TSUNAMI HITS JAPAN (March 11, 2011)

An insanely intense earthquake hit the Northern Coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 at rush hour, causing a huge tsunami.

The massive 8.9 earthquake happened at rush hour Friday, causing a massive tsunami that was watched live by millions around the world as it happened. Aftershocks rocked Japan, the largest being a 7.4.

Japan has suffered multiple earthquakes this week, including a 7.8 on Wednesday, but none resulted in a tsunami, until now.

So far, no tsunami warnings to the West Coast of the U.S., but Hawaii is expected to have a tsunami hit at 2:59 a.m. Friday morning. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii also said a tsunami warning was in effect for Japan, Russia, Marcus Island and the Northern Marianas. Update: Tsunami Watch has been added for WA, OR, CA, AK and British Columbia.

All Japanese transportation systems including airports have been shut down.

This March 11, 2011 earthquake in Japan is the seventh largest on record. As I write this (11:45 pm PST) it is unclear the damage the tsunamis have caused, but it does not look good. CNN is reporting that the Japanese are very schooled in knowing what to do when it comes to earthquakes and tsunamis, and that the mood there is generally calm, but just by watching live coverage you could see cars trying to outrun the tsunami, some with no luck.

Tsunami coverage is live now on CNN – we will post more Japan tsunami March 11, 2011 videos as they are available.

Museums Bring Field Trips to Schools

If it's too expensive or time-consuming to get students out of school for a museum field trip anymore, then why not have the museum come to school?

That's a question that some museums around the country have answered in the affirmative, as decreases in school budgets and increases in paperwork required for field trips have combined to curtail the number of times that students get to go afield.

Never fear, say the staff of a well-known science museum in Boston, we'll come to you. And they have and they do, bringing such things as a portable planetarium into local schools so that teachers can indeed do what they're charged with doing (namely, get their students ready for the next high-profile test).

The planetarium show, a 50-minute lesson on the Sun and the rest of the bodies in the solar system, ties in neatly with the state's physics and space science standards for learning. The show is, teachers and students alike report, compelling. Seeing concepts illustrated in a large-as-life way tends to heighten students' appreciation of the subjects in particular and learning in general, many teachers say.

A similar exhibit from the same museum introduces students to the intricacies of dinosaurs – a favorite topic of youngsters – by facilitating hands-on exploration of footprints and droppings of the giant prehistoric reptiles.

In all, the museum has 14 separate traveling programs, with students and teachers reporting high levels of satisfaction after experiencing the mobile exhibits. The museum plans to exceed 1,000 school visits this year.

Many museums have developed print materials such as handbooks and posters and image- and video-friendly websites showcasing the museums' contents, but the lack of tactile experience is a drawback to many educators. The portable museum concept fills this gap, to an extent that many are happy with.

It's not just Boston, either. Similar "mobile museum" efforts are in business all over the country. Some, like the Boston museum, transport parts of the museum into classrooms. Other museums showcase their wares via video link, which can be as simple as a static broadcast or as interactive as a question-and-answer session.

Then there's Egypt. One museum in South Carolina has made a special effort to take its ancient artifacts to the masses. The mummy doesn't make the trip to schools, but nearly everything else does, including pieces of papyrus and replicas of boys and girls clothes for students to try on.

Under increasing pressure to save money, many schools have abandoned field trips altogether, citing costs of hiring buses, covering museum admissions fees, and possibly even compensating extra personnel for accompanying students to and from school. The other loss, especially for students, is time. The aforementioned 50-minute planetarium show is also just a 50-minute part of a normal school day; by contrast, a field trip to a museum for a 50-minute tour of an astronomy exhibit could last several hours.

With few exceptions, the time that students on field trips spend away from their desks – lining up for the bus, riding the bus to the museum, riding the bus back to school – is not spent learning. If the field trip comes to school, however, it's a class session, during which students can apply themselves 100 percent of the time, including direct followup by teachers on what the students just experienced.

Math, Science Study Gets High-profile Boost

Big Bird, famous CEOs, and the White House are teaming up to launch an initiative to improve American students' knowledge of math and science.

The Educate to Innovate program will devote more than $260 million in public and private funds during the next decade to helping students learn more about STEM – science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Some famous names have been enlisted to help, among them:

* Big Bird, Elmo, and other familiar faces on Sesame Street
* Sally Ride, the first American woman in space
* Antonio Perez, the CEO of Eastman Kodak
* Ursula Burns, the CEO of Xerox
* Glenn Britt, the CEO of Time Warner Cable
* Craig Barrett, former CEO of Intel
* Michelle Obama, First Lady of the U.S.

All of these people have pledged their support, in both time and money, to help American students learn more about the world around them, the way it works, and the way technology can change their lives.

