Minggu, 31 Agustus 2014

Article#337 - Banker's Guide to a Gold Digger

STRATEGY •  • 



This banter may be one of the funniest things we have encountered in a while. An extensively proliferated internet rumor details the story of a young woman who posted a provocative subject on a popular forum entitled, “What should I do to marry a rich guy?”
Within her post she allegedly detailed her troubles of finding a rich man as well as letting everyone know exactly what she is looking for. To make the story even better a “banker from J.P. Morgan” responded with one of the funniest retorts we have ever seen.
The story is fictional, but it is highly probable that he would be an Elite Daily reader if it were real from the tone of his response.

Here is what she wrote:


Title: “What should I do to marry a rich guy?”
I’m going to be honest of what I’m going to say here. I’m 25 this year. I’m very pretty, have style and good taste. I wish to marry a guy with $500k annual salary or above. You might say that I’m greedy, but an annual salary of $1M is considered only as middle class in New York.

My requirement is not high. Is there anyone in this forum who has an income of $500k annual salary? Are you all married? I wanted to ask: what should I do to marry rich persons like you? Among those I’ve dated, the richest is $250k annual income, and it seems that this is my upper limit. If someone is going to move into high cost residential area on the west of New York City Garden(?), $250k annual income is not enough.

I’m here humbly to ask a few questions:

1) Where do most rich bachelors hang out? (Please list down the names and addresses of bars, restaurant, gym)

2) Which age group should I target?

3) Why most wives of the riches are only average-looking? I’ve met a few girls who don’t have looks and are not interesting, but they are able to marry rich guys.

4) How do you decide who can be your wife, and who can only be your girlfriend? (my target now is to get married)

Signed,

Ms. Pretty

The philosophical reply from a banker at J.P. Morgan:


Dear Ms. Pretty,
I have read your post with great interest. Guess there are lots of girls out there who have similar questions like yours. Please allow me to analyse your situation as a professional investor. My annual income is more than $500k, which meets your requirement, so I hope everyone believes that I’m not wasting time here.
From the standpoint of a business person, it is a bad decision to marry you. The answer is very simple, so let me explain.
Put the details aside, what you’re trying to do is an exchange of “beauty” and “money” : Person A provides beauty, and Person B pays for it, fair and square.
However, there’s a deadly problem here, your beauty will fade, but my money will not be gone without any good reason. The fact is, my income might increase from year to year, but you can’t be prettier year after year.
Hence from the viewpoint of economics, I am an appreciation asset, and you are a depreciation asset. It’s not just normal depreciation, but exponential depreciation. If that is your only asset, your value will be much worse 10 years later.
By the terms we use in Wall Street, every trading has a position, dating with you is also a “trading position”.
If the trade value dropped we will sell it and it is not a good idea to keep it for long term – same goes with the marriage that you wanted. It might be cruel to say this, but in order to make a wiser decision any assets with great depreciation value will be sold or “leased”.
Anyone with over $500k annual income is not a fool; we would only date you, but will not marry you. I would advice that you forget looking for any clues to marry a rich guy. And by the way, you could make yourself to become a rich person with $500k annual income.This has better chance than finding a rich fool.
Hope this reply helps.

Photo credit: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images

PRESTON WATERS

Preston Waters is a thinker. He's not your traditional philosophical persona, however, as he leaves no topic untouched. Covering all the bases, from business to women, Preston Waters is the ultimate man's man for Gen-Y.
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Jumat, 29 Agustus 2014

Article#336 - International Guidelines for Problem Solving


This picture is taken from http://9gag.com/gag/av0y2zq.
Beware of stereotypes; it will be wise if you find out the meaning of each topics by yourselves.

Update: 23rd February, 2016, 23:19 (UT+9)

Missing our dear Indonesia? Here it goes.
Design by Ted Kesgar.
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Rabu, 27 Agustus 2014

Article#335 - Karawang Bersaksi

Kami yang berseru nyaring, dalam Karawang bersaksi
Tidak bisa mendesak mereka untuk sedikit tahu diri
Tapi siapakah yang tidak lagi menyapa sepi kami
Terbayang kami geram, namun tegap menanti?

Kami bicara padamu dalam bening yang tercekik sepi
Jika waktu rasa hampa, jam dinding pun tak berdetak
Kami kering. Bosan. Yang tinggal tulang diliputi tunggu
Jerang, jeranglah kami

Kami sudah coba berbagai upaya
Tapi penantian belum usai, belum hasilkan apa-apa

Kami sudah beri tanpa ada kejelasan
Penantian belum usai,
Belum bisa memperhitungkan arti makna percaya

Kami cuma jiwa-jiwa membosankan
Tapi di dalam kuasamu
Kaulah lagi yang tentukan nasib jiwa-jiwa membosankan
Ataukah waktu kami melayang untuk kejelasan, dan kemudahan urusan
Atau untuk sekadar tiada
Kami tidak tahu, kami tidak bisa lagi berkata

Kami merapal ayat-ayat
Ketika kalian sejuk bersemedi
Menikmati perubahan yang berkoar akan kebingungan dan kekalutan

Kami bicara padamu dalam kering yang lelah menanti
Jika waktu terasa hampa, jam dinding pun tak berdetak
Sementara kalian asyik
Menjaga pamor
Menjaga citra
Menjaga langgeng karir

Kami tinggallah hikayat
Berilah kami bakti
Berjagalah terus di garis batas pernyataan dan ingkaran

Kami hanyalah rakyat
Berilah kami bunyi pasti
Lawan segala tindak tanduk pencurian waktu bersama

Jerang-jeranglah kami
Yang tinggal jiwa kosong terbalut tunggu
Beribu kami mengamati Karawang bersaksi

Diadaptasi dari puisi "Karawang-Bekasi" (1948), karya Chairil Anwar.

