When a classic poem works it transports us into the past. One can almost 'be there' with the poet and, in a sense, feel their feelings and see what they see.

The following selections recently caught my eye.

They're all in English translation and some may say that's a shortcoming but if a passage speaks to a reader, it's a moot point whether translated verse if 'legit' or not.

One could say that translated texts are part of the Big Picture and previous versions in other languages are not necessarily of greater value.

Some scholars and so-called cultured folk might be too intellectually regimented to appreciate this perspective. They might also be unaware of postmodern theories about language, specifically, ideas of connotation and endless chains of signification--i.e. open-ended meanings which depend in large part on the reader.

And here theologians could add another factor influencing perceived or interpreted meanings of a text, this being the indwelling of the numinous.

While some traditional scholars dogmatically insist on the importance of original languages, we would also do well to remember that language prowess has been used by unscrupulous elites for centuries to oppress the so-called 'great unwashed' and marginalize individuals perceived as a threat to prevailing power structures, be these religious, regal or scholastic.

Arrogant linguists call to mind an image of technicians working on the space shuttle. They do a specialized job and must do it well. But it takes an altogether different kind of expert to actually fly a shuttle mission.

This kind of analogy, however, only takes us so far.

First of all, a great number of linguists are humble, innovative and use their abilities honorably. Sincerely delighting in the subtle nuances of different languages, such persons have a wonderful gift and developed ability.¹

Moreover, just about any interested reader might 'travel,' if you will, through space and time via translated verse, not just a specialized few as with the shuttle analogy.

The writers highlighted below are no strangers to the arrogance of second-rate thinkers and, more generally, to the bright and dark colors of existence.

Ancient and medieval people knew all about war, intrigue, betrayal, poverty and broken hearts. But amidst all that, their hearts yearned for goodness and beauty. And their perception of life often brought profound insights into the nature of time, eternity and the human self.

Part I

From the Meditations of Ma'arri al-Ma'arri, circa 973-1057 CE

In the casket of the Hours
Events deep-hid.
Wait on their guardian Powers
To raise the lid.

And the Maker infinite,
Whose poem is Time,
He need not weave in it
A forced stale rhyme

The Nights pass so,
Voices dumb,
Without sense quick or slow
Of what shall come.

* * *

From the Shakuntala Kálidása, circa 5th century CE

It is natural that the first sight of the King's capital
should affect you in this manner;
my own sensations are very similar.
As one just bathed beholds the man polluted;
As one late purified, the yet impure:-
As one awake looks on the yet unawakened;
Or as the freeman gazes on the thrall,
So I regard this crowd of pleasure-seekers.

* * *

Yakamochi from the Manyo Shu, compiled 760 CE

[These] meetings in dreams,
How sad they are!
When, waking up startled
One gropes about,-
And there is no contact to the hand.

* * *

The Priest Hakutsū from the Manyo Shu, circa 704 CE

O pine-tree standing
At the [side of] the stone house,
When I look at you,
It is like seeing face to face
The men of old time.

* * *

Looking in the Lake Po Chu-I, 772-846 CE

I look at my shadow over and over in the lake;
I see no white face, only the white hair,
I have lost my youth, and shall never find it again.
Unless to stir the lake-water!

* * *

The Girls of Yueh Li Po, 701?-762 CE

The jade faces of the girls on Yueh Stream,
Their dusky brows, their red skirts,
Each wearing a pair of golden spiked sandals-
O, their feet are white like frost.

* * *

The Girl of Yueh Li Po

She is gathering lotos-seed in the river of Yueh.
While singing, she sees a stranger and turns around;
Then she smiles and hides among the lotos-leaves,
Pretending to be overcome by shyness.

* * *

A Song of War Li Po

Before the Peak of Returning Joy the sand was like snow,
Outside the surrendered city the moon was like frost.
I do not know who blew the horns at night,
But all night long the boys looked towards their homes.

Selections in Part I from A Treasury of Asian Literature, ed. John D. Yohannan. New York: Meridian, 1984.

Part II

A Simple Rustic You Seemed Wu-Chi Liu from the Book of Poetry, 10th to 6th centuries BCE

Three years I was your wife,
I never tired of household chores.
Early I rose and late I went to bed;
Not a morning was I without work.
First you found fault with me,
Then treated me with violence.
My brothers, not knowing this,
Jeered and laughed at me.
Quietly I brooded over it
And myself I pity.

* * *

Tales of Ise Collection from unknown Japanese authors, 10th century

Priestess at shrine:

Did you come here?
Or did I go to you?
I cannot recall,
was it a dream or was it real?
Was I awake or was I asleep?

Young man:

In utter darkness
my heart is clouded
and I am lost.
Was it dream or was it real?
You will have to decide.

* * *

I'd like to include one modern selection from a Pakistani poet-philosopher:

The Caravan Bell Muhammad Iqbal 1877-1938*

In bondage life shrinks to a rivulet;
in freedom, a boundless ocean.

Selections in Part II (adapted*) from Great Literature of the Eastern World, ed. Ian P. McGreal. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.

Part III

Within countless compendiums of Asian literature, standing out are Han-Shan's Cold Mountain poems.

Han-Shan was a wanderer during the Tang Dynasty, 627-650 CE. Gary Snyder says "he is a mountain madman in an old Chinese line of ragged hermits." But Lu Ch'iu-yin sketches a more reasonable picture by saying "No one knows just what sort of man Han-Shan was."

Living at a place called Cold Mountain, he was known to appear at Kuo-ch'ing temple, where one of the local monks fed him scraps of food concealed in a bamboo tube. Once when other monks approached him, Han-Shan apparently stopped, clapped his hands and laughed, leaving behind the "Ha Ha" phrase that he's become known for.

Beat generation writers like Jack Kerouac picked up on his verse, as did hippies and seekers of the 1970s.

One can't help but wonder if several of his ideas might help to understand at least some of the street people of the 21st century. It's highly doubtful that all street persons are spiritually achieved with happy, meaningful lives. But might some be? And, for that matter, was Han-Shan?

If the following selections are of interest, the entire collection found in Literature of the Eastern World, ed. Leo B. Kneer. Glenview, Ill.: Scott, Foresman and Co., 1970 is highly recommended.

7

I settled at Cold Mountain long ago,
Already it seems like years and years.
Freely drifting, I prowl the woods and streams
And linger watching things in themselves.
Men don't get this far into the mountains,
White clouds gather and billow,
Thin grass does for a mattress,
The blue sky makes a good quilt.
Happy with a stone underhead
Let heaven and earth go about their changes.

19

Once at Cold Mountain, troubles cease-
No more tangled, hung-up mind.
I idly scribble poems on the rock cliff,
Taking whatever comes, like a drifting boat.

24

When men see Han-Shan
They all say he's crazy
And not much to look at-
Dressed in rags and hides.
They don't get what I say
& I don't talk their language.
All I can say to those I meet:
"Try and make it to Cold Mountain."

Additional selections are to follow in due course. In the meantime, don't miss this excellent link on Asian Literature Resources.

Notes

1. One could argue that words in any language carry a kind of numinous potential, however great or small. For example, consider the English word salubrious. One senses its history. It carries not only horizontal" meaning (i.e. potential conceptual connotations) but also "vertical" meaning, that is, it resonates through the ages, through Europe back to its Latin roots. Many - perhaps all - words seem to evoke a kind of spiritual ambience or, if you prefer, extremely subtle mystique. While the horizontal vs. vertical distinction is arbitrary, not unlike the terms "conscious" and "unconscious," it suggests that words in any language hold not only conceptual plurality but also numinous potential. Along these lines Jungians talk about the numinous, transcendent power of standard symbols like the mandala but it's quite possible that all language signifiers carry subtler and more specialized numinous potentials.

"Asian and Middle Eastern Literature - Selections and Reflections" Copyright © Michael W. Clark 2008. All rights reserved.

This weekend we had my parents over.. Nice to have them here again. The kids got birthday presents from my brother and sister (and their families). =)

So now starts a new week for us. You know here in Israel Sunday is like a Monday.. which means weekend is over.. back to work - back to school etc. Tomorrow morning we are going to take the kids to the dentist for the first time.. just a general checkup.
Tomorrow evening I have to hand in a paper for the University.. I should get started.. didn't start to write it yet.. though I know more or less what to write.

