Britain Under Siege

I have finally got home. 12 hours since I started my journey from King's Cross station in London to my home up in the North of England. It was chaos everywhere. There was hardly any train leaving Kings Cross. The management was totally not in control. Information was changing by the minutes, and even by the seconds.

After queuing for about 4 hours to take the only train out of Kings Cross, it was full just as I was nearing the front. Damn! So, I hot footed over to Euston Station, and just managed to catch a train up to Manchester. Mind you, it was no where near my home. But I'd reckon it was nearer than London. I would think about it when I arrive there. However, on the train, there was a bit of a good news for me. The conductor announced that there would be a train from Manchester to my city. I couldn't believe my ears, so I went to search him out and asked him. He looked at me with contempt and said," Didn't I just announced that "stupid" (.. I could see him judging me through his eyes)?" So, satisfied , I settled in the journey.

At Manchester Picadilly, I scanned the schedule board impatiently as we were told that the connection would be within a few minutes. Bugger! That was almost impossible to do. The reason for that was because the board switches from alphabetical order (for destination) to chronological order every 2 seconds. Who was the smart alec that designed this? I had travelled from this station before, but this did not ever occur to me. I suppose I was never in a hurry before and can peruse at my leisure. Never mind, finally an announcement came that a train was departing to Huddersfield. Again, no where near my home, but I reasoned that it was nearer than Manchester. So, I hopped on the train. There was a train scheduled to York about half an hour later, which was nearer my home. But should I take the chance? What if it was cancelled? I decided to stay the train as this one was moving. The other one would probably turned out to be an empty promise.

At Huddersfield, we were told that that was the end of the journey and we had to disembark. However, as soon as I got off, there was a whole crowd of people rushing on to the train. So, without asking I hopped back on the train. "Where are we going?" I asked the person next to me. "Oh, the train is going to Leeds first, then to Bradford and onto York", he said. Great, I thought. That is just where I wanted to go. I was feeling suitably pleased with myself as I had managed to get myself a 1st. Class seat. You see, during times of emergency, all the seats are declassified and they become standard seats. Unfortunately, that sense of well-being did not last long. After about 5 minutes, the conductor's voice came over the tannoy," Ladies and gentlemen, I want to apologise for what I am going to say next". He repeated that again. Hmmm! That sounded ominous. "Can all passengers please leave the train now?" Oh dear, not again. Ah well! Might as well go and take a pee while I had the chance. As I was making my way towards the gents on the other side of the platform, suddenly everyone was rushing on to the train that I had got off twice already!! Oh what the heck! Here we go again. I did a U turn and managed to squeeze myself into the carriage again. "Where are we going this time", I asked. Leeds, came the reply. Ok, that is better than getting stuck in Huddersfield I suppose, and I know Leeds well. Also, there will probably be more chance of getting an onward connection from Leeds than Huddersfield. I was more or less resigned to the fact that I may have to put up a night at Leeds. As we pulled into the station, the announcement came that we will be continuing our journey to York. Hurrah!! There was a loud cheer in the train. We finally arrived in York station at about 21:30. From there, I managed to catch a cab home.

No folks. We did not come under attack from the terrorists again. It was a couple of days of heavy rain that had flooded a large part of the country. However, all this goes to show that Britain is not well equipped to cope with natural disasters, even though it was only minor. There was no contingency planning at all. There was also no offer of alternative transport for the passengers.

On reflection, it was almost like a religious experience. One roughly knows where one is going, although one may not know when or where one will end up. To a certain extent, it was like a leap of faith stepping into trains. Oh yes, a certain measure of prayer was also involved. Hmm! I am going to avoid going to London again, if I can help it. The last time, it was the London bombing.............!! Need I say more!

Old Man Whale

19th-century weapon found in whale

By ERIN CONROY, Associated Press Writer Tue Jun 12, 6:24 PM ET

BOSTON - A 50-ton bowhead whale caught off the Alaskan coast last month had a weapon fragment embedded in its neck that showed it survived a similar hunt — more than a century ago.
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Embedded deep under its blubber was a 3 1/2-inch arrow-shaped projectile that has given researchers insight into the whale's age, estimated between 115 and 130 years old.

"No other finding has been this precise," said John Bockstoce, an adjunct curator of the New Bedford Whaling Museum.

Calculating a whale's age can be difficult, and is usually gauged by amino acids in the eye lenses. It's rare to find one that has lived more than a century, but experts say the oldest were close to 200 years old.

