The average Pisay student would have spent a lot of his day in the corridors. Being in the corridor thus would ask us to frequently practice good manners. Here are some good etiquette worthy to recall:

1. When walking at regular pace, DO keep near the sides and avoid the center. The reason for this is simply to give ample space for people who might want to overtake you. Your corridors are just like your motorways, cars travelling fast are advised to stay in the center-lanes, those going slow are supposed to occupy the margin-lanes.

2. Just like in the stairs, DO avoid walking in files, especially when your group is large enough to occupy the entire corridor. Without knowing it, your group is already blocking the entire aisle.

3. When two gentlemen walk in the corridors, the one of a higher rank walks nearer the center. When on the other hand a gentleman walks with a lady, regardless of rank, the lady walks nearer the center. This is because the center of corridors, even of staircases, are considered spaces of honour. In Royal mansions, there are specific instructions given to servants (butlers, maids, pages etc.) never to use the center-spaces. Normally the spaces are carpeted red, while the rest of the house are carpeted with green or any colour except red. In military institutions, the same standard applies as in the phrase we normally hear spoken by an officer, "stick to the wall, cadet!"

Recognizing and respecting different ranks of people do not necessarily go against the time-honoured democratic principle that says, all persons are equal. Why? It is because the proper functioning of society requires duties and responsibilities of different and hierarchical degrees: look, not everyone can be president, all at the same time, otherwise what a horrible and chaotic society you will have! The preferences or ranks we give to people are precisely based on their office or function in society, not because they have a higher or a lower dignity. Yes, as persons we are equals, but as holders of various positions in society, we do differ.

"Giving way" is a wonderful consequence of the virtue of humility, a virtue truly good to practice, afterall who really likes to be with proud and haughty people?

16 November 2009

There are ways of climbing staircases gracefully in as many as there are ways to climb it looking unimpressively flat. Here are a few more tips on climbing up and down a flight of stairs.

1. Do climb in an upright manner just as if you are walking. The tendency of people is to lean forward to transfer the weight of the body up front, but, this is not good to look at and gives an impression that one does not know how to carry his weight. For one who is just learning to walk, this is excusable but for one who has walked and climbed staircases for years, this is unsightly.

2. For males DO climb the stairs straightforward, for females DO climb with a slight tilt (about 15 degrees) towards the hand-rail side. Why the difference? Fashion has a lot to answer for this, males wearing pants need not tilt sideways to see the next few steps to take, which is important for safety reasons. However, females who wear skirts, especially long gowns, in order to see the staircases they are climbing on, must tilt a bit to see their way. Another reason is that, when climbing down, females wearing skirts, especially short skirts, who climb down straightforward fashion will show a lot of their physique (legs and all) to those already waiting downstairs, sometimes this is short of immodesty.

3. DO climb the steps heads erect and not heads down. Looking at where you are going is good safety practice, but looking at your every step in the staircase gives an impression of undue caution and makes you walk heads down, a sign of lack of self-possesion and confidence. A good practice is to look in advance a few steps, say 4 or 5 steps ahead, this will allow your head to remain upright, but at the same time keep you on the side of safety.

One of the greatest gifts of being human is the ability to walk upright, remember, no animal is ever capable of doing this. This gift is part of man having been given dominion over all created things; to be upright means being able to see fully his surrounding and therefore have a command over it. Walking properly and with grace is just the logical consequence of knowing and living this wonderful gift.

Remember, an etiquette a day keeps rudeness away.

-Sir Madz

13 November 2009

In the absence of elevators, daily life in Pisay involves climbing up flights of stairs. This activity, just like any other ordinary activities, calls us to practice proper etiquette. Our practice of these easy-to-follow rules not only will help us avoid accidents (which is not really uncommon, recall how many accidents in Pisay happened in the stairs!) but will also give polish to our conduct.

1. In climbing up or down a staircase DO climb without haste. A lot of the rules in etiquette concern about preventing somebody from looking ugly. A person, in uniform or office attire, running, is not good to look at, and it will produce unimpressive results such as arriving in class all sweaty with hair and clothes disarranged. But there is a deeper reason also in preferring to walk properly than to run in all haste. Being always in a hurry is a good indicator that one is living with a disorderly schedule and one's day is not carefully planned- in short the person lacks orderliness.

