An evolutionary flaw

I understand that people find large eyes cute because cuteness is about the only thing keeping us from abandoning stinky loud babies. However, why does this large eye induced cuteness reaction occur even with other mammals. I remember when I was younger, I saw my cat sitting on the carpet in dim light. Its pupils were dilated and this made the eyes look really big. Of course, I thought the cat looked cute so I went to pet it. Bad decision and I still have the faint scar to prove it. It appears that our evolutionary drive to protect cute things extends to other mammals as well, especially their young. Of course, approaching wild animals especially young animals is a bad idea since their parents also find them cute and will do anything possible to protect this cuteness. I wonder how many stupid people (who feed baby bears or climb over zoo fences) will have too die before humans evolve to a point where they are unengaged by babies of other mammal species? Unfortunately for us, natural selection takes a long time to work.

Twilight = emotional porn

Just a note: the term emotional porn as it relates to the Twilight phenomenon is not of my invention but I think it is a good descriptor of the series. Also, I do not hate Twilight or the people who like Twilight. I have in fact even watched the first movie (although this was mostly due to our free movie channel trial subscription for the month).

You might think that porn is a mighty strong word for this especially since there is no explicit nudity (except for the shirtless guys but that seems to be acceptable in our society, especially if they have a six pack); however, if you consider the definition of porn then it might make a little more sense. In a general sense, porn is the use of media to depict explicit imagery for the purposes of arousal. Oftentimes, an pornographic film involves ridiculous scenarios in which an average male (seeing as how most porn is targeted to the make audience) is seduced by one or several attractive females and proceed to have a ridiculously long period of "love making" with a little bit of plot sprinkled in to make things interesting. If you consider that this arousal does not specifically have be sexual, then Twilight and especially New Moon fit into this definition. Lets see, the plot for New Moon is as follows: An average girl (instead of a guy) is in a ridiculous scenario (where there are vampires and werewolves) and is seduced by two attractive (apparently) men/vampire/werewolf and then proceed to have a ridiculously long period of "who will she choose" with a little bit of plot sprinked in to make things interesting. This comparison is not intended to make Twilight seem dirty or give it a negative connotation but it will be interesting to see how girls who watch these movies multiple times are perceived by the general public. There will probably be some girls who become addicted to watching "emotional porn" just like some men become addicted to sexually explicit pornography. In which case, I wonder if the boysfriends of these girls will become jeolous and confront them about their addiction?

Why grown ups act like kids sometimes

There have recently been some startling incidents involving adults acting immature. Let me list a few notable ones:
1. Serena Williams lost a semifinal match at the US open because she threatened to "shove this f**king ball down the (linesperson's) throat" after she was called for a foot fault on her serve.

2. A congressman yelled liar during the president's speech to the congress regarding healthcare which was televised across the US.

3. Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the MMVAs and embarassed her by claiming that Beyonce's video was the best of all time.

Now these three cases all involved relatively famous people but immature behaviour in adults happens all the time. Have you ever seen what happens inside parliament especially in Asia? Do your parents ever drive through a yellow light? A red light? How do you think they would do in a road test that we have to take now based on their regular driving patterns.

It seems our society's notion of "grown up" refers more to the physical than to the personality and values. Afterall, humans like to make quick judgments about people and how difficult would it be if you had to judge someone's behaviour before determining if they were "grown up". Sure, parents will say "do as I say and not as I do" or "your generation will be better". Well, how many generations have we gone through now? I don't see much improving going on. Maybe I'm a cynic but the only plausible resolution (in my lifetime) to this problem would be to lower your expectations for "grown up" behaviour. Afterall, we are only human.

A note on driver road tests

I recently got my N which for those not in BC means that I can now drive by myself. To get the N designation, you have to pass a drivers road test where a person tags along on a ride for 45 minutes, asks you to do basic driving maneuvers and then grades you on how well you do these maneuvers. However, having another person (a stranger) beside you while you are driving can be intimidating. This is especially true if you notice the other person marking down notes which almost always means you are that much closer to failing. Is it a coincidence that the time I passed the road test, the female tester hugged the clipboard to her chest and instead looked at her nails for most of the time? Instead of having a person sitting right next to you, I suggest they switch to some sort of automated voice system. At the beginning of the test, a little box would be attached to the passenger side airbag and turned on. It would have a GPS and 360 degree cameras on it and would also be programmed to instruct the testee on their next move i.e. turn left/right or parallel park. A person could then sit back at testing headquarters and moniter the video feeds and data from the automated system. The only problem would be when the testee is in serious danger and needs to be stopped from further endangering him/herself and others. Since I'm done with the road test for a while, it would be fun to see them switch to the Chinese system of road tests where you are tested in a controlled environment called a driving park. The instructor still sits beside you but they are even more intimidating since they will try to trick you into doing illegal behaviours to simulate peer pressure (i.e. yelling stop in an area where it is illegal to do so).

Vending machines are trying to steal all our money

I just moved into residence yesturday. Of course, that mean's I left some important supplies at home including my water bottle. To prevent dehydration, I decided to purchase some bottled water from a vending machine. The first vending machine I came to did not take coins. NO COINS. Only credit card or 5 and 10 dollar bills. Not that I didn't have 5 or 10 dollar bills but aren't vending machines notorious for malfunctioning and not producing change or the chosen product. Perhaps this is a sterotype (I don't want you to think I'm a hater of machines) but why are they suddenly taking larger denomenations. Certainly no drink would ever come to such a ridiculous price (Of course, companies could be preparing for the future when water becomes a scarce commoditiy). Needless to say, I didn't purchase anything from this particular vending machine. The next vending machine I went to did take coins and I happily placed the dollar seventy-five into the slot. I then pressed the numbers 55 only to see a confirmation come up for my choice of beverage 52. Luckily this was still bottled water. When the water came out, it was room temperature although it guaranteed a cold refreshing drink. I might be thinking too much into it but something makes me feel like vending machines don't like me anymore.

Things I think in the heat

1. Maybe the constant heat wave would be good motivation for some people to cut down on green house emmissions. Nothing like unbearable heat for an extended period of time to really impress upon people the validity of global warming. Then again, people might just wait out the heat by blasting their airconditioner to max where ever they are.

2. Mighty good time for a solar eclipse, eh? Those lucky Asian bastards.

3. Someone should invent some device to keep your car cool while it's outside in the sun (those infommercial ones don't count).

4. If I were a plant right now, all would be well. Light reactions, anyone?

5. It's hard to think in the heat (notice how my thoughts are getting shorter)

6. How does my cat survive with a fur coat on all the time? Maybe I should trim it down.

That's not my cat by the way. I wouldn't be that cruel.

7. Someone should make a cold treat that doesn't make you feel guilty when you eat it in large quantities (I don't care so much about becoming fat as say becoming unhealthy which can happen to anyone)

8. I saw some bikers in white spandex (or some other type of skin tight clothing) riding along the highway. They sure are lucky their sponsers decided to go with a white as opposed to a black jersey.

