THE RIDGE - October 2010 Issue by The Ridge

THE RIDGE MAGAZINE A NUSSU PUBLICATION OCTOBER 2010 mica (p) 207/11/2009

*THE OCTOBER ISSUE

halloween is here AT NUS do you see it? Look again by the stairs this picture was taken on campus

ENTERTAINMENT TOP TEN HORROR MOVIES TO WATCH! NEWS SAVE’S GREEN SPACE PETITION LIFESTYLE FAUX FUR IS STILL FUR OUTSPOKEN HI! I AM IPHONE, YOU ARE...?

Contents

news

outspoken

lifestyle

06 nus flash

17 Hi! I am iPhone. You are...

23 faux fur is still fur

08 photostory: enraptured by nature’s kiss

18 the integrated programme bandwagon

24 fashion commentary

09 every small step counts

20 lessons from a stranger

12 a second Life for e-learning?

22 the art of appreciation

25 what’s happening in sg? 26 lookbook.nu 27 wardrobe essentials 14 NUSSU council elects 32nd executive committee

28 juice release!

15 nussu annual general meeting

30 halloween COSTUMES

16 save petitions nus to save our green spaces

32 get onboard honouring intellectual property

entertainment

sports

wired

33 bone chillers: THE TEN BEST AND SCARIEST HORROR FILMS

40 chalk up and rock our socks!

47 say hello to the new ipods

42 flying in with flying kicks

50 i can haz funny memes? the internet and its glorious absurdity

36 Book Reviews 37 what’s in my ipod?

43 ifg tennis & FLOORBALL FINALS & IFG finale report

52 Byte sized

38 6th singapore short film festival

Ed editor’s note

Make me go to sleep when September ends. Seriously, the month of September is the hardest one to work in.

We hope that they had a good run while at THE RIDGE and I’d like to reiterate that our door is always open.

While mid-semester exams keep many of us up late in the latter half of the second month, all the hardworking folks at THE RIDGE still had to churn out articles, designs, photographs and everything else that makes a magazine possible.

I’d again like to call out for budding wordsmiths, concept artists, photographers and just about anyone interested in finding out what it’s like working for an actual real-life publication to send us an email and join us!

But it’s not like we were able to juggle both endeavours with the utmost efficiency so do pardon our lateness!

THE RIDGE is truly one of the most impressive organizations within the university (words such as teamwork, leadership, communication, creativity, time management, innovation are truly real here).

But I hope that an October issue with articles such as a top ten list of horror movies (pp 32), IFG sport reports (pp 43), fashion-themed articles (pp 23, 24, 26, 27, 31) and internet memes ((pp 50) amongst many other topics would please our dear readers. And we followed up on our cover story last month with a news report on the NUSSU Executive Committee Elections (pp 14). And I’d like to inform you that while we’re growing every month (with new members joining weekly!) it seems, unfortunately, that some of our team members have left us due to academic commitments.

The next issue will be the last one and there won’t be a December issue (we definitely don’t wish to disturb the exam preparations of our valuable writers, designers, photographers et al). We’ll try to come up with articles that look back on the year that was and try to enliven your mugging hours with a few other articles that make you daydream about that all-too-distant period of time that comprise the December holidays.

But as the seasoned pros that are your seniors can attest, you’ll get used to it over time so fret not a great deal about how you fared!

And do go out on Halloween. It’s the best time of the year as the city truly comes alive with all the colourful costumes, characters and events on display. Happy October! And oh, I like it in THE RIDGE.

If you want us to cover anything in order to better prepare you for your winter sojourn then do drop us an Chief Editor email and let us know! the.ridge@nussu.org.sg

Do look forward to the next issue To all the freshmen, congratulations sometime in the last couple of for crossing the halfway mark! weeks before the reading week. I can still remember my first midsemester break when I jetted off back home and faced my first mid-term tests upon my return. It was a stressful time as the prospect of assessments after months of not having the E-word in my life seemed daunting.

regular surfspots on the web but we sure could use some support and encouragement such that it eventually becomes one!

Errata (September issue): pp 16: Project X was a joint project organised by NUSSU Bizcomm, NUSSU PRU & NUSSU Welfare. pp 13: At the time of writing, there was expected to be a contest for the post of Student Welfare Secretary and not the Assistant Welfare Secretary

With the November issue, the new RIDGE team would have a whole semester of experience under its belt. And we’ll surely be back with a I apologize for the mistakes and any inconvenience caused. bang next semester! In the meanwhile, do visit www.nussutheridge.com and read, comment and critique the various articles that are up on offer there. Admittedly, it isn’t a dynamic portal with daily updates like all your other

publication designer(s) wanted. A publication designer is a person who designs booklets, books, magazines, reports and other publications requiring layout with visual appeal.

you create art with a mouse? feel right at home here. Join Us The team of designers at THE RIDGE work tirelessly month after month to produce great layouts for the NUS population to enjoy in a magazine called THE RIDGE. We are a happy bunch, of course, but we have a hunch that there are more of us out there who would love to put words, images and colour together give the wonderful articles more punch. Do you too create art with a mouse? Feel right at home here with us, at THE RIDGEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Creative Team. Send your best work to theridge.creative@nussu.org.sg

editorial team

the editorial board Chief Editor Suhas Bhat the.ridge@nussu.org.sg Creative Director Kaden Hoe theridge.creative@nussu.org.sg News Desk Editor Meera Nair theridge.news@nussu.org.sg Outspoken Desk Editor Chen Yongquan theridge.outspoken@nussu.org.sg Lifestyle Desk Editor Tamara Kisha Tan theridge.lifestyle@nussu.org.sg Entertainment Desk Editor Saheli Roy Choudhury theridge.entertainment@nussu.org.sg Sports Desk Editor Chow Yongjun theridge.sports@nussu.org.sg Wired Desk Editors Shanmugam MPL & Raymond Lau theridge.wired@nussu.org.sg Secretary Anokhi Vakil theridge.secretary@nussu.org.sg Copy Editor Luke Vijay theridge.copyeditor@nussu.org.sg NUSSU Publications Secretary Tan Heng Wee pubsec@nussu.org.sg

contributors

writers

Luke Vijay

lukevijay@nus.edu.sg

Michelle Chong

michelle_chong@nus.edu.sg

Ng Hui Ying

huiying.ng@nus.edu.sg

Sharon Rozario

sharon.rozario@nus.edu.sg

Sriharsha Bhat

sriharsha@nus.edu.sg

Vinothini Subramanian

vinothini@nus.edu.sg

Goh Ruoyi

gohruoyi@nus.edu.sg

Tirta Santoso

tirtasantoso@nus.edu.sg

Augustin Chiam

augustin@nus.edu.sg

Heng Ming Fong

mingfong@nus.edu.sg

Vincent Lau

bchvlsl@nus.edu.sg

Sabrina Mercy Anthony

sabrina@nus.edu.sg

Vanessa Tan

vanessatpl@nus.edu.sg

Tan Yuh Ting

a0074773@nus.edu.sg

Bridget Tan

bridget_tan@nus.edu.sg

Aditi Anand

aditi.anand@nus.edu.sg

Herng Yih Tan

u0900751 @nus.edu.sg

Jane Antony

janeantony@nus.edu.sg

Nathanael PS

u0900511@nus.edu.sg

He Yining

he.yining@nus.edu.sg

Divya Gundlapalli

divya.divya10@nus.edu.sg

Jocelyn Yeo Yun Ning

a0069497@nus.edu.sg

Retna Devi

a0071116@nus.edu.sg

Charlyn Ang

a0073139@nus.edu.sg

Joseph Chin

a0073391@nus.edu.sg

Felicia Lim

felicia.lim@nus.edu.sg

Edna Chan

a0069512@nus.edu.sg

Prateek Sinha

a0074895@nus.edu.sg

Wired Desk

Lester Hio

a0072480@nus.edu.sg

Chief Designer

Caryn Quek

carynquek@nus.edu.sg

Layout Designers

Eunice Ng

u0702964@nus.edu.sg

Liu Zenan

zenan.liu@nus.edu.sg

Nguyen Son Tra

u0905139@nus.edu.sg

Peng Yifan

u0801540@nus.edu.sg

Abishek Balasubramanian

u0905224@nus.edu.sg

Lee Yvonne

yvonnelee12@nus.edu.sg

Luke Vijay

lukevijay@nus.edu.sg

Matthew Chee

u0908832@nus.edu.sg

Chen Liang

a0072963@nus.edu.sg

Nitya Padmanabhan

a0078559@nus.edu.sg

Dai Jing

a0077827@nus.edu.sg

Aarushi Puri

a0078550@nus.edu.sg

Png Hui Ying Christina

a0071276@nus.edu.sg

Wai Yan Yip

a0078257@nus.edu.sg

Rishika Anchalia

a0078704@nus.edu.sg

News Desk

Outspoken Desk

Lifestyle Desk

Entertainment Desk

Sports Desk

creative team

Photographers

OPERATIONS team

ASK US ABOUT RECRUITMENT AT the.ridge@nussu.org.sg

NEWS

NUSFLASH T-SHIRTS FOR ITUNES U AWARENESS

HAPPY CHINESE CLUB IN NUS

VINOTHINI SUBRAMANIAN

GOH RUOYI

US has become the first university in Southeast Asia to join the iTunesU community that hosts the crème de la crème of educational institutions worldwide. This was promoted on campus by MacNUS (an NUS interest group dedicated to all things Mac) with their self-designed iTunesU T-shirts. These T-shirts were offered free-of-charge to all interested MacNUS members. Their only condition was that these members wear the T-shirt in the week they were requested

to. This was done with the aim of creating awareness on campus about iTunesU. To entice people into wearing the T-shirts, they offered prizes to some who were spotted wearing that T-shirt in the designated week. By joining iTunesU, NUS aims at better outreach to students, faculty, staff and visitors both on and off campus. It will provide visitors with NUS corporate videos, public lectures and speeches by renowned personalities, amongst others.

n an attempt to promote a regular

Mandarin-speaking environment in NUS, a “Happy Chinese Club” has been established this semester. Members of the club gather on a biweekly basis from 7pm to 9pm on Monday nights to interact and converse in Mandarin. To facilitate the learning of Mandarin, the club also has a buddy system that pairs up a beginner’s level learner with a more proficient Mandarin-speaking partner. The club also organises cultural activities for its members. Some activities are the “Dragon-Beard-Making” session that allows students a hands-on

The U on iTunes U Sync. Learn. Reach

PHOTOGRAPH WWW.MACNUS.COM

experience in making the Dragon-

Beard candy and the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration. Students who are taking or who have taken any Chinese modules offered by the Centre for Language Studies are welcome to join the club.

NEWS

NUS SHINES IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION INDEX GOH RUOYI

ith a high score of 71.0, NUS beat NTU and SMU in the recent Customer Satisfaction Index of Singapore 2010, conducted by the SMU’s Institute of Service

strongly that we must provide our students with a rich, distinctive and memorable experience in NUS, and we are heartened by the positive response from our students in this

This 2.0 improvement from last year’s score of 69.0 has made NUS the only local University that showed a positive growth.

At least 250 students were polled from each university and questions included students’ expectations of the overall quality of education given distant past experiences, overall quality of education based on recent experiences, as well as the quality of experience relative to fees paid.

Excellence.

In an interview with The Business Times, the NUS President, Professor Tan Chorh Chuan, said, “We believe

NTU and SMU scored 69.3 and 69.8 respectively, a decrease from last year’s score of 69.5 and 74.7.

survey.”

UTOWN RECTORS ANNOUNCED MEERA NAIR

rofessor Tommy Koh and Professor Wang Gungwu have been appointed as rectors of the Tembusu College and Cinnamon College respectively when UTown opens in July 2011.

Tembusu College is open to all undergraduates while Cinnamon College is the NUS University Scholars’ Programme’s home ground. As rectors of the college, Professor Koh and Professor Wang will be the

non-residential, non-executive heads of the colleges. Each of them will serve a three-

year term and will be involved in managing the programmes, both academic and non-academic, for the colleges. They will also be expected to have a hand in shaping the identity of the colleges.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He is also the special advisor of the Institute of Policy Studies in NUS. Professor Wang is chairman of the

East Asian Institute in NUS and an Emeritus Professor at the Australian National University.

Professor Koh is currently the Ambassador-At-Large with the

PHOTOGRAPH WWW.NUS.EDU.SG

news * photostory

Enraptured by Nature’s Kiss

ro m M on d ay t h r o u g h Frid ay, w e a r e h u st l i n g betw ee n clas s es , d oi n g m u ggin g m ar a th on s and crib b in g ab ou t assig n m e n ts . Eve n t h e weekend s a r e n ot s p a r e d . S o ther e c om es a p o i n t wh ere w e n eed to s to p . S to p an d ta k e a d e e p breath. S top , r elax a n d t ake in th e ab u n d an c e o f life. Look ar ou n d for you r s e l f . We are b le s s e d w ith a n incred ib ly gr e e n cam p u s bu t w e d on ’ t n ot ic e i t . R evelling in n a tu r e’ s bou n ty is n ot in ou r ag en d a.

