Nerve Endings Firing Away

Speaking on the occasion of Teachers’ Day, Dr.A P J Abdul Kalam sent out the perfect message to all educators — to create lifelong learners and enlightened citizens. Whenever I tell people about what I am up to, they sometimes have incredulous expressions and ask me, how long am I going to spend time in ‘school’ and continue learning? I just shrug off the question because if I have to explain they wouldn’t understand. I wonder if people stop learning once they get out of college or school and step out in the real world. Do we simply work for the sake of earning a livelihood and nothing more? In that case, what motivated this Apple employee to sneak inside the Mac office long after his project expired and he was laid off to develop the Graph calculator that is now almost integral to every Mac OS? Definitely there is more to life than earning big bucks; of course having that buffer makes the ride much smoother but that means Bill Gates should just lie back and enjoy his billions.

We meet people everyday but only some manage to stay in our memory.
Some stay on because they look beautiful or are able to perform an
amazing feat but for me, I remember people primarily for the things
they have learned and the general awareness of the world they exist in.
A person who is an absolute ace in his profession but cannot converse
on current affairs is a dud in my opinion. I love people with an
opinion even if they are in direct opposition with mine. Having an
opinion is not enough; after all everyone also has a certain orifice at
their backend (as the cliché goes). The conviction to stand by your
opinion supported by rational arguments and sound logic is more
important. As Dr. Kalam mentioned, there is much disconnect between
what we learn at school and what we do for a living; yet everyday I see
people with multi-faceted interests. Nurtured in the right environment,
it is merely an effort on an individual’s part. There is much potential
in India especially in our hinterland where children simply don’t have
the opportunity. Atanu’s RISC project is heavily rooted in education
and I feel, he has it down perfectly. Curious minds simply attract
knowledge and knowledge if used appropriately can transform the
learning experience. People, please don’t stop learning.

[cross-posted at Learning Redefined]