End of the Year

Time flies.


Once again, we are at the end of the year. Before we say goodbye to 2011. Let's see what happened this year.


I can't really remember everything but I will just type whatever I can remember.


Well, 2011 is very significant to me because 11 has always been my favourite number. And I trust that 2011 will be a good year for me and indeed it has been.


I had tremendous success with my results at University. Come to think of it, I received all my results in 2011. First one in January, second one in June, third one in December. I'm really happy with my results where I got all As except Equity Securities which I got A-. Current GPA stands at 4.96, definitely a benchmark for me to keep up with for the next year!


Joined a CCA and was in Banking & Finance club. Not a bad club I must say, definitely a good boost to the resume.


And of course, the internship applications was really intense. Whereby we all had to find a good internship in hopes of being converted into a full-time staff after we graduate.


Starcraft 2 has always been one of my favourite topic and this game came out only last year December. Today, it has flourished and spread its wing throughout the entire world now. Seeing a strategic game go global is definitely heart-warming.


Lots of adults are always criticizing gamers, saying they are good-for-nothing, and that they only play games for a living. But they are so wrong, these people are one of the greatest strategists and hardest worker. They plan, train and work more than any people out there working in the industry.

They have a passion at the very least whereas most of the people are living without a dream. Living aimlessly where they don't even know what they want in the future. Compared to them, the professional gamers are definitely someone to look up to!


My goals for 2012 is definitely for everyone to live happily and healthily. Of course, I hope to sustain my results and to do better in the future.


Also, I hope to secure myself an incredible internship and should I get one, I promised to give it my all and go out there to impress.


Other than results and internships for 2012, I also hope to secure myself an exchange programme to SMU. I tried to apply for an exchange to NUS this year but I failed to secure a spot. Hopefully my application to SMU next year will be a successful one. Everyone has been talking about how SMU students are so pompous and fake, where they can only talk but have no substance. I mean it sounds like a completely different culture so I would really like to go there and see for myself how it is like.


What will I achieve in 2012, what will happen in 2012? No one knows but I'm definitely looking forward to the journey ahead !

11:11

I have liked the number 11 for an extremely long time now.


But I never knew the reason myself. It just came to me.


Recently, I saw that its popular among other people as well so I went to research about it. And apparently, its a lucky number that allows people to make wishes!





In medieval times, numerologists — those who searched for the mystical significance of numbers — believed all numbers had both positive and negative aspects … except for 11. In the words of the 16th century scholar Petrus Bungus, 11 "has no connection with divine things, no ladder reaching up to things above, nor any merit." Stuck between the divine numbers 10 and 12, 11 was pure evil, and represented sinners.




On the flip side, some modern-day numerologists have deemed 11/11/11 auspicious, and according to local news sources around the country, an unusual number of couples have planned to marry on the day. The number 11 is also a favorite of gamblers — particularly blackjack and Keno players. So, amid all these alternative perspectives, what's the real deal about repeating 11s? Is there anything special about the numbers lining up?

With regards to the 11:11 phenomenon, rather than being a supernatural warning sign, psychologists say it is a classic case of "apophenia," or the human tendency to find meaning or patterns in randomly occurring data. This condition feeds on itself, because the more conscious you are of something — such as repeating 11s — the more often you'll notice it in the world around you, and thus the more certain you'll become that the pattern is real.

In online forums about the 11:11 phenomenon, people often say they didn't notice how many 11s appeared to them until hearing about the phenomenon from someone else. This is a tell-tale sign of apophenia: When they found out about the phenomenon, they subconsciously started keeping track of all the 11s they saw, with each new sighting seeming more significant than the last.

Results

Its the time of the year again. I just received my results last midnight.


So let's start with AA102 - Accounting II.


Initially I was very scared because there are so many FRS readings and I thought to myself, how am I going to memorise all the FRS? But apparently, you don't have to, it just comes naturally once you practice enough. You do not have to memorise the FRS number, its sufficient to just know the rules behind them.


So these are the breakdown for this course

Mid Term 20%: 96.5/100
Project 15%: A

Overall Grade: A

I thought I did quite well in the final exam but I still didn't manage to secure an A+ for this module. Weird but I guess I must have made some mistakes somewhere.



Moving on, its BF215


Mid term 35%: 83/100
Class Participation 10%: 10/10
Ethics Quiz 5%: 11/20

To be honest, I thought I'm dead for this module because its extremely competitive. The mid term average was 74 so I thought I'm around the A- region for mid term.


For the ethics quiz, I just passed. Which further exacerbates the matter.


Thankfully, the final paper was not super easy. So I guess I managed to make a comeback and achieve an overall grade of A.


My advice is to really study hard for your mid terms and finals. Because the weightage for the mid term is freaking high.



Next its BF219: Equity Securities.


Project 30%: B+/A-

To be honest, I'm really disappointed with this module. I really did super alot for this project and in the end, got such a lousy grade.


Worst still, the final paper was embarassingly easy. So easy that I could finish the entire paper in 1 hour when its a 2.5 hours paper.


