It's Leap Year and Today is February 29

Today is February 29, 2008 so it must be a leap year. This year February has an extra day added to it but how did that happen and why?

We know that the Earth revolves around the Sun every 365.2422 days, but how did we come up with leap year to make it all work out. We have to go back to the ancient Romans to begin our pursuit of the answer.

For the Romans it was all about ego. In the Roman calendar, September was the seventh month. September comes from the Latin word for seven. October, which comes from the Latin word for eight, was the eighth month, and November and December follow the same naming pattern.

The Romans added January and February as the last two months to get to twelve months. In 47 B.C., Julius Caesar created the Julian calendar and added two extra days to February every four years. After his death, the Romans renamed the fifth month, July in his honor.

Next in line for the Romans was Augustus Caesar. He changed the name of the sixth month to August and took a day away from February and added it to August to make his month as long as Julius’ month.

Not much happened on the calendar front until 1563 when King Charles IX of France decided that the year should begin with the birth of Christ. He changed the calendar so that January came first instead of March, making September the ninth month.

But the addition of one day every four years made the average year 365. 25 days. That caused some problems. By 1582, there was a 10 day error.

Pope Gregory XII decided to fix that problem. He created the Gregorian calendar. His rules for leap year are the ones that still exist today: (1) Years divisible by four are leap years unless they are century years divisible by 100; (2) Century years are not leap years unless they are divisible by 400; (3) Years divisible by 400 are leap years.

So, 1900 was not a leap year but 2000 was a leap year. And of course, 2008 is a leap year because it is divisible by 4.

Source: Asheville Citizen Times

BLOG QUESTION
1. In one sentence explain why we have to have leap years in our calendar system?
2. In what year will babies born today celebrate their 25th birthdays if they only celebrate on February 29?

Georgia District Goes to All Single Sex Classes

Greene County in Georgia is getting ready to become the first school system in the country to have entirely single sex classes, with boys and girls in separate rooms.

The school board approved the decision two weeks ago for all classes in the high school, middle school and two elementary schools. Only the pre-school classes and a charter school will be coeducational.

Why has the district decided to go single sex? The superintendent of schools says that the arrangement works for boys and girls. Boys won’t misbehave as much because they won’t be showing off for the girls. Girls will be more likely to speak up in class because they won’t be afraid of being teased by the boys.

The move by the board has a lot of people angry. Parents, teachers and students are upset that no one asked them how they felt about the new plan. Even people who support single sex classes are worried that the district has gone too far.

One parent told MSNBC, “I am outraged. I am disgusted. It’s making our county look like our kids are trouble when they’re not.”

But, some teachers think that the district had to do something to improve test scores. One teacher said, “Sometimes big changes are needed for big results.”

New federal regulations have made it easier for schools to have single sex classes but the law also says that parents have to have the option of coeducational classes if the district is publicly funded.

A spokesperson for the federal government said that at this point she did not have enough information to say if what Greene County has done is legal.

Source: MSNBC

BLOG QUESTION
What do you think about Greene County’s decision to go to all single sex classes?

Pakistan Blocks YouTube

Are you a YouTube user? If so, you probably noticed that your YouTube was down for a couple of hours on Sunday. It happened because a country 7,000 miles away decided that there were videos on YouTube that were offensive.

Pakistan’s government told the 70 Internet providers in that country that they were going to block YouTube for the citizens of Pakistan until further notice because of anti-Islamic movies on the site.

Pakistan’s action caused a worldwide outage for two hours. When the rest of the world got back YouTube, Pakistanis were still blocked.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives U.S. citizens the right to a free press but that is not the case in other countries.

Anything that is anti-Islamic is looked at critically by the Pakistani government. According to reports from some Pakistani bloggers, the video that caused the government to block YouTube was one that was highly critical of President Musharraf’s government.

Reporters Without Borders is an international, non-government organization based in Paris, France. The organization speaks out for the freedom of the press all over the world.

Reporters Without Borders has come out against Pakistan’s decision. A spokesperson for the organization said, “It’s very important for youth in part in Pakistan at this time with new body taking over to be able to voice opinion about government and how it should go forward.”

Pakistan is not the only country that censors the Internet. If you lived in China and used Google, you would find that some words, like the word democracy, have been blocked by the government.

Source: CBS News, Channel One News

BLOG QUESTION
Why is the freedom of the press one of the five important freedoms granted by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution?

