Mobile connectivity can supercharge careers, but employers need to do better – Telenor Asia study

Wazzup Pilipinas!?




Improved productivity, enhanced career skills and tapping into new business opportunities are just some of the ways people in Asia are turning to their mobile phones to enhance their working lives, according to a study by Telenor Asia.

The study, and second instalment in the “Digital Lives Decoded” series launched in conjunction with Telenor Asia’s 25th anniversary, looks at how respondents across the region are using their mobiles to adapt to changing realities, as new work cultures emerge post-pandemic.

It also examines the changing relationships between employers and employees, highlighting growing concerns over trust and control as hybrid work imposes a physical disconnect between employees and their managers. The study surveyed 8,000 mobile internet users across eight countries (Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) in South and Southeast Asia.

"Our research points to mobile connectivity as an enabler of productivity, progress, flexibility and economic opportunity. Yet, we continue to see gaps in how this technology is used between urban and rural populations, large companies and SMEs, between industries and even between C-suite executives and their junior counterparts. In addition, people remain highly concerned about their skills and ability to keep pace with advancing technology. The aspect of trust is also preventing people from realising their full potential through mobile use in the world of work. As time spent working online increases, our survey findings can help identify the right tools and knowledge to close these gaps and improve digital work lives,” said Jørgen Rostrup, Head of Telenor Asia.

 

1. More Women and C-suite executives say they gain from mobile connectivity for work

Echoing the first instalment of the report, where more women reported that mobile usage significantly improves their lives, 54 percent of women respondents compared to 46 percent men, said their mobile phones also connect them to better job and career opportunities. In Bangladesh, the Philippines, Vietnam and Pakistan, women are leading the way in using their mobile to find new ways of generating an income.

More C-suite executives also said they benefit from mobile use at work, as compared to employees at any other level. Nearly two-thirds (61 percent) of C-suite executives say mobile devices have significantly improved their careers and skills development, compared to 47 percent of junior-level employees. They are also more likely to see productivity gains, with 60 percent of C-suite executives as compared to 52 percent of those at a junior level saying productivity has improved by over 20 percent. Despite this, C-suite executives (53 percent) signalled greater concerns than other employees (39 percent average) about their skills becoming outdated in this fast-paced working environment.




2. Workplace policies and practices lag behind

Almost seven in ten (69 percent) respondents believe that mobile connectivity is ‘very important’ to the success of their organisation. However, a similar number of people (62 percent) feel there are untapped business opportunities that could be exploited with better developed mobile technology infrastructure.

People named a lack of skills and knowledge (49 percent), resistance to changing practices and habits (31 percent) and unhelpful workplace policies (28 percent) as key barriers to fully utilising mobile connectivity at the workplace.

This is supported by 62 percent of respondents stating learning and development as an area in which their employer could improve the use and application of mobile technology; while 54 percent also cited HR systems and processes as another area for improvement.



3. Trust issues on the rise

While employees currently value the impact mobile technology has on their work life (only five percent believe that using their mobile device for work reduces their quality of life), establishing safeguards to bolster trust will be critical for organisations in the pivot to a digital-first economy. This will become even more important in the future, as many of the respondents indicated that they expect, a significant rise in their use of mobile phones for work over the next six to twelve months.

Already, privacy and security (60 percent) and lack of trust in technology (40 percent), are the top concerns flagged by respondents that prevent them from utilising mobile technology for greater benefits at work.



4. Singapore most sceptical about benefits of mobile devices at work

On multiple fronts, respondents in Singapore reported the least significant positive impact of mobile usage on their working lives. Just 35 percent (regional average 55 percent) indicate that mobile devices have improved their personal productivity at work by more than 20 percent, while 69 percent (regional average 90 percent) felt that mobile devices have contributed positively to their skills development in the workplace.

While the majority of respondents across the region still believe that using their mobile devices for work improves quality of life, in Singapore only two in ten felt the improvement is significant – the lowest among all markets surveyed. A notable 11 percent of Singaporean respondents said that mobile phones have reduced or significantly reduced their quality of life.

Science and the supernatural: Filipino folklore through a scientific lens

Wazzup Pilipinas!?




Even with the rise of science and technology, Filipino folklore is still passed on from generation to generation – including stories of creatures and curses that heretofore have seemed scientifically unanswerable.

Filipino folklore is an interesting topic to delve into for scientists as the Philippines’ library of research on such supernatural phenomena continues to grow. Discoveries in science and technology have helped shed light on some folklore beliefs that generations of Filipinos grew up believing in. Scientists and researchers from the University of the Philippines - Diliman College of Science (UPD-CS), as well as from other institutes, have researches that focus on health conditions linked to Filipino folklore, enriching our understanding of what we heretofore could only think of as supernatural.



