Kya's Blog

Wrote by Kyawijewardena

Hello everybody, this happens to be the third post in my series of 'Imagine if...' posts. Essentially they are just my ramblings and my thoughts on a particular topic. It may not overly interest you because some of the possibilities I discuss are in fact real-world impossibilities, but there's no harm in discussing them anyway. Why poverty, you may ask? Well, I understand why you're perturbed because within the previous two posts, I have discussed things that are quite frankly impossible. However, this particular post discusses a subject that poses a very real threat to the world and is a task that so many charities and organisations are trying to complete. Unfortunately, it's a lot easier for me to sit here and write about it, than it is to actually put some work into progress to ensure the eradication of poverty. One of the major problems is that poverty hasn't just been a recent development due to the rapid development of some countries in the world, it has been present for several decades, even centuries, even though it seems a problem of the 'present'.

Poverty is a difficult topic because it has so many different sections. Primarily, however, I think it's due to a lack of education and more importantly, a lack of access to education. I think we take it for granted just how lucky we are to have a readily available education system, which gives us more opportunities and prepares us for the life ahead of us. Unfortunately, there are several adults and children alike that simply do not have the access to any form of education that will ensure a good future for them and their family. Yes, I know, maybe it's because they can't afford it, but that relates back to their parents and their lack of education. I suppose what I'm trying to say is, that it's all a vicious cycle, which we can help to break. Education can be an important stepping stone out of poverty for many people. I know everyone is stereotypically thinking of the poverty-stricken families in Africa, but poverty is far more widespread than any of us could imagine.

Along with the lack of education, there are so many other factors that can contribute to the extent of poverty. Obviously illness, starvation and eventually death are major issues that leading charities in the world are striving to eradicate. I wonder whether we'll ever get to a time when everyone on the Earth has access to clean water, the necessary medicines (especially vaccines, as highlighted by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) and enough food to sustain a healthy lifestyle. I'm going to make a wild guess here (and please, statisticians out there, I would like you to prove me wrong) and say that complete eradication of 'poverty' as we know it may never be achieved within my life. I try to be an optimistic person, so I'm going to hope and wish that it will be achieved at some point in the future. It's just that the way the world is heading, the prospect seems unlikely (I know, how depressing and pessimistic). The problem is, that I want to help as much as possible, but everything has to be done in moderation. Additionally, I think it's important for this to be a collective goal, because eradicating poverty on your own can be very daunting, so raising money and awareness with others always benefits the cause.

Just in case I haven't hammered on about the subject of poverty, I'm going to offer you some statistics obtained from this particular website: http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats

Almost half of the world (that is over 3 billion people) live on less than $2.50 (£1.65) a day.
The poorest 40% of the world's population account for 5% of global income, whereas the richest 20% accounts for 75% of world income. Pretty self-explanatory I suppose, but still fairly significant.
According to UNICEF, 22,000 children die each day due to poverty. To me, that is an incomprehensibly high death rate. Don't you agree?
Nearly a billion people entered the 21st Century unable to read a book or even sign their names.
Every year there are 350-500 million cases of malaria, with 1 million fatalities.
Some 1.1 billion people living in developing countries do not have access to clean water and 2.6 billion people lack basic sanitation.

The list of alarming statistics goes on. I refused to read on because the bigger the numbers start to get, the more hopeless the situation seems. Sometimes it's so difficult for us to picture a world that is so different from what we live in and what we've grown up in. But, the facts are plain for everyone to see. The world is a long way away from resolving the problems created by poverty. If you think about it in this way, there are billions of people in the world who are in a bottomless pit (an apt simile for poverty, I think) and it's our duty to help at least some of them out. I know, it's easier said than done, but little by little, I think we can really make an impact. Here are a list of the some of the major charities in the world who are pioneering the 'big impact' that we are going to have on the developing world:

Oxfam
Save the Children
ActionAid- sponsor a child
CARE International
Christian Aid
The British Red Cross
UNICEF
Plan UK
World Vision
Concern Worldwide

I hope you enjoyed reading this post and I encourage everyone to do as much as they can to make an impact. Your contribution never has to be huge, you never have to donate thousands or make a grand gesture, just caring and doing as much as you can will always help.

