CNN 10 2/1/2021 ~ 2/5/2021

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Monday, February 1, 2021

The CDC has announced a new rule requiring all people to wear masks on public transportation and the places where people wait for public transportation in the United States. Masks can only be taken off to eat, drink, or take medicine and the rule doesn't apply for children under the age of two or people with disabilities making it hard for them to wear masks. The CDC says this will protect Americans and bolster confidence in travel. The hyperloop is a concept in which pods would travel via electromagnetic propulsion in a vacuum. Through this, these train-like pods can achieve speeds over 500 mph with no turbulence. It would be much faster than train or car, and though ticket prices would vary, they would be much cheaper than airplanes. Virgin Hyperloop plans to start commercial operations in 2030, and other companies like Hyperloop TT are working to the same goals. A storm system that is moving across the US is bringing a variety of weather conditions in different areas, from rain to snow. The type of weather you see depends on temperature in the atmosphere. If all the air that water droplets encounter is warm, you get rain. If it goes through a cold patch closer to the ground, then it doesn't get cold enough to be snow, but instead becomes freezing rain. Sleet happens when the precipitation goes through a small patch of warm air before going through freezing air again. Tomorrow, groundhogs across the US will attempt to predict the coming of spring. If they see their shadow, more winter, and if they don't, spring will come.

Tuesday, February 2, 2021

Myanmar's military has taken over the country again. It has done this in the past - it staged a military coup for decades until 2015, when they finally allowed democratic elections. The democratic party of a Nobel Prize winner won by a landslide at the polls and entered into a power-sharing agreement. In 2017, the country came under fire for its "genocide" of Rohingya Muslims, but the president defended the military's actions. More recently, the second civilian election resulted in a decimation of army-backed candidates, and the fragile power balance broke. Dozens of top elected officials have been arrested for what the military calls a rigged election, and a 1-year martial law has been declared. The whale shark is the biggest fish in the world, and it is also endangered. Due to human fishing and habitat destruction, their numbers have plummeted in the past 75 years. Researchers in Australia have developed software that tags whale sharks based on their unique spot pattern to track their behavior and movements. This will help preserve the most important sites for the future.

Wednesday, February 3, 2021

The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics are still scheduled to begin on July 23 of this year. If they are not held then, they will be canceled entirely, though both the Japanese Prime Minister and the head of the IOC have said that they must go on. Japan has instituted a state of emergency in 9 different areas to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 before the torch relay starting in March. Athletes will not be required to have a vaccination, but there will be guidelines set out very soon. Should they be unable to occur in Japan, the US state of Florida has expressed interest in sponsoring the games, citing its selection for major sporting events. In China, WHO officials are continuing to look into the origins of COVID-19, visiting an animal center this week to investigate the possibility of transfer from animals to humans. The golden monkeys in Yunnan are endangered. Habitat loss combined with hunting from nearby villages and natural predators has decreased the numbers of one of the few monkeys living in the mountains. Conservation groups have been using a combination of monitoring and training of the locals in order to protect this unique group.

Thursday, February 4, 2021

All 50 US states will experience freezing temperatures at some point in the next few days. A polar vortex, or a low-pressure air mass near the poles, will be sending freezing temperatures, resulting in snow and ice as far as Hawaii. Several states will see subzero Fahrenheit temperatures, so cold that you could get frostbite in just 30 minutes. Countries around the world are struggling with COVID-19 lockdowns, and with it comes the problem of schools. All the US states have seen school closures at some point, and now, some states are requiring in-person learning or allowing individual districts to decide. In communities with low virus spread, schools can safely reopen. EU countries have similarly varying measures.

