Make the Luv-A Flow 2012

         The UP Geological Society, in celebration of the love month, held an annual week-long celebration entitled Make the Luv-a Flow last February 6-10, 2012 at the National Institute of Geological Sciences (NIGS) lobby and auditorium.

         The event was sponsored by San Miguel Corporation, Supply Oilfields Services Inc., Iuvenis Orbis Geological Fraternity, Sagittarius Mines Inc., PGMC, and the NIGS Canteen. It was also brought up by the Geological Majors Society, the UP Rockhounds, UP CWM Zen’ Ana, and Pao Pao’s tea bar.
        

        Comprising the celebration was the Wedding Booth, the dedication wall, the selling of chocolates and balloons, the prom night, and the Fab in Feb.

        
         The wedding booth is where couples and teased couples as well could get unofficially married and spend honeymoon on the prepared bed for a cheap price. A dedication wall was also set up for shy hearts which are unable to express themselves verbally and for the ones whose ways into their hearts are their stomach, chocolates were sold on the booth too.

        The highlight of the event was the prom night, held on the evening of February 9. The soiree was hosted by two members of the organization and was participated by the NIGS community and other UP students. Games were the life of the party as there was a Mr. Searcher game, and a few more fun games. As the people were eating food from the NIGS canteen, they were serenaded by the band and other student performers.

      The following day, Fab in Feb took place. This event was co-created with an alumna of the organization and was a day of relaxation as the students enjoyed a body-fat analysis and a facial treatment.#

 -  Jethro Antonio David

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Anniversary Dinner 2011

Last August 13, 2011, the University of the Philippines Geological Society held an alumni dinner at Ral’s Restaurant, UP Technohub. It was a celebration of the organization’s 54^th anniversary. It also turned out to be a good luck party for the 2011 graduates who were about to take their Geology Licensure Examinations a week later. It sure was a night filled with sumptuous food, good music, laughter, some reminiscing, and even inspirational remarks from our alumni.  It served the purpose of catching up with everyone, as well as gathering up to celebrate our beloved organization’s foundation, and continuing success.

           The program started with a welcoming remark from the current president, Conchitina Yu, and followed by two song numbers by Chryselle Ultima Mancenido. Then, an eat-all-you-can buffet dinner was accompanied by serenading music from the band.  After everyone enjoyed their meals, the hosts of the night, JP Mendoza and Hariette Laroco, surprised everyone with a video prepared by the members. The video was a slideshow of pictures from different batches as well as messages and greetings from current professors in NIGS who are GeoSoc alumni. At the end of the video, good luck messages from some resident members were dedicated to the fresh graduates. Then the graduates, Jigo Mismanos, Richard Ybanez, Karizz Morante, John Dale Dianala, Kevin Guellermo, Gaea Roselle and Jillyka Julianda all gave their thank you and inspirational messages after they were given good luck charms for the upcoming examinations.

The presence of Dr. Roger Laraya and his wife was also acknowledged by the hosts. He was called in to give a message for the organization. He obliged and not only did he talk about praises, but also gave tips for the undergraduate geology students and pointers on choosing our partners in life. We were all humbled by his stories and advices on life itself. According to Dr. Laraya, a geologist must choose an understanding partner, for we all know, that fieldworks require us to be away from our homes most of the time. Indeed, he was able to make his point through to all of us listening and with that, we were sincerely happy for his presence that night. As he was about to leave, pictures were taken for documentation and remembrance purposes.

Games and videoke sessions made the night much more fun for everyone who was there until about eleven o’clock pm. Undeniably, University of the Philippines Geological Society is a one big happy family of mixed personalities united for only one goal, excellence (on top of all kinds of stress, academic pressure and social life).#

- Dana Marie Sunga

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GeoSoc Mine Visit 2011

  Geosoc together with other geology students went to Padcal, Benguet to visit the mining area of the Philex mining corporation last April 2-3, 2011. This activity aims to broaden the knowledge of the geology students in the field of mining, to give them a background of the mining industry, and to expose them to what they will be doing in the future if they choose to pursue mining.

                We first visited the Philex museum. There we found samples of rocks, in different forms, commonly associated with gold. Models of the mining processes can also be viewed inside the museum. This gave us an idea of the complexities of the mining industry and also an overview of how the whole mining stuff works.

