2018.06.04. My group's participation in the SPP Conference

(Now: Preparing for my flight to Puerto Princesa.) 

My research group during the 2017 SPP Conference in Cebu.

It's SPP season once again!

The Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas (SPP) [officially the Physics Society of the Philippines in English] is the largest organization of physicists and physics educators in the country. It is recognized by the Association of Asia-Pacific Physics Societies (AAPPS) and the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP). Its website gives an overview of the history and purpose of the SPP:

The Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas (SPP) is a professional organization of physicists and physics educators in the Philippines. SPP was established in 1979 with the aim of promoting research and setting a collegial venue where researchers in various fields of physics can find opportunities for creative scientific work and a productive exchange of ideas.

The SPP, just like other physics societies in the world, conducts a yearly scientific conference and meeting to showcase the research being conducted by its members and to elect the next batch of officers in its National Council. This year, the 36th SPP Physics Conference and Meeting will be held in the Citystate Asturias Hotel, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. The theme of this year's conference is Building bridges and exploring frontiers.

I first attended an SPP-sponsored event in 2004, as a fourth year undergraduate. During grad school, the SPP conference has been a venue for my friends and me to present our exploratory work in a formal scientific event. Many of these SPP papers have developed into journal articles.

I have also served the SPP in various capacities through the years. I first got elected as a councilor in 2010. And then, in 2016, I took over from Dr. Gay Jane Perez as Secretary General of the SPP. It was during my time as Sec-Gen that the SPP started fixing the issues with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) [issues that, I believe, have not yet been fixed until now]. We also signed an agreement with the then Physics Society of the Republic of China (PSROC) [now the Taiwan Physical Society (TPS)]. In 2016, the SPP Conference was held in the University of the Philippines Iloilo. I have served in the National Council for a period of six years.

Since I started taking in student advisees in 2011, I made it a point for the students to participate in the SPP conference, even with their preliminary results. The SPP will be a good venue for them to discuss their ideas and results with the other scientists, not just to gain new insights but also as a validation of their works. Since 2014, all my students, from third year undergraduate students, have been submitting papers to the SPP conference yearly. This year, all my eight students has had acceptance in the conference.

1. M.T. Cirunay and R.C. Batac, Scaling of urban properties for Philippine cities, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article]. 
2. J.M.T. Abella and R.C. Batac, Social network analysis of the co-authorship network of the University of the Philippines Diliman from 1996 to 2016, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article]
3. D.C. Biton, C.D. Janer, and R.C. Batac, Statistical properties of avalanche in sandpile with targeted triggering and in granular pile set-up for earthquake modeling, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article]  
4. A.K. Orden II and R.C. Batac, Characterizing spatial distributions of urban systems using Voronoi diagrams and Lévy flights, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article] 
5. C.D. Perlada and R.C. Batac, A quantitative analysis and growth model of urban spatial structures, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article] 
6. J.A.Y. Asuncion and R.C. Batac, Universal statistics of fire sizes for different targeting schemes in a forest fire model, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article] 
7. C.D. Janer and R.C. Batac, Quasi-static regimes in a continuously-rotated and slowly-grown granular setup, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article] 
8. M.S. Villamayor and R.C. Batac, Emergence of cooperator dominance in an iterated prisoner's dilemma games with punishing agents and dynamic strategies, Proceedings of the 36th Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas Physics Conference [link to article] 

Over the last few years, the SPP Conference has also given us a good opportunity to bond. My students and I plan the accommodations and activities that we will have during SPP season. This, in a way, helps us maintain a really good working relationship and a family-like atmosphere in the lab. And it allows us to plan ahead for the coming months, to keep us in FIGHT mode.

Fight mode ON!

So, it's SPP conference season again! I really hope that this conference will be as productive for my team as always. Regardless of where I will eventually land, I hope to continue supporting the SPP conference with my would-be students and/or colleagues.