Topic Reading-Vol.940-11/7/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

What does a conductor actually do?

Have you ever seen an orchestra perform, whether in a concert hall or on screen? There is a person just standing on the podium moving his or her hands and body but doesn’t play any musical instruments, sings songs or makes sound. But the eyes of the entire audience are glued to his or her movements, not to mention the ones of the players on the stage.

So, what does a conductor actually do? He or she must be doing much more than keeping the right tempo of the music because that could be easily done by a metronome.

Enjoy reading and finding what conductors do on the podium and behind the stage.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20141029-what-do-conductors-actually-do

Topic Reading-Vol.939-11/6/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Terminally ill Brittany Maynard takes her own life

Though it is legal, doctor-assisted suicide is still one of the most controversial issue, especially for the young. This would-have-been 30 on 11-14-2014 woman was diagnosed with brain cancer on New Year's Day of this year and was told she had only six months to live. She had been married only for 15 months then.

She moved to Oregon where such assisted suicide is legal. There have been over 750 people who took the advantage of the law, most of them were aged patients and only six of them were under 35.

She earned two degrees, taught orphans in South East Asian countries, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and tried to live as much as she could. But increasingly frequent and severe pains and stroke-like symptoms made her choose to take the aid-in-dying medication she had received months ago.

Read and imagine how painful and regretful would have been for her to end her life at such an early stage of life.

http://news.yahoo.com/terminally-ill-death-dignity-advocate-dies-070453894.html

Topic Reading-Vol.938-11/5/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Fossil fuels should be phased out by 2100 says IPCC

Another report on climate change. This time it states more specifically and strongly.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, reports that the world faces "severe, pervasive and irreversible" damage if no decisive and immediate actions are taken. The report clearly states that renewable energies must grow from their current 30% share to 80% of the power sector by 2050 and fossil fuel power generation technology needs to be phased out by the end of the century, otherwise, global temperatures are expected to increase by 5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. That increase is far beyond the 2 degrees target acknowledged in 2009 as the threshold of dangerous climate change.

However, there aren’t so many leaders or politicians who would dare to take a risk to bring in such unpopular and painful topic to discussion or election. Economic growth seems to increase their popularity and prosperity as well as global temperatures, doesn’t it?

Enjoy reading and learning about this new warning by the UN’s workgroup.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29855884

Topic Reading-Vol.937-11/4/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

China corruption: Record cash find in official's home

The house must be huge enough to hide cash worth for US$32 million, or 200 million yuan.

Since the largest banknote in China is 100 yuan, there must be at least two million banknotes hidden in the senior party official’s residence who was accused of one of the largest corruption cases since the anti-corruption campaign took place in 2013. The amount of cash was so huge that four counting machines broke during the measuring process.

The question is, who paid such a large amount of cash and how it was carried in the house.

Enjoy reading and thinking what kind of enterprises, institutions or organizations can pay out such a large amount of cash without valid bills and receipts as well as how the transaction or transportation could have been made.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-29845257

Topic Reading-Vol.936-11/3/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Fewer couples want second child

Is that a surprise, underestimate or miscalculation? Of the 11 million who become eligible to have a second child in China, only 720,000 applied to have one.

China’s one-child policy was introduced in 1979 as part of their family planning policy. It has been implemented until recently when the administration decided to ease the rules by allowing couples to have a second child if one of the parents is an only child. They estimated two million couples would apply to have another child especially in urban area where the restriction has been strongly implanted.

However, parents responded not as enthusiastically as they were predicted. Part of the reason is high education cost. That is a common concern in developed counties in Asia such as Korea, Japan and Hong Kong.

Can they sustain demographic balance in the coming decades?

Enjoy reading and learning about China’s new challenge to balancing the largest population in the world.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2014-10/30/content_18825388.htm

Topic Reading-Vol.935-11/2/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

U.S. News Releases Inaugural Best Global Universities Rankings

As businesses and activities are getting more globalized, education is no exception. The number of students who studied abroad was around 800,000 four decades ago. That number reached 4.5 million in 2012, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, and is expected to grow even faster for the coming years.

For those who are interested in studying abroad, here is a newly published global ranking list of top 500 colleges and universities in 49 countries. Not surprisingly, the U.S. has the most institutions in the list, 134, more than a quarter of the list followed by the U.K., and China.

Enjoy reading and learning which educational institutions do better than the others.

http://news.yahoo.com/u-news-releases-inaugural-best-global-universities-rankings-120000152.html

Topic Reading-Vol.934-11/1/2014

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

E-waste inferno burning brighter in China's recycling capital

Many people of the developed countries seem to think they are conscious of the environment and human health. But that consciousness seems to apply only within their sights.

Tons of tons of e-waste such as mobile phones, remote controls, computers and music players have been shipped to be recycled from other countries to this small town in the southern province of Guangdong for decades. The environment of the places where such e-waste is generated might have been improved at the cost of the local environment and health of the residents. Now as China’s economy and consumption grows, this place seems to be getting even more e-waste from the domestic market. Economically, this trend is going to benefit the local residents and emigrants from near and far towns. However, they seem to sacrifice their health and living environment.

Recycling seems to be a morally and environmentally complicated act, doesn’t it?

Enjoy reading and learning about the chain of e-waste recycling.

http://news.yahoo.com/e-waste-inferno-burning-brighter-chinas-recycling-capital-041614646--finance.html