On preparation for doing PhD

Assalamualaikum

It's been so long since I last wrote..
A little update on my preparation for doing PhD..
In January 2012 I received a conditional offer letter from the University of Glasgow, Scotland. I'm applying at the School of Medicine, Veterinary and Dental under the Institute of Immunology & Infectious Disease. In order to get the unconditional offer letter I have to take IELTS test. So at the end of February I registered for IELTS on 10th March, which is only 2 weeks apart. Only 2 weeks to really focus on studying English. I did the exercises in the book bought at British Council. The last 3 days I spent studying at the British Council, using the computer and all. Alhamdulillah I got 7.5 band. I'm so happy with the result given the short time of studying.
Having passed IELTS, I got an unconditional offer letter from the University. So now I have to apply for passport and ATAS to get CAS number. Still a long way to go...hope everything will go well..

How to make a cake stand for cupcakes or mini cakes

From http://cakejournal.com/tutorials/how-to-make-a-cake-stand-for-cupcakes-or-mini-cakes/

I think when serving cupcakes or mini cakes, they look so much better when served on a cake stand. So I have made a tutorial that will show you how to make a cupcake cake stand. When you have all the materials ready it is very easy and quick to make. You can adapt it to the colour or pattern on your cakes. I have used thick gift wrap paper to cover the cake boards. If you like you can place a 6″ cake on the top tier. I would not recommend to place any larger cake on top.

Note: Remember when you have assembled the cake stand with cakes on it, not to move it around too much.
A 5 TIER CAKE STAND CAN HOLD ABOUT 51 REGULAR CUPCAKES.

 This is what I have used:
Cake boards: 1×8″, 1×10″, 1×12″
Note: If you want two more tiers on the stand, you will need 1×14″ + 1×16″ cake boards.
Styrofoam cake dummies Each 2″ high in the sizes: 2X6″ and 2×7″ (If you can get 4″ high Styrofoam cake dummies, then you will only need 1 in each size)
Note: You will need 2×8″ 2×9″ Styrofoam cake dummies for two more tiers.
Satin ribbon, enough for both cake boards and the Styrofoam cake dummies
Thick paper
Glue stick or double sided tape
Craft glue
Strong double sided carpet tape
Metal pins
A pair of scissors
A pencil
Step 1:
Start by glue the Styrofoam cake dummies together. So they can dry completely.

 Step 2:
Take the satin ribbon, and fasten it on the cake dummies with a metal pin. Then wrap it tightly all the way around the cake dummies.
Note: you can also glue the ribbon on the cake dummies if you like, just use a glue stick.

 Step 3:
Secure the satin ribbon with a metal pin or a small piece of double sided tape. Continue with the rest of the cake dummies.

 Step 4:
Place the cake boards on the paper and with the pencil draw a line around the cake boards. Cut out the paper circles with a pair of scissors.

Step 5:
Rub the glue stick all over the cake board and place the paper circles on top

Step 6:
To attach the satin ribbon around the side of the cake boards use either a glue stick or double sided tape.

Step 7:
Now it is time to assemble the cake stand. Use strong double sided carpet tape so that the cake dummies stays in place on the cake boards.
IMPORTANT!! If you are having problems finding the materials to make this cake stand. Then please take your time and read through the comment section as you may be able to find links and answers on where you can buy the materials.

2nd attempt to make macaroon

Hi there...

Lately, I'm in the mood of baking..last week I made red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache..today I made macaroon..lemon macaroon..this is my 2nd attempt of making it..last time I made, it didn't come out right..the 'foot' doesn't come out..but this time around, the feet came out and I could taste the soft and chewiness..because the macaroon itself is very sweet so I paired it with lemon curd filling to lessen the sweetness of the macaroon..

 

Another Red Velvet cake

Last weeek I was in the mood of baking..I baked red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache..That was my second attempt of making red velvet cake..last time I made cupcake.enjoy the pics..

ni untuk nazhan..

Rainbow Cake by Dorie Greenspan

The reason why I tried this recipe is because the cake looks so pretty and colorful..I mean, look at this pic..

So here's the recipe:

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (omit if u’re using salted butter)
1 1/4 cups  milk or buttermilk
4 large egg whites
¾ cup sugar (I cut the sugar. The recipe calls for 1 1/2 cup)
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
120gm unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract
Gel or powder food coloring
2 tsp vanilla essence

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and put a rack in the middle or upper third of the oven. Butter two 5 inch pans and line with buttered parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the egg whites and buttermilk. I whisked the mixture using hand for about 1 minute.
3. Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer on medium speed for a full 3 minutes until very light and fluffy.
Beat in half of the egg-buttermilk mixture, then flour mixture, then the last of the egg-buttermilk mixture, and finally the last of the flour, beating until the batter is smooth. Beat the entire batter on medium high for two minutes until completely smooth and mixed.
4. Divide the batter in 6, dye each batter with different colour. Bake 20 minutes, rotating halfway through, or until a thin knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the pans five minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack. To ensure moistness, once the cakes are cooled, wrap immediately and chill.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 ounces butter, at room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
4 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

To make the frosting: Using the whisk attachment, whip the butter and  cheese on high speed for about 5 minutes, scraping the bowl down as necessary. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar until all is incorporated. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Increase the speed to medium high and whip for a few minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy, scraping the bowl as necessary.

