Sunday, 27 May 2012

Blog 8-Mrs Pamela-Ye Shujian (Peter)-Family and Marriage

Perhaps I am too young to think about marriage and family, but actually, my thoughts about marriage and family have changed a lot these years.

When I was little, I just thought that marriage is a very simple thing. You just have your wedding ceremony, and then you are married. After that, you have children and live with your wife for rest of your life. Now, when I think about this, I can’t stand laughing at myself. How naïve and innocent I was at that time!

When I grew up, I gradually realized that marriage is not such an easy and simple thing. I realized that actually the simple, easy and beautiful thing is dating with the girlfriend, not living with the wife. And I was afraid of something like the seven year itch, which means both the couples might feel boring about the marriage after seven years. This is terrible! What’s more, I also knew that some young ladies got married for money, not for love! As a result, now, I am a bit afraid of marriage as it has left me bad impression!

blog 6)-"Mr. Seto"-"Wei Wenbo"-"Hollywood Movies"

                                             
                               Hollywood Movies
  After five-day school work, watching an American movie or more specifically, a Hollywood movie would be on my schedule of the weekend. Surely, it is really of great excitement and relaxation to watch a gorgeous movie. However, a few days ago, I found myself suddenly losing the interest in movies when I intended to get one in my mobile HDD filled with them. After having watched dozens of them, it seems that there are some “formulas” of Hollywood movies which I cannot say directly but do exist.
  Seldom, there is a tragic ending among hundreds of Hollywood movies. Usually, a miracle would happen when an unhappy ending is about to come. Ironically, many classic movies (here, “classic movies” refer to those movies which could be enjoyed for a dozens of years) are tragic movies such as Titanic, Edward scissorhands and Private Ryan. I think sometimes a tragic ending more easily makes people think of what has caused the tragedy and how to prevent it to happen. Conversely, people seldom explore a movie with a happy ending in depth. At present, people have got used to easily accept a movie with a happy ending quickly and are unwilling to spend more time exploring a tragedy.
  Those famous filmmakers have sensed it. And that is exactly how they make movies. They took and are taking advantage of people’s need for fast movies and they have made a lot of money in this way. They do not care as much as money whether the movies they made are classic or not. They went to great lengths to make movies more attractive and profitable. They are more businessmen than transmitters of ideas.
  Economically speaking, it is a voluntary exchange: audiences have the joy and the moviemakers get the money. Both of them would say thank you to each other and every one should be happy. But in my opinion, joy is not the only aim of watching movies.

Blog8-"Mrs Ivy"-Xiao Xiao(Merina)-Courage is the greatest thing


Courage is the greatest thing

I could not ride a bicycle before, because I could never keep balance on the bicycle. Before I came to Singapore, I had decided to learn to ride a bicycled for many times, but I ended up with failure every time. That is because I did not dare to ride it; I was afraid that I would fall down from the bicycle. But I succeeded today. Our research group went to east coast to cycling today. At first, my friends taught me the skills to ride a bicycle. The next thing I should do is to ride the bicycle by myself, but I really did not have the courage. I always stopped after I rode for just two seconds. After 45 minutes, I told myself that "I can, I can make it." Then I thought that the worst result of riding a bicycle for more than two seconds is falling down and get some pain. I thought that if I want to be an excellent person, I should have the courage to overcome all kinds of challenges. So I just tried my best to ride the bicycle without worrying about myself, and then I really made it. From this experience, I know that courage is the greatest thing; we can do anything if we have courage.

Blog7-"Mrs Ivy"-Xiao Xiao(Merina)-cloning

Cloning

Nowadays, science is developing in a very fast speed; sometimes it developes so fast that we do not have time to think whether it is ethical. For example, cloning, one of the latest technology, sometimes is not ethical. I am really against the point that people can be cloned. I think it is a bad thing, because I think life is not precious anymore if people can be cloned. People treasure their life, because life is limited, and if people do not treasure life, they will lose it quickly. But once people can clone themselves, which means life is not limited, people do not need to treasure it. For example, people do not need to protect their body, because they can clone their body if they face death. People will not try their best to realize their dream, because they will not die, and they have too much time. Life is not as meaningful as it used to be if it is not limited.so I do not support the the idea of cloning people.

