A thought,
before it can be written
in a book of God,
must first originate
in the mind of man.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
A simple way to design a secure password
Since we can access many of our belongings - from email accounts to bank accounts - online, it is important to have strong passwords.
When setting a password, two conditions should be satisfied:
1. the password for each account should be hard to guess, and
2. the password for each account should be different.
Condition 1 is obvious. A lock is useful only if it is hard to pick. A human being may try to break the password by using common personal information such as a family member's name. A computer can search through a dictionary of words and strings such as '123' that are commonly used in passwords (for example, see http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/01/26/common-internet-passwords/).
Condition 2 says that you should not use the same key for all your locks, even if the key itself is secure (i.e. the password is hard to guess). If one account is compromised, for example an email account, then your bank account with the same password also becomes vulnerable.
The challenge with setting good passwords is that most people (including me) find it hard to remember many different passwords. To get around the problem, a person can design a simple rule to set multiple passwords. In order to meet both conditions above, the password creation rule must use two elements: 1. A personal key, and 2. A key that is unique to the account name.
For example, I am Arnab and I want to set a password for my Yahoo account. I could use a password 'ArnabYahoo', except that it would be predictable. But if I used a personal key 'alaihy' (which I can remember easily because it uses the first letters of the song "As Long As I Have You"), and replaced each letter of Yahoo with the next letter to obtain 'zbipp', and created a password by alternating the letters of the two keys to obtain 'azlbaiiphpy', then the password would be hard for a stranger or a computer to guess. The password for Google would similarly be 'ahlpapihhmyf'.
The above is just an illustrative example. There can be infinite variety in the ways in which a person can choose personal and account-specific keys and combine both. Depending on your appetite for complexity and your need for security, you can design a simpler or harder rule.
The vulnerability of the above approach is that if someone knew passwords from a number of your accounts, then the person could potentially uncover the rule you are using to design passwords. But the effort required to collect multiple passwords and uncover your rule is significantly higher than guessing/discovering one simple password.
When setting a password, two conditions should be satisfied:
1. the password for each account should be hard to guess, and
2. the password for each account should be different.
Condition 1 is obvious. A lock is useful only if it is hard to pick. A human being may try to break the password by using common personal information such as a family member's name. A computer can search through a dictionary of words and strings such as '123' that are commonly used in passwords (for example, see http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/01/26/common-internet-passwords/).
Condition 2 says that you should not use the same key for all your locks, even if the key itself is secure (i.e. the password is hard to guess). If one account is compromised, for example an email account, then your bank account with the same password also becomes vulnerable.
The challenge with setting good passwords is that most people (including me) find it hard to remember many different passwords. To get around the problem, a person can design a simple rule to set multiple passwords. In order to meet both conditions above, the password creation rule must use two elements: 1. A personal key, and 2. A key that is unique to the account name.
For example, I am Arnab and I want to set a password for my Yahoo account. I could use a password 'ArnabYahoo', except that it would be predictable. But if I used a personal key 'alaihy' (which I can remember easily because it uses the first letters of the song "As Long As I Have You"), and replaced each letter of Yahoo with the next letter to obtain 'zbipp', and created a password by alternating the letters of the two keys to obtain 'azlbaiiphpy', then the password would be hard for a stranger or a computer to guess. The password for Google would similarly be 'ahlpapihhmyf'.
The above is just an illustrative example. There can be infinite variety in the ways in which a person can choose personal and account-specific keys and combine both. Depending on your appetite for complexity and your need for security, you can design a simpler or harder rule.
The vulnerability of the above approach is that if someone knew passwords from a number of your accounts, then the person could potentially uncover the rule you are using to design passwords. But the effort required to collect multiple passwords and uncover your rule is significantly higher than guessing/discovering one simple password.
Sunday, November 07, 2010
Snapshots
Sharing a collection of pictures I have taken over the years...
The yellow flowers above are from the Anza Borrego desert state park. The flowers eclipse the sun, which given them the 'halo'.
