Today i would like to talk about the growing number of Casinos in Singapore.
We all know that Casinos accommodates certain types of gambling activities, and are known for real entertainment. The Casinos are supposed to be money makers and job creators, but in many peoples' minds they are just a gambling centre.
As for me, i agree with those people. And that means i condemn Casinos.
Gambling addiction does increase over time and the crime, divorce, abuse, and death tolls to feed this addiction also increase. I heard from the news that one woman lost 200 thousand dollars in gambling and another was jailed because she stole money. One person from one of the youtube videos i watched said,"Gambling is like holding your own fate in your own hands". That is what the addicts think and they get hooked on after gambling became more than a game. Another one of the videos said "Whenever you gamble, your integrity tumbles" as whenever you gamble you will have to fake it and lie to get through.
I recently read on a newspaper on how a wife and mother's sad testimony of how her husband's gambling addiction destroyed her home and family and turned a loving husband and father into a man she no longer recognized. This also tells us that compulsive gambling is not cool and is no game but a growing addiction that is ready to destroy your future and change you completely.
I also heard from NPR websites stating that "addiction is a quiet monster" and i completely agree with the quote. My parents told me that Casinos may be the cause for tourism increase, but is also the cause for economic woes as a lot need to be done in building casinos and that is why Las Vegas, the gambling centre, is one of the world's most environmental problematic countries.
After hearing so much from me, what is your opinion. Don't be shy to type them out in the comments. Thank you!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Emily Dickinson- a great poet
Alright.
Today i am going to talk to all of you about poets.
She is the poet who suffered so much in her life, yet made a great accomplishment, ahe is the poet many admired and she is the poet who wrote all her poems in her house. Yes, i am talkng about Emily Dickinson, the legendary poet.
Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1830. She attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, but severe homesickness led her to return home after one year.
People whom she had interacted left great impacts on her poetry and thoughts which caused her to change her mindset.
What i like about Dickinson is that she lived in almost total physical isolation from the outside world, and many people who need isolation just lie around all day, not bothering about anything, but Dickinson actively maintained many correspondences and read widely, which impressed me greatly as she still read widely to get informed of global issues.
I felt sorry for Dickinson and people knew that she was lonely all life as her poetry reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. I felt that she was a great poet as in the hard times she can find a way out by writing that happiness would come to her.
Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a New England town.
Emily Dickinson is famous for her poetry and her prolific writing, but during her lifetime she was more famous for the fact that she rarely, if ever, left her house. During her lifetime she wrote over 1500 poems, however, that are incredibly profound, but few were published in her lifetime; a relative discovered them after her death.
Emily Dickinson was very important. She served as inspiration to poets for generations to come. She was also one of America's early female poets. When she was alive, Emily Dickinson was not that popular. Her writing was not well known. She was quite certain that she would be famous for her writing after death.
Emily Dickinson wrote many great poetry and i am going to introduce you to three of her most famous poems. The first one is called a light exists in spring. It is about the realm of human perception that science cannot necessarily explain or participate in. The speaker invokes words and ideas suggestive of Christianity, creating a spiritual realm that is very real to the speaker. The second poem that i like is "i know a place where summer strives". It is basically about nature. The last poem will be a bird came down the walk. It tells us of how the life of the bird appears to be in the eye of a human.
Emily Dickinson was a famous poet and i agree to that.
Today i am going to talk to all of you about poets.
She is the poet who suffered so much in her life, yet made a great accomplishment, ahe is the poet many admired and she is the poet who wrote all her poems in her house. Yes, i am talkng about Emily Dickinson, the legendary poet.
Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1830. She attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, but severe homesickness led her to return home after one year.
People whom she had interacted left great impacts on her poetry and thoughts which caused her to change her mindset.
What i like about Dickinson is that she lived in almost total physical isolation from the outside world, and many people who need isolation just lie around all day, not bothering about anything, but Dickinson actively maintained many correspondences and read widely, which impressed me greatly as she still read widely to get informed of global issues.
I felt sorry for Dickinson and people knew that she was lonely all life as her poetry reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. I felt that she was a great poet as in the hard times she can find a way out by writing that happiness would come to her.
Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a New England town.
Emily Dickinson is famous for her poetry and her prolific writing, but during her lifetime she was more famous for the fact that she rarely, if ever, left her house. During her lifetime she wrote over 1500 poems, however, that are incredibly profound, but few were published in her lifetime; a relative discovered them after her death.
Emily Dickinson was very important. She served as inspiration to poets for generations to come. She was also one of America's early female poets. When she was alive, Emily Dickinson was not that popular. Her writing was not well known. She was quite certain that she would be famous for her writing after death.
Emily Dickinson wrote many great poetry and i am going to introduce you to three of her most famous poems. The first one is called a light exists in spring. It is about the realm of human perception that science cannot necessarily explain or participate in. The speaker invokes words and ideas suggestive of Christianity, creating a spiritual realm that is very real to the speaker. The second poem that i like is "i know a place where summer strives". It is basically about nature. The last poem will be a bird came down the walk. It tells us of how the life of the bird appears to be in the eye of a human.
Emily Dickinson was a famous poet and i agree to that.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Figurative language
Poem: Dream defered by Langston Hudghs
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sagslike a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
The first Stanza of the poem conveys a general idea.
Hughes uses a lot of vivid imagery or figurative language inside the poem to create pictures in the reader's mind. He also uses words such as "fester," "stink," "rotten," and "crust" to show the negative aspects of dreams deferred, and even the physical pain and deferring dreams can cause.
The image of the poem is central to the theme and impact the poem creates and Hughes uses the imagery as one of the most important aspects of the work. I believe that he uses this imagery as figurative language by making comparisons to dreams to the reality of what happens when they are not true or do not come true.
In his poem, it gives an impression that "sore which is festered" of reality is far away from the dream of equality he depicts so much with simile, personification and hyperbole, and that indicates how Hughes manages to blend figurative language into the poem effectively and for the most impact.
In, "A Dream Deferred," Langston Hughes uses similes to show the importance of dreams, "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun." This symbol means that a dream that is disintegrating and dying like a raisin left out in the sun. Another example of a simile is, "Does it stink like rotten meat" and they all shows the exaggeration of the poem.
I felt that this poem is a gateway between reality and dream. It shows that his desperate calling for dreams and the truth that dreams will not come alive and you have to face the reality. As mentioned before, he also uses figurative language wisely to persuade people. That is why i like this poem.
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sagslike a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
The first Stanza of the poem conveys a general idea.
Hughes uses a lot of vivid imagery or figurative language inside the poem to create pictures in the reader's mind. He also uses words such as "fester," "stink," "rotten," and "crust" to show the negative aspects of dreams deferred, and even the physical pain and deferring dreams can cause.
The image of the poem is central to the theme and impact the poem creates and Hughes uses the imagery as one of the most important aspects of the work. I believe that he uses this imagery as figurative language by making comparisons to dreams to the reality of what happens when they are not true or do not come true.
In his poem, it gives an impression that "sore which is festered" of reality is far away from the dream of equality he depicts so much with simile, personification and hyperbole, and that indicates how Hughes manages to blend figurative language into the poem effectively and for the most impact.
In, "A Dream Deferred," Langston Hughes uses similes to show the importance of dreams, "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun." This symbol means that a dream that is disintegrating and dying like a raisin left out in the sun. Another example of a simile is, "Does it stink like rotten meat" and they all shows the exaggeration of the poem.
I felt that this poem is a gateway between reality and dream. It shows that his desperate calling for dreams and the truth that dreams will not come alive and you have to face the reality. As mentioned before, he also uses figurative language wisely to persuade people. That is why i like this poem.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
A summer life
Book Read: The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
I recently read the adventures of tom sawyer and it was written in brillant language and the plot was well developed. Now let me explain the story to you.
Application:
This book gave me a lot of new ideas about myself and it is much evident in the book, as it shows a lot of Tom Sawyer's escapes and tricks, his adventures that were very interesting and fresh. It provided me with many new paths and ideas such as how to persuade others and stuff that were very new to me and i found pleasure in reading the book. Tom Sawyer was apparently the main character in the story and he showed dignity and pride and others were very attracted to him, naturally. I learned a lot from Tom Sawyer and that provided me with many things that i follow his style.
Analysis:
I would be comparing Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer in this story. They are two friends with very different personalities, each bringing their own unique characteristics into this friendship. Tom and Huck are two adventurous people but in very different ways. Huckleberry's idea of adventure is to escape from society, their beliefs and all of their ideas. Tom, on the other hand, is more likely to make up an adventure based on something he had read in a book and not really trying to escape anything. All of his ideas and schemes come from books, unlike Huck, who has actually lived the fantasies Tom has imagined. The two are alike in one way though. They both have a very strong sense of adventure. I think this one trait along with their similar ages is what makes them friends. Huck seems to be the kind of person that Tom would want to be friends with because of his willingness to make other people happy. Tom lives out his escapades with no regard for the pain and suffering it causes others. Huck, on the other hand, just wants things done and done right.
Synthesis :
I think that the climax of the story is pretty obvious. That would be The time when Huck overhears Injun Joe's plan to kill Widow Douglas, and Tom encounters Injun Joe when he and Becky are stranded in the cave.
Then Tom protects Becky from the fugitive. At that point a chill went down my spine as it was really exciting and i was totally into the book. The scary incident in the cave was chilling and at the same time, an interesting case. I quite like the action.
Evaluation:
I think the author wrote this book mainly for the entertainment of kids and teenagers as the language is suitable. The plot and action are all supposed to be a children book but it could also be for adults as the book sometimes pleasantly remind adults of what they once were themselves and of how they felt and thought and talked, and what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in. I still believed that his main target audience is children as this kind of summer books are mostly interesting to children, just like how i was hooked on it.
I would like to recommend this classic to you as it portrays a realistic summer of a boy and is very interesting.
I recently read the adventures of tom sawyer and it was written in brillant language and the plot was well developed. Now let me explain the story to you.
Application:
This book gave me a lot of new ideas about myself and it is much evident in the book, as it shows a lot of Tom Sawyer's escapes and tricks, his adventures that were very interesting and fresh. It provided me with many new paths and ideas such as how to persuade others and stuff that were very new to me and i found pleasure in reading the book. Tom Sawyer was apparently the main character in the story and he showed dignity and pride and others were very attracted to him, naturally. I learned a lot from Tom Sawyer and that provided me with many things that i follow his style.
Analysis:
I would be comparing Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer in this story. They are two friends with very different personalities, each bringing their own unique characteristics into this friendship. Tom and Huck are two adventurous people but in very different ways. Huckleberry's idea of adventure is to escape from society, their beliefs and all of their ideas. Tom, on the other hand, is more likely to make up an adventure based on something he had read in a book and not really trying to escape anything. All of his ideas and schemes come from books, unlike Huck, who has actually lived the fantasies Tom has imagined. The two are alike in one way though. They both have a very strong sense of adventure. I think this one trait along with their similar ages is what makes them friends. Huck seems to be the kind of person that Tom would want to be friends with because of his willingness to make other people happy. Tom lives out his escapades with no regard for the pain and suffering it causes others. Huck, on the other hand, just wants things done and done right.
