Trying and learning something New!!! 'Sculpture / modelling'

Fun with Colleagues

Now are'nt we the crazy amusing lot!!!

Fooling Around with our marigolds !!!!

With Friends

Some new Paintings

Morning view from my balcony

My Art in the Hostel

Collecting more Memories

The Sanctuary Road

One bit of out of focus wildlife

Road leading away from home

Dad

Falling back on Art!!

Collecting memories with an Amateur Hand

The view from my room

I miss 'em

The Blinding Silver Lining that begins to emerge - atop the flag showing our presence

Now your know what I did in my loo the entire day

With flowers like these in the spring 5 feet from my bathroom window!!! Who would'nt like to spend more than the usual time in there?!

Spot the Weaver Bird pls...

View from the Loo

No matter how long one sat admiring the front lawns- it would never be adequate!

The pictures could never justify the view

And nothing can beat the shimmer on the lake!

Recognising the endless world of Perception.

I always tell my Mother that for me in life the most important thing to remember is 'Perception'. How we percieve things! And to always remember that no 2 people can have same perceptions.

And it is not easy for one to be aware of this fact at a subconcious level, it is only in later life that we hear the elderly saying- he thinks like that so.......!!! I dont know if this is a kind of reconcialation or what it is, but this I know, that it is an understanding that seeps nothing but wisdom into a person.

When I was in college, one thing I yearned for as I spoke to a confidant was 'understanding', I was so full of vigor that even the things that came out had no head or tail, so I wondered what I wanted. Did I only want a listener?

No, I wanted to be understood, and it is not something only I want, as I see people around me I see that this is what alot of people yearn for.

And in trying to be understood I realized that the first step is to understand.

This may seem very basic and simple but when one experiences it one realizes that it unleashes a power, power to control!
As I began to understand the psyche of others, I was able to put my feelings in a way that I knew they would understand, and that gave me a sense of satisfaction, knowing that what the pther person sees is what I want him/her to see.

Of course I am only begining to understand this, and I am sure there are people way ahead of me in understanding and mastering the skill, but none the less I put down my thoughts to crystallize them!

Man - a social Animal (Random Thoughts)

In Pune, minus the constant dose of social company, is no dobt making Jack, or in this case Jackie a dull girl, that ofcourse would be me, many a time I have exploded with feelings of being alone, fought with the odd ones around, tried doing odd things, engaging myself in other things, but without company I feel like my mind is rotting!

So the usual whirling thought clouded my mind and for some reason I began thinking why it was so, why do they call only certain animals social, I mean elephants are supposed to be social, ants too but I havent heard anyone saying. And there are as a matter of fact degrees of sociability, I wondered how, and why......

Finally, I had a eureka moment, the more developed the communication skills are in any organism the more social he is! :)

And so is concurrent in movies with aliens with advanced technology some how have uniques ways of communication....... e.g. telepathy!

So well Man being an intelligent being, thus having a developed aka advanced set of communication skills is naturally more social that other creatures, not disputing ofcourse the fact that we have not discovered and still are about the communication of other animals.

Who knows we may not be as intelligent as other creatures!!!!

Depth of Perception

 The glimmer of opportunity, faint yet there, visible in the light of the cool moon which may be understood as a state of mood; in which each one of us flow with the torrent of life, battling between the silver lining and the dark spiral of the euphemistic side of life that tends to attract our attention due to the sheer uncertainty of it, illuminating the dark yet hidden (by us) nature of man; and ironically we do not fail to look to proceed.........

The hidden talent that we are all afraid to give way to, unsure by limited limitation, where we then curl up into the safety of the fetal position and the only view left is that of darkness. This ballet dancer can if chooses to steer away from the corner to look to allow talent to remain bouyant and not hide it away.... look for the sparkling shoe.

  A time comes in the life of each where darkness seems to overshadow the little light, the only solace one finds is in giving up, forgetting that after each night comes day.

Reminds me of Milton's lines in Paradise Lost- "Her dark foundations, and too fast had bound.
871: Nine dayes they fell; confounded CHAOS roard........
Taking a fall into the material world in vain, strips man of the ensemble of that that has/gives meaning to the spirit. And yet the nature of man can be appreciated in the beauty of the knaivity of man that I see as an expression and facet of the notion of 'being human'.

The light hand of day need only to be felt by the realization of its existence.

Journey of Life - A Thought

As on one end the world virtually becomes a more concise idea due to the various modes of communication and fast modes of travel and the will and interest of man to learn more about others of the same kind, interests tend to shift as we advance.

Although natural selection that occurs in the primitive state of it, I i think it none the less does happen in a way that we are unable to comprehend at a conscious level, but it is important that one notices "it", as "it" is like any other piece of information that plays no role when one is ignorant of it, and when one is aware it tends of influence certain decisions of ours at a concious level.

