Topic Reading-Vol.4237-11/30/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

You can get Covid-19 and flu vaccines at the same time, but should you?

As winter approaches in the northern hemisphere, people live and work in a more closed environment. Then the air is dryer inside and even outdoors. Yes, the flu season is coming. Also, COVID-19 is still out there with new variants like HV.1 and EG.5. So, if you’re getting those vaccines, should you get them on different days or on the same day? Studies have found there seems to be no significant difference in antibody levels between different-day shots and same-day shots. Also, after-shot temporary reactions, such as fatigue, headache, fever, and muscle pain are nearly the same. It rather depends on the person. Then the question is whether you go to the clinic once or twice. Would you risk exposing yourself to an environment where there could be other patients with cold, the flu, or COVID-19 twice? Would you experience after-shot reactions twice? Furthermore, would you like to make just one visit or two visits?

Read the article and learn about how two vaccines could be taken before the flu season.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/24/health/covid-19-flu-vaccines-same-time/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4236-11/29/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

American consumers are experiencing sticker shock for domestic wines. How did US bottles get so expensive?

Wines in the US have become more expensive, but not just because of rising demands. During the Covid pandemic, alcohol sales spiked as many people were forced to stay home and needed comfort. They had an extra budget allowance to buy more expensive wines than they used to buy as they could not dine out or travel. This allowed winemakers to raise prices to offset the rising production costs, including bottles, labels, corks, capsules, and labor. None of these improved the quality, flavor, or taste of the wine, though. After the pandemic, the demand declined but the prices stayed high. Winemakers are afraid that consumers might perceive lower prices as having lower quality. Also, the cost to bottle wine is nearly the same for almost any wine. That’s why prices of wines in the US are staying high. But if there are no good affordable wines, consumers are likely to pick alternative drinks, such as craft beers or sparkling alcohol drinks. Winemakers seem to need sound strategies to manage today’s and future business.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about the pricing mechanism of US wines.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231121-how-us-wine-became-so-expensive

Topic Reading-Vol.4235-11/28/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

From Sin City to Sports Central: How Las Vegas is betting big on a lucrative industry

Located in the Mojave Desert, Nevada, Las Vegas is a city famous for gambling, shopping, and entertainment. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the US, welcoming around 40 million visitors a year. It originally grew as a gambling city with casinos and hotels like Caesars Palac, earning the nickname “Sin City.” Then it added family attractions, including museums, theaters, halls, and amusement parks, and also developed business facilities for conventions, and became known as the Entertainment Capital of the World. Recently, the entertainment city has broadened its business scope to sports events, constructed stadiums and arenas, and hosted Formula 1 racing events, major league sports games, and national title events like the Super Bowl. Now, Las Vegas claims itself as the Sports and Entertainment Capital of the World. It seems that the city is also home to the construction, maintenance, and hospitality industries. What will happen to this desert city in the middle of nowhere in the future? Is this resource and energy-consuming city sustainable?

Enjoy reading and learning about what is going on in the Capital of Gambling, Entertainment, and Sports events.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/18/business/las-vegas-sports-economy/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4234-11/27/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Newborn cloned cat is all Chinese

Animal cloning is the process of creating a genetically identical copy of an animal. The most popular technique of animal cloning is somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), which involves removing the nucleus from a donor cell and placing it into an enucleated egg cell. The egg cell is then stimulated to develop into an embryo, which is then implanted into a surrogate mother. The first cloned animal was Dolly the sheep, which was born in 1996. Catarina the cat was the first cloned cat from a somatic cell in 2001. Research institutions in China have been working on cloning animals with all-Chinese technologies and machines and recently created its first cat cloned from somatic cells using domestically developed equipment and reagents. They’ve also cloned 20 pigs only with homegrown equipment and reagents this month. These are a few examples of all-Chinese scientific research like the Tiangong Space Station. As the number of newborn children has been declining drastically in China (Vol.4232), the news might remind you of the clone troopers in Star Wars movies.

Read the article and learn about China’s all-domestically cloned cat.

