1.0  History of the development of Lawrence Tseung – the Formative Years

 

I shall start the story of Mr. Lawrence Tseung (abbreviated to ‘Tseung’) from his formative years.  Tseung was born into a reasonably well-to-do family.  He has four brothers and three sisters.  He is the fifth in this group of eight children.  There was nothing unusual about him in his primary school days or before the age of twelve.  His story begins with his entering Secondary School at Wah Yan College, Kowloon.  Wah Yan College was a Catholic, boy’s-only school run by Jesuit priests from Ireland.   Tseung told me that in his first physics lesson, the teacher asked him: “What is the shortest distance between two points?”

 

Tseung stood up in front of the class.  He thought that he knew the answer but he could not utter a single word.  The teacher was very encouraging and drew two points on the blackboard.  The teacher said: “Can you draw the shortest path between these two points?”  Tseung drew a line joining the two points.  The teacher said, “Correct. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line”.  The class applauded and Tseung fell in love with physics from that instance.

 

Tseung was red-faced when he stood there not uttering a word.  His mind told him that the question was easy but he could not find the words.  If his classmates jeered him then, he could have lost all interest in physics.  The simple but important act from the teacher turned the shy, red-faced boy into a dedicated physicist for life.  The educators often ignore these small acts in school and in life.  Budding innovators need such encouragement.

 

Figure 1-1  Tseung drawing a straight line joining two points in his first Physics lesson.    The straight line represents the shortest distance between the two points.  The hint and encouragement from the teacher made Tseung love Physics for life.    Can educators learn something?

 

Another very important small act which affected the development of Tseung was the advice from his Home Room Teacher.  The teacher was a graduate from England.  He said, “There is no way that I can give proper attention to every one of you (The size of the class was 40 then).  I propose that you form yourselves into groups of four or five and help each other”.

 

Obediently, Tseung got a group of four.  They stayed after school doing homework or played ball together.  They never let academic questions or difficulties linger on for more than a day.  One of them was likely to come up with the answer.  They approached the teachers on the rare occasions that all four of them failed to come up with the answer.  School was fun.  They challenged and helped each other.  This group-learning technique should be promoted where possible.  The Tseung group was successful but many other groups did not turn out so well.  They either broke up after quarrels or became ineffective.  A good thing might not always work with different people or in different environments.

 

Figure 1-2 Tseung and team doing group  study after class.  Each student explains  the same stuff to others.  The lesson is  effectively recited four times. No questions  or doubts are left unanswered.  Should such a group learning technique be  introduced into the school system?

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    I believe educators should think through the group-learning technique and develop models for our students.  Innovative ideas may not always work.  But if they are not tried, we shall never know.  They do not need to be perfect.  They do not need to work for everyone.  It is like medicine.  Some may not need it.  Some may benefit from it.  It may not be the cure for everything.  But a good teacher or school should have a full range of such medicine or educational techniques.  I tried this technique myself with three other students.  We all mastered the very difficult concept of designing the magneto propulsion unit (MPU) in less than 30 minutes.  When there was uncertainty, we initially asked each other questions.  But after the four rounds of repeated discussions, the design was very clear.   (b)   What can you suggest to improve the educational system in your area?  List five things.  Discuss them with your friends or post them on the Internet.  Start on the path of becoming innovative.  There is no hurry to finish reading the rest of this book.  This book is meant to be studied.

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1.1  The punch bag at age 12

 

Boys are boys.  In Hong Kong, there were many places that one could learn Chinese Boxing.  The relative of one of the team members worked in one of these places.  Tseung and his colleagues went there full of excitement.  There were various pieces of equipment.  One of them was a heavy punch bag hanging from the ceiling.  Tseung and his colleagues punched it in turn.  The punch bag hardly moved.  Tseung then pushed the bag a couple of times.  It swung with a larger and larger angle.  Being a naughty boy, Tseung deliberately stood in the path of the swing and let the punch bag hit him.  The impact really stung him.  He fell on the floor after a couple of staggering steps.

 

 

Tseung’s first impression was that – the force hitting him could not have come from the few pushes that he gave the punch bag.  The force was too powerful.  They discussed this amongst themselves.  They had just started learning Newton’s Laws.  The concept of force, displacement, momentum, work and energy were fresh in their memory.  Tseung said that there was something more than his pushes.  It was his gut feel.  The other team members laughed.  Some of them repeated the experience and became half convinced.  Others joked: “You just get knocked silly by the punch bag!”  They were deadlocked and so decided to consult their physics teacher.  The physics teacher said, “It is indeed the energy you supplied added together.  There is nothing mysterious about it”.  Tseung grudgingly accepted the explanation then.  If Tseung had refused to accept the explanation and worked on the mathematics, the Lee-Tseung Lead-Out theory could have been discovered forty years earlier.  In hindsight, any secondary school physics student could have worked out the physics and mathematics of the Lee-Tseung Lead-Out theory.

 

Tseung compared this incident to that of picking up a piece of diamond without recognizing it.  If he had applied the mathematics and physics knowledge which he had mastered at that time, he might have realized it’s significance.  Tseung compared that process with the polishing of diamonds.  We all get our share of luck in our lifetime.  Most of us just drop the opportunity.  Newton was not the first nor the only person who saw things dropping to the ground.  Lee Cheung Kin was not the first, nor the only person who pushed a swing or a pendulum.  What made Newton develop the Laws of Motion?  What made Lee develop the Lead-Out energy theory with Tseung?

 

Figure 1- 4  We all pick up diamonds from time  to time in our lifetime.  How many of us would  recognize them?  Is this book a diamond that will change your life  and the life of billions around the World?  Lee Cheung Kin stared at the pendulum toy and  discovered the Lee-Tseung Lead Out theory.  Can you distinguish a diamond (brilliant idea)  from a piece of broken glass?

