An Apple a Day: The Most (and Least) Healthy States

The Most and Least Healthy States. The green states are the top 10 sickest states, while the pink ones are the 10 most healthy.

Using data from the United States Census Bureau and social media reports, Sickweather, a company that peruses social media fro sick reports, the most and least healthy states of 2014. Sickweather looked into social media reports of allergies, flu, cough, colds and fever for the first 10 months of 2014 to calculate the number of sick reports per thousand people in the state. Their results have been reproduced below:

Least Healthy States:

1. Kansas- 3.96 sick reports per thousand people
2. Nevada- 3.26
3. Kentucky- 3.25
4. Texas- 3.10 
5. West Virginia- 2.99
6. Oregon- 2.95
7. Indiana- 2.91 
8. Oklahoma- 2.72
9. Massachusetts- 2.63
10. Nebraska- 2.48

Most Healthy States:

1. Idaho- 1.16 sick reports per thousand people
2. New York- 1.16
3. Mississippi- 1.22
4. Montana- 1.24
5. Vermont- 1.38
6. Washington- 1.39
7. Maine- 1.39
8. New Jersey- 1.41 
9. New Hampshire- 1.48
10. Utah- 1.48

Zimbabwe Gives an Early Christmas Gift

This week Zimbabwe has given its people an early Christmas gift. After abandoning its original currency five years ago, Zimbabwe currently uses the US dollar and the South African rand as its currency despite very few coins of these money in circulation. As a result, most shoppers were simply given arbitrary items for change such as candy. So, leading up to Christmas, this week the central bank of Zimbabwe reintroduced coins of the original Zimbabwe dollar into circulation. However, the government insists that the nation will not return to using the Zimbabwe dollar in the near future.

The economy of Zimbabwe grew unstable in the latter part of the first decade of the 21st century. Hyperinflation caused the government to start printing Zimbabwe dollar notes worth $100 trillion. Prices fluctuated hourly, and 80% of the population was unemployed. Abandoning the Zimbabwe dollar in favor of the US dollar and South African rand has helped stabilize the economy, though many Zimbabweans still face harsh financial difficulties.

Geopolitics of the Papacy

The Catholic Church is emerging as a world diplomatic influence again after the relatively dormant papacy of Benedict XVI. United States President Barack Obama announced this week that he and Cuban president Raul Castro have agreed to reopen American-Cuban relations and that this agreement was brokered by Pope Francis.

It makes sense that Pope Francis would make his first attempts at diplomacy in the Western Hemisphere. Francis is the first Latin American pope and the first pope from outside of Europe since Gregory III of Syria in 741. Unlike Pope John Paul II, who is famous for condemning communism in Easter Europe after growing up a Pole in communist Poland, Francis isn't from Europe and therefore isn't as familiar with European problems and diplomacy. Instead, Francis chose an arena that he is familiar with as the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires - the Americas. So, Francis and the Vatican diplomats facilitated the talks between the United States and Cuba, ending over 50 years of cold relations between the two nations.

However, Francis is not limited to the troubles of the Western Hemisphere. The Vatican's location in the heart of Italy allows him to address the geopolitical issues of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. In fact, Francis has already begun calling for a halt of religious persecution in the Middle East and successfully called for the release of Meriam Ibrahim, an Ethiopian Christian sentenced to death for her faith. While these examples demonstrate this pope's willingness to call out for those in need around the world, they do not actually involve any concrete diplomacy and influence as the United States-Cuba agreement did. However, such options will  be available to Francis now that he has already started work as a world diplomat.

As previously mentioned, the Vatican used to enjoy a large influence on world politics. From before the Middle Ages and into the Reformation, the Papacy had a large amount of authority over governments as it was considered to be the ultimate religious authority on earth. After the unification of Italy (of which the Pope did not approve), the Vatican lost its influence over politics until the rise of the fascists in Italy in the 1920's when the Vatican became a separate entity with the Lateran Treaty. However, the Vatican was not nearly restored to its previous prestige and influence until the papacy of John Paul II who was an ardent anti-communist. In the 1980's, the work of John Paul II as a diplomat was so important that many consider him to be as important as Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan in the fall of communism in Eastern Europe. John Paul II's successor was rather inactive in world diplomacy, but with this move by Pope Francis to reopen United States-Cuba relations, the Vatican may be returning as leader of world politics.

Teaching the Midterm Elections

The results of this year's midterm elections. Some states have not yet had Senate and/or gubernatorial races called. Those states have been shaded neither red nor blue.

The midterm elections provide a perfect opportunity to teach about geography! Examine the maps of results of the races. Have your students look for similarities between geographically close states (for example, the South). Explore social and historical connections that could explain the trends in color for certain geographic regions.

Midterm elections and election maps obviously also provide an opportunity to discuss the political system in the United States: the two party system, the Senate (especially term lengths and number of Senators per state), the House of Representatives (same distinguishing factors as the Senate), and the importance of governorships. Last, explain the importance of having a majority in the House and Senate, especially considering the political party of the president.

