Boy Saved From Escalator Plunge

Scientist 'Infected' With Computer Virus

I Am Your Friend

You may not have ever seen me

But you know that I am here.

You can feel me in your heart

As you enter each new day.

I will always be there for you

I am your friend.

Someone to share the good times

As well as the bad.

I make no judgments by what you say

I just listen with my heart and

Hope to be of help in anyway I can.

I will be there for you now and forever

And always please remember I am your friend!

Oil Spill Spreads To Changi Beach

The oil spill from Tuesday morning’s collision between two large vessels has been spotted along a 700-metre stretch of Changi Beach.

According to a Channel NewsAsia report, oil patches were also spotted along Chek Jawa’s 150-metre stretch of its coastal boardwalk, which is popular among nature lovers. Clean up operations are underway at these locations.

Environmental groups are closely monitoring the situation and have expressed concern that the oil slick will hurt Singapore’s precious coastal wildlife.

Louis Ng, executive director of activist group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society, told AFP, “If it more or less hits the sands, it’s mainly the invertebrates like the crabs, the sea snails that will likely be affected.”

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), it will conduct a study on the environmental impact of the oil spill once the clean up is completed.
As for East Coast Parkway, the NEA said the situation has stablised as large patches of oil have been removed by dispersants.

S’PORE CLOSES BEACHES AS OIL SPILL SPREADS
Singapore closes its beaches along 7.2 kilometers of its east coast as an oil spill from a damaged tanker continues to spread.

According to the Associated Press, oil dispersants and 3,300 metres of containment booms deployed by officials have been unsuccessful in keeping the slick from fouling the coast.

A pungent stench now envelopes the eastern coastline, a place normally crowded with families roller-blading, cycling and dining at some of the island’s best seafood restaurants on weekends.

Spots of rust-coloured oil was spotted floating next to a breaker wall at a ferry terminal while the nearby National Sailing Center shuts its doors to hundreds of school students.

Ho Shufen, a manager at the sailing centre, tells AP, “The smell was so bad yesterday, it made me nauseous. I don’t expect anyone would want to come here until the smell is gone.”

The National Environment Agency said it would take “the next few days” to clean up the coastline and advises the public to stay away from the affected beaches.

S’PORE OIL SPILL ‘CONTAINED’, CLEANUP CONTINUES
An AET spokesperson told AFP that the leaked crude was “more or less contained” and “won’t spread” out of the cleanup zone.

“The incident caused significant damage to the vessel’s hull and resulted in a spill of Bintu light crude oil that is now being cleaned up by specialists using a small armada of boats,” he said in a statement.

The Malaysia-based company told AFP, “Efforts resumed early this morning, with the addition of more than 100 personnel deployed along the shoreline in case the spill reaches the coast.”

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in its latest update that 5,000 tonnes of crude had leaked from the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3, double its estimate just a few hours earlier.

A crude oil slick about four kilometres long and one kilometre wide was spotted near the east coast of Singapore hours after the pre-dawn collision.

The MPA said that the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3 has been damaged in a collision with a bulk carrier MV Wally registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

According to Malaysia’s Maritime Enforcement Agency, the collision tore a 10-metre gash in the Malaysian tanker.
Nobody was injured in the accident and ship traffic in the area has not been affected by the incident that took place 13 km off Singapore in the Traffic Separation Scheme at 6.10am Tuesday, according to the release.

The Traffic Separation Scheme is a commercial channel that runs along the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.

In the aftermath of the accident, both vessels were anchored off Singapore and neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia have been notified.

Singapore’s MPA said a total of 20 vessels from Singapore and Malaysia were involved in the cleanup effort while 200 personnel were on standby to attend to coastal areas that might be affected by the slick.
It also said the damaged double-hulled tanker — designed to minimise cargo spillage in case of an accident — was carrying almost 62,000 tonnes of crude.

Ho Yew Weng, response and projects manager of disaster management firm Oil Spill Response Singapore, told AFP, “It seems to be a lot but if it is light crude, it will just evaporate.”

Ho added that Singapore’s hot climate would make the crude disperse even faster, and with the oil’s prolonged exposure to the sun since morning, “a lot of evaporation would have taken place”.

Although the stench of fuel lingered over residential districts near Changi airport into the night, the smell was gone by the morning as joggers enjoyed the fresh morning breeze.

“If they manage to contain it, then it won’t affect wildlife that much,” Louis Ng, executive director of activist group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society tells AFP.

According to Singapore food-industry officials, 51 offshore aquaculture farms near the spill were loaned canvas skirting to cover their underwater nets and prevent any leaked oil from contaminating their fish.

Singapore Closes Beaches

Singapore closes its beaches along 7.2 kilometers of its east coast as an oil spill from a damaged tanker continues to spread.

According to the Associated Press, oil dispersants and 3,300 metres of containment booms deployed by officials have been unsuccessful in keeping the slick from fouling the coast.

A pungent stench now envelopes the eastern coastline, a place normally crowded with families roller-blading, cycling and dining at some of the island’s best seafood restaurants on weekends.

Spots of rust-coloured oil was spotted floating next to a breaker wall at a ferry terminal while the nearby National Sailing Center shuts its doors to hundreds of school students.

Ho Shufen, a manager at the sailing centre, tells AP, “The smell was so bad yesterday, it made me nauseous. I don’t expect anyone would want to come here until the smell is gone.”

The National Environment Agency said it would take “the next few days” to clean up the coastline and advises the public to stay away from the affected beaches.

S’PORE OIL SPILL ‘CONTAINED’, CLEANUP CONTINUES

An AET spokesperson told AFP that the leaked crude was “more or less contained” and “won’t spread” out of the cleanup zone.

“The incident caused significant damage to the vessel’s hull and resulted in a spill of Bintu light crude oil that is now being cleaned up by specialists using a small armada of boats,” he said in a statement.

The Malaysia-based company told AFP, “Efforts resumed early this morning, with the addition of more than 100 personnel deployed along the shoreline in case the spill reaches the coast.”

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in its latest update that 5,000 tonnes of crude had leaked from the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3, double its estimate just a few hours earlier.

A crude oil slick about four kilometres long and one kilometre wide was spotted near the east coast of Singapore hours after the pre-dawn collision.

The MPA said that the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3 has been damaged in a collision with a bulk carrier MV Wally registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

According to Malaysia’s Maritime Enforcement Agency, the collision tore a 10-metre gash in the Malaysian tanker.

Nobody was injured in the accident and ship traffic in the area has not been affected by the incident that took place 13 km off Singapore in the Traffic Separation Scheme at 6.10am Tuesday, according to the release.

The Traffic Separation Scheme is a commercial channel that runs along the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.

In the aftermath of the accident, both vessels were anchored off Singapore and neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia have been notified.

Singapore’s MPA said a total of 20 vessels from Singapore and Malaysia were involved in the cleanup effort while 200 personnel were on standby to attend to coastal areas that might be affected by the slick.

It also said the damaged double-hulled tanker — designed to minimise cargo spillage in case of an accident — was carrying almost 62,000 tonnes of crude.

Ho Yew Weng, response and projects manager of disaster management firm Oil Spill Response Singapore, told AFP, “It seems to be a lot but if it is light crude, it will just evaporate.”

