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Dear Students,

Topics for your Assignments will be displayed on this, our academic blog shortly.

Regards and all best wishes,

Rufus

WHAT IS LIFE? - JBS Haldane

Introduction:

John Burdon Sanderson Haldane was a British-born geneticist and evolutionary biologist. He was one of the founders of population genetics. In this essay, Haldane attempts to analyze the essence of life and the composition of life by means of scientific logic and practical philosophy.

Where does ‘life’ belong?

In normal conditions, a thing must correspond to a noun. For example, bricks, water, coal-gas etc are things. At the same time, there are others like a wave, a tune etc which have less claim to be called a thing. In this kind of a classification, where does ‘life’ belong? Does death mean a loss of something, or merely a change of state like a disarrangement of patterns?

Early people thought that life was breath. But breath consists of gas, which can be made into a solid or liquid. Also, many living things do not breathe at all. Hence life is not a kind of matter. When a man or an animal dies, he does not lose or gain weight.

According to our ancestors, anything which moved was alive. That was a good definition before the age of machines. But a machine such as a motor-car moves itself, and so does a steam-ship. Now, people asked, “Is man a machine?”

According to the philosopher Descartes, both men and animals were machines, but that the human machine was controlled partly by the soul whereas animals had no soul. So some scientists think that life is just a very complicated mechanism.

Machines vs Individuals:

A machine is a system capable of performing some function, made up of replaceable parts. For example, if any part of a motor-car is broken, a new one can be got to take its place; and an engineer could tell a great deal about the car’s behaviour. The opposite to a machine is an individual – which cannot be taken to pieces and out together again. Each part depends on the other to keep it alive.

Animals: Perfect Self-regulating Machines:

An animal is only a very perfect self-regulating machine. Many of the bones act like levers. The eye is like a photographic camera. A good example of self-regulation is that of human temperature – which is so steady that a small rise or fall is a danger signal. The most obvious example of self-repair is the continual renewing of the skin, and the healing of wounds, and the most remarkable of all, is reproduction.

Machines vs Minds:

According to Haldane, the machine theory also fails when we consider our minds. The mind has a unity of its own. Somehow the most varied sensations and emotions are held together. Yet, the mind depends on the body. If you cut off the blood supply from parts of the brain, the most intelligent man becomes a hopeless idiot.

Life – A Synthesis of Opposites - Mechanism and Individuality:

Life then is a synthesis of opposites – of mechanism and individuality. A man is a machine and at the same time an individual. We find the same union of opposites everywhere. Wood is both hard and soft. If it were not hard, we could not use it for furniture. If it were not soft, we could not cut it. Thus we find that there is generally a progress from mechanism to individuality in the life of an individual.

Conclusion:

To conclude, life, according to Haldane, is essentially a pattern of chemical happenings, and so to say that life does not consist of chemical processes is, according to Haldane, as futile and untrue as to say that poetry does not consist of words. And life is something between mechanism and individuality – but seems to strive towards greater individuality or oneness.

THE POSTMASTER - Rabindranath Tagore

For an interesting analysis of "The Postmaster" by one of our alumna @ MCC, (an ex-student) Samyuktha, CLICK on her blog HERE. Hope that solves your notes anxiety for Tagore's "The Postmaster" :-)

Learn Japanese...:

Japanese Language classes will be conducted on Saturdays and Sundays by the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce. This is an excellent opportunity to learn the Japanese language with programs suited to attain a good level of proficiency in conversational Japanese.

For more details, contact: 044 - 24352010/24354779

Book Launch...:

Landmark and Penguin Books India lauch Ali Sethi's debut novel The Wish Maker, a coming-of-age novel - written when the author was only twenty-three. "Each fascinating character breathes on the page, but each also represents a social strata," comments Shapiro in his review of the book.

