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Digital heritage portal interfaces are generally similar to digital library and search engine interfaces in displaying search results as a list of brief metadata records. The knowledge organization and search result display of these systems are item-centric, with little support for identifying relationships between items. This paper proposes a knowledge graph system and visualization interface as a promising solution for digital heritage systems to support users in browsing related items, understanding the relationships between items, and synthesizing a narrative on an issue. The paper discusses design issues for the knowledge graph, graph database, and graph visualization, and offers recommendations based on the authors' experience in developing three knowledge graph systems for archive and digital humanities resources: the Zubir Said personal archive collection at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore; Singapore Pioneers social network; and Polyglot Medicine knowledge graph of Asian traditional and herbal medicine. Lessons learned from a small user study are incorporated in the discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Singapore presents a unique case study for multiculturalists in that the state leans heavily in its promotion of racial demarcations whilst simultaneously propagating a narrative of the state "regardless of race, language or religion". This paper argues that this apparent contradiction is a deliberate calculation to use multiculturalism to desecuritise an otherwise disparate multiracial society. Extending He's (2018) sequencing of multicultural progress as an a priori development to desecuritisation, this paper moves past traditionally democratic assumptions to demonstrate how the Singaporean state has in effect desecuritised national minorities through semi-to-autocratic management of multiculturalism. Referring to 'securitised multiculturalism' that has become increasingly evident since the 2000s, the paper progresses to consider how terrorism has affected Singapore's multicultural formulation and examines the state's top-down responses to desecuritise the security element in 'securitised multiculturalism' to the extent that such is possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By thinking with and through Buddhist cosmology, this paper explores the emergence of an ethical sensibility—what we call planetary cosmopolitanism—that is based on not just a spatially expanded ethic of care to ecological worlds, but also a temporally extended sense of justice to the future Earth. This transtemporal sense of ethical becoming reflects how the possibility of future 'rebirth' and accountability for past actions can motivate new ecological consciousness in the present. We forge these ideas through an empirical focus on popular Buddhist ecological practices in Singapore, where green recovery visions have primarily been driven by a secular and technocratic ethos. In negotiating the prevailing modernist ecological discourses, many Buddhists tap into an alternative imagining of cosmological time that regards Earth not simply as a place to be left behind at the end of one's life, but a permanent home for all future beings. This reading of human–ecology relations emphasises a causal responsibility to secure planetary well‐being, moving the making of cosmopolitan sensibilities from the realm of beneficence into justice. Yet, this renewed cosmopolitan sensibility to Earth is not simply a prescriptive ethical framework articulated on an abstract level, but materially performed and negotiated at the level of everyday life. Recycling becomes a site of rapprochement that allows Buddhists in Singapore to promote and negotiate their ecological consciousness within the strictures of the secular state. In doing so, it opens up new spaces of postcapitalist possibility that enable Buddhists, alongside people of other or no faith, to imagine alternative ways of inhabiting the planet. By developing an alternative account of cosmopolitanism grounded in Buddhist cosmology, we identify Buddhism as a decolonial lens through which we can critically reimagine human–ecology relations, and illuminate diverse modes and practices of ethical becoming in this age of ecological crisis. This paper develops an alternative account of cosmopolitanism ‐ 'planetary cosmopolitanism' ‐ that is grounded in Buddhist cosmology. This account is based on not just a spatially expanded ethic of care for ecological worlds, but also a temporally extended sense of justice to the future Earth, thus moving the making of cosmopolitan sensibilities from the realm of beneficence into that of justice. Overall, the paper advances Buddhism as a decolonial lens from and through which human–ecology relations could be reimagined to illuminate diverse modes and practices of ethical becoming in this age of ecological crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper brings into dialogue recent critical scholarship on smart cities and geographies of the future by examining how city dwellers encounter normative visions of the future supplied by government actors under smart urbanisation. I focus specifically on the prosaic but significant ways in which people (re)interpret and (re)produce urban futures in and through their everyday affective and material engagements with digital technologies. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and semi‐structured interviews, I discuss the extent to which state‐promulgated imaginings of digital urban futures projected by electronic payment infrastructures are negotiated by urban inhabitants in Singapore, at both the levels of the individual and the collective. Although there is a tendency in Urban Studies to read the smart city as depoliticising, the findings in this paper suggest that urban dwellers' lived encounters with digital urban futures are characterised and bound up with politics. Furthermore, this paper casts attention on forms of negotiation that emerge not from grassroots movements and/or democratic activism that have so far attracted social and cultural geographers working on the future, but everyday lived practice around the digital. Such a fine‐grained, practice‐based approach productively foregrounds emancipatory potential for reworking and reimagining normative digital urban futures. Equally importantly, it takes seriously the diverse and uneven future‐making capacities of urban inhabitants in the digitally mediated city, contributing to ongoing projects that seek to develop a globally oriented alternative smart urban agenda for cities and urban spaces in the 21st century. This paper brings into dialogue recent critical scholarship on smart cities and geographies of the future by examining how city dwellers encounter normative visions of the future supplied by government actors under smart urbanisation. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and semi‐structured interviews, it discusses the extent to which state‐promulgated imaginings of digital urban futures projected by electronic payment infrastructures are negotiated by urban inhabitants in Singapore, at both the levels of the individual and the collective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a post hoc analysis and critical reflection of an unplanned methodology change made in the face of the unforeseen disruption brought by Covid-19 pandemic to a longitudinal study on children (N=462) from low-income families in Singapore. The research team was thrown into a state of intense ambivalence between waiting for life to come back to normal so that face-to-face survey could be resumed or to reformulate the methods and keep to the designed time intervals. This paper documents the framework that guided the urgent decision made for the change of data collection methods from f2f to video call survey, the trade-offs, implications on ethics and implementation results. Corroborating mixed post-hoc analysis methods of five qualitative focused group discussions with 39 survey interviewers who implemented the video-call survey, and statistical analysis of the consistencies of survey results over 3 time points, it was found that utilizing video call methodology did not lead to substantial difference in survey quality. The findings of this paper underscore the need for social science researchers to recognize the inevitability of uncertainties in the research fields and the need to strengthen one's preparedness for change while closely attending to the possible ethical implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars have extensively studied the spiritual and cultural interpretations of the afterlife. This paper builds on these works by exploring how the afterlife can be discussed as a 'place' meriting geographical discussion. To do so, I consider how the afterlife is spatialized drawing on the 'trialetic' interactions described in Henri Lefebvre's work. This is done in the context of Singaporean Chinese beliefs that place emphasis on ritualistic remembrance. Firstly, the emotive‐affective aspects of remembrance imbued into material practices produce spaces of representation that prolong the deceased's 'presence'. At the same time, the Singapore state exercises significant regulation of these practices. While common understandings of the afterlife relate to spirits and culture, the analysis charts how in Singapore's case, the spatialization of the afterlife becomes a contested politicized process. Conceptualizations of the afterlife are not statically enshrined in cultural beliefs but evolve with changing times. This paper thus elaborates Lefebvre's spatial triad to examine networks of prescription, alteration, and negotiation, whereby the afterlife is a dynamically produced space charged with power relations among various actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: This study aimed to (i) evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness‐based interventions in improving self‐efficacy, reducing stress and anxiety among peritoneal dialysis patients, and (ii) compare the most effective method of mindfulness based interventions. Methods: This randomized three‐arm controlled trial recruited first‐time peritoneal dialysis patients from the peritoneal dialysis outpatient clinic in Singapore. Patients were randomly allocated to either video‐assisted mindfulness training, therapist‐assisted mindfulness training or treatment‐as‐usual. All groups received 4.5 days of structured peritoneal dialysis training at the peritoneal dialysis centre, while video‐assisted mindfulness training and therapist‐assisted mindfulness training groups were taught additional mindfulness‐based techniques. The perceived stress scale, self‐efficacy, and anxiety (State and Trait Anxiety Inventory) were measured at baseline, 4‐ and 12 weeks post‐randomization, using reliable and valid instruments. Results: Thirty‐nine patients were recruited (13 in each group). All the therapies showed a significant time trend in anxiety. Only therapist‐ and video‐assisted mindfulness training showed a significant trend in perceived stress scale scores but not treatment‐as‐usual. All Intervention X Time interactions were not significant. Patients in therapist‐ and video‐assisted mindfulness training groups had reduced perceived stress scale scores compared to treatment‐as‐usual at week 12. Conclusion: This study demonstrated the potential of mindfulness‐based interventions in reducing stress among first‐time PD patients. Summary Statement: What is already known about this topic? Mindfulness‐based interventions have been recommended to mediate stressful events.Mindfulness‐based interventions as complementary therapy can be taught to patients who are starting peritoneal dialysis for the first time; however, the best method to guide mindfulness‐based interventions is unknown. What this paper adds? The findings showed that mindfulness‐based interventions can potentially reduce stress and anxiety but have no statistically significant effect on self‐efficacy for patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis for the first time.Video‐ or therapist‐guided mindfulness training is just as effective in teaching mindfulness‐based interventions. The implications of this paper: Nurses hold an essential role in improving the experience of patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis by advocating and facilitating the use of MBI during dialysis, especially those who display high levels of stress and anxiety, as well as signs of coping issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integration is a contested topic in Singapore's public discourse. One such area is integration through state-sponsored grassroots community volunteerism. Little is however known about such experiences of grassroots volunteerism to integration outcomes. This paper addresses the gap by exploring how new citizen and permanent resident grassroots volunteers make sense of their experiences through 'integration taxes' and 'gestural integration'. In doing so, this paper argues that while grassroots volunteerism offers lower barriers to entry for new citizens, it constraints the diversity of integration by and through new citizen volunteers due to discrimination, marginalisation and staged integration faced in grassroots work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

State entrepreneurialism in response to external market stimuli has a state intrapreneurialism counterpart – the entrepreneurialism found within public institutions. In moving beyond the case of Singapore from which the idea was proposed, this paper develops the concept of state intrapreneurialism by injecting a greater sense of the political and territorial heterogeneity of, and competition within, national states that fracture the identification of needs, the crafting of policy narratives, and the forging of domestic and international networks. With reference to the case of South Korea, this paper illustrates how state intrapreneurialism has generated domestic and international markets and reputation in the ICT-assisted city management domain despite elements of competition among public agencies. The case raises broader questions for future research on the relational geographies of politics and bureaucracy in stimulating or stifling state intrapreneurialism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how Christian practices of prayer are being reconfigured through digital media in Singapore. Although digital technologies are an area of burgeoning interest amongst social and cultural geographers, the ways in which these technologies reconfigure the space-times of religious praxis and engender new affective relations or subjectivities of religion have not yet been embraced. This paper fills the lacuna by bringing existing studies on religion, technology and affect into constructive conversation with each other. By elaborating on digital prayer as an affective assemblage of religious practice, we show how digital technologies blur institutional boundaries and create new affordances for lived religious subjectivities beyond the 'officially sacred'. Then, we consider how digital media may produce new atmospheres that shape the affective formation of religious subjects. We outline four dimensions of affect that constitute the digitally-mediated affective atmospheres, which structure how prayer is felt and performed. Altogether, this article contributes an understanding of 'digital prayer' as a form of religious practice that enables an integrative, if at times ambiguous and politically-charged, experience for connecting religious belief with the rhythms of everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes how Singapore achieved skin allograft self-sufficiency in 2017 by adopting 5 key strategies in 2012. Singapore General Hospital (SGH) established its own allograft recovery programme in 1998 but was still dependent on overseas allograft procurement. 1. Expanding the donor pool: a. increasing coverage to all hospitals, b. adopting mobile recovery sets and c. increasing skin donor upper age limit from 75 to 90. 