Dear loyal readers,

There will be slightly less frequent updates since I'm also working on Unscientific Malaysia.

For more frequent brief updates, why not follow me on Twitter? I'm @zurairi.

Thank you for your neverending support. Much love to all!

Zurairi AR

A Guide to Having Fun on Twitter

Yesterday, two friends moaned on Twitter that they find Twitter very boring. It’s not surprising how it’s boring, considering how infrequent they tweet.

I have since unfollowed them. Sorry, I only follow interesting people, and I don’t need to hear you bemoan about how lousy Twitter is every few weeks.

Twitter is immensely fun. Just ask those who just can’t stop tweeting every single day. If you don’t find Twitter fun, then you just haven’t been doing it right.

So how can you have more fun on Twitter?

Follow more people

This is pretty much given, but some people do just sit around following a few close friends and missing out on some real fun.

Some people say shortly after joining, that Twitter is no fun without your circle of friends around since you can not tweet each other. That is only partly true.

There are millions of other people tweeting. Following celebrities is a great way to learn how to tweet besides knowing their personal thoughts.

When I started tweeting, I followed comic book writers and artists to keep up with their latest projects. For you it might be famous actors, or musicians, or famous geeks, talk show hosts or whoever it is you love. Most of the time, they are already on Twitter.

Get a client

Tweeting on the Twitter website is okay, but it is certainly not that fun. Once you started following some people, it gets harder to keep track of conversations by using only the web interface. This is where clients, or specific softwares to handle Twitter, come in.

If you do not follow a lot of people, a single-column client might be for you. Popular ones include Tweetie, Destroy Twitter and Twitterrific.

But if you follow a lot of people, multi-column clients is the way to go. I prefer Tweetdeck, but Seesmic Desktop is also popular. What you can do with multi-column clients is you can group people, so it’s easier to keep up with important tweets from say, friends or people you really know. I have around ten columns separating friends, geeks, news, celebrities etc.

If you can not install a client (like in the office), I’d suggest using Brizzly, a great web-based client. If you need invitation codes, leave your contact details in the comments.

That’s just for tweeting from your PC. For convenience, you might want to install a client on your mobile so you can tweet from anywhere. iPhones and Blackberrys have great clients (Tweetie, Echofon, TwitterBerry, UberTwitter), but other phones do too, with Java-based clients like Snaptu and Twibble.

You can also use services like gladlyCast. Once you sync your mobile number to the service, you can just text your tweets to a special number, and gladlyCast will tweet them for you. Dead simple.

Join in hashtags and memes

Hashtags (like #hashtags) are just tags used by tweeters to label their tweets, for searching convenience. At the same time, it gave rise to memes, where people tweet on the same theme and append the hashtags at the end.

For example, on Mondays, a lot of people will talk about their favourite music and tag it #musicmonday. The same on Fridays, where people recommend other people who they think you should follow, and tagging it #followfriday or #ff.

Every so often, you’ll find people playing and joking with other hashtags like #oneletteroffmovies or #threewordsaftersex. There are always new memes popping up every week, so keep an eye on them and join in.

What to tweet?

The beauty of Twitter is that you can tweet about whatever you like, and people won’t complain about it. Some people treat Twitter as a personal diary or journal. Some use it to share cool links they found. Some use it as a free alternative to texting with their friends.

You can ask for opinion on Twitter, and sometimes people will reply back. You can get reviews on the current happenings, or new films, or new music.

For me, Twitter lets me keep up with my friends’ lives, and tvice versa. It’s also a wonderful place to have intelligent discussions with several people at the same time.

Twitter’s biggest advantage is having access to real-time news (and nasty rumours). Nowadays, more and more news comes out on Twitter first before arriving on conventional outlets. If I want a picture of a certain topic at the moment, I’ll just search it on Twitter, and I can get what people are actually talking about it now.

Tweet more

Twitter is not like Facebook. Enough said.

 

Do you have any other ideas on how you make Twitter fun? Leave them in the comments.

I hope you enjoy this simple guide, and have fun on Twitter. Follow me @zurairi.

Malaysia Was a Secular Country, and Should Return to Being One

This was my fifth and final post as PopMuda in PopIN:

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When the Federal Constitution was drafted, it was made very clear that Malaysia is a secular state, and Islam was only the official religion. Malaysia was never an Islamic state.

How come in 2007, the then Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak boldly claimed that Malaysia was “never a secular state but an Islamic nation”?

Somewhere along the way from Independence, Islam took root in the governance and up until now, lobbyists constantly seek to declare Malaysia as an Islamic country. The religious status quo is fast becoming the authority—albeit one that tries to dictate the lives of Malaysians: disregarding personal rights, liberties, freedom of thought, and trampling over unbelievers.

Earlier this week, an ex-mufti was arrested for speaking up. Before that, Islamic vigilantes harrassed some youths—supposedly for “khalwat”—in their own home.

A concert was (shortly) banned for Muslims, and many others were cancelled—most likely the direct result of the senseless regulations. Unjust whipping is on the cards for a Muslim woman drinking beer.

