WWW.GUILFORDlAN.COM
WORLD & NATION
Stories by Becca Heller
Graphic by DanielVasiles
CHINA
For the second month in a row,
China further increased its U.S.
%> DEBT HOLDING, BUYING $12.7BN OF U.S.
Bonds. China, already the largest
holder of U.S. debt, now holds over
U.S. bonds. "There are not many
avenues, other than government
bonds, where one can invest billions
of dollars every day," Charles Chaw
of China Consulting told the BBC.
Analysts suggest that the Eurozone
crisis and the gradual upturn of the
U.S. economy has likely played a part
in China’s decisions to buy U.S.
Treasuries. "Given the situation
in the the eurozone, the U.S.
a;; Treasuries are a much safer
* bet," said Mr Chaw.
UNITED
STATES
One year after the devastating
BP OIL SPILL, FISHERMEN, SCIENTISTS
AND SEAFOOD PROCESSORS ARE REPORTING DISTURBING
NUMBERS OF MUTATED SHRIMP, FISH, AND CRABS COMING
OUT OF THE Gulf of Mexico and surrounding waters.
In addition to seeing a general drop in the population
of many underwater species, fishermen report unsettling
deformations including eyeless shrimp and crabs without
claws. ""We are also seeing eyeless fish, and fish lacking
even eye-sockets, and fish with lesions, fish without covers
over their gills, and others with large pink masses hanging
off their eyes and gills." said lifelong Louisiana-native
fisherman Darla Rooks to A1 Jazeera. "They are still alive,
but you open them up and they smell like they've been
dead for a week." There seems to be no doubt in peoples'
minds that these bizarre mutations are a direct result of the
BP oil spill. "We've fished here all our lives and have never
seen anything like this," fisherman Sydney Schwartz told
AIJazeera.
Mexico's National Disaster Prevention Center raised
THE VOLCANO ALERT TO "YELLOW STAGE THREE" - THE THIRD-
HIGHEST LEVEL - AS FEARS GROW THAT VOLCANO POPOCATEPETL
MAY SOON ERUPT. Popocatepetl, Mexico's second-highest
peak, has begun to spew steam and ash, and several
schools within the volcano's radius have been closed in
precautionary measures, BBC reports. Evacuation shelters
are being prepared, but officials from the National Disaster
Prevention Center have said the alert could remain in
effect for weeks or even months until the volcano's activity
decreases. "We can hear the roar of the volcano," said local
resident Concepcion Perez to AFP. "Sometimes we can feel
its force."
On April 18, India announced its plans to test a
NEW LONG-RANGE MISSILE THAT COULD POTENTIALLY CARRY A
NUCLEAR WARHEAD AS FAR AS Beijing, CHINA. "If you are in
a hostile environment, power respects power," said defense
expert Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar to the Washington
Post in explanation of India's decision. Sandwiched between
nuclear-armed rivals, India seeks to improve its strategic
capabilities and level out the playing field by possessing
a nuclear threat equal to that of China. "It is India's dream
missile — I call it a game changer," V.K. Saraswat, head of
the Defense Research and Development Organization, told
TimesNow television. "It is going to completely change the
scenario with respect to our strategic defense."
AUTISM
Will
y links obesity in mothers to child autism:
your health impact the future of your child?
, I obese mothers could have children with may have a particularly potent effect on plan to have children are responsible f
fpffll hrfliriQ wbirh arp IrnmAm tr> nppH a Int health of their child and, conseouentl
Continued from Page I
(DNA) and gene expression (protein
production)."
It has also been suggested that autism is
a genetic disorder. However, parental age,
premature birth, and failure to take prenatal
vitamins are also contributing factors.
Recently, the CDC came out with a study
stating that one in 88 U.S. children have
autism; this is up from one in 110 in a 2009
report. The other correlating statistic to this
is that a third of U.S. women who are in the
age range to reproduce are considered obese.
It is important to note that women who
are obese are at a greater risk of having
diabetes and/or high blood pressure, in
addition to their risks of having an autistic
child. According to the study done by the
CDC, insulin resistance is a factor in how
obese mothers could have children with may have a particularly potent effect on
autism. brains, which are known to need a lot
"When insulin isn't made or used properly of sugar."
by the body — as can be the case in some The bigger significance of this new
This research should be heard as an outcry to the nation. To a
certain extent, women that plan to hove children are responsible
for the health of their chi d and, consequently, the health of
themselves.
obese people it alters how sugar, which research is the alarming statistics of obesity
serves as energy for the body, is produced in women in the U.S. and what that means,
and transported to tissues including the This research should be heard as an outcry
brain," the study reported. "Such disruption to the nation. To a certain extent, women that
plan to have children are responsible for the
health of their child and, consequently, the
health of themselves.
There is no quick fix or easy solution
to obesity. While it can be perpetuated by
genetics, it can be somewhat controlled
by physical exercise and maintaining a
balanced diet.
"Obviously, nutrition and exercise are
important," said Men's Soccer Coach Jeff
Bateson.
This is something that we've all grown up
hearing, and yet the statistics show that the
problem of obesity is becoming more serious
each year.
It is likely that the solution, while requiring
individual discipline and awareness, will
also require a complete shift in the way our
society views health, nutrition, exercise and
convenience.