Well, it comes to my mind, why we label free thinkers as atheist? Let's start from the definition of atheism. According to dictionary.com, atheism is the doctrine or belief that there is no God. We have a big problem here! What is God in the first place? We have a plethora of different definition of God, depending on religion or philosophy we subscribe in. Yahweh, Allah, Zeus, Wotan, Jupiter, Vishnu, The Tao, Amaterasu, Odin, Baal, and the nature itself is only a few of what humanity ever called as 'God'.
Let's look at this way, the reason why free thinkers are often labeled as 'atheist' is because they don't believe in your 'God' isn't it? But what about other people who believed in other 'God'? You label them as unbeliever? I don't see any difference in it. Both group deny your 'God', so shouldn't you label everyone who don't believe in your 'God' as atheist? Since you believed that your 'God' is the only one anyway, should that make everyone who don't believe in your 'God' as atheist?
What is the catch here? From the perspective of other person, the same applies. You are 'atheist' from the perspective of other person who subscribe in other doctrine. So, what is the conclusion here? Everyone is atheist, and the word become meaningless....
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Physics of The Impossible - the review
Author : Michio Kaku
Year Published : 2008
Rating : 4.7
Summary : In this book, Kaku bring us to the world of science fiction. Explaining us how far we are from science fiction. Teleportation, force field, invisibility, beam weapons, hovercraft and time machine are only a small part of the book. The theories behind these amazing technology and the history of the idea behind it. With his lucid writing style, Kaku explained to us the reason behind his optimism that one day these technology are no longer dream of humanity.
My thoughts : I would say that I'm quite satisfied with the book. It answers some of the many question I have been wondering. The writing style make the book could be understood easier with not much big words. The hard part to understand is the Law of Physics behind it. The absurdity of quantum physics. I'm glad that he explain what is string theory (roughly) that he mentioned several times in the book. It really spark interest to find out more about (super)string and quantum theory.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Quotes on religion
"Rather than entertain the possibility of billions of saints, popes, churches, and Jesus Christs in the outer space, it was more convenient for the Church to simply burn him [Giordano Bruno]." ~ Michio Kaku
"Nothing can be more contrary to religion and the clergy than reason and common sense. " ~ Voltaire
"I believe in Spinoza's God, Who reveals Himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God Who concerns Himself with the fate and the doings of mankind." ~ Albert Einstein
"Just because science so far has failed to explain something, such as consciousness, to say it follows that the facile, pathetic explanations which religion has produced somehow by default must win the argument is really quite ridiculous. " ~ Richard Dawkins
"Religions do make claims about the universe – the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false." ~ Richard Dawkins
"In science it often happens that scientists say, "You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken," and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion. " ~ Carl Sagan
"Nothing can be more contrary to religion and the clergy than reason and common sense. " ~ Voltaire
"I believe in Spinoza's God, Who reveals Himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God Who concerns Himself with the fate and the doings of mankind." ~ Albert Einstein
"Just because science so far has failed to explain something, such as consciousness, to say it follows that the facile, pathetic explanations which religion has produced somehow by default must win the argument is really quite ridiculous. " ~ Richard Dawkins
"Religions do make claims about the universe – the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false." ~ Richard Dawkins
"In science it often happens that scientists say, "You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken," and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion. " ~ Carl Sagan
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Horrors of War
Explosion rumbling as if it's thunderstorm.
Buildings collapsed, forming a rubble jungle.
Humans killing each other.
In the name of justice.
In the name of freedom.
In the name of power.
And in the name of God.
Critters escaping for life.
But none is spared.
Not even a child.
The air is full of the smell of death.
Blood forming a river.
Fire burned the ground.
Many innocent life was lost.
Just because of the command of one man.
Or a press of button.
Plague strikes.
Following the foul smell of death.
Without a the slash of a blade.
Many more died.
From the diseases brought upon war.
Food was scarce.
So does water.
More died,
From starvation and dehydration.
In war,
Parents buried their child.
Who died from the epidemic.
Or killed in battlefield.
Just because of one man.
Who decide to start it,
Such a horrible thing happen.
Why?
Buildings collapsed, forming a rubble jungle.
Humans killing each other.
In the name of justice.
In the name of freedom.
In the name of power.
And in the name of God.
Critters escaping for life.
But none is spared.
Not even a child.
The air is full of the smell of death.
Blood forming a river.
Fire burned the ground.
Many innocent life was lost.
Just because of the command of one man.
Or a press of button.
Plague strikes.
Following the foul smell of death.
Without a the slash of a blade.
Many more died.
From the diseases brought upon war.
Food was scarce.
So does water.
More died,
From starvation and dehydration.
In war,
Parents buried their child.
Who died from the epidemic.
Or killed in battlefield.
Just because of one man.
Who decide to start it,
Such a horrible thing happen.
Why?
Friday, November 13, 2009
Another delusion
Well, I saw Glenn posting this kind of thing on his blog so I decide to join him in this delusion.
You like your own company; you're a very interesting person. Tracking your own mental processes, knowing what you're thinking and why you do what you do, is important to you. Often, what's going on in your mind is more compelling than what's going on outside. For the most part, those with a high score on the "introspective" trait enjoy reading, taking long walks, learning new things, and other solitary activities.
You are not someone who is constantly looking to be among a group of friends; you never feel bored when you are by yourself.
You appreciate art, beauty, and design; you know that they are not superficial but absolutely crucial to living the good life. You have good taste, and you're proud of it. Those with a high score on the "aesthetic" trait are often employed in literary or artistic professions, enjoy domestic activities — doing things around the house — and are enthusiastic about the arts, reading, and travel.
You don't think it's pretentious to be moved by art and beauty. You're not one of those who believe it doesn't matter what something looks like as long as it does its job.
You're comfortable expressing yourself in words and actions, with no self-censorship. You believe that if someone doesn't like what they see it's not your problem, but theirs. A high score on the "accessible" trait suggests that you have a lot of friends, socialize often, and enjoy rap/hip-hop music.
You don't see the need to keep your thoughts to yourself, or to have a zone of privacy that encompasses only yourself and a small circle of friends and relatives.
You are willing to take the time to find out what's going on with other people, especially if they're in distress. You're a good listener, you don't criticize, and you offer unbiased, respectful, honest advice when it's requested. With a high score on the "understanding" trait, it is likely that you are enthusiastic about charitable work, helping others, and making the world a better place.
You don't feel the need to impose your standards on others or say things that, even though true, cause pain.
You believe things will turn out fine even if they don't go precisely according to plan. As far as you're concerned, it's not the end of the world if a project falls short of perfection.
You don't feel compelled to dot every "i" and cross every "t."
You look before you leap, think before you act, consider what you're about to say before you open your mouth to speak; that's why you rarely have to eat your words.
You usually don't get excited easily or blurt out the first thing that comes to mind without considering the consequences.
You rarely become irritated, generally accept people as they are, take things as they come, and feel relaxed in most situations.
You do not let a minor annoyance escalate to a confrontation. You don't regularly snap at those around you or fly off the handle with little provocation.
You feel that a clean, orderly desk is the sign of a person who doesn't have enough to do. Schedules and "to do" lists feel stifling; you thrive on a sense that anything goes, and know that the world won't end if you don't clean up after finishing a job.
You don't need to know that everything is in its place; it is not empowering to you to feel that the world around you is neat and organized. Mowing down every item on your "to do" list, every day, does not bring you joy.
You are constantly coming up with new ideas. For you, the world as it exists is just a jumping-off place; what's going on inside your mind is often more interesting than what's going on outside.
You don't feel that the road to success is to be a realist and stick to the program; you never stop yourself from coming up with new ideas or telling the world what you're thinking about.
Well, I'd say quite accurate but not 100%. I need testimony of my group of friends.
Introspective
You like your own company; you're a very interesting person. Tracking your own mental processes, knowing what you're thinking and why you do what you do, is important to you. Often, what's going on in your mind is more compelling than what's going on outside. For the most part, those with a high score on the "introspective" trait enjoy reading, taking long walks, learning new things, and other solitary activities.
You are not someone who is constantly looking to be among a group of friends; you never feel bored when you are by yourself.
Aesthetic
You appreciate art, beauty, and design; you know that they are not superficial but absolutely crucial to living the good life. You have good taste, and you're proud of it. Those with a high score on the "aesthetic" trait are often employed in literary or artistic professions, enjoy domestic activities — doing things around the house — and are enthusiastic about the arts, reading, and travel.
You don't think it's pretentious to be moved by art and beauty. You're not one of those who believe it doesn't matter what something looks like as long as it does its job.
Accessible
You're comfortable expressing yourself in words and actions, with no self-censorship. You believe that if someone doesn't like what they see it's not your problem, but theirs. A high score on the "accessible" trait suggests that you have a lot of friends, socialize often, and enjoy rap/hip-hop music.
You don't see the need to keep your thoughts to yourself, or to have a zone of privacy that encompasses only yourself and a small circle of friends and relatives.
Understanding
You are willing to take the time to find out what's going on with other people, especially if they're in distress. You're a good listener, you don't criticize, and you offer unbiased, respectful, honest advice when it's requested. With a high score on the "understanding" trait, it is likely that you are enthusiastic about charitable work, helping others, and making the world a better place.
You don't feel the need to impose your standards on others or say things that, even though true, cause pain.
Slapdash
You believe things will turn out fine even if they don't go precisely according to plan. As far as you're concerned, it's not the end of the world if a project falls short of perfection.
You don't feel compelled to dot every "i" and cross every "t."
Prudent
You look before you leap, think before you act, consider what you're about to say before you open your mouth to speak; that's why you rarely have to eat your words.
You usually don't get excited easily or blurt out the first thing that comes to mind without considering the consequences.
Calm
You rarely become irritated, generally accept people as they are, take things as they come, and feel relaxed in most situations.
You do not let a minor annoyance escalate to a confrontation. You don't regularly snap at those around you or fly off the handle with little provocation.
Loose
You feel that a clean, orderly desk is the sign of a person who doesn't have enough to do. Schedules and "to do" lists feel stifling; you thrive on a sense that anything goes, and know that the world won't end if you don't clean up after finishing a job.
You don't need to know that everything is in its place; it is not empowering to you to feel that the world around you is neat and organized. Mowing down every item on your "to do" list, every day, does not bring you joy.
Original
You are constantly coming up with new ideas. For you, the world as it exists is just a jumping-off place; what's going on inside your mind is often more interesting than what's going on outside.
You don't feel that the road to success is to be a realist and stick to the program; you never stop yourself from coming up with new ideas or telling the world what you're thinking about.
Curious
You like to get to the bottom of things. You're not content knowing what someone did; you want to know why they did it.You don't simply take things as they are and move on; you're not content skimming along on the surface; you don't feel you're wasting time by digging for the meaning of things.Well, I'd say quite accurate but not 100%. I need testimony of my group of friends.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
‘Science and religion will always conflict.’ Discuss. (2002)
Galileo Galilei, Charles Darwin, Carl Sagan, and most notably Richard Dawkins had been known for their crusade protecting science from religion. Throughout the age, science and religion co-exist together with religion as a source of inspiration for scientist to know more of the nature. It had sparked many inventions however, it seemed that religion will be in conflict with science with many scientific discovery contradicting religious beliefs.
Science and religion is in conflict these days as religion refuse to change and admit the fallacy of their beliefs. Religious institution inclined to adopt the stand of “I'm always right, your theory is nonsense” due to the strong belief that the “holy book” speaks literal truth as it is “direct word of God” without considering the possibility of inaccuracy of the “holy scriptures” as it is written by man who are bound to make mistake, the same with scientific textbooks. The Galileo Affair and rejection of Theory of Evolution by many churches had shown the stubbornness of religion. Religion itself is unable to admit its mistake as it will destroy the foundation of the religion itself. The Theory of Evolution contradicts the creation myth in the Bible (and also the Koran) had been rejected in many countries including USA and Turkey. Theory of evolution suggest that all living beings comes from a common ancestor which adapt and evolve slowly through natural selection. It suggest that birds and mamals comes after reptiles and human and apes share same ancestor, much of what contradicting the 6 days of creation. The theory itself is mocked by several creationist who defend the biblical creation myth, notably Kirk Cameron who suggest that if the theory is true there should be such thing as “crocoduck”. It is hard for religion to accept science that contradicts to their beliefs therefore making it hard for science and religion to co-exist together.
