SCS Medals and Awards Winners

SCS Award for Outstanding Project Work Recipients SCS Award for Best Final Year Student Recipient SCS Special Industry Prize Winners

Sim Ci En Nanyang Polytechnic Diploma in Financial Informatics

“Taking an IT-related diploma was not something I imagined I would do. However, I’ve since come to discover the beauty behind the ever-changing technology. This makes my learning rewarding and enriching.” – Sim Ci En

Yong Kai Qi Nanyang Polytechnic Diploma in Information Technology

SCS Final Year Best Capstone Project Winner

Fong Jun Hao Singapore Institute of Technology Bachelor of Engineering with Honours in Information and Communications Technology (Software Engineering)

Aldric Bek Zhen Feng Singapore Management University Bachelor of Science (Information Systems)

“There was never a dull moment throughout my academic journey because there was so much to discover and learn. I am excited about the future of the tech sector, and I am sure there will be many new opportunities for making a positive impact in this industry.” – Aldric Bek

SCS Skills Mastery Award Winners

Neo Kai Quan George Temasek Polytechnic Diploma in Information Technology

Joseph Ong

Temasek Polytechnic Diploma in Digital Forensics

Nicole Bernadette Ong Qianling

Temasek Polytechnic Diploma in Information Technology

“While studying Information Technology and Computer Science may be challenging, it is a great privilege to be a part of this thriving sector. The tech industry is booming now and I am excited to learn more about the intricacies of computing and various technologies in my further studies.” – Nicole Bernadette Ong

Low Weimin, Ian Temasek Polytechnic Diploma in Information Technology

Lim Tow Ann, Mario Temasek Polytechnic Diploma in Information Technology

SCS Excellence Awards 2020

Wang Tianduo Singapore University of Technology and Design Bachelor of Engineering (Information Systems Technology and Design)

Who Wears the Pants?

That’s easy isn’t it? Men have worn pants for centuries. And there’s no reason why they shouldn’t – after all, pants are designed specifically for men.

But guess what? If you think that it is just pants that are designed for men, you are wrong. In a world where the proportion of men to women stands at roughly 1:1, our world is actually almost exclusively designed for men. And we have plenty of examples to prove that.

SMARTPHONES

For one, the smartphone is built for men’s hands. Women’s hands are on average, around an inch smaller. That means ever-increasing screen sizes are increasingly making smartphones harder to hand(le) for women. Is it therefore any wonder why most women prefer leaving smartphones in their bags – inadvertently rendering steps-tracking apps anything but hand(y)!

PERSONAL VOICE ASSISTANTS

To rub salt into the wound, even the apps in smartphones are not designed for women. For example, although voice assistants (like Siri) with female voices by default have been around for almost a decade, programmed responses to “I’ve been raped” or “I’ve been sexually assaulted” only came about as recently as four years ago when it came to light that their default responses had been “I don’t know what that is”.

The reason? The programmers – mostly men – are unlikely to find (or imagine) themselves victims to these circumstances. That also explains why it took so long for Apple to incorporate menstrual tracking functionality in its Apple Health1 .

WEARABLES

Okay, you would think the name “wearables” suggests that they are good for wearing by both men and women right? Well, if their bulky forms, utilitarian designs and big, thick straps are any indication, it’s clear that smartwatches are not built for women.

The same goes for the virtual reality experience. We often talk about its potential in changing how we experience the world. But for the smaller-built women with smaller heads, closer eyes and smaller hands, the ill-fitting electrode-lined suits, headsets and hand-controllers are really more of a migraine generating, rather than world-changing, experience!

Fact is – it is no fault of men that women have been omitted in the design of products, and this world. After all, it is hard for men to design for women when they have never walked in women’s shoes before – just like how it is impossible for women to fit men’s pants.

So why ask men to engineer products for women which often end up being just a remodelling of the men’s – smaller, cheaper and slapped with more ‘feminine’ colours like pink, red and pastel shades?

Let’s leave it to women to design their own pants! After all, it doesn’t matter who’s wearing the pants as long as it’s for the good of everyone, right?