Singapore’s answer to Mark Zuckerberg?

While most kids their age are busy with cartoons and computer games, these bright, young tech prodigies are busy writing complex codes and developing computer and smartphone applications.

Singapore’s very own Lim Ding Wen, 11, is one of the world’s youngest Apple IIGS programmers and iPhone developers. The Lian Hua Primary 5 pupil is fluent in six programming languages, and started using the computer at the age of 2. He has since completed about 20 programming projects.

His first iPhone application, Doodle Kids, has been downloaded over 700,000 times on Apple’s App Store. It was submitted to the Android Market too, and has garnered over 180,000 downloads.

The drawing program, which was created when he was just nine, enables users to draw shapes in random colors and then clear their work with a shake of the phone. Not bad for someone who has yet to take his PSLE.

The young programmer is now working on his latest iPad application called Invader War 2. The original Invader War version was implemented by Ding Wen on an 1986 computer Apple IIGS, but later ported to the iPhone.

Mr Lim Thye Chean, 41, quit his well-paying job as a chief technology officer at an Internet Protocol TV company in April this year to set up Virtual GS, an e-portfolio that publishes his and his son’s works.

In an interview with Yahoo! Singapore, the proud father does not think his son is a child prodigy.

“He is just a normal kid like everybody else. I think Ding Wen developed an interest in programming because his dad is a programmer. Right now, I’m happy because we can discuss programming-related stuff together, and write software to ‘compete’ with each other. It’s a father-and-son thing,” he claimed.

Ding Wen plans to become a software engineer when he grows up.

Personal Opinion: I find it very promising that there is such a talented kid in Siangapore and that clearly shows that the future lies with the next generation.

Scripts lost, retake exam please by Siyun

Summary

31 mass communication students from Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS) had been told to re-sit for a multiple-choice-question paper because the school had lost their papers.

MDIS’s partner in Mass Communication programme, Oklahoma City University (OCU), has advised the students to re-sit the paper as no marks would be awarded to them if they did not do so.

According to a student, it was frustrating as they were only given 3 weeks to prepare.

Another students said, "We spent nine days in September preparing for the paper under the guidance of OCU lecturers, but now have to re—do the exam without any refresher lessons.”

MDIS did not specify how the papers were lost. However, it was known that papers are usually sent to partner universities over courier and some schools scanned the original exam scripts before sending as a precaution.

My opinions

I think it is very unfortunate and irresponsible for such a thing to happen in school. I will feel very frustrated if something like this were to happen to me. At MDIS, after putting in a lot of effort and studying hard for a paper and finally, the students was relieved that the papers were over and done with. After that, the school surprised by telling them that the papers were lost and they have to re-sit the paper or else they would be awarded 0 marks for that component. Luckily, I have not experience this before.

I feel sorry for the 31 MDIS mass communications students. However, as accidents like this can always happen so there is no other choice but to study again. The students took the paper once, surely they can do it again. 

Although MDIS is a non-for profit organisation and is government funded so the fees are generally cheaper as compared to other private schools, this does not mean that their standard is as good as the government schools, which are usually very careful and cautious with important tasks such as the handling of exam papers. I think that after this incident, MDIS should be more cautious or they can adopt other schools’ ways- for instance, to screen exam scripts as a precaution.

I think that MDIS should apologise to the affected students properly. Afterall, they paid their school fees and did not expect this to happen at all.

This is not the first unpleasant incident that happened in MDIS. Back in November, MDIS discontinued its partnership with Perth's Edith Cowan University (ECU) and more than 800 students were affected as they have to take other degrees which were picked by MDIS or else, they have to study in Perth in order to get the degree they have studied for originally. Another choice is that they can get a refund, which means that all their efforts of studying would go down the drain.

All in all, MDIS should really do something to build up their reputation again as I’m quite certain that students would now think twice before enrolling in MDIS after hearing about these news.


