Bye Harry Potter!

After more than 7 years and 7 books, FINALLY, the Harry Potter series comes to a close.

Wow! Grabe! I first read the first 4 books of the HP series when I was in the seminary. And I read it for 2 straight weeks reading and hiding it under my scriptorium while pretending to be listening to the discussion of our philosophy professors. And I almost was disciplined (meaning, detained…and no pass for our usual sunday outing) because of that.

Harry Potter 7 (Deathly Hallows), I should say, is probably the most dark and thrilling of the 7 books because Voldemort has already taken over most of the magical word and Harry and the gang spends most of their time running and hiding. I like how JK Rowling was able to weave and connect all the seemingly fragmented events mentioned in the first 6 books: Harry as the 7th horcrux, the cloak as the 3rd of the Deathly Hallows, Snape as always with the DA all along, Snape as Lily’s (Harry’s mom) mean-time guy, Voldemort’s soul in Harry’s and Harry’s soul in Voldemort. Dang, just brilliant. As you read towards the end, you get to look back at the other Potter books and relish its memories like a catharsis after an inner-child session with your spiritual formator. Bwehehehe.

But I was a bit disappointed at how Harry Potter defeated Voldemort. It seemed like it’s so easy. I was hoping that Harry would have used pure magic, fought bravely, and end up in St. Mungo’s with a comma after a near-death experience dueling with the elder wand used by Voldemort. Feeling ko tuloy, napagod na ata si JK Rowling sa kakasulat kaya gusto na niyang patayin kaagad si Voldemort. hehehe.

And the ending is so Pinoyish…it’s like Lito Lapid finishing off 1 batallion of NPA with a huge machine gun while covering his stomach with a helmet to avoid his innards from coming out. I am not saying that Harry finished all the Death Eaters just like Lito Lapid but why is it that all surviving members of the Order of the Phoenix has to be encircling Voldemort and Harry while they duel to the death? It’s so grandiose and predictable, in other words. Sana man lang may konting twist on how Harry defeated Voldemort. But I guess if it just happens, Dumbledore wouldn’t be there to explain everything afterwards. That’s probably the reason why Harry has to be the one explaining why he’s the master of the elder wand. Nagmukha tuloy na bobo si Voldemort because he didn’t figure it out.

And the wandlore explained by Ollivander seemed a bit vague and needs more explaining. I actually read that part thrice while they were discussing it at Bill & Fleur’s house. I think the author was able to veer away with explaining much about wandlore by putting words in Ollivander’s mouth that wandlore is very difficult to understand.

Although I had a few disappointments with how the 7 books ended, the HP experience was one of the best. But, mas maganda pa rin ang Lord of the Rings Trilogy + The Hobbit ni Tolkien. I’m now waiting for the Harry Potter 7-book set to be sold in Powerbooks. I would love very much to share this with my son, Argee, when he grows. Even Homer Simpson turned his spider pig into Harry Potter. hehehe.

Lastly, if there’s anyone who should be properly credited for all the 7 books, it’s Voldemort. Harry’s just an ordinary kid. If Voldemort didn’t kill Harry and made him into a living horcrux, then Harry wouldn’t be that powerful. But the reality is, the good always win in children’s stories. hehehe.

* * *

Since I was so taken by this HP 7, I searched wikipedia and found out that due to HP’s immense popularity, the Chinese even made their own version of the Harry Potter book. The title is…drum roll…HARRY POTTER AND LEOPARD-WALK-UP-TO-DRAGON. I couldn’t help but laugh at the article I found in Wikipedia. Look at the cover image, it’s a chopsuey of famous characters in the cartoon world: the dragon is Malfecient of Sleeping Beauty; and Harry appears to be riding a Centaur. The drawing is not even nicely drawn. Hehehe.

According to the article, this is a 198-page book written and published in 2002 and a verbatim translation of Tolkien’s The HOBBIT, with most names changed to the Harry Potter characters (except Gandalf who still appeared in this book). The only part which is original, according to the article, is the first and last chapters when magical rains turned Harry Potter into a hobbit. Towards the end after all the adventure, he returned to the original Harry Potter. Syempre, daming intsik ang naloko nito. hehehe.

