Anselmo Set Cabigan, Ph.D. - Naturalist, Nationalist, Scientist, Linguist, Professor, Agriculturist, Grandpa, Friend

                                  A Living Tribute in 24 Articles 

      Anselmo Set Cabigan, Ph.D. 

- Naturalist, Nationalist, Scientist, Linguist, 

Professor, Agriculturist, Grandpa, Friend

An octogenarian, Dr Cabigan continues to ponder at Nature's secrets, not so much to understand but wonder with awe and reverence. For Nature is the greatest manifestation of that Omnipotent power of the Creator.

   Dr Abe V Rotor 

Dr Sel Cabigan examines a tree laden with symbionts that form 

a mini ecosystem. Caliraya, Laguna, circa 2002

 

1. No Living Thing is an Island.

2. Old Folks Re-defined 

3. Friends disagree yet agree at a common end

4. Is Rationality a Mask of Reality?

5. The Versatile Bamboo

6. Enigmatic Pongapong

7. Get out of your confine, love the sun

8. Angels Just Pass By 

9. People's Green Revolution in the seventies saved us from Food Crisis

10. Nata de coco Shoes - first of its kind in the world

11. Retrieving researches from old files - how valuable are their results today?

12. The Lost SPU-QC Ecological Sanctuary

13. Twenty Philosophies of Ageing Gracefully

14. What flower is white in the morning and pink in the afternoon?

15. Reviving Philippine Ethnic Literature

16. The making of an effective professor-researcher

17. Have you seen a kugtong or giant lapu-lapu?

18. Living with Nature Foreword  

19. Biology:  Here's a Self-Administered Test 

20. Sinadyaya - the highest quality aromatic brown rice in the market.

21. The Face of Christ Appears on a Painting

22. The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam - an unparalleled masterpiece 

23.  A Tribute to the Pioneers in Biology in the Philippines 

Annex - Self-Administered test on Ethnobotany. 

              Can you identify these indigenous plants?  

                              1. No Living Thing is an Island

A great mind can see the small, the minuscule,

      screen vividly open like a living stage,

where creatures big and small play vital roles,

      in a system like a book page by page.

No living thing is an island, it is part of a whole,

      and yet that whole is not the sum 

of number and kind, neither the measure of time,

      and space and changes to come.  

A tree bears a dual role - individual and host -

     often missed in research and accord,

save he who is gifted a naturalist and teacher

     to save the tree and our world. ~

  2. Old Folks Re-defined  

SPU-QC Senior Faculty: (Left to right) The late Prof Rey Pedroche, Dr Sel Cabigan, 

the author, and Dr Manny Martinez. Angels' Hills, Tagaytay, circa 2007

Who are the old folks,  

but the disciples of   

Confucius and Longfellow,

Gandhi and Thoreau.

The unknown soldier   

of old, doctor, teacher

in war and in peace,

the village elder.

Link of generations,

of human phylogeny, 

authors and models  

of history. ~ 

3. Friends disagree yet agree at a common end

       

Author (left) and Dr Cabigan examine a flowering liana growing on 

windy Tagaytay ridge. Calaruega, Cavite, 2006,.

What friends are - agreeing or not - of a finding, 

discussing it apparently without end

over the horizon of knowledge to its very edge;  

the arena to test who is foe or friend. 

Only then that the probing mind is worth having,

honed like the famed Damascus sword; 

feather or rock its cowers not, and blazes a path

the lesser dares not utter a word.

Socrates to Plato to Aristotle, and the Academe,

great minds of great civilizations rose, 

on the pillars of scholarship and enlightenment, 

and man's reminder of the Cross.

Friendship - all that started the great adventure,

where crossroads mark across the way;

friends disagree yet agree at a common end       

by Whose power and will, they pray.

4. Is Rationality a Mask of Reality?

Dr Cabigan studies a specimen at a Retreat Center. Lipa, Batangas

What leads fantasy to reality, we surmise;

     the saga of the Pied Piper of Hamlyn,

Jules Verne's Kraken, Loch Ness monster, 

     from fantasy to reality stories rise.

Nostradamus prophesy, Malthus' theory; 

     the Bible - fiction, science, tales, all 

mixed up in archives and social media 

     where one is led to think and feel free. 

Scientific protocol: Koch's Postulate, 

     Linnaeus' nomenclature, Mendeleev's, 

computer prediction models of today, 

     Quarks and Higgs Boson as of late. 

To where do all these lead us?  We ask, 

     after moon landing, soon to planet Mars; 

if fantasy a means of escape from reality, 

     then rationality is but a fateful mask. 

5. The Versatile Bamboo

Bamboo comes in different species, from the lanky bikal to the giant  

kawayan kiling. Dr Cabigan shows a rare and fancy species.     

1. Bamboo, it is the only perennial species in its family - Poaceae - formerly Graminae or Graminaceae, to which the rice, wheat, corn, the world's staple food belong,

2. Bamboo, it lives season after season, aestivating in the summer months, living on measly resources, then resuming luxuriant growth in monsoon.

3. Bamboo, it grows in the tropics, covers hillsides, ripraps riverbanks, colonizes deltas and silted areas, forms dense thickets, filters noise, dusts, and wind.

4. Bamboo, it is the source of inspiration in the arts: songs like Lawiswis Kawayan, paintings (Fernando Amorsolo's rural scenes), native architecture (Bahay Kubo).

5. Bamboo, it is the home of the spirits, friendly and scary, of ancestral beliefs and superstition, the birthplace of Malakas at Maganda in Philippine folklore.

6. Bamboo, the material of the finest basket, cradle, fan; vessel for water and wine; thrift bank of children and secret vault for precious possession.

7. Bamboo, the posts of humble homes, stakes of fish pens, scaffolding of high rise, flagpoles in the countryside, fences of settlements.

8. Bamboo, it is made into utensil and receptacle in good and hard times - tinubong for tourists, cooking pot and plate in jungle survival, and ethnic and fancy wares in modern homes, and restaurants.

9. Bamboo, it adds quaintness and merriment to festivities: palo sebo and pabitin in fiestas, stilts in parades and races, in arches of welcome, goodbye and come again.

10. Bamboo makes the finest kites friendly to the wind, steady in the sky, instills awe with their beautiful and colorful design to both young and old, the loafer, the passerby.

11. Bamboo makes many playthings for children: blowgun for kids' war, bat for ball games, fishing pole for fish and frog, bird trap - taay and singgapong.

12. Bamboo, it is a fine material for pan pipe, flute, maracas, castanet, ukulele, gong, guitar, banjo, banduria, xylophone, and the like - the musical instruments of bands and orchestras like the Pangkat Kawayan.

13. Bamboo, its shoot (labong) is food of the common man - the rich as well - in various preparations, atsara, lumpia, bulanglang, ginisa, ginatan, etc.

14. Bamboo, the material used in building a church organ, historically famous, and the only kind in the world, a UNESCO heritage which draws tourists to its home, Las Piñas, Rizal.

15. Bamboo, it is the abode of wildlife, birds that herald the day, chirp in their nest, hoot at night; reptiles calling their mates; rodents rearing their young, bats hanging on the branches; fowls perched for the night.

16. Bamboo, it spawns mushrooms (kabuting kawayan, u-ong bunton Ilk.) beneath its thorny base and surrounding anthills (punso), creating a sense of wonder about the playful dwarves (dwende).

17. Bamboo, the specimen in the field and laboratory for studies in plant physiology, anatomy, biochemistry, pharmacology, owing to its unique biology and many medicinal properties.

18. Bamboo, the ultimate source of water in the jungle when everything is dry, for it stores the purest and most refreshing water that readily quenches thirst, and restores

energy and hope to the lost.

19. Bamboo, it is the fastest growing plant, its shoot virtually visible to the eye in its ascent to the sky, more efficient than time lapse photography, and outpacing a potential shoot gatherer, 

20. Bamboo, the prophet of doom: when it flowers, the Pandas starve, the forest readily catches fire, crops in the field dry up, indicating El Niño phenomenon in its worst episode, yet resurrects thereafter with new life and vigor to all its symbionts.

Bamboo, it is the answer to the riddle of life, when in the final phase, man walks on three legs walking down the lane with a bamboo cane to meet his Creator. ~

6. Enigmatic Pongapong

 

Right, vegetative phase of the life cycle of pongapong, (Amorphophallus campanulatus). The plant grows luxuriantly, then dies out without trace of its trunk and leaves. Overnight, like a fairy tale, a curious giant flower breaks out of the ground. Center of Ecozoic Learning and Livelihood (CELL), Silang, Cavite (right); former SPUQC EcoSanctuary, left photo).

Pongapong is a rare plant. Its reproductive stage is in the form of a single bulbous flower arising from an underground enlarged root. The flower is pollinated by flies attracted by putrefying odor of meat. Once fertilized the flower settles down as if decayed as the seeds mature and become ready for dissemination. The vegetative stage of the plant is succulent appearing like a giant fern. The enlarged root is often harvested for hog feed. It is cut into small pieces and cooked with other feed ingredients. Dr. Anselmo S Cabigan, biology professor examines the floral phase of the plant.

What a life you have, my pongapong fair:

At one time you are all but a huge flower, 

Emerging in royal velvet with deathly air; 

Yet in monsoon, you are reborn a tower.

Breaking out while Hades is in slumber.

7. Get out of your confine, love the sun

Dr Cabigan examines pine saplings in Lipa City, Batangas, 

Why do living things behave as they do; 

what trigger plants to bloom profusely; 

insects metamorphose in their mid cycle,

midges swarm, like the locust do? 

Why is the pine confined on the highland,

save a few acclimatized on the lowland;

the desert suddenly blooms after a rain,

returning barren in the scorching sun?

Why is the firefly's lantern the purest light,

plankton glow in the deep, eyes flash; 

silk the finest textile, honey the sweetest; 

boundless, flawless the birds in flight. 

Ask the naturalist, and if you are one, 

talk to the trees, sing with the breeze

and crickets, greet the first rain in May, 

get out of your confine, love the sun. ~

Dr Cabigan inspects wild birds caught on ricefields 

and sold at the roadside, Santo Rosa, Laguna

.  Dr Cabigan joins students in a visit to the  Museum 

of Natural History at UP Los Banos

8. Angels Just Pass By 

Author left, with Dr Sel Cabigan. 

Photo taken at the former St Paul University QC  circa 2005

 

All the years, to describe you, let me count the ways:

But first, admit your age, and heed the one who says.

Our roads crossed time and again - perhaps the eighth,

Under any umbrella, any fort of service and faith;

A tree you planted, its boughs loaded with children,

In its shade, old and young call each other brethren;

A field of grass undulating in whispers and in song

Of hopes and dreams among the beloved throng;

A plow, you're the man behind a home and nation,

A computer, cyberspace its eye and its bastion.

Nata to leather, fruits to wine, microbes to food,

Work of a goodhearted genius working under the hood.

Busy feet, busy hands, bound in thought and sinew,

Work, work, work - whatever may be your view.

And play? And jokes? You've got a lot, too.

Cracking one, and I saw how a whole class blew.

Child of Nature years ago, but never getting old,

Though your hair is vanishing, laurels in its hold;

In the span of time and space, you now sit on its shed,

Furrows on your forehead, your vision dims ahead.

If for any reason you keep on searching, never tiring,

It's because the stars shine far out into the morning,

And ideals and truth are not the same, are they?

There are no answers - yet you wish there may.

In a perfect place and time, here and beyond SPUQ,

Angels just pass by Sel, we can only guess they do. ~

9. People's Green Revolution in the seventies saved us 

from Food Crisis

Dr Abe V Rotor and Ms Melly C Tenorio

Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid738 KHz DZRB AM Band, 

8-9 evening class Monday to Friday

In younger days in early 1970s, Sel and author (left) inspect 

a Green Revolution project in a schools in Metro Manila. 

Green revolution at home, self-sufficiency its aim,

      freshness, nutrition, exercise, 

family bonding, aesthetics and beautification, 

      nothing compares with its prize.

A little plot, a little trellis, a little space and time,

      devoted to re-create an idle corner,

into a patch of Eden redeemed, transformed,

      from the cruel biblical disaster.

A revolution in economics for the common tao,

      education from theory to skill,

independence from the capitalistic world,

      pride and contentment in every meal. 

How modern we could get yet lose freedom

      of nature's gifts to humanity,

searching for something in the midst of plenty,

      what a single seed could bring unity. ~  

Gardening in homes, schools, and communities saved the country from food crisis during the El Niño in the early seventies, the worst in recorded history of this cyclical global drought. Green Revolution pioneers, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan and author (left) inspect a school project in Metro Manila - trellised ampalaya. The Philippines attained self-sufficiency in food, and even became a net exporter of rice for nearly a decade.

These gardening models have been developed from studies and observations of successful projects locally and abroad. They serve as guide to participants and listeners of Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (School-on-Air) to help them in their projects, particularly in times of food scarcity, such as the present situation caused by the El Niño phenomenon.

But even during normal times, these models are useful to gardening enthusiasts, especially children and senior citizens who find this hobby highly rewarding to health and leisure, and as a source of livelihood, notwithstanding. Those who are participating in projects in food production and environmental beautification, such as the Clean and Green Movement, and Green Revolution projects, will find these models similarly valuable.

One however, can modify them according to the peculiarity of his place, and in fact, he can combine those models that are compatible so as to develop and integrate them into a larger and more diversified plan.

One who is familiar with the popular Filipino composition Bahay Kubo, can readily identify the plants mentioned therein with those that are cited in these models. And in his mind would appear an imagery of the scenario in which he can fit these models accordingly.

Here is a plan of a Homesite - an ideal integrated garden around a home in a rural setting. Compare this with Bahay Kubo. Update it. Innovate it according to your concept, situation and needs. Allow innovations as long as these do not lose the essence of the plan. You can even expand the area, adding more features to it. In effect, this Homesite model becomes a model farm, a Homestead - one that has economic and ecological attributes that characterize the concept of sustainable productivity cum aesthetics and educational values.