Hari 7079, bersama panas debu jalanan.
Dicatatkan dalam semarak kemacetan,
Sabtu, 27 Agustus 2014, 13:12 (UT+7)
6°18'04.38"S, 107°18'11.35"E
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Senin, 25 Agustus 2014

Article#334 - Bulan Yang (Terlihat) Terang

11 Agustus 2014, 01:11 WIB (UT+7). 
Pada waktu ini, Bulan mencapai posisi terjauh dari Matahari, dilihat dari Bumi. Sebuah momen yang biasa kita kenal dengan istilah "Bulan purnama". Di sekitar momen tersebut, Bulan bersinar dengan porsi wajahnya yang paling mendekati bulat sempurna, dalam cerlang yang paling paripurna.
Purnama kali ini, selain menandai pengingat berlalunya tengah bulan bagi umat Islam yang sedang mencoba melengkapi puasanya dengan puasa Syawal, juga dinikmati oleh banyak orang di penjuru dunia karena posisi Bulan yang tergolong cukup dekat ke Bumi di masa purnamanya. Bulan pada posisi ini, yang kemudian populer dengan julukan 
supermoon, berhasil menarik perhatian ekstra bagi pecinta angkasa untuk sejenak menyintas cakrawala petang, hingga tengah malam datang. Semua itu hanya demi menangkap citraan Bulan yang tampak (sedikit) lebih cerlang dari biasanya. Sayangnya, tentu saja, julukan 'super' bagi Bulan di saat tersebut tidak se-'super' kedengarannya, terlepas apakah para astronom akan cukup tega untuk membuyarkan animo masyarakat dalam mengamati Bulan. Bagi penulis, menilik istilah supermoon yang memperdayakan dan sekaligus memberi harapan palsu (?) istilah "purnama perigee" yang lebih ilmiah akan dipakai di tulisan ini.
(Untuk penjelasan lebih lanjut mengenai seluk beluk purnama perigeesila kunjungi laman ini)

Kenampakan Bulan paling besar dan terang tersuguh di tengah bulan Syawal kali ini. seolah memberitahukan orang-orang akan besarnya nilai kemenangan yang didapat setelah sebulan berpuasa. Penulis pun tak mau kalah, dan menyuguhkan foto-foto hasil jepretan orang di berbagai daerah dunia dalam mengabadikan momen purnama perigee. Meskipun, mungkin penulis perlu mengingatkan kepada para pembaca sekalian, bahwa kenampakan Bulan di foto-foto di bawah terlihat besar hanya karena teknik fotografi yang digunakan dalam memotret citra Bulan. Bukan Bulan yang terlihat sedemikian besar; justru objek di sekitar Bulan lah yang terlihat demikian kecil-kecil.
(Jika tertarik dengan koleksi foto-foto Bulan, sila kunjungi juga laman ini)

Tambahan: Melewatkan kedua momen purnama perigee sebelumnya? Purnama perigee untuk tahun 2014 masih bisa kausaksikan pada malam 8-9 September mendatang. Segera tandai kalendermu!

Purnama perigee, dipotret di balik The Peace Monument, Washington D.C., AS.
(Bill Ingalls/NASA)
Purnama perigee, dipotret dari dekat kota Trento, Italia.
(Giuseppe Cacace/AFP/Getty Images)
Purnama perigee, dipotret dari dekat Las Vegas, Nevada, AS.
(Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Purnama perigee, dipotret dari wilayah kota Praha, Republik Ceko.
(Matej Divizna/Getty Images)
Purnama perigee, dipotret dari balik Mt. Rundle, dekat kota Banff, Alberta, Kanada.
(Alan Dyer/Universe Today)
Purnama perigee, dipotret di dekat Desde el Obelisco,
Malecón de Santo Domingo, Republik Dominika.
(Goku Abreu/Universe Today)
Purnama perigee, dipotret dari Observatorium Bosscha, Lembang, Indonesia.
(Muhammad Yusuf/Flickr)




























Jika mata kalian telah berkelana sampai ke kalimat ini, berarti sudah waktunya tulisan ini undur diri. Jangan lupa, masih ada purnama perigee pada malam 8-9 September mendatang. Jika kau melewatkannya, kau harus siap bersabar menunggu tahun 2015 untuk mengamatinya lagi. Meskipun mungkin tidak serugi itu juga, toh tidak terlihat kentara besarnya.
Mungkin cukuplah demikian. Sampai jumpa di lain kesempatan!

Jika ingin melihat gambar-gambar purnama perigee lebih lanjut, sila kunjungi laman berikut.
http://www.universetoday.com/113835/perigee-super-moon-images-from-around-the-world/
http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/month-space-see-supermoon-other-super-sights-n192001
http://metro.co.uk/2014/08/10/gallery-supermoon-pictures-from-around-the-world-4827372/
http://www.space.com/26785-supermoon-photos-august-full-moon-2014.html
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Sabtu, 23 Agustus 2014

Article#333 - Tiga Tahun Tanpa Melamun

Sebersit pandangan itu kembali mengalihkan fokusku,
Fokus yang tak pernah terbentuk dalam kekalutan apapun,
Yang asal dibentuk dan terbujur merengut.

....
Hah, sudahlah. Sepertinya, lagi-lagi, saya tak berhasil menghadirkan nuansa keseriusan yang susah payah saya (tak) upayakan.
Upaya saya di dua post serupa sebelumnya juga gagal, dengan yang terakhir mandek di tengah jalan, dan yang pertama bahkan tak sedikitpun saya uji coba.

