The Yeouido Cherry Blossom Festival (Hangang Yeouido Spring Flower Festival) opened on April 10, 2015.

Since the cherry blossoms opened earlier than the expected date, the festival also open a few days earlier than last year. This festival started 2005, making April 10, 2015, its 11^th anniversary. The festival is one of the most beautiful in Seoul and can be enjoyed only in spring. There were tens of thousands of people in Yeouido on this day to enjoy the weather and, of course, the cherry blossoms! The fragrant scent of the trees, the warm spring sunshine, and the gentle breeze combined to create that perfect but fleeting condition to announce the beginning of spring for all in attendance.

At the start of the festival road, temporary traffic control systems were set to facilitate the smooth flow of massive numbers. The path was lined with a diverse range of food items, events, and shows. TV and radio broadcasting networks were seen to replay the event to get more people to come and enjoy the festival. People filled the road, taking pictures after pictures with their family members and friends. Couples in love were commonly seen throughout the path. The festival was a smashing success in bringing people joy and happiness as well as reviewed vitality for the new year ahead. The festival ended April 15.

For those who could not make it, there is always next year!

Jadon Han

Unseen Scars:

The psychological effects of bullying, among other things

Mar W.

Among the multitude of tiny scabs and cuts we’ve garnered as children, we all have at least one or two invisible scars—flecked on our skin by the painful experience that is bullying.

Most people grow up and move on from the torture, but there are still people who hold it inside themselves—the pressure weighing down on them as time passes. There are even some who cannot handle the pressure, and resolve their problems by simply ending their lives.

Although, suicide isn’t the only trouble that bullying brings. There are some people who grow up to be insecure and have a low self-esteem. The pressure that bullying brings can deteriorate a person’s social skills—which could sometimes lead to depression. Bullying may as well be equivalent to a disease as it slowly eats you inside.

Millions of people over the world have been campaigning against bullying for a very long time now. But standing around in the heat of the sun, waving signs that read “No to bullying!” or making videos and petitions online cannot change the mind of bullies fully.

To destroy the high walls of bullying, it must be done little by little.

What causes this, anyway? Is it because bullying suddenly became a trend, or because it would make someone look “badass” or “cool”? Well, yes and no—there are a lot of people who do it because it was done once to them, or because they feel insecure about themselves—and most of the time, because they are afraid that this person may be something more than they are.

The bottom line is that bullying affects us all—victims and perpetrators. There is no other way out of the tunnel, that is—unless we all decide that enough is enough and we work not just to get rid of bullying, but also to help each other recover from the scars inflicted upon all of us.

Image source: http://www.nurturingparentsandteachers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BullyingPhoto-5.jpg

Increasing mode share of bus transport in Indian cities

The cities in India are now encountering urbanization, improving motor transportation and expanding traffic jam. People in urban areas are not living in a high quality community because of the decreased in public transportation and spending funds for building construction that develop a car culture by constructing road and flyovers. The upcoming years need to center their attention on accurate and improving the expansion of system. It is important to establish a new strategy for operational, infrastructural, technological, marketing, and financing to improve the procedure of public buses in the upcoming years. In order for the cities to be habitable and comfortable, the public transportation like bus and rapid transit (BRT) systems must become an essential part of urban growth.

In the year 2005, buses as public transportation in the cities have a percentage of 90% and it is inexpensive and convenient means of transportation. A total of 35,000 buses in India are functioning for service. Eighty percent of these buses are operating in big cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Pune.

An experimentation study and bus renovation in the past years have strengthen that the systems for city bus will still be the backbone of urban flexibility in India for they in practical cost, more able to be upheld and easy to achieve compare to other infrastructure mass transport systems like metros.

P. Mulukutla

Recently, the value of RMB has decreased. This decrease can have a huge impact on the Chinese economy. There are five major industries that can be affected by this devaluation:

• Clothing industry: The devaluation can stimulate its output.
• Steel industry: Steel exports will increase, promoting the domestic market.
• Shipping industry: Steel and clothing exports will increase consumption of transportation, promoting the shipping industry.
• Chemical industry: The import cost of chemicals will increase, but this will benefit exports of chemicals, stimulating GDP.
• Automobile industry: The price of imported cars will increase, reducing demand for imported automobiles and increasing the competitiveness of domestic automobile manufacturers.

(http://www.wantchinatimes.com/newsphoto/2013-04-18/450/97706_9560400B19.8B19CL31H_2012%E8%B3%87%E6%96%99%E7%85%A7%E7%89%87_copy1.JPG)

Despite these benefits, consumers’ buying power will decrease, and therefore their living standards will decrease. In addition, social welfare will likely be unfavorably impacted. Further, China’s foreign-currency reserves will decrease, negatively impacting the balance of payment. Export prices will fall in the long term, and confidence in the economy may be affected in the short term, possibly because of a fear of further devaluation.

W. Lin