China's One Child Policy
After reading the post on the Baby Care Company it got me thinking on the one child policy in China. I was wondering who thought on this policy, when did it begin and what are the consequences for multiple children? Here’s what I found. Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1979 made the one child limit in order to reduce communist China's population growth. China has proclaimed that it will continue its one child policy, which limits couples to having one child, through the 2006-2010 five-year planning period.
This rule particularly has strongly affected female infants. This is why abortion, neglect, abandonment, and even infanticide have been known to occur to female infants. Some couples kill their females or have sex-selected abortions so that they can retry getting pregnant hoping to have a male child. Fines, pressures to abort a pregnancy, and even forced sterilization accompanied second or additional pregnancies occur in urban areas especially. Couples who abide to the one-child limit have been rewarded with better housing and services, as well as money. China has also used marketing campaigns such as this one: "One is good, two is ok and three is too many", fines, and more coercive methods have been used to help reduce birth rates. However, citizens living in rural areas and minorities living in China are not subject to the law and are allowed more that one child. Also if a couple is composed of two people without siblings, then they may have two children of their own, thus preventing too dramatic of a population decrease.
I found it to be a pretty interesting subject and I encourage you to check it out:
One Child Policy
While we were watching the movie about Bejing it talked about how common it was for people to travel by bicycle in China and in large cities. So I decided to do some research about he forms of travel in Japan to see if there was a difference. I came across this home page which features several different forms of transportation.
Transportation Home Page:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e627.htmlHowever I was interested in reading more about The Tokaido Shinkansen which connects Tokyo and three other major cities in Japan. It is the world’s first high speed train and was inaugurated in 1964. Since its inauguration it has grown in size and now connects more than just the three original cities through multiple routes.
Tokaido Shinkansen Information:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2018.html
While we were watching the movie about Bejing it talked about how common it was for people to travel by bicycle in China and in large cities. So I decided to do some research about he forms of travel in Japan to see if there was a difference. I came across this home page which features several different forms of transportation.
Transportation Home Page:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e627.htmlHowever I was interested in reading more about The Tokaido Shinkansen which connects Tokyo and three other major cities in Japan. It is the world’s first high speed train and was inaugurated in 1964. Since its inauguration it has grown in size and now connects more than just the three original cities through multiple routes.
Tokaido Shinkansen Information:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2018.html
Red Alert-Valcano in Indonesia
Indonesia is a part of the Asia-Pacific, "Ring of Fire," that has at least 129 active volcanoes. Thousands of people living on the slopes of Mount Merapi in Indonesia are taking safety because there are fears that the volcano is going to erupt.
This morning we raised the status of Merapi to the top alert which is the red code, every resident has been ordered to evacuate."" Subandrio, head of the Merapi section at the Centre for Volcanological Research and Technology Development said on Saturday. Mount Merapi is in a state of "constant lava flow"
Streams of lava have been flowing down the side of the mountain, and the last time that this valcano erupted, it killed 60 poeple.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4767805.stm
MAZDA CX-7 EarthSearch Sweepstakes Game
Win a
Mazda.To win the car you have to use the clues and Google Earth to find out where it is hiding.
Play this game and win the new car or other valuable prizes.
Immigrants are good workers?
I came over this article on the St.Cloud times website. I know there has been alot of controversy on Mexican immigrants taking our jobs but this article talks about how they might not be as bad as workers we all thought they were. Take a look and see if you agree...
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/2006-05-10-immigrant-usat_x.htm?csp=22_SCT
France
This year my family and I are traveling to France. My sister seems very excited, but I keep telling he that the French people can be quite haughty around Americans. Of course she doesn't believe me. For a while I have been wondering if all the stories I have heard about the French really creae a general synopsis. Just recently I heard on MPR these rumors of the French. It seems that, according to the traveler being interviewed, that the French in the Paris area fit the stereotypical domineering and arrogant French person, though I am sure there are others that are nice. However, this is only bad around Paris. In areas such as Normandy, where the blood of American soldiers still soak into the beaches, many French citizens respect Americans and are willing to help out any curious tourist. I found this promising. I guess with the French, they view America as gunslinging, hummer driving, fat, stubborn Bush supporters. Perhaps they should take a visit to the North!
Matthew J. Estes, a 39-year-old San Diego native who has lived and worked in China for 15 years, part of that time as a sales manager for pharmaceutical maker SmithKline Beecham, now GlaxoSmithKline, came up with a wonderful idea. He was the brain behind "Baby Care," a company aimed at providing education on pregnancy and child rearing, lamaze classes, marketing baby formula, supplements and vitamins for infants and mothers, educational toys, and classes for young toddlers. So far the American entrepreneur has expanded his facilities to over 20 cities. The project has been highly accepted in china, where the one-child policy dominates. These parents are allowed only one baby, and hope to raise it to their best ability. As one article put it, "That means parents have only one chance to get it right...with the whole family watching." I think that the entire idea is pretty clever. Offering such child care, education, and selling products at the same time, has money printed all over it. Did you know sales are expected to soar this year, and possibly double? So how much are we talking? How about 40 million dollars worth!
