SpaceX launches Falcon 9 once again
Yadira Paz - National Science News Reporter
Tuesday, July 19th, 2016
Florida - Just a few days ago, SpaceX tried once again to launch their Falcon 9 accompanied with the capsule known as Dragon. The first stage of this rocket was designed with nine engines in order to reinsure any small engine failure. The second stage consist of one Merlin engine and one vacuum engine. The rocket has a total height of 70 meters, a mass of 546,054 kilograms, and a diameter of 3.7 meters. Part of the rocket was manufactured at the Kennedy Space Center Space Station Processing Facility. The launch took place in Cape Canaveral Launch Site, Florida around 12:45 am on Monday July 18. Each launch cost about $62 million and let's not forget this was already the second launch so, they had used more money than the company had expected. The first launch had failed due to a break in the liquid oxygen tank. Which then caused everything else to fail in just a matter of minutes. Fortunately, this recent launch was a success carrying over 5,000 pounds of supplies and experiments. Some of those experiments include DNA and cells from different organisms for the scientist to observe their development and behavior. As for the supplies, they sent up water, air, food, waste containers, sanitary items, medical gear, etc. Cosmonauts, astronomers, and scientist are very optimistic that Dragon will reach the space station and deliver all the items safely. There has also been talk about NASA and SpaceX teaming up together to start a project to send humans to space.
Sources : Spaceflightnow.com - https://spaceflightnow.com/2016/07/19/russian-spacecraft-delivers-fuel-and-supplies-to-space-station/ SpaceX.com - http://www.spacex.com/falcon9
Uncovering the Tragedy in Orlando
Two months after the deaths, new details are revealed.
Paulette Morales - National News Reporter
Tuesday, July 19th, 2016
On May 11th, a shooting at an Orlando gay nightclub called The Pulse took place. The person that is responsible for this is a man named Omar Mateen, who was killed by the police. Omar was 29 years old and he was an American citizen. He worked as a security guard at West Palm Beach and the total people he killed was forty-nine people, although earlier reports stated that the number of people thought to be killed was 20 people. Omar’s father states that Omar would get mad whenever he saw two men together as a pair. Two of the types of weapons Omar used were a firearm and a rifle. Presidential candidate, Donald Trump, said that it was Islamic terrorism. The shooting is known to be the most deadliest in US history. The bartender in the club explains that she thought that the gunshots were music and did not know it at first, but then she heard a second one and decided to run for it so she asked one of the customers to give her a ride. After the shooting, hundreds of people decided to donate blood to the injured and the officials of OneBlood are asking for more donors to help the injured at the shooting. This is was an act of terrorism and discrimination to the gay community. Some people are still mourning over the loss of their loved ones who died because of a horrible act of terrorism and hatred. One day, a SWAT truck and a bomb disposal came to see the man who is said to be the father of the shooter at the gay nightclub. The father of Omar Mateen is named Mir Seddique of Port ST. Lucie, Florida. His father has stated that the reason for the shooting had nothing to do with religion. In addition to the injured and killed, one person is still unaccounted for. A thirty-two-year-old named Christopher went missing, according to his mother. Dr. Mike Cheatham is a trauma surgeon at Orlando Regional Medical Center and he said “I think we will see the death toll rise.” Police are investigating if they hit anyone when they tried to shoot at Omar who is responsible for this tragic accident. The police went to the club to see if there were still people hiding in the club a week after the shooting. It is said that people tried to take refuge in the bathroom stalls but police say that Omar Mateen killed three people in the bathrooms. When the police found him there he threatened them by saying he had explosives in his vest and said that he would strap them on to his hostages. Then, the police made a hole in the wall for the hostages to escape and about 33 people escaped through that hole including Omar. President Obama said “It’s a good time for all of us to reflect on how we treat each other and to insist respect and equality for every human being.” Omar did not respect people’s decision to be gay so he attacked them and killed many innocent people. Due to this act of terror, more people have been getting involved with gay rights because they believe that they should not be judged for their preferences. |
Omar’s attack is seen as a terrorist attack because when he called 911 Omar declared that he was an Islamic soldier, he pledged to Islam while he was talking to an operator of 911 and prayed to the Islamic god, and mentioned ISIS. However, people and leaders of the Islamic community want to remind people that Omar’s attack is an act of extremism and terrorism that does not reflect their religion.
