Meaning of DERIVATIVES then and now...

13 years back, I was introduced to Calculus. 'Calculus' stands for the 'study of change'. As the term suggests it finds all of its use in Applied Sciences. That makes me confess, given a chance, I would like to re-learn my Physics lessons for the sole reason that the applied part of such topics was never delivered in the right way and like most other science students I developed the theoretical fascination for limits, derivatives and integrals without getting too much into their practical applications.

After graduating and entering into the world of application software development, I had never thought that I will come across these words again.

However, 6 months back I was introduced to DERIVATIVES one more time, albeit in a different context. But this time it was all practical, all real and thus more fascinating.

It’s amazing to know how the use of derivative instruments (derivatives) have revolutionalised the world of finance. Often very famous personalities or much talked about topics/controversies evoke extreme reactions from people. In 2002, Warren Buffet, in the Berkshire Hathaway annual report, termed derivatives as time bombs. He went on saying that these are 'financial weapons of mass destruction'.

On the other hand, Alan Greenspan, then Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York termed the expansion of financial derivatives as the most extraordinary development of the decade. He was certain of the economic value that these instruments provided to their users.

The views expressed by both the extraordinary visionaries have been proved correct. All derivatives are not equally destructive but there have been several derivative disaster stories. At the same time, the derivative market has grown at breakneck speed and several exotic instruments have made their way to the market.

3 days back I came across Hindalco’s annual results. The company has posted a net gain of 711%. Such mind-boggling numbers were due to the profits from currency derivatives.

It is this lure of large gain that some treasurers succumb to and which helps in maintaining the destructive property of these fascinating instruments. Most of the disasters take place because derivatives find their way as speculative instruments questioning the prudence of the risk management policy of firms.

However, the world of finance would never have been the same without them.

Koshish karne walon ki

One of the many gems that we read in school but its real significance
was realized as we stepped out to face the world.

So let's start again with renewed vigour and determination.


लहरों से डर कर नौका पार नहीं होती,
कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती।

नन्हीं चींटी जब दाना लेकर चलती है,
चढ़ती दीवारों पर, सौ बार फिसलती है।
मन का विश्वास रगों में साहस भरता है,
चढ़कर गिरना, गिरकर चढ़ना न अखरता है।
आख़िर उसकी मेहनत बेकार नहीं होती,
कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती।

डुबकियां सिंधु में गोताखोर लगाता है,
जा जा कर खाली हाथ लौटकर आता है।
मिलते नहीं सहज ही मोती गहरे पानी में,
बढ़ता दुगना उत्साह इसी हैरानी में।
मुट्ठी उसकी खाली हर बार नहीं होती,
कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती।

असफलता एक चुनौती है, इसे स्वीकार करो,
क्या कमी रह गई, देखो और सुधार करो।
जब तक न सफल हो, नींद चैन को त्यागो तुम,
संघर्ष का मैदान छोड़ कर मत भागो तुम।
कुछ किये बिना ही जय जय कार नहीं होती,
कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती।

4 years 8 months later...

Sounds like a caption shown in documentaries. Yes, I am here in this blog-world after 56 months. Many things have happened since then. The highlights were: going back to school, incessant traveling, new friends, a different company, one more degree and losing more hair in the process etc.

Were these events, some major others minor, random? Probably I will get some insights once I finish reading my current book by 'Nassim Nicholas Taleb'.

For now, its time to hit the bed!

Tagged

I thank Maverick who tagged me:

5 favourite toys:
Right now the list goes like this - my newly acquired digicam(Pentax optio), my workstation because of which I have a job, cellphone(Nokia 6610i), my cricket bat and a sports watch which I would be purchasing soon :)

5 greatest joys:
Exploring new places, especially historic monuments.
Travelling especially by train.
Playing and watching cricket
without interruption( I hate people who don't know anything but still speak about it).
Reading any interesting stuff.
Being with my family and friends.

5 favourite TV shows:
Ye jo hai zindagi(I don't remember much about it now, but I liked it)
Lifeline
Vyomkesh Bakshi
Tehqiqaat
and recently KBC(No one can match Amitabh, he is the best!)

5 things I would never wear in public:
Skin-tight T-shirts.
Yellow or red shirts.
Unconventional Jeans(e.g white, weird designs etc.)
Anything wrinkled.
Lungi

5 places I would run away to:
My home.
Any hill station.
National Parks like Kanha etc.
Goa(planning to go there in near future)
Egypt, I want to see the pyramids.

5 Things I'd do with $100 million:
Absolutely no idea.

5 Snacks:
Dahi-wada.
Chole-tikki.
Aloo Paratha.
Rasgulla.
Bhindi ki sabji garam garam roti ke saath(this is the best of the lot).

Yesterday:
Just like any other day, little bit more hectic, reached home at 10pm after dinner.
After some gapshap with roomies started reading "Da Vinci Code", slept at 11pm.

1 Year ago:
Hmm, was working in my first company, yes of course S/W, working hard in office and thinking of a job change :)

10 Years ago:
I was in 11th class, enjoying my time, watching and playing cricket and usual time pass with friends.
I really miss those days except the examination part :)

Anybody who is still reading it, I think this is more than enough for today. Wat say?

Rain Predicted...Again!

Not again and definitely not on the weekend!!

The Met Department has predicted heavy rains in Pune and neighboring areas. Looking to road and traffic conditions in Pune no one would feel happy about this. I just hope it doesn't spoil my weekend plans :)

The answer to the question in my previous post goes like this:

The man would go to any of the brothers and ask - "If I ask your brother which way would lead me to safety what will be his reply?" Whatever the answer I get, I will do exactly the opposite.

Back to blogging

It's been a while since I posted anything here.
I was busy with many things, some of them would continue for a while it seems.

Being a die hard cricket fan, I missed writing on something just too exciting: "The Ashes"
I can't recollect any other series so thrilling and nail-biting.

Found this interesting question on a site, try if you can crack it:

There are two roads,one leads to death and one provides a safe passage to destination. Both of these roads are guarded by twin brothers. One of them always speaks the truth while the other exactly the opposite. A man wants to get to his destination safely, how should he decide on which road to travel?

Hoping to be regular at blogging from now on.

Weekend Excursion

Murud Janjira

After many months we finally managed to make a successful trip. This is
one thing about Pune which I admire most, there is no dearth of places
to go around, you just need to plan it right :-)

It was a day full of fun. We started early in the morning at 6 and thankfully we had a sensible driver this time. The drive on the express way was as usual a great experience. The cloud cover and the surrounding green mountains near Lonavala made it more beautiful.

After 3 hours of journey we had the first glimpse of the sea. We stopped at a point where the road was running almost parallel to the sea. It was a rocky beach with lots of shells and colored stones lying here and there. I immediately started picking them like a kid. In between I had to play the role of a more matured individual as I needed to control some friends of mine who were going berserk with their shouts going higher and higher with the waves.

We then stopped at the janjira(see the pic) but almost unanimously decided against going there as the time was running fast. We finally made our final halt at the Kashid beach. Here we spent some 3-4 hours and had a great time.

It was a memorable trip, hope I get a chance to follow it up soon!!

Meanwhile today I am going home, so expect my post after tuesday once I am back in Pune.