MO Diagram of Propene & Benzene

The day began with me sitting in for a module on Pharmacology & Toxicology. I intend to audit this module but decide not to as the lecturer is basically reading from the slides. Yawn. I am turned off even more when he said to the class that there is no need to read the reference textbook; whatever they need to know in the exams are in the powerpoint slides! What the heck! This deviates so far from the Life Science standard in NUS. Duh.

Anyway, I learnt some basic computational calculations from my senior XH today. He is really patient in guiding me as I am basically a computer idiot. I realized that I need to adopt to a completely new platform known as Linux. It's pretty tough for a start but I got the hang of the starting part at the end of the day. It's quite interesting as it demostrates how experiments and theory agrees well. My greatest achievement today is to calculate the MO of propene and benzene. The main ones are shown below:

HOMO & LUMO of propene:

Main MOs of benzene:

First Day of School

Woke up a little late today as I was kinda tired from yesterday's hike. Reached the lab at around 10am and realized most people were not there yet. the XH told me that the computer that I am going to use was infected with a virus and I gotta reformat the whole computer. It took quite some time and I went to lunch at around 12pm.

Went for Dr. Yu's CHEM244 Analytical Chemistry II lecture at 1pm as she required all TAs to attend the first class. The horror came when I couldn't locate the classroom!! It was located at a new extension block and I was running around looking for it frantically. When I found it, it was already 1.20pm. Her class was boring and the students were talking non-stop, typical of any HK classes. I was about to fall to sleep when the lesson ended. I met her after that and to my surprise, I was not required to give any tutorial. I realized that TA in Chemistry are only required to grade and invigilate mid-terms and finals in courses. Other than that, we are required to take a lab module each. In short, no classroom teaching for me, which is bad. Yawn.

I dropped Biochemistry for bioengineers as its course content was far from what I expected. It's not biochemistry altogether. Sigh. Left with only 3 modules- CHEM512 Advanced Organic Chemistry II, CHEM544 Bioanalytical Chemistry and CHEM588 Polymer Chemistry. At 4pm, I went with my seniors to a seminar given by Prof. Jasper Knoester from University of Groningen in Netherlands. It's on Optical Spectroscopy in Condensed Phase Systems; quite an eye opener for me as I learnt something new :)

At the end of the day, after some rearrangement of the tables, I had my own space, cleaned and almost ready to use. What's left will be to upload the necessary programs and I am ready to learn the computational techniques. I think it's gonna be a little hard for me since I am pretty bad at computers. However, it'll be a good learning experience for me. Once I master the basics, I'll be ready to do some good research and hope to publish some good papers eventually.

Finally, I will like to say that I miss NUS. Yah, as much as I think the education system there is not so good, at least there are a lot of modules to choose from. This is good for me as I like to attend classes. Also, I miss the people - friends and juniors, the office staff, the profs, the lab technicians etc. Getting a little homesick but I am feeling better already. I hope as I get busier, such feelings will gradually fade.

I used to tell people that tomorrow is always a better day. 1 year ago, when I started my honours project, I had a hard time too but I survived eventually, with many other committments bundled. Since I survived that, 2 years Masters here shoudln't be a problem. Friends are not with me physically to shower me with warmth and support; however, deep in my heart, I know that they are with me "spiritually". Come grow old with me as the best is yet to be.

The Most Beautiful Place in HK Revisited

I always wanted to visit Sai Kung East Country Park again as I feel that it's the most beautiful place in HK. I manage to go there today, with Asanka tagging along. I must really apologize as the whole trip really drained him out totally. I should have check his fitness level beforehand (again I assume too much) and moderate the hiking trip.

The travel log is as follow:

0900: Took minibus #12 to Sai Kung
0912: Arrive at Sai Kung
0945: Done with breakfast and took KMB #94 to Pak Tam Chung
1002: Arrive
1020: Start MacLehose trail
1053: Reached M005
1130: Reached M010
1203: Reached M015
1230: Break at hut
1251: Complete Section 1
1300: Lunch break at M021 Long Ke Wan
1345: Arrived M023
1445: Break at M025 hut
1530: Reached M029 hut
1550: Reached Sai Wan Village
1930: M048 completed Section 2

Our hiking trail as follow:

Some nice photos as follow:

The coastline appears different during different part of the year. The first picture was taken during fall 2005 and the second picture was taken today. Note the difference.

Completion of Project X

Project X is finally completed; Eugene and Tian Xin sent it in for publication yesterday. I will like to thank my brilliant team of co-authors who made this possible - Eugene, Alice, Tian Xin and Justin.

It all started with a dream, in May 2006. 9 months later, we are closer to this dream. I wish to see the product of this dream soon. Dreams are really powerful motivating factors; that's why it's called a dream, and not aim or objective.

Referencing Lab Report - Wrong Attitude to Learning

Tu di told me that she received a lot of peer pressure coz many of her friends have senior's lab report to refer to. This has been a problem in NUS Chemistry (or NUS in general) for as long as I remember. That is up to individual actually, I guess there is no right or wrong from a human perspective. However, from the academic perspective, it's a grave mistake. There is no such reason as "since everyone is doing it, then I might as well do it". Remember, the blind leads the blind in most cases.

I always remembered the sweetness of receiving back my lab report when I do the report myself. It may be a B+ but it still represents my ultimate effort. The module that I remembered the most was CM3292 Advanced Experiments in Analytical and Physical Chemistry. I didn't take any year III modules in those areas and thus the lab reports were tough to write. Together with Yiming, we have to read up on the materials and then struggled with the report. It's a tough process but we enjoyed the learning experience. At least, our reports are original. The mistakes are original and genuine. We can jolly well borrow reports from seniors and then save 80% of the time reading up on unecessary stuff (that bores me :p). We didn't fare fantastic for the reports, mostly B+ and A- but at the end of the day, we can satisfactions. At least, we can lift our head high and be proud of our grades because we deserve them. It may be silly, but it's worth it as the satisfaction gotten is priceless and definitely sweeter than an A+.

Nothing interesting happens for the past 3 days. Took lab safety test at SEPO on Tue and then did the online TA training assessment on Wed (before attending the course on Thu and reading the online materials!!!) The crappy thing is, I passed the online assessment. Haha. Maybe I have the instinct of a teacher and that's why I can answer those Q without taking the TA course.

Yah, went for the TA course today. The instructor is humorous and able to teach well. The course itself is however, a little boring for me as it basically teaches us how to teach, something which I already knew :p. Gotta know an international friend from Sri Lanka and went out with him for dinner and to Tsim Sha Tsui to admire the skyline of Asia's World City.

Feeling Blue & Homesick II

Before I rattle, I'll like to thank those friends (especially Emily, Yuan-Ting, Teck Loon, Yiming, Jin Ro, Chee Siong & Suling) who listened to me for the past few days over phone and MSN. Without you people listening to my woes, I guess I would have just collapse. Thank you so much.

Anyway, I finally bath in the bathroom in my apartment this evening! That's quite an achievement, given that the initial condition of the bathroom is far worse than the condition of the dirtiest coffeshop toilets that I have seen! The toilet bowl is literally brown in colour...my gosh. I should thank my dad for doing some initial washing of it to make it look better; it's much cleaner now and yah, people in my apartment are making some effort in maintaining it. But I doubt it'll be kept that way for long, given everyone's busy schedule.

Although I have my own room now and enjoy the privacy that I wanted, it's not as rosy as I thought. Back in exchange when I had a room mate while staying in the UG Hall, though I lost the privacy, I have at least someone to talk to deep in the night when we are rushing assignments and when it's freezing outside. In addition, the toilets and common area were well maintained by the staffs. What's more, we are paying only HK$4000 for 1 semester. That's far cheaper than the HK$2665 that I am paying a month! The rooms in the UG Hall also has a large fan in the middle of the room, which helps to ventilate the room and keep you cool during summer. Over here, such fan is absent and we have to resort to turning on the air-con during summer (I presume it'll be hell hot during summer in the room, without a fan!). The fan can also in a way, helps me to accelerate the drying of my washed clothes. And of course, the bathrooms and common areas are not maintained in the apartment.

So how am I now? Still lonely, home-sick, sucky, down etc. Though Daniel and Yuin Yee (fellow NUS friends who went on exchange with me), and I have some character difference and our friendship remains just cordial, they are afterall Singaporeans! It's like if I have a sucky day, I know at least that at the end of the day, they are there to dine with me and we will "complain" to one another on our "plight". I kinda missed those Mondays and Wednesdays in which they actually waited for me most of the time for dinner when my lesson ends at 7.30pm. Not to forget, those HK friends whom I gotta know in day 1, who were such great companions during class and leisure time. Alas, they have graduated and move on with life. Even if we meet up for meals, it'll me like me catching up with my old Singapore friends; it's a different feeling, you see. Now I am here, surrounded by mainland chinese who communicates in mandarin and canto students who refuse to speak in English. Sigh.

Went on holdiay with my parents for a while last week and I marvelled at the pace that Shenzhen and Guangzhou develop. I went to Shenzhen once in Dec 2004 and a couple of times during my exchange stint from Sep 2005 - Dec 2005. Its most obvious development is in its metro, from none in 2004 to currently 2 lines running. It's expanding rapidly now! Of course, building sprung up everywhere and it's amazing that so much has changed for the past 2 years! Same goes for Guangzhou. I went there once in Feb 1999, Dec 2004 and a couple of times during my exchange stint from Sep 2005 - Dec 2005. It grew from a city without metro to one with 4 lines running now! It intends to expand to 8 lines in 2010, just in time for the Asian Game 2010. In addition,buildings also sprung up everywhere and the most telling sign is in its GDP of >US$10000, the only city in China to have reached such figure. Even Shanghai and Shenzhen were pale in comparison.

Project X will be completed soon and I look forward to see it!

I intend to write an article sharing my experience in teaching pericyclic reactions. Given my current state, in which I "lost" my skill in chemistry, to present, to socialize, I wonder whether it's still possible. My past seem so distant. Sometimes, I don't know how to face people who knows me, for I know they'll be disappointed when they know the state that I am in. Jin Ro and Joawen wrote beautiful descriptions of me before I left; I showed it to Shihui (a senior in Prof Hor's group) and she said that to earn such descriptions means you have really command a lot of respect from them. Thinking back, I feel ashame of those remarks. Apparently, I have lost that feeling for Chemistry, I don't know why. It's the same scary feelings I got after I ORDed from NS. The only difference is, after I ORDed, I was full of enthusiam in entering NUS. Now I am like "living day by day". Hopefully, things will get better when term starts.

In retrospect, one of the reasons why I am having such feelings is perhaps I left Singapore with a heavy heart, with many unfinished business. Perhaps, I left too quickly; I should have just stayed till yesterday and things might be better? Well, no one knows. But one thing is for sure, I am feeling blue now.

Feeling Blue & Homesick I

Initially wanted to continue with my old blog address but decided to start a new one as it's easier to keep track and this also represents a new milestone in my life. "HK expedition" brought me many wonderful memories; guess they were too wonderful that I am feeling so blue now as things turn out to be so different when I am a full-time student here (compared to being an exchange student).

Apparently, the admin people here don't really get what I am trying to tell them and I had trouble with some of them. Even Prof. Wu (my supervisor) told me to be polite in the emails I sent out as the admin people remarked to him that I am rude in the email. Please lor, if I am rude, then they are super rude lor. Sigh, don't know what to say. Things just seem so different from the exchange period.

Sometimes I wonder whether I made the right choice in coming over here. Maybe I should have just go to NIE. If not, I could have chose NUS to do my Masters. Coming over here means I have to start everything afresh. Maybe I am proud or whatsoever, but it just don't feel good to feel so small. In addition, people here usually talk in canto (Hong Kongers) and mandarin (mainlanders). No one to discuss Chemistry in English with me. Sigh sigh.

Things got worse when I was told that I am given Analytical Chemistry and Molecular Characterization lab for my TA duty. Prof. Wu made it kinda clear that he wouldn't help me to talk to the prof-in-charge to change duty for me as he don't wanna trouble people and also it's not nice to do so. Sigh sigh. Why am I given modules which I hate the most for my TA duties? Some form of toughening up for me?

The feeling is scary. Suddenly, I felt as if I've lost all my chemistry knowledge when I embark on this trip. The sending off on Sunday (14 Jan) was kinda sad event for me. I felt I have lost the ability to teach, push arrows, present etc. Why do I feel this way? Is it because things didn't turn out the way I expect it to me? It's a good toughening up process but the road ahead is bound to be tough.