Samsung & Yuchengco Museum encourage Filipinos to celebrate culture and heritage through Instagram Contest

Samsung and the Yuchengco Museum have just launched Culture Connect: Castrillo @ 50, an Instagram contest, which aims to inspire Filipinos to embrace their nationalistic pride and express it on social media.

The late Eduardo Castrillo’s daughter, Ovvian Castrillo, talked about her father’s legacy.

This is the sequel of last year’s launch of Culture Explorer wherein Samsung helped celebrate the Filipino culture and heritage through exhibiting various plazas in Manila. Culture Explorer is an innovative mobile application that uses augmented reality technology to help people, especially the youth, learn about Manila’s plazas and historical landmarks.

This year, to strengthen patriotism among Filipinos, Samsung and Yuchengco Museum are hosting Culture Connect: Castrillo @ 50, which would commemorate the works of nationalist Filipino sculptor, Eduardo Castrillo.

Also, to celebrate Eduardo Castrillo’s 50th year as a professional artist, Culture Connect is set to feature his works this year. Castrillo is known as the monument maker, having produced figurative historical and religious monuments, and abstract environmental works not only in the Philippines but in other countries as well.

“Castrillo’s monuments, including Binhi ng mga Bayani located in Rizal Park, and People Power along EDSA, are cultural heritage pieces of our country. Commemorating some of the turning points in Philippine history, these monuments have become testimony to Castrillo’s passion for excellence in form, technique, and spirit,” shares Jeannie Javelosa, Curator of the Yuchengco Museum.

In line with Buwan ng Wika and Castrillo’s 50th anniversary, the Instagram contest will run for the entire month of August. Culture Connect: Castrillo @ 50 encourages everyone to share their pride and love for their roots and the Philippines through social media.

To help you select a particular subject/genre to use, you may check the list of Castrillo Monuments below:

1. Raha Sulayman, 1976, Raha Sulayman Park, Malate, Manila
2. The Heritage of Cebu, 2001, Mactan, Cebu (History of Christianity in Asia)
3. The Spirit of Pinaglabanan  1974, (heroes of Phil-Am war commemorating Pinaglabanan), San Juan, 1974 – at Barrio Paraiso, Pinaglabanan, San Juan
4. The Light and Sound Sculptural Tableau on the Martyrdom of Dr. Jose P. Rizal, 1991 , Rizal Shrine, Luneta
5. Rizal, RCBC Plaza
6. Life and Heroism of Gat Andres Bonifacio (Relief) Shrine, Manila
7. Andres Bonifacio, 1987 6.3 meters, Fort Bonifacio Manila
8. Emilio Aguinaldo, Trece Martirez City Hall, along Governor’s Drive, Cavite
9. Emilio Aguinaldo, Bacoor Cavite
10. Binhi ng mga Bayani, environmental relief 1995 in Rizal Park (near the gardens)
11. Bantayog ng Mga Bayani, 1992, Quezon Avenue corner EDSA
12. People Power, 1993, EDSA
13. Spirit of EDSA , RCBC Building, Makati, 2001
14. Youth’s Cry of Defiance, 1966, 5.6 meters, cut and welded steel, Fort Santiago, Manila
15. The Cry of Tondo, 1978, Isla Putting Bato, National Housing Authority Project, Tondo, Manila
16. Paghimudos, Bacolod City
17. Katuparan ng Pangarap ng Lahi, 1989, GSIS Building, Reclamation Area, Roxas Boulevard, Manila
18. Diwa ng Batangueno, Batangas City

Anyone can join the contest by posting a photo of any of the select public art monuments on Instagram, and expressing what it means to you as a Filipino. Tag @CastrilloCultureConnect and use the hashtags #SamsungCultureConnect and #Castrillo50.

Up to three entries per person may be submitted under professional or open category. First-place winners under each category get a Samsung Galaxy S7 edge and a Gear VR. Winning contest photos will be featured on the Culture Explorer application.

Contest runs from August 1 to 31, 2016. Winning entries will be announced online on September 13, 2016 and will be awarded on October 13, 2016.