From this article:

Scripts lost, retake exam please

SINGAPORE: Imagine having to retake an examination two months after the original test because the answer scripts have been lost. That is what happened to 31 students from the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS).

In what may be the first incident of its kind, these mass communication students were told to re—sit for a multiple—choice—question (MCQ) paper on Saturday because the scripts for the original paper, which they took on October 9, had been "inadvertently disposed".

In a letter dated Nov 30, the private school told the students that Oklahoma City University (OCU) — its partner university in the Mass Communications Programme — had advised MDIS that the students should re—do the paper, "failing which it would be difficult for the university to assess and award marks for the MCQ component".

No marks will be awarded for the MCQ component on research methodology should students fail to turn up for this re—sit, according to the letter, a copy of which MediaCorp had obtained.

A 20—year—old student said it was a "frustrating" situation, especially since they were given "such short notice" — three weeks to prepare.

When contacted, an MDIS spokeswoman confirmed the incident and said it was an "administrative lapse, and we’re in contact with the students to address the matter".

"Only a small number of students are affected. We’ve taken measures to avoid such an incident from happening again. We’re working toward the best interests of our students to ensure they won’t be disadvantaged in any way," she added.

It is believed MDIS would on Friday speak to the full—time, final—year students —— majority of whom are foreigners —— to get feedback on how best to help them.

One student wondered if this was too late. "We spent nine days in September preparing for the paper under the guidance of OCU lecturers, but now have to re—do the exam without any refresher lessons," said the 19 year old.

MDIS did not say how the papers could have been lost. From speaking to other schools, MediaCorp understands that exam papers are sent to partner universities usually via courier.

Some schools also scan the original scripts as a back—up. It is not known what precautions MDIS had in place.

According to the OCU website, MDIS began partnering the university in 1992 to provide Singaporean students with a mass communications education at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

The courses here last up to two years and consist of 13 modules. Lessons include those on news gathering and writing, television scripting and production, and advertising and public relations campaigns.

Done by: Lee Si Yun

Bringing 'green' values to business By Siyun

Summary

Mr Ma started Indochine and his restaurants have been abstaining from serving shark's fin, blue fin tuna, yellow fin tuna, sturgeon and caviar for 11 years and still counting. He believes that serving shark’s fin in restaurant is outright silly as he thinks that “shark’s fin taste like nothing”. To encourage people to stop eating sharks, he even bought in a shark to Indochine, the now closed branch at Wisma Atria, to 'showcase the shark to the public in all its beauty'.

Indochine at Waterfront has won the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards' Green Leadership Award. Mr Ma did his part for saving the earth with methods such as using the hot air generated by air-conditioners to heat the water in group’s establishments. Also, he chose flooring that is made of artificial wood and recycled plastic. Although flooring are more expensive, he thinks that it is worth it as they can last longer and he do not need to close shop for maintenance to do re-varnishing and stuffs like that. Furthermore, another example of Mr Ma’s recycling take is his use of chi-chi furnishings, which are 200-300 years old.

Mr Ma believes that the products which support the concept of “clean energy” are now more expensive is because of the fact that the turnover of these companises is not enough for them to lower the price. However, if more people can support these businesses, they can make enough money to lower the prices, and thus change the way we live and benefit everyone, both businesses and consumers.

My opinions

I strongly agree with Mr Ma’s way of operating a business, such as choosing flooring that is made of artificial wood and recycled plastic although it is more expensive, it is more beneficial in the long-run as there is no need for re-varnishing.

Most entrepreneurs start their businesses solely with the aim of gaining profits. Not many people think about how their ways of operating businesses can save the world and conserve energy, or they simply did not support the idea of using products or equipments that are more energy-saving as the costs of the equipments are usually much higher.

As the impact of Global Warming is getting more serious, businesses should think of more ways to encourage the saving of energy, or find alternatives for their equipments, products, or ingredients. One example of this is that The Body Shop uses recycled plastics for their bottles production, in some parts of the world they also introduced “Refilling” for their shower gel bottles, and this would reduce the number of bottles being used.

