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Friday, February 17, 2012

Simile Exhibit

Introduction to the tool

SIMILE is a joint project carried out by Haystick Group, World Wide Web Consortium, MIT Librarians and CSAIL. The major technical focus of this project is towards Semantic web technology and standards. It stands for Interoperability of Metadata and Information in unLike Environments. It is focused on developing robust, open source tools that empower users to access, manage, visualize and reuse digital assets. 
The various projects of Simile are as follows:

Exhibit
Appalachian
Babel
Citeline
HTTPTracer
JavaFirefoxExtension
jsTeX
Longwell
Piggy Bank
RDFizers
Referee
Solvent
Semantic Bank
Zotz

Simile Exhibit lets the user create web pages that has advanced text search and filtering functionalities, with interactive maps, timelines, and other visualizations. It lets the user create web pages with support for sorting, filtering, and rich visualizations by writing only HTML and optionally some CSS and Javascript code. No database and no web application technologies are involved. Through this application a user can get data in a webpage in a organised, interactive fashion.

The Exhibit page can be created from any of the following:

Google Spreadsheet
Excel Spreadsheet
Edit Grid Spreadsheet
Publications
JSON data source
ASP.NET

In computer programming, a widget (or control) is an element of a graphical user interface (GUI) that displays an information arrangement changeable by the user, such as a window or a text box. The defining characteristic of a widget is to provide a single interaction point for the direct manipulation of a given kind of data. In other words, widgets are basic visual building blocks which, combined in an application, hold all the data processed by the application and the available interactions on this data.

Business Value
The amount of data that is available on the web is immense and still counting. To go through this data and analyse it is in itself a mamoth task, but none the less very important. Exhibit is a tool that helps in deciphering the data available on the web and gives it to us in a manner which is easy to understand and use. This tool is very useful for every field of business be it marketing, consulting or an other field. Exhibit helps the business managers in developing pages by collecting data from multiple sources. In short it helps creating a repository of data from multiple webpages.

Data Source
Simile Exhibit requires us to select any webpage or particular spreadsheets to fetch the data. A particular webpage with relevant data will be selected and the data from this page will be fed to the application.

Methodology

The various steps that will be undertaken are as follows:
  • Literature Review: Both primary and secondary research will be carried out in this stage. Information available on various websites and other articles will be studied. Also the home page of the software provides with various examples that will help us in understanding how this application works.
  • Hands on: Since the application is an open source one, it can be downloaded free of cost. A hands of experience will be gained by using the application and creating some sample webpages. 
  • Data Source: An appropriate data source will be found and studied. The data source can be any website or any spreadsheets that will help us in showing the working of the application.
  • Tutorial: Finally the tutorial will be prepared by explaining in detail regarding the application. An exhibit webpage will be created using data from a particular/multiple websites. This webpage will be taken as an illustration and the tutorial will explain each stage of how to create such a page using the application.


Below figure shows how Simile Exhibit transforms loosely available data into organized one that can be sorted, filtered and managed easily:




Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Know your NjoyTV!

"NjoyTV is world's first and only Gtalk-Buzz-Facebook Hindi Music entertainment channel"


A.) GENESIS OF the word "NjoyTV"

One fine day during my final year at DCE, I was contemplating on a single "name" which I could use across all sources of entertainment(songs, videos, blogs, etc) which I create, so that just by seeing the name, my friends are able to guess who must have created it. 
On Jan-30-2006 on the eve of ma-papa's wedding anniversary, I was watching MTV in which one sexy VJ, before taking commercial break, said,
"Hey, We 'll be right back after a short break, don't go anywhere, keep watching MTV, Enjoy!" 

I focused on her last two words.."MTV+ENJOY"

From there I got idea of the name of my channel..Initially, I thought to replace M with some other alphabet but finally settled on without alphabet ENJOYTV..making it futher shorter to "NjoyTV"..Since then, I have been using this name as my umbrella brand for videos, chats, blogs, twitter, etc.

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B.) Launch of NjoyTV as a song suggestor/player on Gtalk

I always wanted to be a VJ/RJ since childhood and have recorded many cassettes speaking like a RJ [Still have those but they are useless because of obsolete technology.. :-(  ]. 

