Month: September 2010

Categories
review

Nadi Shastra

For those who don’t know Nadi Shastra is a famous art of Tamil Astrology (Nadi means ‘in search of’). The practitioners claim that the stages of ancient India have recorded the entire human chain of events on a bundle of palm leaves. Based on the individuals thumb print and answers to a series of questions the practitioner is able to retrieve the relevant record (reference palm leaf and the predictions palm leaf) Over the past 20 centuries, several of these leaves are destroyed in fire, flood or due to carelessness. Also only one copy of the record exists. The Nadi Shastra centers have to issue these leaves and return them on a weekly basis. So the chance that your leaf would turn up in the center on that particular day is remote. However to the curiosity of my friend, his leaf turned up in 2 centers on the same day.
Have you wondered that whenever an unmarried person visits Nadi Sastra center, his/her leaf will not contain any information about his spouse’s name. However immediately after marriage, the leaf has the spouse’s name.
How many guesses will it take to correctly predict a randomly chosen number from 1- 127?
Answer: 7 (clue binary search tree algorithm)
They start with a group of commonly used alphabets and eliminate it one by one to obtain to arrive at the right answer. This coupled up with a few intelligent guesses helps build up the entire persona and predictions. Remember, a human being is a believer by nature. (or believes in disbelief) So irrespective of the information provided, he always hunts for an analogy, clause or an instance where the spoken words are true. That is why even a 2/- newspaper is able to make a quite accurate prediction of one’s day.
I would like up to sum up with the words of one of my friend who once said:
“Astrology is a dangerous art. I don’t know if there is any truth in this science, but there is then the astrologer would know things about me, my thoughts and actions even before I realize those words or actions are even possible. If it is bogus, then these guys can subtly persuade and influence me into acts and deeds that they think I should do without providing any logical bias.”

Categories
News

Two-Stroke Diesel Engines

In text-books, we are taught that 2 stroke internal combustion engines are inefficient and are used only in small motors where weight is more important than efficiency or power. However what people don’t realize is that most of the big, high power, high efficiency diesel engines are also two stroke engines. This includes most of the locomotives, ships and submarines. (Gas turbines have higher efficiencies and power to weight ratio, but their high maintenance restricts its use as continuous power supply)
So why the role reversal for Diesel engine?
1. In a petrol engine the intake is a mixture of fuel (petrol) and air (oxygen). The major source of lower efficiency of 2 stroke IC engine is that either some of the fuel leaks away with the exhaust or the exhaust fumes are not fully drained out from the cylinder. However in diesel engine the intake is only air. The fuel is sprayed into the combustion chamber during the combustion phase only. So this takes care of the major source of inefficiency.
2. Diesel is traditionally regarded as a slow and bulky engine. However 2 stroke engine means that for the same rpm (and to the large extend weight and size), there is twice as much combustion and twice as much power.
However all said, 2 stroke engine crams up the intake and exhaust so much that a lot of aerodynamic and thermal stress problems emerge due to close proximity of cold intake with hot exhausts.

Categories
History Investing

East India Company

Incorporated in 1600 was one of the first traded stocks in the world. There is no dearth of evidence that East India’s operations were highly profitable and they reaped profits in shiploads (boatloads). Apart from India, the company had near monopoly in trade with China (opium) and America (before Boston Tea party). It was so successful that it was called ‘The Company’ during its heydays.
What is surprising is that throughout its 2 century of profiteering, the company did not make much wealth for its investors. In 1772, no one was ready to loan money to the Company because of rampant corruption in the ranks. The top man, Warren Hastings was impeached on corruption charges and his predecessor Robert Clive also faced many corruption charges. In 1773 (when company was at its heights) the British Government passed Regulating Acts to control corruption. However Company’s finances never recovered and in 1857 it declared bankruptcy and transferred its assets (right to rule India) to the Crown.
I do not want to start a patriotic debate, but just want to raise the importance of corporate governance while choosing one’s stocks. Traditionally Indian businessmen were infamous for over-invoicing and pocketing part of the proceeds raised from banks/government and stock market. The practice has been slowly changing, but still there is no dearth of company which makes huge yoy profits and yet little or no dividend/capital growth.