Synthesis :
I think that the climax of the story is pretty obvious. That would be The time when Huck overhears Injun Joe's plan to kill Widow Douglas, and Tom encounters Injun Joe when he and Becky are stranded in the cave.
Then Tom protects Becky from the fugitive. At that point a chill went down my spine as it was really exciting and i was totally into the book. The scary incident in the cave was chilling and at the same time, an interesting case. I quite like the action.
Evaluation:
I think the author wrote this book mainly for the entertainment of kids and teenagers as the language is suitable. The plot and action are all supposed to be a children book but it could also be for adults as the book sometimes pleasantly remind adults of what they once were themselves and of how they felt and thought and talked, and what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in. I still believed that his main target audience is children as this kind of summer books are mostly interesting to children, just like how i was hooked on it.
I would like to recommend this classic to you as it portrays a realistic summer of a boy and is very interesting.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
A ruthless game, a merciless community
Book read: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
APPLICATION:
When i compare my life to the life of the characters in this book, i felt as if i am living in luxury. Indeed. The lives of the main characters, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark were poor in their own ways. They do not have enough to eat and have to hunt or find things to eat illegally. Katniss live in district 12 (there are 12 districts altogether), in a desperately poor mining community called the Seam. Strangely, this particular book reminds me of my life in China, where the air is polluted and the environment is dirty. At that time, I suffered a lot as we lived in poorly built houses, we had not much to eat and the toilet were filled with maggots. Yuck! Just the thought of it makes me shudder in fear. It reminds me of my old days, where everything is not so perfect even thought there are some excellent facilities. My old life in China is reflected very well in this book, where the citizens of district 12 led poor and agonizing lives while the capitol led the luxurious lives.
STORY SUMMARY:
Then, there is the hunger games. Twelve boys and twelve girls are chosen to appear in a deadly live television show called the hunger games. There is the unspoken rule of "not eating other tributes" and you must kill people to get out of there alive. Katniss's sister is chosen, and Katniss, fearing for her sister's safety, took her place along with Peeta Mellark. And from here begins the gruesome hunger games. Well, that prettey summed up the first part of the story. The rest are the fighting and returning to district 12.
ANALYSIS:
Well, let me introduce you to another two characters in the hunger games. They are foxface (nicknamed by katniss) and Cato, the boy from district 2, the most ferocious of all. I wanted to compare these two characters as they have very different characteristics unlike peeta and katniss, who have quite the same personality, i believe? In the hunger games, foxface and Cato are the last 2 survivors in the hunger games along with Katniss and Peeta. They have completely different characters and here is why. Cato, to be exact, is a heartless guy with a strong body and it was him who went around killing everyone in the hunter games expect his partner from the same district, Clove. On the other hand, foxface, whose identity is still unknown, is a sly and cunning fellow, just like a FOX. It seemed surprising to me that she was able to survive for so long without killing anyone but rather escaping from everyone. She escapes from everyone and scavenges food. That is why i saw her and Cato to be two complete different tributes. Basicaaly, for Cato, his way of living is to do the so-called hard way while foxface just grabs the good stuffs while noone is paying attention.
SYNTHESIS:
I know that many people will think that the climax of this story will be the middle part, when the hunger games is still taking place. I do Not feel so but i feel that the hunger games is not so interesting but rather the ending. That is when Peeta learned about the fake motives and acts put up by Katniss and Haymitch (their mentor) and felt emptiness and hollow. I felt that this part is very important as it tells of Katniss and Haymitch's attempts to fool the crowd to attract more people to sponsor them. Till this point, Peeta had always been cheerful and that made an unexpected twist which broke the friendship between Peeta and Katniss and left the Cliff hanger of facing the crowd, letting everyone anticipate the second story of the hunger games.
EVALUATION:
I have thought this over and over again, and have more or less came up with a solution. I think that if i can have a friend from the hunger games, it would be Katniss. Why? Firstly it is because that she is responsible and caring. This can be seen as she boldly stood up to protect her sister from entering the hunger games and volunteered herself for it to ensure the safety of her sister. She also had brains and had plenty strategists as she used a lot of techniques to escape the tributes. Then, Katniss is also a loyal friend as throughout the hunger games, she was genuine to Peeta and Rue and never abandoned them. This is the best for a friend as a true friend always one who helps you in difficult times, as the saying goes, "a friend in need is a friend indeed."
Overall, i found this story pretty good with a lot of vivid descriptions of the hunger game and the things the characters did. It was a fresh idea, although many people claimed it to be quite similar to the Japanese book, Battle Royale. The author was also good at attracting people to read on further as she constantly uses cliff hangers and at the ending, there happened to be an unexpected twist which i think will cause the readers to wait feverishly for the next book, catching fire. I would like to recommend this book to you as it is a good read to me and i am sure it will be one to you as well.
APPLICATION:
When i compare my life to the life of the characters in this book, i felt as if i am living in luxury. Indeed. The lives of the main characters, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark were poor in their own ways. They do not have enough to eat and have to hunt or find things to eat illegally. Katniss live in district 12 (there are 12 districts altogether), in a desperately poor mining community called the Seam. Strangely, this particular book reminds me of my life in China, where the air is polluted and the environment is dirty. At that time, I suffered a lot as we lived in poorly built houses, we had not much to eat and the toilet were filled with maggots. Yuck! Just the thought of it makes me shudder in fear. It reminds me of my old days, where everything is not so perfect even thought there are some excellent facilities. My old life in China is reflected very well in this book, where the citizens of district 12 led poor and agonizing lives while the capitol led the luxurious lives.
STORY SUMMARY:
Then, there is the hunger games. Twelve boys and twelve girls are chosen to appear in a deadly live television show called the hunger games. There is the unspoken rule of "not eating other tributes" and you must kill people to get out of there alive. Katniss's sister is chosen, and Katniss, fearing for her sister's safety, took her place along with Peeta Mellark. And from here begins the gruesome hunger games. Well, that prettey summed up the first part of the story. The rest are the fighting and returning to district 12.
ANALYSIS:
Well, let me introduce you to another two characters in the hunger games. They are foxface (nicknamed by katniss) and Cato, the boy from district 2, the most ferocious of all. I wanted to compare these two characters as they have very different characteristics unlike peeta and katniss, who have quite the same personality, i believe? In the hunger games, foxface and Cato are the last 2 survivors in the hunger games along with Katniss and Peeta. They have completely different characters and here is why. Cato, to be exact, is a heartless guy with a strong body and it was him who went around killing everyone in the hunter games expect his partner from the same district, Clove. On the other hand, foxface, whose identity is still unknown, is a sly and cunning fellow, just like a FOX. It seemed surprising to me that she was able to survive for so long without killing anyone but rather escaping from everyone. She escapes from everyone and scavenges food. That is why i saw her and Cato to be two complete different tributes. Basicaaly, for Cato, his way of living is to do the so-called hard way while foxface just grabs the good stuffs while noone is paying attention.
SYNTHESIS:
I know that many people will think that the climax of this story will be the middle part, when the hunger games is still taking place. I do Not feel so but i feel that the hunger games is not so interesting but rather the ending. That is when Peeta learned about the fake motives and acts put up by Katniss and Haymitch (their mentor) and felt emptiness and hollow. I felt that this part is very important as it tells of Katniss and Haymitch's attempts to fool the crowd to attract more people to sponsor them. Till this point, Peeta had always been cheerful and that made an unexpected twist which broke the friendship between Peeta and Katniss and left the Cliff hanger of facing the crowd, letting everyone anticipate the second story of the hunger games.
EVALUATION:
I have thought this over and over again, and have more or less came up with a solution. I think that if i can have a friend from the hunger games, it would be Katniss. Why? Firstly it is because that she is responsible and caring. This can be seen as she boldly stood up to protect her sister from entering the hunger games and volunteered herself for it to ensure the safety of her sister. She also had brains and had plenty strategists as she used a lot of techniques to escape the tributes. Then, Katniss is also a loyal friend as throughout the hunger games, she was genuine to Peeta and Rue and never abandoned them. This is the best for a friend as a true friend always one who helps you in difficult times, as the saying goes, "a friend in need is a friend indeed."
Overall, i found this story pretty good with a lot of vivid descriptions of the hunger game and the things the characters did. It was a fresh idea, although many people claimed it to be quite similar to the Japanese book, Battle Royale. The author was also good at attracting people to read on further as she constantly uses cliff hangers and at the ending, there happened to be an unexpected twist which i think will cause the readers to wait feverishly for the next book, catching fire. I would like to recommend this book to you as it is a good read to me and i am sure it will be one to you as well.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Is it your duty to donate to charity?
Hey ya dudes.
Without telling you guys i think you already know looking at the title. (obvious)
So, is it your duty to donate to charity?
First, lets analyse the word, Charity. so, what is Charity?
Just to let you all know, i felt that charity is like an involuntary act, an act that you want to do, for the sake of the handicapped, the needy, etc. I am not going to make it cliche, but i think that charity is not a must to do, moreover of an initiative.
Why do we have charity then?
Well, the world have infinite number of unlucky handicaps and more that really needs financial support or welfare support. That is when charity clicks into place. Charity is made so as to let the people contribute to the needy and help them.
So, is it your DUTY to donate to charity?
Well, honestly speaking, duty means that it is a must-do, a thing you are supposed to do. So, by right, it is NOT your duty to donate to charity. But, BY RIGHT.
In the 21st century, the world had advanced in many areas and the behaviour of people had changed a lot. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, i said that by right, it is nt your duty to donate to charity. However, the world had transformed into such a place with the idea of charity that is ironic to the word, CHARITY itself, Nowadays, there are so many charitable organisations that almost everyday you will see an advertistment or two regarding the handicapped and stuff like that. That makes you feel kinda of guilty if you do not contribute to charity.
That is my point. It will make you feel guilty or lose out to others if people donates but you do not. And there are also a lot of advertistments going on about you playing a part to help the needy... Blah Blah Blah... So, i am just trying to say that the whole duty and charity thing is actually contradicting itself. Charity is supposed to be a voluntary work but nowadays the society had changed in such a way that charity had become a duty.
So, the question, as usual, is left hanging on a thread.
Is it a duty?
Is it a voluntary act?
You decide.
Without telling you guys i think you already know looking at the title. (obvious)
So, is it your duty to donate to charity?
First, lets analyse the word, Charity. so, what is Charity?
Just to let you all know, i felt that charity is like an involuntary act, an act that you want to do, for the sake of the handicapped, the needy, etc. I am not going to make it cliche, but i think that charity is not a must to do, moreover of an initiative.
Why do we have charity then?
