The unvaccinated are dying. Their death rates are disproportionately high.
If you're spreading fear and doubt about vaccines, their deaths are on you.
Unvaccinated deaths due to covid are very high. The death rates of people dying right after vaccination - whether that was due to the vaccine or not - are very low. Post vaccination complications are also minuscule compared to long covid complication rates.
The disease is the problem now. Long term vaccine may also a problem in future, but a much smaller problem.
It's like how I was worried in the ICU that they are giving me steroids. The nurse told me that it would be helpful if I focused on getting out alive, rather than worrying about any possible aftereffects if I survived. Sure, I'm putting on weight now. But if I start running I will lose that weight. But hard to be running if I'm dead, no?
Stop spreading fear about vaccinations. You're causing a massacre bigger than WW2.
In 2001 I landed at Boston airport. The first time I'd ever been outside India, as also the first time I had taken a flight alone.
My sister, who was studying at Cincinnati, would arrive in Boston that evening. But I had landed in the morning. MIT, where I was going to intern for the summer, had put me up at a bed and breakfast near Harvard Square. But I had no preparation or plan on how to get from the airport to the BnB. (I had frequently traveled solo in India, and had not expected the Americans to make public transport in one of their major cities so complicated and so expensive).
Before I left, someone had given me the phone number of a couple of AID folks in Boston. So, swapping a dollar bill for quarters, I called Om Damani. He was surprised, and a little bemused. We had never spoken before, and I don't think that before that day he even knew I existed. Nevertheless, he drove down to the airport in the slight summer rain to pick me up, and brought me to his home.
Cut to now. I've just landed in Mumbai, and Om bhai is at the airport to receive me. In the age of Uber and Covid, he has chosen to drive down from Powai to pick me up.
Some people never change. Which is such a wonderful thing. 🤗❤️
When we were young, sparrows would visit our home near Yusuf Sarai in Delhi. We'd have to rush and open the French windows of the house, and turn off the ceiling fans to protect them.
As we grew up, the birds around us seemed to have learnt to stay out of human homes. Until this month. Here in Goa, we have scaly-breasted munias visiting us sometimes. And, well, they're stupid. They keep fluttering against the fixed glass panes of the windows for an agonisingly long time, when there is an open window right underneath (see the pic for context).
I suppose the spotted munias forage in the paddy fields around our house. And visit us to snack on all the insects we harbour indoors. Perhaps I'll have the kids put stickers on all the fixed panes, to alert the birds.
(These social, communal birds are frequently caged. The pet trade calls them the Spice Finch. Its... so sad.)
What a lovely experience. The staff at the Government District Hospital in Mapusa were more organised and helpful than the fancy Medanta Team that gave me my first dose.
I can't remember till what age I had this problem. I had to walk aligned to tiles. I assumed it is a mental disease and didn't tell a soul from fear of being ostracised.
Then I saw someone do this in a movie and realised its pretty common behaviour. Now someone has built an entire business out of people sharing their cringe worthy weirdness and called it Reddit.
As many of you might know, I founded a company in 2007, with the mission to create computers for the rural market.
India has 35 crore children of school going age, 30 crore of whom have been without (online) education for the last 1.5 years. In 2007, the digital divide was about children finishing school without any computer skills. Hiring managers said - if you can’t type on a computer, you might as well not know how to write. But today, it’s a lot worse. With the rise of EdTech and online education, the unfair advantage to those who have access to YouTube and app/web based education is simply disgraceful.
Thinvent has done a great job (if I may say so myself) of building rugged, reliable, hassle free computers that last much longer than the average desktop or laptop, while facing the heat, dust and erratic power of rural India and Africa. We have large customers like the Railways, banks, logistics companies, startups and chains of educational institutions, who have given us repeat orders for over a decade now.
While much of our revenue comes from the B2B segment, we also rock in the consumer segment. Our online education star, the Micro 5, is a quad core 1.5 GHz computer with 2 GB RAM and WiFi, Ethernet and Bluetooth connectivity. It supports Zoom and Google Meet, and lets students comfortably attend classes, conduct online research and finish assignments. In the hallowed tradition of eating our own dog food, my younger son Kavin attended classes on the predecessor of the Micro 5, the Micro 4, for many months during the lockdown of 2020. The Micro 5 sells for just ₹2,150 and is supported for at least five years (taxes, shipping, keyboard, mouse and monitor extra).
Our products have frequently been bestsellers on Amazon. We support home and small business customers across the vastness of India. However, one thing we haven’t invested in is marketing. We have lived by the adage that once you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door. In our case, that has held true mostly for technically aware customers, who can appreciate the long term value of our product.
And that brings me to the point of this post. We are going to be raising money by selling equity in the company, and using that money to reach out to the vast consumer base in India and other emerging economies that _deserves_ to be using our computers. If you know someone looking to invest a few lakh rupees in a company that has been profitable for years, and has a track record of growth and customer satisfaction, please do send them my way. I have some aesthetic graphs to share with them.
