Lunar New Year prayers with the masses for 2012 January 19, 2012
Posted by Karen in change, Chinese New Year, faith, human quality, Singapore.Tags: Chinese New Year 2012, leadership qualities, Teresa Hsu Chih, The Great Stuppa, The Jade Buddha
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Went to ‘The Jade Buddha Exhibition’ at Ngee Ann city and praying with others for universal harmony despite I knew very little of formal Buddhism as far as mantras were concerned. But I learn from visuals and see how things around me operate in a highly orderally manner that often always teach me precious lessons, which words cannot portray fully. The event was a very meaningful one for the forthcoming year.
I know very little about chants and by no means a Buddhist. But I thought I would just happily join in with the thousands who were there to sponsor the jade Buddhas and offerings. I followed the crowd, and the written chants pasted near the deities, passing from one ritual to another. Actually I didn’t quite know if I did it correctly but I enjoyed the process of getting my palms together, and made a few wishes. I even wondered if the deities understood me.— It wasn’t sanskrit, it was certainly not tamil, it was in mandarin with bits of English because there wasn’t a perfect translation for that few words. Couldn’t do them in German or even with a smattering of French, but it was more of an instinctive communicative and intuitive way of getting around language barrier to just use pure common sense in my modest prayers. I thought it should come from the heart. So I just did what I understood.
As I was offering my humble pack of rice, I prayed with the thousands for a peaceful and prosperous year of the dragon. The packs of rice will then be given to needy homes in the country. Then I started to ponder why so many people needed the staple when there are many who waste their food. Surely the terribly rich and the very poor are more than miles apart and that itself could set another separate topic about equality in wealth.
The thousands of bags of rice came in within hours and all the Jade statues were fully sponsored into the tens of thousands of dollars meant to go the construction of The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion in Melbourne, Australia.
The whole ceremony was about giving, sharing and remembering what others have sacrificed for us. The late Teresa Hsu was a live example of courage whenever Buddism came to place.
She left the human world without her ashes collected was an act itself that showed her faith and definite courage. In Buddhist rites, bones are to be collected and kept properly. But she didn’t allow even that last rite to be done.
She feared nothing but I still am not fully recovered from the fact she left her ashes uncollected. It was a very unusual thing to do though it was a very courageous act on its own. It could be deem to be almost petrifying to think the remains were ‘unwanted’ especially when she was a pure real 1100% Buddhist. I wouldn’t hesitate to say she was willing to give her all at death to save people. Since she couldn’t, her last words were to tell people not to spend a minute of peoples’ lives to collect her remains. A drastic contrast to what many would have fought for their rights of every minute kind.
The remains of the day would be a life lesson learnt that she sacrificed for sentimental beings all big and small, both great and ungreat. That could even include the despicable. She didn’t mind what she was going to have or not going to have, she simply gave all. I thought she should have given some bit to her own when I saw how some people could eat up others alive for their own merit. In a material world where fame and fortune is power, such people like her are rare gems.
A leader of this might could instantly solve all problems but realistically speaking, few will do it in the kind of world we are now living in. On the positive front, those who did anything less than sincerity and honesty always pay in due course, either via the revenge of similar beings who were being mistreated or via nature through health woes. They will pay. And the price will be hefty. The crazy thing is that these people don’t even know they are paying for it though they know they are suffering from it.
On a grey scale of 10, we must aim to purify the partial hues and in the same time improving ourselves. 2012 will spell a year of transition when more people will realize why and how we have the economic woes of inflation, unemployment, physical pollution and metaphysical pollution all snowballed into a gigantic mix of chaos.Health problems that were used to be for the aged now exist in young people. The levels of mental psychological disorder increases due to rampant bullying and being bullied. Diseases arise from animals that we shouldn’t eat. Plants get contaminated because of the selfish desire to expand urban areas , and worse still, to use name of sustainability to promote their goods when they do not really mean anything healthy in the real sense. The power then will be laid in the masses of the common people to control what they want to change.
Thankfully there are three things that gives us hope with the freedom to voice. Consumer sovereignty, democracy of the people and the sheer natural law of sustainability do not allow the ills to propagate.
For the many who think the bad still get their reward, observe carefully that they live with worry, anger and fear behind the ill gained status. You hardly see them smile. Nor do you see them simple minded, which gives the absolute clarity of thought for peaceful living.
So in the real sense the new year is a year for the commoners. Those who fail to listen to these voices will flop miserably. And it is high tide that 2012 will belong to all who are kind and industrious.
Happy Lunar New Year from the equator.
Karen Fu
Steve Jobs 1955-2011 – belated eulogy on life design January 4, 2012
Posted by Karen in change, life challenges, real power.Tags: apple, life, mac, Steve Jobs
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He was more than able to design his products and services. We all know his power to transform the world in the way we live and the way we interact with one another in life. But he failed to design his own life. This video, which I got it via Majid on facebook, was to me a reminder of how we should live our lives.
The world is what and how you view and make it. Steve Jobs is a solid lesson for us. At the same time, his life told us to stay put and spare time for our loved ones because it doesn’t pay to put 110% in your career all the time. To me, he paid his life like 1100% on his career that was ultimately took his life away. He is a legend. We admire for his dedication for the Mac, iPads, iPhones, iPods and his staunch determination to be the forefront of technology. But he could have spared some bit more time for his wife, his kids and simply for himself.
To me, that’s tragedy, though it didn’t come in as any kind of surprise for the way he worked was going to shorten his life.
When I read the news on twitter last October, I was shocked though I was somewhat expecting his death due to the way he devoted his life at work. It was a very sad moment for a genius had gone. Surely his sense for words for his rivals are very different from his tone for the masses. I guess that is the way to survive in the real world, for that I don’t exactly seem to fully understand why we should be at loggerheads so many times.
Then again, this wasn’t the ordinary person by any means. He is a lengendary innovator, someone who had put his soul into his work and had risen from a disadvantaged class to the top. My first encounter with Apple was not a pleasant one. As a Singaporean, I would have first defend a local product before a foreign one. But he made me stand up straight before his products that shine through nothing short of exemplary.
My first purchase was a 3rd Generation iPod touch. I had bought it because I found my PDA was not working properly and I wanted something that had a touch screen. I lost it after about 2 years’ of use. At that point of time, I realised how much my iPod touch has twinned into my life. The schedules and notes I’ve made and the little ditty stuff that I put into my iPod. It was literary my life twinned into it. I was upset. I do not agree that much with the battery life as being a green technology as it is way too short-lived especially for the iPhone. But I do agree with the material use and all. The software architecture is brilliant and so is the concept of apps in his definition. I think what really hit me hard was that I see him as a hard fighter. I do not think that being born to an unwed couple and then raised by adopted parents was a pleasant process. The growing pains and struggle must have been there at some point. To start an enterprise and to have left it due to business politics is another. Certainly with his tough determination, he returned and knocked all the walls down to build what Apple is today. I have also noted the kind of people he hires, of whom many have modest upbringing but are outstanding in their own merit. Innovativeness can only come from minds that are big and receptive, and tougher than all the obstacles in the universe that is out there; with the keen eye for detail and an industrious mind that works for as long as your breath takes you.
Steve Jobs has done it to his last breath. That is the kind of character that I admire. I think perhaps in the business world, you’ve got to be aggressive because you’ve got an array of different people out there to handle and get things done. However, as far as innovation goes, this guy has huge lessons we all need taking in: ‘You need to learn how to fight and to suffer. Together with your wits, humour and determintation; and a creative gift of wonder before you can shine’. I salute Steve Jobs for all that —- A legendary Innovator, A Voice for Change.
May he rest in peace and that his legend continues. — Karen Fu

Why this blog ? November 15, 2008
Posted by Karen in change, Economy, life challenges, Uncategorized.Tags: change, creativity, daily living, environment, governance, hope, humanity, ideas, life, obama, singapore, US election
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Daring To Change was actually my academic work back in the 90s. I had been thinking about how design could change lives for the better and thought that instead of writing the usual design literature, I should attempt writing on how creative thinking could value add living. I have questioned the issues on design education and various thinking methodologies, as well as citing my own country as an example, how the appropriate thinking could turn a small tiny country into what it is today. Though my country (Singapore) is tiny and cannot compete with other much larger and older countries where history and natural resources are rich and powerful; it is a living example of how creativity in a pragmatic sense could make a transformation from a 3rd world to a near first. It change itself can be viewed as controvesial. Some consider it to be an autocratic and stifling state; while some see it as a modern example of exceptional accomplishment given its tiny size and population of a mere 4.6 million
(estimate) people.
Regardless, my hope is that my skills and ideas could help people positively. I am no supergirl nor marverick. I am just a modest little elfin who lives 1 degree north of the equator, having interesting ideas and lots of enthusiasm in her work. I hope to find like minded people to join my little network and bring small little pieces of dreams come true. It may just be a small paper theory at first. But I believe that it will come forth and become something real and substantial as time passes.
The habitat that we are all living in is undergoing not only environmental disaster alone. This change we need is a holistical, multi-disciplinary one that needs courage to face them and make it happen. Not a lot of people are daring to make the shift because there are too many obstacles that needs to tear down.
Hence the title : Daring To Change.
Daring to change has been extended to include changes in the environment, in governance, in humanity, and in general our daily living. Its a large sphere of change that we need to embrace. The latest US election shows ‘Change is coming’ as President Elect Barack Obama has put it.

His line of Change reminded my own undergraduate paper and also what was to be a conference paper that I did not get the time to present. Perhaps on this blog at WordPress, I could present some of my modest ideas and hopefully gain some constructive ideas of how to improve them. Cheers !
quick typing 15 November 2008
January 3, 2009
Posted by Karen in Uncategorized.comments closed
© 2008-2009 Karen Fu (MCN:W059E-25E97-AD799) Registered copyright for elfinbee @ wordpress.
human resource as a fundamental capital to prosperity, peace and sustainability January 6, 2009
Posted by Karen in research, talent.Tags: creativity, east india company, human resource, LinkedIn, methods, other areas of intelligence, PhD design list, research, scholars, sustainable living, talent
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Some time back I was wondering about human talent and was reading an article in the Straits Times about how scholars are chosen. So I posted on a topic asking LinkedIners what talent is .
Singapore has virtually nothing given but human beings who emmigrated to this used to be a Malay fishing village – an island that was first founded by the British East India Company back in 1819. Since its inception as a British port to today’s diversified economy that includes oil refinery, biotechnology, enbironment technology, finance and others; the country’s sole reliance has been on human talent.
Talent is a fundamental capital not only to prosperity but to survival. But how does one define talent ? Are scholars the only talent ? Who should govern and improve the nation’s / world’s condition ?
They are hard questions to ask and probably require daring souls to answer and implement them.
Talent isn’t confined to just scholars from Ivy leagues who would go on to take on political roles as they are only part of the solution. A creative sociey would have to include people who are talented in other areas. But most societies often overemphasized on academic performance, which mainly focuses on language prowess to deliever knowledge and ideas. Should we focus on this to research and discovery ? One list I am on had discussed on this area (PhD-design at jiscmail) and has discussed on the prime areas of research in other media. However, we must take care that such forms will result in an objective response and not a full egoistical circle where the pure and earnest sharing and passing on of knowledge is eluded.
We have to nose into issues like ROI from these scholars we put our tax money in. Issues like whether they will serve the board of commoners earnestly.
Our National Treasure — 108 year old Humanist Teresa XuZhe January 8, 2009
Posted by Karen in ethics, faith.Tags: Centarian, ethics, humanitarian, Lee Kuan yew, Longevity, Mother Teresa, national treasures, Teresa Hsu Chih, Xu Zhe
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If there are national treasures in Singapore, that would have to be 2 persons:
Teresa Xu Zhe and Lee Kuan Yew .

Centarian Humanitarian magnaminously save lives of all, both the sinful and kind.
Teresa Xu or Hsu Chih is a centarian who has dedicated her life to helping the needy — one of the few rare people in the world, whom like the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta, has dedicated her entire life to serve the welfare of the underpriviledged purely for sake of helping and caring. I have found few people in my life so far to see such a fine character, who has forsaked her own happiness to do what is needed to save lives of others. In a world where status, fame and money are the main motivational goals of most people; the acts of her moral deeds is an excellent example of hope and faith of the most enduring kind. I would even put her above Lee Kuan Yew anytime.
Her living energy along with the world’s few genuine leaders give hope to the world of humanity in which our society badly needs to keep it truly sustainable.
Xuzhe devoted her whole life to serve the people, and it is her deeds keep her healthy perfectly in a rather ripe old age. Yet, she is free from all disturbance and confusion, her innocent and sincere mind expressed on her innocent smiling face. Her smart response to the question from the students won applause. But, more important is Xuzhe illuminated students, make them thinking deeply. Students felt Xuzhe is indeed an evergreen volunteer and Bodhisattva lived in the world. [Translator: Wang Xinyu]
Is Innovation Dead? Is “Transformation” the Key Concept for 2009 ? January 11, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, life challenges, Product Design.Tags: Bruce Nussbaum, Businessweek, change, ethics, save the world, transformation, useless products
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“Innovation” is Dead. Herald The Birth of “Transformation” as The Key Concept for 2009.
Bruce Nussbaum claims a new word over innovation: ‘transformation’.
In context, I agree with change as we clearly need it to make lives better in a world where design is not positively used to benefit and value add living. But how daring are we to this transformation or change ? And also how are we supposed to implement such transformation? If we fail to create this transformation with a solid methodology and a earnest desire to do well in practice; then ‘transformation’ is as bad as the earlier concept in ‘innovation’.
If we look at the things around us, there are plenty of useless things around us. Products that we could have chucked it away but are there because for a solely commercial reason. If we need to save this world from environmental damage, I often feel we need to change our thinking. Things are there because of us, so to handle a problem on the product itself isn’t exactly pinpointing to the problem, but merely recycling them into another different form. Not everything needs a product to solve a problem. So I respect the fact that certain issues require intelligent policies to the world’s problems in poverty and hunger.
Everyone has a role to play in improving everyone’s lives. It’s only a matter of identifying what one’s strength is and use it positively and selflessly.
Then Change has genuinely come to save our skins..

Image extracted from Vinfolio.com
China – an afterthought (Chinese New Year 2009) February 3, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, Chinese New Year.Tags: CCTV, change, Chinese dialects, Chinese New Year, Different Chinese greetings, Lunar New Year
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As I watched the Chinese New Year Celebrations televised over at CCTV (China Central TV) , I cannot help but to be fascinated by their own change – from 30 years ago of monotony to today’s impressive display of variety.To the western world, China is a stifling place where rights are retricted with a serious level of pollution and slew of intellectual rights violation. Though I agree that China does have these serious problems that will hinder their image to the world, I think in due course they will change, as their people are hungry for progress and sophistication in their various areas of culture and technology. Beijing Olympics was one fine example of how they managed to beat the nay sayers and came out in triumph. When I was watching the Lunar New Year show, I cannot help but to be impressed despite the accent that I find hard to adapt. For a country to change and prosper, a nation must be in unity to stay on and industriously fight for progress against the odds. Additionally different foundations in society must be laid soundly by their leaders to accelerate economic and cultural growth. For a vibrant country to exist, cultural evolution is necessary. One has to adapt and be able to morph according to changing times in a positive way where both man-made and natural environment are sustainable in an harmonious way. I see China being aware of all that. And when I saw how they show in their culture with the inclusion of other cultures, I get the feeling they have their cards laid on their tables all set to play – and this play can have an enormous impact not only to themselves but to the world as well.
Short review of Chinese New Year Variety by CCTV.
The Beijing CCTV had also showcasted a formidable programme welcoming the year of the Ox. The ratings were above average and I suspect the lower than 7 out of 10 comes from cultural difference that may be a little difficult to take in, especially the accent and the singing. If we were to make allowance of this, the programme would have easily hit above 8 for the content and variety. There were special guest starts from Hong Kong and Taiwan who add in to the variety of the Chinese program.
56 different ethnicities (a few sources quoted as more than 60.) and their respective cultures transformed the Chinese culture with a uniform taste that doesn’t spell old fashioned. With the inclusion of western influence, they seem to develop an unique identity that marked their style.
In Mandarin Chinese:
http://spring.cctv.com/spring/special/09pingxuan/toupiao/index.shtml
In English:
http://www.cctv.com/english/special/2009yearofox/01/index.shtml
The world sends Chinese New Year Greetings:
http://www.cctv.com/english/20090124/104572.shtml
Countries that celebrate the Lunar New Year (the number of public holidays are stated in the brackets) :
1. China (3)
2. Taiwan (3)
3. Hong Kong (3)
4. Singapore (2)
5. Malaysia (2)
6. Vietnam (3)
7. Korea (3)
It is called lunar new year in vietnam (tet) and korea (sollal). Japan used to celebrate in the far past but they have stopped celebrating in recent decades…There are quite a number of ways of greeting one another during the festive occasion, but the most common ones are the ones below:
1. Universal Mandarin version of ‘Happy Chinese New Year’ [新年快乐]:
- Mandain Chinese (Peking Dialect or Guoyu) : [新年快乐 Xinnian Kuaile or Chunjie kuaile]
2. The different dialect groups that greet Gongxi Facai [恭喜发财]
- Cantonese (Guangdong or yueyu) : Gung Hei Fatt Choy
- Hokkien (Fujian or minnan): Keong Hee Huat Chye
- Hainanese (Hylam or Hainan hua): Gung Hee Watt Tsai
- Teochew (Chaozhou hua) : Sing Knee Peng Ang
- Hakka (Kejia hua): Kung hei fat choi
3. Some of the most common greetings and items used during the festive season:
Thought I add this in from LinkedIn: US competitor in the next 10 years February 4, 2009
Posted by Karen in Uncategorized.Tags: China, economic strength, future, India, LinkedIn, United States
2 comments
Who is more likely to challenge the economic strength of the U.S. in the next 10 years? China or India? Why?
My public answer:
“I can’t even see the link… anyway I will answer from what your question asks: it is an interesting question if you put the time frame as a span of 10 years. If its 30-50 years, it could have been a different answer. So lets focus on what may be happening in the next 10 years. I think the US will still remain in dominance and lead in various areas of science and technology because it has a very superior foundation that cannot be taken away that easily. Unless there are few things happening: -natural disasters that befall the country that could bleed the nations resources. -further turmoil economically that cannot be salvaged effectively within the next few years; which will send the foreign talent in the US to move out or back to their native land. – social unrest and spike in crime. – unexpected challenges arising from warring states in the middle east or even from the north. – increase in unemployment rate – increase in social breakdown mainly due to economic hardship in a very bad way. Notwithstanding, China and India, if they share the above same problems will face similar predicaments. Despite so, even if they could control the current crisis well and maintain in positive growth, I don’t think they can beat the US within 10 years. Maybe in 20 or 30 years, with constant postive growth, improvement in their infrastructure and education; health and security. I do not know that much about india other than seeing the indians here on business. They are impressive people who can match with the Americans anytime. But the problem with their country is that the benefit from their rapid growth doesn’t spread uniformly throughtout the country. If they stand alone in groups like Mumbai, New Delhi, with other prospering cities, it could have put them up in a better situation. Comparatively, China has a better spread. I recently attend an arts event held by the mainland Chinese. Together with what I have seen so far, they are learning very quick. I don’t even think that English is their stumbling block given their hunger for knowledge. Last years Bejing Oylmpics somewhat showed their determination to come up as a strong nation despite the environmental odds and the negative press review. Considering that, I think China is very determine to make it. India is very well known for finance talent and software talent. A lot of able people at top international financial establishments. Their ability in technology especially in developing inexpensive products is also a force to reckon with. Both cultures are historically very vibrant. If they want to prosper and surpass the states, they must learn to create a sense of order. Especially political and social sense of order so that economically and politiaclly they can set up for greater ambitions. They also lack creativity and imagination when compared the States due to the lack of expressive freedom in thinking. If that grip is lessen, it will be a totally different story.
Interesting & thoughtful quote about Change February 12, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, Economy.Tags: Buckminster Fuller, change, eradicate poverty, green design thought, simplicity
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‘You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.’
- R. Buckminster Fuller
Change is basically to make something different from its original state. I think it should define the dimension and the nature of the change. If we were to look for realistic change that value-adds life, we have to look at practicality and move along the lines with adaptations. Many people are equiped with the same fundamental know-how, but do not have the real idea of using them in different ways effectively. Hence the proposals they offer are often lacking in dimension and scope. In the meantime, many more people appear to lack wisdom in their approach to problems; lacking the insight needed to jump out of convention. If we need to really transform ourselves, the niche should be to restructure one’s thinking. People often focus on the products we need to modify to suit the environment, but isn’t the character and minds of the users that make the most effective outcome ? Personal relationships is another. If one fails to handle one’s life, how good and effective can one solve other people’s lives ? The notion of spending needs to be addressed. Fashion is nice, but how many are original in style that promotes a real change so we can come down with the material waste that we have through capitalism and consumerism ?
If we need to produce products/service, can we improvise/trim/save/and just use what is necessary ? If we are able to do this, could we be saving the extra money and spare that to others who need them ? If we are able to feed and cloth the poor, would that mean less crime, less misery and less misfortune that comes out from poverty ?
Quick thoughts for now, and more later.
‘Design is Change; Change is Power’ February 14, 2009
Posted by Karen in Uncategorized.Tags: Branding, change, design, Methodology, The Designful Company
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Just read this new book called, ‘The designful company’ by Marty Neumeier, who was also the author of ZAG. I highly recommend this book for anyone. I have always been a keen advocate in believing that there is always a way in dealing with anything in life.In his book there was this particularcatch phrase that I really like:
‘Design is Change; Change is Power’.
A short and small little book that is thought provoking and leave areas for self designing one’s own brand or business or even with life if you like. I like it as it resonates with what I believe in that ‘Design is thoughtful living’; and that design is a way of thinking that solves problems in any permutation or ways that one can think of under one’s given situation/factors etc. I also believe that there is no hard and fast rules; nor are there that many problems that we cannot solve if we are able to identify the factors and problems and form a way to solve it. It is merely a matter of choice if you would want to strategise and navigate towards your goal to change for the better and turn this change into power that helps one to better control trying circumstances like the one we are all facing.
10 Commandments from Dieter Rams March 2, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, design, Economy, ethics, industrial design, Product Design.Tags: Design Sojourn, Dieter Rams, ethics, sustainability
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I’ve just made a short comment about the thread on Design Sojourn on the topic : Dieter Rams and his 10 Design Commandments and thought that there were other qualities needed to good design, or indeed to a good life since good design value-adds life.
– guts : the courage to change – change on what is really needed in life that doesn’t encourage waste in either unnecessary spending or over buying of certain products.
– discerning critic: the wisdom and intelligence that will enable one to differentiate what is right or wrong by observation and not by what you hear. I think its important for design decisions. Or in any way, making good answers on how life should be live by design.
In reality a lot of issues are thwarted for the sheer desire to make either fame or/and money. If we could all genuinely be honest about keeping this earth sustainable, which really means that we need to look at not only products but also our own quality of thinking as well as the ethical part of our characters; to ensure that this habitat of ours isn’t going to be finished beacuse of our stupidity. Hence being honest to both ourselves and to our living environment is extremely important. It would really not be worth it in the long term to cheat and to deceive what is the natures laws of good living. But there is also another crucial fact that the human civilisation, since the begining of time, has never really fully chosen the path to be just simple and kind… so what should we make of it ? Would this current economic and environment disaster wake all of us up in time ? If it does, its probably a ‘good disaster’ for all to learn…

image from: blog.igloo.com.au/?p=86
Dieter Rams’ 10 Design Commandments
1. Good Design is innovative
It does not copy existing product forms, nor does it produce any kind of novelty for the sake of it. The essence of innovation must be clearly seen in all functions of a product. The possibilities in this respect are by no means exhausted. Technological development keeps offering new chances for innovative solutions.
2. Good Design makes a product useful
A product is bought in order to be used. It must serve a defined purpose – in both primary and additional functions. The most important task of design is to optimise the utility of a product.
3. Good Design is aesthetic
The aesthetic quality of a product – and the fascination it inspires – is an integral part of the its utility. Without doubt, it is uncomfortable and tiring to have to put up with products that are confusing, that get on your nerves, that you are unable to relate to. However, it has always been a hard task to argue about aesthetic quality, for two reasons.
Firstly, it is difficult to talk about anything visual, since words have a different meaning for different people.
Secondly, aesthetic quality deals with details, subtle shades, harmony and the equilibrium of a whole variety of visual elements. A good eye is required, schooled by years and years of experience, in order to be able to draw the right conclusion.
4. Good Design helps a product be understood
It clarifies the structure of the product. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory and saves you the long, tedious perusal of the operating manual.
5. Good Design is unobtrusive
Products that satisfy this criterion are tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained leaving room for the user’s self-expression.
6. Good Design is honest
An honestly-designed product must not claim features it does not have – being more innovative, more efficient, of higher value. It must not influence or manipulate buyers and users.
7. Good Design is durable
It is nothing trendy that might be out-of-date tomorrow. This is one of the major differences between well-designed products and trivial objects for a waste-producing society. Waste must no longer be tolerated.
8. Good Design is thorough to the last detail
Thoroughness and accuracy of design are synonymous with the product and its functions, as seen through the eyes of the user
9. Good Design is concerned with environment
Design must contribute towards a stable environment and a sensible use of raw materials. This means considering not only actual pollution, but also the visual pollution and destruction of our environment.
10. Good Design is as little design as possible
Back to purity, back to simplicity.
requoted off Design Sojourn.com
The greatest power March 3, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, real power.add a comment
The greatest power is the power of nature, the common public & the power of the people
- author of this site, daringtochange.wordpress.com, Karen Fu
Quickie: Climate Change or attitude change March 14, 2009
Posted by Karen in climate change, environment.add a comment
Am reading an article on the Straits Times a moment ago and I really believe that we need to change our consumption habits. Just a few days ago, I was having a forum discussion about ‘safe materials’ and I mentioned that our conventional thinking needs to be altered.An over consumption of even the so-called good and harmless products can do harm as well. I call that the ‘environmental friendly bag paradox’, where plastic bags are replaced with a new green product that ironically doesn’t exactly solve the root problem. You could see a rising number of businesses doing these bags. And often it makes me wonder if these bags consume another new problem of waste ?
Ideally, I feel that we need to totally eradicate redundant use and exercise improvision in the way we consume, either in the way we use products and services or in the way we have our food. Really if we could save on waste, we could save a lot of prospective green house problems under the stratosphere. Currently, I do not think we are exactly solving environmental problems from the way we have our cars, fashion and food. There is also plenty of wastage in several areas in manufacturing,technologies, daily lifestyles et cetra. If we could just sit down and do a simple brainstorming, its not hard to list a whole bunch of them. And if we really do some soul searching, we need to really make hard nose changes.