Categories
Investing IPO

IPO Bonanza

11 Different promoters have tapped the IPO market this month. These include Ramky Infra, Orient Green, Eros International, Microsec, Career Point, Cantabil Retail, VA Tech Wabag, Electrosteel ESL, Tecpro Systemts, Ashoka Buildcon and Gallant Ispat.
History has taught us that booms are followed by a bust. Yet every time when the Sensex zooms up, experts say this time it is different. Today the market closed at above 20K figures, so I went ahead to research why this week was chosen by so many promoters. Here is the list:
1. Most investors go for the relative valuations. i.e. if the PE in the industry is 20, and the IPO is at 17, its fairly priced. With stock market at 20k, promoters are getting a good price.
2. 2 year long bear run has made many firms desperate for capital. Hence they want to cash out before the mood changes bearish/cautious.
3. Coal-India. The interesting thing about all these IPOs is that it gives investors ample time to invest the money, wait for a day or two before selling the shares, another 3 days before the money is back in their accounts and ready for investing in Coal India. Now if a company does not go for listing now, it will have to wait for 5-6 weeks before those who invested in Coal India would be ready to invest in that IPO. Who knows where the market would be heading by then.
4. shraadha: September 24 to 7th October is considered inauspicious for any major purchases. No wonder all the IPOs were bunched so close together.
5. I recently discovered that any firm hitting the IPO market after 30th Sptember, would have to publish its Q2 results. No one wonder promoters with inside information want to cash out before they publish any disappointing results.
Usually I share my analysis for important issues. Unfortunately this time there are too many of them for me to publish my research. All I can say is that I did invest 2,00,000/- in Career Point IPO with the belief that I won’t be allotted more than 6-12k worth of shares. So the downside risk is minimal.

Categories
Humor

marriage invitation

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvX4nykODiE]

Categories
Poem Thoughts

Bird's eye view

A young bird takes her first flight.
With every eye -span ,
she learns new things and grows bold.
Then she starts questioning the old….

Flying above I look down and see –
Grey buildings and brown land.
Every inch, an human errand.
The water shining black and blue
Smoke rings which block my view.
Massive dams that make river stop
Flying planes that come to me for talk
Mighty machine uprooting the tree
Opening up place for walking free.
A big drill to break open the earth
And pull out oil even from inside the crust.
Power weapons to tame elephants life
Ivory to jewel converting magic knife
Even the mighty whale cannot freely float
A magic machine can convert them to soap.
So much magic in the world below lies
New things I learn with each span of eye
But each eye-span chills my heart like ice
To realize that all my grandmother stories were lies —
“Blue water and green land” she told
“Elephant the mightiest animal” she behold
“River always flows to meet the sea” told she
“Only birds can reach the tallest tree.”
May be she never flew out of the nest,
May be she told all stories just in jest,
But when I return home to the flock
My grandmother I will delight with my talks.
I will tell her about the real World Rules
About man, machine and all the tools.
I know truth will give her delight
I know she will kiss me with pride.
But before I fly back home round
Why not eat the grains on the ground.
It is nice to chew these grains you bet,
But why are my feet tangled in a net?

Categories
IPO

IndoSolar IPO

1. At a priceband of 32/- the promoters (who own 97.6% of the stock) are divesting 33% of their equity (indirectly). Which means that even before the company makes a penny, the promoter is able to get his entire investment back.
2. Not only the company is new, but also the promoter has no track record of managing a publicly listed company. so the uncertainity and risks are high. Even the company appointed auditors were uncomfortable with the fact that the top management paid itself 5.1Cr out of the total salary expenses of 8.1Cr. They felt that for a loss making company this level of remuneration is too high.
3. Phase 1 of the company got operational in July 2009, Phase 2 in March 2010 which brings the entire installed capacity to 160MW/annum. The company has order books 1000 cr or 170MW of which only 171cr/31MW is executed. So this brings the utilization factor of about 40%. Now the question is why would a company go for expansion of another 100MW before it is able to fully utlize its existing capacity or has received orders which would help it do so.
4. Indian listed companies which have invested heavily in solar energy are Websol Energy, Moser Baer and XL Telecom. Unfortunately none of them have done too well. Also globaly there is an oversupply of solar cell manufacturing capability.
Bad ipos with poor fundamentals being subscribed is according to me a harbinger of a major crash/correction.
I recently wrote an article about Gujarat Pipav port. IndoSolar is also another IPO which falls in the same category. I just hope it gets oversubscribed, which means that I should short NIFTY in a big way.