Ho added that Singapore’s hot climate would make the crude disperse even faster, and with the oil’s prolonged exposure to the sun since morning, “a lot of evaporation would have taken place”.

Although the stench of fuel lingered over residential districts near Changi airport into the night, the smell was gone by the morning as joggers enjoyed the fresh morning breeze.

“If they manage to contain it, then it won’t affect wildlife that much,” Louis Ng, executive director of activist group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society tells AFP.

According to Singapore food-industry officials, 51 offshore aquaculture farms near the spill were loaned canvas skirting to cover their underwater nets and prevent any leaked oil from contaminating their fish.

Asian Carriers Dominate 2010 World Airline Awards

More than 17.9 million air travelers from over 100 different nationalities were included in this year’s survey, which recognizes the best in the global airline industry. It was certainly a good year for Asian airlines, with Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways and Malaysia Airlines also making the Airline of Year Award's top 10 list:

1. Asiana Airlines
2. Singapore Airlines
3. Qatar Airways
4. Cathay Pacific
5. Air New Zealand
6. Etihad Airways
7. Qantas Airways
8. Emirates
9. Thai Airways
10. Malaysia Airlines

Other categories airlines were voted on include “Best Low-Cost Airline,” which was won by Air Asia, ahead of Air Berlin and Virgin Blue. Dragon Air was named “World’s Best Regional Airline,” with Silkair and Bangkok Airways coming in second and third, respectively.

Apple Dethrones Microsoft In US

NEW YORK: Apple, maker of the Macintosh computer, the iPod, iPhone and iPad, dethroned software giant Microsoft on Wednesday as the largest US technology company in terms of market value.

Microsoft shares shed 4.07 percent on Wednesday to close at 25.01 dollars, dropping its market capitalization -- the number of shares outstanding multiplied by the stock price -- to 219.18 billion dollars.

Apple shares lost 0.45 percent meanwhile to close at 244.05 dollars, giving the company a market value of 222.07 billion dollars.

The only US company with a larger market capitalization than the Cupertino, California-based Apple is ExxonMobil at 278.64 billion dollars.

Apple stock has risen steadily over the past few years as chief executive Steve Jobs, who returned to Apple in 1997, piloted the release of a string of hit products starting with the iPod in 2001, following by the iPhone in 2007 and the iPad this year.

Lee DeWyze Is New ‘American Idol’

Paint store worker, Lee DeWyze, captured the “American Idol” Season 9 title over longtime season front-runner Crystal Bowersox, the cool, dreadlocked single mother with the raspy folk-rock voice.

Lee, 24, looked like he was about to burst into tears after Idol host Ryan Seacrest revealed he won the contest.

He wins the coveted title as well as a recording contract after millions of Americans placed their votes for the bluesy guitarist despite what “Idol” judges had deemed a better showing by Bowersox in her performance finale.

“He’s a fantastic singer. Throwing in the fact that he has an appealing humble and unassuming persona, it’s no wonder he won the hearts of millions,” said Maria S., a die-hard fan of Lee.

Added Kelvin Lian, who watched the finale live on TV this morning, “I’m disappointed Crystal lost out because she certainly has stronger vocals than Lee.”

DeWyze’s cover version of U2′s hit “Beautiful Day” will be released as his first single.

Was Lee your winning choice?

Baby Rolls In Pushchair In Front Of Train Survive

2nd Baby survive from the train collision at the same train station.

Blackberry Or iPhone

In the smartphone deathmatch between RIM’s Blackberry versus Apple’s iPhone, it appears that Steve Jobs’ brainchild may be pulling ahead when it comes to the choice for bankers.

British bank Standard Chartered is replacing the Blackberry, currently its standard corporate communications device, with the iPhone. The move could mean thousands of bankers switching to the Apple device for on-the-go business communications.

The London-based bank is giving its corporate Blackberry users the option of switching to the iPhone, while the company continues to pay for monthly billing for business-related phone and data services.

“It’s a group-wide initiative involving wholesale and consumer banks globally,” a Singapore-based spokesperson for Standard Chartered told Reuters.

In a similar move last June, Singapore’s Overseas-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) also gave its employees the choice of a Blackberry or an iPhone to access corporate email.

Peter Koh, head of technology infrastructure at OCBC, told Reuters, “This initiative is not intended to replace the Blackberry. Rather, we want to provide our colleagues with another option to access their office email and sync their contacts, notes and calendar while on the move.”

“Our colleagues can continue to enjoy the features and content available on their iPhone without the hassle of carrying another device in order to access office email,” he explained.

What does this mean for Blackberry developers, RIM?

“If more companies switch to the iPhone, this is of course bad news for RIM,” said Lu Chialin, an IT industry analyst at Macquarie Securities in Taipei. “However, it will take a long time for companies to do their own internal testing before deciding to change, so it will be a while before it has any effect on RIM.”

She explains the biggest issue for most companies choosing telephone and email hardware is data encryption. And because she feels RIM has a more effective system than other handset makers, the shift toward the iPhone is not one that will happen overnight.

So which smartphone do you prefer? Is the Blackberry in danger of being dialed out, or is the iPhone over-rated?

Huge Oil Spill Off Singapore Doubles In Size

Emergency teams are scrambling to contain nearly 5,000 tonnes of crude oil that leaked into the Singapore Strait after two vessels collided in the busy waterway, according to port officials.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in its latest update that 5,000 tonnes of crude had leaked from the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3, double its estimate just a few hours earlier.

An AFP report said that a crude oil slick about four kilometres long and one kilometre wide was spotted near the east coast of Singapore hours after the pre-dawn collision.

The stench of fuel lingered over residential districts near Changi airport into the night as some of the oil evaporated in the stifling tropical heat.

The MPA said that the Malaysian-registered tanker MT Bunga Kelana 3 has been damaged in a collision with a bulk carrier MV Wally registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

According to Malaysia’s Maritime Enforcement Agency, the collision tore a 10-metre gash in the Malaysian tanker.

The tanker’s operators, Malaysia-based AET, said in a statement, “Oil booms are being placed around the leaked cargo to contain the spill.”

Nobody was injured in the accident and ship traffic in the area has not been affected by the incident that took place 13 km off Singapore in the Traffic Separation Scheme at 6.10am Tuesday, according to the release.

The Traffic Separation Scheme is a commercial channel that runs along the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.

In the aftermath of the accident, both vessels were anchored off Singapore and neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia have been notified.

Singapore’s MPA said a total of 20 vessels from Singapore and Malaysia were involved in the cleanup effort while 200 personnel were on standby to attend to coastal areas that might be affected by the slick.

It also said the damaged double-hulled tanker — designed to minimise cargo spillage in case of an accident — was carrying almost 62,000 tonnes of crude.

Ho Yew Weng, response and projects manager of disaster management firm Oil Spill Response Singapore, told AFP, “It seems to be a lot but if it is light crude, it will just evaporate.”

Ho added that Singapore’s hot climate would make the crude disperse even faster, and with the oil’s prolonged exposure to the sun since morning, “a lot of evaporation would have taken place”.

Hubble Catches Planet Being Devoured By Its Star

WASHINGTON: The Hubble space telescope has discovered a planet in our galaxy in the process of being devoured by the star that it orbits, according to a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

The doomed planet, dubbed WASP-12b, has the highest known surface temperature of any planet in the Milky Way -- around 1,500 degrees Celsius (2,800 degrees Fahrenheit).

