Thanksgiving , a taste of the Indian and American: Perspectives on Indo American community

source:http:\\www.wikipedia.org

Tonight I am at my aunts in Chicago. It’s a place that I can call home within a thousand mile radius of the university. A few hours ago we had a very good meal of turkey, potato, sauce and pies. Right now I’m watching the New York jets demolish the Cincinnati Bengals, albeit with some sorrow. That’s not what I am going to write this blog over, I rarely write on games. Today I will write about family, food and what I see as the identity of people of Indian origin in America. The family I met was my own; relatives who’ve been here for a rather long time. Some are American citizens, other are well on their way to being one. Given this context some might consider the meeting to be akin to meeting outsiders, alien to my usual way of life. That is certainly not the case.

After 2 months of university life, surrounded by my friends and work, meeting indirect family (Not my parents) in such a situation can be discomfiting. I mean where is my real home here? India is too far away and so is the answer Chicago or Columbus? That answer will still need some debating. So when an uncle I have not met in like 8 years picks you up on the 5.5 hour long drive to Chicago. When you move from the two month familiar university campus to somewhere else in an unfamiliar country it can be frightening. Yet they are family. See the paradox? Regardless of my fear or inhibitions the evening did turn out to be fine. We had a very Indian celebration in the afternoon called Raksha bandhan. Like thanksgiving it celebrates the unity of family. The dinner as I said was resplendent. At its end I was left with a very delectable impression. South Asian Indians in America are not very different from their counterparts back in the old world. If anything what makes them different is superfluous and frivolous. I attribute them to cultural differences over pop and movies and maybe the skill with the English language. The real difference lies in how they integrate the best values of the American society while retaining the timeless values that come with being a good Indian. 

So today got me thinking about home and I decided to write a bit more about it. About what it is like back there and what makes Indian people despite their sordid condition, inheritors of a brighter future. India today, as the villages go, is poor hungry and populous. Child mortality and the development index in five states are as low as in Sub Saharan Africa. A simplistic reasoning would be that things from here can only go up. A more logical explanation would be that this harsh world creates a strong drive for improvement in its people. People often argue that Dharavi, one of the world’s largest slums is also a tremendous school in entrepreneurship and resilience. So the engine of the Indian economy runs on the intense competition and the sheer bulk of a billion people. I go to college in America and the relative lack of competitiveness is very perceptible. Advantages present here however are tremendous, such as better infrastructures and superior experience based teaching.

So let me tie up the previous paragraph with the rest of the blog. People of Indian origin in the United States play a vital role for both India and the relationship between our two countries. With time and India’s rising status differences in American strategic interests over Indian ones might become irksome. It will be the responsibility to a large extent of the expatriate community to soothe the nerves. It will also be important for them to build bridges of understanding between the two cultures. One such understanding would be individual competition and strive to succeed (Rationalize the reality of outsourcing and compete to survive). American corporate success has been driven by its fierce competition. This competition among individuals died down soon enough in view of the economic boom that swept the country. This complacency is why fewer Americans went to college and the American economy lost the edge of its strong asset; its people. That is the same asset which for so long was India’s burden and that is now being put to good use. The global economy is changing and the isolation of individual competition from America is coming to a close. It will be more important now than ever for those who never stopped competing to seize opportunities and reinvigorate this trait back into the American ethos. Hard work is respected and always pays.

The chemistry of chocolates and chocolatiers

www.chocoimages.com

The etymology of Chocolate spawns from an Aztec drink discovered by the Spanish and called Xocolatl. The drink was a raw brew of bitter cocoa. To make it palatable to the sweeter European tastes, the Spanish added milk and sugar creating the world’s first hot cocoa drink.  Since then the industry and the people who drove it have created names like Nestle, Cadbury Schweppes and Ferrero SpA. This blog will identify the tastes of chocolate, the amazing new kinds being made and the chemistry that compels most of us to fall inexorably in love with the confection.

The year is 1860 and revolutions are gripping Germany and the Ottoman Empire. The civil wars are ripping America and rebellion ferments in India.  Far removed from these tragedies of life a little man with lots of spunk tries to make the world a sweeter place to be. He was a Swiss and gifted with the rocky resilience and determination they are known for, Henri Nestle starts shop of Nestle & Co. The initial chocolates favored the Swiss taste of strong and bitter. Dark chocolates gripped the Swiss nation and overflowed to neighboring Germany. A year later the German revolution was over. It wasn’t till the taste of amour crossed the English Channel did it face resistance from the peaceful but sweet loving Britons. This allowed the entry of a new player, Cadburys which revolutionized the brown chocolate market. As candy and other derivatives of chocolates took hold, the centre of the confection world shifted west across the Atlantic to the city of Chicago. 

