I read an article about Satyendranath Bose and his contribution to Science, his interaction with Einstein http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open-page/article1073376.ece?service=mobile. The author gives a background about this scientist whose work a hundred years back was acknowledged by Einstein. While we have forgotten about Bose, the author correctly points out that we are more interested in the Sachin's and AR Rehman's, who are acknowledged masters in their own space but whose output is perhaps not as relevant to mankind as that of Bose's. Science drives us forward. While the cricketing prowess of Sachin or the music of Rehman are rather unlikely to make any prominent contribution to mankind.
We now seem to be obsessed with things that don't last long. We hear good reviews about music or fashion that is trendy. Our refrigerators or A/Cs or cars or phones are built to not last. They need a change every 5 years. Gone are the days when we would buy and use a ceiling fan or a radio or a bicycle for a lifetime. Today we want to churn out stuff that is trendy faster.
When I watch TV, I am flooded with advertisements for products that help one to look fairer, handsomer, have long hair, no pimples. Stuff that will change the color of our hair, nails and what not from L'Oreal (of course from Paris, no less) and other brands. Would we use a L'Unreal from Patna?
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