Mungkin post sejenis ke depannya memang bukan untuk ajang memamerkan keseriusan? Atau mungkin saya hanya kurang berkelana selama liburan. Atau mungkin gabungan dari keduanya. Lagipula, bukankah dunia ini isinya permainan dan senda gurau belaka? Maka mungkin hal yang sama lah yang lebih nyaman bersemayam dalam kehidupan saya sendiri.

....'Post sejenis'?
Yap, sebagaimana dua yang lebih dahulu tiba, post ini juga ingin memberitahukan satu hal pada kalian semua:
Tanggal dan waktu publikasi post menandai tepat tiga tahun sudah blog aneh ini menghuni dunia maya.
sumber
....Terlepas apakah kalian mau ambil pusing atau tidak.
Ketika penulis memutuskan untuk menuliskan ragam kegilaan untuk dinikmati (atau dihujati) oleh kalian para pembaca, tujuan utama dari penulisan segala ketidakjelasan tersebut adalah penampungan. Menampung berbagai percik pemikiran yang sering terlintas dalam benak penulis di sembarang tempat, sembarang waktu, sembarang keadaan. Berhubung setiap percik pemikiran akan menimbulkan jejak-jejak, dibutuhkan kejelasan dari segala percikan. Semua itu diperlukan supaya ia mudah diseka dan dibersihkan menjadi tulisan yang padu nan kaya.

Dalam tiga tahun ke belakang, banyaknya percik pemikiran yang beredar di sekitar penulis memicu pergolakan yang berkelanjutan dalam waktu-waktu luang penulis. Sehingga, bisa dikatakan tak pernah dalam tiga tahun ini ada waktu yang tidak menghasilkan apapun.

Mudah-mudahan waktu yang terpakai itu benar-benar bermanfaat bagi pihak lain yang kedapatan mampir. Paling tidak, di samping sang penulis sendiri.

Tiga tahun tanpa melamun.
Semoga kalian terus bertamu.

(silakan ke sini kalau mau lihat post pembuka)
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Kamis, 21 Agustus 2014

Article#332 - Cultural Ignorance & Scientific Illiteracy

by DONALD PROTHERO, Aug 14 2013.
(All the content of this post is Mr. Prothero's work. The entry is reposted in this page for study purposes only.)


