Am back frm Boston. Exhausted. useful trip though. Stayed awake 50% of the time, of which only 20% was spent doodling, writing the alphabet, dreaming of eternal bliss etc. gained scientific knowledge, thought about what expts to do this month.
I'm becoming as paranoid as Joe. Was debating whether to record my newly-gained ideas here, but decided not to because
1) No one else is interested (even I'm not interested, sometimes)
2) what if some random person steals them and sets up MY biotech?
Boston is interesting. Nice city, beautiful parks, historic bldgs, houses look rustic in a quaint, good way. A lot of red brick, tall windows, black spire-like roofs. Not that many homeless people, either. Sure, they're there, but they won't stand on the roads and harass drivers like in Baltimore, and when u don't give them money they won't yell insults at u (like in B'more), and the ones I saw weren't lying in their corners reeking of alcohol and piss. Can anyone tell that I really hated Baltimore? But mebbe I was in posh downtown Boston and haven't really been to the sketchy areas yet. The outskirts are probably teeming with hobos. Can u also tell that I'm completely disillusioned about urban America? I swear it's the lack of sleep. I'm usually all bubbly and sunshine. plus I miss my xiao mei.
top 2 observations about Boston
1) Drivers are insane. Pedestrains are also insane. I forgot how much jaywalking is a part of East Coast life.
2) Dunkin Donuts is way more popular here than Krispy Kreme. In Boston, there're more DDs than Starbucks.
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Weird Movies
have been watching a lot of weird movies lately.
Harold and Kumar-- 2 guys who crave White Castle burgers, and have a bizarre night getting there. Moral of the story: Big bags of weed look disturbingly fetching in pink cardigans.
Big Fish-- 1 guy traces the life of his father, the big fish. Moral of the story: People will still leave you even if you steal their shoes. They might come back later, though. Moral #2: Alcohol makes weird movies not so weird.
The Aviator-- Leonardo plays Howard Hughes, psychotic but brilliant visionary (Howard Hughes foundation still supports a lot of life science research today). Moral of the story: ummm... i dunno yet. still extremely freaked out by the whole psycho thing. just saw the movie tonight. he had the whole Lady Macbeth 'Out-damn-spot!' thing going on too. erm. if pressed, I would say that the moral is, er.... If you're completely cuckoo, intelligent and beautiful women are not gonna marry you.
also saw the movie 'Sideways'. Super boring. don't watch it. if u wanna drink wine come to SF and I'll bring u to Sonoma. free tastings, excellent Chardonnays.
Harold and Kumar-- 2 guys who crave White Castle burgers, and have a bizarre night getting there. Moral of the story: Big bags of weed look disturbingly fetching in pink cardigans.
Big Fish-- 1 guy traces the life of his father, the big fish. Moral of the story: People will still leave you even if you steal their shoes. They might come back later, though. Moral #2: Alcohol makes weird movies not so weird.
The Aviator-- Leonardo plays Howard Hughes, psychotic but brilliant visionary (Howard Hughes foundation still supports a lot of life science research today). Moral of the story: ummm... i dunno yet. still extremely freaked out by the whole psycho thing. just saw the movie tonight. he had the whole Lady Macbeth 'Out-damn-spot!' thing going on too. erm. if pressed, I would say that the moral is, er.... If you're completely cuckoo, intelligent and beautiful women are not gonna marry you.
also saw the movie 'Sideways'. Super boring. don't watch it. if u wanna drink wine come to SF and I'll bring u to Sonoma. free tastings, excellent Chardonnays.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
No Angels on Angel Island
Went to Angel Island on Saturday. It's near Alcatraz, on the bay. It's like the Ellis Island of SF-- all the immigrants go through there. It was also a quarantine facility.... (I wonder how long germs last out in the environment.... *rampant imaginings of TB, leprosy etc thriving in water droplets in the air, being breathed into my lungs*) Walked up to Mt Livermore on the island. It's taller than Bukit Timah! my philosophy here in the US is to only climb hills that are taller than Bt Timah. Gd view of the bay.
