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Watching the World

Melting Glacier Archaeology

Retreating glaciers expose many remains that are of great interest to historians, says the German newsmagazine Der Spiegel. In 1999 in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, such a glacier revealed an Indian male who had died 550 years ago. Most remains, however, have been found in the Alps. For example, the remains of a man who was thought to have left his girlfriend and illegitimate child in the lurch in 1949 were recently found. He had actually fallen into a crevasse, and the engagement rings were in his bag. According to Harald Stadler, head of glacier archaeology at Austria’s Innsbruck University, the historian’s dream is to find items relating to Hannibal, the famous Carthaginian commander who crossed the Alps with 37 elephants. “An elephant bone would be a sensation,” he said.

Teen Gambling

According to the International Centre for Youth Gambling at McGill University, “more than half of Canadian youngsters aged 12 to 17 are considered recreational gamblers, 10% to 15% are at risk for developing a severe problem and 4% to 6% are considered ‘pathological gamblers,’” reports Toronto’s National Post newspaper. The allure often begins in early childhood when some children receive lottery tickets as gifts or use the Internet to bet on-line. The result, say researchers, is that more Canadian teenagers now engage in gambling than in other addictive behaviors, such as smoking or drug abuse. Educators hope that teen gambling-prevention programs at Canadian high schools will be effective in curbing the problem.

France Felt the Heat

Temperatures in France hit all-time records during the first 12 days of August 2003. Never—since temperatures began to be recorded in 1873—had Paris gone through such a hot summer. “According to [the French meteorologic services], this heat wave, in its intensity and duration, beat anything previously experienced there,” reports the nature magazine Terre sauvage. In just two months, one glacier in the Pyrenees, on France’s southern border, retreated some 150 feet [50 m]. “In 150 years the total surface area of Pyrenean glaciers has gone from ten or eleven square miles [25-30 sq km] to two square miles [5 sq km],” said glaciologist Pierre René. Is this evidence of global warming? Experts remain divided. However, it is the opinion of some meteorologists that heat waves are likely to become a more common phenomenon in the years to come—a worrisome possibility in view of the fact that the torrid heat of last summer is estimated to have caused nearly 15,000 deaths in France.

Male Depression

“One of the saddest things about depression is the lingering myth that it is mostly a ‘female disorder’ from which ‘real men’ are genetically protected,” states The Star newspaper of Johannesburg. “Specialists say depression remains hidden in men because men visit health professionals less often than women, with less opportunity to talk about their problems,” and they are less able “to articulate emotional distress.” So doctors are more familiar with symptoms that are common in female victims of depression. “In women,” explains JAMA, “depression has a notably different constellation of symptoms than in men.” What are some of the symptoms common in male depression? Anger, fatigue, irritability, aggression, a drop in work performance, and a tendency for the sufferer to isolate himself from loved ones and friends. “Sadness,” adds a South African edition of Reader’s Digest, “doesn’t always accompany depression—especially for men.”

Catholic Priests and Bible Knowledge

“How well acquainted with the Bible are priests?” This question was posed by Andrea Fontana, who is himself a priest and the director of the Turin Diocesan Office for Catechism. Writing in the Italian Catholic newspaper Avvenire, Fontana said that the question came to mind when “a layman approached [him] to ask if the diocese had any Bible study courses.” In the layman’s parish, “the Holy Scriptures were never mentioned.” In answer Fontana wrote: “In truth, after the seminary courses [priests] attend, sadly, few continue to study the Bible. . . . Sunday homilies are often the only moment in which many of the faithful have the opportunity to hear something about the Bible text and draw close to it.” The layman had said that “he himself associated with Jehovah’s Witnesses to learn more.”

Problems Connected With Obesity

Obesity is increasing in America. According to estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of obese American adults has increased from 12.5 percent of the population in 1991 to 20 percent in 2003. This increase has affected a number of businesses. “Like the airline industry, which was warned in May [2003] that passengers were heavier than they used to be, and was asked to adjust weight estimates accordingly, the funeral industry is retooling to make room for ever-larger Americans,” notes The New York Times. While the standard coffin is 24 inches [61 cm] wide, coffins are now available up to 49 inches [124 cm] in width and suitably reinforced. “Vaults, graves, hearses and even the standardized scoop on the front-end loaders that cemeteries use for grave-digging” have also had to be increased in size. “People are living larger and they’re dying larger, and industries have to adapt to that situation,” states Allen Steadham, executive director of an advocacy group for the obese.

“The Dead Sea Is Dying”

“The Dead Sea is dying, and only a major engineering effort can save it,” states an Associated Press dispatch. The Dead Sea—so called because its high salt content makes it impossible for aquatic creatures to live in it—is the earth’s lowest body of water, 1,320 feet [400 m] below sea level. “For millennia, the balance [between high evaporation and incoming water] was maintained by the Dead Sea’s only water source, the Jordan River,” says the article. “In recent decades, however, both Israel and Jordan have been tapping in to irrigate large swaths of agricultural land along the narrow river that divides the two countries, robbing the Dead Sea of its replacement water.” If nothing is done, says an Israeli study, the water level will continue to drop by up to three feet [1 m] a year, with devastating consequences to the surrounding land, including its wildlife and vegetation. A five-year drought is already adding to the woes of the Dead Sea.