Latest news with #SUTD
Straits Times
08-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
No small feat: 18 graduate from first cohort of 42 Singapore, SUTD's tuition-free coding school
Ms Gan Siow Huang, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, and Trade and Industry, with SUTD president Phoon Kok Kwang and graduates from the pioneering batch of 42 Singapore. PHOTO: SINGAPORE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY AND DESIGN No small feat: 18 graduate from first cohort of 42 Singapore, SUTD's tuition-free coding school SINGAPORE - Completing coding school at 42 Singapore (42 SG) is proving to be a serious challenge. Out of the 190 students in the first cohort who joined the tuition-free programme at the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), 18 have graduated and 100 have quit. The rest are still enrolled in the programme, which is modelled after the renowned Ecole 42 in France, a pioneering coding school that was founded in 2013. 42 SG offers modules in the fields of coding, computer programming, cyber security and more. There are neither teachers nor structured lessons, and no academic prerequisites are needed to enrol. Costing nothing and open to anyone aged 18 and above, the programme relies on peer learning and offers full hands-on, project-based learning in a gamified environment. Mr Koh Chye Soon, head of 42 SG, told The Straits Times that the high attrition rate is not unexpected. Students leave for various reasons, including job offers secured through networks formed during their time at 42 SG, caregiving duties and family responsibilities, he said. 42 SG students are completely responsible for their own learning, he said, as opposed to having teachers supplying materials and providing guidance. 'Without teachers, there's actually more work to do,' he said. 'It is not a small feat to complete 42 SG.' The 18 graduates completed the common core curriculum, which translates to the first nine levels out of a total of 21. This is the equivalent of a diploma certification. SUTD said those who complete level 9 would have acquired skills for positions such as a junior-level software engineer or network engineer. A level 17 certificate is equivalent to a bachelor's degree, and level 21 is equivalent to a master's degree. One of the 18 graduates from the first cohort is Mr Jeremy Choo, 25. He finished the core curriculum of the 42 SG programme in September 2024. He had previously enrolled in a traditional computer-science degree programme at a private university, but left the course nearly six months in, to focus on his 42 SG projects. Mr Jeremy Choo, valedictorian of the inaugural 42 SG cohort, finished the core curriculum of the 42 SG programme in September 2024. PHOTO: SINGAPORE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY AND DESIGN He spent a year on the SUTD campus, for almost 12 hours a day on both weekdays and weekends. 'I genuinely enjoyed being there, so I was there all the time,' he said, adding that apart from coding, he was also learning with his peers and socialising. Through 42 SG, he landed a tech internship at transport giant ComfortDelGro from September 2024 to February 2025. He then applied for a traineeship under Google's Skills Ignition SG programme – a joint training programme run by Google and the Singapore Government – which he secured by listing his 42 SG credentials, among others. The technical skills he gained have come in handy for his year-long traineeship, which ends in April 2026, said Mr Choo. Calling the 42 SG programme unconventional, he said: 'There's such a diversity of people. Like those who had no experience at all, like me. Then there're also others, like software developers in other companies already, who just want to come here to challenge themselves or learn more. 'Instead of being fed notes and listening to tutorials, I felt like it was a more practical approach that suited my learning style.' Though learning without a teacher and relying on teamwork was challenging at first, Mr Choo said he became more resourceful and engaged in his learning. 'I could get a lot more hands-on, and down and dirty with whatever projects I was doing… You figure out how to solve your problems and eventually become more efficient and faster at solving whatever problem comes along,' he added. Mr Choo graduated as valedictorian among his coursemates at a ceremony held at SUTD on May 5. An SUTD spokeswoman said 13 of the 18 graduates have secured jobs or taken up tech roles. SUTD said that, on average, it takes about 18 months to complete the core curriculum if students are in the programme on a full-time basis. Many 42 SG students are juggling the programme and work commitments, she added. Students are not required to complete all nine levels, and can leave any time. Those who wish to rejoin the programme will have to retake the Piscine (French for swimming pool), the second stage in the selection process which tests applicants' determination and desire. Over 26 days, they do basic coding and learn with other 'Pisciners' by completing projects. Since the start of 42 SG in 2023, more than 6,900 applicants have applied across three intakes. Of these, close to 750 passed the first test – a two-hour memory and logic test that does not require any coding knowledge – and have undergone the Piscine. Apart from the first cohort, which had a bumper crop of 190, the student intake sizes in 2024 and 2025 ranged from 100 to 120, said SUTD. A student from 42 SG's second intake, who spoke on condition of anonymity, left the programme in March 2025 after completing just three levels. She had started the 42 SG programme in May 2024. After finding a new job as a software developer at a start-up in October 2024, she took a pause from 42 SG to settle down at work. She decided to leave the coding programme so that she could focus on work. The 42 SG curriculum is 'very intensive', she told The Straits Times, as it can take 70 hours to complete some projects. 