Back the Future series

If you’ve time, you got to watch the series of Back to the Future films. Starred by Michael J. Fox and produced by Steven Spielberg, this is one of the best films i watched. The stories weren’t boring, though some scenes repeating (because the characters back to future and same time again, and they have to make sure they won’t change the history or don’t let their own selves to see them), it’s very fun throughout the whole movies. My favourite character in the movie is Doc. Brown who is a scientist that invents the time machine. It ranked #10 of top 100 movies must be watched in a person’s life time. For a movie produced 25 years ago, the quality and the idea about the future world was simply awesome. Recommended to watch, you’ll love it. =)

想增重了

今天又去了古晋节，作了一个免费健康测试。其实，他们是想要借这来推销他们的保健产品。填好表格后，量好身高，后体重。他们的体重计能粗略估计我们的体脂肪，内脏脂肪，身体水分，肌肉量，骨量，一天卡路里和新成代谢年龄。

除了要增加体重之外，其他算还好。以下是结果：

身高：165cm

体重：44kg （依我身高，我必须增重16kg到60kg才标准）

体脂肪: 17.4% （正常）

内脏脂肪：1 （正常指数是女性：2-6，男性：4-8）

身体水分：60.4% （正常指数是女性：50-60，男性：55-70）

肌肉量：34.3%

骨量:2.0 (55kg 以下：正常是1.95）

卡路里：1078

新成代谢年龄：16！

基本上，我是“underweight”，然后几乎没脂肪，应该说我的新成代谢太快了。吃的食物跟营养消化太快，所以我都不会胖。不过，那也对身体不好。现在还是要努力增重，可能以后吃饭要吃快一点。LOL。

分享：认识邪灵与如何利用真理来面对它

感谢主，差仆人王福牧师与我们分享华人的宗教信仰，尤其是华人对民间信仰的迷思。藉着8月10号的讲座，王福牧师继续带领我们来探讨这一课题：“认识邪灵与如何利用真理来面对它”。我把当晚的课程简略如下：

迷信之存在， 皆因众人（1）渴望平安，（2）帕鬼，（3）怕死（4）怕死后下地狱。这四大理由是民间拜假神，多神论（Polytheism）和偶像的原由。宗教的“宗”固名释义就是所拜的神的“源头”（Origin），比如有人看到“山”就拜“山神”，水就“水神”或“地”就“地神”；“教”就是“道德”（Moral），因此多数宗教都教人行善，做好事。这边先思想：“难道人本性为恶，所以要藉宗教的“庇佑”和“教导如何行善”而学行善吗”？

民间的迷信多从扭曲佛教与道教的信息而演变成的。佛教的最高境界是“佛”（靠修行达到觉悟，是圆满的智慧者），后是“菩萨”（指慈悲，很好心肠的修行者，例如观音），三是“罗汉”，接下来是“神”，“仙”，然后就是“鬼”了。“鬼”在佛教的定义里是那些死后六道轮回而进“鬼道”的往生人。民间的迷信多从扭曲佛教对“神”，“仙”和“鬼”的定义。比如，有人将佛陀当”仙“来拜，扭曲”观音“的真正性别，把民间传说当神来拜（聊斋，西游记）。这全部都从人们将心中的盼望（渴望得健康，富有，来生更好），惧怕 （鬼，被害），再由个人化想象，偏离真理演变而成的。除了佛教，回教也在可兰经谈过鬼，那就是叫人犯罪，拜假神的”撒旦“（Satan）。佛教归鬼有36种，但民间分五大种类的鬼分别是：（1）丧鬼（2）恶鬼（3）猛鬼（4）冤鬼（5）杂鬼

