, and it's obvious to anybody who has used them that they can be used to generate the sequential series of chords we find in music such as Pachelbel's.

So what is a Finite State Machine?
[You can safely skip the dry stuff that follows and jump straight to the conclusion by clicking here ]

A finite state machine (FSM) is an abstraction of stuff we routinely encounter in our daily lives – the behaviour of traffic lights, DVD players and coffee making machines to name a few. We all intuitively understand what they are and how they behave. With traffic light as our example, an FSM can be thought of as an object that could be in any one of a number of permissible internal states (eg. red, yellow, green). External inputs can cause the object to change its state in response. In the case of traffic light, that input comes from a timer signal. The new state that the object shifts to is specified by a transition rule, which could be in the form of a table, or a diagram like the one shown below:

The transition rule (the diagram) shows that certain events are not permitted, e.g. the transition from Red to Yellow, or from Green to Red. What we should appreciate is that once the transition rule has been laid down, and the initial state, e.g. Red, specified, the sequence of all future states that the traffic light will cycle through is completely determined. You can predict with complete certainty which state the traffic light will be in at any given time in the future.

By now you could probably tell where all this is leading: An FSM can be used to generate a sequence of chords. Let's try it for Variations on the Kanon. The diagram below shows the actual choice of chords used by the Kanon from the range available in the C major scale.

Astute readers will immediately realise we'll have a problem on our hands if we try to write down the transition rule for the chord sequence shown above. In a simple implementation of an FSM like the one used in the traffic light example, the next state is fully determined by the current state (ignore for the moment any external input signals). In the 5^th measure, the transition is F -> C, whereas in the 7^th measure the transition is F -> G. So here we have a situation in which the same state, F in this case, can transition to either C or G. This seems to violate our expectation of how an FSM should behave since the current state should fully determine the next. Sow do we deal with this? One way would be to use the musical measure itself as input to the FSM. Another alternative is to specify a transition rule that depends not only on the current state, but the previous state the FSM was in as well.

The real problem with using an FSM for generating chord sequences is that we are stuck with the same sequence for all of eternity, repeated ad nauseum. Used in this way the FSM is nothing but a crude memory device. What would be more useful is to have a construct that uses the Kanon as a style guide to generate novel sequences or even completely new melodies. We would like to have a construct that can 'learn' from examples fed to it to identify those musical motifs that humans find aesthetically pleasing.

Markov Chains

One mathematical construct that has the property we seek is the Markov chain. It is something we use daily, albeit unknowingly. We use it every time we make a phone call on our cell phones, surf the web over a wifi connection or google something on the internet. So how would the Markov chain help us with creating music or understanding why humans have predilection for certain musical motifs?

We can understand Markov Chains by thinking of them as extensions to FSM. In an FSM the transition rules specify unique inviolable transitions from an existing state to a future state. In our example, at the start of the Kanon, we have the transition C -> G. No other transition is specified or allowed. This is rather limiting and it is the reason why a simplistic implementation of an FSM cannot be relied upon for generating novel musical sequences. It is simply too rigid.

In a Markov chain the rules that govern transitions are modified so that they specify instead the probability that a given transition will take place. If you look at the Markov chain depicted below you'll notice that transitions from C to chords other than G are possible, but the most probable transition is C -> G. The numbers above the vertices indicate the probability of a particular transition taking place. For C -> G that probability is 0.4 (i.e. there is a 40% chance of it happening) and so it is the preferred path through sequence space.

In order to use a Markov chain to generate a sequence of chords, we will have to first seed it with values for all the transition probabilities involved. There are a number of ways of doing this. The easiest is to arbitrarily choose large probability values, e.g. 0.4 as shown in the diagram above, for transitions that we favour and one which is characteristic of the Kanon. The other option is to systematically estimate (using an appropriate algorithm) those probabilities from observation of chord sequences in music we like. A database of hit songs from any given era could be used for this purpose.

One particular approach that I'm fond of is to use evolutionary computation techniques such as genetic algorithms for estimating the parameters (i.e. the transition probabilities) of the Markov model and vice versa. These techniques rely on evaluating what is known as the 'fitness function'. For things musical, the fitness function is a measure of how aesthetically pleasing the music is to the ear. A program that uses this approach will use model parameters generated through a genetic algorithm to generate a sequence of musical notes which will then be presented to a human listener for evaluation. The decision by the human listener whether a particular motif is pleasing or otherwise will then be used to either accept or reject the model parameters, and hence the genetic sequence that gave rise to it. The process could be automated too, so that instead of relying on human intervention, popular music could be parsed appropriately to determine the fitness of novel musical motifs.

