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The light is on for children at St Andrews
Children at St Andrews International School have been
amazed at their own abilities to make a light bulb turn on! Students in Year
2 have been experimenting with batteries, wires and light bulbs to create
simple electrical circuits. Children were given the task to see how many
light bulbs they could light up, using only one battery as a power source.
 These
kids could be our future electrical engineers.
There was a great deal of excitement as the Year 2
children were able to see 3 light bulbs being turned on all at the same
time. They were then motivated to investigate what would happen if more
batteries were added to the electrical circuits. The children were
fascinated to see the light bulbs grow even brighter!
 Year
2 students at St Andrews learn to create simple electricity.
By adding switches to their electrical circuits, the
students were able to understand how circuits can be broken to determine its
on and off status.
With so much motivation and enthusiasm shown by the children, it can only
be assumed that there are prospective electricians and electrical engineers
in the making at St Andrews!
Asian University students to assist visiting Nobel Laureates
Over the next few months a group of Nobel Laureates will be visiting
Thailand and making presentations around the country, including locally at
Asian University.
 Roslyn
Pitakwong, Tisana Harintharanont and Nattamon Sartsatit are amongst the
Asian University students who will act as facilitators to help these
honoured guests make the most of their visits to Thailand.
As many of these guests have never visited Thailand
before, Asian University students have offered to act as facilitators to
help these honoured guests make the most of their visits to Thailand. Most
of the visiting Laureates are coming here with their spouses, and about
twenty Asian U students will be helping them, acting as guides and
interpreters.
Some of these Asian University students were
facilitators at last year’s Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC)
meeting in Bangkok. They will be able to use the experience they gained
there, with the APEC and APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) visitors.
The volunteer students include Business, Engineering and
Liberal Arts undergraduates, and they will work in small teams to assist
their guests.
The Nobel lectures start early in December and will
continue until April next year. The only local talks will be at the Asian
University on Friday December 9 (Professor Claude Cohen-Tannoudji on
“Manipulation Atoms with Light”), Friday January 14, 2005 (Professor
Riccardo Giacconi on “The Development of X-Ray Astronomy”) and Friday
March 4, 2005 (Douglass C North on “Beliefs, Institutions and the Control
of Violence”).
This, the second and final event series, “Bridges:
Dialogue towards a culture of peace”, is being hosted by the
International Peace Foundation.
For more information on any of these events, please contact the Asian
University at email [email protected] or telephone 038 754 450.
Sinterklaas is coming to Rayong Saturday, November 20
Sinterklaas, the friend of children who comes to the
Netherlands and Belgium every year to visit them and give presents for his
birthday in December, will come to Thailand.
He arrives on Saturday, November 20, 11 a.m. at Pala
Beach, Ban Chang, Rayong.
 He
wrote this letter to all the Dutch and Flemish children:
Lieve kinderen,
Ook al wonen jullie ver weg van Nederland en Belgie, ik
wil jullie toch komen opzoeken. Mijn Piet in Thailand heeft me over jullie
verteld, en ik weet dat jullie vol verwachting uitzien naar mijn komst. Op
20 November zal ik per boot in Thailand aankomen, en ik hoop velen van
jullie te mogen begroeten. Ook hoop ik dat jullie een tekening voor mij
zullen meebrengen, of een lied zullen zingen, of misschien hebben jullie
iets speciaals voor deze dag ingestudeerd.
Graag tot ziens in Banchang, Rayong, of misschien in
Bangkok.
Sint Nicolaas
If people are interested in welcoming Sinterklaas they
are most welcome in the area near the children’s playground at Pala Beach,
Banchang, Rayong.
 If
you are related to Holland and Belgium and therefore interested in having
your children celebrate, or just for yourself attending the after arrival
Sinterklaas party (where Dutch language is spoken), please contact email:
[email protected]
Sinterklaas explained
In the fourth century A.D. St. Nicholas (in Dutch called
“Sinterklaas” or “Sint Nicolaas”; in German called “Sankt Nikolaus”)
was the bishop of Myra, which is now situated in Turkey. According to
legend, he saved his town from starvation. He is also said to have revived
three dead children, and to have offered gifts of dowries to poor girls.
