Humanity and the world today

Okay I know that I've been blogging really frequenly recently. But there is this sudden realisation that strike me so I have to write it down somewhere.

History tells us whenever a civilisation start to flourish--when the basic needs of the people are met, people generally do not have any problems with satisfying the needs of the physical--that unique cultures are developed, philosophy and the sciences start to take tremendous progress. This can be seen in many cases--the ancient civilisations, notably the Greeks who have came up with so many philosophical ideologies that still hold their places today, ancient Rome which left us Latin, the ancestor of English and is still used widely in the academia. Moving to the more modern ones, we have the age of enlightenment and the industrial revolution. (Pardon me if I make any mistakes or give bad examples--not a history student here) However, as we move closer and closer to the present, we realise that the quality of life of the people are improving, yet the intellectual and cultural pursuits of the people are declining. Looking at the world today, people are "overly fed", both physically and mentally. Most people are enjoying a convenient and hedonistic life (most people as in those who can see this blog). Most people have great food to eat, good sanitation, excellent healthcare, abundance of recreational activities, basically all that is needed physically of that of a human being. However, the level of satisfaction is way lower than what it should be.

Perhaps it is due to a lack of higher pursuit. We are definitely nothing compared to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Look at our so called "pop culture" today. It holds little quality and depth. The ancient civilisations left us with great ideology and inventions. What can we leave for our future generations? Lady gaga? We do have a diversity of newly formed cultures of today, but they hold no value. Most of them are created purely for entertainment and will be soon forgotten, rendering their short existence meaningless but to make a few people laugh. The problem I find with the world today is that our physical needs are certainly fulfilled, but our culture is not flourishing, nor is our intellectual pursuit. Instead, we are trying to ruin the already well established ancient cultures by adding in trashy stuff, instead of building on them.

Also, the fast pace of the modern society has not allowed people to think. People are overly fed mentally as well. Everyday we perceive too much information for our brain to precess and filter, let alone create. We all know that it's only when we get bored does our brain start to fill us with fantastic ideas and inspirations. However, in the modern society there seems to be this fear of boredom. It is as though boredom is a furry little monster that must be kept at bay. When we get bored we must find something to do, it is a duty that we must oblige. Last time when people take long train rides they read their books in leisure or gaze out of the window and simply let their minds go empty. That's why so many ideas were generated on trains. Today, you take a subway ride that stops every 2-3 min with annoying announcements and talking passengers. You, you are furiously scrolling through your social media and feeds trying to get the hottest topic in town. No more ideas will be generated in such a medley environment.

And people think less too, because information is too readily available. People go to that holy site for all their answers in life: Google, and for all the information they missed during lectures because they are sleeping: Wikipedia. I highly suspect that the world will not be able to function properly the day Google breaks down. (Hey that sounds like a great idea for a movie) Basically, people don't undergo the amount of rigour of thinking they are supposed to undergo in order to reach the expected standard of that field of knowledge they are to have last time. When can we ever have our next Einstein? The world now is full of smart people, but they put their intelligence into things such as scoring full mark on a test, finding the right information from the internet and presenting their findings in an interesting way. People who study philosophy, literature and pure mathematics have difficulty finding jobs. The world has turn to a horrible horrible place. People are too short sighted only to fight for their survival or maybe the survival of the future generation. No one actually cares whether the present generation will leave something of value for the future of mankind. That, is a truly sad thing.

(The above whatever is only coming from a viewpoint of a random secondary 4 student studying in a random school in Singapore. Her view may be highly skewed due to lack of exposure to the outside world. Hence, do not fret if you find any sentence in this article untrue. Just wait for her to grow up and she will understand.)

Our class' performance for TDC!

So since it's our last year, our class wants to do something special for our wonderful teachers and we decided to perform for Teachers' Day Concert this year! I have to say our class did an awesome job, and I'm the slacker who only come out at the end :P I'm really amazed by some of my classmates' ability to act. Anyway, our performance turned out great and all our efforts paid off. Without further blabbering here is a video of our performance:

I'm really proud to be in 404! Sadly we only have around a months' time with each other, but these awesome people will stay in my memory.

