Not
many Singaporeans have experienced the tremors of an earthquake or the strong
winds of a typhoon.
In fact, Singapore is so sheltered from
natural disasters that there is a common misconception that such events will
not affect the island.
Is Singapore entirely safe? Absolutely not,
says Professor Kerry Sieh from Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS).
"Singaporeans feel the effects of surrounding
countries. For example, the Bangkok flooding affected the prices of rice sold
here.
"There are bound to be economic and
political consequences."
Prof Sieh pointed out that Singaporeans who go
on holidays in neighbouring countries should educate themselves on earthquakes
and tsunamis, especially those who visit Thailand and Bali.
He even highlighted an example of a student
today who might grow up and do business in Myanmar, not knowing that there is a
huge earthquake fault there, or that cyclones occur in the region.
In order to educate Singaporeans on the
region's dynamic weather patterns and the country's vulnerability to its
surroundings, the Singapore Science Centre will launch a new permanent
exhibition on March 1.
"Earth - Our Untamed Planet" is an
exhibition that brings visitors around seven zones, each zone featuring
different elements of the earth's natural forces.
Key exhibits include a typhoon simulator,
where visitors can experience gale-force winds of up to 150km per hour, an earthquake
simulator that lets visitors feel three types of tremors, a mini replica of
Southeast Asia's most active volcano, and a tsunami wave tank.
The exhibition, which cost a few million
dollars to set up, was first conceptualised in August 2010.
Teams from EOS and Science Centre travelled to
the United States, Japan and Taiwan to gather data as well as visit exhibitions
and museums to bring back ideas on how to distill the information for a local
audience.
"Earth - Our Untamed Planet" will be
a fixed exhibition for the next five years and is part of the general admission
to the Science Centre.
Karen W Lim
AsiaOne
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