Randy Pausch's Farewell Lecture

If you have not heard about Randy Pausch and his last lecture, then here is your chance to look at it and to reevaluate your life, like I am mine!



Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch, who is dying from pancreatic cancer, gave his last lecture at the university Sept. 18, 2007, before a packed McConomy Auditorium. In his moving talk, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," Pausch talked about his lessons learned and gave advice to students on how to achieve their own career and personal goals. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/randyslecture. "Journeys" are special University Lectures in which Carnegie Mellon faculty members share their reflections on their journeys -- the everyday actions, decisions, challenges and joys that make a life.

You should make some time to watch the complete lecture here, about 1 hr and 20 minutes, this is really worth your time --

The Eccentric Artist

Yes artists are considered an eccentric sort, but painter, M.F.
Hussain is in a league all of his own. One of his faux pas's is his
derogatory portrayal of Hindu gods and goddesses. More protests by
Hindu groups in New York have been a precursor to the Christies
auction.

"Hindu activist groups in the US have threatened to hold a
demonstration at Christie's here unless the art gallery stops an
auction this week of paintings by celebrated Indian painter M F
Husain, who they say has hurt Hindus the world over for portraying
their gods in "derogatory" forms." says SIFY news, "In a letter to
Christie's, the Indian American Intellectual Forum, which has joined
hands with Hindu Janjagruti Samiti on the campaign against Husain,
said the artist has gained ignominy and notoriety in India by painting
several Hindu gods and goddesses in derogatory forms. As part of
Christie's New York auction March 20 of modern and contemporary art
from South Asia, Husain's paintings are expected to fetch hundreds of
thousands of dollars. One of them, "The Battle of Ganga and Yamuna" is
estimated to rake in $600,000-$800,000."

Hussain is currently in hiding and BBC reports that he may be living
in the Middle East.

Read the full SIFY article at --
http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14624043

Read the full BBC article at --
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7303479.stm

Chandigarh's Treasures

Chandigarh, a city conceived and designed by reknowned architect Le
Corbusier is supposed to be one of the most organized cities ever
built. It is usually not in the news, until I came across this article
in the New York Times which made me sit up and want to go back and
check out all those chairs and antique furniture at my grandparents
homes!!

An excerpt

"Every working day for the past 20 years, Suresh Kanwar, a civil
engineer in Chandigarh's Forestry Department, has been sitting on the
same battered wooden chair, an object he said had "no beauty" even if
it was, "for office use, very comfortable."

A man sat working on, and next to, an original Pierre Jeanneret teak
armchair at the Forestry Department in Chandigarh, India. Mr.
Jeanneret was a cousin of the architect Le Corbusier, who conceived
the modernist city in the 1950s.

Hazarding a guess as to its value, he suggested 400 rupees, or about
$10, "perhaps, at a junkyard."

A pair of chairs identical to Mr. Kanwar's, instantly recognizable to
collectors as Pierre Jeanneret teak "V-chairs," will go on sale at the
auction house Christie's in New York this month with a reserve of
$8,000 to $12,000."

Read the full article at --
http://select.nytimes.com/mem/tnt.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntget=2008/03/19/world/asia/19chandigarh.html&tntemail0=y&oref=slogin

Philosophical Pop Culture

As I was wathcing Spiderman 3 this afternoon, the underlying theme of an evil mind begets evil, nad a good mind begets good became evident very early on in the movie. Many religions, Hinduism, Jainism, Christianity, Budhism, believe that when a mind thinks good thoughts, good vibes emanate from an individual. Constant bad thoughts, make one sad and upset and an unpleasant person to hang out with.

Even though some feel that movies like Spiderman and Superman are pure entertainment and do not do much for the world, I believe otherwise. Some of these themes provide food for thought for young minds, why, even mature minds.

The folk tales of yesteryears, that I grew up with come to mind, like the Panchatantra, Aesops Fables, Arabian Nights most all of these stories carry a moral and even today when I read some of these to my little son, I stop to think about the morals behind some of these stories, basic, morals that the world of today ought to be reminded about and can surely integrate into their lives.