History for Scientists and Engineers

Preamble:
Most of us (atleast most engineers and scientists!) know that a vector needs two points and a direction. Attributing time to be a unidirectional entity, we can assign vectors to represent a change. So, in principle (anybody have enough enthusiasm to take up this problem?), all that has happened between any two given time line can be expressed by a finite (or infinite) set of vectors.
In other words, the world is a state machine (i dont know if its finite or infinite) which moves from one state to the other as the time progresses. Interestingly, this state machine is self contained. Also, this state machine does not have unreachable states (have u seen the warning "unreachable code" in your programs?). Given sufficient time, it can move to any state.
With the above arguments, we can define the following Theorem:

Theorem: Change, which is axiomatically understood to be a continuous phenomenon is nothing more than a bunch of vectors in an infinite dimensional vector space!

Motivation:
Betterment is the drive that all creatures strive for, all through their lives. Change has always been with us since the absolute zero occured (say, big-bang!). Identifying change happens only by comparision. And to compare, we need atleast two comparable things!

CRUX:
The next question is, what does all this have to do with history?
A precise answer would be that, history provides a finite set approximation to the possible infinte spaces that the world assumed at some earlier point in time (possibly hundreds of years ago!). Historians are those able people who can aggregate and infer from the traces that the world leaves as it progresses in time.

We know the current space in which the world lives (this is still an ideal assumption!), knowing history helps us define vectors that can tell us where the whole world is leading to in general. It could help us define our roles better thus give a nobler purpose for life.

In pursuit of a purpose in life.

History in general, and the history of South India is my new found interest. When Shri M.Nagappa, our history teacher (also our class teacher) at the Vijaya High School(VHS) taught about the need to learn history in our 8th standard, he did it in his typical style by giving some "n" number of points for each of the topics. One of those "n" that i still remember is, that history helps you identify the mistakes and helps u learn from it.

I guess this point had hibernated in my mind long enough. The right opportunity struck when Dr.Suryanath Kamath gave a lecture on the history of karnataka during the "SuvarNa Karnataka" celebrations organised by the IITM Kannada cultural association.
In the wake of recent border issues of Belgaum, the back drop of Tipu Sultan issue which, i followed closely by reading most articles published by Vijaya Karnataka in the recent days; most of our "DIG" friends (thats what IIT(M)ians call fellow kannadigas) were charged up to dig deeper into the history of karnataka.

I'm blogging my experience of learning history in general and the south indian history in particular.