Yes dear readers, the promotion is over…

The promotion was held over a period of 5 months, from October 08 to March 09. During this period, we received numerous enquiries. Enquiries swarmed in continuously. We handled more than 12000 enquiries. Thankfully, all of us at PLS have been are very cooperative and shared the workload. Some questions were really challenging, especially the categories for ‘Festivals’, ‘Fiction’ and ‘Science’.

For example, for festivals, some of the questions asked were “Why can’t we drop chopsticks during Chinese New Year?”, and “For the Chinese, why is it important to wear a new pair of slipper that is bought before the Chinese New Year?”.

These questions seem easy to relate to as many of us have been practising for many years but to locate reliable sources, that is quite challenging. Librarians had to refer to books, websites and also with their grandparents or great grandparents.

Some questions related to Science include “Why is Avogadro’s constant 6/ 10^23 ?”.

For some of us who have no science background, we would ask our fellow colleagues. It was like attending a Science lesson, where the different theories were thrown in.

We librarians also learned a lot during the process. This is what we call ‘Lifelong Learning’.

It was also a challenge to select the winners. There are just too many interesting enquiries. We had long debates which should get the vouchers and Zen Stone.

If you want to check what are the past winning enquiries, do scroll below for the winners for different months.

We hope that you will continue to find the ASK! service useful. We welcome your enquiries, whether it is for your personal interest or work. You can send us enquiries via ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply to you within 3 working days.

We also have a year-long trial where you can SMS your questions. Please do check out our another blog entry on this over here

Thanks for all the support for this promotion.

Contributed by

Ms Michelle Kwok
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

The final and last winner for this promotion goes to the enquirer whom asked the below question. We will contact the winner separately for collection of the prize won. Congrats!!!

Question: Why are clothes pressing irons triangular shaped?

Answer: The shape of irons had evolved over the centuries. Many inventors had made improvement to the different parts of the iron, such as the handle and ironing plate, so as to benefit users. In the 19th century, Mary Ann Cook recommended a small convex surface for the irons, as seen in this excerpt:

“During the 19th century, the fashion called for starched garments, such as shirts, to display a high sheen. Polishing irons, a variation on the traditional sad-iron, were invented for that purpose. The first patent granted in the United States for any type of iron was issued to Mary Ann Cook in 1848 for a Polisher (figure 14). The story of her patent illustrates the workings of the product as well as her special insight from personal experience.”

“Cook’s patent recommends her improvement as especially useful for Smoothing and polishing starched shirt fronts. Apparently she had special knowledge of the problem and special insight to provide a solution: Common . . . sad-irons . . . have only one flat ironing or plane surface. They are not well adapted to polishing or glazing starched shirt-bosoms or other articles . . . . Experience has taught me that a very high gloss or polish can only be successfully or practically effected by a small curved convex surface, one capable of retaining a suitable polishing-heat’ while being used.”

“Her experience also showed Cook that in order to achieve greater pressure on the curved section of the iron and to provide greater wrist comfort, it was advantageous to place a downward angle on the wood handle–an early example of successful ergonomics. Apparently many were sold–and little wonder. Imagine the joy of owning an improved tool to make this onerous task a bit more tolerable.”

The above is extracted from the article “From ironing to transplants: woman as inventor”
Source: http://www.ipmall.fplc.edu/
Information found in: ipmall.fplc.edu/news_activities/potts/potts1.htm
(last accessed on 30 Mar 2009)

If you have any enquiries or comments, please drop us an email at ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply within 3 working days.

Posted by
Mr Justin Tan
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

Yes, this month’s winning question has been selected. Our congrats to the lucky chap!! We’ll contact you separately for your prize collection.

Question: Why do public toilets split in the middle?       

Answer: “Open-front” or “split-front” seats with the little gap came in around 1940 to mitigate the errors. If standing males don’t lift the seat, they can drip urine onto its front; the gap supposedly eliminates this. It also keeps the penis from touching the seat when a man is seated. Though hardly making toilets much better, open-front seats were instituted as code almost everywhere by the 1950s. They didn’t catch on in private homes because of the public-toilet stigma. Also, men are theoretically more conscientious at home and will always lift the seat (though many do so in public toilets as well). But different societies have different concerns. In Mexico, new toilet seats are almost all open-front, whether public or private, even though there’s no seat code at all.

