Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) - Part 1: Introduction

Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) - Part 1: Introduction

CARDIO-PULMONARY RESUSCITATION (CPR)

Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is a lifesaving technique useful in many emergencies, including a heart attack or near drowning, in which someone's breathing or heartbeat has stopped.

WHY SHOULD EVERYONE LEARN CPR?

Acute heart disease causing unexpected heart arrest is the most frequent single killer in our society. In addition, breathing and heart arrest are the immediate causes of dearth in a large number of accidents.

Substantial proportion of these deaths could be prevented if:

• Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is started immediately by a trained bystander in order to preserve vital functions
• Emergency medical treatment becomes quickly available in order to restore spontaneous heartbeat and breathing

Although qualified medical personnel may be on the spot relatively early, their efforts are too often in vain as nobody has been providing basic life support during the very first and most crucial minutes.

So that a trained bystander is available to perform CPR when arrest occurs, as many as possible of the teachable population should be motivated and trained to perform the relatively simple techniques of CPR.

WHY SHOULD YOU LEARN CPR?

Perhaps some one you love is suffering from heart disease. Maybe the nature of your job requires that you prepared to handle medical emergencies. Or you may believe, as many people do, that knowing the skills of CPR simply makes you a more useful member of  your community.

Whatever your reasons, it is important to remember that CPR can help to save lives. Your hard work and study can make a difference.

LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS IN USA

Recognition is given for successful completion of a CPR course, which includes passing written and performance examinations based on criteria established by the the American Heart Association. It does not imply licensure or warrant future performance.

There was no instance known which a layperson that has performed CPR has been sued successfully. There are 'Good Samaritan' Laws in many states that specifically protect professionals and laypersons performing CPR 'in good faith'. Under most Good Samaritan Laws, laypersons are protected if they performed CPR even if there have no formal training.

All the citizens who are able to learn and perform CPR, if such performance would not pose a medical or psycho-emotional danger to themselves, should learn to perform CPR well enough to sustain the life of the victim until professional emergency medical treatment becomes available.

As a rescuer acting a good faith, you should remember that one CPR is begun, you may stop only when:

• The victim recovers (regains breathing or movement)
• Another trained individual takes over
• You are too exhausted to continue

COMMON CAUSES OF SUDDEN DEATH

• Cardiac Arrest
• Electric Shock
• Drowning
• Drug Overdose / Drug Abuse
• Suffocation
• Severe Allergic Reaction
• Trauma
• Stroke

Unique Therapies in Traditional Chinese Medicine

Unique Therapies in Traditional Chinese Medicine

ACUPUNCTURE AND MOXIBUSTION THERAPY

• Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy has a history of thousands of years. The acupuncture and moxibustion therapy involves the use of jabbing with needles and the placement of burning crushed dry moxa. In acupuncture therapy, specially made needles are used to jab into certain acupuncture points of the body of a patient, curing diseases by twirling or lifting the needles.
• As for moxibustion, dry moxa is crushed and then lit up to fume and scorch certain acupuncture points on the skin, curing diseases by the stimulation of heat.
• The acupuncture and moxibustion originated sometime around the New Stone Age and began to be widely used during the Spring and Autumn Period
• The rationale for acupuncture and moxibustion therapy is: Main and collateral channels as a network of passages for the circulation of energy and blood are all over the human body and its function are to connect the external and internal, the upper and lower part of human body. 
• To jab or scorch certain acupuncture points on the surface of the human body can stimulate the human body through the meridians, then adjust the internal function inside the human body, improve its ability to prevent diseases or cure diseases
• The acupuncture and moxibustion therapy spread to Japan and Korea as early as in the Han and Tang Dynasties and to Arabia and Europe in sequence in the Song and Yuan Dynasties and is still thought of highly up to now

A bronze human with marked acupuncture points

Acupuncture and moxibustion

MASSAGE

• In massage therapy, an aspects of traditional Chinese medicine, a massager uses his hands and other limb parts to push, press, nip and knead the acupuncture points or the surface of the human body for the purpose of disease prevention, healing, health improvement and cosmetology. It belongs to the external therapy of traditional Chinese medicine.
• Chinese medical massage has a long history. It reached its climax and was spread to Korea, Japan and India during the Sui and Tang Dynasties. 
• As a kind of natural therapy, Chinese medical massage has the strong points of less trauma and fewer side effects. As people are attaching much importance to natural therapy with no medicine, trauma or side effects, the Chinese massage therapy techniques are recognized and accepted in more and more countries.

SCRAPING TREATMENT

• Scraping treatment was long popular among people in ancient China. People used copper coins and twine dipped in water or sesame oil to scrape the chest or backs of a patient, alleviating internal inflammation by making local hyperemia on the skin.
• Today, scraping treatment has developed from the previous superficial, simple empirical treatment into one of natural therapies guided by a systematic Chinese medical theory. The tools used in scraping treatment are usually special plates made of buffalo horns or jade and the therapy is applicable to eliminating fatigue, losing weight, cosmetology and keeping fit.

