Sunday 26 October 2014

Time is Relative

British Summertime: An Illusion

I get to ask a lot of questions about the start/end of British Summertime and the supposed reasons we put our clocks forwards one hour and then back one hour every Spring and Autumn.  There's not much we can do with the Earth's rotation around the sun and the amount of daylight we get depends on how close/further we are away from our winter and summer equinoxes. The continued argument about saving daylight would actually only make sense if by virtue of "springing forwards" and "falling back" we were making an impossible physical alteration by adding more sunlight to our days. What we do in our twice yearly clock adjustments, is create an illusion. The facts remain, that at this time of year, the days get shorter and the nights get longer, and of course because of the Earth's tilt, our northern hemisphere temperatures also drop, creating our long, dark and misty winters. 

So why all the fuss with adjusting the clocks? And for that matter, when we are already contending with temperature changes, harsher weather and adjusting our eyes to the dark, who cares about clocks? Does counting minutes and seconds make us happier or does it add to an already over-stressed society? Can we not challenge this Western notion of  time 'efficiency'? Perhaps, let physics and nature preside over this one.

Time is Relative

Why cannot we take a look back into the history of our ancestors?  After all, the winters were always harsh and there was less daylight (note I am speaking of the Northern European context here - but each society and part of the world would have made their own adjustments) and we exist today inspite of past hardships. As Muslims, there is always this continuing debate around our calendar - notably around Eid and right now, the exact start date for the New Year. I'm now largely of the belief that the 'exact' date/time matters only if you need to do some specific number crunching - maybe if something needs a precise mathematical measurement. For the rest of us - a date - a precise minute - counting time - has got to be fairly arbitary. 

There wisdom of our ancestors meant that 'time' was much more closely matched to our natural patterns. They also 'measured' time, true - Fajr, Zuhar, Asr, Maghrib and Isha were all good markers of the day, and were decided by amount of daylight, but clinical precision was not foremost when talking about time. "See you in the afternoon," meant that people would meet after Asr and before Maghrib, and not precisely at 3.15pm - woe betide anyone arriving for an appointment at 3.16pm. People, (again Northern Europe illustrates this very well) having reaped their harvests in autumn, would conserve their winter energy by getting up at dawn to feed their livestock and retire to their huts when it was dark to drink their hot broths and eat what they had put aside from their summer's stock, sleeping most of the winter out. In other words, over the winter, people had a different working pattern and lived according to the amount of light available. Different stresses, but compare that to waiting at bus stops in the rain trying to get home in the evening rush hour traffic when the world has gone dark. Who are we kidding? What makes that version of 'daylight' saving better and more efficient? 

At this point in the year, there is a collective slow down; hibernation for animals and stocking up for winter are natural phenomena. Apply that also to the human condition; our history bears witness to seasonal variation and not a constant mechanical expectation of the same levels of work output. What's wrong with admitting this? Would most of us not be happier simply to follow the natural patterns of daylight and live accordingly (yes, by working less) rather than attempting to manipulate time in order to drive 'efficiency'?

Read more.

Source: izquotes.com

Read more: Time

Saturday 23 August 2014

Postcard from Al Khor

I took the drive to Al Khor some days back; a route that I would take often, when I lived in Al Khor. As a family we had lots of fond memories of the place and it was great to visit some of the key places that we were attached to 13 years back. The Al Khor Community has expanded and matured, and therefore changed somewhat, as all places do, but it remained very familiar, and navigating my way round was not that difficult. I include a couple of snaps and a Google Map showing my journey from Doha




Tuesday 12 August 2014

Arabian Nights: Souk Waqif

Souk Waqif has been shaped, in part by the Iranian tradesmen who settled in Doha.  When I was last there (around 2001), it was a jumble of shops selling rugs, spices, cloth and copperware. Today it has been smartened up with hotels and outdoor coffee shops, where the smell of perfume and shisha hangs in the air. It still retains the old souk feel with its narrow alleyed streets, Arabian craftshops, Rajasthani storytellers and Iranian barrowmen. Worth a visit on fresh summers night.

Read more on Trip Advisor.