2. In climbing a stair with a friend, allow the older one or the lady to walk along side the hand rails. This will ensure that they have a support while climbing up or down. Men on the other hand should always be ready to offer some help should they need it.

3. In climbing up the staircase as a group DO avoid climbing in files, especially when the whole file will occupy the entire staircase. Somebody in an emergency or in a needful hurry, might need to overtake you but they cannot because you are blocking him/her.

Etiquette calls for a lot of order because order is a reflection of beauty. We prize beauty though it is not a virtue, because beauty makes us attractive to people. And when people are attracted to us, all the more it is easy for us to do good things to them. Beauty makes the practice of the virtues easy and enjoyable.

Remember an etiquette a day keeps rudeness away.


-Sir Madz

An Etiquette a Day

Taking off from the Balabago-Bitoon Jeep to start a new school day is an experience many of us share. For most us, what happens during this important event spells out our day. Likewise, showing our good manners right from the start of the day is a good practice because, surely everybody would like a wonderful school day from start to finish.

1. Right before alighting the jeep or the tricycle or whatever form of transportation you came with that day (as in the case of those who are dropped-off by their parents or chauffeur), never forget to say the magic words THANK YOU. A big smile would go well with it, too. Yes, you paid for your ride, but I guess you owe more to the driver for taking you safely to Pisay than what is strictly worth PhP 7. If you are lucky to be dropped-off by your mum or dad, a good-bye and a kiss will make them feel rewarded for taking you to school. Yes you've growned up, but that doesn't mean you stopping to show them signs of affection;

2. Just when you enter the confines of Pisay, I'm very sure the first person you'll meet is our station guard. DO greet him with a "good morning!". Your, manong guard, as we fondly know them, starts work at around 12 or 3 am. By the time you arrive in the morning, they are already 6 hours awake and pretty much starting to get tired. But your cheerful smile and greeting, I'm sure, would fire them up to work for the rest of their duty;

3. As you enter school DO try to greet everyone you come across with, guards, janitors, teachers, staffs and students, especially with a smile. But, never expect all of them to greet or smile back at you. Most people are not in their best in the morning, but this should not discourage you to be polite. Afterall, we don't practice etiquette expecting that others would give us the same treatment, we practice etiquette because it's the right thing to do!

Politeness is one virtue we do not practice for the sake of showing off our "manners", rather, it is a result of our desire to make the life of everyone else around us better.

Remember, an etiquette a day keeps rudeness away!


-Sir Madz

An Etiquette a Day

Every ride in the jeep is a one in a million experience, no ride is ever the same! So etiquettes relating to a ride in the jeep never run out, although the same principles may move them. Here are some more etiquettes good to practice in riding a jeep.

1. Though gone are the days of chivalry, it is still nice to follow some order in entering and leaving the jeep. DO allow the women, the old and disabled persons to enter first, and always offer them assistance should they seem to need it. A poor but not so uncommon sight I experience, are young and strong students never seeming to care when an old man/woman or a lady carrying many things enter the jeep. They simply go on with their conversations as if they never saw the person entering. They are not even willing to give up their seats (which are near the entrance) to these poor people;

2. When exiting the jeep, DO allow the women, the old and the disabled to stay behind a bit. This is done so that when they get down you may assist them in their need. It is equally bad manners to leave the jeep first and then simply go on with your business not even minding that some persons inside might still need your help;

3. Similar to walking side by side in the sidewalk, where the proper etiquette is for the men to walk closer to the streets than do the women, when sitting in the front seats of the jeep the women must be allowed to go in first so that the man she is sitting with is the one nearest the open door.

Critics of chivalry often cite the code's being a power play of men versus women, or strong versus the weak. But NO, chivalry is not power play, it simply is kindness. It is a matter of someone more capable extending what he or she is given to help his or her neighbour. It is love of neighbour put into concrete actions.

Remember, an etiquette a day keeps rudeness away!