'I don't have that intensity or energy resources to juggle too many things at one time. So that's why I decided to focus on performing better in my role as a developer at the start-up,' she said. Still, she sees value in the 42 SG experience and hopes to continue when she is more settled at work, though the thought of having to redo the Piscine and start from scratch at the first level is daunting. 'This is not for the faint-hearted… The curriculum is really meant to break you, but it will make you stronger as well,' she said. Elisha Tushara is a correspondent at The Straits Times, specialising in Singapore's education landscape. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The reality of AI's promise to curb older adults' loneliness
Brenda Lam uses an AI chatbot at least once a week. For the 69-year-old retired banker from Singapore, the chatbot brings her peace of mind. 'It motivates me,' says Lam, who communicates with AMI-Go, created by and in partnership with Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Lions Befrienders, a social service organization to support older adults. When Lam speaks with the bot, she usually asks questions to get suggestions and ideas for how to enjoy life. 'What can I do to live life to the fullest?' is one of her latest questions. The chatbot responded with tips, including getting exercise outside and picking up a hobby like gardening, reading, or sewing. 'The responses encourage me,' she says. Though she has family and friends close by, Lam says the chatbot is always reliable. 'I feel it's a bit like a replacement if friends are not available to have time with me,' she says. 'When we have the chatbot, it's always there for us.' Lam's situation is not unique. Many older adults are struggling with loneliness, and one in three feel isolated from others, many of whom live alone, have retired, or don't have the same social connections as they once did. According to the University of Michigan's National Poll on Healthy Aging, 37% of older adults have felt a lack of companionship with others. It's a crisis that the former Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, warned about from the nation's capital with a 2023 advisory on the epidemic of loneliness and the healing effects of social connection and community. Research shows loneliness increases the risk of heart disease, dementia, and early mortality. It's led researchers and public health experts searching for novel solutions in the community—and digitally. So, are AI chatbots, that could function as friends and pals, going to solve the loneliness crisis for older adults? As we face massive demographic shifts—where the number of Baby Boomers is soon to outnumber young adults—Nancy Berlinger, PhD, a bioethicist at The Hastings Center for Bioethics, who studies aging populations, is in no short supply of work. With the number of adults 65 and older set to more than double by 2040, reaching 80 million, she is grappling with how rapid technological changes will affect this cohort. 'If somebody is living alone and maybe their partner has died, and they could go all day with no one to talk to, would they like to talk with a chatbot, especially a voice one that doesn't require the dexterity of typing on a phone?' Berlinger told Fortune at the National Gerontological Association's Annual Meeting in Novemeber. In a pilot program in New York that began in 2022, nearly 1,000 older adults interacted with ElliQ, an AI chatbot. The vast majority of users reported a decline in their loneliness and improved well-being. The participants interacted with ElliQ for an average of 28 minutes a day, five days a week. 'Their social circle is shrinking. People have died. They probably have stopped driving, so their lives are different,' Berlinger says of older adults today. However, Berlinger still worries about technology as a fix-all for loneliness. 'If we say, all we need are the right AI companions for older people, would that mean that we are saying we don't really have to invest in the social pieces of this?' she says, adding that if caregivers retreat because of the chatbot, the technology is not amplifying a person's well-being. Similar to how studies have shown that social media can exacerbate teens' mental health issues and sense of isolation, and that nothing can replace the connectivity of in-person connection, the same can be said of chatbots for older adults. 