Businessmirror August 10, 2019

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2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

DATA CHAMPION

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SURVEY AFFIRMS FILIPINO PARENTS’ PREFERENCE TO SEND CHILDREN TO COLLEGE RATHER THAN TO TECH-VOC SCHOOLS

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By Cai U. Ordinario

N the age of automation and artificial intelligence, Filipino parents still prefer that their children pursue traditional professions, according to a survey commissioned by the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

In the survey report on the “Youth Education Investment and Labor Market Outcomes in the Philippines” (YEILMOS), majority of parents in both rural (67.8 percent) and urban (73.2 percent) areas expect their children to become professionals when they become adults. Traditional professions can only be pursued through college education, which, under the K to 12 system, has become an option rather than a requirement for employment. “These expectations need to

be aligned with recent labor market trends of automation, artificial intelligence, rapid innovation, job mobility, and government development targets,” the report stated. “The government must design and implement policy initiatives that explore how these expectations, particularly those of the parents, can be better informed,” it added.

Original preference

THE survey gathered data from 238 schools; 3,172 junior and senior high-school students; and 2,819

households randomly selected in the National Capital Region, as well as provinces of Ilocos Sur, Eastern Samar and Davao del Sur. It also showed that in terms of choosing an education track, majority of parents in all regions preferred their children go through college. Only 31.9 percent said they would rather that their children pursue the technical-vocational and livelihood (TVL) track. Survey results also showed that only 1 percent of parents in rural areas and 0.2 percent in ur-

ban areas expect their children to become agricultural workers when they reach adulthood. Filipino parents also expect their children to work in cities or abroad. Those in NCR or Metro Manila expect their children to go overseas, while parents in provinces like Davao del Sur expect their children to work in the city.

Info gaps

“MORE rural households [50 percent] expect their children to be Continued on A2

Robots are solving banks’ very expensive research problem

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By Charlotte Ryan | Bloomberg

to filter through the noise in faraway lands.

S lawmakers in Brasilia debated a controversial pension overhaul for months, a robot more than 5,000 miles away in London kept a close eye on all 513 of them. The algorithm, designed by technology startup Arkera Inc., tracked their comments in Brazilian newspapers and government web pages each day to predict the likelihood the bill would pass. lows in May. It’s since rallied more than 8 percent. This is the kind of edge that a new generation of researchers are betting will upend the research marketplace. For Arkera’s clients on Wall Street and in the City of London, that means getting robots

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 52.2300

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Weeks before the legislation cleared its biggest obstacle in July, the machine’s data crunching allowed Arkera analysts to predict the result almost to the letter, giving hedge fund clients in New York and London the insight to buy the Brazilian real near eight-month

The solution

“THERE’S too many people to follow on Twitter, too many websites, too many articles,” said Nav Gupta, the 48-year-old cofounder of Arkera, which says its software can process as much information as 1,000 human analysts. “That’s a very expensive problem and everybody faces it.” The company raised £4 million ($4.9 million) last year from investors including Alan Howard of hedge fund Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP. Using so-called artificial intelligence to automate swathes of the research process is quickly gaining traction because cost-conscious investment banks are downsizing. In the UK alone, there was a 30-percent drop in research budgets last year, Financial Conduct Authority data show. At the 12 biggest banks, there’s been a 7-percent drop since 2015 in the number of front-office Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4925 n UK 63.3759 n HK 6.6612 n CHINA 7.4133 n SINGAPORE 37.8013 n AUSTRALIA 35.5164 n EU 58.4036 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.9250

Source: BSP (August 9, 2019 )

News

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A2 Saturday, August 10, 2019

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Robots are solving banks’ very expensive research problem Continued from a1

staff covering currencies, such as traders and researchers, according to London-based research analytics consultancy Coalition Development Ltd. That means it’s even harder than it used to be to afford analysts on the ground in developing nations, about the only places in the world where investors can get yield right now.

Let machines do the work

DATA-SCIENCE companies like Arkera and New York-based Sigmoidal say they can solve this problem using machines that learn as they go to dredge through tens of thousands of news articles, government statements and social media accounts in languages as varied as Spanish, Arabic and Chinese. After an initial investment of up to $100,000, banks can save $1 million over seven years using such systems because they don’t need to hire as many data analysts, said Marek Bardonski, who was chief executive officer of Sigmoidal when he spoke with Bloomberg in July. He has since left the company. Previously, Bardonski, 27, was a computer scientist at graphics chipmaker Nvidia.

Big brother reloaded

TAKE this year’s protests in Hong Kong. Bardonski said Sigmoidal’s software was able to track developments in the Cantonese-language press and even identify the non-verified Twitter feeds of protest leaders to monitor the risk of further unrest.

The technology is useful for far-away countries wracked by political turmoil, places where investors are keen to put money but don’t have easy access to information. “The system can give an edge over traditional analysts working for financial institutions,” said Bardonski, who said typical reports will include charts on sentiment, key word statistics and short written summaries. “Instead of getting 100,000 news articles, clients can get all the insights on one page.” Neither Sigmoidal nor Arkera would let Bloomberg see an example of an automated report to see how readable it is compared with one produced by a human, citing rules against sharing proprietary data. In Europe, the way investors consume research has evolved fast since new rules last year forced investors for the first time to pay separately for the analysis they receive. The so-called MiFID II legislation stopped a widespread practice of having the cost of research built into the fees that the likes of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. or Morgan Stanley got paid to execute trades.

Downhill

THE irony is that a year and a half since the rules came into force, many investment banks still offer research for free because clients aren’t willing to pay for it, according to Sarah Jane Mahmud, a senior Bloomberg Intelligence analyst who specializes in regulation. They get around the rules by publishing research on their websites for public consumption.

BRAZIL’S congressmen supporters of the Pension Reform Plan wave Brazilian flags during voting session at the Lower House, in Brasilia, Brazil, on Wednesday, July 10, 2019. As they debated the controversial pension overhaul for months, a robot more than 5,000 miles away in London kept a close eye on all 513 of them. ANDRE COELHO/BLOOMBERG

But the quality has gone downhill because mid-level analysts have left or been pushed out, leaving junior analysts to do the work so their more senior colleagues can go to client meetings. This is giving investors even more impetus to seek out bespoke research, like paying cash to speak with experts in the field or investing in automated research to support their senior fund managers and strategists. “Asset managers now need to assess the value of every single research service to assess if it’s worth paying for, how much they should pay for it, and trying to filter the good from the bad,” Mahmud said. Under MiFID II, asset manag-

ers must be prepared to demonstrate they’ve done due diligence on all investments they make for their clients, something that’s always been tricky in developing countries. It was that very problem that inspired Gupta and his business partner Vinit Sahni, whose careers spanned firms including Citadel LP, DE Shaw & Co. and Goldman Sachs, to set up Arkera in 2015. During their 20-year careers in investment banking, trying to find information to substantiate something felt “like pulling teeth,” Sahni, 50, said. So the pair set up a team of data scientists and engineers to design a search engine that inves-

tors can use to give them an edge in places like Turkey, Mexico and Egypt. It works kind of like Google, only it’s programmed to choose the most relevant sources from tens of thousands of articles, social media feeds and government releases. As good as robots are getting at deciphering market jargon, even their developers admit they’ll never fully replace humans. In the next decade, Sahni said smart machines will significantly enhance the capabilities of human analysts. “We will see advancements in cognitive abilities, communication and the physical potential of humans as we collaborate closely with machines and algorithms,” he said.

The white-collar slant

THE Philippine robotics team, represented by Dr. Yanga’s Colleges, at the World Robot Olympiad 2014 in Sochi, Russia. They won bronze (college level), best technical robot (elementary level ) and most creative robot (junior high school level). ANNA MARTYNOVA | DREAMSTIME.COM

Continued from a1

employed in the city relative to urban households [43 percent], while more urban households [28 percent] expect their children to find work overseas than rural households [20 percent],” the study stated. A senior fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), Jose Ramon G. Albert, said this ultimately reveals the “information gaps” in terms of choosing an academic track. Based on the survey, 37.7 percent of information used to choose a postsecondary education are parents, followed by peers at 33.6 percent; relatives, 32.4 percent; siblings, 19.4 percent; self, 18.9 percent; and teachers, 13.1 percent.

Only 3 percent of parents and students sought information provided by the guidance counselor; 3.8 percent from television and radio; 4 percent, other sources; 4.6 percent, books, newspapers and magazines; and 5.2 percent, the internet.

Needed guidance

“PARENTS and students should get more career guidance,” Albert said. This guidance, he said, should come from schools, the government and the private sector. The YEILMOS results, Albert said, indicate that many senior high-school students and their families prefer the academic track over the nonacademic tracks. Albert said this is in large part

due to the expectation of continuing on to college education, and consequently to better-paying jobs, compared to the expectations around jobs gained through the TVL, sports, or arts and design tracks. Based on the survey results, majority of Filipino parents expect their children to earn at least P20,000 monthly by the time they hit 30 years old. A third or 33 percent of parents expect their children to earn P20,000 to P30,000 monthly by the time they reach 30 years old; 26 percent expect P30,000 to P50,000 monthly; 20 percent, over P50,000 per month; 11 percent, P50,000 to P70,000; and 9 percent, a salary greater than P70,000 a month.

The World BusinessMirror

Editor: Angel R. Calso

Saudis to limit oil exports in Sept to stabilize market

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AUDI ARABIA plans to keep oil exports below 7 million barrels a day next month as Opec’s biggest producer allocates less crude than customers demand in a bid to stabilize the market, according to the kingdom’s officials. State-run Saudi Arabian Oil Co., known as Aramco, will cut customer allocations across all regions by a total of 700,000 barrels a day, next month, the officials said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public. The countr y’s produc t ion w i l l be lower i n September than in this month, they said. For Nor t h A me r ic a n c u s tomers, t he k ingdom w i l l send about 30 0,0 0 0 ba r rels a d ay less t ha n t hey nom inated for oi l sc hedu led to load in Sep tember, accord ing to a person fa m i l i a r w it h t he mat ter. Re duct ions to Eu ropea n buyers w i l l be l a rger, sa id t he person, who is fami liar w ith Saud i polic y. T here w i l l a lso be modest c uts to A si a n buyers. Saudi Arabia is reducing allocations despite strong consumption in a l l reg ions, the officials said. W hile the kingdom could have produced about 10.3 million barrels a day because demand is much higher,

it decided to keep output and exports suppressed, they said. The producer and its partners in the Opec+ coalition are determined to do what they can for market stability, they said. Global benchmark Brent Crude rose as much as 3.2 percent to $58.01 on Thursday. Prices are still down about 12 percent over the past week.

