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365 days 365 sketches!

365 blogs!

More than 30 book reviews!

That’s 2025!

My son had a project in which he was supposed to draw a camel; I saw him painstakingly try to get the legs right!

The proportions and the final structure was coming out slowly but he was not happy!

At one point I told him, “Why don’t you simply trace it!?”

He looked at me and said what I would have said if someone had suggested that to me! “That would not be right; I would not feel satisfied!”

I was proud of him!

Art needs truth!

Even if at first your work is not good, all you have to do is be consistent! Even if it does not look good (like my sketch and rarely blog sometimes!); I still post it!

Nowadays you can use the best tools to write a blog or make a sketch! But like my son says; I would not feel satisfied!

Of course many are gifted artists who can get these results faster; many like me need to be persistent and consistent and cannot take this lightly!

In the book mastery by Robert Greene it is said that you need at least 5-10 thousand hours to be a master! It roughly translates to around 6-10 years of consistent work!

So even if the work is busy like today when I saw more than fifty patients or the other day when I was travelling the whole day with no rest; you can still give around ten to fifteen minutes for your skill!

Just like your body needs your time, your mind also needs it! A sketch and a blog and the NYT puzzle corner are the three things I have to do if I have to sleep with a satisfaction of accomplishing something!

The aim is to make the blog readable and crisp! The issue is that writing a short one is more difficult! The ‘facts’ are taken verbatim to maintain authenticity but the topic and the whole text is pure ‘human’ and original! In this day and age though it is difficult to be neutral and clean! I try! Most of the time it works! I have a clear bias towards India and this ‘shows’ most of the time!
But apart from that I have no ulterior ‘motive’ since I have better things to do!

The sketch is usually of the birthday celebrity or someone ‘famous’ right now or someone whom I respect! Here the issue is when I sketch someone who is controversial when actually anyone can be controversial! I would urge then to look at his or her good stuff and ignore the bad! No one is perfect! Not the person I sketch or the person who is sketching them!

Sometimes though I may sketch someone ‘controversial’ for someone else but here also I have no personal affliction to him or her! It would simply have been his or her birthday or he or she would have won the Padma or some award! If he or she can win an award then me sketching him or her is a simple thing! It does not mean that he or she is my friend or I am his or her ‘agent’!

Then again since I also want to be an artiste one day, I have huge respect for artists! They have been given the gift to entertain and how! Like the sketch of the day; Chetan Anand! Even he is not perfect like my sketch!

So I try to see through the imperfections and sketch them! Imperfectly!

Then again that is life! It is not perfect! It simply goes on however it is…

Sharing both the sketch and the collage of 2025!

Let’s see how it’s goes!

Shubh ratri…

Sometimes the cause and the treatment of a condition may be the same!

The same thing can be poison or nectar!

The same water in dehydration is nectar while in heart failure is, well dangerous!

In ENT there is a complication called the oro antral fistula where you have fistula or abnormal communication between the oral cavity and the maxillary sinus or antrum. The interesting point here to note is that sometimes this is a complication of a surgery or surgical approach called the Caldwel Luc! More interesting is that sometimes the treatment is also by the same approach! The cause and the cure is the same in this case!

There’s a process called Photodecomposition!


This is a chemical reaction in which compounds are broken down by photons. The process is also known as photodissociation or photolysis. Any photon with a high wavelength can cause this reaction, including visible light!

The process is responsible for the creation of our ozone!

The ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere is created by photodecomposition
Ultraviolet light strikes oxygen molecules made up of two oxygen atoms
(02), and breaks them into separate atoms.
They then combine with unbroken 02 molecules to form ozone (03)!


Then again that is routine! What is unusual is that this same process causes the destruction of ozone in the earth’s atmosphere!

So the same process which creates also destroys the ozone layer!

Now do not get into the specifics, the root point here is that sometimes what is your greatest strength can also become your greatest weakness!

Being kind can be your strength but then if you are liable to be manipulated for your kindness then it becomes your weakness!

Then again you can be kind and generous and just don’t have any expectations and you will not get hurt!

Like J R D Tata! Remembering legends at the start of the year!

Shubh ratri…

Once upon and time and happily ever after!

Those were the tales we grew up with! Be it movies or stories; everyone is happy in the end! The villain is always defeated and the hero is always the winner!

The best thing is that you know who is the villain and who is the hero!

Who is your actual friend and who is your foe!