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202311/22/WS655d6091a31090682a5ef70a.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4233-11/26/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Skiplagging: Why some flyers love it and why airlines hate it
"Skip-lagging" or "hidden-city ticketing" is a practice some travelers use to fly cheaply. It involves booking a flight with a layover at the desired destination and another leg to another airport to make the airfare cheaper. For example, if you want to fly from Los Angeles to Chicago, you might find a much cheaper airfare to Columbus, Ohio via Chicago. So, you buy a ticket to Columbus, fly to Chicago, and discard the Chicago to Columbus flight. The practice has been popular as airfares to major destinations are painfully expensive while the ones to another airport that is connected are much cheaper. On the other hand, it makes the airline fly with an empty seat for the leg and wait for the no-show passenger until the last minute. In fact, the practice is often against the airline's ticketing policies, and it could impose a penalty on the ticket holder. However, as airfares between popular destinations have become more expensive even before the pandemic, some flyers are trying to save as much airfare as they can despite the risk of penalties. Are there any ways for airlines to be more friendly to budget travelers?
Enjoy reading the article and learning about what skip-lagging ticketing is about.
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/skiplagging-hidden-city-explainer/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4232-11/25/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

After Years of Sharp Decline, Will China’s Birth Rate Rebound?

China’s population is around 1.4 billion, nearly the same as India. The nation recorded its first population drop in six decades last year. And its population is expected to fall to around 1.3 billion by 2050 while India’s will increase to 1.7 billion. Furthermore, China is rapidly aging, and the population aged 60 or older is expected to reach 400 million, making up about 28% of the population. That’s because the number of new births has been declining faster than any other country. Over the last several years, the number of newborns has been showing double-digit declines. In fact, there were 18.8 million newborns in 2016 but the number fell to 9.5 million in 2022, which is nearly half of six years before. And the number is expected to decline another 10% or so this year to around eight million. What is going on? As the number of women of childbearing age declines, so does the number of newborns. Also, fewer people are getting married and are not so motivated to have children. If there has been such a rapid decrease in the number of children, what is happening to schools and businesses for children?

Read the article and learn about China’s drastic decline in newborns.

https://www.caixinglobal.com/2023-09-26/blog-after-years-of-sharp-decline-will-chinas-birth-rate-rebound-102112610.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4231-11/24/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Why you see Black Friday sales in July

Americans celebrate a unified Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November every year. After a day of family gatherings and feasts, people are ready to shop, either for Christmas or their wish list on Black Friday, the start of the Christmas shopping season. Some stores open as early as midnight to fire up sales with heavy discounts. Indeed, Black Friday has been the busiest shopping day of the year in the US for decades. Nowadays though, the term is used not only on the day after Thanksgiving but also for other promotional events, such as Black Friday in July by Best Buy, an electronic retailer. There is also Cyber Monday, an online sales promotion day on the Monday after Thanksgiving, which now become popular in other markets. Then Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer by market cap, hosted a “Prime Day Sales” event in typical July and another in October this year. All these sales events are intended to stimulate consumers with heavy discounts on promotional items before their competitors do. How will American retailers do this weekend?

Enjoy reading the article and learning about what Black Friday meant and means now.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231116-why-you-see-black-friday-sales-in-july

Topic Reading-Vol.4230-11/23/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

How 'ESG' came to mean everything and nothing

Back in 2015, 196 nations pledged to take on climate change with the goal of net zero emissions by 2050 at the UN's annual Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris. This led many businesses to add a new perspective on business strategies and investments, called ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) a framework used to assess an organization's business practices and performance on various sustainability and ethical issues. Some global companies like Axa, Apple, Pfizer, and Proctor & Gamble committed greener or fairer business commitments. However, ESG seems to consist of controversial elements. Environmental and social pledges are for outside of the company while governance is the way that organizations are managed at the highest level, and the systems for doing this. For example, environmentally, the sooner the better to shift from fossil fuel vehicles to new energy vehicles. However, what happens to the cars and gas stations on the roads? That’s a social issue. From the corporate governance aspects, a radical shift to new energy vehicles would affect the bottom line of existing car makers and their suppliers, which is a governance issue. Can corporations and financial institutions keep investing in businesses or projects whose expected returns are lower just under the name of ESG? After all, ESG seems to be a nice label to put on for environmentally and socially responsible corporations that maintain responsible governance.

