Hits in the headlines #79
The 1996 film Twister, brought the world of storm chasers to the big screen and made audiences both interested and terrified of tornadoes. For many viewers, it was just a movie, but for lots of Americans living in the so-called “tornado alley”, it is a horrifying reality. But, despite the danger, these storm chasers are dedicated to tracking and understanding this phenomenon. The hope is that the better our understanding of the damage of these storms, the better prepared we can be in future. With the recent release of Twisters, the “sequel” to the 1996 movie, there is a newfound interest in these devastating storms. The story shared here is of a group of scientists who are dedicated to this study, and how tornadoes are ever changing and becoming more dangerous.
The second story is about stolen identities online. As technology and AI improves, companies and services are taking more precautions to verify that their users are human. You have probably encountered some of these measures before. But selfies, photo ID checks, and videos are becoming more and more common. However, not everyone wants to hand over their image so easily, and so a black-market-of-sorts has grown to become one of the biggest marketplaces for the identity, and likeness, of online victims. It is a scary reality, but we often have little control of the content that we put online. So, what can be done about this? How would you know if your image is being used by others online? And, does this mean that we need to invent new ways of verifying identity?
Lastly, a reminder that the Olympics is on! The video shared is from before the start of the Olympics in Paris this year, so we will already have the answer to our question by the time you watch this video. To put it bluntly, Paris has a poop problem. More specifically, the issue lies in the Seine, the iconic river that flows through the city. The quality of the water in the Seine is terrible, at best. Studies of the water quality have shown that dangerous and potentially deadly bacteria can be found in the river. And, the problem is that this river will be the location of several water events during the Olympics. While this story is happening in Paris, the theme hits close to home for many Brits. The Thames, the famous river in London, was recently labelled a “death potion”, due to the terrible quality and amounts of sewage that are being pumped into the river. Though it has, by no means, been a common place for people to swim, it has not been this bad since the Victorian era. So, will the river be ready in time? Are we just worried about nothing? And, can the city reclaim the river from the dangerous pollutants?
Why not use this as a chance to learn some new language?
Try to note some new language that you see or hear in the articles or video and bring it to the class.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240715-the-scientists-who-chase-tornado-twisters-across-the-usa
Remember, I always encourage you to send in your interesting articles, videos, or podcasts. You can message me directly, or email me here.
Have a great week.
See you in class!