Author: drsriramnathan

In the novel Memoirs of a Primate by Robert Sapolsky; he ends by narrating a sad story which could have been prevented.

This story shows how the greed of the man can even lead to the eradication of a whole species! Of course it is now new!

Time and again we know that the average Homo Sapien is the most dangerous species! He or she has the brains to save the universe and uses it to destroy it as and when he or she can!

Plus you tend to give responsible position to the person who has the LEAST capability of using it or who has only GREED in his or her mind!

So after two decades of bonding with the baboons, a tragic disease strikes!

The first signs are those Baboons who are strong and get the best share of the food! They are the ones who start getting weak and sometimes simply collapse!

When Robert researched them he used to frequently find how the Lung would have simply melted away! You do not need much thoughts to know that it is TB!

In humans it is a chronic debilitating disease but in Baboons it is an acute and dangerous disease which can spread like wildfire! Now before you do could anything you need to know where it came from!

That story is sad and sinister. The Masai tribes rear cows and they have lots but then they are the first to know when the cow is infected with TB. They would then silently take the cow to the hotels and sell the contaminated meat!
The meat inspector would be sufficiently bribed and the obviously infected parts would be thrown on to the garbage dump. The other ‘safer’ lookin meat would then be ‘served’ to the guests! The infected meat thrown on the garbage dump would be eaten by the baboons especially the males who are strong and lazy!

They get infected and it spreads like wildfire! Many would die and Robert cannot do anything since they are all well connected  and tourism is the chief industry in Kenya! He dreams of doing stuff but they all remain a dream!


So you know the cultprit but you cannot do anything! Each and everytime though we know the cultprit is your average Homo of the Sapiens!

Then again that same species is responsible for some memorable things also! Like the movie love story starring Manoj Tuli!

You may know him as …let me know…

Shubh ratri…

In the novel memoirs of a Primate by Robert Sapolsky at one point is simply frustrated with things happening around him!

He then speaks to the wise elders of the Masai tribe who have so much suffering and challenges but then they simple listen to him and say, “That is DUNIYA!”

That word had an intant connect with me since we know Duniya! Since it was the audio book I actually went back couple of times to recheck whether I heard the word correctly or not!

The word is similar in many dialects including Arabic, hindi and Urdu!

The Science of “Duniya” or the the Universe or the world is that human free will is an illusion.

Robert actually then states that that our choices, actions, and entire lives are pre-determined by two main factors over which we have no control!

One is the Biology or the genetics we inherit, the environment in our mother’s womb, and our brain chemistry!

And the other is the Environment! The experiences, culture, and social conditioning we face from the moment of birth!

Every action you take is the result of what happened a split second before, which is the result of what happened an hour before, all the way back to the day you were born.

Therefore, your brain simply “determines” what you will do before you are even consciously aware of it!

Which is when inspired by how DUNIYA operates Sapolsky realises that  we Should live understanding the world this way changes how we treat each other.
Three things are important in this! First is to Eliminate blame; then is to
Treat rather than punish and finally the most important is that we must Reduce judgment!

We should recognize that our successes and privileges are the result of luck (in our biology and environment), not just hard work which is also important! But for everything we have we must also thank our luck!

The life we lead right now with all the struggles and challenges may be a dream for someone else! That is DUNIYA!

Like you can have only have one Sunny cricketer in a Duniya! Of course that’s Sunil Manohar Gavaskar!

Now think about your Duniya and sleep!

Shubh ratri…

You may have seen beautiful family portraits especially those royal places with lineages going back several years!

Each one more beautiful and grand and royal than the other!

But have you heard of a family where each person was more ugly than the other!? Now beauty is a matter of your eyes but this is according to potrait artists!

Let me tell you two chief things which determines the beauty as a potrait artist!

If the nose is good then the face is really beautiful! And if the jaw is bad then the face looks bad!

This whole family turned out to be ugly because of a famous jaw deformity! So famous that there is a name for it and studies done to prevent such ‘complications’!

The jaw is called the Habsburg jaw which is clinically called mandibular prognathism! This is a pronounced genetic facial deformity characterized by an extended, jutting lower jaw and severe underbite.

It is famously associated with the House of Habsburg, a powerful European royal dynasty, and was the biological consequence of centuries of intense, inbreeding to retain political power!


To keep wealth and power concentrated within their lineage, the Habsburgs frequently married close relatives, including first cousins and uncles to nieces!

