University of the Philippines stands for the interest of the nation

From Cebu Daily News

As the University of the Philippines Class of 1960 celebrates its Golden Jubilee this year, its members remember the words of their commencement speaker, the eminent Filipino statesman and nationalist Claro M. Recto.

His words acquire a particular significance in this historic period when Filipinos have just elected a new President and a parade of foreign dignitaries and statesmen pay their respects in person or some other means to the country’s new leader, Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III.

Although Recto had already given a commencement address to the UP Class of 1951, his speech for the Class of 1960 was special. It also seems quite relevant to the present.

For the Class of 1960, UP most certainly wanted the fire of nationalism to be rekindled among its members. It did not want the graduating class to lose sight of what UP stood and continues to stand for: The interest of the country and of the Filipino people.

From: http://ping.fm/wLU6G

UP Economist Explains Need for New Taxes

From BusinessWorld Online

Sometimes, the enemy of the good is the perfect - University of the Philippines economist Felipe M. Medalla told a meeting of the Chamber of Thrift Banks.

For example, there is no such thing as new taxes that hurt only rich tax evaders. Tax measures that hurt some but help many, if they finance good spending, may be superior to doing nothing, he added.

It may become necessary to impose new taxes or reduce the granting of tax incentives.

He proposed fewer perks; higher sin, fuel, value-added and real estate taxes along with a reduction in the income taxes of wage and salary workers who bear 95% of the individual tax.

The government’s tax efforts also need to be improved, Mr. Medalla said.

From: http://news.google.com/news/url?fd=R&sa=T&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bworldonline.com%2Fmain%2Fcontent.php%3Fid%3D12519&usg=AFQjCNFA9s8zRBmjnMfQi39ubI_CKvTXTw

UP Philippine General Hospital telemedicine Unit Pushes Frontiers of Medicine

From Business Mirror

The equipment to be introduced can be hooked up to digital medical diagnostics devices such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging, and computerized tomography scan machines so the images of the patient taken using these machines can be transmitted using the solutions Polycom and ATI are offering.

We are also working towards a partnership with the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital telemedicine unit to support the existing effort to connect doctors and medical support personnel in far-flung areas of the Philippines, who are now using all available technology such as mobile phones, short-wave radio and laptop webcams to bridge the gap between Filipino doctors and their patients, said Emerson.

From: http://ping.fm/jPqvI

UP Economist - "No inflationary threat"

From BusinessWorld Online

Benjamin E. Diokno, University of the Philippines economist, said that there are no serious inflationary threats from the wage hike increase since it will be implemented only for minimum wage earners, who make up some 16% of the country's labor force.

"I don't see the P22 wage adjustment, representing 5.8% increase [from the current P345-P382 per day] as a serious inflationary threat, since it will benefit [only] a small segment of the work force," Mr. Diokno said.

But he added that the new wage imposition will weigh on businesses, which will try to absorb the additional cost in a bid to keep their prices competitive. Small ventures, however, will not have as much room to maneuver.

"I think [business owners] will absorb part of the burden, that is, [they] won't pass on additional labor costs to consumers," Mr. Diokno said.

"For marginal firms, some will probably close or hire less people. That [in turn] could dampen aggregate demand."

The P22 minimum wage hike ordered for Metro Manila is expected to take effect on July 1, after being published on June 16, National Wages and Productivity Commission Executive Director Ciriaco A. Lagunzad III said in a phone interview yesterday.

The new wage order's implementing rules and regulations are expected to be issued within the month.


From: Google

University of the Philippines in Partnership with Toyota strengthens Road Safety Campaign

From Malaya

The grant is part of the University of the Philippines (UP) Traffic Safety Model Zone project, which is a partnership among TMP, the Automobile Association Philippines (AAP), and UP-NCTS. The UP Traffic Safety Model Zone is a campaign on road traffic safety aimed at improving public awareness, education and discipline among motorists, pedestrians and traffic enforcers.

UP-NCTS runs the Training Course for Public Utility Drivers in cooperation with TMP, AAP, and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB). Under the training program, drivers undergo courses on road traffic safety, values formation, public and customer relations, incidents and emergency procedures, fatigue and stress management, and franchising and road laws, among others.

