Dogged Wanderings...

Dogged Wanderings has moved!!

2006-04-24T07:08:00.000+08:00

No need to change bookmarks or anything... I'll take care of the redirections.

Just know that there's a new blog here (although, depending on who you are, you might be better off bookmarking this other blog instead). :P

More on Project NOAH

2006-04-22T20:46:00.000+08:00

There's so much I'm thinking and would like to say but I lack the energy to gather my thoughts and pen them down. Besides, others far more well-grounded in the situation have already spoken. I can only echo their opinions.

Full coverage on wildsingapore.com.

I remain highly skeptical and I do have my reservations. I support the notion that we should put our techonologies and knowledge to the test, but it should NOT be done at the expense of our fragile reefs, at least, not in the field and not at P. Hantu. Say, can't trials be held first, and elsewhere? Forget the commercial incentives for the time being. If they can't then this is, like what others say, businesses just seeing cha-ching-ing opportunities in taking advantage of our marine areas.

Not that the rest of us demand that the project be halted completely, but they shouldn't even think of starting work on it when they haven't fully done their research and laid out their plans proper. As things appear, they have not thought of what exactly will happen and what or how they are going to do it. And what surprises me even more is how a few prominent individuals - scientists and conservationists - are so strongly backing this project. The S'pore Environment Council and Nature Society are supporters as well, no less. If they really see the benefits of this, then I say to them: convince us. They are failing miserably in this aspect, for the reasoning against Project NOAH is overwhelming.

From the press release:

My first thought was... what a load of crap. For many of the points.

-------------

While we're on the subject matter, have a look at some really cool scenes of coral spawning at the waters of the Raffles Lighthouse. :)

Less than two more days...

2006-04-22T20:28:00.001+08:00

Why am I so relaxed??! Por que?

I've read and revised but I don't think I can remember. I won't know if I've remembered until until I write them out. I won't be able to write everything out until I'm staring at the actual paper.

2-month-old guppies

2006-04-20T10:02:00.000+08:00

Compare them now with a month ago. If genetics are anything to come by, their father should be one which looks like Male#9. (Yes, the tank needs cleaning.)

On my way to the Sandwich Shop

2006-04-19T18:02:00.000+08:00

This was from a while back. Just realised I haven't yet published it. More about this 'old English charm' here.

Bird numbers in London

2006-04-19T10:19:00.000+08:00

Something I never knew before:

"The number of bird species in London declines from 77 in the outer suburbs to 50 in the inner and 43 in the city centre." (Pullin, 2002)

Species richness in urban areas declines towrds the city centre, but I never knew what the figures were.

It begins

2006-04-18T17:41:00.000+08:00

It amazes me. It's almost like raising an underground army. 'Cept that the army is already there, it's always been there, and now they are revealing their faces and dusting the grit from their armour. They are rallying to the call of the horn.

"Cause who knows what the future holds?
(who knows what the future holds? )

Cause who knows what your future holds
(this is what your future holds)"

The President and the Council have written back. Not as One but as Individuals.

Things are getting exciting. Things are staring to happen.

One word: Hope.

Actually, add another: Faith.

And wait.

With that, I slip back into my world of the struggling undergrad.

On conservation - "people, politics and problems"

2006-04-17T20:35:00.000+08:00

It was bold move. I wanted to make a statement, not start a revolution. (Although the maverick in me would have been pleased at the latter.) I had originally intended to send it only to the BESGroup mailing loop, but I ended up sending it to all the major mailing lists. To a good many hundred people. I have not yet sent it to the official NSS bird group loop, for I initially lacked the courage. Anyway, I'm sure they'd have heard about this by now.

It started off with Prof Wee's posting on the BESGroup blog regarding the Avifauna. It caused a little uproar, with people speaking out in defence of the NSS, countered by others who believed in revealing the whole truths: "Sweeping it under the carpet does not help."

From there, I dug a deeper hole.

What I wrote:

Many years ago, I was chatting with a fellow nature guide. He asked if I was an NSS member. I said yes. He frowned, and then went on to tell me about why he refuses to (re)join NSS - "Politics, people, problems." At that time, he was the first person I have met to have felt this way. Not having been in the local nature circle long, then I did not understand. But through the years, I came to realise, and know why. Two years ago, I did not renew my membership.

All around us we see 'new-age' conservation and educational groups being formed by enlightened individuals, wisely opting to stay away from the crippling politics of major established bodies such as NSS or NParks. They are bonded to no-one but themselves and a common cause. They are full of youthly vigour - no matter their ages - and best of all, they achieve what they set out to do. To a great extent I'd say they are faring better than the NSS. Have we ever asked why these groups were not, as would have been expected, formed under the wing of the NSS or its specialised subgroups? Why are these groups at the forefront of conservation now, and not the NSS? What has been happening with the NSS?

Sure, the NSS may the 'official' nature conservation body in Singapore, but we must admit that it is getting past its prime. In the past, the way in which it operated might have worked - and its accomplishments are many - but in today's society, imho it should take a step back and face what's happening behind the curtains. Decades of dust and dirt have accumulated and now it's finding it too heavy to move about with? I know that I am in no position to say these things, and I do not claim that I am aware of what exaclty has been happening, but to put it in the simplest words - it does not feel good. Even speaking as I do though, I do not wish to undermine the current efforts of many notable NSS members. The problems do not lie just with the individuals; it's the Society as a whole that needs to address the issues. However that is to be done, I wouldn't know. But something needs to be done, and soon.

Just like in nature, there is the survival of the fittest. New groups have evolved and the NSS is failing to adapt. I do not wish to see it fall apart... it is inevitable that such a big organisation, down its years of existence, will come to be divided into camps, but the greatest sin is to pretend that there is nothing wrong with it.

I deeply admire Prof Wee for his courage to bring this out into the open. I believe it's time all of us talked... openly, frankly, and without fear of repercussions. The hoo-haa with the Singapore Avifauna and the 'betrayal' of hobbyist birders may not seem to be that big an issue with some people but its implications are great. Let's hope it brings about some good.

Responses:

Your letter is very timely and brings out the important issues that NSS has to think about. Bravo. I agree with all your points. They are very well put.

You highlight what many others feel but would not make their feelings public. This is why membership has been on the decline for the last five or more years. I totally agree with you that the society is heading towards irrelevancy, if not already there.

Locally in Singapore leadership rejuvenation is the mantra of the governing party and is good.
Looks like a case of sclerosed leadership in this particular account.
What says the parties ..in this internet era there is no reason to seal the lips.

I am sure others will also be moved to action by it. You may never know the full extent of your influence, but I am sure it has done a lot of good.

Now I know that people have started to write to the NSS President. The NSS Council is afrenzy with meetings. I think the Council must be cursing my name - Who's this young chap who thinks she knows so much? Who dares speak so openly against the NSS?

Nature conservation work has no place for big egos and stagnancy. The NSS should be a partner in our work, not a hindrance.

To quote from a letter I received from someone, a person I have great respect and admiration for:

In NSS, the second type predominates (probably to the exclusion of the first). The social element of NSS is overwhelming. Thus the cliquishness, the obsession with "are you my friend or my enemy?".

People who just want to get work done simply can't get it done at NSS. And if they do want to do at NSS... they have to battle upstream with constant politicking. Nature work is tiring and difficult enough as it is. Having to politick unnecessarily is just too much to deal with for most people.

Allowing a few self-serving, short-sighted elements in NSS to mislead the rest, to speak for the conservation community. This can actually cause serious and irreparable damage to habitats as well as the legitimacy and standing of the community.

If NSS intends to remain a player in conservation, the way ahead is for NSS to remake itself.

That is what we shall wish for. A remaking of the NSS... a new NSS.

2006-04-15T19:29:00.000+08:00

Packing again. Caterpillar mysteries, and NSS politics. That's about all for today; no revision done.

Hhaai.

SBG

2006-04-13T21:57:00.000+08:00

I picked up my baby from the service centre yesterday. "It was quite a serious problem, we had to replace the mirror box," the technician told me.

Ooh. Orh. The lever, the something-and-something-else... blah blah blah was malfunctioning. She asked if I had still been shooting with it right up till when I brought it in. I nodded. She nodded slowly, "Hmmm..."

Well, all's well now.

Today I've finally obtained a new macro lens - Tamron 90mm f/2.8. It was a tough call between a few contenders and even when at the end my mom agreed to the Nikon 105 micro VR... there's kinda a shortage of it nationwide so I'll hang on to the Tamron first (maybe). It is a legendary lens... tack sharp and almost as good as, if not better than, the Nikon 105.

Hung out for a bit at the Botanic Gardens today. I just couldn't stand it. I needed the outdoors. And of course, I've to test out my new lens just so that I can study in peace. Sky was overcast and the drizzles dampened my spirits a tad, but TH and I were rewarded.

My Tamron's virgin shot was of one of the meanest-looking caterpillars you'd ever come across. Say hi to the caterpillar of a Nawab butterfly. Not sure if this is the Plain Nawab or something else though... (EDIT 18-04-06: this is most likely a Blue Nawab cat)

A cute Pied Fantail zipped past us, and paused for a moment on the fence before darting into some bushes...

Then I found a crab spider...

And saw a Large-tailed Nightjar...

I got up close and personal with a Yellow Bittern. I don't think I'll ever be this lucky again - think 400mm, > full frame! (He likes to do the Punk.)

Nearby, a 1st/2nd instar mantis was feasting on a caterpillar...

And here's a Long-tailed Parakeet to wrap it up.

All the photos from today can be found here, plus a few from yesterday - these are mainly stages from the life history of the Autumn Leaf butterfly; I followed my mom to Bishan in the arvo after picking my camera up... and stumbled upon a horde of these caterpillars by the roadside.

2006-04-13T09:48:00.000+08:00

On the P. Hantu blog - NSS Conservation Chat discusses Project NOAH

More news and links -

Reef news from the BWV
on the annotated budak

Happy Easter

2006-04-12T11:10:00.000+08:00

I know, I should put aside the chocolate eggs and Easter bunnies and focus on the true meaning of Easter... but I couldn't resist...

Thanks to Tania for the fwd.

More wasps...

2006-04-11T18:52:00.000+08:00

Dead ones, though. Fried to a crisp. Their insides have all evaporated/vanished/been destroyed/dried up/leaked out/consumed(by whatever). Nada... emptied.

Five of them were stuck in the middle of the two long bulbs of the kitchen ceiling light. Only saw them when the outer covering was removed to change the bulbs.

I wonder how/why/when...

2006-04-10T19:04:00.000+08:00

I wonder for how much longer I can keep this up?

Four folders of notes and handouts to remember, four texts to absorb from front to back, and three for casual reading. Plus extra papers from journals. 4 x single platter of 6 weeks' worth of learning, to be consumed within a week, and regurgitated in a three-hour exam.

Applied Ecology and Environmental Management is the only text to have been brought forward from last year, and I've read that one thrice. I'm fairly confident of Applied Eco, so-so for Population & Community Eco (eek the equations!!) and Biod & Consv Bio, and hmmm for Animal Behaviour.

Two more weeks. My brain's being strangled.

Bug on window

2006-04-10T13:48:00.000+08:00

A hemiptera of some sort. 1st, or possibly 2nd... instar? I can't see its other side. Maybe it's those stink bug thingees.

It was waving its right leg. A greeting? A plea for help? (The wasps and their nest are almost right above it.)

On Pulau Hantu and Project NOAH

2006-04-10T13:45:00.000+08:00

Lots of links and information on wildsingapore.

There's a conservation chat this Wednesday. Hmm...

2006-04-08T12:50:00.000+08:00

The H5N1 virus has been confirmed on a dead Mute Swan up in Scotland, and here's the experts' list of the top 10 birdflu suspects. Among those 10, I do come into contact with eight of them...