Well, the world have infinite number of unlucky handicaps and more that really needs financial support or welfare support. That is when charity clicks into place. Charity is made so as to let the people contribute to the needy and help them.
So, is it your DUTY to donate to charity?
Well, honestly speaking, duty means that it is a must-do, a thing you are supposed to do. So, by right, it is NOT your duty to donate to charity. But, BY RIGHT.
In the 21st century, the world had advanced in many areas and the behaviour of people had changed a lot. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, i said that by right, it is nt your duty to donate to charity. However, the world had transformed into such a place with the idea of charity that is ironic to the word, CHARITY itself, Nowadays, there are so many charitable organisations that almost everyday you will see an advertistment or two regarding the handicapped and stuff like that. That makes you feel kinda of guilty if you do not contribute to charity.
That is my point. It will make you feel guilty or lose out to others if people donates but you do not. And there are also a lot of advertistments going on about you playing a part to help the needy... Blah Blah Blah... So, i am just trying to say that the whole duty and charity thing is actually contradicting itself. Charity is supposed to be a voluntary work but nowadays the society had changed in such a way that charity had become a duty.
So, the question, as usual, is left hanging on a thread.
Is it a duty?
Is it a voluntary act?
You decide.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
If many people think or believe something is true, is it true?
Okay, guys.
Another question.
Ha, if many people think or believe something is true, is it true? I thought for a moment, and decided that it may be true. Maybe! So, is it true?
Then i racked my brains for a moment, and realized there is some false logic in my thinking. I mean, if people all believed in something, could it really be true? Or could it be false?
Then, i thought, maybe it is not.
For an instance, when people all say that McDonalds is unhealthy, is it really unhealthy? I thought about it. Yeah! Is it really unhealthy? My friends often go to McDonalds, but after a few years, nothing happened to them. So, it this was true, why people kept on saying that McDonald’s food is unhealthy? Is it because of the media's influence and the supposedly recorded statistics that shows McDonalds’s food is unhealthy? Is it rumors that resulted in predictions which lead to the guess that McDonald’s food is unhealthy? If it is not, what is it then?
I still remembered the time when the teacher asked my primary school class about a question. When she asked us for a yes or no answer, at first, no one raised their hands. No surprise here. Then, the class genius, Melissa, raised up her hands and said no. Also no big surprise here. Then the “strange” thing happened. Slowly, one by one, my classmates raised up their hands with a “cross” sign representing no. I, on the contrary, chose yes, in fact, the only yes in the class, as I believe that it was correct. Then, the miracle happened. The answer was yes.
So, when most people think something is right, is it truly right?
It looks like it is still a difficult question to answer.
For now, let me voice out the opinions I have. I felt that following the crowd may lead to disastrous consequences. It means that if you simply go on with the flow and follow other peoples’ ideas and paths, it would not be good. That would show that you have no personal thoughts and are too shy or scared to spit out your opinions and your way of thinking.
Everyone has their unique way of thinking but one problem is that they are too afraid to voice it out but instead follow the crowd. That is why once there is one people agreeing to an idea, more and more people will follow and that results in the fact that “most people believe something is true” which does not necessarily mean the truth.
So, why does most of the people have the same thoughts?
There may also be a possibility that people tend to look things in a simple manner and they do not have in-depth thinking. People could have thought about a particular matter simply without considering the different perspectives of the matter. On the contrary, there will also be some people who think very hard at the matter and come up with a different response unlike those who tend to think generally.
After all this thinking, I still cannot come up with a good answer as I felt that there are several possible answers.
What do you think?
Another question.
Ha, if many people think or believe something is true, is it true? I thought for a moment, and decided that it may be true. Maybe! So, is it true?
Then i racked my brains for a moment, and realized there is some false logic in my thinking. I mean, if people all believed in something, could it really be true? Or could it be false?
Then, i thought, maybe it is not.
For an instance, when people all say that McDonalds is unhealthy, is it really unhealthy? I thought about it. Yeah! Is it really unhealthy? My friends often go to McDonalds, but after a few years, nothing happened to them. So, it this was true, why people kept on saying that McDonald’s food is unhealthy? Is it because of the media's influence and the supposedly recorded statistics that shows McDonalds’s food is unhealthy? Is it rumors that resulted in predictions which lead to the guess that McDonald’s food is unhealthy? If it is not, what is it then?
I still remembered the time when the teacher asked my primary school class about a question. When she asked us for a yes or no answer, at first, no one raised their hands. No surprise here. Then, the class genius, Melissa, raised up her hands and said no. Also no big surprise here. Then the “strange” thing happened. Slowly, one by one, my classmates raised up their hands with a “cross” sign representing no. I, on the contrary, chose yes, in fact, the only yes in the class, as I believe that it was correct. Then, the miracle happened. The answer was yes.
So, when most people think something is right, is it truly right?
It looks like it is still a difficult question to answer.
For now, let me voice out the opinions I have. I felt that following the crowd may lead to disastrous consequences. It means that if you simply go on with the flow and follow other peoples’ ideas and paths, it would not be good. That would show that you have no personal thoughts and are too shy or scared to spit out your opinions and your way of thinking.
Everyone has their unique way of thinking but one problem is that they are too afraid to voice it out but instead follow the crowd. That is why once there is one people agreeing to an idea, more and more people will follow and that results in the fact that “most people believe something is true” which does not necessarily mean the truth.
So, why does most of the people have the same thoughts?
There may also be a possibility that people tend to look things in a simple manner and they do not have in-depth thinking. People could have thought about a particular matter simply without considering the different perspectives of the matter. On the contrary, there will also be some people who think very hard at the matter and come up with a different response unlike those who tend to think generally.
After all this thinking, I still cannot come up with a good answer as I felt that there are several possible answers.
What do you think?
Monday, May 25, 2009
My first semester being a secondary school student
As dawn breaks, i sat on the wooden platform as the sunlight penetrates through the morning fog. I looked up, at the majestic features and the tall towers, as a jolt of warmness encircled my body. I made a good decision to enter the dream school i have been waiting for, my new secondary school.
Looking back at my first semester here in XXX secondary school, it was definitely full of surprises. It seemed to me that it was all of a dream. As usual, there were joys and woes and there were times that i lost quite a lot of opportunities. This was a new beginning of another phase of life and i had to say that it was quite stressful.
It appeared to me that it had only been 6 months since i reluctantly left primary school, but it looked like a few years to me. I still remember the glorious day of my old school, where we trashed other school in sports, sent them begging for mercy with our wonderful performing arts and made their jaws drop at our excellent academic performance...... Those days were so happy and relaxing......
But that was 6 before and i had no choice but to enter the second phase of life, that is, to choose a secondary school and i chose XXX secondary school. The life here was tough and stressing and a lot of my friends cannot cope with it.
I felt a breeze run across my face and shuddered involuntarily.
Life for the first few weeks was good and all of us had tremendous fun. I learned our school rules and attended some CCA trials. Our teachers were also not teaching but rather giving us character talks.
Then...
The next few weeks were bad, very bad.
Our teachers started their respective lessons and i could not understand a lot of what they are saying. I was troubled and my friends also could not figure out the wise and meaningful words. I struggled on......
And now......
Life was no better.
I sighed.
Now, we were spammed with worksheets everyday and it takes quite a miracle to squeeze out time for ACE projects...... Yes, quite a miracle indeed...
It made me think whether i really like this school, and i contemplated and pondered......
I watched lazily at the white fluffy clouds.
However...
My time at XXX secondary school was filled with joy. I made new friends and i learned several character traits and acquired knowledge. We also tend to help each other in homework matters and taught each other with patience in areas we falter. Also,whenever i heard people praising XXX school students, i feels a rush of joy course through my body.
I grinned as my thin lips curled up in a smile.
Yes, it was not bad, not bad indeed. Instead, to think of it, i feel that this school really is the perfect school for me.
Although everyday was the same, i experienced a kind of happiness i never experienced before. Everyone was acting in a gentlemanly manner, well, almost everyone, and they taught me a lot of things outside curriculum. I am really thankful.
There were times where i falter, but a lot of my classmates, my friends, helped me sincerely,
There were also times where i succeed, and i helped my friends sincerely.
Although some of my classmates did not like me very much, i will still continue to render my support to them as i feel that if i helped others first, they will learn to accept me.
This semester had been a fulfilling one. It was filled with joys and woes and there had been lots of new things happening to me. I had now learned to adapt to the hectic schedule that is apparently present in XXX secondary school by spending my time wisely. I also made new friends, created new bonds and familarised myself with the various teachers.
I stood up, now apparently similing. Recess is almost over. I took my last glance at the clock tower, before rushing back to class.
I had entered a theatre of dreams, a majestic school, a evergreen school, an elite school, a respected school, my secondary school.
Yes. I had made the right choice.
Yes indeed.
Looking back at my first semester here in XXX secondary school, it was definitely full of surprises. It seemed to me that it was all of a dream. As usual, there were joys and woes and there were times that i lost quite a lot of opportunities. This was a new beginning of another phase of life and i had to say that it was quite stressful.
It appeared to me that it had only been 6 months since i reluctantly left primary school, but it looked like a few years to me. I still remember the glorious day of my old school, where we trashed other school in sports, sent them begging for mercy with our wonderful performing arts and made their jaws drop at our excellent academic performance...... Those days were so happy and relaxing......
But that was 6 before and i had no choice but to enter the second phase of life, that is, to choose a secondary school and i chose XXX secondary school. The life here was tough and stressing and a lot of my friends cannot cope with it.
I felt a breeze run across my face and shuddered involuntarily.
Life for the first few weeks was good and all of us had tremendous fun. I learned our school rules and attended some CCA trials. Our teachers were also not teaching but rather giving us character talks.
Then...
The next few weeks were bad, very bad.
Our teachers started their respective lessons and i could not understand a lot of what they are saying. I was troubled and my friends also could not figure out the wise and meaningful words. I struggled on......
And now......
Life was no better.
I sighed.
Now, we were spammed with worksheets everyday and it takes quite a miracle to squeeze out time for ACE projects...... Yes, quite a miracle indeed...
It made me think whether i really like this school, and i contemplated and pondered......
I watched lazily at the white fluffy clouds.
However...
My time at XXX secondary school was filled with joy. I made new friends and i learned several character traits and acquired knowledge. We also tend to help each other in homework matters and taught each other with patience in areas we falter. Also,whenever i heard people praising XXX school students, i feels a rush of joy course through my body.
I grinned as my thin lips curled up in a smile.
Yes, it was not bad, not bad indeed. Instead, to think of it, i feel that this school really is the perfect school for me.
Although everyday was the same, i experienced a kind of happiness i never experienced before. Everyone was acting in a gentlemanly manner, well, almost everyone, and they taught me a lot of things outside curriculum. I am really thankful.
There were times where i falter, but a lot of my classmates, my friends, helped me sincerely,
There were also times where i succeed, and i helped my friends sincerely.