Religion despise the very nature of science that question religious teaching, branding many scientific research as blasphemy, contributing to the impossibility of religion and science to exist together. Genetic engineering had been condemned as “man playing god” due to the very nature of the research could lead to birth of a new species. However, it should also be noted that selective breeding and cultivation could also lead to new species artificially. Animal was not domesticated until human learn that like them, animals could also breed. The farm animal we have now is the product of selective breeding done by the hands of humans who breed them for food. As these animals lose their need to hunt, they lose their survival skill that is needed in the wild which obviously lead to creation of new species. Genetic engineering only do it in different way at much faster rate. Galileo's Helio-centrism which widely accepted today, is against several verses in the bible which suggest that the earth is the centre of universe. Because of his strong stance in protecting his theory, the Catholic Church of that time charged Galileo with house arrest for heresy. Hence, science and religion could not mix as religion adopt aggressive stance against science.
Science despise the supernatural nature of religion, many modern day scientist cite it as illogical. From the perspective of science, religion could only serve as pseudo-science, nothing to do with knowledge, just a mere superstition beliefs serving to explain what science will never be able to explain such as origin of universe or afterlife. Richard Dawkins had once compares religion with myth, and state that there is no difference between them. Scientist had questioned the accuracy of “holy scriptures” several times, not only on the issue of “Origin of Species” but also on the age of the earth and the universe, the existence of God, extra-terrestrial beings, the power of prayer and miracles. Scientist rejects the idea of using supernatural intervention as an answer to unexplainable events as it does not give an answer of how it actually happens. Thus, religion and science could not mix as scientist dismiss the reliability of the “holy scriptures” due to superstitious nature of religion.
Even though it seems that mixing religion and science comparable to mixing water with oil, there is still a way for them to exist together. A wise man once said “build a bridge not a wall”, there are groups trying to mix both both religion and science. Another way to avoid conflict between both side is to took them separately.
Several liberal churches, notably The Progressive Christians in America have tried to mix science in their religious teaching. The liberal wing of Christianity accepts science as fact and the “holy scripture” as moral guidelines not as source of information as they believed that the bible is subjected to prejudice and its scientific accuracy is questionable as it is written by man who are bound to make mistake and it was written when the world only knew a small percentage of scientific knowledge that is known by modern man. Science on the other hand continue to evolve, continue to be reexamined. However, there is not many of this kind of religious institution in the world, there is only a small percentage of this kind of religious institution and this kind of religious institution is often condemned by others. Most simply reject scientific finding that oppose the “holy scripture” and labeling them as blasphemy.
Several scholars had agreed that religion and science should be taken separately to avoid conflict. They have to be treated as two separate magisteria a view commonly known as NOMA. Science and religion occupy two separate realms of human experience. Spiritual realm for religion and the physical realm for science. Several scientist and theologists agreed to this view that science and religion should be taken separately as there is no way for science to prove or disprove religion and there is no way for religion to give logical explanation on natural happenings. Even though several religious leaders, mainly Pope Pius XII and Pope John Paul II accepted this view, religion often poke into the magisteria of science. The recurring debate in America on Theory of Evolution and 6 days of creation is a fine example that it is difficult for both side to respect the limit of one another. Francis Collins once cited that there is no way to separate religion and science as both are partially overlapping each other. There is no distinct line between both magisteria making it difficult to classify some issue, whether they should be handled by religion or science.
Ok, that's all. I'll try different approach next time.
Science and religion is in conflict these days as religion refuse to change and admit the fallacy of their beliefs. Religious institution inclined to adopt the stand of “I'm always right, your theory is nonsense” due to the strong belief that the “holy book” speaks literal truth as it is “direct word of God” without considering the possibility of inaccuracy of the “holy scriptures” as it is written by man who are bound to make mistake, the same with scientific textbooks. The Galileo Affair and rejection of Theory of Evolution by many churches had shown the stubbornness of religion. Religion itself is unable to admit its mistake as it will destroy the foundation of the religion itself. The Theory of Evolution contradicts the creation myth in the Bible (and also the Koran) had been rejected in many countries including USA and Turkey. Theory of evolution suggest that all living beings comes from a common ancestor which adapt and evolve slowly through natural selection. It suggest that birds and mamals comes after reptiles and human and apes share same ancestor, much of what contradicting the 6 days of creation. The theory itself is mocked by several creationist who defend the biblical creation myth, notably Kirk Cameron who suggest that if the theory is true there should be such thing as “crocoduck”. It is hard for religion to accept science that contradicts to their beliefs therefore making it hard for science and religion to co-exist together.
Religion despise the very nature of science that question religious teaching, branding many scientific research as blasphemy, contributing to the impossibility of religion and science to exist together. Genetic engineering had been condemned as “man playing god” due to the very nature of the research could lead to birth of a new species. However, it should also be noted that selective breeding and cultivation could also lead to new species artificially. Animal was not domesticated until human learn that like them, animals could also breed. The farm animal we have now is the product of selective breeding done by the hands of humans who breed them for food. As these animals lose their need to hunt, they lose their survival skill that is needed in the wild which obviously lead to creation of new species. Genetic engineering only do it in different way at much faster rate. Galileo's Helio-centrism which widely accepted today, is against several verses in the bible which suggest that the earth is the centre of universe. Because of his strong stance in protecting his theory, the Catholic Church of that time charged Galileo with house arrest for heresy. Hence, science and religion could not mix as religion adopt aggressive stance against science.
Science despise the supernatural nature of religion, many modern day scientist cite it as illogical. From the perspective of science, religion could only serve as pseudo-science, nothing to do with knowledge, just a mere superstition beliefs serving to explain what science will never be able to explain such as origin of universe or afterlife. Richard Dawkins had once compares religion with myth, and state that there is no difference between them. Scientist had questioned the accuracy of “holy scriptures” several times, not only on the issue of “Origin of Species” but also on the age of the earth and the universe, the existence of God, extra-terrestrial beings, the power of prayer and miracles. Scientist rejects the idea of using supernatural intervention as an answer to unexplainable events as it does not give an answer of how it actually happens. Thus, religion and science could not mix as scientist dismiss the reliability of the “holy scriptures” due to superstitious nature of religion.
Even though it seems that mixing religion and science comparable to mixing water with oil, there is still a way for them to exist together. A wise man once said “build a bridge not a wall”, there are groups trying to mix both both religion and science. Another way to avoid conflict between both side is to took them separately.
Several liberal churches, notably The Progressive Christians in America have tried to mix science in their religious teaching. The liberal wing of Christianity accepts science as fact and the “holy scripture” as moral guidelines not as source of information as they believed that the bible is subjected to prejudice and its scientific accuracy is questionable as it is written by man who are bound to make mistake and it was written when the world only knew a small percentage of scientific knowledge that is known by modern man. Science on the other hand continue to evolve, continue to be reexamined. However, there is not many of this kind of religious institution in the world, there is only a small percentage of this kind of religious institution and this kind of religious institution is often condemned by others. Most simply reject scientific finding that oppose the “holy scripture” and labeling them as blasphemy.
Several scholars had agreed that religion and science should be taken separately to avoid conflict. They have to be treated as two separate magisteria a view commonly known as NOMA. Science and religion occupy two separate realms of human experience. Spiritual realm for religion and the physical realm for science. Several scientist and theologists agreed to this view that science and religion should be taken separately as there is no way for science to prove or disprove religion and there is no way for religion to give logical explanation on natural happenings. Even though several religious leaders, mainly Pope Pius XII and Pope John Paul II accepted this view, religion often poke into the magisteria of science. The recurring debate in America on Theory of Evolution and 6 days of creation is a fine example that it is difficult for both side to respect the limit of one another. Francis Collins once cited that there is no way to separate religion and science as both are partially overlapping each other. There is no distinct line between both magisteria making it difficult to classify some issue, whether they should be handled by religion or science.
Ok, that's all. I'll try different approach next time.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Some random stuff
In my hands
I holds fragments of memories
I can hear you say my name
I can almost see your smile
I holds fragments of memories
I can hear you say my name
I can almost see your smile
If I lets go
It will vanish
to the strains of a distant wind
One single memory floating away
There is nothing but silence now
Is this our farewell?
The scene half-drawn behind my eyelids is fading
Even when I rub them with my palm
The tenderness I once glimpsed is no longer there
I look only at the foot falling in front of me
Even when I rub them with my palm
The tenderness I once glimpsed is no longer there
I look only at the foot falling in front of me
I'd been forever listening to the song that we played
Inside that room
Inside that room
We played the song together
In the midst of the gentleness I once knew
I hope the scenery remains the same
In the midst of the gentleness I once knew
I hope the scenery remains the same
Never thought
This day would come so soon
The time to say goodbye
How can the world just carry on?
I feel so lost when you are not at my side
But there is nothing but silence now
Around the one I loved
Is this our farewell?
I'd been forever listening to the song that we played together
Forever chasing after the foot prints we left behind
I'd been forever listening to the song that we played together
Forever chasing after the foot prints we left behind
Such an ending is the stuff of farewells, and so I leave everything behind
In the sunlight of morning, I played a new song myself
This day would come so soon
The time to say goodbye
How can the world just carry on?
I feel so lost when you are not at my side
But there is nothing but silence now
Around the one I loved
Is this our farewell?
I'd been forever listening to the song that we played together
Forever chasing after the foot prints we left behind
I'd been forever listening to the song that we played together
Forever chasing after the foot prints we left behind
Such an ending is the stuff of farewells, and so I leave everything behind
In the sunlight of morning, I played a new song myself
Sayonara TPJC
Yesterday was graduation ceremony. It was really time to say goodbye. The teachers done several performance for us. Mr Wong's performance was really spectacular. He is not only a good motivator and joker but he also got some skill in vocal and guitar. Clap of hand for him. I was happy that we (performing art students) was given the recording of our performance in the durian building (dad was asking for it). OK, time is up. Next year must treat my CO juniors (I promised them if I do well I'll treat them a feast).
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Prelude to the battlefield.
Days had passed, the battle draws near. The time is extremely critical, yet yesterday I wasted almost the entire day playing my newly hacked PSP, yes newly hacked it is a v3 mobo. We just left 27 more days to the beginning of A level, our maths paper. It is kinda terrifying to think about it and we lack much of the preparation. Time really flies rapidly.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Role of religious fundamentalism in conflicts
Religious fundamentalism, especially Islamic played a significant role in several conflict. Notable cases of involvement of religious fundamentalism could be seen in Arab-Israeli conflict, India-Pakistan conflict, Yugoslavian conflict, Chechen conflict and Iran-Iraq conflict. It could be argued that fundamentalist creates a new conflict with religious elements rather than adding religious elements in an existing conflict. However, it seems that in most cases religious fundamentalists are adding religious elements in conflicts between 1970 to 2000 rather than creating a new one.
Religious fundamentalism play significant role in fueling the tension in several conflict, derailing the peace process or simply complicating conflict that is already happening by adding religious elements in it. There are several examples of this kind of conflict, such as Arab-Israeli conflict, India-Pakistan conflict, Yugoslavian conflict, and Chechen conflict.
