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Yesterday was the day when this planet was officially named the ninth planet and after 75 or so glorious years; it was demoted mainly because it could not keep its surroundings clean!

That is what you get when your neighbourhood is dirty! You lose your planetary status!

That too when in addition to the planet, a Disney character (introduced the same year) and a major element discovered later were named in its honor!

The planet was discovered on February 18, 1930, by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Arizona.

Searching for a predicted “Planet X” beyond Neptune, Tombaugh used a blink comparator to identify a moving object on photographic plates taken in January 1930. The discovery was officially announced on March 13, 1930.

The discovery was telegraphed to the Harvard College Observatory on March 13, 1930, intentionally chosen to coincide with the anniversary of Lowell’s birth and the discovery of Uranus!

The planet was actually was named in 1930 by 11-year-old Venetia Burney from Oxford, England, who suggested the name of the Roman god of the underworld to her grandfather.

The name was chosen because the planet was dark, cold, and distant!

The Lowell Observatory officially adopted it, partially because “PL” are the initials of Percival Lowell!

The name fit because, as the god of the underworld, the god could make himself invisible, mirroring how the planet had been hidden, and it followed the naming convention of other planets (Jupiter and Neptune are brothers to the said Greek god!)

The staff at Lowell Observatory considered many names, including Minerva and Cronus, but voted unanimously for this name on March 24, 1930!

The name was officially announced on May 1, 1930, and Venetia received a five-pound reward from her grandfather!

After more than 75 years of being the beloved darling and ninth planet it was moved to the stature of a Dwarf planet!

This is because a ‘real’ planet must: 1) Orbit the Sun, 2) Be spherical (have enough mass for gravity to create a round shape), and 3) Have cleared its orbital neighborhood of other debris!

The planet however got only 2 out of three!

It orbits the Sun and is round, but it fails the third criterion. It is located in the Kuiper Belt, a region filled with other icy bodies and debris. Because its gravity is not strong enough to clear this area, it is not considered a “dominant” planet!

In 2006, the IAU or International Astronomical Union  reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet because it fits the criteria of being round and orbiting the Sun but not having the gravitational dominance to clear its path! Basically it has it “has not cleared its neighboring region of other objects.”

Now do not feel sad!  It has company!

The planet is now classified alongside other dwarf planets like Eris, Ceres, Haumea, and Makemake (that is not a song by Yohani!)!

Did you get the Planet or the dwarf planet? Do not say Uranus!

It is PLUTO!

Interesting story by the way, but why I wrote the blog was that in all this time; when it was called a planet and then discovered as a planet and when it was promoted and then demoted as a dwarf planet!

During all this time Pluto didn’t really care what we thought about it!

At some point in our life, I think we also should just do our job and not simply care what people think about you!

Just like Rohit Shetty who does not overthink when he makes his movies! Just some action and full PLUTO, I mean paisa wasool!

Now stop thinking about Pluto and sleep!

shubh ratri!

Did you know that everyone has some culture!

Even animals by the way!

I am talking about bacterial culture by the way!

Now a ‘cultured’ person like you would know that but did you know that your behaviour is determined by the bacteria in your gut!

That feeling in your gut may be a bacteria after all!


Now research indicates that the composition, diversity, and sheer amount of bacteria in your gut (the microbiome) can significantly influence your behavior, mood, and personality.

While they do not completely control you like a “puppet master,” microbes in the gut communicate with the brain, impacting stress levels, anxiety, sociability, and even cognitive functions!


The gut contains a “second brain”—the enteric nervous system—which is composed of around 100 million neurons and is in constant, two-way communication with the brain via the vagus nerve! It also produces the vital bullets of our mood guns! The neurotransmitters! Gut bacteria manufacture, or signal the body to produce, more than 90% of the body’s serotonin (which regulates mood) and significant amounts of dopamine and Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which helps manage anxiety!


A more diverse gut microbiome is generally associated with lower stress and anxiety, while reduced diversity or an unhealthy balance (dysbiosis) is linked to higher anxiety and depression. Microbes may even influence your eating habits by producing neuroactive compounds that trigger cravings for sugar or fat, encouraging the growth of the bacteria that thrive on those specific foods.


Research has also shown that changing the gut microbiome via diet can alter social decision-making, such as increasing a sense of fairness in financial games.
A high-fiber diet with natural prebiotics and probiotics (e.g., fermented foods) supports a diverse and healthy gut, which is linked to better mood and behavior.

While the overuse of antibiotics can disrupt the microbiome, reducing its diversity and potentially causing “behavioral” side effects, such as lower scores on cognitive tests.


