MikeLigalig.com

Hmm, I like to correct my students when they're still talking.

It can be a problem, but I get so excited when lecturing

Quote from: asianfairy on April 23, 2008, 04:19:27 PM
My dear Bran,

I smile everytime you write my name because until now you still couldnt spell my name correctly:-))

he..he.. Miss you Dong Bran.

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 23, 2008, 04:13:57 PM
This is why I am hesitant in using YM. There are too many hackers.

If you guys want to talk, I suggest you download AIM or MSN messenger, which is safer.

Ms. Aneliah, Thank you for the update.

haha, my sincere apologies, Ms. A

Bitaw, long time since we talked. Kummusta naman ka dinha sa Sweden, Ms. A?
Regards lang ko sa imung pamilya, ha?

Long Live the Valenciano!

Bahala pood na ang PETA.

If they come protesting me for killing over-sized pigeons, then I'll just tell them that I'm a man. A natural predator. Hear me roar! lol

If they try to attack me then, I'll just bb-gun them as well. hahaha

I'll hide in the woods and go guerrilla warfare on them.

Mike, is there anyway we can find out if there are hackers in our site?

I grow very weary now.

This is why I am hesitant in using YM. There are too many hackers.

If you guys want to talk, I suggest you download AIM or MSN messenger, which is safer.

Ms. Aneliah, Thank you for the update.

Quote from: Macky Ferniz on April 23, 2008, 02:53:06 PM
Interesting desease. I am still confused what is the difference between a desease and abnormality. If ALS is a genetic abnormality, then it is not a desease and can not be treated. Abnormality in a gene is something natural with no treatment, but we can only re-divert its fate to make the person better. Or maybe to eliminate the problem genes through breeding techniques so this can not be passed to the next generation. I remembered one of my neighbors said that she will choose the bride of his son because they have some sort of blood abnormalities. Incase her son chooses the wrong pair, her grandson will surely suffer from a rare form of anemia.

Also, I have seen on TV a documentary about a tribe with defective gene which causes thier feet to branch out, thus they are called the "ostrich feet tribe". A defective gene was identified and it was nutralized through selective breeding. So for some period of time, they can not choose their true love.

How is Lou Gehrig's disease compared to Alzheimers desease. Can ALS be treated with the controversial stem cell? By the way, there is now new and easy way to collect stem cell from the placenta instead of the aborted fetus which became controversial during George Bush time.

How about gene therapy, I am also curious, it says it can make you young or change your race from asian to caucasian, is it true?

Mr. Ferniz, you raise scintillating questions.

A)Disease in its basic sense is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions, which comes with physical symptoms that leads to its identification and thus possible modes of treatment are prescribed by the physician and/or a surgical procedure is implemented to alleviate the certain condition.

Genetic abnormality is a result of gene-sequential mutanogensis, meaning that there was an error in the protein synthesis, either it be alteration in the production of proteins in the ribosome, some kind of malfunction of the RNA Polymerase I, II, III to bind to the open promoter complex thus leads to a ceasure of helicasization, kinasization. When this occurs, there is no translation of the gene, there is no elongation of the gene, and if there is no translation or elongation, then there is no transcription. We have abortive transcription. If we have abortive transcription, then certain genetic sequences that are responsible for proper formation of tissue types (endothelium, cardiac, smooth muscle, rough muscle, neural, genital, osteolithic (bone tissue), occipital (eye) etc) will not manifest. With these tissue-specific gene sequences inhibited, then as a result diseases and physical degeneracy will manifest outright.

Every disease, physical and mental degeneracy is a result of genetic failure. In example, for those who suffer Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's disease is a result of neural degeneracy in which our neural synapse is unable to transmit information into the cortical apex of the brain and allow retrieval. As a result of this, we have inability to remember, inability to integrate the present to the past. Two abnormal structures called plaques and tangles are prime suspects in damaging and killing nerve cells. Plaques build up between nerve cells. They contain deposits of a protein fragment called beta-amyloid. Tangles form inside dying cells. Though most people develop some plaques and tangles as they age, those with Alzheimer’s tend to develop far more. The plaques and tangles tend to form in a predictable pattern, beginning in areas important in learning and memory and then spreading to other regions.

Why does Alzheimer's manifest in the elderly? It is because of genetic degeneracy. As we age, the wear and tear of genetic transcription damages the RNA Polymerase I, II, III, and as we age site-specific mutanogenisis is common due to the protein inhibition, weakness of protein folding. This simple error translates into a gigantic error in the visceral-organismal level. Proper gene sequences that are responsible for creating the axon and the myelin sheath (which is the protein coating that covers the axon--allowing neural messages to be sent down and up the neural interface) will be damaged, and or unable to repair itself. Another genetic mutanogenisis is that the wrong TAFII (Tata promoter-associated factor) will bind to the wrong protein activator, or a lead to the truncation of a particular DNA plasmid nucleosome. When this happens, we have the wrong sequences binding, and mutation is manifest over 10 million fold. Thus we have the formation of plagues and tangles. Thus Alzheimer's is present. It is mostly an age-specific neural degeneracy (abnormality/disease) in that it is a result of genetic impudence--a result of age.

Diseases, therefore, manifests as a result of genetic mutanogensis. Every disease known to man is a result of genetic mutanogensis. Diabetes is a disease in the American Medical Association, but we all known that it is a result of the body's inability to produce Insulin, which is regulated by the Insulin gene. What happens is that there is a repressor that inhibits the insulin gene from expressing itself in the open promoter complex. When this happens, there is no elongation, no translation, no transcription. Thus, no insulin gene being expressed in the DNA chromatin, and DNA structure. Therefore we have the body's inability to produce Insulin, therefore we have diabetes.
Chemical therapy is present in that we have diabetic medical that provides insulin to the body.

Every disease is genetically-linked. The quicker we locate the peroxidase sequence-specific areas of a disease, the faster we can find a way to develop drugs and models that can over-express that gene or create an anti-repressor that can nullify the repression in mutanogenesis.

B)Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis can be properly treated by chemical therapy. As we speak, there are scientists researching in the creation of repressors that can nullify the  ability of the mutanogensis that resulted in the production of Alsin. And since the Alsin gene is responsible for the production of ALS2, its inhibition and inability to express itself in the DNA chromatid structure of the DNA strand, will allow the body's ability to developing properly. However, if there is no inhibition of the Alsin gene, then ALS2 will be transcribed and thus we have manifestation of Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

The Alsin gene, if mutated, will allow this. There are studies, as we speak, that is indentifying the cause of this mutation of the Alsin gene.

Unfortunately, Mr. Ferniz, drug formation and creation takes years. Research is a conservative process that undergoes countless trials (animals) before making it into human trials. And even if there is a positive confidence in treatment, the drug companies decide in its marketing ability. Cost, is always a factor.

Right now, the only mode of treatment are pain killers, bed side care and tertiary prescriptions that targets bacterial activity in ALS patients (who tend to be more immunosuppressed than non-ALS patients).

Every mode of disease is understood in pure sample. Every treatment created by man for diseases has been a product of stem cell harvesting. The reason for this, Mr. Ferniz, is that stem cells are non-specific cells. Thereby it can develop into any tissue, if placed in that area. If we take a stem cell and place it on top of a damaged cardiac tissue, the stem cell (because of God's brilliance) will actually mold itself and transform itself into a cardiac muscle cell and begin to replicate. They will then repair the damaged heart tissue. If stem cell is placed near a damaged neural tissue, the stem cell will mold itself and transform itself into a precious neural tissue (neural tissue does not replicate btw, that is why any damage on neural tissue is irreversible without stem cell intervention/utilization) and repair itself. Stem cells are uni-specific. They will become whatever their surroundings are.

This is the reason why they are so imperative to medical and scientific research. Stem cells are pure and unadulterated. Yes, we can take stem cell samples from fetuses, however one needs to understand that if we do that there is a high risk of killing the fetus since the stem cells in the fetus are molding itself into either neural tissue, cardiac tissue, osteolithic tissue (bone), occipital tissue (eye), occular tissue (ear), etc. That is why no parent of mother is willing to allow that.

C)Caucasians, Mongoloids and Negroids are all of the same genus: Homo sapiens sapiens. Any differences we have are primarily phenotypic and a result of evolution and of the climactic extremes the said races lived in. Skin tone differences are merely mutations in the endothelium in that there are overactive melnocytes, which are responsible for skin tone and color. Negroids lived in the central plain near the equalitorial range, hence they were bombarded with solar rays, to survive in such harsh and hot climates, they developed overactive melanocytes and thus are dark. Their hair is also kinky as an evolutionary change to repel heat. Caucasoids, who lived above the equalitorial range and were subjected to significantly less solar ray developed less melanocytes thus their skin tone are light. Their eye color differentiation is nothing more than genetic mutation and recessivity. The dominant human trait is brown eyes. This is seen in negroid and mongoloids. Mongoloids developed differently due to the harsh weather of the Pleistocene. Mongoloids came from the Siberian region, where snow was constant and sun irregular. That is why the eye fold of Mongoloids are prominent, the short stature is a result of lack of sun, lack of food in the Siberian region. Lack of calcium intake.

All races are inter-breedable; and thus all similar. Any differences we have are only phenotypic and slight genetic differences. Hypothetically, Mr. Ferniz, one can use gene therapy to change the phenotype of a fetus while developing.

In my opinion that is unnecessary and unnatural for the parents to do. I believe in gene richness. Any mixing of children due to the inter-racial marriage of both parents combines the genotypes. Thereby making the offspring genetically superior to both parents. As they have the best of both worlds.

I hope I answered your questions appropriately, sir.

Quote from: ms da binsi on April 23, 2008, 09:35:31 AM
Akong picture of the day, naa na jud nag kayaking ganiha! agiyY, mag sugod na sad ko ug bugsay ani!

O wow, na kayaking sila. The water looks so tempting.

haha, Ms. Orchids. Mg Adobo ta afterwards, ha?

Silat Dance at a Malay Wedding

Malay Wedding in Sabah, Malaysia

http://youtube.com/watch?v=aLuORceUwCA&feature=inbox

Sun set in Lake Erie, PA

(These pictures were taken by my friend Robert Kurzatkoawsky)

The Holy Father celebrates mass with the faithful.











100,000 faithful Roman Catholics attend Mass




Ordination of new priests




The Eucharist

Why frown? Just smile.

Ready, set, Bowl!

Maybe all three of us can go pigeon hunting. These birds are just rats with wings, they are so daring now that even when I walk by them they wont fly away!

haha, Ma'am Langgam, I'd give it to you--so long as you come hiking with me to the mountains. I promise you, the sight seeing is to die for.

Sunrise on top of the Allegheny Mountains, is almost like seeing God's face. Inexplainable beauty.


If pictures could only,

Ever gone mountain hiking, 'te Ging?

My hiking footwear


Ah, love it.

Quote from: B:) on April 22, 2008, 01:27:55 PM
I would like to share with you all, taken today at NJ Skyland Manor Botanical Gardens. After walking around and taking photos, Bob and I rested and played Scrabble under a beautiful Cherry trees. The weather was gordeous with a temperature of 71 deg.F had a great time. Kay I beat Bob in the game hehehe

The background is beautiful. Spring na jud sa Jersey. Sus , I miss home so much

Beth, I'm digging your look with the glasses.

Nice,

I found another poop stain on my SUV this afternoon. I'm seriously beginning to think about getting a bb-gun and go pigeon-hunting.