In 2019, an extensive genetic study published in the Annals of Human Biology confirmed a direct link between the Habsburg’s degree of inbreeding and the severity of their jaw deformities.

This intense level of consanguinity drastically reduced genetic diversity, increasing the rate of recessive gene expressions that caused the physical anomalies!

While mandibular prognathism is the primary trait, many members of the dynasty exhibited a collection of related facial abnormalities all named after Habsburg! Now is that a thing to be proud of or not is your choice!

Apart from the Habsburg Jaw, you also had the Habsburg Lip with a thick, everted (protruding) lower lip and the Habsburg Nose which is a prominent nose featuring a dorsal hump and an overhanging tip!

The trait was heavily documented by portrait artists for over 200 years!

One of the famous person from this family was Charles II of Spain who was also known as El Hechizado or “the bewitched” and he was the last of the Spanish Habsburgs.

His inbreeding coefficient was incredibly high, and his jaw was so severely deformed that he had difficulty chewing, swallowing his food whole, and speaking clearly!

All because of the inbreeding coefficient! Which means that when they say opposites attract, it is very true!

The person who you marry and eventually have kids must having a very less inbreeding coefficient which means that the more you are not related to him or her, the more are the chances that you will have beautiful or at least healthy kids!

Now that’s a fairy tale wedding! Fairytale though were a far cry when it comes to the movies by Vasanth Kumar Shivashankar Padukone! But all his movies are cult classics now!

Do you know who that is!?

Lemme know!
Of course don’t lose your sleep over it!

Shubh ratri…

Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift’s was an interesting novel growing up! But little did I know that it was a very complicated novel in four parts!

In the novel Seeing further by Bill Bryson he tells about the complexity of this supposedly simple novel!

But we will discuss about that some other day!

Today you will get to know about Struldbrugs!

For the first time ever I will not beat around the bush and tell you that Struldbrugs mentioned in the novel’s third part are immortals!

So when you hear the word immortal you would feel, wow! That is amazing! Even Gulliver thought the same! In fact Gulliver sounds like GULLIBLE! Which was the primary theme! We are all so Gullible!

So Struldbrugs are rare humans born in the nation of Luggnagg who are biologically immortal and are marked at birth with a red spot above their left eyebrow!

The catch here is that they do not stay young!

They continue to age forever. By the time they reach 80 years old, they are physically and mentally ruined. They become blind, deaf, and lose all their teeth!

Their memories stop at middle age, so they cannot even remember modern words or events. They outlive all their family and friends!

But society is not kind to them and in Luggnagg, Struldbrugs are viewed as “legally dead” when they turn 80.

The law takes away their money and property to stop them from owning everything forever. They are not allowed to hold jobs or testify in court. They must live as beggars or rely on the government!

At first, the main character, Lemuel Gulliver, thinks eternal life sounds amazing. He dreams about living forever to become the wisest man in the world. However, when he meets the Struldbrugs, he is horrified by their sad and miserable state. This teaches Gulliver that death is a natural and necessary part of life!

By the way the novel was written in 1726 and see the description of Struldbrugs! Old forgotten and more or less sick with a ‘mark’ over their eyebrow! We have a similar immortal like that written many centuries before with a mark on his forehead who has also been cursed! Do you know who?

Immortality is not all that tempting is it now!? As Anand always says; “Zindagi badi honi Chahiye lambi Nahi!”

So make sure your LIMITED stay in this world is meaningful! Maybe make movies like Asha Kelunni! Some of her malayalam movies like Kilukkam still makes me laugh! You may know her as Revathy!

Now have a Good quality and not a long sleep!

SHubh ratri!

PS- Also lemme know if you got the reference!

Did you know the that Newton invented calculus!

I should have asked ‘Do you know calculus?’, first!

Anyway lets avoid controversial questions! And ask more controversial ones!

Did you know that Calculus was actually not only invented by Newton but also by another Mathematician! 

In fact we actually use his invention today!

Did you also know that Newton was so affected and vindictive of his competition that he did everything possible to keep his competition at bay! Then again truth is like the gold! It will shine forever! 

In the novel Seeing Further by Bill Bryson; he talks about this rivalry and how!

Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz independently invented calculus in the 1670s. Newton invented it first as a tool for physics. Leibniz published his work first. They had a bitter fight over who came first. Leibniz won this fight in the long run. We use his symbols today!