Read the article and learn about what ESG has meant to the world.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231114-how-esg-came-to-mean-everything-and-nothing

Topic Reading-Vol.4229-11/22/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

It’s time to walk the dog (and yourself) for better fitness

If you have a pet dog, how often do you walk them, every day, a few times a week, or less? Just like most of us, dogs want to go out for mental refreshment and physical exercise, too. In fact, most dogs are bored to death at home unless they have frequent interactions with humans or other canine friends. In fact, most dogs need regular walks for their mental and physical health. And if you walk your dog, say for thirty minutes five times a week or 15 minutes 10 times a week, both you and your dog will be in good shape. Actually, you can develop good bonds with your pet dog as you walk or do any activity together. But don’t be too selfish. Not all the dogs are the same. Some are more active and others are not so in physical activities. Pay attention to your dog while walking and adjust the pace and distance according to the dog’s condition, especially when you run or bike. After all, you want your pet dog to enjoy the activity together. Walking shouldn’t be a hardship but fun for both of you.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about the benefits and tips of walking a dog.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/18/health/working-out-with-your-dog-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4228-11/21/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
After WeWork's bankruptcy, what is the future of coworking?

Coworking spaces have become increasingly popular in recent years, as more people choose to work remotely or freelance. These shared workspaces offer a number of benefits, including flexibility, affordability, a sense of community, and productivity. For example, if you work from home, it is not so easy to draw a line between work and daily life. But in the structured environment of a coworking space, you’re surrounded only by other workers like your office. In fact, as more people started working as freelancers or remote workers, the demand for coworking space has been on the rise, especially since the millennium. Founded in 2010, WeWork was a shared workspace company and grew quickly to become one of the most valuable startups with over 700 locations in 39 countries. Unlike other shared-office operators, WeWork took on long-term leases with property owners and collected members’ fees directly to pay the rent. This would allow them to enjoy any extra revenues above the rent they pay. However, when the demand falls like during the Covid era, or property value falls and their long-term lease contract becomes too expensive, this business model collapses. This is what happened to WeWork and the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on November 6. In the meanwhile, other coworking space providers are enjoying their businesses as they have been. Another example of rapid growth and fall in business.

Read the article and learn about what has made once a shining star in the coworking business.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231115-after-weworks-bankruptcy-what-is-the-future-of-coworking

Topic Reading-Vol.4227-11/20/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Cutting 1 teaspoon of salt works as well as blood pressure meds, study finds

Sodium is an essential mineral that plays a vital role in many bodily functions, including nerve impulse transmission, muscle contraction, and fluid balance. In the meanwhile, consuming too much sodium can lead to a number of health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. Even though it is recommended that adults take no more than 2,300 milligrams of salt a day, many people take more salt without putting any salt in their food. That’s because processed and prepared foods contain more sodium than you could imagine, which was added to make the foods tastier, not saltier. For example, if you eat a bowl of minestrone soup and a ham & cheese sandwich for lunch, you’ll get more than half of the daily sodium limit. A new study has found that reducing daily sodium intake helps lower the top blood pressure as much as a hypertension medication. Then how can we cut salt intake? Well, if you eat prepared meals, you hardly have any control over salt intake. So, you’d better prepare meals yourself. Also, if you continue eating low-salt meals, your taste buds will get used to it, and then ordinary foods will taste too salty in a matter of a week. Indeed, just a week of low-salt diet will make you healthier than taking medication.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about how to control daily sodium intake to be healthier.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/11/health/low-salt-diet-or-medication-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4226-11/19/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Nepal bans TikTok because of ‘disruption’ to social harmony

