Time for Music from our Filipino Singers/Bellagio Fountain

The video below is a duet rendition of the song made famous by Celine Dion and Josh Groban- The Prayer. There is also the Dion-Bocelli version that I have heard several times. I love this song and this is the first time I heard it sang by Dulce and Robert Sena. I hope you love this video and the related videos as much as I do.
Here's the Prayer as sang by the world reknown Madrigal Singers


Note that the Dion-Groban duet of this song has been heard by more than 2 million YouTube viewers. This Dulce-Robert Sena version has only been viewed by less than a thousand viewers, however, I like the Filipino singers duet better than the Dion-Groban interpretation of the song. The choral background by MADZ is excellent.



DO NOT Forget to view Church/Bocelli Duet of Time to Say Good Bye with the Fountain of Bellagio, Las Vegas as background. Macrine and I have been to Bellagio several years ago to view this fantastic and unforgettable water show while having cocktail in the Bellagio Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was an experience of a lifetime.

A Picture is worth more than Thousand Words

While surfing on the net, I found the following photos(www.rockingfacts.com/funny pictures)worthy of sharing. Enjoy the following six photos. No label is required.

Places Named Manila in US and other parts of the World

British Trio singing Manila in London
The only Manila that I am familiar with is Manila, Philippines. However, I was surprised that there are actually 11 cities/towns that are named Manila in the US, two of them in Alabama. There is one city in Paraguay, South America also named Manila. Here is the lists for your information. For details and map of the various US cities look in Goggles. Is there a city or town named Manila in Europe or Canada?

1. Manila, Alabama ( Clarke County)

2. Manila, Alabama (Dallas County)

3. Manila, Arizona

4. Manila, Arkansas

5. Manila, California -Manila is an unincorporated community in Humboldt County, California. It is located 3.25 miles (5.2 km) north of downtown Eureka, at an elevation of 13 feet (4 m). The ZIP Code is 95521. The town was founded at the end of World War II, and named after Manila in the Philippines.

6. Manila, Colorado

7. Manila, Kentucky

8. Manila, Missouri

9. Manila, Tennessee

10. Manila, Utah

11. Manila, West Virginia

12. Manila, Paraguay, South America

13. Manila, Philipines

A Change of Subject in this Blog-Joke of the Day

Crucifixion Scene-Moriones Festival, 2010 at the Boac River Park, Marinduque, Philippines

A change of subject in this blog to break the monotony. The following joke I reprinted from Sandee's Comedy Plus: Enjoy! Any comments! Would you like to read more jokes in this blog or not?

"The old Priest lay dying in the hospital. For years he had faithfully served the people. He motioned for his nurse to come near.

"Yes, Father?" said the nurse.

"I would really like to see the Prime Minister and Finance Minister before I die," whispered the Priest.

"I'll see what I can do, Father," replied the nurse. The nurse sent the request to the Prime Minister's office and waited for a response. Soon the word arrived that the Prime Minister and Finance Minister, devoted Christians both, were delighted to visit the Priest.

As they went to the hospital, the Prime Minister commented to the Finance Minister, "I don't know why the old Priest wants to see us but it will certainly help our images and might even get us some favorable publicity." The Finance Minister agreed that it was a good thing.

When they arrived at the Priest's room, the Priest took the Prime Minister's hand in his right hand and the Finance Minister's hand in his left. There was silence and a look of serenity on the old Priest's face.

Finally the Prime Minister spoke. "Father, of all the people you could have chosen, why did you choose us to be with you as you near the end?"

The old Priest slowly replied, "I have always tried to pattern my life after our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

"Amen," said the Prime Minister.

"Amen," said the Finance Minister.

The old Priest continued, "Jesus died between two thieves. I would like to do the same!"


Personal Note: Do you think this joke applies to Filipino politicians? Do you know what our Filipino politicians have been doing with their pork barrel funds for the last decades and even just recently( Fertilizer Scandal)? If you are a Filipino and have not heard of the fertilizer scandal, you must living in another planet!

I love Sunsets! How about You?

