hey..I learned about "singular" in English, but what is "singularity"? Why are many scientists and sci-fi writers are so crazy about it? - no idea, sorry~
lol..gotta open my 2.5 inches-thick dictionary again...
Anyway, I enjoy watching Terminator: TSCC drama shows and I just realized that both of them are actually correlated. In what way? hmm...
The concept of "The Singularity" is basically talk about how someday in the future, probably in 2030 or maybe one or two decades from now, human life would be taken over by cyborgs/ autonomous robots. Some of the scientists and computer experts also believe that human being could possibly uploading their mind into the robots after you died. It somehow saying that you might have an ever-lasting life but, not infinitely so. (So, the robot would behave/acting like us? - maybe yea. And if this truly happen, it would become part of the world populations.... whoops!)
It just something like in the drama show right, but the only difference is in the Terminator, those "Skynet" things are trying to extinguish the humanity. And, here, I guess those robots are still good and naive. Btw, click HERE if you wanna read more on this issue.
Well honestly, I'm skeptical with this idea even after reading a bunch of articles about it. I do respect those people who're still holding to this fantasy, but sorry to say that I'm not convinced enough. Especially, when they're trying to create/develop consciousness in the robot. Like what most of the critics say, we are far away to emulate a human brain. The brain is too complex to be imitated. Even after I discovered that in Japan, robots are more advanced than in here, the United States - robot can play violin, trumpet, dance, and so on, I still cannot foresee the future of "Singularity". Maybe it's because I'm still new in this field and lack of knowledge or maybe also because I am a believer...but, feel free to give your opinions on this issue.
Oct 10, 2008
single...singuLAR...SINGULARITY
Oct 2, 2008
USS Intrepid (CV-11) - Who cares?
Today in class, Prof Yingying disrupted our attention when she saw a big ship came along the Hudson river. At first, I didn't really bother to look out of the window since I was sitting at the most left and far from it. Moreover, I thought it's not really something unusual for me and for most people in Stevens/Hoboken - there are many big ships and ferries crossing the river including the Queen Mary and Norwegian cruise.
But until one of my classmates that staring at the window said that it's the one which can bring about 30 aircraft or maybe more than that, I got interested, stood up and stood on my toes with a hope that I could see it. Haha~ too bad, I couldn't see the USS Intrepid (CV-11). I should stand closer to the window if I really wanna see how big exactly the ship...Some of my classmates crowded the window to see it passing the Stevens and even the prof too...lol
Hmm, I was so lazy to walk so, never mind.
So, after my class end, I went back to my room and google it online. And now, I can see how it looks like. Click here to see the picture. I also discover about the history of this USS Intrepid and I found out that it's pretty impressive one. Or maybe a better word to describe it is pretty cool~ One of its significant contributions is "participated in the Pacific Theater of Operations of World War I" (wikipedia).
Suddenly, it reminds me of my dad. He is a retired soldier. So, I was thinking if he was here, he maybe interested to know more about this ship. Ok, I think it might be a good idea to bring my parents to the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space museum if they are coming to the States for my graduation. FYI, we can explore the ship if we go to the museum. It is one of its main exhibitions.
p/s: InshaAllah I'm going to graduate on May 2009, but I'm not ready to go back home, yet and I don't wanna go back for good. Can I just stay here, please?
Oct 1, 2008
Eid Mubarak :)
"Empire State building turns green for Eid." - terharu skitAnyway, eid mubarak everyone! Hopefully, last ramadhan ain't the last one for us and may Allah always give us His guidance.
Sep 11, 2008
Summer Internship
Aha... summer break!
Last summer was my longest holidays in Malaysia since 2005. Usually I spent half of my summer break at home, but this year I changed my mind due to some reasons. And one of the major reasons was to gain some experience in industrial field before my first entry of working next year, inshaAllah.
After having a long thought during the spring semester, I decided to apply for internships around Shah Alam and Klang/Banting, where my sisters are staying and working. I applied for Toshiba and a few other companies, but never got their response. Most probably because they didn't offer internship or they're not interested. Never mind tho because I actually got accepted to do my industrial training at ShinEtsu (M) Sdn. Bhd. Alhamdulillah ~
The first day of my work, I got really excited and nervous - that was my first time working in a company ever! I could feel butterflies in my stomach and suddenly I lost appetite for breakfast meal =D. I was eager to start off my internship but, thinking of getting into a new place, in one way or another, lose my confidence a little bit. And honestly, I was wondering too many things at the time, likes how's my colleague looked like, was I gonna be ok working there? and, etc and etc... Blessed to Allah, everything turned out perfectly, and I wasn't the only new staff registered on that day. So gradually, I got my strength and wisdom back.
