Friday, May 4, 2007

Singapore- Fastest walkers in the world

With our kiasu mental ability, Singapore has achieved another first. We are now the fastest walkers in the world.

According to an international study by a British psychology professor, Singapore left 34 other cities like Guangzhou, New York and London, in its dust as we are the "fastest-moving city" in the world.

Professor Richard Wiseman, had timed the walking speed of 35 men and women at each of the city centres. In Singapore, that was on Orchard Road. According to Mr Michael White, adviser to the British Council Science Department, the experiment was carried out in all the cities during identical times on a single day last year, on "a busy street with a wide pavement that was flat, free from obstacles and sufficiently uncrowded to allow people to walk along at their maximum speed". And they even ignored anyone holding a mobile telephone conversation or struggling with shopping bags."

Singaporeans clocked the shortest time of just over 10 seconds (10.55 seconds) to walk a distance of over 18 metres. Copenhagen (10.82 seconds) was second and Madrid (10.89 seconds) was third.

Now this is a title we can be proud of! Even our stress-out live is more stress-out than others! Madrid, Tokyo...HA! Singapore is still the best and we did not even have to prepare anything. This is a title for the normal Singaporeans in our normal Singapore lives. I don't know why people are saying that this study is wrong, it seems pretty true to me. If they had done the experiment in Shenton Way, it'll be even faster! And we are the world best, isn't that what Singapore always strive for?

In case anyone wanted to know, the most slow-moving city on the list is Blantyre, a city in Malawi. Pedestrians there averaged 31.6 seconds, about three times longer than Singaporeans, to walk the same distance. We should send some coaches over there. Slow turtles.

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