In the case of Arab-Israeli conflict, the emergence of Hamas served as a hindrance to peace process promised in Oslo. Hamas frequently launched attacks from the Gaza Strip which often frustrate the Israeli government. Hamas challenged the PLO government which was seen as too weak as not going to regain Palestinian land. Hamas is much more demanding compared to the PLO, they reject the idea of two separate states which is already accepted by the PLO. The victory of the Likud Party which is strongly Jewish fundamentalist in 1996 make the matter worse. Benjamin Nethanyahu as the leader of Likud insisted on biblical land which include the occupied zones of Gaza and West Bank. Under his leadership, Jewish settlement in occupied territory is continued against the spirit of Oslo, much to the dismay of Palestinian. This creates much unhappiness among the Palestinians who seek refugee in Hamas who promised to remove Israel from the map. This derailed the peace effort as the fundamentalist Israeli government and religious motivated Hamas refuse to recognize the Oslo Accords, thus prolonging the conflict with this added religious elements.
The Yugoslavian conflict could be seen as another example of a conflict that turned more bloody with the involvement of religious fundamentalism. With the withdrawal of Red Army and Collapse of Soviet Union, there is no longer a force to keep this multi-ethnic and multi-religious country united. Conflict arisen between the Serbian Christians and the Bosnian Muslims. In the middle of the conflict, battle hardened Afghan fighters join side with the Bosnians, training them and leading them to fight the Serbians. There was a huge influx of foreign jihadis since 1992. The involvement of this battle hardened fighters prolongs the conflict as it is harder to end a conflict which involve more skilled fighters. After the conflict resolved, many of these Mujahideen fighters stayed in Bosnia as clerics, preaching for another struggle against the Serbians.
India-Pakistan conflict could be seen as another conflict where fundamentalist complicates matter. Before the conflict, Kashmir served as a platform for India and Pakistan ideological rivalry. India's secularism and Pakistan's theocracy. With the influx of fundamentalism, the mosque in Kashmir become central rallying point of Kashmiri Muslim while the rapid growth of madrasah sponsored by Iran further injected fundamentalist doctrines in Kashmiri society. Afghan fighters who are left aimless with the withdrawal of Soviet Union joined in the conflict,believing that they are carrying out another jihad against India. With the victory of Hindu hardliners, the BJP casted Kashmir problem as a thread to Indian national security, leading to huge military expenditure. In addition their call for protection of Hindu minority casted an image of Hindu tyranny, further angering Kashmiri Muslim. The BJP decided to continue the nuclear programme planned by previous government. This very act provoked Pakistan to do the same, thus further fueling the conflict the the possession of nuclear arsenal on both sides.Thus fundamentalism, make the conflict worse as it changed the nature of the conflict and escalates the tension between both sides.
Even though religion act as a factor escalating conflicts, there are times that the motivation of starting a conflict comes from religion itself. A clear example can be seen from Iran-Iraq conflict.
Iran-Iraq conflict caused as Iraq feel threatened with Shiite based theocratic government of Iran formed after the Iranian Revolution which might supports the Shiite majority in Iraq to rebel against the Sunni based government. This conflict is a form of clash between a nationalistic and militaristic regime against Islamic regime. Saddam decided to launch a preemptive attack, making use of the hole left by purging of the Shah army by the new republic. Saddam underestimated the religiously committed Iranian Revolutionary Corps ability to repel attacks by recruiting large number of young men, leading to 8 years long war. Therefore it could be seen that religion played a role in sparking new conflict as what is seen from the case of Iran-Iraq conflict as Iraq feel threatened by religious movement in Iran that might influenced oppressed Shiite majority in Iraq.
Without a doubt, we can see that religion often mix in a conflict, be it as the main cause or prolonging the conflict or intensify the conflict. Since the ancient past we already had a lot of religiously motivated conflicts as at that time a lot of countries are theocratic monarch. It is true that there are many conflict caused by religion. However, from 1970s - 2000, most of the conflict are secular conflict that turned religious with the involvement of fundamentalist into the conflict. With the involvement of religion, the conflict turns more bloody with indiscriminate suicide bombings motivated by religious believe that dying for religion guarantee a place in heaven. Therefore I would say that fundamentalist worsen a conflict rather than starting a new one.
Religious fundamentalism play significant role in fueling the tension in several conflict, derailing the peace process or simply complicating conflict that is already happening by adding religious elements in it. There are several examples of this kind of conflict, such as Arab-Israeli conflict, India-Pakistan conflict, Yugoslavian conflict, and Chechen conflict.
In the case of Arab-Israeli conflict, the emergence of Hamas served as a hindrance to peace process promised in Oslo. Hamas frequently launched attacks from the Gaza Strip which often frustrate the Israeli government. Hamas challenged the PLO government which was seen as too weak as not going to regain Palestinian land. Hamas is much more demanding compared to the PLO, they reject the idea of two separate states which is already accepted by the PLO. The victory of the Likud Party which is strongly Jewish fundamentalist in 1996 make the matter worse. Benjamin Nethanyahu as the leader of Likud insisted on biblical land which include the occupied zones of Gaza and West Bank. Under his leadership, Jewish settlement in occupied territory is continued against the spirit of Oslo, much to the dismay of Palestinian. This creates much unhappiness among the Palestinians who seek refugee in Hamas who promised to remove Israel from the map. This derailed the peace effort as the fundamentalist Israeli government and religious motivated Hamas refuse to recognize the Oslo Accords, thus prolonging the conflict with this added religious elements.
The Yugoslavian conflict could be seen as another example of a conflict that turned more bloody with the involvement of religious fundamentalism. With the withdrawal of Red Army and Collapse of Soviet Union, there is no longer a force to keep this multi-ethnic and multi-religious country united. Conflict arisen between the Serbian Christians and the Bosnian Muslims. In the middle of the conflict, battle hardened Afghan fighters join side with the Bosnians, training them and leading them to fight the Serbians. There was a huge influx of foreign jihadis since 1992. The involvement of this battle hardened fighters prolongs the conflict as it is harder to end a conflict which involve more skilled fighters. After the conflict resolved, many of these Mujahideen fighters stayed in Bosnia as clerics, preaching for another struggle against the Serbians.
India-Pakistan conflict could be seen as another conflict where fundamentalist complicates matter. Before the conflict, Kashmir served as a platform for India and Pakistan ideological rivalry. India's secularism and Pakistan's theocracy. With the influx of fundamentalism, the mosque in Kashmir become central rallying point of Kashmiri Muslim while the rapid growth of madrasah sponsored by Iran further injected fundamentalist doctrines in Kashmiri society. Afghan fighters who are left aimless with the withdrawal of Soviet Union joined in the conflict,believing that they are carrying out another jihad against India. With the victory of Hindu hardliners, the BJP casted Kashmir problem as a thread to Indian national security, leading to huge military expenditure. In addition their call for protection of Hindu minority casted an image of Hindu tyranny, further angering Kashmiri Muslim. The BJP decided to continue the nuclear programme planned by previous government. This very act provoked Pakistan to do the same, thus further fueling the conflict the the possession of nuclear arsenal on both sides.Thus fundamentalism, make the conflict worse as it changed the nature of the conflict and escalates the tension between both sides.
Even though religion act as a factor escalating conflicts, there are times that the motivation of starting a conflict comes from religion itself. A clear example can be seen from Iran-Iraq conflict.
Iran-Iraq conflict caused as Iraq feel threatened with Shiite based theocratic government of Iran formed after the Iranian Revolution which might supports the Shiite majority in Iraq to rebel against the Sunni based government. This conflict is a form of clash between a nationalistic and militaristic regime against Islamic regime. Saddam decided to launch a preemptive attack, making use of the hole left by purging of the Shah army by the new republic. Saddam underestimated the religiously committed Iranian Revolutionary Corps ability to repel attacks by recruiting large number of young men, leading to 8 years long war. Therefore it could be seen that religion played a role in sparking new conflict as what is seen from the case of Iran-Iraq conflict as Iraq feel threatened by religious movement in Iran that might influenced oppressed Shiite majority in Iraq.
Without a doubt, we can see that religion often mix in a conflict, be it as the main cause or prolonging the conflict or intensify the conflict. Since the ancient past we already had a lot of religiously motivated conflicts as at that time a lot of countries are theocratic monarch. It is true that there are many conflict caused by religion. However, from 1970s - 2000, most of the conflict are secular conflict that turned religious with the involvement of fundamentalist into the conflict. With the involvement of religion, the conflict turns more bloody with indiscriminate suicide bombings motivated by religious believe that dying for religion guarantee a place in heaven. Therefore I would say that fundamentalist worsen a conflict rather than starting a new one.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Questioning faith
Zeus, Jupiter, Baal, Wotan, Odin, Amon Ra, Amaterasu, Flying Spaghetti Monster, you name it. We had incredibly a lot of (main) God we could name of. If I list all the Gods ever identified (made?) by human, the list could be incredibly long, Which one is the real God? If we assume there is only one God - which most of human population believe - the chances of us worshiping the right God is less than 1% (or even lower than 0.1%). So, I question you, are you sure you choose the right God? Since I'm more familiar with Abrahamic religion, especially the one with the unicorn, I'll start my point primarily from there.
Most of us who come from christian school probably had known that the bible cite that the world is created in "6 days". Literalist will seriously take it as 6 days, yes 6 days of our time. The more rationale thinker will take it as a prosaic way of describing the flow of event. What is the flaw in this? Not only bird comes first before reptiles, but also several others like light without sun or stars (from where?), the earth is born before the sun (when logically the sun should be older), man as an image of God (how arrogant and sexist, does God even look like ugly fat preachers? Does God even has penis?).
From the perspective of modern science, we had no real answer on how the universe is born, but we had a hint on the process of the birth of the universe. Just look at the giant burning mass of gas, doesn't it seems to be older than the small puny planet we lived in? Unless you can prove the world that the big bang is true, the creation of the first day has a higher chance to be accurate (explosion does not always produce light). The order of creation of living being does not make sense at all.It is plain weird that birds come first before reptiles and they do not mention insects and other small land creatures. Logically bird come after reptiles as birds has much more complex internal structure compared to reptiles. Archeologist had discovered fossils of feathered (the feather is gone, but there is distinct traces of feathers on the fossil slab) birdlike dinosaur which was hypothesed to explain the missing link. But it should be noted that the fossil is much younger than the famous T-Rex and it is the oldest bird fossil ever found.
The power of prayer is highly questionable. Some churches reject the idea of miraculous power of prayer. It is really does not make sense. Several experiment had been done to prove the power of prayer. All of it failed. The first person to test the power of prayer was Francis Galton. He points out that every Sunday churches throughout Britain prayed publicly for the health of entire royal family. Shouldn't they therefore unusually fit, compared with the rest of us, who are prayed only by our nearest and dearest? Galton looked into it and found no statistical difference. Galton done an experiment where he prayed over randomised plot of land to see if the plants would grow any faster (they didn't). Russell Stannard, one of Britain most religious scientist done another experiment in an effort to prove the power of prayer. Patient from 3 hospitals are divided to three group, one that receive no prayer and do not know about it (group I) and two that receive prayer where one of the group unknown about it (Group II) and the other knows about it (Group III). The result shows no big statistical difference between Group I and II, but there is a difference when Group II and III compared. Group III perform worse compared with the rest.
Another thing that I'd like to point out is do God really meddle with human affairs (which many of us believe he is)? If God really does that, why God abandoned people who are trapped in famine? Why not even a young child is spared in the middle of conflicts and or famine? If God really meddle with human affairs, why he God do not stop criminals before he did the crime? If God is all knowing, why he make that stupid tree, knowing that Adam and Eve will fall to it?
Most of us who come from christian school probably had known that the bible cite that the world is created in "6 days". Literalist will seriously take it as 6 days, yes 6 days of our time. The more rationale thinker will take it as a prosaic way of describing the flow of event. What is the flaw in this? Not only bird comes first before reptiles, but also several others like light without sun or stars (from where?), the earth is born before the sun (when logically the sun should be older), man as an image of God (how arrogant and sexist, does God even look like ugly fat preachers? Does God even has penis?).
