Robopsychology, Linux, Apache, and IIS.

Baby Robot learns like a human.
This was an interesting article I read during the past week. The immediate thought that ran through my mind as soon as I read the title was – Dr.Isaac Asimov's “I, Robot”, and Robopsychology. Also, the movie “I, Robot” based on Asimov’s book also comes to mind. Will Robopsychology and the development of robots lead us to the situation which is illustrated in the movie? Well, this could be the first step – a robot learning to interact with the human world just like a baby learning to interact with other human beings, and learning its way around the world. The robot called ‘BabyBot’ has been programmed to experiment with objects and learns the best possible way to make use of these objects. A very interesting and mind twisting phenomenon is that this ‘Babybot’ has an in-built desire to physically experiment with objects in its close vicinity, it tries different strategies to achieve the best fit. Although we can marvel at the vast improvements and developments in Robotics and Robopsychology, it does send a chill down my spine. Whether it will be useful or destructive, we can only wait and watch with bated breath.

In other news, I was surprised to read ‘Windows Guru’ & Microsoft evangelist, Vladimir Mazek’s extensive use of Linux (CentOS Linux 4.3 to be precise) as a front end to host his blog. Vladimir says his choice of Linux is based purely on cost. Added features like seamless portability and reliance might be added later (I hope so)…

Another piece of good news – Apache has now become the leading developer of SSL servers on the Internet. I was pleasantly surprised when I read this on securityfocus. In a report released by Netcraft, Apache has cornered a 44% share of the market. Some people were surprised that Microsoft’s IIS was placed second. Too bad…It had to happen….

These are my thoughts for the weekend, actually the ones I could write down and put it up on this blog.
Hope you guys had a nice weekend!!!

Graphology, Quantum Physics, Cryptography & NIN.

I was writing (not typing) notes about new cryptographic methods combined with the mind blowing laws of Quantum Physics. Two reasons why I was writing it down
- I did not want to forget what I had read earlier about this fascinating subject.
- I was not sitting in front of my computer.
As I was writing it down on a piece of paper, I realized, I have been so much used to typing (over the past 5 years), that I might have forgotten the art of writing. It so happened, after a couple of pages, my fingers started to cramp up. Another interesting observation – my handwriting had changed. If a graphologist analyzed my current handwriting with the handwriting I had about 5 years ago, I am not sure if he could see great changes by comparing the different handwriting styles, and co-relating them with my behavior. I am aware that handwriting is under the direct influence of the Central Nervous System. So, will the significant change in my handwriting mean that my there has been a significant change in my behavior. Although, lately the validity of graphology has been debated. A very good example that comes to mind is the handwriting analysis of Tony Blair, and the results were that graphologists cast doubts on Blair’s leadership skills & his ability to complete any given task. It was revealed later that the handwriting that was actually analyzed was that of Bill Gates. Does the analysis diminish the leadership qualities of Bill Gates? Or does one even consider Bill Gates to be a great leader? I guess the leadership qualities of the current “World’s Richest Man” is open to opinion & perception.

I digress, but coming back to the original thought about cryptography and Quantum Physics. This method of encrypting data has been discussed since 2004, but I discovered it just a few days ago. It sounds promising, as the basic principle is that individual photons are used to transmit the numeric keys used to encode and encrypt sensitive data. Photons being extremely sensitive will change their behavior if its path of travel has been disrupted. (if someone has tried to sniff the encrypted data during its transfer). This sounds quite interesting, and I need to do more research about this. So, opinions about this new technology are most welcome. When originally discovered, physicists were of the opinion that this method of encryption was virtually unbreakable. But as I was doing my usual knowledge research for the day, I happened to read an article where an amateur code breaker was able to break the Nazi code that eluded the best cryptographers of the Allies during World War II. The code-breaker was able to crack this code with the assistance of a network of computers.

Here is the link to M4 Message Breaking Project.

