Cracking the Transit Maps

The National Public Radio has a talk show called Science Friday where the show's hosts discuss a variety of science topics and many professionals in the science and technology field take part in the discussion.  Recently, a new discussion was on the transit maps that many big metropolitan cities use every day. Residents and commuters in big cities such as London, Paris, New York City, Los Angeles, and Berkeley-San Francisco area, for instance, depend on the transit maps to get to where they need to go. Their jobs, their way home, and their way to social settings depend on the pathways that the maps show. I was in Paris in September for one week and I could not live without a transit map in my purse; the commute from the Musee Louvre to the Eiffel Tower would take close to one hour if walking is the method used to get from one point to another while taking the metro would take twenty minutes.   With traffic, the time spending walking would take much longer than the approximate time of one hour. That same goes for my time in London as well, the tube map was one of my best friend there; and because of it I was able to see many museums that London is known for.

Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and in London propose new maps that would make the current transit maps easier for commuters. One London researcher wanted to turn the Paris metro map in a circular shape rather than the current rectangular shape that it has. An MIT researcher uses the science of the peripheral eye vision to help formulate the new maps for the intricate NYC subway map;  I could see why the NYC subway map need renovation as my time there proves how confusing the subway can get if I was only a visitor there.

However, there are millions of people who use the transit maps for over a decade in their daily life and they have no problem in the big cities.  Of course, first-time comers of a city--or any city-- will have problems with using the maps as they are not accustomed to reading them, but they will.  Our brain is wired to understand anything and it may take time for it to get there but it is possible.  Rather than using research money on making new transit maps, why not put it elsewhere that are more beneficial such as education, community events, and healthcare? When we focus more on making people's life better, whether it is through education, healthcare, and community events, the world will be a better place with smart people walking on the streets.  And with this, we do not need to simplify the transit maps or perform any other work that is unnecessary but rather, we should put more effort in other areas.  And best of all, with time, we know people are capable to tackle problems that daily life raises, even if it is as simple as reading a transit map.

France visits the White House

My morning routine consists of listen to National Public Radio for its morning news while sipping on the water bottle and the breakfast I brought from home.  Today NPR reported that a Russian jet was shot down by Turkey in the Turkey-Syria border because the Russian jets have violated the warnings that Turkey gave it.  Ok, I got it, a jet got shot down due to some violation. No big deal.  And then NPR announced France's President Francois Hollande will be speaking in the White House with the US President.  During the joint meeting, President Barack Obama welcomed President Francois Hollande warmly with a fifteen minute speech. Obama reminded the leaders that Americans love France and its diverse culture; we will always remember the Eiffel Tower, going to the local café and the brasserie for lunch, walking along the river Siene while vacationing in the City of Lights.  Obama also remembered the time when the French stands by the US side when the 9/11 attack happened and ended his speech with the confirmation that America will stand by and give unlimited help to France.  And in return, President Hollande accepted the confirmation for unity with the US.  

One of the wisdom I discovered is it takes experiences to know what we like in life, no matter how smart we are. I was never into politics when I was younger and it took me almost a decade to find that politics is one of my favorite subjects and how it can benefit anyone.  Recently, I did some traveling in the US and in Europe and politics very much fascinate me. I visited political sites such as the House of Parliament in London where the guided tour talked how the political houses in England works, went on a walking tour where a Paris tour guide talked about the political scenes in France,  and visited the French embassy in New York City. Now I find politics very relatable to my own life and to my own world.  My mind is more open to different subjects in the world and to what is out there. When I was in school, I always cringe when I had to go to a history class or any class and the main reason is I did not know how to relate what I learn in school to my own life. I hated how I had to memorize facts and how they do not relate to my life in anyway.  My world was too small and I did not see the world enough to know but traveling showed me the reality of what is out there and forever changed the way I see myself and especially life.  

School should focus on helping students to connect what they learn to their own life. The purpose of education is to teach the students to think for themselves and to relate to what is taught in school to what they know.  It is not about absorbing information and passing tests, it is opening the students’ mind to different cultures and to cultivate well-rounded students who are open to ideas and theory.  Easier said than done, but if we believe it is possible then it truly is. 

Enough is Enough

Many women who were in abusive relationships said that it was hard for them to get out at first but when they made the move to leave, it was the best decision in their life.  It frees them from the bondage and the burden that the relationship was putting on them and it leads to new roads in life.  We can apply the same concept to a job as well, there will be jobs where we have to suck it up and deal with it for a few years and there will be jobs where we have to let it go because our time there is sufficient. We see no point of staying and no growth and it is time to move on to the next stage in life.

Enough is enough. It is a saying that is simple but it has a profound effect on how we make decisions and how we deal with circumstances in life.  Enough does not mean we are a coward who give up and quit, it means we are ready for the new opportunities in life.