Here’s a quick excerpt of news I read on Straits Times:
Climate Change near irreversible.
One victim of climate change will be the polar bear, which could die out within 50 years as the Arctic sea ice melts. — PHOTO: FESTIVE FILMSOne victim could be the polar bear, which could be extinct in 50 years, given the rate at which Arctic sea ice is melting.
Saying there is no excuse for inaction, nearly 2,000 climate researchers meeting in Copenhagen urged policymakers to implement the economic and technological tools available to cut emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases.
COPENHAGEN: Global warming is accelerating beyond the worst predictions and is threatening to trigger irreversible climate shifts on the planet, hundreds of leading scientists warned.
Scientists sound dire warning, calling on govts to act quickly to cut greenhouse gases
Mid Night thoughts: ‘Not just Any Change’. March 21, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, life challenges.Tags: change, human flaws, materialism, peace, Pope Benedict XVI, Sun Yat Sen, terrorism, Universal compassion
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extracted from commons.wikimedia.org
Every time I see someone just taking off something (doesn’t matter whatever that is) without the thought of giving back or at least say a simple thank you to a simple act of kindness, I would wonder if we are ever going to make genuine real changes to keep our living habitat under the common stratosphere well. It is not exactly a simple matter because whatever we do on a nominal basis actually reflects our true personality: if you cannot give, cannot treat people sincerely, cannot keep your eyes off materialism all the time; how could people believe that the world would be a better place for tomorrow ? So we do not need just any change, we ought to add in a strong adjective to the noun ‘Change’ and these are the words ‘real and positive’. We need positive changes that will sink into people’s minds to make a 180 degree turn from our usual human flaw-hypocrisy, greed and selfishness. I am learning that bit by bit, step by step and I hope I am getting there. I also believe this is crucial for any society if it were to remain relevant and to survive. It is especially true in such challenging times where almost every peace is close to being threatened. Why do I say that ? If I have observed correctly, I suspect there may be a growth on a cold war between peoples. The poor global economy is going to be true test to a lot of people about their values. It is probably going to make plenty more people question about materialism and the age old consumerism at best, as in the recent news on Pope Benedict tbe XVI who had recently condemned on the ills of materialism.
But I do hope that this worry of peoples breaking apart is unfounded or at least be minimized. However if we based on history, such cold wars are not uncommon. And jealousy, selfishness and greed have always been the ones that spur deceit, betrayal and onwards to unwanted negative impact. Though we cannot totally eradicate such natural human flaws for good, I believe we could avoid them and turn them to positive energies where we could even influenced the hatred into generosity and magnanimity. That has to come from us ourselves first. If we cannot save some bits, trust some more bits, give extra bits to people, then the notion of being good et cetra would all go down to the drain. This is exactly the kind of energy that is the true force which could put terrorism, poverty and unhappiness et cetra to an ultimate end. We need to first obey the laws ourselves before we could teach the same thing off too. It has to be *real*.
At this moment, the two critical Chinese characters 博爱 ‘bó àì’ (Universal compassion and love) comes to mind. These were the two characters which Dr Sun Yat Sen had written famously to his followers and to his people. He changed the way Chinese think. He changed the lives of the entire race and he transformed the entire Chinese history.
Changes for the US Auto industry March 31, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, Economy.Tags: Auto Industry, change, obama, Obama's speech on Auto Industry, US Auto Industry
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Making a very quick post on the topic. I was listening to the news and this piece of news was just the one piece of news that send my head nodding. With this specific regard on the Auto Industry, I agree with President Obama hands on. But I do not think that a larger stimulus plan may be helpful. Well that is from a non-US citizen so it may be different. Here is his excerpt of his speech that has been just released. And I will append my thoughts about the Auto Industry that I replied some 4 months ago at LinkedIn.
President Obama’s speech excerpt [CNET]
“I am absolutely committed to working with Congress and the auto companies to meet one goal: the United States of America will lead the world in building the next generation of clean cars,” Obama said. He noted that many American-made car companies, including GM, have made significant advances in producing fuel-efficient cars.
“Let me be clear: the United States government has no interest or intention of running GM. What we are interested in is giving GM an opportunity to finally make those much-needed changes that will let them emerge from this crisis a stronger and more competitive company,”
My reply to Edward Caulfield 4 months ago on LinkedIn posted 4 months ago in Change Management, Government Policy:
The concept allows for an interesting scenario. Instead of paying money to save GM, spend the same money on the GM employees (and probably those in the supply chain as well) who earn under $x00k (pick your favorite value for x) per year to retrain them in fields where the demand *currently* remains high – renewables. Key would be that the lowest paid workers would get the highest priority on retraining. I am curious to read your thoughts.
I have some questions here as an onlooker.
Under normal circumtances, I would have agreed to let these auto companies fail.But in this situation where it involves thousands of jobs at stake, would it be advisable to have a kind of contract in place like setting new guidelines for the failing companies and change the top level management people instead of allowing all of them to go bankrupt ?I seem to see that a lot of people seem to favour either government bailout or let them fail. But why can’t it be a mix of both ?
I would have thought that keeping the auto companies are the National Pride of the Americans. To let them fail, seems to be too much especially so when it will make so many workers out of jobs. Though some of them may be taken back into the auto industry when the new Japanese firm sets a new manufacturing plant in the States, I feel that if I were an American and a policy maker, I would have gone in to revamp the management in the company to save a national brand and to save jobs.
I think its the people that needs changing.
2 cents from a foreigner.
Clarification added 4 months ago:
correction on this line where I said ‘see that a lot of people seem to favour either government bailout or let them fail. But why can’t it be a mix of both ? ‘ It should be why can’t there be a mix of government intervention and private sector management ?’I posted the above reply 4 months ago
The design of a national suit – a change for an ideal society April 8, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, design.Tags: change, design, Dr Sun Yat Sen, ideals for an ideal society, Sun Wen, Sun yixian, The Three Principles of the People, Zhong San Suit
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Zhong San Suit (picture extracted from wikimedia.org)
When I was writing about Sun Yat Sen, it came to me that he had also designed the Zhong San Suit (中山装 zhōng shān zhuāng ). The garment was based principally on his ideals for a prosperous and harmonious society, documented in his ‘Three Principles of the People” (三民主义sān mīn zhǔ yì)
The early form of the suit had a closed stand collar and centre-front buttons. The design has since changed significantly over the years to symbolise the new age of revolution for the People’s Republic of China.( 中华人民共和国 zhōng huā rén mīn gòng hé guō)
The patriotic significance of the Sun Yat-sen suit was actually a Western and Japanese influenced style, most likely to be influenced by his early years of study/living in the US and Japan. While there are sources that specifies that the design has some German influence. The overall garment is tight-fitting with the four pockets representing the main ideals of government working ansd serving the people’s 3 basic needs of race,power and livlihood. (民族 mínzú ,民权 mín quán,民生 mínshēng ) the Four Cardinal Principles cited in the classic Book of Changes and understood by the Chinese as fundamental principles of conduct:
Propriety (礼 lǐ); Justice (义yì ); Honesty (廉lián ); Shame (耻chǐ)
The five centre-front buttons were said to represent the five powers of the constitution of the Republic (民国mín guó) and the three cuff-buttons to symbolise the Three Principles of the People - Nationalism-Democracy – People’s Livelihood
He ascribed the idealism of a harmonious society through his design of the suit where the people has the greatest power to keep the government in check. In this sense, he was a great revolutionist and the father of not only modern China but the father and saviour of all Chinese -someone who rose to the politics not because he wanted the power, but to save the people from a failing dynasty that demoralise the entire race for at least more than 2 centuries of humilation and defeat.
The figure below on the right illustrates Dr Sun Yat Sen’s own handwriting of his ideals for the people through an upright and serving government :
Chinese calligraphic work of San Min Zhu Yi to the students and colleagues of Huangpu military school, that was led by Generalissimo Jiang Kai Shek.
San Min Zhu Yi, wu guo suo zong,
Yi jian minguo, yi jin Datong.
Zi er duo shi, wei min qianfeng,
Su ye fei xie zhuyi shi cong.
Shi qin shi yong, bi xin bi zhong,
Yi xin yi de, guan che shi zhong
brief history and personal thought on Dr Sun Yat-sen (Sun Zhongshan, Sun Yixian or Sun Wen; lived during the period of 1866-1925, Cantonese) His 1st wife, Lu Mu Zhen; his 2nd spouse Song Qingling (Hainanese, former surname is Han.) is a creative person whose patriotism and courage led him to go ahead to raise needed funds, people et cetra to overthrow the Qing dynasty(1644-1911) Something that was seemed as an impossible task from a poor and inherently passive peasant boy. In that sense of a character, he was rare. He had the bare guts to fight for what he belived was the right; and not because he had wanted anything of fame and fortune ,which he had none even at the time of his death. He had been risking his life as a fugitive ; and if you would consider his persistent bombings and assassinations of the Qing political figures, you could even count him in as a ‘terrorist’. But I must clarify that I am no supporter of terrorism, for it only fuels more terror in the end. I suppose that during his time and urgency he had to resort to these ways to overthrow a feudal and failing government.
OT post: Blogs In multiple languages April 16, 2009
Posted by Karen in Uncategorized.Tags: my blogs, translation of this site
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OT post here: updated Daring To Change with the function to be translated into different languages. I’ve done this to my other 2 blogs (‘minphf design blog’ and ‘Design is thoughtful living’ as well.
The Translation Widget is found on the right hand column of this blog right under ‘recent post’. Enjoy !
Banks, us and money… April 27, 2009
Posted by Karen in bank, change.2 comments
Instead of changing the banks, maybe we need to change the way we manage money. The ripple effect coming from banks is affecting everyone. Recent news have reaffirmed my thoughts on personal financial management as well as how businesses should run. And I do believe the whole banking industry will get a lot worse before it gets better. Many times over, I believe that most of the troubled banks in contrast of the auto industry would need to just go bust or downsize for the main reason that it is not sustainable for them to continue hanging on on a distressed note. From a consumer level, the problem arises mainly from greed and spiraling credit debt. From a business point, it is all about triming down greed and triming down failing business sectors and derive new ways in borrowing and lending. We need to change the way service is delivered to customers. That includes handling materialism in an optimal way (since eliminating materialism is impossible and also impractical). Credible lending to useful investments that are ethical and healthy. Basically we need to wind back to basics of saving and buying responsibly. Borrowing to live well on one hand improves the living quality in the short term. But it fails in the long run. Debt on good paying investments, which will pay itself after the selling is more than fine. But sadly this is not the case. I have personally witnessed many people who are spending way beyond their means. Just recently, one local man in his late 60s was paying his credit cards’ debt at a foreign bank’s self banking loby. I was there to deposit and he was there trying to figure out how to pay through the automated machine, which was entirely in English. My eyes popped as I saw the few statements he had in his wrinkled hands — all mounting to a scary sum of US$16000 that month ! And he was not a well-off person to start off with. Maybe he was paying for his family, but I thought that kind of bills is really unncessary. Perhaps the current financial turmoil is a good time to clean the entire market and start anew. I have posted some thoughts on ‘credit’ and ‘products’ over on my other blog about it. I think consumption does need changing. It is a matter of how brave we are to change. It doesn’t mean a cut in living quality. But a cut on things that we really do not need and spare some time and effort on those areas that we need to keep us soulfully and physcially healthy. It makes a lot more sense if we could sit down quietly and recount what is supposed to go out of our lives and what is supposed to be included. If we care to face the deal and make the necessary adjustments, we actually do not need to fear if the banks do fail. Then life would be more in control with a way more wholesome and debt free !
reference:
My other blog that mentions about credit and product.
3 big events for the last 3 weeks – terrorism, green design + Obama May 11, 2009
Posted by Karen in design, life challenges, terrorism.Tags: green design, life thoughts, Mas Selamat, terrorism
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I am back with some interesting design posts and thoughts for these 3 weeks.. During which 3 big events have happened :
1. One of the JI leaders in Singapore Mas Selamat has just been caught after a year in running away from authorities.
2. New technology to cut down greenhouse gases by designing a ‘green plane’.
3. US President Obama’s recent handling of the tax evasion problems in the quest to keep jobs at home (US).
I have been wondering since if any of these events are really going to value add life ? I will first focus on Mas Selamat, followed by my other points 2 and 3 for now.— 1: Mas Selamat is finally captured with the help of the Malaysian authorities recently. I thought the hard copy of the Straits Times headline on Sunday (11 May 2009) was somewhat complacent. It wrote in its sub-headline that Mas Selamat’s attempt was only a School boys feat:’20 laps of the swimming pool’ with waters that are ’4 stories deep’ was easy and any school boy could do it. If that were a simple feat, then why was Mas Selamat able to escape from the local prison ? Bearing in mind that he is crippled, swimming across the Johor Straits under the coast guards’ eye would deem a very real fact that he was an extremely determined man of wits and guts. How could that be a simple school boy’s feat is really beyond me. Unfortunately his courage and intelligence went into a destructive force. Should he been still in the loose, I bet Singapore would have been in an unimaginable catastrophe.
Terrorism is a dangerous act that destructs both the terrorist and others. Its a loser’s situation whichever angle you view it. In 2001 September 11, the US witnessed their first unexpected attack on their land. It was an event that 2 planes piercing through not only their buildings in New York, but their hearts as well. It was a lesson not just for the Americans but for the world to remember – we simply cannot overlook and take peace and formidability for granted. For since then, a series of other attacks has sprung up in India, Spain, Indonesia, and attempted attacks here in Singapore. This came in with the freshest memory of the Mumbai attacks. They are all linked and you’ve got to think why all this has been ongoing. It is frightening to see that a peaceful landscape be always overshadowed by this constant darkness of terror.
We should never be complacent and arrogant about any cause of terrorism because it could actually stem out from our daily carelessness and thoughtlessness that we may not be conscious about what we say, do or act. I believe no one wants to fight and kill people out from a complete nothing. I suspect it stems out from a misunderstanding of cultures. Maybe you and I are guilty about it without knowing it. When such problem is left untreated, it usually blows out of proportion. I often believe that most of the hatred could be tamed down or completely eliminated, if we could be more sensitive and careful in the way we treat others. It is sad that Mas Selamat went into this route of anger and destruction. It doesn’t do him good and definitely not in any good for his immediate family and relatives. I don’t know what his story is about but I am sure something must have provoked his anger. Whatever the anger is, we must learn from this lesson that anger only leads to more anger. And when that anger goes beyond the boiling point, it will explode. If we look back in history, all these daily fights between countries, people and within business competition stem out on the pure greed, inconsiderateness, and a sheer lack of wisdom – the type of intelligence that we need to save ourselves and others the sanity that we need in this crazy world. We need to ask hard questions why people choose to do such self-destruction and killing of others; and onwards to look for win-win situations to never repeat the same mistakes again like our forebearers have done. I hope we could cool ourselves down amidst our hectic pursuement of wealth and self-interest to ponder about what life really is. I think this definition is crucial in setting the foundation of a healthy living that benefits all. There are many ways to a good life. It doesn’t need to be done in a heartless way to get even and ‘win’.
Other references:
Some small interesting sites about terrorism: http://www.politicalbase.com/forums/topic/is-terrorism-ever-politically-correct/1118/
causes of terrorism: http://uk.oneworld.net/guides/terrorism?gclid=CKep-MGlspoCFVEwpAodchPlcA
2. Obama: taps on tax evasion to bring jobs back to the US – quick thoughts May 20, 2009
Posted by Karen in Economy.Tags: keeping jobs at home, obama, protectionism, tax evasion, world economy
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Returning to quickly add the 3rd part of the post as promised last week. I decided to post the 3rd instead of the 2nd as this should be really mentioned earlier. I’ll post about green design next week.
3. US President Obama’s recent handling of the tax evasion problems in the quest to keep jobs at home (US).
Sometimes when I think about the current situation, I cannot help but to feel a sense of sadness. We make things so complex that we need to resort to even more complicated means to get the system working again. Tax evasion in a time like this would probably drive the economy in to a spiral of protectionism. It is just normal to protect self interests first, but what I am fearing is that it may well bit back full circle because we are all interdependent on the global stage. I see this as actually a double taxation and a line of free trade agreement cuts and all. As a resourceful establishment, a cut in FTA should prompt one to shift gears and move on to new enterprise before the actual curtail of FTAs. The problem I see this attempt of moving the MNCs back probably would not add much help to revitalise the US economy which is currently the largest in the world. A poor US economy does no one good. Feel free to discuss…
I will post this over from my Karenfusblogs.wordpress.com.
Over at Facebook, C.Sven posted an interesting link about Obama Proposes $190 Billion Tax Increase on Companies (Update4)
I thought it was an interesting topic for discussion. What would you think this rise in tax would bring about ?
I am also wondering about the manufacturing industries. I would have thought a lot of US MNCs may have to cut down their global scale since the tax comes in. True that you can evade tax, but I doubt they could totally evade it, so higher operational costs to these US firms.
What I am worrying is that banks will suffer. It really looks like it. If double taxation really kicks in, companies and individuals have less to put in the banks. Isn’t that directly effecting the whole economy worldwide ?
Maybe I am wrong to say this, but I thought they should keep corporate tax low and make the companies do more hiring. What I see is that tax of this kind is going to reduce employment which will add to the viscous cycle of less spending etc.Came across a couple of blogs and website and I really like Robert Reich’s blog posts on his thoughts on the current economy crisis, and how the US should be tackling it though I do not exactly agree to all. His post on Obama’s first 100 days attracted my attention. Personally we need some more time to see how the stimulus would work. Though Obama’s plan to bring the funds back to the States, there is also a possibility that this may cut down companies competitiveness as costs would increase. If the 2% in the States for corporate establishments were that attractive, then why would these companies station off the US shores ? As an outsider, I am curious how the US system works. To me, the culture is different. During the Asian economic crisis about 10 years ago, many Asian countries were in a financial wreck, notably South Korea, Indonesia and Thailand. Singapore exacped the crisis relatively unscathed because it is small and much easier to regulate and control. In the US, I feel the system is very much more complicated and political in nature. Passing a law off needs a lot of consensus, and that takes off time to pass crucial law to implement fast. Whether anyone wants to admit it or not, the state of the US economy affects the world too. I do hope the steps implemented in the States are going to lead us all out of this chaos. Quick thoughts for now.
OT- break: Creative life 创意人生 chuàng yì rén shēng-inspiration from Twitter 推德tuī dé. May 25, 2009
Posted by Karen in creativity, ethics.Tags: Chinese poem for Twitter as Creative and humanistic, creativity, humanity, Twitter
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测试中文推德,
cè shì zhōng wén tuī dé;
发扬百字散文,
fā yáng bǎi zì sǎn wén;
推广人文善德,
tuī guǎng rén wén shàn dé;
创造美好生活!
chuàng zào měi hǎo shēng huó
Karen M. Fu , 22 May 2009 via twitter.
Handwritten: http://twitpic.com/5og1o
English translation of the mandarin draft:
Testing the Chinese version of ‘Twitter’; promoting the use of 100-character novel; spreading humanity, kindness and virtue/ethics; creative life; creation of a beautiful and better living.
Karen Fu 22 May 2009
3. New technology to cut down greenhouse gases by designing a ‘green plane’. July 5, 2009
Posted by Karen in Uncategorized.Tags: airbus, green, green design, green plane competition 2009
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I’ve promised to post about Green planes and it is later than what I would have liked to post. Anyway the topic is interesting enough to be placed on 2 of my blogs; one of which is this one here at WordPress and the other at Blogger.
Here are the links to the 2 posts about the competition organized by Airbus.They will highlight the various thoughts and issues on green design as well as the videos of the finalists. Click on underlined text to view.
1.Winners of the Green Plane Competition
2. Thoughts about the Competition and issues on Green Design – Wants vs Needs:
There were 5 final contestants and the winner came from Australia with the runner up team from Singapore. What was commendable of the Singapore team was that the 3 contestants were not PhD students and 2 of them were actually undergraduates who worked on The Solaire Voyagers: Second year Engineering students Vignesh Subramaniam, Muhammad Adil and team leader Louis Lee Wee Boon, a first year Masters student in Materials Science and Engineering.
I’ll leave you to read more about the contest !
Moral character is the only way for progressive change July 22, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, faith, human quality.Tags: change, human progression, humanity, life, Moral Character, Shi Mingyi
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Recently, there has been a new slew of dishonesty cases, not just stemming out from commercial areas, but ironically from religious establishments. That often makes me often wonder how all these could happen and why they have happened. It is actually no new news about people being hypocritical about deals and ideals. But what I am really dismayed is that my observations have proven true of a monk here who is now currently undergoing trial for embezzlement of funds. Basically he abused his power by actually appearing to serve the disadvantaged community at large, while committing a number of hideous crimes that a highly professional criminal would do. It was a stab in the heart for many who had a lot of respect for him as an humanist. Before Mingyi monk, T.T Durai had committed similar crimes at NKF (National Kidney Foundation) before. If you start to ponder about the cases in depth, you would wonder what actually happen behind the scenes.
These are high profile crimes which involved highly educated people who appear to be ‘good’. We may expect terrorists and former criminals to do such acts but crimes from these people appear to be even more hideous & upsetting. My first suspicion came a few years ago when I saw his unusually posh office in the papers, which no one appeared to question then. My next suspicion came when I attended some of the NKF activities and I asked why they had a string of repeated donations that often, when they have already gathered millions of dollars. Since then, I’ve stopped donations despite people kept telling me that I was too suspicious about the entire scenario. Years later, my observations proved I was right. (And I am not proud of it.) Singaporeans have always been known to donate generously when asked to. After these incidents, it will somewhat dent donations in the future. And if I’m right again, we need to clean up the way we continue our culture of materialism and capitalism before we get ourselves to a point where nothing/nobody can be really trusted; and that the entire society would risk rolling into huge abominable moral decay.
Mingyi Monk committed more than stealing money from the patients who needed them more. Kidney dialysis is by no means a simple and painless procedure. Most of these patients usually wait in vain for a kidney transplant. The agony of waiting and living on the dialysis is not a small matter. While he had done good deeds in accepting some of the most unaccepted patients (dying and very difficult to care for) in the past, I would question if these kind acts were to cover the planned crimes he had done. Should he be whipped for all that ? He has a list of luxuries that he has been enjoying –from keeping a thoroughbred in Australia, owning posh cars, to suspected womanizing.And the list goes on as the trial continues to reveal his greed and crimes. To add to the list, even his Doctorate degree was a fake.
Thinking about his case, I cannot help but to appreciate people like Mother Teresa and Teresa XuZhe for their pure desire to help the disadvantaged and the needy. These great people fortunately live long enough to have us acknowledging their deeds, which they have dutifully done at the expense of their lifetime without any kind of material compensation they deserve. XuZhe has fortunately live well over 100 to be finally noticed. Whenever I see or read her in the papers, I cannot help but to pity that she did not marry and have children, whom she could pass her genes along. We need people like her and we need her teachings to pass along too. We have way too many parents who instill the wrong teachings/ideas to children to get ahead in their studies for the wrong reasons. We have children these days who think that material success as the most important. It is dangerous to think in that way to get ahead in life, when being a good world citizen is way more important to ensure a peaceful world.
Moral character is by far, IMHO, the most critical aspect in human progression. Without it, we cannot aspect positive change to the surroundings that we are living in. Can you imagine a world with people who have all the skills and knowledge, bearing a mask to hide all their sinister deeds, doing all the important tasks of the world ? Personally I can’t and it would be a perfect nightmare if I could. Some people have forseen doomsday within the next 50 years, but is it all that we could do ?
Ironically and scarily true is that many people have multi-faceted personalities. They could do one thing, and act differently in the other. Unless we rectify this very hideous human flaw, we cannot expect to save the world and the human race from extinction. Call this a natural retribution. We surely do not need to be this stupid to drool on materialism to the point to permanent self destruction.
Reference:
Ming Yi Monk’s crime:
- http://blog.simplyjean.com/2007/11/19/ren-ci-probe-venerable-ming-yis-doctorate/
- http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_366848.html
Teresa XuZhe-Woman of real substance August 10, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, faith, human quality.Tags: ethics, humanity, Woman of Substance
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Teresa XuZhe didn’t know when she was born except the fact that she knew she was born in the year 1897. So she assumed the date of 7th July as her birthday since that was easy to remember. Somebody of her disadvantaged background could beat all odds, despite with only basic education to become a learned scholar in her own right, clearly has the character clearer than the brightest diamond. She is a respected humanitarian and real scholar for us to learn from her passive but genuine keenness to do good for all.
I think she is one fine example of a woman of real substance. I feel that life has not treated her well enough. But she has never disgruntled about her life being lackluster than most others both materially and immaterially. Neither did she complain of her loneliness in her silent pursuement in doing good for mankind– ranging from helping the homeless, the hopeless and to the dying who are much younger than she is. Compared with most urbanites especially women, she doesn’t ask for life’s material comforts. Many women would yearn for material needs and usually do it at the expense of family. Her life overseas away from home was not a sweet one, which was with racism and bullying. Yet she held no grudge and love all the same. A rare humanitarian, an exemplar character, she performed her duties because she genuinely thinks its her calling. It wasn’t the type where being kind was ‘just a calling’ and looking for ‘world peace’ had to be in a loud shouting manner for all to know; but it was in a passive but powerful determination to do it all.And gladly so for most of her years in silence before we discovered her and her deeds in the last 10 years.
I am really glad she is still alive and is living for us to discover her. For many, charity has hidden agendas– either in the disguised name of fame ; or sometimesin the form of money/ tax exemptions. This BBM (public Service Award) is too little for her years of service for mankind at her own motivated will, which she gave to those who needed the love and care.
She is also a live example of what life would eventually reward a genuinely kind soul. She lives a life of no complex worry; neither does she harbor jealousy, hatred or greed in a changing world where deceit, hypocrisy and greed remains a strong force to be challenged with. I often wonder why she is unmarried? She should have. It reminds me of the many other kinds of women and men we have who have families which they cannot managed and a life in a mess of breakups with stranded and ill-behaved children. These people do not deserve a family where they actually taught their offsprings to continue their ills in their lifetime. In that sense, I often wonder why life has not rewarded her a blessing that she deserves. I really feel she deserves far more and I genuinely wish I could give her something really good in return. I’ve not thought of anything as yet.
For now, all I can do is to post about her on the blog. I hope her humanitarian spirit could live on by simply passing a message around by her deeds. Life may not reward the very kind, but certainly it will punish the ill hearted and the greedy. Let this be a lesson learnt.
