Hayashi, Daiki
STS THX
CAS(UPLB) 2012-98083
Do not limit yourself from learning science
According to the National Achievement Test, Philippine
elementary and high schools rank 112 out of 138 countries in the field of
science. What is the reason behind this relatively poor academic performance of
the Philippines’ primary and secondary education? I have heard a lot of times
from Filipinos that the Philippines either have poor or are lacking facilities
in order to study science. Also, the poor academic attainment of children can
be attributed to the insufficient budget allotted by the government. However, two
of the speakers from Mind Museum declared that sophisticated equipment is not necessary
to investigate science. One’s curiosity in science can be satisfied even with
simplest tools.
So, they demonstrated a
scientific experiment by using simple tools, which are readily available in our
households. The first experiment was conducted by using a bill, rubbing
alcohol, and a match. When the rubbing alcohol was poured on the bill and was
set on fire, it did not get burn. It was explained that rubbing alcohol is not
pure alcohol since it contains water that is why the bill did not get burnt.
The next experiment was conducted by using rubbing alcohol, a match, and a
water container, which is made of plastic. The alcohol was placed inside the
container and it was shaken. The rubbing alcohol contained 70% of alcohol but
while it has been shaken, only the alcohol vaporized and it was purified inside
the container. Right after the fire from the match got inside the bottle, the
container shrunk immediately even though it is stiff and cannot be broken by
force.
They also taught me the dance of
scientific elements by using our own bodies. Everyone enjoyed learning science
in such a way. It did not require us to use any sophisticated tools. What were
used in the experiment were only our bodies and very simple tools which we can
find at home. I myself never thought of doing scientific experiments by myself
because I thought that I can never prepare instruments for a scientific
experiment. However, as I remember, I used to conduct scientific experiments
when I was a child. I burned piece of paper using a magnifying glass. I also
put colored papers under the sun and compared the heat of each of them to
understand about reflection of light.
I am not a science major in
college and my passion to study science was going far away. However, the
lecture by the Mind Museum has lit up my curiosity back in science and I
realized that I should not limit myself from learning science by making excuses
that I do not have an environment to study for it because there are actually various
ways in order to explore the wonders of science.
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