Take away yesterday.

the clock is stuck on thoughts of you and me.

HELLO THERE , WELCOME TO MY BLOG :D

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Tuesday, June 9, 2009 @ 9:34 PM

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@ 9:29 PM

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Monday, June 8, 2009 @ 1:49 AM

TrueHearts charity show raises over S$3m for Community Chest

SINGAPORE: The TrueHearts charity show is back after a four-year hiatus. Through the event, the Community Chest raised $3,303,035 for needy Singaporeans. Billed as a fundraiser with a difference, the show featured performances by 20 special needs individuals who are getting help from the Community Chest. They were supported by MediaCorp artistes and foreign stars such as Jeanette Aw, Dai Yangtian and Tang Lan Hua. To make a S$5, S$15 or S$35 donation, members of the public can call 1900-112-8805, 1900-112-8815 or 1900-112-8835, respectively. Donation phone lines will remain open for a week. There will also be an art exhibition at Toa Payoh Hub. As of 10pm, the show received some 130,000 donation phone calls. Mr Edmund Tie, Chairman of the TrueHearts Show Organising Committee, said: "Community Chest is grateful for the staunch support given by all viewers, sponsors and benefactors, despite the current economic situation. And we are thankful to MediaCorp and the artistes, as well as beneficiaries, who have trained very hard for the show."

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Sunday, June 7, 2009 @ 2:32 AM

Search goes on after bodies, debris from Air France jet found

FERNANDO DE NORONHA, Brazil: Ships and planes scoured the Atlantic Ocean Sunday after the first two bodies and debris were recovered from an area off the coast of Brazil where an Air France passenger jet went down nearly a week ago. "As well as the bodies there are various remains of the aircraft," Brazilian Air Force spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Henry Munhoz told reporters in the northeastern city of Recife. "Plane seats, part of the wing and various other items were localised," he said. The finds - the first from the crash - were being brought to the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, the closest inhabited spot to the zone where they were found, for initial inspection by five Brazilian forensic police. From there, they were to be flown to the mainland city of Recife for further analysis by French officials leading the investigation into what sent Air France flight 447 plunging into the ocean June 1 with 228 people on board. The two male bodies the Brazilian navy recovered in the zone earlier Saturday would be catalogued here and also flown to Recife, Munhoz said. "Recife will be the final destination for the bodies as well as the debris from the aircraft," he said, adding that "details of the (personal) items collected will be divulged to the relatives and only to the relatives." The spokesman added that "the state of the bodies will not be divulged." Relatives of those aboard the Air France flight have already given DNA samples to help identify their loved ones. Although the black boxes containing vital data on the flight's final minutes have not yet been located, early suspicions are focusing on a possible malfunction of the Airbus A330's air speed sensors as it flew into a fierce storm. French investigators said Saturday the plane, four hours into a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, suffered multiple systems failures in its final moments and that speed monitors had failed on other Airbus planes. Airbus on Friday issued a notice urging all pilots of its jets to review a 2001 warning on the procedures to follow if speed indicators give conflicting readings and force the autopilot to cut out. Meanwhile Air France said it was stepping up replacement of speed monitors on its Airbus A330s, amid speculation that a faulty indication might have been a factor in the loss of the Rio de Janeiro-Paris flight. In a statement, Air France said that in May last year it began noticing "incidents of loss of airspeed information during cruise flight" on its twin-engine A330s and four-engine A340s, and informed Airbus of the problem. The device in question is the pitot probe - usually affixed to the leading edge of a wing - which measures the force of the air through which an aircraft passes. Combined with a pressure reading from a static port on the fuselage, it tells the flight crew how fast the aircraft is going through the air. French submarines were on their way to help with the hunt for the black boxes, as experts scrutinised the debris found so far searching for clues. On Saturday Brazilian Colonel Jorge Amaral told reporters in Recife that the air force was able to "confirm the recovery from the water of debris and bodies from the Air France plane." A blue plane seat, a nylon backpack containing a computer and vaccination card, and a leather briefcase with an Air France ticket inside were the first objects plucked from the sea, according to Amaral and an official statement. The discoveries took place 450 kilometres (300 miles) northeast of the Fernando de Noronha islands, themselves 370 kilometres from the mainland. The precise spot was 70 kilometres northeast of the point of last communication with the plane, a series of automatically sent messages signalling multiple shutdowns of onboard systems. Air France was trying to confirm that the recovered seat came from the flight by checking the serial number, which Amaral gave as 23701103B331-0. French investigators said the Air France airliner sent 24 automatic error messages just before the crash, and its autopilot was disengaged immediately after ones showing conflicting speed readings given by sensors.

