http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight November 13, 2006*

*Volume IX Issue III Students’ Gymkhana IIT Bombay

General Secretary, Sports ● Vinay’s Manifesto proposed a host of is- - Kuppa Vijay Krishna sues that would be addressed such as dis- Mid Tenure GS Review counted mobile phone services, publicis- Achievements In a bid to make the institute GSs more accountable to the student ing of minutes of various meetings, proper ● A taekwondo centre has been estab- community, we conduct a review of the work done thus far. maintenance of the hostel affairs website, lished, as well as workshops held in swim- etc. However, only a few of them have ● Publicity: The publicity of sports (and General Secretary, Hostel Affairs ming, tennis, volleyball and football. been delivered so far. Since the GSHA’s cultural) events is highly dependent on in- - Vinay Sharma ● A proper sports orientation was held work is directly related to the problems of stitute funding and approval, unlike that of for UG and PG freshmen unlike in previ- students regarding institute infrastructural the self-funded independent bodies. As a Achievements ous years when it was clubbed with orien- facilities, it is imperative that he be in con- result, there is not much knowledge about ● A proposal for the setting up of a Stu- tations of other activities. stant communication with the students. At these events; this issue has been taken up dent Welfare Society has been approved ● Screening of the football World Cup. the same time, it must be said that he has with the concerned authorities. in principle by the Director. The Society is ● Inter-IIT put in a lot of effort to pursue the particular ● Inter-IIT contingent: The strength has aimed at addressing student problems di- 1. Part-time coaches have been appointed issues that he has taken up thus far. to train some teams before Inter-IIT - bad- been increased to 130, but the number of rectly and not via the Estate Office. Funds minton, weightlifting and swimming. girls has been reduced to 15 (from 20), for this are expected from the institute with Manifesto-related issues 2. The daily allowance during Inter-IIT has meaning that some Women’s teams will contributions from alumni. ● A 24-hour Printing and Xerox shop as been increased from Rs.110 to Rs.150. not be represented, in order to bolster the ● A Hostel Maintenance Committee is in well as a Late Night Canteen: The pro- 3. The cost of messing per day during In- chances of the Men’s contingent. the process of being set up. It aims to plan posals for these two have already been ter-IIT (borne by the institute, for all mem- ● Inter-IIT travel: Campus placements ahead for maintenance work, set deadlines accepted. The delay is being caused by st bers attending Inter-IIT camp) has been in- this year begin on Dec 1 , halt on Dec and have someone accountable for the ex- the unavailability of suitable venues; the th nd creased from Rs.110 to Rs.130 in the hope 9 for Inter-IIT and resume on Dec 22 . ecution of work within these deadlines. building near H 8 (old Chinks) is now oc- A lot of effort went into arranging partial 0 that quality of food will increase. For e.g., every year there are complaints cupied by NCC. air-travel for the final year students, with regarding leakage in hostels, but after the ● Cheaper call rates for campus dwell- 1 Shortcomings some subsidy from the institute and a con- monsoons the issue is forgotten. The job of ers: Vinay is due for a meeting with Hutch ● Sponsors for Inter-IIT track suits could tribution from the rest of the team. How- the committee is to ensure that such com- sometime soon, to discuss this further. not be acquired though mentioned in the ever, this contribution worked out to be too plaints are followed up by timely action. ● Centralised Distribution of Raw Ma- manifesto. much and unaffordable to some; hence, fi- ● The geyser problems of all hostels have terials: The old system of central procure- ● Basic tasks such as updating the sports nally all members will be going by train. been resolved by the purchase of sufficient ment of rations (operative till last semester) section of the gymkhana website have not ● Though all attending Inter-IIT camp numbers. has fallen apart, and now hostels procure been completed. will have to pay Rs.530 for track suits, an these commodities individually. The bot- Shortcomings increase of Rs.80 over last year, this is to tleneck however at present is the fact that Manifesto-related issues ● Poor internal transportation: This An issue that irks us at InsIghT is the bloat- ensure that those who make it for camp, the wardens are against this system. but not to the final team, are still rewarded. i s - sue was covered extensively in ing up of manifestos. The manifestos of all our previous issue (‘Tum-tum Other issues the GS Sports candidates looked similar To conclude, while several new initiatives tamasha’). However, the prob- ● Wireless network will be pursued in the last year with many promises of unachiev- have been taken thus far, an actual lem has still not been completely next semester; initial cost-estimates sug- able goals. Kuppa’s manifesto had points idea of the progress made in resolved. Vinay clarifies that to gest that this is quite feasible. However, such as the organisation of a Sports Fes- the sports scene will only rectify this, 8 tum-tums will be this proposal is still in the pipeline. tival, restructuring of NSO and formation be possible next semester, purchased early next semester. ● Dr. S. N. Jha, NSO coach, has proposed of a Sports Club. It is high time the GSs which will see most Sports The institute will take care of an idea of having a Doctor in SAC beyond showed some accountability with respect GC events taking place. 5 P.M. This will be further pushed from the the costs for now, but the to what is proposed in their manifestos. side of the students in the next semester. (Groundwork by Rohit Student Welfare Society Other issues Hippalgaonkar) would be involved in future payments. (Groundwork by Ruchir and Nithya) General Secretary, Cultural Af- the week immediately after the ● The attempt to fairs - Sai Krishna Thota midsems didn’t have any major draft a Cult Cal- ● Open House: When is it happening and event. endar (though t e n t a t i v e ) what are the plans? Achievements: was well appreciated by one and all. The council has planned to have a muli- - Sai clarifies that they had to keep the ● ‘Theatre Fest’ as a 6-day extravaganza: But a lot of rescheduling was done and in session Open House early next semester. inter-hostel events on hold because of the The event was sponsored by LIC (which some cases, events were even cancelled. The hostels would be divided into pools of delay in the formation of new councils in gave around Rs.30,000) and the institute Towards the end of the semester, Ad Film 3-4 and the council would visit each pool most hostels. had to only spend an additional amount of Making and Entertainment Quiz had to be separately and interact directly with the - Expecting the Diwali break to be only 2- Rs.15,000. postponed to the next semester. hostel councils and other students for any 3 days long, the council had not foreseen a ● Hasya Kavi Sammelan: Students’ doubts/complaints that they might have. 9-10 day lull in cultural events. It resulted - The Cult Council attributes the need for Council took over the responsibility from ● SAC library: What is its current status in over-crowding on the other available rescheduling to lots of unforeseen events the Hindi Cell and conducted it more pro- and future plans? days. like the NASI Convention as well as the fessionally, thus receiving a much better The severe budget constraint that the - His plan was to give people some time quiz weeks of sophies in particular. So, response. council is facing this year as compared to come out of the midsems’ state of mind. they chose to try to ensure maximum par- ● Spic Macay events were held in a spe- to last year is the reason why nothing has So the week just after saw simpler events ticipation by holding the events on more cial 4-day format to arouse interest and been done so far. Sai promises a revival of and workshops. convenient dates. then capitalise on this on the latter days. the library next semester, within the con- ● Revival of Gyrations and introduction ● A two-tier point system was announced Manifesto-related issues straints of the budget and will also publi- of Photography as a GC event for the first for group and individual events but this is ● Freshie GC: Why is it not happening? cise the work done in this regard. time. still very nebulous unless one clearly de- The DoSA is not in favour of a Freshie Other issues ● Active functioning of the Lit Club. fines what comprises a group or individual GC, not even a weekend event like last ● Why are so many hostel fests mush- event. And the decision as to what a partic- year and wants all freshie interaction and Shortcomings and Sai’s responses rooming in spite of the fact that they are ular event should be classified under was participation to be through clubs and open ● Cult Calendar was overloaded with found lacking in many respects? left till very late, even after the event in events. 4 major events happening back to back - Sai clearly states that he is not particular- some cases. ● GBM (one per semester proposed): Hindi Band Event, Street Play, Gyrations ly in favour of hostel fests. He expresses When is it happening? and Socials. As a result, many believe that - Sai admits that the issue wasn’t clarified doubts as to how profitable they are for the A GBM had been tentatively decided to be the quality of entries was sacrificed. Since completely and that there was confusion hostels and is concerned about the wastage held in early November. But it didn’t ma- some of these events required the same set regarding the classification of events. But of both paper and time resulting from the terialise. The 4 GSecs have now decided of people, it resulted in burn-out as is evi- the council promises to remedy this situa- extensive publicity done for such fests. to hold a common GBM in the first/second dent from the fact that 3 hostels backed out tion immediately after the winter break. of Gyrations. Also, it must be noted that week of January. (Groundwork by Vivek and Nithya)

