Rainstorms: An Extreme and Potentially Dangerous Natural Phenomenon

Rainstorm, also known as heavy rain, is a natural phenomenon that occurs when rain falls at a very high
intensity and is usually accompanied by lightning and strong winds. Rainstorms are often referred to as
one of the most extreme types of weather and have the potential to cause significant damage to the
environment and infrastructure.

Rainstorms occur when clouds, produced by high air humidity and temperatures above sea level, form
very large and dense clouds. When these clouds begin to reach a certain height, atmospheric pressure
and gravity will force the clouds to free their moisture in the form of rain. If the atmospheric conditions
around the clouds are unstable, the rain can become very heavy and accompanied by lightning and
strong winds.

While rainstorms are often considered a dangerous natural phenomenon, they also have several
benefits for the environment and humans. Rainstorms can help fulfill water needs in water-stressed
areas and help maintain the balance of ecosystems. Rainstorms can also help reduce air pollution and
clean up the environment.

However, despite the benefits of rainstorms, we must also be careful when dealing with this
phenomenon. Rainstorms can cause flooding and landslides, and cause damage to infrastructure such as
roads, buildings and structures. Therefore, we need to take precautions such as clearing drains and
ensuring infrastructure is strong and resistant to rainstorms.

https://www.kompasiana.com/tegar86/63f8172d59008b6f5d4fd1a2/hujan-badai-fenomena-alam-yang-
ekstrem-dan-berpotensi-berbahaya

Belangkas

Belangkas (Limulidae tribe) includes four types of gilled animals (arthropods) that inhabit the shallow
waters of paya-paya areas and mangrove areas. All of them are members of the Limulidae tribe and are
the only representatives of the Xiphosurida nation that still survive on earth. Fossil prints of this animal
have not changed significantly since the Devon period (400-250 million years ago) compared to their
present form, although the species are not the same.
This animal is monogamous, so it is often used as a symbol of the continuity of married couples. The
British know it as horseshoe crab or "ketam ladam" because its shape is considered like a horse ladam.

Belangkas are protected animals in Indonesia.

Types
 Carcinoscorpius genus

Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda, mimi ranti, lives in the mangrove waters of Southeast Asia

 Limulus genus

Limulus polyphemus, inhabits the eastern coasts of North America

 Tachypleus genus

Tachypleus gigas, moon mimi, inhabits the coasts of Southeast Asia and South Asia

 Tachypleus tridentatus, inhabiting the coasts of East Asia

Of these four species, only L. polyphemus is not found in Indonesian waters

https://id.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belangkas

Indonesia's Economic Strength Continues to Strengthen Amid Global Challenges

Jakarta, June 11, 2023 - Indonesia's economic strength continues to strengthen amid global challenges,
showing strong signs of recovery after a period of economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19
pandemic. Recent data shows that Indonesia's economy has achieved stable and promising growth, with
a range of positive economic indicators.

Steady Economic Growth: According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), Indonesia's Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 5.7% in the first quarter of 2023. This represents a strong recovery
after negative growth in the same period of the previous year. The high growth was driven by strong
public consumption, rising investment, and encouraging exports.
Increased Investment: Investment is one of the main drivers of Indonesia's current economic strength.
Data from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) shows that domestic and foreign investments
have increased significantly. The Indonesian government has launched a series of policies to improve the
investment climate, including regulatory simplification and attractive fiscal incentives for investors.
Increased investment in strategic sectors such as infrastructure, manufacturing, and technology has
created new jobs and boosted productivity.

Stable Consumption: Domestic consumption remains one of the main pillars of Indonesia's economic
growth. A manageable unemployment rate and rising disposable income have driven household
spending growth. The retail, tourism, and services sectors have experienced significant recovery as
consumer confidence rebounds.

Strengthening Banking Sector: Indonesia's banking sector has also shown solid strength. Indonesian
banks have improved their asset quality and capital adequacy, providing stability to the financial system.
The government continues to promote financial inclusion through programs such as increasing access to
digital financial services, which supports financial sector growth.

