Topic Reading-Vol.4989-12/21/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Why are sperm donors having hundreds of children?

When a woman wants to produce her own child but is unable to achieve a pregnancy with her partner or without a partner, she could use sperm from an unknown donor from a sperm bank, which collects semen, screens, processes, and stores it for future use. Surprisingly, fewer than five in 100 volunteers' sperm meet the qualifications, including sperm count, motility, and shape, in addition to health and genetic testing of the donors. Also, recipients can choose the donor from the list of profiles, which further narrows down the donor candidates.  As a result, only a limited number of donors’ sperm is being used for a vast number of pregnancies, and this imbalance is creating dozens, or even hundreds, of half-siblings, without the knowledge of either the mothers or the donors. Imagine the offspring of the same donor meet each other and have children?

Read the article and learn how a small number of donors are creating many children.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg8mge23leo

Topic Reading-Vol.4988-12/20/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

High-fiving gorilla scoops first prize at Comedy Wildlife Awards

Founded in 2015, the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards is an annual, global photography contest for humorous images of wild animals. The contest features several categories, including Mammals, Birds, Reptiles and Amphibians, Aquatic Species, Insects, two categories for young photographers, and video entries. This year, the top prize from over 10,000 entries from more than 100 countries was awarded to a photo of a dancing young male gorilla in Rwanda taken by a British photographer. Other category winners include a chimp pricking its nose, dancing foxes, a smiling sea creature, and “headlock” seabirds. If you want to vote for your favorite photo, click or touch on your favorite image from this year’s 43 finalists for the People’s Choice Award.

Enjoy seeing the winners of the 2025 Comedy Wildlife Awards.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/10/travel/comedy-wildlife-awards-winners-2025-scli-intl

Topic Reading-Vol.4987-12/19/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Voyager 1 will reach one light-day from Earth in 2026. Here’s what that means

In 1977, NASA launched two interstellar probes, Voyager 1 to explore Jupiter and Saturn, and Voyager 2 to for Uranus and Neptune. After the successful planetary flybys, they were commissioned to explore interstellar space, a region of outer space beyond the influence of the solar wind. They successfully reached interstellar space in 2012 and 2018, respectively, and they are still flying at a speed of over 55,000 km/h. Next year, Voyager 1 is expected to fly one light-day, about 26 billion kilometers, away from our planet. To travel that distance, it takes 24 hours for a light or a signal at the speed of light, or over 1.2 million years for a commercial jetliner at a cruising speed. It requires continuing and inter-generational effort to maintain contact with the probes, but NASA’s project team members, as well as the retired members, are hoping to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the Voyager project with the probes flying over one light-day from Earth.

Read the article and learn about the 48-year-old probe still traveling 26 billion km away.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/09/science/voyager-1-light-day-earth

Topic Reading-Vol.4986-12/18/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

The moment the earliest known man-made fire was uncovered

The control of fire was a pivotal technology that dramatically accelerated early human evolution. Fire provided warmth and protection from predators, especially at night, allowing early humans to sleep on the ground in caves rather than in trees. Also, fire allowed humans to cook food, which fundamentally altered the early human diet. Cooking with fire increased the digestibility and energy yield of food, expanded the food menu, and increased caloric intake, which helped human brains grow. In the meantime, cooked food was easier to digest and therefore, freed up energy for other body functions, including brain development. Socially, fire enhanced communal activities. People gathered around the fire, enjoyed social bonding, and tried to communicate more, which helped evolve languages. Then, when did humans start making fire? A recent discovery at an archaeological site in England showed a trace of human-created fire as long as 400,000 years ago, 350,000 years earlier than previously thought. Human evolution seems to have taken a very long time.

Read the article and learn about when and how fire started helping human evolution.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-b9da7a6d-165b-492a-8785-235cd10e2e8e

Topic Reading-Vol.4985-12/17/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

What is a hostile takeover bid?

