Monday, July 27, 2009

SONY DIGITAL LIFESTYLE WORKSHOP




Beginners Sony Cyber-shot Workshop in KLCC Sony Style 25.07.09 Another Cyber-shot workshop to cater to our growing number of Digital Imaging product customers. Its all hands-on in approach so if you want to pick up more tips to improve your photography with compact camera, this is your chance!!


The participants were enlightened with a lot of basic photography knowledge. It was excellent and interesting.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

MY-LMS TRAINING





Today (21 July, 2009) English Department has been given the opportunity to undergo a My-LMS training conducted by Mr. Razali, a trainer from one of the MMC's company, an AMDeC's subsidiary. The course content was basically to introduce the on-line teaching material which can be fully utilized by the teachers to teach the students on-line. It is a 2D course and will get back on Thursday, 23 July 2009. ENJOY YOURSELF...

KOKO CAMP 2009 AT LEMBAH GENTING RESORT

CHICKEN DANCERS

MALAYSIAN BLUE BERRY BULAN...






On the 10 of July, KOKO Unit has organized an annual camp. This time was at Lembah Genting Resort. It was a 1N/2D camping. The place was nice but the management was just a satisfactory. A few activities organized were pocho-pocho, chicken dance, flying fox, abselling, night walk, jungle trekking and swimming in the river.
Personally it is rated a 3-star programme as it is more on physical activities but lack of mental, emotional and spiritual endulgement. Perhaps we could learn some lesson through this programme and could take some effort to beautify the programme next year, InsyaAllah.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Food For Thought...



In love? It's not enough to keep a marriage, study finds
Buzz Up
Tue Jul 14, 6:04 am ET
SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) – Living happily ever after needn't only be for fairy tales. Australian researchers have identified what it takes to keep a couple together, and it's a lot more than just being in love.
A couple's age, previous relationships and even whether they smoke or not are factors that influence whether their marriage is going to last, according to a study by researchers from the Australian National University.
The study, entitled "What's Love Got to Do With It," tracked nearly 2,500 couples -- married or living together -- from 2001 to 2007 to identify factors associated with those who remained together compared with those who divorced or separated.
It found that a husband who is nine or more years older than his wife is twice as likely to get divorced, as are husbands who get married before they turn 25.
Children also influence the longevity of a marriage or relationship, with one-fifth of couples who have kids before marriage -- either from a previous relationship or in the same relationship -- having separated compared to just nine percent of couples without children born before marriage.
Women who want children much more than their partners are also more likely to get a divorce.
A couple's parents also have a role to play in their own relationship, with the study showing some 16 percent of men and women whose parents ever separated or divorced experienced marital separation themselves compared to 10 percent for those whose parents did not separate.
Also, partners who are on their second or third marriage are 90 percent more likely to separate than spouses who are both in their first marriage.
Not surprisingly, money also plays a role, with up to 16 percent of respondents who indicated they were poor or where the husband -- not the wife -- was unemployed saying they had separated, compared with only nine percent of couples with healthy finances.
And couples where one partner, and not the other, smokes are also more likely to have a relationship that ends in failure.
Factors found to not significantly affect separation risk included the number and age of children born to a married couple, the wife's employment status and the number of years the couple had been employed.
The study was jointly written by Dr Rebecca Kippen and Professor Bruce Chapman from The Australian National University, and Dr Peng Yu from the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs.
(Writing by Miral Fahmy; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Photo Contest




Co-Photographers:

Shamsida binti Mohd Nor and Noorliza binti Zulkifly
School Documentation Unit,
Ampang Pecah National Secondary School,
Jalan Hamzah, 44000 Kuala Kubu Bharu,
Hulu Selangor, Selangor Darul Ehsan,
MALAYSIA.

Brief details of the Photographers:

Noorliza Zulkifly and Shamsida Mohd Nor of the School Documentation Unit teachers are sharing the same interest in education and photography. Besides teaching in the classroom, they also enjoy helping the school to document and photograph all the school events and activities that occur around the year. Both Noorliza Zulkifkly and Shamsida Mohd Nor have given the same comment that photography has made them close to people and their natural state. They also find photography a good therapy after the hectic life in the classroom. Their motto in photography is “capturing life through photography”

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

CCEM - KLCC (Micro teaching and IT Games)

Mission Completed...Time to go home...everybody has an enjoyble moment at the Convention Center of KL.





















Newly Wed (5 July 2009)

Sisters and cousins
Nasarudim & Siti Juliana




May your wedding shower with blessings, Amin...


The Power of Knowledge
By Sanam Taj

In Islam, religion and science go hand in hand.
Related Links
Scientism
Islamic View of the Universe
From Knowledge Comes Gratitude
Greek and Muslim scholars were very dissimilar in their methods. Muslim scholars were more into experimentation and practical advancement, whereas the Greeks relied on theoretical and philosophical knowledge.

Yet there is one statement by Aristotle that every Muslim scholar would agree with: "The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead."

Today, people around the world watching the news look at the few Muslims who are making themselves notoriously renowned, and think: "What a bunch of uneducated and uncivilized people these are."

