Recent Reads

I have been reading some bits and pieces for some time, and thought I could roll them all into a single post.

Understanding Nanotechnology: A little book, which serves as an introduction to the world of nanotechnology. It describes in quite easy to understand terms the cutting-edge in nanotechnology. What you can expect to know about: fabrication of nanostructures, carbon nanotubes, self-replicating molecular machines, nanotechnology in electronics, medicine. From the book, I could scoop out two more interesting reads. Richard Feynman seems to have put forward visions for everything under the sun. 'There is plenty of room at the bottom' is the genius' vision on nanotechnology. Eric Drexler's 'Engines of Creation' is a futuristic take at nanotechnology.

The Indian approach to formal science: Got my hands on this paper from Abhay at Pune BarCamp 5. Published in the Scientific Heritage of India - talks about the technical language for formal theory used in ancient India, which is a refinement of Sanskrit. This is as opposed to content-indpendent, purely symbolic languages developed in the Western school of logic.

Pune - Queen of the Deccan - Did you know that Kasba Peth is the oldest settlement of Pune? Did you know that there is an 8th century AD temple on J.M Road? Do you know how the Peth system evolved in Pune? This book is a history of Pune since its beginnings, well illustrated with wonderful photos and maps down the ages. A pleasure to browse through.

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid - I have just started reading this book, which talks about how social development and access to products can be provided to the people at the bottom of the social pyramid by the private sector, while being profitable. The premise of the book is that the 'Bottom of the Pyramid' customers should be "respected as individuals, treated as creative entrepreneurs and value-conscious consumers" to open up this vast market for the benefit of all - the BOP people, the private sector companies, entrepreneurs, social agencies and the govt. Sounds interesting, and the first few pages have been impressive. There are case studies of how institutions like Amul, Hindustan Lever, Aravind Eye Care have successfully tapped into this market with innovative products and processes.