An engineer in the late thirties told me that tehcnology is changing so fast in this field that it is difficult for him to keep up and compete with the young engineers that are trained in the new technology.
I asked him to focus on his strenghs, which are the experience and perspective that he has gained over the years, rather than to compete in his areas of weakness.
I posed him a problem of how to write an algorithm to compare one image with another image and see if they fit. The images are formed from the tangram pieces. We discussed several options, including comparing pixels by pixels, but he pointed out that this would take too much power and would drain the battery of the mobile phone.
He then suggested an approach, taken from a previous project. Instead of comparing every pixel, the program could compare every 10th pixel across and down. This would reduce the comparison by the factor of 100 to 1, and would still produce the same answer. It was an excellent solution to a problem that had bugged me for a long time.
I wish to quote this example to encourage the older people that your experience and perspective is valuable, but you have to use it effectively. Instead of competing with younger people in new technology, the older people can use their experience and perspective to guide the young, and can continue to play a useful role in the business.
Tan Kin Lian
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Lasting values
MR Tan Kin Lian,
Singapore’s ‘worship’ for “pragmatism” is as much an “idol”. In my own analysis, “pragmatism” is only a good tool, but a grave guiding values system. It gave Singapore a jump-start in national survival; but we need lasting values to build Singapore into a nation with its own soul. The years of preaching “pragmatism” now produce the unique Singapore phenomenon we witness in public and private arena.
Cashew Nut.
Singapore’s ‘worship’ for “pragmatism” is as much an “idol”. In my own analysis, “pragmatism” is only a good tool, but a grave guiding values system. It gave Singapore a jump-start in national survival; but we need lasting values to build Singapore into a nation with its own soul. The years of preaching “pragmatism” now produce the unique Singapore phenomenon we witness in public and private arena.
Cashew Nut.
Growth in millionaire club
Dear Mr. Tan
The Straits Times front page has an article that showed Singapore to have the largest increase in millionaire households last year. I am somewhat disturbed by this article. Was it written to give an impression that our economic progress is the best in the world? I do not see any improvement in my circumstances and for my friends around me. Was this to prepare for the general election?
My reply
I tried to understand how the statistics was compiled and how it should be interpreted.
It showed the number of households that have an assets more than 1 million dollars (USD). This could be due to the sharp increase in property price last year, which is good for owners of multiple properties, but make no difference to those who own only one property for own occupation. Furthermore, I think that the study measures the value of assets and do not take away the liability (i.e. loans to purchase property).
The growth rate of millionaires was 35% in Singapore, but for China and Indonesia, the growth was 31% and 21% respectively. The report does not measure that proportion of the population that can be classifed as millionaires - but the growth in the numbers of these rich households during 2008.
In one respect, it probaly reflects the widening disparity in income in these countries. For each person to be rich, there must be 100 people that has to be relatively poorer.
The report does convey the impression that the economy is doing well, when in reality, more people are suffering from the high cost of living - driven by high property and asset prices.
The Straits Times front page has an article that showed Singapore to have the largest increase in millionaire households last year. I am somewhat disturbed by this article. Was it written to give an impression that our economic progress is the best in the world? I do not see any improvement in my circumstances and for my friends around me. Was this to prepare for the general election?
My reply
I tried to understand how the statistics was compiled and how it should be interpreted.
It showed the number of households that have an assets more than 1 million dollars (USD). This could be due to the sharp increase in property price last year, which is good for owners of multiple properties, but make no difference to those who own only one property for own occupation. Furthermore, I think that the study measures the value of assets and do not take away the liability (i.e. loans to purchase property).
The growth rate of millionaires was 35% in Singapore, but for China and Indonesia, the growth was 31% and 21% respectively. The report does not measure that proportion of the population that can be classifed as millionaires - but the growth in the numbers of these rich households during 2008.
In one respect, it probaly reflects the widening disparity in income in these countries. For each person to be rich, there must be 100 people that has to be relatively poorer.
The report does convey the impression that the economy is doing well, when in reality, more people are suffering from the high cost of living - driven by high property and asset prices.
Nelson Mandela
I watched the opening concert of the World Cup. I was moved by the public respect that the crowd had for Nelson Mandela or "Madiba". I saw the video clip of his speech when he was elected President. He pledged to spent the remaining years of his life "not as a prophet" but "in the service of the people".
He was prepared to step down from office on completing his term to become a private citizen. This allowed new leaders to be elected democratically, who can adapt the national policy to suit the changing needs of the people. Although South Africa may be economically poorer than Singapore, the people seemed to be quite happy and proud of their country.
I hope that, one day, Singapore will have great leaders like Madiba.
Tan Kin Lian
He was prepared to step down from office on completing his term to become a private citizen. This allowed new leaders to be elected democratically, who can adapt the national policy to suit the changing needs of the people. Although South Africa may be economically poorer than Singapore, the people seemed to be quite happy and proud of their country.
I hope that, one day, Singapore will have great leaders like Madiba.
Tan Kin Lian
Security - role of government and business
The Mnistry of Home Affairs has said that security should not be left to the Government and that businesses should also play their part. They were referring to the recent incident of lax security at the MRT depot in Changi.
I agree. However, it is important for the Government to spend more money on security and that it should be supplemented by business entities. The Government cannot leave this matter to the business entities as there is no clarity on the level of security that is needed and businesses are more focused on their bottom line.
It is important for the Government to put in sufficient funds and effort to ensure a hgih standard of security, law and order, and ask business to play their part to supplement the government's efforts. Our standard of security and many other aspects of public life has dropped during the past decade, due to the policy of cutting cost and leaving things "to the market". We should be prepared to increase our pubic budget in line with the increase in the population.
Tan Kin Lian
I agree. However, it is important for the Government to spend more money on security and that it should be supplemented by business entities. The Government cannot leave this matter to the business entities as there is no clarity on the level of security that is needed and businesses are more focused on their bottom line.
It is important for the Government to put in sufficient funds and effort to ensure a hgih standard of security, law and order, and ask business to play their part to supplement the government's efforts. Our standard of security and many other aspects of public life has dropped during the past decade, due to the policy of cutting cost and leaving things "to the market". We should be prepared to increase our pubic budget in line with the increase in the population.
Tan Kin Lian
Countdown to 2 million visitors (2)
My earlier estimate was that the unique visitors to my blog will reach 2 million by 30 June 2010. This target is likely to be achieved a few days earlier.
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