Last exam on wed. I think this sem chui. Haiz.

Too many things happening, and looking forward to all of them. My mum was asking why am i xin4 fen4 over things. I told her it's a way to make your life more exciting. Something to look energise and push you on in life.

Did some comparisons on 2nd hand cars. 52k can get you an 3 year old integra! Rawr. Too bad my parents are really against 2nd hand cars. It seems to them that the only reason why 2nd hand cars are out on the market are due to their (poor) conditions.

True, it CAN be one of them. But there are many others. Such as the car owner realises that he is unable to pay for it (guy probably lost money during the crisis), car owner feels that it's good to cash in and get some money to buy the things he wants now (probably a nicer looking car that he likes even more), car owner may not be using the car anymore (probably he's migrating or something). The point is that there are SO MANY 2nd hand cars on the market and at least half of the newer ones (<3 years) do not suffer from bad conditions.

In fact, there exist people who do a living from buying and selling cars. Depends on luck though, but as what serene said, the exact same car that was auctioned the day before appeared the next day with a higher price tag.

I've got a bu neng shuo de mi mi.

Anyway 3 down 2 to go! Really must pray friday's L&C won't be a killer. It's gan pua chim.

Okay there's plenty of Motivation Mechanisms, which are backed up by many theories of reinforcement.

Thorndike's Law of Effect.
Focuses on the effect created by the reinforcer. Emphasize that the only role of the reinforcer is to create the S-R association. Magnitude of the association is dependent on the outcome.
Cons: There's no role for rewards/expectations in this framework, and that it does not address what makes a reinforcer effective.

Hull's Drive Reduction Theory.
Concentrates on what makes a reinforcer effective. Concept of homeostasis: The need to maintain the ideal level with respect to certain biological factors. Hunger: If the animal is deprived of food, then the drive state of hunger will occur and this motivates the animal to engage in behaviors that will lead to food. If stimulus can effectively reduce a drive state, it is then a reinforcer. Primary reinforcers - Stimuli effective in reducing a biological need w/o training
Secondary reinforcers - Stimuli that are not primary reinforcers in their own right and become associated with the reduction of drive states.
Instrumental response is motivated by two factors: S-R and S-O.
Cons: Fell out of favour because of growing evidence of sensory reinforcement effects and the development of other conceptual frameworks to account for reinforcement effects. (Animals will do stuff just to receive sensory input.)

Modern Two Process Theory.
Claims Pavlovian and Instrumental Conditioning are distinct forms of learning. Stimulus present when response is reinforced, becomes associated with outcome. S-O association formed.
Stimulus motivates behavior by activating Central Emotional State via the S-O association.
If we are able to manipulate the CES, then we are able to control the response. Positive mood will increase response, vice versa.
Thus, stimulus which activates a CES would allow the presentation of a classically conditioned stimulus to influence the instrumental response rate.
Evidence: Transfer of control experiments. Conditioned emotional suppression did not elicit a response.

Premack Principle aka Differential Probability Principle.
Focuses on response rather than on stimuli. (Act of eating instead of food itself)
Critical determinant of whether a response would be reinforcing would be the PROBABILITY of the response.
The opportunity to engage in a higher probability response could serve as a reinforcer for a lower probability response.
Cons: Difficult to assign precise probability to responses and these probabilities change unexpectedly. Answers what makes a response effective, but does not answer the question of how a reinforcer increases the probability of a response.

Response Deprivation Hypothesis.
Similar to Premack Principle: Thought of reinforcers as responses instead of stimuli, and focused on the difference between instrumental and reinforcer responses.
Differences: Performance of a reinforcer response is restricted, but performance of the instrumental response is not. Also, a low probability response can reinforce a high probability response is the former is held at a level below its baseline level.
It is the response DEPRIVATION that makes the response reinforcing. Reinforcement effects are due to the response restriction placed upon the animal by the conditioning procedure rather than due to factors external to the conditioning procedure.

Behavioural Regulation Approach. ARGGHH help.
Does not treat reinforcers as special stimuli or responses.
Build on Response Deprivation Hypothesis, assumes restrictions on responses determine reinforcement effects.
Attempt to explain how a reinforcer increases the probability of a response. (Premack Principle's con)
Bliss Point: Preferred distribution of responses.
When an instrumental contingency is placed upon the animal such that it cannot distribute its responses in the preferred manner, it will attempt to approach the bliss point.
Animal in the absence of any behavioural constraints, will always respond at the bliss point.
Example of studying 15mins and TV 60mins.
However, if another activity can replace the reinforcer, then the reinforcer is not a very strong one.
Cons: Does not require information about molecular choice patterns which is crucial for influencing bliss point. Does not account that different activities may have different values depending on circumstances. Attempts to provide an understanding of the tradeoff between behaviours, but does not explain what processes are involved.

