Goodbye Kitty Hawk!

After 10 years being homeported in Yokosuka, Japan, USS Kitty Hawk is finally making her way home to the United States, and will soon retire from active service.

Fair winds and following seas!

School holiday? What holiday?

The full story at The Straits Times.

Basically, it seems that schools are getting more and more kiasu about making sure students do well for their exams. Besides PSLE seminars, now we have schools holding classes... when it is supposed to be the school vacations!

Is there really so much to learn in school? Whatever happened to following a fixed syllabus? Whatever happened to lesson plans? If there is so much to teach that teachers cannot finish teaching the syllabus within allocated school terms, then shouldn't we be reviewing the syllabus to cut it down? After all, we don't use integration and differentiation in our everyday life. You don't need to know how to calculate inverse tangents in order to get on the bus. And we obviously don't need to know the exact molecular composition of each and every protein that we eat.

School vacations/holidays are not just great breaks from the fixed classroom environment, it allows the child a chance to learn about things outside his usual circle, which is now mostly confined to the school since they spend so much time in it. A overseas trip can teach a child so much more about history, other cultures and even basic manners, that he won't be able to pick up in school. A simple fishing trip can teach patience. Even cycling along East Coast Park can open his/her eyes to the importance of maritime trade to Singapore as he/she sees the amount of merchant shipping passing through the Singapore Strait.

We don't need to teach our kids to be exam smart. They don't need to score As. They need to learn skills that will be useful to them in life, to help them succeed in what they want to do, not what we want them to do.

Other blogs talking about this:
keanandgreen
Chengxin rules the city
Command and Conquer - Take Control

Forum discussion on SGClub

Indiana Jones

This weekend was spent on Indiana Jones.

With Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull out in the theatres, being someone who grew up watching the archaeologist's adventures, we decided that we needed to catch the latest instalment of the series, as well as refresh ourselves on the past episodes.

So we went to the movies, caught the latest one on the big screen, and also got ourselves a copy of the trilogy at the local DVD store. And went through the first three episodes over the weekend.

Did you know, that while the order the films was made was "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "The Temple of Doom" followed by "The Last Crusade", in terms of story time, "The Temple of Doom" comes first, taking place in 1935, followed by "Raiders of the Lost Ark" set in 1936, then "The Last Crusade" set in 1938. The Last Crusade has a few references to the earlier movies and tried to explain some of the background of our hero, such as why Indy hates snakes and how he got his fedora hat.

What is so catching about Indiana Jones? Well, the story may be simple, there may not be as many clues and puzzles compared to The Da Vinci Code or the National Treasures series. But it is full of action, action that is thrilling and when viewed on the big screen, makes you feel nervous for our hero as well. The "roller coaster" rides, the car chases, escaping certain death, falling from great heights, etc. all make the Indy movies so much more exciting compared to those "solve the puzzle" movies.

Of the 4 movies, the most interesting to me was "The Temple of Doom", with its dark themes of human sacrifice, slavery and cult worship. Being set in India, within a castle, also made it more interesting than cave crawling.

Well, don't just sit there, go watch the movie!

兄弟戏于墙、外御其侮

What does this verse from 诗经 (Book of Songs) mean? It means that while brothers may fight when within their own walls, they will stand together when confronted with external threat.

The ICJ ruling on Pedra Branca reminded me that there are many other disputed islands in the world. Japan happens to be involved in some of them. And two of them are classic cases of how "brothers" may "fight when within their own walls, they will stand together when confronted with external threat".

The Senkaku Islands are disputed by Japan, Taiwan and China. In this case, the "brothers" are China and Taiwan. Takeshima is disputed by Japan and the two Koreas. Obviously, in this case, the "brothers" are the two Koreas.

Pedra Branca

Pedra Branca is a small little island located at the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait. It was claimed by both Singapore and Malaysia, and today, the International Court of Justice has ruled that the small island belongs to Singapore, while the rocks nearby, known as Middle Rocks, belongs to Malaysia. While the ICJ may think that this is fair (since Singapore's claim to this group of rocks stems from the operating of Horsburgh Lighthouse on Pedra Branca, while Malaysia claims it through historical presence), this ruling is going to cause some real problems, since Middle Rocks and Pedra Branca are so close together, that trying to split them between two countries will probably cause more problems than solve them. Let's see how the two countries solve the problem of territorial waters now...

