Success is Skin Deep?

We were just discussing about the 'DNA test for world peace' and scientists have discovered the genes for the skin color. Its really a bad news for the big group of cosmetic industry in India which makes money by saying their products changes the skin color of girls and hence make them more successful in life??? Is the secret of success and beauty is just skin deep??

The cute little zebra fishes helped us to identify the genes involved in the skin color. Now what about the religious gene?? May be before we identify this genes, we have to find a religious fish... ;-) I guess we will be more 'human' if we just follow the animal instincts within us and get synchronized with nature.

This picture is taken today in my Lab Party, thats me with Iva and Lila, a picture representing European, African and Asian girls. People from 13 different countries work together in my lab.Its just great, we never feel the difference at work or as we get together in parties... Check the Side link for more Party Photos(flickr.com).

DNA Test for World Peace!

I don’t keep a track of happenings in Politics, but sometimes, if I am in mood for jokes, I browse through the Online News Papers for the happenings in Politics. I was keen on these jokes for last few days as my name was on headlines, after Uma Barati was expelled from BJP, and today in the headlines, she asked for a ‘DNA’ test of politicians, to check the Hindu ideology they posses. I wish every religious man do this DNA test, to see their genes are not contaminated with religion and culture, May be then they may start doing what their gene says, Wow! This DNA test will bring all the war and crimes happening around the world in the name of religion to an end.

Applying Technology in Love…

It may sound strange for some people, for the way I get excited about love adventures of my friends. Especially for few of my friends in India, The past 28 years of my life in India, I spent it in 12 different village, towns and cities. That too it’s a mere coincidence that I was born in a village and as I grew up started moving to bigger and bigger towns and cities. Well! That’s a really a big story, I need a separate blog for that. So, that short side story was to say that I have friends in villages, and small towns where the reach of technology is still very less. Now back to the topic. So, for them to understand, I need to explain the ‘cultural lag’ I faced here, after my entry into the western world. One of the big shock was by seeing the Advancements in Technology, I have read about most of them, like the faster way of communication etc. But never heard about the Technology applied ‘Love’ (love is a too strong word; I should call it just a relationship or affairs). For example people apply parallel processing and backup technology in their ‘love’. I think we take backup because we don’t believe in the computers, it may crash any time. But it was very surprising to see the Love affairs which should be based on belief, is been contaminated with this ‘disbelief’ technology. Born in a place where the relationships, love, marriage are still based on ‘blind beliefs’ and now to see relationships, love, marriage based disbelief, is very shocking. So, I get excited when I see some relationships/love affairs of my friends (among both my eastern and western) who don’t follow the crowd, just throw away the blind belief and disbelief and build a relationship just on ‘Belief’. Curse you…the Technology of Disbelief!!!

To Assaf and Nivi

As I promised on Friday, its time to write about the my friends Assaf and Nivi. Assaf works with me in my lab,a great..great scientist and Nivi is his girl friend, who is a wonderful artist and two of her books, kids cartoon book will be released soon. It would have been impossible for me to handle the 'Cultural lag ' problems(during my first few rough days in Paris /Sometimes even now :-( ) without them. In a Hindi Movie "Munna Bahi MBBS" they often talk about The 'Jadu Ki Japi' (The Magic Hug), a hug which can cool down any emotionally stressed person. I understood/experienced the real meaning of this 'Jadu Ki Japi' only because of them. Now to the Exciting Part, this friday, with after the big emotional arguments about love (as an impact of JK's quote on Love) I checked my mail and I saw Assaf's mail, saying, By the time I read the mail, he would be crossing the ocean to meet Nivi in New York (which was a surprise for her) and to propose her, Today he was back in the lab with successful and exciting Love Story...Wow! Now! Its time for me to pack up and be ready to go to Israel for their wedding....! Yeah ! Thats Assaf and Nivi in the picture, taken during a party in Chris's (My Boss) house.

In spite of Hindi Movies famous for many many crappy sentimental stuff...this 'Jadi Ki Japi' sentiment is really really good....If you have not watched this movie "Munna Bhai MBBS" yet...the first thing you guys should do is, to go and see this movie and the next step is,when ever you see someone down, give a 'Jadu Ki Japi' and say ' tension nahi leneka.. apun hai na' ( Dont Worry! I am there!) Believe me it really..really works!

Love in Finding Nemo!

More on Love! Oops! I am still stuck with JK's quote on Love. Today as I was seeing " Finding Nemo" for 101th time, I was able to sense different types of love in the movie, beautiful depicted using different characters. The Negative aspect, like the Darla's Love for fish, a high intensity,lethal love. She loves fishes so much that she calls herself 'Piranha', a Amazon fish refered as Man eaters in old movies, without scientific evidence. Darla, inspite of having love for fishes, she is called the 'Fish Killer' in the movie, often the love when expressed with such high intensity, leaves the beloved in suffocation. And Marlin's Love , a high intensity, semi-lethal Love for Nemo, a type of Paranoid Love. Often we love like Marlin, the negative things around us or the negative memories of the past, the fear gets mixed up with love and the love loses its charm. The most pleasant form of love in the movie is the one of Dory's, least contaminated with the negativity around her, not infuenced by the negative thoughts of past,the fear (she 'suffers'? / 'enjoys' !! from Short Term Memory Loss). Now putting this in terms of JK! " Fear destroys love. You cannot have love - love cannot exist where fear is. So thinking has created fear. Right? Thinking about the future, thinking about the past.Thought is born of experience and knowledge, which are inseparable from time and the past. Time is the psychological enemy of man. Our action is based on knowledge and therefore time, so man is always a slave to the past. Thought is ever-limited and so we live in constant conflict and struggle. Love is: dying every day. "

