Topic Reading-Vol.3962-2/28/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Why Japan has so many ‘never travelers’
Fewer Japanese people seem to be interested in traveling abroad. Even though Japanese citizens can visit more countries without visas than any other country, fewer than 20% of them have the powerful passports. A pre-pandemic study also found that around 70% of the respondents say they wouldn’t travel abroad. To travel abroad from Japan, most travelers have to fly for hours. If you take the time, money, and hassles only to get to an international airport into consideration, there are much more economic and convenient options within the country. Also, Japan has been under deflation or zero inflation for decades, which has made foreign traveling more expensive, not to mention the recent weakening Japanese yen value. Furthermore, there are other domestic entertainments that deplete their time and money, such as smartphones, games, and SNS. In addition, as the country’s population is rapidly aging, once-frequent international travelers tend to travel to domestic destinations. All in all, the people of the island nation seem more inclined to be isolated from the world.
Enjoy reading the article and learning about how Japanese people are happy about things around them.
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/japan-never-traveler-culture-cmb/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3961-2/27/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
The Koreas' DMZ: Once a bloodshed scene, now a wildlife sanctuary
The Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a border barrier that divides the Korean peninsula roughly in half. It was established as a buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea under the Korean Armistice Agreement in 1953. The DMZ is 250 kilometers long from east to west around the 38^th parallel north. The 4-kilometer-wide demilitarized zone is one of the world’s most heavily militarized borders and has been a deadly place for humans, making habitation impossible, which has ironically created an involuntary park recognized as one of the most well-preserved areas of temperate habitat in the world. Now, Google Street View features 360-degree views of landscapes and life inside the civilian control line, just outside the DMZ.  
https://artsandculture.google.com/search/streetview?project=korea-dmz
70 years of nearly complete isolation has made the DMZ the most uninhabited area for humans but the most well-preserved sanctuary for flora and fauna in the Korean Peninsula.
Enjoy reading the article and learning about what the Korean DMZ is for nature.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-64740679

Topic Reading-Vol.3960-2/26/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
South Korea court recognises same-sex couple rights for first time
While South Korean government is struggling with the falling fertility rate, the Seoul High Court gave a ruling that a gay partner should be granted health insurance coverage just like other legally recognized partners of a different gender even though same-sex marriage is not recognized in the country. The ruling states “Everyone can be a minority in some way. To be in the minority is to be different from the majority and cannot be wrong itself. In a society dominated by the principle of majority rule, awareness of the rights of minorities and efforts to protect them are necessary.” Even though the case is likely to be appealed to the Supreme Court, the ruling sounds like a big leap forward for LGBT rights advocates in a country where there are conservative social norms are still in place. Will the diversity of partnership and family style help solve the falling fertility rate problem (Vol.3959) in South Korea?
Enjoy reading another social topic on South Korea.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-64714625

Topic Reading-Vol.3959-2/25/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
South Korea breaks its own record for world’s lowest fertility rate
The fertility rate is the ratio between the number of live births in a year and the whole female population of childbearing age (the average number of women between 15 and 50 years of age over the year). Assuming no net migration and unchanged mortality, a total fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman is needed to maintain a stable population. Many African countries have a very high fertility rate of over 4.0 and about half of the countries in the world have a higher fertility rate than 2.1. However, economically developed Asian countries like Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and China all have low fertility rates. South Korea, known for the world’s lowest fertility rate, renewed the rate to 0.78 in 2022 with only 249,000 new births. The average age of the mothers of these newborn babies was 33.5. With 372,800 deaths, the country with a population of just over 50 million lost over 120,000 of its population just in a year. Why are South Koreans reluctant to have a child or children? Are there any dominant social, cultural, or financial problems?
Read the article and learn about the country with the world’s lowest fertility.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/02/22/asia/south-korea-lowest-fertility-rate-record-2022-intl-hnk/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3958-2/24/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
The toxic legacy of the Ukraine war
Over 55 percent of Ukraine’s land area is arable land with fertile soil, Ukraine is one of the world’s top agricultural producers and exporters, playing a critical role in supplying oilseeds, sunflower oil, and grains like corn, wheat, and barley to the global market. The year-long war against Russia has already caused long-lasting damage to the country's environment and agricultural productivity as heavy metals, fuel, and chemical residues from ammunition and missiles have seeped into the soil. Also during wartime, when there's no waste management infrastructure, waste piles up in unregulated or informal landfills on the outskirts of towns and cities and causes damage to the surrounding environment. The problem is that conflict pollution to the environment is not visible and location-specific. When the war is over, substantial efforts will be needed to assess the environmental damage and apply suitable treatment to each type of contamination. Will the US, NATO, and their allies support the reclamation of the war-torn land in Ukraine as much as they are providing weapons and ammunition?
Read the article and learn about how toxic the war in Ukraine is.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230221-the-toxic-legacy-of-the-ukraine-war