Venue: Landmark, Apex Plaza

Date: 25 July

Time: 6:30 pm

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FREE IAS Coaching Classes..:

Young Men's Indian Association will conduct free IAS Coaching classes for the 2010 preliminary examination on weekends from September.

For details, contact: YMIA, New India Building, II Floor, 49, Moore Street. Ph: 25343337.

Thoughts for a New Academic Year..:

Dear Students,
Welcome to another dynamic year of Academics. For some of you this may be the last year of your graduation, while for some others, you've still got a year more to go..!
Either way, I thought of enumerating below, Seven golden principles for my students, which I'm sure would effect a lasting transformation in YOU.

1. Always march to the beat of your own band - The most satisfying experiences in our lives are when we are engaged physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally, or intellectually. Life is meant to be effortless. If you're tugging and pulling, and everything feels like an uphill battle, then you're doing the wrong thing. If you don't like a class, quit it. Don't try to march to the beat of your teacher, chugging and pulling, and distracting the attention of others around you in the process.

2. Dedicate Quality Time - Life is so precious; make the most of each and every day. Rise early, spend some quality time by yourself as well as with those you care about. Go for a walk, workout, read a book.

3. Be Passionate in Everything you do - Show passion in everything you do. Let it show in your body language, in your smile, in your voice. Let your eyes sparkle. Let the world see and hear your enthusiasm and let it feel your passion.

4. Always be true to yourself - Live a life of integrity. Take pride in whatever you do. Be proud of who you are and what you represent. Accept others with all their flaws. Show compassion and goodwill to your fellow human beings. Be dignified. Lead a life of purpose and be proud of your values.

5. Don't take yourself so seriously - Recognise that perfection isn't always the only option. Don't let life's imperfections bother you. Lighten up and see the funny side of things when they go wrong, the learning in them. Be tolerant, smile...don't waste your energies on the small stuff, you have much bigger fish to fry.

6. Show gratitude and say thank you to the people who have helped you along the way. Send a handwritten letter to someone who has touched you. Call up a friend or loved one and tell them how much they mean to you. Compliment a friend or a class mate on a job well done. Show people you appreciate and care about them. Acts of kindness cost nothing but mean everything.

7. Be a role model and mentor for people - Serve others. Volunteer in your community and help others achieve their goals. Your world will be enriched and a better place for sharing your talents and giving freely of your time. Leave a lasting legacy.

Have a dynamic and lovli year ahead! All the best..!

Regards and all best wishes in all your endeavours...
- Rufus

(With due acknowledgements to Prof.Charles Marcus for his lively inputs)

THE SCIENTIFIC TECHNIQUE - Bertrand Russell

THE SCIENTIFIC TECHNIQUE

Introduction:

According to Bertrand Russell, the earliest beginnings of scientific technique can be traced back to the prehistoric times. The use of fire, the use of agriculture, and the domestication of animals etc are prehistoric in origin. In this essay, Russell tells us that the most important characteristic of the scientific technique is that it proceeds from experiment, not from tradition.

Beginning of Writing – beginning of History:

The beginning of writing coincides with the beginning of history. The next great advancement in scientific technique was the working of metals. Roads have been constructed chiefly for military reasons. The Middle Ages invented the gun-powder and the mariner’s compass, and finally the invention of printing.

Protests against Machinery and Return to Nature:

Lao-Tze, who lived in the sixth century B.C., protested against the destruction of ancient beauty by modern mechanical inventions. Roads, bridges and boats filled him with horror because they were unnatural. He believed that men should live according to nature. Rousseau also believed in the return to nature, but no longer objected to roads, bridges and boats.

According to Rousseau, return to nature, if it were taken seriously, would involve the death by starvation of some 90 per cent of the population of civilized countries.

The Application of Science in Technology and Production:

Science advanced very rapidly throughout the whole of the 17th and 18th centuries, and it was only at the end of the 18th century that it began to affect the technique of production. Ancient Egypt to the year 1750 saw less change in methods of work than there have been from 1750 to the present day.