Market meltdown

SAUDI AR ABIA, the world’s largest oil exporter, has already cut production more than required under an agreement between the Opec and allies outside of the group to help drain inventories and reach market stability. Oil has been swept up in a global market meltdow n as the USChina trade dispute worsened, spurring fears it would morph into a currency war. Prices recovered some of their losses after a Saudi official said the kingdom won’t tolerate a further sell-off, and has phoned other producers to discuss a response. Still, a cooling global economy and the US-China trade dispute are putting a brake on fuel demand, so even if global producers decide to cut output further, they may struggle to revive prices. Bloomberg News

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US calls China ‘thuggish regime’ as Hong Kong feud deepens T

HE US State Department’s spokesman called China a “thuggish regime” for releasing personal information on an American diplomat who met with opposition protesters in Hong Kong, escalating a war of words over protests that have wracked the territory. “I don’t think that leaking an American diplomat’s private information­— pictures, names of their children­— I don’t think that that’s a for ma l protest, that is what a thug gish regime wou ld do,” Morg a n O r t a g u s s a id at a St ate D e pa r t me nt briefing on T hursday. “ T hat’s not how a responsible nation would behave.” Asked if she was directly calling China a thuggish regime, she responded, “Yeah.” Ortagus was referring to Julie Eadeh, a political counselor at the US consulate in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong-based Ta Kung Pao newspaper, which is linked to China’s Communist Party, published a photo of Eadeh meeting with opposition leaders in Hong Kong, along with two other photographs of her. One showed her

A PROTEST in the Causeway Bay on August 5. JUSTIN CHIN/BLOOMBERG

holding up an image of a child, and the other showed her in a helmet and flak jacket. Zhao Lijian, China’s deputy ambassador in Islamabad, Pakistan, linked to a series of photos and tweeted: “Embarrassing! The black hand was caught redhanded!” He also called Eadeh

“a subversion expert at the State Department.” Earlier Thursday, the Chinese liaison office in Hong Kong said it had formally protested to the US over Eadeh’s meetings. China’s foreign ministry has previously said the ongoing unrest in Hong Kong was “the creation of the US.”

Ortagus’s accusation is “defamation and slander” and reflects a “bandit logic,” the Office of the Commissioner of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong said in a statement on Friday. The comments “expose the US’s hegemonic thinking,” which China strongly resents and resolutely opposes, it said. Protests have continued in Hong Kong for nine weeks, first over a since-suspended bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China, and later expanding to calls for greater democracy. Ortagus called the meeting with protesters a routine part of any American diplomat’s job. C r it ic i sm of Hong K ong ’s crackdown on protests by US officials has escalated, although President Donald J. Trump has tended to dismiss the issue in his comments. “Something is probably happening with Hong Kong, because when you look at, you know, what’s going on, they’ve had riots for a long period of time,” Trump told reporters last week, saying the issue was “between Hong Kong and China.” Bloomberg News

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A4 Saturday, August 10, 2019 • Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Exporters told: Smart packaging tech ensures product safety, quality

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ILIPINO companies, especially those engaged in the food business, are encouraged to use smart packaging technologies to ensure product safety and quality which are key drivers of competitiveness. “For exporters, it will ensure the quality and safety of their products. It can directly communicate with the consumers because it has indicator. You can immediately see if your product is fresh or not,” said Daisy Tañafranca, chief of the Packaging Technology Division of the Department of Science and Technology-

Industrial Technology Development Institute (DOST-ITDI). Tañafranca pointed out packaging technology becomes more sophisticated, especially for products geared for the export markets. Smart packaging technology includes the use of active packaging, intelligent packaging, and radio frequency iden-

tification (RFID). She cited as an example the utilization of active packaging which delays the ripening of banana and mango, preserves the freshness of heirloom rice, and extend the shelf life of bread. Tañafranca said intelligent packaging monitors the condition of packaged foods, and provides information on the quality of the packaged goods during transport and storage. It is used mainly in logistics and supply chain management, as well as food and defense safety, she added. Tañafranca further said the RFID technology, on the other hand, is a tagging and tracking system for food and other goods. She noted many developed countries are already using smart packaging technologies.

Customs set to implement EU’s Registered Exporters’ scheme

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HE Bureau of Customs (BOC) is ready to implement the European Union Registered Exporters (REX) system for certifying the origin of goods. The system is crucial in allowing Philippine exporters to continue enjoying benefits under the EU’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program. ”The REX system will gradually replace the current system of origin certification based on certificates of origin (CO Form A) issued by BOC,” the agency’s Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group deputy commissioner Atty. Edward James Dy Buco said in a memo dated July 5. A Customs order on guidelines for implementation of the system will soon

be issued. Exporters may start applying online through https://customs.ec.europa.eu/rex-paui/#/create-preapplication. Once the electronic application is submitted, a printed application from must be submitted by exporters to the BOC’s Export Division or Export Unit together with the tax identification number; unique reference number(URN) for Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) locators and Client Profile Registration System fornonPEZA locators; and product evaluation report, if applicable. A l l application for ms submitted to the Ex por t Div isions/Unit sha l l be endorsed to BOC ’s Ex por t Coordinating-

Div ision (ECD) for reg istration to the R E X system. Exporters shall be notified about the results of the application and assigned a REX number within seven workingdays from receipt of the complete set of documents by ECD from the export division of ports.CO Form A shall be issued by the Export Divisions/Units for exporters that are not yet registered to REX untilDecember 31, 2019. In case majority of exporters to EU are not yet able to register by the third quarter of thisyear, an extension of six months may be requested from the EU. If the extension is granted, it is only up to June 30, 2020.

Neda’s Pernia cites need to boost domestic demand, exports’ competitiveness

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ITH global growth likely to remain sluggish for the remainder of 2019, the government must exert all efforts in boosting domestic demand and exports’ competitiveness to improve the Philippines’s trade performance, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said in a news statement on Wednesday. The Philippine Statistics Authority, an attached agency of Neda, on Wednesday reported that the country’s total merchandise trade contracted by 5.8 percent in June 2019 as the decrease in merchandise imports (-10.4 percent) outstripped the growth of exports (1.5 percent). Imports continued its downward trend for three consecutive months now, with raw material and intermediate good, and consumer goods posting the biggest decline at -16.5 percent and -12.8 percent, respectively. The moderate recovery of exports, on the other hand, continued for the third consecutive month. Increased sales of agro-based products, minerals, and manufactures compensated for the decline in outward shipments of petroleum products and other agro-based products. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia attributed the external trade slowdown in part to the ongoing trade disputes, Brexit-related uncertainties, and rising geopolitical tensions. “Despite the challenging external environment, the Philippines has shown resilience in its trade performance. The Philippines is among the countries in Asia with positive export growth,” he said. In terms of exports earnings, only Vietnam and the Philippines registered gains among selected Asian economies (China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand). “The government must continue pro-

moting the competitiveness of the Philippine exports by implementing policies and laws such as the Philippine Innovation Act. This will encourage innovation that will reduce the cost of production and elevate the quality of Philippine products to meet international standards,” the Cabinet official added. “However, considering the less optimistic global trade prospects, it is necessary to diversify markets and boost domestic demand to compensate for the weakness of external trade,” Pernia said. The Cabinet official likewise reiterated Neda’s call to diversify products and markets by establishing new trade relations and improving existing ones with strategic partners. “In light of the current trade spat between Korea and Japan, we need to complete the negotiations for the freetrade agreement with South Korea and review the decade-old Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement to further expand the country’s exports in both markets,” said Pernia. “Importantly, the government has been fast-tracking the implementation of infrastructure projects under the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program to enhance trade facilitation and provide logistical support to manufacturers and exporters,” he added. However, only 11 (of 38 Neda Boardapproved project proposals) out of the 75 infrastructure flagship projects are now in the construction phase. Further speeding up the roll-out of approved projects and processing of those in the flagship list are called for to boost government spending to provide needed stimulus to economic growth. Pernia urged the government to also be ready with countermeasures against disruptions to construction activities that may occur from likely unfavorable weather conditions.

Villar to Zamboanga Peninsula MSMEs: Venture into global halal market

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EN. Cynthia A. Villar has encouraged entrepreneurs across Zamboanga Peninsula to cash in on the huge global market demand for halal products, and make their region a gateway to Mindanao as the

halal capital of the country. Villar said they have to get “serious” about making halal products, as she asked the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to assist them in promoting halal exports.

“The global market for halal food and lifestyle products is expected to reach $10.5 trillion by 2024. Kaya ang laki-laki po ng [the] market [is really huge] for halal products. The extent of market opportunities is

quite varied and diversified,” she said during the opening of Zamboanga Peninsula Exposition (ZAMPEX) 2019 held here recently. Villar said business opportunities are offered by various industries

ranging from food, beverages, cosmetics, personal care, pharmaceutical, health care, tourism, among many others. The senator pointed out that the halal market size is expected

to expand tremendously, along with the growth in the Muslim population, which is projected to rise to 2.2 billion in 2030 or nearly 26 percent of the world’s population. PNA

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From P500 to P1,000: Iloilo solon files bill seeking to double elders’ pension

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LOILO CITY—Iloilo Fifth District Rep. Raul Tupas has filed a bill that seeks to increase the monthly social pension of senior citizens from P500 to P1,000. On Monday, Tupas said he saw the need to increase the social pension as maintenance medicines are now costly. “Now they are receiving P500 monthly pension per month or P1,500 per quarter, but I saw the situation that the price of medicine and commodities have increased,” Tupas said as he recalled the situation of senior citizens in his district in Iloilo. “They have reached the age that they had helped our county. Through the national government, we can recognize and help our senior citizens,” he added. Section 1 of the House Bill 2868