Friday, February 5, 2021

On Thursday, President Biden and his team laid out his administration's plans for foreign policy over the next four years. First, in regards to Russia, he said that they would be extending a deal that limits the nuclear weapons of both countries, but that there would be repercussions if Russia tried to interfere in the US or poisoned its own citizens. He also said that China was the biggest competitor to the US and addressed the military takeover in Burma, saying the military should return to democracy. He also said that the US would end support for the Yemeni rebels and decrease the number of refugees allowed into the US. A nor'easter is bringing snow and powerful waves to coastal areas in the northern US. Record-breaking snowfall is expected, and it may be surprising that each snowflake is different. All snowflakes have a general shape of six branches and are categorized into 8 subgroups. Each one has a slightly different pattern because they all fall through slightly different temperatures and humidities on their way to the ground.

CNN 10 1/25/2021 ~ 1/29/2021

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Monday, January 25, 2021

One year ago, on Friday, January 24, 2020, reports surfaced that a type of coronavirus was starting to circulate in Wuhan, China. The WHO said that day that the outbreak was not a public health emergency, which was changed six days later. The same day, the US CDC said people should avoid Wuhan, and a week after that, the Trump administration banned non-US citizens who had been in China within the last two weeks. At that point, less than 10 cases had been identified in the US, and that number has since exploded to 25 million. In Wuhan, the origin of the disease, the seafood market from which the virus is believed to have originated is bustling again. Though there is still pain and secrecy, the people of Wuhan say that they are resilient. The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics were postponed and are now scheduled for July of this year. If they are not held then, they will be canceled, and the outlook is grim. There is a surge in COVID-19 cases across Japan, and although the IOC and Japanese Olympic Committee say that the games will go on, support from the populace is declining. 77% of Japanese think the games should not go on, and several anti-Olympics groups are saying that they would sacrifice lives. Of course, there is a lot on the line for Japan. The country spent over $25 billion in building and remodeling Tokyo, and the lack of tourism would hurt businesses preparing for extra tourist spending.

CNN 10 1/19/2021 ~ 1/22/2021

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Monday, January 18, 2021

Happy MLK Day!

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Ahead of President-elect Biden's inauguration and in the aftermath of the Capitol mob, security around the Capitol has been ramped up. A force of around 25,000 from various departments has been activated, and major buildings have unscalable fences topped with barbed wire around them. There have also been concerns of violence at state capitols, which are also getting extra security. There are hopes that the peak of this wave of COVID-19 is over. A few weeks ago, hospitals were recording as many as 132,000 cases per day, and that has come down to 124,000. There are concerns that a new strain of the disease may cause increases, but people who have recovered and those who receive the new vaccine will be immune. At around 60 or 70% immunity, something called herd immunity occurs. The majority of the population is immune, preventing further transmission. Both vaccines available in the US require two doses, but since the incoming Biden administration will release all of the doses right now, a second dose may not be available when the time comes. There is also no evidence that the vaccine prevents you from carrying the virus, so even if you are vaccinated, you should follow all safety guidelines around non-vaccinated people. Avalanches are often caused by humans, and they kill dozens every year in Colorado. Luckily, Maurice Wilkins had an avalanche airbag which saved him and allowed him to record an avalanche he inadvertently caused.

Animal Farm

By George Orwell

    The animals on Manor Farm work long hours with little food under Mr. Jones, who is often drunk. One day, Old Major, a prize boar who has lived to a long age, calls the animals together after dark. He tells them that their human overlords do no work while taking away the fruits of the animals' efforts. He says that he was dreamt of a future in which man does not interfere and animals work for themselves. He says that although he will not live to see the Rebellion, he knows that it will happen and that any two-legged creature should be feared. The animals learn a song called "Beasts of England", which speaks of the day when animals roam free.

    A short while later, after Old Major's death, Mr. Jones's men forget to feed the animals for the entire day and when they start to help themselves, take out their whips. Enraged, the animals rebel, establishing Animal Farm and 7 commandments by which all animals should abide. They ensure that no animal will ever become like a human. At first, all seems to go well. The pigs, being the smartest, take over the day to day operations with Snowball and Napoleon at the helm. The farm becomes much more efficient and the animals prosper, even defeating human attackers who attempt to retake the farm thanks to Snowball's brilliant tactics. The general human response is to pretend that the animals have become cannibals and the farm is disorderly.