By BESDON payday loan
If you think you understand what is means by fasting for Muslim in the month of Ramadhan, think again.
See what fellow Malaysian (Ezad Zaid and friends) think about the fasting month and how it is played by some as an attempt to get out of it.. Enjoy!
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/360/my-one-malaysia/3696114
This video discuss and show a various angles comparing current and the past education systems. I shown this in the beginning of the semester in my class, to set up a ground for a design student to have a broad ideas of the education system that they’re in and to provide basic understanding of the important of an education and to start a discussion (or breaking the ice term).
I hope it is as useful to you as much as it has been and continue being to me.
‘Flee to God’s Qur’an, take refuge in it
there with the spirits of the prophets merge.
The Book conveys the prophets’ circumstances
those fish of the pure sea of Majesty.’
Rumi qouted in Lewis, 2000, p. 408
Jalal ad-Dīn Muhammad Rumi or known as Mevlana Celaleddin-i Rumi
“I died as a mineral and became a plant,
I died as plant and rose to animal,
I died as animal and I was Man.
Why should I fear? When was I less by dying?
Yet once more I shall die as Man, to soar
With angels bless’d; but even from angelhood
I must pass on: all except God doth perish.
When I have sacrificed my angel-soul,
I shall become what no mind e’er conceived.
Oh, let me not exist! for Non-existence
Proclaims in organ tones,
To Him we shall return.”
از جمادی مُردم و نامی شدم — وز نما مُردم بهحیوان سرزدم
مُردم از حیوانی و آدم شدم — پس چه ترسم؟ کی ز مردن کم شدم؟
حمله دیگر بمیرم از بشر — تا برآرم از ملائک بال و پر
وز ملک هم بایدم جستن ز جو — کل شیء هالک الا وجهه
بار دیگر از ملک پران شوم — آنچه اندر وهم ناید آن شوم
پس عدم گردم عدم چو ارغنون — گویدم کانا الیه راجعون
Rumi quoted in ‘The triumphal sun’. by Annemarie Schimmel, p. 328
I would like to share this stories, or experience (some are mine and some are from friends who have gone through similar path) and thoughts with you and with future PhD’s.
When you started doing your research, you will get used to hear advice from your supervisors, PhD’s candidates, postgraduate discussion forum, and etc. that you need to discuss and talk about your research topic with others. The question you need to answer when people asked you after knowing that you have dedicated full time to do research, is ‘So, what is your research about?’ Then you go… ‘Hmmm… How do I start?’ Now indeed, this kind of conversation, the more the better according to many researcher, will be able to help you and your research. What will it help? It will help you 1) understand your own research, 2) to learn to articulate your research ground/areas, and 3) to gained new ideas and approached from others.
Well, that is the advice I received when I started my PhD and indeed, I cannot agree more that it does achieved the three goals, plus it help the new researcher (you) to find your own voice, and gained confident in discussion about their research. What they did not tell you, is that you need to be able to construct your conversation, and managed the discussion. You need to be aware that this research is not a short time research, instead it is a long years process, some takes 2 at least for Master’s, 3 and half for PhD’s and the years can go on till 20 years. How do you construct your conversation and managed them till that long? How do you keep your research stories ‘fresh’ and exciting so when you talk to the same people again after 3 years, it will not bore them?
My story:
When I started my PhD, I talk and discuss about the topic and areas that interest me with my husband, and we can talk and talk about this for hours, and almost every weeks. That was the first year I started my research. It was full of excitement, discoveries, exploration and most of all it has gained lots of my confident in talking about it to other people besides my husband. And for him, is the same, he is so interested to know more, we argue, debates, disagree, research and get to some sort of resolution. The research grows with us…
That means, we grow to be part of the whole research process… that happen most of the time and we do brings our family along with it. Anything and almost everything we see, experience and do, somehow we managed to associate or to trigger link to our research topic. For some, it might not go that far or they are smart enough to find line to put stop at it. They did not allow research take over their life and decided to take over the research life. So they discontinue their research. Me, I continue till the end. But there are prices to be paid. Research has taken over me.