Although some of my classmates did not like me very much, i will still continue to render my support to them as i feel that if i helped others first, they will learn to accept me.
This semester had been a fulfilling one. It was filled with joys and woes and there had been lots of new things happening to me. I had now learned to adapt to the hectic schedule that is apparently present in XXX secondary school by spending my time wisely. I also made new friends, created new bonds and familarised myself with the various teachers.
I stood up, now apparently similing. Recess is almost over. I took my last glance at the clock tower, before rushing back to class.
I had entered a theatre of dreams, a majestic school, a evergreen school, an elite school, a respected school, my secondary school.
Yes. I had made the right choice.
Yes indeed.
"I am lying." True or false?
"I am lying." True or false.
When i first looked at it, the only thing that popped out of my mind was, what kind of question was this? Of course the answer is true.
Then i thought, it was false.
Looking back at my previous thoughts, i felt confusion. Is it true, or is it false?
Really, i am quite confused. It appeared to me that it was a relatively simple question. Yes, simple indeed, but it, in fact, was a complex question. Yes, 3 words only. However, to determine whether it is true or false is not going to be easy.
From one point of perspective, i felt that it could be true. Suppose you did something wrong and your mom accuse you, but you denied it until your mom canned you, forcing you to admit that you are lying. Yup. That is true indeed.
However, if you did something correct like giving up seats to the elderly, and you tell your mom. Then, you said that you are lying, but in reality you are not lying, so it is false.
This is when matters get complicated...
Sorry about the fact that i cannot phrase my words properly, but when explaining, it really takes a lot of efort to phrase my thoughts into one complete paragraph.
Okay, back to the main point.
So, the question remains, is "i am lying" true or false. I think that there is no answer to this question as there could be different circumstances and perspectives which caused different situations and views.
To me, it is dependent on the situation and circumstance to determine the answer.
What do you think? Is it true or is ti false?
When i first looked at it, the only thing that popped out of my mind was, what kind of question was this? Of course the answer is true.
Then i thought, it was false.
Looking back at my previous thoughts, i felt confusion. Is it true, or is it false?
Really, i am quite confused. It appeared to me that it was a relatively simple question. Yes, simple indeed, but it, in fact, was a complex question. Yes, 3 words only. However, to determine whether it is true or false is not going to be easy.
From one point of perspective, i felt that it could be true. Suppose you did something wrong and your mom accuse you, but you denied it until your mom canned you, forcing you to admit that you are lying. Yup. That is true indeed.
However, if you did something correct like giving up seats to the elderly, and you tell your mom. Then, you said that you are lying, but in reality you are not lying, so it is false.
This is when matters get complicated...
Sorry about the fact that i cannot phrase my words properly, but when explaining, it really takes a lot of efort to phrase my thoughts into one complete paragraph.
Okay, back to the main point.
So, the question remains, is "i am lying" true or false. I think that there is no answer to this question as there could be different circumstances and perspectives which caused different situations and views.
To me, it is dependent on the situation and circumstance to determine the answer.
What do you think? Is it true or is ti false?
June holidays
Hi everyone!
As you all know, the much anticipated june holidays is round the corner!
I am so excited and could not wait until the last day of school. It might be a good and happy month for all of you but i kinda of hate it. My parents booked tickets for me to go back to china to see my elders and spent time with them. It is of my greatest pleasure to do that but the problem is, i am so busy during the seemingly "holiday" that i doubt i could finish all of my tasks and assignment by the time i pack and leave for China.
You know, i am kinda packed during the holidays as i have tons and tons of class outings, CCA camps, which i so wanted to go but cannot as i am going back to China, CIP trips...... but all of which i could not attend to due to the time FACTOR. Nevermind, i will look on the bright side. Hey, at least i get to play with my younger cousins right?
What about your holiday plans?
As you all know, the much anticipated june holidays is round the corner!
I am so excited and could not wait until the last day of school. It might be a good and happy month for all of you but i kinda of hate it. My parents booked tickets for me to go back to china to see my elders and spent time with them. It is of my greatest pleasure to do that but the problem is, i am so busy during the seemingly "holiday" that i doubt i could finish all of my tasks and assignment by the time i pack and leave for China.
You know, i am kinda packed during the holidays as i have tons and tons of class outings, CCA camps, which i so wanted to go but cannot as i am going back to China, CIP trips...... but all of which i could not attend to due to the time FACTOR. Nevermind, i will look on the bright side. Hey, at least i get to play with my younger cousins right?
What about your holiday plans?
Thursday, May 21, 2009
If you could eliminate one emotion from the world, would you?
Yo everyone!
Emotions are sort of feelings that one and every person in the world must have. There are all kinds of emotions, namely happiness, sorrow, anger, boredom, nervousness, anxiety, excitement, shock, fright, jeolousy etc. Emotions are like the "soul masks" of everyone, always expressing peoples' feelings and thoughts about a particular subject.
So, if you can choose to elimninate one, just ONE, emotion from the world, which one will you choose?
Alot of people would first thought of anger. It is probably because anger is an hurtful emotion and can do a lot of damage. Anger is an emotion difficult to resist and anger, hatred separates people and sever bonds. It brings sorrow and fear to people and creates misunderstandings. Some of the people in the world will also eliminate anxiety as most of the time people tends to get anxious and worried for someone and therefore cannot concentrate well to focus. I have heard of people who hate jeolousy. Jeolousy brings competition to our lives and we taste "sour grapes" and feels envious of the latter.
What about me? For me, if i can eliminate one emotion from the world, i would choose not to.
Emotions are the souls of humans. If we do not have emotions, we might be walking around in circles doing nothing.(What i am saying is basically true!) That is why i feel even losing one emotion will be a sorrowful thing.
For example, if people hate anger so much, if the world is without anger, imagine what will it be like? It will be more likely to have people smiling weirdly all day and the world all peaceful without war. Is that good? It sounds weird and there will surely be alot of awkwardness.
If the world is without happiness, everyday will be either a sad day or dark day and everyone will be suspicious of each other and there will not be anymore public activities and there will not be anymore gatherings between people. The world will become a frightening place to live in.
Although emotions like anger might seem like a hated emotion to a lot of people as it separates people, it is still important as it is these little imperfections joined together that make it perfect!
That is why i want to tell all of you that no emotions shall be eliminated as they join together to form a perfect world.
Emotions are sort of feelings that one and every person in the world must have. There are all kinds of emotions, namely happiness, sorrow, anger, boredom, nervousness, anxiety, excitement, shock, fright, jeolousy etc. Emotions are like the "soul masks" of everyone, always expressing peoples' feelings and thoughts about a particular subject.
So, if you can choose to elimninate one, just ONE, emotion from the world, which one will you choose?
Alot of people would first thought of anger. It is probably because anger is an hurtful emotion and can do a lot of damage. Anger is an emotion difficult to resist and anger, hatred separates people and sever bonds. It brings sorrow and fear to people and creates misunderstandings. Some of the people in the world will also eliminate anxiety as most of the time people tends to get anxious and worried for someone and therefore cannot concentrate well to focus. I have heard of people who hate jeolousy. Jeolousy brings competition to our lives and we taste "sour grapes" and feels envious of the latter.
What about me? For me, if i can eliminate one emotion from the world, i would choose not to.
Emotions are the souls of humans. If we do not have emotions, we might be walking around in circles doing nothing.(What i am saying is basically true!) That is why i feel even losing one emotion will be a sorrowful thing.
For example, if people hate anger so much, if the world is without anger, imagine what will it be like? It will be more likely to have people smiling weirdly all day and the world all peaceful without war. Is that good? It sounds weird and there will surely be alot of awkwardness.
If the world is without happiness, everyday will be either a sad day or dark day and everyone will be suspicious of each other and there will not be anymore public activities and there will not be anymore gatherings between people. The world will become a frightening place to live in.
Although emotions like anger might seem like a hated emotion to a lot of people as it separates people, it is still important as it is these little imperfections joined together that make it perfect!
That is why i want to tell all of you that no emotions shall be eliminated as they join together to form a perfect world.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Should you be awarded for your efforts in school?
Hi guys.
I have a question for all of ya. Should we be awarded for our efforts in school? Well, to answer this question, we have to consider the term, "school" as well.
What is schools? To me, my personal opinion is that schools are places that provide the students with a conducive environment to allow the students to gain knowledge through many means. Schools have teachers who guide us on our journey to knowledge and we also had tests which i believe most of us detest.
So, now, should, or should not students be rewarded for their hardworking efforts in school? I personally feels that both are possible and it depends on the circumstances.
Mainly, i feels that students should not be rewarded for their efforts in school. Students have one priority, that is, study. Whatever efforts they put in, its for themselves. Let me repeat, for themselves! We study for the sake of our future and for knowledge.It is no point rewarding people who did well or put in a lot of effort in a certain area.
If the teachers or school administration rewards us whenever we were noticed as hardworking and diligent pupils, i believe that although we will be "motivated" to study, we will slowly want to study for the rewards instead of the knowledge. At that time, we will lose our hunger for knowledge and we will ironically in turn not be motivated to study for knowledge but for the rewards. Then, we will not be able to study for knowledge in the future but need some rewards to motivate us. Moreover, its the students' responsibility to learn.
Let me take this topic to another perspective.
To look at this question from another angle, i will say that students should be given rewards for their efforts in school. Nowadays students spend most of their free time playing computer games and watching televisions. Most of them detest schools and tests and they rarely revised for the next day's lessons. In fact, even in class, there will be some "DAREDEVILS' who played hand phone games. In this case, the rewards may be necessary.
The school administration should give rewards to those students who pay attention in class and put in a lot of effort in their tests and homework. As a result of the rewards, the students may succumb to temptation and start to put in more effort in their work to get their hands on the rewards.
Also, the rewards will serve as a motivation for the students. When the students get tired of study and is struggling to keep up, by telling them there will be reward for their efforts and good grades, the children will naturally be more excited and motivated to study and learn.
I had experienced times when the teacher rewards us with mystery gifts to give us the willingness to study for tests but i also experienced times where the teachers did not present us with anything and just asked us to study for the tests.
So, the question remains: should you be rewarded for your efforts in school?
I had given you my opinion. What about yours?
I have a question for all of ya. Should we be awarded for our efforts in school? Well, to answer this question, we have to consider the term, "school" as well.
What is schools? To me, my personal opinion is that schools are places that provide the students with a conducive environment to allow the students to gain knowledge through many means. Schools have teachers who guide us on our journey to knowledge and we also had tests which i believe most of us detest.
So, now, should, or should not students be rewarded for their hardworking efforts in school? I personally feels that both are possible and it depends on the circumstances.
Mainly, i feels that students should not be rewarded for their efforts in school. Students have one priority, that is, study. Whatever efforts they put in, its for themselves. Let me repeat, for themselves! We study for the sake of our future and for knowledge.It is no point rewarding people who did well or put in a lot of effort in a certain area.
