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NTIC MAGAZINE
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MESSAGE FROM THE TEAM Colour explosions, artistic inspirations and much more is what`s in store for you in our new magazine issue. Since the start of the Autumn Term 2014 students from different cultures and backgrounds teamed up to create a magazine that would be interesting to everyone in NTIC. The cultural diversity present in the team created a unique magazine which combines different views, hobbies and beliefs making sure that people could find a topic that they would be interested in. Our aim was to create something eye catching, fascinating, funny and informative. From debating over the name of the magazine, to choosing article topics, to designing the layout, we made sure to keep in mind not only our interests but also the interests of other students. This perspective provided the opportunity for many students to share with us their hobbies as well as contributing ideas and even articles to the magazine. We couldn’t be more excited to finally present the outcome to you. So without further ado, turn over the page and start looking through our hard work.
THE TEAM Clockwise from left: Winsome Wong, Elaine Kwok, David Obiri, Mariam Elkaradia, Xinxin Wu, Vince Huh, Salahuddeen Etruki
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VOL. 7 SPRING 2015
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contents ART EXPLOSION
TOPIC DIVERSION
4
Graduation Interview
16
YouTube Sensation
6
3D Forms
18
Motivation
8
Leather Crafting
20
Sarcasm On The Internet
10
Crafting Anatomies
BOOK EXPLOSION 12
Luminous Hoodies
FOOD VISION 14
Have Diets Gone To Far?
22
To Read Or Not To Read
24
Eileen Chang
26
Book Review: Heaven Looks A Lot Like The Mall
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NTIC Graduation Interview D
uring the NTIC graduation of 2014, Mariam Elkaradia gets a chance to ask the graduates of their experiences from studying at Nottingham Trent International College. What were the best parts of you studying at NTIC? “We met people from different countries and we learnt about a lot of different cultures. We made a lot of friends which is a nice thing to have international friends in UK.” - Ayatt (Foundation Certificate in Media and Communications)
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“I liked my course, it had a lot of different kinds of lessons.” - Mannat (Foundation Certificate in Media and Communications) “The best part was working with other people to do presentations or final essays. It was a good experience and I made a lot of friends” - Oni (Foundation Certificate in Business) What was the most challenging thing that you had to do? “For me the challenge was the language. At the beginning it was very hard for me to understand” - Oni
“For the art and design course the project were very demanding but eventually everything turned out ok.” - Asma (Foundation Certificate in Art and Design) “For me it was getting up in the morning “ - Nikki (Foundation Certificate in Social Sciences) “Writing essays especially the one about logos was quite a challenge” - Mannat
ALL PHOTOS: NTIC
Can you give an advice for future students who are studying the same course? “Don’t leave everything to the last second because it’s better to have time to do everything” - Asma “Try to work every day.” - Radwa (Foundation Certificate in Art and Design) “You have to study daily to keep up with the program.” - John (Foundation Certificate in Computing) “Have fun while you are here” - Ayatt
How was your stay in NTIC? -It was a good experience. It gave me confidence to enter NTU and the information that I learnt here was very helpful for when I progressed to the university course. - Ahmed (Foundation Certificate in Business) If you could describe your stay in NTIC in one word what would it be? “Fantastic.” - Ayatt
“Versatile.” - Mannat. “Fun.” - Nikki “Brilliant.” - Ahmed. “Awesome.” - Asma “Great.” - Radwa
“Amazing.” - John “Epic.” - Ali (Foundation Certificate in Business) CONTRAST | 5
N
3D Forms
ot an Art and Design student? Want to know more about the course? Ever wondered about those strange structures mysteriously appearing and then disappearing from the Global Point Knowledge Hub? Here, Art and Design students Marshed Al Farsi, Winnie (Bao Guo) and Candy (Yin Kwan Lam) reveal all. The Art and Design students were working on a 3D form project, maybe some of you have seen them working at the Knowledge Hub for a few weeks. The 3D form project is a fun group project that needs to be designed using cardboard and a structure that has a specified size (72*72) cm square. Thus, it is a challenge due to the limited space and materials. Seems entertaining! We present two examples from the project below.
Group 1: The Unknown The Unknown is one of the groups that came out with an amazing 3D design. The group consists of four members. Two of the students are going to study interior architecture next year, Mariam Alkaradia (group leader) and Kinsang Tso. The other two members, Hanna Okpetu and Ruochen Huang, are going to study fashion design. This is what the group said about their “Unknown” idea: “ In the college there are a lot of people from different places and cultures and they interact with each other every day. So we wanted to combine different cultural architecture into one object. We took this as our idea and tried to show it through our 3D model.” Three Cultures, One Design
ALL PHOTOS: MARSHED
The design consists of three cultures, where the four students come from. For example, the Russian architecture buildings influenced the top part of the design, “The Dome”. China had a big impact on the sculpture where the body of the sculpture was influenced by the Chinese fashion designer, Pei Guo. “Dougongs” (an important structural element in traditional Chinese architecture) were also added to show the architectual influence of China. The beauty of the bright African colours were added to show the African culture that Hanna comes from. 6 | CONTRAST
How can this project help you in the future when you are studying at NTU?
“It helps to understand more about how things work and how can you build something so it can “3D form project helped to know more about 3D stay balanced and not fall down” - Mariam Alkaradia and it might help me with the construction of 3D dresses in the future when I am studying fashion “ It helped me to know other cultures more and design” - Hanna Okpetu how to work in a group, because I think I am going “Because I have done lots of research in this project to work in a group work a lot next year. So this proabout fashion design, I think it will let me know lots ject was a good preparation for it” - Kinsang Tso of different styles and bring inspiration for me after I started doing some research related to my degree” - Ruochen Huang
Group 2: Sculpture Chair
The members of “Group 2” are Saba, Nusa, Saroul, and Elaine. They are Art and Design students from Chris Lewis Jones’ class. In phase 1, Group 2 built a “Sculpture Chair” as the model of 3D Form project. In this project, students were supposed to use cardboard. Besides using cardboard, Group 2 also used a glue-gun, gold spray, and a candle. As Art and Design students will face a lot of group projects in the future, Group 2 mentions that “3D Form project not only could help them practice how to do the group work and improve communication skill, but also learn the importance of collaboration.”
The “Sculpture Chair” was made by cardboard with different shapes and sizes to form irregular shapes. The “Sculpture Chair” included many layers, which is similar to the pattern on marble. For the presentation, Group 2 put the “Sculpture Chair” on top of the table and they used fabric and candles as the decoration. They made a catwalk backdrop and used a table lamp to produce lighting effect. Pay attention to Saroul‘s shoes. They were covered by cardboard, which was matched with the “Sculpture Chair”
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LEATHER CRAFTING
A
rt and Design student, Kin Sang Tso, shares his passion for leather crafting with NTIC magazine. (Images: Kin Sang Tso)
What is leather crafting? Leather is a traditional material which has been used by human beings for thousands of years and leather crafting is the practice of making leather into craft objects or works of art, such as wallets, bracelets and handbags. A technique that is often used in leather crafting is leather carving, which is similar to wood carving. It uses metal tools to compress moistened leather to give it a 3-D appearance on a 2-D surface. My hobby I started to practice leather crafting one year ago, when it became my hobby. I was influenced by my friend. It was curious to see him make a leather handbag for his mother. At the same time, the prices of the top brand leather products are so high. Because of this, I thought to myself, “Why don’t I make them myself?” It not only ensures the quality, but it also lets you make what you want. All your works are unique and made by your hands. They cannot be bought with money. So, I decided to continue leather crafting from now on. Are you interested in leather crafting? Do you want me to customize one? Please tell me! Cheers!
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Wechat ID: thx0819 Facebook Name: Thx Tso Facebook Homepage: TKS
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CRAFTING ANATOMIES
by Arielle Ta and Alice Huang
H
ave you guys heard about an exhibition that uses human bodies to design art? Imagine putting animal heads on top of a body, or using human skin to design clothes. Do you think that’s interesting or terrifying? On 8th January, our Skills class spent class time visiting Bonington Gallery. All of us went there to take a look at an exhibition called “Crafting Anatomies”. Our tutor, Simon Aldcroft, wanted us to visit because everyone in the class was doing Art and Design and it would be especially useful for students like Hannah, Jenny and us. BACKGROUND The exhibition is about CRAFTING ANATOMIES, which analyses the human body and dissects attitudes. Organs crafted by silk worms, bespoke jewelry cultured from human cells and human organs like hearts will be on display. This exhibition was open from Wednesday, 7 January 2015 to Wednesday, 4 February 2015 and featured 43 practitioners, including Amy Congdon, Karen Ingham, Shelly Goldsmith and many more. ART WORK 1.) “GENDERED POSTURES” 2014. Designer: JULIA SCHUSTER. We know the gendered postures are based on the observation of body language. The designer let people use their bodies, like the hand, which was used to hold the plaster or put the plaster on the chair and let people sit down. Because the plaster is soft and easy to deform, it can reflect how certain postures are forces upon genders as social standards. In my opinion, I like this idea because it clearly shows that combining the human body with the plaster, allows it to take on different forms to express the postures. 2.) “ANIMAL: THE OTHER SIDE OF EVOLUTION “2012. Designer: ANA RAJCETIVE Animal: The Other Side of Evolution is grounded in a unique visual interpretation of animal anatomy, building upon existing skeleton structures to create a series of sculptures. I like this work because it combines the animal body and human body to create a very interesting design. This work makes me think about a fashion designer named Gareth Pugh whose own work is also very creative and interesting. The work wherein the designer put a deer’s horn on someone’s head is similar to Gareth Pugh’s work. 10 | CONTRAST
So, I decided to ask three people about their opinions of this work. Interviewee 1: Winnie
“I THINK IT’S VERY CREATIVE, AND LOOKS VERY BEAUTIFUL WHEN THE DEER’S HORN IS ON THE HUMAN’S HEAD. I REALLY LIKE THIS WORK”. Interviewee 2: Illayda
“I REALLY LIKE THIS WORK. IT COMBINES MODERN ART AND NATURE TOGETHER AS WELL AS MAKING ME THINK THAT WE SHOULD PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT”
GENDERED POSTURES BY JULIA SCHUSTER
Interviewee 3: Alia
“I DON’T LIKE THIS. IT LOOKS UNCOMFORTABLE. THE SHAPE IS TOO SIMPLE TO BE FAMOUS AND IT JUST LOOKS BORING…MAYBE IT’S MY PERSONAL FEELING, BUT I LIKE CLASSIC ART MORE THAN MODERN ART”. ANIMAL BY ANA RAJCETIVE
3.) “LACE TRACKS LIGHT REFLECTIVE COLLAR” 2013 Designer: HANNAH WHITE As mentioned in the description for the work, lace is a rather soft and fragile material so it is mostly used for decoration. However, I like the idea that the artist put the material to use and transformed it into something people wouldn’t expect. Lace becomes much stronger in the concept of sportswear and this changes viewer’s perception of the material. 4.) “TWINS – JEFF AND TERESA” 2013. Designer: MARISA CULATTO Seeing the work and reading about it at the same time, I found this one interesting as it has a meaning that applies well in art and also in society. I like to think that “TWINS” is about how everyone is different from each other in many ways. It’s also about how people look at others and how they look at themselves. That idea, to me, is attractive and how it is shown through the work is unique.
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1) Make sketches of the front and back of your design paper and draw a zoomed-in sketch if you have a small and detailed design. This is to make sure the company has a clear understanding of your design. 2) Think about which type of font you want if there are words. You can just open Microsoft Word and choose the one you want and jot it down on the paper with the name of the font. If you have a different type of font and you don’t know the name of it, take a picture of it and send it to them.
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Y B N SIG
U A Y NY
O H T AN
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3) When you have double-checked your design, contact Alexander Homme (https://www.facebook.com/alexanderhomme) by email, Whatsapp, Facebook or even Instagram. Remember to let them know that you heard about the company from me! They will ask you questions if anything is not clear enough. 4) The final thing you need to do is pay and wait. It doesn’t matter where you are, they can ship it worldwide! Normally, it takes about 7 days if you are in Hong Kong, but you might need to wait a bit longer if want to ship it somewhere else. Let them know where you want your shirt to be shipped to and everything is done! How luminous hoodIes work: Every luminous product contains phosphors. A phosphor is a substance that radiates visible light after being energised. It is a type of light emission that delays between excitation and de-excitation, which provides an afterglow. This delay is caused by atoms being excited to energy levels that do not decay rapidly.