Hmp,

Spain Cap #4; $3.00

Its getting hot in here, woot woot

$3.05

Mikey, kuyawa pood ang sleeping position sa Philippine Airline Air-Hostess.

Open leg position man, lol. Di ba ma sakit na iyang likud?

You're too funny, dude.

Oddly enough, I've gotten accustomed to country songs. Thats what 4 years of country radio stations does to you.

Lami bitaw ang messages sa ilang songs. Daghaang relation to communidad, historidad, personalidad, and religión.

Please, do call me Bran.

Mao bitaw, smiling is good for you. Mind and body.

$2.65

This is a great read, in my honest opinion. Take it as you will.

By: Prof. Corydon Ireland
Harvard University Professor


Almost 14 billion years after the big bang, and 3.5 billion years since the first bacteria appeared on Earth, humans occupy just one branch of the tree of life.

We share an evolutionary limb with other eukaryotes, creatures whose membrane-bound cells carry genetic material. Our biological neighbors developed over time just as we did, by the evolutionary forces of mutation and natural selection. They include plants, fungi, and slime molds.

Despite that humble company, said Martin A. Nowak, Harvard professor of mathematics and biology, humans have a profound "claim to fame" â€" language. He called the acquisition of complex expression "the only truly interesting thing to happen in the last 600 million years," and the most important of all evolutionary events.

Language is as little as 100,000 years old, said Nowak in a March 8 lecture at Harvard Divinity School. But it is the evolutionary gift that accelerated cultural development, allowing us to become "hopeful, generous, and forgiving," he said. "We are as different from animals as any theologian wants [us] to be."

"Evolution and Christianity" was the ninth in a series of lectures sponsored by the Evolution and Theology of Cooperation Project at Harvard University. The three-year project, supported by the John Templeton Foundation, is directed by Nowak and Sarah Coakley, Edward Mallinckrodt Jr. Professor of Divinity.

In most of the 4 billion years of life on Earth, gene sequences were the only way information was encoded for evolutionary purposes, said Nowak, who is the director of Harvard's Program for Evolutionary Dynamics. Then along came human language, an ever-growing repertoire of signals that evolved from adapting ancient regions of the primate brain once only used to decipher sounds and control facial muscles.

Language propelled evolution out of a purely genetic realm, where it still operates, into the realm of culture, Nowak said. "There's a structural evolution of the brain going on, in a very, very fast timescale."

Language accelerates cooperation, an evolutionary feature that â€" starting with the first multicellular creatures â€" is present in robust organisms. "You move to higher levels in evolution whenever you manage to get cooperation," Nowak said.

Cooperation made even social organisms more robust, said Nowak, and allowed humans to rapidly evolve into "the world champions of cooperation."

In cultural terms, cooperation evolved first as kin selection, by which close relations have the highest social importance. Nowak quoted the late British evolutionary biologist J.B.S. Haldane: "I will jump into the river to save two brothers â€" or eight cousins."

Cooperation spread out to include groups, clusters of groups, and finally to humanity at large. "Indirect reciprocity," for instance, is the closest that evolutionary cooperation comes to what might be called altruism. It means helping others simply because you've observed others being helped. "That's really what people are always about," said Nowak.

In mathematical terms, he said, kinship selection and other mechanisms of the evolution of cooperation show a favorable cost-benefit analysis. In social terms, "the winning strategies have nice attributes," said Nowak. That's where being "hopeful, generous, and forgiving" comes in, he said, along with the evolution of religious feeling.

The evolution of cooperation lays out common ground for the scientist and the theologian.

"Religion, like language, is a human universal," said Nowak, and should not threaten scientists. In turn, he said, evolution should be "as little problem for religion as [the concept of] gravity."

But in the public arena, evolution is still an issue that keeps scientists and theologians apart, and creates undeniable tensions.

Religious opposition has coalesced into three camps. Creationists hold that the Book of Genesis is a scientific account of historical events on an Earth just 6,000 years old, and therefore evolution is impossible. That's "bad science," said Nowak. And perhaps bad theology, too, since it runs counter to the idea, adapted by Thomas Aquinas and other theologians, that God is best explained in terms of analogy.

Proponents of "intelligent design" hold that evolution is largely correct, but that some living structures are so complex they require the hand of God to create. "Weak science," said Nowak â€" and weak theology, since it posits a God "who is sometimes here and sometimes away."

Scientific atheism holds that science provides everything needed to understand the world. It's the strongest challenge to religion, said Nowak. "But to say science disproves God," he said, "goes beyond what science really says."

Science and religion provide analogous functions, said Nowak. They allay human suffering by offering guidance through a mysterious world, while simply occupying "different ecological niches in the brain," he said. "Science and religion are two essential components in the search for truth. Denying either is a barren approach."

By itself, intellectual (scientific) life is "inherently unstable," and is unable to answer the kind of questions religion can â€" like the meaning of life, said Nowak. "There are no equivalent questions in science."

To illustrate the instability of relying on science alone, he used the analogy of Mr. Spock on "Star Trek." He was "only a scientist â€" hyperrational," said Nowak. "And that's always funny."

Science and religion fulfill separate roles, like two languages always searching for the right word. "Even as a scientist, I am free to assume the best possible world," said Nowak, who is content with the parallel lexicons of the two realms. "That makes perfect sense."

http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2007/03.15/11-cooperation.html

Always smile, Bulak.

Smiling and laughter induces endorphins (natural pain killers). In fact, laughter prolongs life, on a general sense. Stress causes fatigue, if you smile more, stress is alleviated.

Keep on smiling, beautiful.

Insofar,

How is ALS treated?



No cure has yet been found for ALS. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first drug treatment for the diseaseâ€"riluzole (Rilutek). Riluzole is believed to reduce damage to motor neurons by decreasing the release of glutamate. Clinical trials with ALS patients showed that riluzole prolongs survival by several months, mainly in those with difficulty swallowing. The drug also extends the time before a patient needs ventilation support. Riluzole does not reverse the damage already done to motor neurons, and patients taking the drug must be monitored for liver damage and other possible side effects. However, this first disease-specific therapy offers hope that the progression of ALS may one day be slowed by new medications or combinations of drugs.

Other treatments for ALS are designed to relieve symptoms and improve the quality of life for patients. This supportive care is best provided by multidisciplinary teams of health care professionals such as physicians; pharmacists; physical, occupational, and speech therapists; nutritionists; social workers; and home care and hospice nurses. Working with patients and caregivers, these teams can design an individualized plan of medical and physical therapy and provide special equipment aimed at keeping patients as mobile and comfortable as possible.

Physicians can prescribe medications to help reduce fatigue, ease muscle cramps, control spasticity, and reduce excess saliva and phlegm. Drugs also are available to help patients with pain, depression, sleep disturbances, and constipation. Pharmacists can give advice on the proper use of medications and monitor a patient's prescriptions to avoid risks of drug interactions.

Physical therapy and special equipment can enhance patients' independence and safety throughout the course of ALS. Gentle, low-impact aerobic exercise such as walking, swimming, and stationary bicycling can strengthen unaffected muscles, improve cardiovascular health, and help patients fight fatigue and depression. Range of motion and stretching exercises can help prevent painful spasticity and shortening (contracture) of muscles. Physical therapists can recommend exercises that provide these benefits without overworking muscles. Occupational therapists can suggest devices such as ramps, braces, walkers, and wheelchairs that help patients conserve energy and remain mobile.

ALS patients who have difficulty speaking may benefit from working with a speech therapist. These health professionals can teach patients adaptive strategies such as techniques to help them speak louder and more clearly. As ALS progresses, speech therapists can help patients develop ways for responding to yes-or-no questions with their eyes or by other nonverbal means and can recommend aids such as speech synthesizers and computer-based communication systems. These methods and devices help patients communicate when they can no longer speak or produce vocal sounds.

Patients and caregivers can learn from speech therapists and nutritionists how to plan and prepare numerous small meals throughout the day that provide enough calories, fiber, and fluid and how to avoid foods that are difficult to swallow. Patients may begin using suction devices to remove excess fluids or saliva and prevent choking. When patients can no longer get enough nourishment from eating, doctors may advise inserting a feeding tube into the stomach. The use of a feeding tube also reduces the risk of choking and pneumonia that can result from inhaling liquids into the lungs. The tube is not painful and does not prevent patients from eating food orally if they wish.

When the muscles that assist in breathing weaken, use of nocturnal ventilatory assistance (intermittent positive pressure ventilation [IPPV] or bilevel positive airway pressure [BIPAP]) may be used to aid breathing during sleep. Such devices artificially inflate the patient's lungs from various external sources that are applied directly to the face or body. When muscles are no longer able to maintain oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, these devices may be used full-time.

Patients may eventually consider forms of mechanical ventilation (respirators) in which a machine inflates and deflates the lungs. To be effective, this may require a tube that passes from the nose or mouth to the windpipe (trachea) and for long-term use, an operation such as a tracheostomy, in which a plastic breathing tube is inserted directly in the patient's windpipe through an opening in the neck. Patients and their families should consider several factors when deciding whether and when to use one of these options. Ventilation devices differ in their effect on the patient's quality of life and in cost. Although ventilation support can ease problems with breathing and prolong survival, it does not affect the progression of ALS. Patients need to be fully informed about these considerations and the long-term effects of life without movement before they make decisions about ventilation support.

Social workers and home care and hospice nurses help patients, families, and caregivers with the medical, emotional, and financial challenges of coping with ALS, particularly during the final stages of the disease. Social workers provide support such as assistance in obtaining financial aid, arranging durable power of attorney, preparing a living will, and finding support groups for patients and caregivers. Respiratory therapists can help caregivers with tasks such as operating and maintaining respirators, and home care nurses are available not only to provide medical care but also to teach caregivers about giving tube feedings and moving patients to avoid painful skin problems and contractures. Home hospice nurses work in consultation with physicians to ensure proper medication, pain control, and other care affecting the quality of life of patients who wish to remain at home. The home hospice team can also counsel patients and caregivers about end-of-life issues.


What research has been done?



The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health, is the Federal Government's leading supporter of biomedical research on ALS. The goals of this research are to find the cause or causes of ALS, understand the mechanisms involved in the progression of the disease, and develop effective treatment.

Scientists are seeking to understand the mechanisms that trigger selective motor neurons to degenerate in ALS and to find effective approaches to halt the processes leading to cell death. This work includes studies in animals to identify the means by which SOD1 mutations lead to the destruction of neurons. The excessive accumulation of free radicals, which has been implicated in a number of neurodegenerative diseases including ALS, is also being closely studied. In addition, researchers are examining how the loss of neurotrophic factors may be involved in ALS. Neurotrophic factors are chemicals found in the brain and spinal cord that play a vital role in the development, specification, maintenance, and protection of neurons. Studying how these factors may be lost and how such a loss may contribute to motor neuron degeneration may lead to a greater understanding of ALS and the development of neuroprotective strategies. By exploring these and other possible factors, researchers hope to find the cause or causes of motor neuron degeneration in ALS and develop therapies to slow the progression of the disease.

Researchers are also conducting investigations to increase their understanding of the role of programmed cell death or apoptosis in ALS. In normal physiological processes, apoptosis acts as a means to rid the body of cells that are no longer needed by prompting the cells to commit "cell suicide." The critical balance between necessary cell death and the maintenance of essential cells is thought to be controlled by trophic factors. In addition to ALS, apoptosis is pervasive in other chronic neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease and is thought to be a major cause of the secondary brain damage seen after stroke and trauma. Discovering what triggers apoptosis may eventually lead to therapeutic interventions for ALS and other neurological diseases.

