Category: Interesting Stuff

The Philip Welsh story

I read this story, ironically, in the wake of the “Look Up” YouTube campaign (yes, the same campaign that asks people to look up from their phones and get out which is being shared all over internet while people are still looking down to watch and share it). This story is in contrast to the anti-social media campaign because it talks about a man who was killed and left no electronic trace which the police says helps a lot in resolving cases these days.

What struck me though, as I came to the end of the article, is these four lines that was written by Philip Welsh which was read at his memorial service.

“Please refrain from remarking
I’m in some Better Place
’cause for life on this earth,
I never had no complaints.”

How beautiful. I wish I could write something like this towards the end of my life. And this alone proves that, though had a tragic death, Philip Welsh lived a full life. While we dream of a 7 star facility somewhere at top of the clouds with a white bearded man or a bunch of gold and saree clad men and women would be looking over us. Or while we fear of a large Tandoori kitech that is waiting to get us grilled.

The height of Mohan Lal and Mammootty

I go though my site stats occasionally and come across some interesting keywords from time to time. Last week’s site statistics has a few of those as listed below. Check ’em out.

 

what is the height of mohan lal and mammootty
is it possible to go to jail by watching porn
why sreekandan nair left asianet
can an individual be punished in india for only watching porn
do you go to jail for watching porn on the internet
is there an issue watching adult porn on internet
ilayaraja arrogance
i hate semmangudi

 

Pity those poor souls whom Google had directed to my website for these keywords.

Just Sharing – 8

Skyrim – Peter Hollens & Lindsey Sterling
(Shared by YouTube on Google+)

One voice, one violin and 120 tracks. That is how this song was made up. This truly beautiful music piece lead me to hear more of Peter Hollens’ work. Peter’s specialty is A capella, which means he uses only his voice and mouth to create songs. Watch Skyrim first and then one of Peter’s amazing works.

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Celebrity for the day
(Shared by Nick Bilton on Google+)

This is a funny experiment where a man with the help of a few friends made others believe that he is some sort of celebrity. And people followed suit and the mall security came along and things like that. Check it out. 🙂

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Just Sharing – 7

Miniatur Wunderland
(Shared by Beena Nair through Email)

This one is truly amazing! Miniatur Wunderland is the largest model railway in the world, and one of the most successful tourist attractions in Germany. On the 1.300 m² large layout, far more than a thousand trains, aircrafts, cars and ships move about. A wonder of the world in miniature.

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Sadaa by Agnee
(Via Facebook)

Here is a song that is still looping in my computer. This beautiful song by Agnee also has some beautiful visuals. See and hear.

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Just Sharing – 6

Art work by Andre Kohn
(Shared by Aashik Salahudheen in Google+)

Andre Kohn is a Russian artist based in America. Viewing his work is like watching real life frames through a glass window that has just been sprayed by the rain outside. Learn more about him in his website or check out a few of his works here.

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Most beloved and creative street art
(Shared by Ranjit in Google+)

Check out more such cool creative street art in this page.

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Smart thief caught on cam
(Shared by Kumar NM in Google+)

This is one of ‘the best’ ads I have seen recently. Go check it out yourself! 🙂

Just Sharing – 5

Honda’s ASIMO
(from Google+)

You can’t watch this without a ‘wow!’ moment. Watching Honda’s robot ASIMO makes me think that Hollywood stories can really happen on earth. 🙂

And when I thought that was it, YouTube gave me more. See these videos. 🙂

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Before and After Transformation in 5 Hours – EXPOSED!
(from Dailymalayalam.co.uk)

This guy, ‘Furious Pete’, reveals the ‘Before and After’ secrets of the fitness supplement advertisements. Check it out.

Just sharing – 2

Hotel California mixed with Pahla Nasha
(Shared by < don't remember who it was > in Facebook)

This is an awesome attempt at mixing both the songs in a beautiful way. With the tone of Santoor playing the lead instead of guitar and the apt rhythm arrangement, this is an awesome piece of music to listen.

http://youtu.be/V0sZqbPAXuQ

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Celluloid Calligraphy
(Shared by Slogan Murugan in Facebook)

This blog, Celluloid Calligraphy, is an effort to explain the calligraphy styles used in the Malayalam cinema, particularly the old ones. A great effort to appreciate the works of masters.

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The Hang
(Source: Facebook share)

Found out about this instrument which was unknown to me. Sounds like sort of a ‘steel Ghatam’, it is called The Hang. There is a Facebook page that features some works played with the Hang. Check ’em out.

Just sharing

I’m just posting the interesting videos or other tit-bits that I gather from my social media accounts into this space. Once a week. You could share the interesting ones you get too.

FaceCake’s Kinect Dressing Room
(Shared by Ashik in Google +)

This one is truly awesome! At the Microsoft booth in CES 2012, they demonstrate how you can try out different clothes and accessories without even wearing them. All you gotta do is just stand in front of a Kinect camera and try out new clothes. You can even move along to see if the dress fits you right in all angles, as if you just wore them. Truly amazing stuff!

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A Violinist in the Metro
(Shared by Thulasi in an email)

Washington Post ran an experiment in a metro station at Washington DC. What they were trying to find out was whether we perceive and appreciate beauty in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour. They had a best musician playing one of the best pieces of music ever written on a very expensive violin. And the result? Read on… 🙂

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I Think You’re Fat
(Shared by Ashik in Google chat)

When I read the title of this article, I asked Ashik if it’s yet another fitness piece. It’s not just the title, but the names of magazines like Esquire, Cosmopolitan etc. puts me away because I never could relate to or enjoy the content printed in those magazines (not that I have checked out a lot of them). Ashik did not explain what the article was about than asking me to read it, and since it is him who recommends, I saved the link to to read later. And it was one funny, thoughtful piece though it spans over 5 long pages. To give you a brief idea of what it is, this one is about Radical Honesty. As it says in the beginning, “This story is about something called Radical Honesty. It may change your life. (But honestly, we don’t really care.)” Read more at the Esquire page.

Meet Masarat Daud

I have a thing against the Burqa. I think that thing represents a system of oppression designed by religion and men. Burqa, in my mind, has always remained to be a symbol of oppression, no matter how much those religious folks try to justify it by calling it a way of “protection”. So I was slightly amused when this Burqa-clad woman followed me on Twitter and had a look at her profile and there she is – A Burqa-clad woman who is fighting the very same thing that I think Burqas represent – Oppression.

Meet Masarat Daud, who is working to set girls of our rural areas free from oppression using education as a tool and bringing an event like TEDx to India’s villages, even with fighting the religious orthodoxy. Masrat runs an educational program called 8 Day Academy. She is changing the face of education in rural India through her work and is responsible for hundreds of girls getting the opportunity to attend schools. Since February 2009, Masarat has held three sessions of 8-Day Academy in her hometown Fatehpur, Rajasthan, training teachers and students from a local school in Computers and in Public Speaking & Communication skills. After eight days of Computers training, the team was able to use MS Word, MS Paint and know the theory of computing. All this by people who had never seen a computer before!

And then she brought TEDx to Shekhavati and you can read/listen more about her exciting and inspiring stories here and here . Also see her TEDx Shekhavati speech below: