Wishes at 12 in the night..

Couple of days ago was Mugdha's birthday.. And mugdha is a friend of mine, really close to me..
Well, this time around though I couldnt wish her at 12 in the night.. Had problems of internal body heat coz of lack of sleep and had to sleep early that night.. My gums bleed coz of that sometimes.. Anyways, that apart for now.. The first thing I did when I got up was wish her a lovely day ahead.. But something was different when I did that.. Something, which wasn't as every year it is..

Its not that not giving your birthday wishes at 12 makes those less important or less special.. Some people rather argue that its one of the worst times to call and wish as we are disturbing the sleeping time.. Many of these people too are awake till 12 on their birthday nights, rather the previous nights.. Something is there in that timing which makes the talk feel really lovely, whoever the person wishing might be.. Our heart knows, and somewhere inside it expects a call from some people who are very special for us.. The smile stays on our face throughout, as we answer those barrage of calls from people, many of them, whom we wont normally be chatting with, at 12 ;-) .. Whatever be it, one really looks forward to that time..

The birthday evening when I met her, the topic obviously had to come up.. Coz both us had felt that different thing in my birthday wishes in the morning.. It hardly matters though.. I knew for sure that she would have missed getting a call from me, the previous nite.. And so did I sorely miss wishing her at that very special 'wishing' timing.....

A tryst with GRE..

So, after quite some gap, writing a post.. And this is on the GRE exam that I have just done with.. Gave it on the 7th September at the Mumbai center 1:00pm slot.. The result said:
Verbal: 660 Quant: 800.. Total 1460!!

Well, I had always aimed for a minimum score of 1450, and for most of my preparation, it seemed to be out of my reach.. But the last two weeks preparation and a change of strategy regarding the way of preparing really helped me from transforming a possible score of 1300-1350 into a 1450+ score..
So, this is the account of my GRE experience along with some advice and links, which will surely help anybody planning to give GRE in the coming time, in someway or the other..

The TEST:

Travel & timings: Well, Mumbai traffic is horrible and you surely got to face it, irrespective of whatever route you take to the test center. And this is especially the case for the 1:00pm slot.. So plan such that, you reach the centre atleast 2 hours before the actual test time.. This can be 1.5hrs for the 9:00am slot, but not for the other two slot timings.. Applies for the other centers as well.. This also gives enough time for one to refresh after a journey or to have some snacks (as in my case, coz I feared I would get hungry towards the end of the test :-) ).. And they let you in at 8am for the 9am-1pm slot and at 12pm for the 1-5pm slot..

Well, I reached the centre at 11am and had a light meal. Had already come to a relative's place in Mumbai, the day before.. Had done this with the intention that there wont be too much travel on the day of the test and would help in keeping cool and calm.. Learnt a lesson from the experience of BITS exam some years back, when the travel that day from Pune to the test center in Mumbai had really drained me out coz of a variety of reasons. That apart, so went in at 12 pm. Lots of signing stuff and filling in the form. And they absolutely dont allow anything inside the actual test lab except your passport, secondary ID (driving license or college ID ONLY) and you with your clothes on & all pockets emptied!! Jackets/sweaters are allowed and I had worn one coz was pretty cold and felt it pretty necessary.. Rest, you have to put everything in your bag which you keep inside the alloted locker. A lady explains you all the rules of the test.

Time to go in!! They take your photo and signature and I was given the scratch pad (more than sufficient pages) and two pencils and was led to my machine.. First was all the tutorials of how to use the mouse, keyboard and all.. Just to consume a bit of time, before I actually start with the essays, I saw one two screens of each and then exited.. Way too boring.. Proceeded to the AWM section.. You are given a headphone to keep out the noises from the neighboring keyboards, but I found it hardly effective. Also, it was hardly fitting over my huge sized head (!!), and had to wear it in an awkward fashion.

AWM Section (Essays): The screen showed up two topics for the issue writing. Went through them, reading each topic twice. Gave a thought and realized that I absolutely havent understood either of the two topics!! Went through those again, the same condition.. Out of those, I absolutely didnt get what the 2nd topic wanted to say.. So, had to choose the first one.. And I wrote an average essay on the interpretation that I took out from the issue statement. (It has turned out to be that my interpretation was completely wrong and had absolutely no relation with the intended meaning.. So, worried about my AWM scores which are yet to come). The argument was a pretty standard one with typical flaws and could easily point them out and elaborate.. So, relying on argument for consolidating my AWM score..


The option of taking the 10min break popped up.. Absolutely!! A much needed one! Went out, had some water.. Cooled myself down, regained a bit of composure after that real shaky start and went in again.. Still 4 min of break remaining.. Just closed my eyes and once again reviewed in mind, the strategies I had decided to tackle each question type (Thanks to Sahil for this suggestion) and then terminated the break.. ( I really recommend people to take this break coz it helps to reorganize yourself and get prepared for the crux part..) Also, any of the two sections, Verbal or Quant can come first after AWM.. So be mentally prepared to face either of the two upfront..

Verbal Section: The standard one first.. Started with it pretty cautiously.. But most of them were antonyms/SC/analogies mostly based on Barrons words.. Though, the 4/5th question puzzled me & I think I might have got that wrong there.. Also, I think, I have made a mistake in a sentence completion which was the 7/8th question.. There were very few non-Barron words in the options, but I could somehow either eliminate the others to get the non Barron word as the answer or some other option as the perfect one.No RC's in first 10! Real lucky me.. The RC's though started from the 12th question and 3 consecutive RC's (12-22) !! Dont remember whether any antonym was there in between, but mostly not.. The RC's were around 50, 110 & 60 lines respectively.. Had already spent too much time on first two RC's. so just marked some random answers for the third one.. At the end, it was down to 4 questions - 1 min, 3 questions-30sec, 2 questions-10sec!! This was the time, my heart was pounding like anything!! Had to somehow mark & confirm the last 2 answers at random.. And thankfully managed to do so..

Just to mention here, unanswered questions are penalized by the test algorithm! So, even if you have 5,6 or whatever number of questions left in the last minute, make it a point to mark any random answer and confirm the answer for all the questions.. U might end up on a much lower score if you fail to confirm all your answers, depending on the number of unanswered questions.. This is really IMPORTANT!! (Thats why, marking those last two answers was really important)

What I did in the one minute break between these two sections was too calm down my heart beats.. GRE is an exam wherein if you don't maintain your calm and cool, then you are bound to make mistakes, howsoever prepared you are..

Quantitative Section: The section started with the standard stuff of questions on algebraic calculations, geometry and inequalities.. No sum was really difficult.. All were pretty easy.. The thing was that many of these sums were pretty lengthy.. Was taking a significant amount of time to be absolutely confirmed of an answer.. So, after a cautious approach for questions 1-10, I had to increase the speed for the next questions.. The DI questions had probability involved and many sums were worded so cleverly that you would easily go for the wrong answer.. The wording of the problem should be crosschecked after finding the solution, to confirm whether this is what the problem is demanding in the appropriate units.. Got 5-6 problems based on mean, mode, median concept as well.. Finally had 40 seconds with 2 questions left.. And with quant, there is no chance of solving a question quickly enough.. So no risks, straightaway marked random answers for the last two and completed the section..

Now, the research section.. And the screen had on it in bold letters "This will NOT be counted towards your final score" and that this wont affect your AWM score.. So, it was an issue.. But with the earlier issue screwed up, I was in no mood of writing another issue and so exited the research section.. Was more eager to get to the scores instead.. After confirming of reporting and not canceling the scores, there it was: Verbal: 660 Quantitative: 800
A broad smile on my face greeted the score screen.. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!

Submitted my scores to Georgia Tech, Purdue, USC and UMinnesota(Minneapolis) and DONE!!

For the free score reporting, you have to first select the state, and then it displays all the universities in that state. Selecting the university, displays the departments and then you finally confirm an university. So, it is necessary to know the state in which your desired university lies in as well as the exact name. The list that is displayed on the screen is same as that of the list given in the GRE bulletin at the very end. So, have a look at the GRE bulletin list before you come for the exam. NO need to remember codes, just remember the state.

So, came out with a real nice feeling of content and satisfaction.. A different experience..

THE PREPARATION :

Will talk here about my preparation and some tips and advice based on my experience and also of many others who gave the test in the same period..

I had joined Dilip Oak Academy (DOA) last year.. Then, I hardly knew about GRE and my primary motive was to get acquainted with how the actual preparation process should be.. I was actually planning to take my GRE in January, and so had joined the class last year.. But didnt take any date coz of project commitments.. On DOA, I would comment that the class gives you some good tips and the study material is really good.. Dont expect that you are done with the class and you are done with the preparation.. They just give you tips and directions.. The actual work starts after the class ends.. So, joining a class is not mandatory, though its good to start, if you are at 'zero'...

Turning to the sectionwise analysis.

VERBAL SECTION:

The most important thing for the verbal preparation.. Nothing even comes close, neither practice nor tests.. The 4000 Barrons words.. Its a must to know all these words with all their meaning variations or context.. Believe me, I didnt solve a single exercise from either of Barrons, Kaplans, DOA material or whatever else.. The CBT's and a few Big Book tests was all the practice I did.. I strongly believed that if I knew those 4000 words pit-pat, then the marks would automatically follow.. Well, I wouldn't recommend not practicing at all, but it proves the fact that you wont score good in any case if you are not well prepared with them..

Will talk about the strategy change that I made in the last 2 weeks.. I finished my first round of words, 23 days before the exam.. And finished the 2nd round around 14days before.. 4000 words at a time seems to big an amount to handle.. So what I did while doing this 2nd round, was using the wordflash software, i marked the words which I knew, I wouldnt remember after sometime or coudnt remember at that time.. Then, I printed this 'difficult word list' and for the next 2 weeks, just concentrated on these words.. It was still a list 1450 words!! Whatever it maybe, 800-1500-2000, separate these words and concentrate ONLY on these.. Master them and you will feel the increased comfort and ease with which you solve the tests.. I went back to the complete 4000 list of barrons, just 2 days before my actual test..

Of the question types, antonyms are the easiest as you immediately get to the answer if you know the word or by elimination. I found Sentence completion and RC's, one level up.. And analogies were the toughest.. You got to get the exact relation and apply them to the options, otherwise you are bound to get confused..

Well, Big Book tests are really good.. The only thing is that they are paper based.. Could only solve 10 of those (there are a total of 54!), but I found them really worth the time and the level is pretty good..Attaching the link for the.. BigBookTests
Also, attaching a file which gives the equivalent CBT scores for a BigBook test score.. BigBookScores

From what I have heard from friends who have given GRE, DOA material is good and even the Kaplan drills in the Kaplan CBT software are good..

Some really good mobile softwares that I used:
(1) Wordy2
(2) Vocabol
Another useful link:

http://gre-verbal.blogspot.com/

QUANTITATIVE SECTION:

Well again, I havent solved any exercise from any book here, mostly coz of the confidence I had in these types of problems.. Didnt want to be overconfident, but a consistent score of around 790-800 in the tests assured me that I wasnt being overconfident.. Though, had a look at the all the different types of diagrams that DI comes up with.. And just revised the formulaes.. The questions in the actual GRE though, were pretty lengthy.. More lengthy than any of the quant sections problems of any of the CBT's including PowerPrep.. So, the only advice would be to practice a lot and get familiar with the question types, as it would reduce the time of thinking on a solution in the actual GRE.. Mind you, no question in GRE was 'difficult', it was just a bit more time consuming..
And even though I didnt practice anything, most of my friends found DOA material as a useful practice source.. Also, many say that no book gives you the exact feel of the actual level of the quant section problems in the actual GRE.. So, as I said, get familiar of ways of going about a particular type of problem to save time and that in turn would ensure an 800!

