Finding fault is now easier with the new web-based app from PHIVOLCS

Thursday, September 22, 2016 12:09 AM

Views : 97By:DOST-PHIVOLCS

PHIVOLCS Fault Finder (http://faultfinder.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/) is an application capable to do proximity searches to active

faults. It may be used to determine the location of Active Faults in an area and to measure the shortest distance
between an active fault and a user's current location, which is determined by the gadget's tracking device. It may also
be used to measure the shortest distance between an active fault and a specific site, which is identified by a user.

The app would be useful for land-use planning, risk assessment, disaster risk reduction plan, and awareness.
This web app is a product of the joint collaboration between the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology
(PHIVOLCS), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Geological Survey of Japan (GSJ), National Institute
of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Japan. It was developed by Dr. Joel C. Bandibas of GSJ with
the cooperation of the research and development personnel of PHIVOLCS.

The app uses three base maps, Philippines Geoportal from NAMRIA, Google Maps, and OpenStreet. Information
about a particular query includes information on the Distance to the Nearest Active Fault, Fault Name, Fault Segment
Name, Year of the Mapping, and Map Scale used during the mapping.If you are currently located, or if want to know
the location of active faults, in the Greater Metro Manila Area (GMMA), click "Valley Fault System (VFS)" in the
opening page, otherwise, click "Other Fault Systems".
To determine the distance of your current location to the nearest fault, turn on your gadget's tracking device. Click the
"VFS Fault Nearest You" or "Active Fault Nearest You". You may click on "Active Fault Based on Location" tab if you
want to know the distance of a Barangay to the nearest active fault. Or you may choose "Double Click a Place on the
Map" and double click your cursor on any area of interest.
You may click "Base Maps" located at the upper rightmost corner of the map, to change maps. Click "Legend" located
at the lower rightmost corner of the map to see the legend.
For

more

information

on

how

to

use

the

Fault

below.https://www.facebook.com/mabee.cahulogan/videos/10154416261424265/

Finder,

watch

the

instructional

video

PHIVOLCS takes the necessary steps to continually improve the accuracy of the fault information reflected in this
application. The institute does not guarantee information from third-party sources. The public is advised to consult
PHIVOLCS directly for official hazards assessment.

Feminized male carps indicate Laguna Bay pollution

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 11:57 PM

Views : 92By:Geraldine Bulaon-Ducusin - S&T Media Service, DOST-STII

The common carp, known as karpa in the local market, can possibly help in detecting the magnitude of wastes in
water ways.
In a study conducted by Dr. Michelle Grace V. Paraso of the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of the
Philippines, Los Baos, carp was found to have a potential use as a biomarker in detecting the level of pollutants in
the country's water resources.
The study evaluated carp as fish biomarker in determining the contamination of Laguna de Bay in four sites: Sta.
Cruz and Paete, Laguna (East Bay) and Taguig City and Muntinlupa City (West Bay).
A biomarker is an organism with a particular substance which may serve as indicator of some natural phenomenon
like pollution and various biological pressures like infection and disease.
Dr. Paraso found that majority of the male carps in study site have shrunk testes compared with that of the normal
male carp. Shrunk testes of a male carp indicate that the fish has been feminized. Such feminization shows that the
carp was exposed to certain type of pollutant known as estrogen, among others.
According to the study, changes in the reproductive conditions of carp are influenced by several factors, such as food
availability, water quality, and temperature.
Estrogenic contaminant or pollutant is estrogen produced through unnatural means. The contaminants developed
from chemical components obtained in an environment and they cause reproductive impairment in water organisms
such as fish.
Paraso is an expert from the Veterinary Medicine Division of the National Research Council of the Philippines of the
Department of Science and Technology (NRCP-DOST) which funded this study. The study is relevant at this time
when the government is pushing for a cleaner environment, especially in the coastal areas where many people live
and obtain their livelihood. To know more about the services of NRCP, visit their website:
Geraldine

Bulaon-Ducusin,

DOST-STII

Photos

by

Val

http://www.nrcp.dost.gov.ph

Zabala,

(By

DOST-NRCP)

?
Upper photo: A scientist collects blood sample from a carp found in one of the study sites. Lower photo: Smaller
testes of the carp makes it "feminized", indicating pollution in sample site.

