Everything in a nutshell...

As mentioned in the first blog post, I chose to take this module because I wanted to hone up my communication skills as a budding chemist. Out of the many aspects which we have covered in class, the two which I find most beneficial are: (i) Delivering Oral Presentations and (ii) Building Interpersonal Communication Skills.

Prior to this semester, I subscribed to the idea that Emotional Intelligence (EQ) equates to sensitivity. Hence, I always thought that I have relatively high EQ. However, I realised that there are many more aspects to that, e.g. empathy, interdependence, self-honesty, etc. Being more aware of these definitely pushes me to change for the better. After all, its better to be late than never!

Although having to present something to an audience sounds so trivial, the website flashed to us during class certainly widened my knowledge - and I am thankful for that! The beauty of it all lines in the fact that the new knowledge which we acquire is nothing abstract or philosophical. Instead, the majority of them are simple facts, e.g. the use of a 'B' button during a powerpoint presentation. Now that I know such a function exists, I would definitely make use for it :-)

To sum it up, I have not regretted taking this module. Thank you Brad, my fellow project mates, and to everyone else in the class. You all have made my learning experience a memorable one!

Ayo kenalkan Desmond!

I am Desmond, a final year undergraduate who is currently pursuing his passion in the Chemistry Department of the National University of Singapore (NUS). Having been trained in the Sciences for almost a decade has equipped me with a fine eye for details, which I am confident will serve me well in the future. In addition, I was appointed as the assistant to the Secretary of the Carnival@Marina Planning Committee (National Day Parade 2005) during my time in National Service, and some of the tasks expected of me included the preparation and screening of documents and presentations on a daily basis, such that everything is in the right place.


Besides Chemistry, Bahasa Indonesia is also an integral part of my life. Although I knew selecting Bahasa Indonesia as my minor was equivalent to having an arduous task await me, I went ahead with my decision and finished all six modules with a perfect score. In addition, I firmly believe that learning is not just limited to the 4 walls of a classroom, and so I seized any possible opportunity to expand my knowledge of both the Indonesian culture and language; these included: working as a prison translator, giving speeches to students in lower level Bahasa Indonesia modules, and paying visits to the embassy.

So I say: pursue what you love, all the way!

Reflection on Research Project Experience

"Two heads are better than one." What about four heads?

This research project is indeed an enriching experience. I like how the four of us have distinctly different characters, which allows us to complement one another. Zhiyi is the one that would get started on something, and that allows the other members to subsequently follow-up on the piece of work. I see that as an extremely crucial skill to have in group work. After all, it is one thing to spend days and days to brainstorm, and another thing altogether to materialise whatever thats said. Susanto is our group's silent worker who is always supportive of ideas (unlike the old me that can be very critical of ideas). I really appreciate his timely contributions that puts us back on track during discussions. Lastly, we have Max who is the analyser. Occasionally, the group is at a lost as to what is the next appropriate step to take, and Max would always step in and shed light on various subject matters.

About 4 years ago, my superior in the military told us about the dynamics of group work, and I found it extremely appropriate for this project. He said: "In any team work, there are various roles that are adopted by different individuals, and they are namely: the leader whom leads (obviously), the devil that has to do the dirty job of shooting ideas down and having to push his way such that things get done, and the other members being faithful subscribers to proposed ideas and/or thoughts. Of course, with all that is said, I find that I usually end up being the devil of the group in such situations. Often, I would ask myself why would I even choose to adopt such a role, and potentially end up with a bad reputation. How about you? What role do you usually adopt in such occasions?

Shocked!

Living in Singapore, I am certain that most of us have had the chance of experiencing cultures that differ from our own (which proves to be really beneficial at times). I would like to adopt a different approach for this assignment, that is: summarising the view of a foreigner towards the way of life in Singapore, e.g. how my maid views my family when she first arrived.

1. Food Culture

There are 2 ways that my family go about eating. First, we adopt the conventional method of using utensils of course, e.g. spoon, fork and chopsticks. Alternatively, we use our barehands to savour some of the delicacies from Pizza Hut or KFC (which is a lot more convenient in certain occasions!). When my maid saw the latter, she was a little disgusted. According to the practices in her hometown, they use their right hand to eat; NEVER their left hand. Does anyone know why? :)

In addition, there was once when my family went to a relatively traditional restaurant to celebrate my grandma's 70th birthday. On the table, we were just given a spoon made of glass, and a pair of chopsticks. My maid had a lot of difficulty trying to use the chopsticks, probably because she has never used that before. However, my aunt was being difficult with her, because she thought that the maid was being disrespectful, e.g. she said: "the least she could do is to try to eat with those chopsticks..."

2. Language Barrier

In Singapore, many of the people from the older generation are relatively fluent in Bahasa Melayu, and that also includes my parents. As my maid did not receive much education, thus her command of the English Language is extremely weak, and this of course caused much problems amongst the family!