This coming week I'll have to be more organized. I have a lot to do now since school started again. But I also think this week will be easier. Last week the kids were at kindergarten only for a couple of hours the first days. This week they will be there more.

What's new?

...I hear you ask. I would like to be able to say that I have walked straight into a job in the industry, but like many graduates, this wasn't the case for me. A colleague of mine, Todd Nash, graduated with a first class honours from the journalism degree, and is now a Community Moderator at The Guardian. A huge congratulations to him, he definitely deserved it.

As for myself, I have had a few interviews in London, but all of them to no avail. I missed out on one job because of putting a decimal point in the wrong place, such is the fine line between success and failure.

I even turned down an interview due to the fact I couldn't relocate to another part of the country on a low wage - I'm hoping that isn't a decision I will regret this time next year.

I'm finding searching for the right job difficult. I tailor my application for several jobs to make it unique to the position I am applying for, and explain why I think I'm suited for the role, yet still, the lack of response is amazing.

In other news:

There is some positive news to relay, however. I recently won the Trinity Mirror 'Online Journalism Student of the Year' award. I was very surprised when I found out I had won this award, and I'm sure this came across in the dinner I recently had with Marc Reeves, Joanna Geary, and Paul Bradshaw.

It's been a while since I've done some networking, both on and offline - and it was even more refreshing to hear how the guys got into the industry. Jo said she had had several setbacks before she got the right job, but it was all worth it in the end.

Marc even filmed a short video from his mobile of part of our discussion, no doubt that will turn up online soon.

I'm afraid that's all for now folks. Guess I have to keep ploughing on, and hopefully there will be a light at the end of the long tunnel that is employment after graduating.

I'm not giving up just yet.

Here goes: First of all, I currently live in London and have recently started interning for Summer at an International Independent Fashion Magazine (Two guesses which one?) So far I have gleaned some pretty interesting info and I felt the need to spill.  Of course, I could just keep my own diary but that wouldn't be half as much fun now, would it?

Secondly, I am also a student at London College of Fashion, which is definitely worth it -  if only for that first foot in the door.

So for now I'm going to organize my new gossip so as to really make the most of it...I'm thinking salacious stories of the fashion world backstage.  Excitement!

Una inmensa catedral blanca símbolo del eclecticismo enfrentada a un infinito bloque gris soviético con incontables ventanucos negros puede ser la imagen que mejor describa Kaunas. Todo ello rodeado de casitas que llegan hasta donde no lo hace la vista, todas ellas con las fachadas desconchadas pero coloridas. La calle principal llena de árboles, tiendas y fuentes, al estilo occidental desemboca en más callejuelas estrechas y austeras llenas simplemente de gatos, algún que otro solitario y paredes revestidas de historia. Estas a su vez, desembocan en lo que viene a ser el epicentro del capitalismo en Kaunas, el Akropolis, un imponente centro comercial laberíntico donde incluso Inditex tiene su sede lituana.

El constante contraste también está presente en las gentes que caminan por la ciudad, los más viejos con su pasado soviético a cuestas, y los más jóvenes triunfantes de poder vivir en uno de los países con mayor crecimiento económico, pero ninguno de los dos haciendo alarde de un carácter demasiado simpático. En sus entrañas, el lituano parece encerrar una mezcla de ruso y algo del latín y fluye como de si una bandada de pájaros gritando se tratara. Imposible hablar inglés, por ejemplo, en una frutería, y ni siquiera en la recepción de la residencia, donde a la amable señora de las llaves siempre hay que decir simplemente que sí -"teip, teip, teip"- porque no habla una palabra de inglés y nosotros, nada entendible en lituano. Ni siquiera en el acto de presentación del curso de la universidad, donde las únicas palabras en inglés fueron tres: Welcome erasmus estudents.

Los jóvenes lituanos aparcan su fachada de carácter agrio en casa para ensayar escenas dantescas en los bares, cuanto menos surrealistas, y cuanto menos graciosas. Robertas, el simpático amante de los extranjeros, nos pudo enseñar la primera noche que tras la fachada gélida, los lituanos se esconden la hospitalidad, pero la tienen, tal vez en el mismo sitio donde él se guardaba una botella de vodka que se bebió de un trago, y rematando la jugada con una frase digna de recordar para contar a los nietos: "No intentéis hacer esto, no sois de Europa del Este".

Además, las calles están empedradas, hay obras en todas partes y hasta ahora sólo un ascensor de los que hemos conocido funciona. Las señoras mayores son inmunes al frío y colocan sus puestos de frutas y verduras en las calles, la mayoría de la gente va en bicicleta y Penelope Cruz está en todos los carteles habidos y por haber de Lituania. El animal más tipico de aquí es la avispa y el tiempo no es tan frío. Además, los residentes lituanos roban frigoríficos a los erasmus mientras ellos duermen y sus compañeras turcas, aun estando despiertas, no hacen nada por evitarlo. Al anochecer una incontable bandada de cuervos - que seguro en su día inspiró alguna leyenda lituana- es la encargada de esconder el sol, y teñir el cielo de negro.

anyway, another week has just flown by. it's the fifth one into the new semester. and i must say i had a much easier time this week, because i didn't get an assignment for Spectrum TV. but apparently Jess and i have been assigned to cover an upcoming sex exhibition on campus. uh? ... according to Philip at least. and we have a new mentor, yay.

my Thursday was pretty fun. had lunch with Jerry after a short meeting with Rikesh and Tehpeng re: our 252 group presentation on tourism and culture. xD; ... so, we were all hungry, and it was obvious our hearts were not in the discussion after a while. not to mention we keep losing our train of thought and semi-digressing. anyway, met a friend of Jerry's at The Quad, Carissa, who's an exchange student from Hong Kong. we had a nice chat over lunch. (:

i decided to take some time off to go thrifting! my first thrifting experience, and i decided to head to the only store i knew how to get to. the Salvation Army family thrift store at Potong Pasir, near my old secondary school. oh, the memories. xD ... i was somewhat disillusioned. then again, thank god i didn't expect much. the stuff there wasn't cheap at all. the vintage bags in decent condition were like $50. ): i couldn't see myself getting much mileage out of the clothes on the racks either. i left empty-handed. and so in the end, the adventure wasn't that long after all. it was only an hour of detour from my usual ride home. (:

Thursday night, i spent, trying to catch up with my 207 readings. i hate backlogging for that one, because of the possibility of pop quizzes anytime. well, maybe not for this week. but the truth is, i actually do very much enjoy reading the Ev Rogers' book prescribed for this course. but recent chapters have been absurdly long. like, almost 40 pages on printed A4, and thus, probably 80 in book-page form. i'm currently trying to finish the chapter on Lazarsfeld and doubling back on the Chicago School before proceeding with chapter 8. 

i can't begin to talk about my Linguistics readings. ): and for 252. i need to prepare for my Linguistic tutorials in the coming week, so i'd better read fast. truthfully, the only module that i have not been missing out on regular readings, is for 257. then again, those chapters in the Media Effects textbook have been of manageable length and suitable for a single read. 