Challenges Faced: Although Indonesia's current economic strength shows a positive trend, challenges
remain. Fluctuations in global commodity prices, slowing growth in some trading partner countries, as
well as the possibility of rising global interest rates may affect the Indonesian economy. However, with
proactive policies and efforts to improve the competitiveness of the economy, Indonesia has great
potential to continue its sustainable economic growth. rsustainable economic growth.

https://www.kompasiana.com/muhammadalvinmumtaz4485/6485592d4d498a07341031b7/kekuatan-
ekonomi-indonesia-terus-menguat-di-tengah-tantangan-global

Social Issues: Conflict Threatens National Integration

Welfare disparities, poverty, and political tensions are considered the root causes of social conflicts in a
number of regions in Indonesia. If left unchecked, conflicts will threaten the integrity and integration of
the nation.
"In general, the roots of social conflicts are structural in nature, problems of poverty, welfare gaps, and
added political tensions," said sociologist from Gadjah Mada University, Arie Sudjito, Sunday (5/2).

Coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Peace Psychology at the University of Indonesia Ichsan
Malik, Saturday (4/2), in Jakarta, said the same thing. "In my observations over the past 10 years, the
most dominant source of conflict comes from structural problems, namely policies, access, and control
over natural resources," Ichsan said.

In recent years, social conflicts have been rife in a number of regions. The most common trigger for
conflict is land disputes or agrarian conflicts. According to Agrarian Reform Consortium Research and
Campaign Deputy Iwan Nurdin, agrarian conflicts in 2011 involved 69,975 families with a conflict area of
472,048.44 hectares.

Of the 163 agrarian conflicts in 2010, 97 cases were in the plantation sector, 36 cases in the forestry
sector, 21 cases in the infrastructure sector, 8 cases in the mining sector, and 1 case in the pond or
coastal area. From the distribution of conflicts, East Java is the most prevalent region with 36 cases,
followed by North Sumatra (25), Southeast Sulawesi (15), Central Java (12), Jambi (11), Riau (10), South
Sumatra (9), and the rest are spread across a number of provinces. In the last 10 years, 186 people died
due to agrarian conflicts.

Secretary of the Prosperous Justice Party faction of the House of Representatives Abdul Hakim also
suspects that the social conflicts that have occurred in a number of regions in recent times are due to
land disputes.

"So far, land disputes have been the main cause of clashes between residents and police officers. We are
increasingly worried about social conflicts that occur in a number of regions," he said on Sunday.

Deputy Chairman of Commission II of the House of Representatives A Hakam Naja also believes that land
disputes occur because the Basic Agrarian Law is not implemented properly. Since 2009 until now,
Commission II has received 167 reports of land dispute complaints from a number of regions.
Commission II has formed a Working Committee on Land Conflicts and Disputes to resolve cases of land
disputes as well as to find patterns of land dispute resolution.
Indeed, a number of social conflicts that led to violence could not be separated from land disputes,
including the violent incident in Sape Harbor, Bima, West Nusa Tenggara, which was motivated by a
mining license dispute, December 2011, as well as cases of violence in Lampung.

https://indonesiapoliticalreviews.wordpress.com/berita/masalah-sosial-konflik-ancam-integrasi-bangsa/

The Original Culture of Indonesian Batik

Batik is a craft that has high artistic value and has become part of Indonesian culture (especially Java). It
is a heritage of the Indonesian ancestors since time immemorial. The history of batik in Indonesia is
related to the development of the Majapahit kingdom and the kingdoms afterwards. In some records,
the development of batik was carried out during the Mataram kingdom, then in the Solo and Yogyakarta
kingdoms.

The batik tradition was originally a hereditary tradition, so sometimes a motif can be recognized as
coming from a particular family's batik. Some batik motifs can indicate a person's status. Even today,
some traditional batik motifs are only used by the royal families of Yogyakarta and Surakarta.

There are many types and patterns of traditional batik, but the patterns and variations are in accordance
with the philosophy and culture of each region which is very diverse. The rich cultural heritage of the
Indonesian nation has encouraged the birth of various styles and types of traditional batik with its own
specific characteristics. Javanese women in the past made their skills in batik as a livelihood so that in
the past batik work was an exclusive job for women.

Since industrialization and globalization, which introduced automation techniques, a new type of batik
has emerged known as stamped or printed batik while traditional batik produced by handwriting using
canting and malam is called written batik.

