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What I found in QD31.3 Sis 2006, University chemistry / Peter E. Siska.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007 3:20 PM Schroedinger, Erwin! Professor of physics! Wrote daring equations! Confounded his critics! (Not bad, eh? Don't worry. This part of the verse Starts off pretty good, but it gets a lot worse.) Win saw that the theory that Newton'd invented By Einstein's discov'ries had been badly dented. What now? wailed his colleagues. Said Erwin, "Don't panic, No grease monkey I, but a quantum mechanic. Consider electrons. Now, these teeny articles Are sometimes like waves, and then sometimes like particles. If that's not confusing, the nuclear dance Of electrons and suchlike is governed by chance! No sweat, though--my theory permits us to judge Where some of 'em is and the rest of 'em was." Not everyone bought this. It threatened to wreck The comforting linkage of cause and effect. E'en Einstein had doubts, and so Schroedinger tried To tell him what quantum mechanics implied. Said Win to Al, "Brother, suppose we've a cat, And inside a tube we have put that cat at-- Along with a solitaire deck and some Fritos, A bottle of Night Train, a couple mosquitoes (Or something else rhyming) and, oh, if you got 'em, One vial prussic acid, one decaying ottom Or atom--whatever--but when it emits, A trigger device blasts the vial into bits Which snuffs our poor kitty. The odds of this crime Are 50 to 50 per hour each time. The cylinder's sealed. The hour's passed away. Is Our pussy still purring--or pushing up daisies? Now, you'd say the cat either lives or it don't But quantum mechanics is stubborn and won't. Statistically speaking, the cat (goes the joke), Is half a cat breathing and half a cat croaked. To some this may seem a ridiculous split, But quantum mechanics must answer, "Tough @#&! We may not know much, but one thing's fo' sho': There's things in the cosmos that we cannot know. Shine light on electrons--you'll cause them to swerve. The act of observing disturbs the observed-- Which ruins your test. But then if there's no testing To see if a particle's moving or resting Why try to conjecture? Pure useless endeavor! We know probability--certainty, never.' The effect of this notion? I very much fear 'Twill make doubtful all things that were formerly clear. Till soon the cat doctors will say in reports, "We've just flipped a coin and we've learned he's a corpse."' So saith Herr Erwin. Quoth Albert, "You're nuts. God doesn't play dice with the universe, putz. I'll prove it!" he said, and the Lord knows he tried-- In vain--until fin'ly he more or less died. Win spoke at the funeral: "Listen, dear friends, Sweet Al was my buddy. I must make amends. Though he doubted my theory, I'll say of this saint: Ten-to-one he's in heaven--but five bucks says he ain't." -Cecil Adams, The Straight Dope (Taken from http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_122.html) ... Sometimes, just sometimes, in rare moments like these, I wonder if I should've majored in Physics instead of Life Sciences... but in any case, I KNOW I'm in the right faculty. I feel like I'm slowly getting acquainted with and inducted into a fraternity of the intellectual and quirky... and I think... I like what I see! ( 6 comment) Welcome to NUS part II Saturday, December 02, 2006 5:33 PM Hi, it's been a really long time since I last updated this blog huh? Sorry man, I've been so overwhelmed these past four months in university, I hardly had the time for anything but CCAs and mugging (and wasting my time playing silly games in response to having to study so much. I'll explain this some other time, if ever). First of all, I must concede that I had a joyfully eventful time at NUS. I say this with reservation because I entered NUS in an extremely jaded and cynical frame of mind. Having graduated from over 10 years of MOE education and 2 years of SAF education (well, depending on how you look at it, ANYTHING can be considered education), I fully expected NUS to be what all other local institutions had thus far been: full of 'wayang' and no substance. And so it was that after a few weeks, I began to find that NUS wasn't really as bad as they claimed it to be after all. Sure, there is a general air of 'muggerism' and a pervading 'study for the sake of exams' kind of attitude among the student population, but I began to notice that this kind of attitude was prevalent in overseas universities in US and UK too, apparently. And I must concede that I was quite impressed with the infrastructure provided by NUS; the buses, the internet, the IVLE (I was especially surprised that the IVLE forums and many other functions were being so well-utilised, for I had thought IVLE was like some sort of technological white elephant), etc... Maybe such 'standards' are all but an expected minimum for a 'Top 50' institute of tertiary education in the world, but having come from a purported top junior college and secondary school which offered nothing close, I guess it's reasonable for me to be dazzled. Of course, academically speaking, I also felt that actually, the standard of the lecturers in NUS wasn't all that bad as they claimed. There were good professors who were not only good academics, but