Chocolate in essence can only be of two types, Black or White. The other variations depend purely on the amount of cocoa. What makes the industry really fun is the diversity it allows by experimenting with flavors, additives and ratios. I’ve TRIED to make mint chocolate once. The main ingredients were grounded cocoa with milk, sugar pepper and essence of mint. I wasn’t like 100% successful, though the result was perfectly edible and tasted of mint. The curious things I learned from this experiment included but not limited to: Pepper and sugar are flavor enhancers; you dilute chocolate with vegetable oil and not water. Then there are the molds which you can use to allow fillings of honey, mildew, nutmeg and raisins. Shapes also play an important role in justifying the chocolate. Dark chocolate is a better binder than white chocolate and as a result can support much more exquisite shapes. 

www.metro.co.uk

So why does chocolates remain a delicacy for mankind. Why does it retain its symbol of love and refinement? Arguably the first can be associated to the chemicals theobromine and phenylethyl amine. To a chem. E both these compounds are aromatic in nature possessing resonant structures and weak chemical bonds. As a result they can easily break bonds to release energy and spawn reactions that give pleasurable smells and products. An easy example of such a reaction is by the means of a deodorant like. The chemicals break up on your body to cover up your stink. Another historically perturbing question to men at least is DO woman really dig chocolates and why? Tthat would answer one sure thing about the cuter sex. Billions of dollars of research later scientists could say this. Chocolates are extremely attractive to women for two primary reasons. The smell triggers the release of endorphins, (also called pleasure hormones) which satiates them. The amine on the other hand surges production of oxytocin which is associated with love and warmth. So the familiar warm and fuzzy feeling becomes a reality.

www.khymos.gr.ju

Chocolates are becoming more powerful and bold in their ideas and concepts every day. Changing from the Chocó bar to soft core bonbons and finally the artificially engineered chocolates that we can now consider to make. The theory behind this concept would be artificial aromatic compounds either of the phenol or ketone group. Compounds from these groups can be used to create compound chains which tamper with hormonal balance of the body. For now this remains unlawful but as we subject ourselves to greater doses of caffeine and toxins the line between artificial chocolates and danger gets finer by the minute. Synthetic chocolate can be used for good too though. The world craze for chocolate has contributed to the destruction of vast areas of amazon forest. Synthetic chocolates through yeast or chemical bases can substitute some of the need. With time, chemistry and chocolatiers will find the need to co-operate in order to maintain the sweet success of this sticky story.

 My mint Honey mint choco recipe

A can of cocoa powder, Icing sugar, Milk, Mint extract, Clear edible oil, Raisins, Honey, pepper and sugar.

Mix cocoa and milk in a suitable ratio to obtain desired color and consistency. (Rule of thumb: 1spoon to 2  cups). Add icing sugar to desired taste. Warm the concoction over a very low flame for 2-3 minutes while stirring. For a cup of chocolate add a spoon of Mint extract and half a spoon of honey. (Vary by taste.) Add raisins liberally and sprinkle pepper to taste. While stirring add oil judiciously to remove sluggish coagulation. Use molds to create shapes and add extra fillings as you wish. Quick freeze for 1 hour. Stow it in the refrigerator.

www.fergusonpiaresonline.ca

In memory of a friend who never gave up on me.

Much has been said about this topic and as time changes; more can be said about it. This is probably one of the more absorbing experiences; normally reflected on in retrospect or studied as a form of cultural preparation. Sitting in a lonely lounge in the department of foreign languages (Hagerty Hall) , I can probably find no better place to type this blog. I must tell you that this will be in a very informal style, and should the reader choose to leave, well; I really can’t stop him, can I? Nor do I intend to make this a blog for a hapless international acutely homesick. You do not have to leave a country to feel out of place sometimes. Nevertheless, being a newcomer into the age of 17 and a new country does offer a unique emotional perspective. I thought the most prudent place to start this blog, would be the greatest cultural barrier of all, language.

English is the lingua franca of America. Everyone uses it though Spanish keeps catching up. Now my English isn’t particularly bad and yet occasional misunderstandings keep flaring up when I least expect them. Say you walk into a cafeteria and see the delicious hot dog you want. In a moment of ravenous impulse you ask the sweet lady behind the counter for a wiener. The look she gives you …. Oh damn! In a stroke of pure genius you realize your mistake and stutter an apology which tends to include the words “foreign” and “not from here”. She shakes her head in disgust and off you go head hanging in shame. Now, if that sounded funny its only because I intended it to. For anyone else in the situation knows how dangerous it can really be.

Not to say anything of those so many others who find the fluid parlance of English a challenge. Imagine a class room which as daunting as it already is (I am an Engineering major) is spoken in a different language or with different and unfamiliar quirks, terminologies or accents. The manner of instruction can be a significant challenge as might be the decorum expected.