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HAVE
BY
DIETS GONE FAR ? TO
ELAINE KWOK
A
s clichéd as it seems, entering a New Year and making New Year resolutions are inextricably linked; setting resolutions has become the ritual of New Year’s Day. And I have recently come to the realisation that many people tend to have the same New Year resolutions about getting fit and eating healthily, especially since witnessing the scenario (on more than one occasion!) of people reiterating their New Year goals while a Big Mac is being aggressively gulped down!
ROBERT GOURLEY
I think it is safe to say that losing weight is one of the most sought after goals for people. Well, actually it is happiness according to official studies, but being skinny is apparently equivalent to happiness nowadays. I have discerned that juice cleansing has become a prevalent trend in the past year and, in case you have never come across exactly what that is, it is a detox diet solely involving fruit and vegetable juices and it mostly lasts for 10-14 days. It is quite self-explanatory how the diet works, considering you are cutting off carbs and only consuming liquid into your body. However, even though your body stops assimilating refined carbs like white bread and white rice, which gives you the illusion of you being healthy, it is also actually preventing you from absorbing healthy fats from foods such as sweet potatoes, salmon and tuna or other “oily fishes”. Fun fact for the day: US scientists found out eating them can perpetuate your life at least two years longer due to the omega-3 fatty acids in them which can reduce the risk of dying from heart disease by lowering your blood levels. Ironically, did you know that a survey conducted by Harvard School of Public Health suggests nine out of ten children and two-thirds of adults in Britain never eat “oily fishes” even though they are essential to your brain development as well? 14 | CONTRAST
The commonly known ‘balanced diet’ has took a twist in recent years.
You’re welcome, people, now hurry up and add fishes to your diet meal plan to achieve a balanced diet rather than a drastic diet that is considered more as a selfharm behaviour- if you ask me. America might be the initiator of the burgeoning cleansing juice industry, but many countries have been deeply influenced by it and England is no exception. Detox juices are ubiquitous since they can easily be found in cafes and ordered online. You can even purchase a 3-day, 5-day or 7-day programme on websites of these detox juice companies, whatever floats your boat! Juice Master, one of the UK’s leading detox juices’ retailer, claims to be an advocate for a healthy body, mind & life.
“Possessing the ability to love yourself is the first step to a healthy mind and soul and that will naturally lead you to a healthy lifestyle in my opinion.” But does drinking juices as a proper meal and starving yourself throughout the day count as attaining a healthy life? That is something worth thinking about. Possessing the ability to love yourself is the first step to a healthy mind and soul and that will naturally lead you to a healthy lifestyle in my opinion. My motto has always been “everything in moderation”, especially when it comes to eating habits. I am a firm believer of that. The idea of cutting a specific thing completely out of one’s life just sounds neither plausible nor idyllic to me. Occasional indulgences can be a form of healthy living by rewarding yourself with your guilty pleasure! I’ll give you my word that your body and mind will thank you for that.
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SENSATION BY ELAINE KWOK AND JENNY LAM
W
ho are these new celebrities with millions of followers on YouTube and how have they become so popular? Elaine Kwok and Jenny Lam investigate the YouTuber phenomenon for the NTIC magazine.
YouTubers (n): people who make a living out of YouTube. As a matter of fact, that would be an understatement, YouTubers are embarking on a whole career that involves making videos on topics they’re interested and talking to a camera. Who knows that could worth millions of subscribers and inspire such devotion among teenagers? The popularity and the immense amount of admiration they’ve received from their viewers is undoubtedly no less than any other A-list celebrities. They are definitely fearless in terms of moving out of their own comfort zone since an abundance of YouTubers now have their books, own lines of clothing and cosmetic products launched. You name it, they’re doing it. Watch out people, they have no interest in fading in 2015. In fact, the opposite is true, they are determined to stay and they are more than ready to take the world by storm.
