Genetic Revolution - An Artist's Interpretation

 Genetic Revolution 

An Artist's Interpretation

Dr Abe V Rotor

"Genetics is a revolution that will change the course of human history." - Craig Mello

Synthetic Lichens in pastel and acrylic by the author (20" x 28") 2025

Lichens - fungi and algae living in symbiosis,

hallmark of biology, defied by technology; 

man challenging Nature's order and harmony,

its domino effect signals life's greatest crisis. 

"Genetics is the science of possibility, and we are only limited by our imagination." - J. Craig Venter

Genetically Modified Echinoderms (GME) in acrylic by the author 

and grandson Mateo Laurence M Rotor, 9 (19"x 23") 2025

Starfish - marine counterpart of stars in the sky,

     subject of fairy tales and scientific study;

would we rather preserve them rather than defy

     the Creator working in His laboratory?

“Nuclear weapons need large facilities, but genetic engineering can be done in a small lab. You can’t regulate every lab in the world. The danger is that either by accident or design, we create a virus that destroys us.” — Stephen Hawking

Red Eagle in acrylic by the author (20" x 28") 2025

Two ways we shall forever lose this noble bird:

     genetic engineering other than extinction;

the former, in a fancy eagle-parrot combination.

     Lo! to all of us humans - ridiculous, absurd.

  
“My worry is that other advances in science may result in other means of mass destruction, maybe more readily available even than nuclear weapons. Genetic engineering is quite a possible area, because of these dreadful developments that are taking place there.” — Joseph Rotblat

Toys in Our Postmodern World: We are in the midst of Toy Revolution

Toys in Our Postmodern World*

We are in the midst of Toy Revolution

Dr Abe V Rotor

Author and wife watch their son make a colorful kite, 

Are toys important?

Yes. Toys and play are important in growing up and in learning about the world around us. They help us discover our identity, they help our bodies grow strong, and make us learn the cause and effect of what we do and in understanding the environment.

Even adults need toys; they form and strengthen social bonds. They teach and reinforce lessons, exercise the mind and body, and hone skills into use.

Toys decorate our homes, schools and playgrounds. They add aesthetics to our living space. Toys are more than simple amusement; they profoundly influence many aspects  of life.

 

Drone toys: remote controlled flying bird; quadcopter mounted with Wi-Fi Camera

But is this the way we regard toys today?

Toys evolve

• It’s a toy for the big boy - a hybrid of a jeep, rover, buggy and racer.  Now we have the drones.  With all its elaboration and sheer size it is not a toy in the strict sense of the word. It is one for Jules Verne and Flash Gordon.

• Life-size dolls, the like of McDonald or Jollibee figurines, come in various shapes one can easily inflate or assemble. Sometimes they are actually mascots. They guard the garden and porch, keep us company, and tell the story of Gulliver, and keep Mardi Gras alive year round.

• Booming sounds and tweeters, percussion, wind and string altogether, make a potpourri of music – or is it noise? Auditory toys, they are called, they abound in passenger jeeps, shops and homes. Just walk through Raon and Evangelista streets, the music center of Manila, now in big malls.

• It is entertainment for you and the kids to visit a toy center in a mall. Take time out, you were in fantasyland. Toys, toys, toys – for grown ups and kids, you need to come back to see more, from electronic gadgets to make-it-yourself kits.

• Athletics stores today carry toy items as many as real sporting goods, that often you can’t decipher a real gun and a toy gun, a bicycle for racing or for exhibition, a kid’s boxing gloves from the real one. Name a toy and you can find it in a sports center.

• Automotive accessories make your car your traveling home – from cup holder to inflatable bed. From the inside and outside of a loaded car, there are all sorts of decors that take you to US, Germany, Japan, China - in fact around the world.

. Computer games are all over. Children and adults engage for hours everyday in these games robbing them of precious time for work and study, spawning many problems that are destroying the future of young people. Have you heard of computer addiction? Electronics syndrome?

. Sports have evolved into more dangerous games such as bungee jumping, sky skiing, cage-wrestling. Daredevil sports continue to evolve with new technologies, among them free fall gliding.

