Topic deconstruction

A number of possible presentation topics were presented.
Now they are deconstructed (my comments and deconstruction in orange)

please, need comments/help would be very much appreciated for this sem's module.

- World history Learning from the past would allow a better future. Should our roots be remembered no matter how savage or uncivilized they were? Humanity's progress, chronicled for our benefit. What drove our forefathers? (very broad. lots of areas to cover)

- politics a dangerous topic indeed. what indicates the grey area between right and wrong? does might make right? Is always the most convincing argument the appropriate presidential candidate?

- money management the figurative "root of all evil", but is it really the cause of evil? I doubt it. What does it take to do one's own checks and balances? Is it better to work yourself to the bone for more money, or to save up and spend less?

- piano playing a beautiful skill to make beautiful music. Sadly as a presentation topic, it might merely be instructional in nature.


- music the universal language, one that transcends cultures. Very broad, and comes in a myriad variety of genre. Will it be a deconstruction of the music industry as a whole? or will the focus be on a particular genre?


- chinese language with china's increasing prominence, how important is it that people learn its language? Should non-chinese people, caucasians included, pick up chinese? "One language to unite them all" or "stay true to your roots" in racially diverse singapore?

- korean dramas analyse: what is the innate attraction of sad stories? Is it a kind of escapism? But if so, an escapism from what? Life is already sad enough as it is. Or perhaps a "im glad this is not happening to me" kind of feeling? What is this strange stranglehold tear jerking dramas have on the asian populace? Is there a logic behind the emotional flood?

- movie reviews how does one try to be as objective as possible in the evaluation of a movie? What is the line between fact and opinion? Is it possible for one to put aside what he "Feels" about a movie and access a movie for what it is? Is it possible for one to like a bad movie, for one to enjoy a movie that he does not like or for one to not enjoy a truly good movie?(I say yes)

- health issues How does one toe the line between living healthily and being obsessed with health? Would taking the time and effort to live healthily result in a better life or would that time and effort be better spent on other more important matters?

- SG culture Singaporeans mostly look down on themselves. Our own "singlish" has been called crude, our mannerisms rude, "kiasu". In a culture whose main unique point is its composition of various cultures, how does one truly pin point a "singaporean" culture? Are locals being too hard on themselves or are people only remembering the few black rude sheep and basing a generalization of singaporean culture on them??

- story writing the finer points of composing literature. From the historical greats to contemporary fan fiction writing. Is the career as writer at all feasible in talent saturated singapore? Is it a language or creativity issue that prevents people from expressing their stories?

- how to plan "fail to plan, plan to fail", planning is no doubt important. What are the pre-requisites and procedures to start a plan. What happens when a plan does not come to fruition?

- "our future lies in our hands" an excellent topic for determinism Vs free will. But if the bible itself advocates God's "Divine plan"for all of us, how much of the future truly lies in our own hands? Are the choices we make really our own choices or have we already made the choice long before thinking about the choice? Is there fate or only what we make? Where does God(who knew us through and through before we were formed in the womb) factor in if only our own hands determine our future? Does shaping our future against the divine plan not go against the will of God?

- "nothing is free" LOVE is free. For if love is not free from conditions, it is not true love. Then again, what is the concept of "free"? Where do hand-outs of kindness or windfalls of luck factor in? is not satisfaction free? Is "free" only a concept that we choose to bind ourselves with, to tie ourselves down?

- "birth and death is part of life" death, is only the beginning. We never truly die. We either live on in eternal life, or in our legacy. What is legacy? Does one have to be a world shaker, an events shaper, a big player that everyone knows of, just to leave a legacy? Whose life is death a part of?

- friends are important"What constitutes a "friend"? What defines a friend? How important is a friend? Would you save your friend or your family member? Can friends instead be burdens? Can friends be merely using you as a means to an end? Excellent topic with room for sociological insight.

- role as a daughter Does sexism among offspring still exist in today's families? Are daughter's and son's roles all that different in a family? Is it a cultural thing, a result of our male favoring chinese heritage? What is the role of a daughter......really.

- "don't take anything for granted"What constitutes "anything"? and what determines "taking for granted"? very vague. Is it a case of "you wont miss it till you lose it?", or perhaps about treasuring each moment of life? In that case, are the terrible moments even worth treasuring at all?

- fighting for what one wants How does one determine what one truly "wants"? Is it an emotional impulse to say "i want this" without proper logical evaluation? Do we truly deserve what we want to have? There is a fine line between tenacity and foolhardy, between "never say die" and delusional. Is a "want" a "need"? Do we need to have "wants"? When does fighting for, lets say, a higher grade become just plain anal complaining?(afterall, a grade is an indication of how much knowledge on has. With only 75% knowledge, does one deserve 100% grade?) Where is the line drawn between fighting for something and accepting the loss of that thing? Sometimes retreat is the better part of valor.

- importance of education Has the true importance of education been warped? What is education? Is it important as it allows us to expand our understanding of the world, grow, improve and advance our knowledge and lives as human beings? Or is it important just because of career opportunities and the piece of paper that lists one's qualifications? Why work to learn? Do we learn to become better people, or do we learn just to ace an exam? Is an exam the "end" and studying merely a "means to that end"?

- gaming more addictive than drugs, what is the draw of gaming? Is it something deeper than just escapism? Does identity construction come into play? When a game becomes serious(played for money, or as a career), is it still a game or a tedium? What different sets of skills does one need to participate in different games? Should one just jump into a new game as a complete newbie or train one's skills before starting a game?

- psychological horror the psychology of horror. Is horror scarier when not seen? What makes people scared? Is it harm or the potential for harm?

- zombies the science behind re-animating corpses.