9. Manufacturers of solar panels must be cursing under their breath on days like these. Not enough sunny days in Vancouver to warrant the installation? Here are your @#$%^&$* sunny days. Go shove it up your $#@%&.

Heirs to the throne?

Congradulations to Roger and Mirka Federer on the birth of their twin girls. Due to their father's lofty achievements, the girls already have expectations of becoming great tennis players. Most of these expectations are expressed in a joking tone like Andy Roddick's twitter comment: "Introducing the 2029-2040 Wimbledon women's champions, the Federer girls..". Afterall, they are just a day old (or young might be more appropriate). On the other hand, there are already some gambling sites (mostly in the UK) who have already put wagers and odds on the girls winning Wimbledon before their 25th birthdays (1-100 if you wanted to know).

This gets me to the much broader topic of children following in their parent's footsteps. Among athletes and celebrities, this trend seems quite common (although it's human nature to notice trends, even amongst an ocean of counterexamples). For example: Kirk and Michael Douglas (actors), Martin and Charlie Sheen (actors), Bobby and Brett Hull (hockey), Archie and Peyton Manning (football),Ken Griffy Sr and Jr (baseball), Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson (actresses), and finally it pains me to say this but Billy Rae and Miley Cyrus (singers/actors, sort of).

Maybe the reason this trend doesn't extend so much to real life is the fact that athletes and celebrities are famous for physical attributes. Athletes needing to have athletic physiques while celebrities need to have good looks. These qualities are a lot easier to transfer (well, not as easy as money) than say intrapersonal skills or knowledge. So while most of us are born with a blank slate, some of these famous children have genes that are important in their parent's careers. Although, there are still some family businesses going on in the world. Also, culture has a lot to do with this. In an individualistic society, children are supposed to create their own path but in collectivist society, children are probably more inclined to follow their parent's line of work.

In my case, does my wanting to become a pharamicist have anything to do with my mom being a nurse? Probably. I also know of people who study science and who have parents who also study science. Coincidence? Maybe, but not likely. We are all shaped in some form by our parents. In some cases, familiarity breeds a form of contempt. But in other cases, we admire the work and achievements of our parents and aspire to be like them.

No wonder my TAs were so mediocre

Turns out it's easier than you think to be a TA (teaching assistant). You just have to have taken the course. Well at least that is what was implied in an email from the UBC math department. While I did well in first year math, I assumed a larger math resume was required before imparting ones knowledge onto the next generation of number crunchers. Then again, it is just first year math for biology students so how hard could it be? There really wasn't any mention of previous experience with tutoring students, volunteer experience or anything like that. The only supplemental resource they asked for was my previous year's grade summary. If grades are the major determining factor, I might very well be selected to become a TA (I am considering applying). This would not be great for the students I help because I am an antisocial person who strives on answers rather than explanations. I might know how to do something but it will be some time before I can properly explain it to some one else so that they understand. Also , what if someone comes up with a question I can't answer? Imagine how long that awkward silence could go on for. All my calculus knowledge is perspiring out of me as we speak. But of course there are benefits to a job like this such as the pay and the experience (something like this could help you get hired at UBC for other jobs in the future). While I'm weighing the pros and the cons, I might as well start brushing up on my differentiation and my integration techniques. It also probably won't hurt to develop a thick Chinese accent.

Biopics that should be made but probably won't

Note: When I talk about movies, I mean major motion pictures and not documentaries or miniseries.

Hitler: What did this guy ever do to deserve..oh ya. There have been many portrayals of Nazi Germany and and concentration camps, some with even brief glimpses of Hitler himself (Valkyrie being the most recent). But what about a movie about Hitler's life (and not the part where he kills the Jews because everybody knows about that). Sure the guy did some bad stuff but he was still human was he not? It's hard to imagine Hitler at age 9 being just absolutley evil. Didn't he want to be a painter? The movie could revolve around his adolescence because I'm sure few people know what that was like.
Why this probably won't happen: Hollywood loves a villain and Hitler is perfect for that. Also, it turns out that a lot of potential directors and actors in Hollywood who happen to be Jewish and they might not fall in love with the idea (i.e. Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, Natalie Portman, Adrien Brody, Sean Penn). Artists will pursue art for arts sake but there are moral boundaries some will not cross.

Napolean: Apparently Stanley Kubrick (director of 2001: A Space Odyssey) wanted to make a sweeping epic about Napolean but the film was stopped because the budget was too large (ironic that anything associated with Napolean was too large). This would be a great movie because it would have lots of historical fight scenes, lots of dialogue in French accents and lots of historically correct costumes including leotard-esque pantaloons for the gents.
Why this probably won't happen: Americans/Canadians don't have a particularily strong appreciation for French history. Certainly not enough to sit in a theatre for over 2 and a half hours watching a short Frenchman conquer Europe.
By the way, does anyone else think Gary Bettman looks like Napolean?

Michaelangelo/Leonardo da Vinci: Either of these great artists would make great subjects for major motion pictures. With Michaelangelo, you could focus on David and the Sistine Chapel and with Leonardo da Vinci you could focus on his inventions and the Mona Lisa, the Last Supper etc.
Why this probably won`t happen: Watching someone paint might be as boring as watching paint dry (technically, you are watching paint dry).

Albert Einstein: You`d think Hollywood would pounce on the story of a young post office clerk who secretly creates a theory that changed science forever (kind of like in Good Will Hunting but with actual accomplishments). Add to this the fact that he is one of the most recognizable characters of the 20th century, with the flowing hair and the crazy attitude, and it`s a shock someone hasn`t won an oscar yet for portraying him in a movie.
Why this probably won`t happen: Americans or Canadians (me included) just aren't capable of following along with such complex theories (E=mc^2 is one thing but what about the theory of relativity?). It's not like you can just skip through his theories like they did in a Beautiful Mind because they were such a big part of his story.

By the way, there are several actual biopics being developed in Hollywood as we speak. Look forward to seeing Charles Darwin, Earnest Hemingway, Martin Luthor King, Frank Sinatra, Abraham Lincoln on a screen near you. (interesting that they are mostly Americans while the biopics I want are mostly of Europeans eh?)

The Lord of the Strings: The career (up to this point) of Roger Federer

The title of this post is clearly inspired (if not in a cringe inducing way) by the J.R.R. Tolkien masterpiece of three volumes. While this may be corny enough, like the infomercials always say "But there's more!" I have split up the career of Roger Federer into three parts based on the three volumes of the story.

Part 1: The Mellowship of the King (I know mellowship isn't a word. Just play along)

As you may or may not know, Roger was once a very vociferous and short-tempered individual. There was many a match when yelling at the umpire, throwing the racket and cursing could be observed from Federer's side of the court. The trantrum throwing brat has now been replaced by a metrosexual man who is often seen crying after a big match (win or loss) and seen carrying a man purse (Not sure what he puts in there because he has a bag for rackets as well). This may present an image problem of its own but on the court, Roger has become a quite and graceful athlete. To be honest, Federer would probably be more well received in North America if he did still have some of that John McEnroe complex.