1. Sunset from Balcony of the Chateau Du Mer Beach House, Amoingon, Boac, Marinduque, Philippines

Over the years, I have seen and photographed several dozens of sunsets in several countries that my wife and I have visited. We have been to Marbella, Spain, Rome, Italy, London,England, Vancouver, B.C., Cancun, Mexico, Aruba, Hawaii( Maui, Kawaii, Big Island), Puerto Rico and most of the US big cities, New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Chicago, Kansas City, St Louis, Miami, New Orleans, Washington, D.C., Las Vegas, NV, Houston, TX and other small cities . But the two most beautiful sunsets that stir my emotion are the one at Amoingon Bay (#1- taken at the balcony of our Chateau Du Mer Beach house-top photo) and the one over Manila Bay(# 9 photo). You will probably say, I am partial since I am a Filipino-American, but judge it yourself. Above are ten of my favorite sunset pictures for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy! Comments, anyone?

2. Sunset, Eagle Beach, Aruba



3. Sunset, San Juan, Puerto Rico



4. Sunset, Hanalei Bay, Kauai



5. Sunset, Kaanapali, Maui



6. Sunset, Kona Village, Big Island, Hawaii



7. Sunset, Marbella, Spain



8. Sunset, Cancun, Mexico



9. Sunset, on Manila Bay, Philippines



10. Sunset, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Things to See and Do in Marinduque-My Island Paradise

Here's a video from marinduquegov.blogspot.com summarizing what you can see and do during your visit to Marinduque-my island Paradise. If you have additional questions feel free to call me or send me an email. I hope you enjoy this video. Cheers!

Filipino-American Scientists Impact on World Science

PAASE Logo
As retired member of the Philippine-American Academy of Science and Engineering (PAASE),I found the following article by Eduardo A. Padlan published in the Philippine Star dated July 15, 2010, very interesting and relevant to my life's experiences. Dr Padlan concluded that in the field of chemistry, biochemistry and molecular biology, Filipino-American scientists have made significant impact in world science. This is indeed music to my ears, being a Filipino-American chemist myself (retired chemistry team leader from the Food and Drug Administration, Center of New Drugs, Silver Spring, MD).

Here is the article for your reading pleasure. Thank you Ed, for a very informative and interesting article.

"As a nation, we are not publishing as many scientific papers as many of our neighbors do. Yet, individual Filipino scientists, here and abroad, are making significant contributions to world science. How much are our scientists contributing? How do their contributions compare with the best of the world? What impact has Filipino scientists made on world science?

There are numerous measures of the impact of the scientific work of a scientist. An analysis of the various metrics used in the evaluation of a researcher and his work is the topic of a recent Nature magazine special (print edition: June 17, 2010; available online at http://www.nature.com/news/specials/metrics/index.html. (With apologies, I’ll just use the male reference for writing ease.) One is the number of papers he has published, especially in peer-reviewed journals. An often-used gauge of the quality of one’s work is the number of his publications in “high-impact,” i.e. frequently cited, journals. Another measure is how often his publications are cited by others. There are arguments against the use of any of the measures currently being used, since there are inherent difficulties in the proper assessment of the impact of one’s scientific publications. (The reader is encouraged to read the articles in the Nature special, as well as the article by Peter Lawrence (2007), appropriately titled “The mismeasurement of science.”)

For one thing, the number of papers a scientist has published is a measure of his output — not necessarily the quality of his work. We all know of several individuals in the past who had published only a small number of papers, but whose work is still remembered to this day. One example is Francis Crick of the double-helix fame, who did seminal work not only in molecular biology but also in protein crystallography, but who published only 87 papers (listed in PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/) — several times fewer than the output of a number of scientists I know. Further, the number of papers in which an individual has published as a co-author does not necessarily reflect his true contribution to science.