New standards aim to improve surgery for the oldest patients

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ASHINGTON—The 92year-old had a painful tumor on his tongue, and major surgery was his best chance. Doctors called a timeout when he said he lived alone, in a rural farmhouse, and wanted to keep doing so. “It was ultimately not clear we could get him back there” after such a big operation, said Dr. Tom Robinson, chief of surgery at the VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System. The Denver hospital is trying something new: When their oldest patients need a major operation, what to do isn’t decided just with the surgeon but with a team of other specialists, to make sure seniors fully understand their options—and how those choices could affect the remainder of their lives. It’s part of a move to improve surgical care for older Americans, who increasingly are undergoing complex operations despite facing higher risks than younger patients. The American College of Surgeons launched a program Friday to encourage hospitals around the country to adopt 30 new standards to optimize surgery on patients who are 75 and older—information seniors and their families eventually will be able to use in choosing where to get care. Seniors account for more than 40 percent of surgeries, which is expected to grow as the population ages. Certainly there are plenty of robust elders who can withstand major operations. But as people get older, they don’t bounce back like they did even in middle age. Seniors rapidly lose muscle with even a short period in bed. They tend to have multiple illnesses that complicate recovery. And 15 person of older adults who live at home—and a third of 80-somethings—face particular risks because they’re frail, meaning they’re weak, move slowly and get little physical activity. The new standards stress teambased care and better communication about surgical risks and quality of life, to help patients choose their treatment. They must be evaluated for vulnerabilities, such as frailty, being prone to falls or having dementia, and the hospital must have plans to handle them. AP

(HB 2868) or an “Act Increasing the Monthly Social Pension of senior Citizens and Expanding the Coverage Thereof” amends Section 2 of Republic Act 7432. HB 2868 states that “social pension refers to the monthly stipend or monetary grant from the government to augment the daily subsistence and other medical needs of senior citizens which shall not be less than P1,000 per month.” The bill also amends Section 5 of the RA 7432 and states that “all senior citizens without pension shall be entitled to a monthly social pension of, at least, P1,000 to augment the daily subsistence and other

A web of privacy issues

PAPP’S fight to monitor her mother’s care reflects a reasonable fear. More than 1.3 million Americans live in nursing homes, and elder abuse can be a killer. Every year, news reports surface about nursing home staff physically or sexually assaulting patients. Physical and cognitive vulnerabilities may make it difficult for residents to report abuse or to have their reports taken seriously. Web-enabled digital cameras offer one solution. Evidence suggests that ever more people are putting cameras in a relative’s room to detect and deter abuse, though exact numbers are unknown as the practice is often done covertly. Seven states have passed laws enabling families to monitor the care of aging relatives this way. But nursing home surveillance has significant legal and ethical implications, according to two multidisciplinary studies we published in 2019. Chief among them is privacy. The most intimate care activities are conducted in view of the camera: washing, using a bedpan, changing underwear. Sensitive conversations with visitors, from clergy to romantic partners, may also be recorded. “Is this really what the resident would want to have recorded about themselves?” asked one respondent to our survey on webcams in nursing homes.

Recorded without permission

CONSENT is another tricky issue. While state laws regulating camera use require consent from the patient, roughly half of US nursing

People from my past (1) By Nick Tayag

‘T ILOILO Fifth District Rep. Raul Tupas pays respect to senior citizens in his district in Iloilo province. He has filed a bill, before the 18th Congress, which seeks to increase the monthly stipend of senior citizens from P500 to P1,000. PHOTO COURTESY OF REP. RAUL TUPAS

medical needs of senior citizens.” Tupas said the amount of the social pension should be reviewed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development

every two years after the effectivity of the said act. “If the bill is approved and the pension will be increased, it will be of great help to them,” he said. PNA

Webcams in elderly homes raises ‘ethical’ questions A FOOT infection seemed to be going untreated, leading Lisa Papp to fear that her mother’s nursing home wasn’t providing proper care. So Lisa did what any concerned child might: She bought a $199 webcam from Target and put it in her mother’s room. But she found that nursing home staff kept pointing the camera away from Mary Ann’s bed or unplugging it. Eventually, Lisa bolted it to a piece of furniture and brought a formal complaint against the facility. In May 2017, the Minnesota Department of Health decided in the Papp family’s favor: The nursing home had to allow a camera in Mary Ann’s room.

Editor: Efleda P. Campos • Saturday, August 10, 2019 A5

home residents have dementia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These residents are unlikely to be consulted about camera installation, because they lack, or are perceived to lack, capacity for consent. In these cases, children often act as parents’ legal proxy to give consent on their behalf. Even when parents are capable of consenting, we found, children may simply want to avoid conflict with a parent and judge it easier to install an always-on camera without discussion. Since nursing home rooms are usually shared, the consent and privacy of roommates presents an ethical problem, too. Inevitably, roommates’ conversations will be recorded, and they will be filmed when passing through a camera’s field of vision. All of the states that allow inroom cameras require that roommates, or their legal representative, be informed of surveillance and allowed to require that the camera be pointed away from their bed. But that’s no guarantee of privacy. Dementia or lack of familiarity with technology may mean roommates cannot adjust cameras to protect their privacy. And because nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the US are dangerously understaffed, their caretakers may be unavailable to offer tech assistance when needed.

Negative impacts on care

WEBCAMS are a consumer response to the United States’s inadequate long-term care system. Long-term care in the United States is poorly funded, primarily by Medicaid. Medicare covers acute but not ongoing services and supports. Most Americans can’t afford the care they will need as they age. As a result, the nursing home staff trusted to do this demanding and fraught work receive low pay— on average, making $27,470 a year. Turnover is particularly high among caregivers who provide the most hands-on, intimate care in American nursing homes. For these staff, the in-room cameras that ease families’ fears often produce anxiety. Respondents to our survey of 273 staff at American nursing homes and assisted living facilities said that surveillance could create a culture of mistrust. Ubiquitous webcams

make elder-care workers feel that they aren’t seen as capable of professional, moral behavior. “It feels like…having a supervisor or someone breathing over your shoulder at all times,” one nursing home worker said, adding that cameras “take away employees’ confidence.” That, in turn, has a chilling effect on the relationship between patients and their caregivers. “There are no advantages that outweigh the concerns and the kind of culture you create by doing this,” one respondent asserted. Additionally, while media coverage of elder abuse typically focuses on abuse by nursing home staff, studies show that in almost 60 percent of elder abuse and neglect incidents, the perpetrator is a family member.

Investment needed

THE demoralizing effects of in-room cameras, coupled with the ethical and privacy concerns that they raise, indicate that webcams are not the solution to preventing abuse in elder-care facilities. Our work points instead to the need for more US government investment. With better pay and working conditions, nursing homes could attract more direct-care staff who would stay in their jobs longer and be more invested in their workplace. Nursing assistants could get to know residents, and keep a better eye on them. Enhanced training on recognizing and reporting abuse would also promote accountability. Such improvements will only become more critical as the US population ages, further straining the care work force. National efforts like the “culture change” movement—an attempt under way since the 1980s to make nursing homes more home-like with more privacy and individual care—are already empowering staff and residents, and bettering the quality of care. According to one 2014 study, in states where Medicaid rewarded culture change practices through “payfor-performance” reimbursement policies, nursing homes were far more likely to employ these practices. More public investment could expand these promising efforts, giving families real peace of mind about their older parents’ safety and ensuring Americans get quality care in old age. AP

MY SIXTY-ZEN’S WORTH

HERE are places I remember,” croons the late John Lennon. But in my case, let me tell you about certain people from my past whose plights have brought to light a few meaningful insights, which I would like to share with anyone who cares to listen.

When I first met Nathan, he was a struggling graphic artist, barely able to survive on a hand-to-mouth kind of life. Jobs did not come on a regular basis. When he got jobs, payments were never on time. One day, Nathan’s mother died. The wheel of fortune suddenly went Nathan’s way. His mom left substantial real-estate properties, which were sold as soon as possible. The proceeds from the sale were divided among the heirs, which included Nathan. His share was quite substantial. But instead of investing it wisely, Nathan and his wife chose to use the money instead to purchase a house, a van, the latest audio system and an expensive computer system. He went to the most fashionable auto shops and bought high-priced accessories for his van, just to be one step ahead of the joneses and relish the look of “envy” in other people’s eyes. It looked to many observers that Nathan and his wife were in a hurry to make their wealth visible and, thus, gain a notch in social esteem. The couple couldn’t wait to live the dream. For a while, Nathan’s friends were impressed. Clients’ attitudes changed after seeing him being driven to meetings in an expensive looking van. He was no longer just a struggling freelance artist. Somehow, it changed him as a person also. He became boastful and arrogant. He made it known to secretaries of his clients that he couldn’t tolerate waiting anymore. He turned down projects that he deemed too small for him; in some cases, he priced himself too high. Some friends who referred jobs to him but got turned down could only shake their heads ruefully, recognizing a typical case of a nouveau riche whose newly acquired wealth had gone to his head. But in just a short time, the money seemed to slip through his fingers, until it ran out. Meanwhile, his freelance business wasn’t picking up. His clients became scarce. He had problems collecting from his few remaining clients. He couldn’t sustain his business. Nathan panicked. He sold his house and his van. He dismissed his chauffeur. He tried selling his computer. Nobody bit at his steep asking price, until he was forced to sell it real cheap. Then he was admitted to a hospital due to a kidney infection of some sort. His wife was forced to borrow money from acquaintances. A few lent them some and most of his former friends did not even bother to visit him at the hospital. Socalled friends were suddenly “unavailable” when he called. Last I heard, Nathan became a

psychological wreck and turned to religion. Yes, for a while, Nathan the “one-day millionaire” enjoyed moments of being on top, as well as the trappings of the good life: a home of his own, the latest entertainment gadgets, limitless credit, all the personal effects that seem to be the badge of a successful individual in today’s world. From a struggling artist to a one-day millionaire. He got instant gratification. Today, we live in a world that wants what it wants. And wants to have it right now. ”Now na!” is the constant refrain that used to be loudly spouted by TV hosts of variety and game shows. We have completely forgotten the saying: “easy come, easy go.” We disdain the virtue of patience, which as one put it is a “virtue with a lot of wait.” We no longer want to work for something. All we’re after is the pleasure of possessing things that seem to put us above others, even if they are beyond our means, or we don’t really need them or have not earned them. Because of this, we go for the easier way, or the path of least resistance, the shortcuts. And so, we have lost the joy of savoring the fruits of a job well done, or a celebration well deserved. “The more difficult, the sweeter the victory,” goes the old maxim. Remember also what old folks used to advice us: “Kung walang Biyernes Santo, walang Domingo de Gloria.” In an old book I excavated from a garage sale entitled Men Who Are Making America by B.C. Forbes, I read about 50 individuals who, at that time, composed the honor list of America’s foremost achievers. I noted that there are three key characteristics common to these 50 wealthy individuals: one is the willingness to sacrifice many pleasures in youth in order to get an education; two is the willingness to sacrifice pleasure in order to save and accumulate capital; lastly is the ability to overcome desire for showing off. What this tells us is that financial security is not something that just happens or comes to you. It takes sacrifice, a tremendous effort of denying oneself and delaying satisfaction until the right time has come. It takes a life of conscious proactive effort. I call it Postponed Gratification. Postponed Gratification entails curbing your impulse to acquire beyond your resources. Our ancestors know the wisdom of frugality expressed in the old Filipino saying: “Matutong mamaluktot, kung maliit ang banig” (Learn to contort your body to fit the mattress.) Don’t shy away from hardships and difficulties of living within your means. Yes, Postponed Gratification. It begins as an attitude, which after a while, is transformed into a way of thinking and doing, a habit of the heart and eventually a way of life. It may not be your cup of brewed wisdom or insight, but I assure you it has served me well as a guiding principle in my mature years.

