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WRITEUPS
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◆May 24, 2026
The Accounting Trick That Turns State Failure Into Economic Growth
India is the world's fastest-growing major economy. Part of that growth is your school fees, your hospital bill, and your air purifier. Here is how the design of national accounting quietly rewards the state for failing you.16 MIN◆May 24, 2026
The Accounting Trick That Turns State Failure Into Economic GrowthIndia is the world's fastest-growing major economy. Part of that growth is your school fees, your hospital bill, and your air purifier. Here is how the design of national accounting quietly rewards the state for failing you.
16 MIN◆May 24, 2026
The Linguistics of Putting Women in Their PlaceSERIES
How languages engineer gender hierarchies through vocabulary. A deep investigation into semantic derogation, gendered vocatives in Malayalam, and the feminist movements reclaiming language from the inside out.3 PARTS◆May 24, 2026
The Linguistics of Putting Women in Their PlaceSERIESHow languages engineer gender hierarchies through vocabulary. A deep investigation into semantic derogation, gendered vocatives in Malayalam, and the feminist movements reclaiming language from the inside out.
3 PARTS◆May 23, 2026
Your Boarding Pass Is a Credential. Stop Posting It.
The barcode on a boarding pass contains your passport number, home address, frequent flyer balance, and a precise schedule of when your house will be empty. Here is the full technical breakdown.15 MIN◆May 23, 2026
Your Boarding Pass Is a Credential. Stop Posting It.The barcode on a boarding pass contains your passport number, home address, frequent flyer balance, and a precise schedule of when your house will be empty. Here is the full technical breakdown.
15 MIN◆May 23, 2026
Why Is the Sky White in Kerala but Blue in England?
The physics of why tropical skies look washed out while temperate ones stay deep blue. A story about particles, humidity, and light.9 MIN◆May 23, 2026
Why Is the Sky White in Kerala but Blue in England?The physics of why tropical skies look washed out while temperate ones stay deep blue. A story about particles, humidity, and light.
9 MIN◆May 22, 2026
The $400 Royal Oak That's Changing Everything
AP and Swatch dropped colorful pocket watches for $400 and watch Twitter lost its mind. Here is the full story: the Royal Oak's wild history, the legal crisis nobody talked about, and why this collaboration is smarter than it looks.11 MIN◆May 22, 2026
The $400 Royal Oak That's Changing EverythingAP and Swatch dropped colorful pocket watches for $400 and watch Twitter lost its mind. Here is the full story: the Royal Oak's wild history, the legal crisis nobody talked about, and why this collaboration is smarter than it looks.
11 MIN◆May 21, 2026
The Wheel That Became a God
A chakram is a razor-edged steel ring that Nihang warriors could throw 100 meters at 1500 RPM. The same object, in Hindu cosmology, severs the ego, eclipses the sun, and exists as a conscious deity. The story connecting those two things is stranger than either.14 MIN◆May 21, 2026
The Wheel That Became a GodA chakram is a razor-edged steel ring that Nihang warriors could throw 100 meters at 1500 RPM. The same object, in Hindu cosmology, severs the ego, eclipses the sun, and exists as a conscious deity. The story connecting those two things is stranger than either.
14 MIN◆May 20, 2026
The Calendar Kerala Has Been Keeping Since 825 CE
The Kollam Era is a solar calendar specific to Kerala, in continuous use for over 1,200 years. Its year is not borrowed from any pan-Indian system. It begins every August when the sun enters Leo.5 MIN◆May 20, 2026
The Calendar Kerala Has Been Keeping Since 825 CEThe Kollam Era is a solar calendar specific to Kerala, in continuous use for over 1,200 years. Its year is not borrowed from any pan-Indian system. It begins every August when the sun enters Leo.
5 MIN◆May 19, 2026
The Beautiful Fact That Everything Ends
You have already forgotten most of your life. That might be exactly right. On memory, impermanence, and why endings are not the enemy of meaning.4 MIN◆May 19, 2026
The Beautiful Fact That Everything EndsYou have already forgotten most of your life. That might be exactly right. On memory, impermanence, and why endings are not the enemy of meaning.