I invite all followers and readers of this Blog to adopt these models in their own capacities wherever they reside - in the rural or urban area - and whenever they find them feasible, and thus join the movement which PBH has been carrying on in the last twenty years or so.

It is for this nationwide campaign that PBH has earned, among other programs, the Oscar Florendo Award for Developmental Journalism, indeed a tribute to all those who have participated, and are going to participate, in the pursuit of the noble objectives of this campaign.

Keep track with the development of this project, learn more about its practical methods and techniques, and participate in the open forum of the radio program. Most important of all, share with the millions of listeners your experience with your project on how you made it a successful and rewarding one. Which therefore, makes you a resource participant to Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid. Tune in to Radyo ng Bayan DZRB 738 KHz AM Band, 8 to 9 o'clock in the evening from Monday to Friday, with Melly Tenorio and Ka Abe Rotor.

    

10. Nata de coco Shoes - 

first of its kind in the world

Bacterial cellulose as substitute of leather and plastic is the brainchild of Filipino scientist, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan former Director for Research, National Food Authority, and professor in biological science at St Paul University QC 

Nata de coco laminate made into shoes was pioneered in a thesis by the late Amparo Arambulo of St Paul University QC in the late nineties for her degree in BS Biology.  

The idea is the brainchild of Dr Anselmo S Cabigan who served as adviser. Miss Arambulo is shown in this photo with the author, also a former professor of the university. At the foreground are nata leather sheets ready for tanning. Nata shoes passed the DOST test for strength and durability surpassing animal and artificial leather.

Nata is produced by Leuconostoc mesenteroides, a bacterium ubiquitous in distribution. It grows and colonizes fermenting materials, often accompanying vinegar formation or acetification.

Nata is a popular food, made into sweets or mixed with halo-halo. It comes as cubes, strips, colored red or yellow, but it is preferred in its semitransparent state. One good thing with nata food is that it is filling to the stomach, and because it is low in nutrients, it is excellent in keeping down weight. Its rich fiber, actually bacterial capsule, aids in detoxification and regular movement.

At one time Japan imported from the Philippines tons and tons of nata for the electronic industry, particularly for the membrane of speakers. It was from the rejected orders that Dr Cabigan thought of developing alternative uses of the unwanted material  otherwise thrown away as waste. 

Other than nata shoes, Dr Cabigan pioneered in nata surgical thread which is as good as conventional surgical threads because of its natural and self dissolving characteristic. Nata laminate is also a good material for belts, wallets and other products traditionally made of leather and lately, plastics.  Nata is perhaps the only commercial cellulose-fiber produced by bacteria. 

Nata's potential contribution to the environment is enormous. It saves countless animals, especially the endangered species, from which leather is derived. It offers as substitute to plastics that comprise the bulk of non-biodegradable wastes all over the world. On the production side, nata offers great opportunities as a cottllage industry and in converting farm by-products into useful products.

Next time you pick your favorite nata de coco from the supermarket, imagine its many uses and how this simple product of a bacterium can make miracles.

The technology of nata growing in culture medium is ancient and universal in process. It is a microbial process, a kind of farming with a bacterium Leuconostoc mesenteroides, and a complex of other microorganisms, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Acetobacter aceti. It is Nature's microbiological chemistry which man has learned to produce useful materials, like vinegar, herbal tea, and of course, nata as food. The innocula grow on a wide range of substrates. If it is pineapple, the product is nata de piña. It is possible that other countries have nata products from their indigenous fruits and nuts.

What is revolutionary is the discovery of nata as non-food material that is economically viable and ecologically friendly.

Biologically, the process is nature's way of disposing organic residues by converting them into more stable forms preparatory to their final degradation, ultimately returning to their elemental forms ready for the next cycle.

The encapsulated bacterium is the main agent in the process, leaving its gelatin or cellulose shell to form layers and thick mass which is the nata. This is made into mats and when finally cured becomes laminate, firm and soft (even after a few years), cool to the feet, and other tests for leather.

The nata "leather" is produced by gradual pressure and drying until a leatherlike consistency is attained. This undergoes curing, tanning, and dyeing like leather. Which is then made into uppers of shoes and slippers, cut into belt, surgical thread, percussion instruments, and fabric substitute.

This work Cabigan-Arambulo is ahead by more than ten years of one of Time magazine's featured inventions in 50 Best Inventions of 2010 (November 22, 2010, page 53, Invention No. 15 BioCouture).

The untimely death of the inventor is indeed a great loss. Had she lived longer she could have proceeded in pursuing this pioneering discovery, such as nata surgical thread which was invented by another student at SPU-QC the following year. ~

 

Newly harvested nata is laid on muslim cloth and allowed to dry. Nata filaments are air dried at room temperature.

 

Newly harvested nata laminate is ready for tanning. Tanned nata is subjected to same process as ordinary leather.

 

It is cut according to pattern and size of shoe, then sewed and glued to fit in a mold.

 

        AUTHOR'S Note: The discovery of the use of nata laminate by Dr AS Cabigan and Ms Amparo Arambulo in the late nineties opened  a gateway to the potential uses of bacterial cellulose in the fields of medicine, ecology, industry, notwithstanding its conventional use as food.  

11. Retrieving researches from old files -

how valuable are their results today?

Author's note: These researches were conducted at the former Eco Sanctuary and biological laboratory of SPUQC.  They withstood the test of time.  They were conducted ten to fifteen years ago by students pursuing BS Biology at St Paul University then a college. Researches such as these however significant they may be, usually end up in dusty shelves and cabinets, or lost forever. 

Thesis adviser, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan examines the mysterious change in colors of balibago flower.  Angels' Hills, Tagaytay

Perhaps a review of these may lead us to find their application today, and to offer opportunities for further research. Ironically there are now fewer researchers in this field, and the quality of research has greatly declined. This is a general observation in many schools.     

It is not the intention of research alone to prove a theory or hypothesis; it is equally valuable in disproving it as well, in erasing false beliefs and providing the basis of decision and judgment to conflicting opinions.

     Paradoxically, as we move by leaps and bounds with scientific and technological progress, we cannot help to look back at conventional values and tradition. For example, more and more people are craving for native varieties of plants and breeds of animals, rejecting or adamant accepting genetically modified organisms (GMO).

       People are willing to pay premium for food grown with organic matter instead of chemical fertilizers, fruits and vegetables which did not receive chemical spraying, meat and poultry which are free of residual antibiotics, and fish bearing no trace of toxins carried through the food chain.

A. Natural Pesticides and antibiotics

      Suha (Citrus maxima) and tanglad (Antropogon citratus) can be formulated into an insecticide against common houseflies (Musca domestica). As a spray solution prepared from one ml of the volatile oil extracted from these plants to one liter of water, it is effective against adult flies. The flies were killed within one to one- half hours after direct spraying. 1/

     The search for alternative antibiotics as answer to the dwindling potency of conventional penicillin group antibiotics brought researcher back to the drawing table, this time to take a second look at plants growing within reach of the common man.

     A decoction of garlic (Allium sativum) at 40 gm per 100 ml water was found to inhibit the growth of Staphylocccus aureus, a bacterial pathogen that causes infection of wounds. While the area of inhibition (antibiosis) under  laboratory condition is lower than those obtained with the penicillin and Prostaphlin, two commercial antibiotics, ( 2.25 mm versus 2.7 and 3.31 mm respectively), still garlic is recommended as a home remedy because it is safe and practical. 2/    

Faculty and staff of SPUQC visit a barangay project 

as part of the school's outreach program in San Juan MM 

    A follow-up research on the antibiotic properties of guava, (Psidium guajava) proved the efficacy of the decoction of its leaves (250 ml of the extract to 1 liter water) in controlling the bacterial pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, S. typii, and S. dysenteriae.3/

     Another potential antibiotic against diarrhea is mayana (Coleus blumei). Under laboratory condition using the nutrient agar medium, a decoction of mayana leaves, at 75g per 100ml, can effectively control S. aureus and E. coli. The local remedy is more effective on S. aureus which is gram-negative than on the gram-positive E.coli. The efficacy can be compared to those Omnipen and Ampicillin, two commercial antibiotics.4/

     Can we identify plants which posses certain medicinal properties, such as diarrheal, without subjecting it to the conventional laboratory procedure? Initial experiments using thin layer chromatography  established positive indications on the antidiarrheal property of guava (P. guajava), camito (C. cainito) and avocado (P. americana). More advanced chromatography can now be used in improving this technique. 5/

     The use of anesthetic substitutes is not new. Even when I was young, I knew from experience that ikmo (Piper ikmo), a climbing plant growing in the backyard, when chewed, deadens the taste bud as well as soothes toothache. I witnessed a dentist in Bolinao, Pangasinan, use ikmo as local anesthesia in tooth extraction. A ball of ground fresh young leaves of guava was later administered to seal the wound to stop the bleeding. An experiment was conduct at SPCQ using Indonesian queen (Justicia genderusa) and Bulacan wonder (Cleome viscosa) as topical anesthesia.

    

     The extract of these plants can be made into ointments that are applied to aching joints and muscles. Although the test was made on white mice, it was able to establish the basis of a potential formula. Equal proportion of the dried leaf extract of either plant with petroleum jelly. The extract is prepared by first drying the leaves before they are ground. Ethyl alcohol is used as solvent, and because it is volatile, it leaves behind powder sediment that is the dry extract itself. A stronger dosage may be formulated for faster and longer anesthetic action. 6/

    

     On the village level, fresh extract is made by simply macerating and grinding the fresh leaves. The sap is recovered by straining the juice with a fined one-shade piece cloth. It is allow drying with the aid of the ethyl alcohol before it is blended with petroleum jelly. Fresh extract may be used and massaged over the effected parts of the body with coconut oil. Cleome was found to have a higher anesthetic action.

B. BT is Insect Specific

     I had the chance to work on Bacillus thuringensis way back in the early sixties. However, it was only in the eighties that the microbiological agent, a bacterium discovered and developed in Thuringen, Germany, became a biological control agent against moths and butterflies. It is also effective in controlling insects outside order Lepidoptera?

     Dr. Anselmo S. Cabigan, professor in biology at the SPCQ and former director for research of the National Food and Authority, tested BT on other major insect pest. two BT preparation were made- as spray and bait – and tested on the common housefly ( Musca domestica) of the Order Diptera. The BT inoculant was developed following a protocol named after the author.7/

     At one percent concentration, either as spray or bait, mortality rate reached up to 44 percent of the housefly larvae (maggots) treated. Since the site of the experiment is an open poultry house, subsequent generations of flies followed during the experiment. The study however was inadequate to determine if BT can effectively carry out a continuous and sustaining epidemic on the entire population of the pests irrespective of the life cycle of the organisms and stage of generation.

     Earlier researches proved the effectiveness of BT on fruit fly (Dacus dorsalis), a major pest of mango and other fruits. The pathogen killed mostly maggots in their early stage. Both bait and spray methods of application were effective with the former having a slight advantage. 8/

    Does BT work on stored grain pests? This time the experiment was on weevil, order Coleoptera. tested BT on Lesser Grain Borer (Rhizopertha dominica) just as in   the previous experiment, the inoculants were derived through the same Protocol. The preparation at 1 percent concentration (inoculants in dried papaya pulp medium) with road dust was applied to stored rice with the assurance by DOST that BT has no harmful effect applied directly with stored grains. Result: BT cannot control the Coleopterous pest. The explanation is that beetles are protected by thick exoskeleton and the moisture in the grain is too low to activate the Bacillus spores. 9/

      Similarly BT was applied on a stored corn grain to protect it from infestation. To the question, "Can BT serve as protectant against possible insect pest?” Arabella Caralde, BS biology 1998, came with up a negative result. Again, this is because BT spores can remain dormant under highly dry condition. Stored corn grains, like rice, contain average 14 percent moisture, fluctuating very little under ambient condition.

     Next was a test on the effectiveness of BT against American Cockroach (Periplaneta americana), a cosmopolitan household pests inhabiting kitchens and dirty places. Again, the result obtained was negative. 10/

     Dr. Cabigan and I discussed the result of the BT experiments. We arrived at the conclusion that definitely BT is insect specific. It is designed for caterpillars, the feeding stage of Lepidopterans. The ingested bacterial cells and spores produce toxin that acts in the gut of the insect causing the destruction of epithelial cells and consequently resulting in the death of organisms. Multiplication of bacterial cells continues even on the dead larva. Resting cells are formed and become ready for next round of infection, thus setting the momentum of epidemic, say in cornfields where corn borers abound. As long as condition are favorable for the pathogen, the host caterpillars become “sick” and ultimately die; thus BT can provide long-term protection to the crop.

      Even if the toxin is effective on other insects as demonstrated by the experiment on houseflies, the mechanism of a biological control on caterpillars has yet to be established and proven to be as effective.

      The significance of research then is not only to prove a hypothesis. It is equally valuable in disproving a claim or belief as shown in the BT experiments. BT is not a universal biological agent. It disproves claims on the effectiveness of BT by commercial manufacturers.

                                                     C. Aflatoxin

      Aflatoxin  is a carcinogenic by-product of the fungus, Aspergillus flavus, which invades poorly dried and damaged copra, peanut, and corn and other cereals and seeds. When both man and animals take these products, the toxin may cause cirrhosis of the liver.

     What happens to chicken fed with aflatoxin-tainted feed? The amount of Aflatoxin in commercial feeds is insignificant to affect broilers. Besides, the rearing period (5 weeks) is too short to allow accumulation and expression of the toxin.11/

      For humans however, aflatoxin may accumulate in the liver and the consequence may be detected only after the long period. The suspected sources of aflatoxin that enters the human body are beer (brewed from the aflatoxin tainted cereals), peanut butter (inferior peanut separated from the whole seeds and ground into peanut butter), “moldy” rice, corn and other food. It is no wonder that many beer drinkers are victims of cirrhosis. Personally, I believe that it is not the alcohol that is the main cause because beer contains less than 5% alcohol. It is the grain, like binlid (broken rice), that is the source of aflatoxin. There is little research on aflatoxin in the Philippines todate.

