Life in a nutshell @carlobasbas - Tumblr Blog

Fuck.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Your Brain Sees Things That You Don't

1. Is attention and awareness the same thing?

No. Recent studies show that a person’s attention can focus on something without actually being aware of it. A recent study conducted showed that an eight-year-old boy who is blind in an area of his right visual field could still point a dot flashed to his right field of vision even without being aware of its location. He insisted that he does not see a dot but when asked to point to the dot, he accurately gets it most of the time. This phenomenon is called blindsight discovered by 1970’s British researchers Larry Weiskrantz, Nicole Humphrey, and others. This happens when there is a damaged part in the primary visual cortex that dismisses consciousness of what one sees.

2. Do people with no brain damage experience this phenomenon?

Yes. Another study showed that people with no brain damage still attends to small things when flashed even without actually being aware of seeing the distraction.

A right dot flashed in the right of the screen where subjects are looking at. When a number flashes, they are asked to say the number as quickly as possible. When the number flashed on the right after the dot flashed, the subjects were able to quickly tell the number. However, when the number flashed on the left after the dot flashed on the right, the response time was slower because their attention needed to adjust. Therefore, the dot snags attention even if the subjects were not aware of the dot that appeared.

3. What is the attention schema theory and how does it explain the difference between attention and awareness?

The theory is an attempt to explain the relationship between awareness and attention. Attention only handles the data presented. It is only the way of how the brain focus on an object. Meanwhile, awareness it the interpretation of what one is attending to. It is the general description of the brain of what the brain attends.

Another explanation would be attention is a process that does not change while awareness is a process where one monitors what is being attended. These two processes most of the time come in pair that is why if awareness is removed, attention would start to lose its accuracy.

Reference:

Graziano M. (2016). Your Brain Sees Things That You Don’t. Retrieved from: http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/04/awareness-and-attention/476943/

#ENG2D2

Hello! If a notification appeared on your device upon my posting this, turn it off. Thanks. (This goes not only to you, Sophia. Haha)

It has been a long time since I was here. Much has changed.

By looking at my feed, I am disappointed at my old self. This feed is not what I want to see yet it’s on the screen.

Yes, I am disappointed at my old self. But I am quite sure, my old self would be as disappointed, if not more, with myself right now. I have changed, for the worse I guess.

How To Deal With Annoying People

Okay. Just today someone requested me to blog about how to deal with annoying people. (through ask.fm/carlobasbas wehehehe)

First, let’s start philosophically. (I am currently taking a course about philosophy so yeah, it kind of sticks.)

We can’t remove the fact that we, ourselves, are annoying. We maybe annoyed of ourselves especially after stupid decisions. Other people are constantly annoyed of us, either secretly or openly. So, what seems to be the norm for us might be annoying for others. And we don’t want to change what seems to be the norm for us. It’s our norm. For us it’s ethical, so why change it to impress other people? This brings us to number 1.

1. Don’t confront them.

This is the Carlo Basbas way, I don’t know if your method is the same but since you asked for ‘how I deal with annoying people,’ of course, this would be subjective.

I don’t confront people as much as possible. I tolerate them when I face them; then I backstab them. Yes. The word ‘backstab’ is a very serious word in the Filipino society. But hell, every time you talk about someone, you backstab them so don’t act innocent. Everyone talks about people behind their backs. It’s human nature. Especially after storing your annoyance.

For example, I happen to have a classmate in a subject that annoys me very much. I don’t act like I want to hit him in the face. I only act so after class, when I am with a close friend and when he is about hundreds of meters away.

Why is this better for me? Because people are naturally close-minded. Yes, they may say they are open-minded to a lot of things. But a change in attitude/opinion? I don’t think so. Humans stand firmly when it comes to their decisions. If you confront them, nothing will happen. It will be just like talking to a wall.

2. Just avoid them.

So, you are annoyed of them, huh? Then simply ignore them. Try to be as far away as possible. If they sit at the back of the class, sit at the front and vice versa.

Nothing forces you to mingle with each other, so why even bother to interact with each other? But if unavoidable, just try acting as ‘plastik’ as possible.

