4.27.2009

ode to Economics

Studying Economics for 3 years, I studied a lot of theories. Some were easy to understand, others took sometime for logic to kick in, while the rest went completely over the top. Some of these theories, simple and complex alike, make a lot of sense. Being based on general consumer and market behavior, one could really apply these and conclude that yes, they actually do fall true. But a lot of them failed to make sense (at least to me). They felt like forced efforts on the part of the economist to just get done with it and put a theory forth. I couldn't comprehend many such theories; but it did end up making me realize what the general 'anatomy' of a theory is. It isn't that complex. Start by selecting a variable/phenomenon. Pick up any random consumer behavior (your own for example), study it, analyze it for sometime till you can convince yourself that it is pragmatic enough, add a few Utopian assumptions to it, garnish it with a cause-effect relationship and spice it up with a few exceptions. There you have it, your very own Economic theory.

I'm not preaching without practicing. I did apply this too. I came out of the last TY exam, earlier than the others as usual, and started wondering, why... why did I opt for Economics? The answer was too vague. It did give me a sense of contentment though. I'm happy with what I did, no regrets whatsoever. But I had to give something back; try to return a part of what I learnt to the field which taught me so much the last 3 years. And I realized there couldn't be nothing better than a theory; my very own theory, analyzed, studied and proposed. Hence, I put forth, The Theory of Universal Application of Economics OR simply The Theory which gives Economics one up over Science.

Any and every element/thing/substance, living or non-living, physical or abstract, can be expressed it terms of its demand and supply. Lets start with something known and usual, jobs for example. Demand for work and supply of jobs available. Similarly education, demand for schools/colleges/universities and supply of the same. Entertainment (movies, plays, musicals, dramas, TV shows, sports etc.), their demand and the amount available i.e. supply. Something a bit more complicated, getting laid for instance. The demand for action and the relative opportunities one gets (supply). Suggest any thing, and I mean, ANY THING you can think of, and I can (even you) can put it in terms of demand and supply.

Exceptions, not many, but specially those which can be self-achieved. Taking the above into consideration, you can self-employ yourself, you can be home-schooled and similarly you can entertain yourself too and entertainment that can cover the need for contentment as well as that for pleasure.

Taking this ahead, I began to think, actually how universal is Economics? What is its real scope? The theoretical definition I've learned says that Economics is a Science as well as an Art. Economics is an art cause there lies a major scope for creativity and personalization (what you're reading right now). But why a science, I could never get my head around it. Science has been accepted as a term which stretches across various fields and branches of education. Why this universal acceptance and how it came about is something I can't answer. What I do know is that instead of 'science' why can't everything be pegged to 'economics'. After all, isn't everything directly or indirectly connected to money and its management. Medicine, aeronautics, law, biology, psychology... all deemed as 'Sciences' per say are connected with money, earning or spending likewise, which is invariably Economics.

Think about it! It is simple logic. Science is all about money and so in a sense, Economics is not a Science, but rather Science IS Economics.

4.14.2009

i heart movies :)

I'm looking forward too,
  1. The Soloist - April 24th
  2. The Informers - April 24th
  3. Mutant Chronicles - April 24th
  4. X-Men Origins: Wolverine - May 1st (yes, I'm going to wait for the BETTER print on the big screen)
  5. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past - May 1st
  6. Star Trek - May 8th (YEA!!)
  7. Angels & Demons - May 15th (DOUBLE YEA!!)
  8. Terminator Salvation - May 21st (DOUBLE TRIPLE YEA!!!)
  9. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian - May 22nd
  10. Away We Go - June 5th
  11. Taking of Phelam 1 2 3 - June 12th
  12. Year One - June 19th
  13. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - June 24th (UNLIMITED YEAs!!!)
  14. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - July 1st (need I say something for this one :)
  15. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - July 17th (They better not delay the release any further)
Phew! Its going to be a helluva summer.
I just hope most of these release simultaneously in India as well.

4.09.2009

insomnia

Sleep has never been a necessity for me. I'm not the conventional sleep lover who'd be proud that he can sleep 'anywhere, anytime'. If there is something interesting on the rack, I'd skip sleep without a 2nd thought. Perhaps, this is where I undermined its importance. It has been next to impossible to get even a few hours of sleep since the last week. Lying down with the lids shut for hours together has generated more anger and frustration than anything else.

It may be a blessing for some who face this problem when exams are going on. Till the last spell of examinations I couldn't visualize anything other than the bed for most of the times during the day... now even that seems far fetched. The satisfaction of waking up after even the shortest of naps seems so overwhelming; a sensation I direly miss now.

No! its not because I'm in love. Its not because I'm tensed about exams nor is it because of worries about the 'future'. Its not because of any of the million and one reasons that I've thought off. I just need a cure for this; more urgently I need some hours of deep slumber before the freaking International Trade & Public Finance paper!

4.03.2009

the 3 years that were...

"If someone says that school is better than college, then that someone has never been to college". Its pretty ironic how you can't wait to get out of school and once you're in college, you don't want to get out of it. Not implying that I had a bad school life or something; it was in fact pretty decent through out and got even better by the end. But then who doesn't start thinking about college the moment they land in the 12th standard; many even in the 11th. I guess its pretty normal to do so. Looking forward to a massive change, hopefully a pleasant one, and I was no different.

I puked in the college bushes on the first day, fell sick and missed the initial 3 days which are the orientation days when you get acquainted to your seniors and get to know your classmates. Besides these, college began as it should have. A complete new world with new people all around. I was the only one out of school who had changed streams and chosen Economics, so none of my school friends were with me. I hung with 2 guys for the majority of the first 6 months and got to know some more new people for the rest of FY. First year was mostly new friends, new places to go too, new things to do, lots of early morning and pre-noon movie shows and a lot of time to waste. It was like switching worlds. From a fast paced, relentless school existence, where there wasn't a minute to waste to a completely subdued, merciful and jazzy college life. It was a transition that didn't take time to happen. Second year came along pretty soon. SY wasn't much too different from FY. Acquaintances became friends, good friends became best friends and girlfriends, animosities grew with some, professors became more involved and Economics became lengthier and tougher. When the going gets tough, the tough get going they say. TY was undoubtedly the toughest, from all ends; studies, friendships, the other ships... The last year, much like the 2 previous ones, passed quickly. Things went from good to bad, bad to worse, worse to excellent, round and round the same cycle kept repeating. But again, all's well that ends well and it did end well. All the three years did actually.

3 days away from the finals, this lazy rut of sleeping late, getting up even later, unsuccessfully trying to study all day and ending up having done nothing has crept in. It makes me realize how adventurous and more desirable college was. The last mile, as I like to call it, is here. Its always the slowest. It creeps along at a pace that is both irritating and at times pleasing. I really want the exams to end in a flash but then that will be it. No more lectures getting bunked, no more morning movies, no more economic summits to go too... and a million other 'no mores' that make me realize that I'll really miss college...

The three years did pass by in a flash, but certainly left their mark. The examination ordeal went by every now and then, the annual cultural fest got better every year, friends on Facebook kept growing, messages and calls got longer, gossips kept getting more interesting, many 'ships' were made, more got lost and done away with... sitcoms became real life, hugs became more familiar, shoulders got nearer... It should aptly take 3 different posts over a period of 3 weeks, may be even months to do justice to the college life I've seen. This is just a jist of the 3 years that were...