Current Events #1

Look Out Below

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/11/man-seriously-injured-after-being-hit-by-boulder-in-middle-colorado-road/?intcmp=trending

An Arizona man was seriously hurt when a car-size boulder slid onto a mountain road and landed on him while he and his co-workers were trying to move another massive rock off the road.The 27-year-old Phoenix man was hospitalized with injuries to his legs and pelvis after being hit Tuesday by the 30-ton boulder.

Spitting and a Deadly Disease

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/health/camels-linked-to-spread-of-fatal-virus.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=1&

Evidence is mounting that camels are the most likely intermediary in the transmission from bats to humans of the virus that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

Watch Out x2

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/12/travel/aircraft-near-misses/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

There were 4,394 cases in which planes came too close to one another in the year ending September 1, 2012 -- up from 1,895 the year before, the Federal Aviation Administration said on Thursday.Forty-one events were characterized as "high-risk events." None resulted in accidents.

Build an Ark

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/12/us/flooding-colorado/index.html?c=&page=0

With rain still falling and the flood threat still real, authorities called on thousands more people in the inundated city of Boulder and nearby towns to evacuate as rivers and creeks rose to dangerous levels.

Angry Bunny with Moustache Trouble

http://www.npr.org/2013/09/08/220188619/climate-change-leaves-hares-wearing-the-wrong-colors

Hares switch color in the spring and fall in response to light, when the days get longer or shorter. But that means they're at the mercy of the weather. If the snow comes late, you get a white hare on brown ground. "And they really think that they're camouflaged," Kumar says. "They act like we can't see them. And it's pretty embarrassing for the hare."Kumar calls this "mismatch," and it's becoming more of a concern with climate change. 

Not Even a Mother Would Love…

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-09-13/miserable-looking-australian-fish-voted-world27s-ugliest-animal/4955094

The blobfish, which lives in deep waters off the southern Australian coast, has been named as the mascot of the British-based Ugly Animal Preservation Society, which aims to protect the world's weird and wonderful creatures.

Bad First Argument

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/11/us/montana-husband-death/?iref=obinsite

Missoula, Montana (CNN) -- The Montana newlywed accused of killing her husband by pushing him off a cliff has traded her bridal gown for an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs.Graham and Johnson had been married just more than a week when an argument in early July allegedly escalated to a case of second-degree murder.

We are Winning at Failing

http://www.oregonlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/09/oregon_test_scores_nose-dive_1.html

Oregon schools bombed state tests this year, with a significant drop in the passing rate in at least one subject at every grade level tested.

One epic fail: high school writing. The share of juniors who could write an acceptable essay dropped to 60 percent, down seven percentage points from the previous year.

20th Mass Shooting of Obama’s Tenure

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/09/16/us/site-of-the-navy-yard-shooting.html?_r=0

As investigators look into the history of Aaron Alexis, the man believed to be responsible for the Washington Navy Yard shooting that killed 12 and wounded eight, a portrait of a disturbed man with a history of mental health issues has emerged.

Fire, Fire, Fire!

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/18/nyregion/jersey-shore-boardwalk-fire-is-ruled-to-be-accidental.html

TOMS RIVER, N.J. — Investigators have determined that the devastating fire that consumed several blocks of the Boardwalk in nearby Seaside Park last week was caused by an electrical wiring problem, and was not set intentionally.

But the hidden culprit may well have been Hurricane Sandy.

US & Russia Negotiate on Syria

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/13/politics/us-syria/

Discussions between the two [Russia and the USA] in Geneva -- centered around Moscow's proposal to have Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government hand over its chemical weapons stockpile -- were supposed to end Friday. They continued through the night and were extended into Saturday for a reason, U.S. officials said."If there was no opening, we wouldn't still be here," a senior State Department official said.

The Captain Might Still Go Down

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2013/0918/With-Costa-Concordia-righted-most-of-Italy-moves-on

Just a day after the successful raising of the Costa Concordia cruise ship, life was regaining some degree of normalcy on the tiny Italian island of Giglio.

As boats and barges fussed around the battered hull of the liner, which was raised in a dramatic 19-hour operation, locals took advantage of the warm autumn sunshine. On the tiny sand beach that lies directly opposite the wreck, grandmothers in roomy swimming costumes sunbathed while their grandchildren dug holes and built sandcastles.

Brazil vs. USA/NSA Round 1

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Security-Watch/terrorism-security/2013/0918/Did-Brazil-s-president-just-knock-down-US-influence-a-notch-or-two

The decision of Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff to forgo a planned October state visit to the United States is being portrayed by the White House as a mutually decided-upon postponement. Worldwide, however, that view gets little play: The cancellation is seen by many as a dismissal of the US in response to revelations about its wide-reaching National Security Agency surveillance programs.

Should We Watch You?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2013/0917/Cyberbullying-Should-schools-police-students-social-media-accounts-video

The Glendale Unified School District in Glendale, Calif., finds itself under a national spotlight over its hiring of a firm to monitor its 14,000 students’ social media accounts.

In the wake of the suicide of 12-year-old Rebecca Sedwick in Florida last Tuesday – reportedly after receiving taunting text messages from at least 15 girls – many cyberbullying experts are applauding the Glendale decision. But others say the Glendale Unified School District (GUSD), though well-meaning, is entering dangerous moral and legal ground. At least one online petition is out to stop it.

Open the Windows with the Air On

http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Global-Warming/2013/0917/New-climate-change-map-adds-a-new-factor-people

A new map adds a new variable to assessments of the regional impact of climate change: people.

In making the new map, published this week in the scientific journal Nature Climate Change, a team of scientists have factored humans’ modifications to their environment into a new calculation of the relative threats that climate change poses to the world’s different regions.