Its 09:00 AM and my math recitation teacher is passing out the quizzes. He calls out a name of a person right behind me but in a location that makes it difficult to approach. The helpful Indian that I am I rise to get the paper and pass it on to her. He stares at me, she stares at me, and the whole class looks on in mild amusement. I’m like what did I do now??? American embarrassment No.2. Never touch a quiz belonging to someone else and refrain from asking a classmate how much they scored on a quiz. Privacy is a very big thing. Now I made it a point to ask a close American friend if this was the norm and his answer was negative. Yet from my viewpoint there is a difference in classmate relationships here and elsewhere. Some of the warmth, maybe?

A better example would be the Engineering class. Now I am not very good in this class. There is something about dimensioning and drawing that I find troublesome. I do love the computer work though. So when we work as a group on a question I find the situation inclusive and yet paradoxically exclusive. We work as a group from a shell of self. Unlike the probing questions I am used to in groups back home “Hey did you get it?” or “Do you want me to help you?” or even “What the hell are you doing?!?”, if I choose to distance myself from the group here, I could do so. That is not to say the classroom is devoid of warmth, in fact it’s not! We didn’t have too many conversations on the Premier league teams in the classrooms I was used to but Engineering here is teaching me quite a bit about the Patriots and Steelers. So the laissez faire attitude co exists with exams and grades. The group works with sub units existing within. To be fair I must say that the person truly at fault is me. The assumptions I draw are made by my mind from what to others is a very natural American classroom. In truth, I and most in my situation have a nagging feeling of not really belonging and that is what makes the difference between a normal classroom and the “American” classroom. Rationally, I do not expect anyone to change for me. I need to change and make myself feel to belong. That has been done by others before me and I shall do it too. My experience remains mine and unique.

That brings us to the final part of the blog. A dispassionate account of the emotions I experienced. The oxymoron is well suited because most emotions I encountered are paradoxical. Lonely sometimes and yet at the centre of attention else while. Embarrassed by awkward moments which later turn out to be wonderful dinner conversations. Alienated by my different upbringing which fascinates my friends. I do wonder if these experiences remain meaningless in a larger context. Are they abstractions of language and useless appendices of emotion in a wannabe engineer?

I think not. I think it’s important for me or anyone else to consider these emotions and adapt to the surroundings without corrupting the unique values and character that we had learned and acquired. Right now I’m sitting on the amphitheater by Mirror Lake, looking at a mutated duck waddle by. Whatever the challenge I need to adapt wisely. Sure I miss home very much. Home is a long way away and this country is in so many ways a constant reminder of what it was back there and then again, not. However the lessons learned here is part of working in a global economy with sensitivity to multinational collaboration. It’s also a lesson in control and a test of maturity. To break into frustration, tears or anger is to accept weakness. The challenges are hard and some grades might be low but to give in is to lose it all.

Information Graphics: Simplification of logic processes

                                                                        (Source:as below image)
(To celebrate the achievement of another,)

Information Graphics is an accurate way of displaying information or data through a concise graphical representation. In layman parlance, “Infographics” is every symbol or flow of symbols that convey a meaning through an idea rather than language. Infographics once shared a common heritage with language when the Hieroglyphics were considered pictorial representations and not meaningful words. Infographics is currently being applied to the decoding of the symbolic language of the ancient Indus valley civilization.

From these primeval beginnings almost lost in the mists of time, Infographics continues to play a vital role in several modern applications. Infographics retains an edge due to its ability to get ingrained faster and longer into the human brain. Infographics provides direct instructions cutting through the verboseness of the language I type. The application of Infographics that I think is really cool is in the field of Man Machine interface. Think I, Robot.

                                               (Source: blog of Scott Sheppard: "http://labs.blogs.com/its_alive_in_the_lab/2008/05/index.html")

The interface between humans and the AI in a computer gets more and more complex every time Microsoft brings a new OS out. Yet the primary computer language remains Boolean expressed in the forms of 0’s and 1’s. As more and more people seek access to computers for more complex tasks a certain amount of programming control is handed over to the user. A simple example can be seen from the MS OS. The early generation Windows 98 had very few plugins, if any. Most plugins could only be activated by using the complicated MS-DOS shell. The ability to configure the system, either its hardware or software was limited at best. Compare that to the Windows 7 or if you can imagine, the future Windows 8. The possibility and intricacies appear limitless and therein lays a flaw in the system. 

Computer programming is based on choices the user makes. In a way it is governed by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. As the number of options grow large the effectiveness/hardiness of the program decreases and this leads to increase chances of malfunction. In common speak computers become smart enough to interpret inputs in ways they were not intended to. Consider a complicated software that flies a personal air vehicle (refer Post on PAV’s here). An error could be disastrous. Neither could the program be simplified to give greater power to the human operator because he/she might want to know as little about flying as I do about Justin Bieber. So we enter the crunch paradox where over simplification or complication can lead to disaster. The only way out is a radical change in the system of programming.