Certain fundamental advances had been slowly acquired: speech, fire, writing, agriculture, the domestication of animals, the working of metals, gun-powder, printing, and the art of governance etc. These advances, because they came slowly, fitted in, without too much difficulty, to the framework of traditional life, and so, men were not conscious of a revolution in their daily habits.

The Scientific Technique: Its Impartiality:

The scientific technique is closely connected with the social virtue of impartiality. According to Piaget, the reasoning faculty in a child, is a product of the social sense. Reasoning develops as a method of arriving at a social truth upon which all men can agree. The advantage of this method is that, private emotion will not be regarded as the test of truth.

Another aspect of the scientific method is that, it gives power over the environment and also power of adaptation to the environment. It is success in this practical test of power over the environment or adaptation to it, which has given science its prestige. All modern life is built upon this practical success of science.

Scientific versus Pre-Scientific Technique:

The essential novelty about the scientific technique is the utilization of natural forces in ways that are not obvious to untrained observation, but discovered by deliberate research. The use of water-power in an old-fashioned water-mill is pre-scientific, but the modern use of water-power by means of turbines is scientific.

Clearly the line between scientific and traditional technique is not a sharp one, and no one can say exactly where the one ends and the other begins. Primitive agriculturists used human bodies for manure, and imagined their beneficial effect to be magical. This stage was definitely pre-scientific.

Conclusion:

The most essential characteristic of scientific technique is that it proceeds from experiment, not from tradition. It is this scientific spirit which is characteristic of modern times, and it is because of this spirit that the power of man in relation to his environment has become so immeasurably greater than it was in the civilization of the past.

HAMIDA - Lesson Summary

HAMIDA

Introduction:

“Hamida” by Amrita Pritam is a satire on the inhumane treatment meted out to an infant, all because of communal strife. The story portrays the malady of communal hatred and its horrific effects on society.

Hamida finds a Baby:

In the early hours of the morning, when it was still dark, Hamida went out of her home and discovered a new-born baby, born to a mad woman, who was by now stone-dead. Hamida, brought her husband and together, they took the baby to their home.

The news spread like wild fire in the village. The women hurried to Hamida’s house and blessed Hamida. They appreciated her act of mercy and went back to their homes. The elders buried the mad woman’s corpse.

The Meeting of the Hindus to discuss the Baby:

Hamida was curious to know what was being said about the child and its dead mother. The Hindus called a meeting to discuss the matter. Soon, the religious fervour was spreading across the room and the atmosphere was filled with hate.

Finally it was decided to take back the boy from Hamida and bring him up under the paid custody of the water-carrier woman. It was also decided that the boy would be provided with two square meals a day when he grows up.

Hamida’s Agony:

Hamida felt very traumatized and agonized. They were given black looks and ostracized by the Hindu community. Having nurtured the tiny infant with her own milk for six months, after six months of sleepless nights, after washing the soiled garments of the infant for so long a time, the child had come to look upon Hamida as his own mother. So Hamida did not feel like parting with the child.

Rashida’s Plea:

Rashida sincerely defended his wife’s love for the child in front of the village elders. But the Hindu elders were very particular about taking the child from the custody of Hamida. Now, the water-carrier woman emerged and took the unwilling baby from Hamida’s arms. The child felt the rough touch of unfamiliar hands and began to cry.

Hamida sank to the ground. She heard the boy’s crying. That night, no food was cooked in Rashida’s home. Even their own little son Javed felt sad at the departure of the baby boy.

Conclusion:

On the fourth day, the villagers could talk of nothing but the fate of the infant, which refused to take any food. The story ends with the infant throwing up every drop of milk that went down his throat.

Thus the story represents communal egos and hatred that divide the society and thereby take away the humane aspect of man. Amrita Pritam, through her short story criticizes these Hindu-Muslim divisions, and pleads for greater unity and harmony among the various faiths of the country.