Kush wrote:
That would really help making Indian role models, establish pride in hacking or do it yourself culture. A few things we lack terribly are -- 1 how to work in teams 2 how to resolve conflicts and understand why and how they happen 3 present or communicate properly/intelligibly 4 not sharing information --phenomena of extreme competitiveness (crab mentality) 5 readily acknowledging our peers and 6 making a welcoming environment for newbies or laymen
and I must add that 7 we need to have acknowledgement/acceptance for being different or multidisciplinary (or well rounded). e.g. we never talk about our chaps having interests other than nerdy interests (things like soothing or inspirational music etc specially classical raga or western instrumental etc or gardening as a great hobby for the typical Indian nerd)
Gardening, golf, fishing, trekking, adventure sports, literature, the arts, music, team or individual sports (except cricket) or martial arts--tai chi, yoga, breathing techniques, gourmet food etc etc are generally not associated with typical Indian nerds. Gardening particularly is looked down upon but it has a very therapeutic and balancing effect for a person who is exposed to electromagnetic radiation for hours at a time.
Our research universities etc (except for the IITs, IIMs and older universities etc) do not have the kind of open tranquil space to walk and think, potter around, sing, enjoy or relax as compared to the university campuses in the west which gave researchers enough space in their own living places or bungalows to live comfortably and have other interests.
Our typical nerds are sort of factory assembled or regimented products not being exposed to (or tolerant of ) different streams of knowledge or viewpoints whereas westerners come from all walks of life (lawyers, jurists, artists, finance people, management people, mathematicians, doctors etc etc) into the technical fields now.