New treatment for Multiple Sclerosis has been discovered!

     Finally, after awaited decades, a new treatment was found for the rare chronic disease of Multiple Sclerosis (M.S). A swiss drugmaker in the German company, Novartis gained approval for its pill, Gilenya, by the American regulators. The Food and Drug Adminstration supported Gilenya, which has said to treat the common form of the disease, relapsing M.S. Stated in the New York Times, Novartis claims,

Gilenya reduced the frequency of M.S. relapses and helped to slow the advance of some of he physical problems caused by the disease, and the drug had a well-studied safety and tolerability level.

I'm sure this new revelation has brought hope to many people who suffer with this unbarable disease. What's benefical about this very pill, is that the drug will slow down the physcial effects of the disease, which intially could lengthen the lifespan of those who suffer from M.S. This proves to be the first small step of many to find a cure for M.S and finally help those who are in need of it. Although it is a rare condition, primarly found in women rather than men, it causes grave liabilty for families who take care of these patients. The victim of the disease are not the only people that suffer from it. Hopefully in the near future, America will unlease a cure for this small, but life threating disease.

Living Up to Social Standards Calls For Dramatic Changes in the Afghan World

     Near the outskirts of Afghanistan, the small town of Kabul, an intrigued young girl is driven to discover the endless possibilities the world has in store for her. The ambitious Mehran Rafaat, daughter of Azita Rafaat; who works for the Afghan Parliament. Each morning Azita prepares her four daughters for school, as The New York Times states,

Mehran’s sisters put on black dresses and head scarves, tied tightly over their ponytails. For Mehran, it’s green pants, a white shirt and a necktie, then a pat from her mother over her spiky, short black hair. After that, her daughter is out the door — as an Afghan boy.

Generations in the past often describe female relatives, family or friends growing up has the opposite gender. Afghan traditions have always held a high regard for males, and are the only ones that can inherit the fathers wealth and family name. Families without boys, suffer a fate of pity and disdain, thus subject to face the social pressure of having a male heir and possibly economic needs. This rarity of girls mascaraed as boys is not only found in Afghan culture. Many have witnessed it in Chinese and Japanese cultures as well. The favoritism between genders seems like an bias disrespect to young children and the level of equality needs to be in balance. Families should learn to except the gift of their child for who they are, not for what the needs of parents. The social beliefs should not dictate family decisions when it comes to children. They are individuals just like the rest of us, and they need to have a voice of who they want to be. Perhaps this aspect of the Afghan religion should be questioned....

 

World's First Cyborg!

It seems technology has advanced itself to new heights that could possibly embed human characteristics into machinery. Kevin Warwick takes us into the world of robotics, hoping for a beneficial change in our everyday life.Could machinery be a replacement to the human race?

Car Bomb Explodes in Russia Causing 16 Deaths.

     In Moscow, a car loaded with explosives detonates in a small market located in Russia's North Caucasus Region. Authorities believe it was a suicide attack, killing 16 and wounding 100 people. Stated in The New York Times,

The blast occurred in North Ossetia, a mostly Orthodox Christian area where major acts of violence have been rare in recent years compared with majority Muslim republics in the region, like Chechnya or Dagestan, where just last weekend a suicide bomber killed three people at a military installation.

Russia's Prime Minster, Vladmir V. Putin claims the bombing occurred for only one purpose. The small community of Muslims living in Russia celebrated the end of the holy month Ramadan by oppressing the ethnic disorder that was presented to them. It seems almost every nation has developed a revolt against Muslims. Prior weeks Russia witness more suicide attempts. However, no one will take responsibility for such crime. To this date, the detonation of the vehicle is the deadliest attack North Ossetia has gone through. Will the man behind the scheme ever be caught? Only time will tell.

San Bruno Homes Burned to the Ground After a Massive Explosion

     Reported on CNN channel 5 at 6:00p.m, residents living in San Bruno, California suffer a devastating fate as they watched their homes light on fire. Also discussed in The New York Times, writer Anahad O'Connor updates us all on what occurred during the hour long fire consumption.

A tremendous explosion apparently fueled by a ruptured gas line tore through a San Francisco suburb Thursday night, destroying about 20 homes and critically injuring a number of people, the authorities said.

