"In any realm of life—whether academic, social, business, or political—the only way to succeed is to take a practical, rather than an idealistic, point of view. Pragmatic behavior guarantees survival, whereas idealistic views tend to be superceded by simpler, more immediate options."

Ever-wondering, why US has the best renowned University in the academic realm? The answer lies in their pragmatic approach. For century-long, US-educational based system has outlined the different mainstream students to be independent, creative, critical thinking and the most upfront emphasize is the on-hand experience in the field of exploration. Taking the Go-Cart competition would best to describe. Each year, Mechanical faculty from amongst the University authorities would send out their best craftsmanship result by students for competition. Each student not only undertakes the analysis on Mechanical Stress, outsource the material, but also to the late-stage of assembly, testing and evaluation of their Go-Cart performance. Since then it would spur the students’ interest to participate actively in mini-group projects but also translating the theoretical formula into the realistic and workable project as a whole.

Neither, a caliber political leader should deal with his diplomacy in idealistic manner but in the pragmatic approach instead. When a catastrophe occurs, he should be first prompting for the action, extending his help to the needed victim and minimized the destruction-impact caused by natural disaster. In 2009, when BP failed to contain the leak oil from gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, Barack Obama as a President of the United States quickly held an immediate closed-door party with BP’s top management. After several meetings, BP has reached the concession to pay mounting oil spill claim at USD20million in 4 years and agreed to scrambling the next bid before due date. From this perspective, Barack Obama could have won his next presidency campaign because of his agility to react with sudden-alerted situation, but also in ensuring financial safeguard to the affected vital-lifeline fishing villages.

"In any field of endeavor—the sciences, the humanities, the social sciences, industry, etc.—it is not the attainment of a goal that matters, but rather the ideas and discoveries that are encountered on the way to the goal."

The discovery of America Continent by Christopher Columbus is a watershed event, yet it also marks the beginning of colonization by European. Above is the classic example that when we are directed towards the goal, too often, it would be accompanying with the ideas and discoveries that we stumble across. The question is does idea and discovery do matter than the attainment, or the attainment plays a vital role in getting for the positive result? Today, we would like to discuss this matter as below.

Undeniably, scientists are always seeking the unorthodox way to discover the ideas rather than putting the weighted points in attainment of the goal. These are the groups who constantly need the idea to gush forth in order for them to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of the idea in the clinical trial. Take Mitral-heart Valve as an example. At the early stage, it was designed to replace the damage heart valve in human hear chamber, nonetheless due to its design has yielded the life-threatening condition, thus it has forcibly scientists to devise the Mitra-Clip to replace of it instead. The idea of Mitra-Clip was imitating those stitches to close the flap door in the heart- valve of a human, and it is because of its simplicity design, many heart patients have opted for this new therapeutic option besides it is less costly than the conventional open heart surgery.

Moreover, the discoveries are sounded more prominent than attainments when it is in the process for curing a disease and save-vital human life. Dr. Joseph who is also the author for the book of “The Powerful of Subconscious Mind” has credited the merit of subconscious mind in battling against the deadliest disease and win over the “War”. Inside his documentation, a several patients were diagnosed as a cancerous –carrier vessel has been fully recovered at the years span later. This phenomenon has harbored many physicians and scientists and they dubbed it as “Remission Therapy” in which the cancerous activity has been ceased to zero. The only plausible explanation which is given by Dr. Joseph is that, the subconscious mind is acting likes a powerful antidote when we place hope in recovering soon, they render the abnormalities to be inactive.

Nonetheless, the context in discoveries would be different for athlete. Athletes are a group who had to put in more measurable way in attainment than in discoveries solely. Their annual revenue, sponsorship, spokesman income is all greatly dependent on their regular performance which always marks the difference altitude in their career. The case of Michael Jordon is no less known to us, he is the iconic person in NBA history. MJ has even grabbed tons of title for himself, likes 10 All NBA first team designation, 3 best steals titles and 1988 best defensive player award. This has further yielded the endorsement from NIKE for the designated sneakers on “Air Jordon” which is still popular in commercialization right until now. If MJ was not the big shot in NBA, just a punk who played well in the street game, all this generated revenue of billion-dollars as a spokesman would not be wired into MJ account as his pocket money.

In conclusion, to gauge the importance of discoveries over attainment or vice-versa, it is largely dependent in the eyes of the endeavor and the field he engages in. Scientists, philosophical, economist and judiciary are all favors to evidence, idea and discoveries, meanwhile, endeavors like athlete, entrepreneur, politician are putting their calibers onto their respective field of interest. Therefore, as to which element is far more superior than other it does not really matter, what matter is given the stipulated time, both discovery and attainment could reach the final goal together.

"We can usually learn much more from people whose views we share than from people whose views contradict our own; disagreement can cause stress and inhibit learning."

