Happy Vesak Day!

Wish everyone a very happy Vesak Day! While we celebrate the birth and enlightenment of Buddha here in Singapore, we should not forget about others who are suffering. Let us pray for the victims of the two recent major natural disasters- the Sichuan earthquake and cyclone Nargis. Amidst our relatively sheltered life in Singapore, which is free from natural disasters, it is easy to forget that there are so many people in other parts of the world whose lives have been wrecked by such calamities and their daily existence have become a ceaseless struggle. It is heartening to know that countries and people all over the world have provided humanitarian aid and monetary donations to the afflicted countries. While we may not be able to help out with the relief efforts, we can donate and pray for the victims. Let them know that the world is still full of compassion.

Do electrons really spin and do quarks really have colour?

Do electrons really spin and are quarks really coloured? Well, the answers to both are no. Why then do scientists come up with such terms? To deliberately obfuscate people? I do not think so. The limitations of human languages in describing the quantum world have made it difficult for us to assign appropriate words to describe properties of subatomic particles. As such, analogies such as spin and colour are used to create a more intuitive understanding of reality. What do scientists mean by the spin of electrons and colours of quarks then?

Before I explain electron spin, imagine a classical spinning top. If you look at the spinning top from the top or bottom, you will see that it is either spinning clockwise or anti-clockwise. If you view it from the side, you will not observe any spin. (Note: Spin is defined to be the rotation of an object about an axis which passes through it.) In order to understand the spin of an electron, we have to move away from the classical notion of spin. The electron is actually not a point-like particle but rather, it is a probability cloud. The spin of an electron is just a name used to describe one of its properties. This electron spin is a result of its intrinsic angular momentum. If you view the electron about any axis in 3-dimensional space, you will always observe either a clockwise or anti-clockwise spin, and the value of the spin is defined to be 1/2. It is difficult to imagine how this can happen, for the quantum world is totally different and exists on different scales from the macroscopic world on which we live in. It is only natural then that we will have trouble visualizing the world of the subatomic, just as a bacterium would have much difficulty in comprehending the human world.

Now let's move on to quarks. Quarks are the constituent particles of hadrons (a class of subatomic particles which interact via the strong force) and come in six different flavours called, 'up', 'down', 'top', 'bottom', 'strange' and 'charm'. These are not names of some newfangled ice-cream flavours but are merely names of different types of quarks. Apart from flavours, quarks also posses another property called colour and come in red, blue and green. A hadron is colour neutral as it consists of three quarks from each of the colours, just like mixing the three primary colours of light produces white light. In a meson, there are two quarks of similar colour but each being the matter and anti-matter counterpart of each other.

Quarks themselves are not coloured in the classical sense in which we see macroscopic objects in different colours. We can see and perceive colour from macroscopic objects because incident light or photons on the objects are absorbed by electrons in the atoms and then re-emitted or transmitted to our eyes. In the simplified model of an atom, bound electrons 'orbit' the nuclei in shells of fixed distances from the nuclei. (Note that electrons are actually probability clouds which flow around the nuclei of atoms and this flow is called a probability current.) Whenever a photon with the right amount of energy (corresponding to the gap between two energy levels of an atom) is incident on a bound electron, it will be absorbed by the electron and cause the latter to become ‘excited’ and jump to a higher orbit. The excited electron subsequently re-emits a photon as it falls back to a lower state. (Note that the excited electron may return to the ground in a single or multi-step process.) Since different atoms and molecules, and thus different objects, have different gaps in energy levels, they reflect different frequencies of visible light, resulting in our perception of colour. Anything smaller than an atom will not possess colour in the classical sense. Hence, it makes no sense to ask how quarks look like.

In trying to understand and describe the quantum world, we are inevitably bogged down by our limited sensory perceptions, preconceived notions of the world and semantic limitations. Nevertheless, we have come very far in building a scientific model of the world since the dawn of civilization. Will we ever be able to fully comprehend the world? Some say that it is impossible for mere human minds which are constrained by the limitations imposed by our physical senses to comprehend the universe. I personally think that Science alone will not be able to fully explain every aspect of reality. However, many people have been wrong countless times in predicting the limits of Science. Thus, only time will tell.

Complexity Theory

In my previous post, I mentioned about complexity theory. It is actually a branch of science which explores how simple instructions governing individual units of a system consisting of a large number of these units can give rise to complex behaviours without the need for a leader or intelligent being in control. Examples of complex systems include schools of fishes swimming in unison, flocks of birds flying in formation, the weather, formation of hurricanes, the human brain, the stock market, and even the behaviour of liquid water. Another thing about complex systems is that they possess properties that cannot be predicted from the individual properties of their constituent units, just like you cannot predict the properties of macroscopic water such its boiling point or density merely by studying the individual properties of the water molecules.

Check out the links below for more information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_system
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3410/03.html
http://complexity.orconhosting.net.nz/intro.html

Book Review: Climbing Mount Improbable - Richard Dawkins

Ever wondered how the theory of evolution could explain the existance of the dazzling array of complex biological creatures on Earth? If your anwer is yes, then you should read this book. Apart from explaining that, Richard Dawkins also tackled the favourite target of creationists - the eye.

