Topic Reading-Vol.2796-12/7/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Russian dairy farmers gave cows VR goggles with hopes they would be happier and make better milk

Cows understand what threatening and pleasing. The growl of a wolf or a bear certainly make them scared and become uneasy. In contrast, calm, pleasing music seems to make them feel easy and relaxed and make them become more productive. Indeed, some premium beef producers play music in the cow house to make the meat tenderer. Also, some dairy farmers play easy music in an attempt to make their cows produce more and better milk. Audio seems to be an effective tool to improve cows’ productivity.

What about visual effects? Now, a cow farm in a suburb of Moscow (the capital of Russia, not a kind of cow), is putting virtual reality goggles on its cows trying to produce more and better milk. The VR goggles are customized to fit the head shapes and eyesight of the cow. Through the customized VR goggles, the cow can feel like being in a wild, expansive field beneath the summer sun wherever it is and whenever. It might be helpful in a cold place like Russia where cows have to endure a long winter in a crowded and stressful barn.

Will Muscovites be able to enjoy richer milk in winter because of these cow VR goggles?

Enjoy reading the article and think if VR goggles help produce better beef, pork or chicken.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/27/us/virtual-reality-russian-dairy-farm-cows-trnd/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2795-12/6/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Go master quits because AI 'cannot be defeated'

Born in March 1983, Lee Sedol is a South Korean professional Go player of 9 dan rank. He became a professional Go player when he was 12 and has been considered as one of the most prominent Go players in the modern era. Originated in China, Go is a three-millennium old game. It is a very complex game as each player usually has 200 moves to choose, ten times more than chess.

In March 2019, he played a five-game match against the computer program AlphaGo, developed by DeepMind, an artificial intelligence arm of Google. Before the match, he was confident that he would win but was defeated one-to-four, though the games were very close. The defeat of this legendary Go champion is regarded as a landmark moment for artificial intelligence. Now, the 18-time world Go champion has decided to retire from his glorious Go career. He said that there is an entity that cannot be defeated.

Was he the last line of human defense against machines?

Enjoy reading the article and think about what humans can do better than artificial intelligence, instead of what AI can do.

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-50573071

Topic Reading-Vol.2794-12/5/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

US life expectancy is still on the decline. Here's why

Despite the world’s highest health care spending per capita, life expectancy is declining in the US. The average length of time expected to live 60 years ago was about 70 and it went up to nearly 79 five years ago. However, it went down slightly to 78.6 in 2017. There have been no plague, war, famine, or great economic depression after World War II in America. In fact, the US has been enjoying no less prosperous era compared with other developed countries like Japan, Singapore, or Western and Northern European countries whose average life expectancy has been growing steadily. So, why does America suffer a downward trend?

It seems like Americans do things excessively, such as drug overdoses, over drinking, overeating, and overstress. For example, seven per every ten adults are either overweight or obese, which could cause cancer, diabetes, heart problems and chronic conditions. Also, more people are killing themselves. Suicide rates increased over 55% for people aged between 55 and 64 over the course of the last twenty years.

America is proud of being a free country. But it may be the time to learn to be modest, at least in how much to put into their mouths.

Enjoy reading and learn about this underlying problem of the most prosperous nation.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/26/health/us-life-expectancy-decline-study/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2793-12/4/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Turkey’s ancient tradition of “paying it forward”

Askıda ekmek, meaning bread on a hook, is an old tradition through which the wealthy support the poor in Turkey. For example, someone buys a loaf of bread for a price of two at a bakery, so that the baker can give the already paid loaf of bread to someone in need. It is a practice originated back in the Ottoman era to help people without expectation of reward or recognition. It also follows one of the five pillars of Islam teaching. Sounds like a practical way to connect those who can afford to those in need in an anonymous way. This tradition is also practiced online connecting people across the country. Using social media platforms, donors can simply click the amount and recipients can enjoy free meals at participating restaurants or cafes. This is especially helpful to connect college students to the companies that intend to help them. Innovation can be used not only for convenience but also for conscience.

