How to speak Chinese.

Everyone can speak Chinese. All you need to know is that the only language the Chinese understand is money. So, key to fluency in Chinese, lies in the wallet.

Now, there is a reason I say this. Yesterday, China executed a mentally ill man for a crime he did not knowingly commit. I very much doubt that any other country in the world, at China's level of development, would have done so. Thus, China is an aberration by world standards.

Many developed nations spoke out against what China wished to do...they pointed to the man's SELF-EVIDENT mental illness as a reason for commuting his sentence - yet China refused to listen. The reason they did not listen seems clear. The protesting nations spoke in terms of "human rights" - well, China does not care about human rights. The protesting nations spoke in terms of the value of human life - well, China does not value human life. The protesting nations spoke about the rule of law - well, China does not care about the rule of law. So, China killed him anyway. The reason China did not listen is because the protesting nations and organizations were speaking the wrong language. There is only ONE language the Chinese really understand: money. Thus, the way to make the Chinese listen is very simple - all the British had to do, to save Akmal Shaikh, was to say this: "We will suspend all trade with China until you guarantee Akmal Shaikh's safety. No British company or individual will be allowed to buy any Chinese goods until he is set free and returned to us for suitable treatment."

China would have listened to such language. You see, Britain is China's third largest trading partner, globally. Trade with Britain is worth tens of billions of US dollars annually to China. They would do quite a lot to avoid losing such income. In their eyes, I am fairly sure that setting one man free would be a minor matter compared to losing tens of billions of dollars of income.

So, in future, if the world needs to make China listen, they should just propose suspending trade if they do not. This, apart from war, is probably the only way to make China listen to the wishes of the international community.

This suggestion comes too late for Akmal - but it could be used in any situation in which China is about to commit what is, by international standards, an atrocity, or grave injustice.

There is another aspect of this that has been overlooked. China refused to accept Akmal's mental illness as a reason for clemency (although it has been reported that Akmal's defence was so incoherent, in the court, that the judges openly laughed at him - a very disturbing reaction, in itself. How often have you heard of a judge laughing at a defendant, anywhere in the world?). It is clear, that if China ignored Akmal's mental state that they are likely to ignore the mental state, also, of any Chinese national who comes before them. Thus, their judiciary is, most probably, committing many such acts of terrible and cruel injustice, annually, to THEIR OWN PEOPLE. So, it would be fitting if the international community of nations and organizations lobbied China for a change on their rules concerning the prosecution of the mentally ill. It may even be necessary to apply the kind of pressure mentioned above to get them to listen - because, after all, like most authoritarian regimes, China basically ignores world opinion.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals. If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

A Singaporean Chinese person on Malaysia.

Yesterday, I had an encounter that is fairly typical of the talk one hears about Malaysia, from Singaporeans. I was struck, however, by the certainty of her views, which made me think them fit for remark, here.

I was in KL airport, waiting for a delayed Jetstar Asia flight to Singapore. It had been supposedly delayed by an hour and a half, but in fact, the delay turned out to be even longer (almost two hours).

Sitting next to us, in the boarding lounge, at KLIA airport, was a Singaporean Chinese woman. Her manner, accent, appearance and expressed views all identified her, immediately, in this manner. She was in a talkative mood, one largely provoked by her irritation at being delayed.

"I will never take a budget airline, again...", she began, her lips curling dismissively.

Before we could comment, she continued: "Jetstar is my first time...but never again will I fly budget."

"We have found AirAsia to be quite good, so far.", I interjected.

She looked at me blankly, as if she did not know what to say to something that countered her world view.

"You know, Jetstar is Malaysian.", she said, her stress on the final word, as if she spoke of something truly disgusting. Her tongue could barely bring itself to say the word, and her face was an image of revulsion. I was, actually, rather offended by her tone, by her expression and by her clearly evident beliefs. I was offended, on behalf of Malaysians, as anyone of humanity, would be on behalf of any people, so disregarded.

Now, I didn't know if Jetstar was Malaysian or not, so I couldn't comment and so remained silent. She, however, did not.

"I have travelled on Malaysian Airlines several times...and they were ALWAYS late." She shook her head, her lips curling downwards, a vision of one unimpressed.

I thought it odd, that she should think so, since I, too, had travelled on Malaysia Airlines, several times and never had any problems at all. I said, nothing, however, because, in fact, I was curious as to how far she would go, in her rant.

She leant forward then, as if to confide something of the utmost significance: "The Malaysians have NO system." She sat back, then, as if I should be shocked at the idea that a nation might not be as systematic (read "robotic") as Singapore is.

