Friday, March 28, 2008

Blissfully Troubled

A word of caution: You'll be happy to skip this piece if you are sick of my perpetual talk about the rain, or if you are allergic to cribbing students.

There are moments when Data Mining scares me no end- if it was Artificial Intelligence last semester, Data Mining definitely takes the cake this time. It doesn’t exactly go over my head, but it’s not great fun either. I suppose the authors worked on the textbook when they were depressed with life and desperately needed some publicity; or when they had a bad toothache. It goes from comprehensible to complicated, and finally becomes totally incoherent. I’m probably exaggerating; I understand most parts of the book, but it’s the remembering part I detest. There seems to be very little application, it’s theory all through, and all new. Now you know what I mean by ‘new’ if you are or have been a ‘normal’ engineering student.

I believe in leaving trouble alone until it actually comes to haunt me; so I’ve decided not to get nervous till the exams actually begin. And I have the perfect thing to bolster my spirits- you know it- the rain. A couple of days ago, I reread my favourite part from Ruskin Bond’s Book of Nature- the chapter ‘Rain’. Can anybody ever describe the sensations the first cleansing showers evoke so beautifully? Bond talks of how the rain can get tiresome if it goes on and on. Now that is something I’m yet to experience, but if and when I do, I’ll surely let you know.

The skies are high and dark, the wind is crisp and strong, and I like the way it blows the stinging, electrifying raindrops in my face. A cool, sensuous rain- I have parted the curtains in my room so I can hear it talk to me and feel the damp. I just hope this bliss lasts for atleast two more days.

Nature feels like a beautiful prayer tonight.

3 comments:

Revs said...

Ewwwwwwww!! i completely completely loathed AI and DM. silberchatz or some useless book like that i used for DM i think. and like u though i understood most parts the remembering bugged the crap outta me.
Good luck for ur exams. write what u know which will definitely be more than what the examiner knows. thats the attitude which helped me crack all exams!! :D

P.S: i love the rain. will read book of nature by RB!! thanks for the tip!! :)

Arun Ramkumar said...

// "...when they had a bad toothache"
heh :D !!! aw you'll sail thru I am sure !

Jaya said...

Revathi: Thanks, I've been giving my friends your 'words of wisdom' :). They did cheer up considerably after that. We have a book by Han and Kamber, and I don't think it's any better than yours. So you like the rain? Kindred spirit :). Do read the Book of Nature, I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Arun: Two exams down, DM is the only one left. The first two were okay, but I'm not sure about the 'sailing through' part in DM. I just hope the answers come to me miraculously, just like in 'Autobiography of a Yogi; :).