                After the museum, we went to the “core log house” which stores hundreds or even thousands of core logs that were drilled recently or even years ago. These served as references to where the mining should take place. This core logging, highlights the main role of the geologists in the mining industry. They are responsible for the directions of the drilling. They will identify the rocks present in the core and then they will know the orientation or position of the minable materials such as gold through association. It may sound simple but the task should be carried out with utmost care and thinking because each drilling costs a lot of money.

                Next to the “core log house” was the assay laboratory. The team demonstrated to us the preparations they do for the analysis of the samples and for knowing the percentage composition of each sample. There, we observed under a microscope a flake of gold embedded in a rock.

                After the laboratory, we proceeded to the briefing and distribution of the equipments for our trip underground. Everyone was excited to descend underground with the complete outfit and gears. The whole trip was tiring but fun and full of experience. We were able to see the actualities of mining especially the part on exploration. We were also able to observe the organization inside the mine – the different roles the people play in order to carry out the mining process. For example, the role of mining engineers, mechanical engineers, geologists, etc. It was just amazing to think that we were actually in the core of the mountain thousands of meters from the surface. And with us were huge tanks and bulldozers very busy on their respective tasks.

                Next was the “mill operations”. This is where the processing of the ores gathered from the mining production lines take place. The end products here are the extracted important metals from the ore ready for export or transport for further processing. The process involves big machineries. The process seemed to be complicated but according to the metallurgical engineer that toured us, “It is just as simple Chem16.”

Philex provided us with free accommodation in their student dormitory. There, we stayed overnight after that long busy day. Even though everyone is tired, we still had time to do some recreations. The hours before going to sleep served as bonding time for all the students who joined the mine visit. Thanks to Philex.#

- Kimberly A. Ilao

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Make the Luv-A Flow 2011

               Last February, the UP Geological Society brought about the “MAKE THE LUV-A FLOW” in the National Institute of Geological Sciences. The activity aims to promote camaraderie, fun and entertainment during the most anticipated love month. Included in the list of activities were the wedding booth, dedication wall, chocolate selling, and Mr. and Ms. Luv-a Flow. Also, the first ever PROM NIGHT was held last February 11, which serves as the culmination night for the Make the Luv-a flow week.

            Among the activities in the Make the Luv-a Flow week, the Weeding booth was indeed the most famous and exciting, as real-life or asaran-generated couples exchange their wedding vows with complete wedding stuff for an awesome wedding. Some weddings appeared to be the Wedding of the century (Leong-Mancenido and Bornilla-Calanno) as their whole class attended the wedding. Even the Deputy Director for Student and Academic Affairs, Dr. Tarriela, witnessed how emotional these couples were as they exchanges vows even though everything were just made–up weddings.

            Seems like everyone have some unspoken sweet words towards a special someone or maybe it was just all about having a sweet tooth. No wonder, the dedication wall and the chocolate selling were a huge sensation during the week. As an added twist, the chocolates have small curled paper inside which resembles that of a fortune cookie. Some of the more famous fortune is “mabubuntis ka mamaya… magtimpi!”

            Another exciting activity during the week was the search for Mr. and Ms. Luv-a Flow. The pairs were chosen based on their popularity as couples and their overall sweetness even if they are not really in a romantic relationship with each other. There were six couples which competed for the title namely: PaJak (Patricia Quimora and Jake del Prado), JanRari (Janelle Marasigan and Merari Rosaroso), MacKira (Macky Bernardo and Kira Gauce), MarEsca (Mark La Rosa and Cesca Llanes), DominIce (Dominic Guballa and Ice Ortiz) and AngelinaJolly (Angel Yu and Jolly Sulapas). Voting was done during the entire Luv-a week and the couple who garnered the highest votes was proclaimed Mr. and Ms. Luv-a Flow 2011 during the Prom Night.