From the perspective of modern science, we had no real answer on how the universe is born, but we had a hint on the process of the birth of the universe. Just look at the giant burning mass of gas, doesn't it seems to be older than the small puny planet we lived in? Unless you can prove the world that the big bang is true, the creation of the first day has a higher chance to be accurate (explosion does not always produce light). The order of creation of living being does not make sense at all.It is plain weird that birds come first before reptiles and they do not mention insects and other small land creatures. Logically bird come after reptiles as birds has much more complex internal structure compared to reptiles. Archeologist had discovered fossils of feathered (the feather is gone, but there is distinct traces of feathers on the fossil slab) birdlike dinosaur which was hypothesed to explain the missing link. But it should be noted that the fossil is much younger than the famous T-Rex and it is the oldest bird fossil ever found.
The power of prayer is highly questionable. Some churches reject the idea of miraculous power of prayer. It is really does not make sense. Several experiment had been done to prove the power of prayer. All of it failed. The first person to test the power of prayer was Francis Galton. He points out that every Sunday churches throughout Britain prayed publicly for the health of entire royal family. Shouldn't they therefore unusually fit, compared with the rest of us, who are prayed only by our nearest and dearest? Galton looked into it and found no statistical difference. Galton done an experiment where he prayed over randomised plot of land to see if the plants would grow any faster (they didn't). Russell Stannard, one of Britain most religious scientist done another experiment in an effort to prove the power of prayer. Patient from 3 hospitals are divided to three group, one that receive no prayer and do not know about it (group I) and two that receive prayer where one of the group unknown about it (Group II) and the other knows about it (Group III). The result shows no big statistical difference between Group I and II, but there is a difference when Group II and III compared. Group III perform worse compared with the rest.
Another thing that I'd like to point out is do God really meddle with human affairs (which many of us believe he is)? If God really does that, why God abandoned people who are trapped in famine? Why not even a young child is spared in the middle of conflicts and or famine? If God really meddle with human affairs, why he God do not stop criminals before he did the crime? If God is all knowing, why he make that stupid tree, knowing that Adam and Eve will fall to it?
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins
Don't think of the book as "evil" just because of the title. If you think that Dawkins purposely sensationalised the title, you are wrong. It is highly informative, touching several aspect of religion in the society and also relationship of religion and science. Dawkins also mention several common misconception about science and religion such as the use of the word "God" by several scientist such as Einstein. The book mainly focused on argument on the existence of higher being and his whether he influence human lives. Something very controversial that the church prefers we know nothing about it. The book might pissed of readers whose faith challenged by its content. Those who are easily offended better stay away from this book!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Neo-sexism? Maybe?
I find the issue of gender equality intriguing with many complains of unequal treatment, not in nations like Afghanistan or Pakistan where Woman's Right is not that respected. I'll focus my area on modern country like Japan and Sweden. I'm not being sexist here, but just showing how what called "gender equality" had gone in the pursuit of it.
You guys might had often heard about rampant train groping in Japan. There is a lot of such cases is not a fact, but something made up by the women to extort money from the so called "groper" or just some misunderstanding. Once a man is accused as train groper (also known as chikan), he is assumed to be guilty unless proven innocent (You are in deep shit if someone suddenly accuse you doing it). It is not that easy to prove yourself innocent given that most of the incident happen when the train is so full that you will feel like squashed orange inside (how the camera can show your where your hand is). It is true that police had given male passengers advice on how to prove their innocence by holding the rails with both hand and put the baggage above the seats (but please, at that time the train conformed to be so full that putting your baggage above the chair might cause you to miss a stop and there might be no space for you to hold the rails). It is true that there is women only carriage in Japan, but interestingly they are underused. Recently men are complaining the transportation authority about the missing men only carriage. What was their reason for complaining about it? It was about high frequency of wrong accusation.
I think that this applies to many country. Women are not to be charged of raping men unless underaged boys even if the men don't give consent of doing XXX (only rape not other kind of crime might be related to raping, such as kidnapping or torture). Even our senior who currently doing his service as police tell me this. If woman rape man, the man can't bring the woman to court, since to do it the man's XXX must be XXX so the man's XXX XXX is a sign of consent (get the reason?) but if it is the reverse, there is a high chance the man will end up in jail (if this is the way women can get away from being charged of raping, why men can't use similar argument?).
Recently, there is an outrage among otaku community, because of what? Ban in loli. Even though previously the ban was cancelled there is a new surge of activist who wan it to be banned, not long after a group of feminist who call themselves Equality Now (ironically they are not advocating equality but over-protection of women that will make man in deep shit if a woman decide to bring him to court even if there is no sufficient evidence. What is more stupid is that they advocate protection of non-existent girls in manga, anime and games after they failed to protect real girls in those traditionalist states like the Arabs where women might be treated as property.) I wonder why they only advocating the protection of loli characters but not shota when both are quite often used in echi. What I can't believe is that even UNICEF stepped in to pressurize Japan to ban loli, but not shota.
If you notice it, the law of of the nature itself is sexist. Men are physically stronger than women but it doesn't mean that men are superior to women. Without women, the humankind will perish. Strangely in some animals, we can witness female only organism or virgin birth. Certain species of reptiles are female only. Some sharks had been witnessed giving virgin birth. Maybe there will be one day women no longer need men, even for preserving human species, but it will be a long way to go. The day of men and male dominance is numbered. The Y-Chromosome in men are slowly disappearing, scientist predicts that if the rate goes on, men will be no more in thousands years.
You guys might had often heard about rampant train groping in Japan. There is a lot of such cases is not a fact, but something made up by the women to extort money from the so called "groper" or just some misunderstanding. Once a man is accused as train groper (also known as chikan), he is assumed to be guilty unless proven innocent (You are in deep shit if someone suddenly accuse you doing it). It is not that easy to prove yourself innocent given that most of the incident happen when the train is so full that you will feel like squashed orange inside (how the camera can show your where your hand is). It is true that police had given male passengers advice on how to prove their innocence by holding the rails with both hand and put the baggage above the seats (but please, at that time the train conformed to be so full that putting your baggage above the chair might cause you to miss a stop and there might be no space for you to hold the rails). It is true that there is women only carriage in Japan, but interestingly they are underused. Recently men are complaining the transportation authority about the missing men only carriage. What was their reason for complaining about it? It was about high frequency of wrong accusation.
I think that this applies to many country. Women are not to be charged of raping men unless underaged boys even if the men don't give consent of doing XXX (only rape not other kind of crime might be related to raping, such as kidnapping or torture). Even our senior who currently doing his service as police tell me this. If woman rape man, the man can't bring the woman to court, since to do it the man's XXX must be XXX so the man's XXX XXX is a sign of consent (get the reason?) but if it is the reverse, there is a high chance the man will end up in jail (if this is the way women can get away from being charged of raping, why men can't use similar argument?).
Recently, there is an outrage among otaku community, because of what? Ban in loli. Even though previously the ban was cancelled there is a new surge of activist who wan it to be banned, not long after a group of feminist who call themselves Equality Now (ironically they are not advocating equality but over-protection of women that will make man in deep shit if a woman decide to bring him to court even if there is no sufficient evidence. What is more stupid is that they advocate protection of non-existent girls in manga, anime and games after they failed to protect real girls in those traditionalist states like the Arabs where women might be treated as property.) I wonder why they only advocating the protection of loli characters but not shota when both are quite often used in echi. What I can't believe is that even UNICEF stepped in to pressurize Japan to ban loli, but not shota.
If you notice it, the law of of the nature itself is sexist. Men are physically stronger than women but it doesn't mean that men are superior to women. Without women, the humankind will perish. Strangely in some animals, we can witness female only organism or virgin birth. Certain species of reptiles are female only. Some sharks had been witnessed giving virgin birth. Maybe there will be one day women no longer need men, even for preserving human species, but it will be a long way to go. The day of men and male dominance is numbered. The Y-Chromosome in men are slowly disappearing, scientist predicts that if the rate goes on, men will be no more in thousands years.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Freaking Prelims Final Update.
History
The result is quite bad, a huge drop since SA2. Well, actually I kinda expected that. Fatigue and exam panic was the reason. I did the stupid mistake of not answering the question directly and get carried away with it. The facts, I already know more than needed and put too much example without explaining its significance. DARN IT!!! It is a good essay lesson nevertheless.Verdict : More SBQ exercise. AIM FOR 20/25. Write more essay, target for essay is 16-17/25. I WANT MY A!!!
Overall result is like crap only 2 H2 passes and not an excellent pass.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Freaking Prelims update
Physics
Well, like what the teacher said, this paper was quite unfair. Some chapters are totally scrapped off. Paper 3 was quantum dominated and one of the question was killing almost the entire cohort. Where is my nuclear physics, where is my thermophysics, and what pissed me of the most is that LASER is not there (spent quite long trying to memorise the requirement for laser). A D-Grade is not enough for me.Verdict : Time to consolidate Quantum and Electricity. Get the answer of VJC 2008 from any teacher I can ask. Finish RJC 2008 Paper 3 by THIS WEEK. Then do the rest like no one's business.
Tomorrow might be the last update. The last paper, my freaking 4 long essays should be returned tomorrow.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Saber Lily
At last this figure comes after a long wait. It was enough to burn a hole in my wallet. I have not opened it as I don't have proper storage yet. I have to wait 2-3 years for the glass cabinet (for my gundam models also) if dad manage to get a property in Singapore.If you guys want to see how Saber will look like outside the box, scroll below to see the official picture.
Looks nice and fresh isn't it?
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Unlimited Paper Works
I am the bone of my result
Distinction is my body and competition is my blood
I have completed over a thousand papers
Unknown to failing
Nor known to passing
Have withstood boredom to finish many questions
Yet the brain shall never absorb anything
So, as I condemn, "Unlimited Paper Works"
Basically now the school trying to make us do the prelims paper. I find it crazy that they want us to do like 10 papers a week. It might work to pump our grades, but how efficient?
*Parody intended
Distinction is my body and competition is my blood
I have completed over a thousand papers
Unknown to failing
Nor known to passing
Have withstood boredom to finish many questions
Yet the brain shall never absorb anything
So, as I condemn, "Unlimited Paper Works"
Basically now the school trying to make us do the prelims paper. I find it crazy that they want us to do like 10 papers a week. It might work to pump our grades, but how efficient?
*Parody intended
Friday, September 25, 2009
Freaking Prelims updated
Chemistry (updated)
I gonna say that this is one of the worst paper.I'm not the only one who did badly for this paper, the entire school does. For you info, the average grade is S. But, there is no excuse to did badly. Izumi and Abe passed the paper, not in flying colours though, so why I can't do the same? What make me upset is that there is too many stupid mistakes being made. Like missing elements when I know (obviously) that it should be there. It might be caused by exam panic. So what now? MUGGING TIME!Verdict : More practice needed to reduce exam panic. Time to eat the thick stack of notes and finish all the papers available.
General Paper
Even though my tutor said that she was impressed with my essay, I gonna say that I'm not satisfied at all. I made no improvement in this essay. DARN IT. There is overall improvement thanks to the paper 2. But, I'll ignore it as performance in Paper 2 is fluctuating. Overall failed by half mark. T.T
Verdict : Read more stuff to study how excellent writer or debater like Dawkins present their point. Read more information to help boost AQ also.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
NIGHTMARE!!!
Just having a terrible nightmare out of usually dreamless sleep. It was really a terrible dream, what I fear the most. Unable to do A Level Paper. The dream only show me desperately trying to finish Physics Paper, but unable to complete the task. It is very scary indeed. It might be a sign for me to start hitting the books like no one's business.
NCT is a bomb
Apparently they uploaded the answer already. I checked the answers based on assumption that unrecorded answer is wrong answer and the result is a bomb. Enough bullet for today.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Freaking Prelims
Well, just get back some of the papers, not all yet. So far only 2 subject had returned the full paper. Which are Mathematics and Chemistry.
