Code to Compost

As we close out 2025, I’ve been reflecting on the diverse paths our lives take. This week’s blog is a tribute to my UnderGrad classmate, Partha, whose journey over the last decade serves as a profound masterclass in purpose and resilience.

Life Transformation

After twenty years in the software industry, Partha made a choice many of us contemplate but few dare to execute: he traded the corporate office for the open field. Today, he is a seasoned natural farmer, leading the way in sustainable agriculture at the Bhoomi Network’s Farmer’s Center in Tiruvannamalai, India.

The Courage to Pivot

Spending time with Partha at his farm was a mesmerizing experience. Witnessing his transition from two decades of IT logic to the intuitive, rhythmic cycles of nature was deeply humbling. While many of us talk about "getting back to our roots," Partha has spent the last ten years living that reality—transforming rough, challenging land into a thriving ecosystem.

My visit left me with a few powerful realizations:

• The True Value of Nature: Seeing the interdependence of soil, water, and weather firsthand.
  
  
• Grit and Commitment: The physical and mental stamina required to build a farm from scratch is immense.
  
  
• A Student’s Mindset: Partha’s success stems from his passion for asking the right questions and his willingness to keep learning from the land.

A Hub for Ecological Change: The Vivasayi Maiyam

Partha’s work at the Bhoomi Network's Farmer’s Center (Vivasayi Maiyam) in Tamil Nadu is more than just farming; it is an educational movement. The center serves as a bridge for those looking to transition from conventional methods to "nature-imitated" practices through several structured programs:

1. Volunteering (7+ Days): A hands-on entry point for those over 18. Participants engage in farm work and group discussions under a unique "Gift Culture" model (suggested ₹500/day).
2. Village Immersion (3–5 Days): A program designed for urban professionals to experience rural social realities by living and working alongside village communities.
3. Holistic Internships (1 Month+): For those seeking a deeper, comprehensive understanding of ecological systems.
4. Model Farm Creation (6 Months+): A rigorous, experiential program where participants manage a one-acre plot, learning everything from seed banking to animal integration.

Final Thoughts

We often think of success in terms of vertical growth within an industry. Partha has shown me that success can also be horizontal expanding our impact across different sectors and aligning our work with the health of the planet.

I am incredibly proud of my friend. His journey reminds us that it is never too late to redefine who we are and what we contribute to the world.

TOON usage

In the rapidly advancing landscape of AI, TOON (Token-Oriented Object Notation) has emerged as a specialized alternative to JSON. It is designed specifically to optimize how Large Language Models (LLMs) like GPT-4, Gemini, and Claude process data.

Top 3 factors to leverage TOON

1. Drastic Cost Savings

AI models do not read text character-by-character; they process "tokens." In standard JSON, every brace { }, quote ", and comma , consumes tokens.

• Token Reduction: TOON can reduce token usage by 30% to 60% compared to JSON.

• Lower Bills: Since most AI providers charge per token, switching to TOON can cut your API costs nearly in half for the exact same data.

2. Expanded "Memory" (Context Window)

Every AI model has a limit on how much information it can "remember" at once (the context window).

• Efficiency: Because TOON is more compact, you can fit twice as much data into a single prompt.

• Better RAG: For Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems, this means you can feed the AI more search results or documents without hitting the limit.

3. Improved Accuracy and Reasoning

JSON often forces the AI to navigate a sea of repetitive keys and brackets. TOON uses a tabular, header-based structure that aligns better with how models naturally "see" patterns.

• Reduced Hallucinations: With less syntactic noise, the AI can focus on the actual values, leading to more accurate data extraction and reasoning.

• Structure over Syntax: TOON explicitly declares array lengths and headers once, which helps the model stay "grounded" when reconstructing large tables.