MANILA, Philippines—It’s still a long way away from the Philippines’ first Nobel Prize, but for these whiz kids, it may well be a good first baby step.

Six students from Philippine Science High School (PSHS) won six medals at a prestigious science tournament in South Korea early this month, proving that Filipinos can go toe-to-toe with the best in Physics, Chemistry and Biology.

The seniors and juniors from the state-run PSHS brought home three silver and three bronze medals from the 5th International Junior Science Olympiad (IJSO) in Changwon City on Dec. 6-15.

First started in 2004, the Olympiad drew some 250 science wizards aged 15 or younger from more than 40 countries.

“I felt so proud. We never expected to do so well considering that we had less than a month to prepare,” said Benjamin Francis Rodriguez Jr., a junior who had the highest marks among the Philippine delegates.

“It just goes to show that Filipinos can compete with other countries” in the natural sciences, Rodriguez told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Jan Tristram Acuña and William Tan, both seniors, also won silver medals, while the bronze medalists were Guia Publico, Cara Evangelista and Ralph Ugalino.

Acuña said the examination proper had three parts: A 30-item multiple choice, a theoretical exam with three questions, one each for physics, chemistry and biology, and group experiment on each subject.

“Before the exam, we were always in a huddle, reviewing and asking each other questions that may be asked in the exam,” he said.

“On the whole, the Asians, including us, were more reserved and silent. The Europeans were the party people types,” Acuña said.

Cramming sessions

He said the group felt a bit disadvantaged upon learning that some of the other nationals, especially the Taiwanese, spent several months preparing, compared to their own “cramming” sessions.

“We didn’t have much time to prepare for the contest due to school activities and lessons but while we were there we studied every night before the contest proper,” Tan said.

He said winning silver was “quite unexpected.”

Helen Caintic, the PSHS executive director who accompanied the students, said: “This is a proud moment for all Filipinos. Once again, we have shown what Filipinos are made of.”

Acuña said winning a silver medal meant that a competitor fell within the top 20 percent of the contestant pool and a bronze within the top 30 percent. A gold medalist, on the other hand, was among the top 10 percent.

6 points away from gold

Only Korea and Taiwan won gold medals for each of their six delegates, according to a Taiwanese news website. Thailand, like the Philippines, won six medals—two golds and four silvers, a Thai news website reported.

Acuña said the Philippines “almost got a gold,” with Rodriguez and him just six points away from the cutoff. He added that Rodriguez was ahead of him by 0.5 point.

He said the test questions tended to favor the host countries, which typically patterned the exam according to their own curriculums.

“It appeared that the questionnaire, as in previous competitions, was biased in favor of the hosting countries,” Acuña said.

For instance, Indonesia won top honors in the two years it hosted the event, as did Taiwan and Korea.

According to the IJSO website, the Philippines won only two silvers and a bronze in the previous Olympiad.

Rodriguez said this year’s competition made him realize that Filipinos can compete with other nationals in science and mathematics despite the dismal state of education here.

“It can really be done,” said the 15-year-old, who wants to take up medicine at the University of the Philippines when he graduates next year.

Doing well in competitions

Tan said the Philippines had actually been doing well in scholastic competitions.

“Among science high schools, the curriculum in the Philippines is advanced compared to other countries, while among ordinary schools, we are not lagging behind other countries in terms of what they are studying,” he said.

Tan said he drew this conclusion after the competition proper. “The other delegates asked us how we dealt with the exam. Through that we were able to see what they knew and what they didn’t,” he said.

But Acuña thought differently. “With other developing nations, we can compete. But with advanced countries like China, I think we’re one or two years behind.”

Acuña and Tan said they wanted to pursue a degree in physics from the University of the Philippines. Both said they would not mind the less than lucrative jobs that might await them when they finished school.

“Physics is really my passion … In my spare time, I try to solve complicated physics problems,” Acuña said. “My friends find it weird.”

Meager funding

But he said most other Filipino students wanting to specialize in the natural sciences lacked incentive to do so because of little government support and meager funding.

Rodriguez said there were actually many good Filipino scientists, but excellent science research required proper facilities, like laboratories.

Which begged the question: Is a Filipino winning a Nobel Prize for medicine, physics or chemistry an impossible dream at this point?

Acuña replied: “It’s not impossible but it’s going to be very tough … We still have a long way to go before we can catch up with the developed countries.”

Added Tan: “I’m not saying it’s impossible to win a Nobel Prize with the way things are going, but it is going to be difficult.”

But Rodriguez was far more optimistic: “I really think we can make it. All it’s going to take is support from government and a lot of hard work.” Inquirer.net

Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines—The Miele Guide was recently launched at the Grand Hyatt in Singapore, over an exquisite dinner prepared by three of Asia’s top chefs (whose restaurants made it to the Guide’s Top Ten list). The 350 guests comprised Asia’s most respected restaurateurs and chefs, plus some food writers.

The red book was creatively and literally served to each of the guests on a silver platter. The best part for us: Many Filipino restaurants were included in the list.