[picture taken from LianHeZaoBao 9 August 2009]
reference link
- http://daringtochange.wordpress.com/2009/01/08/our-national-treasure-teresa-xuzhe/
OT special – Somewhere Over The Rainbow Song Review of Thoughts August 26, 2009
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, faith, human quality.Tags: hope, peace, Somewhere Over The Rainbow
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Working around and after time is a fact of city life and I admit being tired about it all. But I always love this song ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ for many of the most mellow reasons – the lyrics, the tune and especially the simple melody that radiates so much positive energy. Almost childlike as it sounds, it makes you want to sing and bring forth a lot of smiles and cheers with everyone in the world.
A dream is what moves us and the colorful rainbow is the bridge that links peoples, cultures and lands together in hope, peace and happiness. We can only live in goodness and happiness if and only we could join hands together regardless of race, creed and nationality. The colors of the rainbow are so pretty and to see friends shaking hands and asking, ‘how do you do?’ and they reply, ‘I/We love you’, would be such a wonderful feeling. Simple care and concern is what alleviates the pain, sorrow and struggles of many people; melts the hatred and discrimination and many unwanted jealousy and fights of any kind, in any form. Troubles would simply melt like lemon drops…
Dreams that you dream once in a lullaby, dreams do really come true. Someday you wish upon the sky and hopes over the rainbow, as the blue birds fly.. while the trees are green and red roses too… are singing along with you under the sparkling stars. Take 2 steps back, breathe some fresh air, see around you; feel the surroundings more; think how many years you’ve passed; and count how many years you may have. Then everything in the negative will not last and stay in you anymore.
Sing along with the Chipmunks & make even the simplest space a very joyful and blissful way !
Hope this makes a lot of sense from someone over the rainbow in Singapore !
Another Heartwarming OT, an aspiration & inspiration – Somewhere Out There August 27, 2009
Posted by Karen in faith, human quality.Tags: human quality, Somewhere Out There
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Updated on 17 Jan 2011 :
Please surf to Somewhere out there for 2011
to watch an replacement for the missing video below. The new blog post also contains Kaitlyn Maher’s performance & thoughts for 2011. Cheers!
What I really like about this music Video is the purity of these voices. To me, this angelic music video is not just about keeping old friendships and the like alive regardless how far apart they are; but also reminding us that we are all citizens of this same common world that we all live in. As the world is getting flatter, anything that is done in one point will inevitably effect the other directly or indirectly. If everyone were to think we are all only residing in different rooms of the same huge house as a large family; we could just probably free ourselves in many areas of thought that will liberate us of our negative thoughts. Unless we free our minds and reduce them to the purest point, we probably will never really make any real change and advance ourselves as truly cultured people.
Maybe these little mice and the earlier little Chipmunks could really teach us some neat though simple lessons about life and hopefully change for the better… It may sound really too simple, but in reality its a large feat to be accomplished in human history.
MERRY CHRISTMAS VIDEO – Fireworks ‘caught’ at the door through the eyes of the mobile phone.. December 21, 2009
Posted by Karen in christmas, video.Tags: christmas, fireworks, pyrotechnics, video, vivocity
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I was supposed to get back to the viewing area with a proper video camera. Before the show started, I went off to look at some of the green designs nearby at VIVOcity thinking I could easily get back in time. By then I return a little too late to pass the door. It was already jamming soon after I left the area. Jammed with the rest of the crowd with a mobile phone, this was the video I could get…
Happy Hanukkah anyway ! And MERRY CHRISTMAS! ……. Enjoy the view at the waterfront nonetheless. – @karen_fu 21 Dec 2009 Singapore.
Snap shot from Twitter – Long shot on Peace: thoughts from ‘Good Artists Copy; Great Artists Steal.’ March 10, 2010
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, human quality, life challenges, real power.Tags: human mind, originality, peace, Twitter
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‘Good Artists Copy; Great Artists Steal.’ I’d say ‘orignal Masters don’t Bully.’
This was exactly the immediate reaction I have when I caught the link via @dtapscott (Don Tapscott, Author of the book ‘Grown Up Digital’) on Twitter.
Can’t say enough about twitter’s great indexing system. It widens your learning horizon and sends you thinking in depth about the people you interact online and how minds work across the tweets. Everything in digital print and record. Perhaps it would be great to run the real offline world in this format. We might be able to run a better world that way. I have a string of blog posts under draft mode as I have a great tendency to make tonnes of typos if I don’t check more than twice. But it will start to shoot after this post, and I am so compelled to post this now.
It has prompted me on a few main sub topics pertaining harmony via the issue on business/ intellectual property:
-Do we exactly trust people? (or could one choose to mischieviously rip the faces of bad people off ?)
Its common knowledge that in business,or indeed in life in general, people could do all kinds of slander or gossip to try erode their opponent’s credibility. That is why law and regulation come into place to enforce a harmonial order however imperfect the system may be.
It is also common knowledge since human civilisation that human beings dwell on the most cruel war , fights and even murder to vent their pent up anger over what they think they are unfairly treated. So the next question is:
-When can we stop the fights for money, status and integrity? (maybe this is impractical unless we choose to live on high mountains of sheep and cows…)
The only way is via tolerance & stop focusing so much on self. Easier said than done, we might need more an a couple of natural / man made chaos to put everything in world order. Sounds horrific but it seems that the human gene isn’t computated with this idea of thought that it takes 2 to start a quarrel then fight; and a blast of smoke to start a war. Having said so, sometimes silence & no reaction could also start fights too, which also cause many later fights that is based on mannerisms. No one likes empty silence after making a proper request. Fights don’t come from nowhere. It is just a matter of respect that one should have. Bending around on ethics to play around isn’t that very wise but many people do that too. It is not only complex to play with but also the dues are definitely going to be hard to simplify later. There are many different permutations of people; most have double or even multiple agendas, which is why an overwhelmingly complicated system emerges. Why do we do that is beyond me. Perhaps I am way too simple minded but I like being simple. It keeps me young.
-Great people don’t have airs; they don’t bully and they mix with all kinds of people.
Play fair, go straight. Forgive and forget. Forget jealousy and stop keep dwelling on what you don’t have. Be genuinely nice.Your mind will be clear of thoughts, and originality will come through. It is easy to see how and why great men and women are such, because they only have big clear minds that spur great physical health too.
-Masters don’t bully because they only spend time to create useful that benefit themselves and others.
Beware of people who love to gossip especially those with a glib tongue.
And beware of rumours. That is exactly where trouble starts. Use your eyes, use your head.
Change in the usual mental thought of getting even, ‘cos that is how the (individual, national or international) rot starts.
Have this for now; have to fly off for now. Taking this very short break to post. Hope I’ve made sense. More pending blog posts in draft.
PS: I’d wish the weather here is cooler. It’s definitely abnormal but that’s what we have put in. – Karen Fu
Something I learn from Dr Sun Yat Sen – about thinking April 7, 2010
Posted by Karen in design, human quality, real power.Tags: change, design, Dr Sun Yat Sen, ideas for an ideal society, Sun Wen, Sun Yat Sen, Sun yixian, The Three Principles of the People, Zhong San Suit
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Finally saw this video to add to the design aspect of the post at : http://daringtochange.wordpress.com/?s=sun+yat+sen&searchbutton=go!
I only want to focus on the last 4 minutes of the video which shows his garment design which is passed down even to this day. I don’t think there are simple tools to just edit it, so I’ve decided to just show the whole original piece of video. Some schools in the world are still wearing this style, signifying his design impact that lasts almost a century. Unfortunately the video is only in Mandarin. But hopefully through the images, and the tone of the voices , audience could have some idea of the historical/social impact of his Zhongsan Suit.
‘Towards A Republic’ was aired at least twice in Singapore with very popular reviews. The last part of the YouTube Video shows Dr Sun’s aspirations for a republic in his specially designed Zhong San suit. He was not only a doctor with an incredibly strategic mind but also a pretty creative designer, whose strategy relied on a wise and smart thinking process quiped with an ardent idealistic rhtetoric for sustainable human living. His ideals for peace translated to a life long struggle that I believed had shorten his life tragically. He ended up dying relatively young at the age of 59 of liver cancer.
The video often sparks these few areas of side thoughts:
- Designers could be anyone.
- Tools are self derived; and so are methods, in which no one can teach you original thinking. You have to self derive it yourself.
- Education does not groom a specific profession but it does offer the thinking tools for one to develop other areas of knowledge and ideas. The quality of education is vital not the quantity of it. It can be in any form.
- His efforts for a peaceful society of fairness and happiness seems to linger slow. I believe its dogmatic human nature that hinders such progress. In that respect, I believe we can’t do very much apart from repeating the message and hope it will finally drill the message in.
- History doesn’t make permanent radical changes to the natually pre-programmed human mentality; though it makes temporary gradual ones that makes people think and change bit by bit….questions how smart we are and it does question how wise we are too. History has proven that people could do all the irrational ways that are both lengthy and costly just to get what they want.
Whatever it is, people generally could identify a kindness out in the blue. The only main problem is to recipocrate it. So it isn’t too bad despite the news we get everyday comprises of mainly the negative more than the positive…. just hoping that we could see a simplified problem that will vanish soon. We don’t need the continuing noise in our short lives. But we do need to recognise that we are all living under the same roof of the same ozone layer and the same global human climate in general.
Before I end this note, I am putting in another YouTube Video of a song that is dedicated in memory of him: 国父纪念歌 (via TuDou.com)
Whilst his unique suit design constantly reminds not only to people of Chinese descent but also to the world as a history lesson:We must contribute in our modest ways. They needn’t be loud and prominant.But earnest everyday positive notes of kindness that spreads from one to another. Not out of jealousy and resent, hypocrisy and disdain. While he sacrificed his life to saving the Chinese citizens, the people gave him a song in return and a lasting remembrance of his life in fight for better status/life quality of the Chinese people. I dedicate the following mandarin song from this Dr Sun Yat Sen Academic Research Site to those who may like it in one form from the other. I will translate as closely to the original Chinese format in the Chinese culture:
我們國父,首創革命,革命血如花,推翻了專制,建設了共和,產生了民主中華。
Our Nation’s Father (of China), (who) started the revolution, (whose) revolutionist blood like (blossoming) flower, overturning the feudal era, setting up the Republic, forming the Peoples’ Republic of China
民國新成,國事如麻,國父詳加計劃,重新改革中華。
Formation of the new republic, lots of remaining national issues, Father (of China) carefully plans, the revamp of revolutionialized China.
三民主義,五權憲法,真理細推求,一世的辛勞,半生的奔走,為國家犧牲奮鬥。
The Three Principles of the people , Five Powers of Constitution/ Charter, (Which) real meanings need to be finely attained, lifelong’s tediousness, half a life of nomadic life, sacrifice for the sake of the country’s survival
國父精神,永垂不朽,如同青天白日,千秋萬世長留。
The spirit of the nation’s father, always live forever, like the ‘clear skies white days’, living perpetually
民生凋敝,國步艱難,禍患猶未已;莫散了團體,休灰了志氣,大家要互相勉勵。
Livlihood of commoners falling, nation’s steps (becoming) difficult; don’t disperse the unity, deminished the detemined minds, everyone must encourage one another (to propel forward)
國父遺言,不要忘記,革命尚未成功,同志仍須努力。
Nation’s father’s last words, do not forget, revolutionary ideals are still unsuccessful, commrades must still fight on.
Here I present the Mandarin song below :
Late post on Chinese New Year Of The Tiger Thoughts / Learning our mother tongues. April 6, 2010
Posted by Karen in China, Chinese New Year, Language.Tags: China, Chinese Anthem, Chinese language, Learning of Mother Tongue, Rise of China
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The year of the tiger roared in on valentines day, 14 Feb 2010.
China’s progress during the past year or so has been swift. I have been following the highlights. One of the most recent achievements was the Vancouver Winter Olympics, where the Chinese are not well known to be strong holders of sports like figure skating, apart from Chinese American Michelle Kwan who had won the figure skating competition before. It does appear that the mainland Chinese wants to be the best of the best and they are well on their way to it. As for overseas Chinese like us, we have been repeatedly impressed by the motivation. Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong of Singapore had recently voiced that China may well be ahead of our expectations and urged Singaporeans to ride the train with China’s progress by mastering the Chinese language. A few months ago, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew voiced the same message. China’s demand on top Singaporean students are also a surprise to me. Noticeably on their demands for Students for entry to China’s top 3 universities are almost daunting, sending a distinct message : ‘I want your best of the best who are able to lead and learn in the very top 2%, nothing less’
Many local ministers raised the awareness and many local parents, students and the like responded. Special Assistant Plan (SAP) schools in Singapore has been started since 1978 which focuses in both English and Mandarin Chinese as first languages. They were only available to the top 10% students in Singapore. Today the percentage has risen to more than 30% of the yearly student cohorts. Personally I feel that it has responded a little late. Also I think as born ethnic Chinese, though overseas Chinese, the Mandarin language should have been paid first language level attention because we are ethnically Chinese regardless of any other reasons. It’s part of our roots and culture that we cannot afford to neglect regardless if the Chinese language was economically vibrant or economically in disarray. We should master it because it is our mother tongue. Nothing else. No one would have respected any of us if we do not even utter properly of our mother tongues. It’s given.
The demoralisation of learning Chinese during colonial years made parents forced their children to master the English language was the sole pragmatic solution to alleviating poverty. There was little choice for a struggling tiny country then especially after the British had left us in 1963. Today learning Mandarin Chinese is also about the economy but this time its about staying ahead and keeping up with the global competition.While this is adaptive change, it could have been better if it was for transformational change in the way we view a language. It really should be about keeping our roots. No one would look up to anyone who forsake one’s mother tongue. Wouldn’t it ?
Am writing and listening to Youtube videos on China and found this song, which translate into English means ‘March of the Volunteers’. It has a strong determined stance. It starts off with ‘Arise! All who refuse to be slaves’ signifies their first sole objective of rising up from what they left in History as low class citizens. That is a strong motivational force behind their rise. Will stick this right below this sentence:
歌詞 (Lyrics)
reference: 义勇军进行曲
(簡体字) (Simplified Chinese)
起来! 不愿做奴隶的人们!
把我们的血肉,筑成我们新的长城!
中华民族到了最危险的时候,
毎个人被迫着发出最后的吼声。
起来! 起来! 起来!
我们万众一心,
冒着敌人的炮火,前进!
冒着敌人的炮火,前进!
前进! 前进! 进!
(繁体字) (traditional Chinese)
起來!不願做奴隸的人們!
把我們的血肉,築成我們新的長城!
中華民族到了最危險的時候,
每個人被迫着發出最後的吼聲。
起來!起來!起來!
我們萬眾一心,
冒着敵人的炮火,前進!
冒着敵人的炮火,前進!
前進!前進!進
Commentary on CCTV chinese new year.
Noticed a vast change in the comperes’ dress up from last year’s. It was only a year’s difference and there was already an obvious evidence that they’ve learnt fast from possibly critics on their fashion last year. Their apt adaptation was both impressive and ‘frightening’. 1 year’s difference shows exactly why. For a country that is not entirely westernized like Hong Kong and Singapore, the rate at which they are catching up is rapid. Check my post last year to make the comparison. China – an afterthought (Chinese New Year 2009)
I’ve also watched CCTV and I cannot help but to think our local Mandarin stations have already lost their place. CCTV is effectively billingual. It’s English Version of the programme http://www.cctv.com/english/special/10springfestgala/homepage/index.shtml and its Chinese version is undoubtedly the best.
Quick bedtime post on History – Mao & Sun – how history has judged them? April 6, 2010
Posted by Karen in change, China, Chinese New Year.Tags: China, History, Mao Zedong, Sun Yat Sen
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[pic source: 3quarksdaily.blogs.com]
Recently during the Chinese New Year Celebrations, I asked a promotor at the Mao Zedong exhibition at Vivo city why Mao’s photo was placed at Tian An Men Square instead of Dr Sun’s. I asked out of curiosity as I have been always wondering why Mao was worshiped in Tian An Men Square for decades in place of Dr Sun. Both were great men doing the same aim albeit different styles. Till now, I am still remained puzzled by the replies to my ardent questioning. Mao was a staunch defendent of China. One could effectively claim that during his reign, no foreign dignitaries could walk over his China’s interest. It would be also perfectly correct to say he used his life to defend every Chinese in China. What was a dire mistake was his Cultural revolution in the 60s which had caused a lot of suffering. Perhaps history has viewed him as largely as a hero since he liberated the lives of peasants and ostracized the wealthy who exploited the former. No class of politics is perfect in alleviating the poverty and the pain of certain groups of people. Neither can we look forward to perfect men/women either. Everyone has mistakes, even historically great leaders. The only difference would be the extent of the mistake. Circumstances change peoples’ character and their deeds and actions. What may be forgivable is that one’s character should be measured during different times and circumstances. Mao, in essence formed the People’s Republic of China.
Dr Sun has its own criticisms as well. Some people feel that he was merely portrayed as a larger than life figure. It depends on how you see him. He was a doctor, an activist and someone who doesn’t appear to believe in a lot in power. He surrendered his presidency to Yuan Shikai whom he later overthrew for corruption and revival of the previous feudal era.I’ve gone to Singapore’s Wanqingyuan twice: once before it was closed for renovation and the 2nd time recently. Not happy with the quality of the exhibits on the 2nd visit. Plenty were moved out of the villa. What I see is the Dr Sun also sacrificed lives to achieve revolutionary aims. It could also be seen as inevitable. However, at the base level, he does move crowds to overcome the Qing dynasty. If it were not for him, the Chinese would still be either wearing pigtails & females be having warped feet…
Both men marked great changes. Who is to decide who is the great leader forward? If I leave you the reader to decide. Whom would you pick?
About money, banks and us. May 31, 2010
Posted by Karen in bank, change.Tags: money management
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As much as we blame banks for the global financial crisis, a better way would be to design our ways to avoid such crisis. Being financially self-sufficient is one way; being wise about how to use the banks as a leverage is another. Each bank, despite being one of the most ‘money’ focused businsses around, fortunately has its merits for us to smartly use.
I was reading about credit card crisis and the first thought was that we are over reliant on borrowing to live our lives well. Credit itself is actually a vice not a virtue. Credit cards are often given too much honor to the point that many people have taken the image that owning credit cards and spending via credit cards is a prestige.
I often like to observe trends, and I see a lot of teenagers, fresh graduates and professionals especially, often live beyond their means by splurging on items that they actually cannot afford. Banks are afterall businesses. And many will look at how much they can get out of you given your income. No banks will lend you money when you don’t have the money.
People often don’t think about making the money before achieving their goals which is the exact fomula for loosing money. Banks can be our friends if we the consumers make wise and smart choices.
The global crisis itself is indirectly caused by us who actually fuel the problem by investing in high risk profile investments that we actually cannot afford.
How do we change this idea requires one’s determinatoin to refrain from borrowing / investing wrongly in the first place. Where could we get the right financial education ? We need to use our wisdom and intellect to read what we are told. From there, make reasonable deductions of what to listen and how to move on. Be sure to remember that debt is a sin, not an honor; and make sure that our bank/s are at our service and interests by asking smart Qs to get our As about money.
Wish to write more, but as my time limits; this is the only time at night that I can write… hope this is well taken and make some intrinsic sense about money.
Aftermath of a Great Reset & Sex & the City – what it means for design of cities / societies (episode 1 – Intro) July 9, 2010
Posted by Karen in creativity, design.Tags: cities, City planing, creativity, design, quality of living, Sex & the City, The Great Reset
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[image from arttherapyblog.co
I have been reading books of a different genre. And I am watching films that bear a different genre. I have lots to write and share. But I think breaking this big chunk into smaller episodes will a better & quicker choice. I think this is really getting interesting.
Well maybe not all that different; just that its in a different style and taste.Something that I rarely would like to touch but realised that I have to because you can’t exactly design/plan or execute anything without a good knowledge of politics and economics. You can’t make fine changes when you don’t understand a wide variety of different ideas & how minds work. Fundamentally, I am more into American style after being Asian and European. I think its a special class on its own.
So what does it mean for new cities to become great cities ? What makes a place really nice to live in? I thought it was chiefly about great people,with essentially fine thinking of gutsy characters. (hence the title of this blog). It’s really different from the views of an urban planner, an economist, a politician, an engineer or a designer. The personalities among these professions again makes a new multiple of mixes. However the combinations are, the common ground is to improve the quality of living. The definitions may be different again in different cultures. I’d like to quickly write about 2 items that I have found interesting: a book and a film. The former is a book by Richard Florida’s ‘The Great Reset’ which I have waited for 2 months for the real physical book to swim over when an ebook could have saved the day..(whatever the reason why it can’t be virtually zapped over is another story to be amicably reckoned with…) and a film called ‘Sex & the City 2′ (which actually teaches us a lot of useful lessons apart from the fact that the film has lost a lot of its original flavour that fans like). The former is about discovering new ways of living and working after an economic crisis. The latter is more about new ways of living as a family/view in social life which is really very different to what I know and what I believe in.From an Asian brought-up, European-educated Singaporean, all these appear to be really interesting and on my grounds perplexing. Thus seeing things differently. I might open a can of worms. But after much thought, I think I’d rather open the can of worms. It may be real benefit to share than to keep. So here’s a candid piece of uncensored opinion for everyone to read:
I often day dream about how a society should be like. In my elfin’s perspective of a cute world, my very first idea is that great cities must be in an optimal state. That optimal state must bear a few chief fundamentals, from namely a low crime rate; sustainable economy with little or no national debt, a high domestic income without an over reliance on credit facilities of any kind; to low cost of living that yet supports a high quality of living. Peace & safety within the nation & with other nations and multicultural/ multiethnicity societies are placed high on my ideals of a fine sustainable city.The ability to assimilate and tolerate different ideas without conflict should always be on anyone’s top priority list.
Values may be different and they carry different ideas to point into various solutions. Hence different cities. Some values are controversial. An example would be Confucian values. Confucian values may not be as palatable in the west for many reasons. But Confucian values have merits in where a high sense of order can be achieved through respect in various levels of relationship. No value system is perfect, but what we could really learn is to pick out the best of various worlds and make it our own. Western values value individualism and liberty, which opens minds out for aggressive & quick execution. The values show in the way we live and the way we see the world and the universe. In any way. culturally we are different and by different cultures we can also see different flaws and merits clearer in others to improve our own. The economic downturn has not only effected the US but almost every nation felt the shock. Should Americans move to a rental society? I think to a certain extent, his ideas and solutions to the problem is valid. But I was wondering for those who start off renting & get mobile. Would this may well increase the income gap between owners and renters? And thus struck up another eminent problem?
Circumstances may need to put in order. On the other hand, I am thinking how long and how values will effect the quality of thinking and creativity that is required to grow as an innovative city. From a Singaporean perspective, will we be great as a tiny dot on the equator in another 10 years time ? Dependent on several factors.
Afterall, creativity involves finding ways to improve or create ways that have never existed before; and this particular skill cannot be taught. It can only be experienced.
More on this episode later.
Great Brains in (n) types of design – a quick draw review on ‘America is Rotten & China is Awesome?’ July 19, 2010
Posted by Karen in China, creativity, Innovation, USA.Tags: America, China, Creative thinking, Innovative thinking
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[pic source: www.gmtmag.com/en/]
I read this article: ‘America is rotten and China is awesome?’ by G.E Anderson at the Forbe’s website just a while ago; and felt compelled to write quickly about my 2 cents on innovative & creative thinking. I’ll zap it straight to the point.
We all know we need to know enough and have solid foundations in our subject areas. Yet we also need to know how to quickly think via various channels in different scenarios. From an outsider’s immediate point of view, many American students seem to lack the former and the Chinese students lack the latter. Having taught both nationalities before as a teacher tells me that certain curriculums need to be changed. But that again, it has always been difficult to say how and why because I always feel difficult to put in my comments especially when I do not come from a big country. And that coming from a tiny young one makes everything all the more difficult.
Americans, like many other Western countries, tend to have more creative minds that could twist and turn to create ideas of thoughts, innovative solutions etc. But having lack the depth in both Math(s) and Sciences is going to stunt them in the near term and we can start to see the effects even now, where a lot of foreign students who have graduated in the States are now working in the US developing niche products and services. All this new preference for the humanities and the arts by the Americans come from somewhat a natural distaste for numbers & physics. I also suspect that it has a lot to do with affluence where looking towards the arts where social sciences would be more interesting to learn than fomulas in math(s) and the sciences (especially Physics and engineering sciences). Natural sciences, however, doesn’t seem to be much of this kind of problem. However the reality is many advancements in technology, typically with the ones that directly affect us in phyical life, requires one to be superior in these subjects.
Chinese students, on the other hand, are masters with numbers and logical thinking. Too again with many other Asian countries and typically with Russian students, where mathematics to them are like playing magic with figures.They are not uncreative but they do not appear to learn how to sit and think of other ways to come up with new solutions. Everything appears to have evolved from similar or the same common base. I attribute this problem to the way the society and economy works. When you are striving to get out from poverty to become extremely well off, the first thing you need to do is to just follow the path that will send you fastest to sucess. And that does not often allow you time to think and try. In certain instances, daring to think in a different path may be a personal economic risk, where your time and effort may be grounded to a far less profitable result. From another flip point, countries which are industrially established in the east, still tend to carry on the safe path of thinking where you focus on the safe path to climbing up the social ladder. Creativity is often set aside after you attain your financial freedom, which is exactly the formula to stunted creativity as it is better to start early and have it in our living surroundings.
In the States or indeed in the west as a whole (bearing in mind the different cultures in the west) have more accessibilities to innovation as far as the culture of free thinking / sources of various information goes. Free, also as in the freedom of not having to worry about the basic needs — as in the society allows you the luxury of time and money to truly try different things in store.
Personally, I do not have a preference for whom is going to be the super powerhouse of the future. I think if you were to clear your minds a little, thinking a little far a little, the optimal that will keep the world sane and healthy is to actually not have any single super powerhouse in innovation. It simply isn’t healthy. Creativiity, in my opinion, depends on a rich array of experiences that we can share under the common umbrella of the skies, where different creed, people etc will offer you various insights of true wonder that our own cultures may fail us in seeing what could be the best solution. We cannot be benifiting anyone, if we think true innovative thought must come from a certain part of the world.
Great brains, in my modest opinion, is one which is not only solid in the fundamentals of as many subject areas possible; but also in the way it develops over time to be fluent in the nth number of ways to come up with solutions despite under any circumstance. (politically, economically, socially etc). Innovative thinking has to make the world as one, where it shows sensitivity to the rest of the world and other people’s needs. You can’t do this when you start to brand one another, or trying to sit somebody off.