Enjoy reading the article and think about this street practice and online practice to connect people and their wills.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20191125-turkeys-ancient-tradition-of-paying-it-forward

Topic Reading-Vol.2792-12/3/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

How to save the planet: Five simple things you can do

A Green House Gas, GHS, has the property of absorbing infrared radiation (net heat energy) emitted from Earth’s surface and reradiating it back to Earth’s surface, and as a result, it contributes to the greenhouse effect. It includes water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. It is thought to have been causing global warming since the Industrial Revolution, having produced a 45% increase in the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide. The majority of carbon dioxide emission comes from burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and natural gas. Other factors like deforestation, changes in land use, agriculture and soil erosion are also to blame. Should GHG emission increase at the current pace, global temperatures would rise by 2°C before the middle of the century, which would cause potentially harmful effects on ecosystems, biodiversity, and human livelihoods.

While governments and businesses are reluctant or slow to tackle this most dangerous and catastrophic human-caused problem in human history, there are things that individuals can do to help reduce the emission of such hazardous gasses.

Enjoy watching the video to learn what you can do to save the planet.

https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2019/11/08/save-planet-reduce-carbon-emissions-call-to-earth-lon-orig-c2e.cnn/video/playlists/call-to-earth/

Topic Reading-Vol.2791-12/2/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Water vapor detected on Jupiter's moon Europa,

Found by Galileo Galilei in 1610 along with three other brother moons, Europa, [jʊəˈroʊpə] is one the 79 known moons of Jupiter. Slightly smaller than Earth's Moon, Europa is the sixth-largest moon in our solar system. It has a very thin atmosphere, composed primarily of oxygen. Because of its smooth surface, scientists have been expecting that a water ocean exists beneath it, which is one of the three essential ingredients for extraterrestrial life along with energy sources and chemicals like carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen.

Recently, scientists have discovered the presence of water vapor above the surface. Though it is not yet liquid water, water in vapor form is still the next best thing. In 2025, NASA is planning to launch Europa Clipper, an interplanetary spacecraft to make flyby inspections of to find more about this distant, cold moon in an attempt to find if it indeed has a suitable environment to host life.

Do you want to visit this potentially habitable moon? Be prepared to land on the surface whose temperatures are below -150°C. But you may also want to be reminded the message repeatedly sent to us by the creator of the monolith in Space Odyssey 2010, “All these worlds are yours, but Europa.”

Enjoy reading the article and learn about Europa.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/18/world/europa-moon-water-scn/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2790-12/1/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

In secular India, it's getting tougher to be Muslim

The population of India has been growing at a rate of over one percentage point, thanks to the healthy fertility rate. With 1.37 billion population, India is the world’s most populous democratic country. Indeed, approximately 900 million people are eligible to vote and about two of every three of them voted in the last national election in May.

When it comes to religion, about 80% of the population practices Hinduism. Though there are about 200 million Muslims in the country, the third-largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan, they represent less than 15% of the nation’s population, So, democracy seems to work naturally in favor of Hindus even though the country has no state religion under the constitution. Also, despite the secular national status, India’s personal laws on issues such as marriage, divorce, and inheritance vary by religion.

Naturally, religion plays significant roles in elections and people’s lives in India where secular doesn’t mean freedom of religion, equal citizenship to each citizen regardless of their religion, or separation of religion and state but just freedom in religion.

Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, won 303 seats in the parliamentary election this year, well over the majority and was the second win in a row. The party’s policy reflects Hindu nationalist positions and advocates social conservatism and a foreign policy centered on nationalist principles. The leader, Narendra Modi, and the supporters seem to have little hesitation to work on their religious interests.

Enjoy reading the article and think about what influences more in today’s politics.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/19/asia/india-muslim-modi-intl-hnk/index.html