[ We are, at the moment, not talking to large investors. There are certain core values that we will not compromise on in the pursuit of growth - paramount being that we do not exploit our workers. We provide full time employment to all who manufacture and test our computers, and cover all their healthcare and education expenses. We aren’t in the race to be the cheapest manufacturer of computers; but we do know that we are the best.
We work hard to reduce the environmental impact of our computers. We replace 10 kilogram computers that consume 50 Watts of power and have a supply chain that winds round and round the Earth, with 200 gram 5 Watt computers built with components sourced from our thirty odd suppliers spread across Delhi/NCR (and some crucial help from our friends in Taiwan). Even those 200 grams, we choose carefully to have the least impact on the planet, and then fastidiously recycle at the end of the computer’s life.
When you invest in Thinvent, your money creates meaningful jobs for school pass outs, diploma holders and engineers from diverse backgrounds. We give them the freedom to solve real world problems in engineering and operations, with ownership and fulfilment. We also foster an ecosystem of reliable computer component manufacturers in India, by asking our suppliers to focus on quality not undercutting the Chinese. If you make what we need in India and you make it well, we will be sure to source it from you instead of importing it. ]
I can't lift my kids any more. Not much. They miss it, sometimes. Till a while ago, they used to miss it a lot more.
I blame their growth spurt. And my back. But I can fix it. If I try.
Being able to lift and spin them around has been my main motivation to fix my body up through some drastic lifestyle changes. Less sitting and working. More movement. Being in nature frequently.
Which is why I found this video magical. What I would do, for that one lift.
(Waking Kavin up has always been a challenge. Not being able to simply lift him out of bed has led to me turning into a human alarm clock every morning. Sigh.)
इक दफ़ा वो याद है तुमको बिन बत्ती जब साइकिल का चालान हुआ था? हमने कैसे भूखे-प्यासे बेचारों सी एक्टिंग की थी हवलदार ने उल्टा एक अट्ठनी देकर भेज दिया था एक चव्वनी मेरी थी वो भिजवा दो...
सावन के कुछ भीगे भीगे दिन रखे हैं और इक खत में लिपटी रात पड़ी है वो रात बुझा दो और भी कुछ सामान तुम्हारे पास पड़ा है वो भिजवा दो
पतझड़ हैं कुछ पतझड़ में कुछ पत्तों के गिरने की आहट कानों में पहनकर लौट आई थी पतझड़ की वो शाख अभी तक काँप रही है वो शाख गिरा दो मेरा वो सामान लौटा दो
एक अकेली छतरी में जब आधे आधे भीग रहे थे आधे सूखे आधे गीले सूखा तो मैं ले आई थी गीला मन शायद बिस्तर के पास पड़ा हो वो भिजवा दो मेरा वो सामान लौटा दो
एक सौ सोलह चाँद की रातें एक तुम्हारे काँधे का तिल गीली मेहँदी की खुशबू झूठ-मूठ के शिकवे कुछ झूठ-मूठ के वादे भी सब याद करदूं सब भिजवा दो मेरा वो सामान लौटा दो
सब भिजवा दो मेरा वो सामान लौटा दो
एक इजाज़त देदो बस जब इनको दफ़नउंगी मैं भी वहीँ सो जाउंगी
https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/over-40-000-breakthrough-infections-or-covid-cases-in-vaccinated-people-in-kerala-source-2507884 - I think it is time the government started educating people on what the current vaccines can and cannot do. The vaccines as they stand today cannot _prevent_ infection. They cannot also _prevent_ disease, fever, sickness. They can greatly improve the _outcome_, or in other words, reduce mortality, ICU admissions and severity of the disease.
Vaccines that can prevent infection in the nose (https://www.indiatoday.in/coronavirus-outbreak/story/covid-vaccine-prevents-covid-disease-transmission-animals-study-results-1826943-2021-07-12), and then transmission on to others, are under development, but likely won't be widely available till 2021. I am not a scientist, but herd immunity is not an achievable goal till such vaccines are mass manufactured and administered.
Therefore, even after vaccination, people must maintain distance, try and meet in open, well ventilated places as much as possible, mask up, and stop scratching their noses.
Yesterday the kids and I had a long chat about activities they might pursue seriously over the next few years. Maths is a topic of interest to Kavin. I told him that I once qualified the RMO and sat in the INMO exam. If he is serious about maths, the IMO is not a bad goal to pursue.
Today I dug up the INMO 2021 exam paper. In 1996, I had traveled from Bhopal to Jabalpur to attempt the four hour INMO exam. The 1996 paper was as confounding to me then, as the 2021 paper is today. One hour into the paper, I had suffered a spontaneous nosebleed.
Back then, there were centers in Nagpur/Pune that coached students for the INMO. After 25 years, those are still the leading centers for INMO/IMO prep. But really, just look at this paper. Why would I want to subject my child to this?