Farms in Singapore

We decided to spend our weekend going to the farms in Singapore, just to see something that is not a common sight in Singapore. After all, with all the commercial buildings and housing estates in Singapore, open areas such as farms are rare... some people may not even be aware that Singapore has farms!

Just a note... we happily forgot our camera, so all these pictures were taken from the sites of other people who have been to these same places.

First stop, Bollywood Veggies. This is a small farm at Neo Tiew Road (near Kranji area) that has plots of banana trees, some vegetables, and some other fruit trees.

For $2, you get to enter the farm for a self-guided tour. With our small little pamphlet in hand, we walked around the farm, looking at the various trees and vegetables (thankfully, they have signs so we know what they are). I didn't realise that there are so many variations of bananas.

There is also a bistro here called the Poison Ivy, where we had a drink and some snacks. The vegetables grown here are also being sold (we got some long beans) so if you like organic food, what better place to get some than from the farm itself.

A word of advice, the place is quite open, so if you come on a hot day, dress in shorts and short sleeves, and remember to bring a hat. Sunglasses would be great too. And the sprinklers are automatic... so don't be surprised if you get a shower while walking!

Next stop, Jurong Frog Farm! We wanted to see how frogs are bred for food (yes, we eat them... the Chinese consider the legs a delicacy). I don't know why it is called Jurong Frog Farm, since it is not in Jurong but at the Lim Chu Kang area.

And this is how a typical frog pen looks like... lots of frogs, sitting around doing nothing, growing fat and waiting to end up on a dinner table.

My wife's friend was at Qian Hu Fish Farm, so we decided to join them. It is at Tengah area, near the Home Team Academy.

Qian Hu Fish Farm offers a unique experience... they have something known as spa fishes that nibble away at dead skin. So we went to try it out. There are three ponds, two of them with small fishes (about 3cm to 5cm), while there is one pond with bigger fishes (about 15cm). You put your feet into these ponds, and the fishes gather around them to nibble at the dead skin on your feet. For someone who is very scared of being tickled, this was a "ticklish" experience. I could barely stand the small fishes nibbling at my feet. When the big ones came, I almost jumped! So if you are like me, stick to the pond with the small fishes.

Next time would be the dairy and goat farms...

Bollywood Veggies
Jurong Frog Farm
Qian Hu Fish Farm

Swift and sure

Goodbye to the swift and sure. Thank you for all your years of faithful service.

Best of the best

For the second time, I am proud to say that I am part of the best of the best. Last time, fight for the right. This time, triumphant at sea!

Be focused on winning, be willing to lose

In the movie "The Last Samurai", when Tom Cruise's character was practising swordsmanship with a samurai, he kept making mistakes. Another samurai told him that he had "too many minds", that he was thinking too much.

Yes, when you think too much, about how to avoid losing, how to create openings for future moves, how to protect yourself, how to gain an advantage, you end up clouding your mind with thoughts that won't help you win. To win, you need to think about winning. And that means not thinking about losing.

How not to think about losing? The only way to do so is to live your life each day ready to lose. Live each day to the fullest, so that there are no regrets should you lose. For a warrior, losing means death. So if you live each day to the fullest, and have no regrets dying, then you won't let the fear of death cloud your thinking.

Kaishaku 介錯

The Last Samurai was aired on TV today. Watching it again, the concept of kaishaku 介錯 set me thinking. In the show, one of the Emperor's generals had lost the battle and was captured. As an atonement for the shame in losing the battle and being captured, he was offered the choice of committing seppuku 切腹, which is ritual suicide to atone for one's mistakes without blemishing one's honour. The person committing seppuku drives a short dagger into his abdomen and draws is across (and sometimes up as well), while an appointed second (usually chosen by the person committing seppuku) will then cut of his head to shorten his misery.

