Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Do You Know...Your Earth - Part 1?

Do you know that the Earth is more than 4.5 billion years old?


Editor's note: Of all known forms of animals life ever to inhabit the Earth, only about 10 percent still exist today.

Do you know that the Amazon rainforest produces more than 20% the world's oxygen supply?


Editor's note: The oxygen produced by the Amazon rainforest contributes to the oxygen in the atmosphere that makes up 21% of the air.

Do you know that there are more than 50,000 earthquakes throughout the world every year?


Editor's note: An earthquake in 1811 caused parts of the Mississippi River to flow backwards.


Do you know that the Sun contains 99.8% of the total mass of the solar system?


Editor's note: All the coal, oil, gas, and wood on Earth would only keep the Sun burning for a few days.

Do you know that approximately 70% of the Earth is covered with water?


Editor's note: The Pacific Ocean covers 28% of the Earth's surface. Also, the Atlantic Ocean is saltier than the Pacific Ocean.

Do you know that the world's highest capital is La Paz, which is the capital of Bolivia? The city is situated at about 3,650 m above sea-level and it is built on steep hills.



Editor's note: Finland is also known as "the land of of the thousand lakes". There are 187,888 lakes in total. While most of these lakes are considered small, there are 309 of them that are larger than 10 km².



Do you know that of the twenty-five highest mountains on Earth, nineteen are in the Himalayas?


Editor's note: The deepest point on the Earth's surface is in the Pacific Ocean located in the Mariana Trench.



Editor's note: Compare the depth of the Mariana Trench with Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the Himalayas.

Do You Know...Your H2O?

Do you know that in a 100-year period, a water molecule spends 98 years in the ocean, 20 months as ice, about 2 weeks in lakes and rivers, and less than a week in the atmosphere?


Editor's note: The overall amount of water on the planet has remained the same for two billion years. Therefore, it is possible that the water that comes from the faucet can contain the molecules that Neanderthals drank.

Do you know that 80% of the earth's water is surface water?


Editor's note: The other 20% is either underground water or atmospheric water vapour.

Do you know that of all the water on earth, only 2.5% is fresh water?


Editor's note: Fresh water exists mostly as ice, a sizeable amount as groundwater and a small amount as readily accessible water in lakes, streams and rivers (see diagram above).

Do you know that approximately 66% of the human body consists of water, which amounts to about 37 litres?


Editor's note: Water exists within all our organs and it is transported throughout our body to assist physical functions. For the compositions of water in our body, see the diagram above.

Animals, like humans, also consist of mostly water which assist in their physical functions.
     (a)     75% of a chicken is water.
     (b)     80% of a pineapple is water.
     (c)     95% of a tomato is water.
     (d)     70% of an elephant is water.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Do You Know...Your Body?

Do you know how much skin is shed at any one time? It's 600,000 particles! 


Editor's note: Averaging that out for over a year, it works out to be about 900 g of skin. So, a person will loose around 65 kg of skin by age 70.

Do you know why you produce earwax?


Editor's note: It protects the delicate inner ear from bacteria, fungus, dirt and even insects. It also cleans and lubricates the ear canal. By the way, the ears will secrete more earwax when you are afraid.

Do you know that you have fewer bones than a baby?

Editor's note: Try counting the two hand bones shown above. How many bone does a child's hand (left) and an adult's hand (right) have? Do you manage to count 23 and 13 bones respectively?


As babies, humans have about 350 bones. However, some bones fuse together during growth and thus ends up with only 206 as adults. 

Do you know that the acid produced by the stomach to help digest the food you eat has a pH value between pH 0.8 and pH 1.0?


Editor's note: The stomach acid is primarily hydrochloric acid and at this pH value, it is much stronger than the ones found at the lab. At that pH, the stomach acid is as strong as battery acid such that it can even dissolve a stainless steel razor blade.


Do you know that the length of the small intestines is 4 times as long as the person’s height? This means that if a person is 154 cm, the small intestines will be 616 cm!

  
Editor's note: If the small intestines are not looped back and forth upon itself, they will not fit into the abdominal cavity.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Viewpoint - An Educator's Perspective of an Inward Thing

“So please, guys, do come for class next semester.”

“Aiyah, it's no big deal. Like as if we don’t know how to live, right? No need to go to Lifeskills class la. Anyway, bye ‘cher. See you in January.”

My students left in high spirits, celebrating the end of the semester and anticipating the coming holidays, thus leaving me all alone in the cold empty classroom. Their words kept haunting me. No big deal? No big deal! What did they mean by 'no big deal'? We are supposed to be inspiring, right? Or at least that is what the advertisements for teaching positions always depict.