Adios. xxx

Wrote by Kyawijewardena

Hello and welcome everybody, to another of my posts where I ramble and ponder about the impossible. If someone ever asks me what sort of superpower I would most like to have, I think I would undoubtedly confess to wanting to be able to tell the future. Personally, I think it will be the most useful (other than super-strength or speed) in the modern world. It might seem strange because people are so caught up in 'living in the moment' these days, but the future may not be something that people want to know. I understand that the long-term future for us all will inevitably lead to our departure from this planet (apologies for lowering the tone, but we must face facts), but as an adolescent (or teenager as some of you like to brand us) who has their whole life ahead of them, knowing something of the future could bring some relief and leave us less stressed about our future outcome. For those who have already accomplished all within their life, then the future may either be something they are not looking forward to, or it might bring some pleasant surprises. I think, it's something entirely subjective.

Sometimes I wonder, 'what am I going to end up doing one day?', 'will I fulfil my dream of becoming a doctor, or will I turn to a different walk of life?' , 'where will I end up living one day?' or 'will I be happy with what I have achieved?'. Obviously, I have no clue as to what the answers to those questions are going to be, I can only guess. So, just for once, I would like to delve into my future to see what life has in store for me. Sometimes, it might end up being a waking call and one may have to completely change their lifestyle, in case they end up foreseeing a more troubled life than they expected. I guess, what I'm trying to coherently communicate is that, it would be nice to have a little advanced notice, so you can change within the present and possibly alter your future. I know this is entirely hypothetical, but wouldn't that relieve you of some major stress? For me, I think knowing what the future holds could be a vital part of shaping my actual future.

I also sometimes wonder, how the world will change in years to come. We all know about the imminent changes to our planet's climate and environment, but how will it actually end up? Will there be horrendous floods that drown entire countries (yes, I know that is slightly too far-fetched, but how am I to know?) Are we then all going to pack our bags and move to another planet? I can't stop myself from imagining the future that is always predicted in movies or television shows, where there are floating buildings and cars that fly. It seems incredibly ridiculous, as I write this now, but how do we know what' s going to happen? The rate at which we are advancing, we might end up eradicating some incredibly deadly diseases from this planet. On the other hand, the world population could increase so rapidly that we start to inhabit more and more areas that were originally solely dedicated to wild animals. What if the common animals that we know today, like giraffes and zebras become extinct and in there place, there exists a slightly more evolved and adapted hybrid (perhaps a gebra or ziraffe)? As you can tell, the future can be a frightening reality.

Unfortunately, nobody I know is gifted with such an ability, which may indeed be a good thing. You might feel slightly stranded or incredibly apprehensive about everything if your psychic powers informed you of the death of a loved one or if it indicates to you that your life isn't going to take the path you intended due to certain circumstances. Wouldn't that be thoroughly disappointing? Knowing everything about the future could make life less interesting as the world would cease to surprise you. You would know about your every move, before it actually happened. I suppose that takes the pleasure out of living and feeling alive. Once again, this is an argument that has two sides (oh how predictable). This sort of power could fall into the hands of the good and could save millions of lives and put an end to suffering as we know it. But, simultaneously, it could fall into wrong hands and be used to create havoc. So, I suppose it's up to you where you stand in this particular scenario.

Sometimes I really wish I could know even the slightest of details about my impending future, just to assure me that things are going to be okay. But, that is not an ability that we have, so we have to endure life as it comes, when it comes and how it comes. I suppose being psychic gives us an unfair advantage, which may ruin the balance of nature. However, on the other hand, it will really sharpen our 'decision-making' ability, based on what life throws at us. Don't you think? Anyway, thanks for reading.