also good educators. Perhaps I was fortunate to have picked the right modules (I accidentally picked a law module, which turned out to be quite my most enjoyable module so far), but I thought the professors really sought to get us students to learn something, to truly educate. Having said all that, what truly brought me joy nevertheless, I think, was staying in on campus. If you think about it, the reason why an overseas education is so sought after is really because it widens one's horizons. Someone who's studied half the globe away for 3-4 years looks at the world in different eyes I guess. And living independently away from home is one of these intangible educating mechanisms. So for me, I was pursuing an overseas education at NUS for the 5 days I was away from home, free to be whoever I wanted to be. Until the exams loomed around the corner, and I chickened out and went home on some of the weekdays. As for the many events that transpired during my stay at KEVII Hall, I don't think I'll be able to find the time to write about them properly on this blog. To give a rough idea of the kind of life I led in hall, firstly, I think I lived in quite a spartan manner, having only ever gone for supper at Fong Seng once (on 16th November, the day of many firsts), and not having depended on any snacks or 'dietary supplements' in my room except milo. Until the examination period when cup noodles and chocolates made their way onto my shelves. Secondly, I've joined KEVII Hallplay, being delegated the role of lights I/C (because the original lights I/C, an experienced lights person, decided to sign up to be assistant production manager, and then asked me to take over his job). I'm with the road relay (ie, a jogging CCA), as well as the publications committee. Lastly, in this intensive starting four months at NUS, I was with the Varsity Christian Fellowship at KEVII, and through it all, God was abundant in His grace and mercy to me. Well, I hate to admit it, but I think university looks like it's going to be quite an exciting chapter of my life. ( 4 comment) Brainwashing @ Civil Service College Wednesday, July 26, 2006 9:14 PM I attended a brainwashing session (which they called an MOE Induction Programme) at the Civil Service College last Thursday. The brainwashing was quite thorough. Before tea, there was an engaging talk on the big picture of our educational landscape by a very sharp and knowledgeable lady which opened my mind. And after tea, there was an inspiring speech by the Principal-designate of Northlight School (http://my.asia1.com/sub/budget2006/story/0,6634,376446,00.html) that tugged at my heart. I'm a very slow person. My friends used to say that to make me laugh on Monday, they've got to tell me the joke the previous Friday. It seems that when it comes to brainwashing, I'm even slower. A good one week after all the talks, whilst I was on the bus to SAFRA to sign up for the Sheares Bridge Run, the effects of the brainwashing began; I started thinking about education, and I felt like some ideas just dropped into my head: One of the main aims of an education system in a society is to produce citizens, regardless of social status, to be well-equipped to contribute back to society; to produce citizens who can and will be appropriately useful to society. So an education should produce good doctors, good teachers, good chefs, good technicians, good labourers... good everythings. From a secular point of view, a person can be said to have led a meaningful and purposeful life if he or she has contributed to the general betterment of the society. Great people discover cures and vaccines to diseases that save millions of life and improve the medical standards of society. Not-so-great people can make a child's day by being gentle and understanding when administering that painful injection and thus also improve the medical standards of society as well. If both the above doctor and the nurse keep doing what they do, they can be said to be leading a useful life. I think people in general, if given a choice, would prefer to lead a useful and thus, meaningful life, to know that what one is doing is actually beneficial to at least one other person other than oneself. And then I realised that, from a Christian perspective, this was because man was made in the image of God, and God, as manifested in Jesus, was a humble servant; Man was made (not primarily, though) to serve. Of course, very often, the pragmatic realities of life set in, and ambition and material pursuits take precedence. I know a senior who's now a lawyer. She tells me she was full of idealism just after she graduated and wanted to be a good lawyer, but now she is just a glorified clerk with paperwork up to her neck and was struggling just to clear her 'in' tray consistently. For people like her, I suppose it seems that the greater good of society has no place nor importance in their lives. Material success and financial well-being becomes paramount. Some people under such circumstances succeed in achieving their new goals, whilst others fail. However, at the end of the day, whether they lead a contented and happy life actually doesn't depend on the extent of their success. Human avarice is limitless. Material success cannot satisfy because there's