But it could be enveloped by its own parent star over the next ten million years, the paper's authors have concluded.

Using a new instrument called the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph that was installed on Hubble in 2009, the researchers observed how the planet was whipped into an elongated shape by gravitational forces.

"We see a huge cloud of material around the planet, which is escaping and will be captured by the star. We have identified chemical elements never before seen on planets outside our own solar system," team leader Carole Haswell of The Open University in Great Britain said.

Discovered in 2008, WASP-12b is located about 600 light-years from Earth in the Auriga Constellation and is more than 300 times the size of Earth.

It also has a mass 40-percent greater than that of Jupiter, the biggest planet in our solar system.

It is so close to its parent star that it orbits it in little more than 24 hours.

Astronomers already knew that stars will swallow a planet that comes too close to it, but this is the first time that the phenomenon has been observed so clearly.

The paper, which was published in the May 10 edition of The Astrophysical Journal Letters, confirms a theoretical paper published in the journal Nature last Friday by Shu-lin Li, an astronomer at Peking University in Beijing.

Shu-lin had predicted that the planet's surface would be distorted by the star's gravitational pull, and that gravitational tidal forces would make the interior so hot that it would greatly expand its outer atmosphere.

LOVE THEM: STOP The Cruelty & Abuse

LOVE THEM...

LIKE YOUR OWN CHILDREN...

They Need the tender care,

If u dun care don't hurt them...

Have a loving heart!!!!

Annoyed By Cellphones?

NEW YORK - Ever wonder why overhearing a cellphone conversation is so annoying? American researchers think they have found the answer.

Whether it is the office, on a train or in a car, only half of the conversation is overheard which drains more attention and concentration than when overhearing two people talking, according to scientists at Cornell University.

"We have less control to move away our attention from half a conversation than when listening to a dialogue," said Lauren Emberson, a co-author of the study that will be published in the journal Psychological Science.

"Since halfalogues really are more distracting and you can't tune them out, this could explain why people are irritated," she said in an interview.

Last year Americans spent 2.3 trillion minutes chatting on cellphones, according to the U.S. wireless trade association CTIA -- a ninefold increase since 2000.

Worldwide, there are about 4.6 billion cellphone subscribers, according to the International Telecommunications Union, a U.N. agency. The number is equal to about two-thirds of the world's population, leaving few corners of the globe where public spaces are free of mobile-tethered babblers.

China has the most cellphone users with 634 million, followed by India with 545 million and the United States with 270 million, figures from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency show.

Emberson said people try to make sense of snippets of conversation and predict what speakers will say next.

"When you hear half of a conversation, you get less information and you can't predict as well," she said. "It requires more attention."

The findings by Emberson and her co-author Michael Goldstein are based on research involving 41 college students who did concentration exercises, like tracking moving dots, while hearing one or both parties during a cellphone conversation.

The students made more errors when they heard one speaker's side of the conversation than when overheard the entire dialogue.

The study shows that overhearing a cellphone conversation affects the attention we use in our daily tasks, including driving, Emberson said.

"These results suggest that a driver's attention can be impaired by a passenger's cell phone conversation," according to the study.

It recommends similar studies should be conducted with driving simulators.

Tanjong Pagar KTMB Station To Relocate

The Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB station) at Tanjong Pagar will be relocated to the Woodlands train checkpoint by 1 July 2011.

In a Channel NewsAsia report, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak also agreed that Malaysia would co-locate its railway and Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) to the Woodlands train checkpoint.

Also announced was the establishment of MS Pte Ltd. It is reported that Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional Berhad would hold a 60 per cent stake in this company while Singapore’s Temasek Holdings will have a 40 per cent share.

MS Pte Ltd will oversee the development of three parcels of land in Tanjong Pagar, Kranji and Woodlands, and another three pieces of land in Bukit Timah.

The railway land could be swapped for real estate in two of Singapore’s most expensive districts, in Marina South and/or Ophir-Rochor area.

In a joint statement released, both sides will conduct valuations of the land and PM Lee will visit Kuala Lumpur within a month with a proposal for a land swap.

According to Song Seng Wun, a regional economist with CIMB-GK Research in Singapore, he told AFP the railway land’s worth “could be in the billions”.

Malaysia Wildlife park Under Fire Over Tiger Video

KUALA LUMPUR : A Malaysian wildlife park came under fire Sunday from wildlife activists over a video posted on YouTube showing an apparently drugged tiger being prodded and poked for the amusement of visitors.

The two-minute clip:

Shows the tiger lying on a slab at a wildlife park in the Afamosa resort while a handler invites visitors walking around it to take pictures with the animal.

The handler then prods and pokes the big cat to force it to pose and even uses his knee to jab its head into an upright pose for a photograph.

"This is horrible and a disgrace that an animal is treated in this fashion. We must stop such abuse and the perpetrators must be punished," Friends of the Earth Malaysia president S.M. Idris told AFP.

Wildlife trade watchdog TRAFFIC criticised the park's use of captive tigers for entertainment.

"If they acquire tigers for this use, it gives Malaysia a very bad reputation as it shows the park is using the tigers for entertainment instead of educational purposes," senior officer Kanitha Krishnasamy told AFP.

Afamosa resort general manager Allan Chee denied the tiger was abused at the park, which has more than 20 tigers and numerous other species.

"There was no abuse to the tiger, the tiger was just drowsy and lazy after being fed and so was being prodded by the handler to get into position," he told AFP.

He said the park in southern Malacca state prided itself on its animal performances, with elephants playing football and others allowed to roam freely.

However, state wildlife and national parks head Abdul Rahim Othman told AFP the park had been warned over having such photo sessions with animals which can be viewed as abuse.

"We have warned them and will carry out further investigations and if they continue to violate our warnings, we can take action against them including pulling their licences," he said.

Just 3,200 tigers are believed to remain in the wild, down from an estimated 100,000 a century ago.

Collin Raye - Love Me

Osmonds 50 Years Of Memories 1

US Team Creates First 'Synthetic Life'

WASHINGTON: US researchers have developed the first self-replicating bacteria cell controlled by a synthetic genome, but denied they were playing God or seeking to recreate life in a test-tube.

"This is the first synthetic cell that's been made," said lead researcher Craig Venter, unveiling the culmination of 15 years of research.

"We call it synthetic because the cell is totally derived from a synthetic chromosome, made with four bottles of chemicals on a chemical synthesizer, starting with information in a computer."

The method could be used to design bacteria specifically to help produce biofuels or to clean up environmental hazards, said the study carried out by the J. Craig Venter Institute, and published in the journal Science.

Potential applications include producing algae to clean up carbon dioxide, one of the main greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, or making new clean energy hydrocarbons for refineries.

Researchers also hope to work on techniques to speed up the production of vaccines and to make new food ingredients and chemical substances.

"This becomes a very powerful tool for trying to design what we want biology to do," said Venter, co-author of the first sequencing of the human genome in 2000.

But critics warned that he and his team were opening up a Pandora's Box by paving the way towards building artificial organisms that are still not properly understood.

In an interview with the BBC, Venter defended himself from accusations that he was "playing God."

"That's a term that comes up every time there is a new medical or scientific breakthrough associated with biology," he said.