"Blog 8"-"Mr Seto"-"Ping Sibo"-"Pearl Poem"

Pearl Poem:


                                Love
                           Pure,happy
                      Inspiring,blinding
    Because of poverty, prohibited by parents
                   Desponding,suffering
                      Boredom,forget
                                Hate

"Blog 7"-"Mr Seto"-"Ping Sibo"-"cloning"

It has been a long time discussing whether clone is good or not. In fact, clone has become a very irreplaceable industry nowadays. Human beings have made many species, except ourselves, be cloned. Some of them are for food, while others are for scientific research. Cloning has many kinds of benefits. First, when doing scientific research, scientists need to conduct their experiments for many times, which need many experimental articles. However, there are no enough experimental articles only if clone animals or plants are used. Second, we can produce clone animals and plants for food. As it is known to all, there is too large population on the earth. If we do not have clone things for food, maybe there would be more starvation around the earth. However, cloning also has its limitations. Nowadays many people think clone food unhealthy and try their best not to buy them. Similarly, cloning human beings is not allowed by both laws and ethics. Maybe in the future, we can make cloning more successful than now.

"Blog 6"-"Mr Seto"-"Ping Sibo"-"character assessment"

When we are confused about our future, we should usually do a character assessment to know ourselves better. It is said that people could know themselves worse than others. In other words, they should pay more attention on recognizing their true spirits. There is much kind of character assessments. One of the most impressed one is DISC, which we have done recently. In that assessment, we are supposed to accomplish 40 questions in 20 minutes. That is to say, we should do each of these questions in a very limited time. Only in this way can we make those answers accurate. Once we have done these questions, the counselor would tell us how to find out our characters finally. The result of assessment separated us into four groups of people with different characters. After finding our own characters, the counselor asked each group of us stood up separately and spoke impressed words with him. Having accomplished a character assessment can benefit us indeed. The more we recognize ourselves, the more we can achieve in the future.

Blog 7-Mrs Pamela-Ye Shujian (Peter)-Cloning & Designing babies


The first time that I thought about cloning was when I was watching the movie Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones. In this movie, there is a plot that thousands of people with the same look appear, which really shocked me. It makes me think that what will happen if there are thousands of people who are totally same as me. Actually, I think cloning is terrible when it is happened on me, because it will bring me a lot of troubles. If there are people who are the same as me and they murder someone, then I may be put into prison as we look the same!

About designing babies, I am against it as well. Our lives should be designed by nature. If every parent designs their babies, then I think the life will lose its meaning as uncertainty is a beautiful and important part of the life. Because of uncertainty, there are so many kinds of lives making the beautiful world. Moreover, if everyone is designed to be wonderful, it is very ridiculous and meaningless.

Saturday, 26 May 2012

Blog 8) "Mr Seto"-"Zhu Zikun"-"Science"-"Theme: Poetry"




You are a mystery,
Alluring my entire heart and body.
Playing with you, I'm on longer lonely.
Since the day I met you, I trust you completely.
Naturally, fall in love with you, sweetie.
You drive me crazy,
cause me laughing,
cause me crying.
I can't help devoting my life
into unveiling your mystery.
You're huge, deep and rich, greatly.
But just once, let me kiss you just once;
Just one, Let me know just one of your secrets.
Addicted to your charm, madly.
Let me approach, honey.
You are the one, only.

Blog 6-Mrs Pamela-Ye Shujian (Peter)-Characters & Personalities


In China, there is an old saying which has existed for almost two thousand years: "Know about yourself and others, then you will always win." What exact things do we need to know about ourselves and others? That is characters and personalities. Almost one month ago, we did a personality test (I should write this blog almost one month before > <). According to the test, I am an ENFJ (a type of personality) and the ENFJ is described as a caregiver. The website which provided this test also said that ENFJs should do the jobs like nursing or massage. When I read this, I was a bit disappointed. Some ENFJs in our group said that it was ridiculous. I asked myself, “How can I do nursing and massage after graduation? “ Now, when I think about this, I don’t feel disappointed, because I am proud of being a caregiver. Everyone in the society has its own work and responsibilities. Not everyone can be the boss or leader. If everyone is leader and boss, then the world will be in a mess. Moreover, helping people can make me feel happy. So, why not be proud of being an ENFJ?

Blog 5-Mrs Pamela-Ye Shujian(Peter)-fengshui


When I was little, my mother told me something about fengshui, so I knew some basic knowledge about it. For example, the door of a house should face south and a house should be located in the relatively north, because then the house can have more sunshine and avoid suffering from the strong wind. At that time, I started to agree that fengshui is a reasonable thing.

However, not everyone in my home accepts fengshui. Like my father, he thinks fengshui is traditional and superstitious. He would laugh at us when we talk about fengshui and he asked me not to believe it. I don't agree with him as I think fengshui is examined by so many people for so many years and it is still popular in the Chinese even the foreigners, it is reasonable and practical. Actually, it is not all about superstitious. For example, fengshui encourages people to make the room or desk tidy so that when you are working, you will be more efficient. What's more, fengshui is a very important part of Chinese culture. We cannot forget or abandon it.

