Wait, Survivor is Still on the Air?
Meet UC Berkeley’s Coolest IT man, Yau-Man Chan. Apparently in this reality show world of cutthroat backstabbing and feel-bad sniping, this humble sage has brought back some mental stability and trust into a world where survival of the fittest is everything.
This season’s recent Survivor:Fiji results proved stunningly disappointing for fans of Yau-Man Chan, the College of Chemistry’s information-systems director, who braved hunger and thirst, poisonous snakes, 108-degree temperatures, and backstabbing competitors during the program’s 14 weeks, only to be eliminated before reaching the competition’s final round.
During that more-than-three-month run, Chan, 54, became a favorite among the program’s estimated 13.8 million fans: He was named the most popular cast member by nearly two-thirds of the visitors to the program’s website. That level of fandom surprised him as much as did his own ability to persevere and survive in a game that, in Chan’s words, typically “attracts young, buff men” rather than a “scrawny old guy” like him. “I thought I’d be seen as the weak, old guy” with not much chance of winning, he recalls.
But Chan endured, employing a three-pronged strategy that served him well until a costly miscalculation — trusting a fellow competitor — ended his run. First, he tried to avoid elimination by winning “immunity challenges” in each round of competition. (This and other nuances of the game are explained below.) Second, he focused on gaining the respect of his fellow players so they wouldn’t view him as “the weak, disposable one.” Third, he forged a key alliance with another player whose mental strength, Chan calculated, would help keep the alliance together.
As usual, we’re happy to see that one of ours did well. And he did make off with $60,000. But, we have to wonder what exactly he was thinking placing his faith in a cheerleading coach just before the final round, where he probably would have won it all. Cheerleaders are full of snotty, greedy attention whores–what would make you think their coach would be any different? Trust only goes so far in this show. A show that we will now forget exists again.
Yau-Man Chan [Wikipedia]
After ‘Dreamz’, it’s back to reality [UC Berkeley Newscenter]
- None Found
Loading ...