Last Night *edited*

i stumbled on a bbc interview which i don't know why, made me watch it... and in a few more moments... i was already glued. this guy from bbc (i forgot his name) was interviewing a man called jean-marie la pen, a man from the french legislative i think, and oh my god, i never hated a living man like this, i thought i was seeing the spawn of hitler alive!

this man was totally blaming ALL (yes, ALL) of france's problems to the immigrants(this is in line of the recent french street riots). he said that even immigrant's children born in france (and therefore are by birth-right french) was also part of the problem. he said he'd do everything to get get rid of these people! ...oh! don't get him wrong he says... "i have a black employee..." "i have other foreign employees..." "i am for intergration... but in small numbers..." "i am not an internationalist, i'm just nationalistic..." NATIONALISTIC!? F*CK YOU!! grrr...

it was very apparent that the bbc guy was starting to get irritated and was already making ways for him to say directly he hates these people... and la pen doesn't even seem to notice it... he's so preoccupied of thinking that what he's saying is right and good for his people and that they understand him. and this stupid guy bullshits all the bbc guys research about statistics on immigrants saying that the research is real bullshit when it was the french government itself that issued these figures.

hehehe... i remember the bbc guy saying... "so... you're saying these figures your goverment released are wrong and you're basing your statement on what you see on the streets everyday?" this was after the man was saying that "just look in the trains there are a lot more immigrants here" because the bbc guy was saying that in germany there is a higher ratio of immigrants vs. endemic people but there are no riots in germany. sigh... i really am disappointed there are still people in the world like this. and to think... this guy is thinking of running again for presidency in 2007(he lost to Chirac last presidential elections).

ANYWAY... i am enjoying watching HBO's rome and just noticed there are so much penis things in this TV Series-movie. penis graffiti on walls, showing real penises, on-stage dramas with penises hehehehe... i looked it up and it seems romans are really "in" to penises hehehehe... they view it as a symbol of power etc...

Another Friday

this was a really good friday. got to go break bread with my friends from a2 (though i didn't eat).

i watched harry potter and the goblet of fire on opening day. i thought it was better than azkaban. my only disappointment? it's too short for me, a lot of interesting things from the book were not included

oh! i bought my star wars episode iii dvd and have watched the yoda vs. sidious scene an endless number of times. reading from forums, many things were said about this duel which i think is really more interesting than obi-wan vs. anakin.

hmm... the emperor stronger than yoda? i think not, he had his advantages especially that he had an opposable thumb hahahaha but really yoda's real defeat was that he gave up when he lost his lightsaber. though i don't think he'd prefer any other method killing the emperor. i don't think he'd use force lightning even if he did know how to use it. during the last few moments of their force lightning resistance-battle you can see that master yoda was winning and sidious worried. but as i said... opposable thumb... hehehe

Star

looks like a mouse-deer ^_^

we have a new baby!

beautiful 1 month old japanese spitz of pure stock. we named her "STAR" ^_^ here she is nuzzling my tummy hehehe

Lame choices - -kind'a funny...

i tried a mock exam on bio and i found these choices... rather lame

why are large mammals sucessful in the grassland biome?
a) because they create their own shadow - - pfft! pretty lame huh

taxonomists...
a) work for the IRS - - haha im just oozing of sarcasm, was this supposed to be a joke!?

NEWphylum porifera(sponges) is appropriately named because...
a) they are not very rich - i don't understand why the exam has these choices ??

lz

Bacteria.... our ancestors

the endosymbiotic theory states that the origin of the eukaryotic organelles are symbiont bacteria which have been engulfed into other larger cells. this was trivial at first fueled by some observations. however, in the past few decades, it is surprising that evidences are accumulating providing evidence for this controversial theory:

a) mitochondria and chloroplasts have their own genetic material different from the information from the nucleus
b) mitochondria and chloroplasts divide in a similar manner as bacteria
c) mitochondria, chloroplasts, the nucleus, and the endomembrane system have double membrane systems the outer of which is similar to the cell membrane and inner more similar in make-up with prokaryotes
d) mitochondria and chloroplasts have 70s ribosomes, bacteria have 70s ribosomes. the ribosomes used by the cells are 80s

recently... centrioles have been found to contain small amounts of DNA. these were suggested as remnants of their origin.

what do you think?

Understanding - - then imparting

I admit, this is the thing that gives me that happy feeling inside hahahaha : understanding insanely unreadable stuff and then shedding light on it… reading stuff like gene regulation(which I ignored in college), I have to rest every paragraph just to give my brain breathing time hahaha sigh… I hope I do well doing imparting these stuff, I know it would be difficult, my paradigm-shift ‘ika nga, but I know I’ll emerge victorious ^_^
lz

Lessons to be learned…

I remembered the song I posted a while back… now… I send its message to a friend :

“there’s a universal plan for every woman, every man…”
“ there are reasons for the path we take”
“there are no mistakes, just lessons to be learned”

I’ve learned so much with all the things I’ve experienced, i hope you do too with yours ^_^

DNA methylation, parthenogenesis and hermaphrodism

Have you ever thought why there are no true mammal hermaphrodites or why mammals or vertebrates for that matter cannot reproduce parthenogenetically?

Today, reviewing gene regulation in eukaryotes, I’ve come to understand few basic principles which govern these events.

I’ve always thought that the only thing fertilization accomplishes is returning the number of chromosomes to the diploid number (2n). therefore, I also thought that if these was the case then, a zygote can be formed from a container and two egg cell nuclei or two sperm nuclei because it satisfies the requirement for the diploid number.

Apparently, it is not possible(as of the moment)because of an occurrence called DNA methylation. Cytosine residues in vitro are occasionally methylated and this determines whether a certain gene will be actively transcribed, repressed or do other functions. Now, the methylation pattern is usually preserved in the chromosomes you inherit from your mother and father. Remember that you have two sets of chromosomes, one from your mother and one from your father. Some genes are active only on one of the chromosomes… how is it determined which chromosome does the job? Is it the paternal of maternal chromosome? Some processes have an inherent order, for example, the gene for the enzyme ILGF-II (insulin like growth factor-II) is paternally unmethylated and maternally methylated. And in this case methylation serves as a negative regulator. Therefore, all your ILGF-II principally comes from your father.

The understanding of the principles which govern the pattern and inheritance of the methylation pattern is not yet fully understood. But this leads us to the point of my exhausting story, two egg nuclei thefore cannot be used to produce a zygote because the chromosomes have the same methylation pattern and in turn many of the genes will not function normally.

God is saying… "don’t mess with me, I’ve planned ahead" ^_^

Terms for the layman :
Parthenogenesis – zygotes develop without fertilization
Diploid – bearing two copies of chromosomes, humans have a diploid number(46 chromosomes in all), plants can be polyploid meaning they can have more than two sets, fungi and lower animals are usually monoploid/haploid
Cytosine – one of the four nucleotides which make up the genetic code
Methylated – a methyl group (-CH3) is attached to the molecule as a side-chain

Happy Christmas! Part II

since i got great reviews from my take on "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," i've decided to do one of my favorite melodies...

widely believed to be composed by Henry VIII(1491-1547), Greensleeves is a traditional english folk song and the following is my take on it. this is my arrangement and i've added the intro, ending and interludes. robert said there's a christmas lyric for this tune and i've yet to see it, i've always liked its medieval sound. pardon my mistakes and i hope you enjoy it.

Playing : Greensleeves (LZ on Piano) Download

Happy Christmas!

i'm really looking forward to this christmas ^_^ for one jasper's(my car) going to be fixed and i can drive around again haha! sigh... and this maybe my last christmas here ^_^ if lady luck's on my side ^_^

'twas a lazy day so i thought i'd record a christmas song for all of you ^_^ just ignore my mistakes hehehe! raindrops for my effort!

Playing : Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas (LZ on Piano) Download

Finally...

"He that loveth not, knoweth not

God - for God is love."