-Sir Madz

An Etiquette a Day

The jeepney is a public transport. It is a means of transportation where we could get seated next to a friend in as much a probability as getting seated right next to a total stranger. Because of this, riding the jeep calls for great effort to practice our good manners. Here are a few more etiquettes to practice when riding a jeep:

1. Being a public place, DO avoid talking loudly in the jeep. Dropping names or hints to yours and your friend's identity is very unwise to do in public places, or in the words of Emily Post, "doing so would be just the same as tearing down the walls of your house." Your identities are best known only in the intimacy of your homes;

2. DO converse intelligently in private places but never so in public ones. Pisay students are intelligent students who study subjects quite advanced for their age, everybody knows that. So nothing annoys people more than when they hear you talking about your knowing this and that in public places like the jeep or the malls. Even if you don't mean it, people tend to believe out of a sense of "inferiority", that your are bragging about your intelligence;

3. Laughing is a healthy reaction of a cheerful person. But laughing heartily may be taken especially by strangers as insulting or sarcastic. It would start making them feel self-conscious and uncomfortable. So when you and your friend would want to have a good laugh, DO reserve them in the confines of a private place, not in the jeep.

Modesty practiced in conversations, such as in the cases above, is a very good virtue. It promotes the friendship you already share with your friends, and helps you gain more friends out of total strangers.

Don't forget, an etiquette a day keeps rudeness away!

-Sir Madz

An Etiquette a Day

The ride in the jeep from Jaro Plaza to Pisay is a wonderful occasion to show ones elegant manners and good breeding. Here are some few good tips to remember:

1. When you are one of the first few to enter the jeep, DO try to occupy the seats near the driver. This will make it easier for those who'd come late, who would logically have to sit farther from the driver.

2. Being seated near the driver, especially right behind him would mean the added hassle of being his assistant especially in "collecting" the fares of the other passengers. But if you come to think of it, this is really not so tiring, besides you can think of it as some payback service for these people who pay for your education. Remember you are in Pisay because of taxpayers money.

3. When, on the other hand, you are the one asking a favour from the other passengers, for them to pass to the driver your fare, don't forget to say Please, or "palihog" in Hiligaynon and a big smile would go well with it! When someone finally hears your plea and offers to pass your coins to the driver, a Thank you or "Salamat" will be very good to hear. Remember, you are asking a favour from them, it's not their job to give your fare to the driver.

Good manners really are not mere trivialities, they demonstrate virtues, such in the cases above- consideration. Practicing them doesn't just suggest formality, but rather good upbringing ang an innate largeness of heart.

Don't forget, an etiquette a day keeps the rudeness away!

-Sir Madz

An Etiquette a Day

Ever wondered how to introduce your friends who barely know each other?

It's pretty safe to say that in Pisay, almost everyone knows about everyone else. Afterall we live in a 3.3 hectare community, boy, if you didn't know about the latest gossip of whom, you must be a hermit! But, then again, from time to time, we encounter situations where we have to introduce a friend to another friend. The two of whom barely know each other. The following are the hard and fast rules:

1. The younger or less distinguished is introduced to the older or more distinguished. (e.g. Jared this is Perry my classmate, Perry this is Jared my younger brother; OR Phil this is Dr. Caiway my research adviser, Sir, this is Phil my classmate who want to join our research group)

2. But, always introduce a male to a female, regardless of distinction. (e.g. John meet Betty my cousin, Betty this is John my classmate; OR Sir this is Vanessa my classmate who wants to join our research group, Vanessa this is Dr. Caiway my research adviser).

3. The only exception to rule no. 2 is when the male is a President, a Cardinal or a reigning Monarch. (I wonder if anyone of us will ever get to rule number 3 not at least in the near future, but who knows...)

When being introduced, "How do you do" is the best answer, a casual "Hello" may be fine but never "pleased to meet you", unless you're sincere about it.

Don't forget, an etiquette a day keeps the rudeness away!

P.S.
Any comments, questions? Use the combox!

-Sir Madz

Social Commentary

(photo courtesy of the LA Times, http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2009-07/corazon-aquino_48399263.jpg)

When I gave my quarterly examination in Beginning Economics last Thursday, a current events question was posed asking the student who was this iconic Philippine figure who IS currently suffering from colon cancer. The answer was obvious if not for the wrong question. She was long dead before my exam got into the hands of my students.