In fact in some “germ-free” mouse studies; it has been seen that transplanting gut microbiota from depressed humans into mice resulted in the mice displaying depression-like behaviors!

Remember that next time your gobble down those antibiotics without prescription like it’s a dessert you got in your uncle’s house!

You are what you eat and what’s in your gut!

Now this blog may not get viral because; well it’s bacterial!

Then again more than the blog getting viral I would like the world getting more peaceful! One way would be by listening to wise ‘cultured’ people like Vijayendra Saraswathi Swamigal…

Now stop that junk food and get more fiber for your gut and health!

Subh ratri…

This game was most popular and one of the most dangerous games of all!

In 1902 even with rules and regulations 12 people died in this game! While in 1905 the number was 71! 71 people died while playing a game! Let that sink in!

Of course it was not boxing since that can maximally have only two people playing at a time!

This game is one of the most famous games in the world right now though the injuries happened in the Americanised version of the game!

The most famous game in the world of course is football and the violent game with American version of the football; Rugby!

Although technically speaking there is an American version of rugby called American football!

Then again rugby and football and American football have the same origin!

The novel by Bill Bryon called made in America; details about how football came into play!

Bryson details how various forms of “football” were played in Britain for centuries, often as chaotic town-wide matches with few rules. The separation into distinct codes happened in the mid-19th century:

Rugby Football was Named after the Rugby School in England where, according to legend, William Webb Ellis first picked up the ball and ran with it in 1823!

Association Football or Soccer version focused on kicking the ball. The term “soccer” actually originated in Britain as a slang abbreviation of “Association” (from “Assoc.”).

Bryson explains that when these games reached the United States, they were further adapted:

Walter Camp’s Influence: Often called the “Father of American Football,” Camp was instrumental in modifying the rules of the rugby-style game played at American universities (like Yale) to create the distinct American version.

Bryson highlights how Americans retained the word “football” for their specific gridiron game, while the British eventually abandoned the term “soccer” (which they had invented) in favor of just “football,” leading to the modern linguistic divide.

By about 1818 football rugby had permanently parted ways in America.

Now a player is called a jock! Don’t even ask whether the term originated from!

American football and rugby differ primarily in protective gear, player roles, and flow of play. American football uses heavy pads, has 11 players per side, and allows forward passes, resulting in stop-and-go action. Rugby uses no pads, features 15 (Union) or 13 (League) players, restricts passing to backward/lateral, and has continuous play!

So now you have football or convention football, which is soccer, then you have the international rugby or the British rugby, and then you have the American football, which is the Americanised version of rugby!

Cricket seems like a good option right now!

That’s history! A legendary historical figure also was Dr Viswanathan Shanta!

When you can read so much about football; do read about the legendary oncologist!

Praying for peace…
Shubh ratri…

“What time is it?”

There was a time when this was the question we used to ask most commonly to anyone and everyone!

Apparently, this is also one of the most common searches on the Google right now!

You want to break ice with someone just ask what time it is! Do not try that now though!

Those days if someone wants to talk to somebody or be friends with somebody, all he or she had to do was ask ‘what’s the time?

Even during exam time, if you are asking something else (not me though! Since I hate cheating…) you can always say that you are asking the time!

Even if you have a watch, on you; the only way of checking is to ask someone, what is the time?!

That person would look at you and look at your watch, and assume that you are insane (he may be right there!) then you tell your watch may not be working and everything will be okay!

Those are the days when no one had mobile phones, and the average wrist watch was the only Tech anybody had!

Then again, you have the watches with the cells or batteries which had the all or none law! Either they had a perfect time or not at all!

While the ones who had to be wound up were more consistent but costlier to have and maintain! Even then you had to ask others for the time! I remember people setting or correcting the time by listening to the Radio or seeing the TV!

In fact you had a time check every hour, just so that you would know what time it is! We do have the time check even now, that’s just, Entertainment!

Of course, now you would never, or hardly ever meet a person who ever ask you, ‘what’s the time?’

And even if he did, you would really look up and down to confirm whether he is from the same century or not!

Of course, some old timer still ask time! Maybe they genuinely want to know the time or they want to remember the time when they had to ask the time!

If you are nostalgic, Kind, then rest assured the question ‘What is the time’ is now the second most common search query on Google.!

I know, I know you would want to know which is the most common searched query!

Apparently, the most common searched query isis; ‘what is my IP address’

I have never asked that question, but now is not the TIME to discuss that!

By the way it is also one of the most common questions asked to most tech gadgets like the Alexa or even my ray ban meta!

