[MyAppleMenu] May 20, 2012

applesurf at myapplemenu.com applesurf at myapplemenu.com
Sun May 20 18:59:00 EDT 2012

MyAppleMenu
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**** Here's How Desperately Cities Want Apple Stores ****
<http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57437737-71/heres-how-desperately-cities-want-apple-stores/>
Chris Matyszczyk, CNET


> According to a report, Apple gets hugely preferential leases just to open its stores in certain cities and locations. Why is anyone surprised?

I wonder if there are any countries that are courting Apple too. For example, there are no Apple stores in Singapore...


**** Hands On With Glassboard 2.0 For iOS: Simple, Private Group Sharing ****
<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/05/hands-on-with-glassboard-2-0-for-ios-simple-private-group-sharing/>
Jacqui Cheng, Ars Technica


> There's value in an app whose sole purpose is to make it easy to share things privately with social or professional groups. And although there are other apps similar to Glassboard, this one has the benefit of being very straightforward and simple—no muss, no fuss.






The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** It's Not Dick Tracy, But It Can Screen Your Messages ****
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/business/wristwatches-that-help-screen-your-messages-and-more.html?gwh=2CF6664D804492B742951C89B7D705D9>
Anne Eisenberrg, New York Times


> I’ve been trying out some of the new watches that display caller IDs, text messages, Twitter and news feeds, and the weather, too — all beamed from a nearby companion smartphone.






MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** What A Physics Student Can Teach Us About How Visitors Walk Through A Museum ****
<http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/art/2012/05/what-a-physics-student-can-teach-us-about-how-visitors-walk-through-a-museum>
Henry Adams, Smithsonian


> To devise a good layout requires some understanding of what museum visitors do, and there’s surprisingly little literature on this topic. Most of the studies of museum-goers that I’ve seen rely on questionnaires. They ask people what they did, what they learned, and what they liked and didn’t like. No doubt there are virtues to this technique, but it assumes that people are aware of what they’re doing. It doesn’t take into account how much looking depends on parts of the brain that are largely instinctive and intuitive and often not easily accessible to our rational consciousness. Was there another mode of investigation and description that would illuminate what was actually taking place?



**** Urban Entertainment Districts: Blocks Where No One Has Fun ****
<http://www.salon.com/2012/05/19/urban_entertainment_districts_blocks_where_no_one_has_fun/>
Will Doig, Salon


> If you took all the clichés about horrible urban design and shoved them into 75 acres, you’d probably end up with something pretty close to Dallas’ Victory Park.



**** How Time Stands Still In Women's Magazines ****
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/may/13/eva-wiseman-womens-magazines>
Eva Wiseman, The Observer


> I suppose it's like a failing relationship. That final morning where you wake up and lie staring at the ceiling until the alarm goes, and the first thing out of your mouth is a hoarse "It's over." It feels like a shock, until years later you look back and join the dots – those silent car journeys, the misunderstandings, an odd summer evening where something sort of happened – and you see the path of change. Of things going wrong. Women are at that point, I think, with our magazines.






SingaporeSurf
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**** DPM Teo Questions If Hougang Voters Being Taken For Granted ****
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1202498/1/.html>
Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia


> Mr Teo explained that when the WP had to choose one member from their East Coast GRC team to send to Parliament as an Non-Constituency MP, they did not choose Png Eng Huat. "If he was their best man, why didn't they choose him?" Mr Teo asked.

> "Is Hougang so special, that the WP is sending you a candidate that they themselves decided not to send to Parliament, when they had the chance?"



**** Notes On “The Material Culture Of Bukit Brown Cemetery” ****
<http://kentridgecommon.com/?p=15254>
Isaac Tan, The Kent Ridge Common



**** Pritam Singh Takes On Khaw Boon Wan And Lee Hsien Loong ****
<http://feedmetothefish.blogspot.com/2012/05/pritam-singh-takes-on-khaw-bpoon-wan.html>
Feed Me To The Fish


> Just why do people turn up by the thousands to watch non-PAP rally? On a hot steamy Saturday night which at time threatened to rain. For me, it is a chance to hear the truth. Not the filtered down reports that you get from controlled, testicles-carrying and biased mainstream media, but words spoken as they are. It is also an opportunity for like-minded people to show their unity against a Petty Arrogant Party gone wrong! Very wrong!



**** Re Ng E-Ching: Is Your Statement On Cultural Translation A Red Herring? ****
<http://newasiarepublic.com/?p=38639>
Faisal Wali, New Asia Republic


> When I saw the word “cultural translation”, it served up an eerie reminder of cultural references implicitly by our very own leaders; Lee Kuan Yew’s references to “Asian values” to justify an authoritarian rule and ex-minister Lee Boon Yang’s emphasis on the responsibility of the (mainstream) media to be sensitive to national interests such as racial and religious harmony and to promote “our shared values as a society” in defence of Singapore’s relatively low press freedom rankings.



**** American Politicians Should Learn Some Policy Lessons From Hong Kong And Singapore ****
<http://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/2012/05/19/american-politicians-should-learn-some-policy-lessons-from-hong-kong-and-singapore/>
Dan Mitchell, International Liberty


> One reason they have good tax policy is that the burden of government spending is relatively modest, usually less than 20 percent of economic output. No wonder some Americans are shifting economic activity to these pro-growth jurisdictions.