Indeed, a major difficulty arises from the question of authorship. There is no problem when there is only one author. In a paper with multiple authors, proper attribution of credit is often not straightforward. What did each author contribute to the project and how can it be quantified? One could think of a measure that is somehow related to the order in which the authors are listed. But there is no uniform convention in the listing of authors. Sometimes, the listing of authors is done alphabetically — this is especially true in the old days. These days, the first-listed author is supposed to have contributed more to the project and the last-listed author (the senior author) is supposed to have been the originator of the idea behind the project. That is not always the case. More and more, we see papers where two or more of the authors are noted as having contributed equally to the work. Further, more projects are collaborations of several independent groups, so that the listing of authors is often the result of negotiation and does not necessarily reflect the contribution of the individual authors.

And there is an inherent difficulty in judging the quality of a paper that was published in a “high-impact” journal. A journal’s “impact factor” is based on the number of times the articles in that journal are cited by others, so that it represents the average impact of all the articles which appeared in that journal and is not a measure of the impact of any individual article. The “impact factor” is so misused that the European Association of Science Editors has recommended that “journal impact factors be used only — and cautiously — for measuring and comparing the influence of entire journals, but not for the assessment of single papers, and certainly not for the assessment of researchers or research programs either directly or as a surrogate” (European Association of Science Editors 2007).

A more appropriate measure of a paper’s impact is probably the number of times that that paper is cited by others and a good measure of a scientist’s impact would be the total number of times his publications had been cited. One measure that is gaining acceptance is the “h-index”, which is defined as the number h of a scientist’s publications with at least h citations (Hirsch 2005). Interestingly, the “h-index” appears to obviate the need to correct for the problem associated with multiple authorships and self-citations (Hirsch 2007). But any measure that is used to estimate the impact of a scientist that is based on citations depends on his field or discipline. For example, since there are fewer mathematicians than biologists, the number of citations of a mathematical paper would be expected to be fewer than that of a biological paper. Any comparison should be limited to those in the same or closely related disciplines.

I have chosen to use the “h-index” in assessing the impact of some Filipino scientists on world science — with all the appropriate caveats.

I present the h-index of some of the most published Philippine- and foreign-based Filipino chemists, biochemists, and molecular biologists. The list is necessarily incomplete, since I do not know all the Filipino scientists in those fields, and I apologize for any omission. For reasons of space, I have chosen an arbitrary cutoff. The numbers were obtained on June 2, 2010 (a scientist’s h-index changes with time) and my source of information is Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com/), which is free and available to anyone with access to the Internet. The numbers may be different if a different citation database is used (I have no access to other databases other than Google Scholar). An important aspect of a Google Scholar search is the possibility of including citations from patents and I chose that option because those citations reflect the significant contribution of an article to novelty and practical use. The compilation should be made more complete and for all fields, and updated periodically, if we wish to see how our scientists continue to impact world science. At the end of the list, I have added the h-index of two well-known scientists in those fields.

Here’s the list: the h-index (shown in parentheses) of Rigoberto Advincula (33), Lourdes Cruz (40), Sevilla Detera-Wadleigh (39), Pedro Jose (40), Bienvenido Juliano (44), Carlito Lebrilla (31), Baldomero Olivera (63), Michael Purugganan (33), and Florante Quiocho (57); and those of Francis Crick (49) and Linus Pauling (81).

Again, I must emphasize that this is an incomplete list and only for those in the fields of chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology.

The reader can draw his own conclusions. My conclusion? Our kapwa-Filipinos are making a significant impact on world science. The future of Philippine science is bright"!

My congratulations to the above listed Filipino-American Scientists. May your tribe Increase and Keep up with the Good Work! Mabuhay ang PAASE!

Filipino Accents- is it Funny or Not?

Image from shutyourmouthtumbler.com
The following video (and related videos) explain why Filipinos like to joke about their Filipino accents. In my previous posting I discussed the numerous number of dialects in the Philippines. A stranger will usually guess what part of the country you came from by just listening to your accent. Some accents annoyed me, others I love to hear. If you are a Filipino-American, which accent annoys you? The Ilocano, the Ilonggo, the Batanganeo or the Cebuano? Enjoy the following videos.

