With the exception of finals, this semester is pretty much over. This means that I have completed all course work for my program at MIT. I had my final exam for microeconomics last Friday and will have the final exam for my political economy class this coming Thursday (perhaps, my very last final as a student). After next week, the only thing getting between me and degree is the thesis. So far I have been dragging my feet on my thesis. Although I have the thesis problem statement and hypothesis defined, the scope of the thesis has grown beyond what is minimally required by a master student. No, don’t get me wrong, I am more than happy to do a PhD-minus or master-plus thesis; but I am constrained by one thing: time. I still want to do a good thesis but I only have till May to complete the thesis. I was originally scheduled to complete everything by February but with the stress and workload that I am having this semester this lofty goal has proven to be unproductive. I simply don’t have the time; but even if I did, I found it very distracting to switch between thesis work and coursework. Fortunately, I believe I have found a new direction to completing my thesis without compromising the quality and am loving this new novel approach. I am confident of completing by mid-March while still offering new insights to the problem I am trying to solve. I don’t want to divulge the details of my thesis at this point; but let’s just say that it has something to do with disruptive technology, management of technology, microeconomics using the seventh generation game consoles (Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii) as a case. This new thesis subject should be fun.

It has been a while since I last blogged and there is a good reason for it. I was swarmed from school lately. Nonetheless, I am feeling much relieved and upbeat now. So on a positive note, I am going to start blogging after a month-long hiatus. I have also been living a very sedentary, unhealthy lifestyle as of late. So another activity that I would like to resume after a month long suspension is exercise. I went for a run earlier today and scheduled to play squash with Dr. AJ tomorrow at MIT. I am feeling rejuvenated now. Kat was right when she said: “People get bitchy when they don’t exercise.” I do feel less of a jerk after today’s exercise. Can’t wait to exercise again tomorrow.

I have not done any research on the subject, so my assertion is really based out of subjective observation, and online articles and forums on PS3 vs. Xbox 360. In terms of sheer power, the PS3 beats Xbox 360 hands down (according to official technical specs). However, the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) on the Xbox 360 is quite powerful, which is further complemented by a shared memory architecture that boasts higher system bandwidth. This architecture should put the performance of the 360 on par with PS3. According to one report, the 360 is considerably more user-friendly and less buggy, while the PS3 is still marred by bugs. From a marketing perspective, the PS3 is released a year late and considerably more expensive than the 360. I am not a firm believer that market pioneers will always emerge as winners (think Google and Microsoft, they were late market entrants who turned market leaders). But in this case, I think that a year is an eternity in a gaming world especially given that the Xbox 360 is a well-designed game console (rather unusual for Microsoft). Then there is the availability of software titles. What good is great hardware if there is a lack of good software? With a year head start, there are already considerable titles released for the 360 with many newer titles taking advantage of the Xbox 360 architecture. I suspect PS3 will eventually catch up.

Also according to this article on Gamespot, for every PS3 sold Sony is losing from $240 to $300 depending on configuration. In contrast, Microsoft is losing $75 per Xbox 360 console now, down from $124 when the console was first released. The economist in me is now yelling that I should go buy a Sony PS3 since I will be subsidized more for my purchase. Of course, finding a PS3 in the market is quite impossible at the moment unless I am will to shed a few thousand dollars for one on eBay. Unfortunately, Sony is still having problems on the manufacturing of PS3 and the console will likely remain sold out till the next quarter.

It seems like people are going all out to get their hands on the highly anticipated release of Sony Playstation 3 (PS3). Some even camped out for days for the PS3. There is certainly plenty of mayhem today with the official launch PS3 in America.

First, a group of armed men robbed an Elk Grove store for PS3. Next, a blogger’s account of a smash n’ grab incident at a Best Buy parking lot. In other another part of the country, police has to be called in to quell the rowdy crowd. Then there is a man who was shot while waiting for PS3. Last but not least, a bad case of the Monday Syndrome by going “Office Space” on the PS3 - this one is funny.

Due to the overwhelming number of students and the workload involved in grading the assignments in System Project Management, a required SDM course, I was offered the position of teaching assistant (TA) for this course. Krishna, a fellow classmate, has been the sole TA for the class before I joined; but he is simply overwhelmed. My appointment is only for the second half of the semester, which at this point in time has already past the halfway point. I did the paperwork with Jeff yesterday and I am pleased to say that the financial incentives for this position is very good. It certainly makes economic sense.