Friday, after 207 and the Paparazzi team photo shoot, i went for brunch with my default group of friends. (: afterward, hung with Zi Jie on my favorite third level bench in school. Stanley and Clement came by to join us subsequently. Stanley and i were actually hanging around in school, waiting (thankfully not in vain, in the end) uncertainly for confirmation of our appointment with Dr S. in the meantime, i rushed to finish citing and creating an annotated bibliography for our research project; and looking for full texts of articles which abstracts i had on hand. which was why i didn't get to talk much to Mint on MSN. ):

Philip passed me FCP to install on my Mac. but told me i had to find a serial number to complete the installation, on my own. because my Mac is not defended against spyware, i decided against it in the end. which is truly depressing, because it'd have made my life a thousand times easier, if only i could do the editing for Spectrum on my own computer. met Jess and my new mentor though. (:

Dr D passed by the bench at one point when the others went off for class, and we had a short conversation about his class. i also bumped into Carissa again who invited me to join the focus group discussion she was holding next Tuesday, which i couldn't make. also had a small chat with Rachel. then i realized i was getting distracted, and i decided to move to the lab where it was quieter, to join Stanley. 

our meeting with Dr S went well. he suggested we meet during the week of mid-semester break rather than two weeks from now. which is scary midterms week. he asked us how many midterms we had to sit for, other than his. and i didn't answer, because i really couldn't recall at that moment. i think only all of my CS modules. as for Linguistics, usually the quizzes are just before finals. fingers crossed. 

anyway, it really felt that we were going somewhere, and ideas were coming. he gave us a book, and a hard-copy reading, in addition to new links. it's really to get us to know the topic we're studying so we know what we're talking about. but i can't help feeling a little flustered when it comes to reading all that in addition to all i have to catch up on already. 

right now, my entries span two blogs: this and &insomnia; which Jinhe surprised me when she told me she read/s it. heh, i usually post there more often during the week, because i deliberately made its format much quicker/easier/convenient for me to dump a new post about what i am doing/feeling. or just about random stuff i have been mulling over. 

besides readings for school, i've been surfing online stuff and reading miscellaneous things a fair bit. like Chictopia and other blogs on style and fashion. and i stumbled across this godlike artist whose sketches are so amazing. Zi Jie also showed Stanley and i the site of this talented young photographer yesterday. i haven't had time to follow NYT UrbanEye very much though, sadly. and i only wish i had time for new fall titles.

some new songs i've been listening to include iiO's Rapture, which Stanley identified for me after i commented on the background music Dr S was playing while we were in his office during a meeting a few weeks back. apparently, yesterday was Daft Punk. xD; anyway, another would be Cas Haley's take on Sting/The Police's 'Walking On The Moon' during the Chicago auditions of America's Got Talent season two. 

Sting/The Police - 'Walking On The Moon'

Giant steps are what you take
Walking on the moon
I hope my legs don't break
Walking on the moon
We could walk for ever
Walking on the moon
We could live together
Walking on, walking on the moon

Procrastination is without a doubt a bad thing, especially if you push aside important tasks and end up rushing them out in a shoddy manner. When I keep telling myself, there's this and that to do and yet I find myself hanging for an extra hour at the coffee joint, surfing Fabsugar and Forever21 for celebrity gossip and clothes, downloading new music to spice up my playlists, painting my toes and dancing with myself. I haven't been exercising for nearly two months, not that it is showing anywhere, thanks to my blessed high metabolism. I am down with the most common college-kid affliction (not the flu) the procrastination-itis, and there is no cure in sight, except for a little dose of self-discipline and a wakeup call -- which will come in the form of midterms, project deadlines and the finals. But meanwhile, two weeks away from the mid-semester break, it looks like the procrastination bug is here to stay, so I might as well enjoy it while I can.

Anti-procrastination Resolutions:
#1 - Stay away from my weekly dose of primetime television drama until I have completed the tasks I have set for the day.

#2 - Rethink the purpose of my surfing ASOS.com and UrbanOutfitters and downloading the latest hits when I have some really cutthroat competitors in my class to beat.

#3 - Wake up the moment the alarm rings, and go to bed before I am so tired I fall asleep in an awkward position that leaves a crick in my neck and a perpetual numbing sensation in my arm.

So, after spending the entire morning in bed, i finally got up, i packed my laptop up and came downstairs. I wanted to find a place where there were alot of people studying, and so i decided to come to the open area over here at block N. And i am here at the moment typing up this post!!!But im supposed to be studying!!!!lol.....

The condition here at the study place is quite good, its is quite quiet except two men who are supposedly trying to find where to place the switches of a couple of fans.. Other than that, everyone is just minding their own business, except me, im here wid my phone and im taking photos all around me!!!lol...i think people are getting annoyed since everyone is giving me the dirty look!!lol......its hilarious, im here listening to 'teenagers' by my chemical romance, and quite similarly, im here sitting with a bunch of people that match the song exactly¬!!!

So, i have been here at INTI for a week already and i have been to classes already and stuff, but im still not very excited...lol....i mean coming to INTI was exciting and meeting all the people, that was also exciting, but after classes started, everything around me, grounded to a stop, all the fun ended and now all we had to do was to concentrate, focus,and study. Nothing else, at least for me, i have basketball to pass the time, but here in Malaysia, the weather is soooo unpredicatable!!! It has been raining over these few days and to play basketball, we have to dry the court first!!!lol.....Its quite funny watching all the guys walking around the court, newspaper in hand and wiping any part of the court that has water on it.....it is hilarious!!!!lol

After living alone for the last couple of days, here are some points that i summarised....lol

• Never leave you laundry lying there for days. Wash them whenever you get the chance, if there is only a few garments, you can wash with your hands, but if there are alot, you can wash with the washing machine.
• Wash your garments daily, so to avoid piling up , in this way, u wash one or two garments everyday, and thus washing a lot in one week, in this way, you can save the cash that you insert into the washining machine and spend it on sumthing usefull.
• Always arrange your room. I had a couple of scares these days, my room is soooo messed up and so i couldnt find my keys....and i thought i had lost them, so i started a search throughout my room, and ha, i found them under the quilt....which had a huge pile of clothes on it...lol
• Dont annoy your neighbours. They will do the same to you!!! A couple of days back, i had my sound system cranked up and it was pumping out some loud decibels, and then later on, when i switched it off, i heard loud music coming from the room next to me....it was defeaning, so i guessed he must be upset with me...lol.....

Thats just a few, if you want to knw more, just email me anti_foolery_man@hotmail.com....

TC and hope you had fun reading my post!!!

Here are few things worth knowing about the admissions:-

1) The most important criterium that will decide the fate of your application is your academic performance at your undergradauate level. This comes as a surprize to many who believe GRE is everything and that US universities rely on a more "holistic" approach to select students. No they dont. Your academics are given about 80% wieghtage unless you have a solid research experience (which is really rare btw, average performers generally dont get into research jobs). So what's a good performance? While the IIT certainly carries a lot of value, for the non iitian -- Suppose the top performing student has scored 88% and you have scored 75% you have a good chance at top universities. IMO, However you need to apply to 8 top ones of your choice to be sure to get into one.

2) The second important is GRE. Now exactly how important is it? For a science and engineering student, you have to concentrate more on Math. Now I know a lot people end up worrying about verbal but it doesnt carry as much wieght as a perfect 800 in Math. Work on getting a perfect 800 in Math and just about 550 in verbal and you should be fine. I havent seen too much emphasis on analytical wrting. A 4.5 in AWA is good enough most of the time.

3) If you have average academics say between 63-69%, do not aim too high. Sure apply to 4 top universities however chances of you getting through are slim simply because there are too many students for too few places. Your best are tier 2 or even tier 3 universities. However if getting a job in US after MS is your goal then tier 2 universities are not bad at all. Infact some like sjsu and sdsu have a good placement record especially for computer science students. 

4) Do not go to any consellor. They dont know any shit about anything. I mean do NOT go to ANY cousellor.

5) Fork out a little dough and subscribe to US news rankings. Ofcourse I am not suggesting these rankings are perfect, but you will come to know of a lot of schools that you never thought of applying to and you will have access to various admission statistics which will give a good idea of whether or not to apply to a particular school.

6) Do not bank your work experince to make up for that average performance at school. Unless your work is heavily nerdy and reasearch oriented, they dont give a shit about which fancy MNC you are working for.

7) Toefl-ibt is only as much important as the cut off level that each university prescribes on it's website. A very high score say 115 will not give any extra advantage to your profile. A safe score is 100 which should cover most universities.

There's my little bit. Do feel free to comment :-) .

Anyway back to my life, which really should be the focus of this entry since such things don't seem to appear often =P. The pace [of uni] is really picking up, and silently all the work is already right in front of me, be it tutorials, assignments, labs or even group work. Not surprisingly, my pace hasn't adjusted accordingly to meet with this change. So far, I'm [relatively] comfortable with 2 of my mods, namely the stats and the maths, as compared to my other 3 core CS mods. Kinda strange isn't it? Though all 5 of them are core mods, I seem to prefer modules that have somewhat less intimate importance to the major I'm doing. Lol.