It was not that bad, not how it sound like here in this story of mine. Life was good, I feel good, confidence sometimes can be over exited and over confidence, which is normal in this process. Oh yes, another ‘normal’ process would be experiencing a ‘roller-coaster’ life and mood. This process is as much as annoying and upsetting, it can also cause lots of stress. Life is like as a new researcher is like roller coaster. Lost is the words that many would be saying such as ‘Oh! I am lost with this research’. But what you don’t know you also have somehow lost with your own self. You have misplaced yourself. Deep in your thoughts, you deeply belief that this is not hard, come on! You can do this, you have been through harder times than this study, this should not be taking so much impact on your life. Yes, that is what you keep on telling yourself about again and again… that you are not misplace yourself but you have decided to take this challenge. Just for a thought, imagine that this process in your mind right now. Imagine that this process continue for a long long long long years… to be continue.
Unknown graffiti artist. Image photographed by Nurul Rahman, 2011.
Unknown graffiti artist. Image photographed by Nurul Rahman, 2011.
Kita Pengguna, pembeli dan penjual (we are the user, consumer and seller)
An interesting speech by Dr.M reminding Malaysian about the their roles and status as citizen at the World Consumer Day & launching for the Harmonious Family competition on the 4 June 1996. Most of Dr. M speech can be obtained in the online achieve (most of it is in Malay language). The speech is related to the government efforts to create an awareness among people in understanding the roles they play as consumer in their everyday life. Dr. M reminded the people that their everyday life can affect the country’s economical status, thus, they need to understand how they conduct and managed their everyday life. In his speech he discussed about roles as individual, a seller, and a buyer. He also includes in his discussion about the services that is provided by the government staff, that every services offered have to be acknowledge that it is part of the circle between user, consumer and seller.
Sydney CBD Crossroad-Image NurulRahman2010
For example a person who is a government clerk is also a user (which means he or she still have use the other services provided in everyday life, she or he still will be using the hospital facilities, paying electric and other household bills, etc). The same person is also a consumer, he or she will have to buy products for everyday life, going to the market, buy the household products, and other necessary needs for day to day life. In many ways, the person, is also selling or promoting a service, where he or she as a government staff is providing some sort of services to the others. If the process of productivity work accordingly the level of the inflation will be stable, and everyday life circle will be secured.
There are other point highlighted in his original speech but these are among the significant one.
6. Hakikat asas ini perlu kita ingati sepanjang
masa. Terlalu ramai daripada kita hanya memikir
diri kita sebagai pengguna dengan tidak sedikit pun
sedar bahawa kita semua adalah pembekal.
7. Mungkin kita percaya kita tidak mengeluarkan
apa-apa untuk dijual kepada sesiapa. Mungkin secara
langsung tidak. Tetapi secara tidak langsung,
dengan kesan yang tidak sedikit, kita `menjual'
khidmat atau barangan sekurang-kurangnya kepada
majikan yang membayar upah kepada kita.
8. Kerani dalam pejabat Kerajaan menjual
khidmatnya kepada Kerajaan dan khidmat Kerajaan
kepada orang ramai. Jika ia tidak cergas dan cekap
dalam memproses atau menaip surat, kelewatan itu
mempunyai kesan kepada bekalan khidmat kepada
pengguna. Budak pejabat yang melambatkan
penghantaran surat pun boleh merugikan pelanggan
khidmat Kerajaan. Jika kerana ini Kerajaan menjadi
tidak efisien maka kos segala-galanya akan
meningkat.
9. Dalam syarikat pembekal khidmat atau barangan,
tiap seorang kakitangan menyumbang kepada kejayaan
membekal apa sahaja kepada pengguna. Daripada
kerani dan pemandu kereta hingga ke eksekutif
tertinggi, semuanya bertanggungjawab dalam membekal
keluaran syarikat. Kelewatan atau mutu yang rendah
barangan yang dihasilkan bermakna kos meningkat dan
pengguna tidak mendapat haknya. Kemajuan ekonomi
negara juga akan terjejas.
10. Jika kita dapat ingat sepanjang masa bahawa
kita semua adalah pembekal dan bertanggungjawab
kepada diri kita sendiri sebagai pengguna, maka hak
kita sebagai pengguna akan terpelihara sepanjang
masa. Jika hari ini pengguna berasa hak mereka tidak
diberi pertimbangan yang sewajarnya, sebabnya ialah
kerana kita hanya melihat diri kita sebagai pengguna
dan lupa akan tanggungjawab kita sebagai pembekal.
11. Pengguna dan gerakan pengguna memanglah baik
untuk memelihara kualiti khidmat dan barangan yang
dipasarkan. Tanpa gerakan pengguna khidmat dan
barangan akan jatuh mutunya dan harga akan
meningkat. Dengan itu bermacam-macam masalah akan
dihadapi oleh masyarakat dan negara.
12. Barangan yang bermutu rendah atau/dan harganya
yang tinggi tidak akan berdayasaing dalam pasaran,
baik di dalam mahupun di luar negeri. Untuk pasaran
dalam negeri Kerajaan akan diminta melindungi
barangan tempatan. Perlindungan oleh Kerajaan
sebenarnya bermakna memaksa pengguna tempatan
membayar harga yang lebih atau menerima kualiti yang
rendah. Dengan perkataan lain bukan Kerajaan yang
melindung pembekal tetapi pengguna yang melindung
pembekal dan memikul beban. Ini sudah tentu tidak
adil kepada pengguna.
13. Sebaliknya barangan yang kos pengeluarannya
mahal atau kualitinya rendah tidak dapat dieksport.
Dengan itu jumlah keluaran tidak tinggi dan tidak
dapat menolong mengurangkan kos pengeluaran. Sekali
lagi pengguna tempatan terpaksa menanggung beban.
Yes, it is difficult and most of the time, you think that it will waste your precious research time. Well, the answer is you don’t have to spend time trying to understand what is the core of the thesis content in your first attempt. It will definitely put you off. But somehow you have to read it because it might have some interesting discussion that you might be able to use or refer to in your research. For sure you don’t want to missed out some important literature. But at the same time you don’t want to end up feeling ‘what a waste of time’.
Skim Reading is the answer so far. It help you to gather the core ideas in the thesis so that you are able to understand, not to missed out, and then to make decision whether you should spend a bit more time reading the thesis thoroughly. On the other hand you will be able to say to our supervisor that ‘Yes, I have read the thesis. It is interesting research but it is not relevant to what I am researching at the moment’. There are plenty of different websites that teaches skim reading. But I have tried this one in particular and found that the methods here and the exercise they offers is very easy to learn on how to skim read.
Reading thick thesis is not that difficult after all. Good luck!
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/570/pulp/hemp1.htm
I would like to thank Prof Mark D. Hill for sharing the oral presentation tips (1992 revised January 1997).
Some of you might think that this oral presentation tips might not be relevant to your research areas as the oral presentation here is created for computer science program. But, trust me when it comes to presentation slides, it all goes down to the content, and that is what you need to add in. Others, which is the structure, is almost the similar. Just have a read through.
1. Oral Communication is different from written communication
Listeners have one chance to hear your talk and can’t “re-read” when they get confused. In many situations, they have or will hear several talks on the same day. Being clear is particularly important if the audience can’t ask questions during the talk. There are two well-know ways to communicate your points effectively. The first is to K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid). Focus on getting one to three key points across. Think about how much you remember from a talk last week. Second, repeat key insights: tell them what you’re going to tell them (Forecast), tell them, and tell them what you told them (Summary).
2. Think about your audience
Most audiences should be addressed in layers: some are experts in your sub-area, some are experts in the general area, and others know little or nothing. Who is most important to you? Can you still leave others with something? For example, pitch the body to experts, but make the forecast and summary accessible to all.
3. Think about your rhetorical goals
For conference talks, for example, I recommend two rhetorical goals: leave your audience with a clear picture of the gist of your contribution, and make them want to read your paper. Your presentation should not replace your paper, but rather whet the audience appetite for it. Thus, it is commonly useful to allude to information in the paper that can’t be covered adequately in the presentation. Below I consider goals for academic interview talks and class presentations.
4. Practice in public
It is hard distilling work down to 20 or 30 minutes.
5. Prepare
See David A. Patterson’s How to Give a Bad Talk
This new robot, iRobot Scooba 230 somehow reminded us of the modern popular living style the world is adopting. The purpose of this new design is to assist busy life that most family is facing at the moment, juggling between work and some quality times with family. More design similar with this robot will soon occupied our household, and yes at the moment this all changes is making you feeling uneasy but, it won’t take long when it become something that we need. Mobile phone and internet, was regarded as the unnecessary product a decade ago, now, can we live without it?