My office hours began at 8:10 in the morning and done at 5:40 p.m. So, basically it's like working in other private companies too. For the first three days, I had to attend courses which are mandatory for all their new workers. That courses covered from the basic stuff regarding safety (since so many hazardous thing around the company compound - machines, etc), their mission (5's - Japanese system to make sure that you have an effective workplace), effects of the chemicals, and noise and the ISO 9002, just to name a few. Besides, I also had to take exam for most of the courses and actually have to pass it too - It's a requirement! The exams are closed notes so, gotta have a good memory =)
In the first week, I had nothing much to do so that my life turned out extremely boring and tiring. The company didn't provide internet access for all their exempt staff except the head of departments and managers. So, I couldn't at least surfing the internet or chatting online to kill the time. I was thinking to bring a novel or magazine but, my sister said that it's really inappropriate since I was just a trainee (and fresh too). And somehow it showed that I didn't have any effort to ask for a work. So, as an alternative, I always hanged out at the workshop and make friends with the technicians. Luckily, they're friendly and very helpful to me.
As the time went by, I started to get assignments and felt comfy with the new surrounding. I also glad to know that there was another girl doing a practical too at the moment - Alin, a polymer eng. student from USM. Although we were working under different departments, we always met during recess time and hang out together. hmm..by the way, I realised one thing about my colleagues...no wonder the single tends to have their own circle of friends and the married too...because their topics of discussion aren't match to each other; the married with their children and family matters while the single with their "single" hot issues.
By the way, here are the stuffs that I did during my practical:
*first task - helped engineers in designing new packaging system, to prevent the magnet from corrosion and rusty. In this assignment, I had to go back and forth from plant 2 and plant 3 in order to get the accurate data for each magnet. (Anyway, this company has 3 branches in S.Alam area and each plant has different production lines. I was assigned to be working under Engineering 2 department @ Plant 2)
*second task - calculate electricity consumption for slicing machines. For this assignment, I had to consider the thickness, shapes and different types of raw materials of the magnets.
*third task - assist engineers in magnet testing and inspection.
*fourth task - learned AutoCAD, designed magnets
*fifth task - helped with bar code system.
In summarize, I enjoyed working in this company. I feel sol happy that I make a right decision to pursue for an internship. I learn many new stuffs and it somehow widen my mind/view on what exactly an engineer does and also knowing my aim. It also provides me with real-working experience that I don't think I could get in my classes. I wish I could work longer because 2 months really a short period of time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
exempt staff - some co. called it as executive staff. This exempt staff only works during business hours except for a few cases.
5's - Seiri (Sorting), Seiton(Set in order), Seiso(Sweeping), Seiketsu(Standardizing), Shitsuke(Sustaining)
Apr 29, 2008
Ouch, it must be so hurt that he couldn't stop crying :( I pray someone will come forward and help this kid fighting his rare disease. amin~
Apr 15, 2008
Stop and Stare
"After the last note of the anthem had faded, the children sat in a neat circle and begin copying their multiplication tables. Most scratched in the dirt with sticks they'd brought for that purpose. The more fortune, like Jahan, had slate boards they wrote on with sticks dipped in a mixture of mud and water... [T]here was a fierceness in their desire to learn, despite how mightily everything was stacked against them..." - Greg Mortenson, from the Three Cups of Tea
I came across this passage a few weeks ago while reading the book. Somehow, I feel like writing about it as a reminder to you, my beloved readers, and to myself. We rarely appreciate and feel grateful of what we have until we loose it from our grip. And we often feel frustrated and get mad when we don't get what we want or when things don't turn out the way we expected to.
Yeah,...you might have heard these words so many times before, and it's probably a cliche...is it? Hopefully, nope. This is the fact that we have to face on every single day. Our life is never all ups. So, we just have to be patience and put our heart and soul in everything we do even though it's hard.
From the Quran:
"It may be that you detest something which is good for you; and it may be you love something even though it is bad for you. Allah knows, and you do not know" - Surat Al Baqarah, 2:216
=D
Apr 14, 2008
Thomas - a man who gets pregnant?
"Is this for real or it's just a joke??," I asked myself when I heard about this news while listening to wplj radio. Hey, how can a man gets pregnant, right? He don't even has a womb! hmm, this thing manage to distract my attention from doing my design homework. So.., I google "thomas - the pregnant man" in the internet and I found many articles, discussions on this issue. And luckily, I also found archives videos of this hot topic on Oprah's show, where this thing was exposed live on TV.
