WEEK2--South Korean President's Scandal

South Korea's presidential scandal

• 16 January 2017
South Korea's parliament has voted on 9 December to impeach President Park Geun-hye over a corruption scandal.
Ms. Park stepped back from her duties following the vote and her case is now being heard by the constitutional court.
On 20 November, Ms. Choi was charged with various offenses, including abuse of authority, coercion, attempted coercion and attempted fraud. She is now on trial.
Few claims have been off-limits in the media coverage, with some reports going as far as suggesting the president is a puppet who hosted shamanist rituals at the presidential compound. But many of the lurid claims are unsubstantiated.
Keywords: south Korea, president, scandal, corruption, abuse of authority, coercion, attempted coercion, attempted fraud, on trail

What: south Korean president's scandal
When: January 2017
Who: Park Guen-hye


網址:  http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37971085

• From the sectio

• http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asihttp://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37971085

WEEK1--Burkini 布基尼

Burkini ban: Why is France arresting Muslim women for wearing full-body swimwear and why are people so angry?

What started as a temporary rule brought in by a single resort in France has spread along the country’s world-famous Riviera and beyond to become a lightning rod for a multitude of divisive issues.

The imposition of local by-laws on swimwear may seem minor but the “burkini bans” have tapped into division over immigration, sexism, religion and extremism as the country continues to reel from a series of deadly terror attacks by Isis supporters.

The debate is seeing France’s constitutional secularism pitted against freedom of religion, with emotions running high on both sides.

Proponents argue the move preserves “security and secularism”, while critics have condemned it as a sexist attack on human rights and a valuable recruiting tool for Isis and other jihadist groups propagating the idea of a war on Muslims in the West.

網址: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/burkini-ban-why-is-france-arresting-muslim-women-for-wearing-full-body-swimwear-and-why-are-people-a7207971.html

What: burkini, ban

When: 6 months ago

Where: France

Who: Muslims

Keywords: ban, burkini, France, freedom of religion, human rights, Muslims

week9 Rio 2016 Olympic Refugee Team

Olympic history made: Refugee team revealed for Rio 2016 Games

By James Masters
Updated 1442 GMT (2242 HKT) June 3, 2016

Competing under the Olympic flag, the six male and four female athletes will walk into the opening ceremony at the Maracana Stadium ahead of host country Brazil.

"These refugees have no home, no team, no flag, no national anthem," IOC president Thomas Bach said.
"We will offer them a home in the Olympic Village together with all the athletes of the world. The Olympic anthem will be played in their honor and the Olympic flag will lead them into the stadium.
Refugees carried the Olympic Flame. Now they will compete at Rio 2016. Team Refugees announced in Switzerland today! 
— UN Refugee Agency  June 3, 2016

"This will be a symbol of hope for all the refugees in our world, and will make the world better aware of the magnitude of this crisis," Bach added.

"These refugee athletes will show the world that despite the unimaginable tragedies that they have faced, anyone can contribute to society through their talent, skills and strength of the human spirit."
The United Nations' refugee agency said it was "very inspired" by the creation of the historic team. It said the global number of refugees, asylum seekers and displaced peoples had continually risen since the 59.5 million recorded at the end of 2014.

"Having had their sporting careers interrupted, these high-level refugee athletes will finally have the chance to pursue their dreams," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said in a statement.

"Their participation in the Olympics is a tribute to the courage and perseverance of all refugees in overcoming adversity and building a better future for themselves and their families."

網址:http://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/03/sport/rio-olympics-refugee-team/

What: Refugee team in Rio Olympic 2016

Where: Rio, Brazil

When: June 2016

Keywords: 

refugee team
participation
courage
perseverance

Rio 2016

national anthem

Olympic flame

symbol of hope

aware of the magnitude of this crisis

week8 Brexit 英國脫歐

Brexit: All you need to know about the UK leaving the EU
By Alex Hunt & Brian Wheeler - BBC News

12 December 2016

Why is Britain leaving the European Union?
A referendum - a vote in which everyone (or nearly everyone) of voting age can take part - was held on Thursday 23 June, to decide whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union. Leave won by 52% to 48%. The referendum turnout was 71.8%, with more than 30 million people voting.

What was the breakdown across the UK?
England voted for Brexit, by 53.4% to 46.6%, as did Wales, with Leave getting 52.5% of the vote and Remain 47.5%. Scotland and Northern Ireland both backed staying in the EU. Scotland backed Remain by 62% to 38%, while 55.8% in Northern Ireland voted Remain and 44.2% Leave.

What has happened since the referendum?
Britain has got a new Prime Minister - Theresa May. The former home secretary took over from David Cameron, who resigned on the day after losing the referendum.
Like Mr Cameron, Mrs May was against Britain leaving the EU but she says she will respect the will of the people. She has said "Brexit means Brexit" but there is still a lot of debate about what that will mean in practice especially on the two key issues of how British firms do business in the European Union and what curbs are brought in on the rights of European Union nationals to live and work in the UK.

