5.4 Current Events, World Landmarks, Literature & General Trivia

Current Events, World Landmarks, Literature & General Trivia

The final section of Chapter 5 consolidates international relations knowledge, world and Philippine literary masterworks, iconic architectural monuments, and general trivia across scientific history.

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1. International Organizations & Global Treaties

The United Nations (UN)

Founded on October 24, 1945, in the aftermath of World War II, the UN currently comprises 193 member states. It is structured into six principal organs:

1. General Assembly: Main deliberative body; each member state has 1 vote.
2. Security Council: Charged with maintaining international peace and security. Consists of 15 members: 5 Permanent Members (P5) possessing veto power (United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia, China) and 10 non-permanent members elected for 2-year terms.
3. International Court of Justice (ICJ): Judicial organ seated at The Hague, Netherlands.
4. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC): Coordinates economic and social fields.
5. Secretariat: Executive organ headed by the UN Secretary-General.
6. Trusteeship Council: (Inactive since 1994 following Palau's independence).

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Founded on August 8, 1967, through the signing of the Bangkok Declaration.

• 5 Founding Member States: Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.
• Current Expansion (10 Members): Joined by Brunei (1984), Vietnam (1995), Laos (1997), Myanmar (1997), and Cambodia (1999). Timor-Leste is currently in the formal accession process.
• Motto: "One Vision, One Identity, One Community."

Major Treaties & Declarations

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR): Adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 10, 1948, outlining fundamental human rights.
• Paris Agreement (2015): Legally binding international treaty on climate change aiming to limit global warming to well below $2.0^\circ\text{C}$ above pre-industrial levels (preferably $1.5^\circ\text{C}$).

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2. World Wonders & Architectural Landmarks

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

• Great Pyramid of Giza (Egypt): The only ancient wonder still standing.
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon (Mesopotamia)
• Statue of Zeus at Olympia (Greece)
• Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (Turkey)
• Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (Turkey)
• Colossus of Rhodes (Greece)
• Lighthouse of Alexandria (Egypt)

The New 7 Wonders of the World (Declared 2007)

1. Great Wall of China (China)
2. Petra (Jordan)
3. Christ the Redeemer (Brazil)
4. Machu Picchu (Peru)
5. Chichen Itza (Mexico)
6. Colosseum (Rome, Italy)
7. Taj Mahal (Agra, India)

World Architectural Icons

• Burj Khalifa (Dubai, UAE): World's tallest artificial structure (828 meters).
• Angkor Wat (Cambodia): World's largest religious monument complex.
• Parthenon (Athens, Greece): Ancient temple dedicated to the goddess Athena.
• Hagia Sophia (Istanbul, Turkey): Famous Byzantine architectural monument built by Emperor Justinian I.

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3. Philippine & World Literature

Philippine Literary Masterpieces

• Francisco Balagtas (Baltazar): Author of Florante at Laura, an epic metrical romance written in 12-syllable quatrains (Awit form) during his imprisonment.
• Pedro Bucaneg: Blind poet acknowledged as the father of Ilocano literature; transcribed the pre-colonial Ilocano epic Biag ni Lam-ang (The Life of Lam-ang).
• Dr. José Rizal: Author of Noli Me Tángere (1887, Berlin) and El Filibusterismo (1891, Ghent). Also wrote the farewell poem Mi Último Adiós before his execution.
• Nick Joaquin (Quijano de Manila): National Artist for Literature known for The Woman Who Had Two Navels and the play A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino.
• F. Sionil José: Author of the five-novel Rosales Saga (Po-on, The Pretenders, etc.), exploring themes of social justice and class struggle.

World Literature Classics

• Homer (Ancient Greece): Composed The Iliad (detailing the Trojan War) and The Odyssey (Odysseus' ten-year journey home).
• Dante Alighieri (Italy): Author of The Divine Comedy (Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso), detailing a journey through the afterlife.
• William Shakespeare (England): Legendary playwright (Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, King Lear).
• Miguel de Cervantes (Spain): Author of Don Quixote (1605/1615), widely considered the first modern novel.
• Gabriel García Márquez (Colombia): Pioneer of magic realism and author of One Hundred Years of Solitude (Nobel Prize 1982).

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4. History of Science & General Trivia

Milestones in Science & Technology

• Heliocentric Model: Nicolaus Copernicus (and later defended by Galileo Galilei) posited that the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun, displacing the geocentric Ptolemaic model.
• Theory of Relativity: Albert Einstein formulated Special Relativity ($E = mc^2$, where $c \approx 3 \times 10^8\text{ m/s}$) and General Relativity (gravity as spacetime curvature).
• Apollo 11 (July 20, 1969): First crewed lunar landing mission. Astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the Moon, stating: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
• Computing History: Alan Turing formulated the concepts of algorithm and computation (Turing Machine). Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989.
• Nobel Prizes: Established by the will of Alfred Nobel (inventor of dynamite) in 1895. Awarded annually in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology/Medicine, Literature, Peace, and Economic Sciences. Journalist Maria Ressa became the first Filipino individual Nobel laureate when she co-won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021.