Wednesday, 23 May 2012

Blog 8)-"Mr. Seto"-"Wei Wenbo"-" Pay It Forward"

         Pay It Forward
  When we give something to somebody, usually we expect a return: love for love, help for help. It is kind of pathetic when we find that most of humans give with aims that someday a return would come to them. And because of the expectancy which could not be reached, gaps between people, even hatred would appear. We are grouped into a society and everyone is not in completely isolated existence. We have relationships. We have chains. A little wave could influence the whole ocean. And the relationships between give and return are like relationships between wave and ocean.
  Pay It Forward, an idea takes advantage of this kind of relationships. Besides, the happiness of giving is stressed in the idea. Person A gives his help to person B and person C could get the benefits and person C gives his help to person D… Everyone in society would benefit from it. Finally, our society would become very harmony.
  However, sometimes the chain is very weak. The difficulty is just like what the boy have faced. And the difficulty in reality could not always be solved like what happened in the movie. Sometimes we choose to be isolated and refuse peoples’ giving. More often, we take them for granted. That is a question about gratitude. And we need a group of powerful, influential and enthusiastic people to lead the campaign.
  The world would be greatly changed if there is a large group of people who have the same aim and high social responsibility. In that case, the world would be a paradise for human beings.

Blog8-Mr. Seto-Dong Fangzhou-Poem

Heaven
Paeceful, merciful.
Resting, singing, praising.
Joy, excitement, temptation, addiction.
Suffering, torturing, cursing.
Dreaddful, fallen.
Hell.
 
 
 
*CENSORED*
 
 
I am in heaven.
Such a peaceful place blessed by the merciful.
All I am doing is resting, singing, and praising.
There filled joy and excitement, which drive me to temptation and, addiction.
 I suffer from it. It tortured me, cursed me.
Oh, I felt dreadful. I am falling down.
I am in hell.

Blog7-Mr. Seto-Dong Fangzhou-Science and technology


The biological technology has developed so rapidly that we can hardly imagine what breakthrough would be like made I the next decade. We have known the creatures much more than ten years ago. Cloning, known as an application of the scientific findings in life science, has always been focused by the public. The issue of human cloning is frequently discussed about by many biologists as well as politicians. As far as I am concerned, human cloning should be completely abolished. Firstly, it is very risky to do so and we cannot guarantee that the human can be cloned successfully. If not, the “human” that have been produced by cloning may be very strange in shape. If it could think as a human and has emotion in its mind, some great moral problems may occur. Secondly, even if a man is successfully produced in the process of cloning, although everything of him has no difference from a normal human being, he knows that he is a clone person and share exactly the same DNA with someone else. He may not think of himself as a real human morally. Then some social problems might occur if there were too many clone men. For example, the thumb scanning security system may fail to work because two men share the same thumb feature. However, although human cloning should be abolished, the research of cloning animals should continue in order to find some better cures of human diseases and make development in organ transplantation.

Blog6-Mr. Seto-Dong Fangzhou-Character assessment


Last Friday, the MOE organized an activity called “DISC personality test” for us SM3 students. It was to assess our personality through a few questions and then help us have a better understanding of ourselves. “DISC” refers to four different kinds of personalities. “D” stands for the personality that a person is kind of dominant and easy to get angry. At the same time, a “D” person may make a decision without being much affected by others. If a person is of “I” type, he/she would be fond of communicating with people and emphasize on the relationship with others. He/she may have a lot of good friends and have contact with many people at the same time. However, he/she may be extremely afraid of being rejected by others. Then, an “S” person tends to be shy and not willing to express his/her own idea. He/she may be sensitive to the relationship with others. Last but not least, a “C” person usually makes a considerable planning before making a decision. He/she may think carefully before doing something important. As for myself, I love to talk to people and play games with other. There is no doubt that I am a typical “I” person. I should keep on contacting with others frequently and keep good relationships with my friends. However, I should have my own idea and should out be easily affected by others when making decisions. Moreover, when I have some confliction with others, I may not have to sacrifice my own standpoint in order to remain good relationship with others. That is to say, I should have my own attitude towards a certain issue.

Blog8-Mrs Pamela-Liu Yanan (Linda)-Appreciating Poetry

Diamond Format:
Birth
New , Energetic
Giggling, Playing, Learning
He grows up, and experiences things vicissitudes of life.
Working, Supporting, Suffering
Old , Undynamic
Death

Poem:
He was born.
He was new and energetic.
He giggled innocently, played with nature and learned.
He grew up, and has been experienced things vicissitudes of life.
He works hard, supports his family, and suffers from diseases.
He is old and undynamic.
He is dying.