There was once when my maid cooked french fries, and my brother asked for ketchup to go with it. She was extremely puzzled, because ketchup in Bahasa Indonesia refers to sweet sauce. How would you react in my brother's situation if you saw sweet sauce on your piping hot fries?

On another occasion, my mum was talking to my maid in the room, and she told the maid to pusing kipas angin, and the phrase in Bahasa Melayu refers to turning the fan. However, it was very unfortunate for my maid, because the very same phrase does not make any sense in Bahasa Indonesia. In fact, pusing stands for headache. Thus, what registered for my maid was: headache of the fan. Eventually, she got scolded by my mum, because my mum thought that she was trying to be funny.

To summarise this post, I would like to say that one should be tolerant of differences in culture, and not make assumptions that any culture is universally correct or accepted, because that is usually not the case (as we have seen from the numerous examples brought up in class as well). Hence, it would definitely serve us well in the long run if we are better exposed to various cultures (both by reading and having first-hand experience)!

Potential Research Topic

Last semester, I took the module SSA2215: The Biophysical Environment of Singapore, and I was appalled at my lack of knowledge of the current environmental problems my country is facing. Having been brainwashed for 24 years, one would think that Singapore is actually still the Clean and Green Lion City that we once were. It is imperative that we get our act together, and actively take part in the conservational efforts that are currently in place. After all, it is one thing to be aware, and another thing all together to be a part of the solution.

For purposes of contextualisation, I have decided to study the attitude of the NUS population towards environmental conservation. If one pays attention to the both the email circulars and the posters that have been put up in campus, one would know that the university is actually actively involved in many conservational efforts. 3 of the initiatives are listed as follows:

1. Save3s: Double-sided printing or electronic submission through IVLE

In conjunction with the launch of SAVE3s campaign, NUSSU SAVE is proud to announce that the Office of Provost for both Undergraduate and Graduate Studies has allowed the submission of all assignments, reports, papers and thesis electronically through IVLE or on double sided print.

2. Zer0Waste: Recycle your unwanted notes after exams

During the examination period, a new pilot project called ZerOWaste will be carried out in MPSH to allow students to recycle used paper. Recycling bins will be placed outside the MPSH exams hall to facilitate this. In addition to this, paper recycling bins will be placed at the various halls' offices during and after the exam period for students to recycle unwanted paper.

3. Rebate2Earth Campaign – Reduce the Use of Plastic Bags on Campus

NUSSU Students Against the Violation of the Earth (NUSSU SAVE), in collaboration with the Office of the Provost, the Campus Sustainability Committee and NUS Co-op, has launched its Rebate2Earth Campaign on Monday 4th February 2008. This means that NUS Co-op will no longer be dispensing free plastic bags for purchases made at its stores. Instead, plastic bags will be available at $0.10 each. The proceeds collected from the sale of plastic bags will be deposited into a coin box at the cashier’s counter and will go towards supporting future environmental projects in NUS.

In this section, I would attempt to give a detailed description of my project proposal.

Research Topic:

To investigate the level of involvement of NUS students in environmental conservation efforts organised by the campus.

Hypothesis:

The majority of NUS students know the existence of conservational efforts that are already in place in the campus, but are choosing not to be involved.

Problem Statement:

The objective of this study is to explore the various approaches which can get NUS students to be interested enough, such that they would be actively involved in the university's environment conservational efforts.

Purpose Statement:

The objective of this research is to inform both staff and students in NUS of the increasing number of students that do not actively participate in the university's environment conservational efforts despite their awareness of campaigns which are already in place. Another objective is to understand the reasons for the laidback attitude that NUS students adopt towards environmental conservation, so that possible measures can be in place to correct this attitude.

Reason(s) for an Attitudinal Survey:

As the attitude of NUS students is of utmost importance in this project, it is clear why an attitudinal survey is mandatory.

*Edited on 8th September 2008 (2200 hours)

The light at the end of the tunnel...

Dear friends,

Tom has read all your comments, and he wishes to express his heartfelt thanks to each and everyone who posted. His response is as follows:

Susanto: As much as I would like to speak to my Dad, the environment in my family is really not conducive for that; its probably just the way my family members express their love for one another, i.e. quietly caring for one another. Hence, I think its a really difficult task to bring that up to my Dad. In addition, this is really a sensitive issue, and I have no idea how to go about bringing that up to him... You are right in saying that his acts are unlawful, and the morally right approach would be to report this to respectful authorities such that the interests of the maid is protected. However, there is also the moral issue in having to prosecute one's father right?

Wei Chung: I really agree with you that this a very tough situation. In fact, Desmond was also stumped when I painted him the scenario. Of course, I am really grateful to him for bringing this up in his assignment. With regards to your advice to bringing this up to my Mum, I am afraid that this would not be a suitable approach, because that might just cause my family to break up.