For full mechanics and more information visit, www.eduardocastrillo.com, and follow @CastrilloCultureConnect on Instagram.

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Latest Kwentong Jollibee video honors Pinoy dads

Get teary-eyed with latest Kwentong Jollibee video that honors Pinoy dads

Jollibee, the country’s number one fastfood chain launched its newest made for digital material which premiered just in time for Father’s Day.

The two-minuter Father’s Day special, titled “Entrance Exam,” is the latest installment of the fastfood chain’s Kwentong Jollibee series. It revolves around the story of a successful father with high expectations and his son’s earnest desire to fulfill them. The commercial culminates with an unexpected twist—expectations of excellence can be built over decades, but love and acceptance trumps over disappointment at the end of the day.

The Kwentong Jollibee campaign  captures the many heartwarming stories of Filipinos over the years and how Jollibee has been part of it. The campaign kicked off last February with three heartwarming real stories of long-time Jollibee customers and an omnibus material presented from the perspective of a restaurant manager who has been with the company for more than 20 years now.

“Entrance Exam” was directed by Ianco dela Cruz who also helped bring to life the previous Kwentong Jollibee stories like “Almusal,” “Jabee,” “Tagpuan,” and “Mama’s Girl” (Mother’s Day special).

“Kwentong Jollibee is the story of Pinoys all over the country and the world and how their favorite fastfood chain figured in it. It represents the Pinoys’ long standing love affair with Jollibee,” said Francis Flores, Jollibee Global Brand Chief Marketing Officer. “We believe that everyone has a Jollibee story to share. And through Kwentong Jollibee, we want to creatively capture  the universal Filipino experience, anchored on the things we love—our families, friends, communities, that somehow also make up our favorite Jollibee memories while growing up.”

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Jollibee 2016 Grand Independence Day Countdown - #PINOYANDPROUD

This year Jollibee decided to celebrate our independence day by throwing a star studded countdown celebration at the Metrotent in Pasig City. With the tagline Pinoy and Proud, the celebration was graced by a lot of well known showbiz personalities.

#PinoyandProud - The hashtag you can be proud of!

The event stood up to its tag line Pinoy and Proud when our very own local talent provided us electrifying performances. The stage was graced by the presence of some of our Brightest OPM Stars. To name a few were Sarah Geronimo, KZ Tandingan, Darren Espanto, Itchy Worms, Spongecola  and a lot more.

Celebrity Endorsers Jodi Sta. Maria and son Thirdy, Karmina, Zoren and the Legazpi twins are also present during the Jollibee 2016 Grand Independence Day Countdown.

The Legazpi Family fambam!

You can also be Pinoy and Proud through your T-shirts as Jollibee and Uniqlo collaborated to give us 5 new tshirt designs that will show how Pinoy and Proud we are. The new T-shirt designs would be available nationwide starting June 20.

There is nothing more Filipino than a family sharing a bucket of our favorite crispylicious, juicylicious Chickenjoy! This month our favorite Chicken Joy will be served in a limited edition #PinoyAndProud Independence Day bucket. On the bucket design you’re going to see a very Filipino Jollibee and friends as they are seen wearing Barongs and Filipinianas.

Sarah G. performing on stage!

Some of the highlights of the event were the introduction of the Jollibee Viber sticker pack 2 which can be downloaded for free this June and the new Jollibee theme song performed by Darren Espanto and Rachelle Ann Go.

Darren and KZ making us proud to be Filipinos

Wath the latest music video of Jollibee and know what its like being a Filipino. Video courtesy of Jollibee’s Youtube page.

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Indeed the event gave us the reason to be Pinoy and Proud so visit your nearest Jollibee Store to experience the fun of being a Pinoy!

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SNIPE App: Shop, Find Deals & Bargains Tinder style

SNIPE App: The first-ever location-based app that shows you deals at the product level, right in the mall you’re in, instantly Snipe is a personal shopping companion that makes shopping even more fun by letting users sift through bargains in a gamified interface.

