STPM is inching closer to us day by day. About a month left before the big day. Ya, I know that it’s been a tough journey for all of us, we have already come a long way and now this. Sometimes, we feel that it’s hopeless and all, wanting to throw in the towel, but hang on, just hang on…don’t let STPM, be "Sudah Tentu Pasti Mati" for you! Fight I say, fight to the bitter end!!!
I wish you all, my "comrades" in STPM, all the best!
=)
There was a time when we actually thought that connectivity was being able to acess your email, through the net, or actually being able to chat anywhere using preinstalled MSN or Yahoo chat. But burning a cd without any programs installed? Now that new! Yes, portable applications are like softwares that can actually run inside your pendrive or from any removable hardware. It’s been here for quite some time but has always been in the form being small and nifty, with minor functions such as converting units or a portable dictionary.The portable application has evolved then, some to being full fledged software and with the invention and popular usage of thumbdrives (cheap and within reach of mass consumers that’s why!) and removable hard disk, it is no wonder that portable applications are the future in software. Imagine, stand alone softwares in your hard drive, capable of surfing the net or editing photos, imagine having the open office in a thumbdrive, being able to edit your presentation anywhere on any computer, that’s what were talking about! Untill now few software have been made but as time passes, you can be sure that portable application are the next big thing in software development!
Links:
PortableApps
Have you heard about the story about “the missing piece”. It basically goes like this, a circle missing a wedged shaped piece that rolls around trying to find its mate to be complete. I guess there are many renditions of this story and I’v also heard one using a doughtnut but getting back to point, this story is very profound. I guess every one of us is some sort like a the circle, forever looking for that one thing to complete us, to make us whole. We have that longing in our heart, a sense of incompleteness; it’s funny how everyone has it, as if life isn’t complete without that something or someone. Nothing to say here, I just wanted to share this thought to the far ends of the world, from an incomplete circle to another…
Who are we really actually? Everyday, we wake up and perform tasks like our jobs, go home, eat dinner, watch TV, and go to sleep. Then tomorrow, we repeat everything again. We say we are different, that we are our own individuals having different personalities. Yet, we run our everyday life with little or no difference from others. Personality is just an illusion. Probably, humans just made it up so that they can use it to blame their shortcomings. We say things like “no it just no in me to do it”, but seriously, who are we kidding?
In reality, what we really do is wear mask, think of it like role playing. When we go to work, we put on a “job” mask. Think of it like stamping the word “accountant” in red big bold letter on your forehead. Then when you go home, you wear the “dad” mask, becoming the great guy that your kids love. You also alternately wear the “loving husband” mask while you spouse rotates mask that are labelled, “mom” and “loving wife”. There are sometimes you also put on the “me” mask when spending time alone (your so-called personality, that when you think about who you are). The thing is that we act differently with every different mask we put on. A person can be really agressive at work, be the “fun guy” while hanging out with friends, and yet be the caring and loving husband and father at the same time. Who we are changes with the different mask we put on. We often say that our personality changes when time goes by, but in fact it changes so many times in just one day!
There’s no such thing as a personality, being that you are what you are, a rigid thinking that this is who you are and cannot change it. It’s funny how some people are afraid to change as they are afraid they might lose themselves. Then, if you look at the countless times you change masks in a single day, it’s suprisingly liberating to know, that your so called personality is more fluid and flexible than ever. We are constantly changing, so used to it that we don’t really feel the difference when we are at work or play.