> InsIghT is the students’ newsletter of IIT Bombay. The views expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of Students’ Gymkhana, IIT Bombay. Any reproduction of these contents must include proper attribu- tion and a link back to the InsIghT website. 2 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight t’s that time of the year again when ing the placement season. There is also Ione finds final year students engaged Placements Hungama some serious infrastructure revamp on its in earnest discussions and never-ending way - an increase in interview rooms in the cack sessions with ex-students in solitude. Sriram Emani and Saurabh Das give a complete round-up of what to placement office from the present 7 to 15, Speculation and paranoia enjoy an all-time expect this placements season. video conferencing and ISD facilities. For high, and words like resumé, PPT, short- thrice, the resumés were finally uploaded, ducted workshops on resumé writing, case this year, venues being considered are the list, package make the laziest of final year flush with extravagantly worded tales of solving, derivatives and so on, to acquaint placement office, KReSIT building, SOM, students perk up their ears. A time when achievements. One wonders why a PDF aspiring candidates with some essential Physics Dept and GG. the most ‘cool-dude’ senior in your hos- format won’t suffice, considering that half basics. After a very encouraging placement sea- tel scandalises you by worrying about his the batch has no HTML fundae! For the first time ever, the placement team son last year, expectations are high. But CPI! It’s placement season again! conducted an opinion poll amongst those PPT (Un)culture gearing up for placements is not trivial and registered for placements to find out their PPTs (Pre-Placement Talks) this year got the random, last minute preparation we are The Prologue preferences (about order of companies, their fair share of bouquets and brickbats. used to will get one nowhere. In addition to Last semester itself, there were rumours etc.). The placement team went about the Leading corporate firms leveraged brand some general reading material, the place- flying around about the advancement of final scheduling by considering various image and high pay packets to tether people ment team has sent in a well-compiled ‘Be the placement season. As expected, this criteria, the major ones being company st to their seats, but others had students walk- Prepared’ document, listing interview ex- year placements begin on Dec. 1 , the day profile, job profile, past history with IITB ing out midway (after the announcement periences of last year’s students. For those of BTP/DDP presentations for many and and remuneration offered. There has been of a low package) and refusing to main- who are still clueless where to start, we of- almost three weeks earlier than last year. an organised profile-based slotting of com- st tain decorum. The pizzas however as al- fer some tips (see Box). The first phase of placements from 1 to panies this year, with consulting kick-start- around 9th Dec. promises to be a roller- ways got the most attention. Malnourished coaster ride with over 40 companies ex- IITians literally jumped and made a dash How to Prepare for Interviews for the pizzas the moment a PPT ended, pected to come in, packed in 6-a-day sa- We spoke to a few seniors about how they since tech companies typically have ca- leaving senior management personnel of chets. The cherry on the cake (or is it?) is went about preparing last year and what sual dress codes. the companies totally dumbstruck. Those the fact that this semester’s grades will not they learnt from their experiences. What ● Be super confident. As long as you are who managed to recover soon enough con- be updated in the CPI for the first phase, follows is a fusion of their comments. in control, composed and full of self be- tributed feedback like: they shall matter only in the second phase lief, the job is yours for the taking. Just th THE COMPANY: of placements which begin around 20 “Do these people really want to take up believe strongly that you were always ● Do you homework to understand how Dec., after Inter IIT. the job? From their behaviour it seems meant to be in this company. it would be to work in the company they do not actually want this. Is it that the The term ‘Resumé’ entered daily jargon ● Speak to seniors and use the website to profile is bad or is it always the case with COMMON DOS 0 and enjoyed demi-god status for the first learn about the work profile, growth op- 2 all companies?” ● Turn up bright for the interview. What people want in a job portunities, lifestyle and exit options. ● Have clothes and other material in “We go to various campuses place one night before (clothes ironed, across the world like MIT, Carn- THE INTERVIEW: shoes polished etc.). egie besides other IITs. You are ● Study your resumé. You should have at ● Get up early and have a good break- now competing against such oth- least 5 minutes of gyaan on every bullet fast. er campuses. But let me make this in your resumé. Something as insignifi- ● Speak to a few people outside IIT and very clear: if this is the kind of cant as your interest in movies could be a calm yourself before the interview. response students give in PPTs, topic of conversation. ● Shut your ears and eyes to what others we might have to reconsider our ● Understand yourself in terms of your are doing/achieving. A job that is good decision to recruit from here…” core skills, interests, strengths, weak- for one can be disastrous for another. Where people want to be placed nesses, career aspirations, expectations, “We go to top management insti- hobbies, etc.; you should be able to proj- COMMON DON’TS tutes around the country and they ect yourself strongly and consistently ● Take too much NBD, especially when treat us nothing short of rolling - you are not short listed in any company out red carpets. Evidently from WHAT TO CARRY INTO THE IN- coming on the first day/week and all your today’s behaviour, IIT Bombay TERVIEW wingmates/ friends are. thinks they are the smart ones. ● Copies of resume, basic stationery - you don’t make it in your first inter- And then you guys ask us why we (pen, pencil, eraser) and most of all a view. don’t hire from your institute!” bright, enthusiastic, well dressed you. ● Look at the shortlist and start rating ● Additionally, you could carry some- So what’s new this year? your chances against others. Avoid all thing unique to you that might interest Going by the PPTs so far, it’s ap- gossip in insti about who has a good the interviewer. For e.g., a copy of the parent that there are many new chance and who has a stud resume. Just newspaper you are the editor of or some Sample surveyed : 343 UGs + 269 PGs Courtesy: Placement team firms coming in. Both consult- focus on yourself, your strengths and be press clippings that are relevant to your ing and investment banking firms have positive. achievements. This is very situational half of the semester, with junta fishing increased in number. Foreign placements ● Prepare for interviews on the last day and you should be comfortable doing it. out all their credentials, right from posts will also almost certainly see a rise with held in IITB to that freshie year elocution firms like Mercer Oliver, Opera Solutions, THE LOOK AND ATTIRE (Inputs from Amit Ghorawat, Priyanka where they finished 3rd and a district lev- Merrill Lynch debuting in IITB. The aver- ● Wear a suit for consulting firms, I- Jain and Salim Dewani. Amit, Priyanka el athletics bronze in 8th standard! After age salary is expected to go up. Firms are banks and foreign companies. and Salim are all alumni of the 2006 fiercely wrestling with the HTML format exploring various means of making their ● For Indian companies especially tech batch and are placed with BCG, ZS As- and having the deadline being postponed presence felt. Some firms have even con- ones, suit might be a little intimidating sociates and McKinsey respectively. )

