 Image from NASA Global warming and Climate change are real, and the sad fact is if we don't do something soon there could be possibly devastating effects on our planet and the human race. According to NASA our climates and the warming of our planet is based mainly around the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is where the heat that gets radiated off earth gets trapped in our atmosphere and the heat bounces back. According to National Geographic the temperature has risen 1.6 degrees on average since 1906. Because of this rising temperature and the earth getting hotter ice is melting worldwide, mainly at our planets north and south poles. The ice is melting at Antartica and Greenland. The most notable sign of ice melting is the fact that Montana’s Glacier National Park the number of glaciers has dropped to 30 from the 150 in 1910. Because of this and many other effects like how hot water expands and takes up more space leads to the rise of sea level rise. According to National Geographic “Sea levels are expected to rise between 10 and 32 inches (26 and 82 centimeters) or higher by the end of the century.” This could cause many effects one of which that's expected with sea level rise is major flooding. There have been prediction maps made about “The great floods” that estimate that some major cities like New York and depending on how much the sea rises maybe San Francisco will be under water. Because of these floodings, some people would have to pack their bags and move.
The effects of global warming are not just the sea level will rise or the planet will get hotter, some of the less talked about effects are the animals and the effects on their habitats. For example, the Adélie Penguins that live in Antarctica. Their habitat is melting and their population is decreasing. Many animal species are migrating to cooler areas. For example, some foxes and butterflies are moving north to cooler more sustainable areas. Precipitation has increased across the world. Though some places are experiencing severe drought. Because of this, the chances of wildfires is higher in those areas, the increased risk of crop and plant loss and loss of drinking water can devastate those areas. Predictions of possible “megadroughts” lasting years to decades become more plausible in the upcoming future. Because of these things species like mosquitoes, jellyfish, ticks and crop pests are thriving. This list only continues and lots of these effects we can see today and in the near future. If we don't find ways out of these bad habits we’ve adopted it will only continue to get worse. Here are some of my ideas on how to slow down and prevent these effects. Try to find a way to get more electric cars on the road and make them easier to afford. Try to get more solar panels on the roofs of our houses and buildings. At this point, it's no secret we need a technological breakthrough to prevent some of these things. But truly as these effects are emerging it needs to serve more as a wake-up call. These things are happening. What can you do to help? Story by Aidan McCloud  Many countries around the world have tried to grow seeds of various veggies and plants in space in hopes of a scientific breakthrough. The results have not been as pleasing as people have hoped for, with many issues of not enough sunlight and freezing temperatures those conditions don't always make the best environment for plants. China recently sent a new spacecraft chang´e 4 into space on December 12, 2018, to the far side of the moon in hopes of developing cotton plants.
This is not the first time a country has tried to grow and develop plants in outer space, NASA has tried to grow plants and various types of vegetables on the moon in a space garden, this experiment is called Lada Validating Vegetable Production Unit. The development of plants in space is a very crucial experiment to science this is important because when astronauts are sent to space they bring food for the whole time they are in space this can be up to 3 months worth of food and water. Plant research in space has been being developed and studied for over 40 years according to the Australian Academy of Science, NASA is not the only space agency that has grown plants, China is not far behind in the competition and recently had a short success in growing cotton plants on the far side of the moon. The analysis of growing plants is an ongoing experiment that many scientists are testing every day and are working hard to continue finding a solution to growing plants in space. Although top scientists have been studying the process of growing plants in outer space it has been a subject of trial and error, NASA has been working very hard to find the best solution. There are various places that scientist have tried growing plants such as International space station, the far side of the moon, and on different space crafts. Many solutions have been created to cope with the low-gravity, extreme temperature changes and the difficulty of watering the plants such as using recycled water for the plants and using electric lighting to help them grow when the sun is scarce. It is not ideal to bring thousands of gallons of water into space because of lack of space and weight of water so scientists have come up with the idea of recycling water that is already on the spacecraft, and when they say any type of water they mean it, sweat, collected breath, and even urine could all be recycled and made into water that is suitable for watering the plants. It is very important to quickly find a way to grow these plants because scientists have high hopes of being able to bring plants on the mission to Mars. Scientists will continue to work on developing ways to grow plants in space to help future missions to space be as sustainable as possible. Growing plants in space doesn't just save space on flights but it also allows astronauts to have a healthier diet while in space and have some sort of nature with them that reminds them of home. Studies will continue on this process and in the future, we hope to see not only see astronauts but maybe even plants as well. Story by Barret Bryson Carrot Image  Weather is often affected by climate change. It can be affected in more ways than you may expect. Throughout time weather and climate have been changing and adjusting which has caused some major weather events and unfortunately, will continue to. For example over the past couple of months, we have seen heat waves, hurricanes, massive floods, wildfires and snow storms. We can expect to see rising sea levels and drought and more weather like these. But what's causing it all and how can it be stopped?
