Topic Reading-Vol.2036-11/7/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Women won't have equality for 100 years - World Economic Forum

How equal women are to men? In most countries, women are not particularly segregated from men in theory and by law. But in practice, there still seems to be a considerable gap between them.

According to the data from the World Economic Forum (WEF), the gap widened in 2017 from the previous year, especially in jobs and politics, whereas in narrowed in education and health.

Overall, the Nordic countries, such as Iceland, Norway, Finland, and Sweden have much less gender gap compared to others in the world. Many middle eastern and African countries showed the widest gap except Rwanda, which was ranked number four in the world in terms of gender equality.

What makes difference to close the gap? Is that the law, tradition, religion or discrimination?

Enjoy reading and think if and how equally women are treated in your country and society.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-41844875

Topic Reading-Vol.2035-11/6/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Pope Francis admits he sometimes falls asleep while praying
Have you ever fallen asleep when you were listening to someone speaking, such as a school teacher or lecturer, your boss or parents, or a priest? And what about during a peaceful or enjoyable time, such as reading, thinking or praying?
People often fall asleep when they are bored or tired. Some people nod when they are sitting still in quiet, even the Pope.
Pope Francis is so honest to admit that he sometimes falls asleep while praying. It is not confession because he thinks it’s ok to fall asleep during prayer because it makes him feel like a child lying in God’s arms. Is it ok then to nod while a priest is giving a sermon? 
No one would dare to nod while a dictator is making a speech, though.
Enjoy reading and think what your reaction would be if someone you’re talking to starts nodding.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41829338

Topic Reading-Vol.2034-11/5/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Inside the lab rewriting the origins of humanity

How old is our species? This is the question anthropologists have been trying to find the answer to.

Homo sapiens, our distant ancestors, had been believed to have emerged around 200,000 years ago in eastern Africa until new fossils were found in Morocco, the opposite side of the continent lately. It’s quite a significant discovery because of the time and location. They are over 5,000 km apart. Though there wasn’t any dry dessert between them then, it is not a distance even Homo sapience could travel back and forth easily. Also, it was found that the newly discovered fossils are 300,000 years old, 100,000 years older than the previous estimate. Were Homo sapience had spread all around Africa by then?

One of the lead researchers mention, "Science is a sort of perpetual reworking of knowledge."

Enjoy reading and learning when and where our ancestors originated from.

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/10/25/africa/inside-africa-morocco-homo-sapiens-fossils/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2033-11/4/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The place spacecraft go to die

How many satellites in space? There are over two thousand satellites currently in orbit around the earth.

Who sent them? Russia did more than thirteen hundred and the U.S. did about the half of them.

Will they be in space forever? Nope. Most of the satellites in orbit will eventually come down to earth.

What will happen then? Smaller ones will burn up, so there is no threat to anyone or anything on the ground. But pieces of the larger ones may return to earth, whether in the sea or on the ground. That sounds scary as more satellites are being launched in the meanwhile old ones are approaching their retirement.

Where are they falling on? Most of the falling satellites are controlled to drop in the oceanic pole of inaccessibility.

Enjoy reading and learn how and where those satellites end their missions.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-41683839

Topic Reading-Vol.2032-11/3/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Yasuhiro Yamashita: 'Judo gives us hope in this fragile world'

Judo is a modern martial art developed in Japan in 1882 and is now practiced all over the world after it evolved into a combat and Olympic sport in 1964. Among the legendary Judo fighters, Japan’s Yasuhiro Yamashita still holds a record of 203 consecutive wins, including five gold medals in international competitions, which he established before he retired from competitions in 1985. He was only 28 years old then.

Though Judo is a sport now, it requires the player to beat the opponent to win a match. But there is much more to do to master what Judo is about. For example, if the opponent is injured, you may not attack the injury only to take advantage of it.

Judo is loved by many in the world. One of the Judo loving celebrates is Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, who was awarded 8^th dan, the highest degree, and in 2012, became the first Russian to become one of the few judo fighters in the world who have achieved such status.

Yamashita believes that people learn the core values of respect by practicing Judo, which connects people beyond cultures, countries or religions. On tatami, there is no border but Judo.

Enjoy reading and learn what roles Judo could play outside tatami.

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/10/24/sport/legends-of-judo-yasuhiro-yamashita-ajjf-japan-teddy-riner/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2031-11/2/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

These ocean drones are trawling for climate change data

Drones cruise the ocean? You may think the drone is a thing that flies in the air. But there are sea version drones trawling day and night for scientific research. They don’t fly but trawl seas for gathering data, such as carbon dioxide, acidity, currents and water temperature to combat climate change as well as fish count data. They can also detect unauthorized undersea ships that are attempting to smuggle illegal objects like drugs. These solar-powered unmanned boats travel slowly but nearly permanently. Thus, the cost to gather such data fell drastically compared to human-operated ships, not to mention the consistency and accuracy of operation.

Enjoy reading and thinking any other version of drones that could take or help human’s jobs.

http://money.cnn.com/2017/10/27/technology/saildrone-autonomous-boats-drones/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2030-11/1/2017

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

US sailors rescued after five months adrift in Pacific

How did two humans and two dogs survive in a small sailing boat in the open sea for five months? What did they drink and eat?

Though it was unfortunate that the engine of their boat was damaged and broken when it was hit by a storm, the sailorwomen had been well prepared to survive in such a helpless situation. They had a water purifier to make sea water drinkable. That really was a lifesaving device, wasn’t it? They also stocked enough dried food, such as oatmeal and pasta to live for a year or longer. Were they expecting worse situation than this?

Yet they had life-keeping water and food, there were life-threatening incidents during the voyage. Two shark attacks. Fortunately, the boat was too large for the sharks to capsize or break apart. Phew! They didn’t seem to have been suffered major diseases or physical problems when they were rescued by a US navy vessel, including the dogs.

Learning from their experience; Be prepared. You never know what could happen during your voyage. Don’t lose your hope.

Enjoy reading and thinking how prepared you are for your next journey or event.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41772323