My Perspective

How to determine the distance to a star cluster using its H-R diagram? Background and Need Having covered the background on Star Clusters , H-R diagram ,  Main sequence and the need to study star clusters in our previous article on estimating the age of a cluster , we will discuss about ZAMS. Zero-Age Main Sequence (ZAMS) is the locus of all newly formed stars main sequence (MS) stars on the H-R diagram of a cluster – forming a boundary to the lower left of the main sequence. Idea

The highlights on the criminal and financial background of MLAs in the newly elected May 2011 assemblies of four states - Assam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry: 35% of MLAs of West Bengal, 29% of Tamil Nadu, 10% of Assam and 30% of MLAs from Puducherry have criminal cases pending against them.   75 MLAs of West Bengal, 36 MLAs of Tamil Nadu, 8 of Assam and 2 of Puducherry have declared serious criminal cases pending against them including charges of murder, kidnapping extortion etc.   37% of MLAs of Assam, 52% of Tamil Nadu, 16% of West Bengal and 63% of MLAs from Puducherry are crorepatis.   For the complete analysis on this across all five states where elections were held please read this  report  (pdf) prepared by  Association of Democratic Reforms . For individual state wise analysis please visit this  page . All this information is prepared by collating all the information submitted by the candidates themselves and nothing more...

Recently I came across a comic blog looking at the lighter side of Tamil Brahmins (aka tambram) culture, their superstitions, daily life etc. etc. It is aptly titled " TAMBRAHM RAGE "..  I wish to share a recent article from that blog here. If you cannot relate to tambrahm jokes, there are other such raging blogs...

IEEE Medal of Honor for  the year 2007 goes to  Prof. Thomas Kailath   for "exceptional development of powerful algorithms in the fields of communications, computing, control and signal processing". How can one work and contribute at highest level in so many varied fields?  What is his recipe for success? Before we discuss that aspect, here is the link to article in IEEE Spectrum on Kailath  and his achievements.  I will summarize the article here for the sake of readers' convenience (also I find it easier for this discussion that way): His doctoral research was on the detection of random signals in noise. He worked out a theory for using a separate feedback channel to provide information about noise in a communications channel and adapt the incoming signals to move through the noise. (That work has yet to find practical application). He was involved in developing computer algorithms for the systematic design of special-purpose chips. He laid the groundwor...

"Where the mind is without fear and the head held high; Where knowledge is free; Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls; Where words come out from the depth of truth; Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection; Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit; Where the mind is led forward by Thee into ever-widening thought and action; Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake."

' Now showing ' is a movie review show on CNN-IBN tv channel aired on Fridays at 10.30 pm which review latest movies released that same week and as well as new DVD releases. Both the host and the movie critic on this show is Mr. Rajeev Masand known for his outright blatant expression of views in his movie reviews . I still recall how he famously threw an egg at the camera after reviewing the utterly hopeless movie 'RamGopalVarma ki Aag'.

How can we determine the age of a star cluster using its H-R diagram. Background Star Clusters are groups of stars that are gravitationally bound ranging from just ten to over ten million in number e.g. Pleiades cluster (Krittika) or M45 in Taurus constellation. An H-R diagram is a scatter plot of Luminosity vs. surface temperature or absolute magnitude vs. spectral type of stars. Main sequence is the track of stars that runs diagonally across the H-R diagram from high luminosity, hot stars to low luminosity, cool stars. Need The star clusters are useful in checking theories of stellar evolution, for calibrating absolute luminosities, and

I derive value out of watching the review, since it is better to spend couple of minutes reading the review rather than spending two whole hours watching the movie only to feel what a hopeless waste of time it was. It also makes sense as there are way too many movies out there but very few good ones given the rat race in the  movie industry! There are a quite a few reviewers out there, how to follow the right one. Now that is a tough question.