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BusinessMi

Saturday, August 10, 2019 | Editor: Jun Lomibao

FROOME: BERNAL’S LIFE ABOUT TO CHANGE FOREVER

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OUR-TIME Tour de France winner Chris Froome said 2019 champion Egan Bernal “is going to go on to do amazing things in our sport.” Although he said he plans to target the 2020 Tour de France, Froome admitted that he didn’t quite expect a challenge from the young Colombian prodigy so soon. “I could see in the early days with Egan that he was a huge talent,” Froome said in a video interview Team Ineos released late last week. “He’s someone who is going to go on to do amazing things in our sport, but I didn’t expect to have him down as the 2019 winner of the Tour de France.” Froome missed the chance to win a record-tying fifth Tour this year when he crashed out of the Critérium du Dauphiné with multiple fractured bones. Team Ineos still had defending champion Geraint Thomas on the roster, but it was Bernal who surged ahead in the Alps and deposed previous race leader Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-QuickStep). “What he’s achieved is phenomenal,” Froome said. “He’s taken on the best in the world and he won. I certainly couldn’t have imagined achieving victory like that at such a young age.” The four-time Tour de France winner also had a bit of a warning for Bernal, however. “Egan’s life is about to change forever,” said Froome, who accompanied Bernal at home at the Tour Colombia 2.1 in February. “Just being in Colombia this year and understanding how big cycling is in Colombia, I don’t quite think he knows what’s going to hit him when he gets home.” Froome admitted to finding a way to enjoy his own time at home this year, despite being laid up recovering from his injuries and missing out on riding the Tour. He took solace in watching the performances on TV. “It was really special to be able to watch it as a fan, and obviously knowing him so well and knowing all my teammates and the rest of the riders in the peloton, it made the race really come alive for me,” he said. “As much as I wanted to be there, there was a side of me that really enjoyed just kicking back and watching it this year.” Despite heading into 2020 with yet another teammate as the Tour’s defending champion, Froome took confidence from the fact that the British squad were able to wrangle the race under control in the final week and deliver yet another yellow jersey podium in Paris. “This year’s Tour de France was such a closely contested Tour de France, and it was only at the last moment that Ineos managed to take control and get in that yellow jersey position,” Froome said. “To win the Tour seven times in eight years and with four riders....That doesn’t happen by chance.” Froome has set himself the target of

competing in 2020 as he continues his rehabilitation. Froome sustained a broken femur, as well as fractures to his hip, elbow, sternum and vertebrae when he crashed while reconnoitring the Stage 4 time trial at Critérium du Dauphiné in June. The Briton spent more than three weeks in hospital but during the final week of the race, he posted a video to social media which showed him pedaling with one leg on a turbo trainer. On Saturday, Team Ineos posted a longer video interview with Froome, who described the early stages of his rehabilitation and outlined his intention to return in time for next year’s Tour. Froome’s Ineos teammate Egan Bernal won the 2019 Tour, with Geraint Thomas placing second overall. It was the British team’s seventh Tour win in eight years, a sequence that began with Bradly Wiggins’s 2012 victory and continued with Froome’s four victories. “The only goal I’ve set myself personally is to get to the Tour de France next year, that’s what’s driving me,” Froome said in the video. “Week by week, I can set myself little goals in terms of allowing myself more movement, but for me, the underlying goal is to get to the start of that Tour de France next year, in 2020, and be at a similar or better position to this year. That’s what’s driving me at the moment.” Froome has not spoken to the press since his crash on June 12. “It just felt as if I needed a bit of time for myself and a bit of time to come to terms with what had happened,” he said. But he described his recollections of the incident in Saturday’s video for Team Ineos. “I can remember the first part of the FROOME

recon but around where I crashed, I’ve got no recollection at all, so I can only really go off what people who saw the crash happen and what they said,” Froome said. “What I understand is that it was a perfectly straight piece of road, slightly downhill, so I was going at quite a bit of speed. And I went to go and clear my nostrils and I was also going past some buildings at the same time. The wind funneled through some buildings and took my front wheel. I tried to hold it up and I ended up veering off the road and into a wall at quite high speed. I think it was really just one of these freak, freak accidents. “I can remember lying on the road and the first responders coming over to me, and my Coach Tim Kerrison, my mechanic Gary Blem and Servais Knaven my director, they were all in the car behind me. I can remember interacting with them, speaking to them. I think my first question was, ‘Can I get up, can I get back on my bike, am I going to be ok?’ They made it very clear that I wasn’t moving anywhere, and I should just lie still, and I wouldn’t be carrying on the rest of the race. “I think one of my first questions was am I going to be alright for the Tour de France and they quickly put that out of my mind. They obviously didn’t give a prognosis, but they said, ‘It looks like your leg’s broken and your arm doesn’t look good either so no, you’re not going to be on your bike.’ I think those were the first moments that it hit home and I took it on board that I’m not going to be racing the Tour de France this summer. It almost felt like a scene from Grey’s Anatomy or something, where it just hit home that there was more going on.” Froome would spend more than three weeks in hospital in Saint-Étienne but he was heartened by some early feedback from his surgeon, who told him that he could make a “100 percent recovery.” In the weeks since, Froome has begun his rehabilitation program at his home in Monaco, and he said that he was already ahead of schedule. “I think it’s safe to say I’m ahead of all the predictions that were made initially of how long it would take even just to get to this point. I got the green light to start weight-bearing—very lightly, but it’s something, it’s a big step,” Froome said. “I’ve been doing three to four hours of physio every morning. I take a small break at lunch time and then I start the exercises I need to do, two hours on my own, just implementing everything that the physio has helped me to be able to do. The days are full.” Cyclingnews

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IPAQUIRA, Colombia—Thousands of screaming fans held a victory party for Tour de France champion Egan Bernal in his Colombian hometown on Wednesday, celebrating the first Latin American to win cycling’s most prestigious race. Bernal rode his bike into the central square of Zipaquira wearing the Tour de France’s iconic yellow jersey while some 3,000 supporters dressed in the same color chanted his name. The 22-year-old won the Tour last month ahead of Ineos teammate and defending champion Geraint Thomas, becoming the youngest rider to win the race since World War II. Bernal’s victory has been widely celebrated in Colombia, which has produced several world-class riders but had never won the Tour. As Bernal flew home from Europe, a Colombian airline crew spotted him on their plane and celebrated his presence with a toast and free champagne for passengers. Then he was flown in a helicopter to his hometown of Zipaquira, about 50 kilometers outside Bogota, Colombia’s capital. “If someone would’ve come to my neighborhood a few years ago and told me I was going to win the Tour de France, I wouldn’t have believed it,” Bernal said on a stage set up for the party that was decorated in yellow, with fresh flowers arranged in the shape of a bicycle. “Today I feel very proud to be Colombian and bring the yellow jersey home.” Bernal’s victory especially resonates with the residents of neglected mountainous areas, which are home to the country’s top riders. Bernal grew up in Zipaquira, an oxygen-starved town about 9,200 feet above sea level. His father was a security guard at the local tourist attraction, a salt mine that houses a large cathedral. His mother labored at a local flower farm. Bernal’s friends said he set ambitious goals from an early age, training hard to make it onto the international cycling circuit, and benefiting from training in the high altitude of Colombia’s mountains. “He had an insatiable hunger for victory,” said Felix Baron, a childhood friend and professional cyclist who drove two hours from his farm to attend Bernal’s victory party. “He is like an eagle that puts his eye on a goal and doesn’t let go.” As a teenager, Bernal enrolled in a local college to study journalism, but a mentor convinced him to drop his studies and devote his time to cycling after seeing his potential. The mentor promised to pay for Bernal’s university studies if his sports career floundered. Bernal won several regional mountain bike competitions and then focused on road cycling. He first started to race in Europe with Androni, an Italian squad that signed him at age 18. On Wednesday, Zipaquira Mayor Luis Rodriguez described Bernal as an example for Colombian youth. “Thanks to you, they have seen that great triumphs are possible, with humility and hard work,” he said. “With your pedaling, you made our hearts vibrate at the same rhythm.” Bernal was asked if his new status as Tour de France champion could unleash a leadership battle within his Ineos team. The squad has been captained in most major races by Chris Froome, who has won the Tour four times, and it could soon sign Giro d’Italia champion Richard Carapaz. Bernal said he would be happy to support Froome or any other teammate in future races if that is what his team asks him to do. But he said he would also love to bring another Tour victory to Colombia. “In the end, the road puts everyone in their rightful place,” Bernal said. “I just want to enjoy this Tour victory, and continue to ride, because this is what I love to do.” AP

EGAN COM

A CHILD eats a popsicle and locals look from a balcony as Tour de Fran

Is it the bike? Or the rider? A LOOK at Egan Bernal’s bike.

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HE British WorldTour squad— formerly Team Sky—rebranded earlier this year after being bought by the British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, who is the chairman and chief executive of petrochemical giant, Ineos. At the same time of the new team launch, long-term bike partner Pinarello launched an all-new Pinarello Dogma F12 frameset, with Bernal’s victory the 15th Grand Tour title for the Italian bike brand. While the frameset changed for 2019, Team Ineos stuck with the tried and tested Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 series drivetrain components. However, although the team also used Shimano’s wheels for the majority of the race, Team Ineos opted for Lightweight

Meilenstein Obermayer wheels for the hillier and mountain stages of the race. Cyclingnews understands the wheel choice saved around 400 gms—a substantial amount on long climbs. Pinarello’s component company Most provides Team Ineos with their cockpit components and handlebar tape, with Bernal opting for a carbon, integrated handlebar and stem system. For the final stage of the race, Pinarello presented Bernal with an allyellow version of the Dogma F12, which the Colombian rode into Paris. Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale), who won the green and polka-dot jerseys, respectively, also had custom bikes for the final stage.

