一生中收效最高的習慣

一生中收效最高的習慣 (節錄自80/20定律 Richard Koch)：

習慣 收效
天天健身 更健康、更有吸引力，感覺更棒
天天動腦 保持思維敏捷，提高智力水平，從思考中獲得樂 趣
每天做一件有益於他人的事情 收獲快樂
每天深思或者靜想 保持頭腦清醒、不混亂；做決策會更加明智
每天向你的愛人表達愛意 留住他或者她；讓他們感覺幸祝福
只要條件允許，就不吝借你的 讓別人和你自己都保持良好的心態
表揚或感謝
節約收入的10%用於投資 沒有金錢之憂的未來
對朋友慷慨 更深的交情；感覺更好
每天總有2-3小時的純休息時間 恢復能量，保持身心健康、偷快
永不說謊 贏取他人的信任；建立良好的聲譽
永遠保持平和與放鬆 感覺更好，身體更健康，壽命更長
集中注意力在那些煩擾你的事情上 以少求多、事半功倍
經常自問：怎樣才能事半功倍 不論條件如何，都能大幅度提高工作效率

Bird Flu --Deadly Pandemic

Is Asia ready for bird flu?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4360334.stm
By Chris Hogg, BBC Hong Kong correspondent

In one market near where I live in Hong Kong there's a vision of the future.

It's a stall that sells the chickens the Hong Kong housewives like to buy still alive to ensure their freshness. But the stall-holder and her birds are behind a pane of glass that stretches from floor to ceiling. She is in effect encased in a large box. She's almost completely separated from her customers. When they buy a chicken she kills it, plucks it and wraps it up before passing it through a small gap in the wall. The customer's contact with her or her birds is reduced to a minimum.

These are the kind of measures the scientists say are needed throughout Asia if we're to have any realistic chance of protecting ourselves from bird flu - in addition to the stockpiles of anti-viral drugs like Tamiflu or the yet to be produced anti-bird-flu vaccine. But in reality we're not going to see measures like that across Asia.

'A plane ride away'

While Hong Kong might be what the World Health Organization (WHO) describes as the 'gold standard in terms of surveillance and measures designed to prevent the emergence of bird flu', poorer nations in South East Asia just don't have the same kind of resources to throw at the problem.

That is the biggest issue facing Asian governments. The bird-flu virus H5N1 has been circulating in this region for at least two years.

Not ready

Compare that with the situation in Vietnam today.

The New York Times reported recently that while two years ago when a case of bird flu was discovered every chicken within a radius of about 5km of the infected fowl would be slaughtered, today officials kill only those birds in an infected flock that do not die from the disease itself.

The reason, the newspaper says, is a lack of money to compensate the farmers. And then there are the allegations of corruption in Indonesia which mean the country has to test its entire stock of bird flu vaccine because government auditors suspect companies have produced doses of inferior quality to inflate profits.

Or fears raised by opposition politicians in South Korea that the government doesn't have enough intensive care facilities to treat a mass outbreak of any kind of communicable disease.
So yes, Asia has woken up to the threat posed by this disease.

But is it ready? No, there's a lot to do.

Although in some places they're doing their utmost to take adequate precautions, this region is nowhere near a position to fight an outbreak in anywhere but the most developed or affluent areas.

"We are hoping the resources now being discussed in the West will now make it possible to protect the populations of the poorest countries," says the WHO's Peter Cordingley, but he warns "It's a slow business, and how long do we have?"

For more information on 'How bird flu has spread', see http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/world/2005/bird_flu/default.stm

For bird flu's impact on the globe, please refer to

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4531500.stm

Take part in the largest climate experiment ever

Do you want to take part in one of the largest climate experiments in human history? The only thing you need to do is to share the computing power of your PC via a technology known as distributed computing. You simply download a software from the following website and follow the instruction then you can take part in the modelling of global climatic change.

http://bbc.cpdn.org/index.php

The result of the experiment is crucial to our understanding of the current situation of global warming. For more information, please refer to

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/hottopics/climatechange/

Saving the frogs

Amphibians are more vulnerable to fungal attack than they were in the past. Pollution and degradation of their habitats as a result of human activities are to blame. Two scientists from the U.S. are tracking some rare species in different parts of the world and hopefully their effort will raise the public concern over the plight of these endangered amphibians.

For details of their excursion, please check the following video clip from CNN.
http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/tech/2006/02/20/schulder.endangered.frogs.cnn

To be an information literate person

I attended a seminar on ‘Analysis of students' performance in CE Biology 2005’ last month. The question and answer section of the programme reminds me of the importance of information literacy in teaching profession.

During the Q&A section, some teachers questioned whether breast milk contains enzymes or not . A professor from the faculty of Education (CUHK) insisted on the lack of enzyme in breast milk, but some teachers argued that enzymes like lipase and lactase could be found and information of this kind is available on the Internet.

In today's highly connected world, all information is available at the finger tip and is easily accessible within a few 'clicks'. In the era of 'Googlization', no one can dominate the source of information even the experts. Instead of serving as information providers, teachers should change their roles as facilitators and help students to become information literate.

Information literacy(IL) is common to all disciplines, to all learning environments and to all levels of education. It enables learners to master content and extend their investigations, become more self-directed, and assume greater control over their own learning.

In the digital era of rapid technological change and proliferating information sources, IL forms the basis for lifelong learning.

Are you ready for the challenge? Please refer to the following checklist to see if you are information literate.