Scientists have not yet identified a reliable biological marker for ALSâ€"a biochemical abnormality shared by all patients with the disease. Once such a biomarker is discovered and tests are developed to detect the marker in patients, allowing early detection and diagnosis of ALS, physicians will have a valuable tool to help them follow the effects of new therapies and monitor disease progression.

NINDS-supported researchers are studying families with ALS who lack the SOD1 mutation to locate additional genes that cause the disease. Identification of additional ALS genes will allow genetic testing useful for diagnostic confirmation of ALS and prenatal screening for the disease. This work with familial ALS could lead to a greater understanding of sporadic ALS as well. Because familial ALS is virtually indistinguishable from sporadic ALS clinically, some researchers believe that familial ALS genes may also be involved in the manifestations of the more common sporadic form of ALS. Scientists also hope to identify genetic risk factors that predispose people to sporadic ALS.

Potential therapies for ALS are being investigated in animal models. Some of this work involves experimental treatments with normal SOD1 and other antioxidants. In addition, neurotrophic factors are being studied for their potential to protect motor neurons from pathological degeneration. Investigators are optimistic that these and other basic research studies will eventually lead to treatments for ALS.

Results of an NINDS-sponsored phase III randomized, placebo-controlled trial of the drug minocycline to treat ALS were reported in 2007. This study showed that people with ALS who received minocycline had a 25 percent greater rate of decline than those who received the placebo, according to the ALS functional rating scale (ALSFRS-R).

Source
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/amyotrophiclateralsclerosis/detail_amyotrophiclateralsclerosis.htm

Genetic explanation: In TAF level





Why and How does it differ? What happens to manifest it?


A:A common mutation of breakpoint cluster region (Bcr) involves fusion of the Bcr gene on chromosome 22 with the Abl proto-oncogene on chromosome 9. This results in the formation of Bcrâ€"Abl chimaeras that express various portions of N-terminal Bcr sequence fused to the Abl kinase domain: p185 is associated with 20â€"30% of incidences of acute lymphocytic leukaemia, p210 with 90% of incidences of chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML), and p230 with a subset of patients that have chronic neutrophilic leukaemia.

A chimeric protein in which a C-terminal fragment of leukaemia-associated Rho guanine nucleotide-exchange factor (LARG) is fused to the N-terminus of mixed lineage leukaemia (MLL) has been identified in acute myelogenous leukemia. Ala441Gly is a missense mutation in Tiam1 (T-cell lymphoma invasion and metastasis-1) in renal cell cancer cell lines and tumours. Fgd1 mutations result in faciogenital dysplasia (or Aarskogâ€"Scott) syndrome. Mutations include those that introduce premature stop codons and missense mutations that are scattered throughout the protein, with many involving deletion or mutation of the Dbl homology (DH) domain.

Truncation mutations within the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-2 (ALS2) gene product, Alsin, result in the premature truncation of Alsin and are thought to be causative for juvenile onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Indicated are the locations of breakpoints, missense mutations and sites of protein truncations that result from nucleotide insertions or deletions.


Please, feel free to ask questions.

Anatomical difference between normal tissue and ALS-affected tissue.
ALS tissue is manifested due to activation of Alsin gene in the chromosome 2 subtaxic sequence,
within the range of phosphodiester bond of the major groove, on the periphery of the nucleotidic sequences in the minor groove.


The Alsin gene--responsible for the translation and transcription of ALS2--which manifests into musculature degeneracy otherwise known as Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

Treating ALS is rather simple; formulate an Alsin gene-specific repressor that will inhibit translational ability of Alsin to proliferate ALS2.

I had a lecture in lab today (my last lecture for the semester  ). Throughout the course of the semester we instructed the students about concepts of peroxidase sequencing, RNA-ase and DNA-ase abilitities as well as genomic manipulation that can either induce and or inhibit/repress transcriptional factors from binding to the target site of translation-transcription. Gene-specific transcriptional factors will either activate activator-proteins within the open promoter complex to allow the RNA Polymerase to induce the opening of the envelopic fold, thereby manifesting helicase activity as well as kinase activity.

With these complex processes in motion, the open promoter complex of the gene sequence will be translated, then elongated, and then transcribed. Insodoing, one sequence of the  DNA (either it be the complex homo sapiens sapiens, to the simple Arabidopsis thaliana) will be expressed. When all sequences are expressed (there are millions of sequences found in a chromatin within the DNA) then the probability and possibility of proliferation is guaranteed.

Science is an ever-changing field. It is never stable, never secure. As scientists and science-students, we study life in all of its forms and sub-principles. Either it be biology, chemistry,geology,  neuroscience  whatsoever it maybe, it is all part of nature. Nature is always changing, environmental cues will change, plate tectonics will change; always following a rudimentary law of planetary homeostasis.

Just as we, organisms, also too follow in a rudimentary internal homeostasis. A failure to maintain homeostasis either going above limits or below limits, will result in organismal death. Hence, change is manifested. The same is seen in the planet as well.

However

Man, out of all the billions within the continuum of animals, is the only one that can identify a disease, physical and mental degeneracy and trace its causes to the genetic level.

Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis, per se

     1850 - English scientist Augustus Waller describes the appearance of shriveled nerve fibers

     1869 - French doctor Jean-Marie Charcot first describes ALS in scientific literature

     1881 - "On Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis" gets translated into English and published in a three-volume edition of Lectures on the Diseases of the Nervous System

     1939 - ALS becomes a cause célèbre in the United States when baseball legend Lou Gehrig's careerâ€"and, two            years later, his lifeâ€"is ended by the disease.

     1950s - ALS epidemic occurs among the Chamorro people on Guam

     1991 - Researchers link chromosome 21 to FALS

     1993 - SOD1 gene on chromosome 21 found to play a role in some cases of FALS

     1996 - Rilutek® becomes the first FDA-approved drug for ALS

     1998 - El Escorial is developed as the standard for confirming ALS

     2001 - Alsin gene on chromosome 2 found to cause ALS2

As we speak, there are pharmacologists and neurobiologists working in a way to synthesize a gene-specific repressor. This gene-specific repressor will attach itself to the Alsin gene, when it targets the Alsin gene, it will inhibit Alsin transcriptional ability. With this inhibited, there is no translation of ALS2. And since ALS2 is responsible for the manifestation of Amytrophic lateral sclerosis during the developmental stage of the fetus while in the mother's womb, or during adult life, with it totally repressed within the genomic sequence, this therein inhibits the physical degeneracy from manifesting completely.

As we speak, man and science have cooperated in fighting debilitating diseases such as Diabetes, Endocarditis, Alzheimer's, Hypertension, HIV, Basal Carcinoma. The more we research in finding gene-specific sequences, the more we find out what diseases they are responsible, and when we find this out--HOW we can find a way to inhibit and even alter it genetically.

Any questions? 

This song makes me think about little Jayci and what her father probably felt like.



[mp3tube]b4583e94e5870dc504097d3bfa265d5c[/mp3tube]

U.S. military assistance to the Philippines has been effective in building counterinsurgency capacity, according to a forthcoming study for the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, but critics say it has come at the price of a U.S. blind eye to extrajudicial killings there.

The debate highlights different views among policymakers and experts about the right way to implement a hearts and minds approach to counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism.

The Filipino government has been locked for decades in a conflict with separatist groups in the southern region of Mindanao, home to the far flung archipelago nation's Muslim minority.

Peace deals and cease-fires were negotiated with the mainstream rebel groups in the 1990s, and Mindanao was granted autonomy in 1996, but more radical elements, some linked to al-Qaida and other Islamic terror groups have emerged since -- principally the Abu Sayyaf Group, or ASG, the primary target of U.S. and Filipino counter-terrorist operations in the area.

In addition to ASG's links with transnational terror networks, the study, to be released by the U.S. Military Academy's Combating Terrorism Center Thursday, says the U.S. government "views the ASG as posing a direct threat to a highly important ally."

The current Filipino government, it says, is "one of the most ardent supporters in President Bush's global war on terrorism" and "remains crucial to legitimating U.S. basing options in the wider Asia-Pacific."

The Philippines is now the largest benefactor of the Pentagon's Foreign Military Financing budget, receiving $11 million in 2005, $12 million in 2006 and $13 million in 2007.

"The bulk of this money has been used to promote defense reform and underwrite the logistics for ongoing counter-terrorism efforts in the southern Philippines," reads the study.

According to the study the main thrust of U.S. security assistance "has been directed toward vitiating the operational tempo of the ASG -- an effort that, at this point, has met with some relatively significant results."

"One of the key factors" in the success of the U.S. assistance program "was the attitude of the Philippines government," its author, Peter Chalk, told United Press International.

Chalk, an analyst at the RAND Corp., a think tank with historic links to the U.S. military, said Filipino officials had "recognized they need help, taken ownership of the problem and come to table" to get the assistance they. "If you don't have that buy-in, you can't succeed," said Chalk.

Chalk said there were currently "less than 1000" U.S troops in Mindanao, about one third of them special forces.

"The strategy (the Filipino military) were employing -- hit 'em as hard as you can -- wasn't working," said Chalk, adding that the new strategy, implemented with U.S. assistance, was oriented to winning hearts and minds.

"The key drivers of militancy in the south are seen as poverty and underdevelopment," he said, adding that the Filipino military was now concentrating on so-called civil-military operations -- using troops to do development work like building roads, sewer systems and clinics.

He cited the forthcoming U.S.-Filipino joint training exercise called Balikatan 2008, scheduled to start later this month, which he said would not involve any war games or conventional military exercises. "That will be exclusively civil-military operations," he said.

Human-rights advocates were unimpressed by the study, citing reports that the Filipino military was involved in widespread extrajudicial killings of government opponents.

"What is needed to build (the population's) confidence in the military is for people all the way up the chain of command to be prosecuted for their involvement in these killings," Human Rights Watch Asia Program Deputy Director Sophie Richardson told UPI.

She accused U.S. officials of soft-pedaling the issue of accountability for the killings and other human-rights abuses.

"The United States disgracefully backed one murderous dictator" in the Philippines, she said, referring to U.S. support for anti-Communist strongman Ferdinand Marcos. "The tragedy of U.S. policy is that they cannot see that it is not inimical to their counter-terrorism agenda to push for … accountability."

"It is ironic," she added, that U.S. officials could not see the value of "publicly enforcing the laws" in combating an insurgency "partly fueled by disenfranchisement and discrimination -- precisely the feeling that the laws offer them no protection."

Other observers say that counterinsurgency operations directed against the ASG have complicated the peace negotiations that the government is conducting with other armed Islamic groups in the region. "It is a complicated situation," acknowledged Chalk.

He said that the other plank of U.S. assistance, reform of the Filipino military, was also moving ahead.

For the first time the government had a strategic plan for resource allocation within the military, he said, and the armed forces were engaged in a process of transformation.

"They are moving away from large scale procurement (of aircraft and other major weapons systems) designed to enable them to do force projection against an external enemy."

Instead, military leaders were trying to shape "a smaller, more nimble force oriented towards dealing with internal security threats."

Critics said these observations were beside the point.

"Improved budgeting processes and better administration … cannot be the benchmark" for reform, Richardson said. Real reform would be orientated towards producing "a truly disciplined, rights respecting military."

"I don't see any evidence of that," she concluded.

WASHINGTON (AFP) â€" The United States has promised 200 million dollars to help poor nations combat the global food crisis amid mounting warnings over the impact.