Author with Dr Cabigan. Photo taken at the former St Paul Museum 

QC, circa 2005

                                                     D. Substitute Tea and Coffee

     Tea from leaves of pandan (Pandanus odoratissimus), sambong  (Ocimum bacilicum) was formulated singly and in combination, and the product was tested through organoleptic analysis. A blend of the three plants gave a superior result, compared to any single formulation. The reason is that certain desirable characters of each component were combined. For example, basil gave the best color, flavor and texture, while pandan gave the best aroma, sambong contributed to the fullness and desirable taste of the composite product. 12/

     In another experiment, Oolong tea (semi-fermented, slightly bitter tea) was prepared from the immature leaves of avocado (Persia americana), banaba (Lagerstroma speciosa), tsaang gubat (Carmona retusa), and caimito (Chrysophyllum cainito ), the contribution of each component was determined by organoleptic test with tsaang gubat giving the desired color, banaba the taste , and  avocado, together with caimito, the texture and flavor proposed is that blending may be modified in order to suit the taste of the drinker.13/

     This is also true with another experiment, this time black tea from sambong, pandan and avocado by Michelle B. Deliguin, The leaves are first withered then airs dried, brewed and made into tea. Sambong gave the desired color, pandan the aroma and avocado texture. An increase in the amount of pandan improved the taste of the blend.

     Coffee substitutes have been the quest of those who have sensitive nerves. Even decaffeinated coffee in not the guarantee to many people. On the farm, we used a number of substitutes such as rice or corn roasted until the color is rich brown. Cacao with coffee may reduce the latter’s effect but this is expensive and cacao is not readily available. Besides, cacao has another nerve-acting property, theobromine, which is even stronger than caffeine acting as stimulant.

     Another substitute which is clandestinely added to native coffee or kapeng barako (Coffea liberica) is seed of ipil-ipil (Leucaena glauca). This is NOT recommended. Ipil-ipil contains mimosin, which retards growth causes baldness. That is why the use of ipil-ipil leaves to animals is limited. Stunted growth (bansot) and loss of hair in piglets are traced to the effects of mimosin.     

Author's wife Cecille, examines cultured species of mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus,

Coffee from green mungo (Phaseolus radiatus) was developed by an HRM graduate. To remove the bean taste, roasting is done slowly while the pot cover is remove to allow the substance to escape as gas. This procedure is also recommended when using soybeans (Glycine max), Lima beans (Phaseolus lunatus) and others beans belonging to the Family Leguminosae, now Fabaceae.                               

E. Technology Innovations

Can we extract oil by practical means, saving on both expense and time? Dr. Anselmo S. Cabigan led two experiments. The first experiment was the extraction of the oil of chico (Achras  sapota ) by water distillation. Although more oil was recovered with hexane, the commercial method, the distillation process was able to obtain a rich light brown distillate which is intensely sweet in odor, and which met the saponification test, and the free fatty acid analysis. The product is a valuable extract compared to extracts of vanilla, banana, Lemon and the like. 15/  

     Extraction of the essential oil from the peeling of mango (Mangifera indica) showed a similar result. In this case the hexane method produces a clearer extract other than its higher recovery over that of water distillation method, whose process took a longer time to complete. The importance of practical methods adaptable on the farm level in spite of low efficiency need not be emphasized. Distillation of lambanog (Coconut wine) in Laguna and Quezon, may be crude and inefficient, yet fits into the rural setting where investment, technology and tools are limited, notwithstanding the influence of tradition and culture. White cheese production is also crude and simple, so are patis and vinegar-making, and many more locally manufactured products. Innovations to this indigenous method are a big challenge to both scientists and entrepreneurs. 16/

F. Four stages of Research

Scientific research, in general, undergoes three basic stages, namely, conceptualization, · experimentation, and validation.

If it is thesis, the researcher, after completing the attendant academic requirements of his course, receives his diploma, leaving behind his work with his alma mater. Outstanding theses proceed to a fourth stage - publication, which is usually in the school’s research journal.

Research generally undergoes four stages, namely, conceptualization, experimentation, · validation, and publication.

It is the fifth stage – application - that is the most valuable, yet the most wanting and neglected aspect of research.

     The question, “What happens next?” points to the lack of a linkage between research and application. And because of this gap, research works gather dust in libraries, so to speak, and therefore their objectives are not achieved.

Algal bloom depletes dissolved Oxygen and builds CO2 in water leading to fish kill in freshwater and marine environments

G. Pure versus Applied Research

    Of course, the other reason why researches fail to reach field application is that there are researches, which are classified as “pure research” which, by their nature, are not intended to provide the intermediate step to application. “Applied research”, on the other hand, is precisely intended to provide this bridge.

     A good example to differentiate the two kinds of research is the case of red tide, a cyclical phenomenon of marine algal bloom. A thesis, which seeks to identify the poison accumulated in the shellfish host in order to know the composition and nature of the toxin, is “pure research”. But a thesis that is developed out of the findings of this work, if at all suitable, in order to formulate an anesthetic compound out of the poison, is clearly one that belong, to “ applied research”.

     Another crucial reason for the inapplicability of certain researches is that research proposals do not emanate from the bottom, but from the top. It means they are not gauged on the needs of the people.

     In the Philippines priority should be given to applied research over pure research. This is true to other developing countries where research funds are not only limited, but technological innovations seek practical solutions to problems at the grassroots. Call this people’s research. Before a research proposal is conceived the researcher already must have in mind the felt needs of the people.

     As one professor puts it when asked how we know if a research is good, “it is if intended for the greatest majority.” Of course, it is easier said than done. But anyone who believes in this adage and who has a heart for research is definitely on the right track.~

Alternative medicine principally using herbals such as Oregano, has gained popularity in spite of modern medicine

BS Biology researchers (1993-98) under the guidance of Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, Dr Rosalie Marcelo, Prof Concordia P. Segismundo, among others, including the author.

1/ Julio Rose del Rosario Santos 

2/ Cristina B. Aragon

3/ was conducted by Fatima V. Santiago 

4/According to Rhodora Anna M. Francisco 

5/ Evelyn del Castillo 

6/ Ma. Shiellah D. Giner

7/ Maria Cristina T. Bustos

8/ Michelle D.Gonzales

9/ Kristina Rose D. Contreras 

10/ Lourdes G. Bunuan 

11/ Bernadette Young  

12/ Ma. Cristela M. Antonio  

13/ Liliibeth F. Abalos 

14. Carmelita C. Mendoza, HRM  

15/ Peachy M. Villanueva 

16/ Myla E.Quinto,

12. The Lost SPU-QC Ecological Sanctuary

Where have all the insects gone?

The SPUQC Ecological Sanctuary, the only kind in Metro Manila

 in its time, was the brainchild of Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, a 

co-professor in the university for more than 15 years.

Dr Cabigan and author, on retiring from teaching at St Paul University QC, ca. 2009

 I am personally grateful to SPUQC and Dr Cabigan for the rare opportunity of having spent long hours of study and leisure in this garden. This is a re-print of an article I wrote in the garden which at one time had some 300 living plant species that attracted many insects and other organisms. As the metropolis grew, new and high rise buildings engulfed the open spaces, among them the famed SPUQC EcoSanctuary.

With increasing density and population, traffic and commerce all around the school, the SPCQ garden has become a sanctuary of many insects. Here they live freely in the trees and shrubs, on annuals, inside the greenhouses, around the ponds, and in the shade of buildings, and some even visit classrooms and offices.

Pagoda bagworm (Cyptothelea heckmeyeri )

I have the feeling that these insects have become adapted to the varied aspect of Paulinian life from the sound of hurrying feet to soft echoes of prayer and hymns. They feed on morsels, paper and crayons, drink on fruit juices and honey drops, and aestivate in flower pots and boxes to tide with the harsh summer months. Frankly, I have not seen insects more friendly than these that I think Pavlov’s classical conditioned learning works with insects as well.

Interestingly, as an entomologist, I have been monitoring the insects in the garden for the last five years or so, listing down a good number of species that include those not readily found elsewhere. These include a giant click beetle, a rhinoceros beetle with horns resembling a triceratops, Ficus pollinating wasp, leaf-curling trips of Ikmo, longhorned grasshopper, sulfur and Papilio butterflies. 

An adult stink bug.( Nezara viridula)

Well, it is a fact that there is no escape from insects good or bad ones. In terms of species, there are 7 insects out of 10 animal organisms of earth. Insects comprise 800,000 kinds and scientists estimate that their kin - lobster shrimps, spiders, ticks, centipedes, millipedes and scorpions are to be added, the phylum to which they all belongs, phylum Arthropoda, would comprise 80 percent of all animals organisms. To compare, plants make up only one-half million species.

What secrets have insects in dominating the animal world, and surpassing the geologic history of dinosaurs, fishes, mammals and even some mollusks?

Well, look at the ants, termites, and bees, the so-called social insects. Their caste system is so intact and strict that it has long been regarded model of man’s quest for a perfect society. It inspired the building of highly autocratic empires like the Egyptian and Roman Empires, and the monarchical Aztecs and Mayan civilizations. It inspired Plato to write the Republic, a Utopian human order.

Take the case of the butterflies and moths. Their active time is not only well defined- diurnal or nocturnal, but their food is highly specific to a plant or group of plants and their parts. Their life cycle allow either accelerated or suspended metamorphosis depending on the prevailing conditions of the environment, feat no other animal can do more efficiently. 

A pair of Cotton Stainer (Dysdercus megalopigus)

My students gathered around me by the ponds. There I explained to them the bizarre life of the dragonfly, once a contemporary of the dinosaur. Its young called nymph is a fearful hunter in water as the adult is in air. Apparently this is the reason on how it got its legendary name. I showed them the weapons of insects: the preying mantis carries a pair of ax-and-vise, a bee brandishes a poisonous dagger, while a tussock moth is cloaked with stinging barbs, a stink bug sprays corrosive acid on eyes or skin. The weevil has an auger snout, the grasshopper grins with shear-like mandibles, and the mosquito tucks in a long, contaminated needle.

We examined a beetle. Our thought brought us to the medieval age. A knight in full battle gear! Chitin, which makes up its armor called exoskeleton, has not been successfully copied in the laboratory. So with the light of the firefly which is the most efficient of all lights on earth. 

Wait until you hear this! Aphids, scale insects and some dipterans, are capable of paedogenesis, that is, the ability of immature insect to produce young even before reaching maturity! 

Numbers, numbers numbers. That is the secret of the survival and power in the biological world. King Solomon is wise indeed in halting his army so that another army-an army of ants can pass. Killer ants and killer bees destroy anything that impedes their passage, including livestock and humans.  


Spotted garden butterflies, relatives of the migratory Danaus (lowermost photo)

Invisibility is another key to insect survival and dominance. Have you examined the interior of leaf galls in santol, Ficus and ikmo? Well, you need a microscope to see the culprit - thrips or red mites. I demonstrated to my students how insects, being small, can ride on the wind and current, find easy shelter, and are less 

subjected to injury when they fall. Also, insects being small require relatively less energy than bigger organisms do. All of these contribute to their persistence and worldwide distribution. Insects surely are among the ultimate survivors of a disaster.

In an article I wrote, “ a Night of Music at the SPCQ Garden” I described Nature musicians, the cricket and the katydid. While their sounds are music to many of us they are totally coded sounds similar to our communications. Cicadas, beetles, grasshopper, have their own “languages”, and in the case of termites and bees, their language is in the form of chemical signals known as pheromones. It is from them that we are still studying pheromones in humans.

Without insects, we are certain to miss the sweetest sugar which is honey, the finest fabric which is silk, the mysterious fig (Smyrna fig). We would be having less and less of luscious fruits, succulent vegetables, reddest dye, flavor in cheese, and most likely we will not have enough food to eat because insects are the chief pollinators, and main food of fish and others animals. They are a major link in the food chains, the columns of a biological Parthenon.

Without insects, the earth would be littered with dead bodies of plants and animals. Insects are co-workers in the decomposition with bacteria and fungi.  They prepare for the life of the next generation by converting dead tissues into organic materials and ultimately into their inorganic forms, thus altogether help bridge the living and the non-living world.

A garden without bees and butterflies mirrors a scenario of the biblical fall. And if the other creatures in that garden strayed away from its beautiful premises just as our first forebears began their wandering, they too, must have learned the true values of life, which they share to us today.

Black field cricket (Acheta bimaculata), 

fiddler in the garden

Beautiful is the verse from “ A Gnat and a Bee” in Aesop fables. To wit:

The wretch who works not for his daily bread,

Sighs and complains, but ought not to be fed.

Think, when you see stout beggars on their stand,

The lazy are the locusts of the land.”

In “The ant and the grasshopper,” Aesop, acting like a father with a rod in hand, warns. He was referring to the happy-go lucky grasshopper.

“Lo now, while health and vigor still remain,

Toil, toil, my lad, to purchase honest again!

Shun idleness! Shun pleasure’s tempting snare!

A youth of rebels breeds age of care.”

Ecologically insects are the barometer of the kind of environment we live in.  A pristine environment attracts beneficial insects, while a spoilt one breeds pests and diseases.

I have yet to see a firefly in the SPCQ botanical garden. I remember an article in Renato Constantino’s series of publications, “ Issues Without Tears”. Its title is,” You don’t See Fireflies Anymore,” a prophesy of doom, a second to Rachel Carson’s” Silent Spring”.

Maybe. But I have not lost hope. Someday, a flicker in the night may yet come from a firefly and not from a car or cigarette - if only others will share with me the same optimism.

                                        

To a Friendly Killer 

Preying Mantis (Mantis religiosa)

Praying or preying you’re god sent,

You pray for rain, you share our peace;

You prey the pest that feed on crops,

Two lives have you all in one piece.

Your friendly gaze is for a man’s grim, 

Kneeling in the art of a stranger,

Yet a friend you’re to the farmer,

So welcome shy, friendly killer. 