Creationists believe that only an intelligent being could have created something as complex as the eye. The book goes to great length to explain how complex structures like eyes can be a product of the forces of mindless random mutations and natural selection, thereby removing the need for intelligent design. In fact, eyes evolved no less than 40 times independently and taking only around 500 thousand years in some cases, which is really just a 'blink of the eye' in terms of geological time. What most people fail to realize about the theory of evolution is that complex biological structures can be evolved through a series of gradual steps; they do not have to be evolved in a single huge step. Richard Dawkins used the analogy of climbing a mountain to explain this: when faced with an insurmountable clift, one can find another longer route which has gentler slopes and is easier to climb, just as evolution tends to seek these gentler slopes towards increasing complexity. Thus, seemingly impossible structures can arise in nature without the intervention of any intelligent being. Do read up on complexity theory if you wish to find out more about how complex systems can arise out of numerous simple interacting sub-units.

Even if you already believe in the theory of evolution, this book still has much to offer you. It provides deeper insights into how and why different creatures took on separate evolutionary paths and evolved different body structures to serve the same or different purposes. For instance, bats use echolocation for navigation whereas most other creatures rely on sight. It also explains why only some creatures evolved wings for flight but not others. It is actually due to the practicalities of the required wingspan, speed of flapping, stresses on the wing material, etc, that will be needed to lift the weight of the creature. Richard Dawkins also mentioned about the high level of complexity that exists in creatures with five-fold or higher symmetry such as the Radiolarian and starfish. There are plenty of other interesting stuff in the book, not to mention the numerous pictures in it.

Radiolarian Haeckel Polycyttaria (from Wikipedia)

Arthur C. Clarke’s Final Odyssey

It was indeed a loss to the world that one of the world's most visionary and renowned science fiction author has passed away. Arthur C. Clarke, one of my favourite sci-fi authors, passed away on 19 March 2008 at the age of 90. I started reading his books when I was in secondary 1 and it was through his vastly imaginative and thought-provoking stories that cemented my love for sci-fi. Contrary to general sentiments, sci-fi is not just totally nonsensical ideas. Rather, most ideas in sci-fi stories are based on scientific theories (especially those sci-fi stories written by scientists or engineers). Contemporary sci-fi also explores a variety of issues ranging from philosophy to psychology and even politics. It is no mean feat to reconcile the schism between mainstream literature and hard core science and to bring across scientific ideas to the masses in an accessible manner through stories. Few can claim to be able to do this as skilfully as the late Arthur C. Clarke. Indeed stories have been around since the dawn of civilization and have tremendous power in disseminating ideas and influencing the masses. What better way to spread scientific ideas and stretch the imagination of human minds than through stories? Herein underscores the undervalued importance of science fiction in the modern society.

Arthur C Clarke wrote 100 books, more than 1,000 short stories and essays over 60 years. Some of his best-selling novels include ‘Childhood's End’ (which is my personal favourite), 2001: A Space Odyssey (The Oscar-nominated movie of the same title was based on this book), ‘Rendezvous with Rama’ and ‘Fountains of Paradise’. Trained in physics and mathematics, Sir Arthur also wrote many books and essays of non-fiction on space travel, communication technologies, underwater exploration and future studies.

It is widely believed that Clarke's most important scientific contribution is his idea of using geostationary satellites as ideal telecommunications relays. He wrote a paper titled ‘Extra-Terrestrial Relays — Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?’, which was published in Wireless World in October 1945 delineating how the concept of geostationary orbit can be put to practical use. The geostationary orbit is now sometimes known as the Clarke Orbit or the Clarke Belt in his honour. This shows why we should pay attention to sci-fi writers, for we never know if some wacky idea which is deemed impossible today will be possible and useful tomorrow. Jules Verne’s idea of an underwater submersible ages before the development of the first submarine is another example of the prophetic power of science fiction. Indeed, Arthur C. Clarke once said that ‘in order to find out the limits of the possible, we have to venture a little way past them into the impossible’. Never has the words of someone had such a profound impact on my thinking than those of Arthur C. Clarke’s.

Before his death, Clarke said: "I’ve had a diverse career as a writer, underwater explorer, space promoter and science populariser. Of all these, I want to be remembered most as a writer – one who entertained readers, and, hopefully, stretched their imagination as well." Well, he has undoubtedly stretched my imagination and I believe that of many other people too.

“It may be that the old astrologers had the truth exactly reversed, when they believed that the stars controlled the destinies of men. The time may come when men control the destinies of stars.” -Arthur C. Clarke, First on the Moon, 1970

As a leading proponent for space travel and exploration, Clarke has also chaired several space advocacy organizations. I do believe the day will come when mankind will advance into a stage 2 or even stage 3 civilization and alter the destinies of stars as Clarke prophesized.

Arthur C. Clarke’s even came up with 3 ‘laws’ of prediction which he called it Clarke’s 3 Laws:
1. When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.

2. The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.

3. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
As a fitting eulogy, I decided to name the title of this article ‘Arthur C. Clarke’s Final Odyssey’ after one of his books in the Space Odyssey series, ‘3001: Final Odyssey’. I highly recommend you to read his novels and be inspired by one of the greatest masters of sci-fi. Arthur C. Clarke may no longer exist on this world, but his legacy will forever live on in his books and be immortalized in the minds of his fans.

My recommendations:
• Childhood's End

• The Light of Other Days

• 2001: A Space Odyssey

• 2010: Odyssey Two

• 2061: Odyssey Three

• 3001: Final Odyssey

• Rendezvous with Rama

• Against The Fall Of Night

• Time's Eye

• Sunstorm

Singaporeans An Ungracious Lot? Think Again.