Now, my wife is Malay - and so, of course, could easily be Malaysian. This Singaporean Chinese woman's friend looked across at my wife, sitting silently beside me - and nudged her friend, with a glance to my wife. The thought was clear: "She might be Malaysian....shut up!"

The nudge brought the rant to an end, but I was glad to have heard it. It was most instructive as to what goes through the mind of quite a few Singaporeans. The reflexive thought is that all that is Malaysian is "bad" and all that is Singaporean is "good". There is also a tendency to blame Malaysia for things it is not responsible for. You see, there is one big problem with the core of this woman's rant against Malaysia: Jetstar Asia is not Malaysian, at all - it is Vietnamese. The Malaysians are not responsible at all, for this woman's flight delay. However, I will say one thing: she was right in thinking that Jetstar Asia are rubbish...it is undoubtedly the worst airline I have personally travelled on. The problem is, she is blaming the wrong nation.

Jetstar Asia is based in Ho Chi Minh city and is 42.5% owned by Quantas, the Australian Airline. However, that is where the resemblance to Quantas ends: Jetstar is a truly awful airline...but more of that in another post. What interested me, more, about this encounter, was that this Singaporean Chinese woman should have been so certain of her anti-Malaysian views. She truly believed that Malaysia was a terrible place and that Singapore was inherently superior. I found this odd, since my experience of both places does not place Singapore above Malaysia in the overall picture. Yes, Singapore is more glossy, but I don't think that, as a whole, it offers anywhere near as much as Malaysia does in terms of variety, potential ways of life or experiences. It is, in fact, a much bigger, more diverse nation than Singapore. It interests me, therefore, that so many Singaporeans have this reflexive superiority concerning their neighbour...it would, in fact, be funny, were it not, in fact, racist, at its core.

Two pieces of advice: don't fly Jetstar...and don't believe Singaporeans who badmouth Malaysia, without checking the place out, yourself, first. Start with Kuala Lumpur.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals. If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

The flight of the Malays.

Malays are leaving Singapore. Now, this is no news, but what may be news, is their relative abundance in those who emigrate.

A few days ago, I posted on the remarkable inflow of Chinese PRCs into Singapore. I wondered, in that post, "The secret Singaporean Teleportation Device", whether this deepening of the Chinese nature of Singapore, was prompting more Malays to leave, as they found themselves further marginalized. I had no figures to back up my intuition - well, now, I have.

Today, on reading the New Paper, I came across a little snippet of information in an article on Malay emigration to Australia. There was a quote from a Singaporean Chinese "immigration consultant"...or should it be "emigration consultant? This Mr. Sim remarked that fully 30 % of his clients were Singaporean Malays. That is a surprisingly high number for two reasons. Firstly, the proportion of Malays in Singapore is only 13.6%, so this abundance in his clientele was 2.2 times greater than expected by chance. Secondly he is a CHINESE consultant, and therefore presumably less well-connected to the Malay community than a Malay agent would be. Thus, his clientele may UNDERESTIMATE the proportion of Malays who are leaving Singapore, for other countries.

Recently the Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, spoke of the "privileged position" of the Malays in Singapore and of the importance of maintaining that privilege. I thought this an eminently funny speech, because anyone who knows anything of the real situation, in Singapore, for Malays, knows that they are not privileged, in any real sense - they are, in fact, disadvantaged and discriminated against. So many jobs, for instance, in Singapore require that the applicant be of Chinese race. They call it "Chinese speaking"...but if a Malay fluent in Mandarin applies for the job (or an Indian for that matter), I have heard that they get turned down. I have even heard of minorities fluent in Chinese being told that they are not being hired because a Chinese person is wanted - despite their Mandarin fluency.

The real test, of course, as to whether a minority feels at home, in their nation, is whether or not they leave and the relative proportion of those who depart, who are from the minority in question. By this measure, and by the evidence of Mr. Sim's clientele (which we have no reason to believe is unusual or atypical of other agents' clientele in any way), the Malays certainly don't feel privileged. They clearly feel that they will have a better life elsewhere - which is why so many of them are leaving.

What do they find overseas? Well, one thing which is refreshing, for many Malays, is that they don't experience the active discrimination in the workplace that is present in Singapore. They don't see job adverts for "Must speak Mandarin"...they are only required to speak English (in the places they tend to go to, like Australia), which, of course, they do. I have heard, on the grapevine, many success stories of Malays who couldn't really "make it" in Singapore, who found it very much easier to do so, in other countries. Tellingly, the person, in question, is no different and no more able - all that has changed is the environment and the set of social forces they are up against.