Scary News-Balikbayans Watch Out and Beware

Today's news written by DJ Yap in the Philippine Daily Inquirer is indeed shocking and scary. Reading this article is scary it could happen easily to all balikbayans or tourist from the US. The article is titled "Couple lose SUV, cash to armed carjackers who followed them from airport".

Now I have second thoughts of vacationing to the Philippines. If this incident continues, it will ruined the tourism industry in the Philippines. I have a question, Is it legal to carry and bring to the Philippines 2.5 Million pesos in cash? Any one know the answer? I believe one is allowed to carry cash not to exceed $10,000, but you are suppose to declare it to immigration. Am I right?


"AN AMERICAN and his Filipino wife lost their sports utility vehicle (SUV) and P2.5 million in cash and valuables to armed carjackers who attacked them along Edsa in Mandaluyong City early Friday morning.

The incident occurred at 1:10 a.m. at the intersection of Edsa and Shaw Boulevard, investigators at the Mandaluyong Police Station said.

Frederick Allan Boutcher, 63, and his wife Priny Mosquito-Boutcher, 52, had earlier landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and were traveling on board a gold Isuzu Crosswind, with plate number XJY-499, when a red Toyota Innova bumped the rear of their vehicle repeatedly.

Rogelio Maullan, Boutcher’s stepson, who was driving the SUV ignored the bumps, until the Innova overtook their vehicle and cut them in front, prompting him to stop.

Five men armed with short firearms got off the Innova and forced Maullan out of the car. The men then commandeered the vehicle with the Boutchers still aboard, said Eastern Police District Director Francisco Manalo.

The suspects dropped off the couple in Galas, Quezon City, where they reported the incident to police at the nearest precinct.

Taken from the Boutchers were $2,500 in cash (about P115,000), three cellular phones, several pieces of jewelry, including the couple’s matching 22-karat wedding rings, five suitcases containing their bank passbooks, a land title, and other valuable bank documents.

Manalo said the heist was virtually the same as the modus operandi used on the family of Jorge Bernas, brother-in-law of Luli Arroyo, daughter of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, in Pasig City last month. The Bernas family had just arrived at the airport when they were attacked along C-5 Road.

The official said he instructed the Mandaluyong police to work on the composite sketches of the suspects quickly. The suspects were in plain clothes and their faces were not covered, he said.

Manalo also said he went to the Southern Police District to coordinate efforts in tracking down the carjackers. He said they believe the suspects pick their victims by observing arriving passengers at the terminal".

Visitor's Location-July 14, 2010

Fertilizer Scandal Investigation in the News

The following news article from GMA News(11/08) attracted my attention, after I heard in TV GMA News today, a list of four names of congress representatives and other government and private individuals, that had been charged for illegal use of funds in connection with this fertilizer scandal. This is one of the biggest scam and scandal in The Arroyo administration. One of the names in the list is our former Congresswoman and now Marinduque Governor Carmencita Reyes. There are other famous names in the list, so my feeling that all politicians are crooks are indeed reinforced by this news. I realized that these politicians spent a lot of money to be elected ( buying votes). So one of the easiest way of getting their money back is to get involved with scandals. Here's the news for your reading displeasure. Shame!Shame! to all you politicians. I hope your conscience will bother you till the end of your days!

"MANILA, Philippines(11/08) - The Office of the Ombudsman has filed a complaint against public officials allegedly involved in the multimillion-peso fertilizer fund scandal.

The agency’s Task Force Abono (fertilizer) charged Quezon City Rep. Nanette C. Daza (4th district), Marinduque Rep. Carmencita O. Reyes, former Malabon-Navotas Rep. Federico S. Sandoval II and former Batangas Rep. Oscar L. Gozos for illegal fund use.

In a press conference, Assistant Ombudsman Jose T. de Jesus, Jr. said the fact-finding committee found sufficient evidence that of the P728-million budget for farm inputs/implements program, P14 million was spent for farm implements not included in the Ginintuang Masaganang Ani rice program.

In addition, the Commission on Audit (CoA) found out cheaper items that were then available from other suppliers. Mr. de Jesus said this constitutes technical malversation.