DOST STARBOOKS Tugon sa kakulangan ng Library sa Bansa

Saturday, September 24, 2016 06:30 AM

Views : 67By:Raffy Rico

DAHIL sa kakulangan ng magagamit na Libro sa library ng public at ibang private school sa bansa para sa research
ng mga estudyante, naka-isip ang DOST ng magandang paraan para matugunan ang kakulangan ng libro.
Nitong nakaraang September 23, 2016, walang pagsidlan sa tuwa ang mga estudyante, guro, mga magulang at
residentente ng Dayap National High School sa Barangay Dayap, Calauan, Laguna matapos na makabitan ng Super
STARBOOKS ang kanilang campus. . Sila ang masuerte at pinalad na makabitan ng ika-1000th site ng STARBOOKS
na binuo ng Science and Technology Information Institute (STII), na ahensiya ng Department of Science and
Technology (DOST).
Pinangunahan ni DOST Secretary Fortunato T. De La Pea ang unveiling ng marker para sa ika- 1000th site ng
DOST STARBOOKS. Ito ay dinaluhan nina Calauan Mayor Buenafrido T. Berris, DOST Assistant Secretary for
Countryside Development Dr. Urduja A. Tejada, DOST Region IV-A Director Dr. Alexander R. Madrigal, DOST-STII
Director Richard P. Burgos, DepEd Superintendent Dr. Joselyn S. Solana, Dayap National High School OIC and
DepEd Supervisor Dr. Florentina C. Rancap, and Provincial S&T Center-Laguna Director Engr. Samuel L. Caperina.
Sa kalagitnaan ng mensahe ni Secretary DeLa Pea, pumili siya ng 10 estudyante na nasa grade-7 at isa-isang
tinanong kung ano ang gusto nilang maging sa paglaki. Anim ang sumagot na gusto maging engineer, apat naman
ang nais maging Doctor. Agad na ipinakuha ni De La Pea ang mga pangalan nila para gawing scholar ng DOST.
Nangako naman ang Mayor ng Calauan na si Buenafrido T. Berris na magdadagdag sila 20 additonal units ng
computer para sa kapakinabangan ng mga estudyante sa Dayap National High School at additonal site para sa
bayan ng Calauan, Laguna.
Ang DOST STARBOOKS ay ang kaunaunahang digital science library-in-a-box sa bansa na inilungsad taong 2011.
Maari itong gamitin kahit walang internet. Sagana ito sa research materials sa science and technology local and
foreign, resource materials sa text, video, and audio formats; mayroon din journals, technology materials at

livelihood videos. Kasama nang nakapaloob na topic dito ang tungkol sa food and nutritions, health at medicine,
energy, environment, climate change, livelihood projects, at iba pa.
Sa ngayon, ang upgraded version na tinawag na Super STARBOOKS na siyang ikinabit sa loob ng campus ng
Dayap National High School ay may apat na terminals para magamit ng maraming estudyante, bukod sa dati ng
contents na nakapaloob sa kauna-unahang STARBOOKS, ang Super STARBOOKS ay mayroong pang 15,000
mahigit na research materials kasama na ang Tamang DOSTkarte Livelihood series idial for students, professionals,
at housewives na may enterpreneurial spirit.
Ang super STARBOOKS sa ngayon ay ipinapakalat na nationwide sa ibat-ibang private at public school sa bansa,
maging sa mga municipal libraries, government offices at iba pang institusyon ng libre. Ang kailangan lamang na
magkaroon ng computer unit at kiosk ang makakabitan nito, at bahala na ang STII na mangalaga sa content, paguupgrade ng unit at training ng librarian. Posibleng maging katuwang na ng DOST ang Samsung, Aboitiz, Eastwest
Rural Bank, Cebuana Lhuillier, Children's Hour Philippines at ang HP sa darating na mga araw.
Ang ilan pa sa magiging upcoming content partnerships ng STARBOOKS ay ang CFO (Sentro Virtual Rizal),
Technology Patents-TAPI, Entries for RICE and NICE TAPI, Front Learners E-Learning, Interactive Softwares from
Various National High School, Desaster Information Videos from -Weather Philippines, at ang Pinoy SciencePCIEERD.
Dahil sa novelty ng DOST STARBOOKS ito ay binigyang parangal ng American Library Association ng Presidencial
Citation for Innovative International Library Projects taong 2015, June 29, sa International Librarians Reception sa
San Francisco Library sa San Francisco California.
Ang clients category ng STRABOOKS sa ngayon as of June 24, 2016: school 769 sites (82%), LGU 96 sites (10%),
NGO'S/Private Institutions 69 sites (7%) at 5 sites (1%)naman sa Gov't Agency. (Click picture below to enlarge)

