OPINION
What I also knew was that companies want graduates who have studied the liberal arts. The admissions office here at Yale-NUS, and every other small liberal arts college I looked at, stressed that the liberal arts would give me skills and knowledge that were in short supply. Liberal arts graduates were perfectly suited to be leaders, because they would have—and these are Yale-NUS’s words—“the appreciation and understanding of breadth and complexity of issues, capacity for critical thinking and problem solving, and effective communication and leadership skills.” YaleNUS called those three components the “critical outcomes of a traditional liberal arts education.” Surprise! They are precisely the three things we’re told companies today need in their leaders. All this gave me a strong (if vague) sense that as a liberal arts graduate I’d leap ahead of all those who had done specialist degrees.
EDITOR’S NOTE/NEWS
And the thing I’d repeat to myself, if I was to do-over my first two years at Yale-NUS, is that nothing is more important than building those foundations. A career can rest on them, but the foundations of who you are as a person cannot rest on a career. The essays and assignments, events and pressures won’t disappear during these four years. But what can change is our understanding of what all this time is for, and how we choose to respond to unavoidable pressures. That is something we all can grasp, and is the starting point for taking control of the books we read, the conversations we have, the time we spend, and, most importantly, the ways we learn to live our lives.
Vol. 5, Issue 1 Friday, August 26, 2016 Yale-NUS College, Singapore www.theoctant.org
NEWS Research 101
FEATURES How to Be Right: An Insider’s Guide Fresh
RESEARCH 101
I now find myself with one year left to “transform my life”. In my junior year I realized that it is for a very good reason that the liberal arts and residential colleges go together. A college is a microcosm of life, where you are exposed to people and to life, where everything and everyone is closer. The beauty of a liberal arts college is that you are given an environment in which to make sense of all those conversations, emotions, and relationships, where books shed light on your life in dining halls, suites, and behind closed doors. At what other point in our lives will we have the space, the time and resources to figure out what we like and dislike, what we want and do not want? As I wrote in an article last semester, “The liberal arts and sciences are not a unique selling point for a resume, or a euphemism for an elite college. They are about having freedom—four years of freedom—to learn about ourselves and our own minds so that we can approach everything else we do in life with solid foundations.” 4 | AUGUST 26, 2016
EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Readers, It is my pleasure to introduce the first issue of The Octant for this Academic Year 2016/17. We have been working hard over the summer to improve your experience with us as a publication and I would like to share some of the changes.
Yale-NUS made an effort to describe the other ways that a liberal arts education would benefit us, capturing this idea in the phrase “Four years to transform your life”. But after my first week at the College, I quickly began to forget about this amidst classes, extracurriculars, and the pressure from CIPE to start planning out my next summer. I wanted my life transformed, but it became difficult to transform anything apart from my next essay as life became a string of deadlines and events. What also began to happen was that the pinnacle of each academic year became a prestigious internship or an exciting international “opportunity”. Dining hall conversation began to turn to this topic from the end of first semester, and reached fever-pitch a few weeks into second semester. CIPE’s events talked about the importance of internships in setting us up for careers. Thanks to the subtle pressures within each semester at Yale-NUS, I started to think that the purpose of my education was to fast-track my career. I began to confuse “transforming my life” with getting a prestigious job. The lines began to blur, and I found myself taking classes I didn’t particularly care for but which would look good on my resume; I found myself choosing a major based on what was most relevant to the job I expected to get after graduating.
OPINION What is Our Time Here For?
FIrstly, I am very excited to announce that this semester The Octant will be collaborating with Ink: the Yale-NUS Literary Collective. Every week we will be publishing a piece of poetry or prose written by their members. We hope you enjoy. Secondly, over the holiday we conducted a survey of our readers on our publication’s content and distribution methods. One area of improvement identified by the survey respondents was The Octant’s Clockwork section, with some respondents calling it unprofessional or childish. While we understand these criticisms, we feel there is still value in having a concise summary of news on a campus as busy as Yale-NUS College. As such we will be keeping the Clockwork section, but will be giving it a slightly more formal tone and moving it to the inside of the publication.
Story by Li Ting Chan, Staff Writer Picture credit to Graham Link ‘17
ith the start of a new academic year at Yale-NUS College, first year students may be wondering how they can get involved with research at Yale-NUS. From summer opportunities all the way to your final year projects, here are three ways to kickstart your research at Yale-NUS:
W
Capstone For one, students at Yale-NUS have to complete a capstone project prior to graduation. The start of the 2016/2017 Academic Year thus marks an exciting time for the graduating seniors. As members of the inaugural class embark on their capstone projects, some have already completed a fair bit of work. Anthropology major Graham Link ’17 is one of them. Link’s capstone is on how the Mosuos (摩梭)—an ethnic minority group in China—view, reappropriate and readapt
state discourse on suzhi (素质). “It was my first real experience with anthropological fieldwork,” he said, emphasizing the scale of the project in comparison with previous fieldwork done in class. Link had originally conceived the project as a part of his study abroad program, where he was required to spend a month doing independent research. Amidst linguistic difficulties, Link highlighted other challenges in human research, such as building rapport with the villagers. “Informants … are not just pools of knowledge … [they] are … collaborators [who] are ... giving up time and effort to help in your research,” he said. On how he thought of his experience, Link said, “I don’t know if there has been enough time … to process how impactful it was, [but] it gave me a lot of confidence.” Having collected all his data, he will be focusing on bringing in more literature and theory for his paper in the year ahead.
