Being back in the land of SACSALs ("SACSAL refugee camp") is, in different ways, both comforting and depressing.

To mitigate the moral hazard problem inherent in group work (perhaps "solve" is too hopeful a word), in one module we're required to name the best and worst member of the group, and if there's someone who deserves more or less credit than the rest, and why.

The Ben and Jerry's waterbottle I thought I lost 2 semesters ago was in Chattercube! Though it had a year's worth of ants inside. Ugh.


After a short email exchange, Eurolines refunded me half the return fare from Utrecht to London.

A friend is going on exchange to the Netherlands this semester. Her visa got rejected because the bank's letter didn't say if the money in the account was in US$ or S$. Wth.

Florida's Natural now produces fruit juice nuggets. Wth? Incidentally it doesn't seem to be made from Californian oranges anymore. Guess the partnership fell through.


Stuff that's more expensive in Cold Storage:

- Champignons (maybe 2x the price)
- Potted plants (maybe 4x the price - my parsley!)

Maybe it's cheaper at Shop & Save.


Quotes:

Is this the right class? There's supposed to be 150 of you. First day, right?... For most of you this is the first classof the new semester, which probably explains why most of youaren't here.

*Flashes slide: "Expect this course to be hard"* That's the good news.

Some of the models will be pretty. Some of them will be ugly. You will take them all on.

Causes from MIT (courses)

Am I going too slow?... One nod. I guess it counts.

[On grading] 4% is attendance. It was forced upon me by the faculty.

[On homework] Copyright will be highly appreciated in this module... To be fair, I will punish both... You should keep your submission as confidential as possible. (He hasn't heard of Creative Commons)

Science faculty graduates earn 5 times more. Excuse me, 5 percent times more than arts graduates (more)

[On matrices] This matrix is totally different from the movie Matrix (...)

Change position means change the poles (Transposition, changing)

Row and colour (column)

[On matrix multiplication] Your reaction seems to be - *flashes clipart of woman with a dropped jaw*

If I give you a 100 by 100 matrix, can you invert it? Yes. But you don't have to know. The computer will know.

What are you doing in science? [Student: Life sciences] So you don't like maths? [Student: I like it.] She likes mathematics.

[To a Sikh] Am I allowed to crack any Singh jokes? [Sikh: I guess it depends.]

XXX. [Student: Actually my first name is YYY.] I know, but this sounds better.

What is the grade you got the last time you took my module? [Student: B-] You deserved it, did you? [Student: I think so, since you gave it to me.]

We have 2 Kenneth Tans. So who's Kenneth Tan 1?

[On a Dutch architect who designed NUS] This guy built this campus so students would get lost. [Student: No, it was so students wouldn't go on strikes... lots of hills, hard for students to congregate.] I hadn't heard of that theory. [Student: It's an urban legend.] I thought it was so the corridors would get wet everytime it rains. Please, this NUS building was not designed by engineers. It was designed by architects.

[On the previous lecturer not stopping on time] I will make sure he stops on time. I have been here long enough. I know how things work... I will tell him 'a girl from your class complained'. That will throw him off the scent. [Student: It's a guys' class.]

I don't like to call teachers here lecturers. Lecturers are like past US presidents who go around the country lecturing about the misdeeds which they have done.

[On prestige in degrees] There were 3 things we could've done. Engineering, medicine or law. The others were not. *pauses* That was the choice available to me, anyway.

Engineers have made themselves very boring. That might be a myth by the non-engineering people. The other group are doctors... They'll keep talking about past cases. You can't talk to them about current affairs. They'll take about some dead bodies.

[On a comparison with doctors and lawyers] Engineers are very stupid, they have no political clout.... If the engineers go on strike, nothing will happen.

A lot of ministers were engineers... They have moved to other fields. They are probably not boring anymore... How come no engineers are challenging me? I am insulting your profession. [Student: This is your personal view right?... Sad to say, I agree with you.]

They keep on inserting things, but they never take out anything... They have no time to digest... They just memorise and regurgitate. That is the way engineering is taught, not just in Singapore but all over the world.

Anyone knows what financial engineering is? You cook the books, is it?

If you come to me privately, I will not answer you. I will probably insult you and scold you and tell you to... run away.

[On giving examination hints by phone] I don't know who is on the phone. It may be a spy planted by the Vice-chancellor or the President to find if *** is giving hints.

[On The Bluffer's Guide to Teaching: Bluff Your Way in Teaching] I recommend this book. I use it all the time.

As I become less nervous, I think my voice will raise more (rise)

[On course information] Is that all? Oh yeah. My name is Dr ***. My first name is Ed. If you like, you can call me Ed. Unless you don't feel comfortable here [doing that].

My office - on the fifth floor. I can't remember the number, but you'll see my name on the door.

This is like a stage. 8 inches. *jumps dramatically off raised lecture platform*

[On the visualiser] This is a neat device. Anybody's a palm reader?