Here are Asia’s Top Ten Restaurants:

1. Iggy’s in Singapore
2. L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon in Hong Kong
3. Les Amis in Singapore
4. Gunther’s in Singapore
5. Mozaic in Indonesia
6. Robuchon a Galera in Macau
7. Garibaldi in Singapore
8. Yung Kee in Hong Kong
9. Hutong in Hong Kong
10. Antonio’s Fine Dining in Tagaytay, Philippines

The Filipino restaurants that made it are: Margarita Fores’ Pepato in Greenbelt, Jessie Sincioco’s Le Soufflé in Rockwell, Ariel Manuel’s Lolo Dad’s in Manila, Rolando Laudico’s Bistro Filipino at the Fort and La Cocina de Tita Moning near Malacañang.

Restaurants from hotels such as Prince Albert at the Intercon; Heat and Shang Palace in Shangri-La, Makati; and The Fireplace and Li Li at the Hyatt in Malate, were also included.

There was also a good showing of mall restaurants: from Greenbelt are Sugi, People’s Palace, M Cafe, Via Mare, Italiannis and The Chateau Group’s Sentro 1771 and Chateau 1771; from Serendra there’s Larry Cruz’ Abe; and at the Podium, Casa Armas.

ISCAHM’s Aubergine at the Fort also made it, as well as Old Swiss, near the Manila Pen. Pasay Road favorites El Cirkulo and Tsukiji were also on the list; as well as Salcedo Village’s favorites, Elbert’s Steak Room and Apartment 1B. Three restaurants from Tagaytay (or near Tagaytay) were also included: Sonya’s Garden, Kanin Club and Antonio’s Fine Dining.

Disappointed

How did the Miele Guide come about?

A few years ago, some of Asia’s food writers, chefs and restaurateurs were tapped, with food writers, chefs and restaurateurs around the globe, to vote on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

Two of the restaurant authorities tapped were husband and wife photographer, writer and editor tandem Aun Koh and Tan Su-Lyn of Singapore. When the results came out, they were disappointed to see that only five restaurants from Asia made it to the World’s 100 Best (not even the Top 50).

In his blog, chubbyhubby.net, Aun mused, “In addition to profiling the world’s top 50, Restaurant magazine also lists the next 50 (i.e. those ranked between 51-100). This year, only 5 restaurants in Asia made it to the top 100; all are ranked in the bottom half of the list. Bukhara, in India, at #55, continues to hold its place as Asia’s top-ranked restaurant. Iggy’s, in Singapore, is in second place, at #77.

“The next three Asian restaurants are all situated in Hong Kong. Pierre Gagnaire, Robuchon a Galera (technically in Macau) and Zuma are ranked at #88, #98, and #99 respectively… Each year, when these results are announced, I have the same reaction. While it is always cool to scan the top 10 or 20 restaurants and pat myself on the back for having visited several of them, the thing that irks me is the question, ‘Surely, Asia has more than just five world class restaurants?’”

In 2006, Chubbyhubby came up with his own survey of Asia’s best restaurants based solely on online voting through the chubbyhubby blog. Incidentally, the first comment on the post that revealed the results said, “Finally, indeed… what I would do for a luxe-style travel and pocket guide edition of this!”

Thus, the Miele Guide was born.

Controversial

Aun Koh said at the dinner, “We expect that this list will be controversial… we expect people to dispute the rankings and to criticize us. But the more people talk about our Top 20, the better. The overarching goal of The Miele Guide is to help the restaurant industry in Asia grow.”

Controversial or not, what we should note here is that the turnout from the Philippines was great. The international press especially took note of Antonio’s as they were surprised that a Filipino restaurant made the Top Ten.

Thanks in great part to our wonderful food blogging community (and to the fact that we Filipinos just really love food and dining out), a good number of Filipino restaurants made it to the Miele Guide.

Hopefully, with our best chefs at the helm of this voyage, we can become a destination not only for our beaches, but also for our food!

GMA News

MANILA, Philippines – A total of 39 medals, two of them gold, were garnered by the Philippine delegates during the recently concluded 2008 International Mathematics Competition (IMC) in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

In a statement, Mathematics Trainers Guild-Philippines head of delegation and President Dr. Simon Chua said Filipino students hauled two gold medals, 15 silvers and 22 bronze medals.

“Our contestants rose above the challenge and proved that they can compete with other students from other countries. We at the Mathematics Trainers Guild Philippines are very happy with their outstanding performance,” Dr. Chua said.

The Philippine delegation arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Friday night.

Ma. Czarina Angela Lao from St. Jude Catholic School, who was the lone gold medalist from the country in the elementary individual competition, won the first gold medal for the Philippines.

The other gold medal was won by Philippine Team A composed of Geraldine Baniqued of St. Paul College Pasig, Carmela Antoinette Lao of St. Jude Catholic School, Aileen Giselle Chua of Grace Christian High School and Jillian Kristel Sy of Chiang Kai Shek College.

They are also the same team that won 14 gold medals during last year’s competition in Hong Kong, the statement said.

Thailand Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and Thailand Education Minister Srimuang Charoensiri opened the math competition on October 26, underscoring the importance of the contest, which drew 25 countries including math powerhouse China.

