Net-Neutrality to be continued...

Net-neutrality is a principle coined by Tim Wu, Columbia University, which states that the internet service providers should treat the content, application or web services equally, there should not be differential treatment in any way on the basis of content.

‘Free Basics’ an initiative by Facebook, which purports a free internet to reach poor users is banned in India. A similar initiative by Airtel called ‘Airtel Zero’ was also condemned for its differential treatment for the content on internet. Many intellectuals have been at loggerheads on the pros and cons of these marketing strategies by the giants. TRAI even asked the Indians their opinions and people voted for a neutral net. Finally TRAI considered both of them a threat to net-neutrality and imposed a ban on ‘Free Basics’.

‘Airtel Zero’ was a plan to work by asking marketers or application developers to register to them for which they might have to pay an amount and in turn the users or the customers would use the application on internet for free. ‘Free Basics’ a new name for internet.org, was about to work on the similar lines, however the only difference in their way of marketing was keeping ‘Free Basics’ free for application developers and  customers, it seemed a win-win platform for both the sides at prima facie.
 

But there are two sides to every coin, let’s try to understand how it was beneficial for the users and customers. ‘Free Basics’ kept it clean by allowing marketers to register to them for free and also thought of user welfare, making a free content available for a poor mass, who could have not afforded an internet. ‘Airtel Zero’ and ‘Free Basics’ seemed a perfect suit for the ‘Digital India’ initiative, which envisages Indians, even the most unprivileged ones using internet to get exposed to opportunities online. They also appeared to boost the ‘Startup India’ initiative, by turning to be a boon for startups, as startups need publicity the most and could have helped them compete the rivals effectively.

 

But these plans were not beneficial for the marketers not registered to them, these marketers would have faced extreme difficulty in their business and would have finally found refuge in registering to them. In this way it could have overtaken the internet. Though ‘welfare’ is what ‘Free Basics’ proposed, there was huge mass they pointed to, and more publicity for the advertisements they offered.

 

Internet neutrality was a certain threat in this case, it not only could have gulped the market of those not in support but also have had an extra user base on its way. The benefits it offered could also not be neglected and could be contemplated if it proves to be impartial. 

Contemplating 'The Odd-Even Scheme' in Delhi...

 

Road-rationing had been implemented in some countries like Mexico, Columbia, Chile, Brazil, France and China to curb pollution. In 1989, Mexico introduced "hoy no circula" which  roughly means "today [your car] does not circulate", Beijing introduced odd- even scheme and claimed that vehicular emissions reduced by 40 percent. Expecting the same results Delhi’s CM Mr. Arvind Kejriwal promulgated “The Odd- Even Plan” to control the ever increasing pollution, which saw active participation by Delhites.

According to this plan odd-numbered cars ran on odd days and even-numbered cars on even days. Two wheelers, CNG vehicles, women, VIP’s etc. were exempted under the plan. To contemplate its effectiveness we need to first understand the causes of this extreme pollution in the capital. Pollution is the deterioration of air by particulate matter (PM) which comprises of aerosols, ashes, smoke, smog etc. PM 2.5 can easily penetrate through your respiratory system, which not only causes hazardous diseases but also leads to the birth of premature babies. Vehicular-emissions obviously is one of the causes but is not the only cause. Many industries and factories add to the pollution, fireworks in Diwali and bonfires in winters, deforestation to urbanize and industrialize the capital are also some of the causes. Road-rationing, checks on industries, educating people, afforestation and developing new technologies to control pollution, steps in this order can be taken to solve the problem.

Odd- Even scheme imposed in Delhi has helped to some extent curb the PM 2.5, despite a long list of exemptions. But it has fulfilled its motives by introducing lots of insights to be examined before its complete promulgation. For instance pollution reduction by 25 % an insight to check if the exemption of 2 wheelers, which contribute to 30 % of air pollutants a good choice, congestion control and time-saving while travelling is another good insight to keep this formula active with some improvements, inconveniences to the commuters and recommended solutions for it, although this was taken care of by the government by adding 3000 buses to its bus force. These all insights will certainly help the authorities take calculated steps to control pollution.

Finally, some cognizance among the public is required to keep trust on the government and also understand their duties towards a healthy environment. Many of them talked about the inconvenience caused due to the plan but isn’t some inconvenience welcomed for a better tomorrow. Bonfires and fireworks, despite extreme pollution levels is no intelligence. On the top of it forwarding messages on WhatsApp as below:

“What happens to a person going for movie at multiplex during last show at 10 pm in Delhi and is supposed to return at 1 AM. Which numbered car does he drive odd or even?

Next IIM or IAS question”

Though joke!! But jokes make more sense if the joker understands the context properly. Odd- Even plan was in place from 8am to 8pm from Monday to Saturday.  

Thinking to Manifest Change....

We lead a life that is manifestation of our thoughts, if you are a lawyer, an HR or an engineer you had thought about it sometime in past. Thinking is the first step towards becoming something. If you think robbery is a bad trait you become averse to robbers. If you think you want to be an entrepreneur, congratulations! you have taken first step towards its manifestation.