Speaking of which, it seems that all my midterms will be closed book except for MA which allows 1 open A4 sheet [for formulae and some tips duh]. That makes it the most challenging semester I have so far. How nice right. Well, the interesting thing is I think there's going to be some nice conflicts for quite some people in a couple of my mods. Of which, one of the midterm's scheduling is rather "brilliant" as it makes all students sit for the midterm during one of the lecture slot timing when the module offers 2 different lecture slots. First time I observe such a thing, but it's the NUS. Anything can happen. =P Woops, I hope I don't get blacklisted because of that. Lol, at least I didn't explicitly name the module, although those folks taking it probably know what I'm talking about.

Outside of school, I just do what I normally do anyway. The usual show-watching, though the rate is noticeably a lot less due to school and lack of holidays. =P Something to note, however, would be that I got myself involved in a handful of upcoming projects as a guest participant. Am really glad to all those who have accepted my contributions and am honoured to be part of the various projects backed by famous people in the community. Of course, I'm referring to combo videos lah. Actually, I have kind of lost track of which ones I've sent and when, since their planning and production phase usually takes quite a number of months. But fear not, I'll be sure to "advertise" it on my blog when they do come out. I can at least be confident that I will be able to spot all those I've participated in, if the videos do actually come out =P Hehe, just trying to make my puny presence a slightly bigger existence in a community filled with lots of talents and professionals. =)

Oh, and I've decided that my next video [volume 10] will probably be just a compilation of all the stuff that have been sent out and used in other videos but were never featured in a video of my own, as well as those that never made it anywhere on the Net. It'll probably be more of a commemorative one for me rather than to show the world. Haha, at the moment there's no concrete plans for specific deadlines but I thought I should "officially" make it a part of my to-do list. Maybe no one will really bother with what I've said in this paragraph but that's quite understandable. Hah.

Enough of that. I know 90% of you reading the above 2 paragraphs probably are not interested in that area. So moving on, I haven't really seen some people in months and months. Perhaps I ought to try to get those people out during the recess week or something. Hopefully they won't end up mugging at home or something. Lolx.

Well, that's about it. There are other things on my mind but it's probably not nice to put them down here. Some things are indeed better left out of places such as a blog. Don't msn the first thing after you read this portion as well. No use one =P Anyway, till then, hopefully all those in uni will concentrate on their studies [yah, I should be doing that instead of asking people to do that], and those who are working will have smooth times in their job and workplace. Take care~ =D

p.s. if you're smart enough, you might be able to make an intelligent guess on what the title might suggest. lol

a) yet completely AlcoholEDU (which must be done by the 8th of September),
b) packed my dorm necessities (and I'm leaving in a week),
c) put all the pre-carpet boxes of stuff back in their appropriate locations (it's been three weeks),
d) visited friends at the local state university despite my month-old promises to do so,
e) studied for the infamously difficult math class that awaits me (my brain has been vacation-ing for so long that I fear that it has deteriorated to half its original size),
f) read the three required summer reading books,
g) decided whether I'm going to audition for chamber music, the symphony, or neither (the audition is on the 22nd),
h) contacted my old violin teacher, which I've been meaning to do for over a month now,
i) written letters to any of my out-of-state friends, despite my promises to keep in touch by post,
j) returned board games to a friend who left them at my house at the beginning of August (but now she's in Boston, so I guess I'll have to wait until Winter Break),
k) lost the pre-college fifteen pounds that are inevitably going to be followed by freshman fifteen, which will then be followed by the holiday weight-gain hell,
l) etc.

In other words, I've been procrastinating. Yay. But really, this is ridiculous. I mean, it's summer! What could I possibly be doing instead of doing any or all of the above? And if I'm already procrastinating now, then what am I going to do when school begins and I can no longer afford to spend so much time dilly-dallying my way through life?

• I have moved in to my dorm room at MSU.
• I no longer work at the Dollar General store in Marion, and I'm unemployed.
• I am a Music Education Major at Murray State University.
• I have met several awesome people.
• I have read and studied a lot on the subject of Tourettes Syndrome, and I'm pretty sure that explains my random tics. (Which are mostly in the shoulders, and neck for me.)

I am really enjoying MSU and the music department here. Even if it is a bit overwhelming. Although I have been very frustrated about my saxophone playing. Hopefully after a few more lessons with Mr. Erickson that problem will be fixed. Or it could just be me feeling inferior to all the other great musicians here.

I have always been told about the amount of work, and determination it takes to be a successful music major. And now I'm starting to understand. Just the amount of homework I have due on Monday is pretty insane. And I am a bit afraid of it. My grades have not been what I have expected to get. So, I must start to kick it up a bit, or to put it as Mr. Fannin says's "Throw down the hammer." There is just so much to do, and so little time to get it done. Today is really the first time I have gotten to rest in my dorm room, and that is only because I am procrastinating till tomorrow.

My new video project has also been on hiatus because I do not have a video camera right now. Which sucks, because I have so many ideas to film. And my saxophone is in the repair shop. The low notes are not sealing off, and something is wrong with the neck, so that is not fun. Well that pretty much wraps everything up for right now.

The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, established in 1949 and named after Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III, the former ruler of Baroda, is one of the premier universities of India and the largest university in the Baroda city. It is popularly known as M.S.University (MSU). It is known throughout Asia for the Faculty of Arts & Fine Arts, for producing good engineers and managers and for research in the areas of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Biotechnology. Originally known as the Baroda College of Science (established 1881), it became a university in 1949 after the independence of the country. It is both a teaching and residential university in the sense that it offers all its courses under a single roof. It is the only university in Gujarat whose medium of instruction is English for all its courses. The university's alumni include Dr. B.R.Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, IG Patel, the former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Chimanbhai Patel, the former Chief Minister of Gujarat, and
The cricketer Kiran More.

Sayajirao was born at Kavlana, 10th March 1863 as Shrimant Gopalrao Gaekwad, second son of Meherban Shrimant Kashirao Bhikajirao [Dada Sahib] Gaekwad. He was selected by the British Government as successor to Maharaja Malharrao Gaekwad and was accordingly adopted by Maharani Jamna Bai, on 27th May 1875. He ascended the gadi (throne) at Baroda, 16th June 1875 but being a minor reigned under a Council of Regency until he came of age and was invested with full ruling powers, 28th December 1881.
During his minority he was extensively tutored in administrative skills by Raja Sir T. Madhava Rao who groomed his young protege into being a ruler with foresight and with a will to provide welfare to his people. In this period Sir T. Madhava Rao restored the State to its normal conditions from the chaos in which it was left by the predecessor of Sayajirao. Not a little credit for what the Maharaja achieved during his life in every sphere of human activity must be given to F. A. H. Elliot. The learning which Sayajirao acquired under Mr. Eliot's able guidance made him a great statesman, educator, and ruler. It is acknowledged that the Maharaja Sayajirao was a prince among the educators and an educator among the princes. He had to undergo such a heavy course of studies that it would have made many a student hate them. But it made him realize his shortcomings and strengthened his determination to acquire more knowledge.
Rule & Modernization
On assuming the reins of Government, some of his first tasks included education of his subjects, uplifting of the downtrodden, judicial, agricultural and social reforms, building a network of railways to connect areas of his dispersed territories. He played a key role in the development of Baroda's textile industry. His educational and social reforms included, along others, ban on child marriage, legislation of divorce, removal of untouchability, spread of education, development of Sanskrit and ideological studies, religious education, encouragement of fine arts. Fully aware of the fact that he was a Maratha ruler of Gujarat, he identified himself with the people and developed their cosmopolitan attitude and progressive, reformist zeal. His rich library became the nucleus of today's Central Library of Baroda with a network of libraries in all the towns and villages in his state. He was the first Indian Ruler to introduce, in 1906, compulsory and free primary education in his State, placing his territory far in advance of contemporary British India.

