I just finished reading 1984 today. I am wondering what if I had been born and had grown up in US, how I would have felt after reading the book. Then, I thought what if I had been born in totalitarian country. Then, I thought no no no if I had been born in a country like that, there would have been no way for me to commit "THOUGHTCRIME" because we probably would not have had capability to differentiate between orthodox and unorthodox thoughts.
But well, I was born in Thailand and I had grown up there. Forget about that for a while, let's talk about the book. I found the concept is so real, true and immortal. Even some parts of the book sound too extreme yet who knows if those scenes really had happened, happened, happen, is happening or will happen in any part of the world. The author, to me, is so genius. He tied totalitarian concept by playing with new invented vocabularies used throughout the book. Let's talk about some of the vocabularies that are still running through my brain. I am about to translate them based on my understanding and from the book. When you get to read the book, or for those who have already read the book, share with me your thought.
WAR IS PEACE
Totalitarian leaders invent fake wars as a mean to control their own people. They use the fake wars as a mean to control their own labors, crops and materials, in other word, resources used within their own countres. So, WAR IS PEACE for the leaders.
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
Totalitarian leaders control all aspects of their people's lives, especially their people's thoughts. When they say 2+2=5, you have to believe that. You have no way to escape as they have put up telescreens (cameras) everywhere that can capture your words, your movements, and even your thoughts. So, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY for the leaders.
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH
Totalitarian leaders maintain people classification; the High, the Middle, and the Low. They ignore the meaning of equality and oppress the masses from revolution. They invent tools like CRIMESTOP, BLACKWHITE, and DOUBLETHINK to manipulate people's brains so that any demand from their people can be subdued and they can remain in control. When they alter the history and write up a new history book, you have to believe that the "new" history is real. So, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH for the leaders.
THOUGTCRIME
When you start to think against the Party (totalitarian leaders) even you think you have not committed any crime, you have already committed THOUGHTCRIME.
VAPORIZE
Well, even this is not a new word, but in the book, it means when you get caught by the THOUGHT POLICE because you commit THOUGTCRIME, then, you will disappear without any trait of your ever existence.
CRIMESTOP
CRIMESTOP means the faculty of stopping short, as though by instinct, at the threshold of any dangerous thought.
BLACKWHITE
This word has two mutually contradictory meanings. Applied to an opponent, it means the habit of impudently claiming that black is white, in contradiction of the plain facts. Applied to a Party member, it means a loyal willingness to say that black is white when Party discipline demands this.
DOUBLETHINK
DOUBLETHINK means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them. It is a vast system of mental cheating.
Now, let's come back to where I told you I was born and raised in Thailand.
Below are some articles about Thailand written in either Thai or English. It is beyond my capability to judge whether the articles are true or false or good or bad. Just play a matching game here. Once you read those articles, can you match each of them with vocabularies above? Or do they not match to any of the vocabularies above at all because Thailand has never fallen under totalitarian leadership? I have to leave it up to your judgement then.
1. https://asiancorrespondent.com/2014/09/all-thai-students-required-to-recite-daily-prayuths-12-core-values/
2. https://www.bbc.com/thai/thailand-49590530?ocid=socialflow_facebook&fbclid=IwAR2713MoChBNJRm7d-Uf15QH1mlwZsRAPDlbcNWdn-9RYZUD8ZONH-qCw0E
3. https://www.sanook.com/news/7821022/
4. My article you are reading.
Reference
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteen_Eighty-Four
Sunday, September 8, 2019
Tuesday, April 2, 2019
A Tale of Food and Tableware Exhibition: What is this all about?
My kitty posted a picture today.
"Come see my fashionable table arrangement at 'A Tale of Food and Tableware' exhibition"
This was fun!
What is this all about?
Food for Thought: 3 Eggs and 3 Lessons from Xi Jinping
https://accountancyfuture.wordpress.com/2018/04/04/3-eggs-and-3-lessons-from-xi-jinping/
Credit: James Lee for his website. Re-posted what James Lee created on his website.
China’s President Xi Jinping has created his own political ideology, as the leader of the Communist Party. “Xi Jinping Thought” were mentioned several times at the Communist Party Congress.
I read a recent message about the lessons he learned from his father while he was young and the influence on him. The lessons about truth, experience and generosity was very well encapsulated in this short story.
“As a child, I was a selfish child.
I always think of myself first with good things, never consider the feelings of others.
As a result, the companions left me one by one. I am very upset over it, and laid the blame to others.
