WebSining Digital Art Contest

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WEBSINING DIGITAL ART: CONTESTING TRADITIONS

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To encourage artistic innovations in the intersection of art and
technology, WebSining introduces a new category to the Digital Art
Contest, Software Art. Also, WebSining encourages the use of free
software and non-proprietary file formats for creating and running the
entries. All entries must articulate the theme of WebSining 2007:
"CONTESTING TRADITIONS."


Categories:


[1] Still Digital Image:

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A digital image is a representation of a two-dimensional image as a
finite set of digital values called picture

elements or pixels. Digital images may be created by a variety of input
devices and techniques, such as digital cameras, scanners, coordinate
measuring machines, seismographic profiling, airborne radar, GPS
controllers, etc. Digital images may also be synthesized from non-image
data such as mathematical functions. Suitable submission formats are:
JPEG, GIF, PNG at 72-96dpi and at least 1024x768ppi screen
resolutions.


[2] Digital Animation:

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In a digital animation, moving images are created via the use of
computers as opposed to traditional cell animation where each frame is
drawn by hand. Digital animation may be created by means of 3D computer
graphics or 2D computer graphics, and may be created for output on
computer, or another medium such as video or film. Animation created via
computers combines vector graphics with programmed movement.
Suitable

submission formats must be web-browser viewable such as: Open-source
Flash (FLV), OGG video, Flash Movie, Director Shockwave, QuickTime AVI,
Java applet, and others. Animation sequence must be within 30 seconds
only. A storyboard (in JPEG, GIF, or PNG at 72-96dpi and at least
1024x768ppi screen resolutions) must accompany the entries.


[3] Software Art:

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Software art is the confluence of two very distinct realms:
"software" and "art." Software art is an art form
that uses instruction code, algorithms or rules as its medium. Software
art may be written in C, Java, hypertext markup language, or other
programming or scripting languages, and its aesthetic concerns may also
be drawn from characteristics of software. Suitable formats are: Java
applet, executable, HTML, ascii, and others. Source code must be
submitted with the entries.


Please note that the sending of malicious code is punishable under the
Electronic Commerce Act (RA 8792).


Contest Mechanics:

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1. Contest is open to all Filipino citizens, 16 years old and
above.  Members of the CVA, NCCA Secretariat and competition judges
are disqualified from joining the contest.


2. Contestants may join in the three categories but allowed only one
entry per category.


3. Beginning October 15, 2006, contest entries with Entry Forms must be
submitted via Email to
websining@gmail.com. Entrants
will receive a confirmation receipt of their submissions.


4. Deadline of submission of entries is extended until December 30,
2006.


5. Only original artworks shall be accepted. Awards given to works that
are subsequently proven to be non-original will be revoked/reclaimed
without prejudice to other legal actions.


6. One winner per category will be voted by a panel of two judges with a
final third vote from the results of a public vote through the NCCA
WebSining website
(http://www.ncca.gov.ph). Public
voting will be from January 4-15, 2007. Only one vote per person will be
counted.


7. Special citation awards may also be given by the panel of judges based
on technical innovation or transcending the contest theme.


8. Winners in the Digital Image and Software Art categories will receive
PhP50,000.00 each, and the winner in the Digital Animation category will
receive PhP75,000.00.


9. The decision of the panel of judges shall be final and not subject to
appeal. All entries will be exhibited on the WebSining website and will
be included in the CD Catalogue.


10. Announcement of winners, exhibition and awarding of prizes shall be
in February 2007.


11. All Cash Prizes will be subject to 20% tax. All entries may be used
by the NCCA for purposes it may deem appropriate.


Visit
www.ncca.gov.ph
for contest details. Entry Forms may be downloaded from the NCCA website
or from Korakora Projects
(
http://www.korakora.org/projects/?q=node/203).

Railroading the Cha-Cha

From the e-Mandirigma himself, Mr. Enteng Romano.
Yes, it is disgusting in the way they want to hold on to power...