The reason why I am putting down my thoughts as crude as they may sound, is because I hope that when I, in time decide to do my phd in psychology, perhaps I will consider this as one of things I would like to test. My interest stems from incidents in my life.

About 5 years ago, my parents went to Terry- a counselor at Xavier's- my alma mater, to get their IQ tested. On the day the result was to be told, Terry asked my parents if they had had a love marriage, and I know how much that is far from the truth, the reason for him asking so was because their IQ's were very close to each other and on a higher side. Ofcourse this at the time seemed to be an incident of jest.


As I dated people in college and out of I some how was not happy in my relationships and of course they in no time fell apart. And I began thinking why it is so, what does it take for a relationship to work.
I began thinking of all the pieces of advice people give, "you need to work hard in a relationship", "relationships are not easy", "relationships need more effort that even your JOB" - that was the most amusing I heard, because was'nt a relationship keep you together in times of even a depression in the cycle of your career. Why were things so contradictory?!!

Coupling and tripling events that I have experiences including my current relationship and observing people around me. People with certain backgrounds tend to get together, people with similar families get together-(talking exclusively of India- will attempt to deal with this at a global level perhaps in the next article) and so on.

Considering, location (area of residence, college time, work place etc) I noticed that people who are on a similar platform as far as one's intelligence level is concerned seem to have more successful relationships in modern India. This probably makes communication and interests converge at some level, and at a discreet unconscious level I think we may be selecting people who match our intellect or in the least challenge it! In essence we tend to look for matches that we can relate with on an intellectual platform.

Further, I would even not fall back from inclining towards the thought of- one's emotional level also perhaps having a very similar effect on Us choosing our partners.

Into Emotion (www.kira.net.au/intoemotion.html)

(I really wanted to capture what it felt like to fall in to the inky black depths of emotion. Sometimes it’s so overwhelming you just fall into them. Really tried to capture that renascence feeling through the colour and the flicker of the cloth to really push that falling into emotion is beautiful and has gone on for countless years. I used a woman because she represents the female emotional side to really dive home the helplessness that emotions induce. Taken as it is from the site of the photographer as an ironical inclusion in the article)

So, the persons having a higher intellect choose similar partners and produce children with higher intellect, and this may be applicable to the other spectrum of intelligence, this basically ensures that natural selection does take place, perhaps with a display of intellect instead of physical strength.!
The dimmer population does not have to be eradicated off the earth, but are kept aside in a natural way.

(The above article are developing personal views and does not consider and formal influencing factors and does not intend to offence anyone)
(The article does not use the term Natural selection in its biological sense)
picture- sandwichbag.blogspot.com

Art-o-nomics

Art is'nt lost, it perhaps has found new meaning, a new way has been paved, no longer does the glory have to go to a dead guy, he can now be recognised for the work he does in his lifetime. Alot more people now have begun to find the intellectual hint in the world of Art.

Contrary to the classical opinion of art following a method, and hence the interpretation being constant by all has now begun to fade out. Now art is an extraneous body of knowledge i.e our materials put into art and the knowledge of how to use it best, and this is evolved in different various that then takes the face of numerous ways of expression. The expression of the artist. And this in turn may be related to the viewer in varied ways.

INTERPRET THIS!!!!

A friend once told me that he too wanted to learn how to appreciate art. The irony being that it is not something that is learnt, good art can evoke many interpretations, limitless, and none can be incorrect. Modern art more and more is taking the form of abstractions that are not subject to only what the artist tries to put into it. It can catch the viewers fancy in any way and is open.

Today, in changing times, according to an Indian born artist, Anish Kapoor, "Artists excavate meaning, he does not deliver them"

And it is the above sentence that rings through art space and allows it to rosonate through time.

RECESS ADIEU .....

The recession now seems to have eased out, and at the end of it we certainly have learnt lessons that may facilitate keeping its successor at bay, whilst the mixed economy factor & maintaining a balance between indegeneous industry and foreign kept India afloat, China has kept afloat by increasing exports that it earlier restrained (its natural resources) and innovation.

In earlier articles my co-blogger had pointed out how innovation can be an important factor in keeping a stagnation at bay, and ofcourse a recession from digging its heels deep into a country.

While last year France and Japan launched their super fast trains the Shinkansen and the AGV (Automotrice Grande Vitesse), China to nip the recession in the bud has made a new innovation of the Bullet, the fastest train in the world.

The average speed of the high-speed railways is 243 km per hour in Japan, 232 km per hour in Germany and 277 km per hour in France. China’ Harmony Express reached a maximum speed of 394.2 km per hour during trail runs that begun on December 9.

And for the new year with a fresh outlook and new weapons against threats to international economies, China like many other has used an age old tactic to surmount what has surmounted the American Economy.