Newton called his system fluxions. He wanted to measure the speed of moving things. He used terms like “fluents” (changing quantities) and “fluxions” (their rates of change).

Leibniz used infinitesimals which are numbers that are infinitely small. They are larger than zero, but smaller than any real number you can name. Think of it like cutting a pizza into a million tiny slices!

The symbols we learn in school come from Leibniz and not Newton!

Leibniz wrote derivatives as fractions! This shows the ratio of tiny changes in y over tiny changes in x!

He wrote integrals as int with a long “S” for summa. It means adding up an infinite number of tiny slices!

Newton used dots and dashes over letters, like ẏ. These are harder to type and use, so modern math classes ignore them!

So we use Leibniz! But who came first!?

Well…

Newton was a secretive man. He did not publish his calculus notes for years. Leibniz figured out the same math on his own ten years later. Leibniz published his work immediately!

When Newton saw Leibniz’s work, he accused Leibniz of cheating. Newton was the head of the Royal Society in London. He used his power to declare himself the first inventor. Historians now agree that both men invented calculus on their own!

Of course Leibniz won in the long term but at a hefty prize! Did you know who Leibniz was until now? While everyone knows Newton! Being the head and being powerful comes with fruits you see! Not everyone can use power judiciously!

Judicious use of talent also is a talent! Like the talented Balamuralikrishna!

Now use calculus to set your alarm! Joking! 

Shubh ratri…

A Primate’s Memoir by neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky

Audio book!

I am going in reverse!

This should have been the first novel I should have read by Robert!

Then again it dose not matter because it is not in series though many incidents are related to his other novels as well as his lectures!

This one is basically a biography on how he ended up studying and living with Baboons for several years and literally became an expert on the Primate behaviour!

His journey and resilience would put anyone to shame!

From the safe environment of America with a safe job, Robert decides to go halfway across the world to a desolate place where even civilization has not reached to spend time with Baboons!

Then again that is passion! If you do not take the trouble; it does not feel worth your time!

This is an adventure book which details his 20+ years studying wild baboons in Kenya.

He blends wildlife science with local culture. Sapolsky proves that social rank and stress hormones affect primate health and life span.

The book explores both animal behavior and human survival in the bush.

Sapolsky grows up in Brooklyn. He falls in love with the African animal displays at the museum. At age 21, the Harvard graduate leaves the US to study a real baboon troop in Kenya.

He studies how stress causes disease. He tests blood and hormone levels. He learns that a baboon’s place in their social group determines their stress.


The primary finding is that the lower-ranking males actually suffer the highest stress!


The ‘imagination’ or notion that the Males are the king and leaders is thrown into the bin at least when it comes to baboons! The males have come from some other troop and they do not know shit! It is the females who are the most experienced! Even in attack unless it is his own kid which is under attack you may find the male sitting comfortably atop a tree being groomed by the trending female! Food is free for all and all the alpha male does is to roam around, eat, seep and have babies with all the leading ladies! When he is ‘away’ the other males have a go! They constantly try to take over the alpha position though and that is a constant cycle!

The book describes much more than just monkeys. Sapolsky faces extreme isolation. He deals with dangerous wild animals, corrupt park rangers, and kidnappers. He also befriends the local Masai people!

All the while you have civil war going on and the government getting collapsed! People fighting and killing with impunity! If you have money then you are alive! Then you have the tribes who drink cow blood! They also drink the milk occaionally! They also are hunters and do not do anything else! Education is a distant dream and ‘their’ way of life is the way of life!

So you can imagine the state of the author being a vegetarian stuck in a place like this! One fine day he gets a leg of a Zebra as a gift from the rangers who are supposed to protect them! Apparently it was a payment they took for delayed salary!

Naorobi is the city to be if you need anything but simple things like a fridge to a permit takes lots of patience and GREASING! Almost everyone is corrupt and only the degrees vary!

He tries to get close to the troop and even gives them Biblical name in spite of being an atheist!

Then you have the darting and the army ants and the hyena attacks! It is a wild safari all around and you cannot stop to take a nap!

In between he does meet his partner and they share more than food habits and then some!

The final chapter is the tragedy and ends up with hope…

After two decades of bonding with the baboons, a tragic disease strikes! A tuberculosis outbreak kills most of his original baboon troop! How they go the disease? All human of course!