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@ 2:29 AM

Over 4,000 turn up for Singapore Idol auditions

SINGAPORE: Over 4,000 people turned up for the Singapore Idol auditions on Saturday as of 5pm. That is double the number of the last Singapore Idol season three years ago. Organisers have decided to extend the auditions to Sunday due to the overwhelming response. The barricades were up at 8pm on Friday night at The Cathay and the queue started forming immediately. Many of the idol hopefuls went without sleep the entire night but they were certainly not low on energy. Supportive families, tired friends and enthusiastic fans kept many of the idol hopefuls company throughout the long night. For some, the sleepless night was well worth the effort. One idol hopeful said: "I'm just going to give my best shot for the second audition and hopefully I can make it through. It's time for real talent to step through." And for those who did not make it, they are not giving up on their dreams just yet. Singapore Idol premieres on MediaCorp's Channel 5 on August 9.

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@ 2:23 AM

Aunt of H1N1 patient becomes 15th case

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Health (MOH )has confirmed another H1N1 case, bringing the total to 15 cases so far. The latest case is a 39-year-old Indonesian woman who is the aunt of an earlier case. She went to Changi Airport to fetch her niece who returned from New York via Frankfurt on Monday. When the niece developed symptoms on Tuesday, the aunt brought her to Raffles Hospital by taxi. The aunt had been on home quarantine and was given medication, but laboratory results confirmed on Saturday that she has been infected with the H1N1 virus. She has mild symptoms and is in stable condition. Three of her family members have already been placed on Home Quarantine Order (HQO). The Health Ministry said although the 15th case was started on chemoprophylaxis when she was served the home quarantine order, it should be noted that she could already have been infected through close contact with her niece prior to taking the medicine. While chemoprophylaxis can significantly reduce the risk of infection, it does not completely eliminate it. As such, MOH reiterates its advice to avoid non-essential travel affected areas such as Melbourne and the State of Victoria in Australia, Kobe and Osaka in Japan and Chile, USA, Canada and Mexico. For those returning from the affected areas, they should seek medical attention promptly and call 993 for an ambulance if they become unwell within seven days of their return. They should avoid taking public transport or taxi to minimise exposure. MOH said to date, six patients have been discharged and nine are still in hospital. The 12th patient involved an 18-year-old Singaporean man who took the MRT in the morning of June 3 to see his GP. MOH said its risk assessment showed that there is limited exposure to the public as it was only a two-minute train ride from Serangoon to Kovan. The Health Ministry said Singaporeans need not be unduly alarmed as the virus remains mild and all patients are stable. However, the ministry added that this is an example that should not be followed by others. MOH said that contact tracing for the 13th and 14th cases have been completed. The 13th case involved a 23-year-old Singaporean man who travelled to Melbourne from May 27 to June 3. MOH has identified 44 close contacts on the flight. It managed to contact 18 out of the 19 passengers with entry records into Singapore. They comprise 11 Singaporeans and seven foreigners, and they have been placed under HQOs. Their period of quarantine ends on June 11. One foreigner is uncontactable. MOH has alerted the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority to inform the ministry if he should turn up at Singapore's checkpoints. The ministry has also informed WHO and its IHR counterparts of the 25 passengers who are out of Singapore. For the 14th case that involved a 22-year-old Singapore Airlines air-stewardess, MOH said it did not conduct contact tracing of flight passengers on SQ25 flight travelling from New York to Frankfurt on the basis that the confirmed case is unlikely to have been infectious while onboard the plane. She had developed symptoms more than 24 hours after disembarkation. Her quarantine period is from June 5 to June 11. MOH has identified four close local contacts and they have been placed under HQOs. Her quarantine period is from June 5 to June 11.