ok ok, got side tracked again. wanted to say that Angel Island reminded me of this documentary I saw about Mary Mallon (Typhoid Mary). Mary was a cook in NYC, and a healthy carrier of typhoid. The Health Dept traced several outbreaks to her and forcibly captured and quarantined her.
so the issue here is whether it's ok to lock up infectious people. Sick people mebbe. they shd be resting anyways. but healthy carriers? or just mildly sick people? i guess for typhoid it's not a super-big problem, becos transmission is usu only by ppl who prepare food (so if u're a cook u're screwed). but what about SARS or sth that can be spread thru' the air? wear mask? what if it's a virus? i think even masks are not effective then. who's the guy that talked about the greater good? Mill? something about it's good if produces greatest utility. I mean, to put it bluntly, she murdered 3 people and injured like, 50.
*sigh* I hate morality questions. I guess one thing is definately true: It sucked to be her. 'though I think i usually take the heartless kill-them-all side of the fence. pro-choice, pro-euthanasia, pro-death penalty etc. why? I dunno... mebbe cos when I was young my mum told me everyday about how she's gonna kill herself at 45 'cos she doesn't wanna get old n useless. But won't that make me cherish life instead? Or mebbe becos of that I've been psycho-ed to think that ppl that are old/useless/sick/dangerous shd all die. mebbe it's the biologist in me, the 'survival of the fittest' ideology. mebbe i'm just an evil b!#ch.
on a completely irrelevant note: when u're in a developing country, even the bottled water is not safe to drink. someone did a study and there's just as much bacteria in the bottles as there is in tap water. drink the carbonated water instead. The acid in there kills the bacteria. Moral of the story: in India, brush ur teeth with beer.
ok ok, got side tracked again. wanted to say that Angel Island reminded me of this documentary I saw about Mary Mallon (Typhoid Mary). Mary was a cook in NYC, and a healthy carrier of typhoid. The Health Dept traced several outbreaks to her and forcibly captured and quarantined her.
so the issue here is whether it's ok to lock up infectious people. Sick people mebbe. they shd be resting anyways. but healthy carriers? or just mildly sick people? i guess for typhoid it's not a super-big problem, becos transmission is usu only by ppl who prepare food (so if u're a cook u're screwed). but what about SARS or sth that can be spread thru' the air? wear mask? what if it's a virus? i think even masks are not effective then. who's the guy that talked about the greater good? Mill? something about it's good if produces greatest utility. I mean, to put it bluntly, she murdered 3 people and injured like, 50.
*sigh* I hate morality questions. I guess one thing is definately true: It sucked to be her. 'though I think i usually take the heartless kill-them-all side of the fence. pro-choice, pro-euthanasia, pro-death penalty etc. why? I dunno... mebbe cos when I was young my mum told me everyday about how she's gonna kill herself at 45 'cos she doesn't wanna get old n useless. But won't that make me cherish life instead? Or mebbe becos of that I've been psycho-ed to think that ppl that are old/useless/sick/dangerous shd all die. mebbe it's the biologist in me, the 'survival of the fittest' ideology. mebbe i'm just an evil b!#ch.
on a completely irrelevant note: when u're in a developing country, even the bottled water is not safe to drink. someone did a study and there's just as much bacteria in the bottles as there is in tap water. drink the carbonated water instead. The acid in there kills the bacteria. Moral of the story: in India, brush ur teeth with beer.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Epitaph
In 2000 I got this book of poems (published by the BBC!), and there was one I really liked. I got reminded of it today because a friend of a friend's grandma passed away. So I was thinking of this poem and how I want to have it on my tombstone. But I guess now no more tombstones in S'pore. On my urn then, i guess. or whatever they're using when I die. I couldn't remember the exact lines so I googled it and it's on like, a gazillion websites. So mebbe it's not so special, huh? but whatever. I still think it's good. ANyways.
Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there. I did not die.
-Mary Elizabeth Frye, 1932.
Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there. I did not die.
-Mary Elizabeth Frye, 1932.