After watching all parts of the episode, I discovered that HE IS PREGNANT. He is now six months pregnant! How could this be possible? A man became a biological mother? - you might having those questions at the moment. Yes, this is a very complicated thing but yet, there is an explanation. Despite the fact that Thomas has grown thin beard and mustache, and has no woman's physical attributes, he was actually a beautiful woman in the past; he was born as a woman. His name was Tracy and was the only girl of three siblings. Nevertheless, today, he is a transgender-identified man, who is "legally" married to Nancy.
sigh~
I don't want to give a point of view from same-sex marriage perspective here since he seems to strongly believe on masculinity. He said that he rejects himself as a woman and yet, he believes that he wants to get pregnant someday (he said about this pregnancy thing before he become transgendered) and wants to have children. - For me, it's like saying you wanna be a sth that is completely different but, at the same time part of yourself realize that you're belong here.
hmm (-.^)?
Another reason why I'm opposed this thing is because I strongly believe this misconception can be another bad milestone in gender and role issues in the future - even if his status as a "pregnant man" might not ring you any bell, but believes me...in the next few years or maybe after a decade, this thing could be a common lifestyle in the society. But then, see what happen to the mindset of that generation. Would that be better or worse?
Mar 31, 2008
it's never too late
Although Malaysia's General Election 2008 took place for almost a month from today, I believe that it's never too late to say a word about its result. Since before the election day, I was hoping that the opposition parties which consists of PAS, PKR, and DAP could win fair votes and maybe could recapture Terengganu state. I am confident that they can bring change in the Malaysian government and help our country combat all kinds of corruption and misused of power among most of the current ministers. I was really tired of the deceit and secrecy in the administration and now, only looking for one thing - a change! And Alhamdulillah, all praise be to Allah, it turned out that the opposition parties got majority supports at 5 states, which is totally a breaking news! Even though Terengganu turns out to remain under BN rule, I'm happy that many people can see the need of change. Bravo! So now, I hope the new elected ministers/politicians will keep their words and make us feel better and safer living in the country. And please do not make us loose our trust on you.
* shaded areas show states where the opposition alliances won controlof state governments
Feb 20, 2008
not feeling very well lately with some attitudes that makes me really sick to think of. I'm not trying to say that I'm good or what, but their cynical attitudes really makes me feel so miserable and inferior.
Benarlah kata ibu ilmu
satu kata, makna beribu
sampai yang buta tercelik matanya
atau yang bergerak...terkaku pula
sigh~
pls don't push my patience to the limit!
Feb 9, 2008
Sahabat
Thanks Nora for giving me this mp3 song! =) I like it because it has a deep meaning to it. hmm, I don't know how to link it from my laptop so, here I posted the same song I found from the imeem playlist. enjoy!
Jan 23, 2008
Jan 19, 2008
zzZzZzzzZ...wake up maa!
Lately, I'm kinda struggling to woke up early in the morning. So, I think this lecture is a good reminder for me and those who are facing the same problem. Here, I give you some interesting points from the lecture....I highly recommend you to listen to this short lecture. It only takes about 17 min.
* Waking Up for Allah - Husain Abdul Sattar
- Allah takes the entire earth and puts it into the day - it's not a small task that you started with the night and all the sudden you ended with the day...
- Waking up in the morning is one of the signs of His greatness...Allah controls of everything - Allah is so Merciful. He didn't create life as one lengthy unit. He could have written that but Allah didn't do that way.
- Allah create each day as an individual unit.
- Allah create the night as the "eraser" - When we woke up the next morning, we woke up fresh. We don't bring the mistakes from the previous day with us nor we bring the success with us.
- The new day is a new opportunity. We can't live in the past...We can't assume everything that happened in the past, now all the sudden will just change us to who we are in the future...Everyday is a new challenge...
- Those people who have led their lives full of mistakes...it doesn't matter! You start over the next day! And those people who are striving in their deen...it doesn't matter too! The next day is another opportunity to strive!
- So, we should take this advantage!
