With a stunning coastline, magical harbour and abundance of urban public pools, Sydney can certainly claim to have one of the world’s most vibrant swim cultures. However, if you want to take full advantage of your backyard in the hotter months and really turn up the Thirsty Merc, it’s preferable to have your own private sanctuary. Adding a pool to your home is the ultimate game changer, providing countless benefits that go beyond just looks and appeal.

With Sydney’s outdoor culture and beautiful weather year round, having a backyard pool is more than just a luxury – it’s almost a requirement! Whether you’re hosting your best friends or just enjoying a family barbeque, having a pool will allow you to truly enjoy all that a backyard has to offer.

While a pool adds to the overall aesthetic of your home, it also increases its resale value. In the highly competitive Sydney Real Estate market, having a pool is an attractive feature for prospective buyers and will often attract a higher return on investment.

An IPv6 address pool is a set of IPv6 addresses that are available for allocation to devices connected to the network. The pools are managed by the network administrator and may be used for different purposes, such as addressing hosts on different subnets. The pools are created using the Pooling Protocol.

A pool is a man-made lake or enclosure of water that is formed when waves crash against the shoreline, leaving behind a shallow area in which people can swim safely. There are many different kinds of pools, including natural tidal pools, man-made concrete swimming pools and reclaimed industrial ponds. Most of these pools are located in tropical climates, although there are also some in temperate regions.

The first step in pool construction is the excavation and shaping of the site. Depending on the size of the pool and its features, this can take anywhere from three to six weeks. Once the excavation is complete, the next stage is laying the foundations. This can be done in a variety of materials, such as bricks, block, precast slabs and concrete. A concrete pool can be finished with a selection of finishes, such as pebbles, exposed aggregate and tiles.

When the shell of the pool is in place, a layer of non-slip coping is added to the edges. This can be made from pavers, concrete or natural stone and is designed to improve safety and reduce maintenance. The coping can be made in a variety of shapes and styles, such as rounded (bullnose), square, tumbled or drop face.

If you’re thinking of installing a pool in your Sydney home, make sure to hire reliable contractors. It’s important to get your pool built at the right time of year to ensure it’s ready for summer. In general, spring and autumn are the best times to install a pool in Sydney, as temperatures are ideal for setting up your new pool for peak use.

The annual singapore prize is Singapore’s biggest literary award, with top prizes of up to $10,000 for fiction and non-fiction in each of the country’s official languages: Chinese, English and Malay. This year saw a record number of submissions, including one from an unpublished author. Previously, it was only open to authors with published work. Presented by the National Book Development Council of Singapore, this year’s awards also saw the introduction of the Youth Category, an annual bursary offering SGD 3,000 each to three students from local Institutes of Higher Learning.

The President’s Science and Technology Awards are Singapore’s highest honours for scientific achievement, awarded to scientists in recognition of their key roles in upholding research excellence and strengthening the nation’s growing community of scientists. Founded in 1987 as the National Science and Technology Awards, they were elevated to Presidential status in 2009, and have been bestowed annually since then.

Winners of this year’s award include a new generation of Singaporean scientists and engineers, such as chemist and biomedical engineer Chun-Yew Lee, whose pioneering work on cancer drug development helped to revolutionise medical treatment for liver and kidney diseases. Other notable winners include microbiologists Tan Hooi and Wong Yen-Li, who shared the 2024 prize for Life Sciences for their discovery of a bacterium that can survive extreme heat, and chemical engineer Ning Cai, whose work on the genetic engineering of algae has led to novel biofuels.

Two Epigram Books titles split the English fiction prize: Straits Times journalist Akshita Nanda’s debut novel Nimita’s Place about two women named Nimita navigating society’s expectations in India and Singapore, and speculative short story collection Lion City by Ng Yi-Sheng. Similarly, the Chinese fiction prize was divided between Chia Joo Ming’s SG50-centric Kian Kok and Wong Koi Tet’s loss-of-a-housing-estate memoir Dakota, with Ng winning the new Readers’ Favourite award for his work.

In the Organisations of Good (Large Enterprise) category, winner Foreword Coffee stands as a beacon for inclusivity, working with island businesses to promote inclusive hiring and training to create supportive work environments. Meanwhile, People of Good (Youth) winner Clarence Ching’s Access Singapore has helped to empower disadvantaged young people by empowering them with the English skills required for success in their lives and careers.

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