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Historically speaking, there have been many disputes in the South China Sea due to claims of sovereignty for the islands, shoals, and reefs residing there. One of these is Scarborough shoal. Scarborough shoal has been fought over China and the Philippines since the 1960’s, although, what is Scarborough shoal? It is referred to as Panatag shoal or Bajo de Masinloc by Filipinos and Huangyan by China, it has the coordinates of latitude 15°08’N and longitude 117°45’E, and measures over 150 square kilometers. The reason it is being fought over by the countries is because of its rich natural resources and it is a popular fishing ground. Both countries claim sovereignty of the shoal through historical claims, however the Philippines also cites that the shoal falls under its 200-mile exclusive economic zone as specified by the United Nations convention on the Law of the Sea. It states in UNCLOS that if the island or islands fall within a nation’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone, it gives the nation the right to exploit the living and nonliving resources it encompasses. It also states, “Under the LOS Convention, the state holding valid legal title to sovereignty over an island is permitted to establish a twelve-mile territorial sea and a 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) around that island”(UNCLOS, 1982). In short, the Philippines has the right to use Scarborough shoal’s natural resources but technically is not given legal title to sovereignty since the shoal is 118 nautical miles west of the mainland instead of the territorial sea instead of the 12 miles that will give it undeniable sovereignty, meaning the shoal considered independent.

The main problem with these disputes is that they have reached a level of vehemence. Both states try to monopolize the fishing grounds, and use violent means of ejecting the others. The most ideal solution here is to solve the dispute through diplomatic means. Meaning, since Scarborough shoal is neither legitimately under China nor the Philippines, they must agree to share the shoal. However, there is one problem here. It has already been done. During 1996 the former presiding presidents, Jiang Zemin and Fidel Ramos signed a code of conduct to solve the dispute by peaceful means and agreed to share resources, although, even after the signing, conflict still went on on the fishing ground and both countries’ fishermen, were end up hurt. This shows that the purposes of the signing were ineffective and the promises made there useless. China later stated, “As for the difference between the two countries, China still advocates solving the problem by friendly consultations in line with the principle seeking common development while putting aside differences” (Jiang, 2000). He stated this because often times, Chinese fishermen were usually kicked out by the Philippine navy or Philippine fishermen. Which intern shows either the disregard to presidential decrees or lack of discipline of the people, passive leadership in the part of the Philippines. Although at the same time, China would use violent means of fighting, and actions of both parties would further foster the clash.

The Risks of Non-Sleep

          Sleep is an essential to learning. Students should then make sure to take time and make sure that their body clock is healthily working for them every day. However, due to the demands of college life, a balance between staying awake and keeping asleep has always been a challenge.  Most students are confronted with the question on how they are going to solve their sleep deprivation problems.

          Some of the consequences of sleep deprivation and which could possibly be a risk to the student in his daily activities are the following: sleepy mornings, unproductive and stressful days, mood swings, unhealthy lifestyle and different health risks. 

          The above are just some of the effects of sleep deprivation being experienced by most college students. It occurs when an individual lacks enough sleep because of too much class hours and school requirements, personal commitments and health problems; or maybe plainly just the lack of proper time management. As a result, they do not meet the average or required hours of sleep which is around seven to nine hours depending on their age which could lead to more serious physical, mental, emotional and psychological problems.

The Struggles of Keeping Awake

           How does one keeps himself wide-eyed during rest hours? What are the struggles of keeping awake when you must already gave to bed, but decide otherwise because there are more things that needed to be done.

           Research shows that having at least 20-30 minutes of power nap is enough for each day. Long naps can make you feel drowsy and interfere with your evening sleep because you will not feel sleepy at night. Also, if you do such, you will lack self-discipline and might be unproductive as you are tolerating yourself to take a nap more than the average number of minutes.

          Limiting or avoiding your intake or the use of caffeine, nicotine and alcohol, which are stimulants, could also help you to have restful nights and seldom awakenings. Vigorous physical activities should also be lessened or must be avoided before bedtime because it increases a person’s alertness. Thus, it will make us awake during our supposed sleep at night. Making a sleep pattern would also help us to have peaceful nights as we already trained ourselves to sleep and to wake up at a specific time so that we will be organized with the things we have to do each day.

The Classic Solution

          But what is the best solution to this problem? We cannot avoid the number of class hours we have to take everyday and the assignments, quizzes, projects and activities that we have to review and finish for the next day or the following week. We cannot also prevent having personal commitments to our family, friends and special someone. And lastly, we cannot just escape this struggle especially when we have medical problems. Therefore, we must plan our everyday lives and the weeks ahead of us so that we have a control over it and we can be more productive each day with enough required sleep.