"It's been a goal of humanity from the earlier stages to try and control nature... that's how we got domesticated animals.

"This is the next stage in our understanding, it is a baby step in our understanding of how life fundamentally works and maybe how we can get some new handles on trying to control these microbial systems to benefit humanity."

The researchers synthesized the 1.08 million base pair genome of the bacterium Mycoplasma mycoides -- which commonly causes mastitis in goats -- created from four bottles of the chemicals which make up the components of DNA.

They also added "watermarks" to the synthetic genome to distinguish it from a natural one. The watermarks included the names of 46 authors and scientists who worked on the project on the genome along with its own website address -- so that anyone who decodes it can send an email to the team.

Three sets of quotations including "to live, to err, to fall, to triumph, to recreate life out of life" from Irish author James Joyce were also included.

Venter told a press conference the team had started with a living cell, which had been transformed with the synthetic genome, adding the cell had gone through a "million steps of replication" and was now frozen in a freezer.

"This is an important step we think, both scientifically and philosophically. It's certainly changed my views of the definitions of life and how life works," he added in a statement.

Throughout the research, the team had engaged in discussions about the ethical implications of their work, he stressed.

But Canadian international technology watchdog ETC Group warned against further such research.

The synthetic cell "is not a one-stop shop for all our societal woes," said the group's director Pat Mooney. "It is much more likely to cause a whole new set of problems governments and society are ill-prepared to address."

Venter's team announced in 2008 that it had chemically synthesized a bacterial genome, but it was unable to activate that genome in a cell at that time.

Now the team had managed to "boot up" the synthetic genome to create the first cell controlled by a synthetic genome.

But Jim Thomas from the ETC Group warned: "Synthetic biology is a high-risk, profit-driven field, building organisms out of parts that are still poorly understood.

"We know that lab-created life forms can escape, become biological weapons and that their use threatens existing natural biodiversity."

Dismissing the danger of bio-terrorism, Venter added to the BBC: "The technology is not for sale, the cells are not for sale. We are trying to use this technology to advance vaccine protection, we are trying to use it to advance the basic understanding of cellular life."

8 Survive Plane Crash In South India, 158 Dead

MANGALORE, India: An Air India Express airliner crashed outside an airport in southern India on Saturday, killing 158 people when it burst into flames after overshooting a table-top runway and plunging into forest below.

There were eight survivors after the Boeing 737-800, which had come from Dubai with 166 people on board including crew, appeared to skid off the runway in rain at Mangalore airport in Karnataka state, Air India director Anup Srivastava said.

At least 146 bodies had been recovered, said M. Nambiar, a top official in the Civil Aviation ministry.

"We had no hope to survive, but we survived," Pradeep, a survivor who is an Indian technician working in Dubai, told local television.

"The plane broke into two and we jumped off the plane. As soon as the plane landed, within seconds this happened."

Local television showed a fireman carrying what seemed to be the remains of a child from the smoking wreckage. Charred bodies lay in the forested terrain.

All the passengers were Indian nationals, an Air India official in Dubai said. Many were likely Indian migrant workers in Dubai. The pilot was Serbian and said to be very experienced.

Air India Express is the budget arm of the loss-ridden state-run carrier Air India, which has been fending off growing competition from private airlines.

The flight's black box has been recovered, the United Arab Emirates state news agency WAM said. But Air India official Nambiar said the search for the flight data recorder was still going on.

The crash appeared to be an accident, Indian officials said. One TV report said the plane hit a radar pole on landing.

"There was no distress indication from the pilot. That means between the pilot and the airport communication there was no indication of any problem," V.P. Agarwal, director of Airports Authority of India, told local television.

Indian officials said the plane crashed around 6 a.m. . TV images showed it struck a forested area, and flames were blazing from the wreckage as rescue workers fought to bring the fire under control.

"While landing at the airport, the plane deviated and hit something," said Krishna, another survivor. "It caught fire and we fell out. We looked up and saw some opening and came out through that route."

BOOM INDUSTRY

It was India's first major crash in a decade, which has seen a boom in private carriers amid growing demand from India's middle class.

A series of near misses at major airports, including Delhi and Mumbai, have sparked debate about how India's creaking infrastructure was failing to keep pace with an economic boom.

Indian Law Minister Veerappa Moily told CNN-IBN TV that he had opened a new runway at Mangalore airport just 10 days ago. The ill-fated Air India airliner was two years old.

Boeing said in a statement it was sending a team to provide technical assistance to the crash investigation.

The last major crash in India was in July 2000 when an Alliance Air Boeing 737-200 crashed into a residential area during a second landing attempt in the eastern city of Patna, killing at least 50 people.

With growing competition from private carriers, the Indian government agreed to inject $1.1 billion into Air India if the ailing state-run carrier came up with the same amount in cost cuts and extra revenue.

The airline lost $875 million in the fiscal year ended March 2009.

Hundreds of Air India pilots went on strike in September 2009 to protest at management plans to cut pay incentives. The strike was called off when aviation minister Praful Patel said the grievances would be dealt with.

Rest In Peace Dr Goh Keng Swee

Singapore’s former Deputy Prime Minister and chief economic architect, Dr. Goh Keng Swee, has passed away after a long illness. He was 91.

Dr Goh is best remembered as one of the key architects behind Singapore’s economic success. His daughter-in-law, Tan Siok Sun described the story of his life in the new book Goh Keng Swee: A Portrait. The biography features many of the key milestones in Singapore’s journey from sleepy backwater to a globalised, First-World city.

He is survived by his wife, son, daughter-in-law, two grandsons and three great grandchildren.

Born into a rich Malacca family, his father, Goh Leng Inn, managed a rubber plantation and his mother was from a family that produced famous Malaysian politicians like Tan Cheng Lock and his son Tan Siew Sin.

Dr. Goh came to Singapore at the age of two, and was later educated at Anglo Chinese School before going on to study economics at Raffles College.

He was active in post-war administration after joining the Department of Social Welfare in 1946. He then tendered his resignation from the civil service to enter politics in 1959. Elected as the People’s Action Party (PAP)’s representative for the Kreta Ayer Constituency, he only retired from the position in 1984.

In 1959, upon taking up the post of Minister of Finance, he once famously described the state of Singapore’s economy as “wretched”. Thanks to his efforts, however, the economy did not stay that way for long.

Twelve years later, in 1979, Dr. Goh made significant contributions to Singapore’s education system, introducing key policies like religious education and streaming in primary schools.

Apart from his role as the Finance Minister, Dr. Goh also became the Minister for Interior and Defence until 1967 following Singapore’s independence. One of the key policies he is credited for is the creation of National Service.

Due to personal reasons, Dr. Goh stepped down as Deputy Prime Minister in 1984. By then, he had been in the Cabinet for 25 years, serving the last 11 as Deputy Prime Minister.

Famed for his legendary thriftiness, President S.R. Nathan, who once worked with Goh in the defence ministry in the 1970s, observed that he was so averse to the idea of spending that he would carry soap flakes to wash his clothing in the hotel bathroom whenever he travelled.

Retired civil servant Oon Lye Kim, 70, told Yahoo! Singapore, “Dr. Goh wasn’t much of a talker but he was a brilliant economist. He really laid the foundations for Singapore’s economic success. He was also instrumental in developing Jurong Island, then just a wild jungle, thereby giving jobs to thousands.”

