Library in Chalmers

I have recently written an e-mail to one of the library personnel in DA-IICT upon his request to tell him how the library at Chalmers is and thought I can share it here :) . It may be grammatically not so correct as I wrote it very fast and didn't do proof reading also. Add suggestions in comments or e-mail me :)

"I like our library better than this one. May be because I am habituated to that library and also we have all books in our book shelves so that we can go and pick up any book we want. Here, there are books which students can see in book shelves but some books are in stack which we are not permitted to go. So, we have to search it in website first and then put a 'Request' to that book and they will place that book near the reception desk of Library.

Inside Chalmers Library.

Some good things which I found it in Chalmers Library are:

• Issue and return of the books can be done via a computer. We need to first select 'Borrow' or 'Return' feature through a touch screen computer. Then place our Library card in a slot provided. Then place the book which we want to have transaction for. While returning, if that book is requested by some one else, we have to keep that in a 'reservation trolley' which is connected to one of these transaction computers. I think this can be implemented in DA-IICT as well. Some students can take up as a project and work it out.
• We will get an e-mail telling that our book which we have ordered is ready for pick-up. We also get e-mail saying that the loan for book which I have borrowed is expiring and 2 other e-mails subsequently which says it's overdue. After few days (they are not telling me the number of days ..just they say as soon as possible) of not returning the book will be fined.
• Two other nice things which I have found it in Sweden library system are: 1)We can issue library cards from other libraries here (Municipal library and also Gothenburg University library) free of charge and can take books from those libraries also. 2) This is one of the most interesting thing which I have found: In http://chans.lib.chalmers.se/search/, there is a 'Other Catalogues' option, where you can search books from all libraries in Sweden. If a book is not in Chalmers library but is present in any other library, we can just order that book through 'Inter Library Loan' request and they will bring that book to us. (I think DA-IICT library is also doing this since once I got a book from IISC when it was not available in DA-IICT library when I was doing BTech project under Prof Vijay Kumar)
• There are silent study rooms inside library. It is not restricted to talk in whole library. Only in these 'silent rooms', it is restricted to talk. There is a small restaurant at the entrance of the library. There is also facility of kitchen in library in ground floor where there are microwave ovens to hear food.

I think these are few differences which I observed. 

Energy

I recently came through the following, which I found interesting to share with.

As we all know every one has twenty four hours. It's not the time that counts but energy. And of that wonderful quality we all have very different amounts, from the persons who wake up tired, no matter how much sleep they've had, to lucky, well-adjusted mortals who hardly ever need to sleep.

Energy comes from a healthy body; it also comes from a psychological balance, a lack of conflicts and insecurities.

Some people apparently have boundless, unlimited energy-they're on the go from morning to night, and often far into the night, working hard, playing hard, never tiring-and getting as much done as any three other human beings. They can be called indefatigable people.

Using Technology

Now-a-days in this globalized world, everone has to try out their hand on the technology. My parents who were once layman with computer are now using them comfortably. I'm doing my Masters in Sweden. My Parents are in Thrissur, Kerala, India. My sister is in Coimbatore and one of my cousins is in US and other in Vizag, Andhra Pradesh, India. But because of this so called 'flat world', we are able to ommunicate all at once. The tool which we use to talk to each other is through Skype Conference call.

My sister doesn't have access to computer. So, once my cousins, my parents and I get connected to skype conference call, my parents will call my sister on mobile with loud speaker enabled on mobile. So, Whatever my sister speaks, every one can listen and what we speak, she can listen.

It's nice to use the technology and make us feel at home since we all talk to each other for very long hours. But for sure, there is little homework to be done before this: As you might have guessed, we should first plan ahead when we should talk because i´n all the above places, the time is not the same-I mean to say that there is difference in time.

Anyways, it gives great pleasure to have audio chat in skype even though video chat (with more than two groups) is not possible free of cost.

See you.´!!!

Some important things after getting acceptance

As I’m not getting sufficient time these days, I asked my friend to write this post and he, as always, accepted my request. He will be sharing some of his experiences and information which will be useful for you!! If you’ve some more questions to ask, please write it in comments section so that after we answer, everyone can see them.


