The Flying Saucer At Sunset

Lenticular clouds (Altocumulus lenticularis) are stationary lens-shaped clouds with a smooth layered appearance that form in the troposphere, usually above mountain ranges. One was spotted in Singapore recently...

Eyes Of 30,000 Honeycombs

With 30,000 individual facets, dragonflies have the most number of facets among insects. Each facet, or ommatidia, creates its own image, and the dragonfly brain has eight pairs of descending visual neurons to compile those thousands of images into one picture...

A Kaleidoscope Of Colours, Shapes And Patterns

Spectacular and innovative in design, the Flower Dome replicates the cool-dry climate of Mediterranean regions like South Africa, California and parts of Spain and Italy. Home to a collection of plants from deserts all over the world, it showcases the adaptations of plants to arid environments...

Lightning Strikes, Not Once, But Many Times

Unlike light, lightning does not travel in a straight line. Instead, it has many branches. These other branches flashed at the same time as the main strike. The branches are actually the step leaders that were connected to the leader that made it to its target...

Are You My Dinner Tonight?

A T-Rex has 24-26 teeth on its upper jaw and 24 more on its lower jaw. Juveniles have small, sharp blade-shaped teeth to cut flesh, whereas adults have huge, blunt, rounded teeth for crushing bones. Is the T-Rex a bone-crushing scavenger?

Green Carpet Awards 2013 - Nurturing NextGen Green PhotoJournalists

8:26 AM  , , , , , , , , ,  

Keming Primary School
Bukit Batok, Singapore
May 2013

Merlion Wayfarer was recently invited to preview the Green Carpet Awards 2013.


Organized by the World Marketing Group, and supported by National Geographic Explorer and the National Parks Board, the Green Carpet Awards (GCA) is an award ceremony recognizing the nature photography and journalistic work of young explorers from schools all over Singapore. It is sponsored by Nikon Singapore to engage and inspire students in primary and secondary schools about the environment and how pollution affects it greatly. Mrs. Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, former Minister of State for the Ministry of Community Development Youth & Sports, and Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for the Environment & Water Resources, had graced the event as the guest-of-honour for 2011, and 2012 respectively.

Through photojournalism, GCA aims to:
  1. Educate by nurturing the next generation of environmentally-conscious leaders through programmes organised in partnerships with the private (Nikon, National Geographic Explorer) and public (National Parks Board) sectors
  2. Engage by mobilizing the public in achieving a greener future through a series of exhibitions and road shows for student advocates to lobby for a change in perspectives and attitudes
  3. Empower by providing the platform for students to reverse their social roles, and lead the community on a renewed charge for a greener lifestyle

“I always think that children are wiser and more perceptive than adults because they see the world without preconceptions and prejudices, and thus would be able to point out what adults have always taken for granted and overlooked. Children can be our best teachers, they deserve a voice and that’s why we have the grandest platform in the Green Carpet Awards to help children deliver their voices to Singapore.”
- Jim Huang, GCA Organizing Committee Chairman

A Site Visit
  

At Keming Primary School, Merlion Wayfarer got to speak to Tng Qian Hui and Mithunashree, 2 of the 5 nominees from Keming, who shared their inspirations on their photos. Situated in scenic Bukit Batok, Keming has a comprehensive English curriculum that weaves in pictorial and photo-journalistic components, together with excursions like the Underwater World in Sentosa and nature trails in Singapore. 


Merlion Wayfarer was also pleased to hear that for the first time, there was a nomination from APSN (Tanglin), a special needs school. On her visit to Sungei Buloh, Siti Aisyah captured a moving scene with a flock of birds flying past her. 


More Information
   

All top 20 GCA nominees will be exhibiting their photography works at Gardens by the Bay on 29-30 June 2013, and lead members of the public on an adventure trail themselves. The public exhibition will also be held at Cheng San Community Club in Ang Mo Kio on 13 July 2013.


The glamorous award event will take place on 06 July 2013 at Nanyang Polytechnic with a 1,000 strong audience who will witness the birth of the top green advocates who will be dressed in their finest as they are recognized on stage.

For more information,  visit www.greencarpetawards.org.


