Tech-Camp

    No.6 Devon Road, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong a technology day camp for students 12-17  

About Tech-Camp       

Tech-Camp is a day camp with a focus on computers and electronics technology. We offer 2-week summer programmes for students of 12 to 17 years of age. We have a computer lab with the latest and fastest equipment, an electronics lab, and a video production studio. Our staff are special, too. They are experts in computers and electronics, of course, but they are also people who care about children and enjoy working with them.

The benefits of Tech-Camp        

    In all of our programmes, we show students how to work in teams and how to solve problems by themselves. We encourage them to think creatively.       

What students will do at Tech-Camp       

    Each day Tech-camp is filled with useful, interesting and challenging activities. For example, in the Computer Programme, students learn the basic computer programming, and how to use the Internet. In the Tech-Camp Programme, they make radio-controlled model cars and produce their own short videos.       

Programme Session 1 Session 2 Session 3

Computer Programme 15 June-26 June 15 June-26 June 15 June-26 June

High-tech Programme 29 June-10 July 27 July-7 August 15 June-26 June

Fee: HK $2,000 per student       

(10% discount available for groups of 10 or more students.)       

For more information about Tech-Camp, please contact Director of Summer Programmes, Ms     Julia Brown, by phone, fax or e-mail.       

Telephone: 26548898           

Fax: 26948850       

E-mail: juliab@techcamp.com.hk       

    Watching some children trying to catch butterflies one hot August afternoon, I was reminded of an incident in my own childhood．When I was a boy of 12 in South Carolina, something happened to me that cured me forever of wanting to put any wild creature in a cage.

    We lived on the edge of a wood, and every evening at dusk the mockingbirds would come and rest in the trees and sing. There isn't a musical instrument made by man that can produce a more beautiful sound than the song of the mockingbird.

    I decided that I would catch a young bird and keep it in a cage and in that way would have my own private musician.

    I finally succeeded in catching one and put it in a cage. At first, in its fright at being captured, the bird fluttered about the cage, but eventually it settled down in its new home. I felt very pleased with myself and looked forward to some beautiful singing from my tiny musician.

    I had left the cage out on our back porch, and on the second day of the bird's captivity my new pet's mother flew to the cage with food in her mouth. The baby bird ate everything she brought to it. I was pleased to see this. Certainly the mother knew better than I how to feed her baby.

    The following morning when I went to see how my captive（被俘虏的） was doing, I discovered it on the floor of the cage, dead. I was shocked! What had happened! I had taken excellent care of my little bird, or so I thought.

    Arthur Wayne, the famous ornithologist, happened to be visiting my father at the time, hearing me crying over the death of my bird, explained what had occurred. “A mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes bring it poison berries. She thinks it better for her young to die than to live in captivity.”

    Never since then have I caught any living creature and put it in a cage. All living creatures have a right to live free.

    Car companies are developing vehicles that will plug into electric sockets, ust like many laptops, digital cameras, cell phones and Mp4 do. Called “plug-in vehicles”, these cars will get most of their power from electricity. Their drivers won't have to stop at gas stations as often as usual.

    The technology is more than just cool. In our car-filled world, plug-in vehicles could reduce the amount of gas we use, which keeps rising in cost now and then. Besides, driving around in these vehicles may even help the environment. Gas-burning cars produce a lot of greenhouse gas, which causes global warming.

    The first company-produced plug-in vehicles could hit the roads by 2020. But engineers still have a lot of work to do to make the technology practical and inexpensive.

    Batteries are the biggest challenge. In the plug-in-vehicle world，Li-ion(锂离子)batteries are getting the most attention. These batteries can store a large amount of energy in a small package, and they last a longer time between charges. Li-ion batteries can fit laptops, cell phones, heart instruments and other similar pocket ones.

    But because cars are so big and heavy, it would still require a suitcase-sized Li-ion batteries to power about 12km of driving. What's more, the batteries are much expensive.

    “A car filled with batteries could go a long distance,” says Ted Bohn, an electrical engineer in Chicago. “But it couldn't pull any people, and it would cost $100,000.” So researchers need to work out how to make batteries smaller and cheaper, among other questions.