Tracing the Aswang’s true roots

One of the most feared Filipino supernatural beings is the aswang, a shapeshifter that takes on human form during the day but transforms into a grotesque creature at night that would feast on humans. Aswangs are said to live mainly on Panay Island, particularly in the province of Capiz. But in 1975, Filipino doctors discovered a neurodegenerative disorder there called X-linked Dystonia Parkinsonism (XDP).

People diagnosed with XDP exhibit symptoms of dystonia, such as cramping of the foot and involuntary pulling of the neck. The jerky, seemingly unnatural movement of XDP sufferers could easily lead one to think that they are being possessed by the devil. Then it progresses to Parkinsonism symptoms such as tremors, muscle stiffness, slow movement, and impaired balance and coordination which could sometimes lead to falls.

“The [aswang] myth tried to explain the transformation when these people eventually started to manifest the trait,” said National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (NIMBB) Director Dr. Pia Bagamasbad, who recently published a study on how stress hormones affect the expression of genes of XDP patients. “They [XDP patients] were born normal, they grew up to be normal, then they suddenly transformed, exhibiting these involuntary contractions na parang nagtatransform. Ganoon ‘yung sinasabi na ‘aswang’. Kaya nagkaroon ng myth.”

Dr. Bagamasbad visited Capiz in 2019 for a completely different reason, but talking to the citizens piqued her interest in probing the link between stress and XDP. “‘Yung iba sinasabi na after a very stressful situation, like [typhoon] Yolanda, doon nagsimulang magmanifest ‘yung symptoms,” Dr. Bagamasbad narrated her experience.

XDP is due to a mutation in a gene found on the X-chromosome. Therefore, this disease more commonly affects males. All individuals afflicted by XDP can trace their roots to Panay Island. There is still no cure for XDP yet, but according to a case study on XDP published in the Philippine Medical Association Journal, it is important for this disease to be recognized.

“The patients who suffer from X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism are people who need care and are not supposed to be feared. Perhaps, if the disease becomes common knowledge, the fear will be turned into understanding, the stigma would be abolished, and the patients afflicted with the disease will be given the appropriate management and be given hope,” the study said.



Blindness due to a ‘curse’

Meanwhile, according to ophthalmologist Dr. Ryan Collantes, it is rare for young people to suffer from glaucoma. So he was naturally intrigued when a 16-year-old approached him because of possible glaucoma.

“The patient also offered an interesting history. Both of his siblings were blind in one eye. His father was also blind. In his case, [glaucoma] was a familial disease. I thought that there was a genetic component because there was a strong penetrance of the disease,” said Dr. Collantes in an interview.

Dr. Collantes flew to the patient’s hometown to learn more about the patient’s family history and genetics, only to meet more than 50 family members who had juvenile open-angle glaucoma (JOAG), a rare glaucoma condition.

After collecting blood samples from the family members and analyzing its extracted DNA at the Philippine Genome Center (PGC), Dr. Collantes discovered a new type of mutation that causes glaucoma in affected family members.

His further research on this disease allowed Dr. Collantes to become a research fellow at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear and the Harvard Medical School. He also received the international Dr. David L. Epstein award for clinician-scientists pursuing research on glaucoma.

“These people [with JOAG] think that they’re cursed. But, through this scientific discovery, we proved that they aren’t [cursed]. I want to give patients hope. It means a lot to them that we’re looking into their situation. I want to genuinely look out for them,” Dr. Collantes shared.



The mystery behind kulam

Whenever severe adverse events happen, Filipinos often wonder if it has something to do with kulam or sorcery. Usually, kulam involves serious ailments that cause pain, and uses kontra-kulam remedies as treatment.

However, Department of Anthropology Professor Emeritus and former UPD Chancellor Dr. Michael Tan wrote an essay elaborating on how certain diseases can be thought to be caused by kulam. Neuritis, a condition involving inflammation of nerves, is one such disease. Sicknesses that are visually disfiguring are also commonly assumed to be an aftermath of kulam. Psoriasis is another example, where patches of thick red skin and scaly patches appear on the skin. And these diseases can also overlap with nervous diseases: anxiety can cause people to scratch their skin and experience mild pain that could worsen over time.

Chronic ailments such as ascites, a condition in which fluid builds up in the abdomen, are also commonly associated with kulam. Ascites may be often caused by liver problems, but some people readily believe that a mangkukulam placed foreign objects into the sufferer’s body.

Psychosis or paranoia, a mental health condition that involves irrational suspicions or mistrust of others, is another ailment commonly associated with kulam. Patients with paranoia often believe they are being threatened despite having little or no evidence.

