Movies: Sherlock Holmes 2 & MI4 Reviews

Christmas-slash-New-Year holidays are always the best time for movies as it is almost one of the cheapest entertainments which occupies hours of your time and creates bunch of excitements for your post-viewing sharing and discussions, let alone the benefits of learning English words.

Image from filmofilia.com

But for me, my way of watching movies has evolved or even upped a new level! And that is, while searching for clues and predicting the plot of the upcoming scenes, I also search for flaws and inconsistencies  appeared in the movies. If the movie is set in a modern time like Mission Impossible 4 or the earlier Transformers 3, then I also paid attention to the product placements.

Wait, was there any product placements in Transformers 3? Well, yeah! And from China too!

Milk from Yili
Image from maydaily.com

Lenovo Desktop
Image from Google

Xie Wei at Meters/bonwe Tee shirt
Image from brandchannel.com

And from non-China we have ...

Mercedes SLS AMG
Image from brandchannel.com

The white iPad 2!!!

Canon printers and many many more! Some subtle, some apparently named like the Yili milk! For pride or exposure or both, this has become an extra fun for me!

In Mission Impossible, I saw a lot of Apple, Samsung and LG as well!

And of course, BMW!

Alright! Looks like I have sidetracked quite a bit so let's get back to the movies.

I watched MI4 after I have watched Sherlock Holmes and I think it was the right order to do so. That's because Sherlock Holmes -- A Game of Shadows has fewer product placements and I can focus more on the clues of the story.

Image from Teaser-Trailer.com

I must say that the sequel really hasn't disappointment me with the tight action-packed plot and twists. I particularly like to see Moriarty and Holmes' battle of wits, how Holmes predicted the place, time and style of  Moriarty's assassination attempt of Watson and his wife on the train, how Holmes cleverly calculated every step of the rescue and the slow-motion real-time forest escape scene shot by the Phantom high-speed cameras.

The ending was particularly funny and the Holmes in disguise was definitely not expected! Then again, Moriarty wasn't said to be dead while Holmes had an official funeral which made everybody thought he was dead, as supported by the actual fiction that Holmes had a three-year "death" [1], so in Sherlock Holmes 3, Holmes will be able to continue his fight against Professor Moriarty and more thrilling plots await us.

It was a pity that Irene Adler was killed (?) by a poisonous drink spiked by Moriarty.

All-in-all, a brilliant movie with lots of cunning plans! Must watch indeed!

Image from Counting Down The Hours

As for Mission Impossible -- Ghost Protocol, I am still surprised that some of my closest friends DO NOT intend to watch! It is such a brilliant movie and my friends just don't see it! Their argument is, they can't believe that Tom Cruise can still live up to the fame of the first Mission Impossible movie! Well, if they have watched it, they will know they are SO SO wrong! because yes, Tom Cruise still does live up to, or should I say, higher than that standard! I'm no big fan of the Mission Impossible series but I have watched every single one, and despite the change of directors in every single MI movie, this one is THE best among all four!

Burj Khalifa
Image from burj-khalifa.eu

Action-wise, you still get that just-3-inches-off-the-floor jump! Plus, you get Tom Cruise doing those amazing stunts on the glass walls of Burj Khalifa -- the highest building in the world with a height of 829.84m, twice the height of IFC 2 (46.8m)!

Image from Wikipedia

Let's not forget about the eye candy of the movie!

Smart ladies, what is the product placement here?
Image from media.theiapolis.com

Léa Seydoux the assassin
Image from media.theiapolis.com

What could be the reason for this? Could it be the director Brad Bird? He is the director of The Incredibles, The Simpsons, and Ratatouille! Creativity explodes when it comes to cartoons and animations, and MI4 does seem much less cruel than MI3 and funnier than all its prequels! Yet it doesn't compromise the thrill and the unexpectedness!

So while it is still on cinema, catch the movie ASAP in IMAX!!! Worth every penny of yours!


Don't foreget to "Like" this article and the English Playground! Your "Like" tells me which types of article you like more!