Source:

http://archives.stupidquestion.net/sq82699toiletseats.html

Stupid Question ™, Aug. 26, 1999
By John Ruch

An interesting read if you would like to find out more about technology and inventions:

Cool Stuff 2.0 and how it works/by Chris Woodford and Jon Woodcock.
J English 600 WOO

Great inventions of the 20th century/ by Peter Jedicke
Y English 609.04 JED

Gadget nation: a journey through the eccentric world of invention / Steve Greenberg.
Y English 609 GRE

 Posted by Yen Yen Toh, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Found this question interesting? What do you think? Post your comments.
If you have a different question, please email to ask@nlb.gov.sg instead of sending a comment

ASK! about Fiction

Below are some recommendations:

1. Title: The dark mirror
Author: Juliet Marillier
Publisher: New York : Tor, 2007.
Call No.: MAR -[FN]

2. Title :Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Author: Susanna Clarke ; illustrations by Portia Rosenberg
Publisher: London : Bloomsbury, 2004.
Call No.: CLA -[FN]

3. Title: A song for Arbonne
Author: Guy Gavriel Kay
Publisher: London : Earthlight, 2002.
Call No.: KAY -[FN]

 4. Title: Stardust
Author: Neil Gaiman
Publisher: New York : Spike, 1999
Call No.: GAI – [FN]
(editor: Stardust has been made into a movie, starring Claire Danes, in 2007)

You can check our online catalog (http://catalog.nlb.gov.sg/) for the locations and availabilities of the above titles.

 Originally answered by Ms Lynn Koh, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Posted by Yen Yen Toh, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Found this question interesting? What do you think? Post your comments.
If you have a different question, please email to ask@nlb.gov.sg instead of sending a comment

Yes, this month’s winning question has been selected. Our congrats to the lucky chap!! We’ll contact you separately for your prize collection.

Question: Which festival in the world has the longest number of celebration days?
** This Question had been edited for better clarity

Answer: The Nadun Festival (meaning ‘entertainment’ and ‘carnival’ in the Tu language) is a unique folk activity among the Tu ethnic people concentrated in Minghe County, Northwest China’s Qinghai Province. The festival is held after harvesting the wheat in the summer, and usually lasts two months from July 12 to September 15 on the lunar calendar. It’s no wonder that some people call it the longest carnival in the world.
** Source: [www.yellowsheepriver.com/~qh000007/2008/] (last accessed on 13 Jan 2009)

If you have any enquiries or comments, please drop us an email at ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply within 3 working days.

Posted by
Mr Justin Tan
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

The Ministry of Health National Organ Transplant Unit was set up to “tailor organ procurement activities to meet the needs of the various transplant teams”. Statistics on human organ transplant in Singapore from 1997 to 2006 is also available at the MOH website.
Source: Ministry of Health , last accessed on 30/01/2009.

Acts related to human organ transplant are available at Singapore Statutes Online , last accessed on 30/01/2009.
1) Human Organ Transplant Act
Chapter 131 A
2) Medical (Therapy, Education And Research) Act
Chapter 175

For further news on this topic, you may also access Factiva for related newspaper articles:
Electronic Databases – Factiva (available through NLB’s eResources page)

Use Factiva’s research products to gain single click access to a deep archive of news and business information that provides a historical, global, and local perspective, which can help you uncover essential information on your prospects, partners or customers easily.
Available from home. With 30 days archive access.

Headline: Higher penalties: Under amended Act, offenders could be jailed 10 years, fined $100,000
Author: Judith Tan
Date: Nov 14, 2008
Source: The Straits Times

“…
There are currently about 560 Singaporeans who need a new kidney. A shortage of donors means wait times can average nine years. Last year, more than 80 patients were removed from the waiting list because they had died, or had become too old or too sick for a transplant.
…”

** Note **
The “Just ASK To Win!” promotion runs from 1 November 08 to 31 March 09. Enquiries received via the ASK! mailbox automatically qualify for the contest. For more information on the promotion, please refer to http://blogs.nlb.gov.sg/ask/promo.

If you have any enquiries or comments, please drop us an email at ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply within 3 working days.

Posted by
Mr Justin Tan
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

Here it is folks, the moment you’ve all been waiting for — The winning question for December 2008, and it goes to…

Question: Do international country calling codes have any relation to the country’s history or status? For example, the US calling code is +1 and Singapore’s is +65. Our year of independence is 1965.
** This Question had been edited for better clarity

Answer: International country calling codes are assigned according to the country’s respective geographical zones/ country groups by CCITT (Consultative Committee for International Telegraphy and Telephony) in 1964. We are unable to find any other logic in the assignment of the codes. There are 9 groups of countries altogether. Singapore is in zone 6, so the calling code begins with 6 but US calling code +1 shares the same code with Canada.
The country calling codes may be changed if a country is separated from another country. Country calling codes can contain one to three digits.

World Zone 1 – North and Central America (only country code +1)
World Zone 2 – Africa
World Zone 3 & 4 – Europe
World Zone 5 – South America
World Zone 6 – Oceania, Australia, etc.
World Zone 7 – USSR (only country code +7)
World Zone 8 – Eastern Asia
World Zone 9 – Western Asia, Middle East

You may look up the various codes & the developments of country codes assignments from the above info source: World Telephone Numbering Guide at http://www.wtng.info
Other Web resources:
International Telecommunications Union (formerly CCITT) http://www.itu.int

** All websites last accessed 7 January 2009

Congrats to the winner!!! We’ll be contacting the winner separately to collect the prize won.

