104 days to TEDIndia2009!

Ever since I’d been introduced to TEDGlobal, I was hooked on to it. It’s possible that this one idea to bring together intellectuals from all over the world could top all the other ideas being presented at their tremendously impacting conferences in the fields of technology, environment and design. Although every such conference includes a lot of interaction between the layman and the laureate, it is the famous 18-minute talk of theirs that makes the difference. The TEBGlobal, a series of such conferences usually held in Oxford, UK, attracts thousands of attendees who travel there just to bear proud witness to these talks. As such each intellectual comes on stage and demonstrates, in varying manners, how innovation by the minute could defeat orthodoxy of thought and the oft bureaucratic methods of science, it gradually becomes apparent that some fields of thought, especially those which we had earlier perceived as too theoretical and therefore not fit for further development, are capable of having impacts on humanity much greater than the others. Take the example of Zeresenay Alemseged, the Ethiopian paleoanthropologist, who discovered the 3.3 million years old fossil of the girl Selam (of the species Australopethicus afarensis). In studying her tiny bones, Alemseged sees the points in time at which man began to differ from apes; in studying the hyoid bone in her throat, he sees the beginning of human languages. The study of both these will provide significant insights into how we, as humans, understand language, and why it is the way it is. This is in turn will aid linguists, and that in turn will aid psychologists, and so on and so forth.

With many such personalities in their arsenal, TED is now beginning to focus on the East, where the economic downturn has had the least impact. Countries like India and China have ridden the slowdown like none else, with many industries still showing massive profits. There is a rising consensus that this cannot be just due to the cheap outsourcing options the region offers or even the low-cost jobs, but due to the diligence of the Indian. TEDIndia2009, the Indian chapter of the TEDGlobal conferences, is now coming to Mysore and will be held between November 1-4 at the advanced training center run by Infosys there. Why I’m excited about this conference is because of the expected topics TED is going to try to handle:

• Which local innovations are destined for global impact?
• Who are the young thinkers and doers capable of shaping the future?
• Can there be economic advancement without environmental destruction?
• Can a pluralistic democracy survive in the face of rising fundamentalism?
• Can we make money and be good? Really?
• What should we learn – or fear? — from China’s investment in Africa?
• Do we have enough water for everyone?
• How do we keep our youth challenged and our aged healthy?
• How can anti-poverty solutions be brought to scale?
• Is there wisdom to be found in traditional medicine??
• Which other ancient traditions can illuminate modern life?

All of this, coupled by the fact that the speakers usually don’t hail from a purely scientific background but also from a partly managerial one, makes it an interesting event to look out for since the answers to the questions above could mean a lot for India as a whole, including its people and the vision it has set out for itself. For further information, check out http://conferences.ted.com/TEDIndia/.

The Beginner's Guide to World War II

As you can see, I’m bored. 

This is a chronological guide to the happenings in WWII. Everywhere you go, you only find detailed articles about this ‘era’, but I prefer keeping things short.

1. World War I ends. Germany signs Treaty of Versailles, is prohibited from annexation, expansion. Consigned to massive repairs. June 2, 1919. 
2. Russian civil war topples Czars. Soviet Union, under the leadership of Joseph Visarionovich Stalin, comes into existence. April 3, 1922. 
3. Japan, seeking to plant seedlings of influence in China, invades Manchuria using the Mukden Incident as provocation. September 19, 1931.
4. Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi party, comes to power in Germany. Dissolves democracy and takes over as dictator. Nationalises industries, promotes anti-communism. Calls himself ‘Fuhrer’. August 2, 1934.
5. France allows Hitler free hand in Ethiopia in order to befriend Germany. Hitler subsequently begins rearming campaign and introduces conscription. France, UK and Italy, alarmed, form the Stresa Front to defend against offensives. Russia concludes a treaty of mutual assistance with France. Early 1935.
6. League of Nations’ bureaucracy delays approval of Franco-Soviet pact. UK steps in and signs naval agreement plan with Russia. USA passes Neutrality Act. Mid 1935.
