3) Listen to 5 installments of "BBC World News" (either radio or online) and do a summary of what you heard / learnt.
1. BBC News - 26 Nov - Smoking damages memory, says King's College study
Students at King's College were carrying out tests to understand the links between the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke with people smoking. They looked at over 9000 people above the age of 50. When they finally carried memory and planning tests and mental ability on these people, the results show that the overall risk of a heart attack or stroke was "significantly associated with cognitive decline". Which meant that smoking not only increases the risk of one getting a heart attack or a stroke, it is also harmful to one's memory and cognitive skills. High blood pressure and overweight however affected the brain to a lesser extent. From this, one can surely tell that smoking is harmful hazard to one's body. It increases one's risk of lung cancer, a heart attack or a stroke, which is not a very healthy lifestyle. Now that it is proven to decrease one's memory and learning ability, it only adds to the list of bad things smokes have to offer. In my opinion, smoking should be banned. Around 5 million people die due to tobacco each year, so one can see the very detrimental effects of smoking. Although it brings in huge amounts of profits, but the money is made from ruining people's health.
2. BBC News - 27 Dec - 2012: 'Year of the touch screen'
Ipads, Iphones, tablets and many more smartphones dominate today's technology market. Today, there are many kinds of apps on the Android and Apple market, which are the two technology giants right now. With Android and its app store, it attracts many youngsters to purchase their products. However, Apple is also very alluring with its IOS systems and many apps for it. Technology is available everywhere nowadays, and not just a nerdy thing. The development of the technology market has opened many ideas for technology uses, and how things could work using technology in a way that no one has ever thought before. I think that the development of the technology could continue to see more improvements in the daily technology we are using. And I've learnt that people should think big, dream big and make dreams happen. Apple products used to be just a competing brand with Windows but now it is iphones and ipads everywhere. This shows that dreams can come true if one is determined to work hard and is not afraid to work in a way different from others.
3. BBC News - 28 Dec - Japan: Whaling is 'justifiable research'
Hunting whales are condemned by many international organisations but Japan's new government is defending themselves by saying that whaling is for conducting "whale research in accordance with the Whaling Convention Treaty in order to gain scientific understanding". According to Japan, their whaling acts and killing hundreds of whales annually is "justifiable". I think that Japan can cut down on the amount of whales they hunt each year, or they could come up with a way to do their research without having to actually kill the whale. I think that the Japan authorities can actually do more to protect these last whales in the wild as whales are on the verge of extinction. If they continue hunting the whales at these rates, there will come one day when whales will disappear from the face of the earth and go into extinction. Hence, to protect all these lovely animals, Japan should try to reduce the amount of whales they kill for 'justifiable' research.
4. BBC News - 29 Dec - Eye gouge victim Tina Nash 'looking forward to life'
Tina Nash could no longer see anything after her boyfriend Shane Jenkin gouged out her eyes. She could no longer see her hands, her feet, or her children. At first, she felt like a ghost without any eyes. But later she had reconstructive surgery to implant prosthetic eyes. Although she still couldn't see, this boosted her confidence a lot and now she actually looks forward to what life has in store for her. Her two sons are very proud of her and having such a mom. The people around her said that she has overcome many obstacles in her way and now she is an independent mother who is capable of taking care of her two children, even though she was robbed of her sight. I think that she is a brave person. She got past her sad period and tried to make her life better for her and her children. She does not stop at the time where her eyes were robbed, but moves on with her life and continues with her life without blaming anyone that her eyes were taken away. She is helping to raise awareness on domestic violence to stop people from being treated the same way she was. I find her way of standing up again very courageous.
5. BBC News - 29 Dec - Indian High Commissioner on rape death
A female student was gang-raped by a bunch of guys on a bus. Beside gang-raping her, they hit her, causing severe injury to her brain which caused many of her major organs to malfunction. She died in the Singapore Mount Elizabeth Hospital, despite "receiving the best care she could receive". The Indian High Commissioner, along with many other Indian officials sends their condolences to the girl's family. This gang-rape incident also brought on many protesters protesting against the government for the lack of female rights in India. The protests turned violent and left a police officer dead. I think that the culprits behind this - the rapists - should be put to death. They have shown a disrespect for women rights, and did not respect women in the way they should. They made things worst by beating her up and giving her brain injuries. Indirectly, they might have caused her death. Those rapists who give in to a moment of lust are despicable.
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