Monday, November 2, 2009

First Semester STR2 Grades [PROVISIONAL AND UNOFFICIAL]

UPDATE 1:
Latest version of grades uploaded. Computation errors in Results and Accomplishment subsections have been corrected. Graviton has the most heavily revised set of grades.

Notes:
  • No Results and Discussion submission (5%): Gl08, Gl09, Gr08, Gr10, Gr12
  • No notebook (15%): El11, Gl08, Gr05, Gr11
  • Late notebook (15%): Gl06
  • No portfolio (10%): El11, Gl08, Gr05, Gr09, Gr11
  • No task list and Gantt chart: El06, El11, Gl05, Gr11
  • Peer Evaluation of Gl02, Gl03 and Gl06 are projected at 4% pending submission of their peer evaluation paper.
You may still submit your notebooks and portfolios up to 12PM tomorrow Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Deductions will apply.

For questions, YM me or post a comment. If you would like a breakdown of your grades or you find your grade unusual, see me at the STR unit tomorrow before 12PM.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Submission Moratorium

Receiving of submissions will be closed from 12:00 AM Monday 10/12/09 to 12:00PM Thursday 10/15/09.

Please do not email anything between the submission ban schedule. Email messages received between these periods will be discarded.

STUDY FOR THE PERIODICAL EXAMS. GOOD LUCK.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

The Quarterly Report will be FUN!

The quarterly report for the month of September will be in the form of a closed portfolio, closed notebook, closed draft paper INDIVIDUAL TEST!

Before you go crucify me, think about it... NO PAPERWORK!

I expect each group member to be familiar with some basic knowledge of their project (title perhaps?), be knowledgeable about the technical details and specific procedures of the project, and be able to cite supporting facts proving the scientific feasibility and integrity of the proposal. And of course, there will be questions about the progress of the project and each member's contribution.

Note that the test will contain parts that are specific to your project. For those who have changed their topic, the test will be based on the latest topic you are currently working on. The result of this exam will also affect your INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE GRADE (aside from what your data notebook says and the contribution I get to observe during the STR period)

SCHEDULE:
Electron - 9/25/09 - STR period
Gluon - 9/23/09 - first STR period
Graviton - 9/24/09 - STR period

If you have any questions, email me at str2kawashima@gmail.com

REVISED Guidelines for Submitting Requirements

Because not everybody follows (or can follow?) my previous set of guidelines, I've made an effort to make it easier and more logical.

FROM NOW ON, please follow the following rules when submitting your requirements.
  1. ALL PAPERWORK (proposals, drafts, reports, slideshows...) must be submitted by email.

    DEADLINE IS 9PM.
    (We have been receiving reports that you don't sleep anymore so don't use "STR" as an excuse to YM/Facebook/Twitter after 9PM :) Paperwork received after 9:00:00 will be considered late.)

    Only the RRL/Project Portfolio, Data Notebook and the ISEF forms will be submitted physically.

  2. Submit your capsule proposal, final proposal, draft paper, final paper and whatever requirement that would have "proposal" and "paper" in their names to str2kawashima+paper@gmail.com.

    Indicate your Section, Group Code and whatever the name of the requirement is in the SUBJECT of the email. No need to write it in some special OneWordFormat, "Revised Final Proposal" is going to be just fine.

    If you do not receive an automated reply, it could mean that your message did not conform with the format, was not filed properly, or was not received at all.

  3. Submit your progress reports, updated plans and anything that has to do with progress and planning to str2kawashima+progress@gmail.com.

    Indicate your Section, Group Code and whatever the name of the requirement is in the SUBJECT of the email. No need to write it in some special OneWordFormat, "Progress Report" is going to be just fine.

    If you do not receive an automated reply, it could mean that your message did not conform with the format, was not filed properly, or was not received at all.

  4. If you have questions, requests, consultations and whatever else on your mind, email me at str2kawashima@gmail.com.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Submission Stuff

Uhmmmm... (Marco-style)

ALL SECTIONS:

  • For those who submitted their final proposal in PDF or XPS, kindly resubmit it in an editable file format (doc, docx, rtf, odt)
  • If you submitted a hard copy document, kindly submit a soft-copy version for easier editing and versioning of each revision later on.
  • I know some groups have yet to submit their forms and project plans. Please submit ASAP.