Again I should be thankful that I'm not working with birds for my FYP. Not that there is a high possibility of transmission of the virus from tits (erm, yeah, tits... Parus spp... don't laugh...), but at least my parents won't have to worry!

2006-04-07T23:07:00.000+08:00

Did a couple (well, more than a couple, but...) of things today, and I'm only just about to start on the day's revision.

I've left myself feeling extremely insecure by parting with my D70. Sniff... no camera for about a week. I've sent it for servicing. It feels like we've done so much together... my camera and I, and as of today I'd have had it for exactly a year.

Shutter count is 30500 in a year, = 2541 photos each month, = 84 clicks per day. :)

Picked up my certificate of citizenship (which 'expires' this year...) the guys at ICA were quick, so I only hope the paperwork'll go the same for the Brit High Comm chaps.

Then... went to watch Ice Age 2 with my sis...

Paid a visit to my camera shop and erm, retrieved some items...

And finally had a quick dinner and meetup with ZF. My first 'social' since my return, and I daresay it'll be my only one.

2006-04-07T23:05:00.000+08:00

For a couple of days now, Zoto has been insisting that I brush up my Chinese language skills. English has mysteriously disappeared... and I haven't changed a single setting on it or my computer since the last use. I can't find the language settings... well not that I can't handle it as it is right now (:P) but it's just weird.

Tiktaalik

2006-04-06T23:20:00.000+08:00

When I first heard the podcaster mentioning the name of this fish, for a moment my mind held the image of a glass of teh-tarik.

Source: Nature, 6 April 2006

Remarkable Devonian tetrapod-like fish fossils discovered

The transition between fishes and limbed vertebrates, or tetrapods, occurred over 370 million years ago and required changes to virtually the entire body. Sensational fossil finds, and reinterpretations of old ones, have radically altered thinking on this topic in the past 20 years. But the transition itself – the very point where fishes became tetrapods – remains obscure. What fossils there are tend to be incomplete or badly preserved.

All that changes with the discovery of a well-preserved species of fossil lobe-finned fish from the Late Devonian of Arctic Canada that represents an intermediate between fish with fins and tetrapods with limbs, and provides unique insights into how and in what order important tetrapod characters arose.

Find out more:
Special Audio Coverage

Nature Articles:
A Devonian tetrapod-like fish and the evolution of the tetrapod body plan
The pectoral fin of Tiktaalik roseae and the origin of the tetrapod limb
Nature News & Views

For those who do not have access to Nature, here are some other links:

Science Museum news --> must check this out!
Natural History Museum news
BBC News
Nat Geog news
The Economist

How exciting... a real, new missing link... one on par with Archaeopteryx. Say hello to our distant ancestor. :) Casts of the fossil will be on display in the Science Museum until May... might go have a look when I can.

2006-04-06T13:17:00.000+08:00

I woke up to a drilling-knocking sound...
Like a bill hammering on wood...
It came from the trees outside my window.
I spotted the little thing swooping from one trunk to another.
I grabbed my binos -
A Golden flameback woodpecker.
The beautiful thing...
makes my day.

Sigh.
I want to be outdoors...
I miss Buloh, and all those places.
Low tides are coming...
I want to be with the Beachfleas on their intertidal trips...
I want to feel the coolness of a sandy reef beneath my feet, a sea star inches away.
I want to be out there guiding, taking people around...
Or with my camera and scope, shooting away.
Don't mind the sandflies and the mozzies...
They're part of the experience...

Drat the exams, drat my sudden hardworkingness.

2006-04-03T19:56:00.000+08:00

This is hilarious.

Dr Lamb has sent round the brief outline (outcome) of the whisky experiment.

Here I quote, from the results section:

M1 had somewhat bloodshot eyes soon after the first drink. By 2.03 he had some flushing, especially on the cheeks, but not the uniform strong flush of F1. M2 and F3 showed no visible signs of flushing... ...

F1 said that she felt calm but deliriously happy, and less hot than previously. She felt drunk, almost giddy, and at peace with the world. F2 felt tipsy, half sober, and thought she could walk in a straight line if she had to. Her vision was a bit blurred and she was getting a headache. She felt a bit giddy and tired. She felt peaceful and relaxed, and no longer felt hot although she had done earlier. F3 felt OK and had her fourth drink at 2.15. M1 could see clearly but the images did not come together. He felt hot, was getting a headache, and could fall asleep any time. M2 was not feeling much different from normal, just a bit light headed. He thought he could walk in a straight line.

2006-04-03T19:03:00.000+08:00

I declared not long ago that I was a Hong Konger. And now those words have come to hit my in the face?!

I went to ICA for the simple task of renewing my passport. I was bounced from one counter to the next, and the officer behind one of them handed me two letters.

The first letter told me that blah blah "under the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore..." I was supposed to do certain things. And, much to my surprise, that I am a "British citizen". The second letter informed me that I am also a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region citizen... but that is another matter.

"So if you decide that you want to be a Singapore citizen..." the officer repeated.

"Yes I want to, I don't have another choice!"

"You need to renounce your British citizenship."

"I don't have British citizenship..."

"Our records say that you do."

"But I don't... ..."

And so it went.

I don't hold any British papers or anything... but by merit of my country of birth, I am a British citizen, whether I like it or not. I can't get my passport renewed/extended. They say I hold dual nationality, and now that I'm 21, my minor citizenship no longer stands.

I need to take the Oath of Renunciation, Allegiance and Loyalty. And to do that, I need to prove that I am not a British national.

And for that, I need to produce a Certificate of Singaporean Citizenship to the British mission. And I don't currently have one. I had to apply for one, and to do that I had to raise my right hand and read a solemn declaration that I 'lost the original'. It usually takes two weeks to process, but they'll try to make it quicker.

Bleah... the whole day wasted for nothing. I'm done with revision for Applied Ecology, but that doesn't mean I can slack my pace.

I wonder what the British Consulate will have to say when I go to them.

"Hello, can you please give me some documentation to prove that I am not one of your people?" lol.

Heck, please don't let them say... "Oh, but you are."

For I would have lived through my life not knowing that I was.

2006-04-02T14:10:00.000+08:00

Going through my Applied Ecology notes... the case studies so frequently mention Singapore and its use of Integrated Pest Management systems on agricultural and commercial crops that one unfamiliar to this city-state might be forgiven for thinking that we are a nation of farmers.

2006-04-02T14:03:00.000+08:00

Another patrol round the circumference of my apartment found this outside my parents' bedroom window:

It's the ootheca - egg case - of a praying mantis. All hatched, though, not long ago. I wonder how some insects choose their oviposition sites... four floors above ground, on a bare marble wall, with no food in sight (they start hunting upon hatching - a scene of mass cannibalism enters my mind -_-), and there's that additional high possibility of being sighted by a human being whose first instinct upon seeing these six-legged creatures in her house is to call for the insecticide.

2006-04-01T16:54:00.000+08:00

The Central Nature Reserves volunteers have started to blog, with accounts of the colugos (flying lemurs) to kick off with. A pity the mom and baby both couldn't make it. Drat the poachers, these thieves and murderers who take away what's so precious to us.

I don't quite know how management is like over there but it's been not an easy task getting Buloh involved in blogging. The closest I could do was to start a forum for them. Even so, it's been months (the proposal was first put forth three years ago, in fact, but they were initially hesitant), and it's due to be launched soon.

The CNR blog has a pretty family-oriented feel to it... I quite like it. And there's a particular poster who's caught my eye - a young boy who goes by the name of Leshon. He's got his own nature blog... and reminds me so much of myself when I first started. If only I started blogging then... there are so many stories, so many anecdotes left untold. He seems like a good guide; I don't know how old he is, but he's an example that there should never be age requirements when it comes to this sort of stuff. *cough* Buloh *cough* Zoo Docents *gentle cough*.

Many more nature-related blogs popping up left and right. A good sign?

2006-03-31T13:34:00.000+08:00

There's a wasp/hornet nest hanging right outside my window and try as I might, I can't identify them. Of the subfamily Polistinae, paper wasps? The material and the cell-like structures of the nests do vaguely resemble that of paper wasps. And the entire thing is attached to the wall/ceiling by a short stalk. Can't think of any other wasps which do that (and they are social). But the shape of the structure... it's wrong, it's not an upside-down bell. Urgh. Help. The wasps themselves are short and fat, and come in the typical black-and-yellow attire. So far... having observed them scuttling to and fro, I haven't seen a single one carry any material or organism of any sort. I wonder what they actually do. Are they all females? Where's the queen? How big can that nest get? Why're all the openings of the cells facing one direction? Am trying to get a better shot of an individual. The reach of my macro's too short and with the tele I've to stand too far away. I might end up looking at them through my binos while in a chair at my desk.

2006-03-30T13:31:00.000+08:00

True to the S'porean tendency to apply abbreviations to whatever words whenever possible, I've found these while going about my business:

APPLES: Application for Passport On-line Electronic System

OSCARS: One-Stop Change of Address Reporting Service (to inform participating government agencies and statutory boards of your change of residential address)

And if A*STAR wasn't unoriginal enough, here's another STAR (Special Tactical & Rescue Unit)... the SWAT equivalent of the Singapore Police Force.

Wildlife in the house?

2006-03-29T22:01:00.000+08:00

I haven't stepped out of my home since I arrived on Monday night. Been revising haaard... almost halfway through Applied Eco. Almost. So far - a lime butterfly and a cicada have paid me a visit. The former's an adult reared by my sis while still a caterpillar, and the latter... well, you could say Banjo 'found' it when he decided to stop by the dining room windows. He's a bit scruffy so I decided to give him a little sprinkle in my bathroom.

No plans to get out too soon though; can't afford the time. No, not when even coursemates on msn can't spare a few minutes to chat - we're all studying. Gotta renew my passport, send my D70 for servicing, grab a coupla things from here and there and boy do I really want to visit that Star Wars exhibition... can't miss it twice! But arrghh... < 4 weeks till exams.

Last days of term: Dr Lamb's experiment, NHM, Anna's birthday, and sushi-making

2006-03-26T07:04:00.000+08:00

I'm not gonna bother explaining what yesterday's Lamb experiment was about - Xi, having been one of the seven (six?) experimental subjects, has a full account on her blog. All I can say was that it was great fun - no, I didn't drink, I shot, I witnessed a lot of things I would have been best left not witnessing, and I ran off to wrap up my BCB course by supporting partner Soph's talk on our otter action plan. I rejoined the others in Lamb's office after an hour, only to find a pinked-up Marvin (Sook Sook the traitor, he was wearing an EEE hoodie!), a red Xi and a very intoxicated Xiao.

--------------------------------------------
It was NHM again in the arvo, but my sup Mick was nowhere to be found. I suspected he was at the Union Bar - where he and some other entomologist dudes hang out on Fridays - but he emailed later on explaining how he was at the airport receiving a Chinese visitor, but missed him as they were both at different terminals. "Not sure how to pronounce his first name though Cong, I need your help with this!"

--------------------------------------------
Anna aka Princess' birthday at night was one of the most memorable. Dinner and karaoke in London! With HK/S'pore/BBC bio gang and the MUN'ers. We sang mostly Cantonese songs, with the occasional English song so that our international friends won't be left out - but they were the cheesy BSB types, that or "I'm a big big girl in a big big world". Well, they were enthusiastic about the whole idea of KTVs to begin with... which was just totally great. Too bad there weren't any Japanese songs though. I thoroughly enjoyed myself... we were all on a high throughout the night.

Johannes and Sun proposed going to an arcade or playing pool... but... the rest weren't keen... so the remnants of the gang ended up at my place and played (or learnt to play) mahjong.