The bomb lance fragment, lodged a bone between the whale's neck and shoulder blade, was likely manufactured in New Bedford, on the southeast coast of Massachusetts, a major whaling center at that time, Bockstoce said.

It was probably shot at the whale from a heavy shoulder gun around 1890. The small metal cylinder was filled with explosives fitted with a time-delay fuse so it would explode seconds after it was shot into the whale. The bomb lance was meant to kill the whale immediately and prevent it from escaping.

The device exploded and probably injured the whale, Bockstoce said.

"It probably hurt the whale, or annoyed him, but it hit him in a non-lethal place," he said. "He couldn't have been that bothered if he lived for another 100 years."

The whale harkens back to far different era. If 130 years old, it would have been born in 1877, the year Rutherford B. Hayes was sworn in as president, when federal Reconstruction troops withdrew from the South and when Thomas Edison unveiled his newest invention, the phonograph.

The 49-foot male whale died when it was shot with a similar projectile last month, and the older device was found buried beneath its blubber as hunters carved it with a chain saw for harvesting.

"It's unusual to find old things like that in whales, and I knew immediately that it was quite old by its shape," said Craig George, a wildlife biologist for the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, who was called down to the site soon after it was found.

The revelation led George to return to a similar piece found in a whale hunted near St. Lawrence Island in 1980, which he sent to Bockstoce to compare.

"We didn't make anything of it at the time, and no one had any idea about their lifespan, or speculated that a bowhead could be that old," George said.

Bockstoce said he was impressed by notches carved into the head of the arrow used in the 19th century hunt, a traditional way for the Alaskan hunters to indicate ownership of the whale.

Whaling has always been a prominent source of food for Alaskans, and is monitored by the
International Whaling Commission. A hunting quota for the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission was recently renewed, allowing 255 whales to be harvested by 10 Alaskan villages over five years.

After it is analyzed, the fragment will be displayed at the Inupiat Heritage Center in Barrow, Alaska.
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Wow! What an old whale! Too bad, it did not survive this second attack. The ocean never ceases to amaze me. Ever since I began scuba diving in 1996, my respect for the marine environment has increased year on year. I learn something new all the time. But isn't it sad that we humans are destroying it more and more? Why is our appetite so voracious? Why can't we leave these beautiful animals alone? Do we have to eat these wonders of the world? Can our conscience not control our gastronomic urges? Why do the Alaskans and for that matter, the Japanese and Scandinavians have to hunt and eat whales?

Ever since I started diving, I had also stopped eating shark's fin. And....I don't miss it at all. At Chinese wedding dinners, this dish is usually served. I would now sit out this course. My family used to say,..........eat lah, this shark fin is fake anyway. Not the real stuff. My response is that it is a matter of principle for me, and more importantly, a matter of survival for the sharks. The harvesting of the fins is cruel. The sharks are still alive when their fins are hacked off. They are then thrown back into the sea to die a slow and painful death. So whether the fins are real or fake, folks need to be educated about this. So, I will say it one more time, "STOP EATING SHARK FIN" and "STOP HUNTING THE WHALES".

Educating Myself

After months of hard work, I decided to go for holiday again..sorry no, I mean go for a conference. Always a good excuse to get away from work. I will be attending the Spring Meeting of the Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthetists (ACTA) tomorrow in Cambridge. In fact, I am already here. I am staying at The Moller Centre this evening. It is fairly cheap by UK standard. £67 per night B&B. Conference price. Normal price is only £10 extra. Good size and clean room. But, the best thing is that the WiFi is free....wahahaha...! Another advantage is that the meetings are held here and also at Churchill College next door. So, no need to rush.

I like Cambridge. One of my favourite cities in UK. Lots of things going on and it is always a pleasure to walk through university grounds. There is a river running through it and punting is a favourite past time here, especially during the summer. Last year, I took the opportunity of this conference to turn it into a caravan holiday. Took my family here as well. The caravan park is only 3 miles from the city centre and there is a park and ride nearby. There is a good Thai restaurant and also a Tapas resturant in town. Can't remember the names though.