 

I sat down at the cafe with my brew of the day…the umpteenth brew actually. Where had I gone wrong? Am I not good enough, not influential enough, not charismatic enough? What?

While pondering on this universe-altering question, my mind somehow drifted to a story I had came across a while back through a plethora of chain emails that flooded my inbox.

Mrs Thompson stood in front of her fifth-grade class on the very first day of school in the fall and told the children a lie. Like most teachers, she looked at her pupils and said that she loved them all the same, that she would treat them all alike. That was impossible because there in front of her, slumped in his seat on the third row, was a little boy named Teddy Stoddard.

Mrs Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and noticed he didn't play well with the other children, that his clothes were unkempt and that he constantly needed a bath. Teddy was unpleasant and a sullen little boy and no one else seemed to enjoy him either.

At the school where Mrs Thompson taught, she was required to review each child's records and put Teddy's off until last. When she opened his file, she was in for a surprise. His first-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is a bright, inquisitive child with a ready laugh." "He does his work neatly and has good manners...he is a joy to be around."

His second-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an excellent student well-liked by his classmates, but he is troubled because his mother has a terminal illness and life at home must be a struggle."

His third-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy continues to work hard but his mother's death has been hard on him. He tries to do his best but his father doesn't show much interest and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren't taken."

Teddy's fourth-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is withdrawn and doesn't show much interest in school. He doesn't have many friends and sometimes sleeps in class. He is tardy and could become a problem."



By now Mrs Thompson realized the problem and she decided to focus on Teddy Stoddard.

Her children brought her presents, all in beautiful ribbon and bright paper, except for Teddy's, which was clumsily wrapped in the heavy, brown paper of a grocery bag. Mrs Thompson took pains to open it in the middle of the other presents. Some of the children started to laugh when she found a rhinestone bracelet with some of the stones missing, and a bottle that was one-quarter full of cologne. She stifled the children's laughter when she exclaimed how pretty the bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some of the perfume behind the other wrist. Teddy Stoddard stayed behind just long enough to say, "Mrs. Thompson, today you smelled just like my mom used to."

After the children left, Mrs Thomson cried for at least an hour. On that very day, she quit teaching reading, writing, and speaking. Instead, she began to teach children. 



Jean Thompson paid particular attention to Teddy. As she worked with him, his mind seemed to come alive. The more she encouraged him, the faster he responded. On days where there would be an important test, she would remember that cologne. By the end of the year he had become one of the smartest children in the class.

A year later, Mrs Thomson found a note under her door from Teddy, telling her that of all the teachers he had in elementary school, she was his favourite. Six years went by before she got another note from Teddy. He then wrote that he had finished high school, third in his class, and she was still his favourite teacher of all time.

Four years after that, she got another letter, saying that while things had been tough at times, he'd stayed in school, had stuck with it, and would graduate from college with the highest of honours. He assured Mrs. Thompson she was still his favorite teacher.
 
Then, four more years passed and yet another letter came. This time, he explained that after he got his bachelor's degree, he decided to go a little further. The letter explained that she was still his favourite teacher but that now his name was a little longer. The letter was signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, M.D.

Stories like these always have a way of putting the right perspectives onto life. I sipped my coffee as I recalled the students who came to me for advice and, for some, validation that everything is going to be alright.


Hafiz, who behind his flamboyant style, had asked if he should strive for what he really wanted out of life and that was not the conventional 5 Cs (condominium, car, cash, credit cards and country clubs).

Then, there was Stanley, who despite having difficulties handling his parents’ expectations, needed a listening ear while he reinforced his belief in gathering knowledge and experiences in business, sales and customer service through direct selling.

What about Ming Sheng, who had a knack for dry humor, had apologised to me for making people laughed during his presentation? Apologised to me? For what? The whole class was entertained beyond words and that made his content interesting and simple enough to comprehend. Apparently, he had been told time and again that his presentation was poor because people "laughed and therefore did not take his presentation seriously". I'm sure Chris Rock, David Letterman and Tina Fey beg to differ.

Not forgetting Naresh, who clearly wanted to work for others rather than starting his own business so that he could have time to pursue his love for classical Indian dance.

That’s just it! The reactions of most students to soft skills/life skills modules or even to me may not have been what I initially hoped for and expected. Maybe I was looking for that jumping-for-joy anticipation every time I walked into class. Maybe I was expecting full attention and diligence during lessons.


The truth is human’s reactions to situations are as varied as the ridges on our thumbs. Maybe the students are inspired after all but I just need to get used to reactions that are different from my expectations.