    “The answers don't exist yet,” Bohn says, “As a kid, I thought someone someplace knows the answer to everything. All of these questions haven't been decided. That's what engineering is about-making a guess, running tests and getting fine results.”

    Nobody likes doing the dishes, but it turns out that doing this daily task might pay off in an unexpected way. According to a new study published in the Journal of Pediatrics, washing dishes by hand instead of using a dishwasher might prevent the development of allergies.

    Researchers in Sweden surveyed the parents of 1,029 children ages 7 and 8. They discovered that children whose families hand-washed the dishes instead of using a machine were less likely to have allergies.

    Earlier research has shown that dishes washed by machine are cleaner than those washed by hand. So why would kids who eat off slightly dirtier plates be better off when we talk about preventing allergies? One explanation is based on a theory known as the "hygiene hypothesis (卫生假说)," which says the reason why kids develop allergies is that their surroundings are actually too clean.

    Your immune (免疫) system keeps you healthy by fighting germs (病菌) like bacteria and viruses. But when you have allergies, it overreacts and tries to fight ordinary things like pollen (花粉) or certain foods.

    Being exposed to germs, particularly early in life, is good training for the immune system, says the lead author of the study, Dr. Bill Hesselmar of Queen Silvia Hospital in Sweden. "You excite the immune system in various ways and it becomes tolerant."

    This study shows that while using the dishwasher might be easier, the old-fashioned method of cleaning up could be better for your health.

    Alaska Airlines has the cheapest fares around, but you receive superb service unequal to its price. In case you don't know, Alaska Airlines does not just go to Alaska, but includes states such as Washington, California, and Hawaii. Our prices are reasonable and we offer great service.

    Alaska Airlines is generous. For each bag you check in, it must weigh 50 pounds or less, which is extremely generous for domestic flights. Your baggage is allowed to be up to 62 inches in length. You're also allowed one carry-on bag in addition to one personal item which can be a purse, a laptop computer, or a briefcase.

    Not only do we give you the cheapest airfare, but we offer you a visa card which you can earn plenty of miles on. Upon approval, you will receive 25,000 Bonus Miles. From then on, for each dollar you charge to this card, you will receive 3 miles and there's no limit to the amount of miles you can earn. You also receive a $99 round-trip discount code for a Companion Ticket each year for using this card. This is a sweet deal and very generous. Think about all of your purchases you make during the month. Now multiply that by three. You're talking about a free trip cross country in just a few short months. Wow!

    Alaska Airlines receives great reviews for its performance, punctuality, and professional service. In addition to its great reviews from customers, Alaska Airlines has received lots of awards and recognitions. Network Carriers in North America has rated Alaska Airlines for the highest in customer satisfaction for the past 4 years. We have also received the Executive Travel's leading edge Award. We were also named on the 2011 Washington Green 50 list.

    Alaska Airlines is quickly gaining the recognition it deserves. We're adding higher expectations to the flying experience. Try it out.

    Three men traveling on a train began a conversation about the world's greatest wonders.

    "In my opinion, "the first man said, "the Egyptian pyramids are the world's greatest wonder. Although they were built thousands of years ago, they are still standing. And remember: the people who built them had only simple tools. They did not have the kind of machinery that builders and engineers have today."

    "I agree that the pyramids in Egypt are wonderful," the second man said, "but I do not think they are the greatest wonder. I believe computers are more wonderful than the pyramids. They have taken people to the moon and brought them back safely. In seconds, they carry out mathematical calculations that would take a person a hundred years to do."

    He turned to the third man and asked, "What do you think is the greatest wonder in the world?"

    The third man thought for a long time, and then he said, "Well, I agree that the pyramids are wonderful, and I agree that computers are wonderful, too. However, in my opinion, the most wonderful thing in the world is this thermos."

    And he took a thermos out of his bag and held it up.

    The other two men were very surprised. "A thermos?" they exclaimed. "But that's a simple thing."

    "Oh, no, it's not," the third man said. "In the winter you put in a hot drink and it stays hot. In the summer you put in a cold drink and it stays cold. How does the thermos know whether it's winter or summer?"