Verma Zapanta's ACCHS Blog

Application of E=MC2 to Life An article published in 2016 on Interesting Engineering summarized a clear understanding of Einstein's Theory of Relativity and what they see as a "mathematical solution to an esoteric problem." 😄  Basically, there is no such thing as an "absolute" frame of reference because everything is in relation to something else.  I guess that would be applicable to the construction of our identity and understanding of the world.  There is a point of reference/root/starting point to everything that shapes who we are.  As much as we'd like to think we are individuals with unique identities, even that idea is informed by another person/culture/ideology/etc.   Four Forces & Gravity The four "forces" are the fundamental laws of nature and at the core of everything in the universe. This article from Forbes magazine clarified some of my questions about the four forces from our class discussion: 1) strong nuclear force ...

Transitional Metals of the Week: Zinc and Copper I registered into our chemistry class late, so missed out on the discussion related to this assignment. I'm going to assume that we were to identify a transitional metal on the periodic table that we engaged with for the week.  I chose two transitional metals, zinc and copper, which combined make brass.  (My question is if those transitional metals are combined to make an alloy metal, is it still considered a transitional metal? I had trouble answering this question in my research.)   I've been building my relationship to different elements as a way of re-grounding and re-connecting to the earth. Brass in particular is special to me because I wear a set of bracelets and a necklace from the Philippines made by indigenous groups on the islands. They are adornments from two different tribes, the Igorot (Northern Luzon) and T'Boli (Southern Mindanao) who use brass to construct jewelry and instruments.  They ...

Caster Semenya: "I Am a Woman" Conversations around sex and gender continues to be a taboo subject in our society.  Much of those conversations are based on sexist and patriarchal ideas of what it means to be a "man" or "woman."  It's only fitting that these same issues will arise in institutions such as the Olympics. Requiring female athletes with naturally elevated testosterone levels to inhibit their hormones through drug therapy and surgery completely negates the IAAF's goal of equality amongst female competitors. For Caster Semenya and other female intersex track Olympians to endure the regulations imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) is an injustice. This quote by Pidgeon Pagonis in a May 2019 article from Vox that summed up my thoughts on Semenya's fight with the IAAF. Pagonis is an intersex activist and founder of the Intersex Justice Project:  "Certain bodies are never allowed to be female,...

Synchronicity & Connectivity "Dr. Carl Jung 's observations were based on the rejection of a coincidental, one-dimensional life, and instead, the recognition that we engage in the world in a very complex way through our psyches, our energies, our emotions, and our actions and experiences." (Kopecky, Gaia Magazine, 2015) I feel there has to be a level of mindfulness/awareness in how one interacts with people, situations, emotions and the world in order to experience what Jung coins as synchronicity.   As I've become intentional about reconnecting to my physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing, the more synchronicity has resonance with me. I continue to be less and less surprised when friends I think about suddenly contact me or events I foresee to happen eventually unfold.  What I've been grappling with lately within the concept of synchronicity is how we tap into memories stored in our bodies. For instance, this week I found myself cooking more than...

Element of the Week: Bismuth I chose to bismuth as my element of the week because of its strange properties (and how cool it looks! 😍).  It is the heaviest, non-radioactive metal on the periodic table. Bismuth is also diamagnetic, meaning you can place a magnet between two pieces of bismuth and it will levitate.   Bismuth, specifically bismuth oxychloride is commonly found in cosmetics because of it is a cheap filler for products, adheres to the skin well and provides make-up powders with a pearlescent, shimmer. The FDA added bismuth as a color agent in 1977 for use as an synthetic ingredient. There isn't much data yet, but some people argue that bismuth may be toxic because it shares similar chemical compounds to arsenic.  Many make-up companies are now manufacturing products without bismuth oxychloride. 

Human + Chimp Genes and Genetic Evolution "99.4% of the most critical DNA sites are identical in human and chimps genes" In response to the quote above, I believe humans are either descendants of chimps or share a common ancestor. P erhaps over time, a genetic mutation occurred in a generation of chimpanzees and the human species are products of that change.  Our genetic similarities to chimps can offer a useful key into understanding the biological and evolutionary traits of humans; it seems we are just scratching the surface in understanding what makes us human. I was unable to access the link provided on human genetic evolution, but found an interesting article published by Big Think on four beneficial evolutionary mutations that humans are currently undergoing.  What intrigued me is their stance on mutations as a more positive outlook on genetic evolution. For instance, there is a small community in Italy who carry a mutant version of a protein gene ca...

Are you eating Monsanto weed killer for breakfast? How scary is it to know that 90% of corn and soybean crops are treated with glyphosate!  I've developed a soy allergy and try my best to steer clear from it. I stopped cooking with corn oil and REALLY try to stop eating corn.  However, it seems virtually impossible to avoid both soy and corn if you are eating out.  In relation to this article, even if you were to avoid soy and corn, neighboring organically certified crops and even animals will still be exposed to pesticides, if not have higher traces of the toxic chemical. I remember in the 90's when videos surfaced of woking conditions in the farms. There were heart wrenching images of deformed limbs of farmworkers and their children due to exposure of pesticides.  It took labor organizers and the general public decades to put pressure on Congress to tighten restrictions on pesticide use.  Although visibility of the impacts of pesticides isn't as e...

"Evo-Devo" + Epigenetics If our environment has a direct correlation to gene development, then I'm curious to learn more about epigentics (a branch of evo-devo) and transgenerational inherited trauma. Epigenetic researchers who focus on the genetic transmission of trauma look at historical trauma (i.e. slavery or the Holocaust), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and how it is passed down through family genes, affecting varying aspects of their offsprings livelihood. This can impact the future generation's life expectancy, resiliency to diseases and capacity to respond to stressors. I also think about the implications this has on the physical and mental health of descendants of colonized and displaced people.  Although most studies on epigenetics are on descendants of survivors of traumatic events that happened decades ago, t, I think about the individuals today who are constantly re-exposed to their traumatic environments such as those living in Palestine and...

Introduction Greeting ACCHS Western Sciences Community,     My name is Verma Zapanta and I am a first year student at ACCHS. Although I've been attending the course since the beginning of the trimester, I just enrolled in the class and am slowly catching up with the workload in all the Western Science courses that Larry is teaching. =) I worked in education for ten years prior to attending ACCHS as a history teacher, college professor and in youth leadership development.  I transitioned out of teaching because the work became unsustainable and had a significant impact on my wellbeing. I found myself drawn to mental health work and holistic medicine because it supported my own healing.  Acupuncture was the introduction to other modalities of healing and re-connected me to the medicines that exist in my ancestral land of the Philippines.  My goal as a practitioner is to not only practice Chinese medicine, but to continue conversations on wellness within spac...