Sunday, 20 May 2012

Blog 8- Mrs.Ivy- Wang Xiao (Vicky)- poem

First Class poem: 

 Boys
     Energetic, Adventurous
      Playing, Chasing, Fighting
          schoolmates, classmates, desk mates, friends 
          laughing, sharing, gossiping
   gentle, considerable
 Girls



*CENSORED*


Boys are energetic and adventurous.
They are always playing, chasing, and sometimes fighting.

Girls are gentle and considerable.
They are always laughing, sharing and sometimes gossiping.

Boys and girls are
 schoolmates, classmates, desk mates, and , most importantly, friends. 

Wednesday, 16 May 2012

Blog8-Mr Seto-Li Bin(Lionel)-Poem

Boy
Handsome, Patient
Trying, Finding, Dreaming
Half, Happiness, Love, Life
Trying, Finding, Dreaming
Pretty, Elegant
Girl

*CENSORED*

The boy
who is handsome and patient
is trying to find
where is his only half and
what are the true happiness and love.
He is dreaming to
spend his whole life with
such
a pretty and elegant girl
who is also
trying, finding and dreaming.
P.S. I am sorry for that I did not follow the poem rules strictly. I wrote in this way(the third line and the fifth line are the same) because I think love is on both sides. Boys and girls will experience the same feeling of love.

Monday, 14 May 2012

Blog8-Ms Ivy Chan-Zhou Shaowen-poem



hatred
messy, complicated
arguing, fighting, crying
violence, envy, depression, pain
communicating, encouraging, smiling
harmonious, happy
love
*CENSORED*
When people live in hatred,
things become messy,
and complicated
Arguing, fighting and crying
is everywhere
People are full of
violence, envy, depression and pain
However, when people begin
communicating with others, and
encouraging others,
the world will become a
harmonious and happy place
That is a world of
love

Sunday, 13 May 2012

Blog 8-Mrs Pamela-Hu Yiyao(Scarlett)-Heaven and Hell

Heaven
Paeceful, merciful.
Resting, singing, praising.
Joy, excitement, temptation, addiction.
Suffering, torturing, cursing.
Dreaddful, fallen.
Hell.

*CENSORED*

Once I was in the heaven,
where was peaceful and merciful.
I was here,
resting, singing, and praising.
It is full of joy, excitement, temptation,
and of course, addiction.

I became suffering, torturing,
and cursing.
I felt dreadful and fallen.
Now,
I am in the hell.


Blog 7) "Mr Seto"-"Zhu Zikun"-"My Thoughts about Transplanting Pig Hearts"-"Theme: Science and Technology"

      Don't Look Down on Pigs  
                 ----My Thoughts after a Class Discussion on Transplanting Pig Hearts 


A few weeks ago, my class discussed about organ transplantation. During this discussion, we mentioned about transplanting pig hearts into humans. Almost everyone laughed at this idea and thought it unacceptable. For me, however, I would totally accept a pig heart if I need a transplantation. Many people reject pig hearts because they somewhat look down on pigs and think they would feel insulted if they accept pig hearts. I think these ideas are extremely silly. We do not have the right to look down on pigs. The reason why we now seem to be dominating the animal world is simply that we are more competitive CURRENTLY. Nevertheless, no one can predict what will happen in the future and it is possible that pigs will dominate the world after years of evolution. Even now, we are not really dominant because even the tiny bacteria can destroy us humans in a flash if a particular gene mutation happens to one bacterium. 
All in all, my point is simple: Stupid humans, don't look down on pigs!

Saturday, 12 May 2012

Blog8-Ms Lim-Zheng Siyuan-poem

She is my mum.
She is always beautiful and gentle.
She cares about me, she understands me, she always forgives me.
She uses love and patience to nurture me, cook delicious food and sow the clothes for me.
She always waits for me, she always trusts me, she always thinks about me.
She is common like other mums in the world, but she is great.
She is my mum.

Wednesday, 9 May 2012

Blog8)-"Ms Ivy Chan"-"Wang Kexin"-"Appreciating Poety"


A Love Letter to Nanjing University

2012 is the 110 anniversary of Nanjing University. Though I did not spend much time there, I still appreciate the chance she gave to study, to make friends, and most important, to be an individual. This poem is a love letter to her, to honor and to remember.

The day I left,

as I looked back,

I knew I was going to miss you.

We have met,

we have departed,

but I know we will meet again.

Do you know,

I am so honored to have met you 

in my most beautiful period of my life? 

Though I am miles away,

I still miss the campus where I have stayed for two months.

On such a joyous occasion,

please accept my sincere blessings and well wishes for you. 

Happy 110th Birthday, NJU! 