With many governments fighting unrest over sky-rocketing prices, the Philippine government declared war on rice hoarders and appealed for US help to boost stocks.

As oil prices hit a new high of 112.78 dollars a barrel, Bangladesh became the latest nation to see food protests and UNESCO said the inflation was forcing poor families take children out of schools and go to work to help pay for food.

The United States announced its emergency aid one day after the head of the World Bank warned in Washington that 100 million more people could be pushed into poverty because of the doubling of food prices in the past three years.

"This additional food aid will address the impact of rising commodity prices on US emergency food aid programmes, and be used to meet unanticipated food aid needs in Africa and elsewhere," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

She said Washington would consider increasing the aid, adding that the money would be channeled through the US Agency for International Development.

Perino said earlier that President George W. Bush was "very concerned" about the prices phenomenon and "has raised the issue with his national security advisors, and he has asked State (Department) and USAID to look at what can be done in the near term."

Earlier, UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned that the food crisis could trigger political upheavals and security risks.

"The rapidly escalating crisis of food availability around the world has reached emergency proportions," he told a meeting of key UN financial, economic and trade institutions in New York.

Food protests have already been the cause of deadly protests in African countries such as Cameroon, Senegal and Mauritania and riots in Haiti and Indonesia.

"We need not only short-term emergency measures to meet urgent critical needs and avert starvation in many regions across the world, but also a significant increase in long-term productivity in food grain production," Ban told the meeting.

The Philippine government said the United States has agreed to sell 100,000 tonnes of rice to help bolster its government stocks. Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said in Manila that authorities were investigating alleged rice hoarding and speculation.

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo said: "Anyone caught stealing rice from the people must be thrown into jail."

Speaking after a cabinet meeting on the rapid rise in rice prices, she added: "I am leading the charge to crack down on any form of corruption by public or private persons who would divert supplies or pervert the price of this essential commodity in any way."

At least 15,000 Bangladesh garment factory workers went on strike Tuesday to call for higher wages as food prices in the impoverished nation soar.

Bandladesh's garment industry, the leading export earner, saw dozens of factories idle at the Fatullah industrial zone south of Dhaka, police said.

UNESCO said in a statement ahead of the release of a major report on poverty, that since March 2007 prices for soya beans have risen 87 percent and for wheat 130 percent at a time when global grain stores are at their lowest levels on record.

It attributed the trend to increased demand in China and India as well as the alternative use of maize and soya beans for biofuels.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said increased prices are forcing children out of classrooms and into jobs to help pay for family food.

The impact of higher food prices is particularly marked in poor countries where 75 percent of a family's revenues go on food, compared to rich countries where just 15 percent of a household's income is spent on meals, UNICEF said.

A drop in school attendance is already being observed in Nepal, said World Food Programme spokeswoman Christiane Berthiaume.

In many countries, the only warm meal children get in a day is the meal served in school canteens. In Cambodia, the WFP has been forced to suspend food distribution to school canteens as local suppliers ended their contracts so they can sell elsewhere at a higher price.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jVqb8xOGCaxjhmiV8YKLlvybvKFA

Professor!

Welcome to Tubag Bohol!

Enjoy the site and thank you for your presence.

Truly,
BL

Professor. Licayan,

Welcome to Tubag Bohol.

Follow the link and find your fellow Duerohanon. Good hunting!

http://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?board=91.0


Cheers,
Bran Lorenzo

I don't know why he wanted to kill and do harm. Senseless killing is like a plague.

His parents did the right thing, saving their son in the process, but the lives of dozens of students.

Rest in peace, little Jayci. The Heart of Christ will brighter her eternal soul, and welcome her to His Kingdom.
For no one shall enter His Kingdom unless he has a heart of a Child.

I pray for you, little Jayci. No more pain, kiddo. No more waiting. You're home

Be at peace, baby.

Through Christ Our Lord,
Amen.

To Donald, Bryan, Edwina, Nicole, Amber, John Carlan (JC),
and to my dear Robbie Matson

Guys, I can't help but allow my tears to fall
I surrender to my emotions, I drop my chest plate
I throw away my shield, and drop my lance
I expose myself to you.
Naked. To You
,
My mind cannot contain my emotions,
Do you know how much I will miss you ?

Fall 2004, I can remember unpacking my belongings
A matriculating student, homesick, emotional for my parents
Yet you all came. And made yourself available
And so we became. Good Friends. Loving Friends.

When I was grumpy, undeserving of such love, annoyed at the world,
You were there.
My Friends.

When I was happy, content, yearning, laughter unrestrained,
You were there.
My Friends.

When we grieved, this past November 2007 after the loss of our friend,
We were there for each other. Each one of us a rod to each other.
Combined, we became an unmovable tree.

So do you see?
How much I love you,
Care for you,
Adore you,
Laugh with you,
and most of all-

How much I will so dearly Miss You?

You. Each and every single one of you.
You are a part of me, my fiber, my soul.
You allowed me to express myself, open myself,
Be myself, talk as myself, release myself.

You've seen me angry, sad, restrained,
formal, unformal, gentle-like.
Dressed, Naked, Reposed, Assured, Secured.

So now do you know why it is so hard to say goodbye?
Its not everyday when a man is allowed to say these things,
experience these things, these passions that dance within my chest.
So I'm trying to be positive, to be happy, my best.

But truly, and totally I cannot hold back the tears from falling
Falling down my face. As I remember how much we have been through.

That is why. I Love You.

Guys, remember when we were at Robertson's Field that night to watch the fire works during Spring Fest?
It was dark, and I laughed with you all, but I did not tell you how I was crying,

so this is what came out,

Graduation is a time
When our thoughts turn naturally
To vandalism, sex, and crime,
Now that we at last are free.

Our teachers think we're well prepared
To make decisions on our own;
But now, perhaps, they're running scared
As they listen to this poem.

Don't worry, folks, we aren't crazy,
Though sometimes we look that way;
Just annoyed, bored, and lazy
As we make it through the day.

So just like birds out of a cage
Or slaves set free from toil and pain,
We aim to try to act our age
And be for now a bit insane.

For life too soon will close its doors,
And then as we grow old in years
We'll teach our own kids to be bores,
But hopefully they'll stuff their ears
And do as we dream, not as we do,
Facing life a tad askew.

I dedicate this to my closest friends who are walking with me this May 11, 2008:

Edwina Flores, Don Marsh, John Carlan Bangoy, Nicole Winkle, Lisa Alexander, Bry Kramer,
Ali Berks, Hussein Bin Khalid, Shiaojie Shi, Devin Fachs, Lorianne Tayler, Alma Manta

From Freshman Year-we arrived in the halls of Allegheny as timid and scared students,
Now, as aged, wizened, stressed yet capable Seniors. Leaving all of you is becoming a reality,
I'm already missing you guys. I love you, and I hope you find this page. 


To You All:


Alma maters nourish more than mind:
Light within illuminates the whole,
Making one of multitudes combined,
Allowing each the passion of its soul.

Maybe we'll forget much that we've learned
As we narrow to a single road.
The powers we were given we have earned,
Ever the way blessings are bestowed,
Riches not retained until returned.

Graduation isn't gradual.
In fact it's quite abrupt, a sudden shock.
It's more like rushing towards a waterfall:
One moment we're afloat, and then we're not.
Sure, we see it coming up ahead,
The water roaring into the abyss.

We make a joke and look away instead,
Unable to acknowledge what this is.
And then the moment's past, and we're the same.
Everyone is smiling, sunny bright.

Someone kisses us and calls our name,
And then we think, well, everything's all right.
But life is like that: things get smashed inside,
And we don't even know it. Foolishly,
We think we're in it only for the ride,

Yet mourn for all that can no longer be.

By: Joanna Fuchs


Mom, I look at you
and see a walking miracle.
Your unfailing love without limit,
your ability to soothe my every hurt,
the way you are on duty, unselfishly,
every hour, every day,
makes me so grateful
that I am yours, and you are mine.
With open arms and open heart,
with enduring patience and inner strength,
you gave so much for me,
sometimes at your expense.
You are my teacher,
my comforter, my encourager,
appreciating all, forgiving all.
Sometimes I took you for granted, Mom,
but I don’t now, and I never will again.
I know that everything I am today
relates to you and your loving care.
I gaze in wonder
as I watch you being youâ€"
my miracle, my mother.

Lyrics:

Barack Obama:
I want to thank all of you for your time, your suggestions, your encouragement, and your prayers.
And I look forward to continuing our conversation in the weeks and months to come.

Obama Girl:
Hey B, it’s me. If you’re there, pick up.
I was just watching you on C-SPAN. [Sigh] Anyway, call me back.

You seem to float onto the floor
Democratic Convention 2004
I never wanted anybody more
Than I want you
So I put down my Kerry sign
Knew I had to make you mine
So black and sexy, you’re so fine
‘Cause I’ve got a crush on Obama

I cannot wait, 'til 2008
Baby you’re the best candidate
I like it when you get hard
On Hillary in debate
Why don't you pick up your phone?
'Cause I've got a crush on Obama
I cannot wait, 'til 2008
Baby you’re the best candidate
Of the new oval office
You’ll get your head of state
I can’t leave you alone
‘Cause I’ve got a crush on Obama

You’re into border security
Let’s break this border between you and me
Universal healthcare reform
It makes me warm
You tell the truth unlike the right
You can love but you can fight
You can Barack me tonight
I’ve got a crush on Obama

I cannot wait, 'til 2008
Baby you’re the best candidate
I like it when you get hard
On Hillary in debate
Why don't you pick up your phone?
'Cause I've got a crush on Obama
I cannot wait, 'til 2008
Baby you’re the best candidate
Of the new oval office
You’ll get your head of state
I can’t leave you alone
‘Cause I’ve got a crush on Obama

B to the A to the R-A-C-K-O-B-A-M-A (Barack Obama) [8x)
‘Cause I’ve got a crush on Obama

By: Obama Girl

http://youtube.com/watch?v=wKsoXHYICqU

Lyrics

Barack Obama: Uh-huh uh-huh, uh-huh uh-huh. Yo, my girl Hillary former First Lady, will she be president? Who knows, maybe. Yo, Barack Obama! I’m a black democrat, no I ain’t no punk, Hillary’s a hot mama. She’s got her eyes on the prize and I’m talkin’ bout my junk. Hillary, where you at?

Hillary Clinton: I’m in the front, but what I want…is a little bit of mandingo love. Bill had Monica playin’ like a harmonica. So can I be blamed if I want to get some strange? Yes I am a firm believer in some hardcore jungle fever. He’s my boy I am his girl. Hells yeah, we’re both down with the squirrel. We may have differed on Iraq, but noone’s stiffer in the sack. I can’t lie I that’s why I wanna be under Barack Obama, Bama, Bama, ay, ay, ay, under Barack Obama, Bama, Bama, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay ay. The poles have me in the lead, but your pole’s the only one I need.

Barack Obama: Girl you’re making me really hot. I’m gonna put my ballot in your slot.

Hillary Clinton: Pour your chocolate rain on me, and I’ll make you my VP.

Barack Obama: Gonna put my lovin’ on ya.

Hillary Clinton: I wanna be under Barack Obama, Bama, Bama, ay, ay, ay, under Barack Obama, Bama, Bama, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay ay.



hahahahaha! This video is awesome. GO BARACK!

I love this video, hahaha.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=2Xb3bDwE9jQ

Enjoy ladies and gents.

I would donate everything that was usable. To save another life, of course.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ROFLMAO!