            Some of the possible solutions and strategies to cope up with this situation that can be found in different websites and books are avoiding long naps, drinking less caffeine, avoiding or limiting alcohol and nicotine, not doing dynamic physical activities before going to bed, and having a sleep pattern everyday.

            This struggle that most of us are facing is not that hard to avoid. We are the ones choosing what we like to do. We know the solutions to our problems yet we still ought to just ignore them and do the opposite. Sleep deprivation has its solutions. On our part, understanding the solution is not the permanent answers to this perennial problem.

            There is a picture that is very popular to the social media in which it is said that “Good Grades + Enough Sleep = No Social Life; Social Life + Enough Sleep = Bad Grades; Good Grades + Social Life = No Sleep.” This is partially true. But if we really know how to manage our time well and assign only specific days to do the things we have to do then we will achieve a life with less or almost no sleep deprivation problem.

                   Sleep deprivation occurs when a person is not getting enough sleep. An adult is said (American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 2008) to sleep for at least 7 to 8 hours in order to feel well rested. A teenager should get about 9 hours of sleep, while children should get 9 hours of sleep or more. Sleep deprivation is a growing concern because of the prevalence of it. There are various causes of sleep deprivation, mainly, work or school hours, daily obligations, etc. Why is sleep deprivation a growing concern, you ask? Because of its effects, its effects are (to write a few) irritability, anxiety, lack of concentration, and so on. Dettoni et al. (2012) wrote that sleep deprivation can even lead to cardiovascular problems.

                   There are many suggested solutions for sleep deprivation. One of which is cutting down the hours of work or school. This is probably quite impossible because it will result to a change of curriculum and productivity for school and work respectively. The other solution is to have a healthy lifestyle. Which, let’s admit, that is quite a hard task to undertake. The most logical solution for sleep deprivation is time management. Time management is (somewhat) self-explanatory. Time management is planning your day to accommodate every important aspects of your life, and this includes sleep. Most people lack the ability to plan their day effectively, thus leading to an imbalance day and resulting to unhealthy habits.

                     Undeniably, sleep deprivation is a difficult problem to answer. We have different tasks and obligations every day that makes sleep the least of our problems. But, we have to accept that this plethora of articles and journals as the truth. Sleep is important. There is no known substitute for sleep. We may wish to counter sleep with caffeine and other stimulants but they are nothing compared to a good night’s rest.

References

American Academy of Sleep Medicine. (2008). Sleep Deprivation. Retrieved from American Academy of Sleep Medicine: http://www.aasmnet.org/resources/factsheets/sleepdeprivation.pdf

Huan Yang, J. J. (2012). Total sleep deprivation alters cardiovascular reactivity to acute stressors in humans. Journal of Applied Physiology.

Josilene L. Dettoni, F. M.-C.-F. (2012). Cardiovascular effects of partial sleep deprivation in healthy volunteers. Journal of Applied Physiology.

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“The Fast, The Furious”     

     “How could a four-lane highway become so congested?” This would always be a $64 question to me. You would never be a full-fledged Manileño if you have never experienced traffic. It is already given that the traffic situation in the Metro is bad. In a recent survey conducted by Waze, a GPS-based navigation app, Manila was named as having the ‘worst traffic on earth.’ Congested roads and blocked intersections define Metro Manila’s rush hours. It is a harrowing experience to sit down for at least two hours on the bus just to get home. There are numerous causes of the traffic jam in the Philippines. PUVs overloading and racing against each other show how Filipinos lack discipline. They seem to be devoid of road courtesy and it is one cause of traffic. Construction of roads contributes to blockage of roads, especially now that a skyway connecting the NAIA terminals is being built. Bad weather conditions and accidents fall under disturbances that cause vexation among drivers. The real question is: What can be the solutions to ease the traffic in the Philippines specifically in Metro Manila?

     Making the LRT and MRT into a more efficient transportation system would definitely reduce the amount of vehicles on the road. People will choose riding these trains because they are quick. The government should really handle these trains seriously. Then too, it should dictate the bus routes and staff for an effective public system. Sidecars and tricycles should follow the ruling that they are not allowed to ply the highway. There are designated streets only for them.

     EDSA. A main road that causes problems to every commuter and driver who passes there. A skybridge would alleviate traffic woes in EDSA and other roads. It will also decrease travel time during rush hours greatly. Adding lanes is a more common approach to these problems. It would only be effective if the number of cars will not increase by leaps and bounds. HOV lanes or High-occupancy vehicle lanes like those in the United States would also allay the traffic. It is for cars with a certain number of people inside. It resembles a carpool lane.

     Decentralization or developing other areas in the Philippines would lessen population in Manila, thus, reducing traffic. Proper placement or zoning would really help because people would just walk from their house to the school or mall. Changing office hours would reduce the volume of cars during rush hours as well. These are just some long term solutions to the problem.