 

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    The moral of the story is that we all have opportunities to pick up unpolished diamonds (or brilliant ideas) in our lifetime.  What kind of training or stimulus should be provided so that we, the average people, can polish such diamonds (develop such brilliant ideas into useful things)?   (b)   The simple act of pushing a swing must have been done for thousands of years by millions of individuals.  Associating that to extracting energy from gravity involves a link not previously noticed even by the famous scientists.  Even after detailed explanations, many are still doubtful.  Some will have to see working prototypes generating electricity in front of them before they can be convinced.    (c)    We have been brainwashed into thinking that perpetual-motion machines are not possible.  Lee and Tseung introduced a new concept of Lead-Out-Energy machines.  If we accept it as new like the average secondary school student, we can accept and understand it easily.  If we lump it or classify it together with the discredited over unity machines like some patent examiners or engineers, we shall have problems in accepting it.   (d)   There are many pre-conceptions and beliefs passed on to us from a young age.  We accepted them without questions.  Religion and tradition are obvious examples.  When I saw the lady runner from Bahrain wrapped herself up in her religious athletic outfit, I knew that established ideas and customs die hard.  Many see Lee and Tseung as trying to contradict the Sacred Law of Conservation of Energy.  I now see that it is a logical process in re-examining all values when  society progresses.   (e)    Which rule or custom will you re-examine first?

 

1.2  Presenting at the Aviation Club of Wah Yan College

 

The other incident that has lasting effect on the innovative development of Tseung was his involvement with the Aviation Club at Wah Yan College.

 

One of the Jesuit priests, the late Father Cunningham, was selected by the USA Navy to say Mass at their warships, including aircraft carriers when these warships stopped over at Hong Kong.  Father Cunningham selected some boys to help him.  Two of them happened to be members of the Tseung team.  The boys were obviously excited about their experience and shared their stories – including some pictures of the different aircraft.

 

Figure 1-5  Boys showing the pictures of aircraft they took at the US aircraft carriers.  They became the envy of the class.  It was also the start of the Aviation Club.  Tseung believes that the existing aerodynamic theory is wrong in the treatment  of pressure of fluids in motion.  Pressure should not be a scalar quantity.  Pressure  is not even a vector quantity.  Pressure should have six different values in the  Px, P-x, Py, P-y, Pz, P-z  directions.

 

At that time, Wah Yan College was promoting additional activities outside school hours.  The school supplied support in terms of use of classrooms, library books and promotion of such activities.  The idea of forming an Aviation Club was accepted.

 

Tseung was assigned the task of explaining how aircraft can fly to the Aviation Club members.  That subject was not taught in secondary school physics then.  Tseung went to the City Library and discovered some good information in Encyclopedia Britannica.  It was the first time he stepped outside his school to get information.  Nowadays, we can sit in the comfort of our home and hit a few keys at the computer.  Back then, Tseung and his friends had to take a bus to the Public Library and wrote down as much information as possible.  Incidentally, Encyclopedias were not allowed to be taken out from the Library.

 

Tseung spent many hours copying.  The two most important experiments he learned from the Encyclopedia were:

(1)   Blowing air in between two sheets of paper.  Instead of flying part, the two sheets of paper would come together and then separate.  The action would repeat - making a loud flapping sound.  The explanation was that when the air was in motion, the pressure it exerted on the sides would decrease.  The stationary air on top of the top sheet and at the bottom of the bottom sheet would then press the sheets together.  When the sheets were pressed together, the airflow temporarily stopped.  The additional air blowing in would force the two sheets apart.  The airflow would again lower the sideways pressure.  The process would repeat and produce the flapping sound. 

 

Figure 1-6  The two sheets of paper would come together and then separate.  The action would repeat and produce a loud flapping sound.

 

(2)   Blowing air over the top surface of a sheet of paper.  The paper would rise up to the horizontal level.  The explanation was that the pressure of the flowing air would be less than the static pressure of air at the bottom of the sheet.  Thus the static pressure at the bottom surface would push the paper up.  Tseung even quoted that as the Bernoulli’s equation.

 

Figure 1-7  The sheet of paper would rise up. The pressure of the flowing air on top will be less.  The static pressure of stationary air at bottom pushes up.  Classic explanation of how planes fly.

 

The presentation was done with some teachers and higher-level students present.  They gave standing ovation afterwards.  Tseung, then in Form 2 became a mini hero.  The many hours of hard work were worth it.

 

One of the questions raised by a higher-level student was – pressure was a scalar quantity and had no direction.  The explanation by Tseung associating pressure with direction was faulty.  The physics teacher commented that even though the Tseung explanation was not perfect, such an effort from a thirteen-year-old was commendable.

 

That question of pressure as a scalar quantity remained as a shadow in the mind of Tseung.  He took it up at BSc and then at MSc level at University.  He believed he finally understood it after he completed his Kinetic Theory of Gases in Motion after his retirement some 40 years later.  This topic of Kinetic Theory of Gases in Motion will be covered in a later chapter and will have important impact in aerodynamics and Flying Saucers.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    The moral of this story is that one can pick up knowledge from channels other than schools.  Never make the excuse of “this has not been taught yet”.  If something is important, learn it.  Another important moral is – you must be absolutely clear on every detail.  If one detail is fuzzy, it may be the diamond waiting to be polished.   (b)   I always find the interchanging of vector and scalar quantities puzzling.  Pressure is force divided by area.  Force definitely has direction.  Why would the division by area take away the direction element?  Can scientists be wrong for centuries?  Do we have to introduce a new thing for pressure?  Do we need to consider the pressure of a moving fluid as having six directional elements?  Do we really need to consider Px. P-x, Py, P-y, Pz and P-z?  Are the existing textbooks on fluid mechanics wrong?   (c)    If someone comes to me and claims that “pressure as taught in fluid mechanics” is wrong, my first reaction is to send him away.  If this someone is the now celebrated Tseung, my reaction will be different.  The same words presented by different individuals will have different impact.   (d)   Do you think that pressure should have a directional element?  Is this a piece of unpolished diamond for you?