Also, people who produce the machines, products or equipments that are more energy-saving and green for the environment can help to create more awareness about the benefits of using such products, especially for the earth in the long-run. When more people are educated about this, the chances of them buying or using such green products is higher.

Individuals can also do their part to save the earth, such as by switching off electrical appliances when not in use, take public transport instead of private vehicles and a lot more other ways.

In conclusion, if everyone do their part, no matter how small it is, it would all add up to a significant gesture in helping to save the earth eventually.

From this Article:

Bringing 'green' values to business The Business Times

By Lynn Kan STRAGGLY-HAIRED, Australian-accented Michael Ma from resort and nightspots group Indochine looks every bit the tree-hugging greenie he professes to be. The green streak began in him long before bringing your own shopping bags to the supermarket and being vegetarian became cool. And ever since Mr Ma started Indochine 11 years ago, his restaurants have abstained from serving shark's fin, blue fin tuna, yellow fin tuna, sturgeon and caviar. 'Some of these fish were not yet on the endangered list when we started. Now, almost all of them are,' he tells BT. 'Caviar has recovered somewhat, but we're still not going to serve these types of food until the natural stocks bounce back.' The passionate collector of fish has a soft spot for sharks. That may explain why he reviles those restaurants that serve them to gourmands in shark's fin soup. At a dinner held during Indochine's annual Green Festival, he said the dish was the 'stupidest' thing a restaurant could serve because 'shark's fin tastes like nothing, and all you're eating is double-boiled chicken soup, corn starch and crab or whatever meat's in there'. He even brought in a shark to the now-closed Indochine branch at Wisma Atria to 'showcase the shark to the public in all its beauty'. This move, however, was not appreciated by everyone and he received a letter from the Divers' Association boycotting the shark-as-exhibit idea. 'I think they misunderstood my message. I'm a diver myself, and all I wanted to do was to show they're not like (the creatures in the movie) Jaws. They're really not dangerous creatures, and they don't deserve people eating them.' Then he throws in a whammy only a diehard conservationist can: 'Did you know that 90 per cent of the shark population has been eliminated?' Every year for the past four years, Mr Ma has held a Green Festival that raises awareness and funds for a conservation society. This year, he aided International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), throwing two gala dinners at his Forbidden City restaurant in Clarke Quay and Waterfront restaurant at Empress Place in November. Another similar dinner this month will again be laced with the anti-shark's fin message. Making money isn't at odds with being mindful about the environment, says Mr Ma, whose Indochine Waterfront took the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards' Green Leadership Award. 'How to solve it is by bearing in mind sustainability, doing business in a responsible way,' he says. One way that Indochine does this is to emulate nature. 'In nature, everything's a cycle. There is no wastage. It's Man who creates waste.' Peer into Indochine's piping and there are heat-exchange cooling systems where the hot air generated by the air-conditioning is used to heat the water in the group's establishments. Mr Ma also opts for flooring that's made of artificial wood and recycled plastic. The latter doesn't require varnish, which Mr Ma says helps reduce the toxic chemicals being used in his hangouts. 'I paid more for these things, but because they're well-designed, they last longer. I don't need to close shop for maintenance work, lose business days to do re-varnishing and the like.' Indochine is known for its chi-chi furnishings, which are 200 to 300 years old, another instance of Mr Ma's stylish take on recycling. Indeed, nothing is too dear to be spared from being recycled in the Indochine group. After the company vacated its Wisma Atria outlet, Mr Ma ordered the shopfront tempered glass window to be re-used as a tabletop. It now covers the precious alabaster marble that is the long table front and centre of Indochine Waterfront restaurant at Empress Place. 'We needed a cover for the marble, which is easily scratched. We made it more fun and usable because people can relax using the table,' he says. At the Green Festival gala dinner held there, guests danced on the tabletop. The recycling zeal is not confined to Singapore. At the group's resort in Phuket, Thailand, Mr Ma also composts the carbon-based food products from the restaurant and sends the protein-based ones to pig farms as pig feed. While not everyone is conscious about everything that can be reused, reduced and recycled, ideally, says Mr Ma, they should be. 'The aim of businesses and consumers should be to think about the material they use,' he says. He believes that if consumers are more aware and support alternative energy companies more fervently, eventually the economics of it will come full circle and reward the pockets of the man in the street. 'Right now, these guys (the clean energy companies) don't have the economic numbers to support their business. It's not feasible at the moment because their turnover isn't there yet,' he says. But once there are economies of scale - and that will only come when people and companies really look at and change the way they live and consume - alternative energy companies will be able to lower their prices, benefiting all consumers, he says.