Some readers requested some other content tweaks including more regular publishing, more accurate titles, and new content. This semester we will be publishing articles online as soon as we finish them. This will allow us to respond to news in a more timely fashion. We will are also adopting a new article pitching process that gives writers more autonomy over the content they write. This should increase the variety and quality of content in The Octant. We will also be placing increasing importance on the quality of titles during our editing sessions. One final area of improvements the survey identified was our distribution method. Many respondents indicated that they struggled to find the print issue of the publication due to erratic publication dates and unclear drop off zones. We hope to rectify this by printing a summary issue of the week’s news every Friday and investigating distribution in the lift lobbies. Many respondents also praised The Octant for its improving quality and bold themes. It is our intention to continue pushing boundaries and producing better quality journalism with every new issue of The Octant. If you have any feedback that you feel we are not aware of then please reach out to us at yncoctant@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you and continue improving your experience with the publication. Yours sincerely, Dave Chappell Editor-in-Chief
AUGUST 26, 2016 | 1
CLOCKWORK/NEWS
Summer Research Programs
CLOCKWORK What’s happening on campus We Are Family: On Friday, August 5th, Yale-NUS College officially became a full-house, with the Class of 2020’s First Year Assembly. The student body now has four classes which is composed of more than 700 students from 53 different countries! A warm welcome to everyone old and new. Your Cup of Tea?: With the start of a new semester, Yale-NUS’s numerous student organizations have begun pitching for students’ attention. For those that were still confused by all the Welcome Teas, the Dean of Students Office organized an Activities Fair on Wednesday, August 24th. Also remember, student organizations are like ice cream flavors, you can try everything first but stick with your favorites later. Sizzle the Fat Away: Among the student organizations vying for students’ attention is a new fitness and wellness club, BACON (Building A Culture Of Nutrition [and Fitness]). Those interested can choose between circuit training, yoga, and Zumba in both the evenings and at the crack of dawn. Week 7 Fair: As well as the activities fair, first years were also treated to CIPE’s Week 7 Fair on Wednesday, August 17th. With travel opportunities ranging from Spain to Tokyo, there are plenty of opportunities to that next location-locked Pokémon … and also hopefully learn something. Go to the Polls: This year’s student council elections have begun, with the call for candidates closing on Sunday, August 22nd. Those that confirmed their candidacy now have one week to make their case to the student population, before elections are held on August 29–31. Top Cat: The safety of Lizze the campus cat was called into question again this week when a member of the community complained to the NUS Cat Cafe about her presence. Adlin Zainal ’17 put out a call for feeders and possible adopters for Lizzie after the cat cafe expressed concern that the person may still contact the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore to remove her. Last week a petition in favor of Lizzie remaining on campus gained 285 signatures from members of the Yale-NUS community.
2 | AUGUST 26, 2016
Capstone research is not the only type of research conducted at the College. Members from the Classes of 2018 and 2019 also had opportunities to engage in research at various laboratories over the summer. A few participated in the Summer Science Research Program (SSR) and Summer Social Science Research Program, which were both in their third iteration. Wang Jiayun ’19, an SSR participant, spent her summer at the Centre for Quantum Technologies working on quantum computation under the supervision of Assistant Professor of Science (Physics) Ng Hui Khoon. “Because quantum computing is totally new for me, and it’s been quite a long time since I last did physics, [this research opportunity] is … a jumpstart into something new,” she said. Wang expressed gratitude to her mentor Dr. Ng throughout the interview, whom she said was very nice and patient. “[The research] really offers me confidence and belief that I can do research as an undergraduate with a professor,” she added. She hopes to major in physical science and will thus be continuing her research throughout the semester.
FRESH
SATIRE/OPINION
Research Associates
Students can also conduct research with professors through the academic year, either through research-associate positions or through self-initiated projects. Clin Lai ’18 is a research associate for both Assistant Professor of Social Sciences (Psychology) Jean Liu and Assistant Professor of Social Sciences (Psychology) Chris Asplund, and has been working with them during the school year and over the summer. Her research with Dr. Liu, on organ donation in Singapore, investigates how the opt-out system affects Singaporeans’ views on the topic. A psychology major, Lai is interested in how environmental factors change people’s perceptions, and is confident that the research has the potential to benefit many people. When asked her biggest takeaway, she said, “Cognitively, I understood that [research is hard]. But it’s another thing to experience the back and forth email with staff [from various departments] … it is actually quite amazing to experience just how much research involves.” While research experiences can be fulfilling, Lai cautions that one should evaluate one’s commitments carefully prior to embarking on research. “It is highly irresponsible to over promise the professor [whom] you are working with and later on disappear,” she added.