Part 2: The Two Towers (This is exactly the same as the title of the book which means I am now plagiarizing)

From 2004-2007 Federer was nearly impossible to beat. Then came along a young Spaniard who made his way into the elite company of Federer (Nadal was there from 2004-2007 but didn`t really make a breakthrough on any surface besides clay). These two towering figures in men`s tennis (you get the reference now) had some epic battles in their rivalry including the 2007 and 2008 Wimbledon finals, the latter being hailed as the greatest match ever played. Then they played another epic match in the 2009 Australian Open. Nadal, having won the last three meetings in a grand slam final with Federer, wrangled the number one ranking from Roger`s grasp and began forging his own legacy. Most people started writing off Federer as a great athlete who`s career was starting to go down hill. Some thought he would never win another grand slam.

Part 3: The Return of the King (More plagiarizing. I guess there's no harm now.)

Several months into 2009 and Federer had still not won a title at any event. Part of this was due to a back injury that plagued him starting from the end of the 2008 season. The other part was probably due to a mental block of losing his invincibility on the tennis court. At the same time, Rafael Nadal was winning every title in the clay court season and poised to take another at the Madrid Masters. That was until (as a shock to most of the tennis world) Federer reached the final and beat Nadal on clay in straight sets (a feat reminiscent to beating Michael Phelps in the pool). This provided a little more drama going into the French Open but most still thought Nadal was a lock to take his fifth title in a row at Roland Garros. Everything seemed to be going as planned until a tall Swede came along and ousted Nadal in 4 sets, setting the table for Federer`s first ever French Open victory. Like Pete Sampras, Federer up to that point was a great player but one who had never won a grand slam on clay. With his victory, Roger finally got the monkey (we`re talking bigfoot size) off his back. Everything was set for Roger to win his 15th grandslam and claim the most prestigious record in tennis at the Championships Wimbledon. The only man who bothered to stand in his way happened to be Andy Roddick (a man who probably would have been King had Roger not pulled his racket out of the anvil. A reference to King Arthur). After an awkward 4 hours and 18 minutes (the match reminded me of two people trying to walk through a narrow tunnel only to meet at the middle and then trying to squeeze past each other to get to their desired destinations). In the end, it was Andy who begrudgingly let Roger walk through the tunnel first, into the bright forever of tennis immortality. Now Roger has regained his number one ranking and is playing with a lot of confidence. It seems his career is far from over and who knows, maybe a lost manuscript of J.R.R. Tolkien's fourth volume of the great story will be found someday.

P.S. Sorry to the readers who don't know much about tennis. In my opinion, it is a great sport to watch and an even better one to play.

My adventure in China part 1 more than what ever it was before

Most adventures have plot twists that make the story more interesting. Unfortunately, what is more interesting for the viewer/reader is not always more interesting for the protagonist (like in the sixth sense when Bruce Willis finds out he's actually dead. What a bummer.) Anyway, it just so happens that my adventure in China also had an interesting plot twist. Most of you probably know the short version but now I will tell you the whole story.

So before I begin, let me give a brief note for context. China has been screwed over lately by some pretty nasty epidemics i.e. avian flu, SARS etc. So understandably, when this whole swine flu thing broke out, the Chinese government freaked out and over reacted. Everyday, you could expect the top headline of the news to report the latest tallies of infected patients around the world. Anyway, at the time China didn't have any cases of H1N1 flu so if I had been living there for more than a week, it would have been all right. It just so happened that I was in China for the seventh day, that I had come from a country with numerous reported infections and my mom was a nurse who worked in a hospital with collegues who had just returned from Mexico on vacation. The evidence for infection were pretty convincing now that I think about it but hindsight is 20/20 as they say.

So anyway, I got a fever. No other symptoms except the fever. My parents (rightlyfully on edge) took me to the local hospital where they had just established a fever ward and where doctors had recently had a meeting on the new H1N1 flu. At first they laughed at us when we went in but after we told our story, they gave us face masks and went in the back room. When they came back out they were dressed in blue hazmat suits with face masks and many layers of latex. You wouldn't understand how many times we had to answer basic questions like our names, where we were from etc. but I suppose it was important to be thorough. When an ambulance came to take us to an infectious diseases hospital, we went out of the small room and were greeted by a throng of hospital employees, reporters and cameras. This was probably the closest I would ever come to feeling like a celebrity. Sad, isn't it.

My first ride in an ambulance wasn't particularily eventful although I did get real accustomed to the rhythm of the siren (it was a long ride). I'm not sure if it was the ambulance or the roads but the ride was also very bumpy (bumpy enough to send you flying an inch off your seat). My mom noted that if you didn't have a broken bone before you got to the hospital, you probably would have one by the time you got there.

It turns out the infectious disease hospital was in a very secluded area (makes sense). They treated many types of patients, most worse off than me, but the place seemed very empty for some reason. Anyway, once we got to our isolation rooms, we were asked the same questions as before but by a different group of people. There was a bed, concrete floors, a tv with really bad reception (it was secluded) and a washroom in complete disrepair (apparently, the isolation units hadn't been used in a long time). That night, I was given an IV of something that roughly translates to poison reducer but who was I to argue with their methods. That night, I couldn't get much sleep. This was a result of 2 things. First, while I was in a locked room no where near the outside, some mosquitos got in and feasted on my arms. I suppose they honed in one the heat I was radiating. Besides the discomfort, it is also disconcerting to realize that I was in an infectious disease hospital with HIV and tuberculosis patients, some of whom could have easily been the mosquito's previous meal. Second, it was necessary to report my temperature every four hours. When the time was right, I was awakened with a bell that play Fur Elise. As you know, classical music is very calming.

Now, if I had know I would be alive and well in Canada today blogging from my computer, then I would have asked my parents to get our camera so I could get some establishing shots of the hospital/room. I did, however, have the common sense to record my wounds before they were completely healed and forgotten. The top picture is of some of the mosquito bites I got. The second is a picture of the puncture marks left by the IV needles inserted daily into my hand. Looks like I got bitten by a snake doesn't it?

So anyway, long story short (well, it's already a long story so just bare with me a couple more sentences) we stayed at the hospital for a few more days out of precaution. They supplied us with three meals a day and any other reasonable accomadations (and it was all free too. Can you believe it? Well, about as free as a person can be in China. Ha, communist joke!). Blood and saliva tests confirmed that I only had a regular influenza strain. Thinking back on that time, it probably would have been pretty cool to be the first person in a whole country to get infected. That would be big news, especially in China. Imagine getting transported back to Canada in a special plane for treatment. Now that would be something to blog about. Anyway, there's always next time.