FIONA KOLBINGER finishes the race in 10 days, two hours and 48 minutes.

irror CYCLING

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph | Saturday, August 10, 2019

A7

Cycling world struggles to make sense of Lambrecht’s death

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N BERNAL MES HOME!

nce winner Egan Bernal arrives to Zipaquira, Colombia. AP

HE Tour de Pologne is struggling to come to terms with the tragic news that one of its riders, Bjorg Lambrecht (Lotto-Soudal), died in a crash during Stage 3. Lambrecht crashed into a concrete culvert a third of the way through the stage to Zabrze. A local rider who did not want to be identified told Polish reporters after the stage that Lambrecht had put his arm up and been calling for a director shortly before crashing, but that nobody had any idea why he had actually fallen. First reports that Lambrecht had died filtered through just as the riders were finishing the stage. Hospital staff informed a local newspaper, but it took time to be confirmed through the race organization. Lambrecht’s death was then confirmed by the race doctor and then by the Tour de Pologne Director Czeslaw Lang. As news filtered through, the usual festive atmosphere surrounding the seven-day WorldTour event subsided rapidly. The pounding pop music that accompanies each start and finish was turned down, and the hyped-up, prize-giving ceremonies were quickly canceled. The crowds dispersed quickly and quietly. Out at the line of team buses situated behind the stadium next to the finish, waiting for the riders to come through, the mood was equally downcast. Staff stood quietly by their charges as they wheeled to a halt and tried to find out accurate information. Most heard of Lambrecht’s death first through social media. Although there have been bad crashes in the past, this is the first time since the race turned fully professional in 1993 under the management of Czeslaw Lang that there has been a fatality on the event. Lambrecht’s death was only confirmed shortly after the finish and at this time some teams had already left the event. Some directors went over to the Lotto Soudal team bus to express support. All Lotto Soudal’s riders were inside the bus, with just one empty team car parked outside, and staff only emerged briefly to talk to their counterparts before reentering the bus. Deceuninck-QuickStep DS Brian Holm was driving the team car and passed the scene of Lambrecht’s crash. Visibly affected by the news like all everyone on the race,

TEAMS and race management are in shock over Bjorg Lambrecht’s death.

he told Cyclingnews, “We saw that he’d fallen, you don’t know what to do, if to stop or not, but we thought we’d best leave it to the doctors. Somehow I could see with all the people stopped you knew it would be bad.” “It’s really, really bad news,” Belgian photographer Luc Claessen, reporting on the race from a motorbike, told Cyclingnews as he walked away from the finish. “He got second in the Tour de l’Avenir behind [Egan Bernal] and in Belgium even this week they were talking about Remco [Evenepoel, San Sebastian winner] and how well he had done recently, but also about Lambrecht, and how maybe in the future he could win a Grand Tour.” As yet it is unclear if the Tour de Pologne will hold tomorrow’s stage, which features the race’s first uphill finish, with the race organizers saying a statement may be released later. But it does seem that the race will continue for now. Czeslaw Lang also told reporters that is also unclear, as yet, if Lotto Soudal will remain in the Tour de Pologne.

Barker breaks collarbone but defends Wild over RideLondon Classique crash

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RITISH road and track star Elinor Barker (Drops Cycling) hit back at negative comments made toward WNT-Rotor rider Kirsten Wild, who was first across the finish line at the RideLondon Classique on Saturday but was relegated for having been judged to have caused a crash that brought down Barker, among others. Olympic team pursuit gold medalist Barker was left with a broken collarbone, but tried to look on the bright side. “They say you’re not a real cyclist until you’ve broken a collarbone. Avoided joining the club for the last 15 years, but not much I could do yesterday. Thanks for everybody’s messages. I’ll be fine,” she said on Twitter. Wild—looking to take her third victory at the one-day race that takes place in central London, having also won last year and in 2016—moved to her left in the

German first female champion of Euro Transcontinental Race B BC Sport reported recently that Germany’s Fiona Kolbinger has become the first female winner of Transcontinental Race, a cycling endurance event that covers 4,000 kilometers across Europe. The 24-year-old cancer researcher “endured thunderstorms, scorching heat and icy rain in the solo race” on her way to beating more than 200 men, according to the BBC. Kolbinger finished the race in 10 days, two hours and 48 minutes. She told the BBC she could have gone even harder. “I could have slept less,” she said. Great Britain’s Ben Davies held off Job Hendrickx for second place overall in a total time of 10 days, 13 hours and 10 minutes, 10 hours and 22 minutes slower than Kolbinger. Kolbinger’s victory was not only a first for the Transcontinental Race, it was also the winner’s first-ever cycling endurance event, according to the official race web site. “I am so, so, surprised to win,” Kolbinger said in a report posted on the race web site. “Even now. When I was coming

into the race, I thought that maybe I could go for the women’s podium, but I never thought I could win the whole race.” Competitors passed through seven or more countries during the race, including Austria, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Croatia, France, Italy, Kosovo, Serbia, Slovenia and Switzerland, depending on their chosen race route. Riders endured temperatures of up to 37 degrees centigrade and as low as 4 degrees above freezing, according to the race web site. There were four control points for the competitors, each accompanied by a section of obligatory parcourse, including gravel roads to high-altitude climbs with steep gradients. Among the obligatory obstacles were Timmelsjoch (2,474 meters) in the South Tyrol at the border of Italy and Austria, and the Col du Galibier (2,645 meters), one of the highest paved roads in the French Alps, according to the race web site. The riders are self-supported, and must plan, research and navigate their own course and choose when and where to rest.

Insidethegames

BEST TRICK ACTION

Logan Martin competes in Dave Mirra’s BMX park best trick at the X Games at the US Bank Stadium recently in Minneapolis. AP

bunch sprint with around 100 meters to go, looking for some open road having been caught behind a number of other riders. The switch took out Ale Cipollini’s Chloe Hosking, with the domino effect of the Australian’s fall taking down around 20 other riders, including the reigning scratch race world champion Barker. Wild stayed upright and powered through on the left-hand side of the road to be first across the line, only for the commissaires to judge her move as illegal—UCI regulation 2.12.007, article 5.1: “Deviation from the chosen line that endangers other riders”—relegating the Dutchwoman to last place in the front group (37th), as well as fining her 200 Swiss francs (£170/US$200). The second-placed rider—Parkhotel Valkenburg’s Lorena Wiebes—was handed the race victory as a result. “A bit upsetting to see comments aimed at Kirsten, though,” Barker added in a further tweet. “It’s easy to criticize from a slow-mo aerial shot. The real-time reality is that everybody is just hoping that their split-second decision benefits themselves without harming anybody else. Race accidents happen.” Hosking, meanwhile—despite hitting the ground hard and rolling several times—was able to walk away from the crash, “missing skin” and with “a hit to the head.” “For those who saw, I took a bit of a tumble at RideLondon yesterday,” Hosking wrote on social media. “Missing skin and took a hit to the head. This morning I’m feeling like I had big night last night, but without the good memories. Will be monitoring the head situation over the next few days.” Insidethegames

A8 Saturday, August 10, 2019

Sports BusinessMirror

Editor: Jun Lomibao | mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

HIDILYN DIAZ no longer needs to go to social media to plead for support.

ATENEO stalwart Maddie Madayag brings her act to the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference. PETRON’S Aiza Pontillas breaks the F2 Logistics defense.

JAVEE MOCON is making a statement.

BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

Saturday, August 10, 2019 A9

Communication technology fully impacts national disaster approach ENTERING the rainy season, the local government units (LGUs) of various regions have kickstarted awareness drives and preparedness programs anchored on disaster risk reduction and mitigation (DRRM) for this year’s Disaster Resilience Month. The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center attributes the effectiveness of disaster reduction and response to the effectivity of managing information before, during and after a disaster. However, utilizing relevant information is largely anchored on the availability and, most important, the reliability of platforms for communication in place, according to Cisco Managing Director for the Philippines Karrie Ilagan. “A huge part of the government’s DRRM measures for a disaster-prone country like ours is vigilant preparation, as this is the foundation of our response to and recovery from disasters,” said Ilagan. “While preparation may involve tasks like having survival kits ready at home, or LGUs readying early warning systems and transport systems like rubber boats and trucks, technology is a powerful tool that also plays a crucial role in DRRM and, in fact, cuts across all stages of our disaster approach.” Based on Cisco’s multinational partnerships, Ilagan forecasts communication technology greatly benefiting each DRRM aspect the government has in place: 1. PREVENTION AND MITIGATION. In order for the development of DRRM plans to be accurate, Ilagan believes communication technology must aid community assessments through solutions that facilitate end-to-end monitoring. “Evaluating municipalities will need continual monitoring of areas exposed to natural or man-made risks like flooding or even vehicular accidents,” she said. Ilagan also highlighted that the reliability of these surveillance solutions is hinged on cloud platforms that allow seamless data gathering, storage and exchange, easing the generation of vital community reports. 2. PREPAREDNESS. Ilagan further discussed that strong partnerships and coordination among all key players like LGUs and their constituents rely on collaboration solutions that expand from traditional telecommunication platforms. To Ilagan, video conferencing will innovate communication between these LGUs, giving critical meetings full context while maximizing the time of each stakeholder through an all-in-one platform. 3. RESPONSE. Collaboration among stakeholders facilitated by reliable communication solutions carry over to the next DRRM aspect of response. Integrated and coordinated search, rescue and retrieval capacities are fortified with resilient, uninterrupted communication among municipality network operation centers. On the other end, mobile IP-based communication systems will aid on-ground operations using smallscale, independent Voice over Internet Protocol, using the Internet to facilitate phone calls. These can be enforced to bridge possible communication gaps caused by damaged or destroyed infrastructure. 4. REHABILITATION AND RECOVERY. Finally, on the road to recovery and rehabilitation, communication technology can aid reconstruction efforts for disaster and climate-change resilient infrastructure through faster exchanges. Quick relay of data from small municipalities to national government offices like the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council has the potential to hasten assistance. “We have plenty of use cases from different countries for our communication and collaboration solutions, Meraki Wi-Fi, Webex and Emergency Communication Kit—but all of them contributed to the effectivity of each nation’s disaster plan and we see the same potential in the Philippines,” Ilagan concluded.

From iPhone to Android, and make mine pink PRIMETIME

DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ @dinnachanvasquez luckydinna@gmail.com

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HEN Vivo announced its partnership with Benefit Cosmetics, of course I wanted whatever it was that they had to offer. The partnership was the limited-edition Vivo V15 Blossom Pink with two Benefit Box o’ Powders— Dandelion Twinkle and Gold Rush. Stratworks, Vivo’s PR agency, sent over the pink box with the blushes for review. Full disclosure: The unit was on loan and will be picked up next week. I get to keep the box and the blushes.

