Medical Technology is constantly evolving. Every day new machines that allow the enhancement of medical procedures are crated. In this matter veterinary is obviously behind human medicine. Chile in particular is quite behind other countries. For example some exams have to be done abroad since laboratories here don’t have the sufficient technology.
I think the university needs to invest more money on new technologies that will allow us to improve the quality of both our diagnostics and treatments.
In terms of social matters I think Chile is still a challenged country. A lot of people here still don’t consider animals as beings with rights and animal life remains under valuated. This leads to the fact that a lot of owners opt for the euthanasia of their sick pets despite the existence of other alternatives. Animals also get abandoned very often and clandestine dog fights are still happening. Owners are also not responsible enough with theirs pets. Dogs for example usually leave their houses completely unsupervised and the fact that most of them have not been castrated only serves to increase dog population.
I think this problem is completely related to education. Children should be taught from a very young age to respect animal life, they should also learn about the responsibilities that owning a pet implies.
Our discipline also faces tremendous problems in terms of its education.
In Chile there are currently more than 20 veterinary faculties. The government does not supervise the study plan for any of them. Faculties can then teach whatever they want, and some students finish the career without the proper knowledge. These veterinarians may then prescribe inappropriate treatments to some of their patients (this actually happens a lot).
I consider that once they finish their career, veterinary students ought to present a national test that evaluates how well prepared they are. This way, veterinarians from all over the country will be required to know the same.
~
domingo, 20 de junio de 2010
sábado, 12 de junio de 2010
- - Tiger abuse in Chinese zoo - -
The news item I chose for this assignment recounts about a Chinese Zoo that was closed down due to the death of 11 Siberian Tigers and to the fact that it was accused of selling tonics made of tiger body parts.
Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo was a semi-private institution that started to reduce food rations due to financial problems. The investigation on said zoo began after 11 Siberian tigers died of starvation in the space of 6 months. Apparently the keepers were feeding them cheap chicken pieces because the zoo was short of money. The institution was also accused of providing tiger bones and penises to manufacturers of traditional chinese medicines (despite being a ban on such kind of trade). One of the zoo employees actually stated that since 2000 around 40 to 50 tigers died in the zoo and the fact that their bones were being used to produce tiger-bone-wine was something pretty much everybody knew. The zoo spended more money on the purchase and maintenance of freezers (used to preserve saleable tiger parts) than on the food required by the felines.
Sadly this situation seems to be quite common in China, around 6,000 to 10,000 animals are currently being sheltered by institutions that only pose as breeding centers (their real objective being the farming and marketing of animal parts). The investigation started by the authorities will also examine the situation in which other captive-breeding business are. The paper actually discovered that more than 1,000 captive tigers are in danger of sufering malnourishment.
One of the problems lies within the fact that China has no laws against animal cruelty and the government does not supervise breeding centers. Therefore anyone with enough funds can build a zoo or a wildlife park and do whatever they please with the animals in it. Nevertheless, the government announced that captive breeding system will be re-evaluated if the investigation reveals such abuse to be happening in other centers.
I personally consider this to be awful news. The Chinese government really ought to regularly inspect zoos (specially the ones sheltering endangered species). I also think Chinese people should think about the effect that some of their traditions have on animal welfare (after all, animal parts trade survives because of the public’s demand). I do realize however how difficult this is.
PS: Here's the Link to the news item -> http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/17/chinese-zoo-tiger
PS2: I guess I'll ask Nacho and Simon to review this. Tere is welcome to do so too of course!! =D
~
Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo was a semi-private institution that started to reduce food rations due to financial problems. The investigation on said zoo began after 11 Siberian tigers died of starvation in the space of 6 months. Apparently the keepers were feeding them cheap chicken pieces because the zoo was short of money. The institution was also accused of providing tiger bones and penises to manufacturers of traditional chinese medicines (despite being a ban on such kind of trade). One of the zoo employees actually stated that since 2000 around 40 to 50 tigers died in the zoo and the fact that their bones were being used to produce tiger-bone-wine was something pretty much everybody knew. The zoo spended more money on the purchase and maintenance of freezers (used to preserve saleable tiger parts) than on the food required by the felines.