An information literate person is one who:

Recognizes that accurate and complete information is the basis for intelligent decision making
Recognizes the need for information
Formulates questions based on information needs
Identifies potential sources of information
Develops successful search strategies
Accesses sources of information including computer-based and other technologies
Evaluate information
Organizes information for practical application
Integrates new information into an existing body of knowledge
Uses information in critical thinking and problem solving

Seven faces of information literacy

Information literacy experienced as:
1. Using IT for information retrieval and communication
2. Finding information located in information sources
3. Using information processes for problem-solving, decision making
4. Controlling information (recognizing & managing relevant information; making connections between information, projects, people)
5. Constructing knowledge in an unfamiliar area
6. Extending knowledge
7. Using information wisely

If you are eager to develop you information literacy, please visit the following website and try the interactive tutorial. You may log in via the guest account.
http://tilt.lib.utsystem.edu/

For more resources on information literacy, please visit
http://www.du.edu/~miclark/tutorial/

資訊素養
維基百科，自由的百科全書
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B3%87%E8%A8%8A%E7%B4%A0%E9%A4%8A

知識管理
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%9F%A5%E8%AF%86%E7%AE%A1%E7%90%86

資訊素養 Information literacy
http://www.lib.pu.edu.tw/~jiang/lib-science/info-literacy.htm

The University of Hong Kong Libraries
http://lib.hku.hk/

獅子和羚羊的故事-全球化下的職場寫照

每天早晨在非洲，都有一隻羚羊醒來

知道一定要跑得比最快的獅子還要快，不然就會被吃掉

每天早晨都有一頭獅子醒來

知道一定要撲上最慢的一隻羚羊，不然就會餓死

不論你是獅子還是羚羊

當太陽升起，你最好快跑

開天殺價的本領

一間工廠的機器壞了，整條生產線都給拖累，也停下來了，不知怎麼辦。廠長請來已退休的工程師求救。這位老工程師用手拍打機器，不斷地拍打，拍打到了某一個位置後就說：「就在這裏！」

然後在衣袋裏取出一支粉筆，在這位置上打一個X，他促維修人員在這裏維修，結果機器弄好了，生產線也恢復運作。

過了幾天，工廠嘆收到這位工程師的賬單，盛惠一萬大元。
「什麼？只是用粉筆打一個X就收一萬大元，這豈不是開天殺價？」廠長紿嚇壞了！

老工程師在回覆信中列出服務費用清單：
粉筆一支 $0.5
打一個X的勞務費用 $0.5
準確地知道在那裡打一個X $9,999
________________________________________
共 $10,000

這9,999元就是工程師的知識回報，他與一般工人的最大分別在於化擁有別人沒法取代的附加價值(Added Value)。

世界是平的

小時候我常聽爸媽說：「兒子啊，乖乖把飯吃完，因為中國跟印度的小孩沒飯吃。」現在我則說：「女兒啊，乖乖把書唸完，因為中國跟印度的小孩正等著搶你的飯碗。」

這是比爾蓋茲已經推薦過N遍的一本書。他說，這是一本所有決策者、企業員工都必須讀的一本書。

說，所有的MBA都在讀《世界是平的》。《財星》雜誌說，全美國的州長、國會議員都在談《世界是平的》。大學校長在畢業典禮建議，進職場前應該先讀《世界是平的》。有的商學院甚至要新生來報到前就先把《世界是平的》讀過。

只要有寬頻，只要有雄心，不管你在哪裡，都不會被邊緣化。因為，競爭的立足點變平等了，小蝦米和大鯨魚可以平起平坐了。

拜科技之賜，即使在家裡開一個工作室，一個人也可以和大企業搶生意。同樣的，大企業也可以比小公司更靈活，更細膩。從前做夢都沒想到的，今天不只變可能，甚至是必要了。
　　
抹平的世界，也是無限商機的世界。

The world is flat : a brief history of the twenty-first century

Book Review:

The World is Flat : a Brief History of the Twenty-first Century / Thomas L. Friedman.

(Available at TKO public library and the call number is 301.243 FRI)


Thomas L. Friedman是《紐約時報》專欄作家，他多年來熱衷推展全球化理念，之前他的經典著作《The Lexus and the Olive Tree》當中提出的新科技和全球化與傳統文化的拉扯，當時他認為現在的社會必定抵擋不了全球化的浪潮，必須往全球化邁進。

不過在他的最新作品《The World Is Flat》中，Friedman對於全球化有了新的思考。在9·11、伊拉克戰事之後，一趟前往印度的旅行讓他重新思考了全球化的意義，他在本書中提出了全球化的三種版本，現今則是全球化的第三個版本：因為網路的普及，主體是個人的全球化。

世界上新成員，中國和印度的崛起、新的舞台出現，因此有新的遊戲規則，如許多的產業外包至中國與印度造成的失業風潮，這些改變不遜於之前的任一革命，雖然如此Friedman仍確信，新的全球化能對個人與團體好的影響，更確信會有好的社會能改變人類的精神與物質現況。

哥倫布之後人類知道世界是圓的，本書所謂世界是平的，是回收一個過時的觀念來說明現狀，指的是政治經濟上的撤除藩籬加上科技進步所創造的溝通無礙。副標誆稱這是一部二十一世紀的簡史，事實上不是歷史，就是現在。寫過《從貝魯特到耶路撒冷》、《了解全球化：凌志汽車與橄欖樹》，紐約時報專欄作家湯瑪斯．弗里曼是新聞界最有洞見的一枝筆，他舉出了十股造成世界平坦化的重要力量，點醒讀者眼前的潮流，對一個國家、一個公司、一個社群或個人而言，到底意味著什麼？世界變得平坦，是不是迫使我們跑得更快才能擁有一席之地？平坦化的世界裡，政府組織和社會機制該如何適應？在他稱之為「全球化第3.0版」的演變中，撼動世界的不再是跨國公司或國際組織，人在新的世界運作中重新成為歷史的主角。