So in a way no one is exactly rotten and no one is exactly awesome. We have everything to share and learn from everyone. And the brain that has the ability to sort nth number of problems has got to be also a brain that is very open to all.
Quick draw at one go. Doubt a lot of people would read about it. But I thought I might as well hit the keys since I have been interested in such topics for a long long time. I don’t believe in certain stigmas and a crazy few dogmatc thinking egos. My approach may somewhat look slow, but it has gained me a lot of invaluable insights and train me to think fast.
Got lots to say but I really need to pop into bed. Its 2.25 in the morning ! — Karen Fu, some little nobody sitting on the equator, in front of her PC, smattering away from tiny Singapore.
Ah, we are from the Planet C. Why Are We So Complex In Mind ? July 26, 2010
Posted by Karen in change.Tags: layman philosophy, minds, survival, sustainable living, thinking
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Pic source: //img0.liveinternet.ru
@GreatestQuotes: “Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.” Albert Einstein
Just retweeted it. Thought I add a few thoughts about the perplex layers of the human mind. We’ve come across great men and women whose paths have been obstructed because they have been different. Einstein was not alone. Together with many other great minds in innovation and invention, politics and literature; thinking different often means opposition. And its true even today when we are supposed to fully evolved and morphed into this new kind of cacoon which it should be born a free and beautiful butterfly.
The type of butterfly that is supposed to be from the new age, new born, new minds that are big and open.
But are we?
Everyday we could read from our papers (doesn’t matter where the heck you are on this little blue planet of ours) there must be some kind of fights: from domestic violence to national disputes; from toilet politics to international politics; from simple words of simple thoughts blown out disproportinately into complex thought & fights. Some people appear to be able to just find fault in some people somehow. I often think we are all weird speices of the strangest kind. First off, we could see the bad in others. Next off, most of us fail to see the good in others and third off, we can’t see the bad in us. Well maybe we do. Just that we forget all about it very soon after.
I think this is negativity in the worst form. Its venom seeps into the mind in making it far more complex than it really should be.Ever wondered why the crazy human mind has rarely evolved beyond being genuinely nice? And why there must be shades of grey in every kind of human relationship? I believe most of it comes from self defense – the kind of defense that links to the way one feels that they might be walked over, and hence must do a plot or a con in self defense, often in the name of ‘survival’.
I think that is an excuse.
And we need to requestion about what is real ‘survial’.
‘Survival’ actually really means to allow what is good for us to prevail. Great minds and ideas to flourish. Not there because of certain hidden interest.
Societal problems, like different kinds of discrimination, has never really eluded us. Most of the time, it has been haunting us. Kingdoms have formed and take over the weaker races / dynasties to create a variety of social classes. Its how one forms power. It has always been happening and I’m afraid it will continue to happen. In the many books I’ve come across, people do take sides. And often at a discriminative account. History has never been really fair in making 100% truthful accounts.Then again, history is written by us — human beings.
For as long as the idea comes from a human being, I supposed it will not be 100% fair. It’ll most likely be from Plant C (Complexity) where simple issues would be wired from one to another; into several volumes of history, rarely wanting to look just simple and clear.Which really would be the ultimate form of sustainable survival. Agree?
PS: CHANGE is actually about facing reality. To deliver the truth and admit flaws would be the real guarantee for the future.
‘A’ or ‘C’-The Future Talent We Need Now. August 1, 2010
Posted by Karen in creativity, human quality, Innovation, talent.Tags: education, future, progress, singapore
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OR
[pic source: www.scivit.de; www.cgb-reunion.org]
I’ve just met another typical parent today. Someone who claims that today’s standard is higher than yesteryears as the technologies to be learnt are far more advanced than before. While it’s true to claim that today’s students learn far more, one cannot deny that our forefathers took the pain to lay the foundations. Should more advanced knowledge be the main guaage to measuring one’s talent? I doubt it. But it appears that taking more tests and the ability to score high in more tests appear to be the mark of excellence. To a lot of extent, a lot of what our predecessors have done are forgotten.
Can we safely say that to invent a bicycle is less intelligent/creative/innovative than to invent a motorcycle? Or can we discriminate someone who could fold a plane in a piece of paper and say the engineer who just made another fighter jet is far cleverer?
I thought this is the kind of mentality that cuts off other areas of knowledge and creativity.
More than half a century ago, scoring 5 Distinctions for the University of Cambridge Examinations used to be a stellar set of grades. Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and his wife were top students of their cohorts. While I cannot recall how many ‘A’s they have scored, I am very sure they did not have 10 / 11/ 12 or even 13 As in one shot. Definitely they did not have stand in tutors/enrichment classes to get them to the grades they had. Today, getting a string of A’s is a common sight. This used to be confined to top schools in Singapore. It wasn’t meant to be even reachable among the masses. Not to mention those who are in the 50th/60th percentile of the year’s cohort. However today, a student, under the tutorledge of both school and private home teachers + many on enrichment classes, these students could be stellar students able to reach the stars like anybody else. Naturally the pride goes up. And it is good that the esteem has risen. They have put in a powerful effort to gain the grades and that is admirable. What looks mediocre now was what it was exceptional. Today’s top student is someone of a super hybrid of As, list of accomplishments at national and international levels armed with a few rare skills. The skills of these students are highly noted. Once I went to an European seminar, and a professor from a top northern European country even suggested that the entire Singapore population to migrate to his country. He claimed that there were ample land space for all to go over to settle. To add on, the mix of cultures and race would enrich his entire country.
I was surpirsed or rather should I claim that was a shock. Never had I heard something like that. It could mean a whole bunch of other things as well. But I’m not too sure since he didn’t explicitly spelt it out. He merely suggested it.
While this is all very encouraging, I am actually worried. Not that I worry about the academic ability. But I worry about the true definition of ‘talent’. If we are not careful, we might make a U turn backwards as far as learning is concerned, for learning is not merely about accumulating knowledge, but to learn how to learn. We may be misled to miss the points of other traits, notably creativity and more importantly, moral ethics and a wide horizon of other non-academic subjects that we all need to learn — political and socio-economic astuteness. The possibility of getting ‘A’ scorers to get complacent and even arrogant is very real, and it is happening now. And the humility to bend and move in ways that most cannot do in a leadership way that is like no other, so a nation could remain as prosperous and sustainable.I think this latter portion is way more important. What was an ‘A’ may not meet what is a ‘B’ with other non-academic skills that could easily make up for the loss of an ‘A’.
We want creative leaders / followers who can think not just out of the box, but in any given situation in different professions. Flatted or not, the world is now in its evolved state that anyone with any skills could work in anywhere under any different scenario. Everywhere in the world, people keep blaming that people from poorer countries are undercutting them. If they could cut you at a lower price, someone somewhere would do a better deal. The competition is that steep and everyone’s in.
I often wonder why our gradautes could fade after the top of the crop while other graduates could just perform better & eventually surpass us. There’s clearly something we need to change. I have a school friend who was rendered as a sort of failure. She wasn’t stupid. For if she were, she wouldn’t have cross the hurdles to be in the top high school here. She merely miss the senior high school year & she was seen as an academic failure. Soon, she went off to Arizona State University. Following year till final year, she had been on the Dean’s list. She went on to Penn Uni for Masters (if I’m not mistaken.) She wouldn’t have made it if she stayed here. The level of freedom to research and learn were far more flexible, so your mind just grow. It did for me too when I was overseas, so I knew what she was talking about. Definitely there was something in.
For a changing world, you need people who genuinely loves to learn for the sake of learning,and a zeal that makes people fuel more energy to create new exciting ways of living that enhances quality.Not a group of people who are stuck in an area for just ‘A’s. ‘A’s are not enough anymore for a world that runs on very rapid change.
For what was an ‘A’ in the past may not be an ‘A’ now. And what was a ‘D’ or even a ‘F’ in the past may changed to be a ‘B’ or even an ‘A’ now.
So what are the grades for? And what are talents?
Only time, not report cards, will tell. – Karen Fu
Prime and Prejudice August 4, 2010
Posted by Karen in change, life challenges.Tags: discrimination, global harmony, prejudice, sustainable living
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Some feedback I received on the Prejudice Map shows not everyone knows the meaning of the word “prejudice.” However, knowledge of this word is crucial in understanding the map. So to continue to the map, please prove you know how “prejudice” is defined (for example, here’s a definition):
- A prejudice is something like a fact about a person that’s often fitting, based on personal behavior.
- A prejudice is a cultural trait that unifies a group of people or a country.
- A prejudice is a short description of an individual’s character.
- A prejudice is an irrational, unreasonable opinion formed without actual knowledge.
- A prejudice is a piece of knowledge aquired by scientific analysis.
- Whatever, show me the map!
[pic source & quote: blogoscoped.com]
Discrimination has always been existing for centuries. It has never really disappeared despite the years of campaigning and it will probably never be totally eradicated as long as we have this idea to differentiate ourselves from the pack. Being ‘prime’ has a kind of thinking that we are always better than the rest adds to the prejudice equation. Think about it, almost everywhere there are preferences over one group of people from another. Various kinds of discrimination have also been around. Where there is a dominant race, there is usually a feel of inferiority felt by other minorities. The larger population usually overpowers.
Even within people, people tend to group and have peers. Not that we cannot have cliques. We do need private space of our own. But the real problem arises when one starts to use class/family/group/associations/et cetra to classify and oust out people who are out because they are different. Be it personal preference/national preference/international preference, I always think that as long as we have any of such preferences, we’ll never really break the visicious cycle of inequality. When prejudice sets in, people are usually blind about the potential dangers of disharmony that may arise from such forms of discrimination. People tend to take in information that soothes their senses and ignore / discard the other noise about the intrinsic risks from forming classes. That is often the poison to good living and a real obstacle in keeping prosperity. It is simply unsustainable when people start to form enclaves. In fact it is dangerous.
Per chance we need to ask ourselves, how much discrimination we have been practicising daily: when something looks different to ours; when we do not like the intimidation of others; or when it looks like our status or interests are threatened. The social ostracisation to name the odd one out as ‘others’ would always be in existence as long as we fail to make radical changes about how we view other fellows who are different from us.
But life has its strange ways of handling such unfairness. So as long as you work honestly with a passion; somewhat the prejudice will gradually disappear in appearence. The answer to this kind of problem? Adaptation and perseverence. But the pending price for tolerating such inequality itself is unhealthy. It forms another form of distrust and encourages the defending party to form their own class too. So why should we allow it? — Karen Fu
minphf’s design site: Land Use Design – World Population in a 1000 Singapores… August 22, 2010
Posted by Karen in change, environment.Tags: China, Land Use, singapore, Sustainabe Living, United States
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The line in the Straits Times a couple of days ago caught my eye: ‘By 2050, 70% of the world’s population will be living in cities in the developing world’. This caught my attention as I was travelling on the train home. Honestly I have been dreading the idea of increasing the poputlation to 5.5 million in the near future. Surely, this piece of news citing Singapore’s land use to house some 6 billion people on just 0.5 % of our planet’s land must be scary, if not petrifying.
Singapore, which has only a land size of 710 square kilometers, is aiming to house some 6 million inhabitants on land. As a citizen and resident of this tiny dot, I must admit it was an eye popper news. I have been squeezing through trains, and replaning my time around peak hours. But when I start to recall spaces around places on this tiny dot, this seemingly daunting aim appears to be achievable from mainly 3 aspects:
- surprisingly, there is still good amount of green spaces that could be utilized.;
- the way these designs of flatted properties with underground system planning of spaces could effectively save a lot of land space for a growing population.
- there is very little crime, and people are generally at peace, making this concept of urban planning feasible.
We are currently undergoing the pace of change where lots of spaces are still undergoing constructional change, which is why the crowded packs. Complementing this undergoing this space change would be the enlarged network of the Mass Rapid Transit points, which will see extended links in the central parts of the country. Mass Rapid Transits’ undergrounds are also built with retailing outlets apart from linking them directly to office, recreational and residential spaces. For a tiny dot to remain as a livable urban city, the living spaces must grow along the rising population (both expats and local).
Checking this illustration on Straits Times [Aug 2010]
The above illustration shows the size comparison with Texas, in the US and with China. If this were the way the land is used, theoretically it would take up very little piece of land, leaving a huge remainder of the earth’s surface for other uses. Though theoretically ideal, there are a few worries off hand:
- Would everyone agree with such land use? Different cultures of different peoples around the world would not agree to the kind of living depending on one’s idea of what is comfortable and even ‘prestigious’ living. Some may consider this as a packed up living life style where you cannot enjoy the spaciousness of greens and enjoy the big airy skies around you.
- Social economically, and more importantly politically; this idea of land use may not be palatable to all. It would need the sacrifice of space where grandeur may have to be taken away in architectural designs of monumental buildings. This could impact social uproar when national identity and pride is taken away via a reduction of space for these historically important venues.
- The price of land would peak unless we have an economics system where this cost could be cut from earnings from other areas. This could possibly be achievable if we would use other land spaces for other economic activity, provided if we could keep greed in….
Space is often seen as a sign of power. Else histrorically, countries and people wouldn’t want to wage wars to conquer more space for increasing political and economic might. To take away living spaces has a lot of conflicts of interests that we have to overcome. Cutting population growth is often seen as a way to solve overcrowding and many other human problems. But is a large population the main cause for depletion of natural resources? I doubt it. It could often be touted that the vice of misusing technology and knowhow is the main cause for unsustainable living. I often think that this is the most fundamental reason for our impending demise.
Don’t you think so?
Time for bed…as usual..
— Karen Fu….
Reference:
Courage, energy & pure spirit of the Singapore 2010 Youth Games - August 26, 2010
Posted by Karen in change.Tags: singapore, YOG thought, Youth Olympics Games
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The closing ceremony for the first Youth Olmpics Games ends tonight in Singapore but so far I am impressed by the sportsmanship of these teenagers and their superior skills at various sports. Prior to the event, I must honestly admit that I had thought it would be just kids’ fun and giggles. But it ended up to be much more than that. We have kept comparing it with the grandeur style of the Beijing Olympics forgetting that this is the very first Olympics of these 14-18 year old teenagers. It is a completely different kind of spirit and it may well be the kind of gutsy and fresh energised spirit that we may all benefit from. Girls Football Finals at Jalan Besar Sports Stadium was an event that I had thought it was not going to be at least interesting. But I was proven wrong. It turned out to be one of the most fantastic finals that I had enjoyed immensely. They may be shorter and smaller in build compared to full grown adults or even when you compare them with the boys; but they are individual skills of playing with the ball before sending it to the goal posts was far powerful than the superficially perceived. Most events had a lot of locals cheering for other teams though our own teams may had lost or were not in the finals. The friendship bonded during these events had been more than heartwarming and encouraging; they were collectively an event that makes adults like us think about relationships around the world. Everyday should ideally be like it – friendship, bond and support.
Teens have their own style, visions and hopes that we adults must learn from ( and they are qualities that we have gradually forgotten as we grow older as well) – and that is the courage, energy and pure free spirit to be willing to accept change and to change positively.
More later.
Recalling & review: Singapore wins bid in Youth Olympic Games (Positive Spirit, Positive Change) August 28, 2010
Posted by Karen in change.Tags: Bid for YOG 2010, Lee Hsien Loong, Positive Change, Prime Minister's YOG Bid Speech, review, singapore, YOG, Youth Olypics Games 2010
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We have to view the olympics positively. Read a couple of sites and links that were pretty negative. I had thought it was a very good effort for the time frame given — doing a fresh new era of sports in South East Asia, which has never happend before. Only 2.5 years as compared to the usual 4 to prepare and host the inaugural youth olympics where there are no precedents.
Frankly I was thinking that in times of global economic downturn, I didn’t really expect much money to be put into such an event. I didn’t think youth olympics was as exciting as the adult version. It did seem to be an inferior version to the historical age old adult Olympics that we have all grown up to know. But these young atheletes have proven me wrong by their undying power of positive determination and fresh courage which many adults start to loose as they leave their teenage years.
Please listen to the youtube video above that showcased how this tiny dot in the world used all its positive notes to bid for the first youth olympics: the peoples’ effort to unite the students, the taxi cabbies, the ministers etc. I thought it was a good motivational start. I believe it hadn’t been easy. And the result was good. Particularly the final rally. We had problems in the midst of YOG, but they were bravely overcomed. That is exactly the spirit we all need regardless as an individual, a nation or in an sports event.
I hope all this is well taken.
More later.
One last goodbye – One lesson I have learnt: October 7, 2010
Posted by Karen in change, human quality, Singapore.Tags: family values, Ke Yuzhi, Kwa Geok Choo, Mrs Lee Kuan Yew's wake, society change, women
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‘I should find solace at her 89 years of life well lived. But at this moment of final parting, my heart is heavy with sorrow and grief,’ MM Lee said. — ST PHOTO: TERENCE TAN
IN THE end, there was just a man who loved his wife till the end.
He walked to her casket and placed a single stalk of red rose, green leaves still on its stem, on her body.
He raised his 87-year-old body and walked half a step towards the head of the casket, supporting himself on the frame.
Then, he bent towards her and reached for her face with his right hand. He brought his hand back to his lips and planted a kiss on her forehead.
As though he could not bear to part, he did that again. And then he walked away, composed and unaided.
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew gave his wife two final kisses as she lay peaceful in her casket at the Mandai Crematorium. Madam Kwa Geok Choo – his beloved Choo – had died on Saturday, aged 89, after being bedridden for over two years as a result of a series of strokes.
His kiss was a private gesture of love, but will linger in the memories of those who witnessed it, as a public affirmation of the abiding love they shared.
Earlier, in his eulogy, he spoke of their years together, as starry-eyed lovers at Raffles College and Cambridge University. He spoke too of her support as he fought for independence, and through his many years as prime minister as he and his colleagues built a new nation.
He spoke of their public life together, reminding his audience of her role in helping to draft legal documents at pivotal moments in Singapore’s history, and of her role as his confidante and adviser.
Of his private feelings at losing his wife, he would only say he would have been a different man without her, with a completely different life, adding at the end, with his head bowed: ‘I should find solace in her 89 years of her life well lived. But at this moment of the final parting, my heart is heavy with sorrow and grief.’
Read the full story in Thursday’s edition of The Straits Times.
One last goodbyeCLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE:
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I knew she was a very brilliant scholar and capable wife of MM Lee. But what I didn’t know was she even took care of the entire household inside out. Not only did she focus on the upbringing of all her children and grandchildren; she had also put in great care into her family needs. She even handpicked the family’s groceries herself, which is a rare chore to do for families like hers. More than often, groceries are taken care of by butlers or servants. Even in the heartlands where most people are just ordinary commoners, getting groceries isn’t their business. They simply just get their maids to do it. This is often one habit that I do not condone—at least on the part where children are taken care of by maids. I think these close ties should be nutured by the mother, not the maid.
Today, many people hire nannies/governesses/private tutors to take care of their children. New age parents, especially see child caring as an opportunity cost to their professional careers. For some, the hiring of someone to take off their responsibility of grooming their children, and making use of other people to care for their childrens’ needs. For that very reason alone, she is indeed a very great mother. For with a stellar set of grades and gifted talents, she could have been a star performer in her own right.
She had put in an enormous sacrifice for her family to make sure they shine before her. That is what I am impressed of.
It’s often till the death of some person that we often get to know their other silent deeds. In this case, I was impressed by the work she had done as a mother. My family had thought the same because handling both household & children; and caring for her husband’s work and all are not easy. Yet she managed to accomplish all without resorting to hiring other professionals to replace her personal touch for the family though her family clearly has the money to do so.
This is the kind of greatness that many people fail to do – sacrificing for families, and letting other shine before self.
PS: I know there are a lot of people who do not like the Lee family because they are often seen as autocratic. But in some ways there are merits that we have to recognize. I didn’t know Mrs Lee was such a great mother because I myself had thought she was hard handler. At least this came to me as a surprise. And when I heard the eulogies for her; I then knew what kind of sacrifice she had made.For that I thought I would post this simple straight thought about her. — Karen Fu
Postgrad or not? – the value of education to answer real problems. January 4, 2011
Posted by Karen in Architecture, change, education, environment.Tags: higher education, postgraduate, sustainability, value of education, world problem
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I have just received an email invite to attend a talk for postgraduate studies by an American professor. Honestly I had thought the college would not call me up anymore because I get the sneaky feeling they may not really like the way I think. On the other hand, I don’t have the time to attend as I happen to work at that time slot and the time is really pretty much fixed. I don’t know if I want to study any more. I have been catching up with some of the best professionals and many ironically do not hold a postgraduate degree. It seems to me that my motivation for postgrad appears to wane over the years after talking to too many people. I seem to have an impression that education does not breed the ideal graduate who could genuinely contribute to society in a sustainable and healthy way. Maybe its due to the people whom I talked to but I didn’t really think they were exactly nice people.
I was particularly ‘pissed’ by a few academics who seem to think that postgraduate education provides the ultimate skill. Not that I disregard the fact that advanced skills contribute to a far higher quality of solutions; but more of the fact that it was delivered in arrogance. I don’t like pompous, matter of fact answers. I often find humility in the most intelligent people and that group of smart people aren’t exactly all from postgraduates.
Some time back, I was talking to an academic who claim to say that better buildings are made through more years in the university. I know Tadao Ando, a famous Japanese architect, didn’t attend any professional architectural school at a university. He was entirely self-taught. By self-taught through travelling and working, he formulated his own ideas which invariably meant that he was creating fresh ideas/methods away from the convention. Le Corbusier was another famous architect who did a similar way. Perhaps some people may argue that these great innovators were such because knowledge then wasn’t as diversfied and in depth, which makes self teaching possible. But somewhat I feel that postgraduate training is unlike undergraduate. The latter offers a base. If you have a good base, you could extend and multiply off your knowledge later. If you had a lousy base, you can’t do postgraduate anyway ‘cos it wouldn’t be effective. A good foundation is one that allows one to form ideas and method to learn, apart from skills.
I also question about the true value of a college education for we have problems that are not exactly being solved. Its more morphed than being answered permanently. Looking around at the changes in science and tecbnology; language and humanities; can anyone truly claim that the worlds problems or rather on a microscopic level, a society’s problem be sorted sustainably? We may be living longer but we may not be necessarily be living healthier. We seem to sort problems partially, and leaving another part of the problem to mutate into another new set of problems.
I wonder if we have really learnt our lessons inside out. Over the course of history of seveal thousands of years, human deceit has never been really eradicated. It appears that people of lesser formal education appear to learn more at times when disasters come. The only downpoint of these people are that they lack impeccable verbal skills. Language skills appear to dominate in the area of intelligence. It really shouldn’t be this way. I have learnt a great deal everywhere from everyone. I wouldn’t have the guts to claim I know it all. Neither would I have the might to say I am perfectly educated. I often feel that many around me have taught me a lot. Hence I am now questioning the true value of education. We should humbly take cues everywhere from everyone. The direction we are heading may well be wrong.
Simply because we have an impending global disaster — both physical and metaphysical climate. — Karen Fu
Somewhere out there for 2011 January 16, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, New Year.Tags: Kaitlyn Maher, life, Somewhere Out There
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Just popped in to check on the visitors who have visited my site for the day, and clicked on an old post that one virtual visitor from the US had visited: ‘Another Heartwarming OT, an aspiration & inspiration – Somewhere Out There’ ; only to realise that the youtube video wasn’t available anymore. Wonder what had happend to it? Anyway, it said the video had infringed some copyright rules and was taken off… Some killjoy, but I really love both the song and the cartoon even till today. It has left such a fine impression on me since then. The pure, pristine, innocent lyrics sung in the most idealistic, cute & utterly adorable way. I could almost feel I’m 5 again :
[taken from http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/anamericantail/somewhereoutthere.htm]
Somewhere out there,
beneath the pale moonlight,
someone’s thinking of me and loving me tonight.
Ty: Somewhere out there,
someone’s saying a prayer,
that we’ll find one another in that big somewhere out there.
(*)Ty: And even though I know how very far apart we are,
it helps to think we might be wishing on the same bright star.
Fv: And when the night wind starts to sing a lonesome lullaby,
it helps to think we’re sleeping underneath the same big sky.
Together: Somewhere out there,
if love can see us through,
then we’ll be together, somewhere out there,
out where dreams come true.
*note on 13 Feb 2011 — don’t really know why the American Tail Version of ‘Somewhere Out There’ has a problem of sharing content on blogs, but I think I should just give it up. So just enjoy Maher’s version of the same song. Her maiden performance at a national competition is still the best.
2011 has come & really people should learn a couple of lessons from this song. It’s a sort of hope and faith that everyone out there has a someone out there to share their lives in a meaningful way. More than often, bad things happen because certain ill-meaning thoughts sunk into their minds to committ crime, injustice to another being because they think they are excluded from the love, passion and compassion from their peers/world around them.
The idea of negative thought such as terrorism, murder and such ills are resulted from the fundamental loss of love.
The basis of happiness is to feel cherished. And the way I see the world is that people who bore a simple outlook of life with content usually are far happier than those who linger in the realms of complexity — the kind that eats one up where material greed is concerned. You can almost identify one when you meet it because the years of experience seeing different kinds of people etc everyday that has sharpened your senses. Well I suppose many could identify this..
Anyway, on a bright note, I’ve found another super video from this 4 year old kid (then in 2008) who sounds exactly like a brilliant star that shines. She was way better than any adult singing the same song because of her angelic voice. Her innocent, cheerful & extremely loving open demeanour attracts your attention. So here it is Kaitlyn Maher on ‘Somewhere Out There’ :
I think she is a very confident & mature singer. Being an extremely patriotic & very impressive American, she also seems to be extremely bright. I would think she’d make a brilliant inspiring American leader if she would keep her given nature unchanged. What I’ve found it interesting was that there were two British judges on the panel. Wonder where was the competition held? Her later performance, such as the one done when she was 5, singing Ave Maria, was somewhat polished up to a commercial-like level, which I do not prefer. I still favour the one above — its simply crystal & priceless!
Enjoy! And may 2011 would be a far better year sans the natural disasters that we have seen; with more people learning the way of life that health, wealth and prosperity is simply based on content and recognising that money is not the sole religion of the 21st century — its a poison that kills a sustainable and happy life.
Hope I’ve made sense. — Karen Fu
My 2011 carrots for the Golden Bunny. February 5, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, faith, human quality, life challenges, New Year, terrorism.Tags: Chinese New Year hops, elitistism, future, life design, Meritocracy, sustainable lifestyle
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2011 is here. Well it is already here for over a month until the metal (Golden) rabbit pops in just 3 days ago in the Lunar New Year. Perhaps munching some carrots and looking for play, baby bunny may well bring us a brighter outlook than last year.