Sadly this situation seems to be quite common in China, around 6,000 to 10,000 animals are currently being sheltered by institutions that only pose as breeding centers (their real objective being the farming and marketing of animal parts). The investigation started by the authorities will also examine the situation in which other captive-breeding business are. The paper actually discovered that more than 1,000 captive tigers are in danger of sufering malnourishment.
One of the problems lies within the fact that China has no laws against animal cruelty and the government does not supervise breeding centers. Therefore anyone with enough funds can build a zoo or a wildlife park and do whatever they please with the animals in it. Nevertheless, the government announced that captive breeding system will be re-evaluated if the investigation reveals such abuse to be happening in other centers.
I personally consider this to be awful news. The Chinese government really ought to regularly inspect zoos (specially the ones sheltering endangered species). I also think Chinese people should think about the effect that some of their traditions have on animal welfare (after all, animal parts trade survives because of the public’s demand). I do realize however how difficult this is.
PS: Here's the Link to the news item -> http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/17/chinese-zoo-tiger
PS2: I guess I'll ask Nacho and Simon to review this. Tere is welcome to do so too of course!! =D
~
domingo, 6 de junio de 2010
~~ Our Faculty ~~
I consider that our faculty has several infrastructure problems. Currently the faculty has 2 computer labs, 1 cafeteria, 1 library and 1 common area for the students to just spend their time. Considering this, there are some things that need improvement.
First of all there is the space problem. Our common areas are to small and do not have the capacity to shelter all the students in the faculty. For example, the cafeteria. If we take into account the number of students the faculty has, then it becomes quite obvious that the cafeteria does not provide enough space for everyone. It’s small which forces a lot of students to have their lunch in the campus outdoor areas, this is not a big deal during summer, but when winter comes and temperature strats to decrease and rain becomes more frequent then it does become an issue. We have the same problem with the library, like the cafeteria, the library is way to small, I don’t think that it has room for more than 70 people, so te problem is the same, students then have to study outdoors. Then, there’s the common area issue. The faculty has only one common area for students, it is located between to the xerox machines and the student council and is – quite frankly- ridiculously small. The common area only has one couch (usually used by the faculty dogs), one coffee table and one TV that apparently, is broken. So when it rains, student’s only choices for shelter are the cafeteria and the library which I already established are to small.
Another big problem we have is that we don’t have anything to distract ourselves with. The cafeteria used to have pool tables and some video games, but they were all removed after some parents made a complaint about them, stating that the games would distract us from our studies. I considered the measure to be extremely unfair (students need distractions!, we are not robots!).
Lastly, I have to mention the cafeteria again. This time my complaint is not about the space, it’s about the food. The cafeteria serves and extremely monotonous and expensive menu. We should have more options and the hygiene with which meals are prepared also needs to improve.
In order to improve all of these things the faculty should probably invest money in the construction of new common areas as well as in the enlargement of the cafeteria and library. I think this would bring a lot of benefits to the students. For example, if students have more places to be in, then the library would not be so cramped and it would be a lot more pleasant to study there.
~
First of all there is the space problem. Our common areas are to small and do not have the capacity to shelter all the students in the faculty. For example, the cafeteria. If we take into account the number of students the faculty has, then it becomes quite obvious that the cafeteria does not provide enough space for everyone. It’s small which forces a lot of students to have their lunch in the campus outdoor areas, this is not a big deal during summer, but when winter comes and temperature strats to decrease and rain becomes more frequent then it does become an issue. We have the same problem with the library, like the cafeteria, the library is way to small, I don’t think that it has room for more than 70 people, so te problem is the same, students then have to study outdoors. Then, there’s the common area issue. The faculty has only one common area for students, it is located between to the xerox machines and the student council and is – quite frankly- ridiculously small. The common area only has one couch (usually used by the faculty dogs), one coffee table and one TV that apparently, is broken. So when it rains, student’s only choices for shelter are the cafeteria and the library which I already established are to small.
