Where do new ideas come from?

I believe that new ideas can broom you brains and experiences you had in your past life. This might happen anywhere. New ideas come through thinking and brainstorming. For example, earlier people used to think that the world was flat and you might fall off from the edges. Later, when people came up with the idea or hypothesis that the world cound indeed be round, the idea would have been dismissed as a stupid idea. Many peole would have commented rudely, like "What an idiot" etc.. However, the idea turned out to be a reality as figured out and established by Christopher Columbus, and people did start believing in the same. Not all ideas can be flawless. There are many ideas which have a flaw and others which do not have a flaw. Thus, it is experiences and facts that establish or turn the idea to reality. We should not just dismiss the idea for the reason that it sounds strange. We should explore and try to prove it right or wrong with a scientific approach.

Favorite short story

What is your favorite short story from our unit? What makes a good story?

During the unit of short stories, we read three very interesting short stories - The Sniper, Lamb to the Slaughter and Thank You Ma'am. Although I liked all the three stories I very much liked Lamb to the Slaughter as it had very interesting ideas and the two climaxes kept me spellbound. Lamb to the Slaughter is written by Roald Dahl. It has the sensations of suspense. The story is very clear to me and very easy to follow as it is written in a simple language. I also liked the theme of the story " People aren't always who they seem like". Mary Maloney seemed very nice but she wasn't as she had killed her husband. This story therefore really surprises me in a very simple way about how Mrs. Maloney gets rid of the evidence. The most interesting part of the story for me was where where Mary Maloney had fed the Lamb to the Police. I had hoped to have read this story earlier in my life.

Reflection

• What are the consequences of ' just accepting the situation in which you find yourself [so] everything will be so much easier'?(Boyne 53)Bruno's father to Bruno.

The risks and consequences of' ' just accepting the situation is that other people die because of your own action. In the village of Le Chambon where the people helped 5000 jews and kept sending them to neutral countries. These people in the village did not care what would happen to them or their family. Le Chambon served 5000 jews in just 5000 christians.

The people knew the risks of taking the jews hiding them and then sending them to neutral countries but they still continued with the hard work.

The Afghan Girl

Steve McCurry’s photographed of a green eyed beautiful Afghan girl, Sharbat Gula, in 1984. Her portrait became most famous and was selected as the cover of National Geographic 100 Best Pictures. During many subsequent visits to Afghanistan & Pakistan, McCurry tried to find her again, but was not successful.

In 1992, the National Geographic team returned to Pakistan to search for her. Through a series of contacts, she was identified. Her husband and brother finally agreed to allow her to be interviewed. She never knew that she had become so famous in the meanwhile. Since Sharbat Gula lives a traditional Muslim life she was not allowed to meet men outside her family. However, the Geographic team could send a female photographer to meet Sharbat and photograph her face again. After another photo was taken it was sent to obtain verification through iris-scanning technology and face-recognition techniques used by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to see if it was the same girl who was pictured 17 years ago. Later when the Afghan girl met Steve McCurry they recognized each other.

The Afghan girl had married and has 4 daughters. Since the family didn’t want to get interviewed by many reporters so the family relocated to a different village in a remote part of Afghanistan, where she continues to live her life.

Steve MCcury Essay

Steve McCurry is a well recognized & a very fine photographer who has won many top international awards for photography. McCurry’s photos explore people in difficult situations, performing ordinary tasks in their culture or just simple portraits show us the struggles and joys of life. The photographs depict realities of today’s world, including resilience of human spirit, hope, hardship, determination, wars and effects of wars on humanity etc. McCurry himself comments about his photographs in his words saying, “Most of my pictures are grounded in people. I look for the unguarded moment, the essential soul peeking out, experience etched on a person’s face. I try to convey what it is like to be that person, a person caught in a broader landscape that I guess you’d call the human condition”.

I find all of McCurry’s pictures very meaningful and impressive. Below are some of the pictures, which stand out for me.

Boy sells Boy flower Children play on an anti-aircraft gun near Beirut, Tanks become toys in Kandahar, Afghanistan, 1994

In busy road, India 1993 Lebanon, 1982.

In the first picture above, a child is seen selling flowers to bus passengers. Child labor, which is quite common in certain countries, is one of the evils of society. Like the picture of the boy selling flowers, I have myself seen so many children doing such odd jobs to earn a bit of money in India. As I grow up, I want to somehow spread a message that child labor should be abolished.