The story is sad and sinister. The Masai tribes rear cows and they have lots but then they are the first to know when the cow is infected with TB. They would then silently take the cow to the hotels and sell the contaminated meat! The meat inspector would be sufficiently bribed and the obviously infected parts would be thrown on to the garbage dump. The other ‘safer’ lookin meat would then be ‘served’ to the guests! The infected meat thrown on the garbage dump would be eaten by the baboons especially the males who are strong and lazy!

They get infected and it spreads like wildfire! Many would die and Robert cannot do anything since they are all well connected  and tourism is the chief industry in Kenya! He dreams of doing stuff but they all remain a dream!

I have seen what happens later in his other novel but that is another matter!

Finally the tragedy forces Sapolsky to accept nature’s harsh realities. He transitions from a young, attached field observer to an experienced scientist. He now focuses on the academic side of biology! And talks about the concept of DUNIYA! The world as it is!

With every word you could feel his pain and emotions and this is a treat!


Thank you for doing this Robert…The DUNIYA is a better place because of people like you!

An amazing journey indeed!

In the novel Seeing Further by Bill Bryson which is about the Royal Society he talks about, well the Royal Society!

That is of course not surprising!

Then again he talks about one of the famed members of the Royal Society; one bloke called Isaac Newton!

Then again that is also not surprising!

But! Have you heard of the Newton’s death mask!

That is the juicy story right there! Who told you history is boring! Most probably your biology teacher!

Anyway you must know about this piece of history! Newton’s Death mask!

Newton’s death mask is a plaster or wax sculpture cast within hours of his passing on March 31, 1727!

Created by Flemish artist Michael Rysbrack, it was intended as an anatomical reference for sculpting Newton’s Westminster Abbey tomb.

Several copies exist in institutions like the Royal Society Picture Library and the Huntington Library.

By the way it was not just any other mask! It was taken right after death, which is why the mask shows Newton with closed eyes and a slightly flattened nose due to the weight of the wet plaster!

The existence of multiple authentic copies demonstrates the intense reverence held for Newton during the Enlightenment.

Then you have several historical and modern facts regarding the mask!

Prime of which is the Thomas Jefferson Connection! The plaster mask held at the Huntington Library was once owned by Thomas Jefferson, who prominently displayed it at Monticello as an emblem of the Enlightenment!

An iron/pewter version exists at Woolsthorpe Manor, which was bought in a Camden junk shop in 1930 for just £2.10s! Do not ask me the price now!

In 2012, researchers used an Xbox Kinect to create a highly accurate 3D model of the mask, ensuring the scientist’s physical likeness is preserved forever!

And you thought only the Mask of Jim Carrey was famous!

Then again more famous and pious is Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso! You may know him as the Dalai Lama!

Big respect to his holy grace on his birthday…

Now remove all your pseudo masks and sleep!

Shubh ratri…

Do you know what is Chrometophobia?

Of course we know it is a phobia!

Chrometophobia should not be confused with chromophobia (the fear of colors) or other bizarre celebrity phobias, such as Megan Fox’s fear of dry paper or Oprah’s fear of chewing gum!

In the series The Mentalist the serial killer Red John also has a phobia! Hopefully you do not have the PHOBIA of not knowing the ending!

Anyway coming to Chrometophobia.

The iconic British comedian Benny Hill despite an estimated net worth of millions, famously lived like a pauper, refusing to buy a home or car, patching his old clothes, gluing his shoe soles back on, and walking miles to avoid taxi fares!

In fact he died surrounded by uncashed checks!

Then you have the celebrity Ellen DeGeneres who also has this!

Hope you got it!

Chrometophobia is the extreme, irrational fear of spending or handling money. It often stems from past financial trauma or childhood instability.

Sufferers experience intense anxiety, physical symptoms like panic attacks, and avoidance behaviors—often neglecting necessities or isolating themselves to prevent any transactions!

They typically include refuse to check bank accounts, open mail, or touch physical cash/cards!

They even experience a racing heart, sweating, or panic attacks when faced with purchases!

Of course until now it is more or less normal but when they go for self deprivation then it is a problem!

Denying yourself necessities (like medical care or proper home maintenance) even when financially stable and then skipping vacations or social gatherings out of fear of spending.

Finally obsession! Constantly counting money or ruminating over hypothetical financial disaster is a prime symptom!