 

1.3  The Winning of the Logical Thinking Challenge

 

The incident that made Tseung think that he was special was the winning of the Logical Thinking Challenge.  During one of those periods after the school examination and before the teachers finish marking the examination papers, the teachers and students were allowed “free time” to discuss non-textbook related topics.  One of the teachers gave the following logical thinking challenge.

 

In this challenge, there were three very bright students.  There were five hats.  Three hats were red and two hats were yellow.  A student could see the color of the hats of the other two students but not his own.  The students were asked to logically deduce the color of his hat.

 

In the challenge, many students said that they simply guessed.  The chance of guessing right was 50%.  The teacher said that that was not good enough.  He mentioned something like the logic of elimination.  Most other students did not know what that means.  Tseung had the inspiration to imagine that he saw two yellow hats.  He thought, “If I see two yellow hats, the hat on my head must be red”.  He then paused and thought, “If I see one yellow hat and one red hat, how should I react?”

 

The logical answer was to stare at the student with the red hat.  If that student saw two yellow hats, he would have screamed that he was wearing a red hat.  If all the three students were bright and they all remain silent for some time, the chance of any of the students seeing one red hat and one yellow hat would be low.  Thus the logical deduction is that Tseung was wearing a red head.

 

The teacher explained that this was a special branch of logic.  One saw two red hats.  But one should step back and assumed that one saw two yellow hats!  Sometimes we had to ignore what our eyes saw and to imagine the various possibilities.  For example, if we saw some hungry children, the obvious solution was to try to find food for them.  We might even blame their parents or drought etc.  We might easily overlook the deeper reasons of ignorance in agricultural technology or in resource distribution.

 

When Tseung met that challenge, his teacher and his classmates used the term genius on him.  He developed the feeling that he was intellectually above others.  He was motivated to meet challenges.  One example was to do the most difficult problems in the mathematics textbooks and in the previous public examination papers. That inner confidence remained with him for the rest of his life.

 

He was also willing to imagine things that did not happen or have not happened yet.  Much of the economic views later on in life were from such assumptions or imaginations.  Some people called him a dreamer but they also accepted that there was always logic in his dreams.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    Achieving something special is one of the biggest confidence builders.  For example, if one wins a gold medal in Olympics, one will never feel inferior. Can we provide opportunities for our youngsters to achieve the impossible?  Should we provide mini-obstacles?  Should we provide major hurdles?  Should we provide both?   (b)   Should we make a student feel superior and become an innovator – willing to explore the unknown?  Should we emphasize teamwork and equality - no one should be above others?  We know that China is successful and wins many gold medals in Olympics because it has special schools for its athletes.  Should we have special schools for our innovators?  Would summer camps be enough?   (c)    I think that encouragement is like giving a tennis racquet to a youngster and saying: “You may become a tennis champion someday”.  The act of giving the tennis racquet is a good encouragement.  But we must have the follow-up action of many hours of coaching, playing, competing, etc.  The Educators must think through all the steps to train the innovators.  A single innovator can potentially change the entire world.   (d)   Can you dream up one idea that can change the World?  Can you dream up one idea that can change your family?  Can you dream up one idea that can change your future?

 

1.4 The first hint that History taught in different Countries is different

 

After Tseung passed the Hong Kong School Certificate Examination, he went to England to join his brothers for continued education.  Hong Kong was a British Colony at that time.  There was a general conception or misconception that the educational system in England was very much superior to that of Hong Kong.  Many wealthy families sent their children aboard to increase their worth.  The Chinese saying at that time was – one needed to dip in seawater if one wanted to succeed in the high society.  Tseung’s family was no exception.

 

At the interview with the Headmaster of the Sutton Grammar School, Tseung did miserably.  He could not present a confident Tseung.  He uttered and sweated.  When the Headmaster asked him whether he was confident in continuing his education in the esteemed school, Tseung tried to be humble and said, “I shall try my best”.  Tseung should have learned that in any interview, he ought to show his absolute best.  The Headmaster then placed Tseung with the Transistors.  Transistors were basically Form 5 Students who did well and might have passed one or two O-level examinations.

 

In England, a Secondary School Student could take an O-level examination for one or more subjects before his Fifth Form graduation, while in Hong Kong at that time, the average student was required to take examinations in eight or nine subjects at the same time.  The O-level examinations in England were conducted every six months.

 

Within weeks, Tseung realized that he was effectively repeating his fifth form studies.  He was too timid to approach the headmaster.  Instead, he applied to take both O-level and A-level examinations at the earliest opportunity which was three months after he joined the school.  He chose five O-level science subjects and A-level Chinese.  The result shocked the headmaster.  Every subject including A-level Chinese were awarded Distinction (the top grade).  Tseung then applied to take A-level Pure Mathematics to complete the minimum University requirement of five O-level and two A-level subjects.  The headmaster allowed Tseung to take A-level Pure Mathematics classes and to skip the O-level Classes totally.

 

Within weeks, Tseung was the top in the A-Level Pure Mathematics class.  He studied on his own and learned the topics well before the teacher taught them in class.  He became argumentative and did not make any friends.  The incident that caused dissension was the discussion of why Hong Kong became a British Colony.

 

When Tseung was in Hong Kong, he learned that Hong Kong was ceded to England as a result of the opium war.  England sold opium to China.  China wanted to stop that.  China seized and burnt the opium.  England then sent the navy and defeated the Ching Army.  Hong Kong was ceded to England as a result.  Tseung got into an argument with the English students.  The English students said that their history textbooks never mentioned opium.  England just needed a port so that their merchants could rest on their world trade.  Tseung then read their history books.  The English students were right.  Opium was never mentioned.  They then went to see the English teacher.