Then you grow up and realize that it is all a story! Then again sometimes your own story can be a fairy tale! But if you think about the real stories behind the fairy tales then you would realize that life is a fairy tale but only that it is unmodified!

In the story Pinocchio, when Pinocchio is teased about his wooden head by his cricket companion, the enraged puppet throws a hammer and kills him!

In Andersen’s telling of the little mermaid, the witch silences the little mermaid by cutting off her tongue! Also the little mermaid loses her prince to a human bride and smiles at him one last time as she and her sisters rise slowly to heaven!

In the actual stories of Cinderella, the evil stepmother hands a knife to the eldest of her two daughters, and orders her to cut her toe off to fit in the glass slippers!

In a version of Red Riding Hood, as a warning to young women to avoid sexual predators, he simply allows the flirtatious Little Red Riding Hood to be eaten by the big bad wolf!

And in Snow White; her evil stepmother is invited to Snow White’s wedding, where the guests heat a pair of iron shoes on burning coals. She’s then forced to step into the red-hot footwear and dance in agony, until she falls down dead!

Those are the real fairy tales! Real and tough…which is life…


It’s a fairly tale if something is named after you for perpetuity! Like the Boson named after Satyendra bose!

May the new year be like the fairy tale of your childhood like Boson!

Shubh ratri!

The last day or rather night of the year is the middle of the week! If you are travelling during the time you would not even realise how fast the time flies!

Your resolutions are getting formed and then getting broken just as soon!

The clubs are busy, streets are full of life and there is celebrations everywhere! If you had a good year then you will be so happy and hope that the coming year or years will be just as good! If you have had challenges then you should have hope that things will look better next year! There is always the next year!

You will meet your family and friends and may be have a party! Or like the good old days of the DD; stay at home and watch the idiot box which is just as entertaining though with the abundance of choice you actually feel left out! When we had only one channel; the late night DD new year special was the party to watch out for!

You had amazing stars and great personalities who would come and entertain us! Little did we know that it was all pre recorded! Even the count down! But it was still fun! Some neighbor would inevitably burst a fire cracker and we would all get to know that it is time to wish everyone!

The phone lines will be blocked and even later, the messages would not go through!
People would anticipate this and send messages as early as one week in advance! Some do not need to hurry and even wish one month after the beginning of the year!

These are what the average Homo Sapien who has made these ‘divisions’ of the year would do!

Then again you have these terms as the middle of the week or the end of the year and if you think rationally; these are only our concept!

For the animals and the trees and even the whole planet; except for the seasons which are the slow changes and the night and day which change faster; every day is the same!

The end of the year is only for us!

We have divided the year into the twelve months and we use them for everything in our life!

So if your wishes are unfulfilled or your quota of the ‘yearly’ happiness is not done or ‘met’ or your quota of ‘unhappiness’ is more then do not worry too much! Any day is the beginning and every day can be the end!

Years are only colorful symbols on your work calendar!

So just be patient, have hope and all will be ok; the next year!


May your ‘Prabhu’ bless you!

Shubh ratri and a very happy new year!

What is the common link??

Archimedes shouting ‘Eureka!’
The number one singles by Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie!
40% of Pulitzer Prize winners in the last ten years!
The composer Ludwig van Beethoven’s musical genius and his many compositions!

In fact the list is much longer but don’t want the suspense to be!

All these creative juices (literally!) And ideas happened in the toilet! Yes! The loo is a big creative zoo!

There are several reasons why we (just as an example!) Have amazing ideas in the toilet! There is SHOWER EFFECT/WHITE NOISE EFFECT an DOPAMINE!

This “shower effect” apparently allows for a break from analytical thinking, enabling more unconventional and original thoughts to emerge.


The biggest reasons why the creative juices are flowing is because of lack of social media! If you install a water proof screen in the toilet then you can finally say good bye to creativity!

The lack of external stimuli, such as emails and social media, in a bathroom allows the brain to “blink” and activate the insight pathway to solve problems! In fact as told in the novel Secret of secrets; once the brain is removed from all the distractions it is finally free to perform wonders!

Also the warm water of a shower and the general environment of a bathroom promotes a relaxed state , lowering stress and allowing the mind to wander freely!

Then you have the “White Noise” Effect! The sound of running water can act as white noise, blocking out other distractions and creating a calm, meditative state! In fact if you are reading, you can get the same benefit if you listen to music but make sure it is instrumental or even simply white noise!

This state of relaxation and internal focus is characterized by alpha brain waves, which help make the brain more open to remote associations from the right hemisphere of the brain!

