Topic Reading-Vol.3558-1/7/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Why you should upgrade your mask as the Omicron variant spreads

Hundreds of thousands of people have been infected daily in countries like the US, France, and Spain by the Omicron variant. Since Omicron has been spreading around the world much faster than any other known variant, it is time to be reminded of the importance and necessity of wearing masks. Unlike influenza, which could spread by droplets, inhale, or surfaces, the primary driver of coronavirus infection is shared air. That’s why the function of masks plays an important role to prevent infections. For example, if you’re wearing a mask that is 90% efficient like N95, it could take 10 times longer before you get infected than not wearing any. However, many people, especially those who are in non-mask-wearing cultures, choose to wear cloth masks for an appearance’s sake. Unfortunately, they are far less effective than professional, surgical, or disposable masks when it comes to preventing virus infections even though they work much better than not wearing any. Also, the longer you stay in a closed environment, the higher the chance you get infected. Proper mask-wearing and air ventilation seem to be more essential to cope with the highly contagious coronavirus variant.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about what masks do to protect you from the virus.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/24/health/cloth-mask-omicron-variant-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3557-1/6/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Quiz: Do you remember these good things that happened in 2021?

2021 was a challenging year for humans. The coronavirus pandemic didn’t cease but created new variants instead and kept sickening more people and screwing the economy. More extreme weather events occurred in many parts of the world such as heatwaves and super hurricanes. When you look back on the past year, which events do you want to remember, good ones or bad ones? You probably have a number of great events even without winning a lottery, such as having a new family member, making a good friend, getting a new job, or just living a healthy life. In the meantime, many good things happened around the world last year that you might not have remembered yet, such as in the Olympic Games and from Mars exploration.

Enjoy trying these 10 quizzes to remember 2021.

https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2021/12/us/quiz-year-in-review/

Topic Reading-Vol.3556-1/5/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

China bans its national football players from getting tattoos

Now, tattoos are officially considered unhealthy content in China. The sports administration body announced that tattoos should not be shown by the footballers of the national team. Historically, tattoos were used to identify criminals visually in China. Also, they are linked to criminal groups in east Asia. The star footballers who already have tattoos are now advised to remove them. Tattoos can be removed fully or partially with laser treatments though the expense and pain are typically greater than those of applying them. But that is not it. The National Youth Campus Football League announced that athletes at all stages shall not have tattoos, dye their hair, wear weird hairstyles, or wear any accessories to take part in the competition. Indeed, star athletes are as influential as online influencers or game characters to young people. They are watched, followed, and even mimicked by young players and children. So, if the government intends to restrict or promote certain practices, top athletes are the ones that showcase good examples, and certainly not bad ones. The question may be who decides and on what grounds. Religious codes, cultural practices, legal guidelines, or public sentiment? Think of the dress codes in some of the Islamic nations. Aren’t they too strict? Can New Zealand’s All Blacks play rugby in China? There seem to be broader aspects to look at what is appropriate and what is not.

Enjoy reading the article and think about what tattoo could mean or present to young people.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59827047

Topic Reading-Vol.3555-1/4/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

China: Public shaming returns amid Covid fears

Public shaming or public humiliation is a form of punishment that dishonors an offender or criminal in public. A criminal or accused could be placed or paraded in a central, public, or open place where he or she could be openly seen by citizens. For example, French women, who were accused of having collaborated with Nazis, were shaved their heads and were paraded through the streets barefoot in Paris in 1944. Also, victims of a struggle session during the Cultural Revolution time in China were forced to admit their crimes before a crowd of people who verbally and sometimes physically abused them. Nowadays, public shaming is sometimes seen online, exposing private information to get public humiliation. On December 28 last year, four men in hazardous materials suits (hazmat suits) were paraded through the streets of Jingxi city in Guangxi province, China. They were accused of smuggling people across China’s borders. The parade was meant to deter illegal activities around and across the border when it is under strict control to prevent the novel virus from coming into China.

Read the article and think about if public shaming is just a form of humiliation or a suitable deterrence method to contain the pandemic.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59818971

Topic Reading-Vol.3554-1/3/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The Indian economy is growing fast, but problems loom

With a population of 1.4 billion, India’s economy is the 3rd largest in the world if the relative cost of local goods, services, and inflation rates are taken into account, or on PPP (purchasing power parity). However, India’s GDP per capita on PPP is just over $7,000 and ranked 122th in the world. In fact, it is estimated that over 20% of people live in poverty. Also, while the overall unemployment ratio stays below 7%, youth unemployment goes over 20% in India. The worst problem is inflation, which tends to hit the poor hardest. India has experienced a double-digit price increase for several months. And fuel and energy prices increased nearly 40% in November. Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises or MSMEs represent 30% of India’s GDP but they are devasted by the pandemic. That’s a big problem as MSMEs employ over 100 million people. When energy and food prices go up, those who spend most of their money on basic necessities suffer more. And MSMEs are their main employers as India’s industrial sector, which could provide higher wages, better welfare, and safer job security employs just over 25% of the labor force.

Enjoy reading the article and learn why India’s economy is growing but people’s lives are suffering.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/12/28/india-economy

Topic Reading-Vol.3553-1/2/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Thirty years after the Soviet Union collapsed, Putin exploits nostalgia for the old regime

A century ago, the world’s largest nation was created, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, USSR. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The first leader was Lenin, succeeded by Stalin, and the last was Gorbachev. The seven-decade-long communist empire was dissolved in December 1991 by its founder states, and then the Commonwealth of Independent States, CIS, was established and Russia and 14 other post-Soviet states emerged. The first directly elected president of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, was succeeded by Vladimir Putin in 2000, who called the breakup of the Soviet Union was the worst political mistake and catastrophe. His popularity and support increased when the oil price hiked, fought against George in 2008, and annexed Crimea in 2014. Putin has been leading the country for over two decades but Russia’s economy has been stagnant for about a decade and is now facing harder economic and political challenges than ever before. Surprisingly, his attempt to recall Soviet nostalgia doesn’t seem to have met strong opposition. Does larger geographical territory or national pride bring about a better economy? Does political ideology help people make happier? In the 21^st century, it isn’t the size of the land or military but the environment for technological and industrial advancement that gives people jobs and makes the country mightier.

Enjoy reading the article to learn about the challenges that 30-year-old Russia is facing.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/25/opinions/30th-anniversary-soviet-union-collapse-andrei-kolesnikov/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3552-1/1/2022

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

James Webb Space Telescope lifts off on historic mission

Named after an architect of the Apollo Moon landings, the James Webb Space Telescope is the largest telescope ever launched into space. It departed on Christmas day last year and is on its way to the observing station some 1.5 million kilometers away from the Earth. Unlike the Hubble Space Telescope that orbits around the Earth, it will orbit the Sun. Webb’s 6.5-meter-wide golden mirror is three times wider than the one on Hubble but is 100 times more powerful to observe infrared signals of very distant objects. As you know, light travels at 300,000 kilometers per second. So, the Sun you see in the sky was the sun about eight minutes ago. If we could detect infrared signals in deep space where there is very little gravity, friction, magnetic, or atmospheric influence, we might be able to analyze what happened at the beginning of the universe like the Big Bang, which took place over 13 billion years ago. Also, Webb is expected to probe the atmospheres of distant planets that could be habitable for any lifeform. It is such an ambitious project that thousands of people worldwide have worked on over the last three decades.

If the world can work together and spend billions of dollars on a non-urgent project like this, why can’t we work on a more immediate problem like global warming?

Enjoy reading the article and learning about this new space exploration project on New Year’s Day.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59782057