Vocabulary:
evolve  [I or T] to develop gradually, or to cause something or someone to develop gradually
up -- (vb) [T] (-pp-) to increase something such as a price
flaw -- (n) [C] a fault, mistake or weakness, especially one that happens while something is being planned or made, or which causes something not to be perfect
inconsistency -- (n) If a reason, idea, opinion, etc. is inconsistent, different parts of it do not agree, or it does not agree with something else
product placement / embedded marketing (n)[C] -- a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs.
sequel -- (n)[C] a book, film or play which continues the story of a previous book, etc.
twist -- (n) [C] [C] a complicated situation or plan of action
assassination -- (n) [C or U] the murder of someone famous or important
attempt -- (n)[C] when you try to do something, especially something difficult
spike -- (vb) [T] to make a drink stronger by adding alcohol, or to add flavour or interest to something
stunt -- (n)[C] an exciting action, usually in a film, that is dangerous or appears dangerous and usually needs to be done by someone skilled
prequel -- (n) [C usually singular] a film, book or play which develops the story of an earlier film, etc. by telling you what happened before the events in the first film, etc
compromise -- (vb) [T] disapproving to allow your principles to be less strong or your standards or morals to be lower
eye candy -- (n) [U] informal someone or something that is attractive but not very interesting or useful


Resources:
News, Movie & Idiom: Megan VS Rosie X Water Under the Bridge @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/07/news-idiom-megan-vs-rosie-x-water-under.html

Movies: Must-watch & Can-Watch Movies 2011/12 @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/12/movie-must-watch-can-watch-movies.html

Mission Impossible 4 -- The Ghost Protocol @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1229238/

Chinese Tee: Mainland Brands Test Product Placement in Transformers 3 @ Brandchannel
http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2011/07/20/Transformers-3-Chinese-Brands.aspx

Transformers 3 Movie Clip "The Duchess" Official (HD) @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xr_N9lnH8pw&feature=player_embedded

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol - BMW "Mission To Drive" BMW Vision (Promotional Partner Ad) @ YouTube
http://youtu.be/32Bfm2jRv_E

[1] Irene Adler @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irene_Adler

Burj Khalifa @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burj_Khalifa

IFC 2 @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IFC2

Brad Bird @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0083348/

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/evolve?q=evolve
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/up_32?q=upped#up_32__3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/flaw_1?q=flaw
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/inconsistent_1?q=inconsistency+
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_placement
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sequel?q=sequel+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/twist_4
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/assassination?q=assassination+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/attempt_2
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/spike_3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/stunt_1?q=stunt
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/prequel?q=prequels#prequel__3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/compromise_3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/eye-candy?q=eye+candy

Travelling & Living: Day 2 in Taipei

Image from Locky's English Playground

Day 2 of the Taipei trip, woke up in a cold and drizzling morning, the breakfast was not amazing but it seems to me that Taiwan breakfast is kind of like Japanese breakfast in a sense they both have rice with mini side dishes such as spicy bean sprouts and fried green vegetables.

Image from Locky's English Playground

The hot spring hotel requires their customers to check in at 5pm but check out at 12pm, so there was really not enough time to spend in the room, but they do offer free shuttle for the customers and their luggage, or just their baggages and not the customers, so making use of this service to walk around without your luggage  for most of the time and then have your luggage delivered to you at the nearby MRT stations is a great strategy!

Image from Locky's English Playground

Leaving Beitou to Tamsui and there is a harbour walk with snack shops and restaurants. The snacks were all great! dry pork slices, Taipei 101-like ice-creams and potato crisps, pork sausages and many more. Their huge sizes definitely attract tourist to give it a go and kill their SD card memory, but the scenery is not to be missed.

Image from Locky's English Playground

One interesting thing observed about the Starbucks Coffee in Taipei is that they don't just come in a shop, but the entire building! You see the photo below? That is a four-storey Starbucks coffee! Man, I would love to go there often to enjoy my coffee. Just look at the view from the above photo! The coffee shop is directly facing this!

Image from Locky's English Playground

After picking up the luggage and went to check-in at a much cheaper hotel in Ximen, it was time for more walking around and snacking. There is this really popular noodles shop which serves fine melt-in-your-mouth noodles in soup in Ximending and is always very crowded, not sure if the locals like it but definitely attracts tourists. You can see some people eating their bowl of noodles on the street while others take photos of other people eating in the photo below.

Image from Locky's English Playground

Many stores and restaurants have Japanese-scripted lanterns and banners to attract their customers and they seem to work very well!

Image from Locky's English Playground

Absolutely a place with a nice blend of the Japanese and the Taiwanese cultures!

Image from Locky's English Playground

Took the following picture just before leaving Ximen Ding, not exactly the same as Japan's -chō, but definitely an alternative if Japan isn't a choice on your list.

Image from Locky's English Playground

Outside of the busy shopper's paradise, museums and artistic structures harmonise the atmosphere.