Before entering the context, as said “Adversity always brings into the opportunity”; does this hold true for disagreement? Does disagreement could unleash the potential in learning or it only magnifies the crack between the opposition, breeds the hatred, and impede in the learning curve. I am pretty confidence, most of the crowd would conceive to the latter; as they view disagreement would bring in the disadvantages points than advantages. Today, we would delve into this issue as below.

Needless to say, the disagreement always brews into the stress and impede in the learning process. Both parties are neither seeking for the common ground nor try to listen to the opposition’s opinions, both of which are rooted out firmly in their stance and profoundly to proclaim their wisdoms are indeed the most constructive and workable in the argument. If that is the case, six-core would not be emerging from the Chipset market, this chipset is primarily developed by engineers in Bangalore, India. The Chief designer challenged their crews to be able to draw out with the robust design and succeeded to the predecessor of i7, yet they prevailed in the end after 6 years of technical scrambling to fine tune on Six-Core Xeon. The strayed of argument, different perceptions, and the misalignments from core values would not bring in the fame and recognition in Bangalore as the small Silicon Valley in India today.

The virulent disagreement and criticism could be extended to the field of political. The atmosphere in political field is even tense, constantly backfire, not seeking the common ground of understanding nor joint-force with each other. Often one of each worthy opponent would be citing the certain law enactment to bring down the opposition. The debating from Abraham Lincoln over Stephen A. Douglas was seen at least the most stark physically and morality attack. Lincoln emphasized that “The Slave Power” should be abolished and threatened that Douglas was defying the value of republicanism meanwhile Douglas backfiring by skirting that Lincoln was never exercised the practice in Freeport Doctrine where the settler are free to choose whether to allow the existence of slavery or not. In the end, they only left the crowd with rhetoric and needless to say they were not fostering the intimation of learning in disagreement process.

Though, debating is at least seen as the paradox way to gain the learning from disagreement. When debating, both oppositions would present their materials, factual argument, and the consistency of axioms to prevail over the trial or in competition. Take the homicide case in a courtroom trial. Priori entering to the “Battlefield”, both defense and prosecutor attorneys would need to congregate and organize their testaments in the most “Unorthodox-Striking” way. When the trial begins, both attorneys would try to point out the weaknesses in opposition and manifest it largely, so that, it would be one side favors from juries. Apart from that, during the “Assailant”, both attorneys would need to devise a plan to counteract the bombardment from opposition; it is in this process, the attorney could build up their confidence, eschew the onslaught and overrule the statement if any before the final conviction is put by the judge.

To sum it up, it has become a notion for public to “Eradicate” the sense of disagreement in the learning process, nonetheless this philosophy does not hold true for the group of people whose idealism, views, standpoints and beliefs are downright contradict to the opposition, to excel in themselves, they need to engage in the dispute, controversy and disagreement in the formative way of debating. As Confucius emphasized, we should give up this relationship if the belief we are holding are straying at each other.

Confirmity leads to deadening of indivicual creativity and energy

“We need to end this long addiction to fossil-fuel and embark on the clean-energy” this is the statement which was spoken by Barack Obama when the catastrophe caused by BP could not contain the crude oil after the several attempting actions. Does this sound a conformance to you? Well, in my point, conformity only works for certain regulatory body and group members, in fact I concede that conformity leads to deadening of idea, creativity and energy whether it is governing to an individual or targeting to a whole group of organization.

Firstly, conformance never works on the scientists, researchers or any greatest inventors. Many of them has disregarded the notion on conformity, in the other hand, they seek for the critical thinking and out of the box solutions. They are deeply believed that, whatever they could dream of, they could materialize them as said by Albert Einstein. Take the example of the Wright Brother’s creation; it would not be plausible for the 300kg metal alloy can be built into giant-bird shape like navigator and soar freely in the sky. Yet, Wright Brothers, disregard on the notion and rhetoric from authorities, they continued their day and night research to fine-tune on their giant-bird glider. In Dec 1903, the first human piloted plane has clung to the sky and this has astonished many of the skepticism people and turned into their favorable supporters since then.

Remarkably also, conformance works flawlessly to the giant with less fortune fate such as Liu Wei, Nick Vujicic, John Wilson and Mr. Them. Above persons are either struck by the sudden mishaps nor were born with handicapped. Yet, they never succumb on the negative thinking; beg for merciful or becoming as a victim, but in the other hand, they are the compass and mirror to many others who search for a meaningful life. Who say, a limbless person could not surf in the ocean with their skateboard, yet, Nick Vujicic has proved everyone wrong; who say a pianist must have the healthy limbs to play on piano, listen to Liu Wei who once played on the famous song “Let It Be” with Andy Lau and has touched million of the audience with his incredible performance, playing the piano with his only toes. All this inspired and adrenaline heartfelt feeling could not be gushing forward if they kneeled down their heads before conformity.