I course, do it to find out if the glasses are working!

Of the other common things, what we ask, our gadgets to do is to play music!

Just now I  asked my Meta AI to play a Mohit Chauhan song!

Of course, now is the TIME to sleep!

Now Set the time to get up and sleep!

Shubh Ratri!

Do you know what is doomsday and do you know what is a doomsday plane!?

While the former is simply a movie by marvel having RDJ as Dr Doom! The latter is much more serious to say the least!

So the “Doomsday Plane” refers to a class of highly specialized military aircraft designed to serve as a mobile, survivable command center for the U.S. President and senior leadership during a nuclear war or national emergency.

There are currently two primary types of aircraft fulfilling this role as of March 2026:

The first is the Boeing E-4B Nightwatch (Air Force) which is known as the National Airborne Operations Center (NAOC) and it serves as a “flying war room” for the President, Secretary of Defense, and Joint Chiefs of Staff.
It is shielded against electromagnetic pulses from nuclear blasts; notably, it still uses analog instruments because they are less susceptible to EMP than modern digital systems!

The best part is that it can remain airborne for up to a full week with in-flight refueling!

As far as alert Status is concerned, at least one of the four existing E-4Bs is on 24/7 alert, ready to launch in minutes from its base at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska!

The other Doomsday plane is the Boeing E-6B Mercury (Navy). This is codenamed “Looking Glass,” since it mirrors the capabilities of ground-based nuclear command centers. It can relay orders to the U.S. nuclear triad, including launching ICBMs and communicating with ballistic missile submarines via a miles-long trailing wire antenna.

As far as the future is concerned the aging E-4B fleet is scheduled to be replaced by the SNC E-4C Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC).

Needless to say, the sighting of such a plane cannot be good news for anyone!
Though it could be a routine drill!

Then again I would prefer the Marvel’s Doomsday over the Doomsday plane anyday!

Then again, given my current situation, I would prefer doing a round of Tabla with the legend Zakir Hussain!

Praying for peace and health

Shubh ratri…

In the comic book, TinTin and the Picaros; his dog snowy refuses to eat a dish which he calls as slop!

This was important because the dish has to be eaten by everybody in the camp so that they will develop an aversion to alcohol and their revolution will be a success!

One of the person who feels there’s something wrong with the slop initially tries to feed it to snowy!

Snowy refuses to eat it because he feels the “slop is full of Pimentos!”

Of course, Tintin makes him eat the ‘slop’, and then the whole thing becomes a success!

How it becomes a success you can know when read the comic!

For me, however, the point of interest was the term slop!
Now I read that comic more than twenty years ago so Snowy might as well would have said Soup! Or maybe it was the Captain who said the word in another Comic! But I remember it as slop!

It is interesting because now there is something called an AI slop! The term has become so popular!


AI slop (also known simply as slop) is digital content made with generative artificial intelligence that is perceived as lacking in effort, quality, or meaning, and produced in high volume as clickbait to gain advantage in the attention economy, or earn money.


It is a form of synthetic media usually linked to the monetization in the creator economy of social media and online advertising.


Coined in the 2020s, the term has a pejorative connotation similar to spam
It is often characterized by High Volume, Low Quality: Content created quickly to fill websites, social media feeds, or search results, often lacking depth, accuracy, or human oversight.

This slop has the main idea of repetitiveness with formulaic patterns and recycled ideas that offer little original value!

It also involves Hallucinations! Which are inaccuracies or nonsensical information presented as fact by AI models!

You can also see visual Artifacts which are AI-generated images with glaring errors, such as extra limbs, distorted textures, or surreal, nonsensical compositions!

The term is also frequently used as a critique of the “dead internet theory,” where bot-generated content begins to outweigh human-created material, leading to a degraded user experience!


In fact “Slop” was selected as the 2025 Word of the Year by both Merriam-Webster and the American Dialect Society!

Now that is fame! AI fame!

Of course some do not need any AI slop for fame! Their work speaks for themselves!

Like Anupam Kher!


Now Stop looking at AI slops and go to sleep!

SHUBH RATRI…

Do you know that human beings are Altricial?

I know for sure that that’s not a form of mental disorder!

In fact, every human being is actually Altricial!
Then again, you are not alone, don’t feel bad. There are so many animals and birds who are Altricial!

Of course, since human beings need much more time to develop, we are the most Altricial of them all!

Now the animals who are not Altricial are called Precocial!

No, no, don’t become antagonistic or lose your mind! It simply mean that you are not independent when you are born! Some of course are not independent, even otherwise, but then that’s more philosophy, not real life!