CUPPING THERAPY

• In cupping therapy, cups made of bamboo, pottery or glass are heated and attached to the skin by means of a heat vacuum, causing hyperemia and thus cure the diseases.
• In ancient times, cupping therapy was used for the surgical treatment of inflammation with pyogenesis and was later extended to tuberculosis, rheumatism, rheum, insomnia and others.
• This therapy is simple and effective, hence being passed down from generation to generation, and is still popular today, even rousing interest among some foreigners

Four Great Inventions

Four Great Inventions

Ancient China was a country of inventions and discoveries. Among its abundant brilliant scientific and technological achievements, the 'Four Great Inventions' had made enormous contributions to the development of civilizations of the whole

1. PAPER MAKING 

• Before paper making technology was invented, people carved or wrote Chinese characters on tortoise shells, animals bones, bamboo slices, wooden plates and silk
• Tortoise shells, animals bones and wooden plates are too heavy to use while silk fabrics are too expensive, so none was very practical.
• Around the early period of the Western Han Dynasty (260 BC - 25 AD), people made paper from hemp and ramie, which was rough and not suitable for writing.
• During Eastern Han Dynasty (25 - 220 AD), Cai Lun improved the technique after years of experimentation. 
• He used various plant fibers such as bark, hemp, rags and torn fishing nets as raw materials to produce high quality paper. 
• People call the paper that he invented as Cai Hou's paper because Cai Lun was bestowed the tittle of Longting Hou (Longting Marquis)
• Cai Hou's paper was cheap, easily available and suitable for writing on.
• Its emergence marked the beginning of paper replacing jian and bo ( one type of writing instrument before the invention of Cai Hou's paper). 
• Jian is bamboo slices used to write on and bo is a general term of silk products.
• China's paper making technology spread to the Korean Peninsula, Vietnam and Japan in the late Sui (581 - 618 AD) and early Tang (618 - 907 AD) Dynasties, later to the Arabian area in the 8th century, and to Europe through the Arabians.
• The invention of paper greatly facilitated information and storage and cultural spread and exchanges, and thus had an epochal significance in promoting the development of human civilizations

2. GUN POWDER

• The formula of gun powder was first discovered by Taoist alchemists of ancient China while trying to make pills to achieve immortality.
• Later, people made black gun powder with niter, sulfur and charcoal of certain proportions on the basis of the formula.
• Books of the middle Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD) recorded the method of producing this kind of gun powder. 
• It was first used to make firecrackers and fireworks and then in military affairs in the late Tang Dynasty.
• In the Northern Song Dynasty (960 - 1127 AD), gun powder based weapons such as rockets and cannons were widely used.

3. COMPASS

• As early as in the Warring States Period (475 - 221 BC), Chinese discovered that a magnet could indicate south and north, and on the basis of this feature, made a southward-pointing instrument that was the prototype of the compass. 
• The instrument comprised a smooth magnetic spoon and a copper plate carved with directions; the handle of the spoon points south.  I
• n the Song Dynasty, such prototype evolved into a southward-pointing fish and a southward-pointing needle. 
• A southward-point fish was a magnetized fish-shaped thin icon slice, whose head would point southward when it floated on the surface of water.
• A southward-pointing needle was a magnetized steel needle, which was able to indicate directions when it was placed on such smooth surfaces as water, nails or a bowl or hung in the windless air.
• In the Song Dynasty, the compass was spread to Arabia and was affectionately called 'the Eye of Sailors'.
• Around 1180, the compass was introduced into Europe via Arabia. The invention of the compass pushed forward the rapid development of navigation, making it possible for Zheng He to make his seven voyages across seas to Southeast Asia and around the Indian Ocean in the early Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644 AD), Christopher Columbus to discover the New World, and Ferdinand Magellan to sail around the world and facilitated the startup of European colonies and the establishment of world markets.

4. MOVABLE-TYPE PRINTING

• Before printing techniques was introduced, a scholar had to copy characters one by one if he wanted get a new book. 
• In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, block technology was invented which improved the speed of printing.
• In block technology, Chinese characters were engraved on a wooden plate and coated with Chinese ink and the covered with paper to print.
• Block technology sped up the printing of books, but was still impractical because engraving blocks was time-consuming, such blocks could not be easily preserved and misplaced would not be easily corrected.
• During the Northern Song Dynasty, Bi Sheng finally invented movable-type printing.
• He engraved the characters could be repeatedly used for the type setting and printing of different printed sheets.
• This method was both economical and time saving, ushering in a new age of printing. 
• In the development afterwards, clay used to make movable types were replaced with tin, wood, copper, lead and so on.
• Mankind had been using Bi Sheng's movable-type print until the emergence of the electronic typeset system in the 20th century
• China's movable-type printing first spread eastward into Korean and Japan and then westward into Persia and Egypt and at last across the world.
• The invention of printing greatly sped up the development of exchanges between cultures of all the countries throughout the world.

Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) - Part 2: CPR for an adult

Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) - Part 2: CPR for an adult

It's far better to do something than to do nothing at all if you are fearful that your knowledge or abilities are not sufficient enough. Remember, the difference between your doing something and doing nothing could be someone's life.

Here is advice from the American Heart Association:

• Untrained. If you are not trained in CPR, then provided hands-only CPR. That means uninterrupted chest compression of 100 to 120 a minute until the paramedics arrive. You don't need to try rescue breathing.
• Trained and ready to do so. If you're well-trained and confident in your ability, check to see if there is a pulse and breathing. If there is a pulse and breathing. If there is no breathing or pulse within 10 seconds, begin chest compression. Start CPR with 30 chest compression before giving two rescue breaths.
• Trained but rusty. If you have previously received CPR training but you are not confident in your abilities, then just do chest compression at a rate of 100 to 120 a minute.

