One of R. L. Stein’s books I read when in Primary Five detailed a twelve year old boy who turned sixteen overnight and was horrified that his textbook was on “Advanced Math: Calculus”. That got me thinking about what was so scary about Math. I went home and opened my sister’s (then Secondary One) textbook and looked at it. Somehow I was drawn to the problems there, and soon finished the textbook. I began to apply algebra to math problems, which was more efficient than the tedious trial and error tactics taught in school.
That was when I realized I liked Mathematics. It didn’t hurt that I just have this innate talent for it either. In my last year of high school I accelerated a compulsory module, Complex Numbers. What I love most about Math is the delight upon successfully solving a tough problem, and learning about elegant proofs. Recently, I co-authored an essay on “Hunting for proofs from THE BOOK – two millennia before Erdös” with a classmate, which won the top prize in the Singapore Mathematical Society Essay Writing Competition 2009.
Physics is another great love of mine, but my first experiences with it were saddled with difficulties. NUS High School taught us Physics concepts at A Level standard when we were only in Secondary Three, which went totally over my head. The only thing that kept me going was a casual comment by my uncle. He said he expected me to be good at Physics because I was good at Math and the two subjects coexisted with one another. Somehow his words resonated in my head whenever I wanted to give up and placed an invisible pressure on me. It wasn’t until Junior College 1 that I became interested in Physics for the beauty of it. I had been selected for Physics Olympiad Training in school, but initially I didn’t have the confidence to go for it. Finally, one teacher said “Make your decision, and stick with it”, and I decided to throw caution to the winds and sign up. Luckily, the trainer was an exceptional teacher. His enthusiasm for the subject was infectious. He was so knowledgeable he never needed any lecture notes at all, only a whiteboard and marker for his performances. Inspired, I worked harder than ever, scoring one of only eight gold medals given out in the 2008 Singapore Physics Olympiad.
Research is my main interest. I took on a research project on organic chemistry under the Science Mentorship programme, where I synthesized a novel compound with two photon properties. I also worked on a project on microfluidic devices under the Science Research Programme. This project was graded Excellent for my Advanced Research Project. Recently, I took up an attachment at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology where I worked on tissue scaffolding. It was my first time working at a professional research institute and I really enjoyed myself as I had camaraderie with the researchers. But I realized what I really wanted was to do research in the mathematical sciences, so I transferred to the Defence Science Organization to work on Electromagnetic Compatibility and Interference.
Another outstanding teacher I have had was my erhu (Chinese violin) trainer in Nanyang Girls’ High School. A veteran in his craft, everyone who passed under his watchful eyes achieved quantum leaps in standard as he was extremely strict about practice. He lectured us on practicing to the point where we felt guilty if we did not practice for a day. Long after I left his tutorship, I still carry that expectation of myself, though I’ve come to realize that usually it’s not how long you spend working on something that matters, but how much effort you put in while working, an attitude which has served me well in both in and out of school.
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