أَصْـبَحْنا وَأَصْـبَحَ المُـلْكُ لله وَالحَمدُ لله ، لا إلهَ إلاّ اللّهُ وَحدَهُ لا شَريكَ لهُ، لهُ المُـلكُ ولهُ الحَمْـد، وهُوَ على كلّ شَيءٍ قدير ، رَبِّ أسْـأَلُـكَ خَـيرَ ما في هـذا اليوم وَخَـيرَ ما بَعْـدَه ، وَأَعـوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَـرِّ هـذا اليوم وَشَرِّ ما بَعْـدَه، رَبِّ أَعـوذُبِكَ مِنَ الْكَسَـلِ وَسـوءِ الْكِـبَر ، رَبِّ أَعـوذُبِكَ مِنْ عَـذابٍ في النّـارِ وَعَـذابٍ في القَـبْر. [مسلم 4/2088
"We have reached the morning and at this very time unto Allah belongs all sovereignty, and all praise is for Allah. None has the right to be worshipped except Allah, alone, without partner, to Him belongs all sovereignty and praise and He is over all things omnipotent. My Lord, I ask You for the good of this day and the good of what follows it and I take refuge in You from the evil of this day and the evil of what follows it. My Lord, I take refuge in You from laziness and senility. My Lord, I take refuge in You from torment in the Fire and punishment in the grave."
Jan 13, 2008
CINTA a.k.a LOVE
Allah's Messenger, sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam, said:
"If Allah loves someone He calls (angel) Jibreel and says: I
love so-and-so, so you love him. Jibreel loves him, and calls
the other angels in Heaven to love that person. They love him,
then his love will be made upon earth, and he becomes loved.
"And if Allah hates someone He calls Jibreel and says: I hate
so-and-so and you hate him. Jibreel hates him and calls the
angels in Heaven and says: Allah hates so-and-so, so you all
hate him. They all hate him, and his hatred is made upon earth
and he becomes hated." - Muslim
[Lessons from this hadith] People do things for the sake of
seeking out love from other humans. All the love you need is
found in obeying Allah. Do actions sincerely to win Allah's
love, and love will be yours!
[Suggestions on how to implement this hadith]
http://www.Powerworkshops.org in the "Free Stuff" section
With best wishes to see you succeed at the highest level!
- Muhammad Alshareef
Jan 10, 2008
[Review] Nikon School of Photography: Introduction to Digital SLR Photography
Saturday, March 10, 2007. I bold myself to attend this workshop alone at New York's Hotel Pennsylvania which is across from Madison Square Garden. Although NYC ain't that far from my place plus it was going to start at 9:30 am, I decided to leave a little early - around 8 am. And I thought the good fortunes to arrive early were that I could get the best seat, be relaxed and comfortable. However, when I arrived at the Penntop South Ballroom...whoa, I found out that almost half of the seats have been filled! Apparently, I wasn't the only one who wanted the best seat. Never mind. Just kept on looking for an empty spot in the middle row...and smile! finally, I found it.
I could see participants of different ages; but most of them from middle-aged people and very few teenagers. Furthermore, I found out from three women I chatted with, some of them were sent by their companies and some of them attended this workshop because of deep interest in photography. Also I noticed that most of them brought together their SLR digital camera except me, who brought a Nikon Coolpix S1...haha, at the moment I felt sO ashamed that I reluctant to bring it out =P. I was wrong when I thought I could also use it for this workshop despite I knew it wasn't a SLR camera.
Personally, I think I was pretty lucky to receive a free ticket from Nikon Inc. because the fee for this one-day-school is quite expensive for a college student like me, which is cost 119 bucks. If I were given a choice, I don't think I would want to spend my money on this workshop unless I am really into photography or going crazy with myself. You might be wondering why or how could I possibly get a free ticket to this school don't you? =D
Honestly, this was not really a free ticket - nothing in life comes for free or easy unless there is an "excuse."
I believe it wasn't until end of 2006 - i guess around late September or early November, i got a letter from Nikon Inc. I was kinda surprised to receive the letter since it has "return receipt requested" and "important" on it, which I knew there must be something important here. As I went through the letter, I was thrown again when it says, "We are writing to you in regard to a recent security incident at Nikon Inc. on September 12, 2006. The personal information you provided to us...has been made available to unauthorized persons." Astaghfirullahalazim! What's going on here? It wasn't long before I received a letter from PNC Bank saying that they detected a fraud case in my account! Sigh~
It made me pretty mad, but luckily, they said that they has remedied the security incident. They recommended me to contact the credit card issuer to discuss more about it and call the Nikon Consumer Relations Department if I need their assistance. Well, because of the incident, Nikon gave me a compensation; an automatic one year extension of "Nikon World" subscription and also a free ticket to the Nikon School of Photography. They also let me choose whether to attend "The Introduction to Digital SLR Photography" or "Streamlined Workflow Techniques".