Another big problem we have is that we don’t have anything to distract ourselves with. The cafeteria used to have pool tables and some video games, but they were all removed after some parents made a complaint about them, stating that the games would distract us from our studies. I considered the measure to be extremely unfair (students need distractions!, we are not robots!).
Lastly, I have to mention the cafeteria again. This time my complaint is not about the space, it’s about the food. The cafeteria serves and extremely monotonous and expensive menu. We should have more options and the hygiene with which meals are prepared also needs to improve.
In order to improve all of these things the faculty should probably invest money in the construction of new common areas as well as in the enlargement of the cafeteria and library. I think this would bring a lot of benefits to the students. For example, if students have more places to be in, then the library would not be so cramped and it would be a lot more pleasant to study there.
~
domingo, 23 de mayo de 2010
~~ Sea Otters!! ~~
I’m not really good when it comes to choosing favourites (specially if we are talking about animals). The number of animals I love is considerably large so choosing just one is kind of dificult. Nevertheless, for the purpose of this assignment I decided to pick the Sea Otter. I found out about the existence of this adorable animal after watching a documentary about them on cable (I can’t remember if it was on National Geographic, Discovery Channel or Animal Planet).
The sea otter is a marine mammal that lives in the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. They inhabit nearshore environments, they can measure from 1.0 to 1.5 m and weight from14 to 45 kg.
Otters are generally considered to be semi-aquatic animals since they spend some time in the water (mainly when they forage) and some time on land. But, unlike their relatives, sea otters spend almost all of their time in the ocean. One might think then that in order to keep their body warmth otters would have developed a very thick fat layer, but that is not the case. To do such thing they depend completely on their fur, which is actually the densest in all animal kingdom (they have up to 150,000 hair strands per square centimeter, this allows them to keep cold water away from the skin which reduces heat loss). It is due to the importance of their fur that otters spend most of their time grooming (they clean it, untangle knots, squeeze the water out of it allowing the entrance of air, etc...)
They prey upon marine invertebrates such as sea urchins, molluscs, crustaceans, and fish. A curious fact about them is that in order to dislodge their preys out of their shells they use rocks. This makes them one of the very few mammals that uses tools.
They don’t have a very complex social system. Each male has a particular territory wich he defends, and females can move freely between these territories. They also forage independently but form single sex groups when they want to rest. To keep from drifting apart when sleeping they may hold paws or wrap themselves in kelp (a type of seaweed).
In terms of reproduction otters are polygamist animals (a male can mate with several females), and both mating and birth of the pups take place in the water.
Sadly between 1741 and 1911 otters were hunted because of their beautiful fur. The hunt was so extensive that otter population fell from about 300,000 to near 2,000 individuals. Currently their number has increased considerably thanks to the fact that they are now a protected species and to several conservation effors. To protect and help with the resurgence of this species is something that I would love to do since the protection of endangered species is one of the areas that interest me the most about veterinary.
PS: If you feel like it and you have a little time... you can watch this incredibly cute video that shows two otters holding paws in an aquarium in Canada.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epUk3T2Kfno
~
lunes, 17 de mayo de 2010
~ where to go in Santiago ~
I don’t consider Santiago to be a very interesting city to visit since we really don’t take much care of our historical buildings or public places (to my mind Chile in general is nice place to visit in terms of landscapes). But still, there are some places that you can go if you’re a tourist visiting Santiago.
First of all. When visiting Santiago one must consider it’s history. For example a very important fact to take into acount is that Chile was ruled by a military regime for almost 20 years. Considering this there are several places related to that subject that one can visit. Such are the “Memory and human rights museum” (“Museo de la memoria y de los derechos humanos” in spanish), “Grimaldi villa” (“Villa Grimaldi” in spanish), and the “Memorial to the detainees and disappeared” (“Memorial a los detenidos desaparecidos” in spanish) located in the General Cementery of Santiago.
