Quantum Physics Breakthrough: Filipino Physicist Captures ‘Birth of a Torus’ in Quantum System for the First Time

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In a groundbreaking moment that rewrites the boundaries of quantum science, a team of physicists led by Dr. Jayson Cosme of the University of the Philippines has achieved what was once only a tantalizing theory — the first experimental observation of the "birth of a torus" in a quantum system. This historic scientific milestone, published in the prestigious journal Physical Review Letters, marks a pivotal leap forward in our understanding of how complex quantum behaviors emerge — with implications that stretch from theoretical physics to next-generation technology.

From Heartbeats to Donuts: Understanding the Torus Transition

Imagine a heartbeat rhythm — the steady lub-dub — drawn as a simple loop in a mathematical model called phase space. But when that rhythm becomes erratic or more complex, the simple loop fails. That’s when nature upgrades its metaphor: from a rubber band to a donut — or in scientific terms, a torus. This geometric transformation isn't just a visual curiosity; it's how physicists model systems as they undergo transitions into more intricate, dynamic states.

In classical systems — from the flow of air in a jet engine to the orbits of planets — this “birth of a torus” has been observed and mapped. But in the chaotic, jittery domain of quantum physics, it remained a phantom—predicted, but never seen. Until now.

Time Crystals: Beating Hearts of Quantum Systems

Central to the experiment is a strange but real phenomenon known as the time crystal. Unlike ordinary crystals like diamonds or snowflakes, which are repetitive in space, time crystals exhibit repetition in time. They “tick” back and forth between quantum states, acting like quantum pendulums — beating not because of an internal clock, but because of precise external stimulation, like lasers.

In 2016, time crystals were created by firing rhythmic laser pulses at ultra-cold atoms. But in 2022, Dr. Cosme and his collaborators pushed the envelope further — discovering that even without pulsed lasers, time crystals could emerge. By trapping rubidium atoms between mirrors and bathing them in a continuous laser beam, they saw spontaneous oscillations emerge — giving birth to what they called a continuous time crystal.

Cranking Up the Quantum Heat: From Loop to Torus

Now, in their latest and most daring experiment yet, the team turned the dial even further.

“We showed that cranking up the intensity of light to even brighter or stronger levels will lead to another critical transition,” said Dr. Cosme. And what a transition it was.

As the laser intensity increased, the atoms began behaving erratically — oscillating in a complex, less predictable way. Their movement in phase space shifted from a simple loop to something far more intricate — a torus. The “birth of a torus” was no longer theoretical; it had been captured in real-time.

This wasn’t just a mathematical flourish. It was a revelation. What once existed only in equations and simulations had now been seen in the lab — a cosmic choreography of light and matter at the smallest scales.

The Quantum Future: Detectors, Predictions, and New Frontiers

Why does this matter beyond pure scientific curiosity?

Because systems like these — hovering delicately at the edge of transition — are incredibly sensitive. According to Dr. Cosme, “A system operating close to this transition point can be used as a sensitive detector for light or electromagnetic fields.” In essence, future technology could harness this torus transition to create detectors that are exponentially more responsive to environmental changes.

The team is already preparing their next quantum expedition: exploring whether such dramatic bifurcations in quantum systems can be predicted before they happen — a pursuit that could lead to quantum forecasting tools. They also have their sights on another exotic quantum phenomenon known as the Kibble-Zurek mechanism, which they examined in an earlier publication and now hope to probe more deeply.

A Filipino First, A Global Impact

Dr. Cosme, based at the National Institute of Physics at UP Diliman, has not only brought international acclaim to Filipino science but also placed the Philippines on the quantum map with this unprecedented experiment.

“This is a significant contribution to the global quantum research community,” said peers in the field. Indeed, the breakthrough is a testament to Filipino ingenuity and perseverance in pushing the limits of what is measurable, knowable, and ultimately, possible.

As the quantum world slowly reveals its secrets, the birth of a torus stands as a symbol of how far we’ve come — and a doorway into how much more lies ahead. The rubber band has snapped. The donut has formed. And the universe, in its quantum whisper, has just told us a new story — one that began in the lab of a Filipino physicist, with lasers, mirrors, time crystals, and the courage to imagine the impossible.

