Social media has recently ignited a fiery debate surrounding the disciplinary practices in schools, particularly those overseen by the state and located in rural areas across Laos. These practices, frequently viewed as outdated and inappropriate, have come under intense public scrutiny, exposing a clear division of opinions. While some condemn these disciplinary measures, others place the blame on students for not adhering to established rules.
Study Reveals Risks of Washing Raw Poultry in Southeast Asian Homes
A recent study sheds light on the common practice of washing raw poultry in Southeast Asian households, highlighting the increased risk of cross-contamination associated with this habit.
Conducted across eight Southeast Asian countries, the study titled “Consumers’ raw poultry washing practices: A cross-sectional and observational study in eight Southeast Asian countries” analyzed responses from 2009 participants regarding their behaviors in Laos, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
More than 45 percent of participants in the study purchased raw poultry products from traditional markets, with 96 percent of them admitting to washing them before cooking. Despite popular beliefs that washing removes impurities and ensures safety, research indicates otherwise.
Contrary to expectations, washing raw poultry does not eliminate bacteria. Instead, the process can spread microorganisms up to 70 cm, increasing the risk of contamination. Moreover, misconceptions about using ingredients like salt or lime juice for microbial reduction have been debunked, as they were found ineffective.
The findings also identified older, married, and lower-income individuals, as well as those purchasing from farms or wet markets, as being more inclined towards washing raw poultry. Additionally, various cross-contamination pathways were observed, including improper hand hygiene and contaminated kitchen surfaces.
Misconceptions abound regarding the use of ingredients like salt or lime juice to minimize microbial contamination. Research has shown that washing raw poultry with acidic solutions, such as diluted lemon, lime juice, or vinegar, is ineffective in reducing bacteria.
Additionally, participants often resort to using flour or lime during the washing or soaking process to alleviate odor. However, the study suggests that this practice is more about perception than actual safety.
Furthermore, other pathways observed during the washing procedure could contribute to contamination with foodborne diseases on various kitchen surfaces, including the sink, chopping board, kitchen cloth, and even the refrigerator door handle.
To combat the long instilled belief of washing raw poultry, the study suggested targeting safety messages and educational campaigns suited to local contexts, including using innovative communication tools regularly to induce behavioral change.
Participants from Laos and Indonesia displayed a willingness to change their habits upon understanding the risks associated with washing raw poultry.
Good hygiene practices are also advised, such as washing and sanitizing hands and kitchen equipment with soap and water after handling raw poultry.
7-Eleven’s New ‘K-Flavour Hits’: Embark on a Tasty Journey of Korean-Inspired Ready-to-Eat Delights!

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 21 February 2024 – Brace your taste buds for a delicious explosion of flavours as 7-Eleven transforms into your go-to convenience store for Korean food with the launch of its ‘K-Flavour Hits’ menu that’s as vibrant and exciting as any K-Pop concert! Dive into an amazing array of 7-Select Korean-inspired ready-to-eat items, including packed meals, snacks and sandwiches, starting from an incredible $2.80!

Discover authentic Korean flavours with a playful twist in the all-new and exclusive chart-topping treats, including 7-Select Army Stew Wrap, 7-Select Spicy Stir Fried Squid with Rice and the 7-Select Korean-Style Chicken Broth with Goji Berries Onigiri! With the fusion of iconic Korean favourites such as black bean noodle (Jjajangmyeon) and spicy rice cake (Tteokbokki), indulge in the irresistible 7-Select Black Bean Sauce Chicken with Egg Fried Rice (Jjajangbap) and the cheesy delight of 7-Select Cheesy Rice Cake with Ramen (Rabokki).
What’s more, this ‘K-Flavour Hits’ menu is not just a feast for your taste buds – all items, excluding the onigiri range, are halal-certified, making them perfect for breaking fast during Ramadan too!
Korean-Inspired Packed Meals That Pack a Punch of Flavour!
A new and exciting selection of Korean delights is coming your way with this enticing menu of ready-to-eat packed meals – ideal for a satisfying and delicious bite on-the-go. This is one tasty menu you won’t want to miss:
7-Select Sweet and Sour Chicken with Rice (Tangsuyuk) (RSP $5.80): Time to let your taste buds dance like your favourite K-pop stars with our 7-Select Sweet and Sour Chicken with Rice! We’re talking tasty chicken coated in a Korean-style sweet, sour, and tangy sauce – the flavourful sensation your palate has been waiting for.
7-Select Stir Fried Glass Noodle with Beef (Japchae) (RSP $5.80): Imagine bouncy sweet potato noodles with savoury beef slices! This texture-rich comfort food classic is a delightful blend of chewy and tender that’ll have you coming back for more.
7-Select Black Bean Sauce Chicken with Egg Fried Rice (Jjajangbap) (RSP $5.80): Satisfy your cravings with this savoury egg fried rice dish topped with flavourful black bean sauce – a mouth-watering pick perfect for a quick lunch or late-night supper!
7-Select Spicy Stir Fried Squid with Rice (RSP $5.80): Turn up the heat with this spicy sensation featuring tender squid, onions, and peppers in a rich, savoury sauce loaded with aromatic flavours.
7-Select Spicy Seafood Noodles (Jjampong) (RSP $5.80): This Chinese-style Korean noodle dish will cure your cravings with its red, spicy seafood broth flavoured with gochugaru (chilli powder).
7-Select Kimchi Stew and Chicken Dumpling with Rice (Kimchi Jiggae) (RSP $5.80): Get cosy with this spicy Korean stew where chicken dumplings, tofu and napa cabbage kimchi come together in a delicate hearty broth, served with a side of rice.
Super Snacks and Awesome Onigiri!
Looking for a handheld treat to power through a busy day? Look no further than this line-up of quick and tasty bites:
7-Select Chicken Bulgogi Sandwich (RSP $4.00): Elevate your lunch game to the next level with this sandwich filled with Korean BBQ-style marinated chicken in a sweet and savoury sauce.
7-Select Corn Cheese with Chicken Ham Bread Roll (RSP $3.90): Enjoy creamy corn cheese with chicken ham and savoury turkey bits, all rolled up in a soft bread roll.
7-Select Kimchi Chicken Bread Roll (RSP $3.90): Turn up the spice with this tasty sandwich, which boasts tender chicken topped with savoury, spicy, and delicious shredded kimchi.
7-Select Army Stew Wrap (RSP $3.90): Experience the comfort of the classic Army Stew in a convenient wrap form! It’s a harmonious blend of flavours, filling and comforting, wrapped up and ready to go.
7-Select Korean Style Grilled Chicken Wrap (RSP $3.90): Savoury, umami-rich soy-marinated chicken meets crunchy garlic chips in a wrap that’s tender, juicy, and oh-so-satisfying.
7-Select Seafood Pancake (Haemul Pajeon) (RSP $3.90): This popular Korean pancake is made with scallions and a medley of seafood – it’s a slice of Korean culinary delight!
7-Select Cheesy Rice Cake with Ramen (Rabokki) (RSP $4.20): This Rabokki recipe features ramen noodles and rice cakes coated in a sweet and spicy sauce, delivering a burst of flavour and cheesy goodness in every bite.
7-Select Chicken Bibimbap Onigiri (RSP $2.80): Treat yourself to this tasty onigiri packed with succulent bulgogi stir-fried chicken, savoury gochujang sauce, and veggies. It’s the ideal handheld treat for a satisfying bite while on-the-go!
7-Select Korean-Style Chicken Broth with Goji Berries Onigiri (RSP $2.80): This scrumptious snack offers a unique flavourful experience that combines the earthy warmth of chicken broth with the savoury goodness of chicken, all wrapped up in a convenient and portable rice ball.
7-Select Tuna Kimchi with Egg Furikake Onigiri (RSP $2.80): Prepare for a fusion of tantalising tastes and textures ready to ignite your taste buds. Snack in style with this tempting mix of tuna, kimchi, and egg furikake that tastes as good as it looks!
But wait, there’s more! From 21 February to 12 March 2024, you can enjoy more exciting Yuu offers: Get 7-Select Kimchi Chicken Bread Roll or 7-Select Army Stew Wrap at 200 points + $2 Top up! Any purchase of the items mentioned above except 7-Select Kimchi Chicken Bread Roll or 7-Select Army Stew Wrap will receive 3x Yuu points!