Elaine and Jenny’s Guide to YouTubers: Beauty/Fashion Essie Button (Born 17 Aug 1990) A UK based Canadian beauty and lifestyle blogger Most popular video: Autumn Get Ready With Me Zoella Sugg (Born 28 March 1990) Within 7 years since she joined YouTube, over 7 million people has subscribed to her channel. That is already a quite impressive achievement, but she has definitely step it up a notch in 2014. Her beauty collection is a sellout and her book, Girl Online is also expectedly an immense success. (Hello? Fastest-selling debut novel!) Most popular videos: How to: My Quick and Easy Hairstyles My Brother Does My Makeup 16 | CONTRAST
Relaxation
Marcus Butler (Born 18 December 1991) The British internet personality has been making videos since he was 18 and has gradually gained recognition for his comedy videos. Most popular video: Singing With Helium Ryan Higa (June 6, 1990) An American-Japanese internet personality. One of the pioneer YouTubers, almost reaching the milestone of 14 million subscribers. He has managed to make a name for himself by making comedy videos. Most popular videos: How To Sing Like Your Favourite Artists I Dare You: Wasabi Challenge
Music
Kurt Hugo Schneider (September 7, 1988) He is a music producer who invariably collaborates with singers and presents a different rendition of smash hits. Most popular videos: Just A Dream by Nelly-Sam Tsui & Christina Grimmie Heart Attack by Demi Lovato – Sam Tsui & Chrissy Costanza of ATC Madilyn Bailey (September 2, 1992) Her soothing voice and the refreshing music arrangements go together perfectly, that is why Bailey’s acoustic song covers never fail to go viral Most popular videos: Titanium- David Guetta feat Sia (Acoustic) Can’t Hold Us – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (Acoustic)
So, clearly it is no longer impossible to become a full-time YouTuber if you have got talent. The flexibility and innovation of YouTube offers a platform for people to share their thoughts on a variety of fields, as well as gain support and popularity. A surprising result of a survey Variety Magazine commissioned in July 2014 is that the five most influential figures among Americans, between13 and 18 years old, are all YouTube favourites, such as Zoella, which has eclipsed traditional celebrities, such as Jennifer Lawrence and Seth Rogen. They have definitely taken the world by storm! CONTRAST | 17
BEATE_LlE
GENERATION LAZY T
eenagers: a lazy generation that lacks motivation or a generation smothered by their lack of choices and freedom?
Winsome Wong investigates. Many people argue that, in today’s society, our generation lacks motivation, especially when compared to our parents’ generation. However, this argument is inaccurate. Our motivation is not due to how we are raised or our environment but instead, it can be explained through our sensations, perception, emotion, stress and the brain. On the sensation perspective, our senses play a critical role in perception and behavior. They not only allow us to perceive the environment, but also enable us to act in response to it. It is human nature that we see with our eyes, smell with our nose, hear with our ears, feel with our skin, and taste with our tongue. Because there is an overabundance of stimulation hitting our senses in every moment, most of the sensations will be filtered out. Also, our nervous system processes sensory information in two ways. One of them is called topdown processing. It focuses on how our expectations and experiences influence our interpretation of the incoming stimuli. Therefore, our sensation plays a factor in the motivation process. On the perception perspective, perception 18 | CONTRAST
leads to decision making and action taking. Normally, the decision is to act or not to act and this depends on how we develop motivation. With every action, there is always a set of alternatives from which to choose, even though most of the times it might seem as if there are no alternatives. The meaning we give to a stimulus we perceive will fundamentally shape the choices and actions we take in response to it. The decision you make is based on the human instinct of self-preservation. We are always trying to maximize our chances of survival and preserve ourselves. Also, our expectations through our experiences will determine our perceptions. These expectations produce a perceptual set. It can influence what we hear, feel, taste, and see. Our perceptual set is often guided by schemas. These are the concepts or mental frameworks that help us to organize our world and the way we see the world. Therefore, our perceptions also play a factor in the motivation process. On the emotion perspective, an emotion is made up of affect, physiological arousal, and behavioral expression. The physio-