If conformance could not be found from scientists, inventors and “Gigantic” person, where should it belong to? Yes, we can witness their traces at manufacturing-based company such as Plexus, Jabil, military group and jurisdiction body. All these groups do not require the well-educated person to be in-charge, in fact, they only need their obedience, achieve the target, wipe-out the enemy and reach the same verdict in a same-time. Take the example of military group, their commander needs their crews to be very obedience and strictly comply to his order, moving in to the target based and eradicate the enemy, in contrast they never asked their soldiers to be a very outstanding group who is always thinking in the unorthodox way to accomplish their mission, this is therefore they only be viewed as “Killing Machine” only to defense their commander orders.            

To wrap this up, both conformist and non-conformist people only could unleash their potential if they are placed in their right position. The converse is true, the idea, creativity, abundance of energy would be withered, if we put scientists in a conformist group or conformist person in the non-conformist environmental, therefore it is up to the upper echelon to define on their human ideology when placing their respective crews under their particular regulatory body.

Is Multitasking a digital fried to our brains??? (II)

Multitasking has rapidly taken our lives to a point we are looked awfully lax if we are doing one thing at a time. Chances are good you have several browser tab on your Mozilla Firefox while you are doing your homework, chances are good also you are driving back home but blabbering over the phone with your best buddy. With the ever growing array of digital distractions available, multitasking has become prevalent than ever before. This is however; our brains are not built for the onslaught from multitasking and this is according to Professor Nass, a neurologist from Stanford University. We are built to train and focus on a single intellectual task, when our minds are bombarded with different tasks, it get overloaded and virtually coming to a halt in the dead alley.

First of all, multitasking is draining out our brainpower infinitely. Imagine that, when I am in the middle of learning from Answers.com and texting email to pen-pal, both tasks are competing to reach the same place in the brain. As a result, our brain get exhausted, cluttered, and overloaded. According to Dr. Glenn Wilson, a psychologist from University of London, he has pinpointed that, this scenario is actually able to knock down 10 points of our IQ, much to situation where the head-fog is caused by losing a night’s sleep. Even we are not multitasking in the same time, but we are switching between tasks it can slow down on our works according to Dr. Wax from University of Queensland. When the group of people was asked to solve the complicated Math, in the mean time they have to divert their attention to others, they were actually up to 40% much slower in their usual performance.

Besides that, it is also the single most important reason why we are witnessing the epidemic of rage according to Dr. Gary Small, a psychologist from Harvard Institute. Take the sample likes this, I am a busy parents, living in a crowded city, and I have to perform multitasking daily, all these hectic and chaotic in my personal experiences would be translated to be a chemical changes under my brain, and thus it would chronically raise the level of the stress hormone cortisol in my bloodstream. In longer term, I would be disposed as being more to impulsive and compulsive personalities. Therefore, in short, it is the psychological and intellectual toll which may eventually cause a harmful spread onto my body, mind and soul. According to the American Study reported in Cyberpsychology, kids who are immersing heavily in multitasking find it difficult to concentrate on their single intellectual task such as reading text.

In addition to that, multitasking is potent enough to cast a form of autism into the future of our children. When our minds are filled with noise, it is starting to losing it out capacity to process, from attended fully to gradually anything. This phenomenon has been christened by Hallowell as “Attention Deficit Trait”, a psychologist expert from University of Holland. According to him, children with autism are often demonstrating the behavioral likes lacking of the interpersonal skills, isolating with others, doesn’t make eyes-contact with peers, focusing on the pieces of part and even worst misinterpreting the imply meaning or failed to catch the subtle non-verbal messages such as body language. We can think this along the scale of Asperger, a mild form of autism where there is no connectiveness, other the fancy world of us.

In conclusion, it is the psychological and intellectual toll taking as a whole in this collateral damage. If we must perform multitasking by anyhow, we should heed on the following advices from experts. Whenever we hit on the “Fried” point, we must quickly turn ourselves into low-information environment; get a soothing view; walk away to allow the brain to discard on the tangling and extraneous thoughts. Never do in the afternoon, the post-lunch fatigue, added to the strain of multitasking could cause an overload to brain. Mediate is to increase the attention and memory in the brain. Ironically, Professor Nass could not find any to quit cold turkey in Stanford when he offered 100 bucks as the reward to them.

Is Multitasking a digital fried to our brains???

Multitasking has taken our lives to a point where we are being looked as the woefully lax person if we do thing one at a time. Coupling with the ever-growing digital array available, multitasking has strengthened its magnetic field to become more irresistible. We are built with the novelty-instinct; it is hard not to divert our attention when a click is pop-up from screen or the swing open sound is coming from a door when the actual thing is we are surfing on net with multiple tab browsers. Professor Nass from Stanford University has warned public that the exploitation from multitasking will only create the disastrous in our mind, either in the psychological way or a toll in intellectual way.