 Hi guys, Congrats :) and hearty welcome to Sweden :)

Well, I am back here to share some of my experiences and views that may help you. Since the visa process is the immediate step after admission I will start with that….!

Firstly, I would like to give a small advice before I move further. Please don’t delay to take an appointment for visa interview. Even though you are in dilemma whether to choose Sweden as an option, there is nothing wrong to take one date for visa. Since visa approval will take about 6 weeks to 9 weeks it is always better to have early dates.

Now let’s see the check list which you need for visa interview. (You can e-mail the embassies to get this information.)

All the following docs should be carried with minimum of 3 copies each, excluding Original.

1. Passport – You should take photocopies of both front and back pages including any previous visa stampings if any.

2. Admission Notification Printout – Just three copies are sufficient here.

3. Filled out Residency Permit form – You can fill the form by writing if it is legible (readable by any one) otherwise it’s better to fill using you keyboard ;) for safer side carry some blank forms that may use in emergency.

4. Bank Certificate – should carry all in original (of course not mandatory) and keep copies for your reference.

5. Degree Certificate – Still if you have not got one even provisional is accepted. Even it is better if you can get a letter from your principal stating the date of issuing your Degree Certificate.

6. BE transcripts – Consolidated and 8 individual mark sheets should be carried.

7. Bank pass book copy – It is okay if you can just carry a pass book with you. But take copies of front and back along with inside transactions from the date you started transaction for visa processing for some emergency purpose.

8. 10th and 12th mark sheets.

9. Passport size photographs: You need to carry 4 photos with you. There will be some specific dimensions for them as I mentioned below. They will say it should be taken in light back ground, but its better you take in white back ground.

The photos must be in color and of the standard passport photo size, which is 3.5cms X 4.5cms. The face should occupy about 70% of the photo and you must be looking directly at the camera so that both sides of your face are visible. The background should be light colored and should contain no shadows or objects. It is important that your expression be neutral which means that you should not have a big smile on your face and your teeth should not be visible. While regularly worn spectacles should be worn in the photo, there should be no reflection that limits the visibility of the eyes in the photo. Head gear of any kind and dark or heavily tinted glasses are not allowed. The photos must be submitted in duplicate with the applicants name clearly printed on the back of the photos in pencil.

http://www.epassportphoto.com/Blog/post/2008/11/Sweden----Passport-and-Visa-Photos.aspx

All the documents (photocopies) mentioned above should be attested by a notary public (or equivalent).  I guess these are the important things to make as a check list.

Now I like to introduce about the Bank Transfers:

Most of the guys might be confused about bank transfers and bank details.

To be frank, if you collected sufficient funds then either open a new account with your name and transfer 168000 SEK (or equivalent) or do the same with the existing account. No one cares about your previous balance. Just they are expecting during the time of visa process they will check whether you can withstand with your personal funding during the period of study over here. Keep in mind that they won’t allow any fixed deposits or any kind of documents that can show you have sufficient amount of funds. You need to show the amount in cash in a savings bank account. After getting visa approval you can withdraw the money. There is also an alternative; if you are making a joint account with your parents (only parents are accepted – at least to my knowledge) then you should get a certificate from a lawyer (I am not sure about the letter content) and also you should submit last year’s tax office statements.

In many blogs I came up with a common question stating I opened my account just after my admission confirmation and I managed to arrange the entire sufficient amount just three days before the visa date. So can I show this as my transaction? Will consulate officers accept my document? The answer is yes. Though the rule is to show the last six months transactions, without knowing about the admission no one (at least no student) will have such a huge amount in their savings bank account. So it is quite accepted by the consulate members with the nominal transactions of your amount in your account.

For now this information is sufficient I guess. Since I got so many other works I am not able to write all the info at a time. I will come up with more details like how to apply for an apartment, cheap air tickets, important things to purchase, and few others in the next post later this month…!

