Aaron's Adventures: 2010 at a glance!

2010

2010 has been a lot more than what I've wished for. Did a lot of new things, went to 5 different countries (all during term time) and reaped the rewards of my efforts!

For me... 2010 has been...

A YEAR OF CLOSER TIES

I stayed in a flat with 3 flatmates! Tired of travelling to school, and too used to Boarding, we opted to stay together in a flat in Clementi. This has been one heck of an awesome experience... and the memories we shared in this tiny space has been truly unforgettable!

Thanks to Brenda, Yangxuan and Darren for making this experience what it was!

In January, I celebrated my birthday at the flat as well, with a semi-surprise 18th Birthday party.

2010 was also...

A YEAR OF TRAVELLING (ON A SHOESTRING)

Yup. I travelled to 2 continents this year. Thanks to an enormous subsidy from the school and MOE, I spent less than a $1000 travelling to Japan, China and London!

In February, I travelled to Osaka, Japan, for the International Water Forum organized by Ritsumeikan Moriyama High School. I presented two projects - one on Frogs, and another on Pollution in Waterways. Homestayed at a Japanese home (super kawaii) and well, made so many new friends!

Yay for being on the trip with Darren, Lianhan and Mr. Soh!

In July, I went on a 10-day Cultural Immersion trip to Beijing, China, organized by Beijing No. 4 High School. Got to visit virtually every single major tourist attraction in Beijing - Tiananmen, Great Wall, Temple of Heaven etc. Had a homestay experience, and did very Chinese-y things, and again, made new friends! Doesn't help to have Cedric and Viona, who make for excellent buddies on a trip.

In late-July, I was successfully selected to represent Singapore at the London International Youth Science Forum, under the MOE Overseas Student Attachment Programme. Imagine, 14 full days, ALL EXPENSES PAID! It was another great voyage... my first steps on European soil, and being one of eight projects selected for oral presentation to an entire audience. The best part was meeting people from ALL AROUND THE WORLD. I got to know Chua Lynn much better, and made new buddies - Yu Jun, Chai Hao, Pei Ling, Meng Ying, Shi Yang & ZongMin. I love this bunch!

In November, Darren organized a trip to Phi Phi Islands, in Phuket. Part of a Graduation trip, we all enjoyed relaxing by the beach, snorkelling in the world-renowned Phi Phi Islands, lazing on Maya Beach, and did well... Islandy activities.

In November again (with 8 hours of rest after touching down from Phuket), I visited Jakarta. Nothing beats having locals show you around... and staying in the middle of the CBD! We went to Bandung to shop at factory outlets, stay near the top of a mountain, and well, did more shopping. Indonesia couldn't have been better =) Great thanks to Intan & Family!

Beautiful eh? Another graduation trip!

2010 was also...

A YEAR OF HARD WORK AND ACHIEVEMENTS

This year marked an incredible array of achievements... and I'm incredibly blessed and lucky that all my efforts paid off!

My Advanced Research Project, "Effects of Microclimatic Variations and Habitat Disturbance on Frog Communities in Singapore" garnered awards at the Republic Polytechnic Science Congress (Best Poster), Singapore Science and Engineering Fair (Merit), Shell-Singapore Youth Science Festival (Best Oral Presentation and Bronze). Presented the project in Japan and in London. Couldn't have done it without Intan and Joseph - I loved working on this project so much, because the company was awesome!

My Independent Research Project on Investigating Pollutants in Waterways was a finalist at the Singapore Science and Engineering Fair, and was presented in Japan.

As Geography majors... we embarked on the Singapore Land Authority Spatial Challenge 2010 from April to July, part of our Year 6 GIS Module. Against all odds and using skills acquired outside the module, we managed to DESIGN + OPTIMIZE Bicycle Networks in the City and Heartlands of Singapore. In a nation-wide competition, we emerged 1st Runner Up + $2500! The going got very tough halfway as we were very last-minute, but we managed to pull through, after using some bossing power!

One of the five maps we made!

At Speech Day 2010, Gamelan won the CCA Achievement Award (Team), and I received the Book Prize for Geography.

At Convocation 2010, I graduated with the NUS High School Diploma (Distinction). To my surprise, I won three awards along with it: the NUS High School Outstanding Student (Achievement, Leadership and Service), the NUS High School Outstanding Student (Geography), and the *gasp* A*STAR Young Researcher Award. It was an amazing feeling to have graduated after six long years in NUS High School!

Post-Graduation, I got the results for the NUS Module I took in Semester 2. Reading GE1101E Place, Environment and Society - I scored a freaking A+! The feeling of being able to score an A+ even at a University level was truly beyond me... I learnt so much from the module, and am thoroughly intrigued by the concepts of 'Sense of Place' and 'Place Identities'.

In late November, I received not one, but TWO offer letters - Unconditional from Durham University and University of Nottingham!

2010 was also...

A YEAR OF SERVICE

In June, I served as a Student Liaison Officer for the Singapore International Mathematics Challenge. Together with Elaine, we mapped out a cultural tour route through Chinatown and Little India. It was awesome to work with someone as efficient as Elaine!

As an SLO, I worked together with Hafizah and Jessica, bringing students from Patumwan Demonstration School around Singapore!

In July, together with a team of students in the Gamelan Ensemble, we had successfully executed our first Service Learning Project with Singapore Children's Society (Henderson). It was fun going down with Wai Leng, and a good learning experience looking out for the needs of the children.

And of course...the 8-month journey leading up to the Sustainable Development Youth Convention 2010! Being part of the Exco of NUS High's 1st student-run Convention was an exhilarating ride. I got a chance to work with incredibly experienced and talented individuals - Steph, Zhexu, Royston, Nicyeo, Andy, JunYi, and of course, my fellow Comm-Head Dorothy! Leading a team of Year 4 to Year 6s through the PR work of an event was very fulfilling.