4 MIN◆May 18, 2026
On Being Seen: The Ancient Need to Be Witnessed
Why do we take photos of beautiful things we are already looking at? On the ancient need to be seen, what it costs when we are not, and why paying attention is one of the most generous things you can do.5 MIN◆May 18, 2026
On Being Seen: The Ancient Need to Be WitnessedWhy do we take photos of beautiful things we are already looking at? On the ancient need to be seen, what it costs when we are not, and why paying attention is one of the most generous things you can do.
5 MIN◆May 17, 2026
The Gift of Other People's Inner Lives
Marcus Aurelius was anxious and not sure he was doing it right. He wrote it down in 175 AD. You can feel it tonight. On books, music, and the miracle of minds reaching across time.5 MIN◆May 17, 2026
The Gift of Other People's Inner LivesMarcus Aurelius was anxious and not sure he was doing it right. He wrote it down in 175 AD. You can feel it tonight. On books, music, and the miracle of minds reaching across time.
5 MIN◆May 16, 2026
Everything You Are Came From Someone, Nobody is Self-Made
You did not build yourself. The list of people who shaped you without knowing it is longer than the list of people who tried. On invisible architects, and why you are one too.5 MIN◆May 16, 2026
Everything You Are Came From Someone, Nobody is Self-MadeYou did not build yourself. The list of people who shaped you without knowing it is longer than the list of people who tried. On invisible architects, and why you are one too.
5 MIN◆May 15, 2026
Beauty Has No Right to Exist. And Yet Here We Are.
Beauty should not exist. There is no clean evolutionary story for why organised air makes you cry, or why a mathematical proof feels elegant. And yet here we are, a species that decided some things are beautiful. On what that means.6 MIN◆May 15, 2026
Beauty Has No Right to Exist. And Yet Here We Are.Beauty should not exist. There is no clean evolutionary story for why organised air makes you cry, or why a mathematical proof feels elegant. And yet here we are, a species that decided some things are beautiful. On what that means.
6 MIN◆May 14, 2026
We Are Not Made for This World. We Conquered It Anyway.
A love letter to humans. We are not fast, not strong, barely built for this world. And yet we are in every part of it. I am proud of every single one of us.7 MIN◆May 14, 2026
We Are Not Made for This World. We Conquered It Anyway.A love letter to humans. We are not fast, not strong, barely built for this world. And yet we are in every part of it. I am proud of every single one of us.
7 MIN◆May 12, 2026
The Universe Might Be Running on Four If-Statements
How a bored Cambridge mathematician invented a game with four absurdly simple rules, accidentally broke the idea of complexity, and spent the rest of his life regretting it.10 MIN◆May 12, 2026
The Universe Might Be Running on Four If-StatementsHow a bored Cambridge mathematician invented a game with four absurdly simple rules, accidentally broke the idea of complexity, and spent the rest of his life regretting it.
10 MIN◆May 11, 2026
You Should Betray Your Friend. Here's Why You Probably Won't.
Why two perfectly rational people always make the worst possible choice together, and what that reveals about climate, war, and human cooperation.9 MIN◆May 11, 2026
You Should Betray Your Friend. Here's Why You Probably Won't.Why two perfectly rational people always make the worst possible choice together, and what that reveals about climate, war, and human cooperation.
9 MIN◆May 10, 2026
One Sphere, Two Spheres: The Theorem That Broke Geometry
In 1924, two mathematicians proved you can decompose a solid ball into five pieces and reassemble them into two balls of equal size. No stretching. No scaling. Completely rigorous mathematics. Here is how, and why it works.11 MIN◆May 10, 2026
One Sphere, Two Spheres: The Theorem That Broke GeometryIn 1924, two mathematicians proved you can decompose a solid ball into five pieces and reassemble them into two balls of equal size. No stretching. No scaling. Completely rigorous mathematics. Here is how, and why it works.
11 MIN◆May 9, 2026
Position 44: The Card Trick That Does the Maths Itself
Someone picks a card from nine, buries it in the deck, and you deal four chaotic piles counting backwards from ten. The sum of what lands face-up tells you exactly where the card is. Every single time. Here is why the deck has no choice.12 MIN◆May 9, 2026
Position 44: The Card Trick That Does the Maths ItselfSomeone picks a card from nine, buries it in the deck, and you deal four chaotic piles counting backwards from ten. The sum of what lands face-up tells you exactly where the card is. Every single time. Here is why the deck has no choice.
