It's time for taking action through your blog again!
Every year on 15 October is Blog Action Day where the bloggosphere aligns its conversation for a day towards a particular cause by talking about the same thing on the same day. This year's cause is "Climate Change". Very timely since the treaty succeeding the Kyoto Protocol will likely be adopted at this year's COP15.
For the last 2 years, Midnight Monkey Monitor has been taking part in Blog Action Day. 2009 will be no different. I have registered my blog. So far 31 blogs from Singapore are listed. Are you one of them? Will you be joining in the action? Register your blogs now!
"Saving forests five times better than carbon capture for climate action" 7 Oct 2009, WWF Sweden
WWF Sweden is urging its government — holding the current EU Presidency - to get behind an effective international agreement on halting forest loss as a key and highly cost effective measure on climate change.
"Sweden should follow the examples set by its northern neighbors in developing systems to halt deforestation," said WWF CEO General Lasse Gustavsson.. "One Swedish krona to stem deforestation results in the same emissions reductions as five kronor for the controversial carbon capture and storage technique."
Gold in Green Forests, a report issued today by WWF-Sweden, says that next to energy efficiency halting forest loss and degradation is the most cost-effective method for mitigating climate change.
The annual loss of natural forests in developing countries is equivalent to one third of Sweden’s surface area. Forest fires, the conversion of forests to agricultural land and the cultivation of energy crops are responsible for the high rate of forest loss.
A program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation, known as REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) is currently being discussed in the negotiations for a global climate deal. REDD aims to make it worthwhile for developing countries to maintain their forests, as opposed to cutting them down.
In order for REDD to succeed it needs a suitable framework and international finance, including aid to developing countries will be required. Potential investors recently surveyed by WWF said they would be ready to support a forest carbon market if certainty and support were forthcoming from the international community and key national
"prioritise solutions that are best for both the environment and our wallets"
In Indonesia, where large areas of forests are cut down and prepared for palm oil plantations, 80 percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from deforestation. Halting deforestation would not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but would also secure the livelihoods of people living in these forests.
”We should always prioritize solutions that are best for both the environment and our wallets, especially during the ongoing financial crisis. Sweden’s cautious attitude in this area is therefore very surprising,” said Gustavsson, who calls for the government to take action during the ongoing climate change conference in Bangkok and secure a system to finance the protection of the world’s forests.
”Norway, Finland, Denmark and Germany have already guaranteed financing for REDD between 2010 and 2012. It's time for the Swedish government to take action - both domestic and as EU President,” he said.
If parties are able to come to an agreement on a new climate deal in Copenhagen, it will not enter into force until 2013. Meanwhile deforestation will continue to accelerate in large parts of the tropics.
“Time is passing and the possibility of reaping the positive climate effects that a stop in the loss of forests entails is decreasing rapidly. Complex social, economic and ecological are involved which is why a global cooperation for REDD must be carefully prepared,” says Stefan Henningsson, Climate Director, WWF Sweden.
WWF negotiators in Bangkok are urging a an insitutional structure for REDD which guarantees transparency, effectiveness and longterm financing from developed countries in support of measures in developing countries. In financing, WWF is seeking the equivalent of $US 42 billion per year after 2013, a key element of an estimated financing requirement of $US 160 billion annually for climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing countries.
The scheme would aim for a goal of zero net deforestation by 2020, with WWF also emphasising that forestry and climate projects must also contribute to the conservation of biological diversity and respect the rights of local and native populations.
As some of you may know, this monkey is no longer a full time graduate student but is now a gainfully employed member of the workforce since August 2009. Still, that is no excuse for my silence on the blog front. Just some updates on what I have been up to since my last post!
4 Oct 2009: Really Really Free Market Been waiting 2 months to give away clothes at the Really Really Free Market, held monthly at Post-Museum, Rowell Road. Everything at RRFM is free and people can freely take and give. There are also a lot of indian workers in the vicinity who takes the clothes to give their family and partners. I brought down 4 big bags of clothes and items which were all taken by the end of 4 hours! There were about 10 pieces of leftovers which were collected by one kind soul who sent them to a disaster relief collection point. I hope all the clothes went to good use and good homes.
3 Oct 2009: Guided GE2221 Nature & Society Students at Chek Jawa Had a wet and wild afternoon with students from the NUS geography module "Nature & Society" at Chek Jawa, talking about conservation and development in the pouring rain. Despite being drenched, I had a thoroughly good time and I hope they did too! More photos here.
2 Oct 2009: The Naked Truth and other Sluggish Affairs After a 2 months hiatus, we kick started activities at The Leafmonkey Workshop with Chay Hoon's naked workshop on slugs and other naked molluscs. Read more about what happened on the newly revamped The Leafmonkey Workshop website! Photos can be found here.