The other two pictures that particularly stand out for me are the ones that show how the monstrous death machines have become a playground for children in Lebanon & Afghanistan. What is expected out of children who play with guns and ammunitions’ instead of books and general toys? Is this not a very bad influence of wars on humanity? As McCurry puts it, “Whether it is splashing in puddles or climb on abandoned tanks, their world of make believes is almost as important food and shelter.” I would say the same after seeing such images. The world should be a happier place to live rather than being a battlefield. This picture makes me wonder that the governments are unable to give the children what they deserve. Instead, children are being shown the path to violence. While my own circumstances are so different, I still feel a strong connection as we both share the same affection for children.

Overall McCurry’s photos emphasize on humanity and quality of life. He also lays lot of emphasis on the ongoing war in Afghanistan and how the citizens of the country are affected. McCurry’s photographs are results of his Insatiable Curiosity, Hard work, Fortitude and Determination, Continuous learning and ability to evolve & reinvent with heart and mind open. In one of his blog post Steve tells us what he does to take all these spectacular images about many lives unseen by many humans before. He is doing a marvelous job by publishing all these images to show the world how people struggle and still get nothing.

Matt dancing!!

Matt Harding was a new name to me till recently. However, having searched for him on the web, I am amazed by the awesome job he is doing. He has pictured himself in all 7 continents and 70 countries dancing at exotic locations. He is inspiring people to come and dance with him and is sharing happiness. How true is his statement “People want to feel connected to each other”. I myself would love to be connected to people from different nationalities and walks of life in this world. I think people would like to mingle with all others, irrespective of cultures and nationalities . Although Matt does simple dancing (I cannot do that!!) he has inspired many people to come and dance with him all around the world. Good job Matt!!

Matt's dancing theme is common to “The compliment guys”. All of them are doing their bit by making people smile and feel good. I think it this way people can forget their worries and be less stressful..

The picture above shows Matt dancing with two other people in front of the camera. Both look happy and smiling while they dance with Matt.

URL: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2286/1619925971_52c2462f34.jpg

The Compliment Guys

Wow!! The people who happen to pass by Cameron Brown and Brett Westcott (the Compliment Guys) at Purdue University on Wednesdays between 12:30 to 2:30 PM are so lucky to get personalized compliments from the duo. These guys bring cheers to lives of many and touch their heart. They lift the morals of people giving sincere comments in the current economic downturn. In return, Brown & Westcott expect nothing. I know how good it feels to be complimented I was recently complimented for my good performance in Maths quiz and I felt on the top of the world. Similarly, when I complimented my cousin for his awesome pics which he has posted on facebook, he felt very nice and thanked me for the compliments. He said, “Adhip, you have made my day”. It is rightly said, “Small efforts make a big difference”.
I have chosen this smiley cap picture as a thank you from me to “the compliment guys”. I want to make them feel happy just like they are making several people feel happy.

URL: http://rlv.zcache.com/happy_face_hat-p148109470807671371q6hl_400.jpg

My King is here

“Adhip” means “King”. When I think of my name I feel I am a king and the world is my kingdom. Adhip is actually a Hindu name adopted from “Sanskrit” language. My father told me that it was not difficult for them to find a name for me. They always wanted my name to start with “A” since my dad’s name also starts with an “A”, Ajay. They also wanted my name to be uncommon. Thus, my father bought a directory of names. My parents together shortlisted a few names and then they finally decided on “Adhip” along with my grandparents. Adhip is not a common name even in India and thus in a crowd or a class when my name is announced, there is clarity that I am the only one. Moreover, when I have to register on websites for e-mail address or user name, I always get my favorite ID “adhipnagpal” and thus I do not have to add prefix or suffix to my user ID. Another positive is that for any reason when names are listed alphabetically my name comes either first or is close to the top few. The only negative which comes to my mind is that sometimes people do not find it easy to pronounce my name correctly. Again, I love my name; when someone calls me by my name, Adhip, I hear it as “King Adhip” and feel as if I am a king.

URL: http://www.kongehuset.no/aim/kongehuset/16/7/storage/file.image.jpg/Scale?geometry=373x334%3E&Set:quality=100

I chose this picture because this gives me a feeling that I am the KING.

Life is a journey, not a destination

You must be wandering why I put the quote “Life's a journey, not a destination”. When I was looking for quotes I found many, but this one by Steven Tyler somehow took all my interest as it has become a very popular phrase. I decided to find out what it really means. Life is a journey and not a destination has a very deep meaning behind it. The core message by this quote is that in life you go through many obstacles and opportunities and it does not matter if they are hard or easy, good or bad, life never stops; you never know what will happen next. You will continuously evolve. If life were a destination, you wouldn't get anywhere in life. It would become standstill.

I chose the painting below by Joann Dufau (Click on the link to read about the artist and the painting). It certainly represents the theme of the blog. The angel is moving around the world, moving past all obstacles, searching for her destination. She is taking all pains that come her way on the road of life.

Malaysia Week - Unforgettable Sibu

When I joined ISKL I was told that everyone in MS gets to go to a place in Malaysia for few days as part of curriculum. Since then, I had been looking forward to Malaysia Week. Once the programme for MW was announced, the excitement grew. I was assigned to Pulao Sibu, an island in the East Coast of Malaysia, in Johor state. We were a group of 24 MS students accompanied by Mr Callan, Ms. Whiting and parent volunteers.
We reached Sibu on 15th March 2009 afternoon after an 8 hours bus ride. From the jetty we got a 30 minutes boat ride to the island. We were dropped on one side of the island and our first task was to reach Sea Gypsy resort (our abode for the next few days). 24 young and brilliant minds easily traced the route and we were at the resort quickly. Soon we were assigned Chalets and room partners. Maxson & Non were my room partners. The activities over the next few days were fun filled, starting with getting up early to finish breakfast by 7:30 am. This was followed by fishing, swimming, races, quizzes and many more. Journal writing was in the evenings after dinner. Another challenging activity was for all of us to memorise the names and two unique things about all others. Though difficult, we all were successful as success carried a reward – S’mores.
The day before departure for KL was spent on Survival Island. Here we made shelter, prepared yummy food for ourselves and also made a SOS sign. I loved the rice and can never forget this eventful day. Later we had the tug-of-war game wherein my team (Sibu Monyets) won. The last day dinner was a Bar-B-Q followed by a bonfire and yummy ice-creams. Next morning we set off for KL.
MW brought all the 24 of us very close and we have all become very good friends. Team Building was really great. I have already started looking forward to next year’s MW.

Economic Crisis

I never knew what Economic crisis is, though I had seen my dad glued to CNBC a lot during the last 1 year. On Monday, I was thinking what topic to choose for my new blog post and I saw "Economic Crisis" flashing o the TV screen. I asked my dad about it and he explained me a bit on what it meant. I am writing below what I understood. I know that the economic crisis means much more than what I have understood and written here.

With the information I have, I understand the Economic Crisis started when the banks didn't have money. All their money was gone because people were unable to return the money they had borrowed as housing and other loans. Thus, banks started collapsing. Further, the industries and the offices didn't get loans from banks to buy materials and pay the employees and workers. because of this, there were job losses or delayed salaries. This resulted in people unable to buy expensive things from the market. This lead to shopkeepers loosing business. Overall, lots of people, businesses, banks, industries etc have run out of cash. Even the stock markets crashed.

Today, the world is looking forward to Obama and other world leaders to introduce policies which can bring us all out of Economic Crisis.

Mumbai under seige

During the last three days my parents have been closely following various news channels and internet to get updates on what was happening in Mumbai. As you all know, Mumbai was attacked by terrorists on 26th November 2008. The terrorists were well organised and attacked two most luxorious hotels of Mumbai, namely Taj and Oberoi. They also attacked few other places. The fight between terrorists and authorities (Police, Army and Navy) went on for more than 3 days. While most of the people held as hostages were rescued, still more than 150 people have been killed (including 13 foreigners). As I write this blog, the authorities have finally delcared that they have control over all the places that were attacked.

I have lived in Mumbai for a long time. It is a very lively city. People from all races and communities live together peacefully. Even though there have been terrorist attacks in Mumbai earlier as well, this one has been the worst. It is an attack on humanity. Intelligence forces from all over the world are collabrating to find out who the terrorists were and what was their real motive.

Please join me in paying tribute to the victims of Mumbai terror attack. I sincerly hope and pray that life in Mumbai will be back to normal soon and government will ensure that there are no more such attacks in future, not only in Mumbai, but anywhere.

Each small step is a big invention - Lighting our lives

A light bulb flashing over the head of a lone scientist is the universal symbol of invention.

Just imagine if there were no electric lamps, how life would have been after sunset or in darker places !! How life woud have been in Northern Europe during the winters, when the days are very short!! How would traffic run on roads with no lights!! Do you think, candles and lamps would have been enough for all this? No way...life would have been dull and boring without the electric lights.

Electric lamps have been one of the greatest inventions. They have made our lives comfortable in many ways. Many inventions have taken several centuries to develop into their modern forms. A light bulb is no exception. It is one of the best inventions.

Do you know Thomas Alva Edison didn't "invent" the light bulb. He actually improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1809, Humphry Davy, an English chemist, invented the first electric light. In 1878, Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, an English physicist, was the first person to invent a practical electic lightbulb (13.5 hours). In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours. Edison placed his filament in an oxygenless bulb. Edison continued to improved his lightbulb until it could last for over 1200 hours. In 1991, Philips invented a lightbulb that lasts 60,000 hours.

So you see, how this important invention, that has given light to our lives, has evolved over time. The modern day lamps, different colours, sizes, and types for different uses, all originate from the early inventions. Today, it is very difficult to imagine life without electric lamps.

Each invention may be just one small step on the road to the ultimate goal.

Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA)

SPCA stands for
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
I never knew that I have got to do anything for them. Few days ago, a woman from SPCA visited ISKL and told us about SPCA activities and how we can help SPCA in a responsible way. I then also logged on to SPCA website and got to know of their services. They are really doing a great job which is worth appreciation. The aim of the SPCA is to protect defenseless animals and to alleviate their suffering. They are constantly challenged by shortage of space and limited funds.

Services provided by the SPCA are:-
Adoption programme - Members of the public are encouraged to adopt animals from the SPCA.
Stray animals in distress - Whilst the animal shelter will receive sick, injured or very young, orphaned animals round-the-clock, the SPCA ambulance also responds to distress calls between 8am - 8pm.
Inspection of cruelty complaints - SPCA inspectors investigate complaints relating to animal cruelty whenever possible. The identity of complainants is kept confidential.
Educational talks - Upon request, talks are conducted either on SPCA premises or at schools, clubs and other organizations to discuss topics such as responsible ownership, animal care, strays, neutering etc.

How can we help?
We can donate our pocketmoney,clothes, dog and cat food, newspapers, puppy pens, cages. SPCA need people to adopt animals. We were shocked when SPCA told us that many people cut tails of dogs for fun. So if you see you anyone being cruel to their pets or stray animals please call the SPCA.
SPCA needs money to provide shelter for more animals so please donate for the good cause. I think Malaysian government should also increase the amount of the fine if people are found being cruel to animals. If the government would increase the fine I think people would stop being cruel.

I request all readers to spread this message.

I remember, I had promised to give answers to the 2 riddles I had posted in the last post.

1st : because the window was shut

2nd : because they were bald

First Impressions

My Name is Adhip. I am 11 years old and study at ISKL. I live with my loving parents at Kuala Lumpur.

I have no siblings. I sometimes feel bad about it, because then I could have had play mates with me all the time. On the other hand, I am happy as I dont have to share my stuff.

We have recently moved to KL from Aberdeen, UK. After we settled in at KL, the local magazine, Expatriate Lifestyle, published an article on us. The article was titled First Impressions. Thus, I have picked up the title for my first blog from there.

Prior to moving to Aberdeen, I was at Mumbai, India.

Modern cars is my passion. My favourite cars are Aston Martin DB7, Lamborgini Gallardo and Audi A6. My favourite movie is "Delta Force". My favourite colour is "Green". I like to play games on PSP & PS2. I also like assembling lego Toys.

I keep in touch with my old friends at Aberdeen & Mumbai by e-mails. I miss them all.

Ok, some riddles for you...keep thinking and wait for the answers in my next post.

Macho the wonder dog can drink 5 litres of milk, jump 7 feet,climb trees. But Macho cannot jump through the 4 foot window.Why?

Young boys were playing rugby and it was raining very heavily all day long. Not a single strand of hair got wet inspite of the boys not wearing any protection like a cap, hat etc. Any luck?