The Nanyang Chronicle Vol 15 Issue 05

CHRONICLE Singing her own tune... PAGE 12

THE NANYANG

O C T O B E R 2 7, 2 0 0 8 | V O L 15 N O 5 | I S S N N O 0 218 -7 31 0 | W W W . N T U . E D U . S G / C H R O N I C L E

Down in the rankings

NTU slips down in global varsity rankings for a third year running PAGE03 PLUS: PERK UP YOUR SENSES̶THE EIGHT ESSENTIALS TO SURVIVE THE EXAM SPELL PAGE09 POON CHIAN HUI EVERY night at 7pm, thousands of lights across the campus switch on so students can continue with work.

But when the students leave, the lights stay on.

According to the Office of Facilities and Planning Management (OFPM), the school’s monthly electricit y usage ranges from 8,000 to 14,000 megawatt hours (MWh).

Based on figures from the 2008 Yearbook of Statistics released by the Singapore Department of Statistics, 8000 MWh is enough to power a family of four living in a HDB flat for more than 1000 years – or to power 1,000 families for a year.

W it h Si ngapor e Powe r ’s a n nou ncement t hat elec t r icit y tariffs will increase by 21 percent from October 1st due to higher fuel oil prices, this translates to a staggering monthly bill of at least $2.44 million.

According to OFPM, lights in all public access areas and corridors are switched on from 7pm to 7am the following day.

Mr Lim Tiong Eng, from the Engineering Services Division of OFPM, said the lights are left on for “safety and security reasons”. This relates to recent concern over campus security after a female student from the National University of Singapore (NUS) was sexually assaulted near her campus while walking home at night.

Having lights on at night also helps staff and students who work late, said Mr Lim. This policy benefits students like Kee Choon Yan, 20, who studies late at the benches along the South Spine. The second-year Chemistry and Biological Chemistry student said: “I think lights should be left on for places that are conducive for studying, like benches.”

However, some, like doctorate students from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Raymond Wong and Zhang Qingfeng, take advantage of a stretch of lighted space beside the carpark to rollerblade.

Although having lights on at night is convenient for the sport, Raymond said there are many unused areas that are lit as well.

“T here cou ld be a sensor system that’s linked to a timer,” he suggested, “If there is no movement for one hour, the lights go off.”

Besides the hike in electricity ta r i f fs, M r L i m sa id newlycompleted bu i ld i ngs a nd a n increase in the student population a l so cont r ibuted to cost l ie r electricity bills this year compared to the previous year.

But the increase in electricity bills is unlikely to result in current students having to pay more school fees.

I think lights should be left on for places that are conducive for studying.

Kee Choon Yan, 20 Second-year Chemistry and Biological Chemistry student

Said assistant director of the Office of Academic Services Ms Adelyn Soh: “The tuition fee for the current cohort of students is fi xed throughout the course of study as announced on February 13th 2008.”

However, Ms Soh does not rule out a revision of school fees for future cohorts.

The Students’ Union said they may take action to improve the university’s lighting system.

“We can approach OFPM to introduce more light sensors or stipulate a shut-down time for all electrical facilities,” said Social and Environmental Executive Ivert Taniwangsa, highlighting the example of the Students’ Activities Centre, which shuts down daily at 2am.

However, with examinations around the corner, these changes will have to wait.

“A s i t i s c u r r e n t l y t h e examination period, students have requested for more studying areas around campus, hence the lights are left switched on in many buildings around campus,” said Taniwangsa.

See the Light

Super

Rabbits This quirky trio from NTU won a rock band competition PAGE02

The F

Word

All’s bright and clear when no one’s near

Fashion takes a fierce turn PAGE18

上海黑帮的

爱恨情愁

中文戏剧《悬恋》 耗资1万3千元华丽打造 23页

Meet the NTU Lion

LIGHTS ARE ON BUT NO ONE’S HOME: Does leaving the lights on all night justify the high electricity costs the university incurs?

PHOTO | FOO CHEE CHANG

Alumnus and professional footballer shares his thoughts PAGE34

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Giant in scientific field honoured Dr Yang Chen Ning receives honorary doctorate that was 41 years in the making

A car bomb in the Croatian capital Zagreb killed journalist and newspaper owner Ivo Pukanic and a colleague last Thursday.

Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong calls the 2009 route "innovative and very interesting" as he continues to plan a tilt at an eighth win.

Lee Yen Nee THE latest recipient of an honorary doctorate in science was welcomed back to the NTU family on October 16th, 40 years from the day he first came here.

For Dr Yang Chen Ning, the recognition was the culmination of 41 years of involvement with the university in scientific research as well as the launch of a scholars’ programme in his honour.

The conferment ceremony was held at the Nanyang Auditorium and was attended by more than 500 people, most of them students from China.

One of them is Li Xuan, 19, who is inspired by Professor Yang’s passion in education. “He’s a very active man. He’s 86 years old but still a professor at Tsinghua University and Chinese University of Hong Kong,” said the secondyear Civil and Environmental Engineering student.

Professor Yang is well-known for his significant contributions in physics, such as the formulation of the Yang-Mills theory, considered a cornerstone of theoretical physics in its description of elementary particles.

D r Ya n g ’s t i e s w i t h t h e university date back to 1967, when he visited what was then known as Nanyang University.

He eventually became the e x t e r n a l e x a m i n e r f or t h e

Actress Lindsay Lohan faces legal action from three men who claim she commandeered their car. She served 84 minutes in prison after admitting drink and drugs charges.

Three men convicted over the 2002 Bali bombingswillbeexecutedinearly November, Indonesian authorities say.

A spacecraft carrying two Russian crew members and a US space tourist arrived back on Earth from the International Space Station on Friday.

Conferment ceremony: Dr Yang Chen Ning, a world-renowned scientist whose ties with the university go back to the 1960's, receives his honorary doctorate . PHOTO | AHMAD ISKANDAR

Department of Physics in 1971.

When the Institute of Advanced Studies was set up in 2005 to enhance the research culture in the university, Professor Yang was made a member of the International Advisory Committee.

Describing Professor Yang as a “giant” in the scientific field, NTU president Dr Su Guaning said that it is an honour that Professor Yang accepted the honorary doctorate.

“He’ll be a great example to all the students here, especially the CN Yang scholars,” he said.

T h e C N Ya n g S c h o l a r s ’

Programme was launched in 2006 for gifted science students who take part in research projects such as the CN Yang Scholars Progr a m me Undergr aduate Research Experience.

I n c onju nc t ion w it h t he conferment ceremony, students in the Scholars’ Programme put up an exhibition at the lobby of the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences to showcase their respective research projects to Professor Yang.

G o o Y i k We n , 20 , a C N Yang scholar from the school

of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineer ing, was t h r i lled to meet Professor Yang. “It was great meeting such a well-known personality who has graciously lent his name to this programme,” he said.

Upon receiving the honorary doctorate, Professor Yang said that he is glad the scholars’ programme is providing students a head start in research.

“It is an honour for me to receive this award from this university, which I visited 41 years ago,” said Professor Yang.

Preppy rabbits win fans and $50,000 “We chose music over school since it was our last dash through everything."

Yong Shu Hui THREE NTU girls walked away $50,000 richer after coming out tops in the second season of SuperBand organised by MediaCorp.

Indie-pop band Tu Zi, also known as Rabbits in English, beat 15 other bands in the music competition which sees local groups battling out on television every week. In the final, the public votes for the winning band.

Tu Zi is made up of team leader and bassist Carissa Foo, drummer Joyce Tan and guitarist-cumvocalist Sarah Lam, all 21.

And yet winning is not just a high point, and Foo said: “We’re thankful and relieved. It’s a good closure for us.”

Simply put, it was a lot of hard work. Tu Zi agreed that they were busiest on the week before the finals on October 5th; they had to miss a week of lessons to prepare for the competition.

“We chose music over school since it was our last dash through everything,” said Foo, a third-year English Literature student at the

news flash

Carissa Foo, 21 Tuzi Bassist

RABBITS JUMP FOR JOY: The all-girls superstar team is relieved that their hardwork had paid off . PHOTO | YONG SHU HUI

School of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Despite missing lessons, Tan said catching up was not a huge problem, as she had help from her schoolmates “My lect urer s under stand my situation and agreed to give me deadline allowances for my

assignments,” Foo added.

Although Foo considers Tu Zi’s music raw, SuperBand judges and their supporters have lapped up their sincere and unpretentious approach to music since t he competition aired in June this year.

The band is well-liked for

their colourful, preppy image and performances inspired by bands like The Beatles and The Beach Boys.

Tu Zi never expected to win as “other bands are very strong” but they led in the popularity votes during the finals, thanks to “pro-active supporters who voted avidly”, Lam said.

The girls said winning the nationwide competition did not change the way friends treated them, apart from the teasings of some.

“My friends greet me with a ‘Hey superstar!’ and said they have a superstar as a friend now,” Lam said.

Saudi Arabia has laid charges against almost 1,000 suspected militants linked to al-Qaeda, the interior minister says.

TV host Phillip Schofield denies ex-pop star Kerry Katona was "ambushed" in an interview where she slurred her words.

The European Parliament delays the introduction of airport X-ray machines that effectively peek under the clothing of passengers.

A Japanese vampire comic inspired a suspect in the murder of UK student Meredith Kercher, an Italian prosecutor says.

Nine suspected Somali PIRATES have been captured by the French navy and handed over to Somali authorities, officials say.

A second Greek minister resigns over a scandal involving a land swap between the government and a monastery.

At least 26 people died in a huge blast at an illegal fireworks factory in the western Indian state of Rajasthan, police said on Thursday.

Wal-Mart tells its Chinese suppliers they will have to adhere to new quality standards and pay more attention to their sub-contractors.

Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan likens the financial turmoil to a "once in a century credit tsunami".

Russia has spent 15bn roubles in the past week to boost its currency, raising fears over the stability of its currency.

India successfully launches the unmanned Chandrayaan 1 spacecraft last Wednesday—the country's first mission to the Moon.

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Doubts cast on NTU fall in rankings

THE TRUE WORTH OF AN EDUCATION: Students say it is the quality of the education and how effective they pursue their discipline that really matters. PHOTO | FILE

Provost calls eight-placedrop “mathematically impossible” as university has improved in almost all its judging criteria Edmund Lee Wei Jian assistant news editor

N T U may have fallen for the third consecutive year in a recent universities ranking, but university officials here are taking the results with a pinch of salt.

According to the survey by The Times of London Higher Education, made public on October 11th, the university fell eight places to the 77th position out of 200 universities worldwide.

The Straits Times reported that Quacquarelli Symonds, which compiled The Times of Higher London Educat ion r a n k i ngs, attributed the drop to a low number of citations gathered by faculty members.

NTU’s academic publications were also not cited as often by other academic institutions.

But N T U Provost Ber t i l A nder sson sa id t h is d rop in rankings “cannot be mathematically possible”.

This is because the university improved or remained the same in five out of the six criteria used in the ranking. These are: academic peer review, employer review, faculty to student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty and international students.

Out of t he si x categor ies, academic peer review constitutes the highest weightage of 40 per cent.

Citations per faculty constitute 20 per cent, international staff and

students each constitute five per cent.

The university believes that though ranking status is important, the survey should be taken with a pinch of salt.

A universit y spokesperson said The Times is not an academic authority in university ranking, but a commercial newspaper.

Moreover, it does not take into consideration that new schools are set up.

The drop worried students such as Lim Xian Zhi, 22, a second-year Mechanical Engineering student.

“It does worry me because I think the ranking of the university has some impact on whether you get the job, especially when you are competing with students from top universities.” he said.

But the university spokesperson said ranking should not be the main concern as the univerisity sets its sight globally and should concentrate on quality research and teaching.

Provost Andersson is also conf ident of the universit y’s established reputation in the world and its excellent research work.

“NTU is on a fantastic upswing as judged by its perception in the world and the readiness for top scientists and top students to join the university,” he said.

Some students see the quality of students rather than university r a n k i ng a s what compa n ie s consider more.

Ermin Tham, 22, a second-year business student, said: “I think ultimately the university trains us to be effective in whichever disciplines we are pursuing, and I think that is what employers are looking out for rather than the ranking.”

03

Financial literacy course pays off for teachers Syafqiah Omar IT WAS meant to benefit their students, but a personal finance seminar for teachers ended up benefiting them most when the economy began ailing.

Joint ly organised by Citibank and National Institute of Education (NIE), the two-day seminar was aimed at equipping teachers with basic financial literacy knowledge they can pass on to their students. The seminar covered topics ranging from coming up with a personal budget, risk management to investment strategies.

When the economy began to fail, Dr Koh Noi Keng, who is involved in organising the programme, received feedback f rom teacher s who avoided investment errors and escaped from the financial meltdown, thanks to what they learnt at the programme.

Dr Koh, who is president of Commerce Educators in Singapore and an NIE lecturer, explained that the seminar is part of the

“By organising financial literacy programmes in schools on our own, we will be able to engage our students better.”

Norhafizah Mohamed Alias, 19 Second-year NIE student

Ministr y Of Education’s aim to raise awareness of financial literacy in schools.

They hope these teachers will then impart their knowledge to students. NIE had received a grant from the education ministry to launch the programme last November. It caught on, and some schools started similar classes for students.

“One of the spin-offs of this seminar is that some schools now roll out their own financial

literacy programmes in their schools and organise cluster events to showcase their students’ work in financial literacy,” Dr Koh said.

One such school is Anglo Chinese School (Independent).

With support from Citibank and NIE, it launched the Financial Literacy Integrated Programme ( F L I P) for t he i r S e cond a r y Three students as part of their coursework fulfilment.

105 students were taught by teachers who had taken the NIE course.

These students showcased their knowledge in financial literacy by displaying their projects in an intra-school competition on 22 October.

Norhaf izah bte Mohamed Alias, 19, a second-year NIE student, expressed interest in participating in future seminars like this.

“By organising f inancia l literacy programmes in schools on our own instead of employing external companies to do so, we will be able to engage our students better,” she said.

An open museum for the campus Karen Seng BE READY to spot art house pieces nestled around campus.

O f f i c i a l l y l au n c h e d on October 20th, the NTU Art and Heritage Museum opened with the inaugural exhibition of new ink works by award-winning artist Mr Lim Tze Peng at the galleries of the School of Art, Design and Media (ADM).

However, ADM will only be home to some of the artefacts the museum owns, as the museum will feature exhibits in galleries and other prominent public spaces in the campus.

Museum head Mr Roeland Stulemeijer said the museum will function not only as a place to exhibit works, but also “aims to become a regional leader in the study of conservation of artefacts and all its facets.”

He added that the museum intends to focus on research work in the long term.

Professor Kwok Kian-Woon, C ha i r of t he N T U Mu seu m committee, said: “The whole campus atmosphere will change because wherever you turn there could be an art work which makes you look at things differently.”

ADM lecturer Professor Oh Soon Hwa welcomed the museum. “(We can have our) own space for dialogue and exchange between our staff, students and artists all

EXPLORING NEW SPACES: Museum showcases works by award-winning artist Mr Lim Tze Peng (middle). PHOTO | MAY CHEN

over the world,” he said.

For third-year ADM student Rachel Lim Sh i En, 23, t he museum is an encouragement to art students to work harder. “(The museum) gives a push factor for students to produce better works equivalent or in competitive manner to what they see in the galleries,” she said.

But some students like Elson Lee Guo Chuan, 22, a f irstyear School of Physical and Mathematical Science student, preferred to have the art works in a shared space.

“I fe e l t hat pe ople w it h common interests won’t have a common place to share their ideas,” he said.

Museum head Mr Roeland Stulemeijer addressed this issue, saying that a proposal to construct a museum for the university will be made when a campus master planning team is formed next year.

For now, a round-the-clock virtual museum is in the works and “exhibitions will be organised with and mostly at the ADM galleries”.

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S’pore to ride out recession, says NBS dean NBS Dean and experts allay fears of students in financial panel discussion Cheong Kah Shin WHILE investors worldwide panic as the economy sours, Singapore is expected to weather the storm, business professors said at a panel discussion.

Held on October 20th, about 200 students and faculty turned up for the event at the Nanyang Aud itor iu m. Chair ing it was Nanyang Business School (NBS) Dean, Dr Jitendra Singh.

Look i ng for wa rd , Dr Ta n K hee Giap predicted that the current economic rollercoaster will last till the end of the year. US and Europe money markets, which banks are heavily dependent on, are not functioning normally yet and capital injections to banks, though promised by the authorities, would take time to finalise, he said.

He also expects Singapore to not reach earlier estimates of 3 percent economic growth in light of the current technical recession, and at best there would be zero growth next year.

Dr Tan has doubts that the

SAFE IS MORE: Local banks' conservative risk management policies will allow Singapore to ride out the financial storm. PHOTO | COURTESY

integrated resorts would be in full operation as scheduled in 2009.

But the full impact of the IR-driven tourism qrowth expected in the second quarter of 2010 would provide the needed economic stimulus and jobs for Singapore's economy, he said.

NBS Dean Dr Jitendra Singh

was also positive about the times ahead.

“In many ways it would appear that the worst is behind us now,” he said, referring to September's market crash, which registered the steepest drops in global markets since 1997's A sian Financial Crisis.

Governments working in a coordinated fashion like European governments’ concerted efforts to save their banks, was also what Dr Singh called “a step in the right direction" to restoring investor confidence.

Another finance professor, Dr Low Buen Sin, said local banks’ prudent risk management policies, often conservative in comparison to foreign banks, may better withstand shocks in times of crises.

Besides talk about local banks, the panel discussion also touched on general tips for investors amidst market volatility.

Finance Professor Dr Hwang Chuan-Yang suggested that short term investors might want to cash out of a fear-driven market, and long term investors would prefer to stay as it would be hard to re-enter the market again after withdrawing.

Business Professor Dr Suman Banerjee also commented on the collapse of major banks in America and its impact on the markets: ”Such unprecedented events only served to erode the credibility of large financial institutions and create a crisis of confidence amongst investors.”

Dur ing t he panel, t he

professors also allayed fears of students, especially on the topic of employment.

Dr Tan said the integrated resorts will boost employment in service sectors, and added in jest that NBS is the top business school in Singapore and undergraduates therefore need not worry.

Shao Bing Chu, 23, a secondyear Electrical and Electronic Engineering student, said: "Now at least I have some background on the financial crisis, its causes and its effects. This knowledge will come in useful when I go into the job market in one or two years' time."

But second-yea r bu si ness student Manish Nandwani, 22, wished the speakers had addressed the Lehman Brothers minibonds issue in greater detail.

He said. “Selling financial products will be part of our job in the future and I wanted to know how things might change after this incident.”

However, Shao felt the milliondollar question on everybody's minds was when this financial crisis will end.

"Let's hope that things get better especially when we graduate and go into the job market," he said.

Do you know your politics?

Start enquiring, students

Tan Yi Wen

Becky Lo

NTU students who took part in xQUIZit scored better in Asian news than in other categories of general knowledge. xQuizit is a walk-in current affairs quiz organised by the NTU Current Affairs Society to allow students to test themselves on the happenings of the world today. It was held on October 10th at the void deck of the North Spine.

“We want to test the general knowledge of NTU students and also encourage them to be updated of what is going around the world,” said the society’s president Sahil Gupta, 20, a fourth-year Electrical and Electronic Engineering student.

The questionnaires were split into three categories: “Anything Asian”, “Sports” and “Are you feeling lucky?”

On average many students a n s we r e d t h r e e out of f i ve questions correctly in each of the three categories, with many scoring well in the section of “Anything Asian”.

O n g We i G u a n g , 2 0 , a first-year Physics and Applied Physics student, won a prize when he participated in all three categories of the quiz. “Some of the questions were rather challenging and required recalling trivial details, which most people who read newspapers wouldn't bother about.”

The winner of the top prize was Saumya Mohan, a f irstyear student from the School of

Computer Science, who walked away with a DVD player.

This is the second year that xQUIZit was held, and the event at t racted approx i mately 250 responses, an improvement from last year’s turnout, which had only 150 participants.

“We want to encourage them to to be updated of what is going on around the world.”

Sahil Gupta, 20 President Current Affairs Society

Gupta credited this year’s improved response rate to better publicity. He said that the society had mass-emailed every school in NTU so the news of this event was forwarded to most students in the university.

For next year, Gupta believes that students can do better.

“I hope that this event might encourage the students to improve their general knowledge about anything going around them.

Most of the students were fine in answering the quiz questions but I believe that the bar can be raised,” said Gupta.

STUDENTS now have one more avenue to go to for news. The Enquirer, an online newspaper was launched recently by a group of students from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI).

“We are actively reaching out to t he St udents’ Union, academic clubs, sports clubs and other movers and shakers in the schools, as well as talking to students and conducting polls to make sure our articles reflect what the students are concerned about,” said chief editor, Chong Zi Liang, 23, a third-year journalism student.

Readers can expect a website that complements the campus newspapers, Nanyang Chronicle and Nanyang Tr ibune, wit h stories that these publications do not publish, according to the description posted on the website.

“I think by having a news website, we can increase the interactivity between writers and readers. By taking the dialogue about issues onto the online platform, discussions can be faster and more vibrant,” said deputy editor, Zakaria Zainal, 23, a third-year journalism student.