'It's not going to replace all of that richness of relationships, but it's not nothing.' She adds, 'I wouldn't say it's a solution to the problem of aging. It's something to keep our eye on.' Lam appreciates the chatbot as a way to ease the burden she feels falls on family and friends. 'I feel that in this world, everything's changing, so we ourselves have to keep up with technology because we cannot rely too much on family members or too much on our friends. Sooner or later, they have to live their own life,' she says. Whether that's the right mindset is yet to be seen. Walter Boot, PhD, professor of psychology in medicine in the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine and associate director of the Center on Aging and Behavioral Research at Weill Cornell Medicine, says while AI is moving fast, he's not yet convinced that it's a long-term solution for older adults. 'You might see that people feel a little bit better, but whether or not that addresses things like depression and loneliness and perceptions of isolation, I don't think we have really good answers to those questions just yet,' he tells Fortune. 'You feel good because you played with a nice piece of technology, and it was fun and it was engaging for a while, but what happens after three months? The evidence base isn't there yet.' Boot also explains that tech can't replace all of the things humans have done to support older adults. 'There's a danger to thinking that the only problem is that you don't have someone to talk to. When you have people who are visiting your house, they can see your house, they can see your environment, and see that there's something wrong with you. Something might need to be repaired, or maybe the person I'm visiting looks sick, and maybe they need to go to a doctor,' he says. Both Berlinger and Boot want tech to supplement other pieces of in-person interaction and care. Let's say AI can help older adults choose the right health plan or doctor, which Berlinger says can reduce the caregiving burden disproportionately facing daughters. Maybe AI can also help find local activities in the community for older adults to partake in, something Boot is researching with his team. 'If we could reduce the paperwork side of being old and caregiving, and help people to do things they want to do, well, that's great,' Berlinger says, noting that, still, we aren't quite there yet. 'Who's going to be the IT support for that chatbot? I still think it's the family caregiver.' But for Lam, she loves using the chatbot to gather tips and suggestions for how to feel better and more active. And from time to time, she doesn't mind asking it an existential question, too. When asked what burning question Lam has next for her chatbot, she posed one that maybe many of us are considering. 'What can a chatbot do to create a better world for all of us?' Lam says. This article was written with the support of a journalism fellowship from The Gerontological Society of America, The Journalists Network on Generations and The Silver Century Foundation. For more on aging well: Exclusive: Midi Health launches longevity arm to reach the millions of women 'lost to medical care' 3 takeaways from a cardiologist and 'SuperAgers' researcher on how to live longer and healthier Vitamin D supplements may slow down your biological clock, new study finds This story was originally featured on
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The reality of AI's promise to curb older adults' loneliness
Brenda Lam uses an AI chatbot at least once a week. For the 69-year-old retired banker from Singapore, the chatbot brings her peace of mind. 'It motivates me,' says Lam, who communicates with AMI-Go, created by and in partnership with Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Lions Befrienders, a social service organization to support older adults. When Lam speaks with the bot, she usually asks questions to get suggestions and ideas for how to enjoy life. 'What can I do to live life to the fullest?' is one of her latest questions. The chatbot responded with tips, including getting exercise outside and picking up a hobby like gardening, reading, or sewing. 'The responses encourage me,' she says. Though she has family and friends close by, Lam says the chatbot is always reliable. 'I feel it's a bit like a replacement if friends are not available to have time with me,' she says. 'When we have the chatbot, it's always there for us.' Lam's situation is not unique. Many older adults are struggling with loneliness, and one in three feel isolated from others, many of whom live alone, have retired, or don't have the same social connections as they once did. According to the University of Michigan's National Poll on Healthy Aging, 37% of older adults have felt a lack of companionship with others. It's a crisis that the former Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, warned about from the nation's capital with a 2023 advisory on the epidemic of loneliness and the healing effects of social connection and community. Research shows loneliness increases the risk of heart disease, dementia, and early mortality. It's led researchers and public health experts searching for novel solutions in the community—and digitally. So, are AI chatbots, that could function as friends and pals, going to solve the loneliness crisis for older adults? As we face massive demographic shifts—where the number of Baby Boomers is soon to outnumber young adults—Nancy Berlinger, PhD, a bioethicist at The Hastings Center for Bioethics, who studies aging populations, is in no short supply of work. With the number of adults 65 and older set to more than double by 2040, reaching 80 million, she is grappling with how rapid technological changes will affect this cohort. 