THE WORLD
From Issue #20
Oh Canada!...and Beyond
Research and summaries by Laura Ashton
EVIL NEIGHBOURS
A 2004 Canadian poll
shows a dramatic
change in the
viewpoint of Canadian
youth about the U.S. More than
40% of teens aged 14 to 18 say their
impression of the United States is that of an evil global
force. That number jumped dramatically to 64% for
French Canadians. Ontario’s teens seemed most
conflicted about their opinion of the U.S., with one-fifth
sitting on the fence. The results are being viewed as anti-
American sentiment, where the desire to keep Canadians
as far away from U.S. politics is higher than it has ever
been. The poll was conducted to engage teens in political
issues and give parents and teachers a chance to
understand where the political sentiments of teens stand
today.
Source: The Ottawa Citizen
THE GREAT WHITE TAKES A BITE
It is being called the first great white shark attack in New
York in 30 years. While surfing approximately 25 feet
offshore at a beach on Long Island, Ryan Horton reported
he felt a sharp pain in his ankle, but couldn’t see what
caused it. After paddling back to shore, he was taken to
the hospital. Police later confirmed that even though there
are many kinds of sharks inhabiting the waters around
Long Island, the photos of the wound confirmed that the
injury was indeed inflicted by a great white. The last
reported great white shark attack was in 
1975, in Sandy
Hook, New Jersey, just after the release of the blockbuster
hit, Jaws. Authorities say that there is no reason for
people to change their swimming patterns due to the
latest incident. However, according to the Shark Attack
File, a service run by the Florida Museum of Natural
History, there have been 61 unprovoked shark attacks on
humans worldwide in 2004 alone.
Source: Reuters
NO CHARGES LAID IN CULTURAL MISCHIEF
British Columbia: No charges will be laid against a 17-yearold
Sikh teenager who claimed a group of white men had
ripped off his turban and cut off his hair. The RCMP made
the decision even though evidence (and a confession)
revealed that the teen injured himself, cut his own hair
(Sikhs don’t cut their hair), and then reported that five
Caucasian men attacked him in broad daylight.
Source: Canadian Press
EXPLODING TOADS
MYSTERY SOLVED
Science fiction is closer to
reality than you think.
Toads in northern Germany
were meeting a very dark
and unsettling fate: they were exploding. What was
originally viewed as a strange disease affecting toads in
both northern Germany and some parts of Denmark has
now been revealed as precision attacks by crows with a
taste for foie 
gras. The crows attack the toads when they
crawl onto land at night. The crows then swoop down on
the toads and peck out their livers in one thrust. The
toads expand their bodies in an act of self-defence but
with no liver and a punctured stomach, they inadvertently
blow up their own blood vessels. Their lungs then collapse
and the toads explode.
Source: BBC
TEEN RABIES SURVIVOR DOES IT WITHOUT VACCINATION
A teen who is the first person known to survive rabies
without a vaccination says she is doing fine five months
after returning home from the hospital. Jeanna Giese was
attending church with her family when she was bitten by
a bat on her hand last September. Thinking nothing of it,
she didn’t seek treatment immediately. But by mid-
October, Jeanna was showing symptoms of what is
usually a fatal disease and underwent an experimental
treatment to battle rabies. After a successful treatment
and recovery, Jeanna is going to take summer courses to
catch up on her classes.
Source: Associated Press