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It's enough to make you revolt, if not in arms, then in disgust.

I refer, of course, to the proceedings in Congress last night where they shamelessly changed the rules to pave the way for transforming Congress into a constituent assembly (Con-Ass), even without Senate concurrence.

The brazenness by which they are ramming their way towards a parliamentary form of government is the strongest argument against it. These are the very same people who will run parliament - concentrating the powers of both the legislative and the executive in one body, and using their numerical superiority to subvert rules and defy common decency.

Why the rush? So they can schedule a plebiscite that they can cheat through which will in turn serve as basis to cancel the May elections; they're running out of time. So they can defer to the demand of their chief benefactor - GMA, who is scared to death of an opposition dominated Congress after the May elections; she wants the elections cancelled at all cost. So they can extend their own term and stay in power without having to spend for an expensive election. You only have to watch the live coverage for 10 minutes to come to the same conclusion.

It makes me cringe whenever they call each other honorable and gentlemen. It makes me aggravated to see Lagman and Villafuerte inflict their antics upon Congress, instead of attending to their constituencies ravaged by one of the worst calamities that hit our nation in recent times. And it makes me wonder how they can muster the gall to blatantly pervert the law for their own ends, totally oblivious of public opinion and mocking all sensibilities.

The answer is quite simple... we have not raised our voices, not even a whimper, whenever they trampled our democratic processes, each time calibrating it with more impunity when they see no resistance from an
indifferent citizenry.

What, then?

You can opt to keep silent, and watch events pass by. Soon, you'll have parliament. And if that still does not satisfy their lust for power, martial law can not be far behind. Whatever the form, the killings will continue,
our rights trampled even more, and more institutions will be compromised.  If you can live with that, fine.

Or you can rise and declare, "enough is enough". At the very least, you should watch the live coverage on ANC (or TFC, if you're out of the country) and be scandalized with the proceedings. And when you're upset enough with what you're watching, you just might build up the courage to go to the Batasan and proclaim face-to-face with the dishonorable men of Congress your utter disgust.

You can also text your friends to watch ANC or join you at the Batasan, forward this mail to your friends, family, and egroups, write/email your congressman or local priest, or simply tell everyone within your sphere of influence that you will no longer take this sitting down. Enough is enough.

We may not be able to do anything to stop a natural calamity like typhoon Reming. But we can certainly do something to prevent a man-made calamity about to happen.

It's time to step up and be counted.

God bless,

enteng

Be nice to Mother Nature - Recycle!

Start:	Dec 8, '06 08:00a
End:	Dec 8, '06 3:00p
Location:	Goldcrest Parking Lot, Ayala Center, Makati City

If you have junk at home or in the office, maybe it's time to clean up your storage rooms for the holidays and the coming new year, you could go there and sell/dispose the following items at the waste market.

Non-traditional wastes

- Junk electronic and electrical equipment and appliances
- CPU (complete/incomplete/case) and monitors
- Printers, scanners, fax, etc
- Motherboards, PC/telecom cards, printer/med grade boards, harddisk,power/ monitor boards
- Old/obsolete/broken Betamax, VHS, DVD players
- Microwave ovens, toasters
- Electric fans
- Other office and household equipment and appliances
- Used ink/toner printer cartridges, dot matrix ribbon cartridges
- Used acid-lead batteries and rechargeable lamps
- Used/damaged cds, vcds, VHS, betamax and radio cassette tapes
- Busted tivoli (Christmas) lights
- Used oil (for registration - do not bring to the area)
- Styrofoam (polystyrene) and other packaging materials (for donation)
- Cellphone and cellphone batteries (for donation only)

Traditional Waste

- Used paper and cartons (newpapers, komiks, notebooks, reports, old test papers, phone directories, etc)
- Damaged/broken plastic furniture, containers, bottles, etc.
- (anything plastic!)
- Aluminum and tin cans (soda/food cans)

You can also exchange these traditional waste items for new products, such as 5 kilos of cartons can give you 4 rolls of double-ply tissue paper, or 5 kilos of plastics or 1/2 kilo (30 pcs) of aluminum beverage cans can be exchanged for 1 dozen of hangers, and other trading promos that you can avail of.