Heritage & Views
Though a prince of a native state, an admirer of the English people and in many respects of the English rule in India, he jealously guarded his rights and status even at the cost of annoyance to the British Indian Government. He was granted the title of Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, 29th December 1876. He attended the Delhi Durbars of 1877, 1903, 1911. It was at the 1911 Delhi Durbar that Sir Sayajirao did not bow to the King Emperor and this was considered disrespect to the throne by the British who almost derecognised him and he almost lost his throne. Sayajirao was often in conflict with the British on matters of principle and governance, having continuous and longstanding verbal and written disputes with the British Residents.
Public Works

Railways
It was during his reign that a large narrow gauge railway network was set up in Baroda State which even to this day is the largest narrow gauge railway network in the world with Dabhoi at its focal point. Sayajirao envisioned a water supply scheme for Baroda in 1892 at Ajwa which would supply drinking water to the people of Baroda by gravity. To this day a large portion of Vadodara City gets its drinking water from this source.
Parks & Universities
The large public park originally called Kamati Baug and now called Sayaji Baug were his gift to the City of Baroda. On the occasion of his Diamond Jubilee of accession to the throne, he set apart large funds out of his personal as well as the state funds for setting up a University in Baroda for the benefit of students from the rural areas of his state...... a task which was ultimately completed by his grandson Sir Pratapsinghrao Gaekwad who founded the Maharaja Sayajirao University and settled the trust as desired by his grandfather. This Trust known as Sir Sayajirao Diamond Jubilee and Memorial Trust exists today also and caters to the educational and other needs of the people of the former state of Baroda.

Early History of the Idea of a University in Baroda
The idea of establishing a University at Baroda had engaged the attention of the Government of the former State of Baroda and its educational advisers long before the question of regional universities and decentralisation, reorganisation and reconditioning of higher education to suit the cultural educational needs of particular areas had taken root in the country. The concept was first visualized by Dr. Jackson, when, as Principal of the Baroda College in the 1908, he advocated the establishment of a Science Institute at Baroda on an improved and independent basis. It was a consistent policy of the Government of Baroda to subject its educational system to periodical inquiries of a searching nature by educational experts of international fame, as a result of which the first Commission was appointed in 1909. The principal recommendation of that Commission was to expand the activities of the Baroda College by establishing additional chairs in new branches of knowledge. As a result of this policy of chalking out untrodden paths in higher education and thereby evolving a university atmosphere in Baroda, chairs of Comparative Region and Household Science were instituted. Prof. Widgery and Mrs. Strong were appointed to hold these chairs. In 1916, the educational policy of the State was again reviewed. As a part of this inquiry, one of the members of the Commission, Shri S.V.Mukerjea, prepared a minute of recommendations and in his note he definitely advocated the establishment of a University at Baroda. In 1919 the matter was brought to the forefront by the appointment of yet another Committee consisting of the late Principal Clarke, Prof. Widgery and Shri N. K. Dixit, the then Educational Commissioner of the State. The Committee drew up an elaborate report in favour of civic University at Baroda. Thereafter, Prof. P. Sheshadri of the Benares Hindu University was requested to lay out a scheme for a University at Baroda. Prof. Widgery also submitted a scheme for a State University on the lines of the smaller German Universities. During this period , Her Highness Shrimant Maharani Chimnabai Saheb, the Maharani Gaekwad of Baroda, offered a princely donation for running a Women's University at Baroda. But as Sir Manubhai Mehta, the then Dewan of Baroda, pointed out in one of his speeches, "the time was not ripe then for idea to germinate."

Faculties:

Faculty of Fine Arts:
The faculty of fine arts is one of the most well recognised and widely respected faculties all over the world, which has produced notable and world renowned artists. It is considered to tbe the crown jewel in the M.S University. It is ranked in top 3 arts faculties in the world.

Faculty of Performing Arts:
History:
Maharaja Sayajirao Rao Gakewad was also a patron of Indian Classical Music. Ustad Moula Bux founded the Academy of Indian Music under the patronage of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad. This Academy later became the Music College and is now the Faculty of Performing Arts of the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Vadodara. Apart from Ustad Moula Bux, Sayajirao’s Court boasted of great artistes like Ustad Inayat Khan and Ustad Faiyyaz Khan. It was during the reign of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad that the first all India Music Conference was held in 1914 in Baroda.
The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda—a city only two hours by train from Ahmedabad—had started the first dance programme in India in 1950. Over the centuries there had been many alliances and marriages between Baroda’s kings and distant princesses. Dancers were often part of the dowry as dancers, poets and musicians were status symbols for the royal courts and maharajas had as many artists as they could afford. In 1880 the Maharani Laksmi Bai(Chimnabai I) of Tanjore was married to Baroda’s Maharaja Sayajirao III Gopalrao Gaekwad, an enlightened prince who after ascending the throne established the Baroda College as one of his first public acts. It was later absorbed into the university that bears his name. Chimnabai I was knowledgeable in Bharatanatyam and carnatic music, and brought a troupe with her, comprising two dancers, two nattuvanars (leaders of Bharatanatyam concerts), and two teachers (Khandwani 2002). Others followed later: nattuvanar Appaswamy and his dancer wife Kantimati, who had studied with Kannusamy and Vadively, two members of the Tanjore Quartet. After the death of Appaswamy in 1939, Kantimati and their son, Kubernath Tanjorkar, left Baroda to teach in Lucknow, and then worked in film in South India until Maharaja Pratap Singhrao Gaekwad called the Tanjorkar family back to Baroda in 1949, to teach in the Music Department in the Palace Kalavan which was later absorbed into the Maharaja Sayajirao University (Gaston 1996: 158-160).So what we have here is a tradition of very distinguished Bharatanatyam dancers and teachers, members of a family considered an offshoot of the Tanjore Quartet bani (stylistic schools; Gaston 1996: 159), already established in Gujarat by the time Mrinalini sets up her own academy. Yet there is a sense that what she did was not new.

Faculty of Arts:

The Faculty of Arts is famous for its educational procedure as well as its GUMBAZ (THE DOME), which is the second largest.
FACULTY OF ENGLISH: Departmental Library: The Department of English has a library of its own for use by its students and teachers. It is housed in a spacious room having facilities for reading and conference. It has a collection of around 1200 titles representing poetry, fiction and drama, literary criticism and theory, and works on individual authors and texts. The richest sections are on literary criticism and theory, and fiction. Prof. J Birjepatil, who was the Head of the Department of English for many years, has gifted to the Departmental library his entire collection of 860 books. The library has also been receiving gifts from the British Council, the USIS as well as from individuals including members of the teaching staff of this Department. The library has also borrowed some important books from the collection of Smt. Hansa Mehta library of the University for Use by its teachers and research scholars.

Faculty of Commerce:
The faculty of Commerce has four buildings named MAIN, UNIT, GIRLS, and PG building. It has the largest number of students in the whole university. It is the place also known for its fun, masti, fashion and real college enjoyment.

Faculty of Education and Psychology:

The Department of Psychology at the M. S. University of Baroda is one of the oldest and strongest departments in Western India. Since its inception the department has grown tremendously both in the sphere of teaching as well as research. This department is offering specialization in four areas – i.e. Clinical Psychology, Counseling Psychology, Educational Psychology and Industrial Psychology at under graduate and post graduate level. Post graduate students are provided with placement in different corporate and service sector organizations, community guidance centers, mental hospitals, general hospitals, schools, clinics and counseling centers for on-the-job experience to facilitate the practical utility of their theoretical knowledge and give them professional training along with the academic input and training in the department.
The department is associated with number of community outreach programs, such as in the university counseling centre – MARG meant for counseling of students. From time to time the department organizes workshops and seminars. The department has undertaken various functions of teaching as well as research and guidance. A separate guidance and counseling centre catering to the needs of student as well community is attached with the department. The department offers three part time post graduate diplomas namely (1) Human Resource Development (H.R.D.) and, (2) Clinical and Community Psychology (C.C.P.), Applied Hypnosis (C.A.H.). These courses were first of their kinds in the country at the time of launching.

Faculty of Family and Community Science:

Faculty of Family and Community Science is one of the best faculties of the Maharaja Sayaji Rao University. Mostly its a girls' college but boys can also get admission. You can earn five majors in the Home Science faculty. 1) Foods and Nutrition 2) Human Development and Family Studies 3) Clothing and Textile 4) Home Management 5) Extension and Communication
You can do your B.Sc. (home) degree as well as Post Graduation M.Sc. in any of above major or you can also do your graduation with General Home Science which covers all five majors. The faculties are highly educated and experienced in their field. Majority of faculty have Doctorate Degree in their field. Students graduating from the home science are placed in various good industries.

