How the Large Hadron Collider Works

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the largest and most complex scientific instrument ever built and the highest energy particle accelerator in the world. The accelerator is located 100 meters underground and runs 27 kilometers through both French and Swiss territory. It really is an amazing creation! Watch this great video to know how it works:

Hug A Developer

Source: http://develop-one.net/blog/2008/08/27/HugADeveloper.aspx

It started with "Developers everywhere are in terrible pain", and I just knew where it was going. Its true for *most* software projects, which are mishandled and either end up being a total failure or, if they're lucky, realizing less than half of what the software was originally capable of. A sad story, repeated all over the world for myriad reasons.

Note there's no mention of testers or software testing. That probably because there's nothing to it! :) I mean how hard can it be?! :P Devs and test, as you can imagine, don't always get along. But perhaps I'll save my anti-QA rants for another post some other time :)

Girl Runs Away from President Bush

As some on Digg said:

She's not scared, she's just allergic to concentrated stupid.

LOL!

Dr. Israr's Blasphemy

Readers of this blog will vouch for the fact that I tend to stay away from religious debate, as we seem to have different interpretations and after all, everyone is entitled to their opinions and beliefs. But this time, Dr. Israr has really crossed the line for me. His comments, aired on June 12th on a QTV program, are shockingly sacrilegious and leaves one wondering: what the ?#@$ was he thinking?! I addressed the following letter to PEMRA and sent it to the editor of DAWN. Hopefully it'll get published.

The recent deplorable comments by Israr Ahmed on QTV are a cause of shame and disgust for all Muslims. One can only judge the true intentions of a speaker by the selection of issue. By narrating a highly controversial tradition from a dubious source that contradicts the very essence of Islam - as Imam Ali (as) embodied whatever Islam is - Mr. Ahmed has shown an incredible lack of rationality and objectivity. Mr. Ahmed deliberately tried to put doubts in minds of the unwary and stoke flames of sectarianism, in pursuit of fulfilling his satanic agenda. However, the responsibility of this act does not end with Israr Ahmed. The team of QTV responsible for producing this program share equal blame for their severe lack of competence in screening this venomous content, which has the potential of causing great social strife. Subsequent apologies from the ARY Network notwithstanding, this is a case-in-point for taking measures against incompetence of a media outlet by PEMRA.

In this regards, we ask the regulatory authority to severely reprimand the administration of QTV along with imposing a hefty fine as a reminder for the channel to rectify it's conduct. We also demand the QTV administration to name-and-shame people involved in broadcasting the program in question. Furthermore, speakers/preachers such as Israr Ahmed should be barred from writing or voicing comments through the electronic media, in view of the disturbance of public order these people can and have caused. We sincerely hope that by taking such strong measures in view of the controversy created by the speaker will restore public confidence viz-a-viz the credibility of the media and governance credentials of the people in power.

The damned video in question:

Dr. Randy Pausch - Last Lecture

When a dying man gives a talk on how to "live", you're bound to listen carefully. Dr. Randy Pausch is one such unfortunate person, who has sadly lost the battle against pancreatic cancer and has been told by his doctors that he has only a few months left in him. While that would send most of us in a deep comatose-like depression, it's had a different effect on Dr. Randy altogether. It's made him more determined to share his view of how to make the most of your life - a true believer in the adage that it don't matter how long a life you have, but it is how well you live it that matters. A truly inspiring talk that you absolutely must see!

There's also a TIME article on him:
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733756_1736194,00.html