Next : Merlion Wayfarer's GCA Adventure Trail begins at the "The Secret Life of Trees"...


More photos are available on Merlion Wayfarer Goes Green's Picasa at :

Sources

  • "Green Carpet Awards 2013 Surprises Top 20 Student Nominees at Schools with Glamorous Hollywood Fanfare" (31 May 2013).  Media Release, Green Carpet Awards 2013.
  • "Nominated Entries 2013" (28 May 2013). Green Carpet Awards.
      

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Gardens By The Bay - Environmental Sustainability

7:16 AM  , , , , , ,  

Gardens By The Bay
Marina South, Singapore
June 2013

After spending the day at Gardens By The Bay's "Flight Of Fancy", Merlion Wayfarer was wondering about the environmental impact of artificially cooling two huge conservatories and generating enough power to keep a seven-storey high waterfall running non-stop for 12 hours daily.


Curious, she did some research...

Comprising two glass biomes, the cooled conservatories - Flower Dome and Cloud Forest - replicate the cool-dry climate of the Mediterranean and the semi-arid sub-tropical regions and cool-moist climate of the Tropical Montane region . A diverse collection of plants not commonly seen in equatorial weather are housed here.


A series of cutting-edge technologies for energy-efficient solutions in cooling are built within the conservatories:
 
  • Use of biofuel
The energy used for powering the chillers is produced by a biomass furnace that uses horticultural waste produced within Gardens by the Bay and island-wide by National Parks Board.
  
  • Minimizing solar heat gain
The two conservatories are fitted with specially selected glass that allows optimal light in for plants, but reduces a substantial amount of heat. The roof is fitted with a sensor-operated retractable sails that opens automatically to provide shade to the plants when it gets too hot.
  
  • Cooling only the occupied zones
The Conservatories apply the strategy of cooling only the lower levels, thus reducing the volume of air to be cooled. This is achieved through thermal stratification - ground cooling by chilled water pipes cast within the floor slabs enabling cool air to settle at the lower occupied zone while the warm air rises and is vented out at high levels.
    
  • De-humidifying the air before cooling
To reduce the amount of energy required in the cooling process, the air in the conservatories is de-humidified by liquid desiccant (a drying agent) before it is cooled. This desiccant is recycled using the waste heat from the burning of the biomass and accumulated at the higher levels of the cooled conservatories.
   
  • Generating energy and harnessing waste heat
Electricity is generated on-site to run the chillers that cool the Conservatories. At the same time, waste heat is captured in the process to regenerate the liquid desiccant. This co-generation of energy is achieved by the use of a Combined Heat Power (CHP) steam turbine that is fed by horticultural waste from the Gardens and other parks around Singapore. This reduces dependency on the electrical grid.


(Source : Gardens By The Bay)

An energy modelling study showed that by applying the technologies, the energy consumption for the conservatories is comparable to that of an average commercial building in Singapore of the same footprint and height, normalized over a 24-hour cooling period.

This helps achieve at least 30% savings in energy consumption, compared to conventional cooling technologies.


(This article is part of Merlion Wayfarer Goes Green's Gardens By The Bay series.)

The full albums are available at:

Sources



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LG Optimus G - A Lighter & Greener Phone

4:06 AM  , , , ,  

Singapore 
June 2013 

The mobile phone industry has long been scrutinized for its environmental impact. Particular component materials have been focused on, the most common example being magnesium, and LG was one of the first manufacturers to address the issue. 

With its new LG Optimus G (E975) phone, LG reduces its environmental impact by using eco-magnesium, a new type of clean magnesium alloy developed by the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH) with funding from the government of Korea. This decision will reduce greenhouse gas emission by a factor of approximately 24,000 during the die-casting process without affecting the quality of the final product. Simply put, CO2 emissions are reduced by a whooping 4kg per handset!


The Sprint version of the Optimus G earned ULE Platinum certification the highest level of environmental performance issued by the Underwriters Laboratory Environment. In addition, the Optimus G was also granted CarbonFree® Product certification, a program is aimed at increasing awareness of product emissions and recognizing companies that are taking responsibility for their products carbon footprint while helping to hasten a market transformation to a low-carbon future.