Another retiree, Paul Loh, 63 said, “He was a very tough but also prudent man, especially when Singapore broke away from Malaysia and we were left on our own. People respect him for what he has done.”

My condolences to his family.

Thank you, Dr. Goh. Rest in peace.

Australian Aims To Solve Great Everest Mystery

SYDNEY: An Australian adventurer will set out to solve Mount Everest's greatest mystery this week by searching for long-lost evidence that the peak was conquered in 1924, 29 years earlier than previously thought.

Mountaineer Duncan Chessell said conditions were the best in decades to find the missing body of Andrew "Sandy" Irvine and perhaps photographic evidence that he reached the world's highest peak with fellow Briton George Mallory.

Mallory and Irvine perished near the summit during their expedition, leaving many wondering whether they had successfully scaled Everest. Mallory's body was recovered in 1999 but not the camera equipment he was believed to be carrying.

"I was at North Col last week and the wind was 150 kilometres (90 miles) per hour and it was stripping snow off the mountain which has been there for many years," Chessell said in a message from base camp, according to AAP news agency.

"There is now bare rock exposed which has been deeply covered for decades in the most likely areas where Andrew Irvine's body may be.

"It is my intention to search those areas en route to the summit and take this rare opportunity to find him and, perhaps, the missing cameras."

New Zealand's Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay are acknowledged as the first to conquer Everest in 1953, but Mallory and Irvine's unexplained story has continued to fascinate the mountaineering world.

"I have studied this matter very closely and am now very familiar with Mount Everest," Chessell said. "I believe we have a good chance of finding something."

Chessell, who is also bidding to become the first Australian to summit Everest three times, was due to begin his final ascent on Tuesday and should reach the peak by Sunday or Monday.

Worst Words To Say At Work....

Let’s look at some specific words and phrases that are used by some people to buy time, avoid giving answers and escape commitment. If you use these words and phrases yourself, take a scalpel and cut them out of your thinking, speaking and writing. Words like these only weaken you and make you sound noncommittal, undependable and untrustworthy.

“Try”
Try is a weasel word. “Well, I’ll try,” some people say. It’s a cop-out. They’re just giving you lip service when they probably have no real intention of doing what you ask. Remember what Yoda says to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: “Do or do not–there is no try.” Take Yoda’s advice. Give it your all when you attempt something. And if it doesn’t work, start over.

Put passion into your work and give it your best effort, so you can know that you did all you could to make it happen. So if the outcome you were expecting didn’t come to fruition, it’s not because you didn’t do everything you could to make it happen. It just wasn’t the right time for it or it wasn’t meant to be.

“Whatever”
This word is a trusted favourite of people who want to dismiss you, diminish what you say or get rid of you quickly. “Whatever,” they will say as an all-purpose response to your earnest request. It’s an insult and a verbal slap in the face. It’s a way to respond to a person without actually responding. When you say whatever after another person has said his or her piece, you have essentially put up a wall between the two of you and halted any progress in communicating. It’s a word to avoid.

“Maybe” and “I don’t know”
People will sometimes avoid making a decision and hide behind words and phrases like “maybe” and “I don’t know.” There’s a difference between legitimately not knowing something and using words like these as excuses. Sometimes, during a confrontation, people will claim not to know something or offer the noncommittal response “maybe,” just to avoid being put on the spot. If that seems to be the case, ask, “When do you think you will know?” or “How can you find out?” Don’t let the person off the hook so easily.

“I’ll get back to you”
When people need to buy time or avoid revealing a project’s status, they will say, “I’ll get back to you,” and they usually never do. If people say they will get back to you, always clarify. Ask them when they will get back to you, and make sure they specify the day and time. If they don’t, then pin them down to a day and time and hold them to it. If they won’t give you a day or time, tell them you’ll call in a day or week and follow up. Make sure you call and get the information you need.

“If”
Projects depend on everyone doing his or her part. People who use if are usually playing the blame game and betting against themselves. They like to set conditions, rather than assuming a successful outcome. People who rely on conditional responses are fortifying themselves against potential failure. They will say, “If Bob finishes his part, then I can do my part.” They’re laying the groundwork for a “no fault” excuse and for not finishing their work.

There are always alternatives, other routes and ways to get the job done. Excuse makers usually have the energy of a slug, the vision of Mr. Magoo and the spine of a jellyfish. You don’t want them on your mountain climbing team up K-2 or Mount Everest.

“Yes, but …”
This is another excuse. You might give your team members suggestions or solutions and they come back to you with “Yes, but . . .” as a response. They don’t really want answers, help, or solutions. You need to call the “Yes, but . . .” people out on their avoidance tactic by saying something like: “You know, Jackie, every time I offer you a suggestion you say, ‘Yes, but . . . ,” which makes me think you don’t really want to solve this problem. That’s not going to work. If you want to play the victim, go right ahead, but I’m not going to allow you to keep this up and I may have to report you.” After a response like that, you can be assured that the next words you hear will not be, “Yes, but . . .”!

“I guess …”

This is usually said in a weak, soft-spoken, shoulder-shrugging manner. It’s another attempt to shirk responsibility–a phrase is only muttered when people half agree with you, but want to leave enough leeway to say, “Well, I didn’t really know. . . . I was only guessing.” If you use this phrase, cut it out of your vocabulary.

“We’ll see”

How many times did we hear our parents say this? We knew they were buying time, avoiding a fight or confrontation or really saying no. It’s better to be decisive and honest by saying, “I need more information. Please present your case or send me the data–both pro and con–so I can make an informed decision.” That way the interested parties will contribute to an in-depth, well-researched “verdict.”

This column is an excerpt of Surviving The Toxic Workplace (McGraw-Hill, 2010) by Linnda Durré, a psychotherapist, business consultant and columnist.
http://www.survivingthetoxicworkplace.com/

I Won A Lamborghini? No, Thanks.

Singaporean Rina Sim, 51, visited the Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) casino with her elderly parents earlier this month.

While they played at the second floor VIP tables, she tried her luck at the slot machines making S$5 bets. She was down to her last S$50 when the buttons on the machine stopped working.

She could not play or retrieve her ticket when suddenly, a message flashed on the machine, “Congratulations, you have won the Lamborghini!”

According to The New Paper, Ms Sim was one of two punters who won a Lamborghini each at the RWS casino last week. The two were playing the Mystery Jackpot and were among those who have won over S$70 million over the first three months of the casino’s opening (I wonder how many lost.)

Each luxury car is worth S$850,000 and does not include COE, but the two lucky winners opted for S$650,000 cash instead.

“I really didn’t expect to be so lucky,” said Ms Sim, who opted for the cash because she said a sports car is too difficult to maintain.

Single, and living alone in a condo, she added that she will use the money to pay off housing loans, give some to her parents as well as make donations to old folks’ homes.

The self-professed “aunty” is an RWS regular and visits the casino twice a week, also frequenting cruise ships and overseas casinos. But she insists that she will not increase her bets or stop working because of the windfall.

“The money is not life-changing. If you spend a bit here and a bit there, it will be gone quickly. You still have to work and be thrifty,” she advises.

After all, when it comes to gambling, everyone knows the old adage — for every winner, there’s a thousand losers.

Somehow....

By winning, you achieve something.