I wa s p r e t t y mu c h l i ke e v e r y o n e e l s e u n t i l I found m y s e l f o u t d o o r s o n e fi ne we e k e n d m o r n i n g . A t t h a t j u n c t u r e , i t hit me wi t h l i g h t n i n g sp e e d w ha t I h a d b e e n m i s si n g out on a l l a l o n g i n m y u n i ve r sit y life. A s I j o g g e d a l o n g K e nt Ri d g e P a r k , t h e f r e s h, i n v i g o r a t i n g a i r fi l l e d my l u n g s a n d c a r e s se d my f a c e i n a l l i t s s we e t ne ss. A s t r e t c h o f t h e r o a d offe r e d a n i c e p a n o r a m a o f t he h a r b o u r . I c o u l d e v en g e t a wh i f f o f t h e s w e e t s c e n t e d fl o we r s.

The v e ge t a t ion a r ound w a s t hic k a nd in it s most pr ist ine st a t e . The y sa y t he sile nc e of na t ur e is v e r y r e a l a nd t ha t y ou c a n fe e l it e nv e loping y ou in a ll it s goodne ss. I only r e a liz e d t he e sse nc e of t ha t be lie f t ha t da y . The sun a nd r a in don’t be a t ov e r t he c a mpus for t he t r e e s a nd fl ow e r s a lone , but a lso for our pur e v isua l de light . So a s muc h a s y ou might enjoy the a ddic t iv e fe e l of y our pillow s dur ing t he w e e hour s, t r y something else.

author author name + photographer/photographer photographer name/website.com author vinothini subramanian + photograph panoramio.com

Ta ke a c lose fr ie nd for a w a lk, e xplor e t he cam pus a nd ge t imme r se d i n the t r a nquil sile nc e and the e a r ly mor ning glam our. I t ’s she e r poe t r y ; the music of t he a ir and trees .

“The landscape belongs to the person who looks at it.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

News

Every Small Step Counts Over 10,000 ex-offenders are released from prison annually only to enter a new gaol, a prison with invisible bars. They face mistrust, suspicion and discrimination outside and even the best rehabilitation regime is useless if they are rejected at every turn by the community.

“E

v eryone can play a part in helping ex-offenders reintegrate into society.” That was the message Veronica Tang, a final-year double major in geography and communications and new media, intended to convey as she took part in the Yellow Ribbon Prison Run on 5 September. The Yellow Ribbon Prison Run is the flagship fundraiser event for the Yellow Ribbon Project, a community initiative in Singapore aiming to create awareness of the need to give ex-offenders a second chance, generate their acceptance in the community and inspire community action to support their rehabilitation and

reintegration into society.

Yellow Ribbon Project, Tang claimed otherwise, saying that In a show of support for the “many do walk away from the ex-offenders, over 7,600 runners event with a better understanding participated in the Run, with the of the aims of the Yellow Ribbon route taking them through several Project.” historical sites, including the Johore Battery and Old Changi The run raised $110,000 for the Prison Wall. Yellow Ribbon Fund, which is devoted to developing and “Everyone should be given refining rehabilitation and a second chance to start life reintegration programmes for afresh. Reintegrating into society ex-offenders, as well as to sustain certainly isn’t going to be an easy support services for the families road, which makes it even more of the incarcerated. important for us to show our support to the ex-offenders who While the run is Tang’s first sincerely want to change,” said participation in a Yellow ribbon Tang. initiative, she added that she plans “to take part in more of While the run may appear at such activities in the future” and first glance an ineffective tool urged her peers to do so as well. in spreading awareness on the

“A first step could be by participating in Yellow Ribbon Project activities or by simply wearing the yellow ribbon as a show of support for giving exoffenders a second chance,” she said. “Every small part that an individual plays makes a difference when these efforts come together. This is what being part of a community is about.”

author Sriharsha Bhat + photograph Lee Yvonne

news advertorial

or Michael Tan, the thought of working as a lawyer in INCE & CO, an international law firm specialising in maritime law, had never crossed his mind. However, the desire to seek an exciting career motivated this NUS Faculty of Law graduate to move into maritime law. When Tan first shared with his fellow lawyers his desire to leave his specialisation in building and construction to pursue maritime law, they thought that it was a bizarre and risky move that may not pay off. “Some of them linked the maritime industry to nothing but shipyards, Ducktours, and SuperStar Virgo. Others had this perception that maritime law is a niche area within the law industry which is simply too specialised for someone to switch to without difficulty,” said Tan. Holding on to the belief that the practice of law is very much about soft skills and that with time, and that he could pick up the technicalities associated with the maritime industry, Tan was determined to move out of his

comfort zone. This risk paid off and Tan has not looked back since. Speaking to THE RIDGE, he said : “The maritime sector encapsulates just about everything. It’s a diverse sector that will open your eyes and broaden your outlook. Maritime law, practised in a leading firm like Ince & Co, is a dynamic field. It presents a fulfilling career which is intellectually challenging and offers immeasurable job satisfaction.” His first encounter with Singapore Maritime Foundation (SMF) was when he met Mr David Chin, Executive Director of SMF, during a law programme. Inspired by Mr Chin’s passion to raise the profile of the maritime sector among youth, Michael approached SMF to offer his voluntary services to reach out to youth. “I realized that I am passionate about SMF’s cause and wanted to do my bit. It helps that my bosses are also supportive too.”

author tirta santoso + photographer abhishek balasubramaniam

The MaritimeONE scholarship is an initiative spearheaded by SMF and its maritime partners. This year, 21 outstanding students were awarded the MaritimeONE scholarships to pursue maritimerelated courses in Singapore and overseas. Tan, who is an avid volunteer at MaritimeONE career fairs, believes that many young Singaporeans are not fully aware of the modernity and the diverse career opportunities that maritime sector offers to young talents. Often, they associate maritime careers to laborious jobs at dockyards and the scorching sun, he added. Tan explained: “The maritime industry is a key pillar of our economy and contributes seven percent to Singapore’s GDP. Everyone can be in the maritime sector because no matter which specialisation you are in, you are likely to be able to contribute to shipping in some way. Don’t be constrained by others’ perceptions. It’s a huge world out there.” The maritime sector employs 150, 000 people and job

opportunities for young talents are definitely on the rise. For those who are keen to find out more about educational and career opportunities in the maritime sector, visit www. maritimecareers.com.sg.

NEWS *FEATURE

A Second Life for eLearning? T

he departure of Linden Labs’ Singapore office earlier this year has had students speculating that NUS Second Life has come to an end. Indeed, the apparent lack of activity on NUS Second Life, coupled with the absence of aggressive marketing on campus has done nothing to quell such opinions.

office. As a result, NUS Second Life is unaffected by the exit.

Communications and New Media (CNM), is a case in point.

This must come as good news for eLearning week. Past experiences have drawn criticisms from both students and lecturers, most of which revolve around the lack of interaction presented by the traditional webcasts.

Titled ‘Governance and New Media’, the module required students to log onto Second Life to participate in a cybercrime quest during e-learning week. Students will also have to submit a snapshot from Second Life as proof of their participation.

However, according to John Yap, the senior media producer of the FASS Information Technology Unit, NUS Second Life never received support from Linden Labs’ Singapore office.

Second Life, by transporting the real world onto a virtual platform, attempts to preserve the element of interaction that occurs in real life. It is of no surprise then that some departments have already begun harnessing Second Life as an educational tool.

Core support was always tied to Linden Labs’ San Francisco

NM3202, a module from the Department of

Learning languages is also made easier with Second Life. Bahasa Indonesia is one language that has seen success, with Second Life being used to familiarize students with Indonesian culture.

GEK1511, Introduction to Currently, there are attempts to Computing, is another example. do the same for Japanese. As part of the curriculum for this module, students get to create their own avatars and have their tutorial sessions in a virtual classroom in Second Life. During recess week this

Discussions taking place on Second Life

AUTHOR MEERA NAIR & MICHELLE CHONG + PHOTOGRAPH JOHN YAP

semester, an educational maze was created in Second Life to further facilitate learning.

Apart from interactive activities, Second Life can allow for normal lectures as well. Yap cited a fourth-year CNM seminar-style lecture where students’ questions (submitted via chat) were answered by a lecturer using a microphone.

NEWS*FEATURE

There is also the possibility of bringing in lecturers from different universities without actually having to fly them in. In addition, Second Life offers anonymity that encourages shy students to speak up in class. Lin Shuli, a third-year sociology major, acknowledged that through her experience in using Second Life for GEK1511 last year, she found that it allowed “people who are shy to speak their mind through typing and having an alternate persona.” Despite the benefits Second Life offers, a check with students and staff revealed that it would be unlikely that other modules will be taking up this mode of learning anytime in the near future.

Dr Reiko Yamagishi, a lecturer from the Department of Japanese Studies noted that while conducting virtual classes on Second Life allows for considerable interaction that is absent in webcasts, it still does not measure up to actual faceto-face interaction. “The students’ facial expressions and responses are a big part of how I conduct my lessons. I am not able to see their expressions on Second Life,” she said. Unfamiliarity with Second Life also acts as a deterrent for some.

“I am not considering having lectures or tutorials on Second Life this year, simply because I am too unfamiliar with how Second Life works and it Lin pointed out that Second Life would take me too much time may not be that ideal as it was to figure out,” said Professor “a little chaotic because it was Catelijne Coopmans from the like an MSN conversation with Department of Sociology. everyone talking at the same time in the virtual classroom.” “The only factor that could sway me, not this year but perhaps “I had some problems trying to in the future, is if I get a student control my avatar,” she added. assistant who is really familiar

with Second Life and thus able to help me get everything up and running,” she added. This is one of the problems with extending Second Life to more modules, said Yap. Training would be necessary for lecturers and tutors to adequately manage a class in Second Life. Students would also have to be briefed on the proper use of the programme. On the administrative end, classes would have to be scheduled so that they will not clash, especially when modules adopt interactive activities like treasure hunts and mazes. Finally, he added that computers would also have to be upgraded within the faculties for students who wish to participate in Second Life lessons on-campus. NUS Second Life, apart from being a tool for eLearning, is currently the hangout of the NUS RidgeCats, a CCA dedicated to maintaining NUS Second Life.

NM4213, Digital Economies, where students conducted discussions via chat. The lecturer responded using a microphone.

It was also heavily involved in the NUS Open House and is officially listed as one of the components of NUS Campus Life, which is one of the reasons why Second Life comes pre-installed in laptops bought on campus.

NEWS

NUSSU COUNCIL ELECTS ND 32 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE T

he 32nd NUSSU Council met for the first time on Sept 17 to elect six out of the seven constitutional positions of 32nd Executive Committee into power. The elections took place during a landmark 12-hour session held in Lecture Theatre 26 at the Faculty of Science.

addressed the council with a message that highlighted the importance of these focuses. Ang Yu Qian, Cheong’s sole rival for the presidential position, was elected as NUSSU Vice President.

The former SDE Club President Christopher Cheong, former Vice was willing to take up the role. President of the 31st Executive Committee was voted in as “Sometimes in life we don’t get NUSSU President. what we want, but that doesn’t mean we should stop believing in Cheong’s plans for the Union our ideas,” he said. focus on 3 key areas - Union Building, Student Life and Cheong readily accepted Ang as Student Needs. his Vice President. He pointed out that Ang’s background in Before the election, Cheong NUSSU’s constituent clubs would

complement his own strengths. This was not the only instance that evening where committee veterans triumphed over new blood. Tan Heng Wee, the former Deputy Publication Secretary, won the majority of votes over Eugene Tan for the role of Publication Secretary. No other positions were contested. Jia Han was elected as Honorary General Secretary for a second term. Lau Wei Liang was voted in as Honorary Financial Secretary and Ang Kai Li as Student Welfare Secretary. No nominee was voted in as Honorary Assistant Secretary. Ng Yim Chew Klo’e, the candidate for Honorary Assistant Secretary, admitted during her address that she had lost her enthusiasm for the position after it became clear that Ang had lost the presidency. “To be truthful to the council, I do not have the passion anymore, but I give my word that I will do

AUTHOR LUKE VIJAY + PHOTOGRAPH LUKE VIJAY

it to the best of my abilities,” she said. Although some observers believed Ng’s statements were the result of her feeling unwell - she had come to the election despite being down with a fever - the council chose not to elect her into power. Instead, as no other candidates were nominated for the position, the election of Honorary Assistant Secretary will be brought up again at the next NUSSU Council meeting. Aside from this minor hiccup, council members and observers seemed generally pleased with the election, although many were left exhausted by its length. The contest for the presidency was also well received. “More competition generates more ideas. It keeps people on their toes. They can learn from one another,” said the Arts and Social Sciences Club President, Wee Shi Chen.