12 MIN◆May 8, 2026
The Pearl on the Crown: Mathematics' Most Dangerous Simple Question
In 1742, Goldbach wrote Euler a letter with an observation so simple a child could understand it. No one has proven it since. Here is the 280-year story of the conjecture, the man who came closest in a boiler room under a kerosene lamp, and what it costs to chase an unprovable truth.20 MIN◆May 8, 2026
The Pearl on the Crown: Mathematics' Most Dangerous Simple QuestionIn 1742, Goldbach wrote Euler a letter with an observation so simple a child could understand it. No one has proven it since. Here is the 280-year story of the conjecture, the man who came closest in a boiler room under a kerosene lamp, and what it costs to chase an unprovable truth.
20 MIN◆May 7, 2026
You Have 60 Seconds: The Physics of Being Tiny
Google used to ask job candidates what they'd do if shrunk to the size of a coin and dropped in a blender. The math says jump out. The physics says you're dead either way. Both answers are wrong for interesting reasons.17 MIN◆May 7, 2026
You Have 60 Seconds: The Physics of Being TinyGoogle used to ask job candidates what they'd do if shrunk to the size of a coin and dropped in a blender. The math says jump out. The physics says you're dead either way. Both answers are wrong for interesting reasons.
17 MIN◆May 6, 2026
The Equation That Deliberately Forgets Everything
A Russian mathematician picked a fight with God in 1906 and accidentally built the mathematical engine behind Google, ChatGPT, nuclear weapons, and card shuffling. The story of Markov chains and the strange power of forgetting.20 MIN◆May 6, 2026
The Equation That Deliberately Forgets EverythingA Russian mathematician picked a fight with God in 1906 and accidentally built the mathematical engine behind Google, ChatGPT, nuclear weapons, and card shuffling. The story of Markov chains and the strange power of forgetting.
20 MIN◆May 5, 2026
The Mouse Utopia That Chose Extinction
In 1968, a scientist built a perfect world for mice: unlimited food, no predators, no disease. The colony was extinct in five years. What Universe 25 reveals about density, identity, and what happens when survival becomes too easy.19 MIN◆May 5, 2026
The Mouse Utopia That Chose ExtinctionIn 1968, a scientist built a perfect world for mice: unlimited food, no predators, no disease. The colony was extinct in five years. What Universe 25 reveals about density, identity, and what happens when survival becomes too easy.
19 MIN◆May 4, 2026
Propaganda, Dopamine, and the Collapse of Reason
How political propaganda, algorithmic manipulation, and neurobiology combine to hijack belief, and what it actually takes to break free.34 MIN◆May 4, 2026
Propaganda, Dopamine, and the Collapse of ReasonHow political propaganda, algorithmic manipulation, and neurobiology combine to hijack belief, and what it actually takes to break free.
34 MIN◆May 3, 2026
Database Normalization, From Chaos to Clean
A step-by-step interactive guide to 1NF, 2NF, 3NF, BCNF, 4NF, and 5NF with real SQL and transforming tables at every stage.15 MIN◆May 3, 2026
Database Normalization, From Chaos to CleanA step-by-step interactive guide to 1NF, 2NF, 3NF, BCNF, 4NF, and 5NF with real SQL and transforming tables at every stage.
15 MIN◆May 2, 2026
The Pharmacy of the World
How India quietly became the source of 40% of America's generic drugs, 60% of the world's vaccines, and one of the most important forces in global healthcare. A fifty-year story of bold laws, brilliant scientists, and one audacious phone call.13 MIN◆May 2, 2026
The Pharmacy of the WorldHow India quietly became the source of 40% of America's generic drugs, 60% of the world's vaccines, and one of the most important forces in global healthcare. A fifty-year story of bold laws, brilliant scientists, and one audacious phone call.
13 MIN◆May 1, 2026
Why You Dream Big and Do Absolutely Nothing
A deep look at the real neuroscience and psychology behind why ambitious people consistently fail to act on their own ambitions. Hint: it is not laziness.14 MIN◆May 1, 2026
Why You Dream Big and Do Absolutely NothingA deep look at the real neuroscience and psychology behind why ambitious people consistently fail to act on their own ambitions. Hint: it is not laziness.
14 MIN◆May 1, 2026
Your TV Is Taking Screenshots. Here Is Exactly What That Means.