Faculty of Management Studies:
Popularly known as FMS-Baroda, started offering two-year full time MBA course in 1984. Then, eventually, it also started offering three-year MBA Evening Programs for working executive. Current, intake of students for MBA regular program is 40. It offers specialization in Marketing, Finance, Human Resources and Information Systems. Its MBA program has been rated in India's top 30 MBA program by Business India 2000 ranking. It has its own dedicated library and computer lab. It also offers Ph.D. in management for the research scholars. Current Dean of the faculty is Prof. (Dr.) G C Maheshwari. Prior to him, it was headed by Management Guru, Prof. Mayank Dholakiya for more than six years in a row. Prof. Mayank Dholakiya, was known as "Mr First", as he stood first in B Com in his University, then he stood first in Finance stream at IIM-Ahmedabad and again all India first in AICWA exam. He died on July 14, 2006. Other full time faculty members are: Prof. (Dr.) Kiran M Joshi, Prof. (Dr.) Jayraj Jadeja, Dr. Surendra Sundararajan, Dr. Dalpat Sarupria and Dr. Sunita Sharma.

Faculty of Social Work:
Faculty of Social Work at the M.S. University of Baroda was instituted in the year 1949, on 15 March. This is the only institution having the status of the Faculty and third of its kind in the country.
Courses offered Master of Social Work (M.S.W.), Master of Human Resource Management (M.H.R.M.), P.G. Diploma in I.R.P.M.; P.G. Diploma in Hunan Resource Management, P.G. Diploma in Health Management and Interventions; P.G. Diploma in Social Development and Organization Management; P.G. Diploma in Criminology and Correctional Management and Ph.D. in Social Work.
Awards and Scholarships: Post Metric Scholarships for SC, ST and SEBC students is available as per the government norms. Besides these Eklavya Awards for Excellence, Gold Medals for meritorious students and other awards are given to the students for their excellent performance in the examinations.
Other distinguished features
1. It Prepares students for a sophisticated professional career and a sound job in NGOs, G.O. and modern Industrial organizations and social sector.
2. It prepares to be effective, impressive, dynamic, smart person and professional with commitment.
3. Profound academic inputs by experienced staff and practice wisdom induction by field experts.
4. Most up to date infrastructure facilities to make MSW & MHRM education quite interesting and lively.
5. From the day ONE Class-room and field work inputs begin.
6. Effective placement services
7. One to one closed supervised education inputs.
8. off Campus Training
9. Practicum in nationally internationally known industries viz. IOC, GSFC, ABB, IPCL, Alembic etc.
10. Professional Training develops creative leadership and technical skills enabling young professional to face challenges of the new millennium.
11. The Curriculum for this programme is designed to prepare professional for holding managerial positions in HRM-HRD, NGOs, GOs, health, Sectors etc. training functions and enhance their effectiveness as trainers.

Faculty of Journalism and Communication:
It is an inside joke that the Masters in Communication Studies is what you get for spending your time under Bodhi Tree – just outside the Faculty of Journalism.

Faculty of Technology and Engineering:

The Faculty of Technology and Engineering of the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda is one of the best engineering schools in the state of Gujarat. It is housed in Kala Bhavan, the building was supposed to be a temporary palace of the Maharaja of Baroda while his palace was being constructed. Hence is it located exactly opposite to the Laxmi Vilas Palace. The Maharaja donated the palace to open the school of engineering.
Founded by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Baroda as the Kalabhavan Technical Institute in the year 1890 AD the Faculty of Technology and Engineering is also popularly recognised as Techo.
The Kala Bhavan started its activity in 1890 with the modest but novel objective of producing skilled artisans and apprentices by imparting instruction in local language in the following fields:
Civil, Mechanical, and Electrical Engineering,Drawing and Printing, Architecture and Photo engraving, Textile Chemistry including Dyeing, Bleaching, Sizing & Printing, oil and Soap making etc, With the assistance of German experts and foreign trained teacher under the able stewardship of Principal T. K. Gajjar. Other courses on Textile Technology (weaving), Furniture making and Fine Arts were started later. Principal C. H. Vora consolidated these pioneering efforts into a Polytechnic by starting a variety of Diploma and Certificate courses in the above major disciples, with the additional staff, laboratories and buildings. The Polytechnic status with steady development continued until 1949 when the Kalabhavan was converted into the Faculty of Technology and Engineering (with the establishment of The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, following generous donation by the Gaekwads for the University and the New Building of the Institute). From this stage onwards, the Institute developed rapidly recognizing no bounds.
These hectic developments resulting in creation of 15 departments, a workshop, a library and several buildings were possible due to the financial support mainly from UGC and aided by UNDP, USAID and Government agencies and also due to the dedicated efforts by the Institute, Deans and Teachers. Faculty laboratories and departments received massive aid of $1,050,000 for development from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The aid was given to develop infrastructure facilities in the area of Fracture mechanics, Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, Turbojet propulsion and Microprocessor Applications. In 1986, Post Graduate courses on (i) Fracture Mechanics (ii) Irrigation Water Management (iii) Turbojet Propulsion and (iv) Microprocessor Applications were introduced.
Under USAID program, faculty received a massive grant of Rs. 4 crore from Water Resources Department and Narmada Department of Government of Gujarat for development of undergraduate and postgraduate program of Irrigation Water Management in March 1991. Constant efforts are made to update curriculum, improve teaching, enhance infrastructure and laboratory facilities, promote research and establish linkages with the Society and Industries and above all, emphasis on excellence.
Under the Quality Improvement Program of Department of Electronics – now called Ministry of Information Technology, Department of electrical Engineering and Department of Computer Science received electronic equipments, computers and software worth Rs. 200 crores. This project was named as IMPACT project and was for the improvement of laboratory facilities for under graduate degree program. MIT later on partly supported the maintenance of equipments and computers under the sustainability support scheme.
Department of Science and Technology agreed to support to the tune of Rs. 112 lacs to the Pharmacy Department under the MISSION REACH. This project is called TIFAC CORE -- Center of Relevance and Excellence. Under this project, Industrial Partnership is also expected. UGC, under the SAP Program granted DRS – Phase III and COSIST Program to Metallurgical Engineering Department and DRS – Phase I to Pharmacy Department. Pharmacy Department is also likely to become QIP center for M.Pharm. and Ph.D. under AICTE – QIP.
The reputed faculty members leave profound influence by their expertise at the major national & international conferences, seminars and refresher courses and help shape the future trends in technical education. That our Alumni have performed excellently in higher education and in challenging jobs in India and abroad (particularly USA) and have achieved higher key positions, bears testimony to the quality of education imparted. The Institute is always a preferred choice for a student to become and engineer and for the employer to grab its competent engineers for jobs. Thus, it has taken more than a century of dedicated efforts of a few pioneers and visionaries to raise the old KALA BHAVAN to the stature of a mighty technical institute in the forefront of technical education in the service of the nation.

