Singapore Youth Olympics (YOG) Medal Count/Tally

Singapore Youth Olympics (YOG) Medal Count/Tally
(As of August 25, 2010 11:00 PM Singapore Time)

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	China (CHN)	30	16	5	51
2	Russia (RUS)	18	14	11	43
3	South Korea (KOR)	11	3	4	18
4	Ukraine (UKR)	9	9	15	33
—	Mixed-NOCs	9	8	10	27
5	Australia (AUS)	8	13	8	29
6	Cuba (CUB)	8	3	2	13
7	Japan (JPN)	7	5	3	15
8	Hungary (HUN)	6	4	5	15
9	France (FRA)	6	2	7	15
10	Italy (ITA)	5	9	5	19
11	Azerbaijan (AZE)	5	3	0	8
12	Germany (GER)	4	9	9	22
13	United States (USA)	4	8	8	20
14	Thailand (THA)	4	3	0	7
15	Israel (ISR)	3	2	0	5
16	Canada (CAN)	3	1	8	12
17	Great Britain (GBR)	3	1	5	9
18	Kenya (KEN)	3	0	3	6
19	Lithuania (LTU)	3	0	1	4
20	South Africa (RSA)	2	4	3	9
21	Brazil (BRA)	2	3	1	6
22	Colombia (COL)	2	3	0	5
22	Ethiopia (ETH)	2	3	0	5
24	Egypt (EGY)	2	2	2	6
24	Kazakhstan (KAZ)	2	2	2	6
26	Iran (IRI)	2	2	1	5
27	Sweden (SWE)	2	0	3	5
28	Nigeria (NGR)	2	0	2	4
29	Bulgaria (BUL)	2	0	1	3
29	Slovenia (SLO)	2	0	1	3
31	Mongolia (MGL)	2	0	0	2
32	Spain (ESP)	1	4	6	11
33	Romania (ROU)	1	4	2	7
34	Turkey (TUR)	1	3	6	10
35	Czech Republic (CZE)	1	2	3	6
36	Netherlands (NED)	1	2	1	4
36	New Zealand (NZL)	1	2	1	4
38	North Korea (PRK)	1	1	3	5
39	Argentina (ARG)	1	1	2	4
39	Belgium (BEL)	1	1	2	4
39	Vietnam (VIE)	1	1	2	4
42	Croatia (CRO)	1	1	1	3
42	Denmark (DEN)	1	1	1	3
42	Serbia (SRB)	1	1	1	3
45	Poland (POL)	1	0	5	6
46	Austria (AUT)	1	0	3	4
47	Kyrgyzstan (KGZ)	1	0	2	3
48	Dominican Republic(DOM)	1	0	1	2
48	Eritrea (ERI)	1	0	1	2
50	Bolivia (BOL)	1	0	0	1
50	Chile (CHI)	1	0	0	1
50	Ireland (IRL)	1	0	0	1
50	Virgin Islands (ISV)	1	0	0	1
50	Jamaica (JAM)	1	0	0	1
50	Puerto Rico (PUR)	1	0	0	1
50	Trinidad and Tobago(TRI)	1	0	0	1
50	Uruguay (URU)	1	0	0	1
58	India (IND)	0	6	2	8
59	Belarus (BLR)	0	4	1	4
60	Uzbekistan (UZB)	0	3	5	8
61	Chinese Taipei (TPE)	0	3	0	3
62	Singapore (SIN)	0	2	4	6
63	Slovakia (SVK)	0	2	3	5
63	Venezuela (VEN)	0	2	3	5
65	Malaysia (MAS)	0	2	0	2
66	Mexico (MEX)	0	1	5	6
67	Armenia (ARM)	0	1	3	4
67	Greece (GRE)	0	1	3	4
69	Switzerland (SUI)	0	1	2	3
70	Jordan (JOR)	0	1	1	2
70	Moldova (MDA)	0	1	1	2
70	Portugal (POR)	0	1	1	2
70	Tajikistan (TJK)	0	1	1	2
74	Bahamas (BAH)	0	1	0	1
74	Cyprus (CYP)	0	1	0	1
74	Ecuador (ECU)	0	1	0	1
74	Equatorial Guinea (GEQ)	0	1	0	1
74	Haiti (HAI)	0	1	0	1
74	Hong Kong (HKG)	0	1	0	1
74	Nauru (NRU)	0	1	0	1
74	Pakistan (PAK)	0	1	0	1
74	Qatar (QAT)	0	1	0	1
83	Finland (FIN)	0	0	2	2
84	Netherlands Antilles(AHO)	0	0	1	1
84	Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH)	0	0	1	1
84	Cambodia (CAM)	0	0	1	1
84	Georgia (GEO)	0	0	1	1
84	Guatemala (GUA)	0	0	1	1
84	Indonesia (INA)	0	0	1	1
84	Saudi Arabia (KSA)	0	0	1	1
84	Kuwait (KUW)1	0	0	1	1
84	Latvia (LAT)	0	0	1	1
84	Lebanon (LIB)	0	0	1	1
84	Morocco (MAR)	0	0	1	1
84	Norway (NOR)	0	0	1	1
84	Peru (PER)	0	0	1	1
84	Turkmenistan (TKM)	0	0	1	1
84	Uganda (UGA)	0	0	1	1
Total		199	197	220	616