7. Second Italo-Abyssinian War: Italy invades Ethiopia under Benito Mussolini. Germany backs Italy’s action; Italy, in return, revokes objections to Germany making Austria a satellite state. October 1935.
8. Germany invades, later annexes, Austria, provoking little or no reaction from other states. Encouraged, Hitler lays claim to Sudetenland which comprises a part of Czechoslovakia. France, UK concede territory against promise of German ceasefire. March, 1938.
9. Japanese forces capture Nanjing, then capital of China. Chinese forces flood Yellow River to stall Japanese advancement and prepare defence at Wuhan. Wuhan falls by October. Mid-late 1938.
10. Germany annexes Rhineland in direct violation of Treaties of Versailles and Locarno. Spanish Civil War breaks out; Hitler and Mussolini support General Francisco Franco’s nationalist forces, which eventually win. Early 1939.
11. Hitler makes demands on Danzig, Poland. Franco-British pact guarantees Polish freedom. Italy invades Albania; freedom guarantee extended to Romania, Greece. April, 1939.
12. Germany and Italy unite to form Rome-Berlin Axis; Germany and Japan sign Anti-Comintern Pact against the Soviet Union, which Italy later joins. Chinese Kuomintang and Communist forces declare ceasefire to present joint front against Japan. Mid 1939.
13. Russia and Germany sign non-agression pact. Agreements include a secret protocol to split rest of Europe into two separate spheres of influence. August, 1939.
14. Hitler invades Poland. World War  breaks out. France, UK and Commonwealth nations declare war on Germany. Japan attacks stragically-important Chinese city of Changsha. Poland is defeated, though it doesn’t surrender, and is split up between Germany, Soviet Union, Lithuania and Slovakia. September-October, 1939.
15. Soviet forces invade Baltic States after signing armistice with Japan, wage the four-month Winter War against Finland. Finland loses with concessions. UK, France consider Soivet’s attack a breach of promise and expel it from League of Nations. China, with the power of veto, abstains from vote in fear of alienation from Western states. Angered, Russia suspends military aid to China, at the same time completing invasion of the Baltic States. Late 1939 – Early 1940.
16. German-Soviet Commercial Agreement signed: Germany provides military support to Russia in exchange for raw materials to circumvent British blockade. Hitler invades Denmark, which capitulates. Two months later, Hitler annexes Norway also despite Allied support, securing large quantities of iron ore. Norway Debate in UK results in PM Neville Chamberlain being replaced by Winston Churchill. Upto May 1940.
17. Germany invades France, Netherlands and Belgium. Latter two run down by blitzkrieg tactics in two weeks. Maginot Line, strongest French line of defence against armored vehicles, is defeated by flanking movement across the Ardennes. May-June, 1940. 
18. Italy declares war on France, UK. Begins piercing into French territory along with Germany. France falls in 12 days. British troops depart from Dunkirk, leaving all heavy equipment behind. USA significantly increases size of US Navy. June 22, 1940.
19. France divided into German and Italian occupation zones; small rump survives under the Vichy regime. British attack small French fleet in Algeria to prevent possible seizure by Germany. July 14, 1940.
20. Germany takes over French ports, beginning naval and air superiority campaign over UK. Air campaign fails, compensated by successive victories on water against over-stretched Royal Navy. Italy begins advancement into Malta, British Somaliland and Egypt. Siege of Malta begins. Japan attacks French Indochina, capturing several bases. Mid-late 1940.
21. USA embargoes iron, steel and mechanical parts to Japan; agrees to trade American destroyers in exchange for British bases. Germany, Italy and Japan sign Tripartite Pact, declaring that any country (excl. Russia) that attacked either of the three would be at war with all three. German-Soviet Border Agreement is signed: Russia is partially included into Tripartite Pact with commercial favours for Germany. September, 1940.
22. Tripartite Pact expands with the inclusion of Hungary and Slovakia. Romania joins later to oppose the Soviet Union under the wishes of Ion Antonescu (its leader), primarily to battle Communism. November, 1940.