Set up by journalism students, The Enquirer currently has three editors and two writers, and hopes to get writers from other schools, according to Chong.

The website also states that it

ASKING QUESTIONS: The Enquirer team can consider more publicity for their online newspaper. PHOTO | TAN ZI JIE

prides itself as a “fully studentrun and independent—editorially, administratively and financially” news platform.

It was par tly inspired by the recent incident where the u n i v e r s i t y a d m i n i s t r at ion pulled a news story from the Nanyang Chronicle about a visit by opposition party leader Chee Soon Juan, said Terence Lee, 22.

Acting Head of the Division of Journalism and Publishing in the WKWSCI, Assistant Professor Cher ian George sa id: “ ( T he Enquirer) can also put pressure on the Chronicle to stay relevant and responsive to its readers.

More competition would make the practicum experience more realistic and enriching.”

However, some visitors also had suggestions on how the website can be improved.

“The layout of the website can be quite confusing. The stories are everywhere, all asking for attention at the same time.

Disclaimers should also be more clearly visible at the end of the article to show that opinions are that of the writers and not the editorial team, like what Straits Times and Today do,” said thirdyear communication studies student, Elizabeth Soh. “The Enquirer can consider improving their publicity by getting the editorial team to send out personal emails to invite people to view the site,” said Jeremy Cheok, 23, a second-year Materials Science student.

Professor George said: “I hope The Enquirer takes off because it can provide another avenue for journalism students to gain experience.”

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05

Here’s less food for thought Bronze for

team despite a rush for time Despite a tight training schedule, three engineering students win a bronze medal for programming competition in China Priyabrata Priyadarshi

EAT LESS TO HELP OTHERS: The exhibition on food sustainability was held at Canteen B. PHOTO | CHARISSA TAN

Maxie Aw Yeong DO NOT waste your food; think of those starving children in Africa.

This is what a group of students from AIESEC want you to think about the next time you tuck into a meal.

A n e x h i bi t ion on fo o d su sta i nabi l it y wa s he ld by AIESEC, a student organisation, at Canteen B from October 14th to 17th.

Food sustainability is having enough food we need, while being able to distribute food efficiently to various parts of the world, organisers said.

“Many think that donating is sufficient to help those dying of hunger in Africa,” said Tri Wira Efendi, 21, Organising Committee

President for this year’s Project Based on Exchange (PBOX) on food sustainability. “We want to change that perception.”

The United Nations estimated that up to 862 million people are starving around the world, but Efendi said about 400,000 tonnes of food is wasted in Singapore annually.

T he ex hibition was held to coincide with World Food Day 2008 on October 16th. It displayed the facts and figures of food wastage and showcased a large jigsaw puzzle that students must piece together.

“We aim to have an outreach of 3000 people this year,” said Mayas Singh, 20, president of AIESEC Singapore.

First-year Material Science

& Engineering student Lee Xin Yuan, 19, learnt a lot about food sustainability from the display. “I didn’t know we were so wasteful of food,” she said.

T h e v i v i d p i c t u r e s of ma lnou r ished people in developing countries made firstyear Chinese student Tan Zhi Bin “quite traumatised”. But she agreed that more can be done to help those deprived of food.

AIESEC reached out to 100 people through the display, and hopes there will be more related events to come next semester.

Sa id Efe nd i: “ We wa nt to persuade school canteens to charge var ied pr ices for different-sized portions, to give students an incentive not to waste food.”

A flash of lightning

THREE students from the School of Computer Engineering (SCE) won a bronze medal in Harbin, China despite not having much time to prepare for the regionals of the Inter Collegiate Programming Competition.

Team KZ-N T U, comprising freshmen from Kazakhstan, solved four out of 10 computing problems in five hours on October 12th. For example, they were tasked with calculating the quickest route possible between two cities using mathematics and algorithms. It is a realistic situation that airline companies handle on a routine basis..

“It was very rushed,” said Mr Kevin Jones, the team’s coach.

“W hat with the shor t notice, inadequate training and lastminute visas, we were relieved to get to the first practice session on time.”

Tsinghua University won the right to represent the Asia-Pacific region in the world f inals in Stockholm next April, solving seven problems out of the 10.

Mr Jones, a lecturer from SCE, accompanied the students on the trip, which was sponsored by host Harbin Engineering University.

Te a m pr og r a m me r Z hom a r t Sadykov, 18, said the team did not expect to reach the finals.

“A lt houg h it wa s not a s cha l lenging as t he t h ree I nte r n at ion a l Ol y mpi ad s i n

Informatics that I competed in from 2006 to 2008, our team was not well prepared as we commenced preparations for the contest at a month’s notice,” he said.

Their team was one of 10 international teams competing in a pool of 191, mostly from Chinese universities.

“We started well and were among the top 10 initially, but fell back in the late hours of the contest,” said Asset Daliyev, 18, the team’s mathematician.

They spent their Saturdays at the Software Engineering Lab for a month with post-graduate students, who shared their experiences pa r t icipat ing in prev ious computing competitions.

“With the short notice, inadequate training and lastminute visas, we were relieved to reach the first practice session on time.”

Mr Kevin Anthony Jones Coach School of Computer Engineering

Coach Mr Jones said they had not expected the competition to bar coaches from being with their team in the competition hall room, which was unusual since this was a custom, yet no reason was given.

But the team is not discouraged by its showing at the competition this year.

Said Sadykov: “We’ll try harder next year, now that we have an idea of the difficulty level and skills required for the ICPC.”

PHOTO | LIN JUNJIE

FOUR trees at the bus stop outside the Jalan Bahar exit fell when they were struck by lightning in a thunderstorm. Workers were dispatched to clear away the branches and leaves strewn across the bus stop.

TRY, TRY, AGAIN: Mr Kevin Anthony Jones and members of Team KZ-NTU, looking forward to the competition next year. PHOTO | Fiona Low

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Teachers' leadership course celebrates graduates Idayu Suparto IT WAS a graduation ceremony of a different sort, with National I n st it ute of Educat ion ( N I E ) honouring the latest graduating b a t c h of g r a d u a t i n g v i c e principals.

Held on October 10th at the Four Seasons Hotel, the event saw a total of 40 vice-principals receiv i ng t hei r Leader sh ip Educat ion Prog r a m me ( L E P) certificates from the Minister for Education Dr Ng Eng Hen. T he L E P i s a s i x-mont h executive leadership development programme for vice-principals and officers from the Ministry Of Education (MOE) headquarters.

It is aimed at developing the participants’ leadership capability as selected graduates will then lead a number of assigned schools as principals.

The LEP aims to highlight to the school leaders developments in education in Singapore and to provide them with the resources to deal with broad leadership issues that they might encounter in a school environment.

Dean of Leadership Programmes, Associate Professor David Ng, said: “It was a good

LEARNING LEADERS: Featured winners of the LEP programme, from left, Mrs Chaillan Mui Tuan, Mdm Thian Ai Ling and Ms Janis Lee Ling Poh pose with their awards. PHOTO | COURTESY

mix of formal and informal. True to the way we’ve developed their leadership competencies, they took charge and injected the informal bit by giving their own

awards informally to staff and fellow participants and senior ma nagement of f icer s i n t he Ministry of Education.”

T h i s yea r’s va led ic tor ia n

was Madam Thian Ai Ling, who received the Lee Kuan Yew Leaders in Education Programme Award which included a plaque and a $1,000 cash prize.

“I must say I was pleasantly surprised to be chosen as the valedictorian of the LEP class of 2008,” she said.

“Every one of my coursemates worked very hard and they were all outstanding as well, and hence I think everyone deserves this accolade.”

Madam Thian’s project – the iCREATE Portal at Chung Cheng High School (Main), where she was attached, was one of this year’s three featured projects.

T he proje c t i nvolved t he creat ion of an on line por ta l which served as a platform for the students’ works, including podcast recordings, digital compositions and short films.

Through the portal’s comments and ratings function, students were able to share their thoughts and build on each other’s works as well as offer their suggestions for improvement.

“The teachers also felt that the portal especially the podcasting allowed for learning any time and anywhere—as students could now download the podcasts and listen and learn while they are on the go as well. Overall they felt that this mode adds value to the students learning process,” said Madam Thian.

Tap into a wealth of information Radio Fusion goes 3G Sean David IMAGINE being able to access the best scholarly articles written in NTU from an information bank and share your ideas with everybody else.

It a lready ex ists. T he Digital Repository for Nanyang Technological University is an online information bank that aims to capture, store and preserve academic articles written here.

T he r e positor y ha s t wo services. It replaces the older system, NTUPubs, by letting only NTU students submit their final-year projects, industrial attachment reports and theses and an “open” repository gives faculty and researchers a platform to make their publications available to open access.

T he ba n k ma ke s u se of Sig@ir, a tool that helps upload batches of information into the university database and enables data exchange with other library applications.

For example, selected finalyear-project repor ts will be uploaded into the database.

Students who are preparing for their projects could access the database through Studentlink and look at what their seniors have worked on before to learn from their experiences.

It also made the university proud by winning the eIndia 2008 award early this month for “Best ICT-enabled University

TUNE IN TO WATCH: Call in to 64039849 to have a look at what goes on in the radio booth. PHOTO | CHARISSA TAN BANK IN: Students can freely access various research and final-year-project reports through a specialised database. GRAPHICS | SU TONG

of the year (Digital Learning Category)”.

NTU librarian Ms Joy Wheeler, who handles technology and systems, said they will choose articles recommended by the facult to be deposited in this information bank.

“The recommended reports go through rigorous selection by the OAS (Office of Academic Services),” she said. “Only the crème de la crème will go into the database.”

Jackson Yang, 21, a third-year Materials Engineering student, is hopeful he could use the bank in future.

“After all, as students, we’ve never had a guide—the way to do reports properly,” he said. “We’ve always had to borrow our seniors’ reports. This will change that.”

Associate Professor Goh Hoe Lian Dion, who is involved in the project, is more than happy to input his work into the system.

“Academics and researchers have long had their own web sites to disseminate the results of their work,” said Prof Goh. “An institutional repository can also play this role by giving NTU's faculty a centralised facility to upload their research output for public access.”

Jayne Tham 3G WAS once just for video calls between mobile phones. Now it can give you a view of what’s happening in the booth of Radio Fusion, the campus radio station.

Hoping to add a something special to the student-run radio s tat ion , A s si s ta nt P r ofe s sor Bradley C. Freeman, the teacheradvisor, introduced 3G video-call technology to the radio booth. It is the first local station to adopt the 3G video call technology in Singapore.

Although it might be easier to log on to the Internet and watch the DJs over a live webcam, this technology serves to let anyone in the university glimpse into the

happenings in the radio booth.

Having the web cameras in the booth may also lure readers to call in out of curiosity.

“The only reason that the video is there is because people are curious what DJs look like, and there is this natural desire to see the person and to connect the voice to the face,” said Dr Freeman.

However, for the DJs, the web camera also makes sure that they are professional at all times.

Zave Zhuo Zhicong, 23, a third year Nanyang Business School student, a DJ with Fusion Radio, said: “We will be more disciplined because we know for sure that someone is watching us any time of the day. We become more poised and professional in our jobs.”

Lifestyle

Relax on your holiday without worrying about money Page 14

MONEY MAKING ENVIRONMENT lyental Cindy m n , o Envir student nature by ourism s u ecot cio t for cons es her bi with her ff finds yari , do auty Chng off its be Charles S g her aaz ing nnin show hereen N ges of ru .S en tours the chall ss e out busin n w o

ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY: Going green and loving it, Cindy Chng brings the beauty of nature to the masses, at a low cost to boot. PHOTO | TAN ZI JIE

AS MOST f irst-year st udents scramble to adjust to the pace of university life, Cindy Chng, a firstyear business student, has found a little extra time to run not one, but two companies.

She may only be 19, but Cindy is already the managing director of both Eco-Travel as well as Singacasino.com (SGC), a one-stop information portal for visitors to Singapore.

The website, which will be launched at the end of the year, was set up in response to Singapore’s decision to build two Integrated Resorts in April 2005. It is a joint venture between Cindy and two of her friends Eco-Travel, however, is her brainchild. Offering personalised tours to Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand, Cindy partnered with the non-profit organization Eco Singapore, which provides help for eco start-ups, to start the company in April.

The idea of a business that contributes to the environment came after she participated in a few ASEAN Youth forums, where there was much disussion about businesses for a social causes.

“W hen we star t a project with only a social cause, it’s not sustainable because there’s no

income,” she said.

Coupled with her love for geography and travel, the National Junior College alumna put words into action and set up Eco-Travel.

She hopes to be able to expand Eco-Travel’s tours to the entire ASEAN region within the next two years.

“We want to change the whole travel landscape and do more than just adventure tours and nature sight-seeing.” said the young entrepreneur.

Cindy tries to offset costs by going into alternative activities such as home stays with the local villagers, using budget carriers and even public transport.

She feels that this reduces the impact on the environment. Most customers book tours with EcoTravel as Cindy customises travel itineraries for them based on their travel needs and preferences.

“I find it very fun and exciting when I ac t ua l ly get to pla n personalized tours for everyone.

It’s a different new challenge for me every time. Everyone has different requests,” she said.

Cindy tries to incor porate novel ideas into her tours, such as jumping into rivers and picking mussels to cook for their meals, as she feels Singaporeans are more

protected and sheltered, and do not have the chance to experience spontaneous living.

A lt houg h Eco-Travel is a relatively new company, it is already yielding a profit of 10 per cent. But the NBS student said that the profits are still small compared to what is put in.

People are very curious to know about me because I m just 19.

Cindy Chng, Managing Director of Eco-Travel and Singacasino.com

“Being in the tourism industry doesn’t seem that lucrative after all. I earn only $100-$200 after all the start up costs. It has the potential but for now, the sales volume is not there yet. We’re trying to keep the costs low yet creating high value for customer”, she adds.

The “no frills” policy EcoTravel adopts helps to lower the cost of each package and is more

suited for group tours. The majority of her clientele are schools that organize educational tours for their students and community centers who organise weekend trips .

Although business is picking up, Cindy said her parents were initially worried about the viability of the company. They did not support her venture because they felt that her education was more important than starting a business.

But Cindy persisted as she felt that her age and her business major were added bonuses.

Howe v e r, C i nd y r e m a i n s r ea l i s t ic about Eco -Tr ave l’s prospects.

“I’m not sure how this will go in the future but even if I fail, I’ve tried,” she said.

Cindy feels that her age is helpful in giving her that extra push to catch the attention of other entrepreneurs and sponsors.

“People are very curious to know about me because I’m just 19.” she explained. However, it also means that people tend to undermine her abilities.

But with school in full swing, how does she manage her business and school work?

During the semester, she visits the office, which is shared with

Eco Singapore, once a week. She deals with clients via email, phone calls or through her website. It is a simple system that works for her, as she is running the business on her own.

Now that she spends more time in school than at the office, Cindy sees potential in bringing some awareness of the environment to NTU. She currently works closely with NTU’s Rotaract Club, and hopes to be able to work with NTU’s ODAC in planning overseas trips for their members.

“I think more can be done in NTU... It would be good if we can do a change. And definitely, bringing in more recycling bins!” she adds.

W hen asked what she t hought about Singaporean’s attitude towards ecotourism and environmental awareness, a note of disappointment creeps into her voice.

“Singaporeans are not there yet. There are still a lot of people who go: “Why do we need to save the ear th? ”In Singapore, you must make the people feel for the problem before going into the bigger ideal of saving the world, because that’s just Singaporean— we’re very practical people.”

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BEAUTY QUOTIENT

Those late nights spent on the books can do serious damage to looking good. Rachael Boon and Imran Jalal suss out fab finds for both guys and girls to bid those eye bags, et al good bye 1. BED BUDDIES GIVE that cuppa a miss the next time you are slogging late at night. Instead try London-based Anatomicals, a brand we adore for its quirky take on toiletries (read Stop Cracking Up Lip Balm and Snog Me Senseless Breath Freshener) . But what got u s cracking, and awake, are their caffeine-packed energy patches which you pat on your upper arms.

Just don’t get addicted we say.

Snoozers are Losers Energy Patches, $14.90 available online at www. whathewants.com.sg. Whathewants is located at 01-06 The Cathay & 02-013 Suntec City

2. CLEAN ACT FOR blokes who like a fuss-free fi x, here is one remedy you should take note of. The non-greasy gel in the Fatigue Fighter not only keeps your skin fi rm and rejuvenated sans all that mess. The wintergreen extracts takes away those dead skin cells while Clarins AntiPollution Complex keep your skin safe from the harmful elements.

Defatigant Visage Fatigue Fighter, $70 available at all Clarins and ClarinsMen counters

3. MIST BUSTER KEEP those germs at bay with this anti-viral and anti-bacterial spray.

The concoction of essential oils, such as clove bud, cinnamon bark and oregano blended in distilled water and vegetable glycerine can be sprayed not just on yourself— mist your room with it to shield against that nasty flu bug.

Buddha Nose Immune Booster Spray, $51.40 from Apothecary + Co., B1-21, Raffles City Shopping Centre

4. SAKE SOOTHES BUSY students who have no time for a day at the spa can look to body products from The Face Shop’s Sake Body Line, touted to be simply divine. The sake’s scent relieves tension and invigorates an exhausted body with easy application onto your skin after a shower. Brown rice and plum seed are found in this lotion which removes skin debris, combats fatigue and hydrates moisturedeprived skin, amongst other skincare properties.

Nourishing Body Lotion, $25.90 from The Face Shop, 01-107 IMM Building

5. BLEMISH BEGONE

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THIS 3-in-1 is heaven-sent for stressed girls who find themselves breaking out. The latest cosmetic darling to hit our streets, this blemish balm (BB) cream which offers SPF20, corrects distressed complexions with natural coverage and replenishes tired skin with nutrients. The white tea extract repairs damaged skin cells and most importantly, it does all this while you use it as a foundation!

The Skin Extra BB Cream, $42.90 from The Face Shop, 01-107 IMM Building

6. WIDE-EYED IT’S not just a woman thing.

Now men too fret over puffy and racooned peepers. Kiehl’s Eye Alert provides the perfect solution to those worries. Its alfalfa and cucumber extracts keep the thin skin of the eye area hydrated, while the Vitamin E and caffeine blend erase the fatigue away.

Eye Alert Energy Booster to Combat Puffiness and Dark Circles, $43 from Kiehl’s Since 1851, 01-07 The Heeren

7. CHEAT SHEET BURNING the midnight oil does nothing but accentuate your dark eye circles. An inexpensive and convenient way to remove those panda eyes without burning a hole in your pocket, would be to grab this Carrot Collagen Eye Sheet.

Vitamin A-rich carrot extract, marine collagen and royal jelly are all packed into a hydrogel, which will moisturise and brighten those panda eyes for all those sleepless nights.

Carrot Collagen Eye sheet, $5 from Skin Food, 01-220, Marina Square

8. HINT O MINT THE Koreans certainly know how to revitalise their weary bodies after a hard day’s work, especially with ingredients such as vitaminrich oranges and mint , which have a soothing effect on irritated skin.

Ladies would love this body care line for its skin whitening and anti-aging properties. You’ll leave the shower feeling rejuvenated and refreshed.

Orange & Mint Body Wash, $25$29 from Skin Food, 01-220 Marina Square

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T h e na n ya ng c h ron ic l e

know your prof

kick the trauma

Associate Prof Fred Long Foo Yee talks to Jamuna Sundaraj about dealing with trauma and playing football

What other disasters were you involved in?

There was the Silkair MI185 crash in Palembang and the SQ006 in Taipei. But between t hese d i sa ster s t her e wer e others, such as a tour bus with Singaporeans travelling along the North-South Highway to Genting that crashed killing many people. So as a team, we would go in and help manage the crisis.

“I saw a teddy bear on the runway. A hymn book.

Our Singapore Girl’s uniform. A Singapore Armed Forces military uniform.”

Asst. Prof Fred Long on what he saw at the SQ006 crash site

Could you describe your experience working at IMH? I did not have any initial shock or fear to the patients there. To me, they are just like you and me. Plus, by then I had already studied about them and their mental illnesses, so I was quite prepared. To others, the

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To register, go to www.brandstorm. loreal.com. Registration deadline is on November 21st 2008.

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How did you get into the field of trauma psychology?

My background is actually in Clinical Psychology. I got my degrees and professional training in Australia and London. I joined the Woodbridge Hospital in 1968 as a clinical psychologist and worked with people with mental disorders.

It was not until after the Hotel New World’s collapse that we realised, people who were undergoing trauma had to be managed somewhat differently.

And so, we came up with this programme called emergency behaviour management system, related to trauma psychology.

Could you tell us more about your involvement in the hotel’s collapse?

It was in March 1986. That was my first involvement in a disaster. I saw 13 people who had traumatic reactions from being buried under the rubble.

Some were entombed for several days and had varying degrees of injuries. I helped them by using whatever clinical knowledge I had then.

upcoming events

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The top prize for both games is a trip to any destination worth 10,000 euros (SGD20,000)! There will be a booth set up in NTU for students to register.

DEALING WITH PAIN: Assistant Prof Fred Long helps people deal with traumatic situation. PHOTO | LIN JUN JIE

patients are perceived as violent, crazy and they believe if you work with them, you would go cuckoo also.

