I am back to Singapore!

I touched down to home soil yesterday evening, around 11.40pm. The feeling was estatic. It's nice to be back home after being away for 6 months.

Prior to returning, I had one of the most memorable (if not the most memorable) holiday in my life. It was a nice getaway from lab work and school. Thanks Suling and her aunts for the wonderful memories. I have not been so happy for a long time.

The holiday begun immediately upon their touch-down on 22nd June. Upon checking in at Dosett Seaview, we went to 联邦 for yum cha. This is one of the best along Nathan Road, clearly showcased the quintessence of Canto food culture. Shopping at Harbour City followed and it was rounded up by the Symphony of Light along Victoria Harbour.

We went to Shenzhen and Guangzhou on Sat and Sun and for the final 3 days before our return to Singapore, we toured Ocean Park, Repulse Bay, Victoria Peak, Tai O etc. Of course, a trip to HK will not be completed without some shopping.

Near Luo Wu border in shenzhen.

With Wiskers in Ocean Park.

From Victoria Peak.

Hiking @ Sai Kung.

In Tai O.

Top amusing incidents:

1. Adidas shoe. Suling wanted to get a pair of adidas shoe very much but the 3 outlets which have the shoe don't have a new pair; they only have the display pair. In the end, after much "thinking", she decided to get the display pair with better conditions. The moral of the story is, sometimes a good horse has to back track to eat the grass coz it's greener. Lol.

2. Shoe lace. I wanted to get shoe lace in Haizhu Square in Guangzhou. It cost RMB$3 but I remembered getting it for only RMB$1 2 years ago. In the end, because of pride, I didn't go back and get it. Instead, 3 days later, I got it for HK$10. The moral of the story is, we have to pay a price for pride.

3. Incident @ Da Tong Restaurant. This lengendary dim sum restaurant is also well known for its rude service. Suling's aunt's friend complained to the manager regarding the bad service in 3 languages (Cantonese follow by English follow by Mandarin):

Suling's aunt's friend: "(Canto) 你的服务员，态度很不好。(English) Very rude you know. When I asked her for the price again, she gave me a look, show an angry face and walk away. (Mandarin) 那里可以这样 。。。"

Manager: "..."

Lol. The manager was dumbfounded (coz she don't understand). The moral of the story is, most people in the world can't change channel like we do in Singapore.

4. Sucky food at Baiyun Mountain. Nothing much to write. Just that the food sucks big time. The moral of the story is, you don't get good canto food everywhere in Guangzhou.

5. Taxi ride around Guangzhou. We took a taxi from our hotel to Tee Mall. It costs RMB$53! Holy crab. It's expensive, given the fact that cab rides in Guangzhou is relatively cheap. The driver took us almost one round Guangzhou and discussed a lot of politics with us. He even asked whether we would like to see China fighting a war with US. Suling's aunt and I chatted with him most of the time, albeit sarcastic most of the time. Most memorable part of the conversation:

Driver: "Singaporean are street-smart; if not, why will the country develop so fast in the past 30+ years ..."

Suling's aunt: "No lah, still got a lot to learn from you all; we wouldn't dare to display any tricks in front of you people."

Me: "Yah lor. If really so smart, then won't be riding in your cab for an round-Guangzhou trip..."

Driver: "..."

The moral of the story is, when we get cheated, we must make sure that the other party knows that we know we are getting cheated. Singaporeans are not that dumb afterall; get back at them with our own flavour of sarcasm.

6. Walking around the business district. Suling and I walked around Central-Admiralty area after visiting victoria peak. She begun to utter things like "IFC won by height; other than that, its not architecturally pleasing. BOC is amazing, both in lightings and structure. Lippo is like a pair of enantiomers etc." Never seen her so relax like this before. The moral of the story is, walking around a concrete jungle can be a new experience.

7. Suling's aunt and friend got "lost". I waited for them at the harbour in TST; instead they were at the harbour in Sheung Wan. Lol. The moral of the story is, know your destination before taking any transport.

8. Hiking in Sai Kung. Upon reaching mid-way, we decide to back track via another path instead of completing section 2. This is mainly due to the flat terrain in the alternative path. In the end, we realized that the alternative path is not that nice to walk afterall (boring?). The moral of the story is, it may be more worthwhile to walk a little longer to look at breath-taking sceneries.

PS: We missed out Tai Long Sai Wan (2nd half of section 2), which was being voted as the most scenic spot in HK this year. On the whole, it was fruitful as we been to the 4 of the top 10 most scenic spot in HK - Tai O, Long Ke Wan, High Island Reservoir and Victoria Peak. Not too bad for a 4 days trip in HK. :)

9. Last minute shopping. Suling and I literally ran around for last minute shopping. Our itinerary: Causeway Bay --> Admiralty --> Kwun Tung --> Mongkok. Lol. It's like a mess. The moral of the story is, plan your shopping itinerary before you set off.

10. Umberalla @ Bosinni. Conversation:

Suling: "Wah, even the umberalla looks so nice. But quite stupid hor, come all the way to HK to buy umberalla. Wonder if they sell similar design in Singapore."

Me (jokingly): "Well, you can try to ask the sales assistant whether they stock it in Singapore."

Suling (enthusiastically): "Excuse me, I wonder whether Singapore has similar design."

Sales assistant: "... ...; err, I am sorry but I am not sure as I've not been to Singapore."

Lol.

11. Searching for entertainment. Suling have an urge to play pool and bowl. We went around but to no avail; it's either too smoky and sleazy (Golden Chicken) or not available (Olympic City). The moral of the story is, not many places are like Singapore.

12. Trip to Tai O. We went to Tai O before our flight. We reached the airport just on time, 40 mins before the flight. Luckily there is no jam in the mountainous Lantau terrain. The moral of the story is, do not gamble before your flight back home; not every day is a Sunday.

Top quotable quotes (won't mention names of the person saying :p):

1. In Guangzhou's cab. "How come the meter don't jump? (remains at RMB$7 for the first 2.4km) Wah like that what they earn? In Singapore, before the bud warms up, it's already S$4.50 during peak hour.

2. In Guangzhou. "You guess how much the wanton noodle is? It's only RMB$5. So cheap. Some more the wanton very big. So full. I can split it up into 2 portions and eat for 2 meals."

3. In Guangzhou, after the RMB$53 cab ride. "It's RMB$53! You can eat 10 bowls of wanton noodle, 20 meals. Lol."

4. In Guangzhou, after the dim sum in Da Tong. "If it's my brother-in-law, he'll walk out. Then the manager come; he'll say, "you go ask your gal lah; no service expects us to pay ah?""

5. In HK. "Hello, Chong/Dennis, I need a cab from ____ to ____ in 30mins. Can you get me one? Thanks."

6. In HK. "Next time, I will take one day to complete each colour (MRT line) and shop along all the malls along it; if not, very empty leh."

Of course. A holiday will not be perfect without a perfect companion. Suling has been a superb companion in this trip and I really enjoyed her company.

Returning home on 27th June

Time flies and it's already Wednesday 20th June. I've been in HK for slightly more than 5 months; will be returning to Singapore next Wednesday for around 1.5 weeks for commencement, catching up with family/ friends and olympiad stuff. A string of events lining up for me when I return:

1. Commencement in the evening of 4th July.
2. Invited talk on SCHO - 29th June morning @ YJ, 4th July afternoon @ACJ & 5th July morning @ NJ.
3. ICHO organic training (3rd or 4th July).
4. Monica's wedding on 1st July.
5. Catch up and watch Fantastic Four with Chee Siong, Yuan-Ting & Teck Loon (Date??); bowling, pool etc as well.
6. Spend time with family. Go JB? (Date??)
7. Dental appointment in the morning of 28th June. Meeting up with Suling?
8. Catching up with friends.

Hope I don't fall sick in the end. Anyway, I went to Shenzhen last weekend with Asanka (my apartment mate) and his labmates for some shopping and meals. My main motivation is to buy the DVDs for my mom as I wouldn't want to carry so much thing back when I accompany Suling and her aunt to Guangzhou this weekend.

It was a so-so trip. Asanka can't really appreciate dim sum as he finds them tasteless :( When he was eating mian sian, he added half a bowl of chilli sauce in. *bang bang* He told me that it's not spicy and it's too bland. He said that canton food is good but it tastes better with chilli. I was pissed lor; he doesn't know how to appreciate the taste of canto food. If I am the chef, I'll be very upset - imagine that for a bowl of really good fish soup, you need to spend hours boiling it, to drain the essence out from the "input". Then when you pass it to your customer, you expect him to appreciate the taste but instead, he dumped half a bowl of chilli in!! That destroys the hours of effort you've put in.

Ah yes, I finally get to try Sichun dishes, all thanks to Asanka (for requesting his labmates to bring him to some place where he can eat spicy food for dinner). Hmm they are ok (read "ok" which means I prefer canto food) and not as spicy as I thought (maybe not authentic enough?). I was so surprised that Asanka's labmates have a lower tolerance of spicy food than me. Lol. Initially, they were like saying they can take it and I was like "no, not for me". Then in the end, I seem to be able to take it better than them. Lol. Actually, I really can't take (or don't like?) spicy food. If I feel that it's "ok", it means that it's not that spicy afterall. ;)

Busy Week

It's going to be a busy week. Will be truly living a 24 hours day like a 48 hours day. Lol.

Anyway, saw the below poster in HK during the weekends. It is the poster for the upcoming Marvel film - Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

I am ok with the poster, but I have a question in mind:

Isn't Silver Surfer a good guy in Marvel? Why is his name being translated as "银魔", which literally means "silver demon"? Wierd. Also the trailer seems to portray him as a bad guy as well.

Ah yes. Heard from Suling that the book is on sale in Popular Bookstore at a price of S$15.10. Lol. Popular always give discount, as usual. Hope the sales will be good. My NUS chemistry classmate Weili, who is teaching in NJC now, emailed me to ask about resources of H3 as she heard that I've wrote a book on it. Ha.

Dreams & reality are poles apart

Indeed, dreams & reality are poles apart.

Went to see Prof. Wu just now. He sort of lectured me.

"You must stay focus! You only have 2 years here and almost half a year is gone already."

Actually it's my fault. He asked me to work on a project. I didn't actually work on it but went on to do my "dream" project. Then when he asked me to report to him my progress, I don't have much to report. So in order to prove to him that I actually done something for the past one month and not just slacked in the lab, I told him about this interesting stuff that I am working on. He didn't appear happy.

Ok it's my fault. Yah, I will focus now and stop "dreaming". I came to HK with a dream; it seems to be shattered now. I think I should place focus on my primary project and do those dream projects when I have the time.

*Stressful stressful*

Stressful again? Lol.

Die ah. Prof. Wu came back but I have got nothing to report to him. Last week was learning and installing system and network for the 24 new computers. Then I have the darn Bioanalytical Chemistry exam to worry about (in the end, I didn't study for it. Lol). The week before, I was focusing on my "dream" project. Haha. So in the end, I didn't do much. Stress to the limit.

Sigh, it's my fault also. Too stubborn. Keep doing my "dream" project. I was also disturbed by other things as well. Too many things in my mind.

Was quite pissed with the 2 CHEM398 (something like the UROPS in NUS) students yesterday. They gave me the impression that since it's holiday now, they don't want to finish up the stuff and just want to quickly settle the presentation. Despite wanting to quickly settle the presentation, they asked Xin Hao and I whether they can slow down the pace of research??? Hello, so what you you guys want? Pissed lor. Some more, now they are in "trouble" coz boss gave them the same project. They have to present separately but I am wondering how are they going to do that? Not possible lor.

Lousy Day

Don't know why, woke up today with a heavy heart. Suddenly felt depressed and don't feel like doing anything. Forced myself to have breakfast and dragged myself to the lab. The feeling was similar to when I first arrived here. Spent the whole day installing software into my new computer. The consumable funds had large excess and my seniors decided to get a new desktop for me. It was a sefl-configure one and consists of really good parts. It ran on the legendary Windows Vista and yes, I have to admit that it's extremely visual pleasing. I especially like the translucent and the Windows "AERO" effect.

I finally saw our book and felt it last Friday evening, all thanks to my junior, Shuhui for agreeing to bring 4 copies over from Singapore while coming to HK for holiday with his parents. The printing was a little disappointing, especially the first page. Other than that, it was ok.

I brought Shuhui around on Sunday - yum cha in the morning at Federal Restaurant followed by TST, shopping at Harbour City, Victoria Peak (too bad it rained), Italian food at Fat Angelo's at SOHO, shopping at Ladies' Street and Mongkok and Symphony of Light at TST in the evening. Since Shuhui like to "act cute", she (we) took quite a no. of candid shots:

Bumped into Philip in UST!

Lol. There's so much coincidence in this world. I actually bumped into Philip in campus, a fellow exchange friend of mine when I was here on exchange back in Fall 2005. I was on my way to dinner after 3 hours of marking the analytical chemistry exam scripts. And then, I saw a familiar face and he waved at me. Gosh it was Philip. Lol

Philip's from University of Pennsylvannia and we were first introduced to one another by Emily. I remembered the first time I met him, I was having some attitude problem as I wasn't in a bad mood back then. I was being sarcastic and high and mighty while talking to him. I remembered him saying something like "Oh I took freshmen organic chemistry during freshmen years and it was really difficult." I replied by saying that "if chemistry was easy, then I wouldn't be taking it." Lol. Hiah, realized my mistake now.

Though Philip didn't go travelling to China with me, we had our fair share of fun in the hike at Lantau, Ocean Park, dinner at Ngau Tau Kok, roasted delicacies back in Don's hall etc. He's now on an Asian backpacking tour after his Senior year and he will be starting work this coming August. I'll wish him all the best for his future endeavours.

Project X is out!

Finally, Project X is published (thanks Eugene for informing me). But what is Project X? Project X = Thinking Straight About Pharmaceutical Chemistry for H3 Students, a book written by my talented friends and I last year.

Once again, I will like to thank my brilliant team of co-authors - Eugene, Alice, Tian Xin and Justin; without them, this book will not be possible.

5 years ago, I entered NUS with a dream, a dream to write a book on organic chemistry to help students. In May 2006, I came closer to this dream when I gathered my co-authors and started writing the book. May 2007 marked a milestone as the book is published. It's not the end of the dream though; it only marks the beginning of similar dreams, and perhaps greater dreams.

Invigilating CHEM244 Analytical Chemistry II

Just came back from invigilating the Analytical Chemistry module. Lol. This is not the first time I am invigilating. Last year, I invigilated for SCHO as well (well, I set the organic Q, that's why).

Anyway, this was the first time I saw those act-cute students having such a serious look on their face. Must be stress out from exams. Ha. When I saw the exam papers, I was stunned! It was quite easy lor. I am no expert in Analytical Chemistry but when I looked through the questions, I can do at least half of them lor. Lol. I think if TX, Eugene or Wu Jiang do, 1 hour can finish already. The questions are straightforward lor - section 1: MCQ, section 2: short answers and section 3: calculations. *faint* NUS analytical chemistry exam is comparatively tougher lor.

Ha come to think of it, NUS's exams standard is not that bad afterall. Last time, Zhijie and I always complain but on the whole, it is better and more organized compared to those in HK. I like those questions by Prof. Hor, Dr. John Yip, Prof. Lai, etc. The most memorable one being Prof. Hor CM3212's section A (50 marks):

Examine the validity of the following statements. By using suitable illustrations wherever applicable, explain concisely (in fewer than 80 words) the problem(s), if any, in each of these statements.

a. Synthesis of cis-PtCl2(NH3)2 (cis-platin) is best carried out through oxidation of Pt(NH3)4 by Cl2, although it can also be prepared from reduction of PtCl4 in aq. NH3.

b. Since trans-influence is a thermodynamic perturbation, it may have very little bearing on the labilizing effect of a departing ligand, which is governed by a kinetic phenomenon, called trans-effect. This is particularly true in substitution reactions that are driven by an associative mechanism.

c. [Rh2(miu-S)2(CO)2(miu-dppm)2] (dppm = Ph2PCH2PPh2) is a good example of an "A-frame" complex. The Rh-Rh bond can be easily cleaved to accomodate an incoming small molecule, such as SO2, without disturbing the 16-electrons state.

d. Dimerization of [Re(O)Cl4] should be facile, since it can generate a dinuclear species [Cl4Re-O-O-ReCl4] with octahedral geometry at the metal. The {Re2O2} core should be a stable entity since similar {M2O2} configuration has been established elsewhere, e.g. in [Co2(O2)(CN)10]6-.

e. Ln3+ is a labile metal ion. Transfer of ligand from Ln3+ to other metals ions (such as Cu2+) is necessarily quick and hence the rate constant k is inevitably very high.

Lol. 50 marks for section A. Section B requires us to read a paper and then answer 10 MCQ. Sounds simple? Not really. The above is a killer. It wiped out all except 2 in the exam. I remembered Zhijie writing only 2 pages for the above 5 Q as he thought the above 5 Q adds up to only 10 marks. Lol. In the end, he got an A. Wow.

Maybe I should just focus on hydrosilylation

Sick for the past few days. Flu followed by diarrhoea. Though not very serious but it is certainly irritating. :(

Went on a short trip to China last weekend for yum cha and to purchase my favourite Mongolian yohurt milk. Lol. Went there with Stella, a fellow schoolmate working on polymers. I was quite pissed with her friend though as she wasn't at all appreciative of Stella helping her to purchase a Nokia phone all the way from HK.

Gotta know my commencement date from the web last Friday. It was on 4th July 8pm. Not a very good time though as day photos will not be possible then. From another angle, it is also good that it is held at 8pm; that will mean that I will be able to return to ACJC to give a talk to the teachers on Chemistry Olympiad Preparation. Lol. 4th July happens to be on Wed and so they are free after 1.30pm. I will feel weird "teaching" the teachers though as some of them were my former teachers.

Sigh, maybe I should just focus on hydrosilylation. For the project that I found on my own, I kept getting TS of more than 40 kcal/mol. That's really bad. A bit low morale now. For a moment, I thought I found the perfect method to do it (B2PLYP) but it conflicts with frequency calculations. Last week, I tried HF (a not so good method) and it gives very good geometry. But alas, the TS energies are too high. Maybe I should just focus on hydrosilylation for now and think about other things in the future.

We always have a choice

Feeling exhausted, both mentally and physically... ...

Recalling a quote from Parker:

"No matter what comes our way. No matter what battle we have raging inside of us, we always have a choice. My friend Harry taught me that. He chose to be that best of himself. Our choices are what makes us who we are. And we always have the choice to do what's right."

How veracious! Don't you think so?

Polymer exam & Spiderman III

Ha, weird title; the only relation that both has is that I did both on the same day. Lol.

Polymer exam, crab lor. The course was taught by 3 profs in 3 campuses, namely HKU, HKUST abd CUHK. Therefore, there are 3 parts to the exams. CUHK's part, was a bit crab. 2 Q don't know what he wants. Lol. So I just wrote some stuff that I think is the answer. HKUST's part, so-so. 1 Q also don't know what he wants. HKU even worse. The Q he asked, I think I can answer them without taking this module lor. Sigh. Not much challenge on the whole. A bit disappointing. I missed those exams in NUS, especially those of Prof. Hor's, Lai's, John Yip's, Martin's, de' Cruz's etc.

Following that, I went to catch a movie at diamond hill. I should have watch Spiderman III with my 2 best friends but since I am in HK, then gotta watch alone. I was a spiderman fan since I was 8 years old and I am glad that they brought the story to the movie. However, the storyline seems to have change to an almost unrecognizable state. Hmm people who don't read the comics feel that it's nice, good graphics, action packed, etc. Yah I agree. It's very realistic and many a times, the sound and visual effects made me jump a little. Ha. But I guess for all comics fan, deep down in their heart, they prefer to see the original version up on the screen.

Anyway, disregard all the above, the story on the whole was pretty touching, especially the last part when Norman Osborn came to help Parker. Also, the citizens of NY clapping their hands away, cheering was also a touching moment. Also, the part when Parker forgave sandman; hmm I think it takes a lot of courage and strength to say, "I forgive you". The ending was not good for Osborn died while saving Parker. :( I think Osborn did a noble thing, though I don't really like him in the comics (and the earlier 2 movies). Venom (Eddie Brock) was not too bad. The effects were beyond my expectations.

Whatever the case is, I am sure there will be a part IV coming. And be sure that part IV will feature a villain known as CARNAGE.PS: The actually storyline, in brief, should be something like this:-

Sometime in 1980s, Spiderman went to a distant planet with a group of superheros to fight the "Secret Wars". That was when he met the symbiote and subsequently, merged to gave the "black" spiderman. Following that, he discovered that the symbiote was trying to take over his mind and soul and decided to abandon it. He had a hard time taking it out and it was only with the help of Fantastic Four that he managed to get rid of it. That was when he discovered its weakness - intense sonics and heat. The symbiote hated Parker and found another host - Eddie Brock. Eddie also hated Parker for making him lose his job and since both of them shared this intense hatred, they combined to form Venom, which subsequently became one of Spiderman's greatest arch enemy.

Venom was "created" by cartoonist Todd MacFarlane and it appeared in Amazing Spiderman #299. He initially wanted to end it somewhere in #400 but everyone seem to love Venom a lot. So he thought, since I can't end it, why not "create" another one? That was when Carnage appears. Cletus Kasady shared the same prison as Eddie Brock in one occasion. When the symbiote came to save Eddie, it left an offspring in the cell and it binded to Kasady and gave Carnage! Carnage was very powerful, more powerful than both Spiderman and Venom combined. Both of them eventually put aside all unhappiness and join forces against Carnage. Venom is good by nature and he only attacks Spiderman. Carnage on the other hand, is a serial killer who kills for the fun of it. His famous saying is "I am killing you because I can.".

Blair is leaving office

Read at the front page of South China Morning Post after lunch today that British PM Tony Blair is stepping down on 27th June. I (plus Teck Loon, probably) remember this speech of his most strikingly:

"Can we be sure that terrorism and weapons of mass destruction will join together? Let us say one thing. If we are wrong we will have destroyed a threat that, at its least, is responsible for inhuman carnage and suffering. That is something I am confident history will forgive. If our critics are wrong, if we are right as I believe with every fibre of instinct and conviction I have that we are, and we do not act, then we will have hesitated in the face of this menace when we should have given leadership; that is something history will not forgive."

He spoke the above on 17 July 2003, at an address to the US congress in defence for his (and Bush's) "war against terrorism".

The report ended by saying that the world will miss him for his leadership and determination; we will miss him too, for his brilliant rhetorical speeches.

The above speech can be modified and be used in an argument in a "creative" manner. For example, if I want to argue with NUS Chemistry department to revamp the organic syllabus, then something along this line will be great:

"Can we be sure that current organic syllabus will benefit the students and give them a wholesome education? Let me say one thing. If I am wrong I will have remove an outdated and poorly-planned syllabus that, at its least, is responsible for the lost of interest of some students and the lack of academic rigour. That is something I am confident history will forgive. If my critics are wrong, if I am right as I believe with every fibre of instinct and conviction I have that I am, and I do not act, then I will have hesitated in the face of this debate when I am given the opportunity; that is something history will not forgive."

Lol. Sounds cheesy. Ha.

Too stubborn?

Went to lab this morning at around 0930. That was kinda late for me as I usually reached there at 0900 or before. Was washing clothes this morning and that explains why.

My senior Xin Hao then casually told me that if I am to continue with my Si cyclobutene analogues, I should not be expecting too much even if I get good computational results as boss might not be very interested in this topic. That was when I recalled him saying something to be over dinner yesterday along this line: "...为你的梦想去奋斗..." and also a couple of weeks ago when he was wondering why I am kinda persist over this project.

Looking back (and forward), am I being too stubborn? Hmm not sure myself also. Maybe coz this is the first project idea that I came out with myself and it is a potential new field (and my favourite as well). Although I met up with quite a lot of problems along the way, I will like to persevere on to see if my idea (intuition) is right.

Following that, I recalled what my junior said: "只要相信，期待就会成真". Ha, hope I am looking forward to something interesting.

Prof. Hor once said, "What is nobel/world class research? It is to create a new field for people to come into." For example, ever since Sharpless developed Click Chemistry in 2002, many people has been using it for all sort of areas that you can think of: polymer, molecular machines, nanotechnology, drug discoveries, supramolecular chemistry etc. I guess given my situation (and ability), creating a new field will not be possible. However, I will at least wanna work in a mechanism that I really like.

Since I can't create a new field, I will at least want to bring Singapore's education to a new height when I return to the teaching service. This will be done through my beliefs and teaching philosophies. One of my dream is to see the Singapore Chemistry Olympiad team getting 4 gold medals (Singapore's best performance was in 1998, with 2 gold and 2 silver).

We are always talking about "dreams" here. But what sets individuals apart is when you START to work towards your dream in a systematic way.

Doubtful, doubtful...

Gosh, just realized that I'll be having my first paper this Sat on Polymer Chemistry. Have yet to start revising. :( Gotta start soon though. Actually I am not so worried about this course; should be able to pass with a decent grade. My next exam will be on 31st May and that is on Bioanalytical Chemistry. Ha, kinda worried about that as I didn't do well in the mid-term. The module on Advanced Organic Chemistry II is non-examinable and I've gotta submit an essay. Whatever the case is, I guess I have live past the "grades chasing" stage. I guess I have lived past that ever since I returned from exchange in 2006. Lol.

Met up with problems in my research. It seems that computational chemistry some times gave us result that we doubted. The highly popular "B3LYP" method seems to be popular just because it is convenient and apparently, if things agree with the experiment, then it's publishable. If not, then gotta try another method or just dump it until a better method comes along. Sometimes, we will doubt whether the things we are doing are right.

I started working on this Si cyclobutene analogues and B3LYP gave not-so-accurate geometries and energies. I "dumped" it aside for a while when Prof. Wu gave me this hydrosilylation project. Yesterday, I read on a new method call "B2-PLYP" and it seems to give better results, as shown by several publications. I tried it on Gaussian 03 and it works!! It gave the correct geometries and most importantly, more reasonable energies. However, it can't calculate frequencies as it sort of clashes with the Gaussian system. I emailed the prof who developed this method and he told me to use another software call OSCA. I went to take a look and OSCA seems to be difficult to use. Also, Gaussian based software cannot open its file. :( Sigh. Then how? Lol. I emailed Gaussian too; waiting for their reply. Hope they will be able to solve the problem and allow B2-PLYP to be used in Gaussian. All these softwares... dont' know lah. I am not a computer geek. Gave me headache whenever I am reading the manual.

Learning computational chemistry has certainly made me more critical. Nowadays, I feel that a lot of research are blown up and they are not as glamarous as they seem.

Ha, sometimes I feel that when profs (and students as well) like to ask a question and then solve the question themselves. It's like "creating a problem that does not exist and solves it". A series of exchanges at a group meeting:

A: Have you considered solubility? From experience, I think solubility of the catalyst will affect the reaction.

B: Not really...

C: etc etc etc. Yah, just like what A said, the solubility will affect. Maybe you can rethink about the whole thing and come out with a better way of solving the problem ...

A: (realizing that actually it's not an issue) Come to think of it, solubility is not that important as the thingy is afterall a catalyst. As long as it has some solubility, maybe one molecule per 10000 substrate, it is good enough.

C: (realizing it but maybe coz of pride, wanna defend his last statement) Yah, but it does affect as well. It's still an issue as we never know how much is enough?

A: ... ...

Lol.

Revamp of Organic Syllabus in NUS Chemistry

Ha, looks like NUS Chemistry is kinda serious this time round in revamping the organic syllabus in NUS. It seems that none of the current batch of honours students bother to reply Dr. Zeng (the prof in charge of the revamp). Upon my junior, Suling's help, I drafted an email to Dr. Zeng:

...CM1121 was taught by Prof. Lai, my former Honours supervisor. He was by far the best teacher in organic chemistry that I have encountered and I am sure few will disagree with me in this. He managed to covered all the essential basic grounding in organic chemistry for us, with an emphasis on (SN1, SN2, E1, E2), nucleophilic acyl substitution etc. I believed whatever he has taught us gave my batch a solid foundation to tackle CM2121 and above. I have a bold suggestion for CM1121 though: it will be good if we can have something like CM1121S, which is worth 5MC. This is meant for those who are extremely passionate about organic chemistry and will like to learn more. The Math department has similar modules with a "S" code in their freshmen and sophomore courses (http://ww1.math.nus.edu.sg/undergrad.aspx?file=stu-modules#MODULES_OFFERED)

For CM2121, like I mentioned below, it will be good to maintain the teaching of retrosynthesis. I recalled the days when Zhijie and I had loads of fun discussing and debating about making a molecule. We even came out with weird looking molecules on our own to make; now of course we know that our routes were not ideal but it is the learning process that matters. The spirit of learning and exploring should be emphasize here. However, one thing we found lacking was that in most cases, only the conventional 1,2 1,3 ... 1,6 disconnections were emphasized in great details. This might lead students to think that retro is all about carbonyl disconnection, which is incorrect. Therefore, it might be good to "go beyond carbonyl disconnection" to introduce more strategies to the students. Of course at least level, we should maintain a "non-asymmetric" approach. Also, simple examples of total synthesis from the literature can be introduced to allow students to appreciate this subject better. I do read of some total synthesis who are relatively straightforward. I also believed that CM2121 has undergone some revision when it was taught by Dr. Lear (he did include additional stuff beyond the usual carbony disconnections) and I applaud him for that.

For CM3221, I really think that it was totally trashy (sorry for being harsh). During my time (and I believed it is still like this now, in fact worse), it was basically a repeat of what we learnt in CM1121 and CM2121, except for some additional topics in reduction and oxidation, which can be easily covered in 4 lectures. My personal belief for a level III organic module is that it should, at the very minimum, include the following:

1. Simple asymmetric synthesis concepts - stereochemistry, substrate control, asym aldol, chiral auxillary etc.
2. [O], [R], possibly asymmetric version
3. Advanced spectroscopic techniques like 2D NMR, CD etc.
4. Pericyclic reactions (Frontier orbitals vs. correlation diagrams vs. transition state aromaticity model and their interconnections)

CM3222 is more of "touched and go" in my opinion. I feel that we should focus more on in-depth understanding and introduce the students to stereoelectronic effects, MOT, principles of stereoselectivities and some other fundamental concepts in physical organic chemistry.

For CM3225, we can consider adding some topics in bioorganic chemistry; this is more so since the current year 1 have already learnt biochemistry in their freshmen year.

For CM3291, the whole lab manual should change to include a greater variety of experiments. At least, in my current institution (HKUST), their synthetic lab experiments are really good and thorough. I'll be happy to share if required.

CM4222: I don't have the opportunity to take it when I was in NUS :( But as conpensation, I took CM5121, CM5221 and CM5222.

CM4223: Asymmetric Syntheses' content is generally okay. I am currently helping Dr. Tan to revise his notes and the new set of notes will include some of my ideals. It will have more topics in organocatalysis, strategies in total synthesis, contemporary topics such as Memory of Chirality and Non-linear Effect etc. Maybe can introduce Green Chemistry as well.

Oh yah, I realized that the curriculum time for level IV courses are reduced by half (cf. level I, II and III; in short 1 lecture per week compared to 2 lectures per week) I think this is not good as students get shortchanged. In NUS Physics department, Honours year students get 2 lectures per week as well, similar to their first 3 years. Therefore I don't see why students in Chemistry should get less.

Finally, I think it will be a good idea if the department can gather the strength of its staff (and students as well) to come out with a set of teaching materials for organic chemistry (and possibly publish a book on that). It will be good if it comes in small A4 handy booklets for each of the 8 modules and it gets constant revision throughout the years. I feel that when it is accomplished, then all further improvement can be easily made from there. Everything starts with a dream and I hope the department will consider this proposal....

Hope that this time round, they will seriouly do something about it. I must applaud NUS chemistry for taking this initiative. It was one of Zhijie and my dream back then to change the syllabus.

A New Yum Cha Place

Received an important email this morning. After reading it, I decided to go for yum cha to take a break.

Finally, I went to HK island for yum cha. I have been having dim sum in Kowloon all the time and have yet to try those "legendary" places in HK island. Lol. I went to this Superstar Restaurant in Times Square in Causeway Bay. It looked really grand and the standard of the food speaks for itself. The dishes looked really nice, clearly showcased the epitome of cantonese cuisine; the price speaks for itself too :(. Here are some of the dishes:

鳳尾蝦春卷(HK$32.80)

蟹粉小龍包(HK$18.00)

蛋煎糯米雞(HK$24.80)

純鮮蝦餃皇(HK$32.80)

鳳凰燒賣(HK$24.80)

石頭魚餃(HK$32.80)

蓮蓉西米焗布甸(HK$12.80)

蛋黃千層糕(HK$18.80)

Walked around for a while and then went to buy a tortoise in Mongkok. It's called "snake-head" tortoise as it's neck is very long and moves like a snake. So cuttteee. Lol.

I speak in British English? Lol!

A rather boring day with some amusement before dinner.

Went to look for Prof. Wu to discuss about my project and at the end, he said something that made me amused. He started by asking me about last Sat's Hong Kong Chemistry PG Symposium. Then he asked me about one of the lab senior's oral presentation etc. Following that, he said that if I have some interesting results, he'll consider asking me to represent HKUST in oral presentation next year!! Gosh. That's not the most amusing thing lor. The latter part is even more amusing:

Prof Wu: When you presented previously during the group meeting, you spoke too fast; it makes people hard to catch and understand the content.

Me: .... ok (actual feeling: yah I know; you are not the first person saying that...)

Prof. Wu: ...and I realize that you speak in British English; HK and mainland students may find it hard to catch British English ..."

Me: Oh.... (stunned beyond words; I never knew I spoke in British English....more of Singlish??? Lol)

Prof. Wu: ... so next time, maybe you can slow down and speak a little slower.

Me: ... ok.

Ha, I didn't know I speak British English. That's really a news to me.

Pissed!

Super pissed today lor. Boss argued with me for no reason. It all started with the below equation:My junior Joawen asked me a Q on Friday on what can a chemist do in order to obtain most of the product in the enol form. From chemistry, H-bonding with a substituent at the ortho position should be able to stabilize it. -NH2 or -NO2 will be good but not sure which is better since both of them have very different nature. I told Joawen that I'll do some calculations to confirm and my calculations showed that NO2 will stabilize the enol by 4 kcal/mol and NH2 will destabilize it by 4.8 kcal/mol. I thought this is a rather interesting problem and I went on to do calculation for substituents such as Me, CF3 and Cl. All of them showed that keto is more stable and therefore, the NO2 should stabilize it by H-bonding (and maybe something else).

Then today, I told my boss and he asked me to check literature to see if anyone has done it as he is sure that someone has already done something similar. I have already checked and the result is negative. Later on, he came to the lab and dicussed with my other seniors on their project. When I told him about it, he told me that since a prof set this Q, surely he must have some supporting data (most likely literature). But no lor, I told him there is something call hypothetical Q or open-ended Q. Then he rebuked me and say if the prof himself also don't know the answer, how to set Q? Then I told him that as long as the students' answer are reasonable, why not? Then he don't believe lor. He "challenged" me and said if you didn't do calculation, will you know the answer? I told him that I did calculation to verify my chemistry. He went on further by drawing nitrobenzene and aniline and asked me, from my chemistry, which will have a lower hydrogenation energy? I told him use nitrobenzene as EWG made it more stable and etc etc. Then he said very hard to say lor and then said may involve aromaticity as well etc. Ahhh. Crab lor.

Pissed.

Ngong Ping Charity Walk 2007

I completed Ngong Ping Charity Walk 2007 in 5 hours 49 minutes. Lol.

But it is not a "normal" walk lor. It is an arduous 26km hike in one of the toughest hiking terrain in HK. I was so glad that I survived it and completed it in less than 6 hours. My aim was around 6 hours since I completed sections 1 and 2 of Sai Kung (24.1km) in around 6 hours during my exchange. This hike however, is more challenging than Sai Kung and it's really an eye opener. The hiking route is as follow:

The journey to CP1 is ordinary, consisting of flat roads. So nothing very special about it.

The journey to CP2 consist of an upward climb till around 200m above sea level. It is pretty steep but still bearable.

The journey to CP3 continued the climb till around 380m above sea level. It is quite tough. Haha.

The journey to CP4 was one that I will not forget for life. Hardcore! However, it is not as difficult as the Sharp Peak in Sai Kung. For the Sharp Peak in Sai Kung, you literally have to use your hands and climb up. For this route to Lantau Peak (934m above sea level), you just have to walk carefully as there are steps along the way. But it's kinda dangerous as it is very misty and there are very strong wind blowing at you. Quite a lot of people slowed down here and I overtook them. Lol. The descend from Lantau Peak to CP4 was a killer as it's a little steep. Descending has always been pretty bad for me as my leg is not so accustom to going down.

So up till this point, since I've overcame Lantau Peak, the rest should be easy right? No lor. The guidebook stated that from CP4 onwards, it's mostly flatland. Not true!!! So misleading. CP4 to CP5 involves some climbing again at the later half, but it is still bearable. It is CP5 to CP6 that "killed" me in a way. It should be mostly going down but the journey turned out to be down, up, down, up, down ...etc. I walked until my legs were cramped. Lol. But then again, it is worth the walk as the scenary was very good. No strong wind and mist here and so I can see the cable cars and the airport pretty clearly.

The journey to the end point from CP6 is flatland and so it's fine. Had Mac for lunch and bought haf a roast duck for dinner! I slept from 7.45pm till 8.45am this morning. The hike was pretty exhausting. On the whole, it's a good experience, coupled with new challenges.

"If you believe, your dreams will come true." Lol.