These events are organized to help promote recycling in the Philippines. Also, by selling your junk or still useful waste to accredited recyclers,we lessen the amount of trash that go directly to landfills or illegal dumping/recycling. What better way to dispose of your junk at the same time help protect our environment.

These events are organized by the host cities in collaboration with the Philippine Business for the Environment, Ayala Foundation, National Solid Waste Management Commission and DENR.

If you have any questions, please call 752-1084/1178 (adel/tin/jess) or 635-3670/2651 (nancy).

DON'T BE A JUNKIE!!! Kick the habit of throwing away still useful materials.

US Scholarships

Gates Millennium Scholars

There are three components of the GMS scholarship nomination process:
(1) A Nominee Personal Information Form to be completed by the student,
(2) A Nominator Form to be completed by a principal, teacher, guidance counselor or other professional educator, and
(3) A Recommender Form to be completed by an adult who is familiar with the Nominee's community service and leadership activities.

Nominations and recommendations from relatives will not be accepted.

Students are eligible to be considered for a GMS scholarship if they:
- Are African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American or Hispanic American
- Are citizens/legal permanent residents or nationals of the United States
- Have attained a cumulative GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (unweighted)
- Will be enrolling for the first-time at a U.S. accredited college or university as full time, degree-seeking first year students in the Fall of 2007
- Have demonstrated leadership abilities through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities
- Meet the Federal Pell Grant eligibility criteria. (Eligibility for Federal Pell Grant can only be determined through the submission of a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to the U.S.. Department of Education, Feder
- Have all three required forms (Nominee Personal Information Form, Nominator Form, and Recommender Form) completed and submitted by the deadline.

If you have any questions, please contact Ryan Edgar, GMS/APIASF Outreach Coordinator, at
gmsoutreach@apiasf.org or
via phone at (toll free) 1-866-274-4677 ext. 9.


Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund

There are two components to the APIASF scholarship nomination process:
(1) a student portion and
(2) the Recommendation form that is to be completed by a principal, teacher, guidance counselor, other professional educator, or an adult is who familiar with the student. Recommendations from relatives will not be accepted.

Both forms must be completed and submitted in the same method. Both the student and his/her recommender must either complete and mail the hard
copy forms or complete and submit the online forms.

Students are eligible to be considered for an APIASF Scholarship if they:
- Are of Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity as defined by the 2000 Census.
- Are U.S. citizens, U.S. Nationals, legal permanent residents, or citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands, or the Republic of Palau.
- Are first-time, incoming college students in the Fall of 2007.
- Are enrolled full-time in a two or four-year program at a U.S. accredited college or university in the U.S., Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for the 2007-2008 school year (enrollment is verified in the Spring of 2007). In the Freely Associated States, this includes the community colleges of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau.
- Have a cumulative, unweighted grade point average (GPA) of 2.7 or higher on a 4.0 scale, or the G.E.D. equivalent.

If you have any questions, please contact
Bindi Patel, APIASF
Scholarship Associate, at
bindi@apiasf.org
or via phone at (toll free) 1-877-808-7032.

The deadline of January 12, 2007, 11:59 pm EST for the 2007-2008 Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) and Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF) Nomination Processes is fast approaching!

For more information about GMS and/or to start the online nomination process, visit www.gmsp.org.

For more information about APIASF and/or to start the online nomination process, visit www.apiasf.org.

You can also download the nomination materials from the websites.

Materials may be submitted either on-line by January 12, 2007, 11:59 p.m. EST or postmarked on or before January 12, 2007.