NEWS

NUSSU ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING T

he first of the month marked the date for the NUSSU Annual General Meeting (AGM) where representatives of the 12 NUSSU Committees (including THE RIDGE), 14 Constituent Clubs, the NUSSU Executive Committee (Exco) and interested observers gathered at LT16 at Business Faculty in order to take stock of the activities that transpired within the past year. Every NUSSU committee had an outgoing chairman who submitted a report and explained to the audience the efforts, achievements, challenges and illustrated the directions that would be undertaken in the upcoming academic year. International Relations Committee headed by Arti Srivatsa (FASS, Year 3) outlined how 10 country groups were created and administered by NUSSU IRC. Moreover, IRC had focused on “integrating the local and international students in the

NUS community while at the same time representing the international students and reporting back to the Union if there are any pertinent needs or issues that need to be looked into”. The Business Committee (Bizcom), Computer-Based Learning Centre (CBLC), Volunteer Action Commitee, Public Relations Unit and many other committees have also written summaries and the reports have been compiled into a 155 page Annual General Meeting Report (AGM Report). Each cell in the NUSSU Executive Committee also had to relate their activities over the past year and they explained the structure and the operational process that they had followed. Jia Han, the Honorary General Secretary, stated that the Secretariat Cell had carried out many projects and she requested for the continuity of those plans in the next academic year.

“The Secretariat Cell had successfully expanded the capacity of the Student Lounge in terms of furniture and had ensured the transition to a new venue at YIH. We hope that student facilities will be further improved by novel ideas, for example, implanting a music system, increasing the number of games available, utilizing the lounge as a venue for the activities of many interest groups, such that student facilities stay relevant and useful.” Jason Feng, the outgoing Honorary Financial Secretary, reported that “the Union is in good financial health.” The Balance Sheet, which is also there as an appendix in the AGM Report, showed that numbers are positive and the finances of the Student Union are strong. Printing and publicity expenses were significantly lower perhaps due to the usage of new media for publicity such as EDMs and Facebook posts that reduced the printing cost for posters and other publicity ventues.

Over the past year, NUSSU has been active in many endeavors. The recess week has been fixed such that it will always occur after Week 6 unlike the past semester when it occurred after Week 5, NUSSU SAVE has brought about double-sided printing which has now become a way of life, the Central Library is open 24-hours during exam time (alongside similar operating hours for McDonald’s & Subway) and for the first time, Rag was held during the night-time and it was also held in conjunction with the arrival of the Youth Olympic flame. A NUSSU Council Fund was also created in order to promote collaboration between faculty (and non-faculty) clubs. The fund is used to promote projects that are organized for the whole NUS population. The Arts-SDE bash is one such prominent example. The 155 page Annual General Meeting Report can be obtained on the NUSSU website. www.nus.edu.sg/nussu

AUTHOR TAN HENG WEE + PHOTOGRAPH LUKE VIJAY

NEWS

SAVE PETITIONS NUS TO SAVE OUR GREEN SPACES F

rom August to September, students would have seen members from NUS SAVE (Students Against Violation of the Earth) handing out paper leaves during lectures for students to sign.

appearing on campus in recent years. While recognizing the need for new facilities, SAVE also feels that the green areas on campus should not be compromised in the name of development.

This was under the tagline of “Green Spaces, Better Places”. The signed leaves were used to petition the school administration to leave 5 green areas undeveloped for the next 20 years.

“Green spaces serve as a point for student activity (e.g. orientation camps, mooncake festival celebrations) and are important for academic research and learning, especially for physical geography and life sciences modules,” said Jasmine Chen, the vice project director of the campaign, on the importance of these spaces.

These green spaces have been identified as the tree-lined areas near the Kent Ridge bus terminal, Lecture Theatre 11 at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, the canteen at the Faculty of Engineering, Lover’s Park at Central Library and the Sports and Recreation Centre. The campaign was triggered by the rash of new buildings

Their efforts resulted in over 7,500 votes being collected. The success of this petition is, however, dubious, with the NUS Office of Environmental Sustainability (OES) commenting that it may not be

entirely feasible. They wish to strike a balance between being environmentally friendly and ensuring that the needs of future students are met. The latter will include the construction of more facilities. The conservation of green areas may hinder the achievement of this balance. As such, the OES espouses other methods like increasing the green cover of NUS, which currently stands at around 30%. The upcoming University Town campus, for instance, has had more trees replanted than the number that was uprooted. However, Chen cautioned against the removal of all the green spaces under this rationale, saying, “We do not want to wait until all the green spaces are cleared before realizing that we

AUTHOR SHARON ROZARIO + PHOTOGRAPHER/PHOTOGRAPHER WWW.NUSFIGHTSCLIMATECHANGE.COM

could have done something to protect them.” “We have a group of wellinformed staff and students who are ready to vocalize their views should these spaces be threatened,” she added. This campaign was launched as a part of SAVE’s annual Green Carnival, a student-centered initiative to increase the level of environmental awareness within the NUS community. It was held this year from August 16 to September 9. Other features of this year’s carnival included the Climate Casino, which raised awareness about the environment using games modeled after actual casino games and a photography competition to highlight scenic green areas on campus.

outspoken

ith the rise of social media, it is hard to imagine life without it. Technology has converged most social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter into compact smartphones and these phones are gaining popularity. Ask yourself if you know of anybody with an iPhone or a Blackberry. Chances are most of your peers already own one or two of these devices.

Smart P h o n e s A British phone retailer, Phones 4U, claimed that more than half of the female respondents of a survey it carried out would be more likely to date a man if he owns an iPhone. According to one respondent, men with iPhones are deemed to be more reliable and well-off. The given reason was that such a man is likely to be more trustworthy because he is good with technology. Furthermore, because he can afford an iPhone, he must also be doing pretty well financially.

affordable for us. In addition to the many considerations involved in a decision on which phone to purchase, there is now one additional consideration. How do you wish to present yourself?

Well, if you decide to seek others’ Today, a wide range of opinions on Facebook, don’t be smartphones available on the surprised when distinct clan market allows owners to adopt discriminations flood your wall. an identity of their choice. Think you are not cool enough? Get an iPhone. Want to appear professional? Get a Blackberry. Want to be different? Get an Android phone.

Most people buy a lifestyle out of these phones. More significantly, the linkage between smartphone usage and identities has allowed for a possibility of “mobile phone clans”. “You have a Blackberry! While controversy surrounds the So do I! We can Blackberry true origin of the survey as well Messenger (BBM)!” “What apps as the validity of its results, the do you have? Me too! High Five!” survey is of interest because it does suggest to us that someone While consumption has long out there is holding such a view. been associated with identity, Whether we agree or not with for example a particular make the aforementioned respondent of automobile is said to tell us on her take on men, what we can much about the driver, the rise of agree on is that mobile phones smartphones has probably more are no longer just serving their implications on the identities of us primary purposes of making calls students since they are much more or sending short messages.

“Hi! I am iPhone. You are?”

author Heng Ming Fong + photograph apple.com mobilewhack.com phonebeez.com

outspoken

The Integrated Programme

Bandwagon

he Integrated Programme (IP) has revolutionised the education scene in Singapore since its inception in 2004 among the top junior colleges such as Raffles Junior College, Hwa Chong Junior College and AngloChinese School (Independent). The differentiated ways in which these schools have conducted their IPs have opened up many choices for the Singaporean student. Of particular interest to the NUS community would be the IP at the NUS High School of Mathematics and Science which is affiliated to NUS. Currently, NUS High School students can study certain modules offered at selected NUS faculties if they meet the minimum academic requirements set out by the

lecturer. This allows them to gain advance credit should they wish to further their studies in NUS or even in other universities, both local and overseas. Students are also prepared for and encouraged to take the Advance Placement (AP) Test and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) which open up opportunities for entry into American universities. Recently, it was announced that seven new schools will be offering IPs, on top of the eleven schools that already do. It is clear that the educational trend is a move away from traditional modes of education. While innovation is generally a good thing, the fear is that too many schools are jumping onto the IP bandwagon without first considering whether

it has actually brought about any Certificate of Education (GCE) improvement to our educational ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels Examination. system. Many of the pioneer graduates of the IP system are still going The main problem is that there through their tertiary education. is not much quantitative or However, all the more, we should qualitative comparative data approach the introduction of new IPs with more caution. available to the public to assess the improvements that the IP is supposed to Ultimately, educational reforms are a tight bring about. For example, the public might be interested to balancing act. We should know whether the results of the neither be overly resistant to change nor should we be in a IP student in major examinations (the ‘A’ levels in particular) are hurry to overhaul the status quo before a serious public significantly higher than the nonreview of the IP is done. IP student. Admittedly, many of the IPs offered are still relatively new when measured against the traditional system of the Singapore-Cambridge General

author Augustin Chiam + photograph hwachong.edu.sg raffles-college.edu.sg sch.edu.sg

nus.edu.sg clipartist.net

you love to shoot. we’d love to have you. JOIN US Good photographs are hard to come by, and THE RIDGE needs good photographs. If you love to take photographs and you’re kinda good at it, why not join us? Our team of 5 photographers are already getting their photographs featured in the most well received publication on campus. There are rumours that we’ll be starting a little advertising agency within the magazine as well. Fancy doing photoshoots? Well, if you love to shoot, we’d love to have you. Send your best photos to theridge.creative@nussu.org.sg

OUTSPOKEN * FEATURE

LESSONS FROM A S I

t was a peculiar morning. For not aware that this was going My son, he’s damn stubborn! He some queer reason, I had to be one of the most enriching is now serving his NS. He went decided to take a cab to school. taxi rides I ever had. into the Officer Cadet School for a few weeks. Came out and told It was the morning rush - “So what are you studying? me, ‘Pa, this is not for me.’ So frustrating for many wishing to Which year? What do you want he went to injure his legs and he hail a cab. I was lucky. A white to do in the future? Teach?” the was out of course. I said, ‘Why cab sat quietly by a corner, man shot me with his endless do you do something like this!’ waiting patiently for someone to list of questions that made me He said, ‘No point. I have no felt like I was at one of those new interest in being an officer.’” hop on. year gatherings where people “Uncle, NUS!” I said as I opened felt obliged to ask something I could not have agreed any about you but they don’t really lesser. I have always believed in the door and got onto the cab. care. letting my passion guide me. “Whoa, NUS! That’s a lot of money huh? Hahaha!” A “Not really. I am undecided. This does not mean that one loud voice and a hearty laugh Well, who knows what’s going has to stop trying new things. to happen to the job market 5 You may have found something greeted me. or 10 years down the road.” worth doing, something that I looked up to see unexpectedly I answered him. In my mind I you are passionate about. But the head of a scrawny man thought, “Man, this guy should if opportunities rise for you to surfacing from his newspaper, a read my August column!” try new things, ask yourself why smile beaming on his face. not? “You are similar to my son!” his As the cab moved off, I was still loud voice boomed. “You know? “You know what my golden rule

AUTHOR CHEN YONGQUAN + PHOTOGRAPH MACWALLPAPERS.EU

is? Never stay in the same job for more than 3 years.” True, I thought. Being in the same job after some time does bore a person out. Yet, I have always believed that for most people, circumstances make men. The inverse that men make their own circumstances is only a privilege of a powerful few. Most of us simply have to adapt to changes as they come along. If being stuck in the same job is so miserable, why aren’t people just quitting their jobs and getting new ones? Well, for many, circumstances do not allow them to do so. I recently met a friend from my junior college days and in his words, “It’s different when you have an additional mouth to feed! Oh

OUTSPOKEN * FEATURE

STRANGER and even more mouths next will want to know more about time.” the world! You want to be able to share and help. Like my kids, At this point, the man’s loud when they have questions, they voice jolted me from my drifting will come and find me! Because thoughts. they know, Pa has the answers.” The man proclaimed proudly. “You want to be able to know a little bit of this industry and a “And remember, never work for little bit of that. I am 59 this year. salary! Never!” Now that I am driving a taxi, I learn more about the public “If you are really good, anywhere transportation system!” that you go, your salary will naturally rise. I used to have Finally! Here’s someone who this intern when I was in this shares my view that to be corporation. She’s so good! I successful in life, one needs to would beg her to stay! I would be a jack of all trades rather than give her a car for transport, a master of one. anything! When you are good, people want you!” “And imagine when you retire and all you know is that same “Even if they pay you peanuts, thing you have been doing for you still give them your 110%! years in one industry. You know, Because when you leave, your when your kids grow up, they name stays behind. People are

going to say how they used to “So!” the man’s loud voice have someone like you and how thundered again. “I hope you learn something huh?” it is their loss that you left.” This struck me deeply. Isn’t it more often that when rewards are fewer, we tend to be less motivated? Aren’t many guilty of blaming human nature that we are self interested individuals and so shouldn’t be faulted for haphazard work if the remunerations are not attractive?

