Going away for Spring break? This is a smart way to pack your shoes! Keep those white sun dresses and shorts clean. Store your shoes inside shower caps to stop dirty soles rubbing on your clothes. Don’t own a shower cap? No problem! You can find one in just about every hotel room!
Welcome to another edition of Weekly Newsmakers – your source for summaries of fascinating news and events. With St. Patrick’s Day approaching, our Newsmaker this week and the Free in NYC events below are appropriately themed as such. Enjoy!
U.S. Demands China Block Cyberattacks and Agree to Rules – New York Times (Editor’s Pick)
The White House demanded Monday that the Chinese government cease any attempts to break into American computer networks. The public announcement was issued two days after China’s foreign minister, Yang Jiechi, refuted claims that the Chinese military had hacked into American corporations and some government agencies. The White House urges China to address the issue of hackers in China and to help create global standards in ethical online usage. In the past, U.S. officials have avoided singling out China’s connection to cyberespionage, as the White House is working with China to contain North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs. Should the U.S. have called out China for the Cyberattacks earlier? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.
Judge Halts New York City Ban on Large Sugary Drinks – CNN
This week, a New York state trial judge curbed Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to prohibit the sale of sugary beverages over 16 oz. in size in locales such as ballparks, restaurants, and movie theaters. Many brands of sodas, energy drinks, fruit juice/drinks, and sweetened teas would have been covered by the ban. However, supermarkets and convenience stores would not have been affected by the mayor’s plans. Bloomberg believes that stopping the sale of sugary drinks over 16 oz. would help control the obesity issue in New York where an estimated four of every ten New Yorkers are obese. “We believe that the judge’s decision was clearly in error and that we will prevail on appeal,” Bloomberg told reporters. Where do you stand on the sugar debate? Should NYC allow vendors to sell sugary drinks of any size or ban sugary drinks over 16 oz.? Voice your opinions below.
Need some post-midterms stress relief? Try these events – almost certain to cheer you up from your test-taking blues!
Arias and Irish Songs – Weissman Center Reports
Ring in St. Patty’s Day with a free concert! The Underworld Productions Opera will be at YMYHWA of Washington Heights/Inwood for a limited engagement this Sunday at 2 PM. Enjoy Moore’s Ballad of Baby Doe, Danny Boy, When Irish Eyes are Smiling, and Mozart’s Abduction of the Seraglio and Don Giovanni, amongst many others. RSVP required at [email protected] Details: here.
Leprechaun Hike – Weissman Center Reports
Need an excuse to visit Staten Island? You’ve got one! On the Leprechaun Hike, join in exploration for treasure and hike a mile-long path through Greenbelt Nature Center. Dress warmly and comfortably. Register via email ([email protected]) or call 718-351-3450 to make sure there’s still space on the hike. Details: here.
MOCA Thursdays – Weissman Center Reports
In case you didn’t get a chance to visit last week, don’t miss out on free admission to the The Museum of Chinese in America every Thursday this month! Weaving rich history and culture into their insightful galleries, the experience is something visitors of all ages will enjoy. Details: http://www.mocanyc.org/
With just a few clicks, Kickstarter can help you propel your ideas and make them a reality. The website, which has been functioning since 2009, allows people to raise funds for just about any project through crowd funding. The first question that may come to mind is how much money can really be accumulated through sponsoring over the internet? Just ask Pebble Technology, a start-up company that was able to raise 10.2 million dollars for their E-Paper Watch with almost 70,000 backers. The company far exceeded its $100,000 goal, as many projects do.
Companies may offer an incentive for funding their project but essentially, people are pledging money because they believe in the success of the project. They believe in the business owner’s idea and want to see it come to fruition.
There are thousands of good ideas that are waiting to be sponsored, from gadgets to books and even food! Although some don’t always reach their goal, having ones company featured on Kickstarter is good exposure. People are always browsing the site and looking for a project to invest in. If you’ve got a great idea, post it up on Kickstarter; you never know if it’ll be the next million dollar start-up.
Save Time in the Kitchen!
Its nearly midterms and no one really has time to chop vegetables for dinner so here’s a pro tip for mid-week meals. Prepare all the ingredients for multiple slow cooker meals at once, then dump them in to bags and freeze them. When you’re ready to cook, simply take a bag out, throw the ingredients in to the cooker and turn it on. Find recipes and details at Mama and Baby Love.
Target currently has a Black Quart Slow Cooker (Crock-pot) on sale for $34.99! This pot allows you to cook a healthy meal in an efficient way!