Launched in China in 2016 as Douyin, TikTok is a video-sharing social networking service owned by Chinese company ByteDance. It is a global platform for creating and sharing short videos, usually 15 seconds to three minutes long, that can be anything from funny skits and dance challenges to educational tutorials and product reviews. It has over 1 billion active users worldwide and is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world. While TikTok has been praised for its creativity and its ability to connect people beyond borders, languages, and cultures, it has also been criticized for its addictive nature and potential to spread misinformation. In 2020, India banned the use of TikTok in 2020 because of the threat to sovereignty and integrity. There were over 120 million users then. The US, UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, the five intelligence alliance partners, restricted the use of TikTok on devices issued to government workers for security reasons early this year. Then, Nepal, situated in the Himalayas with a population of 30 million, has decided to ban TikTok because it has spread disharmony, disorder, and chaos in society. Now, those restricted users might be using TikTok rivals, such as Instagram Reeds. YouTube Shorts, Triller, Likee, or other rising apps. Will those countries maintain their integrity, security, and harmony with other short videos?

Enjoy reading the article and learning about another ban on the popular short video app.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/14/tech/nepal-tiktok-ban-hnk-intl/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4225-11/18/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
No, you can’t just ask your wife to make a list. This is how to become equal household partners
Mental load is the cognitive effort involved in managing your work, relationships, family, and household. As it is often called invisible work, the mental load is cognitive and emotional labor to accomplish a task, including forethought, planning, and management, which are often invisible to and unnoticed by others or the partner. For example, if a couple has a baby that starts coughing, it is often the mother who starts thinking about what to do. But when the family car starts making noises, it is usually the man who takes the initiative to contact or visit a repair shop to solve the problem. In both cases, the mental load is involved that might not be equally shared by the partner. Indeed, women are taking most of the mental load of household chores that are often not shared by their partners. That is mainly because of how they grew up in their families and what social expectations usually are. So, just sharing household tasks like putting out trash bags or vacuuming the floor isn’t enough to really share the real workload. How should couples share the mental load? Read the article and learn about hidden workload.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/13/health/mental-load-sharing-tasks-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4224-11/17/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Delhi AQI: Can artificial rain fix toxic air in India's capital?

As Delhi’s air pollution continues, the Indian capital has closed schools and offices, and restricted construction works and the number of cars on the roads. However, its Air Quality Index (AQI) is still at 10 times the acceptable level. So, the desperate government wants to try any measures that could improve the air quality like cloud seeding. Cloud seeding, or artificial rain, is a weather modification technique used to induce precipitation in areas experiencing water scarcity or drought conditions by introducing certain substances like silver iodide or chloride into clouds to stimulate the formation and development of raindrops. The government hopes that rainfall will wash away particulate matter in the atmosphere. However, the effectiveness of cloud seeding can vary depending on factors like cloud type, weather conditions, and the choice of seeding agents. Also, the environmental impact of artificially created rain remains unclear. All in all, rain isn’t a solution but just a band-aid for air pollution.

Read the article and learn about how artificial rain could work on severe air pollution in the capital of the most populous country.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-67364941 

Topic Reading-Vol.4223-11/16/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Michael Jackson jacket sells for £250,000 at auction

Michael Jackson was one of the most iconic and influential singers/dancers in the history of popular music. Born in 1958, he started his career with his brothers as Jackson 5, took off his solo career in the early 70s, and became King of Pop in the 1980s. Recently, the leather jacket he wore in a Pepsi commercial in 1984 was sold for $300,000 at an auction in London. Why do people buy clothing and items that once belonged to celebrities at inconceivably high prices? Some enthusiastic fans want to own a piece of memorabilia associated with their celebrities for their emotional attachment or nostalgia. Others buy for investment or their collections. Whatever the reasons might be, such clothing and items aren’t bought for a practical purpose. Do you think those who bid thousands of dollars for Michael Jackson’s tight-fit leather jacket are physically fit to wear it?