Done By: Lee Si Yun

The teenager who sleeps for 10 days

Louisa has slept through holidays, friends' birthdays and half of her GCSEs. She might take 10 days to fully wake from her slumber, due to a very rare neurological disorder. In 2008, aged 14, she had been suffering from flu-like symptoms. She was at her school in Sussex when she started nodding off in class and behaving strangely.

She couldn't remember anything, all of sudden it just went blank and she went to sleep for 10 days. She then woke up and was fine again. The first time was a frightening experience for her parents, although Louisa herself says she wasn't scared by the episode, more puzzled.

She was finally diagnosed with Kleine-Levin Syndrome (KLS). There is no known cause or cure but Louisa says it was good to know what it was and that it wasn't life threatening

I think she is quite unfortunate to get this syndrome. So many people said that sleeping too much is just a waste of time even though we are taking a break while we're sleeping. In her case, she couldn't control herself whether to stay awake or to sleep. However, so many teenagers are having insomnia and refuse to wake up early in the morning. Sometimes, sleep too much will also make us tired. We'll become lazy to do anything because we're used to the habit of sleeping. In conclusion, we should have enough rest and not over rest. Of course, once in a while we can rest for long and enjoy our time.

By: Norika Tjoe

Oil leak and wing damaged in Qantas A380

Sydney, oil leak may have caused an engine blast on a Qantas Airbus A380 which badly damaged the plane. The engines would be taken out of service if the embattled British company detected the same issue again. The European Aviation Safety Agency had decided to upgrade the engine's control software to detect any problems earlier and ensure the engine would be shut down before it could explode. 

Shares in Qantas, which have fallen more than eight percent since the incident, rose three cents in early trade Friday to 2.67 dollars (2.61 US). Dolan said the initial assessment was that an oil leak had caused a fire which caused the turbine to break up, raining pieces down on an Indonesian island and into the double-decker plane itself. Dolan praised the Qantas pilots who managed to bring the damaged Sydney-bound plane back to Singapore trailing smoke and safely land it without injury to any of the 469 passengers and crew on board.


In my point of views, this case is a real dangerous. We should not judge the plane by it looks. Being one of the biggest Airbus in the world, I think they should double check the plane. As I took the exact plane (Qantas Airbus A380) from Sydney to Singapore before, could not imagine what if this case happened to me. I remember I seated beside the 72 meters long wing, I could see that the wing was keep shaking. A month later, I heard that the wing was dropped in Indonesia. I was so shocked and speechless to hear the news. I hope everything will be okay after the repair the plane. The most important thing is to keep all the passengers safe.


By: Norika Tjoe

Can you spot a person in every of these photos?













Chinese artist, Liu Bolin, has been dubbed the 'Invisible Man' because of his uncanny ability to camouflage into his surroundings with the use of paint. STOMPer AC came across examples of his work online and says that they are not camera tricks.

"The guy actually paints himself to suit this background," the STOMPer wrote.

"He does not use any trick photography at all and he simply paints himself.