It was then I realised we were pulling to a stop at the Central Library. “This ride’s worth the money right?” he grinned cheekily at me. I had to admit that it was indeed.

PHOTOGRAPH MACWALLPAPERS.EU

outspoken

The L

Art of Appreciation

earning becomes a chore. Queuing for food is worse than starving. Traveling to school is a transit through hell. Your semester module feedback never fails to average up to at best ‘fairly dissatisfactory.’

Appreciating people and things around you seems to get harder. The enormous efficiency and convenience in Singapore have bred a new generation: one that expects instant gratification, to be served-on-demand and takes things for granted. Much discontentment that we have with life is fueled by a lack of perceived value. When the race for material and stature begins, we gradually forget to admire the scenery along the way. The culprit of many complaints made daily is the act of taking things

for granted. When you start thinking that your well-being is your entitlement rather than a privilege, you start to get over yourself. Notice how things are always losing shine and novelty? Appreciation is not intrinsic. It is a fine art; an acquired skill. If you don’t make a conscious effort to do it, you won’t. But for those who incorporate that transforming attitude into his or her gears, it becomes clockwork and has profound uplifting effects. Best of all, appreciation is infectious.

I did not have an innate ability to appreciate. My turning point was National Service. In the military camp, your freedom is gone. Everyone around you had the same uniform and hair. I lost what a teenager would cherish most: liberty and identity, at the how people in an organisation same time. can be motivated to go the extra mile because they can valuate the The process of acclimatisation and importance of their role in the learning to see the fireworks in organisation. everyday routine was grueling. But when I did, even my dilapidated If done right, the art of bunk became a sanctuary. I started appreciation can probably half the to cherish the people around me world’s depression and woes. So and their kind gestures amidst the the next time you get on a crowded hard times. train, be glad that you have a train to get on. When you feel it, you show it. Although we always associate eliciting genuine gratitude with saying ‘thank you,’ showing appreciation goes far beyond lip service or cut-and-paste ancillaries. Being adept at putting yourself in another’s shoes always seems to be the easiest way to appreciate the efforts made to render a service to you. That’s also

author Vincent Lau + photograph susanwaughtal.net

LIFESTYLE * FEATURE

Fau x fur is s till fur A

heavyweight in fashion industry today, French fashion house LV (from the name of founder Louis Vuitton Malletier) undoubtedly has made huge impacts on the lives of modern cosmopolitan citizens. “The strength of Louis Vuitton is its almost magical ability to reinvent itself every season,” says Artistic Director Marc Jacob recently prior to the release of their Fall/Winter 10/11 collection. From one noted fashion designer to another, praise is rare. Marc Jacob’s comment therefore is telling of the uniqueness and classic quality of LV collections. Brands like LV successfully beguiling us into their world of wonders –

Here, I’ll talk specifically about LV handbags and their current advertising campaigns that feature them.

advertisements, the latest one (shown in insert) depicting the model posing with a young lion cub.

This season, as expected, LV didn’t fail to bring something new to the runway. By far one of the boldest collections, the bags feature alligator and waxed calf leather among other designs of flocked and sequined monogram canvas totes. The designs come with an edge that complement the ideal attitude that a successful modern woman exudes today in cosmopolitan society – She’s competitive, in control, independent and thoughtful about her appearance. This image is personified and depicted in LV’s luxury

To me, it is plain that the fashion industry’s penchant for deriving inspiration from wildlife is always in vogue, and seems to be here to stay (at least for now). While virtually all prominent fashion brands in the industry have sworn off using animal skin or parts in their fashion collections, they continue to feature them in collections, in the form of faux material.

Just what is the intention of their campaign ads adorned with exotic animals, skin of alligators and waxed calf leathers?

At the end of the day, fake fur may be faux, but it still purports the image of the real fur that it’s modeled after. With strategic campaign advertisements ‘loaded’ with messages most probably intended for the subconscious, one truly wonders what luxury brands like LV seek to incite in potential consumers. Surely these are issues worth thinking about, perhaps especially for This does not harm animals per those concerned about wildlife se, but how about the subliminal preservation. effects on consumer perception of fur and other animal parts for use in the designing of clothing?

author Tan Yuhting + photograph louisvuitton.com

LIFESTYLE

FASHION COMMENTARY T

he High-waisted Pant, the Hot-short Denim and the varying bermuda (aka berms). These ever popular wardrobe staples are here to stay! Or are they?

Girl in a hot denim short (yeah, you!) and boy in your berms, don’t you just love the comfort these wardrobe staples provide you? And girls who’ve caught the high-waisted pant ‘bug’, I’m

glad you like the trend. The hot these wardrobe staples are getting Singaporean weather is here to increasingly popular, let’s see the stay, and I’m glad that students origins of these outfits. have been sensible enough to keep cool while in school. As

THE HIGH-WAISTED PANT They days of the low-rise and hiphugging jeans are over, making way for the polar opposite: highwaisted pants are in vogue, if you haven’t already noticed. The highwaisted pant is actually a come

back of a trend from another era. Back in World War 2, while their husbands were off to fight in uniform, women took up jobs in factories that were short staffed. Dresses and skirts were inconvenient for facotry work, so the women raided their husbands’ wardrobes and decided to don pants to work. The men’s pant were generally made pretty high-waisted back then, so that

was what the women ended up Despite being “hot off the wearing. runway”, the high waist pant isn’t for every figure. It’s important for Soon, the high-waisted pant you to know whether or not it suits became an attempt to go against you! Get a trusted friend or to tell convention. Women refused to you the truth when you attempt to dress up in dresses and skirts but purchase a pair. Always remember instead, wore high-waisted pants that styles come and go, and if this to make the statement that they trend isn’t quite your cup of tea, could wear other things apart don’t fret, there will be something from the conventional skirt and that will fit you well eventually (if dress. there isn’t already something).

EVOLUTION OF HOT-SHORTS Post-World War 2, after the societal acceptance of women donning pants, women felt free to start wearing Bermuda shorts as well, for more comfort when going about their daily routines.

As such, a shorter version was born as women also found shorter shorts to be more comfortable than Bermuda shorts (I think it’s safe to assume that a clever lady chopped off the length of the Bermuda to result in a shorter pair However, they found that of shorts). In modern society, the the length of Bermuda shorts short shorts evolved into the hot emphasized their knees and calves shorts that we see on girls today. instead of their ‘shapely legs’. Commonly made of denim, hot shorts are comfy, versatile and adaptable, just like the Bermuda. BERMUDA SHORTS Bermuda shorts originated from the British Army. They gave these shorts to the soldiers for wear in tropical and desert climates. During World War 2, in Bermuda (a

AUTHOR VANESSA TAN + PHOTOGRAPH TOPSHOP.COM

British Overseas Territory), shorts that were modelled from shorts of the British military gained popularity and Bermuda shorts actually became the business attire in Bermuda. After the war, the design of the shorts was improved and more colours were

introduced, causing further surge in its popularity. Berms are very casual and versatile. Paired easily with tank tops (for girls) or t-shirts (for the boys), the result is often a ‘relaxed daytime look’.

Lifestyle

What’s happening in sg? SUNDAY

Monday

Tuesday

wednesday

thursday

friday

saturday

Singapore Slingers vs KL Dragons, 4 pm @Singapore Indoor Stadium

Halloween Horrors 2010, @ Night Safari (whole month)

International A Cappella Festival, 8 pm @ Esplanade Recital Studio

Release of The Child’s Eye

teamNUS Nite 2010, 4 pm @ UCC

da:ns Festival 2010 @ Esplanade (8-17 Oct 2010)

Rebellion @ Zirca Kings & Queen (free entry for of Comedy Asia, tertiary students) 7 15 pm @ Singapore Conference Hall

Vicissitudes 2010 by NUS Dance Synergy, 8 pm @ UCC Korean Pop Night Concert, 8 pm @ Singapore Expo

ROKTOBER, 6 30 pm @ Timbre, The Substation

25 Z oukOut ticket

sales begin (starting from 22 Oct)

Vampire Weekend, 7 30 @ Esplanade Concert Hall

Sentosa Spooktacular, 7 pm @ Imbiah, Sentosa

Singapore Sun Festival (29 Oct - 7 Nov)

Let’s Misbehave by Vocaldente, EMCC, 8 pm @ UCC Spectrum: Alternating Current, 7 30 pm, Esplanade Recital Studio

Release of Mettle Games The Social Network 2010 @ Xtreme SkatePark at East Coast Trilogy @ Powerhouse (free entry for tertiary students before 11 pm) 1 week to Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows

Deepavali, Public Holiday

Barclays Singapore Open, Sentosa Golf Club

Zouk Halloween: Fear Factory, 9 pm @ Zouk SCC International Rugby 7s (5-7 Nov), @ The Padang Anime Festival Asia, @ Suntec

Singapore f1 grand prix 2010 (what you missed last month!)

lonso wins again, closing in on Webber with Hamilton, Vettel & Button close behind. Schumi finishes his first night race and I can’t believe the old horse is still out there giving it his best shot. But can Red Bull really beat the likes of Mclaren & Ferrari? With 4 races left, it’s still all to play for. We had a blast with roaring engines, blitzkrieg racing and world-class entetainment being provided both before and after the race. And the Singaporean skyline gets more beautiful each year.

photograph Roro fernandez on flickr.com

lifestyle

LOOKBOOK.NU Aditi brings you looks fresh out of the online pages of LOOKBOOK. at brands like Urban Outfitters, H&M, Zara, etc have caught wind of street style sites and -The Biker look with the gold already take note of the latest buttoned jacket and skinny black trends online.” jeans. So please Ctrl+T while at -Black skirt teamed up with your open browser window chunky light blue neck piece for and navigate away from your permanent Facebook page, type that classy effect. in the URL and see what you stumble-upon at Lookbook.nu!

For Girls

For Guys

-Simple white t- shirt and jeans look accessorized with a black jacket and tied-up shoes.

ondering what shoes to wear with your new vintage dress, what bottom to team up with your sequined top or (insert any other arbitrary fashion conundrum here)? Well, I’ve got fantastic news - You’re saved! Look no further than lookbook.nu the internet’s largest collection of fashion inspiration from Real people around the world. LOOKBOOK.nu is a fashion, youth culture, and community website created by Yuri Lee, San Francisco, 2008.

connectivity!). LOOKBOOK is all about Diversity - they hope to be able to provide the lay citizen fashion inspiration from real people, contrary to the perfectly photoshopped magazine pages from which we usually consume our monthly dose of fashion. Users the world over - from Iceland, Latvia and even in China, are uploading and updating their looks online. We’ve even got local Singaporean contributors up there as well!

Once the pictures are up, the LOOKBOOK fashion community can ‘hype’ a look - The equivalent of a ‘Like’ on Facebook. Looks that are well ‘hyped’ are listed at the top of the ‘Hot’ section and users who are consistently “hyped” gain “karma”, which gets them more exposure on the site’s front pages. Users are now allowed to LOOKBOOK also offers a forum share their latest Looks and where users can post topics and fashion activity, not only on discuss with one another. LOOKBOOK’s website itself, but also in Facebook, Twitter So to start you off, here are few and Tumblr (the wonders of different looks from the site: Like its famous namesake (Facebook), the website is free for use and allows anyone and everyone to join. We’re all lucky that it recently changed its invitation-only scheme to provide an egalitarian open-service to us fashionistas (wannabes also included).

author Aditi Anand + photograph lookbook.nu

-Casual day out look with a plain collared t shirt and crisp black capris. LOOKBOOK isn’t just for the fashion newbie or the clueless at fashion - It’s all about turning the fashion world into “a two-way street”. Founder Yuri Lee says it plainly: “Whether you’re a wouldbe designer or just a teenager who loves fashion, LOOKBOOK. nu provides a way to be seen and promote your vision. By the same token, you can be absolutely positive that the design people

“Put down your glossy fashion mag and stop idolising supermodels. If you think they are your fashion bibles and saints, you are sadly out of touch”

LIFESTYLE

WARDROBE ESSENTIALS THE ESSENTIAL: HAVAIANAS

et’s admit that there is a prevalent slipper culture in Singapore. Culture essentialists claim vehemently that Singapore does not have a culture, so what would you call the mass wearing of slippers that is pervasive

a stone and hit a girl/guy wearing show. It was interesting to see a simple slipper make it to the a pair! runway – after all, isn’t it only the daring, new, avant garde or classic, But I digress. that make it to the runway shows? I’m here to provide you with a bit Surely slippers didn’t fall into any of arbitrary (but true) trivia on of the abovementioned categories!