Snipe is neither an online shopping app nor like any other shopping app out there today. It is a personal shopping companion that helps people quickly find and collect deals they like—all in a gamified interface. “It’s like Tinder, but instead of matching people with each other, we match customers with bargains,” says Robert Suyom, Jr., one of Snipe’s creators. “Sale posters are everywhere, but we want to know what specific products are on sale. Snipe makes information available right when and where customers need it.” The app was launched on August 11, 2015 and can be downloaded for free on both the App Store and the Play Store.  A user can see deals using Snipe in selected malls in Metro Manila.

With Snipe, users can shop like never before. This app brings delight and surprise to the fore of shopping. Snipe distills the feeling of stumbling upon that perfect dress or pair of shoes and makes it easier for people to have exciting encounters like this again and again.

Not only can customers save time and money with Snipe, but they can also discover bargains in a new and fun way. To help users discover deals, Snipe detects which mall the user is in and displays the deals available there, one-by-one in random order, on a digital coupon roll. The user can narrow down his search with a filter of bargain categories. (Note that Snipe displays deals only when the user is in a mall and during mall operating hours.) The randomly ordered coupons make users feel lucky when they see a deal they like, and the coupon-roll interface itself adds a tactile and visually quirky user experience. To help users save time and money, Snipe lets them swipe through bargains that would've taken users hours to sift throughas well as take advantage of the promos featured in the app.

How to use Snipe App:

There are just three easy steps to use Snipe [Source] :

1. Fire it up: Snipe detects your location, gathers the best of the best deals in the mall you’re in, and presents them as a roll of coupons in random order.

2. Snipe the deals you like: If you like a coupon, simply swipe it to the right. Or, in short, Snipe it! Coupons you snipe are stored in the wallet. If you don’t like a coupon, just swipe it down.
SOME IMPORTANT NOTES: A discarded coupon will be gone for the rest of the day, so swipe down with care. Also, all Sniped coupons in your wallet will be deleted every midnight.

3. Redeem: Go to your wallet and redeem the coupon by showing the generated redemption code to the store representative. Then, you can finally purchase the bargain.

Current Malls that support Snipe:

• Alabang Town Center
• SM Mall of Asia, Glorietta
• Greenbelt
• Power Plant Mall
• SM Aura
• Bonifacio High Street
• SM Megamall
• EDSA Shangri-La Plaza
• SM North EDSA

Where to download Snipe App:

• App Store for iOS Devices
• Play Store for Android Devices

Expect more deals and malls to be covered by Snipe in the future. Snipe is a creation of the local tech startup Resonant Technology Solutions. More info about Snipe App here

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ART x WINE: A Collaboration Exhibition featuring CHARLIE CO and CEZAR ARRO

Art x Wine:  Featuring Charlie Co and Cezar Arro, a collaboration exhibition launches at the Kirov Model unit in Rockwell Center

Art x Wine, is an Art Exhibition and Wine appreciation event featuring the works of two phenomenal Filipino Artists, Charlie Co and Cezar Arro launches at the Kirov Model unit in the Proscenium Showroom in Rockwell Center.

The launching of the exhibition was initiated by a ribbon-cutting ceremony by the following notable personalities:

Charlie Co – Featured Artist/Painter

Cezar Arro – Featured Artist/Painter

Ferdinand Roxas – Chairman of PCSO

Ada Mabilangan – Head of Poorita Kalaw Foundation

Tina Colayco – President of the Metropolitan Museum

Muriel Sy – Art Collector

Sherwin Lao – Co-Owner of Golden Wines Inc.

Jonathan Gee – Head of Gallery H

Judith Gee – Co-Founder of Gallery H

Art x Wine aims to bring together Art and Wine Enthusiasts for a festive night where we celebrate the Filipino Art paired with lovely wines provided by Golden Wines Inc.

Charlie Co (Right)

As the Founder of Gallery H, Jonathan Gee quoted, “I have been living in the Philippines for a number of years now.  What I’ve discovered is that there is an abundance of artistic talents in the country.  Because of this, Judith and I decided to organize an Art Exhibition that features these talents.”

