And it can be quite fun! — Graduate schools are expensive. According to this article in U.S. News, a two-year full-time graduate program can cost $100,000; more if you’re thinking about a Ph.D. …

Graduate school is expensive, but believe it or not, there’s a way to not only afford it but also get paid for it — First, let me briefly tell you about my personal journey to my Ph.D. Hopefully, it gives you an idea about what it takes, and what you might be able to do if you want a Ph.D. with a limited budget too. When I arrived in Hawaii for college, I had…

Another perspective to see sexual crimes and victim blaming — Note: For some reason, all of my writings about sexism or rape culture are unpopular. If I were a bit smarter, I probably should have avoided this topic. Well, guess I’m not smart. Somebody has to say something about it. Injustice can’t be ignored; that’s just not me. [Chu News…

What do we do when media polarization is so strong? — [Chu News — Life, Politics, News / Mark Chu] A while ago I was in a meeting with a few students and colleagues. Someone asked a question about what we should do when media is presenting conflicting messages, that the polarization makes things so confusing. A colleague right away responded…

Death is just a transformation — [Chu News — Life / Mark Chu] I would like to quickly talk about a famous poem, Immortality, published in 1934 by Clare Harner. She wrote it after her brother’s sudden death. Do not stand By my grave, and weep. I am not there, I do not sleep — I…

Am I the only one who sees this song as a love that shouldn’t happen? A tragedy? — [Chu News — Life, Music, Entertainment / Mark Chu] Barbra Streisand is a superstar in the music and movie industry with countless songs and films, but if you ask me which of her songs impresses me the most, I probably will say Woman in Love. It was written by two…

It’s WAY MORE than a love story — [Chu News — Life, Music, Entertainment / Mark Chu, Taiwan] Have you ever thought about a world with only you and the one you’re deeply in love with, that no one else exists for some reason? Maybe you’ll ask: “Where in the world?” or “What kind of world?” And that…

You really think we have a chance? Think again — (You might think these stars are very close. They are, in fact, very, very far apart from each other; so far apart we can’t even start to imagine) [Chu News — Life, Entertainment, Science / Mark Chu] My half-sisters were born when I was 15 and 16. I didn’t get…

A pianist, and a giant in music we always remember — George Winston [Chu News — Life, Music / Mark Chu] When I was in high school, one day I came home to an old piano. Mom bought it from someone. I was so happy I almost fell to the floor. I was always curious about this instrument. I picked up…