Image from Locky's English Playground

Dinner time arrived and it was this station we were heading. There was only one restaurant in the plan......

Image from Locky's English Playground

Leaving a quiet MRT station? Just because it was still early, it was so packed on the way back.

Image from Locky's English Playground

And then we arrived at THE ONE!

Image from Locky's English Playground

Yes, Hong Kong also has Din Tai Fung, but I won't want to miss the origin of the restaurant. Hey! Must see how different they are, right?

Image from Locky's English Playground

And the differences were great! Not the taste really, but the portion and the price. In Taipei, the same restaurant offers double portion for almost everything but charges only half the price of Hong Kong's!!! You will have to believe me with the bill shown below.

Image from Locky's English Playground

It was definitely a great restaurant to visit and had the time been longer, I would have had the same food again and again!

Don't forget to "LIKE" this entry and the English Playground

Vocabulary:
drizzle -- (vb) [I] to rain in small light drops
 -chō -- (n) [U] 
harmonise -- (UK usually harmonise) [I or T] to be suitable together, or to make different people, plans, situations, etc. suitable for each other




Resources:
Travelling & Living: Day 1 in Taipei @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/12/travelling-living-day-1-in-taipei.html

Ximending @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ximending

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/drizzle_4
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/harmonize_2#harmonize_2__3

Message: Happy New Year 2012!!!

Looking back at this year, I think I have done some good jobs in my research and wrote some of the articles which I really like, particularly, those under the label Medical, Health and Fitness, Technology and the recent ones on radiation under Travelling and Living.

I see myself expanding in my pool of knowledge much quicker and I'm eager for more!!!

This year, I shall continue to expand my knowledge through detail researches and then of course, bring you the best of the digest.

Let's continue to learn together.

Happy 2012!!!

Locky

Travelling & Living: Is The Food From Japan Safe?

My snappy doctor friend (see Medical & News: What Causes Cancer? -- Part 1 and Medical & News: What Causes Cancer? -- Part 2), who was not snappy yesterday, is going to visit Japan, and in our recently set up Whatsapp chat group a friend asked if the food in Japan is safe for consumption. This doctor friend said she doesn't care. Then of course, I knew the answer and told her, but she insists on not caring.

Is there anything wrong with her thinking? Nope. Doctors often see life and death as commonplace as missing breakfast. But how about the rest of us?

Many of us thought that as long as the air is clean, like the guy in the movie above, then it will be safe. The fact is of course NOT.

Why not? Because the worst is still in the ground.

Image from antinuclearinfo.files.wordpress.com

Pay attention to the part which the plants pick up the radioactive elements from the ground, because even if the air is far below the safe limit of radioactive level, like the video below taken in Chernobyl (the region of the Chernobyl Disaster on 26th April 1986), the Geiger counter level started off at a rate lower than Hong Kong's ( roughly 0.200 μSv, microsievert,  for most updated count, see Hong Kong Observatory Ambient Gamma Radiation Level ) and began to signal DANGER when placed next to a patch of grass.

And one of the most dangerous thing to eat? Mushrooms!

As shown and admitted by the Japanese government in the news below.

Then how do I know what food from Japan is safe to eat and what is not? This question suddenly popped up when I picked up two packets of 3.6 Hokkaido milk at a discounted price of $15. I heard those packets on one hand, found a great Android App from Market, check it and then decided to put down the milk.

Which app? FoodSafety -radiation in food-  It is a really good app and I highly recommend you download it and check it when necessary, especially when doing your grocery shopping.

Image from AppBrain

Two things I like this app.

1) It lists out the date of update, the region, the test dates, the food type, the level of iodine (131) and cesium (137) in Bq/kg, becquerel per kilogram. 

Image from Locky's English Playground

So, from the above screen capture, mushrooms from region Miyagi has been tested on 16th November with radioactive iodine "not detected" ND but 1400 Bq/kg of radioactive cesium. Fukushima, the region of the nuclear plant explosions, has mushroom at 4900 Bq/kg of cesium!!! But the highest is Tochigi with 6940 Bq/kg of cesium!!!! Anyway, they all go under the Red upset face, which means they are over the safety level. Touch them NOT!!!

Image from Locky's English Playground

2) The prescribed safe limits for radioactive elements recommended by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for each type of food are used in this app.

As shown above, the prescribed safe limits for radioactive cesium in milk is 500 Bq/kg. Although the Hokkaido milk gets only 0.1 Bq/kg cesium, I decided to put down the great bargain.