Kulam, according to Dr. Tan, reveals Filipinos’ lack of health literacy and how widespread and dangerous that can be.



Building on the supernatural

And yet, modern science doesn’t always necessarily have to debunk folk beliefs.

In some ways, science can supplement or even enrich our appreciation of folklore by enabling us to understand what makes the seemingly impossible, possible. And it is through this understanding that we are able to make better-informed decisions.

“Words like ‘mutation’ or ‘carrier’ are very common now, and there’s less stigma among the people afflicted with this disease [XDP],” recounted Dr. Bagamasbad as she talked about her research on XDP. “Now, their health-seeking behavior has improved. Some of them even volunteered their post-mortem brain to advance the understanding of what’s happening at the tissue level.”

Through folklore, we are able to glimpse our ancestors’ perspectives on life, which can in turn cultivate our own self-understanding. Folklore also points the way towards the unknown, raising to our awareness the mysteries of our world, thereby setting the stage for our innate scientific curiosity to learn more about and understand them.


Written by Eunice Jean Patron, UPD-CS SciComm Team

Eunice Jean Patron is a graduate of Development Communication from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. She is a Senior Science Communicator at the UP Diliman College of Science.

Food, Negros Food!

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Visitors to Negros Occidental always take away happy memories about their gastronomic discoveries. From iconic pastries to Bacolod City’s branded chicken inasal, to hearty, steaming, extraordinarily rich bowls of kansi, Negros has become the new food destination. In the last decade alone we’ve earned the moniker “Organic Food Capital”. We’ve also taken a seat among seafood farmers, Negros being the leading prawn producer in the country. We’re graduating a record number of culinary arts professionals from our colleges and universities. Our chefs are second to none. And most recently, Negros Occidental has become the bedrock of the slow food movement in the Philippines. No wonder then, Negros Season of Culture celebrates Negrense Food. That’s how we’re rooted. And that’s how we’ll take on the world.



Popular Lumpia Ubod Versions: Can You Tell the Difference?

First on the table is Lumpia Ubod. To be clear, our version is different. Our wrapper is not made from eggs, but ground rice. We don’t put sauce outside. We put it inside where it can suffuse well the filling of palm heart and choice meat. The lumpia ubod (or, as Tagalogs would say, lumpiang ubod) is a traditional snack hereabouts. It even lists among the esteemed “mahjong merienda” fare. Families known for special cuisines take pride in their version of the lumpia ubod. In ages past home kitchens used special ingredients, like the tahure paste made with tofu, sugar, and ginger, spread inside the lumpia wrapper to give every bite heat. But with time, the lumpia ubod has evolved to delight modern palates. In Lumpia Ubod, Negros Season of Culture spent a day with Chef Richard Ynayan of the Institute of the Culinary Arts of the University of St. La Salle for a chat about these innovated offerings.




Negros Seafood

In addition to being a big player in the country’s prawn and fish pond industry, Negros Occidental has many fish ports throughout the province. Outside the capital, three easily come to mind, the Tagda Fish Port in Hinigaran, the Tabao Fish Port in Valladolid, and the Sagay Fish Port in Sagay City, each one fetching over five tons of harvest daily. Seafood has always been a major food group in the Negrense’s daily menu. In Negros Seafood, we set up kitchen at a private resort in Silay City to create the perfect setting for Chef Gabriel “Gab” Melocoton and Chaela Ruth Mirano to take us on a seafood cooking show that re-issues three popular delicacies into five-star dishes. Beyond steaming, beyond smothering them with chili garlic sauce, Chef Gab tweaks the lukon, diwal, and litog to surprise you.



Peanut Gang

Peanuts Gang is a story of MSME success, one of many uplifting entrepreneurial stories in Negros Occidental. At the recent Negros Trade Fair in Manila, Negros Season of Culture met Shiena Becaro Pobleto, a young mother who has pushed the peanut business started by her parents beyond what they ever dreamed of. There in Glorietta, within her two-by-three booth, she wooed the world with her branded peanuts. Now we know, it’s not all about selling. One of her siblings has integrated farming into the picture to ensure the supply chain. This is not so “MSME” anymore, it seems, but that’s exactly what happens when MSME turns big.

While in the subject of food, the Negros Season of Culture looks forward to celebrating an upcoming event at the Power Plant Mall in Rockwell Center, Makati City. Happening from November 4-6 is Namit Namit Food Festival, Best of Negrense Favorites. Negros Season of Culture ambassador, actor Joel Torre, is the man behind JT’s Manukan. Fancy meeting him and savoring his famous chicken inasal at the Power Plant. Mark your calendars.