Adios. xxx

Wrote by Kyawijewardena

Hello once again everybody. I apologise for not having written in a while, but I was at a loss of inspiration. I can't say I feel overly inspired now, but this is just a thought that popped into my head and I thought, 'why not write about it?'.

Can mind-reading be considered a super-power? I really don't know, because as of yet, I really haven't met anyone capable of achieving such feats. I know fortune-tellers and various magicians may have skills of predicting your future (or so it may seem), but have they truly grasped the ability to identify what is going through our heads? For one thing, I feel sorry for any poor soul who has to attempt and read my mind, it is not something I would recommend. But, is it truly possible? Can anyone's mind be so evolved that they are able to make sense of the rapid electrical impulses passing between neurones and crossing synapses in another person's brain? I sometimes find it difficult to understand my own brain, so much so that I can't even begin to fathom how complex it would be to interpret other people's thoughts.

I know that Edward Cullen can do it (just trying to brighten your day with some Twilight trivia) and that certain twins are telepathically gifted, but what about you and I? I find that I can sometimes tell how a person is feeling, due to their posture and facial expression, but there's no knowing whether those feelings correlate with the thoughts running through their mind. If someone's seems sad, because either they're more hunched and their facial expression depicts it, then I would presume that they were upset about something (crying would also be a useful hint). But, I could only possibly guess at the cause of the sadness. That kind of information is secured within the mind of the particular person in question and unfortunately, I can't access it.

But think of all the tragedies and deaths we could have prevented, if we were capable of reading each other's minds. People would never be able to lie about something and the awkward first stages of trying to identify whether someone likes you can be avoided. Think about those situations when you try something on for the first time and you ask others on their opinion and they unanimously agree that it looks great on you. Have you ever wondered how despite each person having their own unique style, they still all have positive remarks on whatever it is you are wearing. This kind of scenario could apply to all sorts of different situations. Honesty between people would soon cease to be a problem.

However, in order to ensure that this is a balanced argument, I should mention that this power could also very easily fall into the wrong hands. People could be cruelly manipulated because of their deepest secrets and people could become constantly paranoid about the thoughts crossing their mind. You would become more conscious than ever about your opinions and judgements on various people or even other things. I like to think that our minds are a like a bank (you know, like HSBC or Barclays), but unlike the more common banks, our minds are completely impenetrable. The biggest banks in the world have such high quality security systems and yet, I don't think they are any match for the invisible system of protection we have for the wealth that is contained in our minds. But, if even one person manages to break that protection by acquiring the ability to read each other's minds, then aren't we all going to be compromised? And think about how annoying it would be, to be able to know each and every thing somebody is thinking. You might just like to enjoy the peace and the quiet of your own thoughts, without having other people's love lives or their intended dinner menu constantly resurfacing amidst your thoughts.

Anyway, those are just some of my ramblings. I would love to know what you think about the idea of mind-reading. Are you against it or for it (not that this is some sort of petition for a new type of technology that I'm developing)? I just think it would be interesting to delve into what other people think, without being overly intrusive. You never know, it may surprise you when you realise what others are truly thinking.

Adios. xxx

Wrote by Kyawijewardena

Hello once again everybody. This post is going to be about another talk that I have attended in Cambridge. It was organised by the Cambridge Carbon Footprint (and no prizes are to be awarded for guessing what issues this talk revolved around). The talk was held on the 2nd of July at St. Luke's Church in Cambridge. It was presented by Anne Miller who is in fact Director of The Creativity Partnership of the British Antarctic Survey. If I followed her correctly, I think she is in fact an engineer that was given the opportunity of visiting the Antarctic. I just came across it on the internet, thought it sounded quite interesting, hopped on the train with my mother and brother and then caught a taxi to the venue. We arrived around five minutes late, but I don't think we missed anything significant (or at least I hope we didn't).

