Magnetic discs kill cancer cells?
PARIS - TINY magnetic discs just a millionth of a metre in diameter could be used to used to kill cancer cells, according to a study published on Sunday.
Laboratory tests found the so-called 'nanodiscs", around 60 billionths of a metre thick, could be used to disrupt the membranes of cancer cells, causing them to self-destruct.
The discs are made from an iron-nickel alloy, which move when subjected to a magnetic field, damaging the cancer cells, the report published in Nature Materials said.
One of the study's authors, Elena Rozhlova of Argonne National Laboratory in the United States, said subjecting the discs to a low magnetic field for around ten minutes was enough to destroy 90 percent of cancer cells in tests.
In a commentary on the report, Jon Dobson of Keele University in Britain said antibodies could be used to direct the discs towards tumour cells.
'This provides an elegant and rapid technique for targeting tumour destruction without the side effects associated with systemic treatments such as chemotherapy,' Mr Dobson wrote. -- AFP
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Exams… 50% completed
It’s at this time of the year that I’ll be in a deeper relationship with my laptop. I’m touching it all over and I literally can’t take my eyes off her. She just seems so attractive and powerful. She gives me an avenue for me to alleviate my stress when I need to let go for a while. Allow me to express my confession to you. I love you darling. LOL.
Hail the power of RSS. With it, you can skip the needs to visit website. Just read the updates from your mail reader will do. You can read all your friends’ updates in an instant. However, I still prefer the traditional way of going to the site though. The look and feel of the website just gives me a more familiar appeal compared to the stone cold black text on white background you see in the mail. Haha.
I’ve been trapped in NTU for quite a while. Not quite sure what has been happening in Singapore except for what I’ve read from the updates my darling told me on straitstimes.com. I was thinking the high level of monsoon rain in Bukit Timah probably give the rich ones in that area to change a car. “Oh honey, looks like the car is in a bad condition. Should we get a new one?”, says the husband to the wife. Haha.
Something happened recently that was beyond my expectation. Just when you thought that someone would be nice to you or things will happen in a good way because you prepared for it, then it’s wrong. There can be no telling what the future holds for you, not unless you possess a pair of reveal-the-intentions/future type of eyes. I would like to have them if there were such a thing. Ha.
However, every cloud has a silver lining. Without the black, you can never see how pure white is. In comparison, I found someone else whom I could be worth being a better friend with. Let’s hope I’m right then.
My hair is still so damn short. It’s taking forever to grow back to that length. =/
Should I be more curious to poke further into non-personal matters or should I just stay out of it? Hmm… Still giving it a thought.
Kawaai Ne~
Here’s some pictures to help you destress the pressure for the exams. Although babies could be cute, there are some animals that look just so cute too!
Random
I think mashimaro looks better than the blue bird. Since I don’t use twitter anyway.
Have you heard of bladeless fan that works? Yes, there’s one and it’s even more energy-efficient than the ones that have blades. It looks easy to clean too. It seems like it’s a new technology from www.dyson.com/fans/
This song by Jay Sean is so addictive. I didn’t know he’s a UK-born Indian. But the part when Lil Wayne sings, it’s so irritating. He looks sleazy in the music video.
Is there a faster way of studying like burning the notes and tutorials and ingest them? =x
Blog Updates!
It was time for a change of template. Coincidently, the pictures from the previous template that were hosted for the blog were removed by flickr due user inactivity. I kind of like the new one actually. Colours are neutral to bright. Serves to remind me to blog about happy things more often. Bigger fonts and wider spacing. Good for old people like me. Ha.
However with every change of blog templates, some things will be removed such as the tagboard and my friends’ links. It’s difficult to add back the links one by one. I’ll keep a backup of the links next time then. Ha.
In addition, I realised that I had tried to use proper English for my blog posts since Dec 2005. I recalled that back then whenever I feel like it, I’ll just write, without even having second thoughts about filtering the words I want to say through my mind. Not that I have gotten any better in my linguistic ability but I seem to have gotten used to the part about thinking-before-I-say now. I can’t end up writing stuff that I know will cause outrageous outcomes.
I used to blog about many happy events that happened to me but I seemed to have less of these up here recently. Hmm, I should try to remind myself to keep looking at the brighter side of life. :) Perhaps the best of life is yet to be?
