Week #49 {24 - 31 January '21}
- The Bulletin Buzz
- Jan 24, 2022
- 9 min read
Articles by Ananya Nayar & Misaki Tomiyama
Articles:
What’s happening in Kazakhstan?
By Misaki Tomiyama
Kazakhstan, located in Central Asia, was a country that gained independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Kazakhstan is known for its oil production- and produces about 1.6 million barrels per day. However, Kazakhstan is a poor country, with 4.3% of the population living below the poverty line (according to statistics of 2019).
After the independence of the nation, Nursultan Nazarbayev, a former communist party member, ruled the country. He had ties with Putin, the Russian President, and aimed to improve the economy instead of introducing democracy. The current president is Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
In the country, a public rally is forbidden without permission from the government. The government increased its price cap, which is the upper limit set on a product, on liquefied petroleum gas. Later, the government announced that they will remove the price cap which virtually led to the sudden increase in the price of liquefied petroleum gas. Riots arose as demonstrations started on the 2nd of January this year, which eventually spread to the rest of the country. Some demonstrators even made attempts to tear down a bronze statue of the former leader Nursultan Nazarbayev. Clashes with the police have resulted in the death of 44 rioters, with 1000 being reportedly injured, and 400 are being treated in the hospital.
Photo via: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-60058972
Russia got involved in this riot after the president requested their government to send paratroopers to stabilize the country. Approximately 2500 soldiers have been deployed in Kazakhstan. The government has delayed decisions on removing the price cap for liquefied petroleum gas.
Yemen Crisis and War
Article by Ananya Nayar
Yemen, a country in the Middle East, dented with wars, humanitarian crisis and destruction is currently in conflict with the United Arab Emirates (UAE.)
In 2014, Houthis took Sana’a (the capital of Yemen) and proceeded on a march South to seize the rest of the country. In March 2015, the civil war was in the same place and Saudi Arabia, UAE and other countries joined the war in support of the recognised government. The war has caused devastation, with hundreds of thousands dead, extreme poverty, severe water scarcity and starvation nationwide.
In 2021, President Joe Biden ended support for Saudi Arabia’s military offence in Yemen, at the same time when the Houthi movement began targeting Saudi Arabia. Riyadh has also retaliated.
Last week, Yemeni forces & the UAE fought Houthi coalition troops near Marib in hopes of securing lucrative land pieces. This ignored the United Nation’s calls for a ceasefire, insisting that a battle like this would endanger 2 million civilians and cause displacement.
Photo via: © Yahya Arhab/EPA/Shutterstock
Recently, there have been even more attacks that have been publicly condemned by the UN, as ballistic missile and drone attacks are targeting civilian areas especially.
On top of this, the World Food Programme (WFP) has been forced to reduce food assistance due to a lack of funds. This means that many families will get hardly half of the minimum ration, this puts 5 million Yemenis at risk from famine conditions and malnutrition treatment for children will also be forced to reduce.
Beijing Olympics Controversy
By Misaki Tomiyama
The Beijing Olympics is expected to take place from 4 February to 20 February this year, with around 3000 athletes from 109 countries. The Winter Paralympics will take place from 4 March to 13 March with 736 athletes.
However, because of concerns regarding the Beijing Government’s atrocities against the Uyghur Muslims, many countries are declaring diplomatic boycotts, meaning ministers and officials will not attend the Olympics. Athletes are competing in the Olympics.
For quite some time, the Beijing government has been accused of detaining and possibly committing genocides against Uyghur Muslims and other Ethnic groups of China. There has been evidence showing that Uyghur Muslims have been forced into labour, and being tortured. China is also accused of having “re-education camps” where the Uyghur’s are being detained. China, however, denies, and mentions that these camps were designed to fight against separatism, and deal with the Islamist militancy in those regions.
So far, US, UK and Canada have declared a diplomatic boycott, along with Japan announcing that they will not be sending any ministers to China during the games. France however, is against the idea of the diplomatic boycotts and believes political matters should not be brought into the Olympics. Meanwhile, the world sees protests against the Beijing Olympics.
Boris Johnson Lockdown Party Controversy
Article by Ananya Nayar
The British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson is facing the risk of ousting and could lose his position and career in days. Here is why most of the British population is outraged with him.
During lockdown in London last year, members in 10 Downing Street and people in the parliament hosted a number of parties, where drinking and music were involved, at the same time that the rest of the country were following rigid COVID-19 precautions and restrictions.
In December & May 2020, indoor mixing of any kind was prohibited in London and people were only allowed to meet outdoors in groups of two.
The party was held during the peak of COVID cases in the U.K when many were dying and the situation was serious. Hospitals were at their breaking point and the NHS was overwhelmed, many families were also not permitted to say bye to their loved ones, see the birth of their children or attend relatives’ funerals.
A photo was leaked showing the Prime Minister and others gathered with wine and cheese. The parties were denied or called ‘business meetings,’ although witnesses and neighbours say they heard loud music.
The lack of regard for regulations set by the government, who also ignored them has angered many.
What’s even more scandalous was that two parties were also held on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, who had passed earlier that week. It’s considered a mourning period for the Royal Family and associates especially, even for the whole country, yet two separate gatherings were held that night. Apologies by Johnson’s office did eventually come out, saying it was ‘deeply regrettable that those festivities occurred during a time of ‘national mourning.’
Boris Johnson is currently facing a lot of pressure to resign, which he refuses to do, and even lawmakers in Britain have talked of ousting their leader after the violations.