'If somebody is living alone and maybe their partner has died, and they could go all day with no one to talk to, would they like to talk with a chatbot, especially a voice one that doesn't require the dexterity of typing on a phone?' Berlinger told Fortune at the National Gerontological Association's Annual Meeting in Novemeber. In a pilot program in New York that began in 2022, nearly 1,000 older adults interacted with ElliQ, an AI chatbot. The vast majority of users reported a decline in their loneliness and improved well-being. The participants interacted with ElliQ for an average of 28 minutes a day, five days a week. 'Their social circle is shrinking. People have died. They probably have stopped driving, so their lives are different,' Berlinger says of older adults today. However, Berlinger still worries about technology as a fix-all for loneliness. 'If we say, all we need are the right AI companions for older people, would that mean that we are saying we don't really have to invest in the social pieces of this?' she says, adding that if caregivers retreat because of the chatbot, the technology is not amplifying a person's well-being. Similar to how studies have shown that social media can exacerbate teens' mental health issues and sense of isolation, and that nothing can replace the connectivity of in-person connection, the same can be said of chatbots for older adults. 'It's not going to replace all of that richness of relationships, but it's not nothing.' She adds, 'I wouldn't say it's a solution to the problem of aging. It's something to keep our eye on.' Lam appreciates the chatbot as a way to ease the burden she feels falls on family and friends. 'I feel that in this world, everything's changing, so we ourselves have to keep up with technology because we cannot rely too much on family members or too much on our friends. Sooner or later, they have to live their own life,' she says. Whether that's the right mindset is yet to be seen. Walter Boot, PhD, professor of psychology in medicine in the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine and associate director of the Center on Aging and Behavioral Research at Weill Cornell Medicine, says while AI is moving fast, he's not yet convinced that it's a long-term solution for older adults. 'You might see that people feel a little bit better, but whether or not that addresses things like depression and loneliness and perceptions of isolation, I don't think we have really good answers to those questions just yet,' he tells Fortune. 'You feel good because you played with a nice piece of technology, and it was fun and it was engaging for a while, but what happens after three months? The evidence base isn't there yet.' Boot also explains that tech can't replace all of the things humans have done to support older adults. 'There's a danger to thinking that the only problem is that you don't have someone to talk to. When you have people who are visiting your house, they can see your house, they can see your environment, and see that there's something wrong with you. Something might need to be repaired, or maybe the person I'm visiting looks sick, and maybe they need to go to a doctor,' he says. Both Berlinger and Boot want tech to supplement other pieces of in-person interaction and care. Let's say AI can help older adults choose the right health plan or doctor, which Berlinger says can reduce the caregiving burden disproportionately facing daughters. Maybe AI can also help find local activities in the community for older adults to partake in, something Boot is researching with his team. 'If we could reduce the paperwork side of being old and caregiving, and help people to do things they want to do, well, that's great,' Berlinger says, noting that, still, we aren't quite there yet. 'Who's going to be the IT support for that chatbot? I still think it's the family caregiver.' But for Lam, she loves using the chatbot to gather tips and suggestions for how to feel better and more active. And from time to time, she doesn't mind asking it an existential question, too. When asked what burning question Lam has next for her chatbot, she posed one that maybe many of us are considering. 'What can a chatbot do to create a better world for all of us?' Lam says. This article was written with the support of a journalism fellowship from The Gerontological Society of America, The Journalists Network on Generations and The Silver Century Foundation. For more on aging well: Exclusive: Midi Health launches longevity arm to reach the millions of women 'lost to medical care' 3 takeaways from a cardiologist and 'SuperAgers' researcher on how to live longer and healthier Vitamin D supplements may slow down your biological clock, new study finds This story was originally featured on
