NewsTracker Answers for week of Mar. 29, 2021

Q: Caught in Italy’s worst recession since World War II, thousands of Italians are being recruited to write glowing product reviews on Amazon. Intermediaries for sellers find reviewers to buy products on Amazon and then reimburses them once the reviews show up online. Where is Italy?

Circle the area on this map

Q: A 14-year-old boy from Calabria said he gets between $350 to $450 a month from the sellers for signing up people to write the Amazon reviews in exchange for the free products. Where is the Calabria region in Italy?

A. On northern border

B. Around Rome

C. Toe of the boot

D. On island of Sicily

C. The Calabria region on the toe of Italy’s boot has the highest unemployment rate in the country and one of the highest inside the European Union. A 37-year-old reviewer from nearby Sicily said he resells his freebies to boost his earnings.

Q: Italy lost more than 440,000 jobs last year as COVID-19 lockdowns also shut down its economy. Which was the first western nation to impose a lockdown to control the pandemic?

A. Italy

B. Spain

C. United Kingdom

D. United States

A. Italy reported its first coronavirus cases on Jan. 30, 2020, and locked down 10 northern cities on Feb. 21 to control the spread of the virus. On March 10, Italy became the first country to implement a national quarantine for COVID-19. The nation planned new lockdowns for this Easter holiday as new cases started rising again.

Q: Italy has recorded more than 107,000 COVID-19 deaths, sixth highest toll in the world. Which European nation has had more deaths?

A. France

B. Germany

C. Russia

D. United Kingdom

D. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has suffered more than 126,000 deaths. The United States has the highest death toll of more than 547,000; followed by Brazil with 307,000; Mexico with 200,000; and India with 161,000.

Q: About 10% of Italians have received at least one injection of a COVID-19 vaccine and 4.8% are fully vaccinated. Which of these nations has vaccinated the largest share of their population?

A. Chile

B. Israel

C. United Kingdom

D. United States

B. In Israel, 59% of the people have received one injection and 53% are fully vaccinated. In the UK, 45% have received one injection but only 5% are fully vaccinated. Chile has given one injection to 34% and fully vaccinated 17% of its people. The US has delivered the most doses – more than 140 million – with 28% getting at least one shot and 15% fully vaccinated.