The blast occurred in San Bruno, about 8 miles south of San Francisco, and was so loud and devastating that some officials initially suspect that a plane had smashed into the neighborhood. Towers of flames shot 50 feet into the sky and a plume of ash-colored smoke hovered over the area. Aerial footage showed multiple cars on fire and several homes completely consumed by a blazing fireball that stretched across an entire street.

 As I sat down and watched the news, I was devastated. This particular event was broadcast on every informational news channel. The flames itself, from the fire were so strong that it was nearly impossible to put out. Thankfully everyone was safely evacuated from their homes and immediately rushed to the hospital. It was a tragedy that many suffered the loss of their home, especially during these days when everyone is struggling through the economy. The big question that still remains, what will happen to those that lost their home?

Abstinence Program in China

     China has undergone several changes in the recent decades, modernizing the traditions in their culture, solving solutions for divorce rates and putting immense pressure on families. One of the discussed topics our world faces in the near future is over population. Reported by The Washington Post, China is now educating and forcing their children to follow a strict discipline of practicing Abstinence.

 In Yunnan schools this year, teachers are being trained with a sex education curriculum created by the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family. The agreement with the Yunnan ministry of education is a milestone for Focus on the Family, which has struggled for four years to make inroads on abstinence in China.

It is also the result of a narrow confluence of interests: Evangelical Christian groups want an entree into China. And Chinese authorities, despite the country's official atheism, want help with controlling population growth and managing the society's rapidly shifting values.

     Now of course, China has already started to see some of the effects, due to the fact that it has the largest population count in the world. Many have questioned some solutions to prevent this rising issue before it gets out of hand. Author of "Hot, Flat and Crowded", Thomas L. Friedman discussing the possible outcomes of not only America's future, but the entire world. Perhaps educators enforcing young children the importance of abstinence may seem a bit dramatic, however I believe  it should taught to educate the children on what is occurring recently today, but the decision they make is up to them.

New Technology Aimed for India's Web Security.

     Google and Skype has now effectively gone global and due to our modern technology today we can now manage and run companies in other countries without being a resident. As seen in The Washington Post, technology has evolved in huge business corporations, while India tries to manage security.

MUMBAI, India -- India has widened its security crackdown, asking all companies that provide encrypted communications - not just BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion - to install servers in the country to make it easier for the government to obtain users' data. That would likely affect digital giants like Google and Skype.

People who operate communication services in India should (install a) server in India as well as make available access to law enforcement agencies," Home Secretary G.K. Pillai told reporters. "That has been made clear to RIM of BlackBerry but also to other companies.

India, to ensure safety, set up an encrypted communication code to obtain information faster from one country to another. Thomas L. Friedman, author of "Hot, Flat and Crowded"  discussed how technology has reshaped the way we interact with one another, causing us to be connected even across vast oceans. Mumbai now faces with reconfiguring its software to simplify the use of information that is being traveled to the Government as well as the entire world.

Shallow-water Platform Fire Raises Questions on Oil Safety.

     As we all know about the Gulf of Mexico oil spill that recently occurred in August, it has now started to formulate whether the approach to shallow water drilling is safe. The Washington Post did a report on this matter, discussing the possible effects of shallow water drilling.

In the hours afterward, both the White House and the petroleum lobby offered little comment. But others - in Congress and in environmental groups - rushed out statements that raised wider questions about oil safety.

'"This is a shallow-water platform, and that's the key here. Since the beginning of this crisis, the Obama administration has attempted to limit the crisis to deep-water drilling and to suggest that shallow-water oil drilling is safe," said Kieran Suckling of the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. "I'm not in the least bit surprised that we have a big shallow-water drilling explosion right now.

     The Obama Administration and representatives from The Center of Biological Diversity argue whether they should consider limiting the shallow-water drilling. However, the Obama Administration strongly believes that shallow-water drilling poses a very minor threat to the endangerment of the environment. As Thomas L. Friedman would say, considering he strongly believes in saving our environment; that Kieran Suckling had a point that needed to be recognized because we as a nation need to be more aware of preserving our natural resources instead of destroying them. Also we need to break away from this non stop oil addiction.