The greenhouse gas effect is a natural process and without it, we wouldn't be able to survive here on earth. What makes it worse is the activity that humans do to contribute to this process. This is called the “enhanced greenhouse effect” or “anthropogenic climate change”. It can be caused by the burning of fossil fuels, cutting down forests, increasing livestock farming, fertilizers containing nitrogen and fluorinated gases which contribute a lot to climate change. These things heat the environment by letting the heat release process much harder for the atmosphere by trapping in the suns heat. Climate change is a real issue that is affecting our weather every day. To stop it may almost be impossible but to reduce the speed that climate change is happening is the mission, what you can do to reduce your contribution to climate change is something everyone should do in their day to day life. You can green your commute, try to reduce the amount of pollution you create and also try and reduce the amount of waste you create, even in your own home! All of these things can help to reduce the amount of heat energy which is being trapped in the atmosphere which can cause many catastrophic weather events and raised sea levels. Story by Brooke Darby Sources: https://climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/About-climate-change-in-NSW/Causes-of-climate-change https://ec.europa.eu/clima/change/causes_en Photo: nasa.gov Have you ever heard of a partially recognized nation? Well, they are nations which are not recognized by all members of the United Nations or UN. I decided to look into a few of these places and interview a local in the country. The three states that I researched were Palestine, The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and Abkhazia. All three of these states with limited recognition are at different points of recognition, Palestine is recognized by 137 UN members, The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is recognized by 46 UN member countries, and the Republic of Abkhazia is only recognized by 5 UN member countries. Palestine is a partially recognized nation in the middle east. Palestine claims the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and parts of Western Jordan as its own. Palestine is currently in an active conflict with Israel. Palestine is considered a non-member observer state by the UN. I decided to interview an editor for the Palestine Chronicle about Palestine and these were their answers. Can you tell me about what makes your country separate from the country that claims it? 1. The State of Israel didn't exist before 1947. That land belonged to Palestinians and the Arab majority lived in peace with the Jewish minority. However, the foundation of the State of Israel coincided with the so-called Nakba, Arabic for "catastrophe": hundreds of thousands of native Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their houses and from their land. Their villages were destroyed, entire families died and others were forced to leave their home and run away. They became refugees. After a few years, in 1967, there was a new war between Arabs and Israel: from that moment on, Israel illegally occupied much of Palestinian territories. Since then, many illegal settlements were built, and Palestinians still try to resist, because they don't want to abandon their land and they truly perceive themselves as a Nation. They have a strong culture and identity and they don't want to give up. Do you think that your country will gain recognition in the next decade? Why or why not. 2. The State of Palestine was already recognized by many countries, but unfortunately, things will not change unless the human rights for the Palestinian population are acknowledged. Recently, Israel is under a lot of international pressure because of its illegal behaviors and many citizens from other countries, as well as universities, churches, political and cultural institutions decided to boycott it. We think that, in the long run, this could impose a major change to the current situation and could lead to the foundation of a State where Palestinians have the same rights as Israelis. What's your favorite part about the culture in your country? 