I remember seeing students freeze when the patients come near them during their visits to the hospital. But I had good impression of the doctors, nurses and therapists who work with them. It showed that these people really care for the mentally ill who are shunned by society.

This made me want to serve in this field, and I am not ashamed of it.

Were you ever overwhelmed by any of their incidents?

I don’t remember to be. When I am activated to an incident, I tell myself that I need to be objective and not identify myself too closely with the situation or the people. When SQ006 crashed, I was part of the investigation team.

When I was on the runway, I could see the debris of the plane crash strewn across a wide area.

The smell of death seemingly was still in the air, even though the fires had been long doused.

What was running through your mind then?

If I didn’t prepare myself, that scene would have affected me badly. Before walking down the runway, I told myself that this is a job that I have to do. I saw a teddy bear on the runway.

A hymn book. Our Singapore Girl’s uniform. A Singapore Armed Forces military uniform.

All kinds of things.

For anyone, who thinks, this reminds me of this person or this reminds me of my life, you would get overwhelmed and even break down.

Away from the topic of trauma, and psychology, what are your other interests?

I am an avid fan of football.

I do follow the English Premier League but not a fan of the major clubs, like Manchester United, Chelsea or Liverpool.

So is there a particular team you like then?

People laugh when I mention this but I like Crystal Palace.

They are not in the main league anymore and are somewhere at the bottom.

“In the 1950s I used to play for Tampines Rovers.”

Asst Prof Fred Long, who used to play with Singapore football greats like Quah Kim Song

So why do you like them then?

Well, I have followed their fortunes and misfortunes. I used to live in Crystal Palace when I was in England. I laugh when I see Singaporeans get overexcited about their so-called teams. I see so many people pick Manchester United because of good players. Just to tease my friends who are fans, I would support any team that plays against that club.

Besides watching matches, do you play football?

Oh yes. I used to. In the 1950s I used to play for Tampines Rovers. I became the General Secretary for the Club in the 1970s. Later I was coach for the

youth team and was chairman of the Tampines Constituency football team.

In those days our idols Quah Kim Song, and other national players, were in the club as well. Tampines was one of the leading clubs.

Since then I have always been following their games.

Even, during my time working in the Hospital, there were inter hospital games and Woodbridge was usually one of the strongest.

Our rival would be Alexandra Hospital. So yes, I did play quite a fair bit until I had a slipped disc.

What happened?

I think it was from a football injury but I don’t remember when. (laughs) All I know was that I was packing for a trip to Japan and when I bent over to pick a shirt, I felt my back go brrrr.

The pain was excruciating and I could not sit or stand or even lie down. The doctor said no more soccer. Now to keep fit, I usually brisk walk about three kilometres during the evenings.

What else do you do in your free time?

I surf the net to update my lecture notes. I try to keep the notes updated on recent events like the Sichuan earthquake and so on. I try to tie in the concepts to whatever is happening in the world. Other than that, I do have dinners with a group of friends.

I read widely, usually anything that captures my interests. I teach a Bible class serve in the National Council On Problem Gambling.

avenue q “The Internet Is For Porn” and “I’m Not Wearing Underwear Today” are just some of the hilarious songs that make Avenue Q unlike any other play ever seen before.

A furry and fun-filled romp featuring an ensemble of actors and some very adultminded puppets. It’s ‘Sesame Street’ with a very grown up twist!

Date: Oct 30th to Nov 16th 2008 Venue: Esplanade Theatre Ticket Prices: Preview Show on Oct 30th, 8pm Standard —S$70 (VIP B ox ), S$60, S$50, S$45, S$40 Tues-Thurs, Sun & Sat Matinee Standard —S$120(VIP Box), S$100, S$80, S$70, S$50 Fri-Sat, 8pm Standard —S$140(VIP Box), S$120, S$100, S$90, S$70 zoukout 2008 ZoukOut 2008, everyone's favourite beach party returns this December to take party people across the region on a brilliant escape into a rhapsody of music, dancing, art and festivities.

Date: Dec 13th 2008 Venue: Sentosa Island Ticket Prices: $38 to $58 Hours: 8pm to 8am To have your event listed, e-mail chronicle@ntu.edu.sg. Include event date, location, contact and any pictures.

lifestyle

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GOING, GOING...GREEN Being environmentally-friendly is the latest fad. Huang Hui Fen finds out what some Singaporeans are doing to reduce their carbon footprints on Earth

FOOD#3 109 Rowell Road Tel: 6396 7980 Opens: 5pm to 10.30pm (Tuesday to Thurs); 3pm to 12.00am (Friday); 12pm to 12am (Saturday & Sunday); closed on Mondays Website: www.food03.sg

HE HATED vegetables when he was young, but now he owns a vegetarian café that supports an environmental cause.

He wa nt s to stop meat production, the largest source of ca r bon e m i s sion s i n t he environment.

Mr Woon Tien Wei, 33, set up Food#3 in Rowell Road about a year ago. His vegetarian theme was influenced by a United Nations (UN) report on the harmfulness of industrial farming.

Accor d i ng to t he r epor t , livestock farming contributes to 18 percent of greenhouse gas emission, more than that from transportation.

H e n c e , M r Wo o n w a n t s to encou rage consu mer s to eat vegetables. He tries to make vegetarian food fun and contemporary, and roped in the help of a friend from Australia to design the western vegetarian menu.

EARTHY TONES : Go au natural as this restaurant, which serves up yummy vegetarian food. PHOTOS | COURTESY

All the ingredients Mr Woon uses are from small markets in the heartlands. He tries as much as possible to buy food that is grown regionally or locally so as to reduce the carbon footprints when transporting food from farm to plate.

Besides the food, Mr Woon uses

DOINKY DOODLES

GOYA DESIGN SINGAPORE

33 Bali Lane (2nd floor) Tel: 6292 2248 Opens: 1pm to 8pm (Tuesday to Saturday); closed on Sunday and Monday Website: www.doinkydoodles.com

AT A boutique in Bali Lane, old clothes are given a new lease of life. Washed, cut and patched, these old fabrics are stitched to form patchwork designs for bags, pouches, cushions and soft toys.

Miss Weng Pixin, 25, owner of Doinky Doodles is a firm believer of not wasting old items that can be reused. She uses old clothes and fabric scraps to sew into what she calls “little oddities”.

T hese range f rom a plush bunny with Hawaiian-print shorts, one-eyed monster cushions to colourful laptop bags.

Miss Weng loves working with recycled fabrics as they provide her with different textures.

However, not all second-hand clothes are used. Dirty clothes are discarded while those that pass her quality checks are washed before being recreated.

Miss Weng was inspired by her grandmother’s thriftiness.

She used to sew old fabrics into tablecloths and pillow covers.

Instead of plastic boxes for storage, her grandmother would use her coffee cans.

his café as a space for environment lov e r s to c onduc t i n for m a l networking sessions.

Recycling is also an integral pa r t of Food #3. T hei r paper menus will be recycled once they wear out. Also, the café makes a conscious effort to separate cardboard, papers and cans from

Tel: 9656 7196 Website: www.goyad.com

SEWED TOGETHER: Old fabrics made into something new.

Hence, even the furniture in Doinky Doodle is second-hand.

“Pixin does not believe in buying new stuff,” said Miss Joycelyn Wong, 24, a friend of Miss Weng who helps out at Doinky Doodles.

Miss Weng would turn off the air-conditioning sometimes or switch off some lights to save on electricity.

She uses plastic bags donated by customers, who do not want to use them.

Doinky Doodles also carries other designers’ eco-fr iendly products, . The shop also accepts old clothes from walk-ins. The next time youare there, you might just spot your clothes as new art

EVER wonder where the papers you sent for recycling go? With Miss Elle Wong’s green touch, recycled paper is transformed into trendy handbags.

M i s s Won g , to ge t h e r with her business par tner Mr Gideon Yong, set up an online shop, Goya Design Singapore, about two years ago, specializing in handbags made of recycled paper and handmade jewellery.

The handbags are handmade, with recycled paper, reu sed scr ap leat her a nd plastic. Miss Wong hopes to reduce wastage by reusing materials and making them into handbags and jewellery.

Three years ago, while reading a DIY handicraft book, Miss Wong came across the handbags made of recycled paper.

She decided to learn to make the bags, which was then already popular in Japan.

Eventually, she added the bags collection to her online jewellery store.

At first, her customers were skeptical of a handbag

trash. They are then given to the old folks who collect these items for recycling to earn a few bucks.

Food#3 started a campaign, “A4 for Old Folks”, where customers are encouraged to bring in used paper, which will then be donated to the old folks to recycle.

“There are many senior citizens made of paper was real or if it could last.

“My bags broke after a few uses,” Miss Wong said, “and it was only after repeated tests that the quality improved.” To increase customers’ faith in her bags, she issued a three-months warranty for them.

Customers also found her bags expensive too. Miss Wong’s bags range from $50-$70. “Recycled papers are not cheap, so we had to reduce on labour costs,” Miss Wong said.

However, as time went by, her customers started to trust her products and her business has since improved. She has seen more environmentally conscious Singaporeans but hopes that people will do more.

“I f you wa nt to save t he environment, don’t think about doing big things, but first learn the simple rule of which trash should

who seep through the cracks.”

Mr Woon said, “Many are not qualified for the social welfare benefits, while some don’t know how to receive it.”

Hence, Mr Woon tries to help these old folks in little ways. He has plans to set up “The Soup Kitchen Project”, where volunteers will utilize the kitchen when the café is closed on Monday to cook food for the homeless, cardboard and can collectors, old folks who live in one-room flats and stranded foreign workers around the Little India neighbourhood.

Many will be sur prised to know that Mr Woon is not from a culinary background. He was an artist, whose artwork centered on the theme of food. The name of Food#3, is an extension of his project in art school, Food#2, where he invited guests to his studio to sample his food.

“I want to explore how we can convert kopi (coffee) money into cultural capital,” Mr Woon explained. 30 percent of the profit from Food#3 goes into PostMuseum, an independent cultural space.

However, doing one’s part to save the environment can be simply to eat less meat. “It beats changing to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for cars. Nothing can beat saving the earth than abstaining from meat,” Mr Woon said. go into which bin.”

Trash, under Miss Wong’s hands, is turned into gems. She reuses the ring on metal cans for jewellery.

She often asks her customers not to throw their old jewellery away, but to let her clean it and design it into a more intricate piece of jewellery.

The plastic bags she used to pack her products are also reused from shops that do not want those bags anymore.

“If you love the Earth, it is equivalent to loving yourself.

Harm the Ear th, and you are harming yourself,” she said.

PAPER CRAFTS: Recycled paper is reused to make fashionable handbag creations.

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video made the radio star This budding singer's career began after her original tune was featured on Youtube's front page. Claire Matthews talks to her and finds out more about the face behind the microphone

Breaking a leg may not be cause for inspiration for most, but for Ng Ling Kai, it was time enough to finish writing the songs that would eventually earn her an independent record deal.

T he 22-yea r-old communications student at NTU, fractured her knee in her second year, and was given a semesterlong break from school. “I just had so much time on my hands, so I started writing.”

If the name still does not yet ring bells, it is because she’s no manufact ured pop superstar.

Ling got her fame from being a Youtube phenomenon. The singer/ songwriter amassed over a million hits on a video she posted last year under the alias ‘ling86’.

“I figured it would be a good way to see what kind of response my music would get. It was no harm done if no one liked it,” she said.

The video featured the original song ‘Larkin Step’, which was inspired by poet Philip Larkin.

Ling had read Larkin in junior college, and wrote ‘Larkin Step’ with his themes in mind, such as sadness and the transience of life.

But the song is still a work in progress, according to Ling. “It was supposed to be just a draft, and then suddenly everyone had seen it and I couldn’t change it.” she said.

foray into music. Even before her YouTube success, the 21-year-old, who taught herself the guitar at 17, played covers at local clubs including Timbre.

“When I played covers, I needed to think: ‘What will pub-goers want to hear?’ But when I write, I can say what I want.”

Lempicka asked her to promote Honestly while in Australia with several performances, including one at Queen’s Street Mall, a busy shopping centre in Brisbane.

“It was pretty intimidating.

But some people actually stopped to listen, and then came up to ask me when I’d be playing again so they could come back, that was quite nice.”

Compared to Singaporeans, Ling found Australians more welcoming to new music. “A lot of Singaporeans don’t have the habit of really looking for artists that are not being pushed to them. Australians will go look for obscure artists.”

"When I played covers, I had to think of what people want to hear, but when I write, I can say what I want.”

Ng Ling Kai on writing her own songs

“I can't run away from being Chinese.”

Ng Ling Kai Fourth-year Communications student

I n c om p le t e or n ot , u s e r comments started pouring in, praising her poignant lyrics and lilting vocals, while other fans of the song began to post their own cover versions. One YouTube user even changed her username to ‘ling86fanforever’.

“It was very flattering,” said Ling, who attributes Larkin Step’s success to a combination of chance and supportive netizens.

But not all responses were positive. Ling’s YouTube account has been hacked into twice. But the hackers had not been interested in harming her reputation.

“One of the hackers said he wouldn’t return my account unless I bought him a video game,” laughs Ling. The account was eventually returned thanks to fans, who banded together to petition YouTube for its return.

There was racism and sexism too. “You’re pretty good, for a ch in k ,” said one commenter.

Another called her an “Amazon woman” after the mythic race of

YOUTUBE SUPERSTAR: Ling Kai is an international superstar on YouTube with over a million hits. PHOTO | COURTESY

tall warrior women, and accused her of enjoying towering over men.

But Ling laughed it off. “I can’t run away from being Chinese.” As for the Amazon comment, Ling was unsure of what to say, though the commentor did not know it, Ling stands at 1.75m.

T he n , i n M ay t h i s yea r, Australian independent label Lempicka Records approached her.

While Ling had been approached before by people claiming to represent labels, Lempicka was the first she felt she could trust.

Lempicka flew down to meet with her, and after an impromptu one-song performance in a café at Dhoby Gaut, Ling was signed

"Life moves along and it trickles down the cheeks of every beautiful boy. Time comes along and it breaks every bone in your spine."

Chorus of Ling Kai's selfpenned song 'Larkin Step'

to the label.

In July, she flew to Brisbane to record her debut EP, Honestly, a name chosen to reflect the candid quality of Ling’s lyrics. The EP took six weeks to record, with Ling sometimes putting in 16-hour studio days.

Her first recording experience was not so much exciting as tedious, said Ling, with ever y instrument and phrase recorded over and over. But the small group of Lempicka staff were encouraging and this left a warm impression on her.

“It was the real meaning of indie, not just skinny pants and eyeliner,” she said, Honestly is not Ling’s first

She said that she writes about things she observes or experiences. “ Fac ebook Photog r aph”, for instance, is about long distance relationships, and the longing associated wit h look ing at a profile picture rather than the real person.

“My ex-boyf r iend st udied in the States,” she says, adding cheekily: “That’s the reason he’s my ex-boyfriend and not my boyfriend.”

Ling said that her next step depends on how Honest ly is received, though she would love to tour one day. For now, Ling has her hands full at school.

But she admits she still has trouble believing that people really enjoy her music.

“Honestly, I felt doubtful about how far I could go with this, and about my own ability.”

Nevertheless, she takes her compliments where she can. When told of a friend who enjoyed her music, she grinned broadly. “I never get tired of hearing that.”

‘Honestly’ is out on 21st October. Orders are available on lingkaimusic.com.

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food snoop TWG TEA SALON 01-22 Republic Plaza Tel: 6538-1837 Opens:10am to 8pm (weekday); closed Saturday and Sunday

TWG Tea Cafe and Salon is an upmarket tea house. Roundw glass chandeliers and rich wood pa nel l i ng t hat l i ned t he tea boutique was luxurious.

I found myself intimidated and out of place. The entire place had a posh Parisian feel to it, unlike any other cafe I have been to.

Nestled in the heart of the Central Business District (CBD), the tea salon and boutique has patrons from young teenagers to senior citizens. However, executives make up most of the crowd.

THE TEA PARTY

BON

01-07 Sixth Avenue Centre Tel: 6462 3563 Opens daily: 11am to 11pm

APPE-TEA

As a young girl, Shereen Naaz Charles Syariff loved the sweet brew her father made. She hunts down some speciality cafes in Singapore and finds out how tea has evolved in so many ways

The entire place had a posh Parisian feel to it, unlike any other cafe I have been to.

The cafe serves 250 varieties of tea. Yellow Gold Tea Buds, Smokey Earl Grey, Emperor Pu-Erh, Bain de Rose and Gyokuro Samurai are all prepared on the spot.

They are drained with strainers, made from 100% cotton to ensure a consistent taste, regardless how many cups of teas you have had.

This means that whether you’ve had one cup or 10, you don’t get the bitter aftertaste which comes with leaving teabags soaked for too long.

I decided on the 1837 Black ($7.90 per pot)—the cafe’s signature tea.

The 1837 Black was named as such because it was the year that Sir Stamford Raffles created the Chamber of Commerce and also because it was the best year for spice and trade in Asia.

My tea arrived in insulated steel pots and bone china cups, all of which are handmade.

As I took my fi rst sip of the 1837 Black, I was overwhelmed by the fragrant smell of berries.

With a clear, orangey hue, the blend was strong but perfect for my taste—not too bitter as tea can be sometimes.

The second tea I tried was the Crème Brule ($7.50 per pot), to see how it compared with its namesake dessert, a rich custard base topped with a layer of caramel, hardened by burning sugar under a grill.

The tea hit the spot: a light, vanilla-infused brew that was easy on the stomach, with a slightly spicy taste that I could not quite place.

This tea salon is a novel choice if you are looking for a place to satisfy those tea cravings. And just for that little while, you feel like royalty.

I WAS greeted with a dim, slightly romantic setting and very warm service at The Tea Party. I sank into a sofa chair and browsed their menu.

The two-storey tea cafe at Sixth Avenue Centre claims to be the first in Singapore to conceptualise the idea of ‘tea culture’ by selling hundreds of varieties. They have since branched out to serve set meals and pastries.

T heir teas have mysticalsounding names from around the world, such as the Lapsang Souchong, Genmaicha and Rooibos.

I ordered for myself a Genmaicha and Rooibos Orange.

The Genmaicha ($5.60 per pot) was served in tiny Japanese tea cups. It is a mix of sencha (Japanese green tea made without blending the tea leaves) and roasted brown rice.

... they wanted to make tea affordable for the students who frequent their cafe

POSH DRINKS: TWG Salon serves up to 250 varieties of tea. The attention given to brewing the tea ensures its quality and consistency in taste. PHOTOS | COURTESY

5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT TEA 1 Tea is high in antioxidants, and can be used to cure headaches and rheumatism.

2 Tea comes from the Camillia Sinensis plant.

3 To cure puffy eyes, place a moist teabag over both eyes and leave for about 20 minutes. The swelling around the eyes will to your amazement disappear and your eyes will return to their former glory.

4 Tea can be used to soothe burns and sunburns. Put wet tea bags onto the affected areas. You can also put tea into your bath water.

5 Tea will absorb odors around it. For example, rub your hands with tea leaves to remove fishy smells after eating seafood with them.

STYLISH PARTY: Have a steaming cuppa’ of tea for a good price.

The Genmaicha tea is known as “popcorn tea” because the brown rice pops during the roasting process and resembles popcorn.

However, I noticed a strange smell of seaweed with each sip which made me queasy at first.

But I liked its lightness and that it was not as bitter as many Japanese teas are. It tasted as though I was drinking rice.

Old favourites are also given a new twist here. The Earl Grey Crème ($6.90 per pot) is flavoured with oil of bergamot and a hint of vanilla and cream. The natural blend was creamy without milk and the strong taste was like Ceylon teas.

Owner, Pauline Tan said that they wanted to make tea affordable for the students who frequent their cafe.

I tried the Rooibos Orange ($6.90) or “the happy tea”. She says that this is one drink that she constantly recommends and is popular .

However, it tasted like a mix of chin chow jelly, orange peel and mint, something that my taste buds were not familiar with.

I usually love the taste of teas with an oriental flavour, but this particular mix left me feeling unsure. The Rooibos range of teas are all caffeine-free and made from the leaves of the Aspalathus linearis, a plant native to South Africa.

The Tea Party is an affordable, student-friendly tea cafe where students can escape from the hustle and bustle of city life.

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lifestyle

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T H E NA N YA NG C H RON IC L E

travelogue

ON A SHOESTRING BUDGET Fiona Low and Cassandra Eng share their tips on how the richest of experiences sometimes come from the lowest of budgets.

VIETNAM BUDGET travelling in Vietnam is not difficult. The key is to live as the Vietnamese do.

Here is a list of tips for budget traveling in Vietnam.

THE FOOD Instead of heading to touristy restaurants that charge more, look out for street stalls selling food like barbecued meat, beef pancakes and noodles. This is cheaper and an amazing way to try real Vietnamese cuisine.

Sitting by the roadside, watching m y food cook on a m a ke sh i f t charcoal pit as the traffic and noise whirled around me, was one the best experiences.

