Cogito, Ergo Sum

People willingly concede that when it comes to nuclear physics or kidney dialysis, specialized knowledge is essential. But let the conversation turn to consciousness, and everybody chimes in, on the assumption that they are all entitled to their own pet theory in the absence of pertinent facts. Nothing could be further from the truth.

—One of the reasons for such naive theorizing is that the enigmatic nature of consciousness baffles us all (scientist, non-scientist alike), and we try to analyze it within the realms of our individual conscious experiences. For those truly curious, Consciousness: Confessions of a Romantic Reductionist by Christof Koch will be an intellectual adventure that attempts to provide several such "pertinent facts" and directs us toward the right questions that need to addressed to resolve this longstanding enigma.

Book review: Consciousness by Christof Koch

Awaiting Venus

The countdown has begun as the world prepares to see Venus make its transit across the Sun, a rare event and the last of its kind this century. On June 5-6, 2012 we should be able to watch Venus appear as a black spot and glide slowly across the face of the Sun. Some quick facts about the Transits of Venus: 

• They occur at gaps of 8,121.5, 8, and 105.5 years (the full pattern repeats every 243 years).
• The last one occurred in 2004. After 2012, the next one is not due until 2117! 
• Depending on where you are (see map below), you may be able to watch the full transit, only the entry (before sunset), only the exit (after sunrise), or neither. 

Topol-logy 101: Healthcare for Homo Digitus

Cardiologist Eric Topol's recent book The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Health Care was quite an eye-opening and thought-provoking read. We live in an age where our lives are heavily reliant on smartphones and other digital gadgets. Be it navigation, finding a nearby restaurant, or simple event reminders, digital practice has transformed our lives. Yet healthcare continues to be a different (and alarmingly primitive) experience. Some radical change is called for in this arena, be it in small matters like eliminating the annoying paperwork preceding a doctor appointment or getting your physician to respond to your emails quicker or bigger matters like conquering deadly diseases, saving lives, and reducing healthcare costs. This "transformation that accompanies radical innovation" is what Dr. Topol refers to as "creative destruction" in the title of his book. The key to it lies in the unified incorporation of four digital domains into healthcare: wireless physiological monitoring, genomics, imaging, and health information technology.

Discovering Madrid

It is a city teeming with life, an art-lover's paradise, and one of the greenest cities in the world. The official symbol of Madrid is an upright bear next to a Madroño tree, displayed in form of an almost 20 ton statue at Puerta del Sol, the city center.

The bear and the Madroño tree at Puerta del Sol. The Madroño tree is often referred to as a strawberry tree as it bears little red berries that look similar to strawberries.  

Pause, Rewild, Play

In his book The Wild Life of Our Bodies: Predators, Parasites, and Partners That Shape Who We Are Today, biologist Rob Dunn presents a compelling perspective about how, in spite of the tremendous progress in human civilization, our lifestyle, in particular our interaction with other species, continues to be guided (and occasionally misguided) by primitive cues from our ancient brains.

Book review: The Wild Life of Our Bodies by Rob Dunn

Connecting the Dots to Who You Are

The connectome, a term coined by Olaf Sporns, is a neural connectivity map for the entire brain. In 2010, the National Institutes of Health launched the Human Connectome Project, a $30 million initiative seeking to use advanced medical imaging techniques to map the structural and functional connectivity of the healthy human brain. The participating institutions were to be Washington University, St. Louis, the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard University, Boston, and the University of California Los Angeles. "Better understanding of such connectivity promises improved diagnosis and treatment of brain disorders," said their news release. This post is about the recently released book Connectome: How the Brain's Wiring Makes Us Who We Are which happens to be quite an illuminating read on this cutting-edge topic. 

Book review: Connectome by Sebastian Seung

Flight of Fancy

I slid down that rabbit hole
In quest of Wonderland.
The glint of malice
In the eyes of Alice
Sent matters out of hand.


I soared over the Nimbus clouds
Knockin' on heaven's door.
But Zeus's thunder
Portended plunder.
Soon havoc was galore.


I strolled past the Redwood trees.
As I neared the Bay (alas!),
The Golden Gate
Was rudely irate
And refused to let me pass.


Restless I am in captivity.
Sleepless is the night.
But every yawn
Is a step closer to dawn
As I eagerly wait to take flight.


(A largely literal account on the travails of East to West Coast travel with minor poetic liberties)

Mystery, Mayhem, and Murder

Nothing adds more zest to a reading list like a mystery novel. And so, in way of keeping up with the holiday fervor, my reading theme this season is mystery, mayhem, and murder! The books I picked are: The Sherlockian (which I stumbled upon at the Strand Bookstore, NYC, and thought was a must-read), The Dante Club (a half-historical/half-fictional account about a series of brutal murders in 19th century Boston), and Death Comes to Pemberley (a recently released, bestselling Pride and Prejudice sequel). These books have an interesting commonality: they involve characters from literary classics and/or their creators. While I have tried my best to avoid major spoilers, I will be commenting on the general structure of each novel. So, beware!

The Winter's Tale

Gloomy winter. Sluggish day.
Book and blanket. Cold at bay.
I felt hints of ennui.
The wind tapped on the window pane.
Like caffeine molecules in the brain
It broke my reverie.


I emerged for an evening stroll.
Like an orange smear in a violet bowl
The horizon was aflame.
The lofty tree by the red brick house
Rustled its leaves, swayed its boughs,
And whispered out my name.


Such fondly wondrous tales it told
Lush, fragrant, with colors bold
Like a kaleidoscope.
As sunshine wrapt the city pale
In a gold-woven gossamer veil,
I saw a glimmer of hope.


My sunken spirits took a leap.
With intrepidity my heart did steep.
I was finally ready for this.
"Winter will be mesmerizing,"
I told myself romanticizing
The white, snowy bliss.


I felt a sudden surge - a spree -
An intense gush - of poesy
(What a charming season!)
When a sudden gust of the friendly breeze
Ushered in that pioneering sneeze.
(What a stolid act of treason!)


Kleenex tissue. Chicken soup.
Like a variable in an infinite loop,
The sneezing refused to pause.
Winter's beauty was promptly forgotten.
As I told myself "This season is rotten!"
And pointed out its flaws.


Back I am in my cozy nook.
Warm again, with blanket and book
As the nasty virus I fight.
Ruddy-nosed I curse the chill,
Reach out for another Benadryl
As doggerel verse I write!

¡Hola Valencia!

The schedule was tight. The rain posed a formidable challenge. Yet, thankfully, I got to explore bits and pieces of this eponymous capital of the Spanish autonomous community of Valencia. The cityscape of Valencia is a strikingly unique blend of the past, the present, and the future. The architecture ranges from Gothic splendor to flamboyant postmodernism interspersed densely with mundane arrays of lackluster modern midrise apartment buildings.