Quote of the Post: "Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?" - Edgar Bergen

Random Playlist Song: Schumann - Kreisleriana, Op. 16 - 8. Schnell und spielend

"The title can be understood by Germans only. Kreisler is one of E. T. A. Hoffmann's creations, an eccentric, wild and witty conductor. You will like much about him."

***

First and foremost, I got treated to dinner by Tym today, so thanks be to her :)

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Please welcome the latest member in a very big (but sadly almost totally inactive) list of posters: Anonvarstud Ingénieur

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I realise that I know next to nothing about wireless networks or working with networks in general.

I seek a master to initiate me into their mysteries.

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Someone: [On jailbait] You must introduce me to all these people

Me: But they won't be jailbait for much longer.

Someone: Because then they'll be legal

***

My system has been rebooting spontaneously sporadically. At first I was wondering if I had a wire loose on my motherboard, then I got a tipoff from Xephyris:

"i'm guessing if you're using windows XP, it BSODed and autorebooted is all
it's the evil new scheme by MS to make you think windows XP doesn't BSOD

did you check the "atuomatically restart" box in the contrl panel > system > advanced > startup and rcovery ?"

Bloody hell.

***

" Interesting observations. I have a terrible voice...so am interested in any ways to make for better songs.
What say I? I say you should listen to the music coming out of the Czech republic & Poland. The structure of the songs being made by these czechs & Pols is superior to any previous forms of music. If your opinion of "modern" music isn't changed by them, then you are just being stubborn, imposing yourself to old dead music only for the sake of seeming cultured or high-brow.
I agree that the pop music of the masses is always poor...because most people are tone deaf idiots. You must dig deep into the underground...that is where the talent lies,in the artists who make music for themselves not the fans."

So. Anyone has recommendations about which Czech and Polish artists to try? Though I find that the "you are just being stubborn, imposing yourself to old dead music only for the sake of seeming cultured or high-brow" comment smacks of hubris.

***

His Excellency Saparmurat Niyazov "Turkmenbashi", President of Turkmenistan

"He has established Turkmenistan's international prestige and has displayed concern for the people's well-being. Following his election, one of the first resolutions to be adopted was a decree on the free use of water, gas and electricity by the people of Turkmenistan.

As founder and president of the Association of Turkmens of the World, Mr. Niyazov holds the official title of Turkmenbashi, Leader of all Ethnic Turkmens.

Mr. Niyazov was awarded the Magtymguly International Prize for achieving the aim of Magtymguly, the great Turkmen poet and philosopher: the establishment of an independent state of Turkmenistan."

I have one guess as to the person who started the prize.

***


Skydiving Festival

"August 20th-22nd 2004
Precisely what people jumping out of airplanes has to do with Singapore declaring independence from Malaysia is anyone's guess. But jump they will, and often too: some 2,000 jumps are planned for this two-day festival."

Wah.

***

We're now coming to the end of Orientation Week. While other faculties are organising plenty of games, activities and groping sessions, USP has a different set of activities.

On Wednesday, I saw the people in Arts Orientation Week, instantly remarkable by virtue of their red T-shirts, clustering in the school field shouting, screaming and gesticulating vaguely, if wildly. Perhaps some were close to falling to heat stroke, and perhaps others were groping and being groped, in their turn ("Grope and be groped" - what a great O Week motto *g*). Some people were elevated above the rest - on chairs perhaps, and there was general pandemonium. Meanwhile, I was on my way to the Raffles Museum of Biological Diversity. Perhaps I should have signed up with Arts O Week as well, to get the best of both worlds.

In any case, the museum visit was fun, inasmuch as a museum visit can be fun. The public exhibits were quite extensive, especially considering the limited floor space of the museum, and our guide, a graduate student, was lively, informative and fun. Among other things, there was a giantic mounted Japanese Spider Crab, and a huge stuffed Leatherback Turtle. And we were told about the road-infesting crabs on Christmas Island.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, we met our academic advisors. While some professors played hard to get, one was helpfully waving a sheet of paper with his name written on it.

After that, while audible from downstairs were the yelps of people playing Orientation Games (one of which I saw in progress later, where 3 girls wagged their fingers and derrieres in unison, and shouted at the rest of their Orientation Group, presumably cursing them) , we had talks about the Student Exchange Programme and related programs. Apparently NUS will freeze your CAP (Cumulative Average Points - equivalent of GPA) while you're on exchange. I thought they wouldn't want to adopt policies that encourage, even tacitly, you slacking while on exchange. Then again, they seem eager to send as many of us away as possible, so that they can receive more foreign students here on exchange and boast that we have students from more than 70 countries studying in NUS.


Registrar's Office Circular - 20th July 2004

"(2) Lifting of Compulsory SARS Module

As the global Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak had been effectively contained, the University has decided to lift the requirement that all students must read the module SSM1205 Nation’s Health: Lessons from SARS as a graduation requirement. Students who have yet to read this module are therefore no longer required to complete the module as a graduation requirement."

I am at a loss for words.


"[You are cordially invited to a talk on:]

Possible Future Trajectories of the Islamic Resurgence
by Prof Ibrahim Abu Rabi'
Professor of Islamic Studies, Co-Director
The Duncan Black Macdonald Center
For the Study of Islam & Christian-Muslim Relations

Date: 11 August 2004 (Wednesday)
Time: 4 pm to 6 pm
*Light snack (sic) will be provided.

