58bits - Other

I've been wanting to blog about this one for a while now.

Like a lot of Canadians that aren't from Quebec (i.e. any of the other nine provinces and two territories), we're all taught French at primary school; for me at least from grade five to eight. Of course the entire country prints all its product labels in French and English and all the road signs and government communication are bilingual as well. Why? Well that's a whole 'nother thing. The main thing however is that there's really no practical reason for speaking French in Canada, unless you live in Quebec. So unless you're from one of those families that either a) really encourages their kids to learn another language because they believe it will enrich their lives, or b) they're snobs - and dropping a little French in polite company is the best way to confirm their snob standing - then you will forget your French - if you actually remembered any in the first place - the minute you stop studying.

Then I moved to the UK. Ok I wasn't 'exactly' forced to learn another language. But I was in for a surprise. The subtleties (or perhaps better described as the brutality) of English slang, idiom and the vernacular took some getting used to. I began to see the important connection between language and culture. For the most part though - the main visual queues that I'd grown up with still worked. If someone smiled it probably meant they were happy. If they frowned or grimaced - something was up.

Then I moved to SE Asia spending most of my time in Thailand (although frequently visiting most of the other countries in the region including China). And this is when it started to get interesting. Not only did it take a long time to figure out the basics - but the subtleties took even longer.

Thai is part of the Tai-Kadai family of languages (formerly classified as part of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages). It's mono-syllabic and tonal - which means if I write the word - 'kaow' (phonetically) but pronounce it with five different tones (high, mid, low, rising, falling) - I get five different words (rice, enter, news, white and hill). Tones are a great vocabulary multiplier when you're running out of monosyllabic words. Once you can hear (and speak) the tones - within even a modest vocabulary - things start to open up. If you're lucky enough to be in the right environment, or around long enough to move on from the basics - then it gets really interesting. (Picture above: Talking to the monks at Wat Yai Chaimongkon in Ayuttahya.)

Thai is a language rich in character attributes. You can describe someone's nature, behavior, and habits - in just a few words - and those around you will either nod in agreement - or disagree and exchange their own short character describing phrases. Thai is an incredibly polite language - with degrees of politeness to suit many different situations, typically based on the authority, seniority, or age of the person you are communicating with.

I couldn't sum up Thai society in a blog post (even assuming I was qualified) - however what has really amazed me is the way in which their language and culture seem to match perfectly (which I doubt will surprise any social anthropologists, or experts on Thai custom and culture). Thais are witty and humorous, and not being overly serious matters a lot.

When you've begun to master a language in another culture (especially as different as those are from West and East) - and are able to start pushing back a little and probe more, you begin to understand what people mean, what's important to them, and what they are thinking. And that's just amazing. It gives you a totally new frame of reference from which to compare where you've come from, to where you are now.

Ok - second attempt, this time from Dabs.com. What an amazing camera; built-in neutral density filter if you want a wide aperture in bright light settings, auto ISO settings, image stabilizer, fully manual including focus and a great macro setting. 12.1 million pixels and overall picture quality that's pretty darn close to a professional SLR all from a camera that you can still attach to your belt. I'm a happy camper...

I doubt I'm generating enough traffic on the site yet for this to have the effect I'd love it to - but you never know...

A friend of a friend was passing through Bangkok a week ago - and we'd arranged to meet for dinner, as well as enjoy the beginning of the Songkran Festival.

Just the other day I received an email thanking me for dinner and a fun evening out. However the rest of the email included a description that I've heard time and time again about a really unpleasant experience with Tuk Tuk drivers in Bangkok.

My friend's friend had been told repeatedly by Tuk Tuk drivers that the temple she wanted to visit was closed - and was then dragged off to the closest Gem shop in an effort to pry her hard earned currency from her hands - and for the Tuk Tuk driver to receive a handsome commission in the process. So on her last day in Bangkok - instead of a pleasant cultural experience - she'd got the usual Tuk Tuk con.

Don't use them. They may be cute to look at and an icon of Bangkok - but they're dangerous (just plain unsafe to ride in) and will fleece you for two to three times the price of a taxis as well as do their level best to ruin your plans for the day.