I think I look cuter! (Thick-skinned) Haha. I realised that such hairstyle is back in trend too. No wonder they says fashion recycles its trend every 10 years. Maybe I should start marking my old clothes when I can start re-wearing them again.
Gee, but those were the times that were so carefree. I want to go back to relive those times again!
Sports day photo. I can remember the primary school teacher’s name. A nice teacher. Funny how sometimes I can remember things 10 years back when I have difficulty recalling events 2 days back. Haha. Except for the 2 tall girls in my class, back then I was about the same height with everyone else! Just that I stopped sooner than other people too. Haha.
Hope that the new friendships that were made stay on~ =)
Repaying Kindness with Kindness
How many times have you recalled paying someone’s kindness back with kindness? Although it’s said that when you do a kind thing, it needs no paying back but if your kindness is received by someone who has a conscience, he or she will feel grateful to you and eventually will repay you with kindness in other forms.
But there are times I just suck. I’ve looked through old emails, letters or even little things my friends wrote to me ages ago. Some of which I had totally forgotten its existence. Reading through them brings back bittersweet memories. Those may be all the childish moments that were spent together, all the naive things done together or all the tears shed together. Their sincere thoughts are all penned down on that little pieces of paper in a hope that it gets through to my heart that I should never forget them. Somehow I felt that I didn’t treat these people as well as how they treated me and I haven’t find the courage to bring them back to my life.
Many times I felt grateful that my friends came into my life. I’m thankful that they had left an impact on me and shared with me what I couldn’t learn from just books or from parents. They were the ones I look up to. However, I was wondering just how many of them thinks that way of me? I know I’m the quiet sort that will just blend into the corner. So insignificant. Truthfully, I may not want to know that answer. Some things are better left unspoken.
But as with every friendship built, there are bound to be some that hurts you deep into heart. Walls are then built, facades are then maintained. Unlike mathematics, there’s no right or wrong how you should handle interpersonal relationships. I hope to find the right formula to keep my dear friends close to my heart and the rotten ones out of the universe as soon as possible.
=/
Getting you to see from my point of view is so difficult. You will always think from your interpretation that I didn’t care…
Sad recess week
Recess week is here. But it doesn’t seem like a break at all. This is when project work and lab assignments go full swing into motion. Every where around in school, I see a huge crowd of students: canteen, outside LTs, study areas, halls etc. It’s like the only people not here are the lecturers and tutors.
I had said no to a few outings. Rather rare opportunity to catch up with my friends but had to cancel it due to school work. =(
Sometimes, I look around my empty room when I take a momentary break for my eyes, I feel like putting things up to personalize my room. I don’t know since when I have felt so comfortable about my room that it felt just an extension from my home in Hougang. However, when I recall the pains (I could barely squeeze myself into the car after loading my stuff in it) of packing things back from hall in April, I had decided to drop the idea.
My girlfriend’s close friend was ill in leukemia. I recalled seeing her earlier on last year and she still looked healthy. She’s only 20 this year. Her blood type is A+ and she needs platelets donation.
Platelets are the smallest division in the blood that helps to clot blood to prevent prolong bleeding. As she has to go through chemotherapy, her natural platelets are constantly destroyed by the process. Platelet donations last only 3 days before they die off so it has to be scheduled by the hospital. If your blood type happens to be A+, please help her and contact me with your name and phone number. Thank you.
Stress…
I feel married to my computer engineering (CE) course. I’m sharing my all my precious moments with it. Spending time to understand and commit to it. I even dream about it. But like love, putting in effort doesn’t always reciprocate and give the same returns in terms of results. How satisfying my marriage is.
So as it is, if for the moment, I’m speaking a language that you people cannot understand, please bear with me. I feel more acquainted with computer language than human language…
Anyway, do you think it’s weird for someone who doesn’t like drinking to go suddenly go drink?
Thoughts
Year 2 semester 1 seems really difficult. Will I flunk? It takes more than just time to get the idea through. It seems like designing circuit isn’t really my cup of tea. It’s not my flair too… What’s more during the stressful conditions of the exams, I may just walk out of hall. Ha.
