Star Cruise Revisited

Superstar Virgo hasn't changed much since my last visit about 4 years ago, except for certain rules to limit entry into the non-chargeable restaurants/buffet in order to reduce food wastage. Since I've already explored most parts of the ship before and this time I didn't leave the ship throughout the whole journey, there wasn't much to do except eat eat eat...

With RWS, the view at the harbourfront is much nicer now!

This cable car is the main reason why larger cruise ships cannot enter the harbour. I want Oasis of the Seas!!

Another relatively new landmark along the habour. =).

The Pantheon pool is more exciting now, with the addition of a water slide. Didn't get to try it though.

Nothing has changed in the main hall, not even a bit.

*Absorbed into the view*

Observing the sunset from the sea can be so pretty too!

Thank you Japan

Most of the memorable moments during my NUS life is attributed to Japanese-related events and interactions with various Japanese students. I probably won't get to enjoy all these anymore after I graduate.

Hoho...lucky! (taken at a summer festival in Iwate Prefecture)

Visit to Mediacorp radio station. First time hearing my own voice on air. Sounds very strange haha.

Won 2nd Place (tertiary category) in Japanese Speech Contest 2010. This is my proudest individual achievement in my life. Btw the Hitachi TV sits dormant in my room. Other than video games and ZXJA, I don't use it at all. At this rate I think it might break down due to under-utilization lol.

The person who won the 1st Place is my classmate, so I'm happy for her too. If not for the guidance by 千葉先生, we couldn't have made it so far.

Took a few interpretation jobs too, mainly for school exchange programmes. Looks like there are more opportunities nowadays for local students, even at the primary and secondary level, to interact with foreign students. I don't remember participating in such exchange programmes during my time.

Japanese high school students playing balloons with Singaporean primary school students. Why such an age gap? There is actually a good reason for this...

Eh Ah Bengs, 不要教坏小妹妹 hor...

The entire hall turned into a big playground. 大哥哥大姐姐 playing with the small kids. =) Some interesting differences I observed about exchange with primary school, compared to that of secondary school or university.

The Japanese students presented an AKB dance. Erm...something doesn't look right...lol.

I also participated in the BnS (Brothers and Sisters) programme, where I brought Japanese high school students around places of interest in Singapore, like a tour guide haha. They were always very surprised that I'm much older than them. =p One of the most challenging things is satisfying their desire in buying souvenirs and snacks that are uniquely Singapore (except Merlion-related goods).

My very first BnS experience, and one of my most memorable ones. That 'lian'-ish girl on my right kept teasing my Japanese. So I teased her English too haha. Most Japanese are too polite to tease foreigners of their language, so she's a pretty rare breed haha. 

Took this group shortly after returning from Europe so my face was very red haha. Made them walk under the hot sun all the way from Plaza Singapore to DFS. They were so exhausted and sweated like crazy, so I treated them bubble tea from SweetTalk =)

The longest BnS assignment. It lasted about 10 hours, but there was no moment of boredom. I brought them to eat the take-all-you-can Javier, and they really stacked the food like mountains (shared of course). For a gracious society like Japan, I doubt they have such serving style. (not saying that Javier is ungracious haha) Those sunglasses were bought at Chinatown =p

Had a nice time chatting with this group, especially with the 2nd guy from the left. Discussed about deep topics like Japanese attitudes towards the Chinese and Koreans. I treated them ice-kachang and when I told them that it's very easy to fall sick if you eat cold stuff right after eating spicy food and walking under the hot sun, they gave me a O_O face -- "Then why treat us in the first place?“ LOL.   

There was a guy who kept walking far ahead by himself, oblivious to the rest of the group who were busily chatting behind. Somehow it feels like I'm looking at myself...

I became very 八卦 and asked about the relationship with their girlfriends, where they usually go for dating and what they do. Also requested to look at their photos haha. Hope they are not irritated by me =p

The friendly group that said hi to Jupiter lol. They were pretty enthusiastic too, and were very curious about Singapore's culture. But there were 2 super ultra quiet guys. Even when I tried to initiate a conversation with them, they only replied with a simple one-liner, in a hardly audible voice, with eyes looking somewhere else... Sigh...

My most apologetic group. Due to my poor time management, I ended up bringing them back to the reporting point almost 1 hour late, even after taking a taxi. The Japanese are very particular about punctuality and that was considered very very very unacceptable. The BnS in-charge also got scolded because of me, and was late for a project meeting. So he took a taxi and subsequently lost his phone >_<

The most international group I've taken. (They come from an international school) Most of them have lived overseas before, like in US, so their English is much much better than typical Japanese. One of them lived in Netherlands during her childhood, so she could speak several languages including Dutch. One is an American-Japanese. One can speak Mandarin very well because she went China for exchange. One is currently learning French and Korean, and likes Kpop very much haha. 

The most adventurous group I've met. Unlike most Japanese, they were very willing to try spicy food. They even requested me to bring them to eat durian! They also bought local desserts and fruit juice on their own, like chendol and 罗汉果 juice, without any need of my recommendations. Anyway, sorry for the unsightly leftover at the picture foreground...lol

On top of Sentosa Merlion. They are the only group that wrote a thank you card to me after returning to Japan. Just a few simple words but it's enough to make me feel touched =)

Hmm...a little bochup group. They didn't seem very interested in things around them, except for sports shops. Brought them to Velocity at Novena but only 1 person bought something...

They saw people doing this and wanted to try out themselves too haha.

It was their last day in Singapore and one of the girls was so desperate to find something to buy for her mum. We went from shop to shop but couldn't find a suitable accessory, so in the end she settled for a perfume.

They are from Kobe and their Kansai accent is very strong, so I had some difficulties in catching what they were trying to say. Nevertheless I learnt some Kansai dialect from them. Will it come in useful for my Kansai trip? Haha

I don't really like to bring the students to Orchard because there are just too many high-end shops. They don't really seem interested in the basement food stalls of Takashimaya too. It can be quite a challenge to understand what they really want to see or buy. Singapore doesn't have so many souvenir/gift snacks shops everywhere like in Japan.

My final BnS. Got a free ride on Singapore Flyer. Since my previous ride, there were more displays and exhibits to look at before entering the boarding platform. This assignment wasn't as memorable as I hoped it to be, because they got tired and wanted to return to the hotel earlier.

Once again I would like to thank Japan for providing such an enjoyable enrichment to my student life. ^_^

Module Summary

As my blog readers will know, I usually rate my modules at the end of every semester, according to difficulty, workload and enjoyability of lessons. Let’s summarize the ratings and look at how they rank against each other. But first let’s look at the overall statistics:

Number of modules taken: 41
Total modular credits (MC): 168 (7 MC excess)
Core modules taken: 30
Elective modules taken: 11
Module codes taken: CN (20), EG(3), LAJ (3), MA (2), GEK (2), CM (2), MLE (1), SC (1), GEM (1), IT (1), SSA (1), LSM (1), HR (1), JS (1), LAK (1)
Module levels taken: Level 1000 – 12, Level 2000 – 10, Level 3000 – 11, Level 4000 - 8

Without further ado, here are the rankings!

Top 3 Most Difficult Module       
LAJ4203 – Newspaper Reading ★★★★★
CN2116 – Chemical Kinetics & Reactor Design  ★★★★★
CN4121 – Design Project (Part 2) ★★★★★

LAJ4203 definitely wins hands down. For those who are unfamiliar with the module code, this module is about newspaper reading in Japanese haha. Newspaper reading by itself is tough enough, with difficult words and articles covering a wide range of topics. What’s more it’s in Japanese! However this module has definitely helped me to understand more formal Japanese text and expressions, which can be useful in interpreting information from Japanese websites. 

Up till now I still wonder why CN2116 (Kinetics) is so difficult, despite being a fundamental core module. Level 2000 is such an understatement for this. I took this module in my 4^th semester, but even if I were to retake the module now, I would probably struggle just as much as then. The difficulty of CN4121 (Design) lies in its broad scope, and due to the fact that I had to use a lot of CN2116 knowledge for this.  