When it comes down to the crunch, what’s important is not the mask you wear but how well you can change mask. Ever seen that China circus act of a guy that can change his mask really quick? Yes, that’s a great example of adaptability. Like this, once you come back from work and open the door to your house, you must already be wearing your “family” mask. Imagine what will happen if you still have your agressive “job” mask on….ohhh….disastrous! =)
Ever notice how when some stranger stops his car for you to cross the road, you feel all so happy about that simple incident when compared to when some of your friends help you out with even more compared to that simple gesture and yet, such a feeling does not manifest itself? The funny thing about humans is that we tend to build assumptions around something. Take the case of a stranger, that simple gesture may actually make your day, as you get a good impression of the stranger. Then you generalized this feeling that every stranger is good, you feel elevated that the world is such a wonderful place and with such wonderful people. Why, even when you meet a jerk later, it will not spoil your day, as your mind tend to focus the fellow as an oddball, something you need not care about. The reverse happens when you meet a jerk early at the day, you end up feeling angry and start snapping at everyone else. Your mind tends to assumes thing when there is not enough information available. For example, its like an uncompleted jigsaw puzzle, when you look at it you can actually imagine how the picture will look like though it isn’t incomplete. Why, you assumption maybe totally off until the whole puzzle is complete. Likewise, when you get stepped over by someone you don’t know, the angry, combined with anger and your mind’s innate ability to complete a picture will lead you to the subconscious conclusion that everyone is a jerk. To explain the milder reaction of the good deed of your friends to you is that your mind has enough information to “complete” the picture more effectively. It becomes an isolated case and whatever emotions shown are localized with you and your friends only, thus making the effect less great. You lose the “elevated” feeling faster. A simple example is this, you’re now really old and a small boy offers help you carry your shopping bags. You feel all warm and fuzzy within don’t cha? You’ll even probably go along the whole day with a great smile on your face, feeling that the world loves you. Now say that it is your son that helps you, the effect wouldn’t be so great now would it.
Now lets add a twist to this situation, lets say that this boy is a prank caller and, just 5 minutes ago, has just prank called the fire department. Now given that you saw him did that, how would you react? Heck, I bet you’ll even be snatching back your bags from that boy. You see, with the extra information, you mind’s puzzle is more complete, you can see better, now…or so you thought! Perhaps this boy isn’t a prank caller, perhaps his friends forced him to make that call, and he had no choice. Then your reaction on the whole think will again change. What information is fed to you is what that will determine how far you assumption will deviate from the real thing. The reason you don’t get that high from you’re friends is the simple reason that you know them too well, both the good and bad. With you mind trying to fix the puzzle together, what you’ll get is a more subdued, balanced, response.
Gossip is perhaps the greatest example on how this mechanism works. Say person A is a new student in school and I’ve yet met him. Now, what if somebody tells me that the A is a no good 2-faced backstabber before I’ve met him? Boy, the way I would feel and act would totally be different (regardless of whether I believe the gossip or now, it will somehow affect me!) If that gossip didn’t reach me, then I’ll probably meet A with a neutral judgment. Now here’s the dangerous part, after meeting A for a first time, humans will probably try to determine A’s entire personality! Yes, the mind will try to fix whatever pieces of information we have on a person and make a whole lot of assumptions to make up who he is. That’s what we call as “first impression”! We often forget that there is much more that makes a person, and often we run away before digging in further if we get a really bad impression of him. But if we stick to it, we tend to discover more about a person, with more pieces to the puzzle, we discover that everyone is in someway special, something that has more often than not, been overlooked…
“All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.”
~Cecil Alexander
Have anyone of your tried to download the latest Quicktime before? If you do, you will probably find it bundle with the iTunes software. As you all know, Quicktime is an integral part of watching media online, though not the most user friendly software (i still hate how it is always there at my taskbar, can’t really kill it of through its own options, same goes for MSN), it is nevertheless needed. Now here’s the problem, downloading version 7 automatically installs iTunes as well, and I don’t want iTunes! ! I think it is really unfair to force users to install the iTunes software as all we need is Quicktime! Totally dominating!
