My family’s desperate journey from shell-shocked Poonch to safety in Jammu on May 9, 2025, navigating bombardment, blackouts, and uncertainty.

On the morning of May 7, I woke to my mother’s terrified warning as artillery shells tore through Poonch—this is my unfiltered account of how our joint family scrambled for safety at dawn.

Why the classic "5-step" scientific method is a textbook scaffolding—and how real science is a messy, tool-based, and pluralistic pursuit of truth.

How GPT-4o's native image generation triggered a global 'Ghiblification' craze and why it marks the beginning of 'vibe designing'.

A comparison of common sugar substitutes and their properties for making informed choices about sweetness.

Why loyalty to AI models is a mistake and how the pursuit of "convenient intelligence" mirrors the pragmatism of a Sellsword.

A critical look at OpenAI's pivot from the "4whoa" days to the underwhelming "bro-ness" of GPT-4.5, and the challenges of the long game.

A preface to my observation-first documentation of the AI era—mimicking the spirit of historical diaries to record the extraordinary shift in intelligence.

A demystification of Large Language Models—explaining why AIs are essentially "autocomplete on steroids" and what that means for their reliability.

An open letter to co-workers on the sacredness of "the zone" and the cognitive cost of even the smallest interruptions during deep work.

Reflections on a year of dedicated programming—from the "Minecraft for adults" aspect to why English is a programmer's most important language.

A call for pragmatism over pseudo-scientific rigor in startups, exploring why "useful" is often a better benchmark than "proven" in the face of deadlines.

A manifesto against the "Final Draft" mirage, advocating for publishing imperfect, alive work over beautiful, abandoned corpses.

A GPT-generated historical rap in the style of J. Cole, chronicling the transition from class components to the era of React hooks.

A GPT-3 generated poetic technical reminder on why environment variables are the guardians of your code and security.

A concise guide to Cost of Acquiring a Customer (CAC)—explaining non-loaded, fully-loaded, and blended metrics for startup growth.

A curated roadmap of the most influential books for founders, covering everything from lean methodology to the psychology of sales.

Practical tips for transforming the internet into a readable space by mastering typography, narrow columns, and the art of digital annotation.

Differentiating the chaotic pre-PMF world of Prototype Management from the structured, quality-driven world of Product Management.

How to build a consistent writing habit by lowering the bar and focusing on the obvious, much like programmers practice with basic algorithms.

How structuring information around "metadata"—the context and connections between ideas—accelerates the learning curve and deepens understanding.

A critique of digital hoarding and a framework for judging the value of links based on findability, usefulness, and time-sensitivity.

Redefining stupidity through the "harm-to-gain ratio" and why questions about reading quantity and speed are often the most counterproductive.

Using the evolution of MMA as a lens to build better models for spotting real expertise and avoiding the trap of social proof.

A rational deconstruction of the "follow your passion" myth, exploring the hard work, habits, and risks that passion alone cannot solve.

A defense of "indirect experience" and why the scientific method is humanity's primary tool for knowing things we haven't personally witnessed.

A critique of the overused jargon in ed-tech—explaining why engagement is useless if it's not strictly aligned with actual learning goals.

A visceral look at the human cost of the Great Depression—bank failures, "scrips" for wood, and the brutal reality of people for sale.

Understanding the mechanics of startup layoffs through the lens of Product-Market Fit and the "comfort heuristic" of growth.

A curated directory of individuals who combine deep expertise in their fields with the craft of exceptionally clear writing.

Part 4: The grueling journey of Teach For India fellows—from summer training in Pune to the frontlines of slum schools and eventually, ed-tech startups.

Part 3: Drawing parallels between Gutenberg's printing press and the internet—how "scalable content" is the defining rhyme of the second ed-tech revolution.

Part 2: The chaotic reality of "revolutionizing education" with zero experience, a tiny team, and a looming deadline for Monday morning classes.

Part 1 of an ed-tech memoir: The mystery of lesson plans, the aura of pedagogical jargon, and the reality of winging it in a startup.

Why wordy slides fail: Understanding the brain's "one language string" limit and how to transform presentations into visual narratives.

Part 5 of the Amazon series: Analyzing the 2016-2020 letters on Day 2 stasis, high-velocity decisions, and the continuous work of distinctiveness.

A deep dive into Bezos's 2017 essay on high standards—why they are domain-specific, teachable, and require a realistic understanding of scope.

Part 4 of the Amazon series: Deconstructing the 2011-2015 letters on self-service platforms, the "one-way door" decision model, and the culture of failure.

Understanding the Peak-End rule and duration neglect to decode how Jeff Bezos designs his shareholder letters for maximum memorability.

Part 3 of the Amazon series: Insights from the 2006-2010 letters on Kindle innovation, missionary culture, and the "working backward" strategy.

Part 2 of the Amazon series: Mapping the 2001-2005 letters on the economics of scale, the price-cost loop, and data-driven decision making.

Part 1 of the Amazon series: Deconstructing the 1997-2000 shareholder letters on long-term thinking, customer obsession, and high-bar hiring.

How a simple comparison between food delivery costs and book prices can shift your spending habits towards building a personal library.

Deconstructing the "logic" of elite credentials—revealing how ambition and performance, not just the institution, dictate long-term salary and success.

Why most self-help classics are built on cherry-picked examples and how reading Emerson can provide a necessary, if conflicting, antidote.

A satirical dialogue tracing the repetitive cycles and "new" policies of the Indian education system from British rule to today.

A curated collection of writing principles and essential resources for anyone seeking to master the technology of transferring thoughts.

An exploration of how the human brain processes information through chunking, categorization, and the transfer from short-term to long-term memory.

Exploring Schopenhauer's warnings against "reading yourself stupid" and a practical framework for active reading and deep assimilation.