My key learning points from each session...
Importance of Water - Dirty and Clean
We are very fortunate to be living in a country where clean water can be accessed easily. Unlike third world countries, pollution of water can easily be found in sewages and even rivers.
Pollution leads all the way back to 1700-1500 BC. There were lack of sanitation facilities, no ‘drinkable’ water (They had water to drink but it was actually unfit for human consumption), and there were a lot of death from waterborne disease crete.
Problems usually found in Polluted Water are microbes such as Cholera, Typhoid fever, Brainerd Diarrhoes, Dysentery. The germs usually come from animal contact. Some examples are humans, cattle and even elephants. The effects of pollution will usually lead to foul smell, infectious diseases, chronic health risk and environmental degradation.
Revolution of Microelectronics Technology
Asia is becoming a focal point for electronic companies. Integrated Circuit are mainly made of the 9 ‘O’s which is: Bio, Radio, Auto, Info, Nano, Water (Hydro), Audio, Video and Energy. Now, with the convergence of biology and electronics at the nanoscale seen in the 21th century.
One of the earliest signs of the beginning of the revolution of Microelectronics Technology is the Z-1. It was invented by Konrad Zose in 1936. It was the first freely programmable computer. It was then further developed by three men in 1956.
Some examples of the revolution of Microelectronics Technology are like:
Boombox-Walkman-Discman-MP3- iPods
Mobile Phone (700+ grams)- Mobile Phone (100+ grams)
Endoscope- Camera Pill.
Biomedical Engineer & Technology
We learnt three different types of technology. Nano Technology, Bio Technology and Defense Technology.
Nano technology makes use of the concept that with the same volume, make it smaller to get more energy, to create a material 10 times the strength of steel but only a fraction of its weight. It also test out different impurities to get different colors, to create like different colors for contact lens.
Technology that they use are like the electron microscope and the surface area analyzer.
Bio Technology is used for cataract emulsification of lens and Bio adhesive for hip implant.
Defense Technology is creating pixels on the uniform to be of the same size as a iris so the enemy would not be able to spot them from afar.
IT for Animation
Animation is a common past time for children nowadays and it is also a form of entertainment for people of all ages. To create a second in the animation, one would have to take 24 frames of the picture.
There are currently 2 types of animation, 2D & 3D. The production cost for 2D is higher as it requires picture by picture drawing and a lot of manual labour is involved.
Maths and Science is also very important in animation. For example, physic, when the wind blows, how would the curtains or certain objects move and also maybe when an object is falling, the understanding of gravity will be needed, like when a vase falls and a feather, the motion will be completely different.
Disappearing Glaciers, rising sea levels and why gravity is even more important than you think
A space geodesist measure the shape and size of the earth, its gravity field and how those things change overtime with space-based techniques.
GRACE satellite is a gravity recovery and climate experiment have helped to measure the movement of the earth via its positions in space.
Self attraction & Loading (From Melting Glaciers) are the spatial variation. They can actually calculate the gravitational attraction. When a glacier is located onto of a solid surface (usually land) and is located near the sea level, it might cause the sea level to rise when it’s crust is depressed. However, when the crust rebonds, the sea level will then drop.
Deepest Impression
The plenary session that leaves the deepest impression on me is the session by Emma Hill. In her presentation, I could easily understand what she wants to talk about because she went right into the topic, Melting Glaciers, and she illustrates why is it that when the crust is depressed or rebonds, the sea level will rise or drop. Illustration actually helps me understand it better and also her presentation is easier to understand as almost all of us knows what is a glacier. Unlike other presentation where we have completely no knowledge about it so when they try to explain it to us, it is harder for us to understand as well. I also find the part where she states that since crusts rebonds at one country, the surrounding country’s sea level will actually rise, so Singapore is actually at a high risk of having it’s sea level to be increased as Singapore has no glaciers.