The Holidays

I bought my first holiday Starbucks drink in early November and this always mean the end of the year and the new year are about to come.  Like all around the world, Americans take the holidays very seriously. Millions of dollars are spent every year on gifts, shopping, decorations, traveling, road trips, etc.  Us Americans cannot help it that we love the holidays and our tendency to overspend has helped the economy and created jobs, even if it leaves a big hole in our wallets.  

The holidays always bring back the good old memories when I was younger.  My family was not rich, we had enough to live on as first generation immigrants but we still put the holidays as the priority. We spent a lot of money on the food, the decorations, the Christmas tree, the gifts, and we had no regrets.  In elementary school years, the holidays consisted of waking up to a mountain tall  of gifts under the Christmas tree and then the feast with the relatives--which ranges from Vietnamese dishes to American food such as the Asian style baked turkey and the too salty mash potato.  Then the new year eves arrives and this means counting down to the last second of the year while watching the New Yorkers celebrate the New Year in Time Square.  Then there is the eggnog and the left over food that can be eaten for days afterward and they always leave a person full and joyful more than ever.

The holidays can get repetitive and tedious as the tradition repeats itself over the years. But we should focus on the relationship aspect of the time and know that whatever is going on in our lives, there is true joy out there and the holidays is a proof of that. If we take time to think about it, the holidays always bring back fond memories, whether it happened when we went on a first date with someone, or when we first got married, or when we first bring the young infant home from the hospital. Whatever happens in the past, the holidays should always be a reminder of the good old days and gives us the joy that life can take away from us.  

The Victims of the Paris attack

The attack in the Bataclan theater in the 11th arrondissement of Paris on November 13^th. had the highest death casualties, with the death toll of eighty-nine people.  The terrorists entered the theater through the two main entrance and started open fired with automatic guns at concert goers.  They shot the people in the bar area first and then at the audience in the middle and then headed to the balcony and started shooting randomly at the people below. The American band Eagle of Death Metals and some concert goers used the exit on the left side of the stage to escape and survived the attack.  As the terrorists entered the building, one eyewitness, a concert goer himself, recalled turning around and saw a person with a bullet his eyes and many concert goers hid in a closet near the stage and the bathroom stalls waiting for any help to come.  One concert goer pretended to be dead and it seems like eternity before help came. Some witnesses described the inside of the building as a blood bath with people holding onto their loved ones and saying their final good bye to each other.  

All victims came from all over the world; they were nationals of Belgium, Sweden, France, United States, Mexico, Chile,  and Spain. They were students, engineers, teachers, lawyers, normal people who just wanted to have a fun Friday night.  They were at the wrong place and at the wrong time. My Asian mom said once that everyone’s time on earth is already determined by a god and maybe that is the reason for their tragic ending. Whatever the reason is, they have completed their cycle on earth and we all have to accept what happened and look to the future.  The 128 victims will always be remembered and they are now rest in peace. 

I cannot imagine myself holding onto someone who I love as they die slowly in front of me. A French couple went to the concert and the boyfriend was fatally shot and died while the girlfriend survived the tragic episode. Some couples were not so lucky and they died together at the scene. A lot  things hurt in life but losing your love ones is definitely one of the most painful experience anyone has to go through. I was in Paris two months ago and I could have been one of the victims who died in the concert hall or at one of the restaurants that the terrorists targeted. I could have been a passerby on my way back to the place I was staying at and got shot in the head.  All of this could have happened two months ago but it didn’t and I get to see the next day while many victims did not. 

I was very disappointed about something that happened last week and after hearing the story, my pain went away and I realize that there are bigger problems out there and my problems were small compared to what the family and the victims had to go through during the attack and the aftermath of it.   When something  bad happens, it puts everything in perspective and we come to realize what is important and what is not. 

The book The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook has been my to-go book lately and it gives solutions to the daily problems in life. Many readers would consider the problems as minor as they are not threatening or painful such as losing a love one but it can have a dire consequence if not taken the right action to fix it.  For instance, the book shows how to escape from quicksand, how to wrestle an alligator, and land a plane. We might laugh at some of the topics but the solutions are very practical and the problems can happen anywhere. But what happen if we run into a situation where there is no definite answer to a problem? There is no survival guide for the Paris attack. The terrorists came unexpectedly and there is no definite solution on how to manage the tragic episode.  It is good for us to be prepared for the future but many life occurrences are unexpected and there is no clear direction on how to deal with them.  This means we don’t know what will happen in the future so we have to focus on the presence and know that nothing is certain and all we have is today to enjoy it and to make a difference in the world. 