Special mention:

Truth - Ramirez, Senosin + Uayan, Ingco; please email me at str2kawashima at gmail dot com to identify a final topic for each of your projects.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Final Final Final Deadlines

Please use the Research Plan as a guide to make your capsule proposal. Remember your Capsule Proposal contains the Research Plan parts A (problems being addressed), B (hypothesis or engineering goals), C (Methods or procedures, PRESENT A PROCESS FLOWCHART INSTEAD), D (bibliography) and an abstract summarizing your research in no more than 250 words.

Project Planning (task list, network chart) submission deadline has been moved. It will now be submitted anytime before or together with the Final Proposal.

UPDATED SCHEDULE
  • Last day for Topic and Group Registration - July 20
  • Last day for Capsule Proposal submission - July 24
  • UPDATED Oral Presentation Schedule for Electron, Gluon, Graviton and Truth (July 27 - August 7)
  • Last day for Project Planning submission (Gantt chart, Task List) - ONE WEEK AFTER presentation
  • Last day for Final Proposal submission (Abstract, Intro, RRL, M&M) - ONE WEEK AFTER presentation
  • Last day for complete ISEF 2010 forms submission - ONE WEEK AFTER presentation

Not Registered/Not Approved/No Topic

If you see your name on this list, please REGISTER your approved topic at http://strkawashima.blogspot.com/2009/07/str-topic-registration.html or email (str2kawashima [at] gmail [dot] com)/ym (kentkawashima) me immediately for a topic if you have yet to have any approved.

ATTENTION:
  1. Listano (Electron)
  2. Baduria (Gluon)
  3. Encarnacion (Gluon)
  4. Mendoza (Gluon)
  5. Baterina (Gluon)
  6. Rodriguez (Gluon)
  7. Vinuya (Gluon)
  8. Kasilag (Gluon)
  9. Mejia (Gluon)
  10. Pascasio (Gluon)
  11. Olega (Graviton)
  12. Utanes (Graviton)
  13. Javier (Graviton)
  14. Del Castillo (Graviton)
  15. Pagobayan (Graviton)
  16. Sy (Graviton)
  17. Buencamino (Graviton)
  18. Corsiga (Graviton)
  19. Fajardo (Graviton)
  20. Cueto (Graviton)
  21. Guerrero (Truth)
  22. Lim (Truth)
  23. Mariano (Truth)
  24. Gonzales (Truth)
  25. Suares (Truth)

Truth Oral Defense Schedule

TRUTH

Monday - July 27
  1. Tr01 (Cheng, Dumayag, Paderanga)
  2. Tr04 (Ramirez, Senosin, Uayan)
  3. Tr05 (Almirante, Serrano, Oxales)
  4. Tr07 (Doronila, Encarnacion, Alba)
Thursday - July 30
  1. Tr09 (Austria, Uy)
  2. Tr08 (Endico, Nogales, San Antonio)

Monday - August 3
  1. Tr02 (Bernardo, Carag, Mathay)
  2. Tr03 (Del Rosario, Suratos, Carreon)
  3. Tr06 (Guerrero, Lim, Mariano)

Thursday -August 6
  1. Tr10 (Gonzales, Suarez)

Monday, July 20, 2009

Truth groupings

Group

  1. Dumayag, Paderanga, Cheng
  2. Bernardo, Carag, Mathay
  3. Del Rosario, Suratos, Carreon
  4. Ramirez, Uayan Senosin
  5. Oxales, Almirante, Serrano
  6. Lim, Guerrero, Mariano
  7. Doronila, Alba, Encarnacion
  8. Nogales, Endico, San Antonio
  9. Austria, Mendoza, Uy
  10. Suarez
  11. Gonzales

Friday, July 17, 2009

STR Topic Registration

If you have previously registered, you do not need to fill up this form again. This has been tested to work more reliably than the old form.

Remember that today, July 17, is our deadline for Topic Proposals. Please submit your proposals for grading before 9:00 PM (+8:00 GMT). If you do not have an approved topic by today, I will have to assign your group a topic.

Deadline of topic registration is on Monday, July 20.


Monday, July 13, 2009

DEADLINES

Due to recent developments, we (Electron, Gluon, Graviton, Truth) will move all our deadlines and schedules.

Our 7 day afters deadline will be scrapped. We will follow the deadlines below:

Last day for Topic Proposal submission - July 17
Last day for Topic and Group Registration - July 20
Last day for Capsule Proposal submission - July 24
Last day for Project Planning submission (Gantt chart, Task List) - July 24

Oral defense will begin on July 27. Please submit your slideshow ONE DAY before your presentation. You cannot change and must use your slideshow after submission.