No Christmas and No Toys

There was a time when toys were outlawed, so to speak. This was during the Second World War when America needed more weapons and not toys. There is a time for every, the president told the world.

When I saw a film about suspending Christmas in America during the First World War, I thought that the idea was good. For how can a nation at war afford to manufacture toys, celebrating Christmas at home when thousands of its citizens are out there in the battlefield? So the campaign was – No Christmas, No Toys. At least temporarily until the war is over. So toy companies went into manufacturing arms and war materiels, people were told to buy bonds, not toys. Logical, isn’t?

Until the president of one of Americas biggest toymakers AC rallied against the campaign, and before the US Congress closed for the Christmas, he convinced the body to re-consider the campaign. So convincing was his approach by showing toy models that the President himself lifted the No Christmas and No Toys Campaign that very Christmas.

What was AC’s selling point? First, he rode on the foundation of American culture that gives importance to important events and celebrations. But the key was his revolutionary concept of toys.  Toy models that stir the mind of the young to associate themselves with issues, to stir imagination and invention. Learning toys.

Today with the changing times that is becoming more and more difficult, what are toys for? We may ask. In the first place, toys are becoming expensive. Even then if the value  of the toy commensurate the cost, it would be all right. But it is not always the case.

Toys from scrap materials

Ideal Toys

Consider the following:

1. Toys that help children to learn – learn positively and functionally, meaning, toys that have applied value, toys that can increase functional literacy.

2. Toys that arouse inventive skills. Not toys that merely stimulate curiosity that by so doing, toys are dismantled and eventually destroyed without satisfying curiosity itself – much less added to basic and functional knowledge.

3. What should be the toys of the poor, children in marginal communities? Are there toys that can help them in their plight – at least ultimately, in one way or the other. If there are toys of this kind, what are their special features?

4. How do we differentiate toys from gadget, say a cellphone or computer? Computer games need re-classification. What is entertainment and what is function?

5. Electric devices have taken out the quaintness and challenges of toys. They also rob our children of their time to play, to attend to their hobbies, and to be at the playground or in the countryside with nature.

Toy store in malls

6. Devise games that teach children values. Games that do not only make us aware of our responsibilities as citizens by at members of the living world – as ecologists or environmentalists.

7. What happen to toys afterward? Are toys for recycling? Are they transformable in the sense that they can be useful again with the lesson they carry? Should toys be permanent or at least lasting.

8. Do toys create a healthy archetype which children will use as tool when they grow up? Can toys be shared in strengthening values, in building skills, etc.?

Art of toy making

. Kite making and kite flying. Why don't you encourage your children to enter into kite competition?

. Spinning top. Making one is a challenge to physics of motion and balance.

. For the inventive young mind, make solar-powered toys, instead of using battery and electricity.

. There are many useful gadgets in school and home. Here toys do not only entertain; they are useful. We can these functional toys. ~

*Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid with Ms Melly C Tenorio
738 DZRB AM 8 to 9 evening class Monday to Friday

Folk Wisdom for Growing Up Workshop for Children

                   Folk Wisdom for Growing Up Workshop for Children

In cooperation with the University of Santo Tomas

Faculty of Arts and Letter Outreach Program, and

Lagro Homeowners Association,

April 17 to May 10 2013

Conducted by Dr Abe V Rotor

Background
Children come every Sunday afternoon to the house in Lagro. At first there were six, then two dozens - children ages 7 to 13 years from the neighborhood. They call me Lolo Abe, their mentor.

They are in the grades and in high school and they are intelligent. And they are a happy lot. They like to come and want to know what I am doing with the microscope, how I mix colors and paint on canvas, play the violin, feed the fish in the aquarium. Or visit a mongrel dog I gave a home.

We meet under a covered front yard and under the trees. It is sort of extension class. Lessons were compiled and became a source book. It has six chapters with thirty articles.