Happy Baking Folks!

Program Pembangunan Kepimpinan Tunas Akademia di AKEPT

Saya baru je balik dari menghadiri Program Pembangunan Kepimpinan Akademia anjuran AKEPT-UPNM..Kali ni UPNM jadi penyelaras so ramai la tutor dan pensyarah dari UPNM yg datang..Lokasinya di Bangunan AKEPT, Bandar Enstek Negeri Sembilan. Program started from 21st - 23rd Dec 2011...Walaupun tempat tu memang ulu dan ditengah2 hutan tapi once dah masuk AKEPT, cantik rupanya tempat tu..bilik macam hotel..ada fridge, air-cond..nasib baik ada fridge so boleh la pam susu untuk stok Nazhan..stok EBM sekarang dah tersangat la kurang..

Akademi Kepimpinan Pengajian Tinggi (AKEPT) yang ditubuhkan pada Januari 2008 merupakan sebuah organisasi di bawah Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi bertujuan selaras dengan objektif Pelan Strategik Pengajian Tinggi untuk mentransformasikan sistem pengajian yang sedia ada terutamanya dalam pembinaan modal insan.


Sesi ini lebih berkisar tentang penyampaian informasi berkaitan program 1Malaysia, Program Transformasi Kerajaan (GTP), Program Transformasi Ekonomi (ETP) dan Rancangan Malaysia ke-10 (RMK10). Hal in bertujuan agar peserta memahami usaha-usaha kerajaan dan mendapat gambaran bagaimana peserta sebenarnya mampu untuk menyumbang ke arah pembangunan tanah air. Selain itu, ada juga talk on Pelan Strategik Pengajian Tinggi Nagara, Journal writing and publication dan Leadership in Teaching..on the last day tu ada group discussion dan presentation from each group..

ini adalah blok penginapan..lelaki dan perempuan di blok berbeza

besar tempat ni

ni la bilik dia..macam hotel kan? kami duduk twin sharing

You know you're a biologist when.....

(Inspired by the chemistry blog...(a few borrowed)

You know you're a lab rat when:

You open the toothpaste with one hand.
You wash your hands before and after going to the washroom.
When you hear tween, you think of the surfactant not the age group.
For you, media is something which increases your culture.
You can identify organs on roadkills.
You have a callus on your thumb.
You use the word "aliquot" in regular sentences.- this is so true..me and hubby always use this word..
Sometimes you momentarily vanish from social activities because of a timepoint.
You've never worn a clean lab coat. - spot on!
You don't fear rodents, rodents fear you. - i still afraid of a rodent, black mice that is, not white mice
You say "orders of magnitude" in regular sentences.
You flinch when you hear the word "significant". - totally!
Showing up at 10AM and having a coffee is a productive day.
You can't stand god-like physicians, while secretly wishing you had their job.
You're very good at diluting things.
You're also very good at transferring small amounts of liquid between containers.
You are fed up of people saying alcohol, when they mean ethanol.
You hear the word ‘Molar’ and teeth are the last thing on your mind. - haha, so true..
You say “conjugation” instead of “sex”, and "pili" sounds dirty.
SOB is not an insult, it's what you grow your bugs in.
You say "mills" and "megs".
No-one in your family has any idea what you do. - yup, that's right
You can make a short film in power point.
You consider a green laser pointer to be science bling.
A falcon is not a bird....- hahaha
And you have 5 of them with different types of water.
When your fruits go bad and you get fruit flies, you can't help but check their eye colour - mutant?
You own invitrogen t-shirts and actually wear them.
You think that drosophila geneticists have a good sense of humour.
You refer to your children as the F1. - this one is the the funniest..lol
You've suffered carpal tunnel from the pipetman.
You've used kimwipes as kleenex.
A timer clipped to the hip is not only practical, but dead sexy.
You've played Battleship using tip boxes.
The front pages of Science is your light reading.
You think the following is a quality insult: "I've seen cells more competent than you!".
The scent of latex reminds you of work, not play. - get it? lol
You're looking for a cooking book by maniatis.
You've used, "I'd like to get into your genes" as a pickup line.
You've made dry ice grenades.
You've lost many friends to ice grenades...
The stains on your lab coat have become hard-set patterns that welcome new additions every year
Your computer is worth more than your car.
You like to think of computer parts as "subunits".
You check the meniscus when measuring liquids in the kitchen - couldn't help doing this
You want to use a magnetic stirrer in your kitchen!
You have to turn off shows like CSI in disgust when they pipet bubbles or get HPLC results in 30 seconds!
When discussing beer at a party, you are able to detail the biochemistry involved in the fermentation process.
You are really pissed that this thread is issued to biologists, not molecular biologists
When a large shipment of tips, eppis, etc. arrives and it feels to you like Christmas.
 When you get super happy your lab is getting a nanodrop.
 You feel yourself very badly when in the CSI series the "scientist" does not put a balance tube into the
centrifuge.
 and finally...you read this list to see how many applied to you.