I love you, 'te.

You make the best wise sayings of all time. Muah! Yo!

hahahahahahahahhaha! 'te bb gun? ikaw jud uy! hahaha!

O god, you made me cry laughing, yo.

Mao jud na, 'te. Good times..good times!

Keep on smiling, Ms. Beautiful.

Quote from: B:) on April 22, 2008, 09:21:22 AM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 22, 2008, 08:08:25 AM

Quote from: B:) on April 22, 2008, 07:54:54 AM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 21, 2008, 03:32:34 PM
Beth, you got hit on the head? Sus, thats a bit too much of an extreme, uy.

Bitaw no? Strikto jud atong mga parents. Filipino parents, specially when the kids are raised in the Philippines, tend to be more strict than say American parents or assimilated Fil-Am parents.

IMHO.

Yes Bran, she did. If not my head, hit my hands with a thick wood ruler. Yup it was rough. Then she also woke me up 4 AM to my study more before going to school that morning.

I think you're right, it's a Filipino thing who is so strict about education.

Excessive ra bitaw pood na, Beth. Pero you are a very smart and intelligent woman. You know I remember when I was in pre-K in Bohol Wisdom back in 1990 and the teacher would inspect our fingernails if it was clean and cut. If it wasn't she would strike our hands with a ruler.

I do wonder if the educational system in the Philippines is the same for today. Do they still implement the same disciplinary style?

o thank Bran, natakdan lang ko nimo oi hehehe.
Oi ya, even us in HSS, I think it was every morning, our hands on the table for inspection before the lecture started.
I'm not sure if they still do that now?

Na unsa gud ni sila uy? What is the point? Aside from mental and physical stress.

Philippine educational policy needs to be corrected as its borderline child-student abuse.

And I'm sure there are teachers who take advantage of this power.

Quote from: grazie7y on April 22, 2008, 08:19:06 AM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 22, 2008, 08:08:25 AM

Quote from: B:) on April 22, 2008, 07:54:54 AM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 21, 2008, 03:32:34 PM
Beth, you got hit on the head? Sus, thats a bit too much of an extreme, uy.

Bitaw no? Strikto jud atong mga parents. Filipino parents, specially when the kids are raised in the Philippines, tend to be more strict than say American parents or assimilated Fil-Am parents.

IMHO.

Yes Bran, she did. If not my head, hit my hands with a thick wood ruler. Yup it was rough. Then she also woke me up 4 AM to my study more before going to school that morning.

I think you're right, it's a Filipino thing who is so strict about education.

Excessive ra bitaw pood na, Beth. Pero you are a very smart and intelligent woman. You know I remember when I was in pre-K in Bohol Wisdom back in 1990 and the teacher would inspect our fingernails if it was clean and cut. If it wasn't she would strike our hands with a ruler.

I do wonder if the educational system in the Philippines is the same for today. Do they still implement the same disciplinary style?

Speaking of being hit by a ruler, I was in Grade 3 when somebody behind me was making noise.  Our teacher, Ms. Paredes, thought it was me.  I still can't believe she thought it was me when I wasn't a noisy student and in fact, I was actively participating in classes.  Anyway, she hit my hand with a ruler.  I couldn't remember the physical pain but boy I was so emotionally hurt.  I cried so hard even when I was walking my way home.  That night a had severe fever and for the first time I was brought to the hospital due to high fever.  My Dad learned about the incident in school because my cousin neighbor told my parents about it.  My Dad went to our school to talk to our teacher.  When I came back after one week of being in the hospital, my teacher appeared embarassed to me. 

Bastosa pood to imung teacher, 'te. For me, I think physical discipline should be reserved only to the parents, never to the instructor. I remember when my cousin was hit by a ruler by her teacher despite the fact that she wasn't responsible for it, she told my uncles, my aunts and my lola about it.

All of my uncles, who came back to Bohol from Saudi at the time, went to the school to talk to the teacher. The teacher was fired, all I know.

The audacity of the teacher to strike children who are innocent. It's worse than physical trauma; mental trauma ginoon.

I am personally against physical policy. I don't know if its still practiced, but it should be repealed and abolished outright.

LoL, yes 'te duet bitaw ni with Uncle Kracker, haha!

Great taste

mmm, now I'm craving ice cream.

As much as I love the brilliance of God's diversification of the avian species, sometimes I have urges to buy a slingshot and shoot some of the birds. The pigeons here in campus aren't even afraid of us. And their poop-ings are the worst kind kai very puti-on bitaw? And it damages the paint.

'te, does covering the side mirrors really work? I'll have to check that out. I can't help but cry when I see my baby get pooped on. I'm meticulous in keeping her clean.

I like to stay away from personal view points, Maria. I observe the situation in a macro-view point and look at the general scheme of things; the causality, the effects, and the directionality of the overall test subject. Either it be in chemical analysis or in national analysis, there is always a reason for things, a frame, a guideline and rules and explanations why things are the way they are.

There will always be personal stories in any given situation, in any edaphic-climactic occurrences. That is given, as human persona manifests it.

However, in order for us to have a broader understanding on things and to alleviate ourselves from becoming biased, one needs to maintain a neutral point of view. And observe it in a systemic view point.

Overall, the trends seen in the Philippines follows the economic developmental model bequeathed in economic-laws. There is a dichotomy between resources present and production/manufacturing, which is indicative of the progression of the said country, Philippines in case study.

Insofar, the trends are indicative of established models. I'm not surprised in seeing the overall processes in that it correlates to concepts established as law in economics.

Overall, the Philippines is developing and progressing. Not all will be satisfied, but for the most part, the majority of the people are sustained. Thereby guaranteeing the patrimony of the Republic.

It remains one of the greatest mysteries of medicine. Although autism will be diagnosed in more than 25,000 U.S. children this year, more than new pediatric cases of AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined, scientists and doctors still know very little about the neurological disorder.

Unlike childhood diabetes or pediatric leukemia, there is no blood test, no scan, no image that can detect autism. Diagnosis relies totally on behavioral observation and screening. And that's not easy.

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, three distinctive behaviors characterize autism: lack of social interaction, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and repetitive behaviors or narrow, obsessive interests. But children with autism display these symptoms in many different ways, some as mild as avoiding eye contact, while others are totally immersed in a world of their own.

Dr. Gary Goldstein, president of Kennedy Krieger Institute, one of the leading U.S. facilities for autism research and treatment, says although doctors know more about autism than ever, plenty of questions remain unanswered. Over the past few years, it has become clear that genetics play a big role in the development of autism. But researchers believe something -- a trigger -- sets off autism in a child.

"It's a combination of being genetically vulnerable, and then having some kind of social or toxic exposure that tips you over," Goldstein says. If scientists find that trigger, they could find the missing piece of the autism puzzle.

It's that missing puzzle piece that frustrates families with autistic children. When the Gaston triplets of Ellicott City, Maryland, were born seven years ago, their parents, Lynn and Randy, were thrilled. For years, they had been trying to have children. After in vitro fertilization, Lynn gave birth to identical twins, Hunter and Nicholas, and a fraternal brother named Zachary. Though they were born prematurely, they grew to be healthy, happy babies. Then something changed.

At around 18 months, the boys began to display unusual behaviors. Zach became compulsive, lined up cereal boxes and toys; he wouldn't socialize and kept to himself. Hunter would roam the house at night and scream at the top of his lungs. Nick just stopped talking.

Lynn asked her pediatrician about it. Her sons' doctor said she was overreacting and they should wait and see. But Lynn and Randy were sure there was something wrong with their children. It was frustrating for Lynn, who watched her children change every day before her eyes. "It was almost as if somebody turned the switch off. It was like the first 18 months of their lives didn't happen."

As months passed, the Gastons became frustrated as doctor after doctor told them to wait. That was unfortunate, because doctors now know that the sooner autism is diagnosed, the better chance the child has for getting successful treatment.

"Early intervention is key, because brain development starts before birth," says Dr. Pat Levitt, director of the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development in Nashville, Tennessee.

"During the ages of 0 to 5 years, there is a tremendous amount of change that occurs in the brain and brain chemistry."

In October, the American Academy of Pediatrics set up new guidelines to help pediatricians recognize the early signs of autism, in order to diagnose the disorder and get children into treatment as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen for the Gastons. Their boys were 4 years old before doctors at Kennedy Krieger confirmed the family's fears. All three sons had some variation of autism.

The Gastons had never heard of autism before their sons were born. Now they were raising three autistic children. That was tough enough, but even after the diagnosis, it was hard to find any information on the condition. That's because until recently, very little information on autistic children has been widely available. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been collecting data only since 2001, the year the Gaston triplets were born.

Lynn expressed her frustration: "It's not like you can look up autism in the phone book. I couldn't go to the Yellow Pages and find a doctor, and didn't even know what doctor to go see. I thought my pediatrician was going to handle all this."

The Gastons keep asking themselves, "Where is the trigger?" They've each looked into their family history and found no autism.

Some parents believe that thimerosal, a preservative found in childhood vaccines that virtually every child gets, causes autism, because many children were diagnosed after they were vaccinated. But most medical experts increasingly doubt that theory, because even though the chemical has been removed from virtually all vaccines, the number of cases of autism is rising.

"You remove thimerosal from all but the flu vaccine, which isn't given to children under 6 months of age, and the incidence of autism only increases. So you just have piece of evidence after piece of evidence after piece of evidence that really disproves this notion," said Dr. Paul Offit, chief of the Infectious Diseases Division at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Although the Gastons don't express their opinions on vaccines, Randy makes a point: "There's something that's affecting these children at that age, and it's unfortunate that families are left to their own devices to find out what is going on."

For now the Gastons remain dedicated to getting their sons the best care possible, which can be expensive. They sold their house in order to pay bills for therapy and doctors that total in the hundreds of thousand of dollars.

They are also involved in autism awareness groups and try to help other parents of autistic children understand what their children are going through. Just recently they shot a public service announcement to promote a new project developed by the Kennedy Krieger Institute, called IAN, or interactive autism network, an online project that can help autism researchers link with families of autistic children as well as with other scientists. The hope is that IAN will alert families to local and national autism research projects they can participate in.

But minus the projects and the doctors and the therapists, the Gastons, like many families with autistic children, believe it all comes down to the attention they give their children that makes the real difference.

 One type of hormone therapy -- estrogen plus progestin -- already is well-known to increase the risk of breast cancer. But a major study of women able to use estrogen alone didn't find that link.

Tuesday, researchers reported a new wrinkle: Those estrogen-only users doubled their chances of getting non-cancerous breast lumps. That's a concern not only because of the extra biopsies and worry those lumps cause, but because a particular type -- called benign proliferative breast disease -- is suspected of being a first step toward developing breast cancer 10 years or so later.

About one in five women undergo a breast biopsy within a decade of starting annual mammograms, and most are of those abnormalities turn out to be benign. Yet under a microscope, there are different types, from simple fluid-filled cysts to what's called proliferative breast disease because it's made of growing cells.

The latest work, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, re-examines data from the landmark Women's Health Initiative that found a variety of health risks from long-term hormone therapy.

Only women who have undergone hysterectomies are able to use estrogen-only therapy, and the WHI originally included more than 10,000 of those women, who were given either estrogen or a dummy drug and tracked for about seven years.

Now, a team led by Dr. Tom Rohan of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York has reviewed breast biopsies done on those women -- and identified 232 cases of benign proliferative breast disease. Women given the estrogen-only therapy had twice the risk of developing these abnormalities compared with women given a placebo.