 

The English teacher said, “England is a noble nation.  England never traded and will never trade something evil like opium.  It is all communist propaganda”.

 

It was a big shock to Tseung.  He started to lose confidence in authority.  The textbooks meant nothing.  They did not always contain the truth.  The winners wrote history.  They wrote their point of view.  They could omit any fact or incident.  They could interpret whatever they wanted.  This point of view affected Tseung immensely.  He started to doubt the authorities.  His doubts spread to Economics textbooks and then later to Science textbooks.  He never believed in politicians and economists.  Later in life, when President George Bush invaded Iraq on the false CIA information that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, Tseung publicly objected.  He went back to Hong Kong and China as a protest.  

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    One of the biggest obstacles to innovation was the blind acceptance of so-called truth.  The most famous story was Galileo claiming that the Earth was round.  The authority at that time was the Church who claimed that the Earth was flat.  The Pope was supposed to be infallible.  His words were undeniable truths as God guided him.   (b)   Tseung faced similar obstacles when he first presented the Lee-Tseung Lead-Out Theory.  Some scientists and patent examiners dismissed him totally.  They blindly quoted the Law of Conservation of Energy.  Some of the juicy discussions can be seen in the over-unity discussion forum under the Lee-Tseung Lead-Out theory thread (http://www.overunity.com).     (c)    Should we always present history from the two different points of view – that of the winner and that of the loser?  How would such textbooks be different from the ones used in schools today?   (d)   Innovators will step into uncharted territories for the rest of us.  How should we equip them?  Should we just send them in empty-handed and just say ‘good luck’?  Or should we equip them with the best tools and the best backup support?  What are these tools and what is the backup support?   (e)    Have you ever viewed the USA history from the point of view of the Red Indians? Have you ever questioned the doctrine of survival of the fittest?  Do you think that it is a natural law that will be passed to future generations?  Is building happiness on the sufferings of others inevitable?

1.5  The Road to University

 

When the A-level results came out, Tseung got a Credit in his A-Level Pure Mathematics.  In other words, he already fulfilled the University Entrance requirement.  He could apply to Universities.  He got help from his eldest brother who got his PhD from Leeds University.  An incident convinced his eldest brother that Tseung was worth helping.

 

In summer that year, Tseung worked as a student assistant in the research laboratory of his eldest brother.  Tseung was under a different department to avoid the suspicion of conflict of interest.  The manager was hoping to develop an apparatus that could deliver hydrogen with some pressure on demand.  Available to the chemists was the Kipp’s apparatus as shown in Figure 1-8.

 

 

Hydrogen could be produced when an acid such as sulphuric acid reacts with a suitable metal such as Zinc metal fragments (Zn + H₂SO₄ = ZnSO₄ +H₂)

 

The standard Kipp’s apparatus has essentially three chambers. Zinc metal fragments are placed into the middle chamber.  Sulphuric acid can be poured in from the top chamber to the bottom chamber.  If the valve in the middle chamber is open, the acid level will rise until the acid immerses the solid.  Hydrogen will then be produced.  If the valve in the middle chamber is closed, the generated hydrogen gas will force the acid into the bottom and top chambers.  This effectively separates the sulphuric acid and the zinc.  The chemical reaction will be stopped.  It effectively generates hydrogen on-demand and has been used in chemistry laboratories for centuries.

 

The manager wanted to have hydrogen gas on demand with a controllable small pressure.  He left the task to the young Tseung.  Tseung first experimented with the standard Kipp’s apparatus. Within days, he came up with the following simple design.

 

Figure 1-9  The Tseung modification of  the Kipp’s apparatus.  In the diagram:    A = valve to let out hydrogen  B = hydrogen gas produced  C = Zinc strips for chemical reaction  D = Sulpheric Acid  E = Air that can be compressed  F = Air pressure control device

 

The manager was impressed.  He asked: “How can you come with such a design so quickly?”  Tseung said: “It is essentially the Kipp’s apparatus with a lid.  I just played with different arrangements to make it look nice”.  The manger was willing to write an excellent letter of recommendation.  Tseung’s eldest brother took the letter of recommendation and spoke to his former professors at Leeds University.  Tseung was accepted.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    Tseung did not get the normal two years of A-Level education.  He developed the attitude that he could learn on his own.  The small Kipp’s apparatus project gave him much inner confidence.  I believe this inner confidence is the key to training innovators.  Innovators must be able to search and discover their own solutions.   (b)   Learning from teachers or textbooks is useful.  But teachers or textbooks present known solutions.  Innovations involve the domain of the unknown.  Maybe we should have a collection of unknown or unsolved phenomena to stimulate our budding innovators.   (c)    With the internet and multimedia readily available, do we have to adhere to the traditional model of a teacher presenting the material in front of the students?     Can a teacher assign teaching roles and encourage the students to learn from the    internet and present in class?   (d)   List five things that you learned outside regular schools.  Are there things that should be taught outside regular schools?

 

1.6  The University Years

 

This gave Tseung supreme confidence.  Tseung was very active at Leeds University.  He became the secretary of the Chinese Society and helped to organize many functions.  There were many overseas Chinese Students including those from Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Africa and Macau.  During the many long holidays when the local students went home to their families, these overseas students gathered together to have fun.

 

The Chinese Society at Leeds took in many non-Chinese members.  One important motive in welcoming non-Chinese members was the need for good basketball players.  There were two Chinese basketball players who were good enough to represent the University.  They helped to motivate and train a team to compete within the University.  The team was runner-up in the competition.  The decision was to invite good basketball players to represent the Chinese Society.  One black American joined.  Tseung could only play reserve.  He was not tall enough and could not move fast enough.  The games he enjoyed more were tennis and table tennis.  Once the Chinese Society Team had foreign help, the championship was in the bag.