MONEY SAVING TIPS IN VIETNAM

Accommodation Food Transport

THE TRAVELLER

THE BUDGET TRAVELLER

A three star hotel: $90 - $150 per night

A backpacker's motel: $8-$20 per night

A meal in a restaurant: $8 - $15 per person

A meal from a street stall: $1 - $3 per person

An internal flight: From $60 for a one-way trip

An open tour bus: From $8 for a one-way trip

BINTAN MY budget trip to Bintan was just as, if not more, fun as travelling in luxury.

I spent five days in a twostorey villa, had three full meals a day, bought a two-way ferry ticket, kayaked, played tennis and Laser Quest.

Here are five tips if you plan to visit Bintan with $200 and still have change to tip the bellboys.

1

Get as many friends as you can to go on the trip with you. The more people to split the cost between, the less you pay.

Four friends and I shared four rooms with a total of six beds.

2

Look for a company-owned villa. Booking directly with the resort will set you back $600 a night, compared with $36 a night per room, which we rented through a company booking.

When a company buys a villa in Bintan, any employee will get a subsidised rate when booking the place. If you have friends at such companies, book the villa through them.

3

Bring your own food. Food is expensive at the resort restaurants. We drew up a meal plan and cooked meals in the kitchen of our villa. Packing food and carrying it to Bintan requires planning and brute strength.

For frozen stuff like fish and chicken, we packed them into cooler boxes and checked them in at the ferry terminal. For dry foods, we dedicated an entire 20kg of luggage to storing them.

4

Prepare your own indoor entertainment. We brought our XBOX, laptops, Nintendo DS Lite, board games and movies as wet-weather back-up plans.

You’ll be glad you did when it rains.

5

Enjoy all the free stuff. With beautiful beaches and fi ne weather all year round, laze the day away by sun-tanning, wading in the sea or playing a game with beach balls. There’s not much need to pay for extra recreation. The most exciting thing for me was being able to drive the buggy. We had a Grand Prix-like race around the resort with the buggies.

THE ACCOMMODATION Vietnam has many backpacker inns. Compare prices when you arrive.

It is usually not hard to find a place with clean, well-furnished rooms at reasonable rates. Most backpacker hotels offer Internet access.

Living in backpacker inns is also a great opportunity to meet local inn-keepers and learn more about the country.

All the inn-keepers I met on my trip were effusively kind, always more than willing to help, or sit and chat about their country.

In Ho Chi Minh City, I stayed at the Red Sun Hotel — a small backpacker inn along Pham Ngu Lao street. We only stayed there for two days, but the

COST BREAKDOWN AFTER SPLITTING WITH FIVE FRIENDS ACTIVITY

COST IN SGD

Ferry ride

$59

Rental of villa

$30

Food

$40

Recreation/Room service

$28

Grand total

$160

THREE THINGS NOT TO BE MISSED! KAYAKING Explore the seas and beaches of Bintan in kayaks! You will discover hidden enclaves that are great for photo-taking.

Prices are $10 per hour to kayak alone, and $15 per hour to kayak in pairs.

LASER QUEST The laser quest arena in Bintan Lagoon Resort is more exciting than Singapore’s. There are high points where you can snipe people. Smoke constantly gets pumped into the area, adding to the war atmosphere and making the experience more authentic.

Prices are at $6 for a 15-minute session STAR-GAZING Drive a buggy to the Jack Nicklaus Sea View golf course in the wee hours of the morning. Standing under a blanket of stars in a pitch-black open field is a rare experience in brightlylit Singapore. Though we could not take a picture of that sight, the scene will forever be etched in my memory.

inn-keeper, Miss Yuen, literally made the rest of our trip possible. She made countless phone calls, booked bus rides and day tours for the rest of our stay.

I was also pleasantly surprised at the warmth of the inn-keepers. They made it a point to wait for you to return each night and ask about your day.

THE TRAVEL Keep costs low by taking open tour buses instead of internal flights.

These buses travel to most of the provinces and are popular with the locals. Even with journeys lasting up to 30 hours, the lengthy travel time is worth it for the cheap prices and the great view.

Traveling from Ho Chi Minh to the central highlands of Da Lat by bus offered a great experience.

The dusty, crowded streets of old Saigon gave way to chilly mountain roads. Foggy mountaintops surrounded by acres of lush plantation were truly a sight to behold at the end of our ninehour bus ride.

Be prepared for old buses that break down and journeys longer than what the driver tells you.

But if time is not a factor, the breathtaking scenery will keep you happy.

Vietnam is a beautiful country with a myriad of sights and experiences. In the throes of urbanisation, the country is an eclectic mix of modern buildings and old culture.

Ironically, traveling there on a budget gave me one of the richest travel experiences I have ever had.

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15

through the looking glass

NANYANG INK No longer the trademark of gangsters, tattoos are gaining popularity as a form of selfexpression. Tan Zi Jie finds out more

DEMONS & ANGELS

Jeremy Khiang, 24, EEE Year 3 It helps to remind me of certain bad things, and that there is a thin line between good and evil.

I plan to extend the tattoo more, over the shoulder blades, maybe with angels to represent the good.

FOR A LARK

USING THE BIGGEST CANVAS

I just wanted to go through the process of tattooing.

It was on impulse, fun and super painful.

I tattooed the back of my body so I don’t have to see it every day. Sometimes I worry that one day I will get sick of it but right now I’m quite happy.

It is the Witch-king, the ultimate baddie from Lord of the Rings. It represents a lot of what I am. Fantasy, and it can’t be felled by any man.

If you want to have a tattoo, go all the way. Use your biggest canvas you have — your back.

Chen Huimin, 21, ADM Year 3

OUR SONG

Cody Liew, 22, Eng Lit Year 2 & Raelene Chan, 20, Eng Lit Year 1 Both tattoos are done simultaneously by two tattoo artists, so it was a pretty cool experience. The acronym “aeby” on our tattoos stands for our song — “Anyone else but you” by The Moldy Peaches.

Even if we break up in the future, they will be a good memory of the relationship.

Lim Yanliang, CS Year 2

NATURE’S WAY

Anna Kverplassen, 21 Swedish exchange student I grew up constantly surrounded by the natural environment. We lived right next to the woods, and in the morning I would walk to the woods before school or bicycle to the beach. My tattoos are all about nature, because you can’t regret a flower.

The flower is also a symbol of good luck in Sweden.

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lifestyle

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review

BOOKS Final Theory Mark Alpert $31.00, available at Borders Published by Simon and Schuster

CRAFTILY weaving mysteries of science, politics and history, novelist Mark Alpert presents a whole new side to physics that manages to convince even the non-Einstein enthusiasts in his debut novel.

A witty thriller following the footsteps of The Da Vinci Code, Final Theory is another book where Mark Alpert is truly conversant in science and displays his quick witted teasing of scientific theories.

Final Theory packs in real science and real fun to uncover Albert Einstein’s true desire in unearthing a unified field theory that seeks to explain the forces of nature. Alpert does so by combining relentless pace with white-knuckle action–taking physics to a whole new plain.

David Swift, the lead character, embodies a true science historian who seeks to uphold the value of science, and protect the uninformed from its dangers.

However, the Indiana Jones-esque plot proves to be a tad over-dramatic for a professor like Swift, and at times feels a little contrived. The story also seeks to include too many random characters, which tends to confuse the reader as to their relevance in the story and plot.

Final Theory could emulate the success of novels like The Da Vinci Code, but might also come across as a disappointing conspiracy. A fine and engaging read which is not overly strenuous on the mind, Final Theory should be taken as good, clean, fun–just allow fiction to entertain.–Faith Tan

Binu and the Great WallPatrici

a

Su Tong $24.95, available at Borders Published by Canongate Books

BINU and the Great Wall: The Myth of Meng chronicles a peasant's journey across China, which ends at the Great Wall of China. It is set during the Qin Dynasty, at the time when Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered men across the country to construct the Great Wall as a physical defence against the northern invaders.

Binu's husband, one of such men, is captured against his will and transported to another province to work on the Great Wall. When Binu realises that her husband is missing after finding his sandals under a mulberry tree, she sets off on foot, fuelled by a single determination to bring winter clothing to him.

During her journey, she is accompanied by a frog, which Su Tong personifies as her late mother-in-law's spirit. When Binu reaches the Great Wall, she is told that her husband has passed on and is forbidden from bringing home his remains as he was buried along with others, at the foot of the wall. Upon hearing this, she wails and unleashes a flood of tears, which brings down an entire section of the Great Wall.

I would suggest this book as a good start for Su Tong's novels as Raise the Red Lantern might be too abstract for those who are not familiar with his style.

Instead, readers would enjoy Binu more as it adopts a lighter approach compared to My Life As Emperor and his other books.

From Binu’s tragic story, the reader learns of Su Tong's view of human nature and life. This is consistent throughout his books, such as My Life As Emperor and Binu and the Great Wall: The Myth of Meng, where his perspective of life is bleak and negative, but nonetheless realistic enough to connect with readers.–Cerelia L im

“Baby don't give up on us, I know your heart is full of doubt.

You don't need to be without these loving arms."

“Don't Give Up On Us” by Sarah McLachlan

MUSIC Closer

Sarah McL achlan (Pop/Rock)

¯¯¯¯¯ McLachlan has been nominated for 21 Juno awards and awarded eight, on top of winning three Grammys.

SARAH McLachlan is one of the few artists who can be said to have sold millions of albums on the quiet. And she has achieved this feat in the span of her 20-year career, selling 40 million albums on the strength of her songwriting abilities and ethereal vocals.

Closer manages to capture the best of two decades, with the mandatory two new tracks thrown in for good measure.

Certainly, the collection would not be complete without the inclusion of her biggest hits, such as Angel from the City of Angels soundtrack and I Will Remember You, which garnered her a Grammy Award in 1999.

While the two new tracks, U Want Me 2 and Don’t Give Up On Us are not quite as introspective as her material before 2000, such as the beautifully-crafted The Path Of Thorns, they do not tread too far away from her piano-infused and soft-rock leanings.—Derrick Lim

Encanto Sergio Mendes (Midwest Rap/Pop)

¯¯¯¯¯ Mendes has released over 35 albums and used to be part of the Sexteto Bossa Rio.

A follow up of his previous album, Timeless, Sergio Mendes is back with more tracks that boast the Brazilian spirit, with a variety of guest artists ranging from Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am to Natalie Cole.

The album blends modern singers with traditional Brazilian music. Mendes matches Italian hip hop artist Jovanotti against soothing vocals in Lugar comum, which worked out well.

However, some artists like Fergie in The Look of Love and will.i.am in Funky Bahia lacked the vocals to pull off this electic mix.

Like the title suggests, this album seeks to enchant listeners with its mix of bosso nova and samba. All in all, Encanto seeks to remind listeners of how Brazilian music was originally played and why it is still popular today.—Ellyne Phneah

Dig Out Your Soul Oasis (Rock)

¯¯¯¯¯ Oasis is a popular English rock band who shot to stardom with their debut album Definitely Maybe in 1994.

SOMETHING feels strangely familiar about Dig Out Your Soul, the latest Oasis album to hit the marquee. It is that undeniable Beatles' influence that pervades much of this album, which works both for and against the band.

While the album is a few notches above their previous effort, the mediocre Don’t Believe The Truth, it is still somewhat lacklustre.

The album kicks off well with Bag It Up, displaying the band’s signature stripped down rock sounds. However, The Shock of Lightning, the album’s lead single, is what delivers most of the goods. Catchy and energetic, it reminds us of what Oasis is capable of. I’m Outta Time, which is written by Liam Gallagher, displays his natural flair for song-writing.

The rest of the album fares no better, taking either from the band’s earlier work or their idols, The Beatles.

Long-time fans better keep listening to Definitely Maybe and hope for better days ahead.—Karthik Shankar

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FILMS The Coffin

Max Payne

Horror (PG)

Action /Adventure (PG)

Karen Mok, Anada Everingham, Andrew Lin, Napakpapha Naprasitte 88min

“TEMPT Fate. Cheat Death.” That is the central theme of director Ekachai Uekrongtham’s movie, The Coffin. It is inspired by a controversial but real Thai ritual where thousands of people turn up at a temple north-east of Thailand to lie in coffins because they believe this rids them of bad luck and prolongs life.

Chris (Ananda Everingham), a claustrophobic architect, goes through the ritual to save his dying fiancée, Mariko. Sue (Karen Mok), a nutritionist from Hong Kong visits Thailand and does the same to save herself from cancer, one week before her wedding.

A f ter that, both of them experience what appear to be m i racles. To Ch r is’ delight, Mariko awakes from her coma.

Sue not only sur vives a car accident, but also finds out that

her cancer is gone.

H ow e v e r, s t r a n ge a n d fr ightening things star t to happen. Chris and Mariko are haunted by a woman in white (Napakpapha Naprasitte), and her baby. Sue’s fiancé, Jack dies suddenly in a car accident but his spirit still lingers around her.

With the help of a professor specialising in paranor mal cases related to the ritual, they set out to exorcise the ghosts haunting them and reverse the wheel of karma.

The Coffin opened at number one at the Thai box office and we can see why. Shot in provinces across Thailand including a 100-year-old temple and real cemeteries, the film features te r r i f y i ng yet beaut i f u l ly s y m me t r ic a l s c e ne s , l i ke

NNNNN

hundreds of coffins arranged in a circle around a gigantic Buddha and a long closet full of mirrors on both sides.

The movie also shocks when least expected, after you let your guard down.

Credit has to be given to the performance of the actors.

Everingham and Mok truly bring out Chris’ sensitivity and Sue’s v ulnerabilit y. Napakpapha’s villainous but heroic character is played out excellently as well.

However, the plot remains unclear as there are no links between Chris’ and Sue’s stories and we never discover who the woman in white is until the very last moment.

All in all, this is a thrilling yet moving tale about coming face-to-face with living and dying.—Ellyne Phneah

20th Century Boys Fantasy (PG) Toshiaki Karasawa and Etsushi Toyokawa 142min

“K ENJI, come and play with me.”

The impact of the mysterious masked figure of 20th Century Boys and his chilling voice may be immediate, but the whole direction of the Japanese flick is lost eventually.

Based on the successful sci-fi manga by Naoki Urasawa, this edition is part of an ambitious trilogy shot in seven countries, estimated to cost six billion yen.

Kenji (Toshiaki Karasawa), a convenience store manager, is a regular bloke who has since moved on from his dreams of being a rock star. Memories of his eventful childhood make his boring life easier, but those very memories return to haunt him when unfortunate events start

17

to occur.

We are brought back to 1969, where Kenji and his friends built a secret base and wrote the “Book of Prophecies”, a fictional story of how they eventually stand up to villains who are out to conquer the world.

30 years on, a cult and its enigmatic leader “Friend”, have risen to prominence and a series of occurrences happen exactly as described in the “Book”. Kenji and his old friends (played by Etsushi Toyokawa and Takako Tokiwa) must reunite to solve a puzzle locked away deep in their minds. However, age has made it difficult and time is not on their side.

In this rush to find answers, t he f i lm shut t les bet ween

NNNNN different time zones which confuses the audience, though the stylized and manga-like presentation is a breath of fresh air.

T he clichéd concept of fantasy mirroring reality, is powerfully crafted as their little world of childhood games manifest into a global crisis and the men must rise up to a moral duty.

What truly captured my attention were the dramatic heightened scenes which the Japanese are just so good at, best seen in the gathering of the heroes before the fight-back.

But you do not leave with the best feeling when a movie is too long and gives no satisfactory conclusion.—Tan Thiam Peng

Mark Wahlberg & Mila Kunis 100min

MAX Payne is a movie for the guys.

Or at least someone with high levels of testosterone who appreciates guns and sexy women.

The movie starts out with great potential (like Mark Wahlburg w a k i n g up to f i nd h i m s e l f drowning in a freezing lake) but unfortunately bad scripting results in the lacklustre performance of a star-studded cast.

A story told in both flashbacks a nd r e a l t i m e , M a x Pa y n e (Wahlburg), a cold case detective, finds himself on the hunt for the culprits of the brutal murder of his wife and newborn daughter.

Through the various twists along the way, it is then revealed that there is some sort of mysterious flying creature involved in the

NNNNN

multiple murders.

As the plot progresses, it gets confusing at times and together with lots of violence, it makes the movie seem a tad like Sin City with a Norse mythological twist, and a secret government project thrown in for good measure, which explains the flying creatures also known as Valkyries.

While the shots are admittedly well-choreographed, it is essentially a movie adapted from a thirdperson shooter video game, which makes it somewhat unappealing to those who have no interest in the original game.

A definite must watch for fans of the video game and maybe Mark Wahlburg, but other than that, you should save your $9.50 for something else.–Elizabeth L aw

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show dapper: your essential style guide

“

This darkness, a thick black ink, blinds – chokes me like the spiraling fingers of smoke from the end of a lit cigarette— but I will wait, shrouded in layers of shadowed unknown, for the next flare of the match.”

Bustier dress with belt, $199, from River Island

D “

I cannot live without my sun block, parasol, designer shades.

They are protection against my greatest enemy, but I am not a Transylvanian-dwelling drinker of blood, merely a little girl wishing to keep her skin as white as snow.”

Pleated dress, $99, from bYSI; shades and bangles, stylist’s own

ISTURBIA Ladies, it is time to face your worst fears this Halloween

“

That is me but it is not.

These are my eyes, lips, torso, legs, but my soul is not silver-coated glass.

So get behind me, Double, my doppelgänger, for you are merely my shadow in colour.”

Jacket, $105, from River Island; gloves, stylist’s own; ring, styling assistant’s own

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T h e na n ya ng c h ron ic l e

“

Here I stand, a victor in vertigo.

Above me – nothing but thin air.

It took an eternity to make this ascent – the struggle against the temptation to look down; the climb up and further up, still, till I was out of reach of my enemies. And so here I stand, with the world at my feet.”

Dress, $329, by Allure at TANGS

“

Once again, the world drowns me in onomatopoeia.

I am swept under wave after wave of Bang-Crash-Boom, and what you call music is nothing more than vibration.

Shut the engines – turn the volume down – smash the speakers – I would much rather prefer the richness of your silence.”

Coat, $167, from River Island

PHOTOGRAPHY Chen Wei Li (www.bythewei.com) STYLING Gerald Tan MAKE-UP & HAIR Joanna Koh using Benefit Cosmetics (www.joannakoh.com) TEXT Sharlene Lim PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT Liang Huiyan STYLING ASSISTANTS Rachael Boon Carina Koh Lin Xinyi Audrey Tsen MODEL Maggie Landy

“

But when I look at these tinned sardines, the grinning jack-in-the-boxes, those cocoons woven in silken silence – I think: perhaps there is potential in this prison after all.”

Turtleneck top, $39 and cardigan, $33, both from bYSI; pants, $117 and boots, $249, both from River Island; bangles, stylist’s own

STOCKIST bYSI 02-10 Centrepoint River Island 01-41/42 VivoCity TANGS Orchard 310 & 320 Orchard Road

20

lifestyle

O C TO B E R 27, 20 0 8

T H E NA N YA NG C H RON IC L E

tech review

BlizzCon 2008 Reveals Bumper-crop of New Content With a host of new content unveiled at the recently concluded BlizzCon 2008, including a new class in Diablo III and an Achievements system in World of Warcraft (WoW), attendees of the convention could not have asked for more. Our tech editor Lim Yan Liang sums it all up..

THE two day BlizzCon is easily the Mecca for fans of Blizzard, and this year’s convention did not disappoint. From hardcore World of Wa r c r a f t playe r s to fanatical Starcraft lovers, no one was lef t out of t he festivities, especially since the new installments of all three popu lar f ranch ises are due around the corner.

GEE WHIZ, BLIZZARD

Fans cheered as the young, spe l l-sl i ng i ng upsta r t wa s revealed as the third class to be included in the upcoming Diablo III, a fantasy-themed action roleplaying game.

The wizard, a spell-focused c ha r ac ter, appea r s to be a reimagination of Diablo II’s sorceress, with an emphasis on reality-distortion skills such as slow time and teleport, on top of Blizzard spell staples such as Magic Missile.

T he long-awa ite d t h i r d installment to the hack-andslash series will also feature a brand new system of runes, random world drops that can be used to customize skills with new effects. Adding a multistrike rune to a wizard’s teleport spell would, for example, generates multiple copies of the wizard to distract demons.

STARCR AF T TO BECOME A TRILOGY

Big news was also unveiled in the Starcraft department: the sequel will be released as a series of three games, instead of t he one t it le or ig i na l ly conceived.

It will consist of the first, Wings of Liberty, which will tell the story of the Terran race, followed by t wo expansion packs, Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void, which will feature the Zerg and Protoss factions respectively.

The non-linear campaign structure for the single-player aspect of Starcraft II will also be a marked departure from previous Blizzard games, and with each campaign planned to span from 26 to 30 lengthy missions, Starcraft II is shaping up to be an epic universe of its own.

Characteristic of Blizzard, while the announcement left gamers salivating, no hard dates were provided for the launch of the game, only a promise that it will ship in 2009.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY: Come 2009, expect Blizzard to rule the gaming roost with its three heavyweight titles set to once again take over the RPG, RTS, and MMO markets respectively. PHOTO | INTERNET

THE IMMINENT ARRIVAL

With the release of Wrath of the Lich King less than a month away, the new expansion pack for the world-conquering WoW MMO with more than 10.9 million active subscribers was also a focal point at BlizzCon. From a new battleground with 15-versus-15 siege combat action to the new dual 10-person and 25-person raiding structure, there is something for every WoW player out there.