First Fondue

Today I started my day with reading Jk's quote on Love!!! I was so excited to read it, I felt my thoughts were stolen even before, me and my thoughts were born, but on my way to the lab, for a moment I felt even JK might have lived in Utopian world like me. As I reached my Lab two exciting love stories were waiting for me, got to know about the exciting Love adventure of two good friends of mine. ( I need to dedicate two blogs for them and their girl friends in the days to come) ...OK , JK may be right...Selfless Love do exist... and today evening was the first snow of this winter, its so beautiful to see the snow flakes falling, that was the first gift Paris gave me as I landed in Paris nine months back. Now to the more exciting part of French Dinner, with Ale. Today For the first time I tasted the Fondue, Its Boiling cheese over the fire on your table,It was just... Wow! Yeah that's Ale and me drooling over fondue tonight (check out for more Pictures in the flickr.com) And this lovely romantic winter evening came to end as I cycled back home in -2 degrees, with Adnan Sami singing "Kabhi tho Nazar Milao..' for me from my iPod.

Dalai Lama in a Science Congress!

In Science Magazine's "news of the week" there is an article about Dalai Lama's talk in a Neuroscience Congress. Its interesting to read about the controversies, It reminds me of Aldous Huxley's view on such conditions..here it goes...

"At any historical moment human behavior is a compromise (enforced from without by law and custom, from within by belief in religious or philosophical myths) between raw instinct on the one hand and the unattainable ideal on the other – a compromise, in our sculptural metaphor, between the unshaped block of stone and the many-armed dancing Krishna."

When there are two contradictory paths, do we always have to select one? Follower of Religion...Non Follower...Why cant one be "Just an observer"?

Philosophy starts in a Paris Bus Stop!

Nine months back, when I just landed in Paris, I was trying to find out all the possible(bus,metro,RER etc) way to reach my lab. Found that if I take the bus Line 38, the nearest bus stop is "Auguste Comte"...Oh No! Another tough french name...!!! In spite of me having 'google search disease', this name never inspired me to do a google search, may be I assumed that it should be the name of a famous french painter or a writer, as the most of the streets and places are named after them(Thanks to this system of Naming). Today I was reading an article on Altruism, which is evolutionarily, culturally, socially, and religiously significant word. May be this is one of the word where the three different poles. Science,Religion and Philosophy shake hands. And this French Philosopher,Auguste Comte also referred as father of sociology coined this word 'Altruism' it seems...

In Phytoplankton, including my diatoms, its been observed that they sacrifice their life for the survival of the its neighbours in the 'colony', in the time of disease and food(nutrient) limitation. Also this nature of 'unicellular altruism' might be an evolutionarily significant event which lead to the formation of multi cellular organisms(including the 'selfish human'). Today the BBC news says that 'Loneliness could be in our Genes'....Oops! when did 'we' lose this altruist genes of single cell ancestors and got these 'selfish' genes. Something ..Somewhere..Seriously.. went wrong!!!

The Sweet Barbarians

Today I went to a painting exhibition " The Sweet Barbarians" by Marke.(Arjun's Friend). It was in 3rd arrondissement. (Paris is divided into 20 arrondissement - districts .I guess this was my first venture into the heart of 3rd arrondissement of Paris,Naturally, In spite of having two maps I was lost on the way to exhibition and also the way back. But I guess Paris is the only place,where you feel lucky to get lost, every street corner of Paris always have something new to show you, the more you get lost in Paris, the more you enjoy the city. This district of Paris have lots of art galleries,with huge glass windows displaying its own unique arts , was also lucky enough to bump into the Picasso Museum.

Now to 'The Sweet Barbarians', it was in one cute little gallery. And obviously as the name suggests, it had the portraits of (fictitious pop band) some sweet barbarians including Arjun's ;-) (sorry didn't go with my camera) unable to give you guys the feel of the exhibition. I like to get lost in 3rd arrondissement again, may be then I can try to catch the glimpses of the exhibition in my camera ;-)

More Changes...

Talking about changes, Need to tell you guys about my family reunion... almost after 7 years we were together during my vacation in Canada, It was too much emotional for my mom. yesterday as I was talking to her in the google talk,she was missing me, as always I am the first one to eat and finish the diwali sweets and this is my first diwali away from home :-( So, talking about my family, I thought I can share with you my family picture (kal aur aaj ). "ypadi irutha naan... ipadi aaitaaen??.."!!!(A famous tamil movie dialogue, means.."How I was..What I have become??"!!!

"Nothing endures but change."

- Heraclitus (540 BC - 480 BC), from Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers

Changes..On Diwali

Guys! Not Even a year now,Since we took this picture, but there are lots of additions and deletions in our group photo right? Two have babies, one is married, three are out of country! Just rembering the good old days and the evenings when I use to crash land in Neha's kitchen, for the sunday chai and the for the delecious Dinner.! Missing you All on Diwali! Happy Diwali Guys! Well My Diwali in Paris..nothing so special, except for the my Diwali wishes I got from 3 (one 50% and two 100%) French Men ( I can hear Sunitha saying 'sudarja' ) wait... these wishes are spl. because I got it in Hindi, All three speak good hindi..Aj kal main bee thoda bahooth hindi bhool lathi hoon ;-)

My New World... Blog..!!

Yesterday I saw some really cool Blog sites, and thought why not let me have one! I dont have any speacial news to post , but I thought I can share my small exciting things happening in my Research and Life in Paris. So created a Blog called "Diatomist", I picked up this habit of giving fancy names from my last 3 years experience in a corporate! So, why diatomist???, because I work in Diatomics...Ok..ok..enough of fancy terms, I work on Diatom Genomics. Well!! to know more on Diatoms you can either click on the favourite links just in the side of the page, or wait till I finish my PhD ;-) So, the genome of Phaeodactylum tricornutum (Diatom) is my research topic!!!