In mid-2007 While I was working in Cognizant Kolkata, I came upon an idea to start e-mail service everyday where I will send one most important/funniest/knowledge imparting news of the day along with any name of a song under the banner-cum-signature "99.5 Sky Blue FM" [Idea taken from "93.5 Red FM"]. 

I continued it till I left CTS in Oct-2007 to join CSC, Noida. There I saw that unlike in Cognizant, Gtalk is allowed here. So, instead of sending mails daily, I started suggesting songs to friends on my gtalk status by writing the name of the song on my gtalk-status under the heading, 'NjoyTV Song of the Day.' When youtube became popular in 2007-08, I started using the link of the song as well along with its name.

In early 2010, NjoyTV was launched on BUZZ as well where people could comment on the song which would be viewed by anybody on the BUZZ.

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C.) Why do I do this? What do I get out of this?

1. Peace: Even if I am not an RJ/VJ, I am doing something similar but in low tone!

2. Connectivity with friends: I started this channel with the main aim of connecting with friends always..consider this: One day I pinged one of my Cognizant friends to whom I hadnt talked/chatted since 2 years. I said, "You have forgotten me".. He said, "How can I forget you when I listen your song daily on NjoyTV? I have been following you on gtalk since last 2 years and havent missed even a single song"...Once in a while many friends keep in touch with me max. times to Comment/request/advice on a song for NjoyTV!

3. Satisfaction: When my friends ping me back and say:
 - "You made my day, what a song".
 - "Plz NEVER close ur channel, this is the first thing I do in office every morning before starting my work"
 - "What a song..I forgot it thanks for reminding", etc etc

4. Learning about new songs: Since the time I started playing song requests/dedications also in late 2010, I came across many songs which I also didn't know including non-hindi songs. This has helped increasing my songs database.

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D.) NjoyTV Protocol for Facebook:

For more than a year, NjoyTV remained on Gtalk-BUZZ until the news came that Google is doing away with Buzz forever. Hence because of this and upon the suggestions from most of my friends, I am launching it open on Facebook to all its users on my birthday, Nov-9-2011. You can find it here.
1. It will be a Facebook page where I will put one Song daily and on which any Facebook user can comment.
2. Currently, a song request/dedication can be made only by my friends (max. of 2 per week per friend).  It will be played on the nearest available date (based on first-cum-first serve basis) with their name and dedication appearing beside the song. 

3. Total max. song requests in a week = 4. Also song request is subject to condition that the requested song must not have been played on NjoyTV in last 1 month.
4. Max. no. of non-Hindi song requests per week = 1
5. Song will be put up anytime between 11pm to 1am daily night on one song per day basis.

Amendment Note (Jan2013): Now, non-friends viewers can also suggest/request a song which will also be played on NjoyTV but without their name being displayed on the page. For this, they must message their song details and their name on NjoyTV page.

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E.) How to dedicate/request/suggest a song?
Please fill the following form for requesting your song.

Please note that due to enormous number of song requests, you may have to wait quite a long to listen to your song sometimes. However, in case of emergencies like love proposals where waiting can be fatal (;-) you must mention the reason for playing your song early in 'Dedication/Message' question of the form.
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HAVE FUN & KEEP SMILING as LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WORRY..

- Rahul Aggarwal
Director, NjoyTV
Dated: 8-Nov-2011

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Nokia-From Dawn to dusk

This article was published in Economic Times dated Mar-27-2011 that throws light on the factors responsible for Nokia's decreasing market share and stronghold in 3 years(2007-2010).

No handset-maker knows India better than Nokia, then why did it lose its stronghold?
Find out here.

What I learnt from this case study is that in a competitive environment, the three things are most important to survive and stay ahead of the market:
a) Constant Innovation - Creating VALUE for the customer
b) Operational Efficiency - faster, economical production, R&D and sales distribution system
c) Market Orientation - putting customer's needs at the center of all activities of the company

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Life at IIT Kharagpur



“We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they're called memories. Some take us forward, they're called dreams.” 
-Jeremy Irons

When I look back now using the former of the two God-gifted machines, I find that last six months were truly one of the most enriching experiences of my life: academically, personally and socially. Like most of the software engineers, I was also leading a “Physically” comfortable and “Mentally” torturous life. When I joined VGSoM, things got reversed for at least first 2-3 weeks. In fact, the realization of the most basic thing that I was now enrolled in the coveted MBA degree from the most desired words on resume “IIT”, itself kept me motivated against the de-motivating forces of physical pain that I was to bear in the first 15 days.

