Topic Reading-Vol.396-5/12/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

This mask gives you superhuman abilities.

As the speed of microprocessors and data transmission gets faster, wearable technologies seem to become more practical and useful not only for robo-cops or spies but also for ordinary people.

Surely, it’ll be convenient if you could only hear or see what you really want through earphones or eyeglasses where other noises and crowds interfere and disturb your senses.

Enjoy reading and imagining how you would use and enjoy wearable tech. 

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/08/tech/innovation/mask-gives-superhuman-abilities/index.html?hpt=hp_c3

Topic Reading-Vol.395-5/11/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Pilotless passenger planes prepare for take-off

Which do you feel assured when you hear “This is your captain speaking” message of a human voice in a certain accent when are on board a plane on the ground or in the air, or “This is your robo-captain speaking” by a computer voice? Do you feel to fly that your flight is controlled automatically most of the time including taking off and landing, and the pilot only taxies the plane on the ground? If that’s the case, you may not need two pilots in the cockpit but need a drive to taxi the huge vehicle. Which if more reliable, human’s hands or microprocessors and sensors?

Enjoy reading and learning about how today’s and upcoming technologies do for your flight.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130502-pilotless-planes-plan-to-take-off/1

Topic Reading-Vol.394-5/10/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Punished for blogging.

While some countries or states have passed laws that allow gay marriages, there are still some, not a few, countries that don’t allow women’s rights to vote at elections, drive a car, learn at school or even blog for their rights. Why does such inequality still exist in numbers of societies in the 21^st century when people can do many things electronically and wirelessly with high tech devices and infrastructure like smartphones and the Internet? Why technology and ideology differ so much?

Enjoy watching the short video that shows how women’s rights are restricted in some part of the world and how women are fighting just to be equal.

http://edition.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c3#/video/world/2013/05/03/pkg-shubert-forbidden-voices.cnn

Topic Reading-Vol.393-5/9/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Hong Kong's giant rubber duck.

Did you play with a yellow rubber duck in the bath tab when you were a little kid? If so, how big was it? It must have not been as big as the one floating in Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong, which drew attentions from thousands residents and tourists.

The 16.5 meter inflatable duck appeared on Thursday, May 2 without notice and will stay there for a month. It is scheduled to be somewhere in the US afterwards but the exact location is kept secret.

Enjoy reading and learning why someone is showing such an amazing duck. 

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/02/travel/hong-kong-giant-duck/index.html?iid=article_sidebar

Topic Reading-Vol.392-5/8/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Solar Plane Takes Off on Historic Coast-to-Coast Flight.

This high-tech fuel-free aircraft weighs only as heavy as a station wagon but has wings as long as a jumbo aircraft. It charges its highly efficient battery during the day by the solar power panels on the wings to be able to fly at night when no power is generated.

It has taken a century to engineer and fly coast-to-coast across the continental USA  with renewable energy since the first flight with fossil fuel.

Enjoy reading and learning about the human ingenuity and initiative. 

 

http://news.yahoo.com/solar-plane-takes-off-historic-coast-coast-flight-135018073.html

Topic Reading-Vol.391-5/7/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Why is art so expensive?

It is because while you can build a luxurious yacht or palace at anytime, you can’t create valuable art works such as La Reve by Picaso or The Scream by Munch.

The prices for necessary things and materials, such as oil or rare metals, can go very high when the demand exceeds the supply, or when people speculate the imbalance is likely to happen in the future. But still, is over-100-million-dollar price tag for a piece of old painting a fair market value, sound investment or wild speculation?

Enjoy reading and learning about how a small group of people want to spend their fortune.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20130417-why-is-art-so-expensive/1

Topic Reading-Vol.390-5/6/2013

Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,

Japan's Mount Fuji 'set for Unesco listing'.

Mt. Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan, got a recommendation by a key UN advisory council, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (Icomos), to be registered on the UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

The active mountain which last erupted three centuries ago is Japan’s icon or symbol and one of the most popular tourists’ destinations in Japan.

Enjoy reading and learning about a recent nomination to one of the most valued list in the world.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22363161