(local Singaporean speak for the adored footwear) all the time, I, like 99% of my friends and family, all own a coveted pair in the colour(s) of our choice (mine is vivid red). They’re just really, really necessary for tropical

throughout all age groups, islandwide? Some even call it the “citizen sandal”, since everyone from the lay student to the respectable dignitary, wears it.

the famed and much loved slipper Curiosity killed the cat and made (occasionally a sandal, depending everyone try a pair. I think what on the design). happened after that is quite selfexplanatory but for Havies-sake, Havaianas hail from exotic Brazil, I’ll just tell you that: Everyone and the name is proounced loved it and purchased one ah-vai-YAH-nas. It attained immediately (or soon after, at international acclaim after least). designer Jean Paul Gaultier included them in his 2002 fashion While I wouldn’t wear Havies

climates like ours and they’re really convenient to wear as they go with practically any keepcool outfit (I’m sure many of you readers would agree!). So, do give your pair of Havies a wink, the next time you don them on (which will be quite soon, I bet!).

Even in areas of ‘more sophistication’, like down-town Orchard for example, slippers are permissible (or are they?) – Throw

“HAPPINESS IS OWNING (LIBERTY TO YOU TO MENTION ANYTHING YOU DESIRE MATERIALLY HERE) AND A NEW PAIR OF HAVAIANAS” – ANONYMOUS AUTHOR TAMARA KISHA + PHOTOGRAPH THEINSPIRATIONROOM.COM

lifestyle

Juice Release! L

ate night studying, incessant stress and snatching up oily fast food is guaranteed to deprive your body

of nutrients. The Ridge spoke to the owner of The Deck’s juice stall Henry Chua, 52, on what are the juices which can help give our bodies a much needed boost (The Deck is the canteen at FASS!).

author + photograph bridget tan

ABC

Avocado Juice

Apple Yakult

This combination of apple, beetroot and carrot juices is believed to improved one’s digestion. For busy students who frequently eat on-the-go, this would help aid in a smoother digestion process.

Known to be the beauty fruit, avocado is recommended to the beauty conscious. It’s also great for you if you have dry skin, as it carries vitamins that will aid in the natural process of moisturising your skin. Also helps maintain skin in its soft and supple state!

Despite being the newest addition to the juice stall, Apple-Yakult is already a huge hit. The Yakult in the drink also aids in better digestion. In addition, the unique, refreshing flavour acts as a good pick-me-up!

lifestyle

Passion-Orange

Soursop Juice

Kiwi Juice

Passion-Orange can aid in cleansing the body of ‘excess oil’. Great for the fast-food indulgences that we (sometimes) succumb to!

Soursop juice is said to prevent cancer when drunk regularly. Soursop is also rich in Vitamin C (we need a bit everyday!) and fiber (no prizes for guessing why we need this).

Kiwi juice is probably the most beneficial for students as it reduces a person’s stress level. For those with difficulties sleeping, kiwi juice is also the perfect recipe for a good night’s sleep.

lifestyle

Halloween On A Budget! Gone are the days of cutting holes in sheets to be ghosts or holding your breath to keep that tummy from revealing itself in your catsuit. The Ridge provides two unique ways of going for Halloween, in style.

For Him : Prisoner of Technology

With the silver marker, draw the Home button at the bottom. Total cost: S$12.80 Out in town the other day, I overheard this passerby tell her friend on her cellphone: “Boys and their toys ... drives me insane!” While not exactly ‘juicy’, that piece of conversation made me grin. For some Halloween commentary on people’s current self-imposed slavery to iPhone 4, let’s get you boys dressed up in one! To create author + Photograph Tan Zy Bridget

the look, simply get your hands on two black pieces of corrugated plastic boards (or any other black board you prefer), use a silver marker to draw and colour the Apple logo and other details for authenticity, on the sheet intended for behind. On the front, print out your favourite iPhone App icons and paste them onto the ‘screen’. Printing two icons per A4 size would be hihgly recommended.

Using silver crepe paper, form the sides of the ‘phone’. A great way to wear it (that would take the mickey out of your friends) would be to wear it hanging like a walking billboard. Don’t forget to create the chain to complete the social commentary!

lifestyle

For Her : Meet the Meat!

garment, and add an opaque piece underneath to complete the outfit.

“Above is the completed ‘Meat’ dress and the materials you’ll need to recreate the look” Total cost: S$10 What would be more interesting this Halloween than Lady Gaga’s controversial Meat Dress, the animal-friendly way. For this costume, simply put together two of your unwanted garments with colours that closely resemble raw meat.

Following that, simply cut (or shred) wherever on the cloth that you feel brave enough to reveal what you have underneath. The aim is to construct an image of sliced pieces of meat hanging from the dress. Lastly, for that ‘safe touch’, add on a brown tube underneath, and dinner is served.

Create that shiny, ‘wet look’ of meat by choosing one shimmery

Photograph cHARLES M. sCHULZ

lifestyle

Get Onboard Honouring Intellectual Property W

e’ve all done it before; we’re probably still doing it; it is hard to resist the temptation, and truthfully, most of us don’t bother. According to Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee: “If you are honest my rice bowl when they download about it, hand to heart, you will illegally,” she earnestly explained. probably say ‘yes I have bought With her new single “It’s pirated goods before’.” Raining” already on airplay With an optimistic attitude and a debut album coming up towards combating piracy, soon, Sylvia is one of many up the government hopes that a and coming artistes who are dedicated bus service carrying directly challenged by instances counterfeit products will educate of piracy. This is especially true Singaporeans on intellectual for Singaporean artistes like her property rights as it makes it way who are starting out in a smaller market, in contrast to other artists around our sunny island. overseas. Onboard the bus, one will learn to distinguish counterfeit Microsoft The reality that piracy is stealing software, Bandai toys and Adidas is something we unconsciously apparel from the originals. The acknowledge in the recesses of our bus will also feature a specially minds. To be honest, I’m sure that designed iPad game and Xbox you’d agree that most of us don’t kiosk to educate consumers believe we’ll ever get caught. against gaming software piracy. But then Singapore’s Copyright It was stressed that the livelihoods Act allows copyright owners to of content creators, like Sylvia sue those who download pirated Ratonel (Singapore Idol 2010 materials. The law also states runner-up who sang at the that those who download large launch), depended on protection quantities of pirated materials also face criminal sanctions of a fine of their intellectual property. and jail term. Sylvia shared that to her, the bus is definitely “a step in the Perhaps therein lies the dilemma, right direction” when it comes as with no specification on how to curbing the infringement of intellectual property rights. “I compose my own songs and people should know they are taking away much is considered “large”, people author + PHOTOGRAPH Sabrina Mercy Anthony

tend to reason that “I’m not downloading that much anyway.” This law has also never been enforced consistently. The only reported case of police action so far was back in October 2006, when authorities raided the homes of 7 home users for allegedly downloading pirated music. None of them were charged.

“I compose my own songs and people should know they are taking away my rice bowl when they download illegally.” It is not difficult to understand why such laws are in place. However, I do believe that tracking and enforcing the law for each and every download of pirated materials is a virtually impossible undertaking. Even though home-grown artiste Sylvia would prefer to “have a law to fine people who download illegally,

even if it is just one song”, in order to instill a “fear to download,” I opine that such enforcement of the law in the near future, is quite slim. The bus is targeted to reach out to the more tech-savvy young adults in the high broadbandpenetration environment in Singapore. Ultra-fast downloads will soon be possible as Singapore looks forward to rolling out the new Next Generation National Broadband Network. This new high-speed broadband network would increase the threat of peerto-peer file sharing of pirated content. All in all, I think the main factor that would tip the decision of a consumer and undermine ongoing educational efforts, would be the relatively high prices of original consumer content. The lure of cheap pirated versions in Singapore’s wired environment might perhaps still be too tempting!

Entertainment *FEATURE

Bone Chillers With Halloween just round the corner, let us spice up your evening by suggesting the ten best and scariest horror films you should watch. A combination of the grotesque, psychological thrills and brilliant cinematography will leave you, wanting to sleep with the lights on.

1) The Exorcist (1973)

2) The Amityville Horror (1979)

3) The Shining (1980)

4) The Omen (1976)

A mother enlists the help of an exorcist after her daughter begins behave unnaturally. While the plot may seem appear predictable to some, the film’s execution and direction was sheer brilliance, with the perfect mix of horror, suspense and the grotesque. Even the slightest creak in the background will make you jump. The Exorcist will always be one of the, if not the best, horror movies to have graced the screen.

A movie about a house with a dark past, one that haunts a newlywed couple who have just moved in. Eager to build the future they have envisioned with their children, they are soon terrorized by the evil spirit that resides within the house. Despite the help of a priest and the police, the family remains vulnerable to the spirit’s malevolent designs. Even with its flaws the movie is able to effectively scare anyone watching it.

Combine an isolated hotel, an evil spirit, a psychic boy and Jack Nicholson and you are bound to get one of the scariest movies ever. Nicholson plays a father who is driven to insanity by ghosts and is instructed to ‘correct’ his family. The only thing that can save them is ‘The Shining’, a force seen by his psychic son. This movie is a brilliant cinematic masterpiece that uses subtle suggestions to turn your imagination against you.

A prominent politician adopts a young boy, who appears to be the epitome of innocence, after his wife gives birth to a stillborn. Soon abnormal events began to take place in their household. The boy, who is discovered to be the Antichrist, has the ability to will people to do things, including killing themselves. The stellar acting sets this movie miles apart from its 2006 remake.

authors Retna devi, Saheli roy choudhury + Photograph flickr.com, impawards.com, dirtysprocket.com, mikeandmandy.us

Entertainment *FEATURE

5) The Sixth Sense (1999) A child psychologist aids a young boy to cope with his gift; that is the boy is able to communicate with dead people. The beauty of this movie is the simplicity of the plot and how our basic, everyday fears are tapped to convey unimaginable terror. A timeless classic with a twist that promises to leave you stunned.

6) REC (2007) – In Spanish Reporter Angela Vidal and her cameraman, in search of a good story, follows a group of fire-fighters as they answer one of their late night calls. In a dilapidated apartment building, Angela gets more than she bargained for. You’re in for a ride of a lifetime. This was filmed like a documentary, Blair Witch style, and Hollywood embarked to make its own version called Quarantine. Stick with the original, trust us! (And if you’re craving for more, check out REC2).

7) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) A group of five teenagers on a road trip to visit their grandfather’s grave decide to stop over at a shabby-looking house for the night. What they do not expect is to encounter a family of cannibals. Despite the lack of gore, the movie manages to evoke terror whenever the leather-masked maniac and his freakish family appear. Filled with scenes that are raw and even mesmerizing, this is a must-watch. photograph creep at deviantart.com, maniadb.com

Entertainment *FEATURE

8) The Blair Witch Project(2004)

9) A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

10) Dawn of the Dead (1978)

One of the first horror movies to be styled as a documentary, Blair Witch Project is about a group of film students who disappear while attempting to make a movie about an urban legend called the Blair Witch. A year later, the footage they shot is discovered and revealed to the masses. A stark film that is based on emotions and that is very different from the conventional movies of that genre.

Child murderer Freddy Krueger reaches out from his grave and enters the dreams of children to exact revenge on the people who murdered him. The children have to fight for their lives or never wake up. While it does not go over the top and disgust viewers, there are several shockingly violent scenes that are not for the faint hearted.

If they handed out an Oscar for the best Zombie film ever made, this will win hands down. It was initially banned in 17 countries. With George Romero, the godfather of the Zombie genre, at the helm of the project, things can go very very very wrong for our human survivors, and they do.