Alas, the long cold winter is now seeming to be on its last legs, unless a skeptic would pull out Krugman's theories and prove them to be closer to reality!

DID I GET THAT RIGHT?!

When The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the recipient of the Nobel Peace prize, any reaction seemed inadequate an expression, of whether did I hear correctly or has the world been washed off racism completely or since when did awards as prestigious as these be awarded to someone in pure anticipation!!!!

The reactions varied, joyous feelings and those of skepticism prevailed and are still in the air, how does one begin to understand and justify this award. And as it turns out, Obama though the same as well, as he now admits that he doesn't really deserve it.

Yet the question in my mind that remains is that whether or not this was a correct decision, whether the decision to give such an award as an encouragement is correct and would the award then remain as inspiring as it is currently!? Awards such as these have been created to hail someone who has achieved something extraordinary and to commend the work of certain chosen people whose role has played a key role in changing lives. 

Obama has invariably been recognized for the unmistakable quality or being a powerful orator and a figure that represents that part of society, world over, that so far was discriminated against due to baseless notions that have developed over time. Therefore it would not be wrong to say that he has become an idol, a ray of hope for many. But can the fact that an award meant for those who have achieved something commendable, be given to someone who we hope will achieve something great, for his mere advocacy, can that be justified?!

As the question is twisted, so the solution can not be straight, in fact such questions rarely have a clear line of distinction of right or wrong. Yes it is worthwhile giving such an award for the purpose of encouragement, but what would be left of the glory of such an award. Should some other award have sufficed? That is a question I leave unanswered!!!

Mr. Obama is not completely worthy as yet, merely because the credentials fall short, not for any other reason!

Perhaps the Committee was hasty, one is sure that some one of Obama's caliber would be able to make a difference, but let us not be carried away by speeches and intent, that is'nt all the world needs! Let the efforts of Mr. Obama pay off, perhaps then he would be more worthy of the title he has been awarded...

Copyright © Kanica Soni 2008 owned by Kanica Soni. All Right Reserved

Change Should Breed Chnage

William Henry Drummond

NEW doth the sun appear,

The mountains' snows decay,

Crown'd with frail flowers forth comes the baby year.

My soul, time posts away;

And thou yet in that frost

Which flower and fruit hath lost,

As if all here immortal were, dost stay.

For shame! thy powers awake,

Look to that Heaven which never night makes black,

And there at that immortal sun's bright rays,

Deck thee with flowers which fear not rage of days!

Reading Between - The Forensic Graphology

When people learn that I have learnt the arts of graphology, the following question is on the lines as what is that or is that the same as handwriting analysis. On confirmation the enthusiastic question thrown back is “O, so you can read handwritings, so what does as extended ‘t’ mean?”



Handwriting analysis is often thought to be synonymous with the term graphology but the truth is that the 2 terms are related no doubt, but are 2 different things. Handwriting analysis deals with the psychological aspect of understanding handwriting & its uniqueness. Graphology is the science behind it. Where, in forensics we use graphology to support validity of written evidence in the court.

The psychological theory of handwriting comparison is developmental. Children learn to write by copying whatever style of writing is fashionable at the time and taught to them by teachers from textbooks. This style is known as the regular or national system, and for most of the twentieth century, it was either the Palmer system or the Zaner-Blosser system for cursive. Today, there are many systems, or no system. As the child grows, the act of writing becomes a subconscious effort and begins to pick up habitual shapes and patterns that distinguish it from all others. This is most evident with capital letters and numerals. Handwriting has individual characteristics due to it being largely unconscious behavior. The unconscious handwriting of two different individuals is never identical. Mechanical and physical factors, as well as the mental ones, make it highly unlikely that the exact same handwriting occurs in two different people.

Handwriting analysis is done on the basis of assumptions; these assumptions have some standards however vary from analyst to analyst. Hence they do not stand in the scrutiny of court. However knowing the basis of graphology as a science and its explanation of how and why no two people can have the same handwriting, its explanations are accepted in the court of law.



To elaborate the above point, one can consider the scientific basis of the uniqueness of each individual’s handwriting:

The written movement is under the direct influence of the central nervous system. The form of the written movement is modified further by flexibly assembled coordinative structures in the hand, arm, and shoulder, which follow principles of dynamical systems.

The neuro-physiological mechanisms which contribute to the written movement are related to conditions within the central nervous system and vary in accordance with them. The written strokes, therefore, reflect changes in the central nervous system such as development, influence of alcohol, and disease processes, such as Parkinson's disease

This has been proved over & over with the basis also in psychology where-in the mind set, subconscious & unconscious of a person is accepted to have a key role in the kind of handwriting the person has.
This is further the basis of handwriting analysis which is theoretical in nature. In handwriting analysis the analysts try to make assumptions of the nature of human behavior on the basis of their individual handwriting.