WHI participants are still being tracked, allowing scientists to eventually tell if the benign breast problems were a signal of more trouble to come, Rohan concluded.

 While scientific studies have proven inconclusive, it's important to focus on what we do know. Milk has nutrients that are essential to your health, so whatever you do, don't stop drinking it. Here's why:

1. You probably aren't getting enough

On average, American adults consume only half of the three daily servings of milk recommended by the Food Pyramid. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, only 10 percent of women consume the three recommended servings.

2. Strong bones...and more

Milk is a top dietary source of calcium, a mineral that's critical for helping prevent osteoporosis and keeping teeth strong. Calcium and other nutrients in dairy also help keep your blood pressure stable, have been linked to lowered levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol, reduced risk of certain cancers, and even weight loss. For more on what calcium can do for you, read our full story.

3. You need calcium all day

Your body can absorb only about 500 milligrams of calcium at a time. That's why it's best to obtain calcium from a variety of foods all day long. Milk and dairy products, such as yogurt or cheese, make it easy to get small portions throughout the day. (You can also obtain some calcium from non-dairy sources. )

4. All milk is fortified with vitamins

Fortified milk is one of only a few dietary sources of vitamin D, a nutrient that helps your body better absorb calcium and one of the nutrients that women need most. A cup of milk contains 100 International Units (IU) of vitamin D  half the amount currently recommended for adults under age 50 and a quarter of the amount needed for those age 51 to 70. Milk is also fortified with vitamin A, a key nutrient for vision and a healthy immune system.

What you should do:

If you're under at 50, you need 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium daily. Those over 50 need 1,200 mg. Meeting this amount is easy. Consume three of the following (each contains 300 milligrams of calcium a third of your daily requirement):

• One cup of milk

• A cup of yogurt

• One-and-a-half ounces of cheese (about six playing dice)

• Your choice from our list of Top 12 calcium-rich foods .

Finally, be sure to choose low-fat milk and dairy products. Lowering your intake of saturated fat helps lower your risk of heart disease.

A large study offers the strongest evidence yet that a diet the government recommends for lowering blood pressure can save people from heart attack and stroke.

Researchers followed more than 88,000 healthy women for almost 25 years. They examined their food choices and looked at how many had heart attacks and strokes. Those who fared best had eating habits similar to those recommended by the government to stop high blood pressure.

The plan, called the DASH diet, favors fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk and plant-based protein over meat.

Women with those eating habits were 24 percent less likely to have a heart attack and 18 percent less likely to have a stroke than women with more typical American diets.

Those are meaningful reductions since these diseases are so common. About two in five U.S. women at age 50 will eventually develop cardiovascular disease, which includes heart attacks and strokes. Women in the study were in their mid-30s to late 50s when the research began in 1980.

Previous research has shown this kind of diet can help prevent high blood pressure and cholesterol, which both can lead to heart attacks.

The new study appears in Monday's Archives of Internal Medicine.

People might think, "I don't have high blood pressure, so I don't have to follow it," said Simmons College researcher Teresa Fung, the study's lead author. However, the results suggest, she said, that "even healthy people should get on it."

About 15,000 women in the study had diets that closely resembled the low blood pressure diet. They ate about twice as many fruits, vegetables and grains as the estimated 18,000 women whose diets more closely resembled typical American eating habits.

Although the study followed only women, Fung said men would probably get similar benefits from the approach.

The study was limited because it merely tracked the women and their habits for 24 years. That's a less rigorous method than randomly assigning equal groups of women different diets and comparing results. But that would be extremely difficult to do for such a long time.

Given that limitation, Dr. Laura Svetkey, director of Duke University's hypertension center, said the study provides the best evidence yet of important long-term benefits from a low blood pressure diet.

"It's nice to see research that really is aimed at helping people with prevention in a very practical way," Svetkey said. She noted that the DASH diet, which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, is available free on the National Institutes of Health Web site. The study was funded with NIH grants.

Dr. Nieca Goldberg, medical director of New York University's Women's Heart Program, said many patients would rather take a pill than adjust their eating habits. But, Goldberg said, "I always point out to my patients, if you make these changes in your lives, it could ... keep you off medication" in the long run.

"There has to be a greater emphasis on the way we live our lives," she said.

Children should be screened for heart problems with an electrocardiogram before getting drugs such as Ritalin to treat hyperactivity and attention-deficit disorder, the American Heart Association recommended Monday.

Stimulant drugs can increase blood pressure and heart rate. For most children, that isn't a problem. But in those with heart conditions, it could make them more vulnerable to sudden cardiac arrest -- an erratic heartbeat that causes the heart to stop pumping blood through the body -- and other heart problems.

About 2.5 million American children and 1.5 million adults take medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, according to government estimates. Stimulant drugs, like Ritalin, Adderall and Concerta, help children with ADHD to stay focused and control their behavior.

The medications already carry warnings of possible heart risks in those with heart defects or other heart problems, which some critics said were driven more by concerns of overuse of the drugs than their safety.

The heart group is now recommending a thorough exam, including a family history and an EKG, before children are put on the drugs to make sure that they don't have any undiagnosed heart issues.

"We don't want to keep children who have this from being treated. We want to do it as safely as possible." said Dr. Victoria Vetter, a pediatric cardiologist at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and head of the committee making the recommendation.

The label warnings were added after a review by the Food and Drug Administration of its databases found reports of 19 sudden deaths in children treated with ADHD drugs and 26 reports of other problems including strokes and fast heart rates between 1999 and 2003. There were also reports of heart problems in adults; the committee didn't look at adults.

An EKG can detect abnormal heart rhythms that can lead to sudden cardiac arrest. Children who are already on ADHD drugs should also be tested, Vetter said. If problems are found, the child should be sent to a pediatric cardiologist. With careful monitoring, Vetter said. children with heart problems can take the medicines if needed.

The cost of an EKG varies depending on who does it and the location. For example, the amount that Aetna Inc. pays ranges from $24 to $50. Vetter said Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she works, has been doing EKG screening for three years and it has been covered by insurance.

She said a screening of about 1,100 children found that about 2 percent of them had some kind of heart problem.

"We thought it was reasonable to include the electrocardiogram as a tool for the pediatrician, the psychiatrist so that this would help identify additional children who have heart disease," Vetter said.

But Dr. Steven Pliszka, a child psychiatrist at the University of Texas in San Antonio, said he was baffled by the EKG recommendation. He said there's no evidence that sudden death is a bigger problem for children taking stimulants than for children who aren't taking the drugs.

Pliszka said an EKG might deter people from seeking treatment because it's an added expense and hassle. Psychiatrists aren't likely to have an EKG machine, and pediatricians might not either, making patients go elsewhere to get the test, he said.

An ADHD advocacy group called CHADD said parents should monitor their child's reaction to all medications. EKG screening "will bring an even further measure of safety to what is already a safe clinical treatment approach," the group said.

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry recently updated its treatment guidelines for ADHD, and did not recommend routine EKGs, said Pliszka, who was the lead author. He has received research support or served as a consultant for makers of ADHD drugs.

Twice a day, 7-year-old Hannah Austin exhales all the air from her lungs. She then takes a puff of a low-dose steroid from a purple inhaler, holds her breath for a few seconds and exhales.

Like nearly 7 million other children in the United States, Hannah, a second-grader from Smyrna, Georgia, has asthma. This simple exercise with the inhaler allows her to breathe easier.

But on a day when the air quality is poor, she often struggles to catch her breath.

"We know that environmental pollutants have a very significant impact on children with asthma," said Dr. Avril Beckford, a pediatrician in Austell, Georgia.

Children are more vulnerable to the effects of air pollution because their lungs don't fully form until they are adolescents, the American Academy of Pediatrics noted.

The leading pediatricians group added that "because children spend more time outdoors than do adults, they have increased exposure to outdoor air pollution."

"If you live near a polluted area of a city, it's like the child is smoking," said best-selling author and pediatrician Bill Sears. "We all know what smoking does for the lungs."

Sears called the long-term effect of air pollution on a developing child devastating. "Children do not grow as well because they do not breathe as well. The brain really needs a lot of oxygen. They don't think as well. They don't learn as well."

Hannah's asthma was diagnosed last summer. Her mother, Drew Austin, became alarmed when she noticed that Hannah was short of breath while swimming.

"When her asthma is really bad, she just gets lethargic and starts coughing," Austin said.

Coughing, wheezing or whistling when exhaling, and shortness of breath are some of the most common symptoms of asthma in children.

Sears warned that the symptoms can lead to poor sleep habits. "When the child wakes up in the morning with a runny nose and baggy eyes, you can tell they didn't sleep well because they were coughing in the night," he said.

Proper diagnosis and treatment can help manage asthma symptoms. Experts also recommend that people with asthma avoid indoor and outdoor allergens and irritants.

Indoor triggers include dust mites, mold, furry pets, tobacco smoke and certain chemicals.

Outdoor irritants range from pollen to cold air to air pollution.

Michael Chang, an atmospheric research scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, estimated that 50 percent of air pollutants are created by cars and trucks.

He explained many parts of the U.S. are now transitioning to higher temperatures and more humid summers.

"We don't have the winds that blow things out of the air," Chang said. "The stuff we put into the atmosphere lingers longer."

He compared the air quality in many big cities to a chemical soup of thousands of compounds, including ground-level ozone and fine particulate matter. The Environmental Protection Agency describes ground-level ozone as the primary component of smog. It includes motor vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, gasoline vapors and chemical solvents.

Chang's office is responsible for monitoring air quality and issuing smog alerts in Atlanta. He also tries to educate residents by telling them to pay attention to the warnings.

"Jogging late in the afternoon during the summer is not the best time," Chang said. "Ground-level ozone is at its worst at that time of day."

Beckford goes one step further, warning parents to not choose a house, school or playground that is close to a busy road or a highway.

She tells her young patients to get their exercise earlier in the day, when the air is cleaner.

Beckford also urges children such as Hannah to take control of their asthma by taking their medicine as directed and learning to use their inhalers properly.
advertisement

She may be only 7, but Hannah has found one more way to control her symptoms and prevent an asthma attack. She watches the news and checks local Web sites to monitor the daily air quality, to see whether it is safe for her to play outside.

Her mother said, "I hate to have her environment controlling what she can do. I want her to be able to control and make those choices."

Maybe the shiny surface makes them poop? LOL

Its mind boggling.

How is Ubay like, Mikey? Mountainous? Flat? Rolling?

Did you ever notice why pigeons, crows, all kinds of birds etc love to release their dung on your car when you just finished washing it? I just washed my car last night, you know waxed it vacuumed her and what not. So this morning I came back from class and noticed bird poop marks in front of her hood. Its as if the birds targeted her to poop on. I mean, c'mon birds! Can't you poop on grass, on soil, on trees? Why on our cars? lol

Any of you guys experience the same thing? Jeez

Shipping companies need to begin arming their crew with weaponry to resist attacks like this.

Fwew! I thought you ladies were angry at us lol. Sige, Ate Ging and Beth, I will tell Devin tonight when we get together for a study group not to disrespect our Pinoy Flag like that.

Na touched and impressed jud ko ninyo duha uy! Pas-pas jud mo react ang Filipino patriot!  It is very clear you both love our Fatherland. Precious ang Pinoy Flag to your eyes.

Sige, I will honor your request and pass on the message to Dev.


Pinoy Pride!

A suspected pirate ship fired on a Japanese oil tanker Monday off the eastern coast of Yemen, leaving a hole from which several kiloliters (hundreds of gallons) of fuel leaked, officials said. No one was injured.