Top 3 Easiest Module
GEM2901 - Reporting Statistics in the Media ☆
HR2002 – Human Capital in Organizations ★
EG2401 – Engineering Professionalism ★

Easy module does not equate to good grades haha. Thanks to the bell-curve effect. GEM2901 is a pretty straightforward module that requires simple common sense and a bit of critical thinking. You can still proceed well even if you skip lectures and just read the lecture notes. HR2002 is another ‘common sense’ kind of module, with little specific knowledge needed. Generally in this module, you learn how to evaluate yourself and others, and how to work effectively with peers in the workplace. EG2401 is about ethics and decision-making, similar concept as civics and moral education in primary and secondary school. From a moral point of view, we know we should do this and this. But when the time comes, will we stay true to our morality? Well, there is a reason why police and lawyers exist…

Top 3 Busiest Module   
LAJ4203 – Newspaper Reading ★★★★★★★
CN4121 – Design Project (Part 2) ★★★★★★
LAJ3202 – Japanese 6 ★★★★★★

LAJ4203 wins hands down again because of the never ending assignments and quizzes. It’s really time consuming to look for suitable newspaper articles, check out the words, write comments and prepare a peer presentation. You may think it’s pretty simple, but if it’s neither in your 1^st language nor mother tongue, it can be quite tough. Not to mention the quizzes on JLPT N1 (highest Japanese proficiency level) vocabulary and grammar, which are tough to drill in. To make up for the workload, it is set as a 5MC module…but I think it’s more like 6MC haha. LAJ3202 (J6) is just a ‘lesser’ version of LAJ4203.

CN4121 is indeed a demanding module. Before this semester I often heard complaints about its workload, and now I truly understand. So glad it’s all over. =p

Top 3 Slackest Module
GEM2901 - Reporting Statistics in the Media ☆
SC1101E - Making Sense of Society ★
SSA2215 – Biophysical Environment of Singapore ★

Apparently there is strong correlation between difficulty and workload. A difficult module demands more time and effort to study well. On the other hand, you can just sit back and relax for an easy module. Unfortunately, despite GEM2901 being the slackest and easiest, my eventual grade warrants an S/U. SC1101E and SSA2215 may not be the easiest modules, but their assessment components did not contain any projects. Moreover the tutorials were only held biweekly, which did not require much preparation. This is what I like about Arts modules haha (Japanese excluded).

Top 3 Most Enjoyable Lecture   
LAK1201 – Korean 1 ★★★★★
SC1101E - Making Sense of Society ★★★★
GEM2901 - Reporting Statistics in the Media ★★★★

Hmm…LAK1201 was interesting mainly because the contents were so basic. I’m so tired of modules that require critical and analytical thinking. In LAK1201, I could truly sit back, read aloud simple words and sentences with the class, and enjoy the colourful illustrations in the lecture slides and textbook. Oh, I’m missing Billy and his Bibimbap already.

I took SC1101E during my first semester in NUS and was impressed by its content depth and scope. It allowed me to see things from a broader perspective, and understand how different societies work. It also managed to trigger my interest in sociology for a brief period of time, and made me feel like a knowledgeable university student haha. The enjoyment of GEM2901 lies primarily in the jokes cracked during lectures. I still remember once, the lecturer mentioned about how to measure the time taken for one to fall asleep. “You hold the stopwatch on your hand, and the moment you fall asleep, you press the stopwatch” LOL.

Top 3 Most Boring Lecture
MLE1101 - Introduction to Material Science and Engineering ☆
CN3124 – Particle Technology ★
CN3135 – Process Safety, Health & Environment ★

I took MLE1101 in my first semester and it totally shattered my impression of NUS teaching standards. Just as I thought the lectures were bad enough, the tutorials were much worse. CN3124 (Parttech) is comparatively much better, though the lecture style is just…uninteresting haha. CN3135 (Safety) is a little better, though I often find myself fidgeting restlessly, flipping through the lecture notes to see how much more to go before the lecture ends…

Top 3 Most Enjoyable Tutorial
LAK1201 – Korean 1 ★★★★★★
LAJ3201 – Japanese 5 ★★★★★
LAJ3202 – Japanese 6 ★★★★★

LAK1201 definitely deserves the first. I applaud the teaching staff for thinking up so many interesting, creative and interactive class activities, such as shopping, auction and five stones. Ok I really suck at playing five-stones. I had the chance to play five-stones during my kindergarten/primary school days, but I didn’t bother to practise (probably because it was deemed as a ‘girls’ game). Anyway it seems like my classmates aren’t any better too…haha. 

Japanese 5 and 6 tutorials were interesting because I get to speak up a lot. Though I always mute myself during engin tutorials, I can become really enthusiastic to speak up during Japanese classes haha. My ‘proudest’ moment was when I was asked to present kun-yomi  (native reading) and on-yomi (Sino reading) of Kanji (Chinese characters) to the class. It all started when I corrected my teacher that ‘niku’ (肉) is actually Sino reading, and not native reading which most Japanese thought.

Top 3 Most Boring Tutorial
MLE1101 - Introduction to Material Science and Engineering ☆
CN3124 – Particle Technology ★
MA1505 - Mathematics I ★

Yup, evidently there is indeed a close connection between the enjoyability of tutorials and that of lectures. These tutorials are so boring that I don’t even have anything special to say about them.

Top 3 Most Enjoyable Module
LAK1201 – Korean 1 ★★★★★☆
LAJ3202 – Japanese 6 ★★★★☆

This ranks the overall enjoyability of the module, including lectures, tutorials, labs, seminars, field trips etc. There are too many ties for the 3^rd place, so I shall leave it blank. Thank you LAK1201 for accompanying me till the final day, final lesson of my school life. Sorry to say but my heart is still with Japanese haha… However I did have much fun exploring the similarities and differences between Korean and Japanese languages. 

Top 3 Most Unenjoyable Module
MLE1101 - Introduction to Material Science and Engineering ☆
CN3124 – Particle Technology ★
CN4121 – Design Project (Part 2) ★

I have said enough for the 1^st and 2^nd place modules. As for the 3^rd, I can only say…I’m glad it’s all over. Chem engin students should be able to understand this.

Last but not least, I took the weighted average of all the stars I’ve given to the modules, under the difficulty, workload, and enjoyability categories. A high overall star rating means that the module is difficult, has high workload, but very enjoyable. Conversely, a low overall star rating means the module is easy, has low workload but not very enjoyable. This rating is indicative of the module’s worth, and how challenging the it is.  

Top 3 Overall Rating
LAJ4203 – Newspaper Reading (5.3 stars)
LAJ3202 – Japanese 6 (4.8 stars)
CN4118R – Final Year Project (4 stars)

LAJ4203 and LAJ3202 definitely helped to improve my Japanese ability by leaps and bounds, though I’m gradually losing it due to lack of practice and exposure. I hope even after graduating I still have the chance to use Japanese on a regular basis. FYP indeed provided an enriching and valuable experience in the research aspect, but I feel that I’ve barely scrapped the surface of the topic. There is just so much more to explore and learn.

Bottom 3 Overall Rating
MLE1101 - Introduction to Material Science and Engineering (1.5 stars)
GEM2901 - Reporting Statistics in the Media (1.7 stars)
SSA2215 – Biophysical Environment of Singapore (1.7 stars)

As I announce the Hall of Fame, I shall also reveal the Hall of Shame too. No offence to any particular  departments or lecturers. Low overall rating doesn’t mean it’s bad lah haha…

Comments on Star Awards (现场直击)

Grand Fashion Show Opening

First of all I've to thank Yes93.3 and 崇庆 for giving me complimentary tickets to watch the ceremony. After following this event for so many years, it feels great to be able to watch live in the theatre (or ballroom in this case). Unlike the previous years, SA sells tickets this year. Hence it is no longer a closed event exclusive for artistes and fans, as anyone interested can just buy tickets and watch. The big jump from complimentary to priced ($60 or $100) has created much displeasure among the fans who have come to watch the awards every year. Because of this, many found it hard to attend and had to give up this year. Putting myself into the fanclubs' shoes, how can I not feel angry about this arrangement?

The atmosphere of being there live is quite different from watching from TV at home. The opening was particularly grand, and long too (took about 10 mins). I wonder how long did they take to rehearse all these. Too bad the sound system broke down midway during Jay Park's performance and did not revive anymore. Subsequently our side had some trouble catching some speeches, especially 蓝正龙's, who spoke so softly.

Although I was seated at the front section, it was still relatively far from the stage, simply because the ballroom is sooooo huge. Furthermore there were two very tall guys sitting in front of me, which partially blocked the stage view. In the end I still had to rely very much on the screen (= watch on TV) haha.

The enthusiastic fans seated behind me

As you can see, my prediction is pretty off this year. With the exceptions of Top 20, my predictions for the professional awards were all wrong lol. (Is it me or the judges' tastes have indeed changed this year?) In any case I was glad some won the awards, but a little dissatisfied with some.


Super Veteran

Other than 李茵朱 (who has already left Mediacorp), I understand that 陈澍城 has come a long way since black & white TV (more than 40 years). Hence he is said to be the veteran among the veterans. When I was small, I often remember him as the host for 赢万金游万里 and XX之夜 shows. Things does not necessarily pay with time. After such a long wait, with several nominations along the way, this is his first acting award. Probably all along we have taken his acting for granted, treating him like a side dish to fulfill the father-role required for almost every drama. In 《行医》 his role is more witty and comical, different from the typical fatherly figure. It shows his versatility in both funny and serious roles, like 黄文永.

The artistes gave a standing ovation when 陈澍城's name was called.

AT傻大姐

Honestly I felt a little turned-off when I watched 赖怡伶's role in 《四个门牌一个梦》. I don't know if it's because she's trying so hard to imitate ATs, or because I'm just irritated at the ATs' behaviour we often witness around us. Hopefully her AT role won't remain as her only 代表作 in times to come. I actually prefer her laid-back, emo 跛脚 role in 《喜临门》, in which she was also nominated for Best Supporting. Sadly I still feel that she's not very deserving of 超级红星. Look at the 黄金年华 team, then look at her...what a stark contrast...


The Sunglasses Guy

Though I like to watch 李腾's variety shows, like 你在囧什么, 铁路次文化, IQ超人, I still feel Pornsak is comparatively better. I often get a 做作 feeling from him (like wearing sunglasses), whereas Pornsak is much more natural.


Global Exchange

For the 2nd time, 李国煌 won the Best Host Award for 《国际交意所》. Though sometimes his poor command of language gets into my nerves, I highly recommend this show. The third instalment is currently airing now. =)


等到花儿都谢了

Finally after countless policeman roles, 郑斌辉 got an award for an Ah Beng role. Perhaps it is the image change itself that impressed the judges. I hope they didn't judge his performance only based on that 白痴乞丐 video clip lol. Now that he has won the Best Actor, 超级红星 and Best Supporting (many years ago), 明年应该拿什么奖呢？


Kelong Queen

I'm sure everyone shares the same sentiments. It was a super 爆冷 win for Joanne Peh. Some years ago she also won unexpectedly for 《小娘惹》. Her acting is not bad lah, just that there are better candidates around. It is reminiscent of those days when 李锦梅 kept winning the Best Actress award unexpectedly. Maybe the judges prefer the less dramatic, more 深入民心 acting style.

新闻组分猪肉

No idea why there are so many double winners this year at the current affairs/news department. Anyway, 林启元 has already won, 张海洁 won this year. There is nothing interesting to talk about this award anymore...


New Faces

With new faces in the Top 20 Awards, from newcomers like Rebecca Lim and Paige Chua to veterans like Pierre Png and Cynthia Koh, including no-wheres like Ben Yeo, it's getting harder for me to predict. But then again, being too predictable is a little boring right? 


Underrun

As usual, SA displayed its poor time management skills. 3 years ago and before, it was mostly overrun when winners took too long for their thank you speeches. 2 years ago, an underrun triggered the mass hugging session on 赵又廷. Last year, the not-very-funny 脱口秀 by Mark Lee caused an overrun. This year, the shorter-than-expected thank you speeches and the cutting out of nomination videos resulted in an eventual underrun. The award presenters weren't very talkative also. There was just so much remaining time to the extent that the hosts had to cut in and kill time.

The amount of time allocated to Jay Park tells the worth of Korean artistes. Mediacorp must have spent a bomb in inviting him for the ceremony, which partly explains the price of tickets? Haha.


Things you don't see on TV:

What happens during the commercial breaks?
Sugi from 绝对Superstar would appear and entertain the audience with his chatty personality haha. Okay lah, his job is just to keep the large audience occupied and inform us about the programme plan. There was once he tried to get the fans to scream for their idols. When he called for Joanne Peh's fans, cheers were hardly heard. "Hmm...only 3 persons" he said...that's so evil haha. I wonder how she feels upon hearing that... But honestly, Joanne's fanbase is rather pathetic, for her popularity. Whenever Joanne's name was mentioned during the awards, the continuous applause stopped. Somehow she is lucky that she still could squeeze a place in Top 10. After the kelong win, I think she might have more anti-supporters haha.

This video shows the live atmosphere when roulette was running. I don't really take notice when I watch it on TV, but in live, it feels more exciting and tense haha.

双人难

While I'm at it...

再见单人床 inherits the same theme (not really a sequel per se) as 幸福双人床 (Mars and Venus), which was aired in 2007. The previous series starred 郑斌辉 and 黄碧仁, and was pretty well-received at that time. 郑斌辉 played one of his most unglam role as an 'uncle'; I remember the scene where he farted in the elevator haha. That was also 黄碧仁's last drama before she left. Pierre Png is the only one who appeared in both series, though he played a different character this time.

As you can see, all the main characters are veterans (uh Joanne Peh too?), and have been in the industry for more than 10 years. So there is no bad acting by amateurs to spoil the show. 郑秀珍 made a comeback in this drama, after 7 years of disappearance since 爱的掌门人 in 2005. Once again for the nth time, she is paired with 王田裁, thus the chemistry is quite apparent.

Well, the theme is pretty clear, talking about marriage and relationship between married couples. All the couples in the show seem to be on the verge of divorce, after having problems in getting along with each other. (Hmm...except the 陈澍城 and 洪慧芳 couple who seems pretty peaceful) This drama also invites MPs, as well as other well-known personalities to provide their own views on marriage. Though tt may look a little propaganda-ish, trying to encourage people to get married and increase the birth rate of SG.

Special mention goes to the theme song 《伴》 by 黄小琥, which is really suitable for this drama. This song is not exactly new, as it was released more than 2 years ago. Listening to it again, together with this show, strengthens the 感动度 of this song. Too bad it's not eligible for my annual Top 20 songs haha.

Star Awards Prediction

How can I forget not to predict? Haha...

Like the previous years:
*Want = Nominee I want whom to win
*Think = Nominee I think whom will win

最佳男主角
Want: 李铭顺/行医 (Although he's becoming more 'uncle', I think he's still able to handle 吊儿郎当 roles pretty well) 
Think: 李铭顺/行医 (Or maybe they will let 郑斌辉 win out of sympathy haha)

最佳女主角
Want: 郑惠玉/阿娣 (Her 皱纹 can 'kiap'死蚊子 already, let her win ba lol)
Think: 郑惠玉/阿娣 (Usually 苦命 roles will win...look at the past years winners)

最佳男配角
Want: No one in particular
Think: 陈汉玮/星洲之夜 (Safe choice haha)

最佳女配角
Want: 林湘萍/行医 (Though she appeared for only a few episodes, her 哭戏 is really impressive)
Think: 黄慧/甘榜情 (Didn't watch the show, but heard she's pretty good, to the extent that so many people wanted to slap her)

最佳综艺主持人
Want: Pornsak/食在好源头2 (He didn't win last year, so I'll root for him again this year!)
Think: Pornsak/食在好源头2 (Hmm...I still have confidence in him)

最佳连续剧
Want: 拍卖 (Wawa productions...haha, though I prefer 行医)
Think: 星洲之夜 (Well...blockbuster of the year mah)

最佳综艺节目
Want: 铁路次文化 (People who like to travel will enjoy this show)
Think: 食在好源头2 (good theme + high viewership)

Top 10 Male
戴阳天
戚玉武
许振荣
张耀栋
黄俊雄
郑各评
周崇庆
王禄江
Pornsak
陈汉玮

Top 10 Female
周颖
白薇秀
钟琴
赖怡伶
瑞恩
欧萱
庄米雪
谢韵仪
林湘萍
郭淑贤

With popular artistes like 权怡凤 and 郑斌辉 out of the charts, it's getting harder to predict the Top 10 awards...

Semester 8 Overview

In a blink of eye, my last semester in NUS has come to an end. This also marks the end of my 20-year-long schooling journey. The last week of school had been quite ‘eventful’, with a project deadline, role-playing skit, presentation as well as a final examination on my very last lesson as a full-time student. Graduation from university seems a little anti-climax compared to primary school, secondary school and college. There are no big events (like O, A Levels) to send us off on our last days in school. There is still a graduation ceremony coming up soon, but it’s spaced so far apart from our final schoolday. It’s more like a reunion I guess, similar to O, A Levels result collection day, before we officially say goodbye and part ways.

This semester I’ve been busy with lots of non-school work, mainly tuition, Japanese-related activities and job-search. Still managed to have fun though, with a couple of outings here and there. Really appreciate those who initiate outings, despite the difficulty in deciding upon a common date and time, especially when everyone has many other ‘more important’ commitments.

For the last time, let's review the rating criteria:
Difficulty - Self explanatory.
Workload - Amount of lesson hours per week, assignments, tutorials, projects, self-study required, etc
Lecture/Tutorial/Lab - Enjoyability and understanding


CN4121 – Design Project (Part 2)

Difficulty: ★★★★★
Workload: ★★★★★★

A pretty demanding project indeed. It has become a common grumbling topic among the final year students. Previously I heard from seniors about how ‘jialat’ this module is, now I know why haha. The level of demand also depends on which section we are in charge of, as well as the corresponding professor-in-charge. I can say I’m quite lucky to get a manageable section, instead of the *erhem* unit.

This module makes an effort to strike a balance between teamwork incorporation and fair grading to each member. Simply speaking, the department wants us to work as a team, yet grades us separately based on individual performance. Honestly, I feel that I underperformed for this module, for a mixture of reasons. And it does not follow my usual style of taking control, pushing my own beliefs onto others, etc. Probably the scale of the project has made me realise that it’s not possible to take control of every section (unlike in lab modules), and I should try to trust others’ abilities.

As for individual part, it was a struggle deciding whether it is worth the effort to include additional details and research. There are so many things we can include since the project is quite open-ended in a way, but yet restricted by time and page constraints. I kept in mind what my prof said – ‘Focus on the important things.’ But what is considered important? I decided that for myself and naturally took the easier (aka slacker) way out by eliminating effort-consuming approaches. Looking for practical data is not easy too, due to industrial confidentiality.


CN4118R – Final Year Project

Difficulty: ★★★★
Workload: ★★★★★

For most courses, the biggest (and final) project students will embark on before graduating is FYP (or thesis). This is why most people were surprised when I told them I’ve already completed FYP. Thanks to Design Project, the research period for FYP is relatively short (to save us from one agony into another lol).