Cory's death brought back yellow ribbons and reignited EDSA 1 spirits long ought to be hiding in the shadows of history's vaults. Yes, the newspapers were all about Cory, good for one their colour was already yellow, but the other national daily which normally has blue for it's front page, this time, had to switch to yellow. The TV's also had to extend airtime for "news" coverages and Cory exclusives slash specials. Suddenly the Filipino nation called the Aquino children, Ballsy, Pinky, Noynoy and Kris by their first names, that's when normally it was only the last that everyone utters either because somebody won a gameshow or because a controversy just blew, and naturally she had to be there. And the pulpits weren't spared, in the span of a week, I heard 3 homilies all bordering to Cory eulogies, not counting one Requiem mass celebrated specially for her.

I cannot help but wonder, who Cory was for me?

I was born a year before the tumultous year of 1986, was barely 5 when Gringo was busying himself of devicing ways to evict Mrs. Aquino out of Malacanan. Pretty much my only recollection of Tita Cory was her picture hanging on my first grade classroom, in June of 1992. It was to stay there only for the next few weeks as a new picture of Ramos had to replace hers.

Who is Cory for me?

I believe Cory was lucky. She was lucky her husband Ninoy was the lone voice of the opposition at a time when a common enemy was occupying Malacanan. When Ninoy got shot at the Tarmac of the Manila International Aeroport, everybody pointed their fingers to that common enemy, who wouldn't? Mrs. Aquino was lucky because she had to, being the spouse of Ninoy, continue his fight. She was lucky because the bells of Jaime Cardinal Sin tolled for her victory. She was lucky the Filipinos were tired of a dictator ridden with lupus, and were looking for someone new. She was lucky she survived mutltiple coup attempts of chauvinistic disillusioned men in uniforms.

But a presidency is not measured with luck. I could only postpone judgment on her reign until history can cast more light in her behalf. Until then, Mrs. Aquino's presidency for me would no more than be a case of luck, of coincidence, of an auspicious admixture of strange political, psychological and social cicrcumstances, all of which worked towards her becoming a leader.

Who would Cory be for me?

Cory has passed on to the realm of history, to paraphrase one news column. She has rightfully become now a fragment of historical trivia. And the question I made in my economics class would have become out of scope as she became history and no longer current-event.

Cory would remain for me a former president, just like all of them former ones. Shadows of years gone by, and ideals perhaps lost, perhaps still existing. Cory would be remembered for her 2 constitutions, the revolutionary Constitution and the 1987 Constitution. Cory would remain to be that regal president, more of the Head of State than the Head of Government. For the rest, historians of the future will judge. As for me, I could no longer posit any judgment.

Maybe I have become indeed indifferent to society and its supposed ills. Maybe I cannot render judgment on Cory because I refuse to be one with, in her terms, the common tao, a people so formless, so weak-boned it cannot even stand against the lies and deceit of media. Isn't it known that over these past years the news has become tiring, with the media blinded to whatever good the current president has done. The media has made it so difficult for any president to do good until they have gone to their graves.

Why arel all these showers of affections for Mrs. Aquino brought only with her passing away, why couldn't we have paid her tributes when she was still alive? Why weren't there Cory Specials when she was still there to feel loved and valued by the nation? Why did she have to be dead and irresponsive to be shown love? Such hypocrisy spun by the so called fair and responsible media.

If there is one thing I am thanking Cory by now, it is that her death has shown the real hypocrisy of the media.

Thank you Mrs. Aquino and pray for us your people to the God whom you have loved so much in this life.

PSHS-WV Announcement

PSHS-WV will suspend classes on 17 July through 24 July. During these days the school will enforce precautionary measures against Dengue, 3 Level-3 cases of which were recorded in Brgy. Bito-on proper, some 200-m from the school grounds.

All dormer students are encouraged to go home.

Classes will resume, 27-July, Monday.

Maths 2: Angle Pairs and Perpendicularity

Definition of Complementary Angles

Two angles are complementary if and only if the sum of their measures is 90.

Definition of Supplementary Angles

Two angles are supplementary if and only if the sum of their measures is 180.

