Warrier's Collage November 12, 2021

Welcome to Warrier's COLLAGE On Friday November 12, 2021 "Prayers from many faiths in an age of fear and pandemic – The Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County" https://www.interfaithccc.org/prayers-from-many-faiths-in-an-age-of-fear-and-pandemic/ Good Morning A reader said "Collage Menu" is unpredictable*. So, today, we are discussing uncertainties 🙏 *As clarified earlier, content of Collage evolves only on the previous day. Nice Day M G Warrier Message from Panchapagesan Chennai : Chennai is in floods.... Three words have to be remembered. Dependence, Independence, and Interdependence. Dependence has to be understood, not avoided. If we understand it, we can understand hidden behind it is Interdependence. Sun is dependent on us, as even a small blade of grass will be missed from existence. The existence will never be complete without it. You, Me and He, three combined have to face the reality of existence with action towards achievement. Let us face the reality with combined threes. Be Well, V T Panchapagesan We pray for the safety of all affected by rains and floods : https://youtu.be/gfwYxjRj99o A Dr G Sreekumar's A Central Banker's Miscellany The Benegal Brothers The Report on Currency and Finance. Prof. Basu's Policy Maker's Journal. G Sreekumar Nov 11 Comment Share The Benegal Brothers The contribution of the four Benegal brothers to Indian administration, education, freedom struggle, social justice, judiciary, constitution-making, diplomacy, central banking, banking regulation, and international law is relatively unknown. In this post, I overview their life and contributions. I will post separate articles on them. The Benegal Brothers The Report on Currency and Finance As suggested by a journalist, the Reserve Bank of India republished its Report on Currency and Finance (RCF) early this year after a gap of eight years. In this post, I trace the history of RCF. The reader may judge whether the revival was necessary. The Curious Case of the RCF Kaushik Basu’s Policy Maker’s Journal Few have written as much as Prof. Kaushik Basu to make Economics and economic policy accessible to the lay public. In my view, he was perhaps the best Governor that the Reserve Bank never had in recent times. In this post, I review Prof Basu’s most recent book, Policy Maker’s Journal. It covers his tenure as Chief Economic Adviser, Government of India, and Chief Economist, World Bank. Review of Policy Maker's Journal B Current Affairs 1) Chennai rains "Chennai sinking in the rain | Latest News India - Hindustan Times" https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/chennai-sinking-in-the-rain-101636654239132-amp.html 2) Media Response To The Editor The Hindu Business Line Letters November 11, 2021 State of the economy This refers to the reports "Tax cut on fuels positive for inflation management" and "India on track to becoming the fastest growing economy : Finance Ministry report"(November 11). Both reports are comforting for different reasons. RBI Governor Shaktikantadas going on record accepting and appreciating the GOI move reducing fuel prices as conducive for managing inflation has to be seen as a signal of reducing the distance between North Block and Mint Road. More frequent interaction between RBI and Finance Ministry has erased the continuous friction between the two which was disturbing harmony in formulation of fiscal and monetary policies. Seen independent of WTO and IMF or other multiple rating agencies also, it is a fact that India has been managing the economy well within the constraints. This is evident from the fact that despite predictions by hostile doomsayers, the nation's production and supply chains and Healthcare System stood the tests of time during the last two years. M G Warrier Mumbai 3) Gold prices, then and now "From 1947 To 2021, Gold Prices Went Up By 54,000 Per Cent: Here’s Why | Madras Courier" https://madrascourier.com/opinion/from-1947-to-2021-gold-prices-went-up-by-54000-per-cent-heres-why/ In 1947, an aeroplane ticket from Mumbai to Delhi cost more than gold. Petrol was less than 30paise. A litre of milk was priced at 12paise. The price of a bar of soap was 56 paise. Everything was different. The steady increase in the prices of gold, however, did not change. Over the years, gold has become a prized asset for investors. One of the most revered investment options, gold can beat inflation. When the Quit India Movement was at its prime, in 1942, the price of 10 grams of gold was Rs. 44. This price had doubled within the next five years–i.e., by 1947. India had achieved independence and with that, the prices of gold had also started to increase. 