Some sources say that he died on the sixth of December in
343. In 1087 his relics were taken to Bari in Italy. It is unclear why,
according to the Dutch tradition, he comes from Spain. Possibly it has
something to do with the fact that St. Nicholas was the patron of sailors.
In the 17th century Holland was famous for its
navigation. Maybe by contact with Spanish sailors this myth began. It could
also explain why St. Nicholas has “zwarte (black) pieten” to help him
because the Moors dominated Spain for several hundred years. (Another [more
popular] explanation for “zwarte piet” being black is that he has come
down the chimneys so often [see below] that he can’t wash the dirt off.)
His legendary gifts of dowries to poor girls led to the
custom of giving gifts to children on the eve of his feast day, December 6.
The companions of St. Nicholas (in Germany and Austria they are called
“Knecht Ruprecht” or “Krampus”) show the victory over evil. Together
with his “pieten” he visits children to punish the evil ones and to
reward the good ones. The worst punishment is to be taken to Spain in
“zwarte piet’s” bag out of which the good children get the sweets
(called “pepernoten”, “taai-taai”, or “schuimpjes”) and
presents. A less radical punishment is to get the “roede” (rod) instead
of presents. Nowadays there are not very many evil children anymore...
A few weeks before his feast day, St. Nicholas comes to
Holland (and Belgium) on his steamer with all his “pieten” and the
presents which they prepared in Spain during the year. This event can be
seen on Dutch television.
From his arrival in Holland until his feast day, the
children can put their shoes in front of the fireplace. During the night St.
Nicholas visits all the houses by travelling over the roofs on his horse,
traditionally a white/grey (called “Schimmel” in Dutch), and “zwarte
piet” enters the houses through the chimney to put little presents in the
children’s shoes. Sometimes the children put straw, carrots and water near
the shoe for the horse.
On the eve of his feast day St. Nicholas visits all children. After
knocking on the door he gives them a bag full of presents (if they were good
children). Early in the morning of December 6, when he has visited everyone,
he leaves and goes back silently to Spain, to come back next year.
University students visit Royal Navy in Sattahip
Program promotes goodwill between military and civilians
Pacharapol Panrak
A total of 395 students and their teachers recently had a
chance to see the inner workings of Thailand’s military establishment when
they were invited to visit the Royal Thai Navy installation at Sattahip.
The
Military Directorate of Education, and Supreme Command Headquarters brought
the National Security Development Course students to visit the Royal Thai
Navy in Sattahip.
Admiral Pana Thanomsing, assistant director of Education
and Training at Supreme Command Headquarters was on hand to give a warm
welcome to the group. The tour is a part of the government’s National
Security Development Course that was set up to promote good relations between
the public and military personnel.
 Chai
Yo! Lets go for a ride!
The visitors came from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok
University and Burapha University to visit the Royal Thai Navy, the Marine
Order Unit, and Naval Operations.
They were greeted by Captain Chetha Jaipiam, policy and
planning director for the navy’s Civilian Department who took the students
and teachers on a tour of the facilities.
The group also took time to pay their respects to the
statue of the grandson of the king, Admiral “Royal Chumporn Khet U-domsak”
at Chumporn Royal Park.
The student tour continued on to the navy’s Supreme
Command Headquarters located at Toey-Ngam Bay, where the visitors laid down
wreaths for a ceremony at the Marine Statue. This was done in dedication to
the marines who gave up their lives to protect the country.
Students also had the chance to witness Marines in action,
the navy’s sea security protection unit, how the navy suppresses pirates
and prevents drug trafficking at sea.
The National Security Development Course is a vehicle of advanced
education to promote a good relationship between civilians and Thailand’s
three military sectors. The idea is to further better understanding of the
nation’s military personnel and their duty to protect the country, keep
peace in the kingdom and educate students on the important role the military
plays in its commitment to all Thais.
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