You might think being ‘plastik’ is bad. But for me it really isn’t that bad. Unless you’re doing it to do something worse (like you’re spying to get some juicy information). It’s like you are promoting peace despite all the swear words you’re thinking of. And anything that promotes peace is nice (maybe?).

So, yeah. That is how I deal with annoying people. I just don’t know if this would be applicable for you.

Sorry for all the grammatical errors and incoherence. I am just not in the mood to write.

My head is drifting off but I’m not that drowsy. It’s now day two of not having enough sleep. Yesterday, I only had five hours of sleep. This day, I think I’d be having 3.5 hours of sleep. It’s now 3AM and I gotta go somewhere at 7AM.

I am not like this. I am a very diurnal type of guy. I follow the science-recommended amount of sleep for a teenager, which is about eight to ten hours. But I don’t know what’s happening.

Maybe I’m slowly transforming into a nocturnal. But still, I want to be diurnal. I hate being awake at midnight. It makes me think of things I wouldn’t have thought about earlier that day.

Okay. Time to sleep.

Mahirap maging mahirap

Mahirap maging mahirap. Sasabihin nilang hindi ka mahirap. Dahil para sa kanila, ang tunay na mahirap ay ang mga musmos sa kalsada at ang mga iskwater sa tabi ng ilog. Na ang tunay na mahirap ay ang mga hindi na makakain ng tatlong beses isang araw. Na ang tunay na mahirap ay ang nagbabatak ng buto. Na kapag may sasakyan, cellphone, laptop at kung ano pa ay mayaman kayo. Hindi ka mahirap. Mayaman ka. Dahil panglabas lang ang tinitingnan. At kung tutuusin, may damit kang hindi binili sa ukay-ukay, may cellphone kang Android ang operating system, at kumakain ka. Kahit gaano pa kayo kalubog sa utang, kahit gaano pa kaliit ang suweldo ng mga nagtatrabaho sa pamilya mo, wala silang pakialam. Dahil panglabas lamang ang tinitingnan nila.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Magugutom ka. Pagkatapos mong mananghalian, maaring hindi ka na magmeryenda. Kahit sobrang payat mo na, wala kang karapatang magreklamo. Dahil wala na kayong pera. Minsan, kapag ika’y aalis, mas pipiliin mong hindi na kumain. Kahit ikaw ay kasing-nipis na ng isang tingting, kahit ikaw ay gutom na, kahit ikaw ay underweight at ilang beses nang pinaalala ng doktor na kumain nang maayos. Wala kang magagawa. Dahil ang pangkain mo ay pamasahe mo pauwi. Mamamayat ka. Pero wala kang pakialam, basta makatipid lamang, gagawin mo ang lahat. ‘Yung dati mong timbang na 45 kilos? Na sobrang gaan na para sa kanila? Naku. Magiging 39 kilos pa ‘yan.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Makokonsensiya ka. Alam mong hirap na hirap na ang mga magulang mo. Samantalang ikaw ay petiks lang. May babayaran kang matrikula. Kapag nagkasakit, daan-daan na naman ang magagastos. Kapag naggagala, bente na lang hihingin mong pera, pamasahe papunta at pabalik. At kahit bente pa ‘yan, makokonsensiya ka pa rin. Bawat pisong ginagastos mo. Utang man ‘yan ni nanay o suweldo ni tatay, malalaman mo ang halaga. Tuwing sasabihin mong kailangan mo ng pera para sa iba’t ibang bagay para sa paaralan. Magtitinginan sila. At mag-iisip kung paano maibibigay sa ‘yo. Alam mong maaaring umiiyak na ang mga magulang mo tuwing gabi dahil hindi lang naman ikaw ang pinaggagastusan. May mga kapatid ka pa. May babayaran pang utilities (kuryente at tubig). Masakit. Masakit makitang nahihirapan sila. Masakit malaman na ikaw ang isa sa mga dahilan kung bakit naghihirap.