Imperial State Building, New York

 

Imperial State Building, New York

 

New York Central Park

 

Heart Attack

 I was going out of breath on a regular basis after the March of 2023 (when I was on chemotherapy). I was interpreting it as the change in my erythrocyte count (which was small by the way). However, when the chemo was done and my blood became normal again, I was still getting out of breath. Finally, it became very bad in October and I complained to my family doctor.  She suspected a heart attack and directed  me to the hospital. Next day, they did angioplasty on me and inserted three stents. Three of my arteries were almost completely clogged.  Not sure if this was a side effect of the chemotherapy; I suspect it was.

Still another, very old dream

 I had this dream long time ago, but it was so unique, I memorized it.  In the dream, it was a day as usual, and then  I saw something that looked like an alien spacecraft. It was huge and was moving across the sky, very slowly.  The shape  was  gigantic, rectangular and flat  (when seen from the side) . It looked a little bit like a huge  blimp, but it was  flat.  It  also looked completely outlandish, some kind of a wonder of technology, being so huge and flying so low and so slowly.

Then something happened-  the spacecraft hit a building, or a tree, and it started to fall apart! This wonder of technology  broke into many pieces, one by one-  and there was no explosions; it just started to loose parts one by one and finally  fell on the ground.  I did not see any aliens coming out of it. Overall, it looked like a ridiculously complex technology falling apart as a result of a minor accident.

The dream was very visually vivid.

Dreams about HP Corvallis

 I do have a series of repeating dreams about me coming back to Hewlett Packard site in  Corvallis.  Remember being on the site;  the large young crowd of new employees, all in their early thirties, is there. I am also there walking around, but nobody knows who I am and people are mostly ignoring me. I believe I was there already not as an employee, but as a guest, so it felt as being an unwanted visitor/guest nobody cares about.

Another version came out today; I mostly have forgotten it. I do recall being at HP Corvallis when major layoffs were announced; the people are stressed out and not sure what to do next in this small town. This time I was an employee as well and fully shared the fears and confusion of others.

Tropical Storm in San Diego

 Today, the first time in 50 years or so, a tropical storm has reached San Diego. (Hurricane Hilary  was downgraded to a tropical storm when it hit the land). The winds did not hit Ensenada and Tijuana so much; they drifted inland and hit San Diego mountains, including Cuyamaca State Park, Mt. Laguna and Julian.  Remains to be seen how heavy was the impact. We are in San Diego now and it has been raining the whole day, quite hard, but there is no floods. The eye  of the storm is now North from here (it is 8.30 pm). The heavy rain reminds me of Singapore.

8-23 update: the impact in Julian was not so hard; no major winds and about 2-3 inches of rainfall

Still another dream

 I am in Moscow, somewhere in the Moscow State University area, pby the tennis courts (I do not  recall,  were there  tennis courts there? Andrey Rublev is walking by, we talk, he says in a friendly manner, "OK, I will  play with you,  just do not tell Medvedev that I did". The dream breaks here somehow and I do not remember if we actually played or not.

Toyota 4R SRS 2000

 I bought my  4-Runner in 2000, 23 years ago, new. Now it has 221K miles on it. The last 15 years or so it was parked on the street in San Diego.  The car serves me nicely.  There were two accidents: one in about 2002, when the car spun out of control on ice when crossing the  Santiam Pass in Oregon. The car hit the pile of snow and a post on the side of the road and stopped spinning. It had chains on but the road was very slippery. This produced a minor dent in the back of the car. Then, my son was driving at night in 2022 and hit several cars parked on the street. There was some damage here and there (radiator etc), it was all fixed in a body shop. 

 I must say, the reliability of the car is amazing. It is also a 4-wheel drive car; It is now quite essential to drive in our house in Julian during the winter. Never had any problems with it. It is a gas guzzler though, about 15 miles per gallon. 

HP Way Part 3

 Today's thoughts are about why HP way is no more.  Again, my experience is only with HP, but there is Apple, Google, Tesla, Amazon --- each company has its own culture and the way to manage people. 