I’ll be honest—I haven’t used an Android phone in years, although I had one for a while until I discovered the iPhone, six years ago. I love the look of the Vivo V15 Blossom Pink, plus the endorser in Thailand—Bambam of the Korean boy group GOT7—is my favorite. But because I am an old dog who can’t learn new tricks, I let my 22-year-old daughter use it. She likes it so much that she is buying her own after we return the unit next week. So why a collaboration with a cosmetics company? The Vivo V15 is all about upping your selfie game. This is not something that I enjoy and selfies that are heavily “beautified” aren’t my thing. If you feel the same way, just turn off AI Beauty in the camera settings and you’re all set. The phone is not just about the selfie game, although I love the pop-up selfie snapper, full screen and triple rear cameras. The Vivo V15 has a 6.53-inch Ultra FullView full-HD+ display (1080×2340 pixels), which makes it great for watching on YouTube and Netflix, and playing online games. The quality of the images from the rear cameras is excellent. The shots are good and the colors are

nice. What I love about the camera is the Night Mode, which is really superior and quite underrated, if I may say so. Video quality is decent, too. For videos, you can only shoot up to 1080p for the rear camera. The V15 runs on Funtouch OS 9 based on Android 9.0 Pie. Funtouch uses a clean and simple interface for smooth navigation, with a youthful color scheme. Navigation is via the standard navigation keys but you can also use full-screen gestures. The 4,000mAh battery helps the phone easily last through a day of heavy use. My daughter said she likes the phone because of the way it looks and having been a iPhone user, she appreciates the long battery life. “I also wanted something different. I’ve been using an iPhone for so long that a new interface was welcome,” she said. The best thing about the V15 is the price. It’s just P15,000, give or take a few pesos. In the end, I am sticking to my trusty iPhone for work-related reasons, but my daughter is buying a Vivo V15 soon and she wants the pink one. For more information on the limited-edition Vivo V15 Blossom Pink, visit www.vivo.com/ph. ■

These types of apps could prompt impromptu spending WHILE some apps help you save money, others have a way of encouraging you to spend more. Changing how you connect with these types of apps by deleting them, not downloading them in the first place or limiting your interaction with them can help you rein in your spending.

SUBSCRIPTION-BASED APPS

MANY subscription services and boxes have corresponding apps. And you may feel inclined to sign up for a subscription if you can easily manage your membership from an app. But automatic subscriptions are dangerous because consumers tend to continue using (and paying for) them, as opposed to canceling when they’re done, says Susan Weinschenk , a behavioral scientist and CEO of The Team W, a consulting company. “If it requires action to make it stop, then we’re less likely to actually take that action and make it stop,” Weinschenk says. “We all fall prey to inertia.” To save, stay away from subscriptions and their corresponding apps in the first place. Or, use apps to fight apps. For example, Weinschenk suggests setting up alerts to remind you when a free trial is expiring—before you’re charged. You can also set up twice yearly alerts as a reminder to review all of your ongoing subscriptions, streaming services and so forth.

SHOPPING APPS

DEALS make people feel good. When consumer psychologist Kit Yarrow interviewed shoppers about how they feel when

getting a good bargain, they’ve likened it to coming in first in a race or getting a raise at their job. “There’s just a winning feeling,” says Yarrow, who is also the author of Decoding the New Consumer Mind: How and Why We Shop and Buy. Deal-centric apps, such as those for certain stores, bring those feel-good bargains straight to you via your smartphone. But tempting sale notifications can encourage more shopping, which may mean it’s better to delete those retail apps altogether. Or at least turn off the app’s alerts, advises Weinschenk. That way, you aren’t constantly flooded with push notifications about sales. Another strategy? Weinschenk said she’s downloaded a store’s app, redeemed a coupon offer and then uninstalled the app just as easily as she installed it. But if you’re disciplined, you can keep the apps, says Casey Taylor, a partner in Bain and Company’s retail practice. Take advantage of the savings within shopping apps, but also monitor how much you’re spending in them. For example, check your credit-card statements regularly to stay within your discretionary spending budget.

SOCIAL-MEDIA APPS

THE products you see in your social-media feed—whether from retailers or friends—could encourage you to purchase things you wouldn’t otherwise buy. But deleting social media isn’t an option for many. “Most people really want to have social media in their lives, so I can’t

see getting rid of those apps,” Yarrow says. Instead, she says to be aware that Instagram and Facebook will present you with buying opportunities. Be conscious that marketing is constantly targeted at you, and “you’re being hunted, stalked, chased down,” Yarrow says. “When you go shopping online, if you stop and hover too long over a product, that product’s going to show up on your social-media feed, and you have to be ready to say no.” Even when you’re not paying money for these apps, Yarrow says you’re paying with your attention.

REWARDS APPS

REWARDS program apps, whether for a grocery store, airline or coffee shop, typically function in much the same way. The more customers spend, the more rewards they unlock. Taylor says it can almost feel like a game. For example, in the Starbucks app, “You earn stars that you can then burn for rewards,” she says. If you’re a very disciplined customer, you could save money by claiming a free coffee or snack using stars you accumulated from items you were already buying, Taylor says. But, she adds, “what you see is it becomes psychologically tempting to buy things just to earn those stars. So be careful not to let climbing the tiers of a reward system lead you to spend more in the process. With any app, Yarrow says one way to curb excess purchases is to simply be aware of the potential dangers. Pause and recognize your tendency to overspend before it happens. AP

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Mobile phone brand offers great deals

HONOR 8C is light and sleek on the outside, but heavy on performance.

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CUSTOMERS leave an Apple store on the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California. Apple Inc. reports financial results on July 30. AP

IT’S all good fortune and even better deals for Honor Mobile (www.hihonor. com) fans this month, as the leading smartphone brand marks the month with a string of hefty discounts. At the top of Honor fans’ wish list in 2019, the 8C debuts its new price of P6,999, a P1,000 discount. The price markdown is available for the Honor 8C handsets in kiosks and brand shops nationwide, and also included in the price drop series of Honor Mobile.

Earlier this year, Honor 8C grabbed the attention of handset enthusiasts and pet lovers with its Cat’s Eye Blue color. More than its sleek look, however, tech-savvy users loved the handset’s smooth run that let users open multiple apps throughout the day without a hiccup. The handset’s options of matte black or glossy blue finish lends a great package to its Snapdragon 632 processor and 4,000 mAh capacity, giving flexibility to those looking for a sleek phone within the

entry-level range. Honor Mobile also extends the deals to a full dock of best sellers. Freebies, including 32GB microSD cards, are up for grabs with every purchase of Honor 8S. Apart from this surprise, Honor Mobile also hangs the lightest price tag this year for its mobile powerhouse, Honor 8X. The ultra-slim beauty offers a premium look and experience to mobile users for only P10,990. It’s a steep drop from its original price of P12,990 at the start of the year.

Apple’s quarterly profit falls as iPhone sales sputter

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BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE The Associated Press

AN FRANCISCO—Apple’s iPhone sales are still sputtering while the company tries to offset the decline by milking more money from digital services such as music. The latest evidence of the iPhone’s waning popularity had been expected. Even so, the confirmation in Tuesday’s fiscal third-quarter earnings report underscored the challenges facing a company that has been riding the smartphone revolution for the past decade. The iPhone’s downturn is the main reason Apple’s profit for the April-June period fell 13 percent to $10 billion. The good news is Apple has several ways it can still make money from the 900 million iPhones in use today. Besides selling new models to current iPhone owners after the current devices eventually wear out, Apple has positioned itself to make billions of dollars more from music, video and gaming subscriptions, maintenance plans and commissions from apps selling their own wares on iPhones. The bad news is that Apple has still been relying on the iPhone for more than half its revenue so this year, and the company hasn’t proven it can be as adept peddling digital services as it has been making sleek devices. For instance, Apple’s four-year old music streaming service still lags Spotify. Apple is preparing to launch a video streaming service more than a decade after Netflix pioneered the concept. And a recently opened US Justice Department investigation is expected to look into whether Apple unfairly favors its own services and gouges others through its app store, raising the specter of changes that could further depress its revenue. “Apple has become a victim of its own success and there also appears to be a lack of urgency,” Chatham Road Partners analyst Colin Gillis said. “Apple is still the iPhone company and it may always end up being the iPhone company.” The lingering doubts hanging over Apple are one reason why Apple’s stock price remains well below its peak of $233.47 reached last October, even as the rest of the market has soared to record highs. The company’s shares gained 4 percent to $217.55 in extended trading after the release of its numbers for the April-June period. The rally may have stemmed from another encouraging sign that emerged in the quarterly report. Apple’s total sales in China decreased by 4

percent in the quarter compared with a year ago, after plunging 25 percent during the first half of the company’s fiscal year. That dramatic improvement eased fears that the Trump administration’s trade war in China might trigger a consumer boycott of Apple’s products in the country in retaliation. “We couldn’t be happier with the progress,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said during a Tuesday conference call. He credited both Apple’s own price cuts and economic stimulus programs rolled out by China’s government to counteract the effects of US tariffs. Worldwide revenue from iPhones during the quarter totaled $26 billion, a 12-percent decrease from the same time last year. It marks the third straight quarter of eroding iPhone sales, something that has only happened once before.