I wonder is it stress or sleeping late. I have lost lots of hair recently I think. I can no longer feel the thick and lustrous hair when I stroke my fingers through them. Sigh…
Yesterday I considered myself step down after the AGM. It felt like ORD when the 15th JCRC jumped in unison upon the declaration of the end of 15th AGM. A year has gone by. I really want to thank my subcommers for the hard work that they put in. Some of them really don’t need the points at all but they still come down to paint nevertheless.
Back To School
Life has been pretty sweet. Except GPA, everything else is going quite smooth. 
Now I have my own OGs to take care of.
Now the friends that I have around seem kind of different. Friends come and go at different times. I have known that and have embraced that truth. Maybe it’s just a part of me that always like to lament on that.
Year 2 is really a fast-paced one. I can’t seem to afford long hours of not doing work. Unlike in year 1 when I’m practically having HTHTs at all nights. Sigh…
I’ve gotten a book recently. It’s not a new one, I’ve seen it before. But now I don’t ever want to look back at it, especially at the last page.
Whether I get to stay hall again will depend on my commitments this year. I know what I have to do to stay again but why am I feeling so undecided?
Assumption =(
When I’m upset, there’s nothing specific I’ll do. I’ll just flip through everything I can see or find while my disarrayed mind tries to set things in order. I hate that. It’s not productive in any way but rotting my life away thinking about useless stuff. But I just can’t help it.
Assumption is good, probably only in science and mathematics, I guess. It’s actually bad when you’re talking about human relations. Like er… I think you’re thinking about that but I’m assuming you know I’m thinking like this. No… No good at all especially when the truth isn’t anything like what you assume. Yes, truth kills! Be it in any method that it’s delivered to you. Only difference is just which method hurts more that’s all.
Maybe I’m in the wrong. Just let me have a little corner to rant my frustrations out.
That’s Life, move on!
I’m back! Oh, what does that mean when I’m actually still in Singapore…
Took a few photographs with xiao bao’s camera. Added some nostalgic feel to it. How’s that? Does it look very 1980s? Haha.
I’m so addicted to a new RPG “Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4”!
Maybe if you had played previous version, you would have more idea what I’m talking about.
This game sets you into the future in 2011. Although it’s a turn-based game, it’s so interactive in terms of its game play. It’s entirely up to you how you want to strike a balance between the fighting-life and the social-life in game and different answers puts you in a different scenario. There’s so many things to do in there that you can never get sick of. Even when playing through the main game, it already takes you more than 35+ hours. Something worth a try. =)
I always think I spent so much time sitting that I would never get used to standing more than 2 hours. LOL, but my job proved that standing should be the least of my concern. Comparing that with the trouble of convincing irritating and demanding customers; facing the dual-faced permanent staff; working with solely profit-oriented boss; standing didn’t seem so bad at all! Fortunately, there are a bunch of NTU students there in the same plight as me. Sorrow shared, not as bad in the end. I don’t know how much they think of this work place but definitely not a place that I will return to.
Hmm, recently, I’ve seen my tutee more often than xiao bao. I hope she doesn’t mind too much. Haha.
Just a few weeks more, I’ll return to school not as a freshman anymore… Time passes really fast! It just runs faster after 21. Ha.
Whatever will be, will be
Sometimes little things you do can piss people off just like the subtle kind of actions that your friends do can do much to annoy. Perhaps we do get a little insensitive sometimes…
I haven’t been blogging about myself that much. Don’t know how I should write about it anymore.
Thought about the new lesson plan I should have soon. I may not be able to get the same lessons as Sont and Henry anymore. =( Feeling more distant in a way… Sucks.
Also thought about my commitment in the new year. I don’t feel like joining anything. Maybe just a thing or two. Pressure from parents to just focus on what I have to ‘do’. On the other hand, what about the pressure the hall seniors exert on you to influence the next batch of freshmen to be actively involved in hall? It hasn’t happen but I can see it coming real soon. When that comes, what will my choice be like?
Why do I seem to have a dual personality that I myself just cannot deal with… Friends think that I don’t get mad at anything but I’m not. In fact I can possibly get mad at anything.
Hi Mr. Ho, why am I so imperfect? Can I care more about the people around me and stop having to put myself in the centre of the universe?
Speed!
Happened to chance through the Firefox website and found 2 videos that I find amazing. Submission by people to represent the speediness of Firefox.