My adventure in China part whatever it is now

I will now give you an introduction to the places I went while travelling in China. For the majority of our stay, we were in Kunming a city situated in Yunnan province in Southwestern China. Suprisingly, the infrastructure was quite advanced for a city in China not named Beijing or Shanghai. I suppose this is partly due to the large tourist industry from both within and outside China. Now for some random thoughts about Kunming:

• It was hot
• It was really hot!
• For some reason, Wentworth Miller (the actor who plays Michael Scofield on Prison Break) is some kind of model extraordinare in Kunming. I saw him on billboards all over the city promoting some sort of new housing development(I`m guessing). I didn`t get a picture of this but suffice to say he wore a purple shirt, carried a man purse and had CGI water splash all over him.
• There were tropical plants all over the place (because it was hot)
• The soil there was red due to Iron deposits
• Taxis were all tagged with a sticker that had a cute cartoon animal and a number. The sign on the sticker read: ``Do you think I am cute? If you do , please remember me.`` Apparently this was some way of protecting foreign visitors from being ripped off by local cab drivers
• Buses all had bus lanes and almost never merged with other traffic
• People there don`t follow traffic reguations (I`m not fully aware of the traffic reguations but I don`t need to know them to know they weren`t being followed)
• On street corners of big intersections, there were police alarms shaped like robocop. If you were in trouble, you could just press the button and get help.
• Speaking of police officers, I saw some patroling the streets on Segways (advanced indeed)
• Did I mention it was hot?

Now on to some actual specific attractions...

World Botanical Expo site in Kunming: Apparently, Kunming was host to some worldwide botanical expo. Every country set up a garden to display the special fauna and culture of their region. I didn`t see the Canada display but let's just say maple trees probably wouldn't have survived down there (because it was hot).



The Stone Forest: A pile of prehistoric rocks have never been so exciting. This practically named attraction used to be the sea floor when dinosaurs roamed the Earth but was brought up to the surface due to some tectonic movement. The park was very large and we had to use a golf cart so see all the major attractions. Along the way, the tour guide mentioned that some of the rock formations looked like people or things. I will let you decide:



The Wild Elephant Valley: Apparently, this was a triple A attraction according to the official bureau of tourism in China. Also apparently, the Chinese government grade their attractions like we grade out beef. Anyway, this was the only place you were ever going to see wild elephants in China. There were elephant performances, bird performances, and the highlight of the park is a 40 min tram ride over pristine (as pristine as an attraction can be in China) tropical rainforest.



The Birds Nest Stadium and the Watercube: Probably now one of the most popular attractions in all of China. These buildings truly are the result of some great designs and even better engineering. However, I must say that the whole experience was a little underwhelming for me because the Olympics were long over and you had to buy tickets to get inside (and there is nothing inside. Believe me, I was there). Another thing occurs to me just now. You still haven`t seen a picture of me in any of my so called adventures. For all you know, I could have made this whole trip up, taking pictures off the ever fruitful internet. However, I also want to keep this blog and my identity (what identity, ha!) private, at least to those people who don`t already know who I actually am (which is probably nobody but it`s good to keep some things mysterious like the location of Springfield). As a compromise, I will post a couple pictures with me and the Olympic stadiums blurred out enough so that those who know me will recognize me and those who don`t won`t. (All editing was done with Picasa as I was too lazy to use better software).

My Adventure in China part 3

The great thing about travelling to another country where English is not the first language but is required for the tourist industry is the lost in translation messages and signs you find. My parents didn't understand my fascination with photographing all these English signs (I guess they didn't understand the humour) but I had a great time taking them.


This isn't so much a translation error as it is a stencilling error. I understand China's becoming more progressive but I don't think they are quite there yet.


Technically, there is nothing wrong with this translation if you live in the 1960s. Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks of memorizing vocabulary instead of learning the language through immersion is that you might find yourself communicating awkwardly.


There is nothing wrong with this translation either Although I can't help thinking some subtle elegance was lost in the name of this ancient artifact.


Here, some of the Chinese artistry in communication is demonstrated. Instead of "Keep off grass" you have the use of personification in an explanation/plea as to why you should keep off the grass.


It may seem obvious that someone mistook a "d" for a "p" but isn't it also possible that what they were going for was the past tense of holding(maybe not)


I was actually quite surprised to find this butchering of the English language at a national park where thousands of foreign tourists come every year. I guess that's what happens when the person carving the sign doesn't know a word of English.


You got my attentions!!(I actually checked on Google to make sure attentions wasn't a word. It isn't in English but it is in French. If these endangered elephants go extinct, it's all your fault France/Quebec/parts of Atlantic Canada/parts of Africa/parts of the Caribbean/Maillardeville especially Maillardeville.)


I have a hard time believing 2 things about this shirt. 1: How did Nestle let this thing out of the factory (joke). 2: Someone had to have done this on purpose right?


The Chinese are really raising the bar on these "keep off the grass signs". This one was found beside the Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing. And believe me, if the grass was smiling at me when I took this picture, I was smiling right back.

Besides the hours of chuckles I got from taking and reviewing these pictures, a serious and possibly awesome idea came into my head. What if instead of making fun of these signs, like you or me, someone actually suggested appropriate changes. I'm sure the people at the attractions would be very thankful. Maybe word gets around and the Chinese government hires you to make sure all English signs in China are error free (sort of like an editor for a whole country except you would only need basic English to do it). Another bonus is that you don't even need to know Chinese to do this, not really. I also don't see why you couldn't do this in any other country where English isn't the official language. So there, another idea on how to travel the world without breaking the bank.

My Adventure in China part 2

In the last post, I introduced some of the plants and ecosystems that we encountered on our trip back to China. Now I will show you some of the animals we saw along the way (most were wild).


The above picture is of a peacock we saw in an amusement park. I actually felt bad for it because it was tied down to the bamboo post and couldn't fly away.


The above is a fresh water crab I found while walking in the tropical rainforest.


As you can see, the rarest sight in all of nature, the wild elephant butt. As you know, these pachyderms are very self conscious animals.(seriously, that was the best photo I could get)


First, no that isn't a fifth leg or some freaky mutation. Second, if you consider relative volume instead of absolute... nevermind. Third, elephants only let it hang out when they are about to go to the washroom (as I found out immediately after taking this picture)


One of several wild monkeys I saw in the rainforest. This one actually was climbing and jumping from branch to branch right above my head.

My Chinese Adventure volume 1 (or there and back again)

China may be known for its large population, cheap labor and lackluster human rights record, but one thing most people forget is that it is one of the largest and most diverse (ecosystem wise) countries in the world. One of these diverse biomes happened to be a tropical rainforest in Yunnan province in south western China. Let me start with a little photo gallery of the flora we encountered there (I'll spare the landscaped gardens as you could probably find those everywhere. Also, if you notice some pictures not focused properly, you can blame that one me as I didn't read the manual on our new camera before taking it on this trip.)


The above image is of a flower commonly found in Kunming (the capital city of Yunnan province I think)


The above image is of some very thick bamboo bushes. Notice the Asian carvings found on them. By the way, this picture was taken at a buddist monestary. Note to God: I haven't converted.


The above picture is of a papuya tree. There were many plantations in the area including mango, banana, pineapple and even rubber.


The above is a picture of a tree that looks like an elephant's head. The ever practical Chinese call it "the tree that looks like an elepant's head".


The above image is a funky looking tree. No explanation needed.


The above is one of numerous photos I took while taking a gondola ride over the rainforest. We were supposed to see wild elephants. We didn't there but we did eventually see one. Stay tuned for the picture.

