BFM :: The Bigger Picture

Rachaporn Choochuey is a Bangkok-based architect and assistant professor of architecture at Chulalongkorn University. As this month's guest speaker at Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia's public lecture series, we get her thoughts about the interaction between tradition and modernity in Thailand's architecture, how she approach teaching versus the practice of architecture, and her thoughts about air-cons.

Lung cancer does not only affect smokers and secondhand smokers; a lesser known type of lung cancer affect non-smokers. We learn more about anaplastic lymphoma kinase from Consultant Clinical Oncologist, Dr Mastura Md Yusof.

Fifty-three percent of first time donors do not make a second donation due to poor communication, while regular donors prefer not to be asked to contribute until after seven months. How do you sustain a non-profit under these behavioural circumstances? Kal Joffres explains.

Alphabet City: Sentul A-Z. is a series of flashcards - from A to Z - with each letter describing the things, people, and places found in Sentul. They’re intricately designed, they describe a part of KL that’s rich in history, and what’s more, they’re also doing some good. This week, on Invisible Cities, Uma welcomes Swoon Lon Fung and Daniel Heng, the people responsible for writing and designing this series of flashcards, to talk about the "Alphabet City" that is Sentul.

Show Notes:

i. You can find more information on Project: Sentul here.

Looking at Shakespeare’s female characters who were traditionally played by men. What burden does this history weigh on contemporary women portraying these characters? In the course of the discussion with our guests from "Shakespeare's Women", we hope to uncover new understanding of the Bard’s plays--Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, A Winter’s Tale and more. 

Originating from Australia, the Bowen therapy has reached Malaysian shores. Find out how this technique addresses a range of common ailments from migraines to back pain, and more.

Few parents may know the difficulty of raising a terminally ill child, but Marhaini Mustaffa has documented the trials and triumphs throughout the life of her daughter, Marisa, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour at age four and lived until she was eighteen. This strong-willed mother joins us to discuss her struggle to maintain a normal life for her family in the face of her daughter’s failing health. 

For more information about the book or to get in touch with Marhaini, visit the Caring for Marisa's Facebook page at: http://bit.ly/1rYibIP

The Don Sahong Dam, which is being built by Malaysian project developer Mega First Corporation Berhad, is the second of eleven hydropower dams planned on the lower Mekong mainstream. Scientists and Mekong experts believe the dam will block the main channel passable year-round by fish migrating between Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, threatening vital subsistence and commercial fisheries in the Lower Mekong Basin. In essence, the livelihoods and food security of hundreds of thousands of people are at risk. We find out more from Maureen Harris, the Southeast Asia Program Director of International Rivers, a global NGO working to protect rivers and the rights of communities that depend on them.

"The most dramatic impact of David Marshall's tenure of Chief Minister was that the prospect of independence suddenly seemed possible - and soon. The British would be leaving soon - but who would assume power afterwards? Marshall's resignation kicked off a deadly race for the Iron Throne of independent Singapore. In this episode, PJ Thum explains the political manoeuvering and treacherous alliances that began the moment Marshall stepped down, and how they would shape the next seven years. Please send questions, comments, and feedback to [email protected] or visit http://thehistoryofsingapore.com/ Support the show at http://patreon.com/pjthum."

The artistic director tells why teaching young people to drum is important and thus the reason for the upcoming fund-raising concert. At the event, Hands Percussion aims to raise enough to sponsor 1,000 young people in their effort to learn drumming and participate in an international drumming festival that the percussion troupe will hold later in September.