Category Archives: Science and Technology

A Mathematical Model of Edison, NJ

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With Edison, NJ in the news, this article from the the good folks over at GNXP is rather timely – a mathematical model for the formation of ethnic enclaves –

…Natural Intelligence has developed an application called the “Ethnic Simulator” that models the residential behavior of people in the hypothetical ethnically diverse city of Metropolis. …The premise of the Ethnic Simulator is that ethnically distinct groups have a modest preference to live among their own kind. In Metropolis there are five ethnic groups –- Blues (the majority), Greens, Reds, Grays, and Yellows. The application allows the user to set the percentage of preference of each group for its own kind.

Outcome? Regardless of how “racist” the majority Blues are, the minority Yellows end up in “ghettos” if they express even the most minor preference for being near each other…. Intuitively obvious perhaps, but interesting to see mathematically modelled. Continue reading →

Food plaza offers 104 different dosas; patents some

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Eyebrow-raising patents are also granted outside of the U.S.:

…a food plaza in Hyderabad has recently introduced 104 different varieties of Dosa. They have already patented 27 of them. The food plaza introduced this new concept in Hyderabad after a successful trial in Mumbai…“Focal point of the Dosa Plaza is we have created more than 104 varieties of Dosas out of which 27 are patented, nobody can copy it. The difference between other Dosas and these Dosas are the fillings. We have the international flavour like Mexican dishes are filled in the Dosas or there are American fillings,” said Jagdish Khorwal, Project Head, Dosa Plaza. [ANI/Yahoo!]

This far-out concept of wrapping a round piece of flattened bread around Mexican ingredients is going to be big. Picture, if you will, a whole chain of hacienda-like eateries with…bells…selling this truly groundbreaking product to all of India’s mostly non-obese citizens. So big, that it should spark unbridled franchising around the world, catering to those starved for affordable Mexican food prepared quickly. Billions upon billions of dollars will be generated. Luckily, Khorwal has patented this ingenious design, so he won’t have worry about unscrupulous businessmen stealing his idea. He will also finally collect the years of royalties owed to him by the citizens of entire continents, who have been enjoying for eons just such a delicacy without paying him his proper dues.

ANI/Yahoo!: 104 varieties of dosa to stir Hyderabadis’ taste buds!

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Bill Gates again denounces H1-B visa curbs

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So does this mean that Microsoft is hiring?

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates slammed the federal government’s strict limits on temporary visas for technology workers, saying that if he had his way, the system would be scrapped entirely. “The theory behind the H-1B (visa)–that too many smart people are coming–that’s what’s questionable,” Gates said Wednesday during a panel discussion at the Library of Congress. “It’s very dangerous. You can get this idea that the world is very scary; let’s cut back on travel…let’s cut back on visas.” Federal quotas on H-1B visas, capped at 65,000 last year, have long been a sore spot for Microsoft and other technology companies. But, Gates said, the increased caliber of research institutions in China and India means that curbs on immigration and guest-workers will pose a greater threat to America’s competitiveness than ever before. [News.com]

Of course, the rudimentary pro- and con- noise from elected officials:

“I think there was a post-9/11 effort to cut down on visas,” added Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat. “I think this was a mistake.” Rep. David Dreier, a California Republican, was left defending stricter immigration rules. “We can’t be so naive as to think there is not a very serious problem” with terrorists entering the country, he said. [News.com]

News.com: Gates wants to scrap H-1B visa restrictions

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Forbes’ breakdown of Lakshmi Mittal’s crib

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Lakshmi Mittal’s fortress isn’t made of steel, which calls into question his affinity for the source of his eye-popping wealth:

The steel magnate set real estate records last year when he paid $128 million for a townhouse in London’s Kensington Palace Gardens…Mittal’s mansion, tucked between Kensington Palace and the Sultan of Brunei’s spread, has garage space for 20 cars, and is embellished with marble taken from the same quarry as that for the Taj Mahal. [Forbes]

Forbes: Homes of the billionaires 2005 — Lakshmi Mittal

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Kama Sutra to prevent STD’s?

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According to a short audio clip on NPR’s Weekend Edition, the Indian government has authorized Kama Sutra playing cards to be distributed in order to promote monogamy and prevent sexually transmitted diseases. To understand the logic of this you can listen to NPR’s clip (with “exotic” music in the background). However, I think NPR may have made a reporting error. First of all this idea isn’t new. The BBC reported on the use of Kama Sutra to prevent STDs (although by different reasoning) two years ago, pointing to a program in Calcutta.

The government in India’s West Bengal State is supporting a programme that offers prostitutes an ancient solution to modern concerns about safe sex.

“Kama Sutra has many postures that can give men the highest pleasure without consummation and that is what the prostitutes are being taught.

“They are learning something very useful,” says Rajyashree Choudhuri, chief of the Institute of International Social Development (IISD), who designed the project.

