Reforms! What Reforms?

Re: # 90

STOP PRESS!!!.This young girl is actually 3 years old and has just been appointed to run Microsoft!!.Yawn.

or is he?
:-)

as when the good doctor was very very close to exposing the corruption and religious influence entrenched in the Pak education system, 10 yr old Arfa, my cousin, comes in and ruins the whole party.

Doctor you have been proven wrong....if Arfa is a product of Pakistani education system...you must be lying to us in your articles all this time.

Romair shot down a 2000 words article with a 50 letter url...what a soldier! that ratio is better than 1:10....and Hoodbhoy is not even a bania.
:-)

much smaller url

http://tinyurl.com/c7jxm

Interesting.........

http://www.pakpositive.com/common/clicks/out.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fseattlepi.nwsource.com%2Fbusiness%2F232514_msftarfa14.html

Hoodbhoy is a national treasure. Like other ants in the government`s pants, he keeps snipping away at the hotair and bs in pakistan.

OTOH, the increased funding for education is bound to have significant effect in any case. And there is massive demand for proper education. Friend of mine (from Kohat area, one of the most backward), told me they now have the highest literacy rate anywhere in Pakistan (75% or so) - and have coed colleges in a place where the culture has traditionally been among the most conservative in Pakistan.

#87 ``cutehumna``.
you must not have had enough iodine as a child in your water supply. not only is your command on the english language worse than a five year old, your skills of reasoning and logic are at par with my parakeet. If you were keen to know about Hoodbhoy`s accomplishments you might want to do a google search you moron!

This article is just rubbish. Hoodbhoy must be a politician rather than a scientist. As in politics it is allowed to let down urs opponent by every mean. He wrote this article only because of his personal grievances. In fact he can’t make any accomplishment as a scientist then he tried to get fame by this kind of fake articles.

~~Basic academic values are missing, and there is casual acceptance of abysmal ethical behavior -- cheating, lying, and plagiarism by faculty and students. Resources are wasted on an epic scale.~~

Of course they are missing. And as far as I can remember, they`ve been missing for more than twenty years now. And why not? Because after all, why would young people give a damn about science and knowledge, or having no qualms in embracing cheating and lying when many of them are convinced that all this does not matter if you say your Friday prayers, or go for Haj or Umra, and/or worse, finally manage to suck your balls into your brains and become the ultimate ``jihadi.``

Saadia Chisti has this email address dr_saadia@yahoo.com

Just in case, if someone wants to know what exactly is ``Quranization of courses`` which is worth 55 million Rs question, now.

I asked some probing questions, and Dr. Saadia Chisti responded again, and this time, she is really angry !

``To all the unbelievers,

Al-Qur`aan says to the effect, you have your own way and I have mine which means the Qur`aanic Islam.

As such do not contact me any more. HEC has full record of finances, go to it and get the details and then tell me if I have received a dime or not and for what purpose or use?

In future do not expect any reply from me I am a staunch believer in Al-Qur`aan.

If ever you can Biblize, Torohise and Quranize anything under the skies, in just 3 months, send me a copy, I will send it to the reviewers and if they find it Scientific; I will request HEC to pay you what I refused to accept from it.

From Believers in Al-Qur`aan having roots of genuine scientific knowledge.
``

My 2 cents about this article:

Prof Hoodbhoy is that kid in the fairly tale ``The Emperor`s New Clothes``, who loooooves to tell ``the Emperor``....``yo! mashoor Pakistani pehelwaano...these Pakistani emperor-wannabes...you aint got no clothes on!``

No wonder it draws irate responses from some Pakistani quarters & general ``rah-rahs`` from us slimy banias on the right side of the border. Kinda like Farzana Versey does to raise the hackles of us horrible hindoos. Kinda what makes us say ``hey! if you HATE everything about the society you live in ...why the F@ck dont you live abroad?...I mean?...is someone putting a gun to your head and making you live there?!``

Quranization of Science?!!!!

GIVE ME A FRIKKIN BREAK!
I dont care how incredible BRILLIANT this Ibn Chisti (peace be upon him & his Goddamned family) is

---

somebody needs to tell him that his head needs to be examined.

I thought somebody did Pakistan a huge favor & killed that IDIOT Zia-ul-Haq. Too bad his idiotic legacy is still alive & kicking. Listen, boss; those of you who disagree with me, many of us humble folk FIRMLY believe religion & science should be kept SEPARATE...kinda like Church & State....

Yaar, isi baat per aap log from the wrong side of the border... hamesha maar kha jaaten hai!

After reading harimou`s post I`m firmly convinced that Pakistani women are about a million times smarter than their male counterparts.