Finally you have the Dopamine Release!

A relaxed and happy mood, often achieved in a bathroom, can be linked to the release of dopamine, a hormone that improves mood and enhances creative thinking!

Also when you are taking bath or using the toilet; you do not have any other ‘work’ going on! Then this is like a transition or the bathroom acts as an “incubation” environment for ideas, allowing the mind to process information and make new connections without the pressure of direct problem-solving!

The composer Ludwig van Beethoven’s musical genius is partly attributed to his early morning bathing rituals!

So maybe next time anyone complains that you or someone is spending too much time in the loo, maybe he or she is thinking the next Noble (or Nobel!) Idea! Just guide him or her to write it down though otherwise it may get washed down the drain literally!

Then again, the most important thing in the world is balance! Just because you get some good ideas in the loo; please do not make it a habit! ‘Loo’brary is not the place to read! Library is better!

Of course it is a natural thing so there should not be any shame in the bathroom effect!

Some talented people though would be the best everywhere!

Like R. Sundarrajan and his movies with great comic timing!

Now spend the second last night of the year in a blissful quiet with your eyes closed! In other ways; sleep!

Shubh ratri!

In older clocks especially with heavy hands you would notice that the seconds hand moves a little faster while coming down!

While it is a little slow when it climbs up! The time it gains to come down is usually equal to the extra time it takes to go up!

The net effect is that no time is effectively lost! That’s the effect of gravity!

This is what Kepler says in his second law!

Kepler’s Law of Equal Areas, or Kepler’s Second Law, states that a line connecting a planet to the Sun sweeps out equal areas in equal time intervals, meaning planets move faster when closer to the Sun (perihelion) and slower when farther away (aphelion).

This demonstrates the conservation of angular momentum in elliptical orbits, as the planet’s speed changes to maintain a constant rate of area swept over time.


In fact in zero gravity a flame of a candle is blue and round! But under pressure you get the typical colours and features!


Practically though it means that do not worry if your start is slow! You will make up eventually!

Just like How the Ramayana by Ramanand Sagar started so slowly but then it is still a legendary piece of television!

Now start your slow pace towards the bed!

Shubh ratri…

There is an interesting story where a clever princess is asked by her father whether she likes sweet or salt!

She says salt!

As you grow older you actually realise it’s true!

The most important thing for the most tastiest food apart from looking good and you being hungry is it to have the perfect salt!

Interestingly we actually work for salt! Even historically!

Salt is such a basic need that a whole march and revolution is based on this!

Did you know that the word Salary is actually based on salt!?

Then again that may be just a myth!

This old story is pretty famous where the
word salary traces its origins to ancient Rome, deriving from the Latin term salārium, which referred to a stipend, allowance, or pension, particularly for officials or soldiers.

In fact salārium — Originally meant “salt money” or an allowance related to salt!

During those times apparently RomeSalt was a highly valuable commodity in antiquity—essential for preserving food, flavoring meals, and even medicinal uses—sometimes called “white gold.” !

It was then passed through Old French salaire and Anglo-Norman salarie.

This word then entered Middle English as salarie around the late 13th to early 14th century.
By the 14th century, it broadly denoted fixed or periodic compensation for services, extending beyond military contexts!

Now comes the myth!

A widespread popular story claims Roman soldiers were directly “paid in salt,” leading to the phrase “worth one’s salt” (meaning competent or valuable)!

It is more likely that salārium was probably an allowance for salt, not payment in salt!

Now don’t AsSalt me for that!

Salt or sugar; life without guide and Gurus is incomplete. One such guru was Guru Gobind Singh! He used to say that “Recognize the entire human race as one”!

May the divine blessings of Guru Gobind Singh Ji fill your life with peace, love, and positivity!

“Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh”

Shubh Ratri…

Sometimes luck can get you a Nobel prize!

In getting a Nobel; this pair could be considered most lucky!

So while working with the Holmdel antenna in New Jersey, the two astronomers discovered a background noise.

After ruling out possible interference from urban areas, nuclear tests, or pigeons living in the antenna, Wilson and Penzias came across an explanation which simply changed their life!

First to tell about the background noise; some background!

In the mid-1960s, while a professor at Princeton University, Dicke independently concluded that the early universe’s hot, dense state would have left a detectable thermal afterglow that had cooled over billions of years due to the expansion of the universe.

