There were more than 120 students who sat for the mock CAT which was conducted by renowned CAT coaching institute – CAREER LAUNCHER. There were many more students keen on giving the mock test however seating constraints did not permit so.

Had the event been conducted in a larger hall, registrations would have definitely kissed 200.

The test commenced once the students were given a brief introduction to various MBA entrance tests and the CAT in particular by senior Career Launcher professors.

On completion of the hour and a half long test, the students were given a very informative seminar on online CAT 2009 which was more an interactive session wherein students cleared any apprehensions they had about the CAT going online.

Scientists have made the first observation of an unusual class of optical waves called Airy beams. Unlike most types of light waves, Airy beams have the ability to resist diffraction over long distances, and can also freely accelerate during propagation.

These unusual features may enable Airy beams to be used in applications such as particle manipulation and in nonlinear media. The observation of Airy beams in both one- and two-dimensional configurations have been reported.

Airy beams take their name from the “airy integral,” introduced by Sir George Biddell Airy in the 1830s to explain optical caustics such as those appearing in a rainbow. Airy beams were initially predicted in 1979 by two scientists, Michael Berry and Nandor Balazs, within the context of quantum mechanics. The scientists theorized the existence of a free particle described by the Schrödinger equation that could exhibit an Airy wave packet that doesn’t spread out as it propagates—in other words, it is diffraction-free. Remarkably, an Airy wave packet has the unusual ability to freely accelerate even in the absence of an external stimulus.

The researchers note that other two-dimensional diffraction-free light waves exist, such as the so-called Bessel beam, which is generated by a conical superposition of plane waves. Due to their non-diffracting nature, Bessel beams theoretically convey an infinite power. However, lack of space and power causes the beams to truncate and therefore diffract during propagation.

In contrast to Bessel beams and other non-spreading waves, Airy beams do not result from conical superposition. Rather, Airy beams were generated by using a computer-controlled spatial light modulator, which modulated the phase of a Gaussian beam, which was then imaged on a CCD camera.

The researchers have observed that the local intensity features of the Airy beams tends to freely accelerate. This is because these beams are analogous to the probability wave function of a quantum mechanical particle when observed in a free-falling reference frame. Despite the beam’s center of mass remaining constant, the beam’s local intensity features follow a bent parabolic trajectory over distances up to 25-30 cm before experiencing diffraction. By contrast, a normal Gaussian beam of the same size would have expanded 24 times in this distance.

These beams have the ability to freely accelerate or self-bend during propagation while remaining invariant in shape. Light is known to travel along straight paths. In contrast, in this case, the intensity features of Airy waves, follow parabolic or ballistic trajectories, very much like those of a projectile (fired from a canon) moving under the action of gravity.

Due to the ability to separately adjust the x and y parameters of Airy beams, the acceleration of the non-diffracting beam can be controlled. A slightly different technique for generating one-dimensional Airy wave packets may lead to the first observation of non-dispersing Airy pulses in optical fibers. Further, non-diffracting Airy beams may also be useful for particle manipulation or in nonlinear media.

These beams are highly asymmetric in their intensity. There are several applications in probing where this may be desirable. In addition, the fact that the main lobe of these beams (which conveys more than 50% of the beam’s energy) does not travel along straight paths can be used to ‘push’ particles sideways through radiation pressure.

This whitepaper was presented at the NCICT Seminar in 2006.

Download Whitepaper

The common thread between the recent moves of these technology titans: Each company is placing a bet on a new vision of software’s future, one which combines the features of web-based applications with desktop software to create a hybrid model that may offer the best of both worlds.

Even smaller companies are introducing products to support this hybrid model that bridges the divide between web and desktop software. For instance, the Mozilla Foundation — the organization behind the Firefox browser (a major rival of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer) – will be launching an initiative called “Prism.” According to Mozilla, a non-profit group that develops open source software, Prism allows web applications to run outside the browser and behave more like desktop software.

Until recently, most software ran entirely on the user’s computer. This so-called “desktop” software — which includes everything from Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Office to computer games –relies on the processing power of the individual user’s PC and provides the ability to store files locally on the user’s hard drive. While desktop software still dominates, the web has given rise to a new breed of application — exemplified by products like Google Docs, the company’s online word processor, spreadsheet and presentation software, and Salesforce.com’s enterprise sales-support products — that runs within a web browser. These “webtop” applications use the local computer only to run the web browser and a few basic extensions (like Adobe’s Flash Player) and use the processing power and storage of banks of computers accessed remotely over the Internet.

But as this drive toward hybrid desktop/webtop software illustrates, there are limits to both approaches, and the future for software may be a blend of the best features of both.

