I refer to the article “Subway’s Healthy Food” by The Globalist.

URL: http://www.theglobalist.com/dbweb/storyid.aspx?StoryId=3658

References:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20776198/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_size_me

Since the birth of Automat, the first fast food restaurant, in 1912, fast food restaurants have become a symbol of globalization, with fast food companies raking in millions each year.

But their prominence has led many people to question the nutritional values of their meals, with protesters all over the world championing issues ranging from animal rights to obesity. However, in recent years, fast food chains like Subway have taken advantage of the health craze by marketing a “healthier choice” of meals. By appealing to the public’s health consciousness, Subway has now become the fastest growing franchise in the world.

While fast food chains such as McDonald’s have come under fire for contributing to America’s growing population of obese people, Subway has been relatively unscathed under its “healthy” image.

But does Subway really serve only healthy meals?

Jared Fogle, front man for their advertisement campaign in the early 2000s, became 190 pounds from an impressive 425 after he went on the “Subway diet”. However, as the article points out, he subsisted only on a 6-inch turkey sandwich, baked potato chips (which are healthier), one diet soda, and a veggie sandwich daily.

Subway tells the truth when it says that it serves healthy meals – seven of which with less than 6 grams of fat each. However, McDonald’s also serves healthy meals such as salads and apples.

But Subway does not inform consumers of their less healthy choices such as the 12-inch turkey sandwich containing 600 calories, equivalent to that of a McDonald’s Big Mac. In the Journal of Consumer Research by Dr Brian Wansink of Cornell University, he reported that people were more likely to splurge on other unhealthy food in Subway than in McDonald’s, leading to consumption of more calories.

While I applaud Subway for introducing a wide range of healthy meals and setting a benchmark for other fast food restaurants, the façade which masks their less healthy choices is still of major concern to myself.

I am a teenager with tendencies to indulge myself with fast food, but Subway has never been high on my list of places to eat. However, the fact still remains that other teenagers with vanity and image issues might fall prey to the “healthy” image which Subway has associated itself with. While they might choose to go for the healthier choices on the menu, the “Fresh Value Meal”, a new introduction to Subway, offers a soda and potato chips, which is similar with McDonald’s “Extra Value Meals”. However, these “Fresh Value Meals” add up to many more than the calories lost in choosing a healthier sandwich. Added to the less healthy sandwiches on the menu, the meal would have calories typical of an “unhealthy” McDonald’s “Extra Value Meal”.

You might argue that consumers also have to take responsibility for their own health. But while McDonald’s provides nutritional information on all its products, Subway has not done so, and how then can the consumers measure the amount of calories they take in?

Although the consumers already should be aware that soda and chips add a whole lot more calories to their meal, does Subway have the right to keep consumers in the dark about their less-than-healthy meals?

"Sweat Your Way to a Bigger Brain" by Dean Ornish

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20746682/site/newsweek/

Sweat your way to bigger brawn? Or brains? While you might think it is only the former, recent studies have shown that exercise does, in fact, help you grow smarter.

A study at Illinois University reported that those who walked for a mere three hours per week for three months had increased their rate of neurogenesis (the process of growing new brain cells). This caused the size of their brains to increase, thereby causing their brain power to be typical of those three years younger. Thus exercise is now doubly important, as it not only helps improve physical fitness; it also helps in enhancing mental power.

Now, if you think that only the elderly need to exercise, then you’re wrong.

Neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin are built up as you exercise and these reduce depression, lift moods, and in general help you focus better. They are needed not only by adults, but also help reduce problems with attention-deficit disorder in the youth, leading to efficient learning, which in turn leads to ‘smart kids’.

But why then does society generalize intellectual individuals under the category of ‘unfit’?

The American Heritage Dictionary classifies a nerd as:

1. A foolish, inept or unattractive person.

2. A person who is single-minded or accomplished in scientific or technical pursuits but is felt to be socially inept.

A ‘nerd’, the name given to brainier students in school, is often portrayed by society as physically unfit, being either obese or extremely thin.

Conversely, a ‘jock’ (as popularized by American society), or a person who actively pursues athletic hobbies and is generally seen as ‘more brawn than brains’. The societal perception of ‘nerds’ and ‘jocks’ is not supported by the recent research. So why then do the stereotypes contradict the research?

It is all about noticeable examples. Societal stereotypes are based on and amplified upon when someone who is the epitome of, for example, a nerd, is unfit. In the past few years as a teenager, I have seen many a ‘nerd’ conforming to the societal archetype.

Take Person A. In Secondary 1, he was recognized as an intelligent pupil, and was a computer whiz. He was already slightly obese then. But perhaps because his classmates wanted to find flaws in A, they exploited his one ‘weakness’. His obesity. Through the years as he sunk in depression and gave up all hope of being fit by stuffing himself with food and not even trying to do basic exercises, he strengthened others’ perceptions of ‘nerds’. He had failed without even trying.

But you need not conform to societal expectations. Look at Person B. In Secondary One he was thin and unfit. But he, unlike Person A, managed to gain his muscles. He takes Advanced classes, and is consistently the top few pupils in the level. And he is also fit.