AWM SECTION:

Well as I said, I royally screwed up the issue in this section.. One really important thing.. Go through all the issue topics that ETS gives for the issue.. DOA has classified these topics according to the broad subject that they come under.. Reading from there would be more helpful.. Just read them and see if you can understand the basic concept of each topic and what all it can encompass.. Dont forget to clarify any such doubtful point rather than keeping it unsolved till the end.. If you are comfortable with understanding the main theme of all these topics, then facing the issue at the main GRE wont be any big 'issue'.. :-)
The tips given in Barrons and some of DOA tips are really useful and you must go through them once before you start preparing for this section. Also, practice atleast 5 timed issues of different subjects, so that you can understand properly the time management and your comfort level..

The Computer Based Tests (CBT's)

Well, follow the link to Rohan's blog post to download the CBT softwares..
Well, there's a lot of speculation regarding which CBT gives you the closest score..
According to me, PowerPrep software given on the ETS site comes closest.. No other CBT is as accurate as PowerPrep, both in terms of level of questions and the marking algorithm..
But a word of caution.. Dont read too much into either of the test scores of any CBT, including PowerPrep.. In these two months, I have seen many scores increase or decrease by margins as high as 100 points or even more in rare cases.. Dont get bogged down by them.. Here's a list of CBT's and how I performed there..

30days before: Davisons Score:1290 (Q:800 V:490)
24days before: Kaplan-1 Score:1220 (Q:780 V:440)
[these two were just when I was completing the first round of 4000 words.. To get some positive tension.. :-) ]

8 days before: Barrons Score:1360 (Q:800 V:560)
[first round of 1450 difficult words done]

7 days before: Kaplan-2 Score:1410 (Q:790 V:620)

7 days before: PowerPrep-1 Score:1350 (Q:790 V:560)
[Got 1,3,6 wrong in the first 10]

6 days before: Princeton Score:1480 (Q:780 V:700) (too lenient, I feel)

5 days before: Kaplan-3 Score:1350 (Q:800 V:550)

3 days before: PowerPrep-2 Score:1450 (Q:800 V:650)
[2nd round of 1450 difficult words done.. The effect was visible..]

1 day before: PowerPrep-3 Score:1460 (Q:800 V:660)

FINAL GRE Score: 1460 (Q:800 V:660)

Gave the powerprep the day before, after resetting the first one.. Hardly 2-3 questions repeated, rest all where different.. All I had to do to maintain that score was keep my calm and composure during the main exam.. Rest was to follow..

To round up this very wordy and preachy post, let me stress on this very very very important thing.. Whatever happens, dont lose your cool and composure.. However bad or good the earlier section was, make the use of break to cool down your nerves and regain your compusure.. You panic, and you are a GONER.. It has happened that people have got mentally disturbed by an earlier section, which has led to a low score in the next section, inspite of good preparation.. GRE is all mind game, especially on that day.. Your preparation level obviously plays a part but more importantly, to what extent you keep your brain and heart intact, MATTERS!!

Well, the following blog posts were really helpful and were my guides:
(1) Rohan's Blog post (2) Sahil's Blog post

Manatali 'ti'..

With my GRE on 7th of September, I am completely engrossed by those 'esoteric' english words.. (esoteric itself means 'hard to understand'.. Thanx to Mukul, I remember this word very well)
So, desperately need some break from english..