So Where’s the Beef?

That detour into a discussion of finite state machines and Markov chains might seem unnecessary to some, but I have decided to include them in this post anyway because they capture the thought processes I went through when I realised that the sequence of chords I thought I was playing purely on a whim happened to be the sequence used in Pachelbel's Canon.

Prior exposure to music, be it at home, in the elevator or at work – music is everywhere these days - had predisposed my mind to expect certain musical motifs as natural. So strong is this predisposition that we have a tendency to see patterns where there are none, or hear sounds when none have been made. The more sophisticated among songwriters understand this phenomenon and exploit it to their advantage in the songs they write and in the music they create, all for our listening pleasure.

At another level, psychoacoustics as this stuff is called, has been exploited by engineers and scientists to design audio equipment or shrink file sizes to a degree that seems too good to be true. Take the mp3 file format for example; the reason why it can be made so compact is because there is no attempt to accurately reproduce all the information contained in the original sound. Sounds determined to be below the threshold of human perception within a given auditory context are discarded or have their priority reduced when the decision is made as to which information should be retained and which can safely be thrown away.

The predispositions that our minds display are not merely limited to harmonic sequences; they shape the deep-seated expectations we harbour in our daily interactions with other people, and in those important decisions we make in our lives. Mathematical constructs such as Markov chains allow us to gain a deeper appreciation of such phenomena and thereby greatly enrich our understanding and experience of the world. If you are one of those who find the statement that intellectual understanding can only heighten the delight of sensual experience unconvincing, I'd like to end this post with a quote from that inimitable iconoclast, a physicist's physicist: Richard Feynman. Addressing his students one day in a class on introductory physics, he said:

“A poet once said "The whole universe is in a glass of wine." We will probably never know in what sense he meant that, for poets do not write to be understood. But it is true that if we look at a glass closely enough we see the entire universe. There are the things of physics: the twisting liquid which evaporates depending on the wind and weather, the reflections in the glass, and our imaginations adds the atoms. The glass is a distillation of the Earth's rocks, and in its composition we see the secret of the universe's age, and the evolution of the stars. What strange array of chemicals are there in the wine? How did they come to be? There are the ferments, the enzymes, the substrates, and the products. There in wine is found the great generalization: all life is fermentation. Nobody can discover the chemistry of wine without discovering, as did Louis Pasteur, the cause of much disease. How vivid is the claret, pressing its existence into the consciousness that watches it! If our small minds, for some convenience, divide this glass of wine, this universe, into parts — physics, biology, geology, astronomy, psychology, and so on — remember that Nature does not know it! So let us put it all back together, not forgetting ultimately what it is for. Let it give us one more final pleasure: drink it and forget it all!”

Malacca Delectable

2008-09-10T03:22:00.000-07:00

YOU can see it in their smile, taste it in the air and savour it in their fare, of sugar and spice and all things nice, an exquisite blend of all that is wonderful about the Asia I like. I’m talking about Malacca. The original hub of the solar system (much to the chagrin I would expect of Boston Brahmins!) or if that sounds a tad inflated, at least of 15^th century global trade routes.

Successive world empires have left their traces here, in the language you hear spoken on the street, in the architectural mélange of buildings, genes and places of worship, and ultimately for this foodie, in the prized Peranakan cuisine. It is about the latter that I wish to write about in this post.

Peranakan (or Baba Nyonya) cooking was first brought to my attention when a friend of mine took pity on my culinary skills, with its tendency to render all food cuit à l'anglaise, and showed me how to prepare some simple dishes (she is of Chinese, Indian and Malay extraction). One incredible recipe of hers which has gotten me out of more tough situations than I can remember, is the Ayam Masak Merah Ala Baba Nyonya (chicken cooked in spicy red sauce). It can be prepared in a jiffy, uses a minimal of pots and pans, and for someone who used to live on a student’s budget, was and still is eminently affordable.

So what this post comes down to is this, to show you how to prepare this amazingly simple dish. The recipe that I’m going to describe has evolved over time and I have taken the liberty of using ingredients such as cashews which were not present in the original as well as ditching some that only connoisseurs of exotic food may miss. So the authenticity to Baba Nyonya cooking is debatable. But what matters most is the taste, right?