After such a tragedy, everyone wanted to help and even Walt Disney World, which is located in the same city of Orlando, Florida, pledged one-million dollars to help the victims of the tragic accident. Omar’s wife has said that he suffered from mental illness and has abused her many times until they divorced, but at first their marriage was normal. He may have been a gay as well because they said that he was a regular at the bar, had a gay dating app, a man said that he was Omar’s classmate in highschool and he said that Omar asked him out once.Omar’s father said that he was not a gay and he stated that if he was gay, there would be no reason for the attack. Omar’s attack made Donald Trump want to get immigrants out even more because he thinks that they all “support terrorist groups.” There are many perspectives about this event, but it is important to not make judgements or blanket-statements against people. From this tragedy, we can learn many lessons. People need to respect each other more because it causes chaos for everyone even if they are gay or lesbian, so other people do not have the right to tell them what to be or who to like because they could be who they want and people need to work together to stop this discrimination of gay people. Also, terrorism is a complicated issue that requires more investigation and research instead of calling one entire group or religion as guilty. From the horrific events that happened in Orlando, one important idea we should all gain is that It is important to respect each other. The information in this article has been researched from the following news agencies: Univision News, and The OC Register. |
Crime and Punishment, a Texan tragedy.
After a peaceful protest ends, a brutal shooting shocks the nation.
Vanessa Chiprez - National News Editor
Tuesday, July 19th, 2016
Dallas, TEXAS- Gunshots were heard during the time of a peaceful protest on July 7,2016, where 11 policemen were gunned down by a sniper. The suspect to be known to have shot the victims is identified as Micah Xavier Johnson, a 25-year old veteran who was stationed in Afghanistan. He claimed that, “he wanted to kill white police officers,” after being upset by the deaths of African Americans. Later on that night, Johnson was murdered with explosives by a robot sent out to kill Johnson by the police in a parking garage. Overall, 5 officers were murdered,while 7 other officers were injured, and 2 civilians injured. The protest was planned to protest for Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, who were both killed by police in different states across the country during ordinary police stops. Because of the death of Johnson, Sterling, and Castile, more protests were planned and multiple perspectives are being viewed. An investigation was being led by General Loretta E. Lynch and the FBI on the day after the shooting. “This has been a week of profound grief and heartbreak and loss,” Lynch said.
“After the events of this week, Americans across our country are feeling a sense of helplessness, uncertainty and fear … but the answer must not be violence.” Furthermore, something similar was claimed from Obama at a memorial ceremony that was held in honor of all the police officers who were shot and killed in Dallas. President Obama, who was one of the guests who attended the ceremony, addressed the crowd of people with a speech mourning the loss of lives in the shooting. The ceremony was held on July 12th in Dallas, 5 days after the shooting at Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. During the protest, he claimed,”The reward comes in knowing that our entire way of life in America depends on the rule of law, that the maintenance of that law is a hard and daily labor, that in this country we don’t have soldiers in the streets or militias setting the rules. Instead, we have public servants, police officers, like the men who were taken away from us. And that’s what these five were doing last Thursday when they were assigned to protect and keep orderly a peaceful protest in response to the killing of Alton Sterling of Baton Rouge and Philando Castile of Minnesota. They were upholding the constitutional rights of this country.” From Obama’s perspective, he believes the lives of cops and African American civilians matter, but believes those civilians deserved justice against their killers because these citizens were upholding their constitutional rights.
Meanwhile, there are some police officers that have a different view from Obama. Officer Jay Stalien claims,"Black Lives do not matter to most black people...Only the lives that are taken at the hands of cops or white people, matter." As you can see,there are various views on ideas on the Dallas Shooting. More protests against shootings are being planned to be presented in time after the Dallas Shooting. Like Obama said, we understand how America is feeling, but we must reject such despair, for we are not as divided as we seem.