The first order of business as the new TA was to attend class. I have to say that the view of the class in room in 1-390 from the first row - an area where TAs generally sit - looks very different than what I had remembered. For the past year, I have been taking classes Sloan and TPP courses. I haven’t attended an SDM core class for about a year. It was quite refreshing to sit through a core SDM class.

Since taking two microeconomics courses at the moment, I tend to break everything down to microeconomics terms these days. It was no surprise that I was thinking with an economist’s mindset during a project management class yesterday. When the professor asked: What makes a good project manager? The first thought in mind was: resource allocation. I am pleasantly surprised by my response since I would have suggested a very different answer a year ago. Nonetheless, it is interesting to note how certain courses can really influence one’s thinking and perspective.

I love thinking in microeconomics terms. It certainly helps me in developing good analytical skills and a sharp, logical mindset.

Once again, I have been preoccupied with other activities that kept me from updating this blog. At the moment, like any students who will be graduating next year, I have been pensive on what I want to do with my life and career after graduation from MIT. It is kind of paradoxical. On one hand, by being at MIT I have access to many career opportunities. Yet, being a mid-career person, I find it challenging and sometimes frustrating to make a complete career switch in this point in my career. Nonetheless, this soul-searching process is forward-thinking and is no different from the time when I contemplated about going back to grad school. Ultimately, I believe and am still driven to doing something that I am passionate for. I don’t think I can ever go wrong in going this direction.

From time to time, I would join eMusic and then download a mega load of digital music before canceling my membership. However, the selection at eMusic must be getting better lately because I find myself rejoining eMusic more frequently lately to download the music that I want.

Last week, I rejoined eMuisc to download a fresh batch of digital music, which consists of the following albums:

• Picaresque by The Decemberists - If you need an introduction to The Decemberists, this is the album to get. After reading rave reviews about this band and their music, I decided to download this album and listen for myself. I was blown away by the band’s lyrical tunes along with the wonderful voice of Colin Meloy, the band’s lead singer and songwriter. I could not exactly categorize the musical genre that identifies the band. They have a broad range of musical style that ranges from folksy music akin to that of The Thrills to the upbeat indie pop similar to that of The Smiths. Absolutely my favorite album at the present. I highly recommended this album.
• Castaways and Cutouts by The Decemberists - A close second favorite album by the band.
• 18 B Sides by Moby - This is one of the two albums from Moby that features B-sides, which some people consider as rejected stuff that did not make it to the main album. But do not let this negative connotion fool you in believing that this album is inferior. While the album may not be as refined as the parent album 18, it does have a collection of great dance and ambient songs. Overall the album sounds very refreshing and appealing - the album feels more like a new relese than a collection of B-sides.
• Play: The B Sides by Moby - This album is so-so.
• Ambient by Moby - Somehow I do not like this album that much. It is refined but nothing stands out from this album. My least favorite of the six albums.
• Bellavista Terrace: Best of the Go-Betweens by The Go-Betweens - A compilation of top tunes from an 80’s indie band from Australia.

While talking to first year students at MIT recently, I have noticed that many people are either unaware or not taking advantage of the MIT Opencourseware (OCW) project. The OCW is a great resource for finding past assignments and exams as well as their solutions. I have found archived OCW assignment solutions - although not all courses in OCW offer this - to be effective study guides. They help me to cut down study time without compromising my understanding of the course subject. Finally, practicing past exams is an effective way of preparing for exams.

My fellow classmate, Sorin appears on the latest issue of News @ MIT, an MIT Sloan student newsletter, to talk about his perspective on living overseas. Check it out.

I had dinner with Michelle and Camille at House of Tibet Kitchen, a small Tibetan restaurant in Somerville. I have had Tibetan food before but found it to be rather greasy. If you like Tibetan food that is fresh, light, and delicious, then those served from House of Tibet Kitchen will appeal you. Their lentil soup is phenomenal - it is simple yet palatable. For appetizers, I highly recommend Friendly Snack which consists of an assortment of all their appetizers for only $6.50. Some of their appetizers are deep-fried but they do not taste greasy. The place is small but it has a great ambience. I recommend this place to anyone.