If you could force people to stand and sit on a subway car when you decided they should, what algorithm would enable everyone to optimize the amount of time they get to sit down on a subway car? I guess…by ensuring everyone gets an equal percentage of time sitting based on their total ride time. [...]
How to optimize subway seating
Posted by Shubha on December 17, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2605
Americans believing crazy weather is due to end-of-world
There goes the hope that Hurricane Sandy and other crazy weather events will finally wake people up to climate change… A new study shows 4 in 10 U.S. residents say recent extreme weather events, like Superstorm Sandy, is evidence the world is coming to an end. The survey, conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute [...]
Posted by Shubha on December 15, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2599
Meaningful Dates
I don’t know how I missed this one before… So why are the first of most months really important except poor February 1? Also I wonder how to scale the numbers are… like is September 18th and basically the 11th of every month really THAT less important than every other date? Also why are [...]
Posted by Shubha on December 12, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2596
Ui
Have you ever noticed there’s a “u” in us but no “i”? I think us should be changed to ui
Posted by Shubha on December 10, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2592
Mr. Dressup and other favorite Canadian shows
Today’s google.ca logo: Mr. Dressup, who passed away in 2001, would have turned 85 today. Casey and Finnegan were his puppet boy friend and puppet dog! Here’s a long 10-minute clip of the show if you feel very nostalgic. It starts out with the Tickle Trunk! ok now this just has to become a [...]
Posted by Shubha on November 26, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2587
Declines in Home Equity Shrink Charitable Donations
Latest in the Harvard stats emails: Households increase their gifts to charity by nearly 1% for every 10% increase in home equity. That’s about 10 times the effect of increases in other types of wealth such as stocks and bonds, say Chau Do and Irina Paley of the U.S. Treasury. The finding may be ominous [...]
Posted by Shubha on November 24, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2576
Earth Day moves from March to April because the US rules the world
From Wikipedia: The name and concept of Earth Day was pioneered by John McConnell in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. He proposed March 21, 1970, the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. This day of nature’s equipoise was later sanctioned in a Proclamation signed by Secretary General U Thant at [...]
Posted by Shubha on November 22, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2581
Africa for Norway
You’ve probably all already seen this.. but it’s great. A spoof charity video making fun of the sort of development-porn version of aid.
Posted by Shubha on November 19, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2584
Dark Pictures
I was in Barre, MA this past weekend and I took a photo of the night sky with my phone because there were beautiful stars in it And here is the photo I took in Manhattan the day after the hurricane:
Posted by Shubha on November 17, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2572
Our story of Divali
India is a really big country so unfortunately different regions and castes have different stories of Divali. Here is (one of) the versions for our family/region/Tamil Nadu/South India that I wrote up for our family. I made it even simpler than what’s below, for the 3 year olds, and then made little puppets for people [...]
Posted by Shubha on November 13, 2012
http://shubhabala.com/archives/2553