Budget Cuts Postpone Alien Seeking Telescopes

The San Jose Mercury News reports the SETI Institute has put its program to find aliens on hold. On April 22, SETI proposed a letter sent to supporters of their program that they were going to put alien seeking on hold. Tom Pierson, SETI's CEO made this announcment at the beginnin of this week. The Allen Telescope Array has been put into hibernation due to the shortfalls for funding the operations of the Hat Creek Radio Observatory where the telescope is located.

I mean i think that this is something cool to try and see if there are really aliens out there. But i think there is other stuff that we need to be worrying about beisides trying to find other life besides ourselves. Its kool to get out there and explore other life, but i think that it was a good idea to put the operation on hold. I hope that they succeed in trying to find alien life but i think that now is not the time to do it.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/04/26/135746059/budget-cuts-shutdown-setis-alien-seeking-telescopes?ft=1&f=1001

Pop Star To President

Michel Martelly was very troubled and that everything had been done for him to lose at the polls. He thought that his dreams of leading Haiti out of devastation was surely over, but after four months of recounts and reviews, a runoff changed everything. The unexpected candidate is not ready to take his seat of presidency over Haiti.

This was very unexpected because Martelly never considered himself to be a politician. He's better known under the alias, "Sweet Mickey" which was a kompa singer who overwhelmed his fans on stage with his bad-boy image. He was the type to curse and swing alcohol bottles across the stage at his concerts and even mooned his audience on occasions. Martelly revealed that it was an image that only betrayed on-stage not in his personal life.

Their was a percieved lack of progress going on in Haiti thus far, and the government backed Jude Celestin. But the people said Martelly was a fresh face for politics, and would be a face to help stop the destruction in Haiti. Martelly won by a landslide with 67.6% of the votes, defeating his challenger who had 31.5% of votes. Martelly seemed really excited and said, "Haiti is on its way to a revolution." This should be good news for the people of Haiti because they have seen so much devastation, so maybe this will be a good ending for them.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/americas/04/05/haiti.martelly/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Libya: Coalition Airstrikes Continue

U.S. Naval Forces Commander gave reportser a little insight that U.S. Forces had rescued a crew member of the F15 Fighter Jet that had crashed in Libya. The other crew member was rescued by Libyans and transported to U.S. Forces. Allies continue to launch bomb attacks over northern Africa where this is a no-fly zone that is backed by the United Nations.

The aerial attacks have spread more since the no-fly zone has been established over several hundred miles from  Benghazi. Members of Congress has expressed that the President probably doesn't have authority to commit the U.S. military to this operation. President Obama expressed, "the U.S. will hand over its role of military operations to other coalition members in a matter of days."

In addition, the United Nations is expected to vote to renew its mission in Afghanistan. The resolution is expected to be voted on Wednesday.

I don't think we shgould have a role in Libya, because it seems like everytime something happens in another country, the first thing that countries call for is to send the U.S. over. Why don't they come help us sometime? We need help over here too. I will jus be glad when everything is resolved, if that ever happens and everyone can do their own thing.

Source: http://www.c-span.org/Events/Coalition-Airstrikes-In-Libya-Expand/10737420395/

Fear Of Radiation Threat In Tokyo

A second fire was discovered at a nuclear plant in Tokyo. The fire happened after an explosion Tuesday at the plants No. 2 reactor in a storage pond used for spent nuclear fuel. The radiation level increased 16 times the average dose of radiation.

There was no immediate public health threat. But a shift in wind direction could send radiation toward the populated areas which prompted officials to warn people as far as 18.6 miles from the plant to stay inside.

About 200,000 people living within a 12.4 mile radius of the plant have already been evacuated. Flights have also been banned from the area and most of the workers have been evacuated.

This unfortunate event began on Friday off the northeast coast of Japan after a 9.0 magnitude struck. Radiation levels in Tokyo, about 140 miles southwest of the plant, were twice the average level on Tuesday. But the concentration posed no health threat.

The tsunami and earthquake were unfortunate events for Japan. I hope that they will make it out of this catastrophie. This is something not to be taken lightly, and with all the events going on today America better wake up or we could be next again.

Source:http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/15/japan.nuclear.reactors/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29
 

How Much Sleep Do We Need?


The National Sleep Foundation says that Americans don't get enough sleep. Doctors say that adults are the most sleep deprived, getting about 7 1/2 hours of sleep. Adults should be getting about 9 hours and 15 minutes of sleep a night. Scientists really don't know why we sleep, and that makes it very difficult to determine how much sleep we need.