Monday, 7 May 2012

Blog8 - Ms Lim - Zhang Yaowen (Sophie) - Appreciating Poetry

                               Change

He is a triangle,
looking so quiet and low-key.
He is always standing,
observing and thinking.
Sometimes,
he likes arcs and curves,
instead of lines and angles.
He enjoys moving,
experiencing and sharing.
                                                       He wants to be agile and loved.
                                                       He becomes a circle.

It is the first English poem written by myself. Anyway, it was quite interesting. I hope it is not too abstract to understand. Actually, when it came to writing an English poem in class using the Diamond Format, some “strange” words just jumped in my mind, Therefore, just following my heart, this poem came into being.
 

Blog8-Mrs Pamela-Song Zhuokun (Kevin)-Appreciating Poetry

                                  
 Diamond format:
                                                 
classroom

small    ,     tidy

learn   ,   listen   ,   play

chairs   ,   window   ,   lamp-light   ,   whiteboard

discuss   ,   laugh   ,    sing

warm   ,   comfortable
                                                  
family


My poem:


A Warm Family


Our classroom

is a bit small, but very tidy.

We Group Five students

learn English,  listen to lessons, and play games here.

In our classroom,

chairs are put in good order,

the window is elegant,

lamp-light is soft,

and the whiteboard is always full of thoughts.

We lively discuss, joyfully laugh,

and together sing birthday songs.

We really feel warm and comfortable

living in such a big

family.

PS: Maybe I will leave you one day;

however,

I will always miss you,

my class,

my friends and teachers,

my forever big family.

















blog 8 - Mrs Pamela - li xinyan (Effy) - Appreciating Poetry

diamond format :
beast
ugly, lonely
weeping, screaming, struggling
transformation, face, body, soul
smiling, singing, dancing
graceful, elegant
beauty

She was a beast,
She was ugly,
She was lonely;
She used to weep, scream, 
and struggle;
She prayed to god every night,
 Longing for a transformation,
a face,
a body,
That matched her soul.

Now,
She is smiling,
She is singing and dancing;
Look at the graceful, elegant lady,
She has become a beauty.

Blog 8- Ms Ivy-zhangchenwei-poetry for Mother's Day




format:


Day

Passionate, diligent

Cooking, washing, cleaning

Hand, eyes, dimples, hair

Eating, talking, encouraging

Considerate, peaceful

night






When a day begins,
My mother,

who is passionate and diligent,

will start cooking, washing and cleaning.

I can always remember the temperature

of her hands, the brightness

in her eyes, the dimples

on her face, and the sunset

in the end of her grey hair.

We have dinner together.

We talk, and encourage each other.

No one else can be as considerate as her.

No one else can I share

the peaceful night with,

 besides her.



Happy Mother’s Day, Mom!

Blog 8 - Mr Seto - Chen Chi - Appreciating Poetry

Orchid
Major Welcome
Laughing Enjoying Supporting
Truth Love Eros Lie
Crying Suffering Betraying
Minor Disgusting
Lavender

*Censored*


Once there was an orchid,
which was major,
and welcome.
It was always laughing, enjoying, 
and supporting.
There was truth,
and love.

However, here is only eros,
and lie.
It is usually crying, suffering 
and betraying,
because it is minor,
and disgusting.
Now here is a lavender.


P.S. Why is Lavender disgusting? There is one of the reasons below.
The History of Lavender District in Singapore
In the 1800s, Lavender was filled with vegetable farms owned by Chinese immigrants to Singapore. Later on, these immigrants began cultivating sugarcane and the area grew to comprise a mix of vegetable farms and sugarcane plantations. Lavender's inhabitants were constantly complaining about their district because of the stench emitted from fertilizers, cow dung and the nearby industrial plant. Snidely and in jest, they called the place “Lavender”.

Sunday, 6 May 2012

Blog7-Mrs Pamela-Liu Yanan(Linda)-Science and Technology

My Thought about Cloning

When I was young, I had already heard something about cloning. I thought it was fantastic and fun. There would be “I” as many as possible. They could help me do a lot of things, no matter good or bad. They would just obey the rules that I had ordered.
Now I think I was ridiculous, when I was young. However, as far as time goes by, high technology develops into a high level. It could even do “what ever you want” to some extent. in my opinion, if we had done a lot of things which break rules of nature, we would be punished by the nature. As a result, I disagree human cloning.
There are certain disadvantages to cloning human beings. First of all this will affect the sense of individuality that people often hold on to, which will then affect genetic variation. Second, because clones are being artificially developed, they may not be considered proper citizens and then be treated worse than the rest of us. Third, cloning human beings will have significant impacts on our society and affect us psychologically.
      There is no doubt that cloning research accelerates the development of medical science and technology. We could clone organs through stem cloning to help people who are suffering from diseases.
      To conclusion, there are both advantages and disadvantages in human cloning. In my point of view, we should have a cautious and proper attitude towards human cloning. My suggestion is to have a trail run to see if “organ cloning”, not “human cloning”, can work. Let's hope cloning will do us more benefits in the future. 

