Aya has actually performed a number of experiments this year; obviously, I haven’t had enough time to update the experiment blogs. But we have been continuously working on our experiments and having fun discovering new things together. It is such a joy to teach science to a kid – the wonders in their eyes would surely be worth the effort. And besides, it doesn’t really take that long to do one experiment. To parents out there, try devoting half an hour or so a week to sit down with your children and do these stuffs together. Promise, enjoy yan!

This is an experiment to teach children about magnetism. You will need the following:

1. 2 bar magnets and/or horseshoe magnets
2. Objects to test, e.g., objects made of plastic, spoon, coins, pencil, paper clips

*Bar magnets can be purchased at 100-yen Daiso stores.

First, Aya tested how the bar magnets behaved by making the north and south poles face each other.

Uy, nagdikit!

Aya then tried picking up the objects laid before her using the bar magnet.

The spoon sticked to the magnet! Amazing!

Uhm, it doesn’t seem to work here…

Nope, not even on the pen…

Aha, it worked on the can’s lid.

Variation: I made Aya rub the bar magnet on the hair pin.

Magnetized, the hair pin now picked up the screw.

Aya rubbed the hair pin with the bar magnet again, and this time tried picking up the paper clip. It worked again!

This experiment demonstrates a simple way for kids to learn about sounds, particularly, how sound makes movements. For this experiment, you will need the following:

1. Bowl
2. Plastic wrap (e.g., Saran wrap)
3. Rice
4. Metal tray
5. Metal spoon
It may be rather difficult to do this experiment alone for little kids, so it is recommended that adults take part in the performance of this experiment. Aya has to enlist the help of her Tita Lai to do this experiment.

Stretch the plastic wrap over the bowl as tightly as possible.

Next, scatter grains of rice across the top of the plastic wrap.

Then, hold the metal tray as close as possible to the bowl. Hit the tray with the spoon to make a loud noise. And I mean really loud! Observe what happens to the rice.

Explanation: Hitting the tray with the spoon makes the air around it vibrate; when the sound waves reach the plastic wrap, they make it vibrate. This makes the rice grains move.

It has been a year since I was diagnosed with SPVC (supraventricular premature contraction). I’ve been reading on the internet about other people with similar cases, and I am often surprised by how many people with varying ages and occupations have been diagnosed with similar conditions, albeit with varying degrees of intensities. Other people report worrisome symptoms like contractions every 5 heartbeats or so, feeling as if their hearts are on a roller-coaster ride. I think I got it easy. I mostly don’t even feel the contractions, most especially when my concentration is focused on something else. Nevertheless, for now I still make it a point to stay away from heavy physical activities like running or jogging. I don’t know if that will make things worse for me, and believe me, I would rather not find out.

The most important thing that I learned, over the year, is that mostly this is a mind-over-body play. Or a mind-over-heart play, if you will. The premature contractions are here to stay, whether I like it or not. But I also learned that if I make it a point to feel my pulse everytime or listen to my heart beat while quietly lying down, my senses become more acutely aware and it does seem as if the beats are becoming much stronger than usual. But if I just ignore them, everything feels as normal as ever. It has not diminished my capacity or performance in any way, so really, why worry about it?

I’ve been reassured that while it is untreatable, it is not life-threatening in the absence of any heart diseases. Of course, I don’t have the assurance that it will not become any worse as I get older, but for now that is certainly the least of my worries.

I find it rather amusing that people who have the same conditions refer to themselves as “sufferers,” as in “PVC (premature ventricular contraction) sufferers,” or “PAC (premature atrial contraction) sufferers.” Healthy individuals suffer only in the sense that their mind takes the mental blow of worrying each time a heartbeat goes out of whack.

There’s only one word of advice I can give to others out there: stop listening to your heart; listen to your mind. A perfectly normal lifestyle is not impossible. The only true suffering that we would end up experiencing is when we are bogged down by needless worries and anxieties. Let the heart beat its way; as for yourself, celebrate life and live to the fullest!

After all, we only have one life to live. It’s our choice.