Friday, 20 November 2015

10 Things That Have Just Grown Smaller And Smaller With Time


Let's face it. You cannot simply ignore the rapid pace at which our everyday tech objects are shrinking. I mean, just look around. More and more 'intelligence' (read power) is being packed into smaller and smaller devices. Sure, you can say that it's not new and that's how modern technology evolves. But here's a fun fact for you... a guy called Gordon E. Moore had predicted this trend way back in 1965 for integrated circuits! However, I am sure that he would have had no clue about the fact that it would also apply to these marvels of technology:


1. Computers

The first computer, ENIAC occupied the space of an entire freaking room…


…and THIS a modern-day-easy-to-slip-in-a-backpack netbook with approximately 100 times more processing power.



2. Televisions 

This is RCA 630-TS, the first mass-produced television set, which was one of the hot selling products all around the world during 1946-47…


…and THIS is just another ultra-slim Full HD TV that you can buy these days.



3. Cell phones Smartphones

This is Martin Cooper, ex-Vice President of Motorola, holding the first ever cell phone, the Motorola DynaTAC...


…and well, you can clearly see that we've come a long way from carrying cell phones that were like mini dumbells.



4. Hard Disks

This is a state-of-the-art 250MB hard disk drive from 1979…


…and THIS is a humble 128 GB microSD card that’s probably just as big as your fingernail.



5. Car Engines

Back in the day, car engines were really freaking heavy. For instance, here’s Ford’s classic 1932 V8 engine that weighed over 230 Kgs and delivered a whopping 48kW of power. 


And THIS is the new Ford EcoBoost engine which might be small but punches way above than its weight! Despite weighing in at a humble 97 Kgs, it's way, way more powerful than the 1932 V8 engine. Hell yeah! 



6. Cameras

This is Giroux Daguerreotype, the world’s first mass-produced camera that was made in 1839…


…and THIS is a pocketable digital camera that you can buy if you’re not really satisfied with the actually-not-so-bad picture quality of your smartphone.



7. Pendrives

This is the first commercially available pen drive, the IBM DiskOnKey USB which had an amazing storage capacity (in the year 2000) of 8MB…


…and these are a few cute little pen drives that have a modest storage capacity.



8. Calculators

This is Anita Mark VII, one of the world’s first commercially available desktop calculators which probably took quite a bit of space on everybody’s desk back then…


… and this is just another pocket-friendly calculator that you can buy if you prefer being a little old school.



9. Selfies

Yes, the human race has always been smitten by the idea of self-portraiture. However, back in the day you had squeeze in with all your friends into a mini-room of a photo booth…


…instead of just extending your arm.



10. Dictaphones

Back in the 1920s, you really needed a huge dictaphone to record about 1200 spoken words…


…as compared to the palm-sized dictaphones of today that can record for up to 1200 hours!

This 7-Year-Old Owns The Most Expensive Diamond Ever Auctioned. FML


Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau doesn't believe in the term 'spare the rod spoil the child'. At least that's what I'm assuming, given the fact that he just spent $48 million on a rare 12.03 carat liquid blue diamond as a gift for his 7 year old daughter.

Predictably, the billionaire businessman has often faced charges of corruption, but that's a different matter. According to The Guardian, the ridiculously expensive 'Blue Moon' gem was bought at an auction in Geneva and dubbed 'Blue Moon of Josephine' after his younger daughter. Did we mention that he also bought her a rare 16.08 carat pink diamond named 'Sweet Josephine' just the day before?

This sale made 7-year-old Josephine the owner of the most expensive jewel ever sold at an auction.


Joseph Lau is a real estate investor who owns a 61% stake in Chinese Estates Holdings and his fortune is estimated by Forbes at $11.5 billion. His elder daughter was also gifted a 9.75-carat 'Zoe Diamond' (US$32.6 million), and a 'Zoe Red' ruby (S$11.9 million) recently. That's a whole lot of $$!

The Bajirao Mastani Trailer Is Out & It’s Every Bit As Grand As All Bhansali Films

Sanjay Leela Bhansali recently revealed that it took him 12 long years to materialize Bajirao Mastani because nobody believed that an epic story of this scale could ever be translated into cinema. However, Bhansali, not one to back down continued his efforts and strung together a stellar cast boasting of acting powerhouses like Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra to portray the larger-than-life historical characters of  Maratha warrior Peshwa Bajirao, and his wives Mastani and Kashibai respectively.

And the long wait has finally ended today with the release of its official trailer which looks absolutely as grand as any other Bhansali film, perhaps even bigger.

Watch the trailer here!


30 Poignant Swami Vivekanand Quotes That Prove He Was Ahead Of His Time


Swami Vivekanand was one of the greatest thinkers of the 19th century. He played a key role in introducing the western world to our philosophies of Vedanta & Yoga, and boy did they benefit from it. But he attracted major attention when he gave a speech at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893. He started off by saying  "Sisters and brothers of America ..." and then introduced them to Hinduism. He was so impressive with his words that the then Parliament President John Henry Barrows said, "India, the Mother of religions was represented by Swami Vivekananda, the Orange-monk who exercised the most wonderful influence over his auditors".
The speech earned him the title of 'the cyclonic monk of India' & his quotes completely justify the phrase. Read 30 of the best quotes by one of the greatest orators & thinkers of all time: