Newspaper And I.

Various newspaper in Malaysia.

Random facts #1.
I do not read the newspaper often just because flipping pages of it will make my fingers black and dirty. I can only touch other things after washing my hands to prevent them from getting dirty. I think it's very troublesome so until now I still don't have the habit to read the newspaper.

Random facts #2. 

I will always choose to read the entertainment section of the newspaper first. I also like to choose the newspaper printed on the better quality paper such as Metro in The Star where all the interesting features stories were published and Taylor's Inkslinger. 

Random facts #3.
The Chinese newspaper which is still using broadsheet was so huge that I read it on the floor.

Random facts #4.
The first chinese newspaper that I read was Nan Yang Siang Pau (although Sin Chew Daily was more popular).The only English newspaper that I like is The Star, which was mostly influenced by my parents because they cannot read Chinese words.

Random facts #5.
My family has been reading The Star newspaper since I was born. Although I don't read the newspaper but it is always there for me. I witness the changes of the The Star newspaper from broadsheets to tabloids. I felt weird initially but still get used to it eventually. The design and layout of The Stars newspaper were also different back then.

Random facts #6.
What I like about newspaper is that they are eco-friendly and recyclable. Every Sunday I will see my mum using the old newspaper to wrap the vegetables before putting them into the fridge :p

Random facts #7.
My friends and I were on the front page of a section in the New Straits Time because of the school event of the Chinese Cultural Month. It was the first time for me to appear in the newspaper and I bought it specially to keep it as a collection. Online version: http://www.smksp1.webs.com/nst_2010.htm

Random facts #8.
When I was in primary school, my friend and I entered a competition where we need to collect as many news as we can with a specific theme. We collected lots of news from loads of old newspaper, cut it nicely and pasted it on colour papers with pretty captions and design. We won the 2nd price in the competition :)

Random facts #9.
I always loved the Kee's World comic strips that were published everyday in The Star's Section Two. It was a must read everyday for me!

Nevertheless, the newspapers still play an important role in people's lives, even for people like me who don't read it everyday. The newspaper as a credible source of information will not be dying out anytime soon and will continue to serve us a vital type of mass media for many more years to come.

Modern Theories.

Social Learning - Cultivation - Media Dependency. Three theories closely related to each other, slowing influencing people nowadays which are depending more and more on the media to satisfy their needs. We rely on the media, we began to have wrong perceptions in the reality results in stereotyping and unnecessary fears, we copy and learn what we saw from the media without realizing it.

In the advertising industry, the advertisers produce commercials that are made to serve and create awareness among society from time to time. Applying modern theories in their commercials will create resonance in people thus more effective and leaves people with deep impressions.

The advertiser portrays the lives of people who are suffering because of smoking. Everyone knows that smoking is bad for health, the advertiser uses this point and further cultivates among smokers about the serious effect that will impact their lives. The point of view from a mother is also a strong point because we as a child can feel it and it's like a wake-up call for us.

What is your feeling after watching the commercial? Did you teared or did it made you think twice before you decide to smoke? This is where the theory works.

Just to share my experience. Recently I went to the cinema and watched this movie call “Dredd”. The whole movie was basically very violent, I wonder why is it uncensored or uncut. If you like to see cool weapons, cruel treatments, bomb explosion or blood and bodies lying here and there, go ahead and watch.

Not only weapons, the movie also introduce a kind of drug called “Slo-Mo”, which makes the brain feel as if time had passed like 1% of it's normal speed, so sick. Despite the violence, cruelness and bloodiness, the movie was not bad for me not because of the storyline, it's because the cool technologies, graphics and actions scenes.

But all awhile in the cinema, I was thinking that how would this movie influence a person by showing all these violence. If someone is over-exposed to these kind of movie and do not know how to think wisely, I cannot think of the consequences and impact towards the person and what kind of crazy things he/she will do to the society. Although people argue that media is not the main factor that contributes but it is still a factor effecting.

And to be frank, all the movie trailer shown before the movie starts were all violent too. What is happening to our world today?! 

Mean and scary world.

Unspeakable Fun!

Taboo?? Questions appeared in my mind until I saw the box of the game. I recognized it immediately because one of my friend owns this. The purpose of this game is to test our ability to think and relate in another way (I guess?), so everyone was required to play at least once to experience it ourselves.

I actually felt nervous standing in front of people, like I always do. My mind was literally blank but luckily I still managed to think of something. My eyes were busy looking at the 5 words which were forbidden to say, the brain was constantly processing of other words that can describe the answer and coordinates with the mouth which is trying to speak what the brain had processed. The ears were also searching for the correct answer when everyone was guessing the answer. I thought it was amazing because the whole class was filled with various sound and voice yet we can still hear the correct answer.

In order for my friends to understand better, I also need to think on how to say it in proper English. So the brain was constantly thinking about many things that I felt a bit blank. Although I managed to speak what I wanted but my thoughts did not link well with what I spoke, unlike people who have a very good thought process, they can speak with a clear mind and fully understand what is going on.

The game Taboo is closely related with our blog assignment because a lot of critical thinking is needed. For me, I need almost one whole day to finish a blog post, because I tend to think a little slower. Ideas come to me slow unless I see something that inspires me. After I get the idea, I need to rearrange my thoughts which took the most time, and lastly, the way I present my thoughts and corrections for the English grammar.

I guess more thinking is needed to improve our thought process, where people always say “practice makes perfect”. If you get used to it, there shouldn't be much problem. If we are good in thinking and relating, the way we see things will be different and the way we think will be more flexible. I guess this benefits us in our communication skills too.

I really had a great time laughing together with friends and of course I enjoyed myself and had lots of fun with Taboo!

Fun day indeed :D

Review on Delicatessen.

Another mind-blowing movie - Delicatessen, a black comedy directed by Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet, nominated and won several important awards.

The setting of the story was in post-apocalyptic France where good food was rare. The many events of the story were mostly in the apartment building, which was owned by the butcher,  Clapet (Jean-Claude Dreyfus). He always sells this very special kind of “meat” to his tenants the next day whenever someone went missing mysteriously. One day, a former clown, Louison (Dominique Pinon), saw an advertisement on the newspaper went there for a job. He began to win the heart of the tenants, and also fell in love with the butcher’s daughter, Julie (Marie-Laure Dougnac). The story further develops where the truth started to reveal and Julie tries to search for help and save her beloved man from the clutches of her father, and they both tries to run away from him. 

I shall say that the movie trailer is absolutely brilliant. It is just something like a teaser but not revealing too much about the movie. You wouldn't even know what will the story be about because it is not really related to the story of the movie. Unlike some movie trailers nowadays, you would probably guessed the whole story of the movie before you watch it in the cinema. Who would miss a movie with such an interesting trailer like this?

The storyline of the movie was unpredictable, which created suspense in the movie. In order to know what was actually going on, people will have to keep on watching the movie until the end. The movie had succeeded in bringing out the curiosity and interest of people towards the movie. The actors in the movie also did a good job with their characters.

Magical bubbles!

First visit to Julie's apartment.

Searching for the faulty bed spring.

GIVE ME YOUR GRAINS!

Musical saw and Cello.

What I liked about the movie is the character and the presented in the movie, especially Aurore who tried many different ways to commit suicide but eventually failed in a funny way. The budding romance between Louison and Julie was my favourite too!

On the other hand, what I dislike about the movie was the disturbing scenes, for example at the starting part of the movie; a frightened man hiding in the bin, somehow waiting for his doom. Then comes the butcher with an evil face and huge eyes, holding a chopper in his hand..

You can't run away from me!

MEAT.

To be frank, I didn’t enjoy much throughout the movie except the few funny scenes because most of the disturbing scenes freaked me out. I was also trying hard to understand the movie, because of the language barrier and my weak understanding towards the movie. So I should say the experience was unpleasant for me to digest the content of the movie.

As a conclusion, it is still a worth-to-watch movie. If you are curious enough to know what’s all about the movie, be sure to check it out! Your time will definitely not be wasted on this movie.

Good luck and enjoy! :p

Comm Theories in Our Lives.

So today my group of friends and I went to Setapak for our moral project, and we used the LRT as one of our transportation. It was my first time travelling with the LRT in Malaysia and it was kind of a new experience for me.

I was so sad that I had motion sickness so I couldn't read in the LRT while other friends were studying lectures notes T_____T. Of course I got bored and I started to observe people in the LRT.

It was surprising to see that people actually read books in LRT. And then later on I saw someone standing reading the newspaper. I felt he was a hero O.O, and this was where I started to find the tabloid newspaper useful! Other people were either using their gadgets or with their earphones listening to music.

I shall say that the LRT in Malaysia and the MRT in Singapore are very different. Basically every Singaporean in the MRT will be using their iPhones and most of them will be plucking in their earphones #likeaboss. Oops :x

But it's sad to say that most of the people in the LRT are doing nothing. In my opinion, it is better to use that free time reading something useful, unless you are feeling sleepy or having motion sickness like me. But of course it still depends on the individual.

The above bar chart is just a rough analysis of mine through my observation. I assume that the people with their gadgets are using the media such as Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and Youtube. This is where the Dependency Theory happens. It is also related to the Uses and Gratifications Approach, as people are using the media in a cognitive way. Some people also use it for diversion and withdrawal purpose. This is where the bad attitude develops because people are avoiding themselves from letting out their seats for the people who really need it.

So I took the chance to interview Ling who was sitting just beside me as she said it was difficult to concentrate and read in the LRT. It was just a simple question asking about what she was going to do since she couldn't concentrate. The answer I got was: to listen to music, to take out her smart phone and to do whatever thing it could do, most probably texting with people, viewing social network sites and playing games.

That concludes the Dependency Theory, which applies for me too. Viewing Facebook, Twitter and Instagram has become a daily basis for me, especially when I have nothing else to do. Even when I am busy with my work I still tend to get distracted.

And yeah, while I was typing the last sentence of my blog post, I was holding my phone with another hand. DUH.

Review On U-Residence.

As you all know I am staying in U-Residence, a lot of people have been asking me about my room and other stuff. So I am here to answer all your questions and end your curiosity! :D

I am currently staying in a Twin-sharing room for RM920 a month, which is expensive compared to the rent outside Taylor’s University. I decided to stay here because I am unfamiliar with the surrounding places here so it is more convenient and safer for me to stay in campus for the time being.

Because of my room type, I do not have pantry or fridge. No cold drinks for me :( The room is considered small for two people. Basically, I have a bed, a table with bookshelf, a wardrobe and shared bathroom. And yes, we have air-conditioner and water heater here.

I am cool.

Ma bed if you are interested.

Le desk.

Great place to store your foodstuff :D

Mini library with no books.

Unglamorous overview.

Wardrobe.

More than enough to stuff my clothes.

Bathroom (left).

Bathroom (right).

Shower area.

The good thing for choosing U-Residence is that we save a lot of travelling time. We don't have to get up early for class and therefore we can afford longer sleeping hours. We also do not need to worry about traffic jams, unless there is a serious human traffic in school :p

Staying in the campus also gives us a chance to make full use of the University facilities, for example the library and the 24/7 study room. If you have problems sleeping at night, feel free to sit by the lake. It is definitely a good place to put on your thinking cap. It is more convenient for us to spend time at the Uni-gym too :)

The Management of U-Residence really looks after their residents as they will plan activities for them from time to time. I think it benefits the international students here because they are new to Malaysia. By joining those activities they know more about Malaysia and our culture here.

So do you think staying here is good? Well maybe not.

One of the many disadvantages of staying here is that we do not have drinking water source in the room. At first I bought water from store 7-11 which is slightly more expensive than the supermarket. Eventually, I fill up my water bottle everyday at the water dispenser beside Student Life Centre, which is a walking distance from my room. To overcome my laziness, I will make sure that I fill up more water bottles during the weekends.

The room does not provide a place for you to dry your clothes, which means we need to bring our clothes to the laundry shop downstairs. I refuse to spend too much money on my laundry so I have created a little space in the bathroom to hang my washed clothes.

Brilliant :p

The food choices for students who are staying here are very limited too. Unless you have a car or take a bus ride to Sunway Pyramid for your dinner. If not, basically you are eating more or less the same food everyday.

The most depressing part is that we do not have any sort of entertainment here. No televisions, no games such as Angry Birds, Diamond Dash and other games for students, no doubt they are harmless for students. And seriously the I-Xcess in my hostel room is terrible. I cannot connect it to my lappy!! Y U NO LET ME PLAY! D:

The one thing that I do not like about my room is the privacy issue. If you pull up the curtain, people can see clearly what you are doing in the room, especially at night when the lights in our room is on. And the block opposite my room is the boy’s residence. But, if you pull down the curtain, it will block the natural light coming into your room which makes the room dark.

I am watching you.

I can also see the elevator through my bathroom window. The residents while waiting for the elevator can see you pinching pimples in front of the bathroom mirror so make sure no ugly face while looking at the mirror! Greet me if you want to, most probably I will show you an annoyed face :O.

Hi from the lift.

Not to mention Block A3 and A4, the boys are using the same lift. It is easy for the boys staying in A3 to come over to the girls' block because both blocks have the same access. For safety purposes, we always make sure that we lock our rooms. I think the CCTV does not help much. Frankly speaking, it is actually not a serious problem if you don't let your thinking runs wild.

If I were to choose again, I would not consider renting a room at U-Residence based on my experience. Most of our friends who are staying here will probably give a negative answer too. Although staying here has its own benefits but I still prefer to stay outside.

To my mind, it is not advisable for a Malaysian to rent a room here unless he/she really needs it. Why not travel a little and save some money for other purposes? But for international students, it will be good to stay here as a starting point.

Overall, U-Residence is still considered a good place to stay, we have a great environment in Taylor's Lakeside compared to outside! 4 out of 5 stars for U-Residence! *Clap clap*



*More photos of my room will be uploaded soon! :)
*Last batch of photos added and edited on 28th of September, 12.25pm.

Rhythm, Blues and Soul.

Hi everyone! Today I will be sharing about my favourite music genre - R&B/Soul. The reason why I like this genre is because of this particular singer. It's because of him I get to know about this genre, which I think most of the people are unfamiliar with.

He is Khalil Fong, a Hong Kong singer working under Warner Music. Apparently he is one of the rare singer in the chinese music industry to promote about R&B/Soul. Here's a short article about him and his music career.
http://ecentral.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/6/29/music/8939992&sec=music

His version of "You're The Sunshine of My Life" was originated by his favourite master, Stevie Wonder, which is also a R&B singer.

The reason why R&B/Soul attracts me so much is because of its soothing and relaxing music. If you close your eyes and listen closely to the music, you can hear the rhythm of the drums which gives the whole song a flexible and comfortable beat. Unlike normal songs, the way of singing in R&B songs is unique. It is to bring out the character of the music genre. R&B is also something similar with Jazz.

He further promotes about Blues, Gospel and Rock in his album at year 2011, which is a little different from his previous album which focus on R&B/Soul. "Few people understand that Blues and Gospel are the origin of R&B and Soul." he said. The song below can also be said as cross-genre, you can hear different elements working together in the song.

 

In my opinion, true music is really hard to find nowadays because of commercialization in the music industry. That's what makes R&B/Soul so special and stands out from all other music genre - originality.

Have a great weekend ahead :)

Baraka Vs Avatar.