blog 7)-"Mr. Seto"-"Wei Wenbo"-"We are too slow"

  Science and technology are developing, which not only scientists but also we could detect in our daily lives. We could feel their fast developing just by touching our iPhone or iPad, and watching 3D or even 4D movies. We do appreciate what science has brought to us, but at the same time we could feel that we are too slow to catch up the development of it.
  The Internet is one of the examples that our paces in morality, value, and laws. The Internet minimizes the globe into a village, merging various cultures in an extremely high speed which we could not imagine. The Internet provides us a wonderful platform to exchange information, bettering our understanding other cultures as well as contributing to conflicts. We are benefited by social networking perhaps because we thought it is convenient to keep touch with people. But someone might say that we are actually taken advantaged by the technology itself, because our private information could be leaked in this way. And crimes in new forms have also appeared in this “perfect” platform, giving those legislators a big headache. Thus I could say it in this way: we enjoy it on the surface, but in fact we suffer.
  I think the biological technology is another example. It seems that we human beings are trying very hard to give ourselves longer, better, and healthier lives. In other words, we are trying to challenge the rules and breaking the balance set by nature. We invent new protein to satisfy our requirements in medicine, design our babies with those qualities we want them to own, and even try to colon ourselves to extend our existence. Our greed might leave us in trouble. We might not see it at present, but we do see it in some movies such as rise of the planet of the apes which somehow predict our future with new technology used.
  I do not mean that we should stop the study of the new technology to better our life because of the potential threats. However, I am concerned that sometimes we have not evaluated the side effects properly, or in some cases we are too positive or too negative about them. We must think twice before we step further.

Thursday, 3 May 2012

"blog 5"-"Mr.Seto"-"Ping Sibo"-"Fengshui"

Fengshui is a particular production in the ancient China. It came from "Zhouyi", which is one of the hardest books in the world to understand. Even the confucius, who was one of the wisest teachers of all times in China, had said that he could only understand a few pieces of the book. In general, "Zhouyi" had shown to the world of its principles and formulas. And "Fengshui"is just a small section in the book "Zhouyi". Fengshui shows us how a composition of a house affects people's luck and wealth. The most amazing thing is that in most cases Fengshui acts right and it do help people get rid of their doom. For example, Fengshui says that the orientation of the closestool in an particular house could not face towards the orientation of the door. Otherwise it could make the family loose their money. On one hand, there are many people, espacially the overseas Chinese, who lead traditional life styles, believe in Fengshui. However, there are too many people as well who do not believe in Fengshui. They said that there are no logical scientific methods to explain Fengshui. So they think Fengshui is ridiculous and does not make sense.
 As far as I am concerned, even though Fengshui cannot be explained through scientific ways , it does not mean that Fengshui is ridiculous and does not make sense. In fact, there are hundreds of thousands of phenomena which cannot be explained through scientific ways and really happened everywhere and everytime on earth. In ancient times, there were even more things that cannot be explained had been regarded as mysteries. But nowadays they are all solved and even regarded as the basic knowledge towards the science. I think maybe in the future, we can figure the mystery of Fengshui out. I hope we can all benefit from Fengshui.

Blog 7-Mr Seto-Li Bin(Lionel)-Science and Technology


   Science and technology are developing very fast in recent years. Human beings need to choose whether to accept some new technologies with ethical problems or not. Baby design is one of them. Baby design tends to solve some hereditary disease before babies are born; however, people want to use this technology to design their children’s characters and appearances. Then problems come after that. As far as I am concerned, I disagree with baby design being used in such way.
   Firstly, this technology is not mature enough. Scientists are still working on it. They cannot guarantee the success that baby is just like what people have expected. If it fails, they may lose a lot and get into trouble. Secondly, babies may hate the appearances and characters that their parents designed. For example, if the parents like curve hairs and yellow skin but their children do not, they may quarrel every day after the children grow up. The relationship between parents and children will be affected badly. In addition, if every baby is designed perfectly by their parents, people will be almost same. The world will be monotonous and tedious. What a horrible thing.
  Every person is unique and cannot be replaced by anyone. Parents should not design their children’s personalities and their lives. Baby design should be used to avoid the harm of hereditary disease rather than design lives.

