Entry #20 - May 23rd,2015

Dashcam shows plane's deadly descent onto highway

May 23rd, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Earlier this month, a video of a deadly plane crash was caught by the dashboard camera installed in a police car on an Atlanta-area highway.
53 years old Greg Byrd, and his two sons, 27 years old Christopher and 25 years old Phillip, died in the crash on May 8th, along with Christopher's fiancee, Jackie Kulzer. They were headed to the University of Mississippi in Oxford to see Greg Byrd's younger son, Robert, Graduate.
The small plane shown in the video released by the Chamblee Police Department, appeared to be flying low and at an angle along the highway. Immediately after the plane banked behind a tree line, a black cloud of an obvious explosion rose up.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation. The NTSB's final report should be released in a few months.

My Own Thoughts & Opinion

This crash is absolutely tragic, but the dashboard camera installed on the police car definitely helped out the situation right after the crash happened. My opinion is that small planes like this one involved in this accident are not safe, and definitely would not be the best choice of vehicle for travel. I think people should choose train or bus for long distance travel. But if the distance is extremely long, try to avoid small planes like this and go for bigger ones. 

Entry #19 - May 19th, 2015

10-year-old girl drowns on cruise ship

May 19th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

A 10-year-old girl drowned on a cruise ship off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Authorities are currently investigating.

The medical team on the Norwegian Gem tried to revive the girl after she was reported unresponsive on the ship's pool deck on Sunday afternoon, but it was too late.

"After extensive efforts, the guest could not be revived," Norwegian Cruise Line spokeswoman Vanessa Picariello said. "We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this very difficult time. Norwegian's care team is providing full assistance and support to the family."

The ship left New York on Saturday on a seven-day cruise to Florida and the Bahamas, and the girl drowned when the ship was about 75 miles east of Myrtle Beach.

My Own Thoughts & Opinion

This is a very tragic accident that happened on Sunday and should cause our attention. People should always watch over their children while staying on the cruise. This is because a cruise is not a small boat, and there is a high possibility that kids would like to run around on it which is very dangerous. Adults should always keep their children in sight in case of emergency. We can't afford another young, innocent life to be lost.

Entry #18 - May 19th, 2015

UK police: 9 arrested over London's Hatton Garden heist

May 19th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Nine men were arrested due to their connection with the so-called Hatton Garden heist (this heist was a month ago) , which was a theft of gems and cash from a safe deposit company in the heart of London's jewelry district.

Seven suspects (British) between the age of 48 to 76 were detained on Tuesday morning and two more were detained later Tuesday in north London on the same grounds.

A number of large bags that contained significant amounts of high value property were recovered by the police on Tuesday morning as well. Officers were confident that these are the stolen items during the burglary.

The men have been taken to a police station in London for questioning, and the search of the properties are still continuing.

My Own Thoughts & Opinion

What you have done incorrectly will always come back and haunt you no matter where you go. And these thieves clearly proved my point here. A month ago they performed the heist and ran away with the valuables they had stolen, but they could not stay outside of the law forever. The police found them one month later, and arrested them right away. After reading this article, I have to say that our law enforcement system is still trustworthy.

Entry #17 - Apr 15th, 2015

Man taken into custody after landing a single-person aircraft on Capitol grounds

Apr 15th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

On Wednesday a small manned aircraft landed on the west front of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. Police have taken the pilot into custody. The President also has been briefed on the situation according to White House spokesman, Eric Schultz.

The pilot is a mailman from Florida who planned the flight to protest the Supreme Court decisions in Citizens' United case and the influence of outside money in politics. He told the Tampa Bay Times that he wanted to deliver a mail to lawmakers outlining his complaints.

The Capitol Police have not yet disclosed the pilot's identity. They were questioning him in custody and trying to find out whether the landing was a mechanical issue or something else.

A friend who have known the pilot for years said "there's nothing on the helicopter that is dangerous". He also said that the flight was meat to send a message to Congress about campaign finance reform.