10 grams of gold was valued at Rs. 88. Between the years 1950 and 1960, gold gave around 13 per cent return to its investors. What was causing such a steady increase in its price? How had the yellow metal turned into a form of investment? Gold is used to hedge inflation. When inflation is high, the prices of gold keep skyrocketing. The same thing happens the other way round. India is one of the largest importers of gold in the world. If the prices fluctuate in the global market, the same happens in the valuation of gold at home. Interestingly, the yellow metal is dollar-denominated. So, the US dollar’s valuation hugely impacts the price of the bullion metal. A stronger US dollar tends to keep the prices more stable. 4) Recycling currency, differently* https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2021/11/09/kannur-plywood-manufacturer-demonetised-notes.amp.html Is there anyone who benefited from demonetisation? This is one of the posts seen on social media on the fifth anniversary of demonetisation. The answer to this question lies in Kannur. Even today truckloads of demonetised currency notes arrive from Reserve Bank of India at the Western India Plywoods in Valapattanam, Kannur, for manufacturing hardboards, softboards and pressboards. *Link Courtesy : Prem Anand Narayanan Kannur C Collage Profile : Bernard Beckett https://www.lovereading.co.uk/author/2055/Bernard-Beckett.html In 2006 Bernard was awarded a New Zealand Science, Mathematics and Technology Teacher Fellowship where he worked on a project examining DNA mutations. This new direction led to the publication of Genesis in 2006, which won the Young Adult Category in the 2007 NZ Post Book Awards. In 2008 the book made publishing history when UK publisher Quercus Books offered the largest advance ever put forward for a young adult novel in New Zealand. The novel, also published in Australia, is to be released in the UK as two separate editions: adult and young adult, and is to be published – at this date – in over 20 countries. Bonus : Book Review : Genesis "Review: Genesis by Bernard Beckett | Tor.com" https://www.tor.com/2009/03/05/genesisbybernardbeckett/ Excerpts : Beckett constructs Genesis very differently from standard storytelling. For one, the conversations between Anax and her examiners take place entirely in script-like dialogue. EXAMINER: Is there anything you would like to ask, before we begin? ANAXIMANDER: I would like to ask you what the answers are. EXAMINER: I’m sorry. I don’t quite understand… ANAXIMANDER: I was joking. EXAMINER: Oh. I see. (p.4) *** Beckett also makes sure that the story lacks nothing in mystery and intrigue. In the meta-narrative of Anax, readers will desire her success. Like her, we too have been a student under bright lights, and from page one anyone who has ever been a higher education student will immediately identify with her. The narrative of Adam Forde, his personal history in overthrowing the socialistic Republic of Plato, is filled with action, characters of interest and import, and deep, thought-provoking dialogue. The climax of the novel is not in the place you think, and the event you thought ends the story is really just the beginning. This novel is one of the best I have ever read. Beckett is every fiction fan’s ideal philosopher, the type of writer who entertains as much as he questions. Fans of Vernor Vinge or Isaac Asimov will enjoy Genesis. The creative construction of the novel should delight students of literature, as it will readers who enjoyed dystopian novels like Cormac McCarthy’s The Road or Kit Reed’s Enclave. Bernard Beckett is an amazing new talent in science fiction. Genesis is a must read. D Spirituality/Faith Thought for the Day charan singh (@CharanSingh60) Tweeted: Unity in Diversity - 67 मनसा करि सिमरंत तुझै नर कामु क्रोधु मिटिअउ जु तिणं बाचा करि सिमरंत तुझै तिनूह दुखू दरिद्र मिटयउ जु खिणं Meditating with dedication: lust, greed, anger go away Meditating in recitation: get rid of misery and pain Bard Bal, 1405, SGGS https://twitter.com/CharanSingh60/status/1458529244200407040?s=20 E Blogs & Links Life's Twists and Turns : M G Warrier "Life’s twists and turns" https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/warriersviews/lifes-twists-and-turns-25187/ Excerpts : "That’s how I landed in the Government Law College, Thiruvananthapuram attending evening classes, pursuing a three year LL B Degree Course. I attended classes regularly during the three years 1979-82. My cousin’s books on Family Law in the Law College Library gave me some deep insights into the disintegration of my joint family and destruction of our ancestral heritage. As most of the students were young and took interest in studies, there really existed a college environment which all of us enjoyed. John Mathai, IPS