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is a multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate formed in April 2022 from the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery, Inc. It owns media brands including Discovery Channel, HBO, CNN, DC Entertainment, Cartoon Network, the Max streaming service, and Warner Bros, whose movie franchises include Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, Superman, Badman, Monsterverse, and Barbie. Netflix, a subscription-based streaming service giant, tried to acquire the WB studio and streaming assets of WBD in a friendly fashion to expand its video content. After the acquisition was announced, a surprise takeover bid was proposed by Paramount Skydance, whose portfolio includes Mission Impossible, Star Trek, and Top Gun, as well as the CBS network, Nickelodeon, MTV, and Paramount streaming service. While the Netflix-WBD acquisition was discussed between the respective boards in a friendly fashion, Paramount’s bid to acquire the entire WBD company was an unannounced direct offer to WBD’s shareholders, called a hostile takeover bid. What are the differences between a friendly acquisition and a hostile takeover?

Read the article and learn about what is going on around WBD.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/08/business/what-is-a-hostile-takeover

 

Topic Reading-Vol.4984-12/16/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Am I addicted to my smartwatch?

If you wear a smartwatch, how much are you relying on it? Smartwatches act as mini-computers, including convenient features, such as calls, texts, apps, music control, and even contactless payments, just like your smartphone does. Smartwatches can also track real-time health and fitness conditions of the wearers 24/7, including blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen level, glucose level, and sleep patterns. They monitor blood flow with green LED lights to measure heart functions and also detect changes in electrical current to estimate stress levels. While these indicators might warn you of some physical irregularities, do they also improve your mental well-being? Smartphones have replaced cameras, and now smartwatches are taking some share from wristwatches. Functions seem to have become fashions nowadays. But don’t you get a little too nervous if you constantly monitor your heart conditions and sleep quality?

Read the article and learn what smartwatches do to their wearers.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8xdgwrrd0vo

Topic Reading-Vol.4983-12/15/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

The case for taking the same holiday again and again

It is always exciting to visit a new place, try unusual activities, or eat unfamiliar food. But sometimes, the place was not as exotic or distinct, the activity was too boring or demanding, or the food didn’t match your taste buds. Though unusual and unexpected experiences can be enjoyed as part of your vacation, some people prefer visiting the same place and doing the same things to enjoy comfort, familiarity, or nostalgia. If you know what to expect and what suits you, you can enjoy the same vacation routines safely and comfortably, and again and again. Also, you do not have to worry about where to stay, what to do, or which restaurant to eat at. Which vacation style suits you seems to depend on whether you’re looking for thrills or comfort, but you might also find something new when you revisit the same place because you’re unlikely to have seen, tasted, or experienced everything that the place offers only once.

Read the article and think about which way you want to enjoy your next vacation.

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20251204-the-surprising-joy-of-going-back-to-the-same-place

Topic Reading-Vol.4982-12/14/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Neanderthal 1: The incredible discovery that rewrote history

Neanderthals are an extinct species of human ancestor who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia until about 40,000 years ago. They are known for their stocky build, prominent brow ridge, and large brains. In 1856, the first set of their fossil remains, Neanderthal 1, was discovered in the Neander Valley near Düsseldorf, Germany. Initially, it was a subject of scientific debate, but by 1864, it was named Homo neanderthalensis. Then, previously discovered fossils in Belgium in 1829 and Gibraltar in 1848 were re-examined and identified as Neanderthals. They went extinct due to a combination of factors, including climate change, competition with Homo sapiens for resources, and genetic issues from small, isolated populations. Also, Neanderthals are thought to have interbred with modern humans in Eurasia. In fact, modern people with non-African ancestry have around one to a few percent of Neandertal DNA. Though the Neanderthal 1 discovery site was destroyed by limestone mining, the area has been developed into an archaeological park and discovery site as part of the Neanderthal Museum.

