Should Remote Learning Stick Around After This Pandemic?

 School has changed a lot since the pandemic started, one of the biggest changes being remote learning. About a month ago, a New York Times Journalist by the name of Nicole Daniels asked about 400 high schoolers how they felt towards remote learning. Many said they missed their friends and the ambiance they would have while at school. Some said they felt that they were being robbed from a good and traditional education. The surprise was when some students said they loved it, they said they liked being free from "the stressful environment of school" and being able to work at their own pace and set their own school schedule. Some students even said that they would like for some of the remote learning strategies integrated into their everyday school life. When thinking about whether or not this is a good idea there's lots of things you have to think about. What would that mean for the typical 8:oo am- 3:00 pm school schedule? Would there be days where school is fully online and students don't have to come to school? These are some of the questions students were asked too, their answers were very different from what was expected. Some students said that they would be okay with adding more time into the school day while others said the 8 hours they have to spend at school was already too much time to begin with and that adding time would be worse for the students. For reference, college-bound high school were asked in December if they were open to taking even some of their classes online, fewer than a quarter said they would be open to the idea. The same students were asked late March after a few weeks of remote learning, if they would be open to having some online classes while starting college, about 50% of the students who had said no said that they would be open to the idea. There are mixed emotions about whether it's a good idea is up to debate but the question still stands, should schools change the way they operate once we go back to school?


1) What are some benefits from remote learning? What are the repercussions of remote learning?

2) Do you think that grade level should play a part on how remote learning is used?

3) Do you think that once we are back to a normal school schedule we should still enforce some of what we use during remote learning?

Source: When the Pandemic Ends, Will School Change Forever? - The New York Times

Gunfire Exchanged Along the Korean DMZ

South Korean troops stationed along the Korean DMZ

On Sunday 03-May-2020, North and South Korean soldiers exchanged gunfire across the demilitarized zone along the North-South Korean border. All sources indicated that there were no casualties taken on either side. A defense official from South Korea stated that they believe the incident to be accidental. According to the South Koreans on Sunday morning gunfire hit a South Korean guard post in the town of Cheorwon. South Korean troops in response fired 20 warning shots along with a warning broadcast. They state that their warning shots were fired into an uninhabited zone, eliminating the chances of North Korean casualties. So far there has been no response from the DPRK in any way shape or form. They haven't made a press statement or told anything to the South Koreans. Currently all troop movements in the North remain normal and there are no signs of any mobilization. This incident occurred days after Kim Jong Un made a public appearance for the first time in 3 weeks. No one knows what the Supreme Leader was doing during that time, and it seems that it will remain that way. It seems very unlikely that this was a Marco Polo Bridge Incident. Even if the North wanted a war, creating one right now makes zero logical and strategical sense. After all, Disease and war are a deadly combination. It's also fair to assume that due to the DPRK's isolation they have relatively few Covid-19 cases, and it would make no sense to put themselves at risk by pouring into South Korea. Thankfully as time goes on, war it seems is becoming both too expensive and risky. Leading everyone to try to avoid it as much as possible no matter what.

1. Did this situation have the potential to spark a conflict?

2. Is it possible that Kim Jong Un's unusual absence is in any way related to the incident?

3. Was this another Marco Polo Bridge incident (was is provoked)?

Sources:
https://www.vox.com/2020/5/3/21245664/north-south-korea-gunfire-exchange-shoot
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/at-the-border-between-north-and-south-korea-royalty-free-image/916185938?adppopup=true

Elon Musk's Newest Release: X Æ A-12

Elon Musk and his wife (Claire Boucher) Grimes

This Monday, Elon Musk's announcement of his newborn child took the internet by storm. The reason for the commotion amongst the general public was the child's name: X Æ A-12.
Many wondered whether it was a joke at first because it seemed extremely odd that anyone would give their kid such an unusual name. However, Musk and his wife have made it quite clear that they were serious. Still, people are questioning the legitimacy of the name since California, like many other places such as Sweden and New Zealand, have regulations on baby names. Regardless, Musk and Grimes seem insistent on keeping the name. Grimes even posted on Twitter giving an explanation of the name's origin. The first letter of his name X, stands for the variable representing and unknown value often used in math. The Æ, according to Grimes is her elven spelling of love/artificial intelligence. The symbol is pronounced "ash" and can also be found in Latin and Old English as well as a letter in languages like Icelandic, Danish, and Norwegian. Lastly, the A-12 stands for the couple's favorite aircraft that was built for the CIA and is known by its designers by the name; Archangel. It is still unclear how the name is pronounced but the most common speculation is "X Ash Archangel". The newborn hasn't even been alive for a week and he already has millions of people tracking his growth. 