This is the official website for Cambridge Carbon Footprint, feel free to take a look:
http://cambridgecarbonfootprint.org

The talk was very detailed and insightful, but I'm not going to go into very in-depth topics because I want to ensure that everybody reading this will be able to fully understand and appreciate the extent of the research work being done within the Antarctic by various groups of scientists. I apologise if this brief summary seems too short or badly explained but I am not a professional within this field. I am simply going to list and explain some of the bullet points that caught my attention which I have jotted down.

Ice cores and bubbles- This is one of the very few things that I was actually aware of prior to the talk. The drilling of these ice cores enable scientists to analyse the air bubbles trapped within the ice cores and can then give some idea of the various gas components of the atmosphere several years ago. The disks that are collected are apparently sent to Cambridge for analysis, so it was particularly significant that this talk was held within the very place where the scientific data is collected. Using these ice cores, I think the scientists are attempting to map changes in the concentration of various gases in the atmosphere (like carbon dioxide, for an example).
The Antarctic Treaty- This intrigued me a lot because of the neat way in which Antarctica is divided according to which area is designated to which country. Despite the fact that the divisions seem quite strict, various articles within the treaty state that military activity within Antarctica is not permitted, although military personnel and equipment may be used to aid the scientific research that is been done within each country's respective bases.
Anne Miller also spoke about the wildlife surrounding the camps and bases. She showed pictures of various penguins, elephant seals and also told us stories about the consequences of crossing the path of leopard seals. The rather unusual aspect of Antarctica that she explained to us was that marine life were generally larger and lived for longer than usual due to their slower metabolism (which relates to the temperatures that they are living in). One of the most frightening aspects regarding the wildlife in the area was that many of the species are highly sensitive to changes in temperature. For you and I, a three degree increase in temperature may seem minute, but for some species that can mean the difference between survival and extinction.
Another rather intriguing aspect of the life in the Antarctic was that, even during the very late hours of the night, there would still be sunshine. Due to the increased intensity of the sunlight, a lot of protection had to be used to prevent any damage to the skin, which included sun creams at a high SPF.
One of the more important issues being discussed (other than the elephant seals that were blocking pathways between various buildings) was the part that Southern oceans play in the absorption of carbon dioxide. Apparently, these oceans absorb around 40% of the all of the world's carbon dioxide emissions. But, now scientists are puzzling over the possibility that this absorbed carbon dioxide may be re-released back into the atmosphere, which could have several dangerous implications on the global climate. Hopefully, some means of calculating whether this is indeed the case has been developed, after all, BAS were the first to realise the existence of the ozone hole.
Another possibility explored by scientists regarding the melting glaciers, is that currents around the Antarctic are bringing warmer sea water, which may be melting the the glaciers from underneath the surface. But, whatever cause the scientists identify for the melting of the glaciers may not necessarily have an impact on slowing down or stopping the effects that it is having on the wildlife around it. I hope that whatever discoveries are made will now be used in order to better the current situation that we are facing. However, outmanoeuvring nature is not an easy task.

Anne Miller also made an important point at the end, about the guilt that she felt at amassing such a large carbon footprint after the 33 hour flight which took her to her destination. She eventually paid it back, in terms of some sort of carbon gift to the Cambridge Carbon Footprint and she said that these days she is making a conscious effort to reduce her carbon footprint. Unfortunately, I couldn't say the same for myself because after the talk, I was forced to ask her directions to the closest bus stop, in order to catch a bus to the train station. Nowadays, it is so difficult to avoid such forms of transport due to its easy access and how impractical it is to walk and bike everywhere. But I fear that in years to come, we are all going to have to change our habits, otherwise we may end up putting the entire planet at risk. What do you think? I am intrigued to know because I am no climate expert or green activist, I am just interested in what the future may hold.

Adios. xxx

Wrote by Kyawijewardena

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