Archive for April, 2007
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Colour of paradise: Majid Majidi’s Masterpiece
Posted on April 18, 2007 | 4 CommentsColour of Paradise IMDB Year: 1999 Writer: Majid Majidi Director: Majid Majidi Category: Drama Rating: 5out of 5 Another great product of Iran’s movie revolution. A master piece on the struggle between a bright blind boy and a father who is ashamed of his disability Mohammad is a curious young boy who is constantly discovering the nature around him. He is bright and has picked a remarkable ability to read using braille. He is loved by his young sisters and nurtured by his grandmother, and the local school is proud of the boys academic abilities. His father though, is ashamed... -
Touching talk by Desmond Tutu: Nobel Laureate from South Africa
Posted on April 17, 2007 | No CommentsMany talks and interviews with well known people are now available online. I’ve put together a series of them that I have specially enjoyed. To see the rest, click here Desmond Tutu, the Archbishop from South Africa is one of the towering figures of the world today. His role in removing Apartheid from South Africa is well acknowledged. He also received a Nobel peace prize for his role in 1984. Bishop Tutu is a very powerful speaker, story teller, and a jovial person. But between his stories and jokes he gets serious and makes touching appeals. His sense of hope... -
“Consequentialist perspective” of economists and Human Rights
Posted on April 15, 2007 | No CommentsIs the language of rights useful in discussing poverty? Economists seem to claim these days that the rights approach may undermine the cause I encountered many economists writing tentatively about human rights these days. Perhaps there is an extensive literature about it already. The main premise of arguments seems to be while the ideals of human rights are good, the approach will only impair the reduction of poverty by advocating unsound policies. Amartya Sen responds to these issues in a debate with Jeffry Frankel at Harvard University. Webcast of debate is available. The programme runs for an hour and fifteen... -
Wonders and the Flaws of Intuitive Thinking – Webcast of Kahneman’s talk
Posted on April 15, 2007 | 2 CommentsInspiring talk by Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman on intuitive thinking Vs. reasoning and its application to choice theory The introductory lecture to the class of 2008 in Princeton was done by Prof. Daniel Kahneman on the wonders and flaws of intuitive thinking. The webcast of the lecture is available in the Pricneton media website. Kahneman distinguishes between two modes of thinking – Reasoning and intuition. While intuition is powerful and accounts for most of our thinking, it is suceptible to illusions. These illusions can result in wrong choices in a variety of situations. He discusses the topic and its relevance... -
Paradox of Choice – Why more is less by Barry Schwartz
Posted on April 15, 2007 | No CommentsMore choice is equated with greater welfare, is this tenable? Too much choice can paradoxically make us be better but feel worse argues the psychologist In many societies today welfare is associated with freedom, and freedom with choice. It is commonly argued that people are better off with more choice. Psycologist Barry Schwarts discusses various experiments by psychologists and behavioural economists that test this claim. The talk lasts about one hour, and is worth every minute of it. Many talks and interviews with well known people are now available online. I’ve put together a series of them that I have... -
Best book on India’s development by Amartya Sen and Dreze
Posted on April 15, 2007 | No CommentsIndia: Development and Participation Rating: 5 out of 5 Author: Amartya Sen & Jean Dreze Year: 2002 Category: Development, Economics, India Publisher: Oxford My favourite book on India’s development issues. Provides a comprehensive overview of many important development issues In my opinion this book is gold standard and is a must read for anyone intersted in development issues. Amartya Sen is distinguished for his ability to incorporate a wide variety of concerns including growth, inequalities, gender issues, power relations, etc. Dreze complements these abilities and also brings in significant field-level experience apart from rigorous research. India: Development and Participation combines... -
Woody Allan’s Manhattan disappoints me
Posted on April 15, 2007 | No CommentsManhattan IMDB Year: 1979 Writer: Woody Allen Director: Woody Allen Rating: 2 out of 5 The movie starts with a forty something Woody Allan and his seventeen year old date at a dinner with his friend Yale (played by Michael Davis) and his wife. Yale confides to Woody that he is having an extra marrital affaire with a bright Journalist played by Diane Keaton. The movie then takes us through a tangled web of relationships, betrayals, insecurities and a dash of humour now and then. I decided to watch Manhattan after seeing the fantastic rating it had in Rotten Tomatoes.... -
Majidi’s Children of Heaven: A child’s lost shoe becomes a moving story
Posted on April 14, 2007 | 3 CommentsChildren of heaven Year: 1997 Writer: Majid Majidi Director: Majid Majidi Category: Foreign Rating: 5 out of 5 Children of Heaven is a product of Iran’s movie revolution. Ali goes to get his sister’s shoe cobbled and looses it on the way back. He’s too scared to tell this to his parents since they are too poor to buy another pair immediately. He convinces his sister to keep it from the parents and shares his sneakers with her. But this is not easy since his school starts immediately after her school ends and the children run to and from school... -
New York sight seeing: Low cost options for students
Posted on April 13, 2007 | No CommentsBookmarks I created on New York to enjoy the city on a low budget Most things in New York are costly, atleast at the surface of it. But with some hard work one can find a lot of attractions in the city that one can catch up with in a student budget. I found the following online resources on New York useful. This is a small list that I hope to work on. -
Google calculator for quick calculations online
Posted on April 9, 2007 | No CommentsThough I am an intensive user of various features of Google, I was surprised to find that it has an inbuilt calculator that I had not discovered till today. Normally, I open MS Excel painfully or some other application to do simple calculations. I found that one can do these by using the calculator function in Google by using standard methods that one would in Excel. If one has the browser open, it's a quicker and easier way to get answers than looking for an application.