The “Memory and human rights museum” exposes some of the human rights’s violations that took place in Chile between 1973 and 1990. “Grimaldi villa” is an extensive property that was used during the dictatorship as a detention and torture center. Currently it’s a “park to the peace” that honors all the women and men that were murdered there. The “Memorial to the detainees and disappeared” is a very large wall that has the names hundreds of victims of the regime. The memorial is located in the General Cementery of Santiago. This Cementery is actually another place that should be visited if you’re a tourist. The General Cementery was founded in 1821 by Bernando O’Higgings and holds a great architectural value. Besides some of Chile’s most famous personalities were buried there (such as Salvador Allende, Violeta Parra, Victor Jara, Manuel Rodriguez and many more).
Going further back in Chile’s history takes us to another place that should be visited. I’m talking about the “Nacional Maipu Sanctuary” (“Santuario Nacional de Maipú” in spanish. It’s most commonly known as “El Templo votivo de Maipú”). This catholic temple was built by orders of Bernardo O’Higgings in the exact same place that the battle that assured Chile’s independence took place. This was done as a payment to the virgin to whom O’Higgins swore that if she helped them win the battle he would build her a temple.
Other places that should be visited are San Cristobal Hill (there you can visit the National Zoo and the statue of Virgin Mary) , Santa Lucía Hill, and “La Chaschona” (the house of the famous poet Pablo Neruda).
~
First of all. When visiting Santiago one must consider it’s history. For example a very important fact to take into acount is that Chile was ruled by a military regime for almost 20 years. Considering this there are several places related to that subject that one can visit. Such are the “Memory and human rights museum” (“Museo de la memoria y de los derechos humanos” in spanish), “Grimaldi villa” (“Villa Grimaldi” in spanish), and the “Memorial to the detainees and disappeared” (“Memorial a los detenidos desaparecidos” in spanish) located in the General Cementery of Santiago.
The “Memory and human rights museum” exposes some of the human rights’s violations that took place in Chile between 1973 and 1990. “Grimaldi villa” is an extensive property that was used during the dictatorship as a detention and torture center. Currently it’s a “park to the peace” that honors all the women and men that were murdered there. The “Memorial to the detainees and disappeared” is a very large wall that has the names hundreds of victims of the regime. The memorial is located in the General Cementery of Santiago. This Cementery is actually another place that should be visited if you’re a tourist. The General Cementery was founded in 1821 by Bernando O’Higgings and holds a great architectural value. Besides some of Chile’s most famous personalities were buried there (such as Salvador Allende, Violeta Parra, Victor Jara, Manuel Rodriguez and many more).
Going further back in Chile’s history takes us to another place that should be visited. I’m talking about the “Nacional Maipu Sanctuary” (“Santuario Nacional de Maipú” in spanish. It’s most commonly known as “El Templo votivo de Maipú”). This catholic temple was built by orders of Bernardo O’Higgings in the exact same place that the battle that assured Chile’s independence took place. This was done as a payment to the virgin to whom O’Higgins swore that if she helped them win the battle he would build her a temple.
Other places that should be visited are San Cristobal Hill (there you can visit the National Zoo and the statue of Virgin Mary) , Santa Lucía Hill, and “La Chaschona” (the house of the famous poet Pablo Neruda).
~
domingo, 9 de mayo de 2010
Death Penalty
Some people belive that murderers should be paid with the same treatment they gave their victims. Some argue that by not doing so we somehow send the message that the lives of the victims are less important than the murderer’s life.
Others that defend death penalty as a suitable penalization (not only for murderers but also for rapists for example) consider it a necessary measure as it may work as exemplary punishment. This has apparently been proved to be a wrong approach in the matters of reducing crime.