中元节或宜兰节，其源于佛陀弟子目连尊者因想念死後堕落在恶鬼道的母亲，想尽办法打救母亲的灵魂而请示佛陀。佛陀就立七月十五日，叫十方僧众备百味五果，举行法会，诵经施食来解救目连尊者母亲的灵魂。从此以後，佛教徒们都会在这天举行功德法会，为孤魂饿鬼超渡亡魂。按道教说法，道教称天、地、水为“三元”；元者，即是一切事物之开始。道教认为天地水三元之气，为最初生成人类，长养万物之根本，又把三元配置于农历的三个日子，称为“三元日”；上元日正月十五 （“上元一品天官赐福大帝”之生日），中元日七月十五 （中元二品地官赦罪大帝），下元日则为十月十五 （下元三品水官解厄大帝）；故此在农历七月十五，地官大帝会为鬼魂赦罪祈恩，释放狱中众鬼囚，让囚徒饿鬼解脱享食饱满免于众苦。

中元节在华人观念来看是具有孝亲的正面功能，在体现道、儒和佛文化的融合，其核心就是慎重道远的“孝”和推己及人的“仁”。所以期间，华人会敬拜祖先，提倡孝道。这边再思想：“难道人在先人生前是不尽孝道，要等他们死后才该孝敬吗？”本意是好的，但因为民间个人的自私，盼望祖先庇佑，祝福后人，能发达，平安才演变成今天对习俗跟信仰的迷思。除了渴望得到好处，惧怕得罪那些幽魂野鬼会找人麻烦也是导致今天对民间信仰的迷思。为何要怕鬼？为什么鬼那么令人惧怕？鬼存在吗？

人既有肉体，也有灵魂(人的灵状态生命形式,没有异能)，这是全部宗教都相信的。圣经说当人死后，死的是肉体，但灵魂被释放及被上帝审判，去了阴间或天堂。而"鬼"则是另一种先于人类存在的灵，且是邪灵、恶灵。它们的来源本在人类以先，上帝所造的天使。其中很多天使没有持守善，不守本份，与其中一位天使长共同反对上帝，它要自立为上帝。被上帝惩治以后，不能再呆在天上，于是到世界上来，按照它们的罪恶性情为害人类。

人因堕落而有罪，这些就是邪灵在人做的工作。这些邪灵盼望人犯越多罪，越堕落越好，好然人们脱离真理，反抗上帝。它利用人的潜意识的罪，贪婪，民间封建迷信的那一类（相信有超能力者为神）来达到它的目的。世间上所谓的“风水师”，“巫师”，“法师”，“通灵师”，“算命师”其实背后都是“鬼作祟”。人是不可能有异能，超能力，如果不是背后有邪灵附体，一个正常人如何知道一个人的过去，将来，又或者如何行降头，打小人，赶鬼，得真字？我们俗称的神棍就是一个养“小鬼”，借助邪灵的力量而行事，进而骗财的这样一个堕落的人。这些人不称那些能力是“鬼”所做的，而只称某元帅，或者某神祇，乃是鬼进入他们时，自称的身份。鬼总是借民间的英雄或者神话英雄如二郎神之类自称，以令人们既畏又敬，绝对顺从它。这种拜假神，寻求超能力量的邪恶行为必须严厉打击与禁止，因为"鬼"即邪灵，是怀着对上帝的仇恨来做这一类事的，目的便是混乱对上帝的信仰。使人产生敬拜它们也可以得到平安，求问它们也能够预知将来祸福的错误认识。

身为一名基督徒，应当对真理认识，信仰坚固。当我们认罪悔改，领受耶稣为我们死和钉在十字架上的宝血，邪灵无法攻击我们，引人犯罪。

这堂讲座让我获益不浅，当我们基督徒不断装备自己时，也该了解这些邪灵在非信徒身上所作的工。今天，邪灵利用世人对民间信仰的迷失让人用它成为害人的工具时（引人犯罪），明天它可能利用这些人的弱点来扩大它邪恶的国度，到时全世界人人皆堕落，败坏。你想这样吗？

当亚当夏娃吃下那禁果时，上帝大怒赶他们出伊甸园。邪恶的魔鬼得逞了，因为它引了上帝喜爱的亚当夏娃犯罪，堕落。当亚当夏娃犯了罪，行了魔鬼所喜悦的事，他们有被魔鬼继续看守，搭救吗？没有！反而是那至高至上的耶和华，不断地看顾那犯罪的亚当夏娃和他们的后代，甚至派祂儿子耶稣基督道成肉身为众人死，流出来的宝血洗清我们的罪，并让我们成为祂的儿女，称祂为父。感谢主！