He estimated this residual radiation would have a temperature of about 10 Kelvin (later refined to approximately 2.7 Kelvin) and would be observable in the microwave portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Dicke and his research team at Princeton (which included Jim Peebles, Peter Roll, and David Wilkinson) began building a special radio antenna called a Dicke radiometer to search for this signal.

But luck was not in their side!

The radiation was accidentally discovered by radio astronomers at Bell Labs just a few miles away.

So when Penzias and Wilson connected with the Princeton team, it became clear they had inadvertently found the very evidence Dicke had predicted.

This discovery of the CMB provided crucial, concrete evidence supporting the Big Bang theory over the competing steady-state model of the universe.

Now even though the whole theory was provided by Dicke; Penzias and Wilson received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978 for their ‘accidental’ discover

Even when they did not know what it was!

Being first is important and it is also important is to have luck!

Then again it is also important to have true conviction and bravery to become one of the best officers of the army! One such amazing legendary officer was
Major Mohit Sharma AC SM!

Big salute to legends like him


A quick travel sketch and blog
Shubh ratri…

The Turing test, originally called the imitation game by Alan Turing in 1950 is a test of a machine’s ability to exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human.

Practically this means that as Turing proposed human evaluator would judge natural language conversations between a human and a machine designed to generate human-like responses!

Now in his original concept Turing replaced the abstract question “Can machines think?” with a practical experiment:

The Participants were a human judge, a human respondent, and a machine!

All parties are in separate rooms and communicate only through text to remove physical bias.

The goal was that if the judge cannot reliably distinguish between the machine and the human after a series of questions, the machine is considered to have passed.

Even Turing predicted that by the year 2000, a machine could fool 30% of judges during a five-minute test!

By 2025, advanced Large Language Models (LLMs) have demonstrated the ability to pass versions of the test!

The GPT-4.5 in a research published in March 2025 convinced human judges it was a person 73% of the time, surpassing the success rate of actual human participants in the same study!

Modern AI can now simulate casual language, handle unexpected questions, and express believable opinions and humor!

The ability of AI to pass many such modern tests has rendered traditional bot-detection systems like CAPTCHAs increasingly obsolete, necessitating new multi-layered authentication methods in 2025!

Over the years there have been many computers who have defeated this test but as technology progresses the issue is that modern computers who have to pretend to be humans must actually reduce their intelligence and make mistakes to be identified as humans!

Yes! The machines are so fast and accurate that the bot at the other end knows that it is dealing with another bot! You cannot be very good also!

It is like how Karna did not cry of pain even when the scorpion was biting him which Parashuram understood immediately! Too good is sometimes really bad!

Since to err is human! Only when you make mistakes and struggle can you be human and successful!

Successful also was the series by Tarak Mehta which was both funny as well as family oriented!

A quick sketch and blog made without any ‘Robotic’ assistance during a travel in a hotel room with a simple pencil and sheet of paper!

Beat that AI!

Now time to sleep!

Shubh ratri!

This simple game based on paper is now the inspiration to one of the most popular games which floods your WhatsApp group every other day!


The game’s core mechanics come from the older pencil-and-paper game “Bulls and Cows,” a simple code-guessing game with numbers.

In the game one player (the code-maker) creates a secret sequence, and another (the code-breaker) attempts to guess it based on positional feedback.

The game is traditionally played with 4-digit numbers, though versions exist with 3 to 6 digits or even words.

The code-maker writes down a secret number where all digits must be unique (no repeats! This is important and we will come to it later!).

The code-breaker submits a guess of the same length, also with unique digits.

After each guess, the code-maker provides two scores!

Bulls: The number of digits that are correct and in the right position!
Cows: The number of digits that are in the secret number but in the wrong position!

Did you get the modern version of the game with that description!?

There is an intermediate popular game which also got inspired by this one!

Telecommunications expert Mordecai Meirowitz invented the peg-based version of cows and bulls in 1970.

This game play included colors!

One player (Codemaker) sets a secret color code, and the other (Codebreaker) guesses, receiving clues (black/white pegs) for correct colors/positions!

Did you understand that one! Yes! It is Mastermind!

The famous computer scientist Donald Knuth analyzed the game in 1976, proving the codebreaker can always win in five moves or less!

Later on the colors were replaced with alphabets and set to six letters with repeats (which are the hardest clues to solve!)

So you have a six alphabets to solve in six tries or less!

Yes! The Wordle! You even have similar games with numbers and even they are real fun to play!


Fun also was to watch comedians like Raju Shrivastav!

Now finish your worldle of the day and sleep!

Shubh ratri…