Anyway, the highlight for this year's conference is Davy Cheng from Canada. A very prominent Chinese anaesthetist from Canada. Hahaha....Chinese boleh!! Ok lah, got to go to sleep now. Signing off...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

Shoot First....Don't Tok-Tok

Divers Stranded When Tourist Boat Flees After Gunfire
Earlier this week, 2 tourists were enjoying some diving from the boat of Loh Khoy Lee. According to Lee, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency officers signalled to him, requesting radio communication. However, Lee's radio was damaged so he couldn't respond. Then, the unthinkable happened: the Enforcement Officers fired shots on Lee's boat, causing him to flee the area -- and leave the divers!
Lee said about one hour later he and his crew returned to the spot and collected the bewildered divers.

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Ai yo yo! Is it safe to dive in Malaysian waters? I think from now on I have to carry a SMB (surface marker buoy) which says "Please don't shoot, I'm a Malaysian Diver" On second thoughts, maybe not. They might use it as target practice.

It's a pity the article did not say exactly where this incident took place. I suppose to a certain extent, I can understand why the officers opened fire. I found out some time ago that the waters around Malaysia are infested with pirates. Remember the Abu Sayaff pirates aka Muslim freedom fighters from the Phillipines that kidnapped the divers from Sipadan Island? Well, I was at the very same spot only 12 months before. Could have been me.

Forget the SMB. Perhaps I should carry a harpoon to protect myself!

Caravanning Season

Ok, this is now the caravanning season. In fact, it started about 2 months ago. In actual fact one can usually go caravanning throughout the year in the UK. However, fair weather caravanners like myself usually parked up the caravan from late October or early November till about the middle of March. This is because it gets rather cold and I am also trying to avoid doing it in the snow or frost. During the winter months, I usually try to escape to warmer climates mid-winter, so that winter itself feels slightly shorter.

Well, I started caravanning about 3 years ago. I knew absolutely nought about this leisure (and sometimes stressful) activity before I started. However, the great thing about being in UK is that one can usually get the information readily. So, armed with a bit of reading, I headed down to a caravan dealer locally to buy myself one. I only knew that the weight of the caravan has to be about 85% of the weight of my car. After asking the dealer loads of questions, I decided to buy a 5-berth Lunar caravan. I liked the interior, because the fabric is light blue in colour and it makes the inside brighter. I was feeling a bit nervous when it came to the time for picking it up, as I have never towed anything in my life. However, after about 20 minutes of instruction from the dealer towing it round the block, I was let loose onto the unsuspecting public!!

Towing it was actually the easiest thing to do. As long as you give yourself a wide berth (haha) when turning, it is not too bad. The hardest part is however, when you try to park it up at the caravan site. That is not easy to do. It was ok when I took the course, and I got it right all the time. But left to my own devices.......... aaaargh!!! the gear box seemed to chew itself up, and I still can't do it properly. So, I invested in a remote control. Now I just drive up to the pitch, unhitch the caravan from the car, and ease it into place with my remote. Except the time when my leisure battery went flat, and I had to enrol the other caravanners on site to give me a push. Wah...that was embarrasing man!

Anyhow, our first trip this year will be in the middle of June. Also, there is a trip planned in late July. But there is also a competing interest as a trip to Vancouver is also on the horizon. Now, that places my wife between a rock and a hard place. Three weeks in Vancouver or a weekend caravanning? Will let you know what she chooses later. Have a great summer, everyone.

A Psalm for the Living

Just want to share a song that we sang at church today. The words are as following:

The Lord's my Shepherd, I'll not want.
He makes me lie in pastures green.
He leads me by the still, still waters,
His goodness restores my soul.

And I will trust in You alone.
And I will trust in You alone.
For Your endless mercy follows me,
Your goodness will lead me home.

He guides my ways in righteousness,
And He anoints my head with oil,
And my cup, it overflows with joy,
I feast on His pure delights.

And though I walk in the darkest path,
I will not fear the evil one,
For You are with me, and Your rod and staff
Are the comfort I need to know.

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This song is based on Psalm 23. Of the 150 Psalms, this is probably the most popular, or at least the most recognisable one. However, the reason for this is because it is the Psalm that is most often read during Christian funerals. I think the reason for this is because of verse 4 which says "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, For You are with me......". It is a great reassurance and comfort to the relatives of the deceased that at the threshold where one passes from life to death, that God is there leading him or her through. Indeed, it was a great comfort to me personally, as my own dad passed away not too long ago. It was good to know that he was not alone in that journey through the valley of the shadow of death. I still miss him greatly.

