Topic Reading-Vol.2728-9/30/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The five major challenges facing electric vehicles

Why do some people buy more expensive but less convenient electric cars? The upfront cost is still much more expensive than conventional vehicles, resell value or market haven’t been established yet, and charging stations aren’t always conveniently located or easily found.

Unless heavily subsidized by the government like China, the main reason to drive electric cars is to burn less fossil fuel and emit less greenhouse gases. In other words, feel more proud and less guilty.

But such pride and consciousness seem more appreciated than driving luxurious cars like Mercedes or supercars like Ferrari these days. And growing public sentiment may drive the government and businesses to put more resources to promote and accommodate e-cars even though they haven’t turned the wheel towards the right direction yet.

Enjoy reading what people in the UK think are the obstacles to bring more electric vehicles on the road.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-49578790

Topic Reading-Vol.2727-9/29/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

This police department's Tesla ran low on power during a pursuit

Debuted in 2012, Tesla’s Model S is the world's second best-selling plug-in electric car after the Nissan Leaf. According to Tesla, the Model S has the quickest acceleration on earth—from zero to 100 km/hour just in 2.4 seconds, about as fast as Ferrari or Lamborghini. Its top speed reaches over 250 km/hour, thanks to the aerodynamic design. Its Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive instantly controls traction and torque, in all weather conditions. More importantly, it offers the longest electric range of nearly 600 km, provided that it is fully charged and not air-conditioned.

So, why was a Tesla electric police patrol car in the San Francisco Bay Area forced to abandon a car chase when it ran out of power? It takes only 15 minutes to recharge to drive 200 km at a supercharger. Wasn’t the officer in the vehicle aware of the power gauge or did he ignored the warning sign?

The Model S won the 2019 "Ultimate Car of the Year", 2013 "Motor Trend Car of the Year", the 2013 "World Green Car", Automobile Magazine's 2013 "Car of the Year", and Time Magazine Best 25 Inventions of the Year 2012 award.

Enjoy reading the article and think why this award-winning electric car couldn’t catch a conventional vehicle.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/25/us/tesla-gas-fremont-trnd/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2726-9/28/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Infographic: Take a panoramic tour of Beijing Daxing International Airport

There are so many “the world’s -est things” in China. The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is the world's longest continuous bridge over water. The Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge is the longest sea bridge that spans the Pearl River Delta. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope is the world's largest filled-aperture radio telescope. Shanghai Maglev is the fastest train and Fuxing Hao CR400AF/BF is the fastest rail train in the world.

Now, just a week before its 70^th anniversary of the nation, China opened a new gigantic airport near Beijing. It sits only 46 kilometers from the Tiananmen Square connected by two train lines and highway. The starfish-shaped terminal building is packed with state-of-the-art technologies and gadgets to accommodate the needs and convenience for inbound, outbound and transit passengers. There are 268 parking bays and four runways when opened to serve 45 million passengers and will be seven runways for 100 million by 2030.

What’s amazing is that the airport construction completed in less than five years! Indeed, China’s scale and speed in construction and economic growth are both unprecedented in human history.

Enjoy seeing the infographic to learn about this new world’s largest airport.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/25/WS5d8ab62ca310cf3e3556d4bc.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2725-9/27/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

India e-cigarettes: Ban announced to prevent youth 'epidemic'

Ban it before it becomes too popular. That is what India’s government is trying to do with e-cigarettes. Production, distribution, sales, and import of vaping product are going to be banned. Though it is not clear whether the use of e-cigarettes is prohibited or not, it is expected to prevent teenagers from developing an unhealthy habit because vaping is considered stylish among young people in other countries, especially in the US. However, it doesn’t affect to over a hundred million conventional smokers.

Indeed, however unhealthy a habit is, such as smoking, drinking strong alcohol or sugary drinks, or eating junk foods, it is seldom banned. It seems that politicians are reluctant to touch things and customs that are already popular.

Interestingly though, it’s more difficult for business leaders to be proactive than reactive.

Enjoy reading the article and think what it takes to move politicians to stop global warming.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-49738381

Topic Reading-Vol.2724-9/26/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Greta Thunberg: 'Leaders failed us on climate change'

While they spend hours every day on gazing at and touching their smartphones, kids are worrying about their future. Climate changes. Although humans and all the other creatures on the planet are now facing an unprecedented threat in history, no effective actions have been taken collectively to cope with the threat. World leaders in politics and businesses are so influential in acting whether to increase or decrease greenhouse gasses but their attentions are mostly on their next elections or financial performance.