1. Keeping Tradition Alive
2. Appreciating Nature’s Beauty and Bounty
3. Building Good Health and Lifestyle
4. Developing Practical Skills and Self-Reliance
5. Tapping Talents in the Humanities
6. Emulating Models of Greatness

Some have attended as many as 12 sessions, three hours each. They started talking about school projects, home remedies, and things about growing up – or at least, not cartoon characters, computer games, or frequenting the malls. But what happens after?

The lessons are taken up on Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid hosted by Ms Melly C Tenorio and myself as the instructor. The program is linked up with School on Blog [avrotor.blogspot.com], broadcast simultaneously every 8 to 9 in the evening, Monday to Friday on 738 DZRB AM.

The children simply open the Blog and read the lessons. They can download and print them. New lessons are posted regularly to keep the program going. They join the viewers on the Internet (500,000 pageviews to date), and the audience of the radio program. On PBS and Bureau of Broadcast network nationwide and on [www.pbs.gov.ph] worldwide

Learning can be simplified with today’s technology and vast networking. Education can be made available to everyone. Lessons become practical, literacy functional with the least cost. Let us start with the kids in the neighborhood.

NOTE: Each of the twelve (12) successful participants will be awarded a Certificate of Participation by the UST Faculty of Arts and Letters, indeed a great pride and honor for these potential leaders, and on the part of their parents and the community.

Workshop Features
1. Summer workshop for children of school age - 7 to 14
2. Recommended and sponsored by LAHA
3. Class size: 25 to 30, preferably of equal gender number
4. Venue : Laha Conference Hall. Multi media and sound system, optional
5. Attendance: ten sessions, three hours each, thrice a week; includes exhibit 

    and graduation.
6. Class rules: same as in school, on grooming, attendance, performance
7. Recognition: Grading and ranking, citations, exhibit award.
8. Lessons in 6 parts or chapters. See attached manual
9. Teaching methods: Lecture-demo, hands-on, team work, home and 

     community projects.
10. Linkages: Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid, 738 DZRB 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday
11. Internet Link: avrotor.blogspot.com School on Blog
12. Faculty Outreach program of UST Faculty of Arts & Letters
13. Practicum in lieu of field trip – home and community
14. Exhibit of selected works, and graduation
15. Cooperating organizations: LAHA, Barangay Greater Lagro-QC,

      UST Faculty of Arts and Letters.~  

"In the Beginning" - Artist's Interpretation

Artist's Interpretation 

  "In the Beginning"  

Dr Abe V Rotor

In the Beginning in acrylic by AV Rotor 2024

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." 
and their connection in the human mind, truth and myth.
the start of everything, from any event, philosophy, history, 
the mystery of E=mc2, its perpetual, universal reversibility.

Energy-and-matter's interchangeable, in physics and biology,
looking up into the blue sky in search of answer to the theory, 
the mystery deepens, eludes the sages - "In the Beginning"- 

It's the seat of our faith in what don't know, yet believe in. ~

Sea on the Wall Forever

Sea on the Wall Forever

Dr Abe V Rotor

Sea on the Wall Forever, scene from a wall mural painted by the author 

at his residence in  Lagro QC

I love to paint the sea, the living sea

when I was very young,

as young as today in my memory,

and after I am gone.

Sea on the Wall Forever, panoramic view (30ft x 15ft)  AVRotor 2015 

The Power of Black & White Photographs

The Power of Black & White Photographs

25 B&W photographs taken by the author as indicated

Black and white photography evokes a strong sense of timelessness and emotional depth, often capturing the essence of a moment more powerfully than color photography. AI Overview

Dr Abe V Rotor

Black and white captures the true color of this dog. Tenten at home, QC - avr

Texture in black and white photography has the power to show the viewer

the world in a new light.

Agoo La Union cathedral: architecture against cloudy sky. avr

“Black and white does more to evoke an emotion and freeze a moment in time.” 

– Kyle Anstey

B & W enhances sharpness

 

Microscopic study of plankton (30X magnification). avr

“Black and white can transform a scene into something magical.” – Rob Sheppard

Takong, native sow, Agoo, La Union. avr

“Black and white isn’t just an aesthetic choice. It’s an ongoing dialogue between the past and present.” – Anonymous

Epiphytic Drynaria fern on acacia. avr

“Black and white is the conscience of photography. It’s the reference point.” 

– Leonard Freed

Rock promontory in Mandaon, Masbate. avr

Sta Maria Beach, Ilocos Sur. avr

“Color is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.” – Eliott Erwitt

Friendly eagle at Avilon Zoo, San Mateo, Rizal. avr

“Black and white is not sad. It's poetic.” – Robert Frank

Herons on the ricefield in Sudipen, La Union. avr

Old sampalok tree, San Ildefonso, Ilocos Sur

Break time, UST, Manila. avr

“I find that color distracts the eye, but black and white retains the essence.”

 – Dominic Rouse

Pine tree skeleton, Baguio City. avr

Dying camphor tree, UST Manila. avr

Old tree and its shadow. avr

“Black and white photography does more to evoke an emotion and freeze a moment in time than any other medium.” – Cliff Edom

UST Main building. avr

UST Pharmacy Garden. avr

Walking stick, UP Museum of Natural History, Mt Makiling Laguna. avr

“Black and white makes you feel like you’re looking into the soul of the world, without distractions.” – Anonymous

Sea urchins at play in Camindoroan, San Juan, La Union. avr

“I find that with black and white I go straight to the person. In color, I am more worried about the light, the clothes, the setting, etc. It is more complex. In black and white, it’s the person who is important.” — Harry Gruyaert

A pair of water buffaloes (carabao) beating summer in Agoo, La Union. avr

"Black and white are the colours of photography. To me they symbolize the alternatives of hope and despair to which mankind is forever subjected.” – Robert Frank

Kids at play in Calatagan, Batangas

“Black and white finds a new strength in unlikely subjects, taking away the distractions of colour and emphasising form, texture and shape.” – David Prakel

Sugarcane mill chimney at night, Calatagan, Batangas. avr

San Juan (LU) parish church. avr

“A good black-and-white photo makes you forget that it’s devoid of colors.” – Anonymous

Tagaytay Zoo visitors. avr

“Black and white imagery takes you beyond what most people photograph.” 

– Rob Sheppard

A group of cicada attracted by a singing male, topmost (females are dumb), 

former ecosanctuary, SPUQC. avr

“All the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow.” – Leo Tolstoy

 The tree laughs, talks, with all the joys of childhood. "A tree is a joy forever." 

Tandang Sora QC

"Trees are as close to immortality as the rest of us ever come." ― Karen Joy Fowler

Grow Talinum (Talinum triangulare) on Compost-in-Sack

                                        Practical Home Technology Series

Grow Talinum (Talinum triangulare*) 

on Compost-in-Sack

Photos by Dr Abe V Rotor 

Local beauty model Angie Tobias poses before a luxuriant growth of talinum at the Living with Nature Center in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur. Growing talinum in compost-in-sack is a project initiated by the Rotor family in response to the current need of vegetables in the diet, and herbal remedies for local ailments and maintenance of good health as explained in the two researches, the abstract of each is hereby presented as annexes.

 

 

Talinum is grown around a sack of composted leaves.  Left, top view showing plastic receptible on top of sack for watering; right, talinum is ready for harvesting.  Harvesting is done regularly at weekly interval or as needed.  The portable garden is a source of fresh vegetable cooked in sinigang, diningding, steamed as salad, and other recipes.      

Talinum growing on compost sacks arranged in a row on an East-West orientation at the Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur.

*Talinum triangulare or waterleaf is packed with essential antioxidants and soluble fibers that act as mild laxatives. It is, therefore, recommended for use when constipation is an issue. It regulates blood sugar level, and is essential for managing diabetes mellitus. (Joshua et al 2012, Internet)

ANNEXES  

1. Review on the Medicinal Potentials of Waterleaf (Talinum triangulare)

Mediterranean Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, Volume 4, 

Issue 2, Pages 01-07, April-June 2020 7 Pages Posted: 14 Dec 2020

Yilni Edward Bioltif

Plateau State University of Bokkos - Department of Chemistry

Date Written: October 17, 2020

Abstract

Scientific researches and innovations have been the stepping stone for development of the world. It is then very important to engage in research today, especially for developing countries. Plants have been instrumental in the hands of scientific researchers today and used to improve the health systems of the world. Thus, the purpose of this review is to explore the medicinal potentials of the commonly known Waterleaf (Talinum trianguare), which has been extensively used in local communities in Nigeria and beyond, to treat/manage various human ailments which include regulation of blood sugar level, dropsy, oedema and body weight management, as well as for food and feed. This research will help to promote the utilization and cultivation of Waterleaf by the public, and as well serve as a vital tool on which further researches can be based upon and used to explore the different parts of the plant.