So, why do I call it a "Psalm for the Living", when it has such a strong association with death? This is because it speaks to my inner being directly. It calms me in all the turmoils that I had gone through. It rises above material and physical needs. It gives me hope for the future. And because of this, I believe that life is for living. I try not to let fear hold me back from the things that I would like to do. His goodness indeed restores my soul. The chorus sums up my feeling best. Yes, I will only trust in Him. He has shown His mercy to me time and again, and I have enjoyed His goodness. And when the time comes for me, it will indeed be a homecoming. Maranatha!!

Coral Fish

Coral reef fish make their way home

Coral reef fish hatchlings dispersed by ocean currents are able to make their way back to their home reefs again to spawn.

This finding is based on a study conducted by scientists from Australia, France, and the US, led by Dr Geoff Jones and Dr Glenn Almany of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University.

For the study, which took place in a marine protected area in Papua New Guinea, scientists tested a new method to trace fish from birth to spawning and detect the percentage of fish hatched on one reef that return there to spawn.

The techniques used in this study can reveal the extent to which fish populations on separate reefs are isolated breeding populations, or connected by fish movements.

Following two fish species, the clownfish (Amphiprion percula) and the vagabond butterflyfish (Chaetodon vagabundus), the scientists found that young of both species returned to their home reef about 60 percent of the time - a surprising result for fish larvae that had dispersed from a small reef habitat into a large area.

"If we understand how fish larvae disperse, it will enable better design of marine protected areas, and this will help in the rebuilding of threatened fish populations,” said Almany.

The two species in the study have different reproductive styles. Butterflyfish release eggs and sperm into the water, and the larvae drift and swim freely for more than a month before finding a home reef. In contrast, clownfish spawn eggs that are attached to the reef for a week before the larvae hatch and disperse in oceanic waters for 10 to 14 days. The larval clownfish must then find a reef, and a suitable anemone, that will be home for the remainder of its life.

Currents inevitably carry both species away from the parental reef (larval fish cannot swim well), but this study confirms that the majority of both species appear to find their way home after completing the oceanic larval phase.

But how do you tag fish larvae? Well, the process involves injecting minute quantities of harmless stable barium isotopes into the breeding female fish of both species. “The isotopes are passed to the offspring and incorporated into the ear bones - or otoliths - of the developing embryos,” said Thorrold, “thereby labeling the hatchlings at birth with the isotopes as permanent traceable tags.”

Two months after injecting females, the scientists returned and captured newly settled fish at the same reef to determine how many had returned to their home reef and how many had migrated from other nearby reefs.

Reef fish conservation programs utilizing marine protected areas are based on assumptions about how many fish migrate in from other areas and how many return to home areas to spawn. At a time of increasing pressures on coral reef ecosystems, this study provides an important piece for planning the optimum size of coral reef-protected areas and breeding populations.

“Just as importantly,” said Almany of their results, “40 percent of the juveniles came from other reefs that are at least ten kilometers (five miles) away, which indicates significant exchange between populations separated by open sea. This shows how marine protected areas can contribute to maintaining fish populations outside no-fishing zones.”

The successful test of this method in the field offers scientists a new way to evaluate the effectiveness of management models and practices based on direct information. Thorrold is continuing this work, using the maternal labeling technique to evaluate the degree of connectivity in other fish populations, including endangered Nassau grouper in the Caribbean.
Adapted from press release by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

X-Ray International Dive Magazine
@ 2004-2007

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Isn't this just so amazing? I have always suspected that they are clever. The clown fish is one of my favourites when I go diving. On each dive in the Red Sea, one can always see clown fish in their anemones constantly throughout the dive. They seemed to be everywhere. Interestingly, I did not seem to see as many when I dived in Layang-layang. They are also very territorial and guide their own patch / anemone jealously. One of the things that I like to do is to swim quite closely to them with my face forward. They will get very excited and darts around the anemone. Quite often, they will try to attack me by charging at my mask. Usually, there will only be a pair of clown fish per anemone. However, at times you can see more than one pair. I read somewhere that the dominant pair are the bigger ones. The others are usually much smaller. This is because the dominant pair are always bullying the smaller ones, and thereby preventing them from feeding themselves. However, if the dominant pair dies off, the smaller fish will grow in size in a matter of days, and takes over the anemone. Bravo! The film "Finding Nemo" has certainly popularise the clown fish. Unfortunately, it has led people to taken corals and catching the clown fish for their own aquarium at home. This practice is to be discouraged as it leads to the destruction of what is already a very delicate marine environment.

Anyway, just thought that I let you folks know that these tiny creatures have "brains" and should be respected.Hurrah!