Visit to Ngee Ann Poly

Just came back from Ngee Ann Polytechnic. They had a Biotech Fair, and i was invited there as a guest. In case you all don't know what's that, Biotech fair is an annual event, organised by Ngee Ann Poly, School of Life Sciences and Chemical Technology (LSCT) and Singapore Science Center.

Its an prize giving event, whereby students from secondary schools had completed in scientific projects, and accessed. Its also an event whereby some lab suppilers also displayed their wares and advertise themselves. I did not set up a display brooth, but i successfully market out our product. Generate some sales from the social functions with the suppilers.

Its more like internal event, between LSCT, Secondary schools, and Science Center.

As i was driving in, fond memories of my poly life came flooding back to me. Its the best student life i ever had. Poly life was great!! I had a great time chatting with the lecturers, my head of department, (now is senior director) and some former students. Memories of me skipping class, my lecturer asking me to stay awake in class came back, and we joked over it, years later.

Ngee Ann Poly was the place which i get to know my buddy, Gary. And that's how i get to know zone 3 ppl, especially Derek. And it results in me knowing all the fantastic friends in SJAB, and be part of the SjAB family.

This year, the projects are diversified. There got the simple ones like how certain plants, herbs can inhibit a certain bacteria, to those who are more business orientated, like slow release of food for fish, to more "cheem" projects, like, "making Bio-diesel from cooking oil"

I am surprised by some of the projects that the students had done. Its pretty clear that life sciences had advanced well into secondary schools. The students there know how to streak a agar plate, knows chemistry stuffs on hydrocarbon, knows more about bacteria etc etc.

And that's a good and bad thing.

Good thing is, our future leaders have a very good headstart on life sciences, and that is the next step that our goverment is focused on. Money is being pumped into R&D areas in medical, farms, control of infectious diseases etc.

Second thing is that these experiments arouse the student's interest in this particular area, and thus, spurring them to pursue a course in that particular area after their secondary school education, and who knows? Some of them might be successful in creating a drug to cure disease that has no cures now.

Thirdly, if these carry on, Singapore will have an enormous boost in her economy in the future.

But the bad point is that i have to run harder, faster to stay ahead of these youngsters. Cannot smoke them anymore. Sometimes, they will know more than you do, and we old timers must do more to stay ahead of them.