logical arousal associated with emotions is controlled in the nervous system. Two emotion theories integrate the physiological component: the James-Lange Theory of Emotion and the Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion. The James-Lange Theory of Emotion holds that we perceive a stimulus, our body responds, and we interpret the body’s reaction as emotion. The Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion suggests that we experience an emotion and bodily changes simultaneously. Also, examining the behavioral expression of emotion, Plutchik has found eight basic emotions: anger, fear, sadness, disgust, surprise, curiosity, acceptance, joy. Therefore, our emotions play a factor in the motivation process On the stress perspective, stress is a process of perceiving and responding and requires some sort of adaption to the demand or set of demands. There are three ways to response to stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion. Also, all stressors will face three categories of stressful events: daily stress, significant changes, and catastrophes. Therefore, stress is the primary factor in the motivation process. On the brain perspective, the amygdala is a part of the brain that controls our experience of fear. It receives danger information and sends out instructions to prepare the body. The amygdala is also involved in
memory and it is believed to be an important brain structure in explaining the long-term effects of extreme fear experiences. The left hemisphere is associated with emotions such as happiness, while the right hemisphere is more linked to emotions such as disgust. The two-factor theory of emotion developed by Schachter and Singer suggests that cognitive factors affect emotion. In this theory, emotions are determined by physiological arousal and cognitive labeling, as we look at the external word to explain the arousal and then label the emotion. In some situations, emotions come before cognition. An emotion will emerge immediately and automatically as a response to the experience and then we will think about the situation, such as when someone screams and scares you. Therefore, the brain also plays a factor in the motivation process. To conclude, nature versus nurture is always being discussed when explaining how teenagers are being motivated. As we are all born with human characteristics, like sensation, perception, emotion, stress, and brain perspectives, they all play a factor in the motivation process of teenagers in today’s society.
JILL111
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PAUL VANDERWERF/ROCK 1997
SARCASM ON THE INTERNET by David Obiri
I
n 2005, a poster on an internet forum named Nathan Poe made a statement that I believe perfectly describes the problem with sarcasm on the internet. The statement went as follows:
To put it simply, unless you explicitly state that you are joking it is impossible or at least very difficult not to be taken seriously. In his case, Poe was referring to the practice of people pretending to be creationists (it was a Christian forum) as a form of humour, only to be taken seriously by people ignorant of this.
“Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humour, it is utterly impossible to parody a creationist in such a way that someone won’t mistake for the genuine article”
This observation later became known as Poe’s law, something that strongly resonates with my annoyance about anyone who dares attempt to use written parody on the internet. You see, many internet users have apparently never heard of Poe’s law.
-Nathan Poe, Courtesy of Wikipedia
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Because of this, sarcasm is widely used by many people in an attempt to illicit a funny response from their fellow internet users. Before we continue, let’s get something straight - I have nothing against humour.
Quite the opposite actually - I absolutely adore it. Having said that, I consider sarcasm to be one of the lowest forms of comedy ever conceived by human beings. There is nothing funny about someone trying to articulate an apparently funny idea in such a roundabout manner.
A fact many internet posters apparently do not seem to realise. As you might imagine, this leads to more confusion than laughs, often requiring the original poster to later explain the intention of their statement, thus rendering the first post and any humour it apparently contains irrelevant.
It often leads to so much ambiguity that, by the time a listener has finally understood what the speaker was trying to say, the original statement has long since ceased being funny.
How anyone is supposed to find such a process funny is completely beyond me.
To put it even simpler, sarcasm is not universal. In order for one to understand sarcasm one must already be aware of the speaker’s intention. A feat you might realise becomes almost impossible without any aural or visual cues.
PS. Whether or not this whole article was just me being sarcastic is entirely up to you.
In conclusion, people should just stop using sarcasm on the internet. It’s bloody annoying. And pointless.
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To
BRIOSO READ
Read
Or
“Reading is so boring.” and “why should I read when I can watch the movie?”