23. USA effects Lend-Lease Policy, begins $700 billion (2007 equivalent) transfer of war materials to UK, Soviet Union, France and China in exchange for access to military bases. Creation of US security zone spanning half the Atlantic to protect British convoys. German U-boats face off against US naval forces. March-October, 1941.
24. Italy invades Greece, pushed back to Albania in a few days. Shortly after, British Commonwealth forces launch offensives against Egypt, push back Italian forces to Libya. Churchill initiates Operation Lustre: Commonwealth troops are dispatched from Africa to bolster Greece. Royal Navy sinks three Italian battleships and several other warships at Taranto and Cape Matapan. October, 1940 – January, 1941.
25. Hitler launches Operation Sunflower: German troops are diverted to Libya to assist Italy. Commonwealth forces are soon pushed back to Egypt. British counteroffensives in May and June fail. German land troops capture Yugoslavia; paratroopers force Allies to evacuate Greek island of Crete.  February-May, 1941.
26. First Anglo-Iraqi War breaks out. British Commonwealth forces quash Iraqi coup and defeat German forces therein. With assistance of the Free French, invade Syria and Lebanon, crushing a German base in the former. Allied navy sinks German flagship Bismarck. Royal Air Force thwarts Luftwaffe bombing campaing. Upto May 11, 1941. 
27. Japan attempts to capitalise on Germany’s success in Europe, demand oil supply from Dutch East Indies. Talks fail, prompting Japan to capture southern Indochina. Move has two outcomes: China’s trade routes are blocked, and Japan is in position to attack Dutch, British and American territories. May-June, 1941.
28. Germany launches Operation Barbarossa, history’s largest military operation in terms of manpower and area traversed, against Russia. Hitler begins to amass massive hosts of troops and tanks along the 2,800 km border; Russian supreme command, Stavka, assumes defensive stance. German 2nd Panzer Group begins moving toward Eastern Ukraine and Leningrad, defeating 4 Soviet Armies on the way; Kiev captured in a few weeks. June 22, 1941.
29. USA, which supplied 80% of Japan’s oil, enforces a full embargo, compelling Japan to choose between supply of resources from the West or advancing further in Southeast Asia. Choosing the latter, Japan begins incursions against a string of SE Asian territories, causing Allied forces to become more dispersed and weaker. Decision also allowed Japan to exploit natural resources in the region. To prevent American intervention, attack on Pearl Harbor is suggested. July, 1941.
30. Depletion of natural resources forces Russia to sign Anglo-Russian Pact with Britain; shortly after, they jointly invade Iran and capture the Persian Corridor along with the oil fields. July 12, 1941 and after.
31. UK and USA jointly issue the Atlantic Charter – blueprints for the world after WWII. Includes the formation of UN. Represents the ‘changing of guard’ for WWII from UK to USA. August 14, 1941.
32. With only Leningrad and Sevastopol resisting Op. Barbarossa, Hitler orders German troops to begin march towards Moscow. Journey lasts two months; once troops reach outer suburbs, exhaustion causes standstill. World War II’s blitzkrieg era ends. Op. Barbarossa is declared a failure after Russia continues to hold Moscow, Leningrad and Sevastopol. October, 1941.
33. Commonwealth forces launch offensive in North Africa, drive back all intruders. Proceed towards complete reclamation. November, 1941.
34. Soviety troops acheive numerical parity with Axis forces; Military Reserve Forces are created and mobilised against German forces along 1000 km stretch beginning from Ukraine, pushing hostile units upto 250 km west within days. Russian spy, Richard “Ramsay” Sorge, enables Soviets to gain upper hand against battles with Japan. December, 1941.
35. Japan launches two surprise attacks simultaneously by attacking American naval base Pearl Harbor and instigating the Battle of Malaya. USA forms alliances with UK, France, Soviet Union and China. Declaration of UN affirms Atlantic Charter, which the Soviet Union denies to adhere to citing neutral agreements with Japan. UK declares war on Germany. China launches the Second Sino-Japanese War. January, 1942.