Let me tell you a secret...shhhh!
If Pakistani military ever has wet dreams of winning a war with India; it should employ ONLY PAKISTANI WOMEN!
It will scare the living daylights of every frikking sardar, maratha , gorkha....& even slimy brahmins like me!!

Now, will that ever happen?!
Absolutely...sure...when pigs sprout frikkin wings!

The following is not really relevant to this article, except that here is an accomplishment by a Pakistani youngster that needs to be brought to the attention of all.

A similarly accomplished student in India is enrolled in the BE program in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science. He was admitted by Anna University after his skills were verified by graduate students. Special dispensation was granted so that he could enroll in the college though he would have been ineligible on the basis of age, not having completed high school formally, etc. He is now into his third year in a four-year BE program.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/232514_msftarfa14.html

In smarts, she`s a perfect 10
`Pakistan`s girl wonder` is likely the youngest certified Microsoft expert

By TODD BISHOP
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Sitting down for a personal meeting with Bill Gates this week, 10-year-old Arfa Karim Randhawa asked the Microsoft founder why the company doesn`t hire people her age.


[IN HER OWN WORDS
Excerpts from Todd Bishop`s interview with Arfa Karim Randhawa, in MP3 format:
- Arfa describes her meeting with Bill Gates this week (1:40)
- Arfa`s poem about Bill Gates (0:34)
- Arfa describes what she wants to study in college, and what she wants to do when she grows up (1:01)
- Arfa talks about the programs she has made as part of her studies (1:23)
- Arfa recites her philosophy in life (0:14)

Please follow the URL to the article and you will find hyperlinks to the above items.]


Under the circumstances, the question wasn`t so unreasonable.

Arfa, a promising software programmer from Faisalabad, Pakistan, is believed to be the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional in the world. The designation, given to outside experts who prove their ability to work with Microsoft technologies, has also been achieved by some teenagers. But it`s far more common among adults seeking to advance their computer careers.

Arfa received the certification when she was still 9, an impressive accomplishment in its own right, according to older programmers who have gone through the process. And others called it an encouraging sign of the continued emergence of women in a country where they have historically struggled to advance.

The situation illustrates ``another side`` of Pakistan, said Anand Yang, director of the University of Washington`s Jackson School of International Studies. ``That`s another reason to celebrate someone like her.``

Arfa`s one-on-one meeting with Gates was part of a visit this week to the company`s Redmond campus, arranged and sponsored by Microsoft to better introduce Arfa to the company, and to give people at headquarters a chance to meet her. The week included lab tours and a series of informal sessions with Microsoft executives and employees, including a Pakistani employee group.

She made an impression through a combination of charm, flattery and boldness uncommon for someone her age. For example, during Arfa`s meeting with Gates, she presented him with a poem she wrote that celebrated his life story. But she also questioned him about what she perceived to be the relatively small proportion of women on the campus.

``It should be balanced -- an equal amount of men and an equal amount of women,`` she explained afterward.

About 75 percent of Microsoft employees are men, according to company data. Recounting their conversation, Arfa said Gates acknowledged her concerns and talked about the broader industry`s struggles to increase the proportion of women in technology-related fields.

Other topics they discussed included her Muslim faith and her hometown, an industrial city known for its textile businesses.

Afterward, Arfa described Gates as an ``ideal personality,`` explaining that he had been second only to Disneyland on her list of things she wanted to see in the United States. Previously unaware of the casual dress code at Microsoft, she said she had expected Gates to be wearing a suit but was surprised to find him in a casual shirt with the top button open.

``I expected that all the people would be here in suits,`` she said with a giggle, wearing a hat acquired during her earlier visit to the company`s Xbox game studios.

Later in the afternoon, she sat outside with S. ``Soma`` Somasegar, a Microsoft corporate vice president, and described her vision for a self-navigating car. He listened to her ideas and told her about some of Microsoft`s existing software for cars.

To be sure, despite her question to Gates about employing people her age, Microsoft wasn`t about to offer a job to someone so young. But Somasegar talked about the possibility of an internship in a few years.

``The thing that`s exciting to me is her passion for technology at this age,`` said Somasegar, who decided to invite Arfa to Redmond after reading a story about her in MicroNews, an internal company newsletter.

The visit to Microsoft headquarters was the culmination of a meteoric rise that has turned Arfa into something of a celebrity in her country. It began at age 5, when she walked by a computer lab at her school and started wondering about those strange ``boxes,`` the computers and monitors. Later, when she found out what they did, she was amazed.

``When you push a button, something magically appears on the box,`` she said, recalling the experience.

