It's interesting. The Chinese government is considered to be one which ignores appeals regarding human rights and the situation in Tibet. The rest of the world views the US as some racist and ignorant country, while the Gulf states is just brimming with ultra-conservatives trying to capture control of the world. And Rwanda is still in some genocide-torn state.
Which is why I enjoy reading travel guides, because the writers usually try to break down stereotypes and over-generalized and myopic views. (Of course, this is assuming that the writers are writing objectively in the first place.)
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
More than 4 minutes
Madonna and Justin Timberlake brag that they have only 4 mins to save the world. I'm glad I've got 5 months to save my own ass. (Not that 5 months is a long period of time.)
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
It's Over Tonight
The dreaded H3 Math Exams has come and gone. No more rushing to classes on Tuesdays and Fridays. And hello to CSC classes on Tuesdays.
The biggest gain I got from this course is knowing about how codes work. Some codes aren't really too complicated, just doodling with the concept of congruences, modular artihmetic and matrices.
But it has been tough. Math isn't about computation, it's more of understanding and appreciation of certain theorems and proofs, and only then can application of mathematical concepts seem worthwhile.
I have made up my mind a long time back that I won't be pursuing Pure Math. But if there are other fields of Math that suits me better, and can earn some $$$, then show me the door!
The biggest gain I got from this course is knowing about how codes work. Some codes aren't really too complicated, just doodling with the concept of congruences, modular artihmetic and matrices.
But it has been tough. Math isn't about computation, it's more of understanding and appreciation of certain theorems and proofs, and only then can application of mathematical concepts seem worthwhile.
I have made up my mind a long time back that I won't be pursuing Pure Math. But if there are other fields of Math that suits me better, and can earn some $$$, then show me the door!
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Is compulsory national service anti-Singaporean too?
How fundamentally different are Singaporeans and just about any other kind of people anyway? I think most Singaporeans will argue against this, but we shall see. Mr Ng, you're welcome to debate.
http://forums.4aynrandfans.com/index.php?showtopic=6347
Compulsory National Service Is Anti-American
June 4, 2007
Irvine, CA--There has been a resurgence in calls for compulsory universal national service, most recently by former defense secretary Melvin R. Laird, who declared, "Young Americans . . . need to serve their country."
But according to Dr. Yaron Brook, executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute, "Compulsory national service is anti-American.
"According to the advocates of compulsory service, young people take America's freedom for granted, being more concerned with selfishly pursuing an education and a fulfilling career than serving their country. To remedy that, they propose forcing young people to spend a few years working in the Peace Corps, nursing homes, or soup kitchens. This, supposedly, will make them appreciate freedom. But if the government can order a young person to stop pursuing the career he passionately loves in order to plant trees or clean bed pans, there is no freedom left for him to appreciate.
"America's distinctive virtue is that it was the first nation to declare that each individual is an end in himself, that he possesses an inalienable right to pursue his own happiness, and that the government's only function is to safeguard his freedom. Compulsory national service turns young people into temporary slaves in order to inculcate in their minds the opposite premise: that they have a duty to selflessly serve society. To justify such a policy on the grounds of promoting appreciation for freedom is perverse. To call it patriotic is obscene.
"Compulsory national service is a threat to freedom. It should be condemned for the anti-American policy that it is."
### ### ###
Copyright © 2007 Ayn Rand® Institute. All rights reserved.
http://forums.4aynrandfans.com/index.php?showtopic=6347
Compulsory National Service Is Anti-American
June 4, 2007
Irvine, CA--There has been a resurgence in calls for compulsory universal national service, most recently by former defense secretary Melvin R. Laird, who declared, "Young Americans . . . need to serve their country."
But according to Dr. Yaron Brook, executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute, "Compulsory national service is anti-American.
"According to the advocates of compulsory service, young people take America's freedom for granted, being more concerned with selfishly pursuing an education and a fulfilling career than serving their country. To remedy that, they propose forcing young people to spend a few years working in the Peace Corps, nursing homes, or soup kitchens. This, supposedly, will make them appreciate freedom. But if the government can order a young person to stop pursuing the career he passionately loves in order to plant trees or clean bed pans, there is no freedom left for him to appreciate.
"America's distinctive virtue is that it was the first nation to declare that each individual is an end in himself, that he possesses an inalienable right to pursue his own happiness, and that the government's only function is to safeguard his freedom. Compulsory national service turns young people into temporary slaves in order to inculcate in their minds the opposite premise: that they have a duty to selflessly serve society. To justify such a policy on the grounds of promoting appreciation for freedom is perverse. To call it patriotic is obscene.
"Compulsory national service is a threat to freedom. It should be condemned for the anti-American policy that it is."
### ### ###
Copyright © 2007 Ayn Rand® Institute. All rights reserved.