Couldn't make a comeback in the end and had to settle with an A- :(



Next BH226: Strategic HR & Consulting


Project 25%: A-
Essay 25%: A

For this module, the cohort size is really small. Around 90 students I believe and so I thought this is going to be a steep bell curve man. Furthermore I didn't do so well for the project which has a large weightage as well.


But turns out the final paper was not very easy. But I knew how to do it. So I guess I managed to fight back at the last minute.


Got an overall grade of A.


Finally, MA9001: Introduction to Energy.


Quiz 1 30%: 9/10
Quiz 2 40%: 14/15

Quiz 3 I'm not so sure. But I think its either 8/12 or 11/12. Since I got an A+. I think I got 11/12.


The reason why I'm so unsure is that I can't check the answers in the notes. The options in the MCQ are very ambiguous and you can really argue anyway. I mean its sort of playing around with the English Language.


Furthermore, the bell curve for this module is really, really steep. You need like 90+ for an A.


Its extremely competitive especially with the Engineering students taking this module.


But I'm glad I was able to come out victorious with an A+. Really happy for this module.



Yeah, so that's the end of the module review this semester.


Looking forward to the next semester :) Cheers to all.


And Merry Xmas 2011 !!!

Asia markets fall as Europe optimism fades

Asia markets tumbled on Tuesday, with exporters and technology firms weak, after ratings agencies weighed in on the latest plans to stem Europe’s debt crisis.




The performance in Asia followed a drop for U.S. stocks, after credit-ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch issued assessments on last week’s European debt-crisis summit.

Moody’s Investors Service said Monday it still intends to revisit the ratings of all European Union countries during the first quarter of 2012, given “the continued absence of decisive policy measures.”

Separately, the ratings agency placed eight Spanish banks and two holding companies on review for possible downgrades late Monday. 

Ratings agency Fitch said the inability by European Union leaders to devise a “comprehensive” fix to the region’s debt crisis had intensified pressure on debt ratings of euro-area nations.

“The sell-off in Asian markets is feedback to the euro zone news, and [losses] in the U.S.,” Peter Lai, Hong Kong-based director at DBS Vickers said.

“Investors are dumping shares connected to the euro zone, the exporters,” he added.

那些年，我們一起追的女孩

Really a good movie

Brings back memories

Daniel Tammet

Simply incredible.


When he sees a number, he sees colours, patterns, textures and flashes


He had autism, epilepsy and seizures at 4. But yet, he had this ability as a result.


Perhaps this is god's test of his endurance and since he passed the test. He was awarded.


People with autism are said to have narrow interests and obsession. So its both a disability and an ability.

Matches showing human emotions

Kitaro Silk Road

Presenting to you


Kitaro


Helping you to find the inner peace

12 Year Old Steve Jobs Protege

He might not be ready to submit a college application, but Thomas Suarez of Manhattan Beach, California is already releasing apps for iOS devices. The sixth grader recently gave a talk atTEDxManhattanBeach in which he discussed his love of computers (he got into them in kindergarten), his plans for the future, and the inspiration he got from the late Steve Jobs.

Suarez has released several apps on the Apple App Store since launching his first, a fortune-telling title called Earth Fortune, in late 2010. His most popular app has been Bustin Jieber, a Whack-a-Mole style game where players squish the disembodied head of Justin Bieber. "I created it because a lot of people at school disliked Justin Bieber a little bit," he told the TEDx crowd.

After teaching himself programming basics in Python, C, and Java, Suarez says he took up Apple's SDK and Xcode. "I've gotten a lot of inspiration from Steve Jobs," he says. Inspired, he started an App Club at his school, because "not many kids know where to go to find out how to make a program." As he sees it, "for soccer, you could go to a soccer team, and for violin, you could get a lesson from a violinist." But even parents might not be a resource, since as he rightly points out, "not many of them have written apps."

The club is working with its teacher sponsor to create iPad apps for education, which will eventually be distributed to local school districts free of charge, and sold to others. Oh, and he's even created his own company, CarrotCorp. It sounds like Suarez picked up a little entrepreneurial spirit from Jobs, as well.

7 Wonders of the World

They look phenomenal !

Amazon Rainforest in South America

Halong Bay in Vietnam

Iguazu Falls in Argentina and Brazil

Jeju Island in South Korea

Komodo National Park in Indonesia

Puerto Princesa Underground River in the Philippines

Table Mountain in South Africa

Teddy

Check out my dog with his superman clothing and new shoes !!!

Paint what you see

Saw this really interesting piece of artwork

License	All rights reserved by balsamia

Never Stop Questioning

New Starcraft 2 Units: Heart of the Swarm

Check out the videos of the new units for Protoss, Zergs and Terrans.


With the prototypes shown and how it actually works explained by the game balancer David Kim.

Starcraft II New Units

Cup of Coffee

When things in your life seem, almost too much to handle,
When 24 Hours in a day is not enough,
Remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class 
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
And proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open Areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, Friends, and Favorite passions – 
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' He continued,
there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
There’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

U.S. stock rally translates into weekly gain

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks tallied robust gains Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average capping its longest weekly win streak in six months, after a surge in retail sales and Google Inc.’s earnings lifted sentiment.