Overall, the workshop was interesting even though it didn't meet my expectations. I guess I put too high expectations. Never had an any experience with photography workshop before so I think that's the reason why. What I'd expected was an active workshop - going outside to snap some pictures, breaking into groups and teaching us on group on how to use the SLR camera and so forth. But, when I think back, actually, "going outside to snap pictures" really doesn't sound right because where the heck are we going to take the pictures? In the middle of NYC with, I believe nearly three hundreds participants? lol...what a funny! =D
Just to give you some idea of what the workshop looks like - this workshop covers many things from technical insight and experience, sensitivity (ISO), Aperture - aperture vs f. number (sorry, I forgot what "f" stands for), program mode, shutter speed, image editors, RAW file, NEF file, EPSON printing, and color adjustment. There are also videos presentations, Q & A session, small booths located just beside the stage, and you can even meet the professional photographers personally during the break! Also, not forget to mention, your lunch is provided! So, basically you don't have to worry about getting hungry because they provide us with sandwich, fruits, snacks, yogurt, juices and sodas.
What I like most about this workshop is you don't leave empty-handed. They gave each of us two books, which are "Nikon School: Guide to Digital Photography", "Nikon School: Guide to SLR photography" and, also one Nikon notepad and a certificate of participation :). Besides, they gave us a CD of CaptureNX software but in trial edition - this software is only valid for 30 days from the moment you install it; just like other trials you find in the internet. In comparison to Adobe Photoshop, I like this software a lot more in many aspects such as it provides a user-friendly interface, you can make a quick adjustment at the point/area you want, and you can change the picture from normal view to "bird eyes" view or vice versa. You can also edit your picture from image histogram. (*disclaimer: this is just my petty sum. I am not a professional nor am I an expert in photography. Also, this is just based on my experience using Adobe Photoshop in year 2002-2003. I believe right now, there is a major upgrade of Photoshop.)
In short, I would highly recommend this workshop for those who are newly interested in SLR digital photography, thinking of getting or just bought a SLR digital camera, and has a strong financial support.
- and I still remember what Bill Durrence (one of the instructors) said about photography, "good photos combine ART and CLICHE" and "you're the one who treasure your photos...people can say anything about it, but only you know what your picture means"
Wallahualam~ (only God knows best) (^-^)y
Jan 5, 2008
SEEK out benefit
On the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah, sal
Allahu alayhi wa salla, said: "Seek out that which benefits you,
seek help only from Allah and never say you can't do it.
"If any adversity comes to you, do not say: 'If I had
only acted in such-and-such a way, it would have been
such-and-such;' but instead, say: 'Allah has decreed (it)
and what He willed, He has done,' for verily, (the word) (if)
opens the way for the work of Satan." - Saheeh Muslim
[Lessons from this hadith] If there is something that will
benefit you, make every effort and go after it! Seek it out.
There is no failure, only lessons.
[Suggestions on how to implement this hadith]
http://www.Powerworkshops.org in the "Free Stuff" section
With best wishes to see you succeed at the highest level!
- Muhammad Alshareef
bored~
it is a really lame boring day that i have nothing to do than just staying in my room. i wanna go for a walk but it's very cold and windy outside. hurm, i can't help myself but feel sleepy, watching Japanese drama and eating. i guess I'll gain some weight and have a chubby face.
sometimes it's good to have a long break, but sitting in the room all weekend and doing nothing is just miserable, right. actually, i could accomplish many things this whole weekend but i just don't wanna go for it - laziness has gotten its way, i guess. i could finish reading the "Muslim contributions to world civilization" book or at least finish reading the book that i received as a birthday present from my kak ana. sigh, really have to do something tomorrow! takleh biarkan kemalasanku bermaharajalela! Don't let syaitan win over me!
keampunan - Mirwana
i'm currently addicted to this song! gosh, it keeps replaying in my head! really gotta stop it now
di malam ini
tiada lagi...
purnama yang menerangi..
hanya sementara
berselindung balik awan
diselubung kegelapan sehingga kuterpenjara
lantas ku berlari jauh
mencari cahaya untuk menyuluh..
jalan untukku pulang..
Wahai Tuhan yang Agung
Kau yang Maha Pengampun
Andai diri Kau hukum
itu keadilanMu
Ku pohon maghfirahMu..
Ampunilah dosaku
tempat untukku mengadu..
kasihani hambaMu..
Disinilah hakikatnya..
aku tunduk aku akur..
dengan taqdirMu..
~Sebarang janji seringkali aku mungkiri..
tidak pernah sekali Kau menjauhkan diri
sedari mula tak mungkin dapat aku lari dari ujian semua yang telah Kau beri.."
