Topic Reading-Vol.1175-6/30/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Supreme Court rules in favor of same-sex marriage nationwide

Historic judgement has just been made in the U.S.A. It has just become the 21st country to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide. Until this ruling, 37 out of 50 states had already allowed gay marriage, hence the remaining 13 states are the ones actually affected. It is also historical because the ruling was made by five judges in favor and four against.

Now all married same-sex couples can enjoy the same legal rights and benefits as married heterosexual couples anywhere in the country and are recognized on official documents such as birth and death certificates. For example, a gay couple can adopt a child in some of the states.

It took about a half century to recognize gay couples’ right after banning racial discrimination in America. It is indeed historical, isn’t it?

Enjoy reading and learning how significant this new ruling is for Americans.

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/26/politics/supreme-court-same-sex-marriage-ruling/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.1174-6/29/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Are you damaging your hearing without realizing it?

Too loud? Maybe. If you use earphones to listen to music for long time every day, your ears may suffer serious hearing problem later in your life.

Noise Induced Hearing Loss, or NIHL, is seen when your ears are exposed to loud noises, such as machineries, traffic and music. As it develops gradually, those who suffer this problem don’t notice it until it’s too late. Make the matter even worse, once your hearing ability is lost, it won’t recover. This problem is already seen mainly among young people who continuously listen to music on earphones. And this practice is expected to become even more common and continuous throughout the day as 24-hour streaming services, either free or subscription, become the main source of individual music entertainment.

Enjoy reading and learning this on-going health and could be a social problem in the future.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150619-are-you-damaging-your-hearing-without-realising-it

Topic Reading-Vol.1173-6/28/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Irony alert: Password-storing company is hacked

No password is unbreakable. No security system or service provider is perfect. No one seems to be safe in today’s digital world. Someone said there are only two companies, ones who know if they’ve been hacked and the others who aren’t aware of having been hacked. What is essential to live in an online world and deal with the problems is to detect and react as soon as a security breach occurs.

Remember. There is no bullet-proof jacket to protect any computer system.

Enjoy reading and learning about security threats in the digital world.

http://money.cnn.com/2015/06/15/technology/lastpass-password-hack/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.1172-6/27/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

UN warns of alarming level in global refugee numbers

Nearly 60 million last year. Why are so many innocent people forced to leave their homeland? In old days, there were numbers of people who were left no choice but to move to another place because of famine or natural disasters. Also there were people who had to evacuate from their land to escape from oppression by their rulers or intruders by others, as well as domestic violence or conflicts.

However, why the number of refugees has been increasing in the 21^st century? There is United Nations to bring peace and order to the world which has been in place for nearly 70 years. Does human ingenuity and intelligence only function to bring benefits in IT, science or finance?

Enjoy reading and learning how the world still suffer from conflicts and unruliness.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/06/warns-alarming-level-global-refugee-numbers-150618133734323.html

Topic Reading-Vol.1171-6/26/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

10 ways to avoid tourist trouble in Japan

Each country or region has its own customs, practices and rules. Japan is no exception. As the number of visitors has risen over 40% in April over the same period in 2014 and is expected to grow for the coming years because of the weaker yen value and 2020 Olympic Games, more effort should be made to let foreign visitors know some of the dos and don’ts.

Of course not all the things foreigners think are common are considered so or practiced always by Japanese. But there still are things to be reminded such as no tip at restaurants or taxis or taking shoes off when entering someone’s house.

Enjoy reading and learning some of the useful tips to spend enjoyable time in Japan.

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/17/travel/japan-tourist-faux-pas/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.1170-6/25/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Graduates seek dream in budget hotel

Is higher education do any good? Many may think it won’t or can’t do any harm to the young. However, when the job market seeks for more properly skilled or practically experienced quick-fit workers, academic education doesn’t seem to add any advantage to college graduates, or rather makes them unwilling to take a job that doesn’t sound reasonable for his or her educational background. This is especially a serious problem and makes the competition even fiercer when a record high seven-and-half million college graduates are entering the job market.

What are those job seekers doing? Are they giving up the academic achievement and pride and looking for a job that is no different from uneducated workers, or trying to earn practical skills to meet the demand of the job market?

Enjoy reading about the challenge and hardship Chinese college graduates are facing.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2015-06/19/content_21055836.htm

Topic Reading-Vol.1169-6/24/2015

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

India yoga: Thousands attend Modi-inspired event

What’s yoga? It’s an Indian physical, mental, and spiritual practice or discipline. In short, it’s an Indian or Hindu version of meditation with physical exercise. Initiated by India’s PM Modi, June 21, 2015 was set as International Yoga Day and thousands people in 192 out of 193 UN states practice yoga throughout the world. What is the goal of this new event? Is it to promote Hinduism or enhance the presence of the soon-to-be the world most populous country?

Whatever the purpose is, it’s always good to do a daily physical exercise and mental meditation. Also, it seems harmless to promote and organize such healthy and low-or-no cost events.

Enjoy reading and learning about this new world event, whose organizer doesn’t seem to have been corrupted like the other world sport organization, yet.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-33212949