Monday, May 12, 2008
World's Youngest Mother
http://www.incrediblebirths.com/Worlds-Youngest-Mother.html
Pictured to the left, in 1940, is Lina Medina, her baby, and the doctor who delivered the baby. Her son was 11 months old in this photograhph
Born at full term at Lima's maternity clinic, her child was taken through a caesarian operation done by Dr. Lozada and Dr. Busalleu.
Her son, weighing 2,700 grams or 5.92 pounds, was well formed and in good health. Child and mother were able to leave the clinic after only a few days.
As a result of a disorder known as precocious puberty, Lina Medina, born September 27, 1933 in the small Peruvian village of Paurange, was 5 years 8 months old when she gave birth by cesarean section to her son on May 14, 1939 (Mother's Day of that year).
The boy weighed 5 lbs and 9 ozs.
Lina is believed to be the youngest girl in the world to give birth to a healthy, full term baby.
Doctors found that Lina had a menstrual period at the young age of 8 months old.
The reason for this disorder is not known. As it's not everyday a 5 year old girl gets pregnant, research on the disorder is hard. Dr. Gerardo Lozada the doctor who delivered her son was astonished.
When asked who the father was, Lina did not give an answer. Many believed her father had molested her and got her pregnant. He was arrested, but because of lack of evidence, the case was dropped.
When her son, Gerardo (named after the doctor who delivered him), was 10 years old he discovered something quite shocking: the girl he believed to be his 15 year old sister was actually his mother.
Gerardo died at the age of 40 in 1979 from bone marrow disease. There is no evidence of the disease having anything to do with the fact that his mother had been so young when she had him.
Lina got married to Raúl Jurado in 1972 and had a second child 33 years after she gave birth to Gerardo. To this day the father of Gerardo is a mystery. Lina's second son currently lives in Mexico.
She was one of nine children born to country folk in Ticrapo, an Andean village at an altitude of 7,400 feet in Peru’s poorest province
A book, written by obstetrician Joseph Sandoval in 2002, who had been interested in her case, brought fresh attention to Medina’s story, and raised the prospect that the Peruvian government may belatedly offer her financial and other assistance. “The government condemned them to live in poverty back in 1939.
Extreme degrees of precocious puberty in children under 5 are very uncommon but not unheard of. Pregnancy and delivery by a child this young remains extremely rare because extremely precocious puberty is treated to suppress fertility, preserve growth potential, and reduce the social consequences of full sexual development in childhood.
Pictured to the left, in 1940, is Lina Medina, her baby, and the doctor who delivered the baby. Her son was 11 months old in this photograhph
Born at full term at Lima's maternity clinic, her child was taken through a caesarian operation done by Dr. Lozada and Dr. Busalleu.
Her son, weighing 2,700 grams or 5.92 pounds, was well formed and in good health. Child and mother were able to leave the clinic after only a few days.
As a result of a disorder known as precocious puberty, Lina Medina, born September 27, 1933 in the small Peruvian village of Paurange, was 5 years 8 months old when she gave birth by cesarean section to her son on May 14, 1939 (Mother's Day of that year).
The boy weighed 5 lbs and 9 ozs.
Lina is believed to be the youngest girl in the world to give birth to a healthy, full term baby.
Doctors found that Lina had a menstrual period at the young age of 8 months old.
The reason for this disorder is not known. As it's not everyday a 5 year old girl gets pregnant, research on the disorder is hard. Dr. Gerardo Lozada the doctor who delivered her son was astonished.
When asked who the father was, Lina did not give an answer. Many believed her father had molested her and got her pregnant. He was arrested, but because of lack of evidence, the case was dropped.
When her son, Gerardo (named after the doctor who delivered him), was 10 years old he discovered something quite shocking: the girl he believed to be his 15 year old sister was actually his mother.
Gerardo died at the age of 40 in 1979 from bone marrow disease. There is no evidence of the disease having anything to do with the fact that his mother had been so young when she had him.
Lina got married to Raúl Jurado in 1972 and had a second child 33 years after she gave birth to Gerardo. To this day the father of Gerardo is a mystery. Lina's second son currently lives in Mexico.
She was one of nine children born to country folk in Ticrapo, an Andean village at an altitude of 7,400 feet in Peru’s poorest province
A book, written by obstetrician Joseph Sandoval in 2002, who had been interested in her case, brought fresh attention to Medina’s story, and raised the prospect that the Peruvian government may belatedly offer her financial and other assistance. “The government condemned them to live in poverty back in 1939.
Extreme degrees of precocious puberty in children under 5 are very uncommon but not unheard of. Pregnancy and delivery by a child this young remains extremely rare because extremely precocious puberty is treated to suppress fertility, preserve growth potential, and reduce the social consequences of full sexual development in childhood.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
晨间新闻
Slate explains how the Democrats can stay in power for up to 16 years, with Clinton and Obama changing the roles of president and vice-preseident a few times. Sounds crazy but looks fool-proof. Whether or not their popularity can sustain for so many years is another thing.
http://www.slate.com/id/2187034
http://www.slate.com/id/2187034
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