HP Way was heavily dependent on the constant influx of new products in the product line. This allowed the company to keep their employees busy, be profitable and pay back to employees for their loyalty.  I have no idea how Bill and Dave handled it  before the calculator/printer time.

This is not easy to attain and the management needs to be very technical, and also well connected to the rest of the industrial world and perhaps also to the government and defense (which was the case with Bill and Dave).  This is/was definitely not the case at HP from about 2000 on.

Perhaps it is not even feasible anymore in the US on the hardware side as US is no longer the technology hub. Not sure how the software companies (Microsoft, Google) are handling it.  Thus I was under impression that Microsoft was completely out of ideas of where to go before the Artificial Intelligence Boom. Google seems to be the same way but with some delay.

HP Way Part 2

 Let's now review  some of the flip sides of the HP Way

1. Place HP sites  in small towns with a small engineering school.  This provides a steady flow of fresh out-of-school engineering graduates  who  will stay put for a while, as HP is a pretty much the only employer in town and there is nowhere else to go. 

When the business starts to decline, the engineers in a small town  will need to relocate. It is always painful and sometimes not even possible for many people. This will generate the 'culture of fear ' as the people will become afraid to be laid off. 

2. Pay slightly less than the average pay but provide more job security. 

The argument is lost with the loss of the job security. Then, the people are still paid less `and have no job security. Gradually, the pay as the motivator of a good performance, will disappear as a factor.

3. All the business/engineering decisions at HP are done   by consensus.

This eventually leads to wrong technical decisions, and wrong product lines. The consensus can be reached in an ugly, mediocre product that is   the least disliked by all the parties involved.

4. HP culture, compared to other US companies, is  based on teamwork rather than on the solo work of individuals. 

This eventually leads to the lack of technical leadership. As the result, the brightest minds (such as Steve Wozniak) get in trouble and eventually leave the company.

Hewlett Packard and HP Way

 I worked for Hewlett Packard, Inkjet Division for nearly 22 years.  I am still trying to digest my 22 year experience, all the good and not so good things that happened to me and to other HP employees from 1998 (when I came) to 2020 (when I retired).  Today's topic is HP Way-- the way Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard operated before my time,  and the way this tradition evolved to modern times. The  HP Way is partially written down, and can be found elsewhere.   To put it in one sentence, it is an attempt to treat employees nicely, with the exchange for their increased loyalty. I am sure Dave and Bill were not the only ones who did that or tried to do that in the industry in United States in 1950-1970s. 

A good question is then: where did it go? What happened to it? Why it is no longer there?  (I am sure some people will disagree and say it is still there).  My short answer is that the HP Way  is not translatable to the modern Silicon Valley culture and is not sustainable long term.

Anyway, these are the HP Way principles as written down by Dave Packard.

"The HP Way (c. 1992)

We have trust and respect for individuals

We approach each situation with the belief that people want to do a good job and will do so, given the proper tools and support. We attract highly capable, diverse, innovative people and recognize their efforts and contributions to the company. HP people contribute enthusiastically and share in the success that they make possible.

We focus on a high level of achievement and contribution

Our customers expect HP products and services to be of the highest quality and to provide lasting value. To achieve this, all HP people, especially managers, must be leaders who generate enthusiasm and respond with extra effort to meet customer needs. Techniques and management practices which are effective today may be outdated in the future. For us to remain at the forefront in all our activities, people should always be looking for new and better ways to do their work.

We conduct our business with uncompromising integrity

We expect HP people to be open and honest in their dealings to earn the trust and loyalty of others. People at every level are expected to adhere to the highest standards of business ethics and must understand that anything less is unacceptable. As a practical matter, ethical conduct cannot be assured by written HP policies and codes; it must be an integral part of the organization, a deeply ingrained tradition that is passed from one generation of employees to another.

We achieve our common objectives through teamwork

We recognize that it is only through effective cooperation within and among organisations that we can achieve our goals. Our commitment is to work as a worldwide team to fulfill the expectations of our customers, shareholders and others who depend upon us. The benefits and obligations of doing business are shared among all HP people.

We encourage flexibility and innovation

We create an inclusive work environment which supports the diversity of our people and stimulates innovation. We strive for overall objectives which are clearly stated and agreed upon, and allow people flexibility in working toward goals in ways that they help determine are best for the organization. HP people should personally accept responsibility and be encouraged to upgrade their skills and capabilities through ongoing training and development. This is especially important in a technical business where the rate of progress is rapid and where people are expected to adapt to change."

This is the written part of HP Way, so to say, the 'front end' of it. There is/was also an unwritten part that is deeply engraved in HP culture but is not often  verbalized.

1. Place HP sites  in small towns with a small engineering school.  This provides a steady flow of fresh out-of-school engineering graduates.

2. Pay slightly less than the average pay but provide more job security. 

3. All the business/engineering decisions at HP are done   by consensus.

4. HP culture, compared to other US companies, is  based on teamwork rather than on the solo work of individuals. 

Two thugs fighting

 Somewhere in the middle of a street of  a crowded city  two thugs are fighting each other.  Why are they fighting?  Nobody knows. The crowd yells: 'Hit him in the face! Hit him harder! Show him!  The faces of the thugs are covered with blood. Meanwhile, everybody seems to be in a good spirit: what an entertainment!  Although people occasionally take sides in this fight, they are never serious.  Cultured civilized citizens deeply despise both guys. 

Yes you guessed it right; Russia against Ukraine.

Keith Jarrett vs Dmitry Shostakovich

 More specifically, Koeln Concerto of KJ vs 24 Preludes and Fugues of DS

Both were/are great music pieces; Koeln Concerto (1975) as we all know was an improvisation -on-the-fly.  I was wondering, to which degree the Koeln Concerto was (perhaps subconsciously) affected  by DS's work. It is hard to tell. I know that KJ was very familiar with DS work and performed the 24 Preludes and Fugues later in his life.

All said and done, you can make the case that 24 Preludes and Fugues are much deeper. They were  written after the 2nd World War had ended but Stalin was still  alive.   Still it had a feeling of 'freedom at last' for DS.

Russian Mentality vs European Mentality

 It is not a new thought,  but Russian mentality is devoid of structure, logics,  and organizational  order. Instead, people communicate by emotions. Attention to the tone of the voice and inflections  of grammatical structures of our beautiful language  is very important for us, Russians to understand each other. All the information is conveyed through the  delicate balance of cries and whispers.  The actual logical  content that encapsulates those is irrelevant.  There is no logics in Russian heads, from the peasants to the ruling class and therefore there is no law, in the European sense.

 The history of Russia on 18--20th centuries can be interpreted as the attempt of Russian Monarchy which was partially European to (unsuccessfully) control the Russian beast.

This is why Russian poetry and music is so great.

This is why Russian philosophy is the half-religion and half anarchy and is of a less significance to the rest of the world.

 This is why Russian science of 19-21 centuries  (mathematics, physics, chemistry), despite the major contributions in the past,  is completely foreign to the Russian soul   and will be exterminated or will die out by itself--- as its connection to the military superiority of the country  becomes progressively irrelevant.

Another dream

 Las Vegas, perhaps many years after 2023. A huge luxury condo high rise, very expensive; many floors - 30-40? Each floor had very high ceilings, 4-5 meters, beautifully decorated.  The climate in Las Vegas desert  has changed and it started to rain there, every day, very heavily.   For some reason, the  condo skyscraper  has never  been finished, however, the  people already moved in; at the time of my dream it was about 50% occupied.  The construction company has left for unknown reasons and abandoned the project.  In the same time, the gangs of wild monkeys came to Las Vegas (was it the climate change too? no monkeys are living there now). One of the gangs decided to settle in this condo.  The took all the walkways and stairways; also occupied some of the empty apartments. They also attacked the people randomly.  People had no ability to fight them and eventually barricaded themselves in their apartments, having parties, in decadent style. Every day, monkeys were running around on the stairways and people were partying in their rooms.