So, the general secretary of the United Nations set a stage to have conscious world leaders listen to what children want to say at the UN climate summit in New York. Even though less than one-third of the world leaders took part in the summit, the voice of children was heard. Now, is the world ready to take an unprecedented response to this unprecedented threat?

Enjoy reading the article and see the video and think how long or what will take to wake up the world.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-49795270

Topic Reading-Vol.2723-9/25/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

My boss lets me set my own salary

Usually, employees work for a salary or wage that they are offered and agreed. Employers try to set the amount of pay to hire and retain a productive person and also to encourage them to be the most valuable for the company within the budget. Also, the pay is usually allocated from the pool by the employer. In this case, employees talk and negotiate their salary with their employer based on what they have achieved, how much they have contributed, and what value they can bring in for the next pay period.

But what if employees could set their own salaries? If you were told to decide how much increase, or decrease, you would want to start a new business year, how would you set your salary? If you quote it too conservatively, you’ll miss a chance to earn money that you might deserve to earn. But if you set it too aggressively, you might not be able to deliver the expected results. You want to be responsible and reasonable for the amount you would like to quote.

There are an increasing number of companies, mainly in the tech sector, that offer a set-your-own-salary scheme in the UK. Interestingly, employees of those companies become more open to each other as they are often asked for advice and review each other. How does it work?

Enjoy reading the article and think if you are ready to set your own salary.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49677147

Topic Reading-Vol.2722-9/24/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Don't take CBD products into the UAE, UK government warns travelers

The United Arab Emirates, often known as UAE, is a sovereign monarchy and is a federation of seven emirates including Abu Dhabi, the capital, Dubai, and five others. The population of the UAE is just under 10 million, abut 80% of which are expatriates.

The oil-rich emirates have a zero-tolerance policy towards drugs and the laws are strictly enforced in a variety of ways. Use or possession of drugs is a serious crime and could face up to four years of imprisonment, including transit passengers. Any drugs detected in blood or urine tests are also regarded as a possession. Also, prescription or over-the-counter medication and even a small amount of drug substance in cosmetics or E-cigarette refills are classified as drugs.

UAE surely is a place to enjoy drug-free environment.

Enjoy reading the article and check if your next destination has zero-tolerance towards anything that you have in your luggage or body.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/dubai-travel-warning-cbd-intl-scli-gbr/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2721-9/23/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

'Dead Space': Photographer captures Hong Kong's dense hillside cemeteries

Where and how people live in the real world seems to affect where and how they rest afterlife, at least in an urban megacity like Hong Kong where over seven million dwellers live in high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. Since the land space is so limited, it is the world’s least affordable cities for the residents to find a home during and after their lives. In fact, people have to wait for years only to get a space to house an urn that contains the incinerated ash of their loved one in Hong Kong. Similar situations are also seen in Singapore and Tokyo where land space is limited for both living and dead.

One solution is to put the ashes of the loved one after cremation into an urn and place it with others like an apartment instead of burying it in a family grave. A more aggressive method is to put the ashes into a shared container with others. Either way, people have to give up some of their traditions to live in a new reality.

Enjoy seeing the photos of the urban cemeteries in Hong Kong.

https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/hong-kong-cemetery-intl-hnk-scli/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2720-9/22/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The US auto industry is almost extinct in Europe

In Europe, around 15 million new cars are sold every year. If you look at Europe as a market, it is the third-largest after China’s 28 million and US’s 18 million. Yet, Europe is a big market for an automotive company, it is a very demanding and challenging place to produce or sell cars for non-European car companies. While German premium brands like Mercedes, BMW and Audi are all keeping good brand image, presence and profits in other marketplaces, no US brand has ever achieved a sizable market share or generated meaningful revenues in Europe. Yet they had been there for the sake of global business ambition or presence until they finally found that such ambition was just an illusion and not worth the effort and investment. In fact, European automotive market is very challenging; environmental regulations are much more demanding than the ones in the US, buyers are very price-sensitive, roads are narrow and winding, and parking space isn’t accommodating for large American SUVs or vans. Facing the undeniable reality, US automakers have almost retreated from this sizable yet too demanding market. After all, search engines, music channels, SNSs, and mobile payment platforms are getting more diverse these days. Globalization doesn’t seem to apply to all businesses.