For product details, please refer to this summary table:
Product | RSP |
7-Select Chicken Bulgogi Sandwich | $4.00 |
7-Select Corn Cheese with Chicken Ham Bread Roll | $3.90 |
7-Select Kimchi Chicken Bread Roll | $3.90 |
7-Select Chicken Bibimbap Onigiri | $2.80 |
7-Select Korean-Style Chicken Broth with Goji Berries Onigiri | $2.80 |
7-Select Tuna Kimchi with Egg Furikake Onigiri | $2.80 |
7-Select Sweet and Sour Chicken with Rice (Tangsuyuk) | $5.80 |
7-Select Stir Fried Glass Noodle with Beef (Japchae) | $5.80 |
7-Select Black Bean Sauce Chicken with Egg Fried Rice (Jjajangbap) | $5.80 |
7-Select Spicy Stir Fried Squid with Rice | $5.80 |
7-Select Spicy Seafood Noodle (Jjampong) | $5.80 |
7-Select Kimchi Stew and Chicken Dumpling with Rice (Kimchi Jiggae) | $5.80 |
7-Select Army Stew Wrap | $3.90 |
7-Select Korean Style Grilled Chicken Wrap | $3.90 |
7-Select Seafood Pancake (Haemul Pajeon) | $3.90 |
7-Select Cheesy Rice Cake with Ramen (Rabokki) | $4.20 |
All items (except for onigiri) are halal certified. The onigiri do not contain pork or lard.
More promotions and updates can also be found on the 7-Eleven Singapore Facebook page, so stay tuned!
Hashtag: #7Eleven
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
7-Eleven Singapore
Established in Singapore in 1983, 7-Eleven has since expanded to more than 500 stores island-wide to become the leading 24-hour convenience chain store. We take pride in serving the Singapore community 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 7-Eleven emphasises convenience and value by offering a wide array of quality products, food and services to satisfy the needs of its customers. Think 7-Eleven and what comes to mind are the refreshing Slurpee, 7CAFÉ as well as a wide range of quality ready meals and sandwiches under 7-SELECT. 7-Eleven is also a 24/7 one-stop destination for customers who need to access bill payment services in their own time. Our services cover payment of utilities, courier services, and even cash withdrawal.For more information, visit www.7-eleven.com.sg
Siam Piwat Partners with Hyundai Department Store to Forge Global Retail Collaboration Phenomenon, Reaffirming Crowning Achievement in the Limitless Expansion of Global Ecosystem

BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 21 February 2024 – Reinforcing its success in establishing a borderless global business ecosystem, Siam Piwat Group, Thailand’s leading real estate and retail developer, the owner and operator of Siam Paragon, Siam Center, and Siam Discovery, and a joint venture partner of ICONSIAM, ICS, and Siam Premium Outlets Bangkok, has recently unveiled a significant collaboration. Partnering with Hyundai Department Store, the largest department store chain developer in South Korea, both entities have joined forces by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU), aiming to elevate and revolutionize the future of retail. This collaboration seeks to perfectly synergize exceptional benefits, offering exclusive experiences and services to members of both parties. With a shared objective of cultivating and promoting new business opportunities on an international scale, the partnership is geared towards the development of world-class destination projects.

Mrs. Mayuree Chaipromprasith, President – Corporate Affairs and Communications, Siam Piwat Co., Ltd., remarked, “This collaboration aligns seamlessly with Siam Piwat’s business principles, which revolves around the ‘Co-create & Collaboration to Win’ strategy. We prioritize fostering a constructive ecosystem continuously by partnering with leading and robust global business entities and consolidating remarkable potential to propel business growth in innovative and boundless ways.”
Mr. Jung Jee Young, President, Hyundai Department Store, expressed, “This is the first time a Korean department store has outsourced the operation of a part of a store in a famous overseas shopping mall. With a shared commitment to excellence, we have partnered with the Siam Piwat Group, renowned for its global destination shopping centers that have long captured the hearts of tourists. Together, we aim to offer superior benefits and elevate the customer experience. This collaboration also presents a significant opportunity to break down market boundaries and showcase the potential of K-Culture, a highly popular trend in Thailand.”
The collaboration with Hyundai Department Store enables the creation of a more complete ecosystem by leveraging the strengths of both businesses towards a shared objective. This partnership enhances the overall experience for a diverse range of customers, offering exceptional benefits to members of ONESIAM and Hyundai Department Store. This collaboration aims to entice shoppers by offering diverse special privileges at shopping centers and stores as well as stores within the alliance network. It seeks to leave a lasting impression, providing customers from both parties with a unique and superior lifestyle experience.
Given the robust potential of both renowned retail enterprises, evidenced by the significant usage of their services and the substantial spending of customers, they have decided to collaborate and enhance the retail business by actively participating in presenting leading brands and exclusive items across shopping centers. Additionally, this collaboration presents an opportunity to support Thai entrepreneurs in showcasing their creative products to international markets, propelling local heroes to global prominence as well as encouraging small and medium-sized Korean brands to have the market opportunity abroad. This partnership will yield boundless success and drive the business towards sustainability.