S
ound familiar? If your answer is no and you actually like reading then my friend I am happy to tell you that you are on the right path and you can read this article just for fun.. (I mean you do like reading so why not?) Now if your answer is yes and you agree with those statements then well, let’s try to convince you otherwise. So without further or do, here are 5 reasons why you should read, writes Mariam Elkaradia
1. Reading makes you smarter. That should be pretty obvious .I mean, you do learn lots of new things out of books: social values and vocabulary for example. If you are still not convinced then check this out. Keith E. Stanovich, in his journal “What Reading Does for the Mind”, mentioned that people who read frequently tend to show greater knowledge of how things work and who or what people are - just so you know, he is a psychology and human development professor. Basically, it’s been scientifically proven so no arguments are accepted. Period. Moving onto the next point. 2. It makes you interesting. This comes hand in hand with the previous point but, yes, people are usually attracted to smart people. As long as you don’t show off your knowledge 24/7 and correct people all the time then you are good to go and start any conversation with anyone since you will be able to maintain it and change it from one topic to another.
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3. It boosts your imagination. You see, willingly or not, you will start imagining how the characters and places look and that means that you are using imagination, which is a good thing since you get to be creative. By the way, creativity also attracts people (just so we are clear). Now, if you watch a movie, well... in this case you are given everything and your imagination just dies slowly and painfully. So, think about it! Do you really want that? Nope, you most probably don’t!
Read
MOYAN BRENN BOOKS
Not
To
“There is a great deal of difference between an eager man who wants to read a book and the tired man who wants a book to read” Gilbert K. Chesterton 4. It improves focus, concentration and analytical thinking. Do I even need to expand on this? I don’t know if you noticed but in our modern internet-crazed world our attention is drawn to a million different things. Ok, maybe I am exaggerating a bit - just a little bit though. Anyway, as a result we tend to multi-task through every day, which may not be such a bad thing except you get used to it overtime and then it’s harder for you to focus. However, when you are reading you tend to focus on what you are reading (especially if it’s
something that you find interesting). So in this way it helps you to keep focused on other things when you need to. 5. It may reduce stress and it could be fun. Finally, point number 5.The key to this point is to find a book that you would actually enjoy, whether it’s fiction about magical creatures or a non-fiction book about war. A good book will take you to other places (remember the imagination part that I mentioned earlier? yes? good! keep it in your mind). So, you tend to forget about any of your current problems and you can just sit back and relax. As for the fun part, you just need to find a topic you will be interested in and, trust me when I say this, there are books about everything from galaxy studies to fashion to books that are simply funny. So, without doubt you will find something that you like. So, step away from movies and computer games for a while, open a book, and enjoy!
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Eileen Chang By Illayda Eileen Chang
W
hen was the last time you read a good book? Following on from Mariam Elkaradia’s article about the importance of reading, Xinyi Zhong (Ilayda) tells us why we should all be reading the work of Eileen Chang. Eileen Chang is a well-known writer in the Chinese-Speaking World, however she has influenced people all over the world with two of her excellent novels: Lust Caution and The Fall of the Pagoda. In her work, what Chang offers is what all good literature offers: engaging stories, interesting characters, beautiful central controlling metaphors, and evocative imagery. There is a clear difference between her unique writing techniques and those of other famous authors. In most of her work she likes to use lots of metaphors that are based on her distinctive background and unfortunate experiences to attract people. She was born in the period of deep-rooted Chinese feudalist ideology and continuous war.
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Although ,born in an influential family this influence has declined overtime. She had an irresponsible but open-minded mother and a conservative father who was addicted to opium. Family tragedy (her parents divorced) become the first part of her miserable life. Then there was a man who come into her life, making her happy while he was a part of it. However, he left her suddenly because he fell in love with someone else. The reason why I want to introduce this author to you is because her experience can always be a reminder for the public to get over all the problems they face. She especially opened my horizons to have a further understanding of love. Most of her works tell a love story, not a vulgar one but one
that leaves a deep impression on the mind and makes you ponder over time. To achieve this she uses lots of special rhetorical devices, such as metaphors, and combines them with the specifics of her background.
White One remains the bright moonlight outside the window. If he marries the White Rose, she may just shift into a grain of steamed rice clinging to her coat, as the Red One imprints his heart with a beauty spot.”
These are some meaningful sentences from her work that make us think.
3. ” You have to remember that somewhere out there is always someone waiting for you, minding not where or when for you must believe in him or her. Amongst the thousands of the masses, you will meet The One; amidst the boundless wilderness of thousands of years, you will meet The One in a timely fashion, not a step earlier or later. When you two meet, what you will do is just to ask softly: “You are also in here?”