TMP, AAP, and UP-NCTS agree that the nationwide training would be more effective if corresponding video materials are produced to supplement the various modules of the training program. In this regard, the parties decided to tap the UP-College of Mass Communication Foundation, Inc. (UP-CMCFI), who has the expertise and capability to conceptualize, write, and produce the required video materials.


From: http://ping.fm/QMJf0

UP Diliman National Institute of Geological Studies says Metro manila Free from Sinkholes

From Business Mirror

The compact volcanic rocks do not dissolve in ground water, in acidic [water]. Most of the rock materials [in Metro Manila] are silicates, silica-rich, so even if the water percolates, it is not affected, Dr. Carlo Arcilla, director of the National Institute of Geological Studies of University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman, told the BusinessMirror in an interview on Friday.

Asked about the rock structures under specific areas, he said Makati City and Quezon City are sinkhole-free because they are made of adobe.

If you build in Makati, you won't have a problem because the rock underneath it is adobe, solid rock. Also in many parts of Quezon City, he said.

Manila is mixed with clay but has no limestone, so a sinkhole is the least of their [residents] worry there, he said.

He explained: The Philippines is not all limestone; most of it is volcanic rock, which is not soluble in carbonic acid; [it's] more stable from the perspective of sinkholes, he said.

He said the country has no extensive limestone area unlike in Guatemala, where the whole city is made of limestone, or Florida, where practically half of the state is limestone.

You have no escape [in Guatemala or Florida]. You have to have it checked, he said.



From: http://ping.fm/PhyBY

Fire at the Institute of Chemistry, University of the Philippines, Diliman Campus

Original Content From www.ctlyf.com
Original Post by Christopher Villarin

UP Diliman Chem Pav burns! June 2010. The fire started at around 11 PM and was extinguished at around 1 AM. Palma Hall Pavilion II was badly burned. The adjacent Physics Pav was also damaged. Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry labs are no more. Palma Hall undamaged.

UP Professor Emeritus "Philippines Overtaken by Indonesia in Seaweed Farming"

From Malaya

"We're lagging behind because we're working with only one or two varieties," said Dr. Gavino C. Trono, a marine scientist and professor emeritus at the University of the Philippines.

"We should diversify, expand to other species and varieties with potential for high-value products," he said. "If not, we are overtaken easily because of our limited space relative to that of Indonesia."

"We must also ensure that farmers who use the technology don't lose money," Trono said in a recent industry roundtable discussion convened by the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).

The industry should look at labor rates, said former Science Secretary Ceferino Follosco, noting that wages in Indonesia are much lower than those in the Philippines.

From: http://ping.fm/zxWcg

UP Researchers Discover Seafaring Ancestors

From Bio Scholar News

Anthropologists have discovered a foot bone during an excavation of Callao cave in Luzon, which has led to researchers’ claim that humans reached the islands off south-east Asia at least tens of thousands of years earlier than previously thought.

Armand Mijares of the University of the Philippines Diliman, and his colleagues insist the bone is definitely human, and they are provisionally calling it a lightly built modern human.

From: http://ping.fm/CfDDJ

Belgium Audience Amazed by University of the Philipines' Choir

From ABS CBN News

Singing Ambassadors (UPSA) recently held several concerts in various provinces in Belgium that concluded the group's 8th European tour.

In all of their performances, the multi-awarded choir received nothing but praises and several standing ovations.

Chaplain Rev. Father Raymund Gaspar admitted being enthralled by the group's powerful performance.

You can really feel the songs with their marvelous performance. Really exceptional, Gaspar said.

The crowd was simply captivated as UPSA serenaded them with “Tayong Dalawa, Balut and Kalesa.

But it was the group's French rendition of My Way, or popularly known as Comme Dhabitude in Belgium and France, that earned the respect and admiration of Belgian audience.

This is the first time I listened to the group and I find that they have a voice that's really wonderful. It's a very, very nice concert, very nice program, with various kinds of music. It's wonderful, really, said Belgian Anne Leriche, who admitted being surprised with the choir's ability to sing in several languages.