36. Japan almost fully conquers Burma, Philippines, Malaya, Dutch East Indies and Singapore, with continuing campaigns in South China Sea, Java Sea and the Indian Ocean; successful bombing of Australian port of Darwin leaves them overconfident. Chinese Communist forces renew attacks against Japan in Changsha, pushing them further back. German Kriegsmarine (U-boat arm) launches Operation Second Happy Time, sinking valuable American resources off the Atlantic coast. January – April, 1942.
37. With the USA in the war, Japan launches Operation Mo (WWII’s first amphibious assault) to capture Port Moresby in order to sever communication and supply lines between USA and Australia. Americans intercept messaging signals and foil plan; consequently, Tokya is bombed by American battle carriers. UK attacks Vichy-controlled Madagascar to secure foothold off African shore. May, 1942.
38. Germany wins Battle of Kerch Peninsula and Second Battle of Kharkov; Hitler launches Case Blue: offensives against southern Russia to seize the Caucasian oil fields. Axis forces in North Africa fight Commonwealth forces in Battle of Gazala, Libya; Common forces are pushed back to Egypt, where a stalemate occurs in the First Battle of El Alamein. June, 1942.
39. Japan plans to seize Midway Atoll, yet unaware of Americans having broken their signal codes successfully. Japanese forces are sent to the Aleutian Islands to distract American battle carriers, which could later be lured into the atoll for an ambush. Americans disrupt the plans; rout the Imperial Japanese Navy at Battle of Midway. June, 1942. 
40. Battle of Midway defeat forces Japan to consider terrestrial campaign via Territory of Papua to capture Port Moresby. USA initiates a parallel race towards Rabaul, Japan’s primary military base in SE Asia, via the island of Guadalcanal. July, 1942.
41. Axis forces are finally subdued in Egypt at Battle of Alam El Halfa. Roosevelt and Churchill launch Operation Pedestal to bring desperately needed food supplies to besieged Malta. August 9-15, 1942.
42. American and Canadian commandos begin raiding strategic targets in Europe and N Africa, culminating in the disastrous Dieppe Raid (Operation Jubilee) with a decisive German victory. August 19, 1942.
43. Americans reach Guadalcanal before Japan traverses Papua; quest of Port Moresby is abandoned in favour of Guadalcanal Campaign. Japanese troops in Northern Guinea begin retreat towards Guadalcanal when they are intercepted by Australian and American forces in the Oro Province. Battle of Buna-Gona ensues. Late 1942.
44. Allies dislodge Axis forces at Second Battle of El Alamein, begin to drive them west across Libya. October 23 – November 5, 1942.
45. Operation Torch (Anglo-American invasion of French North Africa) is launched by UK and USA. 107,000 troops land in and around coastal Algiers to free N African states, which join the Allies. November 8-10, 1943.
46. Russian armies intercept advancing German, Italian, Romanian and Hungarian units at Stalingrad; launches Operations Mars and Uranus. Mars, an attack on the Rzhev salient in Moscow, fails miserably. Uranus, on the other hand, obliviates the besiegers of Stalingrad by encirculation of enemy troops. November, 1942 – February, 1943.
47. Japan is defeated in SE Asia, and Rabaul is captured by the Americans. Emperor Hirohito commences Operation Ke, the systematic withdrawal of Japanese troops. January, 1943. 
48. Germany joins the Third Battle of Kharkov after Russian forces begin to taper. Front-line salient created by German troops around city of Kursk. Mid-February, 1943.
49. Commonwealth forces in Burma launch Operation Longcloth. The 77th Indian Infantry Brigade, under Brigadier Orde Wingate, penetrate Japanese forces, disrupting rear enemy lines. February-April, 1943.
50. USA, following overwhelming victory at the Battle of Guadalcanal, set off two campaigns: the first to free Aleutians and fortify Rabaul by capturing the surrounding the islands (Operation Cartwheel), and to break off the Japanese Central Pacific perimeter at the Gilbert and Marshall islands (Gilbert and Marshall Islands Campaign). May, 1943.