 

Figure 1-10  The International Spirit   When the Chinese Society at Leeds University opened its membership to other Nationals, it won the basketball champions.   Tseung learned to appreciate the slogan “One World One Dream” at an early age.  This helped to mode him to have an International Outlook.

 

The other important factor that helped the Chinese Society to be more International was that Leeds University had a Chinese Department.  The students loved to find native Chinese speaking students to practice their Chinese language skills.  They sat at the same table at lunch or dinner.  Many became members.  Many smaller societies such as Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam also had joint functions with the larger Chinese Society.  The candle dance at the International Night was a big hit.  It was a combined effort of many Asian Societies.

 

Figure 1-11  Candle Dance   The Candle Dance was a combined effort of many Nationals.  They rehearsed for weeks.  They combined the features or traditions from China, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Eastern Europe etc.  It was the jewel of the International Night at Leeds University.

 

The Chinese Society at Leeds University then held joint functions with other Chinese Societies from the Universities of Manchester, Liverpool, etc.  There was both encouragement and support from the various embassies.  That helped Tseung to develop an international outlook of the World.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    University education is not just about book knowledge.  It involves the social interaction of many others.  Education abroad gives the student a chance to interact with students from many other nations.  I believe that this should be encouraged.    (b)   With unlimited energy, flying saucers and automation, the world needs fewer farmers, factory workers and laborers.  Can we provide longer educational years for our citizens?   (c)    Have you taken tours outside your city?  Have you become more tolerant towards the strange food, habits and culture of other nations?  Are there any habits that ought to be changed?  Can they be changed via mutual credits, model farms, model villages, etc?

 

I asked Tseung the question – How would he improve the education system in Hong Kong if he were given the chance?  Recently, the Hong Kong Educational system was in turmoil.  There was a loss of confidence in the academic qualification of the teachers.  Many claimed that some of the teachers were not qualified.  The blame was placed on the Teacher Training Colleges.  There was a Government Policy to promote the use of native language in teaching.  That led to a classification of English and Chinese speaking secondary schools.  The Chinese speaking secondary schools were made to feel inferior.  The English language skills on the whole dropped as measured by the open School Examination System. This official classification policy would end because of the violent objection from the students, parents and educators.

 

Tseung presented the following innovative answer.  He said, “In the old days before the internet, we relied on the teachers to pass the knowledge to the students.  With the multimedia technology and internet of today, that particular role can be modified.  The Government can promote the teaching of the standard course material in multiple languages.  The recommended textbooks can have CDs with the same material presented in English, Cantonese and Putonghua.  The teachers, students and parents can decide on which language to use.  They may even use multiple languages”.

 

Tseung continued: “To be realistic, much of the material can be learned by the student on an individual bases via the internet.  Some students can move ahead much faster than the others.  The role of the teacher will start to change from that of presenting the material to ensuring the digestion of the material.  Techniques such as small group learning can be introduced.  It may even be beneficial to have student groups to teach some topics to the rest of the class.  That will build the lifelong confidence in the average student that he can learn either by himself or in a small group.  Hong Kong Government tries to promote lifelong learning.  The best way to develop these skills and habits is when people are young”.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    The cost of providing excellent course material in multiple languages on CDs is relatively low compared with the cost of re-educating all teachers.  There can be multiple recommended versions of the course material available on the internet.  The Government can easily fund such material.  The Government can help to produce educational programs or techniques that show improvement or innovation.  Some of the best teachers can earn extra money by appearing in such programs.   (b)   There is no need to force schools to follow the new path.  They will move in that direction automatically if positive results are demonstrated.

1.7  The Kinetic Theory of Gases in Motion

 

In the final year at Leeds University, one of the assignments set for the students was to write a paper on a subject of their choice.  Tseung chose the topic of explaining pressure and aerodynamics using the kinetic theory of gases in motion.

 

The standard kinetic theory of gases is taught in both Physics and Chemistry lessons in connection with the gas laws.  Boyle’s Laws states that for a fixed amount of gas kept at a fixed temperature, P and V are inversely proportional. Charles’ Law states that for a fixed amount of gas kept at constant pressure, T and V are directly proportional to each other. (P=Pressure, V=Volume, T=Temperature).

 

The kinetic theory of gases assumes that the molecules of an ideal gas are small and are in constant motion.  They collide elastically with each other and with the walls of the container.  Pressure at the surface of a container is a result of the rate of change of momentum of these molecular collisions.  (P = 1/3 NMV²).  Pictorially, the pressure of a stationary gas can be viewed as:

 

 

If we can get more balls moving in the X direction, there will fewer balls moving or colliding in the Y and Z directions.  For example, if there were 15 balls moving in the +X direction and if the remaining balls are equally distributed in the other 5 directions, the number of balls moving in the +Y direction would be:   (60 – 15) / 5 = 9.

 

If only 9 balls move or collide with the wall in the +Y direction, the pressure will be less than that compared with 10 balls.  This mental picture (Figure 1-12) is easy to understand and explains why pressure in the directions perpendicular to motion can decrease.

 

 

Tseung used the above concept to explain why the pressure of a moving gas could be lower in the direction perpendicular to the direction of motion.  The Laws of Physics are not violated.  The new thing which he proposed is that pressure should not be viewed as a simple scalar quantity.  It is also not the standard vector quantity with 3 directions.  It should have 6 directions in general (P_x, P_-x, P_y, P_-y, P_z, P_-z).

 

Tseung also used this simple theory to explain Bernoulli’s principle and the Coander effect.  The Coander effect is the tendency of a moving gas to move parallel to a surface if the angle is not too great.  It can be used to enhance lift.