In Alaska It's the Polar Bear Vs. Natural Gas

What animal comes to mind when you think of Alaska? If you said polar bears, you would be right. The only place you can find a polar bear in the U.S. is in Alaska, but if Alaskan legislators have their way, some think the polar bear could be in trouble.

The federal government is considering placing the polar bear on the Endangered Species list. Polar bears live on the Arctic sea ice, and Alaskan politicians are worried that if the polar bear makes the list, the federal government would come up with a plan to protect the sea ice.

So, why is that a problem? Alaskans are waiting for a proposed $26 billion natural gas pipeline to be approved. They know that the new pipeline will help the Alaskan economy.

Ninety percent of Alaska’s unrestricted revenue comes from the oil industry and Alaskan politicians are worried that the money they get from oil could decrease in the near future. They would like the new natural gas pipeline because it will provide a new source of money for the state.

But what about the polar bears? One of the groups that sued to protect the polar bears said that there is a lot of evidence that the polar bears are on the decline in Alaska and they think that the drop-off has been caused by the loss of sea ice.

There is less sea ice right now in Alaska than at any other time in the last 38 years according to satellite record-keeping.

The lines are drawn in this face-off between the people who want to protect the polar bears and the people who want to build the natural gas pipeline.

Source: MSNBC

BLOG QUESTION
If you had a chance to vote on this issue, would you approve the pipeline or would you say no to protect the polar bears?

Beijing Improving Its Manners for Olympics

One hundred and seventy-five days from now on August 8, 2008, the world will turn its attention to Beijing, China for the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games, and Beijing wants to make sure that it is ready for the attention.

Beijing is working hard to promote a positive image for its city. In fact, the government has created a campaign to teach the citizens of Beijing how to be nicer and more “civil.”

Beijing officials have identified three bad habits that they want to eliminate: (1) spitting in public; (2) cutting in line ahead of another person; and (3) littering.

The city has produced pamphlets describing good behavior and has even had practice days for the citizens. Citizens who are caught spitting, cutting or littering at a sporting event are removed from the event.

The city has also established a “civic index” that is used to rate the behavior of the citizens. The index was established in 2006 with annual goals for each behavior.

The 2007 results are now in and Beijing is pleased to announce that the behavior of its citizens is getting better. Only 2.5 percent of the people in Beijing were seen spitting in public. That percentage is down from 4.9 last year. Cutting in line dropped by 1.5 percent down from 6 percent the year before and littering fell to 2.9 percent from 5.3 percent.

The goal for the city is to have a perfect score of 80 on the “civic index” by the time the games begin. The school now stands at 73.4 percent, the highest it has been since the campaign started.

Source: PBS Newshour

Question:
What four bad behaviors do you think your school should try to eliminate? Do you think a campaign like the one used in Beijing would work in your school?

What is a Super Delegate?

Mannie Rodriquez is a Democratic Party official from Colorado. More importantly, Mr. Rodriquez is a “super delegate.” No matter who wins the Democratic primary in Colorado, Mr. Rodriquez has already decided how he will vote at the Democratic convention.

Mr. Rodriquez is a supporter of Hillary Clinton and he plans to vote that way. In a letter to a party member asking to explain his position, he said, "I do not go with the candidate who is always winning. I go with the candidate I believe in."

The super delegate situation is quickly becoming the big story on the Democratic side. On Tuesday, Barack Obama won primaries in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. He has now won 23 of the 35 state primaries, but even if he were to win the rest of the primaries, he will still not have enough votes to win the election.

There are 796 super delegates in the Democratic Party and those delegates will break the tie if neither Mr. Obama nor Mrs. Clinton is able to win enough delegate votes.

It is even hard to tell who has the most super delegate votes, but according to several unscientific counts, Mrs. Clinton leads Mr. Obama by 200 to 150 margin.

Mr. Obama will probably try to use his recent primary victories to convince super delegates that he should be the candidate of choice. He will argue that party insiders should not be able to control the selection process; the decision should rest with the voters.

Some super delegates do not think that they should be the ultimate decision makers. Donna Brazile is a super delegate who has said that she will quit her position with the Democratic National Committee if the super delegates decide the race.

As the primaries move state to state, the big story to watch on the Democratic side is what happens with the super delegate situation.

Source: LA Times

BLOG QUESTION
Do you think it’s fair that the super delegates will get a chance to decide the Democratic Party nomination?