Department of Chemical Engineering:
One Of the Best Chemical Engineering Department of India having very good discipline & reputation in corporate as well as in academics
The Chemical Engineering Department established in 1963, is the oldest as well as the most established department, in the state of Gujarat. It was started to meet the growing need for chemical engineers in Gujarat state, which embarked upon a phenomenal growth of the chemical and petrochemical industries since the sixties. The initial phase of the department was emphasized to meet the demand for chemical engineers in the state and development of the department was geared to train undergraduates in chemical engineering.
The main strength of the department is its experienced and dedicated faculty. The department has good combination of senior highly experienced as well as young energetic/enthusiastic faculty members with postgraduate qualifications. The department strives continuously to orient its academics to cater to the changing outlook of the profession.
It has had interaction with the industries and during the second phase of the growth of the department, two postgraduate courses namely M E (Petrochemical Engineering) and M E (Polymer Technology) were started in 1979 and 1981, respectively.
The Department boasts of a healthy industry institution with a large number of its post graduates working out their research projects in various industries. For research work, the department interacts with various industries: IPCL, GSFC, Deepak Nitrite Ltd., CSMRI, KRIBHCO, Lupin Laboratories, NCL, UOP, Cipla, ONGC, Birla Copper, Reliance, HTRI, Essar, IOC, BPCL, HPCL, TCS, INFOSYS, WIPRO, SATYAM COMP, L&T etc. The Department shares a good rapport with these industries. The department has also undertaken sponsored/collaborative research projects in process development, biotechnology, reaction engineering, modeling and simulation, particularly for polymerization reactors/processes, polymer synthesis and characterization, development of polymer composites and their modifications, etc.
The department has also conducted refresher/condensed courses in chemical engineering for many organizations around Baroda.
The undergraduate and postgraduate students of the department have won many awards and prizes at different national level competitions like paper presentation, technical quiz, problem solving, debates, public speaking, GD's software development, etc. at institutions like IIT-Mumbai, Times of India, MSU Baroda, DDIT-Nadiad, NIT-Ahmedabad, SLIET-Bhatinda, Trivandrum, Hyderabad and other places.

Department of Architecture:
Here is the college provides the architecture course with the lowest fees structure in Asia having the Fantastic & Experienced Faculties to teach the students about the architecture. It’s a 5 year degree course with semester pattern with training in 7 sem. Arc. Uday Shelat is present HOD of architecture.

Faculty of Medicine:
Baroda Medical College.

Faculty of Science:
BCA Programme: - MSU BCA is a 3 year graduation programme that is focused on developing software professionals. In BCA students are trained for desktop applications as well as web applications on various platforms including Microsoft, Java and Open Source platforms. The programming languages taught include C, C++, JAVA, C#, VB, Prolog etc. The students are also trained to use web technologies including HTML, JavaScript, XML, JSP, ASP, AJAX etc. The BCA curriculum gives detailed coverage to Software Engineering, Computer networking, Database technologies, Mathematical skills, Distributed Computing, Computer graphics, Artificial intelligence, Communication skills and so on. BCA curriculum is continuously updated to incorporate latest technologies. Students are required to undertake a part time project of 3 months in 5th semester and a full time 4 months project in their final semester. Students are also involved in international projects with the universities like, The Penn State University (USA) and The East Carolina University.
Faculty of Law
In Gujarat, after GNLU, Maharaja sayajirao University started five years integrated law course, with a tremendous response in 2005. Faculty of Law was established in 1960s and now it is excellent knowledge of law to its students.

Department of Biochemistry:
The KG Naik Department of Biochemistry was established in 1955, under the Chemistry Department, and was headed by Dr. Ramakrishnan. The Department has a glorious history of being the Center for Nutritional Studies, and a long history of international publications and scientific collaborations. This department is recognized worldwide as one of the premier institutes of India and unarguably the best in Western India for education in the emerging field of Biochemistry. The MSU Department of Biochemistry was awarded an excellent status in 2006 by FIST a Government of India accreditation agency. The Department is well known for its teaching and now, is slowly emerging as a center of research as well. It imparts Masters Degree courses in Biochemistry & Medical Biotechnology & boasts of very good research facilities with a force of around 50+ Research students working round the clock. The Biochemistry Department offers courses in enzymology, genetics, molecular biology, neuroscience, plant biochemistry, endocrinology, clinical biochemistry among others. The Department is also conducting active research in many diverse areas like: Bacterial cooperation, polyketide synthase clusture, antibiotic resistance, Apoptosis, phosphate solubilization, nitrogen fixation,probiotics, heavy metal toxicity, Diabetes, Prostrate Cancer, Female Infertility, Endophytes, magnetoliposomes, protein folding, vitiligo etc.
The alumni of the department have traditionally opted for a PhD and a maximum number of them are doing active research in the best labs of the world, while many do go into the industry and start a professional career early.

Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology Centre:
The Microbiology Department was started in 1964, and since 1985-86, it also offers the M.Sc. Biotechnology Course in addition to the master's course in Microbiology. Biotechnology training programme was started with support from NBTB (DBT) and UGC and continues to be very popular, attracting programme among students from all over the country. The backbone of the department is the intellectual rigor provided by a dedicated faculty and students coming from all across the country. By the year 2003, the department had produced 90 PhD’s and a large number of research papers are regularly published in journals of international repute. The alumni of the department now occupy positions of great responsibility in different institutions in India and abroad. The department was funded under DST-FIST I program under which new equipments have been purchased and other infrastructure facilities are being strengthened. In the past department received support from UGC-DRS, UGC-DSA and COSIST programs. The Department has a strong base in Microbial technology and the main focus of the program is on Genetics, Molecular Biology, Industrial Microbiology, Immunology and other contemporary areas allied to Microbiology and Biotechnology. Basic training is given in Microbiology, Biochemistry, Genetics, Developmental Biology, Genetic Engineering, Biochemical Engineering and some aspects of Biophysics, Biostatistics, and Environmental Biology. The broad areas of research in which the department is engaged Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering Microbiology Bioprocess Engineering Immunology, Biophysics

The Department of Economics:
The Department of Economics in the Arts Faculty has given birth to some of the finest economists of the country like Dr. Ravindra Dholakia, Dr. Bakul Dholakia. Upon entering the Department there is the whole list of the PhD holders and most of them are at the top positions academically.
The Geography Department is the biggest department in Gujarat. It has all the facilities and has a museum too. The Department of Archaeology has some of the oldest historic objects and has a large museum.

University Library (Shrimati Hansa Maheta Library):
The University Library Shrimati Hansa Maheta Libraryof M S University of Baroda was established on May1, 1950. At the time of establishment of the M. S. University of Baroda, a collection of 25,000 books belonging to the two State Libraries (Huzur Political Office and Secretariat Library) was handed over to the University Library. There were several colleges in Baroda - Baroda College (for Arts), Science Institute, Commerce College, and Secondary Teacher’s Training College etc. These colleges had libraries of their own. These libraries continued to remain as Faculty Libraries and were administered independently. Thus t he University Library System was established on 1-5-1950, which was housed in the central block of Old Residency Office Building.
Present Status of Library Holding is as following
1. Smt. Hansa Mehta Library: 4, 56,033
2. Sir Sayajirao Memorial Trust (SSMT) Library: 4, 56,033 Combine with H M Library 3. Prof. T. K. Gajjar Library, Faculty of Technology & Engineering.: 1, 12,670
4. Polytechnic Library, Polytechnic College: 41,170
5. Faculty of Fine Arts Library: 11,195
6. Faculty of Management Studies Library. : 5,514
7. M K Amin Arts & Science College and College of Commerce, Padra Library. : 14,750
8. Faculty of Performing Arts Library. : 13,077
9. Faculty of Social Work Library: 13,499
10. Center for Advance Studies in Education (C. A. S. E.) Library: 18,959 11. Oriental Institute Library : 49,347
12. Water Resources Engineering & Management Institute’s (WREMI) Library: 1,983 13. Baroda Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya Library: 5,244
14. Department of Biochemistry Library (Faculty of Science): 789 15. Faculty of Law Library: 7,305
The Library is having SOUL Software made by INFLIBNET, Records Cab be browsed online through Web OPAC

Some of the Respectable Alumni:
• Dr. B. R. Ambedkar,
• Sam Pitroda
• Dr. Bakul Dholakia, Director, IIM Ahmedabad( 2002 - 2007 )
• Mukul Agarwal, MD, Unisys-India
• Rajiv C Mody, Founder Chairman and CEO, Sasken
• Dr. Madhu Mehta, Chief Architect, NirmaLabs
• Dr. Sunil Antani Ex- Vice Chairman, MBNA
• Dr. Anant Agarwal, Founder VP, Sun Microsystems
• Hiten Varia, VP, I2 Technology
• Niru Mehta, Vice Chairman & MD, Avaya GlobalConnect Ltd & MD & VP, Avaya India
• Ajay Shah, President & CEO, SMART Modular Technologies & Managing Partner, Shah Capital Partners
• Amit Shah, V.C., Artiman Ventures
• Vijay P. Bhatkar, Architect of PARAM Supercomputers
• Chinmaya Gharekhan, United Nations Under-Secretary General
• Nagji Patel, World renowned sculptor.
• Vandan S. Naik
• Dhruva Mistry ( world renowned sculptor and artist - known to be the one of the most prominent Contemporary Artist)
• Dr. Divyesh Mehta, Chief Oncology, University of Illinois, Chicago
• H K Desai, Chairman, Qlogic (Nasdaq:QLGC)
• Hargovind Mewada, The Architect of Gandhinagar (Capital city of Gujarat State)
• Shri Amarsinh Chaudhari, Ex-Chief Minister of Gujarat
• Dr. S. K. Khanna, Ex-Chairman AICTE, Ex- Secretary UGC