 

Tseung achieved the nickname of “Flying Saucer Tseung” because he started to apply his knowledge of physics to the design of Flying Saucers.  Tseung assumed that a Flying Saucer could operate in space where there was no air.  The normal aerodynamics could not apply, as there was no air.  All changes in speed or direction needed to come from engine power.  At that time, the Harrier jump jet, which can take off and land vertically, was being developed.  However, the jump jet still needs the oxygen in the air as part of the combustion process.  Tseung argued that a sideways thrust could provide the necessary centripetal force to turn the Flying Saucer sharply including 180 degree turns without lowering its speed.  The only problems at that time were fuel and engine power.  The problems were solved some 35 years later.  Tseung talked about this freely.  He had a chance to talk to a famous child actress Miss Po Po Fung in London (who is still famous in Hong Kong as a mature actress).  Miss Fung wanted more education and envied those with a good university education.  Tseung was the opposite.  He adored the actresses in their ability to perform on stage and their confidence in daily conversations.  Miss Fung used the ‘Flying Saucer Tseung’ nickname in her conversation with Tseung and was very friendly.

 

Figure 1-14  A Flying Saucer   Tseung assumed that an UFO or a Flying Saucer could operate in space where there was no air.  The normal aerodynamics could not be applied. However, the complete theory was worked out after his early retirement with the help from a 13 years-old girl.

 

The graduating students circulated the Kinetic Theory and the Flying Saucer papers and discussed them heatedly amongst themselves.  The models were simple and obeyed the Laws of Physics.  However the project was just one of the requirements for graduation and most of the students focused their energies on their own assignments.  The professor was impressed and took Tseung to see the Head of the Physics Department. 

 

The Head of the Department was very encouraging.  He said, “These are very innovative ideas.  However, they are still in their early infancy.  I strongly urge you to continue this line of research”.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    The Kinetic Theory of Gases in Motion is just a mental picture.  In reality, the molecules travel in a much more random fashion.  However, one cannot visualize and deduce much from random pictures.  Tseung used that logical thinking from his Secondary School days to visualize an ordered picture.  Is this genius or is this just innovative thinking?   (b)   Did the subconscious use the Logical Thinking Competition experience?  Imagine motion of molecules that we cannot see.    (c)    You cannot see the molecules.  But can you see the greatly simplified Figures 1-12 and 1-13?  Can you follow the logic?  With whom can you discuss this?

1.8  First job as Physics demonstrator at Hong Kong University

 

Tseung went back to Hong Kong to visit his family.  Tseung’s father said, “I have done my duty to provide you with a university education.  Now you should start looking for a job and support yourself”.  Tseung went to the Physics Department of Hong Kong University and talked to a professor about his kinetic theory of gases in motion.  He got a job offer as a demonstrator that same day.

 

Tseung rented a room for graduates and staff at Ricci Hall of Hong Kong University.  He became good friends with six other graduates.  They called themselves “The Riddi Seven”.  They would spend all night discussing all sorts of topics.  The girl friend of one of them was an editor in the University Magazine (“Spectrum”) and Tseung got his early paper on kinetic theory of gases in motion published there.

 

Unfortunately, the Hong Kong University Library had a fire and the Library was essentially closed.  Tseung had to work in a vacuum.  The internet was not available at that time.  Tseung got himself known by urging others to help clean the soot off the undamaged library books.

 

Tseung got frustrated with the lack of progress of his theory.  There was nobody in the same field with whom he could talk.  He then realized the importance of working in a proper research environment. 

 

After nine months, Tseung decided to gain more experience in the industrial world.  He got a job as a Product Engineer at Fairchild Semiconductors in Hong Kong.  The first assignment was documenting an improved process in Hong Kong after the process was introduced there from the USA.  Tseung was selected because of his good command of both written and spoken English.  The process efficiency was increased 70 times which is 7,000%.  In economic terms, an investor needed to invest US $1,000,000 to do a certain task in the USA.  That same investor needed to invest only US $14,300 to do the same task in Hong Kong.  That huge difference could not be accounted for by the difference in labour cost alone.

 

The first important improvement Tseung found was in the arranging of the diode chips.  The USA process was to have many workers using tiny suction pumps to pick up each chip and line the chips properly on the testing metal plate.  It was very labour intensive and the tiny suction pumps often got clogged up.  The production line used 20 workers working continuously to line up these chips for testing.  In Hong Kong, one single worker working part-time achieved the same result.  The improvement was actually achieved by a young female worker who poured a small amount of chips on the testing plate and used a paper card to arrange the chips and flipped the ones over if they were not correctly faced.  It required delicate hand movement.  Tseung tried it and realized that considerable practice was required.

 

The USA engineer who designed the process made the assumption that the assembly worker would not need any training and could be productive on the first day at work.  Tseung lost half of the test chips on his first try of the Hong Kong improved process.  A young female worker developed that process when the Hong Kong management introduced the “pay by finished pieces” system.  That young female did the work of twenty workers.

 

	Figure 1-15  Process Improvement   The job of 20 laborers was replaced by 1 laborer with an improvement in the production process.  Japan, Hong Kong and China did not just copy the production process.  They examined and improved it.
	Figure 1-16  Worker Satisfaction   The lady-worker did not have University degree.  She was motivated to invent or improve the process because of money. The management introduced pay-by-pieces incentive.

 

Another big improvement in the production process was the placing of the diodes on to racks before processing.  The US process was to have many workers picking up a few diodes and place them into the slots in the rack.  The US production line used 10 workers working full time.  In Hong Kong, one single young female worker could achieve the same result.  She used a permanent magnet on one side of a thick glass plate to pick up the diodes. After a quick, skillful shaking, many diode parts could be slotted into the rack at the same time.  The human hand was used to pick up a few diodes to be placed in the remaining empty slots.