“After the events of this week, Americans across our country are feeling a sense of helplessness, uncertainty and fear … but the answer must not be violence.” Furthermore, something similar was claimed from Obama at a memorial ceremony that was held in honor of all the police officers who were shot and killed in Dallas. President Obama, who was one of the guests who attended the ceremony, addressed the crowd of people with a speech mourning the loss of lives in the shooting. The ceremony was held on July 12th in Dallas, 5 days after the shooting at Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. During the protest, he claimed,”The reward comes in knowing that our entire way of life in America depends on the rule of law, that the maintenance of that law is a hard and daily labor, that in this country we don’t have soldiers in the streets or militias setting the rules. Instead, we have public servants, police officers, like the men who were taken away from us. And that’s what these five were doing last Thursday when they were assigned to protect and keep orderly a peaceful protest in response to the killing of Alton Sterling of Baton Rouge and Philando Castile of Minnesota. They were upholding the constitutional rights of this country.” From Obama’s perspective, he believes the lives of cops and African American civilians matter, but believes those civilians deserved justice against their killers because these citizens were upholding their constitutional rights.
Meanwhile, there are some police officers that have a different view from Obama. Officer Jay Stalien claims,"Black Lives do not matter to most black people...Only the lives that are taken at the hands of cops or white people, matter." As you can see,there are various views on ideas on the Dallas Shooting. More protests against shootings are being planned to be presented in time after the Dallas Shooting. Like Obama said, we understand how America is feeling, but we must reject such despair, for we are not as divided as we seem.
Juno journeys to Jupiter.
Now we can learn more about this faraway planet.
Rosa Parra - National News Reporter
Wednesday, July 20th, 2016
“The spacecraft’s name comes from Greco-Roman mythology. The god Jupiter drew a veil of clouds around himself to hide his mischief,but his wife,the goddess Juno was able to peer through the clouds and see Jupiter’s true nature.” - nasa.gov
USA - Juno is a robot that was sent to planet Jupiter on August 5th, 2011. It was sent to Jupiter so scientists could see if there is life there. Juno was sent to space in August 5,2011. Jupiter is not just across the street. It is roughly 1.8 billion miles from Earth. Let’s look at it this way: 1.8 billion miles away can turn into minutes, hours, days,weeks, and years. Think about that traveling 1.8 billion miles away. It would take astronauts about 5 years to get to Jupiter. Yes, that means Juno traveled five years to get to Jupiter. Juno was able to capture images that were sent back to Earth. Through the images, we see not only Jupiter, but the moons of Jupiter known as Lo, Europa, and Ganymede.The cost to send Juno was over $1.1 billion dollars. One thing that the public may not be aware of is that Juno will not return to Earth, because it will end its voyage there as it crashes into Jupiter. During its stay orbiting Jupiter, it will continue to send images and information back to Earth. |
Inequality in the LGBTQ Community
The journey to equality is still full of difficulties.
Christina Ledesma, National News Reporter
Wednesday, July 20th, 2016
United States-, The LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender,Queers) community and society are experiencing discrimination around the whole world. The community was known as LGBT, but is now known as LGBTQ because of the new letter, Q which stands for the people are still questioning their sexuality. Discrimination towards the LGBTQ community started in America during the 1960’s and continues to be a hot issue in the present day. The reasons for inequality towards the LGBTQ group is due to religious beliefs and social structures that have been in place since early times.
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For example, discrimination has increased. Many members of the LGBTQ community have been bullied and have had hate crimes committed towards them. Since June 1, 2014 all fifty states legalized same sex marriage. Most of the LGBTQ members don’t report the physical or verbal assaults because they are worried about how society will react. Only 18% of LGBTQ youth report verbal harassment and only 5% report physical assault that they have experienced. Much of the crimes committed towards them have never been reported to the proper authorities. For example, one physical attack that happened on June 12, 2016, was the Orlando shooting which, according to Barack Obama was an attack, “ an act of terror and hate.”
Many believe that the larger society is not well educated about the LGBTQ community and the issues that they face. Not only should the LGBTQ group be educated, we should also the society around them. Many states have begun educating people on the LGBTQ community and passing laws to protect them. More than half of the fifty states have been passing and expanding laws which protect the LGBTQ individuals from discrimination in areas such as employment, housing, and public environments (restaurants and stores). Samantha Allen, a member of the LGBTQ community reported, “Now that we’ve won marriage, we need immediate and concrete support for bisexural community issue like domestic violence, rape and sexural, poor health, poverty and suicidality.” How society will accommodate these needs- only time will tell.
Sources: npr.org, PBS.org, and apa.org
Sources: npr.org, PBS.org, and apa.org
No Justice, No Peace for ALL Black Americans?
Protests across the nation are stirring up as more Black people's lives are lost.