So according to technique:

Written batik is a cloth decorated with batik textures and patterns by hand. Making this type of batik
takes approximately 2-3 months.
Batik cap is a cloth decorated with batik textures and patterns formed with a stamp (usually made of
copper). The process of making this type of batik takes approximately 2-3 days.

In its development, this batik art was gradually imitated by the closest people and then expanded to
become the work of women in their households to fill their leisure time. Furthermore, batik, which was
previously only the clothing of the royal family, later became the favored clothing of the people, both
women and men.

Meanwhile, the variety of batik patterns and colors is influenced by various foreign influences. Initially,
batik had a variety of patterns and colors.

https://www.kompasiana.com/anasfergiawan/5996930ea53b3b095074fbd2/kebudayaan-asli-batik-
indonesia

Get to know the history of ancient humans, is it true that humans originated
from apes?

The life of ancient humans as ancestors of humans today can be seen from the fossils of various types of
ancient humans that have been found. So did humans come from apes like the theory of evolution
proposed by Charles Darwin?

Ancient humans are often referred to as "Pre-historic" or pre-historic humans. But then the use of the
term pre-history was replaced with pre-literacy (not yet familiar with writing). As the name implies, pre-
literate humans are a type of human who lived in an era before knowing writing.

Distribution of Ancient Humans in Indonesia

The history of early humans begins with the assumption that early humans have been moving from
Central Africa to South Africa since 60,000-50,000 years BC. In 50,000 to 45,000 BC, early humans began
to spread widely to Arabia, India and Indonesia. From here, they then reached Australia, Japan, China,
Alaska, and North America.
The existence of early human species in Indonesia cannot be separated from the role of the spread of
early humans who came to the Indonesian archipelago. From there, several types of early humans were
found in Indonesia.

The development of early human life was hindered by melting temperatures on earth or often referred
to as the Ice Age which lasted around 45,000-40,000 years BC. The spread of early humans then
continued to Kazakhstan and Mongolia in 35,000-30,000 BC. Since then, early humans from Kazakhstan
(Caucasoid) spread to Europe. The spread continued until in 20,000-10,000 BC early humans occupied
the territory of South Africa. The movement of early humans continued until they controlled all of the
earth's land in 10,000 BC.

1. Meganthropus Paleojavanicus

Judging from the name, it can be guessed that this type of ancient human was found in the Java region
precisely in Sangiran, Central Java by von Koenigswald in 1936-1941. Meganthropus Paleojavanicus
means the oldest large man from Java.

2. Pithecanthropus

Pithecanthropus means ape man, with this type of ancient human found in several places. The first place
was in the Bengawan Solo Valley, Central Java by Eugene Dubois in 1891. Pithecanthropus was then
named Pithecanthropus Erectus or upright ape man.

Apart from the Bengawan Solo Valley, Central Java, Pithecanthropus fossils were also found in
Ngandong, Solo, Central Java. This fossil is named Pithecanthropus Soloensis, which means upright-
bodied ape man from Solo.

Another fossil was found in Mojokerto, East Java, so this Pithecanthopus species was named
Pithecanthropus Mojokertensis. This type is characterized by a height of around 165-180 cm and is
thought to be the oldest-aged fossil in Indonesia. This ancient human fossil was discovered by von
Koenigswald in 1936.

3. Homo Sapiens
The third type of human is homo sapiens which means intelligent human, which is intended for the
mention of modern ancient humans. In Indonesia, this type is divided into Homo Wajakensis, Homo
Soloensis, and Homo Floresiens with typical Homo Sapiens characteristics in each fossil.

Homo Wajakensis was the first homo species as well as the first fossil found in Asia in 1889 in Wajak,
Tulungagung, East Java by Rietschoten. In 1931-1933 van Koenigswald, Ter Haar, and Oppenoorth found
Homo fossils in Sangiran, Central Java. This fossil was later referred to as Homo Soloensis.

Important discoveries were also made in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara. This is quite astonishing because
previously fossils were found on the island of Java and this fossil from Flores has slightly different
characteristics because its height is estimated to be shorter than other Homo species, so some experts
call it a "Hobbit" human. The researchers who discovered this fossil were Peter Brown and J. Morwood
along with a team of researchers from Indonesia in 2003 and named Homo Floresiensis.

The Way of Life of Ancient Humans

From the discovery of ancient human fossils, researchers then analyzed

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dari-kera