What about the economy?
The UK economy appears to have weathered the initial shock of the Brexit vote, although the value of the pound remains near a 30-year low, but opinion is sharply divided over the long-term effects of leaving the EU. Some major firms such as Easyjet and John Lewis have pointed out that the slump in sterling has increased their costs.
Britain also lost its top AAA credit rating, meaning the cost of government borrowing will be higher. But share prices have recovered from a dramatic slump in value, with both the FTSE 100 and the broader FTSE 250 index, which includes more British-based businesses, trading higher than before the referendum.
The Bank of England is hoping its decision to cut interest rates from 0.5% to 0.25% - a record low and the first cut since 2009 - will stave off recession and stimulate investment, with some economic indicators pointing to a downturn.

week7 ISIS伊斯蘭國

Scores of ISIS fighters killed in Mosul

BY REBECCA KHEEL - 12/26/16 11:30 AM EST

Nearly 100 fighters with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) were killed by Iraqi and coalition forces Sunday as the battle for Mosul continues, according to Monday reports.

The 97 militants were killed in three separate incidents, Iraq's Joint Military Command reportedly said in a statement.

In the first, Iraqi forces detonated two car bombs as ISIS fighters were trying to advance near a federal police position south of the city. The bombs killed 21 ISIS fighters, the Iraqi military said.

The second incident happened as ISIS tried to launch attacks on military positions using car bombs and suicide bombers in the neighborhoods of Intisar, al Salam and al Shaimaa' in southeastern Mosul. Iraqi forces killed 51 ISIS fighters, according to the military.

Finally, coalition aircraft carried out airstrikes on an ISIS gathering in al Wahda neighborhood in eastern Mosul, killing 25.

Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, is ISIS’s last urban bastion in the country, and, as expected, they’ve been fighting fiercely to keep it against the ongoing coalition offensive. ISIS has held the city since 2014.

Iraqi, Kurdish Peshmerga, tribal militia and coalition forces launched an offensive in October to retake the city. Iraqi special forces entered the city limits within weeks, but advancement has slowed as the fight has turned into street-by-street urban warfare.

The U.S. military typically does not tout the number of enemy killed, citing a desire to avoid the Vietnam War practice of using "body counts" as misleading measures of success.

Estimates have placed the number of ISIS fighters killed in the two-year anti-ISIS campaign at anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000.

Who:  ISIS fighters

When:  12/26/2016

What:  ISIS fighters' killing

Where:   Mosul

Keywords:  

ISIS, 

ISIS fighters,

Mosul,

killing, 

bombs,

street-by-street urban warfare, 

25,000 to 50,000 fighters 

網址:  

http://thehill.com/policy/defense/311826-scores-of-isis-fighters-killed-in-mosul

week6 Shanghai Dineyland

• Watch the magical Shanghai Disney opening ceremony

  by Helena Horton 15 JUNE 2016 • 6:23PM

Complete with famous faces, an orchestra, dancing, singing and a beautifully lit castle, the opening of Shanghai Disney was just as opulent as you could expect.

It appeared to be good news for Disney, after their Florida park made headlines when a two-year-old boy was killed killed when he was dragged into a lagoon by an alligator.

In Shanghai, however, you wouldn't have imagined this tragedy took place in a Disney park - there was magic in the air as the massive castle lit up, and the front of it turned into a Cinderella pumpkin carriage.

Out stepped not a Disney princess but the Chairman and CEO of Walt Disney, Bob Iger.

He spoke about the music played by the orchestra, which was specially composed for the park, and his vision for the site, which took 17 years to build.

Iger said: "Music has always been an essential part of Disney storytelling, touching hearts and lifting spirits in so many profound ways.

 "We wanted the music to blend the best of China and the best of Disney to create a powerful expression of shared dreams".

When building the park, he said he "allowed myself to dream big, envisioning a destination that would redefine our limits of creativity and imagination.

What:  Shanghai disney open

When:  June 17, 2016

Where:  Shanghai 

Keywords: 

Shanghai Disney

theme park

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/15/watch-the-magical-shanghai-disney-opening-ceremony/

Week5 unnamed aerial vehicle

Sky Magic Live at Mt. Fuji: Drone Entertainment Show

POSTED ON MAY 12, 2016 IN COOL | 249 VIEWS | LEAVE A RESPONSE

Beautiful backdrop of the world heritage site Mt. Fuji was used to stage the first Live performance using MIDI controlled LED flying machines, accompanied by Shamisens, the Japanese traditional guitars.

This was done so by utilising more than 20 units of these flying machines, flight swarming formations, music, and 16,500 LED lights to combine into a single audio visual extravaganza. Furthermore, we are able to control the flying machines, visual and audio aspects concurrently, using the DMX512.

網址: http://midnightinthedesert.com/sky-magic-live-mt-fuji-drone-entertainment-show/

Actually, these flying machines mentioned above are called unnamed aerial vehicle. They create a beautiful show at Fuji Mountain in 2016, which mentioned in the article.

Key words:

unnamed aerial vehicle

Mt. Fuji

LED

the first Live performance

audio visual extravaganza視聽盛宴

What:

 a beautiful show created by tens of unnamed aerial vehicles

When:

2016

Where:

Fuji Mountain