The Paradox of Progress-Are We Growing, Shrinking, or Flat? 3.1% Growth vs. 3.1% Destruction.

Dear Friends,

Nowadays, the moment I open LinkedIn, Facebook, or Inshorts, I see many stories about AI developments. The more I see, the more they appear, as AI is behind the scenes! This week, I am feeling excitement on one side and anxiety on the other.

Let me start with the excitement. Google started a project called Suncatcher. The objective of this project is to set up a data center in space! By the way, they are already setting up data centers in our neighborhood. They launched a data center-class TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) into space this month. These TPUs sent the first AI-generated message from space: “Blue Marble below. Data streams in silent grace. Starlight feeds my core.”

You might be wondering what a TPU is. A CPU (Central Processing Unit) manages regular functions in a computer. A GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) manages games and AI/ML tasks, whereas TPUs are meant for high-volume, high-speed processing in deep learning applications.

Another exciting piece of news is about Orbital (a startup called the Sunlight Company). It is working towards making clean, abundant energy available on demand. For example, you are walking in a graveyard at 12 midnight, and there are no lights around. You can open your mobile, connect to the Orbital app, and they provide direct, focused sunlight on your head. It is natural sunlight redirected from space using mirrors, since the sun is always visible somewhere on Earth. Many startups have started working in this direction.

While we are conquering Nature, there is another side to the coin. A couple of days ago, we had a severe cyclone called Arnab. I was awake until landfall. It made landfall at around 2 PM. I realized how we, as human beings, can never conquer nature. Until last week, our farming community in North Coastal AP was worried about drought conditions. Suddenly, when we open any news site, the discussion is all about the deluge. Two days of rain have wiped out the whole year's rainfall shortfall in this region!! The other part of AP is still worried about scanty rains!

We have just recovered from the floods in Nepal. Yesterday, a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood damaged a road and washed away a bridge in Bhutan.

Across the globe, from 31 October 2025 to 31 October 2026 (a one-year period), 41 significant disaster events took place (cyclones, typhoons, and hurricanes: 11; earthquakes: 10; flash floods: 10; severe storms: 3; landslides: 2; major wildfires: 2; volcanic eruptions: 2; and extreme heatwaves: 1).

If I make a rough estimate of the economic loss on the lower side, it is between $250–320 billion, including insured and uninsured damage. It is approximately 0.25% of the world's GDP, which is $128 trillion.

If you count man-made geopolitical conflicts in the last year, there were 65 active state-based armed conflicts, 40 selected significant geopolitical and security flashpoints, 8 international conflicts, and 550 political-violence incidents per day worldwide.

If you convert these into economic numbers, a rough estimate could be $835 billion, the established global armed-conflict economic-impact estimate for 2025, and $21.8 trillion as the broader annual economic burden of violence and its prevention.

What is the message?

Peace with Nature and Neighbors is not merely a moral necessity; it is an economic imperative.

The world celebrates 3.1% economic growth. Yet military expenditure, armed conflicts, and natural disasters together represent an economic burden equivalent to approximately 3.1% of global GDP.

Now I have a doubt. Are we growing, shrinking, or flat?

Note: I might have made a few assumptions in my calculations, but the idea is to illustrate growth.

Ravi Saripalle

Writing on Sand, Paper, or Mobile: Does It Make a Difference?

Dear Friends,

Recently, as I was heading to the podium for an invited talk on AI use cases in Education, someone in the first row murmured that he would now pull his handwritten notes out of his pocket. Immediately, I turned to him and smiled! After reaching the podium, I publicly announced that a day before every event I speak at, I write a handwritten script. Many people use their mobile phones, but I prefer keeping my own handwritten script (not even a printed version), no matter how long I have to speak. For a 10-minute speech, it runs to 2 pages, and for a 1-hour speech, it goes up to 5 pages.

You might be wondering why I prefer a handwritten script with my own scribbling. I have experimented with this multiple times. Whenever I type rather than handwrite, there is a huge difference in how I remember facts, pauses, key expressions, and sentence sequencing. These are essential for storytelling. During my college days, I used to prepare notes for myself and my good friends. Every month, I used to buy one ream of paper (500 sheets). I still remember that I scored higher in the subjects for which I prepared handwritten notes than in those for which I did not. I believe there is a scientifically supported connection among writing surfaces, finger pressure, muscle movements, sensory feedback, and learning.

If you remember, during Aksharabhyasam (a child's formal introduction to learning), parents have the child draw letters on a surface of sacred yellow raw rice. This is our tradition, but I am sure our Vedic scriptures recommended this practice on the basis of some form of scientific validation.