Categories
Thoughts

The eighth color of the rainbow

Have you ever wondered what is colour?
As per physics colour is that band of light spectrum(the range of wavelengths) which the human eye can detect.
This band of spectrum is passed to the human brain which in turn ,        helps us to perceive color.
The human eye has three types of cones or colour receptors – Red, Green and Blue(Red , Blue and green are the three primary colours for us). These three types of cones can absorb wavelengths from 420 – 700 nanometres and help us detect about 100 different gradations of colours. The human brain combines these 100 gradations to enable the average human to distinguish about 1 million different colors
But what if our eye can be engineered to detect a wider range of spectrum? Imagine if our eye can have another type of cone to detect more primary colors? This special quality already exists in many animals and some humans, Read – Tetrachromat
Imagine how our new world would be like if we became a tetrachormat or pentachormat or something even beyond?
The rainbow would no longer be of seven colours. The world would be full of new colors and shades. How and with what words would you describe such a world? How would you describe and explain a colour you never saw before. Everything – living or object would look and feel different.
Imagine the impact on culture, art and literature. They would be redefined. All the famous painting of the world would now be fresh. Literature would be at a loss of words. The poetic expressions   – purple rain, green mile; red rose might turn out to be incorrect. The crow might no longer be black.  The grass might not be green now on any of the sides. Pink might no longer be the favourite colour of all the girls.
Imagine the impact technology and fashion. The best resolution monitors would suddenly feel pale. There would now be more shades to permute on the dresses – these new colors would rule the ramp and our minds.
Imagine the impact on our physic. We might initially find it difficult to even identify old and familiar things. We may develop new feelings. We would literally see our old world falling down in front of our eyes and new world takings its place. It would force us to revise the fundamental concept set in our brain. It will make us realize that our perception of things is just a model. There is no absolute truth –
“The sky is no longer blue; it just used to be;
The sky was never blue, we just used to see.”
Perhaps we need such a magical experience to crumble down the rigid walls which have trapped our free will. Perhaps we need such an experience to revitalize, the once considered most important trait of humans – ‘To question something and not believe in it blindly’.
Perhaps we need the eighth colour of the rainbow to appreciate the existing seven.

Categories
review

Movie Reviews

Movie Review: Welcome to Sajanpur
This is another movie with a interesting story line. Shot in a remote backward village of India, the story revolves around a letter-writer who passionately helps illiterates write to their loved ones. Naturally, the story splits into several sub-stories each revolving around his clients. Although you might feel that some parts of the story are exaggerated, which the author himself acknowledges, but the movie is still quite amusing and unpredictable.
Movie Review: Yeh Mera India
This is a very good Hindi remake of the movie LA Crash 2004 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crash_(2004_film) . Set in Mumbai the story revolves around more than a dozen seemingly ordinary characters, each with a totally different personality, desires and yet in a creatively way intertwined each and every one to create an interesting story where the actions and thoughts of one effect the life of another. Amongst the movies with a social/patriotic message, I should say this movie would be the most interesting one. It makes you appreciate the true India without going overboard with strong emotions.

Categories
review

Movie Review: Jonny Gaddar

This is one of the interesting Bollywood movies. The story revolves round 5 friends who (by beg borrow or steal) accumulate 2.5 Crore (25 million INR) for an illegal transaction. Unfortunately one of the friends got greedy and decided to intercept the money during transit. After this the movie takes several interesting turns, twists which will keep you hooked till the very last scene.