Indeed the big question isn’t whether this desktop/webtop hybrid is the future. The question is which company — Microsoft, Adobe or Google — will provide the best platform for developing this next generation of software. The blueprint for this hybrid software model is still being drawn and, while all the major players have moved toward merging features of the desktop with the web, the details of each company’s approach are quite different.

For example, Microsoft sees a world where customers still rely on desktop software, such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint, and use web-based services, like Microsoft’s planned Office Live Workspace, as a supplement to traditional desktop software. Adobe is developing software tools that allow web-based applications to run on the desktop as equal partners to traditional desktop software and take advantage of the full capabilities of the user’s PC. And Google sees a world where most software is web-based and yet can use the local PC as a resource for temporary offline storage.

The most likely outcome is a hybrid future where desktop and web-based software and services become intertwined to the point where users won’t know the difference between the two.

The Players, and Possible Winners

How does each of the major software companies see the future integration of the web and desktop? Here are respective blueprints from Adobe, Microsoft and Google.

• Adobe recently launched the second “beta” (test) version of the Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR, formerly known as “Apollo”), a software development platform that allows developers to use web programming languages to create applications that can run as desktop software programs and will work on any of the major PC operating systems: Windows, Mac OS and, in the future, Linux. AIR applications can run both online or offline and can read and write files to the local PC just like desktop software. Some of the companies that have demonstrated AIR applications include AOL, eBay, Nickelodeon, Nasdaq and Salesforce.com.

• Microsoft also has a vision of the hybrid future with a strategy heavily reliant on desktop software that it calls “software and services” in contrast to the more web-centric view of “software as a service” frequently espoused by companies like Salesforce.com. The embodiment of Microsoft’s approach is its Office Live Workspace, a web-based supplement for Microsoft Office that allows Office customers to store documents on the web, view them online through a web browser and share them with others. Microsoft sees Office Live Workspace as an extension to, not a replacement for, its Office desktop software. According to the company’s plans announced on September 30, users without Microsoft’s desktop software will only be able to view and comment on — but not edit — the online versions of Office documents. Microsoft’s goal appears to be to protect its lucrative desktop software franchise while hedging its bet against the rise of advertising- and subscription-based web services.

• In contrast to Microsoft’s desktop-oriented view, Google is placing its bet on a primarily web-centric vision of software delivery. Google Docs (formerly known as Google Docs and Spreadsheets), provides online versions of tools for word-processing, spreadsheets and presentations. These applications run entirely in the web browser and currently depend on Internet connectivity and remote file storage, although the company’s Google Gears could allow web-based applications to run offline in the future. Matthew Glotzbach, product management director of Google Enterprise, said at the Interop 2007 Conference in New York on October 24 that Google runs its own productivity suite internally and is confident that web-based software is the future. “The game is changing the current set of productivity tools that were created for personal productivity. We’ve moved to this networked world where everything being online all the time is a huge advantage.”
Microsoft, for its part, shows signs of addressing the threat from Adobe through both direct competition and counter positioning. As Adobe’s Flash became more dominant on the web and grew to become the video format of choice for popular web sites like YouTube and MySpace, Microsoft introduced its own browser plug-in for rich media, called Silverlight, to address the Flash challenge head on. But Microsoft doesn’t have a direct analog to Adobe’s AIR, choosing instead to promote its own strategy of desktop applications that connect to the web rather than embracing the cross-platform, hybrid applications Adobe sees as the future.

The Hybrid Software Future: A Realistic Choice

Google’s vision of purely web-based, hosted software isn’t likely to play out for years. For that reason, the hybrid software model looks appealing to many.

This model is likely to develop in two phases. In the first phase, applications will provide essentially the same features as a desktop application, only you will now be able to access them from anywhere. Current web-based apps are good examples of this. For example, Yahoo Mail looks a lot like Microsoft’s Outlook email program. Google Docs and Adobe’s Buzzword mimic Microsoft Word and add perks like the ability to access your documents from any computer.

In this phase, desktop applications will offer more features than web-based software, but over time that advantage will erode.
In the second phase of this hybrid model, web applications and desktop software will co-mingle. What’s likely to be more exciting is the next phase, where these web-based applications can interact and share data with each other and become platforms [that developers can use to build more software]. Facebook has already become one such platform, as has Salesforce.com on the enterprise side. In the next phase, far more interesting things will happen as these web apps start talking to each other.