Why have I taken up this topic today? A couple of days back, there was a viral video about Indira Amma, an 85-year-old who taught children Malayalam, Hindi, English, and Maths through Ashan Kalari, where little fingers trace letters in the sand. (Video). We learned on black slates, whereas my grandfather used to teach my cousins using sand. I saw their index fingers become hard. I remember hearing from my grandfather that this hardness was proportional to the hard work put in.

On the contrary, whenever we conduct project vivas or invite students to give conference introductions, we see Gen Z and Gen Alpha kids bringing mobile phones and simply reading the sentences written on them. Often, their heads get glued to the podium because they cannot raise them; once they do, they lose track of the small characters and sentences on the mobile screen. This is not a characteristic of public speaking.

There are two important senses involved while writing: Tactile sensation-feeling texture, friction, and contact through the skin; and Proprioception-sensing the position, movement, and effort of our fingers, wrists, and arms, even without looking. When these work together with vision and letter sounds, they provide additional information that can support learning.

Kiefer et al. (2020) studied 147 children and found that pencil-and-paper training produced better letter recognition than keyboard training. A 2024 Electroencephalography study (which measures the brain's electrical activity via small electrodes placed on the scalp) also found distinct brain connectivity patterns during handwriting and typing.

This is a far more useful technique, especially for Waldorf Grade 1–2 classes.

Have you experienced this embodied cognition—the idea that learning involves not only the brain but also the body's movements and sensory experiences?

Ravi Saripalle

Inspire to Innovate Storytelling Movement since 2011

i2iTM.blogspot.com

Artificial Intelligence Is Growing. Is Human Intelligence Declining?

 Dear Friends,

A couple of days ago, I was walking down a lane when a group of five students was walking in front of me. The discussion among these boys was about learning programming. It looked like they were all first-year engineering students, presumably most of them from CSE.

One boy was sharing his experience of learning Python programming, for which he was prompting ChatGPT for every programming assignment, whether in the lab or at home. Others were asking, “What would you do in the main exam?” The casual response was, “Let's see when it comes.” Another asked, “What would we do during the campus selection process, as they expect DSA-level programming skills?” Another casually answered, “That is a far easier process than a semester exam.” The boy continued, “Most recruitment tests include online assessments, which we can manage easily.”

Fever is not a disease. It is a symptom of an actual disease. If we don't identify and address it at the root level, we are going to lose a generation.

Most companies are aware that cheating is happening through multiple means—LLM-assisted answers on a second device, AnyDesk, remote software logins by another candidate, prompting, hidden second devices (especially foldable devices), browser manipulations, hidden notes and physical materials behind monitors or on walls, screen mirroring, and more unwanted innovations.

Companies are ignoring this fact because they mostly depend on second- and third-level physical interviews. Having said that, what happens to the genuine student who has worked hard? Is it not a great loss to organizations?

A few days ago, there was an article in The Times of India (citing World Bank research) on learning paralysis. Students are using LLMs, boosting their homework scores by 18% while spending less time on assignments. The same students saw their in-class exam scores drop by 20%, with overall entrance exam performance falling by 5–7%.

Researchers from UC Berkeley, CMU, and MIT studied 1,222 people and found that using AI for just 10 minutes made it harder to focus and solve problems independently. When the AI tool was taken away, participants quickly gave up and made more mistakes on math and reading tasks. The study suggests that relying on AI for quick answers can weaken our own thinking skills over time. This is called Cognitive Paralysis.

What is the remedy?

Microsoft is working on it with Carnegie Mellon University through a programme called PRAISE. It is focused on accelerating junior engineers' learning in the AI era so that they build real skills and don't just ship code faster. The focus is on the parts of the job where people still matter most: understanding the problem before writing any code, questioning what AI gives you, and learning the fundamentals that keep you good at this for years.

Essentially, it boils down to “RAW” skills—Reading, Arithmetic, and Writing. In computer science terms, understand the problem, develop a flowchart, prompt it, and generate the code using AI (productivity is the only merit factor).

The worrying part is that AI is learning faster than humans. The layoffs have surfaced at the humanoid level as well.

When Figure AI replaced its Figure 02 humanoid robots on BMW's production line, it needed to retire the old fleet without leaking valuable trade secrets. Following a viral suggestion on X from Arnold Schwarzenegger, the company sent the fleet to a foundry in Finland to be melted down. The robots were trained to leap into a 75-ton furnace of molten steel, capturing the event on film with Schwarzenegger delivering his iconic “Hasta la vista” line. They learned to jump and were melted down.