Derping around

In case you are wondering why I'm not asleep and doing don't know what in the middle of the night, that's because

1. I'm an owl
2. I don't like to sleep early
3. Sleep is for the weak
4. I was downloading random fonts and exploring with them

okay this font thing is a random discovery. It all started when people on my class whatsapp group are discussing what fonts to use for the word nygh. Therefore, I went to google for fonts, and found this website that has so called 1001 fonts. I'm too lazy to count to verify. Anyway, I browsed through some of the fonts and downloaded a number of them. Okay a lot of them like 20+. After which I spent some time to unzip all the files and install them into word.

So mow, my awesome word has dozens of new awesome fonts! Cheer for me!

And also I deleted some fonts which people never ever are going to use. I wonder what are some of the fonts there for. They are so ugly that using them will be an insult to the reader.

After looking through all the fonts, I saw this special font that has arrows in the words. Then I think of direction, then I think of lost.

And so I started to waste my time efficiently on doing a art word thing on the theme lost. Remember that I'm doing with Microsoft word, so I have to shift all the text boxes, adjust the width of words, adding in colours etc. which is a total pain. However, after hours of meaningless hard work this is what I finally got:

Okay I know the colours may seem cluttered and not very in harmony, but it's not bad for a first timer right? :D This is my first time in attempting this kind of word art. And it may seem a bit messy, but messiness is part of the intended outcome.

Hmm maybe I can tone down on the colours of the word colours.

Haha I'm so proud of myself :DDDDDD

And to end off this post I shall insert a random emoticon. ヽ(*⌒∇⌒*)ﾉ

kthxbye

Suddenly remembered

Oh yeah I suddenly remembered what I wanted to say in the previous post! Never mind no harm in starting in a new post, since the two are completely unrelated.

I have been studying this Jung's personality typology model. It categorizes people into 16 types, in which the personality must be between two types in the four indicators.

Extrovert vs. Introvert

Extraverted (E) Extraversion is a preference to focus on the world outside the self. Extraverts enjoy social interactions and tend to be enthusiastic, verbal, assertive, and animated. They enjoy large social gatherings, such as parties and any kind of group activity. Extraverts are likely to enjoy time spent with people and find themselves energized by social interaction. Extravert Characteristics Gregarious Assertive Talkative Social/outgoing Likes groups, parties, etc. Energized by interaction Expressive & enthusiastic Volunteers personal information Distractable Has many friends Easy to approach

or

Introverted (I) Introversion is a preference to focus on the world inside the self. Introverts tend to be quiet, peaceful and deliberate and are not attracted to social interactions. They prefer activities they can do alone or with one other close friend, activities such as reading, writing, thinking, and inventing. Introverts find social gatherings draining. Introvert Characteristics Energized by time alone Private Keeps to self Quiet Deliberate Internally aware Fewer friends Prefer smaller groups Independent Not socially inclined Enjoys solitude Thinks before speaking

Sensing vs. iNtuition

Sensing (S) Sensing refers to how people process data. Sensing people focus on the present, they are "here and now" people, who are factual and process information through the five senses. They see things as they are, they are concrete thinkers. Sensing Characteristics Concrete Realistic Lives in the present Aware of surroundings Notices details Practical Goes by senses Factual

or

Intuition (N) Intuition refers to how people process data. Intuitive people focus on the future and the possibilities. They process information through patterns and impressions. They read between the lines, they are abstract thinkers. Intuitive Characteristics Future-focused Sees possibilities Inventive Imaginative Deep Abstract Idealistic Complicated Theoretical

Thinking vs. Feeling

Thinking (T) Thinking refers to how people make decisions. Thinking people are objective and make decisions based on facts. They are ruled by their head instead of their heart. Thinking people judge situations and others based on logic. Thinking Characteristics Logical Objective Decides with head Wants truth Rational Impersonal Critical Thick-skinned Firm with people Driven by thought

or

Feeling (F) Feeling refers to how people make decisions. Feeling people are subjective and make decisions based on principles and values. They are ruled by their heart instead of their head. Feeling people judge situations and others based on feelings and extenuating circumstances. Feeling Characteristics Decides with heart Dislikes conflict Passionate Driven by emotion Gentle Easily hurt Empathetic Caring of others Warm