There have been numerous articles on newspaper forums written by foreigners complaining about Singaporeans being ungracious. Among their usual complains include people not giving up their seats to the elderly or pregnant ladies when using public transport, ‘reservation’ of seats at foodcourts and hawker centres using packets of tissue paper, the way some people treat their maids and rushing to board trains during rush hours. Foreigners are quick to point their fingers at Singaporeans but I am sure in many such instances the culprits are not locals. According to the demographic statistics for 2006 (http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/reference/yos/statsT-demography.pdf), about one fifth of our nation’s population comprises of foreigners. Most of these foreigners hail from Malaysia, China, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other South-east Asian countries, so at first glance one might not be able to tell them apart from the locals. It is only when they speak do they reveal their identity through their accent. However, a foreigner might not be able to discern between the local and foreign accents and might end up mistaking another foreigner for a local. Most foreigners have a tendency to assume that almost everyone they see in Singapore is a Singaporean but it is clear that given our high percentage of foreigners living and working here, this line of thinking is fallacious.

While there are indeed Singaporeans who are guilty of being ungracious, making sweeping generalizations and pushing all the blame to us is illogical. Through my own personal experience, I have encountered many incidents whereby foreigners here behaved in a manner falling short of civic-mindedness too, such as spitting on pavements for pedestrians, blocking entrances to trains, cutting queues, littering, talking loudly in public places like the libraries, etc. There are also many people in other countries who behave ungraciously so I see no reason for foreigners to single Singaporeans out. My message to foreigners in Singapore is this: The next time you see someone behaving in an uncivilized manner, do not jump to the conclusion that he/she is a Singaporean. He/she may very well be one of you or a permanent resident.

Hip hop song by 蔡淳佳 & 陈伟联?

I was pleasantly surprised when I heard the interesting new song 《犯错》by 蔡淳佳 & 陈伟联. These two Singaporean singers, better known for singing more traditional chinese pop and oldies, were the least of all singers who I would expect to sing a hip hop song together. 犯错 gives the two singers a refreshing new image and is testimony to the need for singers to keep up with times. While the catchy song was a good effort, I still prefer the two singers singing their classic melodious tunes like 陪我看日出 (by 蔡淳佳) and 触摸 (by 陈伟联), which is undeniably their forte.

Blog Action Day poem

Today is Blog Action Day. It is an event in which bloggers all over the world shall post something related to the environment on this day in a bid to raise awareness of environmental issues. To find out more about Blog Action Day, visit http://blogactionday.org/

For my little contribution to the cause of Blog Action Day, I have penned a poem and I hope you will like it.

The Flight of the Last Seabird

Autumn’s coming to an end
The leaves have begun to turn yellow
Before long the chilly Northern winds have come
Presaging the arrival of the impatient winter
But the winter has come too soon, too abrupt
Something has gone wrong with the weather

The time for the Migration has come again
Yet it seems only yesterday when the seagulls settled here
The hatchlings were still too young to fly
But the lake would freeze soon and only death awaits
Leaving the young and the old to their fate
The seagulls reluctantly took off to the skies
Embarking once more on a journey in search for food, warmth and breeding sites
Little did they know that it would be their last flight

The terrain has changed beyond recognition
The forests have disappeared and mountains denuded
Flying over the parched and desiccated land seemingly devoid of life
The sea came into sight much earlier than expected
The coasts and sandy beaches have all but gone
And the land mass shrunken at an incredible rate
Giving up the fight against the relentless encroaching sea

Fishes abound in the never-ending sea
It might have been a seabird’s paradise
But it was not to be
Water was everywhere but not a sip to be had

Having flown for months without rest
Yet not a piece of land in sight
Battling thirst, aching muscles and sudden violent storms
Only a handful of seagulls have survived
Even so the numbers are rapidly declining
Till there was only one last bird flying
Striving against all odds to keep the hopes of dry land alive
But her efforts proved futile
As she finally succumbed to fatigue and plunged into the abysmal sea

Copyright © Ong Wei Guang

The poem illustrates a possible scenario of Earth in the future plagued by global climate changes, unpredictable violent storms, widespread desertification and most prominently rising sea levels which inundate vast swathes of land. The plight of the seagulls trying in vain to find suitable land to rest during their migration highlights the possibility of mass extinction of numerous species of plants and animals, due to the destruction of natural habitats caused by rising sea levels. All these could happen if global warming is left unchecked as man continues exploiting the natural resources of Earth and pumping ever-increasing copious amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere without restrain.

As the concentration of greenhouse gases build up in the atmosphere, more sunlight is trapped and reflected back to the Earth’s surface, raising global temperatures and melting glaciers and polar ice caps. As more ice melts, less sunlight is reflected back into space and this result in a positive feedback cycle, accelerating global warming. While some scientist have dismissed global warming as alarmist and believe that the Earth will be able to cope with the influx of greenhouse gases caused by the activities of man, there have been increasing evidence in recent years of the manifestations of the dire consequences of global warming all over the world. The Gaia hypothesis proposes that the Earth’s biosphere is a complex non-linear dynamic system and as such, rising global temperatures could reach a certain critical tipping point after which run-away sudden cataclysmic climate changes ensue, as in the movie ‘The Day After Tomorrow’. But of course, do watch the show with a pinch of skepticism as Hollywood movies tend to exaggerate things.

Back from Taiwan

Just came back from my holiday with my parents in Taiwan yesterday. It was quite an eventful trip. Our flight to Taiwan was diverted to Hong Kong halfway into the journey due to typhoon Krosa. Too bad we didn't have much time to explore Hong Kong as we reached the hotel in the evening and stayed for a night there.