After you are done watching the movies featured on this list, we only request that you do not sue us for your electricity bil ! happy halloween!

entertainment

book reviews Title: Beauty Author: James Kirwan

Title: the lovely bones Author: alice sebold

Title: housekeeping Author: marilynne robinson

s beauty inherently objective or subjective? James Kirwan, through his book on Beauty attempts to answer this fundamental question and more. Through nine different essays which touch on different aspects of Aesthetics and beauty, he goes through the various dilemmas often faced by philosophers on beauty. Since the book is structured accordingly to the nice essays, each addressing a different yet related topic, it is easy for the reader to pick up and read a specified portion without losing track on the main thrust of his work. I personally felt that the most well written essay was on the topic of ‘Impenetrable beauty’. Kirwan set the tone right for the rest of the book by carving out a interesting and gripping summary of the many fundamental problems facing aesthetic scholars in our generation and at the same time bringing the reader a concise introduction to the topic. All in all this is a superbly wellwritten book. If you are looking for a simple to read and easy to understand book that will still tickle your grey matter this is a good book to pick up. It is also recommended for people looking for a good introductory book on aesthetics and the various philosophical dilemmas surrounding the topic.

he Lovely Bones By Alice Sebold is the story of a teenage girl – Susie Salmon, who after being raped and murdered speaks of the events that surround her death. Sebold elegantly portrays Susie’s emotions as she watches her murderer and observes the people who love her try and get on with their lives. The first half of the book is part mystery and part ghost story and has an unsettling, silent beauty about it. Susie’s father who suspects the murderer’s identity goes mad with grief at his inability to avenge the death of his daughter. Her mother suffers from clinical depression and has an affair to drown the emotional turmoil. The book resembles depicts familial love and how it endures and changes over time. Being a ‘’watcher’’ gives Susie the comfort of staying in touch with her family, but at the same time it makes her yearn for her former life on earth. She is able to live vicariously through her sister, Lindsey – experiencing falling in love with a boy, having sex for the first time and making plans for marriage -- but she is also reminded constantly of her existence in a perpetual limbo, hovering between the world of the living and the dead.

or Ruth, the protagonist of the modern classic Housekeeping, loss and loneliness have become an essential part of who she is. Set in the tiny town of Fingerbone, Ruth and her sister Lucille are left with their grandmother Sylvia after their mother drove off a cliff. Winner of the PEN/Hemingway Award, Housekeeping distills the frailty of human relationships in the haunting and poetic story of three generations of women. The title of the novel Housekeeping alludes to the stereotypical role of women in keeping house. With no strong male presence in the narrative, this book illuminates the lives of self-reliant women living on the margins of society. By subverting the notion of a domestic female

role, it injects a female presence into American canonical literature that celebrates the male exploration of the wild and transcendental search for spiritual freedom. Robinson, although avant-garde, has the lyricism of Keats and stylistic economy of Fitzgerald. She seems able to recreate experiences of impermanence and desire. “To crave and to have are as like as a thing and its shadow,” Robinson illustrates, “For when does a berry break upon the tongue as sweetly as when one longs to taste it, and when is the taste refracted into so many hues and savors of ripeness and earth, and when do our senses know any thing so utterly as when we lack it?”

From L to R: Beauty, Housekeeping, The Lovely Bones, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

The book, in short, produces one those moments of intangible ache that makes it a pleasure to read.

authors nathanael ps, he yining, retna devi, jane anthony + photograph various sources on the net

entertainment

Title: the particular sadness of lemon cake Author: aimee bender

ow can a lemon cake be sad? That was the first thought that popped into my head when I saw the title of this book but for Rose Edelstein, that is exactly what it is. She discovers, at a young age, that she has the ability to taste people’s emotions in the food they make. Due to her gift she becomes more aware of her surroundings. This coming-of-age novel is unique because Aimee Bender uses food, an everyday concept in our lives, to weave an imaginative tale of a girl coming to terms with her emotionally crippled family. Bender juxtaposes Rose’s dysfunctional family with that of her friend, Eliza’s; a perfectly ordinary and happy family, as a reminder to Rose about how chaotic her life is.

Club Can’t Handle Me Flo Rida feat. David Guetta [Step Up 3 OST] Take It OfF Ke$ha Just a Dream Nelly

Misery Maroon 5

Our Kind of Love Lady Antebellum

Deuces Chris Brown feat. Tyga & Kevin McCall

Another Way to Die Disturbed

If I Had You Adam Lambert Hey, Soul Sister Train Letting Go (Dutty Love) Sean Kingston feat. Nicki Minaj Half Of My Heart John Mayer

The Catalyst Linkin Park Nightmare Avenged Sevenfold There Goes My Baby Usher The Boys of Fall Kenney Chesney

d? o p i y m n i s ’ t a h w “Flo Rida...too hot to handle!”

Despite the fantasy elements in the novel, it cannot be considered a fairy tale because the plot is rooted to reality. Through Bender’s careful construction, the reader realises that the gifts bestowed on the characters are a reflection of their personalities and is a metaphor for how emotionally intuitive and angstridden people deal with the dilemmas of everyday life. It is this stark realism that makes this book one of a kind.

photograph prplmnt.com

entertainment

6th Singapo film fes

International shorts globe impressed at the Film Fes Young Love This segment was a collection of films exploring the joys of love and the gut wrenching pain of heartbreak. Young Love featured six short films, starting with a locally produced one titled Zombies Saved My Cold Dead Heart.

he Singapore Short Film Festival is an annual event organised by The Substation’s film component Moving Images. Running into its sixth year, this event aims to annually promote the short film format as well as provide local filmmakers an avenue to develop their talents and expose themselves to the international and Southeast Asian short film scene. The festival offers a line up of short films, or shorts as they are called, no longer than thirty minutes, covering a wide span of genres, themes, ideas, from both local and international directors. This year there were some very impressive line ups, with nearly 100 titles from as many as

seventeen different categories, including animations and documentaries. Entries were submitted from all over the world, including Belgium, Czech Republic, Ireland, Germany and Thailand, to name a few.

The story follows a simple, linear plot where boy meets girl, get attracted to one another and they resist their feelings with logic but eventually succumb.

In fact, as clichéd as it sounds, it’s probably what the producers and scriptwriters were aiming for (to which they admitted during the short interview afterwards) – with Three of us, from THE RIDGE, a whole medley of overused lines had the privilege to attend the and scenes handpicked from a 6th Singapore Short Film Festival selection of Rom-coms, thrown this September. It was hard to into a mixing bowl and whipped pick from the delectable list of into a fluffy mash. offerings, spread over a week from 28 August to 5 September. The following films were much more abstract; a young couple For some of the segments, the that made a pact to go to the filmmakers were personally there moon together, the awkward first to interact with the audience after step one takes before diving into the screening. commitment, the emptiness a lover can leave you with in his/ her wake.

author divya Gundlapalli, charlyn Ang, saheli roy choudhury+ photograph the substation, mwave.iq, alivenotdeadmail.com

ENTERTAINMENT

upon his arrival in Russia.

PORE SHORT ESTIVAL

RTS FROM ACROSS THE HE 6TH SINGAPORE SHORT FESTIVAL

The film portrayed a very realistic view of an immigrant labourer’s life which paralleled the issues faced by foreign workers in Singapore. Unfortunately, this film lacked the suspense needed for one to really grasp the existence of Bingo’s shady life. Phone Booth by Berivan Binessva delved into the curiosity and loneliness of Mémo, a Kurdish immigrant that led him to listen in on the conversations of the attractive Leila. The idea of how one acts to impress but may never get to revel his feelings due to the realities of life really struck a chord with the audience. The humour and simplicity of the film was captivating.

tributes and social documentaries surrounding the lives of the ordinary and extraordinary, French Shorts did not fail to impress.

7.57 am-pm was a fantastic tribute to Joshua Bell who played The final film Phuket by Aditya one of the greatest classical Assarat, told the story of a famous masterpieces in 2007, in a Korean actress Jin, who gets Washington subway and despite swarmed with her fans while she gaining a large audience, he is on vacation in Phuket. received only a few dollars for his musical efforts. She finds a companion in her driver and as they reminisce His French counterpart Renaud FOREIGN LANDS about the “Old” Phuket , their Capuçon, in this film, emulated conversations liven up her holiday this feat by playing Gluck’s La Foreign Lands featured a host and bring her peace. Mélodie d’Orphée on Line 6 of of films that looked at both the Paris metro. Like Bell, his exciting and terrifying prospect of The film was an apt portrayal of final haul was only a few euros. migrating to another country. celebrity life but lacked depth. At But two days later, he performed times, it felt too long to be a short at a sold-out concert at the The 74 minute long showcased film, what an irony! prestigious Theatre des Champsdifferent themes ranging from an Elysées. immigrant’s life, loves and even the simple pleasures in life. What FRENCH SHORTS Like 7.57 am-pm, there were the line up lacked in numbers other shorts that paid tribute – (only 3 shorts), it made up in Supported by the French Allons-y! Alonzo! (Let’s Go! quality of the films. Embassy and Unifrance, Alonzo!) was an animation, French Shorts featured awardwhich was a tribute to French Bingo was a film from the winning French short films and actor Jean-Paul Belmondo. Netherlands by Director Timur animations, straight from the Ismailov. The crux of this film festival circuits in 2009 and 2010. And Le Petit Dragon (The rested on tracing the tumultuous Little Dragon) was a homage to life of Bingo, an illegal immigrant A variety of exposés, animations, Bruce Lee.

The other films on the line up explored the socially marginalised, the misfits and their exploration of life.

S-EXPRESS Apart from the regular offerings, the festival also had another segment dedicated to Asian talents from the region called S-Express. This year they had line ups from Thailand, The Phillippines, Malaysia, China and Indonesia. The S-Express Singapore featured new works from Singaporean directors, stretching the boundaries of imagination and creativity. All in all, the 6th Singapore Short Films Festival had something for everyone, no matter how varied one’s tastes might be. If you missed it this year, keep on the lookout for the 7th Singapore Short Films Festival next year in September. Visit our website for to see our interview with The Substation! PHOTOGRAPH CINEMA.UOL.COM.BR

sports

CHALK UP AND ROCK OUR SOCKS!

In the following issues to come, THE RIDGE will feature a-sport-a-month! This month, we scale to the top with an interview with Judith, ViceCaptain of NUS CLIMB.

Tell us more about yourself and the sport. I am from the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, a 3rd year Psychology major. I have been climbing for two and a half years, ever since my university life started. I have also been playing netball for eight years and am part of the NUS IVP team. I came into contact with rock climbing through sports camp and my friends. Bouldering in Singapore is divided into level categories on promotional basis. You start from novice levels and progress to intermediate and open categories. Climbers are promoted based on achievements in recognized competitions. I am currently competing at the open level for women. The current ranking system for bouldering in Singapore is the National Bouldering League. Many of our NUS women are highly ranked in the national standings, smashing the stereotype of climbing being a masculine sport!

(The writer viewed the standings at http://sgclimb.com/ nbl/?p=1558 and found that Judith is ranked 7th! Well done!)

author chow yong jun + photograph Abhishek Balasubramaniam

SPORTS

HOW CAN A STUDENT TAKE PART IN THIS SPORT? NUS CLIMB organizes Level 1 courses and the gym is open on Tuesdays and Fridays from 6pm onwards for the club members. We also organize overseas trips for members to experience natural rock climbing. NUS CLIMB works on a free-to-climb basis; as long as you are in the club, you are allowed to use the gym at the allocated timings. To find out more about joining this awesome sport, contact the President of the club, Desmond Ng at boxme_cuba@hotmail.com. There are many other climbing gyms in Singapore, such as at SAFRA Yishun and PA Water Venture at Pasir Ris. One popular climbing gym we frequent is Climb Asia at Farrer Park. They offer climbing courses at higher levels too.

WHAT ARE SOME COMPETITIONS THE TEAM PARTICIPATES IN? WHAT ABOUT EVENTS THAT THE TEAM ORGANIZES? Boulderactive is the annual bouldering competition that NUS organizes. It is a public event that started way back in 1997. It usually takes place in March. This year, we also organized ClimbNUS at the Central Forum. There are about three to five major competitions that make up the “climbing season” for the team. Gravical – organized by SMU, Pumpfest – organized by NTU and Rockmaster – organized by Singapore Polytechnic. It is similar to running. Throughout the year, there are smaller competitions every now and then, which are all

good exposure and experience for the climbers.

HOW OFTEN DOES THE TEAM TRAIN? We train thrice a week. Twice during the weekdays and once during the weekend. In NUS, we focus mainly on bouldering and less on lead climbing or the use of the high walls, i.e. rope and harness. This is due to the space constraint and the number of members we have to accommodate to. The team currently has 40 IVP members.

WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS ON THE CULTURE OF THE SPORT IN SINGAPORE? Climbing is an up and coming sport. There are more people, across the different ages, getting their hands chalked up and scaling the walls. Looking at ClimbNUS, more people are definitely interested in the sport! This is one of the reasons why we held this event. It is about passionate people inspiring passion. Climbing is a passion-driven sport. Once you pick it up, you will never stop! There is always something different to try out, a new route to finish, new rocks to hold onto and endless possibilities. Plus, the climbing community is always encouraging and you can see how passion carries them further. Although climbing is not as popular as soccer, opportunities

are abound. The community is growing and we have strong young climbers representing our nation in international and regional competitions. I do hope some NUS climbers will represent Singapore in the coming SEA GAMES 2011!

ANY INTERESTING EXPERIENCE IN THE SPORT? BEST EXPERIENCE OR OVERSEAS CLIMB?

FUN FACTS

The most interesting thing for NUS climbers is when we go overseas to climb. We have traveled to Malaysia, Thailand, India, China and New Zealand to get our hands on the various rocks and really “play” to our hearts content. These trips are usually free and easy; we do whatever we want, when we want. No studying! It is all just eat, sleep and climb! After our trips, we always have sharing sessions and get everyone psyched up about climbing again.

