Sudipta's Life

"What kind of a computer engineer are you, if you cannot fix this problem?" Sounds familiar? Welcome to the world of ironies. I have faced this question from many different people at different times, with the reason behind such an outburst ranging from not being able to fix a printer to not being able to debug a program in Matlab. The trouble is, it is not just worth trying to make someone understand that the word 'computer' stretches beyond what you commonly perceive as your Desktop machine or your favourite laptop. I was a PC-doctor in my hostels. Which meant that when anyone had a problem with their computer: such as non-booting, bizzare graphics resolutions, no sound, or even programs gone haywire, I was summoned. Of course it took some cajoling (like a free tea at the night canteen --- or the promise at least) to get me there. At other times, the problem itself seemed so interesting (like a program that... well, umm.... never mind) that I went and investigated. A...

A graduate student with no classes, no research who is just settling in has a lot to explore and do around the campus. I had thought that I would be having fun in the campus, but never imagined that things could be so good and so funny! I had come back from my lab, when my roomie suggested, "Lets go play something". We had a basketball at home, and so that was picked, another interested guy found from another apartment and off we went into the evening campus! Deserted-looking streets, dim white lights in the sideways and warm dry winds greeted us as we passed so many imposing buildings and shiny marked-out roads in the car. Once parking was taken care of, we headed for the university basketball grounds. But then classes have not really begun, and so the whole of the university is still under some sort of slumber. The basketball grounds were closed, the flood-lights turned off and there was no-one around as far as we could see. Well, almost no-one around, since there were peop...

One of the strange things that one needs to do in life, I find, is that he or she needs to learn to cook. There is no escape, if you haven't learnt it yet, you will have to: some time or the other. In my case, all these years in hostels I have never learnt or needed to learn to cook. Someone, somehow, was always there to cook food. And I was absolutely efficient in dishwashing! I really mean it --- friends would cook using all the utensils they could find, take all the time they need, while I would lounge about in the sofa in the living room, flipping TV channels. And after a hearty meal, it would take me 15-20 min to get the whole place sparkling clean! Things were so good for me and for everyone else then :) But then I came to America, and found the quintessential invention that will take away my job: the dishwasher! So I woke up the next morning, and found my room-mate in the kitchen area, sipping on a glass of coffee. Jetlagged morning time needed coffee here as well, and I tho...

For some people, they say, the actual realisation that they are going halfway across the globe sets in only when they are actually seated on the plane. In my case, I think, it never did or never will. Or perhaps I knew it the moment I decided to take my GRE. I realised something very different when I was about to start my journey, however. But I am rushing things here... let me start at where things started. I started off from home when my dad and brother came to see me off at the railway station. My mother had bid me farewell at home itself. Her face, all so expressive, kind-of lingered with me briefly as I sat in the car and sped towards the station. The wait on the railway platform was eerie, though. The sodium lamps throwing off the white light, the passing of the mighty trains to destinations far far off, and the soft cool wind playing by as the announcements kept coming on the microphone that mingled with the tea-hawkers dusting off their weary kettles and an occasional "Cha...

There are moments in life when you are left speechless. At such moments, all you can do is sing praises for the Lord. You feel humbled, relieved, your heart is suddenly aflutter with the joy of plenty, the ineffable happiness of mirth. I lived through one such moment on the 31st of July. Lets begin our story on the 30th of August. I went to Kolkata from my home, and fortunately found that the place where we had booked our accomodation was right next door (literally, I mean it!) to the Kolkata US Consulate. I had been looking forward to meeting a lovely lady that evening. She had already attended her Visa interview at the consulate, and gave me some tips about where to sit, what to expect, etc. T he evening seemed to melt away in a huge hurry, and I felt as if I had hardly I talked to her. So, at the parting moments, she promised to meet me before the interview at 8:00 in the morning the next day. I went to bed anticipating all the questions the VO might ask me the ne...

I have been thinking (yes, I do think), that there is so much common between the little things of life, and the not-so-little things. You talk of fractals, you talk of small waves joining together to form the gigantic swirling wave, but the similarity never ends. And of course, there are universities and there are girlfriends. And yes, there is a lot common between them as well. As for example, you start by researching the "potential" candidates out. What are the research interests of the university, where does it stand, what are the costs of living with it, and so on and so forth. Come to think of it, your potential girlfriends are also in the same category. You have to think about what her 'interests' are, how much of girlfriend/wife material she is, and of course, how much is the maintenance cost? Then, of course, there is the consideration of whether you want to have the brand name with yourself all your life. Yeah, I am talking about the commitment bit. But, real...