 
 
Photography: Samsung Galaxy S4

Tuesday 29 July 2014

Qatar قطر

I first arrived in Qatar in the year before the turn of the new millenium. It was for me the first time that I'd lived in a new place and was, for three years, my home. After the initial settling in period, I grew to love the place as did my young family and we have fond memories of our time living in Al Khor in the north and discovering a new and exciting region. In the interim, I have lived and worked in other places, and passed through Qatar, staying in Doha en route to the UAE where I also made my home. Today I return to the country that was once home, with an older family, and to a much changed country. I am here this time for a family event, but amongst the most exciting aspects I hope to experience, will be to return to those places that were familiar, when, fifteen years ago, this was a fledgling country with a mere population of 600,000. The Gulf isn't quite out of my system, I confess. For example, when I send an email, I edit the signature tag that still carries my old cell number.  Also, when I write this blog, whilst the dates are accurate, the times that are published by each posting actually reflect Gulf Standard Time. Memories perhaps?

Qatar. I am home. Enjoy the film.

Monday 28 July 2014

اختر مو مبارک شه

اختر مو مبارک شه
روژی مو قبولې شه


Eid Mubarak
May your fasting be accepted
Tor_Khan تور خان

Thursday 24 July 2014

The Human Cost of War

... Or more specificially, the title should perhaps be The Human Cost of Someone Else's War ...

There must be a first rule - humanity, above all else. No other ideology - religious, political, economic, fashion or tradtion is equal to that first rule.

The downing of the the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 still has me in a state of shock. It seems to come admist a number of human tragedy/gloom stories making the news of late (including the current conflicts in Syria/Iraq/Palestine/Waziristan). At times like this I am forced to pause and return to that 'first rule' - humanity - the most sacred thing worth 'fighting' for. All else is second.

In the current Israeli-Palestinian bombardment, the major news-networks are cautiously selective and present a somewhat sanitised view; not quite able to be fully critical of Israeli aggression, despite a track record and a revealing body of evidence. Hamas is also responsible for aggression, so deaths and injury must not be sugar-coated but here is a clear case of imbalanced response. Considering that Jewish suffering during the Second World War is still within living memory of some, I can never understand how the Israeli state can have complete disregard for the most basic of human compassion.

The Pakistan army operation in Waziristan (Zarb-e-Azb) - again is illustrative of another human tragedy where the rights and wrongs of the conflict have disregarded basic humanity towards ordinary people who are caught in the cross-fire. Most Pashtuns in the tribal belt wish only to protect their land and possesions. Collective punishment, seemingly deemed legitimate in both the Israeli and the Pakistani case treats the innocent as expendable.

The same could be said for the non-combatant civilians caught in Iraq and Syria, and of course between the Russian-backed rebels in the Ukraine and the Ukranian government. The recent downing of the aeroplane is  exactly that - innocents caught up in someone else's war. A real human tragedy and one that has shaken my faith in others. I always expect humans to show humanity, but am fast adapting to the reality that this isn't always so. Pessimism perhaps. Somehow I must hang on to hope, as I fully endorse those genuine fights for autonomy, self-determination and rule of law. But this cannot be justified by mindless acts of violence where innocent humans have to pay for the costs of someone else's war.

 Source: Patheos.com

Monday 30 June 2014

Waziristan Weeps

په ګران وزیرستان کی غیر اغیار نه منو




The song from the hills and mountains of Waziristan is fitting reminder that Waziristan whilst brave and tenacious, has been infiltrated and damaged by outsiders - jihadist militants, US drones, and Pakistani forces. And now the refugee crisis;  in Pakistan called, IDPs - Internally Displaced People, where even liberal Pakistanis have shut their doors on the human traffic that is the inevitable fallout from a military offensive (Operation Zarb-e-Azb). Déjà vu. We've seen this all before. The events today in Waziristan are not disimilar from the events four years ago: As If Hell Fell On Me.

Whilst the Pakistani establishment turns its offensive on Waziristan as a public reponse to this month's attack on Karachi Airport, there is an eerie reminder that we struggle to move forwards because we don't learn from the past. This is about Pashtuns caught in the middle of a bigger war, yet again. 

Sunday 18 May 2014

The Truth is Out There

Throughout history, notable events have occured when people have found a way to challenge the status quo often by opposing (even breaking with) social customs and the law. I'm not on that level of opposition so in some respects, I am to blame for developing a sense of 'switchedoffness'. I should challenge what is not right or what conflicts with my inner beliefs. I have the power of protest because of where I live and should use it, I remind myself. I was raised in a democracy and presumably I have the freedom of speech that others don't. Privileges that make me fortunate as well as responsibilities that come with those privileges.