The Death of Generic Luxury: How Conrad Hotels Just Rewrote the Rules of Meaningful Travel

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In an era where Instagram-worthy moments have replaced genuine connection, one hotel brand dares to ask: What if luxury wasn't about what you own, but what you truly experience?

The concierge desk at Conrad Tokyo buzzes with an unusual energy this morning. A guest approaches, not with the typical request for restaurant reservations or transportation, but with something far more intriguing: "I have exactly three hours before my flight. I want to touch the soul of Japan."

What happens next would have been impossible just months ago. But today, thanks to Conrad Hotels & Resorts' revolutionary new 1/3/5 program launched globally on July 10, 2025, this guest will find themselves seated in a traditional tatami room, watching a Certified Master of Traditional Craft breathe life into Hokusai's iconic "Great Wave" print, while legendary art historian Yukiko Takahashi reveals secrets that have shaped Japanese culture for centuries.

This isn't just another hotel amenity. This is the future of luxury travel—and it's happening right now.

The Rebellion Against Superficial Luxury

For decades, luxury hotels have operated on a simple premise: provide opulent rooms, five-star service, and let guests figure out the rest. The result? Travelers increasingly disconnected from the places they visit, collecting passport stamps instead of meaningful memories, returning home with shopping bags full of trinkets but hearts empty of genuine cultural connection.

Conrad Hotels & Resorts has just declared war on this hollow approach to luxury.

"At Conrad Hotels & Resorts, we believe that luxury travel is about how you experience a destination throughout your stay," declares Dino Michael, SVP & Global Head of Hilton Luxury Brands. His words carry the weight of a manifesto—a complete reimagining of what it means to travel well in the 21st century.

The numbers tell a compelling story of transformation. According to Hilton's latest trends report, nearly 70% of global travelers now crave active engagement with their destinations, while over three-quarters prioritize hotels that offer diverse, immersive adventures. The age of passive luxury is dying, and Conrad's 1/3/5 program is writing its obituary.

The Genius of Structured Spontaneity

The program's name itself reveals its revolutionary approach: 1/3/5 represents hour-duration experiences meticulously crafted to fit into the fragments of time that define modern travel. Whether you're stealing a single hour between meetings, savoring a leisurely afternoon, or dedicating an entire morning to discovery, Conrad has engineered experiences that transform time constraints into opportunities for profound connection.

This isn't random. The program responds to a growing segment of travelers who spend significant time researching authentic, off-the-beaten-path experiences—56% of whom work closely with travel advisors, and 43% who turn to hotel concierges for guidance. Conrad 1/3/5 eliminates the anxiety of planning while preserving the thrill of discovery.

Consider the transformation happening at Conrad Singapore Orchard, where guests can now step inside Manhattan Bar's pioneering rickhouse—the first barrel-aging room of its kind in a hotel bar. In just three hours, visitors don't merely drink cocktails; they become part of the story, building their own custom Manhattan cocktail and bottling it to take home. It's alchemy disguised as hospitality.

Experiences That Redefine Luxury

The program's offerings read like a curated anthology of human experience, each chapter more compelling than the last:

In Tokyo, the ancient art of samurai sword-making comes alive as guests witness master swordsmiths in action, then forge tamahagane steel with their own hands—a rare honor and rite of passage into Japan's warrior heritage. This isn't tourism; it's transformation.

In Bali, the Full Moon Purnama Celebration occurs every 28 days, beginning with traditional Canangsari and Tridatu-making activities, followed by sacred rituals at the resort's temple. As the moon rises, guests participate in beachside meditation, culminating in a Melukat spiritual purification ceremony—a traditional cleansing of body and soul that connects them to centuries of Balinese spirituality.

In Beijing, the grandeur of the Forbidden City becomes intimate as guests explore over 900 buildings housing ancient artifacts, imperial halls, and the legendary Hall of Supreme Harmony. But this isn't a rushed tourist march; it's a five-hour journey through centuries of Chinese imperial history, where every courtyard and corridor echoes with the grandeur of dynasties past.

