Month: May 2021

Math has fascinated human kind for long. The magic of numbers, the patterns it creates and humankind’s grasping of it through observation led to the creation of the metric system, which defines the standard units of measurements of several things we use every day.

The humble A4 paper, which has the dimensions of 210×297 millimeters is extremely special – not because of the number in particular, but because of how we humans have systematized the size to fit into a bigger order of things!

Get ready to explore the universe through the dimensions of a simple A4 paper!

To begin with, let us understand the role the metric system plays in creating the magic. Take a sheet of A4 paper and divide into two. Each twain is exactly half that of the whole and exactly the same shape as the whole with the ratio of its sides identical. Try it with non-metric paper like origami or metric, and you will see that this property does not hold true! That is why you can see the world through an A4 paper and not other sizes.

If you divide a sheet of A4 paper in half you get A5, and dividing that in half gives you A6 and so on. The same holds true for the other way around. Double it to get A3 and double that to get A2, and then A1 and A0, which is equal to exactly 1 m² of paper. Remember, no matter how much the size increases or decreases, the shape is the same and the dimensions are proportionate. This lets you create anything you want on an A4 size to be scaled up or down to suit any requirement. While it makes calculations for practical jobs such as printing easier, with practically no wastage, these metrics can create a far more satisfying and hypnotizing exponential spiral of literally everything there is around you!

If it were possible to physically keep diving a piece of A4 size in half, you could physically see! A4/2⁸ is the size of a bee. A4/2¹² is when you would probably reach the size of a bug’s organ’s and also the limits of a human’s naked vision. At A4/2²⁴ you would reach the size of an individual cell of the bee. A4/2³² would take you down to the mechanical ‘brain’ structure of each individual cell, where you would find chromosomes and DNA that are essentially the blueprints that reside within each living building block of an organism, that is the cell. A4/2³⁹ is when you would have reduced to a size so small that light wouldn’t be able to penetrate. If you tried to comprehend this in atomic terms, A4/2⁵⁶ would give you the width of an individual strand of a DNA. A4/2⁶⁴ is the width of a single atom of hydrogen. If you further kept dividing this size to enter the electron orbital and the interior to discover the very essence of matter, you would end up at nothingness, in the sense of your understanding of physical matter. The center of the atom made of a single proton which is 1/100^th the size of the atom is found at A4/2⁹⁷. Further dividing it would take you into a realm of appearing and disappearing quarks. Here you would hover above the edge of the abyss of quantum deep. Plunge in further and you would fall into nothingness for twice as many as divisions as you have already made and you would reach an incomprehensible quantum madness, right at the floor of the building blocks of the universe we live in! That is when you would reach the limits of any current theory currently in existence as developed by humans. This is the smallest size, you may say, of the pixel that shapes reality as we know it. This dimension is roughly A4/2²²⁵.

Don’t let your head reel! Let us get back to our reality of humble A4 piece of paper – a simple 210×297 millimeters. Keep doubling it to reach the size of table. At A4x2⁶, you’d reach the size of an average room. At A4x2¹² you would probably have the size of the building you’re sitting in. Keep doubling to include the size of the street the building is on, the neighborhood, and at A4x2²⁴ you would have the size of an average town. Quadruple it to get the size of a small city. A4x2³⁶ gives you the size of some of the largest cities in the world. A4x2⁴⁸ is where accomplishments of human civilizations begin to fade and only the light we create can be seen. A4x2⁵⁵ covers the distance of the earth’s farthest artificial satellites. A4x2⁶⁰ is where you’d meet the moon orbiting the earth. To give you better context, this is far enough for the light emitted by us on earth to take one full second to reach the moon! Past A4x2⁶⁸, earth gets too small to be visible. A4x2⁷⁶ reveals the orbits of Venus and Mars. A4x2⁸⁰ is the distance between where you initially started to the sun! A4x2⁹⁰ is where you cross the limits of the orbits of the last planets in our solar system. A couple more doublings and Voila! You reach the farthest any human-made object has travelled. At A4x2¹¹⁰ you would have left our home star. From here, if you travelled for a month at the speed of light, you would reach the Oort cloud with icy planetesimals that occasionally get knocked off their orbits fall inward into. Another year of travelling at light’s speed would get you to A4x2¹²⁴, which is where you would finally leave the sun’s gravitational dominance. Keep doubling to mostly bump into nothing, because at this point, you would reach to discover the true nature of space, ever even our nearest stars are visible just as dots. Continue doubling to A4x2¹⁴⁰ and you would find the appearance of an illusion of something solid – our galaxy! At the speed of light, this is 100 millenia across. At A4x2¹⁶⁸, enormous galaxies themselves would have reduced to farther star-like visibility to create galactic filaments, which are some of the largest known structures to humans. These could be the last threads of light in the void which is our universe. At just 184 doublings of a single sheet of A4 paper, we reach the limits of the vastness of everything we know – the edge of the universe we are able to observe so far. A4x2¹⁸⁴ can contain 2 trillion galaxies!