Gerbera daisies from my potted flower garden.
Hydrangeas. Not from my garden :)
Some fallen twigs with a few leaves attached.
From a memorable trip to Mt. Olympic national park. The beach was amazing... unique in its own way. This was a Thursday afternoon with few people on the beach.
Portland rose garden.
Portland...
More Portland rose...
And more...
You guessed it. I like flowers. Roses in particular.
A shot of Mt. Rainier from the plane. My wife worked in Redmond, WA while I completed my PhD in Houston, TX. This was a familiar sight from the window as the plane approached Seattle.
Big Bend National Park. The wall on the left is Mexico. The one on the right is the United States. In between flows the Rio. Amazing spot to visit. This one is stretched on my desktop as a wallpaper right now. Makes me feel like I am staring down at the reflection of the cliffs in the clear, calm water.
A solitary tulip from Skagit Valley, WA. In spring, the tulip fields are in bloom, and the valley is bursting with color. We were there on a cold, rainy day (so characteristic of the region). And it was pretty awesome then. On a bright day, I imagine it would be heaven.
(If you use these pictures, please cite the source.)
(If you use these pictures, please cite the source.)
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Downfall
We live in times when most human problems are created by humans. I have found myself postulating that the sum of human miseries is constant - it is only the nature of our problems that has changed over the years.
We humans seem to suffer from two types of shortcomings that lead us to create problems for ourselves. First is the inability to understand our needs - what will hurt us - either because of a lack of intelligence or reckoning ability or because of denial. The second is more pitiful - when someone knows that doing something hurts but in incapable of changing one's ways. Ask any addict.
If you are wondering 'What brings me to these thoughts?'... I was watching a documentary on the life of Sam Clemens (better known by his psuedonym, Mark Twain), a brilliant and successful writer who in later life thought he could do business, but was otherwise a very intelligent man. As someone in the movie commented, "There is no reason for a writer to not be a successful businessman. I have just never met one."
There is another thought worrying me too. Of late, I have begun to harbor the belief that financial independence is the solution to life's problems. I have convinced myself that people work for mainly two reasons - financial needs and the gratification of being productive - and being financially independent is the key to doing productive work of one's liking and therefore being happy. The catch is that research has found that abject poverty is cause for unhappiness, but once people reach middle class wealth, additional money makes them no happier. And I have never been anything below middle class in my life. Am I lying to myself about something?
We humans seem to suffer from two types of shortcomings that lead us to create problems for ourselves. First is the inability to understand our needs - what will hurt us - either because of a lack of intelligence or reckoning ability or because of denial. The second is more pitiful - when someone knows that doing something hurts but in incapable of changing one's ways. Ask any addict.
If you are wondering 'What brings me to these thoughts?'... I was watching a documentary on the life of Sam Clemens (better known by his psuedonym, Mark Twain), a brilliant and successful writer who in later life thought he could do business, but was otherwise a very intelligent man. As someone in the movie commented, "There is no reason for a writer to not be a successful businessman. I have just never met one."
There is another thought worrying me too. Of late, I have begun to harbor the belief that financial independence is the solution to life's problems. I have convinced myself that people work for mainly two reasons - financial needs and the gratification of being productive - and being financially independent is the key to doing productive work of one's liking and therefore being happy. The catch is that research has found that abject poverty is cause for unhappiness, but once people reach middle class wealth, additional money makes them no happier. And I have never been anything below middle class in my life. Am I lying to myself about something?
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Suicide helpline autoreply
Please record your message after the beep. When you are finished recording, you may hang yourself or press star for more options.
A fable from the Panchatantra
A man once had a faithful monkey, a powerful beast aggressively protective of its master.
Then one day the man fell ill. While he slept, the monkey kept guard by his bed. A fly buzzed. It buzzed and buzzed and it flew right over the man's face. The monkey was furious. It grabbed a club and aimed it at the insect. One swing after another went in vain until the fly was finally dead.