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Magtitiis ka. Walang ka dapat pakialam sa pera kahit ikaw ay isang teenager na maraming pangangailangan at gusto. Pipigilin mo ‘yan. Sasalain mo lahat ng maaarin mong bilhin. Tuwing mamimili, laging presyo ang tinitingnan at kung makakatipid ng piso ay doon ka na agad. Para sa iba, “Piso lang ‘yan.” Para sa ‘yo, “Pisong pinaghirapan ‘yan.” Magtitiis ka rin sa mga gamit sa bahay. Wala kayong ref, TV, internet, oven, flush, etc. At kung may masira man sa bahay, magtiis ka, wala kang magagamit.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Pero ika nga sa Ingles, “Every cloud has a silver lining.” Oo, mahirap kayo. At mayroon ‘yang mga positibong epekto. Matututo kang maglakad, nang maglakad, nang maglakad. Dahil kung kayang lakarin, lakarin mo na lang, dahil sayang ang otso. Na kung nasa gate ka ng UPLB at sa UHS ka pupunta, lalakarin mo na lang, kahit gaano kainit ang paligid. Dahil sayang ang otso. Matututo ka ring magtipid. Ang baon mong isang daan kada araw (kapag ikaw ay nasa sekundarya), ay pipilitin mong isang daan pa rin pag-uwi. Upang maibalik mo sa nanay mo, upang mabawasan ang pagkakonsensiya mo. Matututo kang mag-acting. Tuwing kasama mo ang mga kasama mo, magpapanggap kang hirap na hirap ka para naman makalibre at makatipid. Ay, mali. Hindi pala magpapanggap. Totoo palang wala kang pera. Hindi ka pala matututo mag-acting, matututo kang magpaawa. Lunukin mo na ang putanginang pride mo, para lang makatipid. Matututo ka ring maggala. Dahil ayaw mo sa bahay. Dahil bawat segundong nasa bahay ka, maaalala mong naghihirap kayo. Na gagawin mo ang lahat, malimot lang ‘to, kahit ilang oras lamang. Kapag nasa bahay naman, gagawin mo ang lahat para limutin ang realidad. Magbabasa ka ng libro. Maglalaro ka ng kung anu-anong apps. Mag-iinternet ka sa kapitbahay para lang malimutan ang kalagayan niyo.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Oo, sobrang hirap. Minsan iniisip mo na lamang, “Kailan kaya kami yayaman? O kahit lumuwag man lang?” Pero hindi mo malalaman ang sagot. Maaaring bukas, o maaaring hindi na, kailanman. Hindi niyo alam. Hindi ko rin alam. ‘Yan din ang aking tanong sa sarili bawat araw. Na sana, paggising ko, tumama na sa lotto ang tatay ko, o kaya naman ay may mabuting tao na nagbigay sa amin ng pera, o kaya naman ay may nalaglag na isang milyon mula sa langit.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Pero maaalala mo, marami pang mas mahirap sa ‘yo. Isa ka sa mga mahihirap, pero hindi halata dahil sandamakmak na mga Pilipino ang mas mahirap sa ‘yo. Kahit panindigan mo pang mahirap ka, hindi mo mabubuksan ang sarado nilang isipan.

Mahirap maging mahirap. Pero ika nga nila, hindi ka naman mahirap! Nagpapalibre pa nga sila eh. May cellphone ka kaya, may sasakyan pa, may laptop pa sa bahay at kung anu-ano pa. Gusto mong sumagot nang pabalang. Pero pipigilin mo sarili mo. At sa isip mo na lang sasabihin, “Putangina mo, palit na lang tayo ng kalagayan sa buhay, gago.”

Mahirap maging mahirap. Tingnan mo. Sa sobrang hirap, kinakausap ko na sarili ko. Mahirap, ‘no?

#lp

panic studying

So I self-studied differential calculus just this midnight.

They kept on blabbing about it in our group chat (for the chemical engineers of UPLB, batch ‘15) and I don’t even have the slightest hint of what they’re talking about.

I went to bed yesterday at 10PM but couldn’t fall asleep. I was sleepy but my mind refuses to shut down. Maybe it’s the cup of iced coffee I had earlier. Or just plain butterflies in my stomach. Nevertheless, I wasn’t able to sleep immediately.