(...Continued from Page 1) ● A presentation was made in the Institute Faculty Meeting held on Nov. 1st to point General Secretary, Academic Mid Tenure GS Review out the need to improve the teaching en- Affairs - Rohit Kumar till 1 A.M. during examinations. Science Club is required to ensure that ● A uniform PT policy has been drafted events are organised regularly. vironment by including more visual aids, for all departments so as to benefit maxi- ● The persistent problem of stipend delay ensuring greater stress on practical appli- Achievements mum number of students. This will be needs to be addressed. cations, and inviting guest lecturers from ● The Biswas Committee is dealing with implemented next year. ● The promise of reducing the minimum the industry and academia. the very important issues of flexibility in ● Academic assistance program for 2nd number of students needed to run a summer the course structure, overall reduction and 3rd year UG students across all depart- course has still not materialised. However, Vox Populi in the number of credits, possibilities of ments has been implemented. The final Rohit confirms that the Dean has agreed to On the whole, most people are happy with the major-minor program etc. Recently, policies are being framed. make an exception if this rule comes in the the way the current GSAA has gone about elaborate feedback forms were distributed ● A MoU has been signed with Hutch to way of a student getting his/her degree. discharging his duties. Several issues have in various departments to collect student extend their bulk messaging service Cam- ● Nothing concrete has been done yet re- been addressed and dealt with satisfacto- opinions on academic issues. Rohit has pus-Connect to IIT Bombay. The service garding the issue of basic criteria for the rily. The concerned authorities have also addressed the issue of restructuring of the would be available shortly. registration of B.Techs for M.Tech cours- voiced their satisfaction with his function- Environmental Science Course in the Civil ● The Placement Body has been func- es. ing. But there still are a few areas where and Metallurgy departments to the Com- tioning smoothly with all the department some work needs to be done. All said and mittee. placement nominees working in close tan- Other Issues done though, the GSAA has achieved a ● For the first time, an academic orienta- dem. ● Information has been collected from all fair amount in the first half of his tenure. tion was organised to familiarise freshmen departments regarding the laboratory facil- We hope that he continues the good work. with the institute’s academic scene. Shortcomings ities/infrastructure. The logistics and eco- ● The institute library has remained open ● Better coordination with TechniC and nomics are currently being worked out. (Groundwork by Arunabh Sinha) 3 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight As a follow-up to our article on career you’d be expected to handle both in equal choices in the previous issue, we preview measure. Contrary to widespread opinion, two other hot career options available to At the Crossroads II IITians are hired for their contribution to recruit us seem to value us very highly! Akshay Saxena (Saxy) IITians. Lakshmi Narayanswamy and the thought process rather than analysis. Akshay Saxena, both passed out of IIT In spite of the hectic lifestyle, I am quite Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article Analysis in consulting, as in research, is Bombay in 2006. Lakshmi is currently at home here. Contrary to popular belief, are based on four months of work experi- an offshoot of thought. pursuing her MBA at IIM Calcutta. Ak- there is barely any RGgiri. In fact, people ence at BCG. Generalisations may or may Consulting gives you the unique advan- shay is employed as an Associate with are extremely helpful – be it quick fundae not apply to all consulting firms. tage of looking at businesses from a the Boston Consulting Group. sessions by the student who knows most Alumni Speak At IIT Bombay, we tend to tire of clichés. detached point of view. Your work will before an exam or the chap with a motor- Over the time we spend on campus we not revolve around day to day process. Lakshmi Narayanswamy (LN) cycle who wanders the campus ready to learn enough about the ‘IITian’ to take You will work with a new company and pick up anyone walking to submit an as- “Why do you want to do an MBA?” the compliments showered upon us with a possibly even a new industry every four signment seconds before the deadline. You – I must have practiced the answer to this pinch of salt. What, then, does one make of months, avoiding the monotony that are always looking out for each other and question a million times earlier this year. the world’s best consulting firms showing tends to set in with most other jobs. in the process, become friends for life. The Something must have sounded right, be- up at the LT, showering praise upon us and network doesn’t stop at your batch-mates However, contrary to campus life, as a cause here I am – five months into an MBA (miracle of miracles) actually hiring a few and seniors. It also grows into the influen- consultant you will have to prioritize and absolutely loving it. of us in ‘consulting’ roles. tial alumni circle which still keeps in touch everything; your work, your personal I came to this B-school simply because with the campus using an electronic dis- Given the long list of recruiters on campus life, your friends, partying (not nec- everybody thought it was a brilliant plan. cussion board. Finally, needless to say, the this year, consulting is one of the many op- essarily in this order). Time, at times, Because I did not like any of the other al- learning - both in the classroom and out- tions you have. Opinions on the consulting comes at a premium and needs to be man- ternatives I had. Yes, because of the money side - is a truly invaluable experience. job range from extremely cynical (“arre aged. You will begin to appreciate the val- too. (Of course, in the interview I called they just do excelgiri”) to outrageously ue of planners and Outlook and secretaries So how do you decide you are MBA mate- the first reason ‘a brilliant opportunity’, optimistic (“five years from now… I am (no kidding!). The average Associate work rial? It would be really easy if you knew the second ‘a best-fit to my skill-set’ and going to take over the world!”). The fol- day stretches up to 10 hours. What you do exactly what you wanted to do in life. the third ‘career-growth’.) The bottom-line lowing paragraphs attempt to help a large with the time might vary dramatically from Since that never happens, one could fol- being I really didn’t have a clue. number of you give careful consideration meetings with CEOs (who will promptly low these guidelines instead. First, know to consulting as a career choice in the short ask you how old you are) to calls to car So has anything changed now? Well, no what opportunities an MBA will give you term based on the life of an Associate at dealers in Brazil (“Hallo, you speak Eng- and yes. I still am undecided about being – openings in big investment banks and the Boston Consulting Group. lish?”) to re-phrasing presentations and an investment banker. But I do like what I consulting firms, designing marketing engaging in involved analysis. You will am learning here and now know the myths strategies for products, focusing on tech- The toughest question you have to answer 0 have to use every skill you’ve learnt over 3 from the facts. And in retrospect, a lot of nical aspects like operations and systems, is, “Will I really like consulting?” There the years and you’ll have to learn more in other things that I would have liked to knowledge as well as contacts in industry are, and have been myths on campus what can only be described as a ‘vertical know when making my decision about an to help you run your own business. It classifying consulting as a ‘lifestyle learning curve’. If you believe that you MBA. Of course, I give these fundae with could even be an initial career’. Consulting is not the ‘work can perform in these situations and also en- all standard disclaimers attached! step to becoming a PhD hard, party harder’ joy them (as opposed to just living through in economics. If any model that consult- Yes, you stay up late working. You are sur- them) you are meant for consulting. of these appeal to you, ing firms would rounded by all sorts of assignments and that is reason enough! have you believe. The peer group at consulting firms is projects. You will have to work in groups Next, determine where Enjoying consulting unique. The diverse backgrounds of people that are randomly and differently assigned and when you would is most importantly around you (ranging from double doctor- for different courses. The scheduling of want to do your MBA. about enjoying the ates to economics graduates and from art- each day becomes a task that probably ex- Doing an MBA abroad job and its challeng- ists to lawyers) will help you put your abil- plains why Personal Organisers and simi- would require work ex- es. The partying is there ities in perspective and keep you in touch lar gadgets make so much money. And the perience. In India, doing an MBA but largely incidental. As a con- with reality. Among the biggest advantag- whining about already pressing deadlines without experience has its own sultant you’ll always have es of working with a global consulting firm just doesn’t work. But one can still make it pros and cons. I chose the direct enough money to splurge, it is that you can use the expertise available all fall neatly into place. The secret is not MBA path because I was certain is time that will be at a pre- in international offices (from nations as working hard – it is working smart. Pri- that I would not come mium. Put simply, you distant as Brazil or as culturally differenti- oritise, plan and split work. Master the art back to academics once will love consulting ated as China) on your work in India and of speed-reading and whipping up a good I started working. Finally, if you’re meant for also meet some interesting people and visit presentation within minutes. Time man- should you zero in on your consulting and if it meets some unusual places in the process agement is not just another phrase – it is choice immediately after IIT, make sure your goals and aspirations. As an the skill that is essential to survive. A large part of what has been put down you are aware of and ready to deal with IITian, you will always love the partying. will seem distant to you. However, ten Another important fact to remember about the pace of the program. The biggest adjustment one makes in the months from now you might just be writ- a B-school is that it actually is the Great initial months is from rubber slippers ing the next version of this article. As a last Indian Pit-stop for a vast majority of stu- The bottom-line is – make sure you know to leather shoes. The rest tends to fall in word of advice, make your choices care- dents. It is a two-year rollercoaster with why you want the MBA. If it is for the place. The core work is not too different fully and like everything that you will hear one goal in mind – placements. Even the money, so be it. To quote an Investment from your BTP (assuming you actually through recruiting season, take this article cultural clubs have a formal structure and banker who was selling his line of work - did some work). Just replace the “Heat with a pinch of salt. Many among us look strict membership criteria – after all, it is a “There are three kinds of people who make Exchanger Network Optimization” with at a career in consulting as a shortcut to an CV point. The amount of preparation one loads of money – sport stars, top Holly- “International Growth Strategy” and you Ivy League business school. Consulting is does for the summer and final placements wood actors and investment bankers. And should get the picture. It’s a lot of think- a career choice and in more ways than one, is equivalent to two courses. And for good the first two need some talent!” ing and a lot of analysis. As an associate a way of life. reason – the big global firms that come to

PanIIT Alumni Conference 2006 all the swimming gold medals and placing A record 5,000 IITians (many of whom from Bulletin Board second in water polo, two meet records were overseas) are expected to participate in the Global Pa- set. The end result – all the 15 Inter IIT Swimming nIIT Alumni Conference 2006 to be held in Mumbai from December 23rd to 25th. In records are now in the name of IIT Bombay. Talk about a whitewash! a bid to encourage entrepreneurship and the contributions of IITians towards nation building, the theme of the conference is ‘IIT: Inspire, Involve & Transform India.’ Dr. Karmarkar visits campus President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam will inaugurate the event and Prime Minister Dr. Man- Dr. Narendra K. Karmarkar, the renowned scientist and alumnus of IIT Bombay, mohan Singh will give an address. There will be discussions held on how to develop visited the campus last month to give a talk on ‘New Direction in High Performance India as a knowledge economy, how to bring professionalism in governance and how Computing’, in the Aagomani lecture series organised by EESA, Electrical Engg to improve the standard of living in Indian cities. The importance of entrepreneurship Dept. He is best known for his algorithm, ‘Karmarkar’s algorithm’, meant for solv- will also be stressed upon. In this regard, the work done by IIT-Bombay’s Society for ing linear programming problems in polynomial time. Of late, Dr. Karmarkar has Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE) will also be highlighted. been in the news for leading a team of scientists involved in an ambitious project to create the world’s first petaflop supercomputer at Computational Research Labs, IITB monopolises Inter-IIT Aquatics records Pune. Millions of dollars are being spent currently by superpowers like the US and The annual Inter-IIT Aquatics meet was held at IIT Guwahati from October Japan to crack this problem. This new breed of supercomputers could have a 1st to 4th. The performance of the IIT Bombay swimming contingent this year wide range of applications in biotechnology, defense and even weather fore- was exceptional, even with regards to its high standards. Besides bagging casting. 4 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight

he lush green campus of IIT Bombay proposed new wings (an addition of only Tis home to over 10,000 residents. Over Accommodation Woes around 950 rooms) would be sufficient to the years, the campus has seen an increas- only temporarily make up for the shortage. ingly large number of people pouring in. With an eye on the severe space crunch facing the institute, Siddhartha It is obvious that speedy progress towards And it has accepted all of them, generous- Bagaria and Gautam Salhotra take a look at what lies ahead. hostels 14 and 15 is now a necessity which ly, with open arms. Building and develop- cannot be ignored. ing slowly from the once sparsely popu- been given double room accommodation tions are going on with the same architect, lated region, it has grown into the now in those hostels having more spacious Hafeez Contractor. The basic architecture In the long run harmonious spread of human co-existence rooms. will be the same but the sky-bridge will be Firstly, one needs to understand that up- with nature. However in recent times, the given a skip, due to maintenance-related grades to the infrastructure in a govern- institute infrastructure has been under tre- What lies in store next year? costs. Instead, a floor (or half a floor) may ment-aided institute like ours are bound mendous pressure. IIT being a research institute, it is difficult be built as a recreational area in each of to take time amidst the protocol that needs to predict the exact figure of vacant or oc- these wings. Some other issues involved to be followed vis-à-vis board approvals, While the student intake has been on the cupied rooms at any given time. However, are cost escalation (to rectify problems fund allocation, design selection, BMC rise in the past few years, the infrastruc- we talked to the Dean SA, Prof. P. Gopalan faced earlier in 12 and 13), proximity to approval, tenders, etc. Extensions of ex- ture with regards to accommodation has regarding the most probable scenario next the lake (for H 13) and hilly terrain (for H isting hostels are also only feasible if the failed to come up to the mark. The arrival year and this is what he revealed. First year 12). On an optimistic note, it is expected land available around them is sufficient. of hostels 12 and 13 in 2003 brought some PG students will be paired up in all hostels that these new wings will be ready for oc- The area behind H 3 is a possible location much needed relief back then. However, as except H 12. There is a reasonably good cupation by the academic year 2008. This for a new wing provided the nursery is expected all along, the issue has reared its chance that third year UG students will will increase the total male student capac- shifted. We might even see a phased de- head yet again. This year saw the pairing not be paired up. However because of the ity of the hostels to around 4,500. molition of the H 10 wings to replace them up of sophomores. This decision invited seemingly comfortable floor space in hos- with G+7 structures. Keeping in mind the some juvenile action last year on the part tels 2 and 3, there is a possibility that these Moving on towards the heart of the cam- land resource scarcity of the campus, all of the then freshmen, primarily because students will have to wait for a year more pus (pun intended), a major facelift will new structures in the future will be G+7. the move was unanticipated. We take a to avail the luxury of having a room all for soon be evident in the form of a new G+7 Of course, proposals for a satellite campus look at what the scenario will be in the themselves. As far as H 11 is concerned, a (Ground+7) structure as a new wing of H are also under consideration. Possible lo- near future. provision of residence in the Staff Hostel 10. The demolition of the existing CPWD- cations are Gujarat, Goa and Vashi. and Staff Hostel Annexure is being consid- C building is being considered to make The present scenario ered, although this is only a tentative plan. space for this new wing. Board approv- Hostels 14 and 15 0 Currently, there are 3,486 single rooms and Three persons will have to share in the als for the same have been obtained. On 4 130 double rooms in the boys’ hostels (ex- more spacious Staff Hostel rooms and four completion, this will add about 200 rooms Board approvals for Hostels 14 and 15 to cluding Tansa), which totals to a capacity will have to share a flatlet type accommo- to H 10. The additional wing is again ex- be built on the other side of the pipeline of 3,746 male students. For girls, the num- dation in Staff Hostel Annexure. The exact pected to be available from the academic were granted as early as 2002. However, bers are 315 single rooms and 66 double number of rooms available and other de- year 2008. connectivity to the campus land behind rooms, thus providing residence for a total tails will be finalised by December. the pipeline is a problem since a subway of 447 girl students. Thus, the total capac- But is this enough? or an over-bridge for heavy traffic needs ity of the institute hostels is 4,193. Also, A ray of hope The current UG intake in the institute is to be built across the pipeline. Only then all these rooms are not necessarily used by The institute is extremely serious about around 600 per year and the PG intake can the area be developed for residen- students, as a few are used for non-resi- expanding the present infrastructure, keep- about 1,000. Earlier this year, the Gov- tial purposes. The pipeline is a strategic dential purposes (wardens’ offices, Xerox ing in mind the ongoing speculations of ernment announced a 54% increase in the organ of Mumbai city. Due to the sensi- shops etc.) As of July 2006, the institute affirmative action regarding the OBC res- total number of seats which will be imple- tivity involved, a specialist international had 4,505 students residing in the hostels, ervations. We spoke at length to the Dean mented in a phased manner over three agency, IRCON was consulted which 3,951 boys and 554 girls. Planning, Prof. R.K. Malik regarding this. years. The current shortage of rooms is evaluated and confirmed the feasibility Among the immediate plans are the con- estimated to be around 200. We conducted of building a subway. Paperwork for the At present, freshmen and sophomores live struction of new wings in hostels 10, 12 an analysis of the projected shortage of same is in progress. When the actual in double rooms in all hostels except H 13. and 13. Besides these, plans for Hostels 14 rooms that will result from the increase ground work for the hostels will begin In addition, some H 11 residents also share and 15 have been in the pipeline for four in seats of only the UG students (involves is however, still uncertain. Meanwhile, rooms. H 11 rooms are however, of a rea- years now (See Box). fewer variables than that for PGs). Assum- BMC approval has been obtained. The sonably large size - three girls are accom- ing the construction goes on as planned, hostels have not yet been designed but modated in the flatlets and two in a room. The addition of two new wings each in the shortage will still rise to 1,750 rooms the targeted capacity would be about Some girls are also staying in the CPWD- hostels 12 and 13 will add approximately in the year 2014, by when the population 800 each with both being G+7 struc- B building behind H-10. PGs mostly live 750 rooms to the sprawling 12-13 complex. will stabilise (see website for detailed tures. Nothing much can be said about in single rooms except for a few who have Currently in the design phase, negotia- analysis). The timely construction of the the tentative time of completion.

The Hostels Timeline -Srivathsan 5 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight

Every year, huge sums of money are stitute space. The system is quite clearly spent on student activities in the insti- For all it’s worth... well thought out, with a sharp eye on the tute – both by the institute and through bigger picture. The Dean, SA adds, “These funds generated through sponsors for Tarun Mathur and Parasvil Patel use the power of the Right to Infor- are still early days for this practice.” student festivals. InsIghT attempts to mation to analyse the budgets pertaining to student activities. give you a bird’s eye-view of these ex- This year, however, the institute has de- penditures. booking the IRCC auditorium, KReSIT digo and Techfest, the annual cultural and cided to reduce this cut from 30% to 20%. hall, SOM classrooms/foyer and so on. technical festivals of IIT Bombay respec- And no, it is not an incentive for the festi- Budget Structures The Institute does not charge for all the tively, as well as the Entrepreneurship vals to become bigger and better than ever. As regards IIT Bombay’s student festivals facilities however, Convocation Hall be- Cell. This money, unlike what skeptics In fact, in view of the sudden imposition Mood Indigo, Techfest and E-Cell, it is the ing free to use. The 30% that the institute might assume, does not go towards any of the Service Tax of 12.25%, the institute, sole responsibility of the festival organis- takes regardless of anything else, does not Institute Fund. Instead, it goes towards a recognising the paucity of time for festival ers to find the monetary resources requi- specifically cater to these infrastructural “Student’s Space”, as emphasised by the organisers to conjure up enough funds to site for the materialisation of their ideas. requirements, as we shall see. Dean, SA. The same could be utilised for maintain a usable budget comparable to The institute neither supports these festi- various purposes, catering to the general that of previous years, has decided to re- vals monetarily, nor provides the available The Cultural Body presents its budgetary student population. These may include in- duce this margin to 20%. This still means infrastructure free of cost. The institute, requirements to the institute in the form frastructural requirements like computers, that Mood Indigo, for example can only in fact, has been taking a 30% cut from of a break-up among various cultural ac- internal transport and the like. Events like use 67.75% of the sponsorship money it all sponsorship money (for the details of tivities, namely Dramatics, Music, Dance, the Manna Dey show held last year are also conjures up this year. However, there is which, see The Final Cut). The Institute Literary Arts, Debating, Fine Arts and held using money from this collection. worse news. From next year onwards, the Cultural, Sports and Technical Bodies are Photography. The major expenditure of the institute would resume taking its legiti- however, given sizeable grants for their Sports Body is in the name of the Inter-IIT Although the hard-earned money may not mate 30% cut from all sponsorship money smooth operations. Sports Meet. Here, the travel and sports be directly routed back towards the festi- collected. That means a whopping 42.25% equipment expenses take the cake. The vals, certain infrastructure that the insti- of festival funds would simply be useless The enormous funds that the festivals are boundaries for the distribution of budget tute invests in is indirectly put to use in for the festivals. However, on the brighter able to conjure up, are clearly accounted as far as the Sports Budget is concerned the organisation and/or implementation side, the 30% would, in most likelihood, for by various departments within - namely are hazy, since “the same equipment could of the festivals themselves. It is, however, be given back to the students. Events, Infrastructure/Logistics, Publicity, be used for more than one event”. Tech- the institute’s every intention to give all Prize Money, Payments to the Institute and niC and Science Club, the two technical of it back to the students - one way or the If one compares the scenarios in IIT Bom- Miscellaneous. Although on the face of it, clubs of IIT Bombay have meagre bud- other. And the festival organisers have no bay and IIT Madras, the IIT Madras bud-0 Events might seem to be the only depart- gets, but the work they put in is consider- complaints either. It is important to re- gets for Saarang (cult) and Shaastra (tech) 5 ment black-holing all the money, Infra- able. In fact, in many cases, Hostel funds member that Mood Indigo, Techfest and are higher as they are enriched by Insti- structure, comprising equipment for these or personal money are also used by those E-Cell are after all student bodies; and the tute funds. However, this is not too valid Events, and the various other nitty-grit- involved in the Technical Scene in the In- cash inflow seen inside the institute walls a comparison, because these festivals sell ties; as well as Publicity, are heavy-spend- stitute. Also, the Science Club has an an- because of these is unparalleled. Hence, tickets to patrons and participants; whereas ing departments. Miscellaneous expenses nual budget of Rs. 40,000; divided equally this money must be put to optimum use, IIT Bombay’s fests have a strict zero entry would include travelling, phone bills and among its five member Clubs – Aero-mod- given the opportunity. As a valid analogy, fees policy, with the aim of not appearing various other forms of “petty cash” expen- elling, Astronomy, Papers, HAM & Radio certain professors who get grants also have commercial and encouraging patronage. diture. and the Electronic Clubs. to spare a share of their income towards an Institute fund, which aids the maintenance *The opinions in this article are a combi- The festivals also pay for the lodging and The Final Cut of laboratories etc. Besides, the institute nation of those expressed by the Dean, SA, bookings at the Guest House, Staff Quar- For some years now, the institute has been overlooks various unthinkable expendi- the General Secretaries of the concerned ters and the like. Both the festivals and the claiming a sizeable 30% chunk from the tures such as the enormous electricity bills Institute Body and the Overall Coordina- Institute Bodies pay heavy amounts for sponsorship money earned by Mood In- during these festivals, and the use of in- tors of the concerned festival. 6 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight

About two years ago, a friend from IIT could be used for their maintenance. Delhi had come to visit me. I welcomed Re-Cycling Transport! 7. A separate hub for cycle maintenance him with the customary stroll around the In the last issue, we covered the inadequacy of the institute’s could also be made for users to deposit campus, to let him admire the famous lakes defective bikes. Small repairs like punc- and the picturesque scenery. But, unlike internal transport system. Nikhil Chandra Jha offers an alternative tures etc. should be the user’s responsibil- any other person I have taken around cam- solution to this problem. ity while bigger damages with justifiable pus, his reaction was most animated when Given the pathetic state of internal transport kept at each hub for issue. causes could be looked into at the mainte- he saw the multitude of unused cycles lying in the institute, this program could be adapt- 4. The cycles would be issued against ID nance hub. in a heap near the Main Gate. His reason - ed to work as an excellent environment- cards, in a similar manner as library books these cycles would have been ideal for the friendly alternative transport system. Here’s are. Card readers, if possible, could be used Some might argue that once in operation, ‘alternative campus transport system using w h a t at the certain issues are bound to crop up with community bicycles’ project he was work- could be hubs by this system. ing on. That was when I first heard of this done: security idea and given the similar situations of the g u a r d s 1. The peak hour traffic, when all students no-bike policy in both institutes, it made 1. The w h o will move between the hostel and academ- a lot of sense to me. Somehow I chose to old and c o u l d ic areas, could create an imbalance in the ignore it back then. u n u s e d d o u b l e hub pools. c y c l e s , up as hub 2. Estimating the extent of damage to a Now, feeling the pinch of the no-bike pol- so many caretak- bike and subsequently holding a person icy coupled with the sudden vanishing act of them, ers. This responsible for it could prove to be a road- of the tum-tums and further compounded at the will also block. by the fact that I live in Hostel 13, the time M a i n e n s u r e 3. Even though ID card validation and uni- was just right for me to ponder over fea- G a t e , r o u n d - form paints of the cycles would deter theft, sible alternatives. The community bicycle h o s t e l t h e - it is difficult to eliminate it altogether. program that I shall describe perfectly fit b a s e - clock op- the bill. m e n t s eration. However, solutions to these are by no and oth- 5. The means impossible. Putting everything in A community bicycle program is not an er areas i s s u i n g perspective, it would be a nice initiative entirely new concept. It has been success- could be collected and repaired. In addi- process could also be automated, as the if this alternative transport arrangement 0 fully implemented in several countries and tion, a pool of people willing to donate IIT Delhi students have mentioned in their could be started on a trial basis. All issues 6 university campuses. In all these places, their cycles when they leave the campus proposal. The cycles would be locked by regarding operation could then be identi- the basic idea is the same. Old and unused could be made to refresh the cycle bank magnetic locks which would open once fied and possibly rectified. Who knows, cycles are collected and painted for rec- every year. The good thing with cycles is the ID card validation takes place. The we could have a long-term solution to all ognition. These are then placed at various that the cost of repair would be minimal. validation process would involve magnet- our commuting woes in the future. hubs inside the operation area. Users can 2. These cycles should be painted with a ic strips, like ATM cards. This automated issue cycles from these hubs, via a manual uniform colour to facilitate recognition. As process, although better, could take time To read more about the proposal and fea- or electronic interface, against their names a result, even if one is stolen, it will have and much more investment. sibility reports of the IIT Delhi students, for free or a nominal fee required for main- little or no resale value and it will become 6. The cycles would be issued for use only please visit http://www.cse.iitd.ernet.in/ tenance. The cycles can then be deposited easier to track lost or stolen cycles. within the campus for a fixed amount of ~csu02127/CS315P/index.htm at any hub inside the area, which makes it 3. Hubs would be chalked out at major ac- time, failing which a suitable fine would very helpful for short-term users. tivity points and a fixed number of cycles be imposed on the offenders. This fine (With inputs from Vikranth Audi)

n the years I have been on campus, I seemingly ordinary performance, it is in Ihave occasionally being involved in its Culture Shock: affirmation of this. A PAF is a parable on cultural activities as participant or judge. a military scale, and that is reason enough Now, as I am close to leaving, I have been to keep it going. It is also gratifying that asked to write about how the ‘insti cult How it really isn’t the PAF as a form is coming into its own scene has become pathetic’ in recent years. - both this year and last, the winning per- I would, except that I do not share the Srinath Perur examines some misconceptions regarding the formances were outstanding, and used the perception. Instead, I’ll write about how health of the cultural scene in the campus. framework of the PAF to make sensitive I believe the cultural activities on campus points about our world. might actually have matured and gone on ing well in other areas too. Music events men with shaven legs and disproportionate to a new level. such as Surbahaar and Surmaii Shaam assets squealing out their lines.) As tastes There is also a cultural life on campus that have always been popular. Acoustic Dusk, mature, it is natural for people with similar we barely acknowledge as a community. Participation in the traditional inter-hostel once practically a jam session, now coor- interests to want to work together across People on campus - students, faculty and cultural events does seem to have dropped. dinates in advance the playlists of several hostels. If some of the inter-hostel com- other residents - write stories, scripts and This is the kind of event where, as the enthusiastic bands, and produces quality petitions continue to be moribund, maybe poems; they sketch, paint and create art- event draws closer, a hapless hostel office- performances. There are more bands on it is time to think of replacing them with work; they write songs; they take photo- bearer coaxes the able and willing to put campus than ever before, playing a variety open or non-competitive events. But one graphs and make short films. Most of this something up to salvage hostel pride. It’s of music, singing both in Hindi and Eng- event I would hate to see go is the PAF. is only seen or heard by a few people who likely that some students have been drawn lish. Several other examples: the rag you happen to be in the direct orbit of those away by other events: technical competi- hold becomes more, well, insightful with The PAF is more than just a synthesis of creating them. Art created in a community tions have grown in stature and participa- every issue; Aawaaz, the Hindi campus several creative arts. Imagine, if you will, needs to be accessible to the rest of it. One tion, and business plan competitions seem newsletter, came into being a couple of the moments leading up to the performance way to facilitate this could be by creating to be on all the time. But I believe some of years back and is going strong; Speakers’ of a PAF: the run-through has just ended an online multimedia magazine for the the rest have been involving themselves in Club and the Lit Club meet regularly; the in shambles; hurried corrections are being campus. Perhaps this could spin-off from cultural activities that go beyond the inter- Dead Poets Society gathers to read from made to the script; untried props are being InsIghT and Aawaaz, both of which have hostel competitions. writers they like; Kaladarshan, the institute installed; botched cues are being reiterated. some experience in the matter. As I see it, fine arts show, sees entries from students Amidst this disorder, the performers are cultural activity on campus is stronger than Dramatics is a conspicuous example. In and campus residents. Surely, these are not told that it is time. They take positions be- ever. We could only benefit by recognising the last four of five years, the annual dra- signs of a pathetic cultural scene. hind lights, microphones, instruments, and the direction of its evolution and support- matics production has been reinstated, backdrops, and the crowds begin to mill ing it. giving the campus some excellent plays. While inter-hostel competitions encourage in. Then, something magical happens. The The Sophies’ productions, where teams of participation by appealing to hostel spirit, tumble of instructions and apprehension in students formed across hostels conceive, they also limit possibilities. Why should the minds of the performers is replaced by (Srinath Perur is pursuing his PhD at script, direct and perform plays, have two musicians with different inclinations a desperate calm. Each one knows that he KReSIT. He has been actively involved in helped identify and nurture some fine tal- have to play together just because they are can only be in that moment and do his best. various cultural activities in the institute, ents. At least one play born on campus has from the same hostel? Why should a boys’ And done together, this results in some- for the last five years.) been performed outside professionally. hostel have to perform plays with all or thing beyond expectations. Any PAF that mostly male characters? (One reason: So does not collapse is a miracle. And if those Non-competitive cultural activities are do- we need not witness the spectacle of young involved jump and dance at the end of a 7 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight Disclaimer: We assure you upon our word best footballing wing of them all! that what lies beneath is merely fiction. Lesson 8: Football is life. Life is football. Any semblance with actual events in the May the Games Resumé That is all there is and all there will ever past, present or future is unintended and Tannishtha & Rajlakshmi take a sneak peek at the making of a CV. be. purely coincidental. “● Was the over all in-charge of the hos- tel fest, Farsical Festunanza - the smaller You wake up one fine morning and decide ment magazine came out on time…” To think of it, the cows are looking happier sibling of Mood Indigo - which made more it is finally time. So you drag yourself to And you know for a fact for that he was the these days and one did hear of the return of profit than ever before and had an atten- your computer and begin typing out…The last to submit his article and the magazine the panther, but the cows remained happy. dance of over 3000.” Resume. had to be delayed till he did so, so he isn’t The committee must be doing excellent Hahaha. Hahahaha. Hahahahaha. Note: The time of the dawning of this real- saying one bit an untruth. A man after your work. Lesson 9: Make more noise, apparently isation covers a wide spectrum. At whose own heart. Lesson 5: Take up causes you feel for. And people don’t think of empty vessels when ends are those who realise in their first Lesson 2: Procrastination is like a dam of blow your trumpet too. time. You must know exactly when to re- you do so anymore. semester since they are concerned about “● My final year B. Tech. project on ‘Per- lease it strictly-on-need basis. their prospects of getting a sophie sum- formance enhancement of CNG vehicles “● Was leading actress in the winning PAF mer PT so that they can get a super thirdie “● Was the organiser of the English parody in Delhi to reduce pollution and increase ’05- the biggest inter-hostel event in the summer PT so that they can land an awe- song event in Mood Indigo, the biggest, fuel efficiency’ was selected for the gold institute.” some job/app; and people who have to be grandest student cultural fest in India. The medal.” Ah…that 30 second part sure was a lead- reminded and coaxed to make a resumé event had participation from over a hun- Now one doesn’t fake such a thing. But no ing role. halfway through their final year. dred colleges, and an audience of over 500 one was as shocked as him when he came Lesson 10: Limelight is limelight, every You can’t be bothered to start from scratch, and went on for almost 5 hours.” to know about this because it was a Ctrl+C bit of your 15 seconds of fame counts. so you manage to lay hands on a few sam- These orgies… the time spent sitting at Ctrl+V job completed in three days and You think of all you’ve done so far, sit ple resumés from your benevolent friends the desk registering those infinite people is two nights. with dictionary.com open and type away. and seniors, even the odd over-enthusiastic used in thinking up these grand lines. Lesson 6: You can fool some people all the In sometime though, you begin to worry. junior. You start jotting down points that Lesson 3: Should learn from the orgies. time. You can fool all people sometimes. You have done only one vague project, in strike you in particular as being indicators Time’s money and bigger is better. But with four years of experience in this which almost all the work was done by of one’s ingenuity. place, you can fool all people all the time. “● Professionally trained in flute and your teammates. You haven’t really done “● Won the women’s swimming, women’s “● Worked on System-level Design and In- drums…” too much for the cultural scene except the carrom and women’s badminton tourna- tegration Studies with focus on Mini Aerial As long as you’re sure no one’s going to time when you painted posters in freshie ments four years in a row.” Vehicles in my sophomore year summer in ask you to exhibit your proficiency, you’re year for PAF. The last sporting achieve- The swimming tournament had 5 partici- the Department Laboratory under the as- fine. If an NSO flute and attending 3 work- ment you remember is running in the0 pants, the carrom tournament 10 and bad- sistant TA of the assistant prof…” shops on drums is professional training, freshie crossie because you had to. 7 minton 16. So? Hmm… after all, he did spend long hours you’ve been a singer all your life. So you re-read the resumés you have. You Lesson 7: A victory is a victory is a vic- in the lab, got the TA tea occasionally, and Lesson 4: Never underestimate yourself. smile and write in summary. tory. kept out of people’s way by busying him- Overestimate. “I am an active, assertive and athletic all- self with Orkut. “● Captained the winning team of Wood- rounder with technological, academic, Lesson 1: An idle mind is the researcher’s “● Editor of newsletter and head of com- lands Wonder League, the most renowned cultural and sporting inclinations and workshop. mittee concerning the welfare of the wild- football league in the institute.” blessed with invaluable research ex- life in the institute - The Bovine Interven- It’s high time the guys started taking their perience as well as organisational Leisure “● Single handedly ensured that depart- tion…” football seriously. We shall soon be the skills.”