The above advice applies to adults, children and infants needing CPR, but not newborns (infants up to 4 weeks old).

CPR can keep oxygenated blood flowing to the brain and other vital organs until more definitive medical treatment can restore a normal heart rhythm.

When the heart stops, the lack of oxygenated blood can cause brain damage in only a few minutes. A person may die within 8 to 10 minutes.

To learn CPR properly, take an accredited first-aid training course, including CPR and how to use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED). If you are untrained and have immediate access to a phone, call 911 or your local emergency number before beginning CPR. The dispatcher can instruct you in the proper procedures until help arrives.

CPR GUARD LINE 2010

• A compression rate of at least 100 per min
• At least 5 cm (2.5 inch) for chest compression depth
• Push hard and fast
• Chest must fully recoil before next compression
• One complete cycle: 30 chest compression to 2 rescue breath
• Each ventilation must over 1 second, just enough to see chest rise
• Call for help

STEPS TO DO CPR 

1. Danger
2. Response
3. Compression / Circulation
4. Airway
5. Breathing

1. DANGER

• Before doing CPR, we must make sure that surrounding are safe and no danger will harm the casualty.
• Ask for help (Call 990 for the ambulance)

2. RESPONSE

• Check for the casualty's response to command, touch and pain
• Casualty may response by eye movement, movement or show verbal response
• The level of responsiveness (Conscious to Unconscious):-
• Alert
• Voice 
• Pain
• Unconscious
• If the casualty is unconscious, start the chest compression.

3. COMPRESSION

• Put the person on his or her back on a firm surface.
• Kneel next to the person's neck and shoulders.
• Place the heel of one hand over the center of the person's chest, between the nipples. Place your other hand on top of the first hand. Keep your elbows straight and position your shoulders directly above your hands.
• Use your upper body weight (not just your arms) as you push straight down on (compress) the chest at least 2.5 inches (approximately 5 centimeters). Push hard at a rate of 100 to 120 compression a minute.
• If you haven't been trained in CPR, continue chest compression until there are signs of movement or until emergency medical personnel take over. If you have been trained in CPR, go on to opening the airway and rescue breathing.

4. AIRWAY

• If you're trained in CPR and you've performed 30 chest compression, open the person's airway using the head-tilt, chin-lift maneuver. 
• Put your palm on the person's forehead and gently tilt the head back. Then with the other hand, gently lift the chin forward to open the airway.

5. BREATHING

• Rescue breathing can be mouth-to-mouth breathing or mouth-to-nose breathing if the mouth is seriously injured or can't be opened.
• With the airway open (using the head-tilt, chin-lift maneuver), pinch the nostrils shut for mouth-to-mouth breathing and cover the person's mouth with yours, making a seal.
• Prepare to give two rescue breaths. Give the first rescue breath — lasting one second — and watch to see if the chest rises. If it does rise, give the second breath. If the chest doesn't rise, repeat the head-tilt, chin-lift maneuver and then give the second breath. Thirty chest compressions followed by two rescue breaths is considered one cycle. Be careful not to provide too many breaths or to breathe with too much force.
• Resume chest compressions to restore circulation.
• As soon as an automated external defibrillator (AED) is available, apply it and follow the prompts. Administer one shock, then resume CPR — starting with chest compressions — for two more minutes before administering a second shock. If you're not trained to use an AED, a 911 or other emergency medical operator may be able to guide you in its use. If an AED isn't available, go to step 5 below.
• Continue CPR until there are signs of movement or emergency medical personnel take over.

NOTE

• If there is sign of life (Eg: coughing), please check breathing and place the casualty into recovery position. 
• Check vital signs (pulse and breathing) every 3 to 5 minutes.

First Aid Kit (Part 1)

First Aid Kit (Part 1)

FIRST AID KIT

• All workplaces, leisure centers, cars and homes should have first aid kits.
• First aid kits for workplaces or public places must conform to legal requirements and be clearly marked in a white box with a green cross or a red box with a white cross and easily accessible.
• Home is the place that we often spend our time other than our workplaces, officers and other venues.
• Many unwanted accidents happened in our home due to our carelessness. For example, we accidentally cut our fingers when preparing meal in kitchen.
• So, there is a must for us to prepare a first aid kit in home for our own safety. If any accidents happened, we can use the content in first aid kit to treat our wound to prevent the situation from deteriorating.
• We can actually buy a kit or put together first aid items by ourselves and keep those first aid items in a clean, waterproof container.
• Any first aid kit must be kept in a dry place, and checked and replenished regularly.
• We can also add pain-relief tablets such as paracetamol in first aid kit

CONTENT OF FIRST AID KIT

1. Yellow solution
2. Savlon
3. Adhesive dressings / plasters
4. Triangular bandage
5. Crepe bandage
6. Roller bandage
7. Cotton Ball
8. Gauze pad
9. Disposable gloves
10. Forceps
11. Scissors

Chinese Knotting

Chinese Knotting

At the beginning, the practice of tying knots proceeded from production and daily life needs. The typing of knots was a laboring skill, such as in tying objects and weaving fishing nets; meanwhile, it was a method for assisting memory. Before the invention of characters or letters, people represent different things using knots of varying sizes and shapes.

