Question 29
The worldwide population of wild giant pandas increased by 268 over the last decade according to a new survey conducted by the government of China. The increase in population brings the total number of wild giant pandas to 1864. The population increase represents 16.8% rise compared to the last panda survey in 2003. Wild giant pandas, a global symbol of wildlife conservation, are found only in China’s Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces. According to the report, formally known as the Fourth National Giant Panda Survey, the geographic range of pandas throughout China also increased. The total area inhabited by wild giant pandas in China now equals 2,577,000 hectares, an expansion of 11.8% since 2003. “These results are a testament to the conservation achievements of the Chinese government,” said Xiaohai Liu, executive director of programs, WWF- China. “A lot of good work is being done around wild giant panda conservation, and the government has done well to integrate these efforts and partner with conversation organizations including WWF. The report, the fourth in a series of decadal (10- year) surveys conducted by the State Forestry Administration of China, began in 2011 with financial and technical support from WWF. Much of the success in increasing the panda population comes as a result of conservation policies implemented by the Chinese government, including the Natural Forest Protection Project and Grain for Green. The report found that 1,246 wild giant pandas live within nature reserves, accounting for 66.8% of the total wild population, and the habitat within nature reserves accounts for 53.8% of the total habitat area. There are currently 67 panda nature reserves in China, an increase of 27 since the last rep
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Question 30
On October 12, 1492 (the first day he encountered the native people of the Americas) , Columbus wrote in his journal: They should be good servants . I, our Lord being pleased, will take hence, at the time of my departure, six natives for your Highnesses. These captives were later paraded through the streets of Barcelona and Seville when Columbus returned to Spain. From his very first contact with native people, Columbus had their domination in mind. For example, on October 14, 1492, Columbus wrote in his journal, with fifty men they can all be subjugated and made to do what is required of them. These were not mere words: after his second voyage, Columbus sent back a consignment of natives to be sold as slaves. Yet in an April, 1493, letter to Luis de Santangel (a patron who helped fund the first voyage), Columbus made clear that the people he encountered had done nothing to deserve ill treatment.
