Stuff YOU Should Know
U.S. and Japan Partner on Security
Last month, Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel met with their Japanese counterparts, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera. Together these leaders worked out ways to align on security measures that better protect both countries against threats from North Korea and China, as well as global and cyberterrorism. Among the issues discussed was the dispute over control of a cluster of islands in the East China Sea . The diplomats made their pledge official by signing an agreement.
Japan agreed to expand and strengthen its national security, increasing military spending for the first time since 2002. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe proposed making changes to the country’s constitution that would allow the military to assist U.S. forces if necessary. The agreement will allow the U.S. to place surveillance drone aircraft as well as a missile-defense radar tracking system in Japan. The 5,000 Marines currently on the island of Okinawa (stationed there since the end of World War II) will be relocated to the island of Guam. These measures will help Japan take a more active stance against an increasingly assertive China.
What Do You Think? With U.S. reducing its military presence in the Middle East, how much involvement do you think will shift to Asia? Why? Follow this story in the news as the aligned U.S. and Japan but their plan into action.
Taliban-targeted Girl Still Committed to Peace
Almost a year ago, Malala Yousafza, a teenaged Pakistani girl was targeted and shot by members of the terrorist group called Tehrik-e-Tailiban (TTP) for being an activist for girls’ education rights. After spending three months in the hospital, Yousfzai recuperated at home before returning to school in March. She now lives in Birmingham, England, where she attends Edgbaston High School, the city’s oldest independent girls school. While she continues to receive threats from the Tailban, the impact of her work has led to her nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Created in 1901, the Nobel Peace Prize is a prestigious honor awarded each year to a person or organization dedicated to promoting peace and human rights. It is named for Alfred Nobel, a Swedish inventor, industrialist and manufacturer. The Peace Prize is one of five prizes awarded by the Nobel Foundation (Literature, Physics, Medicine, Chemistry and Physiology are the others.) The nominations are submitted by a nominating group who meet certain requirements (including some members of governments and courts, some university professors and former recipients). The nominations are then considered by a Nobel Committee, who present the prize on December 10 of each year, the date of Nobel’s death.
What Do You Think? There have been 258 other people nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, a record number. Do a search and find a listing of the nominees. Pick five names and write a two-sentence description of their contribution to world peace.
New Education Standards Spark Controversy
You may have heard already about Common Core, the federal education initiative being implemented in 45 states. Likewise, you might have noticed that politicians, educators, parents and even students are divided in their opinion of the standards. The idea behind the initiative is that students should be able to “demonstrate a common core of knowledge that all citizens should have to be successful.” The standards were developed by the National Governors Association beginning in 2009. They were designed to give a clearer understanding of what students are expected to learn so that teachers can be more successful in helping them learn them. Texas, Alaska, Nebraska, Virginia and Minnesota are the only states not part of the initiative.
Some in favor of Common Core say it streamlines standards with benchmarks that emphasize problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. They also stress that standards are not curriculum, that school districts can choose their own materials. There are mathematicians who say that the math standards in particular will address inadequacies in how teachers teach math. Some opposed to Common Core feel the Common Core initiative violates the individual state government’s right to control education. These critics fear that Common Core testing will be more concerned with gathering data on students than on teaching them. They also are concerned about the level of outside influence by corporate entities. Others feel schools are already suffering from too much testing and demands a “one-size-fits-all” mentality that doesn’t consider classroom differences.
What Do You Think? Is your state adopting Common Core? If you’re not sure, ask your teacher. Ask her or him what they think about the new standards and why.
Giant Killer Hornets in China
Credit: ©IT Stock Free/ Alamy; A problem with Chinese hornets is making the news. Just remember not to try swatting them if they cross the ocean.
Hornets the size of an adult human’s thumb have killed 41 people and injured more than 1,600 in northwest China. They are called Vespa mandarinia and are the largest hornets in the world. Their half-inch stingers create large bullet-sized holes in flesh and contain a kind of venom that can dissolve human tissue. Victims often die of liver and kidney failure. The city of Ankang, part of the Shaanxi province, seems to be the center of the attacks. The Vespa mandarina are known to infest the mountainous areas every year, but this is the worst year on record.
The Ankang Forestry Bureau have offered some possible reasons for the surge in attacks. One is climate change. The higher-than-usual temperatures meant more hornets survived the winter, adding to their numbers. The drier air could be be agitating the insects. Workers have also been moving deeper into the mountains this year, possibly disturbing nests. What’s worse is that these hornets build their nests low to the ground, in tree stumps, crops or under the ground, making them difficult to detect until one is in direct contact.