The 150,000-ton tanker Takayama was attacked about 440 kilometers (270 miles) off the coast of Aden in southwestern Yemen while it was heading for Saudi Arabia, its Japanese operator, Nippon Yusen K.K., said in a statement.

None of its 23 crew members -- seven Japanese and 16 Filipinos -- was injured, the company said. The tanker had left the South Korean port of Ulsan on April 4.

Nippon Yusen spokeswoman Yuko Tsutsui said the attack left a 2-centimeter (1-inch) hole in the tanker's stern, which was temporarily patched after several kiloliters (hundreds of gallons) of fuel leaked.

She said the tanker was heading to Aden for repairs, and its itinerary could change depending on the extent of the damage.

Transportation Ministry official Yoichi Oda said the attackers were believed to be pirates whose motive was not immediately known. The waters in the Red Sea between Yemen and Somali are considered prone to pirate attacks.

Japanese coast guard officials are also investigating the case.

In late October, a Panamanian-registered chemical tanker operated by a Japanese shipping company was seized by pirates in nearby waters off the Somali coast. All but one of its 23 crew members were freed unharmed in mid-December.

More than 260 vessels, including 10 Japanese ships, were attacked by pirates last year worldwide, Oda said, quoting International Maritime Bureau figures. Nearly 40 percent of the pirate attacks occurred off the coast of Somalia, Nigeria and Yemen, where the number of incidents has surged from the previous year.

Kyodo News agency said the Japanese tanker was hit by a rocket fired from a small boat Monday.

Serbia's war crimes prosecutor has brought charges against four former paramilitary fighters for a massacre of ethnic Albanian civilians in Kosovo in 1999, the prosecutor's office said Monday.

The four former members of the notorious Scorpions unit were charged with gunning down a group of 19 civilians, including women, children and the elderly, said the prosecutor's statement.

The killings in the northern town of Podujevo are considered to be one of the worst crimes of Kosovo's 1998-99 war. Only five children survived the massacre.

It took place in March 1999, at the start of the NATO bombing which eventually halted the Serb crackdown against Kosovo's ethnic Albanian separatists and forced the Serb troops out.

Kosovo has been ruled by the United Nations and NATO since 1999. It declared independence from Serbia in February.

Another former Scorpions member, Sasa Cvjetan, was also convicted of the Podujevo killings in 2004, and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The Serbian war crimes prosecutor's office said that the five children in Podujevo stayed alive thanks to the help of regular Serbian special police units who arrived at the scene.

The four paramilitaries were arrested last year. They were identified as Zeljko Djukich, Dragan Medich, Dragan Borojevich and Miodrag Solaja.

Three more Scorpions were put on trial separately after a video was aired in Serbia in 2005 showing the execution of a group of Muslim civilians from Srebrenica by the Scorpions fighters.

An Indonesian court has sentenced the alleged military commander of an al Qaeda-linked terror network to 15 years in prison.

Abu Dujana is the alleged leader of the military wing of Jemaah Islamiyah, a group that is thought to be linked to al Qaeda. It aims to create a Muslim "superstate" across much of Southeast Asia.

Dujana, a slight, wiry man, is accused of direct involvement in the Bali nightclub bombings of 2002 that killed more than 200, mostly Western, tourists. He is also suspected of plotting subsequent attacks on the Australian Embassy and J.W. Marriott hotel, both in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta.

Furthermore, authorities say Dujana is behind the violence in Poso, on Indonesia's eastern Sulawesi island. Fighting between Muslims and Christians periodically breaks out in the region and sometimes turns deadly.

Police have accused Jemaah Islamiyah of sending armed militants to Poso.

The court found Dujana guilty Monday of illegally possessing firearms and explosives, and of harboring suspected terrorists. His lawyers said they may appeal the sentence.

After his arrest last June following a four-year hunt, Dujana admitted to CNN that he was Jemaah Islamiyah's military chief. But he said that happened only after the attacks on Western targets.

He described Jemaah Islamiyah to CNN as "an underground organization," saying "it will continue to exist and continue to move on with its plans" to create an Islamic state under Sharia law despite his capture.

"When a part of it is cut off ...there will be a replacement, it's only natural," he said.

Dujana denied being involved in the Marriott Hotel attack. He told CNN that he helped fugitive suspect Noordin Top plan the attack, meeting him both before and after the devastating blast that killed 12 people and injured 150.

"It's true, I did have a meeting with Noordin before the Marriott bombing but that doesn't mean I was involved in the attack," he said. "In that meeting, we're just aligning our views with each other -- there was absolutely no discussion about planning any bombing."

In his CNN interview, Dujana was quick with messages of hate, calling all Westerners legitimate targets because of the actions of leaders like U.S. President George W. Bush and then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who he says are not giving Muslims the chance to be in power.

Dujana studied in Pakistan and fought in Afghanistan from 1988 to 1991.

He told CNN that he met al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan during the fight against Soviet occupation. At the time, bin Laden was a field commander and he was an ordinary soldier, he said.

Dujana said bin Laden was well respected then and helped him and others realize that it was permissible to kill people to defend Islam.

"I didn't read it in the Quran," he said. " It's based on the teachings of our teachers, clerics, especially what Osama bin Laden first said."

"Because of America's arrogance, many in the Muslim world know, believe, it's permissible to kill American soldiers. It's halal; it's permitted," he said.

The court declared Jemaah Islamiyah a terrorist organization Monday and ordered it to pay 10 million rupiah ($1,088).

Around the same time Dujana was captured last June, authorities also apprehended Jemaah Islamiyah's leader, known simply as Zarkasih. A verdict on his case is expected soon.

Last week, two other top Jemaah Islamiyah leaders -- Dr. Agus Purwanto and Abdur Rohim -- were brought to Indonesia following their arrest in Malaysia.

Both are being investigated for their possible role in fomenting violence in Poso.

Terrorism expert Sidney Jones says Abdur Rohim is believed to have replaced Zarkasih as Jemaah Islamiyah leader.

"It is another major blow to Jemaah Islamiyah, but difficult to tell what the impact will be," Jones told CNN via e-mail last week. "It could embolden a more militant faction. [It] could also lead to some serious reassessment within the organization about its future."

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama haven't crossed paths yet during their weekend barnstorming across Pennsylvania, but they have invoked each other's names at virtually every whistle-stop during the final blitz before Tuesday's primary.

Each candidate says the other is unfit to lead the country.

Clinton has attacked Obama for his recent comments about some small-town Americans, his heath care plan and his relative Washington inexperience. Obama has countered by taking aim at Clinton over her acceptance of money from political action committees, her health care plan and her Washington experience.

But the most oft-repeated charge -- the one mentioned at virtually every stop -- is negative campaigning.

"I just heard that my opponent has put out an ad attacking my health care plan, which is kind of curious because my plan covers everybody, and his leaves out 15 million people, just leaves them out in the cold," Clinton said at a campaign rally in York, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. "Instead of attacking the problem, he chooses to attack my solution."

For his part, Obama accused Clinton of looking to create "fake controversy" around him in the race's final days.

"In the last few months, she's launched what her campaign calls a 'kitchen sink' strategy of negative attacks, which she defends by telling us that this is what the Republicans would do. She says that's how the game is played," he told a Philadelphia crowd.

In Paoli, Pennsylvania, he accused her of "slash-and-burn politics."

The New York senator, Obama said at an appearance in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, was "throwing everything at me and seeing if something sticks."

In response, Clinton spokesman Phil Singer e-mailed reporters a link to a quiz on the campaign's Web site that asked them to decide who had uttered quotes attacking Clinton: a member of Obama's campaign or a Republican.

The charges and countercharges aren't limited to the candidates' stump speeches. Over the past three days, both launched negative robo-calls, tough mailers and attack ads alleging special interests influence their opponent. And on dueling conference calls, surrogates used some of the race's harshest language to date.

On an Obama conference call with reporters Saturday, Gen. Walter Stewart said Clinton's misstatements about her trip to Bosnia as first lady mean she "lacks the moral authority" to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

At a campaign event at Pennsylvania's California University shortly after the call, Clinton said that the Illinois senator "always says in his speeches that he is running a positive campaign but then his campaign does the opposite."

Later, Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson sent reporters a memo charging that Obama "flooded airwaves, radio, phone lines and mailboxes with negative and false attacks against Hillary" in the previous 48 hours, calling Stewart's remarks "the most outrageous attack of the campaign."

The tough words underlie the high stakes and the closeness of the race.

After leading by 20 percentage points just a few weeks ago, Clinton's lead has shrunk to the single digits in the most recent CNN Pennsylvania Poll of Polls, an average of recent campaign surveys.

Clinton has a strong base in the state with solid support from working-class white voters, Catholics and seniors -- three powerful and potentially decisive voting blocs.

But a record number of new voters and party-switchers in Pennsylvania -- the most in any primary contest, and second in number only to the 2004 general election -- propelled Obama into contention in the state.

On Friday, he drew the largest crowd of his campaign, an estimated 35,000 people, to an outdoor rally in Philadelphia.

A South Carolina high school senior arrested in an alleged bomb plot had the ingredients to assemble a bomb in minutes, police said Monday.

Ryan Schallenberger, 18, was arrested Saturday after his parents called police when 10 pounds of ammonium nitrate, an oxidizing agent in explosives, was delivered to their home in Chesterfield, near the North Carolina border, Chief Randall Lear of the Chesterfield Police Department said.

Chesterfield County Sheriff Sam Parker said the ammonium nitrate was purchased on eBay.

Lear said the teen hadn't built a complete bomb but had appropriate materials so that "it would be a matter of just minutes to put something together."

Most of the ingredients were common household items, the chief said.

Parker said Schallenberger, who was assigned a lawyer in an initial court appearance on Monday, is cooperating with the investigation.

"He seemed to hate the world. He hated people different from him -- the rich boys with good-looking girlfriends," The Associated Press quoted Lear as saying.

The teen planned to make several bombs to detonate at Chesterfield in what Schallenberger called a "Columbine followup" in his journal, Lear said.

The police chief said Schallenberger's journal revealed his sympathies for the two teenage gunmen who carried out the 1999 shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado. Those shootings left 15 people dead, including the shooters.

But, Lear said, the South Carolina teen made it clear that he didn't want to "copycat" Columbine. He planned out in detail -- down to the costs of the bomb supplies -- his plans for multiple explosions at the school, Lear said.

He even recorded an audiotape meant to be heard after he attacked the school and killed himself, though he had not set a date for his plans, Lear said.

Police searched the area around Schallenberger's home for additional supplies and weapons. No guns were found in the home, Lear said.

"I don't have any doubt that he was going to carry it out," Lear said. "On the surface, he was one thing, and in his writing, he was something else."

Police interviews with family and friends painted Schallenberger as a handsome, social student with ambitions for college. "He was not what you would call a loner," Lear said.

The police chief said investigators aren't aware of any accomplices.

Scott Radkin, the principal of Chesterfield High School, said Schallenberger is among the top students in the senior class, according to an AP report.

I'll tell Devin about it, 'te. He didn't mean anything mean in it, tho. We're both proud Fil-Ams.

Quote from: B:) on April 22, 2008, 07:54:54 AM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 21, 2008, 03:32:34 PM
Beth, you got hit on the head? Sus, thats a bit too much of an extreme, uy.

Bitaw no? Strikto jud atong mga parents. Filipino parents, specially when the kids are raised in the Philippines, tend to be more strict than say American parents or assimilated Fil-Am parents.