I have just returned home from a series of visits to different places. I think there has been a lot of changes lately — some good, and some not so good. Some catching up with relatives & a few old friends seem to open up many important issues. But I think I just want to dwell on one — human relationships.
So what is there in store for us all around the world? I came out of the Mass Rapid System just a few hours ago to realise that even the nearest station in an almost harmless place is also putting up with clusters of CCTVs (Close Circuit TVs). I couldn’t believe it when I start to count how many of these security measures have come into the neighbourhood. There are already CCTVs at crossroads and some at lifts of public housings. This is to me abnormal since I have been growing up on a tiny dot of land where there used to be given peace all around, and basically everyone used to trust almost everyone. Under that condition, you need almost no security then. Today,securty measures are installed in car parks, canteens, lifts, schools, offices, MRTs, buses etc. The only place that appears to be clear of CCTVs are the toilets. I suppose no one will want to place a CCTV in every water closet. But who knows, in time to come even such privacy may soon disappear when people start to get paranoid about how terrorists work. Till that point, I think almost all kinds of trust will be evaporated. And for that matter, terror will really take its toll.
So my first golden carrot for the bunny is to wish is that we regain trust as people. ‘No trust = no harmony’: a simple equation that all bunnies old & young should be able to understand. To add in a simple reality is that human relationships are wanning mainly because we think too much in the wrong direction. Almost every crazy day, we read about fights. Doesn’t matter what kind and nature of fights they are, it is often stemmed out of jealousy & over emphasis of self interests. Technological advances may solve certain problems to a point, but ultimately its we ourselves who decide if we are willing to let go and forget, simplify and move on. It is often the various self-interests that blind our minds to progress. And it is also the very fact that people tend to run on double-edged swords that cut not only themselves but others too. Divorces are common not only in the west but also in the east where marriage is no longer that lasting as it used to be. ‘Till dealth do us part’ does not ring an eternal bell. It ironically happens in times when people are living better in comfort.
While I envy those who marry, have kids and a family; I do get alarmed by the reality of how many of these marriages actually work. It often makes you wonder what this world is getting to be like the flickery climate — where you don’t know when the floods or draughts would come in. The most comfortable climate is one that bears warmth, sunshine with some drizzles of snow and free breezes of wind. Not thunders or storms that wreck havoc. Family ties are the most important in maintaining society’s harmony. If such units are destroyed, the multiplier effect from broken families is huge impact to a peaceful society.
Most of us know that our future lies in our hands. The future can only betray us when we betray ourselves. To me, I do not see solving problems any harder unless we choose them to be. It is all in our hands to recognize our priorities for survival that is both happy and lasting. Technologies are supposed to assist us attaining solutions and we should not abuse technologies out of greed to the point that it will someday get the better of us. This is the wisdom and intelligence that I feel is crucial. Just because one could argue in profound words that differentiates one from the other & only believe that only that certain group of knowledge is the best to lead and therefore shunning away all other possible solutions; is not only stupid, but also dangerous. We want a meritocratic place where people are credited fairly because of what they’ve positively done to society, not silly looking ideas of appearing ‘intelligent’. In that manner, can we be sure to say that such research is truly beneficial. I often find sickening arguements coming from people whose eyes are grown on top of their heads. They think they know it all because they have come from certain classes in society. That is elitistism & elitistism usually have sorry outcomes.
Our problem is not complex. And shockingly the nature of the problems are often similar. Then why is it that we love to expand and complicate them is often beyond me. Surely there are many different scenarios behind different sets of problems, but my point is why should we always use added knowledge to add up more problems when added knowledge is supposed to solve them?
I used to believe that top schools yield the kind of knowledge that we need to perform. Now I doubt if such systems do work. Times have changed, ideals and norms have changed. Let’s wish that the new year spells far less violence like what we are seeing now in various cities around the world. There is a migratory trend that really says something about societies and it is defintely unhealthy. [People are moving out from what it was the technologically advanced cities fraught with high crime and violence to other places that seem to be safe and peaceful.] And hopefully when the bunny comes hopping in, it knows where to burrow and where to hop in times of trouble. Being passive and docile at times may be better than being mighty & aggressive. Sometimes we need to check our pace, and the year of the bunny may just be the year to check it out before propelling forward just yet in that powerful leap.
Hope I’ve made sense. While writing this, I am redefining what my own wishes are. I still very much prefer the old 80s to 90s and a life of tranquil. I really hate the current greed and all. But what can I do when I live in a pragmatic city where the emphasis of money is getting more and more important ? — Karen Fu
reference
1. Bill Joy: ‘Why the Future doesn’t need us’
Northampton Robbery Foiled by Super Samaritan – Act of Bravery or Foolishness – Social Justice & being positive February 11, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, human quality, life challenges.Tags: Northampton Robbery, Positive Thinking
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This probably doesn’t ring much but I think it’s worth to pin it up here. But if you would start to think how many people actually really fight for social justice, then this grandmother is worth the talk. The social media plattform never fails to surprise me, and let truth be told, I prefer news off from the common people from every walk of life than hired journalists. In any case, I love the granny’s bravery. In times like this when most people only care about what’s going in for them, there are people whose sense of social justice never wane in under any situation, age or time.If everyone were to have bear at least a clear conscience of what is right and wrong, I bet you that we will have, at the bare minimum, far less street crimes. If we were to extend this moral uprighteouness to work in every profession, I bet you again that we will have less legal disputes and far better productivity. Moral ethics in the highest integrity is always fundamental to peace. If people were fair and don’t play shades of grey, I believe that we will not have revenges, wars, fights of any kind. People resort to fights because they feel they are grossly ill-treated and most of such unfairness stems out from grey beliefs that usually disregard other sensitive factors in the process. If you treat people nice, and you confront them fairly, people usually will retreat or at least be refrained from further attacks. Who knows these so-called enemies may someday become your allies.
On another point about the video, I think the robbers weren’t exactly mean people. I’ve noticed that they didn’t retaliate against the old lady and chose to escape instead. I suppose if this were to happen somewhere else, that lady may have been bashed to death. People resort to petty crime or theft for many reasons. It could be the lack of job opportunities or unfair treatment that leave them no choice but to resort to crime. But I also believe they lack creativity and resourcefulness to make their lives better and to resort to crime is pretty silly business. Thinking positive in hard times can be difficult. Take a few steps back, inhale deeply & rethink when you are unstressed. Then you’ll realise that the problems aren’t that difficult to solve.
The Northamption robbery reminds me of my very own personal experience with robbers and with people who are as nice as the old lady. I like the British people for many reasons. They may not have the warmest smile or the best casual pat on the back; but they are definitely friends for life when they do. And often, British people, especially those who are staying off the capital & the urban citiy areas, have very keen eye when it comes to one’s character. They often judge people very accurately. — Karen Fu
Reference:
1. BBC news on this story
2. ABC news on Northampton Grandmother
Quick thoughts about ‘Abandon Earth—Or Face Extinction’ by Stephen Hawking February 18, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, faith, human quality, life challenges.Tags: change, human extinction, human survival, life design, space, Stephen Hawking, sustainability
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I feel Dr Hawkings has over emphasized in the logic of hard core Sciences for survival. For if there is lack of humanity in various ethical thoughts, that our human race would perish despite technological advances.
There are certain uncanny ways about how life and the universe works which perhaps is incomprehensivable even by science. Despite the rules that human mind research could delve into in their individual ways and feelings about how things work. I think we have not developed till that stage where the entire universe can be fully comprehend, else we will not have developed new problems that need new solutions to solve. If we have genuinely understood the root concept of problem solving, we will not problems sprouting out from existing ones. We could have simply sort the problem spot on.
Many of these problems simply morph in form. Not loosing an ounce in essence, the solutions usually require a far more complex way of solving.
If we need to sustain our race beyond the next 100 years or so, we need to find the root problem as to why we have come to this dire point. The thinking process doesn’t require a mere escape in the physical space we live.
I have no doubt that one day our race will eventually be left with no choice but to emmigrate to space. That is if we cannot change what what we have been doing in time. The future living space may well be mars; it may well be a human made platform or synthetic space ground for our future generations to live on. Under a totally new environment, a brand new set of problems will sufface if we cannot face out our own humanisitc problems in thought which controls our decisions that shape our living space on earth.
There is no doubt that the brilliance of the human mind could also solve some of the toughest scientific problems around. However, I have the feeling that we may be dwelling in linear thought or rather we are moving into a history old, seemingly genetically formulated code in our genes into digging more deeper holes and simply swapping spaces for our root problem —- the pertinent issue that we refuse to face the daunting thought that we have been bending rules of nature which is the result for our current dire situation.
We have not changed much in the area of survival. Human greed has not been changed much for centuries and let history be told, whether in total truth or with partial biasness, that our forebearers have merely altered their way of being selfish and that technological knowhow has been used to further exploit in the most uncanny of ways.
There is no doubt that we would eventually be living in space if our existing problems cannot be eradicated in time. It may well be we cannot sort them at all. Climate and land changes have proved in reality of the impending outcome of extiction if we still live on this planet. We have almost depleted our natural resources and also at the expense of other living species in any form for the sole selfishness of just one specie, and that is us.
We need to be truthfully honest about what we and our forebearers have done and how our past and existing thinking had maketh us our own assassinators for our own sustainable survival.
Our knowledge in humanities, science & technology should continue advancing in depth and in width. But we need a source of change that directs us to genuine sustainablity. And that is to make a real conscience about who we are and what we need to do. Not with the impurity of new so-called colours that smudge; but with the eventual outcome of being totally pure as light that will shine us into ever lasting exisitence.
And that one of the several human components may well be a far simpler thought: and that is ethics of sharing, loving and to be far less menacing & hypocritical in today’s fast advancing, pragmatic life of selfish materialism. We are all in a way guilty. Perhaps via the way of doing bit of good everyday and have a far more daring gut toadmit fault & make every modest good step forward; we may perhaps create a miracle that science and religion will be most happy to jot down in our human history.
It’s really a collaborative effort.
Got to run off now. It’s a very quick one-off draft. I want to write more. But I have to go off for now. —- Karen Fu
My Curosity about the Artscience museum February 22, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, environment, Singapore.Tags: Artscience museum, Genghis Khan, green architecture, marina bay sands, Moshe Safdie, opinion, pictures, Silk Road exhibit, singapore
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I am a merry person and am definitely a very curious person by nature. Museums are always on my itinery wherever I go. Just this past faithful Monday I decided to pop into the museum’s 3rd day of opening right in the hot afternoon. It was a great cheery day and I definitely wanted to view the latest exhibits at the newest museum down Marina Bay.
All was well in general and I had a great time learning about the history of various events– from Genghis Khan, Silk Road and the Tang treasures; apart from the design of displays and interactive media. It was all fun and in fact there was a couple of things I thought it was ‘too fun’. Let me try to explain:
I am very impressed by the displays. There are truly world-class visuals with impressive interactive media designs. I especially enjoy the interactive table at the Silk Road exhibition that shows items on a highly illuminated map; and some of the in wall panel displays that allow us to test our mental agilities. What I found a little amusing were the camels. I have seen camels before but I have never seen any spieces like the ones on display at the entrance. Especially the stream of very curly hair running from the top of the camels’ heads along the back of the animals’ bodies. Its too artificial and almost too fashionable looking. It somewhat reminds me of the African hair-style and more likely they reminded me of star wars—-the 4 legged creature Eopie; or the 2-legged creature whose name I’ve forgotten at this point of time. I think they look a little too futuristic to be like the arabian camel or other different hybrids of camels around at the moment. Then again, I was trying to figure out if I have missed any camel species that look like that. Art-wise, they are fantastic as they are highly imaginative and the skills for making them are genuinely top of the class. However, historically-wise they look a little odd. The camels uncanningly have a human look. (see figure below)
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notice the hair-do and the face.
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notice the hair growth on the camel.
After the camel ride into the wonder of hybrids, I romped to the display of fruits and veggies along the silk road in the other show area. I took a general picture of the display (see picture below)
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and spotted something on the right of the picture. Then I took a closer look. (see picture below).
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Out of sheer curosity, I ultimately took a third pic of the object of speculation in different perspectives. (see picture below).
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[your thought may be as good as mine...]
& finally I came to a conclusion that it resembles visually,metaphorically mimicking the physical form of something not too nice. I wanted to get a second opinion so I amicably reported this to their on-duty museum helpers and they shared the same view.I told them I saw something not too pleasant and it was all about ’2 apples and 1 banana’. They were amused by it and went to see it for themselves. One of them took a pic and claimed she was going to report it up. I think they should have reported up to their boss by now. The alignment of those 3 innocent fruits appear to be the work of the display artist.
I love the architecture. And I really like the lotus pond. Moshe Safdie’s sketches are cool with imaginative wonders of neat funcational solutions. The interior architecture of the building has a lovely concept of the lotus flower intertwined with the idea of a lovely welcoming hand. The centre of the building is designed to collect rain water that goes to a recycling system that supplies water to the rest rooms. What I later learnt was that the surface of the building was treated with glass fiber reinforced polymer, which is unusual. I was very happy to be enclosed by this mega structure that has a cool human feel to it.
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I was actually expecting more as I have been to other museums around the world too. I was hoping to see more on the top floor about science and the arts. To me, I think it was a little too little. Those info could have been easily learnt online at different websites. If anyone takes the time and the money to visit a museum, one expects to see physical artefacts that we cannot see at most places anywhere in the world. I also find a few of the artefacts in the Genghis Khan puzzling. I had not have the time to scrutinise the details but I have the memory that I was wondering if the description of the artefact was off or the tablet was off. How did the 12-13th century tablet be using seemingly modern script for that time era was beyond me. I am not a historian so I cannot pinpoint in precise detail where it is off. But on first general look, especially from the script, I was surprised it was dated in the 12-13th century. Maybe someone could enlighten me.
In any case, I had a great time. I spent a few good hours to learn about display design, interactive design, history, strategy, innovation, science and humanity. The various exhibits gave me insights of the human mind that has been both ingenious, kind, mean as well as sheer cruelty.The changes we need in different times show that wrong changes can kill a dynasty. It also teaches us that the right kind of thought will save our spieces and our human race. The future is in our decision making and we should never let history repeat the treachery that we had before.
Hope the museum would take this in good candour.
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After the entire museum visit, I came out seeing a brilliant lotus flower floating on a tranquil man made pond. It is serene, pure and upright. And I hope the welcoming hand of Singapore will bring in just that — pure, upright spirit with integrity.
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As the Chinese saying goes, ‘莲花淤 泥不染’ – the lotus flower, though grows in mud, never gets stained. — Karen Fu
Better picture source would be at my other blog for design.
Singapore Budget 2011 Lego Style, My Read in Free Swing February 26, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: Lego, my free-swing poem, singapore, Singapore Budget 2011, video
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Budget 2011 from ST Pix on Vimeo.
Life should be as easy & smart like Lego
where complex matters are expressed in cheerful style;
where war of words could be saved
and time spared for better play.
Life should be as free.
Wee in the colours
be as smart as Lego;
for its bricks are atoms
and its molecules are wonders.
Via play and fun,
it creates its own universe
that defines a unique legacy
redefines innovation
recreates a united world.
Life should be creative
where different people meet
without self inflicted paranoia or prejudice
that makes the world a divided place.
Lego, I admire your wicked brilliance
for you dominate the world without a winch.
in both happy & dire times.
For you, like me;
play is fun
and fun is cute.
Life’s a peach with roses bedded in your yard
‘cos you’ve fully understood the quotient of the
human mind!
– Karen Fu
PS: Generally I like the budget and I wish I have a play in it too. Adios for now!! For change has come.
‘The Human Religion is Love’ Teresa Hsu’s 100 years of Simple Love beats Pretentious Theories. March 5, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, faith, human quality, life challenges, Singapore.Tags: eradicate poverty, Great Women, Health, Human Religion, humanity, life design, Poverty, Teresa Hsu Chih
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(A) “The Human Religion is Love’
Simply said and dutifully followed excellently for the past 100 years.
All her siblings are all deceased except her. Listen to what she says and notice how she says & you’ll easily notice her lucid clarity shows no sign of slowing down at her ripe age of 113. She offers not only the art of longevity but she gives priceless insights of great life by first being pure-hearted. I love it!
She feels uneasy when she is better off than the poor. And thus joins one of the them to feel for them, as she believes that it is not good to enjoy in the face of the poor. As long as she is alive, she makes sure that no one goes hungry.
Teresa Hsu (XuZhe) at 113 gives all in a simple notion ‘Love’ Noting more, nothing less. She bears no anger, no hatred, no sense of revenge. I feel she has understood the truest notion of what life is and how to value add people’s life by eliminating hunger and offering a great sense of sharing.By constantly asking what she could do every day to make sure that no one goes hungry, she keeps a simple life routine that focuses her time to value add others. I wish that politicians and all leaders alike could do that. In fact, we should all aim towards this goal. It is a pure shame that people tend to be greedy over trivial things that waste time when the same amount of time could be use to share and give.And it is more than shame to manipulate people for selfish goals. But as life would have it, there would be precious lessons like this one that keeps humanity going. TED Singapore has interviewed her and I wish far more people could read her:
(B) Poverty and the Poor
The majority of the world population is poor. There is no great policy in the world that has totally eradicated poverty and hunger. This is an important root problem to social unrest. Everyday I see all kinds of people. People who have all the luxury in the world & yet feel they need to exploit it all.
While economists, politicians, financiers etc romp around in complex policies about how to chop down poverty and hunger in a mess; she offers us a simple yet great formula of sharing, giving and love as a simple yet viable solution— the love of making sure that as long as she is alive, she will share her bowl of rice; making sure that ‘no one eats grass’. It may sound ‘simplistic’, and to some it may even sound laughable and childish. But its underlying concept of showing sheer empathy and earnesty to give, share and help goes way further than pretentious policies/ theories. If everyone were like her, we would be living in a chaos-free life. We won’t need to waste time and resources that often takes a merry go round around a problem. We could save our resources for enjoying a life of peace.
Looking at her great health and her vitality, I cannot help to think that her youth with an intelligent sense of humour is her reward from nature. Her daily routine of helping an average of 20 needy people everyday by moving around visiting underpriviledged elderly who are ironically much younger than her is impressive. Her voice is steady and her thoughts are impeccably sharp.
She mentions about her own hunger and uses that as her mantra in life: ‘grass didn’t satisfy my hunger though it satisfy my thought of hunger’ and thus ‘no one has to eat grass’ as long as she is alive. She will save her rice bowl for others. And when they are both equally hungry, they will share the bowl of rice. If she isn’t hungry, she would give all her rice.
(C) Life
Rather laugh than to cry in the face of adversity. Try the best you can and accept the rest. Know no anger can be hard, but try the best to smile as you work your way out. For anger, sadness dries your energy. Being mean sucks your life up. Look at her vitality and great health, I cannot help but to feel consoled that being nice and honest offers you at least sanity, sharp clarity and impeccable logic that are vital to sane and sustainable living. Her mark of clarity and simplicity is like no other. I have heard that she forgave those who mistreated her. Such sense of magnamity is rare in today’s world where people could choose to inflict harm to even to the most harmless of peoples.
While there are injustices around, rest assured that life has its natural ways of giving the transquility and smooth flow within one’s body to keep it healthy. Health is the most important factor to happiness. One may rich and powerful, but if the lack of kindness, and sheer honest integrity and love for human kind gives one the lack of trust that keeps the mind sane. Throughout history, there are boundless cases of insane people who opted a complicated life full of treachery. Why should we repeat the ills our predecesors hath done?
(D) Everyone’s a Family.
Everyone’s a family. And that very family is our planet earth. If we do what she does, would we need to demonstrate, yell the heads off for peace; trying every policy to rid off hunger and poverty? Food is precious. Time is precious. Her sense of living is simple but effective. It does good to the individual and to a world where food supply is lacking and diseases mutating. Physical and mental workout in her way may not befit any commerical sense. But try recalling a couple of very wealthy people whose health is on the line yet still thinking of scrapping every consumer dry.
By the end of the day, the person who gives gains more. The person who tries all uncanny ways to reap for their own need dwindles. Nature doesn’t work in the formula where people chooses to ‘eat’ one another up. Nature works in harmony only when one understands what simple ‘love’ is.
I always pity that she has not married, not honored beyond what she has been given. Perhaps it is the fact that she is simple that prestigious Universities and colleges choose to ignore her. Or that she lacks the ability to do profound findings. But I earnestly feel she has made one solid point: she used all that she have, and she genuinely uses her knowledge to do good. Not that she pretends to be good, she really means and does good. With such great sense of humor coupled with a big sense of wisdom, she shows her intelligence of words and fine layman psychology to understand people. Her words know no ridiculous, superfluous jargon. Simple, luicid, straight to the point; she delievers far more than a crazy looking thesis that is trying to smart. Thus beats different types of #$! theories that don’t work for the masses.
When solutions fail for the masses, riots and unreats will appear. The many reasons why we have all the rubbish. One of those is because we prefer to differentiate from one another and always on the greed-go to get more when one has already got more than enough.
Teresa Hsu is damn cool. She may not be wearing the funkiest street wear or any designer brand dresses and make up; but she gets her sense of beauty by being a true woman of substance. Her knowledge weighs ahead of anyone with a degree because she practices what she preaches. Shame those men who didn’t marry her. If I were a man, I would!
– Karen Fu
Further Reference:
Dare you make this Change: Quick Excerpt of Life Lessons from Teresa Hsu Chih March 7, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, human quality, life challenges, Singapore.Tags: Emphathy, Foundation of Peace, humanity, layman poetry, Life lessons, Teresa Hsu, Woman of Substance
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I just couldn’t resist taking the time to pick out the important lessons off from her talk when she received her commendation from Venerable Jingkong some 3 years ago. I may have missed a couple of points,but I think I have somewhat covered most of the pointers. I only have pockets of time to do this and I thought the best format would be in the form of a ‘poetry’. And I call this ‘Dare You Make This Change’ — Lessons from Hsu Chih. She is an extremely humble person, but I thought she’s got lots of cool factor that is humble yet gutsy; old yet young. Here’s my shot for the day:
想年轻 就年轻!
Think young and thou shalf be young!
吃
很浪费时间
干嘛
买菜 洗菜
又煮菜
餐餐洗碗
多麻烦 !
Eating is a waste of time
Why waste it on
Buying food, washing them
& cooking them
After whish
the hell of washing follows
What a chore!
不如看书
做有意人的事情 更妙 !
Might as well read books
Do chores to benefit mankind Such is a pure wonder!
她
只有爱人的宗教
没有别的
心清静
头脑只为为众生
She
Only harbors the idea of Love
Love is her religion
Nothing else.
The heart is at peace
And the mind is for humanity
切勿动干火!
因为
发脾气 浪费时间
伤害自己 伤害别人
Boil not your head
‘Cos
Fuming churns away your time
Harms yourself & others
不拿病人的钱
人家给她的钱
她全给其他穷人
交水电 房租
买粮食
Not taking patient’s money
Whatever money that is given to her
She passes it on to the poor
To pay for bills, rent
To buy food.
她从不浪费
因
照顾的人很穷,
所以
一定一样跟他们一样的穷
She never wastes
‘Cos
there are many poor people to take care of
That’s Why
she feels she needs to be as poor as them
爱
她信仰是个‘爱’
永远爱世人 爱众生
Love
Is her mantra
Always love humanity, love all fellow beings
她投其四好:
存好心,说好话
行好事, 做好人
百年功绩
就在她 执着的博爱
She focuses on mainly four beliefs:
Keep a good heart, say the wise words
Do the good deeds, practice being a good person
100 years of achievements
lay on the principle of compassion.
苦人太多,贫穷人太多
跟最穷的人一起往来
她的生活要比他们好,她的心不安
这是真的,不但自己心不安
穷人看了会怕;
Sad people are many, poor people are many
Mingle among the poor and interact with them
She feels uneasy when she is better than them
This is real: Not that she feels uneasy
The poor who sees the better off are uneasy
必须过和他们同样的生活
跟大多数人打成一片
就是和平共处的苦心状举!
Henceforth the effort to experience the poor’s life
Be part of the majority
Such heartfelt emphathy is the foundation of peace !
– compiled in the stanzas in the middle of the night by Karen Fu…
Night All !
PS: The basis of peace formed by Teresa Hsu may be a tall order. If not almost impossible, but I believe that if we could move towards the basis of empathy in her direction, we would have sorted out a lot of problems in life. The essence of thrift, sharing and compassion could take us all out of misery that is stemmed out from jealousy, greed and poverty.
Aid offer bonds old foes – compassion dissolves war. March 13, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, China, human quality, life challenges.Tags: China, Compassion, humanity, Japan earthquake, life design, Tsunami
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THE earthquake and tsunami that devastated northern Japan may ease strained relations with China, allowing the rivals for the moment to look past lingering territorial, economic, military and historical disputes.
When news of the disaster spread, Chinese leaders offered condolences and support. China is also prone to earthquakes and Chinese officials put a rescue team in place to send to Japan if needed.
China’s Defence Minister, Liang Guanglie, called his Japanese counterpart, Toshimi Kitazawa, to offer military assets. Chinese premier Wen Jiabao also had a telephone conversation Friday with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and offered China’s condolences and help.
Advertisement: Story continues belowChina’s show of sympathy and solidarity towards an Asian neighbour in distress contrasts with the heated rhetoric of the past half-year, which saw anti-Japan demonstrations and the cancelling of ministry-level exchanges and tour groups.
Officially sanctioned editorials talked about shared pain and what China can learn from Japan’s response to the disaster. Commentary from state-run Xinhua, recalled how Japan assisted China after the 2008 earthquake in Sichuan province.
”The virtue of returning the favour after receiving one runs in the blood of both nations,” commentary said.
WASHINGTON POST
When I read news that China is offering help to Japan, I felt a great sense of comfort. At least, it isn’t what I have been hearing from certain groups of people who seem to think that the Tsunami in Japan is a sheer kind of retribution. Regardless if it is one or not, I wouldn’t think we should say that. And I think China has made the right move in sending words of concern and sympathy; and more vitally real action of assistance by mobilising teams to help Japan.
It would have been very wrong to stay aloof at Japan’s current plight. Not to mention about feeling totally mean about the neuclear explosions and the massive physical devastation to their infrastructure. In Singapore, I heard there is a national team of peoplw who will be meeting up at Raffles Place this Wednesday to pray for the Japanese. I don’t know what exactly that is, but if time permits I want to join in too.