***Check out this brief site
BABY CARE LTD
Nuclear Plant in Japan
Right now, 52 nuclear power plants supply energy to more than one-third of Japan. However, 14 years ago, a facility was opened in Rokkasho, northern Japan, to produce enriched uranium stirring controversy in the area. The upset could have been due to one of the first plants to be commercially operated, or it could be from complaints from families living nearby who claim the government should not have issued a safety license. Apparently, the land is vulnerable to earthquakes or plane crashes although the building is built to withstand tremors to a degree of five or more. Stronger earthquakes could occur near the facility, but the government's safety check approves.
A high court judge ruled that an earlier decision by a lower court, rejecting the lawsuit, should stand.
Power Plant Controversy
Did you know that 1 out of every 4 people is Chinese
After watching the Beijing video (with Megan.... *sigh*) i thought about adding a post about Beijing
This website has facts about Beijing including Economy, Language, Environment, and Wildlife
My favorite part about this website was the pronounciation part. I think it will really help when trying to read this chapter.
It's also interesting to look at the 'pinyin' way that the Chinese government spells names.
China's Environmental Problems
China has severe environmental problems. It is said that 16 of the 20 most polluted cities in the world are in China. A major cause of all this pollution is the burning coal. Not to mention there is water pollution and deforestation. Some parts of the country the water is so polluted that it is unsafe to drink.
REEP in Southeast Asia
REEEPREEEP stands for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership and it helps out with energy needs. Just recently a ninth section was added and it includes Southeast Asia, and the Pacific region. This was a big step for REEEP because it strengthens their program. My adding a ninth section it also helps them reach their goal of "contributing to the global uptake of renewable energy and energy efficiency by carrying out projects that help to remove barriers to a clean-energy marketplace." Regional secretaries have already been established in the region to get a head start on the project. This is a good thing for the region because it'll help with their energy needs.
Chapter 9 Notes
As we continue through Chapter 9 on Russia, here are the notes from the chapter just in case you missed a day or need a clarification. They are available by clicking
here.
Local Podcast in Rocori
Today, technology is making just about anything possible. With all the different devices available, people are easily able to stay connected with each other. Podcasting is a recent way He that people have been using to stay connected and also a way that people have been using to bring their ideas to large audiences. Podcasting is creating and audio or video blurb and then putting it online and making it available for people to download to their Ipods, computer, or other devices. The St. Cloud Times featuered a local podcaster today who creates a Podcast about Rocori, about 6 times a week. He produces small shows that are available for download that talk about events and news happening in the Rocori area. Thanks to technology, this man is able to spread his ideas very easily to others. The vast movement in technology has helped to make globalization possible; people are able to not only share thoughts with people in their neighborhood or local city, but people all over the world can access web content and very fast as well. This man who podcasts is using technology to help spread his ideas locally, however the information is global. Not only is the news he's presenting for Rocori, but for the world. Anyone in any country could download his podcasts and listen to them or read his blog, which is certainly different than 20 or 30 years ago when personal thoughts of people stayed only within a small range of people, unless you were an author or a writer for a newspaper. Thanks to technology, this man has been able to take his creation not only locally but globally.
The Podcaster's WebsiteIf you're interested in listening to his Podcast on your Ipod:
-Have your Ipod hooked up to your computer and go into ITunes. Click on Podcasts and search for "DigElog"...
-When you find it, you can subscribe to the Podcast and the latest episode should download to your computer. Transfer it to your computer and then to your Ipod like you would with a song. If you don't have an Ipod you can still listen to it through I Tunes or watch it from his site.
I've also started a little podcast of my own. I have my first episode out and it's available by following the same steps above, except type in KH Blog instead of DigElog in the search box. Last week in Collge Geo we recorded Mrs. Hartman's lecture and are thinking of making parts of it podcastable to download or listen to online. I still have to edit the recording and then have Mrs. Hartman approve it, but when it's done it will be available for listening. Be sure to check out my Podcast by clicking to KH Blog on I Tunes or visiting
here.
Booming oil prices are creating a new generation of Russian entrepreneurs
Victoria Grankina, a Moscow-based retail expert, reckons that about 30% of the population now lives "fairly comfortably" on a monthly income of about $1,000 for a family of four. National retail spending has doubled in the past three years and the strongest growth is now to be found in the Urals region and parts of Siberia, where it is leaping by more than 25% per year. The number of mobile phones has soared from 12 per 100 Russians in 2002 to 88 today. Sales of new foreign cars jumped 60% last year. Even the number of Russians living in misery is dropping: a World Bank study shows that the Russian poverty rate halved between 1999 and 2002. That still leaves 2 out of every 10 Russians living in poverty, but the number continues to decline. Today Russian President Putin has a rating over 70%. It is predicted that "Russia will continue to be hooked on oil revenue for the foreseeable future." There continues to be new businesses springing up. Last year there were about 70 startups in Kaluga. The KMB Kaluga branch's loan portfolio swelled over the past year from $600,000 to $2 million, and the number of clients has doubled. A lot of people want to open shops and try their luck at business.
Russia Gets Rich