Enjoy reading and think if doing business globally is a good strategy or not.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/13/cars/us-automakers-europe/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2719-9/21/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Animals show their funny side for the 2019 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards (https://www.comedywildlifephoto.com/) is a global, online, and free-to-enter showcase of light-hearted photos of the most amazing wildlife on our planet. It shows not only the funny side of wildlife but also the necessity of wildlife conservation. Before the Overall Winner and Category Winners is announced on November 13, here are some of the finalists of the annual competition. Which one you think will win the title?

Enjoy seeing the photos and put titles on each wildlife photo.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/comedy-wildlife-photography-awards-2019/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2718-9/20/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Why the world is becoming more allergic to food

Are you allergic to a certain food, animal, drug, or substance? Nowadays, there are more people who suffer from allergy symptoms, such as skin redness, hives, swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, and difficulty breathing and anaphylactic shock. Such life-threatening reactions can be caused by particular trigger foods, like milk, eggs, peanuts, sesame, wheat or particular fish and shellfish.

In developed countries especially like the West, the number of children who suffer from allergies is on the rise. As many as seven percent of children in the UK and nine percent of those in Australia are affected by food allergies while only two percent of adults have such a problem.

When the immune system tries to fight generally harmless substances, such as food, pollen, or animal fur, an allergic response could be triggered. It is thought that modern lifestyles, urban environment, and even improved hygiene are the contributors to the immune system’s overreaction.

It seems that humans’ lifestyles are causing problems not only to the environment and other species but also to humans themselves.

Enjoy reading the article and learn what and how serious food allergies are.

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-46302780

Topic Reading-Vol.2717-9/19/2019

Topic Reading-Vol.2717-9/19/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Internet magic: A look back at Jack Ma at Alibaba

He’s one of the world’s greatest Internet tycoons. Jack Ma, an ex-English teacher in China, crated Alibaba in 1999 in Hangzhou, China. The e-commerce giant opened Taobao, the online shopping platform in 2003, created Alipay, an online payment platform, and launched 11.11 sales event in 2009. The company raised $25 billion by an IPO, Initial Public Offering, in New York Stock Exchange in 2014. Alibaba groups provide consumer-to-consumer (Taobao), business-to-consumer (Tmall), and business-to-business (Alibaba.com) sales services via web portals, as well as electronic payment services, shopping search engines, and cloud computing services. Though often compared with its US rival, amazon, Alibaba isn’t involved in direct sales or doesn’t own any warehouses. They simply help small businesses and merchandisers reach consumers.

The founder and chairman of Alibaba, 马云 (Ma Yun), more known as Jack Ma around the world, completely retired from the company on his 55^th birthday.

When he was young, he applied for 30 different jobs and got rejected by all. He also applied Harvard Business School ten times and rejected. Neither the employers nor admission officers noticed his potential contribution or donation.

Now, what will he do? Will anyone decline his application?

Enjoy learning a brief history of one of the most successful and influential Internet business entrepreneurs.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/10/WS5d7580e9a310cf3e3556a5ca_1.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2716-9/18/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Brazil Amazon: Old enemies unite to save their land

Though the world fears the devastation of this year’s Amazon rainforest fires, those who live in the rainforests are concerned more about illegal human activities such as logging and mining, which contaminate waters and destroy the nature and resources of their homeland. Such activities have increased dramatically ever since Bolsonaro swore in as President of Brazil last January. Over 800,000 indigenous people live in 450 protected territories by law, approximately 12% of the land in Brazil. However, the president has been supporting developers to make use of the protected area for the economy and shown no interest in the ecology and environment of the area and lives of the habitants.

In order to cope with this pressing threat, long-time adversarial tribes in the rainforest agreed to unite to fight against their common enemy. Even though their weapons are no use against bulldozers and guns, their newly formed frontline might push the administration to enforce the protection laws.

Clear and present danger indeed brings people, their ingenuities and minds together. And the world seems to need to realize the underlying problems of the Amazon rainforest fires.