The new dual-spec system that would allow each player to switch between PVP and raiding specs without having to untrain their talents was also much applauded.

On the PvP (player versus player) front, an entire new zone dedicated to World PvP action, called Wintergrasp, will

be found in the new continent of Northrend. Consisting of a fortress that can be claimed by either the Horde or Alliance factions every two and a half hours, control of Wintergrasp would provide a faction some ju ic y i nce nt ive s , suc h a s specific quests, a portal from Dalaran (the neutral city in Northrend akin to Shattrath City in Outland in the first expansion) to WIntergrasp, and a unique raid instance, the Vault of Archavon, who drops both PvP and PvE (player versus environment) loot. Expect World PvP to shape up to proportions never before seen in World of Warcraft before.

As for PvE, Blizzard unveiled t wo ne w le ve l 80 5 -ma n dungeons for the expansion, the Viking-like Halls of Lightning,

and Ahn’Kahet, an underground dungeon featuring Nerubian architecture and both indoor and outdoor terrain in a single instance.

For player s who never got the chance to experience Naxxramas, originally the final 40 man raid instance in the original pre-expansion WoW and what Blizzard terms their best designed dungeon, Naxxramas 2.0 will be the first raid encounter in Wrath of the Lich King, akin to Karazhan i n t h e B u r n i n g C r u s ad e expansion.

Accord ing to Blizzard, since only a tiny fraction of hardcore gamers ever reached Naxxramas in the original WoW, they have decided to resurrect it.

The new spellpower stat

will also be a godsend to classes like the Druid and Shaman, since it essentially combines the old stats of spell damage and healing into one single stat.

This idea of shared gear will help magic-dependent classes, eliminating the need to carry two sets of gear around. The new stat will also help Hybrid classes who do both DPS and healing become more viable, and will certainly make certain specs more popular around Azeroth.

WRAPPING IT UP

With all the new developments going on, BlizzCon 2008 was nothing short of a resounding succe s s . Wit h t he st ud io’s plethora of upcoming offerings, it is certainly shaping up to be a great year ahead for Blizzard Entertainment.

lifestyle

O C TO B E R 27, 20 0 8

T H E NA N YA NG C H RON IC L E

tech review

NEW AND IMPROVED, BUT NOT GOOD ENOUGH Two weeks ago, Apple introduced the new generation of Macbook and Macbook Pro (MBP) laptops sporting several significant changes. However, Photo Editor Chen Wei Li, who had to decide between the old and new models, is not quite sold on the new additions to the line

21

tech flash MOZILL A HAS ANNOUNCED THE availability of the first Firefox 3.1 beta release, an important development milestone for the open source browser. The beta includes important incremental improvements to the user interface and Mozilla’s new TraceMonkey javascript engine.

OPENOFFICE.ORG HAS L AUNCHED version 3.0 of its free, open-source productivity suite. The new version includes compatibility with ODF 1.2 and Microsoft’s controversial Office Open XML (OOXML) format, and adds long-awaited native support for Apple’s Mac OS X platform.

A GROUP OF AMERICAN RESEARCH libraries has launched a new online digital repository for scanned books and documents, making each institution’s files available to the others. Called the HathiTrust, the new group has 78 terabytes of information, or over 731 million pages of content.

THE WIKIMEDIA FOUNDATION, THE organization behind the Wikipedia project, has adopted the Ubuntu Linux distribution for its servers. The organization’s migration of over 400 servers to Ubuntu demonstrate the distribution’s viability in large-scale deployments.

ELECTRONIC ARTS HAS OFFICIALLY unveiled the first two expansion packs for smash videogame Spore – the Cute and Creepy Parts Pack and a new Adventure Maker and space expansion. The former will retail for US$19.95, and be launched on November 18, while the latter is set for a 2009 release.

A STUDY BY IPSOS MEDIACT HAS squashed the myth of gamers as antisocial, with findings such as gamers being twice as likely to go out on dates as nongamers in any given month and gamers being more likely to go out to a movie, play sports and go out with friends than nongamers.

LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP: The Macbook Pro is certainly polarizing - while the beefed-up specs are easy to love, design flaws like the over glossy screen leave much to be desired. PHOTO | INTERNET

IT took me a few years to get over the fact that Apple’s iconic Powerbook laptop series was renamed Macbook Pro, a name hardly as cool as the former.

Fortunately, the industrial design of Apple’s f lagsh ip laptop line won me over, and the original Macbook Pro is arguably as iconic as the Apple logo itself.

Now, I have to take time out again to digest yet another bomb dropped by Apple – the redesigned Macbook Pro and Macbook.

As you can probably tell, I am not very excited about the new releases. Don’t get me wrong, I am a big fan of Apple computers and have been using their products since I was 14.

The launch of new laptops meant that it was the right time to buy my Macbook Pro, but which one?

The incoming laptops come with the latest technology but the ones bowing out are going for six hundred dollars less. So I decided to make a comparison between the two models and hopefully, it will also help you, dear reader, decide should you want to get a new laptop as well.

My biggest gripe is with the overhauled design. While the new designs sport a glossy black matte border around their new LED backlit displays, they

look no different from a Windows laptop that I was using while reading Apple’s press release.

Another distinctive feature of the new laptops is the missing trackpad button, replaced by a huge glass surface trackpad.

While other computer makers are adding more buttons, Apple has removed its sole mouse button.

Bad move, Apple.

The trackpad does more tricks now like four-finger multitouch, but the lack of a physical button is lamentable. The redesigned keyboard though, brings back fond memories of the earlier generations of Powerbook laptops and it makes typing much easier than the line it replaces.

The displays are indeed superb, but they work best only in a dark or poorly lit room. When taken out to a bright area, viewing the screen can be torturous to the eye. This is due to the new glossy screen, which replaces the traditional matte screen.

Apple explained t hat t he reason behind the choice of glossy screens was due to its popularity among customers. I unfortunately beg to differ.

Hardware-wise, the only thing worth mentioning is the use of cutting edge NVIDIA graphic cards. The new Macbook now boasts an integrated N V IDIA GeForce 9400M processor, which produces graphics f ive times

GOOGLE’S CHROME BROWSER HA S managed to grab 0.78 percent of the global browser pie a month after its launch, ahead of competitor Opera at 0.69 percent, according to web analytics firm Net Applications.

Internet Explorer continues to hold 71.52 percent, while Firefox has 19.46 percent.

Processor

Core 2 Duo

Processor speed

2.4GHz

System RAM

2048 MB

Hard drive

250 GB

Optical drive

DVD Super Drive (DVD±R DL / DVD±RW / CD-RW)

Graphics hardware

Nvidia GeForce 9400M and GeForce 9600M GT

Video Ram

256MB

Diagonal screen size

15.4 inch

Screen Resolution

1,280 x 800

Remote

Yes

TV tuner

No

Operating system

Mac OS X

Form Factor

364 x 249 x 241 mm

Weight w/battery

2.49 kg

Wireless LAN

802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n

Webcam

Yes

Ports

2 X USB2.0, FireWire, Mini DisplayPort, ExpressCard, Gigabit Ethernet port

better than its predecessors, on top of a NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT for heavy-duty work like video editing.

What boggles the mind though, is why the two cannot be used simultaneously to boost video performance.

Apple’s rationale is that the built-in card prolongs batter y life. But when I am plugged-in and using the 9600M GT, the additional graphics power from the 9400M just lies there unused.

A shame, as I believe with minmal effort on Apple’s part, both cards can be run in-sync to further boost performance.

So what was my decision?

For a sentimental person like me, it is not too difficult to guess what my answer was.

Furthermore, as the new model i s a l ready on t he ma rket , I managed to bargain for a free ram upgrade for the (so-called) obsolete one. That makes my current outgoing model a much more powerful laptop than the incoming ones.

A ll that, for six hundred dollars less.

This article was drafted on the writer’s spanking new Macbook Pro…the outgoing model.

MICROSOFT HAS DECIDED TO CONTINUE providing Windows XP Professional media shipments to major computer makers for six more months, until July 31, 2009. This means consumers who purchased the Vista operating system will still be able to use their “downgrade rights” till that date.

US BASED SYSTEM BUILDER HARDCORE Computer has just launched its Reactor line of premium systems, featuring a cooling system that has all its system components immersed in a bath of supercomputer coolants to allow for higher overclocking headroom. Prices start at US$5000.

LUCASARTS AND BIOWARE HAVE officially announced a new Star Wars MMO. Called the Old Republic, the PC-only game is set some 300 years after the Knights Of The Old Republic videogame, and would allow gamers to enlist intelligent companion characters to work alongside them.

SECURITY RESEARCH COMPANY VIRUS Bulletin announced that major antivirus suites from AntiVir, F-Secure, and Kaspersky have failed its latest tests, which measure efficiency in detecting known “In the Wild” malware and not detecting any false positives when scanning a set of clean files.

MICROSOFT HAS RELEASED THE Silverlight 2 final build, its answer to Adobe’s Flash.

Silverlight 2, which is now available with a Software Development Kit and updated Developer Runtime for Windows, is available on IE, Firefox, Safari, and Chrome for Windows and on Safari and Firefox for Mac.

Undergraduate Investment Forum

ww

ISSUE 13 | NTU INVESTMENT INTERACTIVE CLUB | WWW.NTU-IIC.ORG

$250 billion

wiped off the Straits Times Index

in one year

By William Low

Since its high of 3,831.19 last Oct 11, the STI has shed 49.15 per cent. This means that easily $250 billion has been wiped off the benchmark. Day after day, we are hit by record breaking losses in the global financial markets.

Cosco Corp, once a darling of many retail investors, has dropped a whopping 84.06% since its peak. The falling Baltic Dry Index is another cause of concern for the shipping industry. It dropped 11 per cent, to 2,221 points on Oct 13. It has dropped 55 per cent over the past three weeks.

Another casualty of the current credit crunch, Ferrochina recently halted trading of its shares, after it announced it has run into working capital debts amounting to 706 million yuan (S$152 million) which have become due and payable, plus 4.52 billion yuan of loans and notes that may become due and payable. Even that failed to be spotted by analysts from various brokerages, who had repeatedly given buy calls on it.

Money Market Funds, low risk funds which were seemingly unaffected by the credit crisis, were also hit recently.

The oldest money market fund in the United States, the Reserve Primary Fund “broke the buck” -- leaving investors unlikely to get back all the cash they put in because the fund failed

to maintain assets of at least $1 for every dollar invested. They had been exposed to Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. debt.

Another favorite of local investors that was badly affected, foreign currency fixed deposits. Many relatives of mine had placed fixed deposits in highyielding currencies like Australian and New Zealand dollar. The attractiveness of 7-8% interest rates on fixed deposits were hard to ignore when local fixed deposit rates were not much higher than bank deposits.

That proved to be an unwise choice, after one unit of the Australian currency traded at 98 Singapore cents by Asian close on Friday, when compared with $1.35 on July 11 last year. When you start to hear of them discussing about migrating to Australia, you know it had hit them hard.

Even local Real Estate Investments Trusts (REITS), which are supposedly defensive plays among the universe of stocks, has lost its allure with investors. REITS were once hailed as a source of stable, visible and recurrent income in uncertain times - and definitely seem to be better bets than developer stocks. However, REITS have not escaped the recent turmoil. In fact, UOB Kay Hian’s index of 14 Reits slid 16.9 per cent in H1 2008 and 27.2 per cent in Q3, underperforming the Straits Times Index.

The only bright spark out of this crisis for the average Singaporean – falling

oil prices. Drivers would heave a sigh of relief for once, after seeing petrol costs fall in line with the drop in oil prices. Not too long ago, Oil was at almost US$150 a barrel, a stark contrast with the less than US$80 seen today.

In view of all these madness in the financial markets now, where should investors seeking for decent returns head to?

JPMorgan has ‘buy’ calls on seven S-Reits, including CapitaRetail China Trust. Analysts feel S-Reits look attractive given their current yields and the steep discounts to book value which they are trading at. The average discount to NAV is steepest for office Reits at 60.5 per cent, versus 35.1 per cent for retail Reits and 30.3 per cent for industrial Reits.

However, the rising cost of debt, reflected in the SIBOR, and challenges of refinancing pose a sizeable risk. New City Residence Investment Corp, a REIT in Japan, on Thursday filed for protection from creditors under the Civil Rehabilitation Law, becoming the first listed REIT to shut down since Japan’s REIT market was created in 2001. In addition, Citi Investment Research has estimated that office rents will correct 40-50% by 2010 which further paints a gloomy outlook for this so-called defensive stocks.

In the telecommunications sector, OCBC believes that the three Singapore telcos are key defensive stocks due to their generally non-cyclical demand. Carey

WIN!

Wong from OCBC Investment Research said: ‘Looking ahead, we continue to expect flat to steady topline growth for the three telcos, even if there is a slowdown in the economy, as the usage of mobile phones has become an integral part of our daily lives.

This can be seen in the high penetration rate that Singapore has achieved over the past few years, where it has been hovering above 100 per cent since September 2006.’And with their strong cashflow-generating abilities, we believe their good dividend yields, at least for both M1 and StarHub, would be a good defensive bet in these still very uncertain times.’

To put things in perspective, consider the comparison of a supermarket with the stock market.

When the stock market rises, investors rush to buy in the hope higher prices.

When the market collapses, no one seems to be shopping for stocks.

Think about it for a moment. If the nearest supermarket started having a mega sale, 75% off all items, wouldn’t all the ‘kiasu’ aunties from Jurong to Changi flock to the supermarket and buy up as much as they could?

No one can perfectly time the bottom of the market. But knowing that the market is halfway off its peak is a good start point. Look for large caps, look for blue chips, look for stable businesses, look for low debt-to-equity, and look for bargains. Caveat Emptor.

CONGRATULATIONS!

3 sets of Takashimaya vouchers to be won!

We want to hear from you! Tell us what you have been doing to manage your personal cashflow, in light of the current financial situation.

Please set the subject of your mail as “UIF Issue 13” and leave your full name and mobile number. Selected entries will be published at www.ntu-iic.org.

What are you waiting for? Send your entries to uif.quiz@ntu-iic.org today!

Deadline: 7 Nov 2008 NTU-IIC reserves the right to edit the entries for brevity, spelling and grammar.

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2008年娱乐圈大小事 精彩回顾 —— 刊27页

新闻

杨振宁：7大理由推动中国高速发展 鞠欣航●报道

诺

贝尔物理学奖得主杨振 宁教授在南大的公开演 讲上表示，中国之所以在今天 能够飞速发展，归决于中国的 文化传统和社会经济政策两大 因素。 在名为“对全球GDP（国内 生产总值）猛增的反思”的演 讲上，杨教授首先谈论了中国 国内生产总值飞涨的原因。 他也以“外行人”的身份 对美国次贷危机表示了个人观 点。 杨教授表示：“中国是个每 年经济增长将近10个百分比的 大国，是史无前例的，而且这 个增长率仍然在上升。” 中国的壮举是将欧美国家3 个世纪的社会经济发展浓缩到 半个世纪，但是在中国飞速发

展的背后，仍存在着一些发展 过程中必须面对的社会问题， 例如国内贫富不均、部分人均 收入低等。 杨教授在演讲中列出促进经 济发展的7大因素中，中国人 的勤俭美德与人本文化名列前 茅。 无种姓制度、以统一为目标 的向心力，再加上国民识字率 的提升和基础设施的建设也推 动了中国飞速的发展。 安定的社会条件更吸引了大 量外资，也促进了中国人民的 消费能力。 杨教授同时也简要谈论了个 人对次贷危机的看法。 他认为美国对金融市场的 不善管理为次贷危机的罪魁祸 首。 虽然次贷危机会影响中国出 口贸易，但杨教授相信中国政 府会有效解决此问题。

杨振宁教授在讲座上提出中国高速发展的7大理由。 摄影|梁玉芬

南大中文学会戏剧公演

耗资1万3千元上演一晚的腥风血雨 宋佳佳●报道

歌

舞升华的百乐门舞厅本 是一片绚丽热闹，台上 婀娜多姿的舞女随着音乐摆动 着曼妙的身段。 顿时，音乐停止，一群手持

利器的黑社会弟兄破门而入。 随后，枪击、嘶喊、殴打声震 耳欲聋。这颇似《上海滩》剧 情在10月19日晚上搬上了莱佛 酒店光华剧院的舞台。 以黑帮充斥的旧上海为背景 的大型戏剧《悬恋》共耗资1万 3000元。

《悬恋》共耗资1万3千元，重现黑帮充斥的旧上海。

这也是中文学会举办对外戏 剧演出以来最大规模的一次。 提及这次演出的重金打造， 担任《悬恋》导演的生物化学 系二年级生谢燕雁表示，这次 中文学会是豁出去了。 她说：“我们两年前曾在 南大礼堂举办过对外售票的

戏剧演出，不过反映不是很理 想。” 他们原想不再办了，可是当 会长问起的时候，大家仍展现 出对演出的热情。 谢燕雁说：“那么既然决定 要办，就要办到最好。” 《悬恋》的故事讲述着一场

《悬恋》怎能少得了爱情？ 摄影|陈渊莊

爱恨交织的黑帮情仇。 为了给观众呈献最逼真的演 出，中文学会筹委会在挑选演 员上煞费功夫。 谢燕雁透露，光是筛选适合 的演员，筹委会就花了好几个 月的时间。 她补充说：“有很多长得 非常上镜的学生前来征选， 但这次演出的主题是黑帮斗 争，光是漂亮没有用，最主要 是要有黑帮的派头，最后选出 来的男女主角们都很符合角色 需求。” 携同一家12口浩浩荡荡前来 观赏《悬恋》的南大前校友王 新发先生说：“这些学生不是 专业的演员，又没有受过专业 的训练，可以有这样的表现是 相当不错的。” 为支持朋友而来的中医师陈 惠玲也对整场演出相当满意， 也给予肯定。 她说：“看得出来南大的学 生很用心地在筹备这出戏，演 出过程中所用的布景道具都可 以媲美专业水准。” 观众好评如潮，谢燕雁深表 欣慰。 她说：“我们不求别的，只 希望大家看到我们的用心。”

24

O C TO B E R 27, 20 0 8

T H E NA N YA NG C H RON IC L E

《非常Superband 2》冠军“兔子”

不适应知名度爆增 被路人认出很奇怪 杨淑慧●报道

第

2届《非常SuperBand》 冠军组合“兔子”比赛 时魅力四射的演出以及活泼的 形象让观众印象深刻，但曝光 率爆增却成了团员们的小小烦 恼，因为她们觉得在公共场所 被认出很“奇怪”。 就读传播系三年级的鼓手陈 静芳笑说：“有人甚至叫错团 名，我们成了“白兔”！” 平时走路时习惯往下看的 贝斯手符彩莉说：“我不喜欢 别人在背后指指点点，可是有 人向我打招呼，我当然会回 应。” 3位在南洋理工大学修读不 同科系的三年级生之所以会组 团参赛，是因为就读于英文文 学系的彩莉的凑合。 当被问起是否担心团员之 前擦不出火花，身为团长的她 说：“如果没有默契的话，我 们就不会赢了！” 兔子经过5个月的比赛后， 在10月5日的大决赛击败其他 组合，与另外一支组合“大风 吹”一同进入总决赛，最后脱 颖而出。 有趣的是，“兔子”竟在成 绩揭晓后的半小时才领悟到自 己是奖金5万元的得主。 就读电脑科学系的吉他手兼 主唱蓝佳慧说：“我们就跑到 一个安静的角落不停地尖叫、 不停地跳，因为我们从没得过 这么多钱！” 彩莉解释说，乐团参加比赛 并不是为了奖金，所以根本没 有去想钱的事。 “兔子”决定参赛，一开始 只是因为“好玩”，没想到连 续成功晋级，因此便努力朝音 乐目标迈进。 长达5个月的比赛，旁人或 许看得精彩，但过程却让3位女

生感到不少压力。 静芳表示，在比赛的过程当 中，“兔子”们感到失望的情 况比开心来得多。 她说：“我们对自己的要求 很高，达不到要求时，压力会 很大。” 平时习惯以英文沟通的“兔 子”，不但努力练习矫正自己 的中文发音，也开始多听中文 歌曲。

“比赛中，我们 感到失望的情况 比开心的多。我 们对自己的要求 很高，达不到要 求时，压力会很 大。”

与教授对谈

林杉教授以品茗 品出生活哲学

陈静芳 “兔子”的鼓手

除此之外，“兔子”希望每 次的演出能够带给观众和节目 评审惊喜。 她们不断在编曲上作新尝 试，可是却一直无法得到评审 的青睐。 佳慧认为每个人都有不同音 乐喜好，“兔子”宁可玩自己 喜欢的音乐并得到赏识，也不 要为了讨好别人才玩音乐。 “兔子”是唯一的学生乐 团，同时兼顾比赛和学业确实 让团员们相当忙碌。 彩莉说：“虽然辛苦，但是 一切都是值得的，因为不是每 个人都可以经历这些。” 回想起来，最让她们难忘 的是得到评审赞赏与认同的时 候。 当被问及是奖金还是冠军头 衔最让“兔子”开心时，3位女 生互相对看了一眼，不约而同 地说：“5万元！”