--------------------------------------------
Today we had the Japanese MUNers over. I love these little visits by the MUN gang. It's always a bit of social, a bit of debating, and there's always some munching. They were here, these noble senseis, to share with us the techniques of sushi-making. I missed the bits in the middle, but returned just in time to join them in discussions of Japanese geishas and maikos, prostitution in countries, the Islamic law in Bahrain, and female escort services. lol... :)

--------------------------------------------
Well, fun's over, it's time to pack. I'll be flying off tomorrow.

2006-03-24T09:39:00.000+08:00

Photos from today. Yeah, Xi helped - in the Entomology Dept! I still haven't told Mick. I've told him that I'd be going back to S'pore for the term break and so he shouldn't be expecting me at work for a while, but I haven't told him about my FYP and what will come after that. He'll be depressed, and I'll blame myself. I can't have that. I'd nominate Xi as my replacement, but heck, she's coming to Silwood too.

I should grab some sleep. I really should. I'll be going home soon and there're these three pimples - which appeared in just these two days - which I need to hide from my mom. She cares more about my complexion that I do, so I gotta take care of my face. -_-"

I'm not sure why I don't feel like sleeping... too much coke? Too excited about the end of term, the end of lectures, and the end of the learning bit of my undergrad life? I've only realised, talking to my mom just now over the phone, that I'll never need to visit the South Ken campus again - at least, not the lecture rooms of SAF. Nor the labs, the computer rooms, or the cafe. And after tomorrow, there will be lots of faces I won't ever be seeing again. Maybe I'm nervous about the uncertainty of everything from now on.

I don't know what I should do on Saturday morning. What else I need to do. I don't know what I should pack. I don't know what I should leave here in London. I still don't know if I'll be staying.

I know, though, that the exams are drawing near - in exactly a month's time - and I should be revising like hell.

2006-03-23T19:51:00.000+08:00

NHM's Central Hall was transformed into a banquet hall of sorts yesterday. Men in black were rappelling down the columns hanging up a Big Black Cloth with Starry Lights, a lady was arranging yellow candles on the main stairway, Dippy the dino was lit up red from the underside, and a lot of other people in black were hurrying about setting tables and looking useful.

Xi said she heard the PA announcing the closing of museum earlier on. Little wonder why they were so eager to get rid of the visitors in such a jiffy.

2006-03-22T19:32:00.000+08:00

I really really ought to have a shower.

But there's no gas... for the upteenth time. No hot water.

Sometimes, I wonder. This sucks. So much so for all the rent and the other bills.

Twice we were completely waterless, once the toilet bowl was stuffed and full to the brim of floating poo.

I don't feel like going out until I have that shower. My head smells.

Final piece of coursework ever

2006-03-22T00:20:00.000+08:00

This is the last assignment I'll ever get in my degree course... gotta make the poster presentation a good one! Since I've finished this earlier than expected, I think I'll wrap up the final bits and pieces tomorrow and make a visit to the NHM. Haven't been down in a while; Mick's gonna wonder what's happened to me. Gotta break to him the bad news too - I don't think I'll be seen in the Ent Dept for quite a long while to come... shall be flying back home this weekened, then'll it'll be the exams, then it'll be Silwood for FYP... then... goodness knows...

I'm still waiting to hear from Sci Comm regarding my postgrad application. They say they'll decide within four weeks, and this is week 4.

2006-03-19T23:26:00.000+08:00

SingSoc Major Event 2006: Rojak! last night - photos

I didn't do anything this year, didn't perform, organise, advise, or anything. I'd prolly fade out from the workload had I taken up juggling yet another ball. I was a photographer, as usual. It has become my default position of responsibility, the only nature of my involvement with them this entire year, and months to come; I'm already booked for covering Sojourn 2006. And again, I must stress... I'm a 'orrible 'people' photographer and I don't actually take a great liking to this sort of work... but photographers aren't that common a breed (why?) and they're often, unfortunately, needed.

Comments on the show? It was evident that everyone's put in tonnes of effort. And they managed to bring if off much better than expected... I was feeling quite nervous for them during the rehearsals. But other than that, I shall reserve my comments (partly 'cos I was concentrating more on getting decent shots rather than actually listening to the singing and happenings on stage... and partly 'cos... bleah).

From 2005 - Reach!

From 2004 - Flaggellah

At this point, I'd just like to say a word: loyalty. Doesn't it mean anything to some people?

Btw, thanks Lu and the MUN'ers for your support!

2006-03-19T23:08:00.000+08:00

Our Conservation Bio course saw us visiting Kew Gardens on Friday (my first visit was two years ago), and I had initially hoped that we'd be treated to some behind-the-scenes demos. But nooo... throughout the day, we sat through lectures after lectures - the most number of lectures we have ever had in a day as biology students, ever - and never once did I even step into a glasshouse. The role of horticulture, herbariums, genetics, etc etc. and many, many case studies from the Caribbean and Africa. Lunch break lasted for an hour and during then Soph and I had a go at the gulls around the pond - she's still learning how to work the EOS 350D. When the flowers are in bloom, I might go there again; entrance fees are waived once you flash your NHM staff pass. Coolies.

2006-03-16T07:55:00.000+08:00

Little did I expect that living two terms with Hong Kongers has returned me so well to the type of environment I have been so used to and brought up in... that when I return to a Singaporean community, I actually come to suffer what I can only perceive as a reverse cultural shock.

Yesterday, at the Rojak (btw, it's this Sat, do come if you can... it's for a charitable cause) rehearsal and today at SingSoc's AGM, I couldn't help but feel a little distressed... at these sudden feelings of alienation. Sure, I've still got friends there, and I'm sure that the fact that I only know a handful of freshers isn't a problem. I felt out of place. Like... I wasn't sure how to interact with the people around me all of a sudden, save for hiding myself behind my camera most of the time. I was mindful of my accent, not wanting to sound like what others may come to think of as contrieved or 'putting on a show' when I speak in my usual 'standard, but Aussie-influenced' English... and having a little bit of difficulty achieving that hint of Singlish. And I don't really get their jokes. Too much Hokkien. I was a tad overwhelmed and at a loss. Reason I don't get this when I return S'pore is that I'm usually hanging out with old friends, or my family and our circle of HK expat friends anyway... so I don't really need to force myself to mingle with many Singaporeans.

After Australia, I struggled trying to fit in with the Singaporeans, but I knew that I had to since they would be my main pillar of support while I started studies in London. I did originally mingle more with the other international students and British-Chinese when I first came, but gradually I became more involved with SingSoc. Even then, through first year, and through second-year, being in the committee, living with Singaporeans... I am thankful to SingSoc and all my friends... but still I didn't know if I belonged. Not having been through JC only made things worse, as that's when I'd start to feel most lonely - when everyone around me starts talking about their JC days and so-and-so knowing so-and-so from class-something. Not having common experiences makes things very hard, and Singaporeans I find are particularly keen on discovering common experiences between people. I suppose that makes socialising easier, so I can understand why, but it gets annoying when that's done everytime people get together. Sigh... like all of my S'pore bio gang dinners.

* * * * * * * * *
I thought that I would have to work hard to integrate into this new household; I knew the two Singaporeans, but haven't met the four HKgers before. I admit that this isn't the most fun bunch I've been with, but right from the start, I felt at home, among my own people. It may not seem obvious significant on the outset, but the cultural differences and the values between the two societies are greatly... different. From practices at the dinner table to the importance of following duty rosters, the differences are there. Very often, during the rare occasions where we had to call for house meetings to settle disputes, the root of the problem lay in these differences. It's surprisingly how visible the line between the HKger camp vs the Singaporean camp is.

* * * * * * * * *
We established the Model United Nations and all of us - contributing to the new club our own experiences and expertise - could arguably have formed the most perfect committee there is and ever would be. And through MUN... we came to know many, many interesting and impressive people. Hailing from Britian, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Bahrain, Japan, Korea, Germany, Portugal, and other Middle Eastern, African and Asian countries... they have enabled me to acquire an increased global perspective. Making these new friends has changed the way I look at things, somewhat. They are what I was looking for when I came - what I wanted to experience in London, to enhance my overseas experience.

During SingSoc's AGM today I was yearning to ask a particular question - one involving cultural exchange and the emphasis on inter-society interaction (between SingSoc and other overseas clubs), as opposed to purely concentrating on strengthening the bond between Singaporeans. This approach does not, apparently, sit well with the majority of SingSoc members, or so I was told, and thus I was discouraged from posing the question. This issue is, as far as I'm aware, one of the the reasons why many Singaporeans do not participate in SingSoc activities. After having experienced 'the greater world', returning to SingSoc is almost like returning to being a frog in a well. Although... having said that, SingSoc does very successfully fulfil its other aims, and more importantly, it is appreciated by the freshers, not for doings unknown.

* * * * * * * * *
Well, again, here I am... writing about this ever-persistent identity crisis that I have. But now... after close to three years of self-discovery, I am confused no longer. I know what I am. I am a heung gong yan. I once asked my housemates, out of self-curiousity, what they consider me as. All unaminously said that I am a Hong Konger. Whereas if I were to ask the Singaporeans, I doubt if they could have agreed that I were Singaporean. I am Chinese, neither of Singapore nor mainland China, but of Hong Kong... no matter how distanced I am from them.

New addiction

2006-03-12T23:12:00.000+08:00

Naruto's still on filler episodes, and Bleach has become a tad less exciting.

I've found a new series to kill time with - Full Metal Alchemist. This one's really really good...

2006-03-09T07:04:00.000+08:00

I've been eating out so often nowadays...

Today was our termly bio dinner, at Nando's Earls Court. Despite me being a tad hesitant to go at first seeing as how the menu has mainly peri-peri chickens and fries - no good for the throat.

That was probably our last bio dinner with all the juniors before we're done at Imperial. Sigh.

x x x x x x

My birthday feels like it's lasted four days.

Tonight I was presented with another present - the main present... from everyone in the household and the bio gang. It's a delightful little iPod Nano, with an engraved personalised message at the back. Boy, I'm spoilt. I've already got a 60gig iPod Photo from two Christmases ago - that's from my family. How sweet. Two iPods, from two very important groups of people in my life. :)

Why another site?

2006-03-09T00:06:00.000+08:00

This blog is the main reason.

Yes, it is here for all the world to read.

But it is still a personal blog.

It remains mainly for what Friendster calls '1st degree' and '2nd degree' friends, plus the odd stranger who stumbles upon this domain.

This site is not for every new person I meet... anyone I give my namecard out to.

talfryn.com exists for a different purpose. Not an entirely commercial purpose, for I intend to fetch no earnings from the launch of that sister site; and not simply to market myself (or my services). It is there 'cos I need an alternative to this.

That world belongs to J.L., and this to Husky.

6 March

2006-03-08T08:14:00.000+08:00

Different households, different 'traditions'. Here at Queen's Gate we have a habit of showering the birthday girl (or boy) with dinners and cakes.

Had an extremely scrumptious meal on Sunday night at some poshish Chinese restaurant with the household and a couple of MUN'ers, and there was that unexpected birthday cake at the end. All thanks to Wang-san, who treated us all. Then Monday came, and we usually don't cook on Mondays but they whipped up a rather big dinner; there's MUN sessions on Mondays so no dinner then. But - Tuesday - was a QG-bio combined affair. Supposedly at some steak place at Fulham's but I wasn't keen on venturing too far so we had a bit of Singaporeaness at Bugis Street. Got back home. Another birthday cake, this time candleless 'cos I am usually the one in charge of cake candles and after Xiao's cake last week they couldn't be found. I've lost count of the times they sang the song. And, for once, it was in Cantonese too. :)

If I were up to it I might have had just one major party, for everyone I know, for everyone I would have liked to celebrate with me. But I've never really been one for parties and sometimes I like it kept quiet. So for those who feel they've been left out, I have not forgotten you. You know who you are, and know that I would loved to have you along.