Tuesday, 1 May 2012

Blog7- Mrs.Ivy- Wang Xiao (Vicky)- My thought about cloning



 I am against the cloning, though the technology of cloning might be the biggest breakthrough in the history of science.  The reason is that if the cloning becomes a common thing, life will not be as precious as it is today.  At that time, people can create a human being easily.  Probably, people will not be afraid of committing a criminal anymore, because even though they kill a person, they can clone an absolute similar person just in a few days.  Also, those who are upset about their lives will opt to suicide without considering families, because they can clone themselves and their families might never know about what they do.  In addition, people will drink alcohol and smoke without any restriction, because it is easy for them to get new and suitable organs by cloning a new life.

Owing to the reason that life will not be cherished, I do not support the cloning. 

Monday, 30 April 2012

Blog7-Mrs Pamela-Song Zhuokun(Kevin)-Science and Technology

   My Opinions about "Human Cloning"

    Since the emergence of Dolly, cloning has no longer been just an issue that is remote from our lives. We can use this technology to "copy" whatever we like. But can we apply cloning to human beings? In my view, "human cloning" is a toss-up. There will be both beneficial and negative effects if we put "human cloning" into practice.
  
    First, we human beings can get a big benefit through "human organ cloning". Recently, a piece of news deeply shocked me. It was said that a Chinese old woman sold her grandson to an "organ-dealer" in order to get some money for herself. Nowadays, there is a growing number of people having diabetes, heart disease, and so forth. And all these people want to do is to find the organs that can "match up" their bodies. This phenomenon of "organ-trading" gives organ dealers a chance to get wealthy as well as to commit crimes. However, if we can take out some cells of patients and then use these cells to clone their organs, there will be not only a higher probability of organ transplanting, but also a lower crime chance of organ trading.


    Nevertheless, some negative effects will also emerge if we put "human cloning" into practice. First, cloning is a kind of asexual propagation which is against the "natural law". If we clone someone, there will be two same person in the world. Then, who will be more important? Do they have equal rights? Do they have the same "human personhood"? Until now, our ethics cannot give clear answers. Second, we cannot "produce" the absolutely same person by cloning. That is to say,  we can only clone someone's appearance but not his personalities. To illustrate, many couples who lose their kids want their dead children to "be resurrected" by cloning. However, such "substitutes" will only have the dead children's bodies but not characters, because the personalities which cloning children will have can be only determined by postnatal cultivation. Thus, such kind of cloning children may make these couples very disappointed and even regret their decisions of cloning their dead kids.


    In a nutshell, there will be both beneficial and negative effects if we carry out "human cloning". In my viewpoint, we can put "human organ cloning" into practice to relieve the pain of patients but not to execute "human cloning" which will bring disasters to us. Let's hope cloning will do us more benefits in the future. 

Sunday, 29 April 2012

Blog 7 - Mr Seto - Chen Chi - Science and Technology


If Jack Dawson Were to be Cloned





This week, we have focused on science and technology. Cloning is a controversial means which requires advanced and latest science and technology. After watching Titanic 3D (2012) in IMAX® for the fifth time today, 


I started to wonder what would happen if Jack (the male leading role in this movie) were to be cloned.



There are some assumptions which can be confirmed. The cloned Jack would still be handsome, attractive and charming. It is because most part of the gene of the original Jack and the cloned Jack are the same. Similarly, Rose (the female leading role) might think that the cloned Jack was very good at sketching. Moreover, both Jacks would be easygoing. Finally, the cloned Jack would still be a guy, of course.


However, the cloned Jack would be somewhat different. Although the new Jack was attractive, Rose might not have a crush on him. It is because this Jack would never be the original Jack, who Rose fell in love with, any more. The cloned Jack would just be the twin of Jack or Jack II, not the original one. Then, the cloned Jack would still be a good artist, but his style might change. It would be possible that Rose did not appreciate his paintings any more. Furthermore, he would also be easygoing, but there has been no longer RMS Titanic for him to board since it foundered on her maiden voyage on 15 April, 1912. As a result, he had no opportunity to encounter Rose. Finally, even if he managed to meet Rose by other means, he might be unable to love her for he was not straight any more.


As a loyal fan of Titanic and Jack, I do not want these things happening. If Jack were to be cloned successfully, it would be a nightmare to me.

Saturday, 28 April 2012

Blog 7-Mrs Pamela-Hu Yiyao(Scarlett)-Chimera (Science and Technology)



In 6th November, the research team from Newcastle University and King's College London apply to the HFEA, for wishing to human and animal cells mixed together to create embryos for medical research. HEFA finally passed this application and the United Kingdom even put it into law.

The scientists who advocate this program point out that, after the success of mixing the embryonic cells, they will observe them for 6 days and extracted stem cells from them. Immediately after that, they will destroy these embryonic cells completedly, and never allow them to survive for more than 14 days.

