finally its here.. Uber Nation fashion brand.

Uber Nation launched at Uber nation

Facebook fan page at Uber Nation Facebook Fan page
Twitter at Uber Nation twitter page

ubernation developes new innovative trends for youth.Themes include street wear, street fashion, funky, contemporary trends, playful styling.

Is there any future for biotech at all??

Quite thought provoking question, ain't it? My take on this:

Lets start by defining the 'future':
Does future mean usability or creating jobs (like comp science :D). Both are valid.

Usability:

It is highly usable and we could see that in the new medicines coming to market. Theoretically, there is a lot of potential to find cure for every known disease to mankind.

Creating jobs: the main issue

As it happens with any new scientific and technological advancement, biotechnology also created jobs. But i guess the point is how many? and why not job creating is not in-line with the hype given to it?

Media gave too much hype about the potential to cure...the hype was inferred as the potential to create jobs. There is a gap.

Little deeper: So what kind of jobs did biotechnology create?

Yes, those guys with flashing white coats looking down a microscope right at the baddys causing problems. And a whole lot of business administration, finance, technology commercialization, regulatory affairs, intellectual property and science policy based jobs. But the success of the biotechnology is being measured only based on the number of people in whites. Only 16-17% of sales revenue is being spent on R&D (www.phrma.org), which is lower than spending in other departments.

All the b.tech/b.sc biotechnology graduates have the idea and ability to work in whites. There are lot of jobs created by biotechnology in other departments. The subjects i took in b.tech covered every nook and corner of science and research topics (even neuroscience :D) but not a hint about regulatory affairs, finance etc.

Most of the people I know (including myself) doing higher studies in biotechnology are averse to research based jobs because of low pay and not much scope to grow. But are not prepared for
other jobs (including myself).

Part II: what can be done?...coming soon

A Wonderful Story

I came across this wonderful story of Vijay Rayapati, who is now an experienced (failed) entrepreneur at the age of 23. I felt really really happy to see somebody breaking the barrier of external forces (like parents, friends, hot careers) and pursuing his dream of becoming an entrepreneur. Although he failed to execute his dream properly, I believe he is a successful entrepreneur. I believe every one of us wants to do something before the external forces start overpowering our passion.

The questions is 'What it takes to pursue one's dream in the midst of all these external forces?'

OR as Vijay puts

How many of us can dare to change from what we are now to what we want to be?

I strongly recommend you to read the following blog post of his failed start-up story. Kudos to Vijay Rayapati.

Here is the link:
http://www.pluggd.in/2008/07/on-startup-failure-what-we-are-and-what-we-dream-to-be-why-my-software-startup-has-failed-and-how-i-went-bankrupt

My fortune

You Will Have A Very Comfortable Old Age

Dr Bhavishya Kumar @ Orkut

Oh yea! Thanks. Like I Care.

The Blame Game

Context: Rising Oil prices. Recently held Oil Summit in Jeddah.

Characters:

1. Western, rich countries = USA represented by Samuel Bodman, US Secretary of Energy.
2. Developing countries = China- no representation, India by P.Chidambaram, Finance minister; Murli Deora, Minister of Petroleum and natural gas.
3. Oil producing countries = Saudi Arabia by Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi.

Lets start the game. Well, if USA is present in any game (be it oil game, war on terrorism game or nuclear bombing game), it will go first. No questions asked.

Mr. Bodman said:

Market fundamentals (of supply and demand) show us that production has not kept pace with growing demand for oil, resulting in increasing -- and volatile -- prices. Every 1 percent increase in the demand for oil requires a 20 percent rise in price to balance the market. Demand in China, India and the Middle East has been soaring in recent years as the countries consume more energy to fuel economic growth.

In essence, he is blaming the increasing demand by the developing countries (which is obvious) and also the Saudis for not increasing the production. But he never raised the issue of curbing the consumption by US (indeed, they are the largest consumers!!).

Ali al-Naimi expressed his concern that oil prices are being driven by financial factors like speculators and not by supply and demand.

Speculators are a tribe who intelligently (i doubt that) predicts the future of oil prices by looking at obscure data all day long (and makes nothing less than 100 grand!). So basically this tribe reacts to the reaction of reactions of (read chain reaction) ..oil ministers, industry leaders, politicians and they use their much debated analysis and brilliance to raise the prices.

P Chidambaram blames futures trading and unregulated oil markets and he denied increase in demand has anything to do with the situation. Well I can't explain what this Harvard Business School alumni is saying (Ever wonder why there is an absence of commotion in the Assembly while this guy is talking!!...Its damn hard to get it.)

So as we can see there is lot of blaming on others rather than a consensus about the real issues.

Ciao! Pizzzaaa!

Its 12.40pm. Lunch time.

I had nothing from the morning so I could not work anymore without something in my stomach. So, for the first time I checked out the menu of Commons (medical center dining area). Water side..expensive, Sushi..naaa, Hugo's taqueria...not now, ciao! pizza!...YES YES. Thats what i am looking for. Hello! Pizza!..I am coming. On my 14 seconds journey of 11 floors, i had these mouth-watering thoughts..courtesy: Papa John's, University drive, College station (i miss it :( ).

Commons is usually pretty busy at this time, but there is nobody at Ciao!. I am lucky. So I reached the counter as fast as I could.

And in thick-accented English:

Q: Can I hv two slices of veggie pijja.. (oops! i am supposed to say peeet-jaa)
A: She scratched her head. Twice.

I am enough to guess that she dint understand my question but understood that I am damn hungry.