Show Me the Money

No matter how software’s hybrid future develops, there is no shortage of possible business models. But, as with the issue of which architecture is best, which approach to generating revenue will be the most successful in the future remains to be seen.
Google is generating considerable revenue selling advertising on its free web-based applications. In addition, Google Apps Premier Edition is available for an annual per-user fee. Adobe intends to profit from selling software development tools used to create both web-based and hybrid applications. Microsoft hopes to blend desktop software licensing and subscriptions with advertising.

Following Google’s success, many software vendors are pursuing advertising for their current generation of web-based services. On October 24, Microsoft spent $240 million for a 1.6% stake in social networking site Facebook. The move gives Microsoft a high-profile customer on its adCenter advertising network. Microsoft also paid $6 billion for online advertising firm aQuantive in May. The plan: Become a large advertising player so it can monetize its web sites and online services to protect against potential future trends away from its traditional revenue streams of PC operating systems and desktop software.

“We’re aiming to become one of the major players in the online advertising space, and we are pleased by the progress we are making in putting the building blocks in place,” said Google and is advertising throughout its web-based applications, but offers this software ad-free for a fee. In addition to its advertising-supported edition of Google Docs, Google also provides a Premier Edition that offers more storage and support for $50 a year per user. Other companies, such as Salesforce.com, rely primarily on subscription-based revenue.

Adobe’s business plan for the hybrid future is an extension of its current revenue model.

But for these hybrid models to develop further, a series of challenges will have to be overcome.
One of the larger challenges will be security, that web applications aren’t necessarily less secure than desktop applications. In fact, web-based services can be more secure since they can automatically update themselves to prevent attacks. However, security risks will increase as web-based applications mesh with desktop software because there will be more points for hackers to attack. Security is only as good as the weakest point.

Data is another concern since, with web-based services; individuals will increasingly store their information on servers run by external companies. In the end, every individual and company will have to assess the potential security risks with hosting data online versus on their desktops or on servers inside their company’s firewall.

Previous web services efforts, such as Microsoft’s Hailstorm in 2001, failed because “large corporations, like financial institutions, didn’t want their customer data managed by someone else.” In the long run, however, these security issues will be overcome.

Any gap between web and desktop software will narrow in the future, one wild card is how well hybrid webtop/desktop applications will match the features of their desktop cousins.

Software companies are now looking for ways to address the limitations of purely web-based applications by developing a new type of hybrid software — one that melds the best features of desktop and webtop into a single, seamless environment.

They discovered the phenomenon of “giant magnetoresistance”, in which weak magnetic changes give rise to big differences in electrical resistance.

The knowledge has allowed industry to develop sensitive reading tools to pull data off hard drives in computers, iPods and other digital devices.

It has made it possible to radically miniaturise hard disks in recent years.

Matin Durrani, editor of Physics World, a journal published by the UK’s Institute of Physics, said the award had gone to “something very practically based and rooted in research relevant to industry”.

“It shows that physics has a real relevance not just to understanding natural phenomena but to real products in everyday life,” he added.

Professor Ben Murdin of the University of Surrey, UK, said giant magnetoresistance, or GMR, was the science behind a ubiquitous technological device. “Without it you would not be able to store more than one song on your iPod!”

Nanotech advances

GMR involves structures consisting of very thin layers of different magnetic materials.

For this reason it can also be considered “one of the first real applications of the promising field of nanotechnology”, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement.

“Applications of this phenomenon have revolutionised techniques for retrieving data from hard disks,” the prize citation said. “The discovery also plays a major role in various magnetic sensors as well as for the development of a new generation of electronics.”

A hard disk stores information, such as music, in the form of microscopic areas that are magnetised in different directions.

The information is retrieved by a read-out head that scans the disk and registers the magnetic changes.

The technology has allowed hard disk sensors to read and write much more data, allowing for bigger memory, cheaper and more reliable computers

Prof Jim Al-Khalili, University of Surrey

The smaller and more compact the hard disk, the smaller and weaker the individual magnetic areas.

More sensitive read-out heads are therefore needed when more information is crammed on to a hard disk.

“It’s no good having computer hard drives that can store gigabytes of information if we can’t access it,” said Professor Jim Al-Khalili of the University of Surrey, UK.

“The technology that has appeared thanks to the discovery of GMR in the late 1980s has allowed hard disk sensors to read and write much more data, allowing for bigger memory, cheaper and more reliable computers.”

Last year, US scientists John C Mather and George F Smoot won for their work examining the infancy of the Universe.

They were honoured for their studies into cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB), the “oldest light” in the Universe.

Currently, Signalbau Huber’s Actros controller is based on Debian GNU/Linux 3.2. Versions based on the new software implementation are expected to begin testing by year’s end. The migration will enable engineers to move from several different CPUs to one CPU, [while] keeping security-critical functions and Linux separated.