In fact, reactions should not be a big deal. It is what happens after that and the impact I have made that matter...and even that may not be immediate too.You can never tell what type of impact you may have on others by your actions, and sometimes, the extend of the impact cannot be seen merely by their outward reactions to you. It is most often an inward thing.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

ITE College East Celebrates National Day

Have you ever heard the loud banging of the Taiko drums in the background, the traditional tunes of the angklungs, and the classic symphony of the concert band all under one roof? Those were the sound that floated through the Indoor Sports Hall (ISH) and the Atrium at ITE College East on the 8 August, where the national day celebrations were held. It was a time of jubilation for Singapore’s 47th birthday this year.


The Guest-of-Honour, Mr Raymond Lim, and his accompanying party were welcomed by the college’s Lion Dance troupe at the atrium. A mini parade was already on standby at the ISH for the GOH to inspect. After the inspection proper, the National Day Observance Ceremony followed suit with the singing of the National Anthem, the recitation of the National Pledge led by the President of the Student Council and the singing of ITE’s College Song.



Mr Eden Liew, Principal of ITE College East, delivered the opening address & national day message, followed by launching of the NDP 2012 official logo by GOH.


Other programmes include:
  1. Announcement of the photography and video competitions
  2. ITE concert band medley
  3. Wushu martial arts performance
  4. Angklung orchestra
  5. Staff performance
  6. Indian dance
  7. CE dance club (hip hop)
  8. Soul percussion drum performance
 




For the finale, the GOH and performers were invited on stage to sing along before being escorted out by the Lion Dance troupe to the atrium to have some fun out at the stalls.








Alas, all good things have to come to an end. One message however, is clear: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SINGAPORE!


Thursday, August 9, 2012

iTabuu Challenge

On Wednesday, 1st of August 2012, the 1st ITE Inter-School ‘iTabuu’ Challenge was held at the ITE CE’s Atrium. Based on the traditional Taboo games but using the Singapore version, the objective of the game was for a player to give clues to his or her team and make them guess the word without him saying “taboo” (forbidden) words listed. At nay one time, teams from two different schools competed with each other in order to go to the next round.


During the first half of Round 1, JP1204N and UB1201A were highly competitive as they had guessed almost all the words, and obtained 8 and 7 points respectively. The round was then followed by a Bonus round where teams can gain two points with each correct answer. JP1204N was confident with their answers and surpassed the other groups, coming in first with a total of 22 points followed by UB1201A in second place with 13 points, PE1201G with 6 points and NF1201A with 4 points.

For the second half, the next four teams took the stage to answer the questions by the Game Masters. Representing the four schools this time round are JR1104E from School of Applied Health Sciences (AHS), UO1201A from School of Business and Services, PM1204J from School of Electronic & Info-com Technology (EIT) and NM1201A from School of Engineering. These teams were put into a similar test of patience, understanding and ability to communicate with their fellow team members to win points for their team.

At the end of Round 1, AHS and EIT topped the scoreboard. For the bonus round, each school was given a last chance to raise their points and beat the other schools. During this round, teams were very tense and nervous. AHS had managed to answer most of the questions asked with confidence and they were also very responsive. At the end of the bonus round, AHS thrashed three other teams, 12 to 0, and was ranked first.

ITE’s very own K-pop dancers showed their amazing dance moves and kept the audience entertained while the judges were calculating the scores for the eight teams.

At the end of both rounds, JR1104E was in first place with 17 points, PM1204A in second with 5 points, NM1201A with 4 and UO1201A with 3 points. The top four teams from Group A and B would move on to the Grand Master round. JP1204N, JR1104E, UB1201A and PE1201G then emerged as the top four teams and played the Game Master Round to determine the winner.


Once again, the audience was entertained by vocalist Firdaus powerful voice in his rendition of “When I Look You in the Eyes” by The Jonas Brothers during tabulation of scores.

A tiebreaker round was held as the two AHS teams had scored the same marks. It was difficult determining the winner from that round alone as both teams were very good. For the final performance, the cheerleading team showed their new moves and flexibility, keeping the audience awed and thrilled with their performance.

The prize presentation ceremony marked the end of the iTabuu Challenge. UO1201A, NM1201A NF1201A, PM1204J and PE1201G received vouchers and certificates of participation each. Scoring 13 points for the whole challenge was 2nd runner up, UB1201A. They received $40 worth of vouchers and a Certificate of Participation. The 1st runner up goes to JR1104E who received $60 worth of vouchers each and a medal. The winner, JP1204N, received trophies as well as vouchers.