And yet a few days back, I sat through a very uncomfortable meeting on the matter of 'extremism'.  You know, the whole argument about anti-establishment information being drip fed into young minds by anti-state agents. Typically, Islam comes up (in truth, isn't Islamic ideology what this is all about?) though they throw in the other objectionable - right-wing Nazi-sympathy - (a late addition to the topic) as some kind of neutralising factor so that the Muslims in the audience don't feel that they are under seige.

It's true; extremists exist. And they do much damage - take a look at Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nigeria etc. There must be a counter narrative to challenge blinkered thinking - a free education system that allows people to make up their own minds in these places - sometimes backed with counter actions (intelligence). But on this occasion I sat through this meeting, democracy, freedom and all, and I felt like the most disempowered person there is. I remained silent, unable to speak up but also torn between what I know/feel is happening to what I am being told. My problem is that continually, the freedom to speak out in protest of government policy, to voice an alternative view, is being marginilised under the weight of the media that cherry picks its commentary when reporting major world events. Remember, they filter the news for us and as most people passively consume, we don't often think about the after effects.

Why is it that the popular counter narrative to extremism (headed by the likes of Malala Yousafzai etc.) now feel like the conflict of an old establishment with its own less-than-benevolent interests against newer forms of protest against them? Why is it, that despite my clear revulsion at the tactics employed by militants (Taliban, Boko Haram* etc.), I think that there is an argument that they should be part of the dialogue for building long term peace? Why is it that I just don't trust the media, the motives of governments driven by capital interests and their third world stooges when they claim that they are fighting for 'freedom' and 'democracy'?

Damn it. I live in a democracy, but dare I speak in favour of something that runs counter to the popular narrative, then I'll be lumped with the extremists that I object. Despite the hundreds of TV channels, most converge at the same place. And despite the millions of websites, the vast majority again, spout a narrative that has been predecided. Dare anyone seek an alternative view? IPs are tracked, web-searches are indexed and profiles are built. It begins, over time, to erode one's confidence to speak up and certainly affects my confidence in state instutions. I'm reluctant now to believe in much of what I'm being told and have learned the art of silence. Extremists/counter-extremists; I don't think that we are in a safer, better world, but not for the reasons that we are told. In a way, my freedom of thought is my most precious freedom, but it is isolating and useless without the freedom to speak up.

The truth, as they say, is out there.

 Image: The Haunted Man

*Read here for an alternative on the Nigeria situation: 'Dear World, Hashtags won't #BringBackOurGirls'

Sunday 4 May 2014

د اسرار اتل غزل

دا چې په جرګو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــــانانه
دا ځلې اختر به سره يو ځـــــــــــــــــاى وي
كلي ته په شپو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جــــــــــــــــــانانه
زړه مي يې په ژوند مې كورته نـه راتلى
ساه مي يې په تلو دې راولم جـــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جــــــــــــــــــانانه
بيا د چا غمونو تښتولــــــــــــــــــــــى يـــې
خوبه په ګولو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جــــــــــــــــــانانه
داسى يې اتله راته ويــــــــــــــــــــــــلې دي
شور له د بنګړو دى راولم جــــــــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــــانانه
راشه په پښتو دى راولم جـــــــــــــــــانانه

 اسرار اتل

Thursday 24 April 2014

The OLPC In Review

I take the time today to return to key interests of mine - technology and education in the developing world. In fact, whilst perhaps I have not mention it here earlier, I was accepted on a PhD programme in the field and due to start at the beginning of this year (having deferred from the year before), but the fees made this non-tenable at the present time and like many things in life, I am thinking about what I do next. 


The subject of this posting however centres around whether one ed tech approach - the OLPC - is still relevant today. Interestingly a couple of years ago, the OLPC featured in a thesis I wrote, at a time when there was considerable debate about whether it was idealistic to expect full saturation of laptops (one per child) in the developing world. Additionally, I have blogged about this on several occasions.

One of the blogs - OLPC News - that I have followed on the subject announced its 'closure' last month and today another blog - Educational Technology Debate (also previously mentioned here) - raised the debate about whether, in the face of the rise of mobile devices and tablets, the OLPC project too had also run its course.

Of course the OLPC is rooted in Nicholas Negroponte's endorsement of a Constructivist ideology - the idea that children can create their own knowledge and educational content with the right tools - in this case - a small open source laptop - that has been designed to be a low power robust machine that can creates its own peer network - ideal for communities that do not have reliable power or internet connections.

Is the OLPC still relevant?