The smart television sitting in your living room is a continuous surveillance device. This is how it works, which brands do it, what they earn from it, and how to make it stop.20 MIN◆May 1, 2026
Your TV Is Taking Screenshots. Here Is Exactly What That Means.The smart television sitting in your living room is a continuous surveillance device. This is how it works, which brands do it, what they earn from it, and how to make it stop.
20 MIN// APRIL 2026
◆Apr 30, 2026
The Country That Got Lucky With Two Letters
In 1995, a bureaucrat assigned the internet suffix .ai to a tiny Caribbean island. Nobody cared. Then ChatGPT launched. Now Anguilla is abolishing taxes.17 MIN◆Apr 30, 2026
The Country That Got Lucky With Two LettersIn 1995, a bureaucrat assigned the internet suffix .ai to a tiny Caribbean island. Nobody cared. Then ChatGPT launched. Now Anguilla is abolishing taxes.
17 MIN◆Apr 30, 2026
How Your Wi-Fi Can See Through Walls
The Wi-Fi router sitting in your living room can, with the right software, detect your presence, track your movements, estimate your body pose, and identify who you are. No camera, no sensors on your body, and it works through solid walls. Here is exactly how that works, and what you can do about it.26 MIN◆Apr 30, 2026
How Your Wi-Fi Can See Through WallsThe Wi-Fi router sitting in your living room can, with the right software, detect your presence, track your movements, estimate your body pose, and identify who you are. No camera, no sensors on your body, and it works through solid walls. Here is exactly how that works, and what you can do about it.
26 MIN◆Apr 29, 2026
A River Runs Through This Website
There is a river in the footer of this website. Literally. Here is what it is, where it comes from, and why I put it there.4 MIN◆Apr 29, 2026
A River Runs Through This WebsiteThere is a river in the footer of this website. Literally. Here is what it is, where it comes from, and why I put it there.
4 MIN◆Apr 28, 2026
Why Things Work Badly, Strangely, or Unexpectedly in Modern Life
Modern life is full of things that feel broken but are not, things that feel designed well but were not, and things that were designed for something else entirely and just never left. A philosophical walk through why the world is like this.11 MIN◆Apr 28, 2026
Why Things Work Badly, Strangely, or Unexpectedly in Modern LifeModern life is full of things that feel broken but are not, things that feel designed well but were not, and things that were designed for something else entirely and just never left. A philosophical walk through why the world is like this.
11 MIN◆Apr 27, 2026
The 465 MW Hole Kerala Dug For ItselfSERIES
Kerala's 2026 power crisis starts nine years ago with four contracts, a procedural shortcut, and a regulatory body that decided rules matter more than electricity. Here's how the state lost 465 MW of cheap baseload power and then spent two years failing to get it back.3 PARTS◆Apr 27, 2026
The 465 MW Hole Kerala Dug For ItselfSERIESKerala's 2026 power crisis starts nine years ago with four contracts, a procedural shortcut, and a regulatory body that decided rules matter more than electricity. Here's how the state lost 465 MW of cheap baseload power and then spent two years failing to get it back.
3 PARTS◆Apr 26, 2026
Why Different AI Models Excel at Different Tasks
Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, and Perplexity all feel meaningfully different to use, and that is not random. Their architectures, training data, and system-level design push them toward genuinely different strengths. Here is what is actually going on under the hood.11 MIN◆Apr 26, 2026
Why Different AI Models Excel at Different TasksClaude, ChatGPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, and Perplexity all feel meaningfully different to use, and that is not random. Their architectures, training data, and system-level design push them toward genuinely different strengths. Here is what is actually going on under the hood.
11 MIN◆Apr 24, 2026
All Of This I Did, Without You
Gerald Durrell's love letter to Lee McGeorge, July 31st 1978. I first heard it read by Tom Hiddleston in LettersLive and have not stopped thinking about it since.9 MIN◆Apr 24, 2026
All Of This I Did, Without YouGerald Durrell's love letter to Lee McGeorge, July 31st 1978. I first heard it read by Tom Hiddleston in LettersLive and have not stopped thinking about it since.
9 MIN◆Apr 21, 2026
Probably Means Something Different to Everyone
A phrase like 'unlikely' can mean 10% to one person and 35% to another. This gap has been documented in CIA memos, medical guidelines, and climate reports for over sixty years. The data is stranger and more consequential than you might expect.10 MIN◆Apr 21, 2026
Probably Means Something Different to EveryoneA phrase like 'unlikely' can mean 10% to one person and 35% to another. This gap has been documented in CIA memos, medical guidelines, and climate reports for over sixty years. The data is stranger and more consequential than you might expect.