Revamp of The Leafmonkey Workshop Website To celebrate our upcoming 1st year anniversary of The Leafmonkey Workshop, I recently revamped the website to a user-friendly version with a new logo to commemorate our first milestone. One young, tender leaf to mark our first year.
28 Sep 2009: "Kelongs Vanishing fast in Singapore" I was recently contacted and quoted in a ST article on "Kelongs Vanishing Fast in Singapore" (28 September 2009)
Ms November Tan, who runs environmental workshops islandwide, acknowledges that aquaculture is a popular solution for food sustainability: 'Food security will be easier met with fish farming,' she said, but added that there are environmental problems with aquaculture.
'There are issues with water pollution due to faecal waste and risk of disease due to fish overcrowding.'
The best solution, she said, is to cut down on consumption so the natural population in the sea can replenish itself.
'It boils down to consumer choice,' she said. 'Singaporeans almost never ask where our fish come from. We seem to think there is a never-ending supply. That is not the case.'
Here's wishing everybody a happy yuletide season and a great 2009 ahead. What a year 2008 has been. Do read on if you're interested in my little holiday update for all of you.
Thank you for supporting the leafmonkey's inconsistent rambling over the year(s). Many apologies for not working hard at creating regular content on this blog. If you're wondering what I've been up to, I've been somewhat regularly updating my research blog. So for now, I'm contemplating my career upon graduation, publication and writing my thesis, in that (somewhat warped) order of priority. Nonetheless, I've been collecting an arsenal of things to share on this blog, just waiting for a moment of inspiration to unleash it!
Of course, as usual, to save unnecessary paper use, I've designed my own christmas ecards to share the holiday season with friends and family. Feel free to use them to send to your own friends and family. Last year's series is also available for use and is tied in with Buy Nothing Christmas.
2008 has been a very eventful year but yet time flies and already it's December and soon, 2009. I do hope that the coming year will be one that is fruitful, peaceful and with more positive action around the world and in our own backyard. In 2009, I will be finishing my last semester in my Masters at NUS. Time has slipped out of my hands before I know it, it's time to graduate! Guess it's my new year resolution to work harder in 2009 to be the change I want to see in the world. I will work harder with my research, with the leafmonkey workshop and of course in my own daily green actions.
Thank you all who have taught me, shared their wisdom with me, helped me, worked with me, collaborated on projects, learned with me, laughed with me and just given me friendship and support in 2008. Here's wishing 2009 to be a great year ahead for all of us, for the environment, for the other 99% of the planet and for the world. Thank you again. What would I do without all of you? :)
Lots of love, laughter, hugs and kisses; always, Monkey
A few days ago, Ria emailed me saying that Digital Life is interested in doing an article about how to be "green" with tech-related lifestyle. I thought that apart from talking about the usual "save electricity, reduce carbon footprint" spiel, I can talk more about what we have been using technology for in terms of "eco social media". I just want to clarify that my quote was edited and "advocating conservation and environmentalism" can be fun too! Here are some fun things that didn't manage to get fitted into the tiny newspaper column!
1. Reduce your carbon footprint Well the most basic of being "green" is to reduce your carbon footprint. That's the buzzword in this globalized world these days. How can we do that? Switch off your gadgets, blah blah blah. But how about less gadget upgrading? It just wasn't possible to include this in press as all their advertisers would be quite upset. Honestly I've resisted upgrading my phone for the last 5 years. And trust me, it takes a lot of effort! Resist resist. resist the iphone. resist a pda phone. resisted the nokia n-series with GPS! It's not easy but it's healthier. When they say I have a long list of gadgets, I meant I travel with all of those (except PC) perpetually. Not forgetting peripherals! How do I make sure I don't die from overexposure to electromagnetic frequencies?
2. Get away from your computer more often! Go out and be with nature more. If you have followed my "lights out" project, I really tried doing that. Lights out is not just about switching things off but reacquainting yourself with life away from gadgets. I don't sit in the dark. I go out and be with nature, be with family, friends and people instead of sitting in the dark! Savor the sweet scent of tembusu as it blooms in the dark. Listen to the hooting of the resident owl beside my office. Chat with friends! Read a book at a library. You get the idea! Very fun one. Confirm, guarantee plus chop! 3. Offset your carbon footprint. If you cannot reduce your carbon footprint, offset with something more meaningful! I've mentioned this in the article but the idea is that since you are using the gadgets already, use it for something meaningful that will help to do something that will offset the gadget's consumption footprint! There are of course so many ways to do it. :) But please don't just try to buy your way out of this. I think there are many more meaningful and actual tangible ways we can do it. Sometimes we do it without even knowing. For example, by clicking or passing on a message in facebook re: environment, like telling your friend about the I want to go Cyrene Reef facebook group, you are doing something indirectly for the environment!