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Friday, June 5, 2009 @ 6:43 AM

Drinking wine makes men live longer, says study

LONDON : Drinking up to half a glass of wine per day can help you live up to five years longer - at least for men, according to a study published Thursday. The impact also depends on the exact amount drunk - more than half a glass starts bringing life expectancy down again, according to researchers from Wageningen University in the Netherlands. "Drinking wine was strongly associated with a lower risk of dying from coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and death from all causes," said the study. Effects varied, however: men who drink up to 20 grammes of any type of alcohol per day live for about two years longer than non-drinkers, while the length of time is slightly lesser for those drinking more than 20 grammes. Those drinking only wine, and less than half a glass a day, lived some 2.5 years longer than those who drank beer and spirits, and almost five years longer than non-drinkers, said the study. The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, was based on research on some 1,373 men between 1960 and 2000. It did not draw conclusions for women. The researchers studied how much alcohol they drank and what type, in an attempt to assess the impact of their drinking habits on cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, and from all causes. They also tracked weight and diet and whether the men smoked. The results held true regardless of socio-economic status, diet or lifestyle, it found. One finding which might seem surprising: the proportion of men drinking alcohol nearly doubled over the four decdes, from 45 per cent in 1960 to 86 per cent in 2000. The proportion of those drinking wine skyrocketed, from two percent to 44 per cent over the period.

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@ 6:43 AM

Stage setup for NDP 2009 allows spectators to get closer to performers

SINGAPORE: A new stage setup at this year's National Day Parade will allow spectators to get up close and personal with performers. The theme of this year's National Day Parade is "Come Together, Reaching Out, Reaching Up". Organisers are taking the theme quite literally by moving the stage 20 metres forward and some nine storeys upwards. But performers won't be seen on the floating platform as it will be used as a holding area instead. The show will be moved up four metres up above the original floating platform stage. Other changes also include a new performance grid and an LED screen. The cubic grid consists of two portions, each measuring eight cubes high and seven cubes wide. Each grid is six storeys high and will be equipped with three scene-changing screens. Performers can switch from scene to scene with a simple pull of the blinds. The LED screen located between the grids will project images in tandem with the performances. The stage structure is about 80 per cent complete. When ready, it can hold 1,500 people. Organisers said ensuring the safety of the performers is a priority. LTC Peter Tay, chairman, Infrastructure and Decoration, National Day Parade 2009, said: "They are equipped with a safety harness hooked on to a secured tow line. And for every two grids, there is a safety officer to look out for them." Organisers have also put in place several measures to deal with wet weather conditions. Randy Tan, architect, National Day Parade 2009, said: "As a standard operating procedure, for example like staircases, places like ramps, there is this non-slip component added to it. So that's one way we look at dealing with weather." The new stage will have three more entrances to allow performers to make a dramatic entrance

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@ 6:40 AM

Singapore confirms 12th H1N1 case

(first news)

SINGAPORE: Singapore has confirmed its 12th case of Influenza A (H1N1). The patient is an 18-year-old Singaporean. He went to Melbourne on May 16 and returned on June 1 on Emirates EK405 at 11.50pm. He was seated at row 18. The Health Ministry said he was sent to hospital at about noon on Thursday by ambulance via 993. Laboratory results confirmed his infection at 7.25pm on the same day and he was admitted to the Communicable Disease Centre. Contact tracing has begun. As for the 10th and 11th cases, the ministry said all contacts have been accounted for. For the 10th case, two close contacts on the same flight and another two close household contacts have been identified and served Home Quarantine Orders (HQOs). The patient, a 33-year-old Singaporean female, had travelled to the US from May 23 to 30. The ministry said contact tracing for the 11th patient has also been completed, with four household contacts placed under HQOs. The ministry said since the 19-year-old American student, here to visit a relative, only developed symptoms more than 24 hours after getting off the plane, no contact tracing of flight passengers was needed. This was because she was unlikely to be infectious when on board the plane.

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Monday, June 1, 2009 @ 8:24 PM

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@ 8:10 PM