Address:

Dept. of Computer Science & Software Engineering
Concordia University,
Montreal, H3G 1M8
Canada


Telephone:
+1 514 848 2424(3025)                     messages +1 514 848 3000

Fax:
+1 514 848 2830


Email:
BipinC.Desai AT concordia dot ca

  We look before and after,
  And pine for what is not;
  Our sincerest laughter
  With some pain is fraught;
  Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought.

  Percy Bysshe Shelley

• Recent elections

  No comment is the best one for someone who is left speechless!

  
  

• Speed bumps

  The local authorities are adding speed bumps in residential streets to show that they are doing something to reduce accidents involving bodily harm. However, we do not know if the number of injuries are lower due to these speed bumps. What is certainly happening is the increase in pollution when drivers brake to go over a bump and then step on the gas to increase their speed to make-up for the forced reduction in speed and then brake again to go over the next bump: there being two or three bumps in each block. This exercise repeated by most motorist also causes brake wear and the increase in the brake dust which may be harmful to breathe.

  The other irony of these speed bumps on streets in the city are their bad shape: the height of the bumps have increased over the years and it appears that they are not removed in the snowy winters in our cold climate (as was done when they were introduced!). During the snow season, the paints on these bumps is not visible if it has not been scrapped off by the snow plows. As it is, in many places in this town, it is not possible to drive fast due to all the pot-holes and uneven street surface. Along with poor construction, the indifferent patching, the local weather and traffic. A better solutions would be to put large flower pots or posts to reduce the width of the street instead of speed-bumps. This will keep trucks out of residential streets.
  

• Bicycle lanes and bicyclists

  Another recent trend one notices is the redesign of streets to put in bicycle lanes. This is done at the expense of the driving lanes and hence causes a bottle neck for the drivers. The number of bicycles, in a cold city like Montreal is increasing and it is good for the safety of the bicyclists. However, this is at the expense of drivers which seems questionable.

  The other issue is one notices time and again is that the bicyclists do not obey the rules of the road and many drive outside the bike lanes for some strange reasons.

  It is about time that these careless cyclist be given tickets/fines for not stopping at stop signs, traffic lights and biking in driving lanes when there are bike lanes etc. They should be given tickets etc. and fined for dangerous biking and accessed de-merit points which could take away their bikes!.
  

• Some observations Covid etc.

  The local stores are crowded and with narrow isle, an ideal place for the spread; specially when the medical profession does not think people should were some kind of face masks.
  

• Traffic lights

  We are in the 21st century and yet most of the traffic light systems are so 1950s. As outlined in The Web of Betrayals, the attempt to modernize city failed due to the mistrust of Hi-Techs business plans to mine user data instead of making cities more modern. One of the issuee that has not been addressed anywhere is the fixed patterns of traffic lights regardless of the traffic conditions including pedestrian traffic. This leads to unnecessary waiting with engines running and adding to the pollution. With all the modern technology accessible, no actors on the urban development scene seem to be working on modernize the traffic control system using sensors etc. to measure the volume of traffic of all kind.
  
  
  
  
  

If you want to reach me, get yourself an email address e.g., which is from your own university or work place. Let us hope that some time soon, the politicians would use the public postal systems to manage publicly controlled email system.

Even though I was involved in the very early days of the WWW, it has been a dis-appointing betrayal of its original intent. I do not participate in any networks - social(!) or unsocial, so pl. don't invite me to join any!

If you are a prospective student and want me to supervise you, you must be able to fund your graduate studies. I am very selective and don't expect a reply to your request.