4. Be self-reflexive! Interestingly, in a recent AAGCultural and Political Ecology Specialty Group mailing list, an academic pointed out to the group that if all of us are studying about environmental issues, what are we doing ourselves to offset or reduce the carbon footprint of our own research's travel? We jet around the world to do fieldwork but think of the fuel consumption! It's really important to be reflexive and it was just great to hear that from professors :)
5. Make the most of what you have! If you read the full article, Hang Chong said something really true too. With gadgets comprising of more tools these days, you can have a universal machine that does everything. But as long as something works, it's good enough too! I constantly catch myself saying to others, "can use can liao lah!". For example, I have a very old nokia phone that doesn't even have a built in camera! But it has GPRS and I can surf twitter on it! I bring my laptop almost everywhere and can use it to skype and call people even when I forgot to bring my phone! Yes it's heavy but one laptop means less gadgets! 6. Embrace the concept of Sharing. Recently I am in need of a 3G phone to use in Japan when I visit in September. But instead of succumbing to the temptation of buying a new iphone, I decided to crowdsource for a phone to borrow. I posted on twitter and facebook asking if anybody has a spare 3G phone to lend me and voila! Reply within the day. This is great! Playing with gadgets without increasing the footprint. Sharing also includes ride-sharing, carpooling, etc. And the good part? You get to make more friends and appreciate your existing friends more :)
7. Engage your friends! I must say that I really have a lot of friend "advocating conservation and environmentalism. The so-called "spending a lot of my time online is for spreading the message" include, for example, writing this blog post! Or posting a link on facebook, or chatting with people about it! Actually devising ways to "harness" social media for environment is challenging and fun. But the best is really engaging people. Starting conversations and getting discussions going on twitter when I saw otters was more fun than just the satisfaction of knowing the "message was passed". I enjoy reading the replies from twitter followers whenever I talk about what green things I have (or have not!) been doing.
Remember, it's not just about the environment. It's really about the people.
As many of you may know, I am in the midst of my Master Candidature and I am desperately in need of time off to focus on my research. I may still post as and when but for now, it's off to work hard on my vegetables. If you want to know more, you can read my research blog. Meantime, I will be writing less here for the next 4 months till mid August when I return from my field work.
Until then, keep an eye and ear out and be that voice for nature :)
Update on 31 Jul 08: I'm back! For good. For now... I miss Cameron Highlands already :(
On 18 June 2008, I published on this blog the email interview I had with a reporter from Straits Times who wanted to feature some "green champions". Today, the article appeared and I am sad to say that there are some serious errata in the small section about me. The writer actually emailed me the draft on Thursday night but I was on my way at 2am to Kuala Lumpur to do vegetable delivery with a farmer. Thus, I did not see the draft nor had the opportunity to send in corrections until it was already published in today's newspaper.
Here's what was published on 21 June 2008 in Life!
Ms November Tan, 26, winner of the Bayer Young Environmentalist Award and HSBC National Youth Achievement Award
Ms November Tan began her love affair with nature when she was a child. She went for hikes with her parents and learnt about the environment she lives in.
Now 26, she is a nature guide on Pulau Ubin, taking groups around the island and teaching them about environmental conservation. She also trains new guides, and authors a blog about the island and its history.
The environmental warrior in her also initiated Toddycats Engage, a group of over 100 volunteers from the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, which provides feedback to various government agencies and organisations on environmental issues.
'Every time I hear somebody come up to me saying that they felt inspired to do something for the environment, even if it's as simple as to stop using straws, I feel a sense of fulfilment.'
Errata:
First of all, Toddycats Engage only has about 10-20 members and was defunct after 4 meetings. Yes, Toddycats had over 100 volunteersToddycats has only 35 volunteers and 20 alumni today. Toddycats Engage was just a small project within the entire volunteer group! Apologies to all Toddycats for this. I am deeply embarrassed by this.
If you read my original interview, I by no means implied this at all! I do not know where he got his information from. Furthermore, Toddycats Engage was a project from 2005 - 3 years ago! There is no mention of anything I do after 2005 which is even more disappointing! Thus, I also have to apologize to the Naked Hermit Crabs for this.
Finally, the Bayer award was called "Bayer Young Environmental Envoy" and not "Bayer Young Environmentalist". Again, sorry to the BYEE Alumni as well. Furthermore it's the HSBC / NYAA Youth Environment (Merit) Award.
I seem to have done no right to any of my groups. I'm sorry. :( Sorry for the melodrama. I was rather upset when I wrote this. Thanks for all the comments!
Black Friday is so called not because of dooms and glooms but because in the US, every retail business would be in the "blacks", making a profit. It is the only day in the whole year where every business is guaranteed to make money.