    

 

 Termite colony (Macrotermes gilvus);  Psylla plant lice of ipil-ipil 

  Red dragonfly (Order Odonata)

Crane fly (Tipula sp) or Daddy-long-legs because of its extremely long legs, looks like an overgrown mosquito. It has the habit of swaying continuously in a dizzying speed that its potential nymphalid (Nymphalis antiopa) rest during the day and resumes its activity at dusk. Like other skippers it is a crepuscular habit.

(Caterpillar of tussock moth, Orgya australis postica.)

13. Twenty Philosophies of Ageing Gracefully 

“Aging is the knowledge and maturity is the wisdom.” ― J. Tisa

“Aging is the divine and maturity is the blessing.” ― J. Nedumaan

Dr Domingo Tapiador (right) former FAO official, Mr Dell H
Grecia (center) veteran journalist, and author, examine a
jeep-ferry model for Laguna Bay invented by Dr Tapiador.

1. Ageing like good wine; it becomes mellow with age. But only good wine becomes mellow with age. And the longer ageing is, the better is the quality of the wine. We can compare it also with wood. “A seasoned timber never gives (up).” A seasoned teacher is wise.

2. Ageing is like knowledge – distilled into wisdom. It’s the ripening of fruits on the tree. Knowledge is not all useful; it leaves a lot of wastes. Which I call infollution (information pollution). Like the so many flowers and developing fruits of a huge mango tree, those that fall are useless knowledge; those that do not ripen are knowledge that can’t stand by themselves. Only those that remain full and ripe at the end are like wisdom. Wisdom is tested by timelessness and universality.

3. Old age is harvesting what you planted in youth. The man is the child of yesterday. Start early in life to plant the seed of success, more so, the seed of service. Monuments are not built for no reason at all. And even without a monument a good deed is monumental in the hearts and minds of those you serve and those who believe in you – especially those you have changed their lives.

4. Ageing physically and physiologically - this is inevitable. But don’t let the mind and the heart age prematurely and uselessly. Like faculty, practice makes them alive and full. Reason, thoughts, imagination, love, compassion should not go to waste by chronological age.

5. The child in you must always live. That Little Prince that rules over the grownup in you that says “a matter of consequence is not only those that are urgent and important,” is also preserving the ideal. Idealism must live together with realism.

6. There are those who are late bloomers; they bloom with age. Catalyze the blossoming of the beautiful things – how late they may come in life. It is better to bloom in old age than to blossom early – and the blossom just fades away. You’ll even regret it because it could mean to you as failure.

7. In old age don’t lose your trophies and medals - because of one false move, worst, if deliberate. Or because of a persistent habit you thought you can get away with even in old age. There is nothing more regretful if you fall into disgrace in old age – you don’t have a second life to amend for it.

8. Hold your horses. Stop, look, listen. Getting older adopts “slow but sure” attitude towards situations and decisions. “Quick to think, but slow to act,” may be appropriate in old age. That is why in traditional societies, decision makers are old people, village elders.

9. Make your assets grow for others, as you prepare to leave the world. Have the philanthropic heart. You can’t take your riches to your tomb. The Egyptians never did. The young pharaoh Tutankhamen left his belongings for the afterlife in his tomb, now in the Egyptian Museum. . Economics does not work well with each one of us holding a treasure chest and locking it up. Imagine if the world is dominated by Madoff et al - even with their alleged generosity.

10. Older societies are more peaceful than younger societies. Make peace as you grow older. Old men don’t go to war. It is the brave who dies young. “Where have all the flowers gone?” speaks of the youth cut down in their prime. All wars – ancient, religious, political – the young is the sacrificial lamb. People as they grow older can’t simply be made easy tools for power and greed.

Jules Verne, author of science fiction novels (Journey to the Center of the Earth, Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, Eighty Days Around the World) lived to a very ripe age. 

Rip van Winkle, character of the short story of the same title by Washington Irving, slept for twenty long years. When he woke up the world had greatly changed, and did not even know who he was,   (Photo credit: Internet, Wikipedia) 

11. Expanded family ties; three generations not in a row, but in a chain. For the first time in the history of man that three generations live under one roof. And soon four generations - as longevity increases. While in the city the family is getting small, agrarian families are expanding because of longer life span.

12. Scientific and technological thrusts are toward aging, longevity: rejuvenation, on-site cloning of tissues and organs, ergonomics (designing tools and materials that fits well to the comfort of the user) - geriatrics, gerontology (all about the science and caring of the aged.)

13. Extension of retirement, active retirement – this is the trend today for old people. Soldiers become security guards; teachers become professor emeritus, executives as consultants, professions doing odd jobs. Age of retirement is not after all boring. So when does one really retire?

14. Foster, adopt, and have the needy, the homeless, the orphaned, the abandoned as your own children especially if you are childless. Even then, by the time you are very old, your children shall then be on their own. Be like Brad Pit and Angelina Jolie who have adopted children of different color. Sponsor scholarships for the deserving but are unable to pursue their studies.

15. Resurrection and immortality are myths. Humans will always remain mortals. More than a hundred corpses of rich Americans are in cryonics tanks waiting for the time to resurrect them. DNA extracted from cadavers and human fossils will never make a living replica of the departed or deceased.

Old man (Spencer Tracy) in Ernest Hemingway's  Nobel Prize winning novel, The Old Man and the Sea. (Photo credit: Internet, Wikipedia)  

16. Life cycle biologically - that is a universal given to everything, living or non-living. But with man’s rationality we can plot our life cycle, so with socio-economic matters. The late Justice Secretary Ordoñez wrote a book, Life Cycle. He said the inevitable is biological, but the way we live our lives, is within much under our control and will. “Men choose to live long which they have no control of, yet refuse to live nobly within their will.” So said the great Roman Philosopher Cicero.

17. Nature is selfish within your lifetime – you care so much for those close to your genes, to the point of dying for them. But nature, after you are gone is altruistic; it distributes your genes to where they will most fit in the name of evolution through which a species should be best equipped in order to survive. We can hardly trace our family tree beyond the third generation. Where are the offspring of the pharaohs, of the King of Siam?

18. Kindness is key to fulfillment; it is also the Golden Rule. “Treat an old man as you wish men to treat you when you are old,” say Geoffrey Chaucer in The Pardoner’s Tale. But be kind yourself as an old man or woman. And that kindness must be unconditional. ARK in Evan the Almighty means – Act of Random Kindness. That’s the way to change the world, so said God in that film.

19. Don’t just pass people along the way. Stop, help them, feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, visit the imprisoned, clothe the naked, comfort the lonely, and heal the sick. In Matthew 25, Christ said, “What you have done to the least of my brother, you have done it to me.” Indeed this is the most meaningful act of human to humanity. You deserve a place in heaven.

20. Facing death is a beautiful thing to one who has reached old age. It’s like a candle in its final brightness. Angelus to the old who is dying unifies the family, gathers the broken fragments of relationships. Bonding is strengthened. It’s time for the living to say the kindest things about the departed. Let the occasion be a memorable and lasting one. Dying is leaving to the living a new hope, renewed love, and a new beginning. ~

                            The Old Man

 He is old now 

            and the cataract is but a spring.

       He touches the spring -   

            where have all the waters gone?

       Yes, he sighs with relief, 

            his gaze takes him far away;

       And there the last drops of his waterfall 

            meet the sea;

       And the sea roars in gladness,

            roars a thousand cheers. ~

14. What flower is white in the morning 

and pink in the afternoon?

What flower is white in the morning and pink in the afternoon? From riddle and humor enthusiast and a good friend of the author, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, former director, National Food Authority; and retired professor, St Paul University QC.  Photo taken at Angels' Hills Tagaytay

1. What is the brightest day of the week?
Sun-day

2. Who was the world's greatest thief?
Atlas, because he held up the whole world. (photo, Internet) 

3. What key plays tricks with anyone?
A monkey.

4. What makes men mean?
The letter A.

5. What is the widest rope in the world?
Europe.

6. What flares up when struck on the head?
A match.

7. What stands on one leg and has its heart in its head?
A cabbage.

8. What tune does everyone like?
Fortune.

9. What can you say, and merely by doing so, break?
Silence.

10. What did the judge say to the dentist?

Do you swear to pull the tooth, the whole tooth, and nothing but the tooth?
 
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Here is simple guide when answering riddles. You may fail to answer correctly, but don't fall into a trap. Because all of a sudden what is being asked in not a riddle - but plain fact, a common knowledge, or basic principle. Here is an example: Someone asked a college graduate in the midst of a riddle exchange session, "How is oxygen produced continously outside the laboratory?" A long pause - then silence - the session broke into guesses. Answer: photosynthesis.
-------------------------------------------------- 
11. What, put in front of pies, makes them dangerous?
The letter S. 

12. What did the bride think when she arrived at the church?
Aisle, Altar, Hymn (I'll alter him.)

 13. What animal disturbs you in bed at night?
A night-mare.

 14. What is the difference between a dressmaker and a nurse?
One cuts dresses, while the other dresses cuts.

 15. Why is the letter A like a flower?
Because the B follows it. 

16. What runs around the house that never moves an inch?
A fence.

 17. When did Adam and Eve stop playing games?
When they had lost their pair o' dice (paradise)

18. What carries hundreds of needles but never sews?

A porcupine. (photo, Internet)

19. Which dog will you find in a ring?
A boxer.
  
20. What is waste of time.
Telling a hair-raising story to a bald-headed man.

 21. What did the flour say to the water?
We'll be kneaded to make the dough. 

22. What part of a ship is strict?
The stern part. 

23. What time is it when the clock strikes thirteen?
It's time to repair it.

 24. What do you call father corn? Pop corn. Mother corn? Mais. Teacher corn? Mae(i)stra.

25. What is worse than seeing a worm in an apple?
Seeing only one-half of the worm. (Answer to photo riddle: Balibago)

Balibago (Hibiscus tiliaceus Linn), Family Malvaceae. Its flowers open pure white in the morning gradually turning into pink towards the end of the day, indeed a manifestation of God's mysterious ways.

Compiled by AVRotor. Reference: The Armada Book of Jokes and Riddles; acknowledgment, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, and Angels' Hills, Tagaytay.

15. Reviving Philippine Ethnic Literature: 

Filipino Riddles - expression of wit, humor, 

and philosophy at the grassroots

Riddles may be based on truth and fantasy, the common and the rare, things we discover yet we can't understand, which we often attribute to the supernatural. Here Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, a foremost Filipino scientist, is studying a rare plant. Its unique characteristic has led local folks to describe it in riddles. Do you know what plant is this? (See answer at end of article)

The word for riddle is burburtia in Ilocano, boniqueo in Pangasinan, bugtong in Tagalog or Pilipino, and in Pampangan, and tugmahanon in Bisayan.

Riddles are common to mankind, from earliest times to the present. Riddles delighted the old Aryans and the ancient Greeks. So with the modern Hindu and the Bantu people of Africa. Cultural influences gave riddles local and foreign flavors that their origin may not be easy to trace. One common characteristic of riddles is that they become adopted by different cultures by way of their languages and dialects.

Riddles are enduring like Homer’s epic, being transcended from generation to generation. Even as their popularity has declined with the rise of the academe and movement of people away from their native origin to live in cities, riddles are still part of conversation, and in fact with today’s social media, in comic books and animations. Riddles give life to discussions and conversations, and are often used in exchanging wit and humor.

A riddle is an indirect presentation of an unknown object, in order that the ingenuity of the hearer or reader may be exercised in finding it out.

Another definition is a play of wit, which endeavors to present an object, stating its characteristic features and peculiarities, giving some ideas about it to tease the mind, without actually naming it.

Riddles are part of cultures. There are Hebrew riddles in the Bible. Persian riddles, Indian riddles, Arabic riddles. Sanskrit and Gypsy riddles. One of the two Malayan collections is Rizal’s Specimens of Tagal Folk-Lore; the other is Sibree's paper upon the Oratory, Songs, Legends, and Folk-Tales of the Malagasy.

Some characteristics of Filipino Riddles.

1. Filipino riddles deal largely with animals, plants and objects of local character; such must have been made in the Islands even if influenced by Spanish models and ideas.

2. Many Filipino riddles are about God, saints and religious persons or objects, dismissing disrespect with expressions “sana walang magagalit, or “bato.bato sa langit ang matamaan huwag sana magalit,” two common expressions of excusing the story teller from blame or anger. It is not unusual that religious riddles lack reverence and sutlety.

3. There are Filipino riddles that lack finesse, in fact they display coarseness and even obscenity, but this is also a trend in many cultures and elsewhere, so that it is likely that foreign influence could be the reason for this undesirable characteristic that undermine the beauty and dignity of Filipino riddles.

4. Of several classes of Filipino riddles, the three most popular one are: concerning God and divine things (alo-divino); concerning persons (alo-humano) and fable (Parabula)

5. Filipino riddles are generally patterned after the true rhymed riddles and the short catch- questions’ expressed in prose. True riddles describe a veiled object, it is thought-arousing, poetical and sometimes misleading. Catch-questions are specific. There is also a third kind “false” riddles. Here the teller and listener fail to agree on the answer, and we can only imagine the consequence. That is why riddles as literature must follow certain criteria and code of ethics.

6. Filipino riddles in whatever language or dialect, are likely to be in poetical form. The commonest type is in two well-balanced, rhyming lines, although less exacting. Rizal says—ayup and pagud, aval and alam, rhyme. The commonest riddle verse contains five or seven, or six, syllables, thus:

Daluang balon
hindi malingon
or
Bahay ni San Gabriel
punong puno nang barel.

Here is a simple rhymed riddle.
Contirad contibong; bandera ti lobong.
(Iloc.) Torre
(Sharp and long; flag of the world – tower).

Here is a short list of popular Filipino Riddles:

Nagalacat nagahayang.
(Bis.) Sacayan
He walks with his back.
A ship

Ania ti pinarsua ni Apo Dios nga ipagnana ti bocotna?
(Iloc.) Baloto
What creature made by Lord God walks on its back?
Boat

Tinugtog co ang bangca nagsilapit ang isda.
(Tag.) Campana sa misa
I rang the banca and the fishes came.
Bell
Note: Banca is canoe or boat; to strike it as with the pole is to ring it. People are called to mass by the ringing of the bell, which is likened to fish.

