Guess what I eventually wrote in my acknowledgements...

My Heartfelt Gratitude:

To Prof Hugh Tan,
Who took me in and nudged me on.
Whose shake of the head and disapproving chuckles,
Made sure I saw the project to the end.

To Prof Richard Corlett,
Who read my doubts and pointed me wrong.
Whose admonishments and insights,
Taught me what an ecologist does.

To Dr. Yap Von Bing,
Who heard me out and set me straight.
With his twinkle in the eyes and easy-going ways,
Told me not to use stats as a statistician would.

My Keenest Gratitude:

To Xingli, Chow Koon, Alvin, Kai-xin and Alex,
For their raucous laughter and lewd jokes.
Camaraderie and mentorship,
Made data-mining much less drier than it really was.

To Dr. Peter Todd and Dr. Myron Shekelle,
For their sharp insights and keen mind.
Frank inputs, tips and advice,
Made this thesis what it eventually is.

My Utmost Gratitude:

To the trees that gave the paper,
The Earth that gave the rest.
May all scientific progress be dedicated to all beings,
Who share their water and their land.

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My Prof's comments on the manuscript he sent back to me:

"These acknowledgements are kind of corny! However, it’s your thesis, so will leave it to you. The grammar is also off in some places!"

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My friend said after i let him read it on msn:

ZL says:u wrote poetry?!!?!?!?
ZL says:WTF
ZL says:damn free right?!