1.”You ask me whether love is worth it or not. In fact, you should know that love is exactly about not asking its worth or not.” 2.”Perhaps, each man has encountered two kinds of women in their life, at least two. If he marries the Red Rose, she may just transform into a crimson stain of mosquito blood on the wall as the time glides by, while the
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BOOK REVIEW: Heaven Looks A Lot Like The Mall By Wendy Mass Reviewer: Winsome Wong
I
t is about a neardeath experience of a sixteen-year-old, Tessa, who suffered from a shocking accident in a gym class. During the gym class, a dodgeball hit her head and got knocked out. By the time her gym teacher leaves to get help, she is already on her way to heaven – the mall near her hometown. At the mall, she meets ‘Nail Boy’, whom he hands her a bag containing all the things she bought at the mall; a pink shoe, a glass bowl, a red t-shirt, a blue prom dress, and etc. As she looks through the things, she journeys through the time when her mother insisting her to get highlights or a perm, and the time of stealing her classmate’s science project in fourth grade and the completely disastrous junior prom at the age of two.
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But in the midst of all the bad times, there were also the good times: eating chocolate on her roof, kissing Ben Silver in a game of Spin the Bottle, being called Tesseract instead of Tessa by the cute boy in Old Navy. Surrounded by the things she purchases at the mall, she travels from babyhood to high school, replaying her life, seeing old memories in new ways, observing her mother’s obsession with looks, making friends and enemies, and at times, just surviving. Nail Boy is not content to let Tessa simply relieve her life through the mall. She is in a coma and he pulled a plug. He told Tessa that she would wake up and leave the mall once she answers an important question. The challenge is that it might take her a long time to figure out why she did not duck when the dodgeball came at her.
She finally figures out that although there are bad times in life, but there are still good times that she experienced in her life. The author chooses ‘Heaven Looks A Lot Like The Mall’ as the title because she thinks the main character, Tessa, spent the majority of her lifetime at that local mall, experiencing the bad times and the good times through the things she purchased at that mall. To Tessa, the mall seems to contain all of her lifetime memories, from babyhood to high school, thus it is like heaven to her. Therefore, the author wants to symbolize Tessa’s life through the local mall that she often goes since she was born.
`Favourite Phrase/Sentence
Why? (Reflection)
But they weren’t someone else’s. It is the time I owned them. They weren’t all bad, I suppose. There were times I felt hopeful and happy and content. And there were memories not found in that bag where I laughed and sang and felt like a semi-normal person, but I guess those weren’t the ones I needed to see. (pg.239-240)
The small memories that we had does not mean they are not important. They may be the ones that make us laugh or smile when we recall them.
But a lot of the time I felt anxious and angry and alone and lost and the walls I built around myself just got thicker and thicker. (pg.240)
Most of the times we are the one to create the walls around ourselves, but we are also the only person to break through the walls that we created.
And I realize that my dad might not be the greatest dad of all the time, I mean, he’s a little temperamental and works too much, but he never stopped trying to make me feel special. I just stopped listening. (pg.247)
How many of us will remember when is Father’s Day? We usually just remember Mother’s Day since we think that it is much more important and our mothers are the one to raise us for most of the times. However, our fathers are important too, most of the times we seem to ignore our father’s love and care to us. We forget that our father is caring us and loving us. We should also love our father as the same as our mother.
The sentence that embodies the theme of the story: “I bet if you go through the rest of your life telling yourself, ‘I’m sparkling,’ you’ll have a whole different energy and experience.” This sentence reflect the theme of the story because the main character, Tessa, is not satisfied with the life that she has now, so when the dodgeball came to her, she did not duck, as she wanted to end her life. So when the Nail Boy said this sentence to her as she was losing hope towards her life, he told her this in order to feel “sparkle”, as she would have not reflected about her life.
This was because she wouldn’t have thought of doing something different for the rest of her life. Due to this, she will learn to treasure her family, friends, and everyone around her. Although there are some memories that she wanted to erased from her life, she learned to accept them and make them part of her growth. Moreover, she learnt to explore her personality and try to live with a better ‘her’.
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