These forces include:
• Hostel Rooms
When I was allotted the room: the cot was in broken condition; water was yellow in taps; walls were covered with spider webs; cistern was pissing; LAN socket had been raped; the speed of the ceiling fan was slower than the slowest rickshaw in Junglepur. It was almost going to be a remake of the horror movie, ‘The Ring’, had the tube light been not working; thankfully it was!

• Homesickness
This started when I consistently scored zero in Mathematical Models of Management Decisions (pronounced fondly as Triple M D) twice in the weekly class tests. Only Kamdhenu Diary’s milk could have helped me sail through this one! :(

• Jungle vehicle: A BICYCLE
Let me tell you that it is impossible to live and traverse on planet Junglepur unless you have a bicycle as motor vehicles are banned here for students. Though people flout these rules easily. 

Also, initially cycling caused my bum to pain, my legs to swell, my bowel movement to go upwards(:P) but believe me, in no time, everything became normal and I got used to it so much that I am thinking to take it with me to Delhi after the completion of the course.

• Food
Daily, we have dark-brown water (which is supposed to be sambhar); egg, bread-butter in the morning; Semi-half baked tawa rotis, rice, one vegetable (or Chicken for non-veg) and yellow water (which is supposed to be Dal) and curd (most tasty component of lunch) in the afternoon; edible snacks in the evening, and dinner similar to the lunch. Frankly speaking, I am not having issues with the lunch because I have seen how worse it can get esp. if you are a vegetarian. And yes, IIT Kharagpur is probably one of the biggest clients of Aquaguard.


Believe me, the above mentioned forces do not last for more than 15-20 days. After that, there’s more than everything to admire here. First, the 2200 acre campus is a self-sufficient ecosystem. It is so serene that you may even miss your partner (or would-be partner) here (though teachers usually make sure that the latter doesn’t happen). People from big cities will take a sigh of relief in this calm, beautiful and pollution-free ecosystem. In simple terms, it’s indeed heaven inside the campus.

Now, before you run your horses, I should make it clear that boy-girl ratio here is highly skewed. :( Though there are some nice maal (read: girls) in BTech but the issue is they remain in their nests the whole year and don't come out until Durga Puja in October or Spring fest in January. There is a sad story that says that earlier boys-girls hostel used to be combined but they were separated later by some @$$ %O^$.

Disregarding the availability though, still a few couples can be seen here inside the library or at Lover's point in front of the library. The institute's central library is one of the biggest libraries in India. It houses magazines, newspapers, journals, books, and lovers(:P).

With one CCD and more than 8 restaurants, you will never feel the need to go outside campus to “try” something new (:P). There are many small markets outside every hostel for the basic commodities. A techmarket is also there that houses shops for fulfilling all basic needs including a hot stuffed-Pakora shop that serves the yummiest green chutney in Kharagpur. 

For workouts, a world-class gym, swimming pool, tennis ground, badminton courts and football grounds are also there. You name a game and it is here.

Though all the above things are not unique to IIT but one thing that differentiates it from other colleges is DC++ which is a peer-to-peer file-sharing system that connects whole of the IIT and has data in excess of 152 Terabytes! From movies to documentaries, from serials to songs, from e-books to software, everything is available on the LAN. The high speed internet connectivity of 100 Mbps with no restriction on downloading makes this place a paradise for net savvy people.

Oh wait… I almost forgot that I have come here to study! So, let me throw some torch on life at VGSoM. Classes usually start at 8.15 in the morning and unlike other B-Schools, run only till 12:30pm except for Mondays when we subconsciously hone our oral or written communication skills in the context of business.
One thing I have not understood yet is that regardless of how many hours I sleep, I still feel sleepy in the class (If anybody knows why, please answer in comments section).

Nevertheless, in the first semester, we study the basics of all trades viz. finance, marketing, operations, IT and HR. The general mode of teaching is usually case study method coupled with theoretical insights from the books of renowned authors. It is a highly enriching experience to attend classes from the world class faculties who hail from institutes like London School of Business, University of Texas, IIM Ahmadabad, IIT Delhi, MICA, etc and have a long experience in industry & teaching. Their focus is primarily on building the conceptual clarity while making studies a fun and not on just completing the course and grades. For Example, in the subject, IT, we indulged in a very unique concept of examination this year where the students were asked to make either one movie or an online application using cloud computing in the groups of three. Also, we are asked to write a 12 page thesis on any innovative thing that has the potential to generate business but is not currently being practised.

