Lalbagh Mango Festival

There is a mango festival in Lalbagh. Its a welcome exhibition. We got to see a variety of mangoes. But the vendors could have passed on some price discount to the visitors. Also, some explicitly declared "carbide free". Does that mean other mangoes are ripened through carbide and other artificial way?  Except for the shop banners, most of the places were in Kannada. The welcome arch, the mangoes title board in the glass house were in Kannada. The organizers should not think that only Kannadas will visit the show. There are visitors from other states and other countries. Overall, I felt the 'grandness' was missing, while the intent of the show is really appreciable.

Billy Joel

Tony writes on Billy Joel, the popular musician. When Billy Joel was young, he was depressed of his career in music which further aggravated because of his girl friend leaving him. Before choosing death, he consulted a mental institution, which became a turning point. Tony highlights how three decisions influence our lives:  what to focus on, what things mean to us, and what to do in spite of the challenges that may appear to limit us.

When I searched on the web, Billy Joel seems to a very successful man despite of his depression.


Going through the chapter 2, its really warming to read the statement "God's delays are not God's denials". This is the encouragement every individual is looking for reinforcement.

Sochiro Honda

Tony refers to Sochiro Honda's life as one of his favorite 'Ultimate Success Stories'. Tony describes how Honda started invested in a little workshop in 1938 while he was still in school, working hard to sell his idea and work to Toyota Corporation, which finally did not Toyota's standards despite Honda's relentless efforts. Then comes Toyota's contract to him, Japanese Govt's refusal to construct factory, and several other roadblocks till he brought Honda to the current state. 

Honda's story: Joy of manufacturing

Ed Roberts

Edward Verne Roberts (January 23, 1939- March 14, 1995) was the first student with severe disabilities to attend the University of California, Berkeley. He became one of the founders and one of the greatest leaders of the disability rights movement. 


Wiki link on Ed Roberts
Highlights from Ed Roberts speech

Dr. Deming's Profound Knowledge

The System of Profound Knowledge comes from W. Edwards Deming. Dr Deming said that hard work is not enough. What is needed is a transformation of the prevailing style of management.
The System of Profound Knowledge has four parts. Click on the links to read about them:

1. Appreciation for a system
2. Knowledge about variation
3. Theory of knowledge
4. Psychology

Deming's "Profound Knowledge" is a system. This means that the four parts interact with one another. Real transformation will only start when there has been some progress in all parts.
For example, these days you can see Shewhart control charts in many manufacturing operations in Europe and America. But most of these companies get very little benefit from the charts because they do not know how to act as part of a system. The only way to get efficient stable processes is to have full co-operation across all departments and outside suppliers to control the variation. To get this co-operation managers need to understand enough psychology to know how to provide the leadership which will focus everyone's attention on getting the best results for the system as a whole.
A lot of mistakes are made during the 'Study' phase of the Plan Do Study Act cycle because results are misinterpreted due to a lack of understanding of the nature of variation.

Cocaine Usage

Tony says in Chapter 1 of Awaken the Giant Within

"Too many of us leave ourselves at the mercy of outside events over which we may have no control, failing to take charge of our emotions—over which we have all the control—and relying instead on short-term quick fixes. How else can we explain the fact that, while less than 5 percent of the world's population lives in the United States, we consume more than 50 percent of the world's cocaine?"

When I (re-)searched on the internet, I came across interesting references.

Time's report on Cocaine Country, 2007
Crime Statistics on Illicit Drugs by country


Cocaine (aka coke, crack, snow, blow) is an addiction that can occur very quickly and be a very difficult habit to break. There have been animal studies, which have shown that animals will work very hard, such as pressing a bar over 10,000 times, after a single injection of cocaine. They were also choosing cocaine over food and water and chose cocaine even when their behavior was punished. It was proven that animals must have their access to cocaine limited in order not to take lethal doses. Studies have shown that people addicted to cocaine also behaved very similar. One of the signs of Cocaine use is that Cocaine addicts will go to great lengths to get cocaine and continue to take it even when it hurts their school or job performance and their relationships begin to suffer.