The Psychology of Meaningful Travel

What makes these experiences so powerful isn't their exclusivity—it's their authenticity. Each activity is crafted by local experts, bookable through the Conrad Concierge, and designed to create lasting impact rather than fleeting entertainment.

Take Conrad Tokyo's Onigiri Workshop, where guests learn traditional flavors at Shinbashi Tamakiya, a historic shop founded in 1782 and now run by its 10th-generation owner. This isn't cooking class; it's cultural immersion. Guests discover the legacy of this centuries-old establishment, sample signature tsukudani made with secret sauce, and craft their own onigiri rice balls while connecting with living history.

Or consider Conrad Bali's Sway Sleep Journey, where guests are wrapped in weighted blankets, provided with heated eye pillows, then gently cocooned in swing-style aerial hammocks to mimic the comfort of resting on a fluffy cloud. In our hyperconnected world, this one-hour experience offers something increasingly rare: permission to simply be.

A Global Movement, Locally Crafted

The brilliance of Conrad 1/3/5 lies in its global consistency paired with local authenticity. While the program launches across all Conrad properties worldwide, each location brings the concept to life in distinctive, culturally relevant ways.

In Singapore, guests can embark on an "Edible Garden Walk," led by expert arborists who reveal the island's living landscape through native trees, edible plants, and rich ethnobotanical traditions. The five-hour journey concludes with serene afternoon tea for two, creating a perfect synthesis of nature, culture, and taste.

In Beijing, the "CBD Art Walk" transforms the city's modern skyline into an outdoor gallery, where contemporary works complement towering architectural marvels like the China Zun Tower and the iconic CCTV Headquarters. It's urban exploration elevated to art form.

The Future of Hospitality

Conrad's 1/3/5 program represents more than a new amenity—it's a fundamental shift in how luxury hotels understand their role in travelers' lives. Instead of simply providing a beautiful place to sleep, Conrad positions itself as a curator of transformative experiences, a gateway to authentic cultural connection, and a catalyst for the kind of memories that reshape how we see the world.

This program reflects a broader cultural movement where luxury travelers increasingly invest in experiences over possessions. The wealthy no longer seek to own the world; they seek to understand it, to connect with it, to be changed by it.

As the program rolls out globally, it raises an intriguing question: Will other luxury hotel brands follow Conrad's lead, or will they continue to offer the same generic luxury experiences that leave travelers feeling empty despite their opulent surroundings?

The answer may determine not just the future of luxury hospitality, but the future of travel itself.

In a world increasingly divided by differences, Conrad Hotels & Resorts has created something remarkable: a bridge between cultures, a pathway to understanding, and a reminder that the greatest luxury isn't what we can buy—it's what we can become through meaningful connection with the world around us.

The next time you check into a Conrad property, remember: you're not just booking a room. You're booking a transformation. And in a world hungry for authentic connection, that might be the most revolutionary luxury of all.

“Singapore Stories: Pathways and Detours in Art” — National Gallery Singapore Redraws the Map of Art History in its 10th Anniversary Reimagining

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

SINGAPORE — July 10, 2025. In a resounding symphony of brushstrokes, pigments, and profound narratives, National Gallery Singapore is about to turn the page of history—not just to a new chapter, but a reimagined manuscript of what Singaporean art has meant across generations.

As Singapore celebrates its 60th year of independence, and the Gallery marks its own decade of influence, the curtain is rising on “Singapore Stories: Pathways and Detours in Art” — a sprawling, ambitious, and deeply introspective exhibition that redefines how the island nation’s artistic journey is remembered, reclaimed, and retold.

Opening fully on 18 July 2025, this long-term exhibition is the first major rehang of the DBS Singapore Gallery since its inception in 2015. But it’s more than just a facelift. This is a radical reorientation—one that threads inclusivity, vulnerability, and innovation into the heart of the nation’s creative memory.

The Bold Rethinking of a National Narrative

At its core, Singapore Stories is a defiant departure from linear, sanitized versions of art history. Instead, it dares to wander down the backroads — the side paths of resistance, experiment, marginalization, and rediscovery. The exhibition spans the 19th century to the present day, featuring over 400 artworks and artefacts—some iconic, others obscured until now. What emerges is a living, breathing archive of artists who have made, taught, shared, and lived art in Singapore.

