"What's the agenda of this meeting ?" I asked Irene.
"Eh ... there's no agenda. Dr. X just want everyone sit down and share what they think." My secretary explained - with some hesitancy.
I did not go further. It's not within her control. Nonetheless my limbic system rang a bell upon the word "share". (Oh, nothing to do with the stock market. Don't be paranoid.)
I am neither a Christian attending a religious gathering nor a French existentialist discussing the (abstract) purpose of life in a salon. There seems little point to have a few dozens of people sitting around in order to so-called share their opinion by what actual is talking to themselves. Worse still, if your opinion does not conform to the unspeakable pre-determined decision of that whoever, you would receive a good lecture to explain why your opinion is not satisfactory. The torture would linger on forever, until you express a desirable opinion.
I used to be puzzled what those Red Guards from the Cultural Revolution become when they grow up. Oh, they're all around.
Or is there reincarnation of Gestapo ?
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Price
While planning to go to Osaka in the middle of this week, I made some exchange for Japanese Yen.
I did it in a small shop of the shopping mall next to where I live. Well, the charge was considerable, but I was more than happy to pay that extra bit: it opens till late hours, and the attendant appears quiet and studious.
That's how small shops - without the advantage of scale - survive. After all, price is not everything. Many of us are willing to pay for convenience and service.
And that's the thing some Mr. Tsang went wrong. What's the point of (using government subsidy for) setting up an elaborated system to compare the price of every bread-and-butter need between various supermarkets and local stores ? Would that help to bring the price down ? No, don't be silly. That simply makes the price uniform - and exactly because the information on price is readily available and your competitor could easily follow - no one would have the incentive to lower the price.
(This argument is not my invention; it is something taught in the first month for any introductory course on game theory.)
Further, a policy of this kind is a subconscious advertisement that customers should focus on price and nothing else. Because large business has a higher bargaining power with the supplier, they make a better profit (or have a better chance of survival) when the price is fixed.
In other words, it encourages monopoly (or oligopoly).
Oh, maybe he's not wrong - that's what he aims for after all.
I did it in a small shop of the shopping mall next to where I live. Well, the charge was considerable, but I was more than happy to pay that extra bit: it opens till late hours, and the attendant appears quiet and studious.
That's how small shops - without the advantage of scale - survive. After all, price is not everything. Many of us are willing to pay for convenience and service.
And that's the thing some Mr. Tsang went wrong. What's the point of (using government subsidy for) setting up an elaborated system to compare the price of every bread-and-butter need between various supermarkets and local stores ? Would that help to bring the price down ? No, don't be silly. That simply makes the price uniform - and exactly because the information on price is readily available and your competitor could easily follow - no one would have the incentive to lower the price.
(This argument is not my invention; it is something taught in the first month for any introductory course on game theory.)
Further, a policy of this kind is a subconscious advertisement that customers should focus on price and nothing else. Because large business has a higher bargaining power with the supplier, they make a better profit (or have a better chance of survival) when the price is fixed.
In other words, it encourages monopoly (or oligopoly).
Oh, maybe he's not wrong - that's what he aims for after all.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Interview
Went to the kindergarten admission interview with Euterpe.
The meeting took 15 minutes in late afternoon, but it needed quite a bit of planning and preparation. You know what, we've been busy from the morning: arranged a proper dress, had lunch, took a nap, opened the bowel, and packed up for outing. Although the kindergarten was just a 5-minute-walk from my home, I don't think I had more preparatory work for a trip to America.
The classroom was full of children and parents. (I learned later the day that there were 600 kids but 60 vacancies.) In spite of all the effort, my worry turned into reality and Euterpe didn't say a word with the teacher - she was just interested in the toys at hand.
The teacher gave me a polite smile; I returned an embarrassed one.
And off she went.
Alas, I suddenly remembered what LS told me: A professor of a medical school is nothing when compared to a kindergarten teacher.
I shouldn't worry that much, I know.
PS. Time has changed. Kindergarten was nothing important when I was a kid. In fact, I had merely 3 months of K-2 and a year of K-3 before entering primary school. Thank goodness my mother was a full time housewife and took the trouble to teach me language and arithmetic. After all, that's all you have to learn.