Judging vs. Perceiving

Judging (J) Judging is the preference outwardly displayed. Judging does not mean "judgmental". Judging people like order, organization and think sequentially. They like to have things planned and settled. Judging people seek closure. Judging Characteristics Decisive Controlled Good at finishing Organized Structured Scheduled Quick at tasks Responsible Likes closure Makes plans

or

Perceiving (P) Perceiving is the preference outwardly displayed. Perceiving people are flexible, like to keep their options open and think randomly. They like to act spontaneously and are adaptable. Perceivers like to keep things open ended. Perceiving Characteristics Adaptable Relaxed Disorganized Care-free Spontaneous Changes tracks midway Keeps options open Procrastinates Dislikes routine Flexible

(Information taken from http://www.mypersonality.info/)

Okay, so after this test I was trying to observe people and categorize into the 16 types of personalities. I took the test and the descriptions of my personality are VERY accurate. I was amazed and thought: oh my someone finally knows me!

Just in case you wonder, I'm an INTJ. Actually I'm wondering if I'm an INTP, because sometimes I can get very disorganised and I'm a big procrastinator. But the test suggest otherwise and I think the descriptions of an INTJ suite me very much as well. It is also a very rare personality! Statistics say that only 0.8% of females in USA have this personality. Well, this may explain why I feel so different from the people around me. Anyway, these are some descriptions of my personality:

I – Introversion preferred to extraversion: INTJs tend to be quiet and reserved. They generally prefer interacting with a few close friends rather than a wide circle of acquaintances, and they expend energy in social situations (whereas extraverts gain energy).

N – Intuition preferred to sensing: INTJs tend to be more abstract than concrete. They focus their attention on the big picture rather than the details and on future possibilities rather than immediate realities.

T – Thinking preferred to feeling: INTJs tend to value objective criteria above personal preference or sentiment. When making decisions they generally give more weight to logic than to social considerations.

J – Judgment preferred to perception: INTJs tend to plan their activities and make decisions early. They derive a sense of control through predictability, which to perceptive types may seem limiting.

INTJs apply (often ruthlessly) the criterion "Does it work?" to everything from their own research efforts to the prevailing social norms. This in turn produces an unusual independence of mind, freeing the INTJ from the constraints of authority, convention, or sentiment for its own sake ... INTJs are known as the "Systems Builders" of the types, perhaps in part because they possess the unusual trait of combining imagination and reliability. Whatever system an INTJ happens to be working on is for them the equivalent of a moral cause to an INFJ; both perfectionism and disregard for authority come into play. Personal relationships, particularly romantic ones, can be the INTJ's Achilles heel ... This happens in part because many INTJs do not readily grasp the social rituals ... Perhaps the most fundamental problem, however, is that INTJs really want people to make sense.

—Marina Margaret Heiss^[12]

INTJs are analytical. Like INTPs, they are most comfortable working alone and tend to be less sociable than other types. Nevertheless, INTJs are prepared to lead if no one else seems up to the task, or if they see a major weakness in the current leadership. They tend to be pragmatic, logical, and creative. They have a low tolerance for spin or rampant emotionalism. They are not generally susceptible to catchphrases and do not readily accept authority based on tradition, rank, or title.

INTJs are strong individualists who seek new angles or novel ways of looking at things. They enjoy coming to new understandings. They tend to be insightful and mentally quick; however, this mental quickness may not always be outwardly apparent to others since they keep a great deal to themselves. They are very determined people who trust their vision of the possibilities, regardless of what others think. They may even be considered the most independent of all of the sixteen personality types. INTJs are at their best in quietly and firmly developing their ideas, theories, and principles.