Signalbau Huber is one of Germany’s two largest traffic managment system vendors. The company’s systems are used in Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Prague, Budepest, Vienna, Poland, Warsaw, and Benelux, among other European locations.

Signalbau Huber’s installations comprise one or two central traffic management systems per city. These are typical PC systems with lots of network connectivity and database-based application software. Connected to these systems by VPNs, “special networks,” dial-up modems, and even GPRS and UMTS are Linux-based Actros controllers designed for placement in each intersection.

^{Click to view a larger size}

The Actros controller runs Linux on a single x86-compatible control-plane processor. A CAN (controller area network) backplane supports multiple switching card modules, each based on an Infineon XC164 microcontroller. The switching cards use MOSFETs (metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor) to send voltages to connected signals — including pedestrian and traffic lights. With a full complement of switching cards, a single Actros controller can control 196 individual signals, Lock said.

Signalbau Huber’s current, Debian 3.0-based Actros controller uses an AMD SC520 “control processor” clocked at 133MHz. It also has a “security processor” that will be obviated by the new ELinOS/PERC architecture. The company has not yet finalized its choice of processors for next-generation Actros controllers, but is evaluating AMD’s LX800.

The new design’s control processor will run Sysgo’s ELinos 4.1 embedded Linux implementation, including PikeOS, Sysgo’s real-time, POSIX-compatible execution environment add-on. The Linux component will provide a browser-based management interface accessible over the network or to on-site technicians. The real-time PikeOS environment, meanwhile, will host Aonix’s PERC real-time Java component.

Two safety-critical applications will run under PERC. The first of these real-time Java applications is a traffic control program specific to each intersection, enabling engineers to program light behavior in Java. The second is an OCIT (open communication interface for road traffic control systems) networking stack that handles most communications with the central management system.

After an initial period of evaluation, Signalbau Huber has been working on the migration to ELinOS/PERC for about half a year.

Choosing Linux will prepare Signalbau Huber for the future as it’s a flexible and scalable system.

Here’s how you do it

1. You need the Apple iPod Software. You can get it from the Apple website. Install it.
2. You need the iPod Wizard to make changes in the firmware of your iPod i.e., changing the graphics manually. You can get it here. Unzip the file after downloading and start iPod Wizard.
   
3. After opening the iPod Wizard click on ‘Open Updater’ and select the Apple Update Application you downloaded in step 1. It is also shown in the photo below:
   
4. Once open, select the firmware.For e.g., IDR_FIRMWARE 5.4.0, which is the do not disconnect logo. Load the bitmap that you want and Save Bitmap.
5. In the same way you can load other bitmaps or fonts, change it and load it.
6. In the end, select Write. And close the updater after you have made all necessary changes.
7. Write will edit the firmware on your PC. So now open iPod Updater and update your iPod.
8. This will search for the firmware that you have edited and will copy it to your iPod.
9. Next you need to Restore your iPod. Once that is done you have successfully pimped your iPod and it is now ready to make you look much cooler and your iPod jazzy.

Very Important

1. In the process,all the data will be erased when you restore your iPod, so you better keep a back-up of the data.
2. Doing this,you will be void of the warranty. But it is worth giving it your own brand.
3. Use good judgement and play nice while personalizing your iPod.
4. We will not be held responsible for any shortcoming.

We have 2 methods to eliminate scratches:

1. Toothpaste Method
2. Banana and Banana Peel Method

Toothpaste method:

Apply toothpaste on the data side of the CD/DVD from the center to the border and back in (not sideways and spirally). Leave it for 5 minutes. Then, place the CD/DVD in running water to wash off the toothpaste. Now, gently wipe the CD with a soft cloth and remove the toothpaste residue.

Notes:

• Do not use toothpastes with gel (gel toothpastes)
• Do not use toothpastes with color
• Do not use toothpastes with additives. These do not help at all.

Banana and Banana Peel Method:

Take a freshly cut banana and apply it on the data side of the CD/DVD. Next take the banana peel and wipe the disc down. The wax in the peel cleans it further. Clean the disc with a soft cloth. This has to be done for a few minutes. Next, take a glass cleaner and spray in on the disc and wipe it down with a cloth so that the banana residue is cleaned off.Y ou have done it, you have saved your CD/DVD! The cheapest and a practical way to eliminate scratches from your disc.

