Serendipity strikes again !

As is well-known, many of the major discoveries in science have been serendipitous - most famously Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin.

A group in Britain has shown that forgeries of paper documents, plastic cards etc can be detected by using a simple laser scanner. The method, published in the latest edition of Nature, takes advantage of the fact that almost all documents 'contain a unique physical identity code formed from microscopic imperfections in the surface'. This fingerprint can be read by using the phenomenon of laser speckle (in lay terms, scattering of laser light from a surface) with an appropriate scanner. The biggest cost-saving from this technology would be not having to impart an external security tag such a hologram, watermarks, microchip etc. to important documents, currencies, credit cards etc.
So why the title ? As this report on NPR Morning Edition mentions, the researchers were actually scanning a new security chip they had developed, which fell off, exposing the paper underneath it to the laser. To their surprise they found a signal coming from the paper - further investigation led to the discovery that each piece of paper has its own unique 'roughness' and hence an unique signal !

Some excellent reviews and missing a movie...

GreatBong has two excellent posts reviewing Pather Panchali and Aparajito. These are pieces that you read and go ' I wish I could write like that ...' ! And even though he claims that the reviews are intensely personal, as the comments sections to his post and my thoughts while reading them shows, the themes resonate with us all.

Jai Arjun is also doing a series of reviews on the Ray movies he watched during the Cinefan festival at New Delhi. All good stuff.

Meanwhile, Asif Kapadia's 'The Warrior' starring Irfan Khan has finally released in the US but not at a theatre near me :-( . Not even the so-called 'artsy theatres' in the triangle are are carrying the film. I have been looking forward to this for a long time - guess I have to wait for the DVD release or go to DC/Philly/NY to watch it !

Made by British-born BBC documenterian Asif Kapadia with British backing, but in Hindi, the movie was nominated by British Academy of Film and Television as the UK entry for the 'Best Foreign Language' entry at the Oscars. Strangely, the Academy in their infinite wisdom decided that since Hindi is not the native language in Britain (while tikka masala can be their national dish!), it could not qualify as a British entry ! As the trailer indicates, the images (it was shot on location in the Rajasthan deserts) should be breathtaking and then there is Irfan, who I would consider to be among the best actors in India at the moment (truth be told though, I haven't really kept up with Hindi, far less other language movies in India for the last year or so). His potrayal of the college activist (read thug) come aspiring politician Ranavijay Singh in Haasil, is one of the best I have seen since Nana Patekar in Parinda and Prahaar. He delivered a great performance in Maqbool as well. Hopefully, he will not be slotted into the dark, brooding, soft-speaking yet menacing villain stereotype by Bollywood.

Swiss chesse ......

...or something else ? Go here to find out.

Thoughts from the suburbia

Living up the American Dream ?? Nah..well...kind of.....but it just made plain economic sense to buy a house (and sign away our souls during the process) and move into the 'burbs. Well...technically our zip code falls within the city limits - but lets not get into semantics - we have the rows of houses with lawns spread out, porches in the front, decks at the back and considerable backyard spaces. Fortunately, unlike a lot of suburbs I have seen in Rochester, NY - we do have quite a few street lights.

One observation - I used to believe that people moved to the suburbs to get away from the noise and hustle-bustle of the city - however so far I have found worse sound pollution here due to the constant roar of the lawn movers from one house or the other. Similar to the 'bigger is better' car syndrome - these people seem to suffer from 'louder is better' syndrome in terms of lawn mowers. Tone it down fellas !

Also, this is the first time I am having to commute by driving in my own own car - back in Rochester I walked to work, out here from my previous place I took the (free) bus service. Granted its a mixed commute right now - I only have to drive about 10 minutes to a Park and Ride lot and then take the (still free) bus to work. That 10 minutes gives me enough time to get updated on the major news through NPR.

NASA's Deep Impact alters the natural balance of the universe !

So while most people around the globe are marveling at NASA's Deep Impact smashing into a coment, this Russian astrologer lady, is suing NASA for ruining ' the natural balance of forces in the universe" .

Bai is seeking damages totaling $300 million — the approximate equivalent of the mission's cost — for her "moral sufferings," Izvestia said, citing her lawyer Alexander Molokhov. She earlier told the paper that the experiment would "deform her horoscope."

Damn you NASA !! According to my old horoscope I was supposed to be a millionbillionare by my 32nd birthday and now these guys have ruined it for me.

Now, my question is, and I am sure it will occur to other people: as an astrologer, didn't she predict this happening ?