the silent speaks (or writes.)

10.05.2005

the "odyssey."

hey guys, did you know that this week is "world space week?" yes, and for those once unknowing earth citizens like me, it has been that way since 1951, the year of launching of the russian spacecraft named sputnik.

being a part of the astronomy elective class, we were "forced" *forgive me for my wording* to go to this space technology seminar, dubbed "space odyssey 2005." at least, we did not get excused from class for nothing... or maybe, that should be "I" did not... we went there by school service - y'know, the jeepneys and vans parked outside the school campus during regular school days... three of them. the delegates numbered forty-one.

anyway, the UP college of engineering auditorium, located on the second floor, was the venue for the said event. (hey, for those who will study there in the future, good for you... the place might look scrawny facade-wise, but the interior is... damn awesome. *only wish i took engineering...*) we arrived there to the sight of another bunch of students. later came two more schools.

the introductory speaker was an intelligent-looking guy wearing glasses and a blue polo. he told us that that room would be renovated as soon as we leave it, thus this certain program would be the last before the makeover... thereby making it a very historic event. what-ever. he also introduced each of the four science high schools present - manila, makati, marikina, and quezon city. first thing I noticed? we proudly have the best school uniforms compared to the nanny-like and common public high school-type regulars of the three others... and possibly, the best in metro manila. *go quesci!!!!*

after him were three more speakers, one a guest. one was the UPD Chancellor, who was said to be good in music and in math. the next was some sort of Dean in the college, I forgot what she did for a living... followed by another introductory speaker, who gave a very brief speech about the next speaker - a former senator whose curriculum vitae was spawned with achievements of all sorts and of numerous world-class institution affiliations. this guy, who remarkably looks like our math-1 teacher mr. chua, spoke for about seventeen straight minutes. brief, eh?

then came the ex-senator... who goes by the name of Leticia Ramos-Shahani... familiar? right. according to her curriculum vitae, (which was recited to us by mr. chua-replica) she was an educator, author, diplomat, and legislator. she had studied and taught at five of the best international universities that Mother Earth can offer us. she knew her French... she had been honored by Spain, and France... and she is definitely Filipino.

she greatly reminded us of our very own ma'am capinpin, who likewise advised us to take science courses for our future careers. the only thing that she lacks is a booming impact on the audience, for she speaks quite mildly and gently, in contrast to ma'am capinpin's impact-filled voice. (edge: ms. capinpin! hahaha.) and she discouraged us from looking for greener pastures, that is, migrating. quoting her, she stressed that our migrating is tantamount to exporting Filipino prodigies to foreign use. how sick.

then came the "lively" lecture, according to the lecturer. beforehand he promised us that we won't get sleepy during the course of his speech. mind you, he was right, for we could've fallen to a slump immediately any point that time. kidding aside... he gave a short quiz, testing the waters... and manila science, known for their mastery of the sciences, mistook galileo for the invention of the telescope. shame on them. we were the most active delegation, and noticeably the most in number... all of us had our shares. we were able to answer intelligently, compared to the others, who were quite lanky...

[here is an excerpt.... *i'm sorry, but i used shortcuts....*]

lecturer: what you see on the screen is a portrait entitled...
students: the Mona Lisa.
lecturer: magaling... can you give some strange features of Mona Lisa?
QueSci (c/o miles): she looks androgenous... one who exemplifies both traits of a man and a woman. first... and forgive me for the term, but she has flat breasts... her cheekbones exhibit that of a man's... and her hair is long, like that of a woman's...
lecturer: very good! anyone else?
MlaSci (c/o a small dark chubby or maybe fat effeminate guy): she has a mysterious smile.
lecturer: mysterious? could you tell us what you mean?
fat kid: .......

so who says other science high school students are better than us in science? to hell with them! go quesci!!!!

back to the lecture. he told us about remote sensing - the ability to feel without touching an object. in short, it is the power of the observing eye. he then showed us satellite pictures, space technology facts, and all that jazz. hey, cool things, anyway... we learned that potato chips sold at the sari-sari stores are directly linked to the apollo space program. how? junk food wrappers are basically made of this certain radiation-reflecting material called mylar, which was also used in the spacesuits of the apollo astronauts. and we learned a lot more...

the lecture ended later, and we headed outside and downstairs to this GPS exhibit (GPS stands for global positioning system... it is a tracking device, obviously one of the products of space technology.) down there, we queued up for our souvenirs (a bag which contains a visor, a red-and-blue-lens pair of shades, and other paraphernalia) and refreshments (consisting of one tuna sandwich, one banana, and two tetra-pak drinks).

while we were enjoying our snacks, some of our colleagues geared up for this treasure hunt in which they will be mainly aided by a GPS device. we ended up second place, behind makati science, the maid-looking girls and their male counterparts in green. manila science? dead last. *and oh yes, i'm oh-so-cruel...*

we were brought back to our campus through an air-conditioned shuttle bus. as for our happy moment, we (the fourth year delegates) all wore our visors and shades as we made our way up the stairs. so much for this day... for there are some details that i would prefer not to discuss. if you ever come to know of it... keep your silence, for my sake... thank you.

my last words? go quesci! hail to the blue-checkers and navy blues!

the silent spoke up on 20:44

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