In addition, both entities are committed to creating opportunities and fostering business growth by delivering a diverse range of new experiences and exclusives at the ‘K-Content Specialty place’, a collection of recently popular K-food, K-pop, K-webtoons, K-fashion, and more., offering a shopping experience and fulfilling the demands of modern consumers, which is to forge a new attractive magnet that caters to both Thai customers and foreign tourists, Emphasizing the importance of the Global Destination project that always won the people’s hearts.
Siam Piwat Group has successfully reinforced its Global Ecosystem by forging partnerships with world-class multinational retail giants. These include PARCO Shopping Complex in Japan, TAIPEI 101 in Taiwan; Republic of China, Hong Kong Times Square, ION Orchard Department Store in Singapore, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and Plaza Indonesia in Indonesia, which is a diverse business group encompassing shopping centers. These strategic partnerships connect and extend extraordinary benefits to visitors and entice shoppers from retail alliance members across various countries to visit and shop at Siam Piwat Group shopping centers. Moreover, these collaborations contribute to enhancing the shopping and lifestyle experiences for both Chinese and global tourists, facilitated by platforms such as Alipay, Klook, and Trip.com. This not only promotes the tourism sector but also bolsters the Thai economy as a whole.
Hashtag: #SiamPiwat
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Vietnam, Thailand Ramp Up Efforts to Expand Visa Exemption Policies for Tourism Boost
As Southeast Asian nations race to boost tourism recovery, countries such as Vietnam and Thailand have intensified efforts to expand their visa exemption policies to attract a greater number of visitors.
HKU Engineering researchers achieve breakthrough in quantum sensing that leads to new opportunities of applications in monitoring dynamic processes in biological systems

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 21 February 2024 – A collaborative project led by Professor Zhiqin Chu, Professor Can Li and Professor Ngai Wong, at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) has made a breakthrough in enhancing the speed and resolution of widefield quantum sensing, leading to new opportunities in scientific research and practical applications.

By collaborating with scientists from Mainland China and Germany, the team has successfully developed a groundbreaking quantum sensing technology using a neuromorphic vision sensor, which is designed to mimic the human vision system. This sensor is capable of encoding changes in fluorescence intensity into spikes during optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) measurements. The key advantage of this approach is that it results in highly compressed data volumes and reduced latency, making the system more efficient than traditional methods. This breakthrough in quantum sensing holds potential for various applications in fields such as monitoring dynamic processes in biological systems.
The research paper has been published in the journal Advanced Science titled “Widefield Diamond Quantum Sensing with Neuromorphic Vision Sensors”.
“Researchers worldwide have spent much effort looking into ways to improve the measurement accuracy and spatiotemporal resolution of camera sensors. But a fundamental challenge remains: handling the massive amount of data in the form of image frames that need to be transferred from the camera sensors for further processing. This data transfer can significantly limit the temporal resolution, which is typically no more than 100 fps due to the use of frame-based image sensors. What we did was trying to overcome the bottleneck,” said Zhiyuan Du, the first author of the paper and PhD candidate at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Du said his professor’s focus on quantum sensing had inspired him and other team members to break new ground in the area. He is also driven by a passion for integrating sensing and computing.
“The latest development provides new insights for high-precision and low-latency widefield quantum sensing, with possibilities for integration with emerging memory devices to realise more intelligent quantum sensors,” he added.
The team’s experiment with an off-the-shelf event camera demonstrated a 13× improvement in temporal resolution, with comparable precision in detecting ODMR resonance frequencies with the state-of-the-art highly specialized frame-based approach. The new technology was successfully deployed in monitoring dynamically modulated laser heating of gold nanoparticles coated on a diamond surface. “It would be difficult to perform the same task using existing approaches,” Du said.
Unlike traditional sensors that record the light intensity levels, neuromorphic vision sensors process the light intensity change into “spikes” similar to biological vision systems, leading to improved temporal resolution (≈µs) and dynamic range (>120 dB). This approach is particularly effective in scenarios where image changes are infrequent, such as object tracking and autonomous vehicles, as it eliminates redundant static background signals.
“We anticipate that our successful demonstration of the proposed method will revolutionise widefield quantum sensing, significantly improving performance at an affordable cost,” said Professor Zhiqin Chu.
“This also brings closer the realisation of near-sensor processing with emerging memory-based electronic synapse devices,” said Professor Can Li.
“The technology’s potential for industrial use should be explored further, such as studying dynamic changes in currents in materials and identifying defects in microchips,” said Professor Ngai Wong.
Link to the paper: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202304355
Hashtag: #HKU
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.