First and foremost, as suggested by Prof Glenn Wilson from MIT, we are not the expert jugglers, we are the amateur plate spinner instead. Switching frantically between tasks will cause a log-jam in our brains; this is because both parts are rushing to reach the same place to process on the information. Taking the example likes this, we are learning online from Answers.com, the same time we are also texting message to our close friend. Information could only be stored into our brain through the striatum to hippocampus if the learning process is uninterrupted, if not it would only be stored temporarily at striatum. In addition, Prof Clint Edward from UCLA has confirmed that only one to two activities are presented in the prefrontal cortex when the visual stimulants are given.

Apart from that, we could have the chance to witness on the epidemic rage caused by multitasking. Let say I am living in the hectic cosmopolitan city, with heavy workload, besides that I am also a busy parents, busying take care of my cranky children, when my multitasking doesn’t live up its reputation, to have the fast efficiency of works in short period. I am starting to feel the anxiety, pressure and overload, and all of the noisy sounds are cracking into my minds. All that troublesome which I felt will be translated into the sort hormone stress cortisol, which spike high in my bloodstream. Chances are good I could be developed with cardiovascular disease because of “gift” from multitasking. In longer term it is not only the psychological spreading the harmfulness in our minds but also taking an intellectual toll as a whole in the process.

Despite of that, our future children who are intensively immerse in technology could have the higher chance in developing autism-like behavioral. Prof Earl Miller, a neuroscientist from University of Melbourne has pin-pointed our brains are not built for the onslaught, it only allows one to two activities to be processing at once, exceeding that limit would only bring the overload to the brain capacity and eventually coming the halt in the end. It is for this reason; our children are shaped with the autism behavior because of the “Attention Deficit Trait” as emphasized by Edward Hallowell, a psychiatrist from Chicago University. He said ADT has the linkage to the autism form behavior in children. When children involve in autism, they are starting to isolate themselves with others, misinterpret on the non-verbal cue and worst leaving in their own fancy world, repeating the same phrases over and over again. In scientific term this scenario is called as echolalia.

In this context, the mounting evidence is suggesting that multitasking would not bring the effectiveness in our work, but in turn would be stirring with turmoil in our peaceful mind to be chaos. It is therefore we should abandon to the notion of work-like multitasking person, which is always the gauge and caliber from gigantic corporation in promoting their personnel. If by anyhow, we must do it, we must heed on the following advices, do not do in afternoon, the post-lunch fatigue added to the strain of multitasking would give you the immediate of overloading to the brain, in fact, the MRI personnel is scanning on which time it is best to perform on the multitasking. When we hit on the “Fried” point, do give ourselves a soothing view of nature, to release on the tension of our minds, and allowing our minds to discard the extraneous thoughts and filled with replenish feeling. As human it is not worthwhile to trade-off our health with multitasking just to storm through the tough time in overcoming the inflation rate in the next few decades. We could have many ways to earn the fortune without neglecting to our health and we should be reminded, the ever biggest fortune we could have in possession is all about the healthy body and mind.   

Should a city try to preserve its old, historic buildings or destroy them and replace them with modern buildings?

Topic#73

In these days, the traces of the age-old historical buildings are getting less and less in view. With the tall-building is surrounding them, they are getting replaced by the skyscrapers and consuming one by one. Should this change be a necessary for us to be dubbed as civilized person living in the millennium era? To me, I personally feel not and has rejected the notion above with two reasons as below.

Historical building has its own unique and remains thereafter. Take an example of Khoo Kongsi at Cannon Square. Scores of the info could have been elicited by the viewing of its structural building, woven clothing, craftsmanship and others. Without all of these great legacy which are inherited since ancestral time, the young generation likes us, would not stumble across to this community nor even know their existence in the face of Malaysia.

Historical building also helps in tourism. The best example is The Forbidden City in China. Each year, tens of thousands foreigners have been teeming up to this capital because of its magnificent sculpting skills on marble stones, the splendid of administration Emperor Hall and the greenish of the Emperor Garden. All these great artifacts only left available in Beijing. Without it, most of the tourists would not hesitate to uncheck the tick-box in China and take flight to Beijing.

Therefore, the message is clear, historical building are indeed have brought two advantages. The unique identity embedded within itself and the center attraction for tourists to flock into. At here, I am
urging the local authority to greatly preserve these little artifacts as best as they could, besides that it has also been becoming the greatest gift to younger generation not only they could gain access by the book but through the personal touring to these legacies left for them.

Regards,
Huei
(Sat, 22-04-2011)