Enjoy reading and learn about what indigenous people really need to fight against.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-49660695

Topic Reading-Vol.2715-9/17/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The Tokyo rugby club keeping elderly players healthy

Originated in England in the 19^th century, rugby is a high-impact sport played by two teams of 15 players. Rugby is played mainly in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, and an estimated global following of 475 Million people. International matches have taken place since 1871, and this year, The Rugby World Cup is hosted in Japan.

Since it is a high-impact sport, Rugby is usually played by young, well-built youths and adults, both men and women. But in Japan, where its population is aging at an unprecedented speed, there is a number of senior citizens who enjoy playing this high-impact sport. In fact, there are 150 clubs that stage competitive matches for players above the age of 40 in Japan and one of them have three rugger who are older than 90. Interestingly, those super senior rugby players seem to enjoy the sport very much despite the risk of injuries or even a heart attack.

In Japan, such active seniors who enjoy the sports and habits they used to do are called return something. Return surfers, return skiers, and return motorcycle riders (especially big bikes) are just a few examples. Many of them are now free from family or business obligations and ready to enjoy what they really want to do. They have time and money, the most essential resources to have fun.

Enjoy seeing the photos of active Japanese senior ruggers.

https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-49598887

Topic Reading-Vol.2714-9/16/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

California passes landmark gig economy rights bill

“Gig” typically means a job for a specified period of time or by the project. In the gig economy, independent workers take temporary positions or job opportunities that are offered by organizations or customers. Typical examples of such workers are freelancers like web designers, independent contractors like baby/pet sitters and ride-hailing drivers, and project-based workers like engineers and technicians.

As the workforce becomes more mobile and ubiquitous, work can be done anywhere and whenever needed. Also, digitization and smartphones have made matching easier between those who need the workforce and those who want to offer their time.

A typical business model is ride-hailing services. A mobility service provider matches riders with drivers via mobile apps or websites, such as Uber in the US and DiDi in China. Since these gig workers are paid only by their time or services, they don’t have any other benefits that ordinary employees enjoy, such as paid absence, sick pay or health care.

Now, lawmakers of California, the home to many such gig economy giants like Uber and Lyft, have passed a landmark bill to mandate companies to offer such benefits to gig workers. Though how the law is enforced is yet to be seen, this could increase the labor costs to the gig economy companies significantly, and could even affect their business model.

Enjoy reading the article about the law that could shake the rising gig economy.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49659775

Topic Reading-Vol.2713-9/15/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Over 30,000 kids in Shenzhen cross border to school

Shenzhen is a major city in Guangdong Province, China. It forms part of the Pearl River Delta megalopolis with Zhuhai, Hong Kong, and Macao. As a major gateway city to Hong Kong and the epicenter of foreign investment, Shenzhen became one of the world’s fastest-growing cities in the 1990s and the 2000s. It is also home for many high-tech companies, such as Huawei, Tencent, and BYD, and is dubbed as China’s Silicon Valley. Shenzhen is indeed closely connected to Hong Kong.

Since there are so many families living in Shenzhen from Hong Kong, over 30,000 students commute to their schools in Hong Kong daily from Shenzhen. Every morning, they come to Shenzhen Bay Port which connects the two megacities via the five-kilometer-long Shenzhen Bay Bridge. Because Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China (SAR), they are also required to go through checkpoints to have their IDs inspected, which could take hours if each student is checked manually. But Shenzhen is a tech hub and has no shortage of technologies and solutions to get the things done efficiently. Now, those students go through a special passage that is equipped with a digital bar code system to ease the traffic pressure.

Imagine students who have gone through a cross-border commute every school day for a decade. How open-minded or flexible they could be as to where to work or how to commute!

Enjoy learning about this cross-border commute by Hong Kong’s students.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/06/WS5d720061a310cf3e3556a26e_1.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2712-9/14/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

One person dies every 40 seconds from suicide, WHO says

Every year, as many as 800,000 people kill themselves, according to WHO. That means nearly 2,200 suicides are committed every day. This figure is higher than the deaths in wars or homicides, meaning more people kill themselves than being killed in wars or crimes.

Somehow, more men killed themselves than women. While nearly 14 men per 100,000 committed suicide worldwide, 7.5 women did. Only countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Morocco, and Lesotho, a landlocked kingdom encircled by South Africa, showed higher suicide rates by women than men. Another aspect is income and wealth. In high-income countries, nearly three times as many men as women killed themselves while the men-women rate is more equal among low- and middle-income countries. From what kind of pressure do men suffer?