History of the world twenty years from now, and they come to the chapter "Y2K to March 2004," what will they say was the most crucial development? The attacks on the World Trade Center on 9/11 and the Iraq war? Or the convergence of technology and events that allowed India, China, and so many other countries to become part of the global supply chain for services and manufacturing, creating an explosion of wealth in the middle classes of the world's two biggest nations, giving them a huge new stake in the success of globalization? And with this "flattening" of the globe, which requires us to run faster in order to stay in place, has the world gotten too small and too fast for human beings and their political systems to adjust in a stable manner?

In this brilliant new book, the award-winning New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman demystifies the brave new world for readers, allowing them to make sense of the often bewildering global scene unfolding before their eyes. With his inimitable ability to translate complex foreign policy and economic issues, Friedman explains how the flattening of the world happened at the dawn of the twenty-first century; what it means to countries, companies, communities, and individuals; and how governments and societies can, and must, adapt. The World Is Flat is the timely and essential update on globalization, its successes and discontents, powerfully illuminated by one of our most respected journalists.

Basic principles of aircraft flight

Some boys in my class show great interest in aircraft flight. There are only a handful of reference books written in Chinese. I came across one written in plain English last year in public libraries. The title of the book is

‘Aircraft flight : a description of the physical principles of aircraft flight’ and is co-authored by R.H. Barnard, D.R. Philpott.

The call number of the book is 629.1323BAR

The following paragraphs are the brief description of the book. Hope you find them useful.

Aircraft Flight:A description of the physical principles of aircraft flight 3rd Edition - Paper

Description

The first edition of Aircraft Flight, published in 1989 broke new ground in the field of technical aviation literature by providing accurate physical, rather than mathematical, descriptions of the principles of aircraft flight.

The book has subsequently established itself as a popular and respected introduction to the study of aeronautics, and is now on the recommended reading lists for aerospace and aeronautical engineering courses at a large number of Universities and Colleges around the world.

In this third edition, the text and illustrations have been updated, and some important improvements have been incorporated. As an aid to student project work, the characteristics of three representative types of aerofoil section have been added in a new appendix.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Lift 2. Wings 3. The Boundary layer and its control 4. Drag 5. High Speed Flow 6. Trust and Propulsion 7. Performance 8. Supersonic Aircraft 9. Transonic Aircraft 10. Aircraft Control 11. Static Stability 12. Dynamic Stability 13. Take-off and Landing 14. Structural Influences Appendix References Index

逆境是一種祝福

拿破崙. 希爾(Napoleon Hill)曾說過：「逆境是一種祝福。它看起來像是失敗，其實卻是一隻看不見的智慧之手，強迫人們改變方向，向著另一個更有利的方向前進。 」

在逆境中，冷酷無情的不幸確實帶來了無可彌補的損失，但悲劇的背後卻潛藏了偉大的治療力量，帶引出改變。每一次挫折失敗都是一種自我超越的過程，幫助打破過往曾經是一成不變的真理，終結了幼稚和不成熟，每一次挫敗都能磨煉人的意志，考驗人的耐性和能力。

揹著木船走路的人

有一天，佛祖看到一個漢子抬著一艘木船，在崎嶇不平的山谷中趕路，他不停地喘氣，走得雙腳發震，汗流浹背，好不辛苦。

佛祖問他為何要抬著木船趕路，他答道：「我剛用這條船渡河，過河後仍須趕路，沒辦法，只好抬著它走！」

佛祖歎息地說：「船只是幫您渡河的工具，現在己渡江了，還抬著它有何用！」

我們在生命的跑道上趕路，都會揹著很多負擔，這些負擔主要來自成功的經驗，也有來自失敗的教訓；有的是有形的，如資產、文憑學歷、子女、身體型態，但有些是無形的，包括習慣、信念、價值觀、規條、生活方式、知識、人際關係、痛苦創傷……..。

為了要順利到達目的地，我們要放低這些負擔。

如果你相信童話

二十七歲的汪明欣，她出生時因為患上德國麻疹而導致視力不斷衰退，母親背著小明欣到處求醫，最後遇到李維達醫生，為明欣醫治，在那短短幾年的醫治期間，是她一生中唯一見過這個世界的時光。

直至她八歲時，醫生終於斷定她完全失明。然失去了視力，但明欣仍然擁有永不言敗的精神，中學時隻身遠赴澳洲留學，回港後，成為香港英華女校首位失明學生。由於當時未有盲人用的電腦，明欣的母親每天都要把明欣的點字功課拿回心光盲人學校翻譯成文字，再帶回學校給老師看；不論風雨，母親都接送明欣上學；在學校，明欣不知跌倒過多少次，但她仍堅持靠自己完成學業。

兩年前，明欣開始自已的創作，寫了第一本小說《如果你相信童話》，故事包含了很多她的親身經歷。明欣雖然失去了很多，可是她卻能擺脫袈鎖，勇往直前，因為她相信世界上仍有童話，而她可能就是童話中的主角。

