Entry #10 - February 28th, 2015

More drones hover over Paris; authorities investigate

Feb 28th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

The city prosecutor's office in Paris said on Wednesday that more drones were spotted flying over Paris overnight.

These drones were spotted over Rue de Vaugirard, the Assembly, the city's east train station, Porte de Saint-Ouen and Porte de la Chapelle between 11 p.m. Tuesday and 2 a.m. Wednesday. Authorities are currently investigating these unknown aerial vehicle activities.

The sightings shown that five drones were flying over other sensitive and well-known areas of Paris. They were seen over the Eiffel Tower, the Bastille, Place de la Concorde, Les Invalides and the U.S. Embassy between midnight and 6 a.m.

Three journalists working for Al-Jazeera were arrested Wednesday afternoon after being spotted using drones in the Bois de Boulogne, but all three were released Thursday.

"We will comment further when more information is available," said a spokeswoman.

My Own Thoughts & Opinions

Personally, I think this is not a very big deal, but we still need to find out who really is controlling all these drones. The reason that made me think this is not a big deal is that there are lots of remote controlled quad-copters, helicopters and planes out on the market for people to buy. And some of these comes with high resolution cameras for pilots to take videos and images. So these drone activities might just be some dude playing with these remote controlled toys and having a good time. The other reason of mine was about finding out the guy behind all these drone activities. This is because we have no idea whether these drone activities were caused by some random citizen who owns a remote controlled drone, or by some terrorized organization that wants to gain information on French government. Once this is mystery is solved, I guess every citizen in Paris will feel relieved.

Entry #9 - February 24th, 2015

Officials: Train technology prevented tragedy in S. California

Feb 24th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

A terrible train crash happened on Tuesday involving a passenger train and a pickup truck in Southern California. If this had occurred five years ago, more people would have been injured or killed, said officials with the commuter service.

Some of the Metrolink cars in the crash were equipped with collision energy management technology. This safety technology was implanted after the crash between a freight train and a Metrolink train in 2008, which caused the death of 25 people.

Gladly, no one died in this accident. What happened was that before sunrise, a driver of a produce truck accidentally mistook the train tracks for the road and tried to turn onto them. But at least 28 people were injured, including three in critical condition.

Apparently the train cars in this accident were relatively new and the safety features were much better at absorbing the impact of a crash than older trains. The front end of the car that hit the truck was designed to crumple and disperse the energy of the collision, said Metrolink spokesman Jeff Lustgarten.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a written statement that the train could have been going at the speed of 79 mph before the crash. The driver of the truck was hospitalized and questioned by investigators, but later arrested on suspicion of felony hit and run.

My Own Thoughts & Opinions

Technology these days is not only developing for entertainment and convenience, it is also developing for our safety. Like the safety technology they used on the train cars in this crash, it prevented what could have been a huge accident involving a lot of deaths, and saved many people's lives. As for the driver of the pickup truck, I just want to say that please drive with caution. Your little mistake could have killed many people. Also after the accident, there is no point of trying to run away from it, it would only make the scenario worse. After all, I am glad that the passengers' safety was put on priority for public transportation.

Entry #8 - February 23rd, 2015

11 at Wesleyan University hospitalized after taking Molly

Feb 23th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Ten students at Connecticut's Wesleyan University along with two visitors were hospitalized Sunday from the use of the drug Molly or alcohol.

The Middletown Police Department reported that 11 people were hospitalized because of Molly and one because of alcohol.

On Monday, four people were still remained in the hospital, and two of them were in critical condition.

University President Michael S. Roth said that Molly is a remastered version of MDMA that can have extremely dangerous effects. MDMA is an active ingredient in the well-known drug Ecstasy.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, most often Molly is not MDMA, but a toxic mixture of lab-created chemicals.

My Own Thoughts & Opinions

More and more people, especially teenagers, are being lured into taking drugs illegally. There are already enough positive advertisements and posters about staying away from drugs, but people still does it. Our government should pay more attention to it and try to eliminate the problem once and for all. It's not like our government haven't put enough attention, it's just that they need to pay more attention. Remember, drug abuse does nothing to you except ruining your life and your reputation.

Entry #7 - February 17th, 2015

China's military not ready 'to fight and win future wars,' new report says

Feb 17th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

China's military suffers from "serious weakness" that could make it unable "to fight and win future wars," a congressional study released recently suggests.

A 184-page report made by the U.S. Congress mandated U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission suggests that the People's Liberation Army has made huge progress in a reasonably short time.

But, weaknesses in the Army's organizational structure (corruption among its ranks) and in its combat capabilities mean the Army faces serious challenges.

These disadvantages could limit the Army's ability to successfully conduct the information-centered, integrated joint operations Chinese military strategists see as required to fight and win future wars.

