Beijing Olympics 2008 Closing Ceremony

After an impressive opening ceremony, I must say the closing ceremony was a disappointment.

It was simple, nothing elaborate, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing to take your breath away. Just people entering the grounds, walking around, simple mass displays (although still with thousands of performers), and the usual singing.

I guess with such an impactful opening ceremony, everything else will pale in comparison, and it will be hard to keep up for future Olympics.

Remembering defeat

Today is the 63rd anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War Two. Time flies, generations have passed since the war, and the present generation knows little about the war besides what they learn from books. And to mark this memorable day, guess what the Japanese ministers did?

Japan ministers, but not premier, visit war shrine

Talk about learning from mistakes...

Yasukuni Shrine has so much controversy surrounding it not just because of the shrine proper (which enshrined war criminals, though its main purpose is to enshrine all those who died for the Japanese emperor), but because within the same compounds, there is a musuem that glorifies the deeds of those enshrined. This of course means the things that they did during World War Two. It is hard to convince your neighbours that you have learnt from your mistakes, if you continue to think that those mistakes are glorious deeds to be honoured.

National Day Parade 2008

After watching the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony, all I can say is that our national day parade pales in comparison. While we obviously don't have 1.3 billion people to choose and work with, just comparing the fireworks is enough. Each year, we boast that we have superb fireworks during our national day parade. This year, we compare with what was seen during the Olympics opening ceremony, and that 5-minute fireworks that we had on National Day. It is something that just cannot be compared. They are in totally different leagues.

But still, parades serve their purpose, which is to show the world what a nation can do. The ability for a military to organise an event is similar to its ability to organise a military campaign.

Beijing Olympics 2008 Opening Ceremony

Just to share some thoughts on the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympics.

In summary, it was impressive. After all, it is not everyday that you see a whole stadium of thousands of performers. More than 2000 drummers, covering the stadium floor, carrying out a traditional drum performance. Or that same number of people, doing a mass taiji/wushu display, so well coordinated. A few hundred people forming a moving typing press. The giant fireworks footsteps really seemed like a giant walking to the stadium. And many more. These mass displays made possible not by machines, but by the hard work and time spent on practice by human beings.
It goes to show just what is possible when China wants something bad enough, to throw in the resources, time and effort into making the Olympics a success. A nation that can do such a feat, even if challenged technologically and politically now, will no doubt be a player to watch out for in the future.

In the mass displays, China has shown the world the inventions that the Chinese have delivered that have influenced history. Now, it remains for us to see what the Chinese of the future have to deliver to put themselves back into being makers of history. And the first step is this historical event known as the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Service at the airport

I like to comment about the level of service in Singapore (see this post and this post).

Well, we were at the airport's new terminal today, and were really impressed by the floor manager at one of the restaurants. She is probably Indonesian, by looks and her name tag. She was always looking around the restaurant, keeping an eye out on which table needs to be cleared, which customers need their glasses filled, which customers have yet to place their orders, which customers seem to be waiting longer than they should for their orders.

The most important thing is, she follows up on all requests. If someone's food is not served yet, she checks with the kitchen, and then she goes back to the customer to let him or her know that the order is being prepared and will be served shortly. It is basic courtesy to get back to someone, and it is great service.

It reminded me of an incident in the past. We were staying at a local hotel, but the service wasn't that great. So when they sent us an online feedback form, we gave our honest feedback. The service staff that got back to us invited us to stay with them again, giving us a complimentary stay. We took up the offer. But on the day when we showed up, that service staff was not there to receive us. Talk about service, talk about sincerity.

Knowledge is Power

Knowledge is power... Raistlin knows it better than anyone else.For his story, you can check out the books below.

Self-knowledge

Self-knowledge is power.

Only when you know yourself, when you know your own abilities, your own limits, your own strengths and weaknesses, will you be able to exploit your strengths, while avoid falling into your weaknesses.

The key to power is knowledge, and the first step is to know yourself.