A Letter to France

I was in the ninth grade when 9/11 happened and I can still remember hearing about two tall buildings getting hit by airplanes over the speaker in my school and how my English teacher looked very concerned after the announcement ended. I was focused on the school work and always looking forward to hang out with the new friends I made so the incident did not hit me as the worst terrorist attack in the history of the world. 3,000 innocents lives were lost in a span of a few hours and many injured, volunteers, and family of the victims were left scarred for life.

France had its 9/11 on Friday, November 13th and despite how different the attack was carried out, its impact is very much congruent with the actual 9/11 that America experienced.  One-hundred and thirty  innocent lives have been confirmed dead and the toll will increase if the people in the critical condition will not get better. All over Facebook, users are posting their profile picture with the background of the French's flag in remembrance of the victims and of the event; Youtube and even other popular social media websites are posting France's flag to show support and solidarity with it.  World leaders are condemning the terrorist group ISIS for the unspeakable act and they promise to stand by with France and to provide any help as the country mourns the death of the victims.

These tragedies show how one tragic event can bring strangers together and how hope and prayers can heal the broken heart that was broken by the resentment toward the evil of this world.  Unity is hard to find where people are different in their beliefs and culture but everything is possible and the terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13th prove it.  United we stand was a phrase that I learned during my American history class and it will always hold true in the presence and in the far future.  France, the world is with you so keep your head up and keep hope in your heart, because things will get better.

 

 

Some Thoughts on the Paris attack

At around 9PM Pacific time, my sister texted me about the terrorist attack in Paris on November 13th. I was there for a little over a week in September and it is a city that I look at with only fond memories so I immediately jumped to my feet and check CNN for the latest news on the incident.  I still cannot believe that with all its beauties and wonderful history, Paris is now on an alert mode for terrorist activities once again.

The Paris police force stated there were 128 victims confirmed dead in the event and the toll might increase.  During my stay in Paris, I was living ten minutes from the attacked area so when I heard the news, it felt personal as if it was my own town as I got to know Paris well during my trip there.  Then more news rolled out and many tourist sites in Paris were targeted as well; for instance, a few restaurants in the 10th district and a soccer game had suicide bombing.

One dead victim was student from California State University, Long Beach where I attended college. If the event occurred two months ago, I might have been that CSULB student or other victims in the vicinity. I wonder if that would change me, if I would be the same person, if I would be changed forever, and if I would experience any traumatic mental problem because of the event.  I told my sister that I was in the area two months ago for my vacation and she told me that I should count myself lucky to not have gone through the tragedy.

Life is unpredictable and we can never know what to expect from it.  The audience in the Bacalan theater did not expect that an armed man would march in and started shooting anyone he encountered. No one expected the suicide bombings would occur at a soccer match north of Paris. None of the incidents were expected and that made the events more horrific and painful to think about.  Anger and maybe hatred can be felt by the injured and the world but I think feeling that way will lead to no where, we cannot bring the dead back, we cannot undo the event, we cannot stop the terrorists from performing their act, but we have total control over our reaction to it. Anger and hatred will lead to no where, forgiveness will. When we forgive, we acknowledge what happened, we see it for what it is, and we move on.  When we forgive and move on, the world seems brighter and the future is more possible to deal with. But it is only an if, and that if is always up to us.

Why We Need to Travel

People say you learn as you go and I could not disagree more.  I started traveling as a hobby for the past three years and at first I see no advantage to it, but as time flies by I see the benefits to my wanderlust.  I started traveling in the states initially where I visited San Francisco, Half Moon Bay, Yosemite, Big Sur, Grand Canyon, New York City, Denver, Las Vegas, and then ventured out to Europe, visiting London, Paris, Venice, Munich, Swiss Alps, Amsterdam, ect.  I started traveling mainly because I wanted to see places that I read about only in books and saw people I know flew across the world and posted pictures on social media.  I wanted to see the Eiffel Tower, London Eye, The House of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, eat the macaron and the baguettes that the French are known for, see the house of Anne Frank and many other historical sites in the world.

One of the benefits about traveling is that it helps me to connect information faster.  On the late night of November 13th, there were multiple terrorists' attack in different districts in Paris, from the 11 arrondissement to the 10th arrondissement to the soccer game that the Prime Minister of France was attending; one attack occurred in the Bacalan theater in the 11th district where 128 people died and the location was only an eleven minute drive from the place I stayed at in Paris two months ago for my vacation. I did not walk in that neighborhood but I have passed by it on my way to the Latin Quarter and in fact I almost stayed at a hotel in the attacked area in the theater.  As I read the news about the attack, I can picture myself standing in that neighborhood and seeing the Swat team hovering over the theater where it occurred.  I was in Paris for nine days total so the whereabouts of the neighborhood and the districts are very much familiar to me.  I was able to make connection of my experience in Paris to the news quickly.  In fact I have a friend living in the 19th arrondissement so I sent him an email and was glad he was safe.  Best of all, the sympathy I felt for the injured and killed in the attacks felt genuine as if I was one of them. Heck, I was one of the Parisians living there two months ago.

