Shadowlessness

Yesterday was a sad day. Not only because it was the day I was born (and not at all because it was also the day Bill Gates was born!) but because I was moving yet again.
I have lived in Tehran the past 13 months. The move originally was an escape from a dead-end job and a much required change in the climate of my life. What I hoped to find in Tehran was obliviousness instead, I found an interesting life-style, a good job and a few great friends.
I’m not a gregarious person by nature. I generally (not always) prefer my own room (or any room with my computer in it,) to a crowded and lively party. I prefer to write and answer email rather than going out with friends for dinner. But in Tehran, I didn’t have a computer for myself at my place of residence for most of my time there and therefor, all the advantages of an anti-social life evaporated. I become used to going out, partying much more often, crashing at a friends’ place, even going to places were you couldn’t get Internet connection or even AC power for many kilometers (i.e. hiking and road trips!) This new lifestyle was interesting and it proved that the right company can make many things not only bearable but enjoyable and memorable!
I went to Tehran for a job. A guy named “Farzam“, whom I had only met twice for a few hours about six months before, called me in the Summer of 85 and ask me whether I would be interested in a programming job developing a 3D simulator for educational purposes. The only catch was that I had to move to Tehran. For several reasons, the least important of which was the job itself, I accepted. The job proved to be interesting enough (rather harder than I’d have liked) and I learned a lot. Most importantly, I learned a lot about what not to do when working as part of a serious team on a serious project. And I’m absolutely confident now that I should never be given the controlling role in a project that has a schedule and/or a budget! I realized this because I wasn’t the lead in this project and it worked surprisingly well for everyone (except for poor Farzam, the lead designer/architect!) There’s way too much pressure there for me!
Anyway, the greatest thing I found in the past 13 months was new friendships. I’ve even found two sisters (I’m not going to talk about the second one though.) Most of this past year I’ve been living at my aunt’s (my mom’s sister) and my cousin Mona is now like a sister to me, more than ever. We’ve become close and she’s helped me in some social issues I’ve have little experience in.
I found great friends in Tehran. Friends that I wouldn’t even know existed if I hadn’t moved there. Even if I don’t consider anything else, they alone make this past year of my life worthwhile. I cannot thank (in chronological order) Farzam, Siamac and Azadeh enough.
Many of those who know me believe that I’m fluent in working with computers. While most of my knowledge is useless and/or inaccurate, I have to admit that I do find my way around computers. Many of my friends are power users and very knowledgeable when it comes to computers themselves, but I have known (in person, and for a considerable period of time) only two people that have had skills clearly superior to my own. The second and the more fluent one is Siamac. I’ve learned many many many tidbits from him that I wouldn’t have found anywhere else, and I’ve shared with him many memories of the “good ol’ days” that I wouldn’t find another soul to have them in common with us.
The smallest thing I learned from Farzam was that I cannot manage a project and he can, almost on schedule and healthy enough. He also stimulated my interest in the finest art and introduced me to much good music. I feel like stabbing (specially) him in the back by leaving at this time, and I feel torn because I cannot not leave.
I also left a few of my older friends in Tehran. Three “Ehsan”s (yes, three! One of them my brother) and one Mahdi. Adios friends.
But being back in Mashhad is not all pangs and regrets. I’m here at my own home, in my own room, with my own computer Mike (although my other computer, Rincewind, was with my these past months.) I’m here nearer to my brother Omid (although I left Ehsan in Tehran.) Most important of all, I’m nearer to my mother, the person I love the most in the world. That alone makes coming back to Mashhad into coming “home.”

One of the cellular automata that were made famous by Stephen Wolfram in his fascinating book “A New Kind of Science” (or NKS for its worshipers) has proven to be a universal Turing machine. It’s the 2,3 machine (named 2,3 because it has 2 states and 3 colors for each state.)
Apparently, it had been proven before that no universal Turing machines with 2 states and 2 colors or less existed (it should not be difficult, because the number of all such machines is really limited.) Now, after a $25′000 prize was announced a few months back, an undergraduate student has proven that the said automaton is indeed universal and can perform any computation that the original Turing machine was capable of.

Two notes: First, I’m not a fan of NKS and Wolfram. He really over-estimates himself and his book. On the other hand, he is a genius and NKS is interesting and a mind-opener. Besides, people wanted to burn Galileo at stake in his own time! Who am I to decide who is right and who is wrong?!
Second, whenever I hear/read/write “Wolfram”, I can’t not think of “Wolfram & Hart” (in Angel TV series) and therefore Buffyverse! Joss Whedon rulz!

UPDATE 2007-10-30: It seems that I was in too much hurry in announcing this. The proof has come under scrutiny and now it seems that it has flaws. Read more on Slashdot.

He would grumble “What are you waiting for, Christmas?”
It was a great game. I can still remember many of the levels and the final boss! What a shot through the goal!
I wonder how many other people I know have played it, and fondly remember it. It was “Groovy!”

Hail to the king baby!

I agree! That title is useless. Here’s the interesting thing. If you search for “search engine” on Google a la this, you’ll notice a strange thing. Google.com is not among the results! Non of the Google local pages are in the (default) first page! The first Google you’ll see is the UK Google (google.co.uk) at rank ~17. And then nothing for several pages!
I guess people just don’t link to search engines on other pages, because Yahoo! is encountered on second page as well!