To supplement our learning in classes, we also get to attend the series of guest lectures where the prominent industry leaders share their valuable industry experiences with us and provide us with the practical applications of the concepts in business.
So, do we study the whole day? Well of course not(:P). To supplement our learning in classes, we usually WATCH as many Bollywood flicks as we can!! ;-). Jokes apart, we take part in many student-managed committees and clubs for practically actuating whatever we learn here in theory. One such committee is Shraddha that works towards improving the lives of the underprivileged children through a school located within the IIT Kharagpur campus. Every once in while we go there, distribute goodies and celebrate festivals like Diwali, etc with the children. This gives a sense of peace in mind (that works as an antidote to the guilt of bunking few classes!).

All the above factors have contributed to a great deal in my personality development. Consider the fact that our class comprises of students from 19 different states of India. Where else do you get such diversity? I was allotted hostel with a south Indian Matka (slang for MTech here!) who doesn’t understand Hindi (though he likes Hindi songs and Katrina Kaif alias Sheila :P). But we are doing well. Sometimes, whenever he talked with his friends in Tamil:

Annaa, sapad pohiren...(Going for food, bro?)
Khanapurti Poda Poda, Ne muritiviten? (Moron, get lost, u are finished)


I used to feel that they were making noise because I did't understand Tamil. Plus, due to cultural differences between North and South, there were many adjustment issues. But then I realized, the only keyword that would work well here is "Co-operate-2-dominate".

It is this multiplicity of courses and diversity of people here that distinguish IITs from other institutes. The learning in behavioural aspects which I have got from here can never be taught in any class. Consequently, I am a more matured individual who knows how to deal with people from different backgrounds and how to manage the most precious resource called “time” to make myself “dedicated to the service of Nation”.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Trip to Puri-Konark-Chilika

Mid-sems got over at 4pm and we decided to go on a trip at 3:59pm!! After considering many options and brainstorming, we finalized Puri-Konark-Chilika trip. This we did even after knowing that we may not get entry to the dolphin island and Nalbana Island that houses migratory birds..but we didn't have any other option due to heavy rains in most parts of this side of the country..We decided to try our luck at it..

Presenting, the Itinerary (on demand of one of my friends) which we followed:


Well as luck had it, we were not able to go to Nalbana and Satpada Islands but will definitely go once again to fill the gap that remains to be filled..!!

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Four-Year Transformation!

Finally, this week marks the end of the first phase of my work-ex that lasted for a total of 4 years as I have decided to overthrow my comfort zone and travel thru the scabrous alleys of a highly respected degree, now-a-days, called MBA. However, when I look back now, I am delighted to note that what a journey it has been. It has all of these called pain, emotions, tears, war, stress, glory, fun, rewards, friendships, etc. And all these things have impacted me considerably to an extent that I feel that I am a much better individual now than what I was 4 years back.

Some of the examples I discovered through introspection:

Before:
Very low self confidence

After:
Duniya ki &%@#!^.. High level of self confidence and belief. This is one lesson that I have learnt as a result of learning from so many failures in almost every field esp. during first serious CAT prep. in 2008 and 1st two projects in CSC during 2008-09. Everytime I failed, I read/listened something motivational. One such quote that is extremely close to my heart is:
"Courage doesn't always roar..Sometimes, it is the quite voice at the end of the day, saying I will again try tomorrow".
Similarly, Chak-de-India movie's title song(hunkar awaz wala paragraph)

And whenever I have tried again and again, almost everytime God has been kind to shower success on me just when I was on the verge of loosing it!
Also, I have experienced this myself that our body imitates our mind. If mind is confident, this will show in the performance by the body and hence, the results. (My first AIMCAT last year was in July first week in which I was not prepared at all so I had nothing to loose. Without any expectations, I went with full confidence that whatever I will do, I will do correct else I will not attempt. Result-98.3%tile, AIR-270 out of 17,000..!)

