Last updated on 18-07-2024
About Me
Hello! My name is Rishikesh (pronounced as ri-shee-kay-sh). I currently live in Abu Dhabi with my wife.
My journey began in a small village in Southern India, precisely at 9.754 latitude and 76.363 longitude, on a national strike day, when the atmosphere held
358 ppm
of carbon. Most of my childhood was spent in Kerala, India, where I was born. To know more about my life as a whole,
timeline
is a great place.
What I do
I hold a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a postgraduate degree in Renewable Energy. Most of my previous experiences have been in the field of renewable energy specifically on energy policy, energy system modelling and mini-grids. My interests are ever-evolving, but my passion lies in addressing the greatest threat humanity faces: climate change. I am deeply committed to solving this issue and believe it is imperative for our future. I discovered the joy and the fascinating world of coding late in my life. So I’m currently on a quest to figure out a way to combine programming and my expertise in energy to become a specialist and contribute my part in energy transition of the world and eventually climate change. I’m actively looking for opportunities in energy system modelling (which I have some experience) or computational social science.
While I am currently unemployed, I am actively working on side projects to learn how to write, code, build, and ship things while growing my audience on my newsletter . Apart from these I mainly love to run, cycle, swim, lift, travel, read , watch and spend time with my wife. I have this sense of curiosity about this world and that drives me everyday. I’m so grateful to be alive this point of history where everyone with a access to internet and a computer, can literally learn anything in this world. I’m so excited about the sheer amount of things that are out there to discover and learn, and excited about the fact that it is an infinite game. I find the most joy when I discover something, learn more about it and figure out how it works.
I thrive at those ‘ahaa’ moments where I understand how things work.
How I see the world
I identify as an INTP-T , explorer , omnivore , atheist , and skeptic . I’m a curious and skeptical person who questions everything around me. While my philosophies are still evolving, I believe in an absurd, meaningless universe where randomness is the most powerful force. I don’t believe in any inherent meaning or creator - the universe’s existence doesn’t require a supernatural explanation, regardless of whether it had a beginning or has always existed in some form. I also reject concepts like karma, rebirth, afterlife, or spirit. As a skeptic, I doubt things and reject all forms of pseudoscience , including practices like yoga (in its spiritual aspects), homeopathy , Ayurveda , naturopathy , etc. I believe in spreading scientific temper and fighting misinformation, seeing it as a civic duty.
While I acknowledge that scientific understanding changes over time, I see this as progress. I think finding the meaning of the universe is a never-ending quest we should pursue, but it’s not a finite game. I believe in physics and its laws, and that all human actions are driven by our evolutionary needs and chemical reactions in our bodies. Despite this, I believe in moral values that keep our society functioning, recognizing our evolution beyond just another organism. I’m not spiritual, and I don’t believe in a larger or shared conscience. I like to meditate, but I view it purely as a mental exercise to refocus, calm myself down, and process my thoughts.
I slightly align with longtermism and care about the future of humanity, including the possibility of becoming a space-faring, interplanetary species. I deeply value relationships and friendships; the probability of forming these connections in such a vast, absurd universe makes them extraordinarily special, highlighting the beauty that can emerge from randomness. While we perceive direction and time in the universe, I believe these are human constructs – the universe simply exists as a series of random events, without inherent beginning or end. While my philosophies are evolving and overlap with each other, they resonate more with something like “Skeptical Scientific Absurdism”.
“I don’t think I’ll ever see Carl again. But I saw him. We saw each other. We found each other in the cosmos, and that was wonderful.”
Why this blog?
This blog is nicheless and is my digital home where I share my thoughts and experiences. For a long time, I struggled to become a specialist. Be it career, life, or hobbies, I have always had multiple passions and interests that evolve over time. I’ve come to realize that being a generalist is not a bad thing, and this blog reflects that.
I think of this website itself as an artwork, something that evolves over time. It’s inspired by numerous blogs and sites out there in the wild west corner of the internet. Like any art piece, each inch of this website is crafted with clear vision, attention, and reason. You can read more about how this blog is built on the colophon page.
Some more info
To know more about my life, visit my timeline . The dream has a list of stuff I want to do, the Lifestack page lists the things I use, and the now page shows what I’m currently up to. If you’re curious, the library has a list of books I’ve read recently, and the watch page lists movies and shows I’ve seen. This website is designed to be explored with no end goal in mind, featuring various interesting pages and easter eggs. Useless Button and The Pixel Mosaic are good starting points, feel free to wander as you wish.
I also host an Ask-Me-Anything (AMA) on this blog. If you enjoy the content, please sign my guestbook .