51. Hitler, in retaliation of Operation Torch, orders German invasion of Vichy France. Vichy rulers scuttle their fleets at Toulon, causing German forces to be pincered into Tunisia. Tunisia overrun by Allied forces. Upto May, 1943.
52. Allied invasion of Sicily begins. Public dissatisfaction with Mussolini’s performance results in his ousting and arrest. Germany prepares for the Battle of Kursk, anticipated by Hitler to span a few months. July, 1943.
53. Allied invasion of Italy begins. 8 days into the invasion, Italy surrenders, signing an armistice with the Allied forces. Germany responds by disarming Italian forces, sezing military control of Italian areas and setting up a series of defensive lines. German Special Forces rescure Benito Mussolini as part of the Gran Sasso raid (Operation Eiche), who sets up the Italian Social Republic in German-occupied Italy. September 1-12, 1943. 
54. Roosevelt and Churchill meet Chiang Kai-shek at the Cairo Conference and Stalin at the Tehran Conference. Post-war territorial surrenders are agreed upon. Stalin agrees to invade Japan within three days of Germany’s defeat to be brought about by Allied forces. November, 1943. 
55. Soviet forces end the siege of Leningrad (the longest and most lethal in history), and continue offensives which ultimately end at the Battle of Narva, Estonia. Germany is aided by Estonian forces looking to restore the exiled Estonian government. Residually, Soviet operations in the Baltic Sea region are halted. January, 1944.
56. USA, UK and Canada launch Operation Shingle and the Battle of Monte Cassino simultaneously. Op. Shingle involves amphibious landings of troops at Anzio and Nettuno (both in Italy) to provoke Battle of Anzio. German divisions are forced to retreat, after which Rome is captured (June 10). January – June, 1944.
57. USA launches Operation Hailstone to capture Caroline Islands, a pre-war territory of Japan. US Navy faces the Japanese Navy and Air Force at naval base at Truk. Offensive lasts 2 days, ending with decisive American victory; US forces proceed to release Western New Guinea from Japanese hold. February 17-18, 1944.
58. Japan launches Operation U-Go, set to besiege Commonwealth positions in Imphal and Kohima (Assam, India), and Operation Ichi-Go to destroy all Chinese fighting forces, establish rail-links between Japanese held territories and secure American airfields. USA successfully executes Operation Cartwheel and the Gilbert and Marshall Islands Campaign. March, 1944.
59. Black May in the Atlantic: Allied navy annihilates the threat of German Kriegsmarine U-boats by systematically sinking 43 units at the cost of 19. General Karl Donitz withdraws campaign. May, 1944.
60. Japan conquers Henan province, China, and instigates Battle of Changsha in Hunan province. June, 1944.
61. Americans launch the Mariana and Palau Islands Campaign, pushing back the Japanese perimeter till the Philippine Sea, where Japanese forces are defeated. Subsequently, Japanese PM Tojo resigns. Americans secure air bases to launch intensive heavy bomber attacks against Japanese home islands. American forces invade Filipino island of Leyte, leading to history’s largest naval battle, the Battle of Leyte Gulf. June-October, 1944. 
62. Soviets launch Operation Bagration in Belarus; Germany Army Group Centre is almost obliterated. Additionally, Soviets also launch Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive to force German troops from Western Ukraine and Eastern Poland. June 22, 1944.
63. Allied Invasion of Normandy (known as D-Day, June 6) commences. Northern France is taken first, and after reassigning Allied units from Italy, Southern France. The Falaise Pocket, consisting of several German units, is defeated. Paris is liberated (August 25). China repulses Japanese attacks, reclaims Changsha and Hengyang. June-August, 1944. 
64. Germany begins Battle of Kursk; dense Russian fortification exhausts German forces, resulting in a slowdown. Soviets mount massive counteroffensive, pushing invading forces well into Romania, culminating in the Battle of Targul Frumos. July, 1944.
