Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

Taken from: http://www.nonformality.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/ledialogue.jpg

Taken from:http://extend.schoolwires.com/clipartgallery/images/8020735.jpg

One day, my mother’s friend had decided to bring her family here to spend their summer vacation. She felt that it was important to let her daughter learn about the different races and cultures of Singapore because she had migrated to Holland when her daughter was just a year old. Hence, she has absolutely no idea about the different cultures in Singapore.

My mother told me to bring her friend’s daughter, Kate, around while the adults gather for a high school reunion. Nonetheless, I agreed as I was rather interested in being able to show Kate around Singapore. Some well known places included Chinatown, Little India, Geylang Serai et cetera. I was very excited as I can finally get to share my experiences of having lived in Singapore ever since I was born.

As she will be staying in Singapore for only a day, I had to finish touring the whole island with her and there was so much for her to see and experience! Initially, I could see that she felt quite out of place as there were many things that she was seeing for the first time. Take for example; tasting the different Indian and Malay Cuisine was a whole new experience for her and the after-taste was a little too much for her. Nonetheless, she tried them even though they were not to her liking. I also brought her to the different temples in Singapore. The smell of the joss sticks in temples was also too much for her. However so, she managed to overcome it and had commented on the excellent workmanship of the temples.

Taken from: http://www.shunya.net/Pictures/Singapore/LittleIndiaTemple.jpg

It seems to me that intercultural communication occurs everywhere and anywhere, especially so in countries which have different cultural groups. One interesting fact is that if we were to live in that particular country, there is definitely much for us to learn about the other cultures. I believe that it is always possible to adapt to new cultures if there was sufficient time given, it is the mindset that needs to be changed to accept a culture different from ours. It might be difficult initially but it is definitely possible. In order for one to communicate effectively with another of a different cultural background, it would be beneficial to learn more about their culture first. Take the first step!

Efficient Energy Use

Green, green, green! That is what we will be looking at in five to ten years down the road. Probably, green would be the only color we see everywhere. There would be green houses, green cars, and even more green trees around! In fact, this is in response to the increasing environmental damages that we are inflicting today. Often, we do not see the impact of the damaging the Earth when we are doing so, however, small damages done by individuals would enlarge to become a huge problem. Take for example; the overwhelming amount of emission of carbon monoxide into the atmosphere is deteriorating the global warming problem and creating trouble for us. Hence, it is really important for us to create awareness of resource conservation and to pay attention to the problems that it can create.

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One possible research topic could be on creating the awareness of conserving NUS ‘free’ resources, reducing wastage so as to create a more energy-efficient and environmental friendly university. This is with respect to ‘free’ resources like electricity, water and paper usage etc. The notion of efficient energy use is probably foreign to many science faculty students as there is minimal exposure to it. In fact, would they consider conserving energy at home by investing in energy efficient appliances?

Taken from: http://www.wec.ufl.edu/extension/gc/harmony/images/cfbulbs.jpg

Hypothesis: Most students in the Science Faculty at NUS lack the awareness and willingness to conserve ‘free’ resources so as to reduce wastage and maintain the efficient use of energy.

Problem statement: One of the objectives of this research study is to determine the extent of the knowledge on efficient energy use in NUS and subsequently at home. It is also to determine if they are aware of the existence of efficient energy buildings (also known as ‘green’ buildings).

Taken from: http://www.osakagas.co.jp/rd/next21/img/energy1_1e.gif

Purpose statement: The objectives of this report are to collate the results and sent it to the National Environment Agency (NEA) or the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) to inform them the actual level of awareness of NUS science faculty students on the efficient use of energy. Hence, by knowing these results, subsequent actions could be done to better the situation. Perhaps the authorities could organize workshops and a series of events on efficient energy use to increase their awareness, could be done to better the situation.

Reasons for survey: The surveys will reflect the extent of interest and level of awareness the science faculty students have towards the idea of efficient energy use. From the surveys, we can also deduce the reasons that they have for their apathy towards the issue of efficient energy use.

The issue of global warming is very much at heart. Every little effort counts. Hence, we should start by creating the awareness of conserving energy, and the use of efficient energy to reduce wastage of energy.

*edited on 9th Sept