A lot of time we learn as we go and we understand as things happen and it applies to traveling as well. I enjoyed my time traveling but the benefits to it was not fully understood until I actually get back to the states. I see how the world is connected and when I read the news, the situations make sense and I was able to understand them better and at a faster rate.  It's true, traveling does make people smarter. It helps us see the world out there and if we are open to it, it can teach us anything and we become not just a smarter person, but a more sympathetic person as well.

Standing Up for Yourself

Growing up, I always wanted to make everyone happy and the easiest way to do that is to agree to everything people say. Whether they voiced something that was in contradiction to what I believe in, a false statement, a statement that try to bring me down, etc. I used to put heavy weights onto their thought and ignore the voice in me even if it pains me every time I hear it.  The downside to always agreeing to what people say is that personal growth is not developed this way; in order for us to grow, we have to believe in ourselves and to be able to think for ourselves.

One way to grow as a person is to stand up for ourselves.  This does not come natural and it takes effort to actually doing it.  A side effect to the action is we might make enemies along the way.  There will be people who are apt up to push us aside  in order to conquer the playground that we are in.  We should all keep in mind people are generally good but as humans, we are all different in the way we live and as the result we are more likely to come into a disagreement. When we stand up for ourselves, we discover our true identity and as a result we will grow as a person.  Sometimes we will run across people who will try their hardest to bring us down even if they are wrong. All we have to do is keep on being our true self and one day we will find one person who truly believes in us, but this only happens if we truly believe our own ability.

No Deadline

During my break today at work, I came by my coworker Elbert Lim's cubicle and gave him a visit.  He has been sick for the past few days so I wanted to make the visit a quick one to prevent any transfer of the germs but unfortunately we ended up talking longer than I anticipated.  I asked him if he knows what he wanted to do with his life and he said he is still finding that.  He is 36 year old, single, and he has been working with my employer for the past thirteen years; he has been contemplating about his career path since he graduated from college over a decade ago but he never got around to go back to school since then.

In fact he thought about attending medical or law school but had to cross that out since he found no interest in them. I had a face expression that signaled “don’t you think you should have it all together by now” and he said there is no deadline for anything and that when we are ready, we will know it. We can apply this knowledge to our career, romantic relationship, friendship, etc. The truth is there is no deadline for anything and when we are ready, we will know it and we will excel.  There is no deadline on when we should get married, when we should date a person, when we should own a house, when we should choose a career, etc. So we have to be patient with ourselves and know everything will work out. If something is meant for us, it will work out, and it will save us and help us grow, no matter what that is.  

The Conversation

During my afternoon break today, three of my coworkers were standing in the kitchen, situated next to my office, so as the day was slow today I decided to join the conversation. I spent the first five minutes listening and nodding to whatever my coworkers were talking about. One of my coworkers is an Italian man and he shared his secret of making the eggplant lasagna that he brought to work last Thursday.  I learned there are different types of eggplants, there are the seedless and there are the ones with the mouthful of seeds, none of the fact was taught in my biology class back then in high school.  One of the female coworkers talked about the bake goods that she is known to make for our office.  Within the five minutes I learned so much about food and random facts that sometimes sitting with a book for one hour would not give me.  I am not saying we should all forgo the books as they have proven themselves to be the source of knowledge for centuries, but sometimes the human interaction gets us closer and faster to the knowledge we need than trying to find the fact by ourselves in books. 

One of the benefits of talking to other people is we will always learn something new. Whether it is about cars, the next big gadgets, the current governor of California, what supermodel Heidi Klum wore during the Halloween party last Saturday, the fact will come handy someday in the future, whether it is to impress someone or for functional use.  And best of all we become a smarter person as we accumulate more facts; in fact to think clearly we need to gather facts and generalize them.  Second, talking to other people make us think.  I was at a friend’s birthday party last Sunday and I ran into a guest who is a friend of a friend. We chatted about high school and college and then she asked me, “If money is not the problem, what would I rather do with my life?” I had to pause a bit before answering because to be completely honest, I had no clue.  I felt like I was in the hot seat in a game show and a few second later I heard myself saying I wanted to do some sort of charity work abroad.  Though the question is simple, I had to think on my feet.  Every time I talk to someone, I find myself to think and to have a better understanding of a topic and of who I am as a person, I might make a fool out of myself while talking to other people but being aware of our flaws is a way to know who we are.

The point is every time we interact with someone, we will always learn something, whether it is about some random topic or ourselves.  We become a new being who is a better person than before.  So we have to always be open to people and keep in mind we are no better than anyone and no one is better than us. Sure our lives and age might be different but we can always learn something new with every person crossing our path.