香 港 電 台 節目重溫
＜ 女 人 多 自 在 ＞第 一 集 : 如 果 你 相 信 童 話
http://www.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/women2006/20060212.html

活出生命裏的彩虹

以下是節錄自信報財經月刊第344期《家庭教室》有關二名失明人士的抗逆故事。

汪明欣、徐啟明，兩個看似毫不相關的人，但不約而同地對生命的熱誠寄盼、積極不服輸的精神，緊緊的把他們牽繫著，彼此追尋自己的理想和活出生命的真義。他們的經歷，也許是你和我也感受不到，卻能為我們重建對生命的看法，活出你與我不一樣的人生。

明欣的手記節錄

佛法開啟了我的心門，令我明白因果，使我從自卑自憐之中，拯救出來。從前，我經常將別人的好意拒絕，認為人們全部都是同情我、施捨我，但卻理解不到成就人的慈悲心，等同於你去幫助別人。經師父的提醒，我才明白自己是何等的高傲。我是如此這般的自大，曾經是目空一切，以為自己可以操縱整個世界。其實，我是一個最無知的人，過分自卑變為過分自大，怕人看不起自己，於是就變造了一隻刺蝟，結果傷害了別人，亦同時傷害了自己。

今天，我終於可以面對失明，也希望自己的經歷去鼓勵更多在逆境之中的你。請伸出雙手，容許別人攙扶你，到你站得穩腳步時，還要攙扶更多迷惘、無助的人。朋友，請你不要計算曾失去的一切，從這秒鐘起，想想自己身邊擁有的，例如說父母、師長對你那不離不棄的愛，朋友對你的支持和鼓勵等等，這些都是難能可貴的無價寶，難道不值得好好珍惜嗎？請別忘記，知足，才能常樂啊！


啟明的手記節錄

中三那年，從心光盲人學校轉到普通中學就讀。由於缺乏點字數學書，有一位學兄鼓勵我，還把他的數學筆記借給我摸。讀了之後，覺得除了應用題是用英文表達外，數學符號和內容跟以前所學的大同小異。若我真的要選修數學，我就要解決把數學教科書翻譯成點字的問題。令我欣喜的是，一位心光的朱老師肯為我製作可觸摸的圖表，其後的三年，她用盡巧奪天工的剪貼技術，製作了數百幅圄表。另一方面，我亦得到數十把聲音的幫助；這些聲音來自家人、鄰居、朋友和義工，他們把數學教科書一字不漏的讀給我聽，我就用點字機抄錄成點字版本。有了點字教科書，我就可以在課前預習和課後溫習。過程是從錯誤中學習，從小成功獲取前進的動力，邁向融會貫通的境界。

那三年的經驗使我領悟到，生命的意義在於能夠品嚐辛苦得來的成果，這成果源於上天給我的恩賜和別人給我的幫忙。這經驗亦叫我不要輕視生命中不能承受的輕(如通宵捱夜)，同時亦叫我不要放棄任何可以進步的機會，儘管是向前挪移一小步，這也代表著生命中的千辛萬苦以及千言萬語，足可回味。最後僅冀盼以一句座右銘，跟各位共勉之 - 『人生並沒有辦不到的事情，只有不去辦的事情。』

留 住 這 一 片 綠

政 府 前 年 底 公 布 「 新 自 然 保 育 政 策 」 及 其 推 行 計 劃 ， 選 定 十 二 個 具 重 要 生 態 價 值 、 須 優 先 加 強 保 育 的 地 點 ， 其 中 三 成 土 地 由 私 人 擁 有 。 該 如 何 在 涉 及 私 人 業 權 的 地 點 進 行 保 育 工 作 ， 政 府 、 環 保 人 士 和 土 地 持 有 人 一 直 抱 不 同 意 見 。
三 個 月 前 ， 政 府 終 於 撥 款 近 五 百 萬 元 在 「 塱 原 濕 地 」 及 「 大 埔 鳳 園 谷 」 推 行 「 土 地 管 理 協 議 」 試 驗 計 劃 。 三 個 環 保 組 織 在 這 兩 個 保 育 區 內 ， 如 何 與 村 民 、 農 戶 合 作 保 育 其 中 的 雀 鳥 、 蝴 蝶 、 樹 木 及 農 地 等 生 態 環 境 ？ 在 可 持 續 發 展 的 大 前 題 下 ， 目 前 這 計 劃 的 進 展 能 否 收 到 預 期 效 果 ？ 維 期 兩 年 的 試 驗 於 明 年 底 結 束 ， 有 關 結 果 將 影 響 未 來 保 育 政 策 的 方 向 ， 該 如 何 評 估 試 驗 計 劃 的 成 效 ？

〈 鏗 鏘 集 〉節 目 重 溫
http://www.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/hkcc/20060212.html

相關環保教育議題：

沙羅洞：當發展與保育不被對立時… …

When Conservation in no conflict with Development…

引言：有關沙羅洞的發展與保育的訴訟明確帶出了香港極需要一套清晰且切實可行的自然保育政策。把發展與保育對立起來，並非理解當中的矛盾與掙扎的最好方法。對利用可持續發展為包裝技倆的無限(經濟)發展論提高驚覺的同時，我們如何尋找一條並非只講中間路線、任何事均取中庸的權宜之計，但可有效保育自然生態和進行可持續發展的第三條路？