These are two riddles about the bat.
Ania iti pinarsua iti Dios a balinsuec a maturog?
(Iloc.) Panniqui

What thing that God made sleeps with its head down?
Bat

Pantas ca man, at marunong bumasa at sumulat, aling ibon dito sa mundo ang lumilipad ay sumususo ang anak?
(Tag.) Kabag
Although you are wise and know how to read and write, which bird in this world flies and yet suckles its young?
Bat
These are three riddles about the water buffalo or carabao in three dialects.
Uppat iti adiguina, maysa iti baotna, dua iti paypayna, dua iti boneng.
(Iloc.) Carabao
Four posts, one whip, two fans, and two bolos.
Carabao

Apat na tukod langit at isang pang hagupit.
(Tag.) Kalabao
Four earth posts, two air posts and whip.

                                                     

Saquey so torutoro duaray quepay-quepay a patiray mansobsoblay.
(Pang.) Dueg
One pointing, two moving, four changing.
Carabao
The head points, the ears move, the legs change position.

Here are riddles about the cock or rooster
Nagcapa dimet nagpadi; Nagcorona dimet nagari.
(Iloc.) Manoc
Gown but not priest; crown but not king.
Cock

Nancorona agimiet ari; nan capa agmuet pari.
(Pang.) Manoc
The king's crown but not king; the priest's cope, but not priest.
Cock

Dinay pinalsay Dios ya managtay carne?
(Pang.) Manoc
What creature of God is with meat on its head?
Cock

Ania a parsua ni Apo Dios ti nagsusoon ti carne nga aoan ti imana?
(Iloc.) Tapingar
What creature of our Lord God carries meat but has no hands?
Cock
The meat is the cock's comb.
Now compare with the style of this riddle.
Nang munti ay may buntot nang lumakiy napugot.
(Tag.) Palaca
When he was little he had a tail but when he was grown he had none.
Frog

Here’s a tricky riddle
Casano iti panangtiliu iti ugsa a di masapul iti silo, aso, gayang, oen no a aniaman a paniliu?
(Iloc.) Urayec a maloto
How do you take a deer without net, dogs, spear, or other things for catching?
Cooked

And another one, this time playing with words.
Laguiung tao, laguiung manuc, delana ning me tung a yayup.
(Pamp.) Culassisi
The name of a man, the name of a chicken, were carried by a bird.
Culas is a man's name; sisi

These two riddles tell the answer, try to mislead.
Verdi ya balat, malutu ya laman anti mo ing pacuan.
(Pamp.) Pacuan
Its skin is green and its flesh is like a watermelon.
Watermelon
The riddle is poor, in that it introduces the answer as a term of comparison, in a way to mislead.

Similar cases occur in this one.

Magma nagcal-logong no maibagam pag-ong.
(Iloc.) Pag-ong
Walking, wearing his hat.
Turtle

Analogy and anatomy
Nagsabong ti sinan malucong nagbunga uneg ti daga.
(Iloc.) Camote
It produces a flower like a cup; fruit underground.
Camote

Oquis nan bagasnan.
(Iloc.) Lasona
Its skin is its flesh
Onion
These are quite difficult, unless you are a farmer

Cobbo ni amam quiad ni inam sica nga anacda daramodum ca.
(Iloc.) Arado
The father is bent over, the mother is bent back and the son is bent forward.
Plow
This has reference to the different sticks, or pieces, of which the plow is composed

Adda maysa nga ubing a natured ti lammin.
(Iloc.) Sudo
There is a boy, who does not shiver with the cold.
Dipper
This dipper is made from the half of a polished cocoanut shell.

Adda abalbalayco a sinam granada rineppetco a binastabasta imbarsacco diay daga nasay sayaat ti cancionna.
(Iloc.) Sunay (tarampo)
I have a toy like a granada; I tied it around and around and threw it on the ground and it sang sweetly.
Spinning Top

Pusipusec ta pusegmo ta iruarco ta quinnanmo.
(Iloc.) Lacaza
I turn your navel to take out what you have eaten.
Trunk

Ania nga aldao ti caatid-dagan?
(Iloc.) Ti aldao a saan a panangan.
What day is the longest?
The day on which you do not eat.

Nag daan si Cabo negro, namatay na lahat ang tao.
(Tag.) Gabi
The black Corporal passed, all the people died.
Night
Died, here, is slept.

All about the stove
Tal-lo a pugot natured ti pudut.
(Iloc.) Dalican
Three ghosts endure much heat.
Stove
The three supports for the pot are meant. It seems that the pugot (ghost) is black.

Tatlong magkakapatid nagtitiis sa init.
(Tag.) Tungko nang calang
Three brothers suffering from the heat.
Pot rests

Tatlong mag kakapitid sing pupute nang dibdib.
(Tag.) Calan
Three sisters with equally white breasts.
Stove
They are equally white—i.e. they are all three black from the fire.

Nagcal-logong nag pica nagcaballo tallot sacana.
(Iloc.) Dalican
It has a hat and a spear, a horse and three feet.
Stove

Riddle about rain
Baston ni San Josep indi ma isip.
(Bis.) Ulan
Saint Joseph's canes cannot be counted.
Rain
Drops of rain in a tropical storm may well suggest rods or staves.

Buhoc ni Adan, hindi mabilang.
(Tag.) Ulan
Adam's hair cannot be counted.
Rain

How about shadow. (It reminds us of Peter Pan, who has no shadow)
No magnaac iti nasipnget aoan caduac quet no magnaac iti nalaoag adda caduac.
(Iloc.) Anninioan
If I walk in the dark I have no companion; if I walk in the light I have one.
Shadow

No tilioec tilioennac; no itarayac camatennac.
(Iloc.) Aninioan
If I catch, it catches; if I run away it chases me.
Shadow

Relationships make many riddles that need careful analysis. Here are examples
 Ano ang itatawag mo sa biyenang babayi nang asawa nang kapatid mo?
(Tag.) Ina
What will you call the mother-in-law of your sister's husband?
Mother

Ang amain kong buo ay may isang kapatid na babayi, ngunit siyai hindi ko naman ali. Sino siya?
(Tag.) Aking ina
My uncle has a sister but she is not my aunt. Who is she?
My mother

Ang mga babaying A at B ay nakasalubong sa daan ng dalawang lalaki; at nagwika si A; naito na ang ating mga ama, mga ama nang ating mga anak; at mga tunay nating. (Tag.) Ang ama ni A ay napakasal kay B at ang ama ni B ay napakasal kay A at nagkaroon sila nang tigisang anak.
Ladies A and B met two men and said, “There come our fathers, fathers of our sons and our own husbands.”
A's father married with B and B's father with A, and each of them had a child.

Nang malapos nang madalao nang isang lalaki ang isang bilango ay tinanong nang bantay; ano mo ba ang tawong iyon? Kapatid mo ba o ano? Ang sagot nang bilango ay ito; akoy ualang kapatid, ni pamangkin ni amain, ni nuno, ni apo, ni kahit kaibigan; ngungit ang ama nang tawong iyan, ay anak nang anak nang aking ama. Ano nang bilango ang tawong iyon.
(Tag.) Anak

After a man visited a prisoner, the guard asked him—“is that man your brother, or what?” The prisoner's answer was, “I have no brother, no uncle, no nephew, no grandfather, neither grandson nor friend; but that man's father is my father's son. “Who was that man?
Son

Green corn riddle
Nag tapis nang nag tapis nacalitao ang bulbolis.
(Tag.) Mais
She wore and wore her tapis yet her pubic hair was displayed.
Maize
The green husks are considered the tapis, or wrap about the mid-body; the silk appearing from the husk wrapping is the pubic hair.

Lastly,
Aniat casam itan ti nasamit?
(Iloc.) Ayat
What is the sweetest of the sweet?
Love

The authors are deeply grateful to Project Gutenberg EBook of A Little Book of Filipino Riddles, by Various (contributors), for allowing the use of some materials for this chapter. To wit: This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net Thanks also to Philippine Studies I A Little Book of Filipino Riddles. Collected and Edited by Frederick Starr, World Book Co. Yonkers, New York 1909

Answer: Pongapong (Amarmophallus campanulatus) virtually dies losing all its stems and leaves completely, then produces a single huge flower emerging from its corm below the ground. The fower stinks and attracts flies to pollinate and disseminate its seeds. Now, how can you make a riddle out of this unique creature? 

16. The making of an effective professor-researcher

Professor Rey Pedoche (Media), Dr Anselmo Cabigan (Biology and Agriculture), AVRotor
(Biology and Ecology), and Dr Manuel Martinez (Business and Psycvhology)

Here is a framework of a lecture on the subject, "What make an effective professor-researcher?" This serves as a guide to practitioners in the academe.

Ways of Researchers

• Hook and Line
• White Gown
• “Frankenstein”
• Entrepreneur
• Continuing

Stages of a “Sageing”

• The Age of Becoming (adventure and discovery)
• The Age of Overcoming (mastery)
• Age of the Forthcoming (Integrity and Harmony)

Risks and Rewards

• Youth – Blunder, also Opportunity
• Middle Age – Regret, also Fulfillment
• Old Age – Curse, also Wisdom

The ABH (Always Busy and in a Hurry) Person

• He is here and he is not here; anywhere but here.
• Often unhappy with what he has, with where he is.
• Imagines success, happiness and contentment to be external and distant
• Not physically, emotionally and spiritually involved.
• He is not living fully; he is Tomorrow’s Child.

The Control Freak

• He wants to be in control in everything and everyone.
• Deep inside he does not trust himself.
• Very organized but always worried.

The Cheerful Robot

• Afraid to take the initiative, drifts with the current
• Creature of routine
• Contented with mediocrity

Cynic (Frustrated Idealist)

• Incurable critic
• Always complaining
• Envious and jealous

The Hoarder

• He has insatiable want, forgetting what he truly needs.
• He is trapped in the fear of losing what he has.
• He needs to escape from the suffocating clutches of his possession

The Pleaser

• His self-image relies on public approval (KSP)
• He can’t say, NO without feeling guilty.
• He overburdens himself with promises he can’t fulfill

The Pretender

• He wears many masks he has forgotten his real face.
• A jack of all trades, a master of none.

The Addict

• He is excessively devoted to or burdened compulsively and habitually at something or someone.
• He is obsessed with alcohol, smoking, sex, TV, computer, money, and car - even religion.

What a Professor-Researcher should have

• Humility – sincerely accepting “who I am and what I am doing that I can, to become what God wants me to be.”
• Simplicity – focusing one’s attention on what truly matters in life.
• Integrity – (integer is whole) wholeness leads to holiness.

How to Live Life

SPUQC Faculty Retreat at Angel Hills, Tagaytay, circa 2008. 

with Dr Cabigan, first from right. 

1. Practice your religion. Religion is the most profound revolution.

• Life is a journey (We pass this way but once.)
• Life is beautiful (If you don’t see it, you will miss it.)
• Life is precious (Don’t miss the happy moments.)
• Life is short (If you don’t look around, you will miss it.)
• Breath, rest, take time out (Sabbath Day, siesta and holiday)

2. Don’t sacrifice your family on the altar of your career

3. Be prepared to experience the Crises of Limit

• Crucial periods and vulnerability
• Know the boundaries, borders and confines
• The Unfinished Business
• The crisis of bodily change. The body never lies.
• The crisis of effectiveness
• The crisis of death awareness

4. Learn from great men and women. Here are some useful quotations.

“Everyday I am doing something beautiful to God.” - Mother Theresa

“Totus tuus.” (Everything I do, I do for God.” - Pope John Paul II

“Don’t judge yourself with what you do, but the meaning of your work,” - Francis Thompson, The Hound of Heaven

Acknowledgment: Lecture presented by AV Rotor in a faculty seminar at the University of Perpetual Help Rizal, Graduate School in Arts and Education. This outline was gathered and organized from a seminar-workshop conducted in for the UST Graduate School professors by Fr. Rolando de la Rosa, current rector of the university. Note: I encourage the readers to write a full article based on this outline, and send a copy of the same for posting in this Blog, and for inclusion in the lessons of Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid.

17.  Have you seen a kugtong or giant lapu-lapu?
"If there is a Coelacanth long thought to have been extinct that lives in the craggy bottom of Madagascar Sea, we have our own kugtong, the biggest coral dwelling fish." (AVR)

 

In the craggy depth of the sea lies a monster - the giant lapu-lapu or grouper. Fishermen in the area respect the niche of this benthic creature. They tell stories of missing pets and fishermen, of mysterious encounters that turn the sea inside out, a battle between a kugtong and a giant squid or whale. These are stories of fishermen and are often exaggerated.

 

At SEAFDEC (Southeast Asia Fisheries Development Center) along the coast of Iloilo, lapulapu is cultured and studied in captivity. The making of a giant is evident in one of these photos. The longevity of the fish may be the same as that of human, and a full grown has a mouth so huge it can engulf its prey whole and alive.

I saw two giant lapu-lapu (kugtong) in Sablayan Occidental Mindoro caught by local fishermen sometime in 1982. I had been hearing kugtong since childhood, a threat to fishermen and picnickers because it could swallow a whole human being, and here with my own eyes the kugtong in Lola Basiang’s story is true after all. So huge are these overgrown lapu-lapu that two men could hardly carry one of them with a bamboo pole on their shoulders. A third man had to lift its tail from the ground as they inched their way to a waiting vehicle. I examined the fish; its body is coarse and shaggy, covered with seaweeds and barnacles, and had lost all semblance of the favorite lapu-lapu on our dining table. But this makes a perfect camouflage that suits the predatory habit of this benthic fish. By the way, it is the female lapu-lapu that attains this enormous size. The male is a diminutive partner permanently attached to her body, indeed a very special kind of relationship in the animal world.

There is a story about a kugtong that lived under the old pier of San Fernando, La Union. For a long time the strange fish was feared by the residents and many animals around had mysteriously disappeared. Then the local fishermen decided to catch it with a big hook luring the fish with a live piglet as bait. The fish took it and struggled until it was finally subdued. It was hauled by many men and if the story is accurate it took a six-by-six truck to transport it.

There are giants in the deep. After the tsunami in 2004 that hit the Indian Ocean, by coincidence I saw giant squids measuring 3 feet long being sold at the SM Fairview supermarket. I surmise that these were flushed out from their deep dwellings and landed in the fisherman’s net when the calamity struck. I remember the giant squid that almost sank Captain Nemo’s submarine in Jules Verne’s “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.”

There is mystery in the biology of lapu-lapu- or grouper, as it is known worldwide. Groupers are hermaphroditic, which means that sex switch from male to female and vice versa. The young are predominantly female but transform into males as they grow to about a kilogram in a year, remaining adolescent until they reach three kilos. From here they become females. But wait. When they are about 10 to 12 kg they turn to males and grow very, very big. Lengths over a meter and weights up to 100 kg are not uncommon.

A newspaper reported a 396.8 pound grouper caught off the waters near Pulau Sembilan in the Straits of Malacca in 2008. Shenzhen newspaper reported that a 1.8 meter grouper swallowed a 1.0 meter whitetip reef shark at the Fuzhou Sea World aquarium.

I asked my friend Dr. Anselmo S Cabigan, a fellow biologist. “What is really the sex of a full grown kugtong, such as those I found in Mindoro?”

In my research it is male. The male is larger and wilder than the female, and I use as analogy the bull to the cow, rooster to hen, peacock to peahen, lion to lioness.

Dr Cabigan thinks it otherwise. The female is larger, in fact much larger, that the male is virtually a remora-size creature attached to the female. I imagine the huge size of the queen termite as compared to the tiny king termite. The enigma of the grouper, considering its diversity, and worldwide distribution could yet reveal other amazing facts about the kugtong. Among the institutions working on the kugtong is SEAFDEC, which admits its biology and ecology remain a mystery.

At least we are sure the kugtong does exist. 

18. Foreword:  Living with Nature

In this age of environmental degradation, resource depletion, and unparalleled human population explosion, how can man live and find meaning in their lives with nature?

Dr Anselmo S. Cabigan, PhD
Former Professor, St. Paul University QC, and Former Director, National Food Authority

Living with nature built character and helped men find meaning in their lives. Moses walked through the desert and found his commission at the burning bush. John the Baptist lived in the wilderness and preached repentance, sustained by locusts and honey. Jesus of Nazareth spent days in the wilderness and came out committed to the way of the cross. Saul of Tarsus waited for marching orders in his garden from a Master whose followers he once persecuted. Charles Darwin took a peek into evolution while sailing along the shores or South America and into the Galapagos. George Washington Carver parlayed with his Creator in the forest and gave the world its first taste of peanut butter.
Once upon a time, nature was pristine, undefiled, and unspoiled. We used to live in a dreamlike world of tropical virgin forests, and pure hidden springs, calm ponds, and serene lakes with majestic purple mountains, crowned with canopied trees. That was when people took only what they needed, caught only what they ate, and lived only in constant touch with a provident earth.
Dr Cabigan with rare species of bamboo, Tagaytay City

Nature eventually succumbed to human exploitation and was sacrificed in the altar of greed. Her bowels were desecrated for minerals and oil, and her verdance raped for timber and paper. The face of earth was scraped for agriculture and housing projects, and her waters poisoned and mercilessly gagged with garbage. Man choked the air with pollutants and dumped garbage on the oceans. Meanwhile the earth’s species were hunted to extinction, and her forests burned with billowing smoke, so massive, it is visible from the surface of the Moon.

In this age of environmental degradation, resource depletion, and unparalleled human population explosion, how can man live and find meaning in their lives with nature?

Very common people, in very common settings, with very simple objects, now tell us how to keep in touch with nature. For instance we rejoice in the bounty of leafy vegetables growing on discarded tires, sustained with compost from a city dump. We also find relief from a burning fever through a cup of lagundi tea, or savor broiled catfish fattened at a backyard pond. Sometimes, we painfully ponder the fate of a dog headed for slaughter, or grieve at the gnarled skeleton of a dead tree, or awe in at the metamorphosis of a cicada, or immersed in the lilting laughter of children at play.

The following episodes speak of very common people, in very common settings with very simple objects, finding meaning in their lives. The Living with Nature Handbook speaks of us and to us.

(Author’s Note: Dr Anselmo S. Cabigan and the author are very close friends, having studied for their doctorate degrees. They share many things in common, both in their personal lives and professions. Both are naturalists, gentlemen farmers, executives of the government, and college professors. It is most fitting for one, as close to the author as Dr. Cabigan is to speak about the book on his friend’s behalf.) 

19. Biology:  Here's a Self-Administered Test 

Dr Anselmo S Cabigan lectures on natural history at the St Paul University Museum QC. The Museum is one of the accredited museums by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. It is also a member of the Museum Association of the Philippines. It was established in 1994.

1. Going back to nature” means we have to live the lives of our ancestors and renounce our modern living.

2. We can actually transfer genetic materials from one organism to another irrespective of species or class or subkingdom by means of genetic engineering, resulting in the formation of what we call as GMO.

3. Genetic engineering actually started with Gregor Mendel, the father of the science of genetics and heredity nearly two hundred years ago.

4. There is no question about a human clone of not having a soul because, the soul of the parent transcends to offspring which is the clone.

5. We live under different ages all at a given time - atomic age, computer age, age of genetic engineering, and space age – all rolled into what scientists called the age of postmodernism.

6.Man is a recent creature on Earth. If the 5 billion years of the earth’s existence is compared to a calendar (365 days), man came into this world only in the eve of December 30. Man is only one-day old on earth.

7. Toxic metals abound on land, sea and air – from kangkong to tuna to fowls – unless we control the emission and spread of these toxic metals.

8. Even without the human species, Planet Earth will continue to “go round” so to speak in the same way as it did in the last 5 billion years – and perhaps go on for another 5 billion years.

9. Penguins and white bears are drowning in the Arctic region because of the melting of ice.

10. The least sprayed vegetables – that is, vegetables that do not necessarily require the application of pesticides – are those that grow wild.

11. Converting corn into ethanol requires more energy in the process than the net energy output/ produce.

12. Cicada or kuliglig emerges singing on trees at the start of the amihan.

13. The name Rachel Carson rings every time we talk about pollution, a subject in her book, “Silent Spring”.

14. When you introduce a new plant in your garden – a plant that has not been tried before – you are sure it is virtually free of pests, firstly because it did not bring with it the pests from its origin, and second, the local pests would take time to develop the taste for it.

15. Homeostasis means dynamic balance – Nature’s way of renewal, renaissance, seeking stability as continuing goal. The coconut crab is the biggest crab in the world.

17. The whale has a good memory. Beware if you injure a whale; it may have its revenge someday.

18. Chicken soup is best for convalescent.

19. Banana with freckles and discolorations means it is sweet.

20. Pulling out a gray or while hair will cause ten more to grow in its place.

Put a check on the correct answers, and X for the wrong ones. Count the number of correct answers and rate it accordingly.

ANSWERS: False: 1,3,4,12,14,19,20,22; other items are True.

RATING:
19 – 20 Outstanding
16 - 18 Very good
13 – 15 Good
10 – 12 Passing

20. Sinadyaya - the highest quality aromatic 

brown rice in the market.

Dr Anselmo Set Cabigan, Ph.D.

Author as botanist and naturalist (Caliraya Lake).

The last time Ka Abe asked me to write something for the second volume of Living With Nature, I wrote about catching quail with bare hands and shrimp with a noose of hair from a horse’s tail. The joys of childhood in the hinterland ring like legend for the metropolitan youth of today. This time, I choose a timely subject, rice – the staple: in the time of hunger between harvest seasons.

Before the advent of high yielding varieties (HYV) of rice and the requisite fertilizers, pesticides, and irrigation support systems, there was only one cropping season, even in lowland irrigated ricefields. Seedbeds were prepared immediately after the early rains in May for transplanting on the first week of June. The paddies were plowed twice and harrowed thrice before transplanting the month-old seedlings. Father would leave three small paddies around the seedbed. These were prepared rather hurriedly after the seedlings have been uprooted. There was no transplanting on these paddies because all the seedlings would have been used up on the main field. These were seeded directly instead.

The variety used was called Sinadyaya (meaning by intent.) The variety was intentionally different from the main crop because it played a crucial role in the survival of the rice farmer. The main crop would ripen from October to November, a long wait indeed for a farmer whose family supply of rice ran out two months after planting the main crop.

The Sinadyaya was not a handsome crop. It was rather short, spindly with a tendency to crawl on the ground. The least wind brought it down, lifting only one or two leaves and the short sparsely – grained panicle just above the water line. Its grain was coarse, with dark red pericarp, practically tasteless and hard-textured when cooked. But it had its merits. In the stormy, rainy, cloudy season of May to August, it brought a crop of grain ripening even in the rain. August was kawitíng-palakól season (literally, reaching with the edge of the axe) when hunger stalked the rice farmer’s family before the next harvest season. And it was in August when the ungainly Sinadyaya brought its measly harvest of coarse, tasteless grain.

There was no problem harvesting in the rain. The panicles could be threshed in the shed. The problem was drying the grain for milling. It was impossible to dry in the sun. The sun seldom came out between the August rains. Mother roasted the fresh grain on a large talyasì (wok) over a low smoldering fire, stirring the grain with a long-handled wooden ladle. We, children, gathered around the fire waiting for popped grains that sometimes jumped out to the ground. Eventually the grain was half-cooked and dry. It was called tanák (probably the closest term for parboiled rice).

The tanák was still hot when transferred to a wooden mortar for pounding. There was very little rice bran. Parboiling had made the pericarp tough and the endosperm elastic. Pounded rice was almost whole grain, with the bran intact. This was called pinawà (brown rice). The partly roasted aroma was good, but above all the quick product of industry was on the dining table in no time. Hunger stopped stalking.

Long before the merits of brown rice was in advertisement, it was an item of survival in the farmer’s diet. Brown rice took twice as much water to cook. Soft well-milled rice varieties that required 1:1 rice:water ratio by volume would take 1:2 rice:water ratio to bring the brown rice to acceptable cooked texture. The hard and coarse Sinadyaya took almost three parts water to one part rice. The gain in volume was further improved by a decrease in intake. One took about half as much pinawà as polished rice. It was a bit tough and took much longer to chew (also much longer to digest). Consequently, one ate less rice and more of the green vegetables that grew on the bench terraces, clung on the fence, and even clambered onto the roof.

When the rice shortage became a current issue, my family switched to brown rice. No, we did not get the ungainly Sinadyaya type. We bought the highest quality aromatic brown rice in the market. The term did not fit the product – it was not brown. Vacuum-packed and pre-cleaned, it looked almost white with colorless pericarp. It cost as much as its well-milled counterpart of the same variety. (As a matter of fact, it should cost less because the milling recovery was 20% higher in brown rice). True enough, it took twice as much water to cook, required more chewing time to eat, but tasted good. It also cut my family rice consumption to half.

Living With Nature includes not only reminiscing the romantic past when oldtimers like us lived in a more “naturalistic” environment. Bringing up the lessons learned a long time ago to the present is more useful. Switching to brown rice not only makes more milled grain available, it also reduces consumption. In simple arithmetic, increased production [milling recovery and cooking volume] and reduced consumption [less rice intake per meal] means a higher ending rice stock balance. It may be too much to suggest paddy processing by tanák, but certainly choosing pinawà sounds more like a health option than a sacrifice.~

21. The Face of Christ Appears on a Painting

Dr Anselmo S Cabigan stands before the miraculous painting at a former university museum where hundreds of pilgrims and other visitors for more than fifteen years saw and pondered on it. It is said that the image remains obscure, and appears only to keen observers. The photos here have been edited to enhance the image.

NOTE: I received queries if the painting has any message at all. I heard comments to relate the painting with the growing problems of the world, notably the recent earthquake in Japan that sent tsunami inland and radiation from broken nuclear plants into the atmosphere. Simultaneously the Arab world is engulfed with social unrest heretofore unimagined, other grave problems like global warming and global recession, notwithstanding. I am therefore reprinting this article earlier posted in this blog in response to our audience's request. Please enter your comments at the end of the article. Thank you.

Into Your Light

“Lead me to where I should lead them,
The little ones to my care You'll send;
That they may solve this awesome maze
And burst out bright into Your Light." 

The little ones to my care You'll send;

That they may solve this awesome maze

And burst out bright into Your Light." 

The little ones to my care You'll send;

That they may solve this awesome maze

And burst out bright into Your Light." 

                  - Anselmo S Cabigan, 1995

“Did you see the face of Christ?”

“Where?”

"On a painting.”

"What is this they are talking about, " I asked Sel.

We went to the Audio-Visual Room, spent a moment of silence as we searched for the Face on the 36" x 24" landscape painting. It was painted and a month ago, and presented in a seminar-workshop at then St. Paul College QC. The theme signifies unity and cooperation among faculty and staff members.

"Can you see it?” I asked.

Sel traced the outline, his finger touching the rough canvas.

"Can you see it?” He threw back the question.

"I see a different one,” I countered and traced the figure differently.

Silence fell again. We exchanged notes and soon enough we were looking at the same face.

Were we seeing The Thing, or only imagining it?

I recalled a story, Images of Illusion. A man was viewing an antique painting and saw himself as one of the torturers of Christ.

“Impossible,” he raged. How could it be possible for the painter to have composed a scenery combining a biblical event and a future character? He demanded the art gallery an explanation.

What is illusion?

In metaphysics, the workings of the human mind have been the subject of research and discourse from the time of Plato who coined psyche or mind or soul, to Kant whose theory of Existentialism remains as the binding force of man and his Creator which is a fundamental doctrine of major religions. Lately, Jung's primary idea of a person as a whole, and not as assemblage of parts, gave rise to the modern concept of holistic personality. Jung’s work as a psychoanalyst was to recover the lost wholeness of personality, and to strengthen the psyche through the process of psychoanalysis and psycho synthesis.