My Own Opinions & Thoughts

Even though the media says China is still unable to fight the future wars, I think they have come a long way. It is a sure thing that I agree with them about the corruption among ranks. Because officers are always trying to get higher ranks so they could earn more benefits. When they cannot rank up by doing hard work, they would think about corrupt their superiors with money. This is a bad thing to do and the People's Liberation Army should really look into it and make sure these terrible acts stops right away. For other things like combat capabilities, I think the Chinese army is working on it. They've had a huge progress already, and I believe that one day, they will become as good as other countries' army.

Entry #6 - February 10th 2015

North Korea flaunts its 'cutting - edge' missiles

North Korea recently tested what seemed to be a new type of anti-ship missile with a picture of its leader, Kim Jong Un, at the launch site. But some analysts said North Korea's missiles appeared to be Russian designs.

The announcement of the test occurred just weeks before the annual joint U.S.-South Korea military exercises. The test-firing took place in the East Sea and the North Korean media described the missiles as 'intelligent rocket', and that the missiles tracked and hit the 'enemy' ship after taking a safe flight.

The South Korean Defense ministry said five short-range missiles were fired on Sunday with a range of 200 kilometers. According to North Korea's state-run KCNA news agency, the purpose of the new missiles are for North Korea to defend its waters and any attempt of military attack.

North Korean media also reported that Kim Jong Un expressed "satisfaction" over the "highest level: of rockets being developed in North Korea. But according an analytical officer, the weapon appeared to be a Russian Kh-35E anti-ship cruise missile. "Whether the KPN (Korean People's Navy) acquired the system directly from Russia or a third party is unclear," wrote Joseph S. Bermudez in the North Korea analysis site, 38 North.

My Own Thoughts & Opinion

It is definitely good to see that North Korea is trying to develop by creating weapons which can be as good as weapons that are owned by countries like United States. But with the question of whether the missile is really North Korean or not, I have to say that if the weapon is North Korean, great; if not, then Kim Jong Un himself should be ashamed for taking other people's work and make it his. It is also hard to know whether North Korea is actually trying to use these missiles to defend itself, or trying to use them as weapons to threat and attack other countries. For now, I think we should wish for the best, and hope Kim Jong Un knows what is the best thing for him to do with these missiles.

Entry #5 - February 8th, 2015

'Mayday. Engine flameout': Call shortly before plane hits bridge in Taiwan

Feb 8th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Someone in the cockpit of a TransAsia Airways flight made a mayday call because of an engine malfunction shortly before the plane crashed Wednesday into a river in Taiwan. At least 32 people were killed.

A male voice on a recording of radio conversations between air traffic control and TransAsia Airways Flight GE235 says, "GE235. Mayday, mayday. Engine flameout." It is still unclear whether the man was a pilot or not.

The passenger plane clipped a bridge and crashed into a river in Taipei. Rescuers hurried to pull survivors from the submerged wreck of the ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop aircraft, which went down shortly after takeoff from the capital of Taiwan.

58 people were on this flight to Kinmen, off the coast of the Chinese province of Fujian. After the accident, 32 people confirmed dead and 11 missing. The search and rescue are still continuing.

Out of the 15 people who survived, many of them were injured. Two other people, who were in a taxi on the bridge that was clipped by the wing of the plane, also got hurt, but their condition was stable.

Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration said they already had local airlines to carry out inspections on all their ATR 72s before using them again. The checks will include various aspects of the engine system, including fuel and propeller control.

My Thoughts & Opinions

It is very sad to hear that another terrible tragedy has happened. But it is very glad to hear that after this tragedy, all airlines which use this kind of air planes are checking for problems. We are trying to prevent such terrible thing to happen, which is a nice thing to do. Still, it is very harsh to hear that out of the 58 people who boarded the plane, only 15 survived the accident. I hope the government could care about the families who lost their dearest member a lot, and compensate their loss. Meanwhile, I want to say good job to all the rescuers. According to the news article, the rescuers swarmed the place where the accident happened as soon as possible and started rescuing survivors. Their spirits made me feel very touched, and I think the families who got their family members back will also be very thankful for their brave act.

Entry #4 - February 4th, 2015

6 killed when train hits SUV in New York

February 7th, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

An SUV driver who stopped at a railroad crossing north of New York caused a railroad collision that left her and five train passengers dead. An official also said that this is the deadliest crash in Metro-North Railroad history.

According to the investigation, the reason for the woman's Mercedes SUV to stop on the tracks on Tuesday night was unknown. Robert Sumwalt, a National Transportation Safety Board Member, told reporters that they will continue to look for the reason even though it is unclear at this moment.

The SUV driver was later identified as Ellen Brody, who was the mother of three girls. An MTA official who knew about the incident said the gates at crossing came down on top of her vehicle. She got out to examine the rear of her vehicle, got back in, drove forward and was struck shortly before 7 p.m. The vehicle was dragged 1,000 feet.

