Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - January 23, 2014
In an attempt to deflect criticism from his “anti-gay” laws, Russian
president Vladimir Putin has in the past week revealed himself to be a
fan of Sir Elton John, describing the singer as “an outstanding person
and outstanding musician” loved throughout the country, “despite his
orientation.”
Now Sir Elton, who came out as gay in 1988, is using this as a
springboard to try to lobby on behalf of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) community in Russia.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - January 22, 2014
More than half of all middle and high school students believe that,
unless they achieve good grades at school, they will be branded
failures.
And almost as many believe that their schools care more about grades
than they do about students themselves, according to a new survey of
2,000 young people.
The charity YoungMinds, which campaigns to improve the mental health
of young people, polled 2,000 people between the ages of 11 and 25.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - January 14, 2014
PBS NewsHour Extra
“Hidden” poverty in suburban areas is making it difficult for the
government to successfully continue President Lyndon Johnson’s War on
Poverty, an academic has claimed.
While overall poverty rates have declined since President Johnson’s
declaration in 1964, the number of poor living in suburban communities
has grown. In some cases, there are more poor families in the suburbs
than in major cities.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - January 10, 2014
PBS NewsHour ExtraRobots are increasingly being used to do all sorts of tasks, from
disarming bombs and helping people with disabilities to autonomously
vacuuming floors. However, there are still tasks that humans can do
easily, such as folding clothing, that are still a major undertaking
for even the most sophisticated robots.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - January 8, 2014
Irena BarkerThe holiday season is usually a time to eat, drink and be merry. But
in many parts of the world, extreme weather events have gotten 2014 off
to a grim start.
As the UK continues to be battered by a succession of unusually
devastating storms and floods, the US is in the grip of a freezing
“polar vortex”, plunging even southern states into freezing
temperatures.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson
Richard VaughanGoogle is not content with producing computers that we wear like
glasses, such as Google Glass: it is now envisioning computers that we
fit inside our heads as well. The tech giant’s engineering director,
Scott Huffman, has said that he imagines a time in the not too-distant
future where Google users can fit a microchip into their brain and
collect data on the go.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - December 11, 2013
Darren Evans
This year it’s not just excited children who are looking expectantly
towards the North Pole; one of the world’s biggest economies is eyeing
the region too.
Canada is set to make a territorial claim on the North Pole in an
effort to assert its sovereignty in the Arctic region, which is rich in
resources such as oil and natural gas.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson
Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first black leader and the man who
came to symbolize the struggle against apartheid, has died at age 95.
The announcement of Mandela's death was made by current South
African president Jacob Zuma, who called the day "the moment of our
deepest sorrow."
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - December 3, 2013
Adi Bloom
You could blame it on the sunshine. You could blame it on the
moonlight. Either way, enough energy could be generated to light up the
world’s dance floors, according to a Japanese company.
Tokyo-based Shimizu is planning to set up a giant belt of solar
panels around the moon’s equator, creating what it claims will be a
“virtually inexhaustible, non-polluting source of energy”.
Today's News, Tomorrow's Lesson - November 22, 2013
Henry Hepburn
Everyone who was alive at the time knows exactly what they were
doing when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, so it’s
often said. And the passing of five decades has scarcely diminished the
intrigue around his assassination and the life that preceded it.