What Jung was saying is that the mind is made up of three levels: the consciousness, the only part of the mind that is known directly by the individual; the personal unconscious which is the level of the mind that adjoins the ego: and the collective unconscious which he inherited from his ancestral past. All three levels are always in a dynamic state. They are never static like a rock or a tree.

When one is afraid of the dark he is expressing the collective unconscious. If he is afraid a the dark because he may be kidnapped, he is expressing the personal unconscious level, an experience which may have been created by distraught thoughts or brought about by personal conflict or raised a moral issue before. In the dark he may be "seeing” a would-be kidnapper at the slightest suggestion.
Now where does the first level come in? His conscious awareness is put to test in such a situation. He then makes to fullest use his four mental functions, which Jung called thinking, feeling, sensing and intuiting. Depending on the development of these faculties from the time of his birth to his present age, the individual tries to overcome - or enhance - the other two levels of the mind which at that moment has caused in him fear.

What I am saying is that a mental image may arise from the interplay of the three levels of the mind. First, there is the “model” or an archetype from which the consciousness makes something out of it. This, in turn, is pictured or deleted in the mind through consciousness.

When Sel and I stood before the painting searching we had different archetypes in our mind. But people who have been raised in the same environment and had undergone similar training have many common archetypes from which images can be similarly patterned.

Suppose one does not readily take from the mind's bank a suitable archetype?
“I don't see anything.”

“Face of Christ, you said?”

"What are you talking about? I can only see trees and a stream flowing through them.”

"I still cannot figure it out.”

These observers, based on Jungian psychology, did not have the archetype at the moment to suit the picture they are looking for.

Quite often discussions may ensue while viewing the piece with someone taking the role of a teacher, or one insisting of seeing another thing.

Again, according to Jung, archetypes can be enlarged or reinforced so that they can surface with the help of the consciousness. However, this may not always work.

“I can see it now.”

“Yes, there it is. There is a bigger one beside it. No, actually there are three faces.”

“There is Blessed Virgin Mary at the center.”

“But it looks like a resurrected Christ.”

“See the trunk at the right? Scourging at the pillar.”

"My God! There's a devil clinging on Christ's nose.”

Now, now, the painting is getting overloaded,

As the painter I wanted to put it back to its real and down-to-earth perspective. It is a forest landscape, all right. The trees are the symbol of strength and unity; the flowing stream is life; the rocks are the obstacles we encounter in life; the light rays penetrating through the forest is hope and guidance; the forest itself characterizes the present world we live in; and the central perspective of the painting leads us to the attainment of a common vision and goal.

As I was about to leave, a very young boy came along with his mother. His eyes were bright and his face radiated the innocence of a child.

"Do you see the little cross, mama?” He was pointing at a orange figure, an empty cross laid upon a rock. Then he scanned the whole piece and quickly pointed at things none of us had earlier seen.

“Here is the Holy Family. Here is baby Jesus. There you see angels. You can count them, 1, 2 3, 4, 5, 6..."

“There are thirty-three trees, I was told," interrupted his mother.

"Those are children playing, mama - there under the trees and on the rocks."

I stood beside, speechless. I realized I only read Plato, Kant and Jung. l did not consult the Greatest of them all. ~
Light in the Woods became the title of the painting, and a book of the same title was published by Megabooks Manila in 1995. The book was presented by the late Jaime Cardinal Sin to Pope John Paul II on his visit to the Philippines in 1995. The book is now a collectors' item.

Dr Cabigan and the author were classmates and co-workers in the government, and co-professors. They have known each other for the last 70 years. The painting was made after a poem composed by Dr Cabigan, Into Your Light (above). The original painting has been transferred to a secured place where it can be viewed on special arrangement. Photos of the painting are found in Light from the Old Arch, by AVR, UST Publishing House 2000; Nymphaea: Beauty in the Morning, AVR, Giraffe Books 1996;Light in the Woods, AVR, Megabooks, 1995, and Light from the Old Arch 2000, UST-AVR Publishing House.

22. The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam 

- an unparalleled masterpiece

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature - School on Blog

I have a friend, Dr Anselmo S Cabigan, who is an ardent disciple of the great Persian astrologer-poet – Omar Khayyam, and on lighter occasions in school where we taught, he would run several lines from Rubaiyat, keeping faithful to the rhyme-rhythm of a quatrain, and emoting the imagined feeling of the master. It is a rare experience today to hear one reciting from memory an ancient masterpiece, which, had it not been for providence, history may have missed conserving such great work.

Omar Khayyam (1048 - ca. 1132) Astrologer-Poet of Persia (Iran)

How distinct Khayyam’s style is, compared with modern poets, who like in painting, hide behind the curtain of abstractionism – vague and hollow, and often wanting of refinement and naturalness. Rubaiyat, of course has some abstract forms, but intellectual and cultural.

Omar Khayyam enjoyed popularity, but his works showed more of the inner man - his life must have been truly well-spent, not only in the sciences and the arts, but in the fulfillment of life itself in his country though tumultuous in his time, was nonetheless obstacle to leading a romantic and scholarly life, as gleamed from the writings of one of his pupils. (The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, rendered into English Verse by Edward Fitzgerald.) To wit:

“I often used to hold conversations with my teacher, Omar Khayyam, in a garden; and one day he said to me, “My tomb shall be in a spot where the north wind may scatter roses over it.’ I wondered at the words he spake, but I knew that his were not idle words. Years after, when I chanced to revisit Naishapur, I went to his final resting-place, and lo! It was just outside a garden, and trees laden with fruits stretched their boughs over the garden wall, and dropped their flowers upon his tomb, so that the stone was hidden under them.”

Here are the first 15 stanzas or quatrains of Omar Khayyam’s masterpiece, Rubaiyat, a priceless contribution to the richness of world literature, and to think that Rubaiyat was written prior to the golden era of the Renaissance. The quatrain used has four equal lines, though varied, sometimes all rhyming, but more often as shown here, the third line does not. It is somewhat like the Greek Alcaic, where the penultimate line seems to lift and suspend the Wave that falls over the last. The Rubaiyat has an Oriental flair, and distinctly  musical so that it is important to read it aloud, preferably with an audience.

I. Awake for Morning is the bowl of Night

Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight:

And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught

The sultan's Turret in a Noose of Light.

II. Dreaming when Dawn's Left Hand was in the sky

I heard a Voice within the Tavern cry,

"Awake, my Little ones, and fill the Cup

Before Life's Liquor in its Cup be dry."

III And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before

The tavern shouted - "Open then the Door.

You know how little while we have to stay,

And, once departed, may return no more."

IV. Now the New Year reviving old Desires,

The Thoughtful Soul to Solitude retires,

Where the White Hand of Moses on the Bough

Puts out, and Jesus from the Ground auspires.

V. Iram indeed is gone with all its Rose,

And Jamshyd's Sev'n-ring'd Cup where no one knows;

But still the vine her ancient Ruby yields,

And still a Garden by the Water blows.

VI. And David's Lips are lock't, but in divine

High piping Pelevi, with"Wine! Wine! Wine!

Red Wine!" - the Nightingale cries to the Rose

That yellow Cheek of hers to'incarnadine.

VII. Come. fill the Cup, and in the Fire of Spring

The Winter Garment of Repentance fling;

The Bird of Time has but a little way

To fly - and Lo! the Bird is on the Wing.

VIII. And look - a thousand Blossoms with the Day

Woke - and a thousand scatter'd intop Cl;ay:

And this first Summer Month that brings the Rose

Shall take Jamshtd and Kaikobad away.

IX. But come with old Khayya, and leave the Lot

Of Kaikobad and Kaikhosru forgot:

Let Rustum lay about him as he will,

or Hatim Tai cry supper - heed them not.

X. With me along some strip of Herbage strown

That just divides the desert from the sown,

Where name of Slave and Sultan scare is known,

And pity Sultan Mahmud on his Throne.

XI. Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,

A flask of Wine, a Book of Verse - and Thou

Beside me singing in the Wilderness -

And Wilderness is Paradise enow.

XII. "How sweet is mortal Sovranty!" - think some:

Others - "How blest the Paradise to come!"

Ah, take the Cash in hand and waive the Rest;

Oh, the brave Music of a distant Drum.

XIII. Look to the Rose about us - "Lo,

Laughing," she says, unto the World I blow:

At once the silken Tassel of my Purse

Tear, and its Treasure on the Garden throw."

XIV. The Worldly Hope men set their Hearts upon

Turns Ashes - or it prospers; and anon,

Like Snow upon the Desert's dusty Face

Lighting a little Hour or two - is gone.

XV. And those who husbanded the Golden Grain,

And those who flung it to the Winds like Rain,

Alike to no such aureate Earth are turn'd

As, buried once, Men want dug up again.

NOTE: Quatrain XI has a universal theme. This is the key to knowing Omar Khayyam's personality and life's philosophy - doubtless, Dr Cabigan and I agree.

"... and Thou beside me singing in the Wilderness - 
and Wilderness is Paradise enow."

About Omar Khayyam: The Persian astronomer, mathematician, and poet Omar Khayyam (1048-ca. 1132) made important contributions to mathematics, but his chief claim to fame, at least in the last 100 years, has been as the author of a collection of quatrains, the "Rubaiyat."

Omar Khayyam was born in Nishapur in May 1048. His father, Ibrahim, may have been a tentmaker (Khayyam means tentmaker). Omar obtained a thorough education in philosophy and mathematics, and at an early age he attained great fame in the latter field. The Seljuk sultan Jalal-al-Din Malik Shah invited him to collaborate in devising a new calendar, the Jalali or Maliki. Omar spent much of his life teaching philosophy and mathematics, and legends ascribe to him some proficiency in medicine. He died in Nishapur. (Acknowledgment: Thanks to Encyclopedia of World Biography; and to Internet for the photos)

Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio, 738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday [www.pbs.gov.ph]

23.  A Tribute to the Pioneers in Biology in the Philippines 

Dr Abe V Rotor

Author’s Note: It will not be long before the final draft of the human genome - the “book of life” will be completed. In 2000 the first draft of the Human Genome Project was made public by the US-UK Human Genome Project’s head, Francis Collins, and J. Craig Venter of Celera Genomics, a private company. They led the celebration of the most important discovery equaled only by the splitting of the atom in the last century. The breakthrough revolutionizes medicine and biology, and has deep ethical and moral implications, as the discovery could lead to the cure of killer diseases through what scientists call gene therapy, and the broadening of genetic engineering possibilities that may lead to the “creation” of life itself. 

Fe Villanueva del Mundo, OLD ONS GCGH, was a Filipina pediatrician. She founded the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines and is known for shaping the modern child healthcare system in the Philippines. Her pioneering work in pediatrics in the Philippines while in active medical practice spanned eight decades.

While the world celebrates the greatest discovery of the new millennium - the cracking of the genetic code - let us turn our thoughts to our own biologists and dedicate this article to them. May their pioneering spirit in the development of biology in the Philippines be brought closer to our youth for them to look into the great potentials of biology as a career.

One of the early biologists was Eduardo Quisumbing the author of Medicinal Plants of the Philippines. Although it was written in the fifties the book is still the most popular reference in pharmacology. It is used in agronomy and horticulture. If you want to know what a certain plant can cure, how it is prepared and administered to the patient, flip the pages his book. It gives the botanical description of the plant so that it can be identified. It is dubbed as the “bible of medicinal plants,” which anyone can use - in the school, barangay and in the home.  

Dr Quisumbing was our professor - Dr Cabigan and I - at GAUF, now DLSU Araneta, in the early sixties. He was also my thesis critic.  

People’s Health and Welfare

Earlier, Leon Ma. Guerrero (1853-1935), the father of botany in the Philippines and one of the first Filipino pharmacists, formulated medicine and drugs from 174 plants in place of synthetic drugs which were not available then. When President Emilio Aguinaldo ran out of ammunition, he formulated an explosive derived from plants. It proved to be a good substitute to gunpowder. It was later named Guerrero Powder. One of the ingredients the author discovered is the hard seed coat of cashew (Canarium luzonicum).

“Necessity,” it is said, “is the mother of invention.” Life went through difficult times even after gaining our independence from Spain and the US and later from the Japanese. It is in these times that great minds were challenged.

Take the case of Maria Y Orosa (1893- 1945). Her discoveries in food preservation and innovations in salting, marinating, and pickling made home economics and food technology household terms. So simple are her techniques that they can be adopted at the grassroots. They are also friendly to health and the environment.

A significant contribution to the improvement of health came from Hilario Lara (1894-1987), an epidemiologist who advocated environmental sanitation in the control of cholera, typhoid, measles, dysentery and diphtheria. For this he did not only earn the title of National Scientist, but his fame gained international acclaim.  He is the Father of Modern Public Health in the Philippines.

Beri-beri and Allergy

It was Manuel Ma. Guerrero (1877-1919) who succeeded in controlling infantile beri-beri. Dr. Juan Salcedo (1904-1988) who was then chairman of the National Science Development Board came up with a special vitamin against beri-beri for all ages, a feat which became internationally famous. Thanks to Dr. Guerrero and Dr. Salcedo this scourge of millions of children all over the world can be now controlled down to the village level. These great Filipino scientists are dubbed the “nemesis of beri-beri”.

More discoveries that improved health were made. Alfredo Santos (1900-1979), one of the founders of the National Academy of Science discovered paheantharine from plants as a treatment of high blood pressure. For this he earned the honor of National Scientist.

Candido M. Africa (1895-1945) succeeded in determining the causes of heart failure and how it can be prevented. In the field of allergy, Arturo B. Rotor (1908-1993), who was also Executive Secretary of President Manuel L. Quezon, and later President Sergio Osmeña, developed a technique in detecting and controlling allergy. He discovered and did extensive research on  a  certain genetic disorder of the liver later named Rotor Syndrome, and is now a standard reference by medical schools and hospitals here and abroad. Dr. Rotor (PHOTO below) also wrote a column, “Confidentially Yours, Doctor,” written in simple and plain English for people to understand the doctor’s lingo. A number of orchids he discovered were named after him. (Author's Note: Beginning 2022, Dr Arturo B Rotor Awards for Literature has been conducting yearly competitions in Dr Arturo Rotor's honor among members of the Philippine College of Physicians Foundation .) 