The purchases did not undergo bidding under the Government Procurement Reform Act, which, Mr. de Jesus said, constitutes technical malversation.

Other respondents were Agriculture officials Dennis B. Araullo, Balagtas J. Torres, Juvylee C. Obice, Rodolfo M. Guieb, Marie Paz Jasmine C. Cabucol, Raymundo E. Braganza, Abelardo Bragas, Felix Ramos, Ofelia Montilla and Gregorio Sangalang.

Private respondents included officials from the LCV Design and Fabrication Corp., namely, Linus C. Villanueva, Remus C. Villanueva, Phydias B. Bañez, Fernando F. Gallarte and Frederico B. Quevedo.

Similar complaints have been served for former Agriculture Undersecretary Jocelyn "Joc-Joc" I. Bolante, former Agriculture secretary Luis P. Lorenzo and incumbent Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap.

The investigation stemmed from allegations that Mr. Bolante diverted funds for the Agriculture department’s rice program to allies of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to ensure her election in 2004 presidential elections.

House probe

Meanwhile, the House committee on agriculture issued invitations to Mr. Bolante, Budget Secretary Rolando G. Andaya, former Budget secretary Emilia T. Boncodin, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas Secretary-General Danilo Ramos, CoA Chairman Reynaldo A. Villar and Agriculture Undersecretary for finance Belinda A. Gonzales to attend Wednesday’s hearing on the fertilizer fund case".

Governors and Congress Representatives of Marinduque

Juan M. Nieva, Lt. Governor, 1907-1916
The following is the list of Governors and Representatives of Marinduque from 1898 to the present.This was published in Eli Obligacion blog, marinduquegov.blogspot.com
I found it very informative and interesting because it showed that Marinduque is not exempted from the Philippines' Political Dynasty Syndrome. Most of the old names sound very, very familiar to me even though I was not raised in Marinduque. But the two names that I have familial association with are the late Juan Nieva ( my wife's( Macrine) grand father) and the late Celso Preclaro ( Macrine's uncle) who was the governor in 1963-1967. Engineer Preclaro (from Santa Cruz) was the late husband of Macrine's aunt Tita Ponti Jambalos from Laylay. Tita Ponti is the older sister of Macrine's Dad, Bernardo Jambalos, Jr of Boac. I used to visit their residence in Sampaloc, Manila, while I was courting Macrine in mid 1950's. Here's the list that is still not complete according to Obligacion.

GOVERNORS OF MARINDUQUE

1898-1901 MARTIN LARDIZABAL Politico-Military Governor
(Appointed Military Governor of Marinduque with Eduardo Nepomuceno as Delegado de Justicia, Tomas Roque as Delegado de Hacienda and Calixto Nieva as Delegado de Policia. Lardizabal was Commandant of the Marinduque Revolutionary Force during the Philippine-American War in Marinduque).

1901-1902 RICARDO G. PARAS, SR.* Provincial Governor of
Tayabas and Marinduque
1902-1904 RICARDO G. PARAS, SR.* Lieutenant Governor
1904-1907 RICARDO G. PARAS, SR.* Provincial Governor
(Paras was delegate to the Malolos Congress in 1898; appointed provincial governor by Pres. William H. Taft from 1901-1902, then as lieutenant governor from 1901-1904 and provincial governor from 1904-1907)

1907-1916 JUAN M. NIEVA* Lieutenant Governor
(Nieva was appointed lieutenant governor; became the municipal president of Sta. Cruz; campaigned hard for the extensive planting of coconuts throughout the province; all the towns of Marinduque were first connected during his term through the installation of telegraphic lines)

(Act No. 1649 May 17, 1907, declared that all of the territory comprised in the Island of Marinduque to be the sub-province of Marinduque, forming a part of the Province of Tayabas. Section 1 of said Act provided for a lieutenant governor for the said sub-province to be appointed by the Governor General with the advise and consent of the Philippine Commission.)

1916-1919 PEDRO MADRIGAL (elected) Lieutenant Governor
(Madrigal’s name was associated with the Philippine-American War in Marinduque; also former municipal president, he established the first drug store, “Botica de Boac”.