In this aspect specifically, literally speaking, "Main apna favourite hun"
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Before:
Extreme immaturity in almost everything, be it relationships, handling tasks, view of life, ability to judge people (Initially, it was like if somebody talked to me with smile, I took his goodness for granted)

After:
Perhaps the most important thing which is developed over these years is “Maturity to think rationally and practically”. Day dreaming is a crime. Learnt this, esp in Kolkata where I made certain mistakes in choosing relationships that taught me that you will never know when your best asset may become your worst one if your eyes and mind are not open.

Generally, most of things went against my wishes during:

1. Last 3-4 months of my 1 year long stay in Cognizant,
2. Two months with a psycho in a single room,
3. Under a super psycho landlord for approx another 2 months
4. And 1st two projects in CSC

These things broadminded my mind to an extent which reflect when you see me today with the perspective of now and then. But a very very important experience I must say, otherwise, I would have never matured to that extent had Cognizant been in Delhi!
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Before:
Poor emotional quotient

After:
Now, I do any work with full emotions but I don’t do any work emotionally! (Slight difference, only few people will be able to understand).
Please please please remember that if you are into a relationship, then it is imperative to give full space to your partner and respect his/her views, else things will not work out.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


Before:
Any big responsibility looked like a burden that used to create stress until I finished it

After:
Let’s have a cup of tea first!
-----------------------------WAIT, Tea se yaad aaya....

Before:
Didn’t used to even touch it

After:
At least 3 times a day else mind gets blocked!
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Before:
Average communication skills when it used to come to relationships

After:
“Express Yourself” is the funda for this! I believe that if you really want to say something to someone, then please go ahead and express yourself to him/her..Don’t think that ‘it is obvious’ or ‘it is a formality’ or ‘it is not my duty’, etc.. Believe me, your few words of motivation can make his/her whole day!
(A very important lesson in public relations)
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Before:
Average mentorship skills (I used to get miffed easily if other person didn’t understand what I wanted to say. This was the case when I used to teach tuitions to class-10th students while I was in DCE)

After:
Developed patience…Here, special thanks to Abhignan da in Cognizant and Devendar in CSC who were my mentors in the respective companies!! (Consider the case that tomorrow is project delivery and our work is just 60% complete at 9pm. Abhijnan da is cool. Also, we have to train 2 other people till tomorrow. Abhijnan da is still cool. Mainframe gets hanged for 2 hours in between. Abhijnan da is still cool as if he had delivered the project. Suddenly it rains heavily to the extent that no cab is available to go home. Abhijnan da is still cool!!)
How to hold your nerves while mentoring and in high-stress zones was the lesson I learnt.
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Before:
Car Driving skills – Above average

After:
Min. 2.5 hours daily driving from Delhi to Noida and vice-versa since Oct, 2007.. Need I say more? Aankh band karke bhi chalaunga toh bhi ghar pahunch jaunga!
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Before:
Laughing loudly and frequently.

After:
This hasn’t changed as yet! People still become victim of that, sometimes!
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So, these were a few examples of my four-year transformation that I went thru with such a highly enriching experience made possible, perhaps, by the blessings of the almighty!
In the same flow, I hope the learning will continue in my last formal education too and who knows I will be writing another post after 2 years with contents similar to this one but heading something like, "Two states, the story of my ******".
-

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Antariksh ki khoj

“Is brahmand ki rachna kaise hui? kisne ki? kyun ki? Yeh itna bada kyun hai? Koi toh batao? And, if there are billions of galaxies and solar systems in the universe then will it be foolish to ask if life is present only on Earth in our solar system? Which is more frightening :- We are alone in Universe OR we are not alone in Universe? Will there be imperialism in universe also for more and more Earth(s) in future? How come Universe is so huge? Will it keep on increasing in size? etc etc”

Sometimes, when I look into clear night sky, there is this whole bunch of questions that gets activated thru my sensory root of vision that keeps on goading my mind for answers. I normally try to evade them by saying that scientists around the world are still trying to find answers to most of them but they never stop from sprouting time and again in my skull’s butter. And the issue is that those questions actually do not have any concrete answers and are still in their Beta phase! In this write-up, I will put light on two such questions to the best of my knowledge acquired thru books, documentaries and internet. These are the birth of Universe and its ultimate fate.

