Self Evaluation of my academic year (2009):

From my point of view all the years that I`ve been in the university studding this career are something like a small victory, because now I`m in fourth year and I can see the day of my graduate closer. I think that this is a reward for my effort so is very comforting.
In my opinion the last year was a good one, because finally I managed to pass all my subjects and I learned a lot, not just in the academic way, I did in terms of personal life too.
Obviously it wasn`t easy. The last year, and principally the last term was very hard, maybe the most difficult for me.

When I started this career, I was very immature and now I admit that I didn`t take all the opportunities to learn and enjoy the things that university offer because I felt a little overwhelmed. I think that the first year was difficult because everything was new, but if I compare that year with the last year, the last one was three times worse.

Like I said the 2009 had a lot of good things too. For example I started to have really interesting subjects, much more than first and second year, like physiopathology and semiology, which are more clinical than chemistry, anatomy and so on.
The experience of have my first clinical case, a dog called “Piri”, who had kidney tumor, was really useful and exciting. Sadly the dog finally was euthanized, because we couldn`t do anything else. But we learned a lot, even we helped in a transfusion blood and in an autopsy.

The other aspect that I value about the last year is that I grew like person, because now I feel that I`m more mature and ready to confront different challenges with more security and optimism because I feel able to do a lot of things if I try hard.
Another important and beautiful thing is related to friendship, because I Knew better to some friends the last year, when we started to meet for study and spent a lot of time together.
In spite of all the complications of that academic year, I think that if I had to evaluate it, I would say that the 2009 was a difficult, but exciting year, and I don`t be sorry for anything that I did, because I did my best, and even though I didn`t was the best student of the class , I improved and the current year I`m in the same way, which make me happy and to be proud.

CHALLENGES IN VETERINARY

Our career involve a lot of different areas, so we can say that is a multidisciplinary career. These areas are constant challenges for us. Some of them are:

1) Technology: the importance of technology is increasing, because the productive demands are increasing too. Therefore is necessary that we develop them. One example is biotechnology, we have a subject called Reproductive biotechnology, in this teach us topics like in vitro fertilization, transfer of embryos, and so on. With these techniques we can to produce more protein for human consumes. In the other hand, with reproductive biotechnology we can decrease the loss of endangered species.


2) Social Matters: in my opinion, this area isn`t tackle very deeply, but we must to change it, because we have to take part in matters like animal responsible possession and animal welfare laws. At present we haven`t an ethic subject in our faculty, so we have to study this area ourselves.
In any area that we work, from clinical medicine, animal production to public health we must to concern about social matters, because finally we work for human beings, but through animals.
Also, we work in safety alimentary, so is our responsibility to produce quality food to the population.
Other important matter is our participation in emergency situation like earthquake, epidemic, and so on. Because we have to implement measures of control for protect to the population against infectious agents, which will increase in this situations.


3) Education: this is a very extensive topic; some examples about our role in education are the research. Scientist research can increase the knowledge about animal diseases and in some cases human diseases, with more information about this we can to educate to the population about prevention measures, also is important and is our responsibility to educate about animal responsible possession.
Moreover, we can teach to small producers some productive strategies for increase the effectiveness of this process and to help them to progress.
In the other hand, we can work in municipality, devising health education programs, for example about food safety, like programs that teach how to cook seafood principally in “holy week”.

Scientists discover new coral species in Galapagos waters

Many scientists thought that the current atmospheric pollution would extinct a big part of coral in the nearby future. Moreover, the temperature also plays a important role, like El Niño phenomenon, this is a periodic event which affects weather.
Coral reefs are formed by deposits of calcium carbonate. These receive nutrients from a symbiotic algae called zooxanthellae, this plant is responsible for their beautiful colour. The problem is that when temperatures rise the algae dies. The El Niño phenomenon increase the temperature for 23-29ºC to 30ºC and one of them happened in 1982–1983, killed around 95% of the coral in the Galapagos islads .
Scientists thought that Honeycomb coral had been extinct in 1997-1998 by the last big El Niño phenomenon.
Nevertheless this year, scientists have discovered three new coral species in Galapagos islands, and one of them is the Honeycomb coral. This fact has increased the hope that the coral reef be more resistant to the rising water temperatures than they expected. Appeared the algae might be adapting to warmer temperatures.
This discovery was covering a not studied in the last decades area, in addition they found some species that wasn`t discovered around Galapagos, and probably new species coral.
The result of the study suggest that a lot of coral dies for the increas of temperature because some species need more time to adapt to this change. Whereas some species can adapt very quickly.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/sep/09/coral-new-species-galapagos

Improving our faculty facilities:

Firstly, I have to say that I like very much the facilities of our faculty, because it is more warm that the typical faculties, but I don`t deny, that the structure can and must to be improve.
Our faculty is characterized for being very simple, with enormous green areas and dogs for everywhere, one dining hall, which is really bad, four bathrooms, fields and one swimming pool. obviously it has other kind of things, like chemistry/biochemistry and pathology laboratories, autpsy room, one library, two computers room, one hospital, a educational farm and so on. Therefore we have facilities for to study, to practice and to relax. It sounds great, but there are some things, which in my opinion are important and should be change. For this is necessary that the authorities put themselves in the place of students and decide to use the funds to do improvements in the faculty. Nevertheless, first the students have to decide wich are the more imperative facilities improvement and expose them to the faculty authorities.
Next, some examples of things to need improvement and aren`t very difficult to do.