Topic Reading-Vol.3957-2/23/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Biden in Ukraine: How the president's surprise visit was kept a secret
A train journey from Warsaw, the capital of Poland, to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, normally takes about 15 hours by overnight express train to cover a distance of nearly 700 kilometers. On February 20, US President Joe Biden cut the trip to ten hours to reach Kyiv to show himself and his commitment to the people in Ukraine, the voters in the US, and the leaders of NATO and allies. The unannounced visit to Ukraine where there is no US military presence is so unprecedented that surprised not only politicians but also journalists who usually are good at inferring such a move from small pieces of information of unusuality. How could his staff arrange such a risky trip in secrecy? What could this trip mean to the war?
Enjoy reading the article and learning about this surprise visit that took place a few days before the anniversary of the War in Ukraine.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64710479

Topic Reading-Vol.3956-2/22/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
A year of Russia’s war in Ukraine: Your simple guide
On February 27, 2014, Russian troops captured strategic sites across the autonomous region of Crimea from Ukraine, followed by the installation of a pro-Russian government, the Crimean status referendum, and the declaration of Crimea's independence on March 16. After the annexation, Russia increased its military presence on the peninsula as if it were part of Russia. That was the initial phase of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Then on February 24 last year, Russian president Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine as a special military operation to demilitarize and de-nazify the country that used to be part of the Soviet Union. Since the invasion, tens of thousands of civilians in Ukraine and hundreds of thousands of soldiers from both sides have been killed and wounded. Putin’s determination to stop NATO’s expansion is unshakeable. NATO and its allies are fully committed to providing both military and humanitarian support. And Ukrainian president Zelensky pledges no compromises in trying to end the war, including the recapture of Crimea. Will this already-year-long war further escalate to the point where weapons of mass destruction are deployed?
Read the article and learn about how the war started and developed in the last 12 months.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/2/16/after-a-year-of-war-in-ukraine-what-might-happen-next

Topic Reading-Vol.3955-2/21/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
How widespread could the four-day workweek really be?
It was nearly a hundred years ago when Henry Ford became one of the first employers to adopt a five-day, 40-hour week at his Ford Motor Company plants. From 1940, a 40-hour workweek with a two-day weekend became standard in the US. Over the succeeding decades, particularly in the 1940s to 1960s, an increasing number of countries adopted either a Friday–Saturday or a Saturday–Sunday weekend to harmonize with international markets. In most of the world today, the workweek is from Monday to Friday and the weekend is Saturday and Sunday. The question is if the five-day workweek is the best practice for productivity, workers’ well-being, and job retention. Why not four days for the same hours or reduced hours? As more people work from home or individually, a four-day workweek has been tried and adopted in some businesses as well as no-meeting days, flexible work hours, and remote or hybrid work. What is the best practice for employers, employees, and their families?
Enjoy reading the article and learning about what a reduced workweek is like.
https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20230125-how-widespread-could-the-four-day-workweek-really-be

Topic Reading-Vol.3954-2/20/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
US cancer patient developed 'uncontrollable' Irish accent
First described in 1907, Foreign Accent Syndrome (FAS) is a rare motor speech disorder. With FAS, your native language will remain the same but your accent sounds very different from your native accent, like American English and British. The most common cause of this rare symptom is brain damage that stems from a stroke or traumatic brain injury. There have been only just over 100 cases reported in the last 100 years. Recently, a man with prostate cancer in North Carolina, USA, developed an uncontrollable Irish accent all of a sudden, which he had never spoken before and he remained speaking with the accent until his death. Though he lived in England for some time, he had no immediate family from Ireland.
Enjoy reading the article and learn about what FAS is about.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64671894

Topic Reading-2/7/2023

Dear, MEL Topic Readers,
After over 10 years of daily posting, the Topic Reading needs a break for the next few weeks.
Please be patient until the next volume is posted.
Thank you,
The Author

Topic Reading-Vol.3953-2/6/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Does having a teen feel like living with a chimpanzee? You may not be far off, study shows
Adolescents tend to have emotional and behavioral problems. They try new things, take risks, and develop their ideas and identities as their brains seek out new experiences and information. What about chimpanzees, our closest cousins? A new study on adolescent chimps, aged between eight and 15 in a 50-year life span, at a sanctuary in the Republic of Congo showed that they take risks and tend to be more impulsive than grown-up adults. In the meantime, contrary to human counterparts who tend to choose an immediate reward, adolescent chimps are as patient as their adults to get a better reward. Are human adolescents less mature than chimps of the same age group?
Enjoy reading the article and learning about how to deal with aggressive and impatient adolescents.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/30/health/teens-chimpanzees-scn-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3952-2/5/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
‘Ideology of hate’ consuming India, Gandhi’s great-grandson says
Around 80% of India’s population are Hindus and 14% are Muslims. Although India’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion, there have been occasional religious conflicts, particularly against Muslims by Hindus. 75 years ago, India’s founding father, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by a Hindu extreme nationalist Godse, who opposed to Gandhi’s advocacy for Hindu-Muslim unity and his support for a separate Muslim state (Pakistan) during the Partition of India. The assassin was tried, sentenced to death, and executed in 1948. Even though the Indian government and many mainstream political parties have condemned any attempt to glorify Godse or justify his actions, Godse’s act has been admired by Hindu nationalists. In fact, a temple dedicated to the assassin was built near New Delhi in 2015.
Now, Gandhi’s great-grandson is very much worried about the rising Hindu nationalism pushed by PM Narendra Modi and his political party (BJP).
Read the article and learn about what is going on in the world’s largest democratic and most diverse secular nation.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/1/29/ideology-of-hate-consuming-india-gandhis-great-grandson-says

