Ambigram: Nehru

Nehru is the name of the new Hall of Residence which I have been allotted in IITKgp.

It turned out to be an almost natural ambigram - a few tweaks here and there, and voila! the ambigram is ready!

I resorted to a little bit of cheating (not in the conventional sense though!).

All the letters are in Comic Sans. I did not try making the alphabet myself. Just modified the existing ones.

How is it? Do let me know.

Other Ambigrams I Designed

 Azad, Jazzonomics, Patel, DPS RKP, Mainak

Real Life Applications of Mathematics - Traffic Rules

Mathematics is often viewed as a subject which has no real life application.

I disagree with this view. One has to look at Mathematics in the right light. Only then one can discover the joy of Mathematics.

Consider, for instance - traffic rules. Very practical, you would agree. However, very few people appreciate the disadvantages of zig-zag movement.

Let us consider it in the light of two well known mathematical axioms.

1. Two sides of a triangle are greater than the third side

It is a very well known mathematical axiom that two sides of a triangle are always greater than the third side.

We can use that axiom to show how travelling in a straight line is a better option than travelling zig-zag. Going by the axiom,

CB + BA > CA

A vehicle travelling CB and then BA would travel more and hence consume more fuel than a vehicle going by CA.

Travelling in a zig-zag fashion is not economically viable.

2. Parallel lines never intersect

A vehicle travelling in a zig-zag fashion would have a greater probability of colliding with other vehicles than vehicles travelling in parallel lines.

That is what is lane driving. Vehicles drive in their respective lanes - in parallel paths. That prevents collision.

What would otherwise seem not very practical at once appears to be plain common-sense because of Mathematics.

Know of any other real life applications of Mathematics? Do let me know. You may leave your suggestions as comments to this post.

Related Posts

Scientific Guessing

Mathematical PJs

Digressions: Rainfall Patterns

Pre-monsoons showers have arrived in Thiruvananthapuram. The mercury has plummeted to a nadir providing respite from the summer heat.

Rainfall pattern here is similar to that of Guwahati. It drizzles incessantly for hours bringing the temperature down.

It is quiet unlike Bangalore or Delhi. In Delhi, it rarely rains. In Bangalore, it invariably rains during the night. By dawn, the rain would have halted confirming to the city's busy lifestyle.

Rainfall pattern in Kharagpur is particularly notorious. It almost always rains on Fridays - which spoiled innumerable ED (Engineering Drawing) sheets which I had painstakingly made in the classroom. 

On Saturday mornings, when we had our NCC parade, the rain would have stopped. In fact, it never rained on Saturday mornings! However, as the sun sets, black clouds start hovering overhead and by evening, it would be raining heavily spoiling our plans for the evening.

I have never understood the Rain Gods (i.e. if any such God did exist). Why doesn't it rain when there is a drought? Why does it keep raining when not required? (for instance, when Mumbai was getting flooded)

And more importantly, why did it never rain when we had our NCC parades?  

My Alma Mater: DPS RK Puram

This is a rotational ambigram I created in MS Paint. The prototype was made on paper - but the final image was created on Paint. 

As a result, I had to create only half of the ambigram. The other half was just copy, rotate & paste. The colour is the same we had on our school uniform.

How is it? Do let me know.

Nostalgia: Code word tuti-on

Tuti-on: Pronounce it right

This was way back in 2001. I was in my VIth standard and one of the toppers in my class.

I was good at Science, Social and English. I could manage Hindi but Sanskrit gave me nightmares. I got a B in Sanskrit in Vth (which was P3 - Pathetically Poor Performance going by my standards back then).

I did not want the entire class to know that the topper was attending tuition classes.

So, I always referred to it as tuti-on. That made me feel better.

Ka, Kha, Ga, ... then what?

Matadeen sir stressed the importance of having our fundamentals strong. From the very beginning, we were told to improve our handwriting and revise our shabd/dhatu roops.