Some of the major routes of administration of cocaine are sniffing or snorting, injecting, and smoking, including free-basing and crack cocaine. Snorting is the process of inhaling cocaine powder through the nose where it is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. Injecting is the act of using a needle to release the drug directly into the bloodstream. Smoking involves inhaling cocaine vapor or smoke into the lungs where absorption into the bloodstream is as rapid as by injection.
“Crack” or “crack cocaine” is the street name given to cocaine that has been processed from cocaine hydrochloride to a free base for smoking.
Rather than requiring the more volatile method of processing cocaine-using ether, crack cocaine is processed with ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and water and heated to remove the hydrochloride, thus producing a form of cocaine that can be smoked. The term “crack” refers to the crackling sound heard when the mixture is smoked (heated), presumably from the sodium bicarbonate.
Cocaine is a strong central nervous system stimulant that interferes with the reabsorption process of dopamine, a chemical messenger associated with pleasure and movement. Dopamine is released as part of the brain’s reward system and is involved in the high that characterizes cocaine consumption.
Signs of Cocaine use include constricted peripheral blood vessels, dilated pupils, increased temperature, heart rate and blood pressure, hyper-alertness, lack of fatigue/sleeplessness, panic, extremely talkative; fast speech, runny nose or bloody nose, seizures from high doses or bad reaction, white powder seen on face or clothes, small spoon-like items used for snorting, mirrors and razor blades used for making lines, rolled money bills used for snorting, small bottles with screw on lids for storing and possession of small plastic packets with white residue.
The duration of cocaine’s immediate euphoric effects, which include hyper-stimulation, reduced fatigue, and mental clarity, depends on the route of administration. The faster the absorption, the more intense the high. On the other hand, the faster the absorption, the shorter the duration of action. The high from snorting may last 15 to 30 minutes, while that from smoking may last 5 to 10 minutes. Increased use can reduce the period of stimulation.
Some other signs of Cocaine use are feelings of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. An appreciable tolerance to the high may be developed, and many addicts report that they seek but fail to achieve as much pleasure as they did from their first exposure. Scientific evidence suggests that the powerful neuropsychological reinforcing property of cocaine is responsible for an individual’s continued use, despite harmful physical and social consequences. In rare instances, sudden death can occur on the first use of cocaine or unexpectedly thereafter. However, there is no way to determine who is prone to sudden death.

References:  

http://www.testcountry.org/signs-and-symptoms-of-cocaine-use.htm

http://www.answers.com/topic/cocaine

Dr. Robert Cialdini

Tony writes in Awaken the Giant Within:

"...So often people believe something because everybody else believes it. This is known in psychology as social proof. But social proof is not always accurate. When people are not sure what to do, they look to others for guidance. In Dr. Robert Cialdini's book Influence, he describes a classic experiment in which someone yells "Rape!" for a subject's benefit while two people (psychological plants) ignore the cries for help and keep walking. The subject doesn't know whether to respond to the pleas or not, but when he sees the other two people act as if nothing is wrong, he decides that the cries for help are insignificant and to ignore them also."

More on the book Influence from Amazon website


Cialdini defines six "weapons of influence":

• Reciprocity - People tend to return a favor, thus the pervasiveness of free samples in marketing. In his conferences, he often uses the example of Ethiopia providing thousands of dollars in humanitarian aid to Mexico just after the 1985 earthquake, despite Ethiopia suffering from a crippling famine and civil war at the time. Ethiopia had been reciprocating for the diplomatic support Mexico provided when Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935.

• Commitment and Consistency - If people commit, orally or in writing, to an idea or goal, they are more likely to honor that commitment. Even if the original incentive or motivation is removed after they have already agreed, they will continue to honor the agreement. For example, in car sales, suddenly raising the price at the last moment works because the buyer has already decided to buy. See cognitive dissonance.
• Social Proof - People will do things that they see other people are doing. For example, in one experiment, one or more confederates would look up into the sky; bystanders would then look up into the sky to see what they were seeing. At one point this experiment aborted, as so many people were looking up that they stopped traffic. See conformity, and the Asch conformity experiments.
• Authority - People will tend to obey authority figures, even if they are asked to perform objectionable acts. Cialdini cites incidents such as the Milgram experiments in the early 1960s and the My Lai massacre.
• Liking - People are easily persuaded by other people that they like. Cialdini cites the marketing of Tupperware in what might now be called viral marketing. People were more likely to buy if they liked the person selling it to them. Some of the many biases favoring more attractive people are discussed. See physical attractiveness stereotype.
• Scarcity - Perceived scarcity will generate demand. For example, saying offers are available for a "limited time only" encourages sales.

More on Dr.Robert Cialdini