WORLD & NATION
DECEMBER 9, 2011
Stories by Becca Heller
Graphic by Daniel Vasiles
RUSSIA
Scientists from Russia and Japan
^ ARE ABOUT TO EMBARK ON A MAMMOTH
EXPERIMENT ... LITERALLY. Using
preserved marrow from the thigh
bone of a woolly mammoth, the team
intends to bring the animal back from
extinction by cloning it. According to
BBC, the team, claiming that the
cloning could be complete within
five years, plans to extract a nucleus
from the marrow of a mammoth and
insert it into the egg of an African
elephant. Many, however, are
skeptical. According to the
Roslin Institute, which
became famous for
cloning dolly the sheep,
stated that it predicted
the probability of success
for the experiment to be
between 1 and 5 percent.
UNITED STATES
On Dec. 3 Tea Party conservative Herman Cain
ANNOUNCED HIS DECISION TO SUSPEND HIS CAMPAIGN FOR
THE Republican nomination, after four separate women
came forward accusing him of sexual harassment
and misconduct. A fifth woman. Ginger White, came
forward on Nov. 28 with claims that Cain had had a
13-year-long affair with her, ending it just before his
presidential campaign. Cain denies the legitimacy of all
five accusations. "These false and unproved allegations
continue to be spinned in the media and in the court of
public opinion so as to create a cloud of doubt over me
and this campaign and my family," Cain said to BBC.
Mexican authorities say they have thwarted a
SCHEME BY A CRIMINAL GANG ORGANIZATION TO SMUGGLE
Saadi Gaddafi, son of former Libyan leader Col
Muammar Gaddafi, into Mexico. Officials say the plot,
which involved buying several properties in Mexico
and using false names and documents, was discovered
through Mexican intelligence reports. According to
Mexican Interior Secretary Alejandro Poire, the crime
ring involved in the plan included people from Mexico,
Denmark and Canada. According to BBC, Gaddafi's
lawyer, Nick Kaufman, denied the accusations that
Gaddafi had attempted to escape, and said that his
client "would continue to respect the United Nations
sanctions" until they were lifted. Gaddafi remains under
house arrest in Niger.
ITALY
On Dec. 7 Italian police announced the arrest of the
NOTORIOUS Italian mafia boss Michele Zagaria. Prior to the
arrest, Zagaria was head of the Casalesi clan, a powerful mafia
group within the Camorra criminal network which dominates
the underworld in Naples. Zagaria, 53, had been in hiding
for nearly 16 years, presumably for safety reasons extending
beyond the justice system. According to BBC, he was found
after the police dug into a secret bunker in his hometown of
Casapesenna; he was then sentenced to multiple life sentences.
Italian citizens and government officials alike celebrated
Zagaria's capture. "He wasn't just the king of the Camorra,"
said Italian writer and crime journalist Roberto Saviano ,to La
Repubblica. "He was the manager of all criminal organizations."
HIV/AIDS infections down by 21 percent
By Victor Lopez
Staff Writer
According to a 2011 report released
by UNAIDS, the United Nations Joint
Programme on HIV/AIDS, the number of
new HIV infections in 2010 was down 21
percent from the staggering 1997 apex of
the disease.
The report states that 2.7 million new
HIV infections were reported in 2010. This
statistic included an estimated 390,000
children, which is significantly lower than
previous reports.
"This was 15 percent less than in 2001
and 21 percent below the number of new
infections at peak of the epidemic in 1997,"
the report states.
The number of people contracting HIV
has continued to fall — in some countries
more rapidly than others — according to
the report.
"HIV incidence has fallen in 33 countries,
22 of them in sub-Saharan Africa, the region
most affected by the AIDS epidemic," said
the report.
The UNAIDS report reminded Timothy
Leisman, junior peace and conflict studies
major, of the need to continue the fight
against the pandemic.
"We cannot allow positive reports
regarding AIDS to let us devalue its
problem," said Leisman. "However, the
report definitely shows human technology
making life better."
The report also brought to light "a new
generation of young people" that are taking
charge of their destinies and protecting
themselves against HIV.
The report indicated there are positive
trends with younger people in countries
with the greatest HIV burdens.
"HIV prevalence declined among young
people (aged 15-24 years) in at least 21 of 24
countries with national HIV prevalence of 1
percent or higher," according to the report.
The report also suggested that
with improved treatment regimens
and strengthened commitment to a
comprehensive response, it is feasible
by 2015 to eliminate new HIV infections
among children and to keep their mothers
alive.
The number of new HIV infections among
children has almost completely stopped,
with the number of new infections among
children falling by 93 percent between 1992
and 2005 in the U.S.
Also noted in the report, more people
are surviving rather than dying once
contracting the virus. The report attributes
this to the fact that people now have
better access to treatment. The number of
individuals living with AIDS is estimated at
34 million, up 17 percent from 2001.
This number of AIDS patients still
alive and functioning includes new HIV
infections. However, the overall trend is
indicative of the impact that increased
access to antiretroviral therapy has on
reducing AIDS-related deaths.
Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
and one of the key advisors to the White
House and the Department of Health and
Human Services on global AIDS issues,
told The Guilfordian that the data from
the UNAIDS report is as accurate as can
be expected in the tracing of such a large
pandemic.
Fauci noted that although cases and
deaths are declining, AIDS is still an
enormous global health problem and
people should not let their guard down.
"History has taught us that as certain
epidemics have begun to decline, people
lost interest in them only to see them return
with a vengeance," said Fauci.
Fauci told The Guilfordian that college
students can play a major role in AIDS
prevention.
"College students can further the battle
against AIDS by taking care that they do not
get infected by practicing risky behavior,"
said Fauci.
Fauci encouraged students to increase
awareness of the risks of contracting and
spreading the HIV infection by supporting
programs led by the U.S. government and
NGOs fighting the AIDS pandemic.
The 2011 UNAIDS report is consistent
with Fauci's assertions, as it calls for
community action to maintain the forward
momentum against the pandemic.
"Now is the time for action, the time
to translate words of commitment into
meaningful and lasting results for people,"
said the report.