Watch the video and learn about the extinct group of archaic humans.

https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0ml7hhx/neanderthal-1-the-incredible-discovery-that-rewrote-history

Topic Reading-Vol.4981-12/13/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Why Greece is now the world’s best place to retire

When the retirement age approaches, some people want to move to live in their dream place where they can enjoy a mild climate, beautiful views, and fresh air. However, aside from the dreamy picture, other practical factors should be taken into consideration, such as visa requirements, safety, cost of housing and living, convenience, ease of integration, and the quality and cost of healthcare. According to the Annual Global Retirement Index by International Living, which evaluates popular retirement destinations, Greece, Portugal, and Spain are at the top of the list. They are mostly sunny and warm, and are relatively affordable to live in. Other retiree-friendly countries are Panama and Costa Rica in the Caribbean, and Thailand and Malaysia in Asia. Another factor that should not be ignored is extreme weather conditions triggered by global warming, such as severe droughts in the Mediterranean region and the recent destructive storms in South Asia.

Read the article and learn which countries are friendly to foreign retirees.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/01/travel/worlds-best-retirement-destinations-2026

Topic Reading-Vol.4980-12/12/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Adolescence lasts into 30s - new study shows four pivotal ages for your brain

From birth to death, the brain changes in response to new knowledge and experience, and also ages as you become older, but not as constantly as you might think. According to a new study that scanned the brains of about 4,000 people, there seem to be five distinct brain phases: Childhood from birth to nine, Adolescence from nine to 32, Adulthood from 32 to 66, Early aging from 66 to 83, and Late aging from 83 to death. These landmark ages of nine, 32, 66, and 83 can be reached earlier or later depending on the individual, but they are clearly shown in the data. It’s quite surprising that adulthood comes as early as nine and lasts until 32, the age you might have thought to have already been an adult for ten years or so. The good news is that our brain efficiency seems to improve until around 66, a retirement age for many. How surprisingly functional the brain is!

Read the article and learn about how our brain functions by stage.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgl6klez226o

Topic Reading-Vol.4979-12/11/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Competition heats up for new civil jobs

This past June, over 12 million new college graduates with bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degrees were poured into the already overcrowded job market, where millions of previously graduated students have been struggling to find jobs. There are simply not so many job opportunities that require university degrees, especially for those who have no previous work experience or particular expertise. On November 30, the national civil service exam for central government institutions was held. Of the 3.718 million qualified applicants, 2.83 million took the exams for 38,100 positions open for 2026, an average of 74 candidates per position. One extreme example is a police officer’s position in Yunnan province, which attracted nearly 6,500 applicants. As AI becomes part of business and daily life, is there a golden rule to get an *iron rice bowl?

*Iron Rice Bowl is a Chinese metaphor for job security and stability, like civil service jobs.

Read the article and learn how severe to get a civil service job in China.

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202512/01/WS692ccf4da310d6866eb2c245.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4978-12/10/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Why singing is surprisingly good for your health

Some people sing songs when they feel good or want to feel better. Indeed, singing helps us improve our mood, reduce stress, and increase feelings of happiness. Also, singing is a social tool. When you sing in groups, you feel connected and share the feeling with others. In addition, singing brings physical benefits for the lungs and respiratory system, as well as well-being and the suppression of pain. Indeed, singing is not only an emotional and social act, but also a physical and cognitive act. Singing is easy to do. It doesn’t require any cost, equipment, or skills to sing songs. So, try singing a song you like to find out what it does to your state of mind.

Read the article and learn the benefits of singing.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20251128-how-singing-can-improve-your-health

Topic Reading-Vol.4977-12/9/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Natl capacity to recycle now exceeds supply

China is not only the world’s largest producer of home appliances, EVs, solar panels, wind turbines, and many others, but also the largest market for them.  Around 40 million fridges were sold domestically in 2024 alone, and over a million EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles have been sold each month this year. China is also the world’s largest producer of solar panels and wind turbines, and generates more energy from them than all other countries combined. According to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, China’s growth in recycling capacity for retired electric batteries, solar panels, and wind turbines has outpaced the supply, and those recycling plants are underutilized. Did the recycling industry overestimate or miscalculate the growth of the recycling market, or are users of those batteries and turbines using them even after the limitations? Whichever the cause may be, China is undoubtedly a proactive and advanced world leader in generating and recycling renewable energies.

