STELLAEIDOSCOPE

Image source: GoComics A new academic year means new friends, new woes, new experiences and a new Team Stellaeidoscope! This year, we hope to really live it up, with all the lights on and all (metaphorical ones, of course – the environment is at stake).In light of the 50th Anniversary of the Moon Landing (and partly because we’re big nerds, also at the suggestion of Zenia, our friend and Stellaeidoscope veteran, whom we love very much), the first issue is themed ‘Space’. We’ve got a variety of articles to enjoy — about astronomy, astrology, the different interpretations of the word ‘space’ itself — and a collection of poetry from our budding poet contributors. In “Celestial Wonders” class, we were discussing various geographical features of the moon when our friend (and yet another Stellaeidoscope veteran — the friendships you make here really do stick) Radha said, wonderingly, that it was beautiful how much mythology concerned itself with space, and how human it ...

Here's our collection of breathtaking space-themed art by some of the club members, from a piece that melds the beautifully harsh reality of space with fantasy, to ones that capture the fluidity of the universe, to a celebration of our favourite sci-fi show Doctor Who. Feast your eyes!   "Fairytale" by Roshan Wahab, I B.Com. (General) "Nebulae" by C.M. Pratibha, I B.Sc. Physics "Space - Fluid Art" by Tanvi Hemani, II B.Va. "Tardis" by C.M. Pratibha, I B.Sc. Physics

“All you really need to know for the moment is that the universe is a lot more complicated than you might think, even if you start from a position of thinking it's pretty damn complicated in the first place.” - Douglas Adams Cover Art by Yukta Smiruthi, III B.A. English Quote by Roshan Wahab, I B.Com. (General) Editorial Houston, We Have Some Content Uniting the galaxy: Area 51 Memes Apollo 11 @ 50: The Spirit of Collaboration The “Pale Blue Dot” and the Security of Oblivion Extraterrestrials Wishing on Shooting Stars   The Sun and the Earth Stars Yet to Reach Specks of Dust in a Galaxy Grey Ceiling The Fault in our Stars Modern Space History: India in Space Spaces Space and Infinity Spaces Between Us  A Sun's Death  Non Spacey Writings A Youth Has Taken Firm Steps For Her Emancipation Mic Drop Space-themed Artwork Space Playlist      

by A. Hanaa Mariam, III B.A. English ‘Taking Firm Steps to Emancipation’ is an opinion piece very eloquently written by former Supreme Court judge, Mr Markandey Katju. The one thing that strikes the aware reader is the sheer ignorance and condescension that the author has managed to convey in his vitriolic article. Mr Katju, in his piece, suggests that the Muslim community in India is ‘poor and backward’ and that they have been taken advantage of in the past by both religious and political leaders. He then very assuredly goes on to add that the present BJP government is a ‘blessing in disguise’ to us. Say that to all the people who have been forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ over the past two months. So, Mr Katju’s solution to our problem is in giving us three pieces of unsolicited advice which he calls ‘radical steps’. Ha. The three things he wants us to do can be read here . To his unsolicited advice, I have a few responses to ideas that I think he has got completely wrong. The firs...

by Hima Mouli, I B.A. English “The stage is not merely the meeting place of all the arts but also the return of art to life.” - Oscar Wilde On Tuesday, 30 July at 3:30 pm, students began to gather at the CC Block Conference Room for a special event, the first of its kind -- ‘Mic Drop’. An event organised and conducted by the students and staff of the department of English, Shift II, “Mic Drop” was a unique showcase of a varied array of creative talents right from spoken word poetry and original songs to puppet shows and group dances. The event kicked off with budding poets sharing their poems, some of them performing for the first time. They guided a rapt audience through a plethora of emotions, touching upon various subjects. There were poems about sexuality and gender disparity, poems about life and death, poems expressing love and pining, and even poems that boldly took on social issues such as AIDS and sexual abuse. Then, the students performed original songs. Poems were set t...

compiled by Sarah M., I M.A. Economics Here’s my take on memes -- they are the only outlet for our ridiculousness and undeniable humour. There’s a meme for absolutely everything somewhere on the internet. Feeling Low? There’s a meme. Hate a show? There’s one right there. Think Marvel completely messed up Steve Rogers Character development in Endgame? There’s a long list of memes to cry to. One of the rare phenomena that united our vast collection of fandoms in this galaxy is the Area 51 memes. Every. Single. Fandom. Had a take on it. My reason for writing this article was to show that even when there are millions of us with differences in tastes and preferences on how we take our coffee (some of us don’t, deal with that), there’s always going to be one thing that unites us all -- our dry millennial humour. So enjoy this compilation (and if you look closely enough, you can see all the fandoms that I am a part of). ...

by Zenia Zuraiq, III B.Sc. Physics "We choose to go to the Moon! We choose to go to the Moon… We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard; because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win, and the others, too." - President John F. Kennedy, September 12 1962  One of the greatest tragedies of history was that President JFK was assassinated before he saw his countrymen take mankind’s first steps on the moon. This was the same John F. Kennedy who used his first Presidential address in front of Congress to propose that a man land on the moon before the decade was out. Image Source: NASA The whole world watched as Kennedy’s vision manifested on July 20, 1969. Neil Armstrong became the first man to land on the surface of the moon, ...