2. Reducing allograft usage by utilising Biobrane as part of SGH Burns protocol. 3. Extending allograft shelf-life by adopting cryopreservation. 4. Tapping on the existing national organ and tissue donation network. 5. Expanding public outreach efforts. The allograft recovery programme expanded from 4 to all 20 institutions. Donor referrals increased by 42.9% from 35 in 2014 to over 50 currently. Donor numbers increased by 210%, rising from 4.5 per year before 2015 to an average of 14 per year from 2015 to 2022. The total allografts recovered increased by 223%, climbing from 13,000 to 42,000 annually. Cryopreservation was adopted, extending shelf life to 5.5 years and doubling storage capacity to more than 140,000 cm2 in 2022. Singapore achieved skin allograft self-sufficiency with no overseas procurement since 2017. ● 5 key strategies were used to achieve skin allograft self-sufficiency. ● Donor pool was expanded. ● Allograft shelf-life was extended with cryopreservation. ● Allograft usage was reduced by adopting Biobrane as part of burns protocol. ● Donor referrals, donor numbers and total allografts recovered increased substantially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of advanced practice nursing has evolved globally over the past decades and has become an important component in the contemporary healthcare system. The term 'advanced practice nurse' is used to refer to nurses practising at a higher level than traditional nurses and is defined as a registered nurse who has acquired the expert knowledge base, complex decision‐making skills and clinical competencies for expanded practice. In 2003, Singapore embarked on the development of advanced practice nurses as an initiative to improve the nursing professional image, retain excellent clinical nurses and fill the gaps in the provision of healthcare services for the ageing population. This paper documents Singapore's journey of advanced practice nursing development and shares our unique learning experience in the aspects of education, certification, registration and scope of practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Person‐centred services are inherently related to patients/caregivers' needs. However, the extent to which dysphagia services within Singapore meet consumer needs is largely unknown. Involving patients/caregivers in service evaluation/redesign deepens the understanding of consumer needs. This process also increases the success of implementing service enhancements through relevant and meaningful change. Aim: This study aimed to identify aspects of dysphagia services, within acute and subacute settings in Singapore, perceived as highly important and easy to change by patients/caregivers. Methods & Procedures: Using concept mapping methodology, 5 patients and 11 caregivers reflected on their experiences of receiving dysphagia care and proposed 59 unique suggestions to improve dysphagia services within Singapore. Then, each individual sorted the suggestions into groups based on similarity and rated each statement for its perceived importance and changeability for service enhancement. Data were analysed using multidimensional scaling, hierarchical cluster analysis, and bivariate analysis to generate clusters of conceptually similar suggestions and a prioritised list of suggestions for service enhancement. Results: Twelve clusters were identified, with most rated as more important than changeable for service improvement. Participants prioritised 23 (39%) of the suggestions as highly important and easy to change, and these focused on ensuring effective communication among consumers and healthcare team, enhancing patients and carers' access to support at home, increasing patients and carers' access to educational resources, and improving service quality and access through technology. Conclusion: These findings provide future directions on how to develop and implement dysphagia services in Singapore to better meet the needs of patients/caregivers. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: What is already known on this subject: Little is known about patients and caregivers' experiences and expectations of receiving dysphagia services in Singapore. Consulting them in service review and improvement deepens understanding of their needs and increases the success of implementing meaningful service enhancements. What this study adds to existing knowledge: This study shows that patients and caregivers in Singapore identified a wide range of dysphagia service issues and prioritised a list of suggestions for service improvement. They prioritised four key areas for service optimisation: ensuring effective communication among consumers and healthcare team, enhancing patients and carers' access to support at home, increasing patients and carers' access to educational resources, and improving service quality and access through technology. What are the clinical implications of this work?: This research highlights the importance of considering the consumers' perspectives in service review and redesign. Patients and caregivers in Singapore identified four prioritised areas for service enhancements. These findings provide future directions on how to develop and implement dysphagia services in Singapore to better meet the needs of patients and caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A central theme of Singapore's "City in Nature" vision is framed through biophilic urbanism, or efforts to harmonize biodiversity and urban development through built, social, and political design. The central discourses of Singapore's biophilic urbanism have revolved around flora-centric paradigms, including habitat conservation, greening spaces, and access to natural capital. This paper detours from conventions of Singapore's urban ecological futures and instead explores the governance of fauna co-existence in the city–state through the concept of "urban crittizenship." Defined as a more-than-human denization framework that interrogates urban wildlife governance, urban crittizenship interrogates the politics of urban wildlife's rights to the city. Drawing on interviews, publicly accessible data, and ethnographic findings with local governing actors and activists, I show that Singapore's experience of urban fauna governance is framed through three categories ("resident," "wildlife," and "pest") and that they inform how state and society mediate and manage coexistence with urban wildlife. These experiences are examined through the examples of otters, boars, and pigeons, respectively. In doing so, I present urban crittizenship as an inductive model of analyzing urban wildlife coexistence as primarily secured through infrastructural and political regime configurations that inform their crittizenship statuses. Any real shifts toward new forms of coexistence must therefore begin with actual transformations in these areas. I further iterate that using an urban crittizenship framework refines our understanding and application of biophilic urbanism as socio-political processes that influence already-existing urban wildlife coexistence, complementing existing analyses in urban ecology. In other words, there is a politics of biophilia that warrants a conversation, because biophilia is political. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A research project on using comics for teaching mathematics was initiated in one Singapore primary school. One class of Grade 5 (students of age 11–12) students was exposed to comics for mathematics instruction. This paper reports a case study of seven students' perception of the features of the comics instructional package and how these features impacted their learning of mathematics. The students' responses in an interview with the researchers were analysed using Thematic Analysis and presented using the Singapore mathematics curriculum framework. Four main features of the comics instructional package: (1) humour; (2) story narrative; (3) scaffolding provided by the questions and (3) visuals and four main themes: Increase in (a) enjoyment; (b) understanding; (c) appreciation of real-world applications of mathematics and (d) participation during lessons; were uncovered. The use of comics could potentially impact positively on developing students' Attitudes, Skills, Concepts and Processes of the Singapore mathematics curriculum framework in learning mathematics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper measures how much more households pay for less density in their immediate surroundings. Using transaction and administrative data and exploiting the introduction of a regulation that restricted the number of housing units for certain land lots, we find that households discount density: a 10% increase in within‐development density decreases the price per square meter by 5%. Further, the mean price per square meter of the average development increased by 1%–3% after the regulation was introduced, while the amount of built‐up space remained constant. The increase in total revenue suggests developers may underestimate the externality caused by density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Online peer support is a useful source of support for parents during the perinatal period, associated with improved psychological outcomes. Past research has found that peer support providers themselves gain from providing peer support as well, making it mutually beneficial. As current maternity care services are insufficient to meet the support needs of parents, the Supportive Parenting App (SPA) intervention was developed to offer them informational, appraisal and emotional support during the perinatal period. It consists of mobile health application-based educational support and online peer support provided by trained peer volunteers, to prevent the development of postnatal depression. Objective: To explore the experiences of peer volunteers with providing online peer support to parents during the perinatal period, as well as to identify areas of improvement for the SPA intervention. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was adopted. This study took place from October 2020 to August 2021 in two tertiary public healthcare institutions in Singapore. A total of 18 peer volunteers were invited for individual semi- structured interviews. The interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim, and thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Results: Four themes were emerged as follows: (1) 'Being there': Reminiscing about and healing of own postnatal depression experience; (2) Building rapport with parents; (3) Parents in mind: Mutual sharing of knowledge and how to support new parents better; (4) Ensuring good quality peer support. Conclusions: The peer volunteers felt that their experience was fulfilling and healing. Frequent contact, sharing of SPA resources and self-disclosure were found to help engage the new parents and build rapport between peer volunteers and parents. Challenges described by the peer volunteers have identified possible areas in which the SPA intervention can be improved. Implications for care: Communication between peer program facilitators, managers and peer volunteers can be enhanced to ensure that peer volunteers are more sensitive and precise when providing support or information. This can improve rapport building between parents and peer volunteers, which will in turn maximize the benefits that parents can reap through online peer-to-peer support. Impact: • This study explored the perceptions of peer volunteers who provided online peer support to parents across the perinatal period. • Peer volunteers felt that the SPA intervention was meaningful and that providing peer support was a healing experience. They were able to learn about the experiences of other mothers with postpartum depression while sharing their own past experiences. Thus, both parents and peer volunteers can benefit from engaging in online peer support programs. • Technology-based interventions like the Supportive Parenting App (SPA) can be a suitable complement to maternity care services by providing parents access to medically accurate information and social support. Additionally, more experienced mothers can engage in fulfilling experiences through volunteering for new mothers who may benefit from informational, appraisal and emotional support. Reporting method: This study follows the reporting guidelines as stated by the Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist. Patient or Public Contribution: Parents and peer volunteers contributed ideas that aided with the design of the mobile app. Many topics added to the educational materials were suggested by these parents as well. What does this paper contribute to the wider global clinical community? This study showed that sufficient training can be provided to lay peer volunteers to help them support other parents, buffering the pressure exerted on the healthcare industry due to the rising demand for healthcare services. The provision of such support is also beneficial for the peer volunteers themselves, as they find it meaningful and educational. Program developers of parenting and peer volunteering interventions can draw on the findings of this study to improve the effectiveness of these programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how older adults interact with fitness trackers and how that interaction influences their physical activity. We carried out qualitative interviews with 22 individuals between the ages of 55 and 72 who had used fitness trackers as part of a six-week field experiment investigating the effects of feedback from fitness trackers and the social influence of their spouses. From their comments, we derived an explorative process model explaining the mechanisms and the four stages of effects arising from personalised feedback, namely, cognitive, affective, conative, and intuitive. These effects were grouped into internal and external dimensions. Three types of goal-related decisions determined whether interviewees moved from the internal responses of cognition and emotion to the external response of behaviour change. The findings from this study elucidate how real-time personalised feedback can motivate physical activity among older adults and highlight the goal-related factors that influence this effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a comparative study of Israel and Singapore to understand the national security policies of geographically smaller states. These states are militarily powerful, geographically small, and in close proximity with much larger potential adversaries. These states are also different in terms of their relationship with that much larger state as well as their independence narratives. Israel remains in a state of conflict with Iran through Syria and through terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. Israel was created through war. On the other hand, Singapore has a complicated relationship with Malaysia based on suspicious cooperation. Malaysia also allowed Singapore independence given differences in the voting behavior of Singaporeans. Both states share a military strategy of preemption or prevention. Since these states are geographically small, striking first may offer Israel and Singapore a better chance at avoiding annihilation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The violence of precarious labour migration is often represented in popular and policy accounts through episodic frames that emphasise particular—often sensationalised and extreme—aspects and moments of more complex and mundane experiences. These depictions commonly appear under the labels of 'modern‐day slavery' and 'labour trafficking'. This paper advances a participatory methodology aimed at elucidating more complex temporalities experienced by precarious migrant labourers, drawing on a project with male migrant workers in Singapore. The methodology developed for this project centres on written diaries/narratives authored by the participants over periods ranging from one to three months. These detailed narratives document struggles—physically, relationally, financially and emotionally—in the context of post‐labour destitution. These struggles appear as both 'everyday' difficulties and longer‐term problems, with both temporalities rendered visible as a form of slow violence. This methodology fuses key principles of qualitative longitudinal research (QLR) methods with participatory action research (PAR) to develop a methodological orientation to temporally extenuative experiences of violence that are visible through processes that draw on participants as key producers of knowledge and advocates for change. As a way of engaging migrants' mundane post‐labour struggles, this methodology allows for tracing of the longer‐term and cumulative impacts of precarious migrant labour through participants' own frames of reference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Haila described Singapore as a laboratory for a social scientist given the multiple ways land is used, managed or treated as a source of public revenue. Phang explains how housing has given the bottom 50 per cent of households, wealth equating to the level advocated in Piketty's 'ideal society'. As fixed‐term leases expire, people who own apartments on public land will see their values fall to zero. Inequality will return, challenging the otherwise stable polity. Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, this paper explores how and why this unique land regime was created, and expose how theoretically inconsistent policies and their ad hoc, pragmatic application has created several rent leakages to a minority of the population who continue to hold freehold land. It offers some alternative strategies better informed by land rent theory, that might be adopted to preserve the benefits enjoyed for now. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent construction of an underground mass rapid transit (MRT) station in Singapore involved 21 m deep excavations within underconsolidated marine clay. The lateral earth support system comprised 1 m thick diaphragm walls socketed into the underlying Old Alluvium and 4 levels of preloaded cross-lot struts. Deep soil mixing (DSM) and jet grouting piles (JGP) were used to improve up to 15 m thickness of the marine clay formation. Field monitoring data showed that these ground improvement processes caused large outward deflections of the diaphragm wall panels at some locations prior to the excavation and may have caused yielding within the wall panels. In this paper, the impacts of these prior wall deformations on the subsequent performance of the excavation support system are investigated. The measured performance at two indicative cross sections is compared with results from simplified 2D finite element analyses. The analyses simulate the effects of ground improvement through prescribed boundary pressures and represent the yielding of the diaphragm wall panels through zones of reduced bending stiffness. We show that large outward wall deflections and curvature observed during jet grouting at one section contribute to higher inward wall movements and strut loads measured during excavation, while smaller movements (and curvature) prior to excavation at a second similar cross section cause negligible change in the performance of the temporary earth retaining system. The results highlight (1) the importance of controlling ground movements associated with ground modification processes such as jet grouting, (2) the uncertainties in estimating mechanical properties for the improved soil mass, and (3) the need to improve the representation of non-linear, flexural properties (M-κ) of reinforced concrete diaphragm panels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review paper describes the development of the pre-hospital system in Singapore from the pre-war days. Every country's prehospital community needs a deep understanding of how they developed over the years, factors that played a part, and the aspirations their community and government have set for this. This can guide future evolution of the services to ensure that care provided is relevant, applicable and in keeping with the community's needs. Countries with similar contextual circumstances, but at a different stage of development of their PECs, may learn from these. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines a patient with borderline mental capacity, where the healthcare team is conflicted about how to proceed. This case demonstrates the complicated intersection between undue influence and mental capacity, allowing us to explore how the law is applied in clinical practice. Patients have the right to decline or accept medical treatments offered to them. In Singapore, family members perceive a right to be involved in the decision-making process for sick and elderly patients. Elderly patients, dependent on mainly family members for care and support, sometimes submit to their overbearing influence resulting in decisions that fail to protect the patients' own best interests. However, the clinicians' own well-intentioned influence, driven by a desire for the best medical outcome can also be undue, and neither influence should seek to be a substitution for the patient's decision. Following Re BKR [2015] SGCA 26, we are now obliged to examine how mental capacity can be affected by undue influence. A lack of capacity can be found when a patient fails to appreciate the presence of undue influence or is susceptible to undue influence due to their mental impairment causing their will to be overborne. This then paves the way for the health care team to decide based on best interests, because the patient is determined to be lacking in mental capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Owner-operated (AECO) industry faces an array of productivity challenges, in part stemming from limited interoperability and suboptimal management of building information across project lifecycles. This paper investigates the application of rule-based systems from the manufacturing industry, especially as used in the semiconductor manufacturing sector, to improve productivity in the AECO industry. A comparative methodology is employed, examining processes in both the manufacturing and AECO industries. The results indicate that methodologies from semiconductor mask manufacturing can be effectively adapted for use in the AECO industry, particularly in design for buildability and standardized rule application. This paper includes the implementation of a Proof-of-Concept (POC) for Manufacturing Rule Check (MRC) in the AECO industry, focusing on Prefabricated Bathroom Units (PBU) production. The MRC developed for the POC could be integrated into the Model Checker platform of Singapore's CORENET X regulatory approval system, as well as deployed as a specialized application in the cloud that facilitates ease of collaboration among the design to fabrication players in the construction process. • Conducted a comparative analysis between semiconductor and AECO processes • Implemented Manufacturing Rule Check system focused on prefabricated bathrooms • Enhanced BIM and IDD interoperability with rule-based checking on regulatory platforms • Demonstrated the significance of adopting IDD to streamline AECO workflows [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper developed a novel online optimization deep learning framework for accurate estimation and control of tunnel boring machine's (TBM) attitude and position. The proposed spatio-temporal deep learning model integrates graph convolutional network (GCN) and long short-term memorial (LSTM) neural network which can provide an accurate estimation of TBM's trajectory deviations. This model is later utilized as the meta-model and integrated with an online non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) method to optimize and minimize the trajectory deviations in real-time. A tunnel project from Singapore is utilized as a case study for demonstration purposes. TBM's key operational parameters, articulation displacements, and TBM's trajectory deviations are processed and utilized for real-time prediction. The results indicate that (1) The developed deep learning models can predict TBM's trajectory deviations with high accuracy. (2) TBM's