IMHO.

Yes Bran, she did. If not my head, hit my hands with a thick wood ruler. Yup it was rough. Then she also woke me up 4 AM to my study more before going to school that morning.

I think you're right, it's a Filipino thing who is so strict about education.

Excessive ra bitaw pood na, Beth. Pero you are a very smart and intelligent woman. You know I remember when I was in pre-K in Bohol Wisdom back in 1990 and the teacher would inspect our fingernails if it was clean and cut. If it wasn't she would strike our hands with a ruler.

I do wonder if the educational system in the Philippines is the same for today. Do they still implement the same disciplinary style?

He's half Filipino, Beth.

Just showing Fil-Am pride, nothing bad in it.

He's one of my good buddies here, he has a big heart for the Philippines.

 
Philippine-Pride, yo!







All in good fun tho.

Las Vegas?! Nice, 'te.

Please take alot of pictures when you're there 'te.

Man o man, good luck uy on the machines there.

In the words of Wheel of Fortune, "Big Money, Big Money!" haha enjoy 'te!

Quote from: lindy on April 22, 2008, 01:03:35 AM

Quote from: swakee on April 21, 2008, 05:38:03 PM
magkadaghan ang squatters kay over-populated na ta.

Day Swakee, dili baya na ma squatters nang mga tawhana kon manguli na sila didto sa ilaha ug magkugi ug panguma. Mao man gyud niy akong kalagutan kay ako mismo dunay uyuan nga ang iyang anak naa sa States nagpuyo daghan ug yuta sa Bohol hasta mga basakan, iyang gitambagan ang iyang Papa ug uban mga igsuon nga paulion sa Bohol aron maoy moatiman sa mga yuta, basakan ug kalubihan. Iyang abalayan, palitan ug tractor hasta kaugalingon nga service sakyanan basta adto lang sa Bohol puyo apan dili mosugot kondili gusto niya didto lang siya sa ciudad sa Davao bahalag medyo may pagka squater nga lugar basta padalhan lang siyag allowance sa iyang anak...unsa man tawag nimo ini gahig ulo, tapulan o unsa pa diha ay ambott!!!

The overall consensus of what Mr. Lindy points out correlates with the Solow economic growth model and the Richards Population Growth Law.

I rest my case.

'te,

That is exactly my point. Smaller countries such as Denmark, Germany, Singapore, South Korea, Netherlands have a rather small population compared to modernizing nations such as China, India, Philippines, all third world countries.

These countries, specifically the Western European states, experienced a massive population growth in the late 19th century during the age of the Industrial Revolution. These nations, western european nations, are more advanced, societally speaking, as compared to the developing asian countries. That is why they have a far more advanced health care system--which translates into decreased mortality rate, which therefore leads to a decrease in population growth as there is no longer a worry of producing offspring to provide for the family. In addition, these smaller countries have a solid hold on the global economy that is why there is no stress go abroad, no stress to have children.

Developing countries need population growth to fuel economic growth, in fact it is a law in economics called:
Solow economic growth model-the Richards population growth law

The way global polity works is there are the few states who control the wealth, and there are the massive number of nations that provide the manufacturing products, and there are those who are the third world who provide resources.

The Philippines is in the modernizing level; yes we provide natural resources, but the country is leaning towards a manufacturing-service economy.

Eventually, when the economy stabilizes itself (probably around 5-6 decades from now) there will be a stability in politics. A strong economy translates into a strong political sphere; look at America right now, the economy is weak, hence there is political disunity. Look at the Chinese government, they have a powerfully strong economic growth hence an overall unified Chinese Government, the Philippines' economy is still weak (though it is growing at a substantial rate) thus there are manifestations of societal uprisings, sentiments etc. When the Philippine economy secures itself, politics will eventually come along. It is impossible to ever separate economics and politics. The two are always correlated.

And when standard of living increases, and public services such as increased health clinics, employment opportunities, establishment of a welfare system; then population will decrease.

Its an evolutionary trend.

Secondly, we are all of the genus Homo Sapiens sapiens. Nationality, ethnicity, matters not. The yearnings and goals of nation states has a universality in the prolonging of species dominance. It will be impossible to completely cease population growth as it is natural. Humans, like the continuum of eukaryotes (complex organisms) and prokaryotes (simple organisms) will manifest a need to reproduce, and energy in form of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is needed-found in food, trees. Human productivity, if one looks at it in the grander scheme of things, follows the same trend as most animals. The need to survive, to reproduce.

Why do we have cars, heated homes, gasoline, jobs, water plants, etc. To secure resources to provide a source of attaining sustenance. Right? Why do we need sustenance? In order to secure our genomic proliferation. When one looks at this in a macro-view point, it translates into species-proliferation.

Species proliferation means survival.

However, there will always be natural forces per se diseases, hurricanes, tornadoes, droughts, and other phenomenons outside the realm of human control that can limit human population growth.

Quote from: ms da binsi on April 21, 2008, 03:37:37 PM

Quote from: Lorenzo on April 19, 2008, 12:38:49 AM

Quote from: salvation is free on April 18, 2008, 04:11:10 PM
Good news. Para daghan na Filipinos mo-occupy sa planet.

Amen!

I personally do not see any problem with overpopulation.

One thing is evident, our country has raw man power. So as that we will not be easily bullied by foreign powers. Sure we may not be as advanced as other countries, but in a war, the enemy will  fail in the Philippines.

Our shear size, and man power will bring us victory through attrition war.

Philippines needs breathing space.

RECLAIM Sabah!
RECLAIM Spratleys!
RECLAIM Guam!
RECLAIM Palau!

Dodong gi unsa gud tawon nimo pag hunahuna nang no problema ang over population?

over population in general destroys our planet, period!

My post was based on the Philippines' position in terms of inter/intra-regional politics and economics. It was based on a specified micro-view not on the overall globalized view.

Of course uncontrolled overpopulation is negative in that it coincides with the Malthusian concept; natural resources are linear and set while human population growth in terms of stress-free environment is asymmetrical.

On matters with the Philippines, a large population is positive in that it provides a constant wave of OFWs to boost the economy, a population base that will pay taxes and contribute to the local domestic economy thereby stimulating economics. A large population is a sign of a growing nation; in regards to the Philippines, which is significantly under-developed, our country has yet to experienced or attained societal apex. Population will grow until there is an augmentation and switch from manufacturing to service-orientation. When the economy and country becomes completely self-sufficient, when the standard of living increases above the present status quo, then there will be a manifestation of the antithesis of population trend. As in population will decrease.

It is a fact in terms of national evolution from a lower tiered society to an upper tiered society that population will increase to fuel growth. The same was observed in the United States and Western Europe in the late 19th century. When the Industrial Revolution spearheaded political primacy in the said regional states, population increased as demand of resources and production demand/quotas were bequeathed.

As the said nation states stratified into their present course, population has decreased.

The same applies for the Philippines, in case study. In terms of global polity, a larger a nation, the more power and sway it has on other countries. The smaller it is, the less it has influence (size of the nation in this case is indicated by its population size and resources available). It is the way global polity works, which is outside the sphere of natural science.

Don't get me wrong, I don't disagree with you that unchecked population explosion around the world would be cataclysmic, however, there are reasons (economic evolution) for such occurrences, which is rather edaphic.

What we deem destructive to the planet in terms of natural resource depletion and environmental damage is translated by political and economic analysts as 'necessary' for growth of modernizing nation states. There is a three-dimensionality constant when involving national polity, national economics, and environment. As there are laws that provide an explanation why natural forces work in their said limitations, so too are there in economics; which itself transcends the concept of nation states, borders. It directly influences populatory demographics.

Quote from: gelyan on April 18, 2008, 02:37:23 PM
yeah! nothing is impossible w/ God!

Gelyan, mao jud. Nothing is impossible for Him.

So what is everyone planning to do this upcoming summer of 2008? Mo balik mo sa Pilipinas? World touring? Vacationing sa inyong dapitan?

As for myself I'm still trying to arrange a way to come back to Bohol this July with the rest of my family for a reunion. It is definite that my family members (extended) are all going back to Bohol this summer. Pero I'm trying to make sure I give myself ample amount of time to buffer as the first day of medical school begins September 1, 2008. So that is in the priority list. Course load for the upcoming Fall Term includes: Gross Human Anatomy I, Medical Histology, Medical Legal Ethics and a full time hospital rotation 2 times a weeks. I will not deny that I'm feeling a bit anxious, scared and excited at the same time.

Kamo? Unsa man inyong plano? In either case, I hope that your summer plans are filled with joyous exultation! The Warm Sun! Wala na winter! 

I will send you a PM if any changes occur, Mr. Ayag.
Warm Regards,
BL

Oh man, this is so sad. Is there any updates on the condition of little Jayci?

Quote from: Ginger on April 21, 2008, 06:38:37 PM
Bella's siblings (these photos were taken when we took a walk saturday evening)

               

     
          your HUG A TREE request

     
          but bulak didn't want to hug


     
          hehehe dunno what to say. LOL!   

** more pics to come later

I like these pictures, 'te. The environment looks so pristine. Oh man, this is perfect for a winter hike.

And of course, you ladies are too cute

I must admit, I admire the Japanese' culminating blend of nature and man-made buildings. Seeing their buildings captures a symbiotic unison. Harmonic, indeed.

The architectural design of the La Iglesia de Sagrada Familia pronounces Spain's architectural eloquence.
The external grid illustrates a rich blend of baroque, classical to the late Imperial-Enlightenment.
















The church will be able to accommodate 13,000 people. When finished, the La Iglesia de Sagrada Familia will have a total of 18 towers. Four Towers on each of the three facades represent the 12 apostles.

Quote from: orChids on April 19, 2008, 06:22:20 PM
                             


                             


                             

These pictures are incredible, Ms. Orchids. What's the name of the temple?

hmm, I also wiggle my nose if I get bored. Any of you guys do the same thing?

Yes, ma'am.

I'm leaning towards Barak Obama.

Good night guys!

Quote from: LanggamTamsi2 on April 21, 2008, 04:09:49 PM
My picture of the day just taken last nighht @ 60th bday of my brod in law.



Me and my brod in law and my siters in law.

Looks they had a lot of fun. I'm loving the photographs on the wall in the second picture.

Nice shots, Ms. Langgam.

Quote from: grazie7y on April 21, 2008, 04:20:43 PM
Dong, so Bill Clinton campaigned for Hillary in your school?  How's the situation there, Dong?  Who do you think will win next week?

Yes, 'te, Pres. Clinton came on Saturday afternoon (1:30 PM) to do a campaign speech for Hillary. We had a pretty good turn out, though I didn't go to support Hillary, many of us came to hear him speak and see a former President of the United States.

I personally have alot of respect for President Clinton. The man is a brilliant economist and nation builder. Personal affairs aside, of course.

hahaha, bitaw it was pretty fun. Everyone in the picture are graduating seniors, Ms. Orchids.

This is our last spring fest. We will never 'forget' it, lol. Alot of crazy things happened hahaha

Fire Works @ Spring Fest,










Party @ the Apartment







smile for me, Tiff


Hmm, 


haha, i was in disbelief,

Spring Fest 2008!!!

(President Clinton came to our campus, spring fest events, party)


Students and town folk waiting for Clinton's arrival


Yup




Bill Clinton!


Sup, Bill!


Addressing Allegheny College!
My Alma Mater!

That sounds interesting, talibon. I'll definitely try that some time.