Francis Bacon

Window Seat 

 Francis Bacon, an English philosopher and statesman, considered as the father of empiricism was born on 22 January 1561. He is known as remembered fo his philosophy of science. He argued that scientific knowledge is obtained after making observations and then utilizing inductive reasoning to interpret the observations. Bacon also argued that controlled scientific experimentation is essential for understanding nature. His call for a systematic "Great Instauration" (renewal of knowledge) laid groundwork for structured scientific inquiry, prioritizing controlled experiments over mere observation.

His famous quote "Knowledge is power" (or Ipsa scientia potestas est), highlighting its utility for life, and emphasizing learning through doubt, observation, and experience over blind belief still resonate.

He died on 9 Apr. 1626. This year happens to be his 400th death anniversary year.

10 Years of Netflix in India

This week Netflix completes 10 years in India. It began its India operations on January 6, 2016. This launch was part of a major global expansion where Netflix became available in over 130 new countries.

The service was launched with subscription plans starting from ?500 per month. While largely offering its global catalog at first, the company soon started investing heavily in local content, with its first Indian original series, Sacred Games, released in 2018.

In ten years, Netflix made a deep impact in the media scene in India.

Netflix was renting out DVDs in the 1990s. It began streaming in 2010, five years after YouTube. Within a short span of time Netflix showcased the possibilities of on-demand, pay -driven streaming that could replace linear television, theatrical releases, and news channels all at the same time. Its success prompted the entry of big tech companies as well as legacy media into the OTT market. The media ecosphere underwent a big change, which also opened the gate for content from several languages across the world to be accessible to everybody. From Korean rom-com to Nordic noir- every genre found viewers. Similarly Indian films, web-series in Indian languages found world-wide audience. AI driven instant dubbing and subtitles helped.

Chand

The January 1926 "Pravasi Issue" of 'Chand' is an example of how a periodical could be used as a transnational political instrument that redefined diaspora identity, created alternative economic networks, and established the template for state-diaspora relations that India uses even today.

Monthly Hindi periodical Chand was launched in 1923 from Allahabad by Ramrakh Singh Saigal. Its early editors included Navjadiklal Srivastav and Dhani Ram 'Prem'. Poet and educator Mahadevi Verma later became a prominent editor of the magazine.

Chand also used to publish cartoons and fine art illustrations.

The January 1926 "Pravasi Issue" of Chand was indeed a special edition edited by Banarasi Das Chaturvedi, a prominent Hindi journalist and activist . The issue focused entirely on the conditions of Indian emigrants (pravasi) and indentured labourers.

This was published during the height of the anti-indenture movement, when nationalists were campaigning to abolish what Gandhi called the "new system of slavery".

Tailpiece: 'Oh my God'!

If we conduct a census of Gods, we would realise that, in our lifetime, while the 'Idol Gods' have multiplied many times over, the 'Nature Gods' have drastically reduced in their numbers. Ironically, many of the Idol Gods also require nature gods such as Trees to take shelter. 

Time to say 'Oh my God'!

(Courtesy: Ranjan Panda)