I encountered Francisco Nemenzo—Ka Dodong to his colleagues and comrades—well before I met him in person. That is, I read one of his papers—isn’t that how we get to know great scholars and thinkers, through the works they have penned? They may be halfway around the world, or they might have passed away long ago,...
Tag: University of the Philippines
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The uncommon life and struggles of Francisco ‘Dodong’ Nemenzo
Once in an era an uncommon person comes along whose life bears the stamp of profound influence on the actions of others and on society. Such was the life of Francisco “Dodong” Alfafara Nemenzo who passed away at the age of 89 last Dec. 19. An unorthodox Marxist scholar of politics, an inspiring socialist leader-activist of...
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Tough in more ways than one: UP reclaims basketball dominance
What a rush! It was pure as pure could be: UP is the champion of UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball! Exhibiting both depth and grit, it was an epic struggle between the two current titans of Philippine collegiate basketball: the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons and the De La Salle University Green Archers. ...
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UP admin and University Council still at odds on UP-AFP accord
Editor’s Note: This report, originally run on Sept. 26, 2024, has been updated with interviews with the UP president and vice president for academic affairs. More than a month since the University of the Philippines (UP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) signed a “declaration of cooperation” (DOC) to conduct joint strategic research,...
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UP-organized conference on AI to showcase cutting-edge applications in critical sectors
With the 2024 Nobel Prize hailing the scientific breakthroughs that made artificial intelligence (AI) technology possible, the University of the Philippines has gathered experts for a conference underscoring AI’s profound impact on society, modern science, and the research community. “AI Horizons PH ’24: Conference on AI-Powered Research and Innovation” scheduled on Oct. 24 and 25 at...
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UP University Council thumbs down declaration of cooperation between UP and AFP
It has been more than a month since the University of the Philippines (UP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) signed a “declaration of cooperation” (DOC) to conduct joint strategic research, and even before the first research topic was announced, the University Council (UC) of UP Diliman put its foot down on the...
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He learned photography without training
It is a matter of pride for geodetic engineer Efren Ricalde that he learned photography through trial and error. When he got the hang of it, he chose to document mass actions or rallies, to do unposed portraits of activists, and to enjoy being right in the middle of things, even at the risk of being clobbered. Ricalde’s early interest in photography began when...
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Sure, let’s discuss so-called ‘grade inflation’
A week after the commencement exercises of the University of the Philippines, an article in Rappler by UP faculty member and proud summa cum laude graduate JC Punongbayan titled “Let’s discuss grade inflation in the Philippines” made the rounds in social media. It eventually reached my own Facebook feed because my newly graduated former students, many...
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Perseverance and passion for challenges met and to confront
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is the commencement address delivered by the author at the recognition rites of the Asian Center and the TriCollege Philippine Studies Program of the University of the Philippines Diliman last July 28. She was vice president for academic affairs in 2017-2023 at UP, where she was a professor of sociology. She...
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Scholars should be activists, and vice versa
“All scholars should be activists, and all activists should be scholars” was Professor Emeritus Eduardo Tadem’s sharp response to Joe Quintero, a young geographer from York University who posed a simple yet provocative question that I paraphrase thus: “How did our activism influence our scholarship?” The question was raised in the panel on “Post-Pandemic Southeast...