New US Citizenship Exam

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/01/washington/01citizen.html?th=&emc=th&pagewanted=print


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http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/01/washington/01citizen.html?th=&emc=th&pagewanted=print
>



December 1, 2006

New Citizens Will Need Deeper Knowledge

By HOLLI
CHMELA


WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 ­ The federal government rolled out a new citizenship
test Thursday to replace an exam that critics say has encouraged
prospective Americans simply to memorize facts, rather than fully
understand the principles of a democracy.


The exam will be assessed in a pilot program in 10 cities beginning early
next year.


Gone are these questions: “How many stripes are there in the flag?”;
“What color are the stripes on the flag?”; “What do the stripes on the
flag represent?”; and the obvious, “What are the colors of our flag?” The
new exam rephrases the questions to focus on what the stripes represent,
asking, “Why do we have 13 stripes on the flag?” or “Why does the flag
have 13 stripes?” (The answer: Because the stripes represent the original
13 colonies).


“Our goal is to inspire immigrants to learn about the civic values of
this nation so that after they take the oath of citizenship they will
participate fully in our great democracy,” said Emilio Gonzalez, director
of the Citizenship and

Immigration Services, which has been working since 2000 to develop a
new test.


The result is 144 questions on civics and history, including 57 rephrased
questions from the current exam. (All the questions are available on the
agency’s Web site, www.uscis.gov).



The exam will be administered in the same way, with an applicant asked to
answer orally 10 questions chosen by the examiner. Six correct answers
are required to pass. According to the citizenship agency, about 600,000
immigrants pass the test and are naturalized each year.


The revised test will be introduced in a pilot program in 10 cities
chosen for their geographic range and high percentage of immigrants.
Applicants will be asked to volunteer to take the pilot exam and will
have the option of taking the current exam if they fail the new
one.


Officials say the goal of the pilot program is to assess the
effectiveness of the exam and refine the exam’s questions or answers.
Before the new test is implemented nationwide in 2008, it will be pared
down to the current number of 100 questions.


The exam will be tested in Albany; Boston; Charleston, S.C.; Denver; El
Paso; Kansas City, Mo.; Miami; San Antonio; Tucson; and Yakima,
Wash.


In developing the revised exam, the agency worked with test development
contractors, history and government scholars and experts in English as a
second language to improve ways to focus on an analytical understanding
of the acceptable answers.


“The current exam did not elicit enough civics knowledge and values we as
Americans hold true,” said Chris Rhatigan, a spokeswoman for the
citizenship agency. “At the end of the test, there was no demonstrable
knowledge that the new citizens were ready to participate in our
government on the federal, state or community level.”


Ellen Mercer, a senior program officer at the U.S. Committee for Refugees
and Immigrants, an advocacy organization that was part of a focus group
about the revisions, said, “The purpose of redesigning the test is to
make it more meaningful ­ and also to update it ­ for the people applying
for U.S. citizenship.”


The current exam has not been changed since 1986. Before that, no
official test existed.


Besides the oral questions, the revised exam, like the 1986 version,
gives applicants three chances to read and write a sentence correctly in
English. But the sentences focus exclusively on civics and history rather
than on a range of topics, and to prepare for the test, applicants will
be given study materials and a civics-based vocabulary list.


Another way the two exams differ is that the new questions will be
weighed by level of difficulty to ensure that each exam tests equivalent
knowledge. How the questions will be weighted will be determined by the
results of the pilot program. Part of the pilot program includes training
test administrators to make the process fairer and more consistent
nationwide.


The

Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Citizenship “has done
everything imaginable to make the test more meaningful, but not more
difficult,” Ms. Mercer said.


Several advocacy organizations are reviewing the exam to determine
whether the level of English is appropriate and whether the civics
questions are understandable.


“We all want to look at the questions carefully to ensure fairness and
compliance of the law,” said Rosalind Gold, a senior director at the
National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.


Ms. Gold added that while the citizenship agency had made progress in
ensuring that the exam was administered fairly, “there needs to be
continued improvement in training examiners so they don’t abuse the
discretion they’re given to administer exams.”