For a detail chart, do read this Bloomberg article.


My snappy doctor friend might not care, but it is your body and your health at the end of the day.

Once again I say, Knowledge is power! The more you know, the better you take good care of yourself and your love ones!

Don't forget to "like" this article and the English Playground


Vocabulary:
snappy -- (adj) also snappish easily annoyed and often speaking in an angry way
commonplace -- (adj) happening often or often seen or experienced and so not considered to be special
Chernobyl

Image from Wikipedia

sievert (Sv) -- (n)[C] the SI unit of equivalent dose. It is the dose of a given type of radiation in Gy that has the same biological effect on a human as 1 Gy of x-rays or gamma radiation. microsievert (μSv), 10 ⁻⁶ Sv


grocery -- [C] (UK also grocery shop , US also grocery store) old-fashioned a grocer's


iodine (131) -- also called radioiodine, is an important radioisotope of iodine. It has a radioactive decay half-life of about eight days. Its uses are mostly medical and pharmaceutical. It also plays a major role as a radioactive isotope present in nuclear fission products, and was a significant contributor to the health hazards from open-air atomic bomb testing in the 1950s, and from the Chernobyl disaster, as well as being a large fraction of the contamination hazard in the first weeks in the Japanese nuclear crisis.

cesium (137) -- is a radioactive isotope of caesium which is formed as a fission product by nuclear fission. It has a half-life of about 30.17 years.

ND -- "not detected"


Resources:

Geiger Counter Readings from Central Tokyo as of 4pm, 3/17/2011 @ YouTube
http://youtu.be/TdIk8k1rJYs

Medical & News: What Causes Cancer? -- Part 1 @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/08/medical-news-what-causes-cancer.html

Medical & News: What Causes Cancer? -- Part 2 @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/08/medical-news-what-causes-cancer-part-2.html

Chernobyl Disaster @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster

Ionizing Radiation Units @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation#Units

Ambient Gamma Radiation Level in Hong Kong(Updated hourly) @ Hong Kong Observatory
http://www.weather.gov.hk/radiation/ermp/rmn/applet/map/rmn_hourly_e.htm

Geiger Counter at Chernobyl @ YouTube
http://youtu.be/DDH6w181Obw

Bavarian Mushrooms - Maronen - CS137 and RadioactivityCounter Android App @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAWQ-YT8BvE

Radioactive Mushrooms & Typhoon eyes Fukushima 7/17/11 @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRVQnxd8gC0

FoodSafety -radiation in food- @ AppBrain
http://www.appbrain.com/app/foodsafety-radiation-in-food/jp.myFoodSafety

Specific activity @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specific_activity

ND @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ND

Japan Sets Safe Limits for Consuming Radiation-Contaminated Food @
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-21/japan-sets-safe-limits-for-consuming-radiation-contaminated-food-table-.html

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/snappish#snappish__3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/commonplace_1?q=commonplace
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/grocery_1?q=grocery+
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iodine-131
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesium-137

News & Technology: iOS 5.0.1 UNTETHERED Jailbreak

Image from redmondpie.com

While I was away on my Taipei trip, perhaps the most exciting news is the hint of the release of iOS 5.0.1 Untethered Jailbreak. Pwned Apple Pwned!!!

Yesterday, it is finally officially out as cited on reputable Jailbreak website, Redmond Pie. Do note that this jailbreak only works on  iPhone 4 / 3GS, iPod touch 4, iPad 1, so don't try this on your iPhone 4S and iPad 2!

Here's the video tutorial.

If you want to read the text, please go to the website below.

But before you start jailbreaking your iPhone, do read my earlier article, Technology: iPhone 4 Failed-Downgrade Rescue Tutorial (without SHSH) and learn how to back up your SHSH blob, just in case.


http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/10/technology-iphone-4-failed-downgrade.html

And once again, Jailbreaking is LEGAL, otherwise, there won't be so many legal jailbreak websites, and legal hackers around and are not caught.


Don't forget to "Like" the entry and the English Playground

Resources:
Jailbreak iOS 5.0.1 Untethered On iPhone, iPad, iPod touch (A4 Devices) Now Using Redsn0w 0.9.10b1 / Corona [Video Tutorial] @ Redmond Pie
http://www.redmondpie.com/jailbreak-5.0.1-untethered-on-iphone-ipad-ipod-touch-a4-devices-now-using-redsn0w-0.9.10b1-corona/


iOS 5.0.1 UNTETHERED Jailbreak for iPhone 4 / 3GS, iPod touch 4, iPad 1 @ YouTube
http://youtu.be/HiH1yRkcIFE

Technology: iPhone 4 Failed-Downgrade Rescue Tutorial (without SHSH) @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/10/technology-iphone-4-failed-downgrade.html

Travelling & Living: Day 1 in Taipei

Image from Locky's English Playground

Hi all! Hope you all had a lovely Christmas! 