Why? Just watch the video above and you can guess why. And it is precisely Black Friday that Buy Nothing Day came into existence. To curb this kind of extreme consumerism in ONE DAY. I guess it's like After Christmas Sales for us or perhaps the Great Singapore Sale. One month of consumerism madness. Perhaps there should be a local Buy Nothing Day targeted at our consumer quirks.
Today I will be spending Buy Nothing Day at Fort Caning. Lapiz Lazuli Light is having a Holistic Health Green Carnival called "an ant's endeavor to move a tree". Although it's not a problem for me to resist buying really cool things, I suspect I will be spending most of my time trying to persuade my friend not to succumb to the allure. Unfortunately as she reminded me, we're supposed to be there to support the cause. We'll see. Anywho, we have made a home-made lunch to picnic at the park later. That should be fun :) We've made sure we didn't use any luxurious ingredients. Having an Indonesian food theme picnic later!
The Midnight Monkey Monitor has been 'discovered' by the Blogger Team and listed as their "blog of note" as of 20 November 2007!
Blogs of note started as the "blog of the week" feature on blogger's main page. These are "Interesting and noteworthy Blogger-powered blogs, compiled by the Blogger Team" which you can find on the sidebar in your blogger dashboard or on the main login page of blogger.com. Naturally, you can also find it on the blogs of note blog!
I had no idea I was being listed until this morning when I was checking my email and suddenly saw a barrage of very supportive comments on my new blog posts and on my daily green action project posts. As most of my readers are usually local, I was wondering where this sudden influx of international visitors came from.
That's when I found out! Shocking! I really wonder how Blogger found me.
I really want to thank everybody who have visited, read, and left me a comment! Thank you so much for your support. This has really given me a boost of energy, inspiration and motivation to continue with my projects and writing. And of course, thank you Blogger Team! :)
Hopefully this outreach to readers will soon spread to Singaporeans who are the core of my target readers since much of this blog revolves around environmental awareness and issues in Singapore. Now that I got the attention of the world, hopefully I'll get the attention of singaporeans soon!
On 10 November 2007, Singapore Environment Council (SEC) launched their brand new Youth Portal. It is a fantastic resource of article, projects and even job listings!
I was also pleasantly surprised that my article for the latest issue of Elements (the SEC newsletter) has also been uploaded on the website. It is not even in pdf form but a web version. Very convenient. Too bad 90% of the photos are not included.
Despite this being a youth portal by SEC, I do hope that there would be more information about SEC's volunteer arm, the Green Volunteer Network (GVN) itself! Understandably this is not GVN's website but so much could be known about the effort by GVN on Pulau Ubin, especially the green house on Ubin built by GVN. I think there are a lot of people who would love to know more about it. Of course monkeys like me would love to have an easy link online to connect people to the green house. I guess I'll just have to write something up sometime soon!
Still, great effort on the youth portal. It looks like a very promising website. Hopefully people will put it to task and utilize it as it is meant to be!
A birthday gift to Team Seagrass from Chee Kong (illustrator) and Monkey (colour and design).
This October would mark the one year anniversary of Team Seagrass which began when Seagrass Watch International first came to Singapore, marking the beginning of the excellent seagrass monitoring project in the shores of Singapore headed by two amazing ladies, Ria Tan and Siti Maryam Yaakub. Of course, without the many volunteers who commit their time and energy to the project, there would be no Team Seagrass!
So this is wishing everybody at Team Seagrass a Happy 1st Birthday and hopefully with many more to come!
You can be part of this amazing and dynamic group, contributing to the long term monitoring and study of the fast disappearing seagrass communities around the world!
Update on September 13: It appears the earthquakes and tremors are yet to be over. Latest updates at the bottom of the post.
This is truly a classic case of the beauty of web 2.0 connectivity.
14 minutes ago at around 7.29pm, Otterman posted a vague message on twitter.com:
"So it was tremors, not a giddy spell. Adrian [lekowala] says neighbourhood getting out of flats in Sengkang... he's at ground floor now"
Photo by Lekowala in Sengkang
At 7.35pm, I reread the message and decided to investigate if there was an earthquake and by searching for "tremors singapore" on Google, the 2nd hit was NEA's website on "Latest Regional Earthquakes" which kindly provided me with the information I was looking for.
30 minutes ago at around 7.10pm, a earthquake of magnitude 7.15 on the Richter Scale was measured off the Southwest of Sumatra. The website reports that a "local tsunami may be generated near earthquake source but unlikely to affect Singapore". This really proves that NEA is on top of their updates. I am rather glad of their efficiency.
Location of earthquake at Sumatra in red square. Map from USGS.