Fascinated? We are too!

There are endless possibilities in the world we live in. Unleash them all with Galaxy Brite A4 paper.

If you are a boss, you must be familiar with all the stigmas that surround your role at work. Stereotypically, you are the subject of your employee’s complaining to their spouses or at parties. One wrong move and this could become real! Your employees could fear you, mock you or worse, begin to disrespect you.
Want to avoid being boss-Zilla? You have only one way out – become a boss your employees absolutely love!
Here are 10 ways to achieve it.

1. Know your employees
   Get to know your employees’ personality traits. Know what each one of them is like on and off work. Instead of setting unrealistic competency expectations, learn your employees’ strengths and weaknesses. This helps you explore ways to provide your employees with an environment to put each of their strong capabilities to work. This, in turn, makes them happy and confident employees.
   But remember, don’t intrude into one’s private matters to learn personal details.
2. Have co-worker-like empathy, but be the boss
   Think like an employee to become a better boss. Understand what employees want. Often, it is no different than what you yourself wanted as an employee. Guidance, care, trust, opportunities and recognition are a good mix that can generally be applied to everyone. Spend time with your employees. Keep in touch with them to understand what else they may need. Do your best to fulfil them to the best of your capacity as a boss. This can help gain your staff’s devotion.
3. Be inspiring
   Anybody can boss around. Aspire to be the kind of leader who inspires. Begin by being inspired yourself. Your zeal for work can be contagious.
   Share your vision with your employees. It makes them feel valuable and accountable at the same time. Share your dreams and show them their role in helping you fulfil them. Before long, your employees will fight as hard as you, for you.
4. Pay attention
   Maintain clear, consistent communication with all your employees. Be approachable and keep your door open. Organize periodic sit-down meetings with your entire team. Remove all distractions and look into the eyes of those who want to speak to you. Make your employees feel heard, comfortable and motivated. Acknowledge appreciation and complaints alike. But pay attention to catch a drift of what’s not explicitly said.
5. Fix things
   Employees often fear bosses because blame is always transferred down the command chain. Break this stereotype. Mistakes happen. Sometimes by employees, at times by you. Own up when you need to. Take responsibility. Forgive and fix things when possible. If nothing else, fix communication channels to nip future mishaps at the bud.
6. Don’t just loosen; let go of the grip
   Don’t do a job in your business. Employ able candidates and let them do their job. Remember, micromanagement is detrimental to the organization’s well-being. Trust your employees to make the right decisions and stand with them. Let go of the reins. Let them rise to the occasion and go the distance. After all, their growth is what can take you ahead.
7. Speak last
   Remember, you are now in a position of power and several of your employees would try to appease you for various reasons. If you want honest input and opinions, don’t say what you think first. Instead, give everybody a chance to speak their mind out. Stimulate their thinking to get creative inputs. This will make your employees feel valued and inspired.
8. Don’t be their friend
   Being a boss is a pretty sticky spot. The best you can do is, to be honest. Bosses can only pretend to be their subordinates’ friend. A leader cannot assert authority as a pal. Keep boundaries clear. Avoid hanging out at the water cooler. Never pick favourites. Provide fair opportunities and guidance to all.
9. See them as humans first, employees next
   Acknowledge that you haven’t employed machines, but people with flesh, blood, emotions, families and responsibilities. Treat them with kindness. Oblige when they have a special need, such as a month’s payment in advance or a longer leave post-wedding. Wish them on birthdays and other important events. Listen when somebody wants to share, but do not overlay personal questions that could make someone uncomfortable.
10. Take a vacation
    The best bosses are the first in and the last out. True, but with some exceptions. You lead by example. Take a vacation once in a while to relax and rejuvenate. Take sick leaves when you need to. Encourage your employees to establish the same kind of work-life balance. This ensures they aren’t pressured into unnecessary obligations, just because a boss doesn’t go on a holiday even once a year. Do not entertain work calls during your vacation. Let your employees know you trust them and hold them accountable to run things in your absence.

Use these actionable bits of advice to begin your journey to the top and Grow With Galaxy