First, let’s begin with the list of ingredients you will need (Box 1). Notice that they are all commonplace items which you will be able to find in the Tescos and Wall-Marts of the world. I happen to think that this availability factor is one of the main attractions of this recipe. So no matter where you are, be it Wasilla or Valhalla you will still be able to prepare and enjoy this dish with your friends and family.

BOX 1: LIST OF INGREDIENTS

4 skinless chicken breast fillets (approx 600g)
5 shallots
3 large ripe tomatoes
3 medium sized red onions
1 large fresh chilli
1 tablespoon thick soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
A handful of cashews

1 teaspoon of chilli powder (for marinating)
1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
Chopped coriander, aka cilantro (optional)
A squeeze of lemon juice (optional)
Cooking oil
Salt

OK now’s time to get all hands on. Cut the chicken breast fillets into smaller pieces, but be careful not to make them too small otherwise you’ll end up with chicken broth instead of an exotic dish from the Far East. Lightly marinade the pieces with some paste made up of turmeric, chilli powder, salt and water. Cover the pieces and leave them aside while you prepare the other ingredients.

Blend the onions and fresh chilli into a paste using a food processor. Leave it for later. Cut the shallots crosswise and separate them into rings. The shallots will be used for garnishing the dish when we’re done cooking.

Fire up the wok and add a sufficient amount of cooking oil to make frying comfortable. Add cashews to the oil when it’s sufficiently hot, and fry until they are slightly brown. You have to be careful here. It’s easy to overdo the frying and end up with burned cashews! So remove the cashews at the slightest hint of browning. Once done, place the fried cashews aside to drain the excess oil.

Now fry the shallots in the same wok and put them aside after you're done. Do not discard the oil in the wok just yet. Use it to fry the marinated chicken pieces. Fry the chicken pieces until they are about half done. Remove and let drain.

There should still be some oil left in the wok. So add the onion/chilli paste, followed by a tablespoon of sugar (to give that exotic taste!). Fry the paste until it turns golden brown and you start getting a whiff of that gorgeous aroma. Put in the chopped tomatoes and continue frying until the tomatoes begin to melt. Add a tablespoon of thick soy sauce to give the paste that exotic Far East look. Then add the fried chicken pieces, making sure that they are completely coated by the paste and tomatoes. Stir fry for a minute or so before adding a cup of water. Bring the concoction to boil, cover and allow to simmer under low fire for about 10 minutes.

Add salt to taste and optionally, a squeeze of lemon juice if you would like that extra tang. Fried cashews are added next and the contents of the wok transferred to a serving bowl. Garnish with fried shallots and coriander leaves. Ta-da! And you’re done!

This dish is best served with steaming fragrant rice.

What if you want to skip the rice?

Here’s a variation on the recipe that I find myself using quite often. If you would like to serve the dish with spaghetti instead of rice, ditch the chilli and shallot, instead add a small amount of cumin to the wok prior to the onion paste. When you're almost done cooking and the chicken has become tender, add some bell red pepper that has been sliced into long thin strips (if you put in the pepper too early it will become unacceptably soft).

What if you are vegetarian?

You can replace the chicken with Quorn. In fact this is what I do when I invite vegetarians over for dinner. If you haven’t heard of Quorn, look it up on Wikipedia or visit http://www.quorn.com. I have visited the factory where they make the stuff and I have this to say: it is the cleanest food production facility I have seen. No, I don’t work there in case you’re wondering!

Dealing with the chilli

Not everyone likes the bite chilli leaves in their mouth. After a great deal of experimentation I have discovered the perfect antidote for this, it’s Haagen-Dazs’ pineapple coconut ice cream, although frozen yoghurt will do in a cinch.

You are now all set for a wonderful evening

If you have called your friends over for an evening of fireside discussion don’t forget that pecan pie or gourmet roasted coffee. I find them to be absolutely indispensable for a summer’s evening of entertaining, light-hearted and occasionally weighty discussion. I usually tend to end such gatherings by taking my friends outside to enjoy the cool breeze on an otherwise warm summer’s night and introduce those who are unfamiliar with the night-time sky, to the Summer Triangle, which is made up of the stars Vega, Deneb and Altair. A marvellous sight if you happen to live away from the city and a perfect way to end a summer’s evening.

