Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 27, 2014

B2

THE WORLD AROUND US

Mountain Views-News Saturday, September 27, 2014 

October: Domestic Violence Month and The Annual Campaign to Help Victims

By Joan Schmidt

 The San Gabriel Mission Playhouse was the 
setting for the 11th annual Domestic Violence 
Campaign Kick-off hosted by Congresswomen 
Judy Chu, Grace Napolitano and Kaiser 
Permanente. 

 Judy Chu welcomed us and gave a history of the 
Domestic Violence Campaign which coincides 
with Domestic Violence Awareness Month; it is 
a collection drive of gently used women�s and 
children�s clothing, household cleaning products, 
toiletries, school supplies and used cell phones 
to benefit domestic violence survivors in shelters 
throughout the San Gabriel Valley.

 Congresswoman Chu thanked the City of San 
Gabriel (Council Members Jason Pu and Chin Ho 
Liao) and the San Gabriel Mission Playhouse for 
use of the facility. Chu spoke of Verizon Wireless 
and its refurbishing old phones for the victims. 
She mentioned other items collected and noted 
the first year, there were 20 bags of donations; last 
year, 112 bags. Chu also spoke of Westfield Mall�s 
Spa Day and the victims� incredulous smiles. She 
felt the �great heroes� were the organizers to help 
victims. The four shelters who will benefit are 
Elizabeth House, Foothill Family Service, JFS 
Haven House and Project Sister Family Services. 

 Congresswoman Grace Napolitano thanked Chu 
for her outstanding work/involvement with this 
cause since its inception eleven years ago and 
appreciated being included in it. Napolitano felt 
�We need to do more work together-federal, state 
and local level�let businesses become part of the 
solution�we need to educate young people.�

 Dr. Victor Cheng, MD, Kaiser Permanente is 
a family physician who treats domestic violence 
victims. He was honored to be part of the Kick-
off and happy to see a lot of media to spread the 
word. �We have to step up and stop the cycle.�

 Mr. Ken Muche, Head of Public Relations 
at Verizon Wireless said the issue (domestic 
violence) is often not spoken about. 60% of us 
probably know a victim; 22% are actually victims. 
Victims shouldn�t feel isolated, powerless. 
Verizon has donated funding for grant programs 
and even given prepaid phones to victims at 
shelters as they need to call for job interviews, 
doctor�s appointments and such.

 Rosemary Morbato, President of San Gabriel 
Valley District of Women�s Clubs and Ana 
Interiano, Director of YWCA San Gabriel Valley 
Wings also spoke before Paulette gave personal 
testimony. Paulette was a victim for many years 
and spoke of extensive abuse. When she realized 
it had to stop before she was killed, she first sent 
her children to her mother�s. Paulette always was 
concerned about their safety. Then she finally did 
something. She told us how restraining orders 
didn�t work- he would stalk her, and hide under 
her car. She truly is an amazing woman and all 
present were in awe of her. Paulette will speak 
anywhere, anytime-her goal is that no one should 
suffer from domestic violence.

 Collection boxes are in the lobbies of the 
following Kaiser Facilities: Baldwin Park Medical 
Center, 1011 Baldwin Park Blvd; Diamond 
Bar Medical Offices, 1336 Bridge Gate Drive ; 
Montebello Medical Offices, 1550 Town Center 
Drive; San Dimas Medical Offices, 1255 West 
Arrow Highway; West Covina Medical Offices, 
1249 S. Sunset Avenue. 

 Collection Locations are at Chu�s Pasadena 
Office (527 S. Lake Ave, Suite 106); her Claremont 
Office (415 W. Foothill Blvd., suite 122); 
Alhambra City Hall (111 S. First St.); Altadena 
Community Center (730 E. Altadena Dr.); Joslyn 
Adult Rec Center (210 N. Chapel, Alhambra); 
Monrovia Community Center (119 W. Palm 
Ave.); Monterey Park City Hall (320 W. Newmark 
Ave.); Rosemead City Hall (8838 E. Valley Blvd); 
San Marino City Hall (2200 Huntington Dr.) 
Sierra Madre Rec Center ( 611 E. Sierra Madre 
Blvd.) Please make a donation for these victims.