So, putting forth one of the few poems written by me, long time back.. Its in marathi and reflects the thoughts of a romantic boy about his 'dream girl' and the relationship that he has with her.. One of my first few attempts at writing.. You may find it a bit typical, stereotyped one.. (Correct the pronounciation of 'ल' as 'ळ' wherever required)
So, here it goes

पाहिले होते तुला जेव्हा,
ज्हालो होतो अबोल काही।
तुज्हे ते वर्णन करण्या इतका सुंदर,
शब्द कुठला अस्तित्वातच नाही।

स्वभाव तुज्हा हा इतका सोज्वळ,
निलसर बोलके तुज्हे ते डोळे।
घायाल ज्हालोय बघुनी तुज्हे मी,
तेजस्वी चेहर्यावर हास्य ते भोले।

गप्पा गोष्टी करता करता
वेळ असा निघून जातो काही।
वाटते तेव्हा मनापासुनी,
हा काळ असाच का थाम्बत नाही।

तुज्या बरोबर असतो जेव्हा,
तुज्ह्यत इतका गुंतून जातो।
निरोप तुज्हा घेतल्यावर्ती,
पुढच्या भेटीची वाट पहातो।

त्या क्षितिजावर सूर्य उगवतो,
ते स्वप्न तुज्हे संपते।
तो मावलन्याची मी वाट पहातो,
तुज्या स्वप्नातच मन रमते।

वाटते आता मनाला माज्ह्या,
आपली ही मैत्री राहिल टिकून।
तुज्ही ही मैत्री मी ठेवील,
माज्ह्या ह्रुदयापाशी जपून.

The Finale...Its just started..

Its the final year of engineering.. The FINALE year as you can say..

Well, this academic year started with a different buzz altogether.. It wasnt the usual stuff..
It was people discussing about placement scene.. About bunking college coz we are in B.E after all!! About GRE preparation and dates.. CAT & GATE classes..
People searching for BE project sponsorship.. The endless notices & the tests and interviews to follow for obtaining project guidance from industry.. The T&P notice board finally got its due attention from us..

When the placement period actually commenced with a handful of companies turning up, it was a real sight to watch.. Watching people coming, dressed up in formals.. The filled auditorium for the presentation.. The aptitude test.. Hundreds of eyes scanning the results to see their name to be shortlisted.. The smiles, the disappointment, the congratulation wishes, the re-assuring pat from a friend saying that there are lot of companies still to come in December..
It was really fun to be a part of all this.. And it was a nice feeling to be amongst the first to be placed.. Well, that was never my aim, but feels real nice and real different as well, to watch all this from the other side of the fence.. And a great start to this year..

Next in the line was my Oracle certification exam.. Well, studied 8 full days for it before the test.. And as usual, the dumps were there as the tension busters with the assurity of not much coming apart from those.. So, secured a 100% score.. Let me tell you, that magical figure of 100% looks completely surreal.. But, to be frank, it wasnt that creditable as well.. I mean, everyone has to study hard before getting a good score, but the dumps play a huge role.. And I was real satisfied with my preparation.. All in all, I am an Oracle certified Associate (OCA)!!

Now, in all this, my GRE preparation had taken a huge hit.. It was time to get back to a thing that really needed some focus from me.. So, that is what is consuming my complete time and attention for the time being..
In the mean time, was a periodical phenomena that was to make its presence felt.. The results!! And it was 'the moment of huge relief' for me when i took the marksheet in my hand.. I was real apprehensive of my Sys.Software pracs and the last S/W Engg paper.. But never before was I so relieved just to see that column filled with 'P'(Pass) letter.. Cleared everythng and got 64%.. Not a score to be proud of, but given that i expected way less than these marks, it was a relief nevertheless.. I consider myself really lucky..

It feels really strange that how these 4 years of engineering makes a person literally 'shameless'.. I mean, I remember those days of FE where getting distinction was like just another thing and how it has now become something to strive for, especially in my case..

I just realized that I started writing this post for some different reason and have ended up writing about my initial months into this Finale year.. Well begun is half done, as they say and I am eagerly looking forward to the rest of this year.. Its gonna be a potpourri of fun, hard work and emotions and I am eager to make this 'FINALE' year, as memorable as have been, the last 3 years..

ABC Tag

The ABC tag.. Well, much simpler than writing "25 things about me".. I was tagged by Rohan..
So, here we go...