“Art is not just a mirror of progress—it is a map of detours, doubts, and discovery,” says Dr. Eugene Tan, Chief Executive Officer and Director of National Gallery Singapore. “In Singapore Stories, we invite the public to see themselves not just in the final paintings, but in the choices, struggles, and questions that shaped them.”

From Colonial Canvas to Contemporary Voices

The exhibition is rolled out in phases—its first chapter debuted in December 2024, tracing early artistic identities shaped by colonial rule and the tremors of independence. The full reveal this July carries visitors into the post-independence era, where the pressures of urban transformation, shifting policies, and an evolving sense of nationhood provoked artists to break away from tradition and forge bold, new expressions.

Sections like Expanding Horizons and Presence explore how pioneering modernists such as Cheong Soo Pieng and Khoo Sui Hoe interpreted change through semi-abstraction. Meanwhile, artists like Georgette Chen and Ng Eng Teng grounded their work in portraiture and still life, reflecting emotional constancy amid national upheaval.

From the Liberating Form and Colour to Vectors of the New, the exhibition traces how artists like Ho Ho Ying, Kim Lim, and Eng Tow broke conventions with form, materials, and meaning. Even commercial art gets its due, with figures like Kwan Shan Mei and Choy Weng Yang reintroduced not just as illustrators, but cultural influencers who helped shape a visual vocabulary for a young Singapore.

The Body, The Collective, The Future

In Body, Self and Other, art becomes a stage for identity and gender discourse. Figures like Solamalay Namasivayam and Amanda Heng interrogate the body’s presence in public space, memory, and political power.

The pulse of the 1980s and 90s is captured in Coming Together for Art and A Space of their Own — where collectives like The Artists Village and Plastique Kinetic Worms created space for alternative practices, challenging hierarchical structures of the art world. These were the rebels, the risk-takers, the community-builders — all vital to understanding art not as product, but as process.

Where Art Meets Artificial Intelligence

The final gallery, Navigating the Interdisciplinary, leaps into the now — and the next. A highlight is the new commission by performance artist Amanda Heng titled Let’s Chat Further (2025). Here, art becomes interactive, holographic, and AI-powered. What begins as live-streamed conversations evolves into chats with “Retired Singirl”, an AI-based persona that merges memory, technology, and cultural critique.

This is no longer just an exhibit. It is a portal, asking: What does it mean to speak to the past when the future is listening?

Hidden Stories, New Spaces: Dalam Singapore

Also unveiled is Dalam Singapore, a rotating annex series that magnifies forgotten names and quieter contributions. Its inaugural show, Tchang Ju Chi: Tireless Camel, resurrects the legacy of an early 20th-century trailblazer, unseen in public view for over five decades. Through meticulous curation and innovative programming, Dalam Singapore insists that the “minor” stories of art are just as monumental as the celebrated.

A Shared Cultural Inheritance

“This exhibition captures the ever-evolving nature of our nation’s art history,” says Ms. Karen Ngui, Head of DBS Foundation. “It reflects the rich cultural fabric that defines Singapore.” For a bank whose roots are intertwined with the nation’s industrialisation, the partnership in reanimating Singapore’s artistic roots feels like a full-circle moment.

More Than an Exhibition — A Cultural Reckoning

As National Gallery Singapore stands at the crossroads of its first decade, Singapore Stories: Pathways and Detours in Art is not merely a look back. It is a clarion call to see beyond timelines and titles — and to embrace a messier, more honest mosaic of what it means to create.

For Singaporeans and Southeast Asians alike, the exhibition serves as an urgent reminder that art is not elite. It is not remote. It is lived. It is layered. And most of all, it belongs to all of us.

“Singapore Stories: Pathways and Detours in Art” fully opens on 18 July 2025 at National Gallery Singapore. Entry is free for Singaporeans and Permanent Residents with a General Admission pass. For more details, visit www.nationalgallery.sg/SingaporeStories

Come for the masterpieces. Stay for the conversations.

Because every detour tells a story — and this time, it's Singapore's turn to speak.