I must help her. My accent got better now (it happens if i want to). Repeat. Communication succeeded. She has only spinach kind. "Sure", I said. (I would eat anything right now).

I don't usually ask too many questions on food. But i guess, due to my thoughts about Papa john's, I asked about crust selections they have. Reply: "we have the best!". Excellent. She passed the box to me which is closed. I couldnt see the slices. Paid. Table with a good view of water falls.

Now is the moment. I opened the box. NOWAY!!!. The slices look like they have been air-dried from a long time. I saw 3 and 4 big, dry green spots on them. It is spinach. I must eat this and I started. The 'best crust' is the hardest crust i ever had. After few hard bites I finished it. I understood why there is nobody at the counter during the busiest time.

Goodbye! Pizza! Never to return!

Ciao means either hello or goodbye. But for me its goodbye for Ciao! Pizza!

-Hari

Hari Kishore-Shaped Hole

I left college station today for Houston, for Internship, for a Career, for a Future. On the way, in the back seat of widely known Ground Shuttle, I was thinking about the difference my absence would make for anybody in college station. I am not sure whether there will be any 'Hari Kishore-shaped hole' in college station for months (or days) to come. But I will try my best to make sure that there will be a hole in Houston when I leave.

HK TM

Devotional Culture of Indians in U.S

I was in Dallas with my friend for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is on Thursday. Thursday is an auspicious day for praying Sri Sai Baba (one of Hindu gods). So I started my day by visiting a temple of Sri Sai Baba. And these thoughts crossed my mind while I was at the temple.

Every year thousands of Indians are coming to USA for many reasons. What are they doing regarding devotion as Hindus?

From what I have seen at the temple, no wonder that they are trying their best to adhere to the devotional culture(s)(I cannot possibly explain the differences in devotional cultures for it would be a big study). I immediately started thinking about the persons behind the existence of this temple. One obvious thing about them is their motivation and persistence.

The temple I visited is in a business complex, to its right is Driving License office and to my surprise(also ironical) there is a church on its left(Y?!!).

I thank those people who have worked hard to set the temple there and also thank the people who are not forgetting the culture and passing it to the next generation. I am very happy with these developments and would like to be a part of it soon. I had finished the rituals before I could pray. The prayer would have been the same as above thoughts.

Did I mention that the 'prasadam' was as great as the view of the Sai Baba? :)

21 Years 265 Days Old. I Still Don't Know How To Approach A Girl I Like. HELP ME!!

Where do I start?

Let me introduce myself as a dumbest adult guy in this world.

So guys and girls out there...Help me how to do it.

Globalization

Globalization has been a buzz word between 2000-2005. Now the world seems to be accepting, adopting and adapting it.

What happened to those who defined globalization as 'a threat to USA'?
In 'The World is Flat', Thomas Friedman wrote 'America as a whole will benefit more by sticking to the basic principles of free trade, as it always has, than by trying to erect walls.'

Perhaps these people have not succeeded in erecting those walls. When everybody is trying to understand globalization as a new form of force, such as the freedom fight by Gandhi in India, which will not harm anybody but can hurt. It certainly did.

And now, in 2007, Everybody (who tried it!) seems to be benefited from globalization except USA. Spending power seems to be decreasing, imports are greater than exports from a couple of years. Nope, i don't believe these measures reflect the effects of globalization. Certainly, many people are attributing globalization to the recession in American economy. I believe that USA is glittering but not a gold anymore.

As far as I can think of, the reasons for USA less of gold is:

1. Motivation of the people
-- During cold war Russian Sputnik motivated USA to pursue engineering, science and math to surpass Russian missile. Today, there is no such force that could unite USA.
2. Education
--Certainly, students from Asia seems to have upper hand in at least engineering education. Their long investments into education seems to payoff now. I see most of the students pursuing either biological sciences and engineering thorough masters and ph.d are from Asia. They definitely would prevail in long-term.
3. Dog-bone politics
--Before coming to USA, I was amused at the political system of this country. I am irritated by politics in my country and was excited to see the system here. Without any objections, political system in this country has been a good one. Now, like an iceberg in Antarctic drifting due to global warming, very slowly, politics in this country are moving (precisely 'drifting') away. The direction of this 'drift' is difficult to understand but nonetheless needs attention. I do not know how to get that attention.

Today, I joined one form of globalization: facebook.

Have blast on Thanksgiving!!

Networking seems to be working!!

Today....Networking day of my life.

I e-mailed one person of my friend and got a positive and positive reply. I am happy. I want to keep this contact alive!

Deepavali - I love this day!!

Ttoday, the Friday, the day of lab meeting and TA meeting, the day of joy in USA.

For me and People in India, today is Deepavali....

I started my day with sleeping. got up and called home, another home and my friend who changed my life 6 years ago....This friend sounded very sad, may be because of sleepiness, but could be due to what to happened to her life. Like many girls in rural India, she has aspirations and ambitions. But could not really make it. Marriage and unsupportive in-laws made it difficult to reach her ambitions. Yet she has that undying zeal for life, not found in many other rural Indian girls, to achieve many things in life. may be my writing skills are not effective in describing her and her motivation, but you got it. didn't you?

Thursday with a difference

today as usual wasted most of my time in sleeping....but i was productive in the afternoon and i called four companies about internship and it happened....Lisa power lifted the phone finally and we spoke to each other for half an hour. i am excited...also worried..i really do not know wether she said a yes or no. and coming to genomics meeting, nothing happened that would give me a good grade.