See that's the problem. Everyone wants a piece of the pie.

Parents called to wake me up yesterday and gave me a shock.

Exams start tmr! Jiayou jiayou jiayou!

Really can't wait for exams to be over.

“Be Fearful When Others are Greedy and Greedy When Others Are Fearful.” - Warren Buffett, World’s Richest Man

My gf probably thought i was crazy when i called her and said those nonsensical things just now.

But really, economical downturns and financial crisis are when fortunes are really made. It's really a pity i don't have the money and time now.

Look at what Warren Buffet is doing. Acquiring major companies for 'chicken rice money'. Only the brave becomes richer. Dare to venture out and stop limiting yourself.

It's funny why so few people want to take bank loans when the interest rates are so low now, buy stocks when they are so cheap now, and consider so damn much for average priced ones. All the talk about risks, and everyone suddenly let emotions rule over logic. Of course like what Adam always says, use only the money which you don't need. No money stay at home and daydream like me.

Everything's so damn cheap now, and ironically, i was complaining about the sky-high fuel price a few months back. With the major companies like DBS, Citibank, HP all cutting staff, and a looming recession, it's time to strike rich because this will mean a stock market recovery. Most people only look at their daily work as a source of income. Tell me how much you are going to earn with a 5K monthly salary. Yes a comfortable enough life. Yeah maybe i should just live simply. But life as myself only occur once and last probably for 70 years only. I still haven't bungee jump nor skydive yet. If you can take this kind of risks, why not financial ones? Is your life not as important as the money in your pocket?

It's a waste i don't have money now. History will repeat itself. Great depression happened yeah? What happened 10 years down the road? THINGS BECOME NORMAL AGAIN, and the people who dare to risk it are living the chivas life now.

It's really very interesting why i was so enthusiastic about the idea of a bubble tea stall in school especially when it's true that the best time to start a business is during a recession. Maybe it's true. Maybe i am just mad, or just lame as usual. But from the bottom of my heart, i see the potential there.

Scared this scared that. Go home and drink milk la. For those who know how to take advantage of all these, i will see your names on the richest people in town in the future.

And to think i hated maths.

Maybe it's easy for me to say now since i own nothing. If i own those damn shares and had to see the prices drop and drop everyday, i would have been pressurized to sell too. But really la ... the Dow is so low now because everyone only knows how to sell sell sell and sell. To help spread the word, out of the 5 investment banks, chui ones don't say. Left Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. Survival of the fittest, and when people went through a tough time, they will rise and recover even stronger. Go figure.

It's funny how i missed out Bernard and Abel in my thoughts when i was typing the previous entry. Car broke down and thankfully they came to my rescue dead in the night. Timing belt snapped and the whole engine gone case, and it seemed that the parts are almost non-existent. Luckily they found it so all's well.

I went down to their workshop just now and it was really nice talking to these old friends. It brought back memories of me playing CS with them. And i am really glad they 2 brothers have came out and carve a business for themselves. Business seems good and is picking up according to Bernard so that's good. Asked them for some advice on buying a 2nd hand car but too bad i don't have the purchasing power now.

Sometimes, i wish i have a source of income now. It does make things easier, but i guess got to wait till the opportunity comes. And of course, the job must be something that is not against my principles. HAHA. Too much talk with someone about selling backside these days.

Anyway, the financial crisis recently had negative people even more negative, and not surprisingly, the emergence of more money-making opportunities. Indeed, at times like this, or EXCITING times like this as quoted by Mr Jiang, it is really easy to strike it rich if you are lucky and daring to. Everything's cheap now ... Mum told me COE hit $2 for this month. If you have the capital, go for it. You will come out even richer. This is what makes a difference between poor people and rich people.

And recently, my future has been put on thoughts too many times for my liking. Perhaps its because i am already in my third year. What am i gonna do? Drawing a basic salary every month won't get you the swimming pool or the 3 convertibles you want. It's really in the business world where such possibilities lie. A boss paying you VS you being the boss? Nevermind, start working and get the capital first. No income, no talk about doing business.

