Ant movement as model for data traffic in computer networks

Another trick to learn from nature. Ants re-route themselves when the path they tread on becomes too crowded. And this regulatatory system could serve as a model for managing data flow in networks.

Scientific American: Pushy Ants Avoid Traffic Congestion

On Going Unnoticed (Robert Frost)

As vain to raise a voice as a sigh
In the tumult of free leaves on high.
What are you in the shadow of trees
Engaged up there with the light and breeze?

Less than the coral-root you know
That is content with the daylight low,
And has no leaves at all of its own;
Whose spotted flowers hang meanly down.

You grasp the bark by a rugged pleat,
And look up small from the forest's feet.
The only leaf it drops goes wide,
Your name not written on either side.

You linger your little hour and are gone,
And still the wood sweep leafily on,
Not even missing the coral-root flower
You took as a trophy of the hour.

Tree by the Window (Robert Frost)

Tree at my window, window tree,
My sash is lowered when night comes on;
But let there never be curtain drawn
Between you and me.
Vague dream-head lifted out of the ground,
And thing next most diffuse to cloud,
Not all your light tongues talking aloud
Could be profound.
But tree, I have seen you taken and tossed,
And if you have seen me when I slept,
You have seen me when I was taken and swept
And all but lost.
That day she put our heads together,
Fate had her imagination about her,
Your head so much concerned with outer,
Mine with inner, weather.

Robert Frost

marine spider

marine spider
Originally uploaded by _Cheng Puay.

Found this at our study site at the Kranji extension. It was perched on one of the wooden stakes used to mark out our plots. This spider was some 10 meters from the shore and I wonder where does it find shelter when the tide comes in. It could have been blown by a sudden gust of wind from the rocky embarkment and landed out on here.

stick insect

stick insect
Originally uploaded by _Cheng Puay.

Found this during the insect workshop 2 weeks back. We were sampling in Hindhede Park for an identification session later when one participant chanced on it perched on a Licuala frond. Needless to say the insect became the center of attention for all the insect lovers in the group. In a flash, it was surrounded with cameras trying to get a good shot of it. I was lucky to snap off a few frames before leaving the scene and letting the others have their turn.

Anansi Boys

God is dead, meet the kids.

A truly truly amazing book. As usual, I could not put down Neil's stuff. Fortunately I managed to finish it in 2 days. That leaves Sunday free for thesis writing.

An excerpt from the book is here.

Rookie season

NBA rookies always find the first season of their career the most exhausting. Getting adjusted to the routine of travelling around, playing high level basketball almost every other day. It's very difficult to maintain the same high standards all season long, the mind and the body have not adjusted completely to the demands of this punishing routine.

Feeling like a rookie towards the end of season. When the last match is played for the season, I will be looking back and appraise my performance. Have I contributed to the team? Could I have done more? What are the mistakes I have made? Where should I go after?

Well to those who have made this season a good one, I thank you. My apologies to those whom I have not contributed as effectively. And thank you every one who have tolerated this rookie all this while.

Beuna Vista Social Club

Went down to watch the famous ensemble of aged musicians. My goodness, they are really good! Though I could not understand a single word of what they sang, I could taste and savour the flavour behind their music.

Beautiful, just like aged wine.

A secret of a long a happy life? Music and dance. (from the way they were drinking and smoking, I was thinking cigars, wine and women)

A parting word from this august group - Live every minute of your life to the fullest. Do not let the flowers of your life pass you by.

Scholastic Environmental Fund Students Forum

It was a week of frentic preparation for the forum where 3 teams were gearing up for the forum yesterday. I must say that the girls worked very hard and took to my incessant demands for change very well indeed. Kudos to their preserverance and detemination.

(Incidentally Kudos is Greek for 'Glory'. Have been wondering how this word came about)

We clinched 2 gold awards and 1 silver award, the silver was slightly disappointing as I felt every team has the potential for gold. But what's more important I felt was this opportunity for the students to gather together to exchange ideas and views on environmental and conservation issues both locally and worldwide. As a student from United World College commented, if it was not for this event, she would not have learnt so much about the enhanced greenhouse effect and water pollution. In this light, awards are not important at all, the knowledge everyone has gained through this is so much more important than the acknowledgement of their oratorical skills.

Still I would like to congratulate my teams for their relentless effort and preparations. Congratulations Shree, Nan, Joanne, Amanda, Zhongning, Ada, Elita and Ros, well done ladies. Let us hope that we have provided ideas for other schools to embark on their own reforestation programmes as well.

Another important part of the meeting was the keynote address by Peter Kenny (International Baccalaureate Organisation). He is in charge of 'Schools to Schools' a service project of IBO to partner teachers and students with their counterparts from the tsunami hit nations. The footages he brought back from Aceh and Sri Lanka showed that there is still a great need for aid for these countries. The students are having their lessons in makeshift tents. The entire stationery and books for a class of 45 took up half a shelf in a small metal cupboard. From the footage taken from a helicopter, most of the houses are still in a stae of disrepair.

The people living in Aceh and Sri Lanka still need alot of assistance which money alone cannot provide. They also need time, knowledge and people actually coming down to give their bit to the actual restoration of a normal life which was abruptly interrupted last December 26.

I am really lucky to be going down Sri Lanka next year and do what I can there to help. Another blessing in being a teacher, these opportunities to serve are just conveniently lying everywhere. Really thankful for that.

Nursery

Nursery
Originally uploaded by _Cheng Puay.

Past few months have been frantic. We went everywhere to gather as much seedlings as we could during the masting event. Collected quite a good selection of Dipterocarpus and Shorea seedlings. With bags of these seedlings, we had to find containers to plant the seedlings and a place to grow them.

The clearing behind the staff room is well shaded with a huge Saga tree. This became an ideal nursery site. I managed to scour unwanted trays from the labs and also some styrofoam boxes from racial harmony day. Shelves were some tables which were not used for the moment. In one afternoon, managed to rig something up for the seedlings. We have planted some 1000 seedlings in all. Hope they will all grow.

Intoxicated by sleep deprivation?

Staying up or enjoying a glass of Bordeaux? Give me a glass anytime. Heh

Arnedt et al from the University of Michigan did an attention of 34 doctors who are either well rested or have been working on intense overnight shifts. After a month, the sleep deprived doctors exhibited reaction times which are 7 percent slower than those who are well rested but had a few drinks (alocohol level below legal limit). Post call doctors are also 30 percent more likely not to maintain a steady speed in the driving simulator compared to well rested doctors who had been drinking.

Scientific American: Lack of Sleep Affects Doctors Like Alcohol Does

The 'CSI' effect

I am a big fan of CSI. Never failed to miss a single episode so I can witness how the investigators meticulously collect, sort and analyse all possible evidence and construct the crime through sheer determination and brilliant deduction and reasoning. Of course, once in a while, one has to remind oneself that this is a TV series.

But it is easy to see how watching CSI will glamify forensic science and also raise expectations of forensic evidence when they are presented on court. This has been known as the 'CSI effect'.

Rowan Hooper from New Scientist has an interesting report on it.

...FORENSIC science's spell in the limelight has given it huge kudos. Glitzy TV shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation have sent students flocking to forensics courses. But while this interest is sexing up the image of scientists, is it also stopping police catching criminals and securing convictions?

Television shows scramble forensic evidence

Grasshopper sungei buloh

Grasshopper sungei buloh
Originally uploaded by _Cheng Puay.

Testing out my new macro lens.

International Coastal Cleanup 2005

Back from reservist last night. Had a nice dinner at a rooftop at HV. Then its off to Sungei Buloh for the cleanup this morning. Though still feverish, managed to be alert and well this year's project is safe in the hands of Yueat Tin and Wei Siong and also Marcus's NUS team which hauled out most of the trash. And of course the amazing SAS and United World College participants, they collected over 1 tonne of trash from their sector.

