asymptotes

Since August this year, I have been going to a public school in Cebu together with some volunteers from a private high school . We give Math and English tutorials to some Grade 4 & 5 students.  Every week is a good experience for me, since, by talking to these kids, I get to practice my elementary Cebuano without fear of committing mistakes. But my experience this Saturday was special. I was tutoring Math. The topic was conversion of decimals, fractions and percent.  I began by tackling the concept of percent in Bisaya to them. Then I thought of translating "percent" to Bisaya so that they can understand it more.  I translated it as "kada gatos". I was overjoyed when I noticed how they immediately got the idea of percent afterwards. Then I wanted to teach them how to convert percent, decimals and fractions. I thought of the table below then began giving them easy drills.  Of course most of them got the correct answers.  They were even racing against each...

I’ll be celebrating my birthday in a few days time. I’ll be 17 again! Yes, I have discovered the Fountain of Youth! The  Fountain of Youth that has evaded many explorers and philosophers for ages! The thing is, they were looking for it at the wrong places! The Fountain of Youth is to be found in Math, in Number Theory, in the Base Number System! I was 17 turning  18 when I found out I could remain 17 forever by simply changing the base number system when calculating my age! The day I turned 18 (Base 10), I decided to say goodbye to the Decimal System (at least in computing for my age) and adopted the Undecimal Number System (Base 11) so that I’ll be 17 again. The following year, I adopted the Duodecimal Number System (Base 12), and thus, I was 17 again!  As  I approach another birthday, I’ll be 17 yet again. But please, don’t ask me which Base Number System I will be using then . We are most familiar with the Decimal Base Number System.  In grade s...

Act1v8  refers to WYD 08's theme taken from "ACT"s "1 V"erse" 8": “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses."  It’s been a year since World Youth Day 2008 . The chants, cheers, greetings and fanfare of those days have died down, but their memories still find echo in the minds and hearts of the participants. Memorable experiences With a bishop from US after the catechesis. Walking along the streets of Sydney, chanting with thousands of other pilgrims: “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie… Oi, oi, oi”.  The youth of the world seems to be waking up the slumbering church in Australia.  Seeing the flags of China and other Middle East countries in the pilgrim walks . It encouraged praying for the Church in those countries where Christianity is a minority.  Singing the WYD theme song, in a dark night dotted by the lights of the candles held by the pilgrims.  It enkindled in the hearts of many a great hop...