And syempre, the publisher was sued by Rowling’s publishers and they paid around US$3,400 (that’s roughly Php170k). To date, the identity of the anonymous author has not been discovered.

Read BBC’s article.

BSOD: The PC game you always play ;-)

While working on the Edubuntu textbook project, scouring the internet for rare Linux content, I chanced upon a rather exciting game which we unknowingly have played before. Since it’s inception in 1995, this game, known as the BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH (BSOD), is very much embedded in the deepest recesses of the popular Operating System, Windows. Little did we know that this game almost always pops up while cramming on an extremely important and lengthy report. Sometimes this game pops up when playing resources-hungry games like CounterStrike, Allied Assault and the like. And sometimes still, it just pops up even when you’re not doing anything to your computer!

According to my on-line source Uncyclopedia, “the Blue Screen of Death (abbreviated BSoD), also known as The Blue Screen of Doom, the “Blue Screen of Fun” or “Phatul Exception: The WRECKening” is an award-winning game first developed in 1995 by Microsoft. Along with HTTP 404 - File Not Found, a hugely successful epic Internet MMORPG developed by Microsoft, the Blue Screen of Death ranks among the greatest computer games of all time. The game simulates a “system error” and displays a series of nonsensical hexadecimal codes for the player to decipher. Since its inception in 1995, BSoD has maintained its position as the most played computer game ever, and is a cornerstone of the Microsoft Corporation.”

Now Data couldn’t even pass level 1.

Get Simpson-ized!

After watching Simpsons, I visited their official website. Lo and behold! The site was as fun as the movie. And so, I simpsonized myself and my wife. Check out how we look when Simpsonized:

This is me and my wife…simpsonized!

Below are our pictures while in Springfield:

The Simpsons

Spider pig…spider pig…

I just finished watching Simpsons the Movie…and my wife cringed to death. hehehe. She never liked my taste for comedy movies. I love to watch Bean, Simpsons, American Dad and the like. They’re all satires about life in general. Satires are social commentaries about how we act in real life and mirrors them in a rather weird funny way. To put it in another way, the Simpsons is more than just a funny cartoon. It reveals truth about human nature that rivals the works of great philosophers like Plato, Kant, Hume and the like. And it presents this while Homer plays around with his pet pig: “Spider pig…spider pig…” hehehe.

But really, it does take a different look at life — Homer style:

Life views: “Because sometimes the only way you can feel good about yourself is by making someone else look bad. And I’m tired of making other people feel good about themselves.”

Religion: “What’s the big deal about going to some building every Sunday, I mean, isn’t God everywhere?”

Here’s another for religion: “And what if we’ve picked the wrong religion? Every week we’re just making God madder and madder?”

On Debate: “Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that’s even remotely true.”

Makulay ang Buhay

I have always asked myself why children, kahit makulit, mahiyain, maingay, are universally loved. Watching our pre-schoolers dance in school makes everyone stand up from their seats and applaud them like there is no tomorrow. And while everyone smiles and laughs at them, these kids all the more jiggle and dance!

Peter Pan refuses to grow up…I couldn’t agree more.

Tag! You’re it!

Clare, from RockEd Manaoag, tagged me.  Since I don’t know anything about this game, I checked her website and found out that: “It’s like this little game going around the blogosphere - perhaps to get bloggers to open up a bit more or maybe spill some secrets (Haha, if you haven’t already).  It’s  fun, besides, it helps to get to know people more.” Well, let’s give this a try!

Here are the rules for “8 facts”:

• In the 8 facts about [name], you share 8 things that your readers don’t know about you. At the end, you tag 8 other bloggers to keep the fun going. Each blogger must post these rules first.
• Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
• At the end of the post, a blogger needs to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
• Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

And here we go:

Truth #1. I never really liked rollercoaster rides. Call me chicken but I just don’t get the idea of paying huge sums just to be scared.

Truth #2. I love watching horror films but turn around when it comes to demonic possessions. Why? Because the latter is true. My former spiritual director in the seminary is an exorcist…and he tells us stories about his experiences. *nginig*

Truth #3. I have a miniature R/C helicopter which I play in my office after work…something to help me manage stress. (But, my wife said that it’s my ‘back subject. hehehe.)