Congratulations once again…!
Ajay

We'll come up with more posts after May 28th if you need to know some more info. I've tried to share some of my experiences in previous posts..if you've time and curiousity, just go ahead and read them and last but not least don't FORGET to leave your comments.. :)

"Masters in Sweden" Posts are done :)

Hi,

As promised, I have completed all the posts. :). Now I want a small but very important help from you. Please provide me feedback through comments so that I can improve on the posts. Since my classes are going to start again from next Monday, I will not be able to post as frequently as I posted during these holidays. However, I'll try to write whatever new things I've discovered and will also share my experiences and my opinions about the same.

Bye...
Have A Nice Day :)

Quarter 1 and Quarter 2 Experiences

International exposure: In every project we did, the team comprised of students from different countries. During the first quarter, my project was with one Turkish guy, Iranian girl and two Chinese students. During second quarter, there were 2 subjects in which we did almost 5 projects. In one team, there was one Chinese girl and one Indian guy. In other project, I was teamed up with one Pakistanian and one French guy. It was a good experience working with people from different countries because we used to know about each other's culture also apart from the academic stuff.

Industry exposure: After our first project in 'Introduction to Communication engineering', all the teams went to Ericsson Company (for wrap-up workshop) and shared our experiences with them. They gave a feedback and also told how the real time projects are done. It was a nice experience talking with them. During the course of the project, there was an external faculty from the industry who guided us throughout the project and told us about project planning and also non-technical things which have to take care during the project. I attended 2 other seminars one in Volvo, other in Ericsson again. It was a very good industrial exposure.

No-extracurricular: Because of the hectic schedule during the course duration, I didn't get time to do any extra-curricular which I'm very sad of. But during these holidays, I planned to write blog and I'm happy that I've done that. I've joined Red Cross organization and it is also very good experience.

Google helped a lot J

Google translate: One Persian and some Poland people shared the house which we are currently living. Unfortunately, they didn't know either English or Swedish and we didn't know their language. Since we are living in the same house, we just use to say "Hi", "Hello" and "Bye". I didn't like this much and I wanted to interact with them. After my exams, I sat with them along with my lappy; opened Google translate and chatted with them using "Google Translate". It was an entire new experience talking with the people using this new way. But it would be good if there is a method where the two people (who can't understand each other's language) can talk to each other not through this Google translate but I wish there is a gadget where there will be real time conversation and translation.

Google Calendar: During the first quarter, it was very difficult to remember the time tables since we have different slots for different courses. Thanks to Google calendar. We came to know about this in quarter 2 from one of my friends Hashim. We downloaded our time table for the quarter in "ical" format and then loaded in Google calendar. There is a nice "Mobile notification" feature available in Google calendar and it was a natural choice to use that. Now, after enabling that feature, I'm getting a sms (free of cost) about any event in that calendar. Thanks to Google and my friend Hashim who conveyed this information.

Some facts which I’ve known + my experiences - part 1

I want to share my views about a country which is determined to hand over to the next generation a society where the most crucial environmental problems have been solved. It is a land of many international brands like Volvo, Ericsson etc. and has given the world scientists like ‘Nobel’ and ‘Celsius’. It is among a few countries which offer free education not just to their Nationals but for international students also; a country where the voting turnout was never less than 80% and is yet to become the space exploration launching site from 2012. Can you guess which this country is? Welcome to Sweden!

        Right now I am doing my Masters in Chalmers University, in Gothenburg and this place fascinated me in many ways during my stay. I’ll try to share some of my experiences/observations and these are put forth categorically.

Geographically: Let me give you some stats to start with. Sweden is a long country: 1,574 km (about 980 miles) stretching from north to south; about the same distance as Mumbai-Calcutta (1,665 km). Population is nearly 9.2 million living in 450,000 square km; roughly 22 inhabitants per square km. This can be compared to the population density in China (134/sq km), Hong Kong (6,688/sq km), and India (318/sq km).

Climate: A warm and light summer is followed by a colorful fall; a long, dark winter and a bright and longed-for spring. The average daytime temperature in the summer ranges from around +12 deg C in the north (Kiruna) to +18 deg. C in the south (Malmö). The average daytime temperature in the winter ranges from around -15 deg. C in the north to +1 deg. C in the south. This year, in Gothenburg(South-West part of Sweden) recorded a minimum of -18 deg. C as of now. I thought that the very low temperature always leads to snowfall which I realised is not true. Snow combined with wind is a very bad situation during winter. Sometimes the situation become worse when its cold and is accompanied by rain and strong wind and I faced this during my first few days in Gothenburg.