Rather disappointing results for the hosting nation.

-- Robin Low

Moist+ 2 Review.

I've used many facial products in the past as I have sensitive and oily skin, which makes my face prone to Acne. When I take spicy food, I can prepare for an outbreak of acne.

However, since I moved to the US, my skin became much drier as the humidity is lower, but still, there are a lot of oily spots on my face.

I have discovered that regularly washing gets rid of the oily spots, but it is just curing the symptom, and to enjoy oil free and acne free skin, the using of moisturizing products is key.

I've tried many facial masks in the past, cheap Korean ones to SKII, the very expensive ones from Japan, in my opinion, the cheap ones are worthless, as they are simply paper masks with water, nothing more.

Moist+ 2 from Greenyarn is definitely something worth trying as it is not too expensive, however it performs as well as the best masks in the market.

The Facial Mask is very soft, and comfortable to put on. In fact, it is so relaxing that one may be in danger of falling asleep. The mask is free from any fragrance and preservatives.

Basically, the facial mask contains nutrients to moisturize the face, making it feel tighter, removing wrinkles and boosting radiance just after one use. It is sort of like a home spa treatment, and effects can be felt just after one use.

The masks are easily folded out from the individually packaged packs and applied to the face for 15 - 20 minutes, and after that, the face does feel a lot smoother, and the skin feels tight.

After using the mask, I noticed that my oily spots are gone, and my face feels good after a rinse.

I would recommend it, and basically just say, give it a try, you've got nothing to lose.

P.S. this mask may be addictive, I've know many people using it and now back for more, including me.

-- Robin Low

Rag Day and YOG Flame 2010

6 Aug 2010

The weather was warm, and I would say this is a perfect day for the arrival of the YOG Flame.

Since the 1980s, it has been a tradition to hold Rag Day after Flag Day as a celebration and a show of appreciation to the public for their bighearted donations. Stunning floats and impressive performances hit the SRC track on Rag Day, the day where the temperature and noise level in NUS rise to a staggering height as everyone gathers for our big party.

Rag Day is also famed for the dazzling parade of floats created by the Faculty Clubs and Halls of Residences. Each float is testimony of months of painstaking meticulous work, countless late nights and the strong bond and unbridled passion students have towards their respective clubs and halls.

Up till now, Rag Day has been confined within the grounds of Kent Ridge. Because the objective of Rag Day is to thank the public for their kind contributions on Flag Day, it is our wish to one day bring Rag Day out of campus and paint Singapore orange and blue with a striking show of the NUS spirit.

It was a fantastic day with exciting performances by the faculty and halls, and it is all for a good cause. Raising funds for the needy.

The performances are exciting with much acrobatics stunts and choreographed dances. The floats were creative and stunning, and all made from recycled materials.

The spectacular day ended with a speech by the president and the lighting of the YOG flame, and finished off with fireworks.

It was very enjoyable!

--Robin Low

Ski 360 Review

Ski360 is a Cable-Ski Park located at East Coast Park in Singapore.



Opening Hours of the cableway:

Monday - Thursday
10am - 10pm

Friday & Eve of Public Holidays
10am - Midnight

Saturday
9am - Midnight

Sunday & Public Holidays
9am - 10pm

Phone: +65 6442 7318

Addrress: 1206A East Coast Parkway Singapore 449891



I tried it, and rather enjoyed it. Even when I am able to skateboard, water ski, jet ski, snowboard, cable skiing is deceptively hard!

What is Cable Skiing or Cable Wakeboarding?

Cable skiing or wakeboarding as its name implies, is waterskiing or wakeboarding where the participants are not pulled by a boat but by an overhead cable, very similar to a snow ski lift, but erected around the banks of a lake.

The speed that the cable travels is the same as the boat speed in tournament waterskiing and wakeboarding, with a top speed of 58 kph.
The cables runs counter clockwise around the lake and the participants are, very simply, hooked up to the cable on the move. It is powered by a variable speed electric motor that can maintain speed between 20 - 58 kph.