What is my general suggestion to freshers?

Working for a startup gives them a better experience than working for an established organization. Reasons—opportunities to delve deep into problems from the early stages, working with teams despite lower salary packages, opportunities to work through a complete cycle (from problem identification to final deployment), and sometimes, a disgraceful exit as well.

This is real learning. This may not be possible for everyone in mature companies.

What is your current learning experience?

Ravi Saripalle

How much Money is enough Money? The Paradox of Wealth-A Question Money Cannot Answer.

Dear Friends

In 1993, a group of 10-15 friends and I visited a village near the Tatipudi Reservoir in Vizianagaram District, AP. While walking among the lush greenery, we all shared our dreams for life. One of them said, settle abroad. Another one for a luxurious life. When my turn came, I was told to buy a Maruti 800, knowing we could never afford it. At that point, it was an absolute dream. There was a reason for this. At that time, it cost 1.66 Lakhs. Given my intelligence levels and where I was living, I would have gotten a job paying 3K. It requires 4.5 years with zero living expenses, and with 20% savings, it would have taken 23 years to buy a Maruti car.

Fast forward, Thanks to the 1991 liberalization, the Indian IT boom took place. Before 1991, Indian IT companies delivered code by physically shipping magnetic tapes abroad. In 1992–1993, the STPI installed high-speed international satellite earth stations, starting with 64 kbps leased lines. This enabled firms such as Infosys, TCS, and Wipro to transmit software code electronically. This created a boom for computer degrees in India. Fast forward to 2003, we were able to buy a Maruti 800 Non-AC. For that matter, many of my classmates could buy a better car or a premium model than this. It took 10 years to manifest the dream. Many of them upgraded their cars. Having said that, I chose to use it till it was burnt out in 2017 for a specific reason.

Last weekend, we visited the Sri Anantha Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Vykuntagiri, on the way to Araku Valley, which faces the Tatipudi Reservoir, in a Maruti Swift (upgraded from 800). It sits at 3,333 feet above sea level and is considered the world’s highest altitude Venkateswara Temple. You might get an interesting question. This time, did I dream about anything more near that same Tatipudi Reservoir? No!! When we enter the 50s, priorities and responsibilities change. The highest priority would be to plan for retirement life with 6% inflation and unexpected medical and family expenses.

I was reading a beautiful article by Saksham Mittal, a young boy and IIT Kanpur alumnus, with the same title. He starts with a story of Leo Tolstoy, who once wrote about a man who was offered all the land he could walk around in a day. He walked so far that he never lived to enjoy it. 20 years ago, the “set for life” amount was 1 crore, which definitely aligned with society’s standards of success. At a 6% inflation, that 1 crore in 2005 would need roughly Rs 3.4 crore today to buy the same life. Hence, it remains a dream for many to think “set for life”. Hence, we require an alternative way of thinking rather than defining “set for life”.

Saksham writes further about the Famous psychologist Daniel Kahneman, who observed that an annual income of $75,000 can serve as a benchmark (maybe for the US standard; I don’t know the equivalent Indian standard). Money buys you happiness until $75k. Daily feelings like joy, stress, or sadness plateau or stagnate at this amount. And below this amount, daily miseries like illness, divorce, or loneliness are amplified. Similarly, if someone knows the threshold amount, it is considered a success in life. Till we know that number, neither should we hanker for more money nor reject God-gifted earnings, whatever little they are. We should not lament but pray to God that He gives us the realization to know that “set for life” figure.

Till we attain that realization, both “excess money” and “insufficient money” ruin our happiness. Saksham wrote about a hungry donkey that stands exactly between 2 equal piles of grass. It can't find a reason to pick either, so it starves. The 2 piles of grass were “excess money” and “insufficient money”.

The successful people are those who manage either of the excess or insufficiency. I believe both are gifts of the Lord and are defined by the Prarabdha karma of our previous life.

Ravi Saripalle

Unlocking Educational Freedom: Could NIOS + The HHH Model Be the Next Big Shift?

Dear Friends,

When I look back at my education journey—which started at the age of 6 (my parents delayed my schooling by a couple of years as I was unable to speak) and officially ended at 40 when I completed my PhD—I experimented with many things beyond conventional education (my Graduation and Master of Computer Applications).