However, it must have been rather serious for it to be felt all the way in Sengkang, Singapore. However, while I was happily sitting here in my office in NUS, I felt nothing and am still awaiting confirmation from Otterman if he felt the tremors or was it only Lekowala.
A class in Natural Hazard 2 years ago taught this monkey that our friends in the Eastern Singapore is more likely to feel tremors as the ground they are on are made of sedimentary alluvium material which is less stable than the granite and what not other hardier material that we are seated on.
Unbelieving that nobody else has picked up on this, at 7.44pm, I made a search on Google News and no news agency has picked up this earthquake yet. At 7.49pm, I again searched for news and see that Channelnewsasia has made a "breaking news" entry on their front page stating that a 7.9 earthquake has struck Indonesia. As usual, there are magnitude discrepancy during the first hour of the earthquake hitting. Google has also picked up a one line feed from Associated Press stating that a powerful earthquake has made Jakarta buildings sway. Apparently at 7.41pm, CNA has made a report of Singaporeans feeling tremors but did not mention any details of location, instead providing only background to the earthquake and past events.
I'm still waiting for images to come in and for Lekowala to show some photos or perhaps to blog about the tremors in Singapore!
Updates 7.58pm: Otterman said that he felt tremors not in NUS but at Holland Village. I stick to my original argument that Kent Ridge is on hardier ground, geologically. USGS reports the earthquake to be 7.8 but NEA has yet to make any changes. Subscribe to USGS's earthquake RSS feed from around the world to keep updated on the latest.
Photo uploaded by 9.
8.06pm: Found that at 7.35pm, a friend uploaded the earthquake location map (above) on flickr as well as the breaking news headline on CNN (below). The easy to use photo sharing mechanisms at work! Naturally he also blogged about it. Apparently at 7.14 Singapore time, all hell broke lose on the Hardwarezone Eat Drink Man Woman forum. Cowboybar is no slower with members posting about the tremors at around 7.20pm when a member felt the quake downtown. 5 minutes later, other members reported tremors from Bukit Panjang.
Photo uploaded by 9.
This sharing of information in real time, at different places in Singapore, sharing experiences and checking on friends is absolutely effective. Meanwhile, I am getting in touch with people on instant messaging programs. On the other hand, said friend is waiting for youtube videos of buildings shaking. Is that too optimistic? Depends on how badly it shook I suppose. This is indeed the age of information sharing and high speed connectivity.
Screenshot of Hardwarezone forum reporting on tremors. By Kingmeng
8.06pm: Otterman blogged about the tremors and updating me on MSN. He also blogged about the tremors from the March 2007 earthquake where he likewise did not feel anything on the Ridge. Nonetheless the SCDF Civil Defence handbook gives detailed guidelines on what to do in the event of an earthquake or aftershock tremors.
So far locations where tremors have been reported:
NORTH-NORTHEAST 1) Sengkang 2) Woodlands 3) Serangoon North 4) Hougang 5) Punggol 6) Toa Payoh 7) Khatib 8) Ang Mo Kio 9) Admiralty 10) Anchorvale 11) Yisun 12) Bishan 13) Kovan
SOUTHWEST-CENTRAL 1) Bukit Panjang 2) NUS Bukit Timah Campus 3) Holland Village 4) Raffles Place 5) Bukit Batok 6) Alexandra 7) Tiong Bahru 8) Clementi 9) One Raffles Link 10) Jurong West (selected areas) 11) Chua Chu Kang 12) Yew Tee 13) Boon Lay 14) Harborfront
EAST 1) Aljunied 2) Bendemeer 3) Bugis 4) Marine Parade 5) Bedok Reservoir 6) Tampines (selected areas) 7) Whampao Drive 8) Mountbatten 9) Geylang East 10) Eunos 11) Pasir Ris (selected areas) 12) Little India 13) Kallang
Areas that reported NO tremors: 1) NUS (Kent Ridge) 2) Jurong (selected areas) 3) Tampines (selected areas) 4) Pasir Ris (selected areas)
At 7.25pm, a member on the Hardwarezone EDMW Forum reported "another round" which I am guessing refers to another round of tremors. This meant there were more than one which is really quite interesting. Were this the secondary waves, aftershocks or something else?
Many also reported that they were giddy, nauseous and felt physically sick. Some who evacuated reported seeing police and ambulance in their neighborhood to tend to any potential injured residents. There were reports of pipes being broken, ceilings cracked, water supply turning brown from pipe damages in addition to the usual swaying. Most people straightaway attribute their giddiness to possibly ill health instead of considering the possibility that the ground was shaking. Could this be due to lack of experience with earthquakes in Singapore? Some veterans (who probably live in tremor prone areas) said this was the worst tremor they have felt.
