36 people left standing in MediaCorp Subaru Challenge

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http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1234174/1/.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

As at 9pm on Monday, only 36 people are still standing on day three of the MediaCorp Subaru Challenge.

More than 350 contestants have dropped out of the running to win an S$80,000 car.

Afternoon showers were a welcome respite from the heat at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza.

At about 4pm, contestants were given a bonus break because of the heat, when temperatures hit some 30 degrees Celsius.

The aim of the game is for contestants to keep their hands on a car for as long as possible. The last hand left wins the top prize.

Ex-Maris Stella principal accused of misappropriating $150k in funds

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http://www.todayonline.com/Hotnews/EDC121029-0000122/Trial-begins-for-ex-Maris-Stella-principal-accused-of-misappropriating-funds

The former principal of Maris Stella High School who was charged with misappropriating nearly S$150,000 was in court yesterday for the opening of the trial.

Anthony Tan Kim Hock, 65, who retired in 2009, allegedly committed the offence in the school on 21 separate occasions between May 2004 and September 2009.

The prosecution is proceeding with one charge - where Tan is alleged to have misappropriated about S$67,700 from the school's chapel building fund account between March and September of 2009.

He was still the school's principal then.

The remaining 20 charges have been stood down for now.

The prosecution has lined up nine witnesses. Three of them - an investigation officer from the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), a cashier from Mustafa shopping centre and an architect - took the stand today.

The court heard that Tan allegedly used the money from the school's chapel building fund to do rebuilding and renovation works for the Champagnat House in Flower Road.

The Champagnat House is the residence of the Marist brothers - the lay-religious congregation Tan belongs to.

Work began on the house in February 2008 and ended in May 2009.

The court also heard that while Tan was not directly supervising the project, bills for some of the works such as stained glass and granite cladding - which involves the adhering of stones to the walls of a building - were sent to him.

According to statements that Tan gave to the CAD last year, he said that he had already reimbursed the money taken from the chapel building fund.

Of the 20 remaining charges that have been stood down, 13 of them involve a man known as Peter Lim - whose relation to Tan is not clear.

Tan allegedly used money from the school management committee as well as the director-general of education school fund accounts to pay for items such as seven of Mr Lim's overseas school trips and an open water diving course in Pulau Tioman.

The trial continues on tomorrow.

Taxi operator Smart Cab's license may not be renewed

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http://motoring.asiaone.com/Motoring/News/Story/A1Story20121029-380328.html

Local taxi firm Smart Cab needs to have at least 800 vehicles in service to stay in operation.

But, according to Lianhe Wanbao, the smallest taxi operator in Singapore has only 517 taxis as of August this year.

The company will need to hit the target by next year September, or it faces the prospect of having its operating license taken away by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

Earlier in July, Minister of Transport Lui Tuck Yew announced that taxis are removed from the small car quota and no bidding is required.

Taxi operators who wish to expand their fleets just need to pay the prevailing quota premium (PQP).

However, there will be a cap on the number of new taxis that operators can register.

Morning peak hour ERP rates to be increased at 6 gantries

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http://www.todayonline.com/Hotnews/EDC121029-0000108/Morning-peak-hour-ERP-rates-to-be-increased-at-6-gantries

The Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates for six gantries leading to the CTE and ECP will be revised.

From Nov 5, ERP rates for four gantries located on the southbound CTE after Braddell Road will go up by S$1 to S$4 from 7.30am to 8.00am.

ERP rates for two other gantries located at Fort Road leading to the ECP and the KPE slip road onto the ECP will go up by S$1 to S$5 from 8.30am to 9am.

The rates for the other gantries remain unchanged.

The Land Transport Authority announced the rate revision after completing its quarterly review of traffic conditions on ERP-priced roads and expressways.

NexLions Cup: Young Lions to take on Man U, Liverpool Under-19

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http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/sports/story/young-lions-take-man-u-liverpool-20121029

Under-19 teams of top European football sides Manchester United, Liverpool, and Sporting Lisbon will take on their Singapore peers in the inaugural NexLions Cup from Dec 14-16.

The three sides will compete against a Singapore Youth Selection squad, coached by former Singapore International Aide Iskandar, announced Football Association Singapore president Zainudin Nordin at a press conference this afternoon.

The four-team tournament follows the success of the Lion City Cup which has hosted the U-16 teams of Manchester City, Juventus, Ajax, and Flamengo.

Said Mr Zainudin: "With the NexLions Cup starting this year, it allows the youngsters another global platform to bring their 'A' game forward and experience what it is like to be up against quality opposition like Liverpool, Manchester United, and Sporting Lisbon."

Giant pandas Jia Jia and Kai Kai make public debut end Nov

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http://www.todayonline.com/Hotnews/EDC121029-0000054/Giant-pandas-Jia-Jia-and-Kai-Kai-make-public-debut-end-Nov

Giant pandas Jia Jia and Kai Kai will be making their public debut from 29 November at the River Safari, just in time for the year-end school holiday.

To meet the giant pandas, visitors would have to pay an additional $5 (for adults) and $3 (for children between 3 and 12 years old) on top of their standard Singapore Zoo tickets.

Also on display are a pair of red pandas and golden pheasants.

The tickets will go on sale daily from 8.30am starting 29 November.

Singapore Ranks 5th for Shopping in Asia-Pacific, Jakarta at 17th

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http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/singapore-ranks-5th-for-shopping-in-asia-pacific-jakarta-at-17th/552985

Singapore is the fifth best shopping city in the Asia-Pacific region, ahead of Sydney and Bangkok but lagging behind Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai and Beijing, a survey has found.

While Singapore ranked within the top 10 in most of the criteria in the Globe Shopper Index, compiled by the London-based Economist Intelligence Unit, it fared poorly on affordability.

When it comes to getting a bargain, Singapore ranked a dismal 19th. However, Singapore shone in the safety criterion.

The city-state was joint with Auckland and Hong Kong in ranking No.1 in that category. Singapore also ranked a respectable third place, behind Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, when it came to the quality of the shops on offer here.

9 in 10 employees working overtime: survey

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http://sg.news.yahoo.com/9-in-10-employees-working-overtime--survey.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Work-life balance does not yet exist in Singapore, according to an overwhelming majority of employees who took part in a survey on the subject in Singapore.

According to a JobStreet survey released on Monday, nearly nine in 10 (or 88 per cent) polled said they are working beyond their official hours. Heavy workload and unreasonable deadlines were the main reasons for pulling in a long shift.

Of this group, 70 per cent choose to complete the unfinished work in office, while the remaining 30 per cent chose to bring work home. A total of 650 workers and 135 employers were polled during the survey done last month.

The survey also threw up two interesting facts arising from employers’ work-life balance initiatives:

(a) 45 per cent indicated that the company pays lip service to work-life balance with policies in place just for show.

(b) 42 per cent indicated that they chose not to use the company’s initiatives for work-life balance with majority citing the concerns of receiving an inferior performance review as the main reason.

Upgrade to Windows 8 for S$18 in Singapore

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http://asia.cnet.com/upgrade-to-windows-8-for-s18-in-singapore-62219265.htm

Since June this year, Microsoft ran a promotion so PC buyers can acquire a copy of Windows 8 on the cheap when it launches.

Windows 8 has arrived and the promotion page for eligible users to download their Windows 8 upgrade has gone live.

While it is meant for eligible PC buyers (those who purchased a Windows 7 PC after June 2), it seems the site works for anyone who wants a Windows 8 upgrade for S$18, regardless of whether you are eligible for it.

Microsoft lets you key in when you bought you PC, without checking whether or not it's true.

This honor system makes it really convenient for genuinely eligible users, since they don't have to dig out a receipt or key in any offer code to get the upgrade. It also means anyone can visit the site and enter an untrue PC purchase date to get a Windows 8 upgrade for S$18 instead of the usual S$50.

Here are the steps:

1. Go to Microsoft's Windows upgrade offer site here.
2. Key in your PC purchase date--there's no verification involved. Microsoft will email you a discount coupon with a number.
3. Download Microsoft Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant here and run the program.
4. Buy Windows 8, don't worry, you'll be able to key in the promotion code before your credit card is charged.
5. Price automagically changes to S$18 from S$50.

For more information about upgrading to Windows 8, read this guide.

Late cancer victim's inspiring video goes viral

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http://sg.news.yahoo.com/late-cancer-victim-s-inspiring-video-goes-viral.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Singaporean Dr Richard Teo, a successful opthamologist-turned-cosmetic surgeon, succumbed to Stage Four terminal lung cancer earlier this month at the age of 40.

But since his death, a 22-minute heart-wrenching video featuring his thoughts on life and the ceaseless pursuit of materialism and success is going viral online.

During the talk given to class of medical students, the former Raffles Junior College and National University of Singapore student shares with painful, brutal honesty how his driving ambition since childhood was to be successful at all costs.

And given Singapore's societal and educational context, that meant making lots and lots of money and amassing enough status symbols to last a lifetime.



"I am a typical product of today's society. From young, I was told by the media... and people around me that happiness is about success. And that success is about being wealthy," he shared in a voice made hoarse by rounds of chemo.

In the grainy amateur video, which was shot in January, a frail-looking and slightly balding Teo goes on to detail how he ditched public service to become an aesthetic surgeon to "make millions".

That is until his "perfect" life fell apart on the day he learned about his illness and how, in the final months of his life, all his wealth, toys -- supercars, bungalows -- and glam lifestyle meant nothing to him and gave him precious little comfort.

Instead, he found comfort in spending time with family and fellow patients, sharing their pain and suffering. In his final message, he urged the classroom of medical students never to lose their moral compass and never to lose sight of the patients they treated.

His wife, Mrs Teo, who was married to him for six years, told TNPS, "I'm proud of him for leaving a legacy. I wish I could be like him. He is the best teacher God has sent to me."

More & improved bicycle parking facilities at MRT stations

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http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1234075/1/.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has now completed the installation of 1,500 bicycle parking racks at 10 MRT stations.

These are at Admiralty, Aljunied, Boon Lay, Chinese Garden, Khatib, Lakeside, Sembawang, Sengkang, Simei and Yishun.

By 2013, another 900 racks will be installed at 10 more stations.

These stations are at Ang Mo Kio, Bukit Gombak, Choa Chu Kang, Eunos, Marsiling, Paya Lebar, Redhill, Tanah Merah, Woodlands and Yew Tee.

The new bicycle parking facilities will facilitate travel to and from the MRT stations and intra-town facilities.

The facilities adopt an enhanced design that enables cyclists to lock their bicycles more securely and are also adequately lit for added security.

To maximise the space available and to meet the parking demand, LTA has also introduced double-tiered racks at selected stations.