Straits Times
30-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
S'pore universities monitoring US visa situation, may advise students to postpone exchange programmes
The institutions are keeping a close eye on the suspension of scheduling appointments for student and foreign visitor visas. PHOTO: REUTERS SINGAPORE - Singapore's autonomous universities are closely monitoring developments in US immigration policy, particularly the pause on new student and exchange visitor visa appointments, which could impact students taking part in exchange programmes. On May 27, a US State Department directive ordered embassies worldwide to suspend scheduling appointments for student and foreign visitor visas. Those that have already been scheduled can continue to proceed, but slots that have yet to be taken up should be pulled down, said the directive , as the State Department prepares to expand social media vetting on such applicants. Four of the six autonomous universities - the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore Management University (SMU) and the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) - have students preparing to spend a stint in the US. In response to queries, a spokesperson for NUS said the institution has been advising and extending support to students who have either applied or are already bound for an exchange programme in the US. This includes placing them in exchange programmes in other countries, as well as rescheduling or deferring their plans where possible. While NUS declined to provide the number of students who fall in this category, the spokesperson said: 'As this is an evolving situation, we are closely monitoring developments.' Over at NTU , more than 140 students are preparing to head to the US in the coming months, all of whom are at various stages of their visa application process. The university is in contact with its American partner institutions to determine the potential impact on upcoming programmes. NTU has so far issued a travel advisory for students' safety, with a spokesperson adding that students can withdraw and 'explore alternative overseas opportunities available'. SMU said it is prepared to assist students depending on their individual circumstances, including redeploying them to partner universities in other countries. Another option is for students to postpone their exchange programme to a later semester, a spokesperson said, reassuring students that it will 'extend every support' to those whose exchange programmes may be affected. SUTD said it has six students slated to travel to the US for its summer and exchange programmes with American institutions. Of the six, two have already received their visas, while the remaining four have yet to apply. 'We are in close contact with all six and will continue to check in regularly on their visa status,' said a SUTD spokesperson, who added that the university also shares International SOS advisories with all students bound for an overseas location. International SOS provides services to safeguard individuals and organisations from health and security threats worldwide. Meanwhile , students from the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) and Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) seem to have been spared the uncertainty caused by the changes in US immigration policy. Although there is already a group of SIT students currently in the US, they were not affected by recent developments. The university also does not have any more student exposure programmes there planned for the rest of the year. SUSS does not have any students taking part in an exchange programme in the US currently either, with a spokesman adding that the university does not have further comments at this juncture. Are you affected by the foreign student visa freeze in the US? Get in touch with us at stnewsdesk@ Aqil Hamzah is a journalist covering breaking news at The Straits Times, with interests in crime and technology. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
The Star
28-05-2025
- Science
- The Star
Only breeding pair of peregrine falcons in Singapore hatch two chicks for first time
SINGAPORE: The only pair of breeding peregrine falcons in Singapore in April hatched two chicks that fledged earlier this month, which means they are able to fly and leave the nest. This is the first record of the peregrine falcon – a bird of prey renowned for its speed – having chicks or eyasses in Singapore. In a statement on May 28, the National Parks Board (NParks) said the chicks were successfully hatched on April 6 and April 9. The falcons, native to Singapore, may be the country's rarest breeding birds, it added. The falcons were first observed to have nested at the OCBC Centre in Chulia Street in April 2024. Their latest clutch of eggs was laid between late February and early March this year. The older chick fledged on May 18, but was found on the ground a day later. The younger chick was also found on the ground on May 21. Both chicks were taken to the NParks Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation for health assessments, where X-ray results showed no fracture. The older chick was put back into its nest on May 