Precocial animals, such as wildebeest, giraffes, zebras, and megapode birds, are independent shortly after birth/hatching.

They are born with eyes open, able to walk or fly, and sometimes forage immediately. For example, blue wildebeest can stand within minutes and outrun predators within a day!

Calves stand and walk within an hour! While megapode Birds hatch with feathers, capable of flying the same day! Even the Guinea Pigs are born fully developed, eyes open, and able to eat solid food immediately!

There are many such examples, but the factor of the matter remains is that they are independent, the moment or a very little time after they are born!

Which brings us to the Altricials!

Altricial species are defined by young that are helpless, blind, naked, and entirely dependent on parental care at birth, such as marsupials, rodents, cats, dogs, and many birds (e.g., owls, woodpeckers).

In fact the most extreme examples include humans, chimpanzees, orangutans, and giant pandas!

Since the human brain is the most complex machine in the world. It takes so many years to get fully developed. Which is the reason why humans are considered to have the highest evolutionary rate of altriciality due to the need for post-natal brain development.

So for every human, even the most intelligent ones, it takes an average number of years to be fully developed, and what is the first thing we do after we supposedly become intelligent?

We waste no time in proving others are stupid! Most kids don’t even consider Mother intelligent! By remembering a simple equation r fact, they feel that they have become very intelligent, forgetting that an average Indian dish has more than 20 different ingredients which your mother remembers without any difficulty!

One great mother and an amazing Woman was my Grand mother Rajalaxmy! Being the wife of a freedom fighter was not easy! At one point she did not have contact with him for many years! A steadfast religious lady who used to eat on plates made out of leaves! Even when she was a little old and weak, she would wear her nine yards saree and pray and sing like a dream! If she was more happy she would play the violin and how!

Only a society which truly respects women can ever be developed or Humane!

Everyone is known on how he or she treats the women in his or her life!

On the occasion of Women’s day; a humble ode to a great lady as well as other amazing women of the world!

Shubh ratri…

We know that the human brain can do a lot of things, but  (you know this was coming!); it is seen that the human brain or for that matter any brain can do only one thing at a time!

It is the same with perception. The human brain apparently can perceive only one thing at a time!

In the novel called a brief history of intelligence, and the novel called The One thing; the author try to emphasise on this basic point!

Now there is an image along with this blog; actually, there are three! When you look at the first image, what do you see?

You would either see a bird or a rabbit, but only one of them at a time! You CANNOT see them together! It is either bird or rabbit!

The second and the third images are linked to each other! In fact, the second image becomes clear once you see the third image, and once you see the third image, you can never unsee the second image!

See the images and get back to the blog!

The first property of perception is called ‘one at a time’ property while second is called ‘you can’t unsee’

The “one at a time” property of perception refers to the cognitive limitation where the brain can only consciously process, attend to, or focus on a very limited amount of information at any given moment.

While our senses constantly take in massive amounts of data, the perceptual system is highly selective, focusing on one focal point or task to construct a meaningful, coherent representation of the environment!

Due to limited processing capacity, the brain functions as a bottleneck, forcing a serial (one-by-one) rather than parallel (all-at-once) conscious experience of complex stimuli.

When interpreting complex scenes or listening to speech, the brain processes inputs in sequence to avoid a “meaningless jumble”.

This limitation is crucial for making sense of the world, allowing the mind to focus on, and therefore understand, specific, relevant information, rather than being overwhelmed by simultaneous, unorganized data!

Then you have the ‘cant unsee property of perception’

The phrase “can’t unsee” refers to a property of perception where, once a specific pattern, meaning, or structure is recognized within sensory input, it becomes difficult or impossible to return to the original state of ignorance!

This phenomenon is driven by the brain’s tendency to organize visual information, often making it hard to ignore newly perceived, hidden, or structural details.

Once context or “knowledge” is applied to an image, the brain changes how it interprets that data. Like in the image 2 and three; you cannot unsee the animal!
At first glance you cannot recognize any pattern but when you see the third image and then see the second image, you cannot unsee the fact that there is an animal present there! I am of course, not telling the name of the animal to keep the suspense!

It demonstrates the cognitive shift from “seeing” to “understanding,” which often overrides raw, objective sensory input.

It is frequently observed in optical illusions, hidden images (like in the FedEx arrow or the “hidden face” in a drawing), or once a structural flaw in a design is pointed out!

Or like the images 2-3! Once brain knows well, it knows!
Like my small brain knows that
Mannjheri Narayanan Nambiar was a great actor!