Vijani: Thanks for your kind advice, but sending the maid away would be the last thing I would do. As mentioned previously, the maid is already a part of my family. Also, who can guarantee that my Dad would not repeat his actions in the presence of a newly employed maid?

Joyce: I think making him aware of his actions sounds like a good idea, because for all we know, his actions are unintentional (maybe he was under the influence of alcohol)! However, I do not know how to go about doing this. The other advice you have given is actually what I have currently adopted, that is to ensure that at no point in time my Dad and maid are alone together. In fact, that was also Desmond's advice :-)

Once again, thank you everyone!

- Tom

P.S.: I have edited Tom's response, in particular the vocabulary and grammar, but not the contents.

Tom's plea for help!

My good friend, Tom, has a maid that has been with his family for almost a decade. Tom and his siblings have grown up in a family whereby face-to-face communication amongst members of the family can be considered a rare sight. On top of that, both his parents are usually not at home due to work commitments. Hence, the maid has become a central element in the communication-web of his family; somewhat like a messenger that critically links members of the family with one another.

Not too long ago, Tom’s father faced a lot of problems at work, and that strained the relationship between his parents. His dad began to stay out much later than before, and turned to drinking as a form of escape. As much as Tom wanted to help his father, he did not know how to go about doing it. In addition, he was too involved with the extra-curricular activities in school. Thus, this situation went on for a few months.

One night, Tom noticed that his maid was very upset. Hence, he tried to find out what had happened from the maid. He was told that his dad got touchy with the maid on various occasions , and this usually took place in the kitchen at night after his dad got home from work (usually when Tom and his siblings were too preoccupied with their computer games). In fact, Tom had also witness this numerous times. However, he was unsure of what action he to take. He felt extremely tormented by this interpersonal conflict, because whatever action that he might have to take would hurt the people dearest to him in one way or another.

Some of the serious issues faced by Tom are summarised as follows:

1) If he should confront his dad with regards to what had happened to the maid, and how he should go about doing that.
2) The seemingly important task of filling his mother in on what has happened between her husband and the maid.
3) The way to go about protecting the interests of the maid, someone whom he already regards as family.

If you were in Tom’s shoes, how would you resolve this interpersonal conflict?

the beginning...

"No man is an island." - John Donne (1572-1631)

In today's society, globalisation has become a reality; something which would be deemed impossible decades ago. One of the key factors that actually made this possible is the advancement in technology. In this post, I would focus on the detrimental effects of technology in communication. However, I would briefly touch on why effective communication is a vital skill (as a budding chemist) first.

I am currently a undergraduate in NUS who is doing my honours in Chemistry, and I spend most of my time doing experiments in the laboratory. Contrary to common belief, a chemist does not only have to be good in his/her laboratory performance, but it is also mandatory to be able to put ideas across. Would you consider a scientist who is an excellent performer in the lab, but is unable to communicate his results across to the community successful? Highly unlikely... Thus, I am now doing this course, in an attempt to hone my communication skills.

Technology in the twenty-first century has advanced beyond recognition; two individuals living thousands of miles apart from each other can be linked in a few clicks of the mouse. Days of using the morse code, and having to correspond with one another via snail-mail are over, and would probably be buried together with history over time. Yes, those methods of communication that were once so effective are now considered old-fashion and obselete! However, is that necessarily a good thing?

Contrary to common belief, I choose to believe: the adverse effects pegged to communication brought about by the advancement oftechnology greatly outweighs that of the advantages. I would attempt to illustrate my point via numerous examples in my daily life.

1) As we have previously discussed, the various forms of communication have evolved; besides the usage of hardcopies to ensure that the delivery of information appears formal and official, other channels of communications assumed importance and formality in many of the societies today. Brad mentioned that most if not all of the announcements in his department are done through email, and I believe that Brad's office is not the exception here. One may ask, "how would this have a detrimental effect on our communication skills?" With cyber-forms of communication being so prevalent in Singapore, it actually affects our communication with one another, both at home (yes, my cousins often communicate with their siblings at home via msn, and so do I!), and at work (my colleagues who are sitting next to one another are sometimes talking through msn).

2) Linked to the above point, communicating more behind the computer for long hours weakens our ability to express ourselves in real life. I am making this statement with specific reference to myself. Something which many people do not know about me is that I actually stammer. Though I have never seen a speech therapist with regards to my difficulty, but I would attribute this problem to my lifestyle. One that is spent a lot in the cyber-world, which really weakens my ability to interact with others in person. I know that this is a psychological barrier, and am trying to overcome it. Help anyone? :)

3) I do not think that coming across an individual with a low EQ is a rare occurence. However, I think that we should stop and think about this issue, before we point fingers and start gossiping about how terrible and hopeless that individual is. Just like how we often sympathize with the disabled, we should also give those people that step on our toes a chance (in this case, the problem with a low EQ), before we actually condemn them. I would think that one of the reasons for this is the lack of communication with others in person. After all, we are the rulers behind the screens, aren't we?