沙羅洞(原稱沙螺洞)，因曾盛產沙螺和地型屬盆地而得名。沙羅洞位於大埔新市填北面，三面被八仙嶺郊野公園環抱。由於山路崎嶇隱蔽，佔地57.2公頃的沙羅洞自成一角。據史料記載，沙羅洞有三條古老的客家村，包括張屋、李屋和老圍。

令沙羅洞聲名大噪的事件始於1979年，當時有一間名為沙羅洞發展有限公司向當地的村民收購土地，並承諾會發展新村屋。其後該公司於1982年向政府提交發展計劃並於1990年得到郊野公園管理局的批准，發展的範圍可以佔用43公頃八仙嶺郊野公園的土地。這項發展申請引起環保團體地球之友的反對，認為沙羅洞乃具有重要生態價值的地方，而且發展該處土地很可能污染設在附近的集水區及郊野公園，於是在1992年向法庭申請司法覆核。高等法庭裁定郊野公園管理局的決定違法。為了發展計劃可以順利展開，發展公司曾多次修改發展圖則和進行環境影響評估，但經大幅修改後的發展計劃仍遭政府否決。

1997年，政府以沙羅洞的河溪乃蜻蜓繁殖的重要生境(habitat，生物的生存環境)為理由，把沙羅洞的河溪以及河溪兩旁30多尺的緩衝區列為「具特殊生態價值地點」(Site of Special Scientific Interest, 簡稱SSSI)。事實上，根據量度生物多樣性的調查，在沙羅洞找到的蜻蜓種類已佔全港已知的六成，共有12科(genus)72個種(species)。另外，沙羅洞的河溪、沼澤和風水林為不少稀有物種提供合適的棲身之所。而在2002年，政府更根據《城市規劃條例》(香港法例第131章)，草擬並通過了〈沙羅洞規劃大綱圖則〉，進一步限制該地方的發展計劃。圖則指出沙羅洞的生態、文化遺產和景觀有相當高的價值，需要予以保育。

而在2003年進行的研究顯示，沙羅洞在〈須優先加強保護的地點清單〉上排名第二(得分2.70)，僅次於米埔內後海灣拉姆薩爾濕地。這些規劃令沙羅洞只有2公頃的面積可作「鄉村式發展」，以整體保存客家古村的建築物，其餘的土地則被列為綠化地帶、自然保育區和特殊科學價值地點。大綱的圖則把沙羅洞定調為生態保育的重點地區，引起發展商和村民不滿。合著《迷失的沙羅洞──文化與生態》(2005)的詹肇泰及邱榮光認為沙羅洞的村民、發展商及環保團體均是這次訴訟的輸家。除了那些希望透過出售土地來改善生活環境的村民和發展沙羅洞來賺取利潤的公司的好夢成空外，環保團體的介入亦令有意復耕的農民卻步，間接造成沼澤乾涸或靜止，不利生物生長和繁殖。再加上香港欠缺一套明確且切實執行的自然保育政策，讓不少極具生態價值的土地因天災人禍而遭到破壞，情況每下愈況。

為了保育由私人擁有的土地，政府分別在2003及2004年就現行的自然保育政策進行檢討和公眾諮詢。在2004年11月提交立法會的文件中(〈新的自然保育政策〉，文件編號CB(1)214/04-05(01))，政府進一步探討與擁有須保育土地的業權人實行管理協議和公私營界別合作的可能性。


探究問題：
1. 沙羅洞的發展與保育訴訟凸顯現行的保育政策有什麼不足？

2. 香港有生態價值的地方大多位於村民的業權範圍之內，綠色團體的訴求和村民的利益必然存在衝突，你能提出平行各方利益的建議嗎？

When cultures collide

The publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad is deepening the divide between Islam and the West. The controversial cartoons have spurred a domino of violence all over the Islamic countries. What do these conflicts imply after all?

This issue reflects the lack of religious sensitivities and respect of Muslims in some European countries. I still don't understand why in the first place the Danish newspaper published the cartoons and under what context that made the publication necessary. Does the publication of these cartoons serve as a token demonstrating the freedom of speech enjoyed by most ‘civilized’ Western countries? Or is it merely a travesty of the conservative Muslims?

Why do Muslims react so vigorously? Personally, I think the controversial cartoons are only a catalyst that sparks off the underlying distrust and hatred between the Islamic and Western worlds especially after the US invasion of Iraq. The deepening divide between Islam and the West is the seed of global unrest in the years to come. Muslims have the right to express their anger over the publication of cartoons but it doesn’t mean it can only be done in a violent way. Any violence done by religion extremists in the name of ‘blasphemy’ will only deter rational discussion among all parties concerned, which is a more proper and well accepted way of dealing with religious conflicts.

The cultural conflicts stem from the value difference between the Islamic and Western worlds. The importance of freedom of speech and women’s rights, most valued in Western countries, is dwarfed by the tradition of Islamic culture. A better mutual understanding from both sides is the key to resolving the conflicts. Would the leaders from the Western and Islamic worlds have the courage and commitment to open the avenue for dialogue and cultural interflow? At present political atmosphere, the chance is so slim especially after the 9/11 terror attack and American military operation in Afhganistan and Iraq. The future of world peace is gloomy unless there is a radical change in the mindset of leaders on both sides.