-- I John 4:8

finally... i've come to read Acts of Faith by Erich Segal. great story... sigh...

a wonderful day yesterday was even though tiring the least, walking in full stride from the train station to my building and then back, standing in the jampacked train then walking again, well it was worth it, i spent the day with my wonderful women (ha!) even though i had to endure a filipino movie (yes ^_^) even though afterwards i can't stop talking about how very unfortunate everybody's situation was (hehe) at least i felt satisfied we kept on disturbing everybody around us (as we usually do)

sigh... anyway... thank you marge for making me read this book, this just added more fuel for a certain hmmm.... pothole that's been in my life (otherwise very complete and satisfying for that matter) that i certainly don't wish to fill anytime soon, sigh... if all goes well (HAHAHA) margie, i vow! i won't be the first one of us to succumb to the lure of the son of Aphrodite

you go girl!

woohoo, i just learned from my highschool yahoogroup-mate that we won the miss international 2005 beauty contest and i was just so proud when i read how she answered her question :

Q: "what do you say to the people of the world who have typecastedfilipinos as nannies?"

A: "i take no offence on being typecasted as a nanny. But i do takeoffence that the educated people of the world have somehow denegratedthe true sense and meaning of what a nanny is. let me tell you what sheis. she is someone who gives more than she takes. She is someone youtrust to look after the very people most precious to you- your child, the elderly, yourself. she is the one who has made aliving out of caring and loving other people. so to those who havetypecasted us as nannies, thank you.it is a testament to the loving and caring culture of the Filipinopeople.and for that,i am forever proud and grateful of my roots and culture."

GREAT ANSWER! YOU GO GIRL! i've never been this proud being a filipino ^_^

^_^ by the powers vested upon me by the great godess ishtar i hereby declare Precious Lara Quigaman an honorary degree from the Ishtar Institute ^_^ HA!

"Blag!" Reloaded

pfft... these kids are.... i don't know... tsk tsk tsk... tell me roberto how do you pronounce "blog?" i got these from urbandictionary.com

american male pronouncing "blog" >> http://www.urbandictionary.com/listen.php?word=blog&skip=1

a "bugging" question

yesterday, on the jeepney as i was on my way home i observed an event which in this case (and for the umpteenth time) stimulated my curiosity.

really... i don't know how to explain this and i really want to know if someone knows how to.

i saw these fruitflies hovering near the trashcan in the jeepney. and curiously they remain hovering over the same spot in the jeepney even though the jeep accelerates, deccelerates, stops suddenly or whatever. you may not understand but try to recall some of your physics ^_^ isn't it that an object on the jeepney (let's take me as an example) will be subjected to newton's law of inertia which means that if the jeep suddenly stops i continue moving forward, hence, i might have to hold on to avoid me being thrown out of my seat. and this if i may remind you is because "i am ON to the jeep." another example would be on the elevator, you feel the inertia when it stops right!? now, my point here is: i move with the jeep because i am attached to it. ok.

now these fruitflies in the jeep and mosquitoes i saw in the train in the past are NOT ATTACHED to the vehicles but rather are flying, hovering, floating over them and not in any way attached to the jeep, how is it that they maintain their position when it is very obvious that they should be left behind as the moving vehicle moves forward. we can conduct a simple experiment: bounce a jackstone ball on table, now as the jackstone leaves the surface, push the table and what happens? the jackstone bounces back on a spot considerably far from its point of origin.

you can say that the fruitflies and the jackstone have rather different characteristics, one is living and the other is inanimate, but still both are subject to the laws of physics right!?

my question here is: ARE THE FRUITFLIES ACTIVELY FLYING WITH THE JEEP CONTINUOUSLY MONITORING THE CHANGES IN SPEED & DIRECTION!?

if they are, i'd be rather surprised because it gives them a rather high level of sophistication.

i've recieved insult from this question from my college physics professor, perhaps because he just doesn't know how to answer it, and still my questions remains unanswered... i will not rest until it is.

lz ^_^

La Naval de Manila 2005 Festivities

Everything went well, very beautiful as usual, i uploaded some pictures, if you want some desktop sized res images, just email me ^_^

Dominican Saints

I've added some of the pictures i took during the La Naval de Manila Festivities, if you are looking for more Dominican Saints or higher resolution versions of these images, email me (lordzagato@chrisalipio.com)
San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila - first Filipino Saint; Martyr