Of course, Singapore won't be bothered about this loss of Malays. They will just be replaced by PRCs from China. However, we should be concerned, because one day, there may not be any Malays left in Singapore. That will be a loss of diversity and plurality that will change the character of Singapore - and not for the better. In no way, in my view, is uniformity (which shall prevail) superior to diversity. Yet, the future of Singapore shall be rather more uniform than it is today. We can see it with our own eyes, on a daily basis, on the streets of Singapore. The national demographic statistics, too, show a steady reduction in the proportion of Malays, every decade, since the foundation of Singapore. Now, this is strange, since Malays, as it is well known, like to have children rather more than Chinese Singaporeans do. That they have more children and yet there are fewer of them, relatively, owes itself to two forces: higher relative emigration of Malays, and higher relative immigration of Chinese PRCs (plus Chinese from Malaysia, Indonesia and anywhere else they can be found).

What I find curious is that Singaporean politicians mumble about the need to maintain the Chinese population (MM Lee himself, is famous for this view). Yet, one doesn't hear any of them drawing attention to the decline of the Malays. I suppose it is, actually, one and the same thing. The decline of the Malays, implies a relative increase in the Chinese - which is what is quite clearly sought, anyway.

Were a future Singapore to lack Malays entirely, I think the Government, here, might suddenly realize their value. You see, the Singaporean Malays allow better integration of Singapore into the rest of South-East Asia. After all, Singapore's Malays speak the language of Malaysia and Indonesia. They also share cultural, religious and ideological understandings. It is one of Singapore's strengths that some of its people share the language and culture of its nearest neighbours. This helps Singapore with trade and survival, both. Were Singapore to become a solely Chinese state, two things would happen: firstly, its ability to communicate with and integrate, effectively, with its neighbouring states would be impaired. Secondly, there would be much greater likelihood of conflict with those very same neighbouring states. Whilst Singapore remains a partially Malay nation, its Malay neighbours will continue to feel they have something in common with it. Once, however, it becomes entirely Chinese (or almost so), the possibility of conflict and resentment will be much heightened. A Singapore without a Malay minority, is a Singapore that invites its own extinction. There will, of course, be a certain irony in that. A state which makes the Malays feel so unwelcome that they decide to leave, until none remain, thereby extinguishing them, will, actually have extinguished itself.

It is best not to listen to what political figures say of a country, it is preferable to watch what the people do. It is not politicians that tell the truth, by their words, but people who tell the truth, by their actions. Singapore's leaders talk of equality for all races, yet, if Singapore's races felt truly equal in opportunity and life chances, the numbers who emigrated would be in direct proportion to their relative racial abundance in the nation. We can see from the New Paper article and Mr. Sim's experience of his clientele that this is not so. Vastly more Malays than expected, are emigrating. This can only be because Malays feel that their lives would be better elsewhere. If they thought that their lives, in Singapore, would be as equally good, as their fellow non-Malays, they would not emigrate in disproportionate numbers.

Countries which make minorities feel welcome are healthy countries, socially and psychologically. They also tend to be successful ones (just think of the demographics of America). Would not Singapore be better off matching the welcome of an America, than the monoculture of China or Japan?

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals. If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

The worst kind of student.

Those who have never taught, have never had the chance to learn many valuable lessons about human nature. Some of those lessons, however, can be rather depressing.

I recall once teaching a group of Chinese students from the PRC. They were not the stereotypical Chinese students. They were neither particularly bright - in fact they were a bit dull - nor were they particularly industrious - in fact they were rather lazy.

Typically, whenever set a task that involved speaking, this group of students (four boys) would sit and do nothing. They never even attempted to do the tasks. However, they did mumble to each other in Chinese, throughout. Whenever they were asked to do written tasks, they made relatively little effort and their output was among the poorest in the class. Now, none of this might have mattered much were it not for what they did outside the class.

Every week, this group of students would complain, in Chinese, to the Chinese management of this school that they "weren't learning anything". It transpires that they had been told, in China, before coming here, that they would learn English in "three months". They seemed also to believe that this learning process would occur magically, without any effort on their part at all.

Now, everytime this particular group of students complained, I would get hauled up by management for it. The manager would then tell me things which they had said such as: "He never marks our work"...which were wholly untrue. I made a point of correcting everything they ever wrote. The sessions would turn into a "he said, she said" ritual, in which I was accused of things which never happened - yet it was just my word against the word of these very lazy students.

It was dispiriting teaching them. You see, everyday I would have to stand up in front of them and teach them - while watching them play brain dead, knowing, that they were stabbing me in the back, on a weekly basis.