        The summers in Sweden are known to be light. On the lightest day of the year in mid-June, there is on average 20 hours of sunlight throughout the country, the sun never setting in Kiruna, north of the Arctic Circle (this is known as the midnight sun). In contrast, on the darkest day of the year (mid-December), the average sun time in Sweden is about 6 hours, the sun in Kiruna not reaching above the horizon at all. So, we can’t rely or conclude from the sun to estimate the time as was the case in India in earlier days. In summers people like to go to beaches to take sun bath and enjoy the sun. In winters, though the sun’s intensity is high, the warmth of sun is not enough to combat the cold.

Food: Pizza, kebabs, falafel, hamburgers, and Chinese cuisine are some of the culinary choices. Apart from these, some Indian restaurants can be seen, though expensive but highly relished by Swedish people. Because of their association with the agricultural past, certain items are identified as particularly Swedish. A basic diet of potatoes, meat or fish, and a hearty sauce is often referred as Husmanskost, or homely fare. A less agrarian dinner alternative is the smörgåsbord. This buffet meal of cold and hot hors d'oeuvres often includes various forms of herring, meats, cheeses, and vegetables.

          Breakfast typically includes bread with butter or cheese; musli or cornflakes with filmjölk, a yogurt like milk product; and coffee. Relatively light hot or cold lunches at midday customarily are followed by early-evening suppers. Bread, pasta, potatoes, carrots, cabbage, peas, herring, salmon, and meat are common components of these two meals. Immigration has enriched the range of restaurants, and restaurant patronage is rising.

          Swedes are fond of coffee. Sweden is the second largest consumer of coffee in the world; with an average of 3.4 cups/person/day (only the Finnish drinks more). They also consume vast amounts of cake and candies. In an effort to limit children’s candy eating to just one day a week, parents observe the tradition of lördagsgodis, or Saturday candy.

         Despite all of this, due to its multicultural society, there are also food items which we eat in India. You can find rotis (known as tortillas), rice, vegetables and almost everything which we eat in India.

Transportation:The main modes of public transportation are buses, trams and trains. These are clean and well planned. Public can buy their monthly/yearly pass or can buy their ticket via an SMS or they can just put the money in a machine and can take the ticket themselves. For the pass, they just need to swipe the card in the card reader available and hence there is no (ticket) conductor but usually there will be checking squad. Whether young or old, people follow rules and help the Government in providing those services fruitfully.

        In most parts of Sweden, you can search a journey planner for any stop or address online and receive several detailed travel alternatives, including changeovers, with minute-by-minute precision. Even at stops there are boards displaying the time for the next bus. It’s because of these consistent timetables that many people are able to use public transport and still keep their daily schedules. For achieving this, there is dynamic traffic control where the driver updates the central office about the delay in his bus time, if any, and this information is conveyed and updated in all the stops along its route. Throughout the city, there are free parking displays and automatic parking facilities with ticketing machines, making it easy for the drivers to use these services by themselves.

Dynamic traffic control: I came to know that bus and tram drivers are given the power to change the traffic signals so that time is not wasted when there is no traffic. There are some sensors near the bus stops, so that the traffic lights switch to green when a bus leaves the bus stop. Pedestrians are given the top most priority contradictory to what we see in India. Almost near every zebra crossing, pedestrians can signal using a button that they need to cross the road. In some road crossings where there is no provision for button, whenever a vehicle driver sees a pedestrian he slows down and allows the pedestrian to cross. Coming from India, it was very irritating at the beginning, because we used to stop for the vehicles to pass and here they are stopping for the pedestrians.

          During my stay for last 4 months in Gothenburg, very few accidents occurred that too due to the snow on the roads. I am very happy and astonished to say that I didn’t hear any vehicle “horn” unlike India. Sometimes, when the driver sees a pedestrian crossing road (other than in zebra crossing), he horns (a small ‘beep’ sound horn) and hence there is no sound pollution.