She eventually persuaded her father to buy a computer, and she demonstrated unexpected aptitude, using Microsoft PowerPoint and other programs. Encouraged by what she was doing, her father took her to Applied Technologies, or APTECH, an advanced computer institute nearby.

``I saw her doing something extraordinary, making presentations,`` said her father, Amjad Karim, who serves with a U.N. peacekeeping force in Africa and came with his daughter to Microsoft this week. ``That made me think that she could use some professional coaching, and she could do better in her future life.``

Karim said he is careful not to push his daughter, but wanted to make sure that the opportunities existed for her to pursue her interest. He said he first noticed something unusual when she started displaying a remarkable memory, perhaps photographic, at a young age.

The people at the computer institute required some persuading, because of her age, but they accepted her as a student, taught her about programming and ultimately told her father that she appeared to be in a position to seek Microsoft certification.

The institute instructors assumed it would take Arfa about a year to go through the process of certification for developing Windows applications. But after four months of study and work, over summer vacation, she passed the required exams.

Her programming experience so far has been as part of her studies. She has created basic Windows applications, such as a calculator and a sorting program, primarily in the C# programming language. The certification she received was as a Microsoft Certified Application Developer. She says she plans to pursue a more advanced certification, as a Microsoft Certified Solution Developer, which involves building programs into a broader system for a business.

Arfa`s accomplishment is ``very impressive,`` said Michael Earls, 33, a software consultant and Microsoft Certified Solution Developer in Atlanta. ``The type of thinking that goes into correctly answering those questions is pretty mature. ... Microsoft certifications are not a joke -- they`re highly respected in the industry.``

Ultimately, Arfa says, she would like to go to Harvard University or MIT, and then either go to work for Microsoft, in its developer division, or become a satellite engineer.

Since learning about Arfa from her father -- and validating her programming abilities through an additional exam of their own -- Microsoft representatives in Pakistan have held her up as an example in the country.

``We discovered her, we ran into her, we feel very lucky,`` said Jawwad Rehman, Microsoft`s country manager in Pakistan, who also accompanied her to Redmond this week. ``But I`m sure there are many others out there, as well, who don`t have access to the computers or the proper education system`` as Arfa did.

As word of her accomplishment has spread in her country, Arfa has appeared on TV, in newspapers and spoken at Microsoft events. One youth magazine called her ``Pakistan`s girl wonder.`` A U.S.-based reporter for GEO TV, a 24-hour news and entertainment channel in Pakistan, came to Redmond this week to document her visit to the campus.

Although she has had a birthday since passing the certification test last year, Arfa is careful to point out that she was 9 when she took the exam. More precisely, she says, she was nine years, nine months, 11 days, and six hours. Fully aware of the fact that she`s the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional, she wants to be specific about her age at the time, in case another young programmer emerges someday to challenge what she calls her ``world record.``

Her mother and two brothers, ages 3 and 7, stayed home while she and her father came to the United States. It was the first trip to the country for both. After some sightseeing in Seattle, they`re scheduled to return home tomorrow from their Microsoft adventure.

Next time, Arfa says, she hopes to visit Disneyland, as well.

How does it feel?
Muzzling dissent and ostracizing those with different opinions is a traditional Paki instrument of control. Chowk management and staff have been doing this for some time now. They delete messages and threads from those who may be opponents of their favorite pets. Now that the so-called ``liberal and progressive`` Paki viewpoiint is being stifled, they cry foul. It all depends on whose ox is being gored. I have no sympathy for you hypocrites.
Salim

BTW the bureaucracy in the field of academics is stupendously clever....most of the careerist science bureaucrats utilize their intellects in obtaining the fattest of the research funds......they travel the most on public money....and control the best resources of the university................we all know these types................these scum bags destroy the love for pure intellectual endeavours and spend of their time counting their money while completely ignoring the real buding geniuses around them..................I can understand what HEC racket is all about..........................instead of the obnoxious hypocricy let us encourage the private institutions to work on the cutting edge technology so that the vieled pretense of encouraging ``pure research`` by these public institutions is not used to make money by these bureaucrat scientists............

I am quite curious about Mr Hoodbhoy and Dr Atta. Kindly explain it to me in a simple language without launching an harangue into the number of dissertations written, the number of PhDs earned, academies of which members etc.

For eg. Mr. Darwin told me that my grandfather was a monkey, Dr. fleming made penicillin from moldy bread, Einstein said E=Mc2, Raman gave us the Raman effect, his nephew told us that a star 1.44 times Sun becomes a black hole and Dr. Abdus Salaam combined weak
interaction and electromagnetic forces into one (whatever that means).

So what do the good doctors have to tell us.

Regards