The funny thing is, that in the very same class, there were students who wrote feedback that I was the "best teacher they had had". The difference was, of course, that the ones who liked my teaching made an effort to do the work - and the ones who didn't, blamed the teacher for their lack of progress, rather than taking a good look at their lack of effort.

Experiences like this one, rather put people off teaching. You see, the teacher is attacked for the students' own failings. The students, in this case, were just not willing to make the effort to learn - but blamed their failure to do so, on the teacher. The management of the school, in question, seemed to side with the students because "they pay the bills" and "we can't afford to lose them". Thus, the teacher is in the strange position of being appreciated by some students as the "best teacher" and attacked by other students on a weekly basis, and by the management of the school, as well.

In the end, such experiences lead one to conclude that teaching is not worth the effort of the teacher - so one is lead to look at other avenues.

This kind of situation could be prevented if there were higher standards of recruitment. If a student is not really motivated to study and is just there because their parents want them to be there, perhaps they shouldn't be there at all. Let them stay in China, for they won't do any good coming here to laze around and complain about everything including the food (they love to complain about that, too). My advice to them: stay home and watch TV. Don't waste the time of your teachers, or the money of your parents. It is better than becoming a toxic presence in a classroom.

Of course, they will never read my advice because they can't read well. So, I suppose I shall just have to wish for a world in which such students only exist in nightmares.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals.If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

The lie of Chinese ethnic unity.

During the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympic games, 56 children were presented to us as members of the 56 ethnicities of China. I thought this rather a good touch. It showed, perhaps, that China was thinking of all of its contributing ethnicities at this time. However, something rankled about it, as a gesture. It rankled because I know, for a fact, that China makes it almost a national sport, to persecute its minorities. It was, therefore, a strange thing to do, to promote itself as being inclusive of all of its 56 ethnicities, when there were many incidents, of international renown, that showed that this was not so, in practice.

Now, we have learnt that the "56 ethnicities" were, in fact, all Han Chinese children. Ethnic children were not allowed to take part. This is most ironic, for in debarring the children of truly ethnic minority origin, China was showing its true face with regards to its ethnic minorities: racism and oppression, sometimes even to genocidal practices (look at the history of Tibet, for instance). Not allowing ethnic minorities to participate is symptomatic of its true attitude towards its own ethnic minorities: they are to be repressed, marginalized and excluded, at the least, perhaps even killed, in some cases.

China is lying to the world again. I rather hope that this will teach the world one basic assumption about China: that it lies at all opportunities - for it has done so, in this Olympics and, no doubt, does so in all its dealings with the world. A liar doesn't just lie on special occasions, a liar lies all the time. Thus, China, in lying so much at the Olympics is showing us that they always lie, that, if they were a person, they would be classified as a pathological liar. When given every opportunity to be truthful, they prefer to lie. They could have told the world: "These are 56 Han Chinese children dressed in the costumes of the 56 ethnicities of China." Instead of which they told the world's media, and thus the world, that they were, actually, children of 56 different ethnicities. So, rather than a simply told truth, they would rather a cleverly told lie.

So, what we have seen, so far, is not a Chinese Olympics, put on by a united China, represented by all Chinese people. No. What we have seen is a Han Chinese Olympics, put on to the exclusion of the diverse minorities that are part of the Chinese land (in spatial co-ordinates, if not in social inclusion).

In a very real sense, the Chinese are insulting the international community by lying to them, in various ways. By telling the world that they had thoughtfully included representatives of all 56 races, they were presenting an image to the world of ethnic inclusivity and absence of racism. This, if true, would have made China seem more progressive, developed and mature. That was the impression they wished to give. The truth, however, was that so racist, internally divided, xenophobic, exclusive and riven are they that they did not include ANY other race of child, apart from Han Chinese. They understood enough to know, however, that the world would like it to be as they said it was. Rather than make it so, however, they preferred to lie about it.

The funny thing about all of this is that China is doing more damage to its international standing than a whole world of critics has managed to do in recent decades. China is coming to look like a shameless liar through and through. Well done, China. What more lies, deceptions and instances of cheating are yet to be uncovered?

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)

The wistfulness of an expat.

Sometimes shopping is not just shopping, sometimes it is reminiscence.

Last week I bought something for a very strange reason. I didn't buy it because I wanted the contents of the container, per se - I wanted it because of what it said on the container: "Waitrose".

Now, "Waitrose" may not mean much to you, but to me it means: childhood, adolescence and youth.

I should explain. The supermarket nearest my longest term home, in my formative years, was a Waitrose. It is a chain of supermarkets in the UK. It is by no means the biggest chain of supermarkets - but it is the one that I visited most often, it being on our doorstep.