1- Dining hall: it`s very small and if it doesn`t get full is because the food it isn`t good and also it`s expensive, so the majority prefer to eat junk food which is not healthy. The attention is bad as well, Therefore it isn`t the infraestructure the only problem here.
2- Field: will be very useful a roofed field, this way we can use it when is raining and play sports all the year.
3- Educational farm: is necessary a paved way, because when it rains, the ground turn to quagmire.
I think that is really important to improve the quality of life of the animals in this farm, principally the cows, they don`t have shade, beds, drinking-trough with clean water, and so forth, and is our duty like vets to concern about it.
In the long term, would be good to bring more laboratory equipment, like autoclave, x-rays and ultrasound machines, so we can do more things instead of only see them.

My favourite animal: The Otter

Is hard for me to choose just one animal, but if I have to, it will be the otter, because it`s a cute and nice animal and also it collaborate with environmental vigilance. This mammal is a very interesting animal and I`ve liked it since I watched it in a TV show, colled Maravillozoo.
The otter is part of the Chilean fauna, inhabiting from the north coast to Cape Horn island. In this country we have 2 species: one of then inhabit near to rivers and the other one is marine, they are: the huillín (Lotra provocax) and the chungúngo (Lontra felina), respectively.

For the purpose of explain why I like this animal I will mention some characteristics about it and I will refer to the situation in Chile, specially about the conservation.

Although otter doesn`t looks like a hunter, it is, actually it`s a carnivorous animal, it eat small fishes and crustaceans helped with its funny whiskers, therefore its appearance can be deceptive, what is very interesting . It`s an animal principally nocturnal, it pass the day sleeping, and when is getting dark it hunt its food. Its coat is dark brown with gold shades, it`s very dense and this works like a water insulating, so it`s beautiful and useful as well.
Another important and curious characteristic of this animals is the fact that they are “sentry animals” because the presence of otters in a place is a water`s purity indicative, because when this is contaminated, they leave the place and they move to cleaner water. So they help us to monitor the environment.

Sadly, in Chile, the otters population and many others species are fragmented because of the environmental destruction, human disruption and illegal hunt, therefore this is an endangered specie. We can realize about that, because the population is decreasing in an alarming way. The conservation is one of our works like vets, and we must take part in projects addressed to protect our flora and fauna, for example generating stronger animal protections laws, monitoring demography changes in a way that make possible to act timely, and so on.

Things to do and places to visit in Santiago

Santiago is a city with several beautiful places, but sometimes the people who live here don`t know even the half, sadly I am in that group. We live so busy that we haven`t time to visit our city. Nevertheless if I have to indicate to a tourist where to go, I think that I would do well.

My top five are:

1. Santiago`s Metropolitan Park:
This is my top one because in the Metropolitan park you can find a lot of interesting, fun and enjoyable things. For example the house`s Anahuac Culture, where art exhibition are done; also in Saint Cristobal hill is the National Zoo with exotic and native fauna, big and beautiful swimming pool, viewpoints, traditional cable car for to climb the hill, and big green areas like the Mapulemu garden where you can see the Chilean flora.

2. Saint Lucia hill and the craft market:
I recommend this place because first of all, the hills into the city are a very attractive for tourists, moreover it is a really beautiful place with interesting architecture and green areas. You can stay here all day and without to get bored. The Saint Lucia`s craft market has several stands whit beautiful Chilean craftwork, so you can to buy souvenirs.

3. Central market:
In this place you can eat Chilean seafood, and this is another thing that the tourists always enjoy. The central market is compound for a lot of restaurants with different prices, some are really expensive and others, very cheap.

4. Pablo Neruda`s La Chascona House - Museum:
I have confess that I`ve never been there, but I think that is a interesting place to visit for tourist and Chilean as well, because it`s part of the big poet`s history. In my opinion it is definitely a good place to know and I want to do soon.

5. Santiago`s Cathedral:
This is a national monument, so we must to take to foreigners to visit it. The architecture in this place is really wonderful, specially the ceiling. In addition to the cathedral, you can go to the Arms Square and to the nearby museums like “Precolombino” Museum.

As you can see, Santiago has many places to visit and things to do, and my top five are just a sample of them.

Death penalty

I think that this topic always will generate discussion, but I reckon that we need to be neutral and do not think and don`t act from the hatred.
In my opinion, death penalty is not fair and I disagree with this sentence. First of all, the trial `s decision might just be wrong and if the accused was sentenced to death there is no way back and regrets doesn`t work, you can`t just back in time and make a different decison. In addition, to my mind the death isn`t a real punishment, this person just will be frightened the time before of the execution and that`s all, I feel that in some cases this is not enough. I agree with effective life sentence, the problem could be the economic resources addressed to prisoners, but they can work for their food.
Besides, so far there is no indication of a crime`s decrease rate in countries that have death penalty, to my mind this mean that it isn`t a good way of to do justice, but a patch solution and society`s revenge that doesn`t lead to anywere.