Ok, let's start from the time order.
Ok, let's start from the time order.
Mathematics
There is several careless mistakes accompanied by negligence in several chapters. A lot one marks are gone because of these mistakes that could be easily avoided. Generally statistics is quite well done except one question which is totally zero because of lack of knowledge in the topic. Pure Mathematics is so-so. Paper One performed worse than Paper two with 49-69. Overall is 59%. Just a freaking one percent to up by one grade.
Verdict : More should be done to secure a sure A-Grade. Make sure Pure Maths is strong enough in case statistics went haywire like previously. Statistics will require more practice to ensure either full mark or zero (in case not knowing what the hell the question is asking or jab wrong calculator button)
Gonna be updated tomorrow.
Verdict : More should be done to secure a sure A-Grade. Make sure Pure Maths is strong enough in case statistics went haywire like previously. Statistics will require more practice to ensure either full mark or zero (in case not knowing what the hell the question is asking or jab wrong calculator button)
Chemistry
I gonna say that this is one of the worst paper. There won't be any evaluation until we finish went through the paper.Gonna be updated tomorrow.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Little modification of this blog
If you guys notice, last month the snowflake background was removed. I decided to change the background with this simple photoshop work. The background is best viewed in wide-screen monitor. Oh yah the moving snowflake is removed because it caused a nuisance and slow load.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Seven Swords : The Planning part 3 - Characters part 1
Main Protagonist not in any order:
Blue
Title : The Blizzard
Age: 16
Sex: Male
Race : Xian
Origin: Unknown
Class: Master of Magic
Occupation: Herbalist
The main character of this chapter, Rick found him in the forest heavily injured five years ago. Blue was a name given by the village elder as he was suffering from amnesia. The name is taken from his blue hair. He was expelled from the village three years ago as he was suspected to assassinate the village elder. Despite being treated unfairly by the villagers, he often protects the village from demons behind the scenes. In terms of combat, Blue is a powerful spell-caster, the only one who can summon powerful elemental spirits. He can use almost all kinds of magic. His weapon is the Elemental Crystals, the powerful essence of magic.
Crimson
Title : The Red Vampire
Age : 20
Sex: Male
Race : Xian
Origin: Chaos
Class: Soul Knight
Occupation: Town Guard
Crimson was the best swordsman in Chaos, assigned to be a captain in his unit at a very young age of 15. Not many is known about him except his excellent swordsmanship. He was given the title vampire as he often kills enemies by draining their blood or attacking their spirit using the legendary sword, the Soul Taker.
Saint
Title : The Holy Blade
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Astoria
Class: Silver Paladin
Occupation: Pegasus Knight
A young Commander of Astorian sky-fleet, a seeker of truth. He keep doubting the command of destroying Skyland and decided to defect after a battle with Lyon. In battle, He is an excellent fighter, able to use supporting magic and revive fallen allies. His weapon of choice is the prized sword, Lux Aeterna.
Lyon
Title : The Sky Render
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Skylander
Origin: Skyland
Class: Chronos Knight
Occupation: Celestial Knight
Lyon is the name of the crown prince of Skyland. Having witnessed the destruction of Skyland, Lyon swore to find the truth behind the attack and end the conflict as soon as possible. Little did he know that the force behind the war is beyond his imagination. As a Chronos Knight, Lyon able to use time magic. His weapon of choice is the Skyblade, the imperial heirloom.
Sasuke
Title : The Fiery Shadow
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Northwind
Class: En-jutsushi
Occupation: Ninja
Sasuke was born with red eyes like the Xians, race of powerful magic users. He was a Northwind Special Task Force Commander when the Chief of Northwind, Lord Hanzo disappears. He is extremely loyal to his master. When he heard that Lord Hanzo was last seen in Runegate, he went there immediately without permission insistently even tough it is punishable by death. As a ninja, he showed little emotion and has a strong sense of duty. In terms of combat, Sasuke is able to use some fire magic outside his ninja skills. He holds the flaming katana, Ashura.
Gustav
Title : The Impenetrable Defense
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Valem
Class: Mythril Knight
Occupation: Iron Knight
Part of the Iron Knight Legion, this member of Ironfield Clan possess a natural affinity with metals. It was said that every member of Ironfield Clan is able to control a certain type of metal called mythril at will. Gustav was a commander of Valem's vanguard unit during the confrontation between the allied army and The Cross Guard. His entire unit was wiped out in a battle with Blue, Lyon, Sasuke and Lance. He defected after he learned that the the king that once he serve had long been killed. In combat, he serves as defense tower with his incredible defense and strong protective magic. He wields the Gem sword, Mythril Heartz.
Rey
Title : The Knight of Nine
Age : 128
Sex: Male
Race : Elf
Origin: Runegate
Class: Forest Guard
Occupation: Soldier
As part of numbered knight, Rey serve Runegate under direct order of the emperor. He was called the The Wolf of Sylvan Woods by his enemies for his capability in forest warfare. Rey is part of the forest elf, that are experts in forest warfare and have strong affinity with nature magic. Rey led the defense of Runegate when the allies broke the peace agreement. He overwhelms his enemies with his nature magic and quick slashes. He wields the elven blade called Welt.
Rune
Title : Grand Defender of Aqua Marine
Age : 22
Sex: Male
Race : Dragonian
Origin: Runegate
Class: Dragon Knight
Occupation: Military General
Commander in chief in the defense and security of Aqua Marine, a small kingdom part of Runegate. He is not only a great military leader but a great swordsman himself. He frequently hold a tournament in Aqua Marine to attract more capable fighters to aid the defense of Runegate. In battles he showed no mercy, beating his opponents with a combination of magic and swordplay. His great sword is called Siegfried.
BlueTitle : The Blizzard
Age: 16
Sex: Male
Race : Xian
Origin: Unknown
Class: Master of Magic
Occupation: Herbalist
The main character of this chapter, Rick found him in the forest heavily injured five years ago. Blue was a name given by the village elder as he was suffering from amnesia. The name is taken from his blue hair. He was expelled from the village three years ago as he was suspected to assassinate the village elder. Despite being treated unfairly by the villagers, he often protects the village from demons behind the scenes. In terms of combat, Blue is a powerful spell-caster, the only one who can summon powerful elemental spirits. He can use almost all kinds of magic. His weapon is the Elemental Crystals, the powerful essence of magic.
CrimsonTitle : The Red Vampire
Age : 20
Sex: Male
Race : Xian
Origin: Chaos
Class: Soul Knight
Occupation: Town Guard
Crimson was the best swordsman in Chaos, assigned to be a captain in his unit at a very young age of 15. Not many is known about him except his excellent swordsmanship. He was given the title vampire as he often kills enemies by draining their blood or attacking their spirit using the legendary sword, the Soul Taker.
SaintTitle : The Holy Blade
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Astoria
Class: Silver Paladin
Occupation: Pegasus Knight
A young Commander of Astorian sky-fleet, a seeker of truth. He keep doubting the command of destroying Skyland and decided to defect after a battle with Lyon. In battle, He is an excellent fighter, able to use supporting magic and revive fallen allies. His weapon of choice is the prized sword, Lux Aeterna.
LyonTitle : The Sky Render
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Skylander
Origin: Skyland
Class: Chronos Knight
Occupation: Celestial Knight
Lyon is the name of the crown prince of Skyland. Having witnessed the destruction of Skyland, Lyon swore to find the truth behind the attack and end the conflict as soon as possible. Little did he know that the force behind the war is beyond his imagination. As a Chronos Knight, Lyon able to use time magic. His weapon of choice is the Skyblade, the imperial heirloom.
SasukeTitle : The Fiery Shadow
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Northwind
Class: En-jutsushi
Occupation: Ninja
Sasuke was born with red eyes like the Xians, race of powerful magic users. He was a Northwind Special Task Force Commander when the Chief of Northwind, Lord Hanzo disappears. He is extremely loyal to his master. When he heard that Lord Hanzo was last seen in Runegate, he went there immediately without permission insistently even tough it is punishable by death. As a ninja, he showed little emotion and has a strong sense of duty. In terms of combat, Sasuke is able to use some fire magic outside his ninja skills. He holds the flaming katana, Ashura.
GustavTitle : The Impenetrable Defense
Age : 18
Sex: Male
Race : Hume
Origin: Valem
Class: Mythril Knight
Occupation: Iron Knight
Part of the Iron Knight Legion, this member of Ironfield Clan possess a natural affinity with metals. It was said that every member of Ironfield Clan is able to control a certain type of metal called mythril at will. Gustav was a commander of Valem's vanguard unit during the confrontation between the allied army and The Cross Guard. His entire unit was wiped out in a battle with Blue, Lyon, Sasuke and Lance. He defected after he learned that the the king that once he serve had long been killed. In combat, he serves as defense tower with his incredible defense and strong protective magic. He wields the Gem sword, Mythril Heartz.
ReyTitle : The Knight of Nine
Age : 128
Sex: Male
Race : Elf
Origin: Runegate
Class: Forest Guard
Occupation: Soldier
As part of numbered knight, Rey serve Runegate under direct order of the emperor. He was called the The Wolf of Sylvan Woods by his enemies for his capability in forest warfare. Rey is part of the forest elf, that are experts in forest warfare and have strong affinity with nature magic. Rey led the defense of Runegate when the allies broke the peace agreement. He overwhelms his enemies with his nature magic and quick slashes. He wields the elven blade called Welt.
RuneTitle : Grand Defender of Aqua Marine
Age : 22
Sex: Male
Race : Dragonian
Origin: Runegate
Class: Dragon Knight
Occupation: Military General
Commander in chief in the defense and security of Aqua Marine, a small kingdom part of Runegate. He is not only a great military leader but a great swordsman himself. He frequently hold a tournament in Aqua Marine to attract more capable fighters to aid the defense of Runegate. In battles he showed no mercy, beating his opponents with a combination of magic and swordplay. His great sword is called Siegfried.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Seven Swords : The Planning part 2 - Race and Jobs
Race:
Hume : Humanoid race, the most balanced of all.
Elf` : Forest dwellers that are comparable to Humes, but having better agility.
Dragonian : A humanoid race that are able to transform to dragonic form, excellent tanker but having terrible agility.
Skylander : A Humanoid race that are able to transform to angelic form, poor in defense but deadly.
Xian : An ancient race living in Ixia has very similar appearance with Humes except their crimson eyes, incredibly agile, versatile in all kind of magic and very deadly but has poor defense.
Beastmen*` : Half human half beast.
Demon*`# : The race that come from the dark realm.
Mermaid* : Aquatic race, excellent magician.
Dwarf* : Excellent blacksmith and fighter.
Draconian*# : Dragonoid human banished from Ixia 300 years ago.
Gnome* : Expert mechanic.
Lizardmen* : Amphibious race.
Naga* : Amphibious race.
Giants* : Humanoid unit with larger build than Hume.
* to be confirmed
` might need to be divided to sub-races
# high probability to be enemy exclusive
- more could be added, There are some characters who are half breed.
Basic Class:
- Tankers :
Paladin : High defense, able to use support magic.
Heavy Blader : High defense, high attack.
Dragon Knight : High defense, high attack, able to use offensive magic.
Dark Knight : High defense, high attack, able to use offensive magic.
- High speed melee :
Swordsmen : able to use most sword-wielder's skill.
Dual Wielder : Wield 2 swords instead of regular shield, able to use some sword wielder's skill.
Ninja : high agility, unique skills.
Assassin : Critical attacks, high evasion equips, poison attacks.
- Ranged :
Archer : Typical bow and arrow unit
Hunter : Archer that specialized in fighting beast type unit.
Sniper : Deadly skills but consume a lot of MP
Gunner : guns, no just flintlocks
Bombardier : bazookas and the like, consume tons of MP, slow unit.