e would have been a valiant man who out is the closest that one can get to Hadventured to eat the variety of food home food on campus. Once in a while that all the messes in our institute have to though, dishes such as their paneer offer. After all, a mess isn’t called so for Aakash & Vivek discover the treasures of the insti messes. capsicum are a let down, with the pan- no reason. When we set out on our arduous eer pieces being harder than the capsi- journey, we were pessimistic determinists the host of eagerly awaiting freshies, this their cooks have not yet been able to mess cum. But we connoisseurs, being kind who believed that some bland, yet non- dish is sinful in every sense of the word! around with. Not surprisingly, inmates of generous souls, shall ignore such small toxic material is all we would come across. Another favourite is the bread toast with H6 are well-renowned for their superior trivialities. However after having made it through un- potato filling. Perfect, with a cup of steam- knowledge of the ‘Daily Special’ at Sub- Hostel 10: (snigger) What can we say, scathed, we have discovered that hidden ing tea, for those winter evenings. way. they get the best of almost everything, beneath the wide variety of junk food are Hostel 4: Worries go down better with Hostel 7: The H 7 mess is presently dys- don’t they? It makes us believe that it is a few bright spots. So if you ever thought soup, and there is no better place than H4 functional, but as we discovered, they this balanced diet of theirs that makes the institute was on a mission to starve you for this. For some strange reason though, haven’t lost out on too much. Their menu them fare better than most of us at acads. to death, fear no more. We present to you a their mess secies have ensured that it is was once ruled by the king of vegetables, list of the best food on campus. Whether it be the starch-rich aloo tikki, the served for tiffin and not dinner! One won- the Aloo. Well demonstrated by their graf- tomato rice or sweets, they’ve got it all, Hostel 1: In H 1, they sure eat breakfast ders what the secret behind this surprise fiti board, their menu went something like sugar, spice and everything nice! And they like a king (pun intended), lunch like a move is. Without cooking up any facts this: Bada Aloo, Chhota Aloo, Ek Aloo, have weird rules too; no guests can be en- prince, and dinner like a pauper. With though, we might safely claim that only Gobi Aloo, Masala Aloo, Ganda Aloo, tertained to meals till the last 15 minutes bread and butter being the daily best, there one of every four people in this institute Achchha Aloo. Another anecdote from of meal hours. wasn’t much to satisfy our taste buds in has one good meal on a given day in the the hallowed halls of the Lady features the Hostel 11: An entry into the mess of H 11 any given meal. However their daal could mess, and there is at least one meal of the ‘emergency bhaji’. This bhaji was once is easily gained if you decide to stand for be featured for a consolation prize at those four served on a given day in H 4 which is prepared at a short notice to make up for the institute elections. All candidates, in ‘cook-if-you-can’ competitions, where not enjoyed by more than four people. a shortage of the regular dish. Its unprec- their valiant attempts to convince the love- most of our chefs have had podium fin- edented success resulted in it becoming a ly ladies of H 11 to exercise their franchise ishes at some point in time. Hostel 5: To say that their cooks are the regular feature of the menu. Now who’s with great care, have braved the meals here fastest in the world would be an under- heard of a scheduled ‘emergency bhaji’! with very little complaints to make either. Hostel 2: After having tasted (or rather statement. How many chefs can cook distasted) failure at the royal farmhouse, something up in less than 5 minutes and Hostel 8: Search no more my fellow men, Hostels 12, 13: The institute’s only un- we moved on to the second in line. Pret- still live to tell the story even after having lay down the anchors, we have found derground mess with arguably the best ty much the usual fare awaited us at H 2 had it tasted? H 5 junta sure have great lev- Charlie’s chocolate factory. The runaway ambience also serves some top-class food. though, with the saving grace being the els of tolerance, and the rewards are sweet. winners of this year’s best-of-the-worst Though it is more known for its night paranthas and ice cream. The 7-dish menu The kheer tastes better than milk from a hostel mess contest. With an extensive list canteen that is open till 4 A.M., the mess on Sundays including biryani and cutlets rice-loving cow and of the rasmalai, all we of mouth-watering delicacies, they sure isn’t too far behind either. The shahi pan- was also reasonably popular. The star can say is “Stop after just one and you are know how to feed the ‘needy’. We shall eer served on Thursdays is a huge hit, and though is their very own super-hero, the a brave man!” say no more because the only thing we there are unofficial estimates of the number ‘Egg-man’, who is well-known for his ex- Hostel 6: Great eaters and great sleepers could manage while having their food was of people visiting the mess doubling every treme eagerness to serve more than one’s are incapable of doing anything else that is silent consumption. With so much on the Thursday night. With separate counters quota of eggs, of all shapes and forms. great, and thus food might just be the rea- platter, we could not choose The One, but for boiled food and spicy food, everyone’s son where they have an edge over all their for the sake of completeness we’d go for happy. Not to mention the rasam, sambhar Hostel 3: The H 3 mess is historically one other sleep-deprived mates. The choice the malai kofta and chocolate shake. and dosa that form a life-line for many a of the more popular messes on campus. for the best on offer here was unanimous: South Indian who frequents the mess. One item that is full tadka and masala is Hostel 9: The H 9 mess is also pretty good Di Hydrogen Oxide! Clear, pure and un- We are out of space now, both on paper their chhole bhature. Sizzling hot, crispy and on its day can give H 8 a run for its diluted, this is supposedly the only thing and in our tummies. So for now, so long bhature served with few grams of grams to money. The palak paneer that is dished fellas! Go indulge. 8 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight Déjà vu: the Movie ast year, the institute witnessed arguably one of the all-time great Abhinav, Nithya and Saurabh write about what has gone be- Then there was the suicide scene in Hostel LPAFs – ‘Déjà vu’. It was a PAF that hind the making of IIT Bombay’s first student movie. 13 that had to have an actor playing dead dared to talk about IITians and the prob- and the body to be lifted and carried away lems they face, struggling against a hostile was also on the Nakshatra ad with Aish- In-charge, had the particularly difficult in the hospital’s ambulance. The first time system that does not brook failure. The warya Rai. The story writers had a minor task of getting all the sets ready in time they tried to film it, the ambulance door story was centered on Dumdum, a typi- tussle with this particular cameraman as for shooting. So professional was the cast refused to close. The second time, the am- cal IITian who believes he is a failure in he wanted to shoot the entire movie like a that they once managed to shoot an entire bulance itself wouldn’t start. And all this life because of his three backlogs. He sees Hindi soap, with long close-ups and very 9-minute sequence continuously, with- time the actor was forced to lie motionless no way out of his problems and is on the few angles. The students being inspired by out a single retake. Then again, in a par- while being chewed alive by mosquitoes. verge of committing suicide when he finds English movies had other ideas though and ticular scene, the lead actor, Ankur Gulati For the same scene, blood was required. out that one of his closest friends has done it took them a few days to get that across. was made to brush his teeth for 2.5 hours They tried several substitutes including the same to himself. This leaves him thor- So while watching the movie, one can ap- without a break. He ended up bruising his Close up toothpaste, but nothing looked oughly shaken. As realistic enough. he delves into the So finally, one of reasons behind his the crew members friend’s final fatal raced to the hospi- action, he realises tal and had a bottle- that the thoughts he ful of his own blood thinks aren’t just his; extracted! They that everyone around actually used real him has a few secret blood in that scene. fears that they never talk about. The story Power connections concludes by urging for lights in outdoor the students and the locales were hard to 0 system to work to- come by. Often the 8 gether to make the crew had to wait institute a mandir hours for the lights for learning. to be set up. Also, the power supply in The response to the IIT wasn’t optimal PAF was overwhelming. The direc- for the kind of lights they were us- tor, Anshul Singhal received several ing, so lights sometimes blew up, anonymous mails from people thank- further delaying the shoots. Rains ing him for the PAF and for speaking too caused the postponement of out about what they had felt inside shooting on two or three occasions. for so long. It was the audience’s re- However at the end of the day, the sponse in the OAT on the night of the cameraman was really fascinated PAF that gave Prof. Kundu, one of with IIT as a shooting venue. He felt the judges, the idea of making Déjà that IIT, with its enticing scenery vu into a movie. He wished for the and natural beauty, was a perfect students to have a platform to voice their parently see this transition. The first few tongue pretty badly and didn’t recover venue for shooting a movie. views and for it to be seen not just by other scenes look like your standard Indian soap, completely till almost two weeks later! students but also by professors and par- then the movie takes on a Bollywood style So what is status quo? ents. Thus, in the beginning of May with and finally Hollywood. In another scene, an actor playing the role a budget of approx. Rs.2 lakhs, a team of of a professor is shown a script for a PAF Déjà vu is presently in the post-produc- students, several among them pass-outs that Ankur Gulati’s character has written. tion stage and is almost complete. Many about to begin their jobs, got together to A few interesting anecdotes During the shooting of the scene, this ac- news channels such as CNBC, NDTV, Zee make ‘Déjà vu: the Movie’. tor could not remember his lines. Hence, in and Times Now have already approached In order to finish shooting as fast as pos- the final take of the scene, the script Ankur the students regarding the film but Prof. Making the movie during the summer sible, the cast was extremely well-pre- handed him contained his lines and he read Kundu intends that the movie be shown in holidays proved to be no joke. The cast pared. Jikku Abraham, the Infrastructure them out in front of the camera. all the IITs to begin with and then depend- and crew still speak with wry smiles of the ing upon people’s reaction, be publicised lessons they learnt in those three months. An Interview with Anshul Singhal (Director) further. Sound, lights, camera, infrastructure – each of these departments had their own Heads. Q: What was the inspiration behind the script of the PAF? The movie is like an art film, and raises People missed treats, classes, even exams several important questions for every for this movie. A few missed their PTs. A: After H 4’s PAF the previous year, the only idea in my mind when PAF season IITian. It looks at matters from the per- Some people worked through the holidays arrived was to win this time. To do that, I wanted to do something different. At that spectives of people with different charac- even though they didn’t have even a single time, a lot was going on in my head and after discussions with my friends and se- ters and discusses their varied problems scene to act in. niors I found that my problems weren’t unique. I realised that almost inadvertently, out in the open. The film doesn’t give any I had stumbled upon something very important. false promises or artificial endings. While There were lessons of punctuality and refusing to fix blame upon anybody, the dedication to be learnt from many of the Q: What were your reactions immediately after Déjà vu, the PAF? film emphasises the need for quick chang- non-IITians involved in the movie too. A: The first thing we all felt when we swarmed the OAT stage was “Boss, jeet es in our system. In the words of Anshul, On the first day, the cameraman arrived at gaye.” “One thing that will come out during the 7 A.M. and had to wake up the Director Then, several people came up to me and said, “Thank you for this PAF.” After the screening of the movie is that irrespective and Production In-charge. The brother of jubilation wore off a little, we all realized how much this PAF meant. We realised of whether a person likes it or not, he/she a lights-man committed suicide during this that it wasn’t about winning anymore; that it hadn’t been about winning for at least would think, ‘This is my story’. And as period. Still, he showed up for work the the last 25 days before the PAF. It was far more important than that. It was a story for every IITian, it would bring a smile on next morning that had to be told. their face.”