Compassion yields compassion. Perhaps at this very trying time in Japan, these actions of help might well be a source of light that shines globally that humanity still exists. Doesn’t matter if you are Caucasian, Asian, African, Hispanic, Mexican, Indian or Chinese; in times of need, when you feel lost, there will be ready help when one needs it. It should be a change of emotional tide about the past grudges about who did what to who. Trying to line up the atrocities only breed further anger that might end up engulfing both parties.
What we should learn about history is about what went wrong. And not counting foes and wrongdoings for ‘revenge’. Surely there are uncountable misgivings. My grandparents, like most others, have suffered tremendously during World War 2, when the Japanese occupied Singapore. It wasn’t any peach and roses. Many went to fight against the Japanese and had been killed on the spot or sent to the notorious massacre at Hong Lim Park or the Changi beach. Even today, Asian countries are still wary of Japan.
Personally I have thought about the historical impact and I can honestly say that I do not like some of the ways the Japanese are, typically their history texts about the World War. But I also know that many Japanese are not mean and know where their flaws are. The Japanese community here in Singapore are very modest and extremely hardworking. And I know with their industriousness and perseverance, they will survive this natual calamity well. It will be difficult but if they can survive 2 atomic bombs from the US, and come up from the ruins after the war; then they can recover and survive this current one.
Just remember that the history of civilsations, that every one of them has done some misgivings at some point. It would be a dire and regretable mistake to repeat them mainly because of revenge.
Can’t type too much for now. I need to get up super early and I am now left with 5 hours of sleep. But I sincerely hope Japan recovers and that from this nightmare comes a dream of true hope, where peoples’ compassion will dissolve all woes of the past. — Karen Fu
Guts to Change-inspired by Brave Bertie (King George VI) March 18, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, ethics, human quality, life challenges, real power, UK.Tags: History, humanity, King George VI, My Layman Poetry, The King's Speech, World War II
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There seems to a rise in the number of British films in the industry when I was picking a film to watch this week. And I am so glad that I have picked “The King’s Speech’ over some comedy. It is a wonderful film about guts to go for the best— touching grounds in mainly aspects of upbringing, education training, life and political history.Certainly life has its twists of fortunes. Or you could view it as a misfortune for the duties of a war-time King were that of an enormous stress that shortened the King’s life. Compared with his elder brother, the former King Edward VIII, he bravely took upon the duties despite his stammer. Colin Firth really played the part of the King very well. He deserves the Oscar.
King George VI was cured by Lionel Logue, who wasn’t exactly professionally trained speech therapist by training. King George the VI wasn’t even close in line to the throne, and neither did he know he was going to be a great king.
I was scribbling my poetry when I was watching the film ‘The King’s Speech’ on my mobile. Some of the parts came from the movie. It was fun.

Mutter No More
Beyond the Stammer
Beyond the minds of fear
No shit No Bugger No bloody f@*-k
For guts and heart
Serve the nation best
Bertie
King George the Sixth
Was saved by
Lionel Logue
Whose know-how was
From his life’s experience
Everyone has a voice
Everyone has the right to achieve
Bravest with the most undying perseverence
Constant hop and bellow
After yells in stammer hell
Till one coronation day
Bertie
Won the day
Kissed the book
Signed the Oath
And he was King
In times of crisis
In this grave hour
Bounce over your fear
Leap and bloody be heard
And thou shalf long live like the King !!
Ok, I’m done with my poem. Enjoy!
Elfinic Cool break rules
Refuse immorality
Make this course their own
Firm, Calm and united
Dark days and war can no longer confined
In a battle of guns and bombs
But reverently commit our cause to god
We shall prevail
Only if we chose to face hard truths
And with guts to overcome unwise complexity
In a way the world should be grateful
Of his presence instead of Edward the VIII
For Bertie’s words were simple in virtue
Steadfast in duty
Silent bravery against bombs
Remain in put without the fear of sinister raids
Performing the usual duties
And become Britain’s respected King!
— Karen Fu
reference:
1. King George VI – an autobiography by essortment
2. Death of King George VI at British Pathe - Video from the media about the King and his passing.
3. The King to His Peoples. H.M. King George VI from Buckingham Palace September 3rd 1939 at youtube
Design for the New Climate March 29, 2011
Posted by Karen in climate change, design, environment.Tags: Blackburn report, cities, climate change, Design Ideas, Fukushima, John O Blackburn, Nuclear Energy Concerns
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Recently, I saw The Ideas Economy’s website and posted 2 ideas that I thought it would be useful. One was to design modular mobile smart housing that acts as a self sustainable unit; and the other a kind of ‘lead net’ that covers the entire nuclear plant in several layers before it actually explodes.
It just came to me after reading and following up the number of natural and man-made disasters that seems to erupt in a short span of 3 years. Regardless if the Mayans had been right about 2012, we have to prepare for a definite real climate that is today and the near future.Highly populated areas, usually in cities, do not have much open space for escape. As such, I am thinking of the many possibilities of designing the units and the ‘safety net’.
Climate change does not confine to the natural environment, about melting ice caps and the rise of sea levels. We are now facing another impending problem that is more instaneous and dire: terrorism. While we can add in rows of CCTVs, sending police and guard dogs to patrol at stations, airports, and sub stations; we must first eliminate any possible attack inland. For that reason alone, nuclear plants, oil rigs in danger points should be seriously considered for a permanent removal.The energy that we should use must be some form that we can contain in a much higher possibility. With the recent Fukushima Nuclear accident, signs are begining to show that the spread of radioactive pollution is going world wide. I think that is itself an expensive lesson to take and we have yet to see the full impact of the disaster.
I particularly liked the idea of solar energy. Many may not for the actual costs of producing them as compared to nuclear energy. But recently I have accidentally stumbled upon a paper by the late John O Blackburn, who wrote ‘The Historic Crossover:Solar Energy is Now the Better Buy’.(see reference below)
I really wouldn’t want to try nuclear in the long term given the change of climates now where there appears to be a rise in the number of
earthquakes.Naturally people may doubt about statistics. Despite the nature of hard core research stats, we live under the sky to know what is really happening. Sometimes, a better trust is within us. Within me, myself, I do not believe that nuclear is the solution. It has never been. With the Fukushima Nuclear incident, I am more than adament to vote against nuclear energy. You know how the Japanese work. They are very merticulous and responsible people. If this could happen, I think its serious enough to make a resolution. — Karen Fu, adapted from my own post to PhD forum.
Reference:
(A) The late John O. Blackburn, Duke University’s Professor Emeritus of
Economics and former Chancellor,
Solar and Nuclear Costs—The Historic Crossover: Solar Energy is Now
the Better Buy’ http://www.azocleantech.com/details.asp?newsID=11407
Obituary of Dr John Blackburn, which reflects his personality:
http://news.duke.edu/2011/01/blackburn.html
Prof Blackburn’s paper:
http://www.ncwarn.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/NCW-SolarReport_final1.pdf
(B) Nuclear waste recycling problems:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=rethinking-nuclear-fuel-recycling
http://www.nuclearwasterecycling.com/
(C) Nuclear reactors in quake zones: http://tinyurl.com/4kxux8u
My Frustration with Design Research March 31, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, creativity, Innovation, Product Design, research.Tags: change, Design methodologies, design thinking, research
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I have been reading design research posts to the point I am getting bogged down. I do not oppose research, else I wouldn’t be on the list and join the Design Research Society. I am a staunch believer of methodology, simply because without a sound and effective method of thinking, I cannot get my answers to existing problems.
People have several definitions to research. Design to many people means different things. Design to me is a specific term to a profession that looks into planning of given factors to form a solution. You could jolly call that Strategy, Plan, Architecture,Engineering etc. It basically means the same thing — systems orgainising and execution to form an finalised solution. It could be a policy, it could be a 2 dimensional product or it could be solid 3D form. It’s just that the dimension of the components are different. Different people are playing given factors to a problem differently. Hence the various sayings and arguements. At least that’s how I see it.
I usually do not take on to one theory that seriously. But I do view them as opinions mainly because different cultures sort problems differently. And I value and respect that seriously. They need to do so because that’s their way of living, seeing things in their own individual perspectives. People love to mention Rittel. Then they would also skew in Tim Brown, then John Chris Jones…or someone who can be recently become controversial as Don Norman ; and before you know it, people will start to debate about who failed to understand what and where it went wrong. Honestly, I don’t see that as important as to go down to earth and see the nature of the changing climate. What is crucial and neck cutting is to understand the different sets of problems. An effective design research is one that fully understands the nature of the problem. Once you’ve understood it, it applies to all different kinds of problems. That makes you a whole rounded poblem solver. Hence, to me, someone who cannot sort out social problems cannot be a true problem solver for a product which is going to be used by people. Products, in my eyes, are to be used by a living being. If we fail to understand the living interaction between a living being and the product, there is no point of desigining, and nevermind the innovation. People may dispute this, but I personally find it a good tool to coming up with ideas to solve problems quickly. We can fly to the edges of the universe, but we must always come back to the concept that we must solve problems permanently and not skirting around it in different fashions.
I often wonder when we can get out of the tangle. Perhaps taking the words out and place in pictures could solve part of the problem. Dan Roam and many others offer some cues to visual thinking. Or at some point, take away all the books and make people really brainstorm for a new way of seeing solutions. Then you will understand why I don’t appear to read too much into those books anymore. Not that I don’t respect them, but I won’t drool over them to the point of hanging there for ages. It sometimes gets you addicted, which is not that healthy for design research. To be able to do research, you must be free spirtited, sharp and quick to act on the materials given. Time is important and hence the aptness of mind to sort problems out outweighs stepping over the same areas again.– Karen Fu
Formation of a great nation is via education — character formation over the scores of ‘A’s April 4, 2011
Posted by Karen in education, ethics, human quality.Tags: character formation, education, great nation, ideals, impact of education
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GREAT NATION = Creative Quality of Skills + Moral Correctness +Humility + Industriousness
I believe that the power of education is formidable.
It shapes minds, thoughts and eventually all these will form a character. Devils or angels, I believe nurture does have certain impacts on a person. Hence I believe that education has at least a profound influence on a person upbringing This collective impact on every individual magnifies into the formation of the kind of society that we will have. It sounds like a no brainer but how often do we actually follow through the fundamentals of moral education when it is actually practised is no man’s clue.
Surely this is vital. Recent events have made me question about the quality of education. Our culture is getting to be almost pragmatic to the point that even kids at primary school have to compete firecely for the top schools so they will be ensured of the coveted scholarships and edication that will lead them to the world’s best colleges. Are we focusing in the shaping of minds or are we merely focusing on ‘A’s with a sideline or lip service towards forming positive characters. We often talk about sustainable environment via green technologies. How about sustainable living via a ‘green’ education system? Being green isn’t exactly what is in my mind. However in the truest sense sans the hue of the chlorophyll, my thoughts are that a society cannot be lasting and a great nation cannot last in prosperity and respected unless the people of that nation is packed with people of the brightest of minds, and the greatest of hearts.
I have sent in my concerns to an educational establishment just to test the waters. Strangely the people at the front desk and a couple of teachers weren’t that interested. They appear to cover up the flaws of certain top A scorers in school. I was about to chuck in another post when the head of the school stepped in, believing that character is important and took immediate steps to get the teachers to focus on the students. A leader and a fine learner can only come true if students embark on the right attitude to life in a selfless way. And only such leaders can lead a nation of properly trained people who are on the right moral and morale track.
Creative quality of skills make unique technologies and innovations that place the country in the world map. Moral correctness ensures a nation the respect that comes from the world. Humility, honesty and industriousness are unique enzymes that keep the entire nation’s system working.
It makes sense. No one likes bad people whose minds are only into self interests. Everyone can simply spot any bad guy in a distance, ironically including the bad guy himself. We often envy a great nation that saves the day. But there are times where a great nation could become arrogant and pompous that a fall is within. And I often believe that the greatness comes from the support by global citizens. When they cheer, they often cheer because they like the people, the culture and truly their living inspiration that motivates people in the most powerful way possible.
Education must induce that effect where the graduates will churn out of substance that builds, creates and knows what is righteous and stand behind justice in the most resilient form. We cannot choose to bend when it comes to social justice. I have recently come across a couple of incidents whom I adamently believe that education must pay a fierce instance on what is moral correctness. Why?
1. An ‘over culture’ focusing in scoring distinctions has an adverse effect,especially when it also entails the idea of materialism and power.When schools advocate the idea, the entire culture of studying instantly turns into a merciless study for grades. The selfishness starts to appear and the hypocrisy of being a nice student is all about staying ahead in the race for scholarship and the best schools.
2. When education starts to move into such direction, the idea of ‘self interest’ and rewards transform itself into work in industries in their adult lives.When this happens, the complexity of people running ideas for themeselves becomes a really selfish motivation. It happens in many societies.
3. the stress that is pushed through the system from the ministry to the schools and onwards to the students can be enormous. The idea of success via grades can hurt the ethics in an educational establishment. People tend to fight for rewards for the very wrong reasons.
I do not believe that a great nation can be formed, last, and continue in history without great people. Great people, for that matter, has to come from nurturing. Once we leave behind ourchildhood, our characters are fundamentally stuck in that form leaving very little room to change. The environment comes from the type of people we have and hence education in the right path determines how a nation would grow.- Karen Fu
Leaders for Singapore – 2011 election, a sincere thought. April 9, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, life challenges, Singapore.Tags: elections, leadership qualities, singapore
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I have been following the news of the coming elections. The heat is on and I can feel it’s different from the past. And I hope there will be more new blood coming into the scene. Times have changed and we need a different set of leaders who will effectively and efficiently bring us all to the next lap of peace and prosperity in a new dimension.
I was thinking what kind of leaders we should vote in. And there are a couple that I think is fundamental. Contrary to popular belief, governing a tiny county isn’t easy especially if it is in a unique ‘waters’. We need some top leader who is brave to lead a pack of very able group of ministers. I think, at this point, we have none though there are many very capable groups of people emerging in this pre-election. And many are from the legal profession. I hope we will see more talent who could sit into the different ministries in a more direct way where the minister will have a direct tertiary training that is straightforwardly useful in his/her ministry. I think it serves the best interest of all to have a direct professional unless we can’t find any.
The problems that we have today are of a different nature compared with the problems we have in the past decades. We need to be independent and stand up for ourselves as a very young and extermely tiny country in the future era where the change of political global climate emerges. People tend to pay much more attention to nations that are huge. We can be huge in our own unique way via our courage to chop down the odds and by creating our own set of knowledge and skill sets. People tend to respect countries where her people are brave, righteous, genuine, and innovative. No one respects any country that is pompous, arrogant and throws their might over others. We have a neat social order. But we need more than that — a society that is very inventive and has a very healthy view of issues.
The leaders we need to pick have to tough. The courage to turn mountains of obstacles and be tough to beat the odds. Not someone who needs any form of say or protection from already a group of seniors. That’s not a real leader. Take problems on independently; face the music. Politics or indeed life itself is not at all a smooth sailing one. One cannot expect full protection in comfort. Life isn’t a bed of roses where its fragrance will always await you. In reality,it’s a bunch of good, evil mixed in shades of grey. Fortunately there is a room for the genuinely good and kind for the law of nature forbids evil intentions.
We need leaders who can uphold justice in the highest order; someone whom everyone, both oppostion and the ruling party, will respect. Finding fine leaders who are not lured by monetary rewards is definitely hard in times when people these days have not rarely gone through destitude and poverty. In times where pragmaticism is around with material comforts are at its highest for many successful professionals; finding the right leader who can comprehend the poor, the needy and the disadvantage is a real task.
I hope the upcoming election will show a few really good men/women who will show us the renewed light for the next 10 years. It will definitely be a different world by then. And whoever is going to be the next prime minister has to be fiercely independent and extremely intelligent. For our survival needs are very different from large countries like China and the US. We need the kind of substance where our leaders can walk down any aisle anywhere in the world with an air of respect that is like no other. — Karen Fu.
Dreaming Design Thinking via Bruce Nussbaum’s ‘Design Thinking Is A Failed Experiment’ (Part 1) April 10, 2011
Posted by Karen in creativity, design.Tags: Bruce Nussbaum, CQ, creativity, design thinking, research quality
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[Image source: Radio 3 BBC.co.uk]
Was following Bruce Nussbaum’s Design Thinking Is A Failed Experiment.
And the first thing that came to my mind was that it is jingle. A lot appears to be in the grey. His book is going to be out next year and I have the feeling he wants to get some feedback.
Personally a great many questions come to my mind:
Can we actually learn to be creative by following certain behaviours? Yes. But can we imitate them? NO. Why? Because I think creativity involves originality. If you imitate behaviours, you may get a display of ‘ideas’ but you’ll miss the essence.
Design thinking is linked to creativity. As in any good thought processes, creativity is part of the quotient. We may try to measure them but in reality part of it is intrinsic and abstract. We cannot measure a person’s creativity as in the form of a formula. In my opinion, it doesn’t work. A creative person is so because it is his/her habit to observe in a curious, inspired, positive and inquisitive way — in a way that is intelligent, astute, wise and even playful. Always acquiring knowledge in an apt and diversified, non dogmatic and open mind. So is design thinking a failed experiment? I doubt it. It can be if only it is used in a silly way which any form of thinking would end up to be anyway.
Nussbaum appears to try to audit creativity. But measuring it makes it resembles that of another form of test. And tests do not exactly measure one’s ability due to a set form of criterias. It may serve as a guide but the guide can never be really wise to use as an absolute measure. It sounds like an subjective ranking system which I feel could be demeaning.
Design thinking is often seen as a failure perhaps of the quality of the research. Design methods do not solve big problems because of the nature of knowledge used. People in hard core sciences often see design methodologies and solutions in an inferior way as it solves ‘soft problems’. Problems that seem to look ‘less intelligent’ and even ‘cheap’. Its a brand image that the design profession needs to smartly change.All problems could be big or small. There is nothing wrong or less intelligent to solve ‘small problems’, but I often feel the image of the design profession is always short of being ‘intellectual’ somewhat.
Personally, I see true creativity when someone is able to structure their thoughts and mould it according to different scenarios of problems very aptly and efficiently. They invent systems. The most creative is able to make do with what is given and set forth. Such a person can not only solve aesthetic issues in the arts form, but can also solve a large variety of other problems in other fields like economics, social, and even life problems. I never see creativity in solely in its art or arts form. Its not a complete perspective of what creative means. It cheapens it. Design is about everything under the sky and beyond. If we need to tackle a problem, we need to know in an all rounded way. If we need to become effective problem solvers, and earn credibility; we must show our intelligence in holding substance in able to answer problems in many areas.
Can’t type anymore. Unknowingly its already 2:27am !! Will stop here for now. - Karen Fu
Squared Earth…a can of squirms… & our way of thinking. April 17, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, creativity, design, environment.Tags: cities, creativity, Daniel Nocera, Energy Conservation, Environment Concerns, green technology, life, Smart research, urban living
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It’s past midnight.
As a typical mid nite owl staring at her news for the day,I’d like to think we have a spherical earth. Well physically it is. But in reality, I really think it’s squared —cuboid in form with eight sharp corners, cutting others while it cuts itself.
We are so rigid and dogmatic in many ways more than we are supposed to be round and flexible, adaptable to different needs and social economic climates. That is, when we look at the the macroeconomical side of things. I often stand squished on train rides thinking about why we have these problems. And if we care to think a little longer, the similar problems we find here appears to be found in many other cities too.Yet our human intelligence in skills and knowlegde fail to solve them.
Elfinically, there are a couple of problems worth tinkering:
1. Why do we have energy problems in cities? Could a lap pool of water quench our thirst?
We are short of natural fuels. So we are looking at alternative fuels. Nothing wrong with alternative energies, but the actual nip of the energy crisis is that we, the smartest of all living beings alive on this planet, are utilising energy in very irresponsible ways unimaginable by even ourselves. It doesn’t really solve that much of a problem even if energy could be generated for the world could just come from a lap pool of water. Prof Daniel Nocera, Professor of Energy at MIT developed personalized energy that could help us to sustain in the long term. Regardless that I feel that we have not actually hit the base core of the problem, I love his ideas from an product innovation standpoint. Very creative ! And he delivers the hard core science in a simple and fun way that everyone enjoys it. I often feel that if we have more people like him, we’d solve plenty of other problems too. (We are way too silly in being complex creatures.)
Nocera also liked the idea of Solar energy and he plans to make it a very feasible alternative energy
I don’t usually like Chemistry more than Physics. But I honestly want to take his classes if I get the chance to. It’s often at such situations, that I often feel that hard core sciences are vital. Then again, when I often feel that the root problem is very much on the humanities perspective — that we are the genuine problem factor to solve. However, if we could sort our living habits together with Nocera’s energy innovation, our world would be in nirvana. When would that happen? I don’t know. But I would like to think its soon. We need it.
2. Why are we jam packed with people or cars ? Sometimes its a sardine packed sort of jam that consists of both people and vehicles.
Do we need cars in the first place? In many big cities in the world, it is so damn easy to get terrified by the stream of vehicles stuck in limbo. So stagnent that our roller blades may take us further than what our cars could take us. Yet we still want cars. Cars that drink both our money and energy; drive us not to our physical destination but drive us up the wall. Yet we give great business to car manufacturers. Strange isn’t it?
3. Social life trends. Relationships between people have changed. More complex in cities where different attractions are available. People tend to wonder between status and money most of the time. Even in marriages, it is common in the west to have pre-nups. Asia is catching up and I hope we will not surpass the divorce numbers in the west. It has a serious negative impact on the society as a whole. The west has a falling marriage rate because of the high divorce rates. As a result, more people choose to have partners and cohabit instead. I think it is a sad case. People may not realised it as such a culture has sunk in naturally as a whole, but if we start to compare cultures, it is easy to see how the high divorce rates link to a change in culture.
Also, in most urban areas, the genuine friendship at work, school or other general public areas; people have become to be more superficial in their manners and ethics. Often such leads to stress problems and many develop psychological problems that require professional help.
Why do you think new professions like psycholigsts, stress trainers etc come from? They emerge as we fail to simplify our thoughts about what life is and how our goals should be achieved. Health pays in the process. What goes around, comes around. Even if it needs to travel around all eight pointed corners.
We live in a strange world alright……but we can choose not to. Appropriate idiosyncracies is fine. Overdo it, and we’ll get a huge can of crazy worns which will make anyone squirm. Cheers for now…- Karen Fu
The Issue on Casinos in Singapore from the eyes of a Citizen April 19, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, life challenges, Singapore.Tags: Election 2011, simplicity, The Issue on Casinos in Singapore
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‘The purity and simplicity of a society gernerate peace & prosperity for the nation’.At least that is what I wrote in mandarin:’民风纯朴, 国泰民安’. And really this is what I feel.
I think this election is by far the most heated one to date; and I will talk about this from a personal and candid view as a local born and raised Singaporean. I wonder how many would take this seriously but I often feel that something is off when I think about the casinos despite the rules being set in place to make sure all is running in order. So far, it has been almost perfect though I can spot a change on the social ground. The casinos do generate billions but the social cost in the long term may be underestimated. That cost, I feel, has a lot to do with changing the social mindset about what ‘survial’ is.
{A} Response to Mr Lim Boon Heng’s emotional reaction.
SM Goh and PM Lee have made their comments in response to the setting up of the 2 integrated resorts that the government understands the implications of the casinos, but feel that the benefits are not obvious to all. Both cited that Mr Lim Boon Heng‘s emotional response came out from him as a devout Catholic, who abides to his religious cause. Mr Lim finally conceded to the idea of building 2 casinos as a way of creating massive number of jobs for the locals.
So far, the government has put in place strict measures to control gambling within the premises very well, making sure that gambling does not go out of hand. But can this last when it is going to expand? The implications of gambling does not stop physically. It sends signals to people about the changing scenario of what is a brilliant economy and beyond.
The casinos are there to stimulate the economy and therefore in a huge way generate jobs for the locals, mainly for the lower income group. But I still feel that they should go in due course. There are quiet signs of what these casinos are bringining in — mainly values that are inculcated into the minds of many. For the young, they question the existence of these world class gambling dens and more from older kids, who are more than intelligent to figure out what sort of societal trends are coming in. We have a bunch of very bright kids who now question norms. We should be very pleased of their personal development that they do not take what they are given. The sense of national belongingness is far stronger than it was ever before.
[B] Our forebearers.
Our forefathers, who mainly come from China and India, sweat their way through the colonial and the Japanese occupation years by toil and sweat, in the social class where we used to be 3rd class citizens. We’ve made it from ‘coolie’ to first class economy where people are no longer illiterate & unable to control their lives. Their lives were sacrificed but they taught us what success was– industriousness, thrift, excellence in acdemia & at work. The idea of gambling was seriously scorned at. Anyone who gambled or haboured thoughts of gambling was really taught a lesson. And so our grandparents ploughed their years to support a family of usually at least half a dozen on meagre earnings. But their children were usually brought up very well. I always remenber during my childhood days going back to Aljunied to have the weekends spent with my relatives. Those were the days when people were really simple at heart but shared what they had with others. If anyone in the neighbourhood was feeling lost in some way, there would always be help just next door. If it wasn’t right next door, someone along the corridor would come. They harboured nothing complex at all.
[C] The simple idea is probably a better idea.
Simple in virtue, steadfast in what ever duties they are given — our ancestors came up to who they were by ensuring a purity of minds and a passion for earnesty & hard work, sheer thrift and a pure emphasis in top education. These were the basis to break out from the ‘coolie’ poverty status. From a scrappie education structure that survived because people wanted to be more than great (laid the foundation of industrioiusness & intellectual astutedness) to become what it is today. In any case, success has never been about gambling.
Simplicity through the ages has not dampen our intellectual thought. We grew because we had a pure heart and honesty that many trust. Our image is that of a squeaky clean society where people respect one another, and that our citizens develop a penchant for learning and tolerance for others. We still have that and I hope we will maintain it without the tarnish of image by any kind.
[D] Something ‘out of point’ — the candidates.
So what is in for the coming election? Based on the candidates, I don’t feel comfortable with many of the new faces. Not because of their ages but because of the way they carry themselves as being lack of substance. When we talk about poverty and life experiences, we don’t expect people who plainly say they have experienced them all when they were younger;or claiming that they come from humble beginnings. It is not enough. Go and mix with the really destitute and go sit and observe the people around you not along the hustle and bustle of city centres. Notice how some very old folks have to work for a living. Or see how a lot of middle aged workers have to settle for lower pay in an edgy world economy to support their growing children. The atmosphere is different from the 50s, 60s or even the 70s. The struggle is about staying alive in an extremely competitive environment where it is further competed with foreign workers who may not be as competent but comand a lower pay. Many parents think that the only way to survive is to get their children in coveted schools and better still the scholarships. I cannot blame them because this is the very environment that we are in.