An educated citizenry is the only safe repository for democratic values.
— Thomas Jefferson
My previous post on “Shark Week” ended up on a thread about American science literacy, so I thought I’d follow up on this topic, which is the subject of the last chapter of my new book Reality Check: How Science Deniers Threaten our Future. We’ve heard a lot about the abysmal ignorance of Americans, especially their lack of knowledge of their own culture as well as any culture outside the U.S. This video is particularly hilarious and appalling. Apparently, Americans don’t even know a triangle has 3 sides, or who Tony Blair is, or that Australia is not North Korea.
For many years, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno  produced short comedy segments called “Jay Walking.” Jay and his small camera crew would stroll the streets of Hollywood or Universal Citywalk or Burbank, and ask “the man on the street” simple questions about current events, culture, history, government, science, and so on. Invariably the interviewees would respond with astounding demonstrations of their ignorance of basic facts about the world, most of which they should have learned in high school or much earlier. They ranged from people thinking Abraham Lincoln was the first president, to not knowing the color of the White House or where the Panama Canal is located. Their ignorant responses reminds one of the famous Groucho Marx gag, “Who is buried in Grant’s Tomb?” The displays of misinformation and lack of knowledge were so appalling they made the both the TV viewer and the studio audience laugh with scorn (and a bit of uncomfortable self-recognition). Of course, the Jay and the camera crew taped plenty of people that DID know the correct answers, and they edited out all but the funniest displays of ignorance. In fact, my wife and I witnessed Jay and his crew taping at segment at the Americana on Brand in Glendale, Calfornia, in early 2011. Very little of what we heard (mostly non-entertaining responses) ended up on the show that night.
      Even though “Jay Walking” is entertainment and not a scientific poll, many rigorous studies confirm the general ignorance and lack of cultural knowledge of the American public, despite the fact that 85% of Americans complete high school (up from only 25% in 1940), and almost 30% get a college education. A recent poll was conducted by the American Revolution Center of 1001 US adults. Over 89% were confident they could pass it, but 83% actually failed. They found that:
“• More Americans could identify Michael Jackson as the composer of “Beat It” and “Billie Jean” than could identify the Bill of Rights as a body of amendments to the Constitution.
• More than 50 percent of respondents attributed the quote “From each according to his ability to each according to his needs” to either Thomas Paine, George Washington or President Obama. The quote is from Karl Marx, author of “The Communist Manifesto.”
• More than a third did not know the century in which the American Revolution took place, and half of respondents believed than either the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation or the War of 1812 occurred before the American Revolution.
• With a political movement now claiming the mantle of the Revolutionary-era Tea Party, more than half of respondents misidentified the outcome of the 18th-century agitation as a repeal of taxes, rather than as a key mobilization of popular resistance to British colonial rule.
• A third mistakenly believed that the Bill of Rights does not guarantee a right to a trial by jury, while 40 percent mistakenly thought that it did secure the right to vote.
• More than half misidentified the system of government established in the Constitution as a direct democracy, rather than a republic-a question that must be answered correctly by immigrants qualifying for U.S. citizenship.”
Another survey found that over 80% of Americans could not name a single Supreme Court justice, and some of the people they named (Sandra Day O’Connor, David Souter) had left the Court. In 2011, Newsweek gave 1000 Americans the standard test that immigrants must pass to earn the U.S. citizenship. Over 38% of native-born Americans failed a simple test about American history and civics that they were all taught in 8th grade and again in high school. Among the questions: 29% couldn’t name the Vice-President (and Joe Biden hasn’t really been hiding in the shadows like some VPs); 73% couldn’t explain why we fought the Cold War; 44% could not define the Bill of Rights; 6% couldn’t even identify Independence Day on the calendar. Even more alarming was the general level of ignorance about world events compared to just about any other developed nation, which scored far higher than US citizens. For example, Europeans were far more literate about the world: 68% of Danes, 75% of Brits, 76% of Finns could identify the Taliban, but only 58% of Americans can—even though we’re fighting them right now in Afghanistan (and the other nations aren’t). Maybe a century ago, such ignorance of the outside world and isolationism might have not been a problem, but now the U.S. is the sole remaining military superpower in the world, and we’re constantly facing threats from not only the wars Bush dragged us into (Iraq, Afghanistan) but just about nearly every other conflict (e.g., Libya in 2011).
Other polls show that American ignorance of their own government and its processes leads to all sorts of myths that politicians can manipulate. A 2010 World Public Opinion survey found that most voters have no clue what the Federal government actually spends money on. We hear one party constantly raising the cry of “cut Federal spending” but nearly all the Federal budget is tied up in categories (servicing our debts, military expenses in the time of war, plus Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare) that no politician dares to touch (the same poll said that 81% opposed cuts to Medicare, 78% opposed cuts to Social Security, and 70% opposed cuts to Medicaid). Instead, politicians attack budget categories like NPR or the NEA or Planned Parenthood that are a miniscule fraction of 1% of the total Federal budget. The poll showed that Americans wanted to cut foreign aid and spending, from 27% to 13% they thought it represented; it is actually less than 1% of the Federal budget. A study done by Stanford professor James Fishkin showed that people, when polled about the issues blind and then given the facts of the situation, tended to make rational choices on budget issues. The problem, is he sees it, is not that Americans are stupid about budgetary issues, but simply ignorant or misinformed, so that they are easily misled by politicians.
Such news stories pop up every few months, further underlining not only the general factual ignorance of Americans, especially their lack of curiosity about the world around them. The reporters telling these stories typically wring their hands in shame and shock that “more people know who (name a pop star or actor) is than (important political figure, like Speaker of the House or Supreme Court Justice)”. The general American ignorance of political and important cultural matters is indeed appalling. It explains why much of the current political debate about “obeying the Constitution” (which Teabaggers claim to believe in) is followed by false and ignorant statements about the Constitution (such as claiming that the Constitution eliminated slavery, or that the Founding Fathers tried to establish a Christian nation) or by cries for actions that are blatantly unconstitutional (such as their frequent attempts to eliminate the separation of church and state).
If the general ignorance of Americans is not shocking enough, their ignorance of science is even more staggering. Study after study over the years shows a virtually unchanging and an abysmally poor understanding of how the world really works. These include such howlers as:
• Only 53% of adults know how long it takes for the Earth to revolve around the Sun
• Only 59% of adults know that dinosaurs and humans never co-existed (the “Flinstones model of prehistory”)
• Only 47% of adults can guess correctly the percentage of the Earth’s surface covered by water
• Only 21% of adults answered all three of these questions correctly
• And a surprisingly large number of American adults still think the sun revolves around the earth! This is not just the crackpot fanatics from the “Galileo was wrong” site but people who think this out of pure ignorance. No one knows how many American adults even think the earth is flat, but it’s probably a lot more than just the crazies who are part of the Flat Earth creationist movement.
There are shockingly large numbers of adults do not know which is larger, an electron or an atom. Most adults cannot give simple definitions of concepts like the cell, the molecule, or DNA. Only about 33% of adults agree with the notion that more than half of human genes are identical to those of mice, and only 38% of adults recognize that humans have almost 98% of their genes in common with chimpanzees. Only 35% think the Big Bang describes the early history of our universe. Carl Sagan (1996) estimated that 95% of American adults were scientifically illiterate. Sagan was thinking of a far higher level of science literacy than these simple middle-school level science knowledge questions we have just mentioned, and judging from numbers we have just cited, he is not far off.