Wayan Vota, writing for the Educational Technology Debate asks the key question, that if we were to replace laptops with today's technologies - mobiles, handhelds and tablets and had full one-to-one saturation (i.e. every child in the developing world had their own device) would this be ideal? Could we instead instead share tools and equipment for the same results? Negroponte would argue that since children have their own pencils, they should have an entitlement to their own laptop. 

The crucial question around meeting the need for enabled and adequately-paid educators is one that continues to remain important, especially in large parts of the developing world. Often low teacher and high student ratios place additional stresses on already burden systems. Negroponte aimed to address the gap through the laptop programme (read that to mean that children can 'educate' themselves).  The Educational Technology Debate article also asks if this is wise or indeed the moral thing to do

Sunday 30 March 2014

د مور دعا

د مور دعا

ماته وغواړه مورجــــانی مغفـــــرت
چې نصیب می ستا دعا شې هم رحمت
ته دعـــــــا د زړه دکــــومی راته وکړه
ستا دعا کې دی د ټول جـــــهان طاقت
اوس زه ستا د دعا ګانو ډیر محـتاج یم
ځکه ستا دپښــــو  دلاندی دې جــــنت
ته ځـولۍ د رحـــمتونو راخــوره کــړه
ستا ځولۍ کې دي دنــیا او اخـــــــرت
که هر څو زه ستا نه ځاراوصدقه شم
در به نه کړای شم بدل ستا دزحــمت
زه عادل ستا دعا په طمع ناســـت یم
چې محروم نه شم له دغه لوي نعمت

Original Post: Nasim Shah 
Photograph: Samsung Galaxy S4
Tor_Khan تور خان

Tuesday 4 March 2014

Grandfathers


Because of the distances presented by my parent's migration to England, I didn't grow up with either of my grandfathers and only saw them during a trip to Pakistan when I was still in first school. I have fading memories of my maternal grandfather, Ghulam Nadir, and some almost equally blurred images of my paternal grandfather, Ali Akbar.

My father's grandfather went by the fine name of Arsalaan and his father was Ras Gul, and so it continues. They are mostly known by their singular names (Khan and Gul as honorific titles) at a time when hard records were not always kept. It's important, however, to have knowledge of your past and this thread is dedicated to that important patrilineal lineage of grandfathers.


Tor_Khan تور خان

Click here and here to read more.

Friday 28 February 2014

Toxic People 10: The Non-Believers

Toxic People
10. The Non-Believers

Worse than those who don’t dream are those who dream, but don’t believe that they can turn those dreams into reality. Those who don’t believe in themselves don’t amount to anything in life. They are the losers — those that are always there, but don’t influence the world. They live in a gloomy and depressing world where their lives are out of their hands. They go with the flow and never attempt to achieve any sort of success. Don’t rely on them to support you when you need the support, either. If they don’t believe in themselves, then they sure as hell won’t believe in you.


Image:  Today's Quotes
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Sunday 23 February 2014

Toxic People 9: The Non-Dreamers

Toxic People
9. The Non-Dreamers

Those who can’t dream don’t live. Life is about believing that things can be better — not just for you, but for everyone. What makes people human is dreaming and hoping that the change to come will be for the better. Those that don’t dream won’t allow you to dream, either, and will do their best to prove to you that your dreams are just that: dreams.


Image: Creative Commons
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Wednesday 19 February 2014

Toxic People 8: Those Who Stay Within Their Comfort Zones

Toxic People
8. Those Who Stay Within Their Comfort Zones

If we wish to live a life of adventure, then those who aren’t adventurous need be avoided. All those you meet and come across in your life are partners on your journey, if only for a few seconds. Those we keep around more regularly end up steering our direction more than we realize. If you hope to leave your comfort zone regularly, then don’t hang out with those who aren’t willing to leave theirs. Their chain simply isn’t long enough to go for the ride.



Image: OurSoulsPurpose.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Saturday 15 February 2014

Toxic People 7: The Constantly 'Depressed'

Toxic People
7. The Constantly 'Depressed'

Not those that have an actual chemical imbalance, but those who act like they do. We all know people who are always feeling bad for themselves, always complaining about how difficult their lives are and how unlucky they are. Bad luck is not a lifelong circumstance. If your life sucks, then guess what? It’s mostly, if not entirely, your fault. Don’t keep these folks around unless you want them to bring you down with them.



Image: rachelbrathen.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Wednesday 12 February 2014

Toxic People 6: The Big Talkers

Toxic People 
6. The Big Talkers 

Those that spend their time running their mouths spend little time doing anything else. It’s the mentally strong that don’t bother doing the talking because the work they are doing speaks for itself. The talkers, on the other hand, have nothing but the empty words they’re speaking.