For video instructions, head over to:

Toothpaste method: Showmehowtodothis

Banana and Banana Peel method: Metacafe

The workshop was centered around Basic Robotic techniques, Sense & Control, Practical orientation of Theoretical norms, take-home Robot construction, Micro-controller Interface, Wireless Robot Control, Autonomous Robotic Techniques with Project build-up/ Paper presentation Fundamentals, PCB fabrication and PCB design.

20 teams comprising around 80 students from the institute participated in this two day event.

The workshop began with an explanation on wired world which included the topics:

• Types of Motors
• Locomotion System
• Construction of a simple wired motorized vehicle
• Switches, chassis, power sources will be covered in brief

The instructors wrapped the day with a small intro about wireless robotics and its implications.
The students on their part finished assembling the robotic car on the first day. It was not a difficult task but required a lot of skill and precision. With just a few hitches here and there the first day of the robotics workshop finished smoothly with the students looking forward to the second day.

Day two began with an in-depth explanation of all essential circuits and IC’s related to wireless. Wireless robot kit were given to all the students and all the functions were explained. This was followed by explanation of parallel port programs and a bit of C programming. Besides this, controlling a robot wired/wirelessly using a computer was taught. After the theory sessions the students then moved on to level two of the workshop where they were able to convert their robotic cars (assembled the day before) to wireless cars.

The theory was minimum need-to-know fundamentals, without recourse to higher levels. This was in view of the different backgrounds of the participants and the time available. The Stress was on Hands-on Construction and “PRACTICALITY“. The practical application of the known techniques and/or the learning of new techniques in a short period of time was the major intention of our workshop.

Day two finished with all the groups successfully completing their robotic cars. The exhilarated students couldn’t wait to enter their robotics cars in various technical festivals.

All in all the two day event was a big success!

For sights from the robotics workshop, please visit the Gallery section.

Finals results:

Abhinav J, Pranav and Karan - First place
Abhinav D, Sheena and Parth - Runners up

Congratulations to all the winners.

–

Elim results: (In no particular order)

1. Abhinav J, Pranav and Karan (B-Tech CS)
2. Abhinav D, Sheena and Parth (B-Tech EXTC)
3. Jai, Anubhav and Shikhar (MBA-Tech Telecom)
4. Karthik, Siddharth and Raghuram (MBA)

Finals will be held at 4pm on Saturday at MPSTME.

Rules and Regulations:

The time frame:

1. Opening Statement: 5 minutes each team
2. Break for culminating points for refutal: 2 minutes
3. Refutal (one person per team): 10 minutes (total)
4. Break for culminating the points for closing statement: 1 minute
5. Closing statement: 2 minutes each team

Basic rules:

One person makes the opening statement from each team (for and against the motion), followed by the dual of refuters (one from each team). This will be followed up by the closing statement from each team.

Each person in the team will have to speak once and each person gets to speak only once.

Team discipline, collaborative efforts, respect for the oponents, clarit of thought and speech, validity of points will be some of the judging citeria.

Use of obscence words and gestures is strictly prohibited. Any team indulging in such act shall be disqualified immediately.

Participants can make use of pens, pencils and papers only. Any other aid being used by the teams should be approved by the concerned authorities.

The teams:

1. Jai Awatramani & team (for the motion) Vs. Abhinav Dayal & team (against the motion)
   Topic: Does India need a Hitler today?
   
2. Siddharth & team (for the motion) Vs. Abhinav Johri & team (against the motion
   Topic: More IITs and IIMs. Do they serve the purpose?

The winning team from each of the semi finals shall proceed to the finals.

The topic for the finals:

“The Percentile based GPA evaluation system: The best grading system”

Winners from semi-final 1 shall be speaking for the motion while the winners of the 2nd semi-final shall be against the motion.

No extra time will be given for preparation for the finals. The teams are expected to come prepared for both the topics. Be prepared for a twist.

Good luck to all the finalists!

–

The Student Branch of IEEE at NMIMS is hosting its very first debate competition. The details of the same are as follows:

1. Teams should be of 3 Members.
2. Topics may be technical, current issues or general.
3. Last Date of Registration is 30th August by 10.00am
4. Elims will be held on 30th August
5. Topics for the Elims shall be given on 30th August at 10:00 am
6. Finals shall be held on 1st September at MPSTME 4:15pm onwards
7. Results of the Elims shall be declared on 31st August 12:00pm and Topics for the finals shall be given at the same time.
8. Cash Prizes worth Rs 1500 to be won.
9. Registration Fees are as follows:
NMIMS IEEE Student Branch Members Free entry.
Non IEEE Members @ Rs. 30 per team.

For any further clarification contact:
Saranya Bhaskaran - 9819044946
Gautam Bhaya - 9892620083

or mail us: web@nmimsieee.com