never enough. However, knowing that you've contributed to the progress of society, or an organisation, or even just someone else apart from yourself, would bring meaning and purpose to one's life. And to be able to, at the end of the day, feel that there's currently meaning and purpose in your life, would make most people contented and happy. The knowledge that one is a contributing part or member of a greater entity, and to see it achieve and progress beyond what any individual can do, that is what brings true joy in life. Examples that come into mind are orchestras, soccer teams, NPCC/NCC units, and society, and of course, the body of Christ. Thus, I'd go so far as to say that more than society needs its citizens to contribute to it, us citizens need to be able to contribute to society before we become complete and content. And it is in schools where the required skills are taught, and it is up to the education planners of a society to determine how to allocate appropriate teaching of all the required skills in society so that everyone can be useful, so that there's no oversaturation nor shortfall of skilled workers in every sector of society. ... Didn't realise that the aims of the education system in Singapore was actually THIS noble huh, did you? Heh. Soon, I'll be telling you about the virtues and achievements of the MOE and it's educational policies... ( 5 comment) 5078 CHEW ZICHUN Singapore 03:38:39 Thursday, July 06, 2006 2:38 AM 3 hours 38 minutes and 39 seconds That was how long I took to complete this year's OSIM Triathlon (1.5km swim, 40km cycle, 10km run) at East Coast Park last Sunday. To put my timing into perspective, click on the link below, and scroll all the way to the bottom, 65 would be a helpful number in case you can't find my name, hehe... http://jsp.triathlonsingapore.org/news_events/events_results/ost2006/sunday/Osim_Sun_AGE_%20GroupM20.htm Well, if you're wondering why I'm so elated (actually, I'm not just elated, I'm absolutely ecstatic) about coming in 5th last for my age group, then you will have to see my results last year to understand why: http://www.singaporetriathlon.com/results/2005/results/Age_Group_Results_CategoryM20.htm And to put THAT into perspective, you will have to check the results of EVERYONE ELSE who took part in the Olympic Distance Triathlon, and try to find the number of people who actually came in slower than me. Notice that the age group goes all the way up to 50, 55, and even 60+ for males? Yes, among all the uncles and aunties, there were only a grand total of 3 (I counted many times, last year and this year) people who were slower than me! When I started the run this year, I was only aiming to finish the race this time just under 4 hours, so that I could tell people I finished a triathlon in '3 hours something', ie barely under 4 hours. And also, so that based on last year's results, I would at least not come in last for my age group. So having 'aimed low', I am thus extremely delighted to have shaved a good 43 minutes off my timing as compared to last year! That is a whopping 16.5% reduction in my timing! And to top it all off, this year's race has been extremely eventful (in a masochistically humourous way), and looking back, I think this timing would very likely be the best performance I'll ever be able to squeeze out with my current (low) fitness level. Let me begin to describe in more detail how the race unfolded for me: 1st Leg: 1.5km Swim along East Coast Beach (2 laps of 375m out into the sea and back) The first thing that greets you when you plunge headfirst into the brownish algae green waters off East Coast Beach is the jolting taste of regurgitated vomit in your mouth. You can barely see your own arms ahead of you as you swim in the murky waters. So it was like that, with the barrage of the oft-described 'flailing arms and legs', that I quickly ended up swimming at the back, and struggling unsuccessfully to keep up with very many people. During the first lap, as I was swimming back to shore, my swimming cap started to come off. Unable to adjust it back into place, I took it off altogether, along with my goggles, and tried to put it properly back on again. I spent a good 3-4 minutes before I finally succeeded, but as I had put my cap on too tight over my forehead, I wasn't able to put on my goggles properly, and till I reached the shore, my right goggle was filled with water. During the second lap, my swimming cap problem was resolved at the shore. However, due to the choppiness of the sea, and the fact that I used breaststroke to swim, I began to feel rather seasick. Having also accidentally swallowed a few mouthfuls of that horrid liquid, I was really on the verge of puking. There and then, the words 'fall out' kept coming mysteriously into my consciousness. Fortunately, they were unheeded. 