At 8.03pm, Channel news asia reports tsunami warnings being issued from Hong Kong, Malaysia and as far as Sri Lanka. Singaporeans as well should not be complacent as well if we are unlucky, and with the write geometry and strong enough magnitude, we would just see ourselves welcoming a tsunami. For now, I am just glad I am on high ground.
Likewise, Club Snap, a photography forum also has a thread with members reporting on experiencing tremors.
At 9.04pm, USGS website states 113 reports from Singapore of tremors as compared to no more than 20 from Indonesia, the place where it occured! This goes to show the wide gap in internet access within the region. Of course earthquake also means electricity being cut off. News report states that electricity and phones were disconnected due to earthquake.
9.45pm: saw Lekowala's photos of people gathering on the ground floor in Sengkang!
A discussion with my parents earlier reported that residents in the high floors at Teck Whye, Chua Chu Kang while those on the ground floor feels nothing at all. I guess that introduces another variable in the identification of tremor-prone areas. However, I am still assured that I am safe on Kent Ridge. But what if we had higher buildings on NUS, would I feel the shake? Engineering ultimately does determine the stability of buildings. Afterall the Japan Kobe earthquake was major because the buildings were unreinforced and not built to tolerate quakes.
10.03pm: watching Channel 8 10pm news now and it states within 2 hours, there were 3 earthquakes ranging from 6 to 8.0 magnitude. Tsunami alerts went as far as Sri Lanka and Australia but the alert has been called off [CNA].
Mainstream Media has also tapped on to videos taken by residents who called in to alert them of the tremors. No videos can be found on youtube yet. Reporters on TV also recount their own experience of earthquake at Caldecott Hill, in the news studio. Shenton Way Central Business District also saw evacuation.
I'm disappointed that mainstream media got video images before any bloggers did. Perhaps people have yet to upload their images on youtube. However, MSM-facilitated medium, Strait Times' Stomp saw many "readers" contribute their videos. I wonder if potential citizen journalists are lured by the exposure Stomp offers a piece of news and video as compared to one's own blog or youtube.
10.15pm: Found videos on youtube! Ironically, found youtube videos through google video and not directly via youtube's search function. 2 very short videos but here's a really haphazardly filmed one.
10.23pm: In order to explore the extent web 2.0 has been activated and deployed in the tremors, I made a search in various blog aggregators. Technorati finds at least 172 blogs about "september earthquake singapore". Del.icio.us finds none but it could be due to poor search keywords. Likewise digg has yet to find me anything.
Comparatively, citizen journalists are so far "losing out" in terms of video quality. Journalists with ample resources gets tip off from viewers who then visit newsworthy site in the business district and interview those involved while we get shaky videos. Although Stomp does get quite better videos. Is this a hint that perhaps we should maximize the infrastructure and facilities provided for citizen journalists by mainstream media?
10.39: My friend, 9, who is also following the progress of the tremors reporting closely tells me that upon closer filtering of technorati searches, there are only 55 blog posts related to today's tremor event, as opposed to 172 which I reported earlier. However, I think some blogs may be lost accidentally especially since he is searching for mentions of indonesia while I am searching for Singapore events. To add to the count, he has also linked this post.
10.48pm: check Channel News Asia again and saw that they expanded their reporting on Singapore tremors. The magnitude of the earthquake has now been readjusted and confirmed at 8.5!
The kind reporters from CNA also gave a history of earthquakes in the region where Singapore felt tremors.
6 March 2007 - magnitude 6.6 6 March 2007 - magnitude 6.1 18 December 2006 - 29 March 2005 -
According to NEA, at 9.02pm, there was another earthquake in Southern Sumatra of magnitude 5.7. In fact, 10 minutes ago, at 10:40PM there was actually another earthquake at magnitude 6.3! USGS has also adjusted their estimate of the first earthquake to be at 8.2.
A complete list of earthquakes tonight at Indonesia according to USGS: 5.9 2007/09/12 10:40pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA 5.3 2007/09/12 09:17pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION, INDONESIA 5.7 2007/09/12 09:02pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA 5.2 2007/09/12 08:21pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION, INDONESIA 8.2 2007/09/12 07:10pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
If you find theres a discrepancy in the magnitude of the earthquakes from different sources, that is because of the nature of earthquake magnitude estimation. Adjustments have to be made according to where the seismograph that picked up the earthquake is located [wiki].
11.49pm: This will be my last update so to enable me to resume regular programming. The media socialist group has highlighted the following blogsearch engines to find out who has been blogging about the tremors. These include Google Blogsearch and icerocket.com
5.28am: Got an email where Otterman suggested that this might be the first blog post in Singapore about the tremors felt here. The post was made at 7.15pm. At 12.01am I was reporting privately to the media socialist group that tomorrow.sg had yet to pick up on the tremors but at 12.27am, tinkertailortomorrowed this post and I picked it up on tomorrow's twitter feed right now.