After wasting a day in Hong Kong, we finally arrived in Taiwan on 7th Oct in the afternoon. On our bus journey to the hotel I spotted electric windmills along the sea coast, and that's something you can't find back in Singapore.

Our main purpose in visiting Taiwan was sight-seeing and it was much to my chagrin when we realized that we were unable to visit Hualien and Taroko Gorge as the roads there were destroyed by the typhoon. The tour guide told us that the best scenery in Taiwan could only be found there but well, unforeseen circumstances do happen and we just have to change our plans. In the end we spent most of our time in Taiwan travelling on the tour bus, visting night markets and temples. The night markets there are similar to the Pasa Malams in Singapore except that they are permanent and sell different stuff. The stuff there are not as cheap as I expected so I didn't buy much. Food was aplenty but I had difficulty finding food in the night market that suited my taste as they mainly sell pig's organ soup and dried squid which I don't eat. I am not so adventurous in trying out exotic food. The melange of smells in the night markets proved to be quite overwhelming to me, especially that of the smelly beancurd or known as "Chou Tou Fu" and the exhaust fumes from the numerous scooters. The crowded night markets and endless jostling of people was a nuisance to me for I dislike crowds. Walking along the streets in Taiwan can be quite dangerous and irritating as scooters and motorcycles zip pass you every few seconds haphazardly. The motorcyclists in Taiwan do not seem to make any distinction between pavements meant for pedestrians and roads. You have to be constantly on the lookout least you get knocked down. I noticed that the percentage of scooters in Taiwan is much higher than that in Singapore, probably because it is more convenient to use a scooter than a car in negotiating narrow alleys and crowded streets illegally.

Our tour bus broke down on the fourth day on the highway en route from Taichung to Taipei. Seated near the back of the bus I detected acrid fumes that smelled burning rubber and the engine made loud rattling noises. Initially I thought the tyres were on fire but it was actually the engine that was emitting those noxious and suffocating fumes. The bus driver continued driving for a few minutes before the engine died and we were left stranded along the shoulder of the highway. The driver should have stopped the bus and opened the doors immediately instead of continuing driving. After trying in vain to start the engine for more than an hour, the driver gave up and another tour bus was sent to pick us up.

We visited Jiu Fen and Yeliu the next day. Yeliu was nice. It was almost surrealistic standing amidst the peculiar natural stone formations caused by weathering and sea erosion over millions of years. When viewed from certain angles, some of those rocklike protrusions bore an uncanny resemblance to the head of a queen wearing a crown or even the head of the alien E.T. in Steven Spielberg's film.

(That's me squatting on an egg-like stone in a ring-like rock outcropping)

(And that's me hugging E.T. the rock)

The second last day of our tour was free-and-easy. Strolling around aimlessly in the streets, we decided to take a MRT train to Taipei 101. However just as we were about to do so, the train service got disrupted due to an earthquake. So we went to Wulai mountain instead and was treated with the sight of a beautiful waterfall. We also got to see the aborginal dance of the Atayal tribe.

Thought not as fun as I expected, my trip to Taiwan was quite an interesting and refreshing experience away from the rigours of army life.

Why are the rich more selfish?

I have always had the nagging feeling that rich people are less generous when it comes to charity giving. Well, it seems that I am right after all, based on the results of NVPC (National Volunteer and Philanthropic Centre) 2006 survey on philanthropic giving in Singapore. The results were published in The Straits Times article ‘In aid of the poorer or richer?’ by Willie Cheng (Sept 04, 2007). The survey results showed that lower-income earners donated a larger proportion of their income compared to higher-income earners. For example, those earning less than $1000 monthly donated 0.65% of their annual income while those earning in the range of $9000-$9,999 donated only 0.12% of their annual income. But it is not only the rich in Singapore who give less proportionately compared to the less well-off. In Britain, a study by Banks and Tanner showed that the richest 20% of households donated less than 1% of their expenditure while the poorest 10% donated 3%.

It seems counter-intuitive that the rich should give less compared to those who are poorer. Having their basic needs met and left with so much surplus wealth, the rich would feel much less pinch to donate some of their money compared to those who are struggling to make ends meet. Yet the reality is stranger than what our logic dictates.

So what might explain the tighter string-purses of the wealthy when it comes to charity giving? Perhaps the more affluent one is the more detached from the other segments of society, such as the needy and less fortunate, one becomes. As one grows richer, one’s circle of friends and acquaintances evolves as the rich tend to clique among themselves. This might result in the inability of the rich to fully comprehend the difficulties faced by the needy and less fortunate or become ignorant of the extent of the problem. This is especially true for those who grew up with silver teaspoons in their mouths. One might think that those among the rich who came from poor backgrounds would be more inclined to donate to charity. This may not always be true. Even those who saw their fate turn from rags-to-riches might forget what it meant to be poor with the passage of time or due to other social factors like peer pressure, and as a result be less generous than expected.

The parsimony of the rich toward philanthropic causes may also be a reflection of the apathy of the rich towards the less fortunate. The rich may feel that the suffering of the less fortunate is in no way attributable to their actions and thus should not be compelled to help them. They may argue that the poor and less fortunate only have themselves to blame or it is just their fate that they are mired in their unfortunate situations. However, such an argument is devoid of morality. As part of the larger society, the rich has an obligation to contribute back to it and help the other segments of society that require assistance. I am not suggesting that the rich has to support the needy and less fortunate financially all the way for doing so would be counter-productive. Donations from the rich should be used to fund education or programmes that will equip the needy and less fortunate with skills to enable them to break out of the cycle of poverty. As the saying goes “Give a man a fish and he will only live for one day, but teach him how to fish and he will live for a lifetime.”