How To Write A Song

2008-08-31T08:12:00.000-07:00

“If you write it on guitar
Place your guitar upon your knee
If you write it on piano
Don’t do that”

- Harry Nilsson, the Sandman album

The impulse to create and share music is so strong among people I know that it leads me to believe that there are only two kinds of folks out there, those who are songwriters and those who wish they were songwriters. So universal is this desire that even techies and the science types, busy as they are with their isosceles triangles and hieroglyphs in Greek, are not oblivious to its sway. I suppose it was by way of popular demand that a respectable science magazine once had an entire section devoted to music and the art of song writing. This article is about one techie’s attempt at reducing that theory to practice by attempting to actually write a song.

Start with the Title

Starting with the title helps to crystallize that vague idea you may have for a song and make it more concrete. The subject matter could be about anything, but it helps to choose one that your listeners actually care about. Songs about love, faith and redemption are universals that reflect the human condition and you’re more likely to connect emotionally with your listeners if you choose one of these as your subject rather than say the history of whale hunting, which only Newfoundlanders may find thrilling.

Like many of my peers, given a choice I would like to write a simple, uncomplicated love song. But most regrettably, what comes to my mind as I write this is not love, but a certain speech given by a Native American hero, Chief Joseph (the brain certainly works in mysterious ways!).

The reason why that speech is so clearly etched in my mid has to do with the poignancy of Chief Joseph’s words and the simple truths they proclaim, truths that touch the heart. As speeches go I rank it among the most eloquent given in history. The original text of Chief Joseph’s speech can be found by clicking here.

So with nothing else with which to go on, I’ll commit the very sin I had warned against earlier and choose a parochial subject, an arcane piece of Americana for my song. I’ll call it “From Where the Sun Now Stands” after Chief Joseph's famous words .

Use a Template

A blank slate is an impediment to creativity. We see this in the world at large when we consider the conflict between freedom (which we cherish) and the reality of having to live and work in a world full of restrictions. This is what causes that creative tension that is responsible for many of the marvellous inventions of the human mind throughout history. We see examples of this truth in action everywhere we look. From the laws that govern human conduct and which act as social glue, to the behaviour of the minutest atoms and molecules in nature. We marvel at how constraints imposed on the freedom of the constituent parts of matter leads to the emergence of a spectacular range of attributes, and a multitude of hues and colours that make the world a more beautiful place. I think I now have a better appreciation of Baha’u’llah’s words in the Kitab-i-Aqdas when he says “Think not that We have revealed unto you a mere code of laws. Nay, rather, We have unsealed the choice Wine with the fingers of might and power.”

But I digress, this is an article about songwriting, not a discourse on philosophy.

The upshot is this, if you want to create a song fast, use a template. It will get your creative ideas flowing in no time. The standard format for a song is verse/chorus. A typical song will have three verses arranged as Verse1/Chorus, Verse 2/Chorus, and Verse 3/Bridge/Chorus. This is the structure we will use for our song. Other variations are possible and you may want to google for the lyrics of your favourite song to find out how it's structured.

Make it Rhyme

How are we doing so far? We’ve decided on the title, so we’ll use that to fashion a storyline. Then we’ll use a rhyming dictionary to convert our story into a prose that rhymes. Again other alternative arrangements are possible. Try listening to some of the songs on the charts for examples.

If you haven’t read Chief Joseph’s speech, I would like to suggest that you do so now. I used that speech and a short biography of Chief Joseph on the web to inspire the following verse and chorus:

Provisional title: From Where the Sun Now Stands

Verse 1:
Thirty days were all we had
To leave our homes or face attack
Down snow capped mountains to Idaho
General Howard’s orders were we had to go

But mounting troubles lay ahead
Our young men wanted the settlers dead
For stealing horses and kayaks
And to put a stop to their sneak attacks

Chorus:
From where the sun now stands until forever
While our voices start to tear
Our people will endure

From where the sun now stands until forever
This truth our hearts hold dear
That freedom is forever

Though the lyrics sound lame, we should not be too concerned at this stage. Rather, we should keep the momentum going and move on to crafting the next most important element of our song: the melody. The words can always be changed later.

Get it to Sing

Now that we have some words to work with, how do we create the melody? We can start by playing a sequence of chords to find one that matches the mood evoked by our lyrics. As usual, I’ll rely on my old three chord trick on the mixolydian scale (chords I, IV, V). I play around with these chords to get a feeling for the song and find that it's....pretty boring. But I just happen to know what will perk it up - a minor chord (VI) thrown in for gratis. So that’s it, these are the chords we’ll use: I, IV, V and VI. We will play these chords in a loop and read our lyrics aloud, and let our brains suggest a tune.