Guests were invited to view the latest painting collection of both the artists beautifully curated within the Showroom space and Kirov Model unit.  As a good pair to the stunning art, Golden Wines Inc. served their famous Australian wine by Peter Lehman and Spanish Enate wines.  Both wine brands feature artworks in their wine labels, which was very apt for the concept of the event.  We were served Peter Lehman’s Portrait Cabernet Sauvignon and Art & Soul Chardonnay 2011.  On the other hand, we were able to try Enate’s Rosado Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Sauvignon – Merlot.

Hosted at the prestigious Kirov model unit in the Proscenium Showroom beside the Rockwell Tent, we were also able to take a grand tour of the nicely laid out and designed Kirov model unit.  The artworks juxtaposed with the wonderful interiors give you the experience of the good life, living with beauty, good design and art.

The ART x WINE opens at 5PM starting Friday, August 5, 2015 which will run until August 13, 2015 at the Kirov Model Unit beside the Rockwell Tent in Rockwell Center.

The beautiful artworks being exhibited are for sale. Wines can also be ordered from Golden Wines Inc.

About Art x Wine

This event is primarily an Art and Wine appreciation event, drawing art buyers, art collectors, art enthusiasts, artists, media people, personalities and wine enthusiasts together.  It is a series where we feature one or more emerging and/or established Filipino artist/s per show.  This event was commissioned by Gallery H and organized by Brylliance Design Studio www.brylliancedesign.com.

For inquiries about Gallery H and/or any of paintings or Art events, you may contact Jonathan Gee at jgee1025@yahoo.com or through his mobile numbers 0920-9153842 or 0918-9424531.

About Cezar Arro

Chairman (Mind Art Torture) Iloilo Artist and Bands Organization (1994-2005).  He is an Iloilo based artist and is a celebrated Visual Artist.  He has been practicing Visual Arts for 22 years and has regularly been featured in multiple publications.  You may get in touch with him at www.facebook.com/cezar.arro.

About Charlie Co

Charlie Co is an award-winning, celebrated Filipino artist based in Bacolod, Philippines.  He has exhibited his works locally and internationally and has done a multitude of solo and group shows.

His current work combines painting and sculpture to create both a visual and tactile quality to his work.  He was first identified as a social realist in the mid-80s and later developed an interest in figurative expressionism that borders on surrealism.  You may get in touch with him at www.charlieco.net.

About the Proscenium

Translated from the Greek term as “beyond the scene”, the Proscenium at Rockwell is inspired by the arts, bridging together harmonious living with cultural sophistication.  With its unique architectural design, the Proscenium compliments luxury living with state of the art amenities, posh retail selections, a world-class Performing Arts Theater and a Museum.  Envisioned by the world-renowned Starchitect, Carlos Ott, the Proscenium at Rockwell is a refined choice for premium residential addresses in the Makati area.

Find out more about the Proscenium at www.e-rockwell.com.

About Golden Wines

Golden Wines, Inc. is the brainchild of friends from diverse backgrounds sharing one common passion – the wine culture.  The partners have a total combined 40+years of experience from various industries of strategic and tactical consumer sales and marketing, general management and operations.  Plus a total of more than 15 years of wine industry experience.  You may get in touch with them at www.facebook.com/GoldenWines.

Photos: Don Cordero

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Mums post breastfeeding selfies in Facebook protest after social network removes photo for 'nudity violations'

Dozens of mums have taken to Facebook to post their breastfeeding selfies, after one mother’s photo was reported for nudity violations.

Mum-of-two Kaya Wright, 32, posted a picture of her nursing her 16-month-old son Kayden in the bath on a closed breastfeeding group on the social network.

But the 32-year-old said that she received a notification from Facebook saying that they were ‘reviewing’ the image she shared with Liverpool Community BAMBIS.

It comes just days after breastfeeding mothers were outraged after being banned from feeding their children - at a breastfeeding conference.

Kaya, who works as a nurse, told the Liverpool Echo: “At first I thought it was a joke. Facebook said the image had been reported for nudity but you really couldn’t see anything. Then I was a bit disappointed at the thought that someone in the group had reported the image.

“It’s a breastfeeding group, so what do you expect? Some of my friends thought that maybe it had been reported by mistake.”

Do you think breastfeeding pics should be allowed on Facebook?

    YES
    NO

But after Kaya told the group what had happened, dozens of other mums started to post their breastfeeding selfies in solidarity.