Contrary to some belief, we are not that short of talents. Many have gone abroad to study and resided overseas. It is a matter of getting these people back, whose education and experience is probably higher than some whom we have taken in. Of these top calibre people, many are not comitted to politics. On another point, while we are churning out numerous numbers of top graduates; many of whom are not as passionate as our predecessors when it comes to serving the nation. So in that sense, we are going to have a tough time looking for the fine leader who will lead a grand pack of ministers.
What is our future going to be will be dependent on whom we, the citizens of this country, are going to pick. But I do hope that the leaders will seriously look into the role of casinos. Should we continue to use them, they have to fulfill certain objectives. Failing which we should really consider closing them. Still, in the long term, I feel they should really disappear. — Karen Fu
Dare you make this Change – a proposed ministerial nominee for the coming Singapore elections « Daring to Change April 20, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: My nominee for parliament, singapore, Singapore election thoughts, Woman of Substance
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I just couldn’t resist taking the time to pick out the important lessons off from her talk when she received her commendation from Venerable Jingkong some 3 years ago. I may have missed a couple of points,but I think I have somewhat covered most of the pointers. I only have pockets of time to do this and I thought the best format would be in the form of a ‘poetry’. And I call this ‘Dare You Make This Change’ — Lessons from Hsu Chih. She is an extremely humble person, but I thought she’s got lots of cool factor that is humble yet gutsy; old yet young. Here’s my shot for the day:
想年轻 就年轻!
Think young and thou shalf be young!
吃
很浪费时间干嘛
买菜 洗菜
又煮菜
餐餐洗碗
多麻烦 !
Eating is a waste of time
Why waste it on
Buying food, washing them
& cooking them
After whish
the hell of washing follows
What a chore!
不如看书
做有意人的事情 更妙 !
Might as well read books
Do chores to benefit mankind Such is a pure wonder!
她
只有爱人的宗教
没有别的
心清静
头脑只为为众生
She
Only harbors the idea of Love
Love is her religion
Nothing else.
The heart is at peace
And the mind is for humanity
切勿动干火!
因为
发脾气 浪费时间
伤害自己 伤害别人
Boil not your head
‘Cos
Fuming churns away your time
Harms yourself & others
不拿病人的钱
人家给她的钱
她全给其他穷人
交水电 房租
买粮食Not taking patient’s money
Whatever money that is given to her
She passes it on to the poor
To pay for bills, rent
To buy food.
她从不浪费
因
照顾的人很穷,所以
一定一样跟他们一样的穷
She never wastes
‘Cos
there are many poor people to take care of
That’s Why
she feels she needs to be as poor as them
爱
她信仰是个‘爱’
永远爱世人 爱众生Love
Is her mantra
Always love humanity, love all fellow beings
她投其四好:
存好心,说好话
行好事, 做好人
百年功绩
就在她 执着的博爱
She focuses on mainly four beliefs:
Keep a good heart, say the wise words
Do the good deeds, practice being a good person
100 years of achievements
lay on the principle of compassion.
苦人太多,贫穷人太多
跟最穷的人一起往来
她的生活要比他们好,她的心不安
这是真的,不但自己心不安
穷人看了会怕;
Sad people are many, poor people are many
Mingle among the poor and interact with them
She feels uneasy when she is better than them
This is real: Not that she feels uneasy
The poor who sees the better off are uneasy
必须过和他们同样的生活
跟大多数人打成一片
就是和平共处的苦心状举!
Henceforth the effort to experience the poor’s life
Be part of the majority
Such heartfelt emphathy is the foundation of peace !
– compiled in the stanzas in the middle of the night by Karen Fu…
Night All !
PS: The basis of peace formed by Teresa Hsu may be a tall order. If not almost impossible, but I believe that if we could move towards the basis of empathy in her direction, we would have sorted out a lot of problems in life. The essence of thrift, sharing and compassion could take us all out of misery that is stemmed out from jealousy, greed and poverty.
If there were no age limit, I would really like to vote for Centenarian Hsu Chih as a minister. Perhaps a designated special post for her to serve as a life’s inspiration that there is always hope, faith and love for people who have a passion for life. I think its very meaningful. And she deserves it.
A minister is a respected leader who selflessly give to his / her people in action that is as solid as his/her words. Her almost 100 years of track record is nothing short of brilliance. Her humour belongs to some of the finest. Her tenacity is one of the toughest, for she stands by herself, for herself and for the people whom she used all to care and cherish. Albeit her age, she thinks clear, sees clear and hears very clearly. Perhaps a little slow now. But considering her heart is golden and her thoughts are pure; if there were a chance, she would be great mentor at the very least.
I truly admire her substance. Something that is grown over time in the sheer test of poverty and hunger; who shines and get noticed because people accidentally discovered her.
She is a definitely a national gem and I think we are very fortunate to have her ! — Karen Fu
Nicole Seah – the youngest candidate of the coming Singapore Elections. April 27, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: National Solidarity Party, Nicole Seah, Singapore election 2011
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I can’t help but to share quick thoughts after reading more detail of Nicole Seah. I like this candidate very much.
When I first read her name in the papers, I had thought she was just another candidate in her 20s trying to make a ‘win buck’ out of this election and didn’t bother to read anymore. Up until today, Nomination day, when I was skimming through the election map online that I really look into the candidates in more detail. I’ve skipped past a lot and skim them off like fat from full cream milk, especially when candidates are just purely young, having merely the usual credentials and talk nothing much. I don’t buy these.
What impresses me most is that Nicole has a very mature sense of life given her age. She seems to know how to handle the media in the most earnest way. Nothing huge in her credentials, just down to earth talk about what she had seen and what she thought she could do in her own right. — beyond many 20-somethings or even those who are way into their 30s, 40s. And some sneaky times, right into their old age. She presents herself who starts small and reads into what others are suffering. I hope she will fully do what she pledges. Taking the plunge into the real change takes more than guts. You need the perseverance and the due diligence & especially intelligence to beat all kinds of people and issues that will stand against you in the test of time. It is hard. And by due means, more than difficult in the face of the real world where power and politics are present. How will she do it? I cannot be 100 percent sure. By the way she speaks, she shows an unduly confidence way beyond her years. To make a full assessment of her, let the coming 10 days show how she interacts and debates with different media sources and with other candidates. She is pitting against one of the toughest wards — Marine Parade GRC where SM Goh Chok Tong is in. Her chances of winning the election may be low, but I believe her life has changed. I also feel she is under employed somewhat. A position in the parliament would be her good call in the near future.
I am impressed!
Got to run off for now. Just thought I must post this. — Karen Fu
Late night thoughts on Nicole Seah & what she represents for + other thoughts on the coming election. April 27, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: Nicole Seah, Singapore elections 2011, Thoughts on the Singapore Election
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Coming back home sitting in front of my PC and re-reading Nicole Seah. I feel she has proven a couple of issues:
{A} Singapore does have talent — polical talent.
Those who are willing to stand up and fight for their cause in the most civilised way that is of integrity as well as intelligence. We have people who have the guts to do real change. Nicole seems to understand the machanics of politics as well as understood the ground level of the poor.
[B} The Issue on Elite education
She claims she is not a scholar from a coveted foreign universtiy. But then again, the local university has grown leaps and bounds to be one of the best in the world. She was also a scholar under the University's scholar programme. So I don't know if we can exactly say she is not an elite. Then again the real problem about 'elites' is not so much because of the scholarship. It has a lot to do with the over confidence and ego that tag with it. If you are great at your studies, you would naturally come to be a scholar. I don't think being a scholar is a problem. Neither does scholar from elite schools is a problem. But in today's materialistc and pragmatic environment, going to the top and be materially well off are seen as successful. What she has shown so far is her staunch sense for justice. The kind of earnesty in her tone is what attracted me. That would most likely be attributed to your young age and for that matter people who are idealistic tend to be far more attractive. She speaks out with a very convincing and logical tone that would make people sit up and listen to her. This is one of the most important traits of a successful politician. For this is the kind of tone that will gather and motivate crowds. If she could continue delievering this kind of assurance in her words, honor them with convincing action and not mere rethoric; I am sure she will win big in this coming election.
[C} Humility
I am definitely impressed by how she handles questions right in the face. It is no small matter that people are following her on facebook. and due to her humilty, people are genuinely giving her their advice. She will certainly stand a great chance learning a lot within the next 10 days. No one knows how she will perform; but I know from experience that when someone who has serious thoughts on certain issues, they will fight for their causes. Such a motivation grows a kind of charisma that can move mountains. The voice of hope must be accompanied by detailed plan of action. When one is able to show that credibility, you will be sure that a fine leader is born. I like people who can strike out on their own merit. In this very respect, I do not underestimate her latent abilities. Whether she will progress ahead, we shall see her real abilities in the near future.
[D] Other thoughts on the coming election:
Today we have most of the successes in place but there are areas where I personally feel need changing. When I read through the news, though I have not managed to cover all, I have the impression that many lack life experience. The kind of life experience that entails living through hardship and experience what commoners suffer seems lacking. Even with Nicole Seah.
I do not have any political affinity for many reasons. The most pertinent one is that I don’t even like politics. But politics is a fundamental part of our lives whether we like it or not; as it is very much alive in our daily living. So I have to be at least aware. My hopes is that whichever political party is taking over the baton to govern this country has to enrure or at least solve immediate problems, probably not obviious to some but visible to many.
There are problems in different dimensions. Perhaps the real issue in this coming election is about pockets of loopholes in the policies that look great. We have world class education, but we have sky high fees. It may look low when compared with other countries; but if you were to really ask people from the ground, a lot of lower middle class and working class folks say they cannot afford fees at some of the coveted top schools. I am not perfectly sure why this is a problem when I’ve thought that there are scholarships lying around. Very often, we need to see the reality.There are people who cannot pay medical bills despite medisaves, medifunds and medicares. But the third dimension of this sort of problems really links to income and the proportion of these earnings that is spent on bills. Foreign talent has always been a topic, not so much because Singaporeans do not welcome them but because some of these talent are not really talents but workers who come in at the expense of locals of similar calibre. Foreign talent can stimulate our economy by giving us the technical expertise that we may or are really short of. A progressive country is one that attracts the world’s best and tap on their expertise to benefit our society; allowing the locals to further their knowledge and skills to improve their innovations in both product and service. However foreigners can be a double edged sword if we do not have the tact to do so because we are a very tiny nation. Some issues are mainly about the difference in cultures. Some on the unwillingness to conform. There are many. Any unrest between local and foreigners can be dire. And because we are a small country, many things are hard to tackle.
This coming election has cooked up a lot of issues. The quality of candidates for the opposition parties has shown marked improvement. Former government scholars like Chen Show Mao joining to opposition parties is getting popular and more accepted than in the past. What I am worrying now at this point of writing is that of a chaos that might come in. This election is different from the past. It is even different from the one 5 years ago. I have never seen polarising situation such as this. But I hope I am wrong
Indeed there is plenty of room for improvement. The nature of issues today are far different than it was back in the 1950s, 60s or even till the 70s. I wasn’t born then, but to hold some of the past in the present, I have learnt a great deal from my grandparents and teachers who most of them are already deceased. In their memory, Singapore suffered through being a small country, where poverty existed. Then there was a line of unrests, social and racial riots. Jobs were unstable and chaos was rampant. The way we rise and the way we fall are very closely linked to the dynamics of the social and economic costs. I hope whoever is taking up the future debates of this coming election will address these costs seriously.– Karen Fu
The Roaring Tide Has Come – Singapore Elections 2011 May 5, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: National Pledge, Singapore elections 2011
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The National Pledge :
- ‘We, the citizens of Singapore,
- pledge ourselves as one united people,
- regardless of race, language or religion,
- to build a democratic society
- based on justice and equality
- so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and
- progress for our nation.’
Am stunned by this crowd. This is not led by the ruling party as what some people may have thought; but by the Worker’s Party. Note the crowd’s roaring the Singapore national pledge, which is even louder than the national day.
Like many, I’m still staying up to catch the wind of the coming elections through the social media. I get the feeling that we will not see the final outcome until the 8 May 2011.
The 2011 Elections has shown a lot of firsts: from the largest number of contituencies being contested to the number of people actually attending the rallies. And a rare apology from the Prime Minister was an eye opener, especially when it comes in just 3 days before polling day. This is an election unlike the 14 others before. You could see this as a maturity of a very young nation seeking for a change of political culture. A change which Singaporeans, both new and native, want to be part of this huge stake and that’s great leap forward. Much of the action has come off from the physical groung into virtual space, where social media is heavily used. Even the Prime Minister had his first taste of conversing with youngsters on facebook for an hour where there were some 5500+ people online. Opposition parties sprung up to media platforms like facebook and twitter overnight, widening their audience reach online.
A politcially apathetic country has suddently turned alive. For whatever it is, there is a heightened sense of national identity and patriotism that is never seen before. Coming in less than 2 days, Singapore citizens will go to the ballots to cast their votes. I have in mind what the elections would turn out and have a couple of scenarios. The results will show the minds of the people and the future course of governence. Hopefully all will go on well and that promises will not be broken as they have been made during the campaign. It is clear that many people want the best for this country. And certainly, the tide has come for us to learn about the lessons picked during this election, that anyone with the heart and brains can suddenly pop out from somewhere big. And things could swirl in whirl of action. But we must truly learn from them and progress it from here. Then can we call that a ‘Change’– Karen Fu
INFOGRAPHIC: Singapore elections: What’s at stake | ABS-CBN News May 6, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: infographics, Singapore elections 2011
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Results – a new era has begun – Singapore elections 2011. May 7, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: Election results, Singapore elections 2011
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The results of the Singapore Election 2011 are all out. Most of the results are generally expected. I think its worth the time to look at certain areas. Overall, the PAP has experienced a drop in their votes. The main reason, as I suspect the Prime Minister has realised during the election, is the lack of communication between the incumbent party and the people. BG Yeo and Mr Lim Swee Say have made some thoughts about their flaw in loosing touch with the people.All have reiterated that they know the people are not pleased with a lot of the recent policies and are willing to hear the people out soon after the election.
[A] The use of social media
Nonetheless, the power of social media cannot be underestimated as an effective tool for communication. Though it cannot replace the actual bond with the people, the virtual tool to link with the people does deliver a powerful impact. In this election, the Worker’s party has effectively utilized their channels very well through consistency. They’ve used a very powerful virtual delivery of their aim–and their ‘A’ team has done what they aim to achieve— the people’s support. The PAP used the social media late & somewhat not as successful; but nonetheless in their own way through the Prime Minister in his recent communication with the people through Facebook. I feel that has somewhat gave a positive impact in PAP’s favour. I think the PAP will certainly review and revamp in some big ways to ensure they will recover the lost votes in this election by the next election.
Having a genuinely strong ability is one, having soft tools like the social media is another. From this election, besides learning a lot about the candidates, the agenda, as well as how our future would be heading with a changed political awareness, a probably new political environment may well be underway. I hope it will be a constructive exchange of ideas in the parliament. Often, a renewed motivation spurs on better ideas and work when one has a highly competitive opponent on the bench. This will yield higher standards.
[B] Earnesty pays
I am somewhat dismayed about Nicole Seah’s lost though I had expected her to loose because of her lack of experience and that she was facing the Senior Minister with a team that was lacklustre. She has put up a tough fight and I think she did very well leading her team in the Marine Parade GRC against Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong by garnering around 43% of the votes. She should be highly commended for her bravery, her earnesty and her hard work And not forget her tears. I think all that paid through. I wonder if she could be a NCMP (Non-Constituency Members of Parliament). For a 24 year old first timer in politics, this is excellent result on her part. She should be happy in this respect and I believe that many Singaporeans would love to hear her views in parliament, if she is given a chance to.
[C] SPP’s lost in both wards.
Singapore People’s Party’s lost wasn’t totally unexpected. I have been thinking about their candidates and their performance so far and I had doubted people would take them back for a few good reasons — mainly the lack of strong leadership. Mr Chiam See Tong has extreme tenacity but he didn’t show himself as someone who was able to lead the party in unison. To add on to the woes, he was clearly physically unwell. His GRC team mates are also not seen as strong contenders who could assist him in his leadership. So although he was in a GRC, they didn’t win. But I had second thoughts that people would vote him in on a thin margin, as he has been really tough in carrying on throughout the tedious campaigning despite his clear physical weakness. Clearly in the end, it didn’t pay off.
[D] The Power to Communicate
This election is really about communication – the kind that spells care, concern apart from cleverness. I think PM Lee has won on a comfortable margin in his personal attempt by winning about 70% of the votes. In general, I think he was sincere in his apology. So was Mr Wong Kan Seng, who has delivered a modest message by thanking even those who didn’t vote for him and pledges to serve them well too. These are powerful statements. Though till now, I am not too happy about the Mas Salamat case, it somewhat soften the whole scenario. The power of communication is definitely a wonder. It may be a soft tool but it is certainly the most important.
The most successful in using the media and motivating the people to run against the grain is still the Worker’s Party. I have not seen anything like it before in my life so far. They’ve used patriotism to move the crowds in powerful tones, using the national pledge as part of their forte. All these contributed their win, which I feel came mainly from their understanding of people’s needs and emotions.
[E] Conclusiion
Actually the opposition parties have not done too badly. In fact, they should see this as a big step forward. Like what BG Yeo has said, ‘ a new era has begun’. Whatever happens, we are all Singaporeans. And for that very matter, we should stand united and move forward to serve our country with pride in every way we can – both leaders & people, hand in hand. That’s constructive communication at its finest. Time to pop into bed. I think I am going to be late again. *sigh* — Karen Fu
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Reference
Voice of the People in the name of the Flag May 12, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: Chen Show Mao, Nicole Seah, politics, Pritam Singh, Singapore elections 2011, Singapore Flag, value-adding lives
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Just watched ‘Focus 30′ over at Channel 8. Zheng Yueli spoke in Mandarin about the aftermath of the Singapore Elections 2011 and I was left thinking what we have learnt so far. The lost of Aljunied GRC appears to be a wake-up call to many. PM Lee has stated that the government has heard the people and will look into improvements. The impact of change after the election is there; and I believe during the campaigning, it has already been recognized.What’s more important is the graciousness of the candidates who vow in unison to make this tiny dot of ours a better place to live in. I hope all these will be materialised.
So what have I learnt ? Apart from thinkiing about our nation building and the problems we are facing, we need a lot of work. It is not just the politicians at work but I feel all of us need to figure out our new role in a changed Singapore. Fundamentally I think we need a change in the way we think about our lives– philosophically and materially. The concept of success needs to be challenged. I think on many levels, it has actually eat us up. The quality of living is far more than measuring how much we have. It is really about sharing with those who do not have. Basic as it seems, we often forget that a peaceful and prosperous life is mainly reliant on being generous and kind. Countries that promote solely on the basis of monetary success are fraught of crimes of varying types. That’s another issue. I too think that we need a real flip in our way of thought. We are far too linear and too pragmatic. There is plenty to say about how a redesign of thought could change for the better. But for now, I think it would be wise for me to just focus on the voice of the people.
[A] Voice of the People
The election may have been over but the fevor from it all has not exactly subsided. As I flip through vidoes on Youtube, blogs on the internet; there is a clear message that comes out from all these. There ideas on Facebook, from votes to open letters, it’s easy to see the true sentiment of the people. The rallies have spoken for themselves. Clearly the tide has changed. To fail listening to these voices will be a big mistake.
Of the many candidates, the opposition has actually fared better this time with a far greater unison than in any other election before. I really like Nicole Seah and Pritam Singh, though I still prefer Nicole Seah for her guts. Pritam Singh has a strong voice which could drive the lungs out of his opponents in sometimes colloquial humour.Anyone who listened to them would know how much they would want to serve the people. I told myself there was strong zeal in these people. There is little benefit for them to join the opposition, which makes their cause even more convincing. The reason why they can move crowds because they resonate with the people, feel for the people and seriouosly committed to the people in need. Surely they have not lived the times of the last century in the 50s or the 60s when riots, poverty and hunger were at its worst. MM Lee Kuan Yew, then a young and charismatic leader, fought through the crowds with convincing thunderous tone that got his supporters moving. I wasn’t any where then but I read through history and heard from predecessors how the word ‘Merdeka‘ resonated through the supporters. The unmistakably roar got Singapore into the making that everyone now knows. The current problems are of a different nature. Though they cannot see what was then, they can see what is now; and they have earnestly voice what they feel & how they want to help the people. The cause is just as convincing. Had their voices were completely wrong, they would not have garnered so much support, not only from their peers but from a large general public,that also includes their seniors. I think there is a common calling here. And I am glad that this calling is being recognized.
The whole meaning of listening and seeing what is beyond the context of the problem and recognising there is a lot of hard work to do to help, is what people really appreciate. Money cannot buy a lot of things –typically the emotional needs of people and the desperate need to be heard and be appreciated.
On the ground, the micro problems of people and their lives are the fundamental and most crucial in maintaining a nation’s prosperity. I see the stability of people’s lives as the basis of maintaining a nation’s peace. The problems must be addressed. But how do you get the relevant help? effectively? Politics? Economics? Design? Or plough your way to give whatever you have to people. I think its a combination of politics, economics and design. Designing of systems — be it physical structures or philosophical structures, our sense of thinking must be formed on the basis of helping the people. I have been thinking, which is the best way to implement all these? In essence, we are for the people.
[B] In the name of the Flag
Now why would I want to bring in the flag? Firstly, I like to look at my country’s flag. Secondly, its because this election has been more than patriotic. Finally, because there were a few politicians who had mentioned about national unity, makes me look at our flag more. From a symbolic point of view,its got red that represents the common blood of all people to stand as one. And the white renders the purity and virtue of the people in the face of adversity. The 5 stars represent the ideals of democracy, chiefly democracy, peace, progress, equality and justice. The cresent represents a young nation on the rise.
I recall the issue on collecting the best people for the team and I quote Chen Show Mao on the note on ‘Team Singapore: ‘The team that was sending to the world cup is the national team. The team that wears red and white, not white and white.’
I would like to add that within the red and white, there’s the stars and the crescent. And beyond the red and white there is the blue skies. There are always other elements that make up a fine team apart from the 2 colours or so. Just like the twinkling of stars that lit the dark skies and the crescent of the moon that shows its rising potential. We should never forget that there are other laws of nature that will oversee us all. The law of nature never allows just a singular component to over shine or to over rule. It is always a harmony of all elements that make up the beautiful world. : )
Its almost 2:30am again. But before I log off, I would still like to put this famous video up for now. I think it has been left on several people’s blogs whether they have supported the ruling party or for the opposition. It is simply a fiesty roar from our fellow citizens. Be moved by the voice of the people. ‘cos I do. I don’t know how others feel, but I think it’s good voice to hear, to think and to change ‘Auf Wiedersehen’ for now.- Karen Fu
Promoting Civic Mindedness — side thoughts after pending departure of MM Lee & SM Goh. May 15, 2011
Posted by Karen in Singapore.Tags: Civic Mindedness, MM Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore elections 2011, Singapore Parliament, SM Goh Chok Tong
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Following posts and comments on Facebook, and there are thousands who have posted their thoughts about the past election. Some are voicing their views about the pending departure of both MM Lee Kuan Yew and SM Goh Chok Tong. The maturity of thought is evident. Most do not favour either of them to leave the Cabinet as mentors. They may have some views that do not tally with everyone, but what is of common knowledge is that they often give insights of issues that could be otherwise be missed by others — especially MM Lee’s, whose views are usually highly respected globally despite his usual iron fisted karate-chop.
I often feel that we should look at the individual politician’s calibre and capabilities that will value-add to our society, regardless if they are from the ruling party or the opposition. Having said that, I also feel that some outstanding individuals should be allowed into parliament apart from the NCMPs (Non-Constituency Members of Parliament) to promote politics in a civil society. There are many outstanding educators, businessmen, engineers et cetra who may not like to be in the shoes of a politician but are civic minded to show their concern in mainstream social economic issues. These people should be taken note of and be allowed to voice their views from time to time in parliament. It will certainly make the Singapore parliament a more vibrant, intellectual and productive place of social interaction . — Karen Fu
My quick comments on catherinelim.sg » After GE 2011, some crystal-ball gazing May 15, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: catherine lim's blog, MM Lee Kuan, Nicole Seah, opposition party, Pritam, Singapore election 2011, Singapore Parliament, SM Goh Chok Tong
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A New Era Has Begun: PM Lee announces new Cabinet lineup May 18, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, Singapore.Tags: New Cabinet Line Up, Singapore elections 2011
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I can’t tell you all how happy I am about the new line up ! Hope this new change will spell a new start and that version 2 of nation building begins. I like the fact that there will be constant review of ministers and that will mean keeping a close monitor on progress. But I feel that the change of people should be also linked to the civil servants too.One of the main reasons for the miscommunication and the detachment of government & people may well be because there are civil servants who have not done their duties well. While we ensure the progress and work of ministers, I feel that the quality of their subordinates and many others who are below them, is just as important. The system is imperfect, and in some areas not good at all. But this election has done a great cause. It has basically enabled tough decisions to be ironed out fast.
Coming back to the new line up of ministers, it is obvious that the voice of the people are heard loud and clear; and that action has been taken almost immediately. It is a first move but I can feel that this is good move though we have yet to see more of its impact. It does appear that the PM has seriously looked into those open letters online too. There are a few others that are not done yet and I don’t expect those to be done easily. It is a very wise move from the PM and the resolute move to take out ministers that the people do not like out. PM Lee is well-known to do what he has promised; and I can trust that the matters laid on the board will be seen. What I have noticed too that the transportation service has already taken effect. It is only wise to take these actions quickly and I think that they will look into other views of them seriously.