I do just this, and find a melody that I think will be acceptable. It is important at this stage to write down or record whatever melody that suggests itself. It is so easy otherwise to forget that fleeting tune that crept into your head. As a result that inspiring flight of notes you stumbled upon might be lost forever.

Here is an excerpt from a recording, warts and all, that I made after following the steps I had mentioned [Caution: there are off-key notes in my singing which I haven’t gotten around to correcting, so turn down that volume while listening. You don’t want to scare the neighbours, or yourself!]

When I listen to the way the chorus resolves itself in the final line, the original title for the song doesn’t sound compelling anymore. So I’ll change it to “Freedom is Forever”. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself doing this to your own song. 'Tis the way these things work.

So What’s Next

Write the rest of the lyrics and modify the words and music as appropriate until you achieve a result that you like. During this critical process, you may find yourself throwing up your hands in frustration and deciding that the song you are crafting is not worth the effort, that it is intractable and totally misguided. Relax...this is completely normal.

Having gone through this exercise in songwriting, I've come to a conclusion of which I’m pretty much confident: I shouldn’t be thinking of quitting my daytime job anytime soon. But the experience sure was fun!

I hope you’ve found this article to be useful and mildly amusing. If it was neither then perhaps you’re a songwriter! If that's the case I proffer my profound apologies, and as atonement leave you with another of Harry Nilsson's quote. I started this article with a quote from him, and it seems appropriate to it end with another: "I get nervous when they start shooting piano players"

On a Wing and a Prayer

2008-08-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

It's a beautiful Sunday afternoon in DC. A light breeze ruffles through my hair as my dad looks on disapprovingly. “Get a hair cut!” he says. I respond with a sigh. “I know, I know”.

We were walking down the National Mall and I was itching to go to the Air and Space Museum. The rest of the family didn’t share my enthusiasm for all things winged, and so they continued towards the Lincoln Memorial while I walked in for a look. I wanted to visit the museum not because of the aircraft exhibits, but the flight simulator.

I first heard of the simulator a few weeks previously at a birthday party. My nephew’s friend whom I had met was so excited about his experience in the museum's simulated F-4 Phantom Jet, that I couldn't wait to experience it myself. Apparently the simulator was of the full motion variety. Real enough that those with heart trouble, or back and neck injuries were warned to stay away from.

So it was with eager steps that I walked past the exhibit displaying the famous Apollo 11 Command Module and entered the queue at the West end of the building. It didn't take me long to realize that this was kids' zone and I was only one of a smattering number of adults there. All of us were eager and excited. I paid for the ticket and waited for my turn.

Before entering the simulator we were asked to empty our pockets and place the contents in a locker. This was serious stuff. You don’t want things falling off your pocket and turning into untethered projectile when you’re flying upside down.

I get strapped into my seat. The cab door is closed. It’s dark save for the simulated display in front of me. I’m on an aircraft carrier, somewhere off the coast of Vietnam. I hear the rumble of the engines and soon the take-off roll begins 3..2..1.. Full throttle...stick pulled back...and I’m off the carrier deck into the blue yonder.

I rapidly gain altitude and notice a bogey at my 2 O’ Clock. I maneuver into position behind and below the aircraft and press the missile launch button. There is a swooshing sound and a missile leaps past me, hitting the target spot-on. That was easy I thought. Bogey’s gone! Replaced by a smoking wreckage that traces a Pynchon arc on its way down.

Although there are many more enemy aircraft in the air, I soon stop going after them. Something’s wrong, dead WRONG! It just doesn’t feel right. The plane doesn’t feel right!

I return to straight and level flight and ignore all enemy fire. Stick now pushed to the left, the plane obligingly enters a left banking turn. Whoa! I start sliding immediately in my seat and get pushed hard against the left-hand side of the cab. This is not what I would've expected in a real aircraft!

If you’re flying by the seat-of-the-pants in a real airplane and you are in a turn, as long as you are using the rudder correctly, you will not slide in your seat. Your posterior stays put (that’s why it’s called seat-of-the-pants flying I suppose). Even if the rudder is not used, which is the case in this simulator since rudder pedals are not installed, as soon as the banking angle is established and the ailerons returned to their neutral position with respect to the airflow, you will not experience the sideways forces that will cause you to slide and get pushed to one side of the aircraft.