ONE/ THIS IS FOR THE GUYS WHO FAIL THEIR IPPT: THE GIRLS CAN DO AS MANY CHIN-UPS AS AN AVERAGE GUY. WE HAVE GIRLS DOING 17!

Rock climbing here in Singapore is mainly bouldering or highwall climbing. Our urban concrete jungle hardly offers any natural rocks. Of the 2, bouldering is usually more exciting to watch, with walls as high as 5m with no ropes or harness. Watching climbers scale the wall structures, making your palm sweat. Every move, every awesome fall, every finish, is really just captivating. Catch the finals for open men/women during one of the bouldering competitions and you can see for yourself!

THREE/ CLIMBERS HAVE FOREARMS AS BIG AS THEIR BICEPS!

TWO/ CLIMBING IS A SPORT THAT DEMANDS EQUAL AMOUNTS OF PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND TECHNICAL PROWESS

PHOTOGRAPH ABHISHEK BALASUBRAMANIAM

sports

Flying In with Flying Kicks 7

th September. Jalan Besar Stadium. Approximately 2130hrs. There was about a minute left on the clock. Beijing Guoan and the Young Lions were battling it out with the scores leveled at 1 – 1.

Literally. With the Young Lions scoring a late equalizer in the 88th minute, Beijing Guoan players’ frustrations boiled over. Tempers frayed and tackles flew in from everywhere. A late vicious challenge ignited the fight, resulting in the match being abandoned. Players flew in with flying kicks. The substitute benches, the technical staff and even the coaches from both sides got involved. Some contributed kicks and punches; some got injured in the process. While it took only three minutes for the referees and the officials to control the situation, players were already injured and fell to the ground. After all, it only takes seconds for someone to stick his studs in your face. Two Young Lions had to be sent to the hospital immediately. The violence in sports is never to be condoned. Soccer has always prided itself on being named the “Beautiful Game”. Honestly, when boots are in your face, you do not really have the luxury of time or consciousness to admire the design of your opponents’ footwear. Keep those feet on the ground and remember that these

author chow yong jun

boots were made for kicking the football, not any other balls. It is good news to know that the Football Association of Singapore would carry out investigations and mete out the necessary punishments to eradicate such behaviors in the sport. This is extremely critical if we want to improve the standards of local football. We want foreign talent for the betterment of the sport. The league currently only hosts 12 teams, any form of healthy competition from foreigners would definitely aid in improving the standards of the league, the teams and the players. I wish to highlight that this incident has marred and masked the passion of the players involved. The desire to win and the hunger for victory are the reasons these players give 100% in every league game, down to the last minute. As long as the final whistle is not blown, every kick of the ball is a chance to split the defence for a goal. Before we go about bashing the players for this single incident, I set out to remind everyone that it is this innate desire in the players that sets the foundation for success. Indeed, this energy has to be controlled and directed, just like a free kick, into the top corner of the goal.

sports

IFG Tennis Finals A

fter several grueling contests over 10 days, The Inter-Faculty Games Tennis Tournament finally had two worthy teams for the summit clash – Arts and Medicine.

The matches began with the ladies’ singles and the two men’s singles simultaneously. I got a little confused as to which match I should follow causing me to move about like a ping pong ball for some time before I decided Both groups had done well; solid to stick with the “centre” court. and consistent performances from Josh Tan from Arts and Ryan their players were the key to their Teo from Medicine were the contenders. The match started successful journey to the finals. with both players in good form trying out each other before an The night of 11th September 2010 was the date and the Tennis imminent all out attack. Ryan was clearly the aggressor but he courts from 9-11 were the venue overdid it. The fifth game saw for the battle royale. I had the him being broken due to loose chance to go down there early shots and unforced errors. The left to get a glimpse of the players handed Josh saw his opening and warming up and must say that I quickly started reeling in games. was considerably impressed with the stroke play of the players from He had clearly decided his game plan was simply going to be to put both teams. balls back in play and let Ryan commit errors to which Ryan The atmosphere was obliged, maybe not gratefully. ripe with excitement tinged with a dash of Clearly Ryan’s strongest shot, his nervousness but who forehand was letting him down and once double faults crept into could blame them, his game, Josh knew he had the for they were just one match away from match in the bag. Ryan won a consolation game but it was too making all their late as Josh wrapped up the match hard work come to 9-3. In the other men’s singles fruition. match, I caught glimpses of

author Prateek Sinha + photograph Prateek Sinha

winners hit by Ben Lim of Arts who comfortably beat Medicine’s Evan Teo 9-2. The ladies’ singles was a match, which hinged more on a player’s consistency rather than brilliance (I am not saying that the players were not brilliant). Jacy from Arts and Hoe Yingmin from medicine were hitting balls to and fro resulting in extremely long rallies which both were determined not to lose. The climax of the match was a little more interesting as the girls got into a debate regarding the score in the last game. There was a reluctant shake of hands but the debate still continued. The victorious Hoe Yingmin had to convince Jacy that the score was correct. Medicine won the debate and hence the match. The second round of games consisted of the Mixed Doubles and the Men’s Doubles. With Arts leading 2-1 overall, I thought Arts would be the champions having seen some

monstrous hitting from the men’s doubles team of Hee Jhee and Chua Kiat Tat during the warmup. But I made the mistake most people make when predicting the outcome of a sports event (luckily no betting was involved), team Medicine of Keith Liang and Jeremny Goh overcame a deficit of 0-3 to win their match thanks to their resilience and superb shots. In the Mixed doubles, Cliff Ng and Lissa from Arts were overpowered by some consistent hitting from Liow Yiying and Judith Ong representing Medicine. Medicine completed a stunning turn around to win the tie 3-2 and be crowned worthy champions of the IFG Tennis Tournament. Congratulations to Team Medicine.

sports

Clinical Approach Wins The Day – Science and Med wins IFG Floorball I

t was honours even for neighbours Science and Medicine as they shared the spoils for the floorball competition in this year’s InterFaculty Games (IFG), held at the MPSH on the 18th of September. It was truly a test of nerves and stamina as they were stretched to the limit for the morning.

the opening strike. Such was the strength in depth of the medicine girls, that their constantly rotated players were tightly man-marking their opponents and stamping their mark into the game in the process. It was unsurprising when the girls in maroon then doubled their lead, this time with a close range finish that upended the Arts defence. Having took the Medicine convincingly took home lead inside 6 minutes, the game the girls title against Arts, giving then settled into a lull as Arts’ rare forays into goal were easily them a lesson on attacking play. neutralised by the Medicine From the onset the medicine team. girls took little time to get about business, scoring a goal just two minutes into the match when It was evident that Arts were an instinctive flick from the left completely outplayed when flank on the edge of the final they contrived to flick a penalty third sailed into the Arts goal for flick high above the bar when

author Joseph Chin + photograph lee Yvonne

presented with a golden chance by a rare Medicine foul, and then concede a goal from the resultant counterattack when Medicine showed their predatory instincts to pounce on a loose ball from close range. Their desperation told as they were firing speculatively from long range, and missed from quite a long way out. Medicine controlled the match with the lions’ share of possession, but ended up shy in front of goal when presented with at least two opportunities to further enhance their scoreline. Even then, their defence were rarely tested save for a goal bound shot late on by Arts that required a last ditch clearance. When they were caught napping,

though, it was Arts who scored a consolation goal from the attacking third to make the scoreline more respectable. Unfortunately, the Medicine team were denied a clean sweep by their Science neighbours, falling 3-1 in the Men’s event. A fast and furious first half saw both teams exchanging blows in a highly physical competition. With both matching each other in terms of wit and work rate, it was Science who drew first blood in the 5th minute when a Finnish exchange student exemplified his homeland’s floorball heritage to cap off a solo run by blasting the ball home to give Science the lead. It was then left to his

sports

team mates to keep things tidy at the back even as they were being roughed up by the Medicine team that led to a few instances of players crashing onto the protective hoardings. Perhaps mindful of how Medicine managed to beat the Engineering team in the semifinals even when trailing from the first half, the Science team were put on the defensive and were nearly beaten on the opening exchanges, before their Finnish import further compounded Medicine’s misery with an accurate flick from the right flank to the top corner of goal when allowed a clear run in a counterattack. Asserting themselves thereafter, Science scored another goal when they exploited a through ball to beat the Medicine

defence with a one-touch shot. By then they were comfortably protecting the lead that lasted till the end, except late on in the game when a speculative shot for Medicine cannoned off the near post to give Science the jitters. In the third place battles, the girls match between the USP and the Science female teams saw Felicia (incidentally my hall mate) breaching the tight Science defence to emphatically whack the ball home for USP with 50 seconds left in the 10 minute half. The Science girls then clinically finished off a quick attack to equalise from close range at the start of an exciting second half which also saw USP wrestle back the lead, scoring from long range soon after the Science goal. Eventually the Science girls won

3-2 with two late goals: a long well against range flick that eluded the USP challenging defence into the bottom right opponents’, and corner, and a close range shot that stated that he and cracked the USP defence. As for his fellow medical the mens match, a goal in each students were half saw Engineering garner a ‘very proud of hard fought win over Arts. A long them’. range goal from half court was complemented by a sumptuously Added Benson Siow, a first year taken set piece from the left in Pharmacy student that was part the second half. of the victorious Science team ‘both teams played very well’, Speaking after the and even though both teams were culpable of violent play during the match, Benjamin Tan, vice-president match, all turned out well.

of the NUS Medical Society explained that his side’s relative success was a result of them ‘showing a good team spirit and doing

author Joseph Chin + photograph lee Yvonne

sports

IFG Finale Report A

fter several weeks of highly competitive games, with valuable friendship formed between diverged faculties, glories and achievements attained, we have once again come to the annual Inter-Faculty Games (IFG) finale which was held on 18 September 2010 and I was honoured to be there to witness my first IFG finale. Everyone was beaming with smiles, anticipating the results.

I cannot seem to erase this special memorable scene in my mind. It has to do with the Arts Facultyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enthusiasm. Upon announcing the results for various games, any mention

of the Arts Faculty, the whole group would start firing their party poppers! At first when they pulled the triggers of the party poppers, it shocked the rest of the audiences! I have to give credit to them because throughout the whole prize presentation, it was the Arts Faculty supporters who indeed presented their most dynamic spirit with their continuous cheering for their faculty members who went up to receive their prizes. Being really proud to be an Arts student myself, I have to really compliment them for their verve. Right before the prize presentation, a video clip was shown to the audiences and it consisted of many different snapshots of the people who participated in the wide array

of activities. The video clip also further emphasized about the importance and significance of sportsmanship and forming of friendships. It was definitely heart-warming to see the efforts placed by each and every one who participated in the IFG despite the tears or the laughter throughout this whole journey.

an overall of 68 points. Falling shortly behind was Medicine who scored 63 points.

The most exhilarating part boils down to the overall faculty standings! To be honest, with engineering faculty teams having a top three placing in most of the games, it is not surprising that the engineers came top with 71 points. What was more exciting was the competition between the 2nd and 3rd placing! Most audiences were guessing Arts faculty to come in 2nd but it was Business who emerged 2nd with

We look forward to yet another inspiring and sensational IFG 2011!

Cheers to the engineers who emerged as champions and with a 3 years consecutively being champion, they are given the privilege to bring home the trophy!

author Felicia Lim + photograph lee Yvonne

wired

Say hello to the new iPods A

h, the iPod. No doubt the king of portable media players (PMP), the iPod’s debut back in 2001 put Apple on the radar of the entire industry with its famed ease of use and sleek design. It is also the gadget that made Apple realise it had to open up and make the iPod compatible with Windows for it to truly take off.

But most importantly, it put Apple in your pocket.

author raymond lau + photograph apple.com

Now a household name, the iPod (and all its variations thereof) can be seen in the hands of almost everyone – from tenyear-old tykes to fifty-year-old uncles. Part of the reason for this phenomenal success is due to Apple’s predictable product refresh cycle: new iPods every year without fail. And like clockwork, the new iPods are here. In a nutshell, iPod shuffle managed to earn its buttons back, iPod nano gets completely redesigned, and iPod Touch (No, it’s not called the iTouch) just got more yummy. Let’s get into the nitty gritty, shall we?

