ENDEAVOR
It was in second year high school when, at age 13, I was first exposed to the use of a microscope in our biology class in Don Bosco, Makati. Our teacher, Virgilio Palanca, brought us to on a weekend excursion to Matabungkay, Batangas where we collected specimens such as sea urchins, starfish and the like. Then he taught us how to use a microscope to examine and understand the characteristics of these sea inhabitants.
Last weekend, my six year old grandson, a kindergarten student, learned how to use Make-roscope, a unique invention by Jerome de Leon. I met Jerome at the Manila Hotel last week where he was cited as one of the 10 first-time recipients of the Newsmaker of the Year award, the highlight of the Manila Bulletin’s 124th anniversary celebration. Jerome gave me a small pill-box sized metal container that contained the Make-roscope, and I, in turn, gave it to my grandson Rafa.
In no time, Rafa’s mom sent me several photos via Messenger showing him looking at his I-pad where magnified images of an ant and a lock of hair appeared.
The Mapúa Library website proudly says this about him:
“Young innovator and Mapúa alumnus Jeremy De Leon captivated many with his helpful, affordable, and efficient creation, the Make-roscope. Make-roscope is an alternative to a compound microscope designed to be mounted on top of a smartphone or tablet’s front-facing camera to project samples at a higher magnification onto the device's screen. It is a single-lens keychain microscope that can magnify materials up to 400 times.
“The Bachelor of Science in Manufacturing Engineering graduate’s objective is to distribute his invention to students in the Philippines and provide them with a direct and hands-on experience of analyzing microscopic organisms even without the compound microscope. At present, Jeremy was able to distribute more than 1,000 Make-roscopes across the country after the Department of Science and Technology-Technology Application and Promotion Institute (DOST-TAPI)’s Invention-Based Enterprise Development Program funded its initial production. Learn more about Jeremy’s innovation here. #VivaMapua #MapuanExcellence”
One News reports that since childhood, Jeremy has been a budding inventor, “disassembling toys to understand their inner workings or switching the wheels of his remote-controlled cars.” He shared his motivation: “I focus on the humanity side of inventions…Can it help, who would it help? Would it make life easier?”
In September 2023, Jeremy’s Make-roscope bagged the Philippine leg of the prestigious James Dyson Award, topping 47 other contestants from 12 universities. On the Dyson award website, De Leon pointed out “the lack of laboratory access to 12 million plus students, who were likely to have smartphones.” He noted that the intermittent lockdowns during the pandemic hampered learning among biology and life science subjects who were restricted to distance learning. He wondered: “But what if there was a special tool that could help teachers and students study science together, even if they couldn’t be in the same classroom?” Enter Make-roscope.
Make-roscope won the Department of Science and Technology’s #PinoyInventor TikTok challenge in June 2021, earning a cash prize of ₱25,000 that he used to buy silicon molds and 3D printers, as well as to subscribe to 3D printing software. The TikTok posting of the prototype elicited enthusiastic public reception that prompted Jeremy to seek support from DOST’s Technology Application and Promotion Institute (TAPI).
He turned anew to TikTok to gain documented public support that convinced DOST about the viability of his target market. He obtained a ₱125,000 grant and produced 3,000 pieces, then promptly donated 1,000 pieces to students, teachers and campus organizations. Security Bank Foundation purchased 1,000 pieces and the rest were sold online.
Jeremy told One News: “It’s overwhelming, heartwarming as we inspire so many people. I even see comments saying they are interested to try the Make-roscope, see microorganisms. That alone already shows that we can inspire children to become scientists.”
In his website, he declares that he’s in it for the long haul: “I know we've got a long way. I’m ready to crawl just to get there.”
Like all the other Newsmaker award winners, Jeremy exuded enthusiasm and energy – the stuff that inspires and empowers people. And this is why the Manila Bulletin launched this recognition program. In a way, this concept takes off from Time magazine’s Person of the Year recognition featuring a person, group, idea, or object that “for better or for worse ... has done the most to influence the events of the year.”
The onset of digitalization has magnified the influence of social media. Through its multimedia platforms, the Manila Bulletin is able to follow the ebbs and flows of public interest, and feel the audience’s pulse. Beyond politics and economics, social entrepreneurship has become a mainstream influence. People are discovering improved ways of accessing products, goods and services. Most importantly, new ideas and trends emerge in a continuous stream of innovation and influence.
We are proud to honor our Newsmakers of the Year: two lady city mayors; one film star; the Asian Games basketball gold medalists; an engineer-inventor; a nonagenarian weaver from Ilocos Norte; an equity venture company; four partners in a supply chain platform; two female co-founders of a women’s healthcare facility; and another quartet of techo-preneurs in the international freight industry.
Manila Bulletin’s Newsmakers are truly movers and shakers!