A public shoutout and congratulations to my college friend peter lu who has been in the headlines with his Science-published paper about advanced quasicrystalline geometry in ancient Islamic art!
check out:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6389157.stm
http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2007/03.01/99-tiles.html
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Monday, February 12, 2007
To Do
A random list of weird and/or difficult tasks on my plate (some successful thankfully):
- Talking with Schering Finland to import 200 units of implant contraceptive into Zambia via NGO and Zambia bureaucracy
- Making numerous, frustrating trips to the "poison board" (i.e. Zambia's Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority) to wrestle an approval for import from them
- Meeting with NGO directors to push through a legal contract between Harvard and the partner NGO because the study ran out of money and needed a new contract
- Purchasing hundreds of chitenges, 1,440 condoms, and prepaid talk time
- Negotiating salary arguments/discussions with the data collectors and community health workers working for the study
- Trying to minimize the community's fears that our data collecting teams are "Satanists"
- Buying pregnancy tests, gloves, bleach, and sterile solution for the surgical insertion of Jadelle implant contraceptive
- Constant monitoring of staff. There's no such thing as being too anal in the field. Some version of Murphy's law is at work here -- if you don't check on the work, it won't be done... or at least it won't be done well.
- Working 7 days a week to reach as many women as possible
- Talking with Schering Finland to import 200 units of implant contraceptive into Zambia via NGO and Zambia bureaucracy
- Making numerous, frustrating trips to the "poison board" (i.e. Zambia's Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority) to wrestle an approval for import from them
- Meeting with NGO directors to push through a legal contract between Harvard and the partner NGO because the study ran out of money and needed a new contract
- Purchasing hundreds of chitenges, 1,440 condoms, and prepaid talk time
- Negotiating salary arguments/discussions with the data collectors and community health workers working for the study
- Trying to minimize the community's fears that our data collecting teams are "Satanists"
- Buying pregnancy tests, gloves, bleach, and sterile solution for the surgical insertion of Jadelle implant contraceptive
- Constant monitoring of staff. There's no such thing as being too anal in the field. Some version of Murphy's law is at work here -- if you don't check on the work, it won't be done... or at least it won't be done well.
- Working 7 days a week to reach as many women as possible
Monday, February 05, 2007
China's growing sphere of influence in the Caribbean and African nations
This is hilarious-- forwarded by a friend of mine.
http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070205/lead/lead1.html
This article brings to mind the recent events here in Lusaka. Chinese president Hu Jintao visited Lusaka this past Saturday through Sunday to officially inaugurate special Zambia-China economic zones... and a new Chinese-financed football stadium. Zambia didn't make the same mistake with the anthem though, I don't think.
On the day the Chinese president arrived at lusaka international airport, I was sitting outside the NGO office waiting for my ride. a zambian man passing by in a truck stuck his head out of the window and yelled "hey, how come you're not welcoming your president?!" I gave the man a slightly dirty look. The supervisors also kept on teasing "hey Christina, why aren't you at the airport welcoming your president?"
Later that day there was heavy traffic to the health clinic as scores of Zambians waited outside the main conference facility awaiting Hu Jintao's arrival. It was a pretty funny sight -- a crowd of Zambian women wearing MMD chitenges (MMD is the political party currently in power that is supportive of China) waiting and cheering for the chinese president.
Also, last Thursday, I was barely able to grab a table at the best Chinese restaurant in Lusaka because there was a huge party of Chinese people having dinner that night... in preparation for the Chinese president's arrival. Supposedly Hu Jintao was going to eat at that restaurant. (And stay at the Intercontinental...)
Anyways, overall, I regard China's generosity to Zambia with suspicion.... the stadium, a new economic zone, $800 million in investment, a state visit, a huge forgiveness of debt.......
To me, it sounds like imminent exploitation, China-style.
http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070205/lead/lead1.html
This article brings to mind the recent events here in Lusaka. Chinese president Hu Jintao visited Lusaka this past Saturday through Sunday to officially inaugurate special Zambia-China economic zones... and a new Chinese-financed football stadium. Zambia didn't make the same mistake with the anthem though, I don't think.
On the day the Chinese president arrived at lusaka international airport, I was sitting outside the NGO office waiting for my ride. a zambian man passing by in a truck stuck his head out of the window and yelled "hey, how come you're not welcoming your president?!" I gave the man a slightly dirty look. The supervisors also kept on teasing "hey Christina, why aren't you at the airport welcoming your president?"
Later that day there was heavy traffic to the health clinic as scores of Zambians waited outside the main conference facility awaiting Hu Jintao's arrival. It was a pretty funny sight -- a crowd of Zambian women wearing MMD chitenges (MMD is the political party currently in power that is supportive of China) waiting and cheering for the chinese president.
Also, last Thursday, I was barely able to grab a table at the best Chinese restaurant in Lusaka because there was a huge party of Chinese people having dinner that night... in preparation for the Chinese president's arrival. Supposedly Hu Jintao was going to eat at that restaurant. (And stay at the Intercontinental...)
Anyways, overall, I regard China's generosity to Zambia with suspicion.... the stadium, a new economic zone, $800 million in investment, a state visit, a huge forgiveness of debt.......
To me, it sounds like imminent exploitation, China-style.
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