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经济学家呼吁关注受高学费影响的大学生Soaring College Costs Prompt Concern From Students, EconomistsWASHINGTON Washingtons Republicans and Democrats are haggling over how to finance higher education, including details like the interest rates that students pay for loans. Recent graduates, who are burdened with an average of $26,000 in loans, are watching the debate closely. But some economists say the real issue is controlling the soaring cost of college at a time when post-secondary schooling is crucial to getting a good job and a middle class salary. Experts say these high costs are hurting the whole economy, not just students and their families. Joshua Jordan earned a doctorate degree in physical therapy. He hopes to open his own practice someday, and says having the expensive graduate degree is good for his patients - but hard on his wallet. “I am currently in debt for $210,000,” he said. Jordans loans are eight times larger than those of the average student. He says it might take him 20 years to pay them off, and he sometimes has had to work two jobs concurrently to meet his bills. For the past 30 years, college tuition has been going up at twice the rate of inflation, and private colleges now charge an average of more than $30,000 a year. Universities say theyre caught between record-high enrollments, a workforce of professors who have the skills to find work elsewhere if they are not well paid, and falling financial support from state governments. Terry Hartle speaks for The American Council on Education which represents thousands of colleges and universities across the United States. Its a terrible conundrum that we face as a country. We want more and more post-secondary education. We want more focus on academic quality and graduation. At the same time, the funding sources for higher education have been diminishing for a generation, said Hartle. While these students made it to graduation, experts worry the high cost of college makes it less likely that bright students from poor families will attend college, depriving the economy of some of the scientists, engineers and others who could help boost growth. And a survey shows that some students concerned about repaying thousands of dollars in loans are putting off marriage, children, and the major purchases that usually go along with forming a family. Peter Mazareas, who is with the College Savings Foundation, said, These students will not contribute to the economy. They will go home and live at home. They wont buy cars. They wont invest in housing, so there is a real multiplier effect that is short term. Georgetown University Labor Economist Anthony Carnevale said the current system is unsustainable for families and cuts economic growth for the whole country. The effects on economic growth of failing to produce post secondary talent are substantial. If we had kept up with demand for post secondary talent, economists estimate that we would be at about $500 billion more per year in gross domestic product, that is people would have more money to spend. There would have been a higher productivity rate, said Carnevale. Meanwhile, Jordan said his family is not wealthy and could not have paid for so many years in so many colleges on the way to a PhD. “There would have been no way I could have created a career for myself that I wanted to do without the use of student loans,” he said. So for him, it is worth it. Global Health Faces Big Industry ChallengesThe 8th Global Conference on Health Promotion is underway in Helsinki, Finland. The meeting focuses on how public policy can meet the health challenges of a growing and changing global population. WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan says the challenges facing public health have changed enormously since the start of the 21st Century. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan warns of the risks of unhealthy lifestyles.She said that health is being shaped by ageing, rapid urbanization and the globalization of unhealthy lifestyles. “Under the pressure of these forces, chronic noncommunicable diseases have overtaken infectious diseases as the leading cause or morbidity, disability and mortality. As stated in the United Nations Political Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases, prevention must be the cornerstone of the global response to these costly, deadly and demanding diseases.” For example, she said the costs for advanced cancer care are unsustainable, even in rich nations. In some countries, 15 percent of the health budget is devoted to diabetes. “In the developing world, the cost of these diseases can easily cancel out the benefits of economic gain,” she said. Dr. Chan said that its getting more difficult to get people to adopt healthy lifestyles. Behavior change faces opposition “unfriendly forces.” “Efforts to prevent noncommunicable diseases go against business interests. And these are powerful economic operators. It is not just Big Tobacco anymore. Public health must also contend with Big Food, Big Soda and Big Alcohol. All of these industries fear regulation and protect themselves by using the same tactics,” she said. The WHO Director-general said those tactics include “front groups, lobbies, promises of self-regulation, lawsuits and industry funded research that confuses the evidence and keeps the public in doubt.” The Global Conference on Health Promotion runs through June 14th.Its Hip to be Asian in the USLOS ANGELES Asian Americans growing up in the United States, especially in Southern California, are having a different experience than their counterparts 20 to 30 years ago. There is a growing sense of Asian American pride and a unique cultural identity that has made it “hip” to be Asian in the U.S. On any evening, after 9:00 p.m., college students and professionals pack the Factory Tea Bar. But