BeateniA

Companionship

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 15:40:00 +0000

Nothing, in truth, can ever replace a lost companion. Old comrades cannot be manufactured. There is nothing that can equal the treasure of so many shared memories, so many bad times endured together, so many quarrels, reconciliations, heartfelt impulses. Friendships like that cannot be reconstructed. If you plant an oak, you will hope in vain to sit soon in its shade.

For such is life. We grow rich as we plant through the early years, but then come the years when time undoes our work and cuts down our trees. One by one our comrades deprive us of their shade, and within our mourning we always feel now the secret grief of growing old.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery

In light of recent event, I found these words comforting.

Goodbye to a mentor and a friend

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 13:35:00 +0000

The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations. The new needs friends.”

Anton Ego (Ratatouille)

In the first year of my undergraduate study, I've told people that I want to work in a think tank. For some reason, my words (and my results) are strong enough that I managed to be employed in one. In my 4 years and 6 months there, I realised that securing a dream job meant nothing if you are not welcomed as a part of the tribe. Dr Mahani Zainal Abidin was the head of this tribe.

I’ve encountered Dr Mahani at first as a student of Malaysian economy. Her book, “Rewriting the Rules: The Malaysian Crisis Management Model” makes me realised how important it is for economic lessons learned in class to be translated into clear actions. Despite clear-cut solutions presented in the textbook, her book presented a case where economic policymaking in an art, a process where the outcome can be uncertain. The book was based on her experience as a member of the Working Group for the National Economic Action Council (NEAC) in 1998 Asian Financial and Economic Crisis (AFC). If any of you recall, the proudest moment of the NEAC existence was when it convinced the nation that Malaysia can ride the AFC without the help of international bodies like the IMF.

One of the questions that she asked me during my job interview was, “why do you want to work in ISIS?” My answer was because I’ve always wanted to work in a think tank. I got my bubble burst few weeks after when my boss, Steven Wong makes this remarks, “sometimes you like the food in a restaurant, then you work in the restaurant’s kitchen and found out it was a messy process”. In this respect, I’ve learned the importance of being coy. Coy-ness in this case is not a bad thing but rather an advantage especially if you are dealing with multitude of audiences, from politicians to the ordinary Pak Mat on the street. You need to break down your point of view and messages in different forms and then start the dissemination process that in the end, the person on the other side changed their perspective and felt that it was driven by their own thinking. I admit I never really mastered the process but I'm glad that I got to see it done by a master. I still don't know whether to call it coyness or Jedi-mind trick.

Formerly an academician that worked in international trade and economics, Dr Mahani tried her best to bring the world of academia and policymaking together. We worked together on issues that required instant solutions and those that will be important in the future. However in an institution that employed around 20 thinkers there’s only as much as this tribe can do. There are times even I felt that an institution we could do more, but my youthful notions was always shut down by hers. It took me awhile to realise that there is clear distinction between throwing half-assed efforts in different directions and having focus on a distinctive area. As an economist-to-be, you always get hammered with the term trade-off but once it is in front of you, you freaked out. In a way, we traded small multitudes of issues with a singular vision and dream. I wish I learned this lesson earlier.

I’ve made a lot of mistakes in ISIS and Dr Mahani was there to correct some of those mistakes. I’m not joking; she even corrected my grammatical errors. She was kind to the new. She took a lot of young researchers in and provides a lot of avenue for us to interact and shaped each other views. She started the tradition of yearly presentations where I bombed in most of my presentations. She took a risk on a newbie like me, without a graduate degree, okay writing skills and shaped me. She opened many doors for me, like when she’s written countless of reference letters for my scholarship applications. I'm in Nottingham now due to the last recommendation letter she wrote. We also undergo some adventures together. I still can’t forget when she fearlessly took me gate-crashing an event that we both don’t RSVP (the trick is to have enough clout and always act like confidence). She also saved my skin when she bailed me out in Bangkok after I got pickpocketed.

I'm gonna missed dropping by to her office around 6pm everyday and talked about small and big things. I'm gonna missed her laugh. Most importantly I'm gonna missed her tone of 'Izzatina' when I ticked her off.

I never get to say my last goodbye, physically. I’m currently all alone, more than 10 thousands kilometres away in Nottingham. This essay is my chance to throw to the universe about my feelings on a friend and a mentor.

Goodbye.

Here’s my favourite picture of us together.

Mahani, I wish you all the best in the afterlife.

