Friday 28 March 2008

Yesterday's Bio Practical

It was the third bio practical I had. We tested several food substances to find out if it contained starch, reducing sugar, protein and lipids. For the starch, you should know, just add iodine. For the reducing sugar, we added Benedict's solution and for lipids, we had to add 5ml of sodium hydroxide and 5 drops of ClHO4. Warning!!! The 10% sodium hydroxide will dissolve you!!! For proteins, we added distilled water and something else.

I remembered we had to insert the test-tube into a 80 degree celcius water bath. There was once my friend's hand accidentally touched the sodium hydroxide. He said it was scorching hot. That was just 10%, imagine pure 100% sodium hydroxide. We sometimes inadvertently add too much chemicals and cause a huge explosion. Just kidding, nothing actually happened.

Practicals are always fun and enjoyable. I am looking forward to the next practical.

Monday 24 March 2008

Interesting Facts that You May Not Know

An Ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.

"Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".? (Are you doubting this?)

Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.

The sentence: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.
(Now, you KNOW you're going to try this out for accuracy, right?)

There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
(You're not doubting this, are you?)

There are two words in the English language that have all five vowels in order: "abstemious" and "facetious."
(Yes, admit it, you are going to say, a e i o u)

TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.
(All typists are going to test this out)

A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.

A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.

A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.

A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.

A snail can sleep for three years.

Almonds are a member of the peach.

Babies are born without kneecaps. They don't appear until the child reaches 2 to 6 years of age.

Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors.

Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite!

Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.

The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket. (Good thing he did that.)

The winter of 1932 was so cold that Niagara Falls froze completely solid.

There are more chickens than people in the world.

Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

Tuesday 18 March 2008

Illusion - Dancing Girl

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If you see this lady turning in clockwise direction, you are using your right brain.

If you see it the anti-clockwise direction, you are using left brain.

THIS IS NOT A JOKE. BOTH DIRECTIONS CAN BE SEEN.

Friday 14 March 2008

Chess Competition

I participated in the 60th Nationals Individual Chess Championship held at Teck Ghee C C two days ago. I won on the first round, lost in the second, won in the third, lost in the forth and fifth, and won the rest. There were a total of 8 games. I won 5 of them . Too bad I still could not get any prize. One of my friends (my classmate, Jia Hong) took part in the girls category. She also got 5 points, but I think she was one of the top 20. This is so unfair, they should mix the girls and boys category. The girls category has less competitors (42, compared to the boys with 179), and is easier to win.
Can you spot where I am? (hint: I am near the standing person whose back is facing you)

Showing off my Megaminx.

Wednesday 5 March 2008

Subjects in NUS High

From like to hate

1. Advanced Maths Olympiad Training IV (MA4204V)
2. Combinatorial Game Theory (MA3210V)
3. Physics (PC1110 Foundation Physics)
4. Mathematics (MA2108 Geometry)
5. Chemistry (CM1101 Properties of Matter)
6. Biology (BL1101 Basics of Cell Biology, BL1103 Nutrition and the Human Alimentary Canal)
7. Music (MU1101 Basic Musicianship)
8. Axis (Research), Affective and Character Education (AL1102)
9. English (EL1101)
10. Chinese (CL1101)
11. PE (PE1102)

and the finale...
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12. GEOGRAPHY (GE1102 People, Place and Nation) !!!!!!!!!!

I still don't understand why maam(P6 form teacher) likes geography so much. If I have taken Literature, it would be no. 13!!!(unlucky no.) If there is rubikology, it would be no. 0!!!(better than 1)