They say there’s no smoke without ire. So let’s look at where you likely will and won’t be able to light up once the Health Promotion Board (HPB)’s consultation on extending the smoking ban closes at the end of this month. Desperate times call for desperate measures—and some out-of-the-box thinking.No WayOKParks and park connectorsTreetop walks (if you're dressed as a giant monkey)HDB staircasesHPB staircases (take the fight to the enemy)Beaches500 feet offshore, in the shadown of an oil tankerCovered walkwaysOpen sewersCarparksDangling from a helicopterHospitalsMorgues 

Words have power. That’s the message behind next weekend’s SlutWalk, the local edition of a phenomenon that began earlier this year in response to some distasteful comments by a Canadian police officer, who recommended that, if women wanted to stay safe, they “should avoid dressing like sluts.” To which the founders of the SlutWalk movement said, approximately, “Hell no!” and set out to reclaim the word. These, though, aren’t the only folk looking to subtly shift the connotations of a word.

In a week in which the New Seven Wonders of the Natural World were announced (our very own mighty East Coast Park was just pipped to the post by Brazil’s Iguaza Falls) it seems prudent to take stock of how we’re handling issues of eco-preservation. Forget all the talk of park connectors, sky gardens and silly “Supertrees,” here’s three rather more interesting initiatives we’re happy to get behind.Preserving the Lesser-Shamed Corporate Sponsor. If you haven’t yet noticed, we’ve just been invaded by some 162 baby elephants.

In which we explore six crazy developments surrounding this week’s eerie numerological occurrence; the moment when the six elevens align at the eleventh second of the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year of our Lord 2011.1. Wounded by lukewarm reactions to the iPhone 4S, Apple are set to hit back with the launch of a special Spinal Tap branded iPod.

There really is an app for everything. The new Police@SG app from the Singapore Police Force (SPF) allows residents and visitors alike to check crime stats, get tips on avoiding trouble, and find their nearest police station. What fun!

A big week for science this. Researchers at our very own Institute of Materials Research and Engineering have figured out a way to boost the storage capacity of hard disks sixfold, with the help of what team leader Joel Yang calls a ‘salty developer solution’; Basically—and bear with us here, while we get super-technical—they added (or, to use scientific jargon, “spilt”) some table salt into the solution everyone else was using, and ta-da! Hard-drives that can store six times more porn, every last episode of Star Trek and forty-four million cute cat JPEGs.

Pop quiz: What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of 1995? The first Toy Story? Or perhaps (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? Maybe you get all misty-eyed about a certain revolutionary new Windows operating system, the founding of ebay or the invention of the DVD. Perhaps you still mourn the death of Dean Martin, Ginger Rogers or Eazy-E. Whatever your memory of it is, 1995 seems like an awfully long time ago.But you want to know something strange? Nothing’s changed since then. At least it seems that way.

To: All of You [mailto: [email protected]]From: Us, the maligned many, the frustrated hordeSent: Frequently, until you change your waysSubject: The New Rules of EmailWe figure we should give you this heads up now, since it’s probably only a matter of time before all of Singapore is sharing the same office.

Dear LinkedIn,We the United Coalition of Petty-Minded, Gossip-Mongering Workers of Singapore wish to register our displeasure at your recent study which claims to have found that Singaporeans are among the world’s worst office gripers.For one thing, telling us we came second is adding insult to injury! Tell us how to come first and we promise to do as we’re told.

Has the novelty of F1 finally worn off? With the race coming only days after scientists announced they may have found particles travelling faster than the speed of light, throwing our understanding of the entire universe into question, Sebastian Vettel’s 300km/hour begins to sound a little tame. The papers tried their hardest to stoke interest, but when you’re reduced to talking about the number of extra hotel beds filled over the weekend, there’s a tendency for your readers to…well…fall asleep.