It is reported that, the stem cells extracted from embryos have not fully developed. They are able to breed a variety of human tissues for the treatment of leukemia, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, organ failure and other illnesses. Because these tissues has the genetic characteristics of the cell provider, the patient after transplantation will not have allograft rejection. Because of that, this technology has high medical value.

Alwhough it may cure so many disease, there are manny people against it. They think it is unethical behaviour and may mix the boundaries of human and other animals. Baldwin, a British scientist, warned that "it is not a scientific advance, but a prelude to human self-destruction."

However, actually, these embryos cannot exist for more than 14 days and they cannot finally develop to be a new creature. In my opinion, this kind of experiment has high medical value and may benefit human beings. But, we must supervise and regulate this experiment strictly to prevent these embryos exist for 14 days. After all, within 14 days, these embryos are just a group of cells, and organ differentiation and nerve cell system have not appeared yet. So, they cannot be considered as a person or an animal within 14 days.

Friday, 27 April 2012

Blog7-Ms Ivy-zhangchenwei- "science and technology"

     science and technology influence our moralty and nature

"First we thought the PC was a calculator. Then we found out how to turn numbers into letters with ASCII — and we thought it was a typewriter. Then we discovered graphics, and we thought it was a television. With the World Wide Web, we've realized it's a brochure."

This quote exactly shows how technology develops. From easy to complicated, from impossible to reality. However, I personally do not want to live in a world with so many advanced technologies. I believe, the more we get from technology means the more we have lost in other aspects, like morality and environment. What is the point of scientific advance without moral advance? Too advanced technology digs out bad characteristics hide in human inside.

 I would like to quote another guy’s words that "People today have forgotten they're really just a part of nature. Yet, they destroy the nature on which our lives depend. They always think they can make something better. Especially scientists. They may be smart, but most don't understand the heart of nature. They only invent things that, in the end, make people unhappy. Yet they're so proud of their inventions. What's worse, most people are, too. They view them as if they were miracles. They worship them. They don't know it, but they're losing nature. They don't see that they're going to perish. The most important things for human beings are clean air and clean water." Though these words seems to be somewhat inaccurate, I do have the same feeling to him to some degree. if we do not have the ability to control the anti-nature power, we had better not use it.

Blog7)-"Ms Ivy Chan"-"Wang Kexin"-"Science an Technology"


 2012 is not the end of the world

   Ever since the movie 2012 hit the screen, the rumors about the end of the world never stop. The prediction that human being will no longer exist after 21st Dec, 2012 has caused a great panic among some people, and which leads this issue under the spotlight of science. However, what I want to say is that 2012 is not the end of the world; and I would like to explain this to you in the following article.
   One reason we have this 2012 nonsense is there is a prediction in May, 2003. A rock planet, whose name is Nibiru, was go to crash into the earth and end the world, which quietly did not happen. Thus, just like every other predictions of the end of the world ever, when we did not die in May, 2003, it probably just pushed back a bit to 2012.
   Apparently, one more reason why 2012 is picked as a new end point of humanity is because of the Mayan calendar, more specifically, the Mayan long-count Calendar. The Maya is an ancient and mystic civilization, whose people were found of time study and they created their own calendars which were far more accurate than that used in Europe at that time. But just as the calendar hanging on our wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan Calendar does not cease to exist after December 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period, but then, just as our calendar begins again on January 1, another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar. So December 21, 2012 is not the Mayan’s prediction of the end of the world, it is merely the end of their calendar.
   But some people still believe that catastrophes are actually going to happen on the day they picked. The planet Nibiru, as I mentioned before, which is sometimes referred to as Planet X, is apparently on its way to destroy. While, it is probably surprise to hear that there is no such thing as Planet X! In fact, if Nibiru is going to hit us in December this year, it would has to be close enough to the earth now, and we will be able to see it in the sky with our naked eyes. But there is no such thing in the sky, right?
   If you are still worried about that solar storms will send us scary solar flares, because sun activities is nearing its peak. Actually, I cannot deny this theory. We will be hit by solar flares by some point in this year and they will have noticeably effects on our planet. Most noticeably, they will make some very pretty and harmless lights in the sky, called the northern lights. Terrify, I know.
   But I think the most ridiculous theory is the worry of the earth and the sun will line up in the center of the Milky Way, causing something bad to happen. Let us think this way; ever though the earth and the sun will line up in the center of the Milky Way, nothing ever happened in every single year, how come this year is different?
   From the reasons above, we can definitely come to the conclusion: 2012 is not the end of the world. And remember, always deny the apocalypse, because you are usually be right. And when you are wrong, there will be nobody around to say I told you so. :P