Antonio Ejercito spearheaded malaria control, while Dr. Sixto A. Francisco (1890-1959) fought tuberculosis with a method he developed with the use of BCG vaccine. Anastacia Giron Tupas (1890-1972) upgraded the nursing profession. She is our own Florence Nightingale, the founder of the nursing profession. 

Fe del Mundo (1907-2011, aged 99 ) institutionalized the treatment of children by putting up of hospitals for children. These hospitals are among the best-managed hospitals today. Among her inventions are an incubator for babies, and a devise in relieving jaundice. Her name is an institution in the field of pediatrics medicine.

Biology and Agriculture

The author and Dr Cabigan had the privilege to study genetics under Nemesio Mendiola (1890-1983). Dr. Mendiola is the country’s counterpart of the American “plant wizard,” Luther Burbank. He was responsible in breeding high yielding rice, corn, sugar cane, and a host of horticultural crops, including fancy plants. Have you seen kamote (sweet potato) varieties with yellow, violet and blue tubers? If you happen to see a dwarf gumamela (Hibiscus rosasinensis) with bright long-lived flowers, it is also the work of Dr. Mendiola. He bred the spineless kenaf from the wild thorny native variety and became the source of fiber for commercial jute sacks.

Another great mind biology is Deogracias Villadolid. PHOTO OF MEMORIAL  He served as professor and critic of the author’s masteral thesis in freshwater ecology,  Deogracias Villadolid, a marine and fresh water biologist, is best remembered for introducing tilapia (Tilapia monzambica and T. nilotica) into the Philippines in the fifties. The fish became adapted to local conditions that today it is the most popular fish, surpassing bangus, our national fish.

Here is a list of other Filipino biologists and their significant contributions:

Julian A. Banzon (1908-1988) developed alternative fuel from coconut and sugarcane. Ironically while millions of cars run on alcogas in other countries, we have not tapped Dr. Banzon’s formula for our local cars.

Felix D. Maramba Sr (1898- 1990?) PHOTO harnessed biogas from animal waste. His project, Maya Farms in Rizal, is the most popular model in the country for small and medium size biogas generator. Like LPG, the gas collected and processed from piggery waste is used for the kitchen and in generating electricity. It became a world’s model for its kind, particularly on the grassroots level. (His project served as our practicum site in the early sixties.) 

Angel S. Arguelles (1888-1988?) developed fertilizers and pesticides to increase plant yield. These alternative farm inputs can save the country of precious dollars that is otherwise spent on imported farm chemicals, which by the way, are deleterious to health and the environment. His formulations set the foundation of organic farming.

Gregorio Velasquez (1901-1994) PHOTO is the father of phycology, the study of algae, which include the seaweeds. Today the culture of certain seaweeds, like Eucheuma and Gracillaria and Caulerpa, constitute a multi-million industry. Seaweeds are used as food and raw materials in medicine and industries. Micro-algae like Spirulina and Chlorella are among today’s growing health food.

 Dr Velasquez served as head of panel of examiners in Dr. Cabigan's dissertation defense at UST.

Gerardo Ocfemia, (1898-1959) the father of plant pathology in the Philippines. He is best known for discovering the cause of cadang-cadang, a pandemic viral disease of coconut. He was responsible in the identification and control of many other plant diseases in the Philippines.

Dioscoro L. Umali (1922-1992) The author, as one time consultant of the Philippine Senate for food and agriculture, had the privilege of consulting Dr. Umali in the drafting of the Magna Carta for Small Farmers, and other related laws and resolutions. A former dean of then UP College of Agriculture, he assumed one of the highest posts occupied by a Filipino in the UN as regional head of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for Asia and Pacific. His works in plant breeding, education and research won him the National Scientist award.

These scientists also excelled in their fields: Salvador M. Africa (chemist, made glass from sugarcane bagasse), and Anacleto del Rosario (discovered natural mineral water).

Of course, we recognize the greatest Filipino who ever lived, the hero of our race, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. Dr. Rizal was a biologist, agriculturist and wildlife conservationist, even while he was in exile at Dapitan. Among his discoveries is a winged tree lizard, which was later named after him, Draco rizali. 

Old Masters of the Life Sciences

The author and Dr Cabigan treasure happy memories through their privileged association as students and professors of the following experts in the fifties and sixties. They constitute the so-called “old school.”

· Fernando de Peralta – Botany (Adviser of the author, MS Botany)
· Fortunato T. Basilio – Animal Science
· Juan P. Torres - Agriculture
· Santiago R. Cruz – Agriculture
· Jose Capinpin - Agriculture
· Gerardo Ocfemia – Plant Pathology
· Juan Aquino – Soil Science
· Domingo B. Paguirigan - Agriculture
· Fortunato T. Basilio – Animal Science
· Romeo Rejesus – Entomology
· Ricardo P. Sevilla – Veterinary Medicine
· Eulalio P. Baltazar - Agronomy
· Romeo Alicbusan – Mycology
· Francisco Fronda – Animal Science
· Martin S. Celino – Agronomy
· Francisco B. Claridad – Genetics
· Romeo Rejesus – Entomology
· Alfredo D. Dean – Entomology
· Vito F. Del Fierro, Jr – Animal Science
· Leopoldo T. Karganilla - Entomology
· Emiliano Roldan – Plant Pathology
· Rufino Gapuz – Animal Science
· Emil Javier – Genetics
· Clare Baltazar - Entomology
· Ramon Valmayor – Agriculture

The author also expresses his admiration to these contemporary Filipino scientists whom he had the chance to study and work with in the academe, in research institutions and in the field. Together with other scientists, they belong to the “contemporary school of biology.” Among them are Reynaldo A. Tabbada, Ph.D. Botany, adviser of the author, Ph.D. Biology, UST; Paciente Cordero (marine biology), Romualdo M. del Rosario (Botany), Ruben Umaly (Genetics); Crisanto Escaño (agriculture), Carmen Kanapi (Genetics), Sister Mamerta R. Rocero (ethnobotany), Alice Claustro (Botany), Anselmo S. Cabigan (Biology) PHOTO left, Irineo Dogma (Microbiology) and Lydia Joson (microbiology). 

The author and Dr Cabigan PHOTO  express recognition to scientists in various fields of natural science.

They also acknowledge his former students at UST, DLSU-D, DLSU Araneta, SPU-QC,  and other institutions, who became practicing biologists - researchers, teachers, community workers, and the like. They are among those who constitute today’s “workforce in biology.”

New Fields of Biology- A Challenge to the youth
These ten major biological research areas pose a challenge to the youth of today who may take interest in becoming biologists.

• Biotechnology
• Marine biology
• Climatology
• Human longevity
• Effects of pollution
• Endangered ecosystems and species
• Exobiology and Space biology
• Natural food and medicine
• Pandemic human diseases
• Gene therapy

Now that the genetic code has been broken, we are embarking into new fields of science and technology heretofore unknown to man - and into the mystery of life itself, a subject that has long defied man’s knowledge.

The mapping of the 46 chromosomes of the human species and the 50,000 or so genes that they hold may have taken us a leap forward into knowing the key to life. But even if we shall have finally identified the specific role of each gene in relation to health, behavior and intrinsic qualities, we would still be in quandary whether this discovery will make life any better, happier and well-lived.

As we look back, our pioneer biologists may not have cracked the gene, but definitely they have in their own quiet and humble ways brought honors to their race and profession. Most important of all, they have improved the lives of millions of not only Filipinos but other people around the world through their genius, efforts, dedication – and selflessness.

May this article serve as a simple expression of our respect and gratitude to these and many other great Filipinos. ~
----------------
Hereunder are scientists who excelled in their respective fields and were conferred the highest honor as National Scientists.  We are equally proud and grateful to them, not only for their valuable contributions, but in laying down the path of excellence for young Filipinos to follow.   
------------------

List of National Scientists of the Philippines (Internet)

Name Year Conferred/ Field of Specialization (1978 to 2014) 
1. Juan S. Salcedo, Jr., M.D. (+) 1978 Nutrition and Public Health
2. Alfredo C. Santos, Dr.phil. (+) 1978 Physical Chemistry
3. Gregorio Y. Zara, D.Sc. (+) 1978 Engineering and Inventions
4. Fe Del Mundo, M.D. (+) 1980 Pediatrics
5. Eduardo A. Quisumbing, Ph.D. (+) 1980 Plant Taxonomy, Systematics, & Morphology
6. Geminiano T. de Ocampo, Ph.D. (+) 1982 Ophthalmology
7. Casimiro V. del Rosario, Ph.D (+) 1982 Physics, Astronomy, and Meteorology
8. Gregorio T. Velasquez, Ph.D. (+) 1982 Phycology
9. Francisco M. Fronda, Ph.D. (+) 1983 Animal Husbandry
10. Francisco O. Santos, Ph.D. (++) 1983 Human Nutrition and Agricultural Chemistry
11. Carmen C. Velasquez, Ph.D. (+) 1983 Parasitology
12. Teodoro A. Agoncillo, Litt.D. (++) 1985 Philippine History
13. Encarnacion A. Alzona, Ph.D. (+) 1985 Philippine History
14. Hilario D. G. Lara, M.D., Dr. P.H. (+) 1985 Public Health
15. Julian A. Banzon, Ph.D. (+) 1986 Chemistry
16. Dioscoro L. Umali, Ph.D. (+) 1986 Agriculture and Rural Development
17. Luz Oliveros-Belardo, Ph.D. (+) 1987 Phytochemistry
18. Jose Encarnacion Jr., Ph.D. (+) 1987 Economics
19. Alfredo V. Lagmay, Ph.D. (+) 1988 Experimental Psychology
20. Paolo C. Campos, M.D. (+) 1989 Nuclear Medicine
21. Pedro B. Escuro, Ph.D. (+) 1994 Genetics and Plant Breeding
22. Clara Y. Lim-Sylianco, Ph.D. (+) 1994 Biochemistry and Organic Chemistry
23. Dolores A. Ramirez, Ph.D. 1998 Biochemical Genetics and Cytogenetics
24. Jose R. Velasco, Ph.D. (+) 1998 Plant Physiology
25. Gelia T. Castillo, Ph.D. 1999 Rural Sociology
26. Bienvenido O. Juliano, Ph.D. 2000 Organic Chemistry
27. Clare R. Baltazar, Ph.D. 2001 Systematic Entomology
28. Benito S. Vergara, Ph.D. 2001 Plant Physiology
29. Onofre D. Corpuz, Ph.D. (+) 2004 Political Economics and Government
30. Ricardo M. Lantican, Ph.D. 2005 Plant Breeding
31. Lourdes J. Cruz, Ph.D. 2006 Marine Biology
32. Teodulo M. Topacio 2008 Veterinary Medicine
33. Mercedes B. Concepcion 2010 Demography
34. Ernesto O. Domingo 2010 Infectious Diseases
35. Perla D. Santos-Ocampo (+) 2010 Pediatrics
36. Raul V. Fabella 2011 Economics
37. Bienvenido F. Nebres, S.J. 2011 Mathematics
38. Angel C. Alcala, Ph.D. 2014 Biological Sciences
39. Ramon C. Barba, Ph.D. 2014 Horticulture
40. Gavino C. Trono, PhD 2014 Marine Biology
41. Edgardo D. Gomez, PhD 2014 Marine Biology

Legend: (+) deceased; (++) posthumous conferment.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a continuing list.  It requires updating and further editing. Acknowledgement and thanks to all his references in this article. 

24. ANNEX: Self-administered test on Ethnobotany

Can you identify these indigenous plants?  

Dr Abe V Rotor

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Answers

1. Chayote - Sechium edule

2. Papait (cultured) - Mollugo oppositifolia

3. Bagbagkong - Telosma procumbens

4. Saluyot - Corchorus olitorius 

5. Alugbati - Basella alba 

6. Dampalit (wild) - Sesuvium portulacastrum

7. Kamias - Averrhoa bilimbi

8. Kuchay - Allium ramosum

9. Pandan Mabango - Pandanus amaryllifolius

10. Papait (wild) - Mollugo oppositifolia

11. Siling Labuyo - Capsicum annuum
12. Karimbuaya - Euphorbia neriifolia
13. Talinum - Talinum tiangulare
14. Tanglad - Cymbopogon citratus
15. Ar-arusip - Caulerpa racemosa

16. Pokpoklo - Codium edule
17. Squash Flower (male) - Cucurbita maxima
18. Dampalit (cultured) - Sesuvium portulacastrum
19. Pako' (edible fern) - Diplazium esculentum
20. Himbaba-o (alokong Ilk) - Allaeanthus luzonicus

21. Ulasiman (ngalog Ilk) - Portulaca oleracea
22. Wax gourd (tangkoy Ilk) - Benincasa hispida
23. Tainga ng daga mushroom - Auricularia 
24. Kutchay flower - Allium tuberosum
25. Sinkamas - Pachyrhisus erosus

26. Native ampalaya (Momordica charantia) and upo (Lagenaria leucantha)  

27. Malunggay - Moringa oleifera
28. Red ginger - Alpinia purpurata,
29. Bignay - Antidesma bunius
30. Achuete - Bixa orellana

14. Outlook of Ethnobotany 

These viewpoints present a Janus’ vantage point from where we stand today. Ethnobotany is besieged by advancing culture, seen on the screen of a computer, serving the needs of modern medicine, and globalization in terms of commerce and intercultural exchanges. On the other hand, ethnobotany offers us an opportunity to turn back to an unspoiled landscape where we study, even under extreme pressure of time and change, the drama which has been taking place many, many years ago, an enduring natural man-plant relationship vital to our success as a species, to be what we are today, our lifestyle and society. In our approach to the subject we may undermine the wealth of indigenous knowledge about the subject, which we must admit, we know so little about.

We should take time out and beat a path out there, bidding the unseen with whispers of bari-bari, as we seek and enter the Shang-rila of health and plenty, a place, a natural order of things, where our ancestors must have lived a full life. ~