Monday, May 02, 2005
GONE CASE
Wah lau I'm really lousy. not even 2 days into my icecream fast and I have broken my vow of celibacy. but it's not Really My Fault (yar rite). my dorm organized FREE COLD STONE ice cream. how to resist i ask u? I got 'Banana Split Decision', a heavenly concoction of Banana ice cream, banana, strawberries n fudge. in a waffle cone. *extreme bliss*. only one notch below a warm Krispy Kreme doughnut + coffee. *heaven*
I have however renewed my vow to stay off ice cream for this week.
whoop! I'm going to Boston next week!!! but it's for a 4 day scientific conference =(. sometimes I think i'm in the wrong field. Reading immunology papers is the shortest road between me and the sandman. I'm convinced that i'm gonna spend 4 days in Boston asleep in various conference rooms. WHY can't people make their talks more interesting?
Immunity is actually pretty cool. Instead, people fill their talks with super-boring details of endless chains of protein phosphorylations and dark little gels and graphs Filled with super-confusing spots.... AARRRGH!!!! if I wasn't completely unconscious in 5 mins, i'll be gashing my teeth and pulling out my hair at the agony of it all. But the WORST part is that one day i'll be presenting my own little obscure graphs and pictures. I can feel it. I already have a file full of fuzzy black spots. They actually look quite interesting, but only AFTER u drink urself into oblivion. I guess if i ever give up science I have a back up job as psychologist, administering those ink blot tests.
I have however renewed my vow to stay off ice cream for this week.
whoop! I'm going to Boston next week!!! but it's for a 4 day scientific conference =(. sometimes I think i'm in the wrong field. Reading immunology papers is the shortest road between me and the sandman. I'm convinced that i'm gonna spend 4 days in Boston asleep in various conference rooms. WHY can't people make their talks more interesting?
Immunity is actually pretty cool. Instead, people fill their talks with super-boring details of endless chains of protein phosphorylations and dark little gels and graphs Filled with super-confusing spots.... AARRRGH!!!! if I wasn't completely unconscious in 5 mins, i'll be gashing my teeth and pulling out my hair at the agony of it all. But the WORST part is that one day i'll be presenting my own little obscure graphs and pictures. I can feel it. I already have a file full of fuzzy black spots. They actually look quite interesting, but only AFTER u drink urself into oblivion. I guess if i ever give up science I have a back up job as psychologist, administering those ink blot tests.
Quarks
My adopted xiao mei asked me about quarks the other day. Since I was reading the Bill Bryson book (see post below), I have shamelessly plagerized his explanation. but we all know that as long as one references one's sources, it's not plagerism, just a good literature search.
Particle physics is an amazingly confusing field, where no one really knows what's going on, because the subatomic realm is governed by completely different rules than in the macro-scale. In secondary sch they bluff u that protons, neutrons and electrons are the smallest things there are, and apparently that's not true at all.
So. this is the currently accepted theory: Quarks are even smaller particles held together by other particles called gluons and together they form protons and neutrons. Leptons form electrons and neutrinos (neutrinos are v.v.v.v. tiny particles given off during nuclear fusion in the Sun). Quarks n leptons together are called fermions. Bosons are particles that produce and carry forces n include photons and gluons. There's another one called the Higg's boson, which may or may not exist; it was invented to endow particles with mass.
Particle physics is an amazingly confusing field, where no one really knows what's going on, because the subatomic realm is governed by completely different rules than in the macro-scale. In secondary sch they bluff u that protons, neutrons and electrons are the smallest things there are, and apparently that's not true at all.
So. this is the currently accepted theory: Quarks are even smaller particles held together by other particles called gluons and together they form protons and neutrons. Leptons form electrons and neutrinos (neutrinos are v.v.v.v. tiny particles given off during nuclear fusion in the Sun). Quarks n leptons together are called fermions. Bosons are particles that produce and carry forces n include photons and gluons. There's another one called the Higg's boson, which may or may not exist; it was invented to endow particles with mass.
what all the above means, I haven't the faintest clue. Once physicists manage to build even larger particle accelerators, they will no doubt discover yet more 'fundamental' particles to confuse the rest of us and spend billions and billions of $$. They contend that this will help us understand the meaning of life.
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