Sachin completes 30,000!!

^:)^


~ Parul ~

And It's Coming...

A few weeks ago, we discussed monopolies in the Managerial Economics class and we discussed the most famous case out there - DOJ proceedings against Microsoft. The prof turned to me for an explanation of what JRE was and how it was affecting Microsoft's competitive advantage in the OS wars. Then we moved on to why Netscape might have been a threat.

As I tried to explain the intricacies of the technologies involved, I was very aware of the fact that my audience wasn't the usual techie group that I've been used to. And so I kept it simple. My language changed, I used different words. And I also kept a few thoughts to myself because the details may have been too complicated and outside the scope of what we were trying to do in economics.

So I briefly mentioned that a browser could become an OS, noticed that a few people didn't quite understand and then didn't push the point further. But the basic fact of the matter is that Bill Gates was wary of Netscape and wanted to cut it off because he was aware that one day the browser could really render the OS defunct. For someone who once famously said that 640KB ought to be enough for anyone, it's incredibly far-sighted.

Welcome Google ChromeOS.

To Write Or Not To Write

"Better to write for yourself and have no public than to write for the public and have no self." -- Cyril Connolly

Interesting times!

This is not about Oxford and Said Business School, let's not make this blog too one-dimensional :). Some of my classmates are regularly blogging over at the SBS blogs and you can head in that direction if you want more of the business school flavoured fun.

Even though I've left my job, I continue to watch the e-commerce space with a lot of interest. I loved it when I was working and maybe if I'm lucky, I can head back to the industry post my MBA as well. Unlike some of the others, a move out of technology wasn't my primary (hidden or unhidden) motive for the MBA!

Anyways, the first interesting piece of news is that eBay (for the first time in the past 5 years at least) broke one of its cardinal rules and introduced significant new functionality on their website during the holiday season. Site stability is really important at peak traffic times but eBay decided something had to be done to try and pull back the dipping page views. Amazon has clocked higher traffic numbers than eBay this October and that's hardly good news. Although with more than 50 mill unique visitors each month, it's not like eBay will become a minor player in this space anytime soon. Unless it implodes.

The other very interesting news (and I loved this one!) was that the law was finally starting to catch up with the very shady post-transaction-marketing tactics that many, many e-commerce sites engage in. A post at TechCrunch describes how these companies cheat customers with false promises and free trial offers. About a year ago, someone had cursorily explained to me how WebLoyalty makes money and it's really quite horrid. I'm glad someone is taking a deeper look. The timing of this piece of news is a little funny (just from a personal perspective) because we just submitted a florist industry marketing assignment in last weekend. While the case in point was very different, most of the companies that we talked about find a place in the Wall of Shame (1-800-Flowers, FTD et al.)

The High Table at Christ Church

Last night, I think I spent my most enjoyable evening at Oxford till now. And that's saying a lot because I have spent quite a few of my evenings doing some pretty amazing stuff.

So yesterday night, I was invited to the High Table at the Christ Church Formal Dinner. If you've seen Harry Potter, that's the table where the professors sit. My advisor at Chirst Church is allowed to take her advisees to the High Table once a term and yesterday had been booked for 3 of us. I've specifically told her that I'd be up for another visit if anyone else drops out. But anyways, let me begin at the beginning..

I had classes till 5 yesterday and Allison (my advisor at Christ Church) had told us to meet her at her office at 6:50 pm. At that moment if I had a choice, I probably would have skipped it. I really wasn't looking forward to the 20-min walk in full sub-fusc to Christ Church. And I was right, it continued to pour and on top of that, it was very windy which meant that my umbrella was flying all over the place. Wrapping my overcoat around me, I forced myself on and ended up at Christ Church just about on time.

I knew Allison's chamber was at Peck 1:1. Deciphering what that meant (Peckwater Quad, 1st Staircase, Room 1), I headed in the direction of the quad. Tushar joined me as I got half-lost and we finally ended up where we were supposed to be. Allison went over the procedures and protocols a little bit and then we headed to the Senior Common Room (SCR).

Now, Christ Church has 3 common rooms and the SCR is only for tutors and fellows.. and their guests. So today was the one day of the term that I was allowed inside. Now, I've talked about how I had really liked the GCR (Graduats Common Room) in one of my previous posts but this place was a gizzillion times better. And I think it also had to do a little bit with the ambience of the place.. everyone was there for the High Table dinner which meant that the gowns were out in full splendour. It was an extremely scholarly atmosphere, it wouldn't be a complete exaggeration if I said that one of those people might win the Nobel Prize one of these days (by the way, Amartya Sen is here on the 19th with an open-for-all lecture at the Sheldonian!). The walls were filled with portraits of those who have been fellows at Christ Church over the past hundreds of years and are therefore entitled to entry in the SCR. One of those photos was that of Albert Einstein.

