altrius.steve

Imagine Cup – Egypt’09

2009-02-19T20:42:00.001+08:00

Imagine Cup is an opportunity created by Microsoft for all students to display their creativity at problem solving. This is an avenue where students’ talents in solving some of the world’s most practical problems can be recognized worldwide.

Contrary to many misunderstandings and false assumptions, Microsoft Imagine Cup’s focus is NOT on how technically capable participants can prove themselves to be. Rather, it is really about how participants view problems and using what practical methods given a series of resources can they resolve or reduce worldwide problems.

If you are a student, you should definitely give this a try. First round merely involves the submission of a proposal at solving a problem of choice, and requires no physical commitment until you get into the next round. This is definitely worth your time because if you got into the next round, chances are Microsoft may be interested in your ideas. ;)

http://imaginecup.com/

Random flitting thoughts

2008-12-05T22:06:00.002+08:00

Today marks the end of another term, and coincidentally not long after the ending of a chapter in my life.

Things happen, to and fro. Life goes in a continual cycle of judgment, quietly, mercilessly, sickeningly. It is therefore an ironic thing that nobody, and I mean zilch, throughout the annals of history, was able to sum life up into a convenient equation. An equation by which pitiful individuals who are sick of braving this relentless battle through this alien term - "life", can simply rely on and get through their lives.

Relative to individual organisms of the earthly species, the human's body of thoughts is extremely advanced. However, if one has the capacity to compare that with the structure of cumulative humanity from an universal point of view, one would swallow uneasily at the knowledge of his/her lack of knowledge.

Irony? Tell me about it.

I guess this is the mentality of a bored, messed up individual, who happens to have too much time to spare, especially in the circumstance of today's Java practical test.

A Window of time

2008-11-26T23:32:00.003+08:00

Ever after, on muggy, soil scented days, Ryan would stop whatever he was doing and stand silent for a minute or two. He was trying to remember.

Something special had happened once. Something wonderful and amazing. Something terrifying, too. Something absolutely impossible. But when he cast his mind back over all the events in his life up till now, he found nothing to account for this sharp certainty. Nothing was special in the way he knew this was.

The mystery tentalized him.

Threads of memory, like dreams, tried to weave themselves into a story. But - as with all dreams - the harder he thought, face bent in a frown of concentration, the strands fluttered like spider gossamer, broke, and were gone.

Relativity in Time

2008-11-21T09:14:00.003+08:00

Time. The mysterious 4th dimensional element that some long to control.

Contrary to everyone's believes, I believe that time is not impartial but relative, and as incredible as it may sound, I believe too that space time does not travel in a logical and ordered sequence. It is simply complicated.

Consider the possibility that time does flow backwards from time to time; be they glitches in this imperfect world of ours or part of this grand creation by a central judgment. A relevant example to illustrate my belief would be deja vu - an experience where someone is sure that he/she has witnessed / experienced a(n) (series of) event(s) already in the seeming past yet experiencing it again in current space time relative to this person. Has anyone considered that this is not simply just another fact of life that is to be dealt with ignorance and given a simple dismissive reason of coincidence? After all, when enough people experience this to result in a term especially coined for an experience that cannot be convincingly explained and proven (re-produced in a controlled but similar fashion) by science and solid logical reasoning, there could be much more to it than anyone really thinks.

The above whole chunk is Greek to you? Let me summarize this in a nutshell:

Consider the possibility where two parallel lines converge.

Until science or logical reasonings or otherwise can satisfy the large majority with a rational and credible explanation, we shall consider living in a world of complicating simplicities.

Institutional Bastards and Retards?

2008-11-10T09:40:00.005+08:00

The problem of the world is that it is divided into institutions. You have political institutions, legal institutions, religious institutions, and of course, national institutions. When you divide people up into different institutions and make them believe that their institutions are superior or more correct in whatever sense than others, they tend to get... ignorant.

The institution of Singaporeans is made up of generally nice people. Generally. The majority of Singapore citizens are good Samaritans and would not hesitate to do an act of kindness so long they don't lose too much on their side. But there is a minor bunch of Singaporeans who seem to be adamant on blaming another group of people with crimes that these people obviously did not commit and live as if these people owe them a living.

The institution of China citizens is made up of generally nice people. Generally. The majority of Chinese are true in their friendship and does not hesitate to help others, sometimes more than the person is worth helping. But there is a minor bunch of Chinese who seem to be such misers so much so that they believe it's ethically sound to compromise the safety/satisfaction of a huge population for the sake of money.