Go the Distance

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 11 May 2013 13:39:00 +0000

This is corny to the max. I'm facing examinations so I guess it is fine.

Personal Note: Checklist on How to Read Academic Paper

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 06:29:00 +0000

I made a note on this before but since I'm writing my dissertation now, I'm refining the rules. In short, every paper encountered should be subjected to the following questions:

What question(s) is/are being addressed here?
What method(s) is / are used in addressing the question(s)?
Did the method(s) able to answer the question(s) satisfactorily?
Did any theoretical progress sprout from this publication?
Did did the paper helps my dissertation process:

based on its outcome
based on its methodology used

If I'm writing this paper, will there be any difference in its approach, dataset or methodology used?
List 3 points (sentences) that I can incorporate in my dissertation.

I'm trying my best to find clarity in my input process using this check list. I'm doing this with the hope that well-defined input process and be easily translated into organized and clear output.

Let's hope this check list works out.

Decision Making 101

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 20:14:00 +0000

I've just made my commitment on the dissertation that I'm going to write on. For close to 1 month, I've toyed around on different ideas and methodology to approach them. Then on a Sunday during a trail run, after the 15th km where I swear I saw my mother waiting for me down the road with a glass of lemonade, I made my final decision.

It came to this, I want to write a paper that I know I will be proud off. It must answers a burning question in my head and taught me several new things in the process.

The cumulative distance covered to made me realized that : 171.53 km.

I have several big life decisions to make in the near future. Until then, let's cover more distance.

" But, the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it." Thucdides (as a general sure he can say that!)

Winter Running in Spring

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 20:30:00 +0000

It seemed that winter decided to creep into spring this year. The UK MET department reports that this year could be the coldest March in 50 years. Early this year I made a promise to myself to run outside once a week. Un(fortunately) I got addicted to the outside and now I am doing it 3 times a week.

On Saturday, the snow fell the whole day. Despite that I choose to turn my 'beast mode' on and brace through the wind and snow. I completed 7.7km run. By the time I leave home to start my run on Sunday, the snow stopped falling. I managed to scale 13km on soft powdery snow. There's even a moment where I loose my footing and fell and some snow managed to sneak into my pants.

I cannot say the journeys were smooth. There are periods that I wished I am back in my room sitting on my warm and toasty bed. On several roads' stretch I learned the concept of wind chill. I've stepped into potholes with icy waters and gotten my socks wet. Right now I'm nursing a blister on my left foot as the outcome of running in wet socks.

However the experience thought me something.

I am about to write a dissertation on topic that is out of my comfort zone. For now it will be the hardest thing that I will do mentally. Turns out pushing your body out of its comfort zone can be a useful lesson. I never knew that my body can take wind and snow at the speed of 20km/h and -2 degree Celsius. I returned to my room after each run with a disbelief that 'Wow, I managed to do that'. I guess it will be almost the same situation in my dissertation process. I need to prepare myself in the best possible way and just do it. I know where the finish line will be and I am mustering every ounce of confidence I have to work on it.

It won't be an entirely lonely process. In both runs, I earned more smiles and 'Good Morning' than ever, from runners and non-runners. Heck, I'm pretty sure there's a car driver that smiled at me today. I did not broke any personal best record in both runs, but without a doubt, both runs are among the best runs I've done in my short life.

Note: I won't be alone all the time during my dissertation process, I got this cool chick as my supervisor.

Nonetheless, at the end of both runs I have these pictures to show others.

Review: The Places in Between

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 08:00:00 +0000

In early 2002, Rory Stewart walked from Herat to Kabul and his journey was chronicled in The Places in Between. The book was published in 2004.

This is the second travel writing book I've ever read.

While reading the book, at times I've forgotten that this is not a fiction. The way the book is structure and written takes you to a land faraway, in transition from years of wars. All I can see is a story about man that is walking across Afghanistan and drawing his experience parallel to Babur in 1500s.

The timing of the journey is what made the book stands out. It happened in the early stage of war on terror in Afghanistan. The new Afghanistan government was only in power for 2 weeks at the time Rory Stewart starts his journey.

My favourite part of the book is where the writer commented on policy makers from think tanks, international development agencies and the United Nations swarming Afghanistan and pushing for agendas that involved words like 'democracy', 'human rights', or 'sustainable development'. The commentary of this chapter draw attention to the role of culture and institutions in setting forth development agenda. 10 years after, this issue still remained unresolved despite billions being poured to Afghanistan development.

I always wish to travel across the Silk Road and Afghanistan is part of its Southern Route. Reading this book give me a new set of perspective on how to approach this dream.