There was this scene of Baraka where the title showed up on the screen at the beginning of the film. Somehow the film title of Avatar appeared on my mind. I thought that the font used for both film titles were quite the same.

 

Okay it's not the same -.-

But other than that, I also realized that both films have three A's in their title, and they sound the same with the A pronounciation; Ba-ra-ka, A-va-tar. There was this scene where they were strongly related, which also gave everyone a deep impression - The Ramayana Monkey Chant in Bali.

The Monkey Chant is believe to ward off evil, and this scene absolutely reminds me of Avatar, where all the Na'vi tribe gathered and prayed around the sacred tree.

Tree of Souls.

Actually both of the films are about the beauty of mother nature and the culture or religion. One in a realistic way and another in a technological way. We can see the destruction of nature by human for the sake of profits in both films.

So I saw this interesting comment by chance from a YouTube user, commenting on the "Baraka - Kecak" video.

"...Do you know the kecak shows story of Ramayana, fight in between prince Rama and demon ravana? And now - write into your google "Rama" and check what is the skin colour of Rama? Outch.....so, what was the Avatar about? ;););) - Duge108"

Okay.. It's blue. Just like the avatars. Now that's something I didn't know! And after some searching on Google I found out that the film is actually parallel with Hinduism. The director, James Cameron himself also mentioned in an interview by Times Magazine that he was inspired by the Hindu God.  - http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1576622,00.html

Lastly, here's the theme song for Avatar! Love it ♥ Enjoy! :D

I see you.

A World Beyond Words.

Photo taken while watching Baraka :)

Obviously today I will be talking about Baraka, which I am late for a week to post it. Sorry! :x So basically Baraka also relates to semiotic because the film consist only sounds and images. To understand the film, we need to rack our brains, do some research, or even watch it a few more times only we can get the messages behind the film.

The film is all about humanity, religions and cultures, and it fits the title Baraka - which means blessing. To be honest, this is the first time I am watching a non-narrative film. Glad that I didn't fell asleep because watching this kind of film is so not me. Actually I am quite excited about this film until I realize that it is a documentary.. Still enjoyed it though :)

It is amazing to see the earth with it's original look - fascinating. By watching this film I gained knowledge about the various culture which I never knew before. Also I saw many historical monuments from different countries in the world which were passed down from the ancient till now.

And then came in the modern world. People nowadays are so busy and we tend to forget the tiniest thing in our lives, even our greatest mother nature. Just like what is shown from the video below, we are slowly being manipulated without realizing it.

I bet this particular scene does attracts your attention. The chicks are sent from one station to another, then being grouped, marked, and their beaks trimmed. This cruel process  is to prevent them from pecking and fighting with each other, protecting them from getting hurt.

I remembered there was one time when I was still a child, I was interested with the Milo tin in the kitchen. I happily grabbed it up without knowing how heavy is it. Of course I don't have enough strengh to hold it and the tin dropped right onto my foot. Blood was all over the floor. My mum was shocked, and my toe nails fell off right after that incident.

I don't remember about the pain at all. But chickens are different. They have nerve endings at their beaks so they do feel it. The film also showed the destruction of nature caused by human. It is very devastating to see that but it cannot be helped. This is what the world had become now.

At the same time it is irony to say this because eveyone, including me, is doing harm towards the earth. We destroy nature because we need it; people perform "debeaking" on chickens because of the profits from mass production. It is impossible to fully stop it, we can only do our part to reduce the harm towards the nature.

Lastly about this particular scene in the film. The sounds effects are actually very disturbing to me and it scares me a lot when looking at the scenes. Seriously it looks like a horror movie to me and I personally dislike horror. But on the same time I am actually quite curious about this place. I saw Japhia posted about this on her blog, then only I know that it is a Genocide Museum in Cambodia. Not only she mentioned about the museum, she also shared her experience in Cambodia too! Do visit her blog and have a look!

I don't wish this post to become lengthy, so that's all for today!




Stay tuned for Part 2 :)