trajectory deviations can be effectively reduced by the proposed optimization method. (3) The proposed spatio-temporal deep learning methods outperform the state-of-the-art methods. (4) The proposed online optimization method is more practical and creates better overall improvement than the conventional multi-objective optimization (MOO) approach. The novelty of this paper includes (a) developing a hybrid framework for accurate trajectory deviation estimation and TBM operating optimization, and (b) investigating the influence of time and distance lag between the TBM operation and position control by considering an online optimization. • A novel online multi-objective optimization (MOO) method is proposed. • Deep learning model is established for reliable estimation on TBM's trajectory deviations. • The developed model is utilized as meta-models and hybrids with online NSGA-II method. • A tunnel project from Singapore is utilized as a case study • TBM's overall trajectory deviations can be reduced by 46.4% by the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seismic tunnel look-ahead methods, used during Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) excavation, provide key advantages in forecasting potential tunneling risks and improving operational reliability and efficiency. However, these methods often grapple with data uncertainty due to the complex subsurface medium and incomplete data, causing tunnel engineers to question seismic prediction reliability. The analysis of uncertainty for seismic tunnel look-ahead methods remains largely unexplored. In this paper, we delve into these uncertainties using field tunnel look-ahead seismic data. We propose a Bayesian update workflow, grounded in a novel real-time seismic tunnel look-ahead method, to quantify tunneling risks and mitigate seismic uncertainty using continuous data measurement. We construct probability density functions of potential risks from seismic prediction outcomes and introduce Bayesian inference to update the probability with multiple observations. We demonstrate this proposed method's application in various geological conditions in an urban Singapore area through several field experiments. Results indicate that our method enhances geological interface prediction reliability, minimizes interference from abnormal bodies adjacent to the tunnel, and demonstrates the ability to integrates interpreted geological information to refine tunnel look-ahead predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imposing minimum green building (GB) standards is a regulatory tool for governments to engage the private sector in building green, but there is little evidence on policy outcomes. This paper looks at the details of minimum GB standards mandated in Singapore in 2008 and critically investigates whether, and to what extent, they affect GB adoption in the private housing market during 2005–2019 using data for 1078 projects and associated transactions. After the mandate, a new type of entry-level, low-performing GB that simply meets the minimum GB standards but is not Green Mark certified prevails in the private housing market. High-performing, certified GBs only slightly increase from 15 % of the market to 23 % in the years after the mandate. Further empirical analysis using logistic and hedonic regression methods shows that small and medium developers tend to build entry-level GBs for tradeoff between GB performance level and cost, while large developers are 7.8 times more likely to build and certify high-performing GBs. These results suggest that mandating minimum GB standards rather than GB certification can stimulate widespread adoption of GB practices in the private sector, but inadequately promotes high-performing GB development and offset the adverse effect of cost on developers' building green. • We examine the policy effects of a mandate of minimum green building (GB) standards during 2005–2019. • Mandating minimum GB standards differs from mandating GB certification. • A new type of entry-level, low-performing, non-certified GBs prevail after mandate. • Small and medium developers lack incentives to build high-performing, certified GBs. • Mandates barely offset the adverse effect of cost on developers' building green. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A chance-constrained UTFM model is developed to optimize UAM traffic flow. • A concept of Waypoint Occupancy Time is proposed to manage dynamic separation. • Reactive and proactive decisions are made to solve observed and future disruptions. • A hierarchical stochastic search algorithm is designed to solve the UTFM model. • Model performance is evaluated by extensive numerical analysis with real-world data. Trajectory-based operations offer a promising solution for effective urban air mobility (UAM) traffic management with conflict-free four-dimensional trajectories. However, these trajectories generated in strategic phases by existing methods could be significantly disrupted due to uncertainties such as flight delays and trajectory deviations. This paper develops a chance-constrained UAM traffic flow management (UTFM) optimization model with fast disruption recovery to solve observed disrupted trajectories and improve their resilience. Our model introduces a novel concept of waypoint occupancy time to cope with the probabilistic separation constraints induced by variables, notably urban wind field. We then convert the probabilistic constraint into a deterministic one, incorporating risk-bounded separation guarantees derived from flight experiment data. Furthermore, we develop a hierarchical stochastic search algorithm for solving the redefined deterministic optimization problem. Our comprehensive numerical studies demonstrate the model's effectiveness in restoring disrupted flights and resolving conflicts within seconds. Additionally, our reliability testing showcases the resilience of the model in managing disruptions, even at levels as high as 50%, and its adaptability in addressing varying levels of uncertainty risk. We further demonstrate the ability of the UTFM model to capture tail risks across Gaussian and non-Gaussian uncertainty distributions. Lastly, our scalability analysis highlights the potential capacity of the model to support up to 3,000 flights per hour in Singapore's urban airspace below 400 ft. This study introduces an adaptable framework to facilitate the modelling of robust traffic flow management and performance-based separation for a variety of eVTOL types under uncertainties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research develops a hybrid approach that integrates light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) and non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) to optimize the tunnel boring machine (TBM) performance during excavation. The TBM operational data are first extracted and meta -models are established to estimate the key TBM performance, including the penetration rate, over/under excavation ratio, and energy consumption. An optimization process is proposed by adopting NSGA-II and the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) analysis to determine ideal operational parameters. The developed approach acts as a useful tool that assists tunnel construction automation and improves TBM performance under different in-situ conditions. Real data from a tunnel project in Singapore is utilized as a case study to examine the applicability and efficiency of the proposed approach. The results indicate that (1) The proposed meta -model provides reliable estimation with an average RMSE and MAE of 2.604 m m / m i n and 3.402 m m / m i n for TBM's penetration rate(O 1), 0.0211 and 0.0324 for over/under excavation ratio (O 2), and 15.512 k w h and 23.088 k w h for energy consumption (O 3), respectively. The prediction accuracy is better than the state-of-the-art methods; (2) The TBM's performance can be optimized by the proposed approach with an average improvement of 33.14 %, 1.32 %, and 17.95 % for O 1 to O 3 , respectively, and an overall improvement of 39.60 %; (3) The