CNN Student News 美国能源计划

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CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: It is Friday, April 1st -- no foolin' -- and you're watching CNN Student News! Hello, everyone. I'm Carl Azuz. First up today, we're heading to the North African nation of Libya.

First Up: Libya Civil War

AZUZ: But a top ranking official from that country is heading out! Libya's foreign minister turned up in London yesterday. His name is Moussa Koussa, and he told the government in London that he had resigned his position in Libya. Koussa is someone who, just a month ago, was defending the Libyan government. British officials say Koussa's resignation is a serious problem for Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and his authority in Libya.

U.S. military commanders have said that Libya is not a "boots on the ground" operation, meaning they aren't planning to send ground troops into the country. We've heard President Obama say that, too. But the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency -- the CIA -- is on the ground in Libya. A source told CNN that operatives from the agency are gathering intelligence and sometimes connecting with rebel fighters.

NATO -- the North Atlantic Treaty Organization -- has taken command of the coalition military operation in Libya. Now, when we say that NATO has taken command, so what? What does that mean? Well, NATO is an organization that's made up of 28 countries from North America and Europe. The United States is a key member. So are the United Kingdom, France, Germany. NATO doesn't have its own unique troops. NATO forces are made up of troops from those member countries. So U.S. forces, British forces, French forces: They're still very much a part of this operation in Libya.

Crisis in Japan

AZUZ: In Japan, officials are worried about the levels of radiation in the ocean water near the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Officials say those levels are skyrocketing, and there's no clear idea of what's causing the spike or how to stop it. Samples taken on Wednesday show that the levels of one radioactive isotope in the water are more than 4,000 times higher than the limit that's approved by regulators. But one official said the seawater radiation doesn't pose a risk to people eating seafood, at least, not yet.

U.S. Energy Plan

AZUZ: Cut America's use of foreign oil by 33 percent. That's a main part of President Obama's new energy plan. He's not expecting that cut to happen immediately. His target date: the year 2025. Critics say that's too far off, that changes need to happen sooner. Another question: What's going to replace the energy from that foreign oil? Megan Cloherty looks at some options.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

MEGAN CLOHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In response to rising gas prices, President Obama outlined a plan to expand offshore oil and natural gas drilling to provide short-term relief and other steps that would allow the nation to transition to cleaner and cheaper sources of energy.

U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: We consume about 25 percent of the world's oil. We only have two percent of the reserves.

CLOHERTY: Obama said the demands of global oil consumption and the instability in the oil market leave America with no other choice but to act now to establish its energy independence.

OBAMA: We've got to discover and produce cleaner renewable sources of energy that also produce less carbon pollution, which is threatening our climate. And we've got to do it quickly.

CLOHERTY: The president said that despite fears raised by the nuclear plant emergency in Japan, he is not abandoning nuclear power as an alternative to oil. While Obama's plan to increase offshore drilling may upset the environmental lobby, his energy secretary emphasized the drilling is a short-term fix.

U.S. SECRETARY OF ENERGY STEVEN CHU: Ultimately, what this is about is diversifying our supply of energy.

CLOHERTY: Republican leaders charged the president's program won't do much to make things better for Americans anytime soon.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, (R) MINORITY LEADER: The president's target is decades from now, but Americans should be able to expect action now.

CLOHERTY: While the president's efforts to reduce oil prices bring motorists relief at the gas pump, the administration plans to raise fuel efficiency standards for car makers this fall, which could result in an increase in sticker prices. Megan Cloherty, for CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO)

What's the Word

TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: What's the word for when something on the internet spreads very quickly?

VIRAL

That's the word!

Anti-Bullying Video

AZUZ: The video about bullying that 13-year-old Alye Pollack posted on YouTube went viral. Within two weeks, nearly 50,000 people had seen it. Alye sat in front of the camera and held up pieces of paper introducing herself and sharing some of the names bullies have called her. There's been a lot of talk recently about the internet giving bullies more ways to pick on people. Alye turned the tables, going online to speak out against it. And she says her video is making an impact.