2nd Leg: 40km Cycle along East Coast Park Service Road (4 laps of 5km to the end of ECP Service Road and back) I still remember vividly how, last year, on a borrowed mountain bike (from my cousin), I really struggled to complete the 40km. I ran out of water very quickly, and even had to come off the bike and ask a police marshaler for bottled mineral water. My thighs were experiencing sharp pains towards the third and fourth laps. My morale was experiencing sharp pains as well because every single encounter with another bicycle was my being overtaken. I did not overtake nor manage to keep up with a single cyclist! Naturally, into my 3rd and 4th round, I was mostly the only left on the whole cycling circuit. It was extremely demoralising. This year, I rented a bicycle from one of those shops along East Coast Park. It was mountain bike with smooth wheels, sort of like a half-breed between mountain bikes and proper racer bikes. With that bike, I managed to keep up with and eventually overtake a Malay uncle on a racer, a young man on mountain bike, and a friendly chinese uncle on a racer in turn. We'd overtake each other every 2-3 minutes, until I'd overtake them and not see them again. There were of course, this time, many other cyclists I overtook once, and permanently, which did wonders to my morale this year. The best part, however, was being able to see the clock at the end of each lap, because I could tell exactly how long I took for that lap. After my second lap, I realised, with an extended loud cheer to myself (which is as much of a celebration as I could afford, being on a bicycle and not knowing how to balance myself with both hands away from the handlebar), that I was taking 22 minutes for each lap! So throughout rest of the cycling leg, I kept calculating to confirm that should I maintain at this speed, I would finish the cycling leg 30 minutes faster than last year, and all I needed to do was to maintain the rest of my timings to achieve my goal! I would grin happily to myself every time after I finished calculating, and then proceed to calculate again to confirm that I was right. 3rd Leg: 10km Run along East Coast Park (2 laps of 2.5km to Singapore Tennis Centre and back) Last year, I took one too many cups of the gassy H20 that the well-meaning marshalers offered me as I jogged. So after my first round, my stomache was fizzing uncomfortably, and I just could not maintain a jog for more than 2 minutes, and ended up walking for most of the 10km. This year, I think the organisers must've realised how silly it was to provide gassy isotonic drinks, so they gave non-gassy H2O instead. So my excuse for this year is that almost right after I started jogging, the muscles above my right knee began to cramp. I could only limp as quickly as I could, until my left knee started to cramp as well. Thus I was reduced to a slower walk for the next 5 minutes, after which, I tried to run again for the next few minutes and the cycle began again. My muscles were really taking turns to cramp, because I'd feel a new muscle begin to cramp along with all the old ones every time. So I began to whisper many words of prayer, as well as drink up as much H20 as I could along the way. Miraculously, after trudging past the first lap in this manner, I was somehow able to continuously jog at a steady pace for the last 5km of the race, without feeling even a hint of my muscles threatening to cramp, until I started to speed up towards the end. Nevertheless, I actually managed to work into sprint at the finish line that captured the attention of the commentator, inducing him, to my chagrin, to announce: "Coming in next... AND working INTO a fantastic sprint, is an individual! It is... Choo Zee Choon at the finish line!!!" ... Well, should I manage to discipline myself into training regularly during my time in university, I think the annual OSIM triathlon is very much going to be an annual party for the few of us (Zhi Xian, Rui Jie, if he comes back, other friends and me). And I know where that $500 'CCA Subsidy' of my scholarship is going to go... a proper racer bike. ( 8 comment) MOE Scholarship Dreams Friday, June 30, 2006 12:09 PM The MOE building has very fascinating lifts for a technological ignoramus like me: You press the floor number you want to go to at the lift lobby. When a lift door opens, an LCD panel just inside the lift door will indicate which floors it will stop at. And so to reach the floor you want to go to, you have to enter a lift that says it will go to that particular floor. From what I recall, there're no buttons in the lift, so I gather that if you forget to alight at your destination, you could very well be stuck in the lift until someone outside rescues you. I made it there and back without any mishaps in the lift on Wednesday to attend the MOE meet-up session for us MOE Teaching Scholars. It was basically a get-to-know-you session, complete with *gasp* ice breaker games for the recipients of the scholarship as well as a briefing for some administrative matters. Many relevant personnel also had a turn at speaking; the OBS instructor and her briefing, a senior and her experience sharing, two NUS professors and their promoting of some of their programmes. Having been briskly acquainted with the lot of Teaching Scholars, I couldn't help detecting this general aura of idealistic enthusiasm in the air, exuding from both the scholars and the speakers. I could see a subtle tingle of invincibility in some of the scholars' eyes. And words like 'Global' and 'Achievements', or 'Meaningful' and 'Enriching' kept popping up on the powerpoint screens or on the lips of the speakers. It seemed to me that by the end of the session at MOE, some of