I have also been reading comments online and I have come to think hard. Though many bloggers appear to write in annoyanmously — some with oddball names; and for one particular instance: an egg shell face with a crazy looking smile that is indescribably painful looking. My take is that it is best to put some kind of identity to the blogs that are meant to be important. It shows credibility and trust of the site and to people who are reading them. Anyway, there are many who are worried about the future that lies ahead. And I am of no exception. The various problems in our society is not a simple one admidst a world that is constantly changing and with different problems emerging. But when I start to see alternatives, I too question about the pending problems. The ruling party is going to have a lot of issues to juggle with, apart from a new slate of opposition party members in.I can see a lot of nit picking & in some areas, probably a couple of storms in a few teacups ahead. Whatever happens, I hope both parties–ruling&opposition– in parliament will keep in mind that apart from the politics of slicing, thrashing and karate-ing; the most important is to win peoples’ hearts by sheer devotion into peoples’ needs. I wouldn’t like to see shouts, arguments, and ideas that do not work in the end. It may sound crazy to put this up but I think politics is great when it is demure (if that is possible), and that it is not an eye-popping session of ripping one another apart. ( I don’t know why I write this, but somehow it just has to be written down ?!) Maybe it’s because I have read and seen debates all the time on research and speeches. But hopefully all will be well. Cheers! — Karen Fu
Epic Pic Of Singapore Politics via Facebook – United for the common good of Singapore May 22, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, faith, human quality, Singapore.Tags: Epic Picture, Lee Kuan yew, Singapore Politics, Singapore Swearing Into Cabinet 2011
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I was looking at the picture. And along with many others on Facebook, I too feel that this is one fine photo. I have asked if I could kindly use the picture directly here. I doubt it though. I’ve shared it on my facebook page and I guess for now, I can only use a this tiny print screen picture off my wall. It features both the opposition and ruling party members, notably with our first Prime Minister of Singapore Mr Lee Kuan Yew, standing together in the most casual and candid way one could ever imagine. Especially true after the heated debates and rallies that at least made me thought that the hammers and thunders were rocking the skies. Storms may come, but every after a heavy rain with that bit of sunshine comes the brilliant rainbow. And I sure hope that the beginning of this new chapter of Singapore politics will change and perfect itself with the introduction of 6 formidable opposition members. May the roar of the lion echoes its way beyond the horizon and resonates throughout the clear blue skies; where even the skies are not the limit, for peace, progress and happiness for this nation!
Here’s a tiny little weeny pic for your glimpse here. But if you cannot keep your curosity like I have done, then please either login to your facebook accounts or snoop your way to this link under ‘Pritam Singh’s Photos – Cabinet Swearing In’ . I think the picture will go to the papers anyway in due course. It’s too good to miss ! – Karen Fu
Scholarship, research and design – its relevancy to both human society & nature October 12, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, design, education, Innovation, research.Tags: design, education, PhDs, research, tertiary education
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I have been skimming through the threads on PhDs, education, design and about substance without brilliance. To be honest, I really feel like ‘crying’. So were the few who had read them over my shoulders. First off to clear out the verbose clot, we need to question the basics of education if we are delivering the right skills to students of the right calibre. Next off, we need to ask if we are teaching the right ethics and ideas about what design should be. This includes not only in the area of the arts but in other fields of engineering design, service design, social innovation etc. They are, in my opinion, linked. For without a sound mind of thought and knowledge in a sharp logical way, clear creative thinking cannot be formed. It is as simple as that. We need to also ask if we have been designing for the sake of designing. Or are we chanting the mantra without asking why we need to use a certain technology. At times advance technologies may be harmful. We need not use ‘progressive’ technologies in certain areas; but we must have a progressive mind to know what is good, and what is bad. Then we are talking about the true usefulness of scholarship, research and design. Many times, we are creating more problems to the problems. Do we really need a microchip to push out the water from the sprout? Does a cup of coffee taste best using a US$3500 machine when someone with the right hand tools would suffice. At some levels, ego seems to be eating us up. Our environment is damaged because we have lost touch with the ground. What is the point of PhDs when you’ve loose the fundamentals? I seem to have been reading a chunk of many words on forums at PhD-Design. Surely the type of words show power and we do need words to communicate over the internet. Its fast & it’s damn quicker to run the keyboards than to even draw or make models.
But at several points, I seem to feel we are students studying English Literature;
while in reality we need to learn design literature, social economics literature, engineering literature, politics etc..Words are there to portray thoughts but words can never display full ideas. They are definitely valueless if they are always being repeated several times.
Should words be used to create ‘class disparities’ ? Definitely not. But it does appear that certain cultures have to be dogmatically followed. That itself stifles that idea of thought. I think there are some ideas about what design education should be; and what research should be. I really love to study and research on design issues. — its basically about life quality in terms of design. But at times, when I read some research views or work; I would start to question about the methods and the ideas behind it. Do we really understand what is research and how to teach research ? What kinds of mindsets and attitudes should we bear in mind ? Sometimes, I find them ‘funny’. At times I find it frustrating. At rare points, reading them makes you wanna ‘cry’.
Taking up a postgrad isn’t that attractive now as I seem to be seeing more problems than solutions. It’s probably the ‘horror’ I read off from certain people on the forum and also the people whom I met. They seem to sound so rigid at times. But I still like to think I could do a postgrad because of 1 reason: teaching. Colleges don’t hire people without a postgrad qualification to teach unless it were to mean guest lecturing. I am studying on my own and seem to be very happy with it. I’ve also come to realize that in higher education, people tend to despise non-postgrad or non PhD graduates. A certain egoistical pride in the way some people view their post grad degrees. That’s also one of the reasons I keep away from the degree. Then again, people can still say I am not good enough to study for one. I have got a different style in expressing myself in which everyone can understand me. No profound words, no ‘profound’ looks. Plain and simple. Maybe that’s why some people don’t really like my style.
I think life isn’t that complex if we chose not to. We live in a oddball world where many people do not die from the disease that they got in the first place. They often die from the side diseases that they contracted later. Advancement in technologies may curing diseases, but if we fail to understand what is the root of the problem, then we are not eradicating problems.Take some breathing space to ponder about how we live. Then you will understand where I come from. It would certainly be a question of character if one does something awfully different from what they preach. That’s a shame on design integrity.– Karen Fu, before late bed time snooze..
Waiting for the final moment (Singapore Presidential Election 2011) August 27, 2011
Posted by Karen in Singapore.Tags: life, Presidential Election 2011, singapore, Tan Jee Say
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I am still all ears and eyes on the internet, the TV and even the radio like my family members and neighbours here. For the past decades, no presidential election is like this one, which requires recounts to make a final mark. It signals an evolutional change for the country, her people and system of governance. Instantly, the social environment has changed into a far more engaging and patriotic atmosphere that this country is coming to be. Singaporeans everywhere here and abroad are using their social media tools, following up closely to every bit of news at home. It wasn’t this way when I was a child. Not even this much when I was at college. And for this very matter, I feel heart-warmed.
During the process, I have come to witness how the *4 candidates make their stand. Of those, I really put my head up to Mr Tan Jee Say. Honestly, I have always forgotten his name up until the past 2 weeks. He’s got guts and the character to keep it up despite some strong opposition against him in which some areas can be really visible. That prompted me to read more about him, who is coming from a modest background with no big backing from the so-called powerful, apart from the many supporters running against the common grain of the incumbent powerful political party. I salute him for his courage to stand up to what he believes in; though I know he would not stand to win this current election because of 1 main reason: it will be difficult for him to make a collaboration with the running government and that is not good for all of us here. For a country to run smoothly, the president must be in consensus with the government to work as team. He didn’t give that impression. Nonetheless, I am proud of what who he is. He definitely will make his supporters proud despite his lost.
I always liken the fact that the new president to have tact with the pragmatics; and the wisdom to look after all the people in different classes. I have thought through carefully yesterday that I shall pick one who gives his heart and time, effort and soul to his people. I always have this belief that a person, who understands life physically and metaphysically, will do whatever is right for the people and will serve the people. Especially when he has genuinely done the acts of serving the underprivileged class; and personally gave his time, his life and skills directly. This is sure hall mark of a fine president.
All the 4 candidates are strong contenders for the top post. Most of my prediction has come true with one missing puzzle of who is the chosen President. I have expected a tiny margin but I don’t know who will be in. I certainly hope my choice gets in. I am also mentally prepared if my choice doesn’t come in. In any case, work continues in the positive light of value-adding human lives in any form that my modest skills could do. I wish I could do more. In areas that I can’t, I will assist those who can. Thats about the best I can do for now. And I hope more will come in as one people to serve for the betterment of deserving Singaporeans who are good citizens of this country.— Karen Fu
* 4 candidates:
Dr Tony Tan: http://www.tonytan.sg/
Dr Tan Cheng Bock: http://www.tanchengbock.org/
Mr Tan Kin Lian: http://tankinlian.blogspot.com/
Mr Tan Jee Say: http://www.tanjeesay.com/
‘Substance without Brilliance’ – Our Education relevant to the Change of Tides. October 11, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, creativity, design, education, ethics, industrial design, Innovation, Product Design, USA.Tags: design education, Don Norman, higher education, PhD-Design, Steve Jobs, tertiary education
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Don Norman posted yet another provocative post on PhD-Design forum: ‘Substance without Brilliance.‘ He hits the nail on the spot. But as I was skimming through on pockets-of-spare minutes, I think there are still rigid ideas at hand with usually certain people who tend not to change.
What caught my eye on his post was his mention on the confined curriculum within the design education along with the lack of adaptiveness. He mentions that most are short of hard core Science and Humaities subjects; and paid little on learning the humanities via ‘liberal arts’ route. In my opinion, a strong logic must come in hand when it comes to comprehending different data. Excellent problem solvers are extremely logical yet they are very creative. I have come to find aquite a number within my encounters. And many do not hold higher degrees. And and for some, no degrees. But what I’ve found a little perplexing is the nature of how he made those arguements at times.
1- Drawing has nothing / little to do with thinking. — I wonder how he meant. Even when one is sketching a nude during life drawing classes, we were told to think in terms of form and how the muscles moved et cetra. Free flow of hand drawing movements train the hand and the eye to quickly take down details. Granted that sketching nudes is not the prime core of the product design, it does instill part of an important training in how to be sharp at observation skills on the human form — important when it comes to studying of ergonomics — provided if the lessons conducted was really into that area of human factors and not just drawing a beautiful drawing.
2- design education must take on on its own. — true. But I think the more fundamental part is to genuinely learn to be open and not be so much on one’s own. Learning has to be free -spirited and without ego is very important to acquiring knowledge. An education lasting a span of only 3-5 years doesn’t really teach you the world but a good education could certainly teach you how to see and evaluate things around you. How would a design education do this? I believe it must first come off from the ‘human aspect’ to first change attitudes before the curriculum could have a radical change. Without that, nothing much can be done.
Our century is the rebellious era of change where the conventional hype will not work because they have proven to be outdated. However, the inertia of change has always been stubborn to go because of the inherent human ego. I always come to think of history as a keen reference to the various human sufferings we have had in the past. Education to that effect, should always cater the idea of how to grow out of ego-istical’ ideas such as ‘elitism’ that confines us from seeing how many other different people see things. Ethics and sustainability issues have been discussed over the years. But I am beginning to suspect that it hasn’t been really working, else we would not be having so much waste created that is not really decreasing. If ethics has been brought into place, then I would have to question why the major world problems have not been eliminated. Social unrest, international disputes on trade and politics of different kinds simply show that our problems are merely morphing in form. Of course, that’s on the economics and social sciences front; but that is also related to design too. For without knowing these key relations, the products designed won’t be relevant. What Don hasn’t pinpointed are a few facts naturally on the ethical mindsets of leaders today who may be perhaps the output of our current tertiary education culture. We may talk about the curriculum that we need to develop a new form. With respect to design, it is a young course that is still changing. It doesn’t have the resolute syllabus of what needs to be learnt like traditional courses at universities like Medicine and Engineering. It is more of an applied course where technology and other subjects of study are brought into place.
I don’t think the craft aspect must be totally taken out. It’s a human skill and sensitivity that is trained through seeing how craft is done. But what Don may be referring to is the overemphasis on craft as the main source for designing products, which is a faulty emphasis if you were to consider the changing technologies & social economics which requires one to be astute and logical. The knowledge in fuel, materials and manufacturing areas are needed to fully understand how a potential product design needs working on. Craft itself is simply insufficient. We can’t live on solely craft anyway. But neither do we do products that are too ‘cold’ in nature as with the emphasis on solely technology and engineering are concerned. Design should break this out of this mold and form a clear distinct definition of what it can do. Else this discipline will soon be perished. All these, I feel, have strong relations to the kind of practice and people we have. All these will build the reputation of the course. I suppose ‘Substance without Brilliance’ isn’t exactly a good title. It really should be ‘Brillaince without Substance.’ That is the crux of the problem, in my modest opinion. I have decided to quickly put in my edited reply to the PhD-design Forum about the thread:
Posted on the 10-10-2011 (Singapore Time)
Looking at the world at large, we have to question that if we have strayed away from the true aims of what education should be. Design education, of course, belongs to a special breed. We cannot exactly equate that to the traditional form of tertiary education. I’m afraid I have to spear the head that in most establishments, teaching tends to form the school’s mould rather than the students’ mould. The late Steve Jobs serve a crucial lesson for both PhD educators and us all who love to learn and learn to love. We need to flexible with an apt mind that shows no rigidity in any way. Then the hard works chutes in. But I believe that hard work has a limit. Health is very important. Many, like Jobs, work as though there is no tomorrow. They work at the expense of family ties, which I object. Sometimes, you need to play for yourself. And when at game, you’d probably expand your mind more. Perhaps, I should have voiced this out ages ago. It’s a little late but its better late than never.
Posted on the 11-10-2011 (Singapore Time)
I had missed out the part on education that I’ve almost sounded as
though education isn’t important. It isn’t. Agree with Frankie on the
innovativeness of teaching as being crucial. However, one would have
to question about the quality of some teachers in the first place in
terms of their own minds if they are able to be that receptive and
elastic to various cultures and concepts. Chances are its very hard to
find such people. Most tend to keep on to their own and refuse
‘provocative challenges’ since that was how they were brought up and
got ‘successful’. We can’t change very much on that, at least on the
direct front.Then again, the history and the nature of most human
minds is that we tend to keep very much to our own because that is the
most beneficial and the easiest way to go through. This inertia if
done with authority could stifle creativity. Fortunately, such
establishments do not stay healthy for very long and they will be
‘auto-renewed’. Steve Jobs is a good example that a superior mind is
not taught by education. He had his own mind. And he did his own way.
Who would have thought that the brand ‘ Apple ‘ had any bond to
computers, and nevermind the bite of an apple could do wonders to our
way of living? In terms of graphical metaphor, it is irrelevant; but
he turned the world around. Thats revolution. Other great minds had no
direct education when they do something. Examples are many. In the
product and servies innovation front, Jobs is a great strategist at
work but ironically a thorough failure in designing his personal life
— he neglected both his family and his health.
> Are we maybe missing something here? Jobs was undoubtedly a creative manager, with vision. But what did that vision lead him to do? Hire educated designers of both software and hardware. In the case of hardware, first a range of outside consultants, and latterly of course, Jonathan Ive.
>
>
> Andrew J King
>
The Late Steve Jobs appear to hire people out from the usual. Most
hired under him tend to be from modest backgrounds with sound
education qualifications though not necessarily from the tip pf the
top schools. His vision of hiring is itself farsighted and different.
Everyone has fundamentally 1 education in a lifetime. Few lucky ones
may get 2 or more. We can’t learn everything in one education, or even
in 2 or 3. But what I can say is a fine education (excluding degree
granting colleges) will set you the foundations for thinking. The rest
of the education after High School or Senior High School (Pre
University) will really be focused on skills and advanced knowledge in
specified fields. Apart from this, if one had not formed the right
matrix for thinking; the chances of exceptional thought will not be
possible. Nevermind expanding on what that has been assimilated
anyway.
In this aspect, college edication has little help. But what it could
do, I think, would be to allow individual students of learning to be
able to retain their own styles. And with that in mind, the culture of
teaching and curriculum has to change to fit the students creative
mind frame than to set a kind of rule of culture. The essence is the
knowledge learnt —- whether one has been keeping up with learning.
It has little to do with the level of Degree certificates one has
obtained.
Hope I’ve made it clear. Perhaps not many are interested in my post.
Mine do look odd when it is compared to the usual post graduate
intellectual debate posts. But I always believe that learning takes no
specific form so as long as the fundamentals of learning with an open
mind & enthusiasm is concerned.
Innovativeness comes from a keep learning mind that knows no
boundaries. Education should always stay in that form and not in
affect of any kind of irrelevant influence.
Right I’m late again.
Cheers!
Karen Fu
PS: adapt to grow; confine to perish.
Don Norman has always been provocative. I like the guts. But there are certain areas that I find it quite perplexing especially on the areas of sketching not seen as part of thinking; which I think its not quite true. But on the areas of design education failing to offer hard core study areas in humanities and technologies, yes. On the account of teachers who may in a way set a culture that confines the students, yes. I think there are plenty more that is to be done on a human level. The reality is that people are stubborn and resistent to change. How to handle the spear without getting speared in this case, would depend on how one handles the spear. The target of changing design education starts from people. I believe a sound education depends on logic. The kind that sharpens the mind to evaluate and form ideas very quickly. That actually needs more than an education. — Karen Fu
Are PhDs a threat to design education? Are PhDs a threat to all kinds of education? October 14, 2011
Posted by Karen in education, Innovation, research.Tags: higher education, PhD design list, PhDs
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I am following up, albeit in a very fast eye dotting manner on the thread which Don Norman had started from ‘Brilliance without substance‘. I have plenty to say. As so much time is allowed for me, I think I will just candidly write from my personal perspective. I think Gunar Swanson had hit a lot of points that design research need not come from only PhDs ( see his post on PhD design) . That is a crux of the matter. Research should not be done by only people who hold PhDs. Its a fallacy to assume that all PhDs could do fine intelligent research. It’s an insult to those who are able but choose not to do a postgraduate education because of the opportunity costs concerned. Research is the process of using keen observation to do innovative investigation, whereby different skills and knowledge are put into use to find the solutions to problems. It has to be done by intelligent people. No doubt about it. But it may not always be done by PhD holders. It can be seen as rude to think so.
I don’t hold a postgraduate degree though I had gotten in to a good number in various fields. I had the wish to a postgrad and onwards to a PhD. But circumstances at home did not allow me to do it. It still is actually. Despite so, I still applied in the slim hope that someone out there would offer me the full cash to cover the costs I would have to forgo. I wanted to be a college professor. I love academic environment because of ONE damned reason : its a learning haven where dreams could be realized without the politics. Top colleges could do that with their kind of financial base with companies and their network to research materials. I was dreaming away and to be not able to attend one postgraduate course was a nightmare, especially to someone who really loves to learn and teach.
Now this motivation to do a postgrad has dwindled down rapidly as I read off minds who are not opened. To me, receptiveness is very important as much as intellectual integrity. One cannot be too intelligent and wise to ignore what others out of our clique could offer. Everyone has their experience, and their cleverness for us to learn. It adds up to a wholesome mind that knows no boundaries. PhDs can be a threat if it blocks this freedom to investigate and problem solve in different ways. If words and tons of words are the sole way of doing research, then we are in dire trouble.
From my clique from Senior High, whom many are holding top posts in the country, I know PhDs are not a must. However, intelligence is a must. The mind must able to see beyond context and be able to interpret different information at a sound level. A good number of my ex-college mates only hold a bachelors, some at Masters level but they hold billion dollar assets excellently. I have only come across 1 PhD graduate from my Senior High clique who is holding a vice director post. I was surprised that not a lot of people had done their PhDs given the fact that most of my senior high friends were high flyers in academia. The reason? They don’t see the point of doing a PhD. Apart from those who did a medical degree, where many of them are researchers in different areas of medicine, I hardly see like even a third of them holding PhDs. Oh yes, another one did hers for journalism. But I don’t think it really helped her much in the end because she was already at her pinnacle of her career. Many had done important work in serving the people. The essence of this success is their openness to learn and to solve problems actively in great precision and efficiency in the best possible method for their pending problems.
Writing to this point, I must clarify that I am not against PhDs. But I do punch out to those who have restrictive dogmatic minds of whom, what and how to do research. It spells discrimination and a poor sense of foresight and even hindsight.
Research is not about prescribed formulas. Its about looking at the problem in a very holistic and sensitive way with respect to people and the environment. It is about the process of creative innovation where methods itself could be even invented. Sure you need a rule to keep things in order and an efficient system for all to relate to. But not to the point of confinement.
Certain cliches for being a PhD graduate appears to be evident. Perhaps it stems out from the idea that to reach the top of the academic pinnacle is an accomplishment. It is, provided that the PhD education has taught one to be truly democratic and open to different people, creed and culture in a respectful way. This is indeed a highly sensitive topic. But I suppose if anyone is genuinely interested in research and to see how it goes, I bet you people will speak up. — Karen Fu
My other relevant blog post reference:
1. Postgrad or not- the value of education to answer real problems.
3. Scholarship, Research and Design – its relevancy to both human society & nature
‘The Power Of Living In Truth’ Jeffery D Sachs December 22, 2011
Posted by Karen in ethics, human quality, real power.Tags: humanity, Jeffery D Sachs, Power, sustainability, sustainable living, Truth
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I really like the whole message that Prof Sachs has written and posted online. Though there is Law in place, the justice is never really quite done. But I suppose where there is darkness, there is also light. Where it will cast a shadow to those who are hideous. I don’t think I need to add anything more but I will quote from this site :
NEW YORK – The world’s greatest shortage is not of oil, clean water, or food, but of moral leadership. With a commitment to truth – scientific, ethical, and personal – a society can overcome the many crises of poverty, disease, hunger, and instability that confront us. Yet power abhors truth, and battles it relentlessly. So let us pause to express gratitude to Václav Havel, who died this month, for enabling a generation to gain the chance to live in truth.
Havel was a pivotal leader of the revolutionary movements that culminated in freedom in Eastern Europe and the end, 20 years ago this month, of the Soviet Union. Havel’s plays, essays, and letters described the moral struggle of living honestly under Eastern Europe’s Communist dictatorships. He risked everything to live in truth, as he called it – honest to himself and heroically honest to the authoritarian power that repressed his society and crushed the freedoms of hundreds of millions.
He paid dearly for this choice, spending several years in prison and many more under surveillance, harassment, and censorship of his writings. Yet the glow of truth spread. Havel gave hope, courage, and even fearlessness to a generation of his compatriots. When the web of lies collapsed in November 1989, hundreds of thousands of Czechs and Slovaks poured into the streets to proclaim their freedom – and to sweep the banished and jailed playwright into Prague Castle as Czechoslovakia’s newly elected president.
I personally witnessed the power of living in truth in that year, when the leadership of Poland’s Solidarity movement asked me to help Poland with its transition to democracy and a market economy – part of what the Poles called their “return to Europe.” I met and was profoundly inspired by many in the region who, like Havel, lived in truth: Adam Michnik, Jacek Kuron, Bronislaw Geremek, Gregorsz Lindenberg, Jan Smolar, Irena Grosfeld, and, of course, Lech Walesa. These brave men and women, and those like Tadeusz Mazowiecki and Leszek Balcerowicz, who led Poland during its first steps in freedom, succeeded through their combination of courage, intellect, and integrity.
The power of truth-telling that year created a dazzling sense of possibility, for it proved the undoing of one of history’s most recalcitrant hegemonies: Soviet domination of Eastern Europe. Michnik, like Havel, radiated the joy of fearless truth. I asked him in July 1989, as Poland’s communist regime was already unraveling, when freedom would reach Prague. He replied, “By the end of the year.”
“How do you know?” I asked. “I was just with Havel in the mountains last week,” he said. “Have no fear. Freedom is on the way.” His forecast was correct, of course, with a month to spare.
Just as lies and corruption are contagious, so, too, moral truth and bravery spreads from one champion to another. Havel and Michnik could succeed in part because of the miracle of Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet leader who emerged from a poisoned system, yet who valued truth above force. And Gorbachev could triumph in part because of the sheer power of honesty of his countryman, Andrei Sakharov, the great and fearless nuclear physicist who also risked all to speak truth in the very heart of the Soviet empire – and who paid for it with years of internal exile.
These pillars of moral leadership typically drew upon still other examples, including that of Mahatma Gandhi, who called his autobiography The Story of My Experiments With Truth. They all believed that truth, both scientific and moral, could ultimately prevail against any phalanx of lies and power. Many died in the service of that belief; all of us alive today reap the benefits of their faith in the power of truth in action.
Havel’s life is a reminder of the miracles that such a credo can bring about; yet it is also a reminder of the more somber fact that truth’s victories are never definitive. Each generation must adapt its moral foundations to the ever-changing conditions of politics, culture, society, and technology.
Havel’s death comes at a time of massive demonstrations in Russia to protest ballot fraud; violence in Egypt as democratic activists battle the deeply entrenched military; an uprising in rural China against corrupt local officials; and police in body armor violently dismantling the Occupy protest sites in American cities. Power and truth remain locked in combat around the world.
Much of today’s struggle – everywhere – pits truth against greed. Even if our challenges are different from those faced by Havel, the importance of living in truth has not changed.
Today’s reality is of a world in which wealth translates into power, and power is abused in order to augment personal wealth, at the expense of the poor and the natural environment. As those in power destroy the environment, launch wars on false pretexts, foment social unrest, and ignore the plight of the poor, they seem unaware that they and their children will also pay a heavy price.
Moral leaders nowadays should build on the foundations laid by Havel. Many people, of course, now despair about the possibilities for constructive change. Yet the battles that we face – against powerful corporate lobbies, relentless public-relations spin, and our governments’ incessant lies – are a shadow of what Havel, Michnik, Sakharov, and others faced when taking on brutal Soviet-backed regimes.
In contrast to these titans of dissent, we are empowered with the instruments of social media to spread the word, overcome isolation, and mobilize millions in support of reform and renewal. Many of us enjoy minimum protections of speech and assembly, though these are inevitably hard won, imperfect, and fragile. Yet, of the profoundest importance and benefit, we are also blessed with the enduring inspiration of Havel’s life in truth.
Jeffrey D. Sachs is Professor of Economics and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. He is also Special Adviser to United Nations Secretary-General on the Millennium Development Goals.
Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2011.
www.project-syndicate.org
Happy Elephant – Order Within Chaos December 23, 2011
Posted by Karen in change, christmas, New Year.Tags: elephant parade, new year wishes
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Done this during lunch for fun. It was so fun I wasn’t exactly having my lunch that much. Probably the idea of Order Within Chaos has been sitting in my mind where societal change has gone into different aspects of chaos in human relationships with nature and other living beings. There is no immediate solution to all those because people and surroundings are getting more complicated that we need to seek order within chaos. Sustainable answers need to be found in the process of the mess that has been piled overtime. I add in vibrant colours for hope and vitality for promise. I don’t think we have to be pessimistic about the future if we choose to. I have seen the elephants standing along Orchard and thought I would like to have a go. Then someone said there is still one template I could use. I did see the Facebook Fan page but didn’t think I had any time. When I finally did just today, I’d thought I had fun anyway. I see if I can do another few when I get my chores done. Merry Christmas and have a tidy plan and ride off the chaos! Best. Karen Fu





































































































