STUDENT’S GUIDE TO BECOMING RICH
By Chew Yee Kiat
ABOUT 120 NUS students attended an investment talk organized by the NUS Students’ Investment Society last Wednesday. Held at NUS Business School, the students set out to discover a route to financial independence.
Mr He Shuhan, a fellow student and self-made millionaire shared his insights and personal experiences about stock market trading and how he generated SGD$1.7 million from a humble $5,000. Currently he is the CEO of trading firm The Farseers’ Academy.
Titled “Money Choices – Your First Step to Investment and Trading”, Mr He’s talk aimed to equip students with proper knowledge about stock market trading.
“Technical analysis is about forecasting the future trends of prices based on past market data and is the bread and butter of trading,” said Mr He.
Mr He held the attention of the student participants with the topics he covered. The topics include technical analysis, basic psychology of trading and comparisons between different financial products.
“This is a very exciting topic because learning about financial independence is very important for me, especially at a time like this, when I am feeling insecure about my future,” said Mr Aaron Koh, a fourth-year Economics major.
During the talk, Mr He also explained how he made millions from trading futures, which according to him, was the only trading instrument that yields the highest and steadiest returns.
Futures are contracts that allow their owners to either buy or sell a commodity at a certain date in the future, at a market determined prices.
From experience, Mr He derived his own method of technical analysis that allowed him to predict the trend of futures’ prices movements. His method, combined with a good psychology, made him a consistent winner.
At the end of the four-hour talk, Mr He summed up what it takes exactly to become a successful trader: “Trading requires professionalism, and most of all, you need to have determination and the willpower to succeed.”
Laotians Go Green
By Lim Ziwei Paul
A GROWING number of foreign visitors have been taking a toll on the Laotian landscape since the Socialist Republic first opened up to tourism two decades ago. However, 21 undergraduates from the NUS Rotaract Club are set to change that.
The students will be heading for Vang Vien, Laos this December as part of Project “Hak”, an overseas youth expedition project to help villagers be more aware of what is happening to their surroundings.
“Hak” means love in the Laotian language. But it is not just love for the environment that the team wants to show to the Laotians, it is about the importance of education. Team members will help refurbish a school and conduct lessons for the local school children.
Speaking at an inaugural meeting last week, team leader Alice Guo said, “What’s different about our project is sustainability. We are going to teach the villagers how to preserve the environment, instead of just building houses for them.”
At the meeting, team leaders discussed how to expose Laotians to basic environmental concepts, conduct basic English lessons, as well as immersing project members in the Laotian culture.
This first meeting was also an opportunity for members to break the ice and know each other. They built towers out of recycled materials and had an informal question-and-answers session to build rapport.
The undergraduates came from all corners of NUS, bringing with them a range of skills that will be useful for the project. Amongst them were a professional photographer, two first-aiders and numerous social workers.
Team leader Jessica Ker was enthusiastic about the response so far.
“Our progress was slow at first, but it has been picking up lately as the group members each found his or her own niche, greatly aiding the project in different aspects. I’m confident the trip will be a success,” she said.
However, the trip is still some time away and the focus of the meeting was on raising funds and budgeting.
The fundraising program is scheduled to take place for the next two months, with the team planning to work with companies for sponsorship opportunities and fundraising events.
Fundraising team leader Yap Jiehui mapped out various strategies for raising funds and designated responsibilities to each member. Each member was allocated a list of companies to liaise with for sponsorship opportunities, as well as project deadlines.
“It’s taxing but worth it. Everyone is very collaborative and it’s a joy to work with the team,” she said.
Fighting Climate Change in NUS
By Goi Jia Yi Pearlyn
THE 2009 Green Carnival challenges all NUS members to be actively involved in diminishing climate change.
Highlights of the event included exhibitions showcasing a countdown towards “Deadline 2015”. It was a prediction made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that global greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 2015, to prevent drastic climate change.
The message was driven home by provocative displays of earth’s tombstones and recycling bins with faces, meant to jolt people out of their comfort zones and help them realise their importance in determining earth’s fate.