Easter Break 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:38:00 +0000

Today is the last day of class before the Easter break starts for 1 month. I have to go through a presentation on Dissertation process this morning. The process can be expressed in the following image:

Thanks to Dr Alejandro Riano.

As for me I just hope I can make full use of this tower of books in that 1 month.

Review: The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 09:45:00 +0000

When I read, I usually alternate between fictions and non-fictions. I bought The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared since it was priced GBP 0.20 on Kindle Store.

The story is about the life of Allan Karlsson (our 100-year-old protagonist) and it starts from the moment he stepped out of the window on his 100th birthday. One-fifth in the book, the story starts having parallel chapters of Allan's live that ultimately leading him to the other side of the window. Through Allan's live we saw how this simple Swedish man get transported all around the world and contributed to the turning points of the 20th century events. In his life high and low points he managed to keep his optimism intact.

Readers of the book will see how Allan aged. At the same time, we can see how his happy-go-lucky personality and simple worldview and naivety allows him to win friendships and enemies. The guy seemed all alone at time but when he managed to find friends it'd do wonders (to him and the world).

The story was written in Swedish and its English translation was made available last July. It was a fun read.

Review: Running the Sahara

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 22:08:00 +0000

Recently I've taken running seriously. For the past 3 years my aim is just to be on the treadmill moving while at the same time had my eyes fixed on whatever TV show playing on the gym flat screens. As an outcome I've prevented any significant weight gain. I came to this country with little money, hence I can't really afford to travel and see other places in UK or Europe. Running outdoor allow me to appreciate the beauty around my locality and I look forward for my next outdoor run, moments after finishing one.

Running the Sahara is an important movie for any runner or for someone who wants to see others achieved amazing things. In late 2006, for 111 days three runners ran across the entire Sahara desert. They started in St. Louis, Senegal and ended the journey in Egypt, by the Red Sea. This is the first time I've found out there's a St. Louis in the African continent.

The cool thing about any documentary is the lack of spoiler. You're just there to understand the message of the documentary. We all know the runners are going to reach their intended destination. The movie is all about the runners' journey across the Sahara desert where they are faced with multiple obstacles, ranging from sand storms to political red-tapes. You can see the physical and mental exhaustion faced by the runners. It amazed me to think that on average these guys completed 2 marathons distance in a day and they consistently repeating it everyday until the end. The movie also takes you to incredible scenes across Sahara while highlighting the water and sanitation problems in the region.

This journey will not be possible without the help of their convoy (that includes a doctor, navigation, cameraman and cook, among others). Of course there are been numerous journeys taken along the way before by traders, accompanied with their camels, but the distance travelled on feet/running that makes the whole endeavour epic. Nevertheless the whole effort to running across the Sahara deserved an applause.

Personally for now on, if I want to travel, I want to make sure that I can run/jog around the place I'm going.

Saturday Review: A Good Day To Die Hard

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 16 Feb 2013 09:48:00 +0000

I like all Die Hard movies. However the latest release is the worst.

The action sequences in the this instalment were so unbelievable and logic-defying. In an instance, Americans were able enter Chernobyl facilities without wearing radioactive-protection suits and made the Russians overdressed for the occasion. The bad guy and his heist is so uninspired and forgettable. 90% of the story took place in Russia and any element of time urgency was eliminated.

In the first 2 movies, John McClane was the guy that saved his wife's life. In the 3rd movie he was working to prevent a bomb from blowing off in New York City. The fourth movie he saved his daughter's life. In the latest movie, John McClane is somehow involves in his son's tasks that involves rescuing a political prisoner. The motive for this movie indirectly made Jack McClane (Bruce Willis's son in the movie) incompetent.

It's also the shortest movie in the series. My friend made a joke that Bruce Willis is getting old so they have to cut the movie running time. Overall, A Good Day to Die Hard made Live Free or Die Hard (Die Hard 4) and its PG-13 rating looks like a masterpiece.

Visual Wednesday: Blue Marble

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 09:29:00 +0000

February.
Courtesy of NASA
http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/

Quantify Sunday: January Movies List

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 20:35:00 +0000

As January also coincide with examinations, I did not get to watch a lot of movies. The movies that I 've managed to watch are:

The Peacemaker (1997) - 41%
Pitch Perfect (2012) - 81%
Cinderella Man (2005) - 80%
Matilda (1996) - 90%
Starship Troopers (1997) -62%
Almost Famous (2000) - 88%
Trading Places (1983) - 89%

Average score for January: 75.9%

Plot Keywords Wordle for this month:

Keyword Density:

relationship (12%)
reference (9%)
female (7%)
new york (7%)
death (5%)

Last year I did not managed to finish the Terry Gilliam catalogue. I've stopped at Tideland (2005). Half-an-hour in, I found it unbearable.