World Ebola Snapshot

The deadly Ebola virus, which has ravaged West Africa since December 2013, is starting to appear around the world, threatening to start pandemic. Many nations are receiving patients medically evacuated from West Africa (the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Norway). However, for Spain receiving a medically evacuated patient turned into its first Ebola case. A health care worker contracted the virus while working on a medically evacuated Ebola patient. In the United States, three states have accepted Ebola patients due to their biocontainment units: Georgia (Atlanta), Maryland (Bethesda), and Nebraska (Omaha). A fourth similar biocontainment unit is located in Montana. The first case in the United States appeared in Dallas, Texas, from a Liberian man visiting family. Subsequently, two nurses contracted Ebola, and one of them was allowed to board an airplane and fly to Ohio to visit family. Ohio now has 18 quarantined people who have come in contact with this second health care worker.

According to health officials, Ebola is only contagious when a patient is symptomatic. The first symptom is a fever which devolves into vomiting, diarrhea, and internal and external bleeding. Moreover, the virus is only communicable through close contact with infected body fluids, with blood, feces, and vomit being the most contagious. Unlike the flu, Ebola is not airborne at this time, so it cannot be spread through casual contact, like sitting next to someone at a movie theater. Last, the Ebola virus only has a dry life of several hours and is cleaned using bleach and other hospital disinfectants.

Will the Scottish Referendum Doom ISIS?

This week, Scottish voters rejected the opportunity to declare independence from the United Kingdom with 55.3% favoring to continue the union with the UK that has been officially been in place since 1707. Rejecting independence save Prime Minister David Cameron's authority as leader of the United Kingdom. Many analysts predicted that Cameron would be removed from his post if the Scots chose to secede and that Cameron would lose his credibility as Prime Minister. Surely, Scottish independence would have sent Cameron's administration spinning and scrambling to salvage its rule.

Such scrambling would force Cameron to become less active in talks for a global coalition to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). First, Scotland houses all of the United Kingdom's nuclear submarines, and its independence would force the relocation of these, threatening the safety of the United Kingdom and NATO. Moreover, many Scottish separatists supported withdrawing from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization upon independence, weakening the group as it prepares to deal with the growing threat of ISIS as more violence appear imminent. United States President Barack Obama knew that Scottish independence would doom his plan to stop ISIS, tweeting the day before the referendum, "The UK is an extraordinary partner for America and a force for good in an unstable world. I hope it remains strong, robust and united."

Some intelligence experts postulated that ISIS was aware of the referendum's importance, too. The British professor Anthony Glees, a respected intelligence analyst, claimed that ISIS chose to execute Scottish humanitarian aid worker David Haines one week before the referendum to undermine the authority and credibility of Cameron.

The referendum comes during the same week as France's first airstrikes in Syria to combat ISIS and the Australian Federal Police's arrest of 15 ISIS-linked terrorists who allegedly planned to behead innocent civilians in highly populated areas. This was the largest counter-terrorism operation in Australia's history.

Will Russia Invade Ukraine? Part 2

Tensions are mounting in eastern Ukraine, as Ukrainian officials declared that 280 trucks that are supposed to be carrying humanitarian aid from Russia to the battle-weary Ukrainian city of Luhansk would not be permitted to cross the border into Ukraine. The spokesperson for Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Andriy Lysenko has said that the convoy could not enter Ukraine because it had not been certified by the Red Cross. In fact, Lysenko showed video evidence that the trucks originated a military base in Russia. World leaders have expressed fears that sending Russian aid to Ukraine could be a precursor to a boots-on-the-ground invasion of Ukraine. Last week, United States President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and British Prime Minister David Cameron issued statements which warned that an invasion would violate international law. However, many have accused this declaration as being too lenient, providing no consequences for Russia if it were to invade Ukraine.

If Russia were to invade Ukraine, it would not face much of a challenge.

Russia has been on a military buildup near the Ukraine border in recent days. Lysenko recently told the New York Times that Russia has 45,000 troops on the border backed up by 160 tanks, 1,360 armored vehicles, 390 artillery systems, 150 truck-mounted ground-to-ground rocket launchers, 192 fighter jets, and 137 helicopters. In fact, NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, told Reuters that there were no signs that Russia had withdrawn troops from the border and that a Russian invasion was "highly probable."

 Eastern Ukraine has been in complete control of the rebels since April, including control of the major cities of Donetsk and Luhansk. As a result, Russia would find the support of the people in eastern Ukraine, making their advance easy. The Russian military is better trained, better prepared for a conflict, and larger than the Ukrainian army; any military engagements between the two would, barring any unforeseen complications, result in a Russian victory, which could entice them to move towards Kiev.

Russia has already claimed Crimea from Ukraine through a referendum, and Russia would like control of the oil pipelines that cross Ukraine. In many ways, Russia and its president Vladimir Putin view Ukraine as its irredenta, as Ukraine was under control of Russia long before it became a Soviet Socialist Republic. In addition, the rebels in eastern Ukraine consider themselves part of "New Russia" - only after Putin coined the term.