Kids Corner:
Kids Corner: Water Deposit Found on Mars
Article by Ananya Nayar
Astronomers have always suspected that the planet Mars once had oceans, rivers and lakes. However, they were never able to prove or find water on the dry planet, unless you count little ice and salty reservoirs in the polar regions of the dry planet.
After a 2016 mission sent an orbiter (the Trace Gas Orbiter) to circle the planet, a unique discovery was made. ‘Significant amounts' of water were found in a canyon that is said to be 10 times longer, 5 times deeper and 20 times wider than the Grand Canyon. What’s more is that this region of water was found just under the equator, in non-polar areas.
The orbiter managed to find which areas of the canyon have the highest concentration or most amount of water.
Alexey Malakhov, a scientist at the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences said that the water may exist as ice though because it is “like Earth’s permafrost regions, where water ice permanently persists under dry soil because of the constant low temperatures.”
Now, the team plans on finding out more about the water’s form, and it is believed that the discovery is a ‘game changer’ for humans and Mars life.
Kids Corner: What’s the meaning behind the Indian Flag?
By Misaki Tomiyama
The Indian flag was made on July 22, 1947, after India gained independence from Great Britain. The flag contains 3 sections, each with an equal proportion, with Orange or deep saffron on the top, followed by white and dark green in the vertical order.
Orange represents courage and sacrifice, white represents peace, and the dark green represents faith. In the middle, there is the “Dharma Chakra” which is the “Wheel of law” and represents the continuous progress of the nation. It is a blue wheel with 24 spokes and is also a Buddhist symbol from the 200th century BCE.
After India gained independence, Indian households, offices and factories hoisted the flag. There is something called the flag code, which is a set of laws that apply when one displays the flag of a country. The flag code of India states that the Indian National Flag represents the hopes and aspirations of the people of India.
Other:
Book and Movie Reviews
Movie (Show) of the Week: The Big Bang Theory
By Misaki Tomiyama
The Big Bang Theory is a comedy sitcom depicting the everyday life of genius physicists Sheldon Cooper and Leonard Hoftstadter in Pasadena, California. One day, the two meet an attractive blonde waitress, Penny, who aspires to be an actress. Leonard wishes to develop a romantic relationship with Penny, but he is socially awkward, just like Sheldon and his other friends Howard, an aerospace engineer, and Raj (Rajesh) an astrophysicist. The Big Bang Theory explores the interesting world of geeky friends and their successes in the world of science. As each episode is around 20 minutes and has an ongoing storyline, it is easy to watch, and with the hilarious moments, along with some emotional scenes, The Big Bang Theory can be said to be one of the best shows out there.
Book(s) of the Week: The Mortal Engines Series by Phillip Reeves
By Mahin Puri
One of my favourite series of all, the world of mortal engines is dystopian, cruel, wild and beautiful. The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where the cities of the world have turned into moving behemoths, scouring the remains of the desolate earth for resources and even going as far as to hunt each other to gain these resources. The story mainly revolves around the “traction city” of London, where the plans of the Lord Mayor are coming to light, and the story of an aspiring historian, Tom Natsworthy, who has fallen of the city and is left on the “hunting grounds,” of the east.
Overall, the character development is slow, yet it also helps us understand the characters better. The narrative by Reeves is well-written, however, it constantly diverges to different timelines and characters, which interrupts the flow of the books, yet all in all, the series is very interesting and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a dystopian fantasy series to read.
Age Recommendation: 11+
Rating out of 5 stars- 4.5/5
Who was… Marie Curie?
By Misaki Tomiyama
Born in Poland, Marie Curie entered the University of Paris in France at the age of 24 and married physicist Pierre Curie at the age of 28. During this time, uranium was a popular element and was called the shining stone, but no one really knew why it shined. Marie Curie, along with her husband, studied and conducted research on Uranium.
They continued their research until they used up all their property, and eventually discovered that the radioactive element polonium and radium were the reasons Uranium shined. With this discovery, Marie and Pierre Curie were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903. She was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize.
However, soon after, Pierre Curie passed away in a car accident. Marie Curie continued her scientific work and became a professor at the University of Paris. She then succeeded in extracting radium from other elements. She is also called Madame Curie for her work in the field of science.
For this achievement, Marie Curie also won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. She was the first to win the Nobel Prize twice for amendments. However, Madame Curie, who had been exposed to radiation for a long time because of her research, passed away at the age of 66.
Fun fact- Marie Curie had aimed to develop radiation therapy and released her method of extracting Uranium for free to the rest of the world. Someone had told her that if she had gotten a patent, she would have received a huge reward, but Madame Curie replied by saying that the greatest reward in her life was intellectual activity itself.
Why Does Our… Mood Change with Weather?
Article by Ananya Nayar
Winter blues make people feel more lethargic and unhappy, it happens to a lot of us, and during the colder, darker months of winter we feel more down.
This isn’t the same as SAD, or Seasonal Affective Disorder, however, which is a serious mood disorder that is parallel to the weather and months of the year.
Winter blues is a common, mild term for something like a ‘seasonal funk.’
Bad weather does have a negative effect on our emotions, and we usually feel tired. Like at night, a hormone called Melatonin is released and triggered by darker lighting, this hormone makes us sleepy. Similarly, our bodies are programmed so that when the sun rises, we’re alert, and when it starts setting, we feel drowsy. Of course, the lack of sunlight in the morning and evening in the winter brings in our sleep-inducing hormones.
There’s a significant dip in our serotonin levels due to the lack of sunshine, which boosts the serotonin in our body. This hormone boosts focus, energy levels and mood, which is why sun exposure is always beneficial and recommended.
Comments