Kaya who also has an older son Daniel, five, added: “I tried to breastfeed Daniel but it didn’t work out. But it was completely different with Kayden.

“Breastfeeding is amazing, everyone should try it. But in this country I’ve noticed there is a different attitude to breastfeeding. Ever since Kayden was born, people have kept asking me when are you going to bottle feed. Breastfeeding is hard and it’s made ever harder by other people’s perceptions. I think breastfeeding should be taught in schools to raise more awareness.

“In the Western world breasts are sexualised, you see celebrities with their boobs out so people associate them with sex. But people need to remember that first and foremost breasts are for feeding babies.”

Later, Facebook contacted Kaya to say they would not be removing the picture as it did not violate their rules on nudity.

Source Mirror

Why studying all night may not work

Memory neurons lull us to sleep in order to consolidate what we have learned, say researchers from Brandeis University in the US, who advise students against pulling all nighters to prepare for tests. Knowing that sleep, memory and learning are deeply intertwined, the Brandeis team set out to find out whether memory is consolidated during sleep simply because the brain happens to be at rest or whether those neurons provoke sleep in order to do their job.

In the study, which was published in the journal eLife, the researchers focused on a specific group of neurons called the dorsal paired medial (DPM), which are well known to implant memories in fruit flies.

In what’s thought to be a first-of-its-kind observation, the flies slept more when the DPM neurons were activated, yet continued to buzz about when these neurons were switched off.

As these neurons start to convert short-term memory to long-term memory, they do their best to make sure you stay sleeping and actually hinder wakefulness, according to the study. In the case of the fruit flies, the part of their brain in charge of memory and learning — called the mushroom body — is also what determines wakefulness and, consequently, it’s where the DPM are housed.

“It’s almost as if that section of the mushroom body were saying ‘hey, stay awake and learn this,’” says co-author Bethany Christmann, a graduate student at Brandeis. “Then, after a while, the DPM neurons start signaling to suppress that section, as if to say ‘you’re going to need sleep if you want to remember this later.’’

Christmann points out that knowing how sleep, memory and learning work together in the fruit fly brain can help researchers know what to look for when working with human participants. “Eventually, it could help us figure out how sleep or memory is affected when things go wrong, as in the case of insomnia or memory disorders,” she says.

Chewing gum enhances oral health!

Chewing gum can enhance oral health by removing 100 million bacteria from your mouth in just 10 minutes, suggests a new study.

Researchers at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands found that chewing gum can trap and remove bacteria from the oral cavity.

In the study, five biomedical engineering students were recruited to chew two different standard types of spearmint gum for various lengths of time ranging from 30 seconds to 10 minutes.

Afterwards, the gum was spit into a cup filled with sterile water to be analysed, 'Medical Daily' reported.

There were were about 100 million bacteria detected on each piece of chewed up gum, with the number increasing as chewing time increased.

However, after 30 seconds of chewing, the gum starts to lose its adhesiveness, meaning it traps fewer bacteria overall.

"Trapped bacteria were clearly visualised in chewed gum using scanning-electron-microscopy," researchers said in the paper published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Previous research has shown that using a new, clean toothbrush without any toothpaste can remove around 100 million colony-forming units (CFUs) per brush, which would put chewing of gum on par with the mechanical action of a toothbrush.

"Chewing gum however, does not necessarily remove bacteria from the same sites of the dentition as does brushing or flossing, therefore its results may be noticeable on a more long-term than those of brushing or flossing," researchers said.

Source ~ Zee News

Photographer documents the death of real-life conversation

As our smartphones make it easier to connect with people across the globe, they often can make it harder to connect face-to-face.

London-based photographer Babycakes Romero doesn't own a smartphone. Instead, he treks along in his beloved city, camera in hand, capturing whatever catches his eye. "As a person dedicated to observation, I just feel I would be missing too much of the world around me if I was staring into the palm of my hand the whole time," he says.