1. A – Available/Single? Neither of the two
2. B – Best friend? Well, have some people whom I consider really close to me.. Can call them my 'best friends'
3. C – Cake or Pie? Cakes.. Chocolate cakes.. Mouthwatering stuff for me.
4. D – Drink of choice? I am a coffee/tea/milk addict.. Can have them at anytime of the day.
5. E – Essential item you use every day? My cell & internet
6. F – Favorite color? Blue, the cooler shade of it. Also like shining black and red
7. G – Gummy Bears Or Worms? Neither of the two
8. H – Hometown? Pune
9. I – Indulgence? Eating, surfing, staying in touch with friends, ManU matches
10. J – January or February? Weird question.. I'll say February
11. K – Kids & their name? Well, every Indian is my brother and sister.. So, no kids.. :-)
12. L – Life is incomplete without? Love & friendship
13. M – Marriage date? Nah.. Not so soon
14. N – Number of siblings? Have a younger sis
15. O – Oranges or Apples? Apples
16. P – Phobias/Fears? Not any serious ones..
17. Q – Quote for today? Success is not final, Failure is not fatal.. What matters is how you carry on..
18. R – Reason to smile? Friends, satisfaction, relief, Imaginations
19. S – Season? Rainy season comes first and winter, a close second
20. T – Tag 3 People? Yes
21. U – Unknown fact about me? Though people think that I dont get angry and dont express feelings directly face-to-face.. Well, I have been many a times.. Its just that I believe, that I achieve much more by silence, than I can, by being angry.. Its killing, let me tell you.. So, you hardly see that angry side of mine..
22. V – Vegetable you don’t like? Just one.. Karlyachi bhaji!
23. W – Worst habit? I am always 5-10min late, most of the times..
24. X – X-rays you’ve had? Teeth, hand, finger
25. Y – Your favorite food? All sweet & milk preparations and also egg preparations. To name some, rasmalai, puran poli, gole-bhaat, halwa, pav-bhaji, south-indian snacks and lots more.. Like chinese too, also pizzas & burgers
26. Z – Zodiac sign? Gemini

Well, my time to tag.. I tag Manan, Darshan, Neil

Real hard hitting forward...

The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.

Come winter, the Ant is warm and well fed. The Grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.

*Indian Version:**

The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the Ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and starving..

NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering
Grasshopper next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food. The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor Grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house.*
Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
Mayawati states this as `injustice' done on Minorities.
Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not upholding the fundamental rights of the Grasshopper.

The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the Grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance) .

Opposition MPs stage a walkout. Left parties call for ' Bengal Bandh' in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry.
CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and Grasshoppers.
Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.

Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the ' Prevention of Terrorism Against Grasshoppers Act' [POTAGA], with effect from the beginning of the winter.
Arjun Singh makes 'Special Reservation ' for Grasshoppers in Educational Institutions & in Government Services.

The Ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, it's home is confiscated by the Government and handed over to the Grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.

Arundhati Roy calls it ' A Triumph of Justice'.
Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice '.
CPM calls it the ' Revolutionary Resurgence of the Downtrodden '
Koffi Annan invites the Grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly. **

Many years later....**

The Ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar company in Silicon Valley , 100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India ,
AND
As a result of loosing lot of hard working Ants and feeding the grasshoppers,

India is still a developing country..

What a word..!!

Well, I came across this word in a section which usually is behind the notebooks which give some interesting facts.. And found hard to believe that such a word exists..
So, cross-checked it, and was amazed to see that it really is an authentic word..
So, here's the word..

hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

Before you start counting, its 36 letters long.. Well, the longest I have come across..
Its a noun.. And well, for the meaning of the word, what do you feel it will be?
Well, the word ends with phobia, so it surely is a phobia of something...
And the word starts with 'hippopoto' which indicates that it must be some phobia like fear of 'hippopotamuses' or something...

Well, here comes the biggest irony.. It actually means 'fear of long words'.. !!!!! Cant believe it, can you?
Neither did I.. Check this link...
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

And the pic that I have posted is a good one, which was there accompanying that fact..