“兔子”在每场演出都使出浑身解数，把不一样的表演带给观众。 照片|网络下载

（左起）“兔子”陈静芳、蓝佳慧和符彩莉赢得《非常Superband 2》总冠军后，时常在路上被人认 出，觉得很奇怪。 摄影|杨淑慧

文／吴雪菲

除

了教学，数理院院长林杉教授平日 最大的兴趣，就是品茗。 走近林教授的办公室，映入眼帘的是 一套精美的白瓷茶具，办公桌附近还有 形形色色的茶叶罐。 林教授微笑着说：“我非常喜欢喝 茶。上午就喝菊花一类的凉茶，下午就 喝铁观音这类绿茶。” 喝茶是为了提神吗？其实不然。 虽然林教授对茶叶说不上有很深的研 究，但是饮茶是他多年养成的习惯。 的确，在访问过程中，林教授的面前 始终放着一杯清茶。 林教授说：“我不喜欢喝甜饮料，也 不喜欢在茶里加糖、加奶。” 对茶叶追求真味道的林教授，也是个 真诚的人。 林教授提及自己曾到戒毒所帮忙。 他表示：“那里的人都是很善良的 人。很多是因为家庭原因才误入歧途。” 当问起是否做过很疯狂的事时，林教 授用开玩笑的口吻说：“我像做很疯狂 的事的人吗？” 语毕，自己先爽朗的笑了出来。 林教授认为，比起疯狂，自己更喜欢 平平淡淡脚踏实地的走过每一步，就像 自己的爱情。 林教授透露，自己和妻子都不是爱挥 霍的人。 他说：“我们都不会去高消费。刚工 作的时候我们有个习惯，就是每周六都 会到一家餐厅的咖啡馆里，喝杯茶、谈 心 。” 走过学生时代的林教授对现在的学生 有什么建议呢？

林教授的生活哲学就如同品茗一般， “平平淡淡才 是真”。 摄影|关洁薇 林教授说，学生时代的自己很爱看书、跑步， 希望现在的学生也能培养这类兴趣。 除此以外，他还说：“我想，最关键的是把握 住机会。如果你错过了这段日子，无论怎么努力都 是要不回来的。” 林教授的生活哲学就如同品茗一般，“平平淡 摄影｜XXX 淡才是真”。

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首家日本漫画咖啡厅 进驻新加坡 店长孙朝晖受访时说，茶坊 的布置及装潢贴近日本漫画咖 啡厅的风格。 但是，为迎合本地顾客的 喜好，茶坊的灯光会比一般漫 画咖啡厅来得明亮，空间也较 大。 往店里头走，1万7000多册 日文、中文及英文的日本漫画 让人目不暇给，不知该从何看 起。 孙经理说，茶坊另一延续日 本漫画咖啡厅的风格，即漫画 归类的方式：先按照出版社， 再按作者名字的次序分类。 漫画茶坊收藏的日本漫画内 容广泛，适合10岁至70岁的漫 画迷阅读。 从被拍成电视剧和电影的少 女漫画，到饮食、体育和公司 企业等题材的漫画，都能在店 里找到。 他们每个月也会有从日本直 接空运过来的新漫画上架。让 漫画迷们无须等候。

漫画茶坊Manga Kissa空间宽敞，让读者舒服看漫画。 摄影|关洁薇

黄慧芬●报道

漫

画出租店在新加坡算是 普遍，但让日本漫画爱 好者一边悠闲地喝饮料，一边 沉浸在漫画世界里的漫画咖啡

厅，Manga Kissa可是头一家。 开业不到两个月的漫画茶 坊，把已经在日本盛行超过20 年的漫画咖啡厅概念引进新加 坡，让喜爱聚在一起阅读日本 漫画的漫画迷，多了一个好去 处。

延续日本的漫画咖啡厅风格 走进漫画茶坊，映入眼帘的 不是一书架排列整齐的漫画， 而是强眼的红色沙发椅，配上 淡黄色的灯光，感觉既前卫又 暖和。

看漫画 学日文 在1万7000多册漫画当中， 有1万3000多册是以日文撰写， 其余4000多册是中文和英文翻 译的日本漫画。

孙经理说：“日文漫画书所 用的词句比较简单，对刚刚学 日文的人来说，是很好的参考 读物。” 若看漫画书看累了，你不妨 上上网，坐在按摩椅上活络筋 骨，或玩电动。 店内设置最新的PS3，其 中一台还具备模拟驾驶盘和油 门，让漫画迷也能过过赛车 瘾。 漫画茶坊首一个小时收费 $5，接下来每一个小时$2.50 ，收费包括看漫画、杂志和上 网，以及无限量的茶和咖啡供 应。使用按摩椅与PS3则另外 收费，每半小时$2.50。

Manga Kissa 地址： 40, Princep Street, Level 1 Singapore 188666 营业时间： 每星期天至星期四，上午11 时至晚上11时；每星期五和 星期六，上午11时至凌晨2时。 网站： http://www.comiccafe.com.sg

LadyIronChef 不为美食打分数 周汶静●报道

只

以最真实的手法写出 食物的好坏，而不 会为食物评分——这就是 LadyIronChef的宗旨。 创办人刘丰恺（21岁）认 为，食物的好坏本来就是见仁 见智的东西，自己喜欢的口味 并不表示其他人也喜欢。 原本只是个私人的部落格， 却因点击率逐日增加而成为了 专门评论美食的网站。这也造 就了网站在去年4月的正式诞 生。 至今，正在服兵役的丰恺已 写了近150篇美食评论，网站 的每日平均点击率更达1500左 右。 丰恺说：“我认为在我国关 于美食的讯息很少，所以我只 想以部落格的方式把自己的经 验分享给大家。” 至于网站名字的由来，丰恺 只是认为Lady和Iron这两个字 的对比相当有趣，就索性把它 登记为部落格的名字。 后来，很多读者因好奇而去 问丰恺名字的由来。这个名字

也因此成为了他和读者认识的 桥梁。 丰恺也不时会收到不同饮食 业者的邀约，希望他为该店的 食物写篇评论。 被问及写这类评论是否有压 力时，丰恺表示，若是被要求 为某店家写评论，我会在评论 上注明。 他说：“我也会事先跟店长 说好，我会诚实地写评论，如 果他们不能接受，我就不会想 帮他们写。”

“现在我到哪里吃 东西都会带着相 机，这已经是我的 职业病了。” 照片｜刘丰恺提供

刘丰恺 LadyIronChef创办人

为了方便读者阅读，部落格 里的篇章都以食物分类，同时 也有一些有关美食文化的篇章 供读者阅读。 部落格的照片和内容，都是 由丰恺一手包办。 他笑说：“现在我到哪里

吃东西都会带着相机，这已经 是我的职业病了。有时因为要 先拍照才能吃，让一些朋友久 等，会有点不好意思。” 虽品尝过无数美食，但最让 丰恺情有独钟的是中式点心。 他说：“每一道点心都是 厨师用心制作的成果。可惜的

是，在华人料理当中，点心的 地位却不像寿司在日式料理中 的地位，时常被忽略。” 除了写美食评论，丰恺偶尔 也会举办小型的美食试吃会， 邀请读者和朋友一同品尝美 食。 他认为，这样能够让不同年

龄、不同行业的人聚在一起吃 好吃的东西，互相交流，是个 很好的交友机会。 的确，美食就是有着这种魅 力。 LadyIronChef 网址： www.ladyironchef.com

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言论 校园大声讲

咖啡厅

政治比电视剧更精彩 分数 并不代表一切 鞠欣航

新

台湾前第一家庭的洗钱丑闻愈闹愈大，精彩程度超越电视剧剧情。 照片|网络下载

黄顺杰

自

台湾前第一家庭的秘密账户被揭 发以来，台湾陷入了前所未有的 政治乱象。各大媒体都密切追踪着这起 弊案的精彩戏码。相形之下，这场政治 的轩然大波远比任何一部八点档黄金大 戏更加精彩。 台湾是亚洲区域中极为推崇民主政 治制度的国家之一。然而在政党轮替的 过程中，“民主”却在这座宝岛有了新 的诠释。在严厉的管制条约缺席的情况 下，上至政要，下至老百姓都能畅所欲 言。这让政客有机可乘，耍尽以“民 主”为名的政治手段来谋取私利。 以近期闹得满城风雨的洗钱案为 例，陈水扁便紧抓台湾民主制度的弱

点，企图扭转对他不利的局势。尽管侦 讯正如火如荼地进行中，陈水扁连日来 仍能抽身北上南下，向各地乡民“取 暖”。 在他的激情演讲中，陈水扁多次将 焦点转至现任总统马英九并大肆批评台 湾司法，甚至向台湾检调局喊话：“来 抓我啊！来关我啊！”活生生地搬演 《霹雳火》般的剧情桥段。 精彩如戏剧的政治固然富娱乐性， 但对一个国家的经济稳定及人民素质的 提升而言，却是毫无帮助的。相反，当 政治沦为儿戏，成为国际间的笑柄时， 可能已赔上国家的前途与未来。 在民主的社会里，人民不能处于被 动。他们必须时刻保持清醒，拒绝被政 客或媒体左右、愚弄。唯有如此，才能 拨开政治迷雾，恢复应有的晴空。

一切从简 知足常乐 黄慧芬

金

融海啸一波未平，一波又起，美 国股市近日频频传出暴跌的消 息，意味着全球的经济必将受到影响。 从日常生活的开支中，我们就能切 身体会到不明朗的经济状况给生活带来 的冲击。要如何缩紧腰带，应付这段艰 难时期呢？ 我国国会议员们建议，首先从生活 方式着手，减少消费，储蓄多些钱。实 际的做法就包括省水省电、在家吃饭、 养成储蓄的习惯，以及多乘搭公共交通 等。 这些算是基本常识的建议，对于那 些平日过着奢侈生活的民众而言，执行 起来不免需要经历一段难熬的过渡期。 但试想想：人类在最早的旧石器时

代存在时，一切从简，不也这样过了一 生？人类降临和离开这个世界时，不也 两手空空？ 长时间的进化、先天的智慧和求上 进的特质，让人类文明起来，生活条件 也越来越优厚。但是，我们现在拥有 的，似乎已经超出基本生存的需要。 就如诺贝尔奖得主杨振宁所说的， 现代科技的发展大幅度提高了人类的生 产力，但背后隐藏的危险是难以估算 的。有得必有失，自然常态就是如此。 地球资源的耗尽，证明了人类物尽其用 和求取进步的能力，但若不为未来打 算，人类的发展还能持续吗？ 人类文明的发展能有现今的成就， 说好听是求上进，说难听是贪念在作 祟。造成金融海啸的次贷危机，不就是 贪心和急功近利的后果吗？是时候抛开 欲望、知足常乐了。

加坡是个用人唯才的社会， 只有才华横溢，文凭显著的 人士，才大有机会跻身于社会顶 层。 新加坡的教育体系，更是以考试 成绩为基准来选拔人才。 然而这种考试成绩决定一切的社 会现象，却导致学生趋之若鹜地为 了成绩而学习。 但是，分数是个金字塔，能到达 塔顶的人毕竟是少数。 为了考试而学习的人一般在上课 时并不对所学的内容有着极大的兴 趣或好奇心。 相反，他们会在考试之前发愤图 强，挑灯夜读，用临阵磨枪的方式 来取得好成绩。 即使这种人在考试时取得了好成 绩，考试结束后，他们大多数会把 背过的东西忘得一干二净。 知识对这类学生来说，只是考试

时的一项工具，而不是用来充实自身 的。 求知欲强的学生，考试成绩未必名 列前茅。 但是论对知识的了解和运用程度， 他们也许会比高分的学生强很多。 求知欲强的学生，不会将自己束缚 于考试范围里。 相反，他们会博览群书，对自己不 了解的事情刨根问底，一直到水落石出 的那一刻。 这样的学习方法并不是为考试而准 备。 因此，学生复习时就时常偏离考试 范围，而导致成绩不理想的现象。 分数本身只是用来衡量知识水平的 一个数据，根本无法与知识量相提并 论。 学校是教书育人，灌输学生知识的 地方，而不是一个用来提高分数的数据 库。 身为学生，最重要的就是根据自己 的长处规划未来，而非通过提高分数来 充实表面的自己。

百变 为 不变

高效率的空间规划与使用者的劣根性形成强烈对比。 摄影|关洁薇

赖美银

八

月开学以来，校园就变了模 样。新教学楼上位、食堂改 头换面、新摊位的加入，这些改变 确实让人耳目一新。 然而，有多少人曾对这些变化进 行认真的比较和思考？ 我不明白，食堂B中央的入口处 为什么可以设立摊位。 那本是进出食堂的阶梯地带。现 在，走动的空间缩小了，食客在现 有空间耐心蠕动的场景，让我很是 叹服。 空间适应了人，人也适应了空 间。在都市化和环球化的时代，懂 得具备高度适应能力是可贺的。 新食堂A的碗碟和桌脚所采用

的“方形”设计更是令我不解。 有一次，当我把一碗生鱼片汤捧回 座位时，汤汁从汤碗的对斜两角一来一 往，结果溅满托盘。 到了座位，想把椅子拉近餐桌以方 便其他食客行走，才发现桌脚的铁方块 构成的阻碍。 其实，这些新的硬体建设不是没有 积极作用。然而最近我发现食堂B各摊 位前伫立了引导食客排队的障碍物。 我很感激这当中的关怀，因为人流 增加时，规规矩矩排好队是难能可贵 的。但我还是感到很不安。单纯的校园 空间和人之间的互动，竟达到如此境 界。 作为这空间使用者的自己，是该赞 叹空间使用策划人的高效率，还是悲叹 同空间使用者的劣性——没有明“物” 规定，就易为所欲为的可能性。

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旅游

杜拜 神秘的“中东奇迹” 杜拜曾是20世纪阿拉伯湾的朴素海滨小镇。现 在，杜拜已拥有世界第1座7星级帆船饭店，也 正在兴建即将成为全球最高建筑物。跟随记者 魏洁莹一同踏上这神秘的中东土地。 “中东奇迹”杜拜 7 最吸引人的，无疑是 星级的柏瓷饭店了。 饭店外观由双层玻 在 璃纤维屏幕构成， ， 阳光下呈耀眼白色 彩 夜晚则是绚丽的七 颜色。 柏瓷饭店最便宜的 ， 房间一晚需770欧元 价 总统套房一晚则要 3 7700欧元，还须提前 个月前预订！ 真不愧是名副其实 的“阿拉伯之星”！ 照片｜魏洁莹提供

集邮箱

齐聚星空 晚，我们一群旅人 在沙漠中度过的那 东烧烤美食。 下，享用道地的中 区里的地 其寒冷，但是用餐 虽然沙漠的夜晚尤 无限的温暖。 毯与棉枕却给予了 伦的传统 们还能观赏精彩绝 享受美食之余，我 ，无不让台 的一举手、一投足 中东肚皮舞。舞者 。 下的观众大为惊艳 演，也是第 满满星空下欣赏表 在 次 这是我第一 晚的无限魅力。 一次感受到中东夜 在新加坡，汪洋大海我不曾看过；可见杜拜那浩 瀚无边的沙漠对我来说是多么大的震撼。 在中东籍司机的精湛驾驶技术下，我和家人乘坐 越野车 ，穿越 一波又 一波的 沙丘。 司机决 定在什 么 时候改 变速度 、在哪 个角落 突然转 弯，我 们都无 法 预测。 但就是这种不确定，增加了旅途的刺激感。

娱乐 2008年的娱乐圈多灾多难，丧事、丑闻一箩筐。但是，演艺圈 不乏喜事。记者黄顺杰、萧佳慧带你回顾2008年的娱乐大小事。

迈入二月份之际，陈冠希与 14名女星的闺房秘照于网上曝 光，照片数量达1300张，震惊 娱乐界。 警方介入调查，发现淫照 是陈冠希将个人电脑送修时， 落入不法之徒手中。男女主角 们在媒体压力下纷纷出面澄清 并坦诚自己愚蠢的行为。其 中，Twins成员“阿娇”钟欣桐 更以“好傻、好天真”概括了 自己应对社会负上的责任。 偶像平日光鲜亮丽，私生活 却极为糜烂，崇拜他们的青少 年是否会效仿他们的行为非常 令人担忧。在镁光灯下，艺人 必须认清自己比平凡人背负着 更多的社会责任。陈冠希和阿 娇等人成了所有艺人的最佳借 鉴。

说到“肥肥”，即使你不 曾看过她的节目，也不会对 沈殿霞感到陌生。今年2月19 日，这位演艺圈大姐大终究敌 不过病魔，噩耗震惊演艺界， 更令喜爱她的观众感到惋惜。 被誉为“开心果”的沈殿 霞从影40多年来给观众们带来 无限欢乐，对抗病魔的坚毅意 志更被形容为港人代表精神。 肥肥的葬礼，前夫郑少秋 缺席了，只送来写着“沈殿霞 小姐安息”的花篮，言之生疏 更被狠批是薄情郎。 病危之际，肥肥也不忘为 女儿郑欣宜铺后路，将约860 万新元的遗产留给女儿，过后 却爆出女儿变卖总值600万新 元的遗产，倒贴洋男友。 黑暗的演艺圈又熄灭了一 颗明星。前夫是否薄情，女儿 是否争气，却成了焦点。

杜拜小知识 杜拜允许“一夫多妻制”，但以 4名妻子为限，而且她们一定要 分开住。依照规定，丈夫须对妻 子们一视同仁，否则妻子有权向 法院提告。

回顾2008年 娱乐圈发生什么 事

银色情侣梁 朝伟、刘嘉玲的 “世纪婚礼” 今年7月21日正式举行，结束 19年的爱情长跑，也掀起了 “不丹风潮”。 梁刘耗资约700万新元筹办 的婚礼，地点出乎预料，选 在每年准许不到一万名游客 入境的佛教王国——不丹。 这场“世纪婚礼”排场极 大，嘉宾名单更因林青霞和 王菲等巨星而星光闪烁。 梁朝伟不仅送上400万元聘 金，价值近500万元的12卡拉 的卡地亚婚戒位居港台美艺 人钻戒排名的第三位，更是 中华人女星之首。 “世纪婚礼”奢华之极， 受到不少网民置疑，梁刘为 何不将上百万元捐赠帮助四 川地震灾民，更有意义。

韩国艺人相继自杀，让韩 国演艺界笼罩在恐怖的阴霾 下。 影星安在焕烧炭自杀不到 一个月，女星崔真实也在家 上吊自尽。据传，崔真实曾 向安在焕放高利贷，相信是 促使两人相继自杀的原因。 变性艺人张彩媛因感情问 题，在崔真实自杀的第二天 自尽。同志演员金智厚则因 不敌网友恶意中伤，自寻短 见。 在接连自杀事件中，网络 言论似乎是罪魁祸首。网民 肆无忌惮地辱骂和批评，使 艺人们心灵上深受创伤。 观众不仅是明星的衣食父 母，更掌握了他们的生死大 权。艺人真是难作。

今年2月，台湾火红的选秀 节目《超级星光大道3》率队 到新加坡寻星。 潘嗣敬和蔡嘉航之前虽未 能闯入《绝对Superstar》和 《校园Superstar》10强，却获 得《星光》评审青睐，登上星 光舞台。 之前曾PK“星光四少”潘 裕文的黄靖伦被评审称作“星 光Vitas”，也深受观众欢迎。 之后，他更深获林志炫赏识， 受邀担任演唱会嘉宾。 潘嗣敬虽在踢馆赛中遭淘 汰，之后却以高分败部复活， 与黄靖伦一同迈入7强。 狮城代表虽未能成功夺 冠，却已获得更多观众的认同 与青睐。这些本地选星比赛的 遗珠，也找到更大的舞台，发 光发热。

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O C TO B E R 27 , 20 0 8

T H E NA N YA NG C H RON IC L E

翻翻

旧片新拍是换汤不换药吗？ 到底旧的剧本和新的导演能 擦出怎样的火花？记者翁毓 汶带你一探究竟。

翻

拍的电影是否比原版更好？近年来，电 影商进行电影翻拍，似乎形成了一股新 趋势。 近期上映的《武侠梁祝》，就是《梁祝》 的翻版。 对吴尊和蔡卓妍的粉丝而言，这部电影绝 对是他们的福音。 但是，既然打着“梁祝”的名号，就难逃 与原版做比较的命运。 我注重的不是主角们的演技，而是电影所 诉说的凄美爱情故事。 看过杨采妮和吴奇隆1994年的版本后，我 认为原版不仅在演员的演技上或剧情的发展上 都比较出色。 话虽如此，《武侠梁祝》的动画却很迷 人，尤其是蝴蝶谷一幕。数百只蝴蝶于银幕上 飞舞的视觉效果，是以往的版本所无法比及