1.) Do you think that because of Elon Musk's announcement we'll begin to see an increase in unusual baby names around the world?

2.) Was it a good move to give the child such an odd name considering that he will be growing up in public eye for his entire childhood and early life?

3.) How might the newborn's unusual name affect his life as he gets older?




Sources:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52557291
https://www.hellomagazine.com/imagenes/healthandbeauty/mother-and-baby/2020050589328/elon-musk-grimes-baby-boy-name-fans-react/0-428-187/elon-musk-grimes-baby-t.jpg

Covid-19's Threat to the Amazon Tribes

In the midst of a pandemic, people from all over the world has been affected by the potentially deadly Coronavirus. Precautions have been taken everywhere around the world, including school closures, social distancing measures, and shelter-in-place orders. However, one group has been gravely overlooked throughout this; the indigenous groups who live in Brazil's rain forest, also known as the Amazons. This community of people are well known for being completely detached from the rest of human society, which means Coronavirus proves a threat to their kind because of their lack of modern technology and medicine. Currently, a global coalition of artists, celebrities, scientists, and intellectuals are calling for Brazillian leaders to take action against a potential "genocide", as some are calling it. They point out that throughout history, Amazons have been devastated by new diseases brought by other people, and Coronavirus will be no different. If no action is taken to protect these indigenous groups, we may be looking at a genocide capable of wiping out the entire Amazon population.

1. What are some ways Brazilian leaders could protect these tribes from Coronavirus?

2. Why do you think Brazilian leaders have not taken any action about this already?

3. Would you classify this situation as a potential genocide? Why or why not?

Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/03/eve-of-genocide-brazil-urged-save-amazon-tribes-covid-19-sebastiao-salgado
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/indigenous-tribe-celebrates-court-decision-to-protect-amazon-rainforest

President Trump's comment on injecting disinfectants quickly debunked

https://apnews.com/697d9ecef7f89cf5e9abb3b008c7faa7

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/24/disinfectant-injection-coronavirus-trump/


Thursday, April 23rd, there was a briefing in the White House which included President Trump, Vice President Pence, and Members of the Coronavirus taskforce. During the briefing, President Trump made a remark regarding the disinfectants which have been selling out fairly quickly throughout stores. He mentions that since they have been so effective in fighting the spread of COVID-19, if "there's a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning...it would be interesting to check that." The media was quick to react to this statement and go on social media and news outlets to debunk this suggestion and call him out on his stupidity. The manufacturer of Lysol even went ahead and issued a statement warning that "Under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body." Hillary Clinton and Hakeem Jeffries tweeted how idiotic and irresponsible it was for a man who was speaking from the presidential pulpit to suggets something so dangerous. The White House responded to the backlash by saying that "the media was mischaracterizing Trump's comments regarding coronavirus treatment" and Trump said that he was only being sarcastic.


1) How do you think the media handled debunking Trump's statement?
2) Many say that Trump was speaking sarcastically, while others thought the opposite, what do you think?
3) Should The White House have handled the situation better?

European Privacy Law Enforcement is Lacking

In 2018 the General Data Protection Regulation was passed in Europe, and heralded as a new era of progress in internet safety. However, the law has suffered from a critical lack of budget and personnel. In the two years since this law was passed, the only giant tech company which has been penalized is Google. While some supporters say that it is too early to draw conclusions about the law, and that there will be new rulings soon, others claim that the cases take far too long, and that due to the limited budget and personnel, governments are discouraged from fighting more complex cases. This failure to limit big companies could also have a large effect on worldwide privacy laws. In any case the future of this law remains to be seen.
(image and article source):
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/technology/GDPR-privacy-law-europe.html?referringSource=articleShare

Keeping Kenyan Schoolkids Fed

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, schools across the world are closed, leading to children without access to meals. However, a non-profit named Food for Education was founded by Wawira Njiru, a nutritionist who grew up near the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. Their mission is to supply inexpensive and fulfilling lunches to poor primary school children and has provided over a million meals. Amazingly, Njiru's program only costs $2 per week to feed one person and has developed into a 24-hour kitchen that delivers food to 13 schools. The lunches consist of rice, beans, maize, and other vegetables that contain nutrients that are important in a child's development. After the coronavirus is under control, Njiru has plans to expand the program and open a second kitchen, which would increase the non-profit's reach to 30,000 children.

1. What are ways people in the USA can help support efforts around the world to mitigate damage/chaos resulted from Corona?

2. By 2025, Njiru wishes to reach a million kids a day. Is this goal realistic, and what can the program do to make that goal?

3. How are the meal programs in San Mateo similar/different than Food for Education?


https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/24/africa/kenyan-keeping-children-fed-lockdown-spc-intl/index.html