My Thoughts & Opinion

The unexpected landing that the pilot did on Capitol grounds was extremely foolish. I understand that the pilot was worried about his country and wanted to deliver his own message, but landing outside of U.S. Capitol would not only get yourself in trouble, the message you wanted to deliver would probably get taken away by the police. That pilot should really thought about the consequences before he decided to do the landing.

Entry #16 - April 11th, 2015

Shooting at U.S. Capitol was a suicide, police say; lockdown has been lifted

Apr 11th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

A shooting that caused the lockdown of the U.S. Capitol for several hours on Saturday turned out to be a suicide that has no connection to terrorism, said Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine in a news conference.

Dine told reporters that an unidentified male walked through a public area on the west front of the Capitol early Saturday afternoon and shot himself. The unidentified shooter had a backpack and a rolling suitcase that authorities treated as suspicious packages, the lockdown was prompted as they were discovered.

The male carried a sign with a message about "social justice" and something about taxing the "1%." There was "no nexus to terrorism" apparent so far in this incident, said Dine.

My Thoughts & Opinions

Why would people want to kill themselves just because life has been a little harsh on them. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Also if someone really wants to kill him/herself and end his/her pain, pick somewhere private and no one would see. Public areas are the worst places for suicides. Because your death might scare innocent citizens and children, leave them something they would never want to see in their lives. So really, think thoroughly before doing things, as they could affect yourself, even people around you.

Entry #15 - April 11th, 2015

Can squid help make soldiers invisible?

Apr 11th, 2015
By: Johnny Yu
CNN News

Scientists say that cephalopods, like squid, octopus and cuttlefish, may hold the key to develop a brand new combat technology that will allow soldiers to avoid infrared detection.

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine claimed that they have found a way to use proteins in the cells of pencil squid to develop "invisibility stickers" which can be worn by ground troops.

Alon Gorodetsky, assistant professor of chemical engineering and material sciences, along with his team, have put all their attention on specialized squid cells known as iridocytes, which contain a unique light-reflecting protein called reflectin. They were also able to engineer E. coli bacteria to synthesize reflectin and coat the protein onto a packing tape-like surface to create the "invisibility stickers".

These reflectin-coated stickers can change into virtually any color with a chemical or mechanical stimulus, causing ground troops to be invisible towards enemies.

My Thoughts & Opinions

The future is finally coming. Invisible soldiers that usually appear in fictions and sci-fi movies are no longer fictional. But this development does not mean that world peace will be easily achieved. We have no idea which country will be the one getting the patent from the developers once the development is done. We also have no idea what the country with the patent would do with this development because if they use it to fight other countries, their chance of winning the fight is much greater than others. Let's just hope this development will not fall into wrong hands once its finished.

Entry #14 - April 6th, 2015

Craig Hicks may face death penalty in slaying of 3 Muslim students

Apr 6th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Craig Hicks, who is responsible for the deaths of three Muslim college students in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, can face death penalty, Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson Jr. ruled on Monday.

Hicks was arrested on February 10th in the deaths of Yusor Mohammad, 21, her 23-year-old husband, Deah Shaddy Barakat, and 19-year-old sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha. They were all brutally shot in the head.

Hicks was the victims' neighbor, and he turned himself in to police on the night of the killings. Immediately next week, he was charged with three counts of first-degree murder and a count of discharging a firearm to an occupied dwelling. "He had no prior criminal record," said police.

On what might have been Hicks' Facebook page, numerous posts against religion were found. The victims' family members have asked authorities to investigate the slaying as a hate crime.

My Thoughts & Opinions

Ones religions don't have to do with anyone else's opinions. We live in a free society, so mind your own business. This Hicks guy obviously went too far in this racial discrimination thing and caused innocent young people to lose their lives. One should never judge other people based on what he/she knows. Instead, we need to tolerate and learn to understand each other. This is the only way to end terrible things like this killing and make our world a better place.