If you have any enquiries or comments, please drop us an email at ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply within 3 working days.

Posted by
Mr Justin Tan
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

After weeks of intensive selection for the most interesting question asked for November 2008, the panel of judges has finally decided on the winning question. Here’s the winning question asked, and also the answer provided by the Librarians. Our congrats to the winner!!! We will contact the winner separately on collecting the prize won.

Question: Why is a rising stock market called a bull market? Why is a falling stock market called a bear market?
** This Question had been edited for better clarity

Answer: There seems to be no fixed agreement on how the terms came about. However, most sources point to the way the animals attack their prey as reasons for their being used to describe markets behaving in a certain way.
For example,
[1] The use of “bull” and “bear” to describe markets comes from the way the animals attack their opponents. A bull thrusts its horns up into the air while a bear swipes its paws down. These actions are metaphors for the movement of a market. If the trend is up, it’s a bull market. If the trend is down, it’s a bear market.
(Source: http://www.investopedia.com/)

[2] “Bear” because the animal tends to drag down its prey. “Bull” because the animal tends
to throw its prey upwards.
(Source: http://www.fundsupermart.com/)

[3] Some say the description refers to the way that the animal attacks. Bull attacks (with its
horns) from bottom up (benefiting from buying low, selling high). A bear on the other hand,
attacks (with its paw) from above (high prices) down (benefiting from short selling).
(Source: http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Bull-market)

** All websites last accessed 3 December 2008

If you have any enquiries or comments, please drop us an email at ask@nlb.gov.sg and we will reply within 3 working days.

Posted by
Mr Justin Tan
Librarian
Adult and Young People’s Services

Depending on their life stages, sunflowers in their bud stage do turn towards the sun, and in its growing stage to the East, but they do not always tend to follow the sun thereafter.
“When the plant is in the bud stage, it tends to track the movement of the sun across the horizon. Once the flower opens into the radiance of yellow petals, it faces east. No one knows why. However, it is likely a defensive response. Facing south or west could result in sun-scalding of seeds during very hot days.”

(extracted from the National Sunflower Association,  last accessed date: 5/1/2009)

 Originally answered by Eleaner Ang, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Posted by Yen Yen Toh, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Found this question interesting? What do you think? Post your comments.
If you have a different question, please email to ask@nlb.gov.sg instead of sending a comment

 Image extracted from Britannica.com

According to Modern World History Online, the “bell tower of the cathedral of Pisa first began to lean after construction began in 1173, and the list, which can be attributed to the tower’s inadequate foundation material (soil rather than rock), increased steadily through the two centuries required for the completion of the project. Efforts are underway to halt and, where possible, reverse the tilt, which constantly threatens the magnificent eight-story tower” (“Leaning Tower of Pisa”).Work Cited:
“Leaning Tower of Pisa.” Modern World History Online. Facts On File, Inc. http:// www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?
ItemID=WE53&iPin=WTR0042&SingleRecord=True (last accessed December 15, 2008).

Encyclopedia Britannica reveals more on how plans to make up for the initial list led to further sinkage. It also provides updates on the progress of correction works:

“[ . . . ] Bonnano Pisano, the engineer in charge, sought to compensate for the lean by making the new stories slightly taller on the short side, but the extra masonry caused the structure to sink still further. Work was suspended several times as engineers sought solutions, but the tower was ultimately topped out in the 14th century, still leaning.

The foundations have been strengthened by the injection of cement grout and various types of bracing and reinforcement, but in the late 20th century the structure was still subsiding, at the rate of 0.05 inch (1.2 mm) per year, and was in danger of collapse. In 1990 the tower was closed and the bells silenced as engineers undertook a major straightening project. Earth was siphoned from underneath the foundations, decreasing the lean by 17 inches (44 cm) to 13.5 feet (4.1 metres); the work was completed in May 2001, and the structure was reopened to visitors. The tower continued to straighten without further excavation, until in May 2008 sensors showed that the motion had finally stopped, at a total improvement of 19 inches (48 cm). Engineers expected the tower to remain stable for at least 200 years” (“Leaning Tower of Pisa”).

Work Cited:
“Leaning Tower of Pisa.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition. 15 Dec. 2008 .

You can also read the following book for a full look at the story behind this magnificent and not-quite-toppling tower. Please search our catalogue (http://catalogue.nlb.gov.sg) to check for locations and availability of the title.

Title: Tilt : a skewed history of the Tower of Pisa
Author: Nicholas Shrady
Call No.: 725.97094555 SHR

 Originally answered by Goh Peck Keong, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Posted by Yen Yen Toh, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Found this question interesting? What do you think? Post your comments.
If you have a different question, please email to ask@nlb.gov.sg instead of sending a comment