And thanks to all who greeted me with birthday wishes or sent me e-cards. My friends in Australia especially - it's been three years on, and it's heartening to know that some where far away you're all still there. Thank you... even though I haven't been exactly putting in the best of my efforts to keep in touch. And hugs to ZF from back home too - when your big day comes, I should be there.

Wallace and Darwin have survived a year under my care - a first for goldfish - and have been joined by dozens more fish. This alone surprises me more than the fact that I'm now 21. Somehow I'm not feeling the age change... perhaps not yet... but I think the day will come soon when I sit down and start to think, and reflect, and plan... what I have done and want to do in life.

As for now, there's that evil bug to tackle; I've caught a nasty flu(?) and so have my housemates and coursemates.

Oh, and yeah. I'm pleased to announce that the day has finally come when Talfryn goes 'dot com'. So - enjoy.

1 month-old guppies

2006-03-06T01:58:00.000+08:00

Early pressies

2006-03-05T01:16:00.000+08:00

Flowers, a cute little iced fruit cake and a fondue set (gotta get cheese!) from home - thanks Mommy, Daddy and Jane *hugs*, and Priceless: The Vanishing Beauty of A Fragile Planet by Aussie author Bradley Trevor Greive from Tania and Lydia in Oz. Missin' y'all.

My housemates have been bugging me to tell them what I want. I don't really know!

Mozena alata rechristened

2006-03-03T07:00:00.000+08:00

2006-03-01T06:35:00.000+08:00

Yesterday and today there was a visiting scientist from the American Museum of Natural History, here to show us the online PBI inventory system (among other things). He proposed that the NHM join them as a participating institution. After looking at their user backend, I want to move over now. 'Cos we're currently using a very basic DB using Microsoft Access. It works, but it is by far much less impressive than PBI (a very well-funded project). Mick's hoping that I'll stay on for another year at least... there's so much he wants to get done.

Today - a bit of curation and specimen photog.

Research on Agamids

2006-02-28T10:00:00.000+08:00

Current task for Biodiversity & Conservation: a comprehensive encyclopaedia article on a 'large-scale evolutionary clade' of my choice.

I am to cover the points on the niche, speciation, phylogeny, distribution, extinctions, imbalance in distribution of subtaxa among taxa, and generally the evolutionary ecology of the clade.

My choice?

The Agamidae family of lizards (representing ~381 species at of January 2005), which includes my favourites the Changeable lizard Calotes versicolor, the Green-crested lizard Bronchocela cristatella and the Common flying dragon Draco volans.

Finally, I get to do something with the reptiles closer to home.

^{Male Changeable lizard, female Changeable lizard, Green-crested lizard, Common flying dragon}

MSc

2006-02-27T22:35:00.000+08:00

Application's in. Now I await.

Bumped into Johannes while in the SciComm office today: "So you really want to do this ey?" *me nods*

What they're doing looks pretty fun. And it's true - I don't see a single Asian in there.

I've a feeling my grades will pull me down. I'm betting my all on my CV and personal statement. But - no point speculating. After a month, I'll know.

New blog

2006-02-27T03:11:00.000+08:00

For my FYP: The Selia of Old Norman

May I encourage all my fellow biologists to keep a journal for their projects - blogging is a handy tool!

Lee Valley

2006-02-27T01:20:00.000+08:00

Lee Valley Park - we went to Chesthunt, about an hour's travel from home. Yesterday was a good day. In fact, one of my best field day-outs. We were blessed with good, sunny weather, a rare occurance in this drab winter season.

Strange as it may sound, barely 5% of my British bird photos are of passerines. This trip added many more record shots, plus 11 new species to my life list. Highlights - two of Britain's rarest birds the Great Bittern and Common Kingfisher, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, Green Woodpecker, Fieldfare, Redwing, Common kestrel, Long-tailed tit and Chaffinch (the latter are common garden birds but I haven't been seeing much of those).

The otters make their home there but we'll have to be lucky to see those.

The good/better/decent:

European robin (skinny one)

European robin (fat one)

Blue tit

Great tit

Swans in lake

Not-so-good/record shots:

Kamikaze?

Female blackbird with worm

Great bittern

Chaffinch

Common kestrel

Green woodpecker

Common kingfisher

Fieldfare

Long-tailed tit

2006-02-24T22:39:00.000+08:00

Mick from the NHM says...

"Re: expert bug catchers, we have about 50, take your pick!"

*rubs hands in glee*

2006-02-24T07:40:00.000+08:00

It's just my luck that Simon Leather was in South Ken for a conference today. I waved at him as he was weaving through the lobby. He squinted - is that you? - and then hopped over. Literally.

I hope I'm not overdoing my enthusiasm... I can feel the "!" in almost all my sentences.

"Hi Dr Leather!"

I'm not sure if I should call him Simon or Dr Leather, even though he calls me Jackie and signs off as Simon and we could easily have been on first-name terms. I've always felt that Titled People should be addressed appropriately with their Titles.

We talked about Silwood and the people at Silwood, and horse-riding "for rich people". And a bit about his history with the Scouts - he was wearing the same scout lapel pin I saw him wear during the zoo trip. I started with a "Happy belated Thinking Day (!)"... 22nd Feb yesterday was world guides/scouts day... and he just rambled on.

We'll meet next Thursday to discuss the OoP.

Sarah's the one who's doing Ian Owen's birds. So many of us had it as our first choice... it was her second choice and yet she got it. That really pisses us off (not the fact that it wasn't I who got the project, but that the system allowed such a thing to happen). But I'm not complaining. I'll never achieve the same level of buddiness with Ian as I could with Simon. And insects are trustworthier research subjects than birds. I'll see if the next time I'm down at the NHM I could hunt down an insect-collecting/sampling expert and bug *cough* pun *cough* him for advice.

Day off tomorrow. Day off yesterday. Day off next Tuesday. MSc application deadline next Tuesday. I wonder how Timmy's going with my reference, 'cos I'm not going too good with the ending bit of my self-written piece of science communication. You know the thing they call writer's block? I think I've got it.

Ent and more ent

2006-02-23T05:16:00.000+08:00

In primary school, I was considered an authority on all things to be found in the Eco-garden: tadpoles, dragonflies, and the inhabitants of leaf litter. In secondary school, it became all things mangroves and reptilian. Some still remember me as the lizard girl. Aussie high school saw a shift in focus to birds, and now comes the Insect Era.

I've been allocated my 2nd choice for FYP. I'll be hanging out with aphidman! Just as I was saying in last night's post about how I'd love to have more of Tilly or Leather, I've got Simon Leather as my supervisor. In a way I'm thankful that I wasn't given Ian Owens' bird project in the end. Since first year, I've been looking up to him but he's been letting me down. He ignores all my emails, and other students' too. NG.

Might as well, since Leather's totally an applied ecologist and denounces the pure ecology side of things (ie. the lab-based work like molecular eco, genetics etc.) Suits me perfectly. Gotta meet up with him somehow in the near future to discuss the outline of the project, which involves designing lotsa pitfall traps and trapping lotsa insects.

Xi will also be based in Silwood; she's teamed up with Jeff, bryophyte dude. Soph too, will become a Silwoodian, working with Charalambous (eek) on crickets.

2006-02-23T05:04:00.000+08:00

I'm growing extremely fond of the NHM. Xi and I went to the staff restaurant this arvo; I spent the rest of the day up in the insecty tower of Entomology. Working on data entry - imaging the old catalogues to be incorporated into the database. Mick's (my sup) drafted out a proposal to the higher ups to get funding for his uber-ambitious curation project. Some dude from the nat hist museum in California sent him a proposal for some cooperative; we're all pretty excited. Quite a monotonous day; Xi came after she was done in Botany and we surfed through the staff intranet pages. There'll be more insects for me to shoot next week, so I'm looking forward to that.

Thames at Night

2006-02-22T07:39:00.000+08:00

Two photos from Saturday night after the LIMUNers left on the boat party...

FYPs, BCB and my PT

2006-02-22T02:56:00.000+08:00

We can NEVER trust the undergrad office - or anywhere else in Imperial which even remotely resembles an office - can we? FYP allocations are two days late and counting. I knew this would happen. We're all anxious. Making us wait is torture. It shouldn't be allowed. If these were days from yonder years we'd be marching to Prof Wright's office "with pitchforks and torches" (Phoon, 2006).

Last year when I told Dr Barraclough my final-year options, he mentioned that he would be teaching in the Biodiversity and Conservation Biology course. It came to be that today was that day when he would teach. After this, I'm not sure if I'll be seeing him in South Ken campus again (or if I'll ever meet him again, for that matter). If I go to Silwood Park for FYP, I might bump into him. Good 'ole Tim, he's my personal tutor. Today after I passed him my postgrad request for reference form, he quietly sought out a dark spot under the stairs to have his salad lunch. Xi, Wink, Soph and I, watching from the other end of the lobby, thought he looked kind of lonely. After a bit of persuasion and nudges from my guilty conscience (for leaving my personal tutor all alone by himself), I went over to him in an attempt to make conversation. Maintaining a flowing dialogue wasn't the easiest of things. He's a bit of a shy person really, and I reckon he's feeling a little out of place in SAF. But otherwise he's quite a sweet chap, if I be allowed to describe a lecturer in such a manner. Tilly Collins and Simon Leather would both make excellent lecturer-buddies... if only they taught us more. I miss Tilly and her kids.

Biod&Consv is full of lecturers we haven't heard of before - Wilkinson, Cardillo, MacLean, Hudson, Milner-Gulland and Manning. Only Charalambous (who has, to our dismay, replaced Purvis as course convenor), Owens and Coulson reappear to swamp us with PowerPoint notes. I've kinda lost enthusiasm for this course now. Who teaches you does make a big difference.

All I can be thankful for is my timetable. No more practicals (time to discard that lab coat, or deface it!)... no full days... and one, sometimes two, free days each week.

I'm currently coursework-free, so it's time to work on that MSc application. There are a couple of aptitude assignments to complete, a CV to polish, a personal statement to write, and forms to fill.

LIMUN 2006, 17th-19th Feb

2006-02-21T01:47:00.000+08:00

^{Clockwise from top left: delegates gathered for the closing ceremony; networking; opening ceremony at the V&A Museum; voting on a motion; ICJ debates; drafting resolutions}

I should stop making collages and work on processing my photos. Xi and I have taken over 1000 shots throughout.

Two things about LIMUN piss me off. Well, actually more than two, but if I mention the rest here I might take flak. What the rest of the OC did is not directly my business, so I shan't go on. The two things were my photography (they've got quite a lot of funding and Xi and I were working f.o.c., way overtime, for 3 whole days. We didn't really volunteer, but were volunteered. Lighting conditions were horrible, my flashgun was uncooperative, my VR + D70 combi gives problems, among others. I am not pleased with my shots.) and that I had to miss paintballing on Saturday with SingSoc. I've never gone paintballing before, and I really wanted to (since first year), but there's a duty to be done and again in the end it's that stupid moral obligation that I shouldn't abandon my friends who're slaving away at LIMUN. Providing almost 8 hours of photographic coverage does take some of the energy and spirit from you, and I knew that if I went paintballing, I might bail out on Sunday as well. And that wouldn't be good.