Now use your brain for one thing!

Sleep!!

Subh ratri!

The greatest beauty in nature is symmetry!

In a Sketch of course the symmetry is difficult to maintain!

Most beautiful things in the world are radially symmetrical while more than 99 percent of living beings are actually not Radiantans!

Which brings us to the question what are who are Radiantans? Who are not Radiantans who form the majority?

By the way the ones who are not Radiantans are called Bilaterians! The chief difference is actually also in the way they walk!

Not catwalk by the way but the basic way they move!

So Radiantans or have radial symmetry while Bilaterians have bilateral symmetry!


Radiantans (Radiata) and Bilaterians (Bilateria) exhibit fundamental differences in mobility, largely dictated by their body symmetry and nervous system organization. Radiates are generally adapted for sessile, floating, or slow-moving lifestyles, while Bilaterians are adapted for active, directional movement!


Radiantans have a mobility which is limited, passive, or slow. Examples include jellyfishes (planktonic drifters), sea anemones, and corals!

Radial symmetry allows them to experience the environment equally from all directions, which is advantageous for sedentary organisms waiting for food, but not for chasing prey. Which means that those which have radial symmetry can move in all directions! Whilst those with bilateral symmetry can only move in two directions.

So Bilaterians have motility which is active, rapid, and directional (forward, backward, side-to-side). Examples include worms, insects, and vertebrates which is of course more than 99 percent of movement in the world!

Another interesting thing is that evolutionarily; both the Radiantans and Billaterans had a common evolutionary origin! In fact evolutionarily all were initially Radiantans!

Which essentially means that at some point in life you could go wherever you want but as you evolve you do only two directions! You can either choose to go front or back or you can choose to go up or down!


Whatever you select is your direction! Sometimes of course there is no right direction; it’s only a choice!

Like I choose to sketch Shankar Mahadevan! Really happy with the sketch after a long time!

Now keep your direction towards your bed and sleep!!

Shubh ratri!

Have you ever wondered what is your brain?

Luckily if you have wonder that then at least one thing is sure; you have a brain!

But practically what is your brain?

Which part of the brain is the brain? The cortex or the sulcus or even the connections!

It’s a complicated issue for a simple brain!

Then again have you heard of Paul MacLean?

At least you have this much brain to understand that whether you know or not I am going to tell you about him!

At least most important thing about Paul is that he actually thought that the brain is divided into 3 parts! Actually he thought the brain is composed of three different evolutionary regions!

Of course not many accept this theory now but still it is an important part in understanding the development of the brain and human intelligence as such!

Paul MacLean’s Triune Brain theory proposes that the human brain evolved in three distinct stages—reptilian (survival), paleomammalian (emotions), and neomammalian (rational thought)—layered over each other!

While influential for understanding basic behavior, this 1960s model is considered an oversimplification by modern neuroscience, which views brain functions as more integrated and interdependent.


This basically means that while Paul’s theory states that first the older brain developed and then the new  brain developed over it and then the latest brain developed over the older brain; the modern  theory is that the brain development is interdependent and layered over each other and not in separate specific layers!

The key components of the model as suggested by Paul included three definite and separate sections.


The oldest part of the brain is the reptilian complex which includes the modern Basal Ganglia and this Controls autonomic functions, survival instincts, habits, and physical safety.

Then you have the Paleomammalian Complex or the Limbic System which Manages emotions, motivation, fear, and memory.

Finally you have the Neomammalian Complex  or the Neocortex which is Responsible for higher-order thinking, language, planning, and abstract reasoning.

Now you may not have people agreeing with the layer theory of brain it’s still fact that there are regions which are primarily old while there are regions which are primarily new!

So average human brain does have regions which are old and this leads to something called the tricky brain conflict!

Because the new brain can imagine scenarios, it can stimulate the old brain’s fear responses even when no real danger exists. For example, imagining a future failure can trigger intense anxiety, creating a cycle of rumination.

The old brain acts quickly to protect us (e.g., jumping back from a car), while the new brain processes the context. However, these systems can get into a “tussle,” leading to distress, such as when anxiety-driven thoughts (new) trigger emotional reactions (old)

This interplay of the old and the new is of course to protect you! Sometimes  though protection gets inadequate and you get hurt!

There is of course nothing new  about that! I am sure your new brain would have got that pun! While your old brain would have wanted to kick and run away from that joke!

If you are scratching your head then it’s a different kind of luck if you have a head like Saurabh Shukla!

Now stop scratching and give rest to both your old and new brain!

Subh ratri!