THREE Thomasians received the 2002 Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Science Award for outstanding research in science and technology in ceremonies last Feb. 8 at the College of Fine Arts and Design Conference Hall.
Faculty of Engineering students Francis Castro and Brian Go, and College of Science student John Paul Lorredo were the top three Thomasian nominees for the award based on their outstanding scholastic achievements, leadership potentials, and researches.
Established in 1989, the BPI Science Awards aims to encourage budding scientists and researchers to scale higher levels of excellence in science, research, and technology development, which are essential components in nation-building.
The research of Castro, who is a Mechanical Engineering major, “Integration of Microsoft Access to Spur Gear Analysis and Design,” focused on the contribution of computer programs to advance machine design theories and applications.
On the other hand, Go, a fifth year Chemical Engineering student, concentrated on producing uniqe Filipino food products from indigenous raw materials. His research was titled “Extraction of Juice from the Philippine Mango Pulp using Thermophilic Pectinase Enzyme.”
His research on carabao mango solved the production problems of local mango juice producers on the low juice yield of the pulp, high viscosity of the juice, and low juice clarity.
Meanwhile, Lorredo, a BS Math senior, performed research on why men die younger than women in the Philippines and compared mortality findings abroad to the country.
His research titled “An Analysis of the Mortality Rates Among Individuals Living in the Rural and Urban Areas in the Philippines,” showed the difference of mortality rates between Filipino males and females and the factors affecting it. He also established the national trends on the mortality rates between males and females based on the different age groups.
Aside from UST, students from Ateneo de Davao University, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, Silliman University, St. Louis University, UP-Diliman, UP-Los Baños, University of San Carlos, and Xavier University were cited for their researches.