By losing, you are motivated to work hard.

By quitting, you shatter your dreams.

By giving yourself a chance to try again or hold on,

some way,

some how,

you will end up getting there.

All blessings are always one second late,

but they're always at the right time.

Can iPad Replace Laptop????

Apple has impossible expectations to meet with the iPad. In the run up to its launch, fans around the world predicted a super-saviour, near-messianic tablet that would not only save the publishing industry but forever change the way we use computers.

In many ways, the iPad is on the way to changing the ergonomics of computing, the same way Apple changed the way smartphones work in our hands.

But really, hype aside, how useful is the iPad as a companion for road warriors?

As part of the job at Yahoo!, I’m on the road about twice a month on average. I’ve been traveling with the iPad for the past few weeks with one question in mind — is it good enough to replace my office-issued Hewlett-Packard sub-notebook?

No. Here’s why:

1. Multi-tasking: No small matter — who likes having to close and open applications continuously? If you get an email with an invite to a meeting, you’ll have to close the mail app, open the calendar, check the schedule, close the calendar, open the mail app and reply. Computing may be tough sometimes, but multi-tasking is nothing short of sliced bread.

2. Keyboard: I’ve been annoyed that the iPhone doesn’t have a keyboard. I hate it even more that there isn’t one for the iPad. Sure, I know I can pair it up with a Bluetooth keyboard, but that’s just one more gadget to pack on a trip.

3. Charger: The iPad can only be charged through a wall charger — you can’t juice up on a regular USB port. That’s another thing to think about.

4. Business apps: Want to work on a 20-page Powerpoint deck on the iPad? Don’t even bother. Apple’s Keynote often shreds Powerpoint pressos.

5. The attention: A curse on early adopters! While it’s a great conversation piece, it means having to demo it for plenty of onlookers.

There are, of course, lots of great reasons to travel with an iPad. Just to balance the argument, here are three of the best ones:

1. Instant on: No-fire-up-and… wait, wait, wait on this. Hit the “on” button and you’re up instantly.

2. Battery life: You get up to ten hours on this.

3. Flights: It’s comfortable to use in the economy seat. No scrunched up body postures. Also, the iPad guarantees a quick pass through on airport security checks. This is one computer that you can safely keep in your bag during luggage x-rays.

Overall, the experience has been positive. But if I had to pick only one business computer for a trip, it would still be the laptop.

What’s been your experience with the “wonder tablet”? Do you plan to get your hands on one?

The Crescent Moon and the “Evening Star”

We received a “front-row seat” last Sunday evening, May 16, 2010 to a common and yet always awesome sight – the “evening star” visibly sitting on top of a crescent moon. People were abuzz both offline and online as people took photos of this astrological occurrence and posted it on social media sites.

The “evening star” is, as many may know already, the planet Venus. As community member Wiser explains in a question, Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after Moon so people thought in the early days (before we has astronomy) it was a star.

Actually, when Venus is seen in the easter sky before the sunrise it is referred to as a “morning star” and when it is seen in the evening in the west after sunset (similar to what just happened last night) it’s called an “evening star.”

How does this happen, that Venus appears as a star? Nuscorpi223 explained that it’s because Venus’ orbit lies inside Earth’s orbit around the Sun. When the orbit of Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun, it also reflects the light of the Sun to earth so that when it moves from the evening to the morning sky, it becomes very visible to us and appears as a “star”.

To people who have just seen this, one question that may be on your mind is if there’s any significance to the crescent moon and Venus being so close together. Don’t worry, this natural phenomenon has no effect on Earth. Community member podi shared that planetary alignments have been happening for the longest time and there’s never been a documented effect to our planet.

But have you ever wondered why the crescent moon and star has come to symbolize Islam? This was asked by bettycatmouse and Schneb gave the best answer. He said the crescent moon and star symbol actually pre-dates Islam by several thousand years. Most sources say that these ancient celestial symbols were in use by the peoples of Central Asia and Siberia in their worship of the sun, moon and sky gods. In this Wikipedia article, it says that possibly the symbol became associated with the Muslim faith when the Ottoman Empire became affiliated with the Muslim world.

If you missed seeing the crescent moon and “evening star” last night, don’t worry. Just click the link below and check out the different photos submitted in Flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=rec&w=all&q=venus+moon&m=text

Prudential Eyes Record Takeover Of Asian Insurer

LONDON: British insurance giant Prudential said Monday it will raise 14.5 billion pounds (17 billion euros, 21 billion dollars) from the sale of new shares to help fund a record takeover of Asian insurer AIA.

"Prudential today announces further details of the proposed combination of the Prudential Group and the AIA Group, including the terms of its fully underwritten rights issue to raise approximately 14.5 billion pounds," a statement said.

The British group had delayed by almost two weeks details of the record rights issue needed to fund the insurance sector's biggest ever takeover as regulators voiced concerns about the enlarged company's capital strength.

Prudential announced in March that it had agreed to buy AIA -- the Asian arm of troubled US insurer AIG -- for 35.5 billion dollars (29 billion euros).

It expects to complete the takeover in the third quarter of 2010 while reports suggest Prudential may have to sell its British operations to fund the rest of the deal.

"We are creating the leading life insurer in the fastest growing region in the world, giving us greater exposure to the highly attractive long-term growth offered in Asia," Prudential chairman Harvey McGrath said Monday.

"We believe this opportunity will deliver substantial long-term value for our shareholders."

The takeover will give Prudential about 30 million customers in Asia and see the Asian operation become by far the group's biggest division -- contributing some 60 percent of new business profit.

Regarding the rights issue, Prudential said it was offering almost 14 billion new shares, each priced at 104 pence. According to analytical group Dealogic, the rights issue is the biggest ever launched to fund a takeover.

Current Prudential investors will be offered 11 new shares for every two shares they own. The sale price represents an 80.8-percent discount to the insurer's closing price of 542.5 pence on Friday.

Prudential's share price slipped 0.37 percent to 540.5 pence in midday London trade.

The AIA deal and the rights issue need 75-percent backing at a shareholders' meeting due on June 7.

"The combined business will be a fast growing and highly profitable company, with a leading position in many of the most attractive markets in the world," Prudential chief executive Tidjane Thiam insisted on Monday.

"We believe that, through capital management and portfolio rationalisation, there will be opportunities for the combined entity to create additional shareholder value over and beyond the revenue and cost synergies identified," added the Frenchman who put together the mega-deal.

Reports have suggested however that some of Prudential's biggest shareholders are opposed to the tie-up.

The rights issue is set to raise about 13.8 billion pounds net of fees and transaction-related expenses and it is being fully-underwritten by Credit Suisse, HSBC, J.P. Morgan Cazenove plus by a syndicate.

These groups will take up any shares not bought by existing shareholders.

Alongside the rights issue, London-listed Prudential has said it plans to begin trading existing shares in Hong Kong and Singapore on May 25.

The listings are seen as a move to garner support from regional investors for the rights issue.

The Hong Kong and Singapore listings will be done by way of introduction, which means adding trading venues without issuing new shares.

The acquisition of AIA will double the size of Prudential and transform it into the world's top non-Chinese insurer by market capitalisation, ahead of major competitors Allianz and AXA.

Sales in Asia already make up half of new contracts for Prudential across a number of countries including China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. The company also has a strong presence in Britain and the United States.