It is inconceivable that the rich might be willing to splurge thousands or even millions on Lamborghinis, Rolexes and personal yachts or even planes but donate so little of their wealth to charity. Recently, there was a newspaper report of a late British tycoon who left one million for the upkeep of her dog. The rich has definitely got their priorities wrong. Such money could have been put to better use if donated to charities. I wonder what is the purpose of amassing so much wealth when one can only live finitely and that material possessions are merely transient. Is it because one becomes blinded by wealth the richer one gets so that they become only concerned with amassing ever-increasing amounts of wealth? Or is it the lack of moral guiding principles among rich people that has led to this perceived apathy towards the needy and less fortunate?

Whatever the reasons may be for the selfishness of the rich towards philanthropy, we should take heart in the fact that there are many out there who give whatever little they have to help the needy and less fortunate. It is this kind of spirit of giving and selflessness that should be encouraged.

Hostages - The Currency of Terrorists?

There has been much controversy over the recent South Korean hostage crisis in Afghanistan which began on 19th July and I would like to add my two-cent worth. The Saemmul Presbyterian Church from which the 23 South Korean hostages hail claimed that they were only doing aid work such as teaching English and hospital work in Afghanistan. Nevertheless, their aid work was only a veneer for their main motive to proselytize their religion to Muslims in Afghanistan. One must question if such an aim was sensitive to the Muslim community there, or to those of other religions in other parts of the world. The South Korean missionaries only intended to stay for a short-term and this places doubt on the sustainability of their aid work. Their prudence in traveling to such a troubled region despite a travel ban to Afghanistan by the South Korean government and without necessary protection is also questionable. Thus, it is only natural to expect ambivalent feelings of sympathy for the two hostages who were killed and relief for those who were freed and flaming criticisms for the 23 missionaries by South Koreans and the world at large.

While the hostage crisis has ended, the political crisis is not over yet. The Taleban claimed that the South Korean government has given them US$20 million and promised to withdraw South Korean troops in Afghanistan by the end of the year. The Taleban also went as far to claim that they would use the money received to buy more weapons and conduct more suicide bombings and other terrorist activities. In their over-zealous evangelistic zeal to ‘spread the word of God’, these missionaries have not only put their lives in danger, but also the lives of others, as well as the political situation in Afghanistan. The readiness of the South Korean government to give in to the Taleban’s demand have merely emboldened them and boosted the morale of terrorists all over the world. It seems that hostages are the new currency for terrorists these days. Well, the South Korean hostage crisis was not the first of its kind and I do not expect it to be the last either. There have been hostages from other countries such as Germany and Italy taken by the Taleban in the past too. The South Korean government has promised to withdraw all missionaries in Afghanistan but this is not enough. There are still many South Korean missionaries in other dangerous regions who are at risk of being kidnapped by terrorists. Other countries should also ban missionaries from visiting troubled regions and withdraw those already there. I wonder when these foolhardy people who take unnecessary risk will stop visiting such troubled regions and leave the aid and relief work to the experts and correct agencies. It would indeed be foolish for these missionaries to think that just because they are doing good deeds or proselytizing, they would be protected by God, and when they face trouble God would save them. One must not be blinded by the desire to spread his or her religion or do good deeds without careful consideration of the risks involved, otherwise one may end up doing more harm than good.

I wonder what action the Singapore government would take and what the public reaction would be if any Singaporean was so unfortunate to be taken hostage by terrorists in another country. If he or she is personnel of the SAF and doing peacekeeping work in the country then I believe the public’s response would be of sympathy for they would understand the purpose of his or her presence in the country. But would the public be as sympathetic if he or she was proselytizing in that country despite a travel ban by the Singapore government?

Magic VS Technology

I just watched ‘Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix’ today and can't help seeing the obvious parallels between magic and technology. Harry Potter's world portrays an alternate reality. In his world, newspapers (The Daily Prophet) could display movie clips and photographs show moving pictures instead of static ones. Mails and envelopes could fly to their recipients and even talk and disintegrate automatically after delivering their messages. These ideas may not be as far-fetched as they seem. There is already much research done on thin, flexible active matrix displays for several years by companies such as Siemens, Philips and Plastic Logic. These displays are as thin and as flexible as paper and can display moving images and store thousands of pages of text. Some of these displays are already in the prototype stage and we can expect to see them in the market in a few years time. As for flying and talking mails, I do not think that will be necessary, for we already have e-mails which are faster and allow us to add file attachments such as voice or movie clips.

