tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-249738642008-07-04T21:42:12.925+08:00chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comBlogger1056125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-51583743574593817312008-07-04T21:41:00.001+08:002008-07-04T21:42:13.005+08:00

Mechanical engineering and material science students study crack propagation and fracture mechanics as cracks are the common culprits in some of the most catastrophic disasters in the world. When there is a crack, no matter how small it is, it grows (or propagates, a term that makes you sound more intelligent). There is no turning back and as the crack grows longer, the object becomes weakened

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-21448027479794306672008-07-03T21:30:00.001+08:002008-07-03T21:34:21.273+08:00

Bus rides (and train rides) are like one night stand. One day, you see a pretty girl on the bus. You can see her, you can hear her, you can smell her (if you 2 are close enough), sometimes you can feel her (accidentally, I hope). Your eyes meet. Sometimes her arm accidentally rubs against yours. Sometimes you can feel her warmth radiating off the skin. But you don't know her. You don't mind

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-27827323966323877302008-07-03T13:55:00.001+08:002008-07-03T13:56:26.730+08:00

nicholl: you very the pv leh! chow: pv? nicholl: perverted.... pressure volume! pressure volume as in the famous ideal gas equation PV=nRT, or the PV diagram. Nicholl graduated from NUS Mechanical Engineering, specialising in Energy and Thermal Process. See that's the kind of conversation you have when you put 2 mechanical types together. (had a great coffee session with Meder, Alex and Nicholl

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-73084420878916153542008-07-02T10:10:00.000+08:002008-07-02T10:10:28.637+08:00

Have you seen the small fountain at Suntec City Mall? (the small indoor one, not the gigantic Guinness record outdoor one) Have you wondered how come the water droplets seem to be suspended in mid air? Or sometimes even moving up? So the other day a friend and I were at the fountain and discussing how it works. The computer engineering graduate was saying something about beads moving up or

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-13577942723637062332008-07-01T11:09:00.000+08:002008-07-01T11:09:22.949+08:00

Yesterday I was ordering food at Long John Silver's. It wasn't peak hour lunch time yet, so the place wasn't crowded. I ordered a set meal, $5.50, I gave the cashier a $10 note. He told me he didn't have change. Neither do I. It wasn't like me paying for $5.50 fast food with a $100 note, or me taking public bus with a $10 note and asking the bus driver for change. I always thought they start a

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-72628324810231045092008-07-01T09:20:00.000+08:002008-07-01T09:20:40.833+08:00

If you are into HVAC (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning), thermodynamics, heat transfer and the sort, HVAC Asia 2008 may be of interest to you. You will get the chance to see latest products and technologies in the relevant area. As long as people need air-con and refrigerator, they will need HVAC engineers. Date: 2-4 July 2008 Venue: Singapore Expo Hall 3 Thanks mavis for the tip-off!

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-76781131717505704922008-06-30T21:11:00.000+08:002008-06-30T21:11:40.431+08:00

Hiya people! Yours truly here with his crappy blog has gotten into top 10 of S'pore Blog Awards Best Individual Blog category! From 30 June till 31 July, you can vote for your favourite blogs from each category, and for each category you are allowed to cast one vote each day (ie, you can vote everyday till 31 July). Register as a voter, and stand a chance to win travel packages. (wah, if only

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-20448005284285929112008-06-30T18:55:00.000+08:002008-06-30T18:55:22.690+08:00

If you fire up your Firefox 3 and type "about:robots" in the URL bar, you will get this screen... (the page title "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!" comes from the classic 1951 movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still") Technology retard me didn't join in the first wave of people downloading Firefox 3, but only installed it last week. Compared to Firefox 2, FF3 is significantly faster, especially on my

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-39925090158750398502008-06-29T11:14:00.000+08:002008-06-29T11:14:23.668+08:00

It has been a long time since I last so enjoyed reading a book. In The Seven Secrets of How to Think Like a Rocket Scientist, Jim Longuski talks about the 7 secrets of how to think like a rocket scientist (duh!) His words are humourous, his stories interesting. Chapters are bite-size, usually 2 pages long and you can finish each under 5 minutes, good for people like me who like frequent breaks.

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-37431331399174094032008-06-28T21:52:00.001+08:002008-06-28T21:57:34.735+08:00

Went to the Singapore Toy & Comic Convention 2008 today at Suntec Singapore International and Exhibition Centre with rinaz. Man, it was literally breathtaking. I reached before they opened the door at 11am and the place was already filled with people, the queue winding worse than you can ever try on Nokia phone's Snake. You know why? The first 1000 visitors got a free Be@rbrick figure. Urgh!

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-78233574298391285382008-06-27T15:13:00.002+08:002008-06-27T17:53:34.289+08:00

Photo taken on North-bound MRT train at 11pm. (note: the guy was sitting right in the middle of a crowded train's walkway) Homosapiens sure can adapt to environment. The next thing you know, people may take out teapot and cup set, or even rice cooker in the train!

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-91825057514819937652008-06-27T14:15:00.003+08:002008-06-27T14:18:17.338+08:00

chillycraps: I don't like to work with π (pi) mr fong: Why? You not hungry? mr fong: I know why they put pi already. It's food for thought. mr fong is a maths tutor.