It was a blessing in disguise when I failed to get all 15 choices in the first round of project balloting. Really thankful to get a good supervisor and a helpful mentor subsequently. Their guidance and support also helped me to overcome several difficulties along the way, to the extent that I feel I didn’t put in much effort myself. Their encouragement kept me motivated all the way too. Sadly I still feel that I’m not suited to do research, though my supervisor often says otherwise.

It was also lucky that my project is computational based so I need not go to school everyday for lab, and I could use the software on my PC. This gave me a lot of flexibility and free time to commit to other matters…oops haha. The most torturous part was report writing, which I spent a lot of time on the formatting and appearance rather than the content, because my report consists of lots of equations and diagrams. As a result, my report ended up looking like a textbook. A considerable time and $$$ was also spent on printing matters. Although my thesis has a pretty-finish, I personally feel that the content is lacking. Fortunately thanks to my supervisor again, I was able to speak my way out during the poster presentation. And that unexpected award made me realise something…

FYP Poster Presentation Day. My supervisor and me (and my poster, which curled like crazy).

Be it in blogs or FB, I see that people usually take photo of their FYP report after completion. I shall monkey see monkey do as well. (anyway the title has a mistake, so I went to bind again...) As you can see, the form of my report is different from the norm, thanks to my supervisor who encouraged me to break the norm haha. It's smaller than A4, bigger than A5.

CN4201R – Petroleum Refining

Difficulty: ★★★★
Workload: ★★
Lecture/Tutorial: ★★

This module is like an extension to the petrochemical module I took last semester, just that it focuses more in-depth into refinery processes. The good thing about this module is that it’s taught by Singapore Refining Company (SRC) engineers who have many years of experience in the field. But the bad thing is they have too much experience to tell, and tend to let us off very late. =(

This is a very very useful module for those who wish to enter the refining industry. It gives a lot of insight as to what chemical engineers do in a refinery and what kind of problems they face. The site visit to SRC was my most enriching visit to Jurong Island (out of 4 visits there) because we were allowed to walk around the actual site, look at the process units close-up and experience the heat and noise, rather than just taking a simple bus tour through.

The assessment is basically memory based. With so much information given and closed-book exams, studying can be quite difficult because you won’t know which information must be memorized in detail, and which information just require a rough grasp of concept. Didn’t do well for the mid terms, as I was caught off guard by questions which require answers that I thought wasn’t necessary to memorize in detail. IIRC I was positioned around the 25-30% percentile. Sigh.


LAK1201 – Korean 1

Difficulty: ★★
Workload: ★★★
Lecture: ★★★★★
Tutorial: ★★★★★★

I had already thought of taking this module since last semester, as there are no more Japanese language modules left for me to take haha. What a lousy reason to learn a new language lol. Honestly I don’t have any interest in Korean culture, pop songs and their dramas. Neither am I extremely keen in their language because they ditched the use of Chinese characters and used some alien-doodle typography with lots of squares and circles.

However starting to learn a new language from beginner’s level brings me back to kindergarten days when we were still trying to speak simple vocabulary and grammar. It’s a big 解脱 from other modules that require a high level of thinking and analytical skills, and demands strong written and spoken abilities for reports and presentations. When starting off a new language, everything is so simple. If something is A, just say it is A. If you like B, just say you like B. 直接了当，不需理由. No need to explain so much with justifications and supporting evidence. Since Korean is so similar to Japanese in terms of vocabulary and grammar, I could pick them up easily. Except that the pronunciation can be pretty tricky.

The lecture notes, textbook and worksheets are filled with cute and colourful illustrations, really reminiscent of kindergarten times. The instructors are friendly and humorous, making lots of funny gestures and sounds to ensure that we understand what they are trying to say. I appreciate the teachers for thinking up so much fun-filled activities for the tutorials, such as ‘snake and ladders’, jigsaw puzzles, shopping and auction. Never expect myself to experience such an enjoyable class at this age. Really thankful to my tutor who spiced up the early-morning sleepy atmosphere by her hyper greetings, funny antics and evil laughter.

Without passion for the culture, I understand that it’s difficult to motivate oneself to learn the language. But I’ll see how it goes.