ALYE POLLACK, MADE ANTI-BULLYING VIDEO: I've had a lot of people come up to me and say, "Now I know not to say bad things. I think before I do say something." And that's just amazing, because people are actually being affected by my video.

Town the Internet Built

AZUZ: You can use the internet to speak out against bullying. You can use it to watch CNN Student News. But can the internet build up an entire town? You might say no. Eunice Yoon says yes. In fact, she has this report from a town in China that's showing exactly how it can be done.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

EUNICE YOON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, HONG KONG: It's 4:00 in the afternoon, rush hour. Most people in China are starting to go home from work. But for the people of Qingyanliu village, their day has just started.

This tiny village near the manufacturing hub of Ewu sets its clock by the online habits of China's shoppers. Until five years ago, this place was a rural backwater. Now, its 10,000 residents generate $120 million in sales thanks to a popular e-retailing site called Taobao. E-commerce chief Liu Wengao says the village has grown five-fold, and is now a base for entrepreneurs looking to make it rich off online stores.

LIU WENGAO, LOCAL E-COMMERCE CHIEF [TRANSLATED]: "There are hundreds of millions of people in China and tens of millions on the internet," he says. "We will never run out of customers."

YOON: When China's shoppers place their orders on Taobao, Chin Yao Moon's merchants fill them at shops like this. Liu Jin has inventory of his own. But if he doesn't have what his customers want, someone else in this town will.

LIU JIN, ONLINE MERCHANT [TRANSLATED]: "We are over here picking up what we need to fulfill their order," Liu explains.

YOON: Once his basket is full, he is off to start packing the evening shipments. The entire village is alive with vendors like Liu. Express trucks come and go seemingly nonstop into the wee hours. Thousands of parcels are stacked daily, emerging from underground warehouses. These basements have a mind-boggling array of goods, everything from the practical to the strange. The government keeps rents in these buildings low, so people like Lin Saila can get started investing only in a room and a computer. Today, she received over 3,000 orders.

LIN SAILA, STORE MANAGER [TRANSLATED]: "Every year, there's a lot of growth," she says. "Each year is better than the last."

YOON: Nearly all of this stuff is made right here in Ewu, so it's convenient and it's cheap to get. So, what vendors do is that they take orders online, and then they package everything up and ship it right across the country. Liu has been to Beijing and Shanghai, but now this farmer's son can stay closer to home.

LIU [TRANSLATED]: "I make money," he says. "It gives me more freedom."

YOON: The express truck is about to leave. Liu hustles to make sure his customers get what they want on time.

LIU [TRANSLATED]: "Every day is this hectic," he says. "We'll be back at it tomorrow in the town the Internet built."

YOON: Eunice Yoon, CNN, Qingyanliu, China.

(END VIDEO)

Blog Promo

AZUZ: Weird is how a lot of you describe yesterday's "TVs watching you" story, when information about what people watch is shared with advertisers. Sam doesn't see a problem with it, writing "it's important for advertisers to locate a demographic to help them with their research." Sadam can see how it would be better if ads were more relevant, but feels this is a major invasion of privacy. "Random companies seeing what we watch on TV is not their business; it's ours." Levi states "it's not like they are watching you get dressed or anything; they're just trying to do business. I think they have every right to." From Brenna: "It allows you to watch ads for things you're interested in, instead of things you don't even care about." But Natalie writes "the idea isn't foolproof in any way. If it's some sort of setting that can be turned off, though, it could help us greatly." And Kaylee, who says our privacy is being violated, adds it should either stop, or the companies could ask customers if they're comfortable being monitored. Great comments, y'all!

Before We Go

AZUZ: Some guys need to work up a lot of nerve to ask someone to prom. Jason here didn't seem to have that problem. He wrote a song, roped his buddies into being a back-up band, got the whole class in on the idea. And all for one simple question. Sure, he put her on the spot, but you know she said yes. We're just glad someone was recording the whole thing and posted it on YouTube.

Goodbye

AZUZ: That way we can prom-ote Jason's impressive proposal. You might think a video like that would prom-pt us to make some jokes. But we prom-ise not to. We do promise that we'll be back on Monday. Hope you have a great weekend. For CNN Student News, I'm Carl Azuz.