From: http://ping.fm/JCSFt

Water Cut Despite Rains after UP Raindance

From Philippines Star

Metro Manila should now start conserving water in preparation for less or lack of rainfall within the 63,000 hectare Angat watershed, he said.

He also said everybody should pray for rain as a rain dance conducted at the dam by University of the Philippines professors last March proved ineffective.

However, German also expressed optimism that water stored in the dams reservoir will soon be replenished. He said that rainfall from two typhoons like last years like Ondoy would be enough to fill up the dam.

From: http://ping.fm/2EMCQ

Seafaring Ancestor Discovered by University of the Philippines Anthropologist Team

From Sify

Armand Mijares of the University of the Philippines Diliman, and his colleagues insist the bone is definitely human, and they are provisionally calling it a lightly built modern human.

"The arrival of people in Australia 50,000 to 60,000 years ago is a good comparison," New Scientist quoted expedition member Florent Detroit of the National Museum for Natural History in Paris, France, as saying.

"It seems coherent for us to think that in; south-east Asia and Australia, humans had sea-faring capabilities by 60,000 to 70,000 years ago."

From: http://ping.fm/zPc1p

University of the Philippines Discovers Mystery Seafaring Ancestor

From New Scientist

The foot bone was discovered during an excavation of Callao cave by Armand Mijares of the University of the Philippines Diliman, and his colleagues.

At depths of 2.5 to 3 metres  "well below the layer of stone-tool flakes and burnt animal bones from 26,000 years ago, the time the oldest evidence of human occupation of Luzon" the team found a layer rich in the bones and teeth of deer. It also included a fossilised human third metatarsal, the central long bone in the foot, which was dated to 67,000 years ago.

Mijares and colleagues say that the bone is definitely human, and they are provisionally calling it a lightly built modern human. Yet it's not a perfect match with any known group of humans.

Although the bone's size matches those of the pygmy Negrito people who now live on Luzon, Mijares notes that its shape is unusual, and that its size also falls within the ranges of Homo habilis and Homo floresiensis. Jungers calls its anatomy "intriguing" because it doesn't match that of any known human group.

From: http://ping.fm/0nf4b

UP Engineering Top-Notcher Changes Lives Behind Bars

From Manila Bulletin

Warren Zingapan just graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Engineering and just topped the Civil Engineering licensure exams (No. 1) when he was sentenced to reclusion perpetua after being convicted of murder, along with some fraternity brothers. Zingapan told us he did not commit the crime, and wasn't even at the scene when it happened. But he was convicted nonetheless and has already spent almost a decade of his life in prison.

But instead of wasting his life further, the now 38-year-old Zingapan chose to move on and pursue a mission to help fellow inmates get on with their lives as well.

On his second year in prison, Zingapan was invited to join the Lamb of God Foundation, Inc. organized in 1997 by former inmate Romeo Jalosjos to cater to the sick, elderly and poor inmates. It was primarily envisioned to augment the insufficient supplies of inmates, sharpen their minds, develop their character, and prepare them for their eventual release and reintegration into society. Over 500 member-inmates work with volunteer professionals in various fields of expertise.

From: http://ping.fm/BHsUq

Second-Sem Slowdown Expected According to UP Economist

From BusinessWorld Online

Victor A. Abola, an economist at the University of Asia and the Pacific, said GDP growth could go as high as 5.5% this year, buoyed mainly by the manufacturing and construction sectors.

"First quarter [performance] was broad-based. The succeeding quarters will also be broad-based but slightly lower. Our exports still have a long way to go," he said in a telephone interview.

University of the Philippines economist Benjamin E. Diokno said a second-semester slowdown should be expected even if April-June growth turns out to be as strong as the first three months of year.

"I think the effect of [government and election spending] will no longer be there in [the second half]. And if La Niña turns out to be worse than expected, we don’t have a respite," he said in a separate telephone interview.

Mr. Diokno, a former Budget secretary, declined to offer a revised 2010 growth forecast, saying: "It would be more prudent to leave this to the next government."

From: http://news.google.com/news/url?fd=R&sa=T&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bworldonline.com%2Fmain%2Fcontent.php%3Fid%3D12004&usg=AFQjCNGIFoGL8uVinlevWiB8Bw6Tcr5bQg

Neri Dropped from Executive Search

From Manila Standard Today

The Philippine Stock Exchange may have to drop Social Security System administrator Romulo Neri from the list of people being considered as its next president and chief executive after the Ombudsman affirmed the corruption charges against him in the National Broadband Network scandal.

Neri, who holds a degree in business administration from the University of the Philippines, was named the state pension fund's administrator in June 2008, replacing Corazon dela Paz.

Before joining the government, Neri was an associate professor at the Asian Institute of Management and corporate planning and finance officer of several private companies, such as the Canlubang Sugar Estate, Canlubang Pulp and Manufacturing Corp., C-J Yulo and Sons, Philippine National Oil Company, Luzon Stevedoring Corp., and Mobil Oil Philippines.

His first government position was director of the Congressional Planning and Budget Office of the House of Representatives in 1990.

President Gloria Arroyo appointed him Budget Department secretary in 2005, then director general of the National Economic and Development Authority, and later chief of the Commission on Higher Education.

From: http://ping.fm/RVuKe

UP Maroons take on Archers

From inquirer.net

A game pitting season host De La Salle University and the University of the Philippines will kick off the men's basketball action when the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) unfolds on July 10 at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

The rookie-laden La Salle Green Archers, who missed out on the Final Four for the first time last year, are also slated to take on fierce rival and back-to-back champions Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles earlier in the season this time.

From: http://ping.fm/gUI41

UP Los Banos: Reinventing Libraries

From Manila Bulletin

The Agricultural Librarians Association of the Philippines (ALAP) is holding its 38th General Assembly and Seminar on Reinventing Libraries and Librarians today at the College of Engineering and Agro Industrial Technology (CEAT) Library, University of the Philippines in Los Banos (UPLB), Laguna. Founded on June 2, 1972, ALAP consists of librarians, information specialists, and other specialists working in agricultural institutions.

Emerging technologies have made it imperative for librarians to reinvent themselves to provide new library services to fully satisfy millennium clients... and for libraries to continually evolve under their supervision.

The three-day Seminar on Reinventing Libraries and Librarians seeks to update librarians on current issues affecting them and their profession, particularly with regard to education, emerging technologies, professional entrepreneurship, promotion of libraries, and personnel/personal management.

From: http://ping.fm/9BCC3

UP Economist said only TV benefitted from Polls, not the People

From Business Mirror

CONTRARY to common belief, the election spending involved in propping up the country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 7.3 percent in the first quarter did not benefit the poor but only the broadcast media, according to an economist from the University of the Philippines (UP).

In a statement, UP economist and former Budget secretary Dr. Benjamin Diokno said without election spending, the economy would have only grown 3.6 percent. Diokno said the main reasons for the 7.3-percent growth in GDP were election spending and low base effects.

However, Diokno said the increase in election spending only benefited the broadcast media, particularly the two major networks.

The economy appears to have grown largely because of election-related spending and low base effects. I estimate that if election-related spending was netted out, [the] first-quarter GDP growth would be in the neighborhood of 3.6 percent, Diokno said.

Broadcast media was [the] fastest-growing activity; but it benefited only the two major networks, he added.

Diokno explained that the activity in broadcast media surged to a staggering 31.4 percent from 1.3 percent during the same quarter last year.

Diokno added that other forms of election spending were spent on one-time expenses like waste collection/disposal, which rose by 9.5 percent. This increase, he said, was mainly due to the preparations like cleaning up clutter before the start of the campaign period.

He added that the increase in rental business for offices was also due to the elections, since candidates rented out office spaces that would serve as their headquarters. Rental business for offices grew by 10.9 percent in the first quarter.

Diokno added that while it was true that government construction grew by 8.2 percent, this was largely because the remaining projects announced in the State-of-the-Nation Address of Mrs. Arroyo were fast-tracked.

Government construction continues to be strong. National and local politicians like to implement projects a few months before the start of the campaign season. The memory of Filipinos is supposed to be rather short, Diokno said.

From: http://ping.fm/kiRBu