Thinking has the power to make you successful in life. When you think about achieving something and you believe in it, you start working towards it, you do not let any stone unturned to make it possible, that is because you thought of it, you think it is possible. For instance, Thomas Edison thought of 'light'. He imagined the steps he could take that will make it possible. He kept trying and made it possible. Had it been possible if he had not thought of it?

Thinking also defines personality traits. If you think having a cup of tea early in the morning, charges you for the whole day, you tend to act like that. However, there are many people who stay charged throughout the day without having a cup of tea. This brings us to an interesting theory: 'Thinking to Achieve'.Thinking to achieve is a practical implementation of thinking to achieve something in life,for instance if you think and believe eating rich food makes you obese, you will avoid it. If you think exercising makes you healthy, you will find out ways to take out time from your busy schedule to exercise. All is about what you think and believe and how much is your intensity towards it. To make things possible you should not have doubts on your capabilities, you just need to think positively every time.

 

Reading good books, learning from the people who inspire you, and having a confidence on yourself are some factors which influence your thoughts. Thus your thoughts are always under your control. You can control what you think and thus you can achieve anything in life.

Listening to Answer....

Do you learn to listen or is it an inborn ability? Many of us think it is an inborn ability, but listening is really an art and you really need to learn this art. But what is so artful about listening? And why is it needed? Following questions are answers to this question. How many times did it happen that you answered without listening the question completely? And how many times were your answers correct?

Listening followed by understanding and thinking is the first step of problem solving or answering a question. When you start listening you brain sends a signal 'Yes! I know this'. And you start speaking something about the question, which certainly is not the answer, because the question does not pertain to your knowledge of the peripherals or the milieu of that knowledge. It pertains to a part of that knowledge, which is extracted by analyzing the required part needed to answer the question.

This process pops up another art called understanding. If you do not listen to the question completely, it is certain that you do not understand it. What will happen if you try to solve a problem without understanding it, for instance do you write a 'B' when asked to write an 'A'? No, because there is a distinction between the two characters. This distinction is so obvious to you that your propensity to answer it will make you feel that you did not try to understand before answering it.But there is an understanding involved.

Understanding obviously follows listening but it requires you to think, which part of your knowledge is required to give the best answer. When you listen to a question, how many times do you think before you answer? If you don't do so, you are just speaking, you are not answering. This thinking process is what I call digging the knowledge to mine the knowledge required to answer the question.

Listening also does not mean hearing. Hearing is as good as seeing something without observing. Listening requires interference of brain for the aforementioned process same as observation needs skills to understand and think.

Keep reading and listening..:)

CAT not only an Exam but also a Lesson for Life....

 

 CAT is an exam people take to get admissions to the most coveted premier B-Schools in India. People have various reasons to take the CAT. Most common being 'to climb up the success ladder' or 'for a better salary potential'.  But most important is that, you crack it or not, you have already learnt lessons in every phase of the preparation. Those lessons will keep empowering you throughout your life.

CAT prepares you in the diverse fields like quantitative aptitude, verbal reasoning data interpretation and logical reasoning which help you become a complete person. Some of you will be surprised to know this, but this is the truth. I am not saying CAT is the only way to be complete but it certainly helps for the same.

How many of you use a calculator for the multiplication of 123*11..A CAT-taker uses a simple trick.. (1, 1+2, 2+3, 3) ~(1353) i.e. just keep adding the terms starting from right. How many of you refer to the dictionary for the word ‘anachronous’…A CAT-taker  breaks the word into ‘ana ’ meaning not(negative prefix)  and ‘chronous’ (related to time) ,something misplaced in time. How many of you still think auto-rickshaw is still the most affordable transport option. A CAT-taker will certainly deduce logically which one of Uber, TaxiForSure, ola etc. offers you the best ride with the provided data of ‘price per kilometer’, ‘waiting time’ and ‘the coupons’ you had received in your inbox.

The preparation for CAT not only prepares you for the aptitude test but also for the day-to-day problem-solving activities. You start analyzing things, you solve your problems logically. You try to infer the meaning of different sentences. So if your boss doubts you of working extraordinarily for any reason, you don't need to take it seriously because if you use your verbal reasoning abilities that is just an 'ASSUMPTION'.

While taking CAT, it is imperative that you be calm and solve questions with utmost equanimity. If you start to panic when the test goes for a toss, you will certainly lose the CAT. There are situations in life, when you tend to panic when you don't find a solution to a problem. For example, if you are in the taxi and there is a lot of traffic outside, suddenly you realize you are half an hour late for the train, and you are certainly going to miss your meeting. If you lose your calm ,you cannot plan the subsequent events, may be you can get a bus to reach the next station and board the train or you can ask the taxi driver to drop you at the next station.

You face many challenges in life and without even trying it you think you cannot do it. Taking a challenge like CAT overwhelms you with the courage of taking any challenge in life. So, if you have a difficult task assigned at work and you have no idea to even start it, you won’t crib and take it the way you took the CAT.

CAT is one of the difficult exams, but if you realize how it shapes your mental abilities, you certainly crack a ‘CAT’ every day.