On the title.

According to general chemistry, a catalyst is a substance in a reaction that lowers the required energy for the reaction to be completed. To put it in an example, supposed that you would need to heat a bunch of uncatalytic reactants to 100 C to ensure that the reaction goes through. By adding a catalyst to the reaction, the required energy will be drastically lowered to, let's say, room temperature, thus allowing the reaction to go through easily. Thus, the "catalyst" pushes the reaction forward, allowing it to go through despite the difficult circumstances (i.e. the high energy requirement). Thus, when someone uses the term catalyst in a societal context, it usually refers to someone who pushes for a change in his community, country and society, a brilliant analogy to the chemical definition.

Meanwhile, the term conundrum has multiple definitions. The first one simple means a riddle. A conundrum is a feisty riddle, usually tricky to answer and in some instances derives its answer from a pun or an unexpected response. According to some quick Googling, examples of conundrums are as follows:

1. What is round, hard, and sticks so far out of a man's pajamas that you can hang a hat on it? His head.
2. What four-letter word ending in K means "intercourse"? "Talk"
3. What is it that a man can do standing up, a women sitting down, and a dog on three legs? Shake hands
4. What is it that a cow has four of and a woman has only two of? Legs

What were you thinking eh? Cheeky sod. Then again, I'm a cheeky sod myself, as most of my friends would know, hence it's quite appropriate. Of course, the other definition of conundrum is the most serious one, pertaining to a serious problem that is extremely bothersome, intricate and difficult to solve. It can be academic, such as the conundrum as to how the Stonehenge or the Easter Island Moai were built; it may also be personally, such as how a smart yet financially compromised student will be able to pursue medicine. I love the word. For starters it sounds so deep. Just say it. Conundrum. But more importantly the dichotomy of the word, its foolhardy first meaning and its deeper serious meaning, strikes me as amazing. The English language does play its tricks doesn't it? (Damn you Shakespeare, knowing history you probably came up with this word, among the many other highfalutin words in our lexicon!)

So you're given my title, Catalytic Conundrums. What does this imply? Hopefully this blog will move my readers in the same way a catalyst moves a reaction. Perhaps not the sort of "mobilize to the streets" kind of move similar to some other blogs I know but perhaps it'll move you emotionally. Hence the second part of the tale, conundrums. I rant on this blog, tell my stories, give my advice, and perhaps opt to send messages to people in the future. They can be happy or sad, whatever happens in my life, or whichever strikes my fancy, after all, life goes up and down all the time, if it didn't, you'd be dead. Either way, they may fall under either (or both) of conundrum's definitions. I hope that in the future, the discussions of this blog may truly be an instigator, or catalyst of critical thought among its readers, and then my friends, I would feel satisfied.

As for the not so average being, I just needed something to fill the gap in my title, but in all honesty, there's no such thing as an average person in anything, is there? :)

And so it begins.....

As of 19:50, on the 17th of January, I've opted to resume a long lost hobby of mine, i.e., writing a blog. It's been years since I wrote a regular blog (around 4 me thinks?) and though I may occasionally update my old blog, it would only be for extreme situations such as lamenting the loss of a dear relative or ranting about the epitome of hell weeks in university. Now, as my academic load gets lighter, and the real problems in life start to get heavier, I felt that it was high time that I proceeded to talk about these things in an outlet that alcohol, marijuana and tobacco fail to help alleviate. Writing. As Lamarckian doctrine states in his use and disuse theory, as a trait is constantly disused it will eventually be lost, and as my writing abilities were quite commendable in high school, I hope not to lose it by the constant mundane writing that college has imbibed in me (curse you science!).

So here's the start of a new beginning. It's quite appropriate I believe, it's more or less the start of a new year, and there are surely many tales to talk about, both new and old, for the next few months and years of my life. It's also near the end of a very crucial chapter of my existence, and once I cross that barrier there shall be even more things to talk about in medical school. It's interesting when you reach turning points in your life, cause it's at these moments when you tend to contemplate and look back on all the things that have gone by. You cry, you laugh, you weep, you cherish, and it's all good. So I hope I can look back on these moments, and hopefully have a smile cross my face at the end of it all. :) In the mean time, my rants, my joys, my tirades, my sentiments and of course, my conundrums, shall be placed here. Please bear with me as I take this journey towards a new beginning in life.

Why arachnoid mater? People who've taken up anatomy should know what it is, and people close in my life should be able to draw the connection. :)