I don't think I can ever be a delegate. Not at an international MUN conference anyway. The delegates are all pros... they're freakingly good. Oji-san says everyone there has lots of 'eye power'. We all agree. They're so good that the Right Honorable Chief Justice of the International Court of Justice might have almost passed for the real thing. Hmm perhaps not quite exactly, but close. ;) Plus, the days are just too long. Friday ran from 12 to 8, Saturday started at 9 and ended at 12, and Sunday's also almost a full day. If I were to talk politics for such long hours, my brain'll just go bonkers.

But I think we've showed them. This is the first time Imperial College has made an appearance at LIMUN, and this is the first time that we're hosting it. A handful of our members came as delegates, while most others were on the secretariat staff. We've showed them that scientists and engineers too can speak United Nations. Nevermind that everybody else who's listed in the delegate handbook is doing BA Development Studies, or LLM International Law, or PhD War Studies, or MSc Human Rights. We've impressed them with our efficiency and facilities. We've helped the conference secure success.

*Group hug* to everyone. We've done Imperial proud.

London Wetland Centre

2006-02-16T07:58:00.000+08:00

Quite pleased... today I finally had the chance to 'test' my newish one-month-and-a-week-old VR 80-400mm on some nature photography. I'm still far from mastering the use of it. My D70 doesn't like it very much for some reason... but otherwise I'm extremely impressed with its optical quality. It's just me who needs to 'upgrade' [my skills and techniques] now. It isn't quite the monster I had expected (and dreaded) it to be in terms of weight. Lugging it around wasn't that bad - no arm aches or anything. Although, compared with Kiat's and his real monster , who am I to complain? :P

O let there be more sunny days... on which I'm free. Let me make the most out of my baby monster.

Some of the species of birds here are still unidentified... I'll update again soon with names. Many species of birds there are alien to Britain... so I can't find all of them in the fieldguide.

Eurasian wigeon (male)

Long-tailed duck (male)

Long-tailed duck

Some duck

Some other duck

Mallards

Rose-ringed parakeet (very obviously alien, but they've long established
populations in around London and are now quite common)

A yellow rose for friendship

2006-02-15T05:06:00.000+08:00

2006-02-14T17:35:00.000+08:00

I was going crazy last night over FYP options. Deadline for choices is today.

And so it seems, no matter what the outcome, I'll be based in Silwood Park for 6 weeks after my exams in April.

In order:

Ian 'birdman' Owens - Colouration in wild birds (I want this one!!!)
Simon 'aphidman' Leather - Effects of pitfall trap design and bait type on catch size and composition (could be interesting, no?)
Tilly Collins - Visitorship of natural areas (I like her, she's nice)
Charalambous - Aggressive male behaviour in crickets (not that I'm really keen on it, but...)
Reader - Carabid beetles as bioindicators (from here on it's forced options)
Vogler, the coleoptera dude at the NHM - Latitudinal beetle species gradients (simply for the sake of needing to have a 6th option)

Side note: I've decided on a Lowepro Slingshot at the mo... since all the reviews and everything about it is so good. A backpack-slingbag hybrid, convenient for swapping camera lens and those little stuff. Perhaps I'll get a backpack only when I return to Singapore where the bags are much less pricey and I can actually try some on for size.

Am off to the NHM again now... prolly will catch Xi for lunch or something later. I just hope she won't be swamped by microscopic algae.

Time to get a new backpack?

2006-02-12T07:04:00.000+08:00

For daily use, I mean. Not another one of those 65L backpacking sorts, but a photog backpack. Gotta support me little back and shoulders.

I'm having difficulty deciding on two of them:

Tamrac Adventure 6 (or 7) or Lowepro Orion Trekker II ?

They're both priced at about the same, and both have pros and cons.

I just need to get a new one soon - my current general-purpose backpack has been with me since Sydney, and it's got little holes and the zip track's broken in places, and the reflective lining layer is coming off. Plus it's got absolutely no padding so I'm a bit worried when I chuck in my baby monster.

2006-02-11T02:51:00.000+08:00

Today's talk went quite well. I came up with one of the bestest Powerpoint presentations I've ever done, and Ian Owens laughed when I said that I could now recognise all the individual males - "They've got their own personalities." Prof Wright smiled a lot too.

We've got a week's break before I embark on the final module of my Ecology degree... on biodiversity and conservation. That should be good.

Monday and Tuesday's for NHM, Thursday's reserved for NHM at Tring, Friday's LIMUN, Saturday's most likely paintballing with SingSoc, Sunday's LIMUN again, Monday's back to school and deadline for project report. I'll try to squeeze in some shooting somewhere.

Now I've got a few gravid female guppies on my hands, and unexpectedly last night I found 6 - traumatised - fry in one of the tanks, so I had to rescue them and they're now in a rearing box. They're only a day old, and already the size of a month-old Betta fry! I think I might give up breeding Bettas in favour of guppies (not that I can help it - the pregnant females *will* give birth, sooner or later).

NHM Ent. Dept. Part 2

2006-02-09T07:48:00.000+08:00

< This is the curator-supervisor-guy polishing up the cicada collection for my specimen photography session.

It's cool. I actually have a job title in the files. It's "Curator Entomology". It'll probably be more appropriate if there was a 'Junior' or 'Assistant' or 'Trainee' in front of it though.

This morning was an intro to the region (of origin) coding systems, and more on the database entry and such, and the mess to do with describing authors, binomial nomenclature, registry and drawer numbers. I reckon more work is done on sorting out the many different records held for a species (since the records and record-keeping methods date back to a couple of centuries ago) and synchronising them, rather that actual work on the specimens themselves. We've only done that for three hundred or so species of the family Cicadellidae (leafhoppers)... there's still a long, long way to go.

Meanwhile Xi's going to start volunteering in the Botany Dept. Something about culturing microscopic green algae. More research-based, then. I could do research too but then I'd be reassigned to the Coleoptera (beetle) section... whom I hear are pretty a ~~scary~~ aggressive bunch. The non-coloeptera people have to label parts of the refrigerator, cupboard and pantry as "NON-COLEOPTERA" to keep the Coleoptera freaks away...

Today

2006-02-09T06:37:00.000+08:00

I'm in a celebratory mood... we're all so happy, but I gotta work on my report/presentation and I can't concentrate at all.

10am - 2pm was working the NHM
2.20 - 6.30 was ICMUN AGM & elections... handover's coming soon! Everything went really well... more on that later
7.00 - 8.00 dinner with old and new committee
8.10 - 10 SingSoc Rojak... just attending the meeting-rehearsals (I'm so terribly out of touch with SingSoc... gotta know what's been happening ey?)

Tired out!

Meet my new roommates

2006-02-08T03:34:00.000+08:00

Me: "What will happen to the guppies after this?"

Greek demo guy: "You can... bring them home?"

Darn. He read my intentions. :P

Noting the questioning look, he added,"Yes, you can bring them home if you feel emotionally attached to them. It's ok."

So I've now got around 20 guppies in my empty tank (previously for my Betta fry). I say around 20, 'cos it's hard to count them when they're all frolicking around. I have only around 20 fish, since I didn't have anything bigger to contain them in and I didn't want to look greedy. The other demo dude told me to take all of them away if I could (I couldn't, of course, so Soph filled another two bagfuls and there were still many, many left), and asked if I wanted to keep the locusts too (some others were using them for the electroantennogram practical). I used to keep guppies when I was young... and those periods of guppy ownership were brief as they'd always die after a few days.

The males in the pic are those which we had used for our project - on male dominance and courtship behaviour. I've got those original 10, plus a few more, including a few pregnant females. One of them has an absolutely huge belly and is on the verge of exploding. I'm not really prepared for fry-rearing again, so if she feels like getting into some fun and offloading herself... ...

Oh, what fun. Souvenirs from Animal Behaviour. A little bit of something to distract us while we work on our project presentations for Friday...

NHM Ent. Dept.

2006-02-05T01:38:00.000+08:00

Working behind the scenes of the Natural History Museum is like stepping back in time. Everything's so old... so fragile... so precious... and there's so much to take in.

I was given a crash course on curation and collections management. Learning all those terms for type material (holotype, syntype(s), neotype and what have you), and other species inventory documentation processes.

The curator (a kindly chap who's been working on hemipteras for the past three decades) passed me a catalogue book, leather-bound, from 1820 - in it were records of specimens presented to the NHM. I flipped through it, being careful not to let the pages fall off.

There were specimens from the Earl of Derby, HRH something, and a sailor on the HMS Rattlesnake from his tour in Australia, among many others. And to think that the *original* of these ie. first-ever described and classified, are on the tray right in front of me (they've got a red disc below their labels)... I could almost whiff the oodles of their 200-year-oldness... O_O'

They're currently working on data entry and creating a database of the collections which will ultimately be made available online. The aim's to make the records of the specimens, and the specimens themselves, accessible to all. The tough part is reading the hand-written labels!

The collections need to be re-housed (the entire old Ent. wing is being demolished), and help is also needed to re-organise and sort (classify) the collections to order or family level. The curator said I might be assigned to the latter task, since not all of their volunteer-staff have a scientific background. Other areas where I could help out would be the IT and computing bits and catalogue photography.

Coincidentally, the curator's the guy in charge of the fencing sports club at the NHM. I think I might go join them for a while on Wednesday, just to see how things run.

I have been wanting the Zoology department (birds and mammals!) but insects aren't that bad either; plus, there're lots of familiar bugs from the Southeast Asian region.

Lunar festival

2006-02-03T02:50:00.000+08:00

World of Warcraft's gone oriental! Red lanterns, chongsams and fireworks mark the Lunar Festival, when "adventurers will have the opportunity to honor many of their elders, and by doing so, they will also honor their culture and their people."

But of course, these traditions have a different origin. Can't totally import the real world, eh?

Doublespeak

2006-02-02T23:23:00.000+08:00

ICMUN received a hundred quid in sponsorship from EDB. We are extremely grateful. In return, we were given a blurb to put on our website, which includes the following:

"Our officers work closely with companies, both multinational and Singapore-based, to understand their needs, configure their business activities and assist in project implementation, in line with our strategic industrial plans. EDB also acts as a catalyst to promote entrepreneurship and develop new industries and technologies. As we forge ahead in a knowledge-driven world, we continue to enhance our pro-business environment ensuring that the right infrastructure and key manpower capabilities are in place for industries to flourish."

FYP

2006-02-02T20:53:00.000+08:00

More than ever now, I want to do Ian Owen's "Evolutionary ecology and genetics of birds" for my final-year project. I'll be devastated if I don't get it.

It's on colour variation in wild birds. It'll involve swapping eggs and rearing chicks, and measuring their data and stuff as they mature. It involves NO genetics or molecular analyses. It's the only project of its kind. I've just spoken with the good Prof, and in a few words he's convinced me that it's all I want to do. But is it up to him to decide on the allocations for his own projects? That's what's worrying me. We have no idea how they carry out allocations.

Methinks there is seriously a lack of faunal-related projects. Everyone's on about genetics and molebio and bacteria and fungi and plants, so as a result there's only five on the list of 130 projects which appeal to me.

Other choices are to do with public conservation attitudes (which would tie in well with my potential MSc in Sci Comm), visitor usage of natural areas, biodiversity in beetles, aggression in male crickets, and pitfall trap designs.

On a side note, I've finally been accepted into one of the science departments in the NHM. They've decided that Entomology Dept needs a hand. After all, right now in this chilly winter weather, I don't think volunteering in the Wildlife Garden is the wisest thing to do.

Guppy courtship

2006-02-01T23:06:00.000+08:00

Clockwise from top left: Male meets male, male meets female, male about to lauch into Sigmoid display, "which female should I choose"?

Animal behaviourists have the funnest pracs of all.

Guppy courtship behaviour is complex - Soph and I shall have this as our extended mini-project. Two full days next week in the labs watching males woo the females!