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ipod shuffle O kay, let’s get the nonnoteworthy out of the way first. The new iPod shuffles come in sleek, polished aluminium and five brilliant colours. As usual, the shuffle is tiny and comes equipped with a clip, making it easy for you to groove to your favourite tunes while working out. If you recall, the previous redesign shrank the shuffle to barely the size of your finger, and you had to control it on specially-designed earphones. Thankfully, the buttons are back, and even touted as a new feature! Says Apple’s website:

“It’s 18 percent larger than previous iPod shuffle models, so it’s even easier to see and use the music controls… Click, click, click. It’s music to your fingers.” Brilliant! (Now excuse me while I stifle a yawn) But that’s not all. There’s an additional playback mode that plays your songs in a whole new random way: a little switch

at the top of the iPod shuffle lets you choose between pure shuffling, or play in order. You know, “play in order” like a regular music player. What next, a tiny screen so you can see what’s playing right now? No, wait, that would have to be the new…

ipod nano The iPod nano abandons its previous incarnations as a candybar-shaped device and takes on the looks of the iPod shuffle. Squarish in shape and also sporting a clip, the nano is now all grown up with its own 1.54-inch multi-touch screen, although what you can do with two fingers on such a small screen is beyond us. It seems to runs a variant of iOS with four app icons on the home screen. Installing other apps on this thing is probably

impossible, though. Also, there is no video playback function, and the video camera is also gone. The new nano is a step back in those aspects. The built-in clip makes the nano a potential fashion accessory, and it certainly seems as if Apple is marketing it that way. But the clip has also opened up worlds of infinite geekery, including a strap which allows you to wear the nano like a watch (after launching the clock app, of course). Try not to

listen to music when the nano is worn as a watch, though, or prepared to get slapped with the earphone cable as you walk. With the inclusion of the Nike + iPod app and a pedometer, Apple is also marketing the nano as your new fitness buddy. It is, however, extremely impractical. If you thought navigating your iPod shuffle with those teensy physical buttons while running was difficult, wait till you try your fingers on that tiny touch screen with no tactile feedback. For a more comfortable multitouch experience, look no further than the…

photographs apple.com, arstechnica.com, ilovehandles.net

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< Pictured: The iLoveHandles Rock Band strap is made of genuine leather and has a special notch to accommodate the iPod Nano’s built-in clip.

Pictured: Past revisions of the iPod nano brought bigger screens, until now.

ipod touch T he iPod touch is better than ever, and that’s not just Apple hyperbole. The new iPod touch comes with an amazing feature set, including front and backfacing cameras that supports video calling over Wi-Fi, and an eye-popping, high-resolution display. Hardware-wise, the device is the thinnest iPod Touch yet, only 7.2mm thick and weighing only 101 grammes.

The long-rumoured camera is finally a reality: the back camera records HD (720p) video at up to 30 frames per second, and takes 960x720 still photos. The quality of videos and photos taken, however, were extremely disappointing compared to the iPhone 4’s; at only 0.69 megapixels for stills and 0.92 megapixels for video, the camera resolution is worse than that of

the first generation iPhone. It would make a lot more sense to pack in a more powerful camera; we don’t need the device to be so thin! Other than the camera, there’s virtually nothing else you can pick on. The high density “retina display” is gorgeous, the new Game Center is rather useless for most but nice for some, and let’s not forget the 250,000+ apps available on the app store from the day of your purchase. Apple’s own in-house microchip makes the device snappy and responsive, and of course, as a responsible student, there are thousands of productivity apps ranging from calendars to document viewers for work on-the-go.

Forget the shuffle and the nano; the iPod touch is the star of this fall’s iPod line-up.

wired

I can haz funny memes?? The Internet and its glorious absurdity We take a look at some of the Internet’s biggest-and-latest- memes.

What is a meme? The Princeton WordNet dictionary defines a meme (pronounced mee-im) as “a cultural unit (an idea or value or behavior) that is passed from one person to another by non-genetic means (as by imitation)”. On teh interwebs, this definition is stretched to epic proportions, referring to any sort of idea, information or concept, which passes through the web like wildfire. Generally in the form of a picture, catchphrase or video, memes can spread startling fast, given the ease of sharing information and passing links through the Internet via forums or social networking sites. Memes tend to border on the absurd and the inane, which only serves to give them that additional quirk that makes people want to share them. To a non-native of the Internet, memes may seem strange, and conveyed in a language that is full of in-jokes that may be inscrutable at first. We’re here to give you a crash course in memes.

author lester hio + photograph various sources on the internet

LOLCats Arguably the Internet’s most famous meme, LOLCats are simple pictures of cats with hilariously ungrammatical captions attached to them. LOLCats originated from the infamous imageboard 4Chan, where it was decreed that Saturday was “Caturday”, and that users were to upload pictures of cats. One poster decided to upload a cat picture with an intentionally ungrammatical caption. Once the phrase “I

can has cheezburger?” was superimposed over an adorable kitten, Internet history was made. LOLcats went on to become the most-spread meme on the Internet, spawning delightful varieties of LOLCats such as Ceiling Cat, Monorail Cat, and Longcat. The speech of the cats, affectionately dubbed “Lolspeak”, also made its impact in forums worldwide, with users deliberately posting grammatically incorrect statements, such as the perennial favourite “Oh hai, I maded you a cookie… But I eated it.”

Celebrity memes (Sad Keanu/ Prancing Cera/ Leo Strut) In June this year, Reddit user rockon4life posted a picture of the actor Keanu Reeves sitting alone on a bench eating a sandwich. Celebrity shots aren’t uncommon at all on the Internet, but this particular picture just seemed so… sad. Within hours, the thread on which the picture – dubbed “Sad Keanu” – had been on made it to the front page of Reddit. Internet users took the image and ran with it, adding their captions and photoshopping Keanu onto various other scenarios, such as sitting on a crane, or being surrounded by cats- while look

sad all the while. Sad Keanu died down after a while (as with most memes), but it seems that the Internet wasn’t yet ready to let a good meme die. In August, a picture of the perpetually awkward Michael Cera (Juno, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Youth in Revolt) made its way into the photosharing site Flickr, where it was taken and posted by director Edgar Wright, who was directing Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, the latest Michael Cera movie. If Keanu was sad, Cera wasn’t; he was practically prancing. The

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Internet loved it. Within hours, Tumblr blogs had sprung up and a host of Prancing Cera pictures proliferated the web, decorated with absurd captions such as “Just Prance” or being ‘shopped onto a still of the movie 300, captioned fittingly as “THIS! IS! PRANCAAAAAAA!”

suggests how one should caption the picture. Take, for instance, Paranoid Parrot.

modify. Most of such memes follow a comic-strip structure, ending in a fixed panel.

How the parrot came to be paranoid is unimportant. It is a blank template and the Internet’s role is to add a fitting caption to it. And since the meme is known as the Paranoid Parrot, a fitting caption should go like this :

The most famous example would have to be Rageguy, which depicts a ranting hand-drawn figure angrily going“FFFFFFF FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUU UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU UUUUUU…” on the last panel. The preceding panels show what could have made Rageguy to be so angry.

The latest in this trend of celebrity images is Leo Strut (also known as Leonardo DiHapprio). Leonardo DiCaprio had a picture of him taken while on the set of Inception, which made its way onto the Internet. His jolly strut and satisfied smile was just too good to pass up, and the norm was to photoshop him strutting against a backdrop of disaster or tragedy, where he could have stopped to help, but no - he is The sheer ease of creating such a happily strutting away. meme (I took less than a minute to create the picture; and I had to think of a funny - I hope Exploitable Image Macros caption), coupled with the ease of sharing it with the Internet, has (Rageguy, resulted in an explosion of such Paranoid image macros. Some examples Parrot, include: Hipster

Kitty…)

The beauty of memes is in how easy they can be exploited by just about anyone with access to the Internet. The latest forms of memes are known as exploitable image macros, as made famous and easy to do by the website memegenerator.com. What it does is simple: You choose a blank template of a given picture, input your own caption, and the website adds that caption on top of the picture. There are several varieties:

One-panel macros As the name suggests, these are standalone pictures. Each of them has a fixed ‘theme’ that

“Socially Awkward Penguin”: a penguin who points out things that would be awkward in a social situation “Hipster Kitty”: a cat wearing an indie sweater and a pair of indie specs makes fun of the hipster subculture “Philosoraptor”: Philosoraptor says stuff that makes our philosophy students weep in shame.

Multi-panel macros These follow the same philosophy as their single-panel counterpart, but only one panel is fixed while the rest are up to the user to

For instance:

(made by silva206 on knowyourmeme.com)

Intruiged? Humoured? Want to get hooked on more memes? Check out these sites for more! www.knowyourmeme.com: A site dedicated to detailing and explaining the origins of the memes on the Internet. www.tumblr.com: Memes are notorious on Tumblr; it’s easy to just reblog pictures or videos from one user to another. Most memes get spread and popularised here. www.icanhazcheeseburger.com: For all your LOLCats needs. www.memegenerator.com: Once you’ve viewed them, contribute to the spread of memes by making your own.

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Byte Sized our wired editors bring you the latest tech news from around the globe and present it to you in a “byte-sized” form!

Google Instant Everything needs to be instant in this fast age. Instant noodles, instant messaging. Just when you thought nothing else could be “instantized”, Bam! Google makes itself instant! With this latest enhancement of its search engine, Google search results now appear as you type. What’s more - Google even provides search suggestions as you type, thus further reducing the time spent typing in the entire query. It almost feels like Google is psychic!

Google two step verification

IE9/Firefox/ Chrome beta

Do you feel insecure when logging into your mail account in public computers? Fret not! For our beloved Google is rolling out a two step verification system, where in addition to your password, a usb dongle needs to be connected or you need to enter a code generated by an app on your phone! So losing your password is not equal to losing your privacy or compromising your security. However, don’t expect to see this too soon. Its being implemented to apps premiere, education and government customers first.

The three major browsers all have their bleeding edge betas out. Looks like Microsoft has finally done something right about IE after a long time! More websites with HTML5 content will render better in IE now. Firefox Beta has the panorama feature which lets you organize your cluttered tabs easily. Chrome’s dev version supports instant searching from its omnibox and has further increased the speed of webpage rendering! All three browsers are introducing hardware acceleration, which means your GPU (graphics processing unit A.K.A graphics card) will actually be put to good use even when you’re not gaming!

author Shanmugam MPL + photograph google.com, kotzot.com, maximumpc.com

Galaxy Tab The much anticipated android tablet, the true contender to the iPad is finally here. Firstly it sports a 7” screen, with 512mb RAM which is twice that of an iPad. It has two cameras to support video conferencing, weighs a mere 0.84 pounds compared to 1.5 pounds of an iPad. The Galaxy Tab also allows you to make phone calls and had expandable memory of up to 32 GB. It runs android 2.2 FroYo, thus giving it a number of additional selling points over the iPad - access to the Android Market, unrestricted running of Flash applications, and of course multitasking. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab is set to launch in Europe within the next few weeks, then in the U.S. shortly thereafter. Give way, iPad, here comes the Galaxy Tab!

WHAT DOES IDK MEAN? I DON’T KNOW. OMG, NOBODY KNOWS! ... gg. JOIN THE WIRED DESK AT THE RIDGE At the Wired Desk, you can fulfil your passion for tech journalism and save the campus from tech “noob-ness”. Aside from the writing in the most well received publication on campus, you will* get your hands on the latest gadgets and gizmos which you will review - We had an Apple iPad and an iPhone and a free copy of Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty mailed to us. Total pwnage. Just Interested? Join us. Send us a sample of your passion to theridge.wired@nussu.org.sg

*most likely

Once a Student, Forever an Alumnus

Students are our future alumni and the NUS Alumni Office engages students from matriculation to graduation. Student Alumni Volunteers A platform to connect students with alumni through student-alumni programmes such as freshmen orientation, alumni talks, networking sessions and sports events. It provides the opportunity for students to learn new skills and develop their leadership potential.

Student Mentorship Programme This programme allows students to learn from successful professionals and alumni mentors about work and life outside the University through networking workshops, seminars and talks. It aims to facilitate a smooth university-towork transition for students.

Student Service Ambassadors A part-time work scheme that offers students the opportunity to be Student Service Ambassadors (SSAs) through involvement in events at the Shaw Foundation Alumni House. SSAs are deployed as Front-of-House or Service Desks personnel.

NUS Alumni Bursary Awards

Valued at $1,500, the NUS Alumni Bursary Awards are given to 20 students each year to pay part of their tuition fees.

NUS Alumni Student Exchange Awards Valued at $2,500, the NUS Alumni Student Exchange Awards give 18 deserving students a chance to study at an overseas partner university for a semester or two to gain enriching and valuable global experience.

NUS Alumni Overseas Colleges Awards

In line with NUSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; aspirations to be a global knowledge enterprise, the NUS Alumni Office extends 10 NUS Overseas Colleges Awards valued at $1,000 to support students spending time in NUS Overseas Colleges.

Office of Alumni Relations

Shaw Foundation Alumni House 11 Kent Ridge Drive, Singapore 119244 Tel: 6516 5775 Email: oarconnect@nus.edu.sg www.alumnet.nus.edu.sg