Definition of Linear Pairs

Two angles are linear pairs if and only if they are adjacent angles whose uncommon sides are opposite rays.

Linear Pair Postulate

If two angles form a linear pair then they are supplementary.

Definition of Vertical Angles

Two angles are vertical angles if and only if they are non-adjacent angles formed by two intersecting lines.

Vertical Angle Theorem (VAT)

Vertical angles are always congruent.

Definition of Perpendicular Lines, Line-segments and Rays

Two lines are perpendicular if and only if they intersect to form right angles. Two line-segments or rays are perpendicular if and only if they have a point in common and the lines they determine form right angles.

Definition of Perpendicular Lines to a Plane

A line is perpendicular to a plane at point X if and only if it is perpendicular to every line in the plane that passes through X.

Definition of Perpendicular Planes

Two planes are perpendicular if and only if there is a line lying on one plane which is perpendicular to the other plane.

Theorem

If two lines are perpendicular, then the pairs of adjacent angles they form are congruent.

Corollary

If two lines are perpendicular, then all the four angles formed by the intersection are congruent.

Corollary

If two lines are perpendicular, then all the four angles formed by the intersection are right angles.

Theorem

If two lines intersect to form a pair of congruent adjacent angles then the lines are perpendicular.

Definition of Perpendicular Bisector

A line, ray, line-segment or plane is a perpendicular bisector of a line-segment if and only if the line, ray, line-segment or plane is perpendicular to the segment at its midpoint.

Theorem

If there is any given point on a line in a plane, then there is exactly one line in that plane perpendicular to the given line at the given point.

Corollary

If there is any line-segment in a plane then in that plane there is exactly one line that is a perpendicular bisector of the line-segment.

Theorem

If the exterior sides of two adjacent acute angles are perpendicular, then the angles are complementary.

Theorem

If there is a point not on a line, then there is exactly one line perpendicular to the given line passing through the given point.

Maths 2: Angles and Angle Measurement

Definition of an Angle

A figure is an angle if and only if it is the union of two non-collinear rays, the sides, with a common endpoint, the vertex.

Definition of Adjacent Angles

Two angles are said to be adjacent if and only if they satisfy the following three conditions:
1. they have a common vertex
2. they have a common side
3. they DO NOT have common interior points

Angle Measure Postulate (AMP)

Given an angle, there is a unique real number BETWEEN 0 and 180 known as its degree measure. (important: this explains why there is no 0 and 180 angles)

Protractor Postulate

In a half-plane with edge, line AB, and any point S between A and B, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the rays that originate at S in that half-plane and the real numbers BETWEEN 0 and 180. The angle measure is taken as the absolute value between the two corresponding real numbers.

Theorem

In a half-plane, through the endpoint of a ray lying in the edge of the half-plane, there is EXACTLY one other ray such that the angle formed by the two rays has a given measure between 0 and 180.

Definition of Angle Congruence

Two angles are said to be congruent if and only if their measures are equal.

Theorem

All right angles are congruent.

Definition of an Angle Bisector

Given three coplanar rays, OA, OT and OB, ray OT is the angle bisector if and only if angle AOT is congruent to angle TOB

Maths 2: Relationships of Points, Lines and Planes

Postulates and Theorems

Postulate 1
A line contains at least two distinct points. A plane contains at least three non-collinear points. Space contains at least four non-coplanar points.

Postulate 2
If two distinct points are given, then a unique line contains them.

Postulate 3
Through any two points there are infinitely many planes. Through any three points there is at least one plane. Through any three non-collinear points there is exactly one plane.

Postulate 4
If two points are in a plane, then the line that contains those points lie entirely in the plane.

Postulate 5
If two distinct planes intersect, then their intersection is a line.

Theorem 1.1
If two distinct lines intersect, then they intersect in exactly one point.

Theorem 1.2
If there is a line and a point not in the line, then there is exactly one plane that contains them.

Theorem 1.3
If two distinct lines intersect, then they lie in exactly one plane.

PSHS-WV Opening of Classes Update

There are news circulating that the Philippine Science High School - Main Campus (Diliman) will open classes on 15-June instead of the systemwide mandated 8-June date.

