Topic Reading-Vol.3520-11/30/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Bee gold: Why honey is an insect superfood

Honey is produced by bees but they don’t produce honey for humans. It is produced by bees but also provides bees with nutrition. There are approximately 20,000 bee species, which live in different places and collect different nectar. From different nectar, different honey is produced. Thus, floral diversity is crucial for bees’ nutrition and health. For instance, if a sick bee is offered different varieties of honey, it will choose the one that provides the best remedy. While we humans only enjoy different flavors and tastes of honey, the survival and society of bees totally depend on the component of honey they produce from the nectar they have access to. And the floral diversity has been severely affected by global warming and the destruction of nature by humans. Will there be much fewer bee species in the near future? Will there also be fewer kinds of honey available for humans?

Enjoy learning about physical, mechanical, and chemical works that make nectar from pollan, and then nectar to honey in the beehive.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211122-bee-gold-why-honey-is-an-insect-superfood

Topic Reading-Vol.3519-11/29/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

New Swedish Prime Minister resigns hours after being voted in

Sweden is one of the Nordic countries with a population of around 10 million. The nation is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy, with legislative power vested in the 349-member parliament. Swedish people are highly conscious of politics, and the voter turnout in the last election was well over 87%. Though the Social Democratic Party holds more seats than other parties, they are still short of forming a government by themselves. Recently, the party succeeded in electing its party leader the first female Prime Minister of the nation but failed to pass a budget plan. After failing to pass the budget, the newly elected PM, Ms. Andersson, resigned in the hope to be reappointed as the head of a single-party government. It was only a few hours since she was appointed the leader of the country. Will she make a comeback to break the glass ceiling in the Nordic country where several parties have been getting enough seats to have an influence on forming a government and passing important bills?

Enjoy reading the article and learn about the short-lived, first female in PM in Sweden.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/24/europe/sweden-first-female-prime-minister-intl/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3518-11/28/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,
This UK bank has moved to a four-day workweek without cutting pay
Most of the workers in industrialized countries work five days a week. This practice was first instituted in the US about a century ago, most notably at Ford Motor Company in 1926. The practice became gradually popular among other countries and workplaces especially after World War II, and work hours have also been reduced to 40 hours or less. This five-day workweek has been regarded as the de-facto standard for most employment opportunities even though work practice, tools, and technologies have changed drastically in most workplaces in the last 20 years. But because of the Covid-19 pandemic, many workers now choose or are forced to work online or from home. So, isn’t this the time to review when, how long and where to work to improve productivity and employees’ welfare? One UK bank recently adopted a four-day workweek with the same pay. Also, it reduced the weekly work hours from 37.5 hours to 34. Will the employees work more productively and happily? Will the bank attract more qualified and motivated workers?
Enjoy reading the article and think about your work-life balance.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/23/business/atom-bank-four-day-week/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3517-11/27/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The most important way of stopping another Covid surge

Vaccinated, recovered, or dead, says the German health minister fearing a further surge of Covid-19 cases before winter. Indeed, in winter, people tend to spend more time indoors windows and doors shut. Also, there are festive activities and gatherings during Christmas, year-end, and new year holidays. Though vaccination rates in most of the developed countries have reached nearly or over 70%, herd immunity doesn’t seem to have been achieved in most communities unless vaccination is mandated. There are people who resist getting vaccinated for some reason or other and they claim a constitutional right to refuse it. But don’t people also have the right to be protected from deadly diseases like Covid? Which right should be respected under the life-threatening pandemic? Also, if Covid-19 cases don’t decrease next year, how many more people get infected and lose their lives or the sense of smell (Vol.3515)?

Enjoy reading the article and learn about how critical the situations are in the US and European countries where vaccination rates are much higher than in the rest of the world.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/20/opinions/covid-19-winter-surge-europe-reiner/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3516/11/26/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

The boom in buying a car without ever leaving your sofa

If you are to buy a car, how will you choose one and where will you get it? When you buy a brand-new car, you might have seen the model on the street or in a parking lot. You also know the sticker price and expect quality assurance from the manufacturer. So, you may want to buy one online like a sofa or PC. But when it comes to buying a used car, you’ll probably look for one you like online and then you most likely want to take a look and check the car yourself, which could take your time and money to get to the car dealer. There, you will hear all the good things about the car until you buy it or leave the place. How about buying a used car online? You can then spend as much time as you want and at any time without leaving your sofa or desk. In fact, there are online used car sellers and marketplaces that show and explain cars, negotiate the price, close the sales, and register and deliver the car to your door front. As cars, especially electric cars are becoming a commodity item and digitally connected like a smartphone, people are getting more used to buying and registering cars online. Soon, you may get a next-day delivery soon by Axxxxx.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about how online car purchase is getting popular in the UK.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-59295353

Topic Reading-Vol.3515/11/25/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

More than a million people in the US may not have regained sense of smell months after Covid-19 infection, study estimates

People lose some sense of smell as they age, just like the eyesight or hearing ability. But no particular virus or disease had been found to disrupt the sense of smell until the Covid-19 pandemic. A new study found that many Covid-19 patients experienced a lost or diminished sense of smell for months and some don’t seem to regain the sense ever. Olfactory Dysfunction, or OD, is the reduced or distorted ability to smell during sniffing or eating. Those who suffer OD may smell differently or things that aren’t there. Such symptoms not only impair the taste of food or drink but also could affect the person’s life. For example, they may not notice the odor from their socks or pet’s urine. Also, they may not realize if the food about to eat is spoiled or something is burning in the kitchen. Scientists and doctors haven’t gotten clues as to what is causing such problematic symptoms or how people can regain the sense of smell yet.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about another damage that Covid-19 could cause to humans.

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/18/health/covid-loss-of-smell-wellness/index.html

Topic Reading-Vol.3514/11/24/2021

Dear MEL Topic Readers,

Amazon to stop accepting Visa credit cards in UK

A credit card allows the cardholder to pay the sellers for goods or services based on the cardholder's accrued debt. The card issuer, such as a bank or credit union, creates a revolving account and grants a line of credit to the cardholder, from which the cardholder can borrow money for payment to a merchant or as a cash advance. The transaction fee is paid by the seller and the fee rate greatly varies by the size and volume of the seller, ranging from below 1% of the purchase amount to up to over five percent. Visa is the world’s largest credit card brand with over a billion cards in circulation, followed by Mastercard. Most of the retailers that accept credit card payments usually take both brands. But recently, Amazon UK announced that it would no longer accept UK-issued Visa credit cards from January 19 because of the high transaction fees. Since many Amazon users register a credit card or two for payment, those who only or mainly use Visa cards are going to have to add or switch to another credit card. Whether this is a near-permanent move or just a threat to Visa to negotiate the transaction fee, it looks like a novel move that might trigger furious battles between credit card brands and retailers.

Enjoy reading the article and learn about a bold move by Amazon UK.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-59306200