"in which dense traffic moves in unison, like marchers moving in step" Some important facts, which the system designers seem to have forgotten: Real systems veer towards chaos and orderly behavior is anathema to all nationals except Germans. That apart, any traffic simulation design could be considered a success if it can be put to use in all conditions. I am quite sure that this system will come a cropper on Indian roads where cars have to jostle for space with cattle, cycles, pedestrians, three wheelers, two wheelers and so on. (Digression: I always find the sight of a stray dog crossing the busy road a lesson in traffic manners. The dog looks either side, ensures that there are no vehicles in vicinity and then crosses: A case of animal adapting his behavior to real time situations.) Human beings are not so adaptable and would do the best they could to defeat even the most beautifully designed systems.
This makes good commercial sense! What is the point of maintaining these missiles for years together at a high cost when the possibilities of using them are minimal and the return on investment is nothing? I foresee that more governments would follow this example. The romantic in me is overjoyed to see the use of dreaded missiles as instruments of global co-operation in harnessing technology for the benefit of man.
Information technology has definitely simplified life for both the Rural and Urban Indian. Bhoomi is one of many projects that dot the landscape: The e-seva kendras in Hyderabad (electronic service centers where the power, water, telephone and other bills could be paid at one place), the spot billing of power consumption using hand held computers/palm tops, Simplified registration of sale of properties, registration of birth and death etc are some other noteworthy projects. Has the corruption reduced?
Definitely, yes! Once the Government's system of maintenance of records is de-mystified and simplified, the avenues for corruption reduce. More importantly, the users can now invest the time and energy, which they were earlier investing on payment of bills etc, more productively. These initiatives may not be enough to make administration totally citizen-friendly but they are a good beginning. Though hardly 2% of Indians have Internet connections, a large percentage access cyber cafés. The cyber revolution is like the STD/ISD booths of yesterday. Fifteen years back, it was difficult to communicate on telephone from one mofussil town in India to the other but today, even the most interior villages have STD/ISD booths. Development is not restricted to only Information technology but also in other fields like Education, Health, Housing and Infrastructure. As India is vast, the extent of development is not the same everywhere. Parts of North India are at least five-six years behind the South and the West. But, considering that India got its independence (From 200 years of British rule) only in 1947, the advances that the Country made are praiseworthy and significant. No room for cynicism, here. The best is yet to be!
Slashdot Mirror
"in which dense traffic moves in unison, like marchers moving in step"
Some important facts, which the system designers seem to have forgotten: Real systems veer towards chaos and orderly behavior is anathema to all nationals except Germans. That apart, any traffic simulation design could be considered a success if it can be put to use in all conditions. I am quite sure that this system will come a cropper on Indian roads where cars have to jostle for space with cattle, cycles, pedestrians, three wheelers, two wheelers and so on. (Digression: I always find the sight of a stray dog crossing the busy road a lesson in traffic manners. The dog looks either side, ensures that there are no vehicles in vicinity and then crosses: A case of animal adapting his behavior to real time situations.) Human beings are not so adaptable and would do the best they could to defeat even the most beautifully designed systems.
This makes good commercial sense! What is the point of maintaining these missiles for years together at a high cost when the possibilities of using them are minimal and the return on investment is nothing? I foresee that more governments would follow this example. The romantic in me is overjoyed to see the use of dreaded missiles as instruments of global co-operation in harnessing technology for the benefit of man.
Information technology has definitely simplified life for both the Rural and Urban Indian. Bhoomi is one of many projects that dot the landscape: The e-seva kendras in Hyderabad (electronic service centers where the power, water, telephone and other bills could be paid at one place), the spot billing of power consumption using hand held computers/palm tops, Simplified registration of sale of properties, registration of birth and death etc are some other noteworthy projects. Has the corruption reduced? Definitely, yes! Once the Government's system of maintenance of records is de-mystified and simplified, the avenues for corruption reduce. More importantly, the users can now invest the time and energy, which they were earlier investing on payment of bills etc, more productively. These initiatives may not be enough to make administration totally citizen-friendly but they are a good beginning. Though hardly 2% of Indians have Internet connections, a large percentage access cyber cafés. The cyber revolution is like the STD/ISD booths of yesterday. Fifteen years back, it was difficult to communicate on telephone from one mofussil town in India to the other but today, even the most interior villages have STD/ISD booths. Development is not restricted to only Information technology but also in other fields like Education, Health, Housing and Infrastructure. As India is vast, the extent of development is not the same everywhere. Parts of North India are at least five-six years behind the South and the West. But, considering that India got its independence (From 200 years of British rule) only in 1947, the advances that the Country made are praiseworthy and significant. No room for cynicism, here. The best is yet to be!