I was just gathering in the atmostphere of the place when the butler came in and knocked his mallet on the door three times. In a deep voice, he shouted out.. "Dinner is served!"

I thought we'd head to the first door now, the one we had entered from but I realized that people were lining up in the other direction. We exited from the other door, and would you believe it, there was a hidden staircase (ok, not exactly hidden, but it was a winding single file staircase that seemed somewhat secretive) that led straight to the front of the dining hall! We stood behind our tables as 4 lines were spoken out in Latin (I don't know what they meant) and then we took our seats. I guess that was the closest I'll ever come to feeling like Dumbledore..

I was seated next to a Christ Church alumni who had walked these halls 40 years ago. All through dinner, he told me tales of how things were back then. He had very deep connections in India and talked about when he had been invited to Indira Gandhi's house sometime in the 70s. Interestingly, he had worked as an foreign investment financier for quite a few major deals back in the land, including the opening of the telecom sector in India. "India works at India's pace," he said in connection to the privatisation of the banking sector. There was no frustration in his voice, only a laid-back acceptance. I guess you really need to know the country to understand that.

Opposite to me was a Mathematics professor. His conversations were entirely different, he was talking about a paper that he had just published and which he was quite proud of. "It's bloody difficult finding a new idea," he was lamenting. "There's no one in the world these days who knows everything about everything. Some people know everything about something, but we need people who know everything about everything. People like Newton, there's no Newton now." Subconsciously, I've always considered Newton a physicist and that example left me confused. I had to remind myself about Calculus before nodding my head at the professor.

The food was brilliant, the dessert tasty, the wine flowed like water, and it was a great dinner. We headed back to the SCR where I chatted with Allison for quite a while, with another serving of yummy dessert. The logs burnt in the fireplace, the couches were comfy, the atmosphere relaxing, and the conversation led to the addition of another book to my must-read list. A truly enjoyable evening and I hope one of Allison's advisees backs out in the next round because I'd love to do this again!

The Contrast

I used to drive by them almost everyday. At the Koramangala Ring Road Junction, a group of children would run up to the vehicles when the lights turned red. The boys usually barechested and the girls in flimsy mud-coloured frocks, they would quickly split up and walk through the traffic. It was the same routine everyday, they moved along tapping on windows trying to get the driver's attention, the dirt on their faces pressed up against the glass. Most were ignored deliberately, sometimes a coin or two was handed out by the saahibs.
And then the lights would turn, a million honks would drown those soundless pleas for help. They would run back, sometimes tripping over, hurrying back to the pavement where their mother sat on the ground. Sometimes, if the baby she nursed wasn't crying, she would run her hands over their oily, discoloured hair when they returned. A few more red lights and maybe they'd have enough for some roti...


***


I pass by him almost everyday. He stands on George Street, leaning against the wall, watching the traffic drive by. He's wearing Nike sneakers, his jeans are slightly torn. The wind is chilly but he doesn't seem cold. His hands are snuggled deep within his sweatshirt pocket. As I walk past him, he whispers to me, catching me off-guard.
"Some change, mate?"
I look at him confused. He has his eyebrows raised, his unshaven face stares at me with curiosity. The universe seems to stop for a second as my mind rushes back to Koramangala.
I evade his eyes. I don't know what to say...

How To Make Education Fun

If you've grown up like me in the 90s in India, you'd perhaps agree that education wasn't really fun. Sure there have been teachers we've all respected and they have been great in their own way.. but really, has it been "fun"?

I'm only mentioning this because I find that some profs here at Oxford go to great lengths to make things fun. And that really makes me wonder why more teachers didn't do it when I was growing up, why it was always about just the textbooks.

The example I have today is that of a course called Decision Science. It's essentially a course about statistics and I have to say I've been lucky to have some amazing teachers in this subject (which can sometimes be very boring). Prof Birbal oh-that-means-the-lawyer-is-a-lady Singh at BITS Pilani was just amazing and now I have Prof. James Taylor going through the routine at Oxford.

The highlight of his classes (at least for me) have been these little quotes that he has added to each powerpoint slide. Actually, there are two professors teaching the course and I don't know whether the slides are shared, so perhaps Prof. Dolores Ramero Moralez should get some credit as well.

Anyways, some of those quotes are below.. take a look, they're very enjoyable.