Now if you put these people together, you generally get a group of trash, their sole existence being a mistake of this already flawed reality.

Have you ever helped someone so much or treated them so nicely yet when your institutional identity gets discriminated, she goes to condemn your existence in its singularity? This is the result of a third party bunch of institutional bastards doing something that influences the world negatively and this retard of a person who understands no logic of humanity.

Cobwebs... Hmm.

2008-11-06T23:27:00.004+08:00

Okae, gotta start by clearing lots of cobwebs around here. So, how did I come back blogging? Don't know, probably an act that is solely dependent on a particular circumstance of mood, a severely human reason otherwise known as randomness. Heh.

Actually, someone reminded me I still had a blog. Funny shit huh? Can't remember my own blog.

Looking at my previous post made almost a year ago, I can't help but still concur with my opinion back then. Luke calls it a Stevenly thing but I find the logic and wonders behind the word 'perspective' have gotten even more... well, relative.

Hmm, I had a few more intelligence points than I have now. But I certainly have more technical knowledge than before! Heh.

Friends. Good topic.

So, what's up with friends? Rather, the question is, "What IS a friend?" I doubt anyone can give a clear definition that is satisfyingly specific. Science is obviously not the way out:

Friends are a virtualized group of homo sapiens created by an individual who deem the elements of this group to share a range of similar properties, ranging from the rather abstract ones (ie Group of emotionally-attached individuals) to the rather frank ones (ie Group of people with smelly armpits).

Neither is brotherhood:

Friends are men we fight for and die for. Women? Undefined variable.

I think friends are people whom you derive satisfaction from and vice versa. Satisfaction comes in alot of ways. Typical examples being companionship, common topic (otherwise known as gossip or on some cases, random talk), etc. But I think the most important aspect of "friend" is that feelings and actions go both ways; from one to his friend, and from his friend back to him.

Yes, that's it.

Friends need maintenance; they may not be treated as inanimate objects to be disposed off as and when you wish. Once it has come to this stage, either the chain of friendship has already been broken, or it is broken. (No, that's not a typo.)

Someone can call you names that are severely unpleasant but if they mean well, they are friends. Someone can call you the most flattering names on earth but they might backstab you somewhere along the lines of humanity. Yes, lines of humanity.
Or some, may discriminate you with an entire array of sensitive factors, pinpointing and stabbing you everyday with your very weaknesses. Oops, these people aren't in the picture at all, they are clearly people on the to-be-avoided list. Such malicious human virii on earth should face eradication.

So two points:

Once it's decided someone is one's friend, he should commit to that friendship and interaction and maintenance must take place.
Respect, respect, respect. One who commands respect and does not give respect himself/herself is nothing but a hypocrite. Eradication? Hell yeah, give me the Death Note.

Luke: This is the Theory of Steven that you have been looking for, I hope? Wet weather are really not your type of days eh? Heh.

Perspectives

2007-12-23T20:39:00.000+08:00

Perspectives, itself is a word that is of an arguable nature. A lot of things are closely bonded to this word. If I say, the scenery is beautiful. You may disagree. If I say, the scenery comprises of a forest, a mountain, and a waterfall, you can't disagree. So perspectives in this case, is the adjective "beautiful".

Everything in life is made up of perspectives, so much so that you won't feel secure anymore because everything seems to be just a big, major perspective that may topple anytime. Logical and critical point of view, of course.

Take those history books for example. You think they are impartial. You think they are written on a neutral basis with a neutral tone. But if you think about it. If the Nazists had won the second world war, will the clause of the contributions of figures such as Lim Bo Seng exist in our history books as a positive figure and a hero of war? Would that war memorial ever mean the same thing or contain the same message, ever? If the communists failed to govern China those many years ago, would President Mao Ze Dong's image still be hung on the walls of Tianmen square? I don't think so. Everything is so made up of perspectives that nothing is what you call "impartial". For heck, even the fact that we are called humans now, is a matter of perspective. Some scientist invented the word upon interest/any other reason but it's a reason that he came up with, therefore it is a perspective. On a more general and realistic note, some people may portray you as just another human, some may portray you as a genius, while others may portray you as a dog. Surely, you can't be all three at the same time?