Ocean Fish Could Disappear In 40 Years

NEW YORK: The world faces the nightmare possibility of fishless oceans by 2050 unless fishing fleets are slashed and stocks allowed to recover, UN experts warned.

"If the various estimates we have received... come true, then we are in the situation where 40 years down the line we, effectively, are out of fish," Pavan Sukhdev, head of the UN Environment Program's green economy initiative, told journalists in New York.

A Green Economy report due later this year by UNEP and outside experts argues this disaster can be avoided if subsidies to fishing fleets are slashed and fish are given protected zones -- ultimately resulting in a thriving industry.

The report, which was opened to preview Monday, also assesses how surging global demand in other key areas including energy and fresh water can be met while preventing ecological destruction around the planet.

UNEP director Achim Steiner said the world was "drawing down to the very capital" on which it relies.

However, "our institutions, our governments are perfectly capable of changing course, as we have seen with the extraordinary uptake of interest. Around, I think it is almost 30 countries now have engaged with us directly, and there are many others revising the policies on the green economy," he said.

Environmental experts are mindful of the failure this March to push through a worldwide ban on trade in bluefin tuna, one of the many species said to be headed for extinction.

Powerful lobbying from Japan and other tuna-consuming countries defeated the proposal at the CITES conference on endangered species in Doha.

But UNEP's warning Monday was that tuna only symbolizes a much vaster catastrophe, threatening economic, as well as environmental upheaval.

One billion people, mostly from poorer countries, rely on fish as their main animal protein source, according to the UN.

The Green Economy report estimates there are 35 million people fishing around the world on 20 million boats. About 170 million jobs depend directly or indirectly on the sector, bringing the total web of people financially linked to 520 million.

According to the UN, 30 percent of fish stocks have already collapsed, meaning they yield less than 10 percent of their former potential, while virtually all fisheries risk running out of commercially viable catches by 2050.

Currently only a quarter of fish stocks -- mostly the cheaper, less desirable species -- are considered to be in healthy numbers.

The main scourge, the UNEP report says, are government subsidies encouraging ever bigger fishing fleets chasing ever fewer fish, with little attempt made to allow the fish populations to recover.

The annual 27 billion dollars in government subsidies to fishing, mostly in rich countries, is "perverse," Sukhdev said, since the entire value of fish caught is only 85 billion dollars.

As a result, fishing fleet capacity is "50 to 60 percent" higher than it should be, Sukhdev said.

Creating marine preservation areas to allow female fish to grow to full size, thereby hugely increasing their fertility, is one vital solution, the report says.

Another is restructuring the fishing fleets to favor smaller boats that -- once fish stocks recover -- would be able to land bigger catches.

"What is scarce here is fish," Sukhdev said, "not the stock of fishing capacity."

Jackie Chan a ruthless boss?

He might be one of showbiz' most famous philanthropists, but Jackie Chan is apparently a lousy boss.

A former assistant who was unceremoniously fired in 2003 during the SARS period in Hong Kong has decided to speak up for the many employees under Jackie and his wife Joan Lin's charge. This was after longtime protégé Kenneth Low was disposed off last year in similar circumstances.

William Duen, an actor previously considered one of Jackie's closest confidantes and who helped the superstar break into Hollywood, attacked his former boss for being heartless.

Jackie owns entertainment companies JCE Movies and JC Group International. Ignoring faithful employees who have worked for him for years, he installed Joan as the head of the two firms in an allegedly nepotistic move.

The infamously tightfisted Joan then sacked Kenneth last September after a 30-year relationship, dishing out a meagre HK$100,000 (S$18,000) as compensation. It is believed the 50-year-old is still unemployed.

For the record, according to labour laws in Hong Kong, an employee of Kenneth's circumstances should receive around HK$500,000 (S$89,000) in layoff reward.

Dhabi Hotel Installs Gold-Dispensing Machine

DUBAI - It's the ultimate hole-in-the-wall — a money machine that dispenses pure gold.

But installed beneath the gold-coated ceilings of Abu Dhabi's Emirates Palace hotel, where royalty and billionaires come for cappuccinos topped with gold flakes, the machine almost seems part of the furniture.

"The reason we chose Emirates Palace is because it really fits with the surroundings here," said German entrepreneur Thomas Geissler, creator of the "Gold to Go" brand and chief executive of Ex Oriente Lux.

The exterior of the machine is coated with a thin layer of gold and offers customers 320 items to choose from, ranging from gold bars that can weigh up to 10 grams, to customized gold coins.

"All the gold is imported from Germany, and soon we will have a customized gold bar with a print of the Emirates Palace logo, which will be a nice souvenir for guests to take home," said Geissler.

Through a computer system, the ATM gold machine updates the gold price every 10 minutes to match international markets.

For now, it takes notes of the local dirham currency, but the option of using credit cards will soon be introduced.

The cash-for-gold machines were first tested in Germany in 2009, but Geissler chose Abu Dhabi for the official launch of his invention because of the region's high demand for gold.

"On the first night we had a lot of demand," he said. "One customer even bought one item of every product we have."

Geissler's timing is spot-on, as investors flock to gold as a safe haven from economic turbulence.

On Thursday, gold priced in sterling and euros reached record highs, while that priced in the more usual dollar denomination was quoted at $1,236 an ounce, with dealers expecting it to reach fresh highs over coming days.

World's 1st Curved Double Helix Bridge At Marina Bay

It's 280 meters long, made of a special stainless steel, was lovingly assembled over two years with great precision and is already being touted as an architectural marvel and engineering feat. Officially named "The Helix," the sweeping, curving structure is the world's first double helix bridge and joins CNNGo's list of 24 of the world's most amazing bridges.

The bridge is located just beside the floating platform at Marina Bay, and when Phase 2 of Marina Bay Sands is open in June, it will allow pedestrians a direct link to the integrated resort. At its entrance is Singapore's first art park -- the Youth Olympic Park -- which opened at the same time as the bridge, and alongside it is the vehicular bridge to the casino resort, called Bayfront Bridge.

Designed by Australian firm Cox Group, engineering firm Arup and Singapore-based Architects 61, the bridge is made up of a major and minor steel helix that wind around each other. The bridge has five viewing platforms spanning across the entire length which provide great views of the Singapore skyline and events taking place within Marina Bay. It also functions as a outdoor gallery where children's paintings and drawings are exhibited for public viewing.

To put it in perspective, if all the steel tubes forming the major and minor helix are laid end to end, it will measure 2,250 meters long, and the entire structure weighs about 1,700 tons, which is equivalent to about 1,130 saloon cars. There is also a night lighting feature built into the pedestrian bridge, which can be programmed to create various moods for different events.

"When the (Marina Bay) Promenade is completed by the middle of this year, together with this bridge, it will form a 3.5-kilometer pedestrian loop around the whole bay," said Fun Siew Leng, Group Director of Urban Planning and Design, Urban Redevelopment Authority, to Channel NewsAsia.

To mark the completion of the bridge and the opening of the Youth Olympic Park, a specially choreographed two-minute pyrotechnic show was held over the weekend, which was set against the backdrop of the pedestrian bridge. The Helix was officially named and declared open by National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

A series of music, dance, drum and gongfu performances choreographed by Aaron Khek, the chief choreographer for the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games, was also held in the newly built Youth Olympics Park.