See also: The Hard Truth About Your Online Life

In his photo series, Death of a Conversation, Romero captures people connection with their digital devices rather than with each other — a phenomenon he believes is only creating more pain and social awkwardness to the world. "I saw that smartphones were becoming a barrier to communication in person. I saw how people used it as a social prop, to hide their awkwardness, to fill the silence ... they basically allow people to withdraw rather than engage."

People walking around parks, in shopping centers, at restaurants and at social events all have one thing in common: no matter how public or social their setting might be, Romero caught them at a time when they were using their smartphone rather than interacting with each other.

As Romero says, "they do not even seem present in the real world. They are 'plugged in' to a virtual world of their own making."

On the other hand, it is very possible that people could be receiving an urgent message or checking a map on their phone in that one snippet of time in which their photo was taken. Romero says he is not entirely averse to technology, however, thinks "people are starting to derive more pleasure from their 'computer cuddles' than from their person to person interactions."

In the end, Romero hopes to educate people who see his photos and hope to raise a discussion about social smartphone etiquette. "Maybe [people] would at least consider how they used their smartphones and question whether it is appropriate to do it at the expense of those around them and also themselves," he says.

Romero also runs a daily photo series called #MyLDN. His other work can be seen on his website and on Twitter.

6 Creative Cover Letters for Job App Inspiration

Your cover letter is supposed to catch a prospective employer's eye, but that's easier said than done when it's buried under a pile of applications. As a result, nearly every professional has his or her own advice when it comes to writing one of these formal introductions and bids for employment.

There's a typical formula many follow, but some job hopefuls have tried more inventive techniques to get their applications noticed. While success isn't guaranteed, these individuals chose more creative paths on the road to employment.

Whether you're looking for ideas to improve your job search, or you just want to see what people are willing to do to get an interview, here are six impressive cover letters that can inspire you to up your application game.

1. The Direct Approach

Lindsay Blackwell wanted to be social media director of the University of Michigan. Instead of typing up a typical cover letter, the tried and (sometimes) true method, she created a website with a video directed at Lisa Rudgers, the university's vice president for global communications and strategic Initiatives.
While Blackwell didn't ultimately get the job, she did land an interview for the position — an impressive feat on its own.

2. Using the Changing Communication Landscape

A PR practitioner looking for a job, uploaded his professional information to YouTube rather than creating a traditional cover letter and resume. Anthony's interactive video application included a breakdown of his skills and timeline for potential employers. It showed his video-producing and editing knowledge as well as his ability to use online resources.

In the end, it helped him land a job at Manc Frank. If a simple series of videos is enough to get you noticed, the sky's the limit.

3. The Power of Being Honest

Sometimes employers appreciate sheer honesty above well-written prose and assertions of dedication and passion. An unnamed applicant applied for a summer internship on Wall Street with a short but honest letter.
Whether the lack of embellishment helped secure the position for the student is unknown, but it made quite a splash online and proved that honesty really can be the best policy.

4. A Little Design Goes a Long Way

With a company as geared to the visual as Instagram, it can take more than a well-worded letter to catch the team's attention.
Twenty-year-old Alice Lee used her design skills to create an interactive website, complete with an Instagram stream with the social network's API. Instagram didn't end up hiring Lee, but she did get to speak to CEO Kevin Systrom, and Lee's site eventually led to an internship with another company.

5. Using the Product Itself

If the company you're interested in makes a specific product, integrating it into your cover letter will show that you're not only familiar with the company, but also that you're resourceful.
For Hanna Phan, the product she needed to use was a slideshow creator. Her imaginative cover letter for SlideRocket incorporated their technology and her style to create an engaging cover letter. If anything, Phan proves that all it takes is a little extra effort and knowledge of a product to make a lasting impression on potential bosses.

6. Using Ads to Your Advantage

Most of us have Googled ourselves at least once or twice, if only to make sure that nothing strange turns up with our names. With that in mind, Alec Brownstein decided to buy ads that would appear when specific people searched for creative directors' names, or more importantly, when said directors Googled themselves.
The ads led to Brownstein's site with a message that simply read, "Googling yourself is a lot of fun. Hiring me is fun, too." Brownstein now works at Y&R New York, and the ads only cost him $6. It isn't exactly a cover letter, but it isn't a bad strategy.