Easter Eggs of NUS High School
by Tan Le En, Yeo Chi Enn Talia
Established on January 1, 2005, NUS High School of Math and Science is renowned as an academic institution with its accelerated curriculum, and exceptional focus on STEM disciplines. NUS High students are often engaged in research and vying for the top in Math and Science Olympiads.
However, besides the intense rigour of the curriculum, there is much more to NUS High. A school wouldn’t be a school without its people, and a passion in the sciences and mathematics cannot be fostered simply by excelling. A warm culture, and the ability to experiment and explore is the key to the success of our school. And we would like to share some of our school culture’s ‘easter eggs’.
Have you seen the school mascot, Novus? Our school’s white-bellied sea eagle can often be seen in the crowds, cheering our students on at events like the Singapore Science and Engineering Fair, or the National STEM Championship. Not to mention, Novus also features at our own school events, such as the yearly Orientation and CCA (Co-curricular Activities) Fair!
Continuing the ecological theme, the student lounge is aptly named the Nest. Newly renovated, a lounge for students was originally an initiative of the 2nd Students’ Council. You can still find the “Unity in Diversity” handprint mural, the original backdrop of the Lounge, along the walkway at the front gate!
Akin to how young hatchlings need places for comfort and safety for growth, on a normal school day, you can find the Nest populated by students relaxing with their friends. The Nest is also stocked with mats and bean bags for students as well as games.
Continue walking down the path, and you will start to hear the clatter of cutlery, and the exuberant chatter of students punctuating the air.
To your left is the school canteen. Another location that was recently renovated under the Reimagine Campus 2028 initiative by the school, the canteen has shifted from the usual Singaporean canteen with stalls, to a cafeteria style with two parts – “Arc” and “Chord”. Arc is where the students enjoy their meals during lunch or recess while Chord is a large empty space catered for activity booths, such as International Friendship Day, House Weeks, and more! Of course, we can’t forget the individuals who are the backbone behind our daily meals – you can always find Chef Raj, and the rest of the PINES caterers cooking up a storm in the kitchen!
The canteen isn’t the last part of the ecosystem that our student body thrives on. “Cloud”, situated right next to the Arc, and in front of the back gate, is the school’s ex-amphitheatre, newly renovated. Like its name, it is a multipurpose, dynamic, open and sustainable area, symbolising the school’s wish for students to explore and grow. Additionally, it aims to raise student awareness of sustainability through interactive displays, the Urban Farm, and specialised bins aimed towards fostering environmentally friendly habits!
Now on to the Concourse! The same level as the drop-off point, visitors often find themselves confused that it’s actually the third floor of the school. Perhaps another fact that may baffle them is that the concourse is home to a couple of science and mathematical features!
The external façade of the concourse is designed with metal plates in different shades of blue, which depict the numbers of pi. Each set of identically coloured tiles represent a number in the sequence, with three white panels representing 3, 1 darker panel, and 4 blue panels representing numbers of pi 3.14 and so on.
The external façade of the indoor sports hall (ISH) represents the golden ratio in a similar fashion with painted tiles instead.
If you look up at the ceiling of the concourse, you’ll notice four familiar structures. They are the 4 molecules of the nucleotides that make up DNA: Adenine, Thymine, Cytosine, Guanine. This feature represents one of the three main sciences taught in our school, biology. The four nucleotides are an important part of our curriculum that students get to know in senior high, and its relevancy spans across a multitude of topics — hence the significance in incorporating these structures into our school design.
In addition, the concourse wall holds an exhibit of inspiring visitors in STEM with interactive displays, hoping to encourage students to learn from them and encourage deeper exploration of their groundbreaking work.
And if you look back down to the floor, you will notice a strange series of metal plates embedded into the ground.
These plates are a timeline of achievements by mathematicians around the globe, paying homage to their efforts and contributions. A rather wholesome part of the design is that a metal plate lays empty and blank at the end of the timeline. This symbolises the school’s hope that one day, a NUS High student will reach for the stars, succeed, and have a world-changing finding that they will one day etch on that plate.
And that brings us to the end of some of the hidden ‘easter eggs’ of our school culture and campus!