(Act No. 2354 Feb. 28, 1914 was passed making the office of Lieutenant-Governor elective in the sub-province of Marinduque, Tayabas)

1919-1920 VICENTE TRIVINO (elected) Lieutenant Governor

(Trivino was aide-de-camp of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo and participated actively in revolutionary activities during the Philippine-American War; was first appointed provincial governor under the Marinduque Charter (1920). Act No. 2880 Feb. 21, 1920, separated the sub-province of Marinduque from the province of Tayabas)

1920-1922 VICENTE TRIVINO (hold-over) Provincial Governor
1922-1925
1925-1929 DAMIAN REYES Provincial Governor
1929-1933
1933-1936 PEDRO DEL MUNDO Provincial Governor
1936-1939
1939-1942 JOSE L. BASA
1942-1945 JOSE L. BASA (hold-over)
1945-1946 RICARDO NEPOMUCENO, SR.*
1946-1947 CESAR NEPOMUCENO*
1947-1951 CESAR NEPOMUCENO
1951-1955
1955-1963 MIGUEL M. MANGUERA
1963-1967 CELSO PRECLARO
1967-1988 ARISTEO M. LECAROZ
1988-1992 LUISITO M. REYES
1992-1995 LUISITO M. REYES
1995-1998 JOSE ANTONIO N. CARRION
1998-2007 CARMENCITA O. REYES

Carrion served as Governor of Marinduque from 1995-1998 and 2007-2010.
2007-2010 JOSE ANTONIO N. CARRION

Reyes served as Assemblywoman from 1978 to 1986 (Martial Law period), Representative of Marinduque from 1987 to 1998 and 2007 to 2010, as well as Governor from 1998 to 2007 and 2010 to present.
2010-PRESENT CARMENCITA O. REYES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Members of the Philippine House of Congress ( Philippine Legislature)

Marinduque had no representation from 1907-1922. GREGORIO NIEVA of Boac was appointed, however, as Secretary of the House in 1910.

1922-1925 RICARDO NEPOMUCENO
1925-1928 RICARDO NEPOMUCENO
1928-1931 RICARDO NEPOMUCENO
1931-1934 JOSE A. UY
1934-1935 JOSE A. UY

Commonwealth Government
1935-1938 CECILIO A. MANEJA (Maneja was defeated by Jose A. Uy in election contest decided in 1937)
1938-1941 JOSE A. UY
1941-1946 CECILIO A. MANEJA

Republic of the Philippines
1946-1949 TIMOTEO RICOHERMOSO
1949-1953 PANFILO M. MANGUERA
1953-1957 PANFILO M. MANGUERA
1957-1961 FRANCISCO M. LECAROZ
1961-1965 FRANCISCO M. LECAROZ
1965-1969 FRANCISCO M. LECAROZ
1969-1972 FRANCISCO M. LECAROZ

Martial Law Priod
1978-1986 CARMENCITA O. REYES
1987-1992 CARMENCITA O. REYES
1992-1995 CARMENCITA O. REYES
1995-1998 CARMENCITA O. REYES
1998-2001 EDMUNDO O. REYES, JR.
2001-2004 EDMUNDO O. REYES, JR.
2004-2007 EDMUNDO O. REYES, JR.
2007-2010 CARMENCITA O. REYES
2010-Present Allan Jay Velasco

A Road to the Interior of Marinduque(Central)

Ferns along this Rural Road
The following video is from Marinduque Rising, Eli Obligacion blog about Marinduque.
HOPEFULLY, this project will be completed soon as central Marinduque is beautiful, scenic and the climate cooler because of the high elevation. I had the privilege of joining a tour of central Marinduque about 6 years ago through the invitation of current governor-elect Carmencita Reyes. There was then even a plan/talk about constructing a city( to be called Carmen City)and call it the summer capital of Marinduque. I hope this project will be continued to insure that Marinduque will indeed be officially recognized as the ecotourism capital of the Philippines