Truth #4. I never really buy brand new stuff. I would prefer buying mint condition, second hand stuff. Reason? I don’t want to bear the depreciation cost. hehehe.

Truth #5. When I was a toddler, I just don’t thumb-suck…but I also toe-suck! And, I think history repeats itself since my son is starting to toe-suck!

Truth #6. When I have a chance to visit Manila for DLSU meetings, I spend 1 hour in Quiapo buying a minimum of 10 DVDs.

Truth #7. My friends and I have this messianic goal of someday going home to Bislig and turning it’s fate around.

Truth #8. Whenever I play basketball, I usually have this wish to get back my high school varsity endurance and stamina. Unfortunately though, 10 straight minutes of basketball is already torture for me.

Hear you go! Those are the secrets I can let go. And, I am tagging:

Joey, para maiba naman ang iniisip at hindi yung project sa work
Malou, the hot mama from Cebu
Ria, the future 1st Lady
Kris, the future President
Rowena, to relieve her of her stress at work
Gara, to give her a reason to blog again (like me, hehehe)
Doyoy, para naman madagdagan ang blog articles mo
Amee, para malibang kahit wala ka na Pilipinas

Tag! You guys are IT!

My blog rating

Allan, my wife’s college friend, posted on his friendster his blog’s rating. He got a G Rating (General Audiences). And so, I submitted my blog to see what my blog’s rating is…

I got a PARENTAL GUIDANCE RATING! I checked why I got this rating and found out that I used the word “shit” once, and used “jap” twice. Shit is understandable but “jap”? What’s “jap” anyway? Jap is japanese right?

I checked “jap” out in the Urban Dictionary to know why it’s offensive. These are the slang definitions of the word “jap”: 1) A term used for people of Japanses decent, also used as a derogatory term during World War II. (Would Japanese be offended if we refer to them as japs?); 2) a jewish girl who is incredibly spoiled in every way, and gets whateevr she wants, whenever she wants.Usually out and about. She knows the latest trends and is always up to date on things going on around her. (hmm…I think i know someone like a real jewish jap. hehehe); and, 3) A chicago term for snapping on someone. It means to have a heated argument with another person. (Is a slang verb offensive?).

I am still confused. I think I’ll just ask my Japanese friends if referring to them as jap is offensive.

The reason why I migrated to Linux

So many articles are written today about Linux and its benefits. Of course, you would expect that these techies would start ranting about their IT jargon until you’ll end up confused with jaws dropping. In the end, what matters is just one question: “Can I use it with ease?”

This is the basic question I’ve been asking when trying out different Linux distribution after my Windows XP (Pirated edition) has failed me miserably after it crashed an average of 3 times per month. This made me greatly consider about  the try-the-Linux-Live-CD commotion…and so I did.

The first set of Linux distribution I tried was an Ubuntu Linux (sorry, I forgot the version but this was 2 years ago). I was surprised how easy it was. The GUI was great and OpenOffice seems to be useable. However, the terminal command line bugged me…it’s like MS-DOS but with different commands. I also tried OpenSUSE, Mandriva, Red Hat, Bayanihan. All seems okay. But I never actually installed them fearing the worse.

Lately, this youtube video solidified my resolve to shift:

Damn, the GUI is so pretty. And so I made the shift…and so far, no hardware problems, no community support problems, no hassles! At first, I dual boot it with Windows XP but after two weeks of trying out Ubuntu, I never looked back. I wiped my harddrive clean and installed a fresh copy of Ubuntu 7.04 + beryl (the 3D desktop thing). Next project is installing either Avant Window Navigator (to make it Mac OSX style) and Gdesklets (like Yahoo! Widgets).

And this is how my dekstop looks now…instant eye candy without having to upgrade my box.

This is the 3D desktop cube. Linux has 4 desktops, so it’s easy to organize your work.

This is the top view of the 3D cube. You can even customize the cube wallpaper to have 3 different pictures.