Philippine Team A in the elementary bagged a silver medal in the team competition. They are Austin Edrich Chua, Ma. Czarina Angela Lao, John Thomas Chuatak, all of St. Jude Catholic School and Aldrich Aldwin Mayoralgo of Xavier School. Philippine Teams E and A bagged bronze medals in the group category.

The silver medalists from the Philippines in the elementary individual contest are Dielle Tio of St. Stephen’s High School, Hubert Yao of Iloilo Central Commercial High School, Sean Timothy Cheng of Grace Christian High School, and Aldrich Aldwin Mayoralgo of Xavier School.

In the secondary division, the individual silver medalists are Carlo Francisco Adajar of PAREF Southridge in Alabang, Vance Eldric Go of St. Jude Catholic School, Ricci Ryan Rojo of Zamboanga Chong Hua High School, Geraldine Baniqued of St. Paul College Pasig, John Russell Virata of Gideon Academy and Jillian Kristel Sy of Chiang Kai Shek College.

The bronze medalists in the individual contest in the IMC are:

* Philip Lizarda of San Beda College, Alabang;

* Austin Edrich Chua of St. Jude Catholic School;

* Andrew Joelle Caguntas of Bangkal Elementary School;

* Jakov Ivan Dumbrique of St. Paul College, Ilocos Sur;

* Martin Lewis Koa of St. Jude Catholic School;

* Richard Milante of Legazpi Hope Christian School;

* Jason Allan Tan of Jubilee Christian Academy;

* Arnold Lindros Lau of Xavier School;

* Mary Kryslette Bunyi of San Beda College Alabang;

* Regina Paz Onglao of St. Paul College Pasig;

* Carmela Antoinette Lao of St. Jude Catholic School;

* Evan Niccolo Lao of Xavier School;

* Alvin Uy Lim of Quezon City Science High School;

* Ervin Fredrick Dy of Chiang Kai Shek College;

* Elvis Jeremy Ayroso of Philippine Science High School;

* Arielle Elise Chua of St. Jude Catholic School;

* Aileen Giselle Chua of Grace Christian High School;

* Charles Rainier Belga of Taguig Science High School;

* Joel Edward Cardinal of Makati Science High School;

* Sterling Alvin Tiu of St. Stephen’s High School;

* John Thomas Chuatak of St. Jude Catholic School;

* Aileen Jennifer Cu of UNO High School;

* Joelle Sophia Pena of Saint Pedro Poveda College; and

* Sarah Jane Cua of Pangasinan Universal Institute

Besides the Philippines, other countries that participated in the contest are Australia, China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Bulgaria, Thailand, Canada, Laos, Malaysia, The Netherlands, Nigeria, Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, India, Germany, Iran, Rwanda, South Africa, and Cyprus.

The Philippines placed fourth among 25 countries with math powerhouse China topping the contest with 51 medals followed by host Thailand with 49 and Indonesia, 41. Trailing the Philippines are Taiwan, 37; Bulgaria, 25; Hong Kong, 23; Singapore, 16; Malaysia, 10; and South Korea, 10.

The trainers and coaches of the students are Dr. Eduardo Dela Cruz, dean of the School of Education and Normal of Arellano University; Sid Aguilar, supervisor of DepEd Taguig City; Priscilla De Sagun, assistant schools division superintendent of Makati; Levita Portugal of the Science Education Institute of the Department of Science and Technology; Roberto Degolacion, Manuel Kotah, Emmanuel Pena, Jonathan Glorial, all team and deputy team leaders.

~ WikiNoypi ~

Proud to be Pinoy!

Proud to be Noypi

GMA News

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Dragonboat team made a successful return with a 16-medal haul in the recently concluded Asian Championship in Penang, Malaysia.

Team Philippines, sent by the Philippine Dragonboat Federation (PBDF) and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission and the Department of Tourism, bagged two gold, eight silver and four bronze medals in the week-long tournament held at the Teluk Bahang Dam.

The national rowers settled for second place overall behind champion Indonesia, which pooled a total of 11 gold and four silver medals in 15 disputed events. A total of 13 countries competed in the five-day event.

The Philippines topped the women’s small boat 500-meter with the lady rowers posting a winning time of two minutes and 36.23 seconds to beat China (2:38.26) and Indonesia (2:38.58).

The Nationals then added the mixed standard boat 200-meter gold later in the day after clocking in at 43.65 defeating Indonesia (44.94) and China (45.88).

China matched the Philippines two gold medal haul but settled for third having less silver and bronze with two and three respectively.

The last time the national rowers competed in an Asian tilt was in 2004 held in China with only the men’s team seeing action and bringing home two gold and a silver.

Team Philippines failed to compete in the 2006 edition in Macau due to luck of funds.

After the Penang event, the rowers competed in the 339th Anniversary of Padand Beloved City in Indonesia where the nationals proved above par against the provincial champion teams and swept all the five gold medals at stake in the men’s 10 men and 20m men and women’s 10 women and 20-women 800 meter races and the mixed race.

“It was a good exposure for our rowers. We will use the good results of our campaign to also justify inclusion of our new members to the national team,” said PDBF technical director Nestor Ilagan who along with the rowers arrived only last August 14.