Category Archives: Books & Reviews

Disney’s Magic

Posted on December 15, 2010 by sinyaw

Few can tell Rapunzel’s story from memory. That is before this instant Disney classic. Now millions of kids around the world will, the Disney version of course, just like Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Snow White, Little Mermaid, and other … Continue reading →

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Harry Potter #7.1

Posted on December 3, 2010 by sinyaw

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson Like a distant relative, we see those kids once every 18 months or so and were surprised that how much they have changed. Hermione (Emma Watson) blossomed into … Continue reading →

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Diane goes to China

Posted on November 21, 2010 by sinyaw

ABC World News Tonight spent several days in China recently. They made a 3-part series on various aspects of China: its economy, of course, education, innovations, etc. Viewers should feel awed by China’s prowess in so many areas: manufacturing, internet … Continue reading →

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Akeelah and the Bee

Posted on November 14, 2010 by sinyaw

A good movie on an obscure topic: spelling tournament. Like all good stories, the pursuit (to win the tournament) is vividly elucidated. One will be awed by the difficulty of mastering spelling at tournament level and cannot help admiring those … Continue reading →

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Ice Age v. Global Warming

Posted on October 11, 2010 by sinyaw

Fallen Angels Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, Michael Flynn 978-0743471817 I nearly forgot about fictions. For so long, my reading queue has been exclusive non-fictions. Anything else got de-prioritized. Kid left this book for me after her visit and it popped … Continue reading →

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Pineapple Cake 鳳梨酥

Posted on October 6, 2010 by sinyaw

Spoken In Taiwanese (a dialect of Chinese, very similar to those spoken in southern FuJian Province), Pineapple pronounced like On-Lie, very similar to “Fortune is Coming.” The fruit therefore became a symbol for prosperity and a favorite gift. But fresh … Continue reading →

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Inception

Posted on September 28, 2010 by sinyaw

Inception Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page Yet another which-reality-are-you-in movie (the best one is still Matrix). The teaser has sufficiently prepared me. The rest of this review will be spoiling. Stop reading if you care. The key idea is that people … Continue reading →

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Telling Stories

Posted on September 15, 2010 by sinyaw

Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting Robert Mckee November 25, 1997978-0060391683 Remember Peter and the Wolf? I loved Sergei Prokofiev’s use of Bassoon; the enjoyment probably came from my ability to identify that unique sound. Most people … Continue reading →

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如果你已經20歲了，你真的輸不起了.

Posted on August 24, 2010 by sinyaw

傳聞李開復的文章,真是洛陽紙貴.網上流傳不止.Google一下,不難找到轉載. 年輕的被說的心悸,過來人看得心有戚戚焉. 同樣的文章,古今中外,歷史上有了幾千版了.李開復的威力,在他的踏實,明確.(但李本人說這文章不是他寫的.) 幾句: 如果你20歲以後所花的每一分錢還都是伸手向父母親人要來的，那你的滿身名牌就只能襯托出你的無恥. 不要與浪子，文藝青年交往，別和沒心沒肺的人在一起，別和沒有正當職業混日子的人在一起. 說穿了,要務實獨立,不要夢幻痛苦,也別想一步登天. 但真想想,沒有幾個天才20歲就念完書了.基本的大學文憑要22æ­².這一代近30才走出校園的,比比皆是.我大慨可以接受把他寫的加個10æ­².三十以前,人追求的是應該是理想及愛情.在那追求的過程中,年輕人走過那世世代代都走過的路,才站立成人.沒有那段夢幻痛苦,怎麼破繭成蝶? 人的成長歷程,一定有一段是在找自己.找到後,才可能走下一步.過來人看到下一代的歷程會心疼,”能不能聽話,別去找了,你就在這兒.” 很不幸,每一代都必須過這關. 每一代,都有一群過不了這關. 那就是被時代淘汰掉的一群. 如果自己的孩子在那群裏,當然心疼. 看到明明有天分的被淘汰,也心疼. 那些孩子,只要聽話,就能好好的,多可惜. 其實,不聽話的年輕人,當然淘汰率高.但把人類推到新高的偉人,也是年輕時不聽話的那群. 順其自然吧!

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The Logic of Life

Posted on August 1, 2010 by sinyaw

The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World Tim Harford February 10, 2009978-0812977875 Free market will drive out bigotry, since prejudice is inferior and will eventually lose to the competition. This is, however, a long-term view. For … Continue reading →

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