overall reliability of TBM operation improved after optimization with a significant reduction in data variance by 91.16 %, 76.92 %, and 97.35 % for O 1 to O 3 , respectively. This paper contributes to proposing a novel method that integrates LightGBM with NSGA-II in resolving the complex TBM operation problem by considering the major performance indexes including excavation efficiency, safety, and energy consumption during TBM operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with international climate obligations and domestic pressure, Singapore has recently raised its climate goals significantly. The government had affirmed its intention for carbon emissions to peak before 2030 and for Singapore to attain net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. However, as Singapore transitions to green energy, there remains much uncertainty if this transformation, coupled with rapidly evolving geopolitics, would present vulnerabilities to energy security. Hence, this paper is an attempt to investigate Singapore's possible paths to achieve these goals while enhancing energy security in view of present and future energy plans. Key parameters of energy security in Singapore's context are identified to determine how different policy decisions would influence them. The effects of various current and potential policies can thus be evaluated using a systems thinking and system dynamics approach to propose new energy solutions to improve energy security. System dynamics modelling reveals that new energy supply solutions would have to be considered in Singapore's Energy 2050 Plan while furthering efforts in reducing energy demand. Findings reveal that Singapore should have a target of >80% renewable energy by 2050, pursue a central strategy towards sustainable diversification of its energy sources into hydrogen, electricity imports and solar energy and reduce energy consumption. Accordingly, Singapore's energy security can then be improved in terms of the economic, energy supply chain and environmental dimensions, and towards attaining net-zero emissions. [Display omitted] • Systems approach to Singapore Green Plan 2030 and simulation of policies towards energy security and net zero. • Systems thinking and system dynamics modeling to evaluate key assumptions and energy security parameters. • Model validation, both structural and behavioral, through base model simulations as well as behavioral tests. • Effect of government policies on hydrogen energy, low carbon electricity imports and energy saving on energy security. • Simulations suggest policies for higher renewable energy targets to attain net zero carbon emissions and energy security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dry docks are essential facilities for ship maintenance and thus are critical assets of a shipyard. In this paper, we study a dry dock scheduling problem that arises from shipyard operations and management. The problem involves decisions on assigning ships to a set of dry docks and sequencing the ships in each dry dock, subject to complicated but realistic operational constraints such as parallel ship service, sequence-dependent setup times, and compatibility between ships and dry docks, to minimize the total departure tardiness cost of ships. Because accurate ship service times are not available until ships have been mounted on the placing blocks of dry docks and have undergone detailed inspections, the uncertainty of ship service times should be taken into account in dry dock scheduling. The structure of the problem enables us to develop a two-stage robust optimization model to capture ship service time uncertainty. We show that given the first-stage decisions, i.e., ship assignment and sequencing, the optimal second-stage decisions, i.e., the service start times, setup times, service times, and departure tardiness of the ships in the worst-case scenario, can be obtained by a dynamic programming algorithm that runs in pseudo-polynomial time. We incorporate this dynamic programming algorithm into an iterative solution method to generate an optimal solution to the two-stage robust optimization model. Through computational experiments on problem instances generated from the operational data of a shipyard in Singapore, we show that the robust optimization approach ensures the shipyard operator's resilience against uncertain ship service times and significantly outperforms the current practice for dry dock scheduling. • A new dry dock scheduling problem with uncertain ship service times is studied. • A novel two-stage robust optimization model is developed for the problem. • The second-stage problem is solved by a novel dynamic programming algorithm. • Model and algorithm are tested on instances generated from real operations data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing emphasis on vulnerable pedestrians and on the social aspects of active mobility, such as walking, has raised the profile of mobile methods for investigating mobilities in densely built environments. This paper examines the everyday mobility practices and perceptions of less mobile pedestrians, i.e., older adults and people with disabilities (PWDs), through mobile ethnographic interviewing. In total, 26 older adults and 7 PWDs were recruited for go-along interviews in localities familiar to them in Singapore. These semi-structured go-alongs generated a wealth of qualitative data covering topics ranging from their travel patterns to their perceptions of the built environment and their attitudes towards space sharing. Interview transcripts, field notes and video footage enabled an in-depth analysis of both the verbal and nonverbal aspects of the active mobility behaviour. The analysis revealed emerging sociospatial themes, including movement within an extended pedestrian network, such as detouring and taking shortcuts, and ambivalence towards space sharing caused in part by unclear rights-of-way among active transport modes and preconceptions of social norms. These themes have implications for how to shape travel behaviour based on a more inclusive approach to urban planning and neighbourhood design that instils a deeper humanistic understanding. • Both the communicative challenge posed by the "inclusive streets" concept and participants' effort to interpret it occurred. • Cut-throughs and informal paths were part of the extended pedestrian network, including for less mobile pedestrians. • A daptive behaviour of detouring and jaywalking represents potential to convert accessibility constraints into opportunities. • Ambivalence towards space sharing was implicated in underappreciated traffic rules and the perceived identity of other users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper establishes a digital twin (DT) enabled model that aims to achieve real-time monitoring and control to enhance the overall performance of tunnel boring machines (TBM) during excavation. Through the Internet of Things (IoT) sensors that are installed on TBM, the actual operating status is transferred from the physical object to the digital model. Deep learning models that integrated graph convolutional network (GCN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) networks are employed for reliable TBM performance estimation. An online multi-objective optimization (MOO) approach is then proposed to determine the optimal operating parameters for advanced control. Real data from Singapore's Circle Line 6 C885 project is utilized as a case study to examine the applicability of the developed digital twin model. TBM's penetration rate, over-excavation ratio, energy consumption, and tool wear are selected as the objectives (O 1 to O 4) for optimization. The results indicate that (1) The digital twin model can provide a reliable estimation of TBM's performance indicators with a high coefficient of determination (R 2) values. (2) TBM's overall performance can be effectively improved through the proposed online optimization method, with an overall improvement of 21.12%. (3) The proposed online optimization method is more practical and creates