If the teachers or school administration rewards us whenever we were noticed as hardworking and diligent pupils, i believe that although we will be "motivated" to study, we will slowly want to study for the rewards instead of the knowledge. At that time, we will lose our hunger for knowledge and we will ironically in turn not be motivated to study for knowledge but for the rewards. Then, we will not be able to study for knowledge in the future but need some rewards to motivate us. Moreover, its the students' responsibility to learn.
Let me take this topic to another perspective.
To look at this question from another angle, i will say that students should be given rewards for their efforts in school. Nowadays students spend most of their free time playing computer games and watching televisions. Most of them detest schools and tests and they rarely revised for the next day's lessons. In fact, even in class, there will be some "DAREDEVILS' who played hand phone games. In this case, the rewards may be necessary.
The school administration should give rewards to those students who pay attention in class and put in a lot of effort in their tests and homework. As a result of the rewards, the students may succumb to temptation and start to put in more effort in their work to get their hands on the rewards.
Also, the rewards will serve as a motivation for the students. When the students get tired of study and is struggling to keep up, by telling them there will be reward for their efforts and good grades, the children will naturally be more excited and motivated to study and learn.
I had experienced times when the teacher rewards us with mystery gifts to give us the willingness to study for tests but i also experienced times where the teachers did not present us with anything and just asked us to study for the tests.
So, the question remains: should you be rewarded for your efforts in school?
I had given you my opinion. What about yours?
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The future
Hey ya guys!!
Sorry as i did not post for a long time as i was very busy and could not squeeze out free times to write out my thoughts with you guys. You know, this term, there had been lots of tests lately and i was even having difficulty to study for the tests! Now it is the weekends and finally i could have a good rest. Maybe not. Why? Because i have more tests coming and i think i got one IS (Infocomn studies) test on Monday. Even my parents are nagging at me to study. :(
Back to the point. Now.
Okay. I will talk about the future today.
The future. What about it? Many of you would ask that question. I am telling you, this is important. It is the future. So, guys, what do you think of the future? Will there be colourful winds? Talking animals? Will there be cloning? Will there be an immortality pill? Will humans live in space? Will we have two lives?
No one knows.
I thought, that this is quite an interesting question. In the near future, i believe, technology will be more advance. Surely. I have heard from trusted resources that the world's oil supply and stuffs like that could run out in a couple of years. I would like to believe the scientists could do something about it. I mean, the world cannot survive forever. there will be a day where the Earth cannot provide enough for humans anymore. What would we do about that? People said that we could be heading to live on Mars. I am not so certain. Mars, so far, is heard to have found no water supply at all. The basic needs of a human are air, water and food. If we did not have any of these, we could only survive for 1 week, the longest.
I wonder, if there will be a day when the countries of the world work together and everyone is united. If that happens, will there be utopia? Will there still have wars? I wonder if dinosaurs would be discovered living somewhere in the world. If that happens, will we be allowed to see the dinosaurs?
There are so many questions. Yet we will have to wait patiently. Wait patiently...... Until the FUTURE.
Sorry as i did not post for a long time as i was very busy and could not squeeze out free times to write out my thoughts with you guys. You know, this term, there had been lots of tests lately and i was even having difficulty to study for the tests! Now it is the weekends and finally i could have a good rest. Maybe not. Why? Because i have more tests coming and i think i got one IS (Infocomn studies) test on Monday. Even my parents are nagging at me to study. :(
Back to the point. Now.
Okay. I will talk about the future today.
The future. What about it? Many of you would ask that question. I am telling you, this is important. It is the future. So, guys, what do you think of the future? Will there be colourful winds? Talking animals? Will there be cloning? Will there be an immortality pill? Will humans live in space? Will we have two lives?
No one knows.
I thought, that this is quite an interesting question. In the near future, i believe, technology will be more advance. Surely. I have heard from trusted resources that the world's oil supply and stuffs like that could run out in a couple of years. I would like to believe the scientists could do something about it. I mean, the world cannot survive forever. there will be a day where the Earth cannot provide enough for humans anymore. What would we do about that? People said that we could be heading to live on Mars. I am not so certain. Mars, so far, is heard to have found no water supply at all. The basic needs of a human are air, water and food. If we did not have any of these, we could only survive for 1 week, the longest.
I wonder, if there will be a day when the countries of the world work together and everyone is united. If that happens, will there be utopia? Will there still have wars? I wonder if dinosaurs would be discovered living somewhere in the world. If that happens, will we be allowed to see the dinosaurs?
There are so many questions. Yet we will have to wait patiently. Wait patiently...... Until the FUTURE.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Projects day
Hi everyone. Okay, i just had my preliminary rounds for projects day, category 3: inventions today! I was excited and nervous at the same time. This is the first experience for me in a secondary school and i was afraid that i may not live up to the judges' expectations.
After the competition, i realized that i learnt a lot of moral values and realized my weakness and strength, also learnt that team synergy is vital in life. I actually benefited a lot from this eye opening experience. Jarel, me, Caijie and Bin Hui were able to contribute our fair share of ideas and we cooperated pretty well. The only difficulty is that Caijie often cannot meet up with us due to time clashed with EP3s and other tuition matters. It was definitely a fruitful project as i learnt how to manage my time well in order to have time for work and play. I have also learnt that to get other's trust, we have to trust them ourselves first. I also had fun with my team members and it was a worthy project. We each have tasks delegated by our leader, Jarel and i felt he did a great job, as well as Caijie and binhui as they really cared about the project and are willing to stay back on many days to rehearse on the project and memorise the script.
The competition today was very strict and we were shaking like leaves. The judges were extremely fierce and they really demanded alot from us and they went into every minute detail possible to question us of our projects. As we were the 12th team, we have to wait for quite a time before presenting our project. As i watched the other groups present their own unique projects, i was both amazed and disappointed at some of their PowerPoint slides. Some of them were pretty impressive and did quite a good job while others had failed to explain their invention. I was rather impressed with the group that presented the Car Courtesy Sign. They did extremely well, considering all factors and working out feasible solutions and ideas. Their invention were basically made to show courtesy while driving to promote courtesy among drivers. I felt that they analysed the whole thing elaborately and the idea is a fresh one. Even the judges were also shouting praises along the way. There were also a few teams which i think are not so good in their plotting of idea. I will not be elaborating further on that area.
In the twinkling of an eye, it was already our turn to present. I was trembling with fear and trepidation as i calmed my butterflies in my stomach but to no avail. I was too afraid! As a sign of good luck, we shook hands and patted each other before walking onto the stage. My heart was palpitating wildly and i hope that our project will went smoothly. As we did the necessary preparations like inserting the thumbdrive and opening the powerpoint slides, i was faking a smile to the audience but my fidgeting habds betrayed my anxiety and concern.
Soon, Jarel had already started to introduce us and had told everyone about our invention. He then went off to talk on the objectives and rationale of our project. I was controlling my stage fright with my best shot, however my attempts were fruitless. I was biting my lip now and then. Soon Jarel finished his role and haned the mike over to me. I perspired profusely despite the cooling air conditioning. I was unable to speak for 2 seconds, until BinHui and Caijie gave me words of encouragements and urging me on. I then started to elaborate on the target audince of our project. In the process, i felt my cheeks burning and my beads of perpiration trickling down my cheeks as more than 100 pairs of eyes stared at me. The pressure was inmense!
I then went on to talk on our methodology of the project before handing the mike over to Jarel just when------ The computer system went black.
For a moment, no one moved and an uncanny silence fell over the Drama Centre. I froze in complete shock as i did not anticipate this! I exchanged worried glances with Chen Caijie and they frowned which expressed concern. I stared at Jarel, only to see him frantically adjusting the wires. I felt flustering red. Why did this only happen to us? Fortunately, Jarel managed to fix the problem and returned ro the powerpoint page. We were back on track.
As we went into the final stage of our presentation, which basically includes the resources and features of oyr prototype, we all heaved a sign of relief to know that msot of our presentation were successful except about the power failure(not our fault). Then, we concluded our presentation and and it is time for the Q and A session. We were stunned to know that there was only one comment about us. I mean, there were not any questions! We were the only team that escaped the session because noone asked questions, not even the judges. Well, as i mentioned earlier, one of the judges said that we could ask the LTA if they allow the attachment of our gadget onto the cars.
Well ,that pretty summed up the day.
After the competition, i realized that i learnt a lot of moral values and realized my weakness and strength, also learnt that team synergy is vital in life. I actually benefited a lot from this eye opening experience. Jarel, me, Caijie and Bin Hui were able to contribute our fair share of ideas and we cooperated pretty well. The only difficulty is that Caijie often cannot meet up with us due to time clashed with EP3s and other tuition matters. It was definitely a fruitful project as i learnt how to manage my time well in order to have time for work and play. I have also learnt that to get other's trust, we have to trust them ourselves first. I also had fun with my team members and it was a worthy project. We each have tasks delegated by our leader, Jarel and i felt he did a great job, as well as Caijie and binhui as they really cared about the project and are willing to stay back on many days to rehearse on the project and memorise the script.
The competition today was very strict and we were shaking like leaves. The judges were extremely fierce and they really demanded alot from us and they went into every minute detail possible to question us of our projects. As we were the 12th team, we have to wait for quite a time before presenting our project. As i watched the other groups present their own unique projects, i was both amazed and disappointed at some of their PowerPoint slides. Some of them were pretty impressive and did quite a good job while others had failed to explain their invention. I was rather impressed with the group that presented the Car Courtesy Sign. They did extremely well, considering all factors and working out feasible solutions and ideas. Their invention were basically made to show courtesy while driving to promote courtesy among drivers. I felt that they analysed the whole thing elaborately and the idea is a fresh one. Even the judges were also shouting praises along the way. There were also a few teams which i think are not so good in their plotting of idea. I will not be elaborating further on that area.
In the twinkling of an eye, it was already our turn to present. I was trembling with fear and trepidation as i calmed my butterflies in my stomach but to no avail. I was too afraid! As a sign of good luck, we shook hands and patted each other before walking onto the stage. My heart was palpitating wildly and i hope that our project will went smoothly. As we did the necessary preparations like inserting the thumbdrive and opening the powerpoint slides, i was faking a smile to the audience but my fidgeting habds betrayed my anxiety and concern.
Soon, Jarel had already started to introduce us and had told everyone about our invention. He then went off to talk on the objectives and rationale of our project. I was controlling my stage fright with my best shot, however my attempts were fruitless. I was biting my lip now and then. Soon Jarel finished his role and haned the mike over to me. I perspired profusely despite the cooling air conditioning. I was unable to speak for 2 seconds, until BinHui and Caijie gave me words of encouragements and urging me on. I then started to elaborate on the target audince of our project. In the process, i felt my cheeks burning and my beads of perpiration trickling down my cheeks as more than 100 pairs of eyes stared at me. The pressure was inmense!