Developmental disorders in kids

Thursday, October 06, 2016 07:40 AM

Views : 18By:Nickky Faustine P. De Guzman

INTERNET addiction and stress, among many other factors, may contribute to developmental disorders among
children in the Philippines, said Dr. Ma. Rochelle Buenavista-Pacifico, a developmental and behavioral pediatrician.

Developmental disorders are "chronic brain problems with motor impairment, language, learning, cognition, and
neuro-behavioral symptoms," said Dr. Pacifico.
"Magkakamag-anak ang mental disorders (mental disorders are related) They are an evolution of symptoms during
infancy and childhood," she said in a press conference on Sept. 27.
The disorders may arise from genetic, infectious, or toxic factors, traumatic insults, and even environmental exposure
like too much Internet exposure and extreme stress on both mothers and the developing infants. She said stress
among children makes their brain smaller, lowers their immunity, and can lead to cognitive deficits in learning and
memory. Women who suffer extreme stress during pregnancy may have a premature baby, or a child who is
temperamental, hyperactive, and inattentive. These children may develop diabetes, depression, and schizophrenia as
comorbidities later in life.
Internet addiction and even regular exposure to a computer for an average of seven hours per day also affect child
development. According to Dr. Pacifico's research study, "Abnormal White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with
Internet Addiction Disorder: A Tract-Based Spatial Statistics Study," the screen time exposure creates subtle damage
even in children with regular Internet exposure. The kids are "impulsive, moody, and cannot pay attention," she said.
According to her presentation, in the Philippines in 2015, there were 2.1 million children between the ages five to 14
years with mental disabilities. Worldwide, the prevalence of autism a neurological and developmental disorder that
begins early in childhood and lasts throughout a person's life has increased between 1980 to 2013: in 1980, one in
every 10,000 people was autistic; by 2013, it was one in every 68. Dr. Pacifico cited the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, Autism, and Developmental Disorders Monitoring network as her source.
The increasing number of people with developmental diseases is due to a number of factors: the increase in the
survival rate because of improved medical practice; the increase in awareness of these conditions; and the increase
in maternal age, with more women deciding to have a baby later in life which increases the risk of having a mentally
challenged child.
"Early intervention is key," said adult psychiatrist Dr. Pearl Reyes.
According to studies, the first three years of a child are critical in development. If a disorder is detected early on,
there's a big chance of "brain re-wiring."
"There are special kids who can be independent if they have early intervention. There can be autistic kids who can
play the piano or excel in school," she said.
Besides the early intervention, the specialists also emphasize support within the family members.
"A hyperactive child isn't necessarily a bad child," said Ms. Reyes. When parents tell their children that they are bad
orpasaway, malikot, or magulo (naughty, restless, rowdy) and they keep on hearing this, "there's a less chance for
success later in life," she said.
The contributing problem, according to the doctors, is that the parents deny that there is a problem because they
couldn't accept it or because of fear of society's stigma.
The consequences of late detection and treatment are many and lifelong, including "social burden, missed
opportunity, strain in family and finances, and social downward shift," said Ms. Reyes.
The experts couldn't overemphasized the power of early detection and intervention.

There aren't many centers for children needing special attention in the Philippines, but one of them is the new
Progress Child Development Center located at the Protacio Hospital in Quirino Ave., Tambo, Paraaque. The center
is equipped with facilities and specialists for children and adults with developmental disorders. It offers developmental
pediatrics, occupational therapy, family counseling, physical and speech therapies, SpEd tutorials, psychiatry, and
neurology services. Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman