Why me?

I got this in my Inbox.

Why me? In what way is my qualification (how do they know what it is?) 'suitable' for me to receive this mail?

Do the analytics used by Yahoo tell them that my mail id shows that I am not averse to a bit of fraud here or a bit of con there?

Also why don't they employ someone to edit these and check the grammar?

Hello Hse_agt

You have a perfect qualification but there is no university diploma?

Interesting and highly paid job to approach the dream. We will confirm your professional status. You want the fast and effective decision, we will help you.

well, quickly and Cofidentiality assured! Bachelors, Masters, MBA and /or Doctorate (PhD) .

We wait your callsof 7 days toweek and 24 hours a day, We send certificate to all countries.art to improve today your life, a call in USA: 1-603-509-2001 Outside USA: +1-603-509-2001

PI/mommy

http://www.indiabioscience.org/node/32 A post by a PI-cum-mommy

Note the first comment too.

My mother's blog.

My mother could have been a concert-level musician if she had not been forced by circumstances to stop training. However, she knows a lot about Tamil Bhakti music... Devaaram and Divyaprabandham. So I tried to set up a blog for her. The problem is she doesn't live here and I need to download the Tamil font for her. Now I have roped in my brother (she lives with him) and hopefully it will get done soon.

A repost

http://midwaypersonal.blogspot.in/search?q=city+academy

I got this invite to be a research guide out of the blue.

I resigned my post doc in 1983 and have not done any research since. So how did they pick me to be a guide?

If I had accepted their offer, I may have been richer by a fairly good sum. Some student(s) would have got a PhD under my "guidance". Those students would all be getting their UGC scales.

Not just that, my college would have been proud of me and I would have been on our college honours list next Sept 5th. Another benefit would have been that this fact would have been good for a few points in the Self Study Report that we just submitted to the NAAC.

In view of so many benefits, I wonder why I did not reply to that email.

PhD

The rush to somehow beg, borrow or buy a PhD is something I have been lamenting about in my blog. This is a fallout of the requirement by the UGC for a PhD if one wants one's scale etc. This is the driver of this gold rush. An article , thanks to Vishwesha Guttal

a talk

A talk to listen to for various reasons-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=y9BRYePpqkc
One point that I would like to quote here is that very often we don't understand dynamics of complex systems, but still confidently predict outcomes in such systems. He points this out with slum clearance and relocation but I this is what I mean to point out about Bt crops.

just thoughts..

There are many things that need to be improved in the Indian Army as in all other institutions. Many concessions given to make life in remote cantonments comfortable, can be misused. As in any other section of society, there are many bad elements...those who embezzle, who steal diesel, misuse facilities. There are those who overstep their brief when dealing with people in disturbed areas, acts of human rights violation....
But there are also many who work hard. Jawans who work non stop, for years. The amount of physical work they are capable of is amazing. They leave their families behind and sometimes,
do not get to see their new born babies till the baby is walking and talking . They cannot question orders. "theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die".
If you meet an infantryman, jawan or officer, after the 1 month exercise ( annual training session) in the Thar desert, you would mistake him for a person just out of some hospital.
In the Thar, they brave the heat, the ubiquitous dust, snakes and scorpions.
Then there is the posting in the high altitudes. The 4 months of snow when you see nothing but white stretches, living in those temporary accomodation. The cold--the altitude sickness....
They get pay and allowances which do not go very far. The other ranks, retire when they are 40 or 45 years old,when their children are not yet settled. Their pensions are smaller still.
While the Army should introspect and weed out the rogue elements, the rest of the armed forces, must be given a better deal.