Ana Interiano, Congresswoman Grace Napolitano, Paulette (Survivor), Congresswoman Judy Chu, Dr. Cheng, Rosemary Morabito


Is Pluto a Planet? The Votes Are In

What is a planet? For generations of kids the 
answer was easy. A big ball of rock or gas that 
orbited our Sun, and there were nine of them in 
our solar system. But then astronomers started 
finding more Pluto-sized objects orbiting beyond 
Neptune. Then they found Jupiter-sized objects 
circling distant stars, first by the handful and then 
by the hundreds. Suddenly the answer wasn�t so 
easy. Were all these newfound things planets?

Since the International Astronomical Union (IAU) 
is in charge of naming these newly discovered 
worlds, they tackled the question at their 2006 
meeting. They tried to come up with a definition 
of a planet that everyone could agree on. But the 
astronomers couldn�t agree. In the end, they voted 
and picked a definition that they thought would 
work.

 The current, official definition says that a planet 
is a celestial body that:

1. is in orbit around the Sun,

2. is round or nearly round, and

3. has �cleared the neighborhood� around its orbit.

 But this definition baffled the public and 
classrooms around the country. For one thing, it 
only applied to planets in our solar system. What 
about all those exoplanets orbiting other stars? 
Are they planets? And Pluto was booted from the 
planet club and called a dwarf planet. Is a dwarf 
planet a small planet? Not according to the IAU. 
Even though a dwarf fruit tree is still a small fruit 
tree, and a dwarf hamster is still a small hamster.

 Eight years later, the Harvard-Smithsonian 
Center for Astrophysics (CfA) decided to revisit 
the question of �what is a planet?� On September 
18th, CfA hosted a debate among three leading 
experts in planetary science, each of whom 
presented their case as to what a planet is or isn�t. 
The goal: to find a definition that the eager public 
audience could agree on!

 Science historian Dr. Owen Gingerich, who 
chaired the IAU planet definition committee, 
presented the historical viewpoint. Dr. Gareth 
Williams, associate director of the Minor Planet 
Center, presented the IAU�s viewpoint. And 
Dr. Dimitar Sasselov, director of the Harvard 
Origins of Life Initiative, presented the exoplanet 
scientist�s viewpoint.

 Gingerich argued that �a planet is a culturally 
defined word that changes over time,� and that 
Pluto is a planet. Williams defended the IAU 
definition, which declares that Pluto is not a 
planet. And Sasselov defined a planet as �the 
smallest spherical lump of matter that formed 
around stars or stellar remnants,� which means 
Pluto is a planet.

 After these experts made their best case, the 
audience got to vote on what a planet is or isn�t and 
whether Pluto is in or out. The results are in, with 
no hanging chads in sight.

 According to the audience, Sasselov�s definition 
won the day, and Pluto IS a planet.

 The video of the debate and audience vote can 
be seen on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/
user/ObsNights

*******

EDITOR�S NOTE: For me personally, Pluto has 
always been a planet and always will be. Ed Krupp, 
director of Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, 
agrees, and shows nine planets (including Pluto) in 
Griffith�s displays. Neil deGrasse Tyson, director 
of Hayden Planetarium in New York, disagrees, 
and has left Pluto out of Hayden�s displays. And 
the legislature of New Mexico, where Pluto 
discoverer Clyde Tombaugh spent his later years, 
has passed an official declaration that Pluto will 
always be called a planet in that State.

So the controversy rages on. School children seem 
to have especially strong feelings about little Pluto, 
as the following poem�the Young Adult 3rd-
place winner in Astronomers Without Borders� 
2014 AstroPoetry Contest�shows:

PLUTO

By Rachel Pribble, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

Pluto

Forgotten Planet

Isolated, neglected, frigid

Small but worthy rock

Planetoid

You can contact Bob Eklund at: 

b.eklund@MtnViewsNews.com.