The victims on the train was identified later. The victims on the train were: Walter Liedtke, an European painting curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Eric Vandercar, 52 years old, a senior managing director in institutional sales and trading for Mesirow Financial; Joseph Nadol, an analyst at J.P. Morgan; Robert Dirks, who worked at D.E. Shaw Research; and Aditya Tomar, who worked at J.P. Morgan.

15 other people were injured due to the crash. After the crash, passenger Justin Kaback said he hardly felt a thing when the train smashed into the vehicle. He also said that he received no warning of the fire caused by the crash, which was about to ignite the first car of the train. It was until the people in the front of the train said they smelled gasoline, that everyone on the train started evacuate to the back.

My Thoughts & Opinions

This is a horrible disaster that happened among us. But this disaster also warned all the drivers: do not come out of the car when you cross a railway crossing. It is an extremely dangerous thing to do. You are not only putting yourself at danger, you are putting the lives of the passengers on the train in danger. I also think that the train staff should let the passengers know that there was an accident as soon as it happened. In this case, People who were not in the first car of the train had no idea about the accident. They weren't even being told of the fire until the people in the front smelled gasoline. Imagine if the people didn't smell gasoline, and the fire continued to spread towards the rest of the train, the passengers would start panicking and turning into a chaos. Overall, my opinion was that if you are driving, pay close attention; if you are a staff on the train, let the passengers know as soon as possible if there is an accident.

Entry #3 - February 1st, 2015

Incredible 50-foot 'dragon' dinosaur unearthed by Chinese farmers

Feb 1st, 2015

By: Johnny Yu

CNN News

Paleontologists discovered a 50-foot "dragon" dinosaur species in China that may have lived on the earth 160 million years ago during the late Jurassic period. The huge skeleton of the dinosaur was found in 2006 by farmers when they were digging for a fish pond in Qijiang city, which is in the southwestern Chongqing province. Lida Xing, who made the discovery and is in a research team from the University of Alberta, told CNN the dinosaur is named Qijianglong, which means "dragon of Qijiang". He said this is because the farmers thought the bones looked like the shape of Chinese mythical dragons. The finding was published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, and it shows that the new species belongs to a group of dinosaurs called mamenchisaurids. Mamenchisaurids are dinosaurs that had extremely long necks, and sometimes the neck would be as long as half the dinosaur's body. Tetsuto Miyashita, a PhD student at the University of Alberta, also said if you imagine Qijianglong's long neck, you would find that evolution can do quite extraordinary things.The skeleton is currently displayed in a museum in Qijiang, but will be moved to a new dinosaur museum in the city which is still under construction.

My Opinions & Thoughts

It is amazing to see how the scientists have found a brand new dinosaur species that used to live on Earth a long time ago. This discovery also makes me wonder: will there be some other species of long-necked dinosaurs within the area where they found Qijianglong? Or maybe within the continent of Asia? Because if Qijianglong used to live in Qijiang area, then it means that this area probably used to be a natural habitat for long-necked dinosaurs -- the mamenchisaurids. But one thing I am sure about is that the discovery of Qijianglong definitely made us one step closer to understand and picture what Earth was like before we even existed.

Entry #2 01/27/2015

Gunmen attack Corinthia Hotel in Libya

Jan 27th, 2015
By: Johnny Yu
CNN News

At lease 10 people including 2 attackers were killed, and six injured on Tuesday in a car bomb explosion and gun attack against the luxurious Corinthia Hotel in central Tripoli. Five people -- one American, one French citizen, and three people from Tajikistan -- were killed during the attack. Five Libyans were also killed. The Libyan branch of ISIS took responsibility for the attack, and released photos of the two gunmen -- Abu Ibraheen Al-Tunsi and Abu Sulaiman Al-Sudani. Their names suggests respectively that the men were of Tunisian and Sudanese origin. Essam al-Nass, a spokeman for a security division of the Ministry of Interior in Tripoli, said it appears that the attackers were Libyans. The FBI is expected to investigate into the incident, two U.S. officials said to CNN. A State Department official confirmed the death of one U.S. citizen, but would not provide any other information. The French Foreign Ministry also announced the death of one French citizen. An online group that supports ISIS said the attack was in the name of Abu Anas al-Libi, who was an alleged al Qaeda operative accused of involvement in the bombing of U.S. embassies in Africa. A spokesman for the Corinthia Group in Malta said they are trying to take possession of the hotel in order to assess the damage, but the Libyan security forces are not yet allowing that to happen.


My Opinions & Thoughts

It is understandable that ISIS wanted to take revenge on what the U.S. government did to al-Libi, who was one of them and recently passed away in a U.S. hospital. But they don't have to do everything in a violent way. Because the people they are killed have absolutely nothing to do with the U.S. government, they were just normal citizen who happened to be in the hotel at that time. Also, I think the Libya government should act more serious about the ISIS branch in Libya. We simply can't afford more deaths of innocent citizens caused by the ISIS. If we don't act seriously, one day they will get out of our hands and do harmful things more than just killing people.