这堂信息除了让我更了解民间迷信信仰，也让我装备和警惕自己，惟有不断寻求真理，才能坚固自己的信仰，才免于被邪灵攻击。也希望我的朋友跟家人们，如果你还没信主，是时候该确定你的信仰了。=）

What Scientist Are You? I AM Edison, Thomas

Thanks Xiang Ru for the link. My result is: Brilliant, methodical, patient. Edisons believe in using teamwork to solve problems. They see the value in testing 800 compounds before finding the right one. It may not be as sexy as getting it right on the first try, but without thinkers like you, we'd all be in the dark.

 

Never realized Edison looked like that.

Short talk: I want to be as rich as him, he invented so many things and have almost all of their patents.. wow can’t imagine if i have the chance. LOL. Besides, even i have patience to try one by one for troubleshoot experiment, the reagent still will finish. It’s not something we can control!! *Desperately need miracle and money”

I want to finish it!

5 months to go.

I still stucked at my qPCR experiments

One more round for microarray

6 more patients yet to be recruited

One more ELISA to be done

I have to finish them all in 5 months!

Can I?????

MSc in Cardiology

It might sounds crazy if one has double-master degrees instead to further to PhD level. My boss introduced this program to me, at first i also thought there is impossible for me to take another Master degree while i still struggling hard to complete my current project in UNIMAS. But surprisingly, after i read the course program, i actually quite interested to take this course. It can be done in part time in two years time, and solely coursework based program. I always have the chance to collect patient’s medical information from their medical reports and somehow i find it’s quite interesting to see how Doctor diagnosed the patient using non-invasive cardiac procedures such as MRI, angiogram, Echography, stress test and electrocardiogram. Most of the case reports published are based on interesting findings from these diagnostic tools. And if you realize, any interesting research hypothesis are actually drawn from these case reports first. This make me wanted to understand the diseases thoroughly from views of basic science (what i do now) as well as from clinical side. I believe this can give me more strong background in clinical cardiology though i’m not from medicine field.

To be frank, the research cultures in “Boleh-land” isn’t strong and always caught less attention than other high demanding fields (this is very sad, but is true), i got a silly thought that if i have this clinical background, maybe next time can become cardiology technician as plan B. LOL. Whatever, just a wild idea, it still have to be considered seriously if really want to take second Master degree, money and time measures the most. Can i get some comments from you all? Please! Thanks.

Journey to USA - day 19 to 21

Is time to say Bye Bye to States, it was indeed a memorable trip with lots of things to see, especially the beauty of natures. I went back to Malaysia with Stephanie first, while my bf and his parents stay in States for 3 more days. After they dropped us at LAX airport, they returned the car, changed to smaller car, and then traveled to San Diego (one of the places i wish to go in my life time, and i missed it!).

We continued our 30 hours flight from LA to KCH, and stopped by San Francisco (SFO), Pudong (PVG) and KLIA for transit flights. The seating space was small as usual, foods weren't that nice compared to our flights to States 20 days ago, and there's no tv on front seat. It was quite boring yet felt the flight rather short, without realizing the time has gone for 12 hours, we landed at PVG then transited to KLIA in a midnight flight.

We reached KLIA when it was 1:15 AM of 2nd June (Tuesday), GMT+8 hours. Surprisingly, we two quite awake even the long tiring flight. When i finally landed at KCH, my mom called me that my whole family was in Sibu and i got to spend my day at my aunt's house. And yea, i enjoyed a bowl of Kampua noodle before i went to my aunt's house.

That's the end of my journey to USA in 21 days. See alot, eat alot, learn alot, suffer alot (the weather there), LOL, i wish there is chance to visit this wonderful country again! Maybe 10 years later, i'll bring my kids to Orlando's Disneyworld.