2. Talinum Triangulare (Water Leaf): What a Wonderful Plant!

Tiamiyu Adebisi Musefiu & Oluwafemi Doris Yinka

(Department of Biological Sciences, University of Medical Sciences,

Ondo City, Ondo State Nigeria) Oluwafemi Doris Yinka

Abstract

The importance of nutraceutical plants and the contribution of phytomedicine to the well-being of quite a large number of people and their animals worldwide has attracted interest from a variety of disciplines. Nutraceutical plants have proved to be very important in medicinal plants research and because of the bioactive compounds that these plants possess, they are useful in drug research and development. This article reviewed the bioactive constituents of Talinum triangulare; its therapeutic and nutritional importance as well as the usefulness of its bioactive compounds in agricultural settings. Bioactive components such as alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, phlobatannin, anthraquinones, steroid, terpenes, phenols, cardiac glycoside were reported to be present in T. triangulare. T. triangulare has been implicated medically in the management of cardiovascular diseases like stroke, obesity and this was attributed to the presence of some bioactive compounds such as flavonoids and antioxidants in this plant. T. triangulare was also reported to contain some important minerals such as ß-carotene, minerals (such as calcium, potassium and magnesium), pectin, protein and vitamins. Investigations involved inclusion of T. triangulare dried powder as additive in the feed and inclusion of the leaf extract in drinking water were also reported to improve growth performance as well as immune system of both aquatic and terrestrial animals respectfully. It is therefore concluded that T. triangulare leaves can contribute significantly to the health management of Man and animal and should be recommended to be included in the daily nutritional requirement of both Man and animal. Suggested Citation: Tiamiyu Adebisi Musefiu & Oluwafemi Doris Yinka, 2022. "Talinum Triangulare (Water Leaf): What a Wonderful Plant?," Journal of Biotechnology Research, Academic Research Publishing Group, vol. 8(2), pages 26-31, 04-2022.

Acknowledgement to the Institutions and authors of these two researches; the Internet, and Living with Nature Center staff.

20 Native Vegetables for Simple, Long and Health Life

20 Native Vegetables for Simple, Long and Healthy Life

"Go vegetable heavy. Reverse the psychology of your plate by making meat the side dish and vegetables the main course." Bobby Flay.

Dr Abe V Rotor

Photos taken at the author's residence

San Vicente, Ilocos Sur

 

Staminate flowers of squash, Cucurbita maxima

  

Alugbati (Malabar spinach), Basella alba or Basella rubra

 

Arusip (ar-arusip Ilk) or sea grapes, Caulerpa racemosa

 

Pokpoklo or green sea fingers, Codium edule

 

Talinum, Talinum triangulare; and green pepper, Capsicum annuum

 

Himbaba-o or alukong Ilk; papait (Mollugo oppositifolia)

                                       

 

             Dampalit, Sesuvium portulacastrum; bagbagkong, Telosma procumbens

 

Edible fern pakpako, Diplazium esculentum; saluyot, Corchorus olitorius

 

Kamote or sweet potato tops, Ipomoea batatas; malunggay, Corchorus olitorius

 

Saba banana blossom,  Musa sapientum or Musa acuminata

  

Katuray, Sesbania grandiflora

  

Ngalog or gulasiman or purslane, Portulaca oleracea; 

labanos or white radish, Raphanus sativus.

 

Garlic, Allium tuberosum; onion (shallot), Allium cepa

TRIVIA: Calamansi - Healthy Lemonade 

 

Calamansi or calamondin, Citrus x microcarpa