The meeting took 15 minutes in late afternoon, but it needed quite a bit of planning and preparation. You know what, we've been busy from the morning: arranged a proper dress, had lunch, took a nap, opened the bowel, and packed up for outing. Although the kindergarten was just a 5-minute-walk from my home, I don't think I had more preparatory work for a trip to America.
The classroom was full of children and parents. (I learned later the day that there were 600 kids but 60 vacancies.) In spite of all the effort, my worry turned into reality and Euterpe didn't say a word with the teacher - she was just interested in the toys at hand.
The teacher gave me a polite smile; I returned an embarrassed one.
And off she went.
Alas, I suddenly remembered what LS told me: A professor of a medical school is nothing when compared to a kindergarten teacher.
I shouldn't worry that much, I know.
PS. Time has changed. Kindergarten was nothing important when I was a kid. In fact, I had merely 3 months of K-2 and a year of K-3 before entering primary school. Thank goodness my mother was a full time housewife and took the trouble to teach me language and arithmetic. After all, that's all you have to learn.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Slow
You may find my comment yesterday that HP-12c calculator is deliberately slow somewhat unbelievable. Nonetheless, it is ordinary psychology. We tend to put more trust on people who say things slowly - because they probably have a more thorough consideration of the problem (even though that's actually the result of a slow CPU).
This is, in fact, not the only application of slowness.
You know what, all Intel chips are made of one computing speed - the fastest one of course. All the other versions on the market are deliberately slowed down. In fact, the cost is actually higher for those slower chips. What's the point ? Well, it creates a desire on your side to buy (and pay more) for the "most advanced" version.
The same is true for Microsoft Office. We know very well there are the Professional version, Standard one, and Microsoft Work. You could easily guess now all three are made from the same base - just that some valuable parts are removed (suppressed ?) from the CD for the latter two versions. Again, it is a bait.
PS. My friend TW made a similar comment a few days ago on my blog about how quick we see cases in the out-patient clinic. She's perfectly right.
This is, in fact, not the only application of slowness.
You know what, all Intel chips are made of one computing speed - the fastest one of course. All the other versions on the market are deliberately slowed down. In fact, the cost is actually higher for those slower chips. What's the point ? Well, it creates a desire on your side to buy (and pay more) for the "most advanced" version.
The same is true for Microsoft Office. We know very well there are the Professional version, Standard one, and Microsoft Work. You could easily guess now all three are made from the same base - just that some valuable parts are removed (suppressed ?) from the CD for the latter two versions. Again, it is a bait.
PS. My friend TW made a similar comment a few days ago on my blog about how quick we see cases in the out-patient clinic. She's perfectly right.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Calculator
Downloaded an electronic version of the HP-12c calculator for my computer. You know what, this pocket-size gadget is HP's all-time best-selling product, and is still in production since it was first introduced in 1981.
Well, for those who are brought up with CASIO 3600p, Americans are difficult to understand - there is not even an "=" button on the keyboard. Nonetheless it is a superb instrument to work on mortgage and bonds and compound interest payments. Although similar calculations could be achieved - and in a more speedy way - by spreadsheets (such as Excel), many practising professions in the financial sector still find this little piece of metal handy and user-friendly.
Talking about speed, the original HP-12c was actually rather slow in calculation - as compared to other newer models. Nonetheless, to be quick is not always good. In the late 1980's, the HP's market research actually found that the users (alas, thick-head financial analysts) did not trust results obtained too quickly, and so - despite rapid advances in the computer chip technology over the years - the CPU speed of HP-12c was not improved for nearly 20 years.
PS. Many general physicians have the romantic idea that nephrologist always carries a calculator for electrolyte and acid-base problems. Well, I have one in my office - it is a Texas Instrument BA-II-Plus professional financial calculator. By looking at the name you could imagine how often I use it for serious acid-base computations.
Well, for those who are brought up with CASIO 3600p, Americans are difficult to understand - there is not even an "=" button on the keyboard. Nonetheless it is a superb instrument to work on mortgage and bonds and compound interest payments. Although similar calculations could be achieved - and in a more speedy way - by spreadsheets (such as Excel), many practising professions in the financial sector still find this little piece of metal handy and user-friendly.