Bibles using the word “Allah” were confiscated without explanation. Muslims led a protest against the relocation of a Hindu temple, calling for blood and desecrating a Hindu icon.

Muslims around the country seem to suffer from a victim complex, paranoid that everyone is out to get them. Every act is an offensive insult, disrespect and contempt by people manipulated by “enemies of Islam”

In their retaliation, voices get silenced, critics get persecuted, creativity is stifled.

These are all reasons why I am adamant that powers should not fall to Islamic moralists. Looking from the outside, it is clear that all the affronts violate sense and so many rights, but to the religionists, they actually believe that they’re doing it for God.

What can you say to someone who’s convinced that he’s doing the work of God? There is no reasoning.

To circumvent this, Malaysia should reassert its identity as a secular country. Becoming secular is not to reject religion. Instead, it just means that there should be a separation between it and the state. The government should not have a hand in, or interfere with religion (or lack of one).

I am weary of those who accuse that by not being religious, Malaysia will morally crumble and fall apart.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Denmark and Sweden.

Spend some time watching this video. It’s an interview with Phil Zuckerman, who wrote the book Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us About Contentment:

Denmark and Sweden are the two most secular countries in the world, and they have among the lowest rates of crime. It is also not a secret that standards of living in Scandinavian country is really high.

The least religious country, CAN also be the happiest country. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

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I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the PopIN team for having me as PopMuda this whole week. It has been wicked!

If you enjoy my short stint, do follow Unscientific Malaysia, and join our FB fan page. We are in need of writers, contributors and supporter.

I also blog at Coffee Conversations and tweet compulsively @zurairi.

Telling Myths Through Graphic Novels

Originally appeared as fourth post in PopIN as PopMuda:

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You might already know that I really adore comics. They are a great medium of telling stories through art.

Today, I’d like share some of my favourite graphic novels that can be considered radical in their deconstruction of what it means to be human, and the whole god, heaven/hell thing:

Preacher (by Garth Ennis & Steve Dillon)
This one hell of a ride is what you get when you mix a Texan preacher, an Irish vampire and a sharp-shooter hottie. Preacher Jesse Custer lived a messed-up childhood under his righteous grandma who wanted him to grow up being a man of God. When the unnatural child of an angel and a demon accidentally entered his body and granted him the “Word of God”, he made it his mission to find God across the United States.

Hellblazer (by various writers & artists)
John Constantine might be many things—occult detective, thief, exorcist, demon hunter, liar, The Laughing Magician—but he’s just really a chain-smoking Scouse bastard. Once on the brink of death, he tricked the First of the Fallen to not only save his ass, but cure him of his lung cancer. One scene that continues to give me the chills is by writer Brian Azzarello, when John cursed some Muslims convicts to pray the other way for pissing him off.

Transmetropolitan (by Warren Ellis & Darick Robertson)
In a dystopian future where humans have found hundreds of ways to live beyond our normal bodies, Spider Jerusalem is a gonzo journalist hell-bent on reporting the truth and bringing down corrupt politicians. When his stories were censored from mainstream press by the President and faced with assassination attempts, Spider continued to dissent in exile through guerilla internet-like “feedsites”. Somehow reminds me a lot of RPK.

Marvelman (by Alan Moore & various artists)
Formerly Marvelman, then Miracleman after a lawsuit by Marvel Comics, and recently Marvelman again after being bought by Marvel. He was initially a British version of Captain Marvel, but Alan Moore, master of reboots, turned it into a far more sinister story. Moore kept asking the question: “What would you do if you have the power of gods?”: Would you try to take over the world? Could you still stay with your mere human love ones? How would you remake Earth?

The Sandman (by Neil Gaiman & various artists)
Definitely one of the best tales ever made, and Gaiman’s greatest achievement so far. Sandman popularised the use of mythical characters in new settings and tales. Lucifer, for example, suddenly decided one day to quit his role as keeper of Hell, set free all its prisoners, and closed it, leaving the key in care of the titular character, Morpheus: The Lord of Dreams.

Something to think about.

My favourite story? Ramadan. Remember the enchanted Baghdad, with its palaces, flying carpets, beautiful harems, genies and wonderful creatures? Where has it gone, and why is it now a war-torn country full of misery?  The answer, as told in this story, is because Caliph Harun al-Rashid had presented Baghdad to Morpheus for safe-keeping in the land of dreams, so that its glory will never fade and be remembered forever!

You might have realised that for someone who talks about rationalism and rejecting superstition, I am very fond of supernatural fictions. Well, it’s because that’s how I feel supernatural should stay as—fiction.

Now if I have succeeded in getting your interest, why don’t you pick some of these titles up? Comics are not all about superpowers and hot chicks, you know.

Psst, have you joined Unscientific Malaysia’s Facebook fan page yet? We have some awesome discussion going on about evolution!

Is Malaysia Capable Of Evolving?

Third post as PopMuda at PopIN:

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Google “Malaysia” and “evolusi” together, and the first link that comes out is for “racing”-flick Evolusi KL Drift. FML.