The well-developed knotting skills of ancient China were directly related to the extensive use of knots in people's daily life. Traditional Chinese costumes are mainly tied with belts and the wearing of jade ornaments has been popular in the Chinese society; these two have also help to improve the development of knotting skills. In addition, many articles of everyday use, such as window curtains, bed curtains, flutes, sachets, tobacco bags and fans, have to be fixed or decorated with knots, or kept contained with knots. Therefore, Chinese knotting was an important skill that Chinese women required to grasp in ancient times, and some related customs were even formed. For example, before Duanwu Festival, women knitted many 'longevity plaits' with five-coloured threads and presented them to relatives and friends on the Festival. It is said that such plaits tied to one's wrists could prevent wicked things and diseases.

Chinese knotting is different from the knotting methods of other ethnic groups mainly in the following aspects:-

• Chinese knots are woven with one single strand
• Tight and complicated in structure
• Do not become loose easily
• Very practical in use
• Symmetrical with both left and right sides and front and 
• Symmetrical with both front and reverse sides
• Confirming to the traditional Chinese habit and aesthetic view of decoration
• Weaving methods of many basic knots can be combined together to indicate strong changeability and decorative

Chinese knots have a wide range of patterns, including true love knots, panchang knots, wanzi knots and wintersweet knots. These patterns are not only exquisite and beautiful, but also carry auspicious and celebrative meanings. One example is true love knots which use two coloured strands tangled together. In the weedings of ancient times, true love knots were used in many ceremonies between bride and bridegroom. True love knots are often used to express love. It said that Su Xiaoxiao, a beauty of the Qi Dynasty (479-502 AD), once came across a man and fell in love with him while taking a ride outdoors. She wrote a poem to express her eelings, writing "Where to make our truelove knots? "

In the 1980s and 1990s, Chinese knots were in vogue both in China and among overseas Chinese, thus becoming craft works full of the characteristics of Chinese culture.

First Aid Kit (Part 2) - Function of First Aid Materials

First Aid Kit (Part 2) - Function of First Aid Materials

FUNCTION OF FIRST AID MATERIALS

1. Yellow Lotion / Iodine Lotion

• Protect wounds from inflection and promote recovery 
• Apply after Salvon 

2. Salvon

• Kill the germs and bacteria on the wounds / injured parts
• Wounds / injure parts must be cleaned first before applying Salvo

3. Adhesive dressings / plasters

• Made up of fabric or waterproof plastic
• Are applied to small cuts and grazes
• REMINDER: Use hypoallergenic plasters for anyone who is allergic to the regular adhesive plasters
• People who work with food are required to use blue plasters
• Special gel plasters can protect blisters

Clear Plasters

Blue Catering Plasters

Gel Blister Plaster

4. Triangular bandage

• Made of cloth or fabric
• Standard measurement: 90 cm X 90 cm X 130 cm
• Can be used folded as bandages or slings

5. Roller bandages

• Used to give support to injured joints / parts
• Absorb fluid from injured parts (bleeding wound)

6. Crepe bandages

• Used to give support to injured joints, secure dressings in place, maintain pressure on wounds and limit swelling
• Mainly used to immobilize injured joints / parts (non-bleeding wound)

7. Cotton balls / Gauze pads

• Used as dressings or as swabs to clean around wounds
• ONLY can be used once

Cotton balls

Gauze pads

8. Disposable gloves

• Wear gloves, if available, whenever you dress wounds or when you handle body fluids or waste materials
• Purpose: to prevent inflection
• REMINDER: Use latex-free gloves because some people are allergic to latex
• ONLY can be used once

Are you guilty being judgmental ?

Are you guilty being judgmental ?

No one in this world is perfect. WE ARE HUMAN!!! Surely, we will always make mistakes. To my view, I partially agree that we feel guilty of judging others. Being judgmental has pros and cons simultaneously.  A positive judgment can be done without any sense of prejudice. The motive of positive judgement is giving advice and correcting our mistakes. But, people nowadays like to judge things emotionally without thinking about the consequences rationally. So, I want to share some tips to promote positive judgement.

1. Changing your view to others

·       Oftentimes, people who judge others have strict standards for their own conduct. If you judge someone harshly in a situation, you may have judged yourself as harshly in the same scenario. Bear in mind that other people just like you often make the same error.

2. Expanding your worldwide and knowledge

·       Get involved in activities that can open up your mind. A matured, rational and critical thinking can ensure people that will analyse, interpret and synthesize the suitable judgement with their general knowledge and sense of humanity.

3. Getting rid of your prejudice

·       We should try to figure out the root of their prejudice. If we can figure out the roots of prejudiced thoughts, this can help us to see how they are irrational. When we have deep-seated beliefs about something, we see those prejudiced beliefs actually reflected in innocent actions. In fact, we are projecting our own prejudice.

4. Considering other person’s perspective before judging

·       Everyone has a unique history and personality that affects their behaviors. Before leaping to judge a person’s missteps, we should consider about his / her background and other related aspects.

Don’t judge a book by its cover. Try to be responsible for your judgement. Don’t let your judgement hurt someone who is innocent. Words hurt someone deeply than a knife.

Thank You.