10 MIN◆Apr 20, 2026
Adding Typefaces to Render Beautiful Malayalam Ligatures
All seven Malayalam fonts available on this site, with live previews. Six are from the Rachana Institute of Typography.1 MIN◆Apr 20, 2026
Adding Typefaces to Render Beautiful Malayalam LigaturesAll seven Malayalam fonts available on this site, with live previews. Six are from the Rachana Institute of Typography.
1 MIN◆Apr 19, 2026
Building a Personal Archive for the Language I Think In
The old proverbs, the quirky observations, the things that only make sense if you've lived in Kerala. A place to keep them before they expire.3 MIN◆Apr 19, 2026
Building a Personal Archive for the Language I Think InThe old proverbs, the quirky observations, the things that only make sense if you've lived in Kerala. A place to keep them before they expire.
3 MIN◆Apr 19, 2026
Your Zodiac Sign is not What You Think It Is
On tropical and sidereal zodiacs, Earth's 26,000-year wobble, and how the Malayalam calendar and Western astrology quietly drifted apart from each other.9 MIN◆Apr 19, 2026
Your Zodiac Sign is not What You Think It IsOn tropical and sidereal zodiacs, Earth's 26,000-year wobble, and how the Malayalam calendar and Western astrology quietly drifted apart from each other.
9 MIN◆Apr 17, 2026
The Struggle Is Real, and That's the Point
Ben Horowitz wrote the leadership book I wish existed before I ever had to make a hard call. Notes on The Struggle, radical honesty, and why protecting your team from bad news is the worst thing you can do.6 MIN◆Apr 17, 2026
The Struggle Is Real, and That's the PointBen Horowitz wrote the leadership book I wish existed before I ever had to make a hard call. Notes on The Struggle, radical honesty, and why protecting your team from bad news is the worst thing you can do.
6 MIN◆Apr 14, 2026
The Court That Proved the Textbook Right
India's Supreme Court banned an NCERT civics chapter for saying the judiciary can be corrupt. The chapter quoted their own sitting Chief Justice. What followed made the chapter's point better than the chapter ever could.9 MIN◆Apr 14, 2026
The Court That Proved the Textbook RightIndia's Supreme Court banned an NCERT civics chapter for saying the judiciary can be corrupt. The chapter quoted their own sitting Chief Justice. What followed made the chapter's point better than the chapter ever could.
9 MIN◆Apr 11, 2026
How India's North-South Divide Was BuiltSERIES
The North-South divide isn't geography. It's the result of colonial land systems, a disastrous freight policy, and radically different bets on human capital. Here's how two Indias were made.3 PARTS◆Apr 11, 2026
How India's North-South Divide Was BuiltSERIESThe North-South divide isn't geography. It's the result of colonial land systems, a disastrous freight policy, and radically different bets on human capital. Here's how two Indias were made.
3 PARTS◆Apr 10, 2026
My Friend Wrote About Love and Language
Yahvi compared love to language , how it evolves, gets forgotten, and takes on dialects over time. Here's what that made me realise about the people I've lost fluency in.7 MIN◆Apr 10, 2026
My Friend Wrote About Love and LanguageYahvi compared love to language , how it evolves, gets forgotten, and takes on dialects over time. Here's what that made me realise about the people I've lost fluency in.
7 MIN// MARCH 2026
◆Mar 26, 2026
Kerala Assembly Election 2026 InsightsSERIES
A quick breakdown of how I built my Kerala election reference tool, what the model uses, and where it can be wrong.3 PARTS◆Mar 26, 2026
Kerala Assembly Election 2026 InsightsSERIESA quick breakdown of how I built my Kerala election reference tool, what the model uses, and where it can be wrong.
3 PARTS◆Mar 7, 2026
Be Delusional, What If It Actually Works Out!
A short note on useful delusion, public embarrassment, and why betting on yourself is often less ridiculous than it looks.3 MIN◆Mar 7, 2026
Be Delusional, What If It Actually Works Out!A short note on useful delusion, public embarrassment, and why betting on yourself is often less ridiculous than it looks.
3 MIN