Day 2 Reflection - Nicholas
Posted by Anonymous at 9:10 pm
6. 3 things you look forward to tomorrow
Today was exciting because we got to experience different lessons from all different sciences, such as physics, where we created an electromagnetic wave generator and a device to check for the wave which was something like FOE, biology where we did something commonly done in biotechnology, electrophoresis and DNA extraction which was something new for me because I am in FOE. Last but not least, we also went for an inventions lesson where we created a machine that transmits energy wirelessly, which was something very cool because it was something like the project that the secondary 4s did for the O level project work.
It was also an fun day because we got to meet our buddies and go for the different club activities, of which I went for Korean Samulnori and experienced the different Korean culture and looked at the various interesting performances.
Lastly, today’s experience was enjoyable as all the lessons were within our concepts as we had learnt all these during our applied subjects and we had enough understanding to know what all the lessons were about and do the projects knowing what we were doing and the principles behind those things, at the same time expanding our knowledge with activities that were an expansion of what we learnt in school.
One highlight of the day was creating the electromagnetic wave generator and the electromagnetic wave sensor. It was essentially a capacitor that establishes an electric field about it and a circular magnetic field, creating electromagnetic waves that were able to be travelled across long distances, so even when the sensor was far away from the generator, the LED was able to light up when the electromagnetic waves ‘closed’ the circuit in the sensor and overall it was really cool creating a large-scale capacitor.
Another highlight was going for the club activities. Since we were in Korea, it was quite essential for us to learn more about the culture, and as I was paired with a buddy from the Korean Samulnori, which was a group playing Korean traditional instruments, I got a hand in playing the drums and also looked at them put on a real full-length show, which was very cool.
Finally, we also went to the Korean Culture Center and put on the Hanbok, the Korean traditional costumes. While we were there, we also played some traditional games and made some rice cakes, which we got to try as well. It was very nice and delicious, and it was very chewy like glutinous rice.
I learnt that the Korean education system was somewhat similar to Singapore’s. Although they were in high school, they learnt quite similar things to what we learnt in our Applied Subjects, which were essentially topics from high-school (JC or Poly) level. As such, I found it quite easy to go along with the lesson and even if I did not understand, there were friends to help as well.
Another thing I learnt was that the Koreans had really strict rules about following the culture they had. They really appreciated their own culture and really wanted to preserve it and teach these to the younger generations, especially since some of the younger generation also did not know how to tie the Hanbok.
Lastly, Korea has a way richer culture than Singapore. Although there may be clubs out there in Singapore like the Malay Cultural Club or Chinese Cultural Club, these clubs mainly originated from outside Singapore such as China or Malaysia, and I have never seen a Singapore Cultural Club, since Singapore is such a young nation and we have barely any real culture set up since at least 200 years ago, other than the Peranakans. In Korea, they have various cultures as seen in Korean dramas that stretch from very very long ago, but still treasure it up to today, with the food they eat, traditional clothing they preserve and other factors.
I have scoliosis and my back hurts from doing the large formal bow in the Hanbok.
I can stop having a runny nose by having an electric shock, since I was adjusting the circuit in the physics class just now but someone switched it on by accident
I also learnt that I am not trying hard enough in my studies, especially looking at other people stay up until so late to try to get into the top universities around Korea. As such, I can try and be more up to task and do work to the best of my abilities.
I did not do the large bow well as my back really hurt.
I ate too much rice cake at the Korean cultural centre, so my stomach hurt quite badly after that and I could not eat a proper meal the the Busan High School for dinner. Perhaps, I should eat less in between meals so that I can have proper and regular meals and I wouldn’t fall sick more easily.
I look forward to the Samsung-Reno Motors and looking at the procedures of making a car. I would also like to know how they design their factory so it would aid in the design of our port system and we can know how to make it more efficient and effective.
I look forward to going for the chemistry lesson, as I would like to know the difference between what we learn in Singapore and what they are learning or have learnt in the syllabus of their first year in the High School there. If there is something new, it could also be a head-start for SPA next year and I will have more experience in lab sessions next year, so that could be of help to me.
Lastly, I am also interested in the robotics class. Since I am in Robotics@APEX, I would like to see what type of robots they typically build there for normal lessons, and see what would be applicable for next year when I am in CCA, and what I can pass down to my juniors, so they can have more relevant experience and build better and cooler robots.
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