Read the article and learn about China’s recycling capacity.

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202511/29/WS692a3475a310d6866eb2c035.html

Topic Reading-Vol.4976-12/8/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Does music make animals calmer?

When house dogs or cats are unattended, they tend to become nervous. Since they can hear much higher frequencies than humans, they react to the sounds and noises coming from outside, such as footsteps or car horns. It is no wonder that some dogs bark at little sounds when they are left alone. Studies found that some type of music helps them reduce anxiety, such as piano, acoustic, classical, or even soft rock that has slower tempos without heavy percussion. For example, 80% of house dogs exhibited fewer anxiety symptoms like pacing, trembling, and panting when piano music was played. Researchers assume that some relaxing music might help animals release chemicals that please their minds. Indeed, as dogs and cats hear and smell much more than humans do, they are very sensitive to the environment and ambience. It may be worthwhile trying to find out which type of music your pet animals enjoy listening to.

Read the article and learn what music could do to the state of animals’ minds.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20251121-does-music-make-animals-calmer

Topic Reading-Vol.4975-12/7/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Cats became our companions way later than you think

Unlike other members of the feline family, like cheetah, puma, jaguar, leopard, lion, lynx, and tiger, cats have been domesticated like dogs for some time. Until recently, they were thought to have become humans’ companions when agriculture began in the Levant around 10,000 years ago. But a new study of DNA from cat bones from archaeological sites has found that cats seem to have started living with humans only 3,500 to 4,000 years ago in Egypt. The domestication spread to Europe about two millennia ago, and then to China along the Silk Road, and also to other places on ships as pets and pest controllers. By then, dogs had been humans’ companions for over 10 millennia. Is that why dogs tend to chase cats?

Read the article and learn how and when the feline species became our friends.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8dvdp9gn7o

Topic Reading-Vol.4974-12/6/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers,　

How extreme weather is making plastic pollution more mobile, more persistent and more hazardous

Plastic is harmful to the environment even before its birth because it is produced using fossil fuels. Globally, less than one-tenth of the plastic waste is recycled, and the rest is sent to landfills, incinerated, or discarded, causing an environmental nightmare. In addition to normal wear and tear, environmental factors like sunlight, oxygen, wind, and temperature fluctuations break down plastics into smaller particles, called microplastics. According to a newly released analysis by scientists, climate change, including rising temperatures, increasing humidity, and stronger winds and waves, is accelerating plastic pollution further in water, soil, air, and wildlife. Extreme weather conditions like storms, flooding, and wind can break down plastic into pieces more easily and spread them more widely. And you know how harmful microplastics are to the environment, food chain, and health. Plastic is closely connected to global warming and is also integrated into our lives, environment, and health.

Read the article and learn how plastic pollution is affected by global warming.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/27/climate/how-extreme-weather-is-making-plastic-pollution-more-mobile-persistent-and-hazardous

Topic Reading-Vol.4973-12/5/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

National parks announce ‘America-first’ fee surges for international tourists

Hiking in a national park is exciting, but a hike of national park fees is discouraging. The United States has announced to implement a new “America-first” entry fee policy at 11 most-visited national parks starting from next year, including the Great Smoky Mountains, Zion, Grand Canyon, Rocky Mountain, Yosemite, and Yellowstone. Non-US residents will have to purchase the annual pass for $250 or pay a $100 fee in addition to the park’s entrance fee. The annual pass costs $80 to US residents. Such a premium price for foreigners is quite common among popular tourist attractions around the world. For example, the Grand Egyptian Museum near Cairo charges around 200 EGP to Egyptians but around 1,500 to foreigners. But this substantial price hike under the American Families First policy hits foreigners’ wallets hard, considering the strong US dollar and already-expensive traveling costs to and around America. There are still 52 national parks that are exempt from the foreigners’ fee.