Get Smart (the movie)

So I went out to catch a movie. Not any movie, but "Get Smart", which is a movie remake of the TV series "Get Smart". I used to watch the TV series back when I was much younger, so I was looking forward to catching it on the big screen.
The film isn't really that great. The plot is easy to follow, and what is good is probably the use of phrases that used to appear in the TV series. The cone of silence is of course upgraded from what it used to be during the TV series, but still malfunctions and doesn't allow anyone to hear anyone else outside their own cones. In conclusion, if you haven't watched the TV series before, you probably won't enjoy it as much, since you won't be able to catch the various references to the TV series. If you have watched the TV series, this movie is probably a 3.5-star. If not, it is probably a 3-star.

But of course, Anne Hathaway is one hot Agent 99.

Beachwear nation

An article in The Sunday Times today talks about Singaporeans wearing shorts, t-shirts and flip-flops... basically, beachwear as everyday wear. Well, what is wrong with that? Singapore is a small little island, surrounded by the sea, and the beaches are never that far way.

Sail but can't swim?

Recently, an undergraduate passed away from a sailing incident in the waters off Singapore coast. What struck me was that the undergrad did not know how to swim. All sports have their inherent dangers, some being more dangerous than others. However, there are always ways to mitigate those risks. Learning to swim before getting into a sailboat is one of them. And if you know you can't swim, then you better wear a life jacket, even if it gets in the way of sailing. Because that is what is going to save you.

Water sports are dangerous. Yet, by not observing simple rules and following common sense (such as wearing a life jacket, especially when you don't know how to swim), you just end up putting yourself at greater risk. No one should be watching out for your safety more than yourself.

Even after swimming 15km in the sea before, I myself am careful, and wear my life jacket when on small boats. Even though I can swim in the sea (very much different from swimming in the pool), I rarely swim out more than 100m from the coast, since no one really knows when you can get swept away by the current.

Let's exercise some common sense, take care of our own safety, and not expect to blame others for our own mistakes.

Growing Artificial Societies: Social Science From the Bottom Up

This was the book from which I learnt about Sugarscape, and from there did my thesis (building my Bilateral Trade Simulator). It is a classic work on learning about emergence and mobile agents, about how global behaviour is more than the sum of individual behaviour, all using the world of Sugarscape.

For those interested in mobile agent technology and how it can be used in simulations, this is the book for you. For those who want to know how individual behaviour can affect social behaviour on a larger scale, this is the book for you. It may not be the most up-to-date text now, but it certainly serves as a very good introductory text to bring you into the world of emergent behaviour and multi-agent simulation.

D&D PDF downloads

I found some D&D books in PDF format at this blog here.

The files are actually stored here.

Watermelon sales

The sales of watermelons is about to increase by leaps and bounds...

Watermelon yields Viagra-like effects

Just remember, eating too many watermelons can cause you to have frequent visits to the washroom... and bring about higher blood sugar levels.

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

"Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" was showing on TV last night, so I sat down and watched it, even though I have seen it before. Because it is a great show that showcases naval traditions originating from the age of sail.

Did you know, the show is actually based on a character created by Patrick O'Brian for his series of novels, with the first book being "Master and Commander"?
For me, the plot is not really that interesting. What catches my attention is the research done into the naval customs and traditions that were portrayed in the film. The traditional toast of the day for Saturday, "To wives and sweethearts, may they never meet" is one of them. The use of the boatswain's call to get people to do certain tasks is another longstanding naval tradition that still is in place today. And for those who don't know the origins of the phrase "to show your true colours", it actually came from this period as well, when ships hoisted up the flags of their nations (their true colours) before they engaged in battle. Other traditions, such as striking the bell to signal the change of watch (and using an hourglass to keep time) were also portrayed in the movie.

For a good book on naval customs and traditions, nothing beats Naval Ceremonies, Customs, and Traditions, Sixth Edition from the US Naval Institute.

Toyota Raum

As you know, I own a Honda Airwave. But my in-laws have a Toyota Raum (pictured above) and that is the car that I drive when I am in Japan.

Toyota makes fuel efficient cars.

Similar to the Toyota Vios (my previous car), the Raum is very fuel efficient. I was amazed that it was actually doing 100km/h just going at 2300rpm. Wow! That is so much more efficient compared to the Airwave. A pity that they don't have this car in Singapore.