Note:

  • Those who submitted their capsule proposals already are free to resubmit.
  • No topic proposal by July 17, no topic proposal grade.
  • NO TOPIC by July 17, I will assign you a topic to work on.
  • No Capsule Proposal by July 24, no capsule proposal grade.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Truth defense suspended to Thursday

Truth will have their oral defense moved to Thursday. We will use the Monday meetings for announcements, topic approval and consultation - essentially a free period. By the end of the period, each group should have finalized a topic to work on.

Please take note that I will still check your attendance.

Gluon Oral Defense Schedule

GLUON

Tuesday - July 28
  1. Gl09 (Marquez, Salindo, Soriano)
  2. Gl06 (Sanchez, Dealino, Villegas)

Wednesday - July 29
  1. Gl04 (De Layola, Jimenez)
  2. Gl01 (Bacarro, Jose, Senga)
  3. Gl07 (Fontanilla, Sanchez, Tan)
  4. Gl10 (Bonifacio, Paz, Tanquintic)

Tuesday - August 4
  1. Gl03 (Baduria, Encarnacion, Mendoza)
  2. Gl05 (Baterina, Rodriguez, Vinuya)

Wednesday - August 5
  1. Gl02 (Cachero, Macahig, Perez)
  2. Gl08 (Kasilag, Pascasio, Mejia)

Electron Oral Defense Schedule

ELECTRON

Tuesday - July 28
  1. El08 (Cortez, Rojo)
  2. El03 (Angangco, Dizon, Hizon)
  3. El06 (Quebral, Ersando, Marquez)
  4. El10 (Medina, Chua, Negre)

Friday - July 31
  1. El02 (Bataclan, Corpuz, Ilaga)
  2. El09 (Cacbay, Dela Paz, Juat)

Tuesday - August 4
  1. El04 (Catalan, Gan, Mateo)
  2. El01 (Castro, Forbes, Garcia)
  3. El07 (Bercero, Guadalquiver, Tiongson)

Friday - August 7
  1. El05 (Reyes, Belen, Sanchez)
  2. El11 (Listano)

Graviton Oral Defense Schedule

GRAVITON

Monday - July 27
  1. Gr03 (Perlada, Jose, Agupitan)
  2. Gr07 (Quinio, Manalo, Centeno)
  3. Gr08 (Viegelmann, Lobitana, Begonia)
  4. Gr02 (Aydinan, Ugalino, Dolot)

Thursday - July 30
  1. Gr12 (Salvo)
  2. Gr10 (Angeles, Trinidad)

Monday - August 3
  1. Gr05 (Del Castillo, Pagobayan, Sy)
  2. Gr06 (Balite, Dailisan, Santiago)
  3. Gr04 (Olega, Utanes)
  4. Gr11 (Cueto)

Thursday -August 6
  1. Gr01 (Carangan, Imperial)
  2. Gr09 (Buencamino, Corsiga, Fajardo)
  3. Gr13 (Javier)

Friday, July 10, 2009

Topic Proposal, Capsule Proposal and Oral Defense

Your capsule proposal (see Research Plan - ISEF 2010 form for format) is due 7 days after topic approval OR before oral defense. For topics approved last Monday/Tuesday, your capsule proposal if you would pursue that topic would be due next Monday/Tuesday respectively. If you plan to submit your capsule proposal on the day of your presentation, please submit it as a printed copy.

For those with approved topics but did not submit it as a topic proposal, please be reminded to submit a topic proposal detailing the real-life problem, proposed solution, specifications and scientific basis/conceptual framework for your project. You may submit your topic proposal as a group but please attribute the person/s who came up with the idea. In case your proposal was derived from an idea of a teacher, indicate his/her name for proper attribution. The topic proposal should be submitted BEFORE submitting your capsule proposal.

Submit your requirements to str2kawashima (at) gmail (dot) com following the subject line format:
Groupcode RequirementTitle
example: El08 CapsuleProposal, Gr01 TopicProposal
Failure to follow this format may lead to loss of the submission.

Oral defense schedule will push through next week. Order of presentation will be in random order with weight given to the time of topic approval. This means that groups with topics approved early will for sure present on the first week. Schedule will be posted here shortly.

Please remember to register the topic your group would pursue. It is important that you register your topic early in case similar topics are submitted. Time of registration will not affect presentation order for your oral defense.

Project planning requirements deadline would be due together with your final proposal.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Online Consultations

I'll be online at these times for your to bother me on your topics and other STR2 matters.