Furthermore a 1993 journal abstract in Global AIDS News mentions the following:

…the Indian Health Organization, a nongovernmental organization founded 11 years ago in Bombay, is promoting the teachings of the Kama Sutra as an alternative to condom use in preventing HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. The basic message that sex with one partner in many positions is safer than sex in one position with many partners is proclaimed on T-shirts and in a series of explicit postcards. This approach is promoting openness, communication, and equality between the sexes.

I’d pay BIG money for one of those T-shirts. Getting back to my point however, I think NPR mistakenly believed that the Indian Health Organization, which it mentions in the audio clip, is a branch of the Indian government and that this is a state sponsored national program. I don’t think the Indian government would be passing out Kama Sutra cards nationally. Am I wrong? If so, someone in India please correct me (and send me a deck of those cards…for reporting purposes). Continue reading →

Medical tourism on ‘60 Minutes’

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Tonight, 60 Minutes showed medical tourists getting treatment at sleek new hospitals in Thailand and India. By showcasing ordinary Americans, the segment amounted to a giant infomercial for this practice. It’s especially salient given 60 Minutes’ demographic, older folks who are significant consumers of health care.

Download the video (49 MB; you need a BitTorrent downloader: Windows, Mac).

The Thai hospital they showed is designed like a hotel, with restaurants and boutique shops in the lobby. They also showed better treatment in India than in the U.S.: an advanced procedure, hip resurfacing, which is not yet available in the U.S.; a high ratio of nurses to patients; personal service; post-op recuperation at nearby resorts; and all for a tenth of the cost. A British medical tourist said that in the UK’s national health system, some women are pressured to leave the hospital just five hours after delivering a baby. In India there was no such pressure. On the flip side, the show noted that suing for malpractice in Indian courts is quite difficult.

The segment also interviewed Indian doctors returned from practicing in the U.S. who say they make only a tenth the money they used to make. One was quite earnest in wanting to help people: he said in the U.S., there are 1,500-2,000 pediatric cardiologists, but in India there were only four. I’ve also heard similar reasoning from eye surgeons.

The more video clips of modern India’s islands of quality are shown, the more respect desis in America will receive. Conversely, desi American doctors will face the same cost competition from India on high-end procedures that desi American programmers do now.

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Effect of rising salaries on India IT

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India’s offshore dominance on the wane because of rising salaries? Hell no, says/hopes/prays Marc Hebert, the VP of a Silicon Valley company that has a branch in India:

Some even speculate that rising salaries in India will erode the cost advantage over U.S. IT workers, ultimately returning offshore jobs to American soil. But that’s only one side of the story. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the reported death of Indian outsourcing is greatly exaggerated. The counterargument rests on two pillars: productivity and scale. Salaries may increase, but there are offsetting factors such as experience, infrastructure, high productivity levels and economies of scale to consider. Let me put it another way: The cost of doing information technology in India is falling, as the range and complexity of projects that can be offshored to India is increasing. [News.com]

News.com: The end of India’s offshore dominance?

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Kitsch-mish

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For your kitschy pleasure:

‘Indian God.’ A music vid of Ganesh as petulant recording artist.

I’m a fuckin’ Indian god, baby that’s a fact
I’m a fuckin’ Indian god, girl I want you baaack
How can you leave an Indian god, baby that’s fucked up…

Fuckin’ Indian god, man, you can’t leave that.
It’s too good, mmm!

He said he’s an Indian god, baby, not a fuckin’ songwriter. Watch the video.

‘Handy Hindus’ finger puppets. They’re Hindu gods done up Elmo / Sesame Street style in cheap plastic.

‘Hindi Bendy’ toy. Here’s a quick way to make money: take a boring old toy, slap on a bindi and add some extra arms.

Here’s their entire section of Hindu products; Archie McPhee sells novelty products by mail-order:

“I study customer’s actual orders. I see 100 voodoo dolls going to a software firm in Palo Alto. What does this mean? A Manhattan buyer wants every nun and Catholic religious item we carry and wants them by air. What’s the rush? And here’s yet another order to Japan. What are they doing over there with all this glow-in-the-dark string they order?”

Lest you think they specifically tweak Hindus, you should see the rabbi punching puppet and the bobble-headed Jesus. They don’t sell Islamic novelties, can’t imagine why.

Bombay reporters undercover as street merchants

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Bombay street merchants sell just about everything — clothes; food; human kidneys. Seven Mid Day reporters tried their hand at hawking a variety of wares, in order to see if they could earn a day’s wage (thanks, Avi Solomon). Who made the biggest profit? Vinod may have been on to something about Indians and superstition:

Item Sold: Net Profit (Rs.)
Fortunes: 110
Head Massages: 109
Water: 107
Flowers: 40
Hairbands: 38
Newspapers: 22
Popcorn: 15

Mid Day: Mid Day reporters turn hawkers

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