Chinese New Year, the London version

2006-01-30T20:48:00.000+08:00

I never knew Londoners had such a fettish for things Chink (have a look at China in London). Yesterday at Chinatown, I think I saw more gweilos than Chinese. And not only gweilos, but African Caribbeans and Sikhs, among others. When the gang of us photographers (five photogs, mostly Nikonians, three with D70s and intimidatingly monstrous lenses) went early to scout out the best shooting spot, there were hardly more than a couple of handful of people - press photographers excluded. But whatever you could see of the pavement was quickly filled up as the distant sounds of Lion Dance drums drew nearer. There were kids - so many kids (the human variety, not goat)! Kids hugging lamp posts, kids sitting on shoulders, kids waving paper dragons, kids wearing sunglasses, kids in strollers, kids wearing cute doggie hats.

The main procession was led by an Englishman with a plush dog on his hat, followed by an entourage of banner-carriers and people in traditional garb. There were more folk dancers, drummers, dragons and lions. Lots of martial artists - most of them non-Chinese. Their flags read "International Joseph Lee Wing Chun Assoc." or something similar; men gave melee combat demos as they walked along, and some associations carried with them weapons of all sorts. Women were dressed in amusing costumes with an oriental theme, but their interpretation of Chinese styles are not quite what I'm used to.

Over at Trafalgar Square, they had some performances on stage, but it was impossible to see as the place was too utterly packed. There were stalls, balloons, firecrackers, and all the accompanying noise and mayhem.

It's a funny feeling. The British don't just watch you celebrate CNY... they actually celebrate it with you.

2006-01-28T21:33:00.000+08:00

I did an essay on optimality in bird migration. On the fuel load, stopovers and predation risk. I read 31 papers, and cited half of them. I was inspired then... to collect all sorts of specialist papers relevant to the local (Singapore) fauna... and come up with some sort of databank or knowledge base, not for scientists but for the layman or average naturalist wanting to find out more. But that's just a vision. I'll have to do that before my MyAthens account expires.

I know what I want to do now, after this year. MSc in Science Communication. It's a bit of everything - journalism, PR and public affairs, media work, broadcasting, science policy, science controversies, ethics.

While I have time I try to squeeze in the TVB series <<酒店風雲>> (Revolving Doors Of Vengeance)... such a gripper, that one. I haven't watched such stuff in ages. That's over now, and I'm now on <<冲上云霄>> (Triumph In The Skies).

Here's something for Star Wars and gaming fans: the recently-released demo for SW Empire at War, an RTS.

Meanwhile it's all this festive Chinese spirit - CNY dinners, gatherings and all those new year goodies and nian gao. This weekend is packed.

"Have you seen the whale?"

2006-01-22T18:10:00.000+08:00

On any other day in London, I would have thought the person asking such a question was mad. But the unusual does happen in London from time to time. This weekend, a whale decided to get itself stranded in the River Thames. It was first sighted on Friday, and by Saturday morning it had swam westwards towards Battersea. It was all over the frontpages, all over websites, and BBC even had a helicopter over the site to provide live coverage over a webcast.

This was one lost whale. Northern bottlenose whales are found in deep, open waters in the North Atlantic (more info on BBC), so it's a rare sight around here. It was so distressed... rescuers mounted a full-sale operation in an attempt to save it.

I first heard of the news on Friday night, after coming back from the first day of our ICMUN conference. Dad came to London on Sat, and he knew of it too... and was interested in checking it out. So after some time at the computer trying to figure out where exactly the whale was then, we headed off towards Battersea, joined by Xi (who had abandoned her post at the conference).

It was packed full of people... bikes, cars and baby prams parked right by on the pathway, Toddlers sat on daddies' shoulders, teens and old men climbed up lamp posts... when I last went to Alberts Bridge for Guy Fawkes fireworks it wasn't even this packed.

I was at the back at first, and couldn't see what was happening. But twice the crowd clapped, and so it must have been something accomplished. When I finally found a gap which could fit me and my new VR 80-400mm, the whale was already lifted onto the salvage vessel. People clapped again. I reckon everyone thought it was a successful mission, and the whale was saved. As the rescue team and boats made off eastwards away from Battersea, people started to disperse, and everyone was happy.

----------

My dad called me this morning from the cab, as he was heading to Heathrow. He said that the whale had died. I knew... I was reading the news and following every piece of article and radio broadcast. They said it died from "natural causes at 1900 GMT after suffering convulsions". It was such a magnificent beast... at up to seven tonnes and 18ft... and yet its life was just as fragile as any other animal's. A sad ending for this out-of-the-ordinary cetacean.

Onlookers gather on Alberts Bridge

Watching the rescue team at work

Whale on mattress on barge

Keeping the whale wet

Waving goodbye

Reporters interviewing Guy-who-was-in-water-with-the-whale

Bug correcting behaviour practical

2006-01-20T03:53:00.000+08:00

These are Oncopeltus fasciatus, distantly related to the Dysdercus species (Cotton stainers) we know so well. Forcing them to turn at a bend imposes a short-lived opposite bias on their subsequent turning, ie. they will compensate and turn in the other direction when they come to the next junction, thus resuming in the original direction. This exp looks easy but it's not - this took us 5 hours, and that's when I handled them directly with my hands. Some others, those less fond of our creepy-crawly friends, used wooden sticks and paintbrushes( = more victims of drowning).

2006-01-19T03:15:00.000+08:00

The fan in my laptop broke down.

It's making all sorts of worrying noise and vibrations, and the keyboard heats up extremely quickly. If I don't shut down within 30 mins to let it cool down, it gives me the accursed BSOD and comes back with a black screen saying 0003 = Thermal sensor error.

Not a good thing.

2006-01-17T07:02:00.000+08:00

There comes a period in life when you start to wonder why you ever did all those things in the first place. Or why I'm still doing them. I thought I was done with being involved in societies and committees and all that. First year come second year come third. I vowed SingSoc was the last I'd touch. Then fencing needed help. I went to help, but on the condition that I'd only do what my job requires and nothing more. Then ICMUN, the little infant it was, needed help too. As a future housemate of all the inaugural committee members, I was obliged to do something. But this is not what I signed up for. I did not think then, that I'd put in my all, and at this moment I know I've not been putting my best efforts into this.

There comes a period in time when you get sick of all this commitment and responsibility and work. I'm not exactly sick of it, but I am tired of it and I have become numbed. It's like I do the same thing year after year - for how many years? Since sec school? - but for different purposes and with different people in different places. mUN@IC is coming real soon - it's upon us this weekend - and recently we've been holding publicity stints. Booths around college, giving out flyers and brainwashing passer-bys. Before I'd reach out to the people like it'll get me the Best Salesman Award or something, but now I'd rather sit behind the desk doing Sudoku or chat absentmindedly with friends. Not only because I doubt the success of our first major intracollegiate conference (I know, that's bad, that's really bad, but it's really discouraging. And ever since last year's pulling-off of SingSoc's major event, I take to the Easy Way Out like a courageous-less mouse) but truth be told, it's because I can't really be bothered anymore.

When my dad said he might be coming to London in January, I said that I wasn't sure if I'd be free. When a friend asked if I'd be free for lunch on a weekend, I wasn't sure if I'd be free. SingSoc's gonna have trip to Birmingham soon and I'm not sure if I'd be free. Natural History Museum WLG's asking me to volunteer on blah^th the Saturday and I had to reply with I wasn't sure if I'd be free. Goodness man, I wasn't sure why I won't be free either. On some dates I know I have events and activities which I couldn't just shrug off, and when I don't have activities, I won't be free 'cos I want the time for myself. I want to be not doing something for once. Gone are the weekends when I was able to laze about at home. Now there isn't a single weekend when I've just bummed about doing nothing.

There comes a time in life when you just wished you had no obligations, no nothing, to anyone, anywhere. No deadlines to meet, no budgets to keep to, no dates to set, no people to recruit, no posters or tickets to design, no to-do lists to draw, no emails to read and reply to (yes, I'm sorry, my email reply rate recently has been at an all-time low), no documents to print, no Union to deal with, no meetings to attend, no late nights to owl away with...

I want to finish that book, watch those TVB serials, read my texts and papers, do some research, have some cereal, edit some photos and clean my fish tanks.

2006-01-12T06:22:00.000+08:00

Things I wanted to but didn't do in my holidays:

- explore nature areas
- meet up with all my friends
- visit the Star Wars exhibition
- watch a movie
- shop around for a new camera backpack
- settle MUN stuff
- go to the zoo

What I did do was to spend more time out of the country than in it, post LOAs everywhere, and go horse-riding in Malaysia. It's funny how my bum is only starting to ache days after the trip. My thighs are sore too.

So it's 'back to school' and the college routine. Currently we're doing Animal Behaviour, and we've got birdman Ian Owens and insectman Jim Hardie. Today was (almost) all things birds - evolutionary behaviour, proximate and ultimate causes of behaviour... ... why Blackbirds let out alarm calls, evolution of colouration or why sparrows choose mates with larger bibs. Once I put forth a question to Prof Owens asking something about the baiting behaviour in herons - to be published to the BESGroup blog, but he still hasn't replied. I've a handful of questions I'd like to ask; I might pick a breaktime to pester him with.

Dofu

2006-01-12T03:03:00.000+08:00

Pic on the left shows her bad eye before the surgery; the second one was taken two days after the surgery - while she was napping under my chair.

2006-01-05T23:20:00.000+08:00

Poor Dofu, she's going for surgery tomorrow. The eye specialist says it's glaucoma, and she's totally blind in one eye. Unfortunately, it can develop in less than 24 hours, and it did so, far too quickly. She was so depressed today, so dispirited. Glaucoma causes great discomfort and pain, in dogs, as in humans. It started off as a potential cataract in Christmas, and her usual vet did not detect anything more serious... and recommended that we wait for the practice's specialist vet to return in early Jan. We couldn't wait; the state of Dofu's eye deteriorated unexpectedly quickly. After many phone calls and bounces from one vet practice to another, we located *the* canine eye specialist who could help.

So they will remove her left eye and replace it with a prosthetic one. She's still young, hardly six years' old, but she's a schnauzer and they've got their history of genetic disorders, as do all breeds of dogs.

We'll be picking her up on Sunday. Hope all goes well.

Poor Dofu.

2006-01-05T15:34:00.000+08:00

Will be out of the country again, till the 8th, this time to Malaysia.

2006-01-05T11:43:00.000+08:00

Despite my Cantonese-Shanghainese roots, I've never been to Shanghai before. Until now. My parents have been there a number of times, Jane as well. They tell me that five years ago, the skyscrapers on Pudong weren't there. That a decade ago, the Bund was already as elegant as it is today. That I wouldn't have been to China if I hadn't experienced Shanghai.

It's a funny city. It is unexpectedly modern, yet not totally so. It is old and dirty and messy, but it has its own draws. Even along the same street, modern architectural wonders can sit side-by-side shabby alleyways where people hang their clothes on trees to dry. It's a city of people and bicycles. There's the police, but there's no law. Anything goes. It's safer to cross the roads when the red man is on and the vehicles travel in one direction, than when the green man comes on and cars, bikes and cycles come at you from both directions. New estates and properties are so grand, they make Europe's royal households seem ordinary.

When we went, the weather was more horrid than London's. Drizzles, mist and crowds everywhere. When you could hardly make out what was on the other side of the Huangpu River, visibility was considered 'good'. The same miserable fog greeted us in Hangzhou, where we stayed for a few days. An ancient Chinese saying goes "in the sky there is heaven, on earth there is Hangzhou and Suzhou." Hangzhou in winter is not exactly this scene of beauty... there is no colour there... all's carpeted in a sheet of mist. Ancient Chinese charm, you could call it. Like the paintings.