the bar serves no alcohol; there is only sweetened tea, often served with ice, milk and an import from Taiwan: large chewy tapioca pearls called boba. “The boba place is unique to Asian people and so, if you want that Asian comfort, you come to a boba place, explained Tiffany Porter, a U.S-born Chinese-American, and so you can feel at home with a lot of other Asian people.” Porter is part of what sociologist Oliver Wang calls the boba generation. “I think the boba generation, if you will, can span everything from todays teenagers up through people probably my generation. Im in my early 40s now. It covers a good 20 years or so,” he explained. Wang said in the last 20 to 30 years, what it means to be Asian in Southern California has changed. He said when he was growing up, Asian Americans felt invisible. ”We performed well academically but we werent necessarily at the top of the internal cultural hierarchy that existed within schools or within a community, and I think thats been a huge shift in this area in the last 20 or 30 years, noted Wang. Wang said this generation grew up seeing more Asian faces on television - locally and through satellite. They are no longer stereotyped, he said, and they now can see how other Asians portray themselves - as trendy, like in this music video Boba Life by comedians called The Fung Brothers. “I know boba is even more ubiquitous in Taiwan than here, but they dont have the same culture built around it,” said David Fung, one of the Fung Brothers. Boba culture in Southern California has been embraced by people who came from across Asia, including Indonesian-American Lina Yaori who socializes at boba cafes. “We like relaxing. We like chatting, she remarked. And then we like to enjoy the drink.” Chatchawat Rienkhemaniyom may be from Thailand, but he knew boba teas have widespread appeal. Thats why he opened the Factory Tea Bar. Business is booming. “Boba has become life, become one of their life, a part of their life,” he said. And that Asian-American lifestyle is spreading across the U.S. “On every college campus, theres enough Asian people, theres enough Chinese people, Taiwanese people, where theyre going to have one boba shop no matter how crappy it is, and all the Asians know about it,” Andrew Fung stated. Boba cafes have become a symbol of a cultural shift among Americanized Asians. Theyre still in touch with their ethnic roots but also take pride in being uniquely Asian American.网络公开课或推动高校变革Online Classes May Force Changes at Universities U.S. colleges face a perfect storm of problems as tuition costs soar, opportunities for graduates sag, and employers complain they cannot find enough workers with key technical skills. One solution may be found in the growing number and quality of online classes. The digital revolution might transform universities the way the Internet has already changed music, publishing, journalism, retail, and other businesses. 美国高校面临一场麻烦的“完美风暴”：学费上涨，学生就业机会减少，雇主找不到掌握核心科技的人才。网上课堂越来越多且越来越好，教育变革在所难免。类似于计算机变革了音乐、出版、新闻、零售等行业，数码革命将推动高校变革。 This is pretty amazing, said the University of Virginias David Evans, teaching an online introduction to Computer Science. “这真神奇”，弗吉尼亚大学的David Evans说，他开办计算机科学的网上课程。 Online classes are now taught by many top universities and offer everything from computer programing to the science of cooking. Many classes are either free or inexpensive, and are updated more quickly than regular college curricula. 许多一流大学开办了网上公开课，教授从计算机编程到科学烹饪的课程。很多课程费用低或免费，而且更新速度比常规学校的课程更快。 Thats important to the millions of students who learn technical and other skills from L. Co-founder Lynda Weinman said, “We can come to market very quickly and we can teach transient skills, so a lot of software is changing constantly and new software is being invented, and those sorts of things cannot easily make their way into college curriculum.” 数百万学生能从L学习科技等技能，这很重要。创办者之一Lynda Weinman说，“我们能快速教授学生短期技能，很多软件不断革新，新的软件不断问世。而这些是传统课程无法轻易做到的。”Instead of the professor lecturing to students, who then do research, study, and homework alone, many online classes flip that around, according to student and blogger John Haber, who said he is taking enough online classes to earn a four-year college degree in just one year. 传统课程中，教授讲课然后学生独自研究、学习、做作业。博主John Haber是一名学生，他认为网上课程与传统课程正好相反。他说为了在一年内获得本科文凭，报了很多网上公开课。 “They are watching the lectures at home as homework, recorded lectures, and when they get to class, they are having more active discussions, or interactions with the teachers or working on projects, he explained. 他解释道，“学生可以把在家看演讲当做家庭作业并做好笔记。他们进入网上课堂后，参与讨论、与老师互动、研究项目都会更积极。” Experts say the new technology will have a “major impact” on colleges. And some predict future classes may be a blend of online lectures and professors helping students work through difficult problems in person.专家称，新技术对大学影响巨大。有人预测，未来课堂将结合网上公开课与教授一对一帮助学生解决问题的模式。 These would be welcome changes according to Georgetown University labor economist Tony Carnevale, who said school has to be less expensive and more focused on skills needed by employers.乔治城大学劳动经济学家Tony Carnevale认为，这些变革一定很受欢迎，他还说，高校应下调学费，重视培养雇主需要的技能。 “Its really quite clear that more and more people need post-secondary education and training and a lot of them are not getting it. And in cases where they do get it, it doesnt lead to gainful employment. Or it leads to jobs where they dont fully use their talents, and we dont have enough money to buy our way out of this so the efficiency of post-secondary institutions is crucial now, he said.“显然越来越多人需要却无法得到高等教育以及专业培训。有的得到了教育却仍不能找到一份好工作。有的虽找到了工作却无法施展才能。我们无法花巨资改变这些，这样高等教育就变得至关重要。” College marketing expert Chris Cullen, of the Infinia company, said competition from online alternatives, and concern about costs, will change universities.Infinia公司的高校市场专家Chris Cullen说，网上公开课有选择性，并且花费低，此优势将推动高校变革。 