If American adults are so appallingly illiterate in science, what about teenagers who are still supposed to be taking science classes in school? Sadly, the numbers are just as depressing. Most kids of high school age know about the same amount of science or less than adults who haven’t sat in a high-school science class for years. According to a study by Jon Miller of Northwestern University (an expert on science literacy who has studied it for years), U.S. high school students are “below average and below most European countries” on virtually every academic achievement test administered in the past 30 years. Miller found that exposure to a college science course, on the other hand, made significant improvements on science literacy, but only as measured against a baseline of almost total ignorance. Currently, scholars are studying the concept of “civic science literacy”, which is more than just knowledge of science facts, but understanding science well enough to apply to their everyday lives. Here again, the results are equally depressing. Although the numbers are slowly rising, Miller (in a 2007 study) found that the “civic science literacy” of Americans was still less than 30%. As Miller put it, “We should take no pride in a finding that 70 percent of Americans cannot read and understand the science section of the New York Times”.
Another way to frame the question is to ask how we stack up against other countries. Study after study has shown that the U.S. is near the bottom of industrialized nations in science literacy. One recent study found that among 15-year-olds, the U.S. ranked 29th among the nations of the world. At the top of the list was Finland, followed by a number of other northern European countries (the other Scandinavian countries, Germany, France, the UK, plus developed or developing Asian countries like Japan, South Korea, and China). Nearly every other ranking in recent years gives similar results, although the exact order of the Top 10 countries might be shuffled a bit—but the U.S. always comes out near the bottom along with countries like Turkey and Cyprus that have a fraction of our wealth and our spending on education. That alone is a mark of disgrace for our society—that we can spend so much money per child, and yet end up with such miserable results, and nearly every other industrialized country does far better than we do. What does that say for our future economic well being when we’re near the bottom on crucial things like understanding science?
Even the PISA (Program for International Scientific Assessment) reports, whichfocus on overall science literacy rather than factual knowledgerank the U.S. 15-year-olds 14th in the world in overall science literacy in 2010, identical to their rank in 2000. A close look at the questions in the PISA results shows that they tend to exclude a lot of material that might be influenced by creationist beliefs, which as I have argued before, is one place where the American literacy rate differs radically from most other developed nations in Europe and Asia, as well as Canada. The PISA results (15th place) aren’t as depressing as the other results (29th place), but still nothing to brag about, and clearly not as high as they should be given our national wealth and compulsory education.  Another point apparent in the PISA results is the breakdown by racial and ethnic groups, with whites doing better than Latinos and African-Americans. This is not surprising, given how the quality of education in any subject in school is strongly affected by issues of poverty and language barriers. But then the question arises: if even the white students in our best schools have much more spent on their science education than in most other countries, why aren’t they nearer the top of the list? Once again, we are reminded of the appalling influence of creationism on the education of the conservative, church-going white population, which closes their minds to the bulk of scientific knowledge, no matter how hard we try to educate them.
Some people would point out that ignorance and disinterest in the world around them is the norm for much of human history. After all, most humans in the past and even now have lived in non-democratic societies, where they had no real political voice, and thus no real interest in something they cannot change.  These people argue that only if a national issue directly affects their lives do people emerge from their little cocoons of trash TV, video games, and local town gossip to engage the bigger world around them. All most people care about is how to eke out a living, how to spend time with their family and follow their favorite pastimes, and the rest of what happens at the state, national, or international level doesn’t engage them until there is a direct effect on their lives. (I know a lot of people who spend all their spare time playing computer games and have no interest in anything outside this hobby—and many other pastimes fit this description as well).  Maybe in a non-democratic society where the average individual has no voice in their governance, this might be excusable. But as the Jefferson quote at the top points out, in our democratic society we cannot afford to be ignorant of politics and world affairs, since we are expected to vote on these issues. Nor can we afford to be so poorly informed in science in a society where scientific issues affect our everyday lives, and frequently become part of the political discussion as well.
So why are we so scientifically illiterate? Everyone has a favorite culprit. Certainly the media share a lot of the blame, filling the airwaves and print and internet with mountains of useless reality TV and pseudoscience and celebrity gossip. Even the science they do present is watered down and oversimplified, often to the point of being distorted or just plain wrong. That was the point of last week’s blog about the lies perpetrated by Discovery Channel’s fake documentary. This is apparently where most scientists feel the blame lies. There are many who blame our educational system, and argue that students need to be turned on to science early and provided with hands-on experiments and active learning. This is probably also true, but unrealistic in this age when education budgets are being slashed to meet politician’s needs to cut costs without raising taxes. I know many high school science teachers personally, and they are at wit’s end. To them, the issue is not just the problem of small budgets, inadequate supplies and equipment, and huge classes. They battle an almost impossible uphill struggle to keep the interest and attention of the average American teenager, filled with raging hormones and interests in cars, pop culture, video games, and the opposite sex, and to get them to pay much attention to science classes, no matter how wonderful and inspiring the teachers try to make it.
As I pointed out in my 2009 book Greenhouse of the Dinosaurs, one need only watch the transformation in children’s programming to track the changes in kids’ interests. For the preschooler and pre-teens, many of the shows are highly educational and filled with dinosaurs and astronomy and other real science. Science is clearly “cool.” Switch channels to the programs that cater to teens and tweens: it’s all about boy-girl relationships and getting along and being “cool” with your peers, along with lots of teen celebrity gossip and pop music marketed just for teeny-boppers. Science is no longer “cool” but “nerdy”; the “popular” kids try to avoid looking like they might enjoy it, even if they do. (Although teenagers do love computers and technology, if only to better communicate with their friends and catch the latest music or video or movie or game). About the only factor that explains this change is adolescence.
So how do the European countries and developed Asian countries like Japan, South Korea, and China keep their teenagers (with their own raging hormones) on track while American kids lose interest? Most systematic surveys on this topic suggest that these countries have far more rigorous and demanding educational systems that expect more of their students, and have high cultural expectations of academic achievement (especially within the family). No matter how many social and hormonal and cultural distractions there are for teenagers, these Asian and European students do much better than do American students.
In recent years, people have noticed that Finland has consistently achieved the best results in education, including science education. How do they do it? Onestudy showed:
“In the 1970s, reports Darling-Hammond, Finland’s student achievement was low. But in the decades since, they have steadily upgraded their education system until now they’ve reached the top. What’s more, they took what was once a wide achievement gap between rich and poor, and reduced it until it’s now smaller than in nearly all other wealthy nations. Here’s how:
* They got rid of the mandated standardized testing that used to tie teachers’ hands.
* They provide social supports for students including a free daily meal and free health care.
* They upgraded the teaching profession. Teachers now take a three-year graduate school preparation program, free and with a stipend for living expenses. In Finland, you don’t go into debt to become a teacher.
* The stress on top-quality teaching continues after teachers walk into their schools. Teachers spend nearly half of their time in school in high-level professional development, collaborative planning, and working with parents.
These changes have attracted more people to the teaching profession—so many that only 15 percent of applicants are accepted.
The Finns trust their teachers, Darling-Hammond reports. They used to have prescriptive curriculum guides running over 700 pages. Now the national math curriculum is under 10 pages.
With the support of the knowledge-based business community (think Nokia), Finnish schools focus on 21st century skills like creative problem-solving, not test prep.”
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Minggu, 17 Agustus 2014