The institute proved to be extremely help- Q: How different was making the movie, from directing a PAF? The other people involved in the core pro- ful, with even watchmen volunteering to duction team of the movie were Vipul Goel, act in the movie. With the aim of produc- A: In a movie, there’s no prod to make. Also, there’s no dearth of volunteers to help Ankit Aggarwal, Amit Golani, Jikku Abra- ing the best possible quality given budget out. While a PAF has about 75 people working on it, our movie had close to 300. ham, Sudarshan Wadkar, Ravali Prasad, constraints, it was decided to wrap up However a great disadvantage in a movie is that here, there’s a screen between the Rajat Sharma, Nikhil Pandey, Vineet shooting in as short a time as possible, so actors and the audience. That’s why you can never achieve the same degree of real- Bansal, Suneet, Sumit Parmar, Akhil Ag- as to afford the best quality of camera and ism in a movie that a PAF does. garwal. crew. In fact one of the cameramen hired 9 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight

Book: Midnight’s Children Punctuation and grammar are occasionally Movie: V for Vendetta ‘Freedom’ are more than words – they are forgotten in the excitement of telling the perspectives”. He promises the citizens on idely considered to be Salman story. Very rich in allegories and symbol- here are but a few films that can stimu- national television on the 5th of November WRushdie’s best work so far, Mid- ism, there are constant tongue-in-cheek Tlate engaging thoughts about the hy- (a day historically remembered in England night’s Children has several awards to its as ‘Guy Fawkes Day’ to commemorate a name, most notably the Booker Prize in foiled revolutionary attempt in the 1600s) 1981 and the ‘Booker of Bookers’ in 1993. ESOTERICA! that in exactly one year he would blow up The book is narrated by Saleem Sinai, who the parliament, thus openly throwing down was born at the stroke of midnight on Au- Our renowned critics, M a d d y a n d K a r t h i k the gauntlet to the dictator. gust 15, 1947. Saleem is one of Midnight’s review a snooty book and a s n o o t i e r m o v i e Children, a group of children who have What follows in the movie is more than magical powers; some can teleport, some references to the superstition and fanati- pothetical, transcending the limits of banal just a slick cat and mouse game. The his- have enchanting beauty, while some can cal religious beliefs that are an integral entertainment. There are fewer films that torical and political premise of the soci- turn metal into gold. Saleem has the great- part of India. A quite noticeable technique can mesmerise and at the same time disin- ety simultaneously unfolds as we witness est power of all, the ability to look inside used in the narration is the sidelining of the tegrate your mind causing intense ferment. revelations throughout the story of the be- the hearts and minds of humans. significant, and the highlighting of unim- The Wachowski Brothers’ V for Vendetta is trayal of a country by a ruthless bigot and portant events. There are tour de force that, by vir- its subsequent battle towards Constant parallels are drawn also several instances of tue of its rich cinematic emancipation. This is one film between Saleem’s life and information obtained on texture, swashbuckling in which the dialogues are ab- the changing fortunes of In- the sly, through peep- execution and flawless solutely fantastic from start to dia. The story gets darker as holes, and much credence script (adapted from the end - the scene where ‘V’ in- it progresses and ends with is given by the narrator graphic novel series of troduces himself to the female the Emergency, which Rush- to rumour. This is done the same name by Alan protagonist `Evey’ (Natalie die considers the triumph of deliberately, in what Sal- Moore) translates into an Portman) in an alliterative so- violence over democracy. eem Sinai refers to as unparalleled experience. liloquy of words starting with Rushdie delves in detail into chutnification, the spic- the letter ‘V’, the scene when the various atrocities that ing up of the story to give The movie commences in he speaks to the citizens on were committed during the it a unique flavour. England 40 years into the national television making a Emergency - the Delhi slum future, a dystopian society pledge, etc. 0 clearance scheme, forced va- The linguistic pyrotech- governed by a totalitarian 9 sectomies performed as a part nics in the novel are quite ‘party’ represented by an Though many critics have of Sanjay Gandhi’s family daunting, and the plotline iron-handed dictator and deemed the movie as “George planning programme and the occasionally confusing, his unscrupulous henchmen. Succumbing Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four meets Rob- imprisonment of Indira Gandhi’s political with numerous references to events long to media manipulations and propaganda, in Hood”, I assert with full conviction that opponents. In fact, the book ran into quite past, as well as events that are yet to hap- the common citizens have lost all capac- there is much more to this film than such a a bit of controversy, with Indira Gandhi pen. However, for its brilliant political and ity to even comprehend the abuse of their platitude. To introduce a little affable sug- (who is frequently referred to as ‘The Wid- religious satire, and Rushdie’s simple but rights to justice and freedom. It is in this gestion in lieu of a critic’s verdict result- ow’ in the book) suing Rushdie for libel, effective demonstrations of the signifi- hopeless Orwellian state of perdition that a ing from a boring argumentative analysis, and winning her case, all over one sen- cance of perspective, Midnight’s Children masked man who calls himself ‘V’ (Hugo I suggest that you beg, borrow or steal to tence in the novel. comes strongly recommended as a very Weaving) challenges to single-handedly watch this one. good read. overthrow the government and remind The style of narration is uniquely Indian. the citizens that “‘Fairness’, ‘Justice’ and