Singularity
Let me begin with the birth of Universe. One might argue that big bang theory has now well established the birth of Universe but on looking closely you will find that it assumes a lot of things and creates more doubts than solving them. It does explain how Universe evolved but it fails to answer how it was born. Let me rewind a little bit.

In 1929, Edwin Hubble, with the help of spectrum analysis and Doppler’s effect, discovered that galaxies were moving away from each other and that Universe was expanding. Hence, moving backwards in time (around 14 billion years ago), everything must have started from a single point (called, singularity) where all the matter and energy was concentrated. From this singularity, the Universe exploded and by this explosion, not only matter and energy was created but also space and time.

My question is that from where does all that matter come? Who created that singularity? Astrophysicists like Stephen Hawking, George Ellis, and Roger Penrose published papers related to measurement of space, time and singularity in 1980s. According to them, “The singularity didn’t appear in space; rather space begins inside singularity. Prior to singularity, nothing existed, not space, time matter or energy.” [Just imagine :)]

They say that it is of no use to speak of the period before the Big Bang as there is no 'before' because time (and space) did not exist! However, my contumacious mind refuses to accept this. It asks that from where did singularity come? In what did singularity appear? Why it was there? The answer is we don’t know.

For the time being, creation of singularity can be supposed to be a supernatural event which is outside our imagination or understanding. Scientists around the world are highly divided on this polemic thought but they don’t have any other alternative at least until further discoveries are made in this regards. (That gives us another reason to make our belief firm in God, though!!)

Dark Matter
Similarly, to predict the ultimate future of Universe is an equally complicated job if not more. According to scientists, as Universe expands, its expansion is slowed down by the combined gravity of all the matter within it (just like a rocket is pulled back by Earth’s gravity). If the pull is strong then the expansion will stop and reverse itself to form singularity yet again else it will continue to expand forever.

In terms of Astrophysics, the future of Universe will depend on its average density and a certain critical density. If the density of Universe is smaller than critical density then Universe will continue expand forever else it will collapse.

The problem is how to calculate the average density of Universe? There are billions of galaxies and trillions of stars. The density of galaxies and stars can be found out as they are visible but what about the matter between them? It was noted that there was an invisible “dark matter” besides the stars and galaxies which was sort of holding the things together and which may also be responsible for slowing down the expansion of Universe.

However, in 1998, the outlandish finding of astronomers in Australia suggested something really strange. Two independent teams of astronomers found that not only is there too little matter in the universe to ever halt the expansion of the universe on its own, but the outward motion appears to be speeding up, not slowing down.!!. (This finding was awarded “Breakthrough of the Year for 1998” by Science magazine.)

Logically, if the Universe was born 14 billion years ago, then its expansion since that time should have been slowed down by huge amounts. But Logics don’t work everywhere! It seems that there is an antigravity force which is responsible for the all this. Even scientists were flabbergasted at this discovery of “speeding cosmic expansion” but they couldn’t find any reason to doubt their work. I noted that back in 1916, even Einstein added an extra term to the equations of relativity called the cosmological constant which amounted to a force that opposed gravity. Though he later discarded it which I think was the biggest mistake of his life.

Currently, there is a lot of research going on around the World on Dark Matter and the nature of particle physics in Cosmos. One such experiment to look forward to is the Large Hadron Collider exp which lies in a 27Km long tunnel beneath Franco-Swiss border near Geneva, Switzerland. I hope it comes out with some concrete results pertaining to the nature of Dark Matter in next 2-3 years.


As far as the ultimate future of Universe is concerned, well, for now astronomers say that the galaxies which we can see now (like Andromeda galaxy) will zip out of range one by one leaving Milky Way galaxy the only one we are directly aware of. By then, our Sun will have engulfed the nearest 3 planets, Mercury, Venus and Earth in its red giant phase before shrinking to a white dwarf star. Finally, there will be only black holes, burnt planets and an extremely cold and black Universe.

Bid
I don’t know whether scientists will be able to provide concrete answers to these two questions in my lifetime but I have a hunch that at least there will be a few more discoveries in the coming years which will provide more answers rather than creating more questions!
***
Special thanks to Nehru Planetarium, Science Magazine, TIME magazine, Discovery channel, Hubblesite.org, Nasa.gov, Stephen Hawkings's A brief history of Time and Black Holes and Baby Universes. All the information provided here is based on above resources and I am not biased towards any of them.