  • 9pm to 11pm Thursday, July 9
  • 9am to 12pm Friday, July 10
  • 9pm onwards Friday, July 10
Yahoo Messenger: kentkawashima (at) yahoo (dot) com

Send your Topic Proposal

For those groups who just orally explained their topic proposal but got an approval, please submit your written topic proposal AS A GROUP to str2kawashima (at) gmail (dot) com ASAP.

For groups that still do not have any topic or groups that have an identified field but nothing specific yet, I would like to hear from you by email ASAP.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

TED Talks: Robert Full on learning from the gecko's tail

TED Talks: Nathan Wolfe's jungle search for viruses

Congratulations ELECTRON 09!


You're done! Finished!

More importantly...

CLEARED.

Actually, until all of you submit your manuscripts, none of you will get your transcripts...

Friday, June 12, 2009

June 12

A Bright New Day

Happy Independence Day!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

How to avoid crashing in STR2

I've heard, read and even talked with some of you about your cluelessness for an STR topic. So to make things a little "easier" for you, I'll give you an idea of why we reject topics.
  1. Recycled topics. Spare us the usual antibiotic and antifungal stuff unless they are truly novel (ie. the quorum-sensing inhibition project). This is not science high school material. Strive to find NEW topics. This is often the pitfall everyone cannot seem to avoid.
  2. Very simple topics. Challenge yourself a bit. Don't submit a topic whose entire testing phase will be finished in one day. This includes food topics that are not well thought through (but we do accept interesting food tech projects)
  3. Vague topics. Sometimes what you want to do would be both novel and interesting, yet it gets rejected... Why? The most probable reason is that you did not explain it fully. Please understand that we cannot evaluate your ideas if you cannot communicate them effectively. To avoid submitting again, make sure to fully thresh out your topic proposals.
  4. Unfeasible topics. I actually like this kind of rejection. It means you have exercised your imagination and thought about something novel, but as it turns out, it just cannot be done due to one or a number of reasons - it's beyond you, it'll kill you, no one has what you need, or science won't allow it. Note that sometimes this gets mixed up with Number 3 because you probably did not fully explain the scientific basis for your solution.
Now to really make it "easy" for you, let me give you some suggestions on what I personally think are interesting fields to explore for your topics...
  1. Mathematical Biology. This is quite interesting as these two fields are not usually thought to intersect. These explore the world of biology and try to explain it in terms of mathematics and algorithms.
    One of this year's special award winners in ISEF worked on "sex determination of Philippine Eagles" using anatomical wingspan and claw data only because as it turns out, finding out whether a Philippine Eagles is a boy or a girl is not as simple as it sounds.
  2. Physics. Nobody works on physics projects. That alone gives you an edge. Physics is the most fundamental of all sciences and all sciences can be analyzed by Physics so why don't you give it a try. There was one promising physics topic last year, but it lacked the steam to plow ahead.
  3. Computer Science. If you do not want to do labwork after classes or resent the fact that you cannot cram your work at home because you lack the equipment, CS projects are perfect for you - all you need it a computer and notepad (and perhaps a compiler).
  4. Engineering. Another rarity during YMSAT, almost no one pushes through with an engineering topic yet these are usually the most successful! Cases in point - alternative PCR device won in UP and the microtremor kids went to ISEF.
  5. Chemistry and Materials Science. I believe this is hard because we have no equipment but that need not be the case- we can always collaborate! Inventive new materials will not only win awards, but also be relevant in everyday life.
  6. Systems Biology. Everything these days seem to be interdisciplinary and systems biology is probably its best example. A new paradigm in biology is emerging, that is, looking at the big picture instead of scrutinizing just one pixel of information. The goal of systems biology is to find emergent properties that are not obvious when we look at things individually. It is in the intersection of biology, chemistry, physics and computer science and mathematics. How exciting.
I'm not dissuading you from doing traditional biology projects, but more often than not, it is the default. Try to explore your options.

There are quite a lot of opportunities waiting for good projects. Aside from the competitions, the prizes, the trips abroad and the TV airtime... there is the fulfillment that when you look back at your fourth year in Pisay, you can proudly say that you had a meaningful research project.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Welcome SY 2009-2010

Welcome to STR2.

For those who were my students in STR1, I believe I have adequately prepared you for the deadlines, requirements and sheer load STR2 brings though you probably hated my guts for it.

Since the official start of the school year has been moved back a week (start on June 15) and you seem to have plenty of time on your hands right now, I'll prepare you already for what's to come...