But alas, when the mission was accomplished, there were no accolades for the well-meaning animal. Time, it seemed, had been rent in two halves by the swift strokes of the club. Before, the insect was the focus of all thoughts.
'That creature must die! Look at the man. This will happen to us all!'
Then the club fell. There was shock, there was awe, and finally there was despair.
'Whoever heard of using a club to kill a fly?'
Then one day the man fell ill. While he slept, the monkey kept guard by his bed. A fly buzzed. It buzzed and buzzed and it flew right over the man's face. The monkey was furious. It grabbed a club and aimed it at the insect. One swing after another went in vain until the fly was finally dead.
But alas, when the mission was accomplished, there were no accolades for the well-meaning animal. Time, it seemed, had been rent in two halves by the swift strokes of the club. Before, the insect was the focus of all thoughts.
'That creature must die! Look at the man. This will happen to us all!'
Then the club fell. There was shock, there was awe, and finally there was despair.
'Whoever heard of using a club to kill a fly?'
Respect
I know a man who works really hard, but people tend not to respect him. He complains all the time. I have never once heard him say something like 'Things are under control. I am taking care of things.' Ironically, he does take care of a lot of things, things that other dislike doing, but he also complains. Just by virtue of what he does, the man ought to be of use to others. And use him, they do, and they pay him too, but they don't respect him.
Earning respect seems to have a lot of prerequisites.
People seldom respect a person who does not respect them.
Respect yourself if you wish to be respected by others. I have seen successful people brag about insincere or unethical actions. Respect vanishes right there. Success and power do not necessarily earn respect. They may fetch flattery, fear, or foolish idolization, but not respect. Of course, that is if you care about respect. There are many who enjoy flattery and being feared as much as being respected. Flattery is insincere, and comes from an expectation of receiving incentives in return. Fear comes from anticipation of penalties. Both satisfy the primal need of being bowed down to. Respect is more subtle - when someone holds you in high esteem with no expectation of incentive or penalty.
A person can react to a situation in a way that earns respect, or in a way that begs sympathy, but usually not both at the same time. This man, with whom I started my story, has spent his entire life playing the victim, begging for sympathy in his own way. It is hard to respect a man like that. Actions designed to earn respect, however, can sometimes earn both respect and sympathy, especially in cases where the outcome is tragic. The sacrifice of martyrs awakens feelings of honor and sorrow at the same time.
Earning respect seems to have a lot of prerequisites.
People seldom respect a person who does not respect them.
Respect yourself if you wish to be respected by others. I have seen successful people brag about insincere or unethical actions. Respect vanishes right there. Success and power do not necessarily earn respect. They may fetch flattery, fear, or foolish idolization, but not respect. Of course, that is if you care about respect. There are many who enjoy flattery and being feared as much as being respected. Flattery is insincere, and comes from an expectation of receiving incentives in return. Fear comes from anticipation of penalties. Both satisfy the primal need of being bowed down to. Respect is more subtle - when someone holds you in high esteem with no expectation of incentive or penalty.
A person can react to a situation in a way that earns respect, or in a way that begs sympathy, but usually not both at the same time. This man, with whom I started my story, has spent his entire life playing the victim, begging for sympathy in his own way. It is hard to respect a man like that. Actions designed to earn respect, however, can sometimes earn both respect and sympathy, especially in cases where the outcome is tragic. The sacrifice of martyrs awakens feelings of honor and sorrow at the same time.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Mistakes
The smartest learn from the mistakes of others. Most of us prefer to learn by making our very own mistakes. And then there are those who never learn...
Monday, March 08, 2010
approximately precisely
'It is better to be approximately right than precisely wrong' - is a useful piece of advice. Of late, I have been postulating in my mind a similar-sounding approximately-precisely principle, which goes:
'It is better to know the answer to a meaningful question approximately than to know the answer to a useless question precisely.'
'It is better to know the answer to a meaningful question approximately than to know the answer to a useless question precisely.'
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