Does that fact that ‘jocks’ excel in sports mean that their lot is cast – that they are doomed to academic failure? I say no. These individuals have the drive to succeed in sports, and it stands to reason that they can also channel this passion into their studies. Should they opt to. It is only a matter of choice.

Nerds need not be unfit, jocks need not be stupid. Exercise is also beneficial to brain power, and ‘stupid jocks’ should not let themselves down by being ‘stupid’. You can be labeled intelligent and muscular simultaneously. So guys – rework your mindsets.

Conventional piracy is robbery committed at sea. However, software piracy refers to obtaining software through illegal means. In Singapore last year, software piracy was at its lowest in recent years at 39%, down from 43% in 2003.
Software piracy cost companies millions of dollars annually. Furthermore, as it is extremely difficult and unrealistic to catch every single offender, usually only those who do it on a large scale are prosecuted.
This poses a big problem to Singapore’s growing technology industry. The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) aims to make Singapore a high value manufacturing hub in Asia to enhance Singapore’s competitiveness in the industrial sector. Not only will software piracy contribute to a loss in revenue of the industry, it will also discourage aspiring computer geniuses from working for the government.
One of the biggest problems posed to curbing this problem is teenagers. Downloading software illegally is free and it is very easy to do so. Therefore, teenagers, without much pocket money and influenced by their peers, turn to illegal downloads to get the latest games and music online. Considering the fact that teenagers make up most of the computer users, to the extent that they might even be more computer literate than their parents, they contribute to a major portion of illegal downloads.
For example, even if I do not download music illegally from the internet, I lend and borrow music CDs to/from my friends. This makes use of the under-licensing of music CDs, as they can be uploaded to any computer with no limit, and therefore, also contributes to losses made by companies due to software piracy. As the music CDs get passed around in a teenager’s network of friends, music companies can make losses multiple times the price of one CD.
As teenagers look upon downloading software as convenience, without having to pay online through lengthy purchase forms nor going down to the store to buy the software, they might not care whether companies make a loss or not.
However, much effort has been put in to discourage software piracy. Education revolving around looking at software piracy from others’ viewpoints, advertisements in movies, passing and upholding laws are ways which the government uses to battle software piracy.
Furthermore, the rise of reasonable alternatives such as freeware has reduced the rate of software piracy. The software is free and available for download, and so is termed “freeware”. For example, Mozilla Firefox, a free web browser, is steadily replacing its counterpart Internet Explorer by Microsoft. These freeware are dependent on advertisements and donations to support themselves, and therefore remain free.
As teenagers develop into adults, it is imperative that they do not participate in software piracy. This leads to a probable downward spiral where everyone is influenced by their parents and companies fold because of software piracy. Therefore we must make sure that this does not happen.
What’s the cost of downloading freeware instead of getting caught downloading illegally? Priceless. (496 words)

URL: http://www.todayonline.com/articles/188779.asp




Primus inter pares - ‘First Among Equals’ - is a Latin term which reflects the original concept of a prime minister as not the most dominant character in the country, but the first minister of the state, second only to the monarch. However, as Singapore uses a parliamentary system where the Prime Minister is the head of the government, it is the most important political position in the country.
Traditionally, ministers have been handpicked from “doctors, lawyers, military officers and civil servants”. While they are still well-suited to be members of parliament (MPs), this group of heartlanders are less well-equipped to be ministers, let alone the Prime Minister, as increasing globalisation exposes Singapore to many different societal and cultural values.
Having studied in overseas universities, worked in multinational companies, able to accept different cultural and societal values – is that not the ideal Singaporean worker class? A cosmopolitan employee who studied in Oxford, speaks a few languages, appreciates Shakespeare and understands Confucius’ teachings would definitely be prized.
Would the future Prime Minister then embody the new breed of the Singaporean worker class, who deals with different nations on a daily basis? With the internationalization of Singapore, it is true that we need a Prime Minister who can hold his own with the leaders of nations all over the world.
And yet, if we overly expand our horizon, we might neglect what is directly under our noses. My teachers have always knocked this fact into me: Singapore’s only resource is its people. Therefore we must never be too caught up with the globalization rage, and must appreciate the people around us, and nurture the young. Similarly, the new Prime Minister must have the welfare of the people at heart.
However, the author assumes that the new PM would definitely be a PAP candidate and the successor of current PM Lee Hsien Loong. This reflects the disturbing political situation here in Singapore. The PAP has never lost an election since Singapore gained freedom from the British. As a result, Singapore has a one-party system.
As we will encounter many different countries, this aspect of our politics might turn off some countries where liberal democracy is practiced, most notably America, a country which is a strong advocate for democracy.
On the other hand, Singapore is still a thriving global hub, regardless of our one-party system. Companies from all over the world invest in Singapore, including Americans. Therefore we cannot simply assume also that this problem with our politics would absolutely be detrimental towards our relationships with other countries, and have to acknowledge that the PAP has on the whole done quite a good job so far.
As the world progresses, we Singaporeans must also constantly develop ourselves to meet expectations and do our part for our country. If we were to be global citizens and yet remain Singaporeans at heart, then the Prime Minister, as the ‘First Among Equals’, would come to represent us, who are the backbone of our nation. (497 words)