3. Although the many difficulties, Palestinians didn't give up. Their mantra is and will always be "We teach life, Sir". They keep praying, loving, getting married, having children, dancing a typical dance called "dabke" and eating their amazing food: hummus, falafel, maklouba and so on. Another important aspect is that they are a lot about education: children manage to go to school, despite the tough situation, and the illiteracy rate in Palestine is one of the lowest in the world. The next country that I decided to look into was the Sahrawi Democratic Republic. The Sahrawi Democratic Republic claims the non-self-governing region of Western Sahara. The Polisario Front is the party that claims this region, it is mainly backed by the country Algeria. The region of Western Sahara is claimed by Morocco and was once a territory of Spain, it was called Spanish Sahara. The Sahrawi Democratic Republic is currently recognized by 34 UN member states. Can you tell me about what makes your country separate from the country that claims it? The Sahrawis began military fighting against Spain on 20/05/1973 and forced it after two and a half years, to negotiate the safe exit of soldiers and their families from the territory in negotiations held in October 1975. The two sides have already begun arrangements for exiting the Spaniards and handing over the Polisario to the Territory. While Spanish exit arrangements and independence of the Sahara were proceeding rapidly, another Jewish-led group was former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Sheikh Al-Hassan II, King of Saudi Arabia, King of Spain and President Ould Daddah of Mauritania to invade the region and exchange benefits, Spain gets its shipyard hunter for decades in the desert and has 30% of phosphate revenues and Morocco taking the northern half of the province and Mauritania, the southern half of it. It was already signed in the Madrid Agreement on 14 November 1975 Sahrawis and even Spaniards who were inside the region were surprised by the agreement that Franco, the Spanish ruler, was on his deathbed and secretly planned it. The first Moroccan troops entered on 31/10/1975. Battles began in Agadir with them, but it was a big surprise were not in mind, and on two sides, which caused great confusion among the civilians, who received the news of artillery shelling and flight and the brutality of tens of thousands of Moroccan soldiers, they decided to leave the cities and move to the relatively safe areas in Tfarti and Amheiriz and Amadreha, but also bombed internationally banned bombs, then The Polisario decided to contact Algeria to shelter the civilians, which has already been done. The fighting on the first two fronts continued with Mauritania and forced to surrender two and a half years later. The northern front with the Moroccans. However, the Polisario did not expect Morocco to mobilize more than 350,000 settlers in a march called the Green March, backed by tens of thousands of Moroccan soldiers, which caused confusion among the unarmed citizens. The fighters never stopped fighting the invaders and began to crowd their ranks on the northern and southern fronts. Do you think that your country will gain recognition in the next decade? Why or why not. 2. Yes , I think and I believe in my country that will gain recognition because they actually did in those days and the big proof was joining to the African Union and the 34 countries ( Algeria, Colombia, Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico, …), in addition to efforts of the Polisario that will never stop, and we went half way through and everything is possible What's your favorite part about the culture in your country? 3. Well I love all parts of my culture and I respect it but my favorite is tea which we do 5 times per day at least, because of its reuniting the family, friends, neighbors and talking about everything and anything, laughing, blaming, and serious topics. That makes these gatherings very special and useful and you can really see the mercy in it. The last country that I researched was Abkhazia. Abkhazia is a de facto partially recognized state which claims the land in North Western Georgia. During the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Abkhazia had autonomy within Georgia. Cultural differences between Abkhazia and Georgia led to a conflict between Abkhazia and Georgia from 1992 and 1993. Abkhazia is only recognized as a country by 5 UN member states. Most just see it as the autonomous region of Abkhazia in Georgia. Can you tell me about what makes your country separate from the country that claims it? 1. The answer to this question may not fit this mail, but briefly speaking we were forcibly attached to Georgia by Stalin in 1931. We never wanted to be part of Georgia and after the collapse of the Soviet Union we found that there are no longer Soviet Law binding us. We proposed to Georgia to find a new form of coexistence but they decided to launch a war. That's how we became two different countries. Do you think that your country will gain recognition in the next decade? Why or why not. 2. Of course, it will. But it is not the goal. We can live without recognition. There are some countries that go well without it. The most important is peace a better life for the local population. Recognition is just another step. What's your favorite part about the culture in your country? 3. Easy attitude. Compassion and close relations with many people and relatives. Nature and easy way of living, though we live through some hardship it is still easy.
