By Tan Xing Yu, STEM Inc, Education Officer, Science Centre Singapore On 18 May 2018, 17 teachers from Damai Secondary School, Broadrick Secondary School, Ang Mo Kio Secondary School, Loyang View Secondary School, Ministry of Education Headquarters and Science Centre Singapore visited Greenology at Farnborough Road to learn more about the company’s involvement in the…
Category: PLANTS
Rainbow Culinary
If your child is refusing greens, this workshop might be the perfect one for you! Tired of mashing carrots or cutting celery into cube sizes to ensure that they stay hidden in your child’s food? Instead of forcing your child to eat something they dislike (aka vegetables), why not make them love it! Join Science…
An InTREEguing Walk
Keen to stretch your legs and explore nature for a change? Want to take a look at some critters up close? Then check out Science Centre’s Intreeguing Walk occurring this Saturday, 5 May 2018! Perfect for anyone wishing to enjoy a guided stroll through nature while learning about the surrounding life. Registration closes on 28 Apr…
Local Asian Herbs
By Ajuntha Anwari Blue Rice Memory As a child I recall eating a delicious dish at a restaurant in Geylang Serai together with my family. It was a delicious rice dish that gripped my young imagination because the rice was coloured blue! I later learnt that the blue colour came from the blue pea vine…
Learning how plants ‘drink’ water— A classroom activity
Written by A/Prof Lim Tit Meng, Chief Executive, Science Centre Singapore Another classroom activity I introduced to teachers on ‘How to make your class alive where students really learn’ in Jakarta on 9 May 2015 was about the vascular system in plants. This activity was organised as a competition – how many straws can one…
Sightings of flowering Pulai trees
I was excited last Friday morning when I observed a three-tiered tree full of cream-coloured blooms and butterflies fluttering over its crown. It was at a park connector about 10 minutes’ walk away from Science Centre Singapore. Being my first time seeing so many butterflies (estimated 15 or more) in a natural setting, I stood…
Nature’s Call!
Fifty-four of us answered Nature’s Call, taking to MacRitchie in the not-so early morning hours of Saturday, 27 Sep 2014! It was welcome respite from our concrete jungle and a much anticipated adventure, which was fully subscribed within 24 hours of its communication to public! The MacRitchie Trail formed the second and final part of…
August Observation @ Ecogarden, Science Centre Singapore
I was inspired by a post on Facebook to make my way down to our Science Centre Ecogarden after a heavy rain one Friday (22 August) to see what insects I might spot. It was in the evening just before 6pm and I headed straight to a row of potted plants right in front of…
Another plant-related mystery
This photo was taken along the fence of one of the many construction sites in Jurong East. On the way to lunch, I’d noticed something sitting on top of the edge of that corrugated fence, and on closer inspection that turned out to be a conifer cone. And it wasn’t alone – there were at least…
Interesting sights @ Ecogarden, Science Centre Singapore
Some of us at Science Centre Singapore were recently talking about the sights and observations from our Ecogarden right at the back of the Centre (Yes, we have one beautiful garden!) I thought it appropriate to share what one of our Science Educators, Patrick, shared of his evening walk at the Ecogarden yesterday. “Crackling symphony”…
The Swamp Thing
Do you remember the movie-the Swamp Thing? If you do, I’d daresay you’re probably at least as old as I am (not that I’m telling!). If you don’t know of it, it’s an interesting science fiction film based on the DC Comics Universe’ story of a humanoid mass of vegetable matter, who fights to protect…
Honolulu creeper or bougainvillea?
I had gone down to the Science Centre Ecogarden to check out the pigeon orchid plant again one day in May but realised that all the flowers were gone. Well, I told myself that I would have a chance again to smell the fragrance of the flowers, as Mrs Chee, one of our ex-colleagues have…
A flower named after Singapore
A few days ago, I saw an interesting Facebook post by NParks, featuring a white flower with a red ‘eye’ in the centre that was named after Singapore, inviting fans to guess its name. How timely, I thought then, with our National Day just around the corner. Enthusiastic Facebook fans of the NParks page…
Plant of the Day
The current plant of the day in the Ecogarden has to be the Wild Cockscomb (Celosia argentea). Not only because of the beauty of its radiant pink blooms and its sweet scent that permeates the ‘Healing Plants” section of our garden; and not only because”virtually every part of this plant is useful to man,” as…
In the wake of the storm!
Here’s a sneak peek into the ‘carnage’ in the wake of today’s gusty storm… We lost one of our beloved trees in the Ecogarden – the Sea Hibiscus.
My humble attempt to grow corn seeds
“I wonder whether they will germinate.” These words made me ponder too, at the bowl of leftover corn seeds soaked overnight for a Show-and-Tell session by some students. Two days later, I noticed these! By then, the corn seeds had already been soaked in the water for roughly five days. I was amazed! The last…
Of Epiphytes and Orchids
“They are pigeon orchids!”, Mrs Chee from Education Programmes Division shared with me when I emailed her a picture of some pretty white flowers that I found at our lovely Ecogarden. Things always happen on hindsight. It was only after Mrs Chee told me so, that I realised that yes, they suddenly look orchid-like. Weird…
“Let’s Grow Veggie!” 102
It has been a full 6 months since I first took home from the inaugural Singapore Mini Maker Faire the baby lettuce in the little paper cups. See my previous blog about the baby lettuce plant. After 5 months and 3 rounds of harvests, I observed little buds indicating signs of blossoms just one day…
Today’s Mystery – Bamboo Twist
How did this bamboo leaf (right) get tied up so neatly? I know of several leaf-rolling insects and spiders; There is a range of caterpillars that roll up leaves as shelters to pupate in, crickets and spiders that hide inside rolled-up leaves, weaver ants that use their larvae’s silk to assemble their nests from whole…
Bendy woody
Did you know that wood can be bent? I was initially surprised when I saw this blog with a science experiment for children called “A little science with breakfast”. It demonstrated an interesting science craft by bending craft sticks through a boiling process and letting the craft sticks dry in the bent form to become…
“Let’s Grow Veggie!” 101
About a month ago, on 6 Aug (Monday), I brought home three mini paper cups of baby lettuce from the inaugural Singapore Mini Maker Faire held at Science Centre Singapore. The lettuce were bought from Evon Tay, one of the Makers at the Faire, and two of them were meant for two friends whom I…
Exploration of the Science Centre Singapore Ecogarden (Part 2) – The Tree House
I had gone to the Ecogarden again to double-check the name of a tree which I previously took a photograph of. Like the first time, I was at the garden in the late morning where the sun shined beautifully upon the greens in the garden. I was lucky to meet our plant specialist, Mr Tan,…
Exploration of the Science Centre Singapore Ecogarden (Part 1)
It started off with a meeting outside the Ecolab, pleasantly complemented by the harmonious chirping of the birds (or so I imagined) and the sight of hummingbirds hovering over the flowers. Gone with December were the rain and the cold breeze. Hence, my mini exploration took place under the bright cheery morning sun. In fact,…
Dragonflies of our Parks and Gardens
I found myself grinning when I was handed a copy of Dragonflies of our Parks and Gardens for the express purpose of writing a book review. What was not to like about it? It felt sleek even at 110 pages and the lush green covers exuded a cool, soothing feel. And if that weren’t enough,…
Into the Woods
Did you know that 2011 is the UN International Year of Forests? There are so many years of this and that these days, you would be forgiven to have missed this one. But there are good reasons the UN is highlighting the importance of forests; Millions of people depend directly on forests for their livelihood,…