Ancient Chinese Calendar and 24 Seasonal Division Points

Ancient Chinese Calendar and 24 Seasonal Division Points

ANCIENT CHINESE CALENDAR

'Calendar' was the core of ancient astronomy of China and the rudiments of the Chinese calendar was in the Xia Dynasty. The establishment of 'Taichu Calendar' during the reign of Emperor Wudi of Han marked the emergence of the first complete calendar of China. In 1280, the 'Shoushi Calendar' which was made by Guo Shoujing of Yuan Dynasty showcased the summit of the development of the traditional Chinese calendar and was spread and used for more than 360 years. In the 'Shoushi Calendar', a tropical year is 365.2425 days long, which is same as the Gregorian Calendar commonly used in today's world, with only a 26 second error compared with the real time the earth takes to revolve around the sun.

Traditional Chinese calendar is directly related to agricultural production, hence is also known as 'Nong Li'. 'Nong Li' is a literally agricultural calendar which is commonly known as a lunar calendar. It is regulated that a non-leap year contains 12 months with a larger month consisting of 30 days and a smaller one of 29 day. The whole year has 364 or 365 days (the order of the larger and smaller months changes each year). Because each year is about 11 days shorter than a tropical year, 7 leap months are established every 19 years. The added months are called a 'leap month' and the year which contains a leap month is known as a 'leap year'. A leap year has 13 months, totaling 383 or 384 days. This traditional calendar of China is still in use today. Some traditional festivals including the Spring Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and the Mid-autumn Festival are calculated and determined by the traditional Chinese Lunar Calendar.

24 SEASONAL DIVISION POINTS

For the convenient arrangement of agricultural production, ancient Chinese had also created 24 seasonal division points. The 24 seasonal division points indicate 24 different positions of the earth as it revolves around the sun in its annual motion, and is able to satisfactorily indicate the change of seasons and climate. So, the 24 seasonal division points have not only an astronomic significance but play an important role in guiding agricultural production as well.

As early as in the Warring States period, a complete system of 24 seasonal division points had been formed. Starting with Winter Solstice, one seasonal division divisional point will lasts for about 15 days.

24 seasonal division points are listed as below:-

1. Beginning of Spring
2. Rain Water
3. Waking of Insects
4. Vernal Equinox
5. Pure Brightness
6. Grain Rain
7. Beginning of Summer
8. Grain Budding
9. Grain in Ear
10. Summer Solstice
11. Sight Heat
12. Great Heat
13. Beginning of Autumn
14. Limit of Heat
15. White Dew
16. Autumnal Equinox
17. Cold Dew
18. Frost's Descent
19. Beginning of Winter
20. Slight Snow
21. Great Snow
22. Winter Solstice
23. Slight Cold 
24. Great Cold 

24 seasonal division indicate the changes of climate, agricultural activities and natural phenomena in the drainage of the Yellow River throughout the year.

For instance, the Waking of Insects indicates that the snakes and insects have awakened from their dormancy while Grain in Ear indicates that seeds are germinating. 

Besides, different seasonal division points are observed by different customs in China. For example, Chinese will celebrate Qing Ming Festival on the day of Pure Brightness.

Great Contributions to Mathematics

Great Contributions to Mathematics

The Mathematics of ancient China was famous for the accuracy of its calculations. In China, the rudiments of arithmetic can been seen in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. during the Spring and Autumn Period and the the Waring States Period, the arithmetic of integers and fractions (with addition, subtraction, multiplication and division appearing in the same equation) had been fairly developed. The Mathematics of ancient China used chips as its computing device, employing a decimal numeration system to calculate. The development of this system has made a special contribution to the development of human civilizations.

Chips that were used as counting tool in ancient China Mathematics

DECIMAL SYSTEM

The Chinese invented a 'decimal' numeration system in the Shang Dynasty at the latest. Among the characters on pottery, tortoise shells and animal bones of the Shang Dynasty, we can find that people at that time had already used 13 numbers, namely one, two, three, four. five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, hundred, thousand and teh=n thousand to numerate any natural number. This was the most advanced and the most reasonable numeration system in the ancient times and had play an immeasurable role to the development of world science and culture.

CHINESE MULTIPLICATION TABLE

The Chinese multiplication table emerging in the Spring and Autumn Period is a perfect combination of the advanced decimal numeration system and Chinese language. As an important method for the popularization and development of Mathematics, it is still in use today. The difference between today's Chinese multiplication table and that of ancient times is that the table of old times started with '9 X 9 = 81' and ended at ' 2 X 2 = 4' while today's table from ' 1 X 1 = 1' to '9 X 9 = 81'.

CIRCUMFERENCE AND DIAMETER OF A CIRCLE

In 263 AD, Liu Hui, a Mathematician invented the division of a circle. He was the first to apply the thought of limits into Mathematical problems and worked out the approximate value of pi as 3.1416. Based Liu Hui's calculation, Zu Chongzhi of the Southern and Northern Dynasties carried out complicated computations concluding that the value of pi falls between 3.1415926 and 3.1415927; that was the most accurate value of pi in the world at that time. Zu took a leading position for advanced in the world and not until more than 1000 year later did the Western scientists catch up to and surpass the achievements of Zu Chongzhi. For the memory of Zu Chongzhi, people call the approximate value that Zu had worked out as 'Zu Chongzhi Ratio'.

