The Zeigarnik Effect on Short time Memory.

You pull out the key to open your house. You unlock the door and get inside. Then several hours later you're looking for the key and wondering where it is. And you discover that you have left it behind on the door. Has this happened to you?

To understand why it happens, let's flashback to Bluma Zeigarnik, a Russian psychologist.

One evening, Zeigarnik and her friends went out for dinner to a restaurant. They had a lovely meal. Guess what the highlight was? It was the service.

More specifically, their waiter. He had an amazing memory. So as everybody placed their orders, he remembered every little detail, without writing anything down. He remembered who ordered what and how they wanted it. Zeigarnik and her friends were all amazed by the waiter's memory.

After the meal, they were driving back when Zeigarnik discovered that she had left her jacket behind in the restaurant. So she turned around, drove back to the restaurant and sought out that friendly waiter who she knew would be happy to locate her jacket. Imagine her horror though when she found the waiter but the waiter didn't even recognise her.

What happened?

It got Zeigarnik thinking. And her research then showed how our brain tends to work. When a task is completed, our brain hits the delete button and our memory gets wiped clean. 

Our short term memory struggles with space to retain information. So it keeps only the unfinished tasks alive. And the minute a task is completed it hits the delete button.

And that's why waiters at restaurants will remember every little detail of your order but only until the bill is made. That's why when we photocopy a document, we pick up the copy and walk away, leaving the original behind. This has come to be known as the Zeigarnik effect, a short-term memory deletes completed tasks. Fascinating, isn't it?

The Zeigarnik effect might explain why at a bank's ATM, you are now required to pull your card out before collecting the cash. They know Zeigarnik will be at play and once you collect the cash, the task is finished and good chance you will forget to take your card back.

It's something we can all put to good use. Look at what Netflix does. You will find through all their serials, every episode ends tantalisingly. That 30-minute episode ends at a point where you will say, "wow, what happens next?" You want to know, you want to come back. There is no closure at the end of that episode and that's what brings us all the time. Had there been closure, chances are we'd quickly forget about it.

Maybe a powerful idea for all of us. If there is something you want to make sure remains alive, keep it just a bit unfinished. Writing a book? Make sure you end every writing session at a point of suspense or tension. Don't resolve it. Don't finish it. That will bring you back next day to writing again.

The Zeigarnik effect might also explain my favourite piece of communication advice. It's this. Someone said that there are really two golden rules of communication :-

* never tell everything at once.

* people remember unfinished tasks more than the completed one.

That's it. Ah, the Zeigarnik effect!

Tailpiece.

Got up at a trifle past 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 10. Telephone calls got me later than usual.

Mr Ramachandran, the Manager of the ICICI Bank, whom I'd befriended yesterday had called on around a quarter past 12 and he was accompanied by Vinay, a member of his staff, who was of a great help to me, yesterday. They were with us for over an hour!

Lekha had gone to the ration stand to collect our dues and Hameed had taken her and the maid, up and down, in his auto rickshaw.

It was raining by evening. 

Chinese perfidy yet again; this time in Tawang!

Indian and Chinese troops clashed in Arunachal Pradesh, on 09 Dec, near the LAC at the Yangtse in the Tawang sector, resulting in injuries to soldiers on both sides. The injured Indian soldiers have been shifted to Guwahati for treatment.

And here's the blow-by-blow description of what happened on the ground, that has sent shivers up the spines of every Chinese soldier who happened to be there. And rightly so!

* Mago marks the southern entrance of the valley and Chuna, the northern end of it, bordering the LAC. Steep mountainous terrain which needs hours of trekking to reach posts.

* Peak XXX sits to the west of this area and has a commanding view of the ridges and tracks across the LAC deep into Cona County. The PLA sent in roughly 300 troops with melee weapons with a clear intention to kill/maim the Indian Army troops holding the area.

* Closely placed echelons on the lower ridges and the river valley were quickly able to reinforce the 50 troops firmly facing the PLA onslaught and reinforcements poured in from multiple directions, immediately, after being radioed.

* What started with abuses and stone pelting gradually progressed to fisticuffs and then fierce hand-to-hand combat where the PLA troops were overpowered and in some cases, their weapons were used against them.

* This free for all went on until the PLA found itself losing ground with many of their troops overpowered and battered while Indian Army troops kept pouring in with their own melee weapons. Things went south from there and the PLA troops started falling back.

* The Indian Army troops were in no mood to relent and went after the retreating PLA troops who were running for their lives after having borne the brunt of the counter attack. Gunshots were heard from the PLA's rear as they attempted to deter further assault.

* The area of the face off has been reinforced and the units in the vicinity are on a high state of alert. All in all a very comprehensive drubbing for the PLA with a dozen plus of their troops dead or extremely critical (skulls opened/crushed).

Courtesy. What'sApp

My take

Serves the Chinese good for their misadventure. How many times do we have to reinforce the fact that the 1962 syndrome of the Indian Army is long since, dead and gone!

The way G 20 leadership will be used to sideline China by PM Narendra Modi's clear and lofty thinking will be his defining moment. The stress on 'Vasudeva kutumbakam' is the step in that direction.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by 10.

Off to the ICICI bank to sort out the issue of my cheque not having been cleared despite handing it over on 09 itself. Sure enough, there was a glitch during the scanning. Made alternate arrangements and cleared the payment. Also, met the Branch Manager, Mr Ramachandran and initiated the request for an add-on credit card!

A quiet evening.

Karna vs Yudhishthira!

Arjuna once asked Krishna, Lord, why do people consider Karna more generous than Yudhishthira? Neither has my elder brother ever refused whatever he has been asked for nor whoever has asked. So why is Karna considered greater than Yudhishthira?"

The Lord said with a smile, "Come, I'll show you why".

Disguised as Brahmins, they first went to Yudhishthira's court and asked for sandalwood sticks to conduct a 'yagna'.

The king immediately sent his soldiers to all parts of his kingdom in search of sandalwood sticks. It was monsoon, the trees were all drenched and the soldiers returned with wet sandalwood pieces. The yagna was not possible with the wet sticks.

Krishna and Arjuna proceeded to Karna's court next and asked for the same sticks. Karna thought for a while and said, "As it's raining for several days now, it will be impossible to collect dry sandalwood sticks but there is a way. Please wait for while".

Saying this, Karna proceeded to chop and cut down the doors and windows of the court which were made of sandalwood and after making them into pieces, gifted the dry sandalwood sticks to the Brahmins to conduct the yagna.

They accepted the offerings and went back.

On their way back, Krishna asked Arjuna, "Do you realise the difference between the two, Arjuna? Had we asked Yudhishthira to give his doors and windows for us to conduct the yagna, he would have given without a second thought but he did not think of it himself".

"We did not ask Karna either. Yudhishthira gave because that was dharma. Karna gave us because he loves to give. This is the difference between the two and that is why Karna is considered greater. Whatever work you do, it becomes nobler when you do it with love".

We can work with different attitudes because :-

* someone asked you to;

* or as a duty;

* or as your dharma;

* or as Karna did, out of love for the job.

The last is, however, the best. Whatever work you do, love it, enjoy the work. That is what brings fulfillment to you as well as the task you undertake.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6 to a real wet day, yet again. The chores and was ready by a quarter past 10.

Went about our work systematically, as usual.

Navneet from the National Supermarket came by to deliver the grocery that Lekha had ordered.  

India abstains at the UN Security Council.

India abstained in the UN Security Council on a resolution providing humanitarian exemptions across all UN sanction regimes, asserting that blacklisted terror groups - including in its neighbourhood - have taken advantage of such relaxations and have been able to raise funds and recruit fighters.

The 15-nation council, currently being presided over by India, voted on the resolution on Friday that was tabled by the US and Ireland to create a sanctions relaxation that exempted humanitarian efforts, with Washington asserting that the resolution "will save countless lives" after being adopted.

India was the sole abstention on the resolution that said processing or payment of funds, other financial assets, economic resources and provision of goods and services necessary to ensure delivery of humanitarian assistance are not a violation of the asset freezes imposed by the council or its Sanctions Committee.

The Council president and India's permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, speaking in her national capacity as she delivered the explanation of the vote, said, "our concerns emanate from proven instances of terrorist groups taking full advantage of such humanitarian assistance and making a mockery of sanction regimes, including that of the 1267 Sanctions Committee".

She made a thin-veiled reference to Pakistan and the terror outfits there. "There have also been several cases of terrorist groups in our neighbourhood, including those listed by this Council, re-incarnating themselves as humanitarian organisations and civil society groups precisely to evade these sanctions", she said.

Courtesy. PTI

My take

Bravo Zulu! A principled and correct stand!

Tailpiece.

A thoroughly wet day as the rain, since last evening, carried on all through the day.

Got up around 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter past 10.

A quiet Sunday.   

 

Xi Jinping in Saudi Arabia.

During his three day visit to Saudi Arabia, Xi attended summits of the six-member Gulf Co-operation Council and a broader China-Arab leaders' meeting.

It came a day after bilateral talks with Saudi royals and yielded a joint statement harping on "the importance of stability" in oil markets - a point of friction with the United States. Washington has urged the Saudis to raise production.

"China will continue to firmly support the GCC countries in maintaining their own security and build a collective security framework for the Gulf".

China will import large quantities of crude oil from GCC countries on an ongoing basis. It also promises to expand other areas of energy co-operation including liquefied natural gas imports. Oil from Saudi Arabia alone accounted for 17% of China's imports last year and last month Qatar announced a 27-year natural gas deal with China.

Both sides are seeking economic and strategic benefits by deepening co-operation.

My take

India has established a good partnership with the GCC countries. We need to increase our footprint in the African continent.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter past 10.

The maid came towards lunchtime. I was furious when she told us that she'd tried to commit suicide by consuming an overdose of sleeping pills but was saved as she was taken to the hospital on time. I told her that I'd spank her if she repeated such stupidities.

It was raining all through the evening. 

The Immortal Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, MVC

Exactly 51 years ago, on this date, the Commanding Officer of INS Khukri, Captain MN Mulla made the supreme sacrifice and went down with his beloved ship while egging everyone to escape till the last moment!

Right at the start of the war on 03 Dec 1971, the navy's communications department detected the presence of a Pakistani submarine a few miles off the city of Diu, on the western seaboard. After coming to know of this threat, two of the three Indian combat vessels were deployed to ensure that the threat from the submarine was effectively neutralised.

The Pakistani submarine, Hangor was equipped with state-of-the-art sensory systems and weapons. In contrast, the sensory equipment on board the Indian vessels were just being upgraded which reduced the ship's speed in water. 

On account of the disparity between the capabilities of the sensory equipment and the consequent navigational route followed by INS Khukri, PNS Hangor was able to fire torpedoes at both the Khukri and the Kirpan. While the Kirpan eluded the torpedo attack and was able to get into an advantageous position, the Khukri was unable to do so.

The attack was devastating as there were two explosions and the ship lost electric power and went dark. As the ship started sinking on the starboard side, Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla issued orders to his officers and men to abandon ship. He personally supervised the rescue operations and tried to save as many of his officers and men, as possible.

Along with the ship, 18 officers and 178 sailors made the supreme sacrifice.

Captain Mulla chose to go down with ship like a true military leader and in the highest of naval traditions! 

Epilogue. The nation honoured him by awarding him the Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously.

My take

Captain Mulla sir, you shall ever remain an inspiration for the generations of mariners who follow your footsteps!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10.

To the ICICI bank to clear the anomalies of my credit card.  

Let mischief mongers not exploit this fragile situation.

The situation is gradually limping back to normalcy on the Karnataka-Maharashtra border after the recent violent incidents. The transport corporations of both states halted the movements of their respective vehicles to each other's states, as a precautionary measure in the wake of attacks on buses on both sides of the border.

However the movement of private vehicles remained unaffected. A large number of passengers from both the states were struggling catch private vehicles to cross the borders throughout the day. 

Activists from pro-Maharashtra groups blackened signboards of Karnataka government buses and wrote pro-Marathi slogans on Karnataka buses in Solapur, Sindhudurg, Nashik, Aurangabad, Kolhapur, Chandgad, Baramati and Pune over the past one week.

The Maharashtra government has issued notices to the heads of 11 gram panchayats in Akkalkot taluk, Solapur district for submitting a memorandum to Solapur DC, seeking merger with Karnataka if their villages were not given the basic amenities by the Maharashtra government.

My take

The problem needs to be dealt with swiftly and firmly before potential trouble makers jump into the fray and flare up things. Discussions with the concerned parties to find a lasting solution is the need of the hour!

Tailpiece.

Got up at a trifle past 6 and opened up the house. Sajish came in by a half past 7 and gave me a haircut and massage.

Saw the Assembly election results in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. 

A quiet Thursday.