New Zealand technology is about to be deployed in Singapore and by all accounts it is a nifty device they are testing.
The university I worked for, before heading to Singapore, (AUT University) has developed a PowerTread system, in which "tubes that are compressed by vehicles and pump hydraulic fluid to turn a turbine and generate electricity".
Powertread has already been successfully trialled on the Causeway providing lighting for one of the border booths for a couple of days.
The Singapore government is getting behind the product's further development and commercialization and one of the country's malls is going to be the next test bed..
They might have been best to put a unit on the road leading to the Integrated Resorts as the volume of gamblers making their way to Marina Bay Sands and Sentosa would give Powertread a real work out.
There are a few moments in one's mortal journey when a life altering is decision takes place. I had one such epiphany two days ago.
Staring at the mirror on a cold winter's morning I decided to shave off my moustache. This carefully cultivated zone of self indulgence first sprouted on my upper lip some thirty five years ago.
It has also survived and flourished in its various manifestations over 26 years of marriage despite suggestions to the contrary.
I blame this sudden and rash decision on my change of diet after leaving Singapore. Soup and porridge have now become staples and a moustache is not the best item of body adornment in such circumstances.
The rationale for my earlier decision to wear a moustache are now lost in the mists of time. No doubt the influence of Hollywood's leading men such as Clark Gable had something to do with it, but more likely it was the 1970's rock scene where long hair and a droopy moustache were de rigeur.
I may have been no Rhett Butler I but I did have a passing resemblance to Ringo Starr on the Sgt Pepper Album's cover art.
Historical evidence suggests that the mosutache has been worn for thousands of years. Eighth Century Latin refers to the "mustacium" and Hellenistic Greek to "mustax". The Pazyrik horseman pictured (circa 300 BCE) sports a pencil thin moustache.
My morning decision had no such historical context. The sobering reality has been that no one actually noticed I had shaved off the offending appendage!
Even the pair of eyes that can observe a sock out of place in the tallboy at forty paces failed to notice the physical change as she passed me by.
Either I have become as superfluous as the furniture, or the colour of said moustache has now changed to such a degree that it matches the skin colour of my upper lip - I suspect the latter.
There is something almost biblical about the tablet - not the Moses variety, the one that Steve Jobs has been touting.
The Straits Times has a report about the launch of the iPad tablet in Wellington today and the frustration experienced by those in the grip of "iPad mania"
Why people bother queuing overnight for a piece of technology that will be superseded within the year by a later version, is beyond me?
Evidently Apple have gone to the extreme with the latest launch of not wanting to reveal in advance where people can buy an iPad. Surely a basic tenant of marketing is that a sale can only take place when one can discover the product?
The launch seems a classic case of hype over substance and I for one will not be beating a path to my local retailer to purchase an iPad.
Singaporeans are into the latest techno-fads as this video demonstrates.
Not that I am opposed to technology, far from it. Since returning from Singapore a couple of weeks ago we have been busy buying a house lot of electronic wizardy.
One such purchase has been a Samsung full HD television. I was surprised to discover that thanks to the recession, the prices for the latest sets here in New Zealand compare very favourably with those in Singapore.
Within three years New Zealand is moving completely to high definition and away from analgue television so it makes sense to get full HD now. Coupled with a simple UHF aerial, this new set will allow me to pick up all of the free to air channels. We made sure we did not purchase an "HD Ready" model which is not full HD and needs a decoder box.
When we left in 2006 there were fewer options but now the channels seem to have spawned several more. The content is a lot better than what was on offer on the Mediacorp free channels and of course the global news broadcasts are far more comprehensive and less controlled.
There is even a dedicated Chinese Channel which is Auckland based so Cantonese dramas and variety shows will be on the menu.
Prime Television is my personal pick and is Australian controlled. It has good sports coverage (albeit often delayed) and old favourites such as the Antiques Roadshow.
One free channels I will be giving a miss is the parliamentary channel which is about as exciting as watching paint dry. Watching the PAP MPs answering prepared questions on Singapore's Channel Five of an evening was enough to put me off for life and our parliamentarians are no better.
It is not uncommon to see young Singaporeans getting on the bus or MRT clutching a paddle.
I was of the belief that this item was to do with dragon boat racing or some other water sport, but given the recent spate of flooding in Singapore perhaps mine was an incorrect assumption?
Maybe they are simply preparing for the Great Flood?
In the above video MM once again makes an astute observation; it is simply not possible for Singapore to become flood free.
One only has to look at the enormous volume of water that roars through the canals during a heavy tropical rainstorm to realise that it is impossible to engineer for every eventuality.
Environment Minister Yaacob Ibrahim (pictured above) is getting a lot of stick in the blogosphere regarding his previous statement that Orchard Road flooding was a "once in 50 year" event.
If you think things are bad in Singapore spare a thought for China where more than 6 million people have been displaced by recent flooding.
No doubt the authorities are keeping their fingers crossed that the next deluge does not coincide with the soon to be staged Youth Olympics. The highways are already being prepared for the YOG and motorists will be expected to be especially observant of blinking lights and YOG number plates.
There is evidently a Plan B according to the chairman of bus operations at the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (Syogoc). Here's hoping they won't need to use it.
The Mao Shan King variety of the fruit is the one that tickles his fancy. The cost of the purchase was just over $Sing 2,000 but if you add in the jet fuel and pilot's wages the costs becomes prohibitive for mere mortals.
Stanley Ho is an interesting man. He ranks 84th on Forbes rich list with a personal worth of $6.5 billion and rising. He is married and has 17 children.
His purported links to Chinese organised crime has meant that his daughter Pansy failed to get a casino license to operate in New Jersey.
No doubt Singapore authorities have inside knowledge about Mr Ho and his associations that they share with the US regulators, and this information is unlikely to be made public any time soon.