58 was the order number I was given for the first smoothie I ever ordered in China. When my order came up the guy shouted 'wu shur ba!', 'wu shur ba!' (58 in Chinese). I shouted back 'wu shur ba!' and collected my smoothie. I couldn't stop saying it for a while after that. Everywhere I went I kept saying  'wu shur ba!'  Obviously my friends in Shanghai thought I was mental. =8-)

Either that or it was the shortest, easiest to remember and available domain name I could come up with as a moniker for my mini-blogosphere.

You choose.

Well there's an 'About Me' link in the main menu - so I figured it should point to something.

Born in Toronto, went to high-school in Markham and college in Toronto. Spent a few years working in a laboratory as a research assistant (doing terrible things to cute little Chinese Hamsters) before I decided that Biology wasn't for me (or at least the salary wasn't). I spent a year working for IBM on a short term manufacturing contract before moving to the UK in 1990 - September 17th to be precise (it was a dark and rainy night... lightening was everywhere).

I spent a faltering first six months working in a lab at Manchester University before I found my first job in IT thanks to a gentleman named David Medcalf. After 18months on a help-desk at RoMEC in Stockport, I accepted an offer to work for VNU publications in London.

So... after two culturally educational years in the North of England - I was headed for the big city of London. I spent another 18 months at VNU before I moved over to Macmillan Publishers. Macmillan was probably my biggest break in IT. I was given a lot of freedom there - free to succeed and fail. It was a formative five years and I'm grateful for the experience. In 1999 I decided to take a year-out to travel - spending the majority of my time in South East Asia.

...which led to all sorts of adventures. I had a great first year or so - lived in Phuket Thailand for almost two years. Bought a little Honda Dream scooter and drove around the island. Six months of fun in the tropics before I started to think about what to do next. I started a little hobby company doing some freelance software and Web development, and then in 2001 - disaster struck. Instead of heading back to the UK or Canada to work again...I deluded myself into thinking that joining a start-up venture in Bangkok was a really good idea. In a way I suppose it was a good experience - but a disaster financially and personally. Four years of squabbling, a dysfunctional board, and a failed business plan and it cost me dearly - taking almost 18 months towards the end to finally be free of it. I can look back and call it the 'business experience of a life time' - but I'm still in two minds as to whether I can chalk it all up to 'experience'.

Rebounded nicely after three years with Datapharm in the UK. Good contract and a good bunch of people.

Started an MSc in Information Security at RHUL in Oct 2007 - which has turned out to be brilliant so far... and after that who knows what next... it's all an adventure now.

If you've made it this far... and want a more formal introduction - then my CV is at http://www.abouch.com

'Per Ardua Ad Astra'

… well at least my version of a short consumer report.

I fly long-haul at least once a year. On the last trip I borrowed a set of noise cancellation headphones from a friend. Noise cancellation headphones contain a little battery powered receiver, usually in the headphone cord near your chest. It picks-up constant ambient sound noise and generates an inverse signal that cancels out a large portion of the ambient background noise. You don’t actually have to be listening to anything for them to work. Great when you want to sleep.

My friends set were a pair of Sennheiser PXC 250 – they were ok – although the regular headphone style is a little cumbersome. I was hoping to find a set of earbud-style noise cancellation headphones for my next trip in a week’s time. I normally do just enough research on the web before making any electronic consumer purchases to be ready and armed to shop and compare. And most times when I’ve failed to do that I’ve paid the price. Sadly this occasion was no exception. While in the local shopping center yesterday I came across a set of Philips SBC HN060 Active noise canceling headphones - earbud-style – and so I thought what the heck – time was limited – I picked them up.

First disappointment was that the battery supplied had leaked and was unusable (fortunately not inside the headphone battery pack). Second BIG disappointment was the sound quality. I have a really great set of Sony MDR-EX71 earbud style headphones (in my diminishing collection of Sony gear) and they are the best I’ve used to date – sound quality is excellent – good range and good low frequency response. The Philips active noise canceling headphones sounded tinny and weak. In fact the overall impression of poor manufactured quality and poor sound quality meant that this was a mistaken purchase for sure.

Although a little over a year old – here’s a good CNET review of noise cancellation headphones. Will be looking for the Sony set soon.