hmm... just when i thought i've managed to reduce my to do list, i've gotta start all over again... ok... explanation about the "v2.0" on my title - this is my second try in getting this entry done... i've actually completed it once but my streamyx failed me and i lost the post... the entire post... so forgive me if this post is not as comprehensive... i've lost the mood...
so... where did i stop in part 1? right... the second stage...
the second stage of the the competition, there are 2 parts... first, there'll be a treasure hunt with 5 stations and at each station, we'll be given an iq question. if we solved it, we'll be given an item. these items would eventually help us in completing the second part of the second stage. for the second part, we'll be given an incomplete motorola 2-way radio and with the items which we've obtained during the treasure hunt, we are given one hour to fix the radio and also to make sure that it is water resistant. we can seal the phone however we want to, as long as it is not visible once the radio is assembled. the 3 radios which can last the longest submerged in water without leaking, will then be weighed to see who can complete the task with minimum item. the top two groups will then proceed on to stage three. sounds simple right?
so, after we were briefed, we were all waiting with excitement for the treasure hunt to begin. sadly, some miscommunication by the organizers led to the cancellation of the treasure hunt. so instead of running around to obtain our items, we were given the iq questions in a classroom. i think our group did quite well in this stage as we've managed to solve 4 out of the 5 questions. not bad, huh? i'll try to draw some of the questions and post it later... (if i've got the time which i highly doubt it)... hehehe...
so, with the items in our hands, we started fixing the 2 way radio. in this part of the competition, we kinda attracted a lot of attention from the motorola judges... i was surprised as they were always standing around our group. but when i took a look around, i found out why... you see, in solving this task, our group was pretty animated. we were always moving around, walking, standing, sitting on the table, discussing... you get the picture, right? but the other groups... they actually sat down quietly (i can't hear anyone but us talking actually) and just did the task like it was an exam... well, i brought this up coz i was just curious - how can you work in a group without talking? hmm...
at the end of the hour, all the radios were submerged into a tank simultaneously and the intense wait begun. we've waited for about 45 minutes before all but 3 radios were eliminated. and guess what? we've made it into the top 3! hahaha... we were elated!
with much higher hopes and much more optimism, we held our breath as the 3 radios were weighed. much to our disappointment, we were the heaviest phone among the 3. what made it worse was the fact that we lost out to um by merely 4 grams! so you know how light that is?
with that, um and iium made it into the third stage which somehow reminded me of those quizzes which we usually watch on tv. the only difference is that this one had a really bad host. anyway, iium went on to win the competition and sparked a small controversy which left a bad taste with some participants.
you see, there were complaints by certain participants on how the whole competition were in iium's favour in the first place. and there were also some suggestion on how the quiz seems to require a substantial amount of luck rather than engineering knowledge and um lost because of the confusing rules. well, i wouldn't want to go any further than that.
as far as i'm concerned, we went to iium with no preparation and absolutely no expectations. we've emerged as the second runners-up and 250 bucks richer per person (the prize money for second runners-up is 1 thousand bucks). more importantly, in the spirit of the game, is that we lost to a better team. i honestly believed that. so i've got no complaints. =)
here are some pictures of us at the prize giving ceremony... =)
this was the hall where the prize giving ceremony was held... looks grand huh?
let's give it up for the champions!!! ok... second runners-up...
the first, second and third placed team with the dean of engineering, iium
from the left: siow yien, pui leng, chuu liu and the great one... muahahaha (evil laughter please)...
ps: this is the first time i've won any prize which requires a mock cheque and i'm still keeping the mock cheque...hahaha...