- Mounted
Pegasus Knight : Pegasus raiders
Dragon Raider : DRAGONS....
- Spell caster
Mage : limited to 4 basic elements, more focused on INT
Wizard : wider range of spells but not as powerful as mage, more focused on MP
Cleric : Basic Healers that can support the party but having no powerful spell. Can fight without spell.
Priest : More focused healers, healing and support spells, some anti undead spell.
Exorcist : priest that focused on anti-undead spells.
Shaman : Expert of spirits, the only one with absorb skills, strong anti-undead unit.
Summoner : Able to summon greater elemental spirit to aid party.
Alchemist : Master of potion and metals.
*might be changed at ANYTIME
Each character has their own elemental affinity, it contributes to magical resistance.
Job affects skills and stats.
Hybrid jobs like what the main characters have will have customized effects.
Hume : Humanoid race, the most balanced of all.
Elf` : Forest dwellers that are comparable to Humes, but having better agility.
Dragonian : A humanoid race that are able to transform to dragonic form, excellent tanker but having terrible agility.
Skylander : A Humanoid race that are able to transform to angelic form, poor in defense but deadly.
Xian : An ancient race living in Ixia has very similar appearance with Humes except their crimson eyes, incredibly agile, versatile in all kind of magic and very deadly but has poor defense.
Beastmen*` : Half human half beast.
Demon*`# : The race that come from the dark realm.
Mermaid* : Aquatic race, excellent magician.
Dwarf* : Excellent blacksmith and fighter.
Draconian*# : Dragonoid human banished from Ixia 300 years ago.
Gnome* : Expert mechanic.
Lizardmen* : Amphibious race.
Naga* : Amphibious race.
Giants* : Humanoid unit with larger build than Hume.
* to be confirmed
` might need to be divided to sub-races
# high probability to be enemy exclusive
- more could be added, There are some characters who are half breed.
Basic Class:
- Tankers :
Paladin : High defense, able to use support magic.
Heavy Blader : High defense, high attack.
Dragon Knight : High defense, high attack, able to use offensive magic.
Dark Knight : High defense, high attack, able to use offensive magic.
- High speed melee :
Swordsmen : able to use most sword-wielder's skill.
Dual Wielder : Wield 2 swords instead of regular shield, able to use some sword wielder's skill.
Ninja : high agility, unique skills.
Assassin : Critical attacks, high evasion equips, poison attacks.
- Ranged :
Archer : Typical bow and arrow unit
Hunter : Archer that specialized in fighting beast type unit.
Sniper : Deadly skills but consume a lot of MP
Gunner : guns, no just flintlocks
Bombardier : bazookas and the like, consume tons of MP, slow unit.
- Mounted
Pegasus Knight : Pegasus raiders
Dragon Raider : DRAGONS....
- Spell caster
Mage : limited to 4 basic elements, more focused on INT
Wizard : wider range of spells but not as powerful as mage, more focused on MP
Cleric : Basic Healers that can support the party but having no powerful spell. Can fight without spell.
Priest : More focused healers, healing and support spells, some anti undead spell.
Exorcist : priest that focused on anti-undead spells.
Shaman : Expert of spirits, the only one with absorb skills, strong anti-undead unit.
Summoner : Able to summon greater elemental spirit to aid party.
Alchemist : Master of potion and metals.
*might be changed at ANYTIME
Each character has their own elemental affinity, it contributes to magical resistance.
Job affects skills and stats.
Hybrid jobs like what the main characters have will have customized effects.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Seven Swords : The Planning part 1
Game title : Chronicles of Ixia : The Seven Swords
Story Genre : Fantasy
Engine : RPG Maker VX
Game Genre : RPG
Synopsis:
Long time ago, a demon lord and his army invaded Ixia, wreaking havoc and causing much destruction. Legend said that the demon was sealed by seven-swordsmen armed with heavenly blades sent by the Gods from heaven.
300 years later....
War broke out in Ixia, The flying island of Skyland was raided by Astorian forces and destroyed to pieces. Soon, Astoria formed an alliance with Valem and invaded Dragonia. Dragonia could not defend against the alliance's larger force and soon conquered. Northwind is facing Civil Strife with the disappearance of it's chief. Bandits are everywhere. Ixia is in chaos. Rumors said the seal had gotten weaker and several demons were reported raiding villages.
Story Genre : Fantasy
Engine : RPG Maker VX
Game Genre : RPG
Synopsis:
Long time ago, a demon lord and his army invaded Ixia, wreaking havoc and causing much destruction. Legend said that the demon was sealed by seven-swordsmen armed with heavenly blades sent by the Gods from heaven.
300 years later....
War broke out in Ixia, The flying island of Skyland was raided by Astorian forces and destroyed to pieces. Soon, Astoria formed an alliance with Valem and invaded Dragonia. Dragonia could not defend against the alliance's larger force and soon conquered. Northwind is facing Civil Strife with the disappearance of it's chief. Bandits are everywhere. Ixia is in chaos. Rumors said the seal had gotten weaker and several demons were reported raiding villages.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Character Design
Well, I stumbled upon a software when I fell damn bored. It is written by some Japanese guy to create some faces out of template provided. Very efficient I would say. Yes, extremely efficient in helping creating the pictures needed for game making and maybe some idea for full body design. which I'm not in the mood of doing it. Some of the result is quite excellent such as:
More will be added if I bother to do so. Character walking animation will not be much problem since the sprite is small and there is a generator for it. Now what is left is the other animations (skills, special effects, etc) (and probably battlers) which will be quite troublesome to do (frame by frame for goodness sake).
Oh yah, about the CO video, I'm not in the right mood to do it and there is some difficulty in choosing the right song. It won't be canceled though. Too bad that many of the J2 can't make it for the HK Trip. Honestly, the timing is not right for the J2s.
More will be added if I bother to do so. Character walking animation will not be much problem since the sprite is small and there is a generator for it. Now what is left is the other animations (skills, special effects, etc) (and probably battlers) which will be quite troublesome to do (frame by frame for goodness sake).
Oh yah, about the CO video, I'm not in the right mood to do it and there is some difficulty in choosing the right song. It won't be canceled though. Too bad that many of the J2 can't make it for the HK Trip. Honestly, the timing is not right for the J2s.
Friday, August 21, 2009
A year means nothing.
A year had passed since that day Doraemon give me a good scolding regarding to my Chinese. There is not much changes other than school-life become more hectic. This few days had been filled with celebration. Izumi's birthday on Sunday and Abe's on Wednesday. Well, there is no need to mention mine, I would rather had it as normal day. No pranks. I still remember that last year Abe and the Ninja bought me a Rubik's Cube. It had been broken due to excessive play. I still keep the parts though. It will be a memento to keep, since it will be hard for us to meet each other next year.
What a peaceful day today. I had the same wishes every year.
I just want a good book to read.
What a peaceful day today. I had the same wishes every year.
I just want a good book to read.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Cause of cold war, fact sheet
Security need
-Russian History of Invasion
- The West did not put much care on Russian history of invasion as they see that as a normal thing during the war.
- USSR feared foreign invasion as they have been invaded a lot of time.
- This made them adopt protective foreign policy.
- Most of the recent invasion comes from West of Russia, therefore USSR fear of invasion from The West.
- As they fear of invasion from the west, they sometimes being aggressive towards the west.
-German Question & Reparations
- The Allies wanted strong Germany to restore Western European economy and contain communism.
- Stalin feared of German revival.
- Demanded huge reparations for tremendous damage done.
-Polish question & Buffer Zone
- The Allies seen it as expansionism of communist empire, failed to understand USSR's need for security.
- It is a matter of life and death for Stalin to have The Balkans and Eastern Europe as buffer zone.
-Atomic Factor
- The weapon is believed to end the war faster.
- It closed the need of Soviet intervention in Pacific.
- Lessened the need for Red Army to help control Germany and thus made The US less willing to acquiesce in A Soviet Sphere of influence.
- Stiffened Soviet's determination to control Eastern Europe to build air defense.
- US atomic monopoly made the Soviets less willing to compromise on key issues lest they appear intimidated, and thus invite further pressure.
- US possession of atomic weapon increased Soviet's determination to develop its own atomic arsenal.
Policy makers
-Kennan Long telegram
- Believes that Soviet leaders worked on fixed assumption that they were surrounded by capitalist enemies and the security of the Soviet could only be achieved by total destruction of their rival.
-Iron Curtain Speech
- Called for an American-British alliance to prevent Soviet expansion.
- Enough information was leaked for Time magazine to publish a full page article including a map that showed Iran, Turkey and Manchuria 'infected' and Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Afghanistan and India 'exposed'.
- Stalin attacked Churchill and USA, comparing them as Hitler in that they held to a 'racial theory' that the English-speaking people should rule the rest of the world.
- Stalin imposed subservient governments on Poland, Romania and Bulgaria.
- Cared out exclusive sphere of influence in East Germany.
- Refused to remove troops from Iran
- Pressed Turkey aggressively for concessions.
- However, allowed relatively free election in Hungary and Czechoslovakia.
- Cooperated in the formation of representative governments in Finland ans Austria.
- Restrain communist parties in Italy, France and in Western Europe.
- Engage in negotiations with the Western in the Council of Europe.
-Truman Doctrine
- Formal abandonment of US Policy of avoiding entanglements in European politics.
- $300 million for Greece and $100 million for Turkey.
- First clear step towards containing communist expansion.
-Marshall Plan
- Seen as a way to solve Western Europe's economic problem.
- A large prosperous market is needed to contain communism.
- It would also build a political structure into which West Germany, or perhaps Germany, could be integrated and contained.
- Molotov together with his eight-nine economic adviser rejected Marshall Plan as it would require a joint European programme, rather than each individual state sending in separate list of request.
- Stalin feared that a joint programme would enable the US economic power to undermine Soviet's influence in Eastern Europe.
- Orchestrated strikes in Italy and France to disrupt Marshall Plan.
- Countered with Molotov's Plan which eventually evolved into establishment of COMECON.
- Establishment of Coninform (information bureau).
- Created division of Europe.
-Berlin Blockade
- 2000 tons of supply airlifted everyday for 11 months.
- Lead to the formation of NATO.
- (Failure in unification of Germany under pro-Soviet government led to lost of industrial area of Ruhr.
- Unification of West Germany and introduction of Deutschmark provoked Stalin.
- 86% victory of democratic member on Berlin city council election.)
- Perhaps executed to squeeze the western power out of Berlin
- Perhaps executed to consolidate Soviet zone
- Perhaps he wanted to force a negotiation on a complete Germany on his favour.
-Formation of NATO (military alliance)Integration of Europe.
- European states recovered their nerve against a possible Soviet attack.
- USA, Canada and 10 European state joined.
- Formation of West Germany.
- Countered with Warsaw Pact (military command based in Moscow) between USSR and 7 other communist state (including East Germany) for collective defense.
- Undertook to consult together on all international questions involving their common interests.
Security/Mistrust
-Allied Intervention
- The Allies intervene in Russian Civil War to protect their interest.
- The Allies see that intervention is necessary to keep Russia joining the Allies to fight Germany in WWI.
- The Allies developed deeply negative views and attitude towards Bolsheviks.
- The Allies treated communism as enemy.
- Lenin and Stalin convinced that western countries will do anything to destroy communism whenever they have the chance.
Mistrust
-Munich Agreement
- The Allies view that USSR did not want peace as USSR was willing to confront Germany to save Czechoslovakia. Soviet's proposal was rejected, they also not invited.
- Stalin believed that the West did it on purpose so USSR and Germany will crush each other.
- Stalin lose faith with The West to stop Hitler.
-Nazi – Soviet Pact
- The West distrusted Stalin as he aligned himself with Hitler.
- Stalin view The West did not understand that Stalin agreed to the agreement just to buy time.