Read the article and learn about another America-first policy implementation.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/26/travel/us-national-park-foreign-fees-tourism-hnk

Topic Reading-Vol.4972-12/4/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Taps may run dry in this country, where the water crisis is so severe it can be seen from space

Iran, mostly a semi-arid country, has been in drought for six years, the worst drought for four decades. The main water reservoirs around Tehran, Iran’s capital, where around 15 million live in its metropolitan area, are only around 11% full, and about 10% of the nation’s dams are almost dry. Warshippers are making a desperate plea in mosques, and airplanes are flying to seed clouds by injecting chemicals to induce rain, but to no avail so far. The country has been extracting much more water from rivers, lakes, wetlands, and underground aquifers at a much faster pace than they are replenished, mainly to irrigate farmland to achieve food self-sufficiency. Besides the drought and warming temperatures, the increasing population, leaky water infrastructure, and poor management are also to blame. The president has warned the residents of the capital of water rationing and possible evacuation from the city. But where to go?

Read the article and learn how serious Tehran’s drought is now.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/01/climate/iran-water-crisis-evacuate-tehran

Topic Reading-Vol.4971-12/3/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
This oil-rich country has stood in the way of climate action. It’s quietly building a clean energy
The climate of Saudi Arabia is predominantly arid to semi-arid, and its land is mostly desert. It was a land of nomads until the discovery of large oil reserves in 1938. By the 1970s, the kingdom had become the world’s largest oil exporter, and its population began to become settled and increased tenfold by 2025. Since Saudi Arabia is a hot desert country with little surface or underground water, demand for electricity is increasing to run air conditioning and provide desalinated water. The energy mix of the oil-and-gas-rich country was almost entirely fossil fuels in 2020. However, the kingdom is trying to source half of its electricity from renewable energy and the rest from gas by the end of this decade, while keeping wealth-generating oil for export. The main source of clean energy now is massive solar farms and battery storage facilities around large cities, the futuristic city of NEOM, and the luxury Red Sea tourism destination. Helped by the rapidly declining prices of solar panels and batteries, renewable energy is going to produce a substantial share of Saudi Arabia’s energy mix in a few years.
Read the article and learn why the oil-rich kingdom is pushing solar farms. 

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/17/climate/saudi-arabia-solar-energy-empire

Topic Reading-Vol.4970-12/2/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

How can you tell if your new favourite artist is a real person?

Robots have been painting car bodies and assisting in surgeries, and we appreciate their fine work for some time. Now, Artificial Intelligence (AI) enables machines to learn from experience, adjust to new inputs, and perform human-like tasks, including solving problems, automating tasks, and even creating content, such as text, images, or music. For example, AI powers personalized recommendations for online shopping or on streaming services like Spotify. Furthermore, AI now assists artists or music producers in writing, creating, or even performing music. Can you tell if the song you’ve heard and liked on a music channel was created, assisted, or performed by AI? Currently, there isn’t any requirement or obligation for artists or music platforms to let their listeners know if or how AI is used in their music. Does it matter to you, or do you want to know how to distinguish genuine human music from AI-assisted/produced music?

Read the article and learn how AI is used in music production.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ylzjj5wzwo

Topic Reading-Vol.4969-12/1/2025

Dear MEL Topic Readers, 

Rerouting the US: Reimagining a country for high-speed trains

In the US, the railroad distances between Boston and New York, and New York and Washington, are approximately 350 km, and it takes about three and a half hours for each leg by the fastest train service. This average speed of about 100 km/h is far slower than the high-speed train services of other countries, like China, Japan, and France. Two centuries ago, the US had a railroad coverage as long as the rest of the world combined. Today, the aforementioned Eastern Corridor train services are the only ones that practically serve both business and leisure passengers. All other busy megacities, like Los Angeles and San Francisco, New York and Chicago, and Atlanta and Orlando, are mostly traveled to either by environmentally unfriendly air or car. In the meantime, China, whose land size is about the same as the US, has a nationwide high-speed railroad network of nearly 50,000 km at a top speed of 300 km/h. So, what if America’s busy destinations are connected by high-speed trains?

Read the article and learn how the US’s busy travel routes can be connected by high-speed trains.

https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2025/11/travel/us-high-speed-rail-reimagined-vis/