Hangzhou's famous Xihu (West Lake)

West Lake in the mist

West Lake by night

Qinghe street bazaar

Qinghe street bazaar at night

Ducks hung out to dry

Streets of Shanghai

Woman selling nuts

Shanghai Old City

Shanghai Old City

Looking down at the atrium of Grand Hyatt hotel

The Bund

New year mini-fireworks

2005-12-27T19:34:00.000+08:00

I had the 'killer' tester.

I recall one practical session, when my instructor pointed at one of the 'on TP test' cars and told me that "He's the killer tester. Name's Mr Tan. Passed the least number of students." He told me that I'd know him from the way he likes to put his arm out of the window during tests. I prayed that I wouldn't get him come my test day.

But I did. Mr Tans are a-plenty, but I happened to get *the* one Mr Tan.

Right after I started the engine this morning, my tester wound down the window and placed his hand out. I glanced at his name tag. shit. I was calm then, but my heart started beating hard and my palms started to sweat.

I had 10 points from the circuit courses - when I could usually get by without a single point. I gained a check in the 'stike kerb' box for my directional change... my initial positioning was a bit too far to the front. I knew my mark - I knew where I usually turned, but it was 'cos the instructor from the earlier morning warm-up (I never had him before) said that my positioning was too far back, and I should station further to the front. His advice costed me 10 points. Argh!

I thought my performance on the road was something my instructors would have been proud of, but the tester kept writing on my assessment checklist. Did I forget to check my blind spot? Was my turning too wide? Did I move off too slowly? I thought I failed at first, for Mr Tan hopped out of the car and slammed the door behind him right after I parked the car back at the centre; I haven't even put the gear to P! I hurried after him, and went back to the office where he tallied my checklist.

"First timer?"

"Yes." (I bit my lip - I knew they were harsh on first-timers.)

"How many practical lessons did you have?"

"16."

"16 lessons then can go driving already one ah?" (Was 16 lessons little?)

"Well... did I pass?"

"Go to room 1 and watch the video." (Only 'graduates' were invited to watch the post-test video.)

So I passed. Passed all my tests at the first go... I've been lucky.

Mom let me drive back from Shaw today. My first time on the roads proper... a bit nervous.

No time to celebrate and have another run; we're leaving for Shanghai tomorrow morn. Coming back on the 4th, so here's wishing everyone a happy new year in advance. :)

2005-12-26T17:46:00.000+08:00

Ahhhhhh!!! Driving test tomorrow... ...

The day before Christmas Eve

2005-12-24T17:42:00.000+08:00

There was a gathering... a reunion... a coming-together of old friends.

Never have I seen so many old familiar faces in Singapore, all at one go... in the same place. I like to use the phrase 'warm and fuzzy'. It felt like that. It felt like I could just be myself; no need to shy away or overdo the friendliness. Most of them did not change as much as I had expected (feared?) them to... many looked almost exactly as they looked five years ago, but some were noticeably more 'grown-up' (hee). Everyone still talks the same, walks the same, laughs the same...

Socialising progressed quickly from the small talk ("Where are you now, what are you studying?") to chats of old times and practically to anything that popped into mind.

It was overwhelming. I was feeling so soo happy.

Many asked "Where did you find her [me]?" as if I was lost. Perhaps I was, having prematuredly left sec school and then... disappearing into somewhere down under or up there, nobody knew. I thought that was it, that only less than a handful would remain from th TK circle of friends. That ZF, Jeanne and ThiHa would be the only other people I could hang out with in Singapore. This isolation was due to a certain lack of effort on my part to find and get in touch with my old friends, but after the footrace of an academic term, I just wish to cocoon myself at home and have some R&R. .. and have some peace and solitude.

The night reeked of a girlishness which I have not experienced for a very long time. Being in Imperial for too long does that to you - you're so used to being outnumbered by the guys that when you suddenly find yourself in a company of 100% girls... it feels... weird. But you feel free. :P

Thanks for a great night - it was the best, and for the realisation that we're all still here. :) We were TKG 2/4 class of '99, and we'll always be.

Ps. I'll upload the photos after all the madness with the celebrations. Here's the group pic to begin with; msg me if you'd like the high-res ones.

Orchard Road

2005-12-22T20:31:00.000+08:00

A random shot of two people sitting on a bench, reading the papers.

I soooo can't do street photog. I'm shy. Hee. Whipping out a dSLR and pointing some fat lens at people is bound to get you some glares and hey-you're-invading-my-privacy looks. Especially in Singapore. In London, people wouldn't batter half an eyelid whether you're taking a shot of them, or their neighbour. People mind their own business.

2005-12-22T20:29:00.000+08:00

It was exactly one year ago when the four of us last had the chance to meet up. It's now been five years since TKG...

Everyone's more or less the same - Tania and Lydia haven't been particularly Aussienised, neither have their looks or styles changed. As for ZF... whom I meet every term break... I nearly couldn't recognise her from afar since she had her hair unexpectedly dyed!

Mmm... I hear there's a class 2/4 gathering tomorrow...

2005-12-21T14:39:00.000+08:00

Once every so often you meet somebody from the other end of the spectrum. As in, personality-wise. The moment you meet, you know that it's gonna be a test of endurance and your diplomactic, people skills.

Monica my ex- high school roommate stopped by for a day in Singapore, on her way to Sydney. While here she met up with another friend of hers, a 16-year-old Singaporean, now in high school in Sydney. The three of us rambled along Orchard Road (where else could we go?). This particular 16-year-old, she looked (or dressed, or put on make-up) a few years older. Once I saw her, I knew that she was the type. We were at the Heeren, and she said she wanted to get a top. What sort of top? She didn't know. Any top. She just wanted a new top for that night. She was gonna go clubbing. Chinablack. And she's only 16. So the first shop we went into (Mon and I were just tagging along), she tried on tight-fitting top which read I *heart* boobs. The second outlet we went into, she tried on first a black, then a white, laced tube. And all the while she kept complaining that she's fat. Like hell she's fat. If she's fat, I'm obese.

Well finally she got her stuff, and we continued on our way to... nowhere in particular. Just walking along the streets aimlessly. It was then that I learnt she was afraid of birds. Anything with feathers... anything that flies. A pigeon landed close to her. She screamed a shrill scream. My ears squinted - well if they could, they would have. I sighed.

We were right outside Wheelock Place. I knew that the Nature Photographic Society (Singapore) was holding a nature photog exhibition at epSITE, so I thought - why not? Since both Mon and I were into photography.

At the gallery, I was admiring an image of a Pink-necked green pigeon, with its fledgings in a nest. Behind me, the friend squirmed, "Eewww. Yucks. Yucks. That is so disgusting. That's so gross. Eww." I turned around, thinking that she was referring to another picture, of an insect perhaps, but nooo... she was looking at the same pigeon photo. She just kept ewww-ing. I looked at her fixedly, "Please do not say it is disgusting. This is my field of work... this is what I study and do. Do not... call it disgusting." She kept quiet. I look on. Monica patted my back.

I don't usually talk about people on my blog - I don't like to rant about people, if ever, publicly. I don't get offended that easily. But this time... It was barely 4 hours with her and that short period of time was enough to make me feel repelled. My tones and words became cold, and harsh. I was firm. I was disgusted at such immature behaviour (there was more throughout the day) and I just wanted to run away. And c'mon... you're 16... what rush is there to go clubbing? Especially if you're so afraid of getting caught. And what's with all those massively huge square earrings? And random whiney noises? And saying that this year's X'mas decorations are pretty (I personally find them quite horrendous and tasteless)? And... aww, give me a break.

But I wonder if such fashion-fad-conscious people look at us nature freaks with distaste too. Maybe something like There's more to life than just grass and butterflies. There's... shopping and dollying up!. Heh.

That aside, it was really good seeing Mon again. Neither of us has changed much... we still see the old us in each other. Nevermind about that friend. No worries, mate. :)

London Zoo

2005-12-18T23:52:00.000+08:00

That was last Thursday.

Not the best of zoos I've visited. I prefer open zoos - and zoos in the tropics. The animals in the London Zoo look quite miserable. It occupies 15ha, barely one-eighth the size of the surrounding Regent's Park, and about half the size of the Singapore Zoological Gardens. But it's the world's first scientific zoo - and I do recognise and appreciate the work they've done - and are doing - for animal conservation around the world.

It was some talk on the history of the Zoo and the work of its parent institution, the Zoological Society of London (it was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1826 - there was mention of Singapore in there! :P). After that we had a little demo in the BUGS section about the Polynesian tree snail (Partula spp.) breeding and conservation programme.

Xi, admittedly an Applied Ecologist at heart, tagged along. So did Dr Collin's children, who despite their extremely young ages are already ecologists-in-the-making! It was free time in the arvo ("Zoo Time!!!" on the timetable). I didn't really feel excited with zoo photography. It's different... you know... the feeling... of shooting captive animals. Then again, waterbird-shooting in the parks in London doesn't quite have its appeal either - they're too tame. Side note: I don't really like geese - they chase after you once they see a plastic bag in your hand and make you stumble over their feet. And make you feel bad. I really like the tiny ducks - the teals and such, and the many un-IDed hybrids and alien species. They're so cute.

Snailman giving demo on... snails

Malayan Tapir - I waited ridiculously long in its stinky pen just for the 'perfect' moment to take this pic!

Squirrel monkey

Finally, a decent gull-in-flight photo

Grey heron reflection in water

Regent's Park

2005-12-16T05:00:00.000+08:00

My best portrait shot of a Grey Heron to date :)

Coots fighting - they were too far away, unfortunately

Walking heron?

Gulls

Heron in flight
Some pics from Regent's Park yesterday - I don't know if I should call the flight ones art or photography... :|

More pics to come from the Applied Eco trip to London Zoo today.

Now - I gotta pack.

4 new otter cubs in Buloh!

2005-12-14T08:15:00.000+08:00

I don't believe I've seen so many smiley faces and exclamation marks in an email from Su Hooi (Outreach Officer, Sungei Buloh WR) before. But well - nobody can blame her for being overexcited.

*points to title of post*

*does a little dance of joy*

Yep! Buloh's resident Smooth Otters (long thought to have been disappearing into the unknowns after sightings of them become increasingly infrequent, and in a smaller group too) have been sighted again. This time with four little ones - the highest number of cubs recorded to date. Usually they just re-emerge with one or two new additions to the family.

So right now there are at least six of them. And if we count the offspring from previous years, I daresay there might more than 10 of them...

(Photo credits: Tay Soon Lian aka Uncle Tay)

It all ends with wine and nibbles!

2005-12-14T02:51:00.000+08:00

Even though Applied Ecology felt like a marathon right from the beginning, and the last two weeks were hellish, I loved it. That's also despite the fact that nearly half of the syllabus was what we had for Resource Management last year. It was engaging and different, in some ways, from the other modules. I reckon Dr Simon 'aphid-man' Leather and Tilly 'new-age lecturer' Collins did an awfully good job.

The debate, for one, was something you wouldn't have expected for coursework (did I mention the debate before?) - a simulation of a Crown Court trial for anti-GM environmental activists. For a moment then I was Dr Lau, an expert in... something... called upon as an expert witness to defend the accused. :P Did pretty well in the essay for that too. That was fun while it lasted; our lawyers were champion!

Our practicals were more like social sessions - we'd surf random websites for photos and we'd chat, and Dr Leather'll come by and chip in too. His brother used to work in Hong Kong, he said, and he's been to Singapore before, a year before I was born. Changi Airport was the best! Stuff like that. Or how we should go do our research project in Silwood, where rich people leave their horses in the stables and we can ride and exercise them for free.

