DAY 1351-1367

May 14 - 30

1) As the end of the month approaches, I realise that I am blogging even more infrequently than usual. There are of course a few reasons for this. The first, is I am obviously quite busy trying to complete my thesis experiments and write up in time. The second reason, perhaps the real reason, is that there just isn't much to blog about. Before the lockdown, I could move freely and about, so there were plenty of opportunities to plan trips or just hangout with friends - which obviously makes good content.

2) Instead, I am going to talk about an important decision I made, which turned out really well for me. Before beginning my Masters programme last September, I was contemplating which of my two laptops I should bring with me. At first, I thought of bringing only one, since two would be quite cumbersome to lug around in my knapsack (I wasn't planning on keeping them as checked baggage for fear of damage). In the end, my dad convinced me to bring both along anyway, just in case something happened to either one. And so I did.

3) Throughout the semester, I was using only one laptop (my trusty old MacBook from medical school) to do all assignments and essays. It felt like I had brought along my other laptop for naught. But then, I started my current project which requires downloading of MATLAB - a computer programme commonly used in engineering, science, and economics. Only then did I discover that my MacBook had insufficient space (i.e. MATLAB requires around 40GB of hard-disk space). Even if I deleted a lot of unwanted stuff, it would not be remotely enough to download MATLAB.

4) I was obviously at a loss, until I realised that I had brought my second laptop with me. Thankfully, this one was practically empty to begin with, so I had around 1000GB to play around;  more than enough to download the required software. I currently have MATLAB installed in this laptop, while I use my old MacBook for other tasks and functions. It feels great to be able to use two laptops for the purpose of my experiments, as it makes analysis much more convenient and efficient.

5) If there is something I have learnt from this, it is that sometimes things seem to work out in the end. When I got my new laptop, I was a bit worried that it would be a waste of money, as my MacBook was still working, albeit with some overheating issues. Not once did I think that I would end up requiring both in order to finish off my studies here in UK.

6) And on that note, it is time to continue finishing up my project. Thanks very much for tuning in, and stay safe and stay healthy. Cheers!

My Acer laptop of two years, being used to type this very blog post :)

DAY 1336-1350

Apr 29 - May 13

1) Finding the motivation to continue blogging is a bit challenging in the midst of this pandemic. Mainly because we are locked in at home without much to do. If I'm honest, the entire two weeks since my last post has been spent sleeping at odd hours, waking at odd hours, eating, and browsing online. Only a few days ago, I've tried my best to come out of this cycle and instead focus on things that will be important later on, such as revising for my medical studies.

2) It is perhaps a little frustrating that I have forgotten so much medicine/ surgery after having only spent one year abroad. But I attribute that to the enormous volumes of material that are required to make it through medical school. Thankfully, I still have some of my notes with me and can revise at my own time (in between my research work). As it is, I cannot believe that in barely two or three months I shall have completed my Masters programme, and be heading back to Malaysia. Hopefully, I will have some time to prepare before continuing medical school again.

3) If there is one thing that this masters has taught me, it is that there are endless opportunities out in the world, if only we are willing to take the initiative. This will come across as an over-generalisation, but I have noticed that a lot of Malaysian medical schools (and by extension, their students), would rather graduate in the minimum time (i.e. five years), and then pursue housemanship and pursue further specialty/board exams. While there is nothing wrong with that, I feel that there is a potential lack of flexibility here. In other countries, many medical schools give students the choice to intercalate (either in their own university or elsewhere) a year out - usually to do a BSc or MSc. Some schools even offer an extended PhD programme, sandwiched between their medical degree. Yet other medical schools (mostly in the US) offer MD/JD or MD/MBA combinations - highlighting the importance of inter-disciplinary skills in this modern day and age. Of course, it is important to remember that US medical schools offer graduate-entry programmes, so a previous Bachelors degree would be required (unlike UK medical schools).

4) Yesterday, Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced an extension to the Movement Control Order (MCO) for a further four weeks (i.e. until June 9th). While some may feel that restrictions should have been eased, I feel that ultimately, this was the right decision to make. As a curious medical student, I have been following the development of the coronavirus pandemic in my home country quite closely. Barring a few hiccups (and some comedy/light entertainment in between), I am genuinely impressed by our nation's swift and systematic response towards flattening the curve. As of Saturday, around 75% of patients treated had recovered (4684 out of 6535 patients) - a phenomenal feat compared to many other so-called "developed" countries. If anything, this pandemic has helped expose flaws in the public health care systems across the globe. Hopefully, we can all learn from this and work on bolstering our response towards any future pathogens. 

5) And on that note, I shall end my blog post here. Thanks very much for tuning in, and have a lovely day. Stay safe and stay healthy, cheers! 

Last week, Malaysia sent 10 million pairs of gloves to the UK for NHS use; the UK Secretary of State and Foreign Affairs Dominic Raab took to Twitter to express his thanks.

To that one commenter who replied, asking i) will they meet UK quality standards; and ii) can you point to Malaysia on a map?

Well, here is Malaysia on a map. Good luck handling the rest of our netizens' comments :)

https://twitter.com/dominicraab/status/1258326956497686528?lang=en

P.S. To those expecting a barrage of references here to support some of my claims, I am sorry to disappoint. A quick search on Dr. Google should be enough to verify them.