Monday 31 August 2009

0218 HKSAR Name of the Day

Sicily Ho (Ms), executive officer, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Geography-based; Rare

Sunday 30 August 2009

0217 HKSAR Name of the Day

Rianna Leung No Kei, Department of Music, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

What’s The Story Morning Glory?

I love the fact that these strange phenomenal tubular atmospheric condensations are called Morning Glory clouds! The name reminded me of the delicious stir-fried tubular vegetables, albeit tangled, that are so popular here.


Even better, their formation (these clouds appear every autumn over Burketown, Queensland, Australia) remains clouded in mystery. Ta da (had to get that remark in)!! There’s obviously a meteorological explanation, but as yet no scientist has come up with a reasonable one.

Reference Mysterious Tubular Clouds Defy Explanation (Wired Science)

Saturday 29 August 2009

0216 HKSAR Name of the Day

Luka So Yuk Ping (Ms), Instructor, Department of English and Communication, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Substitution

Friday 28 August 2009

0215 HKSAR Name of the Day

Cris Fung Yu Yin (Miss), student, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

Thursday 27 August 2009

0214 HKSAR Name of the Day

Chanel Fok (Ms), marketing officer, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong (brand-based)

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Brand-based; Rare

Wednesday 26 August 2009

0213 HKSAR Name of the Day

Iona Milligan Lai Ching (Mrs), Instructor, Department of English and Communication, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

Tuesday 25 August 2009

0212 HKSAR Name of the Day

Balica Ng Tsz Kwan (Miss), student, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Substitution

#25 Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Bodily sounds
Angie Tourani gives a free introduction to BodyTalk therapy, ahead of workshops. Rm 708 Rightful Centre, 11 Tak Hing St, Kowloon; workshops, HK$8,800 (US$1,100).

About Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Monday 24 August 2009

0211 HKSAR Name of the Day

Portia To Shui-yu (Ms), teaching assistant, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Literature-based; Rare

Sunday 23 August 2009

0210 HKSAR Name of the Day

Bobo Lee Bo, Department of English, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

Saturday 22 August 2009

0209 HKSAR Name of the Day

Misty Choi Ka Man, research student, Department of Chinese, Translation and Linguistics, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

Friday 21 August 2009

0208 HKSAR Name of the Day

Bibiana Hui Man King, Department of English, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

Chinese Cherry Picking

The following sentence sounds pretty lucky: “Eight [people] work at the "888" noodle shop in the basement of the Cameron Centre in Cameron Road” … until you realize these "lucky eight" were victims who succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Do people (i.e. numerologists, Chinese astrologists, Fung Shui practitioners, and those who believe in such Hocus Pocus) take notice of the “lucky” number eight in such negative situations? Clearly not. It is human nature that people only pay attention to “lucky” numbers that confirm their biases and will usually ignore any incidents that reject their predetermined view.

Related Post Chinese Fiddlesticks!

Reference (SCMP; subscription required)

10 ill after inhaling gas at noodle shop
Clifford Lo
Aug 13, 2009

Ten people at a Japanese-style noodle shop in Tsim Sha Tsui ended up in hospital yesterday when the ventilation system broke, raising carbon monoxide levels to 20 times the standard level.

Eight of the victims work at the "888" noodle shop in the basement of the Cameron Centre in Cameron Road. There was also one customer - a three-year-old boy - and a man who works in a ground-floor shop.

Last night a 27-year-old man was in serious condition in Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the others had been discharged.

Six fire engines, eight ambulances and a mobile casualty treatment centre were dispatched after the restaurant workers complained of inhaling gas and feeling unwell just before 2pm. Most said they felt dizzy or were having difficulty breathing. They were connected to oxygen masks after being carried into ambulances.

Police cordoned off a section of Cameron Road while firemen wearing breathing apparatus and carrying gas detectors were tracing the source of the gas. Shops at ground level were ordered to close until about 6pm.

Workers from the Drainage Services Department were called in to open the covers of nearby manholes to carry out checks. The Fire Services Department said there was a high concentration of carbon monoxide in the restaurant and an initial investigation showed it had been caused by a faulty ventilation system.

Lo Kam-wing, Tsim Sha Tsui fire station commander, said the level of carbon monoxide at one time was 20 times higher than the standard level.

"Carbon monoxide is a colourless and odourless gas. Inhaling the gas makes it difficult to breathe and you feel dizzy," he said.

A fire officer said the gas level was raised because there was no fresh air being pumped into the restaurant.

Choi Kin, former president of the Medical Association, said the percentage of carbon monoxide in fresh air was low and it would not have a fatal effect even if the level was 20 times higher than normal. However, inhaling large amounts could cause suffocation and brain damage.

