Tag: May 27, 2006

FOR the UST Hospital (USTH), improvement in its finances leads to new medical equipment.

In its aim to establish itself as one of the leading innovative hospitals in the country, USTH hauled in state-of-the-art medical equipment that will detect, diagnose, evaluate, and treat diseases quicker and safer, lessening risks and hastening patient recovery.

IN 2004, the UST Hospital (USTH) was in the middle of what was a seemingly insurmountable crisis. Financial woes, including an astounding P62 million debt, hounded the hospital, almost crippling its ability to spend for its operations and upgrade its equipment.

IN THE wake of debates to legalize marijuana in the United States, its Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ruled out any sound scientific study supporting the medical benefits of the “weed”.

Rep. Mark Souder of Indiana, an opponent of medical marijuana initiatives, claimed that efforts to legalize the therapeutic use of the depressant herb are just a front for the drug’s lucrative trade. Marijuana is legal in Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, and ten US states.

RICE, the staple food in Filipino diet, is found to have cancer-causing toxins.

A study made by Je Won Park of Ewha Woman’s University in South Korea, found that uncooked rice contains aflatoxin B1, a carcinogenic fungus that can cause liver cancer if taken excessively.

“But pressure-cooking appears to largely eliminate the poison from rice,” Park said.

Dr. Rosario Arim, head of the Mycotoxin Laboratory of Department of Science and Technology’s Research Utility and Management Division, said pressure-cooking could lessen aflatoxins.

THERE’S one place heavy traffic can get you these days––the road to impaired hearing.

According to a UST Center for Audiological Sciences study, long exposure to noise in busy metropolitan roads can lessen hearing sensitivity.

MUCH like the rest of popular culture where anything old can be new again, the zarzuela is now making a comeback.

Adapted from the traditional Spanish one-act musical play, the Filipino zarzuela is a play unique to our tastes, showing our seemingly inherent ability to incorporate our culture with another and make it our own. It is with this in mind that the Tourism and Performing Arts Society (TAPAS) has come out with the zarzuela “Dandansoy: Ang Gugma ni Dansoy kag Rosing (Dansoy’s Love for Rosing). “

AS THE age of hi-tech software continues to progress, a wider variety of editing tools and special effects programs are available for everybody’s digital needs—from color-blending options to layer-filtering preferences, sharpening picture selections to animated graphic alternatives.

But actually doing them may not be easy. Raul Beo, a master multimedia designer and head trainer of the UST Educational Technology Center, says people who become involved with hi-tech media still have to learn the nitty-gritty of the programs.

REVIEWING for exams, you turn on the radio to boost your spirits. Pop or rock music will probably groove you high, but if you’re after the right beat to rack your brains, listen to Mozart.

Studies say that listening to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s compositions, among other classical music, can tune up mind power. Since Mozart’s musical pieces match the rhythm of the brain, hearing his tunes could be the “sound” advice to anyone wishing to be bright.

THE COLLEGE of Commerce is set to revise its curriculum toward business- administration-related fields in view of the separation of the Accountancy program from the College in 2004.

College of Commerce College Secretary Joyce Llana said some of the courses in the College’s general education curriculum will become irrelevant to the students since they are considered preparatory subjects for the Accountancy program. The change in the business community’s trends today is also one of the reasons why the course is being revised.

DESPITE the University’s failure to be among the top performing schools, the Faculty of Engineering denied allegations of having a lackluster showing in the recent Electrical Engineer (EE) and Chemical Engineer (CHE) Licensure Exam.

“With four out of five examinees passing the April board exams, I can say that the (University), showed a consistent performance,” Engr. Carlito Gutierrez, the outgoing Chair of the EE Department, said.