Breaking the blogger's block

Life in IISc is never simple. First I have the blogger's block; then there is the IISc blogspot block, which does not let me into my own blog! However, it does let me into blogger and hence this. I have been reading about lots of things, so I thought I should update this little corner. Firstly, via Peter Woit the author of Not Even Wrong, the book and the blog, I read about the new web-site set up by Yau where he links us to a letter written by his counsel to those involved in the article on the Perelman business. I was fairly appalled by the way in which the article depicted Yau, undoubtedly a great mathematician. I don't know what legal recourse he has, but he should get back his reputation! I have also been awfully busy with the course on QM-III that I am teaching. I find that teaching semesters I am about to go crazy most of the time. Trying to balance home, teaching and research is not easy, at least for me! I am using the book by Ryder which is very good. Finally I have got hold of the book by Lahiri and Pal which seems to be very nice indeed. Maybe I will post a review on amazon? Of course I have a huge collection of advanced books, including Weinberg, Sterman, Brown, Itzyson and Zuber and yes, 2 signed copies of Peskin and Schroeder. As always, I do write elsewhere, and in particular wrote a tough article which is posted on the Lokrajsangathan web-page. Our submission to Current Science has finally been accepted and we were busy with the proofs and updating the references. I will post a revised version on the arxiv after the article appears in print. I also try to keep reading the ILC newline and the CERN bulletin to keep abreast of developments in the subject. I read a small news item about a supernova of 2 solar masses which, of course, violates the Chandrasekhar limit. It is hard to understand how such an animal could have come into being. Perhaps I should see if it has anything to do with 'strange' stars? Comments are welcome. That is about it for now and blogging will improve only after teaching is done.

Whipping up media frenzy

Normally I try not to react to the imbecile media world
over, but this time I cannot resist. While the rest of the
world watched in horror at the massacre in Lebanon,
a story was suddenly floated about the arrest of a suspect
in the sad story of JonBenet Ramsey. I told myself
that if it smells like a hoax, looks like a hoax, tastes like
a hoax, then it must be a hoax. Well, that is what it
has turned out to be. It was a magnificent diversion from
the atrocities perpetrated against Lebanon.

Then there is the sad story of the wild-life warrior,
Mr. Steve Irwin who was killed by a sting-ray barb.
Now everyone knows that if you mess around with
wild animals sooner or later there will be an accident.
While it is very sad for him and his family, one saw
the Prime Minister of Australia going on TV and treating
this man as a national hero. [In the old days national
heroes were those whose marched into the valley of death,
cannons to the right of them, cannons to the left of them
(never mind that the Charge of the Light Brigade
(not the electricity bill!) was in a battle of imperial conquest),
but now national heroes are those who prance around crocodiles,
head-butt foul mouthed opponents and hit a leather bound
sphere a few hundred yards. But I digress.] Of course I would
not go to the extent of Germaine Greer's picking on the same
man within hours of his passing, for he was after all harmless.

But all this is nothing compared to the insane joy over
Princess Kiko's delivering a baby boy. Why is the media
so interested in an oppressive, feudal, formerly genocidal
Royalty and its line of succession, which in itself is
misogynist?

In this mad world, the only true prophet that
is left is Mr. Joker of the Batman movies who says,
``what kind of a world is it where a man can dress up
as a bat...?''

Rahul Mahajan's latest offering

Of the blogs that I frequently visit, I have a lot of admiration
for the blog and the blogger. I had sometime ago writte about
George Allen and the 'macaca' incident, which has also featured in
this latest offering .