For February and March 2013, I think I'm gonna devote my movie selection on 1980s comedies.

Work Without Hope (1825)

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 22:33:00 +0000

ALL Nature seems at work. Slugs leave their lair -
The bees are stirring-birds are on the wing-
and WINTER, slumbering in the open air,
Wears on his smiling face a dream of Spring!
And I, the while, the sole unbusy thing,
Nor honey make, no pair, nor build, nor sing.

Yet well I ken the banks where amaranths blow,
Have traced the fount whence streams of nectar flow.
Bloom, O ye amaranths! bloom for whom ye may,
For me ye bloom not! Glide, rich streams, away!
With lips unbrighten'd. wreathless brow, I stroll:
And would you learn the spells that drowse my soul?
WORK WITHOUT HOPE draws nectar in a sieve,
and HOPE without an OBJECT cannot live.

--Samuel Taylor Coleridge--

Friday List: 30 Rock Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 07:15:00 +0000

30 Rock ends today. Here is a list of 30 Rock related list I've found interesting:

Funniest 'feminist' scenes (The Guardian)
The 50 Most Important Lessons Learned from 30 Rock (Buzzfeed)
The Ultimate Jenna Maroney Insult Guide (Buzzfeed)
30 Rock: Top 30 Episode (tv.com)
Ten Best 30 Rock Episodes Ever (vulture)
30 Rock's Best Sports Moments: An Incomplete Video History (bigleadsports)
Best Lines (vulture)
10 Best, Most Obscure 30 Rock Characters (vulture)

Ben & Jerry's released 30 Rock Ice Cream Flavor today but I found it a bit too 'healthy' for Liz Lemon. The Liz Lemon Yogurt are made of Lemon Greek Frozen Yogurt with Blueberry Lavender Swirl. The proceed for this purchase will go to a charity cause. The buzzfeed made a suggestion list on 30 Rock-inspired flavored.

Spring Semester 2012-2013

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 15:03:00 +0000

Today is the first day of the Spring Semester. The previous semester has been brutal and after 2 days of rest, I'm back in classes. The School of Economics at the University of Nottingham requires the students to take the almost same modules in the Autumn semester. We are allowed to diversify our modules selection in the Spring Semester.

So for this semester, I will be taking:

Trade Analysis and Policy
Options and Future Markets
Applied Behavioural Economics
Experimental Methods in Economics
Economic Research Methodology

Basically this semester is all about motions. The first two are motions of goods and the next two involved human decision dynamics. This division of economics fields allows me to have 2 alternatives on the area of my dissertation. I still have several weeks to think about my dissertation topic before making the commitment.

If I learn anything from the last semester, I must keep up with weekly lectures and not to wait until exam to revise.

2012 in Retrospective: Run/Jog/Walk

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 09:21:00 +0000

Run/Jog/Walk
I've covered 897.94 km in 2012. On average its 2.45km per day, a very small distance.

If I started my journey in Kuala Lumpur and walk to the north I will reach Ko Samui in Thailand. If I travelled from Nottingham to Inverness, Scotland (the most northern city in Scotland) I will have 193 km left. My goal in 2012 is just to run more that 10 minutes without reaching for the asthma puffer, which I managed to achieve.

My running goals for 2013 are; i) one trail run every week and ii) one 10km competition every quarter.

2012 in Retrospective: Books

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 21:59:00 +0000

Formally I read 21 books in 2012, cover-to-cover. The full link is here.On average I read 22.16 pages per day. Majority of books I've read are published in this decade.

A lot of factors are made into consideration when I choose a book to read. Some purchases are guided by good reviews in The Economist, attractive positioning in the book stores or Amazon.com algorithm. Using bibliographic information on Google books, I believe I can sense the type of books I read the most in 2012. Based on Wordle.net:

It would seemed that I read a lot of book on the general level-type of books. They might be of science, social, technology in nature but there's huge probability that they written for the general public.

I feel like a rock star

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 15:20:00 +0000

I know that picture is reserve for Wednesday but I'm excited that I've managed to prepare more that 100 thousand observation on a spreadsheet.

Now comes the regression and writing part.