For commentary from Economist on 'Cartoons War', please refer to the following link
http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=5494602

Please refer to my wife's web-blog for in-depth analysis
http://poonmf.blogspot.com
Dated February 21, 2006 'Clash of Civilisation'

Muslims in new cartoon protests fromBBC news
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4675462.stm

非一般的親子伴讀

週一晚上的兩項伴讀活動，都不約而同帶出令我失笑兼無奈的感覺：

活動一：新聞報導

取材：二月六日《明報》的頭條新聞 <摩天豪宅防火弱、消防守則過時多沒裝灑水器>

延伸活動：我們居於三十樓，消防車雲梯最長的有53米高(約20層高)，那我們在火警發生時應該怎樣做呢？

母：只要從樓梯往下直奔至二十七樓避火層，冷靜地等待消防雲梯便可。
清：若爸爸媽咪尚未返家，而姐姐(即菲籍家傭)在煮食時燒死了，那我怎辦？
母：別擔心，煮食時燒死的機會微乎其微。清清，我們要逃生時……清：我真的很害怕啊！若姐姐燒死我會很傷心，那該怎辦呢？她死後會到天父那裏去嗎？
母：……

活動二：中文書

取材：《兒童三字經》內的「香九齡，能溫席。孝於親，所當執。」

原定的學習活動：早在黄香三歲時，他的母親便離世，他是一個孝順的好孩子。夏天時他自覺地用扇子扇父親的牀帳，來清涼枕，並驅除蚊蟲；寒冬時，他鑽上父親的被子裏，温暖父親的被褥。他確是孩子學習的榜樣。

母：黄香三歲時，母親便死去了 ……
清：為甚麼？
母：或許她因病離小黃香遠去，雖然他自幼喪母，但是……
清：那他的母親在何處？
母：應在天父身邊吧，他是……
清：沒有母親的黃香真可憐，那麼他父親白天上班時，誰人照顧他？
母：……

Smoking – A health time-bomb in China

A special news programme on China’s smoking problem was broadcast on CNN last night. Experts in community medicine expressed their concern on the cost, both economic and health, incurred by smoking in China. I found this programme very relevant to the AL Biology curriculum and spent a few minutes on browsing the CNN website in a hope that the online version of the programme could be located and would be shown in the class. To my disappointment, the online version of the programme was not available and so I switched to BBC website and found a news archive related to this issue.

The archive is a report of a scientific research on health cost of smoking in China conducted by scientists from the University of Hong Kong and Oxford University. The research predicts that one-third of all young men in China will die from smoking related diseases and millions will be killed if they refuse to give up the habit. The medical cost and economic cost due to the loss of human capital are enormous. How much resource can a developing country like China, already plagued by problems of rural poverty, spare for defusing the smoking time-bomb?

Smoking as a community health burden is not unique in China. It is also a common problem in many Asian countries. With a lax restriction on tobacco trade and tobacco related advertisement, these countries become the last and major revenue centre of tobacco manufacturers, already face a heavy tax and tighter ban on advertisement in most Western countries. Solving the problem requires the commitment of substantial political will from the officials and effective anti-smoking education at all levels of society.

Here in Hong Kong, the legislation on the ban of smoking in restaurants and night clubs invites serious opposition from their owners and staff working in these places. I am pessimistic on the successful legislation of the ban as the employment opportunity of those working in eating and entertainment establishment means too much to politicians in the looming ‘jobless recovery’ in Hong Kong and may even overrride the demand for better public health.

Fore details of the news, please refer to
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1493887.stm

For video archive, please refer to
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/215000/video/_217628_smokersmovie_vi.ram

The Secret Life of Germs

This book presents to readers simple statistics that should interest anyone who cares about personal hygiene. The author mentions in the book that 80% of infections come from contact, as opposed to vectors, inhalation or common carriers. He stresses from time to time the importance of washing your hands. As mentioned in the book, the result of a survey on people's habit of washing their hands after going to the toilet is stunning. Quite a large number of people refuse to wash their hands after going to the public toilet. The author depicts an imaginative scenario in which a man infected by Ebola virus would spread the pathogen to others simply because of the refusal of hand washing. Toilets in the airport and train terminals become the hub of global exchange of germs. One interesting thing worth to mention is the fatality in hospitals caused by noscomial infection. Noscomial infection is the spread of germs from medical practioners to patients. The culprit of this infection is the refusal of washing hands and this was particular true for medical practitioners in the past. Today, doctors and nurses are well trained on the prevention of the notorious noscomial infection.

This book is avaliable at TKO public library and the call number is 616.9TIE

做 人 之 道

做人要有計劃，
人生才有盼望；
做人沒有盼望，
人生有何意義？

做人要有「發現問題」
與「解決問題」的能力。

不要害怕自己的環境壞，
只怕自己沒有培養智慧。

一個人不論有多少學問，
一定要有「人格」，
沒有「人格」，
什麼價值都沒有了；
所以千萬要潔身自好， 這樣才能保持自己的價值。

自己要提升自己，
要知道自己的不懂。

人的趨名趨利，
就像蒼蠅見血一樣，
當人的修為能夠在名利面前
有「定力」的時候，
那才真有作為， 因為「有守才能有為」。

吃東西時能想到天下還
有別人沒有東西吃，
這就是「人性」。
做人先要有人格，
沒有人格做什麼都不成事。

做人有思想、有抱負、有智慧，
又能堅守自己的立場，
這就能成功。

要用「智」來支配自己，
不要用「欲」來支配。


有才智之人，
先要「修口」，
連口都修不好， 這怎麼能夠做事？

自己的所學必要用上，
否則讀最多也沒有用。

學問講得怎麼好不重要，
重要的是做的怎麼好？

打造未來的技能

到底要學些什麼才不會被淘汰，能夠在這個變化萬千的社會謀生？預言穩定的工作將會消失的William Bridges 認為明日的員工必須要具備有以下的生存技能：

1. 讀寫、算術、基本的電腦運用技巧；
2. 自我經營的能力，無論是自僱或受僱，都必須視自己的工作為一人企業，自己是自已事業的執行官(CEO)，沒有“做生意”的本領，又保如何經營自己的人生？
3. 時間管理、目標設定、會計基礎、企劃能力和行政管理技巧；
4. 自我推銷的能力，將工作環境視為一個市場，能滿足顧客需要才可以生存。

為配合知識型社會的趨勢，須對學習這概念作出徹底的改變。未來學家John Naisbitt認為，在新社會的規則下，學生必須要學會四種技能，就是：

1. 學習如何學習；
2. 學習如何思考；
3. 學習如何創造；
4. 學習如何溝通。

查爾斯韓迪在其新書The Elephant and the Flea中引述英國《經濟學人》的分析，列出在新經濟網絡世界，管理人必須要掌握以下十種技巧：

1. 速度：把事情做得更快；
2. 人才：人要少、要好；
3. 開放：透明化大家都受益；
4. 合作：團隊為基石；
5. 紀律：效率來自協定與標準程序；
6. 溝通良好；
7. 內容管理：要認清什麼是20/80法則，有80%的資訊是不必要的；
8. 關注客戶，以客為尊；
9. 知識管理：分享自己所知；
10. 以身作則：說到即到，即知即行。

以上的技能，你掌握到多少？

健康人格的特徵

亞伯拉罕. 馬斯勞(Maslow)長期研究成功人士的心理狀態，他抽取出能夠自我實踐的成熟人格是有以下的共同特徵的：

1. 接納自己，尊重他人，尊重大自然；
2. 能準確客觀地洞察現實；
3. 以問題為中心，以事論事，不以自我為中心；
4. 有獨處的需要，享受孤獨，享受與自己溝通；
5. 欣賞生活；
6. 坦率、純真、自然、自在、甚少自我防衛；
7. 關心社會；
8. 有良好的人際關係；
9. 善意和富有幽默感；
10. 有創造力，不隨波逐流，不墨守成規；
11. 能坦然面對現實，在惡劣的環境下仍可以找到存在的空間；
12. 曾經經歷過人生最美好的高峰經驗(Peak Experience)。

A Brief History of Aspirin

The discovery of Aspirin is a good example demonstrating the ‘Doctrine of Signature’, a common belief in the old Western medicine, stating that cures of a disease can usually be found in the vicinity where the disease originates. Weeping willow containing Salix alba, a chemical treating fever, grows in damp soil, which is also the home of pathogens that cause fever.

The use of willow’s leaves as painkillers can be traced back to an ancient Egyptian medical journal called ‘Ebers’. This old prescription had been passed on from generation to generation only until 1820, chemists were able to extract and purify Salicylic Acid, an analgestic chemical, from willow’s leaves.

In 1897, Felix Hoffmann from Bayer invented a modified version of Salicylic Acid. This new chemical was called Aspirin. Bayer had the patent of the chemical and Aspirin became the most popular medicine at that time.

Bayer was a German pharmaceutical company. At the end of World War I, Bayer’s properties outside Germany were confiscated in compliance with the Treaty of Versailles. An American company called Sterling successfully bid for manufacturing equipment of Aspirin at 5 million dollars (US) in an auction. Bayer had waited for 75 years before it bought Aspirin factories from the pharmaceutical giant, Smith Kline Beecham, which had already acquired Sterling.

Apart from its analgestic function, Aspirin is also well known in its antipyretic, anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant (blood thinning) properties. Today, Aspirin is still a common candidate in doctors’ prescription for a variety of diseases.

HKUL Reading Club

To promote the cultural and intellectual life of Hong Kong, the Libraries has created the University of Hong Kong Libraries Reading Club. The Reading Club will sponsor a series of book talks featuring leading members of Hong Kong intellectual community.

For video archives, please visit

http://lib.hku.hk/friends/reading_club/

香港中文大學讀書會

香港中文大學讀書會由香港中文大學大學通識教育部、專業進修學院及第二書店合辦，每次邀請來自不同專業範疇的主講者，跟參加者分享讀書心得及樂趣，旨在推廣閱讀風氣，讓社會上每一階層也感受到閱卷之樂。
讀書會每月聚會兩次，分別於中大校園及中大校外進修學院中環上課中心舉行，地址如下：
校園讀書會場地A：香港中文大學邵逸夫夫人樓LT1場地B：香港中文大學崇基學院王福元樓UG LT4 (請按此瀏覽場地地圖)
城中讀書會中環美國銀行中心1樓A中大校專業修學院演講廳 (請按此瀏覽場地地圖)
費用全免，歡迎各界人士參加！請按此瀏覽今期活動。
查詢：2609-7563 / 2609-7075 / bookclub@cuhk.edu.hk

For video archives please visit

http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/bookclub/video.htm

A science experiment for kids

The 'submarine' dives when you squeeze the bottle and floats when you relieve the grip.








With suitable amount of Blu-Tack, the 'submarine' can float in water.









The photo shows how the paper clip is bent and inserted into the straw.








Materials required for the experiment (a paper clip, a straw, some Blu-Tack and a plastic bottle)






My family paid a visit to the public library last month. My wife was looking for story books for Ching’s reading scheme. I liked to try something new and I chose a book about science experiments. Most of the materials required for experiments mentioned in the book are easily available. I tried one with my daughter and she enjoyed it very much. She got a lot of fun when doing this experiment. Here I would like to share with you the key steps of this experiment.

