There is nothing we cant conquer!

Aha, Mr Koh said something today that I think is really inspiring..

If you tell someone, you specialise in this and this area(the more impressive sounding the better), you are bound to elicit wows and praises. It is even more impressive if you tell someone, that you are specialising, but you have not failed to conquer everything that you hated. I suppose its satisfying to know that you conquered this big ugly monster called _____(substitute you most hated subject here). For me, I have so much to conquer!..Self conquer if the first step to conquering the world..

So what's your plan to conquer the world today?

Was watching this show yesterday night about how Britain became a world superpower during the Industrial Revolution. It was an example of how everything links up nicely to give you the most astonishing results. It all started with Isaac Newton. Before him, people did not know why the sun rises and sets, why there were tides, etc. In one fell swoop, Newton published a thick volume known as the Principia that explained why planets move in circles, why things fell to earth, the concept of forces, etc etc. Then after Newton, James Watt and others came up with the concept of steam engine..The concept of forces have led directly to the concept of work done and energy. In the time where England started to industrialise, Adam Smith the pioneering economist published his great work, The Wealth of Nations. In his book, he outlines how an economy should work, in particular, that everyone should specialise to be most productive. His famous concept, the invisible hand, was the framework that allowed the gears of the economy to start moving.

If Newton found the key to industrialisation, and Watt used that key to open the door to industrialisation, then Smith and his 'hand' was the prime mover of the industry, the force that allowed the gears to move, the coal to fire, and belching smoke from hundreds of chimneys in England. Britain became even more powerful when it followed the ideas of free trade, by forcibly using military might to colonise other countries, such that it became a centre for economic growth.

I think there would a lot more meaning to studying our subjects if we could appreciate the history behind it, how it came about, how they shaped the world.

In hoc Signo Vinces. Under the sign of S18 we will conquer.