Saudi Arabia Bans the Color Red

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and the color red will be all over the place. Red hearts, red roses, red candy and of course, red Valentine’s Day cards will be given and received. Red is the color of love and that is what Valentine’s Day is all about.

But, there will be no Valentine’s Day in Saudi Arabia where even the color red has been banned. Every year in Saudi Arabia, the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice go store to store making sure that no red appears anywhere. Today, they are even out there confiscating all symbols of love.

Why is red banned in Saudi Arabia? One scholar in Islamic studies told a CNN reporter that Muslims should not celebrate a non-Muslim holiday especially a holiday that encourages relationships between unmarried men and women.

Not all Saudis agree with the Commission’s crackdown on Valentine’s Day. Ahmed Al-Omran is a university student in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He told a CNN reporter that the conservatives in his country need to practice a little “tolerance.” He said that it is okay if they practice what they believe but they should not try to impose their beliefs on others.

Saudi Arabia’s treatment of women was recently criticized by the United Nations in a report that said there was widespread discrimination against women in Saudi Arabia.

Just last week a woman was thrown in jail for having coffee with her male business partner in a Starbuck’s restaurant.

Source: CNN

BLOG QUESTION
If you were a student in Saudi Arabia, would you try to celebrate Valentine’s Day?

What's the Scoop?

What’s the Scoop? If you are a student looking for news about the upcoming presidential election, the Scoop is what you need.

The Scoop08 is the first-ever daily student newspaper. It is the brainchild of Alex Heffner, an 18 year-old senior at Phillips Academy. Alex and his co-founder Andrew Mangino, a junior at Yale University and editor of the Yale Daily News, decided to create a newspaper by students and for students.

Alex has organized a group of 300-400 student volunteers from high schools and colleges all over the country. The student volunteers choose the topic they would like to cover. They cover political parties, candidates or in some cases, issues.

This year, 44 million Americans ages 18 to 29 are eligible to vote in the 2008 election. That means that one in four voters in this election will come from this age group. Candidates are aware of the power of the youth vote and all of them have specialized youth campaign managers.

Alex and his team of volunteers have become an important news source for young voters around the country.

The Scoop08 also has an advisory board that supports the students’ work. Senator Joe Lieberman from Connecticut, William Buckley, the founder of the National Review, and Judy Woodruff from Public Broadcasting are members of the advisory team.

The Scoop08 is a not-for-profit organization that is interested in getting young voters engaged in the issues and personalities that will determine who will become the next president of the United States. Visit The Scoop08 at www.scoop08.org.

Source: CNN, The Scoop08

BLOG QUESTION
Why are so many young people interested in this presidential election?

Weekend Update on Presidential Primaries

Last Tuesday was Super Tuesday and it was the biggest day in the 2008 primaries, but it was far from the end of the road for the Republicans and the Democrats.

Over the weekend, Barack Obama swept four Democratic primaries in Louisiana, Nebraska, Washington and the Virgin Islands. He took the lead over Hillary Clinton in the count of those delegates who are pledged to a specific candidate. His lead is 918 to 885.

But, Mrs. Clinton leads in the super delegate count by 223 to 131. Super delegates are not required to vote for the candidate who won in their state.

According to CNN calculations, Ms. Clinton leads Mr. Obama in total delegates 1,108 to 1,049 going into Sunday’s Maine caucus. The candidates need 2,025 delegates to win the nomination.

In other Democratic news, Ms. Clinton replaced her campaign advisor on Sunday. She appointed a long-time advisor, Maggie Williams, to the top spot in her campaign.

On the Republican side, the weekend started out well for frontrunner John McCain. His closest rival, Mitt Romney, suspended his campaign, leaving only Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee in the race.

But, Mike Huckabee won Kansas and Louisiana over the weekend and promised to continue fighting. He said, “I majored in miracles.”

Mr. McCain congratulated Mr. Huckabee and then went out and won Washington. Mr. McCain said that Mr. Huckabee was only capable of chipping away at Mr. McCain’s substantial lead.

Mr. McCain already has 723 delegates. He needs 1,191 for the nomination. The Republicans do not have super delegates.

Source: CNN Election Center

BLOG QUESTION
Do you think the Democratic nomination will be decided before the national convention or will it be decided at the national convention?