20, and the other chick followed suit on May 23. Both fledglings closely match each other and their father in size, which suggests both are male, NParks said. Male peregrines, also known as tiercels, are smaller than the females, typically by about a third. The peregrines tried to breed before but previous attempts were not successful, leading to the abandonment of two eggs at their nest site in 2024. To help the falcons in their breeding efforts, the NParks team worked with the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) at NUS Faculty of Science, Mandai Wildlife Group and Mandai Nature. OCBC supported the research project through the Garden City Fund, an NParks-registered charity. NParks said the peregrine eggs were retrieved with the help of robotics researchers from SUTD, who opted to use a device consisting of a telescopic pole and a claw controlled by cables on the ground. The device is called Ernest – an acronym for Egg Retrieval and Nesting Enhancement Support Tool. The eggs were sent to LKCNHM, where researchers concluded that the eggs were likely abandoned because of shell damage. To provide a more suitable material for the falcons to nest on, the research team installed a nesting tray with loose gravel at the nesting site on Nov 22, 2024. A CCTV camera system was installed to allow researchers to monitor the progress of the falcons' breeding cycle. A second nesting tray and CCTV system were set up on the opposite side of the building, facing Chinatown, on Jan 11, 2025 after the research team found that the falcons were using the recess on that side. During the installation of the second nesting tray, five older abandoned eggs and two newer eggs were found. The older eggs were donated to LKCNHM, while the newer ones were moved to the nesting tray. While the male falcon was initially observed to incubate the eggs in the nesting tray, the female did not attend to them, and the eggs were eventually abandoned. On Jan 24, the SUTD robotics team was again deployed to retrieve the two abandoned eggs, which were located three times deeper inside the recess area, and higher than the first retrieval site. The eggs were sent to Mandai Wildlife Group for further examination and incubation at the Bird Paradise Breeding and Research Centre. They were removed after eight days – one due to degradation and the other due to a lack of development. Both eggs were found to be infertile. Dr Daniel Calvo Carrasco, assistant vice-president of veterinary healthcare at Mandai Wildlife Group, said: 'Infertile eggs can result from a variety of factors, including lack of or deficient copulation by a young and inexperienced male, as well as potential nutritional or health-related issues.' A second clutch of three eggs was laid in mid-January, but these were later eaten by the female falcon. The research team said possible reasons for this behaviour include a stressful incubation environment due to the hard, concrete surface and food scarcity. Between late February and early March, a third clutch of three eggs was laid on a nesting tray in the recess facing the Singapore River, which researchers felt could be the falcons' last attempt at breeding for the season. Later, both parents were seen incubating the eggs. After the first chick hatched, the new parents quickly became busy with capturing prey and feeding it regularly. It was fed six times on the first day, NParks said. When the second chick hatched, the male falcon was observed on multiple occasions bringing food back and passing it to the female parent to feed the chicks. At other times, the female falcon also hunted to feed the chicks. The third egg did not hatch and was later sent to LKCNHM for further research. On April 30, when the chicks were about three weeks old, they were retrieved from the nesting tray for ringing – a process where small rings are attached to the chicks' legs for future identification. The chicks were also measured and had blood and other samples collected. The measurements will be compared against those taken from other nestlings elsewhere to determine if their development is on track. The samples will allow researchers to assess the chicks' health. The chicks were later returned to their parents in the nesting tray. The research team also placed temperature and humidity sensors in both recesses on the sides of the OCBC Centre to observe if there are preferences in nest site selection based on these factors. They will also be reviewing CCTV footage to find out the types of prey caught by the falcons. Dr Malcolm Soh, principal researcher at the NParks Wildlife Management Research branch, said: 'By studying their breeding patterns and foraging preferences, we can develop more effective conservation strategies to support their successful adaptation to Singapore's urban landscape.' On May 23, the older fledgling was seen with its parents in One Raffles Place and again on May 24 at a higher perch, showing improved flight and elevation. Despite their improving flight ability and confidence, the fledglings may still find themselves on the ground, NParks said. If anyone spots the fledglings on the ground, they can contact the NParks Animal Response Centre on 1800-476-1600. - The Straits Times/ANN