 

The Hong Kong Engineers also contributed.  Diamonds tipped wheels were used to cut the chips into small pieces.  There were many broken bits.  One of the Engineers suggested that the cutting lines should be etched before cutting.  That greatly reduced the loss.

 

Tseung realized that the US engineers who designed the production process might not be perfect.  The hands-on workers and technicians could make many improvements.  He was highly praised and well regarded by his peers.  However, he found that the working hours were extremely long.  There was little time left for researching his kinetic theory of gases in motion.  He then took up a teaching post in a secondary school.

 

Tseung fell in love with a teacher in the same school.  They got married and had a son.  They saved some money and planned further education for Tseung. They had a very memorable experience at their honeymoon.  They chose Macau as the place for their honeymoon.  Macau was and is famous for its casinos.  That was the first visit for both of them to casinos.

 

Tseung, being the scientist, did much research before going to the casino.  He focused on the three dice game.  In the three dice game, one technique was to bet on a single number.  The total number of combinations for 6 numbers on the three dice was 216 (6 x 6 x 6).  The probability of a particular number not appearing was 125 (5 x 5 x 5).  This means that the chance of a particular number appearing once or more was 91 (i.e. 216 -125).&nnbsp; The minimum bet was one dollar.  The maximum bet on the higher minimum bet table was 2,000 dollars.  If he used the stupid ‘double on losing’ strategy, he would have a good chance of winning.  The stupid doubling strategy is to double one’s bet on losing.  He could have 10 chances (1, 2, 4, 8, 15, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024) before he lost his entire betting amount.  The odds of his not winning a single time was 0.004212 (i.e. (125/216)¹⁰).

 

He thought that he could improve his odds more by carefully observing the history of the results at the table.  The dice might not be perfect and a particular number might appear more often than others.  Their goal was to win 100 dollars. 

 

Tseung sat on the betting table cheered on by his bride after determining a particular table showed a higher appearance of the number 6.  He calmly carried his stupid strategy of doubling on losing.  He won a couple of dollars and then he had a run of seven consecutive throws where the 6 did not come up.  The bet was up to 64 dollars.  Tseung began to sweat.  He closed his eyes.  Then he heard his bride screamed.  There was a double 6.  Tseung collected 128 dollars.  The delighted couple went away from the table to celebrate.  They had drinks and laughed.

 

	Figure 1-17  Gambling at Casino   Tseung and bride did much calculating and theoretical analysis before going to the Casino.   When they stuck to the plans, they won.   However, human emotion took over.  They gambled instead of following a mathematical plan.   The result was total loss!
	Figure 1-18  The Short Moment of Joy   When Tseung and bride used their mathematical plans, they won.   They were supposed to leave the gambling table but….
	Figure 1-19  Total Loss   Like many others, the couple had to leave after losing everything.  Human emotions failed them again.

 

The temptation was just too much.  They went back to the gambling tables again.  The dice were changed at the previous table.  So Tseung searched around and found a table with a higher incidence of the number 5.  He used the stupid strategy of doubling again.  The number 5 appeared many times.  Each appearance yielded one dollar to the couple.  They were there for over 3 hours.  The bride became bored.  She took all the winnings that exceeded $100 and said, “Let us have the excitement of one big bet”.  Tseung obliged.  They lost and left the table.

 

The young bride said, “You have to win it back for me.  But don’t take too long”.  Tseung thought that since the number 5 appeared so often, he could start the minimum bet at $100.  Unless there were a successive 5 runs without 5, he could win back $100 (100, 200, 400, 800, 1600).  Predictably, the bad luck occurred.  The couple lost all their money.  The casino operator gave them back a token $10.

 

That was a painful experience.  The couple cut short their honeymoon.  Tseung realized mathematical analysis was one thing.  Human emotion was another.  Many failures in life would not come from lack of planning or knowledge.  They came from emotions.  Unfortunately Tseung had to learn this lesson again and again.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    Scientific reasoning and mathematics often fail when emotions get involved.  Humans need to have fun.  What is the point of living if there is no fun?  We often do silly and illogical things because they are fun.  Men laugh at women spending time shopping for unnecessary stuff.  Women laugh at men glued to the Television sports programs.   (b)   Innovators also have emotions.   (c)    This is the most stupid way of gambling.  If a table keeps coming up with 6s, I would have bet heavily on the number 6.  Tseung is a stupid gambler.  He does not know how to use opportunity.  I am better than he in this aspect.   (d)   This brings up one important observation in life.  When two persons see the same phenomena (higher occurrence of the number 6), one uses the stupid doubling on losing technique.  The other may use the same bet or double on winning technique.  They may argue on the relative merits.  In reality both may lose because of their greed.  Their human emotions will cause their downfall.   (e)    A casino operator once said, “Most people lose their money before they leave my casino.  If they win, they stay.  I do not really care what strategy they used.  They will not be able to overcome the human greed”.   (f)     List three situations that your emotion failed you.  If you have a chance to re-experience such situations, what would you do?

 

1.9  M.Sc. experience at Southampton University

 

Tseung applied for a MSc course in Aeronautics at Southampton University with a draft of his theory of kinetic theory of gases in motion and was accepted.  He had some financial help from his parents.  He found that he was still short of HK $20,000.  He had a good friend, the late Mr. Edward Lau, who taught him how to play Mahjong at the age of 10.  When they became Bridge partners, they were almost unbeatable.  Mr. Lau got his training as an accountant in England and went into the Stock Trading business with support from many wealthy business people.  Mr. Lau once told Tseung that the Stock Trading in Hong Kong at that time (1970s) was like a casino controlled by the wealthy.  Those wealthy persons were often known as crocodiles.  They just devoured the small fish.  However, if one knew how to play the game, one could win large sums of money.