In the realm of transportation, Harry Potter’s world depicts wizards and witches riding on flying broomsticks and using port-keys, which transports people to another place in a somewhat fashion to teleportation. Well, we may not have flying broomsticks but we do have flying cars. Yes, you did not read wrongly. There is a company called Moller International that produces personal commuter Skycars which as the name suggests, take you to the sky. The Skycar is a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) vehicle and does not need a runway. In the recent ‘Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer’ movie, the Silver Surfer rides on a flying ‘surf board’, but the difference is that the ‘surf board’ is supposed to be a piece of advanced alien technology and not magic. As for teleportation of human beings, such technology may not exist now but that does not preclude such a possibility in the future. Scientists have already succeeded in teleporting a single photon via a process called quantum entanglement. But to teleport a macroscopic object like a human which consists of trillions of atoms is far beyond our technological abilities currently. In the process of teleportation, the object to be teleported is to be split into the individual constituent atoms and sub-atomic particle and then the quantum states of all these particles are recorded and the information transmitted to the designated teleporter to be reconstructed. So effectively, the teleported object is destroyed and then reconstructed. In Harry Potter’s world, doors could lead you to another place or rooms that are much larger than they look from the outside. To achieve something like this, we will have to enter other dimensions. String theory states that there are 10 dimensions, 6 of them being spatial dimensions and the remaining 4 are time dimensions. In M-theory, there are 11 dimensions. We are unable to see the other dimensions because we exist in three dimensions and it is difficult for us to visualize a higher dimensional reality. By moving in another dimension, we will appear to disappear and enter another place. We do not yet know how to move in these other dimensions or whether it is possible to do so in the first place, so extra-dimensional travel will remain a fantasy for now.

The ability to move objects without physical contact is also a prominent aspect in Harry Potter’s world. In fact it is possible to do so, using a method called acoustic levitation. However, scientists have only been able to lift very light loads using acoustic levitation till now. Perhaps in time we will find some ways of moving larger and heavier objects without physical contact. A professor called John Hutchinson has reportedly claimed to have devised a way of doing so by tapping into vacuum energy. However, there have been much doubt and controversy over his claims.

Metamorphosis is another thing which caught my eye while watching the Harry Potter movie. In the movie Sirius Black could transform into a dog and back into the human form. This reminded me of ‘Transformers’, which I watched recently too. The idea of machines that could transform might not seem too far-fetched but living organisms that could transform into other things stretch the mind. I have been thinking how this may be done in a scientific way but have not been able to think of any satisfactory idea. A cluster of nanorobots could do the job by reconfiguring themselves into any desired structure but it will be impossible for a living organism to do that as all the cells have to be reorganized.

There are many other things in the movie which I might have left out in my discussion but my main point here is that fantasy serves as a source of inspiration for invention and technological progress. The renowned science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke stated in his 3rd law that ‘Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’. Indeed our current technology might seem like magic to cavemen and perhaps in time the magic depicted in Harry Potter’s world will become something common in our everyday life.

Where have the Confucius teachings and moral values gone in China?

Recently I have been seeing more and more news reports of fake food products, slavery and large-scale environmental pollution in China. Unscrupulous people intent only on making more money have thrown aside their moral values and sold themselves to the devil, doing unthinkable things such as selling fake baby milk powder which caused the deaths of 12 infants in China and other food products contaminated with or even made from inedible poisonous substances like paint which was used to manufacture fake toufu. The vegetables grown there are also tainted with pesticides and the pigs there force-fed with waste to make them grow fat faster and cheaper. Even more shocking and saddening is that such cases are not isolated but rampant.

There have also been reports of slavery practices in numerous brick kilns in China where children are abducted and sent to work in harsh working conditions for more than 15 hours a day and fed nothing more than mere porridge.

Large-scale pollution of the environment is also common-place in China where factories spew noxious fumes into the air without proper treatment and discharge toxic effluents into rivers and lakes, contaminating the water supplies of millions of people. Countries which share the same contaminated rivers like Russia were also affected.

Lost and blinded by greed, people can become inhumane monsters without regard for the lives and well-being of others. It is indeed unthinkable that China, the country that gave birth to the Confucius teachings would become the state that it is in now. Corruption, lack of a proper system of checks and the difficulty in implementing such checks has helped to perpetuate such irresponsible acts. Amid the increasing pressure from both its citizens and international environmental watch groups, the Chinese government has recently pledged to redouble their efforts to put an end to such egregious acts. Well it is certainly in their best interest to do so, for such acts tarnish the ‘made-in China’ brand and will have detrimental effects on their trade exports and image of the country. Already countries like the United States have banned some products from China as they failed to meet the required safety and quality standards. It looks like in their quest to make more money, those unscrupulous Chinese have only lost more.

Individual Responsibility in Reducing Usage of Plastic Bags

Every year, Singapore uses about 2.5 billion plastic bags a year for bagging purchases. This translates into 1.7 bags per person each day. While this is better than Taiwan's 2.4 and Hong Kong's 3.7, it is still a very high figure. The National Environment Agency (NEA) wants to bring down usage down to the levels in countries such as Australia (1.0), the United States (0.9) and Ireland (0.8). The ideal level would be zero but that is not possible, especially in a society plagued by mass consumerism. Achieving this target is not easy, and it will take the concerted effort of every individual to realise it. No longer can the responsibility of environmental conservation and protection be solely placed on the government or industries. It is now clear that every individual has a part to play in environmental protection and can make a difference.

Plastic, which is made from crude oil is a non-renewable resource, and should be used wisely. Current practices of throwing away plastic bags after use are far too wasteful and unsustainable for the environment in the long run. Being non-biodegradable, plastic bags have to be either incinerated or dumped in landfills. In Singapore, the incineration option is usually chosen as dumping in landfills is not a viable permanent alternative in our land-scarce country. However, incinerating plastic bags produces toxic fumes such as carbon monoxide which can kill in high concentrations.