Apple is forecasting its total revenue for the July-September period will fall from last year, a sign that it is bracing for yet another drop in iPhone sales. That’s particularly striking because Apple typically gets a big boost from the release of new iPhone models in late September. But the midrange projection of $62.5 billion of revenue for the period was better than the $60.9 billion anticipated by analysts, providing another sign of hope for investors betting on Apple’s resilience. Even with the iPhone in decline, Apple remains a financial powerhouse. Total revenue grew 1 percent from last year to $53.9 billion. The services division remains the biggest area of growth, with revenue surging 13 percent from last year to $11.5 billion in the past quarter. ■

Lenovo SM Megamall concept store gets a sleek modern revamp

FROM left: Lenovo Philippines Country General Manager Michael Ngan, AccentHub President Derrick Yu, AccentHub Vice President-Sales and Marketing Mike Taino, and Lenovo Philippines Consumer Lead Sally Yu

A MORE premium and sophisticated experience awaits customers at Lenovo’s exclusive concept store in SM Megamall, which recently underwent a redesign in its efforts to deliver outstanding customer service. Located on the fourth floor in Cyberzone, the refurbished store now gives more room for visitors who want a firsthand experience of Lenovo’s latest devices, accessories and peripherals. The exclusive concept store showcases Lenovo’s growing portfolio of products across its YOGA, IdeaPad, Legion, IdeaCentre, ThinkPad and ThinkStation lineups. For Lenovo Philippines Country General Manager Michael Ngan, the renovation of the store will provide an overall better experience for their customers. “One of the key strategies for growth that has helped Lenovo become the world’s No. 1 PC company in the first

quarter of 2019 was its focused efforts on excellent customer service by giving them everything they need before they even know it. From the latest laptops to professional advice and support from our expert staff, our concept stores have all of these and that makes shopping for a new device a completely hassle-free experience,” said Ngan. This strategy has helped position Lenovo as a global technology leader. During the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year 2018-2019, the company’s net income soared to $118 million while, at the same time, posting revenue of $11.7 billion and gross margin of 16.2 percent, both surpassing projections. These figures earned Lenovo the No. 1 spot in PC shipments by Gartner for the first quarter of 2019. There are currently 19 Lenovo Concept Stores serving clients in key cities across the nation. The Lenovo Exclusive Store-SM Megamall is open daily from 10 am to 9 pm.

‘USE DATA FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE’ BY RODERICK L. ABAD Contributor NEWLY elected local government officials were encouraged to utilize big data in meaningful ways to win the trust of their constituents in fulfilling their duties while building a reputation of good governance. Citing the effectivity of digitization to the successful public office bid of some of them, SAS Institute (Philippines) Inc. Country Manager Ryan C. Guadalquiver advised them to continue leveraging on this to deliver on the promises they made during the campaign, provide better service to their constituents, and, at the same time, address issues concerning their respective local government units today and in the future. “Basically in Philippine politics, we know by now that digital marketing plays a key role because it builds awareness whoever that candidate is. As we’ve seen in recent elections, it really wins just by knowing the profile of voters; you can do a personalized campaign,” he told reporters during a press briefing held recently at the Shangri-La Makati. Case in point is 44-year-old Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso defeating his opponents, former local chief executives Joseph Estrada and Alfredo Lim, who both shared vast experience in leading the country’s capital for multiple terms. Another good example is 29-year-old Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto, who, in his first attempt, already ended the Eusebio clan’s 27-year reign in the city. These young leaders caught the attention of the online community during the campaign period through their strong engagement with voters, especially the youth, leveraging social media to push their political platforms that focused on bringing “change” to their respective cities. “The other thing is you can also use this [digitization] to become more transparent when you’re already in the office. It could also bring up your trust level if you put it up on a digital format, allowing your constituents to monitor whatever projects and whatever budget you’ve been spending,” he added. On July 1, their first day in office, Moreno and Sotto headlined trimedia and social network platforms for a kickoff on their campaign promises. The former led a cleanup of major streets and markets of ambulant vendors. He revealed that he even got real-time reports or tips from both his followers and viewers on what areas of concern needed his immediate action. Meanwhile, the latter ordered the suspension of the odd-even scheme in his city to ease traffic congestion. More than a month now, they remain visible in working to improve further the state of their respective jurisdictions, thus earning praise from the public, especially netizens here and even abroad. “I think in the long run, there’s a good approach to data as these politicians seek to build their credibility with the public,” Guadalquiver said. SAS Philippines, being a data analytics provider, has been working closely with the government. It serves state agencies, mostly in the areas of financial, security and intelligence. Also, it has taken dialogue with the public sector around social sentiment as a benchmark application. “This is where we pick up whether there’s a certain degree of unhappiness, dissatisfaction, or approval for one’s constituents in any city or municipality in the Philippines,” said Philips Manalaysay, consulting director of SAS Philippines. While the country still lacks infrastructure when it comes to bringing dependable Internet connection to the people, particularly in far-flung areas in Visayas and Mindanao, he noted that the “expansive nature of wireless” connectivity allows many Filipinos to have access to social media. “So this is one of the critical and pivotal conversation points that we in SAS Philippines are trying to bring forward in the government sector,” he stressed. “Of course, there’s a slew of other solutions we can bring forward to enhance that conversation. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.” SAS was established in 1976 in North Carolina, USA. It is the largest advanced analytics software company in the world, and a leader when it comes to advanced analytics. In the Philippines, it started in 1990 as a partnership with International Rice Research Institute. It offers both software and service in analytics to various companies and organizations nationwide.

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Stop blaming video games for mass killings

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BY CHRISTOPHER J. FERGUSON Stetson University

N the wake of the El Paso shooting on August 3 that left 22 dead and dozens injured, a familiar trope has reemerged: Often, when a young man is the shooter, people try to blame the tragedy on violent video games and other forms of media. This time around, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick placed some of the blame on a video game industry that “teaches young people to kill.” Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California went on to condemn video games that “dehumanize individuals” as a “problem for future generations.” And President Donald J. Trump pointed to society’s “glorification of violence,” including “gruesome and grisly video games.” These are the same connections a Florida lawmaker made after the Parkland shooting in February 2018, suggesting that the gunman in that case “was prepared to pick off students like it’s a video game.” But, as a researcher who has studied violent video games for almost 15 years, I can state that there is no evidence to support these claims that violent media and real-world violence are connected. As far back as 2011, the United States Supreme Court ruled that research did not find a clear connection between violent video games and aggressive behavior. Criminologists who study mass shootings specifically refer to those sorts of connections as a “myth.” And in 2017, the Media Psychology and Technology division of the American Psychological Association (APA) released a statement I helped craft, suggesting reporters and policy-makers cease linking mass shootings to violent media, given the lack of evidence for a link.

A HISTORY OF A MORAL PANIC SO why are so many policy-makers inclined to blame violent video games for violence? There are two main reasons. The first is the psychological research community’s efforts to market itself as strictly scientific. This led to a replication crisis instead, with researchers often unable to repeat the results of their studies. Now, psychology researchers are reassessing their analyses of a wide range of issues— not just violent video games, but implicit racism, power poses and more. The other part of the answer lies in the troubled history of violent video game research specifically.

Beginning in the early 2000s, some scholars, antimedia advocates and professional groups like the APA began working to connect a methodologically messy and often contradictory set of results to public health concerns about violence. This echoed historical patterns of moral panic, such as 1950s concerns about comic books and Tipper Gore’s efforts to blame pop and rock music in the 1980s for violence, sex and Satanism. Particularly in the early 2000s, dubious evidence regarding violent video games was uncritically promoted. But over the years, confidence among scholars that violent video games influence aggression or violence has crumbled.

none. This was consistent with others’ findings. As the Supreme Court noted, any impacts due to video games are nearly impossible to distinguish from the effects of other media, like cartoons and movies. Any claims that there is consistent evidence that violent video games encourage aggression are simply false. Spikes in violent video games’ popularity are well-known to correlate with substantial declines in youth violence—not increases. These correlations are very strong, stronger than most seen in behavioral research. More recent research suggests that the releases of highly popular violent video games are associated with immediate declines in violent crime, hinting that the releases may cause the drop-off.

REVIEWING ALL THE SCHOLARLY LITERATURE

THE ROLE OF PROFESSIONAL GROUPS

MY own research has examined the degree to which violent video games can—or can’t—predict youth aggression and violence. In a 2015 meta-analysis, I examined 101 studies on the subject and found that violent video games had little impact on kids’ aggression, mood, helping behavior or grades. Two years later, I found evidence that scholarly journals’ editorial biases had distorted the scientific record on violent video games. Experimental studies that found effects were more likely to be published than studies that had found

WITH so little evidence, why are lawmakers still trying to blame violent video games for mass shootings by young men? Can groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) seriously blame imaginary guns for gun violence? A key element of that problem is the willingness of professional guild organizations such as the APA to promote false beliefs about violent video games. (I’m a fellow of the APA.) These groups mainly exist to promote a profession among news media, the public and policy-makers, influencing

STORYBOARD Category winner Arcel Madrid receives a prize for his photo entry (right), shot with the Huawei P30 Pro.

licensing and insurance laws. They also make it easier to get grants and newspaper headlines. Psychologists and psychology researchers like myself pay them yearly dues to increase the public profile of psychology. But there is a risk the general public may mistake promotional positions for objective science. In 2005, the APA released its first policy statement linking violent video games to aggression. However, my recent analysis of internal APA documents with criminologist Allen Copenhaver found that the APA ignored inconsistencies and methodological problems in the research data. The APA updated its statement in 2015, but that sparked controversy immediately: More than 230 scholars wrote to the group asking it to stop releasing policy statements altogether. I and others objected to perceived conflicts of interest and lack of transparency tainting the process. It’s bad enough that these statements misrepresent the actual scholarly research and misinform the public. But it’s worse when those falsehoods give advocacy groups like the NRA cover to shift blame for violence onto nonissues like video games. The resulting misunderstanding hinders efforts to address mental illness and other issues, such as the need for gun control, that are actually related to gun violence. AP

HELLO! Life Category winner Mark Daiz with his prize for his photo entry (right), shot with the Huawei P20 Pro.

Winners of Huawei PHL’s 2019 Next-Image Awards revealed IT has long been established that Huawei is dedicated in redefining smartphone photography through highly innovative smartphone cameras and consumer-centric activities, like the annual Next-Image Awards. And as this year’s NIA comes to an end, Huawei Philippines gives recognition to the winners of its local competition by awarding them with prizes and giving them a great opportunity to be featured in media outlets. Among the winners in this year’s batch, Mark Daiz and Arcel Madrid have stood out because of their evoking images that share inspiring real-life experiences. The competition underscores Filipinos’ inherent skills to produce

outstanding images using their Huawei smartphones. Under the “Hello, Life!” category, the entry of Mark Daiz featuring a fallen leaf being “held” by a hand shadow was captured on the Huawei P20 Pro and the image shares the emotion or the inspiration in everyday experiences. According to Mark, this image reflects a person’s perseverance. “It’s actually difficult for the leaf to be picked up by my hand when I took this photo. But, figuratively, the shadow finds its way on how to make the impossible possible,” he said. On the other hand, Arcel Madrid’s winning photo tells the story of Makabagong Bayanihan Para sa

Edukasyon in nine frames. This was his entry for the “Storyboard” category—a grid of photos that develop a meaningful or intriguing narrative. On his narrative, Arcel said, “In giving back, you will find wonderful feelings. And in volunteering, its the volunteers who will receive more joy from within. These Brigada warriors helped paint a brighter future for the Filipino people.” He also used the Huawei P30 Pro to capture his winning entry, and he said the super camera system of P30 Pro helped him to produce great photos. “The advantage is really the quality of photos, the longlasting battery, and it is easy to bring with you. Hindi

na kailangan ng sobrang malalaking camera because with my phone, I could take great photos.” It is not the first time Mark and Arcel joined the competition. In fact, Mark’s winning entry last year was featured at the annual Paris Photo event in Grand Palais. Meanwhile, Arcel’s entry was shortlisted as part of the Best Top 30 in the Philippines. According to them, Huawei inspired them to try and try again because Next-Image Awards is a great opportunity for growth. Now on its third year, Huawei stays consistent with the impetus behind the Next-Image Awards to lead mobile photography innovation and inspire more visual creatives like Mark and Arcel.