I was thinking of Brad Bellick's death in the recent episode of Prison Break, and it was something that had lots of similarity to Charlie's death in Lost. Somehow, because of the fact that viewers know that Michael Scofield or his brother, or Jack and Kate ain't going to die because they are too big a character, when these 2nd tier characters die, we suddenly hit the realisation that we aren't going to see them anymore. Particularly for Bellick, whose bad-cop-turned-good character was pitiful, yet at the same time we needed a bumbling guy ... not so smart like Scofield, not so loyal like Sucre ... not so interesting as T-bag ... but someone to just fill up the remaining holes. He was the warden that never managed to keep Scofield locked in, and in Season 4 before he died, he still displayed signs of weakness when he suggested to Sucre to run away together.

But maybe his death is staged. Just like Sara's. Haha. Maybe he got washed down the pipe safely. =)

For now, Bellick, we will all remember you for your heroic sacrifice.

I hope after 94 fb messages, i don't need to file a missing person report.

Anyways, i just wanted to say that exams are coming really soon and i need to mug more. No more weekly affairs!! Went with ken to SMU last night for their Starry Night performance which made me once again felt the different aura exuded by the females from SMU. AND, i witnessed the crowd going crazy during xucun's performances. All i can say is that i am glad many of us have carved out our paths and developed over all these years. No matter how much stunts and stupid things we did back in cathigh, many of us are doing something proper now, earning recognition and affirmation.

I went to my granduncle's place for some lunch gathering. 3 things struck me. How much i've changed from a miserably shy kid who hates it when adults every year say how tall i've grown, to someone who actually enjoys chatting to not-so-familiar adults. How tedious it gets without my "an" cousins around because the uncles and aunties would all be wondering which "an" i am. And how much Jeff and Jon have grown. I worried for Jon seriously. He said some rude stuff to me which i could easily dismiss as mere child's misbehaviour, but too much adolescent psychology has taught me that this kind of things matters.

Went to watch Quantum of Solace. Pretty explosive but James Bond should act more "die-able". No one is afraid he might just die, because we all know he won't. Not even a bullet wound. Bought some new stuff for my fish tank and it's less "swampy" and more "Nemo" now.

MTT results are chui!

I am mugging until my brains are fried.

Today my car broke down for the very first time. Thus i got into a tow truck for the very first time too.

The coffee days have arrived!!!

Anyway today i did something that probably only someone like me would do. I was to guard a powerpoint in the library and as the time goes by, more and more people streamed in. Bad thing was i didn't bring any laptop so i didn't have any adaptor to like hog the holes. According to my experience in the library during the last week of school, usually the library would get really packed by noon. No way am i gonna hang on to the powerpoint for that long.

So i tore of my edge of the timetable(that's always in my file) which has this small piece of scotchtape behind it. I then pasted it over the powerpoint holes and wrote "SPOILT!" on it.

NONE of them even bothered to peel it off and test it.

SWITCH THAT WITCH SWITCH THAT WITCH!! LOL!

This is awesome with a capital K.

Haha found some photos that i've got absolutely no memory of on facebook from nana's bday ...

And seriously, what the hell was going on ... but anyway i shall create the story myself ...

Mr Yang here ... thought he's been going to the gym and his muscles are damn big now, is trying to rape me.
I resisted with only half of my might and manage to fight him off ...

So he changed his strategy and tried to bear-hug me into submission ...
Again i use my xiang long shi ba zhang to counter him ...

Haha! Me wriggling my finger to signal my victory!
Not so easy to subdue me!


But hmmm ... now everything looks damn gay.

So much things related to Soci lately. Obama's been elected President ... well it's definitely a step towards eradicating racial differences, but what's with the excessive mentioning of him being a Black? Doesn't that create more thoughts of discrimination inevitably? We will surely take a very long time to sort out these race issues.

And i heard on the radio news regarding Hong Kong's lowering of birth rates, about many females in Hong Kong refusing to give birth. Reasons are the typical ones like women having more power and independence as compared to the traditional times when it was necessary to depend on the males.

Similarly in tutorial on Mon, i was struggling to answer this issue about getting married, settling down and having kids. The topic was about the definition and formation of a family, and it seems that family can now exclude the children part.

But wasn't human made to reproduce? Isn't that our primary purpose? I cannot find another reason except personal selfishness for not wanting to have children. Blame it on the high living costs? Blame it on the extra workload? Didn't your parents give birth to you?

Alright then. Humans will cease to exist because no one wants to bear the responsibility for procreation. Wait for the neighbours!

Omg. Week 12 liao. No time. Damn shagged. No time to cut hair. No time to replace headlight.

Time to mug muggie mug mug! Be a chao mugger! Library here i come!!!