the scholars would have been sufficiently psyched into believing that they can come inspire a new generation of students, change the education system, and bring about World Peace. "Crap lah, the MOE is just like SAF like that, got anything to say also must go through the proper channels and chain of command. You can't do very much. Want to change the screwed up education system? Forget it man." the few of us ORD'd blokes who later sat down at a nearby coffeeshop for lunch were, of course, too jaded and cynical to have been influenced by all that idealism, "eh Zichun, you okay not? You look a little sick." I couldn't help feeling very sick after being immersed in that aura of unrealistic grandeur for a whole morning. ... Actually, I had choked on a mint-flavoured menthos earlier, and I discovered there and then that having menthol in your windpipe was no joking matter. My whole face went red, I really couldn't breathe and speak. I had such terrible spasmic coughs that I thought I might have ruptured some blood vessels in my throat. In reality, I believe most people can't manage to do very much in their lives. Every now and then, we hear of idealistic high-flying civil servants (or civil servants-to-be) that publicly (or privately) tell of their dreams of wanting to change the screwed-up system for the betterment of society. These people are usually top scholars (PSC, President's and beyond), and they usually end up having to later clarify that the system's not all that bad after all, or, if they didn't make their unrealistc claims too public, confess that, it turns out, there's nothing very much they could actually do. How much less us second-tier scholars? ... My answer to that is God. No, I'm not trying to suggest that "with God as my divine weapon, I can hope to do all things great and glorious, and maybe, via a miracle, change the system according to what I think is right." Rather, the idea I'm trying to put forth is more along the lines of "now that I've realised how insignificant my own abilities are, I can suspend all faith and endeavour in my own human abilities, and instead, believe in and endeavour upon God and His plans." Surely God has already made plans for the system if even us second-tier scholars can see the wide array of problems that plague it. However, I think firstly we have to accept that realistically speaking, there's probably nothing very much we as individuals can do to make any effective AND lasting changes. We may perhaps start something notable, or propagate something that's already been started. However, without Someone to plan and orchestrate everything, and equally importantly, many cooperative people who choose to follow, carry out and maintain this one single plan through the generations, we'd only very likely end up with many different imperfect plans carried out half-way, and nothing very much done. In a world where everyone has good intentions, but are often hindered by pragmatic problems that often result in disillusionment and cynicism, God is the answer. And striving to be the willing and obedient servant and worker of God's plans, hardworking and humble; that is the best hope we can realistically harbour for the effective and lasting improvement of anything really. Meanwhile, let me continue to hope that I will not get into any trouble with the intimidating lifts when I go back to MOE tomorrow to sign the contract. ( 1 comment) My History Drama Script Wednesday, June 21, 2006 10:29 AM Presenting to you the script that I wrote for the History Drama Competition. Do note that this thing was written by a bumbling and angsty secondary two schoolboy who had too many ideas to effectively express them out properly. I suspect that most people will not appreciate most of the script's finer details. Heck, in fact, I think apart from the four of us who trashed out the stage directions, about everyone else could catch no ball. Apart from some punctuation ammendments and spelling corrections, I've left the script almost completely unaltered; rhythmic and rhyming errors, grammatical mistakes, bad expressions and all. Enjoy: Once upon a time in the town of Singapore Raffles made his port of call on her very shore At that time the police had no officer in charge So William Farquhar's son in law Francis James Bernard Took the part time job of magistrate and attendant Jailer, marine storekeeper and helper to the Resident The police force then had twelve people in all "Which is incompetent at catching thieves at all And even if they catch the thieves" "Yes finally" "The theieves with a bribe will still go scot-free Because with a puny eight hundred a month For me and all those under my command A nice big bribe from the loot laden thief For the poor policeman is more lucrative" Therefore in the year of eighteen nineteen The streets of Singapore were neither safe nor clean Raffles thought that Singapore's conditions were ill So he blamed Farquhar calling him "Imbecile" Farquhar with a lot of tasks still undone Had to, for law and order raise more funds So he legalized opium smoking and gambling With profits going to the force which was growing Later in the year of nineteen forty-one A magistrate was there to get things done "Under me there was hundred twenty-eight Loyal men who would