And the reason why I migrated to Linux? Stability (no crashing experiences yet) and eyecandy (makes me want to work more with the wobbly, 3D GUI).

Try it, it’s worth it.

I’m back!

My my…I’ve been gone for so long! (My last entry was about an article I wrote way back June 2006). I just checked my old e-mails and remembered I have a blog to maintain. I was so busy with life that I forgot to journalize. Excuses…excuses…Ok. I promise to write again. Hehehe.

So much has happened after 1 whole year. I got a new bouncing…no, jumping little baby boy…our enrolment increased…I just got my first flu shot ever today…a wireless router at home…my HP iPAQ antenna got lost somewhere…and, I have just migrated to Linux.

Yes, the free software bug just bit me…BIG TIME. Well, i think i’ll be posting more about my Linux musings here…I’m so excited…I have spent countless hours trying to learn how to customize my Ubuntu LInux into a better-than-Vista OS. Actually, it is better.

I also have registered to the Linux World, becoming its 450,777th member. And since I used Ubuntu Linux 7.04 (aka Feisty), I also registered to Ubuntu and became its 16,277th user.

Here are my badges Wink:

This is my official Linux badge from http://counter.li.org/.

And here’s my official badge from Ubuntu Linux Counter: http://ubuntucounter.geekosophical.net/

So far, I’ve been enjoying Linux so much because of its flexibility, stability, and customizability. And, it costs me nothing, too! Soon, i’ll be posting more pictures about it, especially my latest experimentation on the Linux 3D desktop GUI.

The fuss about Multiple Intelligences

“Do not train youths to learning by force and harshness, but direct them to it by what amuses their minds so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bet of the genius of each.” (Plato)Recently, I received a letter of invitation to conduct a workshop for teachers on the Multiple Intelligence theory and its application in the classroom. The letter describes Multiple Intelligence as the “in” thing now and should be adopted by schools. I also overhear parents talking about multiple intelligences and how it brought about the discovery of their children’s talents or “smarts”. Sometimes though, more often do I hear parents asking “ano yun?” than being able to clearly explain the theory on multiple intelligence.

But what is this theory about Multiple Intelligences? How did it came about? How do they affect education and learning in general?

Let us transport ourselves way back in the late 70’s when a young Harvardian psychology student named Howard Gardner began conducting brain research among brain damage and stroke victims, prodigies, autistic individuals, and idiots. From his studies, he found out that a specific damage on a specific part of the brain affects a specific learning ability of a patient. Gardner found out that some brain damage patients have difficulty recognizing music, moving about normally, or speaking logically. In the same study he also found out that a well developed talent among prodigies shows a high mark in brain activity in specific areas of the brain.

This discovery led him to further his studies by mapping out specific learning patterns in the human brain. In Gardner’s most famous book Frames of Mind (1983), he revealed his discovery of the 7 intelligences and develops this theory towards a broader application in the field of education.

His discovery of the 7 intelligences totally changed his life as he shifted his research from psychology to education. Due to the potentials of the theory in the educational setting, this created a wave of ecstatic acceptance among educators since it corresponds to the basic premise that all human beings are equally and inherently intelligent.

So what are the Multiple Intelligences?

The Multiple Intelligence theory espouses the existence of 7 “intelligences” inherent in every human being. These are: verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, body-kinesthetic, auditory-musical, naturalist, interpersonal communication, intrapersonal communication.

Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence is the capacity to use words effectively, whether orally or in writing. Your child is inclined to be a good storyteller, orator, poet, playwright, editor, or journalist because of their knack in listening, speaking, writing, explaining, teaching, analyzing language usage, and so much more.

Logical-Mathematical Intelligence is the capacity to use numbers effectively and to reason out well. Your child may become a statistician, mathematician, tax accountant, scientist, or computer programmer since they are good at problem solving, classifying and categorizing information, working with abstract concepts, doing experiments, and working with geometric shapes.

Visual-Spatial Intelligence is the ability to perceive the visual-spatial world accurately and to perform transformations from the perceived world. Your child has good skills in puzzle building, understanding charts and graphs, directing the car in puzzling streets, designing objects, drawing. He / she will therefore be a future interior decorator, architect, artist, or inventor.