Most common cause is the trauma of childhood and history of poverty.

Experiencing severe poverty, job loss, or bankruptcy and growing up in a household with extreme financial conflict or food/housing scarcity.

Of course many may even have a pre-existing predisposition to anxiety or related conditions like OCD.

Now before you start branding people having Chrometophobia; do think a while and try to see the whole picture from a distance or a height! Unless of course like me you have acrophobia then you can simply mind your own…Phobia! Their money their Phobia!


You just hope that you do not have cinephobia! Yeah that’s the fear of watching movies! Catch something nice by say Adoor Gopalakrishnan!

Now get over your fear of darkness and sleep!

Shubh ratri…

Do you know (it is so irritating when someone starts a blog with this I know!); that there are only three people in the entire world who DO NOT have a passport!?

By the way passport has a fascinating history!

The earliest recorded documents granting safe passage are found in the Hebrew Bible and the ancient Indian text Arthashastra.

The term “passport” itself dates to medieval Europe, derived from the Latin passer (to pass) and portus (harbor/gateway) to allow travelers through city walls.

In 1540, the English Privy Council began issuing early travel documents under King Henry VIII. Later, in 1641, King Charles I issued one of the earliest recorded British passports!

As global tensions rose, European nations used World War I to strictly monitor borders and restrict the movement of people.

In 1914, the British government issued the very first iteration of the modern passport booklet, which was a single page folded into eight and held within a cardboard cover.

Finally you have the Global Standardization!

Following World War I, border controls were made permanent. The League of Nations held a conference in 1920 that established a universal size, shape, and content standard for passports, which resulted in the famous 32-page “Old Blue” passport!

Which brings us to the DID YOU KNOW that started it all!

Who are the three individuals with no passport?!


Apparently there are only three specific people in the world who do not need or hold passports: King Charles III of the United Kingdom and Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan!

Because all British passports are issued officially in the King’s name, he cannot issue one to himself. Instead, he carries a special document requesting unhindered passage! Now who WROTE that document is anyone’s guess!


Then you have the Rulers of Japan! Emperor and Empress of Japan operate under a 1971 government ruling stating it is highly inappropriate to subject the imperial couple to ordinary immigration and visa processes!

So unless you are a King (or a Queen for that matter!); and an important one; better have a passport!

Ideally though artists must not be required to have a passport! Art has no border! Like the singer Amit Kumar!

Now keep YOUR passports safe though and sleep!

Shubh ratri…

So do you use perfume or deodorant?

Now, now I am telling you that you do not take bath everyday which leads to the usage of perfume to cover the TRACKS so to speak! But do you use STUFF to smell nice!?

If you do then let me ask if you use COLOGNE!?

If you do then you if you were at some point transported in history and state that you use COLOGNE then people would ask; Why are you using a city!?

Surprised!? Me too! Or maybe you do not get surprised by things which smell!

Anyway after that SMELLY joke lemme tell you that the word cologne comes from the name of a city!

NYT crossword sometimes does improve your knowledge!

So the word “cologne” has two meanings: the city in Germany and the fragrance. Both share the exact same root!

The city ROOT; The Roman Emperor Claudius founded the settlement in 50 CE. He named it Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium to honor his wife, Agrippina, who was born there! Now am sure except the emperor, no one will be stimulated enough to call her  or the city by that long name so people shortened this long name to Colonia (which means “colony” in Latin).

Over time, “Colonia” changed into the modern German word Köln! Finally the French and English versions of this word became Cologne!

Then you have the perfume or the Fragrance! An Italian perfumer named Johann Maria Farina moved to the city of Cologne in 1709. He created a light, refreshing citrus perfume. He named his new creation Eau de Cologne, which is French for “water from Cologne,” to honor his new home. Over time, people even shortened this French phrase to simply “cologne”!

Today, “cologne” is a general term for any light scent or men’s perfume! Now that is not SMELLY!

Since I am allergic to most stuff including and not restricted to DUST; one of the commonest triggers for allergy prone individuals apart from cold or warm air and water are the chemical triggers which start the ALLERGIC reaction!

Foremost are the perfumes! Which is why I avoid them as much as possible! Till someone discreetly tells me to visit or try a city in Germany perhaps!

Or be cheerful and you may smell nice! Watch a movie perhaps! Like mayabazaar starring S V Ranga Rao!

Now be fresh and sleep!

Shubh ratri!…