Indian Epics Blog

This Thursday, I was proctoring a pre-calculus test when our Complex Analysis professor announced that we would have a midterm in a week. Two days after my Thermodynamics midterm. Two days before my Fluid Dynamics Midterms. All within five days of my Numerical Analysis midterm. While this all seems super stressful, atleast once Fluid Dynamics is over, I can look forward to smooth sailing for a few weeks. This week, in contrast to the next few, is looking to be very peaceful as a whole. I got to play soccer with some friends this weekend. I had not played in a few months, but it was great to get back out on the field and run around a little. Even better, I finally decided on a Halloween costume as well- Russell from Up. The only hard thing has been finding badges. Finally, WE GOT A DOG. This part has been most exciting. She came by at some point this afternoon, a friend had brought her up. She basically explored the house for the first bit of the day, and now, she's getting more u...

This week, I had the opportunity to learn how to Turn Negative Thinkers into Positive Ones , in an article by Jane E. Brody. The article delves into how we can turn our general reaction to adversity from one of negativity, to a more optimistic outlook. I once heard a story of someone that donated $5 to a homeless person at a stop sign, then, as they pulled through, they were T-Boned by a truck. However, things happened just well enough to where the person was not harmed in the incident. The classic optimist view says that because the person donated money, things were looking up for them, and that they had escaped any harm. The pessimist would say "just my luck that I get injured right after doing something good." One thing that the article clarified for me was that acceptance is a big thing. Often in social media, news, and other social encounters, we get upset or feel negative about the outcome. But what people forget is that social media is for highlights, not every day l...

This week, I continued to learn more about the growth mindset by reading the article, " How to Spark Creativity When You're In a Rut " by Priscilla Claman. This article lays out some interesting questions to ask in order to determine whether or not one is in a creativity rut. One thing that I learned within this article was that when people are trying to impress superiors, it decreases creativity. This should be expected as people are often thought of kissing up to their bosses to make them like the employee more. One thing that I knew going in was that if we have to monotonous of a routine, our creativity decreases simply due to not getting outside of the box too often. Finally, one thing I would like to learn further on is why creativity is the most important item. Obviously creative solutions are important to innovate, but why is collaboration or something similar not higher? Either way, it was a great read, and I am excited to learn more moving forward! C...

Mobius sat back in his chair, smoke filling the room. As a few people glanced sideways, the sweat started to roll down each players' temples. The small beads formed and fell, only because Mobius had the temperature in the back room turned up. Mobius held a full house on the flop, and placed his final bet. Sure of his victory, he lavishly slapped all of the chips down and went all in. Opposite of him was Yang. All others had folded out. Yang seemed shy the entire game, but had called Mobius every single time. Mobius was sure that he would fold this time, but to his surprise, Yang called. Mobius confidently laid all of his cards down and reached for the pot. But Yang had four aces. Yang had won all of Mobius' money for the entire night. It didn't matter if he had lost forty hands prior, they were small ones, mainly meant to make Mobius think he was a better player than he actually was. Yang took his earnings back home with him to his uncle. His uncle was a ruthless financia...

This week, I continued reading the Mahabharata by C.A. Kincaid.  Earlier, I had praised this part of the story for being far better in clarity when compared to the other, but perhaps it was because I was comparing the relatively easy to understand beginning with the relatively difficult to understand ending. This is an interesting part of the story, because generally when I write, I do not have identity changes such as the Pandavas did, and I also do not interchange characters so frequently. I have a single character and some supporting characters. The issue is that technically, this is centered around an entire family, but the family acts between five different characters, which can make it hard when two characters from two different families interact, and we might not remember who is from what family. The story does become far better when telling the happenings of the battle. In the Public Domain Edition, I had a hard time understanding the entire focus of the battle, because i...

This week, I read an alternative version of the Mahabharata by C.A. Kincaid . This served as a more informative version of the story, for me personally. To start, it really clarifies the lineage that the characters face. It sets up well the reasons that the two families dislike each other, but I thought that the best set up difference was when they compared how the five sons were all related to a different divine being. In addition, we get a better insight into how Krishna gets her name, and why she is thought of as so beautiful. One thing that causes issue (that did not before because I did not pick up on it) is that she marries five people at once. This is somewhat of an issue because in the Ramayana, Sita is banished to a test of fire and then to the forest over questions of her purity. But if all five are married (and it's not simultaneously, they clearly state it is one after the other), then why could people not believe that Sita marries Ravana, then Rama, and move on with ...