CNN 2012-08-17

 We’re going to start today with an incredible statistic 1. We want you to think about a map of the continental 2 United States. So, everything except Alaska and Hawaii. Researchers say that more than 60 percent of that area is suffering through drought conditions that are at least moderate, and a lot of places they are much more severe. 

 
A drought is a sustained period of dryness, and this one has been getting worse. You can see some of the effects here, the dry-cracked land, the damage to crops. That’s why the impact of this drought isn’t limited to the specific area that’s feeling the heat. Because of the damage to crops, food prices have been going up around the U.S. and around the world.
 
Here is another perspective on this - an I-Reporter sent in this aerial video from Indiana. He said, the corn crops should have a green look to them. Instead, as you can see, they are yellow brown. Martin Savidge filed this next report from Tennessee. He is looking at the impact this drought is having on some other industries.
 
You might think this is some kind of desert just outside of Memphis. It’s not. I’m actually standing 3 on the exposed bottom of the Mississippi River. That’s how dramatic the drought impact is being felt here. Hard to believe, a year ago we were talking about record flooding. Now, they are worried about a new kind of record: a record low. The river was three miles wide here, it’s now down to three tenths of a mile. And that’s causing all kinds of problems. There are some benefits, I mean, take a look over here: new beach front. In fact, some have a quip(妙语；讽刺；双关语) now that the Mississippi River has more beaches than the entire state of Florida, which would be funny if it didn’t have an impact on trade.
 
A lot of stuff we use goes up and down the Mississippi River. We are talking steel, coal, ore, grain. The problem is now a lot of those barges 4 have had to lighten their loads, and even doing that, they are still running aground. There is a real fear that there could be a possibility of closing the Mississippi River. If that happens, well, all that product that used to be carried cheaply by barge 5 is now going to be carried more expensively by truck or train. And guess who is going to pay for all of that.
 
Is this legit? The last time a South American city hosted the Olympics was in 1968.
 
Nope, South America has never hosted the Olympics, although that’s set to change soon.
 
In fact, the next Summer Olympics is scheduled to take place in Brazil. You know, you’ll be thinking the Olympics just ended. Why are we already talking about the next summer games? It’s because the people who are organizing it have to make sure they are ready in time, and a lot goes into that. Rio De Janeiro was announced as the host of the 2016 Olympics. They got the news back in 2009, giving the city seven years to get everything done. Rio is known for its beaches, but there are some questions about its infrastructure 6, its set-up, how will it deal with Olympic traffic? Are there enough hotel rooms? Also, some of the venues 7 for the Olympics have to be built. Officials insist they are on schedule, plus they have another major sporting event before the Olympics, they can use this as kind of a test run. Brazil is hosting soccer’s world cup championship in 2014.
 
 
From South America, we are moving to Saudi Arabia. The Middle Eastern country is planning to build a new city with a really interesting rule: no men are allowed in it. The idea is to give a boost to Saudi Arabia’s female workforce 8. Women are allowed to have jobs in Saudi Arabia, but their options have been limited because of the Islamic laws that govern the country. This women-only city would change that. Construction is scheduled to start next year. Officials think the plan could create thousands of jobs for women. Nic Robertson explains some of the reasons for a new city.
 
 
Why are they doing this? Why are they creating women-only environments? Well, they say the strictures of Shia law, Islamic law in the country mean that men and women cannot work side by side. So, until now, the many female graduates that the country has been producing have been going into the education sector 9. What the government is trying to do here, is open up other business centers: textiles, food processing and such like. Also, Saudi Arabia recognizes it’s falling behind the region in terms of the number of women or the percentage of women in their country that are employed. In Saudi Arabia, it’s only about 15 percent of women represented in a workforce.