‘Submarine – sink or float’

Materials:
(1) a plastic bottle
(2) some Blu Tack
(3) a paper clip
(4) a straw (about 6cm long)

Procedure:

(1) Bend the paper clip as shown in the photo.
(2) Insert both ends of the paper clip into the straw.
(3) Attach some Blu Tack to the paper clip
(4) Adjust the amount of Blu Tack so that the ‘submarine’ can freely float in water.
(5) Put the ‘submarine’ in a plastic bottle fully filled with water. Remember to screw the bottle cap tightly.
(6) If you want to sink the submarine, just squeeze the bottle hard.
(7) By controlling the amount of water you squeeze into the straw, you can adjust the position of the ‘submarine’ as you wish.

是含羞草嗎？

含羞草 Sensitive Plants (Mimosa Pudica)










大葉合歡 Lebbeck Tree (Albizia lebbeck)







為了令小清清對真實版的年宵市場有進一步的認識，即使極度不願意在惱人的細雨、相對濕度高達百分之九十九的天氣下，漫無目的地擠在那踵接肩摩的維園內，也要外出一趟。我們在早上十一時多前，完成「實地考察」後，舉頭一看，赫然發現中央圖書館燈火通明，妙絕！在二樓的兒童圖書館內逗留近一句半鐘，借了七本英文故事書後，終於打道回家了。在回程時行經與奧海城遙遙相對的一工地，清清手指着一些小草，跟我說：

清：爸爸，媽咪上一趟說這些不是含羞草，我覺得它們相似到「不得了」，可是當我觸摸它們時，它們竟然一動也不動，為甚麼？
父：那些只不過是樹葉而已！
清：爸爸，是否大的含羞草不懂得收縮，而小的才可以？因為它們是長大了的一種。
父：不，它們的確不是含羞草，是另一種品種的樹葉。
清：但真的似到「不得了吖嗎」….

我回家參考有關的書本，發現這兩種植物同屬含羞草科，怪不得它們的葉片那麼相似。

究竟職位去了哪裏？

要知道究竟職位去了哪裏，請比較一下一部銀行自動櫃員機(ATM)和一位銀行櫃台服務員的工作表現，可能會找到答案。

ATM 櫃台服務員
工作時間 每星期工作168小時 每星期平均工作40小時
工作效率 每日處理2000個服務交收 每日處理200個
工資 安裝連保養約$22000美金 平均每月薪津$1500美金
附帶福利 沒有 不能盡錄

自1983至1993年，美國銀行櫃台服務員的職位已經消失了接近十八萬個，佔總數的37%。

全球化對工作的主要影響，是無情地製造了史無前例的競爭，擄掠了很多人的職位，威脅著無數人的生計；但全球化同時為我們製造了更多的機會。這些機會主要來自更廣闊的市場和更大的發展空間，它能夠突破既有的身份、社會地位、年齡、種族和地域的隔閡，在網上取得同等同質的機會。

節錄自Peter Leyden “The Coming Trauma”

The real scenario of 'The Day after Tomorrow'

Greenhouse gas emissions are rising at an "unsustainable" rate and the Greenland ice cap is at risk, scientists have warned.
The report says the risks from climate change are more serious than previously thought.

An interview with Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett

The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari

一年之計在於春，很多人都喜歡在一年之始訂下鴻圖大計，但大部分人卻不能付諸實行，如果你是其中一分子，Robin Sharma 的 The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari可以幫助你完成大計。

每個人都有自己的Dharma

Dharma 是一個古印度文名詞，意指生命的目標，簡單來說，什麼事情可使你廢寢忘餐的專注和熱情，那是你心中的Dharma，如果你訂下的目標符合個人的Dharma，那便是對你最有利的目標，這些目標可不只是事業上的成就，還應該包括個人素質、知識、興趣、財務、人際關係各方面。

但人的雜念眾多，所以要將目標寫下，並且要把其他次要的項目放在較後的位置。人的腦袋是一個具威力的過濾器，The Monk 書中有句名言：The quality of life is determined by the quality of your thoughts，可見腦袋的威力。有了這個基礎，就可以跟從書中五個簡單的指引，將目標實踐。

一. 將目標形象化。 想像自已已經完成目標的情景，並將它描繪下來，這夢想圖就成為你的藍圖。
二. 適量地向自己施壓。壓力可以助你進步，把目標公開是製造正面壓力的一個有效方法。
三. 定下時間表，給自己一個死線。好讓你能更加集中，可以有效掌管進度。
四. 建立好習慣，掉丟壞習慣。有一個行之有效的方法叫二十一定律，新的行為需要二十一天的時間就可以建立成習慣。若你認為自己充滿著壞習慣，不用灰心，集中放在建立新習慣上，當愈來愈多好習慣被建立，不好的習慣便會慢慢被取代。
五. 享受改變的過程。不要認為追求目標是一件苦差，要認同在過程中充滿歡笑。假如你認為自己是一個很不幸的人，我提議你列一張清單，將不幸的事情列出，之後，再列一張清單，把值得感恩的事情列出來，對比之下，你將發現值得感恩的事總比不幸的多。你以往沒有發現自己原來是多幸福，因為你腦袋只集中在不幸的事情上。

追求目標好比參加一場競賽，需要了解自己的實力，加以鍛鍊，並要有策略地去執行。