Sadly, among young people aged 15-29 years old, suicide was the second-highest cause of death only after road injuries. Can’t they be helped?

Since the most common methods of suicide are pesticides, hanging, and firearms, limiting access to these potentially fatal items could reduce impulsive suicides. And of course, family members, neighbors and friends are the ones who can sense and ease the stress, pressure, or despair of a person.

Read the article and learn about one of the most common preventable cause of deaths.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/09/health/who-global-suicide-rates-intl/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2711-9/13/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

These 2 women are the first sisters ever to become Army generals

Though China outnumbers the size of manpower, US military is the most powerful, expensive, and diverse military force in the world.

Among over 1.3 million active-duty personnel, over 200,000 are women. And a little over 10% of the highest-ranking senior officers, colonels and Navy captains, are women. The figure was only less than 2% three decades ago. But the female presence in the US military doesn’t stop there. Of the 653 active duty general officers and admirals, 63 of them are women, up from 30 in 2000.

You understand that female presence in the US military has been consistently rising at all levels, including combat forces and fighter jet pilots.

Now, two sisters are ranked generals out of a total of 231 army generals. It is the first time for the US army’s history to have active sister generals at a given time.

Were they determined to walk a military career path in their early lives?

Enjoy reading the article and learn about the first sister generals in the US army.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/07/politics/army-general-sisters-trnd/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2710-9/12/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

5G patrol robot debuts in Shanghai

It looks harmless, or even cute. Unlike uniformed police officers who often look authoritative and unfriendly, this tri-cycled police robot received pedestrians’ warm attention when it made its debut on the busiest shopping street in Shanghai. It doesn’t do much at the moment. It rather functions as a moving CCTV, or Closed-circuit TV, camera with face recognition, which is seen everywhere in China. But when the area is covered by 5G, the fifth-generation cellular network that transmits data even faster than Wi-Fi, the police robot can provide real-time interaction with the police.

One of the advantages of this robo-police is its durability. It can work 24/7 as long as the battery lasts. It also plays a role to prevent crimes from happening. People can even contact the police real-time on the site.

But when a police robot is equipped with more flexible and advanced mobility, it could pursue criminals or intervene in a dispute or violence. Also, if it is armed with a weapon and AI, it could function as a true Robo-cop like the ones in the movie.

Will such AI armed robot look as friendly as human cops?

Enjoy seeing the photos of this friendly looking patrol robot on the busiest street in Shanghai.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201909/04/WS5d6f63c7a310cf3e35569b3f_1.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2709-9/11/2019

Dear MELTopic Readers,

Over the years, terrorists have claimed thousands of innocent lives in the pursuit of their dark objectives. The worst and deadliest of all was taken place 18 years ago, today.

The September 11 attacks, or 9.11, were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda against the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks killed nearly 3,000 and injured over 6,000 others.

Four passenger airliners that departed from New York or Boston were hijacked by 19 al-Qaeda terrorists.

Two of the planes were crashed into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York. Within an hour and 42 minutes, both 110-story towers collapsed.

A third plane was crashed into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense.

The fourth plane was initially flown toward Washington, D.C., but crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after its passengers prevented the hijackers from piloting the aircraft.

9/11 is the single deadliest terrorist attack in human history.

The United States responded by launching the War on Terror and invading Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, which had failed to comply with the U.S. demands to hand over Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of 9.11 and expel al-Qaeda from Afghanistan.

Read about the worst terrorist attack and remember the victims.

https://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/9-11-attacks

Topic Reading-Vol.2708-9/10/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

How do we measure language fluency?

Do you speak your first language fluently, or smoothly and efficiently? If you think you do, how fluently do you speak a second language compared with your first language?

In fact, one can communicate with others fluently without accuracy in grammar. For example, if someone wants to bargain at a bazaar in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, where multiple languages are exchanged between sellers and buyers, what matters the most is his or her understanding of the numbers the other is bidding and the timely and accurate response. There, it’s not the proficiency of one language but the fluency of multiple languages that makes the ends meet and bring home the bread, and possibly the bacon.