I have been doing more research about it all day. So, hopefully I will have learnt more about this topic by the end of the week.

Ending thoughts:
For a very long time I was wondering what was the reason behind Trent Reznor naming his band “Nine Inch Nails”. I has assumed it might have to do something with coffins, death etc. But I found this interesting quote from Trent Reznor himself, and it clears the confusion I had regarding his reason to name the band Nine Inch Nails.

“I don't know if you've ever tried to think of band names, but usually you think you have a great one and you look at it the next day and it's stupid. I had about 200 of those. Nine Inch Nails lasted the two week test, looked great in print, and could be abbreviated easily. It really doesn't have any literal meaning. It seemed kind of frightening. [In his best he-man voice] Tough and manly! It's a curse trying to come up with band names”

- Trent Reznor.

10,000 Days - Album Review

It is finally out. Tool's latest album, 10,000 Days. Their previous album Lateralus, was released sometime in 2001. Diehard fans have waited for 5 years, and being a great admirer of this band, I think it is well worth the wait. I listened to the first single 'Vicarious' last week, and blown away by the quality of the song. Everything seemed perfect, the lyrics, the music, Maynard's delivery style etc.
Thank You Maynard & Gang..That is all I can say...
This album is a masterpiece....!!!!
Highly Recommended...More reviews about the complete album will be posted soon. Right now, I am in a state of 'nirvana' after listening to the album. It will take a couple of days for me to get out of this mode. The only other artist(s) that has had a similar effect on me are
1. Pink Floyd
2. Led Zeppelin.

Keep up the good work guys. I am eagerly waiting for the music video.

Update:-
Apparently, it does require some more time for me to get out of this state of 'nirvana' and complete the review. As of now, I do know I need more time than the playing time of 75:45, to deal with this masterpiece. This album does possess all the ingredients to beat a person senseless.

Along with the rest of the band-mates, Joe Barresi & Bob Ludwig (Engineering, Mixing, & mastering) deserve some credit. The album is a collage of guitar riffs, drum beats, complex changes in rhythm & a myriad of emotions. Maynard takes the listeners on an emotional rollercoaster, with his haunting vocals, which complement the music to perfection.

The title of the album 10,000 Days refers (approximately) to the length of time between Judith Marie Keenan’s paralytic stroke & her death. Songs #3 (Wings for Marie, Pt. 1) and #4 (10,000 Days (Wings, Pt. 2)) are a tribute to Judith Marie Keenan (Maynard’s mother).

Lyrics from the first song Vicarious shows a genius at work.

Cause I need to watch things die... from a distance
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
YOU ALL NEED IT TOO, DON'T LIE
Why can't we just admit it?

Random Thoughts

Is Ice considered as powdered water or is it condensed water? -

Books to Read -
Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure - Sarah Macdonald
I just started reading this book. It looks pretty interesting. It is about Sarah MacDonald's trip to India.

And They All Sang: Adventures of an Eclectic Disc Jockey - Louis "Studs" Terkel
I was lucky enough to watch Studs Terkel speak on the "daily Show' with Jon Stewart. The interview was worth watching.

My favorite TV cartoon character, The Decider - GWB. His logic gives me a reason to watch TV everyday. Everytime I see him on TV, I get this subconscious ringing in my head - "I make the Decisions". A million thanks to you GWB for providing us with non-stop entertainment. Kudos to Jon Stewart and team for making a great TV character out of GWB.

Here is an interesting poem I read sometime ago. The original poem was written by Cheezy P. Nikolayey. Credit to P.Nikolayey for coming up with this..
A POEM - From one Geek to another.
My heart Gigahertz
when you are not here,
My life megabytes,
when you are gone,
I Fear.
The End
- P.Nikolayey.

When I first read it, it made me smile. It would have been more interesting if the author (or should I correctly refer to P.Nikolayey as the POET) had added loops, iterations or the very simple line numbers.