65. Armia Krajowa (Polish Home Army) plans uprisings in Poland, drawing support from the advancing Red Army. Two uprisings remain notable: the Warsaw Uprising in the north and the Slovakian Uprising in the south. August 1, 1944.
66. Soviets launch the Jassy-Kishinev Offensive to cut-off and destroy German troops in Romania and Bulgaria, triggering off a successful coup d’etat in Romania and King Michael’s coup in Bulgaria. Both countries then shift to the Allied side. August 20-29, 1944. 
67. Red Army troops advance into Yugoslavia, Albania and Grece, forcing the withdrawal of German Army Groups E and F. Communist Yugoslav Partisans in the south, led by Marshal Josip Broz Tito, assist in delaying the German war effort. September, 1944.
68. UK, USA, Poland, Dutch Resistance and Canada launch Operation Market Garden, a critical failure due to inability of British forces to secure the bridge at Arnheim. Subsequently, Northern Netherlands doesn’t receive food supplies during the Hunger Winter, resulting in more than 10,000 deaths. September 17-25, 1944.
69. The Continuation War (from June 25, 1941) between Finnish resistance forces and Russian troops prevents Russia’s annexation of Finland. Ceasefire is agreed upon; Russia signs an armistice on mild conditions. Finland shifts to Allied camp. Upto September 19, 1944.
70. Soviets launch the Belgrade Offensive in Northern Siberia to liberate Belgrade and its capital city, with a little assistance from Bulgarian forces. October 20, 1944.
71. The Red Army initiates the Budapest Offensive to liberate Hungary. Germany, simultaneously, launches Operation Panzerfaust to prevent Hungary’s defection from the Axis camp as well as to protect Germany’s southern flank. The Battle of Budapest ensues; Red Army scores a decisive vistory and Hungary is liberated. October 29, 1944 – February 13, 1945.
72. German troops attack across the Ardennes, a push that is repulsed by Allied troops over a period of six weeks. Soviets launch anti-German offensives from in and around Hungary. German forces driven out of Yugoslavia, Greece and Albania by Communist partisans. December 16, 1944.
73. Soviets launch Vistula-Oder Offensive and East Prussian Offensive, pushing from the Vistula to the Oder river river in Germany, and overrun East Prussia. Mid-January, 1945.
74. Yalta Conference convenes; Soviet, UK and USA leaders discuss occupation of post-war Germany and Russia’s promised invasion against Japan. February 4, 1945.
75. Allied forces enter Western Germany and halt at the Rhine river. Russia launches East Pomeranian and Silesian Offensives. Allies cross Rhine from north and south of the Ruhr, encircling German forces in the Ruhr Pocket. Russian forces near Vienna. Acting together, Allied forces push forward in Italy (the Spring Offensive) and Soviet troops storm Berlin (the Battle of Berlin). The two forces link up on the Elbe river (April 25). February-April, 1945.
76. Leadership changes: April 12, FDR succeeded by Harry Truman; April 28, Mussolini killed by Italian partisans; April 30, Hitler commits suicide, succeeded by Grand Admiral Karl Donitz.
77. Surrender of forces: April 29, German forces in Italy; May 7, German forces in Western Europe; May 8, German forces in Eastern front (to Soviets); May 11, German forces in Prague.
78. Allied forces continue their advancements in the Pacific theatre, pushing back Japanese forces up to Burma; Commonwealth forces stationed there rout them. American forces launch multiple air raids over Japan and cut off imports. Upto June, 1945.
79. UK general elections held. Clement Attlee replaces Winston Churchill as PM. July 5, 1945.
80. Potsdam Conference is held in Potsdam, Germany. Previous agreements are are reconfirmed. Unconditional Japanese surrender is asked for, providing them with the alternative of “prompt and utter destruction”. July 11, 1945.
81. Japan rejects terms of the Potsdam Agreement. USA, under leadership of Harry Truman, drops atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan surrenders. August, 1945.

World War II ended thus (and not so short after all!).

Probably, the next week end, I’ll put up a guide for the Cold War. Till then, enjoy!