ORCHID EMBRYO CULTURE

One of the fastest way to increase the number of orchid plants is through embryo culture. A single orchid pod or fruit contains a minimum of 4 to 10 million embryos. If one intends to market and earn the same in 6 months time, the probability is 99% given the simple tools.

A simple kitchen can be turned into a simple embryo culture laboratory with the use of some improvise tools to produce thousands of seedlings from a single orchid embryo pod. Any variety of orchid may be propagated through the process. Interested enthusiast can chat with me at botanist_51@yahoo.com for more details.

GLOBAL WARMING/ENVIRONMENTAL DESTRUCTION: SOLAR POWER

Global warming and environmental destruction is unstoppably on the rise. The major causes of these are the extensive utilization of fossil fuels which includes crude oil and natural gas from the 19th century to the current era to support war, intensified manufacturing technologies, and intensified utilization of transport systems. Extensive mining of crude oil and natural gas not only brings about toxic emissions of by-products. The intensity of mining also leaves a huge impact on the emptied underground spaces resulting to earthquakes of tectonic origins.

Perhaps, it is time for the elite think-tanks to consider massive utilization of solar cells to harness solar energy and power all possible activities that require it before all the mountains in the world will crumble down and human existence is no longer possible.

NEUTRALITY

Sometimes it is easy to advocate the principle of neutrality, but, often practicing the same seems living beyond reality.

INSURANCE: SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM

Social Security Insurance from my perspective has definitely some advantages to offer especially in terms of redistribution of wealth. But, the disadvantaged contributors are rather dragged down to the lower edged of economic standing, eventually creating more people within or below poverty line than elevating living status. For example, majority of the national population are blue collar workers that earn only minimum wage per day. This minimum wage is not equitable to expenditures of a family of three. The social security insurance takes away a certain percentage from it, usually equivalent to 1 and 1/2 sack of rice per month from a family bread winner who does not even purchase half a sack of rice regularly, but, buys per kilo of rice for a day or two family consumption. To compensate for the lost part of the earning, the minimum wage earner scrambles finances with creditors in a struggle to cope with the basic family needs.

Where does the insurance contribution of the poor wage earner goes? The bulk of it goes to the salaries of employees sitting in aircondition rooms of the insurance system, representation allowances in conferences, or to construct roads and bridges for the brand new cars and limousines, while the poor contributor and his family settles along a shanty in a river bank. The moment he wants to get a portion of his own money, the poor contributor is told that he should borrow or make a loan. Pay processing charges, interest charges, and penalties. The rich and the poor who conceded to the disadvantageous concept winded up in an embarrased position when calamities hit them unguarded.

Social security insurance perhaps should be made optional especially for the poor. Foundations that are generating large revenues and not paying income tax, as well as religious schools that too are non-tax payers should cover the social insurance responsibilities to balance the financial equation of the economy. In fact, the volume of family earnings in the Philippine setting goes into religious schools, yet, the schools do not contribute anything in the redistribution of weath in terms of cold cash. This is also one of the biggest loophole that must be addressed rather than picking up from the very shallow pockets of people who struggles to survive. Insurance then should serve as a social security rather than an instrument to further the difficulties of the already underprivileged portion of society.

REMARKABLE PHOTOS

The unusual series of images were taken on October 13, 2009 as the sun is about to set at the Western side of Dasmarinas, Cavite, Philippines. These are all unedited versions and seems to reveal something phenomenal.

There seems to be a silhouette of a Mosque or White building? there are no such things in the area in reality!

FINANCE: SIGNS OF ECONOMIC TURN AROUND ?

For over a month now, I have been reading news online about some people echoing signs of economic turn-around. I was just wondering where they got the concrete figures. Personally, economic turn around would mean that my debtors can pay me the little amounts they owe. Since June 2009, I would say financial meltdown has just started biting the hemlines of business. There have not been a lift as yet along the corridors of debts and interest that are bundling higher and higher. I should say, when the prevailing interest in the market goes back down to about 2%, it is only then, that fairly I could say the economy is picking up.

Apparently, some people must have mistaken the ease with which fund raisers for donations to the beggars have been realized in great figures. But this is not economic turn-around. Purchases and income from such funds are ephemeral. What is more of a grounder would be the ability of people to pay debts and make the balance sheet liquid and solvent. In simple terms, if people can not pay their debts and what they earn is not even enough for the very basic need which is food, there is simply no such thing as economic turn-around.

From another point of view which I have read sometime ago, the advocate and author supposed that given a chance to invest, one should do so instead of spending the money to settle accounts. But, while this idea too is ephemeral, it will create chains of insolvencies which will rather dampen any attempts of ressurecting the financial capabilities of an economy. A single persons practice of the principle could endanger a whole lot of economic zone. Sensibly, when no one complains of non-payments and solvency can be gleaned from a financial statement and balance sheet, then, economic turn-around is surely taking place.

HONEY

One of the best honey I have tasted was from Israel. Honey is actually a collection of the so called nectares of the flowers. The bees that collect the nectares deposits the same with some saliva in individual waxy cells in their hives. The nectares are a mixture of compounds rich in carbohydrates. The salivary amylase of the bees slowly breaks down the carbohydrates into disaccharides or sugars in the cells. Turning it into honey which is a yelowish fluid consistency makes the substance ready as a source of food for a developing embryo. Honey is usually best harvested right before three fourths of the cells are sealed up with developing embryos.

HOW TO AVOID CALAMITIES

Numberless generations have lived on earth. Numberless ideas have been written. By this 21st century, it is unthinkable that only with difficulty does men find ways and means to avoid calamities.

In the country, many areas have been observed to be regularly revisited by great misfortunes. A closer study would reveal that the people in these identified areas are known to persist in idolatry and pagan practices. In other words, people were limited to worldly or human perspectives. Thus, they were not able to commune with nature. Failure to understand the rule of nature would certainly mean misfortunes in living. To avoid calamities, live in an area that is clean, not noisy from human activities, no pagan practices, and where nature is allowed to prosper with very minimal human iterference.

HOMELESSNESS

For two consecutive weeks now, the pictures of an ever increasing homeless people in several countries in the globe permeates the broadcast media. These are in addition to the pre-existing multitude of homeless people in the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Italy, United States. Several reasons were associated with their homelessness. Typhoons, storms, hurricanes, and flooding were the most common destructive factors. But, overall, from the material perspective, I could surmise that the bottomline is knowledge, and next is cost.

Knowing where to erect an abode is number one. Number two is personal management over construction. There are no better architects to a house construction than the family who will occupy the house. If one looks closely at those homes damaged by natural calamities, the vast majority of them were constructed by outsiders or people who does not live in the area long enough. They have mostly no idea of the persisting ecological conditions of the zone. Innovations are more often damaging.

Most costly subdividions does not guarantee anything more than settlements that would run into a gamut of ecological embalances. Besides expenditures on highly expensive materials, denuding most natural resources is another, and sewerage will usually falter in a very short span of time with increased population.

My uncle and aunt live nearby the pier where they worked for a shipping company since they got married. Their house is on the surface of the water. They bore six children in the area. Often when we visit them, we asked if they were not scared of the water surge and strong winds. But, they just smiled and said that, together with the thousands of dwellers, they are used to their lifestyle. When the children had their own jobs after finishing school, one son got a housing unit in a subdividion. Some members of the family excitedly relocated. They seemed to adore just everything about their new surroundings living on land. But, one day, there was a heavy rainfall that caused landslides and heavy flooding. At the blink of an eye, most of the homes perished together with some dwellers.

MANAGEMENT

Long before men were created, the earth has been filled with various kinds of natural supplies that God thought would be useful for mankind. God even taught mankind how to utilized things. But, most people today seemed to be short of almost everything to survive. Is this a curse, dullness, or the case commonly called ignorance to real life management. Maybe, they do not really know much about it.

I became interested in the concept called management from the first time that I heared people saying 'tighten your belts, these are difficult times'. This was said every year until last year with the global meltdown. While to squander is wasting, thrift to the extent of greed is worst. And it seems that these are the only two core management concepts that have become manifest in worldly operations. With these, I could only forsee a nightmarish future.

One of the most beautiful story told about the lesson of correct management is in the New Testament of the Catholic Bible. Jesus the son of Mary narrated the story of the vineyard owner and the workers. There was nothing taught about social security system, nor healtcare, not even housing insurance. But, I wonder how could national leaders who are Catholics or who profess to follow Jesus Christ as Christians persists on obligatory and mandatory salary deductions for social security and healthcare and housing insurance. Is this why Jesus said in Mark 5:27-29, "how can you say you follow me, when you do not even obey Moses".

Another story, but quite scary are those in the Qur'an. Allah revealed the consequences of depravity of honestly earned substance. It is equally amazing that when the owner of the money borrows from what has been forcedly saved, the borrower of his own money is charge of interest, penaltis, fines, processing fee. An overtly erroneous management system that any volvanoes on the islands would like to spit out!

DISGRACE IN MISFORTUNE

Silently, I was watching the rampage of wind, water, and garbage all around the areas that had been hit by the series of storms as broadcasted on the television. There was also the earthquake, tsunami, and flooding. People who were affected were really pitiful. But then, I came back to my senses and wondered what could have gone wrong? Devastation was massive.

Right after the storm, thousands of people found themselves homeless. Many were reported dead. Rescue and relief operations were conducted. What was amazing was that most people who survived the calamity refused to leave the area. As days went by, with garbage left strewn around, the victims never cared to put them together and dispose the same properly. They waited for others to do the work for them. Many who were in the temporary shelter and those in their flooded homes were asked how they disposed off their human waste, they said they wee in a cellophane, tied the same after and throw it to float on the water.

When relief goods were delivered, almost everyone just showed their nature. If donors were so eager and selfless to give and share, the recipients appeared to be just embarassingly the opposite. Besides being very noisy, many complained they did not recieved their share. Not one of the recipients volunteered to share to a neighbor what they got. Many more got hurt as they scampered to get goods. The misfortune could have been caused by these disgraceful attitudes. It is indeed a pity, I have not seen one with refine manners or simply what most people call cultured in the midst of difficulties.