About the talk
Islamic resurgence has evolved through various historical phases in the interaction between the Islamic world and Western civilization. In the last century, Islamic resurgence became the Muslim response to rapid westernization and post-colonialism. With globalisation and the new world order, further transformations of the Islamic resurgence would be expected in response to the emerging challenges. The speaker will discuss the premises and present day outcomes of the Islamic resurgence. Examining contemporary developments and emerging trends, he will map out possible future trajectories of the Islamic resurgence as it evolves and transforms within different political and socio-economic conditions in the Muslim world including minority Muslim societies."

Damn. I have a sociology lecture at that time. Yes, I *could* skip it, but I'm too guai to do that (imagine that).


More sordid tales of intrigue and betrayal:

"i've heard of how e best of friends can betray each other to get a better chance of getting 1st class honours
there's this story abt this gal who saw her best friend's thesis, saw a few loopholes pertaining to plagiarism issues and went to inform e prof abt it
in e end she caused her friend to lose her 1st class honours"

To say nothing of the ways that people scheme to manipulate COS in bidding wars, taking advantage of others' irrational exuberance.


Things you learn: "Nugyen" is pronounced as "win"

There are many Koreans in Kyrgyzstan because Stalin shuffled them around.

Uzbeks wear funny wigs when riding on horseback.

Words of advice: "you should learn to differentiate your stress and worries. cos u'll realise theres a lot of things to piss u off in NUS. then at least u can sort of trick yourself into thinking that these are all individual little problems, and not, like, one big fucking NUS problem. then u wont go throw yourself off some NUS building"


Quotes:

the Duck Queen (Dark)

the minced chicken in crap (crepe)

[Me on Orientation Week: Did you get groped today?] A little. Not much.

a learn man (learned)

This picture was taken many years ago. Now all of these people are fat and old. At least 10 years older.

plair'sih'bo (placebo)

[On citations] Stem cells. Stem cells came out in 2000... Everyone wrote papers on stem cells. Thousands of papers... For biologists, we're more laid back, so we cite further back. (As for, studies from)

[On eyes for stuffed animals] Even for humans, if you lose one eye, you can buy a marble eye

Like cockroaches are fun. You all know the American Cockroach. That's what you find at home... Pill-bug roach. When you disturb it it curls up. Very cute. They're good as pets.

A lot of people are disgusted by leeches, because they suck blood. But they have to make a living... You won't get AIDS, or what.

[On addressing professors] Most of us would prefer that you don't call us 'Sir' or 'Madam'.... 'Dr ***'. Or 'hi'. Or 'you'.

I went for 3 camps. USP [camp] was the worst.

artificats (written) (artifacts)

The Economist is better than Newsweek because it's British. Newsweek is American.

[On going on exchange] You pay NUS school fees. A: You spend your time in NUS. B: You spend your time elsewhere. Which would you rather?

You pay the money first. Then you realise it was well spent.

Let me tell you: If you persist in speaking Singlish, you're dead.

Even if you speak perfect English, they won't understand you. Because [when] they look at you, they think you're from China. They think you don't understand English... They speak very slowly.

Another reason you should go for 2 sems: 1 sem, you get to know this guy or girl. Just when you are steady-steady, you have to come back (go steady)

the purgering falcons (peregrine)

The first culture shock I had was in the toilet. The guy and girl toilets were communal... No doors: shower curtains... [Someone: For the first few months, every time I opened the toilet door I screamed. Guys!]

Do not be shocked if you hear strange noises coming from next door. It's very natural... Just don't eavesdrop

As we learned from Mediacorp, Chinese Tea is a good substitute for alcohol. You bring a bottle of Chinese Tea. You tell them it is Whiskey.

Travel advice. When you travel, the first thing you must look out for - toilets.

Banking is very important... From my own experience, it took me one whole month to open my bank account. And they got my name wrong.

IRO [International Relations Office] tells me that there is a lot of money around. You just have to look for it.

Since you travel halfway around the world, and people think you're from China, you might as well go to China

very old, mee'dee'veil (medieval)

If you need funding or moral support, the programme is always willing to help

[On presenting his travel pictures to students] I always have a lot of travel pictures, but nobody wants to see them... I have a captive audience

[On nomads] They catch a lot of foxes, and they hang them inside their tents... So cute

[On Uzekistan pictures] Sorry, I have a... fetish for cemeteries

The current leader of Uzbekistan likes to glorify Timur the Lame. Because Timur the Lame was very cruel. He's trying to justify his existence.

These are Uzbek children. Aren't they cute? ... [Especially] when you compare them to Singapore children (Singaporean)

You see these pre-historic buildings. I think they go back to Alexander the Great's era. (historic)

Every'hwhere you go in Turkmenistan you see big pictures of the Turkmenistan leader. He calls himself Turkmenbashi [Ed: "Leader of all Ethnic Turkmens"] (everywhere)

[On Saparmurad Niyazov, Turkmenistan's leader] He spends a lot of money building these grandeur'se buildings which are useless (grandiose)