Image: HappyHerbivore.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Thursday 6 February 2014

Toxic People 5: Anyone Who Lives By Saying "YOLO"

Toxic People
5. Anyone Who Lives By Saying “YOLO”

Understanding that you only live once can put your life in perspective. In fact, it should put your life in perspective. Yet, the Biebers, Drakes and Mileys of the world somehow managed to get the message completely backwards. YOLO: Let’s get wasted and high, do stupid things, throw up all over ourselves and possibly die while we’re at it! Yes, YOLO. The whole origin of this saying doesn’t suggest doing pointless, dumb things. YOLO means you should spend your time doing something meaningful, with a purpose. YOLO: You have once chance; don’t screw it up.


Image: Spicie.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Monday 3 February 2014

Toxic People 4: The Lazy

Toxic People
4. The Lazy

Laziness is a disease, one that is highly contagious. Lazy people make other people lazy. The more you hang around the immobile, the less you will feel the need to be mobile. The mentally strong are not impervious. Hang around lazy people too often and you’ll notice your productivity and general enjoyment of life plummeting.



Image: Calm-o-matic
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Saturday 1 February 2014

Toxic People 3: The Leeches

Toxic People
 3. The Leeches

Growing up, we’ve all had or been that friend who was always a bit broke and always happy to take a handout. When our friends are at a difficult point in their lives, there’s no reason not to help them out or to offer to pay for them so they come out and have fun with the rest of the group. The problem is when the person seems comfortable in the position and is making little to no effort of improving their financial situation.



Image: JasonPlester.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Friday 31 January 2014

Toxic People 2: The Unintelligent

Toxic People 
2. The Unintelligent

I’m not talking the kind of dumb that can’t be helped; I’m talking about the kind of dumb that is a result of an immense ego, voluntary ignorance and self-righteousness. Most of us know at least one or two people who are completely unintelligent as a result of continually making bad decisions and not learning from their mistakes for their entire lives.


Image: ThatOneRule.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Wednesday 29 January 2014

Toxic People 1: Show Offs

Toxic People 
1. Show Offs

Those who feel the need to be showy are always compensating for something and trying to prove their worth to themselves. Unfortunately for them, this is how you know they have little worth. Showing and trying to make other people envious is a waste of time, unless you’re trying to make yourself feel better about yourself at the expense of others. People that do such things are not the kind of people you want to keep around.


Image: Spicie.com
Text inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com

Tuesday 28 January 2014

Toxic People

There is something about the people we are drawn to and the people that we draw in turn to ourselves; the energy that we give out and the energies we attract and recieve. Either can be positive or negative. 

Sometimes things happen entirely by accident, but for now, let's consider that our energies and actions are charged either negatively or positively. To be positive is to be mentally strong. Mentally strong people understand the importance and influence that human beings have on one another and use this knowledge to their advantage. The mentally strong aren’t flawless or impervious to damage and sometimes even the strongest will fall. 

One trick though, is to plan ahead and avoid the people that make up the worst of the worst. These people are toxic ones and drag you down. Pay heed :) 

Over the next set of posts, I will explore ten types of toxic people, that should, by all accounts be avoided. These posts are inspired by TruthSeekerDaily.com 


Adapted from TruthSeekerDaily.com

Thursday 2 January 2014

2014: Make it Good

Welcome 2014


There isn't much difference between 23.59, December 31st and 00.00, January 1st. I stopped up last night (typical) and ushered in the New Year. It was a quiet affair, at home reflecting on the celebrations being broadcast from around the world. I can't say I felt different from one year to the next.

This past year gone has been a work hard year. I'm reaching that stage in life where I know that I am caught between personal ambition and responsibilities. The latter appears to dominate and one of the reasons I appear to have opted for regularity is because the external pressures around me have grown. Responsbilities to others I believe in, to a point. but an honest confession would be that the head and the heart conflict on this matter, so I wonder what the future holds. As I get older I know that there are fewer opportunties, but ultimately we restrict ourselves don't we? 

We are just microspecs in the universe and yet we are still surrounded by too much conflict in the world around us and in our personal lives. Hope remains my favourite word because it allows our dreams and motivations to thrive, and prayers are made to Allah Almighty. 

Where we are responsible for controlling the events in our own lives, I want to begin 2014 with one simple thought. 

Make it good.
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