—Sandra Krebs Hirsch^[13]

Hallmarks of the INTJ include independence of thought and a desire for efficiency. They work best when given autonomy and creative freedom. They harbor an innate desire to express themselves by conceptualizing their own intellectual designs. They have a talent for analyzing and formulating complex theories. INTJs are generally well-suited for occupations within academia, research, consulting, management, science, engineering, and law. They are often acutely aware of their own knowledge and abilities—as well as their limitations and what they don't know (a quality that tends to distinguish them from INTPs). INTJs thus develop a strong confidence in their ability and talents, making them natural leaders.

In forming relationships, INTJs tend to seek out others with similar character traits and ideologies. Agreement on theoretical concepts is an important aspect of their relationships. By nature INTJs can be demanding in their expectations, and approach relationships in a rational manner. As a result, INTJs may not always respond to a spontaneous infatuation but wait for a mate who better fits their set criteria. They tend to be stable, reliable, and dedicated. Harmony in relationships and home life tends to be extremely important to them. They generally withhold strong emotion and do not like to waste time with what they consider irrational social rituals. This may cause non-INTJs to perceive them as distant and reserved; nevertheless, INTJs are usually very loyal partners who are prepared to commit substantial energy and time into a relationship to make it work.

As mates, INTJs want harmony and order in the home and in relationships. The most independent of all types,^[14] INTJs trust their intuition when choosing friends and mates—even in spite of contradictory evidence or pressure from others. The emotions of an INTJ are hard to read, and neither male nor female INTJs are apt to express emotional reactions. At times, INTJs seem cold, reserved, and unresponsive, while in fact they are almost hypersensitive to signals of rejection from those they care for. In social situations, INTJs may also be unresponsive and may neglect small rituals designed to put others at ease. For example, INTJs may communicate that idle dialogue such as small talk is a waste of time. This may create the impression that the INTJ is in a hurry—an impression that is not always intended. In their interpersonal relationships, INTJs are usually better in a working situation than in a recreational situation.

Dominant: Introverted intuition (Ni)

Attracted to symbolic actions or devices, Ni synthesizes seeming paradoxes to create the previously unimagined. These realizations come with a certainty that demands action to fulfill a new vision of the future, solutions that may include complex systems or universal truths.^[16]

Auxiliary: Extraverted thinking (Te)

Te organizes and schedules ideas and the environment to ensure the efficient, productive pursuit of objectives. Te seeks logical explanations for actions, events, and conclusions, looking for faulty reasoning and lapses in sequence.^[17]

Tertiary: Introverted feeling (Fi)

Fi filters information based on interpretations of worth, forming judgments according to criteria that are often intangible. Fi constantly balances an internal set of values such as harmony and authenticity. Attuned to subtle distinctions, Fi innately senses what is true and what is false in a situation.^[18]

Inferior: Extraverted sensing (Se)

Se focuses on the experiences and sensations of the immediate, physical world. With an acute awareness of the present surroundings, it brings relevant facts and details to the forefront and may lead to spontaneous action.^[19]

(The above is take from Wikipedia)

And if you want to see more, you can go to here.

However I do know of some cases of people who don't fit into this system of classification. For example, Yun Si got a 1% for feeling vs. thinking, thus she has so called "no preference". That means this system cannot very accurately describe her. Hence don't trust this 100%. However if you get over 70% for your type (like me), then it is most likely true.

Well, have fun exploring. I think this is a great way to understand people for an INTJ like me :)

P.s. INTJs are awesome!

(MAJOR EDIT: After a period of identity crisis I now identify myself as INTP. The two are extremely similar hence the confusion. Please refer to later posts for further info.)

Phantom of the Opera

Hehe just returned from the Phantom of the Opera. It is awesome, as expected. Very emotionally filled and the music are epic as well. Totally worth it!

And, as you may expect, another spam of poto music again.

This is a full recording of the 25th anniversary poto. Sorry for the bad quality.

A few notable pieces:

And lastly, it's this dude again!

I actually wanted to write about some other things too, but after watching all these videos I suddenly forgot what I was about to say. Never mind leave it to next time then.