Simple well known concepts include that of the baseline, i.e. if the baseline is ascending the writing is in a happy mood. However this aspect is also subject to varying assumptions such as the writer can be in optimistic mood or that the writer is sets unrealistic goals. Hence as one can see these are mere assumptions and are subject to other factors such as paper used, pen used, habits etc.
Like that there are 30 interpretation systems known to exist.

In graphology however certain techniques are used to individualize handwriting. Proof of individualization qualifies it as evidence. Hence forensic document examiners use 4 main aspects for identification:

1. Form – refers to the elements that comprise the shape of the letters, proportion, slant, angles, lines, retracing, connections, and curves

2. Line Quality – refers to the results from the type of writing instrument used, and the pressure exerted, along with the flow and continuity of the script

3. Arrangement – involves the spacing, alignment, formatting, and distinctive punctuation

4. Content – this is the spelling, phrasing, punctuation, and grammar
In some cases, aspects of the handwriting will be quite unique, which gives them a lot of weight for evidential value. If there are significant dissimilarities between an exemplar and a questioned document, then it's likely that there are two different authors, unless the differences can be accounted for.

Handwriting analysis and their reports are however useful for guiding the investigating officer as such reports concluded by reputed organizations like that of the International Graphoanalysis Society (IGAS) in Canada have a high reliability.

In forensic science we utilize graphology and its branches to examine questioned documents (QD’s). A "questioned" document is any signature, handwriting, typewriting, or other mark whose source or authenticity is in dispute or doubtful. Letters, checks, driver licenses, contracts, wills, voter registrations, passports, petitions, threatening letters, suicide notes, and lottery tickets are the most common questioned documents, although marks on doors, walls, windows, or boards would also be included by definition.

QDE, or Questioned Document Examination, has been a profession at least since 1870, and frequently is found in cases of forgery, counterfeiting, mail fraud, kidnapping, con games, embezzlement, gambling, organized crime, white collar crime, art crime, theft, robbery, arson, burglary, homicide, serial murder, psychological profiling, and deviant sex crime.

Today in India we mainly have cases of threats, kidnapping ransom letter, forgeries etc. Since the act of handwriting has been conclusively been proved to be an unconscious act it's therefore important that samples, exemplars, or specimens (all synonymous terms for documents of known origin) be obtained under conditions as similar as possible to the conditions present at the time the disputed, doubtful, or original (all synonymous terms for questioned documents) was created. These conditions are an essential part of what are called standards of comparison:

• Care must be taken to avoid samples which are deliberately written in a crude, unnatural way, or so well thought out as to disguise the writer's natural style

• A sufficient number of samples must be taken, several pages if necessary, over and over again, to establish multiple (more than one) comparisons of single characteristics or combinations of common and uncommon characteristics

• Samples should be taken within two or three years of the disputed writing in order to rule out changes in style that may have occurred over time or with age

• The sample should include some dictated text, words, or phrases contained in the original document (but under no circumstances should the writer be shown the questioned document)

• Pen and paper, as well as writing position, should consist of the same conditions that existed at the time the questioned document was written (if these facts are known)

• The subject ought not to be shown the questioned document

• The subject is not to be told how to spell certain words or use certain punctuation

• The subject should use materials similar to those of the document

• The dictated text should match some parts of the document

• The dictation should be repeated at least three times

• The subject should be asked to sign the text

• Make sure an objective witness observes the procedure

Often in the case of forgery of signatures the problem occurs when a study conducted concluded that people have in general 3 signatures: (1) a formal one, used on important documents; (2) a routine one, used on regular correspondence; and (3) an informal one, used for jotting quick notes.

Another problem that often occurs is the fact that influence of any drug as well alters mood states & therefore has a direct effect on the handwriting of the person. This makes identification troublesome as some aspects might remain constant but the handwriting overall would change.

Problems can also occur when the writing has been deliberately disguised, such as in threatening or taunting letters. However, the form may change, but the type of words used and the sources that have influenced phrasing remain the same.

Hence there are no clear-cut rules or formulas to follow, so expertise develops from years of exposure. Today there are many automated techniques for making an analysis, such as FISH, or the Forensic Information System for Handwriting, but there are cases in which careful and experienced interpretation is necessary.

The admissibility of handwriting as evidence is accepted only to individualize handwriting in the court of law. A graphologist in no case can make an interpretation on the personality or behavior of the writer. The personality analysis of a person is not admissible in court. Hence as said before, the personality analysis of a suspect can aid investigations but do not stand under the scrutiny of court.

Copyright © Kanica Soni 2008 owned by Kanica Soni. All Right Reserved