Well, that's about it for the flora pictures. I will have some fauna pictures up tomorrow. If you would like to see more, I will probably post more pictures on my facebook page. If you don't know my facebook page, then I probably wouldn't want you looking at my facebook page now would I (creep.)

The pharmacy interview process

You know that part in the last post where I said you'd have to wait a few more days for the next post? Well I was wrong. I guess once you start blogging you don't go jogging (sorry, best I could you on short notice). This next part goes out to all those who are applying for pharmacy in 2010: Nice try. When you googled for information you might have found this link promising. Let me tell you, it is not IF your intentions are to get example questions. You can find plenty of those elsewhere. You may however find this helpful if you are not aware of the atmosphere or experience.

Now back to the pharmacy interview experience. First of all, it was pointless and futile to be nervous. Nevertheless, the feeling of tension in the room was palpable. Everyone basically sat in a circle staring off into the distance. When two sets of eyes met, there was an awkward moment and then resumption of the staring into the distance. When ever one of the administrators made a joke to calm us down, everyone laughed but it was clear that most of them were forced (like the laugh you make in really stressful situations just to release the tension). An interesting part of the pre interview process was the fitting of white lab coats. I suppose it was most practical to do it there but it seemed to me like a taunt at those who didn't get in but were oh so close.

The second thing I noticed was what other people wore to the interview. The interview invitation was quite cryptic in appropriate clothing so most people overdressed including myself (in my opinion. There will be no "imo" on my blog.) After the experience I think a nice dress shirt, tie, dress pants and dress shoes would have been fine. After all, it's what the interviewers wore. I shall make no such recommendations for the ladies because I won't even feign knowledge of female formal dress.

Third, the actual inteview itself was a letdown. For starters, the room was very cramped and it felt like I was financing a mortgage rather than doing an interview. For taller individuals, you may find yourself quite claustrophopic. You may also find your feet (if you are rather long limbed) knocking into the feet of the interviewer. Let's not even discuss one's emotions when this happens. Also, the interviewers seemed to lack excitement during the questioning period. I suppose this is understandable considering I was interviewed on the last day (that means over 200 people were interviewed before me. I guess they were just tired.) The one thing I will mention about questions is that they are straight forward. Nothing totally out of the blue. Aside for the questions and answers, there wasn't much interaction between myself and the interviewers. Part of that probably falls on my social awkwardness, the other part on the rigidness of the questions. The last thing I will assure you is that the 30 min or so you are in there will not feel like 30 min unless it goes really bad (I hope it doesn't). It certainly did not for me.

Lastly, onto something of interest (finally, right?). The week of my interview many famous people died. Earlier in the week, Ed Mcmahon. On the morning of my interview, Farah Fawcett. And finally, after my interview, I found out that Michael Jackson had died. This was the biggest shock to me as the first two celebrities were either old or sick but MJ might very well have been sick and we just didn't know about it. Anyway, on the way back from the interview location this didn't seem like a very good omen. Well, so much for omens as I was just accepted into pharmacy school. So I guess the most important thing for you to realize is that in the end you should just try your best and forget about the other stuff. (For those of you who like me figured their best wasn't good enough, remember that grades and extracurriculars still count for a lot.)

I'm Baaack!

It's been quite a hiatus from blogging. Part of this is due to my trip to China (where internet access was limited). Part of this was due to my working most of the time now (hooray for summer availability change!). Part of this was due (more recently) to my interview and anticipation of acceptance to the faculty of pharamcy at UBC. Well since the last reason is now officially gone (I was accepted) I can get back to what I have enjoyed doing for so long. Anticipate in the coming days a review (with pictures) of my trip to China, the pharmacy interview process from my perspective and anything else that pops into my head. Hey, I guess since I haven't blogged for so long it won't seem like anything really to have to wait a few more days right?

Update from China

Epic stuff. Saw a five-legged elephant. Was quarantined for 2 days in an infectious diseases hospital. Took a 40 min. trolley ride over a tropical rainforest. Saw a pile of rocks. Ate some stuff that should have made me sick but didn't. More later.

Get ready...

For this...



And this...



and this...
That's right, I'm going to heaven. In Chinese, its called Xishuanbanna (its actually four words but they write it like this in English) and its actually in South Eastern China (I think?...hey don't judge me, China is big). China is so big that it takes the same length of time to go from Vancouver to Beijing as it does go from Beijing to Xishuangbanna (although the second trip will be by bus). This trip will be all about sightseeing and photos and being one with nature. When I get back, expect a couple long blog posts on my adventures in the wild jungles of the motherland. Actually, I should change that to if I come back. Not to be a downer but its just not as safe in China as it is in Canada. Those peacocks you saw earlier probably carry bird flu or something. Oh well, at least I got vaccina...oh wait, I didn't. Also, when I get back I will be so out of the loop that this will be all I can talk about. Here's to hoping the Canucks are still around by the time I'm back (The hotels have free internet but we're not bringing a computer so unless I go to an internet cafe populated with Chinese Starcraft kids, there's going to be a lot of catching up to do). World, don't you dare go crazy on me while I'm gone.

How to judge if someone is good

If the technology ever gets advanced enough, someone should create a realistic simulation of what the world would be like if everyone were you. You wouldn't experience life from all their perspectives but rather everyone on the face of the Earth would look like you, have the same personality, talk like you etc. Of course each of them would have different experiences and would accomplish different things but it would be interesting to look at the global effect of such a move. For example, if everyone on the Earth were like me, I assume the Earth would be more quite. The global food shortage would probably be resolved because all the people who eat more than me (that's a lot of people) would eat the same amount as me. Fastfood chains would go out of business since I haven't eaten fast food in years. The number of cars on the road would be significantly reduced since I assume all the versions of me would be equally as incapable of passing the driving test. I guess that solves global warming too. There would probably be a lot of bad thigns that happen as well but self serving bias won't let me think of them. Also if everyone were me, how would the many versions of me reproduce? I guess that's a question for another time.

D-day

If I survive tomorrow, I well be well prepared for next week. If I don`t, I won`t need to worry about next week. Win-win situation.

This is just to see if I can actually influence what the ads are about...

banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.
banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.
banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.
banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.banana.

When you type a word that many times, if begins to seems weird.

Way to go Pearson. You are slowly alienating your customers.

"Don't do it Mastering Physics. Don't you dare..Damn it, why did you do that Mastering Physics. You're lucky you're the last Mastering Physics, Mastering Physics, because otherwise..." This was I thought as I stumbled through the last Mastering Physics(for those who don't know, this is an online homework assignment website in conjunction with our physics textbook) assignment of the year. I swear to you, I was this close to becoming the Asian version of this kid:

Scary to think about isn't it? Now what I am left to wonder is why Pearson, the company behind mastering physics and biology and chemistry and all the expensive textbooks we have to buy would do something that would alienate their small base of customers. What am I talking about? Let me explain. Pearson products are targeted to University students. University students are generally pretty smart. Smart kids generally like to be right. Pearson makes up questions on topics we haven't learned about and then makes them into multiple choice questions where if you make the wrong choice, you get 0 on the question. That doesn't exactly jive with the philosophy of a smart kid who always wants to be right. No, in fact, that throws the wrongness in that kid's face and says: "Ha, you should have known better. Now your physics mark will suffer."You might argue that we learn from our mistakes, and yes I did learn from this unfortunate experience. I have learned to detest Pearson and all its products, especially Mastering Physics. Luckily for me, I probably will never take another physics course again. If there is something called Mastering Pharmacy, so help me God...