better improvement than the conventional MOO approach. This study addresses the existing research gaps of lacking a reliable method to guide TBM operation with enhanced performances for the major objectives. It also contributes to proposing a novel intelligent approach that integrates DT, deep learning, and an online-NSGA-II method for TBM operation optimization during tunnel excavation. • A digital twin enabled approach is proposed for real-time intelligent control for TBM operation. • An MOO approach that integrates deep-learning and online optimization is established. • Data from a realistic tunnel project in Singapore is used to demonstrate as a case study. • TBM's efficiency, safety, energy consumption and tool wear are considered as objectives. • An overall improvement of 21.12% is achieved by implementing the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whitetopping is the concrete overlay used to upgrade distressed asphalt road surface, where the distressed asphalt is milled off and concrete is cast on top as the new wearing course. However, it requires road closure for multiple days, which is not accepted in many urban constructions. Precast concrete pavement (PCP) is the technology that shortens the construction period. However, it is associated with complicated construction procedures due to the brittleness of conventional concrete. In this paper, a brand-new PCP design, i.e., ultra-thin whitetopping (PUTW) is studied and applied in a demonstration project in Singapore. The PUTW is enabled by employing strain-hardening cementitious composites (SHCC) with significantly higher ductility than conventional concrete. The current work includes four parts. First, the desirable combinations of SHCC's tensile and compressive uniaxial behaviors are identified in the analytical model and experimental study to enhance its flexural strength for pavement application. Second, the slab-to-slab joint efficiency in the PUTW, the critical mechanism in the structural design, is examined and validated with a full-scale cyclic wheel test. Third, the structural performance of the entire SHCC-PUTW is examined in a new finite element (FE) model validated against the wheel test. Based on the FE model, parametric studies on the SHCC material properties and PUTW slab dimensions are conducted to optimize the structural design. Fourth, a small-scale field project on the Jurong Island of Singapore, which involves the fabrication and installation of 11 SHCC-PUTW slabs, is reported to assess the feasibility of this new structural design. • Precast SHCC slabs used to upgrade asphalt pavement with shallow damage (70 mm thick). • SHCC mix proportions optimized to enhance flexural strength for the PUTW application. • Full-scale cyclic wheel tests verify inter-slab load transfer by underlying asphalt. • Finite element model verifies and optimizes the overall structural performance. • Monitored full-scale field trial with 13 SHCC slabs at a bus stop in Singapore. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the approvals of several vaccines against COVID-19 by the World Health Organization, a large body of research has studied the determinants of individuals' intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in a variety of societies. Vaccine intention is a complex construct rooted in the social context that informs the decision-making process. The underlying reasons for older adults' intention to receive the vaccination is even more important to health authorities in societies with large proportions of older adults. In this paper, we interview 27 women over age 55 in Singapore about their COVID-19 vaccine decision-making. Using a social-ecological framework of trust, we identify factors at both individual and institutional levels that build or undermine trust and underlie older women's decisions to receive COVID-19 vaccinations in an authoritarian regime. Findings show that both interpersonal trust and institutional trust contribute to vaccine uptake, however, trust can also contribute to delays in vaccination. Moreover, a sizable minority of respondents report that they were vaccinated not because of institutional trust, but because they felt compelled to do so. The results shed light on directions for future vaccination campaigns. • We focus on older women in an authoritarian state. • We adopt a social-ecological framework of trust. • Both interpersonal trust and institutional trust contribute to vaccine uptake as well as delays in vaccination. • This study provides policy implications for future vaccination campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines parenting advice to fathers published in the state-regulated English newspaper, The Straits Times , in Singapore. In November 2020, The Straits Times introduced ST Smart Parenting, with articles written as instruction guides for parents and autobiographical narratives. What is distinct about ST Smart Parenting are the articles written by and for fathers. Fathers are rarely the focus of parenting guides, as mothers have historically and in the present been positioned as having primary responsibility for childcare. Moreover, The Straits Times launched ST Smart Parenting amid two significant developments in Singapore – the publication of the White Paper for Singapore Women's Development as well as constitutional challenges to and the subsequent repeal of Section 377A. I argue that gender essentialism and heteronormativity is entrenched in parenting advice to fathers. As feminist critiques of gendered expectations make their way into public discourse, it is no longer tenable to criticize women per se or blatantly espouse practices that subordinate women and reinforce gender inequality. Consequently, parenting advice to fathers articulates the importance of fathers as benevolent providers of the family, gender differentiation in the family, and the conflation of marriage and parenthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive documentation and research have highlighted the destructive impact of near-field earthquakes on underground structures, while the effects of far-field earthquakes remain relatively less explored. In regions such as Bangkok and Singapore, where active seismic faults are located at a significant distance, the influence of far-field motions on tunnels tends to be ignored. However, far-field earthquakes are generally less destructive than near-field motions due to their low peak ground acceleration, peak ground velocity, and Arias intensity, resulting in lower energy. Conversely, far-field earthquakes tend to have a longer duration than near-field and a higher probability of containing long-period waves, which can lead to higher responses in the low-frequency region of the response spectrum. When these far-field ground motions are applied to thick layers of soft natural clays, a common geological feature in Bangkok, they can undergo significant amplification in the long-period range, resulting in large soil displacements and shear strains. Consequently, this induces significant forces in the tunnel lining comparable to those generated by near-field earthquakes. This paper presents a comprehensive study of this rarely investigated topic, using advanced numerical simulations to analyse the seismic behaviour of a shallow circular tunnel in Bangkok soft clays subjected to long-period earthquakes. The results show that far-field earthquakes have the potential to generate forces in the tunnel lining that are equally destructive as those induced by near-field motions. Therefore, these far-field effects should be accounted for in the seismic design of tunnels. • Behaviour of shallow tunnels in soft clays under far-field motion is investigated. • Soil structure degradation induced by earthquake loading is accounted for. • Soil structure degradation leads to higher levels of shear strain in the soil. • Soil destructuration facilitates the transmission of higher loads to the tunnel lining. • Far-field motion can cause significant damage to the tunnel lining as near-field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]