So as you would have guessed, the experience in the simulator left me a little underwhelmed. While I didn’t expect the ride to replicate the kinesthetic sensations one would experience in a million dollar hardware mounted on a Stewart platform, even within the limitations of the F-4 simulator, better coding would have increased the kinesthetic realism. And writing such code is not exactly rocket science. Any high school kid could do it with suitable mentoring.

Kinesthetic realism is indispensable if you want to teach someone to fly by the seat-of-the-pants, a skill that is essential in the making of a good pilot. There is a memorable scene from Pearl Harbor, the movie, in which Ben Affleck faces the prospect of failing his eye exam and getting his flight status revoked. He has just been accepted to fight the war on the side of the British against the Germans. Now only a jumble of letters on the wall stand in the way between him and his dreams of flying for the RAF in the Battle of Britain.

He struggles with the letters on the chart. Gets them wrong, mixes them up. The nurse says she’s sorry, but given his performance she can’t possibly pass him because it’s the requirement of the Army and Navy that all their pilots have 20/20 vision.

But his eyes are fine he argues; its alphabets that bother him. She looks at him and innocently suggests that perhaps he should go back to school, do a few more extra years and then try again next time when he’s ready.

No, he’s not dumb, he says. He’s had schooling and he’s passed all the necessary exams. Just look at his file. Look at his scores in math and spatial reasoning. Ain't that something! It’s just letters that appear visually all pear-shaped and reversed to him, a condition we call dyslexia but which wasn't widely known then.

Next, in what must be the most eloquent defence of flying by the seat-of-the-pants that I’ve heard, Ben Affleck proceeds to plead with the nurse that “You don’t dog fight with manuals. You don’t fly with gauges. It’s all about feeling, and speed...and letting that plane become like a part of your body. The manual says that the guy who is a slow reader can’t be a good pilot, but that file you’re holding says I’m the best pilot in the room. Ma’am, please...don’t take my wings.”

I liked Pearl Harbor, a delightful blend of historical fact, fiction and Hollywood storytelling. And what an amazingly gorgeous song by Faith Hill. Who can forget that line in the chorus when she sings “In my dreams I always see you soar above the sky”. Boy, I wish I could write songs like that. I’m reminded of Abdu'l-Baha’s words that “a wondrous melody is wings for the spirit”. I found this to be certainly true of that song. It lifts my spirits and puts an extra spring in my step whenever I hear it.

Songs can have great emotional power and they can change our world by changing the way we think and talk about ourselves. It was through a song that the phrase ‘on a wing and a prayer’ first entered the cultural lexicon. Released in 1943, the song which was titled "Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer" was about a damaged plane trying, against all odds, to make it back to base during World War II. It will always remind me of hope and the resiliency of the human spirit in the face of adversity.

It's Electric

2008-08-09T06:55:00.000-07:00

THE last couple of weeks have been rather gruelling. An oppressive blanket of heat has descended over my quaint little town. Though there has been talk of rain, and rumours of rain, not a drop has been seen in ages and the weather has been hot, hot, hot.

I tend to take the heat in my stride but recently I have been visited by a rather curious affliction. Whenever I touch anything metallic I tend to get zapped by a jolt of static electricity discharge. This seems to happen to me all the time whenever I’m at work or on my way to and from work. I walk to my office and as I reach out to pull the door handle ZAP! I get a jolt of electric current. The same thing happens when I walk to the car and try to open the door. I’m zapped again. Ouch! You may think that this zapping action would mean that both the car and I will now be at the same electric potential and so there would be no more zaps. But no. Half an hour later as I get down and close the door I’m zapped yet again.

All kinds of objects give me the jolt. My filing cabinet, and other paraphernalia in my office. I'm lucky my guitar hasn’t zapped me yet! No one else around me seems to suffer from this problem. I can understand electrostatic discharge (ESD) being a problem in cold dry climates. But here in hot humid Malaysia???

I’ve been reading much about human ESD lately and have come across all kinds of unusual stories. There is one about this couple, a guy and girl who both suffer from unusually high static electricity buildups in their bodies. Apparently every time they smooch, they receive quite a jolt of electricity. Now, that must have been something! Talk about sparks in a relationship! So perhaps there is something positive to be had from all of these - I've just got to remember to carry that electroscope the next time I'm on the party circuit :-)