URL: http://www.todayonline.com/articles/188363.asp




The Mobile

Nearly all children aged 13-17 in Britain possess their own handphones. This trend does not belong to Britain alone. Teenagers all over the world are acquiring handphones fast. By “fast”, not only do I mean quickly, but early too. Two years ago, a research company, TNS, discovered that the youngest owner of a handphone in Hong Kong was only six years old.
However disturbing the decrease in average age of handphone owners, what is more worrying is the possible abuse of handphones by teenagers. In Britain, for example, the phenomenon of ‘Happy Slapping’ where teenagers record assaults on strangers is a very disconcerting trend. More recently, the Tammy incident in Singapore, where a film of a 17 year old student being intimate with her boyfriend was uploaded onto the Net, also proves my point.
But the videotaping function in handphones also has its own advantages. For instance, a robber drives away on a motorcycle with a stolen bag. In the past, we might not have seen or remembered the license plate number, but now, we can just slip out our trusty phone and take a photo to help the police to nab the robber. From this we can see that it is the wielder who is evil, not the object itself. Good things can be abused by people to have negative outcomes.
Also, handphones are so widely used that they have become part of teenagers’ everyday life. Handphones have come to represent the “identity” of people. For example, LG and Samsung phones are associated with style, while Nokia phones are affiliated with practicality. Like parents are wont to compare the achievements of their children, teenagers nowadays compare their handphones. Furthermore, over-reliance on handphones for basic functions such as a contact list, alarm etc. heightens the impact of lost handphones. This is a phenomenon not only for teenagers but adults too.
In addition to that, teenagers sms (short message service) their friends frequently, to the extent of sending up to hundreds of smses a day. Perhaps adults think that this is a disturbing trend, but as a teenager, I think that this is just a way to communicate when away from friends. Like adults, I think teenagers value personal interaction more than over the phone, but the mobility of handphones let teenagers communicate with their friends anytime, anywhere. This is just a younger, noiseless version of adults talking for hours over the phone. Both cases have extremities, but the average human does not go overboard when doing such things.
In conclusion, as technology improves, what initially was intended to improve on the quality of human life, might be mutated into a something misused by easily influenced teenagers into furthering their own warped ends. This could lead to widespread misuse, such as widespread voyeurism, if everything goes unchecked. But not all teenagers lack morals, thus, I believe that with education on handphone ethics, the younger generation can be taught how to respect the phone and use it as it should be used.

(500 words)

URL: http://digital.asiaone.com.sg/features/20061006_001.html




That Alien There

Originally from the (bigger) island of Britain, Neil, who had initially decided on a temporary three-month stay in Singapore, settled down here for ten years before moving to Australia last year. Rather than hold himself apart from the multi-racial and jumbled-up mix that is Singaporean culture, he immersed himself in it, and even now, he curses in Singlish, and refers to his fellow Caucasian as “that ang moh there”.
Neil inserts various little anecdotes into this newspaper article, in which he describes his laughable attempts to use Singaporean vulgar language so that his Australian counterparts do not understand that he is in fact cursing at them. In showing off his Singlish vocabulary, he is in fact a prime example of a foreigner being influenced by Singaporean culture, instead of the usual kentang (a very westernized non-westerner).
On the other hand, our very own Singaporeans who go overseas to study in prestigious universities, are also influenced by the local culture there. Sometimes, we have cases of scholars breaking their bonds and choose instead to work for a foreign company, and they are viewed as “traitors”. Being in one of the top schools in Singapore, we stand a high chance of being one of those who will receive scholarships. Thus we cannot escape from the fact that we might adapt to life in that new environment, and choose to stay there instead, like Neil. However, we cannot simply assume that all scholars are “traitors”.
Assimilation into foreign culture for a prolonged period of time might make the person involved adapt to the environment and be influenced by it. This is a global phenomenon: Many citizens of various countries move to other countries for some reason or other. Sometimes they stay and sometimes they do not. The crucial factor is whether the person can adapt to living in the new environment. If he can, then there is a higher possibility of staying. If not, he will most probably move again sooner or later.
Even though Singaporean culture may be part-and-parcel of our lives, the rojak nature of Singaporean culture might at first be so intimidating and different that it is a wonder foreigners do not have xenophobia when they first step into Singapore. However, Singaporean culture got to Neil, and he stayed on for ten years. But the fact is that not all foreigners do feel the same way for Singapore as he does, and feelings are uncontrollable, so we cannot simply assume all foreigners will be intrigued by Singaporean culture like Neil was.
We always say that Singapore is our heartland, and when we migrate to foreign countries, our heart still remains with our little red dot. However, from his very close-to-heart anecdotes, we can see a “foreigner” missing Singapore, proving that there are indeed exceptions to the cold British stereotype. After ten years of living here, he has grown close to Singapore, and remembers it as fondly as he remembers being chased around the house by his mother back in England.

(500 words)

URL: http://www.todayonline.com/articles/169743.asp

Ang Guo Wei (2)
Sec 3R




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