Fortunealy, there is actually a stand alone version! Uhuh, but the question is not whether it is there or not, it is about whether you can actually find it or not? Go ahead, go try! Nope? Well, here’s a link to help you guys: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/standalone.html
Read here for more info:
http://poptech.blogspot.com/2005/06/quicktime-infects-pcs-with-itunes.html
Perhaps one of the last thing we all want to do is to leave a mark in this world, to leave something on this earth that remind the world of our existence, that we once walked on this earth just as they are doing now. The only certain thing in life is death, someday, we are all going to leave this world, no one lives forever. Even as doctors and scientist strive hard to find method to extend our lives, to discover the elixir of life, all of us will perish one day. Even if you are able to live on forever, perhaps you may not die of natural causes, someday you will probably die in an accident or by any other random events. Perhaps tomorrow, you may be run over by a truck and die, there is no guarantee that you will live to a ripe old age. Death is but a really bad food poisoning away!
There is a need to leave a mark in this world. To be acknowledged is a proof that you exist. To change the world, to change people’s life, the need to be recognised, to be successful, all of that leaves a mark of us in the world. In some way, having children is also a way to leave a mark on this earth. The family name stay on, carrying the family’s lineage to the next generation. Perhaps it is our primal need to survive that drives us to such. To be the leader of the pack, that is what drives us. We have the need to be recognised, even as a child, we relish the moment when our parents praise us for whatever menial task we did. As we grow up, the need to be acknowledged still drives us strongly to push ourselves to work harder. Tell me now, isn’t the ultimate form of acknowledgement is to be a legend? A legend that stand the test of time, the ultimate proof that you exist, your name stands strong for many generation to acknowledge what your have done. Don’t get me wrong, this is not human’s egoistic nature to be famous. Sometimes you’re not trying to get people to acknowledge you but instead what you believe in. For example, look at the fervour of evangelist to spread the gospel, doing it all for God, not for himself, to fight for a purpose not for self acknowledgement. Your entire existance is devoted to the purpose of God, more importantly acknowledges your own existance in this world. But alas, mostly it comes to self acknowledgement, ha ha!
The more people acknowledge our actions, the more confident we feel. Being popular means being accepted. How is something determined to be right? When almost all of us agree is it. Religion aside, killing our own kind is considered wrong but killing chickens isn’t. That because, most of humanity agree with it, thus it is wrong. If chickens ruled the world, the situation would be vice-versa! The boundaries of right and wrong are ambiguous, and we need constant assurance of the fact of which is which. Often, teens want to be popular, to be seen as “right” to their peers. To be cool is to be “right” in numerous aspects that are involved. In conclusion, we can all strive to be some sort of “legend”, not to the world perhaps, but perhaps to your community, or your family. Different levels of impact are independent with different intensity. Perhaps you only influence one person in your entire life, but with such intensity that you are a legend in the eyes of the person, and that is all that counts! =)
“Someday most of us will be forgotten, as though as we never existed. Is that how we want to live through our life on earth that comes only once?”
“I expect to pass through this world only once,
Any good I can do, let me do it now,
Let me not defer it,
For I shall never pass this way again.”
- Poet Unknown, newspaper cutting at the metal workshop’s table, SXI.
Ever read articles that really captivated your attention? Or even, ever hear utterly boring lectures before, those that will get you dozing off within seconds? Yes, we’ve all been through those moments in life. Our attention fluctuates with our understanding. The less we understand, the less we pay attention (even when we should be paying more attention!). It is like those moments when you just blur out in lectures and your Physics teacher now sounds like he’s talking Greek! Now what if you’re the speaker? How could you get people to pay attention and ultimately to make them understand? Here is an interesting POV you can apply:
To be able to make people understand, a person must talk in common grounds. The human mind associates information, that means it attempts to connect the new information with its original content. This means that as long the new information is connectable; it is easier to learn and understand something. For example, a new math concept is easier to learn with a strong basic math background. I have a Chemistry teacher who often uses the process of baking a cake as an analogy toward understanding Chemistry. The result is that Chemistry is more understandable, though many have never baked a cake before, it is closer to what we know. I mean, at least people can actually visualise a cake baking right? Now try that with molecules and atoms, get my point? Even more down to earth, is that Jesus, teaches the people through the use of parables. Jesus knew that only by speaking in terms of farmers, sheep rearing, terms that the average people of Israel those days could easily understand.
The way we speak to a seven year old kid is different compared to speaking with an adult. So, to introduce something new, the best way is to relate it with something we know. It is the same with humour, people only laugh at humour they can “get”. Whether you “get it” or not depends on what you know, like perhaps a technical joke. Jokes that deal with everyday life are perhaps the ones most easy to get. It relates to your everyday life and perhaps, in some way gives you a new perspective on it. Remember the Sherlock Holmes Tent joke? It goes like this:
Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson go on a camping trip. After a good dinner and a bottle of wine, they retire for the night, and go to sleep.
Some hours later, Holmes wakes up and nudges his faithful friend. “Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see.”
“I see millions and millions of stars, Holmes” replies Watson.
“And what do you deduce from that?”
Watson ponders for a minute.
“Well, astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. Theologically, I can see that God is all powerful, and that we are a small and insignificant part of the universe. What does it tell you, Holmes?”
Holmes is silent for a moment. “Watson, you idiot!” he says. “Someone has stolen our tent!”
by Geoff Anandappa
More often than not we tend to miss things right under our noses, and in that way this joke relates to us. Also, the joke uses a world renown literature figure to begin the joke with, being famous for analytical thinking and all. It is in fact that we actually take for granted that Watson will answer in the way that he did, knowing that, the twist of the joke becomes all the more humorous. To sum it up, the more we can relate to the joke, the funnier it is. One of those jokes that I can’t get is those comparing something with celebs, being the Malaysian that I am, I sometimes don’t have the background knowledge to “get it”. I’d be like asking myself, “Who the hell is so and so?” Nuff said.
I am sure everyone is familiar with the term Classical Conditioning/ Pavlovian Conditioning. After his experiment, another one was carried out by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner but now the focus of the conditioning was on emotions with an infant rather than dogs and salivation like Pavlov. Basically, what Watson did was first to determine that the infant, in the beginning has no fear of furry animals. Even when a dog bigger than the infant was placed beside the infant, the infant shows no fear of it, even up to the extend of touching it. Then a loud, horrifying sound was emitted when he as about to touch the furry creature. The child, which has a innate fear of this noise, naturally withdraws when the sound is heard. After a couple of repetitions, the child connect the terrifying sound with the furry animals and therefore, is "conditioned" to fear anything furry. A Santa Claus mask was put close to the infant and he fear it, as it has a "furry" white beard.
Now, the significance of this is the tapping of the child’s innate fear and associating it with the fear for furry animals. Now, what if…what if we can "condition" ourselves similarly? Imagine two rivers flowing down in parallel, one is marked as "furry animals" and the second one, polluted with the emotion of fear, is marked as "terrifying sound". What happens is that when the infant is "conditioned", a small stream is dug to connect the two streams together polluting the other river too. Applying the same concept, is it possible to condition passion for something you don’t like by associating your passion from other existing sources? Say, for me, I actually enjoy chemistry, it’s those rare subject where I’d actually enjoy the subject. So, what if I can divert that "liking" for it to other subjects? It is possible to "condition" the affinity of mine to other subjects, say physics? I think the best way is to create transitional borders among the subjects, to blur the lines that separate the distinct subjects, in other words to let the "range of the liking of chemistry" expand its borders to engulf the other subjects. There a always overlapping chapters in science, for example, the subject of atomic structure are both discussed in physics as well as in chemistry. I suggesting that you use this as a connecting planks to connect your initial liking for chemistry with physics. By doing so, you mind will have associated the liking for chem with physics, though only a small part of it (as it has something to do with chemistry). but once that stimulus is reinforced by repetition and constant association of the subject, there will come a point where the mind will treat the "liking" emotion as a whole, as the mind couldn’t really differentiate the one from he other. So, the next time you open your thick physics textbook, the mind will jog your "like" for chem with physics, meaning that you will also like physics. =)