P.S. The "smart kid" I mentioned wasn't me. Just smart kids in general.

Spot the big kitty

Forget asteroids, technology will be the downfall of humankind

And I don't mean robots/androids on a homocidal streak. I'm talking about normal everyday technologies. I admit that these technologies provide great comfort (although comfort is a relative feeling, just ask those tropical foragers) and that without them, we would all be living in small villages living off the land. But this also means we would be seperating populations of the human species in all different environments and promoting diversity in the process. Now, thanks to globalization and technologies such as trains, cars, planes, boats, tv, phones etc, we are more connected with the world than ever. This is a great thing for world trade and it is also good of a little interacial breeding. You know that joke where in the future everyone will be have beige skin? Well, that could very well happen and it wouldn't stop at skin color. It would also include similar immune systems and physcical appearance and genetic dispositions etc. Do you know that classic example of evolution with the peppered moths of industrial England? What do you think would happen if all the moths were white and the trees suddenly became covered with back soot. All I'm saying is that maybe there is some biological purpose to our parents wanting us to marry people of the same race beyond just cultural similarities. Maybe this will preserve differences, differences that could very well keep our species going for the next millions of years. Too bad it isn't going to be an asteroid that kills us because unless Bruce Willis has a time machine, I don't see much we can do to stop this slow but persistent process.

just when you thought it was safe to go back to the park...

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Tanking ecomomy? We just bought a car. What now?

My parents are amazing. They are super stingy with money most of the time but then sometimes they just spend large amounts of money in one shot. That's right. No lease. No financing plan. Just pay the money straight up. I guess in an Asian kind of way, this is logical since you have to pay less money total if you consider interest. Anyway, the new car is a Toyota Venza. I wanted them to get a hybrid but they said that we didn't have a car that could fit 5 people. The Venza has five seats, same as the cars we have now. Well, I will admit that it is much spacier(if that is a word). The car is pretty nice though with all these high tech gadgets and stuff. It also looked pretty safe with all the airbags that could pop up from all over the place. I have a question though. Why don't they have any airbag type things on the outside of the car? I guess it would be kind of late because another car would have already hit the outside of the car for it to deploy. But most crashes don't just involve one collision so if air bag thing deployed after the first impact, the second and later impacts would be damped significantly. Also, if you happened to crash into water, this would keep the car afloat. Just a quirky idea. If you happen to take it and make millions, I expect your first child in return. Think about it.

You know it's bad when you wish someone would say april fools

While no good april fools pranks happened close to home, there were several groups of people that were hit pretty hard on April 1st, too bad they weren't jokes.

First, a unedited, unfinished version of X-men Origins: Wolverine was put on the world wide web for everyone to see. Fox, the distributer, is absolutely pissed that someone would do this. Now there is worry that the opening weekend numbers may fall as a result. And those who have viewed it have generally commented that it is a pretty bad movie. Here's a question for the person who stole the footage and for all the people who viewed this unfinished version: What is the purpose of watching a movie? Is it not to be entertained? Do you expect an unfinished product to be as entertaining as a finished product? That's like going to a photo shoot and taking the first unedited photo, turning it into a cover, and then have people say how ugly the model is. I imagine it would look something like this:

And also, don't you think it's unfair to comment on someone's work before they have a chance to finish it. That's like telling Michaelangelo in the middle of painting the Sistine Chapel that the colors are too bright. I'm not saying Wolverine will be like a masterpiece, I'm just saying that I expect the finished product to be pretty good (when I watch the illegal pirated version).

Some more bad news. This time at the hands of a university. It seems that on April 1st, UC davis sent out acceptance letters along with many other universities. Only problem is that they sent the letters to every single person who applied. Then about an hour later, they sent out emails to the people who didn't get in but were told that they did. This must have been pretty crushing, especially if the students had out of ecstacy declined offers from all the other inferior colleges they had applied to, thus leaving them without a university or a future. If I were UC Davis, I would be expecting a pretty big class action lawsuit any day now. That's just how it's done in the US.

nature>my brain>computer

Why do I think the above statement is true. Let me give you the evidence from my experiences today:

Nature: I saw nature in its full glory today. First, I saw a coyote chase a rabbit into the bushes at which time the bushes frothed violently. The sounds of the chase were exhilerating. Second, I saw a seagull poop while it was walking and without any change in facial expression or pace. I thought: "Man, what a graceful animal."

my brain: I got my 2nd math midterm back today and I didn't do as well as I had hoped. Not because I didn't understand the concepts( I got the hardest question right) but rather because I read and interpreted a question wrong. This resulted in a big deduction which basically ruined what could have been a great exam.

computer: So my computer has been doing crazy stuff lately. Not only is it super slow, but microsoft word wouldn't let me save my document that I had been working for over half an hour. After not being able to do anything, I closed the window in frustration. So I basically lost half an hour of work because of my stupid computer (and to a lesser extent, my brain).

A modest proposal for fixing the economy

Have you noticed the economy is pretty bad right now? Of course you have because the media won't stop jamming it down our throats. Have you noticed those commercials on the radio asking for 2000 new RCMP officers? Of course you have, because it is on all the time. My proposal deals with both these problems. To increase the number of jobs, why not just put a police officer on every block of a certain size. This would drastically increase the number of jobs that don't need university degrees for those who have just lost their job and don't have time to go back to university. With a police officer on every block of every neighborhood, crime should decrease as the majority of criminals won't commit a crime if they see a cop nearby. Just think how people suddenly put on the brakes and slow way below the speed limit when they see a cop car behind them. Also, since police officers don't have to move all the time, they would no longer need police cars to patrol because they could simply walk. This would decrease the carbon dioxide production of the city, helping to combat global warming in the process. Of course, there are negatives. A sudden increase in police officers means less strict policies onwho can become a police officer. This system may be unfair to those police officers who have to work in more crime riddled neighbourhoods as compared to those who work in subrbs. Despite the negatives, if they ever manage to invent some sort of bullet, knife and fire prood suit, then I might just ditch my scientific plans and become a cop.

Chemistry's dirty little secret exposed

No, this is not about Bohr's illegitamite monkey baby. This post is about a shocking process that occurs in organic chem labs around the world. As you may or may not know, organic synthesis involves the production of large molecules from smaller molecules via reactions that transfer and add substituents. One of these reactions that we are learning about right now is the SN2 reaction. Most chem students probably don't realize this because they are actually paying attention, but consider the following: SN2 reactions involve a "neucleophilic attack" by a neucleophile that is so "attracted" to an electrophile that it comes in from behind and "bonds" with it, forcing the electrophile to lose a substituent i.e. I-. What does the word neucleophile remind you of? Need I say it involves Dateline and a hidden camera? And this unsuspecting electrophile is just bonded to without giving any prior consent. This whole process is so traumatizing that it loses "I" or what I like to call its innocence. So now you know. Will you ever look at at a SN2 reaction the same way again? I certainly haven't. I wonder what consumers would think when they find the following on the back of their allergy medication: Numerous molecules were chemically raped in the process of making this compound.

It's a Cat lick Cat world. Don't get licked!

You may be wondering what the hell that title means. I'll elaborate.
1. As most of you know, cat's are lazy (I would know since I have a cat)
2. Cat's lick themselves (displaying their crazy flexibility in the process) to clean their fur and to build up an arsenal of massive hairballs that they can then unlease on their unsuspecting owner
3. How lazy does a cat have to be to let another cat lick it?
4. Don't be that cat

Basically, I am saying that you shouldn't be lazy. You see, laziness has literally decreased all of our university grades compared to highschool. Do you know why? It's because our teachers have become lazier. Since they don't want to mark so many exams, they make fewer exams with fewer questions worth more marks. Thus if you make a stupid little mistake, that is worth a lot more than it would be in highschool. And there is also that thing about research and how our professors spend half of their time doing that. Do you know those Sprint commercials about how the world would look if it were run by construction workers or postal workers? Well university would be like that if they replaced our professors with highschool teachers. I am aware of a couple of teaching machines from highschool that would be able to mark hundreds of exams for the very next day. It is possible. Well what would happen to the university professors? Well, they can go teach middle school when education doesn't matter as much and where they can do all the research they want during recess and all those "teacher meetings".

A little bit of profound in the morning

Two ideas have popped into my head recently that I can only describe as philisophical, although I've never taken a philosophy course (don't even try to say TOK) I assume that is what philosophers get paid to do ( do they actually get paid?).

1) I assume all of you woke up this morning (if you didn't, I suggest you pinch yourself right now). What if tommorrow you could wake up as a different person. Not as yourself in another person's body but just as a different person. You would experience everything from their perspective but you would not know that you were once someone else. So you would literally be them. Now here is a little question for you, who would you be willing to switch with (because if you become someone else, they have to become you)? Would you like to swich with one of Bill Gate's children (by the way, you can switch to a different sex because you will be them), become Lebron James, become a famous actor, become the president (who would want to be a prime minister?). But of course, keep in mind that the other person will have to become you. if your life sucks (relative to their life), wouldn't that be kind of unfair for them? Of course they wouldn't remember their old life but still, you are aware of this when you make the decision to switch. If you turn the argument around, would you sacrifice your pretty decent life to give another person a chance to live an ordinary life. Would you be willing to switch with a homeless person, or an orphan or a disabled person? No one would ever know that you made such a decision so it would be a truly anonymous gift to some person.

2) Now that I am going back to China, I was thinking about all the places I haven't been. I have only been to Canada(BC obviously, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec), China (Tianjin, Beijing and now QuinMing), and the US( Washington, Oregon, California for one minute). Sure, I have plenty of time to visit all the places I haven't visited but what if you don't consider a place to be a country? What if you consider it a more precise location like a city or an attraction? The physical act of being someplace only requires about a square foot of land beneath and a layer of breathable air around you. Consider standing on a movable tile that can be any place on Earth. I call this your tile of being. There are probably billions of tiles of being all over the planet, but consider this. Have you even experienced all the tiles of being in your own house. Now the tiles of being near your computer and tv and bed and washroom would probably be pretty worn out but have been to all the tiles of being in your own house? What about that tile of being in your garage or maybe on your patio. If you consider it like this, we haven't been many places at all. But that can be changed easily. When you walk, you are literally moving from one tile of being to another. In one day, you can experience many tiles of being. Imagine a trip around the world to increase your tiles of being. No place would be a bad place as long as it is a new place. This would probably make vacations more pleasurable for everyone. So go out there and accumulate your tiles of being. What have you got to lose?

If only Le chatelier's principle applied to life

For the non chemistry students, this principle basically says that chemical equations at equilibrium will find some way to remain at equilibrium even if you add a lot of product or reactant (if you are a chem student and didn't know what it was, I renounce you as a friend. That's the science thing to do). Why would I want this to apply to real life? Well, haven't you ever noticed that when good things happen to some people they happen in bunches and when bad things happen to people, they happen in bunches as well. For an example of the good, just look at people in highschool who got scholarships. Generally the people who got full ride scholarships got full ride scholarships from another university and then went on to become valedictorian etc. Then for an example of the bad, just look at Jennifer Hudson, who lost both her mother, brother and nephew at once. If le Chatelier's principle applied, this wouldn't have happened. Every good thing would be immediately balanced with a bad thing. For example, if some rich kid gets a pony for their birthday, their puppy must die. Or maybe you get AIDS but you also get accepted into Harvard. Could you imagine how many Asian kids would get AIDS just to get into Harvard? Could you imagine how many parents would support their kids getting AIDS to get into Harvard? I'm not sure if this actually returns you to equilibrium but let me continue. As a continuation of the principle, small changes require small adjustments and big changes require big adjustments. For example, if you accidentally forget your keys in your car, you might find that the Tim Horton's coffee cup you are holding has won you $20 which negates the inconvenience of locking yourself out. However, if you got a terminal illness then you would have to get something big like immortality. I'm not sure what that equilibrium state would look like but that's up to the philosophers to ponder. Also, consider the following scenario: A genie magically appears and grants you 3 wishes. Of course to counteract the awesomeness of this, you would die after the first wish has been granted. You might say: "Hey, just ask for immortality." But of course, the genie won't allow you to do that. Thus, you would have to wish to live a normal life and die when you are supposed to die, returning you to your normal state. Man, inventing a way for the world to operate is hard work. No wonder God rested on the 7th day.

Caveman diet anyone?

Anthropology was supposed to be one of my throw away, meet-your-18-credit-arts-requirement courses, but it has turned out to be pretty interesting (except for the fact that it is a night class and lasts 3 hours long). What I have learned from this course has only reaffirmed by belief that I was not cut out for the break neck pace of modern western society. Did you know they have a word for people who literally work themselves to death in Japan? Anyway, all the so called "primitive" cultures I learn about seem to living it up in style. Maybe I'm a little biased because I've had this dream of living on a tropical island ever since I saw the Swiss Family Robinson (did you know they were making a remake of this movie with Will Smith and family as the Robinsons? They would have to figure out what to do about the swiss thing but otherwise that might be a pretty good movie. Robinson is an African American name anyway right? At least it is better than Beyonce trying to get cast as wonder woman. I understand she is ambicious but who's going to belive that she came from a tribe of Amazons who are all white?) Back on topic. Anyway, there are people out there who catch fish, hunt and forage for food and then relax for the rest of the day. That's their work, to feed themselves. Isn't it odd that in our society, eating seems to be a break from working? That's 20 hours of work a week that's not really work because you are getting the immediate gratification of eating. I'm sure that these people also have their own problems such as the possibility of starving when you can't find something to eat. I for one would be willing to make that sacrifice to live the forager's way of life, as long as I could bring along my computer and TV.