There are quite a few bad hab- who are into gaming have their its that one regularly associates own set of explanations - from with the IITian way of life. Nor- increased concentration and mally, one shrugs these off with Ashish Goel reveals the inside story of a few IITian traits through science. hand-eye coordination to better the standard ‘Oh well, they are cooperation and mutual under- just absent-minded’ justification. However dozes of harmful bacteria and other micro- deep sleep). Moreover the kind of sleep standing among batchmates/wingmates. maybe, just maybe, there are clear scien- organisms to keep their immune systems that one gets during these power naps is People even cite an increase in gen- Freaky Science tific explanations to justify them. from attacking the very organs they are the very important Rapid Eye Movement eral knowledge about the culture of designed to protect. However, these dis- (REM) sleep. This phase of sleep, apart various civilisations in the world and Irregular bathing and shabby rooms: eases still form one of the most poorly un- from being the phase when one dreams, is the geography of USA. The immune system of the human body is derstood and poorly recognised categories also responsible for the mental rejuvena- always in a hyperactive state. If it doesn’t of illnesses. tion effects of sleep. Having several such On a serious note, collaborations are find harmful external agents to fight with, stages in a day can be beneficial to the being formed between the gaming it starts attacking its own cells and tissues. So then, cleanliness is not really next to human body. Recent studies have shown industry and various branches of sci- This can be attributed to the loss of ‘immu- godliness. It is apparently good for your that people following polyphasic sleep- ence and engineering and one such nological tolerance’ or the ability to distin- body to skip the odd bath and it isn’t really ing patterns experience a decrease in the conspicuous development has taken guish self from non-self; and it leads to a matter of shame to have a filthy room. total number of hours of sleep required by place in the field of medical sciences. several auto-immune diseases like multi- After all, you are keeping your immune the body per day accompanied by an in- Surgeons in several leading medical ple sclerosis and diabetes mellitus. Around system busy with the work it is designed crease in performance of the memory by institutions around the world are being 80 such chronic diseases which effect dif- for! 12%. In fact, NASA trains its astronauts trained in the skills of delicate surgeries ferent parts of the human body have been with schedules of polyphasic sleep, be- through games, specifically designed for identified so far. Caution: This hypothesis is valid only cause every extra minute spent in space this purpose. This is particularly useful for for places which have extremely pure and corresponds to an additional expenditure modern surgeries where the surgeon isn’t These diseases have some interesting hygienic environments. No place in India, of millions of dollars. Further, they can’t present in the surgical chamber at the time characteristics. Most of the known auto- leave alone an IIT in a place like Mumbai, afford to have their astronauts entering the of operation, in order to maintain a ster- immune diseases tend to show a female qualifies for this status. phase of sleep inertia in space. ile environment. The movements of the predominance, spondylitis being the only surgeon’s hands outside the chamber are exception. Further, auto-immunity being Sleeping during lectures: Caution: These findings are controversial transferred to the robotic machine that per- genetic in nature, the genetic inheritance Sleeping during lectures results in a kind and are still under investigation. It has forms the actual operation. of a person plays a big role in the suscep- of sleep pattern that closely resembles been proved that the patterns of polypha- tibility of the individual to these diseases. what is known as the ‘Da Vinci sleep’. This sic sleep, if followed, have to be extremely Several victims of vertigo have shown tre- But strangely enough, auto-immunity has comes from the fact that Da Vinci used to rigid and rigorous. Also, people are gener- mendous improvement through carefully been found to manifest among the mem- sleep for 15 minutes, every 2 hours. Tech- ally advised to have a power nap during monitored, deliberate gaming experiences. bers of the same family in the form of dif- nically, this is known as ‘polyphasic sleep’ their lunch breaks or while travelling in lo- The military of several advanced countries ferent diseases. and colloquially, it is often referred to as a cal trains and buses. So think twice before has incorporated gaming and simulation ‘power nap’ or a ‘cat nap’. you use this as an excuse in one of those techniques in its training program as well. Of late, so much has come to light about 8.30 lectures. these diseases that in several European Sleeping in short bursts of 20-30 min en- Caution: All the instances mentioned countries like Denmark and some parts of sures that one doesn’t enter the phase of Gaming: above are cases where some games have Switzerland (where Indians haven’t yet set ‘sleep inertia’ (the feeling of sloth and Scientists certainly don’t need to come been deliberately designed to meet specific foot), some people actually consume small fatigue that one has on waking up after a up with justifications in this case. People requirements. 10 November 13, 2006 http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight Freshie Journalism Competition: First Prize entry ’ve never maintained a journal in my life. I might nev- I had entered the room allotted to me, only to discover it’s dropped their daughter off at by mistake? er, for fear of that habit and its products becoming a li- already been occupied - the fungi and termites are tough Iability in the future. Remember the number of people tenants to get rid of. They don’t seem to mind the two My close encounters with the panthers of IIT Bombay undone by their diaries? This is the closest I might get girls living along with them in one corner of the room seem to take place mostly between 0830 and 1230 hours, to recounting my experiences. My experiences here come anymore. The room itself, by general consensus, is noth- when we all know what happens. These hours are also under the “novel” category. Maybe you’d think life’s been ing more than a corner. when I had to accept the fact that my childhood ambi- very placid until now; well, I can’t challenge that fact. tion to perform mass hypnosis, especially of those in their A few weeks into staying at the hostel, I came to know adrenalin rushing years, is not much of an ambition at Until now, all my education had been taken how much of a termite I had become. After the supposed all. care of in the same little school, half an “anti-termite” operation, the only living things left in the hour from home. I knew most people there room were the termites. It’s been two and a half months of reinventing and creat- and their idiosyncrasies (a euphemism for ing an identity for someone whom you thought you al- quirky behaviour) and most people knew The first time I came across “the golden word” was the ready knew and that it’d be a cinch to explain to strangers similar details about me. To be thrown into day before classes were to begin. A batchmate of mine who that person is. I guess this is the part of the freshie a totally new city where the above fact of dragged me off to a particular physics lab “orientation”; I experience I’ll never be able to explain or forget. life ceased to hold, created this whole feeling of didn’t really mind being dragged because the other option a dream; not necessarily the sweet one people insincerely was being dragged to some place else for some errand by Five years down the line, I see myself knowing most peo- wish you before going to bed at nine. And then there were another amiable few-hours-old batchmate. ple here and their idiosyncrasies (a euphemism for quirky minor changes in the landscape, from a concrete jungle to behaviour) and most people knowing similar details about a real one, a couple of lakes thrown in and a lot of dogs For the first few weeks “orientation” filled my conversa- me. To be thrown, again, into a new set up where the soon- and cows (and hence minefields of cow dung), along with tions with my parents back home. So frequent and varied to-be fact of life will cease to hold is something I can’t the seniors, taking your intros. I also need to make a spe- (from washing-machine orientations to those of Tech- quite imagine yet. cial mention of the panthers lurking in the bushes. fest) were my descriptions, that my parents thought I was thoroughly disoriented in life. Or was it some IIO they’d (Archana Raja is a first year undergraduate student of the Chemistry Department.) InsIghT team 1 InsIghT conducted a limerick writing competition last month. We present 0 here the top 4 entries in no specific order! Chief Editor Krishna Ramkumar Mohit Gidwani, Varun Verma, Chief Executive Editor Fourth Year, MEMS Fourth Year, MEMS Nishant Patni THE EXECUTION PANEL In the evening, at four-thirty, He started off with a mighty ton, The sportsmen out there get dirty, He was called the Rising Son. Abhinav Dhall, Abhinav Mohan, Aaditya Ramdas, But I end classes, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Amrit Jalan, Ankoor Das, Arunabh Sinha, Ashish Goel, And clink those glasses, Then grew a pony, Ashwin Ravikumar, Avtansh Agarwal, Devasheesh With all my mates, say Aye Aye Tea. And now he can‛t score a single run. Mathur, Gautam Salhotra, Kartik Shekhar, Kumar Aakash, Nikhil Jha, Nithya Subramanian, Onkar Dalal, Palak Ambwani, Pallav Singh, Parasvil Patel, Rajlakshmi Purkayastha, Rohit Hippalgaonkar, Rohit Vadera, Ruchir Goswami, Rylan Henriques, Sarmistha Pal, Saurabh Das, Shweta Shah, Siddhartha Bagaria, Siddarth Madhav, Sriram Emani, Srivathsan B., Tan- nishtha Sanyal, Tarun Mathur, Vaibhav Devanathan, Vikranth Audi, Vivek Upadhyay Chetana Baliga, Eeshan Malhotra, Second Year, Biotech Dept. First Year, Civil Engg. SHOUTBACK Welcome to the Jungle, our entrance sign Arnie was walking; it was pitch black, We NEED Feedback. should read, Stepped on a manhole (he strayed off- Help us improve, the way you want us to. As within this vast Insti, vicious creatures do track). InsIghT also invites freelance articles breed. What could he do? and Letters to the Editor, to be published in Panthers, snake and crocodiles, He just fell through, the next issue. We battle mosquitoes most vile, And managed to shout, “I‛ll be back”. But to fight them that teach us, the bravest Email: [email protected] Newsgroup: iitb.insight go knock-kneed! Web: http://gymkhana.iitb.ac.in/~insight

1. Got the time? 4. Wild card entry John has a small hourglass and a large one. The small Two magicians, Aabra and Cadabra, perform a trick one can measure 5 minutes and the large one can with a shuffled deck of cards, jokers removed. Aabra measure 7 minutes. How can he measure 16 minutes Questech asks a member of the audience to select five cards at with 2 hourglasses running together? random from the deck. The audience member pass- The rule is when any one of the hourglasses finishes es the five cards to Aabra, who examines them, and leaking, that hourglass must be flipped over immedi- 3. Chess time hands one back. Aabra then arranges the remaining ately to keep it running. four cards in some way and places them face down, in a neat pile. 2. Misbehaved Derivatives Cadabra, who has not witnessed these proceedings, The derivative of x^2, with respect to x, is 2x. How- then enters the room, looks at the four cards, and de- ever, suppose we write x^2 as the sum of x’s, and then termines the missing fifth card, held by the audience take the derivative: member. How is this trick done? Let f(x) = x + x + ... + x (x times) Note: The only communication between Aabra and Then f’(x) = d/dx[x + x + ... + x] (x times) You are expected to go from configuration A to con- Cadabra is via the arrangement of the four cards. = d/dx[x] + d/dx[x] + ... + d/dx[x] (x figuration B above on the selected area of chess board There are no encoded speech or hand signals or ex- times) in minimum number of moves. What is the minimum pressions, no bent or marked cards, no clue in the = 1 + 1 + ... + 1 (x times) number and what is the sequence of moves? orientation of the pile of four cards. = x Note: you are not allowed to move outside these 6 This argument appears to show that the derivative of squares for any move. Please mail your suggestions, queries and solutions x^2 with respect to x is actually x. Where is the fal- to [email protected] and/or [email protected] lacy?