            Speaking of the Prom Night, the perfect way to end the week with a big explosion of kilig and love was to have a night of acoustic music, slow dancing, games and of course, sumptuous hearty food. GeoSoc and Heart Angela’s Food shop, also known as NIGS canteen, headed the first ever Prom Night with masquerade as the theme. Also, this special night was made in collaboration with Cravings food group and all the NIGS organizations namely: Cwm Zenana, UP Rockhounds, UP GeMS and IOGF. The idea was to organize a simple yet cozy party to celebrate the love month as an institute. But the attendees were not limited to NIGS people; in fact, many other students from the College of Engineering and the other College of Science Institutes like MBB participated in the magical night. The acoustic romantic songs were performed by various talented NIGS students which were part of the partner organizations. Also, the UP Music Circle performed and charmed the crowd with their golden voice. Another highlight of the night is the announcement and coronation of Mr. and Ms. Luv-a Flow 2011. The votes were tallied and the love team known as AngelinaJolly got in the 2^nd place which entitled them for a romantic street food date within UP. The grand prize of having a romantic dinner date for two at Cravings restaurant in Katipunan was given to Mr. and Ms. Luv-a Flow 2011 - Pat Quimora and Jake del Prado also known as PaJak but later they said they preferred to be called as JakPat. JakPat had their first dance to the tune of Corr’s Runaway. The night ended with fast party dancing and lots of fun pictorials in the photo booth.

            Overall, the entire Make the Luv-a Flow week was undeniably a success. Since its first occurrence in NIGS, it has improved in terms of production and the incorporated activities. Surely, Make the Luv-a Flow 2012 will be much awaited and UP Geological Society will have to bring better and bigger explosion of fun and love during February. #

- Claris Canta

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HighSchool Workshop 2010

The Externals Committee of UP Geological Society (Geosoc) launched the High School Workshop (Workshop) as part of Geosoc’s advocacy in educating students about geology. Geosoc held the Workshop at the National Institute of Geological Sciences during the afternoon of 2 October 2010, right after the annually-held Geoquiz; the participants consisted of the Geoquiz contestants, accompanied by their teachers and younger schoolmates.  The National Institute of Geological Sciences, Nannoworks Laboratory, and Geosciences Foundation Incorporated provided the food and the necessary materials.

The Workshop had one simple objective: introduce the principles and practices of geology through hands-on approach. The Workshop presented principles and practices in geology through interactive stations, each manned by instructors (sophomore to senior BS Geology students). The Workshop catered to all levels and backgrounds of high school students, unlike the Geoquiz which only catered to the students already knowledgeable in geology. Even the less-inclined-to-geology participants easily digested the concepts being taught in the Workshop.

The stations of the Workshop hosted various specific topics: mineral hardness; mineral color and streak; field mapping; rock cycle; field mapping; rock types; carbonate rocks; fossils; and optical mineralogy (thin sections and polished sections). The instructors showcased an interesting hands-on exercise for each of their stations. For example, the exercise in optical mineralogy allowed the participants to see the kaleidoscopic view of thin sections of rocks under the microscope. Active discussions followed the hands-on exercises. For example, after showing off a gold specimen under the microscope, an instructor discussed the interesting facts about the economics of mining in the Philippines.

The sponsors of the Workshop greatly contributed to the success of the Workshop: the National Institute of Geological Sciences provided the rooms, petrographic microscopes, and rock samples; the Nannoworks Laboratory provided fossils and specialized microscopes; the Geosciences Foundation Incorporated provided funds for the Workshop stations’ materials and the food for the participants.

The participants and their teachers, as well as the organizers and instructors, gave positive feedbacks regarding the Workshop. The participants enjoyed the activities in the stations, especially the stations in optical mineralogy. Some participants even expressed their newfound interest in geology; some considered including the BS Geology program among their choices in college. The teachers also participated in the stations, most of them asking a lot of questions out of curiosity. One teacher from Rizal National Science High School commented the Workshop presented a very fresh concept in teaching geology to high school students; the teacher also requested the Workshop to be held in her school. The Workshop actually provided a good start for the future educators of geology. The instructors, consisting of the sophomore to senior members of Geosoc, found the Workshop a rather exhausting yet very rewarding experience. After the Workshop, some of the members started entertaining the idea of teaching geology after finishing their BS degree. Nikko Rivera, one of the brains behind the concept of the Workshop, expressed his interest in continuously supporting the Workshop. He vowed that once he gets to work, he would donate rare and interesting rocks from the various parts of the world for the Workshop. #

- Rico dela Pena

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