I tried to sleep for two straight hours (with occasional peeks of my phone.) But I knew that I won’t be able to do so. So at 12AM, I opened an app I installed earlier that day. And yeah, it’s an app that teaches calculus.

So I studied limits, gradients and differentiation. Some I did not get the concept, but most I did not even know what the concept is (heh, I know this is rhetorically wrong because it’s not contrasting but I don’t care lol).

After three hours, I sort of got it. So, at around 2:30AM, (with my mom scolding me for not sleeping) I answered a seven-item quiz regarding differentiation. And guess what, I got a 6 out of 7. I wasn’t able to answer the one that used the Chain Rule because I did not know what the fuck Chain Rule is. But after taking the quiz, I studied the Chain Rule and I sort of got it too.

This morning, I continued studying diff. calc. I grabbed my brother’s calculus reviewers and started answering the questions. Some I got right, some I screwed. Luckily there’s a solution just below every problem.

I also studied chemistry (but I still don’t get the cathode ray experiment :/).

It was the most productive I’ve been this summer vacation. But the thing is, I don’t even have calculus this incoming semester. The chemistry I would be able to use but the calculus, it’ll have to wait until next semester. I only have algebra and trigonometry this semester. I guess I just wanted to be ‘in’ when they talk about calculus. Oh well, what done is done. At least, I have the faintest idea of what calculus really is all about.

On the early benefits, at least I started studying again. I know again what it feels like (after four months of being idle.) So maybe in August, I’d be good, eh? Who knows.

Four days before classes in UPLB starts. That’s when I started to study. Ironic for a nerd.

But at least I studied.

#lp #diary #meh

New avatar. lol

THEY’VE INFESTED MY BLOG

WHY

Now 17.

Stressed.

Yes.

I am stressed.

I deserve to rest.

What if’s

An alternate universe where I decided to pursue my what if’s before it was too late. I’d like to italicize all of it, because they will never be true.

1. What if I took the Ateneo College Entrance Test (ACET)?

I will pass the exam, but without flying colors. It would just be a bragging right and I would still enroll at UPLB.

I will pass the exam with flying colors. With those flying colors comes a scholarship grant that will shoulder all my expenses. But here’s the catch, this will still branch off into two happenings.

I will pursue Ateneo with a not so heavy heart. Never in my life had I imagined myself in that school. But if I be granted a scholarship, it might be a sign that I should be studying there. I would even pursue my ‘dream’ degree which is BS Chemistry. I think I’d still be happy if I go there.

I will trash the opportunity. But regret it. I would pursue BS Chemical Engineering at UPLB but in my five years of studying (with expenses), I’d think about what would happen with my life if ever I went to Ateneo. My mother would keep nagging about the wasted scholarship. And I too, would never stop thinking about it.

2. What if I chose UP Diliman as my first choice campus?

My mother would be very mad because it is too far from where I come from (although it really isn’t, but for her, it is.) But it would be a dream come true. I would be very happy even during hell weeks. Diliman is a center of cultural clash in the country and I’d love nothing more but to see people from different walks of life to unite for one cause, to improve this country. I would be happy there.

But at the same time, I hate to leave my old life. Laguna is a great place and I’d miss it for the five years (if I won’t extend, haha) I’d be staying in NCR. After studying, I’d settle back in Laguna, where I’d be a stranger.

But along with me is the knowledge I acquired and the glee from everything. Studying at UP Diliman would just be too awesome.

And yes, I am sure that I’d pass UP Diliman if ever I wrote it down in that UPCAT form. I am not bragging.

3. What if I applied at international schools?

Okay. This past years I’ve been dreaming of studying in an internationally renowned school. I have been enlisting several of them. MIT, Stanford, Harvard, University of Berkeley, California, and other universities in Europe or Australia.

This branches out to three situations. I’ll go from negative to positive.

I fail the exam. Tears would be shed, yes. I’d study here in the Philippines but think that I am never good enough for international schools. That all my studying would go to waste. I’d be a pessimist for five years.