Maria Celeste Lopez, National News Reporter
Wednesday, July 20th, 2016
“Am I next?,” is what black people across the nation are wondering due to the many tragedies happening to black people across the nation. It started with Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African American high school student, who was fatally shot by George Zimmerman in the year 2012. A year later, a hashtag was created called, #BlackLivesMatter, on social media. According to the Black Lives Matter website, this is a grassroots movement started by Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garca, and is “An online forum intended to build connections between Black people and allies to fight anti-Black racism, to spark dialogue among Black people, and to facilitate the types of connections necessary to encourage social action and engagement.” The whole purpose of creating #BlackLivesMatter was to call action and response to deadly anti-Black racism that informs our society. In 2014-2016 numerous accounts of protest were held all across the nation.
It was the Dallas shooting that stirred up the greatest protest of Black Lives Matter. A protest occurred for the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile in Dallas, Texas on July 7, 2016. The protest was going on in all the major US cities, including New York City, and Los Angeles. However, the protest in Dallas did not end so well when a sniper named Micah Xavier Johnson shot 12 officer, killing 5 of them. The Black Lives Matter movement officially says these killings are horrific crimes that they do not support. They don’t believe in any violence. However, their protests still continue on. With the death of Philando Castile, protestors shut down a highway in St. Paul, Minnesota on July 9, 2016, shouting for peace and equal race in the nation. Protesters clashed between police by throwing fireworks at them and projecting rocks at them. Authorities used smoke bombs when 200 protesters refused to leave the highway just after midnight. By 12:45 a.m. Sunday, police said they were clearing debris from the road in order to reopen the highway. A total of 102 protesters were taken to custody, meanwhile 21 police officers were injured by the protesters that night in St. Paul, Minnesota. In response of the death of Philando Castile, his mother said, “We urge all people to remain peaceful in all demonstrations throughout our community and our nation. When demonstrations became violent, it disrespects my son and his memory. Philando was a man of peace and dignity.” |
In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, hundreds of protesters gathered for another day of demonstrations over the fatal shooting of Alton Sterling. Some protesters wore T-shirts that read “I can’t keep calm, I have a black son.” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said during a press conference that he was heartened that protest were largely peaceful. "The best way to honor the memory of Alton Sterling, the Dallas law enforcement officers and Philando Castile is for peaceful demonstrations here in Louisiana," Edwards said. During the protest a man by the name of Gavin Long shot six cops, killing three of them on his 29th birthday.
Investigators are still trying to figure out why did Gavin Long (a former marine Sergeant) killed these three police officers in broad daylight. Due to Long’s actions, police shot and killed him. Here is what Long’s step-father has to say about his son’s actions with the shooting. “I was in "total shock" about the Baton Rouge shootings. I was sorry about what happened to the officers and about losing my stepson,” he says. The tensions are high and controversy can be felt between the Black community and the police. Although there are many stories and situations where police are supportive of Black Lives Matter and realize the issues that are raised, there are many who are afraid and angry. An officer named Jay Stalien says, “Black lives do not matter to most black people…. Only the lives that are taken at hands of cops or white people, matter.” Others like Changa Higgins claims, “This feels like 1968 to most black people in America right now.” It is clear that this conflict is far from over and will continue to play out in our country. Due to all these shootings and protests President Barack Obama has condemned the killing of law enforcement and asked for our country to unite together through these challenging times. Information for this article was researched from the following news sites: BlackLivesMatter.com, bbc.com, cnn.com
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Police Brutality?
Clarissa Hernandez and Nicole Velasco, National News Reporters
Wednesday, July 20th, 2016
U.S. -- Police Brutality is an important current issue in the United States of America. Police officers and members of the African-American community are angry with each other. African Americans are angry because they feel that they are the only ones being targeted, arrested, and killed because of their skin color. Law enforcement, or the police feel that they are being targeted and members of their community killed because of the action of a few. They feel that while some police officers may target African-Americans specifically, this is not true of law enforcement in general. Problems between the law enforcement community as well as the African American community is growing. Just last week, five police officers in Dallas were killed during a protest. This week three police officers were shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and unfortunately they all died in the act of the shooting.
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Many would agree that each side make good arguments. More than 920 people been killed because of the police brutality in 2015. This does not mean that all police are to blame, but it is something to consider. How this issue will continue to unfold, only the future can tell.
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