So perhaps you can now understand my reaction when I saw that familiar brand staring back at me from a pot of jam in Cold Storage in Singapore. "Waitrose", it said...so I found my hand reaching out reflexively to this otherwise unremarkable pot of jam, reaching out to recapture a part of my earlier life.

It felt odd to see a name from my youth, in the UK, on a pot of jam, in Singapore. It felt as if, for a moment, I had stepped back in time, to that earlier home, and that I was no longer in Singapore, with my own family, and my own home. I picked it up, not because I felt like eating jam - for I am not a regular eater of jam, and had only eaten it once or twice in the past several years - but because it was a way of reconnecting myself to my younger days.

The following morning, I had Waitrose jam on toast for breakfast. It tasted rather good - but for reasons unconnected to its flavour - it was all the associations it had, that made it meaningful.

Singapore is a very alien country, compared to the UK, given its origin as a British colony. It is much less like the UK than one would have thought, given that history. A Chinese way of thinking pervades the way things are done here - and the result is altogether different from what one might expect.

Thus, I don't expect to see fragments of the UK appearing in Singapore - and when I do, they are welcome, for they remind me that once I had another life, with other thoughts and understandings. Once I lived in the UK and could never have guessed that, one day, I would live in Singapore.

Life is strange like that.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)

The Secret of the Power Rangers

Are the Power Rangers hiding an operational secret? Fintan has the answer.

Yesterday, we decided to go to the Jewel Box on Mount Faber - a hilltop restaurant venue overlooking Singapore and Sentosa. It affords great views of the city from one of the highest vantages in the region. More of that, however, in another post.

We were with my mother and sister. So, with my wife and I and three kids, that made far too many for one taxi. Thus, we had to take two.

I went with my immediate relatives - Syahidah took everyone else, in a separate cab.

Syahidah was, perhaps, feeling a bit mischievous. She told the driver: "We're in a race. If we arrive second, you have to give us a discount!"

The driver was game, and nodded his agreement.

Ainan piped up at that moment: "You have to win - but you can't break any traffic rules."

The driver laughed at that. Ainan was clearly considering the issue of speeding (he is a careful boy).

The race was on. The only problem was that the driver wasn't sure where he was going. He soon got lost, Mount Faber being a rarely requested destination (I, for one, have only visited it once before in the last seven years).

At a loss, he picked up his hand phone and called someone for help. He spoke in rapid-fire Chinese.

Syahidah turned to Fintan, four, and said: "See Fintan, he is calling the Power Rangers for help."

Fintan looked stunned, "The Power Rangers speak Chinese!", he exclaimed, flabbergasted. Nothing could have been more of a surprise.

The next time he met a Power Ranger, he would know how to address them.

For the remainder of the journey, he looked at the driver with respect, no doubt thinking: "That man has the phone number for the Power Rangers."

When Syahidah arrived at the Jewel Box, she found us waiting there, already.

The driver duly gave her a discount, as promised. Any friend of the Power Rangers, keeps his word.

It was a comical beginning to a great evening.

The Garden of Eden, Chinese Style.

Living in Singapore, as I do, in the midst of the Asian world, I sometimes hear things I very much doubt I would hear in London, where I used to live, for instance.

Today, I heard something reputedly to be heard on the tongues of Westernized Chinese people.

The remark in itself is both funny and revealing of the culture that speaks it - though I will leave you to think about what it reveals.

Now, Adam and Eve are usually portrayed as Caucasians, in most accounts. However, what if it were different? I heard, today, that it is said, that if Adam and Eve had been Chinese that we would all still be living in the Garden of Eden - because the Chinese would not have spoken to the snake - they would have eaten it.

I thought it was hilarious.

(If you would like to read of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged seven years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and no months, Tiarnan, seventeen months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)

Fintan's cartoon watching

Fintan likes to watch cartoons. Since he is only three there is nothing unusual in that. However, there is something unusual in what he chooses to do in relation to cartoons.

On watching him do so, we note that he interacts well with the cartoon: he laughs when he should, is surprised when he should be, leans forward when the action gets intense - and so on. Clearly he understands well, what is going on in the cartoon. There is nothing unusual about that you might think.

The only thing is the cartoons are in Chinese. This is what we found surprising. Fintan seems to understand Chinese cartoons - yet neither of his parents speaks Chinese to him. I rather think that he has a gift for languages - and the little Chinese he does hear, in school, is enough for him to begin to piece together an understanding of this difficult (for a Westerner) language.

Carry on cartoon watching Fintan - in whatever language you please!

(If you would like to read more of Fintan, three, or his gifted brothers, Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged seven years and four months, or Tiarnan, fourteen months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted children and gifted adults in general. Thanks.)