Once again, ARML has come and gone. This year marks the 10th consecutive ARML that I’ve attended. It was really fun seeing old timers and meeting so many great kids for the first time. I even met a few really cool kids from Dalton and Horrace Mann! :) Of course, then there’s the usual suspects from Stuyvesant and Hunter… but we all know those schools suck ;)

NYC Math Team did very well this year, and placed third nationally. Taoran Chen from NYC Math team even took top honors at ARML, and placed first individually!

I of course, will always have a soft spot for Baltimore’s team, which once again improved significantly in its rankings under Raymond Cheong. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised if Baltimore wins it all within the decade ;).

Florida also did very well, and I’m really happy to see Chenyu Lin kicking ass at ARML after all the work he’s put in!

Incidentally, I had written an earlier post about ARML’s financials being questionable. This year, ARML actually disclosed fairly detailed financial information to all the coaches and asked for approval. Personally, I still don’t think ARML is running as financially lean as it could (and some of its expenses are kind of odd), but I really appreciate its new efforts in increasing transparency. Given what I do, It’s probably true that I expect organizations to run much tighter ships than normal.

I’ve actually been thinking about making this year the last ARML that I attend, and quitting all math competition related endeavors by next year. This year’s ARML is definitely making my decision much harder….

ABC News is reporting that Viagra could be the potential cure to jet lag:

Perhaps Viagra Can Soften Jet Lag’s Impact

Erectile Dysfunction Drug Shows Promise in Animal Study

By JOSEPH BROWNSTEIN, ABC News Medical Unit

May 21, 2007 —

The little blue pill known for making time in the bed more enjoyable may also help weary jet travelers roll out of it in the morning.

New research shows Viagra may be the solution for travelers who suddenly find themselves needing to rise hours earlier as they cross time zones, at least if those travelers are hamsters.

A study at the Universidad Nacional de Quilmes in Buenos Aires showed that male hamsters who received an injection of sildenafil along with a 15-minute stimulation of light were able to adjust their internal clocks by six hours in roughly half the time that hamsters who did not receive the treatment took.

…

You might notice some very amusing headings:

• Rise and Shine
• Study Arouses Interest
• Will Results Stand Up to Scrutiny

That’s right, my college roommate Joseph Brownstein is now reporting for ABC News! Congratulations Joe, I expect a lot more hilarity to come!

A good friend Aswin is leaving the States for good and returning to India to lead his startup.

What’s particularly cool about his startup is that it’s actually based on the theory of social contract. A company that revolves around solving infrastructural problems in the developing world, how cool is that?!

Incidentally, I would also like to use this post as proof that I predicted Aswin’s rise to the ruler of India well in advance. Good Luck Aswin!

Shali and I were just visiting Cunningham park today and it turned out the park was playing host to the 11th annual Korean Children Festival! I tried to google for some reference to the festival online, but found none. The festival should really do a better job of marketing itself, it seems really fun for the kids!

Anyway, I had my Canon Rebel XT with me today, so I took a few pictures.

A general picture of the festival.

First Birthday Celebration (Tol). The one year old baby is presented with a table of items. Depending on what item the baby picks up, the baby’s future is said to be foretold. Read more about the tradition here.

Shali playing with a Gong.

Kids sumo-wrestling each other?

You can see all the pictures here.

South Park has recently grown on me and has become one of my favorite shows. So of course, when George Xu told me I must watch S10E08, I was more than happy to oblige. Little did I know that South Park has apparently taken on MMPORGs! For anyone who has ever played WoW, or any MMORPG for that matter, South Park S10E08 will be an absolute riot. Of course, some of the “jokes” in that episode sometimes hit a little bit too close to home…..

BTW, if you want to see it, I know a little birdie that can show you :)