The Educate to Innovate initiative will target both in-school and after-school activities. Time Warner Cable's Science Channel is planning commercial-free programming geared toward middle school students. Engineering and science organizations will provide support and encouragement for a nationwide focus on science in school laboratories, with the prime focus a National Lab Day, planned for May 2010.

Elmo, Big Bird, and the gang will get involved when Sesame Street, as a major part of its 40th-season anniversary, will focus on math and science as never before, with 20 of the 26 season episodes to have a prime component on science and math.

Also involved will be the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation, the latter of which will work with technology organizations to sponsor contests for students to create math and science projects.

Sony will donate 1,000 PlayStation 3 consoles to low-income schools, along with copies of the PS game LittleBigPlanet and an invitation for students to contribute data for an update of the popular game. By: socialstudiesforkids.com

Quadriplegic Swims Across English Channel

Philippe Croizon lost both arms and both legs in a horrific accident in 1994. In 2010, he swam across the English Channel.

Croizon, 42, of France was standing on a ladder adjusting his TV antenna when the ladder touched a power line. The result was a shock of 20,000 volts of electricity coursing his body. His limbs had to be amputated.

Since the incident, his sense of adventure had gone up a few notches. For example, he jumped from a plane in 2007 wearing only a parachute. Not long after, he set his sights on swimming the Channel.

Two years ago, he was barely able to swim to lengths of a swimming pool near his home of Chatelleraut. He trained up to 35 hours a week to build up muscle and stamina.

Now, he has achieved his goal. Flanked by a full medical team, Croizon completed the 21-mile crossing from Folkestone, U.K., to Wissant, France.

His prosthetic legs had flippers attached. His shoulders propelled his upper body. He breathed using a snorkel. Three dolphins accompanied him for awhile.

He and his crew had allowed 24 hours for the crossing, but he finished it in less than 14 hours. (The world record is just less than 7 hours.)

Croizon had recently written a book about his life since the accident. The book was titled J'ai décidé de vivre (I decide to live). By: socialstudiesforkids.com

Floodwaters Still Crippling Pakistan

Pakistan continues to be inundated by flooding and suffering.

In the third month of the worst flooding in the country's history, nearly 17 million acres of prime agricultural land still lie underwater, their potential for producing food growing dimmer with each passing day. That lack of food potential spells a continued grim picture for the millions of people left homeless and hungry by the continual rains. International aid from governments, corporations, charities, and individuals has come in at a steady pace; but the number of needy continues to outnumber the number of dollars of aid sent.

The death toll has exceeded 2,000. More than a million homes have been destroyed. Nearly 20 percent of the entire country lies underwater.

Diseases such as cholera have been reported in the wake of the flooding, as conditions already barely sanitary have deteriorated. Entire families and villages have been forced to vacate their homeland and live in unfamiliar areas and conditions. Struggling to find new sources of food and safe water, these people are having to make choices, at times neglecting such basics and medical care.

According to estimates by the World Health Organization, nearly one million Pakistani women will give birth in the next six months and many of them will experience birth complications directly related to the floods and their aftermath. Many women marooned by rising floodwaters have been unable to make needed visits to medical facilities; other women have made such journeys anyway, putting themselves and the unborn children they carry at risk, such as by walking through unsanitary water or undergoing journeys of more than 20 miles one way on foot. Other women have found it a challenge to eat enough to feed both themselves and their unborn children in the last weeks and months of pregnancy. Many women have given birth already in unsafe conditions, some without even a wrap for their newborns.

The country's electrical power infrastructure lies vulnerable, as does the country's fragile efforts to combat the infiltration of opportunistic elements from neighboring Afghanistan, where a fierce war is still being waged between the Taleban and international forces led by the United States.

The worst of the monsoon season is already over, and Pakistani officials hope that the worst of the flooding is behind them as well. By: socialstudiesforkids.com

New Contract for Taxi Drivers

A unified labour contract has been enforced on Abu Dhabi taxi driver. Officials from the Ministry of Labour (MOL) and the taxi regulatory authority TransAD have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the new contract which ensures that all taxi drivers receive a basic salary of AED 800 (for earning a minum revenue of Dh 6,000), as well as accommodation, and a commission.

The contract is mandatory for all new taxi drvers recruited from June, but the existing 6,386 drivers in the capital will have the option of waiting until their original contract expires before they switch to the new one. Drivers of the older white and gold taxis will not be applicable for the new contract, due to being phased out.

Taxis will also no longer occpy parking spots in the city, following complaints from residents. The unified contract states that companies must provide accommodation for their drivers in designated areas outside the city. For the time being, TransAD has granted a grace period to some franchises considering their practical difficulties.

Some companies used to give just AED 500 as accommodation allowance, giving the freedom to drivers to stay wherever they want. Such practices will be stopped.