Current Events

Happy Lunar New Year!

Enjoy the Year of the Ox and learn more about the traditions of the Lunar New Year & the Chinese zodiac here: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/lunar-new-year-2021-ox/index.html

February is Black History Month!

In 1970, 51 years ago, a new tradition was formed. It was derived from a similar history week created in 1926, and is now called Black History Month. In February, African American history is celebrated during this tradition by the United States and Canada (October for the Netherlands and United Kingdom). During Black History Month, we learn about and celebrate influential individuals and events of African American history. There are many sources and lots of information you can learn; the below Google Slide presentation, created by the Book Endz library club, has interesting facts and videos on famous African Americans, highlighting Black authors, for every day of February!

Google Slide: (click on link) Black History Month Day by Day Presentation

ASB launches new “Back to School Bonus Game”

By Desmond Devine

     Although some students might be a bit sad that Winter Break is ending, the Associated Student Body of the Science Academy STEM Magnet will make sure that coming back to school is a fun experience! Each day, ASB will post an update on their Schoology Group, S.A. Student Body Outreach, containing the day’s question and a Google Form to submit an answer. Correct answers will be entered in a lottery and the winner will receive extra English credit (plus bragging rights)! The Bonus Game will continue each day until Friday, January 22nd. 

   The question for Tuesday, January 12th was, “What is the powerhouse of the cell?”. The answer was “The Mitochondria” and the lottery winner was Alma S. of Grade 8!

   The question for Wednesday, January 13th was, “Which brain structure regulates circadian rhythms in humans?”. The answer was “Suprachiasmatic nucleus” and the winner was Ryan P. of Grade 8!

   The question for Thursday, January 14th was, “What is the band of axons that connect the left and right hemispheres of the brain?”. The answer was “Corpus callosum” and the winner was Ava-Ray P. of Grade 6!

   The question for Friday, January 15th was, “What are the SI units of the measure of the compactness of a substance? (Hint: “compactness”)”. The answer was “Kg/m^3” and the winner was Nikita A. of Grade 11!

  The question for Tuesday, January 19th was, “Where are inverses of exponentiation not found?”. The answer was “The patterns found on a dog’s paw” and the winner was Justin K. of Grade 6! 

  The question for Wednesday, January 20th was, “What is the theory of psychology that argues that the emotional response of a person evokes the physiological experience?”. The winner was Alex R. of Grade 7!

  The question for Thursday, January 21st was, “(v^3+4v^2-54v-85) / (v+9)”. The winner was Peter H. of Grade 11!

  The question for Friday, January 22nd is, “What is the empirical formula of Fructose 2, 6 bisphosphate?”.

Universal Human Rights Day

        by Hayley Yoon

         Every year, on the 10th of December, we celebrate the rights of all humans, no matter their race, religion, color, gender, language, or political opinion. On this day, back in 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), after the end of World War II. This document proclaimed the permanent rights that every human on the Earth was entitled to. The UDHR is the most translated document in the world, and it is available in over 500 languages. It is composed of a preamble and 30 articles, which cover the 30 universal rights and freedoms of all humans. An illustrated version of the UDHR is available here.

          Unfortunately, many people in different countries of the world are suffering from their rights being neglected. Article 04 of the UDHR states that “No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.” However, it is estimated that about 40 million people are imprisoned in modern slavery, a quarter of which are children. The most common forms of modern slavery include human trafficking, debt bondage labor, forced labor, and child labor. Several organizations are currently working together to free people suffering from their stolen rights.

Human Rights Day is a perfect day to celebrate and take part in protecting our rights. There are several ways to celebrate this day, even at school or at home! 

• One way is simply to spread awareness. Many people don’t know about some of their rights, or that their rights are being neglected. By writing an article in the school newspaper, posting a short message on social media, or educating your friends about their rights, you can spread awareness about this basic, yet essential topic.
• Pass a resolution, whether it be for school, a club, or just your household. You can also use this opportunity to educate your fellow students on Human Rights Day.
• Donate to a Human Rights charity! These organizations work together to protect and fight for the rights of humans. Some well known ones are Human Rights First (HRF), Human Rights Watch (HRW), or Amnesty International.

Sources Used

https://www.un.org/en/observances/human-rights-day#:~:text=2020%20Theme%3A%20Recover%20Better%20%2D%20Stand,are%20central%20to%20recovery%20efforts.

https://nationaltoday.com/human-rights-day/ 

https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/human-rights-charities/

https://www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/

https://www.antislavery.org/slavery-today/modern-slavery/