Quantify Self: Week 47 (Week 9 of Grad School)

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 20:48:00 +0000

The work is piling up. The 10th week is the most intense week I will have in a very long time. I'm just writing this to quantify things I've done over the past week.

Time spent in class: 9 hours
Time spent on self-study/assignments: 24 hours 47 minutes
Time spent on Macroeconomics: 5 hours 45 minutes
Time spent on Economic Policy Analysis: 5 hours 48 minutes
Time spent on Economic Data Analysis: 13 hours 14 minutes

Total time spent on productive efforts for a graduate degree: 33 hours 47 minutes
Total time spent on productive efforts for healthy body: 5 hours
Total time spent sleeping: 49 hours 48 minutes

Total hours I had in a week: 168 hours

Percentage of time spent on graduate degree: 20.1%
Percentage of time spent in the gym: 3.0%
Percentage of time spent sleeping: 29.6%

Percentage of time that I don't know where it when: 47.3%

Outcome from the week: Every assignment is only halfway done.

On the other hand, I've found this.

Visual Wednesday: Election Day

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 07:00:00 +0000

It's election fever. I'm not able to vote this year. However I got this as consolation prize.

It just for the Police and Crime Commissioner. I hope Commissioner Gordon is listed here, given Gotham is not so far away and Wayne Manor is close by.

Quantify Self: October Movie Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 07:00:00 +0000

The list for October and their corresponding Tomatometer as follows:

Fifth Element (1997) - 73%
Clueless (1995) - 81%
Emma (1996) - 84%
Adventures in Babysitting (1987) - 76%
Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) - 31%
The Shadow (1994) - 34%
Darkman (1990) - 79%
Shaolin Soccer (2001) - 91%
Skyfall (2012) - 94%
From Dusk to Dawn (1996) - 64%
Hocus Pocus (1993) - 30%

Average for October: 66.7%

I watched Fifth Element as a spillover of Looper, Planet Terror and Ocean's Twelve from the month before. I really like Bruce Willis as an actor now.

This month, I've decided to watch movies in pair; i.e. for each weekend I watched movies according to a theme.

The first week its Clueless and Emma. Clueless was inspired by Emma, novel written by Jane Austen. Next its the babysitting twins; Adventures in Babysitting and Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead. In the other week I've decided to watch campy superheroes movies from the early 1990s, The Shadow and Darkman. Honestly after X-Men (2001), the superheroes genre was forever changed. From Dusk to Dawn and Hocus Pocus were selected due to October being the Halloween month.

I think I should get back to my Terry Gilliam work in November. I have another 4 movies to watch and I'm left with 2 months.

Wednesday Visual: Social Media Zombies

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 13:09:00 +0000

This is kind of funny.

Brought to you by Confused.com - You could save on your car insurance at Confused.com

Lazy Wednesday: River Road

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 06:00:00 +0000

Econ Tuesday: Of Immigration and Offshoring

noreply@blogger.com (Nor Izzatina Abdul Aziz) — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 06:00:00 +0000

I'm lucky to be in the University of Nottingham. Every week faculty members from other universities drop by to give a talk or seminar. This week Greg C. Wright dropped by to discuss his work that will be publish in the American Economic Review.

The paper is titled Immigration, Offshoring and American Jobs and it is co-authored with Giovanni Peri and Gianmarco Ottaviano.

Prof Wright explaining his paper

The study looks at three types of workers in relation to the US labor markets. They are i) native-born workers, ii) immigrants workers in the US and iii) offshore workers in US-based affiliates working all around the world. The data for the study is from 2000 to 2007, so the period after the global financial crisis 2008 is not a factor in its findings.

The VOXEU publishes the shorter version of the paper.

The study assumed a lot of assumptions like the labor market in question is fully-employed and immigrants worked in low-skilled sectors. At the same time it only covers one section of the economy which is manufacturing.

Even before the financial crisis, the data from the study shows that the low-skilled and medium-skilled workers are the ones being marginalized by the offshoring process. Indirectly to the low-skilled criteria is the education level. On the plus point, the study found that offshoring pushes the natives (Americans) to perform tasks toward higher cognitive and non-routine content. There by the offshoring process is hard on those with low education and skills but it is helping the high-skilled and educated workforce into better and complex jobs.

Personally, I've learned about the O*NET database on the distribution of tasks in the US labor force. The presentation also make use of the instrumental variables properties in econometrics.My data analysis class just ended before this lecture, where I learned about instrumental variables, and I managed to see how it is being applied in a study.