Innovation

Thursday 31 January 2013

Visual Writing Prompts








A great underwater game. A difficult question. I guess it would all come down to  whether it was permitted to be played in the ocean or in the pool or both. For example, if we were allowed to have scuba tanks to breath and remain underwater, we could play a game of treasure hunt in a designated area between 10sqm and 20sqm. The players would get into pairs and each team would have a list of things to find. There would be professionals swimming around to make sure everyone was safe. However, each candidate would have to learn how to scuba dive. This kind of game would not be common on a day-day bases. Although the game would be very limited, the additional bonus of familiarizing yourself with the underwater world will be a breathtaking experience. 

Saturday 19 January 2013

Giant Squid Captured on Camera for the first time

The Giant Squid. Rumored to be the largest squid ever to have swum in our oceans. In myths, the Giant Squid is believed to be similar to the Kraken, sinking ships and dragging sailors down to the deepest and darkest depths of the ocean. It has made an appearance in Jules Verne's novel "10,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and the popular movie series "Pirates of the Caribbean". Dead Giant Squids have been found in the stomachs of Sperm Whales and scars were found on the Sperm Whale.  Unfortunately, no one has ever seen a live one. That is until yesterday.

A crew from the National Science Museum of Japan, spent over 400 hours in a submarine tracking a 8m long giant squid at a depth of more than 500m within the Pacific Ocean. The creature was said to have big black eyes the size of beach balls making it the biggest eye on an invertebrate. The squid was also holding a much smaller bait squid which it was using to attract prey. The squid was missing to of its 2m long tentacles due to the fact of an encounter with a Sperm Whale. Giant Squids have been believed to battle Sperm Whales when the two oceans giants encounter one another. And sometimes the whale is found washed up on the shore, dead.

Here is the link to the news page:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/giant-squid-measuring-10-feet-1524140

Monday 7 January 2013

ACS Perfect Score

The Anglo Chinese School in Singapore has a fearsome  reputation as one of the best schools in Singapore and yesterday, that reputation was enhanced. Out of all the local schools in Singapore, only a few offer the IB curriculum. This year, Singapore had a total of 41 students achieving a perfect score. Out of this 41, 37 came from the Anglo Chinese School. This school has broken the record for the most perfect scores in an IB final in Singapore.

For the end of an IB exam, each student has to write a 4000 word essay on the topics that interest them the most. One person in particular fascinated me. This person loved playing basketball and learning maths. He wrote an essay on the different angles you have to be in in order to get a swish. He got a perfect score for it.




Friday 4 January 2013

13-year old bomb threat

A 13 year old boy from India, attending school in Singapore, was arrested last week due to his threat to plant bombs on the Marina Bay Sands Casino. The boy posted on Facebook saying that the day he leaves Singapore, he is going to take a "big revenge" and "spit everywhere" by "planting bombs on the Marina Bay Sands Casino". The police were called to case 2 days after the post was visible to everyone.  The boy was punished with a $100,000 fine and was suspended from school. 

After reading this news article in the Straits Times, I was shocked. This boy just through away his life just like that for what is believed to be just a "prank".  It just shows you that you should always "think twice before you act".  

Thursday 3 January 2013

iPhone Contract

I am pretty sure most of us have begged our parents for an iPhone. Some of them obliged after months of persuasion others would not even flinch. And some use terms and conditions. Recently, in the United States, a 13 year old was encountering the same problem with his mother. However, on his birthday, his mom obliged and bought him his very own iPhone. But along with this iPhone came a "contract".


1. It is my phone. I bought it. I pay for it. I am loaning it to you. Aren't I the greatest?
2. I will always know the password.
3. Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30 p.m. every school night and every weekend night at 9:00 p.m. It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30 a.m. If you would not make a call to someone's land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text. Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected.
4. If it rings, answer it. It is a phone. Say hello, use your manners. Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads "Mom" or "Dad." Not ever.
5. It does not go to school with you. Have a conversation with the people you text in person. It's a life skill. *Half days, field trips and after school activities will require special consideration.
6. If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs. Mow a lawn, babysit, stash some birthday money. It will happen, you should be prepared.
7. Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being. Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others. Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire.
8. Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.
9. Do not text, email, or say anything to someone that you would not say out loud with their parents in the room. Censor yourself.
10. Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public. Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being. You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that.
11. Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else's private parts. Don't laugh. Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence. It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life. It is always a bad idea. Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you. And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear -- including a bad reputation.
12. Don't take a zillion pictures and videos. There is no need to document everything. Live your experiences. They will be stored in your memory for eternity.
13. Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision. It is not alive or an extension of you. Learn to live without it. Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO (fear of missing out).
14. Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff. Your generation has access to music like never before in history. Take advantage of that gift. Expand your horizons.
15. Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then.
16. Keep your eyes up. See the world happening around you. Stare out a window. Listen to the birds. Take a walk. Talk to a stranger. Wonder without googling.
17. You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You and I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together.



This particular "contract" was picked up by apple and is now in their monthly magazine for January. It is also on a popular blog known as "Huff Post: Screen Sense". I was shown this by my mother and yes some of these terms do apply to my iPhone. If you are one of these kids who are just begging for an iPhone and still have had no luck. Show your parents this contract it might just change the minds of your parents.