DEADLINES FOR THE FIRST QUARTER:
  • June 19 - Topics Identification (MINIMUM of 3 topics per student, see below for details)
  • June 29 - Capsule proposal of approved topic by group
  • July 6 - Task list, Network Chart and other project planning work by group
  • July 13-24 - Oral defense of approved topic by group
*All email submission of paperwork must be received by 9PM that day.

For your proposed topic, please make sure to state your PROBLEM, PROPOSED SOLUTION and SCIENTIFIC BASIS/CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK behind your solution.
Please avoid common topics that are done year-in year-out (test for antibiotic activity of plants and the like). I suggest you take a look at the past winners of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair to see if what you are thinking is up to par with our expectations. For those who took up SSIP, you still have to apply your topic for approval. It is not automatic.

Good luck. At least now you have something to do. Deadline is Friday, June 19, 2009.

Monday, April 13, 2009

STR2 Clearance Checklist

Make sure to accomplish everything listed. Happy "vacation" =P
STR2 Clearance Checklist

Consent for Publication Form

Please append at the back of your bound copies, right before the back blank page. Remember that this form is INDIVIDUAL. Please accomplish accordingly.
Consent for Publication Form

Sunday, February 15, 2009

STR1 Presentation Schedule

Oral presentations begin on February 17, 2009. Please prepare a 5-minute slideshow presenting us your project, including an introduction of what you are doing, the methodology you used and whatever results you have gathered.

Rubidium
  1. White
  2. Grey
  3. Orange
  4. Blue
  5. Red
  6. Violet
  7. Green
  8. Yellow
Sodium
  1. Orange
  2. Gray
  3. Red
  4. Violet
  5. Yellow
  6. Black
  7. Green
  8. Blue
  9. Clear
  10. Pink
Strontium
  1. Pink
  2. Red
  3. Black
  4. Grey
  5. Orange
  6. Purple
  7. Green
  8. Yellow
  9. Blue
  10. Clear

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Third Quarter 3rd Year GRADES

Some students have asked for a recalculation of their grades based on sheets posted. First of all these sheets are not official and I will have to check with the grades I wrote down first. Second, I just realized that all sheets were not the most recent revision as the "Research Work" column all had perfect marks, which is the default until deductions are considered.

Here are the most updated and recent list of grades. The only point of error will be if YOUR PREVIOUS GRADE is not what is written on the sheet. Please call my attention if that is the case.

Note: Light blue highlight means your grade has changed after being updated from the previous post. Blue green/Teal highlight means your grade has changed from the previous post because of a "greater than 100%" formula error in your grade.

RubidiumSTR1

SodiumSTR1

StrontiumSTR1

YMSAT Poster

Just to clarify things since I've been hearing some wrong information regarding the THIRD YEAR STR1 POSTER...
  1. Poster size is half of a full cartolina. I do not want to give you the specific dimensions as it would be better if you do not spend on printing and use a perfectly fine piece of cartolina. By the way, you may present it in portrait or in landscape as long as it is half the size of a cartolina.
  2. I am requiring only 3 things in your poster: title, objectives and a flowchart of your methodology. You can insert other information such as your background of study and significance but this is not required. I also suggest that you decorate your poster with pictures to make it more attractive.
  3. Poster judging will be on the afternoon of Tuesday next week. You may be required to be there after your other activity in the afternoon. Top 3 groups per section will be called for a brief Q & A by the judges so BE ON STANDBY Tuesday after Bio games.

    CRITERIA FOR JUDGING THE POSTER:

    §  CONTENT                                                                                      10 pts

    o    Clarity of the Title (1 pt)

    o    Background & Real Life Problem (2 pts)

    o    Main and Minor Objectives (3 pts)

    o    Significance of the Study (2 pts)

    o    Methodology Flowchart (2 pts)

    §  EFFECTIVENESS OF CONTENT IN COMMUNICATING IDEAS          10 pts

    o    Use of appropriate words (2 pts)

    o    Conciseness and simplicity of text (3 pts)

    o    Readability of text (5 pts)

    §  ORGANIZATION OF ELEMENTS                                                       5 pts

    o    Organized Flow of information (3 pts)

    o    Overall coherence of content (2 pts)

    §  OVERALL IMPACT / APPEARANCE                                                 5 pts

    o    Color scheme (2 pts)

    o    Use of visual objects (3 pts)



  4. Oral presentations of selected STR1 projects will be on Wednesday morning. All 3rd year students are required to attend this at the gym. Be prepared with a short 5 minute Powerpoint presentation explaining your project and what you hope to achieve in case you are selected. You will only know if you are going to speak on the day itself.

Good luck! Any question? Please comment on this post or email at the usual address.