anytime come to my aid But alas even with these big strong men The bad ways of the criminals I still cannot mend" In eighteen forty-three by popular demand Thomas Dunman was the first full-time chief in command Dunman had difficulties which were immense "Including a problem in the area of finance Furthermore my men are overworked and underpaid Buy luckily efforts to teach them were made And by reducing the working hours that they had Their morale was actually not that bad In eighteen sevent-one due to to much pressure Thomas Dunman made the decision to retire As he left the office for the last time as boss He left behind an efficient and humane police force Twenty years after Thomas Dunman had retired "A new uniform for us was created It consisted of a blue serge coat and cap And white trousers and black shoes to go with that" The detective force in eighteen eighty-four Was built to help uphold the law And because the Chinese had a very bad experience "Of corrupt policemen who had the license To kill and rob and rape and steal Our family's every single meal" So not a single policeman Was a local Chinese man In eighteen nineteen a policeman must have thought "These trousers that I wear are really hot If I wear these trousers too long everyday I might not get to celebrate Father's Day" So he got the force to wear white khaki shorts Which was cooler than the old trousers by lots And thirteen years after they regained their fertility In the very fateful year of nineteen o'three The fingerprint system was introduced So trouble in identifying thieves was reduced In the next year of nineteen o'four Before any Europeans in Singapore Could even dream of being in the police force Had to go through a special training course The course required them to learn the local language And take competitive exams "Hard as those from Cambridge" The ISD was formed in nineteen nineteen To arrest anyone who had even been Thinking of anti-Singaporean plans Or setting up chauvinistic communist bands The marine traffic and communication branch Was added to the force to add a bigger punch "By the decade of nineteen thirty thanks to us And our big police force of two thousand plus Transformed the originally crime laden land Into a place under the strong and mighty hand Of justice to make it a land of peace So that trading and profits will increase" In the fateful year of nineteen forty-two Yamashita wanted to have Singapore to rule So with a "Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat" Singapore was attacked by him just like that But of course he had tens of thousands soldiers on his side And with that thousands of Singaporeans died Gen'rel Percieval couldn't take it anymore So he decided to surrender Singapore The original police force which had disbanded In the war had now been restarted Along with the force came the Kempetai Whose orders no Singaporeans could defy These two forces were corrupt and ruthless And with them there was no justice or fairness "Because if a bad but very rich man Who decided that he wants to steal my hen Will never be charged for theft in court No matter how much proof I have got Because if he bribes the judge with money He will definitely go scot-free And unluckily for me if I fail To pay the fines the judge set I will go to jail" Not only could the police control everyone's money Their lives were also under their authority And with the power that the police forces had They terrorized the streets of Singapore quite bad They murdered, robbed, killed and shot their very own peers And that went on for many years But finally in the year of nineteen forty-five An atomic bomb hit Hiroshima leaving few alive The bomb was made to launch by President Truman "And the explosion was caused by nuclear fission" "We had expected Japan to surrender However all they did was to fight on harder So let's drop another bomb on Nagasaki" "I knew I shouldn't have studied chemistry" So with that there was a very big sound "Kaboom" And everyone in Nagasaki met their doom So soon the Japanese in Singapore surrendered And the Singapore Police Force and the Kempetai crumbled The citizens of Singapore hated the force And they even deliberately tried to break many laws Police chief Colonel R.E Foulgar thought that it was bad So he tried to rebuild the force with all that he had His efforts were luckily for us a success And soon the force started to make progress In nineteen forty-one ten policewomen Were hired so that in a situation Involved the arresting of rowdy women And searching of their bodies in case there's a weapon No matter how much the women try to protest They will never shout the very fearful word "Molest" One year later due to one too many riots The Riot Squad that suppressed riots were created And till now it is still here due to all the good it's done But now it's called the Special Operations Command "Woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof woof" "And that meant the police force did improve Because in nineteen fifty-five dog units were set up To help track down everything from criminals to a cub The dogs helped in almost every single raid And patrolled around houses though they were not paid" In nineteen fifty-nine there were eighty officers Out of which forty-seven were local