Last Tuesday was Super Tuesday and it was the biggest day in the 2008 primaries, but it was far from the end of the road for the Republicans and the Democrats.

Over the weekend, Barack Obama swept four Democratic primaries in Louisiana, Nebraska, Washington and the Virgin Islands. He took the lead over Hillary Clinton in the count of those delegates who are pledged to a specific candidate. His lead is 918 to 885.

But, Mrs. Clinton leads in the super delegate count by 223 to 131. Super delegates are not required to vote for the candidate who won in their state.

According to CNN calculations, Ms. Clinton leads Mr. Obama in total delegates 1,108 to 1,049 going into Sunday’s Maine caucus. The candidates need 2,025 delegates to win the nomination.

In other Democratic news, Ms. Clinton replaced her campaign advisor on Sunday. She appointed a long-time advisor, Maggie Williams, to the top spot in her campaign.

On the Republican side, the weekend started out well for frontrunner John McCain. His closest rival, Mitt Romney, suspended his campaign, leaving only Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee in the race.

But, Mike Huckabee won Kansas and Louisiana over the weekend and promised to continue fighting. He said, “I majored in miracles.”

Mr. McCain congratulated Mr. Huckabee and then went out and won Washington. Mr. McCain said that Mr. Huckabee was only capable of chipping away at Mr. McCain’s substantial lead.

Mr. McCain already has 723 delegates. He needs 1,191 for the nomination. The Republicans do not have super delegates.

Source: CNN Election Center

BLOG QUESTION
Do you think the Democratic nomination will be decided before the national convention or will it be decided at the national convention?

More States are Considering Cyberbully Laws

Cyberbullying incidents continue to get a lot of media attention across the country and several states are looking at either creating new laws or strengthening old ones.

Most of the laws focus on cyberbullying that occurs on school computers or networks, but some of the new laws go beyond the school to cover cyberbullying that occurs after school hours and with the use of privately-owned computers.

Some schools in New Jersey are considering going after cyberbullies who operate after school hours and outside of the school. New Jersey passed a law last year to ban cyberbullying. The State Department of Education told administrators that they “may impose consequences” on cyberbullies but only when it interferes with what goes on in school.

Some educators are worried that schools are taking on too much responsibility and that what happens at home should be handled by parents not by the schools.

Groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) are concerned that schools are stepping on the First Amendment rights of children when they impose punishments for actions that do not occur in school.

Other groups like the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use in Oregon are taking the opposite view. They want schools to get more involved and they want the laws expanded to give schools the right to impose punishment for cyberbullying that occurs out of school.

New cyberbullying laws could also lead to some freedom of speech issues. Do students have the right to express an opinion about a classmate on a web site or is this an example of cyberbullying?

Source: USA Today

BLOG QUESTION
Should schools have the right to punish students for actions that occur outside of school but have an effect on what happens in school?

Who Are the Most Famous Americans?

Here’s a question for you. Who are the most famous Americans if you don’t count any of the presidents or first ladies? Have you made your choices?

The same question was asked of 2000 high school juniors from all 50 states. The students were asked to jot down the names of famous Americans starting with Columbus and going to the present day.

According to the study, African Americans and women dominated the list. At the top of the list was Martin Luther King Jr. Sixty-seven percent of the students had him on their list.

Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony and Benjamin Franklin rounded out the top five. Ms. Parks received 60%, Ms. Tubman 44%, Ms. Anthony 34% with Mr. Franklin at 29%.

In the sixth to tenth spots were Amelia Earhart (25%), Oprah Winfrey (22%), Marilyn Monroe (19%), Thomas Edison (18%) and Albert Einstein (16%).

Sam Wineburg from Stanford University was the leader of the research team. He said that the “prominence of black Americans signals a profound change in how we see history.”

Mr. Wineburg continued, “Over the course of about 44 years, we’ve had a revolution in the people who we come to think about to represent the American story.”

Mr. Wineburg also believes that teachers have had an impact on the list. He suggests that 18th and 19th century figures along with Hispanic and Native American leaders do not get the classroom attention that the names on the list receive.

Mr. Wineburg was also asked if he were surprised by the inclusion of Oprah Winfrey on the list. Mr. Wineburg explained that Ms. Winfrey has a combination of popularity and recognition that goes beyond the media.

Source: USA Today

BLOG QUESTION
Who were the most famous Americans on your list? Would you have excluded any of the names on the list developed by the research team?