-Hitler's Betrayal
- Stalin could no longer trust anyone even when an alliance was in place.
-Second Front Controversy
- The delay in launching the second front fueled Soviet suspicions about Anglo-American motives.
-Katyn Massacre
- The massacre strained relation as The West view that USSR do it to gain full control of Poland.
-Polish Uprising
- The Soviets handling of the Warsaw uprising convinced many western observers that Soviet callousness had few limits.
-Percentage Agreement
- Churchill made an agreement with Stalin on division of Europe before consulting Roosevelt.
- Roosevelt indicated that the agreement was not valid.
- Stalin believed that his desired sphere on influence have tacit Western Approval.
-Stopping Land-Lease Aid
- In February 1946, United States refused Soviet's request for loans as America could no longer afford to do so.
- The soviets interpreted those acts as economic leverage for hostility.
-USSR's policy towards Eastern European country
- The West see this as a violation of Yalta conference.
- They could no longer trust Stalin.
- Stalin was aware that free elections would probably result in the rejection of communism.
- Poles will never elect a pro-Soviet government resulting from bitter memories of tragedies such as Katyn Massacre and Polish Uprising.
- Stalin decided to impose one forcibly.
Ideology
-Irreconcilable political differences
- US wanted to protect economic and political freedom.
- Promote capitalism and Trade. (IMF, World Bank, General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
- Protecting Democracy and Freedom in Western Europe. (Marshall Plan)
- The want to export communism.
- Establishment of Comitern (1920s-1940s).
- Soviet's Policy in Eastern Europe (Polish question, supports for pro communist political party).
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The past might be obsolete, but we might still need it.
History (Historia in latin), a study of the written past might had been seen as one of the most useless subject. There is not many useful application of the study in real life. There are only a few job that require historical knowledge, mainly historian and history teacher or probably politician and writer. Sound like a useless subject to study isn't it? If studying history is useless, why in most part of the world we are required to know at least some historical knowledge of the particular piece of land. Well, basically there are several reason for it.
First off we can say that History is learnt to appreciate what the past generation had done for us. The past generation had brought us peace and subsequently freedom. Peace and freedom is not something that we can take for granted. The previous generation fought battles to obtain them. Many lives are lost in the process of obtaining them. To obtain peace we had to solve a conflict. Blood is spilled in the process. Not drops of blood but a river of blood. The past is filled with many unhappiness that could ignite to a conflict at anytime. A lot Men died because of the explosion of hatred. It only come to an end after one party surrenders or both party had come to mutual acceptance. Many lives lost in the middle of conflict, those who are trapped inside and those who try to stop it peacefully. Dag Hammarskjöld died in the middle of his pursue of peaceful Africa. Africa had nothing to do for him, yet he cares deeply about them and risk his life as middle man in peace negotiation. Freedom didn't come cheap. A fight for freedom of African American had come to a civil war. Not only Africans fight for their freedom. The united army was also consist of the Whites who fight for them. The past generations has fought for freedom from oppressive colonial rule which does not come without blood (maybe doesn't applies to Singapore but it does in many others). We studied history to honour their sacrifices for the current society.
History is also studied to know more of our roots. It is much written in history about the exploration and migration of human. After living for many generations on the new land, we tend to forget of our identity, culture and tradition of our ancestors and where we come from. In today's society, many overseas Chinese especially those living as the minority had slowly suffering from illiteracy of their own language and ignorant of the culture and traditions. Introduction of history of migration will obviously helps to ignite more awareness among this people and eventually lead to more interest in studying the culture and tradition. It will be disrespectful to disregard our ancestors by not knowing them. Studying history let us knows from which part of the world our ancestor come from provided we at least knew some customs and tradition of our ancestors from our parents or grandparents.
History is important as we can learn from the success and mistakes of the previous leaders. Rise and fall of a great leader ought to be studied as it gives clear indication of their successful and bad policies. Li Shimin (Tang Taizong) trying hard not to abuse his power by allowing his officers to criticise him, using Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty as negative example which proved to be instrumental as his ministers tries to stop him whenever he made bad policy, such as when he decide to conscript all able bodied man aged 18 and above. His minister stopped him as it would lead to lack of food since not enough manpower to manage the farms. Kublai Khan practiced tolerance and tried as much as he can to employ non-Mongolian in state affairs, balancing imperial and local interest so that they won't feel discriminated and not represented, much to what needed in modern society to avoid ethno-religious conflict. The rise of Hitler reminded the world not to be overly oppressive to defeated nation as it could lead to over nationalistic leaders who wants to reshape the country to what it was before through militaristic effort, leading to another war. The nightmare of WWII reminded us not to fight another war. The terror reminded the world not to fight another war, as what evidenced by the cold war whereby the the tension horrified the world of possible nuclear warfare.Therefore, history is important as we can learn from the past what kind of outcome an action will bring by studying the leaders.
Most historical records written by a country is more than often biased against their enemy, making it inaccurate and useless to be studied. The Cold War is an example. Records written by American historian (The Orthodox) heavily criticize USSR for causing The Cold War, depicting them as the evil. It is not until Gorbachev of USSR declassified USSR's historical archives the world realised that the Cold War was a mutual mistrust between both states (Post Revisionist). Even though historical records are biased, there are still other sources depicting the same event giving the ability for cross-referencing thus the fact could be drawn. However, when there is no other sources, history serve little or less value as the reliability to explain past events is biased and one sided. Thus, even though many historical records are biased it is still useful provided we had another source for cross referencing, reducing the bias.
History is still useful in this modern society as it is what shaped us now. It might be biased but with cross-referencing we can reduce it. Uncovering the truth of the past. Historical documents let us to understand the perception of people of the past, allowing us not to repeat their wrong decision. Without history, we might not know who we are, the reason we are here and why the world is shaped this way now. Howard Zinn, an American historian once said "If you don’t know history, it’s as if you were born yesterday. If you were born yesterday, then any leader can tell you anything." Therefore history is very important.
First off we can say that History is learnt to appreciate what the past generation had done for us. The past generation had brought us peace and subsequently freedom. Peace and freedom is not something that we can take for granted. The previous generation fought battles to obtain them. Many lives are lost in the process of obtaining them. To obtain peace we had to solve a conflict. Blood is spilled in the process. Not drops of blood but a river of blood. The past is filled with many unhappiness that could ignite to a conflict at anytime. A lot Men died because of the explosion of hatred. It only come to an end after one party surrenders or both party had come to mutual acceptance. Many lives lost in the middle of conflict, those who are trapped inside and those who try to stop it peacefully. Dag Hammarskjöld died in the middle of his pursue of peaceful Africa. Africa had nothing to do for him, yet he cares deeply about them and risk his life as middle man in peace negotiation. Freedom didn't come cheap. A fight for freedom of African American had come to a civil war. Not only Africans fight for their freedom. The united army was also consist of the Whites who fight for them. The past generations has fought for freedom from oppressive colonial rule which does not come without blood (maybe doesn't applies to Singapore but it does in many others). We studied history to honour their sacrifices for the current society.
History is also studied to know more of our roots. It is much written in history about the exploration and migration of human. After living for many generations on the new land, we tend to forget of our identity, culture and tradition of our ancestors and where we come from. In today's society, many overseas Chinese especially those living as the minority had slowly suffering from illiteracy of their own language and ignorant of the culture and traditions. Introduction of history of migration will obviously helps to ignite more awareness among this people and eventually lead to more interest in studying the culture and tradition. It will be disrespectful to disregard our ancestors by not knowing them. Studying history let us knows from which part of the world our ancestor come from provided we at least knew some customs and tradition of our ancestors from our parents or grandparents.
History is important as we can learn from the success and mistakes of the previous leaders. Rise and fall of a great leader ought to be studied as it gives clear indication of their successful and bad policies. Li Shimin (Tang Taizong) trying hard not to abuse his power by allowing his officers to criticise him, using Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty as negative example which proved to be instrumental as his ministers tries to stop him whenever he made bad policy, such as when he decide to conscript all able bodied man aged 18 and above. His minister stopped him as it would lead to lack of food since not enough manpower to manage the farms. Kublai Khan practiced tolerance and tried as much as he can to employ non-Mongolian in state affairs, balancing imperial and local interest so that they won't feel discriminated and not represented, much to what needed in modern society to avoid ethno-religious conflict. The rise of Hitler reminded the world not to be overly oppressive to defeated nation as it could lead to over nationalistic leaders who wants to reshape the country to what it was before through militaristic effort, leading to another war. The nightmare of WWII reminded us not to fight another war. The terror reminded the world not to fight another war, as what evidenced by the cold war whereby the the tension horrified the world of possible nuclear warfare.Therefore, history is important as we can learn from the past what kind of outcome an action will bring by studying the leaders.
Most historical records written by a country is more than often biased against their enemy, making it inaccurate and useless to be studied. The Cold War is an example. Records written by American historian (The Orthodox) heavily criticize USSR for causing The Cold War, depicting them as the evil. It is not until Gorbachev of USSR declassified USSR's historical archives the world realised that the Cold War was a mutual mistrust between both states (Post Revisionist). Even though historical records are biased, there are still other sources depicting the same event giving the ability for cross-referencing thus the fact could be drawn. However, when there is no other sources, history serve little or less value as the reliability to explain past events is biased and one sided. Thus, even though many historical records are biased it is still useful provided we had another source for cross referencing, reducing the bias.
History is still useful in this modern society as it is what shaped us now. It might be biased but with cross-referencing we can reduce it. Uncovering the truth of the past. Historical documents let us to understand the perception of people of the past, allowing us not to repeat their wrong decision. Without history, we might not know who we are, the reason we are here and why the world is shaped this way now. Howard Zinn, an American historian once said "If you don’t know history, it’s as if you were born yesterday. If you were born yesterday, then any leader can tell you anything." Therefore history is very important.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
If it is possible prove it!
I have been thinking for quite a while, what is the difference between impossible and possible? Many answer come to mind. Ideals, practicality, evidence, calculations and recognition.
The idea of aeroplane come to my mind. The aeroplane was invented by Wright Brothers. At that time the general public consider them as lunatic for doing what Lord Kelvin cited as impossible (Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible - Lord Kelvin.) however in the end they manage to prove it and the concept was widely accepted in USA.
Not only Aeroplane but also the steam locomotive, something that we consider old fashioned. The idea of it come from Richard Trevithick a British Engineer who used Watt's steam engine as the main concept of the locomotive. Hundreds of people laugh at him for his ridiculous idea about this mechanical horse (at that time transportation is still powered by horse). He fought hard despite so many failure he face. He have not seen a single success in building this mechanical horse, but his hard work inspire his son to took over the dream and in the end his grandson manage to build the world's first perfect locomotive.
The idea of cold fusion had been a laughing stock of many physicist but does the idea really practical and applicable? We don't know yet. Martin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons claimed its possibility but same experiments done by other research centres could not produce the same result. What we can conclude is that it need to be explored more, not necessarily impossible since there is no evidence to prove it's impossibility (they can do it multiple times, why the others can't? Is it a hoax, or is it a conspiracy? The public is split in believing it or not.)
I guess that it is just a matter of perception whether things are impossible or not. However the general public might see something that sounds absurd as impossibility unless you can prove it. The field of science and its application had so many aspect to be explored. There is no fixed law in science, it always had some exception. Let's take a look at the idea of teleportation. It went against Newton's Law but quantum physics had shown its possibility. Scientist manage to teleport a block of Rubidium under BEC (Bose-Einstein Condensation).
I guess that many of us know about Ludwig Van Beethoven. He still works as musician despite his diminishing hearing. It was really a tough time for him, something that most of us see as impossible but he had shown us that it is possible. It sounds as absurd as the sky collapsing but he manage to do it.