Enjoy reading the article and learning about how much people spend on celebrity items.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-67388618

Topic Reading-Vol.4222-11/15/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Michelin-starred restaurant closes because it’s too expensive

Michelin stars are an annual restaurant rating system used by the red Michelin Guide to grade. According to the Guide, one star signifies "a very good restaurant using top quality ingredients", two stars are "refined and inspired food that is worth a detour", and three stars mean "superlative, exceptional cuisine like art that is worth a special journey". Once Michelin-starred, the restaurant becomes very popular among gourmet dinners and tourists and its tables are hard to book. However, recent inflation has hit the cost of operation too hard on a Michelin-starred restaurant that has been in business for 26 years in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and made the doors closed. The inflation rate in Northern Ireland has been on an upward trend in recent years. In 2021, the inflation rate was 3.3%. In 2022, it rose to 4.8%. And in 2023, it is expected to reach 6.7%. The rise in inflation has had a significant impact on the cost of living in Northern Ireland. The price of fuel, food, and other essential goods has risen sharply. This has put a strain on household budgets and has made it more difficult for people and businesses to make ends meet, including this prestigious Michelin-starred restaurant. A small yet high-profile victim of the rising prices and labor costs.

Read the article and learn about how inflation impacts

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/michelin-starred-restaurant-deanes-eipic-closes/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4221-11/14/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Can AI cut humans out of contract negotiations?

Large Language Model (LLM) is a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that is trained on a massive amount of text data. LLMs can be used for a variety of tasks, including, text generation, language translation, answering, and summarizing. This new tool is already used in Google Translate, ChatGPT, Grammarly, and Bard. So, LLM is like a large-scale collective knowledge of experts. A legal specialist or layer learns, develops, and uses the knowledge and intelligence to create, examine, and give advice to the client or management on legal documents like an agreement or contract. So, if an AI tool learns language data from a dedicated field of LLM, it could do legal jobs as properly as experienced an expert, and much faster. In fact, specialized AI tools for legal experts can not only examine legal documents like a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) but also make suggestions for changes. For example, it shows acceptable causes in green, unacceptable ones in red, and non-standard clauses in amber. Then, it re-drafts clauses based on the previous agreements from the LLM. The whole process takes only a few minutes, which could take hours even for experienced experts. What legal experts need to do then is to check the suggestions and give approval or changes that might be more suitable for the specific case. Another area AI is taking place over human intelligence.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about another rising power of AI.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-67238386

Topic Reading-Vol.4220-11/13/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Three big reasons Americans haven't rapidly adopted EVs

While nearly 30% of new vehicle shoppers are likely to consider an EV in the US, they aren’t buying EVs as much as the car and EV industries hoped. Even though annual EV sales are expected to surpass the one million threshold this year in the US, it is a mere one-14th of the global EV sales. Why aren’t Americans buying and driving EVs? The first hurdle is the affordability. The median income for a family of four in the US is around $70,000 while the average electric car costs over $60,000. As inflation and interest rates rise, EVs are still too expensive for average consumers even with government and state subsidies. And remember, most households in the US need more than one car. The lack of reliable charging stations is another roadblock for EVs in the US. The increase in charger installations hasn’t kept up with the pace of EV sales. And not all the charging poles are functioning as properly as they are supposed to. Also, many Americans drive a long distance. When they travel, they neither want their driving range limited by the battery nor spend longer than a few minutes for charging. Indeed, gas stations are all over the place where drivers can also rest, eat, and buy things. In the meanwhile, China’s EV and PHV market is leading the world.

Read the article and learn why the US EV market looks so small in the rear-view mirror.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231108-three-big-reasons-americans-havent-rapidly-adopted-evs

Topic Reading-Vol.4219-11/12/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