I always think of myself first with good things, never consider the feelings of others.
As a result, the companions left me one by one. I am very upset over it, and laid the blame to others.
One night, my father cooked two bowls of noodles. There was a white egg on one bowl and none on the other.
My father asked me, which bowl you prefer?
During then, eggs were very precious food. It was only on a festive or occasion like birthday that we had the privilege having egg in a meal.
I would not miss such opportunity and with no hesitation, I chose the bowl with eggs.
My choice was wrong. I was surprised that my father’s bowl actually contained two eggs underneath the noddle.
I regretted it and hated myself for being too impatient.
Noticed my reaction, my father smiled and said to me:
“Son, you must remember, what is visible to the eye might not be true, one who want to take advantage of others will eventually suffer a big loss.”
My father asked me, which bowl you prefer?
During then, eggs were very precious food. It was only on a festive or occasion like birthday that we had the privilege having egg in a meal.
I would not miss such opportunity and with no hesitation, I chose the bowl with eggs.
My choice was wrong. I was surprised that my father’s bowl actually contained two eggs underneath the noddle.
I regretted it and hated myself for being too impatient.
Noticed my reaction, my father smiled and said to me:
“Son, you must remember, what is visible to the eye might not be true, one who want to take advantage of others will eventually suffer a big loss.”
The next night, my father cooked two bowls of noodles again.
There was still a white egg on one bowl and none on the other.
My father asked me to choose. I learned from the previous experience and chose the bowl with no eggs on the surface.
The father watched me silently and did not utter a word.
I quickly picked up the chopsticks, stirred the noodles to find the eggs underneath it.
I was disappointed that there was no egg except the soup and noodle in the bowl.
At this time, my father said to me thoughtfully:
“Son, you must remember, do not trust too much in previous experience, as life sometimes deceives you.
However, you don’t have to worry or sad over it. Life experience is something you cannot learn from textbook.”
There was still a white egg on one bowl and none on the other.
My father asked me to choose. I learned from the previous experience and chose the bowl with no eggs on the surface.
The father watched me silently and did not utter a word.
I quickly picked up the chopsticks, stirred the noodles to find the eggs underneath it.
I was disappointed that there was no egg except the soup and noodle in the bowl.
At this time, my father said to me thoughtfully:
“Son, you must remember, do not trust too much in previous experience, as life sometimes deceives you.
However, you don’t have to worry or sad over it. Life experience is something you cannot learn from textbook.”
On the third night, my father cooked two bowls of noodles.
It looked exactly the same as the previous nights.
My father asked me to choose and I did not act rashly.
Instead, I said to my father:
“Dad, you have sacrificed so much for me and this family and you get to choose out of my respect to you!”
The father did not decline and chose the bowl with an egg on it.
I guess there was definitely no egg in the other bowl. To my surprise, I had two white eggs underneath the noodle in the bowl.
My father looked up and his eyes was full of kindness. He said to me lightly:
“Son, you must remember, when you think about others, good luck will bestow upon you.”
I was stunned.
It looked exactly the same as the previous nights.
My father asked me to choose and I did not act rashly.
Instead, I said to my father:
“Dad, you have sacrificed so much for me and this family and you get to choose out of my respect to you!”
The father did not decline and chose the bowl with an egg on it.
I guess there was definitely no egg in the other bowl. To my surprise, I had two white eggs underneath the noodle in the bowl.
My father looked up and his eyes was full of kindness. He said to me lightly:
“Son, you must remember, when you think about others, good luck will bestow upon you.”
I was stunned.
Since then, I have taken these three lessons as my principles of life. Regardless of whether it is for people or things, the first thing that comes to mind is always the interests of others. As my father rightfully said it, luck bestow upon me one after another. My career testifies to the principles of life I learned from my father.”
Saturday, March 16, 2019
Drawing
(mom's drawing redrawn in Paint 3D)
review of paint 3d:
6.5/10
-no layers
-no rotate
-brushes are meh but there could be more
-maybe im just not used to it but i dont like the format either
Friday, March 15, 2019
Letter to Kitty on Mar 15, 2019
Hello Kitty,
How are you doing? It's me!
You know what. I could think about something to share with you after talking to you the other day.
I read a BBC article about a 16-year-old teen living with her alcoholic mom since she was little. Normally people would imagine how kid living with alcoholic mom would turn out right? But amazingly, she turned out just fine and became a very understanding young lady who in turn supporting her mom and her younger sister. Her mom eventually sought help and determined to be out from liquor. They became good friends to each other.
Another article I read was about a 25-year-old man who was shocked, scared, lost and crying when he learned he developed Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This is what he wrote:
"I was alone when I got my final diagnosis from the doctor. By then, I'd done some research and was being very logical about it all - almost cutting off my emotions and thinking, "Right, let’s focus"."
You know what. I could think about something to share with you after talking to you the other day.
I read a BBC article about a 16-year-old teen living with her alcoholic mom since she was little. Normally people would imagine how kid living with alcoholic mom would turn out right? But amazingly, she turned out just fine and became a very understanding young lady who in turn supporting her mom and her younger sister. Her mom eventually sought help and determined to be out from liquor. They became good friends to each other.
Another article I read was about a 25-year-old man who was shocked, scared, lost and crying when he learned he developed Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This is what he wrote:
"I was alone when I got my final diagnosis from the doctor. By then, I'd done some research and was being very logical about it all - almost cutting off my emotions and thinking, "Right, let’s focus"."
Eventually, he learned how to live with it.
He later found his partner and now has a beautiful little girl.
The teen girl and the man really did a great job on pushing emotions away and be rational.
Can you imagine what their lives might turn out if they let their emotions to lead their lives?
If you are still feeling uncomfortable about your school trip, maybe try to cut off your emotions and instead listing what you need to prepare for the trip? Review the places you will visit and see what you need to prepare. Talk to your friends how they prepare their stuff. This might help you feel less anxious but ready for the fun stuff.
Miss you and can't wait for our next Kitty call time,
Love,
Meow Meow
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Blockchain จะต้องอ่านอีกกี่เวบถึงจะเข้าใจเนี่ย
Blockchain จะต้องอ่านอีกกี่เวบถึงจะเข้าใจเนี่ย
March 2, 2019
คิดง่ายๆก่อนนะ blockchain มันก็คือ database นั่นเอง แล้วลองมองว่า one record of data or one transaction is a block นะ database ที่ว่านี้ เก็บข้อมูลของ multiple records of data หรือ transactions ที่มันเชื่อมต่อกัน เลยเป็น chain
ลักษณะของ Database ของ blockchain นี่มันเป็นยังไงกัน
สำหรับ blockchain นะ มันต้อง Distributed Database บางทีเราก็จะได้ยินเขาเรียกว่า
Blockchain Database, Distributed Ledger, Shared Ledger, หรือว่า Distributed Ledger Database
ที่มัน distributed นะเพราะหนึ่งในหัวใจของ blockchain คือ มันต้อง decentralized แปลว่ามันไม่ centralized. เพราะงั้นนะ มันจะไม่มี central administrator computer หรือ node ที่จะเก็บ database/ledger ไว้คนเดียว แต่มันจะเป็นแบบ peer-to-peer network คือ เจ้าคอมหรือโหนดแต่ละตัวมีบทบาทเท่าๆกัน คอมทุกตัว จะมี copy ของ database/ledger
เวลามี new transaction initiates; user of computerA จ่ายเงินให้ user of computerB เจ้า computerB หรือ node ที่อยู่ใกล้ๆก็จะรู้และจะ update database/ledger และกระซิบบอกเพื่อนคอมตัวอื่นที่อยู่ใกล้ๆว่ามีคนจ่ายเงินอีกแล้ว มาช่วยกัน confirm transaction หน่อยเร้ว เพื่อนคอมตัวอื่นก็จะต้อง update database/ledger ของตัวเองและ ช่วย confirm transaction บอกต่อกันไปเรื่อยๆใน network เดียวกัน สำหรับ network ใหญ่ๆนะ บางทีเขาจะตั้ง leader computers/nodes ในการ confirm transaction เพื่อให้มันเร็วขึ้น
เอ แล้วข้อมูลที่เก็บใน database หรือ ledger เนี่ยมันเป็นไงเหรอ
มันก็ต้องผ่านกระบวนการ complex cryptography ก่อน อย่างเช่น ไม่มีใครรู้ identity ของกันและกันใน database จะรู้ก็แต่ public address ของ identity นั้นๆ
"Well… a person’s identity is hidden via complex cryptography and represented only by their public address. So, if you were to look up a person’s transaction history, you will not see “Bob sent 1 BTC” instead you will see “1MF1bhsFLkBzzz9vpFYEmvwT2TbyCt7NZJ sent 1 BTC”.