Interestingly, the reason why I am awake and updating despite earlier stating that was my last update is because, mostly, of this earthquake. Thanks to the earthquake and updating this blog post, I skipped dinner and ended up with pretty bad gastric pains which is why I am awake at this ungodly hour. Coincidentally, a TODAY reporter friend of mine wrote at 9.32pm about a stomachache and the earthquake on her blog as well. Maybe we do not give MSM enough credit. To be a mainstream media reporter is not all that easy either. Citizen journalists are not committed to cover every story that comes their way while reporters are bound my professionalism, and their job essentially, and have no choice but to. I look forward to reading her article on the earthquake in tomorrow's today's TODAY.
I'm also looking at some of the places that linked me and I am very impressed by what I've found!
Secondly, I found a blog dedicated to the use of technology changes that affect emergency management which I found absolutely interesting. Crisis, emergency, hazard management or whichever name you use, is absolutely pertinent and academically interesting for me. After reading so many posts, I must agree that hazard literacy is not very high in Singapore, probably due to our complacency and lack of exposure to hazards.
6.42am: USGS has yet again updated their earthquake lists. I can only imagine the worst in Indonesia right now. Original quake in Indonesia at 7.10pm now updated to 8.4. I am hoping all these relatively smaller quakes are after shocks. Hoping that my friends in Sumatra are alright. At around 1am, another quake was recorded further East in Indonesia near Dili. Since, no other quakes were recorded from Indonesia. Hopefully this is the end of the quakes for now.
5.3 - 2007/09/13 01:04am KEPULAUAN BARAT DAYA 5.9 - 2007/09/13 12:37am SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.2 - 2007/09/12 11:35pm SOUTHWEST OF SUMATRA 6.0 - 2007/09/12 10:40pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 4.9 - 2007/09/12 10:04pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.3 - 2007/09/12 09:17pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.7 - 2007/09/12 09:02pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.2 - 2007/09/12 08:21pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 8.4 - 2007/09/12 07:10pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA
13 September 12.07pm: The earthquakes has NOT ended yet! I was round. Shortly after I went back to sleep at 7.50am, tgwttihs said on twitter that she felt tremors and that's probably the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the same Mentawai region in Indonesia! That happened at 7.49am and 7.50am we felt it in Singapore, give or take a few seconds response time to twitter that fact!
Just 30 minutes ago, annotated budak wrote on twitter that he felt tremors in Ang Mo Kio. Thinking he was joking, I checked the USGS website and saw that at 11.35am, there was yet another 7.1 earthquake!
I begin to see the trend that we feel tremors with earthquakes above magnitude 6.0. Sad to say I slept through it all, otherwise my home is either 1) on resistant geology or 2) my flat is not tall and vulnerable enough. I wonder how soon before Singapore real estate prices will be affected by areas where tremors are more prone.
I've smsed my friend in Sumatra this morning but have yet to hear from her and I'm getting really worried now actually.
7.1 - 2007/09/13 11:35am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.5 - 2007/09/13 10:51am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.9 - 2007/09/13 10:30am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.0 - 2007/09/13 09:55am SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.2 - 2007/09/13 09:49am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.2 - 2007/09/13 09:38am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.8 - 2007/09/13 09:26am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 7.8 - 2007/09/12 07:49pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.1 - 2007/09/12 07:19am SOUTHWEST OF SUMATRA 5.4 - 2007/09/12 06:17am KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.1 - 2007/09/12 06:02am SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.3 - 2007/09/13 01:04am KEPULAUAN BARAT DAYA 5.9 - 2007/09/13 12:37am SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.2 - 2007/09/12 11:35pm SOUTHWEST OF SUMATRA 6.0 - 2007/09/12 10:40pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 4.9 - 2007/09/12 10:04pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.3 - 2007/09/12 09:17pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 5.7 - 2007/09/12 09:02pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA 5.2 - 2007/09/12 08:21pm KEPULAUAN MENTAWAI REGION 8.4 - 2007/09/12 07:10pm SOUTHERN SUMATRA
In light of my new career as a graduate student, I have started a new blog called "Monkey's Masterful Modulation" which records the joys, perils and challenges of graduate research and teaching.
Firstly, an apology for my long silence on this blog. Perhaps a lack of inspiration has plagued this simian but honestly, my new holiday job at the National Heritage Board has kept me busy and exhausted at the end of the day. The Singapore Heritage Fest is held from 18 to 29 July this year at the Suntec City. The monkey will be seen at times moderating talks but mostly behind the scenes. It's crunch time and I do apologize if that has denied me the pleasure of writing and uploading photos. But mostly, it's almost a comfort to stay away from the computer after a long day staring at one and to read a book and sleep rather than to use the brain further.
