Al Wilson’s NIE Tips 1.30.12

AGRICULTURE – HORTICULTURE:

 

Item #1  The U.S. Department of Agriculture has established new hardiness zones for the United States down to as small as half-mile sections.  See:

http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb

 

Item #2  AG & Economics:  The cow jumped over the moon.  How high will beef prices go in 2012?  Texas is the largest beef producing state, and the severe drought of 2011 and feed cost driven up by corn prices caused ranchers to sell or slaughter their herds.  Wholesale beef prices reached $1.97 in November, the highest price since 2004.  What will they be at the end of 2012?  The drought is predicted to continue in 2012 in Texas.

 

 

AMERICAN HISTORY:

 

Tapes have been found that covered JFK’s last months.  The tapes cover 260 hours of meetings and conversation.

 

The hearse that carried JFK’s body from Parkland Hospital to Air Force One at Love Field in Dallas has been sold at auction.  The hearse will become part of a collection in Longmont, CO.

 

BIOLOGY:

 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said 5.7 million bats have been killed in 16 states by the white-nose fungus.  The disease is thriving in northeastern states.  Stay aware of this situation.  Bats are a top nocturnal predator of night-flying insects.

 

CHEMISTRY:

 

Cadmium pollution is threatening a water supply in southern China near a city of 1.5 million people.  Cadmium levels are eight times higher than the safe limit.  There have been concerns about the cadmium level in imported toys in the United States.

 

DRIVERS’ EDUCATION:

 

Can you obtain a copy of “Dear Abby” from Tuesday, January 24?  The whole column is about teenage drivers just learning to drive and the apprehension many of them experience.

 

ECONOMICS:

 

All is not well in western North Dakota.  What do you students in Fargo and Grand Forks think about this?  North Dakota’s economy outpaced every state in the nation in 2011, in personal income, jobs and home pricing, but the dark side is it’s pushing rural North Dakota’s housing, electric, water, police and emergency services to the breaking point.  Now they have big-city concerns in rural communities.  Average annual salary in Williams County grew to $56,857 in 2011, up 70% from 2005.

 

EDUCATION:

 

Item #1  The headline reads,  “Students show they’re ahead of schools on technology.”  An idea other school districts should borrow.

 

The school board invited 18 students from six high schools in the district to input ideas on using Facebook, Skype, FaceTime and other technology to enhance learning.  The students complained about excessive homework and ill-prepared teachers.

 

Item #2  Public school teachers are seeing their traditional tenure protections weakened as states seek flexibility to fire teachers who aren’t performing.  Wow, this will be a loaded issue.

 

ENGLISH:

 

Item #1  Lawrence Taylor, ex-NFL star of the NY Giants, commenting on some mistakes he has made in life.  “We think that we can do certain things, and we still want to have that same life we did when we was younger, you know?”

 

Item #2  The police arrested a panhandler, but he couldn’t be charged because he was never known to ask for money.  He said, “I ain’t got to ask for nothin’ because the Lord gives me everything I need.”

 

GOVERNMENT:

 

Item #1  The Supreme Court has ruled that police cannot put a GPS tracking device on an automobile without a search warrant.  This tracking violates the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.  Police contend the automobile is used on public highways, so a warrant is not necessary.  What will be the extent of this ruling on camera surveillance, cellphone tracking, etc.?

 

Item #2  President Obama was supposed to appear in court in Atlanta, GA, on Thursday, January 26, to prove he is a natural-born citizen of the United States.  He won’t attend.  Were you aware of this on-going story?  How did he get out of his court date as he was in Nevada?

 

Item #3  On Tuesday, Jan. 17, the Supreme Court ruled against two Pennsylvania school districts on a First Amendment issue, and said students can post malicious mockeries of their principals on-line from their home computers.

 

Item #4  The First Amendment of the Constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof . . .”  However, on January 20, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius of Health and Human Services(HHS) introduced a mandate for insurance coverage that violates Catholic Church teachings and, therefore, Catholic conscience.  This should make an interesting classroom discussion.

 

How many czars have been appointed to enforce all the rules and regulations of Obamacare?

 

Item #5  The government is $15 trillion in debt, and the debt ceiling is going to be raised by another $1.2 trillion.  Many say we are on a road to financial destruction, following Europe over a cliff.

 

HEALTH:

 

The CDC reports that an estimated 7% of American teens and adults carry the human papillomavirus(HPV) in their mouth.  This may explain why rates of mouth and throat cancer have been climbing for nearly 25 years, but are still uncommon.  The data was published last Thursday in the “Journal of the AMA”, stating, “The evidence makes it clear that oral-sex practices play a key role in transmission.”

 

The report states that 27% of 15-year-old boys, and 23% of 15-year-old girls have experienced oral sex.  Dr. Phil has discussed this subject, too.

 

MATH:

 

Item #1  A state lottery reported that six people won $5,663.00; 846 people won $59.00; and 18,682 people won $3.00.  What was the total payout by the state?

Answer:  $139,938.00

 

Item #2  A church group raising money for poor children had their penny collection stolen.  Donors from across the country sent the church 300,000 pennies.  How many dollars is this?  Answer:  $3,000.00

 

METEOROLOGY:

 

Again, tornadoes have swept across the South, and hit Alabama especially hard.  This following the April 25, 2011, tornado in Alabama that killed 238, and about 100 people in other states.  What precautions should you take in case of a tornado at home, at school, at work?

 

SOCIOLOGY:

 

Item #1  As the late Paul Harvey used to say, “It is not one world.”  In Iran, toy stores selling Barbie dolls are being shut down.  This is a part of the decade-long crackdown against “manifestations of Western culture.”

 

Item #2  “It is not one world.”  It has been revealed that three sisters and a co-wife have been killed in Canada in an “honor” killing.  The females were killed because they dishonored the family by defying its disciplinarian rules on dress, dating, socializing and going online.

 

Item #3  The “shake & bake” meth labs are burning people frequently filling the burn units in hospitals.  The cost of treatment is about $6,000.00 a day, and the average cost of a stay is $130,000.  Most of these patients are uninsured, so hospitals are closing their burn units.  (sociology, health, economics)

 

Another headline stated:  Psychotic behavior spiking as meth use amps up.

 

VOCABULARY:

 

pugilism, inexplicable, postulate, egregious, contortions, reminiscent, irony, acerbic, crass, thrice, ensconced, corroborate, doyenne, voluminous narcissist, abyss, egalitarian, vitriol

 

WORLD GEOGRAPHY:

 

Locate:  Finland, Switzerland, Russia, India, Scotland, Philippines, New Guinea, Somalia, Turkey, Guatemala, Ireland, Brazil, Peru, Bahamas, Greece. Germany,

Sudan, Ethiopia

 

WORLD HISTORY:

 

There was a large protest on Sunday in Russia against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.  People are protesting election fraud.  Follow this story between now and March.  Will Putin regain the presidency in March?  Wanna bet?