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-40703249168408932712008-06-26T14:42:00.000+08:002008-06-26T14:42:27.467+08:00

Or you can give your classic WTF face, the one you always give at project meetings. -- yk So that's how my project groupmate views me.

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-26049374853846569442008-06-25T15:33:00.000+08:002008-06-25T15:33:16.646+08:00

After having lunch at NUS Arts canteen, I went to the washroom to wash my hands. There was this guy at the urinal and all this while I was at the washing basin, his head was turned and his eyes looking at me wash my hands. (I could see from the mirror. I not as powerful as him to be able to look behind and do my whatever business) What's so interesting about me washing my hands? I was kinda

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-20147887665692060522008-06-25T08:51:00.001+08:002008-06-25T08:52:40.993+08:00

... everyone knows how to BS. BS is making stuff up, telling stories, trying to amuse, and is definitely irreverent. BS knows no decorum, no bound, no fear, and no respect. We all do it. BS is fun, BS is playful, BS is creativity without constraints. Do rocket scientist BS? They sure do! They love to do it and they love to hear it. Why do they like sci-fi so much? -- Jim Longuski, Ph.D. The

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-19089051083675966612008-06-24T22:25:00.000+08:002008-06-24T22:25:36.055+08:00

Some people just like to disgrace themselves at their doorstep. It was on the day I came back from my trip. The plane had arrived at Changi Airport and had berthed at the terminal. Naturally the passengers would stand up, open the luggage compartment and retrieve their hand-carry luggage. This kid who sat in front of me, some secondary school kid, stood up to take his luggage, and close the

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-21513263408171214092008-06-24T13:58:00.000+08:002008-06-24T13:58:14.801+08:00

It isn't that difficult to make someone's day, even if it's Monday. Yesterday early morning I went into Dean's Office of NUS School of Design and Environment for some official business. Not sure was it because of Monday blues or something, the 2 ladies who attended to me one after another had that slightly contorted face on them. But when I said "good morning" to them, their face loosened up (

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-61006304427626789972008-06-23T22:21:00.001+08:002008-06-23T22:31:40.360+08:00

m says: bee kay is dee kay sister is it? BK = Burger King DK = [for me to know, for you to find out] Was having fun playing with acronyms like Ant Yew Ass, Pea Eye Eee and Kay Eff See. (dk: no offense ok!)

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-8788600859454130242008-06-23T13:40:00.000+08:002008-06-23T13:40:28.251+08:00

Another video clip, the transfer from terminal to the airplane. 5 minutes long. If you want to feel like some politicians walking down the stairs at the airport, fly budget airlines.

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-43542137934377375332008-06-23T06:41:00.000+08:002008-06-23T06:41:20.766+08:00

. Yesterday a friend asked me what's the point of uploading (or is it recording?) the video clip in my previous blog entry. I simply answered "no point." Do we always have to have a point when doing things? Are we always objective-driven? For me I'm more into process-driven. In fact if you ask me every blog entry one by one what's the point, I can't answer you. There's no point. I think it's

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-39693890916146424792008-06-22T13:30:00.000+08:002008-06-22T13:30:32.166+08:00

Weirdo me recorded a 50 minutes-long video clip at the first row of the upper deck of a bus, traveling around the less attractive places in Hong Kong. Please prepare your own vomit bag. From Shatin to Tsuen Wan, Tsing Yi and finally Lantau Island and Chek Lap Kok, along the way you are going to find Shing Mun Tunnels and the famous Tsing Ma Bridge, which is the world's 7th longest suspension

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-38499358945203137912008-06-21T21:05:00.000+08:002008-06-21T21:05:30.760+08:00

After some 14 days away from the keyboard, I'm back! To be honest it feels weird to be touching the computer again. The mouse moves so smoothly, the keys seem to be at the wrong positions, the screen too bright, etc etc. I went to China and Hong Kong (which is part of China btw. Singapore isn't.) during this period, having fun with a 100-year record rainfall and flood that kept me indoor most

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-50911822383836202732008-06-08T09:18:00.001+08:002008-06-08T09:18:41.672+08:00

Dear Valued Readers, I will be away from keyboard for a couple of days/weeks with limited or no Internet access. For urgent matters, please find your own solution. Thank you. If not, I will be updating my twitter (the box to the right) when possible, so stay tuned. Oh, I know you guys won't miss me. Regards chillycraps Head of Department Department of Crappy Engineering

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-83193233173217111302008-06-07T16:22:00.001+08:002008-06-07T20:58:06.390+08:00

I have this weird habit. I usually sleep early and wake up early. And when I sleep, my handphone sleeps as well (ie, I switch off the handphone when I sleep) So when people send me SMS at night, I will receive it the next morning at around 5+am, and naturally people reply to messages right after reading them. And when people get woken up by their handphones' message tone, they become grouchy.

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24973864.post-50365396715432890252008-06-06T21:57:00.000+08:002008-06-06T21:57:22.745+08:00

The other day I was having lunch with my summer programme mates, and I was taking off the shell from the prawn using a fork and my teeth when this 2 Penn State University girls froze there and just observe me unshell the prawns. Ermm... can you guys also unshell the prawns without getting your fingers dirty? That's another lunch at Science canteen, with Elise and Wendy. No stripping (of prawns)

chillycrapshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00364275163064391252noreply@blogger.com