members NPCC was formed in nineteen fifty-nine So students would think that being a policeman is fine Bartley Secondary School was the pioneer School that had police protection from the interior In nineteen sixty-three Malaysie merged with Singapore The name of the force was thus not the same as before THe Royal Malaysian Police Force was its new name And catching spies and saboteurs was its new game In nineteen sixty-five we separated from Malaysia And SM Lee even publicly shed a tear Now its name was Polis Republik Singapura And the MID controlled it from afar In nineteen sixty-nine the policement changed their looks "So that we could impress all including the crooks The original dark-blue shirt and white khaki shorts Were replaced with new all light blue uniform that were so hot" The police force maintained its efficiency And made Singapore a very safe country In nineteen eighty-seven Mr Lim Kim San Took over the MID and all of its fund He introduced policement into the NS Which certainly reaped a lot of success "NPCC" Mr Lim Kim San was to say "Is to be in every second'ry school as an ECA" And so this is the brief history Of the Singapore Police Authority Now that you you have finished watching our production We hope that you will look into this baton ( 6 comment) Reflection on DHSCO China Trip '06 (31st May to 10th June) Wednesday, June 14, 2006 6:33 PM I was given the assignment of writing down reflections for the trip to China this year. After thinking for a few days, I've decided to write about this: One of the many highlights of the China trip this year was the opportunity to play my favourite song: Qu Yuan Fu - Ju Song. It is my favourite song not only because its melody is very moving, but also because behind the wonderful song, is the great man, Qu Yuan, whom I really admire. Qu Yuan was a great politician and poet in the Warring States Period (476 BC - 221 BC) in the state of Chu. During that time, because the State of Qin was becoming strong and dangerous, Qu Yuan tried to form alliances with the neighbouring states so that they might have a chance against the mighty and evil Qin. However, because there were some bad eggs who corrupted the Chu king, Qu Yuan was instead exiled. During his exile, he travelled and wrote a lot of poems and songs that expressed how much he loved his country, and how sad he was that his country was going to get invaded by foreigners. While in exile, he did not resort to doing something silly like trying to muster popular support for better foreign affairs administration in the capital so as to pressure the king to make more astute political decisions. Instead, he did the right thing of falling into depression and writing touching poems that did not point out the flaws in the current administration. So, when the capital of Chu was finally captured by the Qin army in 278 BC, he couldn't take the grief and committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River. Qu Yuan was a good minister who carried out effective political reforms, and he was also an accomplished poet whose poems still make people today feel extremely patriotic and sad when they read them. Nobody really seem to take note of that, but, in my opinion, his greatest accomplishment and what everyone should remember most about him is still his committing of suicide. If us normal people, especially Singaporeans, committed suicide, we'd probably get hand-cuffed and all that because suicide is still murder according to the British Law, and then maybe our suicide will turn up in the media, but it's a very extremely small chance and only if our suicide was part of a disturbing social trend that was worth highlighting for the sake of social awareness for the general public. Nobody would even know our names because our identity has to be protected and all that. However, when Qu Yuan jumped into the river, he managed to mobilize the whole neighbourhood to look for his body in the river, and then when they couldn't find it, they made and threw perfectly good rice dumplings that could have been used to feed poor and starving peasants into the river to prevent the fishes from eating his body. And then 2000 years later, we celebrate his suicide by eating rice dumplings and racing in dragon boats every duan wu jie (5th day of 5th month of lunar calendar). So the lesson that I have learnt from Qu Yuan's story is that when we suffer setbacks in life, we should wallow in self-pity and depression and give up altogether. We should not try to help ourselves, nor accept any form of help to recover from the setback, but we should keep telling other people how depressed and upset we are in our poetry. So that when we do commit suicide, people may start to notice our works of art and might even create a holiday or two to celebrate our suicides! ... Heh, the trip to China with DHSCO was much much more than just a song about someone who committed suicide, but I guess I just couldn't resist writing this. Qu Yuan's not just about the suicide I suppose, but it seems that's what everyone (not least me) remembers about him. (P.S I hope nobody took my exhortation to commit suicide seriously...) edit: (By nobody, I really mean nobody, except Chunsz...) ( 2 comment) |
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