Saving Las Vegas

Credit: U.S. Geological Survey
Department of the Interior/USGS
U.S. Geological Survey/photo by Alicia Burtner

Las Vegas has been in the middle of a drought for 14 years, and its running out of water. Las Vegas gets 90% of its water from Lake Mead which was created by the Hoover Dam in 1936. Lake Mead is now only half full, and Las Vegas has experienced a population explosion over the past 10 years, growing from 400,000 to 2 million. A climate scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Tim Barnett, predicts that Lake Mead may provide no water to Las Vegas by 2036. "The situation is as bad as you can imagine," said Barnett.

In terms of a solution, no long term option has been enacted. Las Vegas attempted to build a $15.5 billion pipeline to bring groundwater in an aquifer from 260 miles away in rural Nevada. However, environmentalists sued the city over the plan over how the pipeline would affect endangered species. A judge then refused the city's pipeline plan. Las Vegas has reached out to nearby California for help in dealing with its water shortage. However, California has so far refused as the entire state is dealing with its own "severe drought" that could last many years. Lake Mead is fueled by the Colorado River, and Las Vegas has looked into taking water from other parts of the river. However, the entire river - not just Lake Mead - is drying up. Recently, scientists released a "pulse flow" of water on the Colorado River near the United States-Mexico border, causing water from the river to reach the Gulf of California for the first time since 1998.

The extravagance that is Las Vegas lends itself to wasting water. Las Vegas uses 219 gallons of water per person per day, while other cities use much less (San Francisco uses 49 gallons per person per day). Some water conservations efforts have been put in place though. For example, hotels and resorts are removing grass and plants that require a lot of water. Some people are even removing their lawns to cut down on water consumption.

If Baghdad Falls...

The nation and the world have been on high alert for over a week after militants from the al-Qaeda affiliated group the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) captured Mosul and Fallujah. After the fall of these two major Iraqi cities, the ISIS insurgents are on an uncontested march to Baghdad, the capital of Iraq. If the Iraqi government falls, coupled with ISIS' gains in an unstable Syria, many fear that al-Qaeda will use Iraq as a launching ground for terrorist attacks against the West, especially the United States. For this reason, United States president Barack Obama is considering air strikes in Iraq and is sending 300 "military advisers" to the Iraqi military. (Sending "military advisers" to a foreign war is nothing new for the United States. John F. Kennedy sent "military advisers" to Vietnam as the civil war there was beginning.)

IF Baghdad falls, don't expect ISIS to sit on their laurels and be content with Iraq. These militants come from an fundamentalist Islamic ideology. They see themselves on a mission to spread their brand of fundamental Islam throughout the world; it's their jihad. So, where would ISIS strike next?

Well, certainly ISIS would continue to make gains in Syria as its civil war rages on. However, don't expect Syria to fall like Iraq. Bashar al-Assad will continue his stranglehold on Syria using whatever means to do so with backing from Russia and Iran.

Jordan would likely be the next big target for ISIS. In Jordan, King Abdullah holds most of the power over the government. If the king were to fall, then ISIS would control the vast oil reserves in Jordan. It is estimated that 60% of Jordan houses oil. With this oil, ISIS could join the oil trade or use the oil to fuel further insurgencies and attacks. 

The fall of Jordan also provides ISIS with uninhibited access to Israel. ISIS abhors the Jewish (and Christian) presence in the Middle East. Surely, ISIS would join in the Palestinian cause to remove the Jewish state. ISIS would continue to persecute the Christians and Jewish citizens of the Middle East, leading to more refugees and more religious conflict.

We also could see a repeat of 1990, with and ISIS-controlled Iraq invading Kuwait. Like in 1990, Kuwait today controls, to a major extent, the world's oil trade. Oil prices worldwide would sky-rocket; some analysts predict nearly $5 per gallon.

After Jordan and Kuwait, some speculate that ISIS would start a campaign into Saudi Arabia. However, Saudi Arabia is a very large and powerful nation, and its fall would be unlikely. But, Saudi Arabia would definitely be on ISIS' radar screen. Saudi Arabia is home to 20% of the world's oil supplies, and if Saudi Arabia were to fall then oil prices worldwide would see a major spike. This would also boost nations with oil potential to start producing the fuel. These nations include the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Moreover, don't forget that ISIS is on a jihad for their faith. Suadi Arabia is home to the two holy cities of Islam: Medina and Mecca. Capturing Saudi Arabia and these cities would send a message to other Islamic nations that ISIS is a major player in the Middle East.

Last, don't expect ISIS to invade Iran. The ISIS insurgents are part of the Sunni branch of Islam, while Iran is part of the Shiite branch of Islam. The divide between the two branches originated after Muhammad died; the two branches disagreed over who should succeed Muhammad. As a result, the two branches are at odds, even today, over their faith. ISIS would not want to invade a Shiite Iran due to this religious divide.

With that said, let's remember that Baghdad is still controlled by the Iraqis. ISIS has not gained control of Iraq as of yet. None of these scenarios can be carried out as of now, but don't be surprised if they happen if ISIS topples Baghdad.