Why I'm doing all these posts all of a sudden

So, I went on a long hiatus without blogging. There goes the theory that if you do something 25 times it becomes habit. I guess the longer I go without blogging, the less I need it. To bad the same thing doesn't happen with food and water because then a lot of the world's problems would be solved. Well, why am I doing these posts all of a sudden. Do you want the answer? It's guilt. See, it was a great idea to start a blog and an even better idea to raise money for cancer research but then suddenly, if I don't blog, it's like I don't want cancer research so I'm personally sabatoging the whole thing. At least when I was a naive bystander who didn't do anything to fight cancer I didn't feel guilty when I continued to not do something. I will try to post regularily from now on. Thank you to all those who support Blog for a Cure. I would just be talking to my self without you guys.

30 years from now...

We will all be under water. Just kidding. Time has a way of doing stuff to people like making them famous or tearing apart friends and relationships or making us look older. Can you imagine what the world will be like 30 years from now. I heard somewhere that scientists predict that in the year 2049, a $1000 computer will have greater processing power than the entire human race. The question I want to ask is: Will it be a PC or a Mac? But seriously, that is a lot of change. Now that I'm in university, I hear all these crazy stories that have happened at my old highschool since I had left or all the things that have happened to my highschool friends since we all went our seperate ways. What will that 30 year high school reunion be like? Surely, somone will be rich and someone will be famous and someone will be a drug addict but probably not the same person, although it is possible. There really doesn't seem to be much purpose for a 30 year high school reunion as most people will have probably forgotten each other. I have a sneaky suspicion that schools put these events on to motivate students to become successful so they won't be embarrased when the kid they used to tease and who has just arrived in a ferrari asks them what the hell they have done with their life all these years. I'll admit, it is pretty good motivation. It's times like these when you really regret attending an IB school.

To put it all in perspective

Most of you reading this probably don't know what you are going to do with your life. If your parents are Asian, then they probably want you to go into one of the following 3 things: business, engineering or medicine( if your parents are not Asian, they will tell you they just want you to be happy but they still secretly want you to go into one of the three careers mentioned previously) Unfortunately, those 3 faculties only accept a certain number of students. Well, what do you do if you don't get in? Well take medicine for example. It is one of the most difficult faculties to get into, but don't despair if you don't get in. Think about what a doctor does. He/she diagnoses and treats illness in humans. That is the important part. Imagine a career just like that description but with one slight alteration. Say you want still want to diagnose and treat something, but no one will trust you with their life. Well, then why not become a veterinarian. Benefits include not having as much stress on the job (I mean if you lose a gerbil on the operating table, no one's going to be that devestated and that means no lawsuits). Or if no one is willing to trust you with their pet's lives then you can still diagnose and treat illness in plants. That's right, plants. Absolutely no one cares about these things so you can accidentally kill as many as you like and get away with it. Unfortunately, a new imigrant could easily out compete you since they will charge alot less to do the same work. If no one trusts their plant's lives with you, well, then maybe you just weren't cut out for this whole job thing. Better luck in your next life. (By the way, this was not intended to insult any of the people who do the jobs mentioned above. In fact, I would probably rather be a veterinarian or a gardener than a doctor if I were to choose.)

Entropy wins twice today!

Today was a very odd day for me. Two things happened, both of which have affirmed my faith in the phenomena known as entropy (basically randomness is favored over order).

1. I did a caffeine lab this morning. I prepared for the lab like I prepared for all my other labs. During the lab, I followed the procedure as carefully as I could so that I would extract a pure sample of caffeine. Well, after I evaporated the CH2Cl2, we were supposed to end up with a white solid on the bottom of our beaker which was supposed to be our crude caffeine. Well, guess what happened? I ended up with nothing at the bottom of my beaker. Nada. Zilch. I brought this odd empty beaker to my TA. She confirmed that there was nothing in my beaker. The look on her face was priceless. Anyway, she told me to do it again but this time to only do 2 washes of CH2Cl2, which would basically save some time at the expense of accuracy. So, I haphazardly did a second attempt. By haphazardly, I mean that I drained out some of the emulsion that we were supposed to prevent from getting out. Yet, this time, after I evaporated the CH2Cl2, there was a white solid at the bottom of the beaker. I had done nothing differently except that I have done things in a more random and chaotic manner.

2. After the caffeine lab finished, I was walking to my dorm when a girl approached me and asked where the admissions office was. I asked her if she knew the address and she said it was on East Mall. Well, we were on West Mall so I decided to show her exactly where it was by leading her there in person. I felt pretty good about my self at this time because I was helping for no other reason than to help. Anyway, after I led her to East Mall, I turned to where I thought it would be and continued to walk down East Mall. When I got there and turned around, the girl was no where to be found. I was sure that she was walking alongside me the whole time until when we got to East Mall. Not only is this event in itself random, it ended up separating two people from being close to each other to far away, like we were liquid particles evaporating.Oh well, I still helped her out, I think.

People should really think stuff through

I just found out that Prison Break would be stopped after its 3rd season because it had naturally run its course. Do you know why it naturally ran its course? Because the stupid writers called it Prison Break. With a title like that, how can you do anything but escape from prison, which however exiting it may be, will eventually get old. In fact, it seems a lot of shows can't survive very long because they are hindered by their initial concept. For example, what happens in Two and a Half Men when the actor playing Jake is a man himself? What happens to the characters of Friday Night Lights when they all leave high school (If you continued to follow their lives, it wouldn't be Friday Night Lights anymore because none of them would be in high school)? Do you know what kinds of shows survive for a long time? Shows that have names of people in them i.e. House, the Simpsons, Grey's anatomy. Or maybe shows with really general concepts like Lost, 24, CSI. See, the great thing about these shows is that the plot can go anywhere anytime and every episode can be a new story or the continuation of a longer story arc. Smarten up writers, because I don't want to get addicted to a show only to have it run its course after three seasons because they couldn't think of a better name at the beginning.

The world is unfair ( if the world revolved around me)

This is not about me taking 6 courses (that is a problem I created for myself and I will deal with the consequences). No, this is about the stupid exam scheduling bureau or what ever it is at UBC scheduling 4 of my final exams to with into 3 days. Actually, its not even 3 days since one of the exams is at night. I actually calculated this, and with each exam being approximately 2.5 hours long, I will spend approximately 40% of my waking life in those three days writing exams. Sure, you could argue that this means I get it over with quickly and that it also means I have a lot of time before this block of exams to study. This may be true, but I don't know what kind of mental and physical duress such a intense period of examing may have on my already frail and immobile body. The one positive I can think of for this is that once I finish an exam, I won't have time to worry about the answers because I would be off writing another exam. Maybe I should document my experience like Morgan Spurlock did with eating MacDonalds for a month. If at any time you see me post something like the following, call for help: "nice fluffy kitty, nice fluffy kitty.. haha"

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