Article#331 - Bangunlah Putra-Putri Pertiwi

Sinar matamu tajam namun ragu
Kokoh sayapmu semua tahu
Tegap tubuhmu takkan tergoyahkan
Kuat jarimu kalau mencengkeram
Bermacam suku yang berbeda
Bersatu dalam cengkeramanmu

Angin genit mengelus merah putihku
Yang berkibar sedikit malu-malu
Merah membara tertanam wibawa
Putihmu suci penuh kharisma
Pulau pulau yang berpencar
Bersatu dalam kibarmu

Terbanglah garudaku
Singkirkan kutu-kutu di sayapmu
Berkibarlah benderaku
Singkirkan benalu yang melekat di tiangmu
Jangan ragu dan jangan malu
Tunjukkan pada dunia
Bahwa sesungguhnya kita mampu

Mentari pagi sudah membumbung tinggi
Bangunlah putra putri ibu pertiwi
Mari mandi dan gosok gigi
Setelah itu kita berjanji
Tadi pagi esok hari atau lusa nanti
Garuda bukan burung perkutut
Sang saka bukan sandang pembalut
Dan coba kau dengarkan
Pancasila itu bukanlah rumus kode buntut
Yang hanya berisi harapan
Yang hanya berisi khayalan

Terbanglah garudaku
Singkirkan kutu-kutu di sayapmu
Berkibarlah benderaku
Singkirkan benalu yang melekat di tiangmu
Jangan ragu dan jangan malu
Tunjukkan pada dunia
Bahwa sesungguhnya kita mampu

Tunjukkan pada dunia
Bahwa sesungguhnya kita mampu

© Virgiawan Listanto alias Iwan Fals. 1981

***

Terkemas dalam album Sarjana Muda, lagu berjudul Bangunlah Putra-Putri Pertiwi ini menjadi penutup dari album yang diluncurkan pada tahun 1981 tersebut. Sarjana Muda juga menandai awal karir Iwan Fals di belantika musik profesional tanah air, dengan menggandeng perusahaan rekaman besar Musica Studio dalam pembuatan albumnya tersebut. Nama Willy Soemantri dan Amir Katamsi pun dilibatkan sebagai penata musik utama dalam album terkait, dengan pengerjaan yang lebih serius. Hasilnya adalah sebuah awal bagi karir bermusik Iwan Fals, yang masih terus berlanjut hingga saat ini.

Bernafaskan nasionalisme, lagu ini beberapa kali dibawakan oleh Iwan Fals dalam berbagai acara - salah satu yang paling diingat adalah ketika Iwan Fals mengisi sesi debat calon presiden pada Pemilihan Umum Presiden RI 2009. Di bawah, penulis menyediakan jendela bagi sesiapa saja yang rela menyimak versi lain lagu terkait. Beberapa versi lain bisa kautemui bermodalkan sedikit pencarian di internet.

Selamat mendengarkan.


*****
Bicara soal kemerdekaan, pada awalnya tentu akan banyak yang membicarakan logo peringatan kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia. Bagi kalian yang akrab dengan media massa, kalian akan segera mendapati kemiripan gaya logo-logo resmi peringatan kemerdekaan dalam beberapa tahun terakhir. Untuk tahun 2014 ini, peringatan 69 tahun kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia ditandai dengan logo berikut.
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Sejak beberapa tahun lalu, sudah banyak pihak mengkritisi logo resmi pemerintah tersebut, yang dinilai terlalu "monoton". Menurut mereka, dalam mencitrakan negara Indonesia yang konon adalah negara besar dan beraneka warna, logo resmi yang dikeluarkan pemerintah pun sebaiknya menggambarkan kebesaran negeri, alih-alih menggunakan format yang membosankan seperti saat ini. Sebagai gambaran, berikut disertakan kumpulan logo resi kemerdekaan versi pemerintah, sejak tahun 2005 hingga tahun 2012.
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Jika diperhatikan, logo untuk tahun 2012 (peringatan kemerdekaan ke-67) sedikit meninggalkan pakem yang berlaku pada logo-logo sebelumnya. Alih-alih menambahkan sebuah bendera lagi di sisi kanan atas menjadi delapan buah, jumlah bendera justru dipangkas menjadi tinggal tiga buah. Desain pada angka pun sedikit diubah, dengan membubuhkan garis putih di tengah tiap-tiap angka.
Logo resmi tahun 2013 dan 2014 memang kembali melanjutkan pakem yang sudah tersaji sebelumnya; menambahkan jumlah bendera, satu setiap tahunnya.

Jika anomali dari pakem ini dipertimbangkan, dengan adanya unsur yang dikurangkan dan ditambahkan, mungkin bisa disimpulkan kalau yang dikurangkan semakna dengan yang ditambahkan. Artinya, munculnya garis tengah pada angka 67 tersebut menggantikan lima bendera yang seharusnya berjajar di sisi kanan. Mengingat garis tengah membagi bangun menjadi dua bagian sama besar, dan fakta bahwa satu bendera ditambahkan setiap tahun, kita bisa sampai pada kesimpulan berikut:

Logo tersebut adalah logo kemerdekaan versi pemerintahan Pak Beye (SBY).