It is just a matter of perception whether something is impossible or not. If we think that it is possible, stick to the ideals and works hard to show the world that it is possible. We might not finish it in our lifetime like what Trevithick demonstrated but it was already and achievement to give light to an idea considered as impossible. Opening the eyes of the public that the idea is possible. An idea that is not recognised by the public will remain impossible unless it is proven to be possible.
The idea of aeroplane come to my mind. The aeroplane was invented by Wright Brothers. At that time the general public consider them as lunatic for doing what Lord Kelvin cited as impossible (Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible - Lord Kelvin.) however in the end they manage to prove it and the concept was widely accepted in USA.
Not only Aeroplane but also the steam locomotive, something that we consider old fashioned. The idea of it come from Richard Trevithick a British Engineer who used Watt's steam engine as the main concept of the locomotive. Hundreds of people laugh at him for his ridiculous idea about this mechanical horse (at that time transportation is still powered by horse). He fought hard despite so many failure he face. He have not seen a single success in building this mechanical horse, but his hard work inspire his son to took over the dream and in the end his grandson manage to build the world's first perfect locomotive.
The idea of cold fusion had been a laughing stock of many physicist but does the idea really practical and applicable? We don't know yet. Martin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons claimed its possibility but same experiments done by other research centres could not produce the same result. What we can conclude is that it need to be explored more, not necessarily impossible since there is no evidence to prove it's impossibility (they can do it multiple times, why the others can't? Is it a hoax, or is it a conspiracy? The public is split in believing it or not.)
I guess that it is just a matter of perception whether things are impossible or not. However the general public might see something that sounds absurd as impossibility unless you can prove it. The field of science and its application had so many aspect to be explored. There is no fixed law in science, it always had some exception. Let's take a look at the idea of teleportation. It went against Newton's Law but quantum physics had shown its possibility. Scientist manage to teleport a block of Rubidium under BEC (Bose-Einstein Condensation).
I guess that many of us know about Ludwig Van Beethoven. He still works as musician despite his diminishing hearing. It was really a tough time for him, something that most of us see as impossible but he had shown us that it is possible. It sounds as absurd as the sky collapsing but he manage to do it.
It is just a matter of perception whether something is impossible or not. If we think that it is possible, stick to the ideals and works hard to show the world that it is possible. We might not finish it in our lifetime like what Trevithick demonstrated but it was already and achievement to give light to an idea considered as impossible. Opening the eyes of the public that the idea is possible. An idea that is not recognised by the public will remain impossible unless it is proven to be possible.
Adobe Illustrator is not easy to use
Just installed it and tried using it. It was not as simple as I think, where is the pencil tool?
Friday, August 7, 2009
IT WAS A PITA TO BE IN SCHOOL TODAY
Yes, seriously it was a PITA. Wake up early just to be welcomed by 1 hour of wastage of time and 2 our of formal lesson. Too short to be called school day. Oh yah after our Physics lesson finished, I kill time with Abe by rearranging the score of だんご大家族 (Dango Daikazoku) to scientific form. Quite tedious but we decide to do it for the vocal first. The score was written in A-flat major/f-minor (not very sure which one, I will ask someone later.)
CO BBQ was fun. I was the first senior to get there. I took some photo of the course of event and recorded the ceremony process. Since a lot senior did not come, including some of the ExCo, they had to be represented by other member. It was one of the best BBQ I ever had, I wouldn't ask for more. I really appreciate the gifts from the juniors, it was really a surprise. We did discover some lovey-dovey couple, partying till late midnight (lucky that Clement want to fetch me). I'll upload the picture and video later....
~Ciao, still have my S&E Club, I wonder whether they will bother to organize step down ceremony. We didn't have one last year.
CO BBQ was fun. I was the first senior to get there. I took some photo of the course of event and recorded the ceremony process. Since a lot senior did not come, including some of the ExCo, they had to be represented by other member. It was one of the best BBQ I ever had, I wouldn't ask for more. I really appreciate the gifts from the juniors, it was really a surprise. We did discover some lovey-dovey couple, partying till late midnight (lucky that Clement want to fetch me). I'll upload the picture and video later....
~Ciao, still have my S&E Club, I wonder whether they will bother to organize step down ceremony. We didn't have one last year.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Well, there are so much to write today.
Yesterday I showed the NCT paper to Mr Yeo and tell him about the capacitor question. He tell us something surprising. The paper standard is much higher than A level, it had some H3 question. Today something funny happened. Our timetable is changed without our knowledge. We suppose to have Physics lesson before History lecture. Some of us ended up not attending the lesson and had to arrange "make up lesson" tomorrow. During the break before Chemistry STAR we did something that could be considered retarded. Pikachu photo taking. Don't ask me why the hell we had a Pikachu here, the story will be damn long. I'll upload the photos if I had the time later. We tried to do the IJC paper. It was tough as hell....
See, even Pikachu does mug.
See, even Pikachu does mug.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Brick Thieves Die Horribly as Building Collapses
A pair of ladies who had been stealing bricks from a building were mortally surprised when the building fell on top of them, killing them and crushing a further 13 as it toppled into a neighbouring restaurant.
The thieves, apparently a group of five farmers who had migrated into the city of Liuzhou in China’s southern Guangxi province, had turned to stealing bricks from a derelict building nearby, digging into its walls to extract the bricks for sale.
However, it appears that they stole one too many bricks, for the entire building suddenly collapsed, toppling onto a neighbouring restaurant and crushing 13 of its patrons horribly, though they escaped death.
The brick thieves were not so lucky – firemen picking through the rubble discovered the crushed remains of two women in what was once the building. What happened to the rest of the group is not clear.
Copy pasted from Sankaku.
NCT was #@%$^%
Honestly, I dunno how to describe this. The Physics paper stunned me. The worst MCQ paper ever. The capacitor question stunned me. It wasn't in our H2 Syllabus (please correct me if I'm wrong). The dynamics questions were not easy. Overall it was much harder than all the prelims and A Level questions I have tried. The Chemistry paper was much easier than I expected. There is a lot of mole concept question but little of organics, but there is something strange in the questions. All the question that involve molar volume make me cringe because there is no answer in the MCQ. Reverse engineering shows that instead of using 24 as molar volume, 24.4 should be deployed. What the... Overall it was "easy". Get what I mean?
Thursday, July 30, 2009
BERSERK MODE ON!!!
Honestly I'm not fully prepared for the NCT yet and time is really drawing near. I have abandoned the statistics poster since no one in the group bother to do it. Meetings that had been carefully organized so that everyone could attend had went to the astray since some of us was incredibly busy with remedial that was decided at the last minute. The entry deadline is tomorrow, there is no way we can finish it.
My preparedness for NCT was really terrible now, I have not finish Physical Chemistry, let alone organics. For Physics I need to re-read some more complicated chapter like dynamics, EMI and Quantum. Condition for Physics should be better since I did some question from the prelims paper.
~Ciao, time to hit the book till time to drop.
My preparedness for NCT was really terrible now, I have not finish Physical Chemistry, let alone organics. For Physics I need to re-read some more complicated chapter like dynamics, EMI and Quantum. Condition for Physics should be better since I did some question from the prelims paper.
~Ciao, time to hit the book till time to drop.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Never give in — never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.
~Speech given at Harrow School, Harrow, England, October 29, 1941. Quoted in Churchill by Himself: The Definitive Collection of Quotations, ed. Langworth, PublicAffairs, 2008, p. 23, ISBN 1586486381
~Speech given at Harrow School, Harrow, England, October 29, 1941. Quoted in Churchill by Himself: The Definitive Collection of Quotations, ed. Langworth, PublicAffairs, 2008, p. 23, ISBN 1586486381
A short Story
Once upon a time,there was a teacher who taught at a top-notch school,with top-notch students.
One day,while she was traveling,her carriage knocked down a young boy who just happened to pass by the road.The young boy looked ragged.He was dressed in rags,looked dirty,so much that no one would even look at him.When she got out of her carriage to survey the boy's situation,she saw that the ragged young boy was clutching a package,tightly wrapped in rags,as though bound by tight ropes,to his chest.The boy quickly recovered after falling,and was dusting himself with his spare hand when the teacher appeared.Alarmed by the fact that the boy was still able to stand up after being run over by a carriage,the teacher asked.'What was it that was so precious that you have to risk your life to protect it?'
The boy replied:'It is hope,Miss.When I was down and out,a person never gave up on me,even when the others have already long done so.I may not be rich,or smart,or even comparable to the rest of other people,but there is one thing.Within this bundle here is hope.As long as I continue to live,I will never let go of this hope,no matter what it takes.This is the hope that my teacher and some of my friends gave me.When everyone,myself included,thought that I would never make it,not now,not ever,my teacher and friends never gave up on me.They encouraged me,and supported me.At first,I thought that all their effort was useless,but it touched me.They saved me.Now,I will not disappoint them.I may disappoint others,but not them,and not my family.This bundle is this important.'
And with that reply,he went off,leaving behind the shocked teacher.
Courtesy to Lewis, STOLEN from class blog....
One day,while she was traveling,her carriage knocked down a young boy who just happened to pass by the road.The young boy looked ragged.He was dressed in rags,looked dirty,so much that no one would even look at him.When she got out of her carriage to survey the boy's situation,she saw that the ragged young boy was clutching a package,tightly wrapped in rags,as though bound by tight ropes,to his chest.The boy quickly recovered after falling,and was dusting himself with his spare hand when the teacher appeared.Alarmed by the fact that the boy was still able to stand up after being run over by a carriage,the teacher asked.'What was it that was so precious that you have to risk your life to protect it?'
The boy replied:'It is hope,Miss.When I was down and out,a person never gave up on me,even when the others have already long done so.I may not be rich,or smart,or even comparable to the rest of other people,but there is one thing.Within this bundle here is hope.As long as I continue to live,I will never let go of this hope,no matter what it takes.This is the hope that my teacher and some of my friends gave me.When everyone,myself included,thought that I would never make it,not now,not ever,my teacher and friends never gave up on me.They encouraged me,and supported me.At first,I thought that all their effort was useless,but it touched me.They saved me.Now,I will not disappoint them.I may disappoint others,but not them,and not my family.This bundle is this important.'
And with that reply,he went off,leaving behind the shocked teacher.
Courtesy to Lewis, STOLEN from class blog....
Friday, July 24, 2009
Kinda disturbing, but funny
Two Russian tourists paid a very high price for breaking the American law which bans sex with porcupines.
Staying in Florida on vacation, two Russians from Saint Petersburg decided to check whether they are able to circumvent such an unusual law or not.
Consequences appeared to be very sad. The poor fellows had to take needles from their genitals and treat inflammation for several months.
Having arrived in the USA, the Russians were given the book about the craziest American laws. For example, in Colombia sex - other than in a missionary position - is forbidden; in Kentucky it is forbidden to bring a lion to a movie theater; in Florida it is strictly forbidden to have sex with porcupines!
As it is known, forbidden fruit is always sweet, especially for Russians.
Doctors at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center made the following diagnosis: 'needles of a porcupine in genitals'.
At first 32-year-old Anton and 30-year-old Eugenie had a good laugh at the senseless law written by local authorities. And then, after helping themselves with whisky, they decided to break this funny law.
“We came here to the USA to have fun!” said Anton and the two friends started their searches for the so called American "hedgehog". It took them less than an hour to find the animal.
With victorious shouts the drunken friends dropped their pants and started making unambiguous movements with their hips. Having sobered up the following morning the friends realized that they need medical help. So the animal-lovers had to go from the airport straight to hospital, Life.Ru reports.
Doctors of well-known medical center Cedars-Sinai diagnosed the case as ‘needles of a porcupine in genitals’.
“The most positive thing about the situation is that the Russian tourists did not have to stand trial in Florida. They left the state just in time,” said the doctors at the medical center.
Now American laws do not seem so funny to Anton and Eugenie. After returning to Moscow they had to get acquainted with Russian urologists: porcupine needles caused very strong inflammation.
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