รูปข้างล่างนี้เป็นตัวอย่างของ Ethereum Cryptocurrency Transactions เห็นไม๊ เราจะไม่รู้ว่า From or To เนี่ยเป็นใคร
แล้วที่บอกว่า Blockchain is IMMUTABLE ล่ะ แปลว่ายังไง
ก็แปลว่า Completed Transaction แต่ละ block อะ มันเปลี่ยนแปลงไม่ได้ ที่เปลี่ยนไม่ได้แล้วก็เพราะไม่มีใครจะ hack มันได้ เพราะ Blockchain ใช้ระบบ cryptographic hash function
ตัวอย่างเช่น Bitcoin ใช้ระบบ SHA-256 (Secure Hashing Algorithm 256)
SHA-256 จะแปลงภาษาที่เราเข้าใจกันเป็น 256-bit length
Blockchain นี่ แต่ละ block เขาจะมี hash pointer เป็นตัวเชื่อม blocks เข้าด้วยกัน เจ้า hash pointer นอกจากจะเก็บ address ของ block ที่มาก่อนแล้ว ก็ยังเก็บข้อมูลของ block ที่มาก่อนด้วย
ทีนี้ลองจินตนาการดูนะ ถ้ามี hacker เข้ามาแก้ไขข้อมูลใน transaction ที่อยู่ใน block 1 คราวนี้ ข้อมูลใน block 2 เก็บจาก block 1 ก็ต้องเปลี่ยนไปด้วย แล้วข้องมูลของ block 3 ที่เก็บจาก block 2 ก็เปลี่ยนไปด้วย เป็นไปทั้ง chain ซึ่งเขาบอกว่าเป็นไปไม่ได้ เพราะฉะนั้น blockchain is immutable
ตกลงเขียนมาถึงตรงนี้ เราเองเข้าใจมากขึ้นหรือเปล่านะ
งงอยู่ตั้งนาน หาอ่านอยู่หลายเวบ ที่แท้ มันเป็นอย่างนี้เอง
ที่เราอยากรู้ต่อไปคือ Hyperledger Fabric blockchain framework platform ที่ developer เขาเอามาใช้สร้าง blockchain network กัน
Credit:
https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-blockchain-technology/
https://hackernoon.com/the-blockchain-its-not-what-you-think-it-is-2601f243babd
https://www.ibm.com/blockchain/what-is-blockchain
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_ledger
https://www.hyperledger.org/projects/fabric
March 2, 2019
คิดง่ายๆก่อนนะ blockchain มันก็คือ database นั่นเอง แล้วลองมองว่า one record of data or one transaction is a block นะ database ที่ว่านี้ เก็บข้อมูลของ multiple records of data หรือ transactions ที่มันเชื่อมต่อกัน เลยเป็น chain
ลักษณะของ Database ของ blockchain นี่มันเป็นยังไงกัน
สำหรับ blockchain นะ มันต้อง Distributed Database บางทีเราก็จะได้ยินเขาเรียกว่า
Blockchain Database, Distributed Ledger, Shared Ledger, หรือว่า Distributed Ledger Database
ที่มัน distributed นะเพราะหนึ่งในหัวใจของ blockchain คือ มันต้อง decentralized แปลว่ามันไม่ centralized. เพราะงั้นนะ มันจะไม่มี central administrator computer หรือ node ที่จะเก็บ database/ledger ไว้คนเดียว แต่มันจะเป็นแบบ peer-to-peer network คือ เจ้าคอมหรือโหนดแต่ละตัวมีบทบาทเท่าๆกัน คอมทุกตัว จะมี copy ของ database/ledger
เวลามี new transaction initiates; user of computerA จ่ายเงินให้ user of computerB เจ้า computerB หรือ node ที่อยู่ใกล้ๆก็จะรู้และจะ update database/ledger และกระซิบบอกเพื่อนคอมตัวอื่นที่อยู่ใกล้ๆว่ามีคนจ่ายเงินอีกแล้ว มาช่วยกัน confirm transaction หน่อยเร้ว เพื่อนคอมตัวอื่นก็จะต้อง update database/ledger ของตัวเองและ ช่วย confirm transaction บอกต่อกันไปเรื่อยๆใน network เดียวกัน สำหรับ network ใหญ่ๆนะ บางทีเขาจะตั้ง leader computers/nodes ในการ confirm transaction เพื่อให้มันเร็วขึ้น
เอ แล้วข้อมูลที่เก็บใน database หรือ ledger เนี่ยมันเป็นไงเหรอ
มันก็ต้องผ่านกระบวนการ complex cryptography ก่อน อย่างเช่น ไม่มีใครรู้ identity ของกันและกันใน database จะรู้ก็แต่ public address ของ identity นั้นๆ
"Well… a person’s identity is hidden via complex cryptography and represented only by their public address. So, if you were to look up a person’s transaction history, you will not see “Bob sent 1 BTC” instead you will see “1MF1bhsFLkBzzz9vpFYEmvwT2TbyCt7NZJ sent 1 BTC”.