Whether this news is true or not, the official statement coming from the Director of the Philippine Science High School - Western Visayas (Iloilo) as of posting time, is that, we will push through with the opening of classes come 8-June, Monday, tomorrow.

I repeat, Classes at Pisay-Iloilo will open on-schedule, June 8.

We will open regardless of postponement at the Main Campus.

Favourite Quotes

The latin original of one of my most favourite needless to say of-quoted dictum by Augustine of Hippo, Saint and Doctor:

Magnae vires et cursus celerrimus, sed praeter viam, that is to say, "much strength and great speed, but all off the track".

Random Thoughts

On being asked about my take on Philippine education and educational philosophy in general

As a teacher especially involved in the education of minors I see a great gap in the country’s approach to education in general and to basic education in particular. While it is true that little by little change is slowly creeping in, in the country’s educational system, I believe that this problem is more than about reforming curricula and changing structures, this is a problem deeply rooted in our view of education.

This crisis in our educational system is brought about by a highly bourgeois attitude typical of the 60’s, where education is primarily viewed in its functional mode. There is a neo-utilitarianistic attitude among our educators and people in general where they think one ought to study only what are needed for their careers in the future. A child is brought to grade school left with clear instruction that he studies elementary to be able to get to high school and college. He moves on to high school with the same thought. Ultimately he reaches college, chooses a degree which would be most lucrative come graduation. After four or five years he “finishes” school, looks for work, gets dismayed by the competitive jobs market and lands underemployed if not unemployed at all. The young careerist easily gets dismayed because by this time he would have spent 14 to 15 years of his student life wasted away by being not able to find that “job” he studied for. After all, his sole raison d’être for having spent that much time in school was to “work”. Isn’t this the sad reality among the Filipino youth of today? Because of this neo-utilitarianistic attitude towards education, our people tend to be rather job-takers not job-makers, worst of all this view by and large dehumanizes schooling and working by considering “earning” as their ultimate goals, and, income as the be-all-and-end-all of education and employment.

Plato in his Timeon encounters a non-Greek affirming that the Greeks were αει παιλεσ, eternal children. To which the Philosopher saw no reproach but rather a tribute to the Greek character. At this a Greek Metropolitan, one Stylianos Harkianakis adds, ‘It remains firmly accepted that the Greeks want to be a people of philosophers not technocrats, that is, eternal children, apt to wonder in amazement at the higher states of human existence. Only in this light can we view the important fact that the Greeks have made no practical use of their innumerable inventions’. To which Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, that brilliant thinker and presently pope, furthers that, “wonder should not be lost – the capacity, that is, to marvel and to listen, to ask not only about what is functional but equally to perceive the harmony of the spheres and to rejoice precisely that it is of no use to us.”

A functional view of education must be tempered with a deep regard to the more fundamental principle of learning and that is learning for learning’s sake, for the apprehension of truths, and the attainment of “greater” states of human existence. In this way education becomes a humanizing agent in this ever dehumanizing environment we live in today.

PSHS-WV Announcement

The start of classes has been moved from Monday, 1-June to Monday, 8-June. This is official. Please pass around this wonderful news.

SSIP - Luzon Announcements

SSIP Clarifications (Holidays and Excused Absences)

The 160-hours requirement of the SSIP is ACTUAL working time. This means holidays and excused absences (i.e. being sick, or there was a typhoon) cannot be counted with it.

This is the reason why you had 24 working days allotted for the programme. If you count well this exceeds 160-hrs. Why? So that you'll have time to make up for your absences and or for holidays.

So in the case of May 1 this year which fell on a Friday, that CANNOT be counted as ACTUAL working time. So that's 1-day less of your 24-working days.

If you were also told to leave early or were told not to come at all because of security risks due to the typhoon, that also will be counted as 1-day less or hours less from your 24-working days.

But all in all, you would still have gotten 160-hours by the end of the SSIP.

In short before you leave this Friday DO an accounting of your DTR and make sure that it sums to 160-hrs. or more. If not please contact Sir Oliver Fuentespina immediately! He may be reached at (0921)298-6259. Or contact me at (0918)908-7040 Smart or at (0935)151-2424 Touch Mobile.

