Smile Baby Smile...

"It takes one more muscle to smile than to frown, according to plastic surgeon David H. Song, MD, FACS, assistant professor at the University of Chicago Hospitals.

Newspapers around the globe assure us, "Frowning takes more muscles than smiling,"
13 to smile, 33 to frown - The Washington Post.
10 to smile, 100 to frown - The New York Times,
4 to smile, 64 to frown - The Hindu. An urban myth?

A genuine smile takes two muscles to crinkle the eyes, two to pull up the lip corners and nose, two to elevate the mouth angle, and two to pull the mouth corners sideways. Total smile: 12.

On the other hand, a frown needs two muscles to pull down the lips and wrinkles in the lower face, three to furrow the brow, one to purse the lips, one to depress the lower lip, and two to pull the mouth corners down. Total frown: 11.

A fake smile, however, only takes two muscles. We detect the fake because "the eyes aren't smiling."

Source: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_muscles_does_it_take_to_form_a_smile

SEMI PERMEABILITY OF LEARNING LIFE

Plasma membrane known to be as the external boundary, a guard and true

protector of a cell. Besides of these descriptions what fascinates me the most is its very significant function as selective passage of molecules into and out of cell.

            In our life, there are instances that we need to choose and be selective in our decisions for the betterment of ourselves and other people. Like the plasma membrane, it needs to be selective in order to protect itself and let what is good for the cell to enter.

            But the most difficult thing is how if we are given a chance to choose a thing which are both good and which both we love?  

            With this, a wise decision needs to be made and a courage to stand in our decision despite of its possible consequences.

            One best example is what we experienced in our Biology subject in Master’s degree. As payment in suspended classes, we need to have Saturday classes in our respective schools which become a conflict in our class schedule in graduate studies. In that situation we really need to choose, weighing the pros and cons of our decision we have realized that it is really difficult to choose in both things we love, in both things with unselfish objectives and in both things where the students will benefit.

            But as teachers we need to balance between the orders of our superiors versus our professional growth. Like the cell, we need to achieve the state of equilibrium and it is through having a wise decision, being flexible, and having a wide view of understanding to achieve a better life.

            What we became in the future still lies in our decisions. Our Almighty God gave us a heart and a mind for them to work together for us to derive in good decisions. But no matter what it takes let us be reminded that in whatever we do let us do it as to Lord and not to man.

As mysterious as how life originate on earth, as systematic how first cellular structure were formed and as dynamic how changes occur in our environment. Let the mystery goes in our life by having a strong faith in God and by having a systematic and positive view in this ever-changing journey of our life. 

Sleep Morong... SLEEP

SLEEP MORONG….SLEEP

            Life seems to be too difficult without a proper sleep. With our modern life style which demands a lot of stressful work, our body needs to take a rest which work for us 24/7.

            At night, our eyes signal a biological clock located in the brain that darkness is upon us, and the clock directs the pineal gland to produce melatonin. Our metabolism slows. Our body temperature falls. Blisfully, we fall asleep.

            There are times that due to stress, we experienced difficulties to sleep. Some researchers believed that a melatonin supplement-often taken about an hour before bedtime-can launch such nighttime reactions in restless bodies. ¹

However, instead of sleeping, there are some people tend to spark their night life to relieve stressful work. People prefer to have their Saturday Nights through hanging out in unhealthy food trip, alcohol drinking and cigarette smoking.

            This kind of lifestyle leads to a common death among male Morongueños known to be in that town as SLEEP MORONG, this is because the death of an individual happens in the midst of a sleep which is generally termed as “bangungot”. Study shows that one primary cause of this death is due to heart failure in men which can be trace back on their unhealthy lifestyles.

            A nation of well-rested people sounds ideal, but the kind of our life style to relieve stress and to relax might immediately brings us in either a dream of death or in a dream of heaven.

Hence, we should sleep with an open eye in everything we do and we intake in our body. This can only be done through having a proper exercise, healthy food diet and positive predisposition in life thus achieving healthy body and healthy life.

Reference:

¹Human Biology by Sylvia S. Mader p. 287

To See Is to Believe: Exploring the World of Microcosm

Everything can’t be seen by our naked eye. Perhaps no single instrument has advanced man's understanding of the surrounding world more than the microscope. Scientific discoveries made through microscopic techniques are too numerous to list. The microscope revolutionized the study of biology, medicine, and many other fields of scientific research.¹ Present-day knowledge about cells and other microorganisms has depended to a large extent on the improvement of microscopes through the years. The technologically advanced microscopes can magnify the image of an object being examined thousands of times.2 Thus, modern microscopes have been powerful tools that enable cytologists to probe even the smallest details of the structural and functional unit of life -the cell.

Indeed, with the advent of science and technology, studying cells and other microorganisms demands the use of sophisticated microscopes and considering the use of these in a school setting is a big question specifically if schools were able to afford such microscopes.

 But as educators we need to open our eyes, we need to maximize our resources; we need to make alternative solutions. Since that we are in a computer era, we can use internet/web browsing to address this challenge, there are series of virtual microscopes available in the internet which the students can use and help them experience the use of sophisticated microscopes using the mouse click button. In this sense, they were able to view the real beauty of microscopic world.

As what they say, picture speaks a thousand words and if we will engage our students to view cells and other microorganisms not only in pictures but in actual. We were able to make them believe of what they see and see of what they believe leading to the achievement of the goals of education.   

Sources: 1 http://essaymania.com/160413/microscopy

                 2 Functional Biology Modular Approach by Lilia M. Rabago et al. p 92