Categories
Vanguard

Tapping into atomic power: The risks, rewards of the nuclear industry

The 1986 Chernobyl reactor explosion left its tragic mark by killing more than 30 individuals in the initial explosion and contaminating the surrounding areas with high radiation. Other notable events—such as the Manhattan Project, the bombing of Hiroshima city, as well as another accident in Fukushima—have further aggravated resistance toward the use of nuclear energy.…

Categories
Vanguard

Left in oblivion: At the dawn of the Sixth Mass Extinction

Many have theorized how the end of the world will come. With threats ranging from biological warfare to brain-eating zombies or a destructive alien invasion, theories have ranged from the mundane to those out of this world. But while these ideas may seem far-fetched from the real state of the world, something looming in the…

Categories
Vanguard

Homegrown: JP Tan and the Clouduino Stratus

For many makers, hobbyists, and engineers, the Arduino has been a household name since its early beginnings in 2005. From how intuitively easy it is to use in addition to all the versatile features that come along with the device, the Arduino—a software tool that aids programmers in building applications—is readily programmable via an integrated…

Categories
Vanguard

DLS-CSB’s HiFi: Pushing stalwarts of change through social innovations

Self-driving cars, three-dimensional printing, fiber optics, bluetooth technology, and social media—these are just some of the innovative solutions and technologies that have shaped the 21st century. Greatly influencing how the world works, these advancements disrupted the monotony of established systems and workings; they paved the way for societal change. However, innovations are not limited to…

Categories
Vanguard

Tick tock: Zeroing in on possibilities, debunking theories on time manipulation

Time travel has been viewed as a work of fiction usually brought to life in popular media where audiences see what-could-be or what-could-have-been through glimpses of the future or flashbacks from the past. Highlighted in films such as Interstellar and Back to the Future, the very concept of traversing through time remains an unsolved mystery…

Categories
Vanguard

On environmental conservation initiatives: When the best ‘fix’ is taking a step back

Ecosystems like forests and coral reefs have immune capacity to support life and provide significant economic and ecological services, but only if they are healthy. The increasing area of barren lands and rising sea temperatures are symptomatic of nature’s heightening destruction, prompting many community-based projects—from tree planting to coastal clean-up activities—intended to improve the state…

Categories
Vanguard

Breaking the surface: On the redefinition of SI units, its impact on the STEM field

The human race is attuned to experiencing the ordinary on a day-to-day basis, but the world, at times, has other plans. More notable days, such as November 16 of last year, break this monotony by introducing groundbreaking discoveries, debunking outdated claims, or overcoming world standards and records. On that day at Versailles, France, 60 countries…

Categories
Vanguard

First came Dolly: Investigating the development, ethical considerations of cloning

It has been 23 years since the birth of Dolly, the sheep known to the world as the first mammal to have ever been successfully cloned through adult cell cloning—a cloning process which requires the replacement nucleus to come from an adult cell instead of an embryo. Originally part of a series of experiments led…

Categories
Vanguard

CESDR holds lecture on Anaerobic Co-Digestion of Grease Interceptor as a Model System

Last July 9, a talk titled, Linking the Microbiome to Reactor Performance: Anaerobic Co-Digestion of Grease Interceptor Waste as a Model System by Dr. Francis de los Reyes III, a professor from the North Carolina State University, was conducted at the Shell Companies in the Philippines Audio Visual Room of Velasco Hall.  Spearheaded by the…

Categories
Vanguard

Crabifier and BioMon Launch: Mobile applications for biodiversity, industry, and community dev’t.

July 8 marked the official public release of two mobile applications, Crabifier and BioMon, developed by research groups from the University’s Technologies for Biodiversity Use and Conservation Unit. The launch event, which took place at Br. Andrew Gonzalez Multipurpose Hall, featured a panel discussion as well as demonstrations of the new technologies. Describing the applications…