The event was organised by NUS Students’ Union Students Against Violation of the Earth (SAVE) and was held on the 7 and 8 September 2009 at the NUS Central Forum.
On NUS’ involvement in fighting climate change, NUS President Prof Tan Chorh Chuan said that NUS is already stretching itself in order to fulfil its commitment of reducing 23 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
NUS’ energy usage has been increasing considerably in light of research activities, upgrading of existing buildings and construction of new ones.
A simulated set-up of a “Bochup House” also proved popular among students. The set-up included a kitchen and bedroom of a typical Singaporean home where irresponsible consumption of electricity and food were seen.
“Bochup” means indifference, and organisers seek to help correct such attitudes. Hence the set up offered solutions for saving energy and resources and taught ways in which these excesses can be reduced.
“I think the Bochup House really helped me to visualise the loopholes in my house where energy can be better conserved.” said Ng Shuyu, a 3rd year student who visited the event. “I didn’t know that by using my notebook instead of desktop computer, I save 60% more electricity”
NUSSU SAVE was also promoting 6 initiatives which will allow students to play a part in saving the environment. They seek to get more than 5000 “YES” votes for the top 3 initiatives before proposing them to the administration for implementation. The results of the ballot will be published at the end of September.
Goh Hong Yi, Green Carnival’s Project Director said: “The response is good as we have exceeded our targeted number of votes.”
A total of 1500 visitors attended the two-day event.
The opening ceremony was graced by Guest-of-Honour Dr Amy Khor, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water Resources and Mayor of South West District and Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive Officer of the National Environment Agency.
Green Carnival is strongly supported by NUS administration, Students’ Union and governmental bodies such as National Environment Agency (NEA) and South West CDC.
One Night in Vegas on Campus
By Siah Shing Yeen
A NIGHT of flashy costumes and entertaining performances entranced NUS Temasek Hall’s residents at their annual dinner and dance last Saturday, as they crowned the new hall king and queen.
Residents and guests came dressed in their creative best to suit the event’s theme of Viva Las Vegas, which was held at the Kent Ridge Guild House. The appearances of wand-wielding magicians and attractive bunny girls filled the place with a magical touch. The function room was also tastefully decorated to resemble a real casino, adding on to the extravagant atmosphere.
The night started with a welcome speech by hall master Associate Professor Francis Tay. This followed with the opening of the buffet table, where guests helped themselves to a variety of sumptuous food before settling down for the performances ahead. Song performances by the hall’s band and local magician Jason Law keep guests entertained throughout the night.
Anticipation filled the room as hosts called out the winning numbers for the lucky draw – the event’s highlight. The top prize of a Nintendo Wii went to Block A freshman, Sng Qianwen.
Following the lucky draw was a beauty pageant. Eight pageant contestants made their appearances with a catwalk while the crowd cheered them on. They also performed a hip-hop dance item, wowing the crowd with slick dance moves.
The eagerly anticipated Q & A segment of the pageant did not disappoint, showing brains and beauty can co-exist. The best answer of the night undoubtedly went to contestant M3 Kenneth Ang.
When asked what Valentine’s gift he would be, he promptly replied, “An umbrella, so that rain or shine, I can be there for her”, causing much laughter and shouts of approval from the audiences.
The newly crowned royalty eventually went to contestants M1 Lee You Wei and F4 Clara Lu, whose breezy confidence and relaxed dispositions bowled the crowd and judges over. The night finally ended after the new hall king and queen took their final catwalks, after which guests mingled and took pictures with each other.
“It was interesting to see how everyone can be so creative in playing dressed up. I felt like I really was in Vegas!” said Block A freshman Wee Huiyi, who dressed up as a gypsy.
“I came to support M3 Kenneth Ang, but I got to admit that the new hall king outshone the others in terms of confidence. Overall, the contestants did great!” said Year 3 FASS student Clara Chow.
Organising committee chairman Jacob Jonathan was relieved and satisfied with the outcome.
“My committee had a challenging time in organising the event, and we were pleased to hear that the guests enjoyed the night,” he said.