Talking about speed, the original HP-12c was actually rather slow in calculation - as compared to other newer models. Nonetheless, to be quick is not always good. In the late 1980's, the HP's market research actually found that the users (alas, thick-head financial analysts) did not trust results obtained too quickly, and so - despite rapid advances in the computer chip technology over the years - the CPU speed of HP-12c was not improved for nearly 20 years.
PS. Many general physicians have the romantic idea that nephrologist always carries a calculator for electrolyte and acid-base problems. Well, I have one in my office - it is a Texas Instrument BA-II-Plus professional financial calculator. By looking at the name you could imagine how often I use it for serious acid-base computations.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Fairness
One major reason for the down-grading of the college examination - and to a large extent examinations in (our) medical school - is the obsessive passion for fairness.
"Why do I have a long case who speaks this funny dialect while my friend had one who volunteers to regurgitate the whole history in five minutes ?" Well, let's have a few standard scenarios for history taking.
"Why do I see three short cases in 20 minutes but the other candidate sees seven ?" OK, let's fix the number of case and the time for each.
"Why does the examiner give me such a vague instruction - I don't even know which system to examine." Oh, our apology. We shall specify the system and standardize the instruction.
But, nothing would happen exactly the same twice. The same patient could behave differently. Even the mood of the examiners may change. And, after all, most patients in real life could not tell you which system do they have the problem.
At the end of the day, we change a smart test that picks up bright candidates to a dense examination for dumb doctors.
"Why do I have a long case who speaks this funny dialect while my friend had one who volunteers to regurgitate the whole history in five minutes ?" Well, let's have a few standard scenarios for history taking.
"Why do I see three short cases in 20 minutes but the other candidate sees seven ?" OK, let's fix the number of case and the time for each.
"Why does the examiner give me such a vague instruction - I don't even know which system to examine." Oh, our apology. We shall specify the system and standardize the instruction.
But, nothing would happen exactly the same twice. The same patient could behave differently. Even the mood of the examiners may change. And, after all, most patients in real life could not tell you which system do they have the problem.
At the end of the day, we change a smart test that picks up bright candidates to a dense examination for dumb doctors.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Change
Had a brief chat with MN - the chief local examiner - on the upcoming change in the format of MRCP examination.
As organizers and host centers, our attention were of course directed to the difficulty in recruiting English-speaking patients with suitable physical signs. As an experienced on-looker, it seems a pity to see how a respectable examination disintegrated rapidly in less than 20 years.
The new move of the college is to put more emphasis on an integrated skill of history taking and physical examination for endocrine and rheumatology cases. I asked MN, "How about fundi cases, which usually do not have much history in it ?"
The senior consultant said with some hesitancy, "They would probably no longer appear in the examination."
He may be right. Many of our younger generation doctors do not know how to use an ophthalmoscope, and fundi examination is often left to specialist.
Well, you may say my feeling is merely deja vu of those Song (宋) and Qing (清) emperors, who saw their kingdoms melt away after giving out piece by piece to some barbarians.
PS. Towards the end of the day, the chief external examiner asked if I had passed my MRCP. I took that as a compliment on my lack of grey hair. Nonetheless, I must say the glory of passing this trying examination dimmed down a lot since the system changed at the turn of the millennium.
As organizers and host centers, our attention were of course directed to the difficulty in recruiting English-speaking patients with suitable physical signs. As an experienced on-looker, it seems a pity to see how a respectable examination disintegrated rapidly in less than 20 years.
The new move of the college is to put more emphasis on an integrated skill of history taking and physical examination for endocrine and rheumatology cases. I asked MN, "How about fundi cases, which usually do not have much history in it ?"
The senior consultant said with some hesitancy, "They would probably no longer appear in the examination."
He may be right. Many of our younger generation doctors do not know how to use an ophthalmoscope, and fundi examination is often left to specialist.
Well, you may say my feeling is merely deja vu of those Song (宋) and Qing (清) emperors, who saw their kingdoms melt away after giving out piece by piece to some barbarians.
PS. Towards the end of the day, the chief external examiner asked if I had passed my MRCP. I took that as a compliment on my lack of grey hair. Nonetheless, I must say the glory of passing this trying examination dimmed down a lot since the system changed at the turn of the millennium.
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