But when it comes to proficiency, one needs to demonstrate accuracy, the ability to produce grammatically correct sentences, grammatical range, vocabulary, pronunciation, and so on. While a certain level of language fluency can be obtained if a person lives in an environment where the language is spoken for some time, these language skills cannot be learned without effort. Indeed, language acquisition varies from one learner to another depending on their motivation, aptitude, and effort.

Enjoy reading and think to what degree you want to learn a second or third language.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20190903-linguistic-fluency-proficiency-second-language-learning

Topic Reading-Vol.2707-9/9/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Why Polish people hate rules

People in Polish, especially those who live in their capital city, Warsaw, don’t follow rules as obediently as others in neighboring countries. They don’t wait until something happens or someone tells them what to do. Instead, they tend to take matters into their hands and get things done.

Poland became the first victim of WWII when it was invaded by Nazi Germany in September 1939, followed by another invasion by the Soviet Union. It is estimated that around six million people were killed during the six-year war, including nearly 90% of Jews of the country. Many Polish people resisted the invader and lost their lives. After the war, remaining residents started rebuilding the war-torn Warsaw almost from scratch as it was heavily bombed and destroyed. They did so with their own hands, bricks, and stones from destroyed houses, and strong passion but without government authorization, plan or support. Two years later, the Polish People’s Republic was established as a satellite state under Soviet influence. Polish people were put under communist rule for the next four decades. They endured hardships and rebuilt the city while resisting against the Soviet and its puppet administrations. It seems that history has made Polish people more independent and responsible for themselves.

By the way, Warsaw Old Town, one of the most prominent tourist attractions in the city, was originally established back in the 13^th century, destroyed during WWII and rebuilt afterward. In 1980, it was placed on the UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites as " an outstanding example of a near-total reconstruction of a span of history covering the 13th to the 20th century.

Enjoy reading the article and learn the spirit of Polish people and the background.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20190903-why-polish-people-hate-rules

Topic Reading-Vol.2706-9/8/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Teenage boy goes blind after existing on Pringles, white bread and French fries

Many children are fussy eaters. They aren’t easily satisfied with the foods that their parents or carers prepare for them and often crave for certain foods like junk food or soda. Such behavior usually changes as children grow and does not cause so much trouble for their health.

However, when fussy eating, or particular food craving becomes a person’s main diet for some time, such practice could cause serious malnutrition and health problems.

There is a teenage boy who kept eating French fries, white bread and potato chips severely suffered from tiredness, hearing loss and vision symptoms even though he had normal height and weight. When he turned 17, he lost his vision. He was diagnosed with a lack of Vitamin V12, a nutrient that helps keep the body’s nerve and blood cells healthy and make DNA. The nutrient is contained in meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk and other dairy products. Apparently, none of the foods he was eating provides such essentials.

How much you eat or weigh doesn’t seem to show you how healthy you are.

Read the article and learn how dangerous an extreme eating habit could be to one’s health.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/03/health/poor-diet-blindness-scli-intl/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2705-9/7/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Air Canada fined for not using French language

Both English and French are the official languages of Canada. They are mandated to have equality of status, rights, and privileges as to their use in government and official institutions. This official bilingualism also applies to public services and businesses. For example, signs and announcements in the airport and on the airplane are supposed to be made in both languages equally.

Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada. The airline was sued by a French-speaking couple at a court in Ottawa for not making announcements or showing signs in French as much as in English on the flight they took. For example, some signs were shown only in English and others were written in small French words than English ones. A judge ruled that the airline had breached Canada's bilingualism laws and ordered it to pay the couple CND21,000 for compensation and write a letter of apology for violating their linguistic rights. You can assume that the couple must have taken a lot of photos and recorded announcements on board for proof.

Even though an announcement or statement is created with clear intention, it is often compromised during the translation process. Language learning seems still essential even in the era of automatic translation.

Enjoy reading the article about how strict Canada’s bilingualism is.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-49532427

Topic Reading-Vol.2704-9/6/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Vocational trainees find good jobs

The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is an autonomous region in Northwestern China which covers one-sixth of China’s land. Despite its vast size, only about 10% of the land area is suitable for human habitation. As it borders Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Russia and India, it is an ethnically diverse region, having races of Uyghur, Mongos, Kazakhs, Tibetans, Hui, Tajiks, Kyrgyz, Russians, and Han.

