Pigs Make the World Go Round

Christien Meindertsma, author of "Pig 05049" shares with us the astonishing afterlife of the ordinary pig, parts of which make their way into at least 187 non-pork products, from bullets to artificial hearts.

Thanks to Kevin Wu for sharing this TEDTalk video:

 

 

World No. 1 Nicol David saw off national No. 2 Low Wee Wern 11-6, 11-4, 11-9 in the quarter-finals of the US Open on Tuesday. The former’s semi-final opponent is Egyptian world No. 3 Raneem El Welily.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BTW, in the latest rankings released on October 01, 2014, Low jumped up two spots from No. 7 in the world following her excellent effort in winning the China Open last month, beating France’s world No. 6 Camille Serme in the final. She is only the second Malaysian woman to be in the world’s top five.

Still on North Korea

HELP University's granting of an honorary doctorate to Kim Jong Un unfolded against a backdrop of news that relate to North Korean defections. The world is familiar with hearing harrowing tales of adversity, suffering and hardship endured by ordinary North Koreans and some were lucky to be able to make their escape from the country.  

Here is just one personal tale of survival and hope and which I happened to also locate today:

 

What message is HELP's Paul Chan giving to this bullying overlord of oppressision and tyranny?

I was in Petaling Jaya to be the General Evaluator at the IEM Toastmasters meeting on Thursday. I was there at the invitation of club president, Alex Lu and this was my sixth visit to the Toastmasters club this calendar year. 

A decent meeting overall although one or two members were taking on multiple meeting roles. I would give this meeting a 6 upon 10. 

 

On Saturday, Luis Suarez was in brilliant form in this one-sided EPL match between Liverpool and West Brom where the Reds earned an easy 4-1 win. 

He fired Liverpool in front on 11 minutes, after a delightful run that tore the West Brom defense to shreds. He then added a second six minutes later, heading powerfully beyond goalie Boaz Myhill, and completed his hat-trick with a glancing header in the fifty-fifth minute from a Steven Gerrard free-kick.

 

The Baggies could only offer feeble resistance. Still, they managed to score a goal with a controversially awarded penalty (66) but Liverpool's Daniel Sturridge extinguished any hopes of a comeback with a wonderful 20-yard chip in the seventy-seventh minute to wrap up the game for Liverpool.

The Reds continue to pile the pressure on Arsenal at the top of the EPL table. And Suarez is, match by match, already confirming his place in the Liverpool Hall of Fame!

The Art of Asking

I recommend you to listen to this! Amanda Palmer talks about "the art of asking" on TED – to put it in another way, it is about connecting with people.

Amanda Palmer commands attention. The singer-songwriter-blogger-provocateur, known for pushing boundaries in both her art and her lifestyle, made international headlines this year when she raised nearly $1.2 million via Kickstarter (she’d asked for $100k) from nearly 25,000 fans who pre-ordered her new album, Theatre Is Evil.

But the former street performer, then Dresden Dolls frontwoman, now solo artist hit a bump the week her world tour kicked off. She revealed plans to crowdsource additional local backup musicians in each tour stop, offering to pay them in hugs, merchandise and beer per her custom. Bitter and angry criticism ensued (she eventually promised to pay her local collaborators in cash).

And it's interesting to consider why. It has been suggested that the idea was criticized “because we didn't understand the value exchange – the whole idea of asking the crowd for what you need when you need it and not asking for more or less." Summing up her business model, in which she views her recorded music as the digital equivalent of street performing, she says: “I firmly believe in music being as free as possible. Unlocked. Shared and spread. In order for artists to survive and create, their audiences need to step up and directly support them.”

On Tuesday, I was a speech evaluator for a practice contest speech at the Friendship Toastmasters meeting. This particular meeting was special because the speeches were very personal. And I salute these speakers – especiallly Eri Tang – because they showed courage. And honesty. An 8 out of a 10.