**** Is Singapore’s High GINI A Reason For It’s Low Total Fertility Rate? ****
<http://mathialee.wordpress.com/2012/05/20/is-singapores-high-gini-a-reason-for-its-low-total-fertility-rate/>
Mathia Lee


> In a low-GINI country where income differences aren’t as stark, where your spouse’s income isn’t going to impact on the quality of your parent’s medical care, there would be more people willing to let love conquer social class differences. With the income criteria more easily met by anyone, it’s easier to find someone because the number of available partners increases tremendously.



**** Open Letter To ST’s Andy Ho ****
<http://theonlinecitizen.com/2012/05/open-letter-to-sts-andy-ho/>
Ng Yi-Sheng, The Online Citizen


> Remember that "gay marriage" is not an abstract concept: there are already ten countries in the world which allow same-sex marriage. Some people with these marriage certificates are living in Singapore. If you're attempting to limit the definition of marriage to opposite-sex couples, you're pretty much trying to close the stable door after the horses have bolted.

> Second, you claim that extending marriage rights to same-sex couples would "tarnish [the] symbolic value" of marriage. Though this statement is too abstracted to be proven right or wrong, I'd like to point out that contemporary societies which have legalised same-sex marriage have seen no harm come to opposite-sex marriage: there are no climbing divorce rates, no higher instances of abuse, no dramatic declines in childbirth. The concept may have changed, but actual people aren't suffering.



**** Want Primary 1 Place? Suggest A Long-term Project ****
<http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_800920.html>
Jane Ng, Straits Times


> The schools are asking parents to commit to longer hours or come up with specific projects. Not everyone who applies can be a volunteer.

> More schools have set 60 to 80 hours of voluntary work if parents want their child registered at Phase 2B of the Primary 1 registration exercise. This is well over the Education Ministry's guideline of 'at least 40 hours'.

Also: <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_800921.html">'It's Like Applying For A Job', Says Parent Of P1 Enrolment In Popular Schools</a> (Straits Times)


**** Png Eng Huat: Hougang Is Not For Sale! ****
<http://theonlinecitizen.com/2012/05/png-eng-huat-hougang-is-not-for-sale/>
Benjamin Cheah, The Online Citizen


> Mr Png continued the narrative, saying the PAP “does not know anything about building an inclusive society” and “one thing you should never do is threaten voters”. Mr Png pointed out that Anson constituency, once held by the opposition, had disappeared, and Potong Pasir might suffer the same fate. He said Hougang must never forget this fact, and the children of Hougang must never forget that their parents had sacrificed much for their country. He argued that the PAP “threatened” democracy, and urged the crowd to “keep our fragile democracy alive”. Adding that Singapore has “a long way to go towards a First World Parliament”, he asked voters to vote WP for a First World Parliament.

Also:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_800932.html">Hougang Is Not For Sale, Says Png</a> (Straits Times): Apart from a $100 million upgrading carrot dangled by the PAP in the 2006 general election, there have been scoldings, threats and intimidation, he said.</li>
<li><a href="http://sg.news.yahoo.com/hougang-not-for-sale--workers’-party.html">Hougang Not For Sale: Workers’ Party</a> (Jeanette Tan, Yahoo!): “You have proven time and again to the PAP government that there is more to life than money; that having your voice heard in Parliament is many times better than having free Teochew porridge,” he continued, taking a dig at his opponent Desmond Choo’s previous initiative to help elderly and needy residents in the ward.</li>
</ul>


**** 刘程强：朱倍庆拿人民的钱“往自己脸上贴金” ****
<http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp120520_005.shtml>
何惜薇, 联合早报


> 后港区补选人民行动党候选人朱倍庆在竞选宣言中列举他为后港居民所提供的各项援助，但工人党秘书长刘程强认为，它们其实都是政府援助政策的一部分。他认为，朱倍庆是拿人民的钱，“往自己脸上贴金”。

> 他在后港区补选工人党的首场群众大会中说，不论朱倍庆以提供多少福利配套来换取选票，一个基本的问题是：“钱从哪里来？”

> “是从他的口袋吗？是从行动党的基金吗？在过去的大选，我都告诉行动党，这些都不是你们的钱，是纳税人的钱，是国家的钱。最终，新加坡建国总理李光耀也承认政府的钱，就是人民的钱，也就是你的钱。朱倍庆是拿你的钱，往自己脸上贴金！”

The PAP's use-taxpayer-money-to-reward-PAP-wards strategy started significantly with Goh Chok Tong and continued until today.


**** Small Countries Call For More Transparency At The United Nations ****
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18123768>
Barbara Plett, BBC


> Switzerland's UN ambassador Paul Seger has lost 7kg in the past two weeks, not from hiking in the Alps, but from battling what is known as the five "Big Powers" of the Security Council.

> His country belongs to the "Small Five", a group of middling nations that has been pushing to improve the way the Council does business with the UN's wider membership.

> So what were the Small Five - including also Costa Rica, Jordan, Liechtenstein and Singapore - proposing that so apparently threatened to upset this order?



**** An Honest Day’s Work – But Screwed Anyway ****
<http://andrewlohhp.wordpress.com/2012/05/19/an-honest-days-work-but-screwed-anyway/>
Andrew Loh


> And if the Labour Court and MOM cannot help him retrieve the money rightfully and honourably earned through hard work, then what the hell are the Court and MOM for?



**** WP Fires First ****
<http://thevoiddeck.wordpress.com/2012/05/19/wp-fires-first/>
The Void Deck







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