This is where tackling the issue of evolution in Malaysia becomes rather tricky—it’s rarely because so many people oppose it. We just don’t talk about it much.

So let me get the ball rolling. What is evolution anyway?

To put it simply, theory of evolution explains how animals and plants change over time. This process of change is driven by a concept called natural selection, which means whichever species suits their environment best, will survive better on the average. To survive better, these animals and plants will adapt and change, causing variations after billions of years.

So why don’t we talk about it much? Chiefly it’s because the two main Abrahamic religions in Malaysia, Islam and Christianity are very much sensitive on the origin of human.

It’s understandable for Christians who believe in the Young Earth creationism (i.e. Earth was created in six days, and is only about a few thousand years old), but for Muslims, it’s simply baffling. Most would accept that the Big Bang did happen and billions-year-old fossils are real, but the mere mention of men descending from apes would make some go bonkers.

I have heard many instances of our students overseas who refuse outright to attend evolution classes, like the very act of learning is blasphemous.

Let me assure you, evolution does not even suggest that men came from apes, but that’s a story for another day.

Of course, there are attempts to reconcile evolution and creationism [English version]—an attempt which I think is futile at best—but isn’t it a wonder why this isn’t discussed more? Instead, authorities try their best to hush this up so there won’t be more who will question the status quo (just like they do with everything else).

Why are we, as a country, still in denial on evolution? It is the basis of modern biology, and one of the most important concepts in science. Just imagine the madness if the government suddenly decides to teach that the world is flat, or the Sun revolves around Earth!

Time and time again, why do we keep dismissing the theory of evolution, considering how much it affects our very lives? If we can’t agree on it, let’s at least talk about it more.

So, intelligent readers of PopIN, do you reject evolution? Or do you believe in the theory? Are you mostly confused? Do you think that there might be truth in it, but are still unconvinced? Do you think I’m talking total bullshit?

We would love to know what your views are on this controversial topic. Drop by our discussion board on the newly launched Unscientific Malaysia Facebook fan page and put forward your opinions! Hop on!

Malaysian Students In Sydney For Good

This was my second post as PopIN’s PopMuda.

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Away from polarising politicians back home, Malaysian students in Sydney thrive on being simply of one race: Malaysian race. That was one of the most important things I learnt while in Sydney for four years.

Today, I want to share with you some of the interesting things our students there do for fun:

Malaysia Fest (MFest)
Undoubtedly the oldest and biggest Malaysian cultural festival organised by students—in Australia, if not the world. MFest showcases the best of Malaysia with the classic combo of cultural stage shows and stalls of authentic goodies. Months before the event, the students start choreographing and rehearsing the performances . Every year the committee tries to outdo the last year’s, and MFest 2009 headed by Jenny Tan is the grandest yet, with guest performances by One Buck Short, Reza Salleh, Liyana Fizi and Rashdan Harith. In 2010, MFest will be in its 20th year.

Photo credits: Kamal Hadi

With Love, Down Under (WLDU)
WLDU is a charity organisation based in Sydney, but with members from all over Australia and Malaysia. The idea was concocted by Erina Zahara Ellias as a way for the students to give to society during uni holidays. Two events have been organised so far: a dinner in Malaysia and the WLDU Charity Gig in UNSW featuring Flop Poppy. In two years, they have managed to collect RM 42,000 for PERNIM and Pertubuhan Penyayang ar-Raudhah. WLDU plans to branch into other charities in the future, especially environmental causes.

Photo credits: Andrialis Abdul Rahman

TONG
Combining art exhibitions and impromptu concerts, TONG is the flagship annual event led by Tasniim Abd Rahman and Persatuan Pelajar Melayu Sydney (PPMS). Every year, Malaysia Hall is turned into a gallery featuring eclectic artworks from arts and design students. It is apt then that the name was derived from the act of throwing all artistic “junk” in one space. The last TONG was given the theme “junkies in rubik.kubik”.

Photo credits: Andrialis Abdul Rahman

Malam Gema Merdeka (MGM)
Starting as a modest dinner to celebrate Hari Merdeka, MGM has transformed in the last three years into a full-blown musical theatre under its masterminds from Malaysian Students’ Council of Australia (MASCA) NSW, Najmuddin Mohd Aminuddin and Nik Arif Izani. Attended by the Malaysian High Commissioner and consuls from various countries, MGM features spectacular performances with elaborate dances and costumes. It is usually held on the Merdeka eve and ends with Merdeka shouts.

Love the Person NeXT to You
This charity project was started by Muhammad Hafiz Samsudin and Baiti Aziz, who are representatives of Act of Random Kindness (ARK). With a couple of other friends, they distribute free clothes, books, food and whatever they can spare to the homeless and other needy people around the Newtown area. The free stuff are donated by students, especially those who are leaving for good. They look forward to continue their efforts in Malaysia when they get back after graduation soon.

All these projects are organised 100% by students, and they would be glad for any support they can get, especially in financial sponsorship. Are you from a company or GLC looking to give some corporate social responsibility? You can contact these events on their website to give them a much-needed boost.