The floating desalination machines powered by the waves

As the world’s population grows at an unprecedented speed, having added two billion since the millennium, the world needs more water. However, global warming and extreme weather conditions make it harder to provide stable water supply to many regions. The good news is that we have plenty of water in the oceans and seas. If we could desalinate the seawater in sustainable ways, we would be able to provide clean, fresh water for many people. In fact, over 300 million people today use desalinated water in the world, and the demand for desalination plants is increasing. However, most of the conventional thermal desalination plants are highly energy-intensive and use fossil fuels to heat seawater. Another desalination method is the membrane system, which pushes seawater through a semi-permeable membrane to remove the salt. This technology uses less energy than the thermal system but it still requires quite a lot of energy. So, a Canadian start-up came up with a new floating desalination technology that uses a membrane system powered only by the movement of the waves. Of course, water conservation should be the first priority and step to securing clean water for people, plants, and animals, new technologies are on their way for sustainable development.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about new, sustainable ways to produce fresh water.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-67237006

Topic Reading-Vol.4218-11/11/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Developing countries owe China at least $1.1 trillion – and the debts are due

China is one of the world's largest providers of financial loans and aid to developing countries. As of 2022, the world’s second-largest economy has provided a total of $1.3 trillion in loans and aid to developing countries mainly on infrastructure projects, such as roads, railways, power plants, and telecommunications networks. These projects were expected to help boost economic growth and development in the recipient countries. One example is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a $62 billion development project that links the Chinese port city of Gwadar with Pakistan's northern provinces including the construction of roads, railways, power plants, and other infrastructure. Another is the Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway, a 756-kilometer railway line that connects Ethiopia and Djibouti. China provided $4 billion in financing for the project, which was completed in 2016. Most of these loans had a five to seven years of grace period plus a two-year suspension due to the pandemic. Now, there are at least 57 countries that have outstanding debt to Chinese creditors. Have those heavy infrastructural investments brought out any economic returns to the recipients? Will those borrowers be able to repay the debts, or will those Chinese lenders bear the painful rescheduling or write-off of the loans?

Read the article and learn about the mounting debts in developing countries.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/07/business/china-bri-developing-countries-overdue-debt-intl-hnk/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4217-11/10/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Plastic or paper? The truth about drinking straws

Each year, over 460 million tons of new plastic are produced, which produces about 380 million tons of plastic waste. Approximately, 43 million tons of plastic waste comes from consumer products, including single-use plastics like packages, containers, and straws from the food and beverage industry. In response to consumers’ awareness, many fast-food restaurants and coffee chains have switched from plastic straws to bio-degradable ones like paper. However, they aren’t as durable as plastic ones and become too wet to suck after a while. Also, paper straws are found to contain more lasting chemicals than plastic ones, which stay in the environment for decades and contaminate water and the environment. Also, the amount of gas emissions during the production of bioplastic straws is found to be higher than that of conventional plastic ones. Even though plastic straws are indeed harmful to the environment, no better alternative has been widely produced or used yet.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about the pros and cons of plastic straws.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20231103-plastic-or-paper-the-truth-about-drinking-straws

Topic Reading-Vol.4216-11/9/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Photos: Smog-hit New Delhi extends school shutdown

Delhi is a union territory of India, containing the capital of India, New Delhi, where nearly 30 million people live. There, all primary schools have been closed since the end of October because of the dangerously polluted air quality. The PM 2.5 particles, tiny microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air, reached over 500 micrograms per cubic meter on November 6, a level 40 times higher than the daily maximum by the WHO. In fact, over 17,000 people died in Delhi in 2020 because of the air pollution. The smog of this season is a regular event, caused particularly by stubble burning by farmers in neighboring states after their rice and wheat crops harvest. Also, vehicle and industrial emissions, and dust from construction sites are to blame. Though the government banned stubble burning in neighboring states and implemented emission standards for vehicles and factories, the smog problem in Delhi seems far from over or being eased. Indeed, the air pollution in Delhi is caused by old practices and new vehicles and industries.

Read the article and see the photos of smog-filled Delhi.

https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/11/5/photos-smog-hit-new-delhi-extends-school-shutdown

Topic Reading-Vol.4215-11/8/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Super shoes have ‘blown distance running into a new stratosphere.’ Are they benefitting the sport?

Technologies and innovations seem to contribute significantly to the performance of swimmers and runners. When high-tech swimsuits were introduced in 2008, swimmers wearing them began breaking world swim records at a surprising rate. In fact, swimmers broke 25 world records in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, 23 of which were achieved by swimmers who wore such high-tech swimsuits. The number was a big jump from eight in the 2004 games.