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

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The Smart Act: US vs PHL TECHNIVORE ED UY

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COME HOME TO THE FUTURE

GET first-hand experience of the world’s fastest fixed wireless technology with Globe Lifespeed Home booth at Bonifacio High Street Central, Taguig, from August 8 to September 6. Visitors will be treated to try out the power of Globe At Home Air Fiber 5G—the first 5G technology commercially available for the home in Southeast Asia, through exciting activities for the entire family. These include ultra HD TV streaming, low lag gaming and experiencing intelligent home devices. Exclusive merchandise will also be given daily to those who will drop by until supplies last. “Globe Lifespeed Home is designed to showcase the power of the world’s fastest wireless Internet technology to more customers,” said Martha Sazon, SVP and head of Broadband Business at Globe. “This is in line with our vision to provide more Filipino families with fiber-fast and secure Internet access, to transform their homes to more digitally connected and empowered households.” Globe At Home Air Fiber 5G powered by Huawei became commercially available on July 27 in Barangay Buting in Pasig City, with plans of firing up more areas in Greenpark Village in Cainta, Rizal; Woodland Hills in Carmona, Cavite and Carissa 2A and 2B Palmera Homes in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan by September. Plans being offered are at P1,899 per month for up to 20 Mbps, P2,499 for up to 50 Mbps, and P2,899 for up to 100 Mbps. All plans include up to 2-terabyte data capacity. More information is available at bb.globe.com.ph/5g.

Olympic robots offer ‘virtual’ attendance, help out on field TOKYO—A cart-like robot scuttles across the field to bring back javelins and discuses. A towering screenon-wheels is designed for “virtual” attendance. The cute ones are, naturally, the likeness of the Olympic and Paralympic mascots. Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp., a major Olympic sponsor, is readying various robots for next year’s Tokyo Olympics. The robots were shown to reporters for release Monday. The mascot robots have moving limbs and its eyes change to the image of stars and hearts. It cannot speak at all or walk very well. But the engineer in charge, Tomohisa Moridaira, suggested various possibilities, such as getting the robot to hold the Olympic torch using magnets. The T-TR1, developed by Toyota’s robotics institute in the US, highlights “virtual mobility,” taking the automaker’s usual business of transportation to another dimension. It’s a moving human-size display designed to represent people who can’t be there. Think a faraway grandma at a child’s birthday party or a legendary athlete not able to attend but “virtually” taking part in Olympic festivities. Like all the world’s major automakers, Toyota uses robotics in production plants. But it has also designed human-like robots, including those that play musical instruments. The Cue 3, which computes a three-dimensional image with sensors and adjusts motors for the right angle and propulsion to accurately throw basketballs, recently got listed in the Guinness World Records for making 2020 free throws without missing, a record for a robot and an homage to the Tokyo Olympics. An earlier Toyota robot that glides around like R2-D2 is devoted to picking things up, to help the sick and elderly. The latest “field support robot,” which looks like a cart, will also be picking things up: the javelin, discus or hammer on the Olympic field. Its intelligence helps it avoid obstacles as well as repetitive routes to minimize wear and tear on the grass. The catch is: It can’t go find the objects or pick them up on its own. A person has to run in front of it. Once the object is loaded, by the human, the robot will return to its original position. AP

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RAMA. Scandal. It’s what makes social media so interesting. Last week a lot of Pinoys lost sleep over what is shaping up to be the most intriguing news of the year. What started out as a cryptic message has received an eight-part photo + text reply on Instagram, and now people are divided. Are you #TeamBea or #TeamJulia? In the United States, however, social-media use (or abuse) is again under scrutiny after a US lawmaker filed a bill that aims to end “social-media addiction” by limiting its use to just 30 minutes each day. US Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri introduced a new bill, called Social Media Addiction Reduction Technology, or Smart Act, which will hold socialmedia companies accountable for mindless scrolling or including certain features that encourage people to use their apps for long periods of time. This include features, such as YouTube’s autoplay, Facebooks and Twitter’s infinite scrolling (when more content automatically loads when you reach the bottom of a Web page), those Snapchat streaks (ask your kids) and award badges for repeated use of a social-media app. The bill will also requires social-media companies to provide several ways for users to easily track the time they spend on social-media apps. Senator Hawley’s press office posted this on Twitter: “Let’s be clear. Addiction is what these socialmedia companies are selling. Social media is designed to exploit human psychology and brain physiology. Sen. Hawley’s Social Media Addiction Reduction Technology Act would put an end to this business model of addiction.” I wonder if anyone of our local lawmakers would even think about passing a similar bill. Now that would be an even bigger scandal. Though we did have our own “Smart Act” this week, I don’t think anyone would be complaining after Manila Mayor Isko Moreno #yorme signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Smart Communications to provide fast and free Smart WiFi across the city, particularly government offices, hospitals, universities and other key areas. PLDT Chairman and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan, Smart Chief Revenue Officer Alfredo S. Panlilio and Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso signed the MOA in ceremonies held at the Manila City Hall, which is among the venues to be covered by Smart WiFi. Also present at the signing event was Google Philippines Head of Public Policy Yves Gonzalez. Other proposed areas include Ospital ng Maynila, Tondo Medical Center, Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center, Universidad de Manila, and Museo Pambata. Panlilio said that by working hand in hand with the local government to bring Smart WiFi to more areas, they are making connectivity more accessible for everyone who can use it to keep in touch with their families and friends, and to access key online government and banking services. Once deployed, these venues in the City of Manila will join the growing list of the more than 400 live Google Station sites that Smart and Google Philippines announced in July 2019. The nationwide rollout of Smart WiFi complements Smart’s ongoing network expansion and modernization program across the Philippines. Smart also launched VoLTE (Voice over Long Term Evolution) calls allowing Metro Manila subscribers to enjoy a richer call experience. VoLTE is the first, fully IP-based carrier-grade voice service and uses LTE/4G to transmit voice calls, unlike the current practice where calls go through 2G or 3G mobile networks. After activating VoLTE across its LTE sites in Metro Manila, Smart is making the latest technology in voice calls initially available to selected Smart subscribers. The service will soon be available to Smart Signature

plan holders, as well. VoLTE’s main benefit is the high-definition voice call quality. Calls made over VoLTE are superior in quality compared to calls made over 3G and 2G, and VoLTE-to-VoLTE calls are crystal clear, with almost no background noise. VoLTE also enables faster call setup, which means the amount of time it takes for a mobile phone to connect to another for a voice call is also drastically reduced. To enjoy VoLTE’s richer call experience, customers need VoLTE-capable devices, such as Samsung Galaxy S8 and higher, and the Huawei Mate 20 and P20. VoLTE support will be available to more handsets soon. Using these handsets, customers can make VoLTE calls using their phone’s native dialer, and will not require a separate, over-the-top (OTT) application.

ONEPLUS 7 AT DIGITAL WALKER DIGITAL Walker brings the highly anticipated OnePlus 7 to the local market with a P26,990 SRP. The phone is available in Mirror Gray and Red colorways, and is packed with features, such as a 6.41” display with a 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass-protected Optic AMOLED screen with FHD+ 2340 x 1080 resolution at 402 ppi. It operates on 2.84GHz 64-bit Snapdragon 855 octa-core processor, Adreno 640 GPU, 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, and Android 9.0 Pie OS with Oxygen OS overlay. It also has 256GB UFS 3.0 storage. The phone’s rear camera system features a 48MP f/1.7 Sony IMX586 with PDAF, OIS, EIS + 5MP f/2.4 with dual-tone LED flash. It also has a 16MP f/2.0 Sony IMX471 selfie camera. The OnePlus 7 is available at Digital Walker stores, and OnePlus Lazada and Shopee pages with an 18-month warranty.

AMD UNLEASHES NEW PROCESSORS AMD takes gaming performance, immersive experiences, and visual fidelity to new heights as it announced the availability of its latest graphics card and desktop processors. Built on the groundbreaking all-new AMD RDNA gaming architecture and 7nm process technology, the AMD Radeon RX 5700 series graphics card redefines what is possible in 1440p gaming. The new card delivers superior visual fidelity, lightning-fast performance and advanced features to power the latest AAA and eSports titles. With up to 12 cores and 24 threads now available, 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen Desktop Processors are another powerful demonstration of the technology leadership of AMD, delivering the first high-performance 7nm processors in consumer desktop PCs. Building on the legacy of high-performance “Zen” architectures, the “Zen 2” microarchitecture incorporates enhancements that deliver a significant IPC uplift of an estimated 15 percent generationally for faster gaming and content creation. The AMD Radeon RX 5700 Series graphics card harnesses the RDNA gaming architecture and supports high-speed GDDR6 memory, provides PCIe 4.0 support, and provides up to 1.25X higher

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DIGITAL Walker brings the highly anticipated OnePlus 7 to the local market.

performance-per-clock and up to 1.5X higher performance-per-watt over AMD’s previous Graphic Core Next (GCN) architecture, enabling hyperrealistic, ultra-responsive and high-framerate gaming experiences. The newest Radeon graphics card offers powerful new features to elevate 1440p gaming, including: Radeon Image Sharpening, FidelityFX and Radeon Anti-Lag optimized for eSports. Meanwhile, the new Third Gen Ryzen Desktop Processors enable ultimate performance, power efficiency, and core counts across single-thread and multi-thread workloads, offering Elite gaming performance with higher clock speeds, more performance per clock; winning content creation performance, a cooler and quieter PC experience, and overclocking made simple. ■

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THE AMD Radeon RX 5700 series graphics card

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If you have any information / objection to the above mentioned application/s, please communicate with the Regional Director thru Employment Promotion and Workers Welfare (EPWW) Division with Telephone No. 400-6011. ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

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