Story by Paul Jerusalem i.
ii.
What they don’t show you on prospective student brochures
Nothing is more far-reaching than
is the gap between each tile, how differently vomit tastes
vomit. Why spend all the effort trying
on its plate, how quickly it dries up, how you’ll grow
to write poetry, to convey your heart
immune to its scent, eau de toilet not in the right
when you can spew it out in a pule
place, much less the specifics of each note:
without half the mental drain? Sure,
the first to evaporate is the head note,
you won’t find your name in people’s
the sound of your parents doubting you
hearts, minds, much less on academic
when you said the liberal in liberal arts meant
journals that try to know you more
liberalis, an education worthy of a free person,
than yourself. But who needs that
not that you’d be free from supervision (they
when you can find yourself in chunks
were right). Next, the heart note, you lying
on your floor, your bedsheets, all your
to yourself, thinking you’d be more social less awkward
clothes hanging. The morning after you can
when you go to uni, later discovering this promise
find evidence of yourself everywhere but the bin.
was kept only under the influence. Last, the base notes,
At least you’ll graduate summa cum laude in floor cleaning.
more stubborn than A&F perfume reeking of sin, an insistence on faithful well-adjusted Christian boy aesthetics, despite the convenience of tinder but never the courage to admit that true love like your parents’ exists only when you stop waiting for it to come.
HOW TO BE
RIGHT:
AN INSIDER’S GUIDE Story by Abel Ang, Guest Contributer
Hey there, freshmen! Take a deep breath. You’re entering a liberal arts college, and I know that can be scary. In a world where so many people are just getting it wrong, like Trump and Brexiteers, navigating the grey and gray of nuance can be difficult. But why navigate these stormy seas when you already know you’re right? So here’s a quick and easy guide to being right and doing the right thing! Everyone is a 100% rational, lean, mean, thinking machine. This may come as a surprise to you, but you’re attending college with the best and brightest. One’s emotions and personal experiences never come into play during conversations, so why bother thinking about what those might be? You’re going to need that extra cognitive power to really nail that next premise-conclusion-smackdown. Corollary: If something’s gone wrong in the argument, the other side’s just stupid and probably didn’t deserve to get in anyway. Never listen to a hypocrite. You aren’t just here to get educated—you’re here to get morally educated. If your interlocutor isn’t 100% consistent in principle and deed, you can be sure there’s nothing of value in their words. You only take lessons from paragons of moral virtue—like yourself. The time to fight is here and now. No issue is too trivial. It’s always a sign of Worse-ThingsTo-Come. So tell them why. With your keyboard. At 3 am. There’s no way this could go wrong when everyone’s tired, irritable, and extra argumentative from working on their essays. Remember the law of cause and effect. Specifically, your cause. Everything happens for a reason. And you know the reason. Anyone who says otherwise is distracting people from the real issues. You’re in a liberal arts college. Act like it. In case you didn’t get the memo, we’re all liberals here. If we wanted to take classes in a conservative arts college, we’d be somewhere else. Please catch up with the rest of the rich, white, college-educated world.
Never. Change. Your. Mind. What are you? Weak? You didn’t come here to be weak, you came here to learn! So make sure you learn how to defend the beliefs you have in your first year against the nefarious forces of four years of higher education. Your Latin honors depend on this. Remember, you get far more out of being right than listening, learning, and understanding—so make sure to utilise your time here wisely! College is meant to be a place where everyone’s opinions are exactly the same as yours—we can always put off navigating difference. Or at least until after the votes come in. There is a set of correct questions and answers—and yes, they will be on the test. Remember, you get far more out of being right than listening, learning, and understanding—so make sure to utilise your time here wisely! College is meant to be a place where everyone’s opinions are exactly the same as yours—we can always put off navigating difference. Or at least until after the votes come in. There is a set of correct questions and answers—and yes, they will be on the test.
WHAT IS OUR TIME HERE FOR? Story by Michael Moore-Jones, Guest Contributer
As part of the inaugural classes’ orientation week in June 2013 we sat through a lecture by Professor of Humanities (Literature in English) Rajeev Patke titled “The Liberal Arts: Making the Most of Your Yale-NUS College Education.” I don’t remember much from the lecture in what was a week far-too-filled with them. But what strikes me now, at the beginning of my final year at college, is how there was probably no more a prescient lecture that could have been delivered to an incoming class of students. Education isn’t something that merely happens to us; we must reach out and grab it. Guidance on how to do so is what I for one most needed at the start of my time here. At that point I felt I had a good grasp on what the liberal arts were. They were one half of my decision to come to Yale-NUS, the other being its location in Singapore. My desire to study the liberal arts had arisen from feeling restricted when I looked at university study in New Zealand or elsewhere in Asia—I didn’t want to specialize yet. I didn’t want to spend my four years studying solely law or International Relations, and coming out with very little idea of anything besides. I still wanted to take more literature classes, some history, philosophy and economics, and, who knows, maybe even some cosmology.
AUGUST 26, 2016 | 3