People against capital punishment belive that we really have no right to take somebody’s life even if they took the liberty to do so. Considering this, death penalty would only serve the purpose of revenge and not justice. Some against it even argue that murderers should have the oportunity to be rehabilitated and reintroduced to society if possible.
To be honest I don’t really know very well what to think of it. I tend to be against it (because to my mind maybe just dying is kind of like an easy way out as opposed to be forced to live the rest of your life deprived of your freedom). But I can’t say that if I ever face the situation of a loved one being murdered by someone, that I wouldn’t want that person to die. I think that just like with most controversial topics one’s opinion changes according to one’s personal experience.
~
Others that defend death penalty as a suitable penalization (not only for murderers but also for rapists for example) consider it a necessary measure as it may work as exemplary punishment. This has apparently been proved to be a wrong approach in the matters of reducing crime.
People against capital punishment belive that we really have no right to take somebody’s life even if they took the liberty to do so. Considering this, death penalty would only serve the purpose of revenge and not justice. Some against it even argue that murderers should have the oportunity to be rehabilitated and reintroduced to society if possible.
To be honest I don’t really know very well what to think of it. I tend to be against it (because to my mind maybe just dying is kind of like an easy way out as opposed to be forced to live the rest of your life deprived of your freedom). But I can’t say that if I ever face the situation of a loved one being murdered by someone, that I wouldn’t want that person to die. I think that just like with most controversial topics one’s opinion changes according to one’s personal experience.
~
domingo, 2 de mayo de 2010
~ The Land of the Rising Suuuun~
Picking a country to write this assignment was a bit difficult since there a Lot of places I would like to visit, such as, Switzerland, New Zeland, Australia, Greece, China, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, England, Scotland, and well... actually pretty much all Europe.
But if I had to choose a place to start, I guess it could be Japan. I’ve been dying to go there for quite some time now. Japan is an archipelado (a chain of islands) composed of 6,852 islands, the bigger four being Hokkaidō, Honshū (the main one), Shikoku and Kyūshū.
I’m highly interested in their ancient culture, customs and landscapes. Curiously the technological aspect of the country doesn’t interest me at all.
One of things that I would like to do there is to attend a Kabuki play (a form of highly stylized classical theater) and a tea ceremony. I would also like to visit an Ikebana museum (Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement) and if possible I would love to learn how to make flower arrangements myself, although this is a little more complicated since Ikebana implies a lot more than just putting flowers togheter, it’s actually a very complex discipline. Other places I would absolutely have to go if I ever travel to Japan are Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples (Shintō and Buddhism are Japan’s two main religions).
It would also be nice to spend new year there and visit a temple on January 1st (this is a tradition know as Hatsumōde).
During the year many festivals take place in Japan. Attending these is another of the activities that I would like to do there. For example I would like to attend Sapporo’s snow festival, lake Shikotsu’s ice festival, lake Towada’s snow festival (these 3 are held during February since they include ice sculptures exhibitions) , Aomori Nebuta festival, and Hanabi (also known as the cherry blossom festival). I would also like to visit some traditional hot springs (known as Onsen in Japan) and Mount Fuji (the highest mountain in Japan and also an active volcano).
Of course my visit to Japan wouldn’t just involve activities related to old traditions. I would also like to visit a particular Tokyo neighborhood called Akihabara. There I could buy lots of mangas and anime DVD’s. Being in Japan would also allow me to attend several concerts of artists I like that pretty much only perform there.
Another mandatory stop is TokyoTower. Tokyo Tower is a very popular communication and observation tower located – as the name itself says it- in Tokyo. It’s structure was actually inspired by the Eiffel Tower.
Something I have to clarify is that eventhough I would absolutely love to visit Japan and spend some time there I don’t think that I would actually like to live there or at least not in a big city. Japan is an extremely high populated country (about 30 million people live just in the Tokyo area) and I wouldn’t stand to live in such a crowded place.
~
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