Lebih lanjut dapat dibaca di laman berikut: http://rovicky.wordpress.com/2014/08/16/rahasia-dibalik-logo-kemerdekaan-ri-sejak-2005-2014/

Terlepas dari apapun makna sebenarnya logo-logo tersebut (meskipun kesimpulan di atas dirasa masuk akal), penulis tak bisa memungkiri bahwa gaya logo tersebut memang membosankan. Alhasil, penulis pun tak sedikitpun merasa heran ketika logo resmi tersebut menjadi pembicaraan tiap tahunnya.
Tak hanya mengkritisi, beberapa pihak bahkan membuat prediksi akan perkembangan logo resmi kemerdekaan di tahun mendatang.
Prediksi untuk tahun 2028. sumber
Prediksi untuk tahun 2045. sumber
Tentu saja, bukan orang Indonesia namanya jika hanya berdiam dan memprotes karya "membosankan" sang pemerintah; sama membosankannya dengan kinerja pemerintah. Beberapa orang yang makin kegerahan dengan semua ini kemudian membentuk Kementerian Desain Republik Indonesia (KDRI) untuk mengerahkan segenap otak desainer kreatif Indonesia dalam partisipasi kegiatan nasional.
Dan, tentu saja, salah satu sasaran mereka adalah membuat logo kemerdekaan tandingan bagi logo resmi versi pemerintah. Memanfaatkan efek media jejaring sosial yang mulai menjamur di tanah air sejak akhir 2000an, tiap tahun desain unggulan dari KDRI dilepas ke dunia maya, untuk digunakan dalam berbagai ajang di tanah air.

Logo KDRI tahun 2011
Logo KDRI tahun 2012
Logo KDRI tahun 2013
Logo KDRI tahun 2014
Di sisi lain, adu keahlian para desainer se-Indonesia yang difasilitasi oleh KDRI tersebut jelas ada karena logo resmi milik pemerintah memiliki gaya yang monoton. Atas dasar itu, terkadang penulis berpikir, jangan-jangan pemerintah sengaja membuat logonya monoton, supaya jiwa-jiwa kreatif orang Indonesia tergelitik dan mencoba menandinginya. Mengingat gaya pemerintahan Pak Beye yang terkadang cukup mengejutkan di tengah citraan "membosankan" yang sekilas terlihat, entah kenapa bagi penulis, skenario tersebut mungkin saja terjadi.
Meskipun, pikiran-pikiran yang lebih realistis kemudian mengemukakan pemakaian logo tersebut sebagai logo resmi, untuk menjelaskan desainnya yang monoton. Apalagi, monoton bisa saja diselewengkan maknanya menjadi "konsisten", dan dalam hal ini, pemerintah konsisten dengan gaya yang sama, sehingga logo resmi dalam peringatan kemerdekaan dapat segera dikenali dengan mudah.
Sebagaimana orang-orang bilang, "Keep It Simple, Stupid."

Bagaimanapun juga, bagi penulis, Indonesia memang negara yang sarat dengan hal tak biasa. Mungkin ini dipengaruhi banyaknya ragam warna yang menyusun coraknya. Bayangkan saja, negara mana lagi kah yang memperingati hari kemerdekaannya dengan beragam perlombaan dan permainan? 
Tetapi, tentu saja, hal yang tak biasa tidak selalu bermakna baik; bisa saja bermakna buruk. Supaya ketidakbiasaan ini senantiasa mengarah ke makna baik, yuk kita semua senantiasa turut serta dalam memajukan pola pikir, harkat dan martabat bangsa. 
Supaya menjadi bangsa yang disegani, tanpa perlu menduplikasi.
Supaya menjadi bangsa yang kreatif, tanpa perlu aversif.
Supaya menjadi bangsa yang merdeka secara utuh, yang secara jujur siap untuk menjadi wujudnya sendiri.

Selamat Hari Kemerdekaan, dan tetaplah merdeka!
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Sabtu, 16 Agustus 2014

Article#330 - Here About To Leave

A short trip with nothing to see
A loner's story left behind the scene
The next stop out of what is here
Longing to back where I have been
Let the wind blow now, by the fiery sunlight
Let my eyes to see now
If ever we conspire for all this time?

Sometimes we struggle in disguise
The way of which we will despise
Scolding the rest of our regret
As if we're always there to start
Looming deep over the horizon
Trying so hard to move this on
You dreamt and thought that you were home
But you're here, never to belong

Here about to leave
Is the one to watch the wrong way
Withdraw, waiting for long to bring it back
I can't stand only watching
When I have nothing to stand

Sometimes we struggle in disguise
The way of which we will despise
Foresee the height of our demise
Still not a thing to underline
Looking at the edge of the riddle
Exposed by the tragedy in sight
There, not to be one thing to hide
Till it's burnt from where it rise

Here about to leave
Won't stop only for something
Inside, let alone to be there
I can't be right here
The rail is burnt and longing
Embrace, the benign heart is crumbling
Something to get back
By the morning
I'll be done with this long journey
Light years back
Will be a lot to walk
With these drowsy talk

The pantographs are waiting still for you
Ravaging the heat as the trains go
Won't be sure you're the only one to hold
Clouds stand still, the sand is scorching
Where will we depart?
Acting to knew how to get apart
And nowhere we flow
Loving the spring but this one is not
Way to go, dear pal

Here about to leave
Won't stop only for something
Inside, let alone to be there
I can't be right here
The life is blunt and tearing
Apart, this iron snake is fading
Nothing to get back
By the morning
I'll be done with this long journey
Light years fast
And I ain't gonna be back
Say goodbye to all

Here about to leave
Won't stop only for something
Inside, let alone to be there
I can't be right here
The life is blunt and tearing
Apart, this iron snake is fading
Nothing to get back
By the morning
I'll be done with this long journey
Light years back
Will be a lot to walk
As if I'm getting that



Day 7064, as journey takes its spite.
Retold by the humid sunshine,
Tuesday, 12th August, 2014, 14:41 (UT+9)
6°19'38.23"S, 106°40'54.47"E
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Kamis, 14 Agustus 2014

Article#329 - Kutipan Hari Ini

“Don't waste your time with explanations: people only hear what they want to hear.”