I spent a year in Chennai attempting the AMIIE program when I couldn't secure an engineering seat.  I pursued a Financial Management course with Pondicherry University and attempted the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program, though I did not succeed in those. However, I completed an Executive GMP from IIM Bangalore and earned another MBA alongside my professional duties. Beyond earning my Management PhD, I guided another PhD scholar in Computer Science specializing in DevOps. I also completed the Academy of Customer Excellence program at Harvard Business, certified in the Customer Centricity Program (Ron Kaufman - Up Your Service), and became PM Elite Certified.

I was a school topper, but after that, I never topped again—though I managed decently well and enjoyed the journey without stress except two years. Looking back at the root cause, it all stems from my Plus 2 (Intermediate) education, which felt like the Japanese mongoose experiment on Amami Ōshima Island, Japan. (I will explain this experiment shortly.)

In my entire academic journey, Plus 2 was the most stressful phase. I could understand the concepts, but I struggled to crack the entrance exams with speed and accuracy. That pressure impacted my regular conventional exams too. I owe a deep debt of gratitude to my classmates: Ravi Kumar, who regularly cleared my conceptual doubts, and Ravi Sankar Kottada (currently a Professor at IIT Madras), who helped me in mathematics that ultimately enabled me to pass my plus two.

A couple of days ago, there was a debate about the artificial hierarchy surrounding IIT/NIT branches. A CSE or ECE student is biasedly perceived as having higher merit compared to a Metallurgy student at the same institution—even if the candidate chose Metallurgy purely out of personal interest. Society has built a norm that if you get a top rank, you must choose according to a pre-decided societal hierarchy (CSE, ECE, EEE, Mech, etc.). This rigid expectation is creating a new era of student stress.

Now, what is this Japanese experiment?

In 1979, 30 small Indian mongooses were released on Amami Ōshima to control venomous habu snakes. However, due to mismatched active hours (mongooses are active daytime, while habu snakes are active night-time), the plan backfired completely. By 2000, the mongooses exploded to roughly 10,000, severely threatening native wildlife like the endangered Amami rabbit. A systematic eradication campaign officially launched in 2005 ("Amami Mongoose Busters"), deploying thousands of traps, search dogs, and environmental DNA testing. Following 6 consecutive years with zero sightings, Japan’s Ministry of the Environment officially declared the mongooses completely eradicated on Sep 3, 2024. This 45-year chapter is now closed, standing as one of the world's greatest ecological restoration achievements on an inhabited World Heritage island.

On a lighter note, I also concluded my own 45-year educational story (excluding those first 6 years) along with my Plus 2 "mongoose experiment"! Today, many parents are exploring alternative paths like NIOS (National Institute of Open Schooling, similar to CBSE, ICSE, or State boards). It offers a stress-free opportunity to pursue passions at ages 16 and 17—the most critical age when students develop the capacity for Transitional Autonomous Decision-Making.

In India, we currently lack institutions where students can pursue a NIOS degree while attending experiential, skill-focused institutions like Barefoot College (Rajasthan) or Practical Action (formerly ITDG, founded by E.F. Schumacher in Rugby, UK), where the sole focus is on practical mastery.

Ten years ago, I introduced the HHH Model:

• Head (Cognitive/Degree): Academic knowledge, theory, and formal qualifications.

• Hands (Psychomotor/Skill): Practical skills, technical execution, and vocational application.

• Heart (Affective/Holistic): Values, emotional intelligence, character, and overall well-being.

If we combine the flexibility of NIOS with the HHH model, could it trigger a new revolution in education?

Do you agree?

Ravi Saripalle

The Last Mile of AI Is Human: The One Thing AI Should Never Replace

Dear Friends

Twenty-five years back, one day, a rice cooker exploded in our house. Though there was no major physical injury or damage, one of my family members’ faces got completely blackened, almost like the boiled skin of an eggplant. In that shocking state, we rushed to a doctor just beside our house. I cannot call it a clinic, as it was an 8 × 8 room under a big banyan tree. There were no compounder or nurse and no high-fi sophisticated equipment. The doctor was sitting on a plastic chair, and a stethoscope & BP machine were on the wooden table.

Immediately, he gave simple first aid and asked us to bring one specific ointment from a nearby medical shop. We asked him whether we should take the patient to a dermatologist or any other big hospital, but he said it was not required. He also said that if that first aid had not been given, the face might have remained black even after healing. As he told us, within a few days, the face became normal and the whole wound healed. He just took ₹50 or ₹100, not more than that. He spoke compassionately and comforted us before asking us to go back home.

A Johns Hopkins study says that 40 seconds of compassionate talk by doctor reduces patient anxiety drastically. Another study says that if a doctor talks to a patient compassionately, 2.2 days of hospital stay can be reduced to 1.1 days. You might be wondering why I am using the word compassion multiple times.