Please also do not forget to thank your supervisors and everyone you met for this SSIP in your agency. If you can, try to give some token/s of appreciation, it may need not be expensive. It can just be a personally made thank you card, or thank you note. Just something to show you are grateful for the experience they shared to you.

Alternate Mobile Number

Everyone,

I got an alternative mobile number, it's: +639351512424 (TM).

This is just an alternative number, my default/main number in use is still +639189087040 (Smart) kasi post-paid ito.

Research 2 Final Paper Comments: Flowmeter Project

Just please in Chapter IV, say there is a positive relationship between voltage and volume flow rate...

Apply same statement in the conclusion, instead of saying "direct" relationship.

Please make sure you write all the constraints of your study in the Scope and Delimitation.

I'd like to see your paper after you make these corrections.

Please also come to school tomorrow, 14 April, Tuesday before 9am.

Research 2 Final Paper Comments: Ozone Project

The paper is OK already except please use the US EPA standard of 80ppb Ozone. This can be found from the article "The Ozone We Breathe" by Jeannie Allen. Please find this in your Google Notes. Also since you included this, do write something in your discussion about Nong Sim being exposed to Ozone about 1.5 times the "normal" concentration we can breathe.

If the above suggestions are done, please let me see the final draft so binding may proceed.

Bohol's Flora and Fauna

Above are flowers I found in Choco Hills, and of course Bohol's famous Tarsiers!

Rubians Worthy of our Name

These are the Rubians of SY 08-09 partying after winning in the culminating activity, tied with I-Jade.

Close-ups

Close-ups of shots I got from Lambunao

Drama in Metropolis

And here are dramatic sunset scenes just right outside of Pisay WV

Dandelions in Lambunao

These are dandelions I found in Lambunao, sure sign it's indeed March, springtime!

JS Prom 2009

Faculty enjoying Prom Night!

Hey Alumni! : PSHS-WV in need of 2 Physics/Chemistry Teachers

Hey alumni, your Alma Mater needs you!

PSHS-WV is in need of 2 Physics or Chemistry teachers for SY 2009-2010.

For more information, e-mail me or Sir Cerbo.

E-mail Addresses

Sir Joseph Simon Madrinan (Batch 2002):

jsvmadrinan@gmail.com

Sir Carlito Cerbo Jr. (Alumni Relations, Chief)

c_cervo2001@yahoo.com

Movie Weekend

Ok, I confess, I spent my Valentine weekend watching Movies.

Saturday, Valentines Day -

Movie: Underworld III - Rise of the Lycans
Rating: 6 (out of 10) for sheer presence of factual loopholes

Let me start this with a qualification, I have this certain liking for Vampires over the lowly Lycans. Seriously, Lycans are too ugly!

That being said, I rather dislike the movie for massively portraying Vampires as scheming, haughty and weak creatures.

Underworld III attempts to explain the beginning of the unending war between the immortal bloodlines of vampires and werewolves. In doing so, it made use of the of politics-and-love-equals-war formula. Can it be more cliche?

Victor, the vampire elder was protrayed as a politician so consumed with power that he was willing to execute his daughter just so he appears politically correct and righteous. But isn't this precisely the call of justice?

Here are some garment-rending uber-lamentable factual loopholes in the movie.

(1) Vampires using their mirrors! Yes, folks, the vamps here used mirrors. What happened to them supposedly not having reflections?

(2) A horde of pure-blooded adult Vampires shrieking at the sight of two ugly werewolves. Boy oh boy, can it get any silly. Vamps, pure-blooded at that, can and should tackle werewolves, much more when there's a horde of them against, how many, two, yes two. Exasperating scene really if you ask me.

Now enough rant for Underworld.

Sunday, 15-February

Movie: Valkyrie
Rating: 9

This movie, I like very much. It just makes you think what could've happened had Hitler really been killed.

Nothing much really need be said other that me feeling funny watching the same actor play in two moives I watched over the weekend. One of the protagonist in Valkyrie, Gen. Olbricht, played by Bill Nighy, was actually the one who played the role of Victor in Underworld III. Weird, really.

--- END of POST ---

Philosophical Rant

I'm very distressed, consequently this has pushed me to reced into my usual philosophical ranting and raving.

Await for further ruminations to be published.