Saturday, September 25, 2010

All your burning questions answered

MY PAPER, FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 24, 2010, PAGE A21, LIFESTYLE
From http://myepaper.mypaper.sg/ebook/web_php/fvbrowserjs.php?urljs=http://myepaper.mypaper.sg/ecreator/sphopf/mya240910cnd_opf_files/mya240910cnd.js&ver=Gen
By AZHAR KASMAN, akasman@sph.com.sg



PHOTO: Libby the Owl, the mascot for the microsite which signifies wisdom and knowledge, got its name from the word “librarians”.
MY PAPER, FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 24, 2010, PAGE A21, LIFESTYLE


Do you know that Choa Chu Kang, Lim Chu Kang and Yio Chu Kang were possibly named after the headmen (chu) controlling the villages built near rivers (kang)?

Thanks to the Ask Libby service on Stomp, Asia’s No. 1 social-networking and citizen-journalism website, this and other useful pieces of information are readily available.



PHOTO: http://www.diabetes.org.uk/upload/MyLife/Kids/Kids%20Home%20Flash/problem_page.gif http://www.diabetes.org.uk/Guide-to-diabetes/My-life/Kids/


Ask Libby is the popular question-and-answer microsite on Stomp, the result of a collaboration between the website and Public Libraries Singapore.

Readers post questions on Stomp, which then forwards them the contacts of a team of librarians from the National Library Board (NLB), who uses reliable and authoritative library resources, or other external sources, to find answers.

In fact, Libby the Owl, the mascot for the microsite which signifies wisdom and knowledge, got its name from the word “librarians”.

An NLB spokesman said: “Singaporeans are curious and active seekers of knowledge and information. They are very much in tune with what’s happening locally and globally, and are savvy users of the various information channels available to them.”

This is evident from the steady stream of queries from inquisitive readers submitted through Ask Libby since its launch more than a year ago.

Readers have been submitting all kinds of queries through Ask Libby. They can ask just about anything, on topics ranging from money and legal issues, to fashion and entertainment.

One interesting query posed by a reader is whether it is illegal to visit a prostitute in Singapore.

The response states that prostitution is legal only in red-light districts within the city, where sex workers ply their trade in licensed brothels. The women have to carry a health card and go for regular medical checkups.

However, soliciting for sexual services on the streets and pimping are illegal.

Another reader asked if it could snow in Singapore. The answer is no, because Singapore’s geographical position at the equatorial zone makes the nation one of the warmest zones, due to its proximity to the sun.

For those of you who are into beauty, here is an honest and very relevant question from a female reader: “I have a high waist and a big butt, what should I wear?”

Experts cited by the NLB team recommend that women with a pear-shape figure (where one’s hips are wider than one’s shoulders) should wear halter tops, puff sleeves, A-line skirts and constructed trousers.

Kenny Loh, 28, believes that the hyper-local nature of the Ask Libby service benefits Singaporeans. He said: “There are answers to really Singaporean questions that you can’t even find on Google, because they are so local.”

So, get that burning question off your chest. Remember, no question is a silly one. Just Ask Libby.
By AZHAR KASMAN, akasman@sph.com.sg



HELPDESK
我的字典: Wǒ de zì diǎn
Mascot: 吉祥物 - jí xiáng wù
Inquisitive: 好奇的 - hào qí de
Soliciting: 拉客 - lā kè
Proximity: 靠近 - kào jìn



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