Nowadays, on the ground, super shoes have been demonstrating how technologies affect marathon runners’ performance. On September 24, Ethiopia's Tigst Assefa smashed the women's marathon world record in Berlin, crossing the line in two hours 11 minutes 53 seconds - taking two minutes 11 seconds off the previous record set in 2019. She was wearing Adidas’s Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1 shoes. Then, on October 8, Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum crossed the line in a world record time with a time of 2:00:35, shaving 34 seconds off, at the Chicago Marathon. He was wearing Nike’s Alphafly 3 shoes. Both shoes are the latest high-performance super shoes, which feature carbon fiber plates in the soles to provide a springy rebound effect, designed to be used for just one marathon race at the sacrifice of durability. Critics say such technology devalues and dilutes the former records. Also, they point out the environmental impacts of those single-use products. In the meanwhile, the world is excited to see when and who will break the two-hour milestone in marathon racing, not so much about which shoes.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about how technologies could affect world records.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/03/sport/super-shoes-marathon-running-spt-intl/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4214-11/7/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Pakistan begins mass deportation of Afghan refugees

Since the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on August 15, 2021, hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled their homeland to neighboring Pakistan in order to escape from the Taliban’s persecution. Many of those refugees were government officials, military personnel, interpreters, musicians, artists, teachers, women, and anti-Taliban advocates. It is estimated that around four million Afghans are living in Pakistan, only one-third, or around 1.3 million of whom are registered refugees. Now, the Pakistani government wants undocumented Afghan refugees to leave their land and started deporting illegal Afghan residents as of November 1. Many of them rushed to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border before the deadline, hoping that would be safer than being deported. Taliban said they would accept those voluntary returnees and provide transportation to their homelands. Will they be treated safely? Also, how many will be detained in Pakistan and deported back to Afghanistan after November 1? For some, hiding and living underground in Pakistan might be safer than being deported to the Taliban regime. Will there be another place for them?

Read the article and learn about Pakistan’s new act for Afghan refugees.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pakistan-afghanistan-refugees-deportation/

Topic Reading-Vol.4213-11/6/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Cats have 276 different facial expressions, study finds

Cats seem to have become more sensitive and expressive than before when it comes to interacting with other feline friends, a new study found. Researchers observed 53 cats at a cat café in California where they had interacted with feline friends. They recorded 186 feline interactions and identified 276 facial expressions, nearly half of which looked friendly and 37% seemed aggressive. In general, cat communication includes vocalizations like meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, and grunting as well as cat body language. But over the course of the last 95 centuries, cants have been closely domesticated, become part of human societies, and developed communicative skills with each other. In the near future, cats’ facial expressions might be interpreted more precisely with the aid of AI.

Enjoy reading the article and learning about how communicative our feline friends are.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/01/world/cats-have-276-facial-expressions-intl-scli-scn/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4212-11/5/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Convenience store offers relief for mountain climbers in Hunan

Shiniuzhai National Geological Park is located in Hunan, in Pingjiang County. It is famous for Brave Men’s Bridge, a 300-meter-long glass suspension bridge, and Ten Miles Cliff. Climbers of the cliff, mostly novices, ascend a network of iron steps affixed to the steep cliff, using fixed cables for support. There used to be a resting hut for climbers above 120 meters from the ground. Several years ago, the hut was transformed into a convenience store offering free water to climbers. In addition, it sells snacks and soft drinks at compatible prices with stores on the ground. The 2-square-meter convenience store is open from 8 am to 5 pm. The drinks and food at the store are carried up by staff members each day. It is basically a self-checkout convenience store except when there are many climbers. It is known as the most inconvenient convenience store.

Enjoy seeing the photo and reading the article of this extraordinary convenience store on the cliff.

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202311/01/WS6541a039a31090682a5ebc6a.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4211-11/4/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

What are semiconductors and how are they used?