Somehow, according to the acid test, Safari 4.0 has overtaken Firefox in terms of the most compatible browser in the eyes of W3. However, I’m so addicted to Firefox, I think I’ll just stick with it.
Life’s like this
First H1N1 case in Singapore… Sounds bad that Singapore has become one of the list of unfortunate countries who received such cases. Wonder how many more people that shared the plane with her caught it.
On another note, I came across this Death Note Parody Website. There’s a funny video on the site, here’s the video.
I came across a website that allows you to create your own web avatar that may or may not resembles you. There’s lots of tweaking options available. Here’s mine. Do I look like that? Ha
Interesting Pool
World’s deepest swimming pool. 2 pools, 3 pits of 5, 10 and 33m. Total of 2.5 million litres of water!
Holidays
I was worried I couldn’t find time to play. I had lots of time now… Temporary job is so hard to find now. I can’t have the freedom to shop around unless I’m secured with a job! Moreover, now that it’s back to code yellow for swine flu, I don’t think companies are hiring people for temperature taking jobs then. I didn’t perform well for another interview. I think my main problem is I did nothing impressive.
Dear Mr Ho,
Please take note that chances for interview come rare. Please be more prepared next time you get one.
Signed,
Mr Ho.
Okay, it’s just a personal reminder. Sigh.
It’s been ages since I last went to zoo. 
Just when I thought Singapore Zoo was all about animals, I found something peculiar and went to check it out. They do exhibit random fruit like mangosteen! So there I was doing a random action for a candid photo. Ha.
At the end of the day, I wondered why the zoo didn’t offer free tram rides like Sentosa. We spent literally the entire day walking under the hot sun… It’s not like the zoo tickets are any cheaper than Sentosa entrance fees. Haha.
Learnt something more about myself again. I really shouldn’t be that gullible to believe everything people tell me. Yes, it’s just another pure reminder to myself only.
Another ending…
Another semester is coming to end soon. I’m feeling troubled by the things I can’t control. System bounds everyone to a thinking space restrained with so called rules and regulations… There are many people I want to help to get them into hall but even given the rights and power to argue for them, it is still insufficient. 
I just manage to dig out this photo that was taken last semester. That seems like a really long time back. Things aren’t really the same now… What was good then seemed different now. Maybe only when things change, then you’ll treasure the memories you left behind.
The nearer it is to exams the harder it is to focus. Recently, I had spend an hour camwhoring with JY in addition to getting hooked on other stuff like playing solitaire… Anything meaningless usually can seem like a break for me. I can’t wait for it to end yet I want more time to study. I bet everyone in hall is feeling the same I guess.
I’m starting to feel sick of staying in halls. Haven’t been going home for very long time. Missed everything back there. The home-cooked food, my bed, my TV, etc...
Met up with my brother and my mum today at Harbourfront for dinner. My brother would be enlisted on the day of my first paper so I thought I should see him again before that. I think it’s also miserable to spend a birthday in camp. He seemed like he is in a bad condition. Scars all over, no front teeth. If I was him, I would have filled with regrets over what I did to land myself in that situation. It seemed like he didn’t feel this way.
Mum told me that dad and her went to watch movies. They are not sure about the locations of the cinemas so they went to look around for quite some time. When they found it, they were told that dad could get the ticket at $4 under elderly discount category. It was then that I thought to myself that I hadn’t realise all these while when I’m growing up, time has passed so discreetly and had taken the youth out of my parents’ life too.
Now they are old enough to be considered an elderly. They are lost on where to go even in heartland areas like Ang Mo Kio. I supposed my dad is too hard on working that they hadn’t have time to take on ample leisure time to rest. It’s then that I thought that I should treasure them for all their love that they have given me to bring me to where I am.
My mum passed me a bag filled with cans of herbal tea and instant cup noodles. She knows that I’m too lazy to cook packet noodles so she put in cup noodles instead. Out came the words in Chinese, “You must know how to take care of yourself lei.” I felt touched deep inside. I didn’t think I show any expression though. It’s just not me who will show it directly. Would I have as much time to give back to them as they had for all these years?
I keep getting sore eyes. I haven’t been crying hard or doing something naughty. Oh God, please let me be well soon… Ha.