This is especially true when you read of schools and colleges being bombed in Islamic countries. Well, this is not only asynchronous to Islam's teachings, it is the absolute opposite of the teachings of Prophet Muhammad .

Many Muslims today, for their own personal gains, have conveniently overlooked a very essential cornerstone of Islam: seeking knowledge from the cradle to the grave.

The first word to be revealed to the Prophet was "Iqra". This would translate to "Read" in English. So basically, the first command of God to Muslims is to read, for which one needs to be educated.

The revelation then went on to say:

[Read and thy Lord is highly Benevolent; verily He is thy Lord who taught thee with the pen and taught man what he did not know.] (Al-`Alaq 96:3-3)

This clearly implies that the endorsement of the art or science of writing has been bestowed by the Divine power, who commends it as being for the use and benefit of humankind. The Quran itself was revealed in Arabic because it was the language of the people, and the people needed to comprehend the eloquent verses.

The Quran, unlike the Bible or Ramayana is not fundamentally a book on history; it's a book of ethics, norms, etiquettes, science, and prescriptions for life. It's not a science textbook, but a book of all the signs in life that humans should give attention to.

It includes stories of some prophets (peace be upon them), with Moses and Jesus highlighted the most, but in comparison to the Old Testament, these are just summaries.

Muslim scientists never distinguished science from religion. In several sections of the Quran, God has directly ordered humans to observe their environment, and the various elements of life. God says if we learn about the seas, the mountains, and the planets, we would receive the signs of the Lord. Below is one classic example:

God says in the Quran what means:

[And He it is Who has made two seas to flow freely, the one sweet that subdues thirst by its sweetness, and the other salt that burns by its saltiness; and between the two He has made a barrier and inviolable obstruction.] (Al-Furqan 25:53)

If you provide this statement to someone who comes from a remote village and has had no previous knowledge of anything other than his farm, he would not understand the above lines.

And yet God requires Muslims to understand the Quran. What does this implicate? God wishes that Muslims acquire knowledge about their surroundings; hence God has pinpointed so many facts and analogies in the Quran. Without education, one cannot even fully comprehend the Quran, which is the essence of the religion.

If this inference is too much for people to figure out, God has also given clear instructions in the Quran, and there are many sayings of Prophet Muhammad that ordain the ordinary Muslim to move away from ignorance and acquire knowledge. A very popular quote by Prophet Muhammad is:

"Seeking knowledge is obligatory on every Muslim." (Ibn Majah)


The Golden Age of Islam came about not only because of the curious minds of Muslim scientists, but also due to their obedience to God.

One of the most famous of all Muslim scientists is Ibn Sina — known in the West as Avicenna. He was no doubt a devout Muslim. In fact, from various records we have of him, it was found that if he was stumped during research or experimentation, he would leave his books and head to the mosque, where he would continue to pray till the confusions begin clearing.

Religion and Science

Muslim scientists never distinguished science from religion. As a matter of fact, they felt that Islam encouraged scientific development.

There are two aspects of education/knowledge in relation to Islam: religious and non-religious. There is no limit on any of them. Indeed, there is not much distinction between them, as in the true sense, they are intertwined.

One thing though, is accepted by most Islamic scholars: non-religious knowledge is a benefit only to this world, which is not sufficient for Muslims.

I strongly believe education is not only about acquiring degrees to get better jobs, it's also for the progress of the community.

The growth of a community usually depends on how knowledgeable the people of that community are. Education is a necessity for the growth and welfare of a nation. Looking at the advanced nations in the world, one can confirm that education plays a strong role in the development of societies.

In an article in the Asian Economist (Oct. 16, 2008), Nhuong Son, a writer, mentions that there are three types of educations (as per general thought). These are: academic, practical, and social. I believe we acquire the first from a formal institute and this helps in acquiring a position in the work world, and hence some financial independence and security. The second and third are what we learn from our environment, which is dominated by our families.

As George Santayana said, "A child educated only at school is an uneducated child."

In order to have an educated child it's important that the parents, especially the mother, have some acquired knowledge. A mother spends the crucial first years with her children teaching them how to do various things, and passing on her knowledge.

Prophet Muhammad may have been unlettered, but his history proves that he was far from being ignorant and without knowledge. Initially he was a trader, and even though he could not read, he knew the Quran by heart, and could not only quote and recite it appropriately, he also fully comprehended it.

Ali ibn Abi Talib, Prophet Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, was practically raised by Prophet Muhammad who ensured that Ali acquired all the knowledge possible. Ali is known for his intellectuality and intelligence. He was a beacon of light in the study of the Quran.

Muslim populations don't have any laws that prohibit women to be educated or seek the highest academic degrees they desire.

Aishah, Prophet Muhammad's last wife, not only narrated many of his sayings, she even taught many Muslims many laws about Islam during his life and after his death. Another of his wives performed the duties of a nurse during and after battles. She must have surely been educated in anatomy and medicine.

Islam values knowledge and encourages it, for it helps us understand more that behind this magnificent creation is a Powerful Magnificent Creator.

Sanam Taj has lived in India, Pakistan, and USA, She currently resides in U.A.E where she works as an engineer.