You probably have heard of microchips or integrated circuits (ICs). But what are they? Despite the miniature size, just millimeters or so, microchips, or semiconductors possess a massive amount of processing power by conducting electronic signals so fast. They are used in nearly any electronic device, sensor, or machine. You might remember that there was, and still is in some industries, a global microchip shortage that affected nearly 170 industries, having affected the production of automobiles, computers, smartphones, pacemakers, automobiles, and many other consumer electronic products. So, semiconductors are essential parts of today’s electronics-dependent world. Then how do they work and where are they produced?

Enjoy reading the article and learning what semiconductors are about.

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-66394406

Topic Reading-Vol.4210-11/3/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

The new breed of long-haul, low-cost airlines: What you need to know

What are your priorities when you take a long-haul flight, like the ones between Europe and North America, or to and from Southeast Asia or Oceania? Those flights take six hours or longer and cost as much as your monthly rent or income. If you take a full-service flight like Air France or Singapore Airlines, you can enjoy one or two meals, free drinks, onboard entertainment, and baggage allowance during the flight. Nowadays, there are other economical airlines that offer cheaper airfares if you can compromise your expectations and squeeze yourself into a narrow seat with little legroom. Most of those low-cost carriers, often called LCCs, would serve those services and amenities with a fee, most of which are usually included in the airfare when you travel on a full-service airline. But if you think you’re sitting on a 2^nd-class seat on a night train, you won’t get anything but a seat anyway. In case you want to enjoy a full-flat seat or a better reclining, you could also choose a business class or upper economy class seat on some of those budget airlines at around a normal economy class airfare. So, next time you fly a long-haul flight, study carefully what options you might be able to choose from.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about what low-cost carriers might offer.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/long-haul-low-cost-airlines-what-to-know/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4209-11/2/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Turkey quietly celebrates 100-year anniversary as a republic

Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, declared a republic on October 29, 1923, under Kemal Atatürk, Father of Turks. The ex-general nationalist served as Turkey’s first president from 1923 until his death in 1938, modernized the country’s legal and educational systems, encouraged the adoption of a European way of life, replaced the Arabic script with the Latin alphabet, and enshrined women’s rights to vote. He also established secularism in Turkey even though Muslims overwhelmingly dominated the population. Kemal Atatürk and his secularism have been highly respected in modern Turkey. However, ever since Tayyip Erdogan took control of the country as Prime Minister in 2003 and President in 2014, he started denouncing the legacy and secularism. In fact, He re-converted the former Byzantine-era church Hagia Sophia Museum in Istanbul into a mosque in 2020, which had been transformed into a museum by Ataturk. This year, the republic was supposed to celebrate its centennial anniversary as a republic, and many events and ceremonies had been planned. However, many of those were called off or scaled down because of the upheaval in the Gaza Strip. It seems that the incumbent president wishes to establish his own legacy.

Read the article and learn about the century-old Republic of Türkiye.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/29/turkey-quietly-celebrates-100-year-anniversary-as-a-republic

Topic Reading-Vol.4208-11/1/2023

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Manual scavenging: The unending pain of India's sewer workers

Manual scavenging is the practice of manually cleaning, handling, and disposing of human excreta, animal carcasses, and other waste materials, often in unsanitary and hazardous conditions. This degrading and dangerous occupation is primarily associated with cleaning and maintaining dry toilets, open sewers, and septic tanks in places where there is no adequate sanitation infrastructure. In India, there are thousands of manual scavengers from low-caste communities who clean human waste in tanks, sewers, latrines, and railway tracks even though such unsafe and inhumane practice is banned. When those workers come into direct contact with human waste and harmful gases without proper protective gear, their health is at risk of health problems such as respiratory issues, skin diseases, and exposure to toxic gases. However, some people in lower-caste communities like Dalits have no choice but to take such unprotected and inhumane jobs. Indeed, they are still suffering from discrimination, social exclusion, and economic disadvantages. When robots take the place of manual scavengers, what jobs will those workers find?

Read the article and learn about manual scavenging in India.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-67191131