Topic Reading-Vol.3951-2/4/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Weight loss surgery extends lives, study finds
Obesity, defined as an excessive fat accumulation of a person whose body mass index (BMI) is 30 or higher, is both a health and medical problem that increases the risk of diseases like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cancers. Is obesity a moral failing or a biological problem? As each person has different genetic characteristics, managing weight is unique to the individual. It is like a mixture of genetics, culture, environment, social practices, lifestyles, and health conditions. Along with weight loss medications and lifestyle changes, weight loss surgery is another solution to cure this health problem. A new 40-year study found that bariatric surgery, which involves making changes to the digestive system to help lose weight, indeed reduces the risk of premature death, especially from obesity-related conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and heart diseases. What kinds of surgeries could help lose weight? Are they safe? Did those who underwent the surgery all become happier?
Enjoy reading the article and learning about what weight loss surgery is like and how it helps people with obesity.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/28/health/bariatric-surgery-success-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3950-2/3/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
McDonald’s is testing a new strawless lid
Starbucks replaced plastic straws with plastic sippy cup lids for cold drinks in 2020, except for Frappuccinos and creamy drinks in an effort to reduce the use of plastic waste. It took a little longer for the world’s fast food giant McDonald’s to follow the suit, but not entirely. Plastic straws can still be provided upon customers’ request. While Starbucks also has been replacing plastic straws with paper or other biodegradable straws across the world, McDonald’s has been slower to adopt plastic alternatives. The brand color of Starbucks is green and McDonald’s is red/yellow. The headquarters of the coffee chain is located in progressive, environmentally sensitive Seattle while the sandwich restaurant chain is headquartered in Chicago, a conservative Midwestern area. Also, the customer profile of the trendy, stylish coffee chain differs from the fast food restaurant. They seem to have different levels of sense of urgency toward the environment. Whichever the case might be, there must be better solutions than plastic lids.
Enjoy reading the article and learning about how these two world’s largest food/coffee chains are working on reducing plastic waste.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/27/business/mcdonalds-strawless-lids-test/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3949-2/2/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
ChatGPT passes exams from law and business schools
You might have used a chatbot, or chatterbot, an online chat conversation via text or text-to-speech, to get information, instructions, or solutions instead of a human agent. Launched in late  November last year, ChatGPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) is an advanced chatbot developed by OpenAI. It has been used to generate essays, stories, and song lyrics in response to what a user asks. Recently, ChatGPT answers and essays were graded by university professors. Surprisingly, they passed exams in graduate schools for law and business. This could mean that any student can use the Ai app not only to answer questions but also to write essays and reports. The app definitely shortens the time for research, studies, and even document creation. 

For example,
Question: Which indicator is more accurate to predict the future growth potential of a corporation, PBR or ROE?
ChatGPT: Both the price-to-book ratio (P/B ratio) and the return on equity (ROE) are financial ratios that can be used to evaluate a corporation's growth potential. However, they measure different aspects of a company's financial performance and provide different information.
The P/B ratio compares a company's market capitalization to its book value, which is the value of the company's assets minus its liabilities as reported on its balance sheet. A lower P/B ratio indicates that a company's stock is undervalued relative to its book value, which could be a sign of potential future growth.
Return on equity (ROE) is a measure of how well a company is generating profits from its shareholders' equity. It is calculated by dividing net income by shareholder's equity. A higher ROE indicates that a company is more efficient at generating profits from its shareholders' investments, and it can be used as a sign of a company's potential for future growth.
Both P/B ratio and ROE are important indicators to evaluate a company's financial performance, but they provide different information. P/B ratio gives an idea about the company's valuation and ROE measures the efficiency of the company in generating profits from shareholders' investments. It's important to look at both indicators along with other financial metrics like revenue and earnings growth, debt levels, etc. to get a comprehensive picture of a company's financial health and potential for future growth.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about the potential of ChatGPT.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/26/tech/chatgpt-passes-exams/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3948-2/1/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Earth’s inner core may have stopped turning and could go into reverse, study suggests
The Earth is made up of three different layers, the crust, the mantle, and the core.
The crust is the outside layer of the earth and is made of solid rock. There are two types of crust; oceanic and continental. The oceanic crust is denser and thinner and mainly composed of basalt, a type of black rock that comes from a volcano.  The continental crust is less dense, thicker, and mainly composed of granite, a very hard, grey, pink, or black rock.
The mantle lies below the crust and is nearly 3,000 km thick.  It consists of hot, dense, iron and magnesium-rich solid rock. The crust and the upper part of the mantle make up the lithosphere, which is broken into tectonic plates, both large and small.
The core is the center of the earth and is made up of two parts: the liquid outer core and the solid inner core. The outer core is a solid ball with a radius of about 1,200 km, which is about 20% of Earth's radius or 70% of the Moon's radius. It is made of nickel, iron, and molten rock, and temperatures there can reach up to 50,000 C. The solid inner core is situated about 5,000 km below the Earth's crust and is separated from the liquid outer core, which allows the inner core to rotate at a different speed from the rotation of the Earth itself.
Now you are ready to read the article about the movement of Earth’s inner core.
Enjoy reading the article and learning about the structure of our planet.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/25/world/earth-core-turning-scli-scn-intl/index.html