Thursday 20 August 2009

0207 HKSAR Name of the Day

Devonna Hui Ling Qian (Miss), student, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

#24 Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Psyched up
Jannine Nunan leads a workshop on awakening psychic senses. Feb 15, 11am-4pm, Shakti Healing Circle, 3/F Waga Commercial Centre, 99 Wellington St, Central, HK$1,200 (US$150).

About Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Wednesday 19 August 2009

0206 HKSAR Name of the Day

Derry Law (Dr), teaching assistant, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Institute Of Textiles & Clothing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

“Lightning” Bolt vs Duracell “Battery” Bekele

How fast can you run 100m and how many times can you repeat it consecutively?

I’m simply amazed at how fast elite athletes run. At the 2009 Athletics World Championships in Berlin, we have seen Usain Bolt of Jamaica running 100m in a world record time of 9.58 seconds, and then Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia running 10,000m in a championship record time of 26 minutes 45.11 seconds.










[Usain Bolt (L) and Kenenisa Bekele (R)]

Having recently started to run on the athletics track, I am in awe of what elite athletes achieve, particularly middle- and long-distance runners.

Even though Bolt smashed the 100m world record (a remarkable feat), I am more inclined to be amazed at the pace set by middle-distance runners like Bekele and fellow Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie, and by long-distance runners.

To put it into context, Bekele completed 10,000m in 26 minutes 45.11 seconds. Essentially, he ran the 100m in 16.05 seconds one hundred times. That to me is incredible … non-stop sprinting for about 27 minutes. At a guess, Bolt can probably run 100m at a steady pace (say, 12 or 13 seconds) for perhaps 10 or 20 times non-stop before his pace drops dramatically.

And yes, there is a difference in body make up, with powerful explosive sprinters having a preponderance of fast twitch muscles, while middle- and long-distance athletes having a predominance of slow twitch muscles. That’s the physiological difference: explosive but short-lived performance versus endurance.

Tuesday 18 August 2009

0205 HKSAR Name of the Day

Cycles Poon Suet Ping, Professor, Department of Anatomical and Cellular Pathology, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Job-based

Do you recognize that there is a difference between those two numbers?

The following YouTube soundclip is a great example of irrationality (and ignorance, and stupidity, and whatever else …) at work! Enjoy.



Reference: FailBlog.org

Caller: Do you recognize that there is a difference between one dollar and one cent?
Manager: Definitely


Caller: Do you recognize that there is a difference between half a dollar and half a cent?

Manager: Definitely


Caller: Then do you recognize that there is a difference between 0.002 dollars and 0.002 cents?

Manager: No


Caller: Honestly!

Manager: Well, it’s obviously a difference of opinion.

Caller: It’s NOT opinion!

Monday 17 August 2009

0204 HKSAR Name of the Day

Caesar Lun Suen, Assistant Professor, Department of Chinese, Translation and Linguistics, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Self-important

Sunday 16 August 2009

0203 HKSAR Name of the Day

Dobie Wong Ka Hang (Miss), student, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Substitution

Saturday 15 August 2009

Friday 14 August 2009

0201 HKSAR Name of the Day

Topsy Yee, Mid-Levels, Hong Kong (SCMP letters to the editor, August 31, 2004)

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

Thursday 13 August 2009

0200 HKSAR Name of the Day

Zombi Ho Mei-tak (Miss), assistant manager, AG Wilkinson & Associates Property Management Company Ltd, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

Wednesday 12 August 2009

Tuesday 11 August 2009

Monday 10 August 2009

0197 HKSAR Name of the Day

Ricko Tang Cheuk-yin, pre-associate degree programme student, Lingnan University, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation

#22 Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Light reading
Sue Jamieson gives a free talk on her new book, Light on Life. Today, 7.15pm-9.30pm, New Age Shop, 7 Old Bailey St, SoHo.

About Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Saturday 8 August 2009

Friday 7 August 2009

0194 HKSAR Name of the Day

Eugina Fok, surveyor (since 1997), Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Rare

See also 0183 HKSAR Name of the Day

Thursday 6 August 2009

Wednesday 5 August 2009

0192 HKSAR Name of the Day

Gemmy Cheung Chui Ming, doctor, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Substitution

#21 Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Body time
Mag Fung leads a six-week holistic workshop on creating the body you want. Feb 5, 7pm-9.15pm, Shakti Healing Circle, 3/F Waga Commercial Centre, 99 Wellington St, Central, HK$1,800 (US$225).

About Hong Kong Hocus Pocus

Tuesday 4 August 2009

0191 HKSAR Name of the Day

Jeanny Chang Ming Hei, solicitor, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Insertion; Substitution

Monday 3 August 2009

0190 HKSAR Name of the Day

Derric Fung Kin Pong, surveyor (since 2000), Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Deletion

Sunday 2 August 2009

0189 HKSAR Name of the Day

Gloris Chui Yuet Man, accountant, Hong Kong

About Novel HKSAR Names
Name Category: Creation; Substitution; Translocation

Saturday 1 August 2009