Being a second (known as kaishakunin 介錯人) is not an easy task. The cut must be clean and swift, else it won't serve the purpose of shortening the person's pain. At the same time, because the person is not a common criminal, the kaishakunin is not expected to cut off his head off fully. Cutting the whole head off is a punishment for common criminals. Instead, he is supposed to cut off the head at the neck, yet not through the whole neck, instead leaving a bit of skin uncut so that the head does not fly off. So, some skill is actually required to be a second. And to be chosen as a kaishakunin is a great honour, for it means that the kaishakunin is recognised as being skillful enough to carry out his duty.

It is not an easy concept to understand. To truly understand seppuku and thus kaishaku, you need to understand bushido 武士道. The Way of the Warrior is not easy to understand without living it. It is not about waving swords or killing people. It is a way of life, that focuses on how to live life, how to treat people, how to treat yourself. It is as applicable today as it was 200 years ago, if you know the basic underlying principles of honour, duty, compassion, courage and integrity.,

Free programming tools

These are some of the free programming tools that I have installed for Windows. For Linux, I was using gcc and Glade, but it seems that Glade is now no longer a simple IDE.

MinGW (port of gcc)
CodeBlocks
wxDev-C++
Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Express Edition
NetBeans
Free Pascal
FreeBASIC

Save energy! Win a car!

NEA has recently launched a campaign to save energy. If you cut household energy bills by 10%, you stand a chance to win a fuel efficient hybrid car in a lucky draw.

Anyone living in Singapore will tell you that May to Aug is probably the hottest period of the year. Which means more people use air conditioning. More people shower more often, and wash their sweaty clothes more often as well. Either NEA wants to make Singapore the city of sweat, or they don't want to part with their hybrid car.

Why can't they start the campaign in Oct to Feb period, when it is a lot cooler and people have no need to turn on air conditioning in the first place?

Olympic Flame Run

A letter from Mr Chiang Ging Seng, published in the Forum page of The Straits Times on 1 May 2008.

"A shame...Tell us why we're not part of the flame run

I AM very proud that Singapore has achieved much and were chosen to host the Youth Olympics. But sadly, Singaporeans must travel to Kuala Lumpur to welcome the Olympic torch.

What a shame. Can the Singapore National Olympic Council explain why the torch is travelling from Bangkok to Kuala Lumpur and on to Indonesia, bypassing Singapore?"

And here is the reply from the Singapore National Olympic Council, published in the Forum page of The Straits Times on 2 May 2008.

"Why Singapore not on Olympic torch route

This is in reply to Mr Khoo Lih-Han's comment last Saturday, and Mr Chiang Ging Seng's yesterday, on the Olympic Games torch not stopping over in Singapore.

The Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay is a prelude to the Beijing Olympic Games 2008, and therefore all rights to the torch relay belong to the Beijing Organising Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad.

In planning the route for the torch relay, the committee decides on its theme, duration and distance, as well as the cities through which the torch will pass. The route was finalised and announced by the committee on April 26 last year.

It is understandable that Singaporeans would have liked to have the honour of having the torch relay pass through Singapore. We have long been strong supporters of the Olympic movement, its principles and values. However, we all know we must respect the integrity of the planning process and the decisions made by the Beijing Organising Committee."

Reading the reply, I wondered why the council even bothered to reply, since they are not saying anything at all. I mean, we all know that the route was selected by the Beijing council. So? What was the criteria that the Beijing council used? And why didn't we meet the selection criteria? Aren't these the things that we should find out, so that we increase our chances of being part of the flame run in future Olympics?

PSLE Seminar - A manifestation of kiasu

Those of you living in Singapore will know that PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examination) is taken at the end of primary education in Singapore. What surprised me was that they have seminars for parents, to prepare parents for PSLE, to help parents cope with the stress of having a kid who is taking PSLE. Hey, isn't the one taking the examinations the kid? What has parents got to do with this? Stress for parents? Huh? The one who should be feeling the heat should be the kid, not the parents.

I knew the rat race in Singapore is bad. And Singaporeans are kiasu (meaning they are afraid of losing out). Now, it is not just the adults involved, but they are afraid that their kids will lose out... must everything be compared in Singapore? Must we always be competing against others? Can't we compete against ourselves, challenge ourselves to do better than what we had previously done? I mean, being better than your neighbour doesn't mean you are realising your potential and being the best that you can be.

Are we so myopic that we are satisfied as long as we are better than our neighbours?