The human spectrum of responsiveness—spanning Pity, Sympathy, Empathy, and Compassion—can be mapped on a two-dimensional graph with Understanding & Engagement on the X-axis and Effort on the Y-axis. Positioned sequentially along a positive regression line, these four terms reflect a steady rise: Pity sits at the lowest end (“I acknowledge your pain”), followed by Sympathy (“I care about your pain”), Empathy (“I feel your pain”), and finally Compassion at the highest point (“I want to relieve your pain”), where emotional resonance converts into active effort. The origin represents total apathy or indifference—zero understanding and zero effort.

Doctors and teachers require compassion (they have to relieve the pain without attaching to problem). They cannot operate only on the other three platforms. What triggered me to write this article? Today, I read about Ahmedabad-based ENT surgeon Dr. Nandlal Manseta. He is 81. His fee structure is unusual. He lets patients decide what they can afford based on their income. His fee model is based on trust. Patients are not asked to produce income certificates. Instead, they contribute according to what they earn, while someone with no income can receive a consultation without paying anything. His fee formula is something different—

Fee = 0.01 × Monthly Income!!

Today, I am invited by Infinity Vizag 2026. They asked me to talk on workforce transformation in the wake of AI. One of the real-time stories I shared is that if humans miss the compassionate part of their responsibility, slowly AI will enter that role which was live in Hyderabad and healthcare domain.

AI can remove the task, not the human! AI can give the human a superpower. However, we cannot delegate compassion, accountability, judgement, and safety.

Do you agree?

Ravi Saripalle

From Mud Play to Mobile Play-Do You Allow Your Child to Play in the Mud?

Dear Friends,

During childhood, we used to play cricket in open grounds. Though I was not a good sportsman, I used to judiciously participate. Considering my weight, my team used to call me David Boon, the former Australian opening batsman. Every time, I used to be given the same opening status, but I used to disappoint them! However, I never lost the spirit.

More than the play itself, I used to enjoy the open ground, the company, the pre- and post-play preparation, and the entertainment. In those days, we did not have the concept of carrying a water bottle. If we were thirsty, we used to go to a nearby well at any construction site, draw water using the nearby bucket, and drink. Sometimes, rain comes suddenly, but we used to finish the game in the mud! Mud used to be our soap if we happened to touch any notorious plants!

Why am I sharing my old mud memories in this Saturday’s story? Yes, there is a significance.

I observe the current generation of kids and their behaviour in high rise societies. Many kids come with sophisticated shoes and play on clean cement playgrounds. Even if they play on regular grounds, they still ensure that mud does not touch their feet or hands. Another set of kids is getting glued to virtual games. They sit next to each other and play online, fighting with each other! This is the most pathetic scene.

Finland is known for its education system and child development. Finland discovered that while hyper-sanitized, synthetic playgrounds prevent physical injuries, their lack of natural dirt and biodiversity deprives children of essential microbes needed to build healthy immune systems.

Modern playgrounds rely heavily on rubber mats and synthetic turf to maximize safety and simplify maintenance. However, these artificial surfaces create sterile environments that eliminate dirt, mud, and plants, effectively isolating children from natural ecosystems. Without regular exposure to organic soil, children miss out on beneficial environmental bacteria that are crucial for proper immune system calibration.

To address this concern, researchers in Finland conducted an experiment to rewild urban daycare centres by replacing synthetic ground cover with real forest-floor elements, including soil, grass, shadow shrubs, and moss. In these naturalized settings, children were encouraged to interact directly with nature by digging in real dirt, planting vegetation, and playing daily with organic materials.

The results demonstrated immediate biological and behavioural benefits. Within just 28 days, children playing on natural soil showed significantly higher skin and gut microbial diversity, as well as improved immune system markers that help protect against allergies and autoimmune conditions. 

 

Furthermore, navigating the natural, uneven terrain promoted holistic growth, markedly improving the children’s motor skills, emotional regulation, and imaginative play compared to traditional flat, synthetic surfaces.

If you observe kids in rural settings, they spend a lot of time in the mud and uneven surfaces. Their immunity levels are going to be high as they grow. They manage life easily. 

We stopped giving children mud toys. In our childhood, during Jagannath Rath Yatra, many stalls used to sell clay toys. We used to buy the whole mud kitchen crockery set and play with it. Nowadays, it has completely stopped!

One systematic review confirms that unstructured play in natural environments improves social skills, imaginative play, emotional self-regulation, and resilience compared to structured, artificial play structures.

Mud Is Not Always Dirty!

Ravi Saripalle