My Yesterday’s photography theme was people and today I have chosen objects. Great pictures can be produced from still, non-animated objects present around us in a myriad number of forms and shapes.
The Diesel Monster
Posted: 22nd December 2010 by Aditya Mahajan in BikesTags: 1400cc, bike, diesel, motorcycle, neander
The Neander 1400 Turbo Diesel
Most people do not dream of their bike running on a diesel heart especially after the abysmal failure of the Royal Enfield Taurus bike which was launched in India a few years back. Diesel engines are thought of as high maintenance, oil dripping and noisy beasts of engines. But, in today’s world of engines diesel engines have proved to be more cleaner, powerful and fuel efficient than their petrol counterparts.
Germany’s Neander Motors is planning a new bike running on a 1430cc turbocharged parallel-twin diesel engine developed by Rupert Baindl. The engine has given hope to the bike world and is looking promising to become the world’s first turbo-diesel production motorcycle.
The specifications for this beast are:
Neander 1400 TurboDiesel
Engine: Air/oil-cooled turbocharged parallel-twin diesel with twin 360-degree geared crankshafts, dual con-rods per cylinder
Valve arrangement: Apfelbeck eight-valve cylinder head with gear-driven double overhead camshafts, and radial valves with opposed inlet and exhaust tracts
Bore x stroke, displacement: 108 x 78.2 mm, 1430cc
Compression ratio: 16:1
Carburetion: Garrett turbocharger with intercooler, Bosch electronic direct fuel injection, single top injector, 31mm throttle body
Transmission: 6-speed Aprilia RSV1000R gearbox, multiplate dry clutch
Final drive: Belt
Weight: 595 lbs. dry
Rake/trail: 31 degrees / 109 mm
Wheelbase: 68.5 in.
Seat height:25.5 in.
Front suspension: 43mm Paioli inverted fork
Rear suspension: Single cantilever Ohlins damper
Wheels: Spun-aluminum, 18×3.5 front, 18×5.5 rear
Front brake: 2, 4-piston Performance Machine calipers, 11.8-in. discs
Rear brake: 4-piston Performance Machine caliper, 11.8-in. disc
Front tire: 130/60-18 Metzeler Marathon
Rear tire: 240/40-18 Metzeler Marathon
Claimed top speed: Over 140 mphClaimed power & torque (at crankshaft): 94 bhp @ 4200 rpm, 129 ft/lb @ 2600 rpm
I sure hope this bike ushers a new biking revolution like the cars nowadays running on more powerful and fuel efficient diesel engines.
For an in-depth review on this bike please go here
Ducati Diavel in India in April
Posted: 22nd December 2010 by Aditya Mahajan in BikesTags: diavel, ducati, ducati diavel 2011, gujarat, india, launch
The Ducati Diavel
Good news is pouring in by the days for the Indian bike enthusiasts and the latest news to hit the Indian shores is an announcement by Mr. Mirko Bordiga ( CEO, Ducati, Asia pacific ), that The 1200 cc Ducati Diavel would be available in India starting with Dealerships in Ahmedabad,Gujarat from April 2011. Ducati expects to sell 40 units in Gujarat itself.
He further added that Ducati is planning to expand its service and dealership network in India and that Ducati is taking the Indian consumer very seriously. 10 major cities are being eyed for the initial dealership and service network expansion. Diavel is the latest addition to the Ducati stables and is one of the best looking cruisers of all times and one of the best looking bikes from Ducati.
Following are the specifications of the bike:
The official video from the Ducati Stable is awesome:
The word on the price of the bike is not out yet, but I am sure it would be out of reach for a lot of bike enthusiasts in India. Lets hope the scene keeps improving with time and more and more superbikes knock the doors of India.
People
Posted: 21st December 2010 by Aditya Mahajan in PhotographyTags: expressions, people, photography
These photos revolve around the theme: “People”. Its often amazing to capture people in different moods and phases of life. The young, the old its a sea of expressions waiting to be clicked in the wide wide world.
A good sun film for your car
Posted: 21st December 2010 by Aditya Mahajan in CarsTags: Car, infrared, quality, sunfilm, UV
Sunfilms is one of the most gray area in the automotive domain. In India, most people I meet often debunk the concept of sunfilm as something that can be fitted from a road side vendor ofr a mere INR 400-500 and is just there to darken the glasses of the car. My suggestion to all such folks is to just hold on here and please don’t put your buck in any such film that can fit your pocket and the car but not serve the actual purpose of installation.