Picture of Zu Chongzhi

THE NINE CHAPTERS ON THE MATHEMATICAL ART

The Nine Chapters on Mathematical Art was completed around the first century or so which exerts a very profound influence on the development of Mathematics in ancient China. The book lays out an approach to Mathematics that centers on finding the most general methods of solving practical problems, collecting 246 problems and classifying them into nine chapters. It touches on arithmetic, algebra, geometry and so forth and its records of the solving of multi-variable linear equation group is the earliest in the world which is more than 400 years earlier than in India and more than 1300 years earlier than in Europe. Moreover, its concept of fractions and their operation, its concepts of positive and negative numbers and related addition and subtraction rules, its operation of square roots and its solving of quadratic equations are also the earliest records in the history of Mathematics in the world.

The Nine Chapters on Mathematical Art is one of the world's most recognized Mathematical classics and its emergence marked the preliminary formation of the Mathematical system in China. This book was spread into the Korean Peninsular and Japan as early as in the Sui and Tang Dynasties and now it has been translated into several languages.

Abacus and Calculation with an Abacus

Abacus and Calculation with an Abacus

The abacus was a great invention of the laboring people of ancient China. With its simple structure and quick computing method, it is praised as 'the most ancient calculator in the world'.

The abacus was invented on the basis that Chinese used that the counting-rod for a long period. In ancient times, people used small rods to count. Later, with development of productivity and commodity economy, the amount requiring calculation was greater and calculation with counting-rods was limited. Thus, people invented a more advanced counter - the abacus

The abacus is rectangular with a wooden frame on the four sides and small rods fixed inside stringing wooden beads; a beam across the middle separates the abacus into two parts: each rod has two beads on its upper deck, each representing one. The extant abacuses vary in shape; the most commonly seen have two beads in the upper part and five in the lower parts. Moreover, some have one bead in the upper part and five beads in the lower part or one bead in the upper part and four beads in the lower part. Particularly, the Museum of Chinese History houses an abacus from the Qing Dynasty which was excavated in Guangdong and has two beads in the upper part and six beads in the lower part. Such a style of abacus is seldom seen.

Calculation done by way of the abacus is called 'abacus calculation'. Abacus calculation has its own rules of 'addition, subtraction, multiplication and division' which are called the rules of abacus calculation in general. For ordinary counting, skillful abacus calculation is not inferior to computer, especially in additive and subtractive calculation. After abacuses replaced counting chips and became the major counting devices of the Chinese society in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD), their use had played an immeasurable role in accelerating economic development and pushing forward scientific and technological progress. Furthermore, the abacus gradually spread into Korea, Japan, America, Singapore, Malaysia and other countries and regions becoming an important component of world culture.

With the rapid development of electronic calculators, abacuses gradually lose their calculating role in social life and production, but the abacus-based mental arithmetic which is based on traditional abacuses have been given much importance because of its unique function in intelligence development.

Unique Tradition Chinese Medical Science

Unique Tradition Chinese Medical Science

Traditional Chinese medicine is a systematic science which is particularly concerned with wholeness and carries a unique theory. Its theoretic system was largely formed in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period and was constantly developed and improved afterwards. It is not only a precious piece of legacy in the history of Chinese culture but has made enormous contributions to the development of world of medicine.

Traditional Chinese medicine views the human body as a part of nature as a whole. In treatment, it not only takes into account the human body itself but pays much attention to the relations of diseases to the patient's psychology and living habits and to the outside environment, especially to climatic changes and then carries out all-round analysis and treatment in reference to the causes and symptoms of the diseases of the patient. 

The Canon of Medicine of the Yellow Emperor which occurred in the Warring States Period, is the earliest extant medical experience in and before the Spring and Autumn and the Warring State periods (770-221 BC), laying a theoretical foundation for traditional Chinese medical science. The Febrile and other Diseases which was written by Zhang Zhongjing, a renowned doctor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, is one of the most influential works in the history of traditional Chinese medicine. Hua Tuo, a reputed doctor of the Eastern Han Dynasty was the first in world to use anesthetic (Mafeisan) in surgery and was called the 'founder of surgery'

THE TRADITIONAL DIAGNOSING METHODS OF CHINESE MEDICINE

1. Observation

• To observe the appearance of the patient
• Example : His countenance and the sign of his vigor or lack of vigor

2. Auscultation and olfaction

• Listening to the sounds and smells let out by the patient

3. Interrogation

• To enquire about the course of disease and the status quo of the patient

4. Pulse feeling and palpation

• Involve inspection of the patient's pulse
• Bian Que, a famous doctor of the Warring States Period who is reputed to be the 'founder of Chinese medicine' was especially good at it
• The application of pulse feeling and palpation indicates that the physicians of ancient China had grasped the relationships between pulse and each part of human body.

TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

Traditional Chinese medicine mainly come from plants, animals and minerals. These medicines not only enrich the world medical system, but are widely used in the field of regimen and cosmetology. There were many monographs about medicines and prescriptions in ancient China. For example, the Essential Formulas for Emergencies [Worth] a thousand Pieces of Gold compiled by Sun Simiao of the Tang Dynasty collects more than 6500 prescriptions and has been praised as an 'encyclopedia of clinical medicine' and the Compendium of Materia Medica written by Li Shizhen of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD) includes 1892 medicines, 1109 illustrations and 11096 prescriptions, quite deserving to be called a complete collection of medicines in the ancient world.