McCain Wins; Clinton and Obama Split

Yesterday was Super Tuesday and across the country Democrats and Republicans went to the polls to vote in primaries in 24 states. New York was one of those states.

On the Republican side, John McCain was the big winner. He won in New York Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, and New Jersey. Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee were also winners in the some of the Republican primaries. Mr. Romney won in Utah, Massachusetts, Alaska, Colorado, North Dakota and Minnesota. Mr. Huckabee won five states in the South: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, West Virginia and Tennessee.

On the Democratic side Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battled state by state. Mrs. Clinton won in New York, Arizona, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee. Mr. Obama won in thirteen states: Alaska, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota, Utah, Minnesota, Connecticut, Illinois, Alabama, Georgia, North Dakota, and Kansas.

All of the candidates are reaching for the magical number of delegates that will make them the presidential candidate for their party.

The magic number for the Democrats is 2025 delegates; however, 40 percent of the delegates are called “super delegates.” These delegates are special because they are free to vote for whomever they want at the convention. They do not have to vote for the candidate who won in their state. The magic number for the Republicans is 1191.

At the end of the biggest day in the 2008 presidential election season, here is how the races shape up. On the Republican side, John McCain leads the pack with 613 delegates. Mitt Romney has 269 delegates and Mike Huckabee has 190.

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton leads with 845 delegates. Barack Obama has 765

Source: CNN, USA Today.

BLOG QUESTION
Now that Super Tuesday is over, who do you think the candidates will be in November?

Nature Groups Propose "No Child Left Inside"

Teens in the U.S. are spending so much time in front of televisions, computers and video games that one group has called teens “The Media Generation.” Research by the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that the average teen is in front of media 6 hours and 23 minutes a day.

To counter that trend, several groups have established a new campaign called “No Child Left Inside.” The groups are proposing a back-to-nature movement with several interesting activities.

Leaders of the movement believe that when teens spend time outdoors, they are more active, happier, less lonely, and more able to pay attention.

Here are some examples of these back-to-nature activities:

The U.S. Forest Service is launching a program called “More Kids in the Woods.”

Connecticut has sponsored scavenger hunts in eight state parks.

The National Audubon Society plans to open dozens of new centers to serve elementary students.

Nearly 300 state parks have programs like the Junior Ranger program for kids 5-years and older.

The National Wildlife Federation is launching a new web site called “The Green Hour” that will give parents suggestions for outdoor activities.

Gina McCartney, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, summarized the back-to-nature movement: “We’re trying to grow environmental stewards, not just healthy kids.”

Source: USA Today

BLOG QUESTION
Should the Scarsdale Schools include a camping experience for all students?

Poll: McCain and Clinton Lead Primary Races

Tomorrow half of the country votes in the Super Tuesday primaries and according to the latest poll from ABC News, most Americans are really into this election. Eighty-one percent of Americans are closely following the race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama and the Republican race with John McCain, Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee.

Who will win on Tuesday? On the Republican side, the poll shows that John McCain has jumped out to a 2 to 1 lead over Mitt Romney. Mr. McCain had 28 percent going into New Hampshire several weeks ago and has now jumped to 48 percent. He has picked up most of the supporters of Rudy Giuliani, who dropped out of the race after his defeat in Florida.

For the Democrats, Hillary Clinton maintains a slight lead with 47 percent to Barack Obama’s 43 percent. John Edwards left the race after Florida, but it appears that his supporters are now equally divided between Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama.

The Democratic race is coming down to experience versus change. Of the people who care more about experience and strength, Mrs. Clinton leads 75 to 17 percent over Mr. Obama; of the people who say they want change, Mr. Obama leads 70 to 22 percent.

According to the poll, Mrs. Clinton also is seen as a “stronger leader” than Mr. Obama. She has a 58 to 34 percent lead in that category.

What are the big issues in the campaign? With talk of recession in the news every day, it is no surprise that the biggest issue is the economy. Thirty-nine percent say that it is the biggest issue compared to 29 percent in September. The war in Iraq was number one and has now fallen to number two from 35 percent to 19 percent. Immigration, terrorism and health care are also mentioned as important issues.

The ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by telephone from January 30 to February 1. A random national sample of 1,249 adults were called.

Source: ABC News

BLOG QUESTION
Who will win the most delegates on Super Tuesday in the Democratic and Republican primaries?