But mostly, this editorial is to announce that this Monkey has finally graduated! I am now officially a graduate with a Bachelors of Social Science with second uppper honors in Geography from the National University of Singapore. But sadly I've also signed up to throw myself back into the foray of academia and student life by doing a Research Masters in Geography at the same university.
In other updates, the Chek Jawa boardwalk was opened yesterday but monkey sadly had to choose graduation jitters over rushing from Ubin to NUS within one morning. I even had to skip my friend Sharon's wedding! Sorry Sharon and I did hear that it was a fabulous wedding!
Despite my silence, the monkey has been working hard and having her hands full with several project underway. Mostly the monkey has now more or less become a member of the "friends of WildSingapore". We are planning an evil plan to take over the world and more news when the time comes. I do expect you boys and girls to be gripping your seats in anticipation at that news!
Monkey has covered several events this past month and visited many wild places in Singapore. I have photos a plenty and countless tales to tell. If it ever happens, it remains to be seen but for now, be happy that I am still alive! Sadly I was sick and am sick plagued with a violent cough that had me coughing throughout the entire commencement ceremony. If you heard somebody coughing, it was probably me. Blame it on the cough that has put me out of commission this past weeks.
LiveEarth has come and almost gone. It's been met with much criticism and I do hate to talk about it some more but we'll have one year to see how Al Gore's SOS team work with it.
Finally, congratulation to the graduation Class of 2007! Many of my friends have already begun jobs in the government sector like URA, STB while half the class is absconded to NIE for a life of teaching ahead of them. Whatever our paths lie, good luck!
As mentioned in the earlier post, Live Earth on 07.07.07 will be broadcast live in the event Earth fest, held in conjunction with Earth Fest.
At the same time, you can also catch the FULL 24 hours of concert on Channel 5. This is rather amazing because on that Saturday, any time you tune in on Channel 5 after 7pm till the next day, you will see the big stars featured on Live Earth!
It's been billed as "concerts for a climate in crisis". Featuring the likes of Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Madonna, Kayne West, Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi and the reunited Smashing Pumpkins, don't miss this unprecedented 24-hour mega-event which will take place on all 7 continents. Sweet.
MediaCorp TV Channel 5 will be broadcasting Live Earth on Saturday, 7th July 2007 starting at 7pm!
Billed as "concerts for a climate in crisis", this groundbreaking event will be staged across seven countries worldwide. To date, MediaCorp TV Channel 5 is the only free-to-air broadcaster in the world who will be airing the full 24-hr event.
With concerts on all 7 continents (Shanghai, Sydney, Johannesburg, London, Brazil, Japan and the United States), the mega-event promises a rollicking show with worldwide-renowned entertainers, athletes, scientists, government leaders and CEOs helping to engage their constituencies with SOS.
Channel 5 also plans to air environmental awareness messages and programmes in the week surrounding the Live Earth telecast. Watch out for more updates in the months to come!
What is Live Earth? A monumental music event that aims to bring together more than 2 billion people on 7/7/07 to raise awareness about global warming. With 24 hours of music across 7 continents and performances by more than 150 of the world's top musicians, Live Earth will engage, connect, and inspire individuals, corporations and governments to take action to solve the climate crisis.
International artistes who have confirmed their performances include: Madonna Sheryl Crow Alicia Keys Kayne West Wolfmother Faith Hill The Smashing Pumpkins Kelly Clarkson Black Eyed Peas Bon Jovi Red Hot Chilli Peppers Beastie Boys Jack Johnson John Mayer Foo Fighters Damien Rice Roger Waters Kylie Minogue James Blunt Snow Patrol Lenny Kravitz Jennifer Lopez Snoop Dogg The Police Duran Duran Eskimo Joe... & a whole lot more!
Live Earth happens on 07-07-07 at 7pm on Channel 5!
However, it does make me wonder if Earthfest is on anymore. This monkey will update everybody as soon as I can find out more.
Read full article here
This weblog was created in 2003 and named as such due to my penchant for alliteration, a midnight predecessor and my moniker as the leafmonkey, or monkey to most. MMM chronicles my thoughts and reflections on subjects and news related to environmental issues as well as issues of cultural and natural heritage. Read more in About Me.
Since November 2007, most of the writings on this blog has been dedicated to the syndication of Daily Green Actions from my Leafmonkey Twitter account. However, as of 2008, I shall resolve to resume more original writings. Find out more about my projects.
On 20 November 2007, this blog was listed on Blogger's Blog of Note.
Finally, congratulation to the graduation Class of 2007! Many of my friends have already begun jobs in the government sector like URA, STB while half the class is absconded to NIE for a life of teaching ahead of them. Whatever our paths lie, good luck!
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