Paint Ball
It has been ages since I touched my blog. I do not think I am a blog writer. However, I feel like notating down the fun and thrill, apart from the bruises I had today. 10 of us went for a paint ball full-day game today. It was my first paint ball experience, and it was far more fun than I expected, and also far scarier than I thought.
We arrived at Royston at 8 plus in the morning and headed to the paint ball site. Jit Ern missed the train by seconds. He caught up later. We were given briefings as to how to use the gun and also about the rules. The paint balls were far smaller than I expected and the gun was far more powerful than I expected. It REALLY hurts when the paint ball hits u. All 10 of us have bruises everywhere on our bodies.
We were kinda immuned to the pain at first, probably due to the adrenaline. But the pain later sinked in. And we were slightly more cautious so that we do not get hit that much. In the morning, the 10 of us were in the same team. There were about 20 odd ppl in each team. It was really like a battle with bullets flying pass left right and top out of no where. I could actually see and hear the bullets flying at great speed. When it hits u, u go 'ouch' silently. Anyone who gets hit will have to raise their hands and walk to the dead zone.
I have finally experienced crawling and courching among the bushes and the woods, like a real gun battle. There were trenches and articial barricades for hiding and sniping. I have to admit that I am rather timid and most of the time I am hiding somewhere and shooting randomly. Or I will try to cover someone. I do not think I am physically fit enough and mentally prepared enough to run around and risk suffering from painful shots. Due to my lack of fitness, I usually need to dive down behind a tree and pant, before continuing. The first few rounds were rather confusing as I was just seeing bullets flying past and hearing gun shots everywhere without knowing where the enemies were.
Towards the middle of the day people started spamming bullets and that was scary. The most horrifying battles were when I was trapped in two ocassions. The first one was to retrieve the bomb from the centre of the battlefield and plant it in the enemy's base. I crawled near to the bomb and when I was about to jump into the hole to get it, someone threw a smoke grenade and I thought it was an exploding grenade, so I jumped to a slanting wooden barricade on my left. The wind blew the smoke over to me and I was breathing in the awful sulfur smoke. At the same time, Daniel, the national rifleman was spaying bullets at me. My position didn't allow me to move at all and in the end I was shot. But I could not get up because if I do I would be sprayed by more bullets as I might not be seen as 'dead' due to the thick smoke. So, I was stuck there breathing the smoke. Hong Sheng was laughing at me.
The second occassion was when I was hiding in a small hut with a wooden wall in front of me. Daniel was opposite me and he sprayed bullets on the wall. I could feel the wall shaking thunderously and I could not get out from the exit on my right too because he was aiming at the exit as well. So, the whole game I was just shivering behind the wall. Yijin tried to come to the left and fortunately I turned around and stuck my gun out of the small slit and fired at close range on his thigh, which resulted in 3 bruises.
I was quite good at moving around the artificial village and was able to come to the back and killed some enemies. I felt sorry that I caused a big bruise on chien fen's hand due to that. Towards the end I was really tired and it stresses me up whenever a new game starts as I was starting to resent the stress to have to fight in a battle again. It was quite frustrating at times when you were pressured from multiple sides and was immobilised. Trying to survive was also a kind of stress. I guess real war is not all that fun although it is always a fantasy for guys to be able to shoot. There were times I felt like not playing as I was scared.
The last game was a free for all game. Nobody dies if you get hit, you only surrender if you cannot stand the pain or you run out of ammo. Only Siew Kit, Jin Yang, Hong Sheng, Jit Ern and I were playing. We were put at the same starting point and when the Marshall count down from 5, we were told to start firing and 1. But as he said, Marshall cant count, so it went from 5 to 1 straight. We ran towards all directions and smart Siew Kit stayed put and fired us. I saw Jin Yang on my right and he was busy shooting someone. So I sprayed bullets on his back. He turned to me and fired at me on my right while Siew Kit fired from the left from the fort. It was so painful that I literally just ran for my life. I came back and fired someone at the back before running out of ammo. At the end, Siew Kit still has some ammo left and the Marshall ordered him to fire at will although we though the game ended. I crawled up and ran together in zig zag with Jin Yang and charged towards the exit of the shooting site while Hong Sheng and Jit Ern were shot.
There were some kids who are very good at playing. They have their own gears and guns. Their guns could fire a lot quicker than ours. They were actually very agile and very familiar with the grounds. Besides, there were two guys who came to earn bruises for charity. They both have automatic machine guns which sounded scary and loud.
It was a great experience I guess. Thanks to Siew Kit who organised this outing. I have about 16-17 bruises on my body with one severe one on my right hand. Some others having it worse I guess. When I am typing this, my muscles are still tensed up due to the effects of the war and the trauma.
Cancer
While I was struggling to contribute a little to cancer research, my friend's mother lost her battle to cancer. Her dad just died a year ago of the same disease. I am sure there are many other people losing their lives at this very moment to cancer while I am playing around in the lab with the cancer cells that I cultured.
I cannot imagine myself losing both my parents within a year to the same evil disease. Cancer, a disease which spawns from yourself, a rebel, not a foreign invasion, makes it even more difficult to combat. There is really nothing I can do here besides going back to the lab tomorrow and have a look at my specimen under the fluorescence microscope, order a new antibody to find out another potential therapeutic target. I hope we can progress towards helping cancer patients fight against these cunning and resilient rebels. Besides, I wish her and her family members well.
Mrs Leow, rest in peace...
I thought of seeing her when I go home next month. But, the news told me that I will never be able to do that. Thanks for your wishes and your gift when I left for England at that time.
At the Cambridge Cancer Centre Symposium, one verse which caught my eye at the Cancer Research Institute at Addenbrookes Site is
" Together We Can Beat Cancer"
But the irony is while scientists are fighting behind the scene, they are the ones who face problems with research grants. Scientists are at the mercy of big corporation, big pharmaceutical companies, charity organisations etc. If we want to beat cancer, everyone should wake up and give the scientists support. I mean everyone, especially those who are earning big bugs because you never know how important it is until you are diagnosed with it.
Mayweek!
Mayweek is the only major consolation for Cambridge students to celebrate the end of darkness. Mayweek is not in May, but it is the week when the final term of the academic year ends. This also means that every undergraduate has finished his or her exams for the year and in other words, its PARTY time!
Well, my san jie said I attend parties like attend classes. It is quite true. I have been so busy and occupied everyday in Mayweek, or since my exam ended. It was about drinking, clubbing, and garden parties. I think I am truly blending into the British culture. Well, I think the highlight of my Mayweek will be Saint Johns Mayball! I am lazy to explain how its like. Basically it is a ball which costs a hell lot for you to drink and enjoy whole night. But, it is something in Cambridge that I would want to experience.
Today was a pretty good day. I was asked by Tom to help out in their medsoc garden party. It was nice to work with Tom, Rob and Kat. I am really glad to be working with them in setting up the garden party today. It is the company which matters. The garden party turned out great! I love the chocolate fountain a lot.
Besides all the fun, there is still something lacking which is stopping me from feeling very satisfied of the mayweek fiesta. I hope Johns Mayball is able to do the job. Or perhaps there is just no way to really compensate all the struggle during the mad exam period.
Well, I am also looking forward to my summer research project! Oh well, maybe the best satisfaction you can get in Cambridge is not the alcohol or music, it is the intriguing knowledge.
Revising
9.30a.m.
It is the 6th paper I am going to take this afternoon. this is the 8th day of the prolonged examination (NST Tripos Part 1b 2008). This post will be random and truncated, reflecting my thoughts for the moment. Already exhausted by repeated cramming of information, storing them for the next day's exam, then store them for the next round of papers if there is space, if not delete them temporarily, reload the day before the next round (paper 2 I mean), then regurgitate them during the exam. This prolonged processing and storage is causing some serious stress to my mind and body. Lo and behold, my last paper of the week, which is taking place this afternoon, could be the hardest and worst paper in my examination history, maybe not, but for this exam maybe. They worned me out and send me their 'immortals'.
Well, this evil paper is called Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2) which includes short answers that are very specific and not giving us a choice and 2 general essays out of 5 requiring us to assimilate all that we have learnt throughout the course. Strategy to defend: Study everything!!! 12 chapters from top to bottom, including all the minor details. If not, you will have extra time in exam! Sounds good huh? Yesterday Tegwen said: Gonna diiieee tomorrow! Siew Kit's personal msg: Staring helplessly on the evil Biochem paper (he meant past years lah!). I said on my msn personal msg: 5 + 1 (myself) down, 4 more to go. Oh yea, after such a long struggle, I still can't believe that even after I have finished today's Helm's Deep equivalent battle, without Gandalf in the end, I still have 3 more papers to go, which is going to end a week later.
Back to revision...
10a.m.
Decided to write again. Well, this doesn't seem like a right way to revise. But, I couldn't care anymore. It is better to keep me sane and stress level to the minimum than to breakdown in the exam, not likely, but I don't want to be depressed. Another 3 hour exam later. I think at 4.30pm I will be extremely relieved. I know there is another week to go, but I deserve a break.
Taking out another set of notes....
Flipped through the notes on folding and catalysis. I have gone through this set of notes for several times because I think it is a very difficult topic. Don't get me wrong, I don't think I have mastered it at all, although a few times seems like whoa! The details are just too difficult to stick in my tiny brain.
Read for a bit.... then sneezed...ooops, immune system not working very well it seems. Brother, not enough sleep la you!
Continue reading....
10.22a.m.
Flipped through two topics, felt a bit sick of the material. Hopefully I could remember small bits to gain small marks. Feeling down and lack of excitement, I think I will just go and do whatever I can in this exam. Expectation dropped to the lowest point. I guess the wall will fall today. Well, getting inspiration from Lord of The Rings, maybe I should fight until the end. Maybe....Gandalf will appear. Haha! But it's ok, at least I have sort of survived the previous attacks with not very serious casualties here and there.
Continuing... How to clone genes into mammals?
10.33a.m.
Hmmm....Go disturb Hong King...hehe
10.50a.m.
Back to work.
11.17a.m.
At such a short time, I have finished going through (flipping through) all the 12 chapters. What a genius I am! Well, partially giving up, and knowing that I can't take in anymore. Sneezed for a couple of times this morning already. This is showing that I am getting sick soon. But it's ok, tonight I will concentrate on fighting infection instead of tripos, which is to sleep and take more fruits and vitamins. Life is good...
Should I call it a day and go for a nap? I think I should.
Good luck Wei Shen!
Biochemistry or Pathology?
I decided to take a short break after a long regime or revision during the holidays. Although I did not regard my mocks as something very important but they do stress me up because they somehow reminded me of my inadequacy in handling exam questions despite the revision that I have done. It is not really my favourite topic to talk about, I mean exams, because it is a common topic for cantabridgians especially in Easter term. I shall move away from it NOW!
I remembered that I needed to register my subject for next year and Pathology was the decided course for me. I really like Pathology a lot. The reason I chose Pathology is that I am interested in studying cancer apart from immunology. Generally, I think I have this strong affinity to diseases perhaps because I wanted to be a doctor. So, I am actually quite set for it. Another option that I considered is biochemistry, a subject that I thought I would never ever do during my first year and I am doing it this year because it contains a lot of knowledge which is both exciting and important for scientific development. It encompasses many fields in biology due to the fact that molecular biology has got many roles in all those fields. Whether you are talking about cancer or pathogens, molecular biology of it is essential to understand the reason behind all that happen and medical advancements cannot progress well without in depth understanding of molecular biology. As you can see, I am promoting biochemistry now.
There comes the point: BIOCHEMISTRY! It is now telling me to choose it behind my mind. It actually happened when I really look through the course on the website before I chose to register for Pathology. I noticed there is this option on oncogenes and cancer in the biochemistry course which overlaps with the major part of cancer taught in Pathology. So, that really swayed my choice to pick biochemistry because there are so many other interesting stuff including miRNA, DNA, protein interaction which I think are potential elements which can be useful in development of new treatment and therapy for cancer and various diseases. I started to work on the options and found that I can actually do a more interesting combination if I take biochemistry. Amongst them are oncogenes, molecular immunology, and antimicrobial therapy. Do they resemble Pathology a lot? Not too sure whether they are, but they do make me excited. I am sorry Pathology, I might have to ditch you for the moment, most probably so even though I haven't decided.
There are many other interesting options in Biochemistry and another good thing about biochemistry is I can do a 4th year and not graduate first. This is a rather biased and personal preference because I quite like undergraduate life for the moment and wouldn't like to graduate that early. 3 years is just too short for me. Maybe Cambridge casted some spell on me. Well, perhaps I will still go back to Pathology, maybe I change my mind again, hopefully no, and not too late or I might do a PhD in Pathology, who knows. But...Biochemistry is hardcore, everyone knows that. Hard choice huh?
Third year options aside, I think Cambridge has casted me another spell. It is turning me into loving science more and more. I am starting to imagine myself working in the lab now. Well, many would say that it is sort of expected since I chose a science course. This is a good point but I want to say that choosing a science course might not be equivalent to being able to imagine oneself working in the lab. I hope my summer internship goes well and can further inspire me to be a scientist.
Biochemistry or Pathology? It is rather obvious isn't it?
I couldn't think of a title for this post! The election result still sends me so much disbelief and excitement and I couldn't really sit down and work in this weekend. I just have got too much to talk about and don't exactly know where to start.
Finally, I realise the meaning of democracy. I always thought that BN is invincible no matter how hard you try. But my fellow Malaysians have proved me wrong. It is still possible to make a change. Besides, I also see hope that different races will really come together one day as true Malaysians. This historic change in political landscape in the country sent shivers down my spine. I am happy and excited but at the same time worried for the future of the country. Some people say that our country might be more fractionated and divided. For the moment, I still hope and remain optimistic about it.
Whichever side it is, I hope they are able to move forward and discard the old idea of racial politics. Last but not least, I hope that the rakyat realise that they do have a choice and the power lies in us. You can choose who you want to lead you. The previous belief that " aiya, BN sure win one la " is not true anymore. The same can go to any other party because the rakyat can say NO to you if you don't do your job and keep your promise well.
I am proud of you, Malaysians!
Medics AREN'T Nat Scis!
I repeat, medics aren't nat scis! This post is not against all medics, but it is a reminder to medics who are so arrogant that they think they are 'more' than nat scis or they can be more than nat scis!
I have encountered many medics who have got no scientific passion at all. All they care about is to scoop scientific knowledge for their own businesses. "You actually like pathology practicals?" Imagine a medic saying this. Pathology is the study of disease. If a medic is not interested in pathology, I wonder what he wants to study. Well, of course there are many other subjects in the medical course. But I doubt this kind of medics will have any interest in the other subjects. This year, I am taking two SIMILAR subjects as the medics : Pathology and Pharmacology. Note that I use the word 'similar' because we are indeed not totally the same.
For pathology, we do share the same lectures for the first two thirds of the course. However, I noticed that our attitude towards the practicals are totally different. Guess what? A demonstrator even told me that the medics weren't handling well when we were doing the parasitology practicals. In other words, the medics were scared of worms. This did not come from me, a demonstrator told me that. Most medics don't like histology too. I can tell you I love the slides under the microscope and although I don't love the worms, I am not scared... Therefore, we are different.
Pharmacology, we have different lectures and labs altogether. THANK GOD! For our practicals, we have got a mini project for us to learn to design experiments, the aim of learning to be a nat sci. Medics obviously are not doing that, because they are NOT nat scis. I don't actually know what they do in labs. It is not surprising if they are just memorising which drug does what and what are the doses stated in the manual. Of course not! Cambridge will try to teach them proper pharmacology, but I doubt these arrogant medics can really appreciate science if they have got this unappreciative attitude.
Well, if any of you wonder what infuriated me. The answer is arrogant medics and this statement by a Cambridge medic (you know who) from The Cambridge Student (a student newspaper):
"A lot of medics apply to Cambridge for the prestige and the big fat crest on their degrees. But they are completely unaware that for the first 3 years they are nothing more than glorified NatScis."
Well, this person might just meant that medics in Cambridge aren't good enough. But, without realising(benefit of the doubt), there is a condescending tone towards Nat Scis in his statement.
Of course, there are many medics who are actually true nat scis by having the right attitude towards science. Unlike some medics who think they know more or at least know as much compared to nat scis just because they learnt biochemistry or physiology for a few months. I would say what really distinguishes a nat sci from a medic is the attitude towards science. A true nat sci has got the desire to discover new knowledge (Discover new drugs, new viruses, reasons for disease development... so that medics can learn them to help patients).
Therefore, medics are not nat scis even though they did similar subjects as nat scis. Hence, medics are not superior compared to nat scis. Give some respect to the people who have been working behind the scene for the advancement of medical sciences.