I get in but would not pursue studies abroad. Look, my mother was pretty angry when I said I wanted to study in Quezon City which is less than 1000km away, I think. How much more if I said I passed in an international school and would pursue studies there? So, I’d still settle here in the Philippines, but happy. Thinking that window opened once. It might open again someday. (That was a reference from How I Met Your Mother and if you get it, I love you.)

I get in and study abroad. Relatives would be in awe to learn that I got in so they would contribute in my allowance and expenses. I would also apply for an international scholarship because there are a LOT of scholarships abroad for international students. This would be the greatest scenario. Just like what I’ve said before, I really looove culture mix. And studying abroad would feel so much good for me. Plus, it would be easy to get credentials for a Master’s degree if ever I chose to study in another school (perhaps this is now the MIT, Stanford or University of Berkeley.)

4. What if I pursued BS Chemistry?

I don’t want to write the alternate for this because I am still not sure what to do with my life. Who knows? Maybe I’d pursue it. Or not. Meh. It’s just too painful to write an alternate universe for this.

But all these are fictitious. What if’s. I never pursued them. There is no turning back. I will be studying BS Chemical Engineering at UPLB and nothing can stop that now.

Maybe I should plan better for the future. So I would not have what if’s and would be contented with the decisions I made.

#lp

the-all-around-fangirl

Jennifer Aniston’s adorable reaction when the FRIENDS themesong was played on the set of We’re The Millers.

sophie-baek

Cara Delevingne in Bad Blood

Too many what if’s. Making life decisions is hard as fuck.

Gold can melt and sink down the drain.

"Where do broken hearts go?”

I have never involved myself wholly in the field of love. I’d like to stay out of the pool but when I can’t help it, I still don’t dive. Scientists don’t get emotional, they get realistic. What love is to most people is dream to scientists.

We dream. Highly. We dream to be the discoverer of the cure for cancer. We dream to be a Nobel Prize winner. We dream to be the best in our fields. And as an ‘aspiring’ scientist, I won’t ask “Where do broken hearts go?” instead I will ask, “What happens with shattered dreams?”

People, when heartbroken, feel like it’s the end of the world. While scientists feel the same way when their dreams are shattered.

I am not a scientist, but I am a very passionate man. And I have many passions. Along them are dreams. I have five main dreams, and a lot of minor ones. Recently, one of my main dreams was shattered. And just today, a minor one went out the window. I believe that if I put this in layman’s terms, the feeling right now is twice of that of being heartbroken.

I am a VERY passionate and sentimental man. Little things worry me. I don’t let go easily. I hold on to what I can hold on for as long as I can. But I believe I have not done my best to hold on.

I have exactly five passions. Science, journalism, teaching, computers, and traveling. And my ultimate dream for journalism has come true. I was a participant in the National Schools Press Conference 2015. But I believe my dream was shattered right before it was over.

In the opening parade, I was so happy. Delegates from 16 regions in the country are united at Taguig yesterday! I didn’t care if we are about to clash with each other. As I said, I am a very sentimental man. And having a moment like that is something that I’d never forget. I will pass that great moment to my children, heck even grandchildren. That’s how sentimental I am. I don’t forget those things. I value them highly. And the five and a half days in Taguig would have made an awesome story to my children. However, it became only three and a half days. Where’s the story in that, eh?

And what’s the opportunity cost of those two golden days? A chance to skip three units in college. TWO GOLDEN DAYS TRADED FOR A FUCKING CHANCE TO SKIP THREE UNITS IN COLLEGE.

It’s not equal. It’s like weighing ununoctium against hydrogen. The golden opportunity. Ginto na, naging bato pa.

I will never forget this moment. The day I raged in my room. Fuck this day. I fucking hate this day.

And I believe shattered dreams reamin in our memories. As shards. As we enter our memories, there may be some sweet moments but there are shards to remind us that we did not achieve our dreams. It has wounded us. And as those wounds heal, there will come a time wherein those shards will once again wound us. My memories are full of shards. And I am so wounded every time I go there.

#lp

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