Do graphs have to start from zero origin? NO, read why.

Dear children of God,

Finally, I found the graph I was referring to in class. The graph above was made by a scientist from NASA for the purpose of illustrating the amount of carbon dioxide over passing of time until today. As you can see it does not start from zero either along x or y axis. If one has to stick to mathematical rule of starting from zero when making graphs then can you just imagine how much space would be wasted and how small the lines would be? That is simply for the y-axis. If the value of x-axis in years should start from zero then we cannot make an interpretation on how carbon dioxide increases or decreases over time. Note that the rightmost end of the x-axis (lower right corner) ends with zero.

Graphing is a math skill yet Math has its way of doing things contrary to science. In science, we have to find meaning on what we do. We cannot just blindly follow the rules and end up with a nonsense graph. That is why there is so much more to the number and we have to assign meaning to it. I have nothing against Math but the discipline ends with a number. Science strives to continue from the calculation of the number by attaching meaning to it.

siraris

Why one should use a primary article and how to acquire primary article from a secondary/tertiary source?

Dear children of God,

Whenever you are asked to submit a report or assignment you would always check for Google for the answer. However Google would usually provide Wikipedia as the first entry of the result. You know that Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia and it is under the tertiary source of information. However, at the end of Wikipedia article, you will find the list of references and it is there where you can check the primary sources of information to write the article.

But how important is the use of primary article in writing? For the past few days, we were confronted with hearsay on the status of August 20 if it will be a holiday or not. Some would claim it is a holiday while others would say that it is not. When the news (click here) came out in Yahoo news that there will be no class on August 20 some might take it as true. Most of us would just embrace that the information is true because of the reputation of the company which delivered the news. But I would like to warn you to be critical. You need to read article completely and check for yourself the basis from which the claim of a holiday was made. Since only a proclamation from president can make it official then you can verify it at Philippines Official Gazette for you to ascertain the veracity of the news (click here).

If I were to post only the news article then my colleagues would question if indeed there was proclamation made by the president. Rather than waste time posting the news article one can simply post the proclamation directly from the source. If we simply read critically tertiary articles are our window to how and where to get primary articles.

siraris

How to spot Perseid meteor shower later?

Dear children of God,

Few hours from now we will again observe the peak of Perseid meteor shower. However, most Filipinos won't be able to observe it or will just get frustrated because they won't be able to focus their attention to the spot where the radiant emanates. In most cases, they would dismiss this annual phenomenon as a futile attempt of seeing the event.

So, how will you direct a typical Filipino to spot the Perseid meteor shower?

First, face the northern part of the sky.

Second, ask them if they are familiar of Pleiades star cluster. For sure, they would shy away from you. But ask them if they are familiar of the rosary and most likely they would reply with a big yes. I encircled the Rosary star cluster in the figure above which I print screen from Stellarium application. In astronomy it is Pleiades star cluster but for us this is a mere asterism fondly referred by Filipinos as rosary.

Third, direct your attention just below the asterism and you will find the Perseus constellation. Recall that meteor showers are named after where the radiant emanates. Since it is within the field of Perseus constellation therefore it shall take the genitive form so from Perseus it becomes Perseid.

Fourth, verify if it is indeed Perseus. Check for the "W" or "M" pattern just below in the left side of the star pattern. In the right is an irregular  hexagonal pattern and in the left is a triangle pattern.

Lastly, take note that at 5:34am this upcoming morning you will observe the peak of the meteor shower. It means that in previous days and after the peak you can still observe the meteor shower but it would only provide a sporadic occurrences.

Clear skies,

siraris

What if you realize science is not really your inkling and you don't want to pursue a science course in college?

Dear children of God,

The question, "What if  you realize science is not really your inkling and you don't want to pursue a science course in college?" has been raised to me several times. My usual reply is, "By all means, follow your dream and go on with what you’d like to take in College.” Of course I could not impose to you the kind of work and job eventually you would like to have for the next four decades or even the rest of your life. As your teacher, I want you to be happy and everything will just follow as long as you love what you are doing.

Of course it is a cliché. It is a standard reply you will hear from me. If you were a Grade 7 scholar I would understand but not when you are already a senior. It hurts to think that you realize to take a non-science course after four years of an intensive science curriculum. How is that as a slap on my face? Yes, I agree you have the right to be happy, that you were just forced by parents, you were enticed by the freebies, or you happen to be a minor during the signing of contract. It hurts to think that you cannot see the science connection in what you ponder. It is not about the course.

Well, if you are already decided to take a non-science course, please remind yourself that THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A NON-SCIENCE COURSE. If you truly think that science is not your inkling, it will still haunt you for the rest of your life. Science is what we breathe and if you intend to live on this planet you should know how science works.

Alright, I give in. But please consider the following courses:
1. Advertising. Lately, I noticed that there are so many ads that are pathetic. Let me start with Kris Aquino’s shampoo commercial. Did you notice the use of petri dish to catch the falling hair? Why catch a falling hair with a petri dish? To make it look scientific? Second, how about the milk commercial showing a kid producing sound with the use of wine glass? It would be impossible to do that unless the wine glass is stuck to the table or you hold the glass firmly. It clearly shows the lack of background in science. Whoever are behind the advertisement decided or bothered not to ask science enthusiasts. When I am home, Nanay reminds me to shut up my mouth while watching television commercials but it simply drives me crazy how people can fool us with lousy ad concepts.  They even have the nerve to exploit science to make us believe them. It is sad how we buy these ideas and I won’t talk about most of our shows in TV.
The following link is an advertisement commissioned by the car company to a group of engineers. Guess what is their concept? Check this out! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ve4M4UsJQo


2. Music. The music we learn today is under the field of acoustics. Mind you, it involves a lot of Physics. The speakers are built by understanding principles of wave production and propagation. Your knowledge of science may bring you to NASA and eventually decode how the Universe works. Apparently NASA scientists have taken one step in the direction of finding out by converting gamma rays into a musical score. We need musically-inclined people not simply to entertain us but to provide clues why things are and stifled sounds that are waiting to be uncovered.
http://prote.in/feed/2012/06/sounds-of-the-universe

3. Art. This is the usual field you go into in the event you “lose interest” in science. You can still draw if your passion is into drawing. Why don’t you consider a career as scientific illustrator? Never met one then you better read this article http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/symbiartic/2011/11/30/carol-abraczinskas-interview/. I guess Sir Calambro should give you a basic course on this. If you have a mind of a scientist and a skill of an artist then I would probably be seeing your work in journals or even in high profile criminal hunting.

4. Writer. Why don’t you check articles in PDI and find out for yourself why scientific names are not italicized? Well, we cannot blame them when they are not aware how particular we are in the observance of the protocols. I can let this pass. However, check for their news articles on weather updates. Have you noticed that it is the shortest? They seem to be grasping for words to present the weather news. Well, it is another story when it comes to news on weather toll.
You can still write and be a journalist or novelist. We just need more people who are gifted in science to explain and engage people to science.
You can write science or talk about science. TV Patrol has Kuya Kim reporting while 24 Oras has Mang Tani Cruz yet Kuya Kim seems to be more knowledgeable than Mang Tani. How ironic because of how they express themselves in TV.

5. Law. Your career would be better if you have a good background in science. It is an advantage when you have a background in Chemistry or even better in Physics. Cases are fought in the court with presentation of evidences. You need to examine the hows and the whys. You need to present facts and counter by presenting figures and data. It used to be rhetoric in early days but nowadays you need to understand DNA, forensic science, samplings, ballistics and science-based evidence.

6. Leader/Politician. So much of the issues that will confront you involve your knowledge of science. For instance, you need to deal with climate change, terrorism, nuclear weapon, energy production, health epidemic and population. People around you can always advise what is best but at the very end you still have to think and decide for yourself. When we don’t have leaders whose science foundation is exemplary then we are just dreaming of becoming a developed country. A develop country should churn out more scientists or if not then science-oriented work force. Don't you notice how messed up a place is when it is run without hard facts and data? All we have are just hit-and-miss approach in programs and policies. In a world where tools are handy we still fail to do a research and science based actions.

Remember, it is easy for a science student to shift from a science course to “non-science” but it is hard and seldom happens for anyone to go from non-science course to science. If you think you have a non-science course which has nothing to do with science then leave a comment and I would love to explain the relationship of science to your chosen course.

Magphysics ka na kasi,

siraris

NOTE: My view does not reflect that of the school's position but mine alone.