by Zenia Zuraiq, III B.Sc. Physics Image Credits: NASA JPL On February 14, 1990, the Voyager 1 Space Probe took a photograph of planet Earth from a record distance of about 6 billion kilometres. The photograph (attached above) has since been dubbed “The Pale Blue Dot” owing to how our home planet is a barely visible pixel in it. A tiny, almost invisible pixel. Almost too easily mistaken for a smidge of dirt on your computer screen. A pixel that contains all that we know, that contains all of our written history, that contains all our crowning achievements and glories. All of our poetry, our literature, our many, many emotions. And, oh – that one pixel also contains all your problems. That one snapshot of the observable universe represents all the petty quarrels and insignificant problems we have. All those times we thought the world was ending? Turns out if the world actually ended, the universe would not be that different, actually. Pale. Blue. Dot. We often talk about looking ...

by C.M.Pratibha, I B.Sc. Physics Aliens. Green, small bodies, big wobbly heads with giant black orbs for eyes. This is probably the image you get in your mind when you hear the word, alien. Thanks to Hollywood (insert Independence Day series here), we expect them to be hostile, scary, extremely advanced in technology and a threat to our planet. Since childhood, we have been programmed to believe that aliens are these sinister beings adamant on universal dominance. Many people dismiss the idea of “intergalactic visitors” as they believe it’s too far fetched or too weird to be true. ‘Conspiracy theories’, they call it. Maybe because of how they are projected in movies, their existence hardly seems possible, or a part of the real world. E.T. by Abirami, I B.A. Sociology You can't not believe in extraterrestrials, or E.T. for short. I mean, come on! This is a really big universe with billions of galaxies that contain billions of planetary systems. We have already discovered many p...

by Meghna Jaiprakash, I B.Com. CS (A) Hey, is that a shooting star? Let's make a wish on it! But wait, a shooting star has nothing at all to do with a star. These beautiful streaks of light are actually tiny bits of dust and rocks called meteoroids, falling into Earth's atmosphere and burning up. These meteor showers which fill the darkest nights with brilliant light are said to illuminate your world by fulfilling your wishes, however crazy it may sound! Wishing on a shooting star has been a practice from ancient times, even though there is no scientific proof for it being successful. Different countries have different traditions and ways to make a wish on shooting stars. Some repeat their wish thrice, and some hold a cloth to their face. The moment at which the shooting star is seen is considered to be a fleeting opportunity to reach a divine power. Adults turn into children and get super excited about shooting stars, even though most of them don't believe in wishing...

by Hima Mouli, I B.A. English There was a time, aeons ago Long before the human race A new beginning, a burst of light Amidst the dark, a star born bright A star much known to us all A star that we now call the Sun For many millennia, all alone he shone A luminous lonely star in the abyss Then came an end to his solitude For the nine planets were formed And the Sun shone on, happy and proud At the centre of his new family One caught his eye, among the nine She called herself the Earth She was special, she was different For on her body she nurtured life The Sun grew to care about her Her more than the other ones He helped nourish all her children He gave them light, kept them warm Soon enough, a bond had blossomed Between the two celestial beings That First Love, most ancient and timeless So young and pure and beautiful And so it went, a courtship of sorts He shone for her with all his brilliance She basked in the warmth of his...

by Shreya Sharma, I B.A. English Here I stand, attempting star gazing  looking for Ursula and the Pole. However the sky tonight  seems empty, I wonder if up there too   is scarcity? And below gleaming with light, is that traffic or fireflies? And so I realise - invention has taken a toll; the stars I look for  lie beneath my feet, created by men who seek the zenith  of  heavenly bodies.

by Srinidhi Alladi, I B.Com (Accounting and Finance) “We are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star. But we can understand the Universe. That makes us something very special.” - Stephen Hawking Some of us may believe in the creation of the Universe being in the hands of a Special Someone, others seek refuge in the theory of a single point expanding and stretching. Our ability to even have a choice of what to believe in is the result of those now dubbed “the greatest minds in history” who were thinking and writing about the beginnings of this world all their lives. Imagine getting paid to think – then again, there wasn’t a lot of living expense to consider back then. We all know the usual greats – Socrates, Aristotle, Galileo, Hawking and so on. What we don’t know is that though these people are highly accredited in the world of science, they were also thinkers, philosophers and believers. After some investigation of my own, this is what I have ...

by Lathiba R., I B.A English and Communications I stare at the grey ceiling of the room The dim light from my neighbour’s window Pouring into mine I can trace the outline of the three winged fan As I clutch my blanket to save me From the artificial coldness I wish I wish I was out there somewhere With my arms outstretched With my eyes closed With my hair loose in the wind Not in a bun that stays on my head Like a burden on my shoulder I wish I was there To feel the stars kiss my cheeks And then I would twirl In the deep starry night And as light as a feather My feet would lift off the ground With the help of the wings The night gave me That are adorned with stars That fell from the sky, saying “I’m beautiful even after I fell” I would rise above With the sense of freedom I’d be free I wish I was there with the Magic tingling under my skin But here I am Stuck under the grey ceiling.