Does anyone have experience using an electric cycle? Something like a Hero Lectro https://www.herolectro.com/product-details-c8-700c''ss. I need to get a new bicycle for my elder one; wondering if we should go electric. Top speed is 25kmph so safety doesn't seem to be a concern (it isn't an electric motorbike in terms of speed/torque). @[773224539:2048:Sherebanu Frosh] @[746044341:2048:Nishant Jain] @[601093713:2048:Mayank Rungta]
हमारे सबसे लोकप्रिय thin client का निरूपण और चलाने की विधि - हिन्दी में। हमारे अधिकतर उपभोक्ता छोटे शहरों और कस्बों से ही होते हैं, इसलिए हमारी support team उनसे हिन्दी, तमिल या कन्नड में ही बात करती हैं।
Grief isn't an emotion that I've had much familiarity with.
When my father passed away, I thought I was experiencing grief, but I was actually angry. All my helplessness from the days when he was sick, and the grief and disbelief of his passing, snowballed into anger.
[With lakhs of people passing within a month, it should have been a rage that we collectively felt as a society. ख़ैर, at this time I should just talk about my own experience.]
My friends said that I did all I could given the circumstances. But I was angry at the circumstances. Some relatives suggested that he is in a happier place, given how much he had suffered due to his chronic diseases. I was upset that they should suggest this. I was even upset with my father for not listening in the last few days before he passed, for not cooperating with his caregivers. I had complained loudly to others that he won't listen, even suggesting that it is as if he has a death wish.
I was invited to join whatsapp groups where people expressed their condolences. I was upset at these people - I asked what they'd all done for him while he was living. Had they convinced him to take his medicines? Of course nobody responded, because they could tell I'm angry (which I couldn't, myself). I later came to know that my father had been telling everyone that he is well taken care of, that he is recovering. So what could they do 🤷🏽♂️?
Some persona non gratas thought that this would be a good time to slide into my DMs, comment on my wall, or come see me in person. Some of them, I ignored. Others, who persisted, got a piece of my mind. After all, if you couldn't be nice to man when he was alive, why bother with empty condolences now that he is gone?
We learn to control and channel our emotions (That's what being an adult is largely about, I believe.) And then, suddenly, an event like this takes place, filling us with grief and anger so our cup of emotions overflows. Our delicate balance collapses. It is simultaneously humiliating and liberating to be temporally controlled by your emotions. For your amygdala to take over from your logical, balanced, conscious mind.
Anyway. I look back now with fondness at all the good souls that held me through that tumult. Really separated the wheat from the chaff, it did. You know who you all are 🤗
For those of you who appreciate my bird pics... this is what I call fine bird photography. There needs to be action. So far I've figured out how to capture stills. I'm yet to take a single decent pic of a bird in flight. But slowly and steadily, I shall get there.
(If you're passionate about something, the easiest thing to do these days is to follow pages on FB and hashtags on Insta. First the inspiration comes to you. Slowly you muster courage to start asking questions, and then the gyan and the mentors also come to you. After that it's all hard work.)
"From another era", said she, while sharing this pic with me.
"Spent so much money here. For love ❤️," said I.
I still remember conversations verbatim, from when long distance communication was a luxury. These days its all just a blur, a flurry of messages and images.
And surprise surprise. The secretary incharge is no other than Ashok Khemka. He is gonna notify the entire Mangar Bani as an archeological site and protect it.
उस आदमी का बस चले तो पूरे अरावली को protected site बना दे।
The question came up during a late evening stroll with a professor friend. I had no answer.
Later, as I sat on the throne nursing an upset stomach, the answer came to me. Coelho is popular in India because so are Chetan Bhagat and Ayn Rand.
Indians like to read shallow books. Young Adult literature is being devoured by people in their late 20s and 30s.
The black and white characters of Rand, the pop philosophy of Coelho and Robin Sharma. Plot, conclusion and moral, all pre processed, just like our NCERT textbooks. Why, then, would you grapple with Nietzsche, or have your thoughts provoked by The Little Prince?
In case you wish to travel to the mountains close to Delhi, here is what you need to know: https://www.indiatoday.in/travel/story/planning-a-trip-to-himachal-uttarakhand-here-s-all-you-need-to-know-about-travel-restrictions-guidelines-1813387-2021-06-10
You do not need an RTPCR negative report, or an epass, to visit Himachal. Shops and hotels are open.
Uttarakhand requires an RTPCR negative report, advance confirmed reservation at a homestay/hotel, and an epass. Markets and cafés are closed; you can only eat what your homestay cook serves you.
If you choose to travel, stay quarantined for a week. You can always step out for solitary walks. But partying, drinking, loud music, dancing with other guests is ruled out (I hope it stays that way forever).
Room rates are allegedly less than half the usual prices.