So this perspectives thing. It's not an object, in the sense that it's not physical. And it's abstract, yet it's everywhere. Can anyone ever define the term "perspective" accurately and exactly?

Funny Money

2007-12-18T18:43:00.000+08:00

Even the police had to smile at this one. It was a case of passing counterfeit money that brought cops in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, to a local supermarket. There they got a look at the bogus note. Was it a bad likeness of Thomas Jefferson on the $20, or maybe of Ulysses S. Grant on the $50? Nope. It was a fairly sharp US presidential likeness, actually - of George W. Bush on a $200 bill, which, in the first place, the U.S. Mint does not print any $200 bills. On the back of the note, police found an image of the White House, with its lawn cluttered with signs reading "We like broccoli" and "USA deserves a tax cut."

Silly to think you could get away with that as payment for groceries right? Well this is a case of dumb and dumber. The supermarket cashier actually accepted the phony note and gave the customer his groceries along with $50 in change. Apprehended 12 days later, the man with the counterfeits was ordered to pay back the supermarket - in real notes, thank you - then released.

CherryCredits vs Asiasoft

2007-12-17T21:43:00.000+08:00

Some of us are aware of a major movement in the staff of Asiasoft where the previous CEO and most of the first generation of Asiasoft Game Masters and forum moderators have withdrawn from the Asiasoft establishment to venture into a whole new world of their own - http://cherrycredits.com

I can only infer it as internal conflicts within the company that has caused Addison, the previous CEO of Asiasoft, with a team of followers, to withdraw from what has been established as his commercial empire and to venture into unknown grounds.

From reliable sources, the new CEO of Asiasoft is a cold, hard man. Perhaps evident by the most recent event hosted by Asiasoft that involves Primary School graduates to submit their result slips (only if good) to Asiasoft to become their property altogether. Also, the Asiasoft / PlayPark forums has took a drastic deterioration in quality and community satisfaction. Posts that subtly reminds for consistency in moderation are given a red card (2 warn points) on the spot. The continuous practice of Nazism by the new generation moderators has thus caused some uproar and a general anti-mod atmosphere which I must conclude as most unhealthy.

From the looks of things, Asiasoft might not last long. Save your tears, it's probably a good thing.

By the looks of things, CEO of CherryCredits, Addison, has already established his company to a remarkable extent in a sense that it has already established connections with various game programmers to be their providers and also he already has CherryCredits Prepaid card for sale at Seven Eleven Outlets. Also, as pointed out by Auphilius, CherryCredits has already managed to convince PCBunk.com.sg to replace "Asiasoft Forums" by "CherryCredits" under its list of links. This clearly shows his expertise in the field of online gaming and business management.

Perhaps if you guys are free, you may want to take a look at http://cherrycredits.com and its list of games or visit http://saoamod.org to take a sneak preview at perhaps some of the games hosted by CherryCredits, right out of the mouths of the first generation Asiasoft Forum moderators themselves.

Tata~

English as a twelfth language

2007-12-16T21:01:00.000+08:00

English is becoming the international language of business. But you wouldn't know it by these signs, reportedly spotted around the globe:

A Bangkok dry cleaner asks its customers to: "Drop your trousers here for best results."

A Norwegian cocktail lounge isn't asking for much: "Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar."

A laundry in Rome proves it knows la dolce vita: "Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time."

In the window of a Barcelona travel agency that may not last long: "Go away."

Obviously, not everyone works for a salary at the Budapest zoo: "Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guards on duty."

What? Emo-self-enlightening crap dominates the guidebook?

2007-12-16T09:31:00.000+08:00

This morning, boredom in the toilet gave me some rare chance to re-read some of the old essays that were posted in the school annual of my secondary school - River Valley High. During my stay in River Valley High, I truly believed that my English was not say, bad, but more of, really unfavorable. Perhaps if people read my English they suddenly feel all queer and feel like going to the loo or something. Or that was what I believed in when year after year, my essays that are getting as good as 26/30 are not being published in the school annual.

But re-reading the essays this morning, I must say, the teachers' preferences are really lopsided. They seem to have a fetish for students who indulge in self-enlightenment sessions with each and every essay that they write. That is to say, the regulars who get their essays on the annual, seem to all display a common property, and that is that they all seem to indulge in a deep, self-reflecting, and soul-enlightening session each time they write. I find it queer that they have so much things to be enlightened about but I do not condemn them in any way. No, when I say self-enlightenment, I mean, self-enlightenment.