On Description of Statistics:
Don't set too much store on statistics,' said the quick-witted salesman. 'After all, statistics prove that most people have more than the average number of legs.' -- New Scientist

On Statistics of Stock Portfolios:
If you bet on a horse, that's gambling. If you bet you can make three spades, that's entertainment. If you bet cotton will grow up three points, that's business. See the difference. -- Blackie Sherrod

On Distribution for Supermarket Customer Expenditure:
The consumer isn't a moron; she is your wife. -- Confessions of an Advertising Man, Ogilvy (1963)

On Summary of Sampling:
Beauty is the first test: there is no place in the world for ugly mathematics -- A Mathematician's Apology, Harding, 1940

On Model Building Methodology:
Thou this be madness, yet there is method in't. -- Hamlet, Shakespeare (1601)

On Model Comparison:
A: How is your wife? B: Compared to what?

On Forecasting and Confidence Intervals:
If you can look into the seeds of time, and say which grain will grow and which will not, speak then unto me. -- William Shakespeare

We're only half through the term and this is only a random selection. I'm sure there are more to come. Also, to avoid getting beaten up by my fellow MBAs, I have to mention Prof. Tomo Suzuki (Financial Reporting) and Prof. Mungo Wilson (Managerial Economics) in the fun context as well. And although I'm not taught Strategy by Prof. Thomas Powell, I've heard he's pretty good too. Maybe I'll talk about them in some of my later posts.

Glitch in the Matrix

One of my friends, Dileepan, had this up as his Facebook status today. It pretty much sums up my feelings as well, so I'm just going to leave it here..

The clock has turned back. I'm watching cricket again. India is again a one-man team; Sachin reigns amidst the ruins. All is well with the world.

I wonder if he's recently read Kamala Das. I couldn't find the text of "The Fancy Dress Show" online to link to.. if any readers get hold of it, please leave a comment and I'll add it in :)

Panic Sets In

Yup, it's time for the panic to set in... and in the past 8 hours, I've tried my best to push the following thoughts out of my head at least a dozen times each!!

- Oh my God!! It's already Week 4!!! Time's travelling so fast!!!

- Oh my God!! I've put in my first job apps!! And I don't even know anything yet!! And even if I did, the odds are soooooooooo difficult!!

- Oh my God!! The assignments are piling up!! I mean really piling up!!

- Oh my God!! There's so much to do!! I haven't played tennis for a week!! There's no time!! There's no time!!

- Oh my God!! Is my calendar up to date?!! Have I missed any events I really wanted to attend??!! When was that Poetry Society Meeting?!! When am I going to the Christ Church High Table?!! Check!! Check!! Re-check!!

- Oh my God!! I haven't checked Career Connect today!! Did I miss something?!! Anything?!!

- Oh my God!! There's no time for the readings!! No time for the cases!! No time for anything!!

- Oh my God!! Why am I typing out this blog?!! Why am I not buried under the Nestle Balance Sheet?!! Why?!! Why?!! WHY?!!

...

[Some things never change!]

...

Lovin' it! :D

Failing Small...

I have this friend who I think writes beautifully. I don't think he'd want to be identified, so let's leave that aside. But the title of this blog refers to something that he wrote once..

He called the phenomenon "failing small"...

Failing small is when you are called upon to exhibit courage and emotional honesty and you shrink from that calling and do something flippant or shallow. Maybe you go with the flow when you know it's not true to yourself. Or you make the safe choice knowing you'll regret it. You fail small.

You fail big by throwing yourself into what you do with all of your energy. When you fail big you make the bold choices you really want to make, the ones that define who you are. You go all in and bluff life for everything in the pot. Sometimes you win, but even when you lose, you still win. That's failing big. And it's usually better than failing small.

Why am I remembering all this? It's because of something that happened a few months ago, and which has been pricking me a little for a while..

A few months ago, I reviewed MBA essays for a friend. They were nicely written but as I moved along, a particular line caught my line. In fact, I think it was actually a whole paragraph. It had been lifted off directly from a TV serial. The lines were beautiful, they had caught my fancy when I first heard them, and that is why I recognized them immediately. They fit into the essay perfectly.. but they weren't original.

I mentioned this to the friend and he replied, "Yeah, that TV show wastes a lot of my time but sometimes it provides some great inspiration..."

This wasn't inspiration and the reply troubled me. There was nothing in the essay to indicate to the reader that the lines weren't original. Anyways, I didn't say anything, these things happen sometimes and even the line of what's acceptable seems to have changed. That friend got an admit from the target business school (and let's face it, it's not like those couple of lines got him in) and I wish him the very best.

But I think I failed small...