A sun film is supposed to not only darken the glasses but more importantly to reject a certain amount of Infrared rays or heat of the sun and block the UV rays that are harmful and can cause skin cancer. And believe me getting a good quality film installed on the car does both of them. In my case I have the Garware NF Vlite on the side windows and the rear window and the Garware Fronty covering the front windscreen costing me a total of INR 4000 (and believe me its still less, people spend 20-25k just on getting the best quality films installed on their cars). Since the time I got these installed on my car, I have felt the reduction in the actual amount of heat transmitted by the car windows and without compromising the legal limits of visibility set by the Indian Supreme court which say that the front and the rear windscreens need to have 70% Visual Light Transmission and the side windows need 50% Visual Light Transmission. I must say that I have been satisified with the performance of my car film till now and I suggest to the readers that do not ignore the significance and the usability of getting a good quality film installed in your car just to save a few bucks here and there. Nowadays, almost everyone spends a good amount of time travelling and which amounts to a lot of hours spent inside the 6 mirrors that surround your car.
My suggestion for the takers is that if you want to install a sun film go ahead and get a good one, you will not regret your decision.
Tron:Legacy in 3-D ,a review
Posted: 20th December 2010 by aseem.ace in Opinions, ReviewsTags: daft punk, derezzed, hatter, jeff bridges, legacy, mad, maxim, movie, olivia, plot, review, sirens, soundtrack, tron, wilde
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Tron legacy is a visual spectacle and though detractors of 3-D might disagree the 3-D effects add an interactive gaming experience like feel to this incredible movie. Its an extraordinary treat for the senses(with very few peers in the history of movies-2001 a Space Odyssey and Avatar being the ones that come most readily to mind although 2001 is a far better movie than this or avatar according to me).
While the stunts pulled by Sam Flynn(the son of Kevin Flynn who created the Tron Universe) in the outside world provide a grand opening to the movie the really cool effects kick in when he enters the Tron universe.Special effects I barely thought possible and the technology aided bonus of a CG(computer generated) young Jeff Bridges along with that of the incorrigible Bridges’ himself make this a special movie. Although i must confess his utterances such as “radical,man” struck a jarring note in the world of Tron.
The light cycle battles are a treat to watch and experience via 3-D for bike enthusiasts.
The presence of Olivia Wilde (who topped Maxim’s hot 100 list for 2009 beating the likes of Megan fox) and the sirens adds more than a fair share of glamour to the quotient.The innocence portrayed by Wilde’s character Quorra as she asks Sam, “Do you know Jules Verne?â€� and Sam says, “Yeah,â€� so Quorra asks, “So what’s he like?â€� and when she asks him to describe the sun for her are two of the best written lines of the movie for me.
The role of Michael Sheen as Castor,a small yet interesting cameo, is reminiscent of Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland.
The visual delights are accompanied by a great soundtrack courtesy Daft Punk. The following video provides a tantalising peep into the visual and musical delights of the movie-
But despite all this the plot seems a bit thin and stops this movie from becoming a masterpiece. Being unfamiliar with the cult classic Tron might be the reason i felt this but the plot is the one thing they seemed to have spent the least time on with the pace of the story seeming a bit hurried at times.With the colossal budget this movie is rumored to have (170 million estimated although imdb estimates it at 300 million) the plot should have been more refined.
All in all though the kind of visual artistry at display in this movie,awe-inspiring special effects accompanied by one of the best soundtracks in recent years make this a must watch movie despite the relatively weak plot.
Work Life Balance
Posted: 18th December 2010 by Aditya Mahajan in ThoughtsTags: balance, life, managers, mentality, work life balance
I think work life balance is a must in one’s life and not many bosses in India are able to understand this. I have met and interacted with various people across the industries , be it a Manager or a small shop sales boy, all have complaints for their bosses. I think everybody in the world has something up their mind , for their bosses. But in India this is a real problem to which bosses of even large MNCs are oblivious and just dont want to rectify it.
I have had the pleasure of working in 3 different organizations till now in a total of 5 years. In the first two organizations I found a better work life balance then the current one I work in. I dont know why bosses treat the company’s employees as personal property, while in reality they are colleagues riding the same boat with just different decks to boast of. 🙂
I think its imperative for the Indian management scenario to undergo a paradigm shift towards being more sensitive and understanding to the needs of their employees and not merely concentrate on getting work out of them in every possible way at all possible times.
I personally feel that the employees who work under less pressure ,using their creativity , instead of following mere commands, are more productive than their commanded counterparts. These tension free people voluntarily put more hours in their work due to self interest and not because they have been instructed to do so, turning out to be more productive and thoughtful towards their work and the company in general.
Lets hope some Indian managers read this and think about changing their work styles…..