Xinjiang used to have the historical Silk Road that ran through the territory. In recent years, it is replaced by highspeed railways and motorways, that brought in capital investment and Han migrants, who now represent over 40% of the region’s population and control the region’s governance, security, and businesses.

According to the United Nations, there are numbers of internment camps in the region to reeducate minority peoples. It is estimated that there are over one million people, mainly Uyghurs, are detained in those camps.

However, according to China Daily, those facilities are not detention centers but vocational education centers and those who are educated and trained there have started to play a positive role in the society. Also, those facilities play a key role to free people from extremism and terrorism and maintain peace and order in the region and the country.

Enjoy reading the other side of the story about Xinjian’s “education centers”.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201907/31/WS5d409c03a310d83056401d9e.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2703-9/5/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Trump launches Space Command

A unified combatant command of US military is composed of forces from Military Departments to provide effective command and control of U.S. military forces. They are organized either on a geographical basis, such as Europe, Indo-Pacific, and Africa or on a functional basis, such as special operations, power projection, or transport.

Now, the world’s mightiest military force has added a new command that is intended to ensure safety and superiority in space. These days, satellites are crucial for military operations, civilian businesses, and air, maritime, and even ground transportation. But they are threatened not only by an enormous number of space debris but also by missiles, laser, and cyber attacks. As technologies ease the accessibility to space, satellites become more vulnerable to such attacks. In fact, it doesn’t need rocket science or deep government pockets to reach space any longer. Startups, terrorists or even gamers could pose threats to safety in space and over the world.

The newly formed 11^th US combat command seems to have a lot of tasks and responsibilities on their shoulders besides their marks.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about this new military focus.

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/08/29/politics/trump-space-command/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2702-9/4/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Hong Kong's achievements since its return to China

Honk Kong Island became a British empire’s territory in 1841 during the First Opium War. The colony expanded to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 after the Second Opium War and a 99-year lease was signed in 1898. The treaty was respected by succeeding governments, the United Kingdom and the People’s Republic of China and the former British territory was returned to China in 1997, known as the handover of Hong Kong, and became a special administrative region, or SAR. It was agreed to allow the highest degree of autonomy for 50 years and Hong Kong maintains governing and economic systems separate from those of mainland China, including governing, legislative and legal systems, police forces, monetary systems, academic and educational systems, and customs and immigration systems.

Recently though, you must have seen and heard a lot about the massive and continuous protests in Hong Kong. But what kind of and how much changes has Hong Kong experienced over the last 22 years since the handover? There is always the other side of the story.

Enjoy checking some statistics that how the mainland views the autonomous region.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201908/28/WS5d664022a310cf3e3556862a.html

Topic Reading-Vol.2701-9/3/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

No single gene associated with being gay

Homosexuality is not genetically determined, a new study from nearly half a million people found. The genomes, the entire genetic make-up, of the participants were scanned to find if there are any specific genetic variants associated with homosexual behavior, but no clear link was found between any specific gene and sexual behavior. In other words, there is no single gay gene. Therefore, it is meaningless to conduct a genetic test to find if a person is or potentially be gay.

Isn’t this a good study to prevent segregative or discriminatory screening tests from being conducted for employment or enrollment process? Finding a link between a particular gene and diseases will help prevent or cure those diseases. But it also seems important to find no link to avoid prejudice and mistreatment.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about a study that has found no link between a suspected cause and behavior.

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-49484490

Topic Reading-Vol.2700-9/2/2019

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Why red wine could be good for your gut - in moderation

Does a glass of red wine a day keep the doctor away? If an apple does, so does red wine, according to new research. That’s because red wine contains substantial polyphenols, a category of plant compounds that offers various health benefits. Regular consumption of polyphenols seems to boost digestion and brain health, as well as to protect against heart disease, diabetes, and even some cancers. Dark chocolate, tea, berries, and red wind are all rich in polyphenols.

But why is red wine good for our stomach? That’s because it seems to help the balance of bacteria and other micro-organisms in the stomach that keeps us healthy.

Do you need to drink red wine every day or every meal? Not really. It is an alcoholic drink after all, so moderate consumption is always advised. Again, you can enjoy berries with your cereal, tea after a meal, and dark chocolate for a snack to enjoy the benefits of polyphenols. But of course, a glass of red wine makes your meal and day even more pleasurable.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about this favorable research finding.

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-49480864