Here are a few top companies with fun work environments and special perks! Be sure to attend some events listed at the end of this article to see how you can get your foot in the door!
1.Google Inc. – Widely known as a popular search engine, this internet corporation has five rounds of interviews and is known as one of the hardest jobs to land.
Some of the cool benefits they offer include: free gourmet food, an on-site medical center, travel insurance, a bowling alley, paid maternity leave and free concierge service for running errands.
2.Microsoft Corporation – This multinational software company is famous for tricky questions asked at interviews. It is also the largest software maker in the world based on revenue.
Great bonuses include: electric car charging stations, retail shop center, paid gym memberships, a sports field and an organic spa.
3.SAS Institute – The world’s largest private software company responsible of developing analytic software. Their software (also called SAS) is used by most Fortune 500 companies. Some privileges they provide: unlimited sick days, on-site child care centers, discounts on local retailers, free fitness centers and college scholarship programs for children of SAS employees.
In order to land these openings, you must be able to stand out against other applicants. Because these roles are coveted, fixing up your resume and cover letter is not enough; the ability to network and have a presence plays an important role as well.
Here are some events going on around campus that can hopefully help you earn parks in the future: Presenting You and Your Business, The Art of Networking, or How to Use Creativity to Move Your Career Forward.
Welcome to another edition of Weekly Newsmakers – your source for news and events with an international focus. We hope that you are preparing diligently for midterms (which are fast approaching). For those fortunate enough to have some elusive downtime, the free events at the bottom of this post might help re-energize you for the coming weeks.
Cabinet Picks Could Take On Climate Policy – New York Times (Editor’s Pick)
Among the major factors in trying to refashion the American way of producing and consuming energy, President Obama’s nominees will have to tackle the Keystone XL pipeline decision, which entails transporting crude oil from Canada to refineries in Texas. However, the Keystone pipeline poses a number of potential environment problems: risk of oil spills which could would devastate the surrounding landscape, and that petroleum extraction from tar sands creates significant amounts of greenhouse emissions. Do you think the Keystone XL project is worth the environmental risks? Tell us in the comments area below.
Researchers: Toddler cured of HIV – CNN (Editor’s Pick)
This Sunday, a baby had been cured of an H.I.V. infection for the first time in history. Doctors treated the infant with an aggressive treatment procedure by administering antiretroviral drugs early, around 30 hours after birth, a methodology that was rarely practiced. The findings are astonishing, and if trials on other babies conclude positive results, the procedure may hold the key to decreasing the large number of children living around the world with the H.I.V. virus (the UN estimates that 330,000 babies were newly infected in 2011). Medical researchers are currently studying whether the ‘aggressive treatment’ can work for other babies.
As Hacking Against U.S. Rises, Experts Try to Pin Down Motive – New York Times
Many theories about China’s motives in hacking into American websites including Telvent, a company that monitors more than half the oil and gas pipelines in North America and the computers of the New York Times have arisen the past few months. Perhaps China was planting bugs into American systems so they could cut off energy supplies and shut down the power grid if the United States and China ever confronted each other in the Pacific, rummaging for industrial secrets, or trying to steal American technologies and pass it along to China’s own energy companies. However, some researchers now believe that the Chinese attacks on American networks were cyber-espionage efforts to bolster the Chinese economy.
Thursdays at MoCA – Weissman Center Reports
Every Thursday, hop on the 6 down to Chinatown and enjoy free admission at The Museum of Chinese in America (MoCA), bringing Chinese history and culture to the public, with accessible and interactive exhibitions. Every Thursday, admission is free. Experience MOCA’s newest show, With a Single Step: Stories in the Making of America, an exhibition spanning several generations of Chinese Americans, their contributions and hardships, and the highly contextualized politics between the Chinese and American governments. Location: 215 Centre Street. Thursday Hours: 11 AM – 9 PM. Details: http://www.mocanyc.org/
Fisher Landau Center for Art Presents: Nancy Dwyer – Weissman Center Reports
Take a trip to Queens this weekend and check out an art exhibit celebrating 30 years of avant-garde art by Nancy Dwyer. She and other “Pictures Generation” artists working in the 1970s – ’80s reproduced and appropriated images, graphics, and text from media and advertising. Dwyer’s work utilizes words and images in unexpected contexts, accentuating and subduing contextual meanings. Complimentary admission Thursdays through Mondays, from now to April 6th. Details: http://www.flcart.org/