I did my conference talk and poster on ecotourism and strategies for sustainability. A pretty broad coverage, but it's better than doing something on the over-popular panda conservation cases or African elephants. It's something I can relate to, too. The conference lasted two full days - with many talks and poster judging. This evening we had the wine and nibbles reception, and Dr Collins brought along her two children - the baby boy's six months old now! How fast he grows! (Looking back at a photo of Dr Collins when she took us on a field trip last year; that was when she was still expecting).

Here's her little girl, looking at some cute animal on a poster. How adorable is she? -->

Well, course finale will be at London Zoo on Thursday. Looking forward to it. :)

Meanwhile I can rest some and pack some. Shall be homeward-bound come Fri.

I feel like this...

2005-12-13T12:00:00.000+08:00

Wildlife Garden @ the Natural History Museum

2005-12-11T06:44:00.000+08:00

Count one, two, three... four - four times I've stepped into the Natural History Museum this week.

I applied to volunteer at the Wildlife Garden a while ago. Those application forms were nasty - it felt more like a job application, complete with references, EEO disclaimers etc. Well, this *is* a job, but it's an unpaid position. But why? Why do I always just volunteer? Why is it so difficult to find proper work there - like the many WLG volunteers I met today who are casual staff... who only work at the NHM one weekday each week. They say jobs come by through word-of-mouth and through contacts of staff. Maybe I'm just not lucky enough. Hopefully, by next term, I'll have identified a key person to approach.

Anyway today's work involved mainly London Plane tree leaves raking, collecting, shredding and recycling - the stuff we do, the stuff we learn is just like what I learn in lectures. Habitat creation and management. There are actually eight British lowland habitat types (fen, reedbed, freshwater ponds, hedgerow, healthland, woodland, meadow, and chalk downland) represented in the little WLG. And the best thing is - it's just right across the street... I can see it from my window. Right now some birds are breeding... we counted a number of Blackbird nests, and saw Mr and Mrs Blackbird scurrying to and fro. Miss Wren was there too, and so were a few fat robins. In summer, they actually bring in a few sheep to graze on the chalklands! Over 50 species of birds, 15 butterfly and 300 moth species have been recorded in the WLG, and not forgetting the mammals - foxes, bats, and squirrels. It being situated in a corner of the intersection of two major roads, pollution levels are high and there are a couple of projects currently being carried out to monitor its effects.

There was a talk by one of the staff - on wetlands management in Belarus. There was a heavy emphasis on peat bogs and lichens.

So that took five hours of my time today; I hope to finish up my preparations for the upcoming two-day Applied Ecology winter conference by tonight, and complete the bulk of my scientific paper come tomorrow.

*Warcraftt III peon voice* Work, work.

One misty yesterday morning

2005-12-11T05:35:00.000+08:00

Early morning. Tube to Zone 4 - everyone was half asleep, and I took out my chicken samosa and sipped some Ribena. Sophie fetched me from the station, and we went to her place. Took studio shots of her pet guinea pig - how cute! I miss Prince; I used to have a guinea pig, long long ago. Picked Xi up on the way to the London Equestrian Centre... where Soph had riding lessons. We followed her like paparazzi. I shot many horses. How I wish I could get onto a horse... such magnificent animals!

Bare trees

A fully-rounded European Robin

Dew on a web (Yes, so what if Xi spotted it first? The idea itself remains unoriginal :P)

Mist breath

Portrait of a horse

Left behind - a dog called Junior

Edit: Ok, one more, in response to anon's comment. ;)

2005-12-08T22:51:00.000+08:00

More pics can be found in the gallery.

Guardsmen of the 1st Grenadiers at Buckingham Palace

Policeman on duty at 10 Downing Street (PM Blair's office)

Pigeon on signpost at St James Park

White Pelican taking off

What you'd see at the Darwin Center

Ice-skating rink at the Natural History Museum

Baboon... caught in time

David Attenborough looking somewhat surprised

2005-12-08T22:50:00.000+08:00

I've been busy. Very busy - with work, assignments, events, lots of stuff. A friend I knew since childhood came to London on Sunday, and he's staying for a week. Hosting first-timers to London is... tedious, especially when it's not the first time and you've been-there-done-them-all. When my aunt EE came two weeks ago, she told my mom that I lost weight - I think I did too... burning the midnight oil burns lots of calories. The whole household sleeps at 2am+ nowadays... everyone has so much work to do. One more week to the end of term... and as usual, I shall be flying back to Singapore for Christmas.

Monday - toured the Natural History Museum... planned to go to the NHM, Science Museum and V&A Museum as well but who knew we'd take that long in the NHM. Must have been the n^th time I'm bringing a visitor around the galleries. Bleh. The MUN session that night was absolutely engaging - we were supposed to have prepared for a debate on MNC's 'right to exploit natural resources in countries in which they operate' but no-one had anything much to say on the matter. So instead we decided to discuss the use of capital punishment in states. Naturally, I choose to represent Australia - there were about 12 countries that day. All these things I've been blogging about and more... I had the chance to debate the points. :)

Tuesday was a full day of lectures, but it being the dateline for the hand-in of one of our assignments meant that many skipped classes. Tourist destination for the day was Chinatown, since Eugene's other friend had took him to see the other London sight. In the evening, a few of us attended IC orchestra's concert - fellow applied ecologist Sophie was on the violin. Supported her by taking photos of her in action! :P Extremely well-played and well-chosen pieces of music. I wouldn't have minded if they charged higher prices for the tics.

Had the whole of Wednesday off. Went to Buckingham Palace to see the Changing of the Guards in the morn - Xi joined in and we had some great fun shooting the 'mammals in uniform' (the horses too, wore uniforms) and the squirrels and waterbirds in St James Park. Then after lunch I rushed back to college to hand in a piece of work to our department's professional printer. A corner of his office is a little like a photography studio and he's got photos hung up on the wall. As it turns out, he's not only in charge of printing services but does photography for Imperial as well, and he's a Nikonian! Interesting. Wish I'd knew about the existence of such an office and such a person in the basement of the SAF buildling earlier.

Sir David Attenborough was at the Natural History Museum, autographing the book of his new series Life in the Undergrowth (some superb documentary there)... I had wanted to get the book after I went back to Singapore but if his book was the ticket to get into the queue for his signature, then... why not? I got one from Waterstones, with £6 discount off (so that's not bad)! - and waited next to the dinosaur skeleton in the Central Hall to snap a pic of him and get him to write a message. It's just amazing how patient he is and how active he is still in the outdoors despite his erm, years. Hats off to Sir David!

I was so tired - I fell asleep at the laptop yesterday and the rest went on a Sains run without me. Paiseh. Did a bit of photo editing and then worked on my assignments...

IC Christian Union's Christmas Carolling later - lots of friends in the choir and everyone's going so I'm obliged to go. Then it's photoshooting horses tomorrow morn (free day). Then it's work work work and hopefully with no need for entertaining people. Then on Saturday it's some 'work' at the Natural History Museum. Three deadlines to meet next week. Needing a break... needing space. One of those times again - random screeches and the tendency to bite. Figuratively, of course. With any luck I'll be navigating to the blogger.com pages again in the next few days.

More pre-1999 pics

2005-12-04T06:26:00.000+08:00

2005-12-02T07:39:00.000+08:00

So he was executed after all. As expected.

I did not protest against the firm decision taken by the Singapore government not to grant clemency, but neither did I welcome the childish behaviour displayed by the many Aussies critising our government's actions. To plead and hope for mercy is natural, but proposing sactions and boycotting anything Singaporean is taking it too far. Sparing him is something I will not support, that which will undermine our judicial system. So what if he was an Australian citizen? No matter what you think of our laws, that is the Law. Nguyen knew the consequences for committing the crime and he must accept his fate. He did so with courage, and so should his fellow citizens.

Debating about the execution is one issue, and the law itself is another. I fully support Amnesty International's Recommendations to the Government of Singapore (at the end of the document). Singapore should reconsider its claim that the mandatory death penalty is not a violation of human rights. Even the Lord can be forgiving, if you are trully repentant. The government is not and never will be God and yet it takes lives away. The indifference it shows to humanity is just... depressing. It was just silent. I don't believe the Singaporean Government had expected this scale of media and international attention for this case, so let this be an awakening...

(How saddening and frustrating is it for me to know that some of my Singaporean friends didn't even know that Singapore has a dealth penalty, and also that there was such a hullabaloo in the previous few days and weeks? ... ... >_<")

"I feel sorry for cancer suffers and their families. I feel sorry for parents that bury their own children. I feel sorry for families who lose loved ones in tragic accidents." ~ MC

2005-12-01T07:52:00.000+08:00

If you look at IMDB's bio of Ewan McGregor, you'll find:

(May 2005) Starring as Sky Masterson in "Guys and Dolls" in London West End

It's almost common knowledge in London that he's currently acting in the theatres. We had delayed this West End trip long enough - his last show is on Saturday and the tickets for this last week were going for almost double the normal price... that is, if you could still find tickets.

Five of us from Queen's Gate were lucky enough (and so it seems, were a few from M'Soc and surprisingly, Amar who appeared out of nowhere without warning in central London), and tonight we were treated to 2+ hours of the Scottish actor's stage charm. How charismatic! :P It's hard to believe that that's Obi-wan Kenobi - replace his 1930's suit and trousers and chuck him in a Jedi robe...

This brings to count my second West End visit in less than a week. The previous one was the Blue Man Group last Thurs, something which I can't quite explain but involves a certain amount of mess - stunts with paints, pipes, lots of noise, interactions with the audience, ponchos for those in the front rows (we were there), and of course, the Blue Men. And I daresay kilometres of toilet paper had passed over our heads (hmm actually it's not merely 'passed', it was more like pressed onto our heads by the people from the back rows) amidst strobe lighting and extremely loud music. It isn't any typical theatre production. It's something you gotta experience.

Another celebrity, Kevin Spacey has been playing Richard II at the Old Vic threatre. Tempting, but my wallet is rattling its coins with disapproval...

Quoteworthy

2005-11-30T07:56:00.000+08:00

We should have started this long ago - ICMUN's debates can be so fun. Sure, when they're serious they can be really good, but in between the seriousness are phrases that just crack you up.

For example from Monday's World Health Organisation simulation on AIDS prevention -

Iran: Since when did Iraq become so democratic?

Iran: ... advances in our research... thanks to our male scientists

USA: You don't know who, whom, what, where, from... ... this...
Iran: [mocks USA] who, whom, what, where...

USA: ... it is not putting a condom on a banana which will stop AIDS

Iran: We believe [having equality of education for both sexes] would shake up the entire tradition in Iran; we cannot conceive the idea of women in society

Iran: The delegate of Iran has been insulted by being called USA

USA: Would Iran be made ready the same way Iraq was made ready?

Brazil: The delegate of Brazil will not be in the festival in Rio because he will be in LIMUN

Iraq: [the pharmaceutical industry] Is a good business because it involves people dying

Brazil: If the pharmaceutical goes bankrupt, the Brazilian company will not have any drugs to copy

Look what the cat brought in

2005-11-29T07:52:00.000+08:00

Viv's household caught a mouse a while ago; they said they were gonna kill it but nobody could actually do it. He's been living in an inverted tupperware since, together with the mouse trap with which he was caught and McVitie chocolate digestives, and has fondly been named Edwin. I went round to collect it today - just gonna take a couple of shots and perhaps release it - goodness knows what kind of diseases he might carry! Although he looks healthy enough, and I know of people who keep them as pets. Most friends I know destroy the mice they catch - so much for the holes they leave in biscuits and the contaminated cereals. They're quite common around our old Victorian apartments, these House Mice, Mus domesticus... the original ancestors of our pet mice.