Website:
http://www.msubaroda.ac.in/
Contact:

Note: These contact detsils are taken from the University Website, misuse of these details is punishable offence. The owner of this blog is not responsible for this.
Vice Chancellor
Prof. Ramesh K Goyal
Phone: +91-265-2795600
Fax : +91-265-2793693
Email : goyalrk@msubaroda.ac.in
Pro Vice Chancellor
Prof. S. M. Joshi
Phone : +91-265-2784662
Fax : +91-265-2793693
Email : pvc@msubaroda.ac.in, sri_smj@yahoo.com
FACULTY OF ARTS
Dean
Prof. R. J. Shah
(O) 2780484/2795340
(R) 2645513
(M) 9904464949
E-Mail: r.j.shah@sify.com
Vice Dean
Prof. P.S Choondawat
(O) 2795340
(R) 2712871
(M) 9427836314
E-Mail: choondawatps@rediffmail.com
FACULTY OF COMMERCE
Dean
Prof. S. K. Singh
(O) 2780014
(R) 2782853
FACULTY OF EDUCATION & PSYCHOLOGY
Dean
Prof. S. Kumar
(O) 2792631
(R) 6595561
E-Mail: satyen1949@yahoo.com
FACULTY OF FINE ARTS
Dean
Prof. Deepak Kannal
(O) 2795520
(M) 9427301001
E-Mail : deepakkannal@yahoo.co.in
FACULTY OF FAMILY & COMMUNITY SCIENCES
Dean
Prof. Prerana Mohite
(O) 2795522 Ext. 21 (R) 3018778
(M) 9825096747
FACULTY OF JOURNALISM & COMMUNICATION
Dean
Prof. S. K. Tewari

(O) 2786529 (R) 2787024
FACULTY OF LAW
Dean
Dr. Maswood Syed
(O) 2795503
(R) 2788374
(M) 9825576713
FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES Dean
Prof. G.C. Maheshwari
(O) 2791179/2784934 (R) 2795315
(M) 9825459279
E-Mail : gcmaheshwari2004@yahoo.com
FACULTY OF MEDICINE
Dean
Dr. S. C. Hotchandani
(O) 2424848 (R) 5531473 (M) 9825321811

Dean, Medical College
Dr. K. J. Pathak
(O) 2421594 (R) 2326993/2311521
FACULTY OF PERFORMING ARTS
Dean
Prof. (Dr.) Mahesh Champaklal
(O) 2410194 (R) 2572683 (M) 9374234574
FACULTY OF SCIENCE
Dean
Prof. A.V. Ramchandran
(O) 2780455/2795329 Ext. 301 (R) 2791898

FACULTY OF SOCIAL WORK
Dean
Prof. Aruna Khasgiwala
(O) 2791411 (R) 2310623 (M) 9426894580 E-Mail: fswmsub@rediff.com

FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING
Dean
Prof. B. S. Parekh
(O) 2434188 Ext. 101 (R) 2433212
(M) 9426760530

FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING
Vice Dean
Prof. S.S. Bhattacharya
(O) 2434188 (R) 2371293
(M) 9898810395

Baroda Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya
Principal
Shri Yogesh B. Oza
(O) 2795511 (R) 2567337

M. K. Amin Arts & Science College & College of Commerce , Padra
Principal
Shri G. S. Patel
(O) 222997/222297
(R) 2781390
POLYTECHNIC
Principal
Shri K.S. Agrawal
(O) 2783914/2783915 (R) 2330124/6590981 (M) 9879110587
E-Mail: ksa1515@yahoo.com
ORIENTAL INSTITUTE
Director
Prof. (Dr.) M.L. Wadekar
(O) 2425121 (R) 2431035 (M) 9427347645 E-Mail: mlwadekar@hotmail.com
Dy. Director
Dr. S.Y.Wakankar
(O) 2425121 (R) 2351189
E-Mail: syw16@rediffmail.com
A.I.C.S TRAINING CENTRE
Hon. Director
Prof. A.V. Ramachandran
(O) 2795517 (R) 2791898
Hon. Dy. Director
Prof. N. Rajaram
(O) 2795517 (R) 2794339
E-Mail: msurajaram@gmail.com

CENTRE FOR CONTINUING/ADULT EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY SERVICES
Director
Dr. J.A. Inamdar
(O) 2795510 (R) 2794017 (M) 9825436921
COMPUTER CENTRE
Hon. Director
Dr. Dhanesh Patel
(O) 2795518 (R) 2333444 (M) 9879335246
UNIVERSITY GUEST HOUSE:
Supervisor (I/c.)
Shri Jayprakash Soni
(CB) 2788687 (M) 9825953666
GENERAL EDUCATION CENTRE (PROF. C.C. MEHTA AUDITORIUM) Advisor
Shri Harish Vyas
(O) 2795530 (R) 2481090 (M) 9824334680
HALLS OF RESIDENCE
Chief Warden(Offg.)
Dr. D.P. Bharambe
(O) 2795508/2794483 (R) 2792839
(M) 9426724359
HEALTH CENTRE
Medical Officer(I/c.)
Dr. K. N. Singlot
(O) 2791616 (M) 9426392888 (R) 2660073
Smt. Hansa Mehta Library
University Librarian (I/c.)
Ms. Jyoti A. Bhatt
(O) 2795338 (R) 2466402
E-Mail: bhattjyoti@indiatimes.com
Sir Sayajirao Memorial Trust Library Dy. Librarian cum Coordinator
Mrs. Varsha J. Mutalik
(O) 2795504 (R) 2782177
E-Mail: nassicmsu@yahoo.co.in
Prof. T. K. Gajjar Library
Asst. Librarian
Smt. Ila M. Maharaja
(O) 2439318/2434186 (R) 2351019
E-Mail: ilamaharaja@indiatimes.com
NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME AND STUDENTS WELFARE DEPARTMENT Program Coordinator N.S.S. (I/c.)
Dr. M.N. Parmar
(O) 2791551 (R) 2480881 (M) 9824064291

NATIONAL CADET CORPS
Group commander

(O) 2787364 (R) 6533481
NCC Group Head Quarters
(O) 6533483
PHYSICAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
Director
Shri Parsottam B. Thumar
(O) 2791745 (R) 2795384
PRESS & STATIONERY UNIT
Manager
Shri P.N. Srivastava
(O) 2433072/2436212 (M) 9825222304
(R) 2773258
E-Mail : pnsrivastava@sancharnet.in
Dy. Manager
Shri S. M. Pattni
(O) 2433072 (R) 2323703

PUBLICATIONS SALES UNIT / JOURNAL OFFICE
Coordinator
Dr. Nikhil Desai
(O) 2795517 (R) 3095294/2355602
WOMENS STUDIES RESEARCH CENTRE
Hon. Director (I/c.)
Dr. Parul Dave Mukherjee
(O) 2792106 (R) 2351323
M. S. UNIVERSITY UNION
President
Dr. P. M. Shah
(O) 2791534 (R) 2334732
Vice - President
Ms. Hiralba Saravaiya
General Secretary
Shri Rupesh Prajapati
Treasurer
Dr. D. G. Rathod
(O) 2791534 (M) 9825592426 (R) 6536890 E-Mail: drdgrathod@yahoo.com

So there you have it.  I am sorry if the size is too big, but Wordpress would not let me put it in a smaller size, so I had to do it by hand.  You can click on them to see better images.  Also, if you know what one of the above unidentified species is, please notify me.  Thanks.