Wanted to take things easy and maybe just be a photographer. But ended up running around topping up supplies like trashbags, bringing the rubbish out via trolleys and wheel barrows. Well, some cardio should help me fight the bug. We finished this whole exercise early. Moved off the reserve at around 1230pm and had lunch at 230pm after packing up at the museum.

Went back and knocked out for 3 hours straight. Sleep is good, helps one prepare for the journey ahead.

All in all it's a worthwhile trip. And there is this nice feeling of knowing that this sector is now in capable hands. Maybe I can just be miscellaneous helper next year.

Will be bringing some friends down to Ubin for a quick cycle tomorrow. Hope the weather will hold out.

School begins soon. Well, one step at a time.

ICCS website

In remembrance

For those who gave everything to help during Sept 11.

Thank you!

Thank you! It has been my priviledge knowing both of you. Heh.

Beuna Vista Social Club comes to town

Cuban Music. Just like coffee, rich, thick and full of flavor. The way I like it. The group will be coming to Victoria Concert Hall next week (14th - 20th Sept). Details here.

More information about the group can be found here as well.

One of their songs

Dos Gardenias

Dos Gardenias para tí
Con ellas quiero decir:
Te quiero, te adoro, mi vida
Ponle toda tu atención
Porque son tu corazón y el mío.

Dos gardenias para tí
Que tendrán todo el calor de un beso
De esos besos que te dí
Y que jamás encontrarás
En el calor de otro querer.

A tu lado vivirán y se hablarán
Como cuando estás conmigo
Y hasta creerás que te dirán:
Te quiero.
Pero si un atardecer
Las gardenias de mi amor se mueren
Es porque han adivinado
Que tu amor me ha traicionado
Porque existe otro querer.


Two Gardenias for you
With these I mean to say:
I love you, I adore you, my life
Look after them because
They are your heart and mine.

Two Gardenias for you
With all the warmth of a kiss
Like those I gave to you
Kisses that you will never know
In the embrace of another.

They will live beside you
And talk to you as I do
And you will even believe
that you hear them say: I love you.
But if one late evening
The Gardenias should die
It´s because they know
That you have betrayed me
And that you love another.

Very Cool Bugs

Ran a quick google on entomology and this turned up. Well... i suppose this is a natural progression of knowledge, how can one just learn about plants without knowing about what lives on it?

Check it out Insects on The Web

Fatigue

Out from camp for a while for an entomology workshop by Dr Patrick Grotaerg (Director of Natural History Museum in Belgium). It was a very interesting session, starting with a lecture on Terry Erwin's historic analysis of total biodiversity of Earth using canopy fogging to his own research in entomology. If only I weren't down with flu and looking at everything through a panadol shrouded mist, it would have been such a nice day. Hope I can recover by tomorrow.

Sigh.. so many things to do and learn so little time. My in camp is ending and with it the realities of work draws near again. Lots of stuff to mark, my own thesis and the reforestation project. Well, we'll see how things goes. Something should work out, heh.

I need to brush up my forest taxonomy and start studying insects. Have some ideas for next year, hope I'll get some good work done.

New Orleans

This is a place of big band music, nice moody jazz. And now this tragedy.

Found this link to this eerily prophetic article while reading Neil Gaiman's blog . Shall share this article from the Scientific American here as well.

Scientific American: Drowning New Orleans [ CIVIL ENGINEERING ]
A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 feet of water, killing thousands. Human activities along the Mississippi River have dramatically increased the risk, and now only massive reengineering of southeastern Louisiana can save the city

By Mark Fischetti (Scientific American 2001)

Some background on Hurricane Katrina (why are storms named after women?)
Scientific American: Hurricane Katrina Backgrounder

Peace

I love rowing. Feeling the pull of water in the oars, relishing the swish as the boat cuts across the water. With nothing else to occupy you; just the waves, the boat and your oars.

I must row one of these boats someday. This will definitely be a much different experience from canoeing or dragonboating. And now that my trekking and climbing days are limited, maybe I should revisit this sport again.

Picture from BBC News: This week in pictures