Story by Will Euler  An American-Italian restaurant in the U.K. has decided to offer free kids meals, if their parents unplug during dinner. “Children spell love T-I-M-E and by putting away screens parents are sending the message that their children are important to them and that can only be good for family time,” parenting expert Susan Atkins said to a press release from the restaurant.
Frankie and Benny’s restaurant gave out a survey to 1,500 people and the results showed that about 20% of children said they feel as if their parents would rather be on their phone than talk during the meal. Around 23% of parents admitted they were either on their phones or checking their phones during the meal, while their child was speaking with them. Nearly 10% of children said they had to try and steal their parents phone, to get their attention. These restaurants have showed that kids aren’t the only ones having trouble staying off heir technology devices. Starting on November 17, Frankie and Benny’s encourages parents and kids to put their electronics in the box at their table that the restaurant provides for them. Some parents admitted when their child(ren) were talking to them about their day, they were multitasking by listen and scrolling through their phone. Just to clear everything out the restaurant is not forcing parents or families to give up their electronics their suggestion to participate in this “challenge”. “We’ve found giving families the chance to part with their devices for a mere couple of hours is a great way to bring them closer and embrace family time,” Frankie and Benny’s restaurant said to the Independent, according to this website. This campaign runs until December 7. This Italian restaurant has gathered some more information and they have found out that 72% of children wish their parents would spend less time on their phones, and 70% said they feel as if there parents prefer to be on their phones longer than talking with their children. The restaurant states “If the initiative is a success we’ll certainly be looking at ways to activate it on a more permanent basis.”- cited from The Independent. I have interviewed many individuals about their opinion, on what this restaurant has decided to campaign. “I think it is a great way for families to hang out, talk with each other, and learn how their family member's days goes!” replied Maddy Peoples. Taylor jones responded with “That is a smart idea, to help families get closer!”. In my opinion this is a great way to help familie unplug and get to know each other even better, but when my Family goes out to restaurants my Dad has to have his phone on him ALL the time so he doesn't miss an important work call. My dad is a bank recruiter is works non-stop, I feel like he would like this, but at the same time be stressed or worried about missing important work tasks. “That is a great idea, because shouldn’t be on their electronics in the first place, unless there is an emergency or it is for work.” said my Mom (Sophie). What do you think? Story by Amelia O'Halloran  Ballet began during the Renaissance in Italy and was originally meant just for men. It began around the year 1500. Many of the traditional ballets we see today were invented around the 1930s. Ballet was introduced to France when Catherine de Medici of Italy married the French King Henry II. The first costumes were layers upon layers of clothing and masks that, while beautiful to look at they were very hard to dance in. The dancer´s shoes were similar to the theatre shoes we see today, the pointe shoe and the soft soled shoes were not yet invented. The official terminology was developed over the next 100 years or so during the reign of Louis the XLV. Ballet was performed in courts by hired dancers but the kings also sometimes performed.
While all this was happening Russia was developing its own style of ballet. By 1850 Russia was the leading creativity center of the dance world. This caused dancing en pointe (on the toe) was invented and became popular. By this point, costumes have evolved into long length tutus which are now commonly referred to as romantic tutus. When dancers began dancing on pointe the tutus got shorter and shorter in order to show of the pointe work until they reached the platter tutu. You still see both the platter and romantic tutu in ballets today. Russia is still a leading country in the world of ballet. In the early 20th century the Russian theatre producer Serge Diaghilev brought together some of that country's most talented dancers, choreographers, composers, singers, and designers. He formed a group called the Ballet Russes. They presented a variety of ballets while touring America and Europe. Thus, making ballet popular in America. George Balanchine was part of the Ballet Russes and settled down in the U.S. Another person was Adolph Bolm who was the founder of the San Francisco Ballet. Diversity was not always accepted in the ballet world. But in Misty Copeland became the first African American principal dancer. Story by Maddy Peeples Sources: https://www.atlantaballet.com/resources/brief-history-of-ballet https://www.britannica.com/art/ballet https://www.npr.org/2011/12/16/143775428/tracing-ballets-cultural-history-over-400-year |