                                                 

 

 (Source:www.nasa.gov; heuristic based graphical coding)

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                 (Source:www.javaworld.com; command based graphical coding)

Unlike Graphical User interfaces (GUI’s) which display a pictorial work desk but maintains a Boolean computer language, Infographics can reach out to both the user and a computer mainframe because in essence it is symbolic logic. Computer algorithms have historically been described as sequential steps which execute a logic function but another effective and efficient way to represent algorithms is a flow chart. Flow charts contain symbols with meaning. If you work the Boolean command under the overall architecture of a flow chart you create symbolic programming instead of Object oriented programming. OOPs creates a multitude of objects varying types and functions but symbolic programming concerns itself with just two absolutes; an information or algorithm and the sequence of graphics that represent it. So rather than having the user and computer in two different pages, with the user barraging a stream of orders, unaware of what the computer is going through, by working through a sequence of Infographics he remains an equal player in grasping the notion of what’s going on.

                            (Source:www.math.ucdavis.edu; Electric circuit example of infographic representation )

Infographics has already found a hardware application in the form of different network topologies. In a way akin to how the invention of math made calculations child play, the application of Infographics have allowed net-workers to create networks of unparalleled complexity and power. Its application in the realm of electricity has yielded electric and logic circuits that power some of the best super computers in the world.

Neatly put, Infographics brings the best out of math and logic. It uses a little known but very powerful part of our brain that strongly identifies with symbols. It allows us to reduce noise in transmission of ideas be it through programs or diagrams. While being hard and resilient to anomalies it retains the flexibility to add branching pathways of newer ideas, information or options. I wonder if you could put this post up as an Infographic.

To do or not to do... -from experiences in the new world

•  ·        Never ask the person next to you to move over on a transatlantic flight.
• ·        Never hold the urge to pee till you land.
• ·        Never appear lost and keep an eye on your baggage, especially in Heathrow airport, London.
• ·        Always keep your passport on you even if you have an overbearing but well meaning parent insisting over its custody
• ·        If questioned by immigration police over absence of passports point at said parent and hope they don’t laugh too loud.
• ·        Always be polite, even (maybe especially) in the face of an irate policeman with a handgun
• ·        Accept the complimentary wine (if under 21) with decisiveness and be nonchalant.
• ·        Pretend to be a kid if sitting next to a highly testosterone fuelled man with a gleam in his eye
• ·        Flirt with the air hostess. You get perks
• ·        Shake firm and if your hands feel crushed, bear it with a good countenance.
• ·        Gather your bags and get out of the airport as soon as possible. They can cancel your visa as     long as you are in the airport.
• ·        Talk to the cabbie and give him a tip.
• ·        Never take a bath in a motel, only showers if you must.
• ·        Swallow the fact that your kid cousin knows more about American football with good grace (erst it gets unpleasant)
• ·        Never give in to an American what football is. (it is NOT SOCCER!)
• ·        Love the country; it’s beautiful as are the people.
• ·        Walk as much as you want the sidewalks are heavenly.
• ·        Cars ACTUALLY yield to pedestrians.
• ·        Talk to the people because most of them are waiting for you to do just that.
• ·        Never picture the national cuisine from the food in the cafeteria.
• ·        Party for all the good and right reasons.
• ·        Live with moderation and toleration.
• ·        Do not dimension to hidden lines
• ·        Relationships are verrrrryyyyyy sloooowwwww. Go SLOW!
• ·        Be friendly and cheerful most Americans are and strive to be just that
• ·        Live your culture but respect theirs (its more than just Hollywood)
• ·        Never call hotdogs WIENARS.
• ·        Forget about good bangers and mash. Fish n chips aren’t too great either.
• ·        They have a weird cellular system why do phones cost so much and why cant I cancel a plan without a fee!
• ·        Opportunities abound but you need to ask around. Americans are very independent to the point that asking might look embarrassing, but do it. No one cares
• ·        To try not to jay walk. I’ve done it on occasions but I really do not want to check the effectiveness of the Columbus City police.
• ·        ESPN 3 has live and replay feeds of most football and cricket matches (YAY!!!!). it was an easy find, kudos Google.
• ·        Have fun and work hard. People respect both and love both.
• ·        Be social it’s your one good bet to take tons of green home. You could either marry rich, make rich friends strike rich contacts or strip a rich passed out drunk.
• ·        Always help a drunk passed out girl home SAFELY. You feel good about it even though it might mean you have to tolerate entering the girls toilet to pick her up.
• ·        There are classical Americans who still read books and like writing poetry. (There’s hope). No stereotype is ever right and none are.
• ·        Don’t be evil