Where did the food and water, and other luxury items  for the people come from?  I have no idea.

Dream

 I had a dream that I composed a Broadway-style  musical. I have heard it distinctly, the words, the music and I was listening to it for a while. It was very funny and very politically incorrect, although I do not remember why and how  it was politically incorrect. I am also unsure of the language it was in.

I had composed poetry in my dreams before. Sometimes I was able to remember what I had put together in my dreams-  when I was awoken in the middle of a dream by a sharp noise or by somebody.  Then, in the  awoken state, I always had seen  that the  piece I wrote was not very good, it just sounded good in the dream. With the music however, it was not the case; it was quite good, in absolute terms. 

So, in the very end of my dream I was thinking. oh, it is so politically incorrect.... why  did I do this, I will be in trouble!  Then I  awoke --- Oh what a relief-- it was just a dream! I will not be in trouble!  Then of course I had forgotten the words and the music, so the relief came at a price.

what is left after you (as a scientist)

 Of course we have too many scientists and it is difficult to make a meaningful  contribution.  When I was very young (20-25 years old), I had my PhD defended in 1985 when I was 25.  This is the time when I did the best of my work. Then I started to work in Russian Academy of Sciences and still did some very good work, till about the age of 30. I had a better equipment and analitical tools at my disposal and could do a better experimental chemistry.  Then I spent some time in Lund and did some good work in 1992 - 1993.   Then  I moved to industry and started to work for biotech (1994 - 1998) and then HP (1998 - 2020).   I was very busy and did plenty of applied work.

Here is the frustrating part. Although I was very well paid in industry and worked very hard, whatever I have done there has completely lost its relevance. I was chasing the requirements of the day that always became irrelevant in 2-3 years after. So, a lot of time with the industry, very busy, well paid, nothing is left.

Of course there are patents, but only a small fraction of them is good. 

Life in Time of Cholera

 I remember how I was perplexed by the attitude of German population during the Second World War. After all, the country was engaged in a brutal (yet highly successful) war, with multiple civilian and  military deaths involved-- yet the life in Germany was going as usual--- children were going to school, symphony halls were performing music, etc. Of course the country was covered with the flow of Nazi propaganda, but it should have affected only the non-educated - am I right here? And the deaths mostly happened outside of the country and were not truly visible to civilian Germans --- and the concentration camps were also virtually hidden?  I was able to understand  and accept that the pan-Germanic idea may had had many followers across the board, including the aristocracy, upper class and educated community.

However many of them  knew and they did not do anything?   Why?

I now see exactly the same in Russia. We do nothing.  The children go to school. The stores work. The sports events continue. TV  entertainment is at a full scale.  Again, I can imagine that many members of Russian elite do support the pan-Russian idea.  However, many of them know, and nobody is brave enough to say a word.  Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the ugly reality of the modern world.

Black's Beach-La Jolla

 

Power tools are old man friends!

 I recently discovered how much the construction business has changed with power tools.  

I now have 14 different Makita tools, all powered with 18 volt batteries!

Plus, a Makita vacuum cleaner and a lantern, also powered by 18 volt battery

Plus 2 pneumatic nailers and a compressor, from Makita.

Plus two fancy bit sets, both from Makita.

My life became so much easier! I do not hurt myself anymore, and work much quicker.

Makita tools are addictive. So are Ryobi tools; I have only the high power version of Ryobi that works from 40 Volt  battery, which are:

Edger, chainsaw, trimmer, auger, lawnmower.

War and killing people at a war

 With all the news about the war between Russia and Ukraine,  I see American press  describing it with clearly defined 'good guys' and 'bad guys' in the war.  The death of Ukranians  is mourned; the death of  Russian soldiers is celebrated.   For me both are painful and felt as  completely wrong.  Oh  God when will it stop?   

The peace and reason could also come from outside,  as it happened in Yugoslavia or Cyprus. I hope that the 'bigger superior powers' will put their energy into  stopping the war rather than helping it going.