“Retail sales were a little better than expected, and earnings so far have been pretty good,” said Randy Frederick, director of trading and derivatives at the Schwab Center for Financial Research.

He noted the S&P 500 Index SPX +1.74%was testing 1,220, the upper part of a two-month trading range.

On Friday, the index added 20.92 points, or 1.7%, to 1,224.58, with energy, natural-resource and technology companies leading the gains among its 10 industry groups.

Tallying a second weekly gain, the S&P 500 rose 6% from last Friday’s close, its biggest weekly rise since July 2009.

Closing in positive territory for 2011 for the first time in more than six weeks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA +1.45%  added 166.36 points, or 1.5%, to 11,644.49, a level that has the blue-chip index 4.9% higher on the week and scoring its third consecutive weekly advance, the last occurrence of which took place in the three-week period ending April 8.

Up 7.6% from last Friday’s finish, the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP +1.82%  advanced 47.61 points, or 1.8%, to 2,667.85. Year-to-date, the Nasdaq is up 0.6%. It was the Nasdaq Composite’s biggest weekly gain since March 2009.

Volume was light. For every stock on the decline, more than five rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 847 million shares traded; composite volume neared 3.7 billion shares.

Click to Play

Debit vs. credit: Plastic war heats up

For customers angry about rising debit card fees, banks are promoting an alternative that, they say, is just as convenient, but with lower fees and better rewards. They call it a "credit card."

In Paris, finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 started discussions on Europe’s debt trouble, with officials reportedly thinking about writing down as much as 50% on Greek bonds. Read more on G-20.

“There are a lot of efforts under way to push those potential default concerns out through the end of the year, to get that off the table for the rest of 2011,” said Schwab’s Frederick.

Equities relinquished some of their gains after the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment for October fell to 57.5 from 59.4 in September.

More inspiring for riskier investments, the Commerce Department on Friday reported a 1.1% increase in retail sales for September, the largest growth since February, following a 0.3% gain for August, with the latter figure revised up from the prior estimate. See more on retail sales.

The data offered “encouraging news for the U.S. economy,” noted analysts at Wells Fargo in emailed commentary.

Shares of internet-search engine Google Inc. GOOG -0.22%  rallied 5.9% a day after it reported better-than-anticipated sales for the third quarter.

By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch

Credit -marketwatch

Apple Steve Jobs die at

In an email to employees, Tim Cook, Jobs’s handpicked successor, called Jobs a “visionary and creative genius” as well as a “dear friend and inspiring mentor.”

His statement did not give any further details of Job’s condition prior to his passing.

“Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple,” Cook wrote.

Jobs’s passing leaves behind the legacy of an iconic executive who has led Apple since 1997 — and has since managed to shake not one but three massive industries to their roots.

Known for his meticulous attention to detail, as well as a keen eye for aesthetics, a prescient sense of where technology was heading and an occasionally hot temper, Jobs has arguably left the stage at the top of his game.

Jobs leaves behind a company that has become a power broker across the technology, media and telecommunications industries. Ironically, he has done this as Apple’s legacy business — the Mac computer — inhabits much the same spot it has for decades, as a well-regarded but niche player in the PC market.

A decision not to license the operating system to other hardware manufacturers back in the 1980s relegated Apple to a bit-player role in the PC market relative to then-archrival Microsoft Corp. MSFT -0.12% , which managed to grab a dominant market share for its Windows OS that has remained to this day.

Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985 only to return in 1996 through the company’s acquisition of his NeXT Computer — and ended up doing an end run around Microsoft.

Rather than continuing to wager the company’s fortunes on the slowing PC market, Jobs took Apple into such rapidly evolving areas as digital music and, later, cell phones. This turned out to be especially prescient, as the computing market has shifted to mobile devices that can pack the processing power and applications that PCs did just a few years prior.

A decade after its launch, Apple’s iPod still controls about two-thirds of the market for digital music players. Jobs was able to use the iPod to convince music executives to allow him to sell songs for 99 cents apiece.

That, along with later capabilities to play video over the device, helped turn the company’s iTunes store into the world’s largest retailer of music, TV shows and movies in digital form.

Jobs cemented his position in the media landscape through Walt Disney Co.’s DIS -0.86% purchase of Pixar Entertainment, which Jobs had bought from “Star Wars” creator George Lucas in 1986.

Pixar, having morphed into a producer of high-end computer-animated films such as the “Toy Story” series, was acquired by Disney in a $7.4 billion deal in 2006, making Jobs the largest shareholder at the entertainment conglomerate.

These uncanny moves have left Apple in an enviable position. The company still derives most of its profits from selling devices. But it also gets a cut of every song, movie, book and application it moves through its system to be used on its products.

As such, Apple as a company is unlikely to revisit the near-ruin that it experienced once before in Jobs’s absence. A deep pool of talent, extensive relationships with developers and an all-but-bottomless pile of money mean Apple has plenty of resources to continue innovation and defend its hard-won territory for many years to come

Credits -apple, -