US Schools compete for Saudi students

MANHATTAN, Kan. - Thousands of students from Saudi Arabia are enrolling on college campuses across the United States this semester under a new
educational exchange program brokered by President Bush and Saudi King
Abdullah.

The program will quintuple the number of Saudi students and scholars here by the academic year's end. And big, public universities from Florida to the
Kansas plains are in a fierce competition for their tuition dollars.

The kingdom's royal family — which is paying full scholarships for most
of the 15,000 students — says the program will help stem unrest at home by
schooling the country's brightest in the American tradition. The U.S. State
Department sees the exchange as a way to build ties with future Saudi leaders
and young scholars at a time of unsteady relations with the Muslim
world.

Administrators at Kansas State University, an agricultural school
surrounded by miles of prairie grass, say the scholarships are a bonanza for
public education.

"The Saudi scholarship program has definitely heightened our interest in
that part of the world," said Kenneth Holland, associate provost for
international programs. "Not only are the students fully funded, but they're
also paying out-of-state tuition."

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I believe that this is a good way for Middle East students to prove that they are not what others think they are. Ever since the 9/11 attack, they have been branded by some as terrorists just because they come from the Middle East.

It is also a great way to learn about others' culture. I know that the Philippines has been sending foreign-exchange students here in the US, but I haven't heard anything about it yet.

I think it would be nice if US students would be able to be exchange students in third world countries. In this way, they would be aware of what really is going on in these countries, and they would be able to see how lucky they are compared to these countries.

TRIVIA #2

Winner of Trivia #1 is Mikmik

Answer: He had two hearts.

In December 1974, Dr.
Christian Barnard surgically implanted a second heart into a patient residing in
South Africa. However, Guiseppe De Mai was born with two hearts.

***

This isn't actually a trivia, it's a riddle..

A cat has one, a horse two - some animals have more.

An elephant has only three - while a crocodile had four.

What is it?

Post your answers in the comment box!

TRIVIA #1

In 1894, Giuseppe De Mai was paid $15,000 by the London Academy of Medicine for rights to study his body after his death. Why?

Post your answers in the comment box!

UNICEF

Public response to the tsunami tragedy in South Asia demonstrated what we can achieve when the world comes together. The tsunami crisis was of an unprecedented scale and therefore attracted an unprecedented level of aid and assistance. Yet away from the glare of the media spotlight, dozens of “forgotten emergencies” continue to smolder.

UNICEF is committed to assisting and protecting all children, everywhere, including those caught in forgotten crises.Several critical examples include:• The impact of nearly three decades of conflict, drought, displacement and internal isolation that has destroyed social structures for women and children in Afghanistan.

• The continuing conflict in Democratic Republic of Congo, which has taken the lives of nearly 4 million people in six years.

• The unfolding humanitarian emergency in Haiti that has led to violence, insecurity and the breakdown of law.

• The crisis in northern Uganda, which UNICEF Executive Director Bellamy calls “one of the worst emergencies facing children anywhere.”

• The situation in southern Sudan, where a recent peace accord is creating new hope, and in the western Darfur region, which was considered perhaps the world's most pressing humanitarian hotspot until the tsunamis struck.

Total UNICEF funding requested for its humanitarian emergency relief efforts in 2005 is $763 million. This figure reflects the magnitude of the task ahead, and the sheer scope of the humanitarian crises we face today -- and every donation helps:

• Just $5 can provide an emergency health kit for one person for three months, with medical supplies and drugs to cover basic health needs.

• $87 can provide a basic family water kit for ten households, with detergent, soap, wash basin, towels, bucket and water purification tablets.

• $188 can provide one "School-in-a-Box" kit containing basic education supplies for 80 children during times of crisis.

Children cannot wait. Even a short crisis can have deep effects on them. I therefore ask you to help UNICEF increase its support to children in emergencies. We can’t let them be forgotten.Click here to donate.

[TV] Standoff

I just finished watching the premiere of the new show, Standoff, @ Fox. It wasn't your typical crime scene police stuff [e.g. CSI, Law and Order, The Closer, etc.] It was about negotiators. You know those who negotiate with kidnappers and stuff. Well, yeah basically that was what the whole show was about plus the thing going on between the two protagonists. It was nice, although I was bored in some parts of the show.

Let's see how the show will go. It's on Tuesdays, 9/8c @ FOX.