Body-Kinesthetic Intelligence is the expertise in using one’s body to express ideas and feelings and to perform transformations upon those perceptions. Your child will likely become an athlete, an actor, a dancer, or a sculptor due to his inclinations towards dancing, sports, acting, and using body languages.

Musical Intelligence is the capacity to produce, appreciate and manipulate music. They usually think in terms of sounds, rhythms and patters and are likely to hum around the house. Your child is good at singing, whistling, playing musical instruments, composing music, and remembering melodies. As such, they are inclined to become an accomplished musician, composer, music critique, or musical performer.

Interpersonal Intelligence is the ability to relate and understand others since they see from other people’s point of view. Children with this intelligence use verbal and non-verbal language to open communication channels with others. Your child would likely become good educators, psychologists, or politicians because they are skilled in seeing things from other perspectives, listening, empathizing, counseling, co-operating with groups, and conflict resolution.

Intrapersonal Intelligence allows one’s self to self-reflect and be aware of one’s inner state of being. Your child usually are able to recognize their own strengths and weaknesses, reflect and analyze themselves, reason out with themselves, and understand his / her role in a group. Children with this kind of intelligence usually are able to answer big questions that begin with how and why. He will therefore be a future philosopher, priest, or researcher.

A few advocates of the MI theory contest that there are more than 7 intelligences aside from the ones mentioned above. Students who show an interest in nature are now thought to have Naturalist Intelligence while those who are likely to become priests someday have Spiritual Intelligence. Gardner himself even thought about including a pseudo-intelligence called Existential Intelligence—the ability to understand the purpose of one’s existence in the world. Of course, Gardner remains uncommitted to existential intelligence because of its difficult in assessing this intelligence. And there are others who parodied intelligence by coming up with all sorts of intelligences such as sexual intelligence, survival intelligence, even football intelligence!

Just like any other theory, the MI theory of Howard Gardner has also met tremendous opposition from fellow educators and theorists due to the fact that it is just a theory and should not be taken with finality. In a conference I attended where he was one of the speakers, he revealed that the MI theory is still currently being developed. Although a number of researches have already been published supporting its positive effects, Gardner further explained that the multiple intelligence theory is best practiced in enriching teaching strategies as it supports the concept of holistic education.

In addition, Gardner elucidated that each person is packed with all the intelligences. What makes each person unique is the level of development and the interest towards each “smart.” It is therefore important to note that each child has the ability to develop all the intelligences and not be boxed by a single intelligence while disregarding the other.

Reflections on MI theory and traditional schooling

Sad to say, I have been educated in a traditional school environment, and so do the majority of Filipinos. It is hard to unlearn the traditional way of rote memorization, teacher monologues, and endless textbooks. But the pain of unlearning is rewarded by the achievements of our children and the discovery of talents.

I am glad that, Escuela de Nstra. Señora de La Salette, the school where I work as one of the administrators, advocates the concept of holistic education by adopting and applying multiple intelligences in the classroom. This is perhaps one of the many reasons why the Lasallian Schools Supervision Office of the De La Salle University granted La Salette School a higher Lasallian Accreditation level by becoming a De La Salle Supervised School.

As a response to this educational philosophy, I constantly remind the teachers to discover and tap the inner “smarts” of the students. Of course, it is important to also remind the teachers not to focus too much on only one or two intelligences as there is a danger of stereotyping the student. MI theory provides 7 potential paths to learning and multiple ways in presenting lessons to facilitate effective learning.

Learning should not be limited to just reading and memorizing. Learning should be a fun experience where students look forward to. It should be multi-dimensional, such as that of the MI theory, and should tap the inner strengths of the pupils. This is even a good way of breaking the monotony in the classroom environment by singing, dancing, orating, and others.

There is wisdom why priests and the religious sang biblical verses in their breviary. They learn the bible by heart. Ask them a verse and they sing the biblical text. Not only do they pray twice when they sing, but they learn it by heart when they sing.

=================

This article was written for the LENS Magazine, a quarterly local magazine of Dagupan City. And, a repost from my old blog.