I then went on to talk on our methodology of the project before handing the mike over to Jarel just when------ The computer system went black.
For a moment, no one moved and an uncanny silence fell over the Drama Centre. I froze in complete shock as i did not anticipate this! I exchanged worried glances with Chen Caijie and they frowned which expressed concern. I stared at Jarel, only to see him frantically adjusting the wires. I felt flustering red. Why did this only happen to us? Fortunately, Jarel managed to fix the problem and returned ro the powerpoint page. We were back on track.
As we went into the final stage of our presentation, which basically includes the resources and features of oyr prototype, we all heaved a sign of relief to know that msot of our presentation were successful except about the power failure(not our fault). Then, we concluded our presentation and and it is time for the Q and A session. We were stunned to know that there was only one comment about us. I mean, there were not any questions! We were the only team that escaped the session because noone asked questions, not even the judges. Well, as i mentioned earlier, one of the judges said that we could ask the LTA if they allow the attachment of our gadget onto the cars.
Well ,that pretty summed up the day.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thinking about existence
Okay guys. I am bored today and decided to write something which might shock you. Okay, back to the main point.
I have a habit of wondering life and beyond. I wonder what is universe? What is Earth? What is life? What are humans?...... Don't be freaked out. Don't you do the same? Everyday my mind is all of rubbish. I think how long is the universe, what does the end of the universe look like? These are questions human beings are impossible to answer, no matter how hard we tried. I wonder what is the feeling when we died. Do we just die, or do we feel immense pain. Is there a world after Death? If there is, is it possible for us to stay there for an eternity? Is not, will we die again and go into another world? Enough. i even wonder why i write this post, maybe to share my wonder and the answers i want to know- why are we here? Is there a reason for......
I feel sadness that we can only live for at most 100 years(well, if you look at a larger picture, the oldest person is 120 years old). Is there a medicine that allows us to be immortal? Will there be a time when robots serve us? I feel uneasy that these strange and yet extremely important questions are not answered.
These questions cannot be answered. I am afraid i'll just have to leave it as it is............
I have a habit of wondering life and beyond. I wonder what is universe? What is Earth? What is life? What are humans?...... Don't be freaked out. Don't you do the same? Everyday my mind is all of rubbish. I think how long is the universe, what does the end of the universe look like? These are questions human beings are impossible to answer, no matter how hard we tried. I wonder what is the feeling when we died. Do we just die, or do we feel immense pain. Is there a world after Death? If there is, is it possible for us to stay there for an eternity? Is not, will we die again and go into another world? Enough. i even wonder why i write this post, maybe to share my wonder and the answers i want to know- why are we here? Is there a reason for......
I feel sadness that we can only live for at most 100 years(well, if you look at a larger picture, the oldest person is 120 years old). Is there a medicine that allows us to be immortal? Will there be a time when robots serve us? I feel uneasy that these strange and yet extremely important questions are not answered.
These questions cannot be answered. I am afraid i'll just have to leave it as it is............
Thursday, March 26, 2009
George Washington-a great leader in history
Today i am going to talk about one of the great leaders in history, George Washington, as you all know, the first president of the United States and famous for being the leader of the Continental army in the American revolutionary war.
I felt that George Washington was a man who deserved to be respected and loved after. He understood that freedom is far and the path leading to freedom is unstable and steep, with obstacles everywhere, but the labours of his efforts are sweet and good. He has the courage of a lion, a person who stood up against tyranny for U.S. colonies' freedom.
George Washington also shows tremendous concern for his people and look after their well being and helped them in their needy times. Most importantly, he believed in a bright future and no matter how dark and hopeless the situation gets, he always have hope that miracles can happen. He is also a fair person who does not treat people in a biased manner. He is also a person who accepts reality and is willing to let go of power.
He have superior courage, energy, high principles and moral values, and steadfastness; and possesses impartial justice and utter trustworthiness. He was calm in the face of imminent danger and terror, dauntless in adversity. He was a man who would sacrifice repose for fame and fame to duty; his thoroughness in deliberation and mastery over his strong passion.
George Washington was distinguished for his superior intellect and virtues. He lived not to please himself, not to let others suffer, but to restore peace, order and harmony to a chaotic nation and world, to work hard and never rest to contribute to the world, to donate as many as he could, for the sake of the nation and the sake of the world. He was a great leader with charisma and his selfless contributions and his love for his nation was something not many could do.
However, George Washington also have weakness. He was quite slow in the beginning and is vulnerable to others' decisions and ideas but as the days went by, he became a great leader.
I felt that George Washington was a man who deserved to be respected and loved after. He understood that freedom is far and the path leading to freedom is unstable and steep, with obstacles everywhere, but the labours of his efforts are sweet and good. He has the courage of a lion, a person who stood up against tyranny for U.S. colonies' freedom.
George Washington also shows tremendous concern for his people and look after their well being and helped them in their needy times. Most importantly, he believed in a bright future and no matter how dark and hopeless the situation gets, he always have hope that miracles can happen. He is also a fair person who does not treat people in a biased manner. He is also a person who accepts reality and is willing to let go of power.
He have superior courage, energy, high principles and moral values, and steadfastness; and possesses impartial justice and utter trustworthiness. He was calm in the face of imminent danger and terror, dauntless in adversity. He was a man who would sacrifice repose for fame and fame to duty; his thoroughness in deliberation and mastery over his strong passion.
George Washington was distinguished for his superior intellect and virtues. He lived not to please himself, not to let others suffer, but to restore peace, order and harmony to a chaotic nation and world, to work hard and never rest to contribute to the world, to donate as many as he could, for the sake of the nation and the sake of the world. He was a great leader with charisma and his selfless contributions and his love for his nation was something not many could do.
However, George Washington also have weakness. He was quite slow in the beginning and is vulnerable to others' decisions and ideas but as the days went by, he became a great leader.
Friday, March 6, 2009
The lottery
Hey ya, dudes!! I just finished reading a short story by Shirley Jackson untitled the lottery. If you wanted to read the whole story, please go to this website:http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/lotry.html. I have mixed feelings after the story. It was certainly an unusual story. Resources tell me that people expressed "admiration, confusion and even anger" at the story when it was published. It had a lot of relevance to modern day society, in my opinion.
The story revolves around the hypocrisy of mankind. Take Tessie Hutchinson for an example. She is a person who wanted to see and watch others being unlucky and getting stoned to death but never thought that herself would be the person getting stoned to death. She only wanted to see others suffer and make herself benefit and happy. People nowadays are also like that. For an instance, in schools, often, students would mock others of something and laugh, but they never thought that they would be the one to be mocked at later.
The lottery also shows the internal fear and terror in human beings. The villagers knew that the lottery is a ritual whereby others are sacrificed for the sins committed by other people. They knew that it is not the right way. However, noone dared to stand out and protest against the ritual but just followed the crowd. They do not dare to stand up against authority. This is very common nowadays. In schools, when teachers asked the students who wanted to volunteer for the blah blah blah job, noone raised their hands and stared at each other, waiting for the few people to respond. It will always be the same few who would volunteer. In companies, too. When the director or someone required a tough job, everyone would exchange glances...... It is everywhere, also on buses! When an elderly arrived, everyone would pretend to sleep, or glance out of the windows, not attempting to offer a seat for the elderly. No one would take the initiative to be the first to do something.
The story revolves around the hypocrisy of mankind. Take Tessie Hutchinson for an example. She is a person who wanted to see and watch others being unlucky and getting stoned to death but never thought that herself would be the person getting stoned to death. She only wanted to see others suffer and make herself benefit and happy. People nowadays are also like that. For an instance, in schools, often, students would mock others of something and laugh, but they never thought that they would be the one to be mocked at later.
The lottery also shows the internal fear and terror in human beings. The villagers knew that the lottery is a ritual whereby others are sacrificed for the sins committed by other people. They knew that it is not the right way. However, noone dared to stand out and protest against the ritual but just followed the crowd. They do not dare to stand up against authority. This is very common nowadays. In schools, when teachers asked the students who wanted to volunteer for the blah blah blah job, noone raised their hands and stared at each other, waiting for the few people to respond. It will always be the same few who would volunteer. In companies, too. When the director or someone required a tough job, everyone would exchange glances...... It is everywhere, also on buses! When an elderly arrived, everyone would pretend to sleep, or glance out of the windows, not attempting to offer a seat for the elderly. No one would take the initiative to be the first to do something.
Which came first-chicken or the egg?
Haha, guys. Now here's an interesting question. Which comes first-chicken or the egg. I am sure you all are very familiar with this question and it has bothered scientists for years. If the chicken came first, then didn't it hatch from an egg? And if the egg came first, wasn't it laid by a chicken? It's one of those questions that seem unanswerable. Till today, the question remains unsolved. I came across this question a long long time ago, and was very inquistive to check it out. I did abit research on the internet and i hope you guys could give me more information to really have a better grasp and understanding of the topic.
Chickens hatch from eggs, but eggs are laid by chickens, making it difficult to say which originally gave rise to the other. If the egg is not necessarily of any specific type: Then it could be said that the egg came first, because other animals had been laying eggs long before chickens existed. Egg is defined as a normal egg in this way. If only an egg that will hatch into a chicken can be considered a chicken egg, then maybe a chicken laid the first chicken egg which contained the first chicken. In this case the chicken egg came before the chicken. If only an egg laid by a chicken can be considered a chicken egg: Then, The first chicken (which hatched from a non-chicken egg) laid the first chicken egg. In this case the chicken came before the chicken egg.
However, there is a scientific way of looking into the problem. living things evolve through changes in their DNA. In an animal like a chicken, DNA from a male sperm cell and a female ovum fuse to form a zygote -- the first cell of a new baby chicken.Then, it divides many times to form all of the cells of the complete animal. In any animal, every cell contains exactly the same DNA, and that DNA comes from the zygote.
Chickens evolved from other animals(i think is some sort of winged beasts)through small changes caused by the fusion of male and female DNA or by mutations to the DNA that produced the zygote. These changes and mutations only have an effect at the point where a new zygote is created. That is, two winged beasts(probably) mated and the DNA in their new zygote contained the mutation(s) that produced the first true chicken. That one zygote cell divided to produce the first true chicken.
Prior to that first true chicken zygote, there were only non-chickens. The zygote cell is the only place where DNA mutations could produce a new animal, and the zygote cell is housed in the chicken's egg. So, the egg must have come first.
But there are other definitions. I could be a bit unrealistic as i personally felt that the question is phrased the wrong way. If this is the question, i would like to ask everyone -how life existed and how the universe was formed? Even though we all say man are probably descended from monkeys but that is only an assumption. So, if chickens are descended from non-chickens, then when did the evolution began? How do we know what is the first human? Hence, i felt that there is no correct answer.
Guy, i hope ou all could help me improve by giving your opinions on the mind boggling question. Thank you.
Chickens hatch from eggs, but eggs are laid by chickens, making it difficult to say which originally gave rise to the other. If the egg is not necessarily of any specific type: Then it could be said that the egg came first, because other animals had been laying eggs long before chickens existed. Egg is defined as a normal egg in this way. If only an egg that will hatch into a chicken can be considered a chicken egg, then maybe a chicken laid the first chicken egg which contained the first chicken. In this case the chicken egg came before the chicken. If only an egg laid by a chicken can be considered a chicken egg: Then, The first chicken (which hatched from a non-chicken egg) laid the first chicken egg. In this case the chicken came before the chicken egg.
However, there is a scientific way of looking into the problem. living things evolve through changes in their DNA. In an animal like a chicken, DNA from a male sperm cell and a female ovum fuse to form a zygote -- the first cell of a new baby chicken.Then, it divides many times to form all of the cells of the complete animal. In any animal, every cell contains exactly the same DNA, and that DNA comes from the zygote.
Chickens evolved from other animals(i think is some sort of winged beasts)through small changes caused by the fusion of male and female DNA or by mutations to the DNA that produced the zygote. These changes and mutations only have an effect at the point where a new zygote is created. That is, two winged beasts(probably) mated and the DNA in their new zygote contained the mutation(s) that produced the first true chicken. That one zygote cell divided to produce the first true chicken.
Prior to that first true chicken zygote, there were only non-chickens. The zygote cell is the only place where DNA mutations could produce a new animal, and the zygote cell is housed in the chicken's egg. So, the egg must have come first.
But there are other definitions. I could be a bit unrealistic as i personally felt that the question is phrased the wrong way. If this is the question, i would like to ask everyone -how life existed and how the universe was formed? Even though we all say man are probably descended from monkeys but that is only an assumption. So, if chickens are descended from non-chickens, then when did the evolution began? How do we know what is the first human? Hence, i felt that there is no correct answer.
Guy, i hope ou all could help me improve by giving your opinions on the mind boggling question. Thank you.
The scarlet Ibis
HI everyone. i recently read an interesting book named the scarlet ibis. Let me give you a brief synopsis of the story. The whole story actually revolves around one factor----greed. The story is about a brother who hates his little brother from the minute he was born and showed cruelty towards him. The baby was terribly weak and almost died. His parents decided to name him William Armstrong, hoping that miracles could happen and William could grow up to be a strong and fit man. However, brother detests william and took advantage of his mental regression to trick him and taunt him. He dislikes the name william very much and decided to name william Doodle and that is considered a form of disrespect towards the brother by giving him such a mindless name. The brother also thinks Doodle as a heavy burden and does not find any joy with him despite his calls for fun. The brother was a self centered person who does not care about the welfare of Doodle at all.He only cared about his appearance and pride/dignity. However , brother also showed kindness to Doodle as he brought Doodle to the only beauty he knew-old woman swamp. Brother only succeeded in having Doodle to do things is only because of his pride, his embarrassment to have a mental retard as a brother. Doodle has perseverence and strived to the end with the attitude of never say die. Later on, a scarlet ibis fell below the bleeding tree and Doodle was the first to notice it. He showed his sympathy towards the ibis by carefully burying it. Eventually, there was a strom and brother, caring for his own safety, left Doodle behind and escaped alone.
After reading the scarlet ibis, i felt that it is a very meaningful story that teaches us a lesson. It focus on greed and its consequences/implications and causes. Our language Arts teacher also told us that there is a famous saying in the short story-"I did not know then that pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines-life and death." My personal interpretation of it is that the pride that the brother showed towards Doodle was wonderful and terrible too......
Sorry guys... Due to time constraints, i will have to continue later on... I apologise for any inconvience caused
After reading the scarlet ibis, i felt that it is a very meaningful story that teaches us a lesson. It focus on greed and its consequences/implications and causes. Our language Arts teacher also told us that there is a famous saying in the short story-"I did not know then that pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines-life and death." My personal interpretation of it is that the pride that the brother showed towards Doodle was wonderful and terrible too......
Sorry guys... Due to time constraints, i will have to continue later on... I apologise for any inconvience caused
leakage of batteries overtime
I am sure you guys are curious about things. However, do you know whydoes a dry cell leak over a long period of time? Let me give you a brief summary of the question.
Firstly, you must understand how a battery works before knowing what causes it to leak. The common batteries that each and everyone of us use everyday is known as zinc-carbon dry cells.
A zinc-carbon dry cell consists of a zinc casing and a carbon rod in the centre. The zinc casing holds a paste made of different materials. The zic casing and the chemical paste react with each other. This chemical reaction produces tiny particles called electrons. When an appliance is connected to the battery, the electronstravel from the dry cell to the metal contacts of the appliance. The non stop flow of electrons produces electricity which makes the appliance works.
Even if the dry cell is not in use, the zinc casing continues to react with the chemicals in the battery. Once the chemicals are used up, leaking process begins. The reason is that the zinc casing gets dissolved away. The liquid which leaks out is corrosivw and can cause damage to our fingers if we touch it.
That is the basic understanding of why dry cells leak.
Firstly, you must understand how a battery works before knowing what causes it to leak. The common batteries that each and everyone of us use everyday is known as zinc-carbon dry cells.
A zinc-carbon dry cell consists of a zinc casing and a carbon rod in the centre. The zinc casing holds a paste made of different materials. The zic casing and the chemical paste react with each other. This chemical reaction produces tiny particles called electrons. When an appliance is connected to the battery, the electronstravel from the dry cell to the metal contacts of the appliance. The non stop flow of electrons produces electricity which makes the appliance works.
Even if the dry cell is not in use, the zinc casing continues to react with the chemicals in the battery. Once the chemicals are used up, leaking process begins. The reason is that the zinc casing gets dissolved away. The liquid which leaks out is corrosivw and can cause damage to our fingers if we touch it.
That is the basic understanding of why dry cells leak.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Feelings on recent tests
Hi, guys. We recently had some tests for term 1 and it was causing me to develop goosebumps! I am not kidding. I did badly for all subjects, worst of all is my science and english. I felt depressed and discouraged. The 7 exams pulled down my self esteem and i have been dull these few days. I know it's been a long time since exams are over. However, i wanted to say that after the dissapointing results i obtained, i had woken up. I will pull up my socks and fire all cylinders in term 2. I hope i will get satisfactory results in term 2 and i will go the extra mile to achieve it.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Bullying(updated)
Hi, guys. Today i am going to talk on VERBAL/PHISYCAL bullying. I am just going to give you all a brief summary of the two types of bullying. You all knew the general idea of bullying that it is a form of teasing or taunting people. But do you know the true meaning of bullying?
There are altogether 4 types of bullying: Physical, verbal, psychological and cyber. (i only wanted to give my views on the first two)These 4 types are totally different types of bullying. I will be touching on physical bullying first.
Physical bullying is an act of intentionally causing harm to others, through physical harassment, physical assault, or other more subtle methods of coercion such as manipulation. Physical bullying includes hitting, kicking, slapping, pinching, biting, poking and choking. It also includes destroying personal belongings. One way to avoid physical bullying is to stay in a large group of friends. Or, If you are in school, try taking a different route to your classes then the bully. As we all know, physical bullying is the most well known and common bullying nowadays other than cyber bullying. Physical bullying occurs regularly in modern times and i am not surprised to find at least a few times some gangs harrassing weak boys these days.
Verbal bullying is also common. In fact, sometimes, students insult one another by calling them names like fatso. But in some cases, the students did that purely for fun and entertainment. The opposite party seemed that he or she is laughing and having a good time, but in actual fact, they were miserable in their hearts. Their friends' words have made a huge impact on them and it made them lose their happiness and be alone. The really serious cases of bullying is when people scold and swear ar each other. That is unacceptable/incorrigible behaviour! i mean, how can you curse and scold your friends? Let me share with you a personal experience. Recently, i saw some boys saying bad words to scold each other just because one of them just took another boy's eraser without permission. Taking other people's things without permission is not very nice, but, i mean, it should not go as far as swearing at one another right? It is just over a storm in a teacup. Verbal bullying may not seem serious, but in the latter's mind, he/she will probably feel hurt and pain as they really thought that the other party dislikes/hates him/her. ALmost everywhere: bus stops, coffee shops, classrooms...... There will always be a few jokers trying to create fun by starting to call people names. I know that as i witnessed many such acts and am not afraid to say that i am a victim of it too. I know that when you call friends "fatty" or whatsoever, he will seem to laugh and the whole thing was over in a minute. However, in his mind, questions were raised like,"does he really hates me? When will our friendship end?" The victim will become very depressed .
I hope we could all treat each other with due respect and not tease them.
There are altogether 4 types of bullying: Physical, verbal, psychological and cyber. (i only wanted to give my views on the first two)These 4 types are totally different types of bullying. I will be touching on physical bullying first.
Physical bullying is an act of intentionally causing harm to others, through physical harassment, physical assault, or other more subtle methods of coercion such as manipulation. Physical bullying includes hitting, kicking, slapping, pinching, biting, poking and choking. It also includes destroying personal belongings. One way to avoid physical bullying is to stay in a large group of friends. Or, If you are in school, try taking a different route to your classes then the bully. As we all know, physical bullying is the most well known and common bullying nowadays other than cyber bullying. Physical bullying occurs regularly in modern times and i am not surprised to find at least a few times some gangs harrassing weak boys these days.
Verbal bullying is also common. In fact, sometimes, students insult one another by calling them names like fatso. But in some cases, the students did that purely for fun and entertainment. The opposite party seemed that he or she is laughing and having a good time, but in actual fact, they were miserable in their hearts. Their friends' words have made a huge impact on them and it made them lose their happiness and be alone. The really serious cases of bullying is when people scold and swear ar each other. That is unacceptable/incorrigible behaviour! i mean, how can you curse and scold your friends? Let me share with you a personal experience. Recently, i saw some boys saying bad words to scold each other just because one of them just took another boy's eraser without permission. Taking other people's things without permission is not very nice, but, i mean, it should not go as far as swearing at one another right? It is just over a storm in a teacup. Verbal bullying may not seem serious, but in the latter's mind, he/she will probably feel hurt and pain as they really thought that the other party dislikes/hates him/her. ALmost everywhere: bus stops, coffee shops, classrooms...... There will always be a few jokers trying to create fun by starting to call people names. I know that as i witnessed many such acts and am not afraid to say that i am a victim of it too. I know that when you call friends "fatty" or whatsoever, he will seem to laugh and the whole thing was over in a minute. However, in his mind, questions were raised like,"does he really hates me? When will our friendship end?" The victim will become very depressed .
I hope we could all treat each other with due respect and not tease them.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Science and geography tests
On tuesday would be my science and geography tests! I am now biting my nails and praying to god to let me pass this test. I was already sad enough when i received my maths paper, scoring a mark below expectations. Now comes what is like "hell in all its fury" to me. Double tests on one day! I was not exceptionally good at science but still did okay. I bet the science test would be very difficult and i would have problems passing it with flying colours. To be honest, i only got an A for science in PSLE! :( I also did not have an excellent grasp of geography's foundation. Having started off shakily, i pulled up my socks and finally knew how to solve geography related questions. Now, there will be two tests on same day and i would need all the luck i have to get a satisfactory mark in both tests. Time is running low. I will have to really study my head off if i have too. :)
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Discussion question: Should science be used to artificially improve someone's intelligence or external appearance?
Recently, i read a short but rather eye catching novel---Flowers for Algernon. It is quite interesting and describes how a mentally challenged person became intlligent but went back to being dumb again. I am going to discuss about the topic, Should science be used to artificially improve someone's intelligence or external appearance?
In my opinion, science should not be used to artificially improve one's IQ level.
The reason is actually very simple. It is a way to oppose the nature. It is against natural order. We cannot just increase our intelligence like that, it is a form of abusing science and technology.
Knowledge is not easy to acquire. We normally go through many obstacles and challenges to succeed in our goals. We persevere and spill fresh blood to gain knowledge, to acquire wisdom. Knowledge and wisdom are very difficult to get, so how is it possible for it to just fall from the sky into one's hands? We cannot cheat to please ourselves. We must show respect to science and technology, not abusing them but using them in a proper way, the right way.
For example, if one was very hardworking and was willing to go the extra mile, he should be very intelligent and smart. He deserved it. However, if a mentally challenged or a person with low IQ level gets special treatments, and he became as smart and clever as the previous guy, wouldnt it be unfair? Think about it. It is right?
I also felt that because when we learnt from past experiences, we gain knowledge. On the contrary, when we go against the god or play the god, we straight away know everything and would not have the happy experiences went through with friends.
We would also lose friends as they would think that we may have bacame too weird for them.
Hence, i do not recommend science to be used to artificially improve someone's intelligence or external appearance.
In my opinion, science should not be used to artificially improve one's IQ level.
The reason is actually very simple. It is a way to oppose the nature. It is against natural order. We cannot just increase our intelligence like that, it is a form of abusing science and technology.
Knowledge is not easy to acquire. We normally go through many obstacles and challenges to succeed in our goals. We persevere and spill fresh blood to gain knowledge, to acquire wisdom. Knowledge and wisdom are very difficult to get, so how is it possible for it to just fall from the sky into one's hands? We cannot cheat to please ourselves. We must show respect to science and technology, not abusing them but using them in a proper way, the right way.
For example, if one was very hardworking and was willing to go the extra mile, he should be very intelligent and smart. He deserved it. However, if a mentally challenged or a person with low IQ level gets special treatments, and he became as smart and clever as the previous guy, wouldnt it be unfair? Think about it. It is right?
I also felt that because when we learnt from past experiences, we gain knowledge. On the contrary, when we go against the god or play the god, we straight away know everything and would not have the happy experiences went through with friends.
We would also lose friends as they would think that we may have bacame too weird for them.
Hence, i do not recommend science to be used to artificially improve someone's intelligence or external appearance.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Reflections on Little ironies-the taximan's story
I have finished a book called little ironies, stories of Singapore. I thought about one of the story in it-the taximan's story, and have a lot of feelings about it.
The read on the taximan's story was very useful as it is very realistic because it describes normal happening nowadays. It emphasizes on minute details that were really true of Singapore that the author used, to write what other authors left out. The story is basically about a engaged conversation between a taximan and a teacher. The taximan was telling and stressing the problems of teens nowadays to the teacher and lamenting on their rudeness and disgusting acts.
I agree with the taximan's lamenting as the teens' acts are extremely deplorable and despicable and he just want the teacher to know not to trust teens nowadays too much. He also wanted to share his views on teens' behaviours to put an emphasis on the importance to maintain a strict discipline with teens.
The main theme in the particular story should be the behaviour of teenagers nowadays. The conversation only focus on this point and the taximan even emphasizes on it a lot to express his disgruntlement with nowadays teens that are troublesome.
I felt that the taximan is a very observant person and will remember minute details . He is also a gentle, polite and patient man and likes to treat people nicely. He is a good father and is certainly very concerned about his children's well being, wanting them to make the correct friends. He is caring and strict with his children, but he cares a lot for them and would even sacrifice whatever to provide assistance to his children. I sympathize the poor taximan as he spilled fresh blood trying to earn enough money to support family and children, working hard all day. However, his daughter, Lay choo, who is the best child he had, disappointed him by making a couple of bad friends and act like a gangster. She does not respect her father's efforts at all.
I have identified several ironies in the taximan's story. To begin with, in the story, when young teens said that they have meeting in school and will not come home, they actually does not mean that but in their heart they wanted to do something else. This is an example of verbal irony. Another irony is when the taximan expected his daughter to be a smart and good child, striving in her studies, but it turned out that his daughter went out with friends to play rather than to go for assigned tuition.
I does not feel sympathy for Lay choo at all. She got her just desserts, having teached a lesson by her angry father. She played truancy by not listening to father to stay back in school, but hanging out with friends just for fun. That is absurd behaviour, an act that is unacceptable.
In conclusion, i feel that the taximan's story is a well written novel and is a shadow of nowadays teens.
The read on the taximan's story was very useful as it is very realistic because it describes normal happening nowadays. It emphasizes on minute details that were really true of Singapore that the author used, to write what other authors left out. The story is basically about a engaged conversation between a taximan and a teacher. The taximan was telling and stressing the problems of teens nowadays to the teacher and lamenting on their rudeness and disgusting acts.
I agree with the taximan's lamenting as the teens' acts are extremely deplorable and despicable and he just want the teacher to know not to trust teens nowadays too much. He also wanted to share his views on teens' behaviours to put an emphasis on the importance to maintain a strict discipline with teens.
The main theme in the particular story should be the behaviour of teenagers nowadays. The conversation only focus on this point and the taximan even emphasizes on it a lot to express his disgruntlement with nowadays teens that are troublesome.
I felt that the taximan is a very observant person and will remember minute details . He is also a gentle, polite and patient man and likes to treat people nicely. He is a good father and is certainly very concerned about his children's well being, wanting them to make the correct friends. He is caring and strict with his children, but he cares a lot for them and would even sacrifice whatever to provide assistance to his children. I sympathize the poor taximan as he spilled fresh blood trying to earn enough money to support family and children, working hard all day. However, his daughter, Lay choo, who is the best child he had, disappointed him by making a couple of bad friends and act like a gangster. She does not respect her father's efforts at all.
I have identified several ironies in the taximan's story. To begin with, in the story, when young teens said that they have meeting in school and will not come home, they actually does not mean that but in their heart they wanted to do something else. This is an example of verbal irony. Another irony is when the taximan expected his daughter to be a smart and good child, striving in her studies, but it turned out that his daughter went out with friends to play rather than to go for assigned tuition.
I does not feel sympathy for Lay choo at all. She got her just desserts, having teached a lesson by her angry father. She played truancy by not listening to father to stay back in school, but hanging out with friends just for fun. That is absurd behaviour, an act that is unacceptable.
In conclusion, i feel that the taximan's story is a well written novel and is a shadow of nowadays teens.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Solar eclipse
Hey everyone! Did you all catch the awesome solar eclipse on lunar new year? It was brillant. I was preparing to go but because of other matters, i could not make it... i heard from friends that it was fascinating and they described the whole scene to me. I was mesmerised as they told me about the magnificent view when the sky suddenly became dark and there was a silvery glow in the sky. I wished i could see it.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
The japanese test
I finally know how to speak Japanese, but only a little bit of it. I have been trying my best to memorise the whole "alphabet", but it just could not get into my head! i learnt some of the basic terms such as good morning, good afternoon......so on and so forth. It took a long time, but i can eventually taste the fruits of my labour. The learning process was interesting and lively, with sensei(teacher) showing us all kinds of Japanese videos. We were spurred on by the videos and other things to work harder to master the fluency of Japanese. After only a few lessons, i could speak Japanese! i could barely contain my excitement! It was only then that I found out that Japanese is not as hard as it seems. If you have the will and perseverence to study it, you will learn it.
Lately, Sensei announced that there will be a test... I was shocked to the core as i have phobia of exams. Then i realised that it was our CA1! i was even more scared. The test was to write down the alphabet! i was depressed and did not have any confidence. However, my friends told me not to worry and said that if i work hard, nothing is impossible.
Wish me good luck!
Lately, Sensei announced that there will be a test... I was shocked to the core as i have phobia of exams. Then i realised that it was our CA1! i was even more scared. The test was to write down the alphabet! i was depressed and did not have any confidence. However, my friends told me not to worry and said that if i work hard, nothing is impossible.
Wish me good luck!
Time to get back to full gear!
CNY is over and i am sure everyone had a wonderful and refreshing CNY because it's time to get back to business! After the break, we have to focus on our work once more. I know you all are still in the CNY mood, so quickly recover and get serious! I will try my best to shake off my CNY mood and continue my daily life. So let's be serious.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Barack Obama's day!
Yeah! Today is the day Barack Obama moved into the white house and the day George Bush get out.
I hope that Obama can manage united states well enough to find a solution for the financial crisis that is currently affecting the whole world and whole economy.
I also wish that he has the right answers to the current chaos in U.S. or else U.S. would lose hope of recovering. He has to motivate his people and get them to coorperrate to solve the serious problem.
Go, Obama!
I hope that Obama can manage united states well enough to find a solution for the financial crisis that is currently affecting the whole world and whole economy.
I also wish that he has the right answers to the current chaos in U.S. or else U.S. would lose hope of recovering. He has to motivate his people and get them to coorperrate to solve the serious problem.
Go, Obama!
Friday, January 16, 2009
COUNTDOWN TO CHINESE NEW YEAR!
Hi, everyone. Chinese New Year's round the corner and the festive atmosphere is in the air. Its celebration time! This would be a good time to do shopping for goods, with CNY goodies everywhere. Come on, let's gear up and have a good time. Last one there miss the good stuffs!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Wishing everyone a happy new year 2009
Hi world! I would like to give my sincere greetings for the start of a new year, a year of new hopes and aspirations. This year is the year of the cow and i wish everyone a happy auspicious and prosperous 2009! Anyway, have fun!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Reflections on ferry catastrophe, Sun, Jan 11, 2009
A ferry that was travelling from Pare Pare in south Sulawesi to samarinda in East kalimantan sank with only 4 crew surviving. I felt that the it was a big tragedy as many people were believed to be drowned. The disaster was unexpected and i was sorry for the families of the missing people. They must have had a hard time dealing with the sudden loss. I believe authorities would like to further ensure the safety of the ships before sailing into sea.
Welcome to my blog!
Hi, world! I am Blackbullet and the purpose of this blog is to share with you some of my reflections and opinions of the recent news and the happenings in our society.
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