拍 的

电 影 比 较 好

？

的。 除此之外，中西方电影也掀起了翻拍热潮。 勇夺四座奥斯卡奖项的“The Departed”，便是 翻拍自香港导演刘伟强的《无间道》。 《无间道》演员阵容强大——每一位如梁朝伟或 刘德华都是大牌。 不管是他们的眼神或举止，都完美体现出角色的 深度和多层次性。 剧情采用的心理战术也是电影的致命吸引力。 Martin Scorsese于2006年指导的“The Departed” 虽是《无间道》的“美国化”翻版，但仍深受观众 好评。 刘伟强觉得，Scorsese的版本确实在融入美国文 化时独树一格，但还是自己的作品比较出色。 对我来说，《无间道》较适合亚洲人的口味，自 然会更胜一筹。 另一边厢，许多港片也都翻拍自好莱乌巨片，陈 木胜翻拍自《Cellular》的《保持通话》便是其中之 一。 男女主角古天乐和徐熙媛的对手戏虽然不多，但 二人各以精湛的演技呈献比原版更精彩的故事。 导演选用的拍摄场景也比原创所使用的更出色， 展示不一样的香港。 由此可见，名导掌镜的“翻版”未必叫好又叫 座。电影的成败终究得取决于观众的口味。

乐评 音乐Jukebox

专辑： 《魔杰座》 歌手： 周杰伦 推荐： 《稻香》 《时光机》

专辑： 《JJ陆》 歌手： 林俊杰 推荐： 《小酒窝》 《爱与希望 》

专辑：《集乐星球》 歌手： 苏见信（信） 推荐：《集乐星球》 《告别的时代》

专辑： 《三角行》 歌手： 迷路兵 推荐： 《路》 《三角行 》

暌

在

誉

为中文乐坛最受瞩目的巨 作，周杰伦全新专辑《魔 杰座》终于面世了。今年周董又 玩出什么法宝呢？5个字：还是 那调调。 周杰伦延续一贯作风，在新专 辑里收录了一首中国风的歌曲。 《兰亭序》词曲不相乘流畅，缺 少了以往的唯美诗意。 在《时光机》一曲中，周董展 现了令人惊艳的创作功力。他将 最爱的小叮当写进歌曲里，让听 众仿佛乘坐时光机，随着温馨的 旋律回到过去。 首波主打《稻香》结合了嘻 哈与民谣，以励志歌词和简单旋 律，提倡知足的概念。的确，在 这世道不安的年代，大家需要的 正是这份返朴归真的情怀。 也许这正也是我们最想听到 的周杰伦——朴实、不造作。然 而，在绚丽的魔术师长袍下，我 已找不到当年那戴着鸭嘴帽的羞 涩少年。（文/ 曾威量）

新专辑《JJ陆》中，出道 六年的本地歌手林俊杰决 定回归音乐最根本的感动，并尝 试突破自己原有的创作模式 ，不 过效果似乎不近理想。 由五月天阿信作词的《黑骑 士》，就夹杂着太多《曹操》的 影子。对林俊杰这样的创作歌手 来说，尝试创新可能导致风格变 得不伦不类，延续原有风格又好 像一尘不变，因此要在两者之间 取得平衡实属不易。 新歌《我还想她》，无论是 旋律还是歌词，只能说是中规中 矩。反倒是《有你选择》，借由 粤语和华语的穿插，让人耳目一 新。 林俊杰在《小酒窝》中与 Twins的阿Sa的搭配相当新鲜， 歌曲旋律也十分清新。 整张专辑中，我最喜欢的是 为四川赈灾所创作的《爱与希 望》。没有过多的辅助乐器，简 单的钢琴伴奏更能凸显林俊杰声 音中的感人特质，也真正让我们 听到回复最“单纯、生活”层面 的林俊杰。（文／江昀霜）

单

飞后发行第2张专辑，信 首次尝试烫头发，还穿上 了“闪亮”的黑色上衣。造型上 的突破也似乎为突显专辑中的新 尝试。 专辑中，信打破以往歌曲偏向 摇滚式的曲风，呈现出轻快、摩 登的元素。 英伦摇滚主打《集乐星球》 曲调轻快，摆脱了摇滚一定要嘶 吼或愤怒的刻板印象，表现出了 他活泼的一面。 词中的“没有赛跑／不要唠 叨／高兴就好”也反映了他活在 当下、快乐玩音乐的生活态度。 抒情摇滚《告别的时代》则突 现了信一贯的悲情唱腔，再加上 他招牌式的嘶吼，歌曲意境非常 适合失恋或失意的人。 虽然专辑尝试了不同于摇滚 的曲风，不过我还是很怀念信那 种由内心深处呐喊出来的“飚 功”，因此略嫌这张专辑闷了 些。 （文／吴诗雁）

违一年，第一届《非常 Superband》冠军迷路兵终 于以第2张专辑《三角行》再战 本地乐坛。 为了告别以往的男孩形象， 迷路兵这回改头换面，以更成熟 稳重的造型出击。 《成熟》曲风强劲，宣示转 型后的迷路兵不再走稚气路线。 虽然迷路兵的歌曲一向以摇 滚曲风为主，但旋律优美的慢歌 似乎才是他们的强项。 电视连续剧《黄金路》的主 题曲《路》让人百听不厌。主唱 李顺利激情的诠释，恰当地带出 人生曲折的酸甜苦辣。 虽然是慢歌，但迷路兵不忘 融入自己的风格。感人的歌词， 不仅起着激励向上的作用，更显 露迷路兵演绎歌曲的诚意。 首波主打《三角行》也出乎 预料。钢琴缓慢的伴奏让主唱有 机会展现他温柔的一面。在听者 沉浸于忧伤的氛围之余，也一定 会爱上歌词所表达的丝丝无奈。 一年的等待是值得的。不管 是快歌或慢歌，迷路兵都能以独 特的风格虏获歌迷。 虽然第二张专辑才刚推出， 我已开始期待他们下一张作品将 带来的惊喜。（文／翁毓汶）

Opinion

“So freshies fret not; time is still on your side.”

Page 31

frankly, my dear

EDITORIAL

A column by The Chronicle editors on issues close to their hearts

Beyond the rankings W he n t he Na ny a ng M BA programme jumped 21 places t his year to number 46t h, the university’s president, Dr Su Guaning, celebrated the achievement as “a momentous occasion” for the Nanyang Business School.

It is therefore interesting to see what the authorities made of the third consecutive slipping in the recent rankings published by The Times Higher Education Supplement.

According to a Straits Times report, Dr Su is optimistic that NTU’s ranking will improve in a few years time when work by new top faculty members start making impact.

W hen t h is newspaper followed up with university officials on the fall in NTU’s ran k ing, Provost Ber ti l Andersson said the sur vey should be taken with a pinch of salt because “The Times is not an officially approved ranking institute from the international academic point of view [but is] just a commercial newspaper doing an exercise from the own point of view.”

However, the issue at hand could be more than just about

numbers.

Rankings, while useful as an indicator of a university’s relative performance compared to that of its peers, are arguably not so important as the feelings of attachment and belonging that students feel towards their university.

Twenty years down the road, chances are that nobody will remember that the Nanyang MBA programme was the first in Singapore to make it to the world’s top 50, or that NTU’s world ranking fell for three consecutive years.

What lingers, instead, will most likely be such general feelings as whether we felt a sense of belonging to the university; whether our voices, not always constructive but invariably passionate, were heard; or whether freedom of expression abounded and i ntel lec t ua l ly st i mu lat i ng lectures astounded.

A university administration that is confident that it has succeeded in such areas, need not be overly concerned about whether the university fares exceptionally or mediocrely in contentious ranking charts.

CH R O N ICL E THE NANYANG

chief editor Lin Junjie Managing editor Lin Xinyi sub-editors Amelia Chia Philip Lim Valerie Toh Ser Yi Zeinab Yusuf News editors Cheryl Ong Teo Wan Gek Lifestyle editors Amanda Tan Natasha Ann Zachariah Reviews editor Rachael Boon tech editor Lim Yan Liang Chinese editors Han Weiding Song Huichun opinion editors Huynh Kim Phong Vo Van Hung

sports editors Fabian Ng Tan Jinhe layout editors Gerald Tan Imran Jalal Sharon Hiu photo editors Chen Wei Li Kuan Jie Wei Tan Zi Jie graphics editor Janell Hoong WEB editor Alan Tan Yu Shyang business managers Lee Yi Ling Eileen Teo Xin Wen Jean Toh Zong Rong production support Ng Heng Ghee Teacher advisors Andrew Duffy Javed Nazir Xu Xiaoge

A students’ newspaper published by the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI) Nanyang Technological University 31 Nanyang Link, Singapore 637718 Tel: 6790 6446 Unsigned editorials represent the majority view of the editorial board of The Chronicle and do not necessarily reflect the policies or views of Nanyang Technological University, its employees, the students or the Council of the University.

Signed opinion columns, letters and editorial cartoons represent the opinion of the writer or artist and are not necessarily those of The Chronicle.

Printed by KHL Printing Co. Pte Ltd, 57 Loyang Drive, Singapore 508968

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU News Hotline: 6790 6446 Letters: chronicle@ntu.edu.sg Opinions: chronicle.opinions@ ntu.edu.sg Please include your full name, contact number, faculty and year of study.

Babies, no thanks

Amanda Tan lifestyle editor

P

regnancy is not beautiful.

I was on the train, and opposite me sat a heavily pregnant lady with her eyes strained on a parenting guidebook. I spent a few moments studying her and her awkward bulge as a flood of thoughts poured in, none of them sanguine.

I wondered if the lady ever regretted her decision. With that book in hand, she was anxious about being a good parent, yet also very excited at being one. Still, I could not help but pity her.

Whilst studies such as one conducted at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital have shown that pregnancy can improve a person’s happiness, a May article in the Australian paper The Courier Mail reported that happiness levels drop sharply once a child is born.

Herein lies my point. Having children is not a happy thing.

Not even when they are nestled i n t he dept h s of t he womb, unbeknown to the world and hence, insignificant.

To me, I see no beaut y or nobility in bearing a child. Instead, I think it destroys a person inside and out. On an emotional level, it is an annihilation of the spirit.

Pardon me for the hyperbole, but which I think is apt.

Take for example the decisive moment when a couple decides to have a child. How can anyone ever decide, thinking, “This will be the day I choose to sacrifice my own life?”

Most couples I have spoken to adamantly stress that they do not see it as a “sacrifice” per se, but as a welcome “addition” that will bond the family. But isn’t it just that—a sacrifice?

Let me elaborate. Having a baby robs you of the opportunity to follow your ambitions and dreams.

Not only do you not have the time to pursue them anymore, but also baby-bearing duties will zap all your drive and energy. I believe that these unrealised aspirations and dreams create the broth for resentment in the years to come.

Perhaps this is being selfcentered, but I do not see why I should sacrifice my life to create another. After all, if I cannot even fulfill the dreams I have for myself, what qualifies me to help the life I create to do the same?

I believe I am not the only one

GRAPHIC | MICHELLE HENG

with these views. Given the fierce competition both at school and in the workplace, it is unsurprising that careers and aspirations rank high on one’s priorities.

The fact that the government is spending over $320 million on the baby bonus scheme reflects how much mindsets must be changed.

Furthermore, it also baff les me how mothers-to-be often rave about how they have never felt sexier or healthier. How can a woman, weight y in her third trimester, her oversized belly like a bowling ball protruding awkwardly under her dress, be considered sexy? I certainly do not need to be pregnant to feel nauseous to the core.

I am not selfish. This is simply loving myself more. As they say, you cannot love someone else before you start loving yourself first.

A peeve of mine is the way couples justify how a baby will

bring a family closer together. A relationship should not need to anchor itself on anything, much less another person. Shouldn’t true love overcome everything else?

Why place marital happiness on a pinkish caricature of incessant wa i l i n g , d i r t y n appie s a nd wrinkled skin?

I admit that there are moments I envision what it would be like if I had a child. Many times I have witnessed bad parenting skills and made mental notes not to be such a mother. When I go shopping, I often imagine how I would like to dress my child in the latest trends as well. However, one thing is for sure, these Maternal Instinct Moments are fleeting and ephemeral.

Happiness, incentive or not, I will save Junior for another time (or not at all). As yet, there is nothing in it for me. So go ahead, take back the bonus—and take Baby, too.

30

opinion

o c to b e r 27, 20 0 8

T h e na n ya ng c h ron ic l e

Orchard Road: the new X-factor?

Shereen Naaz Charles Syariff

N

ew York has Madison Av e nue , Tok yo h a s Ginza, Hong Kong has Causeway Bay, Paris has the Champ-Élysées, and Singapore has Orchard Road.

Or at least it had—according to some Singaporeans like Tang Mui Li. In an article in The Sunday Times on 5th October 2008, the 38-year-old part-time insurance agent groused: “How can Orchard Road be a world-class shopping haven and rival other major cities such as Tokyo when it is a freefor-all zone for anyone to hawk their stuff?”

Her reaction came after she observed the recent overload of current and future developments in the area which is supposed to place Orchard Road up there with Madison Avenue and Ginza.

However, new premier brand shops also gave hawkers the opportunity to sell items from the opposite end of the spectrum.

Locals are divided on how to receive the new Orchard Road. A fortnight ago, The Sunday Times published an article about the chaotic ‘pasar malam’ that has become our Orchard Road.

The article captured opinions of many Singaporeans such as Tang, who expressed their displeasure over the “blaring buskers”, “pushy sales promoters” and “crowds and noise”.

No one can blame them for complaining about that.

Howe v e r, a s s u m i n g t h at Orchard Road is the shopping district in the country, it is only natural for many to want to make a quick buck by peddling their goods to shoppers. The market, after all, runs by demand.

Amidst those who find the new Orchard Road far from premier, there are those, like me, who welcome the new changes and are looking forward to the future developments.

The most obvious change is the increase in street performers such as buskers whose talents vary from swinging a chain of wooden balls, to school students busking for charity.

For me, one of the highlights of walking down Orchard Road is the sight of these performers.

On an aesthetic level, the buskers add vibrancy to our otherwise redbricked walkway.

To perform on the streets of Orchard Road is not as simple as packing a bag and choosing a spot.

Buskers need to fill up a form from the National Arts Center (NAC), before they are granted an audition and finally accepted. Not everyone gets a spot.

Busking was discontinued by the authorities in 1994 due to buskers’ failure to comply with rules set by the NAC. As plans to develop Singapore’s entertainment scene surfaced, NAC and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) decided to reconsider their decision

to can busking.

Both government bodies aimed to bring the arts to the masses.

But their attempts seem futile as people found the ‘arts’ more of a hindrance.

To g e t h e r w i t h t h e r e i nt r o d uc t ion of bu s k i n g to Singapore’s streets came new rules like specific timings for performances.

When Singapore announced that it was going to become a global arts city, it was mostly for its business potential. Millions of dollars were spent on the Esplanade, touted as the Sydney Opera House of Singapore. Everyone knew (or at least speculated) that the value of art would ultimately be sacrificed for commerce.

This is why I love the buskers that fill up the streets of Orchard Road . T he y a r e a c on s t a nt reminder of the “Art for Arts Sake” movement, which expresses a philosophy that art should be free from any function except for the purity of art. They remain unfazed by the big durian that occupies City Hall or the upcoming School of the Arts.

To perform on the streets of Orchard Road is not as simple as packing a bag and choosing a spot Sure, some people believe that these buskers are merely beggars in disguise, with no talent and are just out to rip people off. Little do they know that one of the new policies implemented requires buskers to donate part of their takings to charity.

F or t h e f e w m i n u t e s of entertainment that they provide as you walk down the stretch of Orchard Road, how many people actually stop to donate into their open guitar cases?

Even if I chose not to do so, at least, for a few minues, I get some entertainment.

During the National Day Rally in 2005, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong addressed the nation on our aims to be a “vibrant and global city”. He also reminded Singaporeans to realise where our strengths lie.

W hat we lack in physical landscape and natural resources we make up in “our multicultural her itage, ou r clean and safe environment, our disciplined and energetic people, a cosmopolitan and open society”.

Our energetic people contribute to the image of Singapore that we so painstakingly try to maintain in our interactions with locals and foreigners alike.

One of STB’s aims for Singapore is to double our visitor arrivals to 17 million and triple our tourism receipts to $30 billion by 2015.

We are all set for two new shoppi ng ma l ls w it h a more

GRAPHICS | MICHELLE HENG

e x hau s t i ve l i s t of h ig h- e nd shopping labels, and a bright array of lights in Orchard Road.

However, we must not forget that our service sector is made up of more than just the people who sit in air-conditioned shopping malls.

The ice cream man who serves icecream on colourful bread, or the man who is constantly oily from the heat of roasting chestnuts are just some examples of the unsung heroes of our service sector, the people who help Singapore stand out from all the premier shopping districts all over the world.

Would you be able to find icecream on colourful bread on the Avenue des Champ-Élysées?

In a speech made by Mr. S Iswaran. Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry at the off icial opening of the International Council of Shopping Centres in 2006, he highlighted

t hat shopping w i ll be a key pillar of tourism in 2015—and where else would tourists go but Orchard Road? He also adds that we constantly need to keep up with the times.

Would you be able to find ice-cream on colourful bread at the Avenue des Champs-Élysées?

“We recognise that it is no longer enough to rely on our t r ad it iona l at t r ibute s , s uc h as quality infrastructure and connectivity, to attract business events to Singapore. We need to make this place more interesting

and exciting, and enhance our e nte r t a i n me nt a nd l i f e s t y le offerings.”

I think we may have found that answer in Orchard Road—the certain je ne sais quoi that sets us apart. It comes in the form of the wide variety of multi-cultural performances. We have Ethan Ong, a Chinese boy who plays Indian drums along the busy street, the group of tribal percussionists who dr um their way into our hearts and even the two Chinese contortionists that adds the extra twist to Orchard Road’s vibrancy.

“Uniquely Singapore”, STB’s famous tagline, is apt here.

Per sona l ly, it rem i nds me of all the things I love about Singapore, the unique blend of tourism offerings, things I wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else in the world—the all-encompassing Singaporean identity.

opinion

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T h e na n ya ng c h ron ic l e

canteen talk The impact of the ongoing economic crisis is predicted to come closer to home only in 2009.

We find out NTU students’ views on the issue.

It will be more difficult to find a job, but it might not be the case for us engineers I think.

”

31

Of hits and misses

Dhivyathasherny Subramaniam, CBE, Year 1, 19

“

I guess I will need to spend more for the same amount of stuff, but it will not change my spending pattern anyway.

Lee Yi Shi, CBE, Year 1, 19

At this moment, we should encourage our family and friends who lost in investment to stay positive and wait for recovery.

” Faith Tan

I

Yap Yong Han, MAE, Year 3, 23

“

I guess it will affect the graduating students the most. Yet, I think the economy will be back on track soon so I am not very worried.

Koh Boon Ann Kevin, MPE, Year 2, 23

There might be potential employment problems as businesses are bound to be more cautious with their investments.

GRAPHICS | CHRISTIYANI KABUL

”

Rosalinda Yapit, CS, Year 3, 21

TEXT | HUYNH KIM PHONG; PHOTOS | PEAR REI MIN

f my life were a dartboard, NTU would be the travelling dar t: either on its way to hitting the target, or careening off into oblivion.

My time in NTU has indeed had its ups and downs, but as with every phase in life, there will surely be hits and misses. Let me clarify that the misses here represent a feeling of regret or sadness.

I ’m 22 , g r ad u at i n g i n a semester’s time, and unsure of what the future holds for me outside this Youth-Olympic-Village-to-be.

Close to four years in NTU and I’m probably just starting to truly know my way around the school.

So freshies fret not; time is still on your side.

No one can be blamed for taking so long to adapt to everything on campus. After all, I usually take shuttle bus A, or is it B, no wait, C, to Canteen A, or B, and to be fair no Canteen C exists.

A mple t r iu mph ca n be attributed to a laudable effort that has been taken to modernise and vary food choices on campus.

Being a foodie myself, I admit the range has improved, though we ought not to rest on our laurels.

However, a common gripe is that of the polar opposites that canteen A and canteen B represent.

T he Nor th and South spines, polarise—for want of a better word—our student population into two major territories.

Perhaps what N T U need s is a collective central space to encourage the meeting of the minds, which perhaps could be lubricated by an “Ice Cold Beer”.

The lack of this relaxed interfaculty culture could be the reason why NTU students feel somewhat detached from the universit y community, without adequate a suitable venue for much needed downtime.

No one can be blamed for taking so long to adapt to everything on campus However, there are indeed misses from this garden campus.

One thing I will particularly miss will be the former Canteen A’s treacherous steps, that one would have to navigate gingerly while balancing a tray of 50-cent “chin chow” and truly affordable Japanese fare.

The challenge is compounded by having to scan the wide expanse for a seat, chancing upon a familiar face, and trying to reciprocate a wave without stumbling—all in perfect synchronous timing. Well, at least that dangerous detail of our lives has been taken care of.

Another missed aspect would be the 179 bus rides that take

you out of the school much more efficiently when they take you in.

I will miss the slow crawl that the 179 buses have adopted as their pet pace entering the school, making it seem like there is perverse delight in watching students hurtle from the bus-stops to their classrooms.

C o n v e r s e l y, t h e h e a r t thumping, butt-lifting 179 rides out of school are in a league of their own. The urgency to get us out of school leads me to think that the bus-drivers are sympathetic with us students having spent a long day in class. It also drives me to believe that there are sinister thoughts of getting rid of us in the process.