What Does Your Sleep Position Reveal About Your Personality?

The research also links certain sleeping positions with health risks. Some aid digestion while others spur on snoring and restlessness.

Here are the six common sleeping positions and correlated personality traits and health implications, according to this study.

Fetus position - A whopping 41% of participants sleep in this curled-up manner. Women are twice as likely to rest like this and it is listed as the most common position. These sleepers are said to have a tough exterior but are still sensitive and may appear to be shy but warm up quickly.

Log position - If you sleep on your side with both arms down, you are a social, easy-going person who is trusting, sometimes to the point of being gullible. The study showed 15% of people sleep like a log.

Yearner position - A close third is the side-lying position with both arms out in front of the body, with 13% of partipants sleeping like this. Yearners are noted to be open-minded and still cynical, suspicious, and stubborn about sticking to decisions once they are made.

Soldier position - These sleepers lie on their backs with arms down and kept close to the body. This 8% study is said to be reserved, quiet, without fuss, and hold themselves and others to a high standard. Soldier sleepers have a higher likelihood for snoring due to the flat-back position, which may not cause them to wake up often but may result in a less restful night's sleep.

Freefall position - Those people who lie on their bellies with arms under or wrapped around a pillow with head turned to the side, make up 7% of the population studied.
Freefallers are brash, outgoing, and are very uncomfortable with criticism.

Starfish position - Sleepers who lie on their backs with arms up near their head or the pillow account for 5% of participants. These people are good listeners, helpful, and are uncomfortable being the center of attention. People who sleep in starfish position are more likely to snore and to suffer from a poor night's sleep more often.

What’s Your Worst Dining Experience?

Everyone’s favourite fried chicken giant Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) was recently ordered to fork out almost S$40,000 after a cockroach was discovered eating a chip in one of its busiest UK branches.

Further inspection of the branch in London’s West End turned out flies, dried chicken blood on the floor and even a mouse.

And that’s not all – health inspectors found there were no handwash dispensers in the food preparation area. This could only mean that on the day of the inspection, staff were not able to wash their hands properly before handling the food.

Four months prior to the incident, the fast food giant received a “specific warning” from the authorities about its sub-standard hygiene practices. But judging from the aftermath of various inspections, little has been done. I’m pretty sure Colonel Sanders must be turning in his grave right now.

We Singaporeans live to eat, and this incident serves as a harrowing reminder that sometimes we simply have no idea just what goes into our food, or how it’s being prepared.

Dining in Singapore, I’ve survived maggots in sushi, insect wings in Tom Yum soup, rubber bands in my mee hoon and residual lipstick marks on wine glasses. But these are just the tip of the iceberg.

Last April, in what is touted as the worst mass food poisoning case in Singapore, two women lost their lives after eating at an Indian Rojak stall in Geylang Serai. More than a hundred others were either hospitalised or received outpatient treatment for food poisoning.

This follows yet another mass-poisoning scare back in 2007 when Prima Deli bakery was found to have sold salmonella-laced chocolate cake. More than 150 people fell ill and experienced fever, vomiting and abdominal pain.

Do you think food hygiene practices in Singapore are satisfactory?

Share your worst horror dining experience with us and tell us what you think can be done to ensure better local food hygiene practices.

Petunjuk IMAN

Berkata Imam Al-Ghazali

Jika kau ingin petunjuk iman
Kuatkanlah dirimu utk menerima segala musibah
Bertenang dlm menangung segala kepahitan
Sifat sabar terbentang dlm dadamu

Lisanmu perlu dikunci
Matamu perlu dikawal
Rahsiamu disembunyikan
Hanya dilihat Allah S.W.T
Namamu jgn terkenal
Pintumu tertutup
Mulutmu tersenyum
Perutmu lapar
hatimu luka
Hindari dari terkenal
pangkatmu terpendam

Keaibanmu tersembunyi dari umum
Setiap hari menahan kepahitan
Dari zaman dan teman
Sedangkan hatimu menurut
Siangmu berbakti kpd org
Tanpa membangkit2nya

Sepi dari pandangan
Ambillah kesempatan pada malam itu
Jadikan ia jalan dan persiapan untuk hari Kiamat.


"To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order;
To put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order;
To put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life;
we must first set our hearts right".

The Official Song of FIFA World Cup 2010

The song will be performed at the FIFA World Cup(TM) Final by Shakira and South African artist Freshlyground on July 11, 2010.

The song combines Afro-Colombian instrumentation and rhythms with a rousing Soca beat and Southern African guitar. The chorus borrows from a favorite Cameroonian marching chant made popular by the group Golden Voices.

“The Official Song is as much awaited by the fans as the Mascot or the Logo. It is part of the identity of the world’s most exciting sport’s event. This song is the personification of the African rhythm and identity and sets the pace for this unique event. I am looking forward to hear the song throughout the tournament and watch it performed by Shakira and Freshlyground at the Final,” said Joseph S. Blatter, FIFA President.

“I am honored that Waka Waka (This Time For Africa) was chosen to be part of the excitement and the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup,” said Shakira. “The FIFA World Cup is a miracle of global excitement, connecting every country, race, religion and condition around a single passion. It represents an event that has the power to unite and integrate, and that’s what this song is about.”



The so-called “Battle of the World Cup Theme Songs” has finally been settled.

After much confusion, Shakira’s “Waka Waka” (or “Burn Bright” in Swahili ) has officially been named South Africa 2010′s World Cup theme song. Why confusion? Because if you do a quick search on “World Cup 2010 song”, expect most results to show ”Wavin’ Flag” by Somali-Canadian artiste K’naan.



To be fair, both songs boast lively beats, a catchy tune and — most important of all – a great sing-along, easy-to-remember chorus ( my all-time favourite is still Ricky Martin’s “Cup of Life”). But after a fair amount of investigation, I discovered that “Wavin’ Flag” is actually the official anthem for Coca Cola’s 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign and not for the actual tournament.

Even so, response to Shakira’s “Waka Waka” has been lukewarm. Firstly, the imagery of war and battle in the first 2 verses of the song is a little dodgy, bearing in mind the continent’s fresh and painful history of violence. But what riles many Africans more — never mind the fact that native South African band Freshlyground plays back-up – is whether the sultry Colombian is the right “face” for the continent’s first World Cup. And who can blame them?

As diverse as her heritage may be, she isn’t the least bit African. Local South African fans have voiced their disgust. “It’s horrible, I’m not standing for it” says Lindi Munondeand, and “How is Shakira going to sing the African part of it?” laments Nomaswazi Thomo. Jenny Cryws-Williams, presenter for South African station 702 Talk Radio also cried out: “Why don’t we have South Africans doing it for us?”.

The issue with Shakira’s song wasn’t the organisers’ only faux pas. The tournament’s opening concert on June 11 as also heavily criticised for having too many foreign acts such as American artistes Alicia Keys and the Black Eyed Peas. This forced an about-turn by organisers to showcase more local African acts in the line-up.

This will be the first time Africa will host the World Cup — a historic and proud moment for all Africans. The least the organisers could do is get it right.

But whatever has been decided will stand. And it’ll be interesting to see the reception when Shakira performs “Waka Waka” with Freshlyground at the World Cup Finals.

Having said that, have a listen to both songs and tell us which do you prefer?