Coffee is effective in perking you up?

Extremely hilarious coffee TV commercial, if you watch it for the first time

The fact that coffee is able to prevent energy dips in the mid-afternoon is believed by the majority throughout the years. Drinking coffee has become a daily routine for many people and most will feel the effects if they fail to consume their energy beverage.

Although coffee hardly affects one's insulin, it does has an impact on another hormone called adrenaline. Adrenaline is pivotal in preventing your blood glucose from dropping too low.

Almost everybody knows the result caffeine has on the human body. Gulping down a cup of coffee will see the caffeine in it stimulate the nervous system hence, allowing you to feel more energetic and awake.

Caffeine is a legal drug. Like nicotine in cigarettes, caffeine in your cappuccino or kopi-o is relied by the entire world to keep them alert and sharp throughout the day. Whether it is consumed during breakfast, midday or during tea break, millions of people require it to continue working.

Caffeine is only helpful on a short term basis. The negative thing about it is its draining effect on your adrenal glands. By being a heavy coffee drinker, one can tire out his/her adrenal glands and stop the body from producing adequate quantities of adrenaline.

This can be a serious issue when blood sugar levels are on the low. By consuming too much coffee, the body is unable to produce sufficient amounts of adrenaline to halt the dip in blood sugar levels.

I have ever experienced having low blood glucose levels and can vividly remember that I could neither turn my head nor neck while lying down as this would cause giddiness. I could not even stroll properly as my brain seems to be rotating non-stop.

If you are a caffeine addict and seriously need it to perk up, I suggest that you can try cutting down a cup of coffee per day. So, let's say you drink three cups a day, try to make it two and gradually only one in the morning.

Continue doing this and you may come to a point when you don't need coffee for the whole day without feeling sleepy or lethargic.

P.S. I do not drink coffee. If I do, it only happens less than thrice a year when the brew is fragrant and is absolutely free of charge.

Alternatives to iPod Touch

I am currently looking for a device which can keep me entertained while I am in camp. Something that is similar to the well-known iPod Touch of Apple Inc. I could make life easier for myself by simply getting an iPod Touch, used and trusted by many of my friends. But something inside me told me to be different and not follow the crowd plus I don't really plan to own an Apple product in my entire life.

I did some research and managed to discover a few products which are resemble the iPod Touch. Apple has been ruling the portable media player market for almost two years until rival companies started launching theirs to counter the iPod Touch.


Samsung Galaxy Player 5

It's 5 inch display beats iPod Touch's 3.5 inch screen hands down. Able to support a number of video formats and one can slot in a Micro SD card for extra memory. However, it has a front and rear camera which means military camps are gonna ban it for sure. Out.

Phillips GoGear Connect

The plus point about it is its relatively cheap price tag. It is almost like a sibling of iPod Touch but I do not like its design so I'll say, out!

Cowon D3

Supports a wide range of video as well as audio formats and boasts superb audio quality. It is a bit too expensive though. Also, ask twenty friends of yours and see how many of them have ever heard of a brand called "Cowon". Is it even on sale in Singapore?

Creative Zen Touch 2

As much as I want to show my support for local brands just like how I blindly support local films (even though some of them suck), I can't do it when it comes to Creative. Sim Wong Hoo may be a great entrepreneur but their infamous lawsuit with Apple made me minus points from them.

This product has a smaller display than iPod Touch and comes at a smaller price too. Is capable of running multiple Android apps simultaneously but consists of a 2-megapixel fixed focus camera so yeah, you know what I mean. Out!

Sony Walkman Z

Boasts a 4.3 inch screen, starts from 16GB and comes from a famous Japanese electronics company. Looks stylish with its sculpted look and comes with a pair of top-notch headphones not to mention the impressive audio quality.

The downside about this device is that it has no memory expansion (it's alright, since memory cards are banned in camps), an average screen resolution (I'm fine so long as it's not blur like some dying television).

It is clear that Sony is directly competing with Apple's iPod Touch by having a bigger screen and a number of features worth showing off. It is also clear that I have set my sights on it. Now, I just have to check out what is the market price in order not get scammed.

A new generation of Girls' Generation?

No, those behind us are really just back-up dancers

TaeTiSeo, the first sub-unit of South Korea's top girl group, Girls' Generation, will release their debut EP on May 2. Titled "Twinkle", the mini-album consists of seven tracks and can be classified under the funky soul genre.

Introducing sub-units for pop groups is a common sight in South Korea as well as Japan. Household names like Japanese girl group AKB48 and Girls' Generation's label mate Super Junior have all experienced some sort of division within the group.

Fans of Girls' Generation are naturally excited by the news of a new sub-group. Positive comments about TaeTiSeo have been flooding the internet for the past week. However, did we ever try taking a look at the other side of the story?

The media as well as Girls' Generation's label, SM Entertainment, have claimed that the sub-unit is made up of the three best vocals of the group namely Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun.

Although the singing abilities of the three ladies are undoubted, the average Girls' Generation fan might question why was Jessica, another lead vocalist of the group, omitted from the squad.

If SM Entertainment wanted to wow fans by concentrating the best vocals into one sub-unit, there is no reason why Jessica should not be included. Although there is a member, Sooyoung, who can speak Japanese fluently in the group, Jessica still manages to get more lines in Girls' Generation's Japanese songs due to her impressive voice.

SM Entertainment decision to leave Jessica out clearly shows that it is preserving strength, probably for another sub-unit in the future where the remaining five members to choose from are either supporting vocalists or lead dancers.

The result of excluding Jessica is more of a commercial decision than a musical one to neutrals. Both Jessica and Tiffany are widely-known to be the English spokeswomen for their group due to their American roots since both were both and lived in San Francisco.

By partnering Jessica up with Tiffany, the overall image of the sub-unit might look too "westernized", making people think that SM Entertainment is too eager to break into the American market.

By using the three members of TaeTiSeo to form the first sub-unit, SM Entertainment is actually trying to test the waters to see how they adapt to new brand concepts without making any significant impact on the renowned image of Girls' Generation.

Sub-units are a new source of making money and since the fire is still blazing strongly for Girls' Generation, it is understandable that its label wants to make full use of the members while they are in their peak.

Seohyun, the youngest in the group, is an underrated member whose glamour pales in comparison to the likes of Taeyeon or Yoona. However, by including her in the sub-unit, SM Entertainment is giving her an opportunity to boost her popularity and in turn, assisting Girls' Generation as a whole.

No matter which angle one chooses to look from, it is an undeniable fact that TaeTiSeo, or rather Girls' Generation's sub-groups, were formed for a commercial reason. But that's okay to fans so long as they get to see their idols appear more often.

Big Bookshop

The Clementi branch of Big Bookshop has finally become a thing of the past when it ceased operations six days ago on 16 April. Big Bookshop has definitely cemented a place in my memory having been my first-choice whenever I needed stationery.

Since primary school or even younger, Big Bookshop has been a place which I frequent just like how avid gamers visit the LAN shop. I do not always head there for books even though I know that it is absolutely free to read them as they are not packaged.

The kind of stuff which I had ever purchased in the store varies from the average Pilot pen that smudges to assessment books and even things like rubik's cube and Beyblade.

The last item which I bought at Big Bookshop was a notebook. It happened last Sunday evening where I was one of the last few customers of the day. As I carried that familiar white plastic bag while exiting the shop, I noticed a paper on the wall which states that it will be closing down on 16 April.

Instead of feeling reluctant, I was actually quite happy. Happy that I did visited and bought something from it for one last time before it was gone for good. I still have many things at home which were once on sale in Big Bookshop. They will serve as memories for me, memories that span almost twenty years of my life.

Lee Hsien Loong on Facebook!

 

From left to right: Nerd, poker face 1, Ang Long, enthusiastic resident, Returning Officer Extraordinaire, poker face 2, smiling Indian man

Singapore's prime minister, the strong and mighty Lee Hsien Loong, officially launched his Facebook page as well as Twitter account yesterday afternoon. As I am typing this post now, his Facebook page has attracted more than 28,000 likes. Let's see if he can match Nicole Seah's 105K fans.

Seeing the likes of his fellow ministers and even Malaysian PM Najib Razak using social networking sites as a desperate attempt to boost their popularity, PM Lee certainly believes that he is obliged to join in the fun. The burning question, however, is why now?

Staff  bootlickers of Mr Lee will help the small Lee-der maintain his page but he claimed that he will try to post as often as he can. So does that mean that he will not bother to engage with netizens but allow certain authorized people to delete unfavourable posts whenever they like?

No one expects the PM to be vain enough to reply every single post on his wall but one must wonder how is he going to keep those who made an effort to post (or bootlick him) satisfied. Remember that failed attempt by him to "engage youths" via PAP's official Facebook page during last year's election campaign?

Every time Mr Lee posts something, he will automatically get hundreds of comments at the rate of one per second. Only the most naive people (those who strongly welcome foreign talents) will choose to believe that their comment will be read and replied.

With this brand new Facebook page of Lee himself, it is just déjà vu Singapore version. The people who commented are either praising him for joining Facebook or complaining about life in a polite manner. Either way, the administrators of the page will probably be laughing at these typical comments behind the screen.

Najib Razak has been fairly successful on Facebook so far with many youths engaging with him on the web. However, a Bersih 3.0 rally still looks set to take place next Saturday after its predecessor, Bersih 2.0, claimed huge success and media coverage in July last year.

Lee Hsien Loong can continue updating his Facebook page but he needs to keep in mind that unless obvious issues on the ground like transportation and minimum wage can be resolved, he will not be able to transform the number of likes he has into votes.

Google+

So, I had created a Google+ account some time back, approximately three months, and decided to login for only the second time a while ago. Ok, let's see, I have one, two, three, erm ten people in my friend list and only one of them is currently active in this social networking site whose layout suspiciously reminds you of Facebook.

I have yet to upload a profile picture but that does not really bother me because I don't think I will be using/accessing it on a regular basis for the time being. Other than adding that miserable amount of friends, I have also explored the part about following Google+ pages, something similar to Facebook pages.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the people or entities which I follow are names like Barack Obama, Mitt Romney and World Economic Forum. I don't really know who to be a fan of on Google+ since I have no idea how long will I sustain interest in it but was curious to check out what politicians like Obama used Google+ for.

Anyway, when I look at Google+, I just think that it is just an ordinary Google page except that it doesn't gives you a list of what you tried searching for.

Probiotic foods

The subject on probiotic foods being beneficial to our health is highly controversial and has been proven right as well as wrong on numerous occasions. Just before typing this, I had gulped down a cup of yogurt but that is not the main point as it has already been in the fridge for several days.

The theory about cosuming probiotic foods like eating yogurts and drinking Vitagen (think Felicia Chin) will help you improve your digestion is actually rather superficial.

The fact why probiotic supplements are widely popular is because they contain good bacteria which is neccessary for a variety of functions like synthesis of vitamins and nutrient absorption. Probiotic bacteria can be found in fermented foods like yogurt.

The debate, which has been on for a long time, on why these probiotic foods are effective or not all boils down to one point. Can probiotic bacteria survive throughout the human digestive system?

Gastric acids as well as a variety of digestive enzymes have been proven to be too powerful for the bacteria that only a small amount of it is still alive by the time it arrives at the stomach.

Conversely, one could argue that although some amounts of good bacteria have been lost, there is at least still some left to enhance your gut flora. So, in short, probiotic foods are still effective after all.

The debate on probiotic foods will carry on for a long time but do remember something. The body itself is a very powerful tool as it is able to create "stuff" when required in order for it to adapt and continue operating. So, does that small amount of the remaining bacteria really make a difference?

Titanic 100th anniversary

Now that the move Titanic is back in cinemas to cash in on the 3D wave and commemorate the 100th anniversary of this iconic ship's sinking, I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some trivia about Titanic which you might not know.

Fourteen years before that historic voyage took place, a story book named Futility was published. The novella has a number of shocking similarities with the actual event. The fictional ship was called Titan (almost Titanic), sails in April and started of from Southampton.

The best coincidence that makes people wonder if the author had anticipated Titanic's tragedy was that Titan had crashed into an iceberg as well. However, unlike the real thing, the story had a hero who fought a polar bear while he was stuck on the iceberg.

Titanic had more lifeboats than it could carried according to the law. Shipping laws allowed the passenger liner to only carry sixteen lifeboats which it did but it also added four extra collapsible lifeboats.

Law, during then, only required ships to carry such a pathetic amount of lifeboats which may be the reason why so many passengers were not able to escape from the disaster. Had the law been different, history might have been a totally different story.

Titanic was not trying to break any records at all although many people twisted the story and many more people believed this distorted truth. This ocean giant did not meant to exceed any records, it was just merely taking a longer and slower route to avoid erm, icebergs.

But history lessons would be mundane if nobody twisted the facts and made it interesting. Also, nobody claimed that Titanic was unsinkable although some parts of history mentioned that. Nobody in this world would ever declare a ship which is superior to the mighty ocean.

Birthday presents...

All of a sudden, many birthdays of my friends have popped up and one after another, I am invited to their birthday parties. Well, that means that I have to rack my brains to think about what to buy as a present and burn a hole in my pocket after deciding on something creative enough to give that will make the recipent remember for sure.

Oh yeah, and my birthday is also around the corner but I will definitely have to spend it away from home for the first time in my life. But well, it's just a birthday, so long as I get to receive many presents

Pencil vs Camera

Interesting picture. Click on it to enlarge.

Electricity to cost more, again

As you know, electricity will cost more with effect from today according to Singapore Power.

The average three-room HDB flat will see an increase of approximately $3 in their average electricity bill while those living in five-room apartments will pay up to almost an additional five bucks.

SP Services put the blame on the high price of natural resources which resulted in this increase. However, when the price of these resources like crude oil drops, did electricity prices ever fall?

Other developed countries like America do not require their people to pay as much as what Singaporeans do. Something is really not right somewhere and somehow.

Unlike public transportation where there is a duopoly of SBS and SMRT, SP Services has been the sole service provider in the energy sector for years. Yet, the government chose not to allow competition in the utility services market. Maybe we need more Earth Hours or even Earth Days in order to save more money.

Other stuff like HDB flats, which are supposed to be affordable, are also soaring high like there is no ending. It is time to stop living in self-denial and wake up from the "white" dream.