LG, which research company IDC says is the world's third-largest phone maker in terms of unit sales after Nokia and Samsung, has already removed lead, cadmium, nickel, halogen substances, and other EU RoHS materials from its production of mobile phones. Standby power has also been reduced in portable chargers, and a reminder feature lets users know when the handset is fully charged.

Merlion Wayfarer was honoured to be offered the privilege to review this handset. She agreed to the opportunity because of the direction that LG is going - to provide green technology with a reduced carbon footprint yet maintaining the high standards of its products. (The review will be posted in about one month's time, so keep a look out!)

LG takes its role as a green innovation solutions provider seriously. It continually introduces products that meet and exceed the most stringent environmental standards, helping LG customers achieve cleaner, greener lifestyles.

Other products which Merlion Wayfarer were introduced to:
  • It is often presumed that the bigger the product, the larger the energy consumption. However, LG's 84-inch Ultra-High Definition 3D TV  features a maximum energy saving mode (saves energy both in standby and active modes) that cuts energy consumption by 70 percent over conventional TVs.
  • LG's dishwashers and washing machines are designed to use less water and electricity, its refrigerators create new energy efficient storage options and its ovens cook food faster, thus reducing energy consumption.
  • For instance, the LG GR-M236JSQN Side By Side Fridge, which is built with an Inverter Linear Compressor is more efficient as the technology reduces friction points thus minimizing energy loss. The increased durability is evident with the accompanying 10 year warranty on the inverter linear compressor. LED Lights are used at the top and side of the refrigerator providing a brighter view while reducing energy consumption that saves cost.

Thank you, LG!

Related Reviews

More photos are available on Merlion Wayfarer Goes Green's Picasa at :

Sources

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"Go Eco, Get Crafty" With Old Tees & Socks

11:30 PM  , , , ,  

City Square Mall
Kitchener Road, Singapore
June 2013


Last weekend, Merlion Wayfarer participated in an Eco Crafts Workshop organized by Panasonic and OMY with City Square Mall being the venue sponsor. Part of the "Fun Learning With Panasonic" series, "Go Eco, Get Crafty" was hosted by Evelyn Kuek, TV host from Okto/Kids Central and held at City Square Mall, Singapore's first Eco-Mall. 


Find "crafty" solutions for those faded or out-of-sized old T-shirts and socks...
  1. T-Shirt Coaster
  2. T-Shirt Bag
  3. Sock Pouch

Stomach-filling food was provided for both the participants and the bloggers...

Q&A for the participants to win some prizes - Lots of enthusiastic little hands going up!

It's hard to get the little ones to stand still for a photo...

Ending the workshop with a eco-tour around the mall...

All-in-all, it was a cheery end to a warm afternoon with new tips on saving the environment...

  
Thank you, Panasonic, OMY and City Square! 


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"Go Eco, Get Crafty" - Sock Pouch

11:29 PM  , , , ,  

City Square Mall
Kitchener Road, Singapore
June 2013
  

Problem
   

Socks overstretched due to excessive washing? Lost one sock and can't find the other? No problem lah!


Solution

(Materials required : Sock, Scissors, Straw, Shoelace or Ribbon)

  1. Cut two notches in the top hem of the sock. Don't cut further than the hem.

    "If I don't know what is a 'notch', can I help cut the other items?"

  2. Slip one piece of the shoelace or ribbon through the straw. Pull it back against the outside of the straw.

    Threading is not as easy as you think hor...

  3. Slide the straw and shoelace/ribbon through one of the notched openings in the sock. Thread it through to the opening on the other side of the sock.

    Jie Jie from Panasonic helps with the threading...

    Ge Ge from Panasonic helps too...

  4. Remove the straw and tie the ends of the shoelace/ribbon into a double knot.

    Mama takes a proud pic of Ah Girl doing her handicraft...

  5. Repeat Steps 3 & 4 on the opposite side of the sock for the second piece of shoelace/ribbon.

    "I just want to decorate!"

    A cohesive family effort...


  

Sources (Photos)

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