Researchers look for correlations between people's self-reported sleep habits and their real-world behavioral patterns Adults who sleep less than seven hours self-report memeory loss and difficulty concentrating. Adolescents who sleep fewer than eight hours tend to get lower grades. Research studies show that adults sleeping fewer than six hours suffer cognitive impairment.

If sleeps nine hours or more mean that it is good for their health, for example, adults who sleep between six and seven hours per night live the longest. While those who sleep fewer than 5 hours and those who sleep more than 8 hours die younger.

Refugees Need Evacuation From Libya

The fighting continues in Libya, more than 140,000 refugees try to flee the capital of Tripoli. There are many aid workers trying to grant these refugees their wishes. Aid workers are giving the refugees the basic sheltering and necessities that they need to survive the ongoing riots and protests.

A U.N. Official said, "there are acres of people just waiting to cross the border". There have been many people waiting in these freezing cold temperatures without food, water, or shelter. The U.N. Commissioner has called for a "massive evacuation" for the refugees who have crossed the border from Libya to Tunisia. The broken country cannot handle all of the people who have made it into Tunisia. If something isn't done fast then this could turn into a big humanitarian disaster.

According to reports, about 14,000 people have left Libya and fled to Tunisia Monday. There was expected to be another 15,000 to be on there way to Tunisia by Tuesday. Something has to be done now about this situation, first it was Egypt, now it's Libya. These people need food and shelter to survive the winter weather conditions that are going on over there right now.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/03/01/134179204/u-n-official-massive-evacuation-needed-for-refugees-from-libya?ft=1&f=1001

Internet Blackout In Libya

Since Egypt, Libya is now next up for democratic protests and internet blackouts. The Libyian people are now ready to get rid of their dictator, Moammar Gadhafi. There is no specific cause to why there have been internet cuts, but there could be many reasons why there is a crackdown. Some of those reasons are: government crackdown, internet traffic overload, or just basic power outages. But, people are saying electricity is working fine, cell phones are working good, but the internet has been down for days.

International Internet traffic began to shutdown from about 1 to 8 am. People are saying that it is kind of like there is an internet curfew. This is not good for the people of Libya. It is a big possibility that Gadhafi's regime cracked down on the internet to not let the Libyian people have their voice and be heard. Egypt and Iran are known for shutting down the internet for the public.

I believe that the Libyian people deserve to have their internet and have a voice. I am also glad that Egypt and other surrounding countries are taking a stand over dictatorship before it's too late. This shows how much we take for granted here in America, because we basically can say and do what we want to do. Even though, there may be slight consequences. But, the people in Libya and Egypt are willing to lose their lives for the freedom of their country and I respect all of the countries that take a stand.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/web/02/22/libya.internet

What It Takes To Win

Afghan Soldiers Get Knowledge

Many Afghan soldiers can handle a rifle very well, but most of the soldiers can't even read or write their own name. Most of the soldiers were farmers and didn;t have much time to learn how to read or write. Most spent their time fighting in wars and leraning how to handle fierce artillery for the army at young ages. But now these Afghan soldiers are enrolling in a two month literacy course to help advance their knowledge or give them some knowledge in reading and writing.

This course starts with teaching the soldiers basic numbers and letters in the Persian alphabet. There is a very high number of these soldiers who can't read or write, the number are 70 to 90 percent. That is a very high number of soldiers who are illiterate. This shows how much the United States cares and takes part in education to people will have knowledge and not be illiterate on the basics of learning letters and numbers.

The soldiers are enjoying this learning experience and many of them couldn't read until their first day in class. The teacher of the class is now making soldiers give a round of applause to each soldier that successfully reads a sentence the is on the blackboard. I think that this is good for these soldiers. Some of the soldiers said they couldn't count, but they knew how to count their ammunition, that is sad but that is how it is in Afghanistan. But, now since these soldiers have the opportunity to learn, hopefully this will encourage these soldiers to learn more and pass it on to their family and friends.

Link to this post and podcast: http://www.npr.org/2011/02/15/133745097/afghan-army-gets-training-in-reading-and-writing

NFL's Super Bowl XLV and Dealing With Labor Agreement



The NFL just finished up its season by the Green Bay Packers defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers. I listened to the Slate's podcast, Hand Up and Listen On. This was the highest rated Super Bowl in history as it is every year. Green Bay Packers QB, Aaron Rodgers had an almost flawless performance to become the games Most Valuable Player. Since, Aaron Rodgers won the Super Bowl he no longer has to be in the shadow of former Packers QB Brett Favre. On the other hand, could Ben Roethlisberger's off-the-field troubles cause his team to have lost the Super Bowl? It's a big possibility. But at the end of the day the Green Bay Packers really executed the best out of both teams in the game.