Perhaps, what I will miss most about NTU is likely to be all that I will be missing out on after I leave.

Missing out on the Youth Olympics in 2010 will be my biggest regret; the camaraderie and hype building up to this milestone event, and the people I could have met, would be an opportunity I believe you should grab.

For fea r of sou nd i ng disgruntled, I must not disguise the fact that these four years of my life has taught me valuable lessons about the people I meet and the friendships forged.

A s W i l l D u r a nt pu t s i t , “Educat ion i s a pr og r e s si ve discovery of your own ignorance.”

Only through education will we come to ter ms with what we have, and what we often take for granted.

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bpl talk

Desperate times at misery Lane Fabian Ng sports editor What is the difference between Tot t e n h a m Hot s pu r s a nd a triangle?

The answer – a triangle has three points.

Though the Premier League season is only eight games old, Spurs has collected just two points.

At the same stage last year, Derby County had already amassed six points.

T he Ra m s went on to be relegated and collected a record low eleven points, attracting criticisms from obser vers for devaluing the competitiveness of the league.

Though the consensus is that Spurs has too much quality in their team to suffer a similar fate, they may sink into a hole long enough to seriously threaten their status in the top flight if they do not confront the issues facing the squad now.

One action taken by the team has been to remove Damien Comolli from his role of Sporting Director, after the team’s poor performance was blamed on him.

This is because he was tasked with managing the club’s transfer

THE BIGGER THEY ARE: The harder they fall. Tottenham's poor form this season is harder to bear due to their heavy investment in the summer. PHOTO | INTERNET

policy, and the late sales of Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov led to Spurs starting the season without their star strike-force pairing.

In addition, despite bringing in an attacking triumvirate of Roman Pavlyuchenko, Luka Modric and David Bentley at a combined cost of almost £50 million during the close season, Tottenham failed to perform to the expectations of their supporters.

Pundits and fans alike had projected Spurs to finish in the top four positions at the end of the

season, but at their current form they should be content with even a mid-table finish.

However, there is a sense that Comolli is a victim of a witchhunt, a sacrifice made to placate suppor ters. A rsenal manager Arsene Wenger supports this view, though cynical observers note that there is no love lost between the London rivals.

U l t i m a t e l y, t h e p l a y e r s' performance on the pitch need to improve regardless of off-thefield matters, and manager Juande

Ramos has failed to deliver on what he has been hired to achieve.

Even t houg h fa n suppor t remains strong for Ramos, there is still a sense of bitterness against the board for their treatment of Martin Jol. Jol, the previous manager who was sacked because he could only guide Tottenham into the top five, is now flying high. His new team, Hamburg, is top of the German Bundesliga.

With Ramos seemingly unable to decide on his best starting lineup, having used four different players at centre-back, three at right-back, two at left-back, six in central midfield, two on the right of midfield and four on the left, Spurs are unable to get into any sort of rhythm.

The players are not above reproach either. With one of the most expensive squads in the entire league, the fans can be forgiven for wondering what exactly they are paying for.

Captain Ledley King is doing his best impression of the invisible man, featuring just twice this season. His inability to stay fit has severely jeopardised the stability of the team's defence.

In his absence, Jermaine Jenas has taken over the leadership of the

team, but he has flattered to deceive for years. Managers evidently see something in him that fans do not, with him retaining his place in the England national team despite his constantly absymal performances.

E v e n t he U E FA C u p h a s failed to provide Spurs with any respite. Losing to Udinese due to a goalkeeping gaffe by new custodian Heurelho Gomes and a red card to Jamie O'Hara, morale in the team has seemingly hit a new low.

With the newly-promoted clubs doing much better than anyone expected, Tottenham is in real danger of being stuck in a rut.

What the team needs now are fighters who are prepared to do the dirty work, because Spurs needs to realise that they are in a scrap for survival.

Wit h Bolton nex t in line, followed by Arsenal, Liverpool and Robinho's Man City, Tottenham may f i nd t hem se lves deeply entrenched in the relegation zone come December.

If there is a silver lining to be found in this sorry state of affairs though, it is that they may indeed fulfil their aim of finishing in the top four next season – albeit in the Championship.

sports talk

Playing beach games on an island nation Lien Xiuwen MORE than 1,500 athletes from over 45 Asian countries are competing in 13 sports in the inaugural Asian Beach Games in Bali which opened on October 18th.

What Asian Beach Games, you might be wondering.

It is the first regional games that will feature a mix of land and sea sports, including several non Olympic events such as jet skiing, paragliding and surfing. The Asian Beach Games will also feature traditional Asian sports such as kabbadi, sepak takraw and dragon boat racing.

Southeast Asia has always been the premier destination for beach lovers – Redang, Phuket, and the Phi Phi islands are some of the more notable beaches for weekend getaways. Hence, it is no surprise that the quaint Indonesian island was the chosen one for the inaugural Asian Beach Games.

Team Singapore has sent a contingent of 36 athletes who will compete in seven events, namely beach basketball, beach pe nca k si lat , bod y bu i ld i ng , sailing, triathlon, windsurfing, and woodball.

The Singapore woodball male

team won the nation’s first gold at the Games, and is currently at ninth place in the medal tally, placed above China.

However, the press has yet to report on the team’s progress and achievements widely, which has contributed to minimal awareness of the Games and our participating athletes.

So why the muted response to the Asian Beach Games, given its unique focus on beach games in Asia?

After all, Singaporeans are known to be beach lovers, either jet-setting to nearby beach resorts for a leisurely holiday with a few beach activities thrown in, or simply soaking up the sun in Sentosa.

It is queer, given the nation’s recent streak in promoting itself as a regional sporting arena, and its successful bid for the inaugural Yout h Oly mpic Games ( YOG) 2010.

In fact, Team Singapore fielded 13-year-old Mark Wong in the sailing team at the Asian Beach Games – a good opportunity for us to cheer our young talents on in lieu of the YOG. Yet, t he Singapore Spor ts Council and the YOG Committee failed to leverage on this event,

squander ing the oppor t unit y to hook Singaporeans who are regulars at the beach to become a ‘true blue’ sports lover and campaigning for public interest for the YOG, which will happen in less than two years.

Beach volleyball, beach soccer and even surfing are competitive events at the Asian Beach Games, but they are also spor ts that strike a chord with the common Singaporean. Hence their value to the local sporting arena should not be lessened, even if the Games are not part of the IOC Calendar of Events.

Or perhaps the recent economic downturn has cast a grey sky over our love for sports, so much so that we have decided to rekindle our interest with the economy instead.

No matter what the reasons may be, the Asian Beach Games would definitely have struck a chord among locals if the authorities had known how to harness the allure of the Bali beaches and beach games to lure Singaporeans to join in the sporting culture and cultivate their love for sports.

Singaporeans can never deny its ties to the sun, the sand and the sea as we are ultimately living on an “island city”.

ISLAND NATION: Singaporeans to embrace the sun, sand and sea? PHOTO | INTERNET

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sports profile

Hunting down a former Lion A DECORATED former national footballer with victories such as the Tiger Cup, Goh Tat Chuan, an NTU mechanical engineering graduate, talks about his career and colourful life with Rikesh Primalani Professional fo otb aller s nowadays start playing football professionally from 16 years of age. At what age did you start playing professionally?

To begin with, I was never a fully professional player. I did not play the game solely. While I was in NTU doing my engineering course, I was playing part-time.

Af ter I graduated, I got a job straight away in Creative Tec h nolog ies. It wa s a ver y interesting job scope that I had and I did not want to give up that opportunity so I was trying to balance both.

So you were playing parttime even as you were working in Creative?

Yes. So when I was called up for the national team, I would take leave and go and represent my country.

When you were in Saint Joseph Institution, were you in the school team or played in any clubs outside?

Yes I was in the school team.

I realised I was better than most of my peers in primary school because I could take the ball and dribble past everybody to score.

Du r ing one of t he school holidays when I was in Catholic Junior College, I chanced upon this advertisement by a football club called Gilbratar Crescent. It was a Yishun-based club. They were recruiting their under-19 squad for a tournament. I got selected and it took off from there. I learnt more about the game tactically and skills-wise. This club later became Sembawang Rangers.

Did you start playing for Sembawang Rangers then?

Yes. I think by the time I was good enough for their senior team though, I was enlisted into National Service. So I played for SAFSA. It was not an S-League team. But I only started playing for them during the last six months of my service. I went to OCS and became an officer. And it was only in the last six months that I was allowed to play for SAFSA. A f ter NS, I went bac k to Sembawang Rangers and played one season there before moving to Jurong Football Club where I met Sudramoorthy. He really gave me the opportunity to excel and believed in my ability. Till today I am grateful he gave me the chance. From Jurong, I transferred

they said that?

He can ride my Yamaha and I'll spend some time with Angelina (Jolie)!.

Moto GP world champion Valentino Rossi is more than happy to swap lives with Brad Pitt after the actor's declaration that he worships Rossi.

For John Terry, to die on the pitch would be glory. You would need to kill him and maybe even then he'd still play.

AND THAT'S HOW I SCORED: Goh (left) sharing a light moment with reporter Rikesh (right). PHOTO | AHMAD ISKANDAR

to Woodlands where I became captain.

We understand your international career ended abruptly about two years ago.

Do you mind clarifying what happened?

The truth is that I went back home because my wife was sick without informing the coach. I intended to inform him the next day. I wasn’t given a chance to talk to him. He then approached me and asked me where was I. He said that he saw three guys sneak out that night and he did not know where they went. I told him that I went back home to take care of my wife because she was having some gastric problems. Being a newlywed and staying at a new place, I wanted to make sure that she was okay. I admitted that it was my fault for not informing the team manager and the coach.

However, he wanted me to apologise to the whole team and I replied that I could not do that. I told him that I could apologise to him because I report to him but not to the whole team. I would also apologise to the team manager and the team captain. But I wouldn’t apologise to the whole team. He said if that’s the case, then I was out of the team. I couldn’t go against my principles for the game.

I live by these principals and I would not betray them. I still stand by it till today.

If the national team had a change in management, and you got called up to play again, would you go back?

No. the thing about footballers is that they do not know when to pull the plug. David Beckham is past his prime. He’s telling people he’s not retiring. I understand

where he is coming from because as an athlete, you always think that you are at that level. The incident really made me look into my life and plan ahead 10-20 years from where I was. I have a degree so I didn’t want football to be the only thing that I would do.

Footballers do not know when to pull the plug. Like David Beckham is past his prime, but he's telling people he's not retiring.

Goh Tat Chuan NTU alumnus and former Lion

What are your views on the foreign talent scheme?

When I talk of foreign talent, I refer to quality foreign talent and not those who are equal as the locals. Foreign talent gives a different dimension to the team not only in skills but also in attitude, which I think is lacking in the locals. I think the hiring of foreign talents should be done in moderation so that the team does not lose their identity as a Singaporean team.

When you were growing up, who were your footballing heroes?

Bryan Robson. When he was playing for Manchester United. He was the one who got me excited about football. Then I started going to the National Stadium and

started playing the game, and the player that inspired me was Fandi Ahmad. He was the player I wanted to be when I went to the National Stadium and watch the national team play.

What do you remember NTU most for?

I remember rushing down to Hall 6, the sports hall, after class.

I would meet my mates there after class to have a game. We would play until dark, then go back to hall, shower and head down to Jurong for a meal. We would then go back to the room, chat the whole night, and played Championship Manager. *Laughs* and then we would skip lecture the next morning and go for the tutorials that are the most beneficial. There was a lot of planning involved. What I remember is it was fun.

Staying in the hall was quite an experience for me. You don’t study much there. You socialize a lot. And that in itself is a very important skill. During exam periods, about 3 weeks before exams, I would spend days and nights in the hall’s study room and I would not go for any soccer training.

So what do you feel is your greatest achievement?

Being a proud father. Different aspects of life have its own peaks.

Graduating from NTU too was a peak for me. Football-wise, it’s winning the Tiger Cup at the National Stadium. That was a big achievement. At that time, nobody gave us hope and not many people believed in the team. When I was in the team, I had this belief that we could do it because the self belief was extremely strong among all the players at the time.

Chelsea manager Luis Felipe Scolari backs his captain.

Shame Terry seems incapable of overcoming minor injuries to play for England, however.

GRAPHIC | KOH MING XIU

They've hit the post three times, had a goal disallowed and hit the bar. I think I'll go out and buy a lottery ticket.

Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer (above) is feeling lucky after somehow keeping a clean sheet against Sunderland.

That's great, tell him he's Pele, and get him back on!

Scottish team Airdrie's manager Kenny Black has a cunning plan after hearing that his concussed striker Stephen Maguire did not know who he was.

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No coach, but still four golds bagged standings.

The highlight of the team’s performance included two gold medals for the men’s 4 x 50 metres freestyle relay, men’s 4 x 50 metres medley relay and two silvers for the women’s corresponding events.

Student coach and captain Roderick Eng, 22, said he did not expect the team to win the medley relays.

“IVP is actually a good chance for NTU to foster a stronger school spirit.”

TRAILBLAZER: Despite having no coach, NTU swimmers improved their ranking to bring medals home. PHOTO | TAN YI WEN

Lim Yufan THE NTU swim team defied the odds to emerge runners-up of the Institute-Varsity-Polytechnic (IVP) Games 2008 with four golds, five silvers and six bronzes.

The event took place over the

weekend from October 11th to 12th at the Toa Payoh Swimming Complex.

National swimmer Ho Qing Xiang won two individual gold medals in the 50 metres freestyle and 50 metres butterfly.

On balancing his schoolwork and training schedule, the final-

year student at the School of Art, Design and Media said, “Basically, it’s about making a lot of sacrifices.

I don’t have much of a social life.”

Although the team did not have a coach for the past year, they exceeded expectations by moving up three places on the overall

Amanda Tay, 21, Swim team member

“I took a big risk by going in without a natural backstroker. Our first choice backstroker couldn’t make it and I had to replace him with someone else," he said.

Other members of the team also gave credit to Eng for this year’s

success.

“Roderick has done a ver y good job,” said final-year Business student Amanda Tay. “He came up with the training programme for us. You can see that our team spirit is really good.”

Captain of the women’s team See Pui Fun added, “Roderick is very well-liked by the team.”

However, the lack of supporters for the NTU team at the swimming complex was evident.

C om p a r e d to h e r j u n i or college days, Tay felt there was less publicit y for inter-school competitions in NTU. “I think the IVP is actually a good chance for NTU to foster a stronger school spirit,” said the 21-year-old. “Through better publicity, the swimmers will be more motivated and results will improve too.”

After the stellar performance, See hopes to see some changes made to the swimming pool in SRC. “During our training hours, we have to share the pool with many other swimmers,” she said.

“Hopefully, the swimmers will be given priority to use the pool.”

Enthusiasm for running on the wane Syafiqah Omar The annual X-Campus Run held on October 8th suffered the same fate as other recent sports events held on campus when it saw a drop in the number of participants signing up.

This time around, the answer to the general lack of support from the student population seemed to lie in the unenthusiastic batch of freshmen.

“The year ones usually make up the bulk of such events but this year’s freshmen are not as forthcoming as previous years,” said Andrew Chia, 22, President of NTU Runners’ Club.

Attempts by the organisers to boost participation such as introducing a new category and postponing the event by two weeks also proved futile.

While previous runs saw up to 300 participants, there were only about 200 runners in total this year.

Like previous years, there were the fun and competitive categories covering 4.5 km and 6k m r espec t ive ly. T he route covered NTU’s circumference.

T h is yea r, t he orga n iser s introduced a new category for students residing in halls.

Students can represent their hall in teams of five.

This saw about seven teams

cause of concern to organisers.

C h ia at t r ibuted t h i s to a number of reasons, including their publicity strategy.

Publicity was garnered through the Campus Buzz ser vice, the manning of registration booths in Canteen A and B as well dissemination via email.

“This year's freshmen are not as forthcoming as previous years.”

SIGNING UP: Few runners registering at the SRC before the run. PHOTO | DARWIS SUNARYO

signing up with some halls sending in two teams.

“I think it is a fresh idea as it serves as a good platform for us to pitch ourselves against other halls as well as allowing us to bond further,” said Hall 9 sports secretary Daniel Toh. His team was made up of four guys and one girl.

Chia said they had considered asking teams from Co-cirricular Activities and individual schools to sign up for the team category, but he eventually settled for halls.

He felt it was fairer as some schools

and CCAs are bigger than the others, creating an “imbalance”.

He also explained that since those living in halls see each other more often, it will be easier for them to form a team.

In addition to the new category, the run was also postponed by two weeks due to low response, as it clashed with students’ midterm examinations.

Despite all this, the run still saw a drop in the number of students signing up.This recent trend of low participation rate in NTU’s sports events has been a

Andrew Chia, 22 President NTU Runners' Club

However, Chia felt that more access to students’ email addresses could be given to organisers as they were only limited to their own contacts and were thus unable to reach a wider student body.

A s a resu lt of t he disma l numbers, the organisers had to increase the registration fee from $4 to $10.

In contrast, t he staff and international students were more receptive.

This year’s run saw more of them participating.

Drew Morsuy, a second-year

exchange student from Canada had been looking forward to a race in NTU all year and when he heard of the event, he did not hesitate to sign up.

“Back home in Canada, I am in the provincial city team. I have always loved running, it is what I train for,” said the 20-year-old.

The organisers also managed to procure help from the Student Recreation Centre to disseminate the email to most of the staff body.

Dr Saman Abeysekera, an A ssociate Professor from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, has participated in the X-Campus Run 11 times.

The 53-year-old lecturer from Sri Lanka is in it for the charity.

The NTU Runners’ Club will be donating a part of their proceeds to the Dover Park Hospice.

In addition, this year’s run also saw first year NIE Physical Education student Ang Chee Yong winning the race for the fourth time.

The 29-year-old had won the previous races from 2004 to 2006 while he was studying Mechanical Engineering in NTU. “It feels great that I am still able to race with the younger runners,” said Ang, who recently also clinched fourth placing in the Nike Human Race.

Sports

IVP swimmers make a splash on Page 35

Stepping up to the Street Challenge Tiffany Tham DESPITE heavy afternoon rain and a sudden black out during the game finals, the NTU Street Challenge 2008 concluded with passionate teams taking home the best prizes.

The sports competition was held on Saturday, October 18th at the Sports Recreational Centre (SRC). The event’s aim is to promote street sports in NTU. In addition to undergraduate students, members of the faculty and post-graduate students were also welcome to take part. In total, an estimated 480 students turned up for the event.

Most students think that such events are dominated by NTU school team players, leav ing amateurs little room to explore these sports.

However, Lee Xinying, 19, cochairman of the Street Challenge, wishes to dispel this myth.

“Everyone is welcome to join in this competition. You do not need expert skills to participate,” she said.

I n f ac t , pa r t ic ipa nt s a r e required to declare the number of NTU school team players they have in their group or risk being disqualified.

Organisers also r uled that school team players cannot make up more than half of the number of members of the group. The only exception to the rule would

THE ANCHORMAN: Toiling away for his team late into the night.

“It’s all about passion for the sport and having teamwork that’s important.”

Linus Neo, 22 Participant NTU Street Challenge

be handball because it is a new sport that was just introduced last year.

Moreover, the event managers chose not to pract ice a n instantaneous elimination system to give all registered teams an opportunity to play four times or more.

Publicity head for the event Ramona Koh, 19, felt that most of the players had sports experience and exhibited expert technique and team play.

Also, she said team dynamics counted for more than expertise.

This was most evidently seen in handball. The game only gained popularity in this year’s street challenge.

Sixteen teams had signed up this year as compared to six last year.

STUBBORN DEFENCES: Under spatial constraints, street soccer players show off their tricks. PHOTOS | TANG SINRACHTANANT

THROW OF HOPE: Intensity mounts as players approach the finals.

Lee added that the increase in enthusiasm amongst those new to the sport is associated with the hype surrounding the upcoming Youth Olympic Games to be held in NTU, which features handball as an Olympic sport.

Handball participants have taken well to learning this new spor t a nd had joi ned pa r t ly because few people have had prior training, which created a more level playing ground for players in the competition.

Third-year business student, Shi Pei See, 21, was one of the firsttime handball enthusiasts.

“I hadn’t played handball competitively before this and had just picked it up with a few of my friends,” she said.

Contrar y to prev ious assumptions of some students, they do not have to play the games professionally to excel in them.

Fi r s t-yea r me c ha n ica l engineering student Linus Neo, 22, had joined his group of friends in this competition despite not having taken up soccer as a CCA

previously in junior college.

He said he had joined the competition because of his passion for the sport as well as exercise and leisure.

His team emerged champion in the street soccer category despite not having any official training beforehand.

“It’s all about passion for the sport and having teamwork that’s important,” said Neo. Chariman of Street Challenge Andrew Tan, 22, said there was improvement in event management this year.

Qualified referees from the Instit ute-Varsit y-Poly technic games were engaged to manage the games and they had earned the respect of players for their fair judgments.

This quality was important in preventing brawls as one had broken out last year during the soccer matches.

Essentially, “it is the spirit of sportsmanship and love of the games that reigns in the matches above level of skill”, said Koh.