The improper disposal of plastic bags also poses additional problems to the environment. Carelessly discarded plastic bags can end up as litter and clog up drains or collect rainwater, becoming ideal sites for the breeding of mosquitoes and other pests. This would promote the transmission of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue-fever. The sight of plastic bags strewn all over the place is an eyesore and mars the beauty of our living environment and taints the image of Singapore as a “Garden City”. Not to mention the additional costs incurred in clearing up the mess. Plastic bags can also harm wildlife and have a strong tendency to suffocate marine and land creatures.

The best solution to these problems is to reduce the usage of plastic bags and reuse them as much as possible. However, this is easier said than done in a society where the “use-and-throw” mentality is so deeply ingrained. Efforts have been made by the government, mass media and environmental watch-groups to enlighten the masses of the consequences of unrestrained and rampant usage of plastic bags.

Recently, Singapore launched the “Bring Your Own Bag Day” (BYOBD) campaign on 18th April 2007 to generate awareness of the importance and need for individual responsibility in environmental protection. The BYOBD is held on every 1st Wednesday of the month. On this day, customers are expected to bring their own shopping bags to participating outlets to hold their purchases. They can also buy reusable bags at these outlets or will have to donate 10 cents for every plastic bag they use to the SEC, which will use money to fund other environmental programmes. While the intention of this campaign is noble, its effectiveness in promoting the intended message remains in question.

I wonder how many shoppers actually know the purpose and message of the BYOBD. For many of these heartlanders are ordinary ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ who are illiterate and do not read the newspapers. This is where the message of individual responsibility in environmental conservation fails to reach its intended audience. What I suggest is that television advertisements highlighting the purpose of the BYOBD, not just mere details of when it is held, be screened often during prime air-times. Cashiers at participating outlets could also take some time to explain the message of the campaign to customers. If this is not possible (for fear of holding up queues), perhaps schools could send students as ambassadors to explain the message to customers at these outlets as part of their community involvement programme. This way, we could kill two birds with one stone.

Another shortcoming of the BYOBD is that it is only held once a month. Doing so would cause people to shop on other days to avoid the inconvenience of having to bring their own bags or ‘paying’ for plastic bags. While I understand that it might take some time for consumers to wean out this practice of the provision of free plastic bags by shops, I feel that holding BYOBD once a month is far too rare and insufficient to drive home the importance the message to the public. In other countries such as Japan and South Korea, it is a daily practice to charge their customers for every plastic bag they use at certain retail stores and supermarkets. Singapore still has a long way to go towards emulating these societies in terms of good environmental practices.

The BYOBD should also be extended to all shops instead just a few supermarkets and retail stores. Why limit the BYOBD when the purpose is to reduce usage of plastic bags on a national scale? However, this must be done carefully with sufficient checks in place to prevent shopkeepers from profiteering from ‘selling’ plastic bags and causing consumers to incur extra costs.

The BYOBD is a good start and is the right direction forward for Singapore in empowering individuals with the responsibility in environmental conservation and protection. Nevertheless, the campaign has room for improvement. We must not let up in our efforts in protecting the environment and I hope there will be more campaigns to educate the masses and imbue them with the individual responsibility to care for the environment.


Points to take note of the next time you go shopping:

• Do not ask for a bag for small purchases
• Always ask cashiers to pack more purchases into bags
• Avoid double-bagging
• Carry and use reusable bags where possible

The Return of the Poet

I was flipping through one of my files today when I chanced upon a poem which I wrote for a class assignment in sec 4.

Title: The Beginnings of Life
Date composed: 29/07/2003

Created from nothing,
Yet it contained everything.
One big bang started it all,
Quarks, atoms and all.

The superforce split into four forces,
And photons became free.
Matter triumphed over antimatter,
Baryonic life became possible.

Stars formed and illuminated the Stygian void,
Along with them came galaxies and planets.
Life there was,
At least on one planet - Earth

Evolution occured,
And gave rise to intelligence.
Why are we here?
Are we alone?
Questions left unanwered.

Copyright © Ong Wei Guang (Note: Please seek my permission before replicating any part of my poems elsewhere)

Reading the poem refuelled my interest in writing poems after 4 years and I suddenly got an impulse and inspiration to write another one today.

Title: Time
Date composed: 31/05/2007

It can flow quickly like a river,
But it can also inch like a glacier.
Our percpetion of time is relative,
For that is part of our reality.

Intricately entwined with space,
Relativity comes into play.
The faster you move through space,
The slower it will be for time's pace.

Just as flowers bloom but do not unbloom,
Water spills but do not unspill,
Glass shatters but do not unshatter,
The arrow of time will always fly in one direction.
Such is the irreversible nature of time.

Stretching into infinity,
Every moment etched in eternity.
Cherish it we must,
For every second passed,
Will forever be the past.

Copyright © Ong Wei Guang

Both poems are about science, space and the way we percieve reality. Though I am not an arts student, I also enjoy reading and writing poems, for poetry is a tool which helps me to express my thoughts. Hope you like my poems and I hope you will also be able to again deeper insights about the world we live in after reading them. Feel free to give me feedback about my poems.

Happy Vesak Day!

Wish everyone a Happy Vesak Day today!
Vesak Day celebrates the birth of Buddha is also a time for great joy and happiness. Buddhists are reminded to live in harmony with people of other religions and to respect the beliefs of other people as the Buddha had taught.
May everyone be blessed with good health and happiness. :)

New posts coming up.