The NFL is also going through some troubles like the NFL Labor Agreement, that could mean a lockout for the 2011 NFL Footbal Season. NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell says, "A labor deal should be in place in the next few weeks." I believe that something needs to happen now for this collective barganing aggreement. I think the fans deserve to see NFL action next year. Basically, this situation is all about money and the owners of these teams needs to come up with an agreement so these players can play and sustain their lifestyle. I think the guys on this podcast were exactly right about the things they were saying concerning thye labor agreement. They were saying that this agreement is all about money. Which is very true, and I believe that the labor deal will be done before March 2nd.

My final thoughts are that the Super Bowl was very entertaining. I didn't think that it would be as fascinating as it was this year. I think the announcers on the podcast were very insightful on their discussions in the podcast. I believe the NFL will get a collective bargaining agreement done, so that the players can provide for their families, because if they don't it will be very sad.  

The link for this podcast is: http://www.slate.com/id/2283937

President Obama Is Having A Happy New Year



Obama has been very upbeat and happy starting off this new year. Want to know the reason why? He has been coming up with new slogans to like, "Win the Future" to get Americans more enthused about more jobe being brought to the table. He is also bringing about better plans to deal with medium and long-term budget problems. This is something that needs more attention, because America is still in debt, the drought is not over.

He has also brought about "We Do Big Things" slogan which is now available on T-shirts available to donors of the president. "Startup America" was released on Monday to encourage entrepreneurs. I believe that President Obama is doing something positive to give America a jumpstart to the new year. Some Americans might not agree with Obama and his beliefs or how we runs our land but, you can't blame the man for trying to pump some money into this country.

Obama has even offered to let the Republican party help out on some things like the deficit-reduction plan. It is a much needed plan to help America get out of an ongoing deficit. Many people might say that Obama is letting Republicans have a voice just so he can bash them if their plan falls through. I believe that he wants this counrty to be equal and together, not seperate. So, let's just put all of the non-sense aside and get this country back to where it was and needs to be.

Many people have lost their jobs in this country and many more are losing them as we speak. Homes and cars are also being lost, more people are filing bankrupt. So, I really don't care who gets this plan in order whether it's the Republicans or the Democrats, somebody needs to do it and do it now. Feel free to give your feedback and comments, because they are well appreciated.

The site for this source is: http://www.slate.com/id/2283410/?from=rss

Egypt Cuts Off Internet & Social Media Access

Egypt is cutting off soocial media access in their country. This just show how powerful the social media tool is in our world. Could this mean a possible cut off of social media sites like facebook and twitter? If so this will damage our way of communicating to the world. This cutting off of social media could really happen in the United States.

The National Asset Act is an act designed to protect us from any cyber prohibitions. Also this protects us from any potential cyber attacks. This could be a United States kill internet switch. So, this is not just affecting Egypt and surrounding countries, this also affects the United States as well.

Here I have added a video that is describing this whole internet shutdown situation.
                       


This internet shutdown in Egypt could be very extensive. But people want the leader of Egypt gone now.


Source: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2011/01/29/nr.armstrong.internet.access.cnn?iref=allsearch

Will Egypt Come Out Of the Crisis

The crisis in Egypt is something that should catch all of America's attention. This epic event shows how much impact social media has on not just the United States, but also other countries around the world. Protesters and demonstrators are now causing riots with police and attacking a police station in Cairo.

Moscow's Airport Security An Issue?

Moscow is a city in Russia that is in some serious termoil. After, a suicide attack yesterday, Russia is looking to tighten up on airport security. A suicide bomber slithers his way into a Moscow airport waiting for passengers to arrive. This airport was Moscow's busiest and newest airport, with a bomb explosion going off and killing people.

This bombing show that it is very hard to keep security tight in busy airports, with as much travel and movement going on inside the airport. There is very little way to keep up with whose lurking to set off a bomb and kill innocent people that are traveling. The name of this airport is  Domodedovo Airport. Most visitors are required to pass through medal detector devices, but one survivor of the attack said that he saw no one going through medal detectors on this horrible day.

Russia police are look for three Chechen men, which are said to be the leaders in this attack. This is just part of an ongoing war with the republic of Checnya, and the war is still not over. some questions raised are, what can Russia do to enforce stricter airport restrictions? How can these future suicide bombers be detected? This is a sreious crime that has been going on since the September 11, 2001 attacks and probably way before that. This is something that has to be stopped to prevent other attacks from happening.

Source:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-moscow-blast-20110125,0,662374.story