Daily Scribble

What’s wrong with the undergrad mentality

4 Comments

Today is the last day of my philosophy class. The professor has office hour after the lecture. I don’t know which essay topic should I choose, so I went to see her. There is a small line up in front of her office. Some students want to check the grades of their exam, some other just like me want to discuss their essay. While waiting in line, I start the conversation with the classmates by asking them how do they think about the course. To my surprise, all three of them think the course is really hard. They did not get a good grade in the exam and not even know how to write a philosophy paper.

I chat with them a little bit more, I found out none of them are philosophy major. They take the course not because they are interested in political philosophy, it is because this course fulfill the requirement for a minor degree or is an elective of a certain a program. To them, this course is just another course, the final essay is one of the many essays due next week. The stop keeping up with reading after the exam, since the material in those chapters won’t get them any grades. They are very surprise when I told them I am taking this course for fun. I guess they wouldn’t believe why someone would eager to take a course that they think is a torture.

I remember I had the same mentality when I was in undergrad. A course is just a mean for an end, an obstacle between myself and graduation. I don’t really care what I learn, all I care about was getting good grade and an honor degree. I wonder does all undergrad think the same way. Students go to university suppose to learn enthusiastically and always aspire for higher knowledge. How come university becomes a system making students to jump throw hoops in order to graduate. It seems that is not the problem of university. I took the same philosophy course as the other undergrad students. I found the course very interesting but the undergrad think it is boring. If nothing is wrong with the university, then something must be wrong with the undergrad students. But what’s wrong with them? I was one of them too!

政治經濟

防止野人慘劇重演﹐請給警察合適的裝備

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這星期報紙有很多人評論野人慘劇﹐投訴香港警察不正當使用武力﹐開槍射殺尼泊爾藉流浪漢。慘劇的起因聽起來很謊謬﹐精神有問題的流浪漢在山頭小解﹐警員接到市民投訴前往調查。流浪漢持木櫈襲警﹐警員在警棍和胡椒噴霧不敵後﹐最終要開槍才能制服流浪漢。很不幸其中一顆子彈打中流浪漢頭部﹐最終送院不治死亡。不少輿論指摘警察濫用暴力﹐甚至上線上綱說警察種族歧視﹐故然射殺流浪漢。其實這次慘劇真正的兇手並不是開槍的警員﹐而是香港警察缺乏精良裝備﹐不足以應付這種場面。

警察雖然有責任保護市民生命﹐但我們不能要求警員冒不必要受傷的危險。警察拿槍指著精神正常人﹐疑犯因為害怕受到槍擊﹐便會乖乖放下武器束手就擒。可是野人神經不正常﹐用槍指著他沒有阻嚇作用﹐他還是依舊揮舞木櫈攻擊警員。根據警員手則在警員遇襲時﹐先要用最低級武力去制服疑犯﹐若不成功則轉用高一級的武力。在這次事件中很明顯警棍不敵木櫈﹐一個普通警員又不是葉問﹐怎可能憑手上的警棍制服揮舞木櫈的瘋漢﹐警員只好用高一級的武力胡椒噴霧。不過胡椒噴霧的有效射程很短﹐要埋身對著疑犯臉部噴才有作用。警員又不是李小龍﹐不可能空手入木櫈﹐對準瘋漢的臉部噴胡椒噴霧。結果最後只能開槍﹐在安全距離擊倒瘋漢﹐可惜子彈無眼兼殺傷力大﹐結果釀成今次慘劇。

若果警察的武器中﹐在胡椒噴霧和手槍之間﹐還有一個中間級別的武力﹐讓警察可以在遠離擊倒疑犯﹐又沒有子彈般大的殺傷力﹐這次慘劇就可以避免了。電擊槍正好提供這種有效程度的武力。電擊槍的操作原理很簡單﹐警察在遠距向疑犯射出兩枝飛標﹐飛標連接著高壓電線連。當飛標擊中觸到疑犯身體後﹐便作為一正一負的電極通電﹐以高壓電流令疑犯短暫失去行動能力。警察便可以趁疑犯癱倒地上時﹐上前為他帶上手扣制服疑犯。被電擊槍擊中沒有生命危險﹐亦不會留下永久性傷害﹐比手槍更適合用來制服瘋漢。電擊槍已美加多個城市警隊的標準裝備﹐香港身為現代化的國際大都會﹐警察的裝備又怎能不與時並進。我認為防止野人慘劇重演﹐香港警隊應盡快引入電擊槍。

Daily Scribble

Indian bonding

3 Comments

The visiting VP is taking the team out for dinner tonight, thank us for the hard work during the project. Business with your boss, your boss’ boss and your boss’ boss’ boss is usually timid and boring, you can’t talking freely as you are with your own friends. The topic of conversation is kinda general and vague in the beginning, we carefully talk things related to the project. We bashed the IT department, circulate anecdotes about our customers, while trying not to complaining too bluntly about the poor management of the project. Somehow the conversation slowly shift to our Indian experience. All but one colleague at the table went to the Bangalore tour of duty. The VP started with his Indian experience and we all have funny stories to share.

There are some common theme in our Indian experience. After we come back to Canada, we really appreciate the clean air and quiet living that we take for granted. We all wonder whether the highway between the guest house and the Bangalore office is still under construction. We have many stories of the India super inefficient labor intensive way of task management. Anything that we use computer or machine to automate, they use extensive man power in India. Construction workers chip gravel from a big rock with sledge hammer instead of power tools. The page number of engineering lab book is hand stamped instead of machine printed. The Indian experience connects everyone and light up the atmosphere as we recall how our trip to India. Usually you would want to end this kind of business dinner as soon as possible, but we sat at the restaurant, chatted and laughed for almost an hour after the dinner.

兩週一聚

兩周一聚：傳統與傳統智慧

16 Comments

今期兩週一聚由加燦出題目﹐原本的題目水蛇春咁長﹕傳統 & 傳統智慧 / Convention & Conventional Wisdom。為免影響博面排板美觀﹐我把貼子的題目改為﹕傳統與傳統智慧 。原本加燦要求一雞兩吃﹐同一題目中英文各交一篇﹐可惜我恕難從命﹐原因請看篇未注腳。

傳統與傳統智慧
每間學校也有它的獨特傳統﹐我不是指尊師重道或德智體群那些官方傳統﹐而是在學生間世代相傳的不成文規定。我的中學便有一個十分特別的傳統習俗﹐做生日。做生日並不是為同學慶祝生日﹐而是一班同學忽然間圍著其中一位同學﹐很高興地唱生日快樂﹐然後把“壽星仔”按著背脊朝天﹐大伙兒以拳頭相向﹐將不幸被圍的同學打得彭彭作響。做生日的受害者並不只是被圍在中央的同學﹐在外圍的同學手不夠長﹐打不到中央的同學﹐隨便看到那個背脊便打落去。生日會通常不會持續太久﹐每位同學過完手癮後﹐便會一哄而散。

不一定要生日的人才便被做生日﹐當然生日的人一定逃不過被做生日的命運。每一人也有可能是壽星仔﹐選擇基本上帶有隨機性﹐當有有些不幸的同學被選中的機會高些。生日會可以發生在任何時間任何地點﹐轉堂時小息時放午飯時甚至上堂時。最常見的一種生日會在排隊時發生﹐一班同學自發地候守在樓梯口﹐第一位從樓梯下來的同學便自動成為壽星仔﹐而後來從樓梯下來的同學看見有生日會﹐當然會加也快腳步一起加入慶祝。有同學在課室內搞事﹐騷擾一位受歡迎的老師講課﹐我們即場做他生日﹐安撫他後讓老師安心授課。最經典放會考前最後一天﹐我們為一位深不得人心的舊生老師做生日。他幾經爭扎逃出我們班的圍困後﹐他在隔鄰班上最後一節課時﹐害怕再次被做生日﹐還未落堂便奪門而逃。

做生日也有其傳統智慧。生日的正日當然不可以讓同學知道。行落樓梯時也要小心﹐要眼觀八路耳聽四方﹐若果察覺到樓梯底氣氛異樣﹐便應該折反上樓﹐讓其他同學身先士卒。被圍的時每個人的反應不同﹐有些同學會嘗試突圍﹐不過通常也不會成功。有些同學會採取守勢保護自己﹐其實做生日也不是認真地打﹐大伙兒又不是收賣人命。我被圍時則以攻為守﹐隨手找一個同學拉他入圍﹐讓他與我一起分享被慶祝生日。其他同學有兩個背脊做目標﹐落在自己背脊便的拳頭便減少一半。

生日會歷史悠久深入民心 ﹐現在我們在舊同學結婚時﹐仍然會保留這項優良傳統。在飲宴留到最後等大部份親友離去後﹐我們便會舉行這個簡單而隆重的做生日儀式。雖然人老了大家只是循例做樣子扮打﹐但是拍照出來的效果十分有趣。

Footnote: Convention and Conventional Wisdom
Something is wrong with Kempton’s choice of the English title. The translation of 傳統 should be tradition. Convention usually means a big meeting which is not really related to conventional wisdom. I could not figure out the relationship between convention and conventional wisdom, so I could not write anything else except this analysis of the English title.

其他文章﹕
加燦 (出題者)、周游、hevangel、Sherry、michelle、軍師奶、Ian、C9讀與食、南杏、lomichee、zero、芸、mad dog、chili mom、mingmanfred、hongkieatlarge、athrunz、Haricot 微豆、Silver、The Man who Loves Everton、hihisimon、longqt、肥肥媽媽

下期題目﹕ 怕

兩週一聚

兩周一聚(十二)題目：怕

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偶然參加了兩周一聚這個網上聚會﹐認識到天涯海角的一班博友。每兩個星期大家寫同一個題目﹐從多角度去看同一件事﹐大家交流想法激刺思考。今期我自告奮勇出題目。題目一個字﹕ 怕

你怕什麼﹖有人怕狗﹐有人怕黑﹐有人怕鬼。有人畏高﹐有人畏妻﹐有人畏首畏尾。今期的題目請大家暢談心中恐懼﹐越怕就越要講出來。四月十五日你驚我仲驚﹐大家一齊小心小心怕怕囉﹗現在我最怕的是什麼﹖我最怕沒有人參加今期的兩週一聚﹐所以請大家湧躍參加。

參加辨法很簡單﹐在這裏留言報名﹐四月十五日交功課。先把文章放在自己的博上﹐再把連結轉貼過來。另外誠徵下一期兩週一聚的出題者﹐先到先得手快有手慢冇﹐快點留言回覆吧。

報名處﹕
hevangel
加燦
The Man Who Loves Everton
Michelle
Readandeat
Athrunz
Tzigane
周游
Simon Lai
Lomichee
Gwen
Wiwinana
Nankin
Zero
芸
mad dog
Silver
Wanni
Haricot
Cillli mon
Mingmanfred
Bungy-Zoe
Venus
longqt

下期出題者﹕ Tzigane