Yes, I am finally going to put my writing skills into use once again after a 2-year haitus. I have been busy for the past 14 months serving National Service in the army and I didn't have the mood nor urge to write anything serious. But well, I will going to university next year and I still got 8 months to ORD so I might as well spend the time polishing my critical thinking and literal skills before they get too 'rusty'. Actually I thought of writing some serious articles a few months ago but somehow I lost the drive amidst all the outfield training and other 'saikang' which we have to do in the army. There are a lot things that I have wanted to write about but did not do so. However, seeing my good friend Lin Yi starting to blog recently prompted me to start writing once more. I will not be blogging often for I am a stay-in personel in camp. Hopefully I will have the time to sit down and crystalise my thoughts and write them in my blog. Do check out my blog from time to time for new entries. (Note: This blog is actually my General Paper Blog when I was in JC but I will use it as my personal blog from now on as I do not want to create too many blogs.)

“If you or your loved ones are stricken with an illness and your only hope of being cured is therapeutic cloning, will you go for it? Why?”

Yes, I will go for it. Buddhism's stand on therapeutic cloning is that if the stem cells obtained from the embyros are intended to be used for saving lives or finding cures for diseases, then it is acceptable. As a Buddhist, one might say that I would naturally be inclinded towards supporting such a stand. However, I would like to make it clear that I do not support the stand blindly, for I have made an independent assessment of the logic behind the stand and found it to be rational, logical and yet morally sound. Other religious groups have differing stands on the issue of therapuetic cloning. For example, the Catholics are strongly opposed to therapeutic cloning as they believe that life begins at the instant of conception and thus destroying embyros is tantamount to murder.

So much for the religious and moral viewpoints, now let's consider the issue from a scientific viewpoint. If science is to make progress, we must be daring to try new things and explore the unknown, but of course we must also be rational and exhibit good judgement in our quest to discover the unknown. Thus, science should not always give in to moral and religious opposition. As history have shown, religious views are not always correct. Take Galileo for example, he was killed because he believed that the Earth revolved around the Sun while the Catholic Church thought otherwise. Thus, my point is that science should not always give in to moral and religious viewpoints. Therefore, despite what others might say about therapeutic cloning, I will still support it and use it if need be.


(Definition of therapeutic cloning: Therapeutic cloning is a technique that would be used to produce cloned embryos, but only to create stem cells that can in turn be used to repair damaged or defective tissue in the parent of the cloned cells. Such stem cells could theoretically be used to grow replacement livers or hearts (or any of a variety of organs) for transplant without fear of rejection. They might be used to create healthy nerve cells for people with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. Skin cells could be derived from cloned stem cells for burn victims.)

GM Food

Scenario 1
1．As one of the country’s decision makers, would you advocate the use of GM crops? Why or why not?

The use of genetically modified (GM) crops meant that we have already taken the first step down the slippery slope of genetic engineering and there is no turning back Scientists claim that using GM crops can boost yields, reduce use of pesticide, create more nutritious food and a multitude of other benefits. In light of the ever-growing global population, GM crops are poised to bring about the second agricultural revolution to meet the burgeoning food demands of the future. However, GM crops are relatively new inventions, and thus their effects on human health and the environment are not yet fully known. Advocating the use of GM crops without any restriction may engender undesirable consequences. Thus, if I am one of my country Singapore’s decision makers, I would advocate the use of GM crop, but there will be a system of strict regulations in place to minimize the detrimental consequences of using GM crops.

Scenario 2
2． Would you buy products that contain GM foods for consumption by your family? Why or why not?

I will buy products that contain GM food for consumption by my family as these foods have undergone rigorous checks and tests by the Arigfood Agency of Singapore. If we look at the food that we consume, we will realize that most of them contain GM food. This means that we have already been consuming GM food for quite some time, but there have been no reports about anyone suffering from health-related problem due to the consumption of such food. Nevertheless, we must not be too quick to dismiss all the concerns about the adverse effects on health due to long-term consumption of GM food. Studies have shown that animals fed with GM food suffered adverse health effects and this is prove that GM food is not totally safe. However, before we ban GM food, we should step back and take a look at the effect of a non-GM food diet. Studies have also shown that eating too much of something will cause harmful effects on our health. Thus, we should keep an open mind about GM food.

"What are your views on abortion?"

There has been much controversy surrounding abortion, or the act of prematurely terminating a pregnancy. Views on abortion are varied, ranging from pro-life to pro-choice. Pro-choice proponents argue that women should have the right to abort their pregnancies, while pro-life proponents are against the idea of killing unborn foetuses as they feel that abortion is tantamount to murder. The world's main religions are inclined towards pro-life ideology and are firmly against abortion.

Personally, I am against abortion, but in exceptional cases such as pregnancy of rape victims, it should be allowed. Abortion should not be used as a means of birth control. By not legalising abortion, couples will have to think twice before giving birth and make sure that they are financially capable of raising the child, instead of making impulsive decisions to have babies without careful thought and planning. Some couples do not want to have babies but do not have the habit of using contraceptives and use abortion as the easy way out. Making abortion illegal will force them to take precautions and use birth control methods, resulting in fewer necessary loss of lives.

While scientists have not been able to determine exaclty when does life begins, most of them agree on the 14 day cut-off point for embyro research. This can be taken to be tacit agreement that life starts form the 14th day of coneception onwards. Religious leaders adopt a more conservative stance in believing that life begins immediately at conception. Thus, this supports that abortion is equivalent to murder as the unborn foetus has the potential to fully develop into a sentinent being.