The consumer demands that you tell me why, give me a reason, to believe that my money, my tuition money is best spent at your institution, he said. What is the return on my investment? What is your value proposition?“学生作为消费者会这样想：我希望你告诉我为什么，给我原因。让我相信我的花费尤其是学费，得到充分利用。我付费能得到什么？你的价值定位又是什么？” Cullen said top schools with strong reputations may expand in an online world, but less selective, less prestigious universities may struggle to attract students - and their tuition payments.Cullen还说，一流名校也许会连接网上公开课至全世界，但是课的选择较少，他们也将更少关注如何吸引学生以及如何提高学费。US Civil Rights Leader Honored 50 Years After His AssassinationJACKSON, MISSISSIPPI People across the United States are remembering an icon of the American civil rights movement five decades after his racially motivated murder in Mississippi. The assassination of Medgar Evers galvanized support for the civil rights movement, including the right to vote for African Americans, especially in southern states. Fifty years ago Medgar Evers was fighting for equal rights for African Americans in Mississippi. Myrlie Evers worked by her husbands side. She says his goal was to wipe out discrimination. “He was a man on a mission, a mission to make his country everything he knew it could be. And certainly to have conditions improve dramatically for his own people,” she said. Myrlie Evers-Williams says Medgar believed that racial barriers would fall only if blacks were allowed to vote - especially in communities where they outnumbered whites. “Medgar was determined, having served in the armed services and returning home and being unable to vote or be a first class citizen, then he was going to have to do something about it, said Evers-Williams. As a field secretary for the NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the largest civil rights organization, Evers and others like Reverend Willie Blue registered thousands of blacks in a matter of months. We went out into the cotton fields and the byways and highways and everywhere that we could get people to vote and they marked their ballots, said Blue. Evers also was instrumental in helping to racially integrate the University of Mississippi and leading boycotts against white merchants so they would allow blacks to eat at their lunch counters. Hollis Watkins was recruited by Evers to join the struggle. He was committed to the cause. You knew he was not, as we would say, a fly-by-night unreliable person. But he was going to be there and would be there for the long haul. That made you feel good, said Watkins. In 1963 Jackson, Mississippi was the hotbed of mass demonstrations, said Frankye Adams Johnson, who demonstrated with Medgar Evers. She said his work made him the target of death threats from white racists. Not to say he was not concerned for his life, but he had a passion for what he did that kind of went beyond selfishness, said Johnson. On the evening of June 12, 1963, Medgar Evers returned to his home. He got out of the car and was killed by an assassins bullet. Evers was shot by Byron De La Beckwith, a white supremacist. It took 31 years and two trials to convict him. Evers-Williams remembers her husband saying you can kill a man but you cant kill an idea. “He believed it to the death. He sacrificed his life and he did it willingly, not that he wanted to die, but he knew that it would take everything that he could give and others could give to prompt America to accept all of its citizens as just that, full class citizens in America, said Evers-Williams. Now, 50 years after his death, Evers-Williams says her husband is still inspiring people to continue to work for justice and equality.伊朗周五举行下届总统选举Iranian Poll Looms Amid Conflict, IsolationIran holds elections Friday to decide on a successor for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Analysts say his replacement will take charge of a country that is increasingly isolated both in the region and internationally.Syrias brutal civil war forms the regional backdrop for Irans presidential election.Analysts say the recent fall of the town of Qusair to Syrian government forces - aided by their Hezbollah allies from Lebanon - reveals Irans hand in the conflict.Hazhir Temourian, a Middle East analyst who lives in Britain, said Hezbollah forces are an Iranian proxy.The fact that there are apparently thousands of Hezbollah fighters fighting on the side of the Syrian government against the rebels, that means Iranian involvement. But on top of that theres been a huge amount of armament and money as well, Temourian said.But Iranian support for Syria will remain whoever wins the next election, said analyst Shashank Joshi of the London-based Royal United Services Institute.Iran sees the struggle inside Syria as near existential, Joshi explained. And they see the potential for Bashar al-Assad as representing only the first step on a broader attack against Iran.Joshi said that in reality, Irans supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei directs foreign policy.The most we can hope for is that a loyalist president, someone like Saeed Jalili, are maybe given more control of these issues if hes trusted in a way that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wasnt, Joshi said.Jalili - currently Irans chief nuclear negotiator - said last month that the country is ready to resume talks over its nuclear program. The West believes Iran is trying to build atomic weapons - a charge Tehran denies - and has imposed severe economic sanctions.The new Iranian president will inherit a country that is increasingly isolated, noted analyst Temourian.Apart from the Hezbollah who are very, very expensive to sustain, the Iranians have almost no friends in the world. Their friends are smugglers, people who make money out of buying surreptitiously their oil against international sanctions, he said.The sanctions drove President Ahmadinejad to seek new allies in Africa. In April he visited uranium producer Niger - but came away without any big trade deals.Iran h