Personal comments:
The photos look absolutely convincing that there's no one in them. But in fact, there is! Take a 2nd look at the first photo with the tractor. I was shocked and taken aback when i finally spot a man standing infront of the front tyre after trying very hard to spot him. I think that this talent of his to be able to paint himself to fit the background is extraordinarily unique. He is really creative to come up with this idea, and of course, talented as well. I think he might even be able to earn a living out of this talent of his. These photos left me speechless. Same for you too?

Help police! Someone's stolen my snowman

As Arctic blizzards swept across southeast England, stranding hundreds in their cars and bringing motorways to a virtual halt in whiteout conditions, Kent police received a strange call on their emergency number.

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RELATED PHOTOS / VIDEOS

A Parks Police officer takes photographs of a snowman in Richmond Park in south west …MoreEnlarge photo

"I haven't been out to check on him for five hours but I went outside for a fag (cigarette) and he's gone," said the female caller.

When the operator asked who had gone she replied: "My snowman. I thought that with it being icy and there not being anybody about he'd be safe.

"It ain't a nice road but you don't expect anybody to nick your snowman," she added.

Police were most definitely not amused.

"This call could have cost someone's life if there was a genuine emergency and they couldn't get through. It was completely irresponsible,' said Chief Inspector Simon Black.

A transcript of the call was released by the force to highlight what they said was misuse of the emergency number 999 system. (Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Steve Addison)

Personal view:

The lady sounded like it was an emergency that her snowman was missing. The snowman had obviously melted, as seen from the picture. The article states that it was completely irresponsible and actions will be taken.

by chunkit

Chinese passenger train breaks world speed record

BEIJING – China's railway ministry says a Chinese passenger train has set a new record for speed, hitting 302 miles per hour (486 kilometers per hour) during a test run.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the feat took place Friday on the yet-to-be opened line linking China's two major cities of Beijing and Shanghai. It's scheduled to commence operations in 2012 and will halve the current travel time to five hours.

State television footage showed the sleek white train whipping past farm fields. The project is part of a massive government effort to link many of China's cities by high speed rail and reduce overcrowding on heavily used lines.

China now boasts some of the fastest passenger trains in the world. The speed of 302 mph (486 kph) was the fastest yet for an unmodified conventional commercial train, according China's railway ministry.

Personal view:

This is yet another creation of the Chinese which breaks the world's record. I think China obviously will have the number one manufacture industry.

 

 

'Robotic legs' help stroke patients to walk again
A month ago she had a stroke and it has left her left side severely weakened.
Her left arm is in a sling, her left leg propped up on a footrest.
Mrs Nishi has been chosen to try out a new device developed to help people like her walk again. It is a pair of robotic legs.
A physiotherapist helps strap her in. From a hip joint there are struts running down the outside of her thighs, to another joint level with her knees.
The metal and plastic rods also run down her calves to special shoes she can put her feet in.
The two limbs are joined together by a wide belt that goes round the back of Mrs Nishi's hips.
Japan is one of the most rapidly aging societies in the world.
The Hybrid Assistive Limb has been developed by a company called Cyberdyne, and is now being tried out in hospitals in Japan.
Sensor pads on the skin pick up the body's electrical signals. When the patient moves her leg, the machine moves in unison.

Personal comments:
I believe that one of Japan's forte is their knowledge of robot. Now, they are applying their knowledge and technology on what is required and useful. In this very good example, The Hybrid Assistive Limb has applied the technology and availability of robotic techniques on helping people who cannot walk, to walk again. In my opinion, this is a very significant help to the society. Thus, now, robotic technology is not used on just entertainment purposes but also for healthcare. This will definitely benefit a lot of people, not just elderlies but all disabled people. With this to kick start, not only will this help people who have difficulties walking, but people who cannot move their arms or fingers and many other purposes as well. In my opinion, as technology gets more and more advanced, it is important that we do not just focus on entertainment, but constantly thinking of ways to contribute to the society, to be of some help to the society. I believe that technology will bring us more and more help in the near future.

-Chua Rui Yi