 

Tseung called Mr. Lau for his advice to raise HK $20,000 from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.  Mr. Lau said, “Since you are my good friend and your need for money is legitimate, I am going to help you this time.  I shall help you only once and never again.  You must promise not to play in the Stock Market any more”.  Tseung solemnly promised.  Mr. Lau then instructed Tseung to apply for the new issue of a stock.  Sure enough, Tseung got allocated the shares and promptly got the required HK $20,000 in profits.  That was a successful event but it also caused great pains to Tseung later in life.  He broke his promise of never playing in the Stock Market and lost much of his hard earned savings.  Greed and human emotions were great temptations.  Tseung was no Saint and fell prey to them.

 

When Tseung started his MSc training, he lost no time in explaining his kinetic theory of gases in motion to his fellow students.  All were intrigued.  A few were already going for their PhD degrees.  They discussed the primitive theory for weeks and realized that if Tseung were right, then many of the accepted theories such as Bernoulli’s equation, and the Von Karman Vortex theory might have to be re-examined.  They then started approaching the professors one by one.  Many of the young professors started to question the validity of the established theories also.

 

Tseung became bold and started to outline the possible experiments that could validate his theory.  He reasoned that the weight of a solid could not change if one gave it a horizontal velocity.  If the solid acquired a velocity v, every molecule would acquire that velocity component.  However, when a gas acquired a velocity v, there was no requirement that every gas molecule acquires that velocity component.  More gas molecules could move in the direction of velocity v. 

 

He proposed to do the experiment to check the total weight of a toy helicopter and its container.  Assume that the total weight was W1 when stationary.  Would the weight change when the toy helicopter was hovering in the middle of the container?  In the early 1970s, such an experiment was not easy.  Tseung applied for funding through university channels and approached many professors for support.  That caused a minor turbulence.

 

The Head of the Aeronautics Department called Tseung to his office and said, “I understand that you have been approaching many different professors and discussed your primitive theory.  You even implied that the established Bernoulli’s equation, and the Von Karman Vortex theory might be wrong.  You even doubted the definition of pressure.  Pressure is a scalar quantity.  It has no directions.  You better spend your time learning what we are going to teach you.  Or you go on with your own ideas elsewhere.  Your application for funding has been rejected”.

 

It was a very painful blow to Tseung.  He could end up with no MSc degree; wasted years of family savings and go back to Hong Kong as a failure.  He surrendered.  He focused on the MSc material, especially the computer programs to apply the Vortex theory to airfoils in proximity.  He never believed in the vortex theory but he got his MSc degree.  His wife and son joined him in Southampton.  His wife wanted him to get a PhD.  But Tseung decided otherwise.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    What would have happened if Tseung had insisted on his kinetic theory of gases in motion and did not get his MSc?  Could he have gotten support from elsewhere?  In the modern society of Hong Kong or China, will such innovative ideas be supported?   (b)   Tseung will get support now that he is famous.  Are there other unknown innovators with same or better innovativeness waiting to be discovered?  How can we identify them?   (c)    Have you read any innovative invention that deserves your support?  Spend time at the library, the bookstores or on the internet.  Can you come up with a win-win solution?

1.10 IQ tests and how to secure perfect scores

 

Tseung applied for jobs in the open market.  He learned computer programming in Fortran in his MSc course. The first company he applied to was IBM.  When he went for his interview, many of the applicants had already started on an IQ test.  The interviewer asked Tseung to join them.  Tseung did not know what was going on and spent much time reading through the whole examination material without writing anything.  Before he knew what he was supposed to do, time was up.  The interviewer then said to Tseung, “According to this IQ test, you could not even have passed primary school.  Please go away and do not come back again”.

 

Tseung was mad.  He always had a high opinion of his intellect.  That was too much of an insult to bear.  He spent the next few weeks at the University Library reading up on IQ tests.  He read the theory behind the IQ tests and the design of such tests.  He then did hundreds of such IQ tests.  He checked and analyzed every answer.  He walked, ate and dreamt IQ tests.  He then approached an employment agency.  The agency asked him to apply for a programmer job.  Sure enough, there was the IQ test. 

 

The next day, the agency called Tseung and said, “You scored full marks. I shall refer you to a much higher paying job with some relevance to your training in aeronautics”.  The Company was a defence contractor.  Sure enough, there was the inevitable IQ test. 

 

The next day, the agency called Tseung again and said, “The Company wants to interview you.  You must be a genius.  Nobody scores full marks at two successive IQ tests”.  Tseung never told the agency his hard work at the University Library.

 

The interview was very successful.  The interviewer asked some question on control theory and simulation.  Tseung spent months working on computer simulations of the airflow around airfoils.  He could reply with ease and confidence.  Then the interviewer asked what Tseung wanted to do.  Tseung explained his Kinetic Theory of Gases in Motion and his concept of the Flying Saucer.  The supposed one-hour interview lasted over three hours.  The interviewer asked additional managers to come and listen to Tseung.  The Company offered Tseung a job related to missiles research but there was the requirement of security clearance.  The security clearance would take at least nine months and Tseung could not leave England during that period.

 

Tseung talked to the agency.  The agency said, “I shall recommend you to a new start-up Company manufacturing mini-computers.  The name is Digital Equipment Corporation.  I have talked to them about you.  They are interested in having you even for a couple of months”.

 

Comments from the Editor and reviewers:   (a)    Can the IQ test identify a genius?  My gut feel is to compare that with the development of a basketball player.  One must be tall and strong to have a natural advantage.  The rest is proper training and environment.  Developing an innovator may be similar.   (b)   Tseung is no genius.  Any one of us could have conceived his theories.  His achievement was due to rejection and perspiration.  He used jeers and rejection as his motivation force.   (c)    When we see the Gold Medal winners at Olympics, we admire their achievement.  When we read their stories, we learn about their training, the hardship, the ups and downs and the frustrations.  What can you do to win a gold medal in your life?  What can you do to win admiration within your circle or outside your circle?