Here, let me show you an example.

"I always had a fear for water but upon seeing the determination and double hard efforts that the disabled are displaying in their difficult attempt to learn swimming, I felt stunned and guilty. Here they are, giving their all, what am I doing here giving lame excuses to avoid even trying? From that day on, I swam happily ever after!"

I have nothing against the author here and yeah I congratulate her for being enlightened but when each and every single essay that is published in the school annual all about personal enlightenments and what crap with those politically-excellent, self-improving shit, I, as a reader, get more than annoyed. I find myself asking "What the hell, like I give a damn." And strangely enough, I find myself developing a taste of detest for the authors which shouldn't happen at all.

"Well then, what essays do you think should be published then?" you perhaps would like to post that challenge to me. Well thank you for asking, if you did, even if it were just in your brain, mind!

Simply. There are more than a bunch of intellectual students in every school who talks and analyzes politics, intellectual debates and current issues. These people, they have truly the intellect and the capacity to discuss about world affairs, ruling systems, politics, policies, governments, people, hobbies, writers, you name it! Their articles clearly reflect that they are extremely well-read and intellectual beings. Where are their articles? Trashed down the drain? Just because their articles contain a political nature, their articles were not posted? For one, I have a right, just as everybody else, to savor the juice of a nicely-written essay with solid points to ponder upon, especially those on a global basis. I feel secondary school students should be given as much a chance to come into contact with politics and the further-up kind of discussions as self-enlightenment, emo-in-a-hole essays.

Oh whatever, I'm being too harsh perhaps. Then again, that's probably me. I just want to see more intellectual pieces of essays that are of a more global nature being featured in the yearbooks. I wonder when the teachers will grow out of their fetishes.

For heck, Asiasoft's gay!

2007-12-16T09:19:00.000+08:00

Asiasoft Online, being a game hosting giant in the South East Asian region has seen much success since it was established and adopted the then popular game, MapleStory, as its main game. However, business has apparently gone down the drain somewhere, somehow, for some reason and this can only be reflected by more and more events that scream for desperate attention. Either that, or they depict a mask of smiles, behind which, are schemes after schemes, so evil are they sometimes that it makes one quite disbelieve, that their gaming host is actually quite so atrocious.

Take this event for example.

Dear Players, AsiaSoft would like to reward all players who has performed exceptionally well in their PSLE (primary school leaving examinations) / UPSR (Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah) in 2007.

Singapore players must have PSLE scores 250 and above while Malaysian players must have at least 4 As for any 4 subjects in UPSR.

Players have to meet the requirements in any one of the following games
MapleStory: Level 75 and above
Audition: Level 11 and above
Pangya: Senior E and above
Getamped: Dragon Claw and above

As I understand, eligible players must have obtained a remarkably good grade in the recent PSLE AND have a really pro-some game account under their Passport. Seemingly, Asiasoft just wants to encourage its players to study hard and not neglect studies. So all's sweet and smooth as butter, right? Wrong.

Upon taking a closer look at this event's terms and conditions, it's apparent what they seek for are not what they ask. In fact it's not even close! Here, let me show you its terms and conditions without the facade of sugar-coated colors.

AsiaSoft Online reserves all rights to use the submitted entries for the purposes of marketing promotions. Contents may be used according to the absolute discretion of the organizers for the said purpose.
All rights on the submitted entries from users are reserved by AsiaSoft Online and AsiaSoft Online is able to use these contents for development and marketing (including sales) purposes.
Any user who participated and/or submitted his/her entries in the event shall have no rights to claim for the submitted content or idea or part thereof.

This is obviously a display of really atrocious commercial techniques in a blatant attempt to cry out "We have players who are dedicated gamers as well as high scorers!" and inevitably sending the wrong message that "Gaming = Good grades". Ask your unconscious brain and think about it before you jump at me and deny. Seriously. Young citizens of our nation are spending more time to game than any of us are willing to admit.

Furthermore, the blatant attempt to sweet-talk young kids to pass their certificates over to a total stranger of a company for "commercial purposes" would also mean to have their certificates probably published in the media, the press or even submitted as legal proof should anyone charge them with blames of a similar nature. The lopsided nature of this event is unarguable.

And the irony of it all? YOU might be banned for "commercial slander" if you attempt to break up their purposes like I just did here in their community forums. Crooked or not, up to you to decide!