However, to his horror, he discovered that we did not know the Devanagari script. We knew a few alphabets in order - the rest was all mayhem.

We were made to go through our very basics. It increased our confidence level tremendously.

'Does she live down there?'

From the day, sir discovered that our English teacher Anita Abraham was living below Siddhesh (we had our classes in his house), he became reluctant to come to the same place to teach.

After some deliberation, it was decided that the venue for the tuitions would shift base to my house. The onus was now on me.

Paan + Chai: Sandhi Banao

Matadeen sir (almost always) had a paan/supari in his mouth. As a result, he had this strange high pitched voice that is typical of Paan eaters.

The three of us would stare with disgust when he would start drinking the tea and say 'Sandhi Banao: ___ + ___'. Most disgusting.

Rest assured, he was a top-notch Sanskrit teacher. Though, I always wondered why

• He never taught in the school (He would come in - give some high-funda lecture and fly off)
• He never recommended those Rs 3 Kunjis in class (the ones he procured from Banaras)

His were the only tuition class I ever attended. I never had any problems in Sanskrit from then on (or was it so? Matadeen sir taught me in Guwahati. In Bangalore, the syllabus of VIIth was repeated for our class VIIIth course. I have always wondered whether I was just lucky).

I did not pursue Sanskrit after VIIIth even though it was supposed to be a 'scoring subject'. I took Hindi instead.

Stick Figures

I hate getting into details. I abhor details.

When a professor gets into the intricacies/details of a subject, the matter starts flying overhead.

On the other hand, give me a brief outline of the topic and I will fall in love with it.

That is why I found stick figures interesting - you get the idea in a few lines (literally!).

While sitting idle, I made a few stick figures - of activities I do during the day. Notice how simplistic they are and how powerfully they convey the idea.

(All figures have been made in MSPaint)

Running

Reading Novels

Piano Classes

Blogging

Gymming/Push Ups

IAF: A Typical AF Station

In Thiruvananthapuram, I live outside the AF campus. And somehow, I feel out of place. It isn't the same as before. But the moment I enter the campus, I feel at home.

Why? How? These are difficult questions. As I sat pondering over such questions, I decided to jot down what constitutes a typical AF station - and this is what I came up with.

Block structure

Unlike in the civil, where most people live in either apartments or bungalows, in the AF, houses are built in blocks.

Generally, 4 families are allotted a block. The families on the ground floor get gardens (to maintain!) while the first floor families get terraces.

On the rear, quarters for the domestic helpers is built. So, a single block will have 4 quarters of one kind and 4 of another.

The Institute/Mess

Every AF Station has a mess/institute which is the nerve centre of all social activities. The mess has a TV room, a library, an ante room, a bar, a dining hall and a very well maintained lawn.

All social gatherings of importance such as farewells, welcome parties and unit anniversaries are held in the mess lawn/ante room.

Sports Facilities

The gymnasium, billiards room and the golf course all come under the tutelage of the mess.

Almost every AF station has an indoor badminton court, table tennis tables and a squash court.

Golf courses are present subject to availability of space. Individuals in the armed forces get a rock solid sporting culture imbibed in them.

Other amenities

Every AF station has a well equipped SMC (Station Medicare Centre). The SMC has very well trained doctors and a dispensary for the medicines. 

A Shopping Complex caters to the daily requirements of the AF station.

Most AF stations have a Children's Park and a school inside the campus. The station is, in short, self sufficient.

Security

Security is a major concern of any defence establishment. An AF station is (supposed to be) well protected with the entrance being manned 24x7. 

This gives a sense of security to those residing within the campus and binds them into a very well knit unit.

The structure of most AF stations are more or less similar. There may, however be differences based on the location and the strategic importance of the station. 

AF stations have always given me a sense of belongingness. I presume even you would be very attached to the locality you are living in. What is it like? In what ways is it different from an AF campus? Do let me know.