รูปข้างล่างนี้เป็นตัวอย่างของ Ethereum Cryptocurrency Transactions เห็นไม๊ เราจะไม่รู้ว่า From or To เนี่ยเป็นใคร
แล้วที่บอกว่า Blockchain is IMMUTABLE ล่ะ แปลว่ายังไง
ก็แปลว่า Completed Transaction แต่ละ block อะ มันเปลี่ยนแปลงไม่ได้ ที่เปลี่ยนไม่ได้แล้วก็เพราะไม่มีใครจะ hack มันได้ เพราะ Blockchain ใช้ระบบ cryptographic hash function
ตัวอย่างเช่น Bitcoin ใช้ระบบ SHA-256 (Secure Hashing Algorithm 256)
SHA-256 จะแปลงภาษาที่เราเข้าใจกันเป็น 256-bit length
ความหมายของมันก็คือ ไม่ว่า input จะเข้ามามากหรือน้อย output จะเป็น fixed 256-bit length เสมอ
ต่อมาดูนี่นะ แค่เปลี่ยน T เป็น t ผลที่ได้ก็ต่างกันลิบลับ
ทีนี้ลองจินตนาการดูนะ ถ้ามี hacker เข้ามาแก้ไขข้อมูลใน transaction ที่อยู่ใน block 1 คราวนี้ ข้อมูลใน block 2 เก็บจาก block 1 ก็ต้องเปลี่ยนไปด้วย แล้วข้องมูลของ block 3 ที่เก็บจาก block 2 ก็เปลี่ยนไปด้วย เป็นไปทั้ง chain ซึ่งเขาบอกว่าเป็นไปไม่ได้ เพราะฉะนั้น blockchain is immutable
ตกลงเขียนมาถึงตรงนี้ เราเองเข้าใจมากขึ้นหรือเปล่านะ
งงอยู่ตั้งนาน หาอ่านอยู่หลายเวบ ที่แท้ มันเป็นอย่างนี้เอง
ที่เราอยากรู้ต่อไปคือ Hyperledger Fabric blockchain framework platform ที่ developer เขาเอามาใช้สร้าง blockchain network กัน
Credit:
https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-blockchain-technology/
https://hackernoon.com/the-blockchain-its-not-what-you-think-it-is-2601f243babd
https://www.ibm.com/blockchain/what-is-blockchain
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_ledger
https://www.hyperledger.org/projects/fabric
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Olive Branch
Olive Branch
Feb 26, 2019
India and Pakistan news became part of the top 10 international news this week.
I have just read Al Jazeera news my friend sent in LINE group.
"...Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan extended an olive branch earlier today, offering New Delhi cooperation in fighting terrorism in order to end the standoff."
Reading that part of the news, I just fell in love with the words "Olive Branch". I thought about olive oil I recently put on acorn pumpkin, sprinkled with salt and pepper, baked 40 minutes and Wow! Yummy! This made my other thought to also believe that "Olive Branch" must have been good too. Indeed,"Olive Branch" is filled with great meanings.
"Traditionally, the olive branch has been used as a symbol of peace. Its origins as a symbol of peace come from ancient Greek culture, when Athena planted an olive tree to win possession of Athens over Poseidon. Since then it has been used throughout many different cultures around the world."
"The olive branch also has connections to the Roman empire. During that time, when a leader held out an olive branch, it was considered a signal of pleading for peace. "
Credit: naija.ng
"Additionally, the olive branch is related to Christianity as well. As told in the Bible, after the flood, Noah sent a dove out to search for dry land and the dove returned to him bearing a leaf from an olive tree. The olive tree leaf was meant as a sign to Noah that God had ceased His war on mankind and the water was beginning to recede."
Credit: Moziru.com
And now when you see the Great Seal of the United States, you know the bald eagle is holding olive branch in its right talon.
Credit: en.wikipedia.org
Credit:
Jiwamol who posted the news
naija.ng, moziru.com and en.wikipedia.org for the pictures
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)