By CHRISTINA CLARK
Columnist
I hope everyone’s spring break was very eventful, and full of sunshine! It took until Thursday to get some sunshine in good ol’ South Bend, but the fact that we got some is an event in and of itself. But I’m not complaining about being stuck in South Bend for the Spring Break…there was an awful lot going on in the world to keep me on my toes. Here’s a quick recap of a few things that happened over the past week…
The Papal Conclave sent up some white smoke on Wednesday signaling the decision of a new Pope. Finding out that Pope Francis, the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, was the new choice was met with a mixed reaction. Some hoped that the new Pope being from Argentina would mean a slightly more liberal agenda from the Catholic Church. Alas, it seems that Pope Francis was against the same-sex marriage law that passed in Argentina in 2010. Francis seems to be holding true to traditional Catholic beliefs and traditions.
Professor Christopher J. Ruddy, an expert in church theology at the Catholic University of America, was quoted by NBC News saying frankly, “The Pope will be Catholic.” We will have to wait and see what the new Pope has in store for the Vatican and Catholics worldwide, but it should be interesting as he is coming into Papacy during a flurry of controversy.
In other news, the Higgs boson particle was as confirmed as a particle can be. A professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, the leader of one of the discovery teams of the Higgs boson, said in a statement released by CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research), “To me it is clear that we are dealing with a Higgs boson, though we still have a long way to go to know what kind of Higgs boson it is.”
It will be very interesting to see what happens with the discovery and confirmation of the Higgs boson, but it is pretty cool to see that there is a particle that gives elementary particles mass.
The hacktivist group Anonymous has continued OpIsrael, or Operation Israel, which began in November 2012. Their most recent action is in response to Israel declaring war on Hamas and the Gaza Strip on Twitter. Upon hearing that Israel was planning to shut down internet to Gaza, the hacktivists compiled an “Anonymous Gaza Care Package” to help out with first aid in the event that they are cut off. Anonymous has also begun defiling official and advocate sites for Israel.
“We are Anonymous. We are legion. We will not forgive. We will not forget. Israel, it is too late to expect us,” read part of Anonymous’s release on March 14.
Lots of other things have happened before and during break, but these stuck out to me. They all could have rippling effects into our lives through the rest of the semester. From high profile to hacker news, the coming months should be pretty interesting!
