Day: July 2, 2025

The Singapore Prize was established to honour and recognise Singaporeans who contribute towards advancing social welfare, strengthening national identity, fostering innovation and artistic endeavour – it awards individuals, institutions, companies or other organisations located in Singapore.

Since 2007, President of Singapore has presented this award annually, honouring outstanding scientists and engineers who have made significant contributions to national development. Winners receive up to S$50,000 as their cash award.

A total of 224 submissions were received this year for Earthshot Prize Awards, representing a 30% increase over last year. Winners were revealed during a star-studded ceremony hosted by actors Hannah Waddingham and Sterling K. Brown in Singapore’s Mediacorp Campus theater with musical performances by bands Bastille, One Republic and Bebe Rexha as special guests; New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is also a trustee on Earthshot Prize board and she attended as special guest.

To qualify for this prize, a book must make an outstanding contribution to research or scholarly knowledge, with evidence of tangible economic or societal impact. Finalists will be shortlisted by a jury panel which will select five winners; these books will then be published by NUS Press.

Many of the shortlisted works have an historical aspect, fitting with the spirit of this prize; however, its selection process is open to any creative works which address Singaporean history in an innovative manner.

The NUS Singapore History Prize, first established in 1968, underwent numerous changes to its jackpot system prior to being finalised in 1981. At first, its jackpot remained fixed and would only grow with each draw; as its popularity increased however, a rollover system was implemented instead.

One of the most striking changes was the establishment of monetary rewards for medal-winning athletes. This helped many overcome financial constraints associated with training for Olympic-level competitions. Furthermore, it encouraged more people to engage in competitive sports thus increasing overall participation rates across the nation.

Not only did the contest increase prize money, it also created a category for intellectually disabled artists – giving even more people the chance to take part and share their creativity with the world. Thanks to an award from philanthropist and entrepreneur Alan Chan’s generous donation as well as support from Singapore Armed Forces and Movement for Intellectually Disabled of Singapore (MIDS), competition will remain open until May 31, 2027; for more information visit NUS website.

Horse races are competitions between horses in which the winner is determined by being first across the finish line. This sport has been practiced worldwide since ancient times, including chariot and bareback racing; both forms provide entertainment while some may involve serious competitions; animal rights advocates often express concern regarding how racehorses are treated, particularly whether drugs are being used to enhance performance.

Horse races have long been considered one of the most exciting forms of entertainment while others consider them inhumane and cruel to animals, leading some to declare them illegal altogether. Unfortunately, however, problems within this industry extend far beyond just treating its horses poorly: reports of horse deaths are frequent while injuries to riders occur frequently on tracks as well. A study revealed that one thoroughbred dies every 22 races across North America with 3 more injured on daily average according to another research paper.

Federal regulation and other efforts appear to be making an impactful difference in the number of horse fatalities at American racetracks. Horse racing is an extreme form of competition that pushes horses beyond their natural capabilities while forcing them into racing at speeds beyond what their bodies can tolerate, while giving them cocktails of medications to mask injuries while improving performance – this includes steroids, anti-inflammatories and blood thinners such as Lasix.

As horses continue to mature and their skeletal systems cannot handle the stress of racing at high speeds on hard surfaces, their skeleton is often overwhelmed by this physical stress and injuries occur frequently during races – often breaking legs or being permanently crippled during competitions. Another serious risk associated with racing, exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage occurs whereby bleeding from their lungs results. This often ends early races due to lack of rest between races causing their bodies to succumb prematurely.

Thoroughbred horses are among the most sought-after for racing, boasting large muscles with natural endurance ability. While expensive animals, Thoroughbreds must be well taken care of if their career is to succeed; multiple wins must be achieved before breaking even and it is not uncommon for Thoroughbreds to continue racing past age 10.

At a horse race, a jockey sits astride a horse and uses reins to control its speed and direction. Stewards and patrol judges monitor the course to make sure that all rules are observed, while an auxiliary starting gate may be utilized if more horses than expected enter.

Races may take place on dirt, turf or synthetic all weather surfaces and each horse’s distance/surface record for each surface is recorded separately. Race distance is divided into sprint, middle distance (route), long distance (route), starts, wins, places and shows are listed under their name as is fractional time recorded up to one-tenth of a second. Bettor can use fractional times recorded to the nearest one-tenth second for wagering purposes.