~a quote attributed to Paulo Coelho (b. 1947), Brazilian lyricist and novelist. Quoted on Monday, 11th August, 2014, 13:53 (UT+7)

photo credit

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Senin, 11 Agustus 2014

Article#328 - Segenggam Cokelat


Segenggam cokelat itu mengalir di sela jemariku. Lumer oleh tanganku, juga oleh terik siang hari itu.
Kucoba mengumpulkan segenap lelehan cokelat itu. Aku mencoba mengembalikan lelehan tersebut kembali ke rumahnya semula, saat ia masih berupa batang cokelat yang kokoh. Semua usaha itu hanya untuk membuatku celingukan seperti orang bodoh. Cokelat cair telah tercecer ke segala arah, seolah bersama meneriakkan betapa tanganku ceroboh.

Ada tawa berkumandang. Rupanya dari sudut seberang ia datang. Juga bergema dari berbagai arah di sekitar. Entah sesiapa yang menjadi tertawaan, suara-suara tersebut bergiliran datang tanpa lekang. Seolah tak membiarkan telingaku sedetikpun lengang. Meskipun ternyata bukan kepadaku suara tawa itu datang menyerang.
Aku mengamati sekitar, berlagak tenang. Mereka yang tertawa adalah mereka yang dengan kawan saling pandang. Seakan memanfaatkan kesempatan sebelum ekspresi keceriaan dilarang.
Ya, tawa itu masih berkumandang. Memekakkan telinga. Memekikkan kelakar.

Kuperhatikan kembali wilayah kekuasaanku. Daerah di sekitar yang kini ditotoli bercak cokelat bertumpuk. Alih-alih membagi pemikiran dengan kilat cahaya yang ia pantulkan, bercak-bercak tersebut justru memandangiku dalam tatapan kelam. Seolah menggurui seorang pemuda bodoh yang dengan bodohnya membiarkan sebatang cokelat lumer di tangan.
Dikepung ceramah tanpa kesimpulan, pikiranku justru kembali berjalan-jalan. Kutelusuri dengan takzim, kedalaman cerita dari seorang anak bodoh dengan batang cokelat di tangan. Kususuri dengan teliti, ceruk-ceruk memori beriak, yang dengan bodohnya kutelisik dari pola percik cokelat. Seolah aliran yang menerabas memberi kejelasan akan detail dalam ingatan. Seolah bungkus yang terkoyak mewakili semangat yang sebelum waktunya telah terserak.

Beramai orang pernah mengomentari gayaku dalam menghabiskan sebatang cokelat. Perlahan, dengan deretan gigit yang berkesinambungan. Semua komentar hanya kujawab sekenanya, sementara kepalaku sendiri bertanya-tanya. Mugnkin karena sebatang cokelat terlalu manis dan indah untuk dibiarkan berlalu saja. Mungkin hanya karena segenap jiwaku ikut larut ketika mengunyahnya. Atau mungkin aku demikian penasaran akan keseluruhan keping ceramah. Walaupun akal sehat menamparku, mengingatkan akan tiadanya cokelat yang menggurui para pemakannya. Apalagi hingga terpercik ke segala arah. Iya, sebagaimana aku mengoyak bungkus cokelat dengan tidak sabaran sebelumnya, kini percik-percik cokelat itu menyerangku dengan tak sabar.
Di akhir kalimat, kesemuanya tetap menjadi alasan.

Pikiranku yang kosong mendadak tersadar. Alasan dari semua kekacauan yang kuracik di sekitar diriku sedari semula, kembali kudapti ada di seberang sana. Perhatianku kembali teralihkan.
Hampir saja aku diseret pikiranku untuk kembali berkelana. Tetes cokelat yang terbercak. Kesadaran yang berteriak. Semua seolah disuarakan kompak. Cokelat yang sebelumnya kugenggam, menjadi saksi atas kekonyolan diriku menghadapi kegilaan di sekitar. Menghujam dalam sekejap akibat ketepatan kalimat-kalimat itu menyasar tujuan. Kelebat orang-orang di sekitarku dalam rona warna, seolah mewakili dunia yang menertawakanku bersama kenyataan.
Aku kalah. Pikiranku berlutut kaku. Melihat kenyataan itu.
Sosok itu.
Tindak itu.
Derai tawa itu.
Kelebat pikiran itu.

Kuraih selembar tisu, menghilangkan segala kekacauan karyaku di tempat itu. Mengenyahkan segala ceramah yang memenuhi kepalaku. Yang kubiarkan menceramahi tanpa putus, meski hanya dari jauh. Bersama sedikit tetesan yang tak beruntung untuk ikut terangkut. Sementara aku menatap mereka kelu.
Adalah sebuah kepastian bagi segenggam cokelat untuk meleleh, ketika ia ada di tanganmu. Kecuali tanganmu lebih beku dari deru angin musim gugur.
Meskipun kemudian aku menyalahkan pengalih perhatianku, atas hangat yang melelehkan cokelat itu.
Telingaku masih menangkap seruan yang melemah itu. Kata orang, uang tidak bisa membeli kebahagiaan. Tetapi, dengan uang, aku bisa membeli cokelat. Dan bagiku, cokelat sama saja dengan kebahagiaan.

Kulirik lagi pengalih perhatian, dengan tawa kecil sekilas. Kita pernah duduk berseberangan, dan nyaris menjadi kenalan. Tetapi, kemudian kuputuskan untuk menjadikannya sekadar orang asing lama. Yang pernah kebetulan berpapasan.
Telingaku tertawa kalah, dan kubiarkan derai sore itu memanggilku. Menyelusup benakku tanpa keluh.



sumber gambar 1
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