was my class-mate in the Evening Law College. He was a studious, intelligent person who took studies seriously. Occasionally he used to come with me on my scooter and sometimes we used to walk down from college up to Muzeum Junction. This relationship allowed us to know each other more and interact on subjects of common interest. A person with a positive outlook and pleasing manners, John Mathai left happy memories among his friends and colleagues. I’ve learnt many things from him without his knowledge. Association with him brought positive changes in my attitude towards life and career. From him, I learnt that job was just a tool for service and earning one’s livelihood. He told me, ups and downs in a career should not affect one’s performance. He never talked ill of anyone. He also got into the panel of my “Guru’s”, as a reference point when in doubt." 2) The Uncertainty of Upanishadic Wisdom* https://swarajyamag.com/editors-pick/the-uncertainty-of-upanishadic-wisdom A few months ago, Manjul Bhargava at 40 became one of the youngest mathematicians ever to have won the Fields Medal, the Nobel equivalent for Mathematics. His work extends the work of classical mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss. His parents, especially his mother Mira Bhargava, herself a mathematician, and grandparents interested him in Sanskrit literature. Bhargava sees his work as a continuation of the legacy of Brahmagupta. The young cheerful professor of mathematics said thus in a recent interview: Growing up, I had a chance to read some of the works of the masters: the great linguists/poets such as Panini, Pingala, and Hemachandra, as well as the great mathematicians Aryabhata, Bhaskara, and of course Brahmagupta. Their works contain incredible mathematical discoveries, and were very inspirational to me as a young mathematician. The classic works of Pingala, Hemachandra, and Brahmagupta have been particularly influential in my own work… While growing up, I learned from my grandfather how much incredible mathematics was discovered in ancient times by scholars who considered themselves not mathematicians, but poets (or linguists). Linguists such as Panini, Pingala, Hemachandra, and Narayana discovered some wonderful and deep mathematical concepts while studying poetry. The stories that my grandfather told me about them were very inspirational to me. (India Today, August 19, 2014) Interestingly, the interviewer asks him how ‘Vedic Mathematics’ helped the mathematician in his pursuit of knowledge. As the young professor’s answer shows, the inspiration and continuity, though rooted in Indian mathematical tradition, has nothing to do with ‘Vedic Mathematics’. To what shall we attribute the overenthusiastic statement of Rajnath Singh claiming that Upanishads and Vedas as the source of Uncertainty Principle or the confusion of Vedic Mathematics with the Indian mathematical tradition exhibited by the India Today journalist? In case you are looking to find out what Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle is all about, a Google search may help. What these show is that with the artificial removal of Indian metaphysics from the curriculum, the educational system has created a misunderstanding of science as well as the Indic knowledge systems. This artificial divorce between Indic tradition and educational curriculum effected during the Nehruvian regime has cost us heavily. It has alienated the Indian mind from the pursuit of science. The result is that though India produces the highest number of science graduates in the world, the same graduates are among the least innovative. Pride in the Indic often becomes statements bordering on the pseudo-scientific. *This is a 2014 article accessed from the net. F Leisure Poetry 5 Poems for These Days of Uncertainty 5 poems for uncertainty and anxiety https://bookriot.com/poems-for-uncertainty/amp/ Excerpts : "Out of the huts of history's shame I rise Up from a past that's rooted in pain I rise I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise." G Quotes on uncertainties https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/uncertainty-quotes Like : "Human spirit is the ability to face the uncertainty of the future with curiosity and optimism. It is the belief that problems can be solved, differences resolved. It is a type of confidence. And it is fragile. It can be blackened by fear and superstition." Bernard Beckett (Bernard Beckett (born 13 October 1967) is a New Zealand writer of fiction for young adults. His work includes novels and plays. Beckett has taught Drama, Mathematics and English at a number of high schools in the Wellington Region, and is currently teaching students at Hutt Valley High School in Lower Hutt.)