The obvious advantage to cableskiing is the dramatic reduction in the cost for the individual skier.

Participants are not restricted to wakeboarding and waterskiing - people of all ages and abilities can slalom, trick ski, kneeboard, or even surf without the wave. Up to 8 skiers or wakeboarders can participate at the same time on one cableway, with an average of 80-100 participants per day, which means that the economic aspect is guaranteed.

Well, after wakeboarding for 1 hour, I felt pretty ok, but when I reached home, I do feel aches on my forearms and shoulders. Apparently pulling on the handle is hard work, and it did work my muscles.

Even when I fall a lot, I was not hurt, and I felt that the whole setup was pretty safe and fun!

SKI PASSES

WEEKDAYS
1 Hour - $32
2 Hours - $48
4 Hours - $70
8 Hours - $115
*1 Round - $7
Subsequent hour $16/hr (Rates apply only on purchase of 2 hours pass and above)

WEEKENDS/ PUBLIC HOLIDAYS
1 Hour - $42
2 Hours - $64
*1 Round - $9
Subsequent hour- $22/hr

Students enjoy $5 off usual hour passes upon presenting their student pass
*Student rates apply till 7pm not available for night skiing

There are also weekly and monthly rates that do not make business sense, and overall, I felt that their rates were pretty high.

Equipment:

The fees above include the rental of floatation jackets, helmet and water ski, knee board or wake board.

The condition of the equipment was rather poor, and all the equipment seemed very very well used, but heh... Its free.

Overall

The experience was pretty fun. I felt that the place was a little uncoordinated, and the staff were not very customer focused. At the ticket counter, some of the staff were quite confused when I gave them our discount coupons, and we had to wait 3 hours for a group currently there to finish.

For beginners, I felt that you spend a lot of time falling in the water, and there should actually be certain time of the day where they have "beginner course" where the cables run perhaps at a lower speed.

Getting people to watch a video and expecting them to be competent enough to go round and round is simply impossible. Most beginners spend time falling and not going around the course, and I think that if there are 2 locations where cables can be launched (at opposite sides of the lagoon) then more beginners can come on and fall!

Experts can go round 5 rounds before stopping, which makes it very worth their time, and perhaps more fun, but beginners simply fall and fall and fall. (well at least for me)

I would rate this location 4/10 for the price of $42 on the weekends as it is simply not value for money, and I could spend $42 on more fun things to do in Singapore. It is fun, but feels expensive in general. (Would rate higher if it was MUCH cheaper)

I hope the staff or the people could keep the equipment in better condition too as the poor condition of the condition does raise issues on whether the safety of the equipment is regularly checked, and it gives me the impression that everyone there simply does not care.

Still I had fun.

-- Robin Low

iPad in Singapore

The iPad is now available in Singapore.

I had one a month ago, and without iTunes support, it was just a fashion accessory to show off to your friends, similar to a Vertu Phone, however, will there be any difference with the official iPad launch in Singapore?

All iPad models will be available from July 23 in Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore for a suggested retail pricesuggested retail price of S$728 for the 16GB model, S$878 for the 32GB model, S$1028 for the 64GB model, S$928 for the 16GB Wi-FiWi-Fi + 3G model, S$1078 for the 32GB Wi-Fi + 3G model and S$1228 for the 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G model. iPad will be sold through select Apple Authorised Resellers iPad will roll out to many more countries later this year and Apple will announce availability and local pricing for these additional countries at a later date.
(No thanks to the Apple Store online in Singapore)

The iPad is not too expensive compared to the US price, but here are a few points to note:

Pros:
1) iPad's touch features is fantastic, response much better than the other touch screens on tablets.

2) Simple OS, very easy to use.

3) Multi-touch surface for interacting

4) Wifi and 3G support, convenient to use anywhere.



Cons:
1) You can’t buy Kindle eBooks from Amazon (legally) as Singapore is one of the few countries that is not supported.

2) Many books are not available on iBook in Singapore.

3) Weight... The damn thing is heavy, double that of kindle perhaps?

4) Restricted Application -- Subjected to Apple's approval

5) No USB port -- REALLY annoying at times.

6) No Flash support, really annoying on many sites.

7) Back lit display, sort of like a notebook, which may cause strain to your eyes.

8) 10 hour battery life... Short for an ebook reader.

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In short, if you want to use it to read ebook and browse the web, get a Nook or a Kindle. They cost much less, and can last up to 10 days without Wifi on.

If you want more, and show off your new toy, get the iPad. It is definitely novel now as not a lot of people own it, and you can be and early adopter... Which means you will inherit all the problems and bugs not resolved by Apple.

-- Robin Low