I went to Taipei for holidays for the first time and it was really fun! First thing I like about going to Taiwan is the duration of the flight. It took only 1.5 hours on a small plane, and 1 hour 15 minutes on a large one! Amazingly quick! I love it!

People. They make an airline.
Image from Locky's English Playground

This is also the first time my Canon 7D-cum-24-105mm f/4.0-5.6 L is travelling with me, so this trip is a real test for its performance. And it turns out that my new camera has not disappointed me. In fact, it performed so well that I actually think my photography skills have improved with the familiarity of this camera.

Image from Locky's English Playground

My first impression of Taipei is that the Taoyuan airport isn't big and it looks pretty old, definitely nothing like the one in Hong Kong; the streets look very much like mainland China; the MRT (train systems) stations have a design which look almost exactly like those in Singapore, kept giving me a deja vu every time I took the trains; cars and motorbikes use low quality petrol or non-catalytic exhaust pipes which stink the place every time a vehicle drives past, despite these, there are many things very charming about Taipei.

Stone at the entrance
Image from Locky's English Playground

Number 1, it is the scenery at the Hot Spring Valley of Beitou.

First glimpse of the Hot Spring Valley
Image from Locky's English Playground

As an island on the Pacific Ring of Fire, it is reasonable to have real hot springs across the entire Taiwan, and thus, the spectacular rush of continuous steam and sulphurous gases from the hot spring.

Image from Locky's English Playground

The hot spring water flows down from the mountain across the entire hot spring hotels region as shown in the photo below.

Hot spring stream
Image from Locky's English Playground

Hot steam
Image from Locky's English Playground

Hot steam and gases rushes through every openings of the sewage! Remarkable!

Hot spring signs
Image from Locky's English Playground

A taste of the Japanese culture can be seen easily from the colonial architectural elements, such as the hot spring symbol above on a bridge across the stream.

Stream of hot spring
Image from Locky's English Playground

Simplistic design of lamp covers
Image from Locky's English Playground

Model of an artist's lodge
Image from Locky's English Playground

There is no reason to be bored as there are museums, a library and parks for you to spend good relaxing time learning the history of Beitou and immerse yourself into the quietness of the natural environment.

Beitou Hot Spring Musuem
Image from Locky's English Playground

Abandoned hot spring inside the Hot Spring Museum
Image from Locky's English Playground

Do note that the museum closes at 5pm, but the library opens till late at night, so if you want to spend more time in the museum, you must not do your shopping first.

Green Natural environment
Image from Locky's English Playground

It was really a great idea to spend the first day of the trip, what's more, the hot spring hotel has a hot comfy hot spring bath waiting for me.

Mites? Bye bye!

Don't forget to "Like" the entry and the English Playground

Vocabulary:

deja vu -- (n)[U] the strange feeling that in some way you have experienced already what is happening now

Pacific Ring of Fire -- (n) [U] is an area where large numbers of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur in the basin of the Pacific Ocean.

sulphurous -- (adj) from sulphur a pale yellow element which exists in various physical forms. It burns with a blue flame and a strong smell and is used in medicine and industry.

sewage -- (n) [U] the system of carrying away waste water and human waste from houses and other buildings through large underground pipes or passages

remarkable -- (adj) unusual or special and therefore surprising and worth mentioning

immerse -- (vb) [R] to become completely involved in something

comfy -- (adj) informal for comfortable

Resources:
Cathay Pacific Official website
http://www.cathaypacific.com/cpa/en_INTL/homepage


Pacific Ring of Fire @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Ring_of_Fire

Medical & Vocabulary : Heat Rash and Bug Bites @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2010/08/medical-vocabulary-heat-rash-and-bug.html

Medical & TV: Scabies, Monsters Inside Me & solutions -- Part 1 @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2011/08/medical-tv-scabies-monsters-inside-me.html

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/deja-vu?q=deja+vu
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sulphur?q=sulphurous+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sewage?q=sewage+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/remarkable?q=remarkable+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/immerse?q=immerse+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/comfy?q=comfy+