Chinese Traditional Medicine

The Origin and Evolution of Chinese Characters

The Origin and Evolution of Chinese Characters

Chinese characters constitute one of mankind's oldest systems of scripts in the world. Total Chinese characters are more than 80000 which are consisting up to 3500 commonly used and convey 99% of social information.

THE EVOLUTION OF CHINESE CHARACTERS

Chinese characters originate from pictures and pictographic signs in primitive society which were created and summarized step by step over a long period of labor and pratice by the ancestors. Through evolvement, mature jiaguwen (oracle scripts or Chinese scripts carved on tortoise shells or animal bones) appeared in the Shang Dynasty 3000 years ago at the least.

1. Jiaguwen

• Jiaguwen are Chinese scripts carved on tortoise shells or animal bones, mainly during the Shang Dynasty (17th - 11th BC). 
• Jiaguwen have regular strokes and beautiful form, which is evidence that they had undergone a long development process and that there should be certain rudiments preexisting jiaguwen.
• From jiaguwen to the current simplified Chinese characters, Chinese characters have experienced a course of evolution from hieroglyph to abstraction and from complexity to simplicity, evolving from jiaguwen to jinwen (ancient Chinese script used in inscriptions on ancient bronze objects), zhuanshu (seal characters), lishu (official script) and kaishu (regular script) as well as caoshu (cursive script) and xingshu (semi-cursive script)

2. Jinwen

• Jinwen also known as 'zhonhgdingwen'. are script forged or carved on bronze ware in ancient times and their forms are fuller, rounder, more upright, more squared and better balanced in structure compared with jiaguwen. Jinwen existed in Shang, Zhou, Qin and Han dynasties.

3. Zhuanshu

• Zhuanshu can be divided into dazhuan (large seal script) and xiaozhuan (small seal script).
• Dazhuan also called zhouwen, usually refers to the script of the State of Qin during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and the most typical dazhuan was shiguwen; xiaozhuan was a result of simplified dazhuan, but was better balanced in structure and more rgular, with simplified, rounder and smoother strokes.

4. Lishu

• Lishu can be divided into Qin li and Han li. Qin li was used in the Qin Dynasty. 
• Han Li also known as 'present li' was derived from Qin li and commonly used in the Han Dynasty.
• Compared with Qin li, Han li had fewer traces of zhuanshu.

5. Kaishu

• Kaishu was developed on the basis of lishu, first appearing in the late Han Dynasty and most popular in the Wei and Jin Dynasties.
• Being egular and square in forms and simple in writing, it is still in use today.
• It is a standard script that has been used for the longest duration.

Jiaguwen, jinwen, zhuanshu, lishu and kaishu were or are scripts formally used in certain periods of history while caoshu and xingshu have been auxiliary ones all the time. Caoshu features in general continuous or omitted strokes. Xingshu originated in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and is a kind of script between kaishu and caoshu. Despite of its continuous strokes, it is easy to write and read and thus very practical.

Panduan untuk Mengurangkan Hutang

Panduan untuk Mengurangkan Hutang

Hutang merupakan beban dalam kehidupan yang perlu diselesaikam demi menjamin kemaslahatan hidup. Secara tidak langsungnya, hutang akan menyebabkan seseorang individu menghadapi tekanan emosi sekiranya hutang tidak diuruskan dengan betul. Keadaan ini akan menjadi lebih truk lagi apabila masalah hutang berlaku dalam isu rumah. Terdapat beberapa cara yang pragmatik untuk menyelesaikan masalah hutang dalam isu rumah. 

1. Menyelesaikan hutang yang sedia ada dan tidak membuat hutang yang baru

            Kita perlu mengenal pasti hutang yang sedia ada terlebih dahulu sebelum menyusun strategi untuk menjelaskan komponen-komponen hutang yang ditanggung. Kita perlu menganalisa dan mengirakan jumlah faedah yang perlu dibayar untuk menjelaskan sesuatu hutang tersebut. Pada lumrahnya, hutang yang dikenakan kadar faedah yang paling tinggi seperti hutang kad kredit perlu dilunaskan dengan lebih cepat berbanding dengan hutang yang lain seperti pinjaman untuk membeli rumah atau overdraf. Hal ini demikian kerana kegagalan untuk menjelaskan hutang kad kredit dalam tempoh masa tertentu akan dikenakan caj tambahan atas kelewatan tersebut. Hutang yang dikenakan kadar faedah yang tinggi akan meningkatkan lagi jumlah bayaran pokok dan bayaran faedah semasa sesuatu hutang tersebut dijelaskan. Kita seharusnya menggunakan sumber kewangan yang sedia ada dengan maksimum untuk menyelesaikan hutang yang ditanggung berbanding dengan cara membuat pinjaman yang baru seolah-olahnya untuk menjelaskan hutang yang terdahulu.

Membayar hutang mengikuti tempoh yang telah ditetapkan

            Kita perlu membayar pinjaman atau melunaskan hutang apabila sudah samapai tarikh matang. Hal in demikian kerana kita akan dikenakan caj lebihan sebagai denda sekiranya kita dapat menjelaskan hutang pada tarikh yang telah pun ditetapkan. Sehubungan dengan itu, kita bukan sahaja perlu menanggung caj lebihan tersebut, malahan rekod pembayaran tersebut akan dihantar oleh bank atau institusi kewangan tersebut kepada Bank Negara Malaysia. Hal ini akan secara tidak langsung akan mencemarkan reputasi kita dan kemungkinan besar kita akan menghadapi kesusahan untuk membuat pinjaman semula dengan bank atau institusi kewangan yang sama atau yang lain. Sekiranya jumlah hutang yang ditanggungkan oleh seseorang itu melebihi RM30000 dan tidak dilunaskan mengikut ketepatan pihak pemiutang, maka seseorang itu akan dikenakan tindakan undang-undang dan berakhir dengan kebankrapan. Hal ini sudah pastilah akan menjejaskan lagi profil peribadi dan kemungkinan besar akan diberhentikan kerja serta-merta.

2. Amalan menabung

      Pendidikan kewangan peribadi menumpukan kepada aspek keperluan seseorang untuk mengamalkan tabiat menyimpan atau menabung. Tabiat mulia ini bertujuan untuk menggalakkan orang ramai untuk menyimpan dan menabung secaranya amnya demi penggunaan atau perbelanjaan pada masa hadapan atau pada saat-saat berlakunya kecemasan. Dengan adanya sejumlah simpanan, kita tidak perlu tergesa-gesa untuk mencari sumber-sumber lain untuk membayai sesuatu perbelanjaan. Misalnya, kita tidak perlu membuat pinjaman atau berhutang dengan institusi-institusi kewangan atau terpaksa menjual harta atau aset-aset yang lain semata-mata untuk memenuhi keperluan perbelanjaan yang mendesak atau kecemasan. Amalan menabung juga boleh membantu kita untuk membina kekayaan di mana kita boleh memanfaatkan sebahagian daripada hasil tabungan tersebut untuk membuat pelaburan yang menjaminkan hasil yang positif dengan mengambil kira risiko-risiko seperti kemelesetan ekonomi, inflasi, ketidakstabilan dan sebagainya

Membezakan antara barang keperluan atau kehendak

           Konsep asas dalam belanjawan ialah konsep kehendak dan kemahuan. Keperluan ialah sesuatu diperlukan untuk hidup seperti air dan makanan. Manakala kehendak pula keinginan terhadap sesuatu tetapi kita masih boleh hidup tanpanya. Antara contohnya ialah menonton wayang, melancong, hiburan dan barang mewah.

3. Menyediakan bajet atau belanjawan terlebih dahulu sebelum berbelanja

            Konsep yang amat signifikan dan perlu dipegang semasa menyediakan bajet ialah kita perlu membezakan antara barang keperluan dengan barang kehendak. Barang keperluan merupakan barangan yang diperlukan oleh kita untuk meneruskan hidup seperti air dan makanan. Manakala, barang kehendak merupakan barangan yang dapat memenuhi keinginan and nafsu kita untuk tujuan keselesaan seperti barangan mewah, melancong, telefon bimbit yang berjenama dan sebagainya. Kita juga menyediakan senarai barang yang hendak dibeli selepas pergi pusat beli-belah atau pasar raya. Senarai tersebut hanya mengandungi barangan keperluan yang perlu dibeli sahaja. Seterusnya, kita akan membeli barangan yang disenaraikan terlebih dahulu sahaja. ‘Window shopping’ akan menyebabkan pembaziran dan keborosan dalam perbelanjaan. Jadi, kita perlu mengamalkan tabiat berbelanja secara berhemat iaitu mengikut kemampuan kita dan tidak berbelanja melebihi pendapatan.

4. Mempelajari ilmu pengetahuan tentang pengurusan kewangan

            Penyediaan bajet atau belanjawan merupakan kaedah paling efisien dalam pengurusan kewangan. Dalam proses penyediaan bajet, seseorang perlu mengetahui cara dan ilmu tentang pengurusan kewangan perlu dipelajari. Pengetahuan mengenai pengurusan kewangan membolehkan membuat keputusan kewangan yang baik dan bijak. Pengetahuan tentang pengurusan kewangan boleh diperolehi melalui pendidikan kewangan yng dianjurkan oleh persatuan-persatuan pengguna, internet, laman sesawang, institusi kewangan dan agensi-agensi lain yang berkaitan. Tambahan pula, buku-buku dan jurnal-jurnal tentang pengurusan kewangan juga boleh didapati dengan mudah. Antara laman sesawang yang mendedahkan pendidikan tentang pengurusan kewangan atau program pendidikan pengguna ialah bnm.gov.my/consumeralert, akpk.org.my, bankinginfo.com.my, insuransinfo.com.my serta Islamicfinance info.com.my. Sehubungan dengan itu, penyertaan program-program tersebut akan menambahkan lagi maklumat, ilmu pengetahuan dan kefahaman kita tentang pengurusan kewangan peribadi dan isi rumah yang lebih strategik. Selain itu, terdapat juga laman sesawang yang memberi khidmat nasihat tentang produk serta perkhidmatan yang didesediakan oleh institusi perbankan, insurans ataupun Takaful. Misalnya, laman